This blog started off by focussing on NZ's smaller 3rd level airlines, past and present. It has evolved to trying to present some record of NZ's domestic airline operations and some of the larger charter operators, interesting NZ international airliner movements and photos I have taken around the country. Comments, corrections or contributions are welcome, Steve - westland831@gmail.com , , , , . Marie Claire newsletter Celebrity news, beauty, fashion advice, and fascinating features, delivered straight to your inbox! Contact me with news and offers from other Future brands Thank you for signing up to . You will receive a verification email shortly. There was a problem. Please refresh the page and try again. By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions (opens in new tab) and Privacy Policy (opens in new tab) and are aged 16 or over. You could be sitting on a goldmine! Still got your old Harry Potter books and need to earn a little cash? Well, according to a new book, certain editions of the famous book series could earn you a pretty penny. In an upcoming book J.K. Rowling: A Bibliography 1997 -2013, author Philip W Errington has used his time working at auction house Sotheby's to create a chart showing how much early editions of the HP books could be worth now. While you need to check out the book itself to see the chart, we've simplified its findings to see just how much of an earner your HP books might be. Turns out the older the book, the more money you get. Here's our official breakdown... Harry Potter And The Philosopher's Stone (Image credit: Jonathan Hordle/REX/Shutterstock) If it was published by Bloomsbury, is a hardback and the cover shows Harry standing by a train, you're in luck. AbeBooks (opens in new tab), a book site, reckons you can get as much as $55,000 for this rare print, especially if you have a copy that is credited to 'Joanne Rowling' instead of J.K. Harry Potter And The Philosopher's Stone/Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets (Image credit: Jonathan Hordle/REX/Shutterstock) The softback of J.K.'s first novel and the hardback of the second will net you a significantly lower price, but could still land you up to $9,000. That's nothing to sniff at. Harry Potter And The Prisoner Of Azkaban/Harry Potter And The Sorcerer's Stone (Image credit: REX/Shutterstock) The third novel, published by Bloomsbury, also has some commercial value, but it's equal to that of the American print of the first book - that is, the change of title to the 'Sorcerer's' Stone - which can go up to $700, which means you won't be able to get as much bang for your buck. Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire/Order Of The Phoenix/Half-Blood Prince/Deathly Hallows (Image credit: Jonathan Hordle/REX/Shutterstock) After the third book, later titles from The Goblet Of Fire to The Deathly Hallows were printed in huge numbers to appeal to larger demand. So unless you got a signed copy (lucky!) or a special edition, you're more likely to get a couple hundred quid for your storage troubles. While we personally couldn't ever imagine getting rid of our precious hardbacks, the news could come in handy for someone wanting a little cash injection. Source: Warner Bros via Tumblr.com Not too shabby, eh!? U.S. Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Paul Zukunft delivered the 2016 State of the Coast Guard Address at U.S. Capitol Visitor Center Congressional Auditorium Tuesday. This was Adm. Zukunfts second State of the Coast Guard Address and he welcomed the opportunity to recognize Service accomplishments, reinforce his strategic intent and provide direction for the coming year. "Now, on behalf of the 88,000 women and men of the Coast Guard, I profoundly thank the 114th Congress and this Administration for delivering an authorization bill along with the largest acquisition budget in Coast Guard history, stated Zukunft. The commandants speech focused on how the budget is being driven by strategy and how the budget will support his priorities to invest in the 21st century Coast Guard, sustain mission excellence, and maximize value to the nation. The Western Hemisphere Strategy was a topic of the strategic conversation. The Commandant affirmed that in Fiscal Year 2015, Coast Guard assets interdicted or disrupted more than 190 metric tons of cocaine and detained more than 700 suspected drug smugglers detained for prosecution. When I met recently with the President of Honduras, he noted a 23 percent decrease in violent crime in his country a result he attributes to whole of government drug interdiction, said Zukunft. The increased budget allows me to invest in our capital fleet and intelligence programs so that we can continue to reestablish rule of law and stability in our own hemisphere. The Commandant elaborated on what the 2017 budget means for the Arctic Strategy and how it paves the way to recapitalize the diminishing fleet of heavy icebreakers. Currently, the Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star is returning home upon completion of its third consecutive mission to Antarctica, flying the flag of our Nations sole operational heavy icebreaker capable of operating in ice up to 21-feet thick. It causes me great discomfort as it should everyone in this audience that the U.S. has no insurance policy no self-rescue capability whatsoever should Polar Star and her nearly 40-year-old engineering plant suffer an engineering casualty and become beset in the ice of Antarctica, stated Zukunft. However, the budget includes funding to accelerate the acquisition of heavy icebreakers, and as I have previously mentioned, I am grateful for the Presidents ardent support to ensure the United States maintains year-round access to the strategic polar regions. I am committed to the safety, security and environmental stewardship of the Arctic, and I will continue to lead this effort at the international level. The Commandant also highlighted the recently released Human Capital Strategy. For all the investments we are making in our capital plant if they are not matched with a commensurate investment in our people those aircraft, cutters, rescue boats and the skill sets required to operate them will become hollow, said Zukunft. Which is why our Human Capital Strategy and retaining our most vital asset our people is the bedrock of the State of the Coast Guard. The Commandant closed by saying that he is very optimistic in todays state of the Coast Guard and that these are truly the Finest Hours to serve in the United States Coast Guard. An honorable merchant departs While the term pioneer is oftentimes loosely bandied about, there is no more accurate term to describe Jochen Deerberg, an environmental pioneer of the maritime industry, founder of Oldenburg, Germany-based Deerberg-Systems, who was recently feted by cruise industry luminaries at his farewell dinner late last year. To start in 1979 one could see that environmental-waste management problems on shore and especially in the maritime industry would be of great importance in the future, said Deerberg. Of course, I was 10 years too early with my idea. But this edge gave me the pole position for further future inventions. In reflecting on his long career and impressive record of firsts, Deerberg was succinct in his assessment of how the cruise industry has changed most dramatically during his tenure. (In) 1979, the investment for waste management for a ship with 2,500 persons on board was 300,000 Euro installed. This was oily water separator and sewage treatment plant. Today for waste management (solid & liquid waste), it is 3 million Euro installed. Since his early days Deerberg was aware of the significance of waste management on ships, which he developed and continuously improved over the past 35 years. In that time his company grew from a start-up in a small camper to a market leader. Even setbacks let us emerge stronger. With a lean structure and our roots close to the heart we have always been working closely with our clients, with passion and dignity for continuous innovation, said Deerberg. Ever diplomatic, Deerberg is remiss to name one particular ship his favorite, but he did note: This is a difficult question. Deerberg is on 204 cruise ships and I cannot point out one. Eventually the Grand Princess of 1995 which was the ship where we delivered an integrated system solution for the first time. At the end of 2015 Deerberg passed the key to the next generation. Deerberg-Systems is now part of Finland based Evac group, a global company with offices in over 40 countries that designs, manufactures and markets environmentally friendly water, waste and wastewater collection and treatment systems for the shipbuilding, offshore and construction industries. At the 30th traditional Deerberg Christmas party, a literal Whos Who of the maritime industry gathered at Oldenburg Castle. Among the over 200 guests were the former CEO of Fincantieri Corado Antonini, shipyard owner Bernard Meyer, Costa CEO Michael Thamm, his predecessor Pier-Luigi Foschi, CLIA Europe-Head Dr. Raphael von Herman as well as friends, partners and colleagues of a long working life. Jochen Deerberg, owner and managing director of Deerberg-Systems underlines in his farewell that todays environmental consciousness, legislation, industries own initiatives and further developed technology induce the ship owners and shipyards to install a high standard, sustainable and flexible Waste Management System on board. A cruise ship will be operating for 30 to 40 years and must be totally flexible in handling the Waste Management Process onboard. Lets therefore always stay curious with the view ahead. But even after leaving the executive role Jochen Deerberg will stay committed to the industry to support further development benefitting our environment with his expertise as visionary. He is also looking forward to spend more time with his family and his hobbies. And there will be more room for spending time in his Miami apartment. Always close to the industry he was so deeply involved with. When it comes to legacy, always humble Deerberg chose to quote others view of his work. Quoting Pierfrancesco Vago, Executive Chairman, MSC Crociere, from a letter datd 2/9/2015: .With your pioneering vision, commitment and unshakeable determination, you took Deerberg-Systems up to the coveted position of market leader. And quoting Michael Thamm, CEO Costa Crociere, from his Farewell Dinner on December 12, 2015 at Oldenburg Castle, He is one of the most remarkable and best known personalities of the cruise industry with an unmatched footprint set. An honorable merchant departs. (As published in the February 2016 edition of Maritime Reporter & Engineering News - http://magazines.marinelink.com/Magazines/MaritimeReporter) McDermott International, Inc. (NYSE: MDR) signed a long-term exclusive agreement with L&T Hydrocarbon Engineering (LTHE), a wholly owned subsidiary of Larsen & Toubro, focused on subsea projects offshore the east coast of India. This exclusive agreement further strengthens the relationship between McDermott and LTHE, both companies that have successfully cooperated on several earlier projects in India and, more recently, won the Vashishta deepwater development project, said David Dickson, McDermotts President and CEO. With the emerging east coast of India deepwater market offering attractive development opportunities for our clients, we believe this long-term collaboration provides a compelling value proposition for the successful design and delivery of subsea projects. Together, we leverage McDermotts proven track record in subsea engineering, procurement and installation with our versatile fleet and lay technologies that will be further enhanced by the upcoming delivery of the Derrick Lay Vessel 2000 and our in-market capabilities and strategically-positioned LTHE fabrication yard and spoolbase at Kattupalli, Dickson added. Through this agreement, LTHE and McDermott have developed an approach which includes utilization of LTHEs state-of-the-art facility, strategically located Kattupalli near Chennai, for fabrication and local spoolbase in India, and offer an optimized and reliable EPCI solution for emerging deepwater projects in India, said Subramanian Sarma, CEO and MD of LTHE. Regulations Now in Final Stage of Administration Review. The American Waterways Operators, the national trade association for the tugboat, towboat and barge industry, hailed the Department of Homeland Securitys approval of the U.S. Coast Guards rule to establish an inspection regime for towing vessels at 46 CFR Subchapter M. The Subchapter M rule is now under review at the White House Office of Management and Budget, which is the final stage in the Administration review process and typically takes about 90 days. This means the rule, which will take safety in the towing industry to a new and historic level, could be published in the Federal Register by the end of June. For over a decade, AWO has strongly supported the Coast Guard as it has worked to develop a towing vessel inspection regime. We are very pleased that the end of the road to Subchapter M is in sight now that the rule is under review at the White House Office of Management and Budget. The rule will raise safety standards throughout the tugboat, towboat and barge industry, incorporating and building on the safeguards that quality companies have already put in place and ensuring that all towing vessels achieve a minimum threshold of safety that is necessary to protect lives, the environment and property. We urge OMB to review the rule expeditiously, said Thomas A. Allegretti, AWO President & Chief Executive Officer. Mr. Allegretti says that navigating the transition to Subchapter M is the towing industrys highest advocacy and safety priority. He added that AWO will work closely with the Coast Guard to ensure its members have the information and tools they need to facilitate smooth implementation of the rule when it is published this spring. About the American Waterways Operators The American Waterways Operators is the national trade association representing the tugboat, towboat and barge industry, which operates on the rivers, the Great Lakes, and along the coasts and in the harbors of the United States. Barge transportation serves the nation as the safest, most environmentally friendly and most economical mode of freight transportation. For more information about AWO, please visit www.americanwaterways.com. U.S. Marines and sailors are working with Cameroons Fusiliers Marins and Compagnie des Palmeurs de Combat to increase their capabilities to combat illicit activity and increase security in the waterways and borders of Cameroon. At the request of the Cameroon government and through coordination with the U.S. Embassy in Yaounde, Marines and sailors with Special-Purpose Marine Air-Ground Task Force Crisis Response-Africa, are partnering with their military counterparts in infantry tactics in support of their maritime security force capabilities. The small team of Marines are currently attached to Africa Partnership Station, which is an international security cooperation initiative sponsored by U.S. Africa Command and facilitated by U.S. Naval Forces Africa, aimed at strengthening global maritime partnerships through training and other collaborative activities in order to improve maritime security and safety in Africa. The Marines and sailors are conducting training in combat marksmanship, patrolling, ambush techniques, close-quarters combat, tactical questioning and operations orders. The goal is to assist the units to defend Cameroons border against everything from illicit activities, such as countering violent extremist organizations such as Boko Haram, which has kidnapped scores of children, mostly girls, and then using them as suicide bombers to target military and innocent civilians, in the countrys northeastern Borno State, according to 1st Lt. Ryan T. Murray, the SPMAGTF-CR-AF APS team officer in charge. During the month-long mission, the Marines will train FUMA and COPALCO to work together, so they can seize an objective during the final exercise, adding some of the troops present for the training have real-world experience to add to the training evolution. The Fusilier Marins are basically out of their recruit training, so some of this is new to them," said Murray. But, they are a solid group of men who are working well together. The ultimate goal for FUMA and COPALCO is to ensure they are combat ready and ready to demonstrate their ability to utilize small-unit infantry tactics in a kinetic environment. In a press release from the U.S. Embassy in Yaounde, Cameroon, last year, U.S. Ambassador to Cameroon Michael S. Hoza stated the U.S. government is committed to stand with and support Cameroon as their forces counter illicit trafficking and Boko Haram so that all citizens can build a future of peace and prosperity for all Cameroonians through their talents, contributions, efforts, and ideas. The Ambassador also stated Army Gen. David M. Rodriguez, commander for U.S. Africa Command, visited Cameroon to reassure Cameroon that the United States remains committed to assisting the countrys fight against Boko Haram. We have U.S. military advisors and trainers in Cameroon at the invitation of the [Cameroon] government to train and support the Cameroonian security forces in their fight against Boko Haram, said Hoza, in the press release. This commitment is firm, and will continue for as long as Cameroon welcomes it. Though the APS mission is to train the Cameroonians to protect their borders and inland waterways, the waterways lead to the Lake Chad Basin, one of the areas where the COPALCO and FUMA work together, an area where Boko Haram is known to operate. Cameroon Navy Lieutenant Commander Patrick Nnon Mabiom, COPALCO commander, and his troops are in their third iteration with the U.S. Marines and the partnership has already paid its dividends. In the past year, Mabiom and his troops employed the Marines training from past engagements to combat illicit trafficking and terrorism and welcomes future training opportunities as we can continue to build on previous training and continue to get better. Because of this training, we are better prepared to address the security concerns facing our country, said Mabiom. Whether its stopping illicit trafficking or fighting Boko Haram or any other threat, we have the training we need to get the job done. We hope to continue this partnership because we [U.S. and Cameroon] can see the benefits coming out of it. The training they are conducting significantly contributes to the partnership between the two countries, Murray added. When we work with our Cameroonian partners to assist them to counter terrorism and illicit trafficking, it goes to show that both sides are committed to provide a safe environment for everyone, said Murray. They are brave, willing and ready to stop what the bad guys are doing to their country, whether its illicit trafficking of drugs and weapons or terrorism. This is a mutually beneficial engagement. More Media A programme for revolutionary struggle in South Africa - by Revolutionary Young Marxists. South African society is riddled with contradictions. Everywhere one looks today the organic crisis of capitalism is having a devastating impact on the lives of millions of working people. On the one hand, nearly 8 million people of working age are unemployed in the country. On the other hand, the gap between rich and poor is wider than its was under Apartheid. Today, two bourgeois families, the Ruperts and the Oppenheimers own more wealth than half of the South African society. At the same time millions of people remain homeless. This is the situation two decades after the formal overthrow of Apartheid. The fundamental reason for this is the fact that while formal democracy was achieved with the overthrow of the hated apartheid regime, the wealth of the capitalists was not touched, and so our country today remains a capitalist country tightly run and controlled by a small minority of capitalists, bankers, land and mine-owners. The reasons behind this situation are not to be found in the actions of this or that individual, but in the capitalist system which is unable to grant the smallest concessions to the workers and the poor. We believe the only way out of the nightmare of unemployment, misery and general want is to break with the system which spawn them. We believe that the only future possible for the South African youth, workers and mankind as a whole, is a socialist future. The South African masses have reached out for this goal on many occasions, but the leadership of the ANC and the SACP have stubbornly clutched to the capitalist system and defended its violence against the masses. At each stage they have held back the enormous revolutionary energy of the masses on the grounds that before Socialism can be attained, we must solve the immediate problems such as racism, poverty, unemployment etc. But we must ask ourselves, if Capitalism could exist without racism, poverty and unemployment then why bother fighting for Socialism? If the system could satisfy the basic needs of the masses, then why bother overthrowing it? Marxists support all of the struggles of the workers and poor against poverty, misery, racism and oppression. But we also point out that these are inherent parts of the capitalist system. The only way to solve these problems is to break with the narrow limits of the system. Under capitalism all victories can only be temporary and will be undermined by the Capitalists who control the state and the economy. It is with this in mind that we produce this programme of transitional demands for revolutionaries to use in order to connect the daily struggles of the masses with the question of Socialist revolution. The Revolutionary Young Marxists and the International Marxist Tendency are fighting to abolish Capitalism and for a Socialist system in which the wealth of society is owned and controlled by society as a whole in order to provide for the needs of the people and not for the profit of the few. Jobs for all! Unemployment in South Africa has reached devastating levels. According to official statistics, the unemployment rate in the country is 25 percent. The expanded definition of unemployment which includes discouraged work-seekers and those who do only part-time work, stands at 36 percent. The situation is even worse as far as the youth is concerned. Out of the 19.7 million working-age youth, nearly 10 million are not economically active. According to the expanded definition, the unemployment rate for the youth (younger than 25) is at an incredible 63.1%. These figures have been hovering at these levels for more than 10 years. It points to the fact that we are not dealing with a temporary phenomenon. We are faced with permanent organic unemployment. Proof of this lies in the fact that during a period of the last decade the economy actually showed a long period of growth. But even this did not reduce the high levels of unemployment. This was known as the period of jobless growth. The reason for this is the organic crisis of the capitalist system. Under Capitalism, production is not made to create jobs or lift people out of poverty, but for profit for the capitalists. The devastating effects of unemployment are bad enough. But for many of those who are lucky to have a job, things are not much better. First of all, the high levels of unemployment means that the average South African worker has at least five unemployed dependents. This put enormous physical and emotional strain on workers. The high unemployment rate has the additional effect of lowering wages across the board, especially in non-unionised businesses. It is therefore in the direct interest of workers to lead the struggle against unemployment. In order to wage the fight most effectively, it is essential for the trade unions to lead the fight against unemployment by actively mobilising the unemployed workers. This will also have the additional effect of warding off growing attempts by the bosses to divide the working class by falsely painting unionised workers as a privileged layer of society. But in order to end the scourge of unemployment once and for all, we demand the reduction the working week to 35 hours without loss of pay! This will mean that work will be shared out to everyone - thereby wiping out unemployment. Together with this, the reduction of the working week will free up time for working people to participate in the democratic running of society and to pursue science, culture etc. in order to develop them to their full potential as all human beings. A living wage! In addition to unemployment, the cost of living has risen greatly over the last period. For instance, a City Press investigation has shown that between 2008 and 2013 food prices have increased by nearly 20 percent. The price of bread alone has shot up by 69 percent. While the rich and privileged live in the obscene luxury, the workers of South Africa have to work hard for a paycheck which is barely enough to make a living. In 2012 the mining bosses in collusion with the state were willing to murder dozens of miners rather than concede a meagre wage of R12,500 a month. As a result of this, we are calling for a living wage for all workers. Basic human needs cannot be sacrificed for the sake of the profits of the capitalists! We demand that a national minimum wage as a first step to be set to no less than R12,500 per month. It is the workers who create the wealth, who dig the pits, who work the shop floors and who pay the price of hard labour through lower life expectancy while the big capitalists withdraw billions of Rands in profits.If the Capitalists are not willing to concede these reasonable demands, the workers must move to their companies, nationalise them and run them under the democratic workers control. Nationalisation of the mines, banks and monopolies! For more than a hundred years, the mines, the banks and the big monopolies have sucked South Africa dry while its people have been kept in poverty. Today, when the workers of South Africa are fighting to claim their rights and to secure better living conditions, the bosses are threatening by closing down factories and pits. Our reply is: If the Capitalists can not afford us, we can not afford the Capitalists. We support all the demands which will improve the living conditions of the working class and the poor. But these demands are in direct conflict with the ownership of the economy. That is because all the real wealth in society are owned by a tiny minority in society, the Capitalists, yet all the wealth are created by the working class. But in order to give effect to the demands of the workers it is first necessary to expropriate the bosses. It is for this reason that we support the Freedom Charter and its nationalisation clause which states that: The People must share in the countrys wealth! The mineral wealth beneath the soil, the banks and monopoly industries shall be transferred to the ownership of the people as a whole! In contrast to bureaucratic state control, these nationalised entities must be run under the democratic control and management of the working class. All managers must be democratically elected by the workers and be subject to recall at any time. The workers know the ins and outs of the productive process and as a class, only they develop a collective consciousness to lead society. Furthermore, the nationalised entities must be used to provide for the needs of the majority and not for the private profit of the bosses. Workers control in the workers organisations! Over the last period, some of the leaders of the mass organisations have completely abdicated their responsibility and have been using their roles to aim for state and cabinet posts. This is reflected in the crisis of many of the COSATU unions and the rest of the Tripartite Alliance. The end result is that these leaders such as Blade Nzimande and Jeremy Cronin, who are supposed to be communists, end up implementing capitalist policies. The reason why the mass organisations were created in the first place was to fight for the interests of the working masses and the poor. We therefore we stand for the demand that workers must take back their organisations. All workers leaders must be democratically elected by the members and must be subject to recall at any time by those who have elected them. The leaders of the working class must have a similar living standard as the rest of working class. The mass organisations must be worker-led and worker-controlled. This includes earning a wage that does not exceed those of the average worker. The unions must not be a conveyer belt to high political office. Down with careerism and place-seeking in the unions and the mass organisations! Ban water and electricity cut-offs! In the years after the advent of bourgeois democracy, some 12 million people were connected to the power grid and access to running water grew to over 90 percent. However, these gains have been eroded over the years. Sharp increases in the prices of water and electricity have meant that millions of homes have experienced water and electricity cut-offs. Billions of Rands are poured into Eskom, but they disappear before they reach any of the capacity increase projects. At the same time, the same people who are mismanaging the company and siphoning money out of it and into their own pockets, receive millions of Rands in bonuses every year. The energy crisis is a direct result of running the company along capitalist lines. For these reasons, we demand that the books of all utilities companies be opened to all. The workers and poor must see the how these companies are run. We further demand that the running of the companies by the capitalist managers be replaced by the democratic control of councils of workers and the unions. All privatised utility companies must be also be re-nationalised and a massive plan of modernisation of the power grid must be embarked upon in order to facilitate consistent cheap power to all South Africans. Free Healthcare and Education In South Africa, access to health-care is guaranteed in the countrys constitution, yet in reality access for many people is being undermined every day. One of these barriers is the vast distances people has to travel, especially in rural areas just to see a doctor or nurse at the clinic. Apart from the fact that this provide a huge financial burden on the poor, it could further undermine the very health which the patient is trying to improve. Meanwhile access to high quality healthcare is restricted to the wealthiest. South Africas private healthcare system is among the best in the world and the majority of the rich clients are covered by big insurance companies. In 2005, spending per member in the private medical scheme was nine times higher than spending in the public sector and one specialist doctor served less than 500 patients in the private sector compared to 11000 in the public sector. This shows the real situation in the healthcare system and it shows that access to quality healthcare depends largely on access to money. What is true for healthcare is also true for education. In Cuba the adult literacy rate is 99.8% while in Brazil ( the biggest economy in South America ) it is only 88%. The gains of the Cuban revolution of 1959 with regard to health and education are an undeniable fact and are even acknowledged by the the World Bank. Even this leading international capitalist institution had to acknowledge that Cuba had achieved universal literacy, eradicate certain diseases and provide universal access to safe drinking water and basic public sanitation and that all of these are comparable to the most developed capitalist countries. On the basis of a nationalised planned economy, the Cuban Revolution have created one of the best healthcare systems in the world. With an infant mortality rate of just 4.2 per thousand births, Cuba is amongst the best in the world. Life expectancy in Cuba is 78 years. Cubans live on average 30 years longer than their Haitian neighbours. The healthcare system is so good that Cuba has been exporting doctors to many countries of the world. All of this has happened in a small caribbean island which has been suffering under a trade embargo from the United for more than 50 years . These are just a glimpse of the benefits of a nationalised healthcare system. With South Africas enormous wealth, such a system would drastically improve real access to quality healthcare for all. The possibilities in South Africa with its abundance of natural resources is unlimited. On the basis of a nationalised health and education system the problems of illiteracy and poor health could easily be eradicated in a very short period. We demand the nationalisation of the whole healthcare system along with the pharmaceutical companies and its rapid expansion so as to provide free top quality healthcare for all South Africans. Similarly all private education must be nationalised and free education on all levels must be offered to all South Africans. At the same time a grant system must be introduced to allow every South African to take an education without being economically constrained. The raised level of education will in turn add to the expertise and efficiency of the working class and allow it to further drive of productivity and thereby living standards. For the bourgeois the workers are only necessary insofar as they can run their machines. At the same time only a small minority are educated to understand the theoretical foundations of production. The two fields of work, intellectual and practical, only have the minimal connection to each other. These limitations imposed by the division of labour between intellectual and manual labour severely limit the development of science, technology and production. By tying education on all levels into production, innovation and development could be raised to new levels. Under Capitalism, the cost of this is too high for the ruling class. In a Socialist society however, education will be a preparation for running society and production. In Capitalism the workers are nothing but appendages to the machines they run and that also sets the limits for bourgois mass education. But in a socialist society, a holistic and high level education is a prerequisite for workers to be able to run, manage and improve production and society to the fullest. In this way, research, development and the future direction of society is not left up to a small layer of parasitic Capitalists and their narrow individual capabilities, but is carried forward by the full participation of all. This would allow for unprecedented advances in all spheres of human society and activity. High quality affordable public transport! South Africa is a country in desperate need of a viable and sustainable public transport network. According to the South African National Taxi Council (Santaco), taxis transport approximately 15-million commuters daily and this consists of 60 to 70% of the commuting public and workforce. Yet this industry is plagued with health and safety issues and a track record of death and poor driving. According to the South African Institute of Race Relations report released in 2012, the minibus taxi death rate was 27 deaths per 10 000 vehicles and three times higher than the nine deaths per 10 000 for motor cars. With a functioning, safe and efficient public transport network these incidents could be severely limited. The problem of insufficient public transport can be fixed through a national plan for public transport and the introduction of a cheap and efficient national public transport system. All private transport companies must be nationalised and centralised in one national public company which would use the surplus to lower ticket prices and to modernise the road and transport network. The nationalised planned economy must be used to massively invest in the national railway system which is in complete shambles and which isolates large parts of the population from the Urban centres. In Capitalism the transport system is only used to serve the narrow immediate purposes of individual producers. But in a socialist society a modern national transportation grid is a means with which to tie the productive and intellectual capacities of the working class closer together and to allow for the evening out of the difference between the cities and the rural areas. The allowing of research, education and production to work closer across the country would also strengthen development by easier pooling together the resources at our disposal. End nationalism, sexism, racism and xenophobia! The borders of Africa are completely arbitrary constructs drawn up by the imperialists and colonialists to divide the oppressed and to share the loot between them. Today the nation state is a huge impediment on the development of the productive forces because of capitalist competition and the protection of the national market by the capitalists. This gives rise to reactionary phenomena such as nationalism. On the other hand, things like racism, sexism and xenophobia are all products of capitalism. The aim in essence is to divide the working class in order to prevent them from fighting a common struggle against the capitalists. It is the duty of every worker to fight for full equality in economic and other spheres of life regardless of sex, race, ethnicity or religion. In a situation where a minority of the population sits on the enormous wealth and resources of the country discrimination on national, race or gender lines are the expression of the barbaric struggle for the crumbs which the Capitalist think they can afford to concede to the workers and the poor - that is, to those who produce the wealth. As revolutionaries we recognise that the real enemy is the ruling class. The poison of racism and nationalism can only weaken the working classes. Instead of the division of the working class on the basis of tribe, nation, gender or skin colour, we call for a revolutionary struggle by all the oppressed classes against the ruling class. In the final analysis the fight against all of these ills cannot be separated from the fight against Capitalism. The ANC leaders have long argued for ending racism and nationalism. However, as is evident from countless of statistics, racism is still a major factor in South Africa. This is not a moral problem, but one which arises from the general poverty, want and the struggle for survival in Capitalism. There is only one way to fight against Racism and that is to fight for the conditions which creates it. While the class struggle plays a big factor in uniting the working class across racial and national lines, it is only the complete overthrow of Capitalism and rapid raising of living standards which can eradicate the roots of Racism. Similarly the only way to remove the basis for sexism and gender oppression is by raising living standards removing the economic constraints on the relationships of all individuals. In a socialist society, there would be no material basis for racism, sexism and nationalism will be because class divisions will begin to disappear. The origins of national oppression and the oppression of women lies in private property. By abolishing private property, Socialism removes the material conditions for national and gender oppression. Affordable housing for all! After 1994 the government initially focused on the provision of subsidised housing, first introduced under the Reconstruction and Development Program (RDP), commonly known as the RDP Housing program. However housing is still a major problem for large layers of the population. Even those who are lucky to have housing are severely burdened by the extortion prices on rent and mortgages. Unemployment and poverty combined with rapidly rising housing prices has also led to a mushrooming of the informal housing sector, a massive housing backlog and frustration of the poor as a direct consequence to the failure of the formal housing market. In contrast to this, in Venezuela, there has been a massive increase in the provision of free housing to the workers and the. By nationalising the countrys oil industry, the Venezuelan government was able to build nearly 700 000 good quality houses for the poor which it gave to poor people. The target is to build 3 million houses by 2019. The Great Housing Mission initially started as a project to provide housing for all those made homeless by the heavy rains of 2010 but as a result of the revolution has broadened its scope. Under the programme, low income families receive heavy subsidies from the government to help them pay for their houses, and those living on less than the minimum wage receive their new homes for free. By using the profit of the mines and the major banks and industries and combining the major construction companies on a national level, the housing situation could be completely changed within a few years and allow all South Africans access to proper housing. We therefore demand the scrapping of all capitalist measures with regard to the housing crisis. The big construction companies which dominate the industry must be nationalised and be put under the democratic control of the workers and communities and used to build good, quality housing for the working class and the poor. At the same time all unoccupied buildings must be expropriated and used to provide housing and recreational facilities to the people. Police and armed forces The state in capitalist society is a machine which is used for the oppression of of the working class by the capitalist class. In essence it is nothing but armed bodies of men in defence of private property. The whole history of South Africa proves this. Under Apartheid, the police and the army were used mercilessly to massacre workers and communities who dared to demand a life without oppression. But under the new bourgeois democratic regime the same has been happening. The most vivid example is the massacre of mineworkers at Marikana on 16 August 2012 when they demanded a living wage of R12 500 per month. This is the cold reality of life in South Africa today. The tops of the police and the armed forces are not under the control of the masses. They are completely tied into the ruling class who does not hesitate to deploy them against workers and poor communities whenever their vital interests are threatened. But there is a class contradiction between the lower ranking soldiers of the army who generally come from a working class background, and the higher ranking officers who are much closer to the bourgeoisie. In a country like South Africa, many working class people join the police and the army as a means to escape from unemployment. They therefore have the same interests as working people as a whole. The ordinary soldiers are in fact workers in uniform who are also exploited just like workers elsewhere. Because of this, we are in favour of the right of soldiers and police to join a trade union and for the right to strike. This is not enough though, the police and the armed forces must be used to protect the lives and interests of the ordinary working class people and poor communities, not the bosses and their narrow interests. Therefore control of the police and armed forces must be transferred to the organisations of the working class and subject to the management and control of the working class. All top officials must be elected democratically by the ranks and be subject to recall. At the same time conscription will be reintroduced to secure the army is tied to the working people and does not become an independent entity with its own interests. A fully democratic proletarian army is the only force which will be able to defend the revolution against the attacks of capitalist and imperialist forces. For an all African Socialist revolution as the first steps of a world socialist revolution! The working class has no nationality. In Africa the artificial national lines are even more evident from the manner in which they were drawn up by the imperialists. At the same time a socialist economy isolated in one part of Africa would be completely at the mercy of the the Capitalist world market. Therefore a Socialist revolution in South Africa can only be the opening shots of an all-African revolution as the first step towards a world socialist revolution. Socialism is international or it is nothing. The interests of the working class in South Africa is no different from the interests of the of workers throughout the world. The same exploitation and oppression which takes place in South Africa, takes place throughout the world. As the crisis of world capitalism intensifies, the Capitalist class also intensifies its attacks on the working class in order to protect its profits. This is the reason behind the rising tide of class struggle everywhere. A socialist revolution in South Africa would of course raise the ire of international Capital, but it would find an even mightier ally in the world working class who would rally to its defence. Marxists are internationalists. We do not limit our organisations to the artificial borders of single nations, but build a world revolutionary organisation for the spreading of the ideas of Marxism and the defence of the interests of the working class everywhere. For a workers revolution! Capitalism today is in its deepest crisis ever. While all the tools exist to solve all the major problems of humanity, capitalist society is rapidly decaying. On a daily basis the incompetence of the Capitalist class and their political lackeys are exposed in a never ending wave of scandals and internal conflicts. At the same time the much praised democratic institutions are exposed as nothing but a figleaf for the cold dictatorship of Capital. The brutal Marikana massacre and the final whitewashing of it by the Farlam commission and by parliament was proof of the real character of the state as nothing but a tool of the ruling class for the defence of private property. By putting power in the hands of working people and their democratic councils and organisations a Socialist revolution would fundamentally change the character of the state as a means of oppressing the majority, to a means of defending the majority from the attacks of the parasitic Capitalist minority. By making all state officials electable and subject to recall, the unelected state bureaucracy would be replaced with accountable deputies who would receive a wage similar to a normal skilled worker. In one fell swoop the whole corrupt body of judges, army generals, police commissioners, wardens, principals, and ministerial officials who are never elected by anyone are replaced by an accountable force under the control of the working class as a whole. If they are not willing to abide by the will of the majority, they will be removed by the people who elected them. The ability to recall elected officials would be a complete break with the present culture of politicians who promise anything to get to loot and deceive their electorate for 5 years. Gradually, the tasks of the state would be performed in rotation by all members of society. If everyone are bureaucrats, no one is a bureaucrat. The Capitalists have proven that they are unable to solve any of the problems facing South African society. While they live luxurious lives in their gated communities, the masses of workers of poor who produce the wealth of the country are witnessing continuing falls in their living standards. While the country is home to enormous riches, some of its most prized infrastructure are falling apart. By taking over the commanding heights of the economy the South African working class will immediately be able eradicate all unemployment and poverty. At the same time production could be raised to new levels and industrial armies be created to rapidly modernise the whole country. Combined with the raised living standards the working hours could be lowered to allow for people to engage in the running of society. The artificial divisions between the running of society, production, science, art and culture would disappear as human beings would be able to plan and execute their production to satisfy and support their needs and their development. The development of the individual would condition the development of society and vice versa. Thus, for the first time humanity would be able to raise itself from the barbaric struggle for survival and expand its horizons far beyond its present limitations. As Marxists we affirm our unshakable faith in the revolutionary proletariat of South Africa to lead all oppressed layers of society out of the nightmare of capitalist crisis. Like Karl Marx, we believe that the emancipation of the working class is the task of the working class itself. Only the working class, a class exploited by the bourgeois but also a class created by Capitalism itself, is capable of leading the South African revolution. All the building blocks for a socialist society exist today, but the ruling class, no matter how doomed it may be, will not give up its privileges without a struggle. The workers have shown time and time again that they are willing to fight against Capitalism and its ills, but they have been let down and betrayed by their leaders. What is needed is a leadership, steeled in the ideas and methods of Marxism, that is capable of uniting all the movements of the workers on a national level and to lead them to their logical conclusion, the expropriation of the Capitalist class. Join Us and help prepare such a leadership! If you are interested in these ideas and wish to help build a revolutionary organisation based on these, visit the website South African website of Revolutionary Young Marxists - Revolution. aldi.jpg SPRINGFIELD - Aldi is hosting a one-day hiring fair on Wednesday, March 2, for multiple locations across the Northeast, including the Springfield area. These hiring events will focus on filling up to 65 Manager Trainee positions, with an average starting wage of $25 an hour, the chain said in a news release. The hiring events are in support of the ongoing growth of ALDI in the area, offering customers the ALDI brand promise of high-quality grocery items at impossibly low prices. In addition to Massachusetts, ALDI is also holding hiring events in Vermont, New Hampshire, Connecticut, New York, and Rhode Island on March 2. What: Who: Time: Where: Positions: Job Requirements: Christoper.jpg Christopher Heights of Northampton's first resident cuts the ribbon as Northampton Mayor David Narkewicz and Marty Jones of MassDevelopment watch. (photo provided) NORTHAMPTON -- Grantham Group and MassDevelopment on Wednesday announced the opening of Christopher Heights of Northampton, an 83-unit assisted living facility at Village Hill Northampton, according to a news release. Of the 83 units, 43 are designated for low-income seniors, and residents enjoy private apartments, prepared meals, social activities, personal care assistance, medication reminders, and a dedicated staff available at all hours. Christopher Heights also has locations in Worcester, Webster, Attleboro, and Marlborough. MassDevelopment has also chosen Grantham Group to build the assisted living component in the Belchertown State School redevelopment. Northampton Mayor David J. Narkewicz said in a news release: "I congratulate Christopher Heights of Northampton on the completion and opening of this beautiful new senior assisted living facility in our community. Christopher Heights is a wonderful addition to the vibrant, mixed-use, mixed-income Village Hill development, and our city is especially pleased and supportive of the access to quality assisted living it will provide to low-income seniors." Upon completion, Village Hill Northampton will have transformed a former state hospital property into a community featuring office, R&D, retail, and manufacturing uses; market-rate and affordable homes and apartments; and a variety of open space and recreation areas for enhanced living. To date, the property has 177 housing units, include single-family and multifamily homes, townhouses, and duplexes, along with more than 400 employees in several businesses. Transformations, a Townsend-based housing developer that specializes in zero-net-energy homes, will begin construction on its 85-unit Summit Oaks residential development this spring. Northampton's Planning Board will also review proposals for The Columns, a 25-unit condominium development in the former male attendants building; and The Pecoy Companies Northview development, 21 single-family homes on the last residential parcel for development at Village Hill Northampton. MassDevelopment President and CEO Marty Jones said in a news release: "I applaud the Grantham Group for building Christopher Heights to fit so well into the character of Village Hill, while at the same time providing residential care that will help many families in the Pioneer Valley make sure they or their loved ones can access a wide range of assisted-care services. Christopher Heights also joins our valued employers in Northampton, with 40 jobs for caregivers, managers, and other employees of the new facility." Grantham Group Managing Director Walter Ohanian: "We are excited to bring our expertise in assisted living management to the Northampton State Hospital redevelopment known as Village Hill. We are happy to have opened our doors as we have started serving the senior population who will benefit from the housing and services of an affordable assisted living community. Thank you to the City of Northampton for welcoming us and to the Department of Housing and Community Development, MassHousing and Northampton's Community Preservation Committee for helping fund this Project. We also want to thank MassDevelopment, master developer for Village Hill, for choosing us as partners for this project." MassDevelopment, the state's finance and development agency, works with businesses, nonprofits, financial institutions, and communities to stimulate economic growth across the Commonwealth. During FY2015, MassDevelopment financed or managed 294 projects generating investment of more than $2.5 billion in the Massachusetts economy. These projects are projected to create about 6,100 jobs and build or rehabilitate about 2,000 residential units. SPRINGFIELD Bishop Andrew Daubon, senior pastor of the Celestial Praise Church of God in Springfield, says the greatest threat to marriages today is selfishness. "Society has taught us to believe that to be successful, one needs to put their interest before every one else. Sadly, this mentality is often brought into marriages and will suck the life out of the marriage if not corrected," he says. "The marriage works best when our spouse's best interest is our first priority. As simplistic as this sounds, it works every time it's tried." The married father of two has self published his first book "Marriage: A Loveseat for Two." In it he considers the "four legs" that keep the loveseat upright and balanced and shares ways to correct any or all of the legs that may need adjustment. He explains the four legs of the loveseat as: + Leaving (emotional and physical), covers the balance of power in the marriage. + Cleaving, or power of agreement, which speaks to the importance of communication. + Oneness, which speaks to the purpose of sex in the marriage and challenges in this area. + Trust; he looks at trust around money, at money management styles and what money means to different people. "I do all of this by using God's instructional manual, the Bible, as my primary source of instruction," he said. The Bible for Christians is "God's self-revelation in print," Daubon said. "In it, He reveals to us who He is, our origin and purpose and even laws which govern our relationship with each other and with God." A good marriage is built with the four legs espoused in the book and a proper understanding of love, he contends: "Love has to be a decision and not an emotion. It is a decision to give my spouse and marriage priority above all else, to give 100 percent and not the 50-50 we often hear about. Love inspires me never to take my spouse for granted but consider her a blessing in my life. A good marriage is one where you thoroughly enjoy each other even with each other's quirks and imperfections." The senior pastor -- who is currently pursuing a master of divinity degree at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in South Hamilton -- believes marriage is God's invention, which He lays out meticulously in the book of Genesis and troubleshoots issues that would arise in marriages through different portions of Scripture. "My book simply sheds light on the timeless council provided to us in this ever-relevant instructional manual called the Bible," he said. The 76-page book is geared to anyone hoping to get married and those already married. "If your marriage is dysfunctional, it could be that you did not read the manual or follow the instructions correctly. Before you call the divorce lawyer, get this book, it may help turn your upside down loveseat right side up," he said. Daubon attended Mico University College in Kingston, Jamaica, from which he graduated as a teacher of science and history, and from the University of Hartford with a bachelor's degree in education and psychology. He and his wife, Michaelia Daubon, have been married for more than 15 years and are the parents of two daughters, Anthia, 11, and Maliha 7. They conduct marriage workshops for churches by invitation, and he believes that marriage was made by God to be enjoyed, not endured. His older daughter wants him to reserve a copy of the book for her until she is ready to contemplate marriage. He hopes that his children see the love his wife and he have for each other and how it shines through especially in difficult times. "I hope we would have consistently modeled for them mutual respect, selflessness, stability and a contentment with each other, that they too will desire a marriage producing similar qualities," he said. "Marriage requires investment, you either invest incrementally to make it thrive, or you invest everything at the end in divorce." "Marriage: A Loveseat for Two" is available at www.curiouslyformed.com, www.amazon.com, www.createspace.com, Olive Tree Book Store in Springfield and First Connection Bookstore (The First Cathedral Church) in Bloomfield, Connecticut. It sells for $13.50 at curiouslyformed.com and $15 at all the other outlets. It is available in paperback at all outlets and is also in the kindle format on amazon.com. eddie-eagle.jpg Taron Egerton, right, with Hugh Jackman in a scene from "Eddie the Eagle." (20th Century Fox photo) FAMILY FOCUS "Hail Caesar" (PG) "Kung Fu Panda 3" (PG) THE 5TH WAVE - TWO STARS - (PG-13) Based on Rick Yancey's 2013 novel, "The 5th Wave" stars Chloe Grace Moretz as a high school student whose world is upended after aliens invade and decimate society. (112 min.) 45 YEARS - FOUR STARS - (R) A bit of news arrives days prior to the 45th wedding celebration of Kate (Charlotte Rampling) and Geoff (Tom Courtenay), and drives a wedge between them. Marriage can be precarious, an emotional balancing act requiring significant concentration, and Rampling and Courtenay show how four-and-a-half decades of tandem functionality can be upended by doubt, shame, a false sense of certainty and an inability to determine whether a relationship can withstand truth, or the withholding of truth out of love. (95 min.) BROOKLYN - FOUR STARS - (PG-13) Soaring, swooning and gently nostalgic, "Brooklyn" takes melodrama to a new level of reassuring simplicity and emotional transparency. The exquisite adaptation of Colm Toibin's novel about a young Irish woman immigrating to the United States in the early 1950s dispenses with trendy flourishes and sniffy commentary to deliver the kind of movie that Hollywood rarely makes anymore: a sincere, unabashedly tender coming-of-age tale that, for all its deep feeling and wrenching twists and turns, never gives in to sentimentality or maudlin theatrics. (111 min.) THE CHOICE - TWO STARS - (PG-13) Nicholas Sparks' novels wouldn't continue to be best-sellers and be adapted into movies if some audiences didn't like their romances with a hearty helping of cheese. The 11th big-screen adaptation of one of his books, "The Choice," is like fondue. The story is about Travis (Benjamin Walker), a Southern charmer who lives on the North Carolina coast with his dog and his boat and his easy-breezy lifestyle. He never worried about having a girlfriend until he meets Gabby (Teresa Palmer), a medical student who moves in next door. He's transfixed, even though she's irritated by his loud music and carefree attitude -- and tells him so. (108 min.) DEADPOOL - ONE AND A HALF STARS - (R) Nothing is sacred to either "Deadpool" or this character (played with "I'm so naughty" abandon by Ryan Reynolds), which pokes fun at superhero movie culture, Hollywood itself, Reynolds, director Tim Miller, love and human decency -- and that's just in the opening credits. On the page, it sounds like a lot of fun, and it starts out strong with a cheeky, self-awareness, but that wears thin very quickly. (108 min.) EDDIE THE EAGLE - THREE STARS - (PG-13) Based on the rousing real-life story of Eddie Edwards, who proved all the naysayers wrong to become an Olympic competitor, representing Great Britain in the 1988 Winter Olympics as a ski jumper. The movie traces his improbable journey, against the wishes of his working-class father and England's stuffy Olympic committee, which thwarts his every attempt to qualify for their team. (105 min.) THE FINEST HOURS - TWO AND A HALF STARS - (PG-13) In a freezing 50 mph blizzard in 1952, two oil tankers broke up off the coast of Massachusetts. All that stood between dozens of sailors and wintry death were a couple of Coast Guard rescue boat. "The Finest Hours" is the story of one of those tankers, the Pendleton, and the Coast Guard boat - a wooden 36-footer, with a lost compass and a crew of four - that came for it. (129 min.) HAIL CAESAR - THREE STARS - (PG) A studio executive must find the leading man of his latest film after the star has been kidnapped from the set by a group of communist screenwriters who call themselves "The Future." (106 min.) JOY - THREE AND A HALF STARS - (PG-13) Jennifer Lawrence as young woman who founds a business dynasty in this offering from director David O. Russell's. Robert De Niro and Bradley Cooper co-star (120 min.) KUNG FU PANDA 3 - THREE STARS - (PG) The "Kung Fu Panda" series has been smarter than many animated films of its ilk. One of the franchise's visual motifs through three movies now is the yin and yang, and it's apt, considering how it balances ideas about character, individuality and growth with cute animals, slapstick and dumpling jokes (95 min.) PRIDE AND PREJUDICE AND ZOMBIES - TWO STARS - (PG-13) The novel "Pride and Prejudice and Zombies," a mash-up of Jane Austen and the living dead genre, was a runaway best-seller when it was published in April 2009 This long-delayed movie adaptation, whichwent through numerous script and cast changes, now resembles something of a reanimated corpse itself. The film is lumbering, lifeless and charmless. (108 min.) THE REVENANT - THREE AND A HALF STARS - (R) Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu's frontier survival saga "The Revenant," filmed in the Canadian Rockies, seeks to join the ranks of Werner Herzog's "Fitzcarraldo" and Francis Ford Coppola's "Apocalypse Now": movies that take some of their primal madness from their raw, remote natural landscapes. The result is some of the most ravishing filmmaking of the year, or any year. (156 min.) RIDE ALONG 2 - TWO AND A HALF STARS (PG-13) With the same brand of silliness and a bit more creativity than the original, "Ride Along 2"doesn't pretend to be anything more than what it is: a sequel designed to offer a second helping of exactly what worked the first time around. (101 min.) SPOTLIGHT - FOUR STARS - (R) In 2002, the Boston Globe published an explosive series of articles about the decades-long scandal of child sexual abuse within the Catholic Church, involving 70 local priests, more than 1,000 victims and the collusion of Cardinal Bernard Law in covering up the crimes. As a piece of journalism, it was a barnburner, one that garnered the paper a Pulitzer Prize the following year for its airing of truths long suppressed within the Catholic hierarchy. It's not a stretch to suggest that "Spotlight" is the finest newspaper movie of its era, joining "Citizen Kane" and "All the President's Men" in the pantheon of classics of the genre. (127 min.) STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS - THREE STARS - (PG-13) "The Force Awakens" is a movie made by someone who loves "Star Wars" deeply. Someone who can see more clearly than even its creator what made it so special to so many people. Director J.J. Abrams has taken everything that we adore about that first film, delicately mixed up a few elements, and churned out a reverent homage that's a heck of a lot of fun to watch. (135 min.) TRIPLE 9 - TWO AND A HALF STARS - (R) This tale of gangsters and crooked cops in Atlanta has got a murderer's row of acting talent -- Casey Affleck, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Kate Winslet, and Woody Harrelson among them -- an alluringly dark premise, and bombastic bursts of greatness. But ultimately, director John Hillcoat ("The Proposition," ''The Road") fails to meld the storytelling with the film's ambitious scope, the way Michael Mann so proficiently did 21 years ago with his modern classic "Heat." (115 min.) THE WITCH - TWO AND A HALF STARS - (R) An effective, atmospheric horror story from writer-director Robert Eggers'set in 1630s Puritan New England. (92 min>) Dan Kurzrock was a freshman at UCLA when he started brewing beer in his frat-house kitchen. The process posed a moral dilemma for the 19-year old that had nothing to do with being under the legal drinking age. To his dismay, Kurzrock, an economics major with a keen interest in sustainability, was generating 15-20 pounds of grain waste each time he made a batch of beer. "I was just blown away to see how much raw material we used to make five gallons of beer," recalls the now 26-year-old entrepreneur. "I had this moment of there has got to be a better way to do this. I literally felt like I was dumping out these tubs of oatmeal." Robin D. Schatz Full Story: http://www.forbes.com/sites/robindschatz/2016/02/23/how-an-sf-startup-lets-you-eat-beer-by-making-granola-bars-with-spent-brewery-grains/#42a3ea405b64 The Montana Department of Commerce works with statewide and local partners, private industry and small businesses to enhance and sustain economic prosperity in Montana. - Montana Is On The Move Solar industry lobbyists argued that the limit of 75 megawatts would be quickly exhausted, forcing the layoff of workers. State representatives took heed and amended the law to allow up to 100 megawatts under existing rules. by Dave Solomon, The New Hampshire Union Leader, Manchester Full Story: http://www.govtech.com/fs/New-Hampshire-Lawmakers-Double-Down-on-Solar-Power-to-Avoid-Job-Loss.html APO Group , the leading Pan-African communications consultancy and press release distribution service, is delighted to announce the latest iteration of its state-of-the-art analytics platform for the monitoring of press releases in Africa. APO Groups technological innovations have always centred around providing clients with the best press release monitoring reports. The new upgrade to its analytics platform continues this trend, providing customers with richer insights and greater business intelligence. Press releases distributed by APO Group can contain multiple content formats, with clients able to add unlimited image, video and audio assets to their text content free of charge. Press releases are distributed via email to a vast network of more than 450,000 journalists in Africa or reporting on Africa. In 2021, more than 32,5 million emails containing APO Group client press releases were successfully delivered to journalists in Africa or reporting on Africa, while the total number of press releases distributed by APO Group for its clients has increased by 42% in 2021 compared to 2020. Press releases are also automatically published on: 320 African news websites; international platforms like Bloomberg Terminal, Thomson Reuters Eikon, Lexis Nexis, and Factiva; hundreds of RSS readers; News Industry Text Format (NITF) readers; Google News; and social media channels. With such diverse content being distributed to a huge network, APO Group has constantly innovated in the field of monitoring and analytics, consolidating insights so customers have a 360-degree view of their content performance online, in print, on Google and on social media. More media organizations are publishing press releases distributed by APO Group than ever before. In 2020, a total of 12,497 online media houses published at least one press release distributed by APO Group. In 2021, that number increased by 31% to 16,264. In total, 951,180 unique webpages carried APO Group client press releases in 2020. In 2021, that number increased by 43% to 1,362,281. In 2021, a total of 489 print publications (newspapers and magazines) published a least one press release distributed by APO Group, resulting in 3,187 print clippings. The press releases distributed by APO Group may have been picked up by other media but for technical or timely reasons, these are not included in the aforementioned figures. Overview of new analytics features As with all APO Group value-add services, the new analytics features announced today are available to customers completely free of charge to complement their press release distribution. Starting today, APO Group provides impressions analytics for individual press releases across multiple channels. Customers can now see the impressions accumulated by their press releases on Google Search, on Google Image Search, on hundreds of RSS and NITF readers (News Industry Text Format), as well as on 320 African news websites and APO Groups proprietary news service www.Africa-Newsroom.com. Customers can also see more comprehensive audience engagement metrics for their press releases. Including: Human engagement (reading) of the press release based on the mouse movements (scroll) Impressions of images on the Africa-Newsroom platform Downloads of the multimedia assets associated to their press release Links clicked The upgraded analytics platform is fast, robust and designed to be scalable in order to deliver extended value to all APO Group customers. A history of innovation This is the latest in a long line of media monitoring innovations developed by APO Group to support its press release distribution service in Africa since its launch in 2007. In 2014, APO Group launched its complimentary social media analysis reporting (https://bit.ly/3vt7G4b) service enabling clients to measure the social media response to their press releases throughout Africa. Then, in 2018, APO Group became the first news distribution provider anywhere in the world to offer complimentary in-house print monitoring (https://bit.ly/3K5ukUv). Print monitoring is a complete game changer in press release distribution, providing companies with details of earned media coverage gathered from offline print publications. Much of the online data captured by APO Group is powered by its state-of-the-art press release distribution platform www.Africa-Newsroom.com, the most comprehensive repository of Pan-African news content in the world. Africa Newsroom hosts text, image, video and soundbite content from 300+ multinational companies, African governments and international sporting institutions, and is also home to virtual Press Offices (https://bit.ly/3M5fj6T) for some of the most prominent organizations working in Africa, including FIFA (https://bit.ly/3stHFA2), DHL (https://bit.ly/3srXp6t), and the World Health Organization (WHO) (https://bit.ly/35dscLv) among many others. These new additions to our analytics platform add extra depth and granularity to our data, which in turn provides APO Groups clients with greater insights into their press release performance, said Nicolas Pompigne-Mognard (www.Pompigne-Mognard.com), Founder and Chairman of APO Group. As ever, we are delighted to offer these features free of charge. Monitoring is a vital part of the press release distribution cycle, so it is only right that we include the very best insights available, which in turn deliver valuable ROI to our clients, and help highlight the power of our distribution network throughout Africa. All APO Group media monitoring reports contain: APO Groups PR Value, designed to help PR and communications professionals measure the ROI (return on investment) of their press release campaigns Total online pickup, classified per language List, description and circulation of all the websites that picked up the press release Number and names of the press agencies who picked up the press release Number and names of the newspapers and magazines who picked up the press release Number and names of the TV or YouTube channels who picked up the press release Link to APO Group feed on Google News (see https://bit.ly/3ezLx9e) List, description and circulation of the three most influential media organizations that picked up the press release Number of impressions generated by the press release and its associated multimedia content (logo, picture, and video) on 320 African-news websites Number of impressions generated by the press release and its associated multimedia content (logo, picture, and video) on RSS servers / readers Number of impressions generated by the press release and its associated multimedia content (logo, picture, and video) on www.Africa-Newsroom.com, APO Groups web platform dedicated to journalists Number of views on www.Africa-Newsroom.com, APO Groups web platform dedicated to journalists Number of impressions generated by the press release on Google Web Search Number of impressions generated by the press release on Google Image Search Number of views and downloads of the multimedia content associated to the press release on www.Africa-Newsroom.com, APO Groups web platform dedicated to journalists y/3K2DDEI) Screenshots of the press release on Bloomberg Terminals, Dow Jones Factiva, LexisNexis, Tagaday, SyndiGate, Newsedge, NewsBank, Europresse; and APO Group feed screenshots on Thomson Reuters terminals, ProQuest et Euromoney EMIS Number of mentions of the press release on Twitter, and total reach on Twitter Number of posts generated by the press release on Facebook Number of posts generated by the press release on Linkedin Number of clicks received by the press release on APO Groups social media accounts (Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook) Total number of clicks received by the press release through all APO Group distribution channel Some press releases distributed by APO Group in 2021 recorded extraordinary results. One individual press release received 1785 online pick-ups, while another received 58 print clippings. High numbers were also recorded by individual press releases when it came to: Link clicks (2245); TV or YouTube channel pick-ups (34); Twitter mentions (20,600); Total Twitter Reach (292,172,902,837); Facebook posts (171); and LinkedIn posts (76). Partager et informez vous aussi...... 0 shares Share Tweet LinkedIn Articles similaires Unfortunately, our website is currently unavailable in your country. We are engaged on the issue and committed to looking at options that support our full range of digital offerings to your market. We continue to identify technical compliance solutions that will provide all readers with our award-winning journalism. 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 Sarah Mahoney @mahoney_sarah, February 23, 2016 Procter & Gamble is out to give Millennial Latinas what theyre most cravingand its not lipstick or better shampoo. Fueled by research that 86% of Hispanic women between 20 and 39 say theyd like a mentor in their lifeand that 53% think that mentor should also be a Latinaits focusing this years #LivingFabulosa effort on building a network of role models and mentors. It also found that women who have been lucky enough to have a mentor say it has made a big impact: Some 86% believe it has made them more confident about risk-taking. And 72% of those who havent found a mentor think they would be further along in achieving their goals if they had one. Overall, 82% of those with a college degree say there arent enough Latinas portrayed in the media. advertisement advertisement The #LivingFabulosa kick-off event, hosted by actress Diane (Orange Is the New Black and Jane the Virgin) Guerrero, is meant to arm Orgullosa women with mentoring and confidence-building skills they can use to inspire others. P&G launched Orgullosa back in 2011 as an online community to help Hispanic women connect with one another, as well as expose them to P&G beauty brands, including Pantene, Olay, Crest, Secret and Venus. It currently has 1.5 million members, with most between 23 and 27, says a spokesperson, typically bicultural Latinas primarily consuming content in English. (The name is Spanish for proud, she says, and meant to reflect womens pride not just in culture and traditions, but also her beauty, family, and home.) The launch event includes a Chicas Night Out beauty bar, featuring give-aways and consultations with P&G products. Social components of the program include Facebook, as well as daily inspirational messages on Instagram, urging members to post their own #LivingFabulosa messages. Hispanics typically spend more on beauty products than any other consumer segment, according to Nielsen. They account for 16% of the total U.S. hair care market, 14% of fragrances and 13% of cosmetic sales. Texas To urism is launching a campaign featuring the experiences available to be discovered throughout the state. Creative continues to feature the taglne "Texas. It's Like A Whole Other Country," but it transitions the traveler from the big picture to a more in-depth focus. The effort includes national television, print and digital media. Three TV spots focus on family fun, cuisine and traveling like a local. In Imagination, which brings a kid's and kid's-at-heart imagination to life, traveling families capture a glimpse of the adventures that await even the youngest travelers. Many Flavors highlights the culinary adventures one can experience through the many flavors of Texas. Texas Means Friend provides a welcoming Texan's-eye view of unique destinations. advertisement advertisement Six print ads provide additional inspiration for travelers' next Texas trip. The print ads focus on a number of Texas passion points including beach, cuisine, outdoors, Western, music and shopping. The effort also will use the tourism groups Web site and social media including Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram. The campaign aligns with the latest consumer attitudes, as travelers are now more driven by authentic, personal experiences than by destination alone and have a strong desire to experience destinations like a local, says Brad Smyth, tourism director for Texas Tourism. "Texas is a diverse destination, and the goal of our new creative is to showcase that diversity and immerse prospective travelers in the sights, sounds and flavors they will experience during a trip to our state," Smyth says in a release. Research findings guided the campaign creative to strategically focus on family fun, cuisine and traveling like a local. The campaign targets Boomer, Millennial and Gen X travelers, with an emphasis on the latter two, which now count for more than half of non-resident overnight leisure travel. Research shows that one in three leisure trips to Texas includes a child in the travel group with higher rates among Millennial and Gen X travelers. Dining out and experiencing local cuisine are among the top activities for visitors to the State. Images and video from the campaign were shot throughout the regions of Texas including Big Bend Country, the Gulf Coast, Hill Country and the Panhandle Plains. Travel and tourism are vital to the Texas economy, with more than $70.6 billion spent at destinations across the state in 2014, according to the agency. Travel spending directly supported 630,000 jobs while generating $6 billion in state and local taxes. by Wendy Davis , Staff Writer @wendyndavis, February 23, 2016 The "profound issues" raised by the FBI's demand that Apple create new back doors for the iPhone should be decided by Congress, not judges, a federal lawmaker says in a letter to FBI Director James Comey. "The difficult and challenging issues of balancing privacy, liberty, safety, and national security should not be decided by unelected entities, such as private sector companies, governmental investigatory bodies, or magistrate judges," Rep. Ted Lieu (D-California) wrote today in a letter asking Comey to withdraw his demand that Apple create software that would weaken encryption on an iPhone used by one of the San Bernardino shooters. "Let's all take a deep breath and start talking to each other instead of fighting in court," writes Lieu, a military vet, former prosecutor, and Stanford University computer-science graduate. Lieu is weighing in on the highly publicized clash between Apple and the FBI over encryption. advertisement advertisement Last Friday, U.S. MagistrateJudge Sheri Pym in the Central District of California ordered Apple to develop software that will disable a security feature that prevents hackers from repeatedly testing different passwords on the phone. Apple, which is challenging that order, says that this type of software could be used to hack other devices. "In the physical world, it would be the equivalent of a master key, capable of opening hundreds of millions of locks," CEO Tim Cook made that point again today, in a new Web site devoted to the dispute. "Of course, Apple would do our best to protect that key, but in a world where all of our data is under constant threat, it would be relentlessly attacked by hackers and cybercriminals." Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg has expressed support for Apple, as has Google's Sundar Pichai. Microsoft founder Bill Gates also weighed in -- although his views are somewhat ambiguous. At first, he appeared to back the FBI's request. "This is a specific case where the government is asking for access to information, Gates told the Financial Times. He compared the government's request in this case to requests to obtain records from a phone company or a bank. But after that report appeared, Gates indicated he viewed the situation as nuanced. The extreme view that government always gets everything, nobody supports that. Having the government be blind, people dont support that," he told Bloomberg. It also emerged today that the FBI has asked judges to order Apple to help access iPhones or iPads on at least 15 occasions since last October. Those requests are currently pending in seven different federal courts, according to Mashable. At this point, there's no way to know how the judges in various courts will rule, or how the appellate courts will view the issue. But the fact that so many different judges will be able to weigh in on the issue guarantees that Pym's decision in the San Bernardino matter won't be the final word on iPhone encryption. by Sara Guaglione , February 24, 2016 Former USA Today publisher Larry Kramer has been named interim CEO and president of financial news service TheStreet, following the resignation of Elisabeth DeMarse on Tuesday. DeMarse resigned from TheStreet after nearly four years as its CEO and president. All changes are effective immediately. Kramer joined TheStreet Inc.s board of directors in October 2015 and has served as its non-executive chairman since December 2015. "We remain focused on growing both our consumer and business-to-business divisions," Kramer stated. "We plan to continue to invest in new initiatives to make TheStreet a profitable media growth company with multiple revenue streams." Kramer added that the company will discuss its plans in more detail during a conference call following the release of earnings on March 7. advertisement advertisement TheStreet Inc. provides business and financial news and analysis to personal and institutional investors. The company provides content and tools via its online publication TheStreet, a paid subscription financial news and commentary Web site. According to USA Today, TheStreets stock has fallen 43% in the past year. Shares of TheStreet Inc. were trading lower by more than 3% on Tuesday following the companys announcement. Kramer stepped down as USA Todays president and publisher in July 2015 after more than three years at the company, where he played a key part in transforming the print publication into a digital news platform. He remains on the board of the newspaper's parent company, Gannett. The founder of CBS MarketWatch, Kramer also serves on the board of directors of Harvard Business School Publishing and is a member of the board of trustees at Syracuse University. He will join the board of MDC Partners, a marketing and communications firm, on March 1. Kramer also served as executive editor of The San Francisco Examiner from 1986 to 1991. by Sara Guaglione , February 24, 2016 Nilou Motamed was named editor of Time Inc.s Food & Wine on Tuesday, three months after Dana Cowin announced her resignation. Motamed will start on March 14, and the July issue will be the first under her leadership. She told The New York Times that her focus for Food & Wine will be to expand the brand. There has never been a better time for food, what with social media, the way people travel for food and all the elements of the Food & Wine lifestyle, she said. As editor, Motamed will manage the brands franchises and partnerships, including Best New Chefs and millennial food site FWx. She will work closely with publisher Christina Grdovic to help guide Food & Wines TV partnerships, including Bravos Top Chef, and the brands event series, anchored by Food & Wine Classic in Aspen. advertisement advertisement Time Inc. noted that Motamed will work in tandem with sales and marketing to offer creative solutions to the companys advertising partners and help strengthen Food & Wines digital, video and television footprint. Born in Iran and raised in Paris and New York, Motamed lives in Brooklyn with her husband. She is fluent in four languages. Cowin, who was the editor of Food & Wine for 21 years, will become the Chief Creative Officer of Chefs Club International, which has a strategic partnership with Food & Wine. Motamed was previously editor-in-chief of Epicurious, where she oversaw a top-to-bottom rebranding and redesign of the site before it was reorganized and combined with Bon Appetit. She was then director of inspiration at Conrad Hotels & Resorts and spent more than a decade at Food & Wines sister title, Travel + Leisure, where she was features director and senior correspondent. Among its myriad of health benefits, fish contains nutrients that are important for developing fetuses, which is why pregnant women are advised to eat two or three servings of fish each week. However, concerns over the detrimental effects of mercury found in nearly all fish have given pregnant women a reason to be cautious. Now, a new study suggests the negative effects of ingesting low levels of mercury through fish are outweighed by the beneficial effects for newborns. Share on Pinterest Although nearly all fish contain mercury, a new study finds that the benefits of consuming fish during pregnancy outweigh the effects of mercury exposure for newborns. The study, led by Kim Yolton, PhD, from the Cincinnati Childrens Hospital Medical Center in Ohio, is published in the journal Neurotoxicology and Teratology. According to the researchers, previous studies examining the effect of low-level gestational mercury exposure from fish intake on neurobehavioral outcomes of newborns have been limited. As such, they conducted an in-depth study involving 344 infants at 5 weeks of age using the NICU Network Neurobehavioral Scale (NNNS). The researchers measured gestational mercury exposure through maternal blood and infant umbilical cord blood. They also collected information on maternal fish intake and estimated consumption of polyunsaturated fatty acid based on type and amount of fish the pregnant women ate. In total, 84% of the mothers reported eating fish during pregnancy, but they only averaged about 2 ounces per week. In 2014, both the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) revised their advice to pregnant women regarding fish consumption; they advise consuming 8-12 ounces per week, as well as selecting fish with the lowest levels of mercury. Fish with low mercury levels include salmon, shrimp, pollock, light canned tuna, tilapia, catfish and cod, whereas high-mercury fish include tilefish, shark, swordfish and mackerel. Cancer Research UK's Centre for Drug Development (CDD), in partnership with Amgen Inc., has launched a new clinical trial to test a drug that could stop a patient's immune system from protecting tumours. Cancer Research UK scientists are studying Amgen's experimental cancer drug, called AMG319, to find out if it removes the defence shield that hides cancer cells from the immune system. It targets a protein called PI3K delta leading to destruction of the cancer cells when tested in the laboratory. The Phase II trial, taking place at Poole Hospital, Southampton General Hospital, and the Clatterbridge Cancer Centre/Aintree University Hospital, looks at the effects of giving this drug to patients with a type of head and neck cancer known as squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC), to determine whether it affects their immune response. There will be around 54 patients with HPV-negative* HNSCC of the lower and upper parts of the throat (hypopharynx and oropharynx) or mouth in the study. Patients will be randomly assigned to receive either AMG319 or a placebo, during the regular break from treatment to avoid disruption to a patient's care. It is the 10th treatment to enter Cancer Research UK's Clinical Development Partnerships (CDP) scheme. CDP is a joint initiative between Cancer Research UK's CDD and Cancer Research Technology, aiming to increase the number of cancer clinical trials and to progress promising anti-cancer agents by working in partnership with pharmaceutical companies. Professor Christian Ottensmeier, trial lead from the University of Southampton and the Southampton Experimental Cancer Medicine Centre, said: "This is a really exciting trial because we're using this drug in solid tumours for the first time. It also tries a whole new concept of cancer therapy in solid cancers for the first time. We hope that after taking the drug, patients will have more cancer fighting immune cells in their tumour. We will study in detail how the immune cells behave before and after AMG319 and whether they have become more effective." Dr Emma King, clinical lead at the Poole Hospital, said: "I am really pleased that this trial gives our head and neck cancer patients and opportunity to get this new drug." Tony Hoos, Vice president of Medical, Europe at Amgen, said: "The intersection of immunology and oncology represents one of the most promising approaches which may have a significant impact for patients with cancer today. "We value the work that Cancer Research UK has done to make it possible to develop this promising drug to the next stage. This new trial will give us a better understanding of how AMG319 works, helping us learn more about its potential in patients who might benefit." Dr Nigel Blackburn, Cancer Research UK's director of drug development, said: "We're delighted that the collaboration between Amgen and our Centre for Drug Development is moving into Phase II trials. It means we're getting closer to providing a new treatment for cancer patients. "Teaching the body's immune system to fight cancer is a promising area of cancer research and we're excited to see how this drug may help." When diagnosed with breast cancer, women may have thousands of questions running through their minds, but one they may not have immediately is: Will my choice of provider save me time and money? Mayo Clinic researchers have answered this question with what they believe are compelling statistics that may encourage women and their doctors -- and the health care system at large -- to consider a different way of doing business, specifically with respect to lumpectomies as a treatment for early-stage breast cancer. The different way would be to use intraoperative frozen section analysis to determine whether the tumor was removed completely during the first surgery. Doing this in a widespread manner could save untold hours of lost work, anxiety and more for women and tens of millions of dollars. The full study was published online in the Journal of Oncology Practice. Mayo's use of frozen section analysis Frozen section analysis, which was pioneered at Mayo Clinic more than 100 years ago, is used in various surgeries at Mayo, including breast cancer lumpectomies. In a study published in 2014, Mayo Clinic patients having had frozen section analysis conducted were much less likely to require a second operation than those at other institutions using traditional surgery with post-surgical pathology reports. "With the routine use of frozen section analysis of margins on Mayo Clinic's Rochester campus, we rarely -- in only 3 to 5 percent of cases -- require a second operation for margin re-excision," says first author Judy Boughey, M.D., a breast surgeon in the Mayo Clinic Cancer Center. "So, for over 95 percent of patients undergoing lumpectomy, only one operation is required." The researchers identify a number of benefits to this approach. Having one surgery and being able to move on to follow-on treatments, such as chemotherapy or radiation, is preferable to waiting weeks for a pathology report and then needing another surgery 15 to 50 percent of the time. Even if a woman does not require an additional surgery, she must wait for the final pathology results to know for sure. This creates unnecessary anxiety. A second or more surgeries add cost and potential complications for the patient. More surgeries add time and financial burdens on families and employers. Reducing the number of second operations enables surgeons to see more patients and lowers the cost of care across the health care system. "Our surgery and pathology teams intrinsically knew that this relatively unique practice was not only best for patients but also saves costs"," says co-author Elizabeth Habermann, Ph.D., scientific director of the Surgical Outcomes Program in the Mayo Clinic Robert D. and Patricia E. Kern Center for the Science of Health Care Delivery. "This research shows how the whole care episode must be considered when determining total cost and value of a health service." How much is it worth? "Just how much could be saved?" was the question the researchers sought to answer in this study. They used a baseline assumption that an average of 35 percent of initial lumpectomies without frozen section analysis require reoperation. Coupled with some complex analyses, the researchers determined that the potential annual cost savings would be $18.2 million to payers and $400,000 to providers if frozen section margin analysis would be used in 20 percent of breast lumpectomies. If all facilities providing lumpectomies adopt the use of frozen section margin analysis, the potential annual cost savings (using an average 35 percent reoperation rate) is $90.9 million to payers and $1.8 million to providers. These figures do not calculate lost income, productivity and other direct or indirect costs for the patient and her community. For patients, the research team thinks the answer is obvious: Choose a provider who offers intraoperative frozen section margin analysis. Currently very few centers have this capability, but the researchers hope this will change. For surgical centers, they recommend considering adding this capability. "The addition of intraoperative frozen section margin analysis at institutions not already incorporating it could be cost effective for the center and decrease the societal cost of care for breast cancer -- a triple win for patients, providers and payers," says Dr. Habermann. "We all want the optimal outcome for the patient," says Dr. Boughey. "With the lowest reoperation rates, frozen section margin analysis is a game changer for breast cancer patients." The annual women's issue of Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes, an American Heart Association journal, focuses on research promoting the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of heart disease in women - the No. 1 killer of women in the United States. "With this issue, we strive to create a future in which a special issue on women's cardiovascular health is obsolete," said Harlan Krumholz, M.D., S.M., editor of the journal, director of the Center of Outcomes Research and Evaluation at Yale-New Haven Hospital and a professor in Yale's schools of medicine and public health in New Haven, Connecticut. "We will know that we have arrived when an abundance of research on the topic of women's health that generates knowledge to improve the care and outcomes of a formerly neglected population is commonplace." Among the findings in original research and commentaries in the issue: Sex Differences in Outcomes Following Percutaneous Coronary Intervention According to Age (Robert Wilensky, M.D., University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine) Despite having less severe coronary artery disease (CAD) than men the same age, women under age 50, were at greater risk for recurrent vessel blockage and adverse events after having percutaneous coronary intervention (procedure to open narrowed or blocked blood vessels). For five years, researchers followed 10,963 patients (3.6 percent women under age 50). While procedural success rates were similar by sex, the cumulative rate of major adverse events was higher in young women at one- and five year follow-ups. "Because of their many years of remaining life expectancy that are threatened by early onset CAD, young women with CAD are a population that warrants special attention," the authors conclude. Sex and Ethnic Difference in Outcomes of ACS and Stable Angina Patients with Obstructive Coronary Artery Disease (Karin Humphries, D.Sc., University of British Columbia) Among adults with acute coronary syndrome or stable angina and obstructive buildup of plaques in the heart, women, as compared to men, were at significantly higher risk of adverse events (i.e. death and readmission for angina, heart attack, stroke and heart failure), regardless of ethnicity. A key finding of the study was that hospital readmission for angina was the most common adverse event, accounting for 45percent of all observed events. This finding was observed among all sex-ethnic groups, except among the Chinese women whose adverse outcome was driven by higher death rates. The study, conducted in British Columbia, Canada, involved 49,556 patients (25.6 percent women) of which 65.9 percent had acute coronary syndrome. The study suggests a need for more targeted cardiac care and research for women across different ethnicities. Sex and Race/Ethnicity Related Disparities in Care and Outcomes after Hospitalization for Coronary Artery Disease among Older Adults (Deepak L. Bhatt, M.D., M.P.H., Brigham and Women's Hospital Heart & Vascular Center, Harvard Medical School) Women were less likely than men to receive optimal care at hospital discharge when admitted for coronary artery disease, and more likely to die within three years, according to a study of 49,358 patients ages 65 and older across 366 U.S. hospitals. Study data were collected through the American Heart Association's Get With the Guidelines Coronary Artery Disease registry over six years. African-Americans, compared with whites, were also more likely to die from coronary artery disease, though this disparity could not be accounted for by differences in the quality of care. Researchers concluded that about 69 percent of the sex disparity in deaths could potentially be reduced or greatly eliminated by providing optimal and equitable quality of care to women. Do women with anxiety or depression have higher rates of myocardial ischemia during exercise testing than men? (Kim Lavoie, Ph.D. University of Quebec at Montreal) Women with anxiety and no history of coronary artery disease, had higher rates of reduced blood flow compared to women without anxiety. A Canadian study assessed the connection between mood, anxiety and myocardial ischemia (reduced blood flow to the heart) in women and men with and without coronary artery disease. The research indicates that anxiety symptoms, many of which overlap with those of coronary artery disease, might mask heart disease symptoms among women - but not men - and contribute to referral and diagnostic delays for women. Return to Work after Acute Myocardial Infarction: A comparison between Young Women and Men (Rachel Dreyer, Ph.D., Center for Outcomes Research and Evaluation, Yale University School of Medicine) Compared to young men, young women may be slightly less likely to return to work a year after a heart attack. The study included 1,680 heart attack patients ages 18 to 55 (57 percent women) who were working full time before having a heart attack. Statistically, however the differences between men and women were not significant after adjusting for several health factors. In this study, women were less likely to be married and were more likely to have professional or clerical jobs than men - which are associated with lower likelihood of returning to work. Participants were part of the VIRGO study (Variation in Recovery: Role of Gender on Outcomes of Young Acute Myocardial Infarction Patients). Association between a Healthy Heart Score and the Development of Clinical Cardiovascular Risk Factors Among Women: a Potential Role of Primordial Prevention (Mercedes Sotos-Prieto, Ph.D. Harvard Chan School of Public Health) An analysis of 69,505 middle-aged U.S. women in the Nurses' Health Study II showed a strong association between a lifestyle-based risk prediction model and the development of cardiovascular disease risk factors, including diabetes, hypertension and high cholesterol. The Healthy Heart Score estimates the 20-year risk of cardiovascular disease based on nine lifestyle factors. A higher score reflects a higher risk of cardiovascular disease. Women with higher predicted risk of heart disease based on the Healthy Heart Score had significantly greater risk of each risk factor individually. The study calls for additional research to evaluate the use of the tool as a strategy for preventing the development of heart risk factors. Parity and Components of the Metabolic Syndrome Among U.S. Hispanic/Latina Women: Results from the HCHS/SOL Study (Catherine Vladutiu, Ph.D., University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill) Women who gave birth four times or more had the highest odds of developing metabolic syndrome risk factors such as abdominal obesity, elevated fasting glucose and low good cholesterol - all of which raise the risk of heart disease. The analysis was performed among 7,467 women ages 18 to 74 in the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos. The study stresses the importance of considering the number of births as a risk factor for developing metabolic and cardiovascular disorders among Hispanic/Latina women. Sex Differences in the incidence of Peripheral Artery Disease in the Chronic Renal Insufficiency Cohort (Grace Wang, M.D., University of Pennsylvania) Women had a 53 percent higher risk of developing peripheral artery disease (PAD) before age 70 compared to men, in a study examining how PAD in chronic kidney disease differs based on gender and age. The prospective study involved 3,174 participants with chronic kidney disease from the multi-center Chronic Renal Insufficiency Cohort (CRIC). Researchers recommend future studies to better understand the impact of earlier detection of the disease in women and the biological and clinical basis for the sex-based differences covered in this study. And commentary from American Heart Association CEO Nancy Brown provides an overview of the continued growth and contributions of the group's Go Red for Women. Since its inception in 2004, the movement has focused on awareness, education and advocacy in reducing the risk of heart disease in women. The latest addition, expected to launch in April this year, will establish a Women's Health Research Network based at five research centers to support basic, clinical and population-based studies in advancing the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of heart disease in women. "The ultimate goal of Go Red for Women is to save lives," Brown said. "Since 2004, there has been an average annual decrease of about 2 percent in women's deaths from cardiovascular diseases and stroke, representing a total of about 670,000 lives. "Despite this progress, we have much more to accomplish," according to Brown's article. "Heart disease continues to be the No. 1 killer of women, and stroke remains their fourth leading killer. Meanwhile, the prevalence of these illnesses is growing. More than one-third of women have some form of cardiovascular disease, and more than 90 percent have at least one risk factor for these illnesses. That's far too many women, and it means that organizations like ours have an obligation to do even more." Experts are warning that more than a million people in the UK - 90% of whom are smokers or ex-smokers1 - could be living with a serious vascular condition that can lead to leg amputation or a fatal heart attack. The British Heart Foundation (BHF) is urging smokers to give up the deadly habit on No Smoking Day (9 March) and lower their risk of peripheral arterial disease (PAD) - a silent and largely unknown killer in the UK. There are nearly half a million registered PAD patients in the UK2 however, a leading surgeon in the field estimates that the number could be twice as high. Approximately half of all sufferers show no symptoms until they suffer a heart attack or stroke3. In the UK, nine out of every ten people who develop PAD currently smoke or have done so in the past, with some types of the disease almost exclusively found in smokers4. The condition is caused by build-up of fatty deposits in the walls of the leg arteries which restricts blood supply to leg muscles. This process is called atherosclerosis which can be caused by inhaling dangerous chemicals found in tobacco and can lead to serious and potentially fatal problems. People suffering from PAD have a much higher risk of developing other serious forms of cardiovascular disease (CVD), like heart attack and stroke, because it is likely that blood vessels elsewhere in the body are also affected. When symptoms are left untreated, the leg tissue may begin to die. This causes gangrene and, in its severest form, critical limb ischemia (CLI), which results in amputation in around 30% of cases.5 BHF Associate Medical Director, Dr Mike Knapton, said: "Peripheral arterial disease can lead to horrific consequences and the silent nature of the condition means that opportunities to diagnose and treat it are often missed. "We do know that stopping smoking is the single most effective way of reducing your risk of developing this potentially deadly disease and with No Smoking Day on March 9, now is a great time to prepare to start your quitting journey." BHF-funded researchers at King's College London/St Thomas' Hospital are investigating a technique to accurately determine whether an affected limb can be saved through surgery. The new scanning technique will help show the effectiveness of treatment and immediately indicate whether further surgery is required, potentially minimising the number of people having to undergo life changing surgery or amputation. Currently the only way of determining the success of surgery is to wait for a period of days to see whether the leg improves. Mr Bijan Modarai, BHF Intermediate Fellow and Reader/Consultant in Vascular Surgery at King's College London/St Thomas' Hospital, who is leading the BHF- funded study said: "This dangerous disease very often goes undiagnosed and although there are half a million people in the UK officially suffering with PAD I estimate that there could be over one million living with the condition. Approximately 30,000 adults have the most severe form of the condition, which results in at least 9,000 amputations per year. "I see patients - the vast majority of whom are smokers - repeatedly having to go through painful surgery to ease the suffering of PAD and CLI. Research is the only way we will help improve the treatment. However it is crucial that we also use opportunities like No Smoking Day to raise awareness of the dangers of this cruel disease in order to inspire people to quit smoking and prevent them from putting themselves at risk in the first place." Brian Shead, 61, from Edenbridge in Kent had surgery in 2011 and 2015 to treat critical limb ischemia in both of his legs, resulting in having a stent fitted in his left leg. He has smoked since he was 13, and at his most was smoking 30 - 40 cigarettes a day. Thanks to a smoking cessation group, he is now down to 10 a day and is preparing to make a quit attempt this No Smoking Day. Brian said: "The pain in my legs started off small and gradually got worse and worse until I could barely walk. I had no idea that my smoking habit was causing it, and when I realised how serious my condition was, I cut down smoking immediately. "Due to the severity of my condition, and the number of years I smoked I had to have surgery on both my legs. It's so important that people understand the devastating effect smoking can have. I was lucky and didn't have to have an amputation, but many aren't. I have cut down since my surgery, which I am really proud of, and I am making a quit attempt to stop for good on No Smoking Day." Currently just under 10 million UK adults smoke cigarettes6, and there are 10,000 hospital admissions per week for diseases that are directly caused by smoking7. Stopping smoking is the single best thing you can do for your heart health. Latest statistics show that half of all people who successfully quit smoking had set the date when they planned to stop8. No Smoking Day is set to inspire thousands of smokers to believe in their ability to quit, and BHF is urging smokers to use the day to mark the start of their quitting journey. Visit nosmokingday.org.uk for more information. A team of scientists from Singapore and France has revealed the underlying mechanism for the formation and growth of a fundamental type of tissue - epithelial tubes. Defects in the architecture of epithelial tubes lead to diseases such as cholestasis, atherosclerosis and polycystic kidney disease. The research findings contribute towards a deeper understanding of the principles that underline epithelial tube formation, and offer opportunities for developing better therapies for such diseases. Share on Pinterest A composite image of epithelial tubes formed between the contacting lateral surfaces of two liver cells on artificial membranes in circular and triangular microwells. Researchers found that by coating the microwells with fibronectin in different patterns, the shape of the epithelial tubes that grow in the microwells are altered. Credit: Mechanobiology Institute, National University of Singapore The study suggests that the shape and size of some types of epithelial tubes are governed by the mechanical forces that arise from the interaction of cells with the supportive extracellular matrix (ECM) that surrounds them. The work and its findings were published in the scientific journal Nature Cell Biology on 15 February 2016. Extracellular matrix organisation guides lumen morphology All the major organs in the human body, such as the blood vessels, lungs, kidneys, liver, pancreas and the intestine, are formed of an extensive network of tubes. These tubes function as biological pipelines that transport and deliver life-sustaining liquids, gases or macromolecules from one site in the body to another. Depending on the organ in which they are formed or the specific function that they perform, the tubes vary greatly in size and shape, and defects in their tubular architecture have been linked to a number of diseases, such as atherosclerosis and polycystic kidney disease. The tubes enclose hollow spaces called lumens and are primarily composed of a single or multiple layers of epithelial cells. As an important prerequisite for tube formation, epithelial cells become asymmetric or 'polar', acquiring structurally and functionally distinct ends or surfaces. Following this, cells undergo shape changes and organise around a central lumen, with their apical (top) surfaces facing the lumen, the basal (bottom) surfaces interacting with the underlying tissue and the lateral (side) surfaces in close contact with the neighbouring cells. The vast majority of studies on tube formation have focused on understanding the molecular mechanisms leading to cell polarisation and subsequent cellular mechanisms that drive the formation of lumens. However, factors that regulate the shape, size and the directional elongation of lumens into tubes remain unclear. A recent collaborative study between Associate Professor Virgile Viasnoff, Principal Investigator at the Mechanobiology Institute (MBI) at the National University of Singapore and CNRS (France) and Professor Hanry Yu, Principal Investigator at MBI and Group Leader at the Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (IBN), of A*STAR, aimed to address these key questions. Studying the formation of 'bile caniculi', which are lumens formed between the contacting lateral surfaces of two liver cells, the scientists had adopted a 'minimal organ approach'. This involved culturing two liver cells (hepatocytes) that can act as a functional organ unit on artificial membranes fabricated with microwell patterns. The microwells are coated with an ECM protein called fibronectin that promotes cell binding and creates growth conditions identical to the microenvironment found inside cells. By coating the microwells in different patterns, the scientists altered the organisation of ECM around cells and compared the morphologies of the bile caniculi and the direction of their growth. Surprisingly, they observed that lumen shape was controlled by the three-dimensional organisation of ECM around cells. Furthermore, lumens showed a preference to elongate towards the free surface of the cell, away from the ECM. Following up with a series of experiments to understand the role of ECM in determining lumen shape and elongation, the researchers proposed a mechanical basis for the regulation of lumen morphology. According to their model, forces arising from the adhesion of cells to the ECM influence the force balance inside cells and create an intercellular force (force between two contacting cells) gradient. The lumen elongates along the direction of minimal force, as higher intercellular force would squeeze the contacting cell surfaces together and prevent extension of the lumens in that direction. According to Assoc Prof Viasnoff who led the study, "This minimal organ approach provides a unique demonstration of how biomimetic interfaces can be used to probe and understand the influence of the microenvironment on cellular process". Prof Yu added, "The findings not only discovered basic principles guiding tissue morphogenesis but also shed light on the guiding principles for regenerative medicine applications." This study reveals for the first time, that the interaction between cells and the ECM can control and direct the mechanical tension between cells. This mechanical tension directly influences the elongation direction of the intercellular lumen. This mechanical guidance of lumen morphology is responsible for differences in lumen shapes and sizes, formed under different microenvironmental conditions. Assoc Prof Viasnoff concluded that this approach offers a very promising way to understand not only tube formation but also cell polarisation. More broadly, the team expects this study to be a first step towards understanding how the environment surrounding cells affects their interactions in normal and diseased cases. Please complete this form and we'll send you a personalised information that is requested You may use this for your own reference or forward it to your friends. Please use the information prudently. If you are not a medical doctor please remember to consult your healthcare provider as this information is not a substitute for professional advice. "In all events for which information is available, travelers were men and reported symptom onset was within two weeks before the non-traveling female partner's symptoms began," the CDC report said."These new reports suggest sexual transmission may be a more likely means of transmission for Zika virus than previously considered."Experts still consider Zika a primarily mosquito-borne virus, and urge people to avoid bites by applying insect repellent, using bed nets and wearing long sleeves and pants.The United States reported its first case of sexually transmitted Zika virus in early February, after a man traveled to Venezuela then returned to Texas and infected a partner who had not traveled there."In two of the new suspected sexual transmission events, Zika virus infection has been confirmed in women whose only known risk factor was sexual contact with an ill male partner who had recently traveled to an area with local Zika virus transmission," said the CDC."Testing for the male partners is still pending."The CDC said the 14 cases, "like previously reported cases of sexual transmission... involve possible transmission of the virus from men to their sex partners."Health officials currently have "no evidence that women can transmit Zika virus to their sex partners; however, more research is needed to understand this issue."There is no vaccine to prevent Zika virus and no medicine to treat it.In four out of five cases, people who are bitten by an infected mosquito show no symptoms.Otherwise, symptoms may include a rash, red eyes and a headache.But in pregnant women, the consequences could be dire.Scientists are currently trying to figure out if Zika could have caused an increase in birth defects in Brazil, where thousands of babies have been born with unusually small heads since the virus began to spread there.Source: AFP In advance of the February 2016 elections in Iran for both the Majlis and the Assembly of Experts, and in light of Hashemi Rafsanjani's November 25, 2015 announcement that he will run for the Assembly of Experts, the power struggle between the pragmatic camp, which Rafsanjani leads, and the ideological camp, led by Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, has intensified. It now centers on two main focal points: 2. The Iranian regime's circling the wagons against the "American enemy" and against the "new fitna" within Iran, which it calls "the infiltration" - that is, the Rafsanjani camp which is calling for openness vis-a-vis the U.S. and for Iran to implement the JCPOA. The ideological camp defines openness towards the U.S. as a way of allowing the Western-American "dagger" to penetrate, that is, to infiltrate Iran and to murder the Islamic Revolution.[1] Basij commander Mohammad Reza Naqdi and others have singled out Rafsanjani and his associates as those who are continuing to operate at home as "agents of fitna" of the U.S. and Britain, as cowards who are promoting the enemy's policy within Iran, and as morally and financially corrupt. 3. The regime's activity against the U.S. and the "new fitna" gives the ideological camp leverage over the pragmatic camp in the elections. The ideological camp is playing this up in advance of the elections and hinting that the outcome of the last presidential election, in 2013, was a grave failure that must not be allowed to happen again. The Khamenei-affiliated daily Kayhan is even preparing for the possibility that Rafsanjani's pragmatic camp will again triumph in the elections, and stated that such a development would be counter to the Islamic Revolution and its values, and must be prevented. This report will deal with the ideological camp's alignment against the U.S. and the "new fitna" as represented by Hashemi Rafsanjani in advance of the elections set for two days from now. Khamenei: Some In Iran Take Orders From The U.S., Persisting In Making It Look Good, So That The Americans Can Secretly Maintain Their Hostility And Stab Us In The Back When The Time Is Right On November 3, 2015, on the eve of the anniversary of the 1979 takeover of the U.S. Embassy in Tehran, Khamenei said to an audience of students: "[Even] after the revolution, the U.S. kept an embassy in Iran for quite a while, and also maintained relations with the Iranian government. But the Americans never stopped their hostility, not for a single day. This historic experience should teach some people that ties, friendship, and love cannot stop America's hostility and plots... The Americans cannot analyze the Iranian reality; they do not grasp it. Over the past 37 years, America has tried to fundamentally destroy the revolution - but, with God's help, they have failed, and will fail in the future as well. "In the past few years, some people [hinting at Rafsanjani and his associates] have taken orders from America, or have been frivolous, persisting in... making it look good and acting as if the Americans were [once] Iran's enemies but have given up their scheming. These efforts are aimed at making [the Iranian people] forget their memories of the true face of the enemy, so that the Americans can secretly maintain their hostility, and stab us in the back when the time is right. In fact, America's aims with regard to Iran have not changed, and if they could destroy the Islamic Republic, they would not hesitate for a single moment - but they cannot... and this aim will not be realized in the future either..." After the crowd's chants of "death to America" had died down, Khamenei continued: "The Iranian nation's slogan and chant of 'death to America' has a rational basis and solid logic. This slogan stems from the constitution, and from the fundamental philosophy that rejects crime and oppression. Its meaning is death to America's policy and arrogance; if we explained this logic to any nation [on Earth], it would agree with it."[2] In a speech to Basij commanders on Basij Day, November 25, 2015, Khamenei said: "Today, the American administration is a symbol of the arrogance's [i.e. the U.S.'s] hostility towards the Iranian nation. Today's main struggle on the global level is between the arrogant movement front, led by America, and the movement of values and the fundamental and national independence that are being led by the Islamic Republic of Iran. In addition to political organizations and apparatuses, the arrogance enjoys financial might and the support of large Zionist companies. In fact, the front of the arrogance is constantly plotting, using the triangle of money, power, and image. The arrogance's policy and diplomacy apparatuses are using the image [part of this] by smiling at you and embracing you as they plunge their dagger into your heart."[3] Poster Published On Khamenei's Website In November 2015 The poster below, published on Khamenei's website on November 15, 2015, stated: "There are those who insist on beautifying the Great Satan [America] by using traits worse than Satan's, in order to present [America] as an angel. Why [do they do this]? Religion and loyalty to the revolution aside, what about loyalty to the interests of the country? What about common sense? What sort of thinking and what sort of conscience allow someone to treat a power like America as a friend, [and to present it] as reliable and as a redeeming angel?"[4] The quote is from statements by Khamenei on September 9, 2015. IRGC Commander: The Fourth Fitna Is "Infiltration Fitna" - That Is, Some Officials' Tendency To Trust The West And Liberalism At an anti-U.S. conference on November 2, 2015, the commander of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), Ali Jafari, said: "We have had one fitna for every decade of the revolution; each attempted to eliminate the revolution. The Iranian nation emerged with its head held high from each of these fitnas, and we are currently facing the fourth fitna. "The first fitna was the imposed war [i.e. the 1980-88 Iran-Iraq War]; the second was a cultural or security-political fitna... in the second decade of the Revolution [likely a reference to the 1999 student unrest]... The third was the [Green Movement] fitna of 2009 [following the presidential election], which was far more dangerous than the Iran-Iraq war... "The fourth began on a nuclear pretext, and imposed economic pressure and sanctions on the people. The nuclear issue was just an excuse; it was not the enemy's real goal. The important thing for them [i.e. the Americans] was to bring Iran to the negotiating table. Just as the leader [Khamenei] said, negotiating with America will only do us damage - they are trying to infiltrate us via the talks. "The fourth fitna is the 'infiltration fitna.' The Americans wanted the JCPOA more than we did - because they wanted to reach the post-JCPOA phase. This will be a danger and fitna if the belief emerges among the people that because an agreement was reached [with the Americans] on the nuclear issue, agreements can also be reached on other issues. In this new atmosphere, some officials consider, and incline towards, trusting the West and liberalism. This view has been around since the onset of the revolution, [and its proponents] believe that we must negotiate with America about other things as well. Mr. [Khamenei] sees this as the greatest threat [to Iran]. Some not only disregard their own statements and position regarding America's infiltration [of Iran], but even support this. Even though the Leader acknowledges that negotiations with America is infiltration... it seems that the fitna that begins after the JCPOA will be lengthy, and could last for years."[5] Kayhan: Rohani Government Should Stand Fast Against American Infiltration, Not Cooperate With It In its November 10, 2015 editorial, the daily Kayhan warned against those who are collaborating with the "arrogance" - the U.S. - and demanded that the Rohani government heed Khamenei's warnings regarding a U.S. infiltration of Iran: "There is no need for the infiltrators to plant a bomb... Their aim is not just terrorism; their aims run deeper, such as disrupting the [Iranian regime's] decision-making [process], replacing friends [of the regime] with enemies and giving contrary advice on sensitive matters, and replacing [revolutionary] values with contrary values... as well as controlling the thoughts and wills of the politicians so much that they change them. They have a different method of persuasion for each and every [Iranian politician]... "One of the main worries and concerns of the leader [Khamenei] is the issue of the enemy's infiltration of [our] culture, policy, economy, and security, especially in recent months. The leader has stressed that [regime] apparatuses must not become pawns of the enemy; [these apparatuses] must demonstrate a clear revolutionary position against the enemy and must not let the 'Great Satan [i.e. the U.S.],' which the people have pushed out the door, come back in through the window, or disrupt the beliefs of [our] society by infiltrating the decision-making centers... "[President] Rohani said that there is no need to play with the term 'infiltration,' or to use it in a partisan manner. [Supreme National Security Council secretary Ali] Shamkhani said that in effect, the [recent] arrest [of journalists critical of the regime] was a settling of political scores... Members of the [Rohani] government did nothing in this matter other than speak this way and doubt this. Does this not place the government on the defendant's bench? Why should the Ministry of [Culture and Islamic] Guidance or other ministries support those who beautify the image of the 'Great Satan?'... Shouldn't ministries such as the Ministry of [Culture and Islamic] Guidance, Intelligence, Interior, Science, and Foreign Affairs be in the front line vis-a-vis the [enemy's] infiltration, and [in response] infiltrate it deeply - or should they remain passive, to occasionally stand still and become the enemy's target? Is [the government's] passivity and neglect coincidental, or is it a trend?..." Kayhan: Against Ties With The U.S., Against Muslim Leaders Who Betray Their People And Collaborate With Foreign Governments Kayhan's November 8, 2016 editorial stated: "We would not be lying if we say that in the past two years the axis of all those loyal to the leader [Khamenei?] has been condemning America and its arrogant policy, and its allies... A week ago, in advance of November 4 [the anniversary of the takeover of the U.S. Embassy in Tehran], the leader noted in a speech that the slogan of 'death to America' has a rational and legal aspect... Additionally, the leader clarified that our constitution expresses the slogan 'death to America'... In Article 150 of the constitution it is stated that 'the policy of the Islamic Republic [of Iran] is based on negating all colonialism and imperialism, maintaining the state's multifaceted independence and territorial [integrity], defending the rights of all Muslims, and not complying with the imperalist powers or maintaining peaceful relations with aggressive governments... "The Koran stresses defending the honor of the Muslims... The Imam Khomeini defined this as something very important, writing: 'If commercial ties with infidels cause fear in the realm of Islam, it is a duty for all Muslims to abandon such ties. Here, it does not matter whether these [ties] with the enemy are political, cultural, or spiritual. If political ties between Islamic governments and foreign governments cause the infidels to control the Muslims, their policy, or their assets, or cause political captivity, there must be no such ties. The alliance that was formed must be dismantled and dismissed. All the Muslims must guide the[ir] leaders [at the same time] and force them to abandon such political ties, even by means of negative fighting.'"[6] Kayhan Editor: The West Is Telling The Iranians To Elect Candidates From The Pragmatic Camp - So We Must Vote For All The Candidates In The Ideological List On February 22, 2016, four days before the elections, Kayhan editor Hossein Shariatmadari explained why the ideological camp is apprehensive about the handful of moderate candidates approved by the Guardian Council to run for the Majlis and Assembly of Experts: "Over the past 30-odd years, we have witnessed many instances in which the Guardian Council approved people [as candidates] for the presidency and the Majlis, and those people sold out the homeland and became servants of the stream of arrogance, working to destroy the regime and the nation. [These included ousted president] Bani-Sadr and [former prime minister] Mir-Hossein Mousavi [who ran in the 2009 elections and was accused of being a leader of the fitna], along with many delegates from the Sixth Majlis, who openly fled the country, obtained [foreign] citizenship, and flocked to the intelligence services of America, Europe, and the Zionist regime... "Most candidates approved by the Guardian Council reveal only some of their thoughts and aims during the election campaign, so that the people will esteem them. A clear example of this is Mir-Hossein Mousavi, who revealed his true nature only after being approved, and left no doubt during the election campaign that he had received his mission from the British-American-Zionist triumvirate in order to carry out a rebellion [against the regime]... "The propaganda of this current campaign clearly shows traces of this stream... Once again, obvious foreign enemies are standing in line to support this stream, and the official media of America, Britain, Germany, and some European countries are expressly supporting the election lists of this stream. They are even saying who we should and shouldn't vote for. And once again, much like in the fitna of 2009, these gentlemen [the pragmatic camp] express no opposition to them [these foreign enemies and their media]... but rather devote all their efforts to attacking [our] regime apparatuses, as well as the Guardian Council that keeps unqualified individuals out of the [regime's] decision-making centers and from making false allegations against the IRGC, which defends the people's security, life, property, and honor... If this stream enters the Majlis, it will seriously endanger the state's independence, honor, and security, along with the people's welfare and liberty... "[However], the [ideological camp's] conservative coalition list can be a reliable bridge [over this danger]... These are people who have passed the test during [anti-regime] events and did not falter... It is essential that all the people on this list be elected - because failure to elect any one of them can leave the door open for certain unqualified people [i.e. from the pragmatic camp]. "Perhaps some would not agree to the inclusion of some of the [ideological] candidates in this list, and would prefer others... But noting the sensitive situation, we must set aside personal preferences for the good of a stream that is loyal to the principles of the revolution... "Today, there is no room for insisting on a certain personal preference [in the election]... but we must relinquish [any such preference] in order to protect a loftier value."[7] Expediency Council Official: Oppose Those Influenced By The U.S. Who Cause Confusion Between Iran's Loyal Servants And Traitors To It On November 5, 2015, Expediency Council official Mohammad-Hossein Saffar-Harandi said: "The same agents of infiltration that caused the martyrdom of [Ayatollah] Beheshti and 72 friends of the revolution [in 1981] currently serve America and take orders from it, in order to guarantee their own security... The Guardian Council will not allow elements with links to foreigners into the government or the Majlis [and will disqualify them]. We must appreciate this council, as it prevents political and security infiltration... "Today, some argue that we cannot become an advanced [country] unless we become servants of America and the West. [Doing this would be] a culturally infiltrative move. Knowledgeable people in religious institutions and universities, and those who write and deliver [speeches] from public pulpits, should be informed about these issues, and must not allow infiltration. Those who mispresent the situation are paving the way for America [to infiltrate]. This is a dangerous viewpoint. If we can prevent infiltration, then we can increase the true capabilities in the country - because our young people and our scientists have already shown that they can improve our [missile and nuclear] capabilities... "There are some who are not agents of infiltration but who are probably under [American] influence. They organize certain streams in order to cause confusion between [Iran's] loyal servants and traitors to it, and between friends and enemies, and who label those who resist excessive Western demands as extremists [i.e. members of the ideological camp]. They label as 'extremist' anyone who believes that the state should be administered by means of domestic knowledge and capability, and label anyone who wants to link the country's fate to foreigners as 'desirable and legitimate.'"[8] Iranian Army Deputy Chief Of Staff: Oppose Agents Of The Western Infiltration Who Beautify America At a November 12, 2015 memorial ceremony for Maj.-Gen. Tehrani Moghaddam, the architect of Iran's missile system, Iranian Army deputy chief of staff Gholam Ali Rashid said: "There are those who are attempting to beautify the hated face of America, following the JCPOA. They are divided into two groups - the first comprises those who are frivolous and not traitors [and the second comprises traitors]. Some [regime] officials may be members of the first group, but some are agents of infiltration, and are traitors. We must resist both groups, because they seek to provide America with a foothold... Our stand against this is not out of geographic interests, but is based on Islam's stand against heresy."[9] Basij Commander: The Elements Of The 2009 Fitna Have Again Joined Forces With The Enemy To Oppose The Regime Basij commander Mohammad Reza Naqdi said at a conference analyzing the 2009 post-election unrest: "The foreign enemy and those who usurp the country's treasures [i.e. Rafsanjani and his associates] banded together in 2009 to create these events. Today too, these people are plotting. The people have suddenly opened their eyes, and have seen that many, including some who were once officials in the country's leadership and held key roles, are inviting the people to oppose the regime. Even people connected to prominent and well-known families [hinting at Hassan Khomeini, grandson of Ayatollah Khomeini] called on the people to protest in the streets... "The 2009 events had a domestic root and a foreign root. The domestic root comprised wealthy people attempting to preserve their power who needed external [i.e. foreign] support. Even though the Imam Khomeini said many times that regime officials should lead modest lives, they had amassed great fortunes [a reference to wealthy families such as the Rafsanjanis and the Karroubis]. "In the early days of the revolution, they rode around in Zhians [Iranian name for the Citroen 2CV, a very basic, common car] and they now have their own private six-story building in Niavaran [a luxury neighborhood in Tehran]. These people want to continue running the country at any cost. That is why they have formed a party, speak of human rights and freedom of expression, and claim that during some incident or other they stood with [Ayatollah] Khomeini. "As for the foreign root: The revolution increased its stature vis-a-vis America and expelled [America] from Iran, Iraq, and Lebanon... At first, America confronted us face to face, but had no results, and thus decided to select friends within Iran. It chose friends [i.e. Rafsanjani and the pragmatic camp] who are now engaged in covering up America's crimes. "In its 2016 budget, America approved funds to destroy the [regime of the] Islamic Republic of Iran. But these people inside Iran do not mention this. They have even forgotten their oath regarding defending the rights of the people. Although we are the world's most democratic regime, our democracy is unacceptable to America, and the latter wants to make Iran democratic according to its own wishes... "Why are they [these people in Iran] silent in the face of such American moves? Why do some newspapers publish the smiling faces of American criminals - while if some [Iranian] revolutionary figure speaks and the newspaper dislikes his words, they will publish a photo of him looking grim. Aren't these [media] people considered mercenaries? The funds approved in America reach these newspapers... Those who are plotting in order to deceive the [Iranian] nation should learn a lesson: The ones who have doubts should also come back to the people. Our eyes should always be on the leader [Khamenei] in order to be saved from fitna."[10] Basij Commander: The Agents Of Fitna Among Us Are Pinning Their Hopes On The Superpowers, Set No Boundaries For The Foreign Enemy, Have A Reputation For Creating Fitna, Are Cowards Who Fear The Enemy, And Are Morally And Financially Corrupt Basij commander Naqdi said on February 23, 2016 that the heads of the pragmatic camp, Rafsanjani and Rohani, are continuing to operate as agents of the U.S. and Britain inside Iran, are cowards promoting a defeatist policy favoring the interests of the superpowers, and are financially and morally corrupt. He called on the Iranian public to "thwart England's wishes" for the outcome of the elections, following a BBC analysis of the candidates, which he said meant that Iranians should vote for the pragmatic and reformist candidates. This, he said, was an example of the "infiltration fitna" that Rafsanjani and his followers are promoting within Iran. He said: "These are the people who are preparing the ground for the infiltration. Their religious faith is weak, they pin their hopes on the superpowers, and they set no boundaries for the foreign enemy. They have a reputation for creating fitna and have challenged the [Iranian] people and regime in the past [here he is accusing Rafsanjani and his associates of creating the fitna in 2009]. They are cowards who fear the enemy and they have been punished for moral and financial corruption [referring to Rafsanjani's son who is serving 25 years in prison for corruption]. "The diplomacy of the [Rohani] government in the last two and a half years must be criticized... What sort of policy is it to say, while talks [with the U.S.] are at their peak, that America can destroy all our armed forces with the push of a button, [as Rohani said]? Instead of presenting themselves as strong, these people present themselves as weak. Had America been capable of doing so, it would have destroyed Lebanon. [But it cannot do so], let alone destroy the armed forces of Iran... "This creeping infiltration [of Iran by the enemy] is aimed at changing our way of thinking, that is, our worldview, our goal, and our way of life. That is, [it is intended to make us] think like America thinks. After the JCPOA, America has become even more savage than it was before. "There are those who are completing the infiltration project [from within Iran]. Some of them call the [members of] the religious [camp, i.e. the ideological camp] 'extremists' only because they criticize [America and the pragmatic camp] and tell the truth. [Khamenei] said that calling the Basij 'extremist' means completing the infiltration. "The public in Tehran and Iran is not such a corpse that the English and the Queen of England should decide our list [of candidates] and tell us who to vote for and who not to vote for. We must be vigilant and thwart England's wishes [referring to the BBC analysis]."[11] Former Intelligence Minister: The Enemy Is Busy Identifying People And Streams In Iran So As To Choose Which To Use To Harm Islam And The Revolution Heydar Moslehi, intelligence minister under President Ahmadinejad, said on January 7, 2016: "The new fitna will be revealed in the social infrastructure. This fitna aims at [eliminating] the foundations of the revolution and harming the country's economy... The enemy has plans for the coming elections and wants its infiltration plan to bear fruit. Those who are formulating this plot want Iran to stop being a [role] model... The stream of arrogance intends to infiltrate [Iran] and to create fitna... [This time,] millions will not be drawn to the streets like in the 2009 fitna... Rather, in this new fitna, some will take to the streets to make their demands and others will say 'let them express this.' "This fitna will be complicated... [since] they will no longer tear up pictures of the Imam Khomeini, because they have already recognized what the public [i.e. the regime] is sensitive to... Another attribute of this new fitna is that it will not be possible to identify it at first... "The enemy today is busy identifying people and streams [in Iran] in order to see which to use to harm Islam and the revolution. In this situation, unless the nation is vigilant, it will be slapped by the enemy. The Iranian nation must not lose the path of Imam Khomeini. The third and fourth generations of the revolution, which have not internalized the Imam [Khomeini], can turn to his writings, which outline the characteristics and methods of resisting the arrogance and [conducting] foreign policy. Today there are those who only tell about their past experiences [hinting at Rafsanjani] and we do not know whether these experiences are true or false. Some have abandoned the writings of the Imam [Khomeini] and rely only on these tales of past experiences, and this leads the young generation to lose the [revolutionary] path... That is why everyone must know that the Imam desired the pure Islam of [the Prophet] Mohammad and the elimination of America."[12] IRGC Official: Those Who Deny That There Is Infiltration Are Paving The Way For The Enemy To Infiltrate Iran Yadollah Javani, senior advisor to Khamenei's representative in the IRGC, said on November 10, 2015: "All the evidence points to an enemy plot to infiltrate Iran's inner circles... [But] in Iran, there is the [pragmatic] stream that is attempting to deny this danger... "Several months ago, leader [Khamenei] mentioned the danger of the enemy's infiltration during the Ahl Al-Bayt World Assembly, saying: 'Their [i.e. the U.S.'s] intention was to turn the talks and the nuclear agreement into a tool of infiltration. We have blocked this path, and will not allow infiltration.' "The body of the Iranian nation has large wounds inflicted by foreign enemies... This means that the West and the imperialists have longstanding experience in infiltrating Iran... From the 1990s onward, the Iranian nation has witnessed a new generation of forces that are serving foreigners and trying to please enemy interests... During different periods, such as the 'reforms' [the era of President Khatami] these forces increased... Foreigners used their agent and created the 2009 fitna. "Six years have passed since the fitna of 2009 and now, after the JCPOA, America wants to infiltrate Iran. After a long period during which America had severed its ties with Iran, it has reached the conclusion that the best way to harm Iran and the Iranian nation is to infiltrate it... The same journalists and social media that once denied the enemy infiltration and the 2009 fitna and supported fitna elements are denying the enemy's infiltration plot now [as well]. In recent years, they have promoted Western values in the media, the universities, the arts, etc. They readily accept funds from foreigners and enemies, and write in favor of foreigners in their newspapers. "Therefore, the nation should be vigilant and know that those who deny and downplay the infiltration are actually the main people paving the way for this enemy infiltration. The nation should be sensitive about those who pave the way for the foreign infiltration, and should beware them. They must demand that the elements concerned deal seriously and legally with this stream and its main players."[13] Majlis Official Zakani Attacks "Fitna Agent" Rafsanjani Alireza Zakani, head of the Majlis Special Commission for Reviewing the JCPOA, made a series of statements attacking Rafsajnani, and accusing him of being an agent of the American fitna who has betrayed the values of the revolution: Zakani Hints At Rafsanjani: There Is A Fifth Column in Iran Working For The U.S.; The JCPOA Is A Tool For U.S. Infiltration Of Iran On November 12, 2015, Zakani said: "Iran's primary enemy is America. America is the 'Great Satan' and is full of crimes and plots... Iran has chosen the path of truth, and in accordance with the philosophy of the Islamic Revolution, it devotes all its efforts to purging the region of elements that are subordinate to the regime of arrogance [i.e. the U.S.]... "Today, the enemy's efforts are entirely focused on infiltrating [Iran], since this is its best and cheapest way to harm the revolution. The enemy cannot promote its infiltration project without its fifth column, because without these people, the infiltration project will have no impact... "The leader [Khamenei] looks at the current situation and defines schism as the central factor that leads to deviating from the path of Islam. This schism mainly stems from figures [hinting at Rafsanjani] who have a revolutionary past and who have relinquished the [revolutionary] values, but say nothing about this to the people and instead continue delivering speeches and relating their past experiences. The enemy's current goals in infiltrating [Iran] are to beautify America and rid the [Iranian] people of their negative beliefs regarding the American enemy, to make the people despair of their [revolutionary] values, to create schism in society, to cause the people to be displeased, and to pit them against the regime and the revolution... The enemy wants elements dependent on Westerners and people fostered by Westerners to be in charge of the elections. That is why, beginning in 2009, the regime of arrogance has paid special attention to the ballot boxes, since the enemy believes that ballot boxes hidden from the regime could be the entry point for its infiltration... "Unlike some domestic elements, the enemy looks at the JCPOA from a perspective of infiltrating the regime, and tries to present it as a role model... The leader [Khamenei] made up for the deficiencies [in the conduct of the Majlis] vis-a-vis the JCPOA, with his warnings and conditions. If we look at the JCPOA according to the conditions of the Majlis, the leader, and the Supreme National Security Council, we can deny the enemy [its ability] to infiltrate [us], and if we do not, then the JCPOA will become a paved avenue for the enemy's infiltration... "Some yearn to deal with regional issues like [they dealt with] the JCPOA and [wish] to hold talks with America. But the regime will not allow it... The elections for the Assembly of Experts is one of the axes to which great efforts are devoted in order to infiltrate [Iran]... If we do not heed this infiltration, then it will spread to the entire body of the regime, and will be beyond healing. But if we pay close attention from the start, then we can control it. On this level, the worst cancer is American thought and the elements tied to it. "The enemy infiltration expands to culture, policy, economy, and security, but some [regime] officials are not sensitive to this and have [even] opened the gates to the enemy. Even while certain institutions are sensitive and arrest certain people in accordance with the law, some raise a cry over it, because these [officials] require a crisis in order to continue existing, and their interests contradict those of the nation. "Moderate groups have become active in order to play a part in the Majlis elections. Reformists want 50 influential delegates in the Majlis, and that will constitute an active minority. All this is conditional upon the Majlis being held by the pragmatic stream. With this track, the gentlemen want to take [leading conservative politician] Nategh-Nouri and [Majlis Speaker Ali] Larijani for themselves."[14] Zakani: Rafsanjani Falsely Claimed That Ahmadinejad Bought Votes In 2009 And Falsified Election Results; Rafsanjani Said We Wanted Nuclear Weapons; He Is A Fitna Agent Who Wants To Compromise With U.S. On December 28, 2015, Zakani said: "Today we are facing a great difficulty, and if we do not pay close attention to it, then we are not fulfilling our duty to preserve the heritage of the revolution, the leadership, and the people. Thus far we have confronted America six times... In 2009, America targeted the principle of the revolution... After that, America imposed harsh sanctions on Iran... In 2009, America received signs from within the country [i.e. the protests following the elections], and during the 2009 fitna, America imposed smart sanctions [on Iran]... "In the 2009 election, we established a six-man committee, heard the arguments and objections of those who claimed that the 2009 election results were falsified, and spoke with them directly. We met with [former Majlis speaker Mehdi] Karroubi, [Mohsen] Rezaei, Hashemi Rafsanjani, and [Mir-Hossein] Mousavi. They were the only ones who opposed the election [results] in 2009. They had no proof that the results were falsified... Rafsanjani said bad things that cannot be repeated. He claimed on behalf of Rishhari[15] that 15 days prior to the elections, Ahmadinejad collected votes, and that on election day, he paid 50,000 toman to people in order to purchase their votes. We dealt with this issue, and Rishhari never even said such a thing. "America and Europe were bogged down in the nuclear PMD [Potential Military Dimensions] issue. Rafsanjani claimed that in the past and in the 1980s we had wanted nuclear weapons. How do the people benefit from this statement? Does this statement satisfy the hungry bellies of the people? ... After the JCPOA, as the leader said, America intensified its... infiltration... The current fitna is more dangerous than the 2009 fitna... "There are two worldviews for Iranian [regime] officials. One believes in the banner of the Imam [Khomeini], which is currently in the hands of the leader [Khamenei]. This is a jihadi worldview of pure Islam that the leader has identified and that he implements for us... The second worldview is that [of the fitna elements] who say that we must compromise with the 'head of the village' [nickname for the U.S. used by Rafsanjani] and world rulers to achieve peaceful existence. This is a painful view. "The fitna today is greater than in 2009. Its domestic agents are the ones who hold this second view... Had the leader not intervened during the [previous] periods of fitna, who knows how many wars we would have had during those years. They [Rafsanjani and his associates] say that the Rule of the Jurisprudent should become a [leadership] council - this is the worldview of the second group... Today some want to take vengeance on the Imam [Khomeini] and on the revolution... A greater fitna is coming, and the people should be wise and not allow the leaders of this rebellion to achieve their goals and rejoice."[16] Zakani: Rafsanjani Is A Political Opportunist And A Sinner Who Has Abandoned The Values Of Khomeini's Revolution In an interview on November 2, 2015, Zakani said: "On the revolutionary level, to this day Hashemi [Rafsanjani] has a certain characteristic that stems from the following observation: Prior to the revolution, on some topics - including support for the munafiqin ['hypocrites' - nickname for the Mojahedin-e-Khalq] - Rafsanjani did not properly [share] the Imam Khomeini's [position]... When you compare Rafsanjani's path to the philosophy of Khomeini and Khamenei, you find many errors. "In my opinion, Rafsanjani's main problem is that he sees himself as just and [measures] everything in relation to himself... At every turn, he says things that [only] serve his own interests... Why, in the 2005 and 2009 [presidential elections] did Hashemi [Rafsanjani] stand against the people's votes and say that 'there was a forgery?' The people's vote was unacceptable to Hashemi and therefore he does not see it [as valid]. He only accepts the people's vote when they vote for him... [In addition,] some of Hashemi's sons were [involved in] economic corruption that did lasting damage to Iran... "There is substantial daylight between Rafsanjani's and Khomeini's philosophies on sanctions and the U.S., and therefore Rafsanjani has no right to represent Khomeini's... He must repent before God. Thus far we have not spoken to the people about Hashemi. But from now on I have decided to speak to the people about him and relate his many sins that have done great damage to the regime... "In my opinion, Rafsanjani has lost his abilities and has developed a problem of greed... Hashemi made a claim regarding the conduct of Mahmudi Rishhari... But Rishhari said that he never said any such thing. While Hashemi's memories appear to be like this, it is evidence that they are unreliable. He recently spoke of [Iranian] nuclear bombs in the 1980s.[17] This was and still is exploited by foreign media outlets. Can anyone who is vigilant and wise speak this way and create problems for the state? America said that [Syrian President Bashar Al-]Assad used chemical weapons... and Hashemi responded and said 'Assad must not kill his people like this.'[18] Subsequently it was revealed that it was actually terrorist elements who had killed people with chemical weapons... Had Hashemi been vigilant, he would not have spoken this way. "We must reexamine him. Statements like this indicate that Hashemi lacks wits and vigilance. Hashemi should take another look at his inappropriate behavior and opinions."[19] Regime Forces Prepare To Take Action Against "Agents Of Fitna" In mid-November 2015, Gen. Mohammad Bagher Zolghadr, strategic deputy to the head of the Iranian judiciary, said: "The Basij can resist and neutralize the enemy infiltration. The Basij defense force is considered one of the most important elements in the national might. The Basij is a 20-million-strong army... that showed steadfastness during the difficult days of the revolution."[20] Iranian Army deputy chief of staff Masoud Jazayeri said on December 21, 2015: "The Iranian nation stands in opposition to America's strategy to weaken the leader. A close examination of soft warfare indicates serious planning by the regime of arrogance against the leadership in Iran... The sad thing is that some in Iran are party to the enemy's policy, strategy, and machinations. They present bold views influenced by foreign principles or Western thought... There is complete synergy between the foundations of the Iranian regime and the principle of the rule of the jurisprudent. Those who see this as unacceptable [hinting at to Rafsanjani] should not occupy a position in the regime. The vigilant and revolutionary people cannot allow these people to be brazen, and the people will deal with them at the proper time."[21] At a conference marking the December 30, 2009 suppression of the unrest, Jazayeri said that at that time, the people had wisely eliminated the fitna in the creation of which America had invested wide-scale intelligence, cultural, and security efforts: "The failure of the 2009 fitna did not herald the end of the serious hostility of wealthy Zionists against Iran. The important thing is to find new methods of implementing fitna. One of America's methods in its struggle with the Islamic Republic of Iran is to ceaselessly attack the regime's supreme leadership... [But] the people are still on the scene and do not fear resisting those who want to harm the revolution's principles and values. This way, they will block this new fitna. "The regime does not [feel] uncomfortable regarding people who rely on their past [i.e. Rafsanjani], who give themselves immunity and plot against the Islamic Revolution. In the 2009 fitna, the [regime's] attitude towards some of the heads of fitna [Mir-Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi, who have been under house arrest since 2011] was soft and conciliatory, [but] if this happens again [in 2016], the wise Iranian people will no longer forgive them."[22] In a February 15, 2016 speech to representatives of Syria's Central Bar Association and affiliated regional councils, Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad addressed the current crisis in Syria and the ways to resolve it. He presented his vision for resolving the crisis, which includes giving priority to the fight against terror and promoting intra-Syrian dialogue, while stressing that only the Syrian people is entitled to determine its future and that the political process must proceed alongside the military campaign against terror. He also stressed that the transitional phase must be in accordance with the present Syrian constitution. Assad said that the opposition delegation formed by the High Negotiations Committee in Riyadh was a delegation of "traitors and terrorists" nominated by Saudi Arabia. Hence, he said, any negotiation with it is actually negotiation not with Syrian elements but with Saudi Arabia, which would yield no results. Addressing the efforts to reach an imminent ceasefire, Assad said that chances of this were small, and also clarified that such a ceasefire would not mean the cessation of all hostilities, but rather a cessation to reinforcing and arming the terrorists. He clarified further that terrorists are all those who bear arms against the regime, not just those whom the U.N. has designated terrorists. In response to reports about a possible Saudi-Turkish ground operation in Syria, Assad said that it was the U.S., rather than Saudi Arabia or Turkey, who would decide this. As for the presence of Russian and Iranian forces in Syria, he stated that these forces were helping the Syrian army make headway but were not taking its place. Assad expressed confidence in his victory, and emphasized that a resolution to the crisis would be achieved by persisting in the war on terror while achieving local ceasefire agreements,[1] which, he said, have so far proven to be effective. The following are excerpts from his speech.[2] Image: SANA (Syria), February 15, 2016 The West Is Supporting Terror; Political Process Must Proceed Alongside Fight Against Terrorism "The main action of Western [countries] recently has been to support terrorism. This was clear, as we have said, but at the same time, their main game has been a political game that has lasted to this moment. They called it 'the political solution,' [while] I called it the political process, considering that there is no such thing as a military solution or a political solution. There is a solution to the problem [that includes] a political process and a struggle against terrorism. "They [the West] called it 'the political solution' for several reasons. First, by using the term political solution they wished to create the impression, primarily in public opinion in their own countries, that they are nations that act peacefully and have policies that are nonviolent and do not strive for war or destruction. [They wanted to show] that they stand with groups who operate peacefully inside Syria and with the Syrian people in favor of a democratic or peaceful solution. At the same time, [they also] used this track to cover for their Syrian agents, by [portraying them] as a group of statesmen who operate peacefully and wish... to help the Syrian people break free of oppression, killing, lack of democracy, regime monopoly, and [other Western] talk that you are closely acquainted with... "The dangerous thing about this [Western] proposal is that one of its goals is to make the Syrian people feel like there is always a way out from the crisis. Any person, when told: 'There is a military solution and a political solution, which do you choose?' will say 'I choose the political solution, in order to stop the bloodshed and minimize losses, [so] why go with the military solution?' He subconsciously says that the latter solution, the political one, comes at the expense of the former [the military one], but he is unaware that they are concurrent solutions. [The West is actually saying:] We will continue to support terrorism, but at the same time, you must make concessions on the political track. Initially, many were deceived by this proposal. Despite being aware of all these bad intentions, we responded to all political initiatives in order to thwart them and to prove to the Syrian citizen that they [the West] are liars and cheaters..." Fighting Terrorism Is The Priority; Syrian People Will Determine Its Own Fate "Whether or not we were present [in conferences regarding Syria], we were [always] concerned with two matters: First, prioritizing the fighting against terrorism... As far as we are concerned, fighting terrorism is the first priority and this will not change, not now or in the future. Second, without addressing Security Council Resolution 2254 or the Geneva I communique, our concern out of all this is that the decision is in the hands of the Syrian people, obviously in addition to Syrian sovereignty and territorial integrity. This is an obvious matter that was decided and is mentioned in these resolutions, and despite this, they [the West] set all this aside and say, for instance, that a 'transitional governing body' [should be established].[3] What is the meaning of this contradiction? Either we decide what we want or the West decides what it wants. There cannot be two contradictory decisions or contradictory clauses within the same resolution. In effect, all these resolutions are the result of arrangements made in an international conflict between two axes: An axis that wants to affirm international legitimacy based on the UN Charter, and an axis that desires hegemony - obviously the West - which ignores all these treaties. Due to this reason, we see contradictory matters in all these resolutions. "Without addressing all the clauses, what interests us is the sovereignty of the Syrian people. Therefore, we will not carry out any move on our part unless it is based on this principle... There may be some Syrian-Syrian dialogue to reach a certain result, but if this result harms the constitution and exceeds the government's authority, there will be no choice but to conduct a referendum so that every Syrian citizen can have a say in this matter. "The issue is not as they wish to portray it - between the [Syrian] government and opposition groups - but rather between the entire Syrian people and the others, whomever they may be - terrorists, agents, opportunists. This is a national matter..." Any Transitional Phase Must Be In Accordance With The Current Constitution "Any transitional phase must be conducted in accordance with the current [Syrian] constitution. The [West's] intention in establishing a transitional governing body is to deviate from the constitution and abolish it, thereby creating chaos. What governs a country, any country? What governs society or guides it? The constitution. When the constitution is abolished and a [different] body is set up [in its place], society is necessarily managed in accordance with the character of that body or of its members, who are committed to their own narrow interests, and in practice [are committed] to orders they receive from the outside. Hence, the entire process must be conducted in accordance with [the current] constitution, and the current constitution must be upheld until, by means of dialogue or by means of some future body, we reach a new constitution and the Syrian people vote on it, as happened three or four years ago in the case of the present constitution. At that point we will adopt the new constitution..." A Ceasefire Means Ceasing Support For Terrorists; Anyone Bearing Arms Against Us Is A Terrorist "The additional point being discussed right now is the ceasefire. When does the West speak of a ceasefire? I believe the answer is clear - when the armed groups suffer and the defeats begin. First, [regarding] the terminology - a ceasefire is between armies and countries and not between a country [and] terrorists. Therefore this term is wrong. The term can be a cessation of action or hostilities or something of the sort... "The ceasefire, or cessation of hostilities, if it is achieved, does not mean the sides will stop using weapons - this is a very myopic interpretation. A ceasefire, first and foremost, means a cessation to reinforcing terrorist [military] positions. We will not permit the transfer of weapons, equipment, or terrorists, and will not allow the improvement and reinforcement of the positions- all this is forbidden... "Who are the terrorists? This question is now arising. [Some say] there are two organizations or four. The Security Council has designated ISIS and Jabhat Al-Nusra [terrorist organizations], and there are friendly countries [meaning Russia] who want Ahrar Al-Sham and Jaysh Al-Islam [to be defined this way as well]. For us, as a state, a terrorist is anyone who has taken up arms against the state and against the Syrian people. This issue is non-negotiable... They are all terrorists... until they lay down their arms or until we make an arrangement with them, as is happening [on the ground]." A Ceasefire Cannot Be Achieved Within A Week "In the case that a ceasefire is reached with some terrorist groups, and I stress the word terrorist - its purpose will not be [to allow them] to reinforce their positions, but rather to open the door back to the political process... or, at the very least, [to get them] to throw down their arms... Thus far, they have said that they want a ceasefire within a week. Well, who can meet all these conditions or demands within one week? No one. Who will speak to the terrorists? If one terrorist organization rejects the ceasefire, who will hold it accountable? Who will bomb them, as they claim? ... Practically speaking, all this talk is hard [to implement]. But we speak of principles. If all these demands are met, this cessation of hostilities should improve the security situation and bring about reconciliations or arrangements [with fighting groups], or anything else we are currently doing routinely..." Saudi Arabia And Turkey Cannot Decide On A Ground Incursion Into Syria On Their Own "The truth is that when we currently discuss whether Turkey or Saudi Arabia will attack [in Syria], this means that we assign great importance to them, as though they were countries with decision-making [powers] and a will [of their own], which can change the map, when in fact they are merely proxies carrying out the orders [of others]. They play the 'mouthpiece' that intends to blackmail us by saying: If we go to another round of talks, if there are no concessions, then there will be a ground incursion. If they were permitted to do this, they would have done so already, at least several months ago. Therefore, we must look at the master of these two countries. Does he wish to enter into such a war between superpowers or not?...This is what we must realize. This [ground] incursion is not [just] seen as part of the Syrian crisis, but rather in a wider context... The Aal Sa'ud family wanted to embark on a picnic in Syria and change matters there. [If they were permitted to do so,] they would have done so long ago. We have nothing to worry about, but, as we say, we must [also] not discount the possibility of foolish acts, since they exist, especially when the fate [of Turkey and Saudi Arabia] depends on solving the Syrian crisis. If there is a solution to the crisis, the political future of these regional groups that are subordinate to the West will end. At the same time, the West has an international agenda that does not enable its subordinate countries to do as they please, but rather only in accordance with its written plan. Therefore, this is a serious matter. It will not be easy to enter such a war, since it will have global implications, not just local ones." The Riyadh Opposition Delegation Is One Of Traitors And Terrorists; Negotiating With It Is Negotiating With Saudi Arabia "One question has repeated itself in Syria: Will we agree to negotiate with terrorists? In terms of logic - the raison d'etat and the logic of morals and principles - no country can agree to negotiate with terrorists. Therefore the answer is no. Legally speaking, terrorists should be held accountable... The delegation assembled in Riyadh is a grab bag of traitors and terrorists... "When we say 'Syrian-Syrian dialogue,' this means that we will negotiate with Syrians who are members of the Syrian people in every sense of the world - those with roots in Syria and not in other countries; [this,] while the delegation we negotiate with includes either terrorists or terrorism supporters. [And indeed,] in Geneva we negotiated with terrorism supporters and not just with traitors. I mean, what's the difference? The results were the same... If we negotiate with the Riyadh delegation, we will [effectively] be negotiating with Saudi Arabia, and therefore we will not discuss the Syrian constitution with it. We might talk to it, for instance, about the Saudi constitution and human rights in Saudi Arabia. We cannot discuss Syria's future with it. "This depends on the makeup of the opposition. Can the Syrian opposition, in its nationalist sense, take control of the arena? If it can, then we can conduct Syrian-Syrian dialogue. If it cannot, then the main dialogue will remain with groups subordinate to other countries, and will not be Syrian-Syrian. If dialogue is not Syrian-Syrian, we cannot reach true results..." The Solution Is To Combat Terrorism While Reaching Local Reconciliation Agreements "Thus far, the practical solution, in addition to the struggle with terrorism that we constantly highlight, is the local reconciliation agreements, which were proven to be largely effective and are currently making headway, not slowly or swiftly, but steadily..." Iranian, Russian Presence Helps Us Advance But Does Not Come In Our Place; We Will Undoubtedly Win "Some wish to say that if not for the Russian and Iranian friends, and perhaps some others, standing with us, the state could not stabilize. Undoubtedly, the presence of friends has helped this, but while friends can stand beside us, they cannot stand in our place... If not for our stand as Syrians, [and if not] for the mighty stand of the Syrian army against all these challenges, we could not have stood fast for this entire time in this unprecedented war. In any case, we will undoubtedly win..." Endnotes: On February 11, 2016, the 37th anniversary of the Islamic Revolution, the Urdu-language service of the Iranian government-run television channel Sahar TV devoted its Andaz-e-Jahan ("Way of the World") program to "The Islamic Revolution and the Wave of Islamic Awakening." The Iranian state-run Urdu television channel is aimed at Urdu-speaking Shi'ite audiences in Pakistan and India. Still from TV program on Iranian Sahar TV's Urdu service The following is a summary and excerpts from the program:[1] Since Iran's Islamic Revolution, "The Wave Of The Islamic Awakening In The World Of Islam Has Been Regenerating And Increasing Day By Day" Program host Ali Abbas Rizvi began by stating: "Greetings to all of you on the 37th anniversary of the success of the Islamic Revolution. Today's day marks the domination of the faith over Kufr [unbelief]. Today's day is the day of Islam's victory over ilhad [atheism]. Today's day is the day of success of the oppressed over the oppressor. Today's day is when the Iranian nation challenged the superpowers of the West and the East. Today's day is when the existence of the imperialist powers was shaken... "From that day to now, the wave of the Islamic awakening in the world of Islam has been regenerating and increasing day by day. The historic day of February 11, 1979, when under the leadership of Imam [Ayatollah Ruhollah] Khomeini... the people of Iran terminated the 2,500-year-old kingship from Iran forever, and from that day to today, Iran is the Islamic Iran. The Islamic Revolution was not just a nation's revolution. The Islamic Revolution was not a mere political revolution. The Islamic Revolution was not for bread, clothes and house... From the ideas of the Iranian Islamic Revolution, not only the Muslim nations but also the freedom-loving nations of the world are receiving intuition, inspiration and courage." The program then screened a clip of celebrations of the anniversary across Iran, with background commentary, including footage stated to be of rallies in over 1,000 cities and more than 4,000 villages in which millions participated. According to a commentator, the crowds shouted slogans in favor of self-determination, freedom and the Islamic Republic. The commentator noted that the Iranian President Hassan Rouhani had told them that in the 1979 Islamic Revolution, "the world saw how a religious leader [Imam Khomeini] can rule over the hearts of people even in modern times... We are aware that the Islamic Revolution is not simply a political revolution..." Program host Ali Abbas Rizvi on the left; Pakistani guest Ali Raza Alvi on the right According to the commentator, "A resolution was passed at the end of the rallies in which imperialist powers were warned that if they attempted to threaten Iran or weaken it, then the Iranian nation will give a mouth-breaking response to the enemies." The resolution also noted: "The anti-imperialist Iranian nation even now considers America its biggest enemy." The participants in the rallies condemned the Islamic State (ISIS) and other Takfiri groups (i.e. Muslims who declare other Muslims as apostates) and expressed support for the governments of Syria and Iraq as well as the Iranian-backed armed "volunteer groups" - according to the program. Program Host: "It Was Clarified To The World That If Someone Somewhere Has Doubt That After [The JCPOA] A Warm Corner Has Birthed In The Hearts Of The Iranian People For The Imperialist Powers, Then That Is Just Their Whim" After the clip, program host Ali Abbas Rizvi stated: "And the air of the Islamic Republic of Iran was filled for hours with the slogans of 'Allah is the Great, Death to America, Death to Israel' - and it was clarified to the world that if someone somewhere has doubt that after the nuclear agreement [with America] a warm corner has birthed in the hearts of the Iranian people for the imperialist powers, then that is just their whim..." Next, two experts joined the program, Prof. Ahmed Taimuri of Iran and journalist Ali Raza Alvi of Pakistan. Prof. Taimuri said: "The Iranian Islamic Revolution is not specific to Iran. The Iranian Islamic Revolution has international aspects." He added that the Iranian people's relationship with the leader (an apparent reference to Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei) has frustrated the enemies' hopes to weaken Iran through the international economic sanctions. "The Islamic Revolution has been successful in all aspects, despite the fact that they imposed different types of sanctions and tried to crush Iran in many ways," he added. Iranian Prof. Ahmed Taimuri Journalist Ali Raza Alvi, speaking from Islamabad, was asked by the program host: "What is the spirit and motivation behind the success of the Islamic Revolution, even after 37 years?" Alvi responded: "Even after 37 years [since the Islamic Revolution], a third or fourth generation [of Iranians] has the same love for and agreement with the revolution that their forefathers did." Stating that despite Western propaganda, the Islamic Revolution had been accepted by the Iranian masses, Alvi said: "There is something in the Iranian Revolution that keeps them [the masses] tied to it," adding that it is the ideology of the Rule of the Jurisprudent that binds them to the Islamic Revolution. He added: "Due to this rvolution, the honor of Islam has risen in the entire world." Asked to comment on the Islamic Revolution's impact on the Palestinian issue, Alvi said that the Arab countries were not raising the Palestinian issue at various international forums and were maintaining silence about it, as if to show that they had no sympathy for the Palestinian children killed by Israel. He added: "Since Iran's Islamic Revolution, Iran has been the country mostly raising the issue of Palestine. Generally, it was thought that the Palestinian issue is a matter for the Arabs, and mostly Arabs are impacted by it." Endnote: Angered by Washington and Moscow's support of the secular, moderate Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD), as well as by advances by the army of the Syrian regime of President Bashar Al-Assad around Aleppo and its cutting of all the supply lines to the Islamist rebels from Turkey, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his AKP government have been making statements indicating that Turkey may make a desperate and dangerous attempt to act militarily and confront Russia in Syria - which may drag NATO into an unwanted conflict. Erdogan and Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu are claiming that the PYD, along with its armed wing, the Peoples' Protection Units (YPG), is a terrorist organization affiliated with the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), against which Turkey is conducting massive operations in Turkey and in northern Iraq. The AKP government equates the PYD with the Islamic State (ISIS), and considers the High Negotiation Committee (HNC), the coalition recently formed in Riyadh by Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar, as the only legitimate opposition group. Under the HNC umbrella are jihadi organizations, such as Jaysh Al-Islam and Ahrar Al-Sham, which Russia considers terrorist organizations. The PYD, along with like-minded Arab fighters, formed the Syrian Democratic Council (SDC), as the other opposition group. Its secular, democratic-progressive nature contrasts with the sectarian Islamist Salafi nature of the Riyadh group. SDC members are the ground forces that the U.S. supports and relies on in its fight against ISIS. On January 26, 2016, three days before the Geneva III talks were meant to begin between the Syrian government and these two main opposition groups, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said that Turkey would boycott the talks in Geneva if the PYD is invited to sit at the negotiation table as part of the opposition. Prime Minister Davutoglu reiterated the same threat a few hours later. The U.S. accepted this, with the aim of refraining from antagonizing Turkey, and U.S. State Department deputy spokesman Mark Toner said the next morning that the PYD would not take part in the negotiations at this time. At the same time, Russia demanded that UN special envoy for the Syria crisis Staffan de Mistura not give in to Turkey's "blackmail." Following Turkey's ultimatum, de Mistura withdrew the invitation to PYD leader Saleh Muslim, who had already arrived in Geneva for the talks, but did invite Haytham Manna, Muslim's secular Arab partner in the SDC. Manna rejected the invitation, saying that he would not sit at the table unless his Kurdish co-chair, Saleh Muslim, was also invited. Members of the Islamist HNC were also unwilling to start negotiating with the Syrian government until it agreed to meet their preconditions. On the second day of the talks, the opening of which had been delayed until February 1, 2016, de Mistura declared them a failure and ended them. Following are excerpts from Turkish media critical of Turkey's contrarian actions: SDC Co-Chair Manna: Erdogan Wanted An Islamist Jihadi Syria Following Turkey's blocking of the participation of the Syrian Kurds' representative, the PYD, at the Geneva peace talks, the co-chair of the U.S.-supported SDC, Haytham Manna, stated that the SDC would not participate in the talks, and that therefore the group would not abide by any decisions made during the talks. Manna told the Turkish opposition daily Cumhuriyet: "Erdogan has always been supportive of the extremists in Syria. You cannot bring in an extremist regime in Syria to replace a dictator. We need democracy. As someone who follows politics in Turkey, and as someone who maintains good relations with opposition figures, I can say that Erdogan never wanted a secular democratic Syria. He wanted an Islamist and jihadi one. The peace process, and these talks, can go nowhere without the participation of the Kurdish leader Saleh Muslim of the PYD. They [the international community] need us, because we control and have sovereignty over 16% of Syria."[1] Turkish Analyst: What A Shame It Is For Turkish Diplomacy, To Say 'If PYD Is At The Negotiation Table, ISIS Must Be Too' In the Turkish opposition daily Diken, Cenk Sidar wrote that the international actors' finally agreeing on a road map for trying to resolve the tragic Syrian crisis that is threatening the entire region diplomatically through negotiations was a promising development, noting, "The constructive attitudes of the U.S. and Russia, despite their differences, gave hope for a possible solution." He continued with a condemnation of his country's shameful behavior: "From the very beginning of the crisis, the AKP government, which out of political calculations cut all ties and negotiations with Assad, has taken no steps towards peace building and has aided and armed all sorts of questionable groups. It must still not understand that Turkey has ended up as the loser, both politically and materially. Now, the AKP government has said that Turkey would boycott the Geneva talks if the Kurdish PYD is invited to participate. No actor but Turkey would make such threats. This is a source of shame for Turkey." Sidar added that it is only normal that the PYD should be at the table, as it controls an important region in northern Syria and is the only political representative of Syria's Kurds. He asked: "If the PYD is a terrorist organization [as AKP government officials often claim], why has the AKP government hosted PYD leader [Saleh Muslim] multiple times in Ankara? Were they not committing the crime of aiding and abetting a terrorist organization by hosting its leader? And how can the AKP government, that sat to negotiate with PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan [in a Turkish prison] be unable to sit with the PYD in Geneva for the humanitarian ideal of building peace? What a contradiction it is [for it to] reject the PYD's inclusion in the Geneva talks! And how shameful for our traditions of diplomacy to say 'if the PYD participates, so must ISIS.'"[2] Columnist Tastekin: Turkey Is "Part Of - Or Even The Source Of - The [Syria] Crisis" In his January 27, 2016 column in the liberal opposition Turkish daily Radikal, Fehim Tastekin criticized the AKP government's Syria policy and its hostility towards the Kurds, and said that Turkey was livid because the peace initiative in Geneva was not aimed at guaranteeing that Assad would go. The Geneva process, he wrote, was a symbol of the end of Erdogan's and Davutoglu's dreams of having their Friday prayers in Damascus soon, as they had stated in 2012. Arguing that nothing that AKP government planned had worked, that the U.S. had not heeded its demands and ultimatums, and that the Kurdish PYD and YPG had become a rising force in the eyes of both the U.S. and Russia, Tastekin stated: "Turkey is using the Kurds to torpedo the peace process, sabotaging the peace table... and beating up Kurds, both inside and in Syria] to no avail... Some in Ankara [i.e. the AKP and pro-AKP media] may interpret this tactic of sabotage[ing the peace process] as a way of showing the power of the great Turkish state. But it not only diminishes Turkey as an actor in the resolution of the crisis, it makes it a part of - or even the source of - the crisis."[3] Turkish Analyst On Rise In U.S.-Turkey Tensions Over PYD Prominent Turkish columnist and analyst Cengiz Candar of Radikal, wrote that around the time the Geneva talks began, in late January 2016, he had participated in two international panels in Europe on Kurdish issues. At that time, he said, he had told EU and U.S officials: "The attitude of the U.S. with regard to the developments in the Middle East reminds of Britain during World War I. They make similar promises that they cannot keep, to powers that are in conflict with one another."[4] The previous week, Candar had written that faced with choosing between Ankara and PYD, the U.S., gritting its teeth, had at that point chosen Ankara, sacrificing the PYD, its ally and the only force fighting against ISIS, for Turkey. He also noted that the U.S. would have to do something to balance its act, to show that it cares about the interests of the Kurds, so as not lose an important ally to Russia.[5] His advice was validated shortly thereafter, when Brett McGurk, the U.S. State Department's Special Presidential Envoy for the Global Coalition to Counter ISIL, visited the Kurdish town of Kobane on January 30-31 together with French and British representatives, and held talks for two days with the PYD, the YPG, and representatives of the Kurdish autonomous region. This visit was the first to Syria by a high-level U.S. official. Candar wrote on February 3, 2016: "Erdogan and Davutoglu shout, every day, at the top of their lungs, that 'the PYD is terrorist,' and make nonsensical claims that 'the PYD is an accomplice to the massacres by the Assad regime' - [accusations] that no one in his right mind would believe. As they continue to scream, the highest-ranking U.S. representative to Syria visits the Kurdish town of Kobane - showing that when it comes to the PYD, the U.S. does not care about what Turkey is saying. At the time of this Kobane visit, the American and Russian delegations were each holding meetings in Geneva with PYD leader Saleh Muslim, promising him that the PYD would participate in later stages of the talks and that the Kurds would play a role in shaping the future of Syria." Noting that as the Geneva talks are the focus, the Russians are at the same time continuing to bomb rebel targets; with their help, he stated, the Syrian army had retaken the area north of Aleppo, cutting off the road to, and Turkey's strategic supply lines to, the Islamist organizations that had controlled Aleppo and the surrounding area since 2012.[6] He added: "The mentality of Turkey's rulers can promise only blood, death, and tears."[7] Erdogan gives "rabi'a" hand sign: "Hey America!" Haberexpress, February 10, 2016 Erdogan Lashes Out At U.S. And Russia For his part, President Erdogan lambasted the U.S. over McGurk's visit to Kobane. On February 5, 2016, he told reporters on his plane on his way back from his Latin America tour: "The PYD and YPG are terrorist organizations just as the PKK is. We have warned you about this all the time. Now, Obama's representative visits Kobane at the time of Geneva talks. The PYD cannot participate in Geneva, but these [people] go all the way to Kobane to meet with them! He [McGurk] is awarded a plaque by a so-called YPG general! How can we trust you [i.e. the U.S.]? You choose: Is it I who am your ally, or is it the terrorists in Kobane?" Asked about a Russian statement the previous day that the activity along the border showed that the Turkish military was getting ready to invade Syria, Erdogan lashed out at Russia too: "Why are you in Syria? You are an invader there. You are acting together with a murderer [i.e. Assad] who killed 400,000 people through state terror. You continue to kill civilians. The Turkish military never did that. Our 911-km border [with Syria] is under threat - of course we will take all measures [they deem necessary]. We must be ready at any given moment. Furthermore, our kinsmen [i.e. the Turkmens] are there [in Syria]. Hey Russia! What's it to you? Do you have a border there? Do you have kinsmen there? What business do you have there?"[8] In response to Erdogan's criticism, State Department official John Kirby said, on February 8, that the U.S.'s difference of opinion with Turkey on the issue of the PYD was not new, and added: "We do not recognize the PYD as a terrorist organization, unlike the PKK." This official statement escalated the tension between two countries, and U.S. Ambassador to Turkey John Bass was summoned to the Turkish Foreign Office in Ankara to be told of Turkey's displeasure.[9] At a February 10 meeting with village and neighborhood administrators, or mukhtars, a furious Erdogan slammed the U.S. again: "Some people abroad say that the PYD and the YPG are not terrorist organizations. They certainly are, just as the PKK is. It is a shame that those who make these statements are advocating for terrorists. Are you with us, or with the terrorist organizations? There is no difference between the PKK, the PYD, and the YPG. We are telling America that they are terrorists, [and] they [i.e. the U.S.] get up and say they do not consider them as such. "Hey America! We have asked you many times: Are you with us or with the terrorist organizations PKK and PYD? Hey America! You cannot teach us about the PKK and the PYD. We know them very well. We know ISIS, and we know them [PKK, PYD, and YPG]. It is because you do not know any of them that there is a bloodbath in the region. What kind of partners are you? Impossible to understand. "They [i.e. U.S. officials] listen quietly when we repeatedly explain, and then behind our back they make those statements. We don't hear anyone criticizing the PYD, an organization that uses children and women. On the contrary, countries that we consider allies are defending this organization."[10] Erdogan further said that Turkey would continue its fight against terrorism, and added: "The azans from our mosques will never be silenced. No one will be able to divide our people or fracture our country. La Galibe illallah ['there is no victor but Allah']."[11] U.S. State Department deputy spokesman Mark Toner responded to Erdogan's recent statements the same day, confirming the U.S.'s non-recognition of the PYD and YPG as terrorist organizations: "There is a big difference between the PKK and the PYD/YPG. We do not share Turkey's view on the YPG, which is an effective fighting force on the ground, and a partner against ISIS. The responsibility for the bloodbath in Syria lies with ISIS and the Assad regime [i.e. not with the U.S., as alleged by Erdogan]."[12] Endnotes: Women passengers were dragged out of their vehicles and allegedly raped in fields near the National Highway in Murthal, Haryana, reported The Tribune. It's unclear if the incident, which happened early on Monday morning, was linked to the Jat agitation, which saw several violent incidents in Murthal and elsewhere in Haryana. State officials have told their families to keep mum for "the sake of their honour" rather than helping them seek justice, Naveen S Garewal and Parveen Arora reported for the newspaper. While the police are dismissing this as a rumour, eyewitnesses told The Tribune that at least 10 women were sexually assaulted in the early hours of Monday morning.Witnesses said that survivors were told by senior officers not to pursue the matter because it would shame them, and what had happened could not be undone. A senior IPS officer said this alleged crime was just a rumour, and advised the media against reporting matters that could create tension in society, The Tribune reported. DNAIndia "Three women were taken to Amrik Sukhdev Dhaba and united with their families in the presence of senior police officers. They appeared lifeless. District officials who arrived there, instead of investigating the matter, persuaded the families to take the women home. Many were provided transport," an eyewitness told the newspaper. The Tribune reported that at least 30 goons attacked commuters heading to the National Capital Region, and set their vehicles on the fire, but women who could not flee were pulled out, stripped and raped. The newspaper further reported that these women lay in the fields until they were discovered by male relatives, while residents Hassanpur and Kurad rushed to bring clothes and blankets for them. Jai Bhagwan, who runs a dhaba on the highway, recalled how some women hid in his dhaba to save themselves from the goons. Village elders Hari Krishan of Kurad and Zile Singh of Hassanpur told The Tribune that they didnt want to talk about the incident as the police are sure to shield the criminals and nobody, not even the locals, are safe. Murthal, known for its highway restaurants, is a popular stopover for travellers on NH1, which connects Delhi to key cities in Punjab and Haryana. (Originally published in HuffPost India) Following his meeting today with the Norwegian Minister for the European Economic Area and European Affairs, Elisabeth Aspaker, the Alternate Foreign Minister for European Affairs, Nikos Xydakis, stated that Norway is a country that speaks through its actions and teaches us how we need to confront global issues, how we can contribute to bringing peace and stability to the region of the Mediterranean, the Middle East and North Africa. The Greek government and I, personally, are grateful for the visit and the talks. We know that support will follow. The meeting between the two Ministers, which was carried out within the framework of Ms. Aspakers scheduled visit to Greece, took place in a very friendly atmosphere, at the Foreign Ministry. Ms. Aspaker, who is visiting Greece for the first time in her capacity as Minister, expressed her fondness for our country, which she has visited many times in the past. The talks between the two Ministers focused on the strengthening of the longstanding, close relations of cooperation between Greece and Norway, as well as on current European affairs. Special reference was made to the refugee crisis and developments in Syria. The two Ministers agreed on the need to deal with the refugee and migration flows reaching Europe, through a common and cohesive European policy inspired by the principles of solidarity and humanism. Moreover, they stressed the need for the countries of Europe to play an active role in bringing peace and stability to Syria and the wider Mediterranean region. In the context of the shaping of the new programme of the European Economic Area, there was an in-depth discussion of and exchange of views on specific issues the approach to which can be strengthened via close cooperation between the two countries. Among these, and constituting shared priorities for both sides, are youth unemployment, development of entrepreneurship, and best practices for managing the migration and refugee issue. Mr. Xydakis noted the great warmth and productivity of his meeting with Ms. Aspaker, highlighting that the day before yesterday, assistance came from the Portuguese people. Yesterday it was the region of Valencia that extended a helping hand. Today it is Norways turn. Ms. Aspaker stated that we support Greece with regard to both the issue of handling the refugee and migration crisis, as well as the programmes that concern Greek society. For the coming years, through the programmes of the EEA and of Norwegian Grants, we support the programmes for entrepreneurship, innovation, job creation, strengthening civil society. Thus, today, we are talking about ways to develop the next such programmes. I would also like to add that there is 100 million in grants that could be allocated to programmes for confronting youth unemployment and strengthening bilateral cooperation between the EEA countries and Europe. This money also bears directly on the cooperation between Norway and Greece. Regarding the migration crisis, Ms. Aspaker stated that it is a common European responsibility and it should not be handled unilaterally, but through collective cooperation. Norway is not a member of the European Union, but it belongs to the Schengen Area and believes that there must be common solutions to common problems, stressing that Europe must show solidarity, and this means Greece cannot be left on its own to face the crisis. Mr. Xydakis highlighted that the member states of the European Union and all of the European countries will meet soon it is a matter of days. Subsequently, we will again take care of the desperate people reaching Europe from war zones. I am certain that the countries of Europe, the peoples of Europe, will respect international regulations and the foundations of European culture. The Alternate Foreign Minister for European Affairs, Nikos Xydakis, met at the Foreign Minister today with the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi. The meeting took place following Mr. Grandis meeting with the Prime Minister. The two collocutors focused on the unprecedented refugee crisis and the actions that must be taken to confront the crisis, to the benefit not only of the people fleeing from war zones but also of the transit and reception states. They discussed the worrying developments on the Western Balkan corridor and the potential for confronting the refugee and migration crisis, which exceeds the capabilities not only of one country, but also of Europe as a whole. It would be of great political significance and highly symbolic if the UN Secretary General himself, Ban Ki-moon, visited the Eastern Aegean, the gateway of the refugee and migrant influx into Europe, Mr. Xydakis stressed during the talks. Special mention was made of the UNHCRs providing support to the Greek authorities for managing the refugee flows. The collocutors also referred to aspects of the NATO operation, agreeing on the need to promote the processes for relocation and resettlement of refugees. Mr. Grandi highlighted that, from the moment the refugees reach European territory that is, pass into Greek territorial waters Greece and the European Union are bound to respect the international conventions that determine the rights of all those who need international protection. The meeting, which took place in the context of the High Commissioners visit to Greece, was also attended by Vincent Cochetel, the UNHCR's Regional Refugee Coordinator for the Refugee Crisis in Europe, Melissa Fleming, Head of the UNHCR Communications and Public Information Service and Spokesperson for the High Commissioner, Christian Baureder, Special Assistant to the High Commissioner, and Philippe Leclerc, the UNHCR Representative in Greece LAKE TOWNSHIP Officials want a state agency to investigate an unusual and extraordinary power surge they say fried electronics at the town hall and racked up $6,000 in damages for one resident. Lake Township filed a claim with DTE Energy in response to a power surge that involved a circuit serving about 100 customers in the Champagne and Kinde roads area on Nov. 1, 2015. The power surge damaged printers, a fax machine and phones at the township hall which officials say were protected by surge protectors and appliances at residents homes. Township Supervisor Valerie McCallum said one resident, a neighbor to the town hall on Kinde Road, filed a claim for $6,000 in damages. At another home, she said a resident saw lights popping out when the surge happened. Interestingly, one resident has said he wasnt staying in his house, but an electrical surge blew out the furnace or the computer that controls the furnace, Clerk Claren Dede Russell said, adding the resident believes some flooding may have occurred because of it. That resident is Dale Hartsell, a Lake Township trustee and Port Austin police chief. Hartsell said during a board of commissioners meeting Tuesday it cost about $1,600 to get everything fixed. And I was out $500 too, he said. According to DTE, there was, indeed, a power outage in Lake Township Nov. 1, 2015. DTE Energy Regional Manager Ron Chriss said it occurred at about 12:30 p.m. and was restored six hours later. It affected about 100 customers and the cause was a tree falling on a line due to wind gusts up to 26 mph, Chriss said. The tree came down, hit the 40-kV (line) hence the power surge, if you will, he said, adding the likely culprit was an ash tree and the landowner bears some responsibility. Chriss said fuses opened, as they should, but with a surge like that, sometimes the surge gets out in front of the fuse. When it is an act of God outside our control, all we can do is restore and repair and put everybody back as soon as possible, he said. After being told DTE denied the claim and responsibility, the township called on the Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC), a regulatory agency for public energy, communication and transportation services, to investigate whether DTE was aware of the cause and if it could have been prevented. (W)hile power outages are not unusual to this area, a power voltage surge of the magnitude that occurred on Nov. 1, 2015, is unusual and extraordinary, states a grievance Lake Township filed with MPSC. The township says there was no unusual weather that could have contributed to the surge. Township leaders also want the agency to investigate the adequacy of DTEs electric distribution facilities in the affected area. MPSC responded in a Feb. 4 letter stating Lake Townships complaint did not meet standards for the Commission to investigate. It isnt rejecting the complaint; its rejecting the manner in which it was filed, said Judy Palnau, MPSC spokeswoman. The letter outlines requirements the township must meet, including getting an attorney and requesting a bill credit or payment for damages. Palnau says the agency has not heard back from Lake Township regarding the complaint. Palnau also says MPSC does not get many power surge complaints and typically doesnt get involved in such complaints. The township says it isnt seeking money at this time. Rather, officials say the utilitys explanation has left them in the dark, and theyre calling on the MPSC because it carries a little more clout, Russell said. We are also searching to see if its an act of nature and what they (DTE) were doing in the area to cause this electric surge, Russell said. County commissioners inked a resolution to support the townships request for investigation. In past months, the board asked a DTE representative to look into the power surge. I wrote the resolution, County Commissioner John Nugent said. They suspect theres more to it than what DTE is telling them. They want some definitive answers. Township officials say theyve set claims forms at the Oak Beach Pantry & Pizza and at Gotts Corners across from the town hall on Kinde Road. Several residents have filed damage complaints, Russell said. As for the town hall, Russell says insurance covered the damages, minus a $500 deductible. Officials havent included in the claim things like productivity losses, but Russell said property taxes had to be printed outside the office. The township also sent back its surge protectors, and she says the company is willing to reimburse. Up here, the joke is when the wind blows, youre going to lose your power, Lake Supervisor McCallum said of past power outages, adding one resident tracked 25 last year. These types of surges I dont think should happen. BAD AXE Mitch Roth, a Bad Axe High School graduate, is one of six winners of a Syngenta Agricultural Scholarship essay contest. He will be awarded $7,000 in scholarship funds. A 2010 Bad Axe graduate, Roth graduated from Grand Valley State University in 2014, and is now at Michigan State University doing graduate work. Last spring, Syngenta called for essays from students pursuing degrees in crop-related disciplines at U.S. land grant universities with accredited agriculture programs. Applicants were asked to describe their proposed approaches to implementing one of the six commitments comprising The Good Growth Plan, a measurable, global effort by Syngenta to improve crop productivity while also preserving natural resources. The future of agriculture is dependent on realizing the six commitments of The Good Growth Plan, and we are happy to have found students with thoughtful yet practical ideas for achieving this goal, stated Jill Wheeler, head of sustainable productivity in North America, Syngenta. Implementing an educational program to help encourage productive conversations about agricultural research was among the priorities graduate winner Roth focused on in his essay. He is the son of Phil and Ellen Roth of Bad Axe. HARBOR BEACH The Harbor Beach Board of Education recently recognized its junior high robotics team, which has returned from state competition in Battle Creek. Superintendent Lawrence Kroswek introduced five of the attending six members, who otherwise were at the school working on robotics. The group is under the guidance of teacher David Roggenbuck. The team placed fourth out of 32 teams at regional competition in mid-December, which allowed it to advance to the state event. Team members said they began building their robot in mid-October and finished just before the regionals. We learned a lot, said Jeff Oakley, team leader and an eighth-grader. We had a lot of fun. I thought it was amazing, added team member Desiree Wakefield. Im really proud they gave their all, Roggenbuck said. Their dedication paid off in the end. Each team member was individually introduced to each board member, and they were given certificates of appreciation. Several team members will return next year, although Oakley will go into the ninth grade and will be eligible for the high school team. In other business: Elementary/Middle School Principal Tumara Johnston told the board the state recently passed 21st Century Science Standards. She and a group of teachers will be going to a conference to learn how to implement the new standards. She also reported K-6th grades have finished DIBELS Testing, and almost all of the classes have shown improvement. All of the students winter testing is completed. There are 192 students in the elementary school, and 112 in middle school. She said March is Reading Month for K-8. She announced author Kyle Prue will be at the school on March 4. Prue completed his first book when he was 16 years old. He won the Presidents Award in Florida for that book. He will speak to them about accomplishing their goals and following their dreams. High school principal Michael Hugan told the board he has completed the second round of staff observations. He is now in the process of reviewing senior student transcripts, checking for those who were at risk of not gradating. Those students will be given additional assistance until the end of the school year. He also told the board the National Honor Society would hold a student lock-in this month. There will be numerous activities for students to do during then nights lock-in. If it goes well, it may continue as an annual event. Hugan told the board there are 232 students enrolled in the high school. The board accepted a $200 donation from the Harbor Beach Chamber of Commerce for the robotics team. Former teacher Dave Korbel was selected as the Thumb Meet of Champions Friend of Youth for the Harbor Beach School System. The Army launched a new program Feb. 2 to measure the impact of technology on providing primary care services in reducing the time non-urgent care patients spend in busy emergency centers. The six-month telehealth pilot, administered by Regional Health Command-Atlantic (Provisional), is a joint effort of Blanchfield Army Community Hospital (BACH) and Eisenhower Army Medical Center (EAMC) connecting family medicine and primary care physicians from Eisenhower with patients at Blanchfield to provide medical care via a secured video teleconference. According to Master Sgt. Jason Alexander, RHC-A (P) Clinical Operations NCO, many ill patients use the emergency department after hours due to the unavailability of their primary physician. With the pilot, RHC-A staff are helping the emergency department staff at Blanchfield focus on more serious ill or injured patients. "If you or your family member is sick, having access to a doctor right away is a priority. This is why some patients present to the ED with low acuity", said Alexander."This pilot aims to identify patients who fit this category and redirect them to a primary care doctor at Eisenhower. Not only will the care provided be focused to their need but it will also help reduce their wait time and allow ED professionals to take care of more urgent cases." Accessibility involves establishing a"Virtual Patient-Centered Medical Home or PCMH" to redirect non-urgent care patients from BACH's emergency room in Kentucky to an area where they can be screened and evaluated by qualified telehealth physicians working at the EAMC Telehealth Center 445 miles away in Georgia. A PCMH is a way of organizing primary care that emphasizes care coordination and communication to transform primary care to allow better access to health care, increase satisfaction with care, and improve overall health. Access to care is a key focus area for Army Medicine. In 2014, then Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel released the findings of a military health system review, which described the military's ability to meet certain benchmarks for quality, safety and access to care as average. "Bringing the right care, by the right person, at the right time, and in the right format will enable us to transform our delivery of care and improve patient access to that care," wrote Brig. Gen. Ron Place, RHC-A commanding general, in his February message to regional staff. "Our whole objective here is really not to just assist wait times but to assist people who leave because they are tired of waiting and leave without being seen," said Alexander."So the 'left without being seen' rate should drop, our wait times should drop, and the quality of the encounter and our handoff back to primary care should improve as we integrate our systems from this redirect process back to into primary care inside of the hospital." Lt. Col. Kevin Horde, a family medicine physician from Fort Benning's Martin Army Community Hospital supporting the pilot at EAMC, had no telehealth experience before joining the pilot team. "It's a great opportunity to move our care delivery to the next level," he said. In order to get ready for his first virtual patient, Horde had to take online classes in the use and application of telehealth and had to be credentialed to practice at both EAMC (his base of operations for the pilot) and BACH. Hours of practical experience followed under the tutelage of Dr. Wood, chief of telehealth at EAMC. Simulated patients and scenarios were used to get Horde, and the nearly dozen RHC-A physicians training to support the pilot, comfortable with the virtual exam process. "With that very first patient I had a little anxiety despite all of the training," Horde said."Family medicine is hands-on. But the technology actually enabled me to have some great interaction with the patient. I was surprised." Horde says the patients he has seen during the first weeks of the pilot all seem to enjoy the process and the attention both he and the support team at BACH provide. "After the nurses in the room with the patient explain the process, I come on the screen," he added."Usually their first reaction is a smile. I think they are curious about being a part of this [pilot] and interested in the entire process because it is new. We are truly working together as a team and that is what the patient-physician relationship should be." Voluntary surveys given to patients after the exam indicate that they feel their medical problem was adequately addressed and they are satisfied with their telehealth experience. High-Tech, Right-Touch Hospitals across the region have used telehealth, mostly tele-behavioral health for years. EAMC is among the leading telehealth centers in the region, its location at Fort Gordon, home of the Army Cyber Center of Excellence, the Army's proponent for communications and information services, provides prime access to the subject matter experts and technology infrastructure. "Of course, you can do telehealth anywhere with the right resources, but I like to think we are at the right place for this pilot program," said Joseph Wood, chief, Telehealth Service Line, EAMC. "We have been pro-telehealth for a number of years and with our medical center status, medical specialty expertise, and an interest in trying new things, I am excited that EAMC is a part of the pilot." Telehealth exams are more complex that the traditional face-to-face exams, according to Wood. Physicians have to be credentialed at every hospital where they see patients and patient appointments must be made at both the hospital and telehealth site. "We also have to ensure that system access at both locations is available and meets our high standards regarding HIPPA and PII compliance," Wood said."We also have to have point-to-point encryption. This is not like using your computer with some of the popular software on the market." The peripheral devices used for evaluating ear and throat pain provide high-definition images that the doctor and patient are able to see at the same time, according to Horde. Those high-definition images are then uploaded into the patient permanent medical record for use by their primary care physician or specialist. "The technology allows me to share what I see immediately with the patient and use those images to help them understand what is happening," Horde said."This actually increases doctor -patient interaction because we can discuss what they see and hear going on in their body." Getting a team of more than 50 interdisciplinary professionals together was a challenge, according to Alexander, who serves as project lead for the RHC-A Clinical Operations Directorate. "You need a great team and that is exactly what we have," Alexander said. A lot of the leadership has really brought in to this whole telehealth concept and using it to assist their patients. It creates more capacity in our health system. If you look at it from a regional health perspective, telehealth provides us the opportunity to leverage other resources and other facilities to create what we call an integrated delivery system." "We have two facilities connected to each other and at least 25 people working to make this happen from different departments--primary care, emergency department, patient administration, resource management, pharmacy, information management/information technology," he said."This has touched almost every major bellybutton in both hospitals to come together to include at the regional level where we have had to tap into those same shops to make this program work." The team also extends beyond RHC-A to include combat medics and nurses from Fort Campbell's 86th Combat Support Hospital who are training on the equipment to test the feasibility of using telehealth with forward deployed units. Colonel Telita Crosland, commander, Blanchfield Army Community Hospital said moving health care from within a defined medical structure to wherever the patient is would be a real-game changer for our community and organization. "We're taking technology and using it to be more accessible to our patients," Crosland said."It [telehealth] has the potential to project capabilities worldwide from a continental United States location allowing us to better support deployed service members." The admiral in charge of U.S. Pacific Command said China's introduction of HQ-9 surface-to-air missiles, radar system and 10,000-foot runway on contested islands within the South China Sea represented militarization in violation of national protocols. In a hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee, Navy Adm. Harry Harris called for continued freedom-of-navigation movements through the region to reinforce U.S. rights and discredit China's attempted power grab. The hearing came a week after reports surfaced that China had deployed the surface-to-air missiles to Woody Island, the largest island in the Paracel chain in the South China Sea. Harris, who has led PACOM for seven months, said the move did not surprise him at all. "In my opinion China is clearly militarizing the South China Sea, and you have to believe in a flat earth to think otherwise," he told the panel. Asked by Sen. Angus King, an Independent from Maine, why he believed China would take such a step at odds with international convention, Harris was blunt. "I believe China seeks hegemony in East Asia," he said. The push to militarize the South China Sea comes as North Korea makes headlines with nuclear and ballistic missile demonstrations that threaten to further destabilize the region and potentially trigger an international incident. The commander of U.S. Forces Korea, Army Gen. Curtis Scaparrotti, who testified alongside Harris, said tensions around the rogue state rose to the highest they have been in more than 20 years last August, when two South Korean soldiers were wounded by a North Korean landmine, ratcheting up hostilities between the two nations until a standoff could be reached. Scaparrotti said his command would soon begin bilateral consultations on the feasibility of deploying the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense, or THAAD, missile system to South Korea to join the Patriot missile system in providing protection for the U.S. and Korea and answering North Korean saber-rattling. Meanwhile, Harris said, China's provocations called for a calm strategy that emphasized U.S. alliances in the region and its military strength. "I believe that we should maintain our credible combat power; we should maintain a network of like-minded allies and partners; we should continue to exercise our rights on the high seas and the air space above it, and we should encourage our friends, partners, and allies to do the same," he said. Harris acknowledged to committee chairman John McCain, a Republican from Arizona, that certain Chinese weapons might potentially pose a threat to the U.S. carrier strike group in the region, particularly the DF-21 medium-range ballistic missile and the DF-26 intermediate-range ballistic missile, now under development. "I think, though, that our carriers are resilient and we have the ability to do what needs to be done if it comes to that," Harris said. For the U.S., the Chinese decision to militarize in the South China Sea may have at least one positive outcome, he said. "I believe that China's actions are provocative, increase tensions and cause nations in the region to look to the U.S. as the security partner of choice, and away from China," Harris said. -- Hope Hodge Seck can be reached at hope.seck@military.com. Follow her on Twitter at @HopeSeck. While many military service branches as grappling with manpower cuts, the Coast Guard is looking to expand, Commandant Adm. Paul Zukunft said Tuesday. Speaking at the U.S. Capitol as he delivered his service's annual State of the Coast Guard address, Zukunft paraphrased a line from the 1975 classic "Jaws". "Looking at the challenges we're facing in the world today: ladies and gentlemen, you're going to need a bigger Coast Guard," he said. Zukunft added that he was directing a Coast Guard Manpower Requirements Plan to develop a force size that took into account current strategy and risk management. At 88,000 strong, the service, which falls under the Department of Homeland Security, is by far the smallest of the uniformed services. An updated growth strategy will also allow the service to develop a Cyber Task Force, Zukunft said, which will turn the Coast Guard's cyber strategy into an operational arm of the service. "As we move forward, duty to people will take shape in a number of ways across our organization," he said. "You are going to see mission, service and individual level changes to best align our talent with demand in the 21st century." Zukunft's tone was exultant as he praised the Coast Guard on a year of successful and high-value drug interdictions, participation in partner military exchange programs, and promising new programs, including a newly inked 12-week maternity leave policy and assignment policy changes designed to improve stability. At the Coast Guard academy, Zukunft said, the classes of 2018 and 2019 were the most diverse of the school's 150-year history, with 40 percent female students and 33 percent underrepresented minorities. "I am sure most Academy graduates in the audience today probably feel like I do ... I would not want to compete with the young men and women in New London today," Zukunft said. He said he would continue to work to improve retention among women and minorities, who still tend to leave the service at accelerated rates. In an era of tight budgets, Zukunft also celebrated the Coast Guard's largest acquisition budget in history going into Fiscal 2017. The request includes funding to accelerate the acquisition of new heavy icebreakers, a need that Coast Guard officials have highlighted steadily as the Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star -- the country's only operational heavy icebreaker -- continues to age. "I am grateful for the President's ardent support and his call for heavy icebreakers to ensure the United States maintains year-round access to the strategic polar regions," he said. In Central America, Zukunft said, national security cutters continue to interdict drug shipments so large that their street value covers the cost of the cutters in a single deployment. In 2015, he said, the Coast Guard seized or disrupted more than 190 metric tons of cocaine and detained more than 700 smugglers. And the removal of those drugs, he said, translates to added stability and safety in the region. In Honduras, Zukunft said, violent crime is down 23 percent, thanks to drug interdiction activities. Zukunft closed with a reference to The Finest Hours, a film released in January that tells the true story of Coast Guardsmen who risked their lives in 1952 to save those aboard a sinking ship off the coast of Cape Cod. "Today's trackline steers us clear of any rocks and shoals, and true to [Boatswain's Mate 1st Class] Bernie Webber's heroics, these are truly the finest hours to serve in the United States Coast Guard," he said. -- Hope Hodge Seck can be reached at hope.seck@monster.com. Follow her on Twitter at @HopeSeck. The weather in Iraq has been ripe for fighting but Islamic State militants have been lying low, according to the commander of U.S. and coalition troops aiding Iraqi security forces in the country. "For the past two days, we've had horrendous weather here," Maj. Gen. Richard Clarke told reporters on Tuesday during a briefing telecast to the Pentagon from Baghdad. "Lots of rain, lots of clouds. Usually that's an opportunity for Daesh to attack. We've seen nothing." Clarke, who commands the 82nd Airborne Division, which has been the lead U.S. force in Iraq, said the jihadist group Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, or ISIS, also known as ISIL and Daesh, is also feeling the pressure from having less money, equipment and manpower. Meanwhile, he said, Iraqi and Peshmerga forces -- the Kurds fighting in the northern part of the country -- have chalked up significant victories against ISIS by retaking Ramadi, Tikrit, Sinjar and Bayji. "But in addition to taking back those key towns, what we've also seen is at least three significant attacks by Daesh, two in Haditha and one up in [the area of] Mosul in December, and [the Iraqis] held their ground," Clarke said. In fact, since Iraqi troops retook Ramadi last May, they have not lost any further territory to ISIS, he said. American troops pulled out of Iraq in 2010, but returned in 2014 after the Islamic State emerged in Syria and pushed into Iraq, scoring a string of victories and occupying a large swath of territory in both countries. The more than 4,000 U.S. service members in Iraq today are there principally to again train the Iraqi security forces and provide logistics, intelligence and air strike support to the Baghdad government and to the Kurd forces in the north. Clarke said his forces have trained more than 16,000 Iraqi troops and 4,000 Peshmerga fighters. The general, who will be leaving with the 82nd over the next few weeks and turning over the lead mission to the 101st Airborne Division, said Iraqi forces now are gearing up for the recapture of Mosul, which has been under ISIS control since June 2014. Clarke said talks are underway with Iraqi military leadership to determine the kinds and level of support they will need to retake Mosul, one of the largest cities still held by the militants. He didn't specify when the operation might take place. Citing operational security, Clarke would not say how many Iraqi troops are in place as part of the Mosul build-up, but noted "they have a division-level headquarters" there and are moving in some brigades, as well. He also would not say what kind of coalition support he believed Iraq will need for the assault on Mosul, though said Ramadi serves as an example of what Iraq will need for Mosul. "They did Ramadi with the capabilities with our airstrikes, with our ISR [intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance], with our advice, and they didn't need it then," he said. The victory there boosted Iraq Security Forces' confidence, he said, and if they do Mosul on their own it will be a more longer lasting win for the future of Iraq. When pressed on how the recapture of Ramadi could be a model for retaking Mosul, Clarke admitted it would be tougher. Mosul has a population estimated to be more than 2 million, with more than 500,000 in the city itself, and its population is more diverse. Ramadi, in contrast, has about a half-million people and is largely Sunni. Ramadi's recapture was made possible with Iraqi regular troops and Iraqi special forces, and forces already available in the surrounding area made it easier to hold the city once taken back. Iraq may not have the numbers of special forces it would require to repeat the operation in Ramadi, nor is there the military force in the region to hold it if it did. But Clarke said the cities are alike in terms of terrain and layout, each straddling a river and having about five or six key bridges crossing it at different points. "Though Mosul is about five times larger than Ramadi, the model, in terms of how the Iraqi security forces plan on the eventual liberation of Mosul goes to how they plan on isolating it, how they plan on using those special forces to actually do some of the clearance, [and] how they plan on using tribal forces and police forces eventually to old the city," he said. "No doubt, Mosul is gonna be hard," he added. "It's further away from Baghdad, where the majority of these forces will come from, and it clearly a much larger city that has many different sects that are part of it, where Ramadi is clearly and mainly a Sunni town." -- Bryant Jordan can be reached at bryant.jordan@military.com. Follow him on Twitter at @bryantjordan. Veterans Affairs Secretary Bob McDonald on Tuesday met with Senators to discuss the VA's budget for fiscal 2017 and appropriations for the following year. But the issue of funding took a backseat in the discussion as lawmakers were more intent to talk about McDonald's proposals to hold VA employees accountable for wrongdoing or poor performance. "My goal is to see to it that by the end of March we have an accountability bill for the VA employees that's right for the veterans and right for those employees," said Sen. Johnny Isakson, a Republican from Georgia and chairman of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee. "We are looking to the future to ensure that if we have problems ... we have a defensible accountability system within the department to correct a wrong and make sure it does not happen again, he added. Isakson and other lawmakers said they were ready to give McDonald the ability to make both the hiring and firing of employees easier. As part of the department's budget proposal, McDonald asked Congress to convert Senior Executive Service-level employees -- top administrators and directors at the VA's medical centers -- to Title 38 employees -- the category that includes doctors and nurses. McDonald said the change would make it easier to fill the 34 medical center directorships that have been open, in some cases for years, and also to discipline employees when necessary. In the latter case, the change would end the executives' ability to appeal disciplinary actions to the Merit System Protection Board by making McDonald, or his designee, the final word in an appeal. Sen. Jon Tester, a Democrat from Montana, urged the committee to press Sen. Mitch McConnell, a Republican from Kentucky and the Senate majority Leader, to schedule a vote on the changes. "We need to push the leadership to get this to the floor and hold this man (McDonald) accountable," Tester said. "We can't hold him accountable if his hands are tied ... If he screws up [he's] gone. But the fact is," he said to the secretary, "I trust you, I believe you can get this done." Saying there is a "very limited amount of time" to move the legislation, Tester told Isakson that "if it takes a letter, if it takes phone calls, if it takes a group meeting with Sen. McConnell, I'll join you in that." Converting the administration and directorships from SES to Title 38, the section of the law that spells out the hiring practices for VA health care workers and others -- was prompted by recent MSPB judge rulings overturning VA disciplinary actions against executives accused of wrongdoing. McDonald told the lawmakers that converting the job categories is not only about being able to discipline people. He said it's also about being more competitive with the private sector in recruiting and compensation, since it is easier to hire and compensate under Title 38 than the Civil Service rules for SES employees. "It's not about firing people," he said. "It's about treating VA career executives more like their private sector counterparts. It's the kind of flexibility that attracts top performers in the private sector. VA needs that flexibility, too." -- Bryant Jordan can be reached at bryant.jordan@military.com. Follow him on Twitter at @bryantjordan. In a move likely to further increase already volatile tensions in the region, China has deployed fighter jets to a contested island in the South China Sea, the same island where China deployed surface-to-air missiles last week, two U.S. officials tell Fox News. The dramatic escalation came as Secretary of State John Kerry hosted his Chinese counterpart, Foreign Minister Wang Yi, at the State Department. Wang said Tuesday he hoped that "close up" military flights and patrols by U.S. Navy ships over the contested islands would end. Kerry said he wanted China to end its militarization of the contested islands in the South China Sea. "We want to halt the expansion and the militarization of occupied features," he said. His Chinese counterpart added that he didn't want to see any more U.S. military over flights or patrols. "We don't hope to see any more close-up military reconnaissance or the dispatch of missile destroyers or strategic bombers to the South China Sea," said Foreign Minister Wang. Kerry however refused to blame China directly for the the military buildup in the South China Sea. "It is important for all of the nations -- China, Philippines, Vietnam, others -- not to engage in any unilateral steps of reclamation, of building, of militarization. And the fact is that there have been steps by China, by Vietnam, by others that have unfortunately created an escalatory cycle," he said Tuesday. Chinese Shenyang J-11s ("Flanker") and Xian JH-7s ("Flounder") have been seen by U.S. intelligence on Woody Island in the past few days, the same island where Fox News reported exclusively last week that China had sent two batteries of HQ-9 surface-to-air missiles while President Obama was hosting 10 Southeast Asian leaders in Palm Springs. One U.S. official put the number of Chinese warplanes in the single digits, "under 10," he said. Wang was supposed to visit the Pentagon Tuesday, but the visit was canceled. It was not immediately clear which side canceled the visit. Pentagon press secretary Peter Cook said a "scheduling conflict" prevented the meeting, when asked by Fox News at Tuesday's press briefing. When asked about the earlier Fox News story in Beijing, Wang said the deployment of the missiles was for "defensive purposes." Woody Island is the largest island in the Paracel chain of islands in the South China Sea, and has had a runway since the early 1990s. It lies 250 miles southeast of a major Chinese submarine base on Hainan Island. China has claimed Woody Island since the 1950s, but it is contested by Taiwan and Vietnam. In the last two years, China has created 3,000 acres of artificial islands atop reefs hundreds of miles south of Woody Island in the Spratly chain of islands. One runway was tested in January, when two commercial airliners landed at Fiery Cross Reef. After the deployment of fighter jets to Woody Island, officials are concerned the Chinese might send them south to the Spratly islands next. Ahead of Wang's visit to Washington, a spokeswoman likened China's military buildup on Woody Island to the U.S. Navy's in Hawaii. "There is no difference between China's deployment of necessary national defense facilities on its own territory and the defense installation by the U.S. in Hawaii," Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said Monday. More than $5 trillion of worth of natural resources and goods transit the South China Sea each year. Earlier Tuesday, the head of the U.S. military's Pacific Command said China is "clearly militarizing" the South China Sea, in testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee. "You'd have to believe in a flat Earth to believe otherwise," Adm. Harry Harris said. China has sent fighter jets to Woody Island before. In November, Chinese state media published images showing J-11 fighter jets on the island, but this was the first deployment of fighter jets since the Chinese sent commercial airliners to test the runway at one of its artificial islands in the South China Sea. The Pentagon sailed a guided-missile destroyer past a contested island in the South China Sea as a result. Late last year, the U.S. military conducted a flight of B-52 bombers and another warship to conduct a "freedom of navigation" exercise. The commander of the U.S. Navy's 7th Fleet said Monday that he is wary of the situation in the South China Sea being painted as a battle between the United States and China, but added the presence of a Chinese missile system on a disputed island will not stop the U.S. military from flying over the region. "I wish it wasn't portrayed as U.S. versus China," U.S. Navy Vice Adm. Joseph Aucoin told reporters in Sydney. "This shouldn't seem provocative. What we're trying to ensure is that all countries, no matter size or strength, can pursue their interests based on the law of the sea and not have that endangered by some of these actions." The Chinese foreign minister asked the media on Tuesday not to forget the strategic bombers the U.S. has flown in the past, but also expressed a shared desire to resolve disputes through peaceful dialogue. "We take the foreign minister at his word today that he wants to see this resolved through dialogue," said Kerry. When asked to asses U.S.-China relations, Foreign Minister Wang said China's relationship with the U.S. was hard to explain. "Oftentimes one cannot simply give a definition to it," he said. The Chinese have protested the previous moves and vowed "consequences." On Monday, new civilian satellite imagery from CSIS showed a possible high frequency radar installation being constructed in late January. The imagery shows radar installations on China's artificial islands in the Spratley Island chain of reefs-Gaven, Hughes, Johnson South, and primarily on Cuarteron reefs--the outhermost island in the South China Sea. -- Lucas Tomlinson is the Pentagon and State Department producer for Fox News Channel. Congressional opponents of President Obama's plan to relocate Guantanamo prisoners to the U.S. seized upon the crucial detail that was left out of the proposal Tuesday -- whose district or home state would get stuck with them and the political baggage they would bring? Rep. Joe Heck, R-Nevada, chairman of the House Subcommittee on Military Personnel and a candidate for the Senate in Nevada, said in a statement that "another critical detail that is conspicuously missing from this plan is the location of the proposed new detention facility. That's a pretty significant detail to leave out." At the Pentagon, Press Secretary Peter Cook said the choice on where to relocate the prisoners was up to Congress and deliberately left out of the plan developed by Defense Secretary Ashton Carter and recommended to Obama. "We need the input of congress to be able to move forward. It's hard for us to present a final recommendation here" on location, Cook said. In unveiling the plan, the Defense Department and the White House said that a total of 13 sites had been considered to house 30-60 of the remaining 91 Guantanamo detainees who could not be transferred to other countries or put on trial. Sites in Colorado, Kansas and South Carolina have been named, but the others have not been disclosed. In his remarks, President Obama suggested that re-election politics and aspirations for higher office would play a part in how senators and representatives receive his plan for closing "Gitmo" and putting some of the prisoners somewhere in the U.S. Speaking directly to members of Congress, Obama said that there initially was bipartisan support for closing Guantanamo early in his term but "what had previously been bipartisan support suddenly became a partisan issue. Suddenly, many of you (who) previously had said it should be closed backed off because they were worried about the politics." Rep. Martha McSally, R-Arizona, essentially agreed, but said it was Obama who was playing politics by trying to fulfill a 2008 campaign pledge to close Guantanamo before he leaves office. "Let's face it: This decision is about fulfilling a campaign promise, not strengthening our national security," said McSally, a retired Air Force colonel and member of the House Armed Services Committee (HASC). In a statement, Rep. Mac Thornberry, R-Texas, the HASC chairman, said the U.S. location of the proposed facility was also one of his prime concerns. "I have pledged to give the president's plan a fair hearing, but he makes it impossible to do so when he withholds critical details," Thornberry said. "Among the information missing is the proposed location for a new detention facility," Thornberry said. "More than seven years after he first ordered the detention center at (Guantanamo) closed, I find it telling that the White House has either failed to work out these important details or they know, but refuse to disclose them to the American public." At a Pentagon news conference, Cook said that Carter deliberately left out a recommendation on where to put the facility from the plan he gave to President Obama. And he said there also were other sites for Congress to consider beyond the 13 whose locations have not been fully disclosed. "This gives Congress a path to achieve the responsible closing" of Guantanamo, Cook said, and "we believe there are members of Congress who share the secretary's view, the president's view." However, Cook said it would be "challenging" for Congress to act quickly enough to close Guantanamo before Obama leaves office. He also did not respond directly when asked if Obama might seek to bypass Congress with executive orders. Earlier, senior administration officials, speaking on background, also skirted the question of executive orders. "Time is of the essence here," a senior official said, but "our focus today is on presenting this plan and using it to work with Congress to identify a path to changing current law and proceeding toward closure." -- Richard Sisk can be reached at richard.sisk@military.com. Much of the discussion these days about the proper size of the U.S. Navy centers on numbers and types of vessels within a 300-ship fleet: Should the sea service have 38 or 50 amphibious ships? Should it have 40 or 52 littoral combat ships? But a former secretary of the Navy says the focus on a 300-ship fleet only obscures more accurate measures of capability and presence. Speaking at the AFCEA West Conference in San Diego last week, Sean O'Keefe, who served in the office under President George H.W. Bush from 1992-1993, said Congress and Navy brass were becoming too focused on the total number of ships in the fleet when they should be taking other factors into account. The service's current strategy will build to more than 300 ships by the end of the decade, up from 272 today. "The resignation of one of my predecessors, Jim Webb, was prompted at what he thought was the outrage of falling below the 600-ship Navy," O'Keefe said. "You look back on it as if it was the seminal moment of some strategic shift and it wasn't. It was less a statement of capability and more of just a marker on the wall of what's a measure of merit." Webb wasn't immediately available for comment. O'Keefe, who later served as the administrator of NASA from 2000-2004 and as CEO of EADS North America / Airbus Group North American Unit from 2009-2014, said capability and capacity is more than a number of deployable ships. The ongoing war over numbers only fed a "tyranny of incrementalism" that had little benefit to the Navy, he told Military.com at the conference. "It assumes that there is a constancy in which that is the measure of merit and it isn't. That was a very different period of time," he said. "How do you go about the process of measuring capability and the capacity to project force ... And we haven't come up with a metric yet of how you actually measure [those things.] That's the challenge." While a metric that would accurately predict capability is more complex and harder to determine, O'Keefe said, he suggested development of such a tool was not far off. "I think it's starting to gel, trying to figure out exactly what you do to figure out what is the exponential capacity or capability you get out of certain enhancements," he said. "And the more we get into that, the more we're going to get the answer to that question with greater precision. That can be then communicated in an elevator speech in the same way as whole numbers." O'Keefe said it was "hard to be optimistic about transcendence" given the nature of today's political debate with the candidates' dogmatic rhetoric and talking points. But, he said, in the near future there would be opportunities to change the conversation. A year from now, someone's going to be there [in the White House]," he said. "And some administration is going to have the opportunity to be thinking differently about these problems." -- Hope Hodge Seck can be reached at hope.seck@military.com. Follow her on Twitter at @HopeSeck. 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... FLINT, Mich., While helping to hand out water to residents here, a Michigan Army National Guardsman helped save a life. "This is why I joined the military to help people," said Army Spc. Charles Colwell, a medic assigned to Headquarters Company, 125th Infantry Battalion. He is one of 65 soldiers helping distribute water after Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder activated the National Guard to help with the Flint water emergency. While on duty Feb. 1 at Fire Station No. 1 in downtown Flint, Army Pfc. Zacharry Burrell greeted a woman who was there to return recyclables. He noticed that she was short of breath and struggling for her inhaler. Helping a Stricken Woman "She stood there for a minute and it kind of looked like she was looking for something in her bag and then she bent down and put her hands on her knees and began coughing uncontrollably and I saw she had an inhaler in her hand," Burrell said. He brought out Colwell, and he began assessing the woman's condition. Her friends told him she had used her inhaler twice on their walk to the firehouse, and it was now nearly empty. Colwell also learned she was suffering from severe bronchitis, so he called 911. It wasn't until the next day the other soldiers realized how much he had done when she came back to the firehouse to thank Colwell for saving her life. Colwell is also a civilian emergency medical technician in Detroit. "I do this so much every day and everyone else is kind of blowing it up," Colwell said. Recognition for Actions Because of his actions, Colwell is being recommended for the Michigan Lifesaving Medal by his squad leader. "I couldn't be more proud of him," said Colwell's squad leader, Army Sgt. Brandon Lewis. "That's why I put him in for the highest award that I could possibly recommend for him for doing that." Colwell went beyond his normal duties while in Flint and his actions made what could have been a bad situation a positive one, Lewis said. "If it wasn't for him, one of us might have misjudged the situation and just thought she was sick," he said. "Not only did he immediately seek her out, but he did everything he could to make her comfortable, and by the time the EMTs and paramedics got here he already had an assessment to hand over to them so they were a few steps ahead." The 125th Infantry Battalion includes soldiers from different companies from around the state who have volunteered to assist the citizens of Flint. They are stationed at water resource sites at the city's five fire stations, handing out water, water filters and water testing kits. Military health care reform must strike a balance between maintaining military readiness and fixing an "antiquated" Tricare system that needs upgrading, lawmakers said at a subcommittee hearing Tuesday on Capitol Hill. "On not a happy note, I think Tricare as it's designed is really antiquated -- I wouldn't give it a 'B,' " said Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-South Carolina, who chairs the Senate Armed Services subcommittee on personnel. "I'm really going to be hard on you guys to come up with reforms, not just premium increases. We're going to look hard at Tricare and turn it upside down and make it more transparent and make it more accountable." The hearing was the latest in a series in the House and the Senate examining the military health care system as lawmakers prepare to offer reforms as part of the 2017 National Defense Authorization process. The surgeons general of each military service, as well as a panel of private-sector health care system experts, testified before the subcommittee. While the surgeons general testified that military treatment facilities are key to maintaining readiness, the civilian experts offered a variety of proposals that would require military families and retirees to receive care through greater contract competitions and, in some cases, higher fees. When asked to grade the Tricare system, three of the health care experts gave it a "B-plus" grade or lower, while Dr. John E. Whitley, a senior fellow at the Institute for Defense Analyses who has studied military healthcare, gave it a "C, at best." Whitley, who was very critical of the current system, said reform "should be about replacing a system ... with a modernized system that improves the benefit for our retirees and families while saving the tax payer money." By some estimates, care given at a military treatment facility costs 50 percent more than care given by a civilian provider, Graham said. Part of that gap may be because of lower hospital bed occupancy at those facilities. While many civilian hospitals keep occupancies above 90 percent, military officials testified that their occupancy is much lower. Navy Surgeon General Vice Adm. C. Forrest Faison III said his service is about 80 percent, while Air Force Surgeon General Lt. Gen. Mark Ediger said the Air Force is between 50 and 70 percent. Still, the surgeons general emphasized what they see as a need to maintain the military hospital system. "I understand reforms are necessary to ensure the long-term sustainability of Tricare; however, reforms must not increase the financial burden on our active-duty soldiers or active-duty family members, and must minimize any impact to our retired population," said Army Surgeon General Lt. Gen. Nadja West. "Reforms should encourage beneficiary use of our direct care system, to ensure our medical military skills are maintained and should also encourage healthy behaviors ... but reforms must not degrade our combat ready system ... in an environment where we must remain rotationally focused and surge ready, as the next large-scale deployment could be tomorrow." -- Amy Bushatz can be reached at amy.bushatz@military.com. As you might expect, Royals GM Dayton Moore doesnt accept the conventional wisdom that his club is primed to contend only over the next two seasons. Sure, its important that we maximize our current situation, Moore tells MLB.coms Jeffrey Flanagan. People ask me about [the two-year window] and I say, Our window is right now. But we feel that way every year now. And that will mean trying to keep our internal players. Such key stars as Lorenzo Cain, Eric Hosmer, Mike Moustakas and Wade Davis will all hit free agency after the 2017 season, though Moore said its wrong to assume there will be a mass exodus. The Royals will make an effort to re-sign as many of those free agents as they can, Moore said, pointing out that the Royals stepped up to re-sign Alex Gordon this offseason. Even if some players do leave, K.C. hopes to replace them via a strong minor league pipeline to keep the team in perpetual contention. Heres more from around the AL Central The Royals are still interested in re-signing Greg Holland , Moore tells Rustin Dodd of the Kansas City Star. There hasnt been much buzz around Holland this offseason, which isnt surprising given how the former All-Star closer underwent Tommy John surgery in September. The Royals non-tendered Holland in the wake of that surgery but had interest in bringing him back on a multi-year deal so hed be ready to pitch for them when hes healthy in 2017. are still interested in re-signing , Moore tells Rustin Dodd of the Kansas City Star. There hasnt been much buzz around Holland this offseason, which isnt surprising given how the former All-Star closer underwent Tommy John surgery in September. The Royals non-tendered Holland in the wake of that surgery but had interest in bringing him back on a multi-year deal so hed be ready to pitch for them when hes healthy in 2017. Letting catcher Alex Avila go to the White Sox in free agency made sense from a baseball standpoint for Tigers general manager Al Avila, though it was obviously a tougher personal decision for the elder Avila to part ways with his son, Jorge L. Ortiz of USA Today writes. I miss my son. I wish he was here because Id get to see him every day, the GM said. In fact, last spring training we roomed together. This year Im by myself. You would think my wife would be here with me today, but shes actually in Arizona with him and the grandkids. And now I have family members wearing Chicago White Sox gear. go to the in free agency made sense from a baseball standpoint for general manager Al Avila, though it was obviously a tougher personal decision for the elder Avila to part ways with his son, Jorge L. Ortiz of USA Today writes. I miss my son. I wish he was here because Id get to see him every day, the GM said. In fact, last spring training we roomed together. This year Im by myself. You would think my wife would be here with me today, but shes actually in Arizona with him and the grandkids. And now I have family members wearing Chicago White Sox gear. The Twins have interest in several Cuban free agents, 1500ESPN.coms Darren Wolfson hears from a source (Twitter link), though high asking prices are an obstacle. have interest in several Cuban free agents, 1500ESPN.coms Darren Wolfson hears from a source (Twitter link), though high asking prices are an obstacle. Fernando Abads minor league deal with the Twins will pay him $1.25MM if he makes the Major League roster and he has another $100K available in incentives, as per Wolfson and Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press (Twitter links). The World Bank Group has gone public with policy notes for Myanmar that it said may be able to help the country move toward more inclusive prosperity. World Bank Group representatives yesterday presented findings from the organisations report, All Aboard: Shared Prosperity in Myanmar, following talks with government officials from both the old and new guard. The policy notes cover a wide range of issues facing Myanmar narrowing the gap in access to basic services, reducing rural poverty and raising agriculture productivity, promoting a competitive business environment, enhancing financial inclusion, expanding access to energy, and strengthening public sector governance diving into what progress has been made and what more can be done. When the policy notes were still being finalised in December, the World Bank Group met with members of both the National League for Democracy including vice chair U Tin Oo and the incumbent administration. Axel van Trotsenburg, World Bank vice president for East Asia and Pacific, handed the notes to major Myanmar political players on February 22, including NLD leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi. Both Minister for Finance U Win Shein and Pyithu Hluttaw Speaker U Win Myint also received copies that day. The World Banks Myanmar country manager Abdoulaye Seck said the organisation thought it important after the countrys election to drive a dialogue on what policies should be adopted to deliver benefits for its people. He said in a statement that the country can, like its neighbours, chart a course that brings inclusive growth. However, significant roadblocks remain. The country faces a long road ahead in addressing continued challenges to close disparities across Myanmars geography, ethnic communities and income groups, he said. Though challenges can be steep, the World Bank Group said in a press release that Myanmars economy has the potential to grow at around 8 percent per year in real terms for the next five years and that the right decisions can ensure better pay and more jobs. It is about making sure that when the rising tide [comes], it lifts all boats basically, we all benefit from growth, said Mr Seck. A local company that exports rattan products to more than 20 countries is hoping to ramp up sales and take advantage of improving trade links between Myanmar and the global market. Myanmars rattan furniture industry faced difficulties for many years including a banking crisis in 2002, economic sanctions imposed from 1997 and dramatic exchange rate fluctuations until 2012. Only seven producers are still in business compared to over 100 a decade ago, said Ma Swe Zin Le. Aged 28, she works for her fathers company Bella Interiors which was set up in 1994 and now runs with 1000 weavers and skilled workers. Our business struggled for seven years but we didnt want to close down the company or cut back on workers too much, she said. Half of our business assets were liquidated to allow us to survive until today. Bella Interiors first started exporting to Thailand and Vietnam, where it struggled to sell its products at a fair price, she said. However, since 2013, when the European Union lifted most of its sanctions on Myanmar, business has improved. The company can now meet buyers from Europe directly, and is helped by the EUs provision of duty-free market access under its scheme for developing countries. Bella Interiors is now exporting 60 percent of its products to Europe, 30pc to the United States and the remaining 10pc to Asia. We have had more of a chance since the market opened as we were able to survive for years, said Ma Swe Zin Le, adding that over many years her company was able to collect skilful workers, who are becoming increasingly hard to find. New businesses surely wont be able to employ such workers, she said. The company markets itself through regional trade fairs to familiarise buyers with made in Myanmar products, as rattan furniture was formerly primarily associated with Thailand or Vietnam, and a number of global buyers are interested. In the past, customers chose us, but now we can choose customers those who fit our market strategy. We need customers who value our products in terms of quality and price, she said. On the other hand, we need to make a lot of plans such as how much volume we can produce and how to finance the companys expansion. The business of 100pc handmade rattan furniture and products still survives in Myanmar, while products in other countries in the region are now mostly factory-made, she said. That is why we cannot reduce our prices. The work from Myanmar is very different compared to products made in other countries. While Bella Interiors tries to meet criteria set by the global market, high logistics costs and arduous government procedures remain barriers to growth. Logistics costs are high and the number of steps involved in completing the necessary documents should be reduced as we export value-added products, said Ma Swe Zin Le. I hope the government will be able to help with this. An outspoken member of Yangon City Development Committee has taken to social media to question whether international developer Marga Landmark has obtained the necessary permissions to build its mixed-use development on a new site, while other government officials say all approvals are in place. Myanmar Investment Commission (MIC) granted the Hong-Kong based company a new location to build its Dagon City 1 project earlier this month, after the development was suspended last year following public opposition to its location beside Shwedagon Pagoda. The project will now be built on 17.7 acres at the corner of Kabar Aye Pagoda Road and Kanbe Road in Yankin township. U Khin Hlaing is well-known for his opposition to the projects original location, where four other projects due to be built have also since been suspended. He told The Myanmar Times last year that he would absolutely not allow the project to move forward. His opposition was seemingly based on the location of the project, near to the countrys most famous religious site. However, earlier this week he raised fresh concerns, announcing on his Facebook page that MIC did not obtain authorisation from his department before approving the new plot. U Khin Hlaing said he had not been approached either by MIC or by Marga Landmark, and therefore YCDC would not approve the projects new location, which could impact the citys heritage. Near Sedona Hotel and HAGL Myanmar Centre, the new location has a view of Inya Lake. Authorities have said they are trying to develop this area of Yangon, which is well away from heritage sites in the downtown area. A spokesperson from YCDCs Department of Engineering (Building) said U Khin Hlaing is not responsible for deciding whether or not the project is approved. Furthermore, MIC director Daw Mya Sandar said the investment commission asked for recommendations not only from YCDC but from Yangon Region government, both of which gave their approval. We have an approval letter from YCDC, she told The Myanmar Times. MIC is not permitted to make decisions such as this alone, so we spoke with Yangon Region government and YCDC before granting Marga Landmark this new location. She added that according to procedure every project, even a house, must first be approved by YCDC. Furthermore, the location has been approved by the company, she said. Marga Landmark agreed to this replacement site, which is why we granted it. A spokesperson for Marga Landmark said the company has had several meetings with the relevant authorities, including YCDC, to discuss its plans. In fact, we have amended our plans based on the comments given by the Ministry of Construction, YCDC, the Myanmar Engineering Society and other relevant authorities at the aforementioned meetings before submitting our final application to the MIC, they said. Marga Landmark, as always, is a law-abiding and responsible developer. We have been and are complying with all necessary and legal procedures pertaining to the MIC permit for our entirely new project. The companys original project along with four others was cancelled by the Presidents Office after much debate, and developers were told they would be offered new locations. At the time, observers said compensation would be crucial to maintaining foreign investor confidence in Myanmars nascent property market, as the developers had put considerable time, money and effort into the projects and were following the law. An unholy row has broken out between two government ministries over allegations of disrespect for Bagans ancient pagodas. The Ministry of Hotels and Tourism has hit out at the abrupt ban announced by the Ministry of Culture on the practice of climbing on the sacred buildings to catch a view of the sunset. The ban was announced on February 22, effective March 1, after a medical company had conducted a show on Pyathagyi Pagoda featuring singing and dancing, which culture officials had denounced for its ugly impact on the nations culture. Aligning itself with tourism industry leaders, who have already attacked the ban, the vice minister for tourism, Sai Kyaw Ohn, yesterday told The Myanmar Times that his ministry had not been consulted. [This ban] will seriously impact the tourism sector. We accept the need for the long-term conservation of pagodas. But the ban should not have been imposed before an alternative viewing location had been put in place, he said, adding, There was no discussion between our two ministries before the release of this announcement. The Ministry of Hotels and Tourism is still waiting to receive official notification from the culture ministry, he said. U Zaw Zaw Tun, director of the Ministry of Culture, was unrepentant, confirming that the announcement would not be withdrawn or changed. We are doing our duty. We believe our ancient national resources are more valuable and important than tourism income. We have to act to maintain these treasures and ensure they do not disappear, he said. Attracting tourists was the job of the tourism industry, not the Ministry of Culture, he added. However, last night a senior official from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in Yangon said it had been informed the Ministry of Culture was reviewing the decision. UNESCO has been informed by the Ministry of Culture that they are reviewing their decision and will come up with a mutually acceptable solution soon, said Sardar Umar Alam, the head of the UNESCO office in Yangon. The Ministry of Culture could not be reached for confirmation by deadline. But even Ministry of Culture officials in Bagan appeared to be lukewarm on the directive. U Thein Lwin, deputy director general of the Department of Archaeology and National Museum, told The Myanmar Times he hoped to retain a normal situation for visitors. So far we havent got any directive from [the ministry in] Nay Pyi Taw, U Thein Lwin said. The trouble started after a video and photos were posted to Facebook showing staff from Lucky Time Trading Company celebrating at Bagans Pyathagyi Pagoda. We didnt mean this to happen and we very much regret it, said Daw Htay Htay Mon, the companys deputy general manager. She said the company has since submitted a letter of apology to the Department of Archaeology and National Museum, and also published an apology statement in state-owned media. But the ban remains in place, much to the tourism industrys chagrin. Daw Hla Darli Khin, director of 7 Days Travel and Tours, said the practice should have been permitted on a limited number of pagodas for visitors willing to pay an entrance fee. Were terribly upset. How can we sell a Bagan itinerary, and where are people supposed to view the sunset from? she said. U Nyi, joint secretary of the Myanmar Tourism Federation, said there were pagodas sturdy enough to be used as viewing platforms, a highly popular practice among visitors. Rather than a flat-out ban, they should be managed closely to ensure their long-term survival. Angkor Wat in Cambodia limits the number of people allowed in the temple, and some similar way could be found, he said. The association will write to the ministry before March 1 to propose other solutions. It is unclear how the ban will impact the governments quest to have Bagan included on the UNESCO World Heritage List. Allegations of inappropriate development and poor management of the site have continually stalled Bagans application, which was first submitted two decades ago. But in recent years the Ministry of Culture has recently taken several steps to address these concerns. In 2014 it blocked more than 40 hotel projects most already approved and under construction after deeming them to be inside a conservation zone. More recently, hot-air balloon flights have also been subject to new restrictions. After a week-long standoff, Christian anti-narcotic campaigners and Kachin State authorities have reached a deal on a plan to eradicate thousands of acres of poppy fields ahead of harvest season. Members of anti-drug group Pat Ja San will be allowed to proceed on a clearance mission in two sub-townships of the state accompanied by soldiers and police providing security. Mostly young, Christian and ethnic Kachin, Pat Ja San vigilantes have previously sought help from the government and the Tatmadaw to pursue their campaign against local poppy growers. The officials ceased to provide support and began blocking the missions after farmers responded with deadly force to earlier attempts to destroy their cash crops. A teenage member of Pat Ja San was shot dead while trying to strip fields last month, and on February 3, a clearing team accompanied by soldiers clashed with angry cultivators. Undeterred by the violence, the ranks of Pat Ja San volunteers swelled in Waingmaw township, where police and soldiers were deployed to halt the clearance mission. After several rounds of negotiation, the Kachin campaigners and authorities yesterday agreed that poppy clearance will go ahead in Sadon and Kan Pai Tee sub-townships of Waingmaw. Unlike the last, rejected proposal put forward by police, this arrangement is not predicated on authorities checking the targeted fields in advance of Pat Ja San. Kachin State Police Colonel Chit Oo told The Myanmar Times yesterday that the activist group can go to their targeted areas today and the authorities will prepare an accompanying security team. Police, firemen and military troops will go together with the group, he said after the meeting, held at the Kachin State police department in Myitkyina. Around 200 troops will go. We will not block them again and we will protect them from danger,especially from armed groups. The state security and border affairs minister also attended the meeting and agreed to the terms, he added. Representatives for the 2400 Pat Ja San members currently camped in Naungmaw village said they plan to divide into six groups to destroy the poppy fields. Pat Ja San says their supporters are driven by anger at the toll taken on Kachin society by the drug epidemic. Kachin Baptist Convention general secretary Reverend Samson Hkalam welcomed the agreement and said the authorities should be collaborating with the vigilante group instead of blocking its activities. I think that the authorities realise the importance of poppy destruction and they understand they need to cooperate with the anti-poppy activists for the good of our country, he said. The Christian drug-fighting vigilantes notorious for their militia-inspired hardline tactics have also called on the National League for Democracy to get involved. The group asked the partys lower house MP for Waingmaw, U Lagang Ze Jone, to submit a proposal to parliament in support of the group. U Thu Yaw, chair of Pat Ja Sans Myitkyina branch, said yesterday that the NLD promised the MP would submit the proposal to the hluttaw today or tomorrow. He added that the group has already reviewed and agreed with the wording of the motion. We met with the NLD in Nay Pyi Taw and the proposal will be included in this weeks parliament session, he said. They dont know the date for the discussion yet, but we believe parliament will make the right decision to support poppy destruction. U Tun Tun Hein, an NLD spokesperson, said the proposal will do good for the people and the country. Pat Ja San said that they have already destroyed 3000 acres and intend to destroy 20,000 additional acres in the Sadon and Kan Pai Tee areas. Myanmar continues to be the top producer of opium in Southeast Asia and is second only in the world to Afghanistan. Poppies are produced mostly by subsistence farmers, who, according to the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, survive on money generated from poppy cultivation to stave off food insecurity, debt and poverty. Health authorities have announced another crackdown on the use of chemical dyes in fish paste, setting an April deadline for ensuring markets are free of dangerous brands. Daw Khin Saw Hla, director of the Food and Drug Administration branch in Mandalay, said producers in Ayeyarwady Region and Tanintharyi Region, where most of Myanmars fish paste is made, had been warned not to use the dyes. Officials in each state and region have also begun testing fish paste being sold in markets, while checks of producers have already been completed in Ayeyarwady Region, Daw Khin Saw Hla said. The Department of Public Health, [municipal authorities] and the Myanmar Police Force will collaborate to ensure markets around the country sells only dye-free fish paste, she said. Tests conducted by the FDA last year found several types of food products contained dangerous substances, including chemical dyes used in the textile industry and borax, a chemical often found in stain removers and fire retardants. Just this month, the FDAs Mandalay branch discovered chilli powder and fish paste containing dangerous chemicals was being sold in major markets. During our monthly inspections [in February], we found that fish paste still contained banned colouring chemicals. We also found formalin in bean curd. These additives are not included in the World Health Organizations and Food and Agriculture Organizations lists of agents that can be used for making food, Daw Khin Saw Hla said. The departments Mandalay branch has released a list of 32 food brands that should not be consumed due to safety concerns. Companies found to be using textile dyes can be punished under section 28(a) of the National Food Law, which can result in three years imprisonment, a K30,000 fine or both. But officials say producers are not the only ones to blame for dangerous chemicals being put in food products. Fish paste wholesalers have also been caught adding chemicals to the product, which is widely eaten in Myanmar. One Mandalay fish paste vendor, who asked not to be named, admitted adding edible things to the fish paste they order from the wholesale market in order to make a higher profit. But because of the FDA checks, they do their best to ensure it contains no dyes. When we order bags from Ayeyarwady Region or Bayintnaung market in Yangon, the bags always say the contents is dye-free but we cant systematically check, the vendor said. The FDA is responsible for registering and ensuring the safety of cosmetics, medicine and food available for purchase in Myanmar. Translation by Thiri Min Htun The prosecution yesterday offered no evidence to support the allegation that a prominent leader of the 2007 protests entered Myanmar illegally, his lawyer said after the hearing. U Nyi Nyi Lwin, a former monk better known as U Gambira, is accused of crossing illegally from Thailand into Myanmar at the Mae Sai-Tachileik crossing. However, lawyer U Robert San Aung said that three police officers called to the witness stand by the prosecution yesterday, including the head of the police station that made the arrest, offered no evidence to support the allegation. The police officers said they were aware of an investigation by an official from the immigration department but did not give any details. The plaintiff has not shown evidence according to the law. They just [blamed] the immigration officer, U Robert San Aung said after the hearing in Maha Aung Myay Township Court in Mandalay Region. One officer from the Special Branch had not yet finished his testimony. The lawyer for the prosecution argued in court that bail for the mentally ill U Gambira should not be granted because he looked like a healthy Myanmar man and showed no sign of weakness. He said that claims about his bad health were based on remarks from a doctor who had not examined him. Because of the former monks high international status, the lawyer for the prosecution said it was important to handle the case according to the law and that bail was not the priority. His family, his lawyer and a physiotherapist who used to treat him have all asked for the former monk to be released on bail because he suffers from acute post-traumatic stress disorder as a result of his imprisonment following the suppression of the 2007 uprising. The case has not gone unnoticed internationally and local and international rights groups have urged U Gambira be immediately and unconditionally released. Yesterday, representatives from the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights attended the hearing and spoke with the Saffron leader. U Gambira said at the court yesterday that he expects to be granted bail during the next hearing, which will be held on March 1. He has been held in Mandalays Oboe Prison since his arrest the same prison in which he spent four years as a prisoner of conscience, while serving a 68-year sentence that was commuted in 2012. He now faces three years in prison. The former monk said at court yesterday that conditions in prison had been unusually strict over the past week. Last week, the regulations in prison were strict because of the spread of drug use in the prison. But actually, it happened because there was less staff in the prison, he said. Earlier this month, U Gambiras family petitioned to have him moved to a different cell at Oboe Prison after learning he was sharing space with a convicted murderer. He is now sharing a cell with a deserter from the police force. Four teachers have been arrested in Magwe Region for allegedly leaking exam papers on Facebook. Magwe District Police announced on February 21 that a high-level investigation had been launched into leaks of Grade 5 and Grade 9 exam questions. The three men and a woman were arrested after a leak was detected from a post-primary school in Chauk township, Magwe Region, said Police Lieutenant Colonel Min Han. The Ministry of Education is also investigating, he added. The questions, in subjects ranging from Myanmar language to science, were leaked over five consecutive days as exams were being held. The parent of a Grade 9 student said, The questions were leaked via Facebook just before the exams took place, first Myanmar, then English, and so on. People were sharing them on Viber. Screenshots of exam papers appear to have been circulated online. Police said that a minister of the Magwe Region government, regional education officials, the deputy heads of the regional and district police, the deputy director of the General Administration Department and the Special Intelligence Department were conducting the investigation and reporting to the education ministry. The four suspects were charged under the State Secrets Act, police said, after investigators questioned a teacher at a private school and a local copying shop in Chauk township. Retired teacher U Tun Tun said the leak had undermined the integrity of the exam process. The questions were circulated on social media. Lots of people knew about it. I expect a thorough investigation. Translation by Khant Lin Oo Census data held back last year is still too sensitive to release, officials say. Though the initial results of the 2014 census were released in August of that year and a more detailed statistical picture was made public in May 2015, information about religion and ethnicity was kept under wraps. At the ceremony held in Nay Pyi Taw last May to mark the release of the main findings of the census, immigration minister U Khin Yi said further discussions would have to take place with ethnic leaders over unspecified problems before those data were released. It was understood at the time that the remaining information derived from the census would be released early this year. However, immigration and population department director U Nyi Nyi told The Myanmar Times on February 22 that the findings were still going to be kept secret to avoid shattering the peace and stability of the state during the transition period. The timing of the issuance is sensitive. We dont want to shatter the states peace and stability, he said. Much the same argument was used to delay issuing the data before last Novembers election. We dont mean that the facts in the census can destroy the transition. But we want to take more time to do this properly. Our superiors will make the decision as to when to release the data, he said, suggesting that the data is ready for release, and has been for some time, but that the decision over the timing of the release would be left to the incoming government. But a senior NLD official told The Myanmar Times yesterday that he didnt understand how the census results could affect the states peace and stability, and called on the department to offer a more detailed explanation. The results should be released immediately, but it will depend on the policy of the current government, central executive committee member U Tun Tun Hein said. The latest delay runs contrary to the recommendations of the International Technical Advisory Board, a body of 15 experts set up to advise the government on the census. Following a meeting in Nay Pyi Taw on October 22 and 23, the ITAB suggested releasing the data as early as possible, U Nyi Nyi said at the time. We have suggested releasing the census figures on religion after the election, which would mean publishing it at the end of this year, he added. A spokesperson for the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) said yesterday that it was up to the government to decide when to release the figures. While UNFPA has provided, and continues to provide, critical technical assistance to the census, the decision on when the census data on religion will be released belongs to the government, the spokesperson said, adding that no release date has been communicated to UNFPA. The census was conducted from March 29 to April 10, 2014, the first in more than 30 years. U Nyi Nyi said there had been little difficulty in overcoming the technical problems of conducting the census. I observed what other countries had done, especially neighbouring countries. We also received assistance from the UN Population Fund [UNFPA] and from donors, he said. The latest delay in issuing national statistics on religion and ethnicity is likely to direct attention to Rakhine, Kachin and Kayin states, where only population estimates have been released because full reporting was not conducted. The International Crisis Group warned as early as May 2014 of potential risks over the publication of the census results. Disagreements over how to categorise ethnic identities and the possibility that the total number of Muslims in the country may be much higher than expected could fuel tensions in the run-up to the November 2015 parliamentary elections, it said. The Muslim population was officially counted as 4 percent of the nationwide total in 1983 the same proportion as in the previous census a decade earlier. The census stirred controversy because of the exclusion of those in Rakhine State who wanted to self-identify as Rohingya. The ministry said an estimated 1.09 million people were not counted in Rakhine State, while enumerators were also denied access to parts of Kachin State and Kayin State in areas controlled by armed ethnic groups. Additional reporting by Ye Mon, translation by Khine Thazin Han and Emoon Parliamentary Speakers have agreed to reinvigorate the largely defunct Myanmar Parliamentary Union. The union, which was created five years ago but has been rarely utilised since, includes the Speakers from all national and state and region parliaments. Yesterday, at a meeting in Nay Pyi Taw, the current Speakers agreed to reform the MPU and use the body to share best practices and experiences. The inaugural meeting was attended by the Speakers of the lower and upper houses, the deputy speakers, and the 14 Speakers from all state and region hluttaws. Amyotha Hluttaw Speaker Mahn Win Khaing Than said in his opening speech that the union will help improve the performance of members of parliament and strengthen the ability of legislative bodies to represent the people. He said the union would act as a contact point for international parliamentary committees. Engagement would help to develop the democratic system in Myanmar, he said. U Aung Kyaw Oo, Speaker of the Mandalay Region Hluttaw, said that the MPU will meet again after the new government takes office in April. NLD members have taken the Speaker seats in all state and region parliaments except Rakhine and Shan states, where representatives from the Arakan National Party and the Union Solidarity and Development Party have been appointed, respectively. The MPU was created five years ago and was chaired by Speaker Thura U Shwe Mann, but was not a particularly active body, meeting just 14 times. The newly launched MPU of 2016 said in a statement that it would focus on enacting laws in the peoples interest and improving the quality of parliamentary activities. The initiative follows a string of trainings for MPs and appears designed to respond to fears that the incoming legislature will lack any of the institutional knowledge established over the previous term. U San Kyaw Hla, the Speaker of the Rakhine State parliament, said after yesterdays meeting that he supports the plan to re-launch the MPU. The proposal received unanimous support, he said. U Aung Kyaw Khine, Speaker of the Ayeyarwaddy Region Hluttaw, said that the new MPU will be better than the previous iteration, but will start meeting only after the next government forms. This is the power transition period and the new parliament needs to prioritise supporting the current situation, he said, adding, It wont go wrong. In a tactic that seems to combine neat symmetry with a dash of mischief, the former parliamentary Speaker and ex-chair of the ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party will now spend his days unpicking the laws passed by the parliament over which he presided. The implications of the decision by National League for Democracy leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi to appoint Thura U Shwe Mann chair of a powerful legislative review committee are now starting to sink in, with some expressing fears that the move could disturb relations between the incoming government and the military. During its tenure, the parliament that was elected in 2010 and concluded on January 31 passed a total of 232 laws, including amendments to existing legislation. Now, under the chairship of Thura U Shwe Mann, the Commission for the Assessment of Legal Affairs and Special Issues is to review about 200 of them, with a view to either amending or abolishing them. Of the committees 23 members, 10 slots have been allocated to USDP members, all MPs in the previous parliament who lost their seats in the election. This is a much higher proportion of opposition members than would be suggested by the NLDs lopsided majority in the chamber as a whole, with the party holding about 80 percent of all elected seats. Moreover, there are suggestions that the commission will also serve as a repository of parliamentary experience in an assembly dominated by political novices. Unlike the largely dormant version of the same body that existed in the last parliament, the commission is authorised to submit bills and to investigate special issues at the request of the new Speaker, U Win Myint. Thura U Shwe Mann has wasted no time in taking up the reins, having already convened four meetings since his appointment. The most recent, on February 18, was attended by Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, who looked on as Thura U Shwe Mann said the commissions first priority was to work for the good of the country and the people rather than for any party. He and U Saw Hla Tun, former secretary of the Bill Committee, urged MPs to submit suggestions for its work. Were just starting out. We welcome suggestions, and we will pay attention to public opinion. We will be working for the people, said U Saw Hla Tun. A great deal of attention will be focused on whether or not the commission will consider ways of amending the constitution itself. But speculation is already widespread that Thura U Shwe Manns commission could rattle legislative skeletons in some well-stocked cupboards. Nobody knows more than the former Speaker about the nuts and bolts of parliamentary machinery, or the mechanics and motivations behind the laws passed by the parliament he supervised. The leading positions he once held in the USDP and in the Tatmadaw give him additional insights that are now, to all appearances, being placed at the disposal of the NLD. Read more In Depth: All the Speaker's Men While the Speaker regularly showed himself willing to take on U Thein Seins administration and assert parliaments independence, MPs said he also protected members of the government from excessive scrutiny. He [Thura U Shwe Mann] protected the cabinet a lot, said Daw Dwe Bu, a former lower-house MP from the USDP-aligned Unity and Democracy Party of Kachin State. He would warn off MPs who were too critical of ministries. Daw Aung San Suu Kyi has ruled out retribution and stressed the need for national reconciliation. However, Daw Dwe Bu said she believed some confrontation on major issues, such as the suspension of the Myitsone hydropower project, was inevitable. U Shwe Mann will make suggestions, but the final decision will rest with parliament, she said. If he does the job right, he will face confrontation with his former colleagues. One outgoing USDP MP, who asked not to be named, said the outgoing parliament had passed a law, in its final days, guaranteeing the security and immunity from prosecution of President U Thein Sein after he leaves office. But it doesnt protect anybody else, he said. Others pointed out that the former Speaker was unlikely to change laws or practices from which his own family members had allegedly profited or take actions that could put his familys assets at risk. I dont think U Shwe Mann will choose confrontation with former generals. But the question is how he will do his job without such confrontation, said one MP. Thura U Shwe Mann served as the third-highest-ranking member in the former military regime and was key in propelling democratic reforms as the country set out on its transition. But his relations with the non-elected, 25 percent military bloc of MPs deteriorated when he attempted to use his influence to amend the 2008 constitution so that the president, vice presidents and ministers would be drawn only from elected members from parliament. The move was seen as an attempt to reposition the USDP from being a vehicle for the military to controlling the military. Thura U Shwe Manns public jockeying in competition with President U Thein Sein also caused fissures within the party, and led to his ouster as USDP chair in August 2015, just months before the election. Further evidence of the split was seen when the president handed out awards for excellence earlier this month. At the February 9 ceremony, dozens of Union ministers, as well as the military Commander-in-Chief Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, were honoured. Thura U Shwe Mann didnt win any prizes. The Joint Monitoring Committtee, tasked to monitor compliance to the nationwide ceasefire, has pointed the finger at the Restoration Council of the Shan State for violating the agreement during recent clashes with another ethnic armed group. During the first day of a meeting of the committee in the northern Thai city of Chiang Mai yesterday, the chair, Lieutenant General Yar Pyae, accused the RCSS of overstepping the boundaries of the agreement by arresting villagers in Law Naw, a village in Namkham township in northern Shan State, following clashes with the Taang National Liberation Army (TNLA) on February 7. But the RCSS responded that it had stuck to the agreement. Law Naw was the headquarters of the TNLA. They are always shooting at us with heavy weapons. Fighting broke out between two armed groups when they attacked us. Theres no such case like threatening villagers. If it really happened, then prove it, Lieutenant Colonel Sai Mong, a spokesperson for the RCSS, told The Myanmar Times. Fighting erupted more than two weeks ago between the RCSS, which signed the ceasefire, and the TNLA, which did not. Thousands of civilians have since been displaced and the warring parties have accused each other of forced conscription. On February 22, RCSS chief Lieutenant General Yawd Serk met with chief government peace negotiator U Aung Min to discuss the conflict with the TNLA. We didnt break the NCA. The RCSS never started to fight. We just fight to protect our troops while we are under attack, said Sai Mong. The 12-page Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement, signed on October 15, states that armed groups have to avoid troop reinforcements in ceasefire areas, forcible displacement or relocation of local populations, and unlawful and arbitrary arrest, entrapment, prosecution and pronouncement of judgment against civilians. Any action against civilians shall be undertaken in accordance with the law, the agreement stipulates. Members of the JMC expressed their concern about the conflict and the consequences for the peace process during the meeting. We hope to find a way to solve the problem of the RCSS and the TNLA. This is important for finding a way to end the long conflict in our country, JMC secretary-1 U Shwe Khar said at the meeting. The vice chair of the committee, Saw Issac Po of the Karen National Union, agreed that maintaining the ceasefire was essential for the next step in the peace process, the political dialogue. Possibilities for the peace process under a new government were also discussed at the meeting and questions were raised about the future of the Myanmar Peace Center, to which MPC members were said not to have an answer. There is speculation the centre may be revamped or even discontinued under the incoming government. The Joint Monitoring Committee (JMC) is comprised of members of the Union Peace-making Work Committee, representatives of the ethnic armed groups, and trusted and well-respected individuals. The meeting of the Joint Monitoring Committee will end today. I would wager that I have been chancellor of more universities than anyone alive today. This is partly because when I was governor of Hong Kong, I was made chancellor of every university in the city. I protested that it would surely be better for the universities to choose their own constitutional heads. But the universities would not allow me to resign gracefully. So for five years I enjoyed the experience of giving tens of thousands of students their degrees and watching what this rite of passage meant for them and their families. When I came back to Britain in 1997, I was asked to become chancellor of Newcastle University. Then, in 2003, I was elected chancellor by the graduates of Oxford University, one of the worlds greatest institutions of learning. So it should not be surprising that I have strong views about what it means to be a university and to teach, do research or study at one. Universities should be bastions of freedom in any society. They should be free from government interference in their primary purposes of research and teaching; and they should control their own academic governance. I do not believe it is possible for a university to become or remain a world-class institution if these conditions do not exist. The role of a university is to promote the clash of ideas, to test the results of research with other scholars and to impart new knowledge to students. Freedom of speech is thus fundamental to what universities are, enabling them to sustain a sense of common humanity and uphold the mutual tolerance and understanding that underpin any free society. That, of course, makes universities dangerous to authoritarian governments, which seek to stifle the ability to raise and attempt to answer difficult questions. But if any denial of academic liberty is a blow struck against the meaning of a university, the irony today is that some of the most worrying attacks on these values have been coming from inside universities. In the United States and the United Kingdom, some students and teachers now seek to constrain argument and debate. They contend that people should not be exposed to ideas with which they strongly disagree. Moreover, they argue that history should be rewritten to expunge the names though not the endowments of those who fail to pass todays tests of political correctness. Thomas Jefferson and Cecil Rhodes, among others, have been targeted. And how would Churchill and Washington fare if the same tests were applied to them? Some people are being denied the chance to speak as well so-called no platforming, in the awful jargon of some clearly not very literate campuses. There are calls for safe spaces where students can be protected from anything that assaults their sense of what is moral and appropriate. This reflects and inevitably nurtures a harmful politics of victimisation defining ones own identity (and thus ones interests) in opposition to others. When I was a student 50 years ago, my principal teacher was a leading Marxist historian and former member of the Communist Party. The British security services were deeply suspicious of him. He was a great historian and teacher, but these days I might be encouraged to think that he had threatened my safe space. In fact, he made me a great deal better informed, more open to discussion of ideas that challenged my own, more capable of distinguishing between an argument and a quarrel, and more prepared to think for myself. Of course, some ideas incitement of racial hatred, gender hostility or political violence are anathema in every free society. Liberty requires some limits (decided freely by democratic argument under the rule of law) in order to exist. Universities should be trusted to exercise that degree of control themselves. But intolerance of debate, of discussion and of particular branches of scholarship should never be tolerated. As the great political philosopher Karl Popper taught us, the only thing we should be intolerant of is intolerance itself. That is especially true at universities. Yet some American and British academics and students are themselves undermining freedom; paradoxically, they have the liberty to do so. Meanwhile, universities in China and Hong Kong are faced with threats to their autonomy and freedom not from within, but from an authoritarian government. In Hong Kong, the autonomy of universities and free speech itself, guaranteed in the citys Basic Law and the 50-year treaty between Britain and China on the citys status, are under threat. The rationale seems to be that, because students strongly supported the pro-democracy protests in 2014, the universities where they study should be brought to heel. So the citys government blunders away, stirring up trouble, clearly on the orders of the government in Beijing. Indeed, the Chinese authorities only recently showed what they think of treaty obligations and of the golden age of Sino-British relations (much advertised by British ministers), by abducting a British citizen and four other Hong Kong residents on the citys streets. The five were publishing books that exposed some of the dirty secrets of Chinas leaders. On the mainland, the Chinese Communist Party has launched the biggest crackdown on universities since the aftermath of the killings in Tiananmen Square in 1989. There is to be no discussion of so-called Western values in Chinas universities. Only Marxism can be taught. Did no one tell President Xi Jinping and his Politburo colleagues where Karl Marx came from? The trouble these days is precisely that they know little about Marx but a lot about Lenin. Westerners should take a closer interest in what is happening in Chinas universities and what that tells us about the real values underpinning scholarship, teaching, and the academy. Compare and contrast, as students are asked to do. Do you want universities where the government decides what it is allegedly safe for you to learn and discuss? Or do you want universities that regard the idea of a safe space in terms of closing down debate in case it offends someone as an oxymoron in an academic setting? Western students should think occasionally about their counterparts in Hong Kong and China who must fight for freedoms that they take for granted and too often abuse. Copyright: Project Syndicate [February 24, 2016] Barbadillo Uses Thinfilm's NFC Technology to Secure and Authenticate Limited-Edition Bottles of Rare Sherry Thin Film Electronics ASA ("Thinfilm") (OSE: THIN.OL; OTCQX: TFECY), a global leader in printed electronics and smart systems, today announced that Barbadillo, a leading Spanish winemaker, has unveiled a highly exclusive release of rare sherry in "smart bottles" protected by Thinfilm's NFC-based authentication technology. The NFC OpenSense tags incorporated into each bottle are specifically designed to thwart counterfeiters, prevent unauthorized refills, and facilitate product authentication. This Smart News Release features multimedia. View the full release here: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160224005399/en/ Versos 1891 "Smart Bottle" Featuring NFC OpenSense(TM) Technology Dating back to the 19th century and thought to be one of the oldest and rarest sherries on the market today, the exclusive run of "Versos 1891" bottles goes on sale today from Bodegas Barbadillo and a select group of wine merchants across the globe. The Versos 1891 was originally a gift to Manuel Barbadillo by his father as a christening present in 1891, and was already then described as an old Amontillado. Stored in the humid cellars of Barbadillo in Sanlucar de Barrameda, Andalusia, generations of winemakers from the Barbadillo family, as well as the firm's coopers and cellar masters, have acted as its custodians while it aged slowly in he balanced conditions required of the finest old sherries. Each bottle of Versos 1891 will have an NFC OpenSense tag (News - Alert) incorporated into the bottle that can distinguish between the product's "factory sealed" and "opened" states. Using Thinfilm's custom app and cloud-based platform, the tag can wirelessly transmit authentication data to consumers with the tap of an NFC-enabled smartphone. In addition, each tag is uniquely identifiable and trackable, and cannot be cloned. "Versos 1891 is the celebration of an extraordinary man, a legendary winery, and a deep-rooted tradition of winemaking," said Manuel Barbadillo, Chairman of Barbadillo and grandson of Don Manuel. Given the rarity of this release and its significance to the Barbadillo family, we feel compelled to protect it. Thinfilm's technology delivers that protection, for our business and our valued consumers." In May of 2013, the Institute of Masters of Wine celebrated its 60th Anniversary with a formal tasting of Versos 1891, during which the sherry was acclaimed for its "elegance" and other outstanding qualities. "It's gratifying that an emerging Norwegian technology company can deliver value to a centuries-old Spanish winery on such a meaningful initiative," said Davor Sutija, CEO of Thinfilm. "The Barbadillo brand has a rich history, and we're delighted that our NFC OpenSense technology is playing a role in protecting that legacy." Thinfilm worked closely with Constantia Flexibles, a trusted partner and one of the world's leading manufacturers of flexible packaging and labels, on incorporating the NFC OpenSense technology within the Versos 1891 bottle. Spear USA Inc., Constantia's label division and an industry leader within the wine and spirits field, led the integration efforts. Barbadillo and Thinfilm will be demonstrating the Versos 1891 connected "smart bottle" at Mobile World Congress (News - Alert) 2016, February 22-25 in Barcelona, Spain. The Thinfilm booth is in the Norway Pavilion in Hall 6, Stand 6H20. The main venue for the event is located at Fira Gran Via, Avenue Joan Carles I, 64 08908 L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, Barcelona. About Thin Film Electronics ASA Thinfilm is a leader in the development and commercialization of printed electronics. The first to commercialize printed, rewritable memory, the Company is creating printed systems that include memory, sensing, display, and wireless communication, all at a low cost unmatched by any other electronic technology. Thinfilm's roadmap integrates technology from a strong and growing ecosystem of partners to enable the Internet of Everything by bringing intelligence to disposable goods. Thin Film Electronics ASA ("Thinfilm") is a publicly listed Norwegian company with headquarters in Oslo, Norway; product development and production in Linkoping, Sweden; product development, production, and business development in San Jose, California, USA; and sales offices in the United States, Hong Kong, and Singapore. For more information, visit www.thinfilm.no. About Barbadillo Founded in 1821 in Sanlucar de Barrameda, in southern Spain, Bodegas Barbadillo remains 100% family owned by the Barbadillo family with its original cellars and 500 ha of Jerez Superior vineyards. Barbadillo is dedicated to making the highest quality Spanish wines and is especially renowned for its white wine 'Barbadillo', and its Sherries, especially Manzanilla which is unique to Sanlucar. The company furthermore owns the 'Vega Real' winery in D.O. Ribera del Duero and Bodega Pirineos in D.O.Somontano, with an exciting array of excellent quality wines from each. www.barbadillo.com View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160224005399/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [February 24, 2016] HomeSend and Vodafone to Extend M-Pesa Remittance Agreement to Five New Markets in 2016 Today at Mobile World Congress, HomeSend, the international payment and money transfer hub, announced the expansion of its global framework agreement with Vodafone Group for M-Pesa, including the launch of remittance services into five new markets during 2016. The two companies will work together to enable the real-time, mobile receipt of remittances by M-Pesa users in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ghana, Lesotho, Mozambique and Albania. In addition to Kenya, HomeSend has already launched connections for inbound remittances with M-Pesa in both Tanzania and Romania. HomeSend continues to rapidly expand the reach of their network, with coverage expected to reach more than 70 markets in 2016. These will include 20 new Mobile Money markets, bolstering the interoperability of HomeSend's network and providing their customers with the ability to send and receive remittances globally via a mobile phone. Focused on broadening their network and service offering, HomeSend will provide a fast, safe and convenient way to receive remittances by enabling MasterCard (News - Alert) payments cards to be used. Several markets are expected to go live with this solution throughout 2016. Claire Alexandre, Head of M-Pesa Commercial and Strategy, Vodafone (News - Alert), said, "M-Pesa makes money mobile, now increasingly across borders too. We're delighted to offer our customers more choice to send and receive money from other countries and netwrks. HomeSend connects them to an extensive global network, offering an affordable, secure and convenient solution for inbound digital money transfers." Stephen Doyle, CEO, HomeSend, said, "Vodafone is a pioneer in domestic mobile money services. HomeSend, as the leading global payments hub, remains a natural partner for Vodafone to connect their domestic deployments to users worldwide. We are thrilled to expand our work with Vodafone to bring all-important, cost-effective money transfer services to M-Pesa customers in even more countries." Download our Mobile World Congress app or find a complete list of MasterCard news announcements from the conference in our Digital Press Kit. Follow us @MasterCardNews or using the hashtag #WhatsNext to join the conversation. About Vodafone Group Vodafone is one of the world's largest telecommunications companies and provides a range of services including voice, messaging, data and fixed communications. Vodafone has mobile operations in 26 countries, partners with mobile networks in 57 more, and fixed broadband operations in 17 markets. As of 31 December 2015, Vodafone had 461 million mobile customers and 13 million fixed broadband customers. For more information, please visit: www.vodafone.com. About M-Pesa The M-Pesa service was launched in March 2007 by Safaricom Limited in Kenya. It enables millions of people who have access to a mobile phone, but do not have access to a bank account, to send and receive money, top-up airtime, make bill payments and enjoy a range of other services. M-Pesa had approximately 24.6 million active customers as at 31 December 2015 and approximately 236,000 agents worldwide. It is available in 11 markets: Kenya, Tanzania, South Africa, Democratic Republic of Congo, India, Mozambique, Egypt, Lesotho, Ghana, Albania and Romania. About HomeSend HomeSend is a joint venture created by MasterCard, eServGlobal (News - Alert) and BICS that enables B2B cross-border and cross-network value transfers through a single connection. It builds on the successful deployment of mobile enabled person-to-person transfers in emerging markets and the digitalization of money transfer services. The HomeSend service innovatively bridges the gap between finance and telecommunication service providers and enables consumers to send money to and from mobile money accounts, payment cards, bank accounts or cash outlets - regardless of their location or that of the recipient. Contact us at: https://www.homesend.com/contact-us. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160223007122/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] 24.02.2016 LISTEN Ghanas DanceHall Superstar, Charles Nii Armah, aka Shatta Walle, has called on Members of the Shatta Movement to be inspired by his story and never give up on their dreams and goals. According to him, SHATTA means SERIOUS, and for that matter every member of the Movement should take life more serious and work very hard to realize their dreams. Shatta Wale, who is gearing up for the launch of his album AFTER THE STORM in April this year and is looking forward to having it free for his fans because, as he stated, sometimes it is not always about the money, it is about giving back to the society. He made this known in an exclusive interview on Showbiz971 on Suncity Radio 97.1MHz when host, Melvina Frimpong Manso interviewed him. According to him, Ghanaians have showed him so much love that he needs to make them feel loved back. I have gotten so much love in Ghana that I have never gotten before. It hasnt been an easy road for me though, and this album will tell the youth in Ghana that when you want to do anything, do it in the right direction and also positively. According to him, the reason why he settled on AFTER THE STORM is because he has been through a lot in his music career but has never given up. From Bandana to Shatta Wale now has been a brand that many doubted. Those days, people did not really appreciate and understand my type of music. I was told Ghana was not ready for dancehall but I told them I could do it. It took me 10 years to come out with the brand Shatta Wale and I had a lot of struggles here and there, all because I wanted to put our industry in order, he said. I want the youth to know that, after the storm, there is light at the end of the tunnel, he concluded. 24.02.2016 LISTEN Born on the February 23, 1960, Rev. Sam Korankye Ankrah, the Apostle General is a father and a mentor to many. Reverend Sam Korankye Ankrah serves as the Apostle General of the Royalhouse Chapel International, a church in Ghana with more than 30,000 members. He is also the first vice president of the Ghana Pentecostal and Charismatic Council. Quite recently Rev. Korankye Ankrah and his team visited the Koforidua prisons to provide free medical care, drugs, meals and evangelism as part of a mega crusade being held by the Church in Eastern regional capital. Due to his love for humanitarianism, the work of God, touching generations and changing lives, AG as he is affectionately called had been much celebrated by many people home and abroad on his birthday. On the occasion of his birthday which is today 23rd February, Covenant Voices a dynamic Choir in Royalhouse Chapel salutes the Apostle General with touching and inspiring messages. See below some of the touching messages: [11:49, 2/23/2016]: You are a trailblazer of our Generation and the Next Generation. You fought battles on our behalf and interceded for our redemption. You taught us how to talk and walk the Christian way. You LIGHT the way that seem so dark without any clues. [12:01, 2/23/2016]: This day is not special only to us but to all those people whose lives you have touched with your kindness and generosity. We feel so blessed to have you as our Daddy!!! With so much Love from your sons and Daughters of COVENANT VOICES & FAMILY It's our Prayer God grant you Long Life and cause you to increase in strength and in stature. Happy Birthday Apostle General!!!! [12:09, 2/23/2016]: Daddy You're simply the best. Thanks for touching our generation with the power of God [12:09, 2/23/2016]: There should be a way of forwarding the summary or a summarized version of these birthday felicitations to Daddy. Pastor Paapa and the Media team, can you please assist in that regard [12:09, 2/23/2016]: HBD daddy, we love you and pray for more grace and strength. [12:09, 2/23/2016]: The man God has used to add meaning to my life and has made me to understand that it does not matter my background I destine for greatness I say Happy Birthday. AG may you live longer than you ever dreamt off. We love you father. [12:09, 2/23/2016]: Dont think that your birthday is just a reminder of another passed year, because for me, it is the celebration that marks the birth of the best person I ever met in my life. God bless you, hoping He will keep you near for many years to come. [12:09, 2/23/2016]: Happy Birthday General of God Most High, the God who began with you and blessed you, will continue to bless till you become a blessing. CONGRATULATION PAPA. [12:09, 2/23/2016]: Live long and fulfill your dreams .Happy birthday AG [12:09, 2/23/2016]: You have blessed so many lives through your faithful ministry; may you be blessed greatly in return on this special day. All of us in this great family you have raised wish you a very happy birthday with many more to come. I Love you dearly! Live forever! [12:09, 2/23/2016]: Happy birthday to our Mentor, the APOSTLE of our generation. Thank you for teaching us and impacting our life with the word of God. May the Good Lord continue to bless you to take his devine presence to the peoples of the earth. We will forever grateful. HAPPY BIRTHDAY SIR [12:09, 2/23/2016]: Happy birthday Daddy. May God keep increasing you in Wisdom, Health, Ministry, Love, Compassion and all that HE is using you for, in affecting your generation and the once yet to be born. We love Daddy.... Happy Birthday [12:09, 2/23/2016]: Happy birthday to my Mentor, the APOSTLE Gen. of our generation. Thank you for teaching us and impacting our life with the word of God. May the Good Lord continue to bless you to take his devine presence to the peoples of the earth. HAPPY BIRTHDAY AG. [12:09, 2/23/2016]: Happy birthday Daddy you will always be my father, May you grow strong & not weak, in wisdom & knowledge, in spirit & doing miracles, in riches & love etc...now I declare and decree in the next 4 years to come may you take over this nation....Say Amen... [12:10, 2/23/2016]: Caption :Happy Birthday Apostle General [12:10, 2/23/2016]: Happy Birthday Apostle Gen. Let the strength and properity of heaven rain upon you, in the Matchless Undefeating Name of Jesus Christ. [12:10, 2/23/2016]: Happy bday Dad, may God bless and increase the grace upon your life, long life is your portion [12:10, 2/23/2016]: Hapi celebration to u Papa! May ur strength be renewed like dt of de eagle n wax stronger n stronger for de tax placed b4 u to accomplish! May de unique function on u increase n may all who taste of ur ministry hv a positive turnaround in Jesus' name! May ur day be full of surprises, Apostle G!!! [13:01, 2/23/2016]: Happy birthday to u my spiritual father, may God bless u all the days of ur life. May He increase in every area of ur life. May the supernatural favour never cease frm ur life. [13:11, 2/23/2016]: Happy Birthday A.G, God increase u,give u more grace, favour and stand taller than all other prophets in this nation and international. You shld be mouth of God in this world and wen u speak, God has spoken. In Jesus Name Amen [13:21, 2/23/2016]: Happy Birthday man of God. Your worship, selflessness and heart of giving has really empowered our generation. On your 56th Birthday, my prayer is that our God renews your strength and make you grow younger ; be full of wisdom and power from our LORD and savior. Amen 24.02.2016 LISTEN "I have always been in the forefront of fighting for different causes, I feel with who I am and my name , I should be able to speak out and serve". This was the mission of Kate Henshaw in midstream Nigerian politics. Despite stiff opposition from her fan base and her mother over dumping acting for politics, Kate tested the waters and felt politics isn't about movie set directions with the usual tape rolling, characters ready ? and action !. Neither is it about fame, elegance or money. Kate's bid to represent the people of Calabar municipal/Odukpani federal constituency in the Nigerian house of representatives hit the rocks as delegates of Defeated President Goodluck Jonathan's party the People's Democratic Party (PDP) failed to endorse her candidature during their primaries. "I will come back to Nollywood after 8 years in politics" Kate told her disappointed fans through Sahara reporters but she made a swift come back to Nollywood after her political dream was shattered. Paying the price for indulging in partisan politics, Kate missed most movie contracts and came to meet a destabilized fan base as most fans who didnt share her political ideology dumped her. They saw her a greedy actress trying hard to milk Nigeria dry through Goodluck Jonathan's perceived corrupt PDP government. John Dumelo Ghana's finest actor must take a lesson from Kate Henshaw's woes and advise himself against the dangerous journey he has started in Ghanaian politics. John has his right to freedom of expression, right to choose or vote and to be voted for but his lukewarm attitude is gradually affecting his fan base and am afraid might creep into his career if he fails to avoid making partisan comments. What made him John Dumelo, and the people who made him John Dumelo shouldn't be forgotten easily. Political intolerance is an old disease in Africa and Ghana yet to have an antidote. Fritz Baffour an NDC MP will attest to the fact that acting and politics is parallel. If John Dumelo wants to enter into politics, he should boldly come out and stop transmitting from the studios of movie making because not all his listeners will buy what he says, hence creating disaffection in a section of his fans for his current career. He can console himself with successful actors turned politicians like Desmond Elliot, Arnold Schwarzenegger, to mention a few. But he shouldnt forget what such a suicidal venture can cost him just like what is happening to his Kumawood colleague Clement Bonney a.k.a Mr Beautiful. Standing and propagating the message for peace will be a better option for a figure like John Dumelo. Besides, he is still welcome fully into the world of politics but if he is not ready, he must stop tainting the acting profession with partisan politics. The South African government will open South African Airways to private sector investment. By Gianluigi Guercia (AFP/File) 24.02.2016 LISTEN Cape Town (AFP) - South Africa's finance minister hiked taxes and targeted what he called wasteful and corrupt government spending on Wednesday in a "crisis" budget aimed at staving off a ratings downgrade to junk status. Africa's most developed economy is struggling with shrinking growth, unemployment running at 25 percent, and widespread poverty. "There is no doubt about the fact that we are in crisis," minister Pravin Gordhan told a media conference ahead of his budget speech. Presenting the budget to parliament he announced greater cooperation with the private sector in an effort to boost growth, which he forecast would drop to below one percent this year. Although he did not use the word "privatisation", the minister opened the way for private sector investment in under-performing state-owned enterprises. These include the loss-making national carrier South African Airways, long a target of government critics. Gordhan said the government would explore a merger of SAA with the state-owned SA Express airline "with a view to engaging with a potential minority equity partner." Privatisation has long been resisted by sections of the ruling African National Congress. Increased taxes on excise duties, capital gains, fuel, sugary drinks, alcohol and tobacco and environmental levies are expected to bring in an extra 18 billion rand ($1.18 billion). Personal income tax was not increased, but "current taxes on wealth are under review", Gordhan said. The government spending ceiling will be cut by 25 billion rand ($1.64 billion) over the next three years, mainly by trimming posts in the bloated public service. Government corruption will be tackled through a crackdown on tender processes, while wasteful expenditure clamps will include a downgrade in the value of cars bought for politicians. Abuses in the private sector will also be targeted. "We will continue to act aggressively against the evasion of tax through transfer pricing abuses, misuse of tax treaties and illegal money flows", Gordhan said. At the same time he said steps were being taken to cut red tape for business investors, including the establishment of Invest South Africa as a partnership with the private sector. - 'Address declining confidence' - Winning the confidence of the ratings agencies -- which help determine how much countries pay to borrow money -- was made more difficult when President Jacob Zuma shocked markets in December by firing two finance ministers within four days. Gordhan, who was widely respected when he held the position from 2009 to 2014, was recalled in a panicked attempt to limit the damage to the country's credibility. "In acting together we can address declining confidence and the retreat of capital, and we can combat emerging patterns of predatory behaviour and corruption," Gordhan said. The minister faced the difficult balancing act of trying to please both the financial world and a government facing voters in municipal elections this year. He denied in his press conference that he was presenting an "austerity budget", saying that spending cuts would be made without affecting social services. South Africa is regularly rocked by protests over service delivery for the poor, and in the past year the unrest has spread to university campuses with students pressing for free education. Gordhan announced an extra 16 billion rand ($1.05 billion) for higher education, saying "we are crafting solutions to the voices of students regarding fees and housing". A central objective of the budget was to stabilise debt as a percentage of GDP, he said. "Net national debt is projected to stabilise at 46.2 percent of GDP in 2017/18, and to decline after that." Efforts are also being made to reign in the budget deficit, which is expected to be 3.2 percent of GDP this year on total spending of 1,324 billion rand ($86.9 billion), declining to 2.4 percent in 2018/19. Apart from policy missteps, the resource-rich economy has been hard hit by falling commodity prices on reduced demand by China, and an agricultural sector hobbled by the worst drought in more than a century. Pristina, Kosovo Since the founding of the HWPL Peace Academy in Israel in early December, the idea of incorporating peace education into curricula has spread like wildfire to Kosovo and beyond. Mr. Man Hee Lee, Chairman of Heavenly Culture, World Peace, Restoration of Light (HWPL) and Chairwoman Nam Hee Kim of the International Womens Peace Group (IWPG) were invited to the University of Pristina, Kosovo to give a special peace lecture. In the presence of over 400 students and professors, the heads of the university announced future plans to incorporate peace education into their curriculum by establishing the HWPL Peace Education Course. This special course will teach students about HWPLs peace initiatives and its affiliated organizations activities. This will strengthen the solidarity among students to work together to achieve peace in this generation. Chairman Lees speech covered the critical tasks and roles of youths in achieving the cessation of all on-going conflicts through properly learning the practical activities which will bring peace. Chairman Lee said, If we are taught to envision a peaceful world, we will be able to greet the new era of peace sooner. The IWPG and the International Peace Youth Group (IPYG) have fully dedicated their efforts to make peace a reality and collaborate with HWPL to incorporate peace education into school curriculum throughout the world. We urge educators to cooperate with us to provide a comprehensive peace program for students in all grades. Chairman Lee and the HWPL Peace Delegation also visited Haxhi Zeka University where school representatives announced future plans of promoting peace in the University and community and resolved to also become a HWPL Peace Academy. Chairwoman Kim said during her keynote speech, People in all sectors of society, as well as NGOs promoting peace along with schools, need to collaborate with HWPL to teach our youth about the work of peace. HWPL is in the process of developing a comprehensive peace program which provides an educational framework for interfaith conflict analysis and resolution, interfaith peace dialogue sessions, and explains how they were able to build alliances between religions through their World Alliance of Religions Peace (WARP) Offices. HWPL will work to design programs and courses to enhance the peacemaking capacities of individuals and organizations from various faiths through WARP Office events and will highlight HWPLs most recent peacemaking efforts. During the 1st Annual Commemoration of September 18th World Alliance of Religions Peace (WARP) Summit held from September 18th to 19th, HWPL appointed thirteen international law experts as the HWPL International Law Peace Committee (Currently, there are nineteen committee members). Since in-depth and intensive discussions on drafting the International Convention on the Renunciation and Cessation of War and International Armed Conflicts are reaching its height, HWPL has encouraged women and youth to get involved by urging their respective governing bodies to enact and implement the convention. 23.02.2016 LISTEN The row between Apple and the FBI over access to a dead murderers phone should start a debate about government requests for data, says Bill Gates. The FBI wants Apple to unlock the iPhone of Syed Rizwan Farook who killed 14 people in December last year. Apple has resisted the demand saying the FBI order was dangerous and unprecedented. Speaking to the Financial Times, the Microsoft founder said complying would not put a backdoor in all iPhones. This is a specific case where the government is asking for access to information, he said in the interview. They are not asking for some general thing, they are asking for a particular case. Mr Gates said the case was similar to the requests regularly made to phone companies and banks for information. In a separate interview with the BBC , Mr Gates reiterated his view that the issue came down to a debate about whether governments can get at data they use to protect citizens. Should governments be able to access information at all or should they be blind, thats essentially what we are talking about, he told the BBC. Microsoft itself has not formally commented on the row between the FBI and Apple. However, when pushed on the issue Microsoft referred to a statement issued by the Reform Government Surveillance group of which it is a member. . That statement sides with Apple saying: Technology companies should not be required to build in backdoors to the technologies that keep their users information secure. It emerged this week that the US Department of Justice is asking for Apples help to get at data on iPhones relevant to more than a dozen separate investigations. The Wall Street Journal said the cases came from several different criminal investigations and data locked on the handsets would help law enforcement. None of the cases is believed to be related to terrorism and many involved older iPhones that lack the stronger security protections found on newer devices. Majority call More recently, Facebook boss Mark Zuckerberg said he was sympathetic to Apples stance in the row. The attack in San Bernadino by Syed Rizwan Farook and his wife Tashfeen Malik in December last year left 14 people dead and 22 injured. In a statement published on Sunday, FBI director James Comey said its demand for access to the data on the phone was about the victims and justice. Slightly more than half of all Americans, 51%, when asked whether Apple should unlock the phone, believe it should comply with the FBIs order, according to a survey carried out by the Pew Research Center. Of those questioned, 38% said Apple should resist the call and 11% had no opinion. On Monday, Apple boss Tim Cook sent a letter to the firms employees about the row saying its refusal was about a broader civil rights issue not just this one case. It also called for the US government to set up a government panel on encryption to look into the ways law enforcement can ask for access to data. -bbc 23.02.2016 LISTEN The European Court of Human Rights has condemned Italy for what it says was the abduction of an Egyptian imam by the CIA from a Milan street in 2003. Hassan Mustafa Osama Nasr, also known as Abu Omar, was seized under the CIAs extraordinary rendition programme. He was flown to Egypt for interrogation where he says he was tortured. The court found that Italy had been guilty of several human rights violations in the case. In 2009, Italy convicted 23 Americans and two Italians over the kidnapping. All the Americans were tried in absentia. However, the court found that the principle of state secrecy had clearly been applied by the Italian executive in order to ensure that those responsible did not have to answer for their actions. Italy fined . The investigation and trial had not led to the punishment of those responsible, who had therefore ultimately been granted impunity, it continued. The court ordered Italy to pay a total of 115,000 (90,000; $127,000) in damages and expenses to Abu Omar and his wife Nabila Ghali. At the time of his abduction Abu Omar had been granted political asylum in Italy. After being taken from Milan to Egypt, via US air bases in Italy and Germany, he was held for four years without a trial before being released. In December 2013, Abu Omar was himself convicted in absentia of criminal association for the purposes of international terrorism by a court in Milan and sentenced to six years in prison. -bbc 23.02.2016 LISTEN Chocolate maker Mars has recalled Mars and Snickers bars in Germany after bits of plastic were found in a product. Other products affected include Milky Way Minis and Miniatures and certain kinds of boxes of Celebrations. The products involved have best before dates from 19 June 2016 to 8 January 2017. The US company has not said how many bars are affected, but its German unit produces around 10 million snacks every day. A spokesman was unable to say if Tuesdays recall was the biggest ever in the companys history. A full list of products affected can be found on the companys website, www.mars.de, but that address appeared not to be responding on Tuesday afternoon. The company said in a statement: With this recall, we would like to prevent consumers who have purchased one of the above-mentioned products from consuming it. -bbc 23.02.2016 LISTEN The Syrian government and the main opposition umbrella group say they accept the terms of a deal to cease hostilities from Saturday. The government said it would halt combat operations in line with the plan announced by the US and Russia. But the opposition said its acceptance depended on government forces ending sieges and air strikes of civilians. The deal will not apply to the two main jihadist groups in Syria, Islamic State (IS) and the rival al-Nusra Front. Al-Nusra is an affiliate of al-Qaeda and forms part of a major rebel alliance that controls large parts of the countrys north-west. More than 250,000 people have died in almost five years of war in Syria. Eleven million others have fled their homes as forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad and those opposed to his rule battle each other, as well as IS militants. Right to respond Under the terms of the agreement announced by the US and Russia on Monday, the Syrian government and opposition were required to indicate by noon on Friday (10:00 GMT) whether they would comply with the cessation of hostilities. The High Negotiation Committee (HNC), which represents most of the main opposition and rebel factions, issued a statement after a meeting in Saudi Arabia saying it was committed to the success of the international efforts dedicated to ending Syrian bloodshed. But it warned that acceptance of the truce is conditional on the implementation of UN Security Council resolution 2254, which calls on all parties to lift sieges, allow aid deliveries, halt aerial and artillery attacks on civilians, and release detainees. The Syrian government later declared its acceptance of a halt to combat operations on the basis of continuing military efforts to combat terrorism. . It added that it would work with Russia, which has conducted air strikes against Mr Assads opponents since September, to identify areas and armed groups that were covered and reserved the right to respond to any breach by these groups . The Syrian government also stressed the importance of sealing Syrias borders, halting foreign support for armed groups, and preventing these organisations from strengthening their capabilities or changing their positions. Mixed areas The UN special envoy to Syria, Staffan de Mistura, has described the plan for the cessation of hostilities as encouraging, but acknowledged that enforcing it on the ground will be challenging. Mr de Mistura will convene a ceasefire taskforce to monitor the deal as soon as it takes effect, due at midnight on Saturday (2200 GMT on Friday). The US, which supports the opposition to Mr Assad, will also share information with Russia, including data that delineates territory where armed groups are active. Rebel commanders expressed doubts about the accord, saying it would provide cover for government forces and Russian aircraft to continue attacking opposition-held areas. Russia and the regime will target the areas of the revolutionaries on the pretext of al-Nusra Fronts presence, Bashar al-Zoubi of the Yarmouk Army told the Reuters news agency. If this happens, the truce will collapse. Fighting was continuing on Tuesday despite the accord. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UK-based monitoring group, reported that air strikes, believed to have been carried out by Russian jets, had targeted one of the last roads into opposition-held eastern areas of the city of Aleppo. Meanwhile, a UN and Syrian Arab Red Crescent aid convoy was expected to deliver desperately needed supplies of food and medicine to the eastern Damascus suburb of Kafr Batna, which is under siege by government forces. -bbc 23.02.2016 LISTEN The White House has revealed its plans for closing the controversial Guantanamo Bay detention facility, one of the presidents long-standing goals. The Pentagon has proposed transferring the remaining 91 detainees to their home countries or to US military or civilian prisons. But Congress is deeply opposed and expected to block the move. The prison costs $445m (316m) to run annually and closing it was an early promise from President Barack Obama. Senior administration officials told reporters on Tuesday that closing the prison is a national security imperative. Implementing this plan will enhance our national security by denying terrorists a powerful propaganda symbol, strengthening relationships with key allies and counterterrorism partners, and reducing costs, said Pentagon press secretary Peter Cook in a statement. -bbc 23.02.2016 LISTEN Scots nurse Pauline Cafferkey is to be flown to London after being admitted to hospital in Glasgow for a third time since contracting Ebola. The 40-year-old from South Lanarkshire is currently in a stable condition at Glasgows Queen Elizabeth Hospital. An RAF Hercules aircraft will later fly her to London where she will be treated at the Royal Free Hospital. Ms Cafferkey was treated there twice in 2015 after contracting Ebola in Sierra Leone the previous year. A spokesman for the Royal Free said: We can confirm that Pauline Cafferkey is being transferred to the Royal Free Hospital due to a late complication from her previous infection by the Ebola virus. She will now be treated by the hospitals infectious diseases team under nationally agreed guidelines. The Ebola virus can only be transmitted by direct contact with the blood or bodily fluids of an infected person while they are symptomatic so the risk to the general public remains low and the NHS has well established and practised infection control procedures in place. Public health . NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde said Ms Cafferkey had been admitted to the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow under routine monitoring by the Infectious Diseases Unit. The health board said she was undergoing further investigations and her condition remains stable. The nurse, from Halfway, Cambuslang, contracted the virus while working as part of a British team at the Kerry Town Ebola treatment centre. She spent almost a month in isolation at the Royal Free at the beginning of 2015 after the virus was detected when she arrived back in the UK. Ms Cafferkey was later discharged after apparently making a full recovery, and in March 2015 returned to work as a public health nurse at Blantyre Health Centre in South Lanarkshire. In October last year it was discovered that Ebola was still present in her body, with health officials later confirming she had been diagnosed with meningitis caused by the virus . -bbc 23.02.2016 LISTEN Leaving the European Union would threaten jobs and put the UKs economy at risk, leaders of some of Britains biggest companies have said. Bosses including those of BT, Marks & Spencer and Vodafone signed a letter published in the Times , saying an EU exit would deter investment in the UK. Leave campaigners point out two-thirds of FTSE 100 firms, including Tesco and Sainsbury, did not back the letter. A referendum on whether the UK should stay in the EU will be held on 23 June. David Cameron earlier took questions from employees of mobile phone giant O2, one of the signatories of the letter, at its headquarters in Slough, on the first of a series of tour events to sell his pro-EU message to voters. The move is designed to reach beyond Westminster and the emerging divisions within the Tory party. The Mayor of London Boris Johnson, the most high-profile politician to back EU exit, has urged people to focus on the issues and played down talk of ill feeling between him and the PM, saying team spirit within the party was good. Great future In a move described by No 10 as unprecedented, chairmen or chief executives of 36 FTSE 100 companies signed the letter, organised by Stronger in Europe and Downing Street, backing the campaign to stay in the EU, including Burberry, BAE Systems and EasyJet. The FTSE bosses were among a total of 198 signatories from the business world, including the chief executives of Heathrow and Gatwick airports. However, nearly two-thirds of the UKs largest publicly listed businesses did not sign, including RBS and Barclays. Asked about why the majority of FTSE 100 companies did not sign the letter, Mr Cameron said companies were often reluctant to make any form of political statement. But he added: If the leave campaign could produce 35 business leaders of this sort of stature theyd be over the moon and I dont think they have the prospect of doing that with FTSE 100 leaders in any way. On Boris Johnsons decision to campaign against him, the prime minister said he had huge respect for the London Mayor and he had great future in British politics but added: He has got it wrong on this one. Bank of England governor Mark Carney, has meanwhile, said policymakers are not making a judgment on the outcome or consequences of the referendum. . Mr Carney told MPs on the Treasury Select Committee that the Bank was treating the June vote as it would every other political event. For politicians supporting Britain remaining in the European Union, the blessing of business leaders is seen as a positive step. And the list signing the pro-European letter at least in part orchestrated by Number 10 are certainly a hefty bunch. But a few health warnings. First, many of the people who have signed have long been public advocates of Britain remaining in the EU. These include Sir Roger Carr of BAE, Iain Conn of Centrica, Dame Carolyn McCall of EasyJet and Bob Dudley of BP. Second, some of the business leaders named say that although Britain would be better off economically in the EU, the UK is still a significant market. The letter from business leaders said Mr Cameron had secured a commitment from the EU to reduce the burden of regulation, deepen the single market and to sign-off crucial international trade deals. The signatories wrote: Business needs unrestricted access to the European market of 500 million people in order to continue to grow, invest and create jobs. Britain will be strong, safer and better off remaining a member of the EU. John Holland-Kaye, the chief executive of Heathrow airport, denied he had been pressurised into signing the letter, saying his company wanted to get the message across that the EU had opened up the aviation market and reduced the cost of flying. Lower costs of flying mean we can go on holiday more easily, we can go on business more easily so whether you are going on a stag night or exporting there is a real benefit of being part of the EU, he told the BBC News Channel. Richard Tice, co-founder of Leave.EU , said Downing Street had admitted using taxpayers money and applying pressure on FTSE chairmen and chief executives to sign the letter. The truth is that despite the bullying of a prime minister who has no real business experience, it is other normal commercial factors which will determine the continued success of British businesses to invest and grow, he said. And Vote Leave, another group campaigning for EU exit said it was disappointing to see the prime minister resorting so quickly to trying to scare people into voting for his deal. A BT spokesman said: Any suggestion that our company has been pressured into publicly supporting continued UK membership of a reformed EU is untrue and it wanted to inform the public about how the EU benefits its business. -bbc Kwakwaduam Association of New York celebrated its Annual Fundraising Dinner Dance over the MLK weekend in the Bronx. The theme for the fundraising was Enhancing Maternal Care in the Akuapem Region of Ghana The Obstetric Delivery Kit Project. The project was to raise funds to buy Obstetric Delivery kits for laboring mothers and to enhance the quality of work done by midwives in the Akuapem region of Ghana. Enough Funds were raised to purchase 1000 of such delivery kits with a lot more promises expected. The program was ushered in with a prayer from Reverend Yaw Asiedu of the Ebenezer Presbyterian Church of the Bronx Dr. Diana Wolfe, a High Risk Pregnancy Specialist at Albert Einstein Medical College launched the Fund raising campaign by illustrating the Obstetric delivery kit which contains all the essential elements to perform a clean and safe delivery for the mother and the baby. She said she had been to Ghana a few times and sees a profound need for the Obstetric Delivery Kit. Dr. Stephen Asiedu of Oman Clinic in the Bronx worked his magic by encouraging attendees to donate. He said a clean and safe delivery environment was a prerequisite for lowering the perinatal and maternal morbidity rates consistent with the WHO MDGs The Chairperson for the occasion was Dr. Kofi Adu a Surgeon at Harlem Hospital and was supported by Mrs Dinah Bampoe an Informatics Nurse Specialist North Bronx Healthcare Network. He admonished the youth not to be distracted by the comforts of modern technology from their studies. He applauded Kwakwaduam for all the work it had done over the years and pledged his support for the Organization. Lawyer Victor Essien was present to swear in the in-coming Executive of the Organization (Mark Saforo President; Emila Okoampah Vice President; Paul Ansah Secretary; Asamoah - Asst. Secretary; Mindy Asiedu Financial Secretary; Nicole Atram Treasurer; Lydia Apronti Organizing Secretary; Abena Yeboa Asst Organising Secretary; PRO Kwabena Asante and WHIP Genevieve Aku and Emmanuel Fenning The President of the Organization Mr. Mark Saforo said Kwakwaduam continues to fulfill its mission and thanked all those who have supported the Organization over the years. He said Kwakwaduam membership was open to all those who share the vision of the Organization that the best part of every persons life is what he or she gave back to society. He enumerated the impressive list of projects undertaken by Kwakwaduam over the years. He thanked his Executive for a work well done and recognized some dignitaries present (Lawyer Victor Essien, Dr. Baah-Asante, Rita Dwamena, Nana Yaa Boahema, Dr. Bampoe to mention a few ). The Association of Ghanaian Engineers and Architects were well represented with David Nyarko and others Awards were presented to deserving members of the Community and Members of Kwakwaduam. The Friends of Kwakwaduam Award went to Daniel Adjei of Kuwait Shipping and Fred Dwamena of Kwahuman Association. Jocelyn Obeng McDade and Joyce Reid received Leadership Awards for their contribution to the success of the Organization. As always the function was classy, well organized and fun filled. The food was excellent and DJ Rockson kept everybody dancing all night. MC Patrick Akosah who was electrifying. The Organizing Committee comprised Eric Frempong, Mabel Akosah, Genevieve Aku and Jocelyn McDade. Visit Kwakwaduam on the Web at www.AkropongKwakwaduam.Org The new US Ambassador to Ghana, Robert Jackson, says the huge debate generated by the transfer of two former Guantanamo Bay detainees to the country could have been avoided entirely. Robert Jackson blamed the never ending controversy over Ghanas decision to accept the two Yemini terror suspects on a dearth of accurate information. I understand Ghanaians are concerned, and this is largely because of misinformation and lack of information, he said. The US Ambassador made the comment on Tuesday February 23 during a visit to the Nima residence of flagbearer of the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP), Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo. He was accompanied by the Political Chief at the US Embassy, Robert Carlson, to formally introduce himself to the NPP presidential aspirant. Mr Jackson explained that the transfer of Mahmud Umar Muhammad bin Atef, 36, and Khalid Muhammad Salih al-Dhuby, 38, was done with the understanding that the US will be responsible for the upkeep of the detainees for 2 years. He revealed the US has similar agreements in 55 other countries. The US Ambassador assured that the two detainees do not pose a threat to Ghanas security. Nana Akufo-Addo is also of the view that the issue was badly handled by the government communicators, stressing the issue has the potential of hurting relationship between Ghana and the US. None of the institutions of State, not even Parliament, were consulted on the issue. Political parties were not consulted before this decision was taken. Not surprisingly, the overwhelming majority of Ghanaians and civil society were strongly against this decision, Akufo-Addo said. The NPP 2016 presidential candidate said even thought the Ghana-US co-operation was worth striving for, decision that are taken must serve the mutual interest of the two countries. Ghanaians are yet to be persuaded that this decision was in our national interest, he said. Parliament last week held a closed-door meetng with Foreign Affairs Minister, Hanna Tetteh, on the issue of the two Yemini former terror suspects. Minority MPs say they are dissatisfied with the Minister's briefing. Story by Ghana | Myjoyonline.com | George Nyavor | [email protected] Chief Executive of National Ambulance Service, Prof Ahmed Nuhu Zakaria, has touted Ghanas emergency service system as one of the best on the continent despite current challenges. He wants critics of the countrys Emergency Medical Systems (EMS) to first acknowledge the rapid progress made by past and present governments since 2001 when an organized national emergency system was put in place. In the sub-region, apart from South Africa, Ghana is the next country that has an organized EMS. Not even Nigeria that is bigger than us; they have just private, scattered EMS, Prof Zakaria said Tuesday. He was speaking on MutlTVs news analysis programme, PM Express aired on the Joy News channel. A gory road crash at Kintampo in the Brong Ahafo Region that killed over 60 passengers and injured scores two weeks ago renewed concerns for a more responsive ambulance system. Eyewitness accounts of events following the fatal crash revealed that the injured were transported to hospitals in taxis and pickup trucks because the district ambulance was out of service. The countrys current 165 ambulances about 30 of which are at the workshop coupled with an unreliable emergency service number and a handful of staff has meant the emergency response system is in a dire state. Admitting there are challenges that need to be tackled, Prof Zakaria, however, insists there is no need for despair. Looking at where we started, from zero [ambulances] to 7, from 24 to 130, definitely it is an improvement. In terms of staff from 57 to 200 to now 1,700 there is an improvement, he said. He wants debate about how to improve the system to take cognizance of the fact that there are ongoing efforts to ensure the countrys emergency service system is consistent with international standards. What I want us to accept is that if you visit anywhere in the world, they will tell you that even the spate at which we have grown is even faster than the UK and US. Our EMS system is in the right direction, Prof Zakaria told show host Nana Ansah Kwao IV. He appealed to volunteers to come forward and assist regular emergency service staff since that is one of the best ways to see rapid progress of the system. Story by Ghana | Myjoyonline.com | George Nyavor | [email protected] MINERALS AND MINING POLICY FINALLY UNVEILED 17 YEARS AFTER IT WAS FIRST PROPOSED A comprehensive minerals and mining policy to guide government in its management of he extractives sector has finally been launched, 17 years after it was first proposed. NO REGULATIONS FOR FACILITIES MANAGEMENT INDUSTRY Facilities Management companies have had to rely on international best practices for growing the industry, as legislations for their operations are not locally standardized. DKM DIVERTED GHC77M TO SUBSIDIARY COMPANIES A special audit of embattled company DKM Diamond Microfinance Company Limiteds operations, carried out by chartered accountants Lobban, Hyde $ Partners, revealed that the company diverted GHC77.26 million to subsidiary companies, the Finance Minister Seth Terkper told Parliament on Tuesday. MORE ROT AT GNAT A total of 80,000 copies of a quarterly magazine for teachers printed by the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) at a cost of GHC120, 000 with monthly deductions from teachers meagre salaries have been shredded. ECS CONTROVERSIAL STEERING COMMITTEE: CHRAJ, 3 OTHER BODIES MUST WITHDRAW AMIDU Anti-corruption crusader, Martin Amidu, has advised for independent constitutional and statutory bodies to withdraw their representatives from the controversial election committee se up by the EC. NDC ORGANISER ALLGEDLY DEFRAUDS BUSINESSMAN A businessman has accused the Krowor Constituency Youth Organiser of the National Democratic Congress, Hajia Dzigbordi Afiamevu, of fraud. GOVT, TEACHER UNIONSNEGOTIATIONS OVER ARREARS FAIL AGAIN A meeting between government and three teacher unions over a roadmap towards the payment of salary arrears has ended inconclusively. DKM BLOWS GHC100M; MPs DEMAND BAILOUT The issue of the DKM Diamond Microfinance Company Limited and other savings and loans companies operating mainly in the savings and loans companies operating mainly in the Brong Ahafo Region the three northern regions stirred emotions and angered most Members of Parliament (MPs) when the Minister of Finance, Seth Terkper, came to brief them on the matter yesterday. LEGALISE WEE KOFI ANNAN Former UN Secretary General, Kofi Annan has stressed that narcotic drugs should be legalized worldwide since the war on drugs appears not to succeed. TEACHERS DECLARE WAR OVER ARREARS Teachers across the country have refused to back down on their decision to embark on an indefinite nationwide strike despite governments plea. President of the Institute of Human Resources Management Practitioners, Ghana, Mr. John Wilson has inaugurated a seven-member Ethics Committee to oversee and set standards, procedures and operational guidelines for the members of the Institute at a short but impressive ceremony on Monday, 22nd February, 2016 at the HR Centre, Nyaniba Estate, Accra. The Ethics Committee has Mr. John Warmann as the Chairman and Dr. Mrs. Esther Offei Aboagye as Vice Chairman. Other members are Mr. Henry Atta Paidoo, Dr. Edward Kwapong, Dr. Enyonam Kudonoo, Ms. Sika Tetteh and Mr. Alex Williams. Inaugurating the Committee, Mr. John Wilson said, This Committee is established to promote and ensure right standards and behaviours amongst members. The Code of Ethics document which is to be reviewed by the Committee will serve as the guiding principles in all the Committees deliberations. The President added that the introduction of the Code of Ethics, which is the first of its kind, is very timely and is pleased to have the committee inaugurated. Being the nations leading professional organization and official certifying body of HR Practitioners, IHRMP requires adherence to this Code of Ethics as a condition of membership and certification. The Code has been adopted to promote and maintain the highest standards of service and conduct for all persons the Institute has recognized members and certified to use its certification marks in areas of Professional Responsibility, Professional Development and Ethical Leadership; Ensuring Fairness and Justice, handling Conflict of Interest issues and promoting the use of Information to build trust among members and organization constituents. The terms of reference for the Ethic Committee among others are to: 1.Fine tune the ratified Code of Ethics 2.Set standards and procedures (operational guidelines) 3.Ensure adherence to Code of Ethics as a condition of membership and certification. 4.Investigate complaints of alleged professional misconduct by members lodged by their employers. 5.Monitor standards of behavior by members and recommend to Council any appropriate measures to ensure discipline. 6.Meet at least three (3) times a year to deliberate and propose preventive measures in the area of governance. The Chairman of the Ethics Committee, Mr. John Warmann, on behalf of the committee, thanked the Governing Council of IHRMP for the confidence reposed in them by selecting them to oversee the right standards and behaviours among members of the Institute and HR Practitioners in Ghana. He assured that the committee would work assiduously on their mandate and called on the National Governing Council and all HR Practitioners in the country to support them in the discharge of their duties. Present at the inauguration ceremony were the National Governing Council Members, members of the Accra and Tema Chapters of the Institute and other invited Guests. 24.02.2016 LISTEN A soldier, Martin Atinga Awagra, who was dismissed recently from the Ghana Armed Forces, has joined forces with robbery gangs in the Ashanti Region, terrorizing residents and business people. He has been put before a Bekvvai circuit court after he was arrested in a a30,000 gold robbery operation at Anyaaso near Asiwa in the Bosome-Freho District. Martin Atinga Awagra, a resident of Tafo Mile Four in Kumasi, was remanded into prison custody when he appeared before the court on Monday after pleading not guilty to charges of robbery, illegal possession of fire arms and kidnapping. He is expected back in court on March 8, 2016 to answer four counts of conspiracy to commit robbery, robbery, kidnapping and possessing firearm and ammunition without lawful authority. The dismissed soldier, wielding a rifle, attacked and robbed some small-scale miners at a section of the Anyuruso and Anyaaso road near Asiwa, the district capital, on February 11, 2016 at about 4:30 pm with his gang. Police prosecutor, Detective Inspector Stephen Ofori, informed the court that other members of the dismissed soldier's robbery gang were one Ernest, Aboagye and Yaw who had been at large since the arrest of Martin. According to him, all the accused persons are residents of Tafo Mile Four, a suburb of Kumasi, whilst the complainants are residents of Konongo, the Asante-Akyem North district The prosecutor said on February 11, 2016 at about 4:30 pm, the complainants, who were in their private Ford pickup with registration number GN 3999 -12 heading towards home, were attacked by the dismissed soldier and his gang of three at a section of the road between Anyuruso and Anyaaso. Detective Inspector Ofori told the court presided over by Fredrick Nawura that Martin and his men managed to dispossess the victims of a a30,000 worth of gold ore weighing 30 kilograms and the pickup vehicle at gunpoint. He said the dismissed soldier was in possession of G3 rifle, while his gang members were wielding SMA rifle and ammunitions when they emerged from the bush to launch the attack. The police prosecutor disclosed into the rear of the cabin pickup and pointed the guns at their heads and drove them away with Ernest behind the wheels and the dismissed soldier seated beside him at the front passenger's seat. Inspector Ofori said some mourners had occupied the road when the vehicle reached Anyaaso, a situation which compelled the accused person behind the steering wheel to slow down. At this moment, the prosecutor intimated that a struggle ensued between the complainants and the accused persons as one of the complainants held the muzzle of the dismissed soldier's gun and managed to pull the hand break of the vehicle. He narrated that the gun began to discharge during which one of the ammunitions ricocheted and hit a young girl. The development drew attention of the mourners who rushed to the scene to assist the complainants apprehend the suspects. The three gang members sensing danger fled into the bush leaving behind their master, the dismissed soldier who was attacked by the mob, the police prosecutor indicated. They retrieved a G3 rifle with number CIFT 12-11244 and SMA rifle numbered K14619 loaded with 44 live ammunitions. The mobsters later handed over Martin Atinga Awagra to the police at Asiwa who sent him to Bekwai Municipal Hospital for treatment but he was admitted. Inspector Ofori said the accused person was discharged from the hospital on February 19 and was charged with the offences and subsequently arraigned before the court. 24.02.2016 LISTEN And David enquired at the Lord, saying, Shall I pursue after this troop? Shall I overtake them? And he answered him, Pursue: for thou shalt surely overtake them, and without fail recover all. Amalekites had invaded the south, and Ziklag, and had smitten Ziklag, and burned it with fire; their women were taken captives, which were therein: none were killed, either great or small, but were carried away. In fact, David's two wives were equally taken captives, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess, and Abigail the wife of Nabal the Carmelite. ..David and his men came to the city, and, behold, it was burned with fire; and their wives, and their sons, and their daughters, were taken captives. How would you feel if all you had including your lovely wife and kids were taken captives by an enemy? Grace is activated when there is no iota of hope and the people concerned exercise some degree of faith in the Lord. The storm will come, however, your ability to remain steadfast in your faith and demand change determines whether you will win or fail. David and his people did not give up. In fact, what had happened to David and his people were enough to discourage majority of us from further serving the Lord. When things in your life become hard and there seems to be no hope anywhere, faith and courage are the only determiners. Faith taught David and his people the right thing - they sought the Lord. And David enquired at the Lord, saying, Shall I pursue after this troop? Shall I overtake them? And he answered him, Pursue: for thou shalt surely overtake them, and without fail recover all. Courage, determination, and faith were the ingredients that activated and stirred up the spirit of David and indeed pushed them to fight back until everything was recovered. In the end, David recovered all that the Amalekites had carried away: and David rescued his two wives. David and his people met the right person at the right time. It is my prayer that whoever the Lord has prepared to help you discover all that you have lost, either by accident or by evil machinations, shall meet you at the right time and place in Jesus name. The Lord gave David and his people a master-plan to victory. He shall give you too that master-plan to overcome every storm in your life. David enquired of the Lord, if only you will enquire and wait for the Lord, victory shall be yours in Jesus name. In fact, the Lord shall restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the cankerworm, and the caterpillar, and the palmerworm And ye shall eat in plenty, and be satisfied, and praise the name of the Lord your God, which hath dealt wondrously with you: and my people shall never be ashamed. We have all had days (and maybe even years) when life just doesnt seem to be going our way! I have had long seasons of life where I felt like nothing was working and everything was out of whack, and I have had frustrating days where I just cannot seem to get anything accomplished. If only you will keep pushing hard and never give up, the Lord will certainly provide you with the courage, strength, strategy and the master plan to succeed. Success comes to those who keep trying with positive mental attitude and faith in the Lord. Say to yourself, am winning and close your ears to the voice of failure. Certainly, failure isnt your portion. Your enemies are not defeated until you find them under your feet. David said: I have pursued mine enemies, and destroyed them; and turned not again until I had consumed them. And I have consumed them, and wounded them, that they could not arise: yea, they are fallen under my feet. You will not only defeat your enemies and detractors who wish you failure and embarrassment, but you shall trample upon them until they are utterly annihilated. Life may have been hard and unfair to you for some time now, one thing is sure; the Lord has promised not to abandon you nor forsake you. Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the LORD thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee. From henceforth let no man trouble me: for I bear in my body the marks of the Lord Jesus. Even the hair of Samson grew again. He inadvertently had his hair cut off due to utter disobedience; nonetheless, his hair grew again. It does not really matter how you lost it all, one is thing sure and promising - your hair shall grow again. And Jabez called on the God of Israel, saying, Oh that thou wouldest bless me indeed, and enlarge my coast, and that thine hand might be with me, and that thou wouldest keep me from evil, that it may not grieve me! And God granted him that which he requested. Success is almost totally dependent upon drive and persistence. The extra energy required to make another effort or try another approach is the secret of winning. Pursue, for you shall recover all. You are winning if you dont quit!! (Nb: all Scripture quotations are from the King James Version.) By: Analimbey, Adobe-Rah Chris Follow me twitter: @analimbeychris E-mail: [email protected] Tel: 0207992552 Charlotte Osei, Chairperson for the Electoral Commission 24.02.2016 LISTEN NPP-Canada has learnt with dismay a recent decision by the Electoral Commission (EC) of Ghana to appoint a so-called Steering Committee for the Commission. Whilst NPP-Canada does not deny the constitutional right of the EC to establish a Steering Committee (SC) for whatever purpose it may deem appropriate, it is nonetheless disturbed by just about every aspect of this SC. What NPP-Canada finds not only disturbing but frankly potentially complicit is the manner by which some individuals found themselves on this SC. As is done as a standard evaluation measure with just about most if not all integrity-seeking processes, applicants or potential nominees (as the case may be) would be required to complete a Questionnaire. In the case of appointment or nomination to the now-infamous Steering Committee, such a Questionnaire could have posed a nominee the question: Has the nominee ever been an active or card-bearing member of a political party in the past two years? If later found out that a nominee had provided a false answer, such a nominee would have been deemed to have committed perjury, an indictable offense. By such a measure as outlined above, the EC would at least have been seen to have done some minimal due diligence. But as it turned out, the EC shockingly made no such a provision to ensure due diligence and NEUTRALITY. Considering that the EC deliberately did not discuss this SC establishment with the Inter-Party Advisory Committee (IPAC), what is to deny that the EC deliberately let the nomination process to be so lax as to have allowed at least one known activist of the Party of President Mahama to have found himself as a member of the SC? Not too long ago, Madam Charlotte Osei (EC Chairperson) was quoted as saying Is John Mahama my friend? No. I have met him in the course of work. Have I met Nana Addo? Yes. He actually is my friend...but I do know both of them. What message was Madam Osei trying to convey by the above? Or better still, what is it that she appears to be at such pains to conceal? What if Nana Addo had also come out to say he had only met Madam Osei in the course of work and she was not a friend as she so eagerly and desperately tried to convey? What would that have done to her credibility? Or what if a source at Jubilee House had revealed that Madam Osei knows President Mahama a lot more than she was letting on publicly? As the Head of the EC, the Ghanaian people are not interested in who your friends are but in the neutrality with which you approach your role. Let your deeds and not words vindicate your neutrality. Thus far, you are not doing a terribly good job at either. Then there was the rather outrageous comment by Madam Charlotte Osei that the Ashanti Region had engaged in some over 200,000 multiple voter registrations. Of course Madam Osei came back hours, if not days later, to say that she had been wrong with her Arithmetic and that the number was actually 14,651 and not the whopping 200,000 she had earlier claimed. The admission of error on the part of Madam Osei was commendable. What NPP-Canada finds as not commendable was why she felt she had to make such an unsolicited remark in the first place about one particular Region concerning multiple registrations. All that the Ghanaian People have paced themselves for is a Free, Fair and Credible Elections. Adequate consultations with IPAC would go a long way to position the EC right in the view of the Ghanaian People. Beware of so-called institutional representation as some of these institutions are infested with so-called jobs for the boys and may not be the best show of impartiality in a National Election where the ECs neutrality and impartiality cannot be negotiable. When it comes to institutional representation, the key phrase should be Trust but Verify (apologies to President Ronald Reagan). Please Slow Down, Madam Osei. A Word to the Wise should be enough. ---signed--- Gilbert Adu Gyimah Director of Communications, NPP/Canada [email protected] www.nppcanada.org Tel: 587-708-9915 / 647-800-3585 Experts and industry players in the energy sector will converge at Washington DC, capital of the United States of America (USA) to discuss the potential and opportunities in the sector. Africa is said to be witnessing exciting growth path with most Sub Saharan African (SSA) countries working on policies to fast track investment in the power sector and renewable energy infrastructure. Kenya and South Africa have rapidly become world players and leaders in Africas renewable energy deployment and the summit is expected to provide a platform for focused discussions on the energy sector on the continent and the huge opportunities available. The Summit will be complimented by industry seminars and poster sessions and the main events program will consist of individual presentations, Keynotes, and panel discussions. The Africa Energy Investment Summit is targeted at energy experts, investors and enthusiasts from across Asia, Middle East, the US and Europe at a time when demand for increased energy resources is at the forefront of discussions on Africa seizing the opportunity and maximize its growth potential. The Summit, to be held from the April 10th 12th, 2016 at the Georgetown University Hotel and Conference Center promises to be informative and encouraging to global energy sector investors. The Energy Summit promises to offer three days of eventful dialogue, one-on-one meetings and networking, with the event having formed partnerships with energy sector focused media houses and energy industry leaders including Eversheds, MESIA, Beyond Energy, US Africa Chamber of Commerce and Centennial Generating Company among several others. Other participating organizations on the speaker line-up are Novel Energy -Rwanda, Dusable Capital Management USA, Kukula Capital Plc Zambia, CNBC Africa, Dalberg Global Development Advisors, Newcity Capital USA, Aurecon South Africa, Detail Nigeria, International Finance Corporation. The rest are Chadbourne & Parke LLP USA, Actis, ABB South Africa, SiShima Holdings Zambia, Anjarwalla & Khanna (A&K), Orascom E&C USA, Jinko Solar Co Ltd, FBN Quest NIgeria, CRISIL Infrastructure Advisory, ZHE Africa, East African Power Rwanda, Paradigm Change Partners, and many more. To be part of the team driving investment in Africas energy sector. Register on nkmevents.com/aeis . For more details, please email [email protected] We look forward to welcoming you at the summit this April in Washington DC, USA 24.02.2016 LISTEN "..Foolishness...Any Ghanaian leader (or wannabe leader) who uses his liberty to bad-mouth Dr. Kwame Nkrumah...who does not with the same side of their mouth admit that the coup...was orchestrated by foreign governments serving their own permanent interests, who fails to inform Ghanaians...that the Ankrah-Kotoka-Afrifa-Harlley-Busia-NLC bunch lied to Ghanaians, that leader, that wannabe leader, is a dangerous, unbalanced African....(Prof Lungu, 20 Feb 16). Here is the seminal question for Mr. Sydney "Aha a y? din papa" Casely-Hayford Question: Exactly how, why, and under what conditions was Kwame Nkrumah "escorted off the scene" that day in 1966. Maybe, the accountant in Mr. Casely-Hayford will also explain how the colonial powers and their commercial-cum-political interests operated high-value, lively, bullish, primary produce market for cocoa beans all the way through much of the 1950s, to Ghana's independence. Then, conspiracy for your "Independence, Ghana"! Fact is, beginning in 1958, as Ghanaians began to assert their independent voices in matters affecting their own interests, that high-value, lively, and bullish produce market for cocoa suddenly disintegrated into bear territory, almost worthless given the investments committed to grow the market. The Economist magazine reported just 8 months after the NLC coup d'etat on the matter of cocoa produce from Ghana, noting that Ghanaians: ...were encouraged by the manufacturers to expand their production, with the assurance that they could count on prices between $560 and $700 a ton at least up to 1970. This July Ghanas main crop cocoa for shipment between August and September was being quoted at $245 a ton. But the country has already ploughed many millions of pounds into improvement schemes and disease control ... all the effort and investment earned a nil return. (The Economist, October 2, 1965). As summarized by Vallin that same summer of 1966: "...The real conspiracy was the catastrophic decline in the price of cocoa during the past seven years to nearly one-fifth of what it was in the late fifties. From a peak of over $1,000 a ton in 1957-58, the price dropped to $504 in 1963-64 and down to as low as $210 last summer (in 1965)..." So, where does Mr. Sydney "Aha a y? din papa" Casely-Hayford get off his rocking horse with the claim: "...By the time the Osagyefo was escorted off the scene, Ghanas reserves were totally decimated and we were yelling for sardines, corned beef and ice cream. Few were those who were rich with huge edifices; cronies and family had much to boast of and the rest who believed in Freedom and Justice, were jailed and harassed out of the country." Go figure all that coup-plotter regurgitated hogwash! We've already addressed the part about Nkrumah being "escorted off the scene", and won't belabor the point one more time. All that coup-plotter regurgitated nonsense - that Ghana was broke, that "...Ghanas reserves were totally decimated..."! And to hear that from a "Chartered Accountant" in 2016, a person we thought would be better informed, more balanced, by this date. After all, compared to the British, what was Ghana's total debt vis a vis Ghana GDP in 1966. And how has that compared since Nkrumah's overthrow, all the way to 2016, as Mr. Casely-Hayford now finds it convenient to "side" with Mr. Mahama? Still, what does "Ghanas reserves were totally decimated" mean, in fact. Is Mr. Casely-Hayford, like Kwadwo of Ghanaweb, saying he has data showing Ghana's total reserves at the beginning of 1966 was just 500,000, or less, when Nkrumah was "escorted" off the scene, according to Mr. Casely-Hayford? As we informed Kwadwo in several comments under Mr. Casely-Hayford's article, that was another one of those fabrications by the NLC-traitor gang. But, in 2016, should we still continue to believe coup plotter narratives when there is data all over the place that speak intelligently about the real situation? Why should we give the NLC the benefit when they conveniently neglected to inform Ghanaians the CIA actually directed and funded the "escort" and overthrow of their President? Foolishness! Here is the data and arithmetic for Kwadwo and Mr. Sydney "Aha a y? din papa" Casely-Hayford. Employing a conversion factor of 2.79 for 1966, Kwadwo's "500,000 in reserves" gave us approximately $1,395,000.00 of total reserves. But, that is still a lie, heresy! Here are World Bank figures on Ghana-Total Reserves, 6 (six) years before the overthrow, and 6 (six) years after the overthrow: Year Value of Reserves(Million$) 1960 $277,926,000 1961 $155,954,000 1962 $181,711,200 1963 $209,312,800 1964 $125,519,200 1965 $115,809,200 1966 $111,130,400 1967 $82,732,000 1968 $97,004,000 1969 $71,832,000 1970 $42,579,200 1971 $43,092,220 1972 $104,041,100 (Source: www.indexmundi.com/facts/ghana/total-reserves). Realize that in 1966 Ghana's reserves were in the neighborhood of $111,130,400.00. "Ghanas reserves were totally decimated" our foot! All of this is especially galling considering that practically all of the so-called reserves were actually accumulated by the CPP government internally, as definitively argued by Professor Kwame Botwe Asamoah, and many other scholars and researchers. What, after all, did the British leave Ghana but plundered resources and economic and production networks that did not serve Ghana, but were solely oriented to UK, to serve that colonial power? Here is some additional information for Mr. Casely-Hayford. Records show that in 1966 and 1967, Ghana actually received less aid from the US, than Ghana received under Nkrumah the previous years leading up to the overthrow. In fact, for the first time ever, trade between Ghana and the United States was a negative, in 1966, the year the NLC and the civilian rascals affixed their ugly faces to that coup d'etat. In other words, in 1966, even as Ankrah was begging the US for "...sardines, corned beef and ice cream", for his elite friends, the US was in no hurry to assist Ankrah and was in fact importing even less from Ghana. The US, after all, used the NLC (Nonentities, Liars and Crooks) to achieve its primary objective, that is, the elimination of Kwame Nkrumah immediately after the successful execution of the Akosombo Dam/VRA project. Lest other African leaders took a lesson or two from Pan-Africanist Kwame Nkrumah of Ghana. That is official, it is documented fact! So, go figure, Mr. OccupyGhana Sydney "Aha a y? din papa" Casely-Hayford. Check you facts, and give us some data, sir! To cloak all that diatribe and historically inaccurate verbiage against a President more than 50 years removed from the living and political power, to attempt to brand all that under the OccupyGhana banner, is the height of irresponsibility and reckless debasement of true Ghana-Centeredness, and huge disservice to the government in power that can't even bring itself to enact a Production Sharing Agreement (PSA) for Ghana's oil. Instead, they sit in Accra as "Hybrids" supervising the plunder of Ghanaian oil that now amounts to more than $6 billion loss in oil revenues to Ghana. OccupyGhana? Yes, those are some of the same people who cannot even be bothered to support the Fair-Trade Oil Share/PSA campaign that seeks to save Ghana another $6 billion-plus oil revenue loss. And yet, Sidney Casely-Hayford now has power and energy to condemn Kwame Nkrumah two generations removed from life and ephemeral power. To complain in 2016 about lack of Tetteh Quarshie cocoa processing factories, and about lack of water, and about lack of power, and about poor roads to get to anywhere in Ghana, etc., exactly 50 years after Nkrumah was overthrown by people like Sydney Casely-Hayford. To complain about Kwame Nkrumah and "edifices and factories, which we had to leave to rot." Doesn't even village idiots know to make lemonade from lemons! Yes, the "Casely-Hayfords" who always knew back in 1966 that "...the source of raw material input needed to be developed in tandem with infrastructure...that private enterprise in the end trumps central control and resource manipulation...". We see how nonsensical all of that is! And by what special insight, logic, and Occupy-Ghana-Centeredness is Sydney, our friend, able to divine, "...saying the CPP is done and will never rise again..." But that one! That is not ours to fight or argue. Even so, every village idiot knows that today's CPP is not Kwame Nkrumah's CPP. As we've always said, there is always a reckoning behind every record. But, maybe, just maybe, we could entertain the idea of pardoning Mr. Sydney "Aha a y? din papa" Casely-Hayford. Fact is, he informed us he "...was so traumatized (that) week..". Well, let thy brush-strokes reflect well for thou self, sir! Till we meet again! So it goes! SOURCE: 1. Sydney Casely-Hayford. Siding with our President. 10th February, 2016 http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/Siding-with-our-President-414369. 2. Dr. Kwame Botwe-Asamoah. 3 July, 2015. The Fallacy Of Britain Leaving Huge Sums Of Money For Nkrumahs Government. (http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/features/The-Fallacy-Of-Britain-Leaving-Huge-Sums-Of-Money-For-Nkrumah-s-Government-365901). 3. Contact us, if you seriously want to know more about the data and our sources. But, before you do that, please take a moment and sign the FTOS-Gh/PSA petition. From where we sit, that is the more serious business for Kwame Nkrumah's Ghana. We hope you agree! NOTE: 1. Fair-Trade Oil Share-Ghana (FTOS-GH/PSA Petition/Campaign): Read about it, join it, sign it: https://www.change.org/p/ghana-fair-trade-oil-share-psa-campaign-ftos-gh-psa ). www.GHanaHero.Com/FTOS_Gh_Campaign , for more information. (Join the action! Read mo! Listen mo! See mo! Reflect mo!). Prof Lungu is Ghana-Centered/Ghana-Proud. @professorlungu - Twitter Prof Lungu is based in Washington DC, USA. Subj: OccupyGhana's Casely-Hayford Bashes Kwame Nkrumah So He Can Side With Mr. Mahama? (2). Brought to you courtesy www.GhanaHero.com23 February, 2016. 24.02.2016 LISTEN Exactly 50 years ago, on February 24, 1966, the government of Kwame Nkrumah, Ghana's first president, was overthrown by his own armed forces. Just a few months earlier, Kwame Nkrumah had ordered Ghana's army to prepare for a Rhodesia invasion, after European settlers illegally set up an autonomous government in 1965 to rule the indigenous people. Nkrumah ordered his military to conduct simulation exercises in Ghana to ensure that they are ready anytime to respond at short notice to go and fight alongside fellow Africans to defeat the European usurpers in 'Zimbabwe'. However, under the pretext of this very exercise, and with American (CIA) involvement, a plot was hatched to send over 600 troops from Kumasi to Accra to execute a coup detat while Nkrumah was on a trip en route to Vietnam to mediate in talks to solve America's own war wahala. Nkrumah heard about his overthrow in faraway Asia. Many African leaders offered him place to live, but he chose Guinea, where President Sekou Toure offered him post as honorary president. He never saw Ghana again. K.A. Busia returned from exile in the UK and became Prime Minister of Ghana. He introduced the Aliens Compliance Order in 1969 which tagged other Africans as 'aliens' and drove them out on short notice. Most of them from neighbouring states like Nigeria, Mali, Upper Volta (Burkina Faso) and Niger were driven out of Ghana in the first 'xenophobic law' by an independent African state. After '66, Ghana became weak due to weak leadership. Kwame Nkrumah loved Africa. During his presidency, Ghana welcomed African people from all parts of the globe and funded liberation movements as well as developmental projects across Africa. Nkrumah loved every part of Africa just as he loved Ghana. And that led to his overthrow. Nkrumah lived and died for African Unity. In his own words, "Africa must unite or die." Many times, I've heard folks simply say "it's impossible," but to me, that continues to elevate Kwame Nkrumah as a great thinker and one of the greatest leaders the world has ever seen. The Africa that ought t' be won't form from a simple process. It will be more of Africa, and less of Ghana less Zimbabwe, less Guinea, less Nigeria, less Egypt, less Ethiopia, less America, less everything. Lord Kweku Sekyi is a freelance writer Email: [email protected] Moroni (Comoros) (AFP) - The vice president of the Indian Ocean archipelago of the Comoros, Mohamed Ali Soilihi, won the first round of the country's presidential elections with 17.61 percent of the vote, preliminary results released late Tuesday showed. Soilihi edged ahead of Mouigni Baraka, the governor of Grande Comore island, who garnered 15.09 percent, ahead of Colonel Azali Assoumani, who placed third with 14.96 percent. The three candidates will now face off in a second-round of voting on April 10, with the winner succeeding outgoing President Ikililou Dhoinine. Some supporters of Fahmi Said Ibrahim, who had been one of the favourites but trailed in fourth place, alleged his low count had been due to fraud. Police dispersed a small group of Ibrahim supporters who gathered at the party's headquarters on Grande Comore. An African Union observer mission led by former Tunisian president Mohamed Moncef Marzouki said "apart from few isolated incidents, the entire election took place in an orderly and peaceful" manner. The first round of voting on Sunday only took place on Grande Comore, in accordance with electoral rules that ensure the president is chosen on a rotating basis from one of the country's three main islands. The system was established in 2001 after more than 20 coups or attempted coups in the years following independence from France in 1975. Dhoinine's completion of his five-term term has been seen as a sign of growing stability in the Comoros. Some of the shops in flames 24.02.2016 LISTEN Members of Youth for Progressive Change (YPC) at Wassa Akropong in the Western Region have vented their spleen on the Member of Parliament (MP) for the area, Akwasi Oppong Fosu, for ignoring their request for a fire tender for the area. Fire destroyed some shops behind the Wassa Akropong Post Office in the Amenfi East district of the region Monday afternoon. According to an eyewitness, the fire started around 2pm and consumed about five shops. Sources had it that one person collapsed due to the excessive heat and was rushed to the hospital; apart from that, no casualty was recorded. According to the youth group, the absence of a fire tender at Wassa Akropong made the inferno, which initially gutted one shop, spread to other stores and caused damage to properties worth thousands of Ghana cedis. The youth claimed that even though the MP had converted an old structure in the area into a fire station, there were neither personnel to man it nor a good fire tender to quench fires in the event of an outbreak. . Though the main cause of the fire outbreak was not known, eyewitness accounts suggested that it might have been caused by a welder who was working in one of the stores that was stocked with Latex Foam mattresses. According to the group, since there was no fire tender or personnel in the area, the people had to call for fire tenders from Asankragwaa and Bogoso about 30 minutes' drive to Wassa Akropong to bring the fire under control. Frederick Kumah, in-charge of operations of the youth group, said that about five stores and parts of the Wasa Akropong post office were razed down by the inferno. He indicated that even though the residents tried to quench the blaze, the flames were so strong that only fire service personnel with fire tenders could have doused them. It is very sad to note that instead of building a new fire post for the people, the MP converted an old library in the area to a fire station with one fire thunder which became dysfunctional two months after arriving at Akropong, Mr Kumah alleged. He asserted that information reaching the youth indicated that monies meant for the construction of Wassa Akropong ultra-modern market and fire post had been misappropriated. He lamented The area lacks portable water. More rural areas need connection to the national grid and there is massive youth unemployment. But Akropong people deserve better. From Emmanuel Opoku, Takoradi 24.02.2016 LISTEN Joseph Boakye Danquah-Adu, Member of Parliament (MP) for Abuakwa North constituency in the Eastern Region, who was stabbed to death at his Shiashie residence in Accra, will be laid to rest on March 19, 2016, DAILY GUIDE has gathered. A family source, who confirmed the date to DAILY GUIDE, said the mortal remains of the late JB Danquah-Adu would not be interred at the town's public cemetery, but rather at his family's private cemetery at Akyem Tafo, Eastern Region. According to the source, JB, as he was fondly called, would be the first person among the descendants of his late grandparents Opanin Acheampong and Obaapanin Animah to be buried at the said private cemetery, adding that after the burial, the final funeral rites would take place at the WMA Zion Day Senior High School Park. DAILY GUIDE gathered that advanced preparations were underway at Akyem Old Tafo for the final funeral rites of the late MP, which would commence on March 18 and end on March 20. The late Abuakwa North MP was murdered on February 9, 2016, prompting the police to launch an investigation which led to the arrest of one Daniel Asiedu aka Sexy Don Don and other suspects. He is in court for prosecution. The source said the Asene family of JB would officially come out to announce to the public next week the preparations towards his final burial and funeral rites. The late JB Danquah-Adu, a grandson of the renowned United Party (UP) antecedent of the New Patriotic Party (NPP founding member, Dr. JB Danquah, was born on July 2, 1965. He left behind a wife, Ivy Danquah-Adu and two children. EC's U-Turn . Meanwhile, barely 24 hours after the Electoral Commission (EC) had announced that there would be a by-election in the Abuakwa North constituency, the electoral body has dismissed reports that it had set April 5 for the election. The Director of Public Affairs at the Commission, Christian Owusu Parry, said the EC had not taken any decision on the Abuakwa North by-election. According to him, any date agreed by the EC would be communicated through its usual channels a press statement. It would also be on the Commissions website. NPP Angry However, the Eastern Regional Branch of the New Patriotic Party has questioned the haste by the EC setting a date for a by-election to elect a new Member of Parliament for the constituency. According to the Regional Vice Chairman, Alhaji Umar Bodinga, in spite of the fact that the EC's action is backed by the Constitution, based on the horrific manner in which the MP lost his life which has grieved the entire country it wouldn't have been out of place for the Commission to allow at least one month to pass before putting out notice of polls. Alhaji Bodinga stated that the NPP is nonetheless prepared to recapture the Abukwa North seat which the party has held for more than a decade. FROM Daniel Bampoe, Akyem- Tafo [email protected] Mental health hospitals have been without drugs for the past three years and this has been a major setback to treatments of mental illness in the country, says Dr. Sammy Ohene, Head of Department of Psychiatry, Korle Bu Teaching hospital. The psychiatric expert said this has proven challenging because persons diagnosed with mental disorder could not be put on proper medication due to this lack. He said mental hospitals have been depending on charitable donations from the Department of International Development (DFID) the United Kingdoms department responsible for the administration of overseas aid. I am little uncomfortable that as a nation we rely on other nations' taxpayers money, he noted. In a discussion on mental health with other experts on Joy FM's Super Morning Show, Dr. Ohene, said prices of a shot of anyone drug is expensive, and the absence of these drugs has worsened the already volatile mental health situation in the country. If you do not have the requisite medication, you are going to be in trouble, he said. He added that the situation has caused them to run out of options in treating patients. On his part, Chief Executive Officer of Brain Clinic, Dr. Yao Mfodwo, berated the use of holy water which he described as anti-psychiatric medications given to persons believed to be suffering from mental illness by some churches. If you lock up your child for a month or two, DOVVSU will be on your case, he said, and wondered why the police are not moving on some of these churches. He defused the impression that only persons of average means could get mental illness, adding there are people in suit who are - for want of a better expression - crazy. Dr. Mfodwo stressed treatments have become expensive and yet there is a policy that requires treatment to be free. This, he said makes it practically impossible to make care available to everyone who needs it in the country. He added there are some people who are in the mental hospitals because others thought there was something wrong with them, and this practice must be controlled. For the past week, persons alleged to be mentally unstable have gruesomely murdered eight people in separate incidents in Assin Fosu in the Central region and Techiman in the Brong Ahafo region. The experts agreed mentally unstable persons hear voices entreating them to kill, and this could explain the recent happenings in the country. Not a single penny from government has gone into the Mental Health Authority since it was set up in 2013, head of Psychiatry at the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital Dr. Sammy Ohene has revealed. After government passed the Mental Health Act, 2012 (Act 846) and named a Board in 2013, it has gone to sleep when it came to funding the operations of the Authority. This might shock youbut that is just a fact, Dr. Ohene stated on the Joy FM Super Morning Show. Not even the office building of the Authority was provided for by government, the doctor claimed. He said the only source of funding for the Authority is the DFID. Photo: Ms Sherry Ayittey(right), the then Minister of Health, swearing in board members of the Mental Health Authority in 2013 Mental health care 'not yet uhuru' The Mental Health Act 846 described by the Authoritys Board Chairman as a revolution, states the sources of funding for the Authority. It has taken 8 years to pass the law after it was introduced to Parliament in 2004. When it was passed on August 2, 2012, doctors, nurses who had thronged to parliament burst into joy. A very elated Chief Psychiatrist of the Ghana Health Service (GRS), Dr Akwasi Osei who was in parliament told the media "I don't know how to express my joy. Photo: health professionals flocked to parliament in 2012 to witness the passing of the law Eight years of anxiety, apprehension and patience- that is how I can describe my feeling now. If we knew that the bill would be passed today, we would have come here with buses full of people and thereafter paraded through the streets of Accra to exhibit our joy and appreciation, he said, adding that we have to pop champagne as a result of this good news". Buoyed by the legislative green light, Dr. Akwasi Osei stated that " five years from now there will be no mad persons roaming the streets of the country. It is not five years yet but four years into the passage of the law, the dream of a mental health patients is becoming a nightmare. The shocking reality Only last week, eight people were butchered by two persons believed to be mentally deranged. At Assin Akrofoum in the Assin South District in the Central Region, an ex-convict Akwasi Ganu, killed five people four of them his family members. He murdered his mother Abena Ganu while she was eating, chopped off the head of his 65-year old father, George Ganu, killed his sister, Janice Ganu before finishing off George, his four-year-old nephew. His landlord Victor Kofi Tano was not spared. The late Victor Tano Only the son of the landlord, Kwabena Nyarko survived the bloody unprovoked attack. He suffered injuries in the shoulder and was hospitalized. A scandalized mob later killed the drug addict and ex-convict Akwasi Ganu. Last Thursday in Ashanti regional town, Jamasi, a man suspected to be mentally ill allegedly butchered three elderly female farmers in the community. Two of the deceased, Afia Adukuma, 63, and her sister, Yaa Nyamekye, were murdered on their farm while the third, Rose Akyaa, managed to reach the clinic before she died. The deaths have shocked the country and reflected renewed attention on the state of mental healthcare in Ghana. Joy FM's Super Morning Show discusses mental health Photo: [L -R] Dr Sammy Ohene, Dr Yao Mfodwo and Dan Taylor Discussing the matter on Joy FMs Super Morning Show Wednesday, three panelists, Dr Sammy Ohene, Dr Yao Mfodwo and Dan Taylor explained that there are many professionals with mental health problems in Ghana. The stressful lifestyle, long hours in traffic and at work are hurting the proper functioning of the brain, they agreed They advocated serious attention to mental health just like any other area of healthcare. They lamented the under-resourcing of the Mental Health Authority since the passage of the law. Mr. Dan Taylor pointed out Section 82 of the Mental Health Act which detailed the sources of funding for the Authority. It is to rely on gifts and donations apart from other sources. Sources of money for the Fund 82 . The moneys for the Fund include: (a) voluntary contributions to the fund from individuals, organisations and the private sector; (b) moneys approved by Parliament for payment into the Fund; (c) grants from bilateral and multilateral sources; (d) donations and gifts; and (e) moneys from any other source approved by the Minister responsible for Finance. Dr. Ohene said he found it uncomfortable that mentally-ill patients in Ghana should be treated with other "country's taxpayers money". Listen to audio Story by Ghana|myjoyonline.com|[email protected] Member of the Kumasi Traditional Council, Barfuor Osei Hyiaman Bretuo VI has said the Council is not pleased with the manner in which issues relating to clashes at Tafo two weeks ago are being handled. In Otumfuors Manwerehene's view, government seems to be taking the issue lightly and this could create a lot more problems than there already are. A curfew was imposed on Old Tafo in the Ashanti Region a fortnight ago after clashes between Muslim youth and traditional authorities over a piece of land. One person was killed with several others sustaining injuries in the violent clashes. Although a 6pm to 6am curfew has been relaxed to 8pm to 4am, the inability of the traditional authorities and the Regional Security Council to apprehend and punish the perpetrators is causing some amongst victims of the violence. A team made up of members of the Regional Security Council led by the outgoing Ashanti Regional Minister, Peter Anafi-Mensah was expected to brief the Traditional Council on progress made on the clashes on Tuesday, but the meeting could not come off. A church and mosque were destroyed during the clashes Otumfuors Manwerehene in an interview on Joy FM's Super Morning Show said they were informed rather late that the meeting could not come off because the Minister had been engaged in another meeting. This, in his view, is unfortunate. He believes that although some calm has been restored in the area, the traditional council can control the youth only for a while. While you are trying to delay this sort of reportage, you are creating a lot of tension underneath. Seemingly, there is nothing happening because of the security situation at the place but the people who had any of these atrocities metered out to them are waiting for answers. One would expect that they would come out and tell us what has gone on with the measures that have been takenbut we are not seeing them, Nana Bretuo VI said. He added that a lot of people are aggrieved and everyone is virtually looking up to Nananom but the time we assured them of a response has passed and nothing has happened. We were informed in the last minute that the minister would not be around and that he had been assigned to another job, this is creating tension and you should expect this anywhere. He questioned why President Mahama assigned the Minister to another appointment when he is well aware of the issues ongoing at Tafo and the need for the Minster to be present on Tuesday to brief the Traditional Council. How will he [the President] in such a volatile situation assign the minister to something that will not permit him to talk to the people, it shows some lukewarm attitude towards the situation and that is what I believe if we are not careful will turn the thing into something else. This is a security issue and justice is being delayed and you know that once justice is delayed it is denied and once it is denied there will be no peace. We have to go through this and ensure things are put in place, he continued. If the wait is further extended, the Traditional Council will have no choice but to appeal to the National Security Council and the President if they try to treat us that way. The youth cannot stay quiet forever. Listen to audio See Also: Bloody clashes at Old Tafo; curfew imposed Old Tafo clashes: Committee to review extent of damage caused Old Tafo clashes: Police arrest over 40 people One dead, several others injured in Kumasi-Old Tafo clash Story by Ghana | Myjoyonline.com | Naa Sakwaba Akwa | [email protected] London, 24th February 2016 Today, at the Social Media Week in Lagos, BBC World News launched the BBC World News Komla Dumor Award to seek out a future star of African journalism. For the second year running, the award honours presenter Komla Dumor, who passed away two years ago, aged 41. Komla was an exceptional Ghanaian broadcaster who in his short life made an extraordinary impact in Ghana, in Africa and across the world on Joy FM and at the BBC. Through his tenacious journalism and compelling storytelling, he worked tirelessly to bring a more sophisticated African narrative to the world. The BBC is committed to continuing Komlas legacy. Following the success of last years award, and winner Nancy Kacungira of KTN in Kenya spending three months gaining skills and experience at the BBC headquarters in New Broadcasting House in London, BBC World News continues to invest in finding young talent from Africa to tell African stories to global audiences. Nancy Kacungira said: It felt really good to be able to tell a story from Africa on such a big platform - my stories were seen and heard on BBC TV, Radio and Online. My own values on reporting about the continent - nuance, balance, and authenticity - were a good match for the BBCs commitment to getting the story right from wherever they report from in the world. I felt supported as a journalist from the continent, to tell the story I wanted to tell in the way that I felt it should be told. Now open for applications, entrants have until 23.59GMT on 23rd March 2016 to submit. The winner will be awarded the opportunity to gain skills and experience, working with teams across BBC News during a three month placement in London. For more information on how to apply, entry criteria, and terms and conditions visit bbc.com/komladumor and use hashtag #BBCKomlaAward. Francesca Unsworth, Director, BBC World Service Group and Deputy Director of News and Current Affairs said: Komla was a much-loved and respected journalist among his colleagues at the BBC and with aspiring journalists across the world. His storytelling was compelling and his enthusiasm infectious, making him one of our leading journalists - and hugely popular with our global audiences. The BBC is committed to continuing Komlas legacy of reporting on this continent by launching his award for the second year. We are searching for a rising star who displays exceptional talent, someone who embodies the spirit of Komla Dumor. Also in Lagos during Social Media week, BBC World Service will host its flagship current affairs discussion programme, the Africa Debate, looking at free speech on social media. The debate will ask if social media should be regulated and highlights an issue that is of concern to many Africans who have used social media to monitor public officials. Recently, Nigerians have been reacting angrily to a draft bill proposed in the countrys Senate which aims to punish anyone who propagates false information. The bills opponents say it will censor free speech on social media where public corruption is exposed. Its supporters say the bill is to check the publication of false stories which they claim was becoming rampant in the country. Last September the Cybercrimes law came into force in Tanzania making misinformation and sharing of naked pictures on the internet a crime. The situation is no different in countries such as Kenya, Zambia, Egypt and Ethiopia, where journalists, bloggers, activists and individuals have been arrested and arraigned in court for publishing or sharing online content that authorities say threaten national security - claims that are rejected by the accused. Meanwhile, access to social media via smartphones continues to grow across the continent, giving millions the ability to read, post and share content of their choosing online. This edition of BBC Africa Debate will be recorded today, with a distinguished panel of experts and an invited audience in Lagos, Nigeria and will be broadcast by BBC World Service at 1900GMT on Thurs 25 February. The Research for Community Access Partnership (ReCAP) is a six-year programme of applied research and knowledge dissemination funded by a grant from the UK Government through the Department for International Development (DFID). The overall aim is to promote safe and sustainable rural access in Africa and Asia through research and knowledge sharing between participating countries and the wider community. Discussions with the Department of Feeder Roads (DFR) of the Ghana Ministry of Roads and Highways, has identified Roller Compacted Concrete (RCC) Technology as being suitable and appropriate for many rural roads under their responsibility. However, this technology has never been used in Ghana and requires further investigation. This project is designed to investigate the suitability of RCC in Ghana and, if considered suitable, to demonstrate the technology through the design, construction and performance monitoring of a section of RCC on a rural road under the control of DFR. The Research for Community Access Partnership (ReCAP), managed by Cardno Emerging Markets (UK) Ltd, is seeking proposals from suitably qualified organisations to implement a project entitled: Investigate the suitability of Roller Compacted Concrete as a pavement material in Ghana. The study is intended to investigate the suitability of roller compacted concrete (RCC) for road construction in Ghana and especially for the construction of pavements on rugged sections and steep slopes where excessive traction forces are exerted by traffic. The project will test the chemical and physical properties of material specimens in appropriate mix design combinations to achieve the results that will offer long term compressive strength, durability and performance in service. Interested tenderers are advised that the indicative budget available for this contract is a total of GBP 145,000. This tender process is open to any organisation that meets the criteria detailed in this tender documentation. There are no nationalities/country of registration restrictions. Interested organisations can request the full tender documents by sending an e-mail to [email protected] with copy to [email protected], stating the project reference No.GHA2081A on the e-mail subject. All submissions of proposals must be received by no later than 21st March 2016, 17:00 UK time. Cardno Emerging Markets is an Equal Opportunity Employer and is committed to Child Protection. Further information about the ReCAP please visit www.research4cap.org In 2013, a group of organizations came together to form a consortium to work in the implementation of programmes in the areas of water and sanitation. The coalition consisting of WUZDA, Urbanet, ITF, Ghazhia Construction Enterprise, Anthill Investment, some financial institutions and the Sagnarigu District Assembly, has since been providing empowerment to communities on how they can demand services in the WASH area as well as educate them on what their responsibilities are both in the provision and maintenance stages. As part of efforts at realizing their goal, the coalition has met in Tamale at WUZDAs premises to look at a memorandum of understanding regarding the implementing the 3 year WASH programme. Program Manager for WUZDA, which is the lead organization in this consortium, Mr. Abdul Karim Ziblim, opening the forum bemoaned the lackadaisical attitude of coalition members towards their work. He said it was necessary for members to gather and take a look at, and make inputs into the finalization of the MoU to make it universal even as members are required to commit to specific and common goals. He added that in every properly working coalition, suspicion is minimized when members are fully aware, carried along and allowed freely to input into every process that is why it became imperative for the consortium to have provided the platform for certain. Members also looked at other coalitions working to achieve the same goal as the Savanna Integrated WaSH Consortium. The Ghana Wash Alliance was one discussed at length with regards to its contribution to the goals of the consortium. Credit was accorded a former country coordinator of the Ghana WaSH Alliance, Mr. Eric Chimsi for his role in the facilitation of the preparation of the MoU which was adopted and is still in use by the coalition albeit with some alteration. 24.02.2016 LISTEN The Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Barrister Olisa Metuh was arrested by the operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on matters relating to corruption and was later granted bail, oppressively, early this year, to the tone of N400m and N600m, on separate arrests and charges. The same was the fate of the Chairman of DAAR Communication Plc, High Chief Raymond Dokpesi. He was arrested and was latter granted N200 million bail and was, re-arrested. In some very bizarre cases, courts are now requiring suspects facing corruption charges to produce medical certificates as evidence of some ailment, to be entitled to bail, said Human Rights Lawyer, Ebun Olu Adegboruwa, to newsmen. These persons and many others who went and are going through stringent bail applications to gain their liberty have become an essential factor to dissect and analyze on what the views of lawyers are on the stance of the Constitution about the bail issue. Is the monetisation of bail worth doing? Is it right? It is believed in the Nigerian Constitution that an accused person is presumed innocent until proven guilty. Human rights lawyer Adegboruwa, had kicked against the stringent practice and posited it in the trash bin of unlawfulness. In law, an application for bail is a demand for the enforcement of the right of the citizen to his Liberty, under section 35 of the 1999 Constitution as amended. And when the court is to grant bail, it is to be done on very liberal terms, without any pecuniary consideration at all. Thus, the new theory of special bail conditions for suspects facing corruption charges and pro-Biafra agitations, is a setback for our democratic experience, Adegboruwa had said. In 2015, the Chief Justice of Nigeria CJN, Justice Mohammed had asked magistrates to stop commanding rigorous bail conditions on accused persons involved in inconsequential offences. The directive was said to have been made by the CJN at a national executive of the Magistrates Association of Nigeria, led by its acting National President then, Chief Magistrate Victoria Isiguzo, when they paid the CJN and 15 other Justices of the Supreme Court, a courtesy visit. A corollary to this is the imposition of such bail terms, which an accused has no real hope of meeting. I wish to use this medium to counsel magistrates to judiciously and carefully exercise their discretion to remand and consider alternatives to detention where possible, and to set reasonable bail terms as appropriate, the CJN had said. Lawyers Continue To Frown At Stringent Bail? For lawyers, the stringent bail application has not augured well with them as they see it as defiance to the constituted order. Lagos lawyer, Mr. Femi Falana, SAN, was one of those, who had raised voice against such practice. In an article, titled Monetisation of Bail in Nigeria dated September 24, 2013, published in The Nation, Falana wrote, Upon arraignment at the magistrates and area courts, accused persons are made to pay for bail with the connivance of defence counsel. Whereas bail is granted in the open court, it is approved in the chambers of some corrupt magistrates on the payment of negotiated sums of money. There have been reports of frivolous charges deliberately filed in the courts by the police for the sole purpose of extorting money from accused persons. A number of lawyers and magistrates shamelessly participate in the fraudulent commercialisation of the liberty of such innocent people. Giving instance towards his contention, Falana added, The Lagos State Government has monetised bail in total disregard of the rising inequality in the society. Thus, section 116(2) of the Administration of Criminal Justice Law, 2007 provides that, The Court may require the deposit of money or any other security as specified by the Court from the Applicant and/or his surety before the bail is approved. Prof. Akin Ibidapo-Obe, the Dean, Faculty of Law, University of Lagos, UNILAG, in his book Bail Process and Human Rights in Nigeria wrote, In Nigeria, access to bail implies the ability to pay for the services of a lawyer, to hire a surety, and invariably to grease the palms of court registrar and security personnel having custody of the suspect. If what is needed to ease his bail is not available to a suspect, then he is sent back to prison to await the day when he can afford it. Is the Reputation Of The Judiciary Smeared? Nnamdi Kanu who is the leader of the Independent Peoples Of Biafra (IPOB), has been in custody for months upon a court order having given a nod to release him. The straightforward certainty is that the government has refused to obey the federal high court that gave the order. Lawyer Adegboruwa had added, I cannot see any reason to justify the denial of bail to Mr Kanu in particular, or why the courts have now suddenly become scared to admit suspects to bail on very liberal terms, as enjoined by the Constitution, which the courts have a duty to enforce. The judiciary is not under the influence of the executive and our courts are well encouraged to liberate themselves from self-timidity and intimidation of government agencies, especially the EFCC. The enforcement of the right of the citizen, cannot be compromised or defeated, on the altar of fighting some nebulous anti-corruption war. We cannot because of fighting corruption and change the goal post of the law. All offences are bail-able and the conditions should not be oppressive as it is happening now. Did Mr. President Say The Judiciary Is Corrupt? In January, 2016, while in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Major General Muhammadu Buhari, in a statement issued in Abuja on Sunday, January 27 2016, by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Mr Femi Adesina, relayed his town hall meeting with Nigerians living in Ethiopia, on the Judiciary as follows: 1. On the fight against corruption vis-a-vis the judiciary, Nigerians will be right to say that is my main headache for now. 2. If you reflect on what I went through for twelve years when I wanted to be the president, I attempted three times. 3. At the fourth attempt, through God and the use of technology, it was possible for Nigerians to elect an APC candidate as president. 4. In my first attempt in 2003, I ended up at the Supreme Court and for 13 months I was in court. 5. The second attempt in 2007, I was in court close to 20 months, and in 2011, my third attempt, I was also in court for nine months. 6. All these cases went up to the Supreme Court until the fourth time in 2015, when God agreed that I will be President of Nigeria. Conclusion: Is The Judiciary Adhering To The Rule Of Law On Liberty Of Citizens? The former National Security Adviser, Col Sambo Dasuki, (rtd.), the order of court to release him on bail was perturbed by his succeeding arrest right in the frontage of the prisons. The moves were widely fingered to have been masterminded by the Presidency. Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of the Pro-Biafra group; the order of court for his unreserved discharge was absolutely overlooked by the Buhari administration. Adegboruwa had said that the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) should stand on its foot to let the Executive understand its bounds to duty. The Executive should have no say in the Judiciary as long as the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015 is concerned, so that the liberty of the citizens is upheld. In law, an application for bail is a demand for the enforcement of the right of the citizen to his Liberty, under section 35 of the 1999 Constitution as amended. And when the court is to grant bail, it is to be done on very liberal terms, without any pecuniary consideration at all. Thus, the new theory of special bail conditions for suspects facing corruption charges and pro-Biafra agitations, is a setback for our democratic experience. Odimegwu Onwumere writes from Rivers State, Nigeria. ([email protected]). Tel: +2348057778358. Some hardworking staff and students were awarded with prizes 24.02.2016 LISTEN The Rector of the Cape Coast Polytechnic, Prof Lawrence Atepor has emphasized the need for Ghanaians to discard the notion that technical and vocational courses are mainly for school dropouts and people with low level of intelligence. He said some parents persuade their children to pursue some of the so-called prestigious careers such as law, medicine and business administration at the university in order to succeed in life. Most children, who opt for masonry, plumbing, carpentry, fashion designing and catering were discouraged by their parents, and they even consider them as failures and disappointment to their families, he added. Prof Atepor disclosed this during the 25th Anniversary celebration and 6th Speech and Prize Giving Day of Mankessim Senior High and Technical School at Mankessim in the Mfantseman Municipality of the Central Region. The ceremony was on the theme, 'Empowering the Youth through Technical/Vocational Education for National Development: the role of stakeholders.' Prof Atepor expressed concern about the high unemployment rate among young people which forces them to redirect their energy into worthless ventures. . The Cape Coast Polytechnic Rector underscored the need for government to convert the 200 community day Senior High Schools (SHSs) being constructed into technical and vocational institutions. Prof Atepor stressed the need for managers of technical and vocational institutions in the country to impart knowledge and skills into students under their tutelage to enable them establish their own businesses. This, he said, would help reduce the unemployment situation in the country. Headmistress of the school, Esther Taylor disclosed that the school continues to improve its performance in the West Africa Senior Secondary Certificate Examination (WASSCE). Madam Taylor hinted that although about 50 percent of the students do not live on campus, discipline in the school was very high since they appreciate the importance of discipline in achieving good academic results. She commended the guidance and counseling units of the school for helping to minimize drug abuse, absenteeism and deviant behaviours among others that can destroy the future of the students. Email:[email protected] From Sarah Afful, Mankessim 24.02.2016 LISTEN The Board Chairman of the Ghana Immigration Service (GIS) Cletus Avoka has admonished personnel of the service to eschew corruption, nepotism and any behavior which is likely to bring the name of the Service into disrepute and also to work diligently to reduce cross-border crimes. He said GIS personnel were the country's ambassadors at the respective borders and were therefore expected to exhibit knowledge, integrity, vigilance and professionalism so as to attract more tourists and investors into the country. Hon. Avoka made the remarks when members of the GIS Board embarked on a four-day tour of the borders in the Upper East Region to acquaint themselves with activities at the borders, as well as conditions under which personnel of the service work. The tour, which is the second of its kind since the Board was appointed, took them to Paga, Namoo, Zebilla, Pulmakom and Pussiga border posts. They were also at Kulungugu, Missaga, Bolgatanga and the Tamale Regional offices. The board chair assured the officers that the Board would give the necessary support to the new director and expected same from the management of the Service, as well as the entire staff. He said the days when personnel of other sister security services were posted to the GIS to head it were over and that the Service was in a position to churn out its own leaders. He further indicated that hard work, humility, dedication, focus and discipline were the cardinal principles required in achieving anything and the appointment of the new director is testament to this fact. On his part, the new acting Director of Immigration, Felix Yaw Sarpong, threw light on the GIS Bill 2015, which has been passed by Parliament and now awaiting Presidential assent. He said an implementation committee had been set up to ensure that all provisions of the new law were fully implemented. . He made specific reference to the mandate of GIS for personnel to bear arms and emphasized the need for some officers to go for refresher programmes in weapon handling considering the fact that it has been about eight years now since the last batch of Border Patrol officers went for training at the Military Training School at Asutuare. He also disclosed that the Service was making arrangements to procure about 3,000 pistols and 4,000 rifles. He assured personnel in the region that their needs would be prioritized owing to the enormous challenges and the harsh weather conditions they have to endure in their quest to safeguard the country's borders with Togo and Burkina Faso. Regional and Sector Commanders also took turns to address the board, mentioning some of their achievements and highlighting challenges which mostly bothered on the lack of communication gadgets, inadequate residential accommodation for officers, insufficient allocation of service uniforms, as well as limited logistics such as motorbikes and vehicles for border patrol activities. Unveiling of plaque the Hope Congregation Presbyterian Church of Ghana. 24.02.2016 LISTEN THE MODERATOR of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana, Rev. Professor Emmanuel Martey has criticised the chairperson of the Electoral Commission (EC), Mrs. Charlotte Osei for committing too many blunders in dispatch of her duties. He advised the EC boss to stop talking too much and work behind the scene to rectify the mistakes. The Presby Moderator cited the controversial committee constituted by the electoral commissioner as one of the errors. You cannot appoint for example a committee without thorough search against the background of members that will constitute the committee. She also talks too much. The moderator indicated. He made the observation when the Hope Congregation of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana climaxed its silver jubilee celebration with a mammoth thanksgiving service on Sunday. Earlier, the moderator who preached sermon on the theme of Hope, said the Christian faith has three cardinal virtues of which hope is one with the other two being faith and love. . According to him, Christians hope is grounded in the Lord and he will never disappoint them, admonishing them to abandon their spiritual myopia and follow Gods path. Rev Professor Martey was full of praise for the Hope congregation for its contribution to the growth of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana. On his part, Isaac Akesseh, the 25th Anniversary Planning Committee chairman outlined some successes chalked by the church through its 25 years of existence, stressing on the church's strong evangelism roots which has helped the church cross boundaries. Awards were presented to individuals and groups who have contributed to the growth of the church. A plaque was unveiled to crown the activities. From Vincent Kubi, Tema 24.02.2016 LISTEN President John Dramani Mahama says the social teachings of the Church should permeate and influence the decisions of government. If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. Old things have passed away. Behold all things have become new- 2 Corithians 5:17 The President made the call in an address read on his behalf by Henry Newman, a former Chief of Staff at the second Plenary Assembly 2016 of the Regional Episcopal Conference of West Africa. The event, which was under the theme 'The new Evangelisation and specific challenges for the church, family of God in West Africa: Reconcillation, Development and Family Life,' was held at MPLAZA Hotel, Accra yesterday. The event brought together representatives of the Catholic Bishops conference in West Africa and beyond, as well as former President Rawlings and Hackman Owusu Agyemang, a former Member of Parliament. The Regional Episcopal Conference of West Africa (RECOWA) is an integration of all English, Portuguse and French-speaking Episcopal conferences in West Africa. RECOWA, which was inaugurated in Abuja in 2007, provides the platform for a better understanding, exchange of views, experiences and general pastoral collaboration among all the Episcopal Conferences of West Africa. The President said Christians must live without reproach and above the worldly trappings of the present age. If God calls us to a task, he would prepare us for the immense duty of nation-building in Ghana, West Africa and Africa. We are all faced with a series of great opportunities brilliantly disguised as impossible situations. President Mahama, who made reference to a reconciliatory statement by Sister Caroline Osiek, a well-known New Testament Professor at Catholic Theological Union in Chicago said, It is not forgive and forget as if nothing wrong had ever happened but forgive and go forward building on the mistakes of the past and the energy generated by reconciliation to create a new future . Prof. Gilbert D.D Kuupole, who chaired the function, expressed worry about the upsurge in the use of foul language among most Ghanaians. Prof. Kuupole, who is the Vice Chancellor of the University of Cape Coast, urged Ghanaians, especially owners of radio stations, to call on their presenters and guests to use acceptable language. He urged Christians to communicate properly, adding that it was important to put into practice the doctrines and teachings of the church in one's daily life. President of the Ghana Bishops Conference, Most Rev. Joseph Osei Bonsu said the Catholic Church must work together with West African governments to ensure holistic development. Bishop Osei Bonsu, who is also the Bishop of Konogo-Mampong, added that though the church has no technical solutions to all the problems that people face, it is mindful of our God-given mission to bring hope to the people. By Solomon Ofori Some of the workers holding placards during the demonstration yesterday 24.02.2016 LISTEN Health officers at the Wa Regional Hospital have again taken to the streets demonstrating against the appointment of a new medical superintendent, Dr Barnabas Gandao, a former head of the Gynaecology and Obstetrics Unit of the Tamale Teaching Hospital. The staff of the Wa Hospital are demanding the removal of Dr Gandao from office for Dr Chris Opoku Fofie, their preferred choice to take over. The doctors and nurses who prefer Dr Fofie, a gynaecologist at the hospital to be the new medical superintendent, claimed their earlier protest to get management of the hospital to rescind its decision had failed, hence the second demonstration. Lately, appointments of heads of public hospitals have received open rejection from staff who protested against the new appointments. This is the second time health workers are rejecting the appointment of their head this year. In January, a group calling itself Concerned Staff of the Ridge Hospital protested the appointment of Dr Thomas Anaba as the medical director of the hospital for reasons similar to what the doctors and nurses at the Wa Hospital gave. However, the appointment committee maintained Dr Anaba refusing to succumb to the wishes of the workers who wanted Dr Emmanuel Srofenyo, a gynaechologist as the medical director of Ridge Regional Hospital. The Wa Hospital management last week swore in Dr Gandao despite protest by staff who claimed the new appointment does not deserve the position. . Dr Gandao, upon his appointment, called for calm, saying he has no enemies but only friends yet to be known. The workers, not moved by the statement, said their demand for Dr Fofie was on fairness basis and not hatred for Dr Gandao. According to the health workers, Dr Gandao refused a job offer at the hospital when the hospital was in dire need of a gynaechologist, but Dr Fofie had rather laboured with the hospital through difficult time and, therefore, deserves the position. Justifying their stance, the workers said out of about 10 doctors who were posted to the hospital in 2006, Dr Fofie was the only one who stayed in the region, adding that even when he travelled out to further his studies, he returned to work at the same hospital. Meanwhile, workers have embarked on a sit-down strike at the hospital with doctors and nurses refusing to offer healthcare services to patients, leaving most people who had gone for medical care stranded. The group after going through the principal streets of Wa presented a petition to the Deputy Upper West Regional Minister, Dr Mohammed Alfa. The deputy minister pleaded with the group after accepting the petition to go back to work, adding, From here, be the health workers that you are and return to your various posts offering essential services to society. By Jamila Akweley Okertchiri After several months of discussions, Sir Black (Kojo Yibor) founder of Ehalakasa Ghana and Liberian born international curator and philanthropist, Sarah Gusten-Marr (also founder of GalleryGM, Yorkshire England) have once again joined forces and created a new initiative called " Cultural Crossings". Cultural Crossings has been carefully put together by two artists who passionately believe the importance of cultural understanding. Sir Black and Gusten-Marr regularly travel internationally and are adamant that travelling feeds the soul. Cultural Crossings will yearly provide the opportunity for chosen Liberian or Ghanaian artists to explore other African cultures in other countries. Sarah Gusten-Marr already runs her own international artist in resident program in England. Paul Fordjour, a spoken-word artist who came as the winner of the Ehalakasa Slam contest had this to say: (1) Cultural Crossings - Traveling means finding education and knowledge and my plan is to network the African talents/minds. We have to create cultural crossings - one artist should take up the cultural crossings project to other countries for 10 years. As an artist who believes in my example, I value it so much putting my own funds and resources into empowering people. Sarah Gusten-Marr says, I have a land in Kokrobite where my next investment is to engage the school children at a foster facility there to engage in farming and hygiene (where they would go out occasionally to clean the community) a good way to help ourselves improve our health and agriculture and as well teach the younger generation how to live for themselves and not to grow up depending on others. I have pledged to support from the start with Ghc 500 to Ghc 1,000 every 8 weeks. BBC London is also supporting me and I gather lots of clothes within Ghana, Nigeria, and other parts of the world to bring to foster kids. I was raised an orphan too so it is very dear to my heart to care for these people. I am looking forward to building an exchange team in various countries to share ideas. One of my major motivating factors was Rocky Dawuni. He has been a very great inspiration for me and congrats to him on The Grammys his nomination alone means a great win and we are proud of him. Im honoured to have his wife/Manager here with us who passionately supports the dream as well as Rocky Dawuni does, Sarah added. Hon. Dzifa Gomashie who was present at the occasion says, her outfit is poised to support the Cultural Crossings initiative. She added that the Ghana culture forum group would get some form of funding to support the Ehalakasa group and the Cultural Crossings initiative. Present at the occasion were notable figures like Daddy Bosco, celebrated actor Omanza Shaw (of Deadly Voyage and Ultimate Paradise fame), Chief Wumbe of Bubonayili (Rocky Dawunis elder brother), Cary Sullivan (Rocky Dawunis Manager) and others. The event was held at the Best Western Premier Hotel in Accra on Saturday, February 20, 2016. Health Minister, Alex Segbefia is expected to brief Parliaments Health Committee on the steps being taken to curtail the rise in deaths from meningitis Wednesday. The death toll in the meningitis outbreak has hit a 100 with over 500 recorded cases so far. The Brong Ahafo region is the worst hit with at least two districts crossing the epidemic thresholds. The first reported death emerged from the Tain district last December. The disease spread to Wenchi, Techiman, Bruohan, Kintampo, and Sene in the Brong Ahafo region. Northern, Ashanti, Eastern, Volta, Greater Accra, Upper West, Upper East and Western regions have also recorded cases of the disease since it broke in 2015. The Central region is the only territory yet to record a case of the disease spread by dry weather conditions. The situation has become a huge cause for concern as the Ghana Meteorological Agency has indicated that more dry winds should be expected between March and October. Joy News correspondent, Precious Semevoh was at an annual performance review meeting of health officials over the issue and reported that although the outbreak in the Gyaman district of the Brong Ahafo region was serious, health officials say everything is under control. Precious said the health officials have intensified their sensitization drive to curb the spread. According to the officials, the main problem they have grappled with was how to get people infected with the disease to report early to the health centres. Incidences of in Ghana from 2010-2015 The first case of meningitis in Ghana was recorded in the Upper West region in 2010. Out of the 1164 cases recorded, 128 people died. In 2011, there were 790 cases with 104 deaths. In 2012 the country recorded 956 cases with 90 deaths. In 2013 there were 454 cases with 41 deaths. In 2014 there were 477 cases with 39 deaths So far in 2015 the country has recorded about 500 cases with 100 deaths See Also Meningitis Outbreak: Health officials urged to stop causing fear, panic Meningitis Outbreak: PPP call for resignation of Health Minister MoH deploys supplies for treatment of pneumococcal Meningitis Pneumococcal Meningitis: Public Information Video: What you need to know about Pneumococcal Meningitis Story by Ghana | Myjoyonline.com | Naa Sakwaba Akwa | [email protected] 24.02.2016 LISTEN To be honest with the reading public, I pity the alleged Kumawuhene Barimah Sarfo Tweneboah Koduah. He is in a dilemma. However, if he will learn from my bitter personal experience, it will go a long way to help him take a timely decision that will put a stop to his free fall from grace to grass. From the horses own mouth, he has been issued an ultimatum by the Ghana Medical Council/Association to choose between practising his medical profession as a Doctor and being a chief. He is understood to be actively going about his duties as a Medical Doctor while simultaneously performing his functions as the alleged Kumawuhene. However, he keeps botching his job as a doctor. He has not been living up to the standard and expectation of a competent Medical Doctor since his dubious instalment as Kumawuhene. Previously, he was one of the best doctors in Ghana. The pressure of lawsuits on him coupled with his abandonment by the citizens of Kumawuman has taken its toll on him if not exacerbated his plight of being sandwiched between a rock and a hard surface mek3 a nk3 meba a emma Here goes my personal experience to serve probably as a learning curve experience or lesson to him if and only if, he will listen to me. I bought a parcel of farmland from the late Kumawuhene Barimah Asumadu Sakyi II and the Kumawu Traditional Council. No sooner had I started cultivating the land than I started being slapped with lawsuits back, front and centre. Some families from Yawso, Nyamfa and Abura brought lawsuits against me. For nearly the past fourteen years, I have had to battle non-stop with lawsuits at Kumawu Circuit Court (I lost the case to a late old lady from Abura near Bonwire in the Ashanti region), Konongo Tribunal, Effiduase Court and Kumasi Regional Fast Track High Court (I have lost the case). All this while, a close friend of mine, Mr Owusu, from Agona Nsabaa but then living in London kept advising me almost every other day to cease all intentions with the farming project. He was very much aware of all the huge sums of money I was pumping into the project and also the costly lawsuits I was beset with. Other friends who were aware of the situation tried to talk me out of the whole messy project but I would not listen to them. I obstinately kept pursuing my agenda and dreams. I said to myself, I have genuinely purchased the land; I have already pumped too much money into it. Despite all the problems engulfing me, I still deceived myself thinking the whirlwind would soon settle. The prospects of me winning the cases and having my dreams as a farmer come true were too enticing to abandon my dream project. For the first year I cultivated forty to fifty acres of the land, planted ten thousand plantain suckers and thousands of citrus (orange) seedlings and had fourteen workers on the farm that I paid monthly for years. Out of all the hundreds of millions of Ghana Cedis thrown into the project and the related court cases, I have not benefited a pesewa from the project but rather beset with debts and the loss of the land according to the latest unfavourable court ruling. This is the last straw that has broken the camels back. All that I can say with certainty to have benefited from the farm is a few oranges that I ate when I went to Ghana on holiday and the oranges happened to be ripened. I did not even get a finger of plantain from the farm yet I invested hundreds of millions of Ghana Old Cedis in the project. I am now losing about eighty acres of citrus that has never been profitable, a few acres of teak trees and cocoa. The land could be said to be not that very fertile hence inability to benefit from it since purchased many years ago. When the oranges ripe, most of them fall off the trees diseased and I can hardly find buyers for the little left. I thought I had genuinely purchased or leased the land from Kumawuhene so why should I yield in to the demands of perceived opportunists. But here I am today licking my wounds. If I knew I was going to lose my life savings thrown into the project some time to come, I would have listened to Mr Owusu and others. I have come to face the reality of Had I known which is always at last. Will the alleged Kumawuhene Barimah Sarfo Tweneboah Koduah not suffer the same fate as I have? He is beset with lawsuits over his obviously illegal enthronement as Kumawuhene. He is obviously probably borrowing from friends and family members to fight the court cases which he is bound to lose considering the availability of credible evidence against him in relation to his committed infractions of conventions and statutes. Did either he or Kumawuhemaa not bribe some kingmakers in attempts to get him elected as Kumawuhene? Familiarise yourselves with the likely evidence that an instance of bribery might have taken place by watching a video on YouTube via the following web link https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ac8wZIPlVu8 Did he not get himself installed as Kumawuhene while there was still a pendency of injunction against him? He was not to be enthroned until the court had determined the circumstances leading to the granting of the injunction? By his action, had he or has he not breached the order of court hence causing what is called contempt of court? Is being in contempt of court not punishable in some way? He claims to have been gazetted as Kumawuhene. If he indeed has, how did he fill in the form upon the acceptance of which one could be gazetted as Kumawuhene or an Omanhene? All that I know is there is one question of which if you answer YES to, you will never be gazetted. The question goes like, Was, or is there any court case pending against your enthronement before you were enstooled? If you say YES, they will not gazette you until the court has decided the case and your fate. If you answer NO, you will be gazetted. However, was there not, and is still not a court case pending against his enthronement? If he has answered NO to the question and the court finds out when the plaintiffs raise the issue, he will be in breach of perjury or be charged with perverting the cause of justice. Did he not illegally depose some Kumawu sub-chiefs at the behest of Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu II? Read the true form copy of the evidential letter he sent to DCOP Nathan Kofi Boakye, the Ashanti Regional Police Commander from the underlying web link. https://www.modernghana.com/news/589565/1/kumawuhene-sends-a-manipulative-letter-to-police-c.html Have the courts not since reinstated the allegedly deposed sub-chiefs? Watch the celebration of their reinstatement by the Mampong Regional Court referring to the link below. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dDds3Yn-pAk Is the Kumawuman public not united against him hence nicknaming him Nana Ogu agoro and Nana Otu ayie? If the people do not want or like you, on whom will you exercise your functions as Kumawuhene? From all the above inconveniences, he has been compelled to take to heavy drinking. Will he not become alcoholic in the end? Will his drinking not disastrously impinge on his health? Will he in the end not lose his job as a Medical Doctor and at the same time be booted out as the alleged Kumawuhene? As my case had been, so is his being. Therefore, the earlier he throws in the towel, much the better it is for him to save the little money and integrity he has left if at all he has any left. The situation of the alleged Kumawuhene Sarfo Tweneboah Koduah (Dr Yaw Sarfo) is similar to mine. On the other hand, he is like President Mahama who has robbed Nana Akufo Addo of what God has prepared for him hence not having the peace of mind but rather dispossessed of the credibility of, and respect for, President. In the same breath, Nana Akufo Addo is in the same situation as Kumawuhene Barimah Tweneboah Koduah V. As Barimah Tweneboah Koduah V has found the key to unlock Gods promise to him, so shall Nana Akufo Addo find his provided he can devise and adopt STRATEGIES. A word to the wise is enough. I have given Dr Yaw Sarfo free of charge advice. It is up to him to decide on what to do. I have abandoned the farm project that has come to ruin me financially! I was a fighter but I shall not be a foolish fighter any more. Rockson Adofo Minority spokesperson on agriculture has warned that cocoa production will hit an all time low if urgent steps are not taken to improve the sector. Dr. Owusu Afriyie Akoto said governments poor policies for the Agriculture sector have caused shortfalls in cocoa production. His comments come after Finance minister Seth Terkper yesterday told parliament that a cocoa processing company, Barry Callebaut Ghana Ltd imported 15,500 tons of cocoa from Cote divoire, during the 2014/2015 crop season. Read more: Ghanna imported 15,500 tons of cocoa from La Cote divoire in 2014/2015 crop year He justified the imports by saying that it is not the first time such amount of beans is being imported into the country. He said similar importations were done from la Cote d'ivoire in 2005 and 2008. But Dr. Owusu Afriyie Akoto tells Joy News the development is evidence of lack of cocoa beans in the country to feed local industries This year if we are able to match the 740,000 of last year, we will be luckyI mean the reports from the fields clearly indication that we will struggle to match even that low level, he said. He urged government to change its policy on Agriculture to boost cocoa production in the country. He said it had been stated in the 2014 annual report of the COCOBOD that less than 17,000 metric tons of cocoa was supplied to Cocoa Processing Company which is below the 65,000 capacity of the company. Smuggling, seasonal weather and pests have been the causes of shortfalls in cocoa production in Ghana. Accra, Ghana 24th February, 2016----- Jovago.com , Africa leading hotel booking website and GhanaWeb Ventures have just signed a partnership to give readers of the online news website direct access to Jovago.com. Jovago.com , Africa N 1 hotel booking website and GhanaWeb Ventures, a worldwide leader in online news and information announced today a partnership to give readers of the online news website direct access to Jovago.coms online portal and to book hotels. This would further ensure the ease and flexibility with which readers can access a wide range of hotels and make bookings straight from a white label hosted on the Ghanaweb website. This mutually beneficial partnership makes Ghanaweb a ready to go place not only for news and information but also a place where readers can get ready accommodation by just a few clicks of the mouse. This white label deal allows Jovago to share its website on Ghanaweb giving readers of this highly patronized information and news hub a wide range of accommodation options to select from as well as a fast and easy medium to book hotels at the best available rates. GhanaWeb is a very distinguished media house which is not only notable for accurate and reliable news but also has a large number of page views and readers. This represents a wide pool of valuable customers that fall within the Jovago target market. The media plays a very important role in increasing brand awareness and informing both already existing customers and potential customers about new and improved products.In this age of globalization and high demand for fast,easy and profitable means of doing business,e-commerce is one sector of business that cannot be underrated. The role of the media in growing brands and making us more visible and accessible is priceless and very much appreciated by brands such as ours said Claire Staal, Managing Director of Jovago Ghana. Jovago which currently holds the position as Africas largest inventory of hotels will become more recognized in Ghana and beyond as Ghanaweb reaches many viewers and readers far beyond the shores of Ghana and Africa . It is great for Jovago to partner with such a media giant as Ghanaweb who will aid us increase our brand awareness and reach more valuable travelers via their well structured website. Jovago aims at becoming more accessible to make travel more easy and affordable in Africa. Building long lasting business relationships with strong media houses gives us the leverage to grow said Bennet Otoo, Public Relations Manager at Jovago Ghana. This partnership also allows Jovago.com to share travel related stories and tips for travelers as well as provide insights into technology and e-commerce through informative articles on GhanaWeb. "Travel is a very important facet of every business entity these days and people are looking to travel for one reason or the other. Whether the travel is for business or pleasure,people naturally want a fast,easy and convenient way to get quality but affordable accommodation.Associating ourselves with Africas number one online hotel booking portal with a vast inventory of hotels to meet our viewers demands is a major milestone in our quest to provide added value for GhanaWeb users.", added Joost Donkers , Digital-analytics strategist - GhanaWeb. Since its inception in 2013 and the opening of its first offices in Africa, Jovago has been growing steadily.Its large inventory lists 25,000 hotels in over 40 African countries and 200,000 hotels worldwide. With its ongoing success, Jovago aims to accelerate the innovation of its digital services in the hospitality industry in emerging countries. About Jovago Jovago.com is an online hotel booking service with offices in Lagos (Nigeria), Nairobi (Kenya), Dakar (Senegal), Accra ( Ghana ) founded by Africa Internet Group and has MTN and Millicom as investors. Jovago.com, Africas No.1 booking portal , facilitates the booking process for its users to provide them with the best hotel booking experience with fast, transparent and easy-to-use services. About GhanaWeb GhanaWeb is a web portal which offers objective, balanced content about Ghana to educate, inform and entertain the various diverse population of the country. Launched 20 years ago, GhanaWeb has become the most visited Ghanaian online portal. 24.02.2016 LISTEN This entire year is considered very crucial by people in Ghana and the world over, during which many people are praying for peaceful polls on November 7. For some time now almost all registered political parties, have been holding meetings to choose presidential and parliamentary candidates for the elections, as they are fighting for power. The front runners, the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) and the leading opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) have chosen their presidential and most of their parliamentary candidates while the electoral commission is busy preparing the grounds for the polls. There is a growing fear for upheavals in the electioneering campaigns emanates from the massive use of youths to canvass for votes all over the country. In time past, this has resulted in clashes between opposing parties with fatal consequences. Religious leaders traditional authorities and opinion leaders have all called for descent campaigns by all political parties to ensure peaceful electioneering this year. Our two living former presidents are not left out in this crusade. Both men being father figures of the nation called for decent and peaceful electioneering process. They shared their thoughts on the electoral process, underscoring the need for all measures to be put in place for a peaceful Election 2016. They spoke at separate functions. While former President Jerry John Rawlings called on all stakeholders in the forthcoming presidential and parliamentary elections to ensure the highest level of transparency to guarantee a peaceful process, former President John Agyekum Kufuor tasked the Electoral Commission (EC) to put Ghana first in the conduct of this years elections. Although every individual and groups in Ghana are required to contribute towards peaceful elections this year, most people require the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) to do more. The reason is simple. The NCCE is constitutionally mandated to educate the people to appreciate the importance of civic and constitutional way of life wherever they find themselves in Ghana. . Being an election year the NCCE launched a year long program to conscientize the people especially on the need for all eligible voters to take part in the electioneering in process. The NCCE has launched a digital quiz program to pull the youth and students to understand the constitution and work for peace. The NCCE also introduced a program to promote ways of voting peacefully to choose our presidential and parliamentary candidates. In its programs The NCCE would emphasis on the importance of peace in the country and remind the people of the appreciable level of political stability and peace Ghana has been enjoying since the inception of the fourth republican constitution. Apart from holding group discussions in all parts of the country, the NCCE has embarked on a nationwide program in security risky parts of the country known as flashpoints to ensure and order during the elections. Working together with the Small Arms Commission and the National Peace Council, the NCCE is paying visits to the people of Tafo in Ashanti where Muslim youth had a bloody encounter. From Tafo the NCCE and its team also visited flashpoint areas like Nkonya and Alavanyo in the Volta Region, Kukuom and Tuobodom in the Brong Ahafo Region, and other parts of the country. Led by the director of NCCE Mr. Samuel Akuamoah, the intention of the NCCE and its collaborators is to ensure stability and calm from now till the elections in November. Mr Akuamoah has indicated that his team has succeeded in its activities so far because they are well received even at the most difficult areas where people are often chased out by wild youths. The NCCE deserve commendation for the steps they are taking especially because information reaching us indicates that they are making progress towards achieving peace in the country. Apart from the meeting with the youths in the towns concerned, it is advisable for the NCCE and their team to meet political party youths, civil society groups and religious bodies to give a helping hand in the ongoing peace move. Since the NCCE relies on funding from the European Union and other foreign donors for their work, the time has come for financially sound organisations such as banks, commercial and industrial firms to come to the aid of the NCCE. Since the organization is working for peace in the country everyone including the big firms would benefit from calm in the country from till the elections are held in November. EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR EANFOWORLD FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT 0244 370345/ 0274853710/0208844791 [email protected]/[email protected] 24.02.2016 LISTEN The Youth For Progressive Change(YPC) passionately share the pain & losses of properties and valuable items of business women & men worth 100.000 Ghana cedis destroyed by yesterdays unfortunate fire outbreak which occured behind the post office at Wasa Akropong in the Amenfi east district. About 5 stores & portions of the wasa Akropong post office was razzed down by this heavy fire. Our deepest regrets goes to the affected people. Though the main cause of this oubreak is yet to be known, eyewitnesses account suggests that the outbreak was caused by the activities of a welder working in one of the stores that contained latex foam mattresses. The flames was so intense that it needed only fire service personnels & equipments to quench the fire & minize the effect of destruction. According to eyewitness" there was no fire service thunder or personnel within the area to quench the fire upon several calls to their emergency numbers. It was after the affected stores were razed down that fire fighters from Asanco & Bogoso arrived but by that time, volunteers have fought to stop the fire from extending further. Infact One person collapsed due to the excessive heat". This sad account of events brings to question, the importance of the much thawted achievement of Hon Oppong Fosu Mp as proudly reported in daily graphic some few years ago, to have constructed a fire service station in Wasa Akropong to cater for such tragic occurances. Yesterdays incidence exposes the lies & deceit of our Mp. It is very shameful to note that instead of a new office buildings to house fire service personnels, portion of the wasa Amenfi east students library is rather converted to fire station with just one non functional fire thunder which stayed for just two months. YPC is very much aware of how monies meant for constructing Wasa Akropong ultra modern market & buildings to host fire service personnel has been misappropriated & diverted to a different channel for different purposes. We challenge hon. Oppong Fosu to come clean & apologize to the people of Amenfi east or forget campaigning in the November polls. It is very clear from all angles that he can't represent us any better and due to his truancy in parliament nothing seem to work well under Oppong Fosu's leadership as an MP. Amenfi East has the poorest road networks in Western region, no portable & drinkable water, few rural areas connected the national grid and massive youth unemployment among others. we deserve better as people. He must compensate the victims of this tragic incidence because their properties would have been saved if he hadn't deceived us with his sham fire station. Long live Ghana! Long Live Amenfi east Long live YPC ...... Signed.... A. K Gyan -Leader 0247990093 Paul Gyan - Secretary 0548270430 Frederick Kumah - Operations 0506915349 Odame Antwi Snr.- PRO 0244906568 24.02.2016 LISTEN News making waves on radio alludes that water shortage in the Nsawam Township has caused inmates of the Nsawam Medium Security Prison to riot. This is untrue and can only be referred to as a fabricated story. Acute water shortage in the Nsawam Adoagyiri area has become a perennial phenomenon. This can be attributed to a drastic drop of water levels in the water treatment plant reservoir of the Ghana Water Company Limited. This drop is as a result of the drying up of the Densu River which supplies water to the treatment plant reservoir this is largely due to the Harmattan. The Harmattan is a hot, dry wind that blows from the northeast or east in the western Sahara and is strongest in late fall and winter (late November to mid-March) according to Encyclopdia Britannica. Indeed the Medium Security Prison has been hit hard by this acute water shortage in the Nsawam Township but the Eastern Regional Command of the Ghana Prisons Service has ensured that inmates do not feel the hardship that the larger community is feeling with regards to the acute water shortage. Water is life and living healthy is having access to potable water. Persons in prison custody have the right to healthy living but do not have the liberty of going to search for their own water because of their imprisonment this responsibility therefore falls on the Prisons Administration. Granted, the prison has other challenges such as overcrowding that the 6th Ghana Prisons Council through Project Efiase is working on solving but acute water shortages leading to riots is not one of them. Water is used extensively by both inmates and prison officers for the day to day administration of the prison. The uses of water by inmates are enormous and these include bathing, doing laundry, scrubbing cells and prison yard, drinking, preparing food among others. Prison Authorities are well aware of the importance of water in the prison and have put in place measures to ensure that water is made available to inmates at all times. This is because the Prison Service is mandated by law to ensure the welfare of inmates in it custody which includes the bedding, feeding and health care for inmates. The availability of water in the prison environment plays a major role in ensuring that inmates and prison hygiene are upheld - thereby promoting healthy living and preventing the spread of contagious diseases in the prison. The Eastern Regional Command has therefore put in place measures to ensure that water is always made available for both inmate and administration use. The Eastern Regional Command has employed the services of water tankers to supply the prison with potable water for their day to day use. Water Tankers belonging to the Ghana Prisons Service and the District Assembly have been tasked by their respective institution to supply water to the prison on a daily basis. The above mentioned intervention is so far working perfectly without any complaints from any of the water delivery players or the affected inmates of the prison. Therefore it will be completely out of place to suggest that inmates of the prison are rioting over the acute water shortage in the Nsawam Township. The Ghana Prison Service is however considering a permanent solution to the perennial crises and at the top of this is the building of a water treatment plant to augment that of the Ghana Water Company Limited. However, the source of the water for the treatment plant would be from boreholes which are less likely to dry up. The Ghana Prisons Service is thus opened to Private Public Partnership to corporate institutions with the requisite manpower and financial resources in dealing with this challenge. ASP JACKSON AGYEPONG | Ghana Prisons Service | Email: [email protected] 24.02.2016 LISTEN The New Patriotic Party (NPP) has expressed concern over the process leading to the conduct of the November 7 presidential and parliamentary elections. A statement issued by the party yesterday, and signed by its Director of Communications, Nana Akomea, listed a litany of problems and noted that the current state of uncertainty is no way conducive to credible and peaceful elections 2016. The following is the full press statement. The national elections coming on in (probably) November is no doubt the biggest event on the Ghanaian national calendar for 2016. November being a few months away, the New Patriotic Party, like many Ghanaians, is worried about the many uncertainties that currently characterize the work of the Ghanaian Electoral Commission (EC) in the run up to November 2016. VOTER REGISTER A credible voter register is at the Centre of credible elections in November. All parties, the EC, and political parties agree that the register is very bloated, in addition to other flaws. The NPP (and other parties) have petitioned for a new register as the best way of securing a credible register. The NDC, and other parties, have advocated for some auditing process, as adequate to clean up the register. The EC has indicated its decision in favour of cleaning the register through the current challenge and auditing process already provided in C1 72. The auditing process announced by the EC is a combination of public exhibition to allow public participation in the process, and contracting some consultant to execute some other auditing procedures. However, a five-member panel of experts set up by the EC to collate and advise it on an appropriate auditing process has stated in its report that the measures announced by the EC to clean up the register would not work. The panel stated that relying on the challenge procedure provided by the exhibition of the register is not a viable option. The panel reported at page 17 paragraph 7 that judging by the sheer numbers, the Electoral Commission's proposition to display the register, with political parties, the Electoral Commission and the citizenry to identify and point out invalid names, is not a viable approach Particularly, when the persons who identify these records are expected to expend their time, energy and resources, not only to provide the evidence, but also to testify before a court of competent jurisdiction. It continues on page 18: The system is not effective in achieving the set goals of eliminating invalid records from the register and must be reconsidered. It is said you cannot do the same things and expect different results. Regarding the EC's contracting some expert consultant to help audit the register, we do not know which company has been contracted, their terms of reference, methodology, etc. So this crucial matter of securing a credible voters' register, necessary for credible elections, remains unsettled. MANUAL REGISTRATION The EC recently announced that all parties had agreed that manual verification will be acceptable to authenticate voters before voting. However, at the recent IPAC meeting last Friday 19th February, it became clear that there was no such agreement on that position, as announced by the EC. So this crucial issue of voter identification and authentication also remains unsettled. STEERING COMMITTEE The EC, on Monday 8th February, 2016, announced the setting up of a Steering Committee in the management of the 2016 elections. This decision and announcement had been done on the blind side of stakeholders, including the political parties. It turned out that some of the selected members of this steering committee were bona-fide NDC party activists. At the IPAC meeting on Friday 19th February, the political party representatives complained about the EC setting up the Steering Committee on their blind side and sought to know the purpose, functions and terms of reference of the Steering Committee. The EC expressed regret over their action, and indicated they would go back to the drawing board on the matter of setting up the Steering Committee. This was communicated by all the political parties' representatives to the anxious public. Before the nation could heave a sigh of relief, the EC counter-announced last Saturday 20th February that the understanding of the political parties at the IPAC meeting, and subsequent information put out by them was wrong, and that the Steering Committee was still in place. So who is speaking the truth on this matter, the political parties or the EC? The Electoral Commission must realise that all Ghanaians want credible and fair elections this year. This is best achieved by involving stakeholders, particularly the political parties, in deliberations leading to major decisions. So that decision taking and implementation will be harmonious. Time is of the essence. The current state of uncertainty is no way conducive to credible and peaceful elections 2016. Nana Akomea Director of Communications 24.02.2016 LISTEN Seventeen evidence have been tendered in to indict Gregory Afoko at the High Court for the murder of Adams Mahama, Upper East Regional Chairman of the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP). A team from the Attorney General's (AG) Department, led by Chief State Attorney Matthew Amponsah, yesterday tendered in all the evidence at the committal court, pointing to the fact that Gregory Afoko was the one who committed the murder. A prima facie case has, therefore, been made against him. The Magistrate Court presided over by Worlanyo Kotoku committed Gregory Afoko for trial at the High Court. The case was adjourned to March 23, 2016, for trial to commence. Meanwhile, an attempt by the defense to secure bail for Gregory Afoko was fruitless. Gregory has been charged with conspiracy to commit crime, to wit murder and murder. When asked by the judge as to whether he has something to say after his charge and facts had been read to him, he responded no, adding that he stands by his earlier statement. Excerpts of proceedings Counsel for Gregory Afoko, led by Ekow Ampah Korsah, said when facts are presented in court, it is seen as the well view of the prosecution. Adding that in this case, the well view has been dinted by the prosecution, therefore, they intend to scrutinise it to show that the view of the prosecution does not constitute the facts. He told the court that they intend to file for an alibi, which is a form of defense used in criminal procedures, wherein the accused attempts to prove that he or she was in some other place at the time the alleged offense was committed. Exhibits presented by AG Exhibits in the case, according to the summery of the evidence: Investigating caution statement dated 22 of May 2015. The 2nd caution statement taken on 28 May 2015. Charged caution statement dated 26 May 2015. The post mortem report on Adams Mahama by Dr. Lawrence Adusei. Medical report on the wife of the deceased, Madam Hajia Zeinbu Adams Material evidence A gallon containing residue of substance which has been proved to be acid found on the crime scene. Carpet of the pick-up vehicle in which the deceased was seated at the time the acid was poured on him. A pair of shoes belonging to the deceased and clothes he was wearing at the time of the attack. Samples of the seat of the deceased's vehicle Foam being part of the deceased's vehicle A white rubber container A pair of tracksuit belonging to Gregory Afoko A plastic cup suspected to have been used in the pouring of the acid on the deceased. Forensic report issued by Ghana Standards Authority (GSA) on exhibit retrieved from the scene of crime, and the pair of tracksuit trousers of the accused, Gregory Afoko. Photographs taken at the scene of crime Medical report on accused Gregory Afoko dated in 26 of May 2015. Four photographs taken on the wife of the deceased, Hajia Zainabu Adams, following the injuries she sustained Facts The deceased, Adams Mahama, until his untimely death, was a contractor and the Upper East Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP). First suspect, Gregory Afoko is a farmer, an NPP youth activist and a younger brother of Mr. Paul Afoko, National Chairman of the same political party, while the 2nd suspect, Asabke Alangdi, is also a party member. During the early part of May, 2015, Mr. Paul Afoko and Kwabena Agyepong, National Chairman and General Secretary respectively of the NPP, embarked on a tour of the region. On 14th day of May, 2015, the National Chairman and General Secretary arrived in Bolgatanga. The deceased organised some thugs to violently attack them, scuttling the planned meeting at Azumsolom Guest House for campaigning against the flagbearer, Nana Addo Danquah Akufo-Addo, and also not notifying him. The situation was later brought under control by the police. The first suspect was not impressed with the action taken by the Regional Chairman, and as a result had serious confrontation with the deceased until he was chased away by the thugs. Later 1st and 2nd suspects mobilised some youth to form another group, with their sole aim to protect party executives perceived to be against Nana Akufo-Addo's bid. The suspects and other members had a series of meetings, and in the evening of 20th May 2015, two assailants, now identified as 1st and 2nd suspects, armed with a substance in a gallon suspected to be acid, laid ambush at the deceased's residence. The deceased returned home around 11:00 p.m. in his pick-up vehicle with registration number NR 761-14. Immediately he parked the vehicle in front of his house, the suspects went close and signaled him to roll down the glass. The deceased identified the suspects as party members and rolled down the glass to talk to them. Suddenly, the suspects poured a substance suspected to be acid on his head, face and other parts of his body, and fled on a motorbike. The deceased started screaming for help, and his wife, Hajia Zenabu Adams, came to the aid of the husband and managed to bring him out of the vehicle. In the process she sustained burns on the right side of the chest and breast. The wife enquired to know what happened to him, and he told her that it was the 1st and 2nd suspects who poured the substance on him. The deceased, who could not withstand the pains, was still shouting and started removing his clothes. This attracted the attention of the neighbours, who took him to the Upper East Regional Hospital. The deceased repeatedly mentioned the names of 1st and 2 suspects as the perpetrators to the neighbours and friends who came to his aid and rushed him to the hospital. While the deceased was being prepared to be airlifted to Accra for intensive care, he was pronounced dead. During investigations, the 1st suspect was arrested in his house, and when asked to lead the police to the house of the 2nd suspect, he rather took them to the father's house. The police later located the house of 2nd suspect who had got wind of their presence and absconded with his wife, leaving behind their baby. A gallon which contained some of the substance and a plastic cup were retrieved at the scene for forensic examination. A post mortem examination was conducted by Dr. Lawrence Adusei on the body of the deceased who gave the cause of death as shock lungs and extensive acid burns. By Maame Agyeiwaa Agyei ([email protected]) & Ethel Mensah The Private Enterprises Federation (PEF) has urged the government to decentralise the application process in acquiring licenses and permits, through the use of an electronic platform with complementary bank accounts, to reduce delays and save time. The Federation believes that the processes would require that applicants file scanned copies of all supporting documents through a designated website created by the respective agencies receiving applications, and enable them pay application fees directly into the agency's account. This, the Federation said, would help reduce the time it takes to process applications by business enterprises, as well as serve as a data base for reference and research purposes. Nana Osei Bonsu, Chief Executive Officer of PEF, made the call when he spoke during a panel discussion in Accra on the Ghana Journalists Association programme dubbed: Business Advocate on Ghana Television. The programme, on the topic: Streamlining the Processes and Procedures for Permits, Certificates and Licenses for Business Operations, is supported by the BUSAC Fund, Denmark Embassy, United States Agency for International Development, and the European Union. Nana Bonsu said business organisations in the country have expressed worry about the unjustified delay in the processes they go through to obtain a license to operate, adding that a prospective applicant had to go through six frustrating processes to get a permit. The Federation is urging the government to resource agencies mandated in processing the acquisition of licenses and permits for business operations to perform effectively. He was of the view that the private sector can be more competitive, if these agencies are adequately resourced to perform satisfactorily, adding that the little budget released to these agencies delays effective and efficient delivery of service. Nana Bonsu said a study of the regime for business registrations in the country was carried out in 2008 at the request of the Ministry of Trade and Industry to review the time and cost for complying with requirements for registration with the Companies Registry, and various local government authorities. He said, as a follow up to that study, in 2009, the USAID, in partnership with PEF, sponsored a research study to establish all licensing and permit requirements affecting businesses in the country. The study, he said, revealed that a total of 145 or more business licenses or permit requirements were in force in the country, and this affected businesses to varying degrees. Nana Bonsu said the Federation recommended that a percentage of user fees be charged by the respective agencies to be retained for the day to day running of the agencies, including purchases of logistics and its maintenance. The Federation also recommended a sustained public education [effort] through brochures, explaining requirements, processes and timelines to help the businesses understand the policies and laws that govern the operations of the respective agencies, as well as the application processes and procedures employed to service the business community, he said. Source: GNA 24.02.2016 LISTEN Accra, Feb. 24, GNA - Dr Lawrence Tetteh, President of Lawrence Tetteh Ministries (LTM), on Tuesday commended the flag bearers of the political parties for their commitment to the peace and security of the nation towards the November 7, polls. 'I have followed all the statements of leaders seeking political power this year, and they are all harping on peace, which is very encouraging,' he said. Dr Tetteh, also President and Founder of UK-based Worldwide Miracle Outreach, was speaking in an interview with Ghana News Agency towards the March 9- March 13, crusade to be held at the Black Star Square in Accra. It is being organised in collaboration with LTM and the Diocesan Bishop of Methodist Church, Ghana; Right Reverend Samuel Kofi Osabutey. He lauded former President Jerry John Rawlings and John Agyekum Kufuor for the vigilance they have shown so far towards free, fair and transparent presidential and parliamentary elections. Dr Tetteh asked the clergy to continue to intercede on behalf of the nation and to facilitate national cohesion, adding: 'The peace we are enjoying should not be taken for granted.' 'I am well-travelled and has had the opportunity to visit war-torn countries and it is very assuring that Ghana is a safe haven. 'Ghana has earned global commendation for the national commitment to ensure peaceful conduct of Election 2016 and it should stay as such,' he said. He said: 'People who want to foment trouble should look at the bad examples on the continent. 'The Bibles says in 2 Chronicle 7-14 that: 'If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.'' Dr Tetteh asked politicians to understand that kings are enthroned by God and so they should put Ghana first in all their deliberations. He said if the interest of politicians is to secure Ghana then the peace and progress of the nation should be high on their agenda and not just to win elections. He acclaimed the National Peace Council for the efforts to ensure peace before, during, and after the elections. He said the main purpose of the crusade is to pray for the nation to 'heal our land'. GNA Accra, Feb. 24, GNA - Star Ghana has shortlisted 68 out of 221 institutions, which successfully submitted proposals aimed at helping to achieve an inclusive, issues-based, peaceful and credible General Election in November. Information available to the Ghana News Agency information indicates that the shortlisted institutions include15 media institutions; 46 Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) for the Open Components; and seven other CSOs for the Strategic components. The overall indicative budgets for the three calls are: Media Component - US$600,000. Open Component - US$1.5m; and Strategic Component - US$500,000. A source at Star Ghana explained that all the shortlisted applicants had gone through due diligence exercises, as part of the application process, to ensure that the applicants were in a position to deliver on their projects. The due diligence exercise was to validate information provided by the applicants; assess the organisation's capacity (Human and Technical Resources); review the project budget, the organisation's internal governance, financial, monitoring and evaluation systems. The shortlisted applications, together with findings from the Due Diligence Consultant, would be presented to the Steering Committee for vetting, final approval or otherwise by February 26. This would be followed by a grants signing ceremony to officially announce the successful applicants; and the signing off contracts to begin the project implementation process by March 10, 2016. The source said 38 media institutions were able to submit proposals by the January 17 deadline; whilst 171 CSOs submitted proposals for the Open Component and additional 12 institutions submitted for the Strategic Component. Meanwhile, in an interview with the Ghana News Agency, Mr Amidu Ibrahim-Tanko, the Programme Director/Team Leader of STAR-Ghana, expressed the organisation's appreciation to all bodies, which submitted applications for the 2016 Election Call. 'We acknowledge, with regret, that not as much time as we would have wished was afforded applicants to submit their proposals,' he said. 'This was because, in our judgment, any implementation process that commenced after the end of the second week in March 2016, would have been seriously pressed for time within which to carry out the programme objectives before November 7, 2016, when elections are planned to take place. 'We wish to assure those organisations that did not make it this time round that there will be other calls in the future. They should not be discouraged by the results of this call from submitting applications in respect of future calls.' He explained that STAR-Ghana had a vision to see an active and engaged civil society capable of articulating citizens' demands and an effective State, which was responsive and accountable to its citizens. He said STAR-Ghana's goal was to develop a vibrant, well-informed and assertive civil society, able to contribute to transformational national development and inclusive access to high quality, accountable public services for all Ghanaian citizens. In December, 2015, STAR-Ghana announced its first call for proposals to support initiatives towards the 2016 Presidential and Parliamentary Elections. It was opened to all registered Ghanaian Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) and Media Houses/Organisations. Mr Ibrahim-Tanko explained that the second phase of STAR-Ghana's programme, was a five-year programme being funded by UK Aid, DANIDA and the EU with a total budget of 22million. It is being managed by a consortium led by Christian Aid, with Mango, Social Development Direct, Overseas Development Institute, Nkum Associates and On Our Radar as partners. The consortium brings together a range and depth of expertise combined with a shared vision to establish STAR-Ghana as a Ghanaian-owned and led entity mobilising active citizens and civil society around accountability. The current phase of STAR-Ghana builds on previous programmes including the first phase of the STAR-Ghana programme (2010-2015); the Ghana Research and Advocacy Programme (G-rap) (2005-2011); KASA (2008-2010); the Rights and Voice Initiative (RAVI) (2004-2010); and the Civil Society Governance Fund (CSGF) (2004-2010). Mr Ibrahim Tanko said the key shift from its predecessor programme was the new strategic focus on facilitating and supporting processes and interventions, which aimed at systemic changes in socio-economic and political institutions/structures in Ghana. STAR-Ghana would, therefore, act as the Convener, Catalyst and Coordinator of civil society action towards systemic and transformational change. GNA Takoradi, Feb.24 GNA - Vice President Kwesi Amissah-Arthur has urged the Mechanical Lloyd Company to use its vast experience in the automobile industry to organise training programmes for automobile mechanics to improve their services in vehicle maintenance. According to him, the training of local artisans would help in the improvement of economic development, which in the long-run would lead to the economic wellbeing of the people. Vice President Amissah-Arthur made the statement when he inaugurated an ultramodern Branch of Mechanical Lloyd at Takoradi, the Western Regional capital. He applauded the Mechanical Lloyd Company for extending its operations to other regions of the country. 'I am happy to say that a company like Mechanical Lloyd is voting to support the Ghanaian economy and showing the rest of the country that it is good to invest in the country,' he stated. He charged the Management of the Company to ensure that Ghanaians got the real value of the company's products and services. The facility has a vehicle showroom and a maintenance centre that allows spare parts to be held at one place to be brought for servicing vehicles. The inauguration of the branch brings the number of such facilities owned by the Company to five across. Two of them are in Accra, one in Kumasi, and the other Tamale. The Mechanical Lloyd Company, which was established in Ghana, in 1970, and listed on the Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE), deals in Ford vehicles and BMWs. Vice President Amissah-Arthur stated that the new facility should support the Ghanaian economy, provide local content, and improve the quality of services offered to the clients. The facility, he said, should help consumers of vehicles to prolong the lifespan of their automobiles to enable them to derive the needed benefits from it. 'Mechanical Lloyd with its rich history in the automobile sector should be able to help consumers benefit from the modern technology it uses in the servicing of vehicles.' He said the new branch with its modern facilities should be able to develop the skills of local artisans within the twin city. Mr Charles Zwennes Snr, the Board Chairman of Mechanical Lloyd, said the Takoradi Branch would provide consumers with the best of the company's products. He said the company would continue to contribute to the welfare of the country as well as support communities in its operational areas. GNA Accra, Feb. 24, GNA - A study on Maternal Health and The National Health Insurance (NHIS) in 20 poor districts and 120 communities indicates that the active membership of the Scheme stands at 10,145 representing, 38 per cent of the Ghanaian population. One hundred and twenty communities selected from the Greater Accra and the three Northern Regions show a growth rate of 14. 2 per cent over the 2012 record, while all four targeted regions reported increased membership of between 13 per cent and 32 per cent between 2012 and 2013. Majority of the membership of the NHIS in 2013 are females representing a majority of 57.8 per cent. Among the 18 districts schemes, which provided data on NHIS coverage, Adenta in the Greater Accra Region reported the highest coverage of 15 per cent of its population, while the Wa Municipality in the Upper West reported the highest coverage of 90 per cent of its population. The study reveals that the increase in the subscription to the schemes is largely due to public education and sensitisation of communities through radio and community durbars by the NHIS' collaboration with Civil Society Organisations (CSO), improved customer service delivery, reduction in registration fees, among others. With regards to the Free Maternal Care Programme, the study observes that a number of unapproved charges collected at health facilities, including a flask of mashed kenkey or tea, chamber pots to contain urine and vomit, six old cloths and three strong ones to wrap babies, prevent pregnant women from enjoying the full benefit of the scheme as prescribed by the policy. The study also notes the strong collaboration between the NHIS and the Department of Social welfare (DSW) in some districts in the Northern Region, which resulted in the enrolment of LEAP beneficiaries onto the NHIS The study, initiated by SEND Ghana, on the theme: 'Making Safe Motherhood a Reality', recommends, among other things, that to successfully enrol the majority of the core poor and vulnerable groups on the NHIS, there is the need to strengthen institutional collaboration between the NHIS and the DSW. Mr John Nkaw and Mr Mukuila Adamu, of the SEND Ghana Programme, in the Northern and Upper West regions, respectfully, who disseminated the report, were of the view that the mere transfer of the mandate of identifying indigenes for registration to the DSW was not sufficient to widen the safety net for many poor people in Ghana. They noted that a pro-poor programme like the NHIS should reach not only the extreme poor but the poor, in general meaning - all persons who fall below the upper poverty of GHE1,314.00 per a year. Mr Siapha Kamara, the Chief Executive Officer of SEND West Africa, noted that though Ghana had made strides towards its health delivery system, the strategies to an extent had not been equity-centred , comprehensive and effective enough to guarantee all poor and vulnerable people in Ghana access to healthcare. Mr Daniel Dogbetse, the Head of Monitoring and Evaluation of the Ministry of Heath, noted that if members of the society would take responsibility for all their health needs and make efforts to seek timely intervention, more than half of all health needs would be solved. According to him, the trend in institutional Maternal Mortality ratio continued to improve though not at the rate that met expectation. Maternal Mortality ratio improved from 155 per 100,000 live births (LB) in 2013 to 14 per 100,000 LB in 2014. Institutional Maternal Mortality Ratio was high at 174 deaths per 100,000 in 2011 but had since then dropped to 144 per 100,000 in 2014, a drop of about 21 percent, he noted. He said the magnitude and persistent high rates was an indicator of the level of development but said there were outstanding issues policy makers needed to confront. Despite the strides made, the Ministry, he said, would continue to implement plans that placed priority on maternal and infant mortality reduction. GNA Accra, Feb. 24, GNA - Philip Abayori, the President of the National Farmers and Fishermen Award Winners and five others on Tuesday appeared before an Accra Circuit Court for stealing building materials valued at GHE1,503,316.00. With him in the dock are Eric Nana Ebo Aikins, the chief of Aketechia, near Anomabo in the Central Region, Francis Mantey, Emmanuel Ayisadu, Richmond Voanwzor and Mohamed Shaibu. Variously charged with conspiracy, stealing and dishonestly receiving, they all pleaded not guilty. The items including electrical cables, concrete blocks and iron roads were to be used in constructing a six storey hotel. The Court presided over by Ms Rose Naa Adjeley Quayson admitted them to bail in the sum of GHE150,000.00 with two sureties. The accused persons are to deposit their identity cards to court and are expected to reappear on March 1. Prosecuting Superintendent of Police Mr Duuti Tuaruka said the complainant, Eric Johnson, is the Chief Executive of Intermerc Ghana Limited located at Tesano. He said Aikins is a close associate of the complainant who engaged him to supervise his projects over the past 10 years. The prosecutor said Aikins employed Mantey and two other people to mould blocks at the complainant's warehouse at Ablemkpe to enable the complainant construct the hotel. The complainant, however, deposited iron rods valued GHE521, 520.00, electrical cables also valued at GHE747,814.00 and sand concrete totalling GHE315,618.00 and handed over the items and keys to the warehouse to Aikins. On February 1, the complainant sent a witness to the warehouse and he discovered that the items totalling GHE 1,503, 316.00 had been stolen. On February 17, the complainant reported the matter to the Police and Aikins and Mantey were arrested and their caution statements they admitted stealing the items and they led the police to arrest the rest of the accused persons. GNA Tamale, Feb. 24, GNA - The Health Training Institutions Secretariat (HTIS) has warned that it would dismiss any employee of the training institutions who collects money from unqualified students to ostensibly secure them admission to the institutions. Mr Christopher Beyere, the Executive Secretary of HTIS, who gave the warning, said aiding unqualified students to gain admission to nursing training institutions undermined efforts to ensure professionalism in the nursing profession. He was speaking at the opening of the Fifth Biennial Delegates Congress of the Nurse Educators Group (NEG) in Tamale, on Tuesday. The four-day event under the theme: 'Professionalism in Nursing and Midwifery Education', was to enable members of NEG to share issues of interest as well as to elect new executives to steer the affairs of the group. Mr Beyere said reports indicated that activities of 'admission contractors' were becoming an entrenched practice making students with poor grades gain admission to the institutions thereby denying qualified students admission. He sounded the warning that the HTIS would not hesitate to dismiss any employee of nursing training institutions who engaged in such practice saying: 'If those who are to ensure professionalism engage in this practice, how can we ensure professionalism in the nursing profession?' He also criticised the practice of 'protocol admission', saying that system of unfairness must stop. Mr Alhassan Mohammed Sorogudoo, the District Chief Executive for Sagnarigu, who represented the Northern Regional Minister, said the Government's was committed to addressing the challenges facing the nursing profession. He entreated nurses to continue to work for the betterment of the country. Mr Samuel McCarthy, the Chairman of NEG, complained about the new grading of health tutors where their professional titles were taken off and asked that their professional titles be restored to avoid the unnecessary deductions being made from their salaries. Dr Michael Wombeogo, the Head of Department of Community Health and Clinical Skills of the University for Development Studies, who gave the keynote address, urged nurses to adhere to the standards and regulations of nursing to ensure professionalism. Dr Wombeogo said he was unhappy that the nursing profession was not being given its right of place in terms of recognition, and urged nurses to continue to upgrade themselves to be assertive in the profession in terms of decision making. NEG is a body of professional nurses and midwives under the umbrella of the Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association. GNA Accra, Feb. 23, GNA - Miss Sabina Abu, the Tema Rent Manageress, has said there is the need for a thorough education to enable members of the society understand the demands of the Rent Act. In an interview with the GNA, Miss Abu said that there is currently a bill before parliament that seeks to amend the Rent Act, Act 220, 1963. She said the amendment seeks to empower the rent office to send inspectors around to educate both tenants and landlords concerning their rights and responsibilities. Miss Abu said education on rental issues are normally done when the office settles disputes between feuding factions. She said it is on record that landlords and landladies within the Tema Metropolis and other parts of the country charge exorbitant fees to lease out their rooms and demand two to three years advance payment. Miss Abu said unfortunately, that both tenants and property owners seem to have accepted that illegality and this makes it difficult to enforce the law adding that the act demands that tenants pay not more than six months advance to house owners. 'In as much as it prevents house owners from ejecting tenants arbitrarily, it is still not a good practice because people cannot readily come out with large sums of money to pay rents,' she said. Miss Abu said government should stop giving two years advance to parliamentarians to rent houses as this may consciously or unconsciously encourage landlords and other property owners to continue demanding years in advance payments. She said due to the acute housing deficit in Ghana, most house owners have resorted to maltreating their tenants knowing very well that tenants have no choice than to continue coming to them for renting. Miss Abu said if this if this law is passed, it would empower the Rent Office to embark on a massive education to enlighten tenants so they can protect their rights by resorting to the law. GNA 24.02.2016 LISTEN Kumasi, Feb. 24, GNA - Two people arrested for robbing a banker have been sentenced to 40 years imprisonment each in hard labour by a Kumasi Circuit Court. Kwaku Owusu, 22, and Kwame Apraku Adabor, 24, had attacked and robbed the victim of an amount GHE8,900.00 - stabbing him in the chest and hands with a knife. A senior state attorney Madam Gyamfuaah Sarpong, told the Court presided over by Mrs Afua Adu Amankwaah that the incident happened on December 16, 2014, at Atasomanso in Kumasi. The pair, carrying a gun and knife, struck at about 0230 hours, when the banker, Mr Larry Baffour Appiagyei, had just returned to the house from the hospital with the wife and three kids after one of the children had suddenly taken ill. Owusu pointed a gun at the victim and ordered him to remain silent or be shot dead and for fear for his life he did as he was told. The prosecution said Adador, then drew a knife, stabbed him in the chest and hands as he dropped to the ground and bled profusely. They then went ahead to seize the cash, mobile phone and a bag containing his clothes and fled. Ms Gyamfuaah said all this happened in the full glare of the wife and kids and he was rushed to the hospital after the police responded to a distress call by the family. The two were identified by the victim's spouse after they had been arrested by the police for their involvement in another robbery. GNA 24.02.2016 LISTEN Accra, Feb. 24, GNA - Most Rev Joseph Osei- Bonsu, President of the Ghana Catholic Bishop's Conference, has said the Catholic Church is ready to work in close collaboration with all stakeholders to physically and spiritually change the lives of people. He said although the Church did not have all the technical solutions to all the problems that people in the sub region faced, it would collaborate with relevant institutions for the betterment of the people. Most Rev Osei Bonsu said this on Tuesday during the opening of the 2nd General Assembly of Regional Episcopal Conference of West Africa Conference which brought together Catholic bishops from both Anglo and Francophone countries. He said the seven-day conference would enable the bishops to reflect on how they could work together as one united family and in concert with West African Governments, advance the issues of reconciliation, holistic development and authentic family life within the sun region. 'This will be done in the light of the Church's New Evangelisation, which invites the Church to employ new and dynamic ways of spreading the Gospel to its people', he said. Mr Henry Martey Newman, Member of the Counsel of State, who also represented President Mahama, called for an end to tribal, clan and communal clashes. 'Many parts of Africa and the world at large have countless heart-rending tales to tell of shattered development plans and broken homes, all because citizens failed to forgive and forget when it mattered most', he said. He pledged Government's readiness to look up to the Church for inspiration, leadership by example, as well as prayer support. He urged Christians to be the 'salt of the world' as preached by Christ to serve as role models for the rest of the world Theodore Adrien Cardinal Sarr, President of Catholic Bishops for West Africa, said the decision to bring together both Anglophone and Francophone Episcopal Conference in West Africa was born in 1996 to help the Conference transcend linguistic barriers inherited from clolonisation. He said the decision was also help the conference speak with one voice on State and Church matters and put resources together for the consolidated pastoral programme in the Sub-Region. 'With this new arrangement which transcends the linguistic barriers imposed by English, French and Portuguese, the Catholic Church has become more and more a centre of integration for West Africa just as the dream of the founding fathers of the Conference', he said. The conference which brought together representatives from all the 16 countries in West Africa was under the theme: 'The New Evangelisation and Specific Challenges for the Church, Family of God in West Africa'. GNA Accra, Feb.24, GNA - Mr Jacob A. Kor, the Director General of the Ghana Education Service, (GES) has said the Service supports the initiative by the Ambassador Extraordinaire of Prisons, Mr Ibrahim Oppong Kwarteng to sensitise pre - tertiary institutions on crime. The initiative dubbed: 'National Stop Crime Campaign' would enable the Ambassador Extraordinaire show the consequences of crime through Prison documentaries in schools. Mr Kor, said this when Mr Oppong paid a courtesy call on him at his office to share his vision with him. The GES boss said the Service would do its best to ensure the initiative was sustained. The Ghana Prisons Service Council conferred on Mr Kwarteng, "Ambassador Extraordinaire" for his dedication in projecting the welfare of prisoners and the deplorable prison conditions across the country. He described the campaign as a wonderful and well thought out idea that could significantly reduce the urge by students to commit crime. He expressed concern about the growing number of students and teachers in prison as a result of examination malpractices and other forms of school related crimes that had significantly affected the image of the GES. Mr Kor expressed regret about the conduct of some teachers, who, after imparting knowledge on the dangers of anti-social behaviour to students, rather engaged in the same behaviours, thereby making a mockery of the teaching profession. He urged Mr Kwarteng not to restrict his campaign to only the students, but also extend it to teachers for them to appreciate the real prison picture. He promised the support of the GES in the launch of the Campaign and thanked the Prisons Ambassador for coming out with such an initiative aimed at sensitising the public on the dangers of crime. Mr Kwarteng later told the Ghana News Agency that he would take the campaign to churches, schools and mosques to share with the public the living conditions of prisoners. 'Majority of the youth do not have any idea about prison living conditions,' he explained. Mr Kwarteng's latest documentary on prison conditions titled: 'A Neglected Potential', moved the President, John Dramani Mahama to the Nsawam Prison to see at firsthand, the deplorable living conditions to enable him to push for a higher budgetary allocation for the Prisons Service. He said over the years not much had been done to project the plight of the Service, hence his interest to focus on the Prisons. GNA Ho, Feb.24, GNA - Mr Daniel Mensah, the Acting Volta Regional Director of Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) has called for the amendment of the law on defilement and rape. He said though the law punished the offenders, it did not compensate the victims. Mr Mensah was addressing a Review Meeting with the media in Ho, on Gender-based Violence, Domestic Violence, Harmful Traditional Practices and Adolescent Reproductive Health issues. The review was organised by the Department of Women with support from the Volta Regional Coordinating Council and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). Mr Mensah said the victims of defilement and rape needed monetary support to go back to school or integrate well in society. He, therefore, proposed the establishment of a fund or a fine to compensate and take care of such victims. Mr Mensah said such a 'package' would encourage victims and people to report such acts and help eliminate the practice. Ms Comfort Ablometi, Volta Regional Director, Department of Women said rape, defilement, domestic violence and teenage pregnancy were on the rise in the Region. She said the region was now leading in teenage pregnancy cases in the country and charged the media to help address the issue through education. 'We should get prizes for the good reasons not the bad ones,' she said. Ms Ablometi also noted that psychological violence was tearing marriages apart in the Region with children being the worst off. She said men, like women, also suffered psychological violence, which they bottled within them for fear of being ridiculed when others got to know. The consequences, she said were dire, and sometimes death. 'We have to do something to curb it because we are all suffering,' she observed. GNA 24.02.2016 LISTEN Economic downturn; recession of plans and initiatives; -crisis; Brexit and irredentism in the UK, Spain, Belgium, Denmark and Italy; lasting instability in the Euro-Med theatre (debt crisis of the Europes south countries scrutinized and ridiculed under the nickname PIGS, coupled with the failed states all over the MENA);terrorism; historic low with Russia; influx of predominantly Muslim refugees from Levantinunprecedented numbers and intensities since the WWII exoduses; consequential growth of far-right parties that are exploiting fears from othernesswhich are now coupled with already urging labor and social justice concerns, generational unemployment and socio-culturalanxietiesThe very fundaments of Europe are shaking. Strikingly, there is a very little publicdebate in Europe about it. What is even more worrying is the fact that any self-assessing questioning of Europes involvement and past policies in the Middle East, and Europes East is simply off-agenda. Immaculacy of Brussels and the Atlantic-Central Europe-led EU is unquestionable. Corresponding with realities or complying witha dogma? One of the leading figures of European Renaissance that grossly inspired European renewal, Dante, puts Prophet Muhamed to the 8th circle of his famous Inferno. The only individuals bellow Muhamed were Judas, Brutus, and Satan. Islam was seen as the negation of Christianity, as anti-Europeand Muhammed as an Antichrist in alliance with the Devil as Rana Kabbani noted in her luminary piece Imperial Fictions. However, both religions trace their origins back to Abraham. They both lived in harmony (or at least they cohabitated for centuries within the MENA proper, notably in Lebanon, Syria and Iraq). Why was than there no harmonious relationship between Christian Europe and the Middle East? Was Europe opting to repress the Muslims in order to artificially generate a homogenous European self? This is a story of the past centuries one may say. Still, absence of any self-reflection on the side of the EU towards its policy in the Middle East today, makes it worth to revisit some of the bleak chapters of European history, and the genesis of its pre-secular and secular thoughts. Civitas Dei Brussels: Extra Euro-Atlanticum, nullasalus Europe came to be known as Christendom because its identity was imagined or invented as the Catholic in contradistinction to the Islamic Middle East and to the Eastern (true or Orthodox) Christianity. The Christianity, of course, originated in the Middle East not Europe. It was subsequently universalised and Europeanisedby the Balkan-born Roman Emperor, who spent much of his life on Bosporus and hencewas buried in Asia Minor Constantin the Great. Surely, it was by legal design of thisglorious Emperor that the city of Rome was (re)turned into an administrative periphery, politico-ideological outcast and geostrategic suburbia. Therefore, the post Roman/Byzantine inauguration of Christendom as a pure western culture necessitated a sustained intellectual acrobatics: Such an inversion (ideological and geopolitical periphery presenting itself as a centre) required both physical coercion and imposed narrative over the extensive space and time. This a la card creation of Catholic Christendom or to say: WesternUmmah, served two vital objectives: domestic and external. Both helped solidification of the feudal socio-economic and politico-military system, and based on that of a precolonial European collective identity. Domestically, it served for a coherent sense of selfhood (us vs. them paradigm): unity, oppression and obedience (extra ecclesiamnullasalus no salvation outside the church, following the old Roman rational no world beyond Limes line, or the modern one: no prosperity outside the EU). Externally, here was the justification for military voyages and other forms of organized plunders, all coupled with a coercive societal identity. A Catholic Renaissance Europe soon realized that, in order to effectively project itself to physically and/or mentally colonise overseas territories it needed either coercion (rarefying and assimilation), labour-camp detention (slavery) or final solution (physical extermination). These strategic dilemmas over the instruments to useinfluenced and dominated European debates of the time. It brought about the conception of the noble savage who could be assimilated, versus the ignoble savage who was destined for either labour detention or final solution. That coerce-or-exterminate dilemma of soul salvationistseven culminated within the pre-Westphalian Christian Ummah. It was in the famous Valladolid controversy of 1550, by which Juan Gines de Sepulvedas notion of the ignoble savage faced off against Bartolome de Las Casas view of the noble savage. In both cases the claim was offered the Amero/AfroAsianNatives deserve salvation as they have a strong desire for it, but the views differed on whether the Natives prone wishes exceeded their mental capacity to receive Christianity. Hence, the debates which were the roots and origins of the later liberal theories as well as the early precursors of the subsequent regime change, humanitarian interventionand preemptiondoctrines always presupposed the inferiority (and passivity) of the Natives. Frankly, this remains a constant behaviour in international relations: E.g. views on Libya differed, as they differ today on Syria. However, what is common to all views is; nobody consults the local population and considers what they would like for themselves. [1] Legitimizing the imperialism of imagination In a course of subsequent centuries, the notion of final solution underwent through a sophistication, and was eventually replaced by the combination of cultural conversions/submissions (induced submissiveness), politico-military obedience and socio-economic apartheid. A subtle apartheid (that is easy to deny, but hard to prove) is usually better than the brute genocide (which is traceable and easily quantifiable). At the peaks of imperialism a noble-ignoble savage dilemma was embodied in an implicit and explicit racism. Debate was focused on a question whether the civilizational inferiority can be remedied through the imperial civilizing mission, with social Darwinists and scientific racists being rather pessimistic, but more solutionsinstructive. The so-called central dilemma of liberalism (Is it liberal to impose liberal values on illiberal societies) was of course only an innocently looking tip of the large iceberg, of the tireless othering. This epistemology was further soft-embedded in the so-called Peter Pan theory with a romanticised image of the Other as more childishly careless and helpless, than intentionally cruel and barbaric; being rather alluring, promiscuous and exotic. Essentially, the East as an innocently envelopedchild who would never grow up. This, of course, gave riseto various binary categorisations, the us-vs.-them/either-or listings in order to facilitate a decisive and long-lasting differentiation between the constructed West and the East. [2] The West as a constructed male vs. the East as a constructed female. A mind-oriented west vs. a body-oriented east. Phallusoid peninsulas and islands of (Atlantic-Scandinavian) Europe vs. womb-like continental landmass of Afro-Asia; Erective and explosive vs. reflective and implosive; an Omnipresent (ever seafaring and trading) extroverted male vs. humble, handcrafting, waiting female. Masculin, phallusoid, progressively erected temporal linearity vs. periodic menstruation leakagesin regressive cycles of stagnation. Clearly, anything beyond that wasdeemed inconsequential. Physical, material, ideological, active, polarizing, determined vs. metaphysical, spiritual, esoteric, atmospheric, inclusive, holistic. No wonder that all operationalized ideologies originated solely in Europe. What else, since no one ever,but Asians revealed any significant religion to the world. [3] Gradually, the imperial civilizing mission (Expansion is a path to Security) got a new form. It became a moral duty R2P (Responsibility to Protect), as much as the parental duty is to raise their infant child. The handsome, masculine and strong Western Prince Charminghas one duty to emancipate his EasternSleeping Beauty. Giving a kiss meant projecting the western physical military presence, Christianity and commerce. [4] Who was/is the Eastern Sleeping Beauty? Rudyard Kiplings famous 1899 poem, The Whites Man Burdenoffers some answers while describing the Eastern peoples as half-devil and half-child. The blame of those ye better / The hate of those ye guard Kipling warns and instructs, he describes and invites. In his classic novel of 1847, Tancred, much celebrated British Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli claims A Saxon race, protected by an insular position, has stamped its diligent and methodic character of the century. And when a superior race, with a superior idea to Work and Order, advances, its state will be progressiveAll is race! Quite an intellectual acrobatics for Disraeli himself, who was neither Saxonic nor Christian. Over the period, western Catholic missionaries constituted one of the most powerful and influential lobbying voices for this civilizing mission. It was of course weaponisation of religion, anotorious misuse for ideological purposes. Same like today, fanatics then and there, were identified and further radicalised, to say inspired.Eventually, they usually got hired as the AGITPROP/Ideological police by the predatory elites, hid behind the Feudal European states. Naturally, the justification was looked upon in any Biblical narrative. E.g. the re-invoking the Genesis story of Noahs three sons, and interpreting it as the duty of Japheth (Europe) to absorb Shem (the Asians) and enslave and colonise Ham or Canaan (the Black Africa and Indianos of America). Amazingly, according to Genesis ch.9, verse 27: God shall enlarge Japheth and he shall dwell in the tents of Shem, and Canaan shall be his servant. The later Protestant revival infused the next wave of Christian missionaries to force this narrative into the matrix of colonisation as wilful implants onto the minds and bodies of overseas peoples. Therefore, James Lorrimer and other architects of that-time political and international legal order divided the world in three segments: civilized White, barbarous Yellow and savage Black. Yellows were fallen people, a terra infantilis to civilize (what will later evolve into indirect rule, with a social apartheid in place), the area occupied by the Blacks, Redbonesand Aborigine was a borderless space, terra nullius just to conquer and settle, since the indigenous have no birthright to it (meaning: physical colonisation and direct rule, final solution and genocide). Unfinished business of salvationcame back to Europe of 20th century. Hitlers interpretation of it was: civilized White (Arian) Central Europe; Yellows (to be put under indirect rule, with only social apartheid in place) Atlantic and Scandinavian Europe; Blacks (predestined for a physical colonisation of superior race upon a decisive final solution and genocide) all Slavic states of Eastern and Russophonic Europe. Indeed, ever since the 18th century on, European notion that civilization was the monopoly of the West, clearly implied that there is no civilization and therefore, salvation outside the western model. Famous historian Toynbee calls it a secularized version of the primitive Western Christian proposition Neminisalus nisi in Ecclesia. See for yourself how much current debates, sparked by the ongoing refugee crisis, follow the above patters. Triangular economy of othering There is a consensus within the scientific community that the critical factor in redefining Europe as the advanced West was the expansion of its strategic depth westward to the America upon 1492. This enabled the so-called triangular transcontinental trade, brutally imposed by Europeans: Enslaved Africans shipped to America in exchange for gold and silver from there to Europe, in order to cover European deficits in importing the cutting-edge technologies, manufactured products, other goods and spices from a that-time superior Asia and the Middle East. [5] The Afro-America yields were so colossal for Atlantic Europe that many scholars assume the socalled Industrial revolution rather as an evolutionary anomaly than a natural process of development, which was primarily pivoting in Asia. Such arapid shift from a peripheral status to an advanced civilization of course necessitated a complete reconstruction of western identity. This acrobatics in return also enhanced the split between Eastern/Russophone, closer to and therefore more objective towards the Afroasian realities, and Western (Atlantic/Scandinavian/Central) Europe, more exclusive, self-centred and ignorant sphere. While the Atlantic flank progressively developed its commercial and naval power as to economically and demographically project itself beyond the continent, the landlocked Eastern Europe was lagging behind. It stuck in feudalism, and involuntarily constituted a cordon sanitaire to Islam and the Russo-oriental East. Gradually, past the 15th century the idea of Western Europe begun to crystallise as the Ottoman Turks and the Eastern Europeans were imagined and described as barbarians. During the 17th and 18th century, Atlantic Europe portrayed itself as the prosperous West that borders pagan/barbarian neighbours to its near east, and the savage neighbours to its south and west, and Far East. Consequently, we cannot deny a role that the fabricated history as well as the scientific racism and its theories played in a formation and preservation of European identity. The Enlightenment was a definite moment in the reinvention of European identity. The quest came along with the fundamental question who are we, and what is our place in the world? Answering that led on to the systematisation, classification and frankly to invention of the world. From the Renaissance to the Enlightenment, a kind of an intellectual apartheid regime was forming. The rise of the West was portrayed as a pure virgin birth as John M. Hobson fairly concluded. Europeans delineated themselves as the (only or the most) progressive subject of the world history in past, presence and future, while the Eastern peoples (e.g. Asian as the people without history) were seen as inert, passive and corrosive. While the Solar system became heliocentric, the sake and fate of our planet turned plain Europocentric.Theworld is flat mantra set the stage. (following the geostrategic dictatum:the expansion is a path to security. The idea of Europe found its most enduring expression in the confrontation with the Orient in the age of imperialism. It was in the encounter with other civilizations that the identity of Europe was shaped. Europe did not derive its identity from itself but from the formation of a set of global contrasts. In the discourse that sustained this dichotomy of Self and Other, Europe and the Orient became opposite poles in a system of civilizational values which were defined by Europe. notes Delantry. Even the English word to determine, position, adapt, adjust, align, identify, conform, direct,steer, navigate or command has an oriental connotation. To find and locate itself opposite to Orient, means to orient oneself. Feudal Europe had identified itself negatively against Levant and Islam. Clearly, it was an identity heavily resting on insecurity. An external manifestation of inner insecurity is always aggressive assertiveness. Is this still alive or even operative? How it correlates today? Europe repeatedly missed to answer to the East and Middle East through a dialogue (instruments) and consensus (institutions) although having both (CoE, OSCE, EUs ENP, Barcelona Process, etc.). For the last 25 years, it primarily responded to the MENA militarily (or/and with sanctions, which is a socio-economic warfare) via Coalitions of theWilling. However, for a rapidly economically and demographically contractingEurope, the confrontation does not pay off anymore. While practically still yesterday (by the end of WWII), four of the five largest economies were situated in Europe, today only one is not in Asia. None is in Europe. [6] (Likewise, while the US economy contributed with 54% of the world output in 1945, today it hardly has 1/3 of that share.) Simply, the Old Continent is not a wealthy club anymore. It is a place with a memory of its wealthy past. The EU has to learn how to deescalate and compromise. It is in its best interest, for the sake of its only viable future. Therefore, it is a high time for the Brussels-headquartered Europe to evolve in its views and actings. Let us start by answering the question: Is the so-called Russian expansionism or MENA Islamofascism spontaneous or provoked, is itnascent or only a mirror image ofsomething striking in front of it? And after all, why the indigenous Europes Muslims (those of the Balkans) and their twins, indigenous Christians of MENA (those of Levant) are now two identically slim shadows on a bulletproof wall. Anis H. Bajrektarevic Vienna, 14FEB 2016 [email protected] Author is chairperson and professor in international law and global political studies, Vienna, Austria. He authored three books: FB Geopolitics of Technology (published by the New Yorks Addleton Academic Publishers); Geopolitics Europe 100 years later (DB, Europe), and the just released Geopolitics Energy Technology by the German publisher LAP. No Asian century is his forthcoming book, scheduled for later this year. References : Kabani, R. (1994), Imperial Fictions: Europe's Myths of Orient, Pandora Books Brading, D.A. (1991), The First America: the Spanish Monarchy, Creole Patriots, and the Liberal State 1492-1867, Cambridge University Press, (pages 80-88) Losada, A. (1971), The Controversy between Sepulveda and Las Casas in the Junta of Valladolid, The Northern Illinois University Press, (pages 280-282) Toynbee, A. J. (1934-61), A Study of History, Vol VII: Universal States; Universal Churches (Oxford University Press 1954) and Vol XII: Reconsiderations (Oxford University Press 1961) McBrien, R. (2000), Lives of the Popes, Harper San Francisco Wright, L. (2006), The Looming Tower: Al-Qaeda and the Road to 9/11, First Vintage Books Kipling, R. (1899), The White Mans Burden: The United States and The Philippine Islands, NY 2(99) McClures Magazine, (reprint, 1934) Disraeli, B. (1847), Tancred: Or the New Crusade (Complete), (reprint: Echo Library August 28, 2007) Curtain, P.D. (1984), Cross-Cultural Trade in World History, Cambridge University Press Abu-Lughod, J. L. (1989), Before European Hegemony, Oxford: Oxford University Press Lorimer, J. (1880), The Institutes of Law: a Treatise of the Principles of Jurisprudence as Determined by Nature (2 ed.),Edinburgh London: William Blackwood & Sons (retrieved via Archive.org as of 14022016) Wolf, E. R. (1982), Europe and the People Without History, Berkeley: University of California Press Hobson, J.M. (2004), The Eastern Origins of Western Civilization, Cambridge University Press Delantry, G. (1995), Inventing Europe, London, Macmillan (p.84) Bajrektarevic, A. (2013), Multiculturalism is D(r)ead in Europe MENA Oil and the (hidden) political prize Europe pays for it, Nordic Page, Oslo Norway Palacio, A. (2016), Europe on the Sidelines, Project Syndicate (13 Feb 2016, pg.27). For centuries, it follows the same matrix: doctrinated/induced inferiority, denouncing, attack, marginalization, passivation, plunder, indirect rule, remote control presence. Or, reduced to a binary code formula: victimisation-criminalisation. Namely: humanitarian intervention. [2] Small surprise that the 43rd US President (un)famously claimed: you are either with us or against us... His father, the 41st US President, strategized the Cold War and summarised its epilogue effectively: We win, they lose. [3] To this end: Inventive, proactive, scientific, rational, disciplined, sell-controlled/self-constraining, sane, sensible, practical, mind-oriented, independent, and most of all paternal West. The East, of course, was on the opposite side and inferior: imitative, passive, superstitious, lazy, irrational, spontaneous, insane, emotional, exotic, body-oriented, dependent, and above all, child-like. Tall, matured masculinity vs. immature and physically underdeveloped femininity. The masculine phallus of military, industry, technology, shipping and trade that is welcomed, if not heartedly invited, to tap and drill the womb-like dwell of resources, while at the same time seeding the ideological semen of civilization. [4] Most of the so-called International/Cross-continental Trade Pacts are closer to the capitulation agreements than to any fair, balanced and mutually beneficial commercial accords.What a popular language of today calls barriers to trade are in fact the socio-economic sovereign rights and other checks-and-balances national well-being instruments. [5] In order to illustrate a magnitude, lets note a following data: Starting from an early 16th century for consecutive 300 years, 85% of the worlds silver production and 70% of the worlds gold output came from the Americas. Further on, during the 17th,18th and 19th century the role of Black slavery, slave trading, American Black slave-driven production centres and Negro markets, all significantly contributed to Atlantic Europes agricultural and industrial breakthrough as we are celebrating it today. Even the US Founding Fathers were slaveholders (5 of the 7 principal ones: Benjamin Franklin, John Jay, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison and George Washington). Following a leaked video on social media some days ago where a uniformed pupil of a Basic School in Effiduase in the Eastern Region of Ghana asserts that, she was sexually assaulted, the Human Rights Advocacy Centre, (HRAC) whose mandate is to protect the rights of the vulnerable in Ghana, has begun investigations into the matter. This morning, HRACs fact-finding team visited and interviewed the victim, on the matter. In this 5:34 minutes video which first was uploaded on Facebook, the class 3 pupil, Matilda Agyei Dabo, was heard speaking to a group of young men believed to be friends of the perpetrator (name not mentioned). She alleged the perpetrator had both vaginal and anal sex with her. Narrating the incident, Matilda asserted that the gentleman, who met her around a drinking spot, lured her into his house on a promise of giving her GHC10. The gentleman then had sex with her, after which he gave her GHC2 and disappeared. As part of the organisations efforts to investigate this case to ensure justice for the abused girl, the HRAC team visited the school of the girl this morning, where the Headmaster of the school confirmed that she is a pupil admitted under the Education for the Intellectual Disabled (EID) programme of the Ghana Education Service. The headmaster, some of the teachers of the school and the Assemblyman of the area, led the HRAC team and other interested Civil Society Organisations to the house of the pupil. The team, after further interrogation with the girl proceeded to the Domestic Violence and Victims Support Unit (DOVVSU) of the Eastern Regional Police Service, to lodge a formal complaint. HRAC finds this video very appalling, inhumane and a total disregard for basic human rights. Additionally, sexual exploitation of Matilda is in contravention to Section 102 of the Criminal Code, 1960 (ACT 29) of Ghana, which clearly states that, Whoever has carnal knowledge or has unnatural carnal knowledge of any idiot, imbecile or a mental patient in or under the care of a mental hospital whether with or without his or her consent, in circumstances which prove that the accused knew, at the time of the commission of the offence, that the person had a mental incapacity commits an offence and shall be liable on summary conviction to imprisonment for a term of not less than five or more than twenty-five years. The facts of the case reveal that, Matilda is mentally incapacitated, therefore the need to invoke this and other related legal provisions in order to protect her. We would also want to call on the general public to exercise restraint in sharing this video, in the good spirit of protecting this minor from further public ridicule and scorn. We also want to assure the general public that, the Human Rights Advocacy Centre will pursue this case relentlessly, until justice is served. Thank you. Mr. George Owoo (-signed-) Executive Director, HRAC Contact: 0266302582/0244775265 24.02.2016 LISTEN [24th February 2016] Airtel Premier, a sub brand of Ghanas fastest growing telecommunications company and Airtel Rewardz, the leading loyalty reward programme in the telecommunication industry continue to reward loyal customers as part of the ongoing In the Name of Love promotion. The company announced that 52 customers including their spouses and loved ones have been treated to exclusive romantic dinners, serenaded by live band music performances. The customers, who are part of the second batch of winners in the promotion that runs through February also walked away with surprise gifts items. The customers were treated to romantic dining experience in Accra, Takoradi, Ho and Kumasi with Airtels partner hotels and restaurants including Alisa Hotel, Atlantic Hotel, KCS and Linda Dor in the four regional capitals. According to the Smartphone Network, customers still stand the chance of winning movie tickets from Silverbird, smartphones, spa vouchers from Niobe Spa, Spa Body and Beyond, Life Wellness Center, shopping vouchers from Koala, dinner coupons from African Regent and Atlantic hotel and pizza coupons from Papas Pizza by simply purchasing Premier packs worth GHC 30 and above. Frank Djan, Head of Customer Experience, Airtel Ghana said We made a promise to our customers that throughout the month of February we will reward them for choosing and making us their preferred network. So far we have celebrated more than 100 customers and made their dreams come true with exclusive dinners and other amazing prizes and offers. We will continue to reward customers throughout the month. Airtel is renowned for celebrating and rewarding customers all year round. This promotion enables us to truly appreciate our customers for their loyalty. The month long promotion is set to give loyal customers and their partners the opportunity to win and redeem lifestyle gifts and treats, shopping vouchers, discounts with benefit partners across the country. To participate, customers can dial *202# to purchase Premier packs of 30 GHC or more. The first of its kind in the industry, Airtel Premier offers exclusive suite of telecom and lifestyle products and services aimed at recognizing, engaging and serving high value customers with tailor-made solutions, discounted services from partners and automatic enrolment onto Airtel Rewardz. Premier customers also stand the chance of enjoying complimentary gifts and invitations to Airtel sponsored events all year round. Airtel Rewardz is the leading loyalty rewards programme from the Smartphone Network designed to recognize and appreciate all Airtel customers for every amount they spend on the network. Airtel customers are eligible to participate regardless of their usage levels. The Loyalty programme is open to both prepaid and post-paid customers. To sign up for Airtel Rewardz, customers are required to dial *566# and select Join the Airtel Rewardz, he said. Airtel is Ghanas fastest growing telecommunication network, offering superior communication, connectivity and collaborative solutions to its customers. Airtel is also the leader in data and digital innovation in Ghanas telecom industry. About Bharti Airtel Bharti Airtel Limited is a leading global telecommunications company with operations in 20 countries across Asia and Africa. Headquartered in New Delhi, India, the company ranks amongst the top 3 mobile service providers globally in terms of subscribers. In India, the company's product offerings include 2G, 3G and 4G wireless services, mobile commerce, fixed line services, high speed DSL broadband, IPTV, DTH, enterprise services including national & international long distance services to carriers. In the rest of the geographies, it offers 2G, 3G and 4G wireless services and mobile commerce. Bharti Airtel had over 335 million customers across its operations at the end of August 2015. To know more please visit, www.airtel.com About Airtel in Africa Airtel is driven by the vision of providing affordable and innovative mobile services to all. Airtel has 17 operations in Africa: Burkina Faso, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Republic of the Congo, Gabon, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Madagascar, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia. Airtel International is a Bharti Airtel company. For more information, please visit www.airtel.com , or like the Airtel Ghana Facebook page via www.facebook.com/airtelgh or follow us on Twitter via the handle @airtelghana. For more information, please contact: Richard Ahiagble On September 29, 1962, Komla Agbeli Gbedemah, aka Afro Gbede, one-time confidante of President Kwame Nkrumah, Founding Member of the Convention Peoples Party (CPP) and Minister of Finance for seven years in the CPP Government wrote an open letter to Nkrumah from his exile in Togo expressing concern about the Seven-Year Development plan Work and Happiness for All and shared his views on the state of Ghana at the time. In this letter titled It will not be work and happiness for all, Gbedemah pointed out to the President that, the plan was grandiose and over-ambitious and wondered where the money would be found to finance this plan stating: The effect your new 7-year development ideas will have on Ghanas economic weal, and particularly, the chances of Ghana finding the huge sums of money, running into several hundreds of millions, assuming even that these is no shortage of capitalists willing to lend you money. He continued by stating in my view, this Development Plan will not bring Work and Happiness to all. It will result in more unemployment and unhappiness for many. He stated in this letter his bewilderment at how the President hoped the 7-year plan will be financed: However, with this new proposal for a 7-year plan, on the scale envisaged, I have fears, grave fears indeed. But I may be fearing when there is nothing to fear. You may have found in the one year that I left your Ministry of Finance, new methods of producing revenue that I was unable in all my 7 years at the post, to discover. Perhaps that was why you decided not to even consult me before announcing in Parliament on the 18th of April last year that the Budget Bureau would come under your direct control immediately. You have most probably found how cash can be produced to pay for everything on an increasing and grand scale. If this is so Mr. President, I must confess my failure as your Finance Minister for 7 years and I must bow to your superior knowledge of what I spent 7 years trying to learn but failed to know. Gbedemah had been asked by Nkrumah to resign in September 1961, under the pretext that it was undesirable that men with varied business connections should be members of my Government with must from now on be increasingly animated by socialist ideas. Gbedemahs business connections were a poultry farm in Adidome and a joint venture for real estate development which revolved around 5 two-bedroom houses. Gbedemah signs off his resignation letter thus: Today we come to the parting of the ways. I would like you to know that I depart with no ill-will toward you personally, and that it was you who drove me out of your Government, because ostensibly, you have now found more able and more trustworthy lieutenants than myself and our Comrade Kojo Botsio, the three persons who thought out and built up the Convention Peoples Party. A year after Gbedemahs resignation, Nkrumah sent a diplomat to Lome to convince Gbedemah to come back to work for the CPP government. Gbedemah, was adamant he was not interested in being made a Cabinet Minister: I will not come back to accept an apology of an appointmentI am not so wedded to public office that I must suffer the humiliation of coming in such company again, if even it is to serve my country. I will not return until either the crimes alleged against me have been proved (I am ready to present myself if a fair trial is assured), or if they cannot be proved, a suitable apology is rendered to me. Freedom to speak and write what ones feels is true and right, is too precious to be exchanged for a mess of unsavoury potage. In this letter, Gbedemah spared no punches and was blunt with his criticism of what Ghana had become under Nkrumah: Anyone who was present at the State House in Accra on that morning when the First Republic was inaugurated and heard you take your oath as President to preserve and defend the Constitution and to do right to all manner of people according to law without fear or favour, affection or ill will must have had great hopes for the new republic. In barely two years of Republican rule, if these persons have kept in touch with Ghana affairs, how sad and disillusioned they must be to contemplate what has happened, watching the gradual degeneration of the basic democracy we then had, into a totalitarian regime and a Police State. With regard to how some of Nkrumahs opponents as well as his one-time friends and supporters had been arrested and sent to jail without trial, Gbedemah asserted: I do not have any status now to advise you as I used to do until I fell out of your favour, but I will venture even now, because I am a Ghanaian, to offer you this bit of advice: the civilized world which you denounce as ideologically bankrupt and ., would be glad to see you showing the way and the example, by releasing all your people whom you thrown into jail without trial, really tempering Justice with Mercy, if justice was ever done under the Preventive Detention Act 1958. Let our sister African Sovereign States whom you aspire to lead, and the rest of the civilized world see that with the dawn of the era of Nkrumaism in Ghana, you saw the need to end the growing tendency to rule by jungle law. And Gbedemah did not spare Nkrumah personally in his criticisms either Can it be the measure of your fairness to your people as their simple and modest head of state, the Model of Rectitude and Fount of Honour, that you allow more than 325,000 (three hundred and twenty five thousand pounds sterling) of the poor peoples money to be used to build yourself a private palace which, to avoid criticism, you then manoeuvre to make one of the official residences of the head of state, whereas the same poor people have already provided 3 other Palatial Residences and other accoutrements of office, that could make any monarch blush or the Head of a real Socialist State thoroughly ashamed of himself to live in such luxury at the expense of toiling masses? Gbedemah went on to be very explicit with his disapproval of what had become a personality cult and the hero worshipping of President Nkrumah and continued: It must be mark of your Presidential prerogative, conferred by the oath you took on Republic Day in 1960, that universities, colleges, schools, avenues and roads, parks, public house, youth centres and hostels, exhibition halls, factories and aeroplanes almost everything that deserves to be named in Ghana must be named after you and you alone, as the one man who planned and executed the revolution, in prison as well as out of it, to bring Ghana her Independence, and in gratitude for which you must be loaded with all sorts of appellations, sacrilegious as well as not Osagyefo, Fount of Honour of the Nation, Messiah, Teacher, Redeemer, Leader, Ideological Mentor, the Infallible, who approval must be obtained for everything to be done in Ghana. Truly President Kwame Nkrumah, you have succeed uniquely in making Ghana a land without glory for all but your high Dedication! Ghana Honours where instituted at Independence in 1957. Could you tell the world, or your own people how many of the thousands in all spheres of public service, either in politics, the civil service or even in private life have been honoured by you in the five years since we became a nation, Mr. President, Fount of Honour? He then pleads with Nkrumah to reconsider launching the 7-year plan as he feels it would harm the country and its people more than it will benefit them: Please alter your plans for Ghanas sake and save her from precipitate collapse. The new development plan will not bring work and happiness to all, but unemployment and suffering to many. I implore you not to rush our dear country into disaster but to go step by step towards the land of abundance and satisfaction that you have promised the people and which will come if you dont rush so madly into chaos and confusion. He also expresses the hope Ghana would definitely see better days : Let me assure you Kwame, that Ghana will not suffer too long under the iron dictatorship you set out to build in 1949 under the guise and clarion call of self-government now and democracy . The end is approaching of your intrigues and deception of the people. Gbedemahs 29-page letter ends with him saying: If I should live on, I shall consider it my further duty to strive in any way God shall give me the light to see, in company of any countrymen of ours who shall see in the same way as I do; together to strive till the real democracy we earlier promised our people is established; and not an illusory and will-o-the wisp sort of peoples freedom, where in men are huddled in fear into droves of workers whose happiness and plenty for all are constantly promised but never achieved and who get poorer and unhappier with failure after failure of ill-conceived and megalomaniacal project after project. 24.02.2016 LISTEN Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has easily won the US state of Nevada, cementing his lead in the race for the partys nomination. The billionaire now has three caucus wins in a row, after victories in New Hampshire and South Carolina. Senators Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz, who have been trading barbs this week, came second and third respectively. Party officials said they were checking reports of double voting and insufficient ballots at one site. Some volunteers also wore clothing in support of Mr Trump, but officials said this was not against the rules. In his victory speech, Mr Trump told a roaring crowd: Were winning, winning, winning the country, and soon the country is going to start winning, winning, winning. He also celebrated getting the support of the poorly educated and Latinos. Some 45% of Nevadas Republican voters of Latino origin backed Mr Trump, according to entrance polls. Nevada, typically a swing state with a substantial Latino population, is crucial to the election process. Hillary Clinton won the state on Saturday in the Democratic race. . With all votes counted, Donald Trump had 46% of the vote with his closest rival Marco Rubio getting 23%. Mr Rubio defended his second-place finish, calling it an unusual year and an unusual process. The vast, overwhelming majority of Republicans do not want Donald Trump to be our nominee. As long as there are four people running, dividing up the non-Trump vote, youre going to get results like what you saw last night so the sooner we can get this race narrowed down, I think the easier its going to be to stop Donald Trump and defeat him. In the US primary elections, candidates win delegates who pledge to endorse them at the party conventions in July. Thirty delegates about 1% of the total were up for grabs in the Nevada caucuses, the first Republican test in the western US. Donald Trump won 14 delegates; Marco Rubio seven and Ted Cruz six. John Kasich and Ben Carson each got one delegate, with one more still to be allocated. To win the Republican nomination for president a candidate needs 1,237 delegates. So far, Mr Trump has 81 delegates and Mr Rubio and Mr Cruz have 17 each. Cheers erupted at the Trump camp in Las Vegas as US networks started projecting his victory. -bbc 24.02.2016 LISTEN Spains centre-right party Ciudadanos (Citizens) has signed a deal with the Socialists, backing its leader Pedro Sanchezs bid to be prime minister. A five-point plan for constitutional reform is at the heart of the deal. Mr Sanchez will now seek deputies support to become prime minister in a vote on 2 March though the two parties seats combined still leave him far from a parliamentary majority. Spain remains in political limbo following Decembers inconclusive poll. Acting Prime Minister Mariano Rajoys centre-right Popular Party, which took the greatest number of seats in the election, has already tried to form a coalition without success. The Socialists (PSOE) had been negotiating with the radical left Podemos, but on Tuesday declared they had come to an agreement with Ciudadanos. The deal was signed on Wednesday to applause. Between them, the Socialists and Ciudadanos command only 130 seats in the 350-seat lower house. What we agreed we cannot do alone, said Ciudadanos leader Albert Rivera, urging other parties to come on board. . Mr Sanchez will now put himself forward for a vote of confidence in the lower house of parliament on 2 March. To succeed he would need an absolute majority, which would require a yes vote or abstentions by either the PP which has vowed to oppose such a coalition or by Podemos and several other parties. Podemos, analysts say, has been a tough negotiator with the Socialists: its leader Pablo Iglesias insistent on an independence referendum in Catalonia, anathema to the Socialists, or perhaps confident his ascendant party could win even more seats in fresh elections next summer. Podemos is also deeply suspicious of rival newcomer Ciudadanos. Should Mr Sanchez fail to secure an absolute majority on 2 March, he could then aim for a simple majority in a second vote on 5 March. If he fails, the PP may attempt once again to form a coalition perhaps a grand coalition with the Socialists and Ciudadanos. If that fails, a new election would have to be called, probably on 26 June. -bbc Lagos (AFP) - Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari said Wednesday his botched 2016 budget was "embarrassing" after criticism it was littered with costly errors and opened the door to graft. Buhari in December announced a record six-trillion-naira ($30-billion, 27 billion-euro) budget promising to triple investment and stimulate growth in Africa's largest economy. But last week he sacked the director-general of the budget office when civic groups pointed out costly repetitions and extravagant requests in the financial plan. "It is very embarrassing and disappointing," Buhari said in a statement from Saudi Arabia, where he is visiting Saudi King Salman to discuss oil price stability. "We will not allow those who did it to go unpunished." Buhari is betting his blockbuster budget will cushion Nigeria against the global oil price crash that is draining the country's public purse and hammering its currency. But the budget controversy has highlighted fears Buhari does not have a sufficient grasp of economic policy and has undermined his anti-graft message. The errors include the same purchases for vehicles, computers and furniture being registered 24 times, totalling 46.5 billion naira. "It's ridiculous that a government strong on anti-corruption measures would release a budget that is full of mistakes," said Anna Rosenberg, a sub-Saharan analyst at Frontier Strategy Group. To cope with falling oil prices, the budget mess needed to be quickly cleaned up and passed, she told AFP. "If you have all that new spending in the economy you could help a lot of local businesses, not all but some of them, that's why it needs to go forward," she said. Further delays and mistakes would spook investors already chastened by Buhari's unorthodox policies designed to prevent the naira's collapse. Washington (AFP) - The Pentagon on Wednesday disputed claims that two kidnapped Serbian diplomats were killed in a US air strike on an Islamic State compound in Libya. US warplanes and drones last week pulverized a jihadist training camp near the Libyan coastal city of Sabratha, killing dozens of people including an IS operative who allegedly helped plot two deadly attacks in neighboring Tunisia. However, Belgrade said the strike's victims also included two officials from Serbia's embassy in Libya, Sladjana Stankovic and Jovica Stepic, who had been taken hostage in the area in November. Pentagon spokesman Captain Jeff Davis said an extensive analysis of surveillance of the IS compound and a review of photos posted online of the two Serbians' bodies yielded no evidence the man and woman were killed in the strike. "As we've gone back looked at the photos of the Serbian citizens who died and gotten further information about the strike itself, the information we had leading up to it, (and) the assessment of the very extensive damage, it doesn't match with what is in the photos," Davis said. "These photos didn't any have any sense of place to them, that they were clearly taken at the site of the bombing... (there's) nothing to indicate that their deaths are the result of the bombing." Davis suggested the bodies would have been in far worse condition had they been killed in the massive air strike. "It was not consistent with what we would expect human remains to look like following a strike of that magnitude," he said. On Saturday, a day after the strike, Serbia blamed America for killing the two hostages, and Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic later said the pair would have been released, had they not been killed. The United States quickly offered its condolences but also expressed immediate doubts of the claims. US officials said the raid likely killed Noureddine Chouchane, who along with other jihadists had been planning attacks against American and other Western interests. Libya spiralled into chaos after longtime dictator Moamer Kadhafi was ousted and killed in October 2011, with two governments vying for power and armed groups battling to control vast energy resources. Belgrade maintains an embassy in Tripoli, and Serbian citizens -- mostly doctors, other medical staff and construction workers -- have been working in Libya for decades due to close bilateral relations during the Kadhafi regime. Dakar (AFP) - Africa's first home-grown platform for legal music downloads launched in Senegal on Wednesday with a mission to promote African artists, pay them properly, and fight internet piracy. Internationally famous musicians such as Youssou Ndour and Baaba Maal are among almost 200 who have signed agreements with "MusikBi", along with younger rappers, jazz artists and Christian and Muslim vocalists. The platform draws its name from the word for music in Wolof, the language widely spoken in Senegal and neighbouring Gambia, said project developer Moustapha Diop at the launch in Dakar. Songs cost between 300 and 500 FCFA (50-85 US cents) and users can download them using mobile phone credit in a region where few have bank cards. "It is the first platform of its kind enabling music downloads by text or PayPal," said a statement released by Diop's company, Solid. Solid noted that many African music artists "cannot live comfortably by the proceeds of their work", adding the platform offered a chance for "promotion and to allow them to make a living from their art." Concerts were one of the few ways local artists had to really make money, the firm noted. Piracy and changing consumer habits have seen record sales drop across the continent, with illegal downloads tempting African consumers looking online for music while copyright enforcement remains relatively weak. A source within the Solid group told AFP that after mobile operators took their share, artists kept 60 percent of their income from the service, while MusikBi took the remaining 40 percent. MusikBi does not offer a streaming service as local internet speeds are prohibitive for the format, especially in a mobile-driven market. Accra, Feb. 24, GNA - To enable the retailers of its products to improve on their trading activities, Accra Brewery Limited (ABL), a leading player in the beverage industry, is equipping them with some business appreciation skills. More than 100 carefully selected retailers at Sogakope in the Volta Region; Saltpond and Mankessim in the Central Region as well as Sekondi in the Western Region, have participated in the course dubbed, 'Retailer Development Programme (RDP)'. A statement issued in Accra by Ms Adjoba Kyiamah, the Corporate and Legal Affairs Director of the Company, said the training programme was in line with the ABL's sustainable development agenda of creating a thriving world, where incomes and quality of life progress through the accelerating growth and social development of its value chain. 'The RDP is to ensure responsible sale, consumption and advertising of the various alcoholic products of the company,' said the statement. 'It also aims at empowering the retailers to adopt and implement best business practices and skills that will ultimately lead to a growth in their operations.' It said the retailer's were being tutored in courses under the following four modules: 'Running My Beer Business, Basic Business Skills, Responsible Retailing, and Personal Money Management.' The initiative, which is expected to reach more than 200 retailers by the end of March 2016, would also be training retailers from, Brekum, Bibiani, Sewfi Wiaso and Navrongo. Mr Cyrus deGraft-Johnson, speaking at the training session at Sekondi, said the initiative was being implemented globally by many subsidiaries of SABMiller, ABL's parent company. 'One of our ambitions is to create a thriving world by directly supporting over half a million small enterprises to enhance their business growth and family livelihoods,' Mr deGraft-Johnson added. He emphasised that the Company was empowering the retailers to promote a responsible sale, consumption and advertising of alcoholic beverages. Mr Isaac Dzreke of Happy Spot in Sogakope said the training programme was useful to his business operations, especially, on how to draw a budget and keep an income statement, said the statement. Madam Esther Sam of Cold Place Bar in Saltpond, said: 'This is a good initiative ', and expressed the hope that it would cover the whole country.' GNA Ho, Feb 24, GNA - The media in the Volta Region have been urged to make gender-related issues a daily assignment for discussion, education and campaign. 'Let us occupy the top position in positive things not the negatives,' Ms Comfort Ablometi, the Regional Director of the Department of Women, told media practitioners at a Review Meeting to discuss a baseline survey on media engagement as well as lapses, and excesses on reportage of gender based issues. This is because the Region has gained the top spot in teenage pregnancy and other serious breaches and deficiencies in relation to gender and its associated issues. These are Gender-Based Violence (GBV), Domestic Violence (DV), Maternal Health, Harmful Traditional Practices and Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health. The Meeting was organised by the Department of Women and the Regional Coordinating Council with support from the United Nations Fund for Population Activities (UNFPA). Mrs Ablometi said the Department's investigations showed that many people in the Region were ignorant about the fact that breaches of gender-related issues were criminal and ought not to be settled out of court. She said the stains of defilement, forced and early marriages, domestic violence, obnoxious widowhood rites and many other such gender-related breaches are still a daily part of life in the Region. Mrs Ablometi explained that the Campaign against gender related infractions was not a fight between men and women but a crusade against what were objectionable to human dignity. 'How would you feel if your sister, daughter, or niece was defiled, maltreated, sent into servitude or in a way denied her dignity as human being?, she asked. She said it did not matter whether those breaches were committed by men or women but the fact is that those breaches were objectionable. Mr Daniel Mensah, the Acting Volta Regional Director of the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ), explained that at the moment the law recognised that only women could be raped by men and not vice-versa. GNA 24.02.2016 LISTEN Accra, Feb. 24, GNA - The Global Intelligence Consult (GIC) has held a forum with experts from the corporate industry to design programmes for the youth to help them become entrepreneurs. The forum was also to share ideas with the experts on the various job fields that can be added onto the GIC's calendar. Experts from the Banking, Oil and Gas, Academia and the Microfinance fields who graced the occasion shared their experiences with the gathered audience. Mr Emmanuel T Angmortey, Consulting Director of GIC, said the forum was important as it brainstorms on ideas to add value to the lives of the youth and students. He said GIC seeks to provide economic opportunities for people, add value to the labour force and create a platform for networking. ''GIC has been able to provide internship opportunities for students as well as contract employments for graduates'', he said. He urged the youth to use their savings judiciously so that they can start something on their own. Mr Angmortey said the organisation is working towards publishing a book to discuss the job market and provide an insight of the situation to the youth. The Global Intelligence Consult (GIC) was set up in 2012 and for the past years it has been organising training programmes on different fields for the youth and students in tertiary institutions. GNA We attempted to send a notification to your email address but we were unable to verify that you provided a valid email address. Please click here to update your email address if you wish to receive notifications. Otherwise, you may click here to disable notifications and hide this message. you are here: business PNB says 904 wilful defaulters owe it Rs 10,869 crore These are borrowers that Punjab National Bank believes have the wherewithal to pay but don't. business Portfolio repositioning not China dragging India lower: JPMorgan As far as China is concerned, Adrian Mowat of JPMorgan feels the situation is becoming less precarious and the pressure on the Chinese currency (yuan) is easing now. He does not see China dragging India lower, instead feels it is the repositioning of portfolios that has dragged the country lower business Hold Kirloskar Oil, says Pankaj Jain Pankaj Jain of SW Capital is of the view that one may hold Kirloskar Oil Engines. February 24, 2016 Syria: A First Major Win Due To The Cessation of Hostilities Agreement The Russian/Syrian agreement to the cessation of hostilities in Syria is seen critical from a military point of view. It would have been better to use the current momentum and to proceed fighting instead of giving respite to the enemy. But the agreement has one huge advantage. It excludes the Islamic State and Jabhat al-Nusra. Every "western" media report on the agreement and its likelihood to proceed now has to admit what has long been denied. That the unicorn U.S. supported "moderate rebels" are in deep alliance with al-Qaeda. Even the grey lady now concedes: many of the anti-Assad groups aligned with the United States fight alongside the Nusra Front The readers of such piece note that the U.S. is actually supporting the terrorists it claimed to be fighting for the last 13 years. Somehow that does not compute. This will put pressure the Obama administration. It can hardly blame Russia and Syria for continuing a campaign against Al-Qaeda even during a cessation of hostility with U.S. supported "moderates". The U.S. lauds itself over killing alleged Al-Qaeda followers in drone strikes all over the world. How can it blame Russia for doing like in Syria? But not only "western" media are now exposed. The new situation compels the actors behind Nusra/al-Qaeda to reveal their positions: "The PYD is supported because it fights against ISIL. Nusra Front is also fighting against ISIL. Why is it bad?" [the Turkish President Erdogan] asked. "AIDS also kills ISIL? Why is it bad?" Just in time the BBC is reporting what everybody watching the war on Yemen already knew. Al-Qaeda is fighting together Saudi and other Gulf troops in their assault on the city of Taiz. Since 9/11 the "western" public has been conditioned to see Al-Qaeda as the evil enemy. I do not think that it is possible to eradicate that within a few weeks or month. With the push for the cessation of hostilities the Russian/Syrian side has won a major point in the public relation position. It is becoming clear to even average "western" reader that they are fighting real terrorists while the U.S. and its allies support at least associates to terrorists, if not the terrorists themselves. (Sorry for light posting. I am busy.) Posted by b on February 24, 2016 at 19:25 UTC | Permalink Comments The Canadian housing sector has seen a remarkable cooling in the first part of the year, due in no small part to the flagging performance of commodities in some key regions, according to economists. The locales most at risk are any city or region exposed to oil prices, BMO economist Robert Kavcic told Global News. These places include Halifax (which saw a 1.8 per cent drop in prices), Edmonton (8 per cent decrease), and Newfoundland (9.9 per cent decline). Latest figures stated that high-demand regions and metropolitan areas such as the Fraser Valley (which exhibited 27.5 per cent price growth) kept national averages up, and not much else. [T]he Toronto and Vancouver housing party rolled into the new year, offsetting what has been extreme weakness in commodity-heavy markets, TD economist Diana Petramala said. The cities respectively showed 14.2 per cent and 30.9 per cent increases in home prices. These gains belied the overall situation, though, as average national pricesexcept in Ontario and British Columbiawent down by 0.3 per cent in January. This represented a median price of $286,911 on the first part of 2016. ODESSA, Texas (AP) A husband and wife both face 12 counts of attempted capital murder of a peace officer after a standoff in which two Odessa police officers were shot. Ector County District Attorney Bobby Bland said Wednesday that Roy Daniel Garza and Meghan Leanne Garza are charged with the same counts over the December standoff. A grand jury Monday updated charges against both suspects, who remain in custody. Support groups this week -- The Knot Adoption Support Group, 11:30 a.m. today, First Presbyterian Church; Kathy Hagler, Kathy@WTIE.net -- Caregiver support, noon today, HospiceMidland 911 W. Texas Ave., 682-2855. -- Stroke Support Group, noon Friday, Midland Memorial Hospital, West Campus private dining room. For more information, call 221-1677. A confidential peer-to-peer support gathering for combat veterans, Tuesday, Midland College Cogdell Center, 201 Florida Ave.; Steve Cree, 770-7469. -- Parent Quest, for parents of special needs children, 6-8 p.m. Tuesday, First Christian Church. For more information, contact Malissa Roach, SHARE program coordinator, at 349-1069. -- The Helping Hand Metastatic Cancer Support Group, noon Tuesday, Texas Tech Physicians of the Permian Basin Clinic, Room 210B. Lunch will be served. To RSVP , call Amber Chavez at 620-1023. Midland Chapter of NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness), 7 p.m. Tuesdays, First Presbyterian Church (Koinonoa Room); Judith Craig, 683-3648. -- Coffee Break for Men, 9 a.m. March 2, HospiceMidland 911 W. Texas Ave., 682-2855. *** Weekly Meetings Alcoholics Anonymous hotline 580-7868. Narcotics Anonymous hotline 582-2926. Survivors of sexual abuse; interactive Bible study to help deal with the consequences of sexual abuse meets Tuesdays. Child care available; House of Hope, 570-5935. -- Overeaters Anonymous; 7-8 p.m. Tuesdays and 3-4 p.m. Sundays; B&J Plaza, 206 N. Midkiff Road, Suite 1-D; 553-1031. -- Peer to Peer support group for veterans, active duty, guard, reserves and their families, 6 p.m. Tuesdays, Permian Basin Community Center, 401 E. Illinois Ave., Suite 403; Wil Hoggard, 213-5342, william.hoggard@wtcmhmr.org. *** MMH Event Capacity Evaluation and Understanding Rules & Regulations of Therapeutic Restrain of Patients, 6-7 p.m., Monday. Contact Rebecca Pontaski at 221-1625 or rebecca.pontaski@midland-memorial.com. *** Midland ISD Wellness events -- American Heart Association Red Out Day is Friday. American Heart Association T-shirts will be available all day online at- http://DistrictGoRed.kintera.org/MidlandISD All proceeds will going to the association to benefit heart research. -- MISD Health Fair 5-7 p.m. March 15 at Chaparral Center. Free community event, includes health screenings. -- St. Paddys Day Dash 5K/10K Race -- chip timed event March 19 -- registration begins 8 a.m; race at 8:45 a.m. at MISD Central Office To register, go to www.raceplanner.com/register/index/stpaddysdaydash2016 * * * MMH payment options Midland Memorial Hospital recognizes that our community is facing challenging financial times. Resources are tight and families are having to make important decisions about what to spend money on now and what has to wait. Realizing health care can be expensive and the increasing deductibles make it hard to manage, the hospital has adjusted its payment procedures. We want to make sure you receive the care you need, when you need it. To find out about the new options now offered to better accommodate your payment needs, call 221-4705. Source: Midland Memorial Hospital *** How sick are you? Midland Memorial Hospital offers a a nurse triage program 68-NURSE. The program is designed to help people determine whether their health situation warrants a trip to the emergency room. Midland residents can call the line by dialing 686-8773. The program is free and available 24 hours a day-365 days a year. Local nurses are available to help you determine the best place to receive care for your situation. 68-NURSE can help you save time and money by directing you to the most appropriate healthcare option, whether its a neighborhood clinic, urgent care center, emergency room or just staying home. *** Contact your Hospital District representative MIDLAND MEMORIAL HOSPITAL 400 Rosalind Redfern Grover Parkway, Midland, TX 79701 Phone: 221-1111 Website: www.midland-memorial.com President Russell Meyers 221-1584 Directors -- District 1: Dwain Tomlin, District 2: Dorothea Logan, District 3: Tommy Lent, District 4: Cressinda Hyatt, District 5: Alison King, District 6: Joe Kiowski, District 7: Jeffrey Beard WASHINGTON (AP) The Senate has cleared the way for approval of President Barack Obamas nominee for commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration. Senators voted 80-6 Monday to end a Democratic filibuster of Obamas pick to head the agency. Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders and Sens. Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Ed Markey of Massachusetts had held up the nomination of Dr. Robert Califf in an effort to force the agency to be tougher on prescription drug prices and the abuse of opioid painkillers. A confirmation vote could come as early as Tuesday. Califf, a prominent cardiologist and medical researcher at Duke University for more than 30 years, is now the No. 2 official at the FDA. Manchin and Markey held a news conference before the vote blaming the FDA for enabling the opioid crisis. In 2014, U.S. deaths linked to misuse and abuse of prescription painkillers climbed to 19,000, the highest number on record, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. By its estimation, deaths tied to these drugs have risen more than four-fold since 1999 amid increased prescribing by U.S. doctors. The FDA is part of the opioid problem when America is depending on it to be part of the solution, Markey said. For years, the FDA has made only minor changes to the way it regulates painkillers like OxyContin and Percocet, despite the record levels of abuse and death tied to the highly-addictive medications. Former Commissioner Margaret Hamburg repeatedly stressed the need to keep prescription opioid drugs accessible to patients with chronic pain. But in an unusual move as pressure mounted from the Senate, Califf announced earlier this month that the agency would rethink its approach. He pledged that the agency would add new warning labels to the most-commonly prescribed opioids and require new opioid drugs to go before an outside panel of independent reviewers. Its time we all took a step back to look at what is working and what we need to change to impact this crisis, Califf said in a statement. Manchin and Markey said it wasnt enough. They said that if Califf is confirmed, they will continue through other legislation to try and bring more attention to the problem. Sanders did not leave the campaign trail to vote, but said in a statement released by his office that Califf is too tied to the pharmaceutical industry. In 2006, Califf founded the Duke University Clinical Research Institute, a contract research group that has conducted studies for virtually all of the worlds largest drugmakers. We need someone who will work to substantially lower drug prices, implement rules to safely import brand-name drugs from Canada and hold companies accountable who defraud our government, Sanders said. Dr. Califfs extensive ties to the pharmaceutical industry give me no reason to believe that he would make FDA work for ordinary Americans. As head of the FDA, Califf would inherit a raft of projects and potential challenges, including unfinished tobacco regulations and food safety and labeling reforms. Hamburg left the job early last year. The FDAs chief scientist, Dr. Stephen Ostroff, is serving as acting head of the agency. AP Health Writer Matthew Perrone contributed to this report. Follow Mary Clare Jalonick on Twitter at http://twitter.com/mcjalonick CHICAGO The mother and father watched as their 16-year-old daughter ate her pork chop and green beans across the kitchen table of their Mount Prospect home, grateful each time she swallowed without struggle. She paused in between bites to sing a few lyrics of her favorite song. Were all in this toge-e-ether, Hayley Koujaian crooned the theme from High School Musical, a movie she loved as a little girl, before anyone could tell she was sick. Hayley has a rare genetic disorder called Niemann-Pick Disease Type C, often dubbed childhood Alzheimers because its symptoms are similar to those of adult dementia, though its not the same disease. Memory, speech and mobility fade. It gets harder to eat and drink unaided. There is no treatment approved by the Food and Drug Administration, and young children with the disorder typically dont live past their teens. We all knew what the outcome was going to be if the disease progressed, said her father, Harry Koujaian. There is only one outcome. Thats why we were so desperate. Yet the family has found hope in a promising experimental drug and the local physician who helped them gain access. Every two weeks, Dr. Elizabeth Berry-Kravis injects a treatment called cyclodextrin into Hayley via a spinal tap at Rush University Medical Center as her father holds her steady and her mother silently prays. Hayley is one of roughly 40 patients across the country using the investigational drug, hoping for future FDA approval. Berry-Kravis, a pediatric neurologist, said theres initial evidence the injections could be staving off the diseases progression. Some skills even appear to be improving. Before starting treatment a little more than two years ago, Hayley was functioning at the level of an 18-month-old, based on language and cognitive testing. Now her abilities closer match a 2 1/2- or 3-year-old, Berry-Kravis said. Swallowing is much easier. Her gait is smoother, and shes less apt to fall. Prior to treatment, speech therapists found Hayley had difficulty putting together a few words. Now she reads simple sentences, responds to short questions and even sings some of the songs from early childhood, before her mind began slipping away. While the drug is still in clinical trials, it has significantly extended the lives of mice and cats with the disorder compared with those left untreated. The Koujaians wonder whether it could be extending Hayleys life, too. We would not be here, like this, said her mother, Gail Koujaian, gesturing to her family sitting around the dinner table. Maybe we would be pushing her wheelchair. Maybe we would be cleaning her feeding tube. Not like this, she said. Hayley was born Aug. 10, 1999, a chubby-cheeked baby with heart-shaped lips and no hint of any abnormality. Gail and Harry Koujaian recall their daughter was just like any other toddler, running around with ease and learning how to read and write alongside the rest of her kindergarten friends. Then in first grade, she mysteriously began falling behind. First teachers noticed she wasnt retaining information. There was odd clumsiness, bumping into walls and desks without explanation. Most alarming, she appeared to be losing abilities she once mastered. Her mother noticed during Brownie troop meetings that all the other girls could walk alone across a long, thick tube on the playground. Gail Koujaian always had to hold her daughters hand. Then Hayley began erupting in seizures, sometimes several in one day. Medication after medication failed, and, at 11 she had brain surgery and her tissue was sent to a pathologist for testing. Six months and a litany of tests later, the Koujaians got the devastating diagnosis: Niemann-Pick Type C, a fatal disease often appearing in children where naturally produced cholesterol accumulates and becomes toxic. There are about 500 cases diagnosed internationally. Gail Koujaian recalls days when she would drop off her daughter at school and then cry in her car alone. The Koujaians started meeting other families with the genetic disorder from across the country, which was both comforting and terrifying. Youve got kids who are dying, kids in wheelchairs, kids who cant eat, kids on feeding tubes, Harry Koujaian said. Its a cruel disease. It was another mom who told them about cyclodextrin, which appeared to help her own twin daughters. The National Institutes of Health had just begun an exploratory trial of the drug. The Koujaians jumped at the chance for Hayley to join the study, but she was found ineligible because of her uncontrolled seizures. The only other option was to find a physician to file a compassionate-use request with the FDA, a complicated and lengthy process. The Koujaians werent sure anyone would be able or willing to take on the burden. But they had just started seeing a new pediatric neurologist, Berry-Kravis, who found the most recent research for cyclodextrin so compelling, she wanted to give it a try. I can do this, the Koujaians remembered her saying. Every other week, the Koujaians drive a few miles to pick up Berry-Kravis at her Des Plaines home, and they all travel together to the clinic at Rush. Berry-Kravis usually discusses Hayleys progress, typing up her reports on a laptop in the front passenger seat as they sit in traffic on the Kennedy Expressway. Its like a house call in the familys 2006 green Honda Pilot. Recently at Hayleys 56th treatment, she was put to sleep with melatonin, her thick brown ponytail spilling over the edge of the hospital table, as Berry-Kravis numbed her back with lidocaine. The neurologist inserted a 3-inch needle with a pencil-point tip into Hayleys spinal canal, first removing 10 milliliters of fluid to be used for research. Hayley didnt open her eyes or appear to be in any pain. The process has become routine for them. They intermittently joke and laugh softly so as not to wake her. During these procedures, Gail Koujaian asks God to make sure Hayley doesnt have a seizure; Harry Koujaian wraps his arms around Hayley as a precaution, just in case she does. Berry-Kravis started injecting the drug through the spinal tap when a car alarm went off seven floors below. Hayley fidgeted a little, and her parents quickly steadied her as Berry-Kravis finished. Then they reclined the table, positioning Hayleys feet up, hoping the drug will drip from her spine to her brain as she continued to sleep. Questions still linger. Will the drug work long term? Is there a less invasive method? Whats the optimal dose? Outside of Berry-Kravis office, colorful charts detail some of her patients progress. If the disorder is untreated, symptoms might plateau for a little while before they worsen, but they dont get better, Berry-Kravis said. But Hayleys graphs, labeled Subject 1, show improvement in areas like swallowing, gait and speech. There is hope, Gail Koujaian said. --- Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. With a week remaining before the Texas Republican primary, U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz has an 8-percentage-point lead over Donald Trump, according to the latest University of Texas/Texas Tribune Poll. Cruz had 37 percent of the vote in the poll. Trump, the businessman and TV personality who finished first in two of the three states that have already voted, had the support of 29 percent, followed by U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio at 15 percent. The rest of the candidates were far behind: Jeb Bush, who dropped out of the race after the South Carolina primary, had 6 percent; John Kasich, 5 percent; and Ben Carson, 4 percent. The rest of the candidates on the Texas Republican ballot barely registered: Rand Paul, Carly Fiorina, Rick Santorum, Elizabeth Gray, Lindsey Graham, Mike Huckabee and Chris Christie each got 2 percent or less. Several of those candidates have already suspended their campaigns but were included in the poll because all of their names remain on the Texas ballot. These numbers reflect what most of us think was going on in Texas: Its decent ground for Donald Trump because hes a national candidate whos touched a nerve everywhere, but it displays a little bit of a homefield advantage for Ted Cruz, said Daron Shaw, co-director of the poll and a professor of government at the University of Texas at Austin. What looked like a three-candidate race coming out of South Carolina looks more like a two-person race in Texas, with Cruz and Trump almost certainly in position to split the states 155 Republican delegates. Among likely Republican primary voters who identify with the Tea Party, Cruz leads Trump 56 percent to 26 percent in the UT/TT Poll. Among voters who identify as Republicans when given the choice to bolt for the Tea Party, the candidates were relatively even: Cruz had 32 percent to Trumps 30 percent. Rubio had 18 percent of those voters, and 8 percent of those who identify with the Tea Party. Shaw pointed out that the poll was completed on the eve of the South Carolina primary and said the results there and Jeb Bushs decision to drop out could change the dynamics in Texas. He also said all three of the top candidates have good reason to campaign here since Texas is not a winner-take-all state and strong second- and third-place finishes could win some delegates here. Ted Cruz is popular among Texas Republicans, particularly among the more intense conservatives we expect to show up on primary election day, said Jim Henson, director of the Texas Politics Project at UT-Austin and the polls co-director. Second, Texas is not as unlike the rest of the United States as we sometimes like to think. Donald Trumps celebrity and substantive appeal such as it is clearly has an audience among Texas Republicans. Henson also noted Bushs small numbers. There was no redemption in Texas for Jeb Bush, even before South Carolina, he said. Cruz led in all age groups, notably among voters ages 18 to 29 and voters ages 30 to 44. Trump pulled close among 45- to 64-year-olds, and Cruz had a 9-percentage-point lead among voters over 65. Rubio had 21 percent of that oldest group his best showing in the age brackets. The Cruz and Trump voters were more certain of their choices than the voters attracted to other candidates. More than two-thirds of their voters said they were extremely certain about their choice of candidates, compared with 41 percent for Rubio, 29 percent for Carson, 27 percent for Kasich and 22 percent for Bush. Few of those surveyed expressed uncertainty about their choice, preferring to select either extremely or somewhat certain. But in Bushs case, 24 percent said they were not very certain about voting for him and 11 percent said they were not at all certain about it. In Carsons, 21 percent were not very certain, and 10 percent of those who said they support Rubio expressed some doubts. For all of the talk about shaking things up in this years elections, only 15 percent of Republican primary voters said that was the most important factor. Their first reason for choosing a particular candidate, with 21 percent, was to improve the American economy, followed by giving the Republican Party a good chance to win in November. As it turns out, those were also the top two reasons for Cruz voters (he and Trump both got relatively high marks for shake up politics as usual). Trumps voters said "improve the economy" and reform immigration policy were their top reasons for voting. More than a third of Rubios supporters 36 percent said they chose him because they thought having a good chance to win the general election was most important. Cruz had a significant lead over his opponents among voters with some college, pulling 50 percent of those votes to 29 percent for Trump and 6 percent for Rubio. That flipped among post-graduates: Rubio got 35 percent, while Cruz and Trump each got 20 percent. Voters with two years of college favored Trump. Cruz led Trump by six percentage points among high school graduates and among voters with four years of college. The three leaders were the only Republican candidates to attract double-digit percentages of churchgoers. Cruz did best, pulling 38 percent of voters who attend church more than once a week, 38 percent of the once-a-week worshippers and 54 percent of those who said they attend church a few times a month. Trump was second in each of those groups, with 22 percent of the first group and more than a quarter of the other two. He also did best among voters who never attend church: 32 percent of those were with Trump, 27 percent with Cruz and 21 percent with Rubio. Cruz led the pack with male voters, getting 40 percent of them to Trumps 26 percent and Rubios 15 percent. But Cruz, at 33 percent, and Trump, at 32 percent, were in a virtual tie among female voters. Rubio had the support of 14 percent of those voters. The Texas primaries for both the Republicans and the Democrats take place on March 1. Early voting began a week ago and continues through Friday. The University of Texas/Texas Tribune Internet survey of 1,200 registered voters was conducted from Feb. 12 to Feb. 19 and has an overall margin of error of +/-2.83 percentage points. Among self-identified Republican primary voters,, the margin of error is +/- 4.27 percentage points; among self-identified Democratic primary voters, it is +/- 4.57 percentage points. Among likely voters in the Republican primary race, the margin of error is +/- 4.86 percentage points. Among likely voters in the Democratic primary race, the margin of error is +/- 5.44 percentage points. Numbers in charts might not add up to 100 percent because of rounding. Disclosure: The University of Texas at Austin is a corporate sponsor of The Texas Tribune. A complete list of Tribune donors and sponsors can be viewed here. AUSTIN, Texas (AP) The felony prosecution of former Texas Gov. Rick Perry ended Wednesday when the state's highest criminal court dismissed an abuse-of-power indictment that the Republican says hampered his short-lived 2016 presidential bid. The 6-2 decision by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, which is dominated by elected Republican judges, frees Perry from a long-running criminal case that blemished the exit of one of the most powerful Texas governors in history and hung over his second failed run for the White House. A grand jury in liberal Austin had indicted Perry in 2014 for vetoing funding for a public corruption unit that Republicans have long accused of wielding a partisan ax. The unit worked under Travis County District Attorney Rosemary Lehmberg, an elected Democrat. Perry wanted her to resign after she was convicted of drunken driving. Perry was accused of using his veto power to threaten a public official and overstepping his authority, but the judges ruled that courts can't undermine the veto power of a governor. "Come at the king, you best not miss," Republican Judge David Newell wrote in his concurring opinion, quoting a popular line from the HBO series "The Wire." Perry has been campaigning for Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz since becoming the first major GOP candidate to drop out of the race last year. Tony Buzbee, Perry's attorney, said the former governor was pleased with the ruling. "It was a bunch of foolishness from the beginning. I feel bad for him because he was put through this for no reason," Buzbee said. The court said veto power can't be restricted by the courts and the prosecution of a veto "violates separations of powers." A lower appeals court had dismissed the other charge, coercion by a public servant, in July. Perry had rebuked the charges as a partisan attack from the start, calling it a "political witch hunt," but the dismissal brought accusations of Republican judges doing a favor for a party stalwart. Texans for Public Justice, a left-leaning watchdog group that filed the original criminal complaint that led to the indictment, said Perry was handed a "gift" based on his stature. Even a Republican judge who dissented in the ruling said the decision could leave the public with an uneasy perception that the system went out of its way to clear a famous politician with deep connections. "The constant references to 'Governor Perry' could well be seen by the public as an inference that appellant's position in life entitles him to special privileges and special treatment by this court that others might be denied," wrote Republican Judge Cheryl Johnson, referring to how judges addressed Perry during deliberations. Perry, the longest-serving governor in Texas history, made just one court appearance in the case and was defiant from the start he went out for ice cream after turning himself in for booking at an Austin jail, and smiled wide for his mug shot. Legal scholars across the political spectrum raised objections about the case. Still, the Republican judge overseeing it repeatedly refused to throw it out on constitutional grounds, prompting Perry's appeals. Michael McCrum, the special prosecutor who secured Perry's indictment, maintained that the matter was built on evidence not politics and deserved to go to trial. He can appeal, but that would be a lengthy process. Combined, the original charges carried a potential maximum of 109 years in prison. Despite his legal problems, Perry had formally announced he was running for president in June, hoping to convince GOP primary voters he deserved another chance after his 2012 bid was undone by a series of public gaffes. But his second campaign lasted barely three months, and he dropped out of the race in September. The former governor spent more than $2 million on top defense lawyers. His latest White House campaign raised barely half that much in its first month, and Perry blamed the indictment for his sluggish fundraising. But polls showed he was badly trailing despite visits to Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina. He was the first candidate to leave a GOP field jammed with 17 presidential hopefuls at the time. Some names are just synonymous with each other, like Tom and Jerry or Thelma and Louise. Well, the same goes for French Montana and Max B. Their business partnership and frequent collaborations soon developed into a friendship. During a recent interview with Billboard, French opened up about how the incarcerated rapper remains a constant influence in his music, discussed his latest mixtape Wave Gods, and revealed details about his new album. On Friday (Feb. 19), French premiered his brand new mixtape, Wave Gods, on DJ Khaled's Friday night Beats1 radio show. The project was hosted by Harlem's very own Max B, consisting of 14 tracks and a notable lineup of features from Jadakiss, Nas, Kanye West, A$AP Rocky, Travis Scott, Future, Big Sean, Puff Daddy, Quavo, the late Chinx, and more. In 2009, Max B was convicted of multiple counts of felony murder, kidnapping, and armed robbery. He is currently serving a 75-year prison sentence for the crimes. Despite his physical absence in the industry, Max B solidified his presence in music and with some of today's biggest hip-hop artists. His name recently hit headlines after a Twitter war broke out between Kanye West and Wiz Khalifa over who really understood what it meant to be "wavy." A photo posted by French Montana (@frenchmontana) on Feb 16, 2016 at 2:16pm PST "To him, it's a kind of form of flattery," French told Billboard about how Max B feels about all the attention. "You know, for somebody as big as Kanye doing that [on The Life of Pablo], I think [Max] love it. There's no other way to embrace it but with love." The 31-year-old Morocco native already had the Wave Gods title picked out before West even mentioned his feelings about naming his album Waves. Fans got their first taste of the Coke Boys and their "wave" movement back in 2008 when they began dropping their Coke Wave mixtapes. French says he's proud that the movement has surpassed the years and made such an impact in music. The mixtape should hold fans over until French releases Mac & Cheese: The Album in March. The album will have a few guest appearances from Miguel, Beanie Sigel, Styles P, Jadakiss, and A$AP Rocky. There's also a chance Wiz Khalifa, who cites Max B as the reason to why he sings on his songs, might also be featured on the project. He revealed the album is officially done. "Nah, I mean for all my music, it's the same vibe," French told Billboard. "I never change nothing. Whatever the Wave Gods sound like, Mac & Cheese gon' sound like." French Montana is also dabbling in movies. Look out for the rapper in the forthcoming romantic comedy The Perfect Match on March 11, alongside Terrence J, Cassie, Lauren London, and Paula Patton. That's not all. French revealed he finished up production on his own film called Respect the Shooter, starring Chris Brown, Snoop from The Wire, Fabolous, Michael Williams, and more. 2015 MusicTimes.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Oklahoma Insurance Commissioner John Doak Endorses Ted Cruz for President HOUSTON, Texas Presidential candidate Ted Cruz today announced the endorsement Oklahoma Insurance Commissioner John Doak.I am thrilled to announce the endorsement of such a respected Oklahoma leader, Cruz said. Commissioner Doak is a courageous conservative who has led the fight against Obamacare in Oklahoma, stands firm in his pro-life advocacy and has operated his agency under budget, returning $28.5 million in unspent funds to the state treasury. He joins an impressive group of conservatives supporting our campaign in Oklahoma, led by Congressman Jim Bridenstine.Ted Cruz is the trusted, consistent conservative we need in the White House," Doak said. "We can count on him to stop Obamacare, restore the rule of law, and follow the Constitution. I am honored to support him for president.In 2011, John D. Doak became the 12th Insurance Commissioner of Oklahoma. He was sworn in to office for a second term on January 12, 2015, after receiving 77 percent of the vote. Doak is actively involved with the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) and currently serves on the Executive and Government Relations Committees.Doak agrees with Cruz that regulation of insurance needs to be left to the states. Doak has been a small businessman and executive in the insurance industry for over two decades. Sarkodie should have been bigger than ... Sacramento, CA Calling the problem overwhelming, Tuolumne County Supervisor Randy Hanvelt spoke about tree mortality at an Assembly hearing in Sacramento. The meeting on Monday was a joint informational hearing between the Assembly Natural Resources Committee and the Assembly Budget Subcommittee on Resources and Transportation. Some of the main points Hanvelt urged upon the state was to be prepared to deal with high tree mortality for several years; to rebuild the needed infrastructure and operational support; extend biomass generating contracts; obtain a federal disaster declaration; and to deal with dead trees on private lands. Hanvelt says his presentation was well received by the lawmakers on hand, but added, The end result is will they do anything with it, and make believers of the other legislators, so that something happens? Thats a continuing issue, but Im standing by to help support that. Our people need this taken care of. Additional speakers at the hearing included California Secretary of National Resources John Laird, Pacific Southwest Regional Forester Randy Moore, CAL Fire Chief Ken Pimlott and others. Hanvelts speech at the hearing is detailed in the text below: Thank you for hearing this very important topic. This topic is huge and growing. I heard there were 14 million trees in the national forest region 5 in April 2015. I heard it was over 40 million last Summer. Last I heard it was 73 million and growing. I have heard predictions of well in excess of 100 million and up to 100% mortality of some pine species in some areas. I have included a the conclusion page from report by a silviculturist from the Sierra National Forest dated last October so the data is much earlier. It is sobering. This issue knows and respects no boundaries: state versus federal lands; public versus private lands. It is pervasive. Tuolumne County has had three separate States of Emergency in the last three years: A. Rim Fire; roughly 70 days of active fire starting on August 17, 2013 resulting in the largest timber fire in the States history 402 square miles. While the fire is out, the residual remains and is a very large urgency for restoration and repair. The implications are huge so in my mind, the emergency continues. B. Drought; The County of Tuolumne declared a State of Emergency in February 2014 a situation which still lingers and we have been the lead County in terms of dealing with failed wells is fractured rock . C. Tree Mortality: The County of Tuolumne declared a State of Emergency in September of 2015. That is what we are here to talk about today. However, all three are directly related in my mind and once again we are the lead County in terms of dealing with the issues. Consequently Tuolumne County is the first to hit the log jams, the road blocks and the barriers to accomplishing real work on the ground. Governor Brown issued a proclamation of Emergency in the end of October last year. We thank him for that. But Emergency implies URGENCY for me and obviously some people / organizations do not seem to understand that. Need a Federal Declaration and financing to deal with the enormity of this issue. CDAA and or Cap and Trade if it all requires 25% match will dry up our County resources quickly. WE are spending contingency funds as I speak and that will run out quickly. IF we had a 6.25% match with Federal funding, our money would go 4 times further even if the Feds put too much overhead burden on the process. Even if the budget authorization is $140 million like Director Pimlott alluded to a few minutes ago. That will fall way short of the need. These are expense trees to take out because we are only dealing with those that threaten public infrastructure. If we assume $1000 per tree, we are only talking about 140,000 trees. We can hit that really quickly. In my county, we estimated 9000 dead trees along the county maintained roads. We did not include the State Highways which are Caltrans responsibility. The problem is we have twice as many more roads in the public road system in our county which are not County maintained but are still infrastructure. They all provide emergency escape routes and access. So since trees continue to die in my County and others, I would suggest that we have at least 36,000 trees threatening the public road infrastructure in my County. An again add Cal Trans responsibility to this. We have not even talked about the water district infrastructure ditches, flume, water storage, treatment and delivery systems. PG&E has been doing a terrific job of downing trees that threaten their lines. But they are only downing trees and not necessarily removing the trees. That creates other problems. You must consider funding this for years to come. I have only been talking of my County. We are going to use up that $140 million very fast. Even though we have the best infrastructure in the State to deal with this crisis: Two saw mills, a bark plant, a wood shavings plant, and two bio-mass plants; it is and will be insufficient to deal with the issue. A. Rim Fire and other large catastrophic timber fires haves saturated our saw mills with salvage timber. The good news and about that is that there will be no more fire salvage on Rim Fire as it the burned timber no longer has any salvage value. It has decayed beyond having commercial value. The bad news is the market is also saturated with blue stained timber so the value of new salvage is down and needs to be subsidized to make a commercial operation work. B. The dtate does not have the timber infrastructure it once had. We have lost roughly 100 sawmills in the dtate and I think there are only about 30 left. We just lost another one in Humboldt County. There is only one small mill operating south of Tuolumne County. Of the six (6) lead counties in the Tree Mortality Task Force, Tuolumne is the northern most. The others have no significant infrastructure. How do you fix that in an emergency? It is not just the sawmills, bio-mass plants, etc. It is also the support staff of foresters, truckers, tree fallers, operators and more that makes the operation possible. C. We are losing bio-mass plants in this state at a ridiculous rate. Bio-mass is an unrecognized renewable energy source. It is essential to a balanced and comprehensive forest management system. You need to reverse that trend. It needs subsidy just like solar and wind. Bio-mass has a much more dramatic impact on GHG emissions. You see if woody bio-mass from the forest and this tree mortality problem is not burned is a power plant it will be piled and burned in the open. At least we get a GHG reduction in the power plant on the order of 95% or more of the criteria pollutants. The burned trees that are not salvaged have the same issue. Since they are dead, they represent fuel for the next fire while they could be bio-mass fuel. Meanwhile they slowly decay producing GHG in the process. It does not go away by doing nothing. Private Lands: This is an increasing concern for all of the affected counties. The average private landowners are not financially capable of dealing with this problem. In my county, an elderly man (86 years old) spent his entire savings and borrowed money to deal with the trees which threatened his home. He has no contingency whatsoever. A dead tree fell through a house about 4:30 PM on February 17. You have a picture of that in your handout from me. We will see more of this. Dead trees are hazard trees one way or another. We have to deal with that part of the issue. Time marches on and we have been a little slow out of the blocks. We will soon be at timber harvest season in the high country and we will be competing for resources with the green harvest programs. Again a shortage of talent and infrastructure is a problem. We are trying to pull qualified forestry people out of retirement to help us. Fire season is also upon us and Director Pimlotts job will be made that much more complicated and risky. These dead and dying trees will represent more risk of catastrophic wildland fire. We saw it in the SRA with the Lake and Butte Fires last year. Rapid response and cooperation has never been more important and the firefighting budget is at risk. Secretary Vilsack made a rather strong challenge just two weeks ago in Vallejo when he said he will not provide override funds for the USFS to fight fires. He was challenging the Congress to deal with the fire transfer issue. But we could very well pay that price this year. So there is much more to the issues. What I am telling you is this. A. We must be prepared to deal with this for years to come and support funding. B. We must help us rebuild infrastructure and infrastructure operational support. C. We need to extend the bio-mass generating contracts by 10 to 12 years so they are available to support this effort. D. We need to obtain a Federal disaster designation to extend the County matching funds or eliminate matching altogether because we will run out of financing options and the problem will not go away. E. We need to deal with the private lands issue soon. We need to recognize and include the other counties which are experiencing this issue right now: Calaveras, western Alpine, Amador, El Dorado, and Placer. More will appear soon. At least three people have been killed in a wave of severe storms moving across the gulf coast states. Officials now believe at least seven tornadoes hit Louisiana and Mississippi Tuesday. In Florida, several counties in the panhandle are already dealing with tornado warnings. There are reports of damage in the Pensacola area. Those same storms could become a problem for our area Wednesday morning. The storms hit St. James Parish in southern Louisiana Tuesday. The area sheriff says at least two people are dead at an RV park there. Authorities are searching for people believed to be trapped under debris. The man who owns the Sugar Hill RV Park says about six to eight trailers were left standing. In Mississippi, at least one person died in a mobile home west of Purvis. Forecasters say tornados likely caused the damage that led to both deaths. Schools in severe Georgia counties will be closed Wednesday because of the impending storms. Schools in Leon County, Florida will either be closed or open later on Wednesday. Tallahassee is located in Leon County. Information from the Associated Press was used in this report. Family and friends gathered for a traditional ceremony Tuesday to honor the Merritt Island father and 13-year-old daughter found dead in their home Sunday. The ceremony is Thai tradition that when someone passes away, especially inside the house and it happens in such a tragic situation," said Morakot Chaiyahanij, a family friend. "They do not want the spirit to be trapped inside the house. So they invite the monk to come over to bless the spirit, to ask the spirit its OK to leave now," Chaiyahanij continued. According to the Brevard County Sheriffs Office, deputies found 42-year-old Sittichai Boonkeian and his 13-year-old daughter Ananya Mungmart dead inside their Merritt Island home. Investigators believe the father committed suicide. However, they have not said why. They are waiting on autopsy results to determine how the 13-year-old died. Family members held an open house Tuesday afternoon. Friends say its important to be present in the familys time of need. Basically just trying to comfort the family so they can have peace in their heart," Chaiyahanij added. Neighbors are understandably stunned. Ananya was a straight A student who spoke three languages. Boonkeian was known as a loving father. Hes very, very nice, very kind," Chaiyahanij said. Friends and family hope the celebration of life will bring peace to the fathers and daughters spirits and begin healing a broken family and neighborhood. Three new cases of Zika in Florida involve pregnant women, state health officials said Wednesday. The locations of the women won't be disclosed for privacy reasons, the Florida Health Department said. The health department says the women who tested positive for Zika do not have the active virus infection in them, so they would not infect a mosquito. Although Zika has been found to be sexually transmitted, the virus does not transmit through normal person-to-person contact, officials said. On Tuesday, a second case of Zika was confirmed in Orange County. Seminole, Osceola and Brevard counties each have seen one case; Hillsborough has had three cases. As of Feb. 17, the Centers for Disease Control reports there are 82 cases of Zika within the United States itself. All are travel-associated cases. County Number of Cases (all travel related) Alachua 1 Brevard 1 Broward 4 Hillsborough 3 Lee 3 Miami-Dade 11 Orange 2 Osceola 1 Santa Rosa 1 Seminole 1 St. Johns 1 Cases Involving Pregnant Women* 3 Total 32 Researchers are concerned about the Zika virus risk to pregnant women. Health officials have noticed a spike between the virus and babies born with microcephaly, particularly in South America. They are still studying whether the spike directly correlated. Microcephaly is condition in which a baby's head is smaller than expected, which occurs because the baby's brain did not develop properly during birth. For now, the CDC is urging pregnant women and women and men who are trying to have a baby to avoid traveling to any area where Zika is spreading. At least one tourist we spoke with chose to come to Florida instead because she is pregnant. We were supposed to go to Mexico that was our original plan. But then there was all this fuss about the Zika virus and pregnancy so we chose to stay here in Florida, said Ivalu Frederiksen, a tourist from Europe. Frederiksen has two other healthy kids. She said to protect herself, she wears mosquito repellent. However, she is not too worried about catching the virus. There are not many mosquitos in Florida compared to Greenland so Im pretty calm about it, said Frederiksen. In Florida, health officials are warning people to protect themselves from mosquitos by wearing insect repellant and long-sleeved clothing. They also say people should make sure there is no standing water around the house, say in buckets, plant pots or other places that can easily gather water. Standing water is breeding ground for mosquitoes. Symptoms of the virus include a fever, rash, joint pain, headaches and muscle pain. A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launch planned for Wednesday evening has been pushed back to Thursday. Windy weather kept the rocket on the pad at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. Satellite operator SES has been waiting since summertime to launch. The satellite, called SES-9, will provide service to Southeast Asia with high-speed Internet and high-definition television. The launch window opens at 6:46 p.m. EST Thursday at Space Launch Complex 40 at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The window closes at 8:23 p.m. Live Chat Join us at 6 p.m. Thursday for live updates and discussion. Live Blog LIVE Chat: SpaceX Falcon 9 Rocket Launch Coverage from the Space Coast: Headlines, Launch Schedule, Resources "A lot of it will be aimed specifically at the Indonesian and Philippines marketplaces, where we believe we'll be accessing around 22 million homes," said Martin Halliwell, chief technology officer for SES. The SES launch was delayed for several months after a Falcon 9 rocket with NASA cargo on board exploded in June 2015. The Falcon 9 rocket has been upgraded since the explosion. SpaceX has agreed to burn the upper-stage rocket for a few extra seconds to help get the SES satellite into its proper orbit sooner. "That's a big deal for us," Halliwell said. "It allows us to get into service about one-and-a-half months earlier." While the second stage is helping the satellite get into orbit, the first stage of the rocket will return to Earth. SpaceX landed the first-stage booster on the ground at a landing pad during the company's December launch from the Cape. More fuel is needed to launch the heavy satellite into a higher orbit for Wednesday's launch, so SpaceX will attempt to land the rocket booster on a floating, unmanned ship about 400 miles off the Brevard County coast. Three previous attempts to land the booster on a ship have failed. SES is excited about the possibility that one of their future launches will be on a reused SpaceX rocket. "Hopefully it will be a little bit cheaper, and hopefully it will allow us to increase the cadence out of the cape," Halliwell said. "So the reusability is a very, very exciting development for us." SES said it plans to be back out on the Cape this fall to launch two more satellites, SES 10 and SES 11. The Volusia County Strawberry Celebration was today but not many farmers were celebrating. With high winds, looming clouds and temperature swings, only a few vendors were out selling berries. Typically, Central Florida would be in the middle of strawberry season. But the price of strawberries has been high, because the market supply has been scarce. Why? "With unusually warm season this year, we had a late season with fruit, so their was no fruit on the market. So the price was higher for longer just because of the supply," said Tiffany Dale of the Florida Strawberry Association. It's an issue that has plagued all of the strawberry-growing operations in Central Florida because of the brief cold snaps followed by high temperatures. The strawberries haven't had a chance to ripen. "The berries couldn't take it, so their weren't many to pick. They're just starting now to come down," said Kim Bierbach of Scheidel Produce, a vendor at the Strawberry Celebration on Wednesday. Every year, the Crump family's Vo-LaSalle Farms in DeLeon Springs participates in the county's celebration. This year, however, the family can't because it doesn't have any ripe strawberries. The crop is still growing. "The strawberry growth economy is wonderful," said Karen Stauderman, with the University of Florida/Institute of Food and Agricultural Services. "However, each year is dependent on the weather, and this year, we have had an extremely warm winter and, unfortunately, that has offset some of the plants' yield this year." Growers are dealing with major delays in the amount of Florida strawberries they are able to get to the grocery stores. Stauderman said the strawberry growth is just starting to ramp up, and if the weather remains favorable, the crop should continue to grow. Two Texas men, alleged members of the Aryan Brotherhood who were jailed on drug charges last year, were ordered released after a District Court judge ruled they were victims of an unreasonable search and seizure and dismissed the case. Judge John P. Wesley said Wednesday that 105 pounds of marijuana seized from a vehicle driven by Christopher A. Davis, 29, and carrying passenger Kevin D. Donnawell, 43, both of Corpus Christi, Texas, was inadmissible in court because Vermont State Police had no cause to suspect they were committing a crime. Davis was released from the Southern State Corrections Facility in Springfield Wednesday afternoon. Defense Attorney Margot Stone said Donnawell was scheduled to be released Thursday, but officials refused because of some charges against him in Texas. "I feel my client is being held illegally," she said Thursday. Davis and Donnawell were arrested in March 2003 after state police found a 2000 Chevrolet Monte Carlo with a flat tire pulled over on Interstate 91 near Exit 3, according to the affidavit of Trooper Eric Albright. Donnawell told Albright that he and Davis were driving to Maine to see his father, who had recently suffered a stroke, and that the car belonged to his girlfriend. Albright became suspicious after Donnawell indicated that he planned to spend a week in Maine, but had no visible luggage, court documents stated. Albright checked the men's identification and asked to search the vehicle, to which Donnawell agreed, court documents stated. Albright then found the marijuana, documents said. Both men were charged with possession of more than 10 pounds of marijuana and faced up to 15 years in prison and a $500,000 fine. Following their arraignment in Windham District Court, Judge Karen Carroll set bail for Davis at $100,000 and Donnawell at $150,000. The two men remained jail for lack of bail. Less than two weeks after the arrests of Davis and Donnawell, park rangers at the Padre Island National Seashore in Texas discovered the body of Joe Urdiales, 28, of Corpus Christi, who was discovered stabbed to death with sand poured down his throat. Investigators from the FBI later arrested five men, including four alleged members of the Aryan Brotherhood prison gang, in connection with the murder. Urdiales had recruited Davis and Donnawell, whom prosecutors said were also members of the Aryan Brotherhood, to transport the marijuana and was killed after he failed to bail them out, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. Lawyers for both men filed motions in October claiming the seizure was illegal. Prosecutor John Lavoie had argued Albright's actions were justified, because Davis and Donnawell appeared to need help with their vehicle. In his ruling, Wesley said there was no indication that Albright had attempted to help Davis and Donnawell, but had instead used their breakdown to investigate possible wrongdoing. Since 2008, expansion of the Ports-to-Plains Alliance Corridors has come primarily through the various state departments of transportation including both state and federal transportation funding. As discussed last week, federal funding for the past 10 years has come through the state DOTs. The state DOTs combine the federal funds with state funds to carry out each states transportation program. While the process of planning the funding and construction scheduling of highway projects varies across the states in the Ports-to-Plains region, the Alliance works closely with each DOT to advocate for funding expansion projects. Governors, state legislatures, transportation commissions, regional planning efforts and metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs) all have differing roles across the region in determining how transportation funds are used. As with federal funding, the base for state transportation funding is state fuel tax. The same issue of vehicle fuel efficiency has also negatively impacted state fuel tax revenues. As a result states have looked for ways to address those negative impacts. In some of the Ports-to-Plains states, state legislatures have acted to increase fuel taxes in the past few years. Wyoming increased its fuel tax 10 centers per gallon in 2013. South Dakota increased its fuel tax by 6 cents per gallon in 2015. Nebraska increased it fuel tax by 6 cents a gallon in 2015. Five polling places will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday, March 1, for voters in Hale County to cast ballots in the unified Democratic and Republican Primary Elections. While there will be separate ballots for Republicans and Democrats, voters from both parties will be voting at the same spots. HARTFORD Legislation requiring municipalities to equip emergency responders with naloxone, an anti-overdose drug, received unanimous support from the legislatures Public Health Committee on Wednesday. The committee voted 22-0 to approve the legislation, which was introduced by Gov. Dannel P. Malloy earlier this month. Specifically, the bill requires municipalities to update their emergency medical plan to ensure that first responders are equipped with and trained to use naloxone, or Narcan. In a statement Wednesday, Malloy thanked the committee for a swift vote on the bill, as well as the bipartisanship support shown to pass the bill unanimously. The bill will be taken up by the entire General Assembly later this session, which ends May 4. This is a critical public health issue, and I urge the full General Assembly to adopt these commonsense next steps so I can sign it into law, Malloy said. Despite being an unfunded mandate on municipalities, the legislation has support from the states largest municipal lobbying group. During a public hearing last week, Rudy Marconi, first selectman of Ridgefield, spoke on behalf of the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities and said he was confident that all members are pretty much on board. About 3,000 people died in Connecticut from 2009 to 2014 due to overdoses of a prescription opioid or heroin. The deaths occurred in 152 of the 169 municipalities in the state. To date, state police have saved 64 lives by administering Narcan. There are kits for about $35 a dose, and many municipalities already equip emergency personnel with the equipment. Firefighters in Meriden began carrying Narcan last month. The Wallingford and Southington fire departments, in addition to Hunters Ambulance, are equipped with the medication. Southington police carry Narcan, but officers in Meriden and Wallingford do not. The medication can be administered through an injector or nasally. Legislation passed last year allows pharmacists to directly prescribe Narcan. aragali@record-journal.com 203-317-2224 Twitter: @Andyragz Albert Einstein reportedly once said, "The hardest thing in the world to understand is the income tax." If you buy, sell, finance or own real estate, it gets even worse. Property and taxes go together like blood and leeches. Yet there's no reason to pay more than the minimum, and the Internal Revenue Code actually gives property owners lots of tax breaks. "For many homeowners, real estate taxes and mortgage interest are by far some of their biggest tax deductions," says Art Ford, a certified public accountant in Boston. "If I pay $1,500 a month in mortgage interest, that's an $18,000-a-year deduction." So before you belly up to the nearest bar or start pulling your hair out, here are some commonly asked questions about taxes and homeownership. Knowing these answers will help keep your tax bill as low as possible. No. 1: How much of my mortgage payment is tax deductible? On a Schedule A, you can generally deduct the following: Interest on debt used to buy, build or improve your primary or second home (called acquisition debt), as long as mortgages totaled $1 million or less ($500,000 if single or married filing separately). Mortgage insurance (or funding fees for government loans) for loans taken after 2006 as long as your adjusted gross income does not exceed $100,000 for a married couple (half that for singles and those married filing separately). Property taxes on first and second homes (if you itemize your deductions). No. 2: I sold my home this year. Will I owe capital gains tax? As long as the property was your principal residence for at least two of the last five years, you can exclude $250,000 of your profit ($500,000 for married couples) from your federal taxable income. If you profited less than the $250,000/$500,000 threshold, no extra form is required. You can do this as often as every two years. If you made a higher profit or otherwise don't qualify for the exclusion (say, you sold after just one year), Ford says you'll generally owe up to 23.8% in federal taxes on your gains over and above the "excluded" amount. (Your actual rate will vary depending on your income.) But when calculating your taxable gains, Ford suggests looking beyond what you originally paid for your home. You should also factor in anything that you spent on home improvements while you owned the property. Say you and your spouse bought a place for $100,000 two decades ago, lived there as your primary residence and sold the home for $800,000. You'd ordinarily have to pay capital-gains taxes on $200,000 -- your $800,000 sale price minus your $100,000 purchase price minus the $500,000 exclusion for married couples. However, if you spent $150,000 on upgrades, you can deduct that from your capital gain. In the example above, that would reduce your taxable profit from $200,000 to just $50,000. That said, IRS Publication 523 notes that you generally can't deduct repairs or maintenance, only "improvements" that are designed to increase your home's value. Unfortunately, the rules for what's a "repair" versus an "improvement" are pretty vague. For instance, the IRS says fixing a broken windowpane is a repair, but replacing it as part of a project to swap out all of your home's windows is an improvement. So, consult with a tax professional or read IRS Publication 523 for further guidance. If you still have taxable profits on your home after factoring in all of the above, you'll report your gains on a Schedule D, Capital Gains and Losses. There are special rules for vacation homes. You may be able to exclude some or all of your gain. Remember, different states have different rules. Always consult with a tax professional if you need personal advice. No. 3: I lost money on the sale of my home. Do I get to deduct the loss? Loss on the sale of a personal residence is treated like a loss on the sale of any personal property. It is not deductible. Losses on investment properties are deductible. No. 4: Are my closing costs tax deductible? You can claim a deduction for real estate taxes you paid as part of your mortgage closing costs. The same goes for prepaid interest. It will be included on the 1098 form your lender sends you. What about points? The IRS has a flowchart that you can use to see if points are fully deductible. In general, you must have paid points to build, buy or improve your primary residence in order to deduct the entire amount in the year they were paid. Otherwise, they may still be deducted but on a prorated basis. No. 5: What happens with points on a refinance? This deduction is often overlooked, and it could be worth a lot. When you pay points on a refinance, they have to be prorated. For example, if you paid $3,000 in points on a 30-year mortgage, you can deduct $100 a year for 30 years. But if you refinanced again this year and have prorated points that have not yet been deducted -- for example, you are 10 years into a 30-year loan and have only deducted $1,000 of $3,000 in points paid -- you can deduct the remaining $2,000 in the year you refinance. No. 6: Does a mortgage modification affect my taxes? If you modify your mortgage, one consequence might be that you pay so much less interest that you will save more by choosing the standard deduction rather than itemizing. Don't just assume that itemizing is always best because you did it in the past. No. 7: Does a foreclosure, short sale. or principal reduction affect my taxes? Homeowners who lost their homes to either a foreclosure, short sale or had a bank "forgive" part of their mortgage principal (this could have occurred during a loan modification) used to have to pay income taxes on any money that their lender agreed to write off. But the Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act of 2007 and subsequent extensions changed that for loans restructured between 2007 and 2016 for primary residences. For those tax years, you don't have to consider the discharge of mortgage debt as taxable income. However, the 2007 law doesn't cover investment properties and vacation homes, nor does it apply to forgiven home equity loans. Lastly, some jurisdictions require filers to pay state income taxes on forgiven mortgage debt, so check with a tax professional about your personal situation. No. 8: Can I deduct prepayment penalties? Prepayment penalties paid on a mortgage are tax deductible in the year that they are paid. No. 9: What expenses am I not allowed to deduct from my income? Unless your property is a rental or investment, you don't get tax breaks for the following: Hazard insurance. Homeowners association dues. Principal payments. General closing costs like appraisal fees or title insurance. Local assessments to improve your neighborhood. No. 10: Does the so-called "Obamacare" tax affect gains from property sales? The 2010 "Obamacare" Affordable Care Act added an extra 3.8% tax on capital gains incurred by certain high-income taxpayers. If you fall under the law's requirements, you'll have to pay 23.8% in federal income taxes on your home-sale profits over and above the $250,000/$500,000 exclusion rather than the 20% rate that you'd otherwise face. However, this extra tax only applies to single or head-of-household filers who have a $200,000 adjusted gross income or married joint filers with a $250,000 adjusted gross income. And remember, the first $250,000 of a single taxpayer's profits ($500,000 for joint filers) is federally tax free. No. 11: How does the U.S. Supreme Court's gay-marriage ruling affect same-sex couples? The Supreme Court's June 2015 ruling legalizing gay marriage in all 50 states doesn't affect same-sex couples' federal income taxes because the IRS has recognized legal gay marriages for tax purposes since 2013. An earlier Supreme Court ruling that partly invalidated 1996's Defense of Marriage Act prompted the tax agency to decide that same-sex couples married in any U.S. or foreign jurisdiction that recognized gay marriage could file tax returns jointly. The rule applied even if gay couples later moved to states that didn't allow gay marriage. However, last summer's landmark high-court decision legalizing same-sex marriage nationwide means gay couples in states that previously banned the practice should have the right to file state or local income-tax returns jointly for 2015 for the first time. No. 12: Does my income affect my tax deductions? The IRS has increased the maximum adjusted gross income that filers can have for 2015 and still fully itemize deductions -- good news for wealthy homeowners who want to claim things like the mortgage-interest tax break. Married joint filers can have $309,900 AGIs and still itemize all deductions, up from $305,050 in 2014. Singles can make an adjusted $258,250 versus $254,200 previously, while married couples filing separately can have $154,950 AGIs, up from $152,525 in 2014. Above those limits, IRS rules begin to phase out what percentage of expenses you can deduct. Conversely, the IRS has also boosted standard deductions for 2015. Married joint filers who don't itemize can claim a standard $12,600 versus $12,400 in 2014, while singles and married people filing separately can $6,300 instead of $6,200 a year earlier. (Heads of household can receive $9,250, up from $9,100 in 2014.) Smart homeowners will do the math to see which works out better for them -- itemizing or taking the standard deduction. Lisa Greene-Lewis, an accountant with TurboTax, says many homeowners will do better by itemizing instead of simply claiming the standard deduction. "The mortgage-interest deduction is one of the biggest itemized deductions for many people for sure," she says. "That's usually the one that puts homeowners over the threshold to where itemizing makes sense." Knowing what tax deductions are available to you can help minimize the tax man's bite come April 18. After all, the law says you have to pay taxes -- but there's no reason to leave Uncle Sam a tip. Gina Pogol was the original author of this article. Related articles: This article originally appeared at HSH.com. The article 12 Essential Tax Questions for Homeowners originally appeared on Fool.com. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days . We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy Copyright 1995 - 2016 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. The latest quality embarrassment for Honda: It had to stop sales of some versions of its new 2016 Civic because of a problem with the 2.0 liter engines. Image source: Honda. Honda on Tuesday announced a series of senior management changes as new CEO Takahiro Hachigo continues to put his stamp on the company amid lingering concerns about quality. What's happening: It's a sweeping list of changes that appears intended to clear Honda's top ranks of older-generation executives who were put in place by former CEO Takanobu Ito. Three of Honda's directors, its corporate auditor, and seven senior executives will retire as of April 1. Among the executives who will be replaced: Honda's research and development leader, its top executive in North America, and its product chief. What it means for Honda: Ito resigned last June after Honda was hammered by a series of quality problems. Those included an embarrassing series of recalls in its home market of Japan and a surprising slip in the influential J.D. Power Initial Quality Study in the U.S., with Honda falling behind not only arch-rival Toyota, but also both General Motors and Ford. After taking over as CEO, Hachigo promised to "create a new Honda," reorienting the company with a global perspective and pushing for more innovative and appealing products. But Honda's quality problems have continued. Most recently, earlier this month, Honda had to issue a "stop sale" order on models of its new-for-2016 Civic equipped with a 2.0 liter four-cylinder engine. The problem involves improperly installed snap rings on the engine's piston pins that could cause the engine to abruptly stop working. About 34,000 vehicles are affected. Another of the moves seems intended to address Honda's sales slump in the U.S. While the small CR-V has been selling very well, sales of Honda's mainstay sedans, the Accord and Civic, have both been sluggish. Overall sales for the Honda brand in the U.S. rose just 2.6% last year, with sales of the Accord and the small Fit both down year over year. The incoming new Honda North America chief, Toshiaki Mikoshiba, was previously the head of Honda's relatively small European operation. He replaces Takuji Yamada, who will apparently retire. What it means for shareholders: It's another sign that Hachigo (and Honda's board) are determined to make changes in an effort to get the company back on track and aligned for long-term growth. Generally speaking, that's a good thing. But it may be a while before we know how this latest executive shuffle will work out. What's next for Honda: Hachigo is scheduled to give a press conference on Wednesday, February 24. He may give more details on the thinking behind the management shakeup. Stay tuned. A secret billion-dollar stock opportunity The world's biggest tech company forgot to show you something, but a few Wall Street analysts and the Fool didn't miss a beat: There's a small company that's powering their brand-new gadgets and the coming revolution in technology. And we think its stock price has nearly unlimited room to run for early, in-the-know investors! To be one of them, just click here. The article A Big Shakeup at Honda As Quality Woes Persist originally appeared on Fool.com. Copyright 1995 - 2016 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Last week, the world's two largest oil-producing countries, Russia and Saudi Arabia, agreed to freeze their oil production levels -- albeit at record-high levels, and with a few major caveats. The price of oil popped 5% as a result, but how much will the agreement affect the broader industry in the long term? In this clip, Sean O'Reilly, Tyler Crowe, and Taylor Muckerman talk about why Russia instituted the freeze, and how this should affect oil prices going forward. A transcript follows the video. The next billion-dollar iSecret The world's biggest tech company forgot to show you something at its recent event, but a few Wall Street analysts and the Fool didn't miss a beat: There's a small company that's powering their brand-new gadgets and the coming revolution in technology. And we think its stock price has nearly unlimited room to run for early in-the-know investors! To be one of them, just click here. This podcast was recorded on Feb. 18, 2016. Sean O'Reilly: The other day, this seems like a half-hearted thing that they're doing, but everyone was like, OK, OPEC needs to cut production in order to get oil prices up, dadadadada, and I didn't think this was an option, but apparently it is. So, Saudi Arabia called up Russia, and they agreed to a production freeze at elevated production levels or something. Can somebody explain that to me? (laughs) Tyler Crowe: Yeah, that's basically it. Saudi Arabia and Russia, the two largest oil producers in the world -- O'Reilly: They're both [each] at just over 10 million barrels or something like that. Crowe: Yeah, somewhere right around there. They've said they're willing to freeze their current output at their levels in order to help spur along the recovery. However, it's also contingent that everybody else plays along. So, they're saying, "Hey, we'll do it as long as Iran and Iraq and everybody else gets on board with it." O'Reilly: Which seems unlikely to me. Crowe: Yeah, seems like most of them are saying, "Hey, we love the idea of you guys freezing output!" O'Reilly: "Why don't you do it?" Crowe: "But you know what? We still want to bring on more production because we want more money." So, it always just seems like kind of a non-starter, at least from a long-term investor's perspective. These are just kind of those things that, when they happen, we have a 5% jump in oil prices immediately following -- O'Reilly: Yeah. Crowe: -- because everybody got excited. "Oh, oil's back, baby!" Well, guess what? Next day, it happens, and it doesn't happen because people want to keep producing. O'Reilly: Really quick, before we move on, it just seems weird that they were willing to freeze production at current levels. If memory serves, Saudi Arabia is over 10 million barrels per day, like 10.1 or 10.2. And even in summer 2014, before all this happened, they were at like 9.6. Taylor Muckerman: Well, that's the thing. Why care about freezing when you're producing at record levels? Russia produced an all-time high in 2015. So, they're like, "Sure, we'll freeze, because we probably can't produce that much more anyways." O'Reilly: "We can't go much higher." Like ... (laughs) Muckerman: Right. Their currency is down over 30% just over the year, the government is strapped for cash. So these companies have no backing right now. O'Reilly: It's kind of absurd. Muckerman: And they raised debt in 2015 just to stay afloat and keep producing oil. So, Russia, I think, instituted this freeze out of ... because there's nothing else they can do. O'Reilly: Yeah. Muckerman: It's like, "Hey, maybe if we say we're going to freeze it, prices will jump, because we're freezing it anyways out of necessity, not out of desire." O'Reilly: So, Iran came out and said they liked this idea, like Tyler was mentioning, but they were basically like, "Yeah, we're not going to freeze production." But don't they kind of have a point? Because they're trying desperately this year to get to 500,000 barrels a day. But before, in 2011 or 2012 or whatever, before all the embargo stuff and those niceties, they were at 3 or 4 million barrels a day or something. Crowe: Yeah, they're a little ways off from where they used to be. O'Reilly: Yeah. And that's their goal, and they kind of ... I'm not saying I like them or anything, but don't they kind of have a point there? Crowe: They might, but at the same time, do you really want to ramp up and spend a whole lot of money when oil's at $30 a barrel? O'Reilly: They need tens of billions of dollars to ramp up production again! I mean, they need a lot of investments. The article What Russia and Saudi Arabia's OPEC Agreement Means originally appeared on Fool.com. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days . We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy Copyright 1995 - 2016 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Dear Mr. Premack: I am an only child. My mother passed away recently and my father passed away last decade. She died with a Will naming me Executor and leaving all assets to me. The only assets are real estate: first, a homestead that is undergoing foreclosure with only her name on the deed, and second, a rent house with her name and my name on the deed. The rent house has a mortgage for about 60% of the house's value and the loan is current. I filed an Affidavit of Heirship regarding the homestead. Does it suffice to make me owner? Would that work for the rent house, or can I hire an attorney to do Muniment of Title probate? Is probate unavoidable? S.B. Texas law provides a variety of probate procedures, ranging in complexity. Each procedure is meant to be used in different circumstances and each has differing restrictions on its use. You mention two procedures: Affidavit of Heirship and Muniment of Title. There are other legal proceedings that do not apply in your circumstances. Affidavit of Heirship (formally called Non-Judicial Evidence of Heirship) is the only procedure that does not include judicial review. Did you do the Affidavit yourself or hire an attorney? It is supposed to provide family history on the decedent so the laws of intestacy can be applied to identify the new owner or owners. Statutorily, the Affidavit must be on record at the courthouse for five years before the family history is presumed to be true. However, as a practical matter that limit is often ignored by title companies, who often accept the identified heirs as the owners. In many situations, Affidavit of Heirship is not appropriate. For instance, if there were multiple children or multiple marriages in a family yet the decedent's Will left the house to only one person, the Affidavit procedure should not be used. Why? Because it ignores the Will and vests title with all heirs at law (not just the heir named in the Will). When there is a Will, a different probate procedure is better. In your specific case, using only the Affidavit may not gain you recognition as owner by the mortgage company, missing the opportunity to negotiate regarding the foreclosure. Unlike the Affidavit of Heirship, an attorney-prepared Muniment of Title is a judicial procedure which is more reliable than an Affidavit. However, Texas law does not allow Muniment when there are unsecured debts (like credit card bills or unpaid medical bills). The mortgages on your mother's homestead and rental property are secured debt, which do not block using the Muniment process. With her homestead in foreclosure, using a proper Muniment of Title process may give you the opportunity to renegotiate her loan or to stop the foreclosure by refinancing her loan. Administration of her estate is another judicial procedure, and grants you "Letters Testamentary" to act on behalf of her estate. If her Will names you "Independent Executor" there is little to gain as it will not stop the foreclosure, and an attorney could guide you regarding becoming "Dependent Executor". As Dependent Executor you may be able to slow or stop the foreclosure for a while. Any claim presented to a Dependent Executor must be filed in court, any foreclosure must wait until the claim is processed, and foreclosure can only take place with the court's permission. Becoming Dependent Executor may give you time to either sell the house (paying off the loan at the time of sale) or to refinance the loan (curing the default and saving the property). Paul Premack is a Certified Elder Law Attorney with offices in San Antonio and Seattle, handling Wills and Trusts, Probate, and Business Entity issues. View past legal columns or submit free questions on legal issues via www.TexasEstateandProbate.com or www.Premack.com. John Davenport /San Antonio Express-News Dr. Anthony P. Sertich was going through a series of personal crises that left him financially underwater. The Internal Revenue Service turned down at least one offer to settle his tax debt. The ear, nose and throat doctor got so far behind that his original tax bill nearly doubled. So said his lawyers as his trial began Tuesday on charges that include willful failure to collect or pay taxes to the IRS and attempting to evade and defeat taxes. Federal prosecutors said he let the tax bill mount up over the years to the tune of more than $2.9 million. A Sonoma County womans horse and dog were killed, and another horse she owns was sickened, after the animals ingested cookies laced with poison that apparently were deliberately left for them to eat earlier this month, officials said Tuesday. Deputies recently identified a person of interest in the poisoning case, but authorities would not give details about the possible suspect, said Sgt. Cecile Focha, a spokeswoman for the Sonoma County Sheriffs Office. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate A judge says new trials should be conducted for the four San Antonio women who have steadfastly denied the 1994 sexual assault accusations by two girls that sent them to prison but Bexar County District Attorney Nicholas Nico LaHood strongly hinted Wednesday that he plans to drop the charges. Senior District Judge Pat Priest ruled Tuesday that the womens assertion of proof of actual innocence falls short of the mark and recommended new trials. LaHood said he will wait for an appeals process to decide if Priest was right before announcing whether he will retry the cases against Elizabeth Ramirez, Anna Vasquez, Kristie Mayhugh and Cassandra Rivera. We have the option to try all four of those cases again, but at this point, I do not foresee that, LaHood said. I have some serious reservations about this case, and I don't believe pursuing these cases would be in the interest of justice. The four women each were convicted of aggravated sexual assault and indecency with a child after two of Ramirezs nieces testified that, during a weeklong stay with their aunt when they were 7 and 9, all four women bound them, raped them and threatened them at gunpoint if they told anyone about the abuse. The girls changed key details of their stories every time they described what happened in interviews with investigators and over the course of two trials. The expert testimony used by prosecutors has been discredited. One of the accusers has since recanted. Though the newly discovered evidence severely muddies the water ... the evidence does not unquestionably establish innocence as required by (earlier case law). Therefore, applicants should have a new trial, but their claim of having sufficiently established their actual innocence should be denied, Priests ruling stated. The womens attorneys said it was Priests ruling that fell short of the mark. Obviously, when you're falsely accused and convicted, you want a total vindication, said Mike Ware, director of the Innocence Project of Texas and a former Dallas County prosecutor. And that is what these women deserve. They are innocent and should be found innocent. We will file objections (to Priests ruling) and take our arguments to the Court of Criminal Appeals, Ware added. All four women remain free; three are out on bond and one is on parole. Ramirez was tried first and sentenced to 37 years in 1997. Three years later, the other women were tried together and each received a 15-year sentence. The case was dissected in a major story in the Express-News late in 2010. In November 2012, Rivera was released on parole. The state eventually deemed as junk science the forensic evidence used to convict the women alleged signs of abuse on the hymens of the girls. That led to the release of the other three women on bail in November 2013 pending Priests decision. Staff Writer Bruce Selcraig contributed to this report. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Austin police have arrested two men for throwing bottles from a fourth-story balcony at a black man in a neighborhood near the University of Texas at Austin campus with a history of racially-motivated incidents. Tucker Sauer, 21, and Lucas Walker Henderson, 20, have each been charged with deadly conduct, a third-degree felony punishable by a maximum 10-year prison sentence, in the incident Saturday night in the West Campus neighborhood near the UT-Austin campus. RELATED: University of Texas has asked Facebook to remove 'white student union' group page According to an arrest affidavit, the victim told police that he was walking at around 7:20 p.m. in the 2500 block of Leon Street when a bottle fell from an apartment balcony above him and nearly hit him. Three people on the balcony began yelling at him, the victim, who is black, told police. "F--- you, n-----!" one person yelled, according to the victim's account. He told police that he could not identify which of the three men hurled the phrase at him. The victim told police that he was "1 million percent sure" that Sauer threw one of the bottles directly at him, prompting the victim to dodge the bottle lest it struck him. However, the victim was "70-80 percent sure" that he saw Henderson throw a bottle at him as well, according to police. RELATED: Texas A&M-Corpus Christi student finds racial slurs tagged in apartment Both Henderson and Sauer were yelling and shouting expletives at the victim when he told them he was going to call the police, according to the affidavit. Henderson and Sauer told the victim that "they were going to come down and kick his ass," the victim told police. The duo, accompanied by a third person, then came down to the street, the victim said. Henderson was being "very verbally aggressive and bowed up his chest and 'came at him' like he was going to strike him," police said in the affidavit. Sauer also acted like he was going to hit the victim. The third person was still verbally aggressive but "seemed to be sober and attempting to calm the situation somewhat," the affidavit reads. The three subjects then walked away from the scene, the victim told police. RELATED: Phoenix school district outraged over photo of racial slur Officers found Henderson and Sauer in the apartment's parking garage after seeing them leave the balcony when they arrived. Each suspect who swayed while speaking to officers and admitted to drinking and "partying" all day denied the allegations, according to the affidavit. Henderson first told police that he was not on the balcony, the affidavit reads. He later said he was on the balcony but denied throwing bottles at the victim or going down to confront him. Sauer claimed he was on the balcony but denied that bottles were thrown, but later said he went down to the street but didn't yell at or try to fight the victim. Officers arrested Henderson and Sauer, who were also charged with public intoxication. Both men had bonded out of Travis County Jail as of Wednesday, according to online jail records. RELATED: Video shows house mother, 79, of controversial Oklahoma frat spouting racial slurs The West Campus neighborhood, home to many University of Texas students, drew national attention in 2012 when students who were black, Hispanic and Asian reported a string of attacks described as "bleach bombings." The attacks involved balloons full of bleach being tossed on non-white students from apartment balconies. A similar incident was reported in 2013. However, a University of Texas investigation later found that there was no evidence that bleach was used in either incident. jfechter@mySA.com Twitter: @JFreports This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate A Central Texas man is facing a felony charge after swallowing an undetermined amount of marijuana during a traffic stop, police said. RELATED: Central Texas man admits to driving under influence of NyQuil, weed in school zone New Braunfels police arrested Julian Aham-Neze, a 22-year-old man from San Marcos, on a charge of tampering with or fabricating evidence on Saturday, New Braunfels Police spokesman David Ferguson told mySA.com. A New Braunfels officer pulled Aham-Neze over in the 1200 block of the Interstate 35 frontage road just after 8 p.m. on Saturday after noticing that the driver's side headlight and license plate light were not working, Ferguson said. The officer arrested Aham-Neze on a speeding warrant out of New Braunfels Municipal Court after issuing citations for the traffic violations, Ferguson said. RELATED: Police: 2 Central Texas men stabbed each other with throwing star over joint on Valentine's Day Ferguson said that the officer then noticed an odor of marijuana emanating from Aham-Neze's mouth. The officer asked Aham-Neze to open his mouth and then saw leaves of marijuana stuck to the 22-year-old's mouth, teeth and tongue, Ferguson said. Aham-Neze's tongue was also tinted green, Ferguson said. The officer searched Aham-Neze's vehicle and found "crumbs" of marijuana in the car along with a cup where it appeared marijuana joints had been extinguished, Ferguson said. However, there was not enough marijuana present at the scene to charge Aham-Neze with possession of marijuana, Ferguson said. It's not clear how much marijuana Aham-Neze allegedly swallowed. RELATED: Police: Central Texas woman tried to hide 32 grams of methamphetamine in her vagina Aham-Neze was released on a $7,000 bond. If convicted on the third-degree felony charge, Aham-Neze could serve up to 10 years in prison. jfechter@mySA.com Twitter: @JFreports This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate While you may have never heard of U.S. Sen. Kelly Ayotte, a New Hampshire Republican, she has plenty of backing in San Antonio, where her campaign committee for reelection raised more than $34,000, bolstered by contributions from USAA. According to Express-News analysis of political donation data, San Antonians contributed more than $4 million dollars to federal election campaigns and political action committees (PACs) over the past two years. RELATED: 10 facts on how the Texas presidential primary works Among the campaigns supported by local dollars, Friends of Kelly Ayotte raised more money than the presidential campaign committees for Marco Rubio, Scott Walker, Carly Fiorina, Ben Carson and Rand Paul. Of the $34,000 donated to the Ayotte's campaign from San Antonio, USAA employees and its PAC contributed $23,500, the information shows. Click through the above gallery for a breakdown of the top political action committees (PACs) and election campaigns backed by top San Antonio donors. Many in the top 35 support familiar interests and names on the ballot, from the Republican National Committee and Texans for Lamar Smith, to Castro for Congress and Hillary for America. But there are some outlying interests as well, like the American College of Radiology. RELATED: Vintage photos from when San Antonians turned out to vote And while Bernie Sanders rejects funding from PACs, that does not mean the progressive politician running for the Democratic nomination for president hasn't raised any money in the Alamo City. According to ActBlue, an online fundraising platform for small donations, individual San Antonians have contributed more to Senator Sanders' bid than many Republicans. In the Republican camp, the polls seem to be a poor indicator of local political contributions. Donald Trump is no where on the list of top 35 campaigns backed by San Antonio dollars, despite his lead in national polls, while candidates looking up at Trump had some of the highest local contributions even surpassing six figures. RELATED: The Trumps: America's most riveting real-life soap opera Is this an accurate forecast going into the Texas Primary Election on Tuesday, March 1? We will know soon enough. jmscott@mysa.com This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate One Bernie Sanders supporter is redefining the term "grassroots support" to raise funds for the Democratic candidate. Ariel Zimman, a 29-year-old from Portland, told the Center for Public Integrity she will donate 10 percent of all proceeds she gets from sales of ceramic marijuana pipes emblazoned with the Vermont senator's campaign logo to the Sanders campaign. Supporters who want to take the campaign slogan "Feel the Bern" to a whole new level most likely "Burners for Bernie" will have to shell out $60 for a pipe and $30 for a chillum, according to Zimman's website. RELATED: Here's why some people think Ted Cruz is the Zodiac killer Sanders has previously stated that he wants to end the federal prohibition on recreational marijuana and would allow states to decide on legalization. The Vermont senator, who describes himself as a democratic socialist, has also said that he supports the medical use of marijuana. "It was really just a way to show my support for him as a candidate," Zimman told the outlet. "People love [the pipes], and once they hear they are contributing in some way to the campaign, they are all about that too." RELATED: Oregon man lives in a Boeing 727, wants to build another airplane home in Japan But, the practice raises some questions about how legal it is to use a campaign logo to sell a product, even if some proceeds will go to that campaign. Kenneth Pennington, digital director for the Sanders campaign, told the Center for Public Integrity that the campaign does not "authorize or condone" the practice, but said "it's not okay to sell things with the campaign's logo." RELATED: Texas is prepping to license people to grow, sell marijuana. Here are 10 things you need to know Zimman also risks brushing against the federal campaign donation cap of $2,700 for individuals. The 29-year-old told the Center for Public Integrity that she's already donated about $150 to the Sanders campaign and plans to send about $200 more in about a month. That's out of roughly $3,000 in pipe sales, Zimman told the outlet. "There is profit on my side of the business, but I'm also doing it for their profit as well," Zimman said. jfechter@mySA.com Twitter: @JFreports Federal investigators hold the iPhone of Syed Rizwan Farook, the terrorist who helped slaughter 14 innocents in San Bernardino, California. They want to look at its contents but cant because the device is encrypted and Apple has refused to unlock it. The matter ended up in federal court, where a magistrate judge ordered Apple to hack Farooks cellphone. Apple has rejected the judges order, citing privacy concerns. Apple is in the wrong. As Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance points out, the governments case rests on centuries of law holding that no item not a home, not a file cabinet and not a smartphone lies beyond the reach of a judicial search warrant. There exists no right of privacy to withhold evidence of a crime. The idea that the cellphone is a privileged communications device that must be off-limits to law enforcement is nonsense. The courts not telling Apple to create what one critic called a design defect, a backdoor that puts all users in danger of being hacked by identity thieves and other creeps. It has ordered Apple to help the Federal Bureau of Investigation get into a single iPhone. To do this, Apple must create a hacking tool, which, some fret, could get into the wrong hands. But the decrypting could be done on Apple property by Apple people and the tool kept in Apples famously secure vault. While Apples stance is unacceptable, it is understandable from a limited business point of view. Apple worries that if it gives U.S. law enforcement access to encrypted cellphones, countries less sensitive to civil liberties would demand the same. Places like China and Russia could grab the technology for widespread use against their citizens. China is Apples second-biggest market after the United States. U.S. tech companies and civil libertarians are supporting Apples stance. Nuala OConnor of the Center for Democracy and Technology expressed some of the fears. Cellphones have become effectively a part of our bodies, she wrote. Hers has contacts, medical records, kids report cards, pictures and so forth. All the more reason not to carry all that around in ones handbag, we might say. But even if a master key for unlocking iPhones got on the loose, the brutes would still need to possess the iPhone and spend perhaps years trying to get past a strong password. Full-disclosure time. Your writer is a voracious consumer of Apple products and an investor in Apple Inc. stock. Shes not selling her shares for the following reasons: Before the iPhone decryption debate, China was demanding a backdoor to its citizens computers and phones. Chinese consumers know the score. There are American sensibilities to consider. FBI Director James Comey spoke for many when he said national policy on confronting terrorism should not be left to corporations that sell stuff for a living. Victims of the San Bernardino attack are filing a legal brief supporting the U.S. governments position. And for what its worth, Donald Trump has called for a boycott of Apple products if the company does not cooperate. No one said that drawing a line between privacy and security is simple and new technology keeps moving that blurred border. But Comey is right. The job of setting national security priorities has not been outsourced to Silicon Valley boardrooms. It is a matter for our federal government. Dear Apple: Frustrating efforts to track terrorists is not a great marketing strategy. Your wisest move would be to make some noise and then help the FBI break into a terrorists iPhone. fharrop@gmail.com If the situation were reversed, would Democrats want to wait a year to select a new Supreme Court justice? I thought so. Jimmie Jones, New Braunfels Rights assaulted The arrogance of the Republican Party is boundless. The party that touts itself as the sole patriotic defender of the Constitution doesnt even recognize when it goes completely against it. The document clearly gives the president authority to appoint a justice to the Supreme Court to replace the vacancy left by Justice Antonin Scalias death. The threat to block any appointee shows Republicans interest is not in the well-being of the country or in heeding the Constitution. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell couldnt wait to issue his latest declaration. In fact, Scalias death hadnt been public knowledge more than an hour when McConnell made his pronouncement that the Senate should not confirm a replacement this year. He added: The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. It was then repeated by several GOP presidential candidates. The American people do have a voice, and it was loud and clear when they elected President Barack Obama, not once but twice. Leaving the Supreme Court incomplete will cripple the country and leave many important cases hanging or dismissed, many that are important even to Republicans. You think that someone in their position would know better, and yet some of them want to be considered for the presidency! Their actions should be carefully watched by the American people; they dont care about Americans as they claim. Alice C. Chapel, Spring Branch Acting like Iran Re: Invocation seen having message of us vs. them; Council prayer startles some, front page, Feb. 12: Maybe you dont think of your City Council as an official U.S. government entity, but it certainly is only on the city level. Deliberately flaunting your religions prayer in constitutionally protected chambers sends much the same message as flying the Texas flag without its mother, the U.S. flag. It says, Texas is my country not the United States, which is deliberately divisive, controlling and inflammatory just like muscling-in prayer where our unique law says it does not belong. If you are so intent upon prayer and religion everywhere, I would like you to think of an America without its Constitution. Think USSR. Think China. Think Iran. Think Saudi Arabia, or Syria maybe! Sandi Root, Bulverde Reminder of loss Re: The Rev. Buckner Fanning 1926-2016; Pastor known for unifying role, front page, Feb. 16: I thought you would certainly put Dr. Fannings death at the top of the front page. I realize Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia was a much higher personage (Death to affect Texas), but you already had his death on the front page the day before. Dr. Fanning was a vital part of this city, and even though he did not preach as much in the last few years, his loss is a reminder of all that we have lost in the last few decades of our nation. And, please, stop putting that picture of Billy Graham and Buckner in the paper, as if to say, ooooh, he was a friend of Dr. Graham. Buckner could outpreach Billy Graham any day of the week. Frances Geer Awaiting return Re: 2nd sex assault charge against doc dropped, Metro, Feb. 16: Calvin Day was my dermatologist for more than 20 years. I have yet to find a physician more meticulous, more giving of his time, more professional or as well thought of by his colleagues. If he succeeds in overcoming the injustice he suffered and reopens his practice, I will be the first to call his office for an appointment. Susan Jacobson TVs political tinsel This election, as in all elections, the Express-News has published its pick of candidates in both parties as recommended by the Editorial Board. Contrary to what some might argue, no law or ethical constraint has been broken by the Express-News or any other member of the Fourth Estate, pillar of our democracy. Moreover, citizens are legally permitted to take copies of those recommendations into the voting booth. What disturbs me most is that too many of our citizens rely exclusively on the bump and grind of television in forming their opinions about political candidates. One could argue that the majority of our local electorate doesnt even read newspapers and is seduced by the tinsel and glitter of the little screen. The recent plethora of televised debates is punctuated with showmanship, makeup, hairstyling and sound bites in lieu of a substantive exchange of ideas. Jamie Blount Texas highest criminal court, in dismissing an abuse-of-power charge against former Gov. Rick Perry, has upheld the simple notion that politics even the bare-knuckled variety must not and cannot be criminalized. The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, in a 6-2 ruling Wednesday, said that the veto is a constitutional exercise of the governors authority that cannot be restricted by the courts. It said also that criminal prosecution of a veto violates the states separation of powers. This was the obvious and correct ruling. It follows an earlier dismissal by a lower court of a coercion count against the governor in the same case. All of this stems from public threat in 2013 by then-Gov. Perry to veto $7.5 million in state funds for a Public Integrity Unit in the Travis County District Attorneys Office if DA Rosemary Lehmberg didnt resign after her drunken driving conviction and jailing. She didnt and he followed through on the threat. The Public Integrity Unit investigates claims of wrongdoing at the Legislature in Austin. Following a complaint by Texans for Public Justice, a special prosecutor independent of the Public Integrity Unit was named and a grand jury returned an indictment on two counts, coercion and abuse of power. We continue to believe that Perry was wrong as a matter of public policy in demanding the threat and vetoing the funds, but these were political, not criminal, acts. For the court to believe otherwise would have a chilling effect on the free speech inherent in politics and on a governors authority to veto. Both are crucial in this states form of government. In her dissent, Judge Cheryl Johnson, a Republican, said, The constant references to Governor Perry could well be seen by the public as an inference that appellants position in life entitles him to special privileges and special treatment by this court that others might be denied. But, this ruling, in our view, erects protection for other legal actions by other governing individuals and entities as well. Perry seemed to blame the indictment for his poor showing in his second presidential bid last year. He was the first in a crowded GOP field to leave the race. His first bid, in 2012, sunk after some highly publicized gaffes. No doubt the indictment didnt help in his second try, but we doubt that was the sole reason. But even if it cant solely be blamed, the courts ruling makes clear it was an indictment that never should have been. Technically, special prosecutor Michael McCrum of San Antonio can appeal this dismissal. He shouldnt and not just because it would be a lengthy process. Experts will be on hand 1-5 p.m. Feb. 27-28 at the Coventry Homes New Home Information Center, 16914 U.S. Highway 281 N., to answer questions and guide attendees through the intricate process of building a custom home on land they own. The decision to design and build your own home can be a daunting one, said Ken Gezella, sales manager for Coventry Homes. Our goal with these Build on Your Lot workshops is to provide people with the information they need to make well-informed decisions when they are ready to start. Attendees will be able to meet one-on-one with experts, including a licensed Realtor, a mortgage specialist, an architectural designer and an experienced Coventry Homes representative to discuss all aspects of the site selection and construction process, Gezella said. We have assembled a panel of very knowledgeable specialists, he said. They will be able to answer whatever questions you have, from how to get started and how to finance a construction loan to how to develop a custom floor plan. In fact, our architectural designer can help you create a personalized floor plan to take home. With more than 25 years of experience and a 98 percent customer recommendation rate, Coventry Homes is uniquely qualified to guide attendees through the homebuilding process. The companys Build on Your Lot program allows buyers to work with one construction superintendent from site evaluation to move-in. There are so many advantages to building with us, Gezella said. We are a nationally recognized builder, so we have some serious buying power, and we can pass those savings on to our customers. Additionally, we offer a free site evaluation, which allows you to lock in pricing before construction begins, and we offer more plans to work from and more flexibility because we have more experience. Energy efficiency is another advantage. Every Coventry Home in the San Antonio area is certified through the U.S. Green Building Councils LEED for Homes program. Homes certified through this program use less water and energy, use fewer natural resources, create less waste and are healthier for the occupants. Coventry Homes was the first major builder in San Antonio to construct its homes to the LEED for Homes standards, Gezella said. We are also the first volume builder certified green under the Green Built Texas specifications. What this means is that we have outside inspection companies come in and inspect your home, so you are assured that your home has been built to the highest possible eco-friendly standards. The builder backs its homes with a two-year written heating and cooling cost guarantee, provides a two-year warranty on materials and workmanship and a 10-year structural warranty. Our homes are a smart choice for consumers, whether they buy in one of the communities we build in or choose to build on property they own, Gezella said. Not only do we offer high-quality construction, we really work with you to make sure you get the home of your dreams. The builders designs are flexible, so homebuyers can make changes limited only by building codes, deed restrictions, budget and imagination. Adding options such as wine or media rooms and outdoor kitchens are not the only ways the builder can help buyers. Design professionals can help customers choose the perfect kitchen island, decide how much cabinet space they need and add all of the small architectural and design details that will make the home uniquely theirs. Whatever you need, whatever your lifestyle demands, we will work with you, Gezella said. We have built a lot of homes over the past 25 years and have worked with a lot of homeowners. If there is a way to do it, we will find it. The Build on Your Lot workshop is open to the public and is a come and go as you please type of event. There is no need to stay for the entire length of the workshop. For more information about Coventry Homes or this event, call (210) 460-7997 or visit BuildOnYourLot.CoventryHomes.com. Editors Note: This content is made possible by Coventry Homes. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of The San Antonio Express-News' or mySanAntonio.com's editorial staff. Learn more about our advertising products at www.hearstmediasanantonio.com. SHARE By June Fletcher of the Naples Daily News Unlike the state as a whole, closed sales continued to slow into season for existing single-family homes in both Collier and Lee counties, a new report said. Statewide, single-family home sales were up 2.7 percent to 16,529 in January from 16,087 the same month a year earlier, according to a monthly report released Tuesday by Florida Realtors. But single-family sales in the Naples-Marco Island area were down 6.7 percent, to 322 from 345, and fell 5.5 percent, to, 789 from 835, in Cape Coral-Fort Myers. They were among nine out of 20 metro areas tracked that showed declines in single-family home sales for the month. The others were Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin; Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach; North Port-Bradenton-Sarasota; Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville; Port St. Lucie; Punta Gorda; and Sebastian-Vero Beach. Statewide, town houses and condos saw a decline of 4.8 percent in sales, to 6,942 from 7,294 year over year. In Naples-Marco Island, sales of town houses and condos fell 5.8 percent to 359 from 381. Sales of town houses and condos dropped 7 percent in Cape Coral-Fort Myers, to 400 from 430. Florida Realtors Chief Economist Brad O'Connor noted that the sales were declining in properties under $150,000, where there is limited supply, but were actually up in more expensive properties. Turbulent weather, stock market and oil price swings and even the heating up of the presidential election also may have played a factor in the sales slowdown. Plus, supply shortages began to ease throughout the state in January, as new listings rose 3.4 percent to 18,375 from 17,776 a year earlier. Inventory is up overall in the Naples market, according to Naples real estate broker Phil Wood, growing by almost 600 homes from the same month from a year earlier. Supply now equals 6.1 months of inventory, considered a sign of a market in balance. Supply is at it's the highest level since April 2013. Yet even as more Florida markets experienced sales slowdowns, prices have continued to rise. Statewide, single-family prices rose 13.7 percent to $199,000 from $175,000, while town house and condo prices rose 10.9 percent to $152,000 from $137,000. In Naples-Marco Island, single-family home prices rose 13.2 percent, to $447,000 from $395,000, but dropped 5.8 percent, to $289,990 from $280,000, for town houses and condos. In Cape Coral-Fort Myers, prices were up 22.6 percent to $233,000 from $190,000 for single-family homes, and they also rose 12.1 percent, to $185,000 from $165,000, for town houses and condos. A separate market report released Tuesday by the Realtors Association of Greater Fort Myers and the Beach noted price surges on homes on Pine Island, Sanibel and Captiva, as well on homes in the $1 million and up range. SHARE Stan Stouder, a commercial real estate broker with CRE Consultants in Fort Myers, speaks at Market Watch 2016 on Feb. 22, 2016. Photo by Laura Layden/Staff By Laura Layden of the Naples Daily News The housing market is showing signs of slowing and local experts say that's OK. Home resales are slowing and so are land sales for new homes and developments. "We're in the middle of a downshift in the marketplace. And it's a good thing," said Denny Grimes, president of Denny Grimes & Co. in Fort Myers. Grimes was one of three expert speakers at Market Watch 2016, sponsored by the News-Press, and held at the Harborside Event Center in downtown Fort Myers, on Tuesday night. All agreed the housing market is changing in a big way, sharing their thoughts on the future of real estate with a sold-out crowd in the hundreds. Generally speaking, home resales started falling from Sarasota to Naples in the last two to three months of 2015, Grimes said. "It's kind of across the board," he said. "We saw sales down in Lee County 30 percent in January." So what gives? While the roads are full, as they usually are in season, and buyers are out looking for houses, he said, the consumer confidence tank is "low on fuel." Part of the low confidence, he said, is "our fault," with home prices rising too quickly. "We have seen tremendous price increases in the last two or three years and we are pricing ourselves out of a lot of the market. You can ask for more, but buyers won't pay it," Grimes said. There are a few exceptions. The luxury market in Naples is still going strong, with the volume of resales rising 18 percent in the more than $5 million price category and 11 percent in the $1 million to $5 million segment in 2015, over 2014. "I think the luxury market and ultra luxury market is being driven by people saying, 'If not now, when?'" he said. It's clear the "Louis Vuitton" market of Port Royal in Naples, he said, is different, with 37 existing homes selling there last year, generating more than $300 million in sales, for an average price of about $8 million. Homes don't really go "on sale" there, he said. "You want to be in Port Royal? You pay the price and you come," Grimes said. "That is an anomaly. I can't find that type of behavior anywhere else. It may be the only place on the Gulf Coast of Florida like that, which speaks highly for that area." Except for the ultra luxury market, he predicts home price growth will slow down this year, and could even retreat a little bit. "We have to slow down. We are going too fast for our own good," Grimes said. Randy Thibaut, president of Land Solutions Inc. in Fort Myers, agrees a slow down is needed, coming from a different angle. Last year, new home permits soared in Lee, Collier and Charlotte counties. Builders pulled about 13,000 permits in the three counties, for a 44 percent increase over 2014. Lee saw the biggest increase and that was driven mostly by a boom in apartment construction. Apartments are in higher demand because of the rising home prices. First-time buyers are still looking for homes priced at $200,000 to $250,000, which can be found in very few places in Southwest Florida, Thibaut said. In Collier County, the median home price the price at which half the homes sell for more, and half for less rose to $430,000 in December. For that reason, it makes sense that Maple Ridge at Ave Maria, where there are still homes available for less than $300,000, was the top selling subdivision last year in all three counties, he said. "The reason why is price and value," Thibaut said. "So it's one of the last places people can get a value." Some of the buyers in Maple Ridge are coming from the east coast of Florida, and commuting back and forth to their same jobs over there because they can get more home for their money in Ave Maria and they often have a shorter drive than they would on Interstate 95. Thibaut described the trend as mind boggling. "Wow," he said. "That is crazy." Land prices for residential development now exceed where they were in 2005 at the "peak of the peak," which is giving builders reason to pause, Thibaut said. "We are seeing builders, developers and equity firms starting to tap the brakes on land transactions because the prices in some cases, in a lot of cases, have gotten to the point where they can't meet buyers' price demand requirements and are pushing the limit to still make margins," he said. The pause is good for many reasons, Thibaut said. "We have a great shortage of labor and we are having a tough time meeting the demand for the sales and products that are being built and permitted," he said. Some builders have already noticed a slowing demand for new homes, with several starting to offer incentives to entice buyers to purchase the inventory. One of the areas where that is happening is in the Immokalee Road corridor in North Naples, which has seen a surge in new construction over the past few years. High-rise condominium construction is back, with five projects planned or under construction from Naples to Estero, and it will be something to watch this year, along with continued apartment construction, which one speaker described as "white hot," especially in Lee County. "Apartments are really pulling the market," said Stan Stouder, a commercial real estate broker with CRE Consultants in Fort Myers. He showed a picture of a tug boat pulling a big cargo ship to bring home his point. In Southwest Florida, he said, 2,557 apartment units will be built this year, twice the number as last year, Stouder said. Apartments aren't just attracting students, but millennials with too much student debt and not enough money for a down payment, would-be buyers with bad credit, and even boomers who can no longer afford the hefty home prices. "Boomers are coming in great waves," Stouder said. "But they are less affluent. So their pension plans might have been wiped out, their 401ks might have gone down. Their houses may be selling now, but selling for less than they hoped they could get. They still want to come to Florida. Maybe they can't afford a second home, but they can afford to rent an apartment." I Burnt Mine Barbeque opened Feb. 6, 2016, at 3802 U.S. 41 E. in the Sherwin-Williams retail center across from Naples Towne Centre in East Naples. (Tim Aten/Daily News staff) Now that local pitmaster Dave Higgins captured your attention with his oddly named new barbecue joint, he hopes you'll agree that the meat he prepares at I Burnt Mine Barbeque stands out, as well. "People aren't going to come to a barbecue because you have good sides or desserts. They are going to come because you have good barbecue," said Higgins, who opened I Burnt Mine Barbeque on Feb. 6 across U.S. 41 from Naples Towne Centre in East Naples. Not that he doesn't offer good baked beans, coleslaw and potato salad, but the headliners of his lunch and dinner menus are pulled pork, baby back ribs, brisket, chicken and burnt ends a traditional Kansas City barbecue delicacy cut from the flavorful, charred points of smoked brisket. The secret's not really in the sauce, although I Burnt Mine offers a Kansas City-style sweet, tomato-based sauce, as well as a Texas-style red, a Carolina-style mustard sauce and a Memphis-style dry rub, which really isn't a sauce. The sauce does make a difference, though, so I Burnt Mine prepares its slow-smoked meats moist and lets patrons choose the sauce. "The sauce always goes on at the end, otherwise it keeps the flavor of the wood smoke from getting to the meat," Higgins said. "We cook ours with a dry rub and injections." Higgins knows a thing or two about good barbecue. Long before the award-winning pitmaster and his wife, Monica, moved to Naples in 2007, they entered barbecue competitions in their native Kansas City every year since 1988. Right out of the gate, their team won first place in the barbecue mecca's miscellaneous category, and Dave Higgins was hooked. "We've been back to compete every year since and have managed to win quite a few ribbons over the years," he said. "In 2013 we took first place in the pork category with a perfect score, which only happens a handful of times each year." After sampling his award-winning entries, Dave Higgins' friends in Naples encouraged him to launch a local barbecue restaurant along the lines of Brown Bag BBQ, which closed nearly two years ago after operating for more than 28 years in Golden Gate. The winning team's funny name from the start I Burnt Mine seemed like a good place to start. "That's been our team name for the last 28 years, so I didn't want to mess with it," Higgins said. That humble manner extends to cooking techniques for the meat, kind of harkening back to primeval times. "You can dress it up all you want, but I think the simpler you get the better," Higgins said. That also can be said of his initial bare bones menu and brief hours of operation. Higgins' plan is to start simple and expand the menu and hours as warranted. "I'm sort of playing it by ear to see what works," he said. Lunch specials, served 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily with a choice of two small sides, feature a pulled pork sandwich ($7.69), a half rack of ribs ($8.99), brisket sandwich ($9.99), chicken quarter ($7.69), and burnt ends sandwich ($9.99). Dinner specials feature the above items for $1 or $2 more with two large sides. In addition, dinner offerings include a full rack of baby back ribs ($16.99), brisket ($14.99), chicken half ($10.99) and burnt ends ($14.99). End any meal with a house-baked chocolate chip cookie for $1. In addition to the classic, I Burnt Mine has created a special twist with its hot chile chocolate chip cookie, proving that hot peppers go surprisingly well with chocolate. The cookies are the only product sold that is not gluten-free. All of the meats are prepared gluten-free with rubs made of paprika, chili powder, salt, sugar, onion powder, garlic powder and cayenne pepper. Dine-in and takeout services are available at I Burnt Mine Barbeque, in the former space of Empire Bagel Factory in the Sherwin-Williams retail center on the corner of Guilford Road and the East Trail. "I want a nice place for people to come to," Higgins said. "I would like to train people to stop and pick up barbecue on the way home." I Burnt Mine Barbeque, 3802 U.S. 41 E., is open 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Mondays and Tuesdays, and 11 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Wednesdays through Saturdays. The eatery is closed Sundays, but that may change in the future, Higgins said. For information call 239-234-5260 or go to www.iburntmine.com. Know more For the latest in local restaurants coming and going, see Tim Aten's "In the Know" columns archived at naplesnews.com/intheknow, and on Facebook at facebook.com/timaten.intheknow. A rendering of Midtown Kitchen & Bar, a new local restaurant targeted to open in March 2016 in the former TGI Friday's space in Naples. (David Poorman Architect LLC) Tim Aten In The Know SHARE A rendering of Midtown Kitchen & Bar, a new local restaurant targeted to open in March 2016 in the former TGI Friday's space in Naples. (David Poorman Architect LLC) Longtime local restaurateur Michael Hernandez is opening a new restaurant in March 2016 in the former TGI Friday's location in Naples. (Tim Aten/Daily News staff) Naples restaurateur Michael Hernandez Public House, another restaurant from Michael Hernandez, will anchor Creekside Corners this year on the southeast corner of Immokalee Road and Goodlette-Frank Road in North Naples. Set to provide a little downtown vibe a little more uptown, Midtown Kitchen & Bar is under construction to replace the former TGI Friday's hangout this spring in Naples. Local restaurateurs Michael and Lisa Hernandez, owners of HobNob Kitchen & Bar on Fifth Avenue South in downtown Naples, are planning to launch another restaurant at the end of March featuring a menu of creative American cuisine, sort of a fusion or crossbreeding with international flavors. "We can take anything and meld it into American cuisine," Michael Hernandez said. The new venue will be slightly more casual than HobNob, but it will have a larger bar area in the center of the restaurant. "We detected a need for a fun, neighborhood restaurant with a great nightlife scene," Michael Hernandez said in a news release emailed Tuesday. "Midtown is geared towards Naples consumers that don't wish to drive five miles each way to visit the waterfront restaurants. They will have everything right in their backyard." While specific menu items have yet to be revealed, Midtown plans some healthier dishes and small plates. "The modern consumer is eating more healthful, so we will respond to this with the strong use of quinoa, kale and farro in our dishes," Michael Hernandez said. "We also believe in the trend towards small plates and the grazing effect. People want to spend about $12 for these plates to try different flavors." The new restaurant is being built out to anchor the southern end of Gateway of Naples, the shopping center owned and managed by Continental Realty Corp. on the northeast corner of U.S. 41 and Golden Gate Parkway. "Gateway of Naples is in the middle of town and emerged as the perfect location for us to introduce our restaurant concept," Michael Hernandez said. Patrons will immediately notice the new look of the space. Expect a more subtle exterior with gray awnings replacing the trademark red-and-white-striped awnings that the Friday's chain displayed there for more than 20 years. In addition to gray, the outdoor palette will feature white and brown with painted stucco, wood panels and exterior sunshade louvres. One prominent exterior addition will be a canopy that will jut out at the restaurant's main entrance and be supported by a wood-clad pillar. The interior has been gutted since Friday's closed in September 2014. Although the completely redesigned bar, kitchen and restrooms will be near where they have been for decades, expect a soft, modern look, said Michael Hernandez, who is functioning as general contractor for his latest project. "We're trying to keep it comfortable with the food and the design," he said. "We want it to be a comfortable place when they walk in." Midtown will be a dinner-only restaurant, at least initially. Michael Hernandez plans to open during the day on Saturdays and Sundays, but not right away. "We'll work into that," he said. At least 20 seats for outdoor dining will be at the northwest corner of the restaurant. Next to the patio is a new private dining room that seats 20 and can be connected to the patio by opening sliding doors, Michael Hernandez said. Midtown is one of two restaurants under construction by the Hernandez team. Public House is targeted to open in August to anchor the new Creekside Corners retail center on the southeast corner of Goodlette-Frank and Immokalee roads, Michael Hernandez said. Midtown "is more casual than HobNob, and Public House will be more casual than (Midtown)," he said. Public House will serve lunch and dinner and have a full bar. The new restaurant on the highly visible corner of the L-shaped center will have 6,750 square feet with additional square footage outdoors for open and covered seating. Interior buildout will begin soon of the recently completed neighborhood center, which also will be home to the third location for Komoon Thai Sushi & Ceviche, the first area McAlister's Deli drive-thru, BurgerFi's second area location, Smoothie King, and other restaurants and retail businesses. The two new dining spots for Michael Hernandez will continue a string of local restaurants he began creating in the late 1980s. In addition to HobNob, which he has operated since December 2013, he previously owned Michael's Cafe, the original Bistro 821, Trios, Zoe's and Aqua Grill. He also took over the former Handsome Harry's Third Street Bistro. Know more For the latest in local restaurants coming and going, see Tim Aten's "In the Know" columns archived at naplesnews.com/intheknow, and on Facebook at facebook.com/timaten.intheknow. SHARE It's not going to be easy to stop Donald Trump from winning the Republican nomination and probably then losing to the trick-a-day, policy-confused Hillary Clinton or doing something else to make us tremble. He could actually come to occupy the White House and then unleash hoards of his promised barbaric errors. The erasure of his chances, which is nothing short of a duty for those who have closely examined him, will also be arduous. In addition to Ben Carson and John Kasich joining the 12 who have already skadoodled from the race, we need to have as many as feel right about it to become actively involved in promoting the candidacy of the exuberantly special Marco Rubio. They need to speak up loud and clear for him, to enunciate carefully why he is a better choice than Trump or even the somewhat less worrisome Ted Cruz. This won't be easy. It can mean shoving ego aside, of humbling themselves a tad, but there's a reason they should act: wanting what's best for America instead of what most heightens sense of self. Simply following the example of Jeb Bush, who said hi, ho away he goes after being trounced in South Carolina, isn't enough because it is uncertain how many of those votes will float in Rubio's direction. For sure, it's thought by some that the best Trump's zaniness-laden marketing skills can accomplish is to win about a third of all votes, but there are other statistical investigations that indicate otherwise. That's why it's crucial for some to keep campaigning even when it's for someone else, although dropping out is Step 1 even when it comes to someone as well-qualified as Kasich. He was in the House of Representatives for 18 years, serving in major positions and learning how D.C. works. He is in his second term as the enormously successful governor of Ohio. Unlike Cruz, whose often deceptive, self-advertising, overwrought stances have never accomplished boo in Washington, he tells the truth, shines with goodness, works with others and gets things done. Despite a surprise showing in New Hampshire, however, he does not have a chance in this race and could do a world of good by leaving the campaign and pushing hard for Rubio, who fares much better and seems mostly in tune with his views. While Rubio should promise them nothing for their support and they should give it without expectations, some of these ex-candidates could play important parts in a Rubio administration. It's not the least bit hard to imagine Bush as a terrific secretary of defense or Chris Christie as an outstanding attorney general. Carson could be a surgeon general of exceptional merit and here's who Rubio's running mate should be: Kasich, whose experience would counterbalance Rubio's relative inexperience, one of his negatives. He has others, and even I do not agree with all his positions, but I also honestly believe he has the demonstrated character and intellect to give us a unifying 21st-century administration that could make us more secure, boost the economy, lift spirits and reinvigorate a wilting exceptionalism. That's a positive message that ought to be preached, but there's an honest, not so comfortable message about Trump that needs spreading, too. I am not talking about something evil, as when President Barack Obama's supporters as much as accused Mitt Romney in 2012 of killing a woman in a grotesquely misleading TV ad. There can be factually accurate, calmly stated expositions of a candidate who openly calls for the families of terrorists to be killed, who advocates policies that could put hundreds of thousands out of work, who is one day for the Obamacare mandate and the next day isn't. The list is long to the point of exhaustion, but information counts, America counts and some of Rubio's former opponents must therefore stand up and do the right thing. An ibis flies above the swamp. Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary hosted visitors for a back country swamp buggy tour as part of their World Wetlands Day celebration. Lance Shearer/Citizen Correspondent SHARE Recent rains have left the upland woods drenched. Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary hosted visitors for a back country swamp buggy tour as part of their World Wetlands Day celebration. Lance Shearer/Citizen Correspondent Corkscrew resource manager Allyson Webb points out a flock of ibis. Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary hosted visitors for a back country swamp buggy tour as part of their World Wetlands Day celebration. Lance Shearer/Citizen Correspondent An alligator basks in the morning sunlight. Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary hosted visitors for a back country swamp buggy tour as part of their World Wetlands Day celebration. Lance Shearer/Citizen Correspondent Corkscrew resource manager Allyson Webb and volunteer driver Paul Caffrey keep their eyes open for wildlife. Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary hosted visitors for a back country swamp buggy tour as part of their World Wetlands Day celebration. Lance Shearer/Citizen Correspondent By Lance Shearer, Citizen Correspondent Visiting Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary is a trip that should be on the "bucket list" of everyone in Southwest Florida. The Audubon Society's boardwalk takes you on a 2.25-mile roundtrip pathway into the sanctuary, offering views of a variety of wildlife in habitats including towering, 500-year-old trees in an old-growth bald cypress swamp. The preserve hosts 100,000 visitors a year, and the boardwalk is where they go. But with 13,000 acres of Corkscrew, surrounded by 65,000 acres of additional state-owned South Florida Water Management District land of the Corkscrew Regional Ecosystem Watershed, there is a world beyond the boardwalk that few ever get to see. "Part of the Corkscrew Sanctuary is not usually open to visitor access," said Sally Stein, director of public programs for the preserve. "It is managed for wildlife and habitat. On occasion, we offer special educational programs with access to some of these closed areas, to give people a chance to learn more about what we do here." The occasion in this case was World Wetlands Day, celebrated around the world since 1997. Corkscrew was designated a "Wetland of International Importance" in 2010 under the global Ramsar Convention on Wetlands. So on a crisp Friday morning, seven visitors joined guide Allyson Webb, a resource manager for Corkscrew, and volunteer driver Paul Caffrey climbing aboard an open, fat-tired buggy named Janthina. The open deck, accessed by ladders fore and aft, rose 5 feet above the surrounding terrain, with a railing above. Skirting the boardwalk, the expedition headed north and east, through habitats including upland pine flatlands, grass-covered savannah and marshes looking out over open stretches of water. The buggy bounced along as the surface went from pavement to limerock and then to dirt. Eventually, the trail became just a muddy strip, the only place that Janthina could go without being blocked by trees or plunging into the water. In fact, water was everywhere, after the strikingly wet winter the area has had, much higher than is normal for this time of year. If the water level is too high, fish will not be concentrated into pools where Corkscrew's resident wood storks can catch them in the quantities needed estimated at over 400 pounds of fish per brood of wood storks. Each guide brings her own lens and area of expertise to bear on the tours the conduct, and Webb was no exception. She is responsible for conducting controlled or "prescribed" burns within the sanctuary, to keep the undergrowth from growing too riotously, simulating what lightning strikes and nature have achieved on their own for millennia before humans intervened. Fires also help keep down the exotic vegetation that has gained a foothold in Corkscrew, and Janthina's passengers heard a good deal about the how, when and why of prescribed burns. "Fire is the most effective management tool we have," said Webb. "And still, we never fully eradicate anything. I guess it's job security." She also pointed out wildlife spotted along the trail, from white-tailed deer to a family of otters that scampered across the path in front of the buggy. Of course, no trek into Florida's backcountry is complete without a sighting of Alligator mississippiensis, the American alligator, and several fine specimens were sunning themselves close at hand as the Janthina motored past. One of them didn't want to yield the right of way, enabling the passengers to get good photos before he slithered off into the water. The passengers also spotted a virtual nature guide-full of native birds, from wood storks to anhinga, red-tailed hawks, ibis, belted kingfisthers, roseate spoonbills, tri-colored, little green, and great blue and night herons, black and turkey vultures. Webb offered one very practical tip about birdwatching in areas where birds rule the roost: when you're under a tree full of tree swallows, never look up with your mouth open. With his massive 400mm f2.8 lens mounted on a Nikon single lens reflex camera, Harry Nieman was toting a camera that could get closeup shots of the gator's dental work, not to mention tight shots of the birds when the buggy stopped moving. "Yeah, I had to sell some of my wife's jewelry to buy this lens, but she doesn't know it yet," he said, cradling the camera like a bazooka. Lynn Duncan of Bonita Springs traded back and forth between her zoom lens and a pair of binoculars, both strapped around her neck. You don't have to ride in a swamp buggy to have your own experience of the swamp. Corkscrew's boardwalk is a not-to-be-missed nature walk, wheelchair-accessible, that is open to all. You can stroll the swamp alone in a cathedral-like hush, or if you time it right, take a guided tour. If You Go: Corkscrew Sanctuary's boardwalk is open daily from 7 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. (Note: Boardwalk admission closes at 4:30 p.m.) Admission (fees are valid for two consecutive days): Adult: $14 Full-time college student with photo ID: $6 National Audubon Society member with current membership card: $6 Student (6-18 years old): $4 Children under 6: free Friends of Corkscrew members: Free with current membership card. Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary & Blair Audubon Center 375 Sanctuary Road West, Naples 34120 239-348-9151 No pets only service animals are allowed on the boardwalk. SHARE Shailu Joseph exemplifies the friendly, helpful spirit of the Arlington's staff. The Arlington retirement home in East Naples held a grand opening celebration on Tuesday, Feb. 23. Lance Shearer/Citizen Correspondent Fitness coordinator Mildred Octelus shows off the exercise facilities. The Arlington retirement home in East Naples held a grand opening celebration on Tuesday, Feb. 23. Lance Shearer/Citizen Correspondent The Arlington retirement home in East Naples held a grand opening celebration on Tuesday, Feb. 23. Lance Shearer/Citizen Correspondent Dorothy and Donald Chaulk, some of the first residentssay they like the community's 'personal touch.' The Arlington retirement home in East Naples held a grand opening celebration on Tuesday, Feb. 23. Lance Shearer/Citizen Correspondent By Lance Shearer, Citizen Correspondent "They come in and make the bed for me!" Dorothy Chaulk was excited about her new home, and it is new not just for her and her husband Donald, but new all around, just recently completed and ready to make an impact on the senior living scene in Naples. The Chaulks were actually the first to move into the Arlington of Naples, on Oct. 15, and they couldn't be happier, they said. "I like the privacy, the quiet, the ambiance, and the just-right size," said Dorothy Chaulk. "They go way beyond what they have to. It's the personal touch." "I had a stroke (after moving in), and the staff came and visited me in the hospital," said Donald Chaulk. While the Chaulks live in a villa home at Arlington, this new player in Naples retirement living offers a full spectrum of living arrangements from independent to assisted living, skilled nursing and memory care for those afflicted with dementia. The Arlington held a grand opening ceremony on Tuesday, Feb. 23, for their CCRC, or Continuing Care Retirement Community, at the community's campus off Lely Cultural Parkway, across the street from the Collier County South Regional Library. Lutheran Life Communities, with a 125-year history of providing living facilities for seniors, has numerous other retirement homes, most in the Midwest, centered on the Chicago area. Affiliated with both the Missouri Synod and the Evangelical Lutheran arms of the denomination, the Arlington of Naples is proud to be faith-based, but stressed they are open to all, regardless of belief or lack thereof. The Arlington is the only faith-based nonprofit CCRC provider of senior housing and services in the Naples area, said Rex Paisley, corporate communications director. Being among those who moved in before the grand opening, the Chaulks are part of the "Founders' Club," and wore special name tags during the ceremony and the reception that followed. One example they gave of the caring attitude they had found at the Arlington was the care taken during the construction process not to disturb anything of historical or archaeological significance. "When they were building, Native Americans participated," said Dorothy Chaulk. "If artifacts were found, everything stopped." Ken and Mary Jo Courey, sitting underneath market umbrellas on the outside courtyard, are also Founders' Club members. "We bought on paper a long time ago five years," said Mary Jo Courey. "Back then, all we had were pictures to show us what it might be." "We had to have a certain percent of the residences pre-sold before the bank would let us break ground," said Paisley. "It's a testament to the people we were working with" that they were able to complete the project, even with the economic downturn that hit during their pre-sale process. The Arlington has space for approximately 325 residents. As of Tuesday, about 150 had actually taken up residence, said Arlington CEO Roger W. Paulsberg. "We've had about 100 moves," he said. Paulsberg was the keynote speaker at the grand opening ceremony, before the ceremonial ribbon cutting. "For those of you who have not yet entered these doors, you will soon find a community that has been thoughtfully designed, carefully planned and meticulously built," he told the crowd of invited guests. Michael Wynn, immediate past president of the Greater Naples Chamber of Commerce, also spoke to welcome the facility to the area. The facility, with a cultural arts center/theater space, soaring entry foyer, indoor aquatic center, salon and spa adjacent to a fitness center, chapel, and casual and formal dining spaces, did justice to Paulsberg's remarks, giving every indication of the care and experience that had gone into its creation. On Tuesday, with balmy breezes and a blue sky overhead, most present left the inside spaces, though, to enjoy the atmosphere on the outside terraces with views of sparkling lake and a glowing fire pit. Paulsberg, who has responsibility for all the Lutheran Life Communities, also announced the new executive director for Arlington of Naples, Bill Diamond, who will be starting at the end of March. To learn more about the Arlington and explore residential possibilities, call 239-307-3000 or go online to arlingtonnaples.org. SHARE By T.R. Kerth, Citizen Contributor A monkey walked into a bar in Brazil. No, seriously. That's not the start of a bad joke. It's the start of an actual story in the news last weekend one that just cries out for bad jokes to be told about it. In case you missed the story about the bar-hopping capuchin, here it is: After wandering through the bar and finishing off the half-empty rum drinks that patrons had left on the tables, the pickled monkey slipped into the kitchen, where he got his mitts on a carving knife as long as a hobbit's sword. If you don't believe me, Google it. There's even a video. The news story doesn't explain why nobody seemed to notice the monkey until he pulled a knife. I've never been to a bar in Brazil, so I can't say whether a drunken monkey would stand out. But I've been to plenty of bars here in the States, so I'm willing to give the bar security staff the benefit of the doubt. Then, armed with a knife and perhaps fearing that he would be asked to pay the tab for the dregs he had downed, the monkey "began chasing the men in the establishment," according to local fire Lt. Col. Saul Laurentino. But he left the women alone. Because, I guess (bad mixed menagerie metaphor alert!) that drunk-as-a-skunk monkey wanted to be top dog among the lounge lizards weaving their web for hot-to-trot salsa chicks. (Hey, I warned you it was coming.) Someone called the fire department probably one of the Brazilian cops who had been chased out of the bar by the slasher-monkey. Cops have gotten a bad enough rap lately. They don't need a viral video of one of them punching out a monkey. When the firefighters got there they found the monkey up on the roof, stabbing the shingles for reasons only a drunken monkey could explain. The firefighters talked the monkey down, disarmed him, then released him on his own recognizance back into the wild, figuring, I guess, that it was really the shingles that set him off. The men in the bar were probably mistaken in thinking that he was targeting them. Besides, the women had no beef with him. What woman could resist a primate willing to slash the competition over her? But once free, the sloshed monkey continued his reign of terror by behaving aggressively toward local onlookers living nearby, screeching something that probably translated: "Who you lookin' at? I am not an animal!" In the aftermath, local authorities are now debating whether it was a mistake to let the monkey walk, or whether it should have been incarcerated permanently. Whoever made the call to spring the angry alky-ape is likely to get chimp-smacked into unemployment. For now, that's the end of the story. But if history is any guide, the controversy has just begun. Some will surely argue that if the legislature had banned knives long ago, the story wouldn't have amounted to anything more than a drunken, smelly, flea-ridden primate making a scene before being bounced from a bar. In other words: A typical Friday night. At the same time, the NKA (National Knife Association) is sure to step up and say, "This never would have happened if every man in that bar had his own knife. Because the only thing that can stop a bad monkey with a knife is a good monkey with a knife." Knife sales will spike. Some will even be bought by humans though the laws won't require that they prove it. Tee-totalers will rise up and demand that a new warning label be attached to all bottles of liquor: "The Surgeon General has determined that drinking alcohol increases your chances of being shanked by a simian." Liquor sales will spike. Bar owners will challenge the tee-totalers, claiming that none of this would have happened if patrons had only finished their drinks instead of leaving them half-drunk on the table tops for monkeys to guzzle. Drinking alcohol isn't the problem, they will argue it's not drinking your alcohol all the way to the bottom of the glass. They will offer happy-hour safety specials: a free fill-up for every empty glass returned to the bar. Bars will be jammed to maximum capacity, leaving no room for even a single thirsty monkey to squeeze in. Local politicians will campaign on the promise to build a monkey-proof wall around every bar in Brazil and to make the monkeys pay for it. Jane Goodall will issue a statement in response: "We should be building monkey-bridges, not monkey-walls." Before the end of the year, the blockbuster movie "Mad Monk" will be released, featuring Danny Devito in the starring role, with Seth Rogen playing him in his younger years. It will nab top honors at the Academy Awards despite protests from animal-rights groups that one of those actors is actually a human. Kanye West will boycott the awards, tweeting a hashtag-laden statement that wouldn't make sense even to a drunken monkey. - - - The author splits his time between Southwest Florida and Chicago. Not every day, though. Contact him at trkerth@yahoo.com. Why wait a whole week for your next visit to Planet Kerth? Get T.R.'s book, "Revenge of the Sardines," available now at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other fine online book distributors. His column appears every Saturday. By Kristine Gill A Lee County judge on Wednesday decided Jimmy Ray Rodgers will be held without bond on homicide charges in the June killing of Bonita Springs doctor Teresa Sievers. The 25-year-old Missouri man is one of two arrested in the crime. Both are accused of traveling across the country to kill Sievers in her home as she returned from a family vacation alone. Given that he violated federal probation to commit the crime, a state prosecutor argued he should be held without bond. Theres really no court order which would constrain Mr. Rogers to the jurisdictional boundaries of the state of Florida, Assistant State Attorney Hamid Hunter said. Rogers was the first to appear during the hearing. In a green jumpsuit, he was escorted by two jail deputies and appeared over closed-circuit court television. Lee County Judge James Adams said Rodgers will be held without bond. He faces as much as life in prison on the first-degree felony charge. Rodgers will be assigned a public defender. Rodgers was extradited from Illinois Monday where he was serving a six-month federal prison sentence for violating his probation by traveling to Florida, allegedly for the killing. His accomplice, Curtis Wayne Wright Jr., also is in jail in Lee County awaiting trial. In this file photo, Florida Gulf Coast University President Wilson Bradshaw talks about the university's Emergent Technologies Institute (ETI) and its impact on the region to the Greater Naples Chamber of Commerce at the Hilton Naples on Wednesday, August 12, 2015. Bradshaw announced his retirement in 2017. (Scott McIntyre/Staff) SHARE By Maryann Batlle of the Naples Daily News Florida Gulf Coast University will soon begin searching for a new president. Last year, Wilson Bradshaw announced plans to retire when his contract expires in June 2017. Bradshaw, 65, is the university's longest-serving president. FGCU Board of Trustees Chairman J. Dudley Goodlette, in a plan outlined Tuesday to find Bradshaw's successor, said he will appoint a "Presidential Search Advisory Committee" by April 19, the date of the next trustees meeting. "There is a great deal to be done," Goodlette said during Tuesday's FGCU board meeting. Goodlette said he will choose the advisory committee members from among the trustees, faculty, staff, student body, academic deans, alumni organization, FGCU Foundation, FGCU Financing Corporation and community. The Florida Board of Governors, which oversees the state's public universities, will likely add Edward Morton, of Naples, to the committee, Goodlette said. Morton is managing director of the investment firm Wasmer & Schroeder & Company, based in Naples. Gov. Rick Scott appointed him to the Board of Governors in 2013. Morton has a Master's Degree from FGCU. FGCU Trustee Ken Smith, also a Scott appointee, will chair the committee. Smith, of Fort Myers, was executive vice president and chief operating officer of Alico Inc. Trustee Robbie Roepstorff will be vice chairman. Roepstorff is president of Edison National Bank/Bank of the Islands. FGCU Vice President and Chief of Staff Susan Evans is part of the committee because "she is a resource that I don't know what we would do without," said Goodlette. Evans has been with FGCU since 1993 and was one of the "founding team of five employees," according to the university. Once established, the advisory committee would have to create a timeline and determine what the selection process will entail, Goodlette said. FGCU must draft an announcement for the job and determine possible compensation, with help from an outside consultant, said Goodlette. As of November, Bradshaw's annual salary was $415,429.65. FGCU's trustees would select the final candidate. Florida Board of Governors would have to confirm him or her, Goodlette said. The next president will have to get used to being a notable face in the community, like Bradshaw, said Smith, chairman of the new advisory committee. Bradshaw was hired in 2007 as the university's third president. He replaced Bill Merwin, who resigned after admitting to having an affair with a faculty member. Bradshaw inherited the university "in a time of turmoil, and he moved us to where we are today," said Smith. "He took us through one of the worst budgeting times in the history of the state and kept the ship steady," said Smith. "The next leader will take what Dr. Bradshaw has done to this point and move that whole vision forward." SHARE By Melhor Leonor of the Naples Daily News Florida is outpacing most other states in both the number of students taking and passing Advanced Placement exams. According to a report released Tuesday by the College Board, which administers the exams, 31 percent of Florida high school seniors who took one or more AP exams scored a level three or higher. These are considered passing scores and often earn students college credit at many higher education institutions. The national average is 22 percent. Florida also ranked second in the nation for the percentage of 2015 high school graduates who sat for an AP exam at some point in high school. That number is 58 percent; the national average is 37 percent. In a statement Tuesday, Florida Department of Education officials highlighted the Lee County public school district for landing in the College Board's District Honor Roll. The honor is conferred to districts that "increase access to AP courses ... while simultaneously increasing the percentage of students earning scores of 3 or higher on AP exams." FILE - Collier County Clerk of Courts Dwight Brock stands by while debating with Georgia Hiller during a Collier County Commission meeting on Tuesday, September 9, 2014. (Scott McIntyre/Staff) By Greg Stanley of the Naples Daily News Collier County Clerk Dwight Brock said Tuesday he will appeal a judge's decision last week to throw out his lawsuit against the county manager, purchasing director and commissioners over the way the government pays its vendors. An appeal was all but inevitable no matter which way the Circuit Court ruled in a case that could have statewide ramifications. The question is whether county governments like Collier can allow their top unelected officials to make certain purchases without direct approval from commissioners. Collier commissioners, who allow their manager and purchasing director to buy budgeted items under $50,000, say the practice is necessary to keep the government operating. Brock, who sued in April, says it keeps the public in the dark, arguing that only elected officials have the authority under state law to spend public money. Judge James R. Shenko sided with the county last week, tossing Brock's complaint and calling such purchases "administrative and ministerial." "The county manager and his designees have the lawful authority to make purchases," Shenko said in the ruling. "Such authority was properly delegated by the county commission." Brock, who has spent the better part of a decade in and out of court with commissioners, said he has a very good chance of succeeding in appellate court. "I don't make political decisions," Brock said. "The board of county commissioners makes political decisions. When the board makes a decision, I have to decide whether an expenditure is lawful. Our forefathers put that role in our statutes for a reason, as a checks and balances. I will continue to do my job as long as I am clerk." Commissioner Georgia Hiller, who announced Tuesday that she will run against Brock in the August primaries for clerk, called the appeal a waste of money. "He's using our county's money to litigate this issue (statewide)," Hiller said. "The clerk can't stop litigating and wasting taxpayers' money." By Ryan Mills of the Naples Daily News Crawling through the smoke and flames, Christian Valiente searched for the woman trapped in her burning Bonita Springs home Tuesday morning. "I was calling for the lady. She was responding. I found the door she was in. I was banging on it," said Valiente, a landscaper who was working across the street when the fire erupted. "I was like 'Ma'am, you need to lay down. I'm here to get you out. You have to get out.'" Valiente ran out of the home, his skin steaming, and knocked out the woman's window with his hand. He climbed in. It was too late. The woman, identified by family members and property appraiser records as Shirley Corrigan, 75, was killed after the blaze erupted inside her 27567 Dortch Ave. home, which housed four generations of her family. Their pet pitbull, Nilla, also was killed. Two family members Corrigan's granddaughter Kristy Phillips, 36, and 2-year-old granddaughter, Kristiana escaped. "My mom is in there. She couldn't get down the hallway fast enough to get out," said Kimberly Phillips, Corrigan's daughter, who was working at 7-Eleven at the time of the fire. "My daughter tried getting her, but it was too smoky. My dog stayed right with my mom." Bonita Springs firefighters received a 911 call about the fire at 8:42 a.m. and were on scene by 8:47 a.m. When they arrived the home was engulfed in heavy smoke and flames, Chief Joseph Daigle said. Family members and bystanders told them Corrigan was still inside. "They dove through the window under heavy smoke and fire conditions and did a primary search," he said. "During that primary search they did find a pet there, a dog. ... Then they were beat back by heavy smoke and flames." Kristy Phillips said she was feeding her daughter eggs and watching television in a back room when the fire erupted. "I smelled smoke coming from another room in the house. ... I smelled plastic burning. I come running out of the room and the flames and the smoke hit me in the face," Kristy Phillips said. "I grabbed my baby. I went to grab my grandma. I couldn't find her and I couldn't help her." The Bonita firefighters were not the first people who ran into the fiery house. Jameson Gray, 29, and Valiente, 21, were working at a home across the street for a local landscaping company, Scott Gray Lawn Service, when they saw and smelled clouds of smoke. Gray and Valiente ran toward the fire, along with neighbors Jason Barnes, 23, and Mark Higginson, 53. Gray recalled seeing Kristy Phillips out in the street crying for help. "She said 'My mother is in the house. My mother is in the house.' And (Valiente) and I just went boom, right inside the house, right through the front door of the house," Gray said. "He's on his hands and knees crawling around. He's going for the lady screaming bloody murder in the house. I grabbed the kid inside by the front door. She was sitting crouched on the ground. I grabbed the kid and brung the kid outside, brung it to the lady on the phone. "It's people's souls alive, man." After busting out the window, Valiente said he called for Corrigan, but she didn't respond. He could hear her dog whining. He went in. "I was shuffling around on the floor," he said. "I couldn't find the dog. I was getting cut more than anything. So I just proceeded to look around a little further, and then the police officer told me to get out. He pulled me out and dragged me out and told me we had to leave." It was scary, Valiente said. He wishes he could have done more. Daigle said all of the men who rushed to help, without firefighting gear, are heroes. "When you have something like that happening in front of you, instead of not do anything, it says something to the character of the people who decide to take action to help somebody," he said. "Their first reaction was to heed the call of somebody needing help." Lee County Property Appraiser records show the three-bedroom, two-bath wood-frame home was built in 1959. It is owned by Corrigan and Kimberly Phillips, who purchased it in 1997. The home is a total loss, Daigle said. The cause of the fire is under investigation by the State Fire Marshal's Office and the Lee County Arson Taskforce. The Red Cross is assisting the family. There were seven fatal fires in Collier and Lee counties combined in 2015, up from five in 2014, according to the State Fire Marshal's Office. FILE - In this Feb. 23, 2016 file photo, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks in Las Vegas. Legions of Republican voters are coming to grips with the idea that Donald Trump may be their partys best chance for retaking the White House. Some love the idea. For many others, theres shock, confusion and anxiousness, but also a feeling that hed be better than another four years with a Democrat in the White House. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File) SHARE By Ben Brody and James Nash, Bloomberg News With the first presidential nominating contests now in the books, the focus of the race is jumping ahead to the biggest prize so far of the 2016 primary season: Super Tuesday. More than a dozen states and territories will hold primaries and caucuses on March 1, following the Nevada Republican contest Tuesday night and the South Carolina Democratic contest on Saturday. About half of the delegates needed for a Republican candidate to win the nomination are up for grabs and will be awarded proportionally, along with about a third for Democrats. That means that strong performances by Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton on Tuesday -- also called the S.E.C. primary because of the southern swath of states that will vote -- could help them clinch the nominations by mid-March. Many of these states have not been polled regularly in recent weeks, and poll averages -- or the race itself -- could change significantly. For now, here's a breakdown of the standings and dynamics. Alabama: - Democrats (60 delegates, 53 pledged, according to Ballotpedia). In the 2008 primary, Clinton lost by 14 points to Barack Obama, and a big reason was African-Americans, who made up 51 percent of the electorate. Running this year against Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, Clinton has displayed more strength with black voters, winning the group by almost 4-to-1 in Feb. 20's Nevada caucuses, according to entrance polls. Only two polls for the race between Sanders and Clinton have been conducted this year, and each gives her a sizable advantage, according to RealClearPolitics, the polling aggregation site. - Republicans (50 delegates, 47 bound). These Republicans tend to be white, conservative, and evangelical. Trump, who held one of his earliest stadium-sized rallies in the state in August with an eye toward the contest, leads by more than 20 points in the RCP aggregation. Alabama Republicans backed former Pennsylvania senator Rick Santorum in 2012 by a margin of 5 percentage points over Newt Gingrich, the former House speaker from neighboring Georgia, who also had a strong conservative following. Mitt Romney, the eventual nominee, finished in third place. Alaska: - Republicans (28 delegates, 25 bound). Though reliably Republican in presidential races, Alaska is among the least religious states, with just 62 percent of the population identifying as Christian. The state is dependent on a single industry -- oil and gas production -- that has declined with the drop in global oil prices, stoking economic anxiety in the state. Its former governor, Sarah Palin, the 2008 Republican vice presidential nominee, endorsed Trump, but her views are sometimes controversial in her home state. An Alaska Dispatch poll conducted in January showed Trump leading Cruz by 4 percentage points. Democrats hold their caucuses later. American Samoa: - Democrats (10 delegates, 6 pledged). Clinton defeated Obama on this tiny territorial island in 2008, 163 votes to 121, according to the New York Times. Arkansas: - Democrats (37 delegates, 32 pledged). Clinton, who was Arkansas's first lady for nearly 12 years, has deep ties to the moderate Democratic voters in the state, where she beat Obama by 43 points in 2008. In the RCP average, she leads Sanders by more than 28 points. - Republicans (40 delegates, 37 bound). This Southern state is another bastion of social conservatives, with a law on the books that would outlaw abortion immediately if Roe v. Wade were overturned. In 2012, the state's Republican primary was held on May 22, by which time Santorum and Gingrich had dropped out, making Romney the winner with more than two-thirds of the vote. Former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee, who won strong evangelical support in his 2008 presidential campaign, ran again this year, but dropped out after the Iowa caucuses. He appeared at a campaign event with Trump before withdrawing, but Huckabee has not endorsed a candidate. A Talk Business/Hendrix College poll conducted this month showed Ted Cruz leading Trump by 4 percentage points. Colorado: - Democrats (79 delegates, 66 pledged). The dynamics in this purple caucus state are some of the more challenging to discern, said Ken Goldstein, a University of San Francisco political science professor and Bloomberg Politics contributor. Sanders and Clinton will vie for the support of the state's Hispanic residents, who make up about one fifth of the population. Obama handily won the caucuses in 2008. On the Republican side, Colorado is one of several states and territories that will not award delegates based on a primary or caucus vote. The others are North Dakota, Wyoming, American Samoa, and Guam; some hold events related to the nominating process on March 1, while others are later. Their delegates are free to support any candidate they like. Georgia: - Democrats (116 delegates, 102 pledged). As in many neighboring states, a large percentage of Georgia Democrats are black, and Clinton's success among African-Americans in Nevada -- along with an expected good performance in South Carolina -- suggests a decisive lead among the demographic, buoying her as long as she doesn't lose too many whites to Sanders, according to Goldstein. Clinton already has an advantage of 43 points there, according to the latest RCP average. - Republicans (76 delegates). Georgia Republicans backed native son Gingrich in 2012 by a nearly 2-to-1 margin over Romney. The RCP average of polls conducted this year shows Trump leading Cruz by 11 percentage points. Trump won the primary in neighboring South Carolina decisively. Southern Baptists are the largest religious denomination, and the state Senate in 2009 passed a bill to nullify federal laws deemed unconstitutional, even though the Supreme Court has ruled that states can't usurp that authority. Massachusetts: - Democrats (116 delegates, 91 pledged). Massachusetts borders Sanders' home state of Vermont and has typically voted for progressive Democrats. Although Clinton beat Obama there by 15 points in 2008, Sanders leads it by about 4 points in the one poll from this year, according to RCP. - Republicans (42 delegates, 39 bound). Romney's home state favored its former governor by nearly 60 percentage points over Santorum in 2012. One of the most liberal states in the country, Massachusetts favors Republican candidates with more moderate, pro-business pedigrees like Romney and Scott Brown, who represented the state in the Senate for three years. Catholics make up the the largest segment of the state's Christian population, which might benefit Rubio, the only Catholic candidate remaining in the race. Still, Trump carried neighboring New Hampshire and overwhelmingly led in a recent Emerson poll. Minnesota: - Democrats (93 delegates, 77 pledged). The state has not been polled since before February, and it's a caucus state, meaning it may be hard to predict a winner. Sanders may do well, considering the almost exclusively white population and his potential to replicate his success among that demographic in New Hampshire. He appears weaker among whites in the Nevada results and the South Carolina projections, however, Goldstein noted. And Clinton has the support of the state's governor and both U.S. senators. - Republicans (38 delegates, 35 bound). Another of the more liberal states to vote on Super Tuesday, Minnesota nonetheless has produced conservatives like former representative Michele Bachmann, who ran for president in 2012. Minnesota Republicans backed Santorum four years ago by 18 percentage points over second-place finisher Ron Paul, who courted libertarians. A Star-Tribune/Mason Dixon poll conducted last month showed Rubio leading Trump by 5 percentage points. Oklahoma: - Democrats (42 delegates, 38 pledged). Clinton has a 14-point advantage in the latest RCP average, and she won the largely white state by 24 points in 2008, when she tended to best Obama among white voters. But don't count Sanders out yet, Goldstein said. - Republicans (43 delegates, 40 bound). One of the nation's most deeply red states, Oklahoma has a strong social conservative streak. It is the home of Oral Roberts University and an evangelical population that ranks along with Arkansas's as the nation's highest. Republicans in Oklahoma backed Santorum by 6 percentage points over Romney in 2012. Trump led Cruz by more than 7 percentage points in the RCP average of polls conducted this year. Tennessee: - Democrats (76 delegates, 67 pledged). Although it has a smaller African-American share of the population than Alabama or Georgia, blacks still represented almost 30 percent of the Democratic primary electorate in 2008, and Clinton has a nearly 40-point lead here, according to the latest RCP average. She won Tennessee by 14 points in 2008. - Republicans (58 delegates, 55 bound). Another deeply religious state, Tennessee favored Santorum over Romney by 9 percentage points in 2012. Three-quarters of 2012 primary voters were born-again Christians, and the state favored social conservatives including Huckabee in past contests. A Vanderbilt University poll of registered Republican voters conducted in November showed Trump ahead by 4 percentage points. Texas: - Democrats: The Lone Star State is the biggest single prize on Super Tuesday, awarding 252 delegates (222 pledged). It may also be the scene of another battle for Hispanic voters, who were 32 percent of the electorate in 2008. As of now, Clinton seems to have the advantage with a more than 20-point lead in the latest RCP average. Texas gave Clinton a victory by a four-point margin in 2008. - Republicans: Texas will award 155 Republican delegates (152 bound), making it the party's most important Super Tuesday state. Cruz, elected in 2012 to represent the state in the U.S. Senate, has a built-in advantage and endorsements from many state officials, including former governor Rick Perry. Cruz led Trump by more than 9 percentage points in the RCP average. Vermont: - Democrats (26 delegates, 16 pledged). Sanders' home state gives him a whopping 75-point poll lead, according to RCP. In terms of demographics, it also resembles New Hampshire, which handed him a large margin of victory in its Feb. 9 primary. Clinton lost the state to Obama by 20 points in 2008. - Republicans (16 delegates). One of the nation's most liberal states, Vermont Republicans are, relatively speaking, cut from a moderate, Northeastern cloth. Romney won Vermont's 2012 Republican primary by 14 percentage points over Paul, with Santorum in third place. Neighboring New Hampshire favored Trump in its primary. Virginia: - Democrats (110 delegates, 95 pledged). Although Clinton lost the state by nearly 30 points to Obama in 2008, her longtime friend and ally Terry McAuliffe is now its governor, and her campaign manager spearheaded McAuliffe's successful run. Clinton has made stops in Virginia, which includes the Washington, D.C., suburbs, where many Democratic establishment figures appear to favor Clinton over Sanders. She leads by 17 points in the latest RCP average. The state also has a sizable African-American population. - Republicans (49 delegates, 46 bound). Split between establishment-friendly suburbs of Washington and more southern, evangelical areas, Virginia is a swing state both in Republican contests and general elections. Romney won the state in 2012 over Paul, with other candidates failing to make the ballot after missing a deadline for submitting signatures. Trump has feuded with Republican Party leaders over their plan to require voters in the primary to affirm that they're Republicans even though Virginia voters do not register by party. Trump led Rubio by 6 percentage points in a Christopher Newport University poll conducted this month. --- Andre Tartar contributed. Greg DeWitt (D-2), Amy Quaremba (D-1), Richard Ferreira (D-1) and Marc Devisse (D-1) at the Bonita Springs Council Forum on Feb. 22, 2016. Photo by Patrick Riley/Staff By Patrick Riley of the Naples Daily News With Bonita Springs' mayoral and council election less than a month away, candidates for the only two contested council races took the stage Tuesday evening to present their platforms and answer questions about their vision for the city, their position on land conservation programs and their plans to spur economic growth. The hour-and-a-half long candidate forum, hosted by the Bonita Springs Area Chamber of Commerce and held at the Bonita Springs Fire Control and Rescue station, featured candidates Marc Devisse, Amy Quaremba and Richard Ferreira, all running for District 1, and Greg DeWitt, who is vying for the District 2 seat. Jesse Purdon, DeWitt's opponent in the District 2 race, was absent and told a reporter via Twitter that he had a "prior commitment unfortunately." Candidates, working through more than a dozen questions from the chamber and the audience, discussed hot-button issues such as a proposed Bonita Springs high school and what direction the future council should take with respect to a swath of restricted land near the city's eastern rim, known as the Density Reduction Groundwater Resource (DRGR) area. But disagreements were rare. All four candidates threw their support behind a new high school in Bonita and vowed to do everything in their power to make it happen. The topic has made waves in the last months with some communities opposing the building of a school near their neighborhoods. Tuesday, some candidates lamented the staunch opposition some residents have displayed. Ferreira, a former councilman in Bonita, said "it's unfortunate that in some places people have this negative attitude." DeWitt, who is the assistant fire chief for the Bonita fire district and has two grandchildren living in Bonita, agreed and went one step further, vowing to if elected educate his constituents on the merits of a high school should it be built in his district. "I think the community needs to put their fears aside," he said. "Again, this is a school, this isn't a prison, this isn't a homeless shelter, this is a high school. "If the people are worried about the way that these children are acting then get out there and mentor." One of the few areas of division between candidates was the future of the DRGR. DeWitt, unlike the rest of the quartet, said he thinks development on the restricted land is inevitable, but that the city should be "in the driver's seat." "I'm a realist," he said. "I don't want to see the DRGR built on but I think that it will be eventually." Quaremba said the area was "too important a resource to even talk about building on it at this point." "The preservation of our drinking water is something that is not subject to discussion," she said. Devisse agreed, saying he would like to see density increased downtown before building in the DRGR. "Let's convince or work with Lee County or the city of Bonita Springs to buy property out there for conservation," he said. But by and large, the four candidates' messages and opinions complimented each other. And at times, candidates even gave each other compliments. When DeWitt mentioned that businesses should be encouraged to hire local workers by using incentives and bonuses, Devisse, who owns a construction company, agreed with the sentiment. "I love the idea that Greg (DeWitt) has," Devisse said. "Give businesses an incentive to hire local, Bonita workforce." The election for the positions of mayor and city council members for Districts 1, 2, 4 and 6 will be held on Tuesday, March 15, 2016. By Joseph Cranney of the Naples Daily News The three candidates running for Naples mayor played nice, for the most part, for the first hour of the Tuesday night debate hosted by the Naples Daily News. Then came the closing statements. Mayor John Sorey, up for re-election, quoted Ronald Reagan, thanked his supporters and listed the local politicians that have endorsed him. To close, he took a dig at his opponent, City Councilman and former mayor Bill Barnett. "Yes, you have to listen," Sorey said, a nod to Barnett's campaign slogan, "Leadership By Listening." "But listening hasn't gotten us much. We have to listen and put that into action going forward." In her closing statement, City Councilwoman Teresa Heitmann said she was forgoing her planned remarks. Heitmann said the city has devoted too much time and resources toward Fifth Avenue South and not enough attention has been paid toward River Park, the city's mostly poor, majority black neighborhood. It was the only time the neighborhood was addressed during the debate. "River Park has been neglected," Heitmann said. "We have not spent funds appropriately for low-income housing and affordable housing." Barnett and Sorey have previously said that affordable housing in the city is virtually unachievable. The coup de gras on Tuesday, however, was delivered by Barnett in his closing statement. Barnett began by saying this is "perhaps the most important mayoral and council election" in decades. Then he took a sudden, blistering tone against his opponents. "John Sorey is not a consensus builder," Barnett said. "John Sorey basically does whatever he wants, when he wants. I guess that's why he feels comfortable taking credit for everything." "It's not about keeping score," he added. "It's about serving the community." About Heitmann, Barnett called her, "an expert at saying no to everything others propose." It was a striking turn at the end of a mostly cordial night, where there were few rebuttals and almost no direct attacks. During the debate and as he has done throughout the campaign, Sorey referenced the ambitious projects the city has undertaken since he became mayor in 2012, plus the ones he says he will help complete if re-elected. Throughout the night Tuesday, in front of a crowd of about 100 in the Daily News studio, Sorey pointed to his knowledge of the city and his experience in business as the reasons why he deserves another term. Naples has accomplished a lot during his tenure, he argued, including the rebuild of the Naples pier and the overhaul of the city's reusable water system. "I think that leadership is setting the example," Sorey said at one point. "I'm out there. I'm involved with the citizens. I know what's going on." Sorey often promoted his role as the city's chief figure head as a way to separate his community experience from that of his opponents. Heitmann, who was served on the council since 2008, struck a different chord from Barnett and Sorey throughout the night. She frequently called for more transparency in the council process and said her leadership style as mayor would bow to the wishes of the residents. "Leadership is bringing people together, discussing the issues, finding out solutions to the issues, and bringing it to a vote," Heitmann said. On Tuesday, Barnett took the consistent stance that Naples is right where it needs to be. He spoke of a "balance point" when discussing special events downtown, flights at the airport and mixed-use development on Fifth Avenue. Asked whether he agreed with local builder Phil McCabe's vision for downtown redevelopment, Barnett said, "Some parts of his vision are acceptable, some might not be. But it's an individual preference." Barnett ended by quoting Winston Churchill and saying, "There should be no 'I' in Naples, instead it should always be 'we.'" An internally displaced woman washes clothes in Baghdad, Iraq, Sunday, Feb. 21, 2016. (AP Photo/ Hadi Mizban) SHARE By Howard Altman, The Tampa Tribune In May 2014, Iraqi Staff Gen. Talib Shagati Mshari Alkinani, commander of the Iraqi Joint Special Operations Command, visited the U.S. Special Operations Command war game center at MacDill Air Force Base and talked about a dangerous new group of jihadis that was only beginning to garner attention. Calling itself Islamic State, the group had already taken over the Syrian city of Raqqa, which it declared the capital of its caliphate, and the Iraqi city of Fallujah and parts of Ramadi. But it would be another month before it took over the Iraqi city of Mosul, its biggest conquest, which really thrust it onto the global stage. Tuesday, at the Global SOF Foundation Symposium at the Innisbrook Country Club in Palm Harbor, Alkinani delivered his message about Islamic State and what its been like to fight the organization headed by Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi ever since. Continue reading at tbo.com here. SHARE Philanthropy Collier County is well-known for its enticing weather, healthy lifestyle, fine dining, vibrant cultural arts, manicured communities, and its environmental allure stretching from beaches to the Western Everglades. There's one other major distinguishing characteristic its philanthropy. All's not well for everyone counted among Collier County's permanent population of 350,000. That's evidenced, for example, by Collier County Public Schools data showing 63.4 percent of students 29,505 of 46,557 come from an economically disadvantaged background. The needs of area children are addressed by many, from the nonprofit Champions For Learning well-known for its work with the Golden Apple awards for teachers, but which also focuses on students facing barriers in their education to after-school programs with the Boys & Girls Club, Greater Naples YMCA and Greater Marco Family YMCA, among others. Kids' needs are addressed at young ages with early childhood education, such as at Fun Time academy in Naples, to teenage years at PACE Center for Girls, which helps students achieve despite parental troubles at home. Assistance comes to various ages thanks to New Horizons, a nonprofit dedicated to helping at-risk children and teens growing up in poverty and facing academic failure; the organization works with more than 400 at-risk children and teens at several locations. It extends to families, such as the expanding Grace Place in Golden Gate, which offers tutoring, literacy, leadership and enrichment programs, serving 800 children and 400 families. Grace Place offers a food pantry; other charities also address a vast hunger issue in Collier, from St. Matthew's House to Harry Chapin Food Bank to Meals of Hope and the Salvation Army, the focus of a Daily News story this week because its pantry shelves are bare. It's a story of all ages among Collier's estimated 400 nonprofits. Consider the growing membership at the senior center in Golden Gate, operated by Collier Senior Resources, and the Naples Senior Center, which JFCS of Southwest Florida expanded after a year due to spiraling demand by seniors. That's not to mention the medical or mental health needs tended to by the likes of the Neighborhood Health Clinic, Alzheimer's Association, David Lawrence Foundation for Mental Health and Healthcare Network of Southwest Florida, as examples. Much need, much help That's a lot of nonprofits in need to be able to help those in need. But there is a great opportunity next week to help, without even having to leave the comfort of home. The agencies mentioned above are among 40 nonprofits that stand to benefit during the second annual Give Where You Live Collier, from noon Monday to noon Tuesday. It's a 24-hour blitz to raise money for these people-dedicated organizations. The Community Foundation of Collier County and Richard M. Schulze Family Foundation are bolstering the event with a combined $400,000 matching offer that starts with the first dollar donated, not waiting until a specific high figure is reached. More information and a list of charities is at givewhereyoulivecollier.org Second year In the inaugural online event last year, $1.8 million was raised for 30 nonprofits in 24 hours. This is an important event for the organizations, which tend to a need during summer when seasonal residents head to their other homes. Families and the workforce that serves the community year-round remain behind during these slower economic months, and sometimes they need help. The two successful annual charity wine festivals in Southwest Florida may be well beyond your reach. That doesn't mean you can't be a philanthropist within your own means. You, too, can Give Where You Live Collier. SHARE Joyce Lehrke, Naples Volunteer docent Museum of Military Memorabilia Military museum Vacationing or living in Naples and need an interesting and educational way to spend some time? If that is the case I would like to invite you to visit the recently expanded Museum of Military Memorabilia in the newly remodeled Naples Municipal Airport Terminal. The airport is also an historical site as it was built in 1942 as a military training facility. We now have the original museum, which is primarily devoted to WWII and our new annex. The annex has some WWI and WWII and our Korea and Vietnam collection. All of our displays have been donated and once belonged to a real person and each represents a real story and a bit of history. With our expansion we can handle larger groups if we split them into each room. Our hours are 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. Monday-Saturday and noon to 4 p.m. Sunday. It's closed Easter, Thanksgiving and Christmas. There is no admission charge but donations are appreciated. Historical donations of military memorabilia also are accepted. There also are opportunities if you have a free morning or afternoon and would like to be a volunteer docent (three-hour shift). SHARE Charlotte Nycklemoe League of Women Voters, Collier County By Charlotte Nycklemoe And Susan Calkins, League of Women Voters, Collier County In a recent Naples Daily News guest commentary, the senior vice president of state and federal affairs for Associated Industries of Florida called the oil and gas regulatory bill now in the Florida Senate (SB 318) "smart legislation" that should be passed. He claimed "the onshore oil and gas industry has been operating safely in the state of Florida since 1943..." But the author, Brewster Bevis, is referencing traditional vertical drilling, not the unconventional well stimulation techniques like hydraulic fracturing and acid stimulation, commonly called "fracking." The League of Women Voters has serious reservations about the use of these new drilling techniques in Florida, as well as reservations about the pending regulatory legislation, SB318. First, we have no evidence this unconventional extraction technique is safe in our state. The Environmental Protection Agency Assessment of the Potential Impacts of Hydraulic Fracturing for Oil and Gas on Drinking Water Resources (EPA-HQ-OA-20115-0245) did not include any case studies from Florida, which has its own unique geology. Thus we can't generalize the ndings from this report to Florida. Moreover, Florida has the highest percentage of Class 1 aquifers, which the EPA describes as the most vulnerable to contamination. Since well stimulation technology like fracking utilizes hundreds of chemicals many carcinogenic there is a risk of aquifer contamination. We need to know the unintended consequences of this technology. Contrary to Associated Industries of Florida's leadership, we do need a study that addresses all pathways for potential groundwater contamination. In addition, hydraulic fracturing and similar acid stimulation techniques use vast amounts of water. For example, the Collier-Hogan Well operation was permitted to use 280 million gallons a year of prime potable water (South Florida Water Management District 11-03415-W). Moreover, because this freshwater is mixed with toxic chemicals, it cannot be reused and must be disposed of as toxic waste. Unfortunately, SB 318 does not prohibit the use of our drinking water for well stimulation techniques (it should require the use of alternative water supplies). And it does not require that all chemicals used in the acid stimulation process be identied. Many Florida cities and counties share the League of Women Voters of Florida's position regarding the advisability of fracking. To date, more than 70 cities and counties have passed ordinances or resolutions which ban or oppose fracking in their communities. Wakulla County Commissioner Dr. Howard Kessler stated in a commentary in the Tallahassee Democrat, "It boggles my mind that legislators of a state where our clean water, famous springs, and abundant nature are the foundation of our economy would even consider allowing fracking and abolish the rights of people to ban it." Unfortunately, if SB 318 passes in its present form, these bans will be meaningless because the legislation gives the "regulation of all matters relating to the exploration, development, production, processing, storage and transportation of oil and gas" to the state, effectively pre-empting local communities from banning fracking within their jurisdictions, even when a ban already exists. The League of Women Voters of Florida continues to actively oppose this pre-emptive legislation. We do need new oil and gas regulations which address hydraulic fracturing and similar acid stimulation techniques. But we need to get the bill right, to make it good for all Floridians, not just for the oil and gas industry. That means, among other things, that we remove the pre-emption clause and restore home rule authority. Right now Senate Bill 318 is in its last committee, the Senate Appropriations Committee. It has already passed the House of Representatives. Sen. Tom Lee, R-Brandon, chairman of Appropriations, has stated his unwillingness to hear the bill until the state Department of Environmental Protection comes before the committee and answers questions on the record about provisions in the bill: "We want credible, scientific responses to questions." (Miami Herald, Feb. 4). But time is of the essence. The oil and gas industry lobbyists are urging Florida senators to pass this "smart legislation" now. It may be smart for the industry, but in its present form, it is not smart for Florida citizens. We need more protective legislation, we need local control, and ultimately we need to focus on renewable energy, such as solar, if we want to protect our environment and develop energy. Let Sen. Lee and his fellow Appropriations Committee members know your concerns (www.senate.gov/committees). Contact your state legislators. Remember, "democracy is not a spectator sport." __ Calkins is the league's Environmental Affairs Committee chair and Nycklemoe is league president in Collier County. (NaturalNews) For the third time, a U.S. Court of Appeals panel has reaffirmed the constitutionality of a Florida law that protects citizens from being asked questions by doctors about gun ownership In the latest development regarding the so-called "Docs vs. Glocks" case, the Florida Firearm Owners Privacy Act has been upheld in the courts. In earlier rulings it was held that the act was a "valid regulation of physicians' speech," and that it passed the First Amendment intermediate scrutiny standard The law in question prevents doctors from asking a patient (or a minor patient's parents) whether or not they own guns, unless it is relevant to their medical treatment or care.The plaintiffs, which included three individual doctors and Florida chapters of two physicians' associations the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Academy of Family Physicians argued that their free speech was being violated by being prevented by a "content-based restriction."The court, however, ruled that doctors' free speech rights do not extend to the examining room, and that "the law fits well within the traditional authority of the states to define and regulate the practice of medicine."In this latest ruling from Dec. 14, 2015, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit judges "applied the First Amendment's strict scrutiny standard and said the provision passed constitutional muster."From"The physicians twice have sought en banc, or full court review, by the Eleventh Circuit, but have been preempted by the panel's decision on its own (known as sua sponte) to reconsider the issue."The preemptive 'sua sponte' review is a clear signal that the court strongly backs the earlier rulings.From"It is noteworthy that the court didn't wait for the organized medicine juggernaut of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), the American Medical Association (AMA), and several other gun rights-hating doctor organizations to file another motion alleging stifling of free speech."The court seems quite confident in its determination that;1) Florida doctors were engaging in conduct directed at damaging their patients' civil rights2) the legislature acted well within the Constitution by prohibiting that conduct."The ruling represents a significant precedent regarding the regulation of professional free speech, and how far states may go in limiting First Amendment rights when they interfere with other constitutional rights such as the Second Amendment right to bear arms At least another dozen states are considering passing similar laws protecting patient privacy.Excerpts from the court's decision:"The Act protects the right to keep and bear arms by protecting patients from irrelevant questioning about guns that could dissuade them from exercising their constitutionally guaranteed rights , questions that a patient may feel they cannot refuse to answer, given the significant imbalance of power between patient and doctor behind the closed doors of the examination room ..."These doctors' irrelevant requests and misinformation threatened their patients' exercise of fundamental rights, and likely those of countless others who remained silent, while their patients were in a position of great vulnerability, lacking the power to fully stand up for themselves and their rights."The fight is not yet over, however. The Florida physicians who oppose the law have vowed to continue challenging its legality, ignoring the age-old patient/doctor confidentiality pact in favor of a politically-motivated agenda.This case illustrates just how far some individuals and groups are willing to go to support the anti-gun movement Routinely asking whether patients own guns and recording the answers is not a free speech issue. It is rather an infringement of personal privacy and individuals' Second Amendment rights.The Florida court made the right decision. As thearticle concludes: "[W]e will have to continue to teach [doctors] that their job is to heal the sick, and not to run our lives." Hitting the elderly especially hard 'Withdrawal, not depression' (NaturalNews) A renowned academic who is the co-founder of the Cochrane Collaboration, one of the world's top organizations for assessing medical evidence, believes that Big Pharma is killing tens of thousands of Americans every year.Dr. Peter Gotzsche, who arrived in Australia recently to talk to citizens Down Under about their use of prescription medications, estimates that some 100,000 Americans die each year from the side effects of medications they have actually taken as directed As reported by, many of the most commonly prescribed medications, such as antidepressants and painkillers, are actually incredibly dangerous, and are killing more people than need be."It's remarkable that nobody raises an eyebrow when we kill so many of our own citizens with drugs," he said, as reported by theSee a real-time count of pharmaceutical deaths at PharmaDeathClock.com His biggest knock is against anti-depressants and painkillers such as ibuprofen, diclofenac and celecoxib. He also said he has problems with their claims that they are anti-inflammatory, because he says that claim is not supported by scientific evidence.As the Australian paper continued:"These terms for our drugs are invented by the drug industry," he said. "They had a huge financial interest in calling these things anti-inflammatory. It lured doctors into believing that these drugs somehow also had an effect on the disease process and reduced the joint damage."Added Erin Elizabeth ofGotzsche, who authored the study, says he believes those deaths are just the beginning, and that they are indicative of a broken, flawed medical system that fails to protect patients. Elizabeth added that the system is skewed for profits as it really sees patients as "dollar signs."He also said that as evidence against once-popular drugs Valium and Xanax became known, they were replaced by anti-depressants that are as addictive and just as filled with side effects as their predecessors.Furthermore, thereported, additional research shows that small benefits over placebos was biased, because it failed to properly mask whether patients were given the active drug, or were in the placebo group.Gotzsche says the biggest victims in all of this are elderly patients who are over-prescribed such drugs. He points to research published in 2011 in the, in which researchers found that for every 28 elderly people treated with an anti-depressant for a year, one will die who otherwise would have lived, from various causes including heart attack, stroke or a fall."Those who use arthritis drugs are mostly the elderly who are most at risk of dying of a heart attack caused by the drug or a bleeding ulcer," Gotzsche said. "We have a high use of psychiatric drugs by the elderly and we kill an enormous amount of them.""These people get shoved in a nursing home and they get aggravated, so they're knocked out with an antipsychotic drug - it's very inhumane," he said.Gotzsche said he's been criticized for recommending that people should consider slowly weaning themselves from taking any anti-depressants, if their physicians approve. He says he believes that sometimes doctors mistake post-anti-depressant depression as a return of original symptoms, and reinstate the medication."If you get depressed by lowering the dose and then immediately increase it to the normal dose, you will usually be well in a couple of hours," he said. "But if you get better straight away it is withdrawal, not depression." Coffee farmers who are fighting cancer and cancer treatments are now going after Monsanto (NaturalNews) The former owners of Dragon's Lair Kona Coffee Farm in Honaunau, Hawaii, will no longer be fooled by Monsanto's clever marketing of glyphosate . Christine and Kenneth Sheppard's lives have forever been changed by the side effects and horrifying scientific failure of glyphosate, which has become the most widely applied herbicide worldwide.According to the paper,, published in the peer-reviewed journalthe amount of glyphosate used around the world since 1974 surpasses 18.9 billion pounds. 19 percent or 3.5 billion pounds of glyphosate has been used exclusively in the USA since then, where Roundup Ready crops such as soy, corn, canola, alfalfa and cotton now dominate agriculture. Christine Sheppard worked directly with glyphosate for nearly a decade.Monsanto's marketing for glyphosate is all smiles, but the dangerous side effects of glyphosate are real. Monsanto claims that glyphosate kills an enzyme that is only found in plants, not in humans or animals. Monsanto fails to mention that glyphosate is killing that same enzyme that exists in the microbes in the human gut. That's the dirty secret, and that's why glyphosate is registered as an antibiotic . Glyphosate inadvertently kills the beneficial microbes in the soil and destroys the human microbiome, making it easier for disease processes to take hold in nature, in the fields, and in the human body. As glyphosate infiltrates the food supply, the microbes that support healthy digestion and immune system function are being wiped out.From 1995 to 2004, Christine Sheppard used Roundup on her commercial coffee farm in Hawaii. In 2003 she was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and was forced to sell her farm to pay for expensive cancer treatments.Still alive, Christine and her husband Kenneth are now going after Monsanto Co., accusing the agribusiness of falsely concealing the risks of glyphosate that ultimately led to her cancer. The civil suit states that Monsanto "knew or had reason to know that its Roundup products were defective and were inherently dangerous and unsafe when used in the manner instructed and provided by defendant. ..."Monsanto assured the public that Roundup was harmless. In order to prove this, Monsanto championed falsified data and attacked legitimate studies that revealed its dangers. Monsanto led a prolonged campaign of misinformation to convince government agencies, farmers and the general public that Roundup was safe."The Sheppards' civil suit was filed Feb. 2 in U.S. District court in Honolulu. Their attorney, Michael Miller, told the"She's been diagnosed with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, a very serious form of cancer that's gone to Stage 4. She's had enormous treatment and now is in remission, but is in fear of it coming back. So, we're seeking a fair amount of damagesher medical expenses, her pain, her suffering and her mental anguish. And we'll ask a jury to put a number on that at an appropriate time."Monsanto has been in hot water ever since the World Health Organization's International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) classified glyphosate as "probably carcinogenic to humans." Glyphosate's slow destruction of the human microbiome creates the conditions within the body for disease processes to start. Good bacteria play a role in protecting the gut wall and the purity of the blood. The destruction glyphosate causes paves the way for other toxins to break through the gut wall and poison the blood as they circulate through the body.Speaking recently with, Dr. Don Huber talked about his experiences consulting with agricultural workers in El Salvador. "I spent some time consulting in Guatemala, and just across the border in El Salvador, we find that one out of four sugar cane workers has end stage kidney failure [because of glyphosate exposure]. These are young men. This is a death sentence for them. We see the same type of kidney disease here in the US [because of glyphosate from Roundup], but we just have more access to kidney dialysis and kidney transplants. Then you see the situation in Washington State with anencephaly (babies being born without brains) and the large number of stillbirths. Human fertility [in the United States] dropped another 25 to 30 percent in just the last 5 years." Hot dog king? Health implications of processed and fast foods (NaturalNews) With the rise of social media, the global domination of the internet, and the way that we have access to more and more information at our fingertips, fast food chains have come into a bit of trouble over recent years. They still have the edge when it comes to convenience, but as we start to care more about what we put into our bodies, as well as the health implications of fast food , chains are having to come up with different marketing tactics to push sales.As can be seen by Burger King's recent decision to branch out from burgers to hot dogs ...According to, the Miami-based chain is planning to put hot dogs on menus across the U.S., starting this week. This is a bit of a strange move, with the chain having focused on providing a variety of burgers for 62 years, and establishing itself as the second largest fast food chain in the U.S., second only to McDonald's, according toHowever, Burger King claims that this isn't actually a big change from the normal, with their ability to flame-grill meat meaning that flame-grilled hot dogs are not a huge jump. The president of Burger King North America insists that, "this is probably the most obvious product launch ever" yet a lot of people are scratching their heads about this latest marketing ploy.Burger King plans to offer hot dogs at each of its 7,100 U.S. outlets which is the largest number of locations of all fast food chains in the U.S. There are others who sell hot dogs, such as Sonic Drive-In, but the colossal number of Burger King restaurants means that this move makes them the largest provider of fast food hot dogs in the U.S.It seems that the two largest fast food giants, Burger King and McDonald's, have been going head-to-head for quite some time, and the decision to push this new processed junk food product out through Burger King stores comes just after McDonald's launched its all day breakfast options.The hot dogs are going to be provided by Kraft Heinz who owns Oscar Mayer, an established provider of processed and fast foods. The problem with these foods is that they have massive impacts on our health yet their convenience generally wins out, meaning that people with their increasingly busy lives will always turn to fast food restaurants.But according to, the health implications of fast food are catastrophic. The caloric intake that comes from just one fast food meal is way above what you should be aiming for in one meal, and most of them are packed full of carbohydrates . Your body breaks carbs down into sugar, and when you eat large volumes of carbs, you cause a spike in your blood sugar that can alter your natural insulin response. Frequent spikes in blood sugar can contribute to type 2 diabetes Meanwhile, the added sugars that are often incorporated into fast foods offer no nutritional value, but add extra calories. These add up to an increase in weight, which contributes to heart disease. The salt in fast food is also damaging to your heart health causing you to retain water and suffer from higher blood pressure, which increases your risk of heart attack, kidney disease and stomach cancer.This isn't the first time a fast food chain has taken a risk with a new menu launch, and it won't be the last. It is possible that the new hot dogs at Burger King will totally flop. However, it is yet another example of fast food chains trying to market to the masses and pump us full of processed junk food that is doing serious damage to the health of millions of Americans. Press On this page Springer Nature Press Office Please visit the Springer Nature Press Office Site for an archive of Springer Nature press releases (2015-2019) and contact information for corporate media inquiries and book or journal related inquiries. Press releases published before 2015 are available by downloading zip files via the links below. Press release archives (zip): 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 Susie Winter Director of Communications and Engagement, Research London, UK Phone: +44 (0)203 426 3325 E-mail: susie.winter@springernature.com Top of page Journals and Editorial Press Office The Journals and Editorial Press Office provides a service for science journalists and science writers. For enquiries regarding content in the Nature Portfolio journals, please contact press@nature.com or visit https://press.nature.com. Alice Henchley Communications Director, Journals & Editorial London, UK Phone: +44 (0) 20 7843 4562 E-mail: alice.henchley@springernature.com Lisa Boucher Press Manager London, UK Phone: +44 (0) 20 7843 4804 E-mail: l.boucher@nature.com Michael Stacey Senior Communications Manager London, UK Phone: +44 (0) 20 7843 4795 E-mail: michael.stacey@nature.com Sarah Hausman Press Manager New York, USA Phone: +1 (212) 726 9378 E-mail: sarah.hausman@nature.com Sarah McClenaghan Press Manager London, UK Phone: +44 (0) 20 7843 4570 E-mail: sarah.mcclenaghan@springernature.com Emily Cooke Press Officer London, UK Phone: +44 (0) 20 7418 5534 E-mail: emily.cooke@springernature.com Isobel Lisowski Assistant Press Officer London, UK Phone: +44 (0) 20 3192 2097 E-mail: isobel.lisowski@springernature.com A recent state audit raises serious questions about the California state bar's ability to protect consumers. The state bar is in charge of investigating and disciplining attorneys, but a 75-page state audit found major problems with the way the bar worked to clear a huge backlog of disciplinary cases against thousands of attorneys. The result, according to the California State Auditor's Office's, was "the State Bar allowed some attorneys whom it otherwise might have disciplined more severely or even disbarred to continue practicing law, at significant risk to the public." According to the audit, the backlog of disciplinary cases topped 5,174 cases in 2010, "prompting the state bar to take steps to quickly reduce it." While the state bar managed to decrease the backlog by 66 percent within a year, the audit revealed that "speedier resolutions" came at a cost as the State Bar began issuing less severe punishments to attorneys. As a result, the Bar dismissed more cases and settled others with written reprimands that may stay hidden in a lawyer's discipline file. "That's working your numbers to try and look good, even when you're potentially hurting consumers," said Ed Howard, an attorney with the Center for Public Interest Law, a government watchdog group that monitors state boards and agencies. "The state bar does not do in any way shape or form, the kind of job when it comes to disciplining lawyers that Californians deserve and Californians expect," said Howard, who has previously testified before the California legislature to voice his criticism of the California Bar. State Bar: "Unviable" Policies Caused "Crisis "We need to get our house in order," said Leah Wilson, the newly named Chief Operating Officer of the California Bar. Wilson acknowledged the problems facing the bar, and said a 2011 policy requiring a "zero-backlog" of complaints was to blame for the Bar's ultimate failure in adequately disciplining attorneys. "That focus on backlog reduction, absent the infusion of significant resources, was bound to result in that type of crisis that you saw reflected in the audit," Wilson said. "It just was just an unviable situation." The audit found that "since 2007, the State Bar has changed its backlog goal four times: from 200, to 250, to zero, to less than 15 percent of all active cases (its current goal). While the State Bar has met its current backlog goal since it was implemented in 2011, the audit found that the backlog of complaints has increased each year since that time, "indicating that the goal may not be effective in reducing the overall backlog." While Wilson said the bar agreed with the audit's recommendations, she was only hired five months ago after the audit was released and repeatedly told the Investigative Unit she could not answer certain questions concerning the audit's findings. "I don't want to speak for what happened when I wasn't here," she said. "We're going to focus on fixing the underlying structural problems or conditions that caused that problem to occur." Wilson said approval from supervising attorneys is now required before most disciplinary cases against attorneys can be settled. The state bar is also in the process of trying to determine how to best restructure its staff to adequately handle complaints while also minimizing its backlog. According to Wilson, that plan will be presented to the state legislature in May. Woman Blames Former Attorney For Leaving Her Bankrupt Katherine Roberts says the additional oversight should have been in place long ago, and if it were, that might have helped her with her former attorney Drexel Bradshaw. She says her legal troubles began in 2004 after trying to fight an eviction from her San Francisco home. "I ended up in one day losing my apartment and being a half million dollars in debt," Roberts said. "It's been extraordinarily painful." Jym Dyer She eventually sued Bradshaw for, among other things, legal malpractice and breach of fiduciary duty. In 2010, a jury found that Bradshaw's abilities as a lawyer were "below the applicable standard" and determined his actions resulted in a financial loss to Roberts of more than $250,000. Roberts ultimately settled with Bradshaw out of court for an undisclosed amount. Through his attorney, Bradshaw declined to comment. The objections over Bradshaw's work don't end there. The local bar association in San Francisco received "a number of complaints from [Bradshaw's] clients," and in a highly unusual move, filed a complaint with the state bar, citing details from seven of Bradshaw's former clients, including Katherine Roberts. The complaint raised concerns that Bradshaw may have stolen money from at least one client and engaged in "unconscionable billing practices." "That's how strongly we believed something had to be done," said Richard Zitrin, one of the volunteer attorneys with the San Francisco bar who filed the complaint against Bradshaw. "I just hate seeing people like this get away with things, when they shouldn't." State Bar Accuses Attorney of "Corruption The state bar attempted to take action against Bradshaw with a 62-page complaint, accusing him of "corruption," "dishonesty," "and gross negligence." It went to court as two separate cases. The first was dismissed in 2009 and the second one doesn't show up on the state bar's website. "Somehow, at the end of the day, this file got made secret," said Zitrin. "The state bar messed up the prosecution and [Bradshaw] wound up just walking away." Zitrin, who is also a legal ethics professor of nearly 40 years, believed the State Bar ultimately gave Bradshaw a disciplinary slap on the wrist by giving him a low-level reprimand. In legal terms it's called a reproval, but Zitrin said the bar violated its own policies by not making it public. "The state bar doesn't want to admit it made a mistake by secretizing a reproval that, under its own rules, it didn't have the right to do," Zitrin said. State Bar: No "public records" available State Chief Operating Officer, Leah Wilson said there are no "public records" available for the outcome of the case. "There was a settlement agreement and the content of that agreement and the outcome are not public," Wilson said. But what is public is Bradshaw's criminal record. The Investigative Unit discovered Bradshaw is a convicted felon. In 1991, he pleaded guilty in Virginia to grand larceny by check, which does not prevent someone from practicing law, however, Bradshaw lied about his criminal record six years in a row in signed documents he submitted to the San Francisco Bar. On the state bar's website, however, Bradshaw's discipline record is clean not a single infraction is listed. "I think the system is just horribly broken and it's breaking other people," Roberts said. "It's breaking people down." A retired U.S. Marine has pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in the 2011 death of his girlfriend, a Southern California woman whose remains were found on a remote island near Panama. Brian Brimager will be imprisoned for the murder of Yvonne Baldelli after entering a guilty plea Wednesday at the San Diego federal courthouse. Baldelli vanished five years ago when she traveled to Panama with her boyfriend, Brimager, a retired Marine formerly based at Camp Pendleton. The couple left Dana Point, California, in September 2011 to stay on Isla Carenero, an island off the coast accessible only by boat. Baldelli was last seen at a restaurant with Brimager on Nov. 26, 2011. Brimager admitted Wednesday he stabbed Baldelli in the back on Nov. 27, 2011, then used a machete to dismember her before dumping her remains in the jungle. He also admitted to using a computer in an effort to convince family members that Baldelli was not only still alive but had traveled to Costa Rica with another man. Authorities said Brimager withdrew money from Baldelli's bank account and sent emails from her laptop, including messages to her family saying Baldelli was happy. According to court documents, Brimager used the laptop to search for information on how to remove blood stains from a mattress. Hes also accused of stuffing Baldellis belongings into garbage bags and disposing of the bags on a dock outside the couple's hostel. Prosecutors said Brimager lied to investigators about Baldellis disappearance and told them she took her laptop while traveling. In 2012, he was found with the computer in his possession, at which point Brimager changed his story but said he never used it to send emails. Baldellis remains were found in 2013 on a small island off the Isla Carenero coastline. Scientists identified her body using DNA analysis on her skull and bones. Her DNA was also found under the handle of a machete, prosecutors revealed last week. Brimager has been in U.S. custody since June 2013 on charges of obstruction of justice, giving false statements to a federal officer and falsifying records. In April 2015, he was indicted by a federal grand jury in San Diego on a charge of foreign murder of a U.S. national. Brimager initially pleaded not guilty. Just last week, court documents were filed revealing a machete was the weapon in this grisly murder, and that blood found under the handle of that machete contained Baldelli's DNA. After a vaunted military career that took it from World War II hero to a key role in the U.S. space program, the now-museum USS Hornet aircraft carrier in Alameda has a very humble problem a leaky roof. While El Ninos heavy rains have been a blessing for California following several years of drought, theyve had a somewhat destructive impact on the aging ship. With a flight deck long enough to launch jets, the Hornet has more roof than most. This is like owning a really big house, said Jill Rapposelli, executive director of the USS Hornet Aircraft Museum. Our flight deck is 100,000 square feet. The museum is in the midst of an $800,000 campaign to seal the flight deck and make long-overdue repairs. The group is currently $100,000 short of the funds it needs to qualify for a $250,000 matching grant. Although the ship is technically on loan from the Navy, the non-profit group doesnt get government funding, instead relying on museum admissions to pay its bills. Right now were getting around to a lot of the leaks and creaks that came from 50 years of neglect, said John Suckow, a retired Navy pilot who flew missions from a similar carrier during the Vietnam War. This year were experiencing a lot of leaks and problems due to the amount of rain we got. The leaks have infiltrated the steal underplate of the flight deck, trickling into the captains meeting room, leaving porous patches of rust in the ceiling and ruining floor tiles. The leaks also damaged a mural gifted to the ship by former First Lady Pat Nixon - in honor of the Hornets role in retrieving the returning Apollo space capsule carrying the first men to walk on the moon. Some real key areas beneath the flight deck have been damaged, Rapposelli said, that we can no longer bring the public into. Over the rainy season, work crews have raced into between storms to spray sealant on the massive flight deck. Workers were also chiseling away rust from gutters and applying protective coatings. The work is the first major overhaul since the ship retired from service in 1970. Before that it carried a crew of 3,500 who carried out all the work. When the Navy had them we had people 24 hours a day painting, chipping, washing, Suckow said. Now we have 10 people that maintain the whole ship. Scott Zirger, a retired Navy sailor who now serves as the Hornets engineer said the work to keep the massive ship afloat is never ending. Its a constant job of maintenance on this ship - we stay pretty busy, Zirger said. Weve had just a little bit of a taste of El Nino. The Hornet played a prominent role in U.S. military History launching bombing runs that inflicted heavy damage on Tokyo during World War II, and retrieving Apollo space capsules 11 and 12. But after decades besting enemies across foreign oceans, the proud but beleaguered octogenarian is fighting its most entrenched battle with Mother Nature. I think to preserve that history, Rapposelli said, and the legacy of the hornet and all who served on the hornet is important to the new generations. Donald Trump won the Republican caucus in Nevada on Tuesday, according to NBC News projections. Florida Sen. Marco Rubio appeared poised to claim the crucial second-place slot, edging out Texas Sen. Ted Cruz. With victories now under his belt in the West, the South and Northeast, a gleeful Trump was oozing even more confidence than usual Tuesday night that the GOP nomination is within reach. "It's going to be an amazing two months," he told a raucous crowd at a Las Vegas casino. "We might not even need the two months, folks, to be honest." Trump's rivals know they are running out of time to stop his juggernaut. Rubio, who was already in Michigan on caucus night, didn't speak after the results came in but earlier sought to project confidence that he can consolidate the non-Trump voters who have been splintering among an assortment of GOP candidates, saying, "We have incredible room to grow." But after finishing third in Iowa, fifth in New Hampshire and second in South Carolina, Rubio needs a win soon to support the idea he can beat Trump. Cruz, for his part, skipped right past Nevada's underwhelming verdict for him in his caucus-night speech and pinned his hopes on the big round of voting that's coming up next, saying: "One week from today will be the most important night of this campaign: Super Tuesday." The candidates were fanning out to their next targets of opportunity as the lights went out in Las Vegas: Trump was campaigning Wednesday in Virginia, then on to Texas and Oklahoma. Rubio and Cruz both headed for Texas. Entrance polls in Nevada captured the sentiment propelling Trump's insurgent campaign: Six in 10 caucus goers said they were angry with the way the government is working, and Trump got about half of them. Cruz, a fiery conservative popular among voters on the GOP's right, had finished a disappointing third in South Carolina after spending much of the past two weeks denying charges of dishonest campaign tactics and defending his integrity. Nevada raises more questions about his viability. But Cruz harked back to his win in Iowa's leadoff caucuses to remind supporters that his is "the only campaign that has defeated Donald Trump is this campaign." The election calendar suggests that if Trump's rivals don't slow him by mid-March, they may not ever. Trump won at least 12 delegates in Nevada, while Rubio and Cruz won at least five apiece. Eight delegates were still left to be allocated. Overall, Trump has 79 delegates, Cruz has 16 and Rubio has 15. John Kasich has five delegates and Ben Carson has three. It takes 1,237 delegates to win the Republican nomination for president. Trump, in his victory speech, took on the notion advanced by both Rubio and Cruz that if more GOP candidates drop out of the race, they'll coalesce around an alternative. "They keep forgetting that when people drop out, we're going to get a lot of votes," he said. Nevada's caucusing played out in schools, community centers and places of worship across the state a process that's been chaotic in the past. Count Tracy Brigida, fed up after her husband was laid off from his mining job, among those caucusing for Trump. "I want a businessman to run the biggest business in the world," Brigida said as she caucused at a Las Vegas high school. Jeremy Haight drove straight from his marketing job to caucus for Marco Rubio at the same high school. "He's the most level-headed. He hasn't said anything stupid or crazy ... which is really what I think the country needs," Haight said. It was Cruz for Megan Ortega, who declared: "He's consistent, he's bold and he's a class act." Preliminary results of the entrance poll found that about 3 in 10 early caucus goers said the quality that mattered most to them in choosing a candidate was that he shares their values, slightly more than the quarter who said they want a candidate who can win in November. About a quarter said they want a candidate who can bring change. About 2 in 10 want one who "tells it like it is." Trump no surprise here was supported by nearly 9 in 10 of the "tell it like it is" voters. Lagging far behind in the Nevada vote were Kasich and Carson. The entrance poll survey was conducted for The Associated Press and the television networks by Edison Research as Republican voters arrived at 25 randomly selected caucus sites in Nevada. Police armed with rifles and backed by air units surrounded a Southern California home overnight after receiving a 911 call of a woman gunned down inside the residence only to learn that the call was a "swatting" prank on a teen whose viral "Damn, Daniel" video has captivated the Internet. The caller reported just after 1 a.m. Tuesday they had shot their mother dead with an AK-47 assault rifle at a home in the 6200 block of Hamilton Drive in Riverside, prompting officers to swarm the neighborhood east of Los Angeles with guns drawn, said Lt. Kevin Townsend of the Riverside Police Department. The family came out of the home and told police no one inside had been shot, and they had not placed the 911 call. Loudlabs/KNBC-TV While speaking with the family, officers learned that a teen who lives there is behind the "Damn, Daniel" viral video. The family told police they've been receiving phone calls from strangers ever since the online video gained fame. Police cleared the scene and dismissed the call as a swatting hoax. In the video, a teen repeatedly says "Damn, Daniel," marveling over another teen's fashionable footwear. "Damn, Daniel. Back at it again with the white Vans!" the teen gushes. The video, posted on Twitter on Feb. 15, has spawned numerous memes and parodies. The felony prosecution of former Texas Gov. Rick Perry ended Wednesday when the state's highest criminal court dismissed an abuse-of-power indictment that the Republican says hampered his short-lived 2016 presidential bid. The 6-2 decision by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, which is dominated by elected Republican judges, frees Perry from a long-running criminal case that blemished the exit of one of the most powerful Texas governors in history and hung over his second failed run for the White House. A grand jury in liberal Austin had indicted Perry in 2014 for vetoing funding for a public corruption unit that Republicans have long accused of wielding a partisan ax. The unit worked under Travis County District Attorney Rosemary Lehmberg, an elected Democrat. Perry wanted her to resign after she was convicted of drunken driving. Perry was accused of using his veto power to threaten a public official and overstepping his authority, but the judges ruled that courts can't undermine the veto power of a governor. "Come at the king, you best not miss," Republican Judge David Newell wrote in his concurring opinion, quoting a popular line from the HBO series "The Wire." Perry has been campaigning for Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz since becoming the first major GOP candidate to drop out of the race last year. He conceded to reporters in Austin on Wednesday that the indictments hurt his candidacy but didn't dwell on the impact, and said he would veto the same funding again if given the chance. "I've always known the actions I took were not only lawful and legal, they were right," said Perry, who spoke at the headquarters of an influential Texas conservative think tank, which has previously christened its balcony overlooking downtown as the "Gov. Rick Perry Liberty Balcony." The court said veto power can't be restricted by the courts and the prosecution of a veto "violates separations of powers." A lower appeals court had dismissed the other charge, coercion by a public servant, in July. Rick Perry addresses the dismissal of a federal indictment, Feb. 24, 2016. Perry had rebuked the charges as a partisan attack from the start, calling it a "political witch hunt," but the dismissal brought accusations of Republican judges doing a favor for a party stalwart. Texans for Public Justice, a left-leaning watchdog group that filed the original criminal complaint that led to the indictment, said Perry was handed a "gift" based on his stature. Even a Republican judge who dissented in the ruling said the decision could leave the public with an uneasy perception that the system went out of its way to clear a famous politician with deep connections. "The constant references to `Governor Perry' could well be seen by the public as an inference that appellant's position in life entitles him to special privileges and special treatment by this court that others might be denied," wrote Republican Judge Cheryl Johnson, referring to how judges addressed Perry during deliberations. Perry, the longest-serving governor in Texas history, made just one court appearance in the case and was defiant from the start -- he went out for ice cream after turning himself in for booking at an Austin jail, and smiled wide for his mug shot. Legal scholars across the political spectrum raised objections about the case. Still, the Republican judge overseeing it repeatedly refused to throw it out on constitutional grounds, prompting Perry's appeals. Michael McCrum, the special prosecutor who secured Perry's indictment, maintained that the matter was built on evidence -- not politics -- and deserved to go to trial. He can appeal, but that would be a lengthy process. Combined, the original charges carried a potential maximum of 109 years in prison. [[302756881,C]] Despite his legal problems, Perry had formally announced he was running for president in June, hoping to convince GOP primary voters he deserved another chance after his 2012 bid was undone by a series of public gaffes. But his second campaign lasted barely three months, and he dropped out of the race in September. The former governor spent more than $2 million on top defense lawyers. His latest White House campaign raised barely half that much in its first month, and Perry blamed the indictment for his sluggish fundraising. But polls showed he was badly trailing despite visits to Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina. He was the first candidate to leave a GOP field jammed with 17 presidential hopefuls at the time. At least five cases of whooping cough have been reported at a suburban Chicago high school so far this year and school officials are warning parents about the illness. Fenwick High School said it is working the Oak Park Department of Public Health after a number of students have been diagnosed with whooping cough, also known as pertussis. The first case was reported in mid-January and school records show all five students had been previously vaccinated prior to their diagnosis. "The school has been in compliance with the Illinois Department of Public Health and the Oak Park Department of public health, a spokesperson for the school said. We are following all procedures for how to manage this and have notified parents each time a case has been reported." The school has also placed teachers on alert, asking them to send students down the school nurse if they feel they need an assessment and not to pressure students about missing class. "[My friend] said she wasn't feeling well and now she can't come back to school," said student Alexa Zamudio. Whooping cough is a highly contagious bacterial illness. It initially resembles an ordinary cold but can turn more serious, especially in infants and young children. According to the schools nurse, Donna Pape, the illness starts off with cold-like symptoms but can then turn into a severe staccato cough and possible vomiting. Those infected with pertussis may experience coughing fits particularly at night, and vomiting after coughing. The cough associated with pertussis can last several weeks. Symptoms typically do not appear until five to 10 days after initial exposure but can take as long as 21 days, according to the Chicago Department of Public Health. Most diagnosed with whooping cough recover completely following treatment with antibiotics. Cases of whooping cough have also been reported this year at Unity Preschool in Evanston, Warren Township High School in Gurnee and Glenbrook North High School in Northbrook. Dr Kenneth Fox, a pediatrician at North Shore University Health System, said the best defense is to get your family vaccinated and make sure your vaccinations are up to date. "For people who are unprotected, if youre exposed to this germ, theres a 9 out of 10 chance youre going to get the illness," Fox said. Fenwick parent and doctor Robert Koch also recommended sanitizing and maintaining good nutrition as preventative measures. "Wash your hands, get their sleep, keep the nutrition well," he said. "And if they feel they have a cough, stay home." A spokesperson for the family of a tourist who went missing while visiting Chicago over the weekend has confirmed the 26-year-olds body was found on top of a rail car Tuesday afternoon in the West Pullman neighborhood on Chicagos Far South Side. Ademola Owolana, 26, was last seen at Club Low Key in the citys West Pullman neighborhood around 4 a.m. Saturday. He had went out with friends Friday to the nightclub at East 117th Street and South Michigan Avenue and never made it back to his relatives Glenwood home, according to police. A body was found around 2:30 p.m. on an old decommissioned car on a storage track in the Kensington Yard maintenance facility near 123rd and Indiana, Metra spokeswoman Meg Reile said. Although power was shut off to allow emergency crews to remove the body, there were no delays, Reile said. The trains are not attached to power lines, but the lines are always energized even when car is not drawing power. A spokesman for the family confirmed that the man found dead at the facility is Owolana. He was without his phone and passport when he vanished, and was only carrying cash, friends said. The building is not a public facility and the body was found in a fenced yard, Reile added. The car that was involved hasnt been in service for at least 10 days. Amy Gross-Kehoe has lived in six states and registered her car in each of them. But when the Skokie woman moved here 18 months ago, she did not know the state -- thanks to cost-cutting measures -- wouldnt be sending her a reminder to renew her license plate. She learned by getting pulled over by police. I was driving along and the lights from a police car flashed in the back of my car, Gross-Kehoe told NBC 5 Responds. I thought oh gosh, what did I do? Did I miss a sign? What did I do? Gross-Kehoe got off with a warning and, at the suggestion of the officer, went home to jump online to renew. Her Google search landed her on what the state calls a squatter site designed to look like the Secretary of States website CyberDrive Illinois. "It said registration and information, Gross-Kehoe recalled. There still was an Illinois html on there. Following instructions step-by-step on a website called MyCarReg.org, none of Gross-Kehoes warning bells went off until she paid the $23 fee. Instead of getting a renewal, she got a 26-page brochure that walks drivers through the registration process. MyCarReg.org is a site that is in no way affiliated with any government agency, which is noted in a disclosure on the bottom of its homepage. "I've registered my car in 6 states, shouldn't be this hard," Gross-Kehoe complained. Secretary of State spokesperson Dave Druker says she is not alone. "The sites have very similar names and theyre offering services that are very similar to what the department of motor vehicles might be," Druker said. Unlike many other states, the only portal for drivers in Illinois is the Secretary of States Office, which urges drivers to be aware of the imposters. When NBC 5 Responds called the website Gross-Kehoe paid to ask why its charging for information thats free from the state, they told us its against their policy to talk to the media. When we asked them to reach out to our viewer directly, they did, and agreed to give her a refund. Two north suburban men were arrested last month in Arizona and charged with beating a 71-year-old man to death to rob his Albany Park neighborhood home on the Northwest Side. Elijah Timatyos, 23; and Michael Bembea, 24, both face charges of of first-degree murder, home invasion causing great bodily harm and burglary in connection with the death of 71-year-old Allen R. Levin, according to a statement from Chicago Police. A third suspect has not yet been charged. Levin was a family friend of Bembea and had provided financial assistance to Bembeas family in the past, prosecutors said in court Monday. In the days before the murder, Bembea and another person discussed robbing Levin because of their own money problems. Bembea and the other person drove a white Honda Civic from Phoenix, where they were living, to Chicago, prosecutors said. During the trip, the Civic was stopped by police in Wheeler County, Texas, for a traffic violation, prosecutors said. The stop was recorded on surveillance video. When they arrived in Chicago, Bembea and the other person stayed with a friend, and once again discussed robbing Levin. Between Jan. 24 and Jan. 25, Bembea, Timatyos and the third person drove to Levins home in the 4800 block of North Ridgeway. Surveillance video caught the Civic circling the block, prosecutors said. Bembea forced open the rear door of Levins home and pushed the victim down the stairs before letting Timatyos and the other person inside, prosecutors said. They heard Levin fall down the stairs and heard him ask why Bembea was doing this to him. The third person then covered Levins mouth and tried to suffocate him, prosecutors said. Bembea stomped on Levins back, severing his spine, and the other person kicked him in the head. After the attack, they tried to clean up the blood and their fingerprints and wrapped Levins body in a blanket, prosecutors said. They went through the house, taking coins, cash and jewelry, prosecutors said. They left and rented a room at a motel on Lincoln Avenue, then bought cannabis and cocaine before driving back to Phoenix the next day. About 2 p.m. Jan. 27, police conducted a well-being check at Levins home and found him lying on the dining room floor, wrapped in the blanket, prosecutors said. He had a large footprint on his back. An autopsy found he died of multiple injuries suffered in the assault and his death was ruled a homicide, according to the Cook County medical examiners office. Bembea and Tamtyos were arrested in Phoenix on Feb. 4, and made incriminating statements about their involvement in the murder, prosecutors said. Bembea admitted breaking into Levins home, stomping on his back and beating him. Both Bembea and Timatyos were ordered held without bond in court Monday. Timatyos is next scheduled to appear in court March 15. Bembea is scheduled for a hearing March 11. The third person has not been charged. A Missouri jury has awarded $72 million to the family of an Alabama woman who died from ovarian cancer, which she said was caused by using Johnson & Johnson's well-known baby powder and other products containing talcum. The civil suit by Jackie Fox of Birmingham was part of a broader claim in the city of St. Louis Circuit Court involving nearly 60 people. Her son took over as plaintiff following his mother's October 2015 death at 62, more than two years after her diagnosis. Marvin Salter of Jacksonville, Florida, said his late mother, who was a foster parent, used the iconic talcum powder as a bathroom staple for decades. "It just became second nature, like brushing your teeth," he said. "It's a household name. " A Fox attorney said the jury verdict Monday night, which came after nearly five hours of deliberations at the conclusion of a three-week trial, was the first such case among more than 1,000 nationally to result in a jury's monetary award. The jury said that Fox was entitled to $10 million in actual damages and $62 million in punitive damages. Attorney James Onder said he "absolutely" expects Johnson & Johnson the world's biggest maker of health care products to appeal the verdict. The New Jersey-based company previously has been targeted by health and consumer groups over possibly harmful ingredients in items including its iconic Johnson's No More Tears baby shampoo. In May 2009, a coalition of groups called the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics began pushing Johnson & Johnson to eliminate questionable ingredients from its baby and adult personal care products. After three years of petitions, negative publicity and a boycott threat, the company agreed in 2012 to eliminate the ingredients 1,4-dioxane and formaldehyde, both considered probable human carcinogens, from all products by 2015. Spokeswoman Carol Goodrich said Tuesday that the New Jersey-based company was considering its next legal move. In a written statement, she said the verdict "goes against decades of sound science proving the safety of talc as a cosmetic ingredient in multiple products," citing supportive research by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and National Cancer Institute. At trial, Fox's attorneys introduced into evidence a September 1997 internal memo from a Johnson & Johnson medical consultant suggesting that "anybody who denies (the) risks" between "hygenic" talc use and ovarian cancer will be publicly perceived in the same light as those who denied a link between smoking cigarettes and cancer: "denying the obvious in the face of all evidence to the contrary." Talc is naturally occurring, mined from the soil and composed of magnesium, silicon, oxygen, and hydrogen. It's widely used in cosmetics and personal care products, such as talcum powder, to absorb moisture, prevent caking and improve the product's feel. Nora Freeman Engstrom, a Stanford University law professor not involved in the Missouri case, said it's unlikely the $72 million award will survive, noting that the U.S. Supreme Court, in a recent series of rulings, has maintained that appellate courts clamp down on punitive damages. "Big jury verdicts do tend to be reined in during the course of the appellate process, and I expect that to be the case here," she told The Associated Press. The verdict Monday "doesn't bode well for Johnson & Johnson" as it faces at least 1,200 still-pending lawsuits and possibly thousands more, she said. "This case clearly was a bellwether, and clearly the jury has seen the evidence and found it compelling," she said, concluding "the jury was distressed by the company's conduct." After the federal government launched an investigation into the finances of the Marinello School of Beauty chain, the school shut down three weeks ago, leaving hundreds of students under the dryer. Now students have some places to turn for help. Not only did the school close, said Shyan Turner, "but they told us that our high school diplomas didn't matter, so I had to start all the way over. It's just a longer process and it's stressful. To help the students who lost their school, the government brought together 15 other beauty schools to a forum in Hartford. I'm looking for the instructors to give me great insight in what I'm going to learn at the school," Joinesha Cash said. Students were also getting the federal government to forgive student loans used at Marinello, or to move them along to the students' new schools. Some of them, though, paid cash. "Those students can apply for tuition reimbursement and we will refund their money," Patricia Santoro, of the state government's Office of Higher Education, said. Get more information on the help available from the state Office of Higher Education. State police seized dozens of marijuana plants when they raided a home in East Hampton on Tuesday night. A Connecticut State Police drug task force, the Drug Enforcement Agency and East Hampton Police raided 29 Wildwood Lane in East Hampton around 5 p.m. on Tuesday after receiving information that someone was growing it in the home. Police said they identified three residents suspected of growing the marijuana -- Destin Kelley, 32; Julian Clark, 30; and Elizabeth Moore, 36 -- and found three separate grow rooms in the house. Police seized more than 56 mature marijuana plants ready for harvesting, two and a half pounds of processed marijuana buds packaged for sale, several high-intensity lights and ballasts, an extensive irrigation system and a ventilation system, police said. Detectives also seized several grams of THC wax made from the extracted marijuana oils, several pipes and bongs, and around $2,900 in cash. All three were charged with cultivation of marijuana, operating a drug factory, possession of over one kilo of marijuana, possession of drug paraphernalia and possession with intent to sell marijuana. Bond for Kelley and Clark was set at $250,000, while bond for Moore was set at $100,000. All three are due in Middletown Superior Court today. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention added two destinations Tuesday to the list of places with Zika-related travel warnings. While working with public health officials to monitor for ongoing Zika virus transmission, the CDC added Trinidad and Tobago and the Marshall Islands to the list of regions where Zika transmission is ongoing. The CDC warning is a Level 2 warning, saying travelers should "Practice Enhanced Precautions." Specific areas where Zika virus transmission is ongoing are often difficult to determine and are likely to continue to change over time. For a full list of affected countries/regions, click here. The best way to prevent being infected by the virus is to prevent mosquito bites. Mosquitoes that spread Zika are aggressive daytime biters, the CDC said, though they have also been known to bite after dusk. While a Zika vaccine is being developed, there is currently no vaccine or medicine available to treat a Zika infection. The CDC warns travelers headed to regions where the virus is present could be come infected and not become sick until after returning home, or they could simply carry the virus home and never become sick. "Some people who are infected do not have any symptoms. People who do have symptoms have reported fever, rash, joint pain, and red eyes. Other commonly reported symptoms include muscle pain and headache. The illness is usually mild with symptoms lasting from several days to a week. Severe disease requiring hospitalization is uncommon and the number of deaths is low. Travelers to areas with ongoing Zika virus transmission should monitor for symptoms or illness upon return. If they become sick, they should tell their healthcare professional where they have traveled and when," the CDC said. Zika Virus and Pregnancy: CDC Until more is known, CDC continues to recommend that pregnant women and women trying to become pregnant take the following precautions. Pregnant women Consider postponing travel to any area where Zika virus transmission is ongoing. If you must travel to or live in one of these areas, talk to your healthcare provider first and strictly follow steps to prevent mosquito bites. If you have a male partner who lives in or has traveled to an area where Zika transmission is ongoing, either abstain from sex or use condoms consistently and correctly for the duration of your pregnancy. Women trying to get pregnant Before you or your male partner travel, talk to your healthcare provider about your plans to become pregnant and the risk of Zika virus infection. You and your male partner should strictly follow steps to prevent mosquito bites. Guillain-Barre syndrome (GBS) has been reported in patients with probable Zika virus infection in French Polynesia and Brazil. Research efforts underway will also examine the link between Zika and GBS. 14 New Reports of Sexual Transmission of Zika Investigated The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Tuesday it is investigating 14 new reports of sexual transmission of Zika, including several involving pregnant women. "In two of the new suspected sexual transmission events, Zika virus infection has been confirmed in women whose only known risk factor was sexual contact with an ill male partner who had recently traveled to an area with local Zika virus transmission," the CDC said in a statement. "Testing for the male partners is still pending." Confirmatory tests are pending in four other suspected sexual transmission events, the CDC said. And an investigation is ongoing in eight other suspected events. The new cases involve possible transmission of the virus from men to their sex partners, according to the CDC. Currently, there is no evidence that women can transmit Zika virus to their sex partners, but more research needs to be done. Earlier this month, Dallas health officials reported the first known case of sexual transmission of Zika in the current outbreak. Zika has been spreading rapidly across the Americas, prompting the World Health Organization to declare it an international public health emergency. Mosquito bites remain the primary vehicle for Zika transmission but sexual transmission of the virus infection is possible, the CDC said. Federal authorities have indicted Timothy Burke, the man at the center of a foreclosure rental operation in Connecticut. Investigators say Burke, 64, of Easton, defrauded dozens of Connecticut homeowners in foreclosure by promising to intervene with their lenders, but instead rented out the properties and kept all of the money. The NBC Connecticut Troubleshooters began looking into Burke in 2014 and found that he used many aliases, including "Jimmy" and "Bill." An IRS investigator credits the Troubleshooters with exposing the alleged scheme. According to the U.S. Attorney's Office in New Jersey, in 2003, Burke pleaded guilty to several counts of "equity skimming," duping homeowners into signing over the rights to their properties with a promise of freeing them from their debts, then renting those properties out and keeping all the money. Burke served four years in federal prison. His supervised release was terminated in 2009, and he started his real estate dealings in Connecticut soon after. Now, investigators are looking for other potential victims. Anyone who thinks they may have been victimized is asked to call 860-240-9735. Dozens of the complaints found online, through state agencies and to the Troubleshooters ring to a similar tune: Several people say the cars they purchased through A Better Way Autos had safety issues within days of driving off the lot. The business advertises itself as Connecticuts highest-volume used car dealership, working with more than 240,000 customers every year. Theyve closed 88 Better Business Bureau complaints in three years, giving them a B rating. In 2014, Dominica Young paid 15,000 dollars on a Mercedes E-500 from A Better Way. She says she almost immediately started hearing a loud banging noise, and decided to bring her car to two independent mechanics. They told her the car was unsafe to drive. It had a broken sub-frame, and some repairs were fixed with incompatible, aftermarket parts. That was supposed to be my dream car, said Young. A Better Way Owner Joe Gorbecki told us Youngs car was inspected six times by technicians from four different entities. We are confident that her car was safe when it left our facility and we cannot be held accountable for physical damage done to a vehicle once it leaves our facility, said Gorbecki, in an email. We do everything we can to be certain that every single car we deliver is safe and will meet reasonable expectations. Youngs car now sits in her garage. I havent been able to enjoy the car at all because its too expensive to fix and no one wants to fix it, said Young. Like Young, James Saint Paul also spent 15,000 dollars on his Toyota Sienna. He found engine problems two days after bringing it home. He thought he was covered by insurance he purchased with the car. Turns out, he wasnt. He said A Better Way told him in order to get approved for financing, he had to sign up for extra servicesthe 2,500 dollar gap insurance and 500 dollars for lifetime oil changes. His contract later showed 1,500 dollars for the lifetime oil changes. A Better Way denies the implication that this was mandatory. I know I signed for 500 dollars, at least for the oil change, not 1,500, said Saint Paul. There was no reason for me to spend 1,500 dollars for two years to change oil. Both Young and Saint Pauls stories resonate with dozens of people in Connecticut. In a complaint to the Attorney General, one woman says she drove her Tahoe for just three weeks before having to take it in indefinitely. Im not asking for a brand new car, she wrote in the complaint. Im asking for my car to be safe and to be able to be driven. And in an email, one viewer told the Troubleshooters she had to trade her car in, taking a 5,800 dollar loss. Theres no winning, theres no compromising, said Young. You cant compromise. You have to seek for damages, and thats what I intend to do. But Young and every other A Better Way customer cannot sue in court. A clause in their contracts says, We may choose to have any dispute decided by arbitration. In arbitration, complainants dont face a judge or a jury. Instead, they see a third party arbitrator who hears both sides and makes a decision behind closed doors. Compared to the courts, that decisions is much harder to appeal. A Better Way says they support arbitration to keep the legal fees down, a sentiment that resonates with many companiesmost credit card companies and cell phone carriers have the same clause. Washington lawmakers are keeping an eye on arbitrations growing popularity. On February 4, Vermont Senator Patrick Leahy proposed a bill that, if passed, would only be allowed if both parties agreed to it after the consumer filed a complaint. Attorney Dan Blinn represents 12 clients facing arbitration, including Young and Saint Paul. You should see the expression on some of my clients faces when I explain to them that when they went to buy a car, they signed away their right to go to court, said Blinn. Both Young and Saint Paul say they would have never signed their contracts had they known about arbitration. In hindsight and with their cases both still pending, the lesson is in the fine print. Consumers should check these cars out, and they should make sure that all promises are given to them in writing, said Blinn. And they should check over their contracts very carefully before they sign. As Josh Hamilton returned from his second knee opinion in Alabama this morning, he arrived at Rangers Spring Training in Arizona on crutches. Now more than ever, the left-field position is in limbo. The Rangers werent counting on the former AL MVP to play 162 games in the outfield, but news that his balky knee cant even withstand the lead-up to full-squad workouts is alarming. Especially when the team hasnt exactly bought the best of insurance policies. Rangers assistant general manager Thad Levine says slugger Josh Hamilton will be on crutches for a week or so and will not play until mid May due to knee problems. Its painfully clear that Hamilton, who has already undergone two surgeries since September, cant be counted on as the everyday left fielder. At this point its iffy whether he can even be part of a platoon, or even a part-time DH. After the surgeries and a cortisone injection he experienced renewed soreness last week and sought the advice of noted orthopedist Dr. James Andrews. So now what? Another surgery? Chronic pain? 100 games? 62 games? While former Ranger/free agent David Murphy seems a viable option as a left-handed hitting left fielder, the team signed righty Justin Ruggiano as a free agent. Minor-league prospects include Nomar Mazara or Joey Gallo, but the Rangers seemed determined to make the latter slugger a 3rd baseman. Rangers Spring Training 2016 Hamiltons been a pain in the butt for this organization for years now. And with the pain in his knee, this spring is proving no different. A native Texan who was born in Duncanville and graduated from UT-Arlington, Richie Whitt has been a mainstay in the Metroplex media since 1986. Hes held prominent roles on all media platforms including newspaper (Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Dallas Observer), radio (105.3 The Fan) and TV (co-host on TXA 21 and numerous guest appearances, including NBC 5). He lives in McKinney with his wife, Sybil, and two very spoiled dogs. Online retailing giant Amazon is poised to significantly expand its footprint in North Texas. The Internet retailer is looking at two huge warehouses that could add more than 1 million square feet of distribution space to its Dallas-Fort Worth operations, real estate brokers say. The company is in talks with owners of the industrial buildings at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport and near the AllianceTexas development on Interstate 35W. CLICK HERE to read more from our media partners at The Dallas Morning News. Khloe Kardashian isn't sure she's ready to start watching "The People v. O.J. Simpson" just yet. Even though the series features her famous family and is one of the biggest trending shows of the moment, she says she has her "reservations" about it most of which surround the emotions involved with losing her father, Robert Kardashian, and having to watch her "uncle" O.J. Simpson on trial for murder. "I have it on DVD. I just haven't seen it yet," Kardashian explained during this week's episode of of her FYI series "Kocktails with Khloe." "I've seen all of the documentaries or the rehashing of the footage of the O.J. trial and all this stuff, and just seeing like my dad and everything again, I relive emotions. Like, 'Oh my god, I forgot the sound of my dad's voice.'" She continued, "I understand why it came back. I just feel bad and I think I'm a little more sensitive to it, cause he was my Uncle O.J., like that's always what I called him. So just hearing things, or I might remember things differently. "I definitely want to watch it," she noted. "I was also just afraid of how they would portray my dad. I hear David Schwimmer did a phenomenal job, and they play him really true to form, so I'm grateful for that." However, she also said she has a soft spot in her heart for O.J. and Nicole Brown's children and can't imagine what it would be like to have to relive the heart-wrenching experience again. "I'm not their child. I more felt bad for the kids Sydney and Justin," she said. "You'll never get over your mom being murdered, and now they have to get stalked by the paparazzi again?" Meanwhile, Kardashian doesn't have to worry so much about her or her siblings getting a whole lot of air time in the series. Executive producer Ryan Murphy explained during a panel for the show last month, "In the 10 episodes, there are over 400 scenes, and of them, only four or five involve the Kardashian children." The other executive producer Brad Simpson continued, "We thought it would be valuable just for a little sprinkling, and they are in probably no more than 5 minutes in 10 hours. It's the beginning of the 24 hour news cycle. The beginning of reality TV, and they are emblematic of this period." The fourth episode of "American Crime Story: The People v O.J. Simpson" will premiere Tuesday at 10 p.m. on FX. PHOTOS: "The People v. O.J. Simpson's" Incredible Transformations PHOTOS: "The People v. O.J. Simpson's" Craziest Quotes A self-described Southern California outdoorsman has a corporate giant in his sites. He says his cable provider canceled the two channels that got him to sign up in the first place. Now they won't refund his money and won't let him out of his contract. You don't have to look hard inside Sean Keogan's man cave to see it's the outdoors he craves. "This is a 22-250," he says. "It's a varmint rifle." Hunting, fishing, if it runs, flies or swims, "Im predator control," he says. When Keogan isn't on the hunt, he's watching it. "The Outdoor Channel and the Sportsman Channel, I watch them all the time," he says. Not anymore. There was a text on the screen that said, "you're TV's not broken, but the Sportsman's Channel is no longer available." The cancellations triggered anger for Keogan, who'd just renewed his contract with Verizon FiOS TV. "They don't do a month to month or a yearly contract," he says. "It's a two-year commitment." So now keogan is hunting for satisfaction from Verizon FiOS TV. He was looking to cancel the service and get a refund. Since the channels he watches are no longer offered, he learned corporate game bites back. "It would be $220, $230 early cancellation fee," he says. "The ability to get out of a cable TV contract because of the change in the channels, it's got to be a pretty substantial change," says Stuart Talley, a consumer attorney. Talley says those changes could include the cancellation of a major network, or stations with high subscriptions. "If you have someone that's an avid hunter and it's material to him that they got rid of the channel that's not the standard," Talley says. "You have to look at what the reasonable person would think." A spokesperson for Verizon FiOS TV says the Sportsman and Outdoor channels had low viewership that cancellation was a business decision to avoid passing on fees for content to customers. "To prevent those costs from being reflected on your bill, it is sometimes necessary to remove channels from our line up," the company says in a statement. But Keogan says his bill never changed. "So do they just put that money in their pocket?" he says. Verizon FiOS TV says they've reached out to Keogan, offering him a new cable package and will waive any cancellation fees if he chooses another provider. For now, the only outdoor adventures Keogan will enjoy are his own, which he says happens about five times a month. Even if a company won't let you out of your cable contract there are often ways to lower your bill substantially, with just a phone call to your provider. Verizon's full statement from spokesman Ray McConville: We work hard to keep FiOS TV costs reasonable for our customers. Content costs have increased significantly in recent years and in order to prevent all of those increases from being reflected on customers bills, unfortunately we sometimes have to remove channels from the lineup. We understand the inconvenience this causes which is why we do loyalty credits like the one Sean mentioned receiving. Also, while its sometimes necessary to remove channels, we also add programming every year as well whether its more VOD titles, additional channels, or more content viewable outside the home through the FiOS Mobile App. For example, this week we relaunched Blue Highways TV, which, like Sportsman and Outdoor, is another network that caters to outdoorsy/rural interests. Follow these links: http://time.com/money/3737173/how-to-lower-cut-your-cable-bill/ http://www.marketwatch.com/story/the-foolproof-way-to-lower-your-cable-bill-2014-02-21 https://www.caring.com/articles/secret-to-slashing-your-cable-bill Both the man and woman who were mortally wounded during an officer involved shooting were unconscious when Inglewood police first responded to where they were sitting in a car, said Inglewood Mayor James Butts Tuesday in response to questions about the incident. For at least 45 minutes, police attempted "to rouse" them in an effort "to de-escalate the situation," said Butts. It is the first public explanation for what transpired early Sunday morning during the time between the initial call and the shooting. Police previously had stated responding officers saw the woman had a gun, retreated to behind cover, and then gave orders for the couple to exit the vehicle. "Obviously at some point they were conscious because somebody felt threatened," said Butts, a retired law enforcement officer who previously had served as police chief in other cities. He said it is important for police to finish their investigation, and verify facts, before commenting further. During his comments, Mayor Butts made a point of extending his condolences to the families of those who died. "It's more tragic because they had children," Butts said. The deceased have been identified by family members as Kisha Michael, 31, a single mother of three sons, and Marquintan Sandlin, 32, a single father of four daughters. Michael's twin sister Trisha has said it is possible that returning home after a night out, Kisha may have passed out in the car. Police have made no comment on what specific threat officers perceived. The families have demanded explanations and expressed frustration. "The police ain't telling us nothing," said Trisha Michael. Families for both described them as devoted parents who made arrangements for care of their children while they took a night off. Sandlin had a 2009 conviction for unlawful possession of a loaded firearm in public, according to Los Angeles Superior Court records. Relatives said he had a "rough life," but had made great strides and was working again as a truck driver. "He was a loving father," said Sandlin's sister Leandra Faulkner. "All he cared about was his girls, getting them right." They had moved to the high desert city of Victorville, but returned to Los Angeles to visit family and friends, according to cousin Latoya Simmons. "He moved out of LA to get away from all this nonsense," Simmons said. Kisha Michael was on probation for a misdemeanor theft last year, court records show. Her probation was revoked for a failure to appear in court earlier this month, and on Feb. 11, a bench warrant was issued for her arrest. In a police radio transmission moments after the shooting, an officer can be heard saying the woman had a gun in her right hand. Why either would have had a gun, family members said they did not know. But they believe law enforcement should have been able to handle the situation without resorting to deadly force. "They have crisis counselors, tear gas, bean bags," said community activist pastor Eddie Jones. "All kinds of things besides deadly force." It was evident from shell casings at the scene that military grade rifles had been fired. "I know weapons, I know that sound," said Alfonso Parker, Jr. who described himself as a Vietnam War veteran, and said he could hear the shots from his home. "You don't use that crap on your own people." For the first time since a Murrieta teacher was arrested for sexual abusing a student, the teen and his family are speaking out, concerned about what they call a disturbing trend in the sentencing of female teachers convicted of having sex with boys. Last month, former Murrieta Valley High School teacher Shannon Fosgett pleaded not guilty to eight criminal counts against her. Five of them are felonies involving an alleged sexual relationship with a 16-year-old male student. "I wish this hadn't happened to me," said the boy, who NBC4 will call "Nick," not his real name, to protect his identity. Nick is the main accuser. Although he won't talk specifically about the evidence, he said he will talk about the anguish and anxiety he endured during his alleged yearlong sexual relationship with Fosgett. Nick said he felt trapped and afraid. "She'd tell me she'd kill me if I told anybody or if I contacted anybody, so I always felt pressured when I was in her presence or at the school," he said. When Nick came forward to Murrieta police last fall, he said he was disturbed by the reaction from some male students about his alleged relationship. "Kids would come up to me and give me high-fives, he recalled. I didn't even know kids and they'd try to form a camaraderie around it. Like I did something that was cool." His mother said he told her how he felt at the time. "My son, he held me and cried and he said Mom they see me as a man, but I'm just a boy inside," said Nick's mother, Tasha. Nicks family members are worried that he may not get the justice they believe he deserves, in part because the defendant is a woman. They point out sentences in two recent high-profile cases involving teachers. In 2013, former Redlands teacher Laura Whitehurst was convicted of having sexual relationships with three male high school students, including having a child with one. Whitehurst faced 41 felony counts and 29 years in prison. But in a plea agreement, she was given a 12-month sentence and five years probation. She was released after serving six months. San Bernardino County prosecutors said the plea agreement was a tough situation because of the baby. Theres also former Centennial High School teacher Summer Hansen, who pleaded guilty to having sexual relationships with five underage male students. She faced 13 years in prison, but was sentenced to three. Riverside county prosecutors did not agree with the judges sentencing. Nicks family called it outrageous. "They've broken the oath of caring for a child, of giving them a safe environment," said his sister, Christiana. His mother agreed. "What would a man have had? Why did she get three years? Tasha asked. "I don't understand, it's the same effect psychologically on a boy." Former Riverside County prosecutor Ryan Markson said he has often seen female teachers getting more lenient sentences in cases involving underage male victims. "I think it's sort of the idea of chivalry that is that women are in greater need of protection. They're not thought of as predators," he said. Fosgett is also accused of misdemeanor child annoyance involving another alleged male victim. If convicted, she could get five years in prison. Nicks family said it wont be justice unless she gets the maximum prison time. "I'm scared she's going to get a slap on the wrist and come after me," Nick said. NBC4 tried to reach out to Fosgett and her attorney, but have not heard back. She has denied the charges and has pleaded not guilty. She will return to court March 7. A man jailed in Louisiana on a theft-related charge involving a debit card now faces a capital murder charge in the burning death of a 19-year-old Mississippi woman, authorities said Wednesday. District Attorney John Champion said Quentin Verdell Tellis, 27, was indicted Tuesday by a grand jury in the death of Jessica Chambers on Dec. 6, 2014. On that night, she was doused with a flammable liquid and burned over 98 percent of her body when she was found walking from her blazing car in the rural Mississippi town of Courtland, authorities said. She died at a Memphis hospital hours after she was found. Champion says Tellis and Chambers knew each other but would not describe their relationship or give a motive. However, Champion did say he believed it was a "personal crime." The horrific circumstances surrounding the young woman's death garnered national attention and cast light on concerns about violent crime in rural towns like Courtland, where Chambers lived. Tellis is being held in the Ouachita Parish Correctional Center in Monroe, Louisiana. He was arrested in August on three counts of unauthorized use of a debit card. Monroe police in November identified Tellis as a suspect in the death of Meing-Chen Hsiao, a recent University of Louisiana at Monroe graduate from Taiwan who was found dead in her apartment in August, killed by stabbing. Tellis has not been charged in the 34-year-old Hsiao's death but has been charged with using her debit cards after she died. Tellis was arrested Aug. 20 by the Monroe Police Department on three counts of unauthorized use of a debit card that belonged to Hsiao, taking $1,000. An affidavit filed by police in the case says Tellis admitted to using the card under questioning, and that there are ATM photos of him using the card. Tellis is also charged with one count of possession of marijuana with intent to distribute, after police found a quarter pound of marijuana in a bedroom at his residence. Police say Tellis admitted to selling marijuana. Bail was set at $200,000 on the Louisiana charges. The affidavit states Tellis was on parole in Mississippi at the time of the crime and has previously been convicted of burglary. Apple Inc. will tell a federal judge this week in legal papers that its fight with the FBI over accessing a locked and encrypted iPhone should be kicked to Congress, rather than decided by courts, The Associated Press has learned. Apple will also argue that the Obama administration's request to help it hack into an iPhone in a terrorism case is improper under an 18th century law, the 1789 All Writs Act, which has been used to compel companies to provide assistance to law enforcement in investigations. A lead attorney for Apple, Theodore J. Boutrous Jr., previewed for the AP some of the company's upcoming arguments in the case. Apple's chief executive, Tim Cook, has also hinted at the company's courtroom strategy. Apple's effort would move the contentious policy debate between digital privacy rights and national security interests to Congress, where Apple one of the world's most respected technology companies wields considerably more influence. Apple spent nearly $5 million lobbying Congress last year, mostly on tax and copyright issues. Key lawmakers have been openly divided about whether the government's demands in the case go too far. Magistrate Judge Sheri Pym in California ordered Apple last week to create specialized software to help the FBI hack into a locked, county-issued iPhone used by a gunman in the mass shootings last December in San Bernardino, California. Syed Farook and his wife, Tashfeen Malik, killed 14 people at an office holiday party in an attack at least partly inspired by the Islamic State group. "The government is really seeking to push the courts to do what they haven't been able to persuade Congress to do," Boutrous said in an AP interview. "That's to give it more broad, sweeping authority to help the Department of Justice hack into devices, to have a backdoor into devices, and the law simply does not provide that authority." The White House spokesman, Josh Earnest, this week disputed that Congress should settle the issue and called the government's request narrow. Earnest said the magistrate judge "came down in favor of our law enforcement" after evaluating arguments by Apple and the FBI. Apple hasn't yet made any filings in the case because the Justice Department asked the magistrate to rule before Apple had an opportunity to object. "Sending complicated things to Congress is often not the surest way to get a quick answer," Earnest said. "In fact, even asking some of the most basic questions of Congress sometimes does not ensure a quick answer." Apple intends to argue that the 1789 law has never been used to compel a company to write software to help the government. Michael Zweiback, the former chief of the cybercrimes section of the U.S. Attorney's Office in Los Angeles, said it was highly unusual for the U.S. to ask Apple to give the FBI specialized software that would weaken the digital locks on the iPhone. "There's a significant legal question as to whether the All Writs Act can be used to order a company to create something that may not presently exist," Zweiback said. He said as a former prosecutor he was sympathetic to the government's case, but he described Apple's arguments as strong and said the issue has broad implications. "We are not the only ones who are asking for encryption keys," he said. "The Chinese government has made similar demands upon them, the European Union has made similar demands upon them, so the implications are really not even national. They're international in scope." Another expert, Mark Bartholomew, a professor specializing in cyberlaw at SUNY Buffalo, said Apple may have a compelling case arguing that it would be unfair to force it to make its devices less secure, though it's not clear whether courts would agree that Congress should decide the matter. "When you're requiring a private entity not just to unlock something, or not just to show you something, but to actually change their design then you start getting into different grounds," Bartholomew said. "It makes the stakes higher. It makes us, I think, more sympathetic to what Apple is arguing for. It seems more violative of Apple's independence." The U.S. has used the All Writs Act at least three times most recently in 1980 to compel a phone company to provide a list of dialed numbers, but in those cases the technology and tools already existed, said Jennifer Granick, an attorney and director of civil liberties and the Stanford Center for Internet and Society. "This is a terrorism investigation that's solved. We know who did it," Granick said. "What happens so often is we do something that's justified for terrorism, but it's going to get used in regular, run-of-the-mill cases." Apple is challenging government efforts to overcome encryption on at least 14 electronic devices nationwide in addition to the iPhone in California, according to court papers filed Tuesday in a similar case in New York. Lawyers told U.S. Magistrate Judge James Orenstein in Brooklyn that Apple is opposed to relinquishing information on at least 15 devices in a dozen court cases in California, Illinois, Massachusetts and New York. Before then, the government said Apple had helped it retrieve information from at least 70 devices since 2008. Those phones, with operating software designed earlier than the iPhone used in California, allowed Apple to use a physical tool to extract data from them. Since late 2014, that capability has not existed on newer phones. Associated Press writers Eric Tucker in Washington and Larry Neumeister in New York contributed to this report. This tax season hits a sore spot for Ignacio Cabeza. The father of four is being audited by the IRS. "It's a lot of money to come out of your pocket," said Cabeza, who works as a sprinkler installer. He owes several thousands of dollars to the federal government. So does Miguel Medina. He's also being audited by the IRS, "[The IRS] found that I was lying basically that the person who did my taxes lied." Medina, a father of three young girls, said he owes the IRS over $7,000. Both men went to the same tax preparer, Jose Fernandez at National Tax Group Inc., now a defunct company, to have their taxes done. "It was shocking and devastating, " Cabeza said. "I trusted him because that's what he does for a living." For Medina, the IRS audit is only part of his troubles. The Miami-area resident never received his $14,000 tax refund last year. "Never got the money," he said as he described the steps he took to investigate and find out what happened. Medina compared the bank routing number on the return he signed with the one he said his tax preparer filed online. The tax return money that he was supposed to get was diverted into a Citibank account in Doral opened by his tax preparer. The IRS calls that "disreputable conduct" for any tax preparer. By phone Fernandez told the NBC 6 Investigators Medina's refund was deposited into the account to ensure he would get his fee. But he said the IRS froze the account after it detected too many refunds being deposited. Fernandez also said that Medina could go to the bank to get his money, but the bank told Medina he can't withdraw money from someone else's account. The NBC 6 Investigators made unsuccessful attempts to reach Fernandez again after finding an IRS policy that says when there are multiple refunds to one account it simply mails subsequent refunds to the address on the return. But Medina said his address on his return was also changed to a mailbox drop connected to Fernandez. In his complaint to the IRS, Medina called it theft and blamed National Tax Group Inc. and Jose Fernandez, the registered agent of the now defunct company, state records show. "It almost cost my marriage last year," Medina said. "I almost filed for bankruptcy." Medina is now one of thousands who suspect tax preparer fraud. Tax preparers don't have to be accountants or attorneys. All they need to do is register with the IRS to obtain a tax preparer identification, also known as PTIN. Even though consumers trust tax preparers with their most sensitive information such as social security numbers, date of birth address, only four states required someone to be licensed to prepare income tax returns. Florida is not one of them. In fact, it's harder to get a license in Florida to work as a nail technician than it is to do taxes. The Consumer Federation of America said in a report last year that the lack of regulation on tax preparers has led to widespread incompetence and fraud. Medina has filed complaints with the BBB, FBI and IRS. He tried to file a report with local law enforcement but was told he'd have to sue to get his money. Fernandez doesn't face any charges. The NBC 6 Investigators found that Fernandez has opened and closed four tax-related businesses in the last four years. The BBB said a company's history is important to look into when looking for a tax preparer. The experience is a tax-time lesson for all consumers. Medina and Cabeza know this too well. They learned that lesson the hard way. "You don't lie to the IRS, never in your life," Medina said. "Be careful who you do your taxes with," Cabeza said. "Don't trust nobody. Just be aware because when it hits you, it hits you hard." Rod Davis, president of the Better Business Bureau, said tax time means that consumers need to do their homework to find qualified tax preparers. "You are giving them your personal identifiable information, your bank account information so they can deposit that check into your account for you," Davis said. With no standards for education, training or competence for tax preparers, its taxpayer beware, Davis said. "You can try to regulate it or you can work with the current framework and really drive people to go to the individuals that do have the ethics commitment, that do have the ongoing education and who do have organizations holding them accountable." The IRS warns tax payers that illegal schemes could lead to significant penalties and possible criminal prosecution and it warns taxpayers to be on the lookout for unscrupulous tax preparers. Here are some tips to help you choose a tax preparer: Paid tax return preparers are required to register with the IRS and have an IRS Preparer Tax Identification Number, also known as PTIN and include it on your tax return. Ask the tax return preparer whether he/she has a professional credential such as enrolled agent, certified public accountant or attorney and if he/she belongs to a professional organization or attends continuing education classes. Check the preparer's history: Ask the BBB about the independent tax preparer businesses. For CPA's, check with the State Board of Accountancy. For attorneys, check with the Florida Bar Association and for enrolled agents, go to IRS.gov and search for "verify enrolled agent status" or click here. Ask about service fees: Avoid preparers who based fees on a percentage of their client's refund. Don't use a tax preparer that asks you to sign an incomplete or blank form. To read more about national tax professional organizations, click here. Read the full Dirty Dozen tax schemes from the IRS here. Fairfield University officials are planning a forum to discuss racial issues on campus in the wake of a "ghetto"-themed off-campus party. Saturday's party, at a beach house in the affluent Bridgeport suburb near the private Jesuit school, reportedly included white students in blackface or wearing temporary gang tattoos, chains and other "ghetto" attire. "We have confirmed that it was 'ghetto' themed, but we have not confirmed that there were any students in blackface or in brown makeup," school spokeswoman Teddy DeRosa said. "We have seen no photographic evidence, and none of the students interviewed have mentioned anything of the sort." She said university officials are in the process of determining whether any students will face discipline. She said there is no criminal aspect to the investigation and police are not involved. The Rev. Jeffrey P. von Arx, the university's president, sent a letter to the campus community decrying the party for perpetuating racial stereotypes. He said he is committed to "continuing to engage in critical dialogue to build an inclusive community of learners from a diversity of social, economic, racial, cultural, national and religious backgrounds." About 73 percent of Fairfield's 4,000 undergraduate students are white, while just over 2 percent are black and 7 percent are Latino, according to statistics from the U.S. Department of Education. The Fairfield University Student Association, the school's student government, held an emergency meeting Monday night to discuss the party. DeRosa said that group and school leaders are planning an open forum on Wednesday where the campus community can come to discuss racial issues and express their concerns. "I have encouraged my peers to engage in dialogue with friends around this issue regardless of how uncomfortable it may be," said Anif McDonald, the president of the student association. Community leaders are seeking a federal probe of Boston Latin School, the oldest public school in the nation, and its headmaster as they demand a more thorough investigation into the alleged mishandling of allegations of racism at the prestigious school. The local NAACP chapter is calling on the Department of Justice to investigate how the school responded when students brought to administrators attention racially charged social media posts made by other students. "Ultimately, what they'll be looking for is a racially hostile learning environment," said NAACP Boston President Michael Curry. "We believe that there is valid evidence of that, and we're hoping that they will end up taking a look at it." The school was the subject of an internal investigation stemming from seven alleged incidents of racism between November 2014 and January 2016, according to the Boston Public Schools website. The district's Office of Equity found the school violated its policy in responding to one of the incidents, when a student used a racial slur to threaten toward a peer, the school system said. A male student allegedly made a comment about lynching to a black female student. "The review found BLS did not adequately investigate the incident, did not adequately discipline the student, nor take appropriate steps to ensure the support and safety of the targeted student," the district wrote on its website. [NATL] Top News Photos: Pope Visits Japan, and More In another incident, two black students presented the headmaster with a binder full of racially charged social media posts. Four students accused of making the posts met privately with school administrators and "there were no further issues," the school said. The office issued a set of recommendations to district Supt. Tommy Chang in order to "improve the culture and climate" at the Boston Latin School, which Chang pledged to implement. "I believe the Office of Equitys investigation into Boston Latin School was handled with integrity. The NAACP is and will continue to be an important partner of the Boston Public Schools as we move forward to enhance and ensure a safe and respectful learning environment for all students. The district looks forward to working with the NAACP and other community groups," Chang said in a statement Wednesday. Curry said civil rights leaders and organizations planned to submit the request to the U.S. Attorney's Office of Civil Rights Wednesday afternoon. They are pushing for the ousting of headmaster Lynne Mooney Teta. "We want her gone," Curry said. Under pressure to resign, Teta sent an open letter to the school community Tuesday night. "After weeks of self-reflection and frank conversations, I realize that in important ways I have not succeeded," she wrote. "I am truly sorry." "Her apology is appreciated, but it's a little too late," Curry said. Boston Public Schools Superintendent Tommy Chang stood by the original investigation that found only one of seven race-based incidents was mishandled by Latin School administration. "I don't think a federal probe is necessary," said Boston Mayor Marty Walsh. Walsh said he thinks there are other avenues that can be explored that will be less of a distraction for students at BLS. "We're going to have an internal review in the mayor's office separate and independent from the school department," said Walsh. "We're going to have that conversation today and see what the next step will be." The public school is the oldest in the country, founded in 1635. Some of its famous alumni include John Hancock, Samuel Adams and Benjamin Franklin. Federal attorneys say a former U.S. Navy contractor from central Pennsylvania has admitted under a plea deal to giving false statements after he defrauded subcontractors out of more than $1.2 million. Pennlive.com reports that prosecutors say Andrew Persaud pleaded guilty on Tuesday to submitting a false statement in connection with a 2011 contract to renovate warehouses at the Naval Support Activity Center. Prosecutors say the 43-year-old Mt. Holly Springs man swindled more than $1.2 million in payments meant to pay 17 subcontractors involved in the Mechanicsburg project. The Navy terminated the contract after discovering the subcontractors weren't paid and most had walked off the job. Persaud has agreed to pay $1.2 million in restitution and forfeit the prior $1.2 million payment. He faces up to five years in prison. Patrick Murphy was sworn in as under secretary of the Army on Wednesday. Murphy is the 32nd under secretary of the Army and is the first Iraq War veteran to serve in Congress. He has been serving as acting secretary of the Army. Murphy, who is from southeastern Pennsylvania, formerly served as the congressman for Pennsylvania's 8th District, which covers swaths of Bucks and Montgomery counties. He made headlines in May when he was aboard the doomed Amtrak 188 train when it derailed in Philadelphia during a trip from Washington D.C. to New York, killing eight people and injuring 200 others. Murphy, who was not badly hurt in the crash, helped some of the injured escape the mangled train and took to Twitter that night, posting photos and asking for prayers for the victims. A spokesperson for John Dougherty is speaking out after a non-union electrician accused the Philly Union boss of assaulting him during a street fight last month. Joshua Keesee, a 36-year-old non-union electrician, told police he was working at a job in South Philadelphia that was being picketed by Doughertys IBEW Local 98 back on January 21. Keesee said he was on the 1300 block of South 3rd Street around 8:30 a.m. that day when he was approached by Dougherty and three other men. Keesee told police they began arguing over a union sticker that was attached to his vehicle. Keesee said the argument escalated into violence and accused Dougherty and the three men of punching and kicking him. He then said they fled in a Lincoln Navigator. Keesee refused medical treatment but still filed a police report which prompted an investigation. Jim Reid, the owner of Reids Auto Service which is located near where the altercation took place, told NBC10 he witnessed the aftermath of the fight. I open up the door, I seen a skirmish out there and that was it, Reid said. The fight happened down the street. A video of the aftermath shows a man being pulled by another man along 3rd street as Dougherty and three to four men walk towards them. A man walking with Dougherty also appears to be bleeding from his head. Keesees attorney Robert Mozenter told NBC10 the altercation stemmed from the fact that his client is not a union worker. Its clearly a labor issue, Mozenter said. What is a union boss doing on the street at 8:15? Dougherty approached him, hit him with a left that broke his nose and a right that was partially blocked. The other men jumped in and pummeled him. Doughertys spokesman Frank Keel told NBC10 the union boss was acting in self-dense however after Keesee threatened him. Keel released the following statement on the altercation: On January 21, 2016, John Dougherty, while on his way to work in full business attire, was involved in a brief, physical altercation with a contractor at a notorious, non-union job site in South Philadelphia. There were multiple eyewitnesses. John Dougherty was not the aggressor. A non-union contractor on-site, who was half John's age, made verbal threats in front of John, saying he knew where John's wife took her daily walk and the location of John's daughter's home. John told the contractor that if he had a problem, he should deal with John alone. At that point, the contractor rushed John and threw a punch at his head. This happened after the contractor had already sucker-punched one of the Local 98 protestors on the site, which required stitches for the Local 98 member. John Dougherty ducked the contractor's punch and countered with a punch to the assailant's face. That was the end of the incident. We firmly believe that there should be no criminal or civil charges filed in this matter, as John Dougherty acted purely in self-defense. Dougherty is a well-known union boss who is also politically active. Hes made campaign contributions to both Philadelphia District Attorney Seth Williams as well as Attorney General Kathleen Kane. Williams sent the case to Kane to avoid appearance of conflict. Kanes office also released a statement on the investigation Tuesday. In the matter of John Dougherty, Attorney General Kane has set up a conflict wall regarding the decision to accept or deny the referral and/or initiate charges, a spokesperson wrote. This action was taken to avoid the appearance of a conflict due to the high profile nature of Mr. Dougherty, who was a donor to Attorney General Kane in 2013. The Office of Attorney General employs capable attorneys who are prepared to make the decision whether to accept and/or prosecute a potential assault case." Keesees attorney meanwhile told NBC10 hes preparing to file a civil lawsuit. A conservative political action group is praising U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey for his stance that the next Supreme Court nominee should not be decided by President Barack Obama. Meanwhile, Pennsylvanians are debating the senator's stance. Judicial Crisis Network posted "Toomey: Let the People Decide" to YouTube on Thursday and began running a television ad Sunday. The ad, featuring various people, has a voice-over that says, "the Supreme Court has a vacancy and your vote in November is your only voice. Senator Pat Toomey agrees, the American people should decide." Toomey agrees. He told the Associated Press it might be better to not hold election-year confirmation hearings because senators would be weighing more than just a nominee's qualifications. He and other Republicans would also consider how a nominee from the Democratic president would change the court's balance in his favor before a new president takes office, Toomey said. "It's very unlikely that any nominee, however well qualified, could reach the level that would be necessary to satisfy both sets of criteria," Toomey told the AP. "And for that reason, it might be just as well not to have a hearing that would, sort of, might mislead the American people into thinking that this is just about the qualifications of the candidate, because it's bigger than that." Toomey, who is running for a second term in the swing-state seat, backed Senate GOP Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.) earlier this week in arguing that a nominee for Justice Antonin Scalia's seat is best left to the next president. That stance has brought a barrage of criticism from Democrats and Pennsylvania newspaper editorial boards. One Democrat running for the party's Senate nomination, Joe Sestak, accused Toomey on Thursday of "marching lockstep with partisan obstructionists in Washington, D.C." "I think the question before us now is ... should the outgoing president fundamentally change the balance of the court for the next one or two generations?" Toomey said. "I don't think that's reasonable. I think that it's more reasonable for the American people to have a more direct say in that process, which they will do through the election of the president knowing now with certainty that the next president is going to make this really important pick." If an Obama nominee comes to a vote, Toomey would oppose the nominee, he said, barring an unlikely Obama decision to nominate someone in Scalia's philosophical mold who would not change the court's balance. One fear, Toomey said, is that the court with a new Obama nominee might become less willing to block Obama from exceeding his legal or constitutional authority. "The president intends to change the balance of the court and I am not going to support him changing the balance of the court with nine months before an election, I'm not going to do that," Toomey said. Toomey would not say whether he would apply the same election-year logic in a hypothetical situation where a Republican president sought to fill a vacancy or Obama sought to replace a liberal justice. He said he would address each situation as it arises, but, he said, "this one I think is very clear." Toomey didn't return NBC10's request for further comment, nor did JCN. The ad isn't specific to the first-term Pennsylvanian Republican who is running for re-election in the fall. JCN also made similar ads geared toward constituents thanking other Republican senators including former presidential candidate John McCain (Ariz.) and McConnell. Raleigh, North Carolina-based Public Policy Polling said that a poll of 859 Pennsylvanians found that about three-quarters of respondents felt that the Senate should wait to see who is nominated before deciding whether or not to confirm that person. The survey found that voters want someone to get a fair chance in the Republican-controlled senate to replace Justice Scalia before the end of the year, said PPP. A non-scientific PoliticsPA poll found a majority of readers agreed with Toomey's stance. The Toomey campaign told Politics PA that the PPP poll was "a phony poll by a Democratic outfit for a far left advocacy group. Ask Pennsylvanians if its reasonable to let the people have a say over the future direction of the Supreme Court, and they say it is. Should an Obama nominee fail in the Senate, the court would operate with just eight members at least until the next president takes office in January and puts forward a nominee. Toomey said he was not particularly concerned about the court operating with a vacancy in the meantime. "It's not that big a deal," Toomey said. The vast majority of high court decisions do not require a tie-breaking ninth vote and the court will make only a few decisions the rest of the year, Toomey said. Plus, an evenly divided court simply means a lower court decision stands in a case and a nine-justice court can always choose to revisit the matter in 2017, he said. Wednesday is an exciting night for me personally, as we celebrate the launch of website DoSD, which should complement all of the other great sites in town, but musically it's even more exciting, because with just an RSVP, you can catch som of San Diego's finest bands. For example, it wasn't that long ago that we heard Mrs. Magician was calling it quits, and not only are they back, but they have a new album and are headlining tonight at the Casbah. (In case you miss them, they're also opening for Joyce Manor on Saturday.) But Schizophonics, Birdy Bardot and the Palace Ballroom are all joining in on the free Casbah fun. Of course, it's not the only show in town, so you can still grab tickets to Lake Street Dive at the Observatory (with super-buzz band the Suffers opening), while Metric play the first of two nights at the Belly Up, and Beacon return to town for a show at Soda Bar. Wednesday, February 24: DoSD.com Launch Party with Mrs. Magician, Schizophonics, Birdy Bardot, the Palace Ballroom @ Casbah (Free with RSVP) Lake Street Dive, the Suffers @ Observatory North Park Metric, Joywave @ House of Blues Beacon, Natasha Kmeto, 9 Theory @ Soda Bar Reclamation Tour, Tribal Theory, Eli-Mac @ Belly Up Reagan Youth, Authentic Sellout, Revolt-Chix, the Yucks, the Hathcocks @ Brick by Brick The Hapa Tour featuring Meiko, Marie Digby, Chasing Lovely @ Music Box Midweek Boogie with DJ L @ Bar Pink Gilbert Castellanos Young Lions Series and Jazz Jam @ Panama 66 Grand Ole Office @ The Office Dorkbot @ Whistle Stop (5-8 p.m.) Commune: The Last One Ever with Tropical Popsicle, Mike Turi, Adam Salter, Mike Delgado @ Whistle Stop Club Kingston presents Sol Seed with DJ Carlos Culture @ Winston's Connor Correll and Q, Cheyenne Benton @ Lestat's Tropical Wednesday with DJ Mo Lyon @ U-31 WTF Wednesdays @ El Dorado Open Mic with Jefferson Jay @ Winston's (6-9 p.m.) Wildside @ Humphreys Backstage Live Live Band Wednesdays @ Gallagher's Irish Pub Family Beatdown @ Kava Lounge The Mobros, Andrea Vasquez, Joe Kaplow @ The Merrow Gino & the Lone Gunmen @ Tio Leo's Open Mic/Open Jam @ 710 Beach Club A.O.K. Musik @ Henry's Pub Rosemary Bystrak is the publicist for the Casbah, the content manager for DoSD, and writes about the San Diego music scene, events and general musings about life in San Diego on San Diego: Dialed In. Follow her updates on Twitter or contact her directly. A memorial of flowers, stuffed animals and a note draped a fence in a community northeast of San Diego on Tuesday, near the site where a 10-year-old girl was hit and killed by a car. Neighbors and family were mourning the loss of the girl who died trying to save another child on Monday afternoon. The girl, Kiera Larsen, was remembered by neighbors as beautiful, playful and a true hero. Authorities say Kiera was playing with her siblings and friends outside her home when somehow a Mercedes parked in the girls yard rolled down a sloping driveway and toward the group of kids. The accident happened in the 13400 block of Interstate 8 business in Lakeside just after 5 p.m. Kiera saw the approaching car, California Highway Patrol officers say, and pushed a 2-year-old girl out of the way, saving her. Kiera suffered injuries and was rushed to Grossmont Hospital, but later died. Neighbors were stunned and devastated about the loss. Weve just all rallied together as a neighborhood just to be there and do whatever we can for them, said neighbor Terra Ennis. We love them very much. Theres not a lot we can really say or do so were just here for them. Authorities will perform a mechanical evaluation of the car to determine why it slid down the driveway. Meanwhile, Kieras neighbors and friends have set up a GoFundMe page for her family. You can donate here. As a large-scale, $4.5 million restoration project presses on, the historic boardwalk at Mission Beach will be dominated by construction crews and cones at least through Memorial Day, city leaders confirm. With backhoes in tow, construction crews are currently replacing the iconic boardwalk, seawall and splash wall along Ocean Front Walk near Belmont Park a neighborhood improvement project with intentions to restore the beachside landmark to how it looked when it was first constructed in the 1920s. This vintage photograph shows the bustling boardwalk in the mid-1950s. According to San Diego city leaders, the extensive work is expected to be finished by May 30 Memorial Day, and the unofficial start of the summer season. Work first began on the boardwalk after summer 2015. On Wednesday, San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer and San Diego City Councilmember Lorie Zapf toured the construction site and gave some updates on the massive coastal undertaking, which is part of a long-term effort to improve the area for years to come. [G] Mission Beach Boardwalk Under Construction Reconstructing the boardwalk is good for our beach neighborhoods, good for our tourism economy and good for preserving a piece of San Diego history, Faulconer said. This is an example of how we're building our better future by investing in neighborhoods throughout the city. The City of San Diego posted some photos of the coastal construction on Twitter during the mayor's tour: Reconstruction of historic Mission Beach @belmontparksd boardwalk to be done by Memorial Day @Kevin_Faulconer pic.twitter.com/pCYbT6RDYl City of San Diego (@CityofSanDiego) February 24, 2016 Reconstructing the boardwalk is an example of how we're investing in neighborhoods & building our better future. https://t.co/1XrNZgPk8z Kevin Faulconer (@Kevin_Faulconer) February 24, 2016 Mission Beach visitors and residents say the boardwalk area was deteriorating, and the improvement project is much-needed. Its just amazing. The walls are splitting, theyre falling apart, Mission Beach visitor Keith Johnson told NBC 7. I was pleasantly surprised when I saw them at least start to put some money into the beachfront here. Some local business owners along the boardwalk say improvements to the area will likely bring more tourists to the beach, and customers to their shops and restaurants. Ocean Front Walk is also home to many vacation homes. Thats going to give it a good look over here, said Mike Soltan, owner of Kojacks Restaurant. The wall has been there for years and years, and as of right now, I think thats going to help business; its going to improve the area. Its going to be great. I think they did a good job. For now, the popular pathway used daily by bicyclists, joggers and those casually strolling, remains tight. It is difficult to walk along parts of the boardwalk, as the path is more narrow than ever because portions are closed off by construction crews. The shorterm inconveniences, however, will not outweigh the bigger picture, according to city leaders. Restoring the infrastructure of one of San Diego's most precious resources is greatly needed and will be appreciated by all, Zapf added. A federal jury ordered a local medical device manufacturer to pay at least $27 million to a former distributor for interfering with the distributors business. According to court documents and trial testimony, the dispute started in 2012, when San Diego-based NuVasive, Inc. allegedly fired Madsen Medical, a Nevada medical supply company that sold NuVasive products to hospitals and surgeons in Las Vegas and Reno. Madsen Medicals owner, Kris Madsen, claimed NuVasive, which makes devices for spinal surgery, breached its contract with Madsen by hiring six of Madsens sales representatives and having them sell directly to Madsens former clients. The San Diego jury heard 13 days of evidence and argument in the dispute. After several hours of deliberating on Friday, jurors sided with Madsen Medical. The jury agreed Madsen wrongly suffered a $7.5 million loss for interference of contract and lost profits. Jurors also agreed NuVasive wrongly earned $14 million in sales proceeds in Nevada after firing Madsen and hiring the companys former sales reps. The jurys award includes $20 million in punitive damages against NuVasive, which is headquartered in Sorrento Valley. Unlike most verdicts, NuVasive will not have to pay Madsen both amounts. Instead, Judge Barry Ted Moskowitz will review the evidence and verdict and consider post-trial written arguments from both sides before deciding which of the two damage amounts -- either $7.5 million or $14 million -- NuVasive will have to pay Madsen, if affirmed. Regardless of the outcome, Madsens attorney, Joe Ybarra, said the verdict confirmed his clients claim that NuVasive had violated its contract with Madsen Medical and Kris Madsen. Were very proud of our client, said Ybarra.She stood up for herself and her rights, and were really proud that the jury vindicated her. NuVasive declined a request for an interview, but confirmed it will ask Judge Moskowitz to set aside the jurys verdict and vacate the damage wards. We are aware that the court in the Madsen case reached a verdict unfavorable to NuVasive, and we are in the process of filing post-trial motions to overturn the verdict and/or seek a new trial, the company said in a statement released Tuesday to NBC 7 Investigates. We believe that neither the law nor the facts support the verdict in this matter, and we intend to appeal in the event our post-trial motions are unsuccessful and a judgment is entered by the Court. As this is an ongoing litigation matter, our policy is not to comment further. On Monday, the jury deliberated a second time on the issue of punitive damages. In court, Ybarra told jurors NuVasive had not only broken its contract but acted with malice, fraud or oppression and the knowledge that what it was doing was wrong. He asked the jury to award Madsen an additional $15 million in damages, for that allegedly malicious behavior. NuVasives attorney pointedly disagreed in court, telling jurors that NuVasives behavior did not rise to the level required for punitive damages of any amount. After deliberating less than a day, the jury ordered NuVasive to pay Madsen an additional $20 million in punitive damages. Big corporations have to deal fairly with their business partners, Ybarra said of the jurys award. You cant just trample over their rights. Thats what the jury understood. Ybarra said the jurys award of $27.5 million on the low end, or $34 million on the high end, would be one of the biggest verdicts in a civil business dispute in California in recent years. A 31-year-old woman was arrested Tuesday in a New Year's Day hit-and-run case that killed a father of four, police say. Sophia Palmer of Southeast D.C. was charged with involuntary manslaughter in connection to death of Ian Jerome Butts, 36, early the morning of Jan. 1, D.C. police announced. Butts was crossing the street at the intersection of Minnesota Avenue and C Street when he was struck. Police found Butts lifeless body lying in the street about 4:10 a.m. during a routine patrol, police said. The driver had fled the scene, NBCWashington previously reported. A search ensued for the driver, and about 5 a.m. New Year's Day, police notified Butts father of his son's death. Just two hours earlier, Butts had called his father. "He told me he loved me -- Happy New Year," Henry Lockamy, said. "I told him I love him too and I hope this new year be better for him." Lockamy said that if the driver had stopped the car, his son might have survived. "[If] whoever it was would just got out and made a phone call, maybe that would have saved him," Lockamy said. Butts was a devoted husband and father to four young children, his wife, Tjamanquie Moody, said. "Ian was a good guy. Ian was a family guy," she said through tears. The Washington Post reports that Palmer told police, I hit something, but I didnt know what I hit, according to an affidavit. Ramon Castro, a lifelong rancher and farmer who bore a strong physical resemblance to younger brother Fidel Castro, has died, Cuban state media announced Tuesday. He was 91. Widely known by his nickname "Mongo," the white-bearded Ramon Castro preferred tending crops and livestock to the revolutionary political life embraced by his younger siblings Fidel and Raul, who replaced Fidel as Cuba's president in February 2008. Two years older than Fidel, Ramon was long used to getting double-takes from people who insisted he looked just like his famous brother. At times, Ramon was said to reply that because he was older, Fidel actually looked like him. Ramon, Fidel and Raul were the second, third and fourth children of Angel Castro, a Spanish-born rancher, and his second wife, Lina Ruz. Angel Castro also had two other children from a previous marriage. The three brothers attended Roman Catholic schools in eastern Cuba, where their teachers complained about their pranks and trouble making, prompting Angel to pull them out of classes for some time. Once grown, Fidel and Raul headed off to Havana for studies, then the business of launching a revolution against dictator Fulgencio Batista, who seized power in a 1952 coup. But Ramon Castro was content to remain in the village of Biran in eastern Cuba, where he helped his father with the family business. Nevertheless, Ramon remained in contact with his siblings. He wrote letters to Fidel in prison when he and Raul and other followers were arrested after their unsuccessful 1953 attack on a military barracks that launched their armed struggle. Sometimes along with the correspondence, Ramon sent along a ham or a box of cigars. According to letters from that period, Fidel asked Ramon to assure their parents that prison was not "a horrible and shameful idea. ... When one's motives are lofty and great, then it is an honorable place." After Fidel and his followers established their rebel stronghold in Cuba's eastern mountains, there was at least one recorded instance of Fidel visiting the family ranch, where he feasted on a turkey that Ramon had kept frozen for months in hopes of such a visit. Following the 1959 triumph of the Cuban revolution and Fidel's subsequent rise to power, Ramon often worked as a consultant for the government ministries of agriculture and sugar. In the early 1960s, he oversaw sugar production in eastern Cuba, where he helped increase output. Ramon founded several state companies, including ones that handled the transportation of sugar cane and the production of oranges. He also was involved in agricultural research. Although he wielded little government power, Ramon nevertheless was a founding member of the Communist Party of Cuba and served as a deputy in the country's parliament, the National Assembly. Little was known about his private life except that he was born on Oct. 14, 1924, had been married and had at least two sons, Ramon Omar Castro and Angel Castro. Being the president's brother often brought him into contact with high-profile visitors, including American film director Oliver Stone, who met with both Fidel and Ramon during a 2002 visit. More recently, Ramon befriended rancher John Parke Wright, of J.P. Wright & Co. of Florida, during the American's recent visits to negotiate sales of U.S. livestock to the communist government. Wearing big cowboy hats, the pair rode horses and inspected cattle at the Nina Bonita ranch in the western province of Pinar del Rio. Although Fidel quit smoking cigars in 1986, Ramon maintained the habit that he picked up from his father when he was just 12. "Is it true that he never smoked again?" Ramon asked during a 2002 international cigar festival about his younger brother's former love of the island's world-famous tobacco. "As for me, I haven't given it up." Ramon liked to boast about his family's longevity. Their father lived until age 82, and there reportedly was at least one aunt who lived past 100. "It seems that we have a good genetic mix," Ramon said in late 2004, expressing confidence that Fidel would quickly recover after a fall, which in fact he did. Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe has declared a state of emergency as powerful storms ripped through the state, killing three adults and a child. The 2-year-old boy was killed Wednesday as powerful storms ripped through Waverly, in southeastern Virginia, according to state police. The child was in a mobile home that was destroyed in the storm. His body was found about 300 yards from the mobile home, along with the bodies of the two other victims, a 50-year-old man and a 26-year-old man, state police said. Another man was killed in Appomattox County. He was declared missing after his home in Evergreen was destroyed. His remains later were found in the home, state police said in an update late Wednesday. The Virginia National Guard said in a statement that it expects to have more than 50 soldiers on duty early Thursday. Brig. Gen. Paul F. Griffin, director of the Virginia National Guard joint staff, says the initial plan is to provide support for Essex, Richmond, Westmoreland, Sussex and Patrick counties. Officials say soldiers will work in debris reduction teams. They'll be equipped with chain saws and Humvees to help local emergency responders clear fallen trees and other debris. A rotary wing aviation support will be on standby to provide aerial damage assessment if needed. A reported funnel cloud left an 8 to 10-mile path of destruction in Appomattox County. Seven people were hurt, multiple buildings were damaged and many residents are without power. State police in the county were unable to receive emergency calls due to storm damage to infrastructure. In Waverly, eight people were injured by the storm that left a 3-mile path of destruction, NBC12 WWBT in Richmond reported. Residents reported seeing a funnel cloud. In Essex County, 25 injuries were reported, ranging from minor to serious, and at least 30 buildings were damaged. McAuliffe said state emergency officials are closely monitoring storms that continue to lash parts of the state. The emergency declaration Wednesday evening enables state agencies to devote resources to storm response and recovery. Debris from the storm made roads in the area impassable, and there are reports of flooding. State police advised delaying travel in the area. The National Weather Service had issued a tornado warning for an area in southeastern Virginia, with radar indicating a twister in Waverly. Three people were killed in Louisiana and Mississippi when tornadoes hit there Tuesday. Dozens of other people were injured. Four college students are suing the city of Providence, Rhode Island, over an ordinance that bans them from living together in a single-family home. The Johnson & Wales University students are joined in the suit filed Tuesday by their landlord, and backed by the American Civil Liberties Union. The city council passed the rule in September after complaints about chronic, out-of-control partying by students in neighborhoods near the Roman Catholic school Providence College and the public Rhode Island College. There have also been complaints over the years about student behavior in other sections of the city around the Ivy league Brown University and the prestigious art school the Rhode Island School of Design. Democratic Councilwoman Jo-Ann Ryan, who pushed the rule, complained that renting single-family homes to students was eroding the character of the neighborhoods. The lawsuit argues that there is no reason to believe that restricting the number of students who live in a single-family home will lead to safer, quieter and cleaner neighborhoods. "On the contrary, the ordinance is an unconstitutional intrusion into the rights of college and graduate students to choose with whom they wish to live, and the rights of property owners to rent their homes to tenants of their choice," lawyers Jeffrey Levy and Charles Blackmun wrote. A spokeswoman for Democratic Mayor Jorge Elorza said the city does not comment on ongoing legal proceedings. Other college towns have passed such rules in the past, and some of those have been struck down, Levy said. A similar ordinance in Narragansett, Rhode Island, was held unconstitutional by a state superior court in 1994, as was one in Prince George's County, Maryland, in 1993. He said Boston enacted a similar ordinance in 2008, but to his knowledge it has not been enforced or challenged. Levy said his clients have not yet been the target of any enforcement action, and he is not aware of any actions against other student renters. He said the ordinance will have the worst impact on students from low-income and middle-income families who can't afford to pay more for rent. Authorities in Cambridge, Massachusetts, say a police officer has been cited, but not arrested, in a hit-and-run over the weekend. Twenty-eight-year-old Ryan Callinan of Wilmington is accused of leaving the scene after hitting a bicyclist at the intersection of Broadway and Portland Street Sunday evening. Police say the victim has since been released from a local hospital after Callinan rear-ended her. "She was doing everything she was supposed to do," said Cambridge Police Deputy Superintendent Jack Albert. "She had lighting on the back of the bike, she had reflective clothing on and she had her arm out indicating a left-hand turn." Callinan, a five year veteran of the department, has not been arrested, but placed on administrative leave, police said. Albert gave two reasons why Callinan was not charged. "There's no mitigating circumstances, as we know right now, that would elevate it to a felony charge," Albert said. "Unless we witnessed the event, the accident itself, we would not place that person under arrest." The investigation into the hit-and-run is being conducted by Cambridge police, Middlesex D.A.'s office and state police. Callinan's arraignment date has not been set. A judge is allowing a former Brown University student who says he was wrongly accused of sexual misconduct and suspended for 2 years to move forward with his lawsuit against the Ivy league school. U.S. District Judge William Smith on Monday allowed claims of gender discrimination, breach of contract and other claims by the former student, who filed the lawsuit anonymously as "John Doe." The former student says Brown's disciplinary process is stacked against men accused of sexual misconduct. The incident happened in 2014. Brown had asked that the lawsuit be dismissed, arguing the school followed its own policies and the student showed no evidence of discrimination. The judge noted that there have been several recent federal lawsuits brought by male students against universities that found they committed sexual assault. Federal prosecutors in Maine say a 58-year-old Sebago man has pleaded guilty to federal charges stemming from possession of child pornography. Prosecutors say William Duffy faces up to 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and supervised release that could last for life. He will be sentenced after the completion of a pre-sentence report. Court records say sheriff's deputies executed a search warrant on Duffy's laptop at his Sebago home in May 2015. An analysis revealed numerous images and video files depicting child pornography. Duffy's Attorney Tim Zerillo, of Portland, did not immediately respond to a phone call seeking comment about the case. The FBI and Maine State Police Computer Crimes Unit investigated the case along with local authorities. A driver was arrested in a crash that left a pedestrian seriously injured Tuesday afternoon in Weymouth, Massachusetts. Police say 51-year-old Thomas Mohan of Weymouth was drunk and on drugs when he slammed into another vehicle and a 39-year-old Weymouth man at 396 Washington St. The pedestrian sustained life-threatening injuries. Mohan, the pedestrian and the other driver were all transported to South Shore Hospital, where Mohan was arrested on charges of operating under the influence of alcohol and drugs, negligent operation causing serious bodily injury and marked lanes violations. The crash remains under investigation. Suffolk bishop is consecrated at Westminster Suffolk bishop is consecrated at Westminster A former management consultant became the Bishop of Dunwich during a moving ceremony at Westminster Abbey today in front of supporters from Suffolk and across the country who had travelled to London for the occasion. The Revd Dr Canon Mike Harrison, 52, was consecrated as Bishop of Dunwich in the St Edmundsbury and Ipswich Diocese at Westminster Abbey on February 24 by the Archbishop of Canterbury The Most Revd Justin Welby, in front of a large number of fellow bishops and more than 1,000 people. Bishop Mike, whose new role will include helping the Church grow in Suffolk, said: When I was young our family tradition at Christmas was to write (a short!) Christmas present list and at the top of mine was always surprises. Coming into this diocese takes me back to that because it feels as if I know very little indeed about St Edmundsbury and Ipswich and surprises will certainly be in store. However, I am greatly encouraged from what I have been told that this is a diocese of great warmth, welcome and hospitality. The new Bishop of Dunwich said one of his priorities was quite simply to get to know the diocese, which includes almost all of Suffolk. He plans to initially focus on listening to the joys and challenges facing Christian communities, priests and people and the Church within the county as a whole. The Rt Revd Martin Seeley, Bishop of the Diocese of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich, described the ceremony as a tremendous occasion for everyone in Suffolk. He said: I know what the impact of his consecration as a bishop will have on him. It will give him the strength to embrace the joys and challenges of his new role he is coming to in our county. Mike is warm and outgoing with a deep spirituality as well as a creative intelligence. He is a fine teacher, preacher and pastor and I look forward to welcoming him and his family to Suffolk. What Mike brings to our county in particular is experience of the growth and renewal of the rural Church in Leicestershire, the second fastest growing diocese in the country. Mike has experience with young peoples programmes, youth projects and church schools and will aim to strengthen that work in our county too. The Diocese of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich traditionally has two Bishops, currently the Rt Revd Martin Seeley, and his assistant, the Bishop of Dunwich. Bishop Mike said: Coming into a leadership role in any organisation or institution there can be a huge pressure to swiftly identify the problems and fix things. Sometimes this is absolutely right and the situation demands it, but sometimes this can be an anxious reaction to being overwhelmed by worry and that can lead to short-term fixing which in the long-term doesnt fix anything. So I hope I will take Jesus words seriously to be ye not anxious, and face the many challenges and issues that face every diocese with an attentiveness and an unshakeable confidence and calmness in our Lords presence and provision, he said. He will welcomed to the county formally as he is installed as Bishop of Dunwich during a second service at the cathedral in Bury St Edmunds on Saturday February 27. He succeeds the late Rt Revd Clive Young, who retired during 2013 as Bishop of Dunwich and tragically died soon after. Pictured above, the Archbishop of Canterbury with Bishop Mike and, top, the service at Westminster Abbey. Researchers from the U.S. Army Armament Research, Development and Engineering Center recently patented a new type of bullet capable of self-destructing after traveling over a predetermined distance. The idea behind the new and advanced projectile is that it might help limit the extent of collateral damage (read: innocents dying) during battle or in other operational settings and environments. As for how it all works, the U.S. Army explains that when one of these limited-range projectiles is fired, a pyrotechnical material is ignited at the same time and reacts with a special coating on the bullet. The pyrotechnic material ignites the reactive material, and if the projectile reaches a maximum desired range prior to impact with a target, the ignited reactive material transforms the projectile into an aerodynamically unstable object. ... The transformation into an aerodynamically unstable object renders the projectile incapable of continued flight. The researchers add that the desired range of its limited-range projectile can be adjusted by switching up the reactive materials used. Put simply, the Army has come up with what effectively amounts to a self-destructing bullet that is rendered ineffective over certain distances. Currently, the invention is nothing more than a proof of concept, but the Army researchers involved are confident that they're onto something transformative. "The biggest advantage is reduced risk of collateral damage," researcher Stephen McFarlane said. "In today's urban environments others could become significantly hurt or killed, especially by a round the size of a .50 caliber, if it goes too far." The Army notes that the project currently lacks any funding from the U.S. Government, so it may be a while before this proof of concept becomes a working prototype, let alone an actual tool used in a combat setting. Publications across the Internet have praised Netflix on the triumphant migration of its operations into Amazon Web Services cloud. But theres one caveat: Netflix isnt quite all in on Amazons cloud. Perhaps the thing Netflix is most known for streaming videos to users around the globe is not done in Amazons cloud. +MORE AT NETWORK WORLD: If Amazon were in Apples position, would it unlock its cloud for the feds? | VMware turns to IBM for public cloud + Netflix is a big user of Amazons cloud - no one can argue that. Its been a poster-child example of how to use AWS, and even open sources tools it has built for Amazons cloud. Company executives including co-founder and CEO Reed Hastings have been on stage at AWSs re:Invent conference since 2013 chronicling their impressive journey of migrating away from managing data centers and relying more and more each year on AWSs cloud. It published a blog post earlier this month titled "Completing the Netflix cloud migration." Netflix uses AWS for a wide variety of features: It keeps track of all of its users, their preferences, what they watch, what they click on, and the company organizes its massive catalog of content in the cloud. Netflix remembers exactly where you last stopped watching something and picks it right back up from there hours, days or even weeks later. It seems like magic. And a lot of it is run out of Amazons cloud. But theres a whole lot of other magic that happens thats not run out of Amazons cloud. Netflix operates its own Content Delivery Network, named Open Connect, in which it stores the video content is streams to users in data centers around the world to be as close to its end users as possible. The best way to express it is that everything you see on Netflix up until the play button is on AWS, the actual video is delivered through our CDN, Netflix spokesperson Joris Evers said. So while Cloud Chronicles congratulates Netflix on its use of AWS, just keep in mind, the companys isnt quite ALL in on Amazons cloud. Champaign, IL (61820) Today Sunny. High 77F. Winds SSW at 15 to 25 mph. Higher wind gusts possible.. Tonight A few passing clouds, otherwise generally clear. Low 52F. Winds S at 10 to 20 mph. Runners race, jump and crawl their way through an fun-filled obstacle course during the third CarX Crazy K at the Champaign County Fairgrounds Reporter Mary Schenk is a reporter covering police, courts and breaking news at The News-Gazette. Her email is mschenk@news-gazette.com, and you can follow her on Twitter (@schenk). Japanese Encephalitis (JE) virus causes serious inflammation of the brain in people and fertility problems in pigs. Mosquitoes were previously the only known transmission route. However, the virus can also be spread from pig to pig by direct contact, and this could enable it to circulate in pigs during the mosquito-free winter season. The JE virus is the main cause of serious encephalitis in people in Asia. The virus is found in large parts of Southeast Asia and is now also widespread in India. It circulates between birds and mosquitoes and between pigs and mosquitoes, and is passed to humans through mosquito bites. In children in particular, infection can lead to acute encephalitis and permanent impairment or even death. In pigs, the main effect of the virus alongside fever and encephalitis is fertility problems. The virus is closely related to the West Nile, Zika and dengue viruses. All are transmitted by mosquitoes and are flaviviruses, which cause serious illness in humans and animals. Previously, the only known transmission route for JE viruses was mosquitoes. A team of researchers from the Institute of Virology and Immunology and the University Bern at the Vetsuisse Faculty led by Dr. Meret Ricklin and Prof Artur Summerfield have now shown that JE viruses can also be passed directly from pig to pig. The study has just been published in the journal "Nature Communications". Virus persists in pigs Up to now, there had been no explanation for how the JE virus could survive over winter in regions such as the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido, and cause new outbreaks the following year. Outbreaks in some cases occurred on the same farms as in the previous year, despite the fact that no infected mosquitoes could be found in the area. In Taiwan, too, pigs were infected with JE viruses during the winter, but no infected mosquitoes found. As the researchers have now been able to show, infected pigs discharge the virus in their saliva for several days, and the animals are also susceptible to infection through the mouth or nose with very low doses of the virus. In pigs - as in humans - the virus was found to spread through the brain and cause inflammation. The virus was, however, found to grow most in the tonsils, where it was detectable for several weeks or even months. The authors suggest that JE viruses could possibly circulate in pigs and survive for up to months. When the virus is secreted again, for example as a result of a different infection that weakens the immune system, a new infection cycle could then begin. However, the researchers say that further studies are needed to prove this link. No cases in Europe so far The study published shows that even for viruses that are spread by insect bites, direct transmission through animal to animal contact cannot be ruled out. "This means that the virus could circulate within the pig population without mosquitoes, and thus spread even to regions with a temperate climate", says Artur Summerfield. This would theoretically also mean a higher risk to humans. A vaccine is, however, available for both people and animals. The virus has to date only occurred in Europe in travellers returning from Asia and in those cases did not lead to any further infections. Fighting animal diseases The Institute of Virology and Immunology (IVI) with sites at Mittelhausern and Bern is the Swiss reference laboratory for the diagnosis, surveillance and control of highly infectious animal diseases. IVI is part of the Swiss Federal Food Safety and Veterinary Office (FSVO). As part of cooperation with the Vetsuisse Faculty of the University of Bern, the IVI is responsible for teaching and research in the field of virology and immunology. Research activities include both basic and applied research, and provide an important basis for the control of animal diseases and zoonoses (infectious diseases that can be spread between humans and animals). Europes largest dental treatment provider, mydentist, is calling on smokers across the UK to quit on No Smoking Day for the good of their oral health. Steve Williams, Clinical Services Director at mydentist, believes that more needs to be done to educate smokers on the effects their habit can have on their oral health, as well as the rest of their body: The links between smoking and lung and oral cancer have been well documented, with cases of oral cancer on the rise. People are less aware of the damage to the gums and teeth that smoking causes. Recent studies have shown the importance of good oral health as these have been linked with both heart disease and diabetes, he commented. Not only is mydentist encouraging people to give up smoking, but the company is also urging dental practices across the country to provide advice and support services on quitting. Dentists in all of our 670 practices are well-educated in the effects of smoking on a persons oral health, and can provide a lot more support than you might think, Steve continued. As well as checking your teeth, they can also examine your gums, throat, tongue and cheeks to see if there is anything that causes concern. If youre serious about quitting smoking this year, speak to your dentist today to find out how they can help you stop. How does smoking affect your oral health? This No Smoking Day, on March 9th, mydentist is raising awareness of the impact that smoking can have on a persons oral health. When people think of the negative effects of smoking, attention immediately turns to the heart, lungs and overall cardiovascular system. Here are just a few consequences that tobacco can have on your teeth, according to the British Dental Health Foundation: Tooth staining - The nicotine and tar in tobacco can have a dramatic impact on the color of your teeth in an incredibly short space of time. They will start to go yellow, and heavy smokers will find their teeth turn almost brown after years of smoking. - The nicotine and tar in tobacco can have a dramatic impact on the color of your teeth in an incredibly short space of time. They will start to go yellow, and heavy smokers will find their teeth turn almost brown after years of smoking. Gum disease - Smoking increases the likelihood that you will produce bacterial plaque which can lead to gum disease. If that wasnt enough, gum disease can also cause tooth loss. - Smoking increases the likelihood that you will produce bacterial plaque which can lead to gum disease. If that wasnt enough, gum disease can also cause tooth loss. Cancer - In addition to lung and throat cancer, smoking tobacco is also one of the main causes of mouth cancer. Some people may think it is too late to stop smoking for them to feel any benefits, Steve continued. But the truth is that stopping smoking at any stage of your life can dramatically reduce the risk of oral cancer, along with many other diseases. As the largest provider of dental care treatments in Europe, mydentist wishes to use No Smoking Day to educate everyone about the dangers and negative effects of smoking. The decision to quit is ultimately theirs, but they should be aware of the help and support that is out there amongst dentists. APPOMATTOX A dialysis center announced two years ago finally will come to Appomattox. Interim Town Manager Bill Gillespie said it was a project two years in the making at the Town of Appomattox Economic Development Authority meeting Tuesday night. University of Virginia announced it would open a new dialysis center in Farmville and Appomattox in conjunction with Centra Health. Gillespie said after the meeting there has been no communication with Centra during the Appomattox construction. The centers originally were set to open in summer 2014 to provide kidney dialysis treatments for patients, as well as training for home dialysis, according to The (Charlottesville) Daily Progress. The new center will be at 7757 Richmond Highway, near the Kroger, with 9,300 square feet of space and estimated 16 dialysis stations. About 15 full-time staff members are expected to be hired, the announcement said. Gillespie also updated EDA members on work with a Virginia Department of Housing Community Development Block Grant to revitalize the Meadowlark neighborhood in Appomattox. The town announced it received the $1 million grant in August. He said about 25 houses will be renovated along with storm water management and lighting improvements. The town will advertise the request for proposals in March for the first couple of houses and another batch later in the spring. Also at the meeting, the authority discussed six items taken out of its upcoming Action Plan. One of the ideas was a policy for new and existing business incentives. The town has a policy for businesses looking to invest $1 million and another for $250,000. I would like to see a policy to help smaller businesses with smaller things, said newly elected Vice Chair Robert Bob Goode. Authority member Phillip Jamerson echoed the sentiment by saying 10 small businesses may be worth one business. The incentive policy would tie into a Downtown Business District Restructuring Plan to be done this year. About 115 businesses would be in the new proposed district, Gillespie said. The plan would be the first step in applying for a community improvement grant in 2017. In other news, two new members were sworn in at the Tuesday meeting. Daniel Richardson and Michael Goin were appointed to the authority by town council at the February meeting. Boy Thunder's secret identity will be revealed in January's Batman/Superman: World's Finest #11 - but who is he? Boy Thunder is secretly "someone DC fans have known for decades" - but who? Live lunchtime concert According to the Public Relations & Marketing Department, it is because our country needs lots of love to weather the social ills. The week opened with a special My Valentines Party last Saturday, then the love continued on Sunday with legendary band Joey Lewis Orchestra, while Monday was geared towards a Cozy Couples Affair with David Baptiste and Gail Valentine. On Tuesday, it was the night for Latin Lovers, while on Wednesday there was the staging of Local Love T&T Show, then on Thursday, Caribbean Love. The Grand Finale was held on Friday with Love at Lunch - Celebrity Cuisine & Concert featuring David Baptiste. It was a very soothing atmosphere with Baptiste, brainchild of the event, setting the tone as he gave a live concert as patrons had their fill of a great menu prepared by Chef Chris Hosan that included Alfredo pasta, chicken Alfredo, lasagna, mash potato, garlic bread, Chinese-style chicken, fried pork, fried rice, vegetables and lo mein, and Sherwyn Mack attending to the beverage requests. Among the songs he rendered were Lets Stay Together, Penny Lover, and Talking Out Loud/Lets Get It On. As Baptiste sang to a patron: Girl what more can I do...., she responded with: Be careful what you ask for...., causing Baptiste to burst out laughing in the middle of the song. Baptiste eventually continued with All of Me, Just The Two of Us, A Lovely Day and You Make Me Feel Brand New. He was very engaging during his performance, and at the end of it he told Newsday patrons could look out for special guests in the coming months as every other Friday, beginning March 4, the Live At Lunch series will be held. . The Red Sea On social media, many wondered if the red colour was blood, or a sign of the end of the world, while others thought it was a phenomenon known as an algal bloom, also called red tide. However, it was food colouring dumped by an employee of the Stuart Brothers Limited (SBL), a few metres away from the medical facility. SBL is a manufacturer of flavouring concentrates for food and beverage industries in the region. Gregory Wight, managing director of the company, said a junior employee was tasked with making a red food colouring for a customer, and used the wrong one and panicked. He disposed 75 to 100 kilolitres of a five percent solution of red food colour down the drain, he said. Wight said they were shocked over the incident, and while it was regrettable, disciplinary action was being taken. We have very strict guidelines for anything that has to be dumped, he said. He assured members of the public that the colouring was Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved, and it posed no threat to any human, or marine life. We apologise to the surrounding communities over this, and we are taking action to ensure this never happens again, Wight said. When Newsday visited West Shore its Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Umesh Rampersad, said the red substance came from a drain that ran through the facilitys property. He said no waste from the facility is poured into that drain. An official of the Corporate Communications unit at the Environmental Management Agency (EMA) said they worked with the facility to stop the spill. The official said while food colouring agents tend to be non-toxic, the EMA was still awaiting the material safety data sheet to determine if there was any cause for concern. In a release, environmental lobby group, Fisherman and Friends of the Sea appealed to President Anthony Carmona to urgently appoint the EMA board as they were concerned that the Gulf of Paria was being treated like an industrial wastewater dustbin. Recession an excuse to fire workers He said workers have been treated unfairly as they are they ones being made to suffer the most. Roget, who is also head of the Joint Trade Union Movement (JTUM) spoke at a press conference yesterday at the headquarters of the Steel Workers Union (SWUTT) in California. Already, we are seeing scenarios where employers have taken advantage of the situation, most, totally unjustified and we had already in the past, identified some of these employers as the usual suspects, wanting to use the current recession situation to do certain things they had planned to do in the first place, Roget said. So employers are already sending workers home on the pretext that they (employers) are impacted (by the recession). Our information is that all of these claims are not genuine. Just to give you an idea of what we are talking about, Centrin is about to send home 200 workers; Tube City has already sent home 250 workers; Arcelor/Mittal, as you know... we have this raging battle with Arcelor/Mittal. Some 498 workers are on the breadline; NP... you have 68 workers still out and those workers were placed back on the job by the court, but are outside for reasons known only by those who have them outside. OAS, some 1,000 workers are threatened and a number of others as reports continue to come in, Roget said. Roget charged that the burden of adjustment cannot only be borne by workers and that in times of good and plenty employers and businesses benefited from the contribution of these very workers who now should not be called to bear the brunt of adjustments. And so we are going to look at the state of our food import bill as it impacts on our economic situation. We are going to look at the situation with our farmers, the contribution our farmers could make in a time when we need local input in terms of food and agricultural production. We are going to look at greater levels of efficiencies and productivities, cost effectiveness, to ensure that the country benefits from the collective input of its total workforce at a time when it is absolutely necessary, he said. Roget called for equity across the board. SWUTT president Christopher Henry confirmed that Arcelor/Mittal has made an arrangement to remunerate its retrenched workers, confirming a statement on Monday by Labour Minister Jennifer Baptiste-Primus. However, Henry made it clear that the union will not sign an agreement that stipulates that workers will be laid off. Last PSC appointment finally made Gomes told the media that the appointment brings the commission to a full complement of five. Ramkissoons nomination, Carmona said, was first approved by former Prime Minister Kamla Persad- Bisessars and former Leader of the Opposition Dr Keith Rowley in June last year, following consultations with them, but could not be approved by the Parliament because it was dissolved for elections. After the elections there was a change of Government. With the change, he said, he once again had to go through the process of consultation with Rowley and Persad-Bisssessar who once more approved the nomination. The nomination was subsequently unanimously approved by the Parliament. Noting that We live in a political climate where sometimes people see horns where horns do not exist, Carmona said that the consistency with which Rowley and Persad-Bissessar displayed in Ramkissoons appointment, bodes well for Trinidad and Tobago. It bodes well, he said, when we recognise that competence will not become subservient to a change of Government. He continued, When someone, in fact, is competent, and when there is a change in Government, it matters not at the end of the day. Both leaders, he said, demonstrated that the appointment was not about posturing or brinksmanship in the selection process of a commissioner, but that it was based on their evaluation of his curriculum vitae, competence, and experience. President to launch Caribbean forum on integrity The Conference of the Caribbean Association of Integrity Commissions and Anti-Corruption Bodies (CCAICACB) will be held at the Hyatt Regency, Trinidad, from February 29 to March 4. The forum will discuss how integrity bodies can transform the Commonwealth Caribbean. Participants at the event will be drawn from bodies such as the Commonwealth Secretariat, Transparency International, and a dozen regional Integrity Commissions and Anti-Corruption agencies. Participants will include academics, jurists and government representatives. Panel discussions will be held on several topics, including Whistle-blower legislation. Topics also to be discussed are Combating corruption more effectively in the Caribbean, Integrity challenges faced by Caribbean leaders in the public and private sectors, Governance challenges in small island states and fostering integrity as part of culture in the Caribbean, and Building more effective organisations to transform the Commonwealth Caribbean region. Speakers include TT Integrity Commission chairman, Justice Zainool Hosein, (retired); Chairman of the CCAICACB, Justice Dame Monica Joseph (retired); Commonwealth Secretariat deputy secretary-general, Deodath Maharaj; and Transparency International co-founder, Frank Vogl Brothers Who Haven't Spoken in Decades Both Want to Be Mayor (Newser) A female high school student is in custody after eight people were stabbed at a high school east of Toronto on Tuesday, the AP reports. All the injuries are minor. Police Sgt. Bill Calder said officers were called to Dunbarton High School in Pickering, Ontario, after a report about a female waving a knife around. He said six students and two staff members sustained minor injuries. Calder said four were taken to hospital with minor injuries. Students described running from a girl brandishing two kitchen knives careening down the hallways of the school. "I just ran for my life," said one 14-year-old girl who was slashed at. "I just can't believe it happened. She almost got me." Police have not released the name or age of the student taken into custody, but Calder said she is in the younger grades. Two staff members tackled the student and held her until police arrived, he said. The attack appeared to be random. Charges against the student are pending, but it's not clear yet what they are. Police are continuing to investigate. Violence at schools is rare in Canada. However, a 17-year-old shot and killed four people at a school and home in an aboriginal community in Saskatchewan last month. The school in La Loche, Saskatchewan reopened Tuesday. (Read more knife attack stories.) (Newser) Loyalty between dog and man once again has no bounds, this time via a German shepherd who waited two weeks for an owner who'd never come home again. The dog was first spotted at an apartment complex near Houston's Hobby Airport, KTRK reportssometimes on the steps, sometimes at the complex's front gates, sometimes camped out at one particular apartment's front door. "You could just tell that he was a lost dog," neighbor Cassandra Eubanks says. "He would follow the cars and when he would realize that it was not his owner's car, he would just stand there and look helpless." What the poor pup didn't realize: His owner, 54-year-old Hatem Abuharbid, had been killed in a robbery Feb. 7 at the convenience store where he worked, ABC News reports. "Of course he's confused, because he doesn't know what's going on," Eubanks says. The dog wouldn't approach neighbors who left food and water out for him, but he was eventually rescued by a woman who had heard about his plight on social media. "It just broke my heart to hear that the poor animal lost his owner, his best friend," Maranda Perez tells KTRK. She brought her own dog along and worked patiently for about an hour to make the now-ownerless dog comfortable around her. After following him up three flights of stairs, Perez was finally able to place a leash around his neck and get him, with some resistance, into her car. "He was still very shaken up whenever I touched him," she says. Perez says she'll take care of him for the next week or so before Abuharbid's brother takes the dog in. (This loyal pooch stuck by its owner's body until rescuers found them.) (Newser) Someone at the Minnesota Department of Public Safety was maybe not paying close attention when they issued a personalized license plate reading "FMUSLMS" back in June. The plates got attention after a Somali community activist posted a picture of one on Facebook over the weekend, and now the DPS says they will be immediately revoked, Fox 9 reports. "This personalized license plate should never have been issued; it is offensive and distasteful," reads a DPS statement. Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton issued his own statement in which he said he is "appalled" the plates were issued. (Read more Minnesota stories.) (Newser) You get an office computer, and you get an office gun," one employee of Lance Toland Associates tells the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The Georgia aviation insurance agency recently started requiring all 12 of its employees to be armed at work. After employees get their concealed carry license, Lance Toland provides them with a pistol known as the Judge, WSB-TV reports. "Everybody has one of these in their drawer or on their person," he says. "I would not want to come into one of my facilities. Toland says the new rule was inspired by violent crime in Atlanta and the death of his uncle during a robbery four decades ago. I have an issue with thugs," he tells the Journal-Constitution. I want to make sure my family and my employees are protected. Toland says employees in his three offices were excited to get the guns and had their licenses within a month of the new rule. "It was a unanimous, 100% participation, no dissenters whatsoever," he tells the AP. Toland describes the Judge, a pistol that can fire shotgun shells, as a "hand cannon." One shot can cover a wide area, so he says it's a great weapon for people who aren't great aims. But his rule isn't just about protecting his employees, most of whom, he points out, are women. "It's really about us as citizens of this great country enjoying and using our right to bear arms," Toland tells the AP. Toland's requirement that his employees be armed is legal, but he's also legally responsible for anything his employees do with the guns. (Read more guns stories.) (Newser) At least seven tornadoes hit Louisiana and Mississippi on Tuesday, killing at least three people, the AP reports. National Weather Service meteorologist Ken Graham says that number includes the one that slammed into a trailer park in Convent, Louisiana, and one that killed a person near Purvis, Mississippi. Graham says teams will be sent out in the morning to document the damage and rate the tornadoes. Sheriff Willy Martin says at least two people were killed when the twister hit the park in Convent. He says authorities are using dogs to search piles of rubble left in the wake of the storm to find anyone else still missing under the debris. Martin says at least 30 people were wounded. Of those, seven are in critical condition. Vann Byrd of Mississippi's Lamar County Emergency Management Agency says the death in Purvis occurred in a mobile home west of the city. Byrd says officials are still sorting through reports of damage to some buildings. The storm system caused early school closures in districts in Louisiana, Mississippi, Georgia, and Alabama. But it wasn't just tornadoes causing problems. Graham says a lightning strike hit the building where the weather service is located, knocking out their radar systems and forcing them to go to backup systems. (Read more tornado stories.) (Newser) It's a huge blow for Johnson & Johnson, and a huge win for the family of a woman who blamed the company's products for her ovarian cancer. In St. Louis on Monday, a jury awarded $72 million to the family of Alabama's Jacqueline Fox: $10 million in actual damages and $62 million$1 million for every year that she livedin punitive damages, Courthouse News reports. Fox, who died in October but testified in a video deposition, said she used the company's talc-based Baby Powder and Shower to Shower products for feminine hygiene for 35 years. The family's lawyers said the company covered up evidence the products could cause cancer and the jury agreed, finding Johnson & Johnson liable for fraud, negligence, and conspiracy, reports Reuters. The evidence included internal memos that lawyers argued showed that Johnson & Johnson was aware of the link between talc and ovarian cancer for more than 30 years but covered it up. Fox's son, Marvin Salter, became the plaintiff after her death. He tells the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that Johnson & Johnson was a company name he had trusted. "My reaction was disbelief," he says. "How can a company have known about this relationship between talc and ovarian cancer since the 1970s and not disclosed it?" Fox's case was the first to go to court, but there are around 1,200 similar ones in Missouri and New Jersey. The company says "the safety of cosmetic talc is supported by decades of scientific evidence" and it plans to appeal the ruling. (Another alleged cancer risk: This laminate flooring from China.) (Newser) Most rural residents of Cambodia's Ratanakkiri province have no access to a toilet. So when Thailand's Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn chose to visit Yeak Lom Lake, officials were told to make her as comfortable as possible. Over 19 days, a Thai construction company built an 86-square-foot bathroom specifically for her use, complete with air conditioning, a white tiled roof, white-washed steps, and silver railings, per the Independent. The cost: $40,000, or the equivalent of 160 school toilets, reports the Telegraph. And Sirindhorn didn't even use it. During a two-hour visit on Monday, "she did not go inside the bathroom, she just looked at it from outside and took some pictures," a community leader tells AFP. She then flew to Cambodia's capital of Phnom Penh, reports the Cambodia Daily. Residents hoping to benefit from the new bathroom are now out of luck. Officials say the toiletspecially imported from Thailandhas been removed and the building will be used by local officials. The bathroom "can't be kept because it is for royals," the provincial governor says. Though Thailand footed the bill, a former journalist who has written a book on that country notes that for $40,000, "whole Cambodian villages could have been provided with proper sanitation." (Read more Cambodia stories.) (Newser) How big a hit is Beyonce's Formation? So big it got it's own question during Tuesday's Democratic town hall in South Carolina. "Let's talk about Beyonce for a second, because why not?" Chris Cuomo introduced a question for Hillary Clinton about policing in the US. Some law enforcement groups see the video for Formation as overly critical of police and led them to call for a boycott of the pop star, the Los Angeles Times reports. Clinton responded that it's important to "respect the police" while recognizing those officers "who are doing the right things and protecting us." But she also acknowledged the difficulty many officers having interacting with minority communities. "Lets hold police behavior accountable, so theres an incentive for people to change how theyre doing police practices," she said. (Formation also sent sales skyrocketing at one seafood chain.) (Newser) More than 14 months and 150 police interviews after the horrific murder of Jessica Chambers, authorities believe they have found her killer. Quinton Tellis, a 27-year-old man in jail in Louisiana in connection with another murder, has been indicted on capital murder charges in the death of the 19-year-old, who was burned alive on a country road near Courtland, Miss., on Dec. 6, 2014, the Clarion-Ledger reports. Chambers, who had been doused in gasoline, was still alive when rescue workers found her and was able to speak a few words, but she died in a hospital within hours. Tellis went to high school with Chambers and sources tell WREG that he had an on-and-off relationship with her. Telliswho has served time in prison for burglary and finished his most recent sentence in October 2014is in the Ouachita Parish Jail in Monroe, La., on charges related to the killing of Meing-Chen Hsiao, an exchange student from Taiwan, in August. Police say he used an ATM card belonging to the 34-year-old, who was stabbed to death in her apartment. He hasn't been charged with murder in that case, though sources say he is a suspect. "God knows I've been waiting a long time for this," Jessica's father, Ben Chambers, tells WTVM. "Nothing will bring Jessica back, but at least I'll know he will never do this to somebody else's daughter. It will bring closure. At least we will know who did it." (Read more Jessica Chambers stories.) (Newser) Mitch McConnell and other top Senate Republicans insisted Tuesday afternoon that they had no intention of considering any nominee for the Supreme Court put forward by President Obama. On Tuesday evening, McConnell met behind closed doors with House conservatives anxious to know whether McConnell really meant itand they heard exactly what they wanted to hear, reports Politico. "There's not a snowball's chance in hell that's gonna happen," McConnell reportedly said. At least one member of the court doesn't sound all that stressed about the prospect of going with only eight justices for a long stretch. "Theres nothing in the Constitution that specifies the size of the Supreme Court," Justice Samuel Alito told graduating law students on Tuesday, per the New York Times. "There were times in the history of the court when the court had an even number of justices. They must have been more agreeable in those days." As for the possibility of dealing with 4-4 cases for a year, "we will deal with it." (Read more Mitch McConnell stories.) (Newser) A journalist who spent more than a decade working for the New York Times has been found dead in her Dominican Republic apartment. Sarah Kershaw, 49, moved to Sosua with husband William Norton in 2014, and while a local prosecutor says Norton is being questioned about her death, little is known at this point. The initial police statement noted asphyxiation appeared to be involved, but a cause of death had not been established and authorities say neither suicide nor homicide are off the table. The autopsy results are days off. A neighbor tells the AP Kershaw tended to spend her mornings writing on her balcony at the Trade Winds apartments and her afternoons near the pool, accompanied by her dog. Kershaw was a Times reporter from 2000-2011 and previously worked for Newsday; she was currently freelancing. The New York Daily News reports, by way of Norton's Facebook page, that Norton was formerly a senior editor of the Miami Herald's international edition. (Read more journalist stories.) (Newser) New York City was once home to the most billionaires anywhere, but Beijing has overtaken it as the Billionaire Capital of the World, the AP reports. There were 95 billionaires in NYC compared to 100 in the Chinese capital as of Jan. 15, according to Hurun, a Shanghai firm that releases annual rankings of the world's richest people; Beijing gained 32 billionaires last year, but New York gained only four. (The AP notes that other lists, such as the one created by Forbes, might come up with slightly different results depending on the methodology used.) China likely has more billionaires than reported, CNNMoney notes, since many attempt to hide their wealth from the authorities. Next up on the billionaire cities list: Moscow with 66, Hong Kong with 64, and Shanghai with 50. Months ago, reports indicated China has more billionaires than the US, and Hurun founder Rupert Hoogewerf says that if the company's list had been put together last summer, there would have been almost 150 billionaires in China. But the Chinese stock market has fallen 40% over the past six months. Still, Hoogewerf says China's market regulators are likely to thank for the boom in billionaires, because they started allowing a number of new initial public offerings after years of holding back on such allowances. But China doesn't have a billionaire in the world's top 20; its richest man, Wang Jianlin, placed 21st on the global list. The men in the Nos. 1 and 2 spots on the list, per Mashable: Bill Gates and Warren Buffett. There are a total of 2,188 billionaires on the planet, Hurun says. (Read more Beijing stories.) (Newser) Islamic State affiliates in Libya briefly took over the security headquarters in the western city of Sabratha, killing and beheading 12 security officers before being driven out early Wednesday, two city security officials said. The incident highlighted the enduring presence and unpredictable striking power of the ISIS militants in the strategic city, which serves as a hub for migrants heading to Europe. The gunmen "exploited a security vacuum" by deploying in the city center as the military was occupied conducting raids elsewhere, the head of the Sabratha Military Council tells the AP. A second security official said the militants used the headless bodies of the officers they killed to block the roads leading to the security headquarterswhich they occupied for about three hours. The official said the total number of officers killed in the occupation and ensuing clashes reached 19. Sabratha has become the latest Libyan power center for the local ISIS affiliate. Last week, US airstrikes killed dozens of suspected militants in the city along with two Serbian hostages kidnapped last year. Libya's chaos, five years after the uprising that led to the ouster and killing of Moammar Gadhafi, has paved the way for ISIS to take control of several cities. (Read more Islamic State stories.) (Newser) Ajak Dengwhom Vice calls "one of Australia's most successful model exports" since her modeling debut in 2008abruptly quit Tuesday, likely because of racism. "I am happy to announce that I am officially done with the fashion industry, I will be moving back to Australia In order to live the life that I fully deserved. Which is real life," Deng posted on Instagram. "I can no longer deal with the fakes and the lies. My life is too short for this dramatic life." Her manager, Stephen Bucknell, seemed to imply earlier this week that Deng's decision might stem from racism in the industry. The industry is biased toward white models, Bucknell told the Herald Sun. "They'll book the big Caucasian girls, spend the big dollars, and fly them in from LA, but I'm yet to see them book a dark-skinned girl in that way," he said. Deng, whose family fled Sudan in 2005, has also discussed racism in the industry, tweeting in 2014 that she was "kicked out of Balmain for being black" and noting, "I know a lot of black models would rather kiss someone's a-- than being honest but guessed what? I do not gaged [sic] a damn f---" before deleting her Twitter account. The 26-year-old had just walked in New York's Fashion Week before quitting, People reports. (Read more fashion industry stories.) (Newser) Stanford University is launching a program it's calling the "largest single increase in student financial aid in Stanford's history," and it has Nike's chairman to thank for the lion's share of it, NPR reports. Philip Knight, also one of Nike's co-founders, has pledged $400 million, which is more than half of a $750 million endowment supporting the new Knight-Hennessy Scholars program. The scholarship aims to attract students from around the globe with demonstrated "leadership and civic commitment" to solve some of the world's biggest challenges. Knight's philanthropic offeringone of the biggest ever from a single donor to a universitywill fund at least three years of full-time study toward a master's or doctorate for 100 students per year. The first director of the program will be John Hennessy, the college's current president, who's taking leave of his post this year after 16 years at the helm. "This is using education to benefit mankind, and I think it really could be transformative," Knight told the New York Times in a phone interview. (A marijuana tax in Colorado will go toward college scholarships.) (Newser) One sheriff's deputy was killed and two others were injured during a shooting in the "picturesque town" of Bailey, Colorado, on Wednesday morning, the AP reports. The suspect was also killed by deputies returning fire, the Denver Channel reports. One of the deputies who was shot has life-threatening injuries, according to the Denver Post. 9News identified the deceased deputy as Nate Carrigan, who had been with the Park County Sheriff's Office for 12 years. A Colorado Bureau of Investigation spokesperson says the resident of the home, Martin Wirth, was armed with a rifle and attacked the deputies. The Post says Wirth was an Occupy Denver activist who faced foreclosure after defaulting on the house in 2013, and notes that the Colorado Foreclosure Resistance Coalition had called for a "non-violent eviction resistance" for Wirth, who "has been an invaluable part of Occupy Denver from the very early days." Wirth also ran for Colorado senate in 2014the same year Fannie Mae took control of his homeas a member of the Green Party, losing to a Republican incumbent. (Read more shooting stories.) Category 5 Tropical Cyclone Winston left a trail of destruction as the most powerful storm on record in the Southern Hemisphere hit the Pacific island nation of Fiji last weekend resulting to 21 people dead, 8,000 homeless, trees uprooted, roofs blown away, severe power outages, and phone lines cut. "Winston was a monster of a cyclone. I have not experienced anything like this before in my life, nor has my 60-year-old father," said Fiji resident Nazeem Kasim as recalled his nightmarish experience as quoted by CNN. Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama told Fijians Sunday of the situation saying that many people had been cut off from essential services like electricity, communications, and even potable water. "The damage has been widespread, homes have been destroyed, many low-lying areas have flooded, and many people have been left stunned and confused about what to do," the premier said as quoted by Weather. Military personnel have been already been deployed to facilitate a speedy rescue and recovery effort. After assessing the situation, a huge cleanup and rebuilding operation is underway to get things back to order. "The death toll from Cyclone Winston continues to rise and reports of widespread damage are coming in from across Fiji. It is clear that Fiji faces a major cleanup and recovery operation," observed New Zealand Foreign Minister Murray McCully according to a report by NBC News. Also, international aid agencies raised the warning of an impending health crisis due to hunger after crops and stocks were wiped out, crowded evacuation centers, and blocked fresh water supplies. "Water is becoming an issue and will quickly become one of the top issues because if people don't have access to safe water they can quickly become sick," said Australian Red Cross aid worker Susan Slattery as mentioned in 9News report. George Clooney gushed about her wife, human rights lawyer, Amal Alamuddin in a recent interview and told the world how much joy she brought in his life. "I've never been happier. Both professionally and personally. From the first day I met Amal, I began preparing for the most important phase in my life. For me there is no greater joy in the world than the idea that we're going to stay together. Never did I ever dream that I would have such a beautiful, successful and fulfilling life and also be able to find a woman as wonderful as Amal," he told UK's Ok! Magazine as mentioned by Design and Trend. Then and again, the Hail Caesar! actor reiterated that the 38-year old lawyer's intelligence made him adore her more. "She's much smarter than me. The only thing I might be better than Amal at is arm wrestling. But it's always good to surround yourself with intelligent people, which in my case is not particularly difficult. But smart women have never worried me," he told the magazine. Since the first three months of being a couple, rumors have already haunted their marriage. The most recent claiming that the UK-raised lawyer dislikes the actor's close friends and business associate, Randy Gerber and wife, Cindy Crawford, Korea Portal said. "The insider revealed that Amal thinks Rande is just an older version of a frat boy and is a bad influence on George," a source said. The A-list celebrity, however, does not want to lose his friends and thus had fired back at Amal and had ended up threatening her with a divorce. The Clooneys are also subject to pregnancy rumors with source speculating whether the human rights lawyer will have the chance to bear kids or not. However, during his media interaction at the Good Money Gala in Amsterdam, the 54-year old actor slammed the rumors, in his usual joking manner. "No. But I like that you started that rumor," he said as mentioned in IB Times. Meanwhile, in last week's interview at the Ellen Degeneres Show, George Clooney shared how his wedding proposal to Amal Alamuddin went 'horribly wrong' but luckily, she said yes in the end. Republican frontrunner and real estate mogul Donald Trump has ratcheted his rhetoric against his GOP rivals ahead of the Nevada caucuses. And his nasty comments is increasingly deviating from mainstream political behavior. For the negative ad the Ted Cruz camp is running against the billionaire presidential hopeful, it's more than enough to make Trump go berserk with his tirade against the Texas senator. "This guy is sick. There's something wrong with this guy," said Trump as quoted in a report by CNN. Meanwhile, as his political rallies go full swing before the caucuses and primaries nationwide, protesters have been a constant sore in such gatherings. In his pre-caucus rally in Nevada, a protester disrupted Trump's speech to supporters leading him to yearn for the old days when beating up protesters out of rally premises was a norm. "I'd like to punch him in the face. He's smiling, having a good time," remarked Trump as he looked at the protester smiling while being escorted out politely by security personnel as reported by USA Today. As the race for the Republican nominations heats up, former Nevada governor Robert F. List recently said that Trump's surging appeal among conservative voters make him the most difficult candidate to bring down either by Tea Party darling Ted Cruz or by the establishment-favored Marco Rubio. "Trump is still the guy to beat in Nevada, but I see this being a good test between Rubio and Cruz. I think Nevada Republicans are hungry for a winner this year," the former governor observed as quoted by the New York Times. Security forces are now reportedly in control of the Munak Canal earlier taken over by Jat agitators over government job quota dispute in Haryana's Sonipat district. Previously, a water crisis loomed in the national Indian capital of Delhi as Jat-led protests halted water supply to the city. "Thank u army, thank u center for securing Munak canal back. Great relief for Delhi," tweeted Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal as quoted by Indian Express. Normalcy appears to be crawling in despite a number of traffic disruptions carried out by violent-laden demonstrations against the government's withdrawal of 'Other Backward Caste' status to the Jat community which would have entitled the caste a number of privileges as a result of Indian's large affirmative action program. As the situation stabilizes, curfews earlier imposed in volatile towns have since been lifted or relaxed except in 5 Hissar villages where the tensions are particularly high. Shoot-at-sight orders have been issued to deter any attempts by violent protesters for a full-swing mass rioting and arson as reported by New Indian Express. While the situation appears to have improved compared to last week, there are still sporadic incidents of violence happening in 7 districts apart from Hissar- Rohtak, Bhiwani, Jhajjar, Jind, Kaithal, Sonipat, and Panipat. As government forces proceed with their operation of restoring peace and order. According to a report by Tribune India, a number of prominent residents in Haryana have met with Inspector General OP Singh, who oversees the ongoing security operation, to discuss the deterioration of law and order even as curfew and other restrictions remain in place. They also demanded government forces to increase the level of against the movement of arsonists across the embattled state. Recalcitrant Apple may have won over a number of prominent cyber security experts and Silicon tech companies in its fractious opinion-war with FBI. Microsoft founder Bill Gates, however, begs to differ. Instead of siding with Silicon Valley species, Gates instead said that tech companies should be obliged to lend a hand to law enforcement agencies. FBI earlier asked iPhone maker to create a backdoor iOS version that would enable the feds to hack into the phone of one of the San Bernardino attackers which Apple vehemently refused even with an existing court order fearing an unprecedented consequences. Gate's recent take on the issue sets him apart from other tech executives like Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg, Google's Sundar Pichai, and Twitter's Jack Dorsey who also voiced their support for Apple's Tim Cook. "This is a specific case where the government is asking for access to information. They are not asking for some general thing, they are asking for a particular case," Gates said as quoted by CNBC. But Gates clarified that he's not siding with FBI in an apparent disappointment of how some media organizations painted his views as somewhat pro-FBI and anti-Apple. "I do believe there are sets of safeguards where the government shouldn't have to be completely blind. But striking that balance -- clearly the government has taken information historically and used it in ways we didn't expect, going all the way back to say the FBI under J. Edgar Hoover," the former Microsoft CEO said in an interview with Bloomberg. The FBI, on its part, tried rather unconvincingly to get Apple working with the agency over the issue which could potentially unlock some lingering questions about the San Bernardino attack. "We simply want the chance, with a search warrant, to try to guess the terrorist's passcode without the phone essentially self-destructing and without it taking a decade to guess correctly. That's it. We don't want to break anyone's encryption or set a master key loose on the land," FBI Director James Comey as he described his request to Apple as 'limited' according to a CNN report. Europe failed to properly deal with the refugee crisis in 2015, jeopardizing the human rights of millions of people, a new Amnesty International report said on Wednesday. "The richest bloc in the world, which is Europe, has really not been able to come together and find a sensible, agreed, coherent, safe way in which people can access Europe at a time when they're fleeing from war and persecution," Salil Shetty, the Secretary General of the organization, said. The report called out the members of the European Union, for turning away migrants by adopting quotas, creating border polices and enforcing other laws that made it difficult for migrants to resettle. The report cited at least 30 countries that illegally sent refugees who were seeking safety back to their respective countries, putting their lives in jeopardy. The group did name one exception: Germany. Germany has continued to take in thousands of migrants and has been pushing the EU to find a better solution for the migrant crisis. Shetty also pointed out several countries that rejected human traffickers with boats full of migrants from entering via the sea. These migrants ended up being left in the sea with no water or food until they were rescued or died. Amnesty referred to this situation as countries playing "ping-pong in the sea" with asylum seekers. In terms of the fight against extremist groups, Shetty specifically called out the United States, Russia and France as countries that have appeared to forgo human rights in order to combat terrorism. He also called out several countries, such as Saudi Arabia, for committing war crimes. "The human rights of civilians cannot be sacrificed under some vague notions of combating terrorism," Shetty said. "Human rights are a necessity, not an accessory ...the stakes for humankind have never been higher." The report did find a lot of improvements in 2015. The group said the removal of the death penalty in Madagascar, Fiji and Suriname represented steps toward the right direction. The annual review included 160 countries and territories. Read the entire report here. Johnson & Johnson has been ordered to pay $72 million to the family of a woman who died from ovarian cancer, which she had claimed was caused by using the company's products that contained talcum, such as Baby Powder. The jury in St. Louis, Missouri had arrived at its decision Monday night. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported that 10 jurors - one male and nine females - voted in favor and two men voted against her. The Associated Press reported that the company will be paying the family of Jacqueline Fox from Birmingham, Alabama $10 million in actual damages and an additional $62 million in punitive damages. Fox's civil suit, which was taken over by her son Marvin Salter when she passed away from the cancer this fall, was a part of a larger claim filed in St. Louis Circuit Court. The claim, which stated that Johnson & Johnson failed to inform consumers about the health risks involved with using talcum, included roughly 60 people. In Fox's trial, her lawyers accused Johnson & Johnson of being aware of the dangers of talcum and choosing not to disclose them. "The sad part is, she had to learn about it from lawyer ads, while Johnson & Johnson tried to hide the truth from her," Salter said. Fox had contacted lawyers based from a TV ad about talcum. A spokeswoman for Johnson & Johnson, Carol Goodrich, said that although the company stands by its decision, they will be "evaluating" other legal choices. "The recent U.S. verdict goes against decades of sound science proving the safety of talc as a cosmetic ingredient in multiple products, and while we sympathize with the family of the plaintiff, we strongly disagree with the outcome," Goodrich said. Johnson & Johnson will most likely be appealing the ruling. The Swedish teen who was rescued by Kurdish Special Forces has spoken out about her experience in Iraq. The 16-year-old girl, whose name has been properly spelled as Marlin Stivani Nivarlain, talk about how she got sucked into moving to the Middle East by her then boyfriend, who she met in mid-2014. "First it was good together, but then he started to look at ISIS videos and speak about them and stuff like that," Nivarlain said on Kurdistan 24, which is a news station that is based in Irbil. "Then he said he wanted to go to ISIS, and I said, 'Okay, no problem,' because I did not know what ISIS meant or what Islam was - nothing." ISIS is another term for the terrorist group known as the Islamic State. In the interview, Nivarlain also talked about how hard it was to live with the extremists. "In Sweden we have everything, and when I was there, I did not have anything," she said. "I did not have any money either. It was a really hard life. When I had a phone I started to contact my mum and I said: 'I want to go home.'" Nivarlain detailed her journey to Syria as well. According to her account, they left Sweden last May and took the train to Turkey. They then crossed over to Syria on a bus from Gaziantep, a southern city in Turkey. Shortly after being picked up by ISIS members, she was moved into a home near the Iraqi city of Mosul, where she was rescued in a raid conducted on Feb. 17, according to the official statement issued by the Kurdistan Region Security Council. The house reportedly did not electricity, water and other necessities. At the end of the interview, Nivarlain thanked the people who rescued her. "I want to thank them to send me back to Sweden and meet my family again and have a happy life," she said. Although Nivarlain shared her journey, she did not talk about giving birth to a child. Some Swedish reports had claimed that she was pregnant when she made the journey and had given birth in Syria. Nivarlain is in the process of getting ready to return to Sweden. The highest criminal court in the state of Texas has dropped the second and last charge against former governor Rick Perry on Wednesday. The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals also reaffirmed the dismissal of the other charge, ending accusations that Perry had committed felonies while in office. "I'm glad that the court finally put its foot down and put an end to this foolishness," Tony Buzbe, the lead defense attorney, said. "We're happy it's over, but on the other hand, me personally, I'm disappointed in the entire system. The case should have never gotten off the ground in the first place." Perry was indicted in 2014 by a grand jury in Travis County. He was charged with coercion of a public servant and abusing his power for threatening to cut off state funding with the use of his veto power to an anticorruption unit if district attorney Rosemary Lehmberg did not step down from her post. The court voted 6-2 to toss out the abuse of power charge, stating that if the court were to rule on veto power, it would ultimately be violating "separations of powers." "The [Texas] Constitution does not purport to impose any restriction on the [governor's] veto power based on the reason for the veto, and it does not purport to allow any other substantive limitations to be placed on the use of a veto," the court concluded reported by the Washington Post. "The Legislature cannot directly or indirectly limit the governor's veto power. No law passed by the Legislature can constitutionally make the mere act of vetoing legislation a crime." Perry had vetoed the $7.5 million in financing for the unit, stating that he could not support giving money to "an office with statewide jurisdiction at a time when the person charged with ultimate responsibility of that unit has lost the public's confidence." Lehmberg had been arrested for driving under the influence. Lehmberg never resigned from office and is still the county's top prosecutor. The coercion charge was thrown out back in July by a lower appeals court. Fairbanks, AK (99707) Today Snow this morning will transition to snow showers this afternoon. Temps nearly steady in the low to mid 30s. Winds light and variable. Chance of snow 90%. Snow accumulating 1 to 3 inches.. Tonight Mainly cloudy with snow showers around this evening. Low 26F. Winds light and variable. Chance of snow 50%. New Delhi : Two Jawaharlal Nehru University students Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya, facing the charge of sedition, surrendered before the police on Tuesday night, hours after the Delhi High Court refused to grant them protection from arrest. They were also questioned for five hours by the Delhi Police on Wednesday. The duo, who returned to the JNU campus last Sunday after having gone missing since February 12, drove from the administrative bloc to the main gate of the university, got into a Delhi Police vehicle and were taken to an undisclosed destination. Police sources said Khalid and Bhattacharya surrendered at around midnight. There was no word from police as to where the two were taken. Khalid and Bhattacharya are likely to be produced before a magistrate today. Khalid and Bhattacharya are among the five students who, along with JNUSU President Kanhaiya Kumar, had allegedly shouted anti-national slogans at an event organized in the university campus to mark the death anniversary of parliament attack convict Afzal Guru on February 9. Besides Kumar, Khalid and Bhattacharya, the other students are Rama Naga, Ashutosh Kumar and Anant Prakash. Delhi Police had issued a look-out notice on February 20 against Khalid, Bhattacharya, Naga, Ashutosh and Prakash. Earlier, Khalid and Bhattacharya left the JNU campus at around 1150 pm tonight for the surrender. The university students formed a human chain to prevent the media from following Khalid and Bhattacharya when they were leaving the campus this evening. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: JNUSU President Kanhaiya Kumar, charged with sedition, may have to spend another couple of days in prison as the Delhi High Court adjourned hearing on bail plea till February 29. Kanhaiya has contended that he was 'falsely implicated'. His counsel said all defects in his petition pointed out yesterday by the Registry have been rectified and the legal team would press that he was wrongly arrested on the basis of an FIR which was devoid of evidence to book him under such a serious charge. The counsel said the petition is limited to bail for Kanhaiya who was arrested on February 12. Kanhaiya has sought bail claiming he was falsely implicated as he had never raised any anti-national slogans during an event organised in Jawaharlal Nehru university (JNU) on February 9. In the plea, he has also claimed that no case is made out against him as there was no evidence. Kanhaiya had approached the high court after the Supreme Court yesterday refused to hear his bail petition on the ground that it will set a "dangerous precedent" and had asked him to approach the high court. Escorted by police, Kanhaiya's lawyers Sushil Bajaj and Vrinda Grover had thereafter rushed to the high court Registrar yesterday and mentioned the petition when certain deficiencies were pointed out in it. Security was yesterday beefed up in the high court, not far away from the Patiala House Courts, which was the scene of attacks on Kanhaiya and journalists by a group of unruly lawyers on Monday and Wednesday. Kanhaiya, who is in judicial custody till March 2, had approached the apex court directly seeking bail on the ground that his life was under threat in the Tihar Jail. He was arrested on February 12 on sedition charge following a controversial event at JNU campus where anti-India slogans were allegedly raised. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. Chennai: Wading into the JNU row, a group of IIT-Madras faculty has expressed concern on institutions of higher learning being converted into "war zones", saying that calling for the country's "dismemberment and ruin" in the name of dissent is not acceptable. In a letter to President Pranab Mukherjee, the 56 faculty members said there is a need to save educational institutions from the scholarship of abuse and hate and sought his intervention. "We feel concerned about the situation in the country where institutions of higher learning are being converted into war zones by some academicians, politicians and sections of media. "We support intellectual freedom, and alternative views are a must for democracy and creativity. However, there is a deep distortion of the meaning of academic freedom which is leading to a vitiated atmosphere in the campuses," they said. They have requested the President to take steps for saving educational institutions from the "scholarship of abuse, hate and discord" and restoring the atmosphere of sobriety, reflection and harmony necessary for genuine scholarship, Shreepad Karmalkar, a professor and one of the signatories, said in a statement. "In the name of academic autonomy, angry academics should not wage their ideological wars, nor can an institute campus be beyond the norms of the society outside in matters of abusive and hateful expressions. Calling for dismemberment and ruin of our country in the name of dissent is not acceptable, even in a university," the letter said. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. Washington: Republican presidential candidate Marco Rubio aimed to capitalize on rival Ted Cruz's recent missteps leading up to Tuesday's Nevada caucus, where a strong finish could bolster his position as the establishment favorite for his party's nomination. Looming over the tight race between the two first-term Cuban-American U.S. senators is Republican front-runner Donald Trump, the billionaire businessman who has won two of the first three state nominating contests for the Nov. 8 election and is expected to dominate the field in Nevada. With Trump, a blunt-spoken political outsider, commanding a double-digit lead in a handful of Nevada opinion polls, political strategists in the state said Rubio and Cruz had a more modest goal: a clear win over the other, which could propel them through the busy voting month of March. "They're playing for second," said Nevada political analyst Jon Ralston. A recent CNN/ORC poll put Trump ahead by 26 percentage points in Nevada, at 45 percent, followed by Rubio, from Florida, at 19 percent, and Cruz, from Texas, at 17 percent. Lagging behind were retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson, who stoked controversy on Tuesday by suggesting that Barack Obama, the first African-American U.S. president, was "raised white," and Ohio Governor John Kasich. Carson was at 7 percent and Kasich was at 5 percent. Kasich, who finished second to Trump in the Feb. 9 New Hampshire primary, kept his focus on bigger states, including Michigan and Virginia. Trump took to Twitter as polls opened on Tuesday night to encourage voters to turn out and cast ballots for him, taking a jab at Cruz, whom he has continually described as dishonest. For all the Latest World News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. Washington: A new commuter railway spanning London will be renamed the "Elizabeth Line" in honour of Queen Elizabeth II when it becomes fully operational in 2018, the London mayor said today. The queen visited works for the "Crossrail" project in central London today with mayor Boris Johnson, who announced plans to rename the east-west line when it opens through central London. "As well as radically improving travel right across our city, the Elizabeth line will provide a lasting tribute to our longest-serving monarch," Johnson said. The line, costing 14.8 billion pounds ($20.1 billion, 18.9 billion euros), will link Heathrow Airport in the west to the financial city in the capital's east. The queen plunged 28 metres on a lift to inspect works deep under the Bond Street station in the heart of London's shopping district. She met workers on the mammoth project, which began in October 2009, and unveiled its purple logo -- the same colour she was dressed in. Mumbai: Sixteen people have been arrested so far on charges of assaulting two policemen who last week stopped locals from hoisting a saffron flag in a communally sensitive area in Latur district, police said today. A mob had allegedly beaten up Assistant Sub-Inspector Yunus Shaikh (57) and manhandled his colleague K Awaskar when they prevented them from putting up the flag at a controversial spot in Pangaon village. Shaikh was hospitalised following the assault. The 12000-strong population of Pangaon village consists of Marathas, Dalits, Reddys and Muslims among others. On the night of February 19, Shaikh and Awaskar allegedly stopped a group of local youths from erecting the flag in the sensitive area. The group included Marathas and other Hindus celebrating Shivaji Jayanti, police said. Awaskar and Shaikh, both on duty at Pangaon police chowki, reached the spot and asked the youth to leave. They told them that hoisting the flag could lead to communal clashes, a police official said. At 9 AM on Saturday, a mob of around 200-300 people from the village, including the youths, showed up at the police chowki. They (youths) had incited the mob by telling them that the two policemen had crushed their flags under their feet, the official said. The mob then allegedly began to attack the duo with fists and lathis. The ASI and his colleague suffered head injuries, but Shaikh was hit worse and was hospitalised. A video of the purported attack, which has gone viral, shows Shaikh being made to parade a street with the saffron flag by the mob. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: Finance Minister Arun Jaitley is likely to slash corporate tax rate by about one per cent and may put an end date for certain exemptions availed by the industry, in his Budget for 2016-17, tax experts said. "To begin with, one per cent cut in the corporate tax rate, gradual phasing out of accelerated tax depreciation and a sunset clause for the tax deductions, coupled with reduction in MAT, will set the tone for this year's Budget," KPMG (India) Partner Tax Vikas Vasal said. Jaitley in his last Budget had announced phased reduction in corporate taxes over four years to 25 per cent from present 30 per cent, and also simultaneous withdrawal of exemptions. Economic Laws Practice Partner Rohit Jain said since the government is pushing domestic manufacturing, in the next Budget it would be a challenge to do away with exemptions. "The reduction could be one per cent or so in the next Budget. The minister might put an end date to certain exemptions and pave the way for gradual withdrawal," Jain added. Currently, there are various tax concessions under the Income-Tax Act, 1961. The prominent ones are accelerated depreciation on various assets; weighted deduction for capital expenditure incurred on various projects; weighted deduction for expenditure incurred on manufacture or production of specified articles; expenditure incurred on scientific research; various skill development projects etc. "In an event of a phase out approach, a reduction of 1-1.25 per cent in the corporate tax rate could be expected," Deloitte Haskins & Sells LLP Partner CA Gupta said. Also, there is a possibility that no extension of sunset clause in existing case and/or a sunset clause is introduced in particular cases, he said. "It would be an ideal situation if the complete phase out is undertaken only when the corporate tax rate is reduced to 25 per cent," Gupta added. The basic rate of corporate tax in India is at 30 per cent, which is higher than the rates prevalent in other major Asian economies, making domestic industry uncompetitive. Moreover, the effective collection of corporate tax is about 23 per cent after taking into account various exemptions. The Finance Minister had earlier said: "We lose out on both counts, i.e. we are considered as having a high corporate tax regime but we do not get that tax due to excessive exemptions. A regime of exemptions has led to pressure groups, litigation and loss of revenue. "It also gives room for avoidable discretion. I, therefore, propose to reduce the rate of corporate tax from 30 per cent to 25 per cent over the next four years." New Delhi: The textile industry has pitched for incentives such as halving excise duty on man-made fibre and filament and changes in labour laws in the budget for next financial year. The textiles industry has demanded better market access to major markets like the US and EU via trade pacts to help realise its untapped potential. The sector, which is the countrys second largest employer after agriculture, contributes nearly 14 per cent to industrial production and 4 per cent to the GDP. The textile sector can provide jobs to unskilled labourers and women as well, even in rural areas, if we get governments support in the form of higher market access, changes in labour laws and opportunities to scale up, Confederation of Indian Textile Industry (CITI) Secretary General Binoy Job told PTI. Lowering the excise duty from 12 per cent to 6 per cent would certainly reduce the tax burden on MMF reducing its cost to the weaver, CITI said in its pre-budget memorandum. In India cotton consumption dominates with 65 per cent and Man-made Fibre and Filament (MMF) at 35 per cent. The main reasons for lower consumption of MMF in India is higher cost which could be as a result of manufacturing cost, excise duty and oligopolistic market situation. The need for reduction in excise duty is established and therefore it should be given serious consideration, CITI said. The Union Budget for 2016-17 will be presented on February 29. We dont have much access to major markets like the US and European Union. To address this issue, Government should conclude free trade agreement with EU at the earliest and put in place a similar arrangement with US. Government should bring substantial changes in labour laws and make them more flexible. It will give us an opportunity to scale up, Job said. Mumbai: Two persons were killed today after a godown wall caved in below the Dockyard Road railway station here, police said. The godown wall, which was emptied for construction of a foot-overbridge, collapsed at around 7 PM, they said. Ganesh Jambre (45) and a house maid Nasrin Ibrahim were trapped inside the debris. The duo was pulled out by locals and rushed to nearby hospital where they died, police said, adding a case in this regard has been registered at Bayculla police station and investigations are underway. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. Its hard to find a Broadway musical that bears much resemblance to America. The Great White Way, aptly named and outrageously priced, is not especially well known for reflecting the remarkable diversity of the country in ways that transcend tokenism. That is, until now. That is, until Hamilton. The unlikely show by Lin-Manuel Miranda, now six months into an extraordinary Broadway run likely to extend well into the next decade, takes a refreshingly radical approach to storytelling both in its polyglot presentation and its politically sly casting. Radical for Broadway, at least. Via the urgent language of hip-hop, Hamilton reconnects the wayward American dream to its immigrant roots. It doesnt shy away from what the actor Stephen McKinley Henderson calls the countrys birth defect of racism. To that end, it features people of color in the roles of the countrys Founding Fathers, a direct assertion that the story of America as we know it belongs as much to the descendants of Thomas Jefferson as those of the slaves who toiled under him at Monticello. And the fact that it has registered with audiences across the country more than any musical since Rent, an equally energetic if inferior theatrical product that debuted to worldwide acclaim in 1996, is evidence that theatergoers have long been hungering for its message. That hunger was reflected in the young and diverse crowd that lined up outside the Richard Rodgers Theatre before Wednesdays matinee performance in hopes of scoring last-minute cancellation tickets. Theyd flown in from Seattle, driven from Maine or taken the 2 train from the Bronx, lured by the promise of a show that speaks to them in a language they can understand. The remarkable cross-cultural appeal was evident in that crowd, which ranged from nontraditional theatergoers to Broadway addicts thirsting for the latest, greatest thing. A pair of college students from Maine made a pilgrimage to the theater in hopes of scoring a lottery ticket. They didnt win but were in high spirits as they waited for the phantom prospect of cancellation tickets to materialize. My boyfriend hates musicals and he listens to Hamilton with me. Its that kind of crossover, said Kassidy Giggey, who drove to New York with her friend and fellow University of Maine Farmington student Christina Hallowell after months of listening obsessively to the immensely popular Hamilton cast album. It makes history really interesting. Its just this different take on telling a story about history and I think its appealing to everyone. As boilerplate as that praise may sound, its actually central to the shows success: Its relative radicalism works on its fans surreptitiously, without their knowledge, providing not just hummable tunes but a sense of political purpose. For the Lackawanna-born playwright, actor and director Ruben Santiago-Hudson, who is directing an acclaimed off-Broadway production of Dominique Morriseaus Skeleton Crew, the success of the show represents a long-overdue mainstream embrace of work by black and Latino voices. Asked if there were new glimmers of hope for a truly cross-cultural commercial theater after Hamilton, he responded optimistically. Theres always glimmers of hope when you have Lin-Manuel Miranda, when you have George C. Wolfe, hopefully when you have Ruben Santiago-Hudson. Theres always hope, and its not just glimmers. Because we refuse to stand pat and deal with the status quo. We are always pushing the envelope, he said. It brings me a tremendous sense of pride because Ive seen the growth of Lin-Manuel, and I also see how he gives back, Santiago-Hudson said. He creates opportunities through his opportunity. The thing we must do as people of color is create opportunities through our opportunity. But that doesnt just stop with us. The cultural gatekeepers, Santiago-Hudson said, are finally coming around. Those that are in power, when theyre concerned, and open up that door, and give access to a multifaceted society, then we do well, he said. Thats what it comes down to: Were all the same. Were all parents, were all sons and fathers of sons and mothers and nurturers. And once we all come to that, animosity just disappears, anger just disappears, racism just disappears, ignorance disappears. And thanks to Hamilton, a cultural phenomenon that extends far beyond the traditional borders of Broadway, perhaps much faster now. ---{-=@ News / Africa by Staff Reporter Ngamiland farmers, both pastoral and agricultural, are counting their losses against the backdrop of extreme drought situation that has hit the region hard.Ngami Times reported that the North West's District Commissioner Chabongwa Matseka revealed to this publication that the drought has claimed more than 15 000 cattle in the district, 14 000 of which have been registered in the Maun Administrative Authority (MAA) alone while 1485 herd have been recorded in Okavango Sub-district making a total of 15 848 dead cattle.Matseka, however, cautioned that the mortality rate among the cattle in the district could be much higher than that reported.Matseka also noted that few farmers have ploughed in the district and low yield is expected. She also noted that the drought is aggravated by the fact that the 2015/16 hydrological year generally had low flows which continues to recede. A Sub District Drought Management Committee Report, released on January 28, 2016 also indicates that water levels in the Okavango River at Mohembo were gradually decreasing in October 2015 and started increasing at a low rate as from December 2015 to date.Matseka also revealed that a team of Inter-Ministerial Drought and Household Assessment is visiting the district this week. "The team will give a full report on the drought situation and they will also present the report to the government perhaps that's when the decision can be taken whether to declare the district drought affected or not," she said.Matseka further said that last May President Ian Khama declared a drought year and farmers were provided with a 25% subsidy towards the pruchase feeds and vaccines from the Livestock Advisory Centres (LACs) and Botswana Agricultural Marketing Board. That subsidy was, during the latter part of the year, raised to 50% in view of the severity of the crisis, she noted. Matseka also added Okavango sub-district is the most affected region hence they have come up with mitigating factors to deal with the situation. She revealed that the Ministry of Health has introduced a direct feeding programme for malnurished children in clinics of that sub-district.The programme has started and it caters for children that are under-weight. If the child is underweight they are going to be fed directly at the clinic until they regain their weight, she said, adding that they are still at the initial stage and they are experiencing some shortage of some cooking utensils."We are at the implementing stage and we are working with the Village Development Committee (VDC) and other sections of the government," she said.She, however, emphasised that the programme is to be introduced to the rest of Ngamiland as most of the families in district have been affected by famine. "Food at household level have been affected and a lot of families have run out of food," she saidMatseka also revealed that in Okavango sub-district the government has introduced a special drought initiative in which 4,300 people are being supplied with food rations in the form of maize meal, beans and cooking oil. "The initiative was introduced in 2014 after an assessment was made that food at household level in the district was low and the government came up with the initiative to supply food ration," she said. Outdated U.S. nuclear missile technology means they likely would miss high-value targets: Report (NationalSecurity.news) The U.S. Air Force maintains about 450 Minuteman III nuclear-tipped intercontinental ballistic missiles, but a new report says that those weapons are being directed by Cold War-era mechanical guidance technology that is highly inaccurate. As reported by The Daily Beast, in 2005 the Pentagon retired its fleet of MX Peacekeeper missiles 10-warhead mega-weapons that were on 24/7 alert and were highly accurate. But after they were assigned to the dustbin of history, for years no one seemed to realize just what the Defense Department had given up as regards to U.S. nuclear weapons capabilities. As The Daily Beast reported further: [W]hat few people realized thenor even in the decade sinceis that the Peacekeepers exit from the arsenal also marked the disappearance of what the White House regards as an essential facet of U.S. nuclear deterrence: a constant ability to hold virtually all key Russian political and military targets at risk. Should that worst-case scenario play out, Washington also wants to retain enough residual weapons to deter any opportunistic attack by Beijing. Before the last MX was removed from its underground silo in Wyoming, plans were underway for the Air Force, which maintains the nations nuclear arsenal, to transfer MX-like accuracy into the remaining ICBMs. But that transition never took place and, for some reason, few inside the Pentagon realized it. Now, somewhat haltingly, the process has begun again, but it is being hampered by bureaucracy and budgetary limitations, The DB reported. As such, the remaining Minuteman ICBMs are still operating under 1960s-era mechanical guidance technology. And while it is accurate enough to strike some enemy targets, hundreds of the missiles would have little chance of damaging their assigned targets Russias most valuable war-making assets as top-secret U.S. nuclear war plans demand, the web site reported, citing government documents and officials familiar with the situation. A number of aiming points are deemed very hard targets, and they consist of VIP shelters, hardened missile silos, military storage facilities and command-and-control sites, all of which are buried deep beneath reinforced bunkers. These hardened sites are among the first facilities that the Pentagon and the White House would target in virtually any nuclear conflict, sources told The DB, with the objective of quickly crippling Moscows ability to retaliate further against the U.S. Currently, the Pentagon is working on the development of a program known as Prompt Global Strike, which would enable the U.S. military deliver a precision-guided weapon anywhere in the world within 1 hour. It is believed that such a system would augment nuclear strategy with hypersonic glide weapons that are conventionally-tipped. But that system is still in development and there is no date set for its implementation, reports said. In the meantime, the Pentagon has assigned the majority of hard targets to the ICBM fleet; the land-based Minuteman IIIs can be launched within moments of a presidential order, while bomber-based weapons (which went off hair-trigger alert following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991) and submarine-launched missiles can take hours to days to prepare. While most people see any nuclear explosion as catastrophic and it would be for humans and most buildings if the notion is to cripple a nuclear-armed enemy before it can inflict casualties on the U.S. is the goal, then weapons designated for that purpose must be accurate enough to fulfill the task. The Daily Beast noted further: Air Force briefing slides reviewed by The Daily Beast characterize the Minuteman 3 as being 50 percent less accurate than the MX was. That could mean the difference between disabling a very hard target and leaving it untouched. We are no longer able to cover the targets that Peacekeeper covered, ever since Peacekeeper went away, said one former ICBM operations commander at the squadron and wing levels. The math is really simple. Several sources that spoke to The DB appeared to understand the sensitive nature of the information but they said they were willing to speak out publicly, if only anonymously, because they believed only after a public airing would the problem get resolved. One Pentagon official Navy Adm. Cecil Haney, commander of U.S. Strategic Command is fully aware of the deficiency. He says that commercially available solid-state guidance technology would resolve the problem but that it may still take years to get done. Read the full report here. See also: The Daily Beast NationalSecurity.news NationalSecurity.news is part of the USA Features Media network of sites. Submit a correction >> This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Lake users are divided over the proposed bill to reduce the night speed limit for boats on Candlewood Lake and Squantz Pond. The Connecticut General Assemblys Environmental Committee has proposed lowering the speed limit from 25 to 15 mph between 11 p.m. to sunrise at Candlewood and Squantz. The committee hasnt yet shown a lot of support for the bill, which came before a public hearing in Hartford on Friday. The committee has until March 18 to vote on the legislation. The Candlewood Lake Authority has decided to survey residents and boaters about the proposal to take an informed stance on the bill. The survey was posted on the authoritys website and Facebook page Monday evening and emailed to hundreds on Tuesday. It asks for peoples stance on the proposal and how strongly they feel about their position. It asks participants about their lake use, such as whether they live near the water, own a boat at a Candlewood marina and if they enjoy boating or fishing at night. By noon Wednesday, about 500 people responded to the survey. While authority officials are still gathering the data, they said the reactions have been split fairly evenly. Its kind of run the gamut, said Mark Howarth, the authoritys public education director. Opponents say lowering the speed limit would greatly increase travel times across the 8.3-square-mile lake, Howarth said. Others argue the lower speed limit would make the boats difficult to operate. The bills proponents said the lower speed will make the lake safer, Howarth said. Cherry Dumaual, who lives near Squantz Pond, said she doesnt see a speeding problem at night, but is in favor of the bill for safetys sake. We dont have boat speeding at night, though we certainly have that problem during the day, she said. One of the biggest problems on Squantz Pond are the boats that go too fast near the shoreline, which erodes lake walls. The Department of Energy and Environmental Protection has remained neutral on the topic, although the commissioner, Robert Klee, said he wasnt sure this would improve the lakes safety. In general, boating safety may be increased by having a slower speed limit in the late evening, Klee said during Fridays public hearing. However, we do not have data to definitively support that lowering the speed limit from 25 mph to 15 mph would improve boater safety and achieve fewer injuries or fatalities from boating on the lake. Six accidents have occurred on Candlewood Lake since 2008 between 11 p.m. and sunrise. Two people were killed in accidents while others reported injuries. Both incidents involved alcohol, according to DEEP. Klee said slowing some boats could mean larger wakes, which could create more dangerous conditions. Larry Marsicano, executive director of the Candlewood Lake Authority, said the lower speeds might cause a boats front to rise, making it hard to see. Some other boats might get caught in the wake. He said he appreciated the public-safety issues raised through the bill, but questioned if reducing the speed was the best way to make the waterways safer. He said the lake already has a 45 mph speed limit during the day, and a 25 mph limit is in effect 30 minutes after sunset and 30 minutes before sunrise. This means the proposal would add a third speed limit. Adding the speed limit would be difficult to enforce, he said. We dont normally put patrols out that late at night and neither does DEEP, Marsicano said. He said few people are on the lake past midnight, when the patrols generally stop. Marsicano, who lives near the lake, said he understands the residents concerns about the noise a boat traveling at 25 mph creates at night. Howarth said he is unsure when the survey will close, but said the authority will use the responses to help formulate an opinion on the bill. We have to have a lot of different discussions before we formulate a stance, he said. kkoerting@newstimes.com; 203-731-3345; @kkoerting DANBURY A Texas energy company that wanted to lease city land as a construction staging area for part of its $970 million gas pipeline expansion has abruptly withdrawn the request. Spectra Energy had proposed paying Danbury $5,000 to lease a small piece of land in a residential neighborhood south of the West Lake Reservoir, which would be used to store heavy equipment and trench soil. The energy company withdrew its request last week after the city scheduled a public hearing to gather input about the proposal. A Spectra official on Wednesday would not specify why the company withdrew the request. We no longer need the property, said Marylee Hanley, director of stakeholder outreach for Spectra Energy. Spectra received federal approval in March to expand its natural gas pipeline from New York to Boston. The project includes the replacement of a 4.5-mile section of pipeline in Danbury with a larger pipe. The project has already begun in the western part of the city, where workers are drilling beneath Interstate 84 near exit 2. The plan is to begin trench work and pipe replacement in the spring. Our project will be placed in service on Nov. 1, Hanley said. When Spectra officials met with city leaders in January to discuss the lease offer, a project supervisor from the company said construction-related activity on the Driftway Point Road land could last until 10 p.m. and include work on Sundays. Danbury leaders said neighbors needed to weigh in at a public hearing before the City Council could agree to the lease agreement. The pipeline expansion has been opposed by environmentalists and activists, including a small group from Danbury who argue the project is unnecessary and dangerous. At the January meeting, a city representative asked the company what would happen if the city rejected the lease offer. I would say we would have to make do without the work space, responded Martin McCarthy, Spectras right-of-way supervisor. The company has also been in negotiations with private landowners in Danbury to lease temporary work space. rryser@newstimes.com; 203-731-3342 HARTFORD Members of a crucial General Assembly were skeptical this week of a proposal to update the nearly 50-year-old wheelchair symbol for handicapped parking and other signage for the disabled. But Jonathan Slifka, the governors liaison to the Disability Community, said that modernizing the symbol, which would have a figure in a wheelchair leaning forward, is a way to modernize and raise awareness. Modernizing the symbol of access is a vital step in the evolution of disability action and disability awareness, Slifka told the Government Administration & Elections Committee on Monday. For many years, the prevailing attitude toward the disability community was that we were by and large a static and sedentary group. We are not static and sedentary. We are workers, business owners, parents, volunteers and community activists. Slifka said the more-active symbol, along with the word reserved instead of handicapped, is a sign of that activity and advocacy. He said New York State already has adopted the new signage, along with cities around the country. Arizona is also considering similar legislation. Under the bill, new signs would be put up only as replacements to damaged existing signs, or new ones in parking lots and buildings. The idea is that this is a budget-neutral concept. Additionally, the changing of the symbol will stir up more awareness from the able-bodied community, said Slifka, who uses a wheelchair.Far too often and for far too long, the current static symbol has gone ignored by many of the able-bodied community, who seem to park in these spaces or use the accessible bathroom stalls in the interest of convenience. I think we should be a leader on this issue. Were in a dilemma, said Sen. Steve Cassano, D-Manchester, co-chairman of the committee. There are ramifications here that are serious. He warned that federal grants could be affected. I dont want to go out and change 10,000 fines and found weve violated federal law, Cassano said. Atate Rep. Ed Jutila, D-East Lyme, co-chairman of the committee, wondered why Connecticut should change a sign known around the world. Does it even make any sense at all? Jutila said. The symbol was designed in 1968 and was approved by the United Nations. Slifka said that federal law on disabilities allows states to revise signage. Its interesting, said Sen. Michael McLachlan, R-Danbury. One federal law does not agree with another federal law. kdixon@ctpost.com; News / Africa by Staff Reporter THREE people were arrested in Ntcheu District, Malawi, after they allegedly killed their uncle who they accused of using witchcraft to kill their brother.Nyasa Times reports that Esnart (24), Rose (22) and Mac Yon Billy (14) had heard rumours that their uncle Hudson Banga (65) had used witchcraft to kill their brother, Lingson Billy (27).Lingson Billy died after being struck by lightning on 17 February.A cop spokesman said there were rumours flying around the village that Hudson was responsible for the death."They went to their uncle and confronted him, but later chaos erupted where the uncle was stoned and hit by different objects," the spokesman was quoted as saying.Hudson eventually died from being klapped.The three later surrendered themselves to the police.Police have urged the public not to take the law into their own hands and to report matters such as suspicion of witchcraft to the authorities.Last month, four nephews were arrested in Dedza for killing their 70-year-old uncle after they accused him of being a witch. News / Africa by Staff Reporter A Taxi boss driving around the kasi in December was shot several times and survived but this time when she was coming from a prayer service she was shot dead.Daily Sun reported that this time the attackers made sure she did not live to tell the story.According to neighbours, the taxi boss from Lindelani near KwaMashu, Durban was gunned down by three unknown men on Sunday.Nokulunga Ntlawuzana (52) had just come back from a prayer service at her local church with her grandson.The two were entering the house when three armed men started shooting at them.Nokulunga died on the spot.One neighbour said she was busy cooking when she heard the gun shots."I ran to shut my door because I was not sure what was going on."A few minutes later I went outside to see what had happened."She said other neighbours also came out to investigate."It was extremely painful to see Nokulunga lying dead in a pool of her own blood."The neighbour said Nokulunga had been aware that there were people who wanted her dead."But she told me that she was not afraid."She said Nokulunga was a strong woman who refused to be bullied by men in the taxi business."I think they were threatened by the way she did business.She was an honest person who did not approve of any wrongdoing."Ntlawuzana's family refused to comment and said they were still in shock.Petros Miya, Lindelani Taxi Association chairman, said the associaton has lost a hard-working secretary."We are so shocked. I don't want to speculate and say this is a case of taxi violence because it has been very quiet lately."Police spokesman Major Thulani Zwane said the police are investigating a case of murder and attempted murder.No arrests have been made. Brookfield Republicans face an important primary on March 1. It amounts to whether our party will be led by proven, hardworking Republicans or whether control will essentially be turned over to the Democrats. As the senior member of the Brookfield Republican Town Committee retiring this year I can speak to the qualifications of the candidates. I stepped down this year so the RTC could have more young people in the Millennial generation. The endorsed slate on Rows A and B includes two Western Connecticut State University College Republicans among the eight new members with passion for America and energy to elect more Republicans. LAVAL, QC, Feb. 24, 2016 /CNW/ - BELLUS Health Inc. (TSX: BLU) (BELLUS Health or the Company), a drug development company focused on rare diseases, today reported its financial and operating results for the year ended December 31, 2015. 2015 and Early 2016 Highlights Completion of the KIACTA Phase 3 Confirmatory Study for the treatment of AA amyloidosis in January 2016 ; top-line results expected in Q2 2016; ; top-line results expected in Q2 2016; Presented data from clinical and pre-clinical studies evaluating Shigamab in the treatment of sHUS at the International Symposium on Shiga toxin (verocytotoxin) Producing Escherichia Coli (VTEC) 2015 Conference in Boston ; ; Regained exclusive rights to AL amyloidosis program and related compounds; Issued 7.3 million common shares on January 1, 2016 to settle convertible notes, as scheduled; further simplification of the Company's capital structure; to settle convertible notes, as scheduled; further simplification of the Company's capital structure; Concluded the year with cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments totaling $9 .7 million. "The KIACTA Phase 3 Confirmatory Study is the most comprehensive study ever conducted in AA amyloidosis patients and we look forward to sharing the top line data with patients, physicians and the investment community in the second quarter of 2016," said Roberto Bellini, President and Chief Executive Officer of BELLUS Health. "We also continue advancing the other rare disease pipeline programs to continue building value for BELLUS Health's shareholders." KIACTA for AA amyloidosis On January 21, 2016, BELLUS Health and Auven Therapeutics announced the completion of the KIACTA Phase 3 Confirmatory Study for the treatment of AA amyloidosis. The Phase 3 study completed enrollment in January 2015 with a total of 261 patients participating in the study. In January 2016, the event-driven study met its completion target of 120 patient events linked to the deterioration of kidney function. Top-line results are expected in the second quarter of 2016. The Phase 3 study is designed to confirm the safety and efficacy of KIACTA in preventing renal function decline in patients diagnosed with AA amyloidosis. KIACTA's safety and efficacy were demonstrated in a previous Phase 2/3 study. The Phase 3 Confirmatory Study is the last key step before applications for regulatory approval for KIACTA can be filed. No major safety concerns have been raised by the Data Safety Monitoring Board, which independently assessed the safety of KIACTA throughout the study and most recently met in July 2015. BELLUS Health is partnered with global private equity firm Auven Therapeutics for the development of KIACTA. Auven Therapeutics acquired the KIACTA rights from the Company in 2010, is conducting the KIACTA study and funding 100% of the development costs of KIACTA, including the Phase 3 Confirmatory Study and other related activities, which total costs are currently estimated to be in excess of US$60 million. Overall proceeds from potential future revenue of KIACTA will be shared between Auven Therapeutics and BELLUS Health based on a pre-agreed formula, and assuming that total divestiture transaction proceeds reach a pre-determined threshold, the parties will share aggregate proceeds equally. Auven Therapeutics has engaged Lazard as a financial advisor for the sale of KIACTA. KIACTA for Sarcoidosis BELLUS Health's partner, Auven Therapeutics, is currently developing a clinical Phase 2/3 study protocol to evaluate the safety and efficacy of KIACTA for the treatment of patients suffering from chronic pulmonary sarcoidosis. An investigational new drug application (IND) for this clinical Phase 2/3 study is expected to be filed with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in the first half of 2016. All costs in relation to the development of KIACTA in sarcoidosis will be borne by Auven Therapeutics. Proceeds from potential future revenue of KIACTA, including the rights to KIACTA for sarcoidosis, are subject to the proceeds sharing agreement between Auven Therapeutics and BELLUS Health. Chronic sarcoidosis is a rare, potentially fatal inflammatory condition that affects the lungs. There is no cure for sarcoidosis, and treatment options are limited and can have serious adverse effects. Shigamab for sHUS A clinical Phase 2 Proof-of-Concept study protocol is currently being designed for the assessment of the efficacy of Shigamab in the treatment of the Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome caused by Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (sHUS), a rare disease primarily affecting the kidneys of children. The Company intends to meet with regulatory authorities in 2016 to present its clinical development plan for Shigamab. In September 2015, the Company presented data from clinical and pre-clinical studies evaluating Shigamab in the treatment of sHUS at the VTEC Conference in Boston. During the conference, BELLUS Health held its first Shigamab Scientific Advisory Board meeting. In parallel with the preparation of the clinical Phase 2 Proof-of-Concept study, BELLUS Health also plans to perform an additional pre-clinical study in a sHUS baboon model to help establish the optimal effective treatment window for Shigamab in sHUS patients. Shigamab is a monoclonal antibody therapy being developed for the treatment of sHUS, a rare disease which principally affects the kidneys and often leads to acute dialysis, and in certain cases chronic kidney disease and death, primarily in children. AL Amyloidosis Research Project The Company also has a research-stage project for AL amyloidosis, a rare disease in which amyloid protein builds up and causes dysfunction in various parts of the body, including the kidneys, heart, liver and peripheral nerves. In February 2015, the agreement entered into by BELLUS Health with AmorChem Holdings Inc. in 2013 for the development of drug candidates for the treatment of AL amyloidosis was terminated. As a result of the termination, BELLUS Health regained exclusive rights to its AL amyloidosis program and related compounds. Settlement of Convertible Notes As scheduled, on January 1, 2016, BELLUS Health issued 7,286,828 common shares from treasury in settlement of convertible notes. The convertible notes' notional amount was approximately $10.9 million and terms of the conversion were determined as part of BELLUS Health's capital reorganization in 2012. The settlement further simplified the Company's capital structure. Summary of Financial Results All currency figures reported in this press release are in Canadian dollars, unless otherwise specified. Year Ended December 31, 2015 Year Ended December 31, 2014 (in thousands of dollars, except per share data) Revenues 4,024 2,376 Research and development expenses, net (1,008) (1,695) General and administrative expenses (3,122) (3,150) Net finance income 484 452 Deferred tax recovery 27 49 Net income (loss) for the year 405 (1,968) Net income (loss) attributable to shareholders 202 (1,931) Basic and diluted earnings (loss) per share (0.04) The Company's full consolidated financial statements and accompanying management's discussion and analysis for the year ended December 31, 2015 will be available shortly on SEDAR at www.sedar.com and on the Company's website at www.bellushealth.com. Revenues amounted to $4,024,000 for the year ended December 31, 2015 , compared to $2,376,000 for the previous year. The increase is attributable to higher revenue recognized for accounting purposes in 2015 in relation to the VIVIMIND license agreement with FB Health and the service agreement with Auven Therapeutics for KIACTA. for the year ended , compared to for the previous year. The increase is attributable to higher revenue recognized for accounting purposes in 2015 in relation to the VIVIMIND license agreement with FB Health and the service agreement with Auven Therapeutics for KIACTA. Research and development expenses, net of research tax credits, amounted to $1,008,000 for the year ended December 31, 2015, compared to $1,695,000 for the previous year. The decrease is primarily attributable to lower expenses incurred in relation to the development of Shigamab. The decrease is also attributable to higher research tax credits recognized in 2015 in relation to the realization of tax credits from prior years that met the criteria for recognition during 2015, and the filing in 2015 of additional claims for prior years. As at December 31, 2015, the Company had available cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments totalling $9,702,000, compared to $12,307,000 as at December 31, 2014. About AA Amyloidosis AA amyloidosis is a deadly condition that progresses from chronic inflammatory diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis. The disease causes a protein called amyloid A to accumulate in major organs, particularly the kidneys, which leads to organ dysfunction, failure, and eventually death. There is currently no available treatment for AA amyloidosis. A recent commercial assessment study conducted by Navigant Consulting on behalf of Auven Therapeutics and BELLUS Health identified between 10,000 and 15,000 KIACTA eligible patients with AA amyloidosis in the United States and Europe. KIACTA has been granted Orphan Drug designation or its equivalent for the treatment of AA amyloidosis in the United States, Europe and Japan, which provide for market exclusivity for a period of seven to ten years once the drug is approved, as well as a reduction in application and review fees. About BELLUS Health (www.bellushealth.com) BELLUS Health is a drug development company focused on rare diseases. Its pipeline of rare disease projects includes KIACTA in Phase 3 for AA amyloidosis, KIACTA for sarcoidosis, clinical stage Shigamab for sHUS and a research-stage project for AL amyloidosis. The lead program KIACTA is currently in a Phase 3 Confirmatory Study for the treatment of AA amyloidosis, an orphan indication resulting in renal dysfunction that often leads to dialysis and death. BELLUS Health is partnered with global private equity firm Auven Therapeutics for the development of KIACTA. Forward-Looking Statements Certain statements contained in this news release, other than statements of fact that are independently verifiable at the date hereof, may constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation and regulations. Such statements, based as they are on the current expectations of management, inherently involve numerous important risks, uncertainties and assumptions, known and unknown, many of which are beyond BELLUS Health Inc.'s control. Such risks factors include but are not limited to: the ability to obtain financing, the impact of general economic conditions, general conditions in the pharmaceutical industry, changes in the regulatory environment in the jurisdictions in which the BELLUS Health Inc. does business, stock market volatility, fluctuations in costs, changes to the competitive environment due to consolidation, achievement of forecasted burn rate, potential payments/outcomes in relation to indemnity agreements and contingent value rights, achievement of forecasted pre-clinical and clinical trial milestones, dependence on Auven Therapeutics for the completion of the KIACTA Phase 3 Confirmatory Study and that actual results may vary once the final and quality-controlled verification of data and analyses has been completed. In addition, the length of the KIACTA Phase 3 Confirmatory Study and the sharing of proceeds between Auven Therapeutics and BELLUS Health Inc. from potential future revenue of KIACTA are dependent upon a number of factors, including the quantum of proceeds. Consequently, actual future results and events may differ materially from the anticipated results and events expressed in the forward-looking statements. The Company believes that expectations represented by forward-looking statements are reasonable, yet there can be no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. The reader should not place undue reliance, if any, on any forward-looking statements included in this news release. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date made, and BELLUS Health Inc. is under no obligation and disavows any intention to update publicly or revise such statements as a result of any new information, future event, circumstances or otherwise, unless required by applicable legislation or regulation. Please see BELLUS Health Inc.'s public filings with the Canadian securities regulatory authorities, including the Annual Information Form, for further risk factors that might affect BELLUS Health Inc. and its business. SOURCE BELLUS Health Inc. For further information: Francois Desjardins, Vice-President, Finance, 450-680-4525, [email protected] TORONTO, Feb. 23, 2016 /CNW/ - In a landmark announcement, the Cornerstone Standard's Council (CSC) officially recognized CRH Canada's Dufferin Aggregates Acton Quarry as the first quarry in the world to receive certification as a supplier of responsibly sourced stone, sand and gravel. "CRH Canada and Dufferin Aggregates are extremely proud that our Acton Quarry has been officially recognized as the world's first certified aggregate site, and hope that this achievement will be a catalyst for the industry. This certification is a testament to our commitment to address the demand for aggregates that consider community and environmental needs. Now any purchaser of aggregates, be it the public or the private sector, will have the confidence in knowing that they are buying responsibly sourced building materials," said Baudouin Nizet, President & CEO, CRH Canada Group Inc. In January 2015, CSC released its Responsible Aggregates Standard, providing the parameters by which an aggregate quarry could achieve certification in Ontario. CRH Canada and Dufferin Aggregates have a long-standing and well established commitment to the communities in which they operate and to being stewards of the natural environment. To be officially certified and recognized for these efforts and to have product labeled as CSC certified is an important opportunity for the company. "This certificate speaks to the relationship between CRH Canada and the Town of Halton Hills," said Rick Bonnette, Mayor of Halton Hills. "By following CSC's Standards and working proactively to address environmental and social impacts the Acton Quarry has been able to incorporate sustainability principles into its ongoing operations and after use. This has been a key component of the recent approval for expansion of the quarry." "Aggregates, such as cement, are the building blocks of our roads and buildings. But there is a tension between our need for these products, the views of communities adjacent to these operations, and the need to protect farmland and the environment. For the first time, a pathway exists for those building blocks to be sustainably sourced," says Tim Gray, Executive Director of Environmental Defence. "CSC certification can improve industry practices, reduce conflict and generate a market for sustainable products. CRH Canada should be congratulated for being the first operation to certify and for forging a new path that other aggregate operations can follow." About CRH Canada Group Inc. CRH Canada Group Inc. is a leading manufacturer of cement, aggregates and ready-mix concrete and provides construction services to many of Canada's largest infrastructure projects. With over 3,000 employees, CRH Canada has a portfolio of brands including Dufferin in Ontario and Demix in Quebec. The company, which operates across Canada and the Northwest U.S., is a Canadian subsidiary of CRH plc, one of the top three international building products companies in the world, with headquarters in Ireland. SOURCE CRH Canada Group Inc. Image with caption: "World's first socially and environmentally responsible quarry certification awarded to CRH Canada's Dufferin Aggregates Acton Quarry (CNW Group/CRH Canada Group Inc.)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20160223_C6391_PHOTO_EN_627294.jpg For further information: Junaina Saulat, Director, Corporate Marketing & Communications, CRH Canada Group Inc., [email protected] OTTAWA, Feb. 24, 2016 /CNW/ - Organizations in Leamington, Ontario, Peterborough, Ontario and Brooks, Alberta are stepping up to play a stronger role in resettling refugees in Canada. The New Canadians' Centre of Excellence (Leamington), the New Canadians Centre (Peterborough) and the Calgary Catholic Immigration Society (Brooks) all successfully demonstrated they have the services in place to become new Resettlement Assistance Program centres and are able to start accepting government-assisted refugees. Under the Resettlement Assistance Program, there are now 27 communities outside Quebec offering comprehensive and expanded services to refugees. The Resettlement Assistance Program supports government-assisted refugees, blended visa office-referred refugees and other eligible clients when they first arrive in Canada. A recent call for proposals was launched to identify new temporary Resettlement Assistance Program centres and expand the number of cities across Canada where refugees can be sent. Quote "Service provider organizations work tirelessly to make sure that arriving refugees are well supported as they make Canada their new home. The addition of these newly funded organizations under the Resettlement Assistance Program will help to broaden services to government-assisted refugees across Canada." Hon. John McCallum, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Related products Follow us Photos of Minister McCallum available at: http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/department/media/photos/index.asp Building a stronger Canada: Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada strengthens Canada's economic, social and cultural prosperity, helping ensure the safety and security of Canadians, while managing one of the largest and most generous immigration programs in the world. SOURCE Citizenship and Immigration Canada For further information: Media Relations, Communications Branch, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, 613-952-1650, [email protected] News / Africa by Staff Reporter CLARA Basera (40) sent indecent pictures of herself to her husband, Wellington Mhiripiri (48) to keep their romance alive.They miss each other when Wellington is at work as a plumber in North West.But now Clara, from Tshwane, is deeply ashamed because the pictures have gone viral!Daily Sun reported that Clara said her unhappiness began when she and her husband were mugged and attacked on Sunday in Tshwane's Church Square when they went to fetch their son-in-law who was arriving in the country from Zimbabwe.The unhappy woman wants the thugs who embarrassed her to be punished."Three men came from behind and told me to give them my Vodafone tablet," she said."I did so and they beat my husband up and took his Nokia Lumia 520 phone."They also took R4 000 Wellington had on him," she added.Clara said the thugs threw the phones to two women who were sitting waiting in a red bakkie."After a while, I began getting calls from people we know locally and in Zimbabwe, asking me why I was posing undressed."I'm very angry, embarrassed and disappointed at the humiliation," she said.Clara said they opened cases at the Pretoria Central Police Station."We want those criminals behind bars," she said."How can I face my friends and family after these pictures were circulated?"Clara said the pictures were sent to numbers stored in both cellphones so she blocked her SIM card."But people were already exchanging those pictures. The pictures might still be spreading on social networks for all I know," said Clara.Captain Augustinah Selepe said cops were investigating a case of common robbery but no arrests have been made. Immigration officials have arrested 17 Nigerians attempting to cross the border into Niger on their way to Libya with no valid papers, a ... Immigration officials have arrested 17 Nigerians attempting to cross the border into Niger on their way to Libya with no valid papers, a senior Nigerian immigration official told AFP on Tuesday.Nigerian Immigration officers intercepted the 17 in two batches at a border crossing with Niger, said the comptroller of immigration for Katsina state, Ahmed Alhaji Alfa.Our investigation revealed that their mission was to cross border en route to Agadez in Niger Republic and then to Libya, he added.We believe their final destination was Europe through the dangerous voyage across the (Mediterranean) sea. Human trafficking is a major organised crime issue in Nigeria, where victims, most of them young women and girls, are smuggled into Niger then Libya before a final destination in Europe.Most of the victims are promised lucrative jobs but are instead forced into prostitution once in Europe. Such victims are often made to undergo voodoo rituals forcing them to vow never to disclose their situation to the authorities. The victims 10 women and seven men aged between 18 and 40 were apprehended on February 14 and 21, Alfa said. Only one of them was in possession of travel documents while the others had no travel documents nor any means of livelihood, he added.Those detained were from the southern Nigerian states of Edo and Imo and had likely been misled by a trafficking syndicate operating in the northern Nigerian commercial hub of Kano and towns along the borders of Nigeria and Niger, he said. They were handed over to the Nigerian anti-human trafficking agency NAPTIP in Kano on Tuesday for further investigation and prosecution. A hunt for the traffickers and their sponsors has also been launched. News / Africa by Staff Reporter POLICE in Monze Zambia have arrested five people believed to be part of a group of suspected United Party for National Development (UPND) cadres who allegedly abducted and held hostage civil servants and journalists in Bweengwa recently.Zambia Daily Mail reported that on February 13, 2016, suspected UPND cadres attacked government officials and other people in Bweengwa.The cadres hid in maize fields, ambushing the people who were returning from a rally that was addressed by President Lungu at Bweengwa Primary School.Hakabondo Hamukona, John Himalambo, Sulwe Himalambo, a 16-year-old boy and Mukuwa Lweendo, all of Monze, were arrested on Monday.The suspects appeared before Monze magistrate Jacob Mbolela and pleaded not guilty to charges of malicious damage to property.Southern Province commissioner of police Goldwin Phiri said in an interview on Monday that the five are still in police custody and they will appear in court on March 11, this year."The accused pleaded not guilty and are still remanded in custody although bail has been granted at K10,000 each with working sureties from Government, and trial will commence on March 11, 2016," Mr Phiri said.He said Hamukona, 39, John Himalambo, 20, Sulwe Himalambo, 20, the juvenile, and Lwendo, 18, were arrested on Monday for allegedly taking part in the Bweengwa violence in which three police officers were injured and motor vehicles damaged. The Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, has attributed the continued incarceration of its leader and Director of Radio Biafra Mr. Nnamdi ... The Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, has attributed the continued incarceration of its leader and Director of Radio Biafra Mr. Nnamdi Kanu to what it called inexperience on the part of advisers that the All Progressives Congress, APC, led government of President Buhari is surrounding itself with.Addressing newsmen in Nnewi after a meeting to strategize their activities to wade off confrontations from security operatives, IPOB Media and Publicity Officer, Mr. Emma Powerful said President Buhari by now should have known that if he had good advisers, they should have advised him to release the detained leader of Radio Biafra. If they actually want Buhari to succeed in his government, they should have advised him that there is no gain in further detaining Mr. Kanu because the resolve to actualize Biafra grows with each day Kanu stays in prison. Sometimes, we wonder the type of advisers the Nigerian President is surrounding himself with.If what they tell President Buhari is to resolve to fight everybody in Nigeria, we wonder if they tell him to continue the killing of innocent IPOB and other Biafra agitators. Nnamdi kanu We sometimes pause and pity the man because his advisers are not telling him the truth. If he has decided to exterminate this hated ethnic group, then he should wake up from his slumber.How can Buharis APC government be killing innocent, armless and non violent agitators on daily basis and he is keeping quiet? From who do the army, police and other security agencies take orders from? They should not push us to the wall. We have been warning that our leaders should be released without further delay.The truth is that President Buhari lacks good advisers, and prominent Nigerians who should advise him have all kept quiet because they want him to fail as he is failing in all the steps he has taken in his present administration. Look at Nigerian economy and the country they want us to be part of and see how it is nose-diving on daily basis.We in IPOB are telling Buhari to free our leaders . We only said we will defend ourselves in the face of another attack and his government and the police that is supervising the killing of our members became jittery.Meantime, the Uchenna Madu-led faction of the Movement for the Actualization of the Sovereign State of Biafra, MASSOB, has accused the Chief Ralph Uwazurike faction of deceiving Ndigbo by allegedly claiming to be speaking for MASSOB, saying that they had since abandoned the principles upon which the movement was founded.The group in a statement signed by Comrade Samuel Edeson, the factions National Director for Information, claimed that the Uwazurike group incurred the anger of MASSOB leaders and members because of their alleged anti-MASSOB activities, leading to their alleged suspension. The group said it was surprised that the Uwazurike faction which claimed to have formed Biafra Independent Movement, BIM, was still laying claims to MASSOB, saying it smacks of deceit.Can members of Uwazuruikes BIM at the same time be the followers of MASSOB? They are at best saboteurs of Biafra who cannot be forgiven.When they lost in their plan of using MASSOB as a platform to enrich themselves through government leverages, contracts and massive votes canvassing for Goodluck Jonathan, they started parading themselves as factional MASSOB leaders just to create a wrong impression that Uchenna Madu-led reformed MASSOB is divided and unsteady, Edeson said. Vice President Yemi Osinbajo on Tuesday said the President Muhammadu Buharis administration is purely for the Nigerian people and is... Vice President Yemi Osinbajo on Tuesday said the President Muhammadu Buharis administration is purely for the Nigerian people and is always open to dialogue on any issue.He made the remark when a delegation of the Trade Union Congress (TUC) visited him at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.Osinbajo, in a statement issued by his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Laolu Akande, said: We are here for the people, if not for the people, we will not be here. We got here by the grace of God and the votes of the man on the street who felt its time for change.He said it is important for the Buhari presidency to talk and dialogue, adding even if we disagree, we must still talk. The reason is that this government itself is for the people.Osinbajo said nobody is in government by inheritance, adding we are here today because the people chose us and that is the reason we must be prepared to listen to issues that concern Nigerians.The vice president explained that government has set out a number of initiatives to better the lot of ordinary Nigerians, including the six social investment programs for which the sum of N500billion has been allocated in the 2016 budget. The day of reckoning is here. After walking free for about two years, former Minister of Interior, Abba Moro, and four others are now set... The day of reckoning is here. After walking free for about two years, former Minister of Interior, Abba Moro, and four others are now set to face trial for their roles in the shoddy March 15, 2014 immigration recruitment exercise that killed no fewer than 20 job seekers across the country.After investigating the matter for five months, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has now slammed an 11- count charge bordering on obtaining by false pretence, procurement fraud and money laundering on Mr Moro; permanent secretary of the ministry at the time, Anastasia Daniel-Nwobia; a deputy director in the ministry, F. O Alayebami; one Mahmood Ahmadu(at large), and the contracting firm given the recruitment job, Drexel Tech Nigeria Ltd.The defendants are accused of defrauding 676, 675,000 (Six Hundred and Seventy Six Thousand, Six Hundred and Seventy Five) Nigerian applicants of N676,675,000 (Six Hundred and Seventy Six Million, Six Hundred and Seventy Five Thousand Naira).The applicants paid N1000 each through an e-payment platform for their online recruitment exercise into the Nigerian Immigration Service.The accused are also alleged to have contravened the Public Procurement Act, No. 65 of 2007 in the contract awards by not following the necessary procedure laid down by the government.The award of the contract to Drexel Tech Nig Ltd, the EFCC said. had no prior advertisement, no needs assessment and a procurement plan was not carried out before the contract was awarded.The contract was awarded through selective tendering procedure by invitation of 4 (Four) firms without seeking the approval of the Bureau for Public Procurement, contrary to sections 40, 42 and 43 of the Public Procurement Act, No. 65 of 2007 and punishable under section 58 of the same act, the anti-graft agency said.Drexel Tech Global Nigeria Limited, the company that provided the online enlistment and recruitment services is said to be unregistered and had no legal capacity to enter into the said contract.There is also said to be no budgetary provision for the exercise in the 2014 Federal Capital budget hence the applicants were made to bear the responsibility of funding the project without approval of the Board contrary to section 22(5) of the Independent Corrupt Practices and other Related Offences Act 2000, the charge said.The document alleged that One of the accused Mahmood Ahmadu(who is at large) in connivance with Drexel Tech Nigeria Ltd, lavished the total of N423,800,000.00(Four Hundred and Twenty Three Million, Eight Hundred Thousand naira) part of the N676,675,000 (Six Hundred and Seventy Six Million, Six Hundred and Seventy Five Thousand Naira) gotten from the applicants on the following: the sum N202, 500, 000( Two Hundred and Two Million Five Hundred Thousand naira ) in purchase of a property in a choice area of the Federal Capital territory, N120, 100,000 (One Hundred and twenty Million One hundred Thousand Naira ) used in upgrading a property in Abuja, while the total of N101, 200, 000( One Hundred and One Million Two Hundred thousand Naira) was converted to United states dollars for personal use.The case, filed at a Federal High Court in Abuja, is yet to be assigned as at the close of work on Tuesday.Those familiar with the matter said Mr. Moro and the other accused persons might be arraigned before the end of the week.A source at the commission, who cannot be named because she is not authorised to speak on the matter, had told newsmen on Monday that the suspects were picked up on Monday evening preparatory to their being charged.At least nine job seekers died at the Abuja National Stadium while scrambling to secure seats for the controversial recruitment test.The stampede ensued after the over 200,000 job seekers scrambled through a poorly organized barricade at the stadium.In Port Harcourt, Rivers State, four applicants died from the stampede while 12 others sustained injuries and were rushed to Rivers government-owned Braithwaite Memorial Hospital.After the tragedy, several Nigerians demanded the resignation or dismissal of Mr. Moro and the Comptroller-General of Immigration, David Parradang, as well as their criminal prosecution for involuntary homicide.They were accused of putting in place a sham recruitment process that enabled the interior ministry to extort applicants.The minister, who initially blamed impatience and refusal by applicants to abide by instructions for the tragedy, later accepted responsibility for the incident.He, however, refused to step down.Speaking on a Channels TVs breakfast programme, Sunrise, on October 20, 2014, Mr. Moro made it clear he would not resign, saying he would rather stay put in office to clear the mess caused by the incidence.The point at which we are now is not about resignation. That time has gone, Mr. Morro said in response to a question over why he refused to quit.At the time (people were calling for his resignation), I think emotions were very high. I was in the eye of a storm.At that time, a lot of options were on the table The issue is do you resign or do you stay to sort out the problem that have been created?I decided that staying and mopping up the mess caused by the lack of proper implementation of our plans is better. Thats the point we are now.The minister said Nigerians should consider the tragedy as an accident which he too did not plan for or envisage.I also have families. I didnt set out on that journey knowing that accident would occur that would lead to the death of human beings.We took everything into proper perspective. If we had succeeded, a few Nigerians would have congratulated us for the job well done. Hunderds of women from Mile Three Market in Diobu, Port Harcourt marched to the Government House in Port Harcourt in protest against an ... Hunderds of women from Mile Three Market in Diobu, Port Harcourt marched to the Government House in Port Harcourt in protest against an alleged multiple taxation, which includes a tax for governors perfume.The women, who chanted war songs, caused a gridlock around Azikiwe Road as they asked the State Governor, Chief Nyesom Wike, to caution the Port Harcourt City Local Government Council Chairman, Mr. Sunny Sam-Ejekwu.The market women lamented that the extortion from a group suspected to be a task force established by the council was impoverishing them.Although the womens protest was peaceful, their placards, which read, We no go gree, Pay-pay too much, Stop collecting Chairmans money from us, and Save us from extortion and intimidation, among others, conveyed their anger.One of the protesting market women, who identified herself as Gift, expressed anger that the leader of the task force had been collecting various illegal levies from them.Gift said, Each of us pays levies ranging from N1, 500 to N4, 000. The one that is annoying us and forced us to embark on this protest is the N2, 000 for Governors perfume. They said the money would be used to purchase perfume for the governor.The task force constituted by the government is using their position as to intimidate us and extort money from us. They charge us money unnecessarily. They coin name for each of the money they want to take from us.Sometimes we dont sell anything, but they will ensure that we pay more than 1,000 naira daily. We dont make much in our trade, but our small gains go into the governments pocket.She expressed the need for government to appoint a chairman for the market, adding that such a leader will be able to protect market women from the incessant harassment and extortion from task force members.We dont have a chairman in charge of the Mile 3 Market. If there is a chairman, we can take our grievances to him. I sell fish. When these task force people come, they throw my fish away and force me to pay N2,000, Gift further lamented.Speaking in his office, the Chairman of the Port Harcourt City Council, Mr. Sunny Sam-Ejekwu, said he was not aware of any extortion in Mile 3 market.Sam-Ejekwu described the allegation of intimidation and extortion by the market women as blackmail and added that the claims by the market women were politically motivated.When reached, the Chairman of Port Harcourt City Local Government Area of Rivers State, Mr. Sunny Sam-Ejekwu denied knowledge of the said extortion and intimidations.He, however, promised to investigate the matter to find out the actual reason behind the market womens protest at the Government House in Port Harcourt.When contacted, the state Commissioner for Information and Communication, Dr. Austin Tam-George, said there was no such levy for the governors perfume.Tam-George added that the state Governor, Chief Nyesom Wike, had ordered the arrest of fake task force members, who specialised in extorting money from traders. A 23-year old man identified as Maxwell Oronsaye has been jailed by an Oredo Magistrate Court for stealing slippers and belts worth N52,0... A 23-year old man identified as Maxwell Oronsaye has been jailed by an Oredo Magistrate Court for stealing slippers and belts worth N52,000.The convict was accused of breaking and entering into a shop belonging to one Luma Amaka.Police Prosecutor, Sergeant Thomas Ojo, informed the Court that the convict committed the offence on February 22, at Ugbor quarters in Benin City.Maxwell pleaded guilty to the two-count charge filed against him.The offence contravened section 413, 390 of the Criminal code Cap 48 Vol. II laws of the defunct Bendel State of Nigeria 1976 as applicable to Edo.Presiding Magistrate, Mrs J.O. Ejale, convicted Maxwell to two years imprisonment with hard labour without an option of fine. A middle aged man, Friday James, was Wednesday sentenced to death by hanging by a Lagos High Court, sitting in Ikeja. Justice Oluwato... A middle aged man, Friday James, was Wednesday sentenced to death by hanging by a Lagos High Court, sitting in Ikeja.Justice Oluwatoyin Ipaye handed down the death sentence after finding the convict guilty of a two count charge of armed robbery preferred against him by the office of the Lagos State Directorate of Public Prosecution.The prosecution team led by Chief State Prosecutor, Akin George, had accused the convict of the offence of conspiracy to commit armed robbery, and armed robbery.George he told the court that the convict robbed one Olanrewaju of her jewelleries worth N100,000.He also accused the convict of inflicting injuries on the head and hand of the husband of the victim through the use of machetes and guns.The prosecutor said the convict committed the offence, on February 17, 2012 around 3 a.m. at Ewegbemi Street, Meiran, Ajasa Command within Ikeja.The offence, according to the prosecution is contrary to Section 297 Criminal law of Lagos State 2011, and Section 295 subsection 2(a).When the charged were read to him on arraignment in 2012, James had pleaded not guilty to the two count charge preferred against him by the DPP.But the trial judge declared that the prosecution has proved his case beyond reasonable doubt.Justice Ipaye subsequently found the convict guilty on the two count charge offence and sentenced the convict to death by hanging. Vice President Yemi Osinbajo is currently meeting behind closed doors with some chieftains of the ruling All Progressives Congress. Th... Vice President Yemi Osinbajo is currently meeting behind closed doors with some chieftains of the ruling All Progressives Congress.The meeting which started at about 11am is holding inside one of the conference rooms of the Vice Presidents Office inside the Presidential Villa, Abuja.Those in attendance include a leader of the party; Asiwaju Bola Tinubu; former Vice President Atiku Abubakar; the partys National Chairman, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun; President of the Senate, Bukola Saraki; Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yusuf Lasun; Senate Leader, Ali Ndume; Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Babachir Lawal; and a former interim chairman of the party, Chief Bisi Akande, among others.Saraki arrived at about 12.30pm when the meeting was already underway.The agenda of the meeting was not made public.President Muhammadu Buhari is currently on a one-week official visit to Saudi Arabia and Qatar. Seven take-aways from President Buharis visit to Egypt In the difficult moments of our history, looking precisely at the period of N... Seven take-aways from President Buharis visit to Egypt In the course of his bilateral meeting with the Egyptian leader, Abdul Fattah El-Sisi, President Muahmmadu Buhari recalled that in the course of his service in the army, he too received military training in Egypt. This 24-hour visit to to the Red Sea resort of Sharm Al-Shaikh was not just a trip to Egypt as it has been wrongly portrayed, as if it were primarily bilateral in nature or a ritual courtesy call on President Sisi.The purpose was to promote investment and job creation in Nigeria and throughout West, Central and East Africa, together with other African leaders The Sharm el-Sheikh Africa 2016 conference aimed at tearing down trade barriers between North and sub-Saharan Africa a partnership anchored by the continents biggest and third-biggest economies (i.e., Nigeria and Egypt) by the injection of life into a 26-nation free-trade pact signed by half the number of countries on the continent a year ago. The organizers brought together more than 1200 delegates to Sharm el-Sheikh, included among these the eight Presidents and Prime Ministers, ministers of trade and investment, representatives of global financial institutions, businessmen and investment executives.It is expected that this new pan-African initiative will directly benefit Nigeria in its efforts to expand and diversify jobs and exports beyond the oil industry a core component of President Buharis economic vision for the country.Knocking down trade barriers within Africa will create new markets for Nigerian farmers, manufacturers and other businesses. In his opening remarks, Egypts President El-Sisi said that the forum aimed at pushing forward trade and investment in our continent to strengthen Africas place in the world economy.Economic agendaNigerias President Muhammadu Buhari who touted an extensive economic agenda said that this is not without challenges. The new problem affecting investment is international terrorismlots of resources that could be used for development are being diverted to address security issues. As he and many others noted, the only way this can be redressed is by widening the participation of the private sector in African economies, the very idea behind the conference in Egypt.One shining example of how this could be done came from the African Development Bank, ADB which announced through its President,Nigerias Akinwumi Adesina that the bank would be investing 12 billion Dollars in the energy sector in the coming five years to provide access to electricity. There are 645 million Africans without access to electricity. President Buharis visit to Egypt wasnt limited to the business of Africa 2016in its success, as it turned out to be one that is a remarkable watershed in bilateral ties between the two states. While it was not surprising that El-Sisi rolled out the red carpet for President Buhari in line with what many say is a plan by Egypt to rebuild the countrys money-spinning tourism industry in tatters since the mid-air bombing in October of a Russian plane, killing all 223 tourists and crew, the truth is also that these two of Africas three biggest economies had been too far apart when it comes to trade. The two leaders also bonded well with each other at their first meeting in Addis Ababa early in the new year.By the last count, bilateral trade between the two states amounts to a meager USD 100 million, with Egypt drawing about 80 percent of the benefit. Egyptian pharmaceutical companies are making good sales in Nigeria. Egypt is Nigerians preferred destination for medical tourism. Linked to this is their successful airline business trade in Nigeria.Egypt Air makes seven weekly flights to Lagos, and six each to Abuja and Kano. There is little or nothing to show from the Nigerian side and this one of the things President Buhari wants to change. In welcoming our President to the bilateral discussion, the Egyptian leader did not hide his joy at the acceptance of the Nigerian leader to visit. The two leaders agreed to strengthen ties between their two states, to reestablish that historical closeness which helped Nigeria remain a single country decades ago.They talked about doing this through enhanced partnership and cooperation in the areas of trade, security and defense. President Buhari welcomed Egypts decision to strengthen strategic cooperation and intelligence sharing with Nigeria and from this, a framework for dealing with terrorism would emerge. For this, he gave instructions to the Ministry of ForeignAffairs to follow up with a meeting. Further progress is expected to follow on security and trade issues. In addition, the President requested El-Sisi to promote Egyptian investment in education in Nigeria.Education in NigeriaThe two leaders also discussed a range of regional and global issues. As to be expected, terrorism topped them all. They both expressed concern that the anarchy in Libya, a disturbing situation that had provided a great impetus to terrorism in areas far and around the failed state. The leaders also emphasized their cooperation on climate change and energy issues. Experts in the field of diplomacy say that personal bond between two leaders can help pave the way for better relations among states. In Nigeria and Egypt relations, there is a good chance of this working to the benefit of the two states. News / Africa by Staff Reporter Zambian President Edger Lungu has reoportedly free 500 prisoners amid praise by Prisons Care and Counselling Association (PRICCA) which said the latest pardoning of prisoners is a clear demonstration of Zambia's declaration as a Christian Nation.Times of Zambia reported that President Lungu early this month pardoned 500 prisoners drawn from various prisons across the country, among them 26 females, 10 of whom were terminally ill and 14 aged inmates.The latest amnesty by the President brought the number of inmates released from jail to 1,002 in a space of two months after the Head of State discharged 502 on Christmas Eve.PRISCA executive director Godfrey Malembeka said in an interview yesterday that Mr Lungu had rightly interpreted the meaning of a Christian Nation by releasing more prisoners."The declaration of Zambia as a Christian Nation should be backed by actions and President Lungu has demonstrated this by releasing more prisoners from jail."We want to thank the President for this gesture and we are on our knees for more pardons and release so that we can show love to the prisoners and decongest our prisons," he said.As a Christian Nation, Mr Malembeka said there was need to adopt restorative justice where sinners were forgiven and given a chance to reform.He called on various stakeholders, including civil society organisations and individuals, to assist the ex-inmates with various forms of capital for easy integration into society.Mr Malembeka, who is a former prisoner, said that while the released prisoners acquired some skills during their jail time, they would require capital for them to sustain their lives.He commended the Government for ensuring that prisoners enjoyed their human rights.The country has the capacity of just more than 8,000 prisoners in the prisons, although it is currently home to more than 20,000 inmates.Mr Malembeka urged the pardoned inmates to demonstrate that they had reformed when reunited in the various communities, adding that they should take advantage of the voter registration to take part in the general elections in August this year. News / Local by Tendai Mbofana Tendai Mbofana is a community activist, communications specialist, writer, and journalist. He writes in his personal capacity, and welcomes all feedback. Please call/WhatsApp: +263782283975, or email: tendaiandtinta.mbofana@gmail.com I would like to thank all those who have been in touch with me with their various and valuable feedback, which I truly appreciate.Furthermore, my article entitles, 'Was ZANU PF's formation a US/Israeli plot to derail the people's aspirations?', roused some interest amongst readers who wanted more details, something I will try to do - although one or two articles will not do justice to the topic.How did a well-meaning, authentic liberation movement as Frelimo end up assisting a party [Zanu PF] that they regarded as disgraceful, instead of its natural ally - Zapu?On 7 to 8 March 1968, Frelimo - who were fighting the colonial Portuguese government in Mozambique - opened the Tete front in that country adjoining Malawi, Zambia and Rhodesia.As Frelimo consolidated their position in this war zone, a new corridor was opened for infiltration of guerrillas and armaments into north-eastern Rhodesia.As expected, they turned to their natural ally' Zapu, to begin the war in that area.However, they found Zapu embroiled in fierce leadership squabbles, and was clearly not prepared for any military action.One Frelimo official was quoted at the time as saying, it was not the fighters (Zipra) who refused. It was the Zapu leadership'.Frelimo, which was eager to see military action in Rhodesia, was left with no choice, but to reluctantly establish links with Zanu - starting with a tentative meeting at Dar es Salaam's Twiga Hotel in 1968, when Eduardo Mondlane, then leader of Frelimo, and Samora Machel met then Zanu Chairman Herbert Chitepo and secretary for defence Noel Mukono.Even when agreement was eventually reached for Frelimo and Zanu to work together in May 1970, Machel made it very clear to Zanu that this decision did not mean that Frelimo supported them, meaning that Zapu was still its partner, saying, 'We don't support Zanu. We support Zapu. But we also support the people of Zimbabwe and anyone who can show us he can start a revolution in Zimbabwe'.But still the question begs an answer. Why was Zapu reluctant to wage a liberation struggle, even when Frelimo persistently preferred them?George Silundika, one of Zapu's three principal leaders in exile, later explained that at the time of the invitations by Frelimo, Zapu was in a political mess.James Chikerema (vice president, leader in exile and head of the defence department) and Jason Z. Moyo (second man in the defence department) were not co-operating with each other.But what were these problems?Differences within Zapu had begun to emerge in 1967 between Chikerema and J.Z. Moyo.Chikerema - who hailed from the same area as Mugabe - wanted to follow his kinsman's ideology of tribalism, destroy Zapu and set up one Zezuru-led party.Having gathered for himself a strong Shona following, he did all he could to destroy Zapu.In 1969, he even allowed a British television crew to film a Zipra training camp in Zambia, thereby, compromising the security of the guerrillas. He went further and dissolved the party executive and army command, and vesting all powers in himself, thereby, managing to divide the Zipra guerrillas in the camps on tribal lines, resulting in intense fighting amongst them.After satisfying himself that Zapu was as good as dead, and that he had acquired sufficient Shona supporters from the party, he finally revealed his true intentions.He proposed unity with Zanu, as he knew very well that Zanu's split from Zapu in 1963 was tribalistic.However, there was still a problem. Zanu's top brass at the time were not Zezuru as he was, and therefore, not conducive for the grand plan.Zanu had, so far, used the anti-Ndebele card to split from Zapu, but the time had come for the non-Zezuru leadership of Zanu to be removed.As such, whilst Chikerema was conducting official talks with Chitepo and Mukudzei Mudzi (administrative secretary), he was also having more frequent unofficial talks with Nathan Shamuyarira and Taziana Mutizwa - Zezuru members of the Zanu supreme council.In fact, the Zanu president Ndabaningi Sithole, his vice Leopold Takawira and Chitepo were not Zezuru and were not what the conspirators desired.However, the next in the hierarchy - Robert Mugabe - was a Zezuru (or so he claimed, as there are many questions regarding that) and the man for the job.But as he was incarcerated, Shamuyarira and Mutizwa were the link between him and Chikerema.It is most likely that the scheme to destroy Zapu from within, and thus, incapacitate it as an effective liberation force, was mooted by Mugabe.It is also clear that he (Mugabe) was the brains behind the scheme to remove all non-Zezuru leaders of the liberation' movement.Chikerema proceeded to 'leak' to the British media the fallacy that Sithole and Joshua Nkomo (then Zapu president) had stepped down in favour of Mugabe, in Salisbury Central Prison.However, after the scheme was known, Chitepo pulled out of the unity talks.As expected, this did not go down well with the Zezuru elements in Zanu, with Shamuyarira subsequently challenging Chitepo for the chairmanship of the supreme council.However, he (Shamuyarira) lost, and at the 1971 review conference, lost his place on the council and a few days later resigned from Zanu - maybe in the hope that other Zezurus will follow suit and form another party.However, that would have been political suicide, as they were unlikely to receive any recognition from the international community.Whether or not what later transpired in Zanu - the assassinations and revolts - leading to Mugabe becoming president, were part of the plan or not, the fact still remains that Mugabe's machinations were sinister. News / National by Zvamaida Murwira Government will not issue diplomatic passports to Members of Parliament because they are not entitled to that privilege, a Cabinet minister has said.Foreign Affairs Minister Simbarashe Mumbengegwi said this while responding to enquiries from legislators as he gave oral evidence on the country's foreign policy before the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Foreign Affairs chaired by Makonde MP Kindness Paradza (Zanu-PF).Warren Park MP Mr Elias Mudzuri (MDC-T) had asked why MPs were not issued with diplomatic passports to facilitate their work, adding that in some countries like South Africa, legislators enjoyed that privilege.Mr Mudzuri also wanted to know why some people who had ceased to be diplomats continued to use such passports."The issuance of diplomatic passports is governed by Presidential directive. The President's Office clearly spells out which categories should have diplomatic passports and parliamentarians are not on the list. A diplomatic passport is regarded as a document of the Executive to facilitate the executive in doing its work," said Minister Mumbengegwi.Asked to explain what kind of people were on the list, Minister Mumbengegwi said: "I do not have the list but what I know is that parliamentarians are not on the list because this is not the first time this issue has been raised, that some countries give diplomatic passports to their MPs and so on. That is what other countries do (but not Zimbabwe), what I know definitely is that parliamentarians are not in that category."He said there were people who were no longer diplomats but who were used by the Executive to carry out several diplomatic assignments hence the decision to allow them to continue using such documents."The Executive regards them as part of their pool of diplomatic personnel whom they can use in carrying out its work, like to be special envoys and so on. That is where you see someone who once qualified directly still holding diplomatic passports. It is because he is used from time to time to assist the Executive," said Minister Mumbengegwi.Turning to the region, Minister Mumbengegwi said it was not feasible to give legislative authority to the Pan African Parliament and Sadc Parliamentary Forum.He said at its meeting in August 2015 in Botswana, the Sadc Council of Ministers turned down a request by the Sadc PF to upgrade it into a regional parliament.Minister Mumbengegwi said added to financial implications, giving legislative authority would also mean that member countries would have to surrender some of their powers to either Sadc or the African Union."For the Pan African Parliament to be able to legislate, member states must identify certain areas of their powers which they surrender to the central authority of the African Union. To say all powers related to A, B and C have now been removed from the domain of the member states to the African Union. Once their powers have been surrendered, then the Pan African Parliament will be able to legislate in those areas which member states have surrendered responsibility to the AU. As it is at the moment, nothing has been surrendered and yet PAP wants legislative powers," said Minister Mumbengegwi."So the question, which is constantly asked is how do you become a legislature without an executive? What happens to your laws? You make laws and where do they go?"He said if the Sadc PF and PAP want to modernise laws as they claim, what they merely require was capacity to make modern laws that were attractive which when looked upon by individual member states, might be adopted."Modern laws are not binding, they are optional," he said. News / National by Stephen Jakes The ZimFirst leader Maxwell Shumba has accused President Robert Mugabe of turning a blind eye on the plight of Zimbabweans who are suffering due to escalating economic problems.Shumba said when it comes to the plight of the Zimbabwean people Robert Mugabe acts both blind and deaf."As his motorcade sped through the impoverished neighborhoods of Harare, Chivhu, Masvingo and the drought stricken countryside en route to Masvingo for his $1 million birthday bash he acted blind to the poverty that has struck the country. Are windows of his car tinted from the inside? The poverty is glaring.The irony, he holds a $1million birthday party in Masvingo town, a dying city and a province worst hit by drought," he said."In this dying city He will cut a 92kg birthday cake. In obscenity, he will raise a toast for 92 years of his personal good health and his personal massive wealth and 36 years of his reign of cruelty. Blind and deaf to the people' sorrowful plight he will pop up champagne. Amid pomp and fanfare but oblivious to the reality that the country is tethering towards total wreckage and collapse. It's callous and obscene to say the least."Shumba said as other Zimbabweans have rightly noted, throwing a million dollar birthday bash in such a drought-ravaged province is akin to throwing a party at a funeral, a taboo in our Zimbabwean culture."What creature? What monster do this? Zimbabweans might appear to be docile but they are not fools. With certainty we know that that there is an unspoken wish at back of the minds of all those who today are wishing this man a happy birthday. The wish is simple and to the point: 'We wish you were gone yesterday!'" he said."The people cannot even afford to buy a bar of soap on their own , they cannot put food on their table and throwing a $50 birthday celebration for their children is considered way too much a luxury. All because of this man and a his wife."Shumba said how can one man bring misery to a whole population of 12 million people and impoverish a country laden with good rich red soils, rivers, gold, platinum, iron, diamonds you name it?"How does he sleep? His advisors, where are they ?Only cold hearted people are capable of doing this. We certainly do not wish anyone dead but unfortunately there are millions of Zimbabweans who see wishing him dead as the only option left for them to exit out of their current misery," he said. You have permission to edit this article. Edit Close News / National by Stephen Jakes The Migrant Workers Association South Africa National Coordinator Butholezwe Nyathi has said his union has managed to engage the South African Trade Unions in an effort to assist the migrant workers in that country."As you are aware...there are many challenges we have been facing in South Africa. The Migrant Workers' Association - SA (MWA-SA) has linked up with an international funding organisation that wants to create a platform to help us to organise ourselves to engage various stakeholders including government departments. We have also managed to bring on board South African Trade Unions to help. We thank them for their interest and support," Nyathi said.He said their team for the teachers is led by Robert Ruziva and Collen Maringa."I am with the team of health professionals...some will remember that in 2010 we managed to get a breakthrough for a group of nurses. We need to expand on the work we have done.He asked teachers to send the information to him through whatsapp because as Ruziva is currently out of the country.He said they will create a group for teachers to discuss their issues and form a task team like the health professional task team."Please indicate that you are a teacher so that i do not add you to the health professionals group, also state whether you want to be a group Administrator so that you can add more teachers and give direction," he said through a Facebook post.He said Whatsapp contact are 0814956500, voice calls...0764372289."Another way of getting to us is through our Johannesburg Office...Administrator's numbers: Maplanka 0788535353/0736335003, landline 0110748022 or email us on info.mwasa@gmail.com," he said."Our Offices are now at 4th Floor,Office 414, Works@Registry House, Cnr Troye and Kerk Street, Central Johannesburg, close to Noord Taxi rank.""We are determined in the struggle to promote and protect the rights of migrant workers. We have put a hold on membership fees because they have failed to sustain our organisation, we are focusing on service based approach because people come to us when they have problems."He said the best approach is to identify their problems and seek solutions."Seek donor funding to assist and get people being associated to us because we have served them and made them happy," he said."Apologies to those who might feel we did not meet their expectations, we are a growing organisation and we remain open to ideas. Kindly liaise with me if you would like to play an active role in getting MWA-SA growing." 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. News / National by Staff reporter Tourism and Hospitality Industry Minister Walter has rapped the Department of Immigration for dithering around the resumption of a single visa regime with Zambia likening the department's conduct to sabotage.Zambia stopped issuing the KAZA visa last year when the extended period of the memorandum of understanding signed with Zimbabwe for the six months pilot period phase expired in December last year.The KAZA visa was launched in November 2014 for a six month pilot phase to March 2015, but was extended for a further six months to December 31, 2015.Zimbabwe had however continued to issue the KAZA visas, but inexplicably stopped this year amid indications it had run out of visa stickers.The World Bank had funded the initial 50 000 batches for each of the two countries' KAZA visas and German bank KFW was keen to finance the next phase.Although Minister Mzembi wanted the visa to continue, Zimbabwe's immigration like its Zambia counterpart stopped issuing the KAZA visa in a development that enraged Minister Mzembi, as this negatively affected his vision. Today Sunny. High 79F. Winds S at 5 to 10 mph. Tonight A clear sky. Low 63F. Winds S at 5 to 10 mph. Tomorrow Generally sunny despite a few afternoon clouds. High 81F. Winds SE at 5 to 10 mph. Today Sunny. High 79F. Winds S at 5 to 10 mph. Tonight Clear skies. Low 63F. Winds S at 5 to 10 mph. Tomorrow Sunny, along with a few afternoon clouds. High 81F. Winds SE at 5 to 10 mph. News / National by Staff reporter War veterans who are camped in Harare's CBD have vowed to stay put until all their grievances are addressed.The war veterans have been in the CBD since Thursday last week when police fired teargas and used water cannons to disperse them after planning a march to Zanu-PF's headquarters.Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans Association (ZNLWA) spokesperson Douglas Mahiya has however asked the veterans to disperse.Nonetheless, the veterans have ignored his plea and want Defence minister Sydney Sekeramayi to address them.They also want to receive status updates concerning money for fees, which they say should have been received in January. Community Its now easier than ever to connect and chat with others in your local area. You can connect with your community by asking general questions, give area updates and recommendations and even let your community know about local events that are taking place. News / National by Staff reporter FIRST Lady Grace Mugabe last Friday reportedly chickened out of a dinner dance meant to raise funds for President Robert Mugabe's 92nd birthday bash set for Saturday.Grace was supposed to be the guest of honour at the fund-raising dinner dance held at a top hotel in Harare, but reportedly withdrew under a cloud a day before the event.Tourism minister Walter Mzembi was then roped in at short notice to replace her and preside over the event."She (Grace) had been billed to be guest of honour, but we were advised that she would not be coming a day before the event," a Zanu-PF insider said on condition of anonymity."She is said to have received intelligence that some youths planned to ambush the event and to air their grievances about what was happening in the party (Zanu-PF) and the lies she is being fed by the Generation 40 (G40) group."Mzembi yesterday declined to be drawn into details."There is no need for the hype or speculation. I just received a simple letter to the effect that I should officiate at the event and nothing more," Mzembi said.Zanu-PF Youth League secretary for information Evelyn Mpofu initially seemed to confirm that Grace was supposed to be guest of honour.She, however, later chose to be diplomatic, saying she did not have "full details and will consult"."Yes, she (Grace) was, but I am actually travelling to Harare now. Let me consult first. I actually travelled from Harare on Friday and do not have full details.I will call you back," she said.But Pupurai Togarepi, the Zanu-PF politburo member for youths, was non-committal."I do not know. We were given Mzembi as the guest of honour and he represented the interests of the party," he said.Another Youth League official, who spoke on condition he was not identified, confirmed Grace had chickened out at the last hour."For some reason, she decided she was no longer coming and we were advised Mzembi was coming instead," the source said."We wanted to capitalise on her power, but then the factional fights won the day. Her advisers in the G40 faction instilled fear in her. She seemed to have been told that she would be booed, which really is nonsense."Grace's choice of replacement raised eyebrows among ruling party officials angling to succeed Mugabe."Mugabe is capable of anything and could spring a surprise. While it has become clear he is rooting for his wife, anything is possible. He could appoint someone outside his inner circle, it is still a distinct possibility," a source said.Mzembi is one of the few Zanu-PF cadres reportedly sitting on the fence regarding the nasty internal struggles currently rocking the ruling party.Political analyst Alexander Rusero said Grace could have pulled a masterstroke in the midst of vicious infighting."The choice of Mzembi could be a way of sanitising the event, which is supposed to symbolise unity at a time the party is rocked by factional fights between two groups," he said.Meanwhile, a handful of opposition MDC-T youths in Masvingo yesterday held a protest march in the city, demanding that Mugabe's birthday bash be cancelled and all resources mobilised for the event channelled towards drought relief food.The ruling party will reportedly spend at least $800 000 on the bash.The placard-waving youths were singing and toyi-toying, denouncing Mugabe's plans for the bash when many were wallowing in poverty and staring starvation.Some of the placards read: "We want jobs, not bash"; "A serious government cares for its people"; and "Mugabe's regime must fall".The youths marched along Robert Mugabe Road before police dispersed them.It could not be established at the time of going to print whether police had made any arrests.In a related development, youths from Temba Mliswa's Youth Advocacy for Reform and Democracy have also threatened a similar demonstration in Masvingo on Friday. P3 projects can save money, minimize risk, councillors told With city council getting ready to decide whether to proceed with a number of big projects, they will also have to decide how they will build any project. Sudbury's $63 million biosolids plant is an example of a P3 project. With city council getting ready to decide whether to proceed with a number of big projects, they will also have to decide how they will build any project. File photo. With city council getting ready to decide whether to proceed with a number of big projects, they will also have to decide how they will build any project. On Tuesday, Mark Romoff, president and CEO of the Canadian Council for Public-Private Partnerships, gave councillors an overview of P3s public/private partnerships the federal government has been especially vocal in supporting in recent years. Contrary to what many people think, Romoff said P3s are not primarily a way to finance big projects. Rather, they offer municipalities a way to accomplish a big project that minimizes risk and costs. A local example is the $63 million biosolids plant that opened on Kelly Lake Road in 2013, on time and on budget. P3s are not a panacea, Romoff said Tuesday. But when done for the right reasons, they have produced wonderful results. In the case of the biosolids plant, it was built and is being run by a private sector company for the next 20 years. In return, the city provides a guaranteed payment to the company, as long as the company does the necessary work to maintain the facility. The city assumes full ownership of the plant at the end of the contact. Romoff said the Sudbury example is fairly typical of how such agreements work. The private sector accepts responsibility for design, construction, financing, maintenance and, in some cases, operations, he said. Payment from government only begins upon completion of construction (and) ongoing payments remain subject to deduction for failures in service delivery. In the 22-year history of P3s in Canada, he said 236 projects worth $93.9 billion have been completed. That translates into 290,000 direct jobs over the last 10 years alone, worth $25 billion to the economy, savings of $9 billion to governent and generated tax revenue of $7 billion. This has been a very strong outcome, Romoff said. We are receiving delegations from around the world to look at the Canadian model. Federal and provincial agencies have been set up to oversee P3 projects, groups that have had a major impact on their success. Minimizing risk and ensuring there are no surprises in the process has been key, he said. (Governments want) guarantees you'll get your project delivered on time and on budget, he said. Because of their size and the fact the process is so transparent, he said companies around the world bid on P3s, helping to ensure governments get the best possible price. While public sector unions don't like P3s, Romoff said they all respect collective bargaining agreements. And they are popular with private-sector unions. We have enough of them in Canada to do some quality analysis, he said. The results were very strong. Not all on council were convinced, however. Ward 1 Coun. Mark Signoretti said he's worried that P3s allow the private sector to make money with public assest, and then just walk away from them at the end of the contract. I'm not a big fan of P3s, Signoretti said. But Romoff said the private sector must adhere to the terms of the contract, which includes doing proper maintenance of the facility. Usually about five years before a contract ends, government will do an assessment of the facility to ensure the work has been done, and can withold payments as compensation if it hasn't. When you factor in the long-term maintenance, P3 projects come out to be cheaper, he said. I don't know anyone in the business community who does not want to make a profit So if it doesn't work for both parties, it's a mistake. That's why it's so important to do the work up front in the contract language to ensure everyone knows what to expect, Romoff said. Ward 6 Coun. Rene Lapierre wanted to know what would happen if, for example, the city built an arena and events centre under the P3 model. Would exisiting workers lose their jobs? We already have all our arena people, Lapierre said. Romoff said employees are given the option to either stay with public sector, or to work for the private-sector operator under the same pay and working conditions. In response to another question, he said it's possible for government to share revenue in a P3 agreement. For example, a new toll highway is being built and government and the private are sharing the revenue. What kind of dollar range have these projects been? asked Mayor Brian Bigger. Romoff said the smallest he's seen is around $35 million, while most come in around $50 million-$75 million range or larger. The key is to get good, sound advice before you move ahead, Romoff added. City council is expected to get a report on big projects proposed for the city in April. Miner's death could have been avoided If Vale miner Stephen Perry had been able to complete his work, loading explosives, without being right against Coleman Mine's rock face, he would still be alive today, said a Ministry of Labour inspector during the second day of testimony for the in Stephen Perry is shown here with his daughter, Brittany Boyd-Perry. Perry was killed Jan. 29, 2012 while working underground at Vale's Coleman Mine in Levack. Supplied photo. If Vale miner Stephen Perry had been able to complete his work, loading explosives, without being right against Coleman Mine's rock face, he would still be alive today, said a Ministry of Labour inspector during the second day of testimony for the inquest into Perry's death. Perry, 47, was struck and killed by a 14-tonne wedge of rock that dislodged from the 36 West rock face at the 4,215-foot level Coleman Mine on Jan. 29, 2012. Shaun Carter was one of two Ontario Ministry of Labour inspectors who responded to the incident shortly after Perry was killed on Jan. 29, around noon. In his testimony Tuesday, Carter told the five-person jury that bolting and meshing the rock face could have saved Perry's life, but the most effective deterrent would have been for him to work a safe distance, at least six feet or more from the heading. In early 2012 Vale used heavy bolts and steel mesh to secure the walls and ceilings along its mine drifts, but did not secure the rock faces where miners extracted the ore in the same way. Annetta Sampson-Forsythe, a senior ground control engineer at Coleman Mine, told the jury the area where Perry had been working the day he was killed was not considered risky. Vale found out after the incident that large rock wedges, sitting at around a 70-degree angle, had slid out of place due to the constant pull of gravity. Sampson-Forsythe said it was not possible to tell there was anything wrong with the 36 West rock face prior. In the early morning of Jan. 29, 2012, at around 3 a.m., Vale also detected a 2.4 magnitude seismic event near the mine. But because the seismic event occurred around 2,000 feet east of Coleman Mine, Sampson-Forsythe said it was not an issue. On Monday several miners who worked shifts prior to Perry testified they heard popping sounds, associated with seismic activity, when working at the 36 West heading. After its investigation the Ministry of Labour did not lay charges under the Occupational Health and Safety Act against Vale, concluding the incident could not have been foreseen, and all the proper procedures at the time had been followed. In his testimony Carter said the Ministry of Labour had 10 mine inspectors in 2012 to cover Northern Ontario. Because of staffing challenges, Carter said he was limited to visiting each mine site on his list around once a year. The proactive stuff takes a backseat to the reactive, he said during his testimony. While Vale had followed proper procedures leading to the incident, veteran miner Ron Weaver, who was one of the first-responders after Perry was struck by the rock, said in his testimony Monday that the first aid kit available at the time was lacking. Weaver also noted the Jeep used to transport Perry to the cage, or elevator, so they could bring him to surface, did not leave him enough room to perform CPR. In his testimony Tuesday, Perry's shift supervisor Michael Johnson said Vale does not have any defibrillators in its underground mines. After Perry's death Vale and the United Steelworkers Local 6500 started a joint investigation, and eventually came up with 16 recommendations. As of today, all but one of the recommendations have been completed. Chris Bamberger, the operating manager at Coleman Mine, said Vale ceased operations at the mine for two weeks after Perry's death to assess safety concerns. One of the biggest changes to come out of the joint investigation recommendations was to bolt and screen rock faces, like the one where Perry was killed, prior to drilling. The mesh adds more ground support, and can prevent any fallen rock from striking workers. But the process puts Vale's jumbo drill operators at slightly greater risk while they install the bolts and steel mesh. The bolts and mesh also introduce more scrap to the muck the mix of broken rock and ore after detonation that can pose a hazard to workers handling crushers to break down the larger pieces. Vale has also added canopies to loaders, like the one Perry operated, used in its Sudbury mines. Bamberger could not say if the canopy would have saved Perry's life, but said the steel mesh could have made the difference for him to come home to his family after his shift. The one recommendation Vale has not yet completed was to develop technology that would allow for a remotely controlled loader, that would keep the operator a safe distance from the rock face. Vale has provided funding to Sudbury mining research and engineering firm TesMan to develop a robotic arm that could be attached to any loader, and keep the operator up to 12 feet away from the rock face. TesMan co-founder Rod Steele said the company has developed a prototype for the robotic arm, and is around six to nine months away from developing a production model. The company would require additional funding, and an additional six to nine months after the production model is completed, to test it in a working mine. Steele said he hopes to make the remote loader available to any mining company that wants to purchase it. Northern Credit Union is bringing an innovative new, free networking event for small businesses to Sudbury. Small Business Rocks combines live music, expert speakers and great food and prizes, with a brand new networking event taking place Feb. Northern Credit Union is bringing an innovative new, free networking event for small businesses to Sudbury.Small Business Rocks combines live music, expert speakers and great food and prizes, with a brand new networking event taking place Feb. 25 at The Vale Cavern inside Science North. The doors open at 6 p.m.Its all about supporting small businesses in the North, said Northern Credit Union Senior Vice President, Tony Dunham.Its also about showing our appreciation for these businesses, and recognizing how important they are to the communities we all call home.Northern Credit Union knows the huge role small business plays in the Northern economy, he said.Thats why weve invested in thousands of businesses from Thunder Bay to the Ottawa Valley. These businesses have gone on to create more jobs and growth for our Northern communities proof that good things happen when you keep your dollars close to home.Small Business Rocks is all about helping small business owners grow their business. The event will include networking sessions with other small business owners, as well as talks from local experts in areas such as marketing, accounting, IT and HR.Afterwards, attendees can get down to business listening to a live band and enjoying some great food and themed drinks, and even take their shot at winning some prizes.Sudbury small business owners and managers can register for the Small Business Rocks events at www.SmallBusinessRocks.ca Community organizations in Sudbury are receiving $844,000 from the Ontario government to help at-risk children and youth. Community organizations in Sudbury are receiving $844,000 from the Ontario government to help at-risk children and youth.The funding, which is designed to address the root causes of youth violence, will create opportunities for youth in the city to find a mentor and to develop skills to deal with conflict.The organizations selected to provide this new programming are:Child and Family Centre to provide Stop Now and Plan (SNAP). This made-in-Ontario intervention program, which has had great success across Canada, helps children aged 6 to 12 who are struggling with behaviour issues learn self-control problem-solving skills to keep them in school and out of trouble.Shkagamik-Kwe Health Centre for the Youth Mentorship Program, which will pair youth with local mentors to help guide them towards better choices and career options.Elizabeth Fry Society for the Restorative Justice and Conflict Mediation Program, a program for students to manage school conflict through peer mediation while strengthening positive social skills.Sudbury Action Centre for Youth to provide Youth Outreach Workers in the city. Youth Outreach Workers improve at-risk youths chances for success by connecting them to services and positive opportunities in their community.These programs are funded through the $55-million enhanced Ontario Youth Action Plan - the provinces largest investment in at-risk youth across Ontario.Identifying at-risk children in Sudbury and giving them support is part of our overall plan to help our youth advance in todays fast moving society, said Sudbury MPP Glenn Thibeault.Local agencies now have the funding they need to make a difference in the lives of these young people and deal with the root causes of youth violence. Our ultimate goal is a safer community for everyone.The plan invests in areas of the province that need it most, including Peterborough, Brantford, Kingston, Sudbury, and Thunder Bay.The youth violent crime rate has declined by 38 per cent between 2003 and 2014. The Ontario government has contributed to this decline through a range of investments and opportunities for at-risk youth.With the enhanced Ontario Youth Action Plan, Ontario will be providing a total of 65,000 opportunities per year to at-risk youth across the province.The Ministry of Children and Youth Services is currently operating a total of 15 initiatives that are a part of the 2012 Ontario Youth Action Plan and the enhanced Ontario Youth Action Plan, which was announced in June 2015. LU appoints new Faculty of Education dean Laurentian University has announced the appointment of Lace Marie Brogden as the universitys founding dean of the Faculty of Education. Brogdens appointment will be for a five-year renewable term, beginning July 1, 2016. Lace Marie Brogden is Laurentian University's founding dean in the Faculty of Education. Supplied photo. Laurentian University has announced the appointment of Lace Marie Brogden as the universitys founding dean of the Faculty of Education. Brogdens appointment will be for a five-year renewable term, beginning July 1, 2016. As dean, Brogden will have responsibility for leading the two schools within the faculty, the English-language School of Education and the French-language Ecole des sciences de leducation. The faculty currently includes more than 60 full- and part-time faculty, and a total of 780 students. A respected academic and experienced administrator, Brogden has been director of the Baccalaureate Program at the University of Reginas Faculty of Education since 2010. Before joining the Faculty of Education, Brogden worked as evaluation co-ordinator in the Official Minority Language Office of Saskatchewans Ministry of Education. She also spent five years as a French Immersion teacher in Reginas public school system. Brogden received a PhD from the University of Regina in 2007, and a Master of Arts in Education from San Diego State University in 1996. She completed her undergraduate degree, Baccalaureat en education elementaire francaise, at the University of Regina in 1989. We are delighted to welcome Dr. Brogden to this important new role at Laurentian and we look forward to the flourishing of these schools under her leadership, said Laurentian president Dominic Giroux, in a press release. I am thrilled by the opportunity to work with both Schools in the Faculty of Education, which together serve such an important role in Northern Ontario, said Brogden. Today, Feb. 24, is Pink Shirt Day. Thousands of Canadians are expected to turn schools and businesses into a sea of pink to build awareness against bullying. This years Pink Shirt Day message is Kindness is one size fits all. Today, Feb. 24, is Pink Shirt Day.Thousands of Canadians are expected to turn schools and businesses into a sea of pink to build awareness against bullying. This years Pink Shirt Day message is Kindness is one size fits all.Youth and organizations continue to support Pink Shirt Day following the stand of two Grade 12 Nova Scotia students In 2007.The students took action after witnessing a Grade 9 student being bullied for wearing pink to school and encouraged their schoolmates to wear pink to send a message against bullying. Since then wearing pink shirts has sent a powerful message against bullying.Learn more at pinkshirtday.ca A two-year old female pit bull named Kya is safely on her way to the SPCA in New Brunswick after she was impounded in Sudbury on Dec. 31. A two-year old female pit bull named Kya is safely on her way to the SPCA in New Brunswick after she was impounded in Sudbury on Dec. 31.As she was clearly a prohibited dog in Ontario , Rainbow District Animal Control and Shelter Services' rescue coordinator arranged safe passage with Pilots and Paws Canada for Kya to be transferred to the SPCA in Oromocto, New Brunswick.After several delays due to inclement weather, Kya finally departed Sudbury on the morning of Feb. 20 for New Brunswick.Kya has now safely landed in New Brunswick and is now getting comfortable at the shelter.If you are interested in donating to Pilots N Paws Canada, visit their website or check them out of Facebook News / National by Thobekile Zhou The Grain Marketing Board (GMB) has said it needs about 12 months to pay the $4.7 million in outstanding salaries to the 1 243 workers it retrenched last year.Bulawayo24.com heard today. The former workers contracts were terminated following a Supreme Court sometime last July which gave employers the right to sack workers after giving them a three-month notice.Two weeks ago the camped at the company headquarters in Harare demanding outstanding salaries and allowances.They vowed to stay put until they are fully paid.The former workers say the government should intervene as they are now living from hand to mouth.Today, GMB sources said the payments would take up to 12 months to clear."Its a lot of money which we are looking at. GMB is broke but from what top management is hinting at, in 12 months they hope to have cleared everyone" said the insider. After keeping a strong Melbourne side to zero in their final trial, Canterbury's defence looks to be off to a strong start and their new-look attacking structures will come later, according to centre Josh Morris. The loss of organising halfback Trent Hodkinson was always going to present a challenge despite the undoubted talents of his full-time replacement Moses Mbye. Although the Bulldogs did more than enough to dispose of an underwhelming Storm side 20-0, Morris hinted the side hadn't looked to display its full wares in attack just yet especially with first and second choice fullbacks Brett Morris and Will Hopoate unavailable for that game. "I thought it was a really good hit-out. The most pleasing thing is we kept them to zero," Josh Morris told NRL.com. "I know they didn't have Billy [Salter] in their side and he adds a fair bit but I thought our foundation in our defence was really good and I think we can take some confidence out of that game into the first round. "We probably still have a little bit to work on in our attack being a trial Dessie [Hasler] doesn't like to give too much away! We'll work on that and take a bit of confidence going into Round 1." Despite the loss of Hodkinson Morris said the club still had plenty of depth in its playmaking stocks. "There's a lot of spots up for grabs, not just in the outside backs but in the halves as well. While 'Mo' [Mbye] didn't get a chance to play that last trial [due to a minor glute strain] I think they've worked really well in the pre-season thus far and your first indication's going to be in Round 1 to see how they go." While the Canterbury forward pack is as stacked as ever, Morris said some of the young players pushing for spots in the outside backs were also exciting. "'Ty' [Tyron Phillips] was probably our best player in the Nines, he's one that's pushing for a spot. Brad Abbey I watched a fair bit of in the under-20s and he was a really good player in that competition. He played really well on the weekend I thought. These blokes will get an opportunity throughout the year and it's what they make of it," Morris said. Lock Greg Eastwood joked that the main difficulty caused by Hodkinson's departure would be at the goal kicking tee. "It's good, but I think we're still trying to find a goal-kicker so he'll be missed there!" Eastwood said. "Reynolds and Moses have been working hard on their kicking game and working hard with the team so we'll worry about our defence and hopefully the attack will come on the back of that." Video first featured at bulldogs.com.au News / National by Jacob Mafume - PDP National Spokesperson The People's Democratic Party (PDP) welcomes the recent remarks made the Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa concerning the abolishing of death penalty in Zimbabwe.Addressing the 9th International Meeting of the Ministers of Justice in Rome, Italy on Monday, Mnangagwa who is also doubles up as the minister of justice said he was a strong opponent of the death penalty and claimed Zimbabwe was making significant strides towards the elimination of the same from its statutes.However, as PDP we note with deep regret of Mnangagwa's double speak on the death penalty issue.Back home, he has been quoted extensively in Parliament clearly stating that the government's official position is that the death penalty was not abolished by the new Constitution.Furthermore, two Bills affecting the death penalty are due to be considered by the Senate this week. These are; the Criminal Procedure and Evidence Amendment Bill and the General Laws Amendment Bill.The Criminal Procedure and Evidence Amendment Bill seeks to allow the High Court to pass the death sentence on men aged between 21 and 70 who are convicted of murder under aggravating circumstances while the General Laws Amendment Bill seeks to make death penalty the maximum penalty be imposed for murder committed in aggravating circumstances.While the government is pushing for the adoption of the death penalty, Mnangagwa whose justice ministry is responsible for drafting the Bill is singing a different tune in Rome."Surely we will not hesitate to expunge capital punishment from our laws," he said in Rome this week.We, therefore, call for the real Mnangagwa stand up and walk his talk on death penalty.As the PDP, we are fully aware of his presidential ambitions and we find it totally strange that he fails the test of ensuring that he remanis true to his own words.As the PDP, we are aware and applaud our traditional leaders who have spoken out against the death penalty saying it was an unacceptable form of punishment, which is a relic from the colonial era.The PDP's position is for the immediate abolition of the death penalty in Zimbabwe as it is totally inhumane, degrading and against international practices. It is a sham that Zimbabwe remains one of the only 37 countries in the world that still practices death penalty.As PDP, we demand the withdrawal from the Criminal Procedure and the Evidence Amendment Bill and General Laws Amendment Bill, the provisions restoring capital punishment.Capital punishment is in breach of the country's Constitution, which guarantees and protects the right to life and dignity for every citizen.The act of hanging an accused person is both barbaric and outdated; and Zimbabwe should follow international standards and the only solution is to abolish the death penalty. HAMMOND Two defendants pleaded guilty last week and a third signaled she plans to admit to her role in a wide-ranging bank fraud scheme known as "cracking cards," U.S. District Court records show. Kevin Ford, 28, and Cortez Stevens, 25, pleaded guilty Friday to conspiracy to commit bank fraud. Their co-defendant, Mercedes Hatcher, 22, plans to plead guilty March 2, according to court records. A total of 29 people in Illinois and Northwest Indiana were indicted in fall 2014 in connection with the scheme. Ford, Stevens and Hatcher were among six defendants to face charges in federal court in Hammond. The group was accused of using social media and rap music to persuade others to give up their debit cards and personal identification numbers in exchange for promises of cash payments. The group then deposited bogus checks into the bank accounts and withdrew money advanced by banks before the checks were rejected. Ford, who identifies himself as rapper Bandman Kevo on Facebook, and his co-defendants allegedly posted rap videos online where they referred to a "cracking cards" scheme and displayed large amounts of cash and expensive items. The scheme resulted in about $237,201 in attempted fraudulent withdrawals, court records state. Ford and Stevens agreed to pay $141,920 in restitution to Bank of America, Chase, Citibank and US Bank, according to their plea agreements. The restitution amount reflects payments made to Citibank after the administrative forfeiture of a 2006 Maserati owned by Ford and a 2004 Audi owned by Stevens, court records state. All three could face up to 30 years in prison, but the government has agreed to recommend shorter sentences in exchange for their cooperation. Co-defendant Mikcale Smalley, 22, of Chicago, was sentenced in December to 21 months in prison. Stephen Garner, 24, of Portage, was given two years. Brittany Sims, 25, of Portage, was sentenced in September to two concurrent, six-month jail terms on a charge of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and an unrelated mail theft count. Republican James Mount, Indiana's 24th governor, served Jan. 11, 1897 to Jan. 14, 1901. Mount was born March 23, 1843 in Montgomery County. Paired with a Republican Legislature and a growing economy four years after the Panic of 1893, Mount accomplished far more than his immediate predecessors as Indiana's chief executive. In 1897, he enacted the first compulsory school attendance law for children ages 8-14. He also approved measures from the national progressive agenda regulating big business, worker health and safety, food and drug quality and medical licensing. Hoosier prisoners first got the chance at parole during Mount's term in office. Mount was governor during the Spanish-American War, and fought with the U.S. War Department to ensure two all-black Indiana regiments would be led by black officers. The black Hoosier troops never saw battle in the short conflict, but the federal government did eliminate its requirement that white officers always command black soldiers. In 1899, Mount was at the center of a curious episode in Kentucky politics. Republican William Taylor appeared to have won election as governor over Democrat William Goebel, though Kentucky Democrats were investigating claims of voter fraud. During their appeal, Goebel was shot as he entered the Kentucky Statehouse and died a few days later. Taylor was indicted for complicity in Goebel's murder, but fled to Indiana, where Mount, a fellow Republican, refused to extradite Taylor back to Kentucky. Indeed, Taylor remained in Indiana and became an insurance executive. The burdens of being governor wore on Mount, who wanted to get back to farming, and he proclaimed his last day in office "the happiest day of my life." It happened to be one of the last days of his life. Mount died Jan. 16, 1901, two days after his term as governor expired. He was 57. Mount is buried in Crawfordsville. Other offices held include state senator, 1889 to 1892. VALPARAISO The Porter County Election Board's decision to purchase electronic poll books without first securing the funding has triggered a response that may result in losing more than $150,000 in taxpayer money. A fractured Porter County Council on Tuesday agreed, after a lengthy and heated discussion, to address the situation by paying off the bill for the books even though most of the equipment likely never will be used. Council President Dan Whitten, D-at large, called it an "egregious government waste" and a failed attempt to force county government to consolidate the number of polling places. The bipartisan, three-member election board purchased the equipment without first seeking the necessary contract approval from the Porter County Board of Commissioners or funding approval from the council. Concern also was voiced that competitive bids were not first sought. The move left the County Council with two options Tuesday either pay for the equipment knowing it is already becoming outdated and more will be needed, or pay a slightly lesser amount and return the books for a modest credit with the company, according to County Attorney Scott McClure. "Neither one of these lead to a great conclusion," Whitten said. "It's a huge loss either way." Election Board President David Bengs came up with the slight variation chosen, which he hopes will save county government some money. The County Council agreed to make the first of three $58,000 payments with the idea of following through on the other two. But rather than turning over the poll books for a credit, Bengs suggested attempting to get more money for them when it comes time for the vendor to bid on retaining the county's business. Whitten and Councilwoman Sylvia Graham, D-at large, voted against the move. The electronic poll books allow poll workers to scan in driver's licenses and state identification cards, and voters sign in using a stylus. Proponents say the advantages of the electronic system include voters no longer signing on the wrong lines, ballots issued correctly, greater efficiency and quicker responses to confusion over proper voting places. But Whitten said what the election board was really attempting in purchasing fewer poll books than polling places was to force the county to reduce the number of polling places through consolidation. Councilman Jim Biggs, R-1st, said he would cut the salary of election officials if he could over the deal. "There's no winning solution here," he said. INDIANAPOLIS Turnabout, it seems, is fair play when it comes to Statehouse Republicans deciding how Indiana should fund its roads. One day after a Senate committee hijacked House Bill 1110 to keep the local roads plan in Senate Bill 67 alive, the House Roads and Transportation Committee forced its long-term infrastructure funding proposal into a Senate-approved measure. Senate Bill 333, which began life as Republican Gov. Mike Pence's idea to borrow money and spend surplus funds to support $1 billion in state road improvements through 2020, now includes the House Republicans' cigarette and gasoline tax increases contained in House Bill 1001. State Rep. Ed Soliday, R-Valparaiso, the committee chairman, said he made the change because he expects House Bill 1001 will undergo "significant surgery" in a Senate committee Thursday, and he wanted to keep the House provisions alive. "We need this in order for the process to work and to make sure we have all the pieces on the table," Soliday said. "This is one step in a process that will become more intense over the next seven to eight days." Representatives and senators in the Republican-controlled Legislature are struggling to agree on whether to increase taxes in an election year to pay for ongoing road improvements or use one-time funds for a short-term fix. The General Assembly is expected to adjourn for the year March 10. SPRINGFIELD An organization representing towns across Illinois is proposing a legislative agenda that it says would keep money flowing to local governments during the states budget standoff and give municipalities more control over their bottom lines. The Illinois Municipal League, which represents the states 1,297 cities and villages, is calling its policy agenda Moving Cities Forward. At the top of the list is a measure ensuring that local revenue sources collected by the state, such as motor fuel taxes and proceeds from casino and video gambling, would continue to be distributed to cities regardless of whether the state has enacted a budget. Some of the organizations other proposals, such as changes to laws governing how workers are compensated for on-the-job injuries and requiring local governments to pay prevailing wage rates for public projects, align closely with Gov. Bruce Rauners turnaround agenda. These and other proposals are intended to strengthen local governments ability to provide critical services to Illinois taxpayers, said Tom Gray, president of the Illinois Municipal League and village president of Chatham, a suburb of Springfield. The well-known fiscal challenges facing this state are likely to have a negative spillover effect on local governments, Gray said. Providing municipalities with additional flexibility over their finances and operations is the right solution to this problem. The Municipal League also is calling for changes to the arbitration process used to settle contract disputes with police and firefighter unions. The groups proposal would open arbitration hearings to the public and require arbitrators to consider a municipalitys current financial situation before awarding pay or benefit increases. Another priority is lowering the population required before a municipality is granted home-rule authority, which gives local governments more control over taxes and other issues. Currently, the power is given to towns with more than 25,000 residents or those whose voters approve a local referendum. A Municipal League-backed amendment to the Illinois Constitution, sponsored by Rep. Mike Smiddy, D-Hillsdale, would automatically grant home rule to towns with more than 5,000 residents. Brad Cole, the organizations executive director, said local residents can speak out on issues in front of their local village board or city council and have ... much more likelihood of seeing success. They cant do that here when they come to the General Assembly, Cole said. And so this allows more decisions to be made locally by the people that are elected closest to the residents. Some aspects of the Municipal Leagues agenda, especially those that align with Rauners, are likely to run into opposition from labor unions and their Democratic allies in the General Assembly. The Republican governors insistence that lawmakers enact portions of his pro-business, union-weakening agenda before hell agree to tax increases to balance the budget and the Democrats refusal to do so have created the states ongoing impasse. Sean Smoot, chief legal counsel for the Police Benevolent & Protective Association of Illinois, said the union is particularly concerned with the Municipal Leagues proposed changes to the arbitration process. Arbitration hearings are an extension of the collective bargaining process, which takes place in private, and they often result in contract agreements, Smoot said. The whole purpose of the collective bargaining act is to promote labor peace and to promote the parties reaching an agreement of their own accord, he said. The changes also would limit arbitrators to making decisions based on a snapshot of a municipalitys finances rather than the complete picture, Smoot said. As for the proposed workers compensation changes, he said the state should make sure insurers are passing on to employers the savings from 2011 reforms before making more changes. INDIANAPOLIS The five-year effort of state Sen. Ed Charbonneau, R-Valparaiso, to deny parental rights to rapists if their crimes result in the birth of a child is moving closer to becoming Indiana law. The Senate Judiciary Committee voted 9-0 Wednesday to advance House Bill 1064 to the full chamber. A Senate vote to send the measure to Republican Gov. Mike Pence for his signature or veto could come as soon as next week. The legislation, which passed the House 92-0, creates a process to terminate the parental rights of an alleged rapist who fathers a child with the victim, even if the perpetrator is not convicted of a criminal rape charge. Under the plan, co-sponsored by state Rep. Hal Slager, R-Schererville, a rape victim who gives birth to her attacker's child can request a civil court judge terminate the rapist's parental rights if the judge finds "clear and convincing evidence" of rape, a lower standard than "beyond a reasonable doubt" required in criminal cases. The request to terminate parental rights would have to be filed within six months of a rape victim's giving birth. If the victim is younger than 18 years old, the victim would have two years to seek termination after turning 18. Similar proposals failed to become law in prior years due to concerns that the process for terminating parental rights was potentially unfair. Many of those issues were resolved in October through the work of a legislative study committee. Charbonneau said it is unconscionable that rapists in Indiana can continue inflicting pain on their victims or bargain for shorter prison sentences by demanding child custody or visitation. INDIANAPOLIS For the second year in a row, a House committee has declined to consider Senate-approved legislation prohibiting the abortion of a child expected to be born with Down syndrome, or another genetic disease, defect or disorder. But that isn't deterring state Sen. Travis Holdman, R-Markle, from trying to enact his proposal into law. He persuaded the Senate Health Committee Wednesday to add the provisions of his Senate Bill 313 to House Bill 1337, a House-approved measure requiring the burial or cremation of an aborted fetus, instead of disposing of it as medical waste, and forcing abortion doctors to comply with numerous additional paperwork mandates. Holdman's proposal prohibits doctors from performing an abortion if the doctor knows the patient is seeking an abortion due to a diagnosis, or potential diagnosis, of a genetic fetal disability, or due to the gender, race, color, national origin or ancestry of the fetus. He said he hopes it reduces the number of Indiana abortions and demonstrates that Hoosiers believe all life has value. The combined abortion measure was approved by the committee 6-3 and now goes to the Republican-controlled Senate, where it is likely to pass. If state Rep. Casey Cox, R-Fort Wayne, the co-sponsor, convinces the Republican-controlled House to concur with the Senate change to his legislation it immediately would go to Republican Gov. Mike Pence for his signature or veto. The House also could send the combined abortion proposal to a conference committee, where lawmakers from both chambers would work to devise a compromise measure that must be re-approved by the House and Senate to go to the governor. Emergency crews were inundated with calls for slide-offs, spin-outs and stranded motorists, traffic crawled along and some Region roads were impassable Wednesday after a day of snow. Thousands of NIPSCO customers were without power, and the utility warned it could get worse. A state of emergency was declared in Lake, Porter and Newton counties, and travel on all roads was limited to emergency vehicles only, officials said. A blizzard warning for Lake, Porter, Jasper and Newton counties was extended until 4 a.m. Thursday. The warning was set to expire in LaPorte County at 9 p.m. Wednesday. Lake County Sheriff John Buncich said all east-west roads in south Lake County, including Ind. 2, were impassable Wednesday night and warned motorists to stay home. More than 20 vehicles became stranded on U.S. 231 between Cline Avenue and Fathke Road. Crown Point Fire Rescue said it was working to rescue people from the vehicles and take them to a warming shelter. Many on and off ramps along Interstate 65 were nearly impassable, Interstate 80/94 was moving at a crawl, and police were responding to numerous spin-offs and vehicles in ditches on U.S. 41 from Schererville south to Lowell, sheriff's spokesman Mark Back said. Westbound traffic on U.S. 30 in Union Township was down to one lane, and it was a bumpy ride because of built-up snow and ice. Vehicles traveling in both directions on U.S. 30 through Lake County inched along at less than 10 mph in some areas. Police used Hummers to rescue stranded motorists on rural roads in south Lake County, and emergency vehicles and snowplows were getting stuck. As of 8:40 p.m., more than 22,000 NIPSCO customers were without power throughout the northern service area, which covers about the top third of the state. Crown Point, East Chicago, Gary, Hammond, Hebron, Highland, LaPorte, Lowell, Merrillville, Portage, St. John and Valparaiso each had hundreds without power, according to NIPSCO's outage map. Report outages by calling (800) 464-7726, texting "out" to 444111 or going to NIPSCO.com. Gary and several other communities warned vehicles parked on streets with snow restrictions will be towed. Snow began falling in parts of the Region around 7 a.m. Snowfall totals were expected to be between 8 and 14 inches, but could reach as high as 18 inches in some areas by Thursday morning. Winds were expected to be 25 to 40 mph with gusts of up to 50 mph. The heavy, wet snow and winds reduced visibility to near zero and caused total white-out conditions. Forecasters warned that shoveling heavy, wet snow can lead to over-exertion and cardiac distress. The snow and strong winds also can lead to downed trees, tree limbs and power lines. For a full list of warming centers, click here. Doug Moats, spokesman for the Indiana Department of Transportation's LaPorte District, said plow/salt crews were out before the first flake fell. "Crews will remain in full call-out, 24 hour a day, until the storm passes and roads are clear," he said. A lakeshore flood warning is also in effect through Thursday in Lake, Porter and LaPorte counties, where waves could reach 12 to 18 feet. Many schools and government offices closed Wednesday as the Region prepared for the blizzard. More schools and offices will be closed Thursday as well. For an up-to-date list of closings for Wednesday, check out this link. For a list of closures for Thursday, click here. News / National by Staff Reporter Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa is back home from Rome, Italy where he attended the 9th edition of the International Congress of Ministers of Justice.The 9th edition of the International Conference of Ministers of Justice saw Vice President Mnangagwa meeting the President of Italy.In an interview after the meeting, Vice President Mnangagwa said they discussed about the relations between Rome and Harare and the desire by Italy to maintain cordial relations between the two nations.Rome has maintained a good relationship with Harare despite the fact that Rome is part of the European Union that imposed illegal sanctions on Zimbabwe," he said.The Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs, Mrs Virginia Mabhiza, said the conference was an eye opener, adding that her ministry will carry out awareness campaigns to educate Zimbabweans on the need to abolish death penalty.While Zimbabwe's leadership is willing to do away with capital punishment, the constitution which was born out of the participation of ordinary citizens through the referendum in 2013, provides for a death penalty on murder committed under aggravated circumstances.The conference of ministers of justice saw some countries getting inspired by Zimbabwe's efforts in reducing cases that attract death sentences.The Community of Saint Egidio, which are the organisers of the meeting, are of the opinion that the state must value human sanctity and hence the need to abolish capital punishment. GARY In 1972, the first National Black Political Convention was held in Gary. This summer, the second edition returns to Gary. Former Mayor Richard Hatcher, who hosted and convened the original conference, was at the side of Mayor Karen Freeman-Wilson as she made the announcement Tuesday morning. Linda Haithcox-Taylor, executive director of the National Policy Alliance in Washington, D.C., also helped explain the conferences purpose and to answer questions. The initial NBPC drew people from all over the country, who came by bus, train and even by hitchhiking. President Barak Obama and Vice President Joe Biden and their wives have been invited to the 2016 conference, Freeman-Wilson said, and organizers are hoping at least two out of the four will be there. The conference is set for June 9-12 at the Genesis Convention Center. All voices are welcome, including those of groups like Black Lives Matter, Hatcher said. Black Lives Matter is (a group of) young people fighting for reform of the criminal justice system and of course they will be welcome, he said. Because the conference will be held in June, presidential candidates also will be welcome. The conference already has a presidential debate on its schedule. Haithcox-Taylor says she already has had positive responses from some candidates, but could not elaborate further. The NPA, which is organizing the event, is composed of nine major organizations representing African-American officials from federal, state and local government, as well as the Joint Center for Political and Economic studies, a think-tank focused on issues which are of a concern to the African-American community. NPA member organizations include the Congressional Black Caucus, Judicial Council of the National Bar Association and the African American Mayors Association. At the heart of the conference will be a coming together, a consensus on an agenda that will then be presented to both major parties at their conventions in July and August. Among the topics to be discussed will be the disproportionate number of young blacks who have been incarcerated, Hatcher said. Changes in drug and welfare laws have had a devastating impact on our community, he said. GARY With gospel rapper Gemstones chanting rhymes to his own tune and several motivational speakers encouraging students to stay away from drugs and violence, the SAVE Chapter at 21st Century Charter School presented its first pep rally Tuesday. SAVE, or Students Against Violence Everywhere, held a rally to celebrate starting the first of several SAVE chapters in the region. SAVE immerses students in a unique approach to youth safety by highlighting the role young people can play in making their schools and communities safer. Nearly 380 students in sixth through 12th grade attended the pep rally. The program was sponsored by Project Outreach & Prevention, or POP, the brainchild of Dr. Michael McGee, chief medical director of emergency services at Methodist Hospitals. The teens were most moved by Gemstones, retired Detroit police Officer Monica Evans and Gary native Jessie Small, drawing cheers and claps. Evans, who talks to students in Northwest Indiana and Chicago, asked students to separate the perception from the reality. Evans said she grew up in a home where she was sexually abused, became sexually promiscuous, has a brother in prison and an alcoholic stepfather. "We don't have any control over our environment," she said. "I had a praying mother though she wasn't able to change the circumstances of her own life. My sister was 28 years old when heroin took her life. God has allowed me to come here and give my testimony. There is a purpose for your life, and that's what I had to learn. You have intrinsic worth." Gary Police Chief Larry McKinley introduced Small, 33, to the crowd of students in the high school gym. "A year ago, I wouldn't have been able to do that," McKinley said. Small, who said he grew up in Gary and was involved in drugs and violence, said if he can turn his life around, anyone can. Small said his mother was killed when he was 8 years old, and he basically raised himself on the streets with some help from an older sister "Believe in yourself and anything you want to do," Small said. "Please believe that if you mess with drugs and gangs, you will end up dead." Pam Jones, executive director of POP Foundations and a radio news anchor, said young black people are killing one another, and POP was created to prevent the violence. McGee commended all the students but singled out seniors Da'Ione Fields and Johntrell Bowles, whom he said have volunteered in the Methodist Hospitals emergency room for two years, and have bright futures ahead of them. Bowles is president of the SAVE chapter at the charter school. He also is the charter school's valedictorian and has won a full scholarship to the University of Virginia as a pre-med major. McGee encouraged all students to volunteer. "Volunteering is a service that helps you get into college and gives you some experience. Going to college is a way to escape the violence," he said. WASHINGTON Majority Leader Mitch McConnell emphatically ruled out any Senate action on whoever President Barack Obama nominates to fill the Supreme Court vacancy, an extraordinary step that escalated the partisan election-year struggle over replacing the late Antonin Scalia. Democrats promised unremitting pressure on Republicans to back down or face the consequences in November's voting. After winning unanimous public backing from the 11 Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee, McConnell told reporters that that panel would hold no hearings and ruled out a full Senate vote until the next president offers a nomination. Such steps would defy many decades of precedent that have seen even the most controversial choices questioned publicly by the Judiciary Committee and nearly always sent to the entire chamber for a vote, barring nominees the White House has withdrawn. "In short, there will not be action taken," McConnell told reporters. The Kentucky Republican said he wouldn't even meet with an Obama selection should the White House follow tradition and send the nominee to Capitol Hill to visit senators. Such a snub could generate campaign-season television images of a scorned selection standing outside a closed door. "I don't know the purpose of such a visit," McConnell said. "I would not be inclined to take one myself." Obama is expected to announce a nomination in the next few weeks. Since the Senate started routinely referring presidential nominations to committees for action in 1955, every Supreme Court nominee not later withdrawn has received a Judiciary Committee hearing, according to the Senate Historical Office. With the issue certain to roil this year's presidential and congressional elections, Democrats said Republicans were topping their own obstructionist high-water mark of three years ago, when their doomed effort to force Obama to repeal his own health care law helped produce a 16-day partial government shutdown. They also accused Republicans of following the lead of billionaire Donald Trump, a leading GOP presidential candidate who's called on Senate Republicans to derail any Obama court selection. Democrats and some Republicans believe that if Trump is the GOP presidential nominee, he will cost Republicans seats in Congress. "The party of Lincoln is now the party of Donald Trump," Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., told reporters. Filling the vacancy left by Scalia's unexpected death on Feb. 13 is crucial because without him, the Supreme Court is left in a 4-4 ideological knot between justices who are usually conservative and its liberal wing. The battle has invigorated both sides' interest groups and voters who focus on abortion, immigration and other issues before the court. "He hasn't seen the pressure that's going to build," Reid said when asked if McConnell might relent. "It's going to build in all facets of the political constituency and the country." After meeting privately with GOP senators for the first time since Scalia's death, McConnell and other leaders said rank-and-file Republicans were overwhelmingly behind the decision to quickly halt the nomination process. "Why even put that ball on the field?" Sen. Pat Roberts, R-Kan., said of hearings. "All you're going to do is fumble it. Let the people decide." Moderate Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Sen. Mark Kirk, R-Ill., who faces an arduous re-election race this fall, are among the few who've voiced support for at least holding hearings on an Obama nominee. Democrats are hoping that other Republican senators facing November re-election in swing states including New Hampshire, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin will relent over time or face retribution from voters. No. 3 Senate leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said McConnell wanted to quickly end any talk of a nomination process proceeding because, "He wants to lock his people in because he knows the whirlwind's coming." White House spokesman Josh Earnest said it was "absolutely" possible the Senate would end up holding hearings, pointing to statements by Collins, Kirk and others. Earnest said Obama has spoken in the last day to Republican lawmakers, including some on the Judiciary panel. McConnell and other Republicans have said the high court vacancy should not be filled during a presidential election year and that the voters by electing the next president should choose who makes that nomination. Democrats note that in 1988, a Democratic-led Senate confirmed Anthony Kennedy to the court, though he'd been nominated by President Ronald Reagan the preceding year. Republicans say it's been over eight decades since a nomination occurred and was filled in the same election year. "Because our decision is based on constitutional principle and born of a necessity to protect the will of the American people, this committee will not hold hearings on any Supreme Court nominee until after our next president is sworn in on January 20, 2017," Judiciary Committee Republicans said in their letter to McConnell. In remarks Tuesday at Georgetown University law school, Justice Samuel Alito sounded unfazed about possibly spending the rest of this year in a court whose members are locked in a 4-4 tie. "We will deal with it," Alito answered when asked about Republicans' resolve to oppose anyone Obama nominates. ___ Associated Press writers Mary Clare Jalonick, Andrew Taylor, Josh Lederman and Mark Sherman contributed to this report. Sen. Joe Donnelly remembers playing with mercury when he was a kid. We all did back then. We let the liquid metal roll around in a blob on the desk or table, then squished it to see lots of little balls of mercury rolling around. Isnt that what happens with fighting terrorism? Its a point Donnelly understands. Controlling terrorism, like mercury, is all about containing it. My first responsibility before making sure our economy is strong, or making sure our roads are built, is to make sure that were safe, he said. Donnelly serves on the Armed Services Committee and the Subcommittee on Emerging Threats and Capabilities and is lead Democrat in the Senate on all issues relating to nuclear weapons. The latter includes making sure North Korea is kept in check. Dick Lugar has been a great partner, said Donnelly, who calls him for advice. He really is a great role model to me. Lugar lost in the 2012 Republican primary, so Donnelly didnt get to face him in the general election that fall. The Nunn-Lugar Threat Reduction Program secured many nuclear weapons following the breakup of the former Soviet Union. But the Russians are no longer interested in cooperating with the program. North Korea isnt cooperative, either, not even to the Chinese who helped them fight against U.S. and other United Nations forces during the Korean War. Thats a situation Donnelly is watching carefully. So is the situation in the Middle East, particularly the fight against ISIS. In evaluating whether to send troops into a conflict, there are certain criteria to consider. Is this a role that helps to keep our nation safe? That fits in with our goals of protecting our own country, of making the world a safer place? That if we dont give ISIS ground to maneuver, does it make us safer? And the answer is yes, Donnelly said. ISIS is a clear and present danger to our country a phrase every Tom Clancy fan knows and understands and primarily as they hold ground and hold territory. But fighting ISIS isnt as simple as sending troops and the weapons of war into the region to annihilate the terrorists. Our role is not to be the ground forces leading this when it comes to fighting ISIS, Donnelly said. That just feeds into the ISIS narrative of the crusaders coming over. U.S. armed forces help with coordination, logistics and air cover. Donnelly, a member of the U.S. Senate Armed Forces Committee, said he talks every couple of months with Sunni tribal leaders, who say theyll take the fight to ISIS. But they want U.S. support when they get in a jam. In Iraq, the goal is to force ISIS out of the country. The Kurds and Shiites are helping with this, too. Part 2 is to follow the funding, the terrorists financing, and were in the process of doing that, Donnelly said. Most recently weve cut off a significant part of their oil financing, and so our goal is to completely turn the spigot off. You know how their fighters say, you know, religion really motivates us a lot? But what motivates them even more is their paycheck. Take that away, and their religion motivates them a lot less. In this presidential election, voters and the candidates need to pay attention to global politics, not just the economy. I hope that the race comes up to the seriousness of the job, because the rest of the world really counts on us getting this right, Donnelly said. During this mercurial presidential campaign, we need the candidates to show the gravitas the voters and the rest of the world need to see. WASHINGTON President Obama, who has often cited intellect and empathy as qualities he wants in a Supreme Court nominee, said in a television interview broadcast Saturday that he was also looking for somebody who has common sense and somebody who has a sense of how American society works and how the American people live. In the interview, the president, who taught constitutional law at the University of Chicago before coming to Washington, suggested that he prized real-world experience and a common touch as much as scholarly thought in seeking a successor to Justice David H. Souter, who is retiring. What I want is not just ivory tower learning, Mr. Obama told Steve Scully, the C-Span political editor, who conducted the interview on Friday in the White House library. I want somebody who has the intellectual firepower but also a little bit of a common touch and has a practical sense of how the world works. The court now consists entirely of former federal appeals court judges; one question is whether Mr. Obama, in seeking a balance, would try to pick someone with political experience as well. Several governors, including Jennifer M. Granholm of Michigan, have been mentioned as possible candidates. News / National by Staff reporter VICE President Emmerson Mnangagwa is back home from Rome, Italy where he attended the 9th edition of the International Congress of Ministers of Justice on the abolition of the death penalty.Mnangagwa oversees the Ministry of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs and was invited for the conference because of his strong stance against the death penalty having been spared the noose for his revolutionary activities by the Smith regime on account of his young age.On arrival Mnangagwa, who is accompanied by senior officials from the Ministry of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs, was hosted by the Community of Saint Edigio just outside the Vatican City.Zimbabwe ambassador to Italy Mr Godfrey Magwenzi also attended the meeting.In an interview after meeting the Community of Saint Edigio, VP Mnangagwa said : "I am happy to be here. We were here during mediation between the Government of Mozambique and Renamo in 1992."We have been working together with the Community of Saint Edigio for years. There is a long-standing relationship between the community and Zimbabwe." He said it was President Mugabe who dispatched him to Rome for the meeting. The meeting was held within the context of Justice Ministers Conference getting underway today in Rome.Mnangagwa said he will forever advocate for the abolition of the death penalty. "I share the view that we should abolish the death penalty as a policy. I might be the lonely voice but I will continue to say so," he said.the herald At every turn, it seemed, another ethical compromise presented itself, and in increasingly severe ways. We kept going, though in part because we didnt want to relinquish the story and in part because the drama was so rich. Also, there were few opportunities to leave. Thats something to consider before embarking on a 40-mile trek along hidden paths through the jungle, farmland and rural countryside. When youre in, youre in. Perhaps the worst of it came on our second day with the group. Daniel was hoping to snap a photo from a bridge that passed over the railroad tracks. From that overpass, endless forests, a railroad track and the horizons edge stretched before us. With luck, the guys would be walking in a single-file line through the center of it. We raced ahead and climbed the banks of the underpass. I had to go with him so I wouldnt wind up in the picture. After half an hour, when the guys hadnt turned up, we figured the smuggler had taken his chance to ditch us. We had overheard him suggesting as much along the route, assuming it was to give himself the freedom to rob the migrants, which would almost certainly not be investigated, without the hassle of also robbing us, which almost certainly would be. I decided to retrace our steps and look for them. Daniel would stay by the bridge in case they materialized. Minutes later, I found them surrounding Josue Carillas Carnelas, one of the migrants, who was doubled over in agony. He had been suffering a severe stomach infection and had finally collapsed. He needed to get to a hospital. Douglas Slocombe, the British cinematographer who filmed the Nazi invasion of Poland, the adventures of Indiana Jones and the madcap farce of Ealing Studios comedies, died on Monday in London. He was 103. His daughter, Georgina, confirmed his death. One of Britains most acclaimed cinematographers, Mr. Slocombe shot some 80 films, working with directors as varied as George Cukor, John Huston, Norman Jewison and Roman Polanski. His career began with the famed Ealing black comedies of the late 1940s and early 50s, and ended with three Indiana Jones films for Steven Spielberg. Dougie Slocombe was facile, enthusiastic, and loved the action of filmmaking, Mr. Spielberg said. Harrison Ford was Indiana Jones in front of the camera, but with his whip-smart crew, Dougie was my behind-the-scenes hero for the first three Indy movies. Mr. Slocombe was nominated for three Academy Awards and won three British Academy of Film and Television Arts awards for The Servant (1963), The Great Gatsby (1974) and Julia (1977). The British Society of Cinematographers gave him a lifetime achievement award in 1995. Brooklyn, John Crowleys best-picture Oscar nominee, asks and tries to answer Where do we come from? Nature follows an emperor penguin chicks happy feet. And Snooki and her husband flip a house on the Jersey Shore. Whats Streaming BROOKLYN (2015) on iTunes and Google Play. Eilis Lacey (Saoirse Ronan), an Irish lass escaping the narrowness of her hometown in the 1950s, immigrates to the titular borough and finds loneliness, romance and a new identity in this best-picture Oscar nominee, directed by John Crowley. But just as she begins to imagine a new life a house in the suburbs, a thriving plumbing business with her Italian beau (Emory Cohen), a family emergency sends her back to Ireland, where another suitor (Domhnall Gleeson) awaits. I cant remember the last time I cared so much about the marital prospects of a fictional character, A. O. Scott wrote in The New York Times. The real reason is Ms. Ronan, who has grown from an uncannily intelligent child actor into a screen performer of remarkable force and sensitivity. (Image: From left, Eve Macklin, Ms. Ronan and Emily Bett Rickards) Whats on TV SNOW CHICK 8 p.m. on PBS. Happy feet: Nature follows an emperor penguin from the egg to adulthood in Antarctica. Kate Winslet narrates. (Image: Chicks) Centerview Partners, one of the most prominent boutique investment banks, has drawn another longtime deal maker to its ranks. The firm said on Tuesday that it had hired Jack Levy, who spent several decades as a top mergers banker at Goldman Sachs and Merrill Lynch, as a partner. The hiring is the latest move by an established, big-firm banker to a boutique focused primarily on advising clients, without the huge ranks of traders and lending professionals. Centerview itself founded by executives from UBS and Morgan Stanley, among other firms has been one of the busiest in recent years, advising Kraft in its sale to Heinz (where independent investment banks were the only ones involved), Time Warner Cable in its deal with Charter Communications and Pfizer in its takeover of Allergan, a fellow drug maker. As growth slows at home, more and more Chinese companies are looking to do deals in the United States. And they are increasingly running smack into the American national security apparatus. Such scrutiny will have implications for United States and China relations, as well as for mergers and acquisitions more broadly. The latest Chinese deal to feel the chill from Washington was a planned $3.78 billion investment by the Tsinghua Unisplendour Corporation of China in the American hard disk drive maker Western Digital. On Tuesday, Tsinghua said it was abandoning the purchase of a 15 percent stake in Western Digital, citing a decision by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States to review the deal. What is this government body that holds such power? The committee, better known by the acronym Cfius, has a long history, going back to the Exon-Florio amendment of 1988. At that time, there were concerns about Japanese acquisitions in the United States, a fear whose legacy is several mediocre movies like Rising Sun, a tale about Japanese corporate corruption, and the comedy Gung Ho, which starred Michael Keaton as an executive at a car plant struggling under Japanese ownership. JPMorgan Chase executives painted a positive picture of the American economy and the banks business at their annual investor day, but they failed to beat back the pessimism that has battered bank shares and the broader stock market in recent months. The bank, Americas largest, saw its share price fall throughout its investor day on Tuesday after disclosing during the morning that it is putting aside an additional $500 million to cover potential losses from falling oil prices. The stock ended the session down 4.2 percent, falling more than the broad indexes. Since late November, JPMorgans stock price has dropped 17 percent. Many banks are trading even lower, reaching levels near those hit in 2011. JPMorgans stock has performed better than that of most of the other large banks and JPMorgan executives insisted on Tuesday that they were optimistic about nearly all of their business lines and planned to report record profits once again this year. Im mad today about the fact that the United States Senate and United States House of Representatives are about to miss an opportunity to close down the Guantanamo Bay prison camp, says The Timess editorial page editor, Andrew Rosenthal, in this short podcast on the news: the good, the bad and the most maddening. Mr. Rosenthal talks about the lost opportunity lost, he says, because we have a Congress that is entirely and purely political and the $400 million annual tax consequence for taxpayers. The bad news? Hint: It involves Donald Trump. With his sharp insights, colorful phrasing and hard-hitting opinions, Mr. Carr established his weekly Media Equation column as a must-read in the industry. He loved the platform and never took it for granted. But, just as much, he loved the chance to nurture and encourage young people who, like him, were attracted to the flame of the news business people like Sydney Ember, whose potential Mr. Carr spotted when she was a young researcher before helping champion her to a reporting position on our media desk. Since his death, many have noted the delicate balance Mr. Carr struck, embracing new media and transformative ideas without losing sight of the value inherent in places like The Times and other traditional news organizations. These new fellows speak to that balance, promising to help effect change at The Times even as they are changed by it. The applicants for the fellowship were reviewed by a committee of editors at The Times, led by Sam Dolnick, an associate editor. (As Mr. Carrs editor for the last four years of his columnist tenure, I served on that committee). Each candidate was asked to provide a resume, work samples and an essay about why he or she aspired to a fellowship honoring David Carr. Assessing the candidates was a magic carpet ride over the fertile fields of journalism where ambition, energy and achievement grow and thrive, even in some inhospitable terrain. From dorm rooms and newsrooms and tiny offices in remote corners of the globe came the voices of those who believed that telling stories was their calling, and that Mr. Carr was a beacon who showed the way. The emotional and intellectual depth of the essays was staggering. Some were reflective treatises on modern media, others were emotional personal confessions. A young Serbian journalist applied, and while her experience fell a bit short, she was plaintive and moving in describing her hopes and dreams. I am not sure even how I dare to apply for this big thing, she wrote, but recently I imagined me and Mr. Carr talking in one of silent journalist corners for hot coffee to go, and that he is telling me: You can do it girl, try it. Dont be shy and dont miss the stars just because you are afraid of the darkness. He would be very happy to have me there, as his fellow. ... Why? Because I was born to fight, to see things beyond, to hear stories when they arent told, to feel sadness which is hidden behind happiness, to contribute to the happiness when it is so shy. Hi, John, Lets talk about the Supreme Court vacancy, as longtime friends and fellow law nerds. Madness! The Republican senators on the Judiciary Committee, who control whether a presidents nominee gets a hearing, have written a letter saying there will be no hearings and no confirmation. They have taken advice out of advice and consent, the Constitutions provision for the Senates role once the president offers his choice. Or rather, they are offering their advice now and recommending that President Obama and his putative nominee get lost. In a nice touch, they quote Harry Reid, the Senate Democratic leader, saying a decade ago that the advice and consent of the Senate is very different than saying every nominee receives a vote. The Republicans arent talking about every nominee. Theyre talking about any Obama nominee. Still, style points for citing Reid. The most interesting line in the letter, however, is the statement that you must go back to 1888 to find an election-year nominee who was nominated and confirmed under divided government, as we have now (italics mine). Im so glad to see divided government make an official entrance, since it is the real sticking point in this fight. Immediately after Justice Antonin Scalias death, Republicans framed their objections to filling the seat now in terms of letting the people speak in the next election. But the people spoke when they elected Obama for a full four-year (second) term. And can anyone seriously imagine that the Republican-controlled Senate would refuse to confirm a successor to Scalia if Mitt Romney had won that election? No way. This is about preventing a Democratic president from filling the seat that would flip the Supreme Court from majority conservative to majority liberal. By a narrow margin, the Democrats confirmed Justice Clarence Thomas to fill Thurgood Marshalls seat in 1991, a giant ideological shift (that time, from liberal to conservative). But four years earlier, the Democrats rejected Robert Bork, President Ronald Reagans nominee, on the basis of ideology. Now, after many more rounds in the confirmation struggles, the Republicans are refusing to go through any of the nomination process on the basis of party an escalation. Is the next step for the Republicans to refuse to confirm any nominee selected by a Democratic president? And then next time, vice versa for the Democrats when a Republican president would get to fill a Supreme Court vacancy? That seems to me like the endgame here. Im not the only one. Jonathan Chait of New York Magazine asks: Will the Supreme Court Just Disappear? He imagines Hillary Clinton winning and the Republicans continuing to control the Senate, then continuing to block her nominee from confirmation leaving eight justices and years of 4-4 deadlocks in highly contested cases (which are the ones the public tends to care about). Or the Republicans win the presidency, maintain control of the Senate and wipe out the filibuster to muscle their nominee through. It would, Chait wrote, add up to a world in which Supreme Court justices are appointed only when one party has both the White House and the needed votes in Congress. He added: It would look very different from anything in modern history. Vacancies would be commonplace and potentially last for years. And the Supreme Court would be diminished to a mere political tool, far more than it is now. A playlet in four acts, set in the Drama Book Shop, 250 West 40th Street, near Eighth Avenue, starring A BURST PIPE as the villain, and LIN-MANUEL MIRANDA, the creator of Hamilton, as one of many heroes. Act I. Time: Early morning, Feb. 15 SHAWN VERRIER, a manager, arrives to open the store for the day. Sees that the front windows are fogged up. Looks puzzled. Unlocks the door. Looks up at ceiling. Sees water dripping a lot of water. Sees a sheet of ice on the floor water that had frozen after pouring down from A BURST PIPE upstairs. PIPES motivation for bursting is unclear. MR. VERRIER senses that this is a catastrophe for the shop, which bills itself as the oldest performing-arts bookstore in the country. Tears up. Sobs. A soliloquy by MR. VERRIER: There were big clumps of paint that looked like snow hanging from the ceiling, he says, and it looked like it was raining. The water was still dripping. News / Press Release by Lynette Karenyi The MDC Women Assembly feels heavily disheartened by the hunger that has bedeviled and gripped the country.As the women's leadership of the party, we are in solidarity with every citizen of Zimbabwe and express our displeasure with the government of ZANU PF that is engaged in a needless and senseless campaign to distribute food on partisan lines.We feel that a government with people at heart, was supposed to take measures to mitigate hunger before a sustained onslaught of starvation ravaged the people and their livestock. While the hunger is being attributed to the effects of El Nino, we strongly believe that if the ZANU PF government was efficient and effective, it should have taken decisive plans before hunger befell the people.The Assembly of Women is convinced that the ZANU PF government has failed to provide food to all Zimbabwean citizens regardless of political affiliation, when in fact food is everyone's right. Section77 of the Constitution of Zimbabwe gives the State the obligation to provide food. It is therefore the responsibility of government to provide food security to every citizen across the political divide.Currently, in most parts of the country, people are struggling to make ends meet and provide a decent meal to their families, with others reported to be fighting for wild fruits. The deteriorating socio economic conditions in this country have seen multiple rights being violated As a result of inadequate food supplies, diseases are increasing, especially malnutrition to the children, thereby violating their right to health.The Assembly of Women is outraged by the partisan distribution of food aid by the Zanu PF government and some of its partisan headmen and chiefs. This has been very prevalent in most areas of the country.As mothers, wives and grandmothers, the effects of the partisan distribution of food aid has hit us hard in our households .Our children are failing to access food, education and jobs. As such this has led to emotional distress among many women in Zimbabwe at a time when we are expected to be stepping up towards achieving sustainable development goals.The Assembly of Women strongly condemns such practices and would like the government to at least uphold both the dictates of the Constitution and the cultural spirit of empathy. The issues of gender discrimination during the partisan distribution cannot go unnoticed at a time when the world is making serious strides towards gender equality. As an Assembly we demand the immediate end to gross and multiple violations of people's rights to access food aid.Cognizant of all the political , economic and social woes presided over by ZANU PF in the past thirty years in its power, the MDC government led by Morgan Tsvangirai will ensure that people have access to an efficient, effective, competent and a responsive government that respects people's rights, promote equity and equality and provide opportunities that would make people realize their full potential in different spheres of life.Lynette KarenyiMDC-T Assembly of Women National Chairperson The hospital center that dispatched paramedics and treated Eric Garner as he died after being placed in a chokehold by a New York City police officer has agreed to pay $1 million to Mr. Garners family, according to court records obtained on Tuesday by The Associated Press. The settlement with Richmond University Medical Center is confidential and was not part of the $5.9 million agreement announced by the city in July. But the figure was disclosed in court documents filed in Surrogates Court on Staten Island. The figure is the maximum claim allowed under the hospital centers liability insurance policy, according to court papers. The hospital center had no comment on the settlement, according to William Smith, a spokesman. Mr. Garners lawyers did not respond to a message seeking comment. ALBANY The states top court on Tuesday reinstated a lawsuit brought against four New York City detectives by a woman who accuses them of false arrest and malicious prosecution based on a murder confession she says they coerced her into signing. Maria De Lourdes Torres was charged with murder in the 2002 stabbing death of Einstein Romeo Acuna, her friend and lover, after initially telling the police she did not know him. Her lawyers said that after 21 hours with the police, she signed a confession written by a detective who told her she could go home if she signed it. Ms. Torres, 40, was held at Rikers Island for four years, though her lawyers said physical evidence the detectives did not pursue contradicted the confession. Prosecutors moved to dismiss the charges in 2007; she later sued. The evidence gave rise to a triable issue of fact as to whether the detectives falsified plaintiffs confession and brazenly arrested her without even arguable probable cause, Judge Sheila Abdus-Salaam of the State Court of Appeals wrote in a unanimous opinion reversing lower courts. (Want to get this briefing by email? Heres the sign-up.) Good morning. Heres what you need to know: Trumps emphatic victory. Donald J. Trump captured the Republican caucuses in Nevada on Tuesday, showing the breadth of his appeal and propelling him into next weeks Super Tuesday contests with three straight wins. Marco Rubio finished a distant second, followed closely by Ted Cruz. While Mr. Trump gives the impression that hes a big power broker in New York, our reporting shows otherwise. The agency is under pressure from the states around Yellowstone Wyoming, Montana and Idaho to allow hunting of bears that roam outside the parks boundaries. Now, the proposal to call the bears recovered and remove their protection is imminent. If the rule is finalized, its likely to allow states to reduce bear numbers by more than 100 practically overnight. But the bears are already struggling, threatened by declines in important foods like white-bark pine and Yellowstone cutthroat trout, as well as by their isolation from other grizzly populations. Historically, grizzlies ranged from Alaska to Mexico, with at least 50,000 bears living in the western half of the contiguous United States. With European colonization, the bears were shot, poisoned and trapped to the brink of extinction. Today only about 1,500 to 1,700 grizzlies survive outside Alaska, in five isolated populations in the northern Rocky Mountains and the Cascades. Numbers in the Greater Yellowstone area have increased since the animals were first given federal protection, when only 136 bears were left, but they continue to be threatened by climate change and food shortages. Over all, grizzly bears still occupy only 2 to 4 percent of their ancient range in the lower 48 states. Grizzlies run fast, at speeds up to 35 miles per hour, and in Yellowstone where theyre far smaller than their Alaskan cousins weigh up to 700 pounds. Theyre inextricably connected to our notion of the American wild and deeply sacred to numerous American Indian tribes, including the Blackfeet, Hopi, Shoshone and Sioux. They play vital roles in traditional culture and ceremony and loom large in many creation myths. The Center for Biological Diversity, where I work, has been advocating for years, with other conservation groups, for an ambitious recovery strategy for these majestic predators. In June 2014 we filed a recovery plan petition asking the Fish and Wildlife Service to recover grizzlies in more of their historic range, including parts of Colorado and Utah; in December we further petitioned to reintroduce bears into the Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness in Idaho. The Endangered Species Act requires that a species be protected in each significant portion of its range the laws intent being not only to temporarily stave off extinction, but also to recover species so they can persist into the future. But the service has been systemically ignoring, indeed actively working to redefine and thus dismantle, this significant portion of its range requirement under both the George W. Bush and Obama administrations. Dozens of native tribes have also been fighting to stop federal removal of protection, asserting it would violate the American Indian Religious Freedom Act. Tribal advocates for grizzlies feel disrespected or disenfranchised by the governments delisting plan. The United States has urged Mr. Erdogan to halt his attacks on the Syrian Kurds, who now control most of the 565-mile boundary with Turkey and may soon seize the last section of territory that would give them a contiguous region. American officials say the Turks agreed to a pause in the fighting negotiated by the United States and Russia that takes effect Saturday. At the same time, Washington has asked the Syrian Kurds to resist taking advantage of the chaos of war to seize more land. An effort on their part to claim that final patch of territory along the border could provoke Mr. Erdogan to come down even harder with military force. One worry is that Russia, which is also courting Kurdish allegiance by providing air cover for their operations, would then retaliate against Turkey on behalf of the Kurds. President Vladimir Putin of Russia may indeed be looking for an excuse to pay Turkey back for shooting down a Russian jet that strayed into Turkish airspace in November, but Mr. Erdogan should resist giving him an excuse to do so. Mr. Erdogans problems with the Kurds are largely of his own making. He had in fact made some headway in peace talks with Kurdish leaders in Turkey before resuming hostilities last year. He should seek ways to revive that process. As for the Kurds in Syria, he should stop shelling them and instead work with the United States to find a way to accommodate what could eventually become an autonomous Kurdish region in Syria. Mr. Erdogan has found a way to work with the Kurds in Iraq. Fighting Syrian Kurds and inflaming tensions with America makes no sense. Any serious effort to repair criminal justice in New York City must do something about Rikers Island, the jail complex in the East River where justice goes to die, or at least be severely beaten. The City Council speaker, Melissa Mark-Viverito, acknowledged this in her State of the City address this month, when she announced that the states former chief judge, Jonathan Lippman, would lead a commission to comprehensively examine the citys criminal justice system. Its mission will be to reduce the jail population, now at about 10,000, enough to make it possible to consider shutting Rikers down for good. Mr. Lippman is newly retired from the states highest court, the Court of Appeals, after a distinguished career advancing justice for the poor. His involvement lends credibility to Ms. Mark-Viveritos intriguing proposal. Fixing Rikers has been talked about, fruitlessly, for years. Studies have been commissioned, consultants paid, lawsuits filed. Mr. Lippman, now with Latham & Watkins, says he will lead an open-minded investigation, but its hard to imagine a conclusion more foregone: The sensible thing to do with Rikers is to close it. The Times has reported for years on the savagery there. The Justice Department has investigated its corrupted, poisoned culture. The departments report on the abuse of teenage inmates is horrific reading. In a long history of often-fatal violence, incompetence and neglect, one tragic case stands out: that of Kalief Browder, who was 16 when he was taken to Rikers, accused of stealing a backpack. Because his mother could not make bail, he spent three years there, including about two in solitary confinement. He was assaulted by a guard and beaten by inmates. He tried repeatedly to kill himself, and after his release he succeeded. He was 22 years old. Once in office, Reagan said that anytime he could get 70 percent of what he wanted from a legislature, hed take it. Todays congressional Republicans wont settle even for 99 percent: Their mentality has shifted away from having policies and governing and toward a kind of bitter-end obstructionism. In the early days of the presidency of Bill Clinton, congressional Republicans essentially went on strike, treating any legislative accomplishment as a Republican defeat, but they came to the table for a budget deal in 1997. With President Obama, they have largely refused to accept the basic legitimacy of a Democratic president. The tactical obstinacy of the 1990s has curdled into the belief that any compromise constitutes betrayal, a dynamic now playing out in the primaries. The issue that shows the divide most sharply between Reagan and the current crop of presidential hopefuls is immigration. In the past, Republican candidates have been justly criticized for deploying racially coded messages around crime and welfare. But in the main, the party has for decades embraced Reagans notion of American identity based on immigration, assimilation and economic opportunity. Every Republican presidential nominee since Reagan has been a moderate on immigration, and has wanted to bring Latinos into the Republican fold. How did the inclusive, forward-looking Republican Party of Reagan become the crass, xenophobic party of Donald J. Trump and Ted Cruz? The rise of super PACs and the right-wing media has disempowered the partys gatekeepers, while wage stagnation has widened the opening for populist demagogy. This years primary candidates have learned the lesson not only that exploiting prejudice around immigration and terrorism works politically, but so, too, does defying the partys elders and its official apparatus. Thus Mr. Trump thrives and the establishment favorite, Jeb Bush, is already out. Depending on who you ask, Chelseas Maritime Hotel could be seen as proof of the architect Albert C. Ledners inspired vision or a monolithic monument to 1960s kitsch. Originally designed as a hiring hall for the National Maritime Union, the 11-story, porthole-adorned tower has since served as a shelter for runaways and as housing for the New York Service Center for Chinese Study Fellows, before opening as a fashionable hotel in 2003. Now, the buildings storied history also includes La Sirena, chef Mario Batalis first New York restaurant in a decade. Since its in a hotel, and because we have this magnificent location, it will function as the piazza at the center of a small town, says Batali, who hopes the restaurant and bar becomes a bustling hive of activity. You can have breakfast here, lunch here, late-night snack here. Its kind of a cross between Lupa and Babbo and yet available in a much wider and more recognizable way, he says, citing two of his high-end Manhattan establishments. Food-style wise, its kind of like a trattoria. Asked whether the hotels nautical flourishes have inspired the menu, Batali says he preferred to keep the two sensibilities separate. We wanted to honor the marine tradition, and La Sirena is a little doff of the hat to that, but the food is more like what I want to do now, within the confines of classic Italian food. Still, Batali, a fan of Homers Odyssey, felt a name with aquatic flair was only appropriate. My tie to the marine culture is something a little more macabre, he says. I love the idea that the sirens would sing the songs and the passing ships could not avoid them, like all the traffic on Ninth Avenue. La Sirenas decor plays off the 60s architecture with a retro flair. This could be a Fellini set, right? Look at that floor, look at that lighting, look at the Caesarstone walls, says Batali, surveying the restaurant from the corner of its expansive bar. (Batali has admitted that La Sirenas opulence had a high price: Originally set to open months ago, the restaurant ballooned millions over budget.) This is a different beast for us, he says. Serving all the way through the day is something that is going to give us more fun to play around with. Eventually well have a high tea in the afternoon. The world has changed a lot, and were embracing it. Batali is also considering limiting meals to the tables, except for a cart that carries salami, Cravero Parmigiano Reggiano and marinated olives. I like the idea of a stand-alone bar, because if Im at a hotel, I dont want to be aced out by 34 seats of people eating their dinner. I want to go have drinks. In the San Bernardino case, prosecutors have cast their demands for Apple to help them unlock the iPhone used by Syed Rizwan Farook one of the attackers in the December rampage, in which 14 people were killed as a limited effort in response to an unusual situation. Still, no one should be surprised that were investigating other cases and looking for assistance in those other cases, a law enforcement official said on Tuesday. Since challenging a judges demand in the San Bernardino case, which called for Apple to create a special tool to help investigators more easily crack the phones passcode, the company has repeatedly asserted that such a move could not be done in isolation. Once created, the technique could be used over and over again, on any number of devices, Apples chief executive, Timothy D. Cook, said in a letter to customers. And in a note on its website on Monday, Apple said law enforcement agencies nationwide have hundreds of iPhones they want Apple to unlock if the F.B.I. wins this case. Apple has long maintained that it would hand over data to comply with a court order when it was technically able to do so. In a report covering the first six months of 2015, Apple said it had received nearly 11,000 requests from government agencies worldwide for information on roughly 60,000 devices, and it provided some data in roughly 7,100 instances. One minute, Dottys eyes are clear, and her mind is as steely sharp as her tongue. A minute later, clouds seem to shroud those big, bright peepers, and she has the bewildered look of a toddler whos lost track of her mother at the mall. Dotty (Marjorie Johnson), the widowed matriarch of a black middle-class family from Philadelphia, is 65, and although she mostly avoids directly admitting it to anyone sometimes even to herself she has Alzheimers. In Colman Domingos thoroughly entertaining comedy-drama Dot, Dottys failing mind becomes the focus of a fraught family gathering. The play, which opened on Tuesday at the Vineyard Theater, is an impressive advance for Mr. Domingo, also a gifted musical-theater performer, whose previous plays include the autobiographical A Boy and His Soul and Wild With Happy. One indicator of its quality is the somewhat surprising director: Susan Stroman, winner of five Tony Awards and an eminent director and choreographer of musicals, who rarely stages shows in which people do not regularly break into song and dance. Mr. Domingo appeared in Ms. Stromans production of The Scottsboro Boys, first seen at the Vineyard before moving to Broadway, and perhaps their relationship helped bring her aboard. But Dot would earn a director of some stature on its own merits. While conventional in form, its uproariously funny, if naturally streaked with sadness (and at times, a pinch or two of sentimentality). Mr. Domingo draws a complex portrait of a family in crisis, as Dottys three children grapple with the rapid decline of their mother. News / Regional by Leonard Ncube THE Hwange Local Board (HLB) has resorted to shooting baboons, an operation that is now being investigated by the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA).Three baboons were shot dead and one was injured last week during the operation. Baboons freely roam the streets in Hwange and Victoria Falls but lately they have become a menace terrorising residents in search of food.HLB chief executive officer Ndumiso Mdlalose said they had embarked on a 'shoot to scare' operation that saw three baboons being shot to death "by accident."Mdlalose said the local authority obtained a permit from the Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority to shoot to scare the problematic animals."It's a requirement that when you are controlling problem animals you get authorisation from the Parks and Wildlife Management Authority of Zimbabwe. We had a one week shoot to scare permit and notified stakeholders about the issue. We carried out the exercise last week and the idea was to scare the baboons away but in the process three were killed while one was injured," said Mdlalose.He said the local board has previously carried a similar exercise after residents complained about the baboons.Mdlalose said in Hwange they had resolved to carry out the exercise "periodically and targeting problem areas.""There is a challenge of drought and baboons are visiting human settlements more than they used to because they are looking for food which is not there in the bush. This exercise of shooting them needs to be sustained and we prefer to use noisy guns to scare them away," he said.SPCA national coordinator Senior Inspector Simon Chikadaya said they were investigating circumstances surrounding the killing of the baboons."We have to check with Parks and Wildlife if there are any problem animals there and also check with the local authority to establish the reasons behind the shooting," said Chikadaya.Late last month, Hwange residents, especially fruit vendors, complained to the local authority that baboons were snatching their goods.In Victoria Falls, residents recently resolved to petition the wildlife authority over property destroyed by wild animals saying they needed to be compensated for the loss. AT A GHANA LODGE, WILDLIFE AND SUSTAINABILITY Ghana isnt the most common safari destination, but a new luxury safari lodge in the country might be an incentive to attract more travelers: Zaina Lodge opened recently in northern Ghana in Mole National Park, the countrys largest game reserve. The 25-room lodge is on a ridge overlooking the savanna and has a view of two watering holes rich with wildlife such as antelope, waterbuck, baboons and elephants. Local everything is an emphasis at the property local grass, stone and teak are used for roofing, walls, paths and furnishings; over half of the staff are from the area; and local shea butter is used to make furniture polish, soaps and body lotions. Sustainability is also a priority; the lodge has LED lighting and a solar-powered water system. The rate is $350 per person, per night, all inclusive. A JUNGLE BOOK TOUR IN INDIA A new trip to India from the London-based travel company Wild Frontiers is inspired by the Jungle Book, Rudyard Kiplings famous collection of stories. The trip is in commemoration of a new adaptation of the 1967 Walt Disney Pictures animated film based on the stories and opening in theaters on April 15. Called the Jungle Book Tour, the 12-day itinerary takes travelers to Tadoba and Kanha National Parks, two of Indias most famous tiger reserves, where they take part in twice-daily game drives in search of tigers, leopards and other wildlife, and Satpura National Park for walking safaris. These rich landscapes, according to the Wild Frontiers founder Jonny Bealby, gave Mr. Kipling the inspiration for the characters in his stories such as the man cub Mowgli, the fearsome tiger Shere Khan and Toomai of the elephants. The itinerary also includes a stop in Bhopal to see the renowned Bhimbetka cave paintings. The tour includes most meals, accommodations, transfers, entrance fees to parks and guided excursions. The cost is $4,250 a person. Departure is Oct. 18. VOLCANOES, ISLANDS AND A SPA IN JAPAN Showing off a little-known side of Japan is the goal of Japanese Adventure: Volcanoes, Valleys, Shrines & Spa, a new private trip from the travel company Remote Lands. As part of the 14-day itinerary, travelers visit the port city of Osaka and the islands of Kyushu and Shikoku; excursions include riding an aerial tramway up Mount Aso, the largest active volcano in Japan; visiting Yakushima Island, off the southern coast of Kyushu and home to some of Japans oldest cedar trees; seeing the Takachiho Shrine, dating back 1,800 years; and visiting the Utoco Auberge & Spa on the island of Shikoku for deep-sea therapy treatments. Prices from $1,655 per person, per day. ART ON VIEW IN A NEW MANHATTAN HOTEL Art is the focus at HGU, a hotel that is scheduled to open in early April in Manhattans Flatiron district. The HGU was originally the Hotel Grand Union, a Beaux-Arts property that was built in 1905. This incarnation, with 90 rooms, will also be influenced by Beaux-Art design and emphasize contemporary art the property has partnered with Gallery 151 in Lower Manhattan to oversee rotating art installations in the hotels shared spaces and within each of the guest rooms. Works from both emerging and iconic names will be featured including pieces by the Brooklyn-born visual artist Fab 5 Freddy and the Italian-born painter Francesco Clemente. The Brooklyn-based artist Evan Yee is behind the installation in the lobby; called Mirror Mirror, the piece reflects the image of the person looking at it into a background that resembles what the scenery would have been like in 1905. Michigans Senate on Tuesday completed legislation authorizing $30 million in supplemental aid to help Flint residents pay their water bills as lawmakers and public officials scramble to try to fix the lead-contaminated water supply. Senators voted unanimously to send the measure to Gov. Rick Snyder. The legislation will pay for 65 percent of the water portion of Flint residents bills. That includes water used for drinking, cooking or bathing. Residents will still have to pay the sewage portion of their water bills after the Republican-controlled Legislature rejected Democrats efforts to double the aid to cover peoples entire water bills. Charlotte, North Carolinas largest city, has legalized the ability of transgender people to choose public restrooms corresponding to their gender identity. The governor calls it a threat to public safety, and some state lawmakers are vowing to overrule the city. The Charlotte City Council voted, 7 to 4, on Monday to add sexual orientation, gender identity and marital status as attributes protected from discrimination when it comes to public accommodations including restaurants, retail stores and other businesses. Public schools would not be affected by the law, which would take effect April 1. The measure broadly defines how businesses must treat gay, lesbian and transgender customers, but as in other cities, the debate has focused on bathrooms. Speaker Tim Moore of the State House said he would join Gov. Pat McCrory, who is a fellow Republican, and conservative colleagues in exploring legislative intervention to correct this radical course. As the Supreme Court faces the increasing prospect of having an eight-member bench for a year or more, Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. said on Tuesday that we will deal with it, noting that the court has had an even number of members in the past. Whats happened in the last week has been a great shock to us, Justice Alito said at Georgetown University, offering a first glimpse into the internal workings of the court since the death of Justice Antonin Scalia. We just started back in business hearing arguments yesterday. Well see what develops. Justice Alito made his remarks, which had been scheduled before Justice Scalias death transformed the court and transfixed the nation, on the day that Senate Republicans on the Judiciary Committee announced that they would not hold hearings to consider any nominee put forward by President Obama. Graduating law students submitted questions for the justice, and one asked about life on an eight-member court. WASHINGTON A congressional committee is investigating allegations that the agency in charge of airport security retaliated against employees who reported security lapses and awarded bonuses to supervisors who ignored their warnings. The agency, the Transportation Security Administration, has until March 4 to provide the House Oversight Committee with documents detailing how it awards bonuses to top agency officials. The investigation comes after Andrew Rhoades, an assistant federal security director at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, sent documents to the committee that he said indicated that the top supervisors who ignored warnings about security lapses were awarded bonuses. One top official in charge of security for the agency received more than $70,000 in bonuses in a three-year period despite a leaked audit that showed screeners failed to detect investigators with fake weapons and bombs going through security lines. The audit showed that screeners failed to detect the weapons 95 percent of the time. Several top leaders from Warren Jeffss polygamous sect were arrested Tuesday on federal accusations of food stamp fraud and money laundering, one of the biggest blows to the group in years. Prosecutors say the sect, based on the Utah-Arizona border, diverted funds from Utahs nutrition assistance program for inappropriate use by its leaders. Eleven people were charged, including Lyle Jeffs and Seth Jeffs, top-ranking leaders of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and brothers of Warren Jeffs, who is serving a life sentence for sexually assaulting his 12- and 15-year-old child brides. Arrests were made in Hildale, Utah; Salt Lake City; and Custer County, S.D. President Pierre Nkurunziza has promised to release 2,000 people detained during months of unrest, Secretary General Ban Ki-moon of the United Nations said Tuesday. Mr. Ban spoke after meeting with Mr. Nkurunziza and officials from Burundis governing party, government, opposition and civic groups in Bujumbura, the capital. In a statement, Mr. Nkurunziza said he was ready to talk to his opponents and urged Mr. Ban to persuade Rwanda to stop its aggression against Burundi. Rwanda has denied allegations that it is training and arming rebels opposed to Mr. Nkurunziza. More than 400 people have been killed since April, when Mr. Nkurunziza announced that he would seek a third term, which he won. The president of the Samarco mining company and six other people have been charged with aggravated homicide over the deaths of at least 17 people after a dam burst in November, the Brazilian police said Tuesday. The police in the state of Minas Gerais said they had requested that Samarcos president, Ricardo Vescovi, five other company executives and one contractor be held in preventive detention while awaiting trial. The men are charged with homicide, causing a flood and polluting drinking water. A wave of debris from an iron-ore mine broke through the Fundao dam on Nov. 5. The European Court of Human Rights condemned Italy on Tuesday for its role in the 2003 kidnapping of an Egyptian Muslim cleric under the United States extraordinary rendition program. The cleric, Hassan Mustafa Osama Nasr, was seized on a street in Milan by C.I.A. operatives in 2003 and flown to Egypt, where, he said, he was tortured for more than seven months. The court said that Italy, which had granted refugee status to Mr. Nasr, was aware that he had been abducted. The court ordered Italy to pay $77,000 to Mr. Nasr, saying that the national authorities had knowingly exposed him to a real risk of treatment contrary to anti-torture laws. The Foreign Ministry declined to comment. Spanish and Moroccan police officers on Tuesday arrested four people suspected of being members of a cell that sought to recruit fighters for the Islamic State group. Three people were arrested in Spains North African enclave city of Ceuta, and a Moroccan was arrested in the Moroccan border town of Farkhana, next to Melilla, Spains other North African enclave, officials said. One of those detained in Ceuta was a former detainee at the American military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, who was not identified by the Spanish authorities. After being captured in 2002 and held in Guantanamo, he was returned to Spain in 2004, said Interior Minister Jorge Fernandez Diaz. The suspects had also set up contacts to try to acquire weapons and bomb-making materials and were aiming to carry out terrorist acts in Spanish territory, Spains Interior Ministry said. Opinion / Columnist President Mugabe spoke authoritatively about the issue saying we are all one. The moment people or groups of people try to raise the tribal card they become anathema.Are we not all happy that the political temperatures in the country have cooled, especially after the swift intervention of President Mugabe who told factionalists in the ruling Zanu-PF to shut up?At this time last week, we were all in the grip of something heavy in foreboding; some kind of siege and deep fear that our country was hurtling towards something nasty and evil.The signs, the bad omens, were there. The energy, the negative energy, was there.Factional conflicts in the revolutionary party were taking worse turns and protagonists were willing to fight it out in public without fear or shame.The gloves were off.Thursday marked a climax, a crescendo of these factional fights as war veterans were bussed in ostensibly for a special meeting.As we now know, their convenor, Christopher Mutsvangwa, had not followed proper channels to legally hold that meeting.And once they got into Harare, the war veterans were met with the force of police who made sure that they did not go ahead with the meeting and deployed tanks, teargas and other non-lethal means to disperse them.The country was thus careened towards a cliff, which, the following day, it took President Mugabe's intervention to haul us back.Phew!We are relieved.You see, the danger with the path that the country was now taking is similar to a fire that is started by a match that is tossed off by a careless drunk in the veld.It starts off small but burns down the whole forest, this tiny fire that burns big logs and whole trees of the bush.And the winds of the sky blow the fire to reckless, dangerous potency, driving it forward with naked, lustful, consuming rage.Pity the grass, the snakes, the little creatures that have nowhere to run: they become fodder and fuel.But even the big trees are not left unscathed as the fires consume everything in the way.DestructionIt is easy to assume that when a fire starts in a veld, or anywhere else, it becomes a force on its own; an evil on its own, that is driven by a spirit and spirits of its own.In the same manner, you could see that factionalism was beginning to drive as madly and in an evil manner of its own, and true to evil spirits, a whole legion of spirits of different shades and character converge on a feast of destruction.Until they are cast out.But the price of factionalism is high: who is going to talk about bread and butter issues and the economy caught in a life of death and an orgy of self-destruction?Who thinks about the dying, the sick and the hungry?Who cares about the woman dying while giving birth, children dropping out of school, rural girls that lack sanitary ware and people lacking access to clean water?The problem of factionalism, especially the overt, naked one, is that it creates a false reality, wrong priorities and an unhelpful narrative.It also creates false gods.It can make giants out of midgets.In the madness of it all, some people without any sophistication pose as prophets and high priests of a false religion.Woe to honest people who are either driven to murder or are persecuted for doing the right things or things they cannot help.But then, as pointed out above, we are safe.The President spoke (and we hope we are not seeing some characters talking in whispers at nocturnal venues).That is a mourning, global picture of factionalism as lately as we have seen.There is still one worrying aspect that came starkly out of the debacle and this is the main submission of this piece.It is talk about tribalism or regionalism.Tribalism is not something new in Zimbabwe.Some people would like to say tribalism is an African problem, an atavistic phenomenon that tells so much about our backwardness.Scholars want to blame tribalism on colonialism which they say amplified divisions among African people and made them to fight each other in the classic divide-and-rule fashion.That is largely true.But before the coming of the white man to Zimbabwe, for example, as much as the country was at peace in itself, there were some tribes that were more aggressive than others.In fact, all empires and societies were built on war, even though various would maintain their particular identities, culture and philosophies.But modernity whether brought by wars, and especially now enhanced by knowledge was supposed to end all the harmful and atavistic characteristics of tribalism?Alas, it didn't, especially in Africa.Now it's as a threat to democracy even worse than autocracy.This is the view of Harvard scholar Professor Calestous Juma.He says: "The challenge to democracy in Africa is not the prevalence of ethnic diversity, but the use of identity politics to promote narrow tribal interests. It is tribalism."There are those who argue that tribalism is a result of arbitrary post-colonial boundaries that force different communities to live within artificial bordersin the absence of efforts to build genuine political parties that compete on the basis of ideas, many African countries have reverted to tribal identities as foundations for political competition."Leaders often exploit tribal loyalty to advance personal gain, parochial interests, patronage and cronyism. But tribes are not built on democratic ideas but thrive on zero-sum competition."Just these past weeks we heard a lot of disturbing noises about what tribes could or not rule Zimbabwe.Then there was that pathetic, tragicomic assertion by Obert Mpofu that no person from Matabeleland North province was fit to lead this country.President Mugabe spoke authoritatively about the issue saying we are all one.The moment people or groups of people try to raise the tribal card they become anathema.You see these groups at the bar, at school and other social gatherings huddled together discussing their little agendas of supposed marginalisation or perceived superiority.It is truly disgusting, hearing educated, mature people discussing that it is time for a person of this or that tribe to rule this country.Come on!This writer has expressed humble disgust at some people bent on pursing this route.We have enough challenges to confront as a nation and whoever rallies the country around confronting issues of the day should be king.And to rally the country around the national question presupposes unity not petty and atavistic tendencies such as tribe or region.Prof Juma puts it nicely when he says: "The way forward for African democracy lies in concerted efforts to build modern political parties founded on development ideas and not tribal bonds. Such political parties must base their competition for power on development platforms." The Polish composer and clarinetist Waclaw Zimpel is a musical chameleon. After graduating from a Warsaw conservatory, he traded the rigors of classical music for the improvisational thrills of free jazz. Then, fascinated with folk traditions, he set out on a worldwide trek to discover archaic musical styles, learning an array of ancient folk instruments, from the algoza (a wooden double flute from Rajasthan in Inida) to the khaen (a Laotian mouth organ). A few years ago, he moved to Bangalore to steep himself in the South Indian classical tradition of Carnatic music. He formed a band there with local artists, Saagara, which fused Western minimal music styles with improvised Carnatic melodies. Following collaborations with contemporary jazz artists like Ken Vandermark, Mr. Zimpel, 32, just released his first solo album, Lines. The record loops together many of the styles that have influenced him, resulting in heady, superimposed rhythms. The Quietus, an arts journal in London, described one of his new tracks as a rotoscoped psychedelic dream sequence. The following is an edited transcript of a conversation with Mr. Zimpel. Q. Youve collected dozens of folk instruments from around the world. Is it just their unique sounds that interest you, or are you after something deeper? A. I always felt folk musicians are much closer to the essence of music than musicians who are classically trained in the West. And I was searching for this kind of natural approach to playing music, which folk musicians have. They know exactly why they are playing: Their music is for ritual, to help people to go from one state to another, or to make people dance, or to help them meditate. And in most cases theres a lack of this kind of approach in classical training. So I was searching for that in different cultures and along the way I discovered the instruments. Each has a different sound and a different logic. And they give you different ways to create form, melody, harmony. They open up new possibilities for arrangements. Q. How difficult is it for you to learn these new instruments? A. It depends very much on the tradition. For instance, the shakuhachi flute from Japan is an extremely difficult, very demanding instrument and if you want to play it you must dedicate a big part of your life to it. Indian instruments from the Carnatic tradition also require a lot of time to master. But there are instruments, like the khaen, that are very much intuitive if you have knowledge of some classical instruments. Rosie Cavaliero would seem to be the star of Prey, a fairly entertaining British crime series making its debut on BBC America on Thursday. Her picture is on the website, and shes the only actor who appears in all six episodes. But shes not, exactly she receives second billing to two different men, John Simm (Episodes 1-3) and Philip Glenister (4-6). Sexism? No, at least not overtly. The show was conceived as a three-episode one-off series starring Mr. Simm as a framed cop on the run. When it did well in the ratings and drew a Bafta nomination, three more episodes were ordered from the writer Chris Lunt, and Ms. Cavalieros character the cop in pursuit was kept on. But it was still about the prey, not the pursuer, and Mr. Glenister became the new central character. In a way, that worked to the shows advantage. If Ms. Cavalieros Susan Reinhardt had been the protagonist, she probably would have been less interesting. More than a bit of a mess, Susan is stalking her ex-boyfriend and living on candy bars when shes assigned to track down Mr. Simms Marcus Farrow. Its a chance to prove herself, and she blows it jumping to the wrong conclusions; overplaying her hand with her bosses; and being consistently outsmarted by Marcus, a fellow detective accused of killing his son and ex-wife. Eventually doggedness and sympathy carry the day, and the real villain (obvious to seasoned viewers from the first episode) is caught. Ms. Cavaliero is doughty and likable, and Mr. Simm is excellent as always, a cheeky blend of congeniality and slightly annoying self-assurance. After a slow start focused on establishing unnecessary back stories, the show shifts into a series of satisfying and suspenseful Roadrunner-like chases and escapes. They take place in Manchester locations that will inspire nostalgia in fans of Mr. Simm and Mr. Glenisters magnificent collaboration in Life on Mars. Marriage Material By Sathnam Sanghera 323 pages. Europa Editions. $18. Sathnam Sangheras witty first novel chronicles three generations of a Punjabi Indian family in England. After his father dies, Arjan Banga, a graphic designer in London, returns to the dreary West Midlands to help run the family convenience store. The move causes tension with his white fiancee, Freya, whom his mother regards with passive-aggressive disapproval. Arjan must explain to customers that as a Sikh I was not expected to marry my cousin or join Al Qaeda and smile politely at their interpretations of his name (Mind if I call you Andy?). Torn between familial duty and the freedom he enjoys in London, he gains unlikely clarity from his dimwitted friend Ranjit a pot-smoking devotee of Steven Seagal movies, Xbox and hip-hop. Arjans woes are comic, but the novels depth is evident as it sheds light on the economic and political struggles of immigrants. Ways to Disappear By Idra Novey 258 pages. Little, Brown. $25. In Rio de Janeiro, Beatriz Yagoda, a distinguished novelist, clutches her suitcase and a cigar and climbs into an almond tree. Then she vanishes. Emma Neufeld, Beatrizs devoted translator of nearly a decade, sets off from her home in Pittsburgh to solve the mystery of her absence. Emma is also hoping to disappear, by liberating herself from the boyfriend she does not love. Soon she becomes entangled romantically with Beatrizs son, Marco, and clashes with her standoffish daughter, Raquel. They learn that the woman they knew so well had a secret life: The enigmatic Beatriz owes hundreds of thousands of dollars in gambling debts, and her life is in danger. Ms. Novey, an accomplished poet and translator, sustains suspense throughout with beautifully restrained prose. Yet her narrative is more than a mystery its about language itself, both the yearning for comprehension and the desire to feel understood. Private Citizens By Tony Tulathimutte 372 pages. Morrow. $14.99. Four recent Stanford graduates fumble through their post-college years with varying degrees of self-destruction, ambition and success: Cory runs a nonprofit that hosts fund-raisers for progressive causes; Will, a tech consultant, spends his days masturbating, smoking and trying to appease his girlfriend, whos consumed by her start-up venture; Henrik is a manic-depressive grad school dropout; Linda, his ex, is a ruthless, drug-addled narcissist. They argue earnestly about things like privilege, cultural imperialism, power structures and the male gaze; threaten to get tattoos with Adorno quotes; and drop references to reactionary Cartesian sentimentalism during arguments. This material is the stuff of easy satire, but Mr. Tulathimutte is keen to probe the underlying anxieties and insecurities of his characters, making them more empathetic and appealing than they might have been. Small overseas firms often feel helpless against American regulators, some of which render edicts after opaque and secretive processes. But Banca Privada dAndorra fought back against a United States Treasury watchdog, and just succeeded in getting its money-laundering designation withdrawn. And last year, the Chinese-backed owner of an American wind-farm project won a settlement over the block on its activities by the secretive Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States. The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, known as FinCEN, said last March that the bank was helping organized criminals and should be cut off from the United States financial system. The Andorran government subsequently fired the banks board, and its Spanish unit filed for bankruptcy. While the cleanup may have helped achieve FinCENs reversal last week, B.P.A. also took to the courts. The bank wasnt warned or allowed to make its case before FinCEN took action last year. Banks have that chance only after a proposed money-laundering notice is issued. Unusually, Banca Privada dAndorra sued the regulator, asserting it had used inaccurate information when it sounded the death knell for the bank. BERLIN Guy Hands, the British founder of the European private equity firm Terra Firma Capital Partners, on Wednesday joined the voices calling for Britain not to leave the European Union, saying remaining a member of the bloc was the right thing for Britain and for the rest of Europe. Speaking at SuperReturn International, an investors conference here, Mr. Hands said that much of the world from the postwar period through the 2008 global financial crisis had experienced a period of predictability and a unique time of consistent development that has now ended. This period started after the Second World War really, with the end of British and French global ambitions, and the humiliation of those two countries during the Suez crisis a humiliation which the right wing of both the U.K. and French political parties or class have never been able to get over, Mr. Hands said. He was referring to the 1956 invasion of Egypt by Britain and France in an effort to regain Western control of the Suez Canal. Britain and France were forced to withdraw under pressure from the United States, the Soviet Union and the United Nations. John Gleeson, a prominent federal judge and former prosecutor who handled one of Wall Streets biggest criminal cases, is set to become a partner at Debevoise & Plimpton, according to people briefed on the matter. Judge Gleeson announced last month that he was stepping down in March after more than 20 years on the bench. At the time, he did not indicate a next move. The people briefed on the matter said he planned to join Debevoises white-collar defense group in New York. A spokesman for the firm declined to comment. Judge Gleeson spent over two decades as a judge in the Eastern District of New York, an important jurisdiction that covers Brooklyn, Queens and Long Island. BERLIN As a former aide to President Jimmy Carter, David M. Rubenstein, the co-founder of the Carlyle Group, is often asked about his views on this years presidential race in the United States. Speaking on Wednesday at SuperReturn International, an investors conference here, Mr. Rubenstein posed a very different question to an audience of industry executives, investors and service providers: Among the remaining Democratic and Republican presidential hopefuls, to whom would you entrust your investments? The response from the audience was not encouraging. You guys dont like these people as investors, Mr. Rubenstein said, as only a few hands in the audience went up to show support for any of the candidates. As far as who he thinks will win each partys nomination, Mr. Rubenstein said that superdelegates in the Democratic Party would most likely give the nomination to Hillary Clinton. SEMINOLE, Okla. The plunging price of crude has inflicted pain in the Oklahoma oil patch, and now it is threatening to take out the smallest of the small operators, those that have survived decades of booms and busts. Moran Oil Enterprises is losing $5 on every one of the 205 barrels it produces every day, forcing it to borrow $30,000 this month to meet a payroll that includes 24 employees and contractors. One partner at RKR Exploration is so distressed by debt payments he has taken to bringing his garbage to the office to save the $25-a-month fee at home. And the Columbus Oil Company, losing more than $10,000 a month, has given up its rented postage stamp machine. It was an emotional moment, he wrote. I thought about the long-ago work that led to the movie, and how its impact would now be magnified. I thought about how the public might now see why journalism is necessary. And I thought about the oddity of this whole scene in which I had a part: how the saddening subject of sexual abuse had arrived at this bizarre intersection with celebrity, paparazzi and red-carpet interviews. Mr. Baron said the idea for a movie had bounced around for years before suddenly taking off in 2014. Only when he met with his acting counterpart, Mr. Schreiber, did Mr. Baron begin to appreciate what hed gotten himself into. We met for less than two hours, and as we talked it occurred to me that this was not quite an interview, he wrote. This was an observation session, much like a psychiatrists. Only these observations would not remain confidential. They would be revealed to millions. On the film set, Mr. Schreiber would eventually portray him as a stoic, humorless, somewhat dour character that many professional colleagues instantly recognize, Mr. Baron wrote. Mr. Baron was just the latest of several journalists from The Globe to weigh in on the experience. In an essay in The Globe in late 2014, Walter Robinson, the investigative team leader portrayed by Michael Keaton, said he was a fan of Mr. Keatons work in The Paper, the 1994 journalism drama, but this was different. Im shy. This from Charlotte Rampling, the Oscar-nominated actress who, since her breakout performance a half-century ago as the chillingly self-involved Meredith in Georgy Girl, has rarely missed an opportunity to let you know whats on her mind. Yes, that Charlotte Rampling, who in the 1970s shocked moviegoers when she played a concentration camp survivor in a sadomasochistic relationship with a former Nazi officer; who vamped in the buff for Helmut Newton and, some 30 years later, did it again for Juergen Teller shot naked, at 63, alongside a much younger model in a Marc Jacobs campaign. She is that vociferous champion of feminism and apparent libertine who earlier in her career scandalized fans by implying in an interview that she was engaged in a lusty menage a trois. And who only last month, in the wake of her best actress nomination for 45 Years, declared on French radio that a proposed boycott of the Oscars would be racist against whites. Her apparently unthinking, disastrously timed remarks uncorked torrents of vitriol on Twitter and threatened to upend her chances on Sunday of taking home Hollywoods most coveted prize. (Brie Larson is the clear front-runner for her role in Room.) Opinion / Columnist In a follow-up radio interview to President Thabo Mbeki letter "SA policy on Zimbabwe" with Redi Thlabi on 702 Cape Talk Tendai Biti said a lot of things, I would like to take him up one the one issue Did MDC sell-out in failing to implement the GPA reforms, he was asked?"President Mbeki should just shut up! He should not blame the victim. .. MDC fought for re-forms but Zanu PF refused," replied Biti. He was lying because there evidence proves the exact opposite, that MDC leaders sold-out!The process of implementing the reforms was that an MP will submit the proposed democratic reforms on the Police, say, to parliament. Parliament will then debate and refine the proposals and then pass the final proposals to President Mugabe for approval. Once the proposals are ap-proved they will then be implemented and the law changed to suit.Tendai Biti who is lying in saying Zanu PF blocked the reforms because MDC never submitted any substantive reforms in parliament. The two MDC factions had the majority of MPs in parlia-ment and therefore would have had no problems in getting the proposals passed. There were no proposed reforms passed or rejected by parliament throughout the GNU because none were ev-er submitted.There is no doubt that left to his own devices President Mugabe would have rejected all demo-cratic reforms put before him but he was not left to his own devices, by signing the GPA he committed himself and his party Zanu PF to the democratic reforms. So if parliament submitted proposed reforms for his approval and he refused then MDC was expected to take the matter to SADC as the guarantor of the agreement for arbitration.The truth of the matter is MDC never complained to SADC about Mugabe refusing to approve any proposed reforms; they complained about other things but not reforms; because Mugabe never refused to approve any reform proposals, none were ever submitted to him for approval.By the same token, SDAC never failed to take Mugabe to task on refusing to approve proposed reforms because MDC never complained to SADC on that matter. Never! If anything it was SADC who complained to MDC for doing nothing about implementing the reforms.It is a matter of historic fact that SADC leaders, amongst others, reminded MDC leaders on a number of occasions to implement the reforms and then warned them against taking part in the elections without implementing the reforms first and MDC paid no heed. Former GNU MDC Min-ister Samuel Sipepa Nkomo and Tendai Biti's own colleague in the break-away PDP has since confirmed that SADC leaders warned MDC. SeeIn a follow-up radio interview to President Thabo Mbeki letter "SA policy on Zimbabwe" with Redi Thlabi on 702 Cape Talk Tendai Biti said a lot of things, I would like to take him up one the one issue Did MDC sell-out in failing to implement the GPA reforms, he was asked?"President Mbeki should just shut up! He should not blame the victim. .. MDC fought for re-forms but Zanu PF refused," replied Biti. He was lying because there evidence proves the exact opposite, that MDC leaders sold-out!The process of implementing the reforms was that an MP will submit the proposed democratic reforms on the Police, say, to parliament. Parliament will then debate and refine the proposals and then pass the final proposals to President Mugabe for approval. Once the proposals are ap-proved they will then be implemented and the law changed to suit.Tendai Biti who is lying in saying Zanu PF blocked the reforms because MDC never submitted any substantive reforms in parliament. The two MDC factions had the majority of MPs in parlia-ment and therefore would have had no problems in getting the proposals passed. There were no proposed reforms passed or rejected by parliament throughout the GNU because none were ev-er submitted.There is no doubt that left to his own devices President Mugabe would have rejected all demo-cratic reforms put before him but he was not left to his own devices, by signing the GPA he committed himself and his party Zanu PF to the democratic reforms. So if parliament submitted proposed reforms for his approval and he refused then MDC was expected to take the matter to SADC as the guarantor of the agreement for arbitration.The truth of the matter is MDC never complained to SADC about Mugabe refusing to approve any proposed reforms; they complained about other things but not reforms; because Mugabe never refused to approve any reform proposals, none were ever submitted to him for approval.By the same token, SDAC never failed to take Mugabe to task on refusing to approve proposed reforms because MDC never complained to SADC on that matter. Never! If anything it was SADC who complained to MDC for doing nothing about implementing the reforms.It is a matter of historic fact that SADC leaders, amongst others, reminded MDC leaders on a number of occasions to implement the reforms and then warned them against taking part in the elections without implementing the reforms first and MDC paid no heed. Former GNU MDC Min-ister Samuel Sipepa Nkomo and Tendai Biti's own colleague in the break-away PDP has since confirmed that SADC leaders warned MDC. See (theindependent.co.zw) SADC leaders said MDC leaders "were busy enjoying themselves and forgot why they were in the GNU!" in sheer frustration soon after the rigged July 2013 elections.There is no doubt that MDC leaders were enjoying themselves in the GNU and forgot the important task of implementing the reforms. Tendai Bit joined the other MDC leaders in praising Mugabe calling him the "unflappable father of the nation" in an interview with The Sunday Mail in July 2012. Hardly the thing one would say about someone "refusing" democratic reforms.MDC leaders were cocksure Mugabe had accepted them in the exclusive ruling elite club that there did not see the need to implement the democratic reforms designed to end this elitist system and force all those in public office to be democratically accountable to the people. They were members of this elitist group so why end the system.Even after the rigged July 2013 elections which saw many MDC members lose their public office it is interesting to note how many MDC leaders still continued to hang on to the belief that they were still members of the country's ruling elite and Mugabe would treat them accordingly as Dr Misheck Sibanda, the Chief Secretary to the President and Cabinet has revealed."Some (MDC leaders after losing the elections) said, 'If we are needed, even if it's a Zanu-PF Government, talk to the President. Possibly we can come and serve because we want to serve.' (They said they wanted roles) in any capacity. You could tell that it was because of how they had been handled. To me, it was amusing," Dr Sibanda said. See more at: http://bulawayo24.com/index-id-news-sc-local-byo-82991.html It is a great pity that the GNU failed to deliver on the single most important issue - free, fair and credible elections because MDC leaders sold-out. Zimbabwe would not be stuck in this political and economic hell-on-earth still if they had implemented the reforms.Zimbabweans can blame SADC and God knows who else besides for many things but not for the GNU's failure to delivery free, fair and credible elections; we must own up and take the blame for that one! Morgan Tsvangirai, Tendai Biti, Welshman Ncube, David Coltart and all the other MDC leaders in the GNU sold-out; they must apologize to the nation and resign, en mass, from public life. They should have done so a long time ago!Whilst still on the subject of apologizing; Tendai Biti should apologize to former President Thabo Mbeki for accusing him of lying when it was he (Biti) who is lying and should shut up! (theindependent.co.zw) SADC leaders said MDC leaders "were busy enjoying themselves and forgot why they were in the GNU!" in sheer frustration soon after the rigged July 2013 elections.There is no doubt that MDC leaders were enjoying themselves in the GNU and forgot the important task of implementing the reforms. Tendai Bit joined the other MDC leaders in praising Mugabe calling him the "unflappable father of the nation" in an interview with The Sunday Mail in July 2012. Hardly the thing one would say about someone "refusing" democratic reforms.MDC leaders were cocksure Mugabe had accepted them in the exclusive ruling elite club that there did not see the need to implement the democratic reforms designed to end this elitist system and force all those in public office to be democratically accountable to the people. They were members of this elitist group so why end the system.Even after the rigged July 2013 elections which saw many MDC members lose their public office it is interesting to note how many MDC leaders still continued to hang on to the belief that they were still members of the country's ruling elite and Mugabe would treat them accordingly as Dr Misheck Sibanda, the Chief Secretary to the President and Cabinet has revealed."Some (MDC leaders after losing the elections) said, 'If we are needed, even if it's a Zanu-PF Government, talk to the President. Possibly we can come and serve because we want to serve.' (They said they wanted roles) in any capacity. You could tell that it was because of how they had been handled. To me, it was amusing," Dr Sibanda said. See more at: http://bulawayo24.com/index-id-news-sc-local-byo-82991.html It is a great pity that the GNU failed to deliver on the single most important issue - free, fair and credible elections because MDC leaders sold-out. Zimbabwe would not be stuck in this political and economic hell-on-earth still if they had implemented the reforms.Zimbabweans can blame SADC and God knows who else besides for many things but not for the GNU's failure to delivery free, fair and credible elections; we must own up and take the blame for that one! Morgan Tsvangirai, Tendai Biti, Welshman Ncube, David Coltart and all the other MDC leaders in the GNU sold-out; they must apologize to the nation and resign, en mass, from public life. They should have done so a long time ago!Whilst still on the subject of apologizing; Tendai Biti should apologize to former President Thabo Mbeki for accusing him of lying when it was he (Biti) who is lying and should shut up! But I liked the idea of scouting for the new and unseen, and found myself incorporating into my shoots pieces that had been overlooked by others, that made people ask more about who had made them, at a time when the Italian scene was totally dominated by big-name brands and their aesthetics, she added. It was a tragic period for independent designers in Italy. There were simply no systems in place to help them grow. Her aunt had also recognized the importance of identifying and supporting the next generation. So, in 2009, the idea of Vogue Talents was born. Today, Ms. Maino and her team of four are responsible for two Vogue Talents issues each year, uncovering the best womens wear, mens wear, accessories and fashion photography talents worldwide and then offering them connections to education, networking and investment opportunities. She also heads the Next Talents cocktail reception hosted by Vogue and Yoox during Milan Fashion Week. Italy has come on leaps and bounds in the last six years and the improvement in the attitudes of the old establishment have been incredible, she said. That said, we are at risk of a glut of competitions; those alone are not enough when it comes to sustainable solutions. Ms. Maino bristles at the use of young when referring to the designers she finds. Plenty of them are 40, and to suggest that is young is ridiculous, she said. She added that she preferred independent but would grudgingly settle for emerging. You know that saying, better late than never? Well, we are extremely late and there is a long way to go, she said. We are catching up with elsewhere although it is important that Im elsewhere, too. Recently returned from Saudi Arabia, Ms. Maino estimated that she now spent about two-thirds of her time traveling. And for all their differences, she is noticing that many designers share consistent patterns regardless of where they are in the world. And so to Milan, where a jam-packed week of shows begin Wednesday afternoon with a new collection from Alessandro Michele for Gucci, the onetime accessories designer hailed as the man with the Midas touch for his role in a turnaround of fortunes for the Italian luxury powerhouse owned by Kering. The fashion elite has applauded his romantic, eclectic styles as have customers, judging by the latest sales figures so all eyes will be on Mr. Michele come 2:30 p.m. to see what he delivers this time. After the blockbuster curtain raiser comes Fay at 3:30 p.m., then, an hour later, a parade of floaty femininity from Alberta Ferretti. At 6:30 p.m., Fausto Puglisi, the flamboyant Italian with an unabashed love for kitschy Americana, will show his labels latest offerings (he also is creative director of Ungaro, but that show isnt until March 4 in Paris). Afterward, there should just be time to get to the Palazzo Morando for the Next Talents cocktail reception for new designers, hosted by Franca Sozzani, editor of Vogue Italia, and Federico Marchetti, chief executive of the Yoox Net-a-Porter Group. Then, rounding off the day is Roberto Cavalli, in a new 8:30 p.m. time slot. Peter Dundas will show his second collection for the house, just days after it announced it would be opening its first store in Iran. WASHINGTON President Obamas pick to run the Food and Drug Administration, Dr. Robert M. Califf, was finally confirmed for the job by the Senate on Wednesday, in a vote of 89 to 4, after weeks of opposition from a handful of lawmakers who had blocked his nomination over what they said was the agencys poor record on prescription painkillers. An epidemic of abuse of painkillers has swept the United States, with deaths from overdose of prescription opioids quadrupling since the late 1990s. Some senators used the opportunity presented by Dr. Califfs nomination to question the F.D.A., the agency in charge of approving the drugs. In speeches on the Senate floor over several days this week, they appealed to their colleagues to vote against Dr. Califf, arguing the agency he had been tapped to run had approved too many of the opioid drugs and had ignored the advice of its own expert panels, which have occasionally recommended against approval. F.D.A. stands for Food and Drug Administration, but over the last 20 years it really stands for fostering drug addiction, Senator Edward J. Markey, Democrat of Massachusetts, said in a speech on the Senate floor on Tuesday. We have to have an honest discussion about the role that agency is playing. He added: It is not really a debate over Dr. Califf at all. This a debate over the agency. In response, Kevin Griffis, a spokesman for the Department of Health and Human Services, which includes the F.D.A., said in an email: The F.D.A. takes seriously its role in combating the opioid epidemic. Earlier this month, the F.D.A. launched a far-reaching plan that leverages its science-based approach, focusing on policies aimed at reversing the epidemic. As part of this effort, during the approval process, the agency plans to re-examine the risk-benefit paradigm for opioids to ensure that it considers their wider public health effects. A lawyer for another, Abdula R. Greene, who represented Ethan Philips, called the district attorneys statement a little bit of a smear on their character. But Ken Montgomery, a lawyer for Denzel Murray, another of the teenagers, did not find fault with the choice of words. I think that is a way, from a policy and social standpoint, to say, Young men should exercise a little bit better judgment in dealing with certain things, but what they did didnt rise to criminality, Mr. Montgomery said. I would agree, in a sense, that we live in a country and a world where we have a lot of unhealthy ideas of what appropriate sexual relationships are. Mr. Thompsons decision was a pivotal, if not entirely surprising, turn in a case that dominated news headlines and roiled New York City. The police were initially criticized by some community leaders as waiting too long to alert the public to the report of the rape the police released surveillance video of the suspects two days after the alleged attack and Mayor Bill de Blasio and Police Commissioner William J. Bratton said officials should have alerted residents sooner. Yet from early on, inconsistencies and other disclosures made it clear the case would be an uphill battle for Mr. Thompson, who called for justice for the victim but also made clear the case demanded a careful, thorough investigation. Four of the teenagers arrested last month Mr. Murray, 14; Mr. Philips, 15; Travis Beckford, 17; and Mr. Brown, 18 were released after prosecutors did not file indictments within six days of their arrests, as would have been required to keep them detained pending a trial. Shaquell Cooper, 15, who was also charged in the case, is currently being held in jail on assault charges stemming from an episode in October 2015, officials said. Despite the fear stoked by the initial reports, or the relief that followed the arrests, the case was always complicated. Moments after the mayor said the public should have been alerted more quickly, Robert K. Boyce, the Police Departments chief of detectives, illustrated just how tangled the case was already becoming. Say this about the Oculus: It is breathtaking from the inside luminous, intricate, uplifting and tranquil. Photos of it resemble idealized architectural renderings. There is nothing like it back home, unless home is Milwaukee or Liege, Belgium, where some of Mr. Calatravas masterworks have been constructed. Elsewhere at the trade center, a family of four (two parents with a 10- and a 6-year-old) can expect to spend $179 just to get into the National September 11 Memorial Museum and the One World Observatory. The Oculus, however, will be free. It will be free because it is a public space. It is bound to be one of the most popular destinations in Lower Manhattan. Its balconies, cantilevered like diving boards at either end of the elliptical hall, will become Selfie Central. A comparison with the balconies at Grand Central Terminal is almost inevitable. Not surprisingly, Mr. Calatrava cites the terminal as inspiration. The Chinese media have never had much freedom to pursue muckraking stories, or even to dutifully report the facts. Now, President Xi Jinping is going to extraordinary lengths to rein the press in even further. Mr. Xi recently visited the three main newsrooms in the country to convey in unmistakable terms that journalists are expected to behave like apparatchiks. That message, which predictably received fawning coverage, came a few days after the government announced it would further restrict foreign media, too. Under rules Beijing says it will start enforcing next month, foreign companies will be barred from publishing online content including text, videos, maps and games in China without prior approval from the government. The regulations, which could affect major American companies including Amazon, Microsoft and Apple, are intended to promote core socialist values. Those stifling steps will add to the information barriers Chinese people already face. Major sites, including Google, Facebook and Twitter, which hundreds of millions of people around the globe use, are already blocked in China. The Chinese government began blocking access to the English and Chinese websites of The New York Times in 2012, in retaliation for an article that exposed the hidden wealth of relatives of Wen Jiabao, who was then prime minister. State governments are at the front lines of the countrys epidemic of drug overdose deaths. Thats why it is important that the National Governors Association says it will come up with protocols for dispensing prescription painkillers that are among the biggest sources of addiction and abuse in the country. The protocols, or guidelines, would restrict how and under what circumstances doctors could prescribe a category of pain drugs known as opioids. They might, for example, impose limits on how many pills doctors could prescribe to patients who have had minor surgery or dental procedures. More than 47,000 people died from drug overdoses in 2014; 61 percent of those deaths involved opioids like the prescription drug oxycodone, and illegal substances like heroin, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The rate of drug overdose deaths has increased by 140 percent since 2000, while prescriptions for opioid painkillers have quadrupled in roughly the same period. Experts say many patients who become addicted go on to use heroin and other illegal opioids. To the Editor: I applaud The Times for publishing Susan Jacobys Sunday Review article decrying the grip that religion and superstition have on public discourse and politics in the United States: especially that so many people accept God bless America as sacrosanct when it is no such thing (Sick and Tired of God Bless America, Feb. 7). It denies our countrys tradition of tolerance for different beliefs. People laugh dismissively when I confess that I have no religion. They think that my views are simply a passing lapse. It used to be said during World War II that there are no atheists in foxholes. I am a veteran of World War II. I fought in Europe. I was an atheist then and I am an atheist now. BERNARD GOODMAN Glen Cove, N.Y. To the Editor: While I yield to no one in my scorn for religions ability to explain the natural world, Ive never considered my atheism especially important. Supernatural gods and life after death simply seem implausible to me, as do elves and unicorns. Almost anything Vladimir Putin touches these days is perceived by the West as a weapon, and almost everything he does is seen as an attack, very often a successful one. The Kremlin can change facts on the ground, stage quasi cease-fires and create zones of influence to exert pressure on other nations. It has done so in Moldova, Georgia and Ukraine, and the pattern is now being repeated in Syria. Meanwhile, the West goes on declaring one Kremlin success after another in ways that many Russians themselves cannot see. Under an editorial headline Putins Syria Victory, for example, The Wall Street Journal opined on Feb. 12: Negotiations can freeze the conflict in place, a tactic Russia used to its advantage after the invasion of Georgia in 2008 and last years Minsk agreement over eastern Ukraine. It is not by crude force alone that Russia twists events to its advantage. By using its total control over the Russian news media to sow confusion in the West, Mr. Putin has managed, in the words of the journalists Peter Pomerantsev and Michael Weiss, to weaponize information. In a report published in late 2014 by the New York-based Institute of Modern Russia, they outlined how the Kremlin manipulates the media, ethnic tensions and trade and financial transactions abroad to further its own ends. Take the example of a news story by Russias state-run television this January about the alleged rape by migrants of a German girl of Russian extraction in Berlin. German prosecutors said the allegations were not confirmed, and Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier who usually weighs his words with great care dismissed the affair as propaganda. But the Russian media succeeded in blowing the incident out of all proportion, stoking anti-immigrant protests and resentment among Germanys nearly six million Russian speakers. Senator John Cornyn of Texas, the majority whip, said, We believe the American people need to decide who is going to make this appointment rather than a lame-duck president. These statements are so twisted that its hard to know where to begin. Lets take them one by one. First, Mr. Obama is not a lame-duck president. The lame-duck period is broadly understood to run from after the November election until a new president is inaugurated in January. November is more than eight months off. Based on the average number of days it has taken the Senate to act on previous Supreme Court nominees, the seat could be filled by this spring. Second, no matter how often Republicans repeat the phrase let the people decide, thats not how the system works. The Constitution vests the power to make nominations to the court in the president, not the people. In any case, the people have already decided who should make this appointment: They elected Mr. Obama twice, by large margins. Third, it is preposterous to accuse Mr. Obama of causing a bitter struggle by nominating someone who will not be confirmed. The only reason a nominee would not be confirmed is that the Senate has pre-emptively decided to block any nominee sight unseen. Mr. Obama is once again the only adult in the room, carrying out his constitutional obligation while Senate Republicans scramble to dig up examples of Democrats trying to block nominees. But those examples show only that Democratic senators have pushed hard for Republican presidents to pick ideologically moderate nominees. Until now, neither party has ever vowed to shut down the nomination process entirely, even before it has begun. Only two Republican senators, Mark Kirk of Illinois and Susan Collins of Maine, were brave enough to say that they would vote on President Obamas nominee. This is what passes for moderation in todays G.O.P.: simply stating a willingness to do the job you were elected to do. Opinion / Columnist When we were still growing up in the rural area of Buhera, uncle Lazaurus used to be a fun chap. He would challenge us to a fight while he knelt down with one hand tied tightly on his body. That means he would use one hand to fight the four of us together. Nevertheless, he would beat all of us to a pulp in that condition.I invoked that memory following developments in the political matrix in Zimbabwe. Opposition parties are living under the delusion that the ongoing internal tiff in Zanu PF will resurrect them. Last week the private media told the nation that Morgan Tsvangirai was capitalizing on the infighting within Zanu PF to reach Zanu PF's rural strongholds.This week, Tendai Biti-led People Democratic Party (PDP) was in the newspaper claiming that it had made significant pace in recruiting people in Bulawayo, taking advantage of Zanu PF's internal squabbles. They claim that they are recruiting 3000 members within two weeks. Good for them.However, Zanu PF's internal squabbles have not gone to unredeemable level. Even with these internal tiffs currently obtaining, the revolutionary party is still unassailable. As Vice President opined, Zanu PF is like an elephant which keeps going steadily while puppies bark at it. Zanu PF will still go on despite barks from puppies in the opposition camp. The internal tiff is a process that actually transforms the revolutionary party into a formidable entity. It is like gold which is purified by being subjected to intense heat. Zanu Pf will emerge from the current situation with a well refined internal democracy.Zanu PF is like baboons, which despite their difference; fight an enemy as a troop. They forget their differences and face the common adversary. When elections come, those differences will be held in abeyance and they will face the adversary with unity of purpose. It is not the first time that these differences had occurred in Zanu PF. In all the cases, Zanu PF remained as strong as ever if not stronger. Simba Makoni, Dumiso Dabengwa and many others left the revolutionary party but it went on to thrash the opposition in 2013.The irony of it is that the opposition wants to remove a speck in Zanu PF's eyes when they have a log in their own eyes. There are worse divisions in the opposition that have seriously fragmented it. We have lost count of the splinter parties from the original MDC of 1999. Zanu PF members differ but never on principle or ideology. This is the reason why there have not been as many splinter groups as those from the MDC. Even now, the opposition parties are failing to unite in the so-called grand coalition because of their selfish personal egos. They are diametrically opposed in ideology.In any case, Zanu PF has never been a dominant party in Bulawayo where PDP is harvesting members. It is an MDC-T's stronghold. In fact, PDP is sharing supporters with the MDC and MDC-T. This is the reason why supporters have been arguing that splitting as they did, divides votes. The 2018 elections will show them that they were merely sharing supporters.PDP unashamedly lied that they used to be disturbed by Zanu PF youths whenever they held their meetings. If the said youths disrupted them, why didn't they report to police? It is their democratic right to do so. To the Editor: Re The Plan to Shut Down Gitmo (editorial, Feb. 23): The editorial board seems to think about closing Guantanamo Bay in the context of budget constraints and the rhetoric of national security. But the idea that closing Gitmo would help restore Americas standing as a champion of human rights is, as the philosopher Bernard Williams would put it, one thought too many. We should not consider Americas image as a justification for moral action. Closing the prison at Guantanamo Bay is the right thing to do because torture is wrong, unlawful detainment is wrong, Islamophobia is wrong and we should admit that, in this case, America is wrong. ZACK STRUVER Washington To the Editor: Why does the debate over closing the United States prison at Guantanamo Bay never include the broader question of whether this country should still have a naval base there at all? Given recent moves toward normalizing relations with Cuba, shouldnt this issue at least be part of the public discussion? Or do we just assume that the base will play a constructive role in revised Cuban-United States relations? WASHINGTON Apple engineers have begun developing new security measures that would make it impossible for the government to break into a locked iPhone using methods similar to those now at the center of a court fight in California, according to people close to the company and security experts. If Apple succeeds in upgrading its security and experts say it almost surely will the company will create a significant technical challenge for law enforcement agencies, even if the Obama administration wins its fight over access to data stored on an iPhone used by one of the killers in last years San Bernardino, Calif., rampage. If the Federal Bureau of Investigation wanted to get into a phone in the future, it would need a new way to do so. That would most likely prompt a new cycle of court fights and, yet again, more technical fixes by Apple. The only way out of this scenario, experts say, is for Congress to get involved. Federal wiretapping laws require traditional phone carriers to make their data accessible to law enforcement agencies. But tech companies like Apple and Google are not covered, and they have strongly resisted legislation that would place similar requirements on them. We are in for an arms race unless and until Congress decides to clarify who has what obligations in situations like this, said Benjamin Wittes, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. The patent wars have come to the cinemaplex. If you marveled at the facial animations of the current hit movie Deadpool or last years Avengers: Age of Ultron, you probably didnt realize you were watching technology called Mova. Mova captures every facial tick and motion of a human actor and places it on an animated figure. And it won an Academy Award last year. Now the technology we can assume helped the Hulk have a berserk twinkle in his eye as he smashed his way through the Avengers film is the center of a nasty fight between a San Francisco company called Rearden and a Chinese company called the Shenzhenshi Haitiecheng Science and Technology Company. Shenzhenshi, which is affiliated with the Hollywood visual effects company Digital Domain, sued Rearden last February. The tangle over animation technology comes at a relatively quiet period in the tech industrys patent battles. SAN FRANCISCO When you conduct a Google search on your smartphone for a newsy topic say, Donald Trump the results starting on Wednesday will include a horizontal carousel of news articles, each with a little lightning bolt icon and the letters AMP at the bottom. Click on any one of the articles, and it will come up immediately, with no wait. The fast-loading format, developed by Google with input from a wide range of publishers, is the latest effort by online publications to solve a problem that is the bane of smartphone users everywhere: Most mobile web pages take too long to load. The sluggishness is due in part to how websites tend to be built old and new technologies are often mixed together on a page. But it is also because publishers have filled their pages with more and more widgets that deliver advertising and collect data on their users as media companies try to find ways to make money in a world where ad revenue is quickly shrinking. To understand whats at stake in the battle between Apple and the F.B.I. over cracking open a terrorists smartphone, it helps to be able to predict the future of the tech industry. For that, heres one bet youll never lose money on: Digital technology always grows hungrier for more personal information, and we users nearly always accede to its demands. Todays smartphones hold a lot of personal data your correspondence, your photos, your location, your dignity. But tomorrows devices, many of which are already around in rudimentary forms, will hold a lot more. Consider all the technologies we think we want not just better and more useful phones, but cars that drive themselves, smart assistants you control through voice or household appliances that you can monitor and manage from afar. Many will have cameras, microphones and sensors gathering more data, and an ever more sophisticated mining effort to make sense of it all. Everyday devices will be recording and analyzing your every utterance and action. This gets to why tech companies, not to mention we users, should fear the repercussions of the Apple case. Law enforcement officials and their supporters argue that when armed with a valid court order, the cops should never be locked out of any device that might be important in an investigation. Stripe, the San Francisco-based e-commerce start-up, thrives when other businesses do well. So the company wants to help many more businesses get off the ground. That is the reason behind Stripe Atlas, a new product the company unveiled this week at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain. It aims to make it easier for entrepreneurs to set up small businesses in the United States. If all goes according to Stripes plan, Atlas could let start-up founders sidestep some of the bureaucratic hurdles that often hamper building a new business. Determining eligibility requires little more than filling out a form. After that, Stripe will incorporate an entrepreneurs company as a business entity in Delaware, and provide the entrepreneur with a United States bank account and Stripe merchant account to accept payments globally. The target audience is all of the entrepreneurs outside the United States who want access to the countrys well-developed banking infrastructure and business services. Stripe is particularly interested in attracting entrepreneurs from Africa, Latin America, the Middle East and parts of Asia, among other regions. How big is the difference in voting rate among the rich and poor? Its stark at the very top. One study found that around 99 percent of the top 1 percent voted in 2008, compared with 49 percent of the people making less than $10,000. And according to 2010 census data and 2012 exit poll numbers ... About 50 percent of households made less than $50,000 a year, but that group punched below its weight, representing only 41 percent of the turnout in the election in 2012. About 20 percent made more than $100,000 a year, but that share of the 2012 turnout was 28 percent. Low participation among the poor contributed to a dismal voting rate of less than 37 percent in the 2014 midterm elections. Would our policies be different if there were compulsory voting? Recent research has shown significant differences between voters and nonvoters. Before the 2012 election, a Pew study found a strong preference for President Obama over Mr. Romney among nonvoters: 59 percent support for Mr. Obama versus 24 percent for Mr. Romney. The study also found that nonvoters expressed a greater appetite for progressive taxation and a bigger role for government. In other words, these are Mr. Sanderss people, and the playing field would be expected to tilt to the left. Advisers to Mr. Rubio are quick to point out that he has placed second in the last two contests, no matter how slim the margin, and that polls show he remains the overwhelming second choice for most Republican voters. Now, after arguing that the results in Iowa and South Carolina effectively narrowed the primary to a three-man race, his team is suggesting that his finish in Nevada has turned it into a two-man contest with Mr. Trump. That may be wishful thinking, particularly given his middling finish in Nevada. But projecting an aura of victory and confidence, even if the election returns suggest otherwise, is an essential element of the Rubio campaigns strategy. On Saturday night, even before they knew what the results in South Carolina would be whether Mr. Rubio would finish second or third campaign officials were acting publicly as if they had won. They distributed news articles about how Mr. Rubio was surging, and they reminded voters of the states track record in predicting winners. Still, the Rubio campaign risks underestimating the breadth of Mr. Trumps appeal by dismissing him as the latest incarnation of Pat Buchanan, another conservative populist who made a strong showing with Republican primary voters early on in 1992 but ultimately faltered. Mr. Bush tried to project a similar air of inevitability. Party leaders quickly lined up behind him. The biggest Republican donors signed on. And his supporters were making many of the same arguments Mr. Rubio is now: In a topsy-turvy campaign, he was the safe, sane alternative who would unite the majority of the party that appears to dislike Mr. Trump. Mr. Rubio himself has been making this argument, optimistically claiming the nomination is his to lose. I am going to be the nominee, he said aboard his campaign plane on Monday as he crisscrossed Nevada. Weve shown the capability to grow, he added. Six months ago, we werent at 20 or 25 percent. We were at 6 and 7 and 8 and 9. In a telling sign, he now entertains detailed questions about his path to the nomination almost every day, something he had routinely shied from. Over the past 48 hours, he has rolled out dozens of endorsements from current and former Republican governors, senators and representatives to showcase what his aides describe as a coalescing of responsible and respected party figures around his candidacy. But it can sometimes feel as if Republicans are falling in line, not in love. WASHINGTON President Obama on Wednesday said he hoped and expected that the Senate would consider the Supreme Court nominee he selects once he makes his choice, despite a vow by Republicans this week that they would not even meet with his candidate. I recognize that the politics are hard for them, because the easier thing to do is to give in to the most extreme voices within their party and stand pat and do nothing, but thats not our job, Mr. Obama told reporters in the Oval Office after a meeting with King Abdullah II of Jordan. Our job is to fulfill our constitutional duties. Mr. Obama predicted that Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the majority leader, and other Republicans would not be able to sustain their refusal to acknowledge or act on his nominee, adding that in his private conversations with some of them on the matter, it was clear to him that they were not comfortable with that stance. Theyre pretty sheepish about it, the president said. He added, I think it will be very difficult for Mr. McConnell to explain, if the public concludes that this person is very well qualified, that the Senate should stand in the way simply for political reasons. SCRIPT: Applause - Ryan comes on stage VO HOUSE SPEAKER PAUL RYAN, THE CURRENT HEAD OF REPUBLICANS , WILL CHAIR THE PARTYS NATIONAL CONVENTION IN JULY. NAT - Ryan says Hey Hey BUT HIS VIEWS ARE ALMOST THE POLAR OPPOSITE OF THE FRONTRUNNER FOR THE NOMINATION, DONALD J. TRUMP. http://fox6now.com/2016/02/19/fox6-news-sits-down-one-on-one-with-house-speaker-paul-ryan/ NATS OF TRUMP AT RALLY VO AFTER THE TERRORIST ATTACKS IN SAN BERNARDINO, MR. TRUMP CALLED FOR BARRING MUSLIMS FROM ENTERING THE UNITED STATES. MR. RYANS SWIFTLY REPUDIATED HIS REMARKS. SOT: Trump 37149 3714937149 we also have this in our system (man, English, 15 sec): Donald J. Trump is calling for a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States until our countrys representatives can figure out what the hell is going on. // SOT: Ryan 37165_1_paul-ryan-trump-muslims_wg What was proposed yesterday is not what this party stands for and, more importantly, it is not what this country stands for.// Some of our best and biggest allies in this struggle and fight against radical Islamic terror are Muslims. The vast, vast, vast, vast majority - of whom are peaceful, who believe in pluralism, freedom, democracy, individual rights. VO AND JUST LAST WEEK, MR. TRUMP DEPARTED FROM THE REPUBLICAN PARTYS TRADITIONAL POSITION OF STRONG SUPPORT FOR ISRAEL IN THE ISRAELI-PALESTINIAN CONFLICT. SOT: Trump: MSNBC Thats probably the toughest deal in the world right now to make.// If I win... Let me be sort of a neutral guy, VO ON THE ISSUE OF ENTITLEMENTS, MR. TRUMP IS AGAINST CONSTRAINING SPENDING FOR SENIORS. MR. RYAN, ON THE OTHER HAND, IS THE ARCHITECT OF THE PARTYS PLAN TO REIGN IT IN. SOTS: Ryan https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n3VFuWqLBa8 Source Daniel Martinez via Youtube Social security...a cornerstone for many americans...is going bankrupt SOT: Trump: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gp-pY9y4VCg Dr.Gina Loudon via Youtube All other people want to cut the hell out of it, Im not going to cut it at all. Im going to bring the money in and I am going to save it // VO AND ON MATTERS OF FREE TRADE AGREEMENTS, MR. TRUMP IS PRESSING FOR AMERICAN ISOLATION WHILE MR. RYAN WANTS IS A KEY PROMOTER IN GLOBALIZATION. SOT: Trump https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kihtDxtcZ54 NFAtoys via youtube (FOX BUSINESS) We lose a fortune on trade. The U.S. loses with everybody. We;re losing over 500 billion dollars in terms of imbalance with china. // SOT: Ryan 37075_1_paul-ryan-on-tpp_wg We have to engage, we have to lead. Only an active forward-leaning america can tear down barriers to american exports for our jobs. // SOT: Ryan: 37075_1_paul-ryan-on-tpp_wg If we want to create good jobs, we need to make more things in America and sell them overseas. Lets never forget 96% of the worlds people dont live in the US. THey live in other countries and we will not sell them as much as we could if we dont negotiate good trade agreements. VO AS DONALD TRUMPS LEAD STRENGTHENS IN THE PRESIDENTIAL RACE, THE REPUBLICAN PARTY WILL NEED TO FIGURE OUT A WAY TO RECONCILE THE DIFFERENCES. SOT: Trump: That was the end of that campaign, when they chose Ryan. // SOT: Ryan: Donald Trump makes comments about everybody. I dont take any of this stuff personally. END IT The following was sent by Three Expo Events, LLC, the owner of the Exxxotica Lifestyle Conventions that have been held in various cities around the U.S. Dear Dallas, On February 10, 2016 the City Council voted to unconstitutionally ban Three Expo Events, LLC, producers of the Exxxotica Expo, from ever hosting an event at the city-owned Dallas Convention Center in Dallas, Texas. From that moment weve been working diligently to file an injunction enabling us to regain our May 2016 dates; that lawsuit also includes charges of First and Fourteenth Amendment violations, due process violations as well as claims of their tortious interference. These claims are all against the City of Dallas, its Mayor and City Council members who voted to ban the event, in their official capacity but also individually as well. To view the complaint, click here. As of today, February 23, 2016, our complaint is complete and we have given our attorney, Roger Albright, permission to file at will. It is important to recognize that once this lawsuit is filed, it is impossible to put the genie back in the bottle. It will likely cost the City of Dallas and its taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars, if not more, in legal fees and damages. This is on top of the already filed potential class action lawsuit filed yesterday in Federal District Court in Texas. But there is another option. An option that makes this all go away. We have directed our attorney to pass the finalized complaint to the City in hopes they will review our claim, recognize their mistake, and reconsider their ban. To view the letter, click here. We are a lawful event, produced successfully with zero incidents in 2015 at the Dallas Convention Center and attended by over 15,000 Dallas area residents who enjoyed an educational, artistic and fun experience. So we ask, why spend wasted time and taxpayer money on maintaining a ban their own City Attorney strongly advised them against? Since the initial vote was 8-7, it only takes one city council member to make this right. WASHINGTON Senate Democrats were slightly surprised when Republicans told the White House budget director this month not to bother making the ritual presentation of a spending plan. They were absolutely astonished when Senate Republicans took the power struggle to an entirely new level by announcing that they would not even shake hands with a Supreme Court nominee selected by the duly elected president of the United States. This is so far outside of the usual conduct, Senator Tom Udall, Democrat of New Mexico, said on Wednesday. This is hardball politics over the Supreme Court, unfortunately. The conflict between Republicans and President Obama has entered a new phase after another year of confrontation. Republicans circumvented the White House to invite the prime minister of Israel to address Congress. They wrote a letter warning the leaders of Iran that a nuclear deal could be unraveled. They snubbed the budget chief. Now they have no interest in meeting a court nominee. Republicans say that they are fully within their rights to refuse to act on a nominee, and that Democrats would do the same thing if their situations were reversed. HOUSTON The highest criminal court in Texas dismissed a case against former Gov. Rick Perry on Wednesday, apparently ending the long-running abuse-of-power accusations that dogged Mr. Perry during his failed run for the Republican nomination for president. In its ruling, the court tossed the one remaining charge against Mr. Perry and upheld the previous dismissal of a second charge by a lower court. A grand jury in Travis County indicted Mr. Perry in 2014, charging him with abusing his power while in office in 2013 when he pressured the district attorney in Austin to step down by threatening to cut off state financing to the anticorruption unit in her office. He became the first Texas governor in nearly 100 years to face criminal charges. Tony Buzbee, a Houston lawyer who was representing Mr. Perry, called the ruling on Wednesday by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals a long time coming one year and six months after his indictment in August 2014. The court ordered the indictment dismissed. In Austin, Mr. Perry told reporters that the courts ruling proved the indictment was nothing less than a baseless political attack as he struck a businesslike demeanor at a news conference. Mr. Perry, who withdrew from the presidential race in September as his campaign effectively ran out of money, said the shadow of criminal charges undercut his bid. Obviously this indictment, as it would anybody, had a negative effect on our candidacy, Mr. Perry said. Declaring Alabamas law unconstitutional in August 2014, Judge Myron H. Thompson of Federal District Court in Montgomery rejected the states argument that admitting privileges would enhance patient care. If this clinic-closing requirement did not constitute an impermissible undue burden, he wrote, then almost no regulation, short of those imposing an outright prohibition on abortion, would. Condemning the decision and vowing to appeal, Gov. Robert Bentley reiterated his opposition to abortion as he stated: As a doctor, I firmly believe that medical procedures, including abortions, performed in Alabama should be done in the safest manner possible. This law ensures that if a complication arises there is continuity of treatment between doctor and patient. The Montgomery clinic juggles the schedules of three traveling doctors, including Dr. Parker. Already, many of the 1,000 to 1,200 women obtaining abortions at this clinic each year face hours of driving, Ms. Ayers said, and all must make the trip twice because the state requires a 48-hour waiting period after the first visit, which abortion opponents hope will cause those planning to end their pregnancies to have second thoughts. More than two-thirds of the clinics patients live at or below the poverty line, and a large majority already have at least one child, she said. Ashley Garza, 29, who retired after six years in the Air Force that included service in Afghanistan, was in the clinic for an abortion the other day. She and her boyfriend, who plan to eventually marry and have a family, had driven two hours from the southeastern corner of Alabama. If I had a child now, wed be in absolute poverty, said Ms. Garza, who scrapes by on the G.I. Bill while pursuing a degree in social work and who described her own childhood as one of extreme hardship. It wouldnt be fair to the child. From their town, it would be a five-hour drive to the sole surviving clinic, in Huntsville, which, Ms. Garza said, a lot of women just couldnt do. Ramon Castro, a Cuban rancher and the elder brother of Fidel and Raul Castro, died on Tuesday in Havana. He was 91. His death was announced in a brief report by the Communist Partys official newspaper, Granma. Mr. Castro did not join his brothers in the guerrilla movement that preceded the 1959 revolution that overthrew the government of President Fulgencio Batista, according to news reports at the time. But the Granma report said that he was a prisoner of the Batista government in 1953, the same year that Fidel and Raul attacked an army barracks in Santiago. The attack failed, and both Fidel and Raul were imprisoned. Ramon aided his brothers efforts as their revolution progressed, Granma said. Ramon Castro Ruz was born on Oct. 14, 1924, in Biran, a rural district in Oriente Province. He was the eldest son of Angel Castro, a planter who had been born in Spain, and his second wife, Lina Ruz. Like his brothers, Ramon was educated in Roman Catholic schools, but unlike them, he remained in Biran while they continued their studies in Havana. Not long after Fidel Castro defeated Batistas armed forces and seized control of the country on New Years Day in 1959, a report in The New York Times hinted at a split in the family. The government appropriated land from Ramon Castros 21,650-acre farm within a year of his brothers rise to power. Running water was restored on Wednesday to parts of Indias capital region, after protesters sabotaged a major canal in a dispute over preferential treatment for certain social castes. The crisis highlights the precariousness of Delhis water infrastructure, which supplies both the citys gleaming skyscrapers and its teeming slums, and has left residents wondering how it could happen in a country that prides itself on technological innovation. Who is affected? The waterway that was damaged by protesters, the Munak canal in Haryana State, provides 55 percent of Delhis water, funneled from rivers in northern India. Even when it is fully functioning, the canal cannot supply the capital region with enough water to meet its needs, especially in the dry season. Officials told many of the regions 25 million residents to use water sparingly and closed schools on Monday as crews raced to make repairs. Bersih 2.0, which challenged the ban in the High Court, will appeal the ruling, Ms. Abdullah said. I dont know where they got the idea we are a national security threat, she said. We are going to challenge this decision. A lawyer representing the group, New Sin Yew, said that under the edict, shirt wearers could be fined about $1,185. Some people have been briefly detained for wearing the shirts, he said, but he was unaware of anyone being prosecuted or fined. A Malaysian government spokesman declined to comment on the case but insisted that citizens were free to speak their minds. The reality in Malaysia is that there is freedom of expression without fear of prosecution, he said, speaking on the condition of anonymity. Online and in print, the media is freer than it has ever been. The huge transfer of funds to Mr. Najibs account has been reported to have come from companies linked to a sovereign wealth fund, 1Malaysia Development Berhad, or 1MDB. Mr. Najib set up the fund and is the chairman of its advisory board. Mr. Najib has not publicly explained the source or purpose of the money, although he has denied wrongdoing and said that he took no money for personal gain. Bersih 2.0 urged the prime minister to step aside while the unusual transactions were investigated. Instead, Mr. Najib has used his authority to derail government investigations, including removing the attorney general before he could conclude his investigation and firing a deputy prime minister who questioned the transactions. KATHMANDU, Nepal A small plane carrying 23 people crashed in mountainous terrain minutes after takeoff from the city of Pokhara, Nepal, on Wednesday, killing all aboard, rescuers said. Rescue workers have retrieved 17 bodies, said Bishworaj Khadka, deputy police superintendent in the Myagdi district, about 100 miles northwest of Kathmandu, the capital. Among the dead were two foreigners, one from China and one from Kuwait. Mr. Khadka said that the plane had broken into fragments and that bodies were unrecognizable. The minister for civil aviation, Ananda Prasad Pokharel, said bad weather was the probable cause. The weather was not so clear, Mr. Pokharel said. Snowfall, rain and thick fog are responsible for the crash. He said his agency would investigate why the plane took off in bad weather. The plane, which was headed to the city of Jomsom from Pokhara, was a 9NA-HH Twin Otter just purchased by Tara Air, a domestic carrier. The airliner also confirmed the death of all passengers and crew members. Jomsom, about 200 miles northwest of Kathmandu, is the gateway city to a temple that is popular with Hindus and Buddhists. SEOUL, South Korea Tensions between South Korea and China over how to deal with the North have flared into an unusually blunt diplomatic dispute, with Seoul telling Beijing on Wednesday not to meddle in its talks with the United States over the possible deployment of an American missile-defense system here. Jung Youn-kuk, a spokesman for President Park Geun-hye of South Korea, said Seouls decision to discuss the system, known as Thaad, which stands for Terminal High Altitude Area Defense, was based on its own need for self-defense against North Koreas growing nuclear and missile threats. This is a matter we will decide upon according to our own security and national interests, Mr. Jung said Wednesday. The Chinese had better recognize this point. A senior official, speaking to reporters at the South Korean Foreign Ministry on the condition of anonymity, went further, advising China to look into the root of the problem if it really wants to raise an issue with it a reference to the Norths pursuit of nuclear and ballistic missile technology and what South Koreans and Americans consider Chinas failure to dissuade Pyongyang from that path. BERLIN Austria and nine Balkan states on Wednesday agreed on several measures to choke off the flow of refugees from Greece, effectively imposing their own response to the migrant crisis while the European Union has been paralyzed over what to do. The moves, by the foreign and interior ministers of the 10 countries, come amid Europes preparations for another surge in people fleeing war and poverty in the Middle East and beyond as winter wanes and the weather turns warmer. The practical effect of the steps they agreed on during a meeting in Vienna on Wednesday will probably be to keep more of the migrants in Greece, the primary point of entry into the European Union for people coming from Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria and other troubled countries. A. Sometimes its really very hard not to put myself in the shoes of others. For instance, there is a woman in Madaya who is besieged there, and her husband, a fighter, later moved to Idlib as part of a cease-fire deal. He tells me he misses her so much, and she tells me she misses him so much. And I imagine what its like being this couple. On the other hand, it gives me hope that there are still people in this situation who are in love. Hwaida Saad A. All of us find ourselves taking on the trauma of those we talk to. Every now and then, someone cries in the office. (Besides us, we have Syrians and others working with us. And whoevers feeling strong that day supports the others.) Sometimes people ask us for help or advice that were just not in a position to give. And we have to remember to take time to take care of ourselves, and our families. (On the other hand, some of the questions are funny and keep us grounded the woman from Madaya asked us for a recipe to make kaak, a kind of bread, after she received flour that she hadnt had in a long time.) Anne Barnard Dangers to Reporters Q. You mentioned the rise of the Islamic State and kidnapping. Do you consider your job to be more dangerous than it was when you first started out? Or is it more that theres a shift in the type of threats against reporters? tarheeljourno A. Syria has become by far the most dangerous conflict to cover that Ive worked on and that includes the war in Iraq. The combination of massive airstrikes on insurgent areas by the government, the almost near-certainty of kidnapping of journalists in insurgent-held areas, and the complexity of the conflict makes much of Syria very difficult to access most of the time. On the other hand, the ability to use online methods to contact people gives us a much clearer window into places we cant reach one that I could only have dreamed of in the pre-social media age of covering, say, the early United States occupation of Iraq. Anne Barnard Cultivating Contacts Q. In covering Syria, how has the way you report and gather information changed since the start of the war? Do you find it more challenging to find sources? tarheeljourno A. At the beginning of the uprising, the challenge was to find people willing to talk without fear of getting in trouble with the government. Later, people inside became less afraid of talking online. FERNDALE, Mich.Nalpac is now accepting orders for The Womanizer, one of the most popular products on the market now. The Womanizer has become an overnight sensation and the most sought-after pleasure product in Americas top retail chains, said Frank Alde, CEO of Epi24 USA, the company behind the Womanizer. We are very excited to work with Nalpac to further expand our distribution footprint. Womanizer has been called a revolutionary new female pleasure product. Using its patented PleasureAir technology, the medical-grade silicone head surrounds the clitoris to provide touchless stimulation. The Womanizer W100 features five different intensity levels, hygienic silicone, USB charging, and is offered in a variety of prints and colors. Also available is the Special Edition W500 model which is positioned above the original Womanizer and offers a rose pattern, additional intensity levels, and an optimized shape. We have received overwhelmingly positive feedback on this unique toy, said Glenn LeBoeuf, Nalpacs vice president of operations. People cant wait to get their hands on the WomanizerIve never seen anything like it! For more information on the Womanizer, visit Nalpac.com or contact an account manager [email protected] or (800) 837-5946. JERUSALEM Israeli soldiers accidentally shot an army officer in the West Bank on Wednesday while they were trying to thwart an attempted stabbing, the Israeli military said. The officer, who was hit in the chest, died of his wounds. The soldiers were aiming at a Palestinian assailant who was trying to attack the officer, according to the military. The attacker was injured by the soldiers fire. The shooting occurred at the Gush Etzion Junction, a busy and heavily guarded intersection that has been the scene of numerous Palestinian attacks against Israelis in the last five months. The officer, Capt. Eliav Gelman, 30, a resident of Karmei Tzur, a nearby Jewish settlement, had been on reserve duty and was waiting for a bus home at the time. An Israeli man was accidentally killed in December when border police officers shot at two Palestinian men who stabbed two Israeli civilians in Jerusalem. LOS ANGELESPleasure product manufacturer PicoBong, for the second year in a row, will sponsor the Best DVD Director category at the 2016 TEAs. The 2016 Transgender Erotica Awards will be held on Sunday, March 6, at the Avalon in Hollywood, Calif. The official After Party will be held on Monday, March 7, at the Avalons connecting property, the Bardot. Were so very honored to be sponsoring the TEAs again this year. As creator of the first-ever gender-neutral toy Transformer, we firmly believe that quality pleasure (whatever shape it takes) should be fun, flexible, and accessible to anyone and everyone, so we create sex toys that are fun, flexible and that take some pretty unusual shapes, said a representative from PicoBong. Were thrilled to have PicoBong as our Best DVD Director sponsor for the second year in a row, added Groobys Marketing and Editorial Director Kristel Penn. The inclusive nature of their products really encapsulates what were trying to achieve for the TEAs as well, so I think its a great fit. The Transgender Erotica Awards, now in its eighth year, celebrates the accomplishments of the trans adult industry and its performers. Visit theTEAshow.com for more information. Sponsorship and media inquiries can be directed to [email protected]. SAN DIEGO A California man pleaded guilty Wednesday to killing his girlfriend in Panama, where her remains were discovered in a jungle two years after she vanished. In his plea, Brian Brimager admitted to second-degree murder in federal court in San Diego, saying he stabbed 42-year-old Yvonne Lee Baldelli of Dana Point in the back and then dismembered her body with a machete and disposed of her remains on a Panamanian island, where the couple had been living for two months in 2011. Prosecutors say after her death, Brimager withdrew money from Baldellis account and sent emails on her laptop to make friends and family members think the California woman was traveling. A Panamanian citizen found her skeletal remains inside a backpack in 2013. Brimager regrets what he did, defense attorney Devin Burstein said. Hes accepted responsibility for his actions, Burstein said. Hes deeply sorry, and nobody should be judged solely on the worst mistake of their life. More facts and circumstances will come out at sentencing. The 39-year-old former Marine faces up to life in prison at his May 25 sentencing hearing. Before his arrest in 2013, Brimager had moved to the San Diego County and married the mother of his young child. The defense had tried unsuccessfully to get the case dropped by saying Brimager could not be charged in the United States for a crime committed in a foreign country. When Jeb Bush suspended his campaign Saturday in South Carolina, hed burned through most of that cash without winning a single state. It may go down as one of the least successful campaign spending binges in history. Positive Advertising: $84 Million When Bush finally did get in the race, he needed to reintroduce himself to the Republican electorate. After all, it had been eight years since the end of his final term as Floridas governor. His campaign and a super PAC supporting him spent heavily on sunny advertising spots in the hopes of announcing Bush to the post-Tea Party Republican Party as a credentialed conservative. The Consultants: $10 Million A well-funded candidate tends to attract hordes of consultants, and Bush had plenty. All told, his team paid consulting fees to around 140 companies or individuals, including senior campaign staffers, opposition research firms, and get-out-the-vote operatives in Iowa and South Carolina. Branding: $88,387 Right to Rise, the super PAC supporting Bush, and then his campaign directly, retained 30 Point Strategies, a public relations company in Bethesda, Md., specializing in thought leadership and brand journalism, according to the firms website. Clubbing: $94,100 Instead of spending last winter on the hustings of Iowa and New Hampshire, Bush held off, instead using the first half of 2015 to raise money in places like New York, Chicago, Texas and Florida. His goal: Raise enough money for a super PAC to scare other candidates especially those with a similar political profile out of the race. Over the entire campaign, Bushs team racked up tens of thousands of dollars in dinner and event tabs at the Yale Club, the Union League Club of Chicago, Nantuckets Westmore Club, and more than two dozen other haunts of the well-heeled and racquetball-inclined. Valets: $15,800 Donors cars dont park themselves. With an aggressive fundraising schedule and several major donor gatherings, Bush and the super PAC Right to Rise incurred a proportional parking tab. People: $8.3 Million As Bushs campaign matured, he and the group supporting him built one of the largest organizations of any candidate in either party, banking that his superior fundraising would sustain his high overhead costs, which in turn would yield him wins or near-wins in states such as Iowa and New Hampshire, where organizing is critical. But Bushs message experience, civility and technocratic competence did little to win over voters mesmerized by billionaire provocateur Donald Trump. Vegas, Baby: $48,544 Bush and his staff racked up sizable travel bills, including $3.3 million in airfare and hundreds of thousands of dollars at hotels, ranging from a Best Western in Phoenix to the Biltmore in Coral Gables, Fla. But what stands out is the Bush teams taste for the Vegas Strip, where aides and allies patronized the Bellagio, the Wynn and the Venetian, owned by Sheldon Adelson, the Republican megadonor. Pizza: $4,837 As his fortunes declined this winter, Bush sharply pared back employees salaries and consulting fees, even laying off some campaign staff members. But never let it be said that Bush allowed his team to go hungry. His campaign and super PAC were particularly fond of pizza from Dominos or Pizza Ranch, the Iowa chain. Santa Ana police arrested 31 gang members during a three-day sweep over the weekend in response to escalating gun violence in the city, officials said Tuesday. Since Jan. 1, there have been 57 shootings in the city, most of which were gang-related. The city recorded 41 shootings last month, compared to 24 in the same time last year. Figures for February 2015 were not available. We plan on sustaining these types of operations until the violence subsides, said Santa Ana Police Chief Carlos Rojas. We want to have an impact. The sweep, dubbed Operation Impact, targeted areas with the most gang activity, he said. He would not say how many similar operations are planned. Around 12 officers seized drugs and seven firearms, ranging from a .25 caliber handgun to an AR-15 rifle. Some of those arrested were taken into custody on gun and drugs charges; or had arrest warrants, Rojas said. The sharp uptick in shootings culminated last week with a drive-by shooting outside a home. Police officers were involved in two shootings that followed on Wednesday and Thursday. In another shooting on Thursday, a man walked into a hospital with a gunshot wound. In the most recent attack, a man was shot twice early Monday while riding a bicycle. Rojas has attributed the increase in part to Prop 47, an initiative passed in 2014 that reclassified some nonviolent felonies to misdemeanors, which can lead to earlier releases from jail. Its that nexus you have between gangs, drugs and guns, he said. The raids are part of a much-faceted approach to combating the rise in crime in the city, said City Councilman David Benavides. Im glad to see theres very a decisive and active response of the part of the police department, he said. As you look at the long haul, we also need to do everything we can to prevent our young people getting tied up in gang activity. Resident Evangeline Gawronski, who has lived in the city for decades, applauded the departments swift response. All theyre doing is trying to protect the innocent people, she said. Every time I pick up the paper and read about a shooting, I go here we go again. Contact the writer: 714-796-2478 or lcasiano@ocregister.com LOS ANGELES The gas storage facility that spewed methane uncontrollably for almost four months, driving thousands of families from their homes, wont resume operations until it has undergone tougher tests than ever required before, a process that will take months and perhaps even longer. The massive leak drew attention to the Southern California Gas Co. facility and the larger subject of old energy infrastructure nationwide. It also put heat on the state to speed up tougher new regulations that will outlaw a risky practice that put the well in jeopardy of a blowout. I wouldnt say it was a wake-up call. Id say it was a You need to accelerate that process, said Jason Marshall, chief deputy director of the state Department of Conservation. Weve moved it to the top of the pile. In addition to passing emergency regulations, the departments oil and gas division directed the Aliso Canyon facility to undergo tests expected to last months and operate in a safer manner changes that could be expanded to statewide regulations, Marshall said. Environmentalists and residents sickened by the foul smell and chemicals have called for the facility to be permanently shut down. The facility is a major source of energy for Southern California and state utility overseers are figuring out how to provide power while its largely out of commission, as well as exploring what would happen if it never reopens. During a legislative hearing Monday on a bill that would prevent the facility from storing additional gas while undergoing tests of its 114 wells, state lawmakers were concerned about power outages during a shutdown. The situation is similar to when the San Onofre nuclear plant shut down in 2013 after a radiation leak, said Michael Picker, the president of the California Public Utility Commission. It wasnt just the power, but it was the ability to support power flows north and south and getting power to certain specific parts of the state, Picker said. A transmission line in Northern California isnt effective in San Diego, for example. Unlike electricity that moves rapidly, natural gas flows about 35 mph and comes from out-of-state pipelines, so plans need to be made before its needed. In addition to residential and business customers, Aliso Canyon serves dozens of gas-fired power plants. They built a system where Aliso Canyon was too big to fail. And it failed, said Rep. Brad Sherman, a Democrat who owns a home in Porter Ranch near the facility. They say, We wont prove to you its safe, well just prove to you its necessary. If the facility were closed, getting new storage permitted would be unlikely because of community opposition and geologic concerns, said Jay Apt, co-director of the Carnegie Mellon Electricity Industry Center Taking something offline is probably forever, Apt said. SoCalGas Chief Executive Officer Dennis Arriola said the company planned to comply with new requirements and accelerate inspections at the facility that has had leaks and failures from corrosion and heavy use. The new requirements will put a crimp in the speed at which gas is injected deep underground for storage when demand is low and withdrawn in colder weather or during demand spikes. Tests will measure the thickness of protective steel casings, corrosion and make sure wells can withstand intense pressures. The company will now be required to inject and withdraw the gas through narrow metal tubing that runs from the mountain-top facility to abandoned oil wells below. SoCalGas had been using both the tubing and a much wider steel casing surrounding it to deliver larger volumes of gas. Experts said that was risky because the casing was a safety barrier if the tubing failed. In the case of the blown-out well, the casing is believed to have failed under high pressure, allowing the gas to escape. Marshall said the practice, which is fairly common, is forever over at Aliso Canyon and will be banned statewide once new regulations are drafted. He said that change is arguably more important than requiring subsurface safety valves. The well that failed had its safety valve removed in 1979. It wasnt required and was never replaced. Anthony Ingraffea, a Cornell University engineering professor who identified the dual injection and withdrawal practice as a fatal flaw after studying the wells records, applauded the new rules and test requirements. He questioned, however, how regulators had been lax for so long. The agency has been criticized for a lack of industry oversight and acknowledged problems just weeks before the Aliso Canyon leak was reported Oct. 23. The promise of additional funding for new hires is not likely to appease critics. The rules dont fix the problems at Californias broken oil regulatory agency, which has a scandalous track record of failing to enforce even basic regulations, said attorney Maya Golden-Krasner of the Center for Biological Diversity. Chicagos Mayor Rahm Emanuel once said, I will not tie this citys future to the dysfunction in Washington and [Illinois capital] Springfield. The former Washington insider captured what many people are thinking this election year: we cant rely on the federal or state government to solve our problems. Both levels of government are paralyzed and financially broke. Instead, we should look to local government for the bold thinking and muscular action needed to build a 21st century economy and fix politics. It is altogether appropriate that local government assume this leadership role. It is local government that affects peoples lives the most on a daily basis. In California, more than two-thirds of all public money is spent by nearly 7,000 local government entities, such as counties, cities, schools and special districts. There are more than 10,000 elected positions in sub-state level offices, as opposed to 128 in the Legislature and the executive branch. In recent years, however, municipal governments have suffered under declines in press coverage, civic engagement and voting turnout. Nearly all local governments have faced pressing fiscal challenges, which have forced several to declare bankruptcy. Some have been rocked by political scandals. To some extent, these problems are due to the fact that local government institutions havent kept up with widespread changes that have taken place in society and our economy. An upgrade is badly needed. County boundaries, for example, havent changed since they were laid out more than a century ago. This has resulted in some incredible disparities: Los Angeles County, for example, has 10 million residents and the next two largest counties Orange and San Diego have about 3 million each. Each has five supervisors the same number of supervisors as the counties of Modoc (population 9,147), Sierra (3,047) and Alpine (1,159). Does one size really fit all? Also, the current state template for municipal government is based on Progressive Era structures designed to keep people of color out of city government and still do. Today, no ethnic group is in the majority in California. Our public spaces were built long before anyone had ever heard of climate change or the rights of people with disabilities. We are fortunate that this renaissance in local government thinking is occurring during an upsurge in student concern for public affairs, especially for the environment. The seeds of community engagement could be planted in K-16 in activities that teach civics and make a point of focusing on local government. So the question arises, how do we build local government structures that are contoured and calibrated to the 21st century? How can we create public spaces that foster democratic values, especially an informed and engaged community? How should cities and counties be reshaped to fit the needs of the 21st century? And, what can our cities and counties learn from municipalities around the country and the world? These questions and others will be addressed in Chapman Universitys second annual conference on local government, which is being held Thursday, February 25, on the Chapman campus in Orange. The day-long conference is presented by Chapmans Department of Political Science and is made possible due to a generous grant from Fieldstead and Company. It is free and open to the public advance registration online is requested. Our conference includes an eclectic group of participants. Weve invited people from inside and outside of academia. We are joined by local government thinkers, doers and achievers from across the nation and from Sweden, Germany and Spain. We hope you will join us. Fred Smoller is an associate professor of political science at Chapman University. PHOENIX When a family begged for help after their 26-year-old son opened fire in their Phoenix home, authorities responded to find a chaotic crime scene they could not prepare for. The shooter ignited a raging fire and was still inside. Officers donned breathing gear, grabbed fire hoses and ran in, hoping to save lives. They pulled out two victims, but they had to make a hasty retreat as bullets flew their way. The violence played out in a cul-de-sac of quiet, suburban family homes Tuesday morning. Authorities eventually found Vic Buckner, 50, Kimberly Buckner, 49, and their 18-year-old daughter, Kaitlin Buckner, who were all pronounced dead. A 6-year-old daughter, Emma, later died at a hospital. The shooter was the couples son, Alex Arthur Buckner, who was fatally shot by police, Sgt. Trent Crump said. Three officers were treated for smoke inhalation. The chaos woke up residents in surrounding houses, forcing some to evacuate just before dawn. Yolanda Strayhand, who lives behind the burned home, said her elderly mother woke her up after hearing gunfire. Strayhand went outside and said her front yard looked like a movie scene, with lights and noise from several fire engines, SWAT officers and a helicopter. We were approached by a lady firefighter who said, Theres a live shooter, Strayhand said. She got a glimpse of the back of the home engulfed in flames. Every room on the top floor was lit, and they were pointing guns toward the basement, she said. An officer came by and told her to leave. Strayhand gathered clothes, medications and her mothers walker, and they both walked down the street. The ordeal began shortly before 5 a.m. when Kaitlin Buckner called 911, pleading for help and saying that her brother had shot her, Crump said. The first officers on scene ran into the burning house because they felt they had to act quickly. You have people that need you to come and rescue them, and you now have not only a fire, but somebody whos also firing a gun in there, the police sergeant said. Authorities pulled out two victims, then a tactical team stormed in 45 minutes later when the gunfire stopped and shot the gunman, Crump said. Officers were looking for the rest of the victims, but they had to leave because the fire reignited in the attic, sending flames through a ceiling. They took Alex Buckners body with them. After the fire was extinguished, they found the other victims. Investigators will likely be gathering evidence at the burned home into the night, Crump said. The police have no record of ever having been called to the house. A next-door neighbor said the family had lived in the home for about two years after moving from Oklahoma. James Graham said he was not close to his neighbors, but they chatted occasionally and never mentioned any problems. Family members told investigators that Alex Buckner, who lived in the home, had received treatment in Oklahoma for drug abuse. They knew that there was some drug abuse in the past, Crump said. They didnt suspect this now and this was completely out of character and they did not see this coming. All the victims had gunshot wounds, but a medical examiner will determine their causes of death, authorities said. Police said they believe the gun used belonged to Vic Buckner. Sammie Evans, who lives across the street, said Emma Buckner was learning how to write and would show Evans notes she had written. They would chat a bit before the girl went back to her house. I used to call her Miss America. She was so sweet, Evans said. Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton was at the scene after crews tamped down the fire. This is what heroes look like, he said of police and firefighters. Their professionalism and their heroism under the worst possible conditions has truly blown me away. IRVINE Organic pesticides will be the first line of defense for Irvine in fighting bugs and weeds, members of the Irvine City Council decided Tuesday. Officials voted unanimously to stop using synthetic pesticides in response to a group of residents, who in 2015 formed the advocacy group Non Toxic Irvine to lobby governmental agencies and homeowners associations to manage plants and pests using organic methods and substances. In all cases, if pesticides are required organic pesticides would be used first, said Dennis Chiotti, Irvines landscape maintenance superintendent. Synthetic pesticides would be used only if other treatment options failed. Irvine has been experimenting with organic alternatives since November, when members of Non Toxic Irvine first reached out. The city manages more than 570 acres of parks, more than 800 acres of right-of-way, 70,000 trees and nearly 1.5 million square feet of facilities. Dozens turned out to urge the council to issue official guidelines as to the use of pesticides on city property and ban synthetic versions. The California Environmental Protection Agency last year announced it planned to label glyphosate, a widely used herbicide, as probably carcinogenic to humans. More than 30 people requested to speak on the topic, including many parents who said they suspect pesticides played a role in their childrens illnesses. Dr. Dean Baker, a UC Irvine professor who directs the schools Center for Occupational and Environmental Health and is an adviser with Non Toxic Irvine, said via video that children are the most susceptible to be harmed from pesticides because of their increased exposure from playing outdoors. Bruce Blumberg, also a UCI professor and adviser to the parents group, said he and other researchers believe that endocrine disrupting chemicals including weedkiller ingredients such as 2,4-D and glyphosate play a role in the rise of non-communicable diseases. The data supporting adverse health effects of pesticides are very strong, Blumberg said. I personally think we have enough evidence to act. Bob Johnson, a former Community Development Director with Irvine, urged the city to be a leader in safe pest management. The citys new policy emphasizes the use of organic pesticides whenever practical, limiting exposure where people gather and using pesticides with active ingredients that are regulated by the Environmental Protection Agency only if needed to protect public health and economic impact. Other methods used for pest and weed control by the city and set out in the guidelines include the release of beneficial insects, use of organic fertilizer, mowing and daily custodial service. Non Toxic Irvine has also found success petitioning the Irvine Unified School District, which recently formed a pest management team and has pinpointed an elementary school as a test site for an organic pesticide program. Contact the writer: sdecrescenzo@ocregister.com SALT LAKE CITY Several top leaders from Warren Jeffs polygamous sect were arrested Tuesday on federal accusations of food stamp fraud and money laundering marking one of the biggest crackdowns on the group in years. The charges are the governments latest move targeting the sect based on the Utah-Arizona border, coinciding with legal battles in two states over child labor and discrimination against nonbelievers. Prosecutors say church leaders diverted funds from Utahs nutrition assistance program for inappropriate use, including forcing members to put food into a communal storehouse so leaders could divvy it up. The group, which believes polygamy brings exaltation in heaven, also used the funds to pay thousands for a tractor and a truck, according to indictments from the U.S. Attorneys Office in Utah. Eleven people were charged in the scheme, including Lyle Jeffs and Seth Jeffs, top-ranking leaders of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and brothers of imprisoned sect leader Warren Jeffs. Lyle Jeffs runs the day-to-day operations in the polygamous community of Hildale, while Seth Jeffs leads a branch of the group in South Dakota. Their brother is serving a life sentence in Texas for sexually assaulting his 12- and 15-year-old brides at a secretive church compound in that state. This indictment is not about religion. This indictment is about fraud, U.S. Attorney John Huber said in a statement. The bust goes well beyond fraud putting in doubt who will lead the group and how members will respond to a decisive message from government officials they have historically despised, said Amos Guiora, a University of Utah law professor who has studied the church. This is a clear drawing of that magical line in that sand that government will not tolerate crimes committed in the name of religion, Guiora said. That is seriously important. The sect does not have a spokesman or a phone listing where leaders can be contacted. The Associated Press could not verify if the defendants had attorneys yet. The arrests come amid a civil rights trial in Phoenix against the twin polygamous towns of Hildale and Colorado City, Arizona, in which prosecutors say the communities discriminated against non-members by denying them housing, water services and police protection. Federal labor lawyers also are going after the group on allegations that leaders ordered parents to put their kids to work for long hours for little pay on a southern Utah pecan farm. The communities deny the allegations. The actions dont appear to be coordinated, but authorities have gotten help from the large numbers of people who have been kicked out or left amid a series of increasingly bizarre orders from Jeffs and leaders loyal to him, said private investigator Sam Brower, who has spent years investigating the group. This is huge blow, Brower said. Combined with everything else, its incredible. Federal, state and local police served search warrants and made arrests Tuesday in Salt Lake City; Custer County, South Dakota; and Hildale and Colorado City. The raids caused a stir in the sister cities of 7,700, with residents snapping pictures. Blake Hamilton, an attorney representing Hildale, said none of those indicted was serving in a government position. It has nothing do to with Hildale, he said. Resident Andrew Chatwin, a former member of the group, said officers went into five businesses, including a dairy store, produce store and a contractor. He saw hundreds of agents and at least one woman being led out in handcuffs. Im watching them break in doors, Chatwin said. Allegations of fraud connected with government assistance have dogged the group for years, but Brower says its become more organized and widespread in recent years under Lyle Jeffs leadership. The indictment accuses several sect leaders of orchestrating a yearslong fraud scheme in which church members were told to divert food-stamp benefits to the churchs storehouse. The leaders are accused of holding meetings in which they told members how to carry out the scheme and how to avoid getting caught by authorities. Guiora said group members refer to the practice as bleeding the beast, taking money from a government they disdain and using as they see fit. Most of the defendants are expected to make initial court appearances Wednesday. They face up to five years in prison for the food stamp fraud and up to 20 years for money laundering, prosecutors said. If the leaders remain jailed and get convicted, there are clear questions about who is going to lead a flock that is very leadership dependent, Guiora said. Two juvenile gang members were arrested shortly after a shootout on Tuesday in Santa Ana with two members of an opposing group, police said. Police received reports of shots fired around 2:43 p.m. in the 1900 block of West McFadden Avenue. Two underage gang members exchanged gunshots with two other juvenile gang members on South Raitt Street and West Monte Vista Avenue in an area where kids were playing, said Cpl. Anthony Bertagna of the Santa Ana Police Department. Two motorcycle officers responded to the call and arrested two of the suspects, who had a firearm. The other two fled on a bicycle toward South Townsend Street. Several vehicles in the area were hit, but no one was reported injured. The two suspects taken into custody were booked in Orange County Juvenile Hall. The incident where the shooting occurred is less than a mile from where an officer and gang member got into a shootout last week. The officer was grazed in the upper torso and the suspect was wounded. Contact the writer: 714-796-2478 or lcasiano@ocregister.com Chinese dandan noodles come in a gazillion styles, some of which bear absolutely no resemblance to the others. The noodles get their name not from their ingredients but because they were originally sold by street peddlers (it refers to a type of carrying pole). Sichuans version is spicy and electric, while Taiwans is creamy and mild. Each has its merits, and for the Taiwanese version, I really like the noodles at A&J Restaurant in Irvine. The noodles, which look sort of like spaghetti, but whiter, are made in-house. They are served very simply with a creamy sesame sauce, plus a generous handful of peanut powder sprinkled over the top. No meat. No chilies. No scallions. Its almost like something you would expect to find on the childrens menu. And its delicious. A&J Restaurant Where: 14805 Jeffrey Road, Irvine When: Lunch and dinner daily What it costs: $5.75 (cash only) Phone: 949-786-3585 Online: aj-restaurant.com Contact the writer: bajohnson@ocregister.com or on Instagram @bradajohnson CAIRO As alibis go, this one would seem to be airtight: Your honor, my client was only a year old at the time of the crime. But it did not stop an Egyptian military court from convicting the accused, a boy now 3 1/2, of killing three people, carrying guns and firebombs, blocking a road with burning tires, and trying to damage government buildings and sentencing him to life in prison. The verdict came last week in a mass trial of 107 people suspected of being members of the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood, and the charges stemmed from the protests, street clashes and police crackdowns in Egypt after the military overthrow of the elected Islamist president, Mohammed Morsi, in 2013. Hundreds of people were killed and thousands were jailed. After an uproar over the conviction of the boy Ahmed Mansour Qorani Sharara, who was never arrested the military said that it was a case of mistaken identity, and that authorities had actually meant to try a 16-year-old student with the same name. The teenager is on the run, the military added in a post on its official Facebook page. But that, too, may be a mistake: Before the military statement, a police spokesman, Abu Bakr Abdel-Karim, said in a television interview that the wanted culprit was the toddlers uncle, a 51-year-old man who has a similar name. In an interview Tuesday, Abdel-Karim said the reason for the mix-up remained unknown. I dont know why there is a contradiction between the statements, he said. Im not the one responsible for communication with the army. A military spokesman, Mohammed Samir, refused to comment. The case shed a stark light on the often dysfunctional Egyptian judiciary, which since 2013 has sentenced hundreds of people to death or to life in prison in mass trials on what human rights advocacy groups have called trumped-up charges. Ahmeds conviction was for crimes allegedly committed by supporters of Morsi in January 2014. The armys announcements about the case of mistaken identity have not included any apology for the distress caused to the childs family, which was evident in an appearance the boy and his father made on one of Egypts most-watched talk shows. I swear I dont want to upset anyone, the father, Mansour Qorani Sharara, said through sobs as he held the boy and pleaded for help. They told me they will take my child. No one will take my child. The shows host, Wael el-Ibrashy, favored the ouster of Morsi and is a prominent supporter of the government of President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi. But he said despondently, I dont know how people are meant to believe in justice after they see this. Shararas wife, Hemat, called in to the show to say that the police came to the family home looking for her husband and child while Sharara was on the air. Sharara had already spent four months in prison because the authorities mistook him for his son. Egypt maintains that its judiciary is independent, and the government routinely rejects all criticism of its judges or their verdicts. Even so, human rights groups say Egyptian judges comply with the governments wishes. Insulting the judiciary is a crime in Egypt, and many people have been convicted of the charge in recent years. San Diego-based rock, punk and reggae band Slightly Stoopid announced the dates for its upcoming summer jaunt, dubbed the Return of the Red Eye Summer Tour, which will hit up Irvine Meadows Amphitheater (8088 Irvine Center Drive) on June 25. SOJA will serve as direct support on most dates and Zion I, the Grouch & Eligh and Fortunate Youth will perform on select portions of the tour as well. Pre-sale tickets are $15-$34.50 and available now for for fan club members at slightlystoopid.com. Tickets for the general public go on sale at 10 a.m. Friday at Livenation.com. The Pacific Amphitheatres Summer Concert Series continues to slowly be announced. Actor, producer, author and Grammy-nominated stand-up comic Jim Gaffigan will bring his latest tour, Fully Dressed, to Pacific Amphitheatre (100 Fair Drive, Costa Mesa) on Aug. 4. Tickets are $35-$65 and go on sale at 10 a.m. Saturday at 800-745-3000 or Ticketmaster.com. Ziggy Marley will team up with Steel Pulse for two nights at the Costa Mesa venue this season with gigs on Aug. 13 and 14. Tickets to those shows are $27.50-$57.50 and also go on sale at 10 a.m. Saturday at 800-745-3000 or Ticketmaster.com. All tickets to Pacific Amphitheatre shows also include admission to the OC Fair. Paul Simon, who hasnt toured the U.S. on his own since 2011, announced an extensive headlining tour for 2016. The tour should coinside with Simons forthcoming release, Stranger to Stranger, which is supposed to drop sometime in the spring. Simon will perform at the Hollywood Bowl (2301 N. Highland Ave., Los Angeles) on June 1. An American Express pre-sale begins on March 1 and tickets (price TBA) go on sale to the general public on March 5 at paulsimon.com. Contact the writer: 714-796-3570 or kfadroski@ocregister.com BEIRUT Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke Wednesday with key players in the Syria conflict, including President Bashar Assad, ahead of a U.S.-Russia-engineered cease-fire, as the opposition voiced concerns that the truce due to begin later this week will only benefit the Syrian government. Government troops backed by Russian warplanes waged fierce battles to regain control of a strategic road southeast of Aleppo from the Islamic State group. The extremist group seized the town of Khanaser and surrounding hills on Tuesday, cutting the main land route to Aleppo. The state-run news agency said 18 people were killed in IS shelling of government-held neighborhoods in the city over the past 24 hours. The truce agreement, which is set to take effect at midnight Friday local time, does not cover the Islamic State group, Syrias al-Qaida branch known as the Nusra Front, or any other militia designated as a terrorist group by the U.N. Security Council. Its not clear exactly where along Syrias complicated front lines the fighting would stop and for how long or where counterterrorism operations could continue. Also unresolved are how breaches in the truce would be dealt with. It remains shaky at best and major questions over enforcement are still unresolved. In a further reflection of the complicated terrain, Turkeys president said Wednesday that a U.S.-backed Syrian Kurdish militia group which Turkey regards as a terror organization should also be kept outside of the scope of the agreement. Turkey has in the past few weeks been shelling the group known as the Peoples Protection Units, or YPG, in northern Syria. The comments by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan suggested Turkey may not stop bombarding the group, which has been a key fighting force against IS. Addressing dozens of local administrators in Ankara, Erdogan also voiced serious concern that the proposed truce will strengthen Assad and lead to new tragedies. Although it has committed in principle to the truce, the main Syrian opposition umbrella group is deeply skeptical and has kept its meetings in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, open while it seeks clarifications from the U.S. about the mechanism for the implementation of the agreement. Salem Al Meslet, spokesman for the alliance known as the High Negotiations Committee which groups political and rebel factions, said his group has major concerns that Russia and Assads forces will continue to strike at mainstream rebels under the pretext of hitting terrorist groups during the truce. However, in a telephone interview with The Associated Press, he reiterated that the opposition wants to stop the bloodshed and would abide by the truce in principle. The Americans are taking note of our concerns and we are waiting for their replies, Al Meslet said. The U.S. is hoping that a cessation of hostilities would reduce the violence in Syria enough to bring the two sides back to the negotiating table in Geneva to discuss a roadmap for a political transition that was unanimously adopted by the U.N. Security Council in December. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry told American lawmakers on Tuesday that he would not vouch for the success of the cease-fire agreement but that it is the best pathway for ending five years of violence in Syria that has killed more than 250,000 people and displaced another 11 million. On Wednesday, Assad and Putin discussed the truce agreement in a phone call. SANA said the two leaders stressed the importance of continuing to fight the Islamic State group, Nusra Front and other terrorist organizations. Putins spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, said there were differences in opinion between Moscow and Damascus but that Russia is one of the few countries still in contact with the legitimate Syrian leader. He did not elaborate. Speaking in a conference call with journalists, he said Moscow was doing its part and expects the United States to do the same to make sure the groups it supports adhere to the cease-fire. The main goal is to stop the bloodletting in Syria, he said. Asked whether Moscow had a Plan B in case the truce did not hold, he replied: We are concentrating on Plan A right now. Its too early to speak of other plans. The Russian military later said its coordination center in Syria has helped negotiate the cessation of hostilities in some areas as part of efforts to implement the cease-fire deal. Russian Defense Ministry spokesman, Maj.-Gen. Igor Konashenkov, said the center, located at Syrias Hemeimeem air base which is hosting Russian warplanes, has received several requests for assistance from various opposition groups. He said cease-fire declarations already have been signed by the government and opposition representatives in several areas in the provinces of Homs and Latakia. Associated Press writers Lynn Berry, Katherine Jacobsen and Vladimir Isachenkov in Moscow, Albert Aji in Damascus and Suzan Fraser in Ankara, Turkey, contributed to this report. On March 5, this popular seaside destination will be all about community and patriotism. Nearly all of the citys 23,000 residents are expected to turn out for the 50th annual Laguna Beach Patriots Day Parade and celebrate patriots who have given service to their country. For a half-century, residents in this town have come together in red, white and blue to celebrate country and community. People travel from far and wide to not only participate in the parade, but to sit along the towns sidewalks, with flags and streamers waving, to support the tradition. A town saying goes: Half the town is in the parade, the other half watches. This year there will be 88 parade entries including the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing Band based in Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, Pacific Marine Mammal Center and the HIP District. Parade watchers have seen everything from horses and historical cars to dressed-up dogs and costumed locals. Former Laguna Beach Mayor Kelly Boyd, an Army veteran and descendant of one of the citys founding families, is this years grand marshal. Boyd, 72, was humbled and shocked when he found out he had been selected. It means a lot to me, Boyd said. I had no idea I was even being considered. Boyd whose grandfather, Joe Thurston, homesteaded along the banks of the Aliso Creek in 1871 has been on the council for the last 10 years. Before that, he had served from 1978-1982. Being a member of the City Council is his greatest honor, he said. But Boyd also served his country as an Army specialist in Vietnam. This year coincides with the 50th anniversary of his military service. Boyd received his draft notice in 1965, went to Vietnam and was assigned to the 2nd Battalion of the 1st Infantry Division, the famed Big Red One, then operating north of Saigon. He was assigned to be a radio operator to his company commander. Over the next year, the division participated in eight major operations, which kept his unit almost continually in the field conducting sweeps. Boyd was awarded three campaign stars on his Vietnam Service Medal plus a unit citation of the Vietnam Cross of Gallantry with Palm and the Vietnam Civil Action Unit citation. It was during his service in Vietnam that he developed a passion for helping others and reached out to folks back home to pitch in. One day, he was riding with the company first sergeant when they came across an orphanage run by Vietnamese nuns near the divisions base camp. We saw the problems especially the lack of clothing and decided to do all we could. He wrote back to Lagunas Rotary Club with a request for help. Aided by newspaper coverage, there was a large response for Kellys Kids. The difficulty came in getting the stuff shipped during the heat of war. The problem was solved when a congressman intervened. The parade also honors retired Marine Lt. Col. Carlos McAfee as this years patriot. He is a recipient of the Navy Cross, the nations highest medal for valor in combat. In 1955, McAfee was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Marine Corps. This was a period of rising nuclear tension between the Soviet Union and the United States, and McAcfee embarked on a dual career path in artillery and intelligence. His first overseas tour was on Okinawa where he served as a battery commander. In 1965 he was sent to language school to learn Vietnamese prior to a prospective tour as an artillery adviser to the Army of the Republic of Vietnam. Instead, he became an operations briefer to General William Westmoreland, the senior American officer there. After four months, McAfee learned that a Marine adviser to the Vietnamese Marine Brigade had been killed in action. McAfee volunteered to take his place. Serving initially with the artillery, he soon joined the brigades 5th Marine Battalion as an infantry adviser. On June 12th, 1966, then Capt. McAfee was with the units leading elements when they became heavily engaged with the enemy during which time the battalion commander and other key personnel were killed. His citation for the Navy Cross reads: Capt. McAfee, the only American remaining, was instrumental in reforming the shattered command and organizing the defense. He requested tactical air support, and with complete disregard for his own personal safety, stationed himself under the direct fire of the enemy in order to direct and adjust air strikes and artillery fire. Despite continued enemy fire of automatic weapons, machine guns, mortars and grenades, Capt. McAfee directed the medical evacuation helicopters into his area to receive wounded. Through his valiant efforts, he prevented the possible annihilation of a Marine battalion by a numerically superior enemy force, and his courageous direction of the medical evacuation undoubtedly saved many lives. McAfee finished his military career at Camp Pendleton and was promoted to lieutenant colonel, and spent his last four years in the Corps developing modern command and control systems. Other parade honorees include Stu Saffer, editor of StuNews as citizen of the year, Dion Wright as artist of the year, Skimboard champions Nick Hernandez Jr. and Sam Stinnet as athletes of the year and Elle Mahdavi and Alexander Rounaghi as Junior Citizens of the Year. Contact the writer: 714-796-2254 or eritchie@ocregister.com Twitter:@lagunaini SAN FRANCISCO A federal judge sentenced former California state Sen. Leland Yee on Wednesday to five years in prison after he acknowledged in a plea deal that he accepted thousands of dollars in bribes and discussed helping an undercover FBI agent buy automatic weapons from the Philippines. Senior District Court Judge Charles Breyer called the weapons allegations against Yee a gun-control advocate unfathomable and said it was frightening that Yee would be willing to go entirely against his public position on guns in exchange for money. I dont feel I should be lenient, Breyer said during the hearing. The crimes that you committed have resulted in essentially an attack on democratic institutions. Still, Breyers sentence fell on the low end of guidelines that called for a prison term of between four years and nine months and six years. Yees attorneys had called for no more than five years and three months behind bars, saying Yee had a history of public service and his wife was ill. Yee, 67, told the judge before sentencing he had accepted responsibility for his crimes and wanted to take care of his disabled wife. Yee is a longtime politician who also served in the state Assembly and on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors. He pleaded guilty in July to one count of conspiracy to engage in racketeering. The charge was filed as part of an organized crime investigation in San Franciscos Chinatown that led to charges against more than two dozen people. The probe also snared Raymond Shrimp Boy Chow, a leader of a Chinese fraternal organization the Ghee Kung Tong. Wednesdays CIF girls water polo semifinals DIVISION 1 SAN MARCOS (26-3) vs. ORANGE LUTHERAN (24-3) Site, time: William Woollett Jr. Aquatics Center, 5 p.m. Outlook: The second-seeded Lancers and No. 3 Royals are in the Division 1 semifinals for the first time, so the winner will achieve another major milestone with their first trip to the finals. San Marcos is the No. 3 seed but beat Orange Lutheran in the teams lone meeting, the finals of the early-season Villa Park Classic at El Toro. San Marcos won, 10-9. The Lancers then finished third at the Holiday Cup before breaking through at the Santa Barbara TOC. Orange Lutheran won the tournament for the first time and hasnt lost since. The Lancers have won 15 consecutive games, including an impressive 14-5 victory at Santa Barbara in the quarterfinals Saturday. San Marcos swept Santa Barbara, 13-4, and, 9-8, en route to a third consecutive Channel League title. Two-time defending Trinity League champion Orange Lutheran has excelled with a press defense and opportunistic offense. Like Laguna Beach, the Lancers dont feature a dominant center but create scoring opportunities with their defense and counterattack. Attacker Emma Skelly leads the Lancers with 87 goals while Kelsey Tyler is a key 2-meter defender as well as a diverse offensive threat (92 assists, 74 goals). Freshman Alyssa Barnuevo has been solid in cage with 150 saves. San Marcos is led by U.S. national team attacker Paige Hauschild (76 goals) and emerging sophomore goalie Sophie Trumbull. The Royals lost twice to Laguna Beach and once to Foothill. Both teams feature strong supporting casts. The squads also been debated in the polls. There was speculation that San Marcos could have jumped to No. 1 in Division 1 had it beat Laguna Beach in the finals of the recent SoCal tournament. The Lancers were No. 1 after winning in Santa Barbara but were passed by Laguna Beach. San Marcos and Orange Lutheran also were debated for the No. 2 seed in Division 1. Twitter Poll: Pick the San Marcos-Orange Lutheran winner In 1969, Apollo 10 astronauts Thomas Stafford, John Young and Eugene Cernan heard weird sounds while orbiting the far side of the moon but the noise was likely the result of radio interference. It began once the capsule was out of the range of any Earth broadcast. At one point, the baffled astronauts can be heard discussing whether they should tell NASA command or not. "You hear that? That whistling sound? Whooooooooo!" one of them says. Another astronaut says he can: "It sounds like, you know, outer space-type music." "Well, that sure is weird music," his companion agrees. The sound lasted about an hour. Once the astronauts were back on Earth, the recording was shelved until 2008. In 2012, NASA put all of the audio archives from the mission online. They have resurfaced in the third season of the Science Channel's series, NASA's Unexplained Files. Astronaut Eugene Cernan has dismissed conspiracies regarding the audio saying, "I don't remember that incident exciting me enough to take it seriously. It was probably just radio interference. Had we thought it was something other than that, we would have briefed everyone after the flight. We never gave it another thought." But Apollo 15 astronaut Al Worden isn't so sure: "The Apollo 10 crew is very used to the kind of noises that they should be hearing." He suggests that had it been interference, it would have been clearly recognized it as such. Three decades after locking eyes with the woman of his dreams, a British man is finally trying to track her down. It was in 1986 that Vernon Burton briefly glanced at a beautiful woman while traveling on a double-decker bus in the New Forest area of southern England. Most people would forget such a fleeting encounter, but Burton never quite managed to put the mystery woman out of his mind and is now looking for her everywhere. Vernon, aged 62, was born and grew up in Hythe, a small town on the south coast of Kent. He moved to Canada in the 1970s for work but briefly returned to the UK in 1986 for a holiday. He boarded the top deck of a Solent Blue Line bus from Mousehole Lane to Southampton city center, which is when he made eye contact with a woman on the top deck of another bus headed in the opposite direction. For some reason I looked back at that other bus and saw a woman looking back at me, Vernon recalled. I came over all light-headed, my stomach felt like it had butterflies and my legs started to shake. The buses started to pull away and I just had to reach my hand out to try not to let her go. To my surprise, she did the same. You hear about these things happening in romantic movies but it really did happen to me, the retired mechanic added. Unfortunately, Vernon was in a relationship at the time and couldnt pursue the matter further. But hes single now, so hes back in the UK and hes trying his best to locate the womans whereabouts. Hes sent posters of himself to the bus company, which is now called Blue Star. Hes also asking people to help him in any way they can. We received this incredibly romantic request and couldnt think of a better time of year to help Mr Burton track down this mystery lady, assistant marketing manager Stacey Tucker told Daily Echo. Its a long shot but lets hope we can bring them together after all these years. Its been thirty years since their very brief encounter, so Vernon doesnt remember very many details about it, but if youd like to the man a hand in finding his dream girl, it may help to know that she had long dark hair, wore a dark top and was with two schoolboys in uniform on the day they met. As Stacey Tucker said, this is a long shot, but miracles can happen. Maybe she remembers him too and seeing his picture she decides to get in touch. Wouldnt that be something? Romanian woman Ortansa Pascariu is the proud owner of a very unusual piece of wardrobe a vest made of her own hair! Ortansa had been collecting fallen strands of her hair for 20 years, and when she thought she had enough, she decided to use it for a unique garment. The 65-year-old revealed that she started collecting her hair in accordance with a tradition followed in her hometown of Stauceni, in the north-eastern part of Romania. The practice suggests that women should never throw away their hair if they want to retain their beauty and good luck. I heard from elderly friends that women should not throw their lost hair away after combing, she said. They need to keep it. If not, the elderly say, it is as if you are throwing away your beauty. I started gathering my hair when I was 40 and by the age of 60 I had managed to gather one kilo, which was as much as I needed for a vest. Photo: Cosmin Zamfirache/Adevarul Ortansa explained that she only saved the hair that had fallen out as she combed it. She always had long hair that reached her hips, so all the strands in her collection were nice and long, making them perfect for knitting. She used two strands to make a single thread, and then used the threads to knit the vest, completing the project in only one week. It was strange, but also very pleasant to knit something in your own hair, she said. She doesnt wear it though after keeping it for about five years she gifted it to the local ethnographic museum, where it is currently on display. Photo: Cosmin Zamfirache/Adevarul Ortansas husband Vasile expressed pride in her unique craftsmanship. Ive touched it and its like some kind of soft wool, he said. Im very proud of what she managed to do. Its really complicated. The vest is also very nice. This is not the first time weve seen clothing items made exclusively from human hair. In 2010, Vietnamese hairdresser Kim Do created a unique tunic from one million meters of human hair. Source: Adevarul.ro via Yahoo UK Katherine Trinidad Washington, D.C.-based lobbying and life insurance industry trade group American Council of Life Insurers has appointed Katherine Trinidad senior vice president of communications and public affairs. Trinidad joins ACLI from defense and security giant Lockheed Martin, which she joined in 2011 and most recently served as director of worldwide media relations. Prior to that she was news chief at NASA and led outreach for that agencys Space Shuttle and International Space Station programs. Trinidad was a journalist prior to entering the communications field, and served as a reporter at Reuters and also held producer roles at CNN and WJZ-TV (Baltimore). ACLI, which advocates public policy in support of the insurance industry, represents about 300 member companies in the U.S. and abroad. Loading... OilVoice will be with you shortly... Deprivation point to be brought back for PhD students in JNU JNU row: How political discourse has stooped to new vulgaritysex and condoms Feature oi-Oneindia By Maitreyee Boruah The war of words between the "nationals" and the "anti-nationals" over the controversy surrounding the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) continued on Twitter on Tuesday (February 23). However, Tuesday saw a new low after Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA Gyandev Ahuja from Ramgarh, Rajasthan, alleged that the students of JNU are involved in "immoral and illicit" activities like sex and drugs. He not only levelled allegations against the students, who are currently fighting a mammoth battle against the central government to free few of their fellow students from charges of sedition, but also gave the nation a count of cigarette butts and used condoms he found on the JNU campus. Ahuja said that daily 50,000 pieces of bones, 3,000 used condoms, 500 used abortion injections, 10,000 cigarette "pieces", among other things, are found at JNU. He added that girls and boys of the prestigious institute dance naked during cultural programmes. Some found these allegations bizarre, others just ignored it, several self-proclaimed nationals stood by what Ahuja claimed and many simply laughed off these controversial remarks. These are the same JNU students, who are levelled as "anti-nationals and terrorists" by a section of media and political leaders. The social media was astonished as how did Ahuja managed to count the number of used condoms and cigarette butts on the huge campus. Soon #BJPCountsCondoms started trending on Twitter. Most of the tweets were hilarious and poked fun at the BJP leader for making such bizarre comments. "Two Minute Of Silence For That MLA Who Counted The Used Condom. #BJPCountsCondoms #SexAndDrugsAtJNU," tweeted Sir Ravindra Jadeja (@SirJadeja). "If you Dont condemn it Condom it #BJPCountsCondoms," tweeted SANJAY HEGDE (@sanjayuvacha). "What is BJP trying to say? "Abki Baar, Condom Ginne wali sarkaar?"#BJPCountsCondoms," tweeted Vinod Mehta (@DrunkVinodMehta). One more hashtag, #SexAndDrugsAtJNU, trended on Twitter. These tweets mostly supported what Ahuja alleged against JNU students without providing any proof. "Is JNU an educational institution or some kind of a pleasure resort for commies? #SexAndDrugsAtJNU," tweeted Shanta Chari (@newagesong). "ICCs Report: "JNU registers highest number of sexual harassment cases in India", out of 101 cases JNU alone have 51 cases #SexAndDrugsAtJNU," tweeted Anshul Saxena (@AskAnshul). "3000 condoms being used in JNU per day, thank them, nahi toh hostel ke har room se Afzalnikatla.#SexAndDrugsAtJNU," tweeted Enlighted Monk (@XLR8ted_MIND). We don't know how we are going to be benefitted by these tweets and counter-tweets, but one thing is for sure, our political discourse has not only become chaotic, but vulgar too. 2016 girls to be given life skill trainings India oi-PTI Kolkata, Feb 23: Adolescent girls from lower economic strata who feel hesitant to communicate with family elders and teachers, will now be given life-skill training to transform them into peer leaders. The programme to train 2016 girls has been launched by CINI, a leading NGO, ahead of International Women's Day on March 8. The initiative 'With You She Can' has been undertaken in different districts of West Bengal and is aimed at building life skill and leadership qualities among young disadvantaged girls and help them come out of the cycle of early marriage, child labour and trafficking, a CINI spokesperson told PTI. "We wish to instill confidence among 2016 girls this year who suffer due to problems related to health, domestic and outside abuse and early marriages. When adolescent girls find someone of their age and gender to communicate and share, they can find the confidence to come out of it," the spokesperson said. She cited an example of 22-year-old Santwana Kar whose parents are daily labourers. Faced with early marriage and little education Santwana had approached CINI and has now become a peer leader and completed her masters in social work. "There could be more Santawanas," she said. The campaign, which will be carried out wherever adolescent rescue centres of the NGO are located in the state, aims at raising Rs 2.6 lakh from the general people as token help to build field workers from among the girls. The girls would get financial help and be encouraged to realise their career dreams, the spokesman added. PTI Godfather 'Strictly Average flick for B & C Class Masses': The 'first review' on net slams Chiranjeevi-starrer 'Godfather' movie review: Chiranjeevi returns to form as fans lap up mega star's new film 7th Pay Commission: Good News! 'Review report' to be submitted likely by April-end India oi-Mukul New Delhi, Feb 24: There is good news in the store for central government employees who are waiting for the implementation of Seventh Pay Commission. Reportedly, review report will be submitted to Finance Ministry at April end. 7th Pay Commission: Revealed! 'Salary increment' may not be before June Pay commission Sources say that P K Sinha headed Empowered Committee of Secretaries will submit its report to Finance Minister Arun Jaitley in April end. At the moment, implementation Cell of the Pay Commission is looking into the recommendations. After processing the report, it will be sent to Empowered Committee in April. "After submission of the report by the Implementation Cell, the report would be examined by the Empowered Committee for cabinet nod immediately", Finance Ministry sources said. Earlier, PMO had ordered officials to speed up review process so that it could be implemented soon. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had asked Committee of Secretaries to provide maximum benefits to central staff. 7th Pay Commission decoded: All you need to know about salary increment; past pay commissions Pay Commission recommends 3% annual increment and 24% hike in pension for central government staffers. Recently, the Defence Ministry also sought a fresh analysis of the concerns raised by the Army, Navy and the Air force- over the recommendations of the seventh pay commission. 7th Pay Commission: Good news for govt employees! Panel may double minimum basic pay The government has studied representations from the armed forces vis-a-vis the 7th Pay Commission and their concerns will be addressed "in the near future", Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar said. OneIndia News Right to wear Hijab does not fall under Article 25 of Constitution: Karnataka govt in HC Hijab row: If uniform is prescribed it must be followed, says Karnataka HC Chief Justice Jaya DA case: Karnataka mocks "brilliant analysis" of High Court India oi-Vicky Bengaluru, Feb 24:The arguments advanced by senior advocate Dushyanth Dave in the J Jayalalithaa disproportionate assets case pointed towards the various errors made by the Karnataka High Court which acquitted the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister. The hearing on the appeal commenced yesterday with Dave arguing for the state of Karnataka which is the appellant in this case. There were several points that Dave raised during his arguments while seeking reversal of the Karnataka High Court verdict. This is not an income tax matter Dave contended while stating that the case on hand was relating to corruption in public life. The issue here is corruption and not whether she has accounted her source of income for the period between 1991 and 1996, Dave also argued. Tons of money carried in suitcases: Stating that Jayalalithaa while on one hand created a veneer of conscientiousness by stating that she was drawing Rs 1 as salary, on the other hand her cadres carried tons of money to the banks. This is nothing but corruption. It has become fashionable for political leaders to term the crores of rupees they get as birthday gifts, Dave further contended. This was the defence that her advocates had taken up before the High Court. Dave said it is quite shocking that such a defence is taken up and even accepted. This according to me is a "brilliant analysis," of the anti-corruption law, Dave said while mocking the verdict of the High Court. I would have disowned them: Dave further went on to raise the point about the marriage of V Sudhakaran which is also a part of this corruption case. Dave jokingly said this was the marriage of the century. The Supreme Court however said we are not looking at this now. There were corruption allegations that had been raised against Sudhakaran. However he continued to live under the same roof with Jayalalithaa. What does this tell you? Had she had some responsibility she would have disowned them. OneIndia News Maharashtra Govt gives nod for inviting EoI for food scheme India oi-PTI Mumbai, Feb 23: Maharashtra Government today approved a proposal to invite Expression of Interest (EoI) for implementing the "Take Home Ration (THR)" scheme. The Cabinet approved the proposal under which tenders will be floated for supply of THR worth Rs 1,200 crore, official sources said. Women and Child Welfare Department will call for an EoI to provide ration through the scheme under which breakfast and ready made lunch is to be supplied to children between 6 months to 3 years of age, those between 3 to 6 years who have lower than average weight and also pregnant housewives. The tender process came under criticism from the Opposition which said it will remove small women self-help groups (SHGs) from competition, and alleged it favours a handful of suppliers. According to a senior official of the Department, the Supreme Court has directed that food items for Anganwadis (government-run childcare centres) be provided through SHGs and not by private contractors. "It is necessary to select a bidder on technical ground and not on commercial ground. Otherwise, the contractor may submit a low cost tender to grab the contract," said the cabinet note. Meanwhile, NCP leader Dhananjay Munde said the move shows the BJP-led Government wants to prevent SHGs from bidding for the contract. "Women and Child Welfare Department is working in favour of a few suppliers." He said the Bombay High Court has clearly said that SHGs should get the tender of supplying ration though they don't have extruder machines (food processing equipment). "The decision will keep out SHGs, which don't have such machines, from bidding process. In such a scenario, the bid will go in favour of big suppliers," Munde claimed. PTI Man takes to 'Gandhigiri' , dances in front of district collector to get heard India oi-Pallavi Bhopal, Feb 24: A man in Bhopal fought for the right to education for his son in a unique way. After running from pillar to post, but being ignored everytime, even by the district collector, the man took resort of 'Gandhigiri'. Leaving the collector red-faced, Dashrath Suryavanshi of Mandsuar started dancing in front of him to draw the former's attention. He had reached the collector's office with a plea that his son should be granted admission under the RTE (Right to Education) programme as he could not afford the Rs 27,000 fees demanded by a private school. WATCH: Man dances in front of Collector in Mandsaur(MP) claiming he has been repeatedly denied to put forth his pleahttps://t.co/xgQYmsjo1A ANI (@ANI_news) February 23, 2016 Following the incident, the collector assured him that his son will get the benefits of the RTE Act. OneIndia News For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Wednesday, February 24, 2016, 11:52 [IST] Minority Affairs Ministry to also handle Haj works India oi-PTI New Delhi, Feb 24: Certain works related to Haj, which were till now managed by the External Affairs Ministry (MEA), will be handled by the Minority Affairs Ministry. Union Minister Najma Heptulla said she received a communication in this regard on Tuesday, Feb 24. The proposal was first mooted during the previous UPA government. "I was told yesterday that Haj is being transferred to our Ministry, I received a communication (in this regard)," the Minority Affairs Minister said while speaking at annual conference of State Minorities Commissions here. "Haj is being transferred to us, not because it was not being managed properly. The Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) has transferred it to us perhaps from the administrative point of view as Haj deals with minority community people. We too had demanded that Haj be brought under us," Heptulla said. She said her ministry will now see how the new system "thought of by previous government" can be implemented. Heptulla also said that "MEA's role will not reduce in any sense." "We still will have to work in co-operation with MEA as people go abroad, to Saudi Arabia for Haj.So, it is obvious the role of MEA is there. MEA gives visas. We will manage Haj, will co-operate with state committees," she added. Heptulla also asked the chairpersons of State Minorities Commissions to work as a watchdog to see the schemes envisaged by the Centre are implemented by regional governments properly. The session was also attended by National Commission for Minorities chairman Naseem Ahmad, NCM member Praveen Dawar and secretary Amrendra Sinha. PTI NOTA campaign in K'taka to save river receives good response, indicates mood India oi-Shreyas Mangaluru, Feb 24: Post NOTA (None of the Above) campaign at Dakshina Kannada of Karnataka, there is something to cheer for the activists of Sahyadri Sanchaya. The Zilla Panchayat (ZP) and Taluk Panchayat (TP) polls in total saw 28,891 NOTA being exercised by the voters. Prior to ZP and TP polls an organisation Sahyadri Sanchaya (SS) took out a NOTA campaign across the district urging the people to cast NOTA as mark of protest against a populist river diversion project, Yettinahole. A member of the SS previously informed that they were expecting, 30,000-40,000 NOTA button would be pressed during the elections. With election results being out now, the numbers of NOTA too emerged. The people of Dakshina Kannada appeared to have little heeded to the requests of the organisers. The count of NOTA votes, though not reached the expected tune, has came up to 28, 891. The fresh trend indicate that the some chunk of the Dakshina Kannada has expressed discontent over state government's controversial project, Yettinahole that seeks to draw water from key streams and divert it to parched districts mainly- Kolar, Tumkur, Chikballapur. Yettinahole and other streams from where the water is proposed to be diverted is a main source of water for Netravati river, life line of the Dakshina Kannada. It could be recalled that there has been frequent strikes in the district against the implantation of the project. The locals are of the view that diversion of water leave Dakshina Kannada with acute shortage of water supply. A member of Sahyadri Sanchaya, Shashidhar Shetty speaking to OneIndia with only a day's campaign people have pressed NOTA in good numbers exhibiting solidarity with the protests against the project. "Many people who cannot take part in the street protests marked their dissent with the state's decision through electoral process," he observed. This is a warning for all the political parties. The political leaders from the district has to resign from the post demanding scrapping of the project. The NOTA has shown the mood of the people. If the leaders ignore this trend, in the upcoming assembly election the Sahyadri Sanchaya would field Netravati candidate in each assembly constituencies of the district, Shetty informed. Places Zilla Panchayat Taluk Panchayat Mangaluru 3299 3084 Belthangady 3328 2950 Puttur 3076 2772 Sullia 1741 1682 Total 14,675 14, 216 = 28,891 OneIndia News India slips to 112th place in WEF rankings on gender gap; in bottom-5 on health, economic fronts Rwanda's census: LGBT+ people just want to be counted President to inaugurate Gender park on February 27 India oi-PTI Kozhikode, Feb 24: 'Gender Park', India's first gender equality convergence center, will be inaugurated by President Pranab Mukherjee here on February 27. The park is an initiative of the Social Justice Department of the Kerala government to bring together the state, academia and civil society on a common platform to address the gender issues. "The Centre, the country's first such large-scale initiative, will create an environment to share global knowledge and experiences in reducing gender inequalities," CEO of the park Dr P T M Sunish said in a release. A dedicated Gender Institute at the park would focus on learning research and capacity development as part of supporting efforts of the central and state governments in ensuring an inclusive society. It would cover issues pertaining to all three genders in accordance with the 2015 gender and transgender policies of the state government, he said. Kerala Governor P Sathasivam, Chief Minister Oommen Chandy and Rebecca Reichmann Tavares, United Nations Representative for women in India, Sri Lanka, Maldives and Bhutan will take part in the inaugural function. The President will also inaugurate UL Cyber Park, declare Kerala a digital state,launch the Digital Empowerment Campaign and also declare open "Kanivu" (Compassionate Kerala) scheme, by unveiling commemorative plaques. PTI No surprises here: Mallikarjun Kharge is the new Cong chief After the 'Jihad' comment, Patil now claims \"I never said it\" Rahul says government 'scared', won't let him speak India oi-IANS By Ians English New Delhi, Feb 24: Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday said the Narendra Modi- government was "scared" and won't let him speak on student protests in India following the police crackdown on the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU). "I will speak. But they (government) will not let me speak because they are scared. They are scared of what I will speak in parliament. So they will not let me speak," Gandhi told reporters in parliament complex. Parliament began its budget session amid fears that the opposition may try to corner the government over student protests and also the suicide of a Dalit student, Rohith Vemula, in Hyderabad University on January 17. The Congress leader has supported JNU students protesting against the arrest of their leader Kanhaiya Kumar. The JNU Students Union president has been held on sedition charges over alleged anti-national slogans raised in the campus during the February 9 event. Gandhi visited the campus earlier this month and met students there. BJP president Amit Shah denounced him for siding with "anti-national" elements. IANS Dhanteras 2022: How much gold can you buy from Dubai Rajiv Pratap Rudy says sorry for not informing MP while visiting Kerala India oi-PTI New Delhi, Feb 24: Bowing to strong protests by the Opposition, Union Minister Rajiv Pratap Rudy today expressed regrets for not informing the local MP while visiting a skill development institute in Kerala. During Question Hour, RSP member N K Premachandran said in Lok Sabha that Rudy had visited the institute in his constituency Kollam but no information was given to him as the local MP. Premachandran said it was not a healthy practice and Ministers visiting any place must inform the local MP so that he was aware of the Minister's programme. The RSP MP was vociferously supported by several Left and Congress members who sought Speaker Sumitra Mahajan's intervention, forcing Rudy to express his regrets. "I am sorry. But I had visited the skill development academy just for five minute. In fact the decision was taken suddenly at the instance of a Kerala Minister when I was passing by the area," he said. Rudy said it is an excellent institute and expressed appreciation for the Kerala government for its good maintenance. Replying a question, the Minister said there are over 40 skill development schemes across sectors being implemented by over 18 central ministries and departments to promote skills of people, including the youth, in the country. "Funds under these schemes are provided by the concerned Ministries and Departments to the implementing agencies, including states in accordance with the guidelines issued for the schemes," he said. Rudy said government has launched the flagship scheme 'Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana on July 15, 2015 to enable and mobilise a large number of youth to take up outcome based skill training and earn livelihood. The scheme has the target to benefit 24 lakh people with training of 14 lakh fresh entrants and certification of 10 lakh persons under Recognition of Prior Learning. "As on February 22, 2016, 12.50 lakh candidates have enrolled in 9,314 training centres spread across the country with coverage of 29 states and 6 Union Territories," he said. PTI We respect courtbut Lakshman Rekha must not be crossed: Rijiju as SC puts sedition law on hold Sedition against JNU students justified: Justice Santosh Hegde India oi-Shreyas Bengaluru, Feb 24: Former Solicitor General of India Justice Santosh Hegde, perhaps strongly pats the back of the Delhi police for invoking colonial era law sedition against students from elite campus of Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), Delhi. In a telephonic conversation with OneIndia Justice Hegde hit out at the JNU incident where alleged anti-India slogans were raised, saying "there are limits to everything." Hegde elicited the debate of tolerance and claimed there is a degree for tolerance too. "What about anti-India sloganeering being heard from the campus, can the state tolerate this?" seemingly angry former Lokayukta of Karnataka asked. The slogan- "Kashmiri ki azzadi tak jung landenge (Fight till Kashmir will be free), Bharath ke tukude tukude kardenge( we will break India into pieces)," Hegde quoting said if this is not anti-national which is? Hegde opined that government is tough in its stand on such elements and action taken by the Delhi police that falls under the Union Home Ministry has done the right thing by invoking sedition in order to initiate strict action against anti-national elements and it is justified. When asked about the news doing the rounds about videos being doctored, he said it is a different issue and law will take its own course. "Many intellectuals those descended to JNU, following the incident snowballed into a major row, has expressed solidarity with the students citing videos were being doctored. It is a different issue and law will take its own course." Hegde reiterating Narendra Modi lead Union Government has done proper thing, added that earlier there were anti-India slogans raised only in Jammu and Kashmir but now when it has reached to the mainland the action is impending. While many argue that colonial era sedition law has to be scrapped, Hegde batted for its existence. "Sedition law is relevant even in this time to curb talks against the country," he viewed. Hegde said he does not believe in the previous judgement of the Supreme Court that says mere talk is not sedition and should be followed by actions, something contrary to law. "I don't believe in that judgement. Sedition means propagating some views which are against the nation. As long as the judgement of the Supreme Court is there, I am bound to say its the law of the day today. I am one of those persons who would say that the judgement should be changed," Hegde said. OneIndia News Truth has come out, says Sasikala in reaction to OPS's remark before panel Jayalalithaa death probe: TN cabinet to decide on enquiry against Sasikala and others Never interfered in medical treatment of Jayalalithaa: Sasikala denies all allegations levelled by panel Verdict acquitting Jayalalithaa defeats anti-corruption law's aim: Karnataka India oi-IANS By Ians English New Delhi, Feb 23: The Karnataka government on Tuesday sought the reversal of its state high court verdict acquitting Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa in a corruption case, saying that her exoneration defeats the mandate of Prevention of Corruption Act. The state has challenged the high court's May 11, 2015 verdict reversing a September 27, 2014 Bangaluru trial court order convicting Jayalalithaa, her aide N. Sasikala Natrajan and the latter's two relatives V.N. Sudhakaran and Elavarasi in case of owning disproportionate assets. Jayalalithaa and other were accused of allegedly amassing disproportionate asserts to the tune of Rs. 66.65.crores during her first term as chief minister from 1991 to 1996. Assailing the high court verdict acquitting Jayalalithaa as "perverse" with "glaring mistakes" senior counsel Dushyant Dave told a bench of Justice Pinaki Chandra Ghose and Justice Amitava Roy that t is the duty of the courts to advance the objective of the Prevention of Corruption Act" under which Jayalalithaa and others were tried. Telling the court that the high court judgment "defeats the objectives" of the act, he referred to the two earlier judgments of the apex court which had said that corruption was a cancer affecting all aspects of the society and, if not dealt with in time, could assume malignant proportions. Pointing to the figures that the high court had relied upon for reversing the trial court verdict convicting the four accused, Dave told the court that all they had conspired to camouflage the disproportionate assets acquired by the chief minister by creating a web of companies. He said that the case of the prosecution is that assets which they came to acquire was grossly disproportionate to the assets of all the four put together. After a trial that lasted for 18 years, a trial court in Bangaluru had convicted Jayalalithaa and sentenced her to four-year jail term and a Rs.100 crore fine. Jayalalithaa's acquittal has also been challenged by DMK leader and the original complainant Anbazhagan and Bharatiya Janata Party leader Subramanian Swamy. The apex court on July 27, 2015 had issued notice on their petitions. Assailing the error in calculating the disproportionate assets of Jayalalithaa by the high court, the Karnataka government in its petition had contended that the reversal of the trial court verdict has resulted in "miscarriage of justice". It had also said that besides other infirmities in the high court verdict, the "grave mistake" in total of ten loans has "resulted in the acquittal (of Jayalalithaa and others) instead of an order confirming the conviction". The Karnataka government had also questioned whether Jayalalithaa's appeal against trial court verdict convicting her and others in the case was maintainable without making it (Karnataka) a respondent. The state government had contended that because the accused did not make the Karnataka government a party to the case, it could not appoint a public prosecutor to pursue the case and went unrepresented. Dave will continue his arguments on Wednesday. IANS Why the IB and R&AW should be kept away from audit India oi-Vicky New Delhi, Feb 24: Officers in the Research and Analysis Wing and the Intelligence Bureau have welcomed the verdict of the Supreme Court which stated the two agencies and the National Technical Research Organisation cannot be made accountable to the Parliament for their actions and expenditures. "We are thankful that the Supreme Court issued such a ruling," an officer with the IB told OneIndia. A plea had been filed in the Supreme Court seeking a directive to bring these agencies under the oversight of the Parliament and the CAG. The petition stated that this is the norm in several developed countries and hence in India too the agencies must be brought under the purview of the Parliament and the CAG. Why IB and R&AW cannot be made accountable to the CAG? These agencies work undercover and not always is an operation carried out by the book. Moreover the officers rely heavily on sources for information. At times information needs to be sourced by paying a certain amount of money. The "Khabri" or the informer not always shares information without expecting monetary benefits. Every agency including the police have a certain amount of secret funds set aside. This fund cannot be audited and hence the Supreme Court was right in stating that the agencies cannot be brought under the purview of an audit. While this is one part of the story, the other is regarding undertaking covert operations. Sometimes to catch a thief one needs to behave like one. Most of these officers work tirelessly on the field to get information or to trap a criminal/terrorist. There have been numerous occasions in which officers of these agencies have been picked up by the police due to confusion. It is only later that the officer is let off after convincing the police. An officer with the IB says that this happens many times since to catch a thief many times we need to behave like one. Cannot be made accountable to Parliament: If operations of the IB or R&AW are brought under the purview of the Parliament, it will only compromise on national security. If an officer is asked to explain to a bunch of lawmakers every now and then about an operation, it hardly remains a secret. Officers of these agencies at times track persons for five to six years before they can gather all the information before declaring that the intelligence is actionable in nature. In the midst of such an operation, if the Parliament summons him, it would throw a spanner in his work. The Supreme Court has rightly said that no court should enter into this territory. Further it also said that trying to get into this domain may create a dent in national security. OneIndia News For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Wednesday, February 24, 2016, 9:41 [IST] Will give ceasefire with Pak the best shot: General Raju Ceasefire coordination centre set up in Syria: Russia International oi-IANS By Ians English Moscow, Feb 24: A coordination centre began operations at Syria's Hmeimim airbase in order to implement the ceasefire, the Russian defence ministry has said. "In accordance with the Russian-US February 22 agreement on the cessation of hostilities in Syria, for the implementation of mechanism to monitor compliance with the ceasefire regime, a coordination centre for reconciliation of the warring parties started operations at the Russian airbase Hmeimim in Syria," Xinhua quoted the ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov as saying on Tuesday. The Syrian airbase was used to deploy Russian air forces since last September when Moscow started airstrikes against terrorist targets in Syria. Konashenkov said that Syrian opposition groups willing to start peace talks may get help from the centre to establish contact with the government. "Russian contact information for hotline connection (primary and backup) was transferred to Americans," the ministry said. The ministry added that the Russian side expected Washington to provide the same data. The US and Russia announced on Monday in a joint statement that any party engaged in conflict in Syria will indicate to Russia or the US their commitment to the ceasefire by no later than 12.00 (Damascus time) on Saturday. Russian President Vladimir Putin called the ceasefire agreement "a real step" toward ending five years of bloodshed in Syria. IANS We should not consider our mother tongue inferior to English: Law Minister Rijiju European court raps Italy over CIA abduction International oi-IANS By Ians English Strasbourg, Feb 24: The Italian government abused state secrecy in the CIA's kidnapping of an Egyptian cleric who was spirited to his homeland for interrogation under torture, the European Court of Human rights has ruled. The Strasbourg-based court found Italy guilty of numerous human rights violations and ordered it to pay a total of 115,000 euros compensation to Osama Mustafa Hassan Nasr - better known as Abu Omar - and to his wife Nabila Ghali. The abuses included violating the ban on torture and inhuman or degrading treatment, the right to liberty, the respect for private and family life and the right to an effective remedy, the court ruled on Tuesday. The court also condemned the Italian government for allowing agents involved in the kidnapping to escape with "impunity" and the quashing by Italy's top criminal court of the convictions of five Italian military intelligence agents on state secrecy grounds. Italian authorities "were aware that Abu Omar was a victim of the extraordinary rendition operation" involving his 2003 abduction in the northern city of Milan, the court concluded. Nasr's lawyer, Carmelo Scambia, expressed bitterness at the low level of damages but welcomed the court's affirmation of "certain principles". "The European Court's ruling is harsh," commented centre-left lawmaker Rosa Calipari, a member of the Italian parliament's national security commission. "It should make us reflect on the use of state secrecy, which is a legitimate instrument but a delicate one," Calipari added. Nasr was kidnapped by CIA operatives in 2003 on a street in Milan and flown to a US air force base in Germany and then on to Egypt under the CIA's extraordinary rendition programme. He was released from prison in 2007 but cannot leave Egypt. His lawyers say he was ill-treated and tortured for months before being released without charge. Italy has denied involvement in the rendition of Nasr and never pursued the extradition of 26 Americans, including 22 CIA agents, convicted in absentia over the case in 2009 by an Italian court, which ordered the US nationals to pay a million euros to Nasr and 500,000 euros to his wife. A Milan court in 2013 convicted Nasr in absentia and sentenced him to six years in jail for membership of a terrorist organisation. He had been granted political asylum by Italy in 2001. The CIA's controversial extraordinary rendition programme was set up to capture and question Islamist terror suspects in the wake of Al Qaeda's September 2001 attacks on the US. The European Court ruled in three previous rendition cases involving detention sites in Macedonia and Poland that the treatment of "high-value" detainees was torture. IANS 7,000 Hindus in Malaysia wrongly documented as Muslims: NGOs International oi-PTI Kuala Lumpur, Feb 23: Nearly 7,000 Hindus in Malaysia have been wrongly documented as Muslims on their national identity cards, according to a group of NGOs in the Muslim-majority nation. The problem was widespread throughout Peninsular Malaysia and involved mostly practising Hindus from the lower income group who are documented as Muslims, Malaysia Hindu Sangam president Mohan Shan was quoted as saying by The Malaysian Insider. The task force of eight Hindu NGOs said they are assisting 500 Hindus, while some 7,000 others throughout the country were affected by the "system failure" in which anybody wishing to change their official religious status from Islam must first receive permission from the Shariah Court. The Muslim Lawyer's Association of Malaysia (PPMM) said they would assist any registered Muslim who wish to change their official religious status. Islam is the largest and state religion of Malaysia accounting for 61.3 per cent of the total population. Hindus account for about 6.3 per cent. "This 7,000 people never were and do not have any intentions of converting," said Selangor Hindu Youth Organisation (HYO) adviser Arun Dorasamy. Dorasamy, who also heads the Hindu Conversion Action Team, said he had met Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Nancy Shukri regarding the matter. "We were told that we would meet the Prime Minister in a week or two weeks," said Dorasamy. The Hindu NGOs also provided some solutions, suggesting the Prime Ministers Department to set up a temporary task force. They had also suggested setting up a temporary online registry, so that the authorities would be able to estimate the number of cases involve in the matter. The purpose of the meeting with the Prime Minister is also to amend an article of the constitution which states the religion of a person under the age of 18 years shall be decided by his/her parent or guardian. PTI India's right move to allow Pathankot probe team visit: Pak Daily International oi-IANS By Ians English Islamabad, Feb 24: India has made the right move to allow the Pathankot terror attack probe team's visit, said a Pakistani daily on Wednesday. An editorial "Pathankot developments" in the Daily Times said that Adviser to Prime Minister (PM) on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz has elucidated on the progress of investigations into the Pathankot attack, which took place on the Indian airbase, on January 2, leaving seven dead and several injured. After a First Investigation Report (FIR) was registered on Friday by Punjab police's counter-terrorism department, Indian Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar had said that it was an insufficient step and that Pakistan should take legal action to India's satisfaction. Aziz asserted that the FIR could not have been taken on the basis of inadequate evidence, especially considering it is a cross-border terrorist attack, which is why it had been delayed. He said that the FIR had enabled Pakistan to visit the Pathankot airbase. "Contrary to the unequivocal refusal by the Indian defence minister earlier to allow Pakistan's Special Investigation Team (SIT) to visit the airbase, Indian authorities have now agreed to the visit. Aziz stated that the visit to the crime scene would only aid the expeditious investigation," said the daily. Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) group has been named by India as the principal instigator of the attack and its chief, Masood Azhar, the mastermind. Aziz confirmed that "Azhar and a few other JeM operatives were under 'protective custody' and the moment evidence became available action would be taken against them". He also revealed that one of the mobile numbers provided by India had been found to be associated to JeM's headquarters, which have been sealed by the authorities. The editorial noted that before the Pathankot attack, "there was a clear thawing of tensions between Pakistan and India, made possible by the growing amity of the premiers". "However, unfortunately, it appears from statements by officials that India may well be going back to relying on suspicions as it did after the Mumbai attacks, which resulted in an impasse. "While India has made the right move to allow the SIT's visit, there is a need for mutual cognisance that to overcome the hurdles placed in the way to a diplomatic endeavour by the spoilers, there is a need for more definitive action," it added. The daily observed that the "onus is on Pakistan to ensure that investigations are taken to their logical end and not bogged down by political to and fro in order to maintain the possibility of dialogue". "Indian authorities too need to tread with caution, realising that, ultimately, a solution can only come from dialogue, which will not be effective if the political atmosphere is soured by the disobliging demeanour of any party." IANS Dhanteras 2022: How much gold can you buy from Dubai India-Pak bus & train services hit by Jat agitation for 2nd consecutive day New Delhi oi-Shubham New Delhi, Feb 23: The Dosti bus and Samjhauta Express train services between India and Pakistan remained suspended for the second suspended day in the wake of the Jat agitation in Haryana, a Daily Pakistan Global report said. According to Pakistani officials, the operations that were suspended at the request of the Indian authorities are likely to resume on Thursday. On that day, the Samjhauta Express is scheduled to leave for India with 200 passengers, Pakistan Railways sources said, the report added. The Dosti bus was scheduled to leave Lahore on Monday morning but would resume now only after India gives its clearance. The Dosti Bus was scheduled to leave Lahore on Monday 7am, but now resumption of its service is subjected to clearance from India. On Monday, the two countries extended visas of the stranded citizens by another week so that they can return to their respective countries after the train and bus services are restored. New Delhi decided to stop the bus and train services after Jat agitation broke out in the northern state demanding OBC reservation for the dominant community. Nineteen people have died in the violence so far. The army was deployed in the state after the weeklong protest turned violent with the agitators carrying out destruction on a massive scale. Oneindia News eBaums World 21 Oct 2022 It was reported back in June of this year that pop sensation Shakira had caught long-time husband and soccer player Gerard Pique.. Sports Kante Out For Four Months After Undergoing Surgery Webby - October 18, 2022 Chelsea midfielder NGolo Kante will be out for four months after undergoing surgery on his injured hamstring. The news means A gubernatorial campaign co-ordinator of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP has been shot by suspected assassins in Owerri, Imo State. Engr Nnamdi Nsorom, who is a coordinator for the governorship campaign of Rt. Hon. Emeka Ihedioha, the PDP Governorship candidate in Imo State, was shot on Thursday afternoon. PoliticsNGR learned that Nsorom, who is also an aide to Imo Senatorial candidate, Jones Onyereri, was rushed to the emergency unit of the Federal Medical Centre, Owerri where he is currently recuperating from his injuries. He was shot in the chest and arm in front of Onyereris house behind Concord Hotel in Owerri, Imo state. Hon. Ihedioha also paid a visit to him upon hearing about the development. It will be recalled that political activities in the state are currently heightened as the state governorship elections are scheduled to hold on Saturday. Ihedioha will be squaring off with Top Contenders like Uche Nwosu of the Action Alliance(AA), Ifeanyi Araraume of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) and Ikedi Ohakim of Accord Party. Share this: A pair of first-cousins who fell head-over-heels in love traveled hundreds of miles from Utah to Colorado to get married. Michael Lee and his close relative Angie Lee traveled from their home in Eagle Mountain, Utah to Colorado tie the knot on Monday. Their home state only allows cousins over the age of 65 to get married, but makes an exception for couples aged 55 if they can prove they are infertile. Those rules are aimed at limiting the chances of children being born to first cousin parents with genetic abnormalities. First cousins share 12.5 per cent of their DNA, making them up to twice as likely to have a disabled child as a man and woman who arent closely related. Michael and Angie finally got together last winter after 10 years apart, and say they are no longer worried about disapproval from their families. Angie told ABC4: We said OK this is crazy but were adults now, were single now, were just going to go for it and who cares what our family thinks. They are now petitioning for Utah to change its antiquated laws so that other first-cousin couples can tie the knot. Those same rules mean their marriage is not considered valid in Utah. Recalling how he first realized his love for Angie when they were kids, he said: We were second grade. I remembered I stopped her mother and said Im going to marry Angie. She said, No, sorry you cant, you can be friends. He added: Ive always felt that life wasnt fair. Why did the person I wanted to be with most, and who I had the most attraction to the most, the most natural feelings for, whyd you have to be my cousin? He continued: No one Ive ever been with will make me feel as perfect as she does. Her being my cousin and some of the responses is a small price to pay. Share this: Stella Damasus Shares 1999 Throwback Photo With Rita Dominic And Monalisa Chinda Popular Nigerian actress, Stella Damasus shares epic throwback photo with Rita Dominic and Monalisa Chinda Coker. Gistvic Reports. Stella says the photo was way back 1999 when they were doing a commercial for a car company. Gistvic Reports. She wrote: 1999 doing a commercial for a car company as we were filming FACE OF A LIAR, with these beautiful and talented women @ritadominic @monalisacode and my dear @vikkysog SOURCE: GISTVIC.COM Share this: A three-man panel of the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal in the FCT, Abuja has granted the PDP and its presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar access to All Electoral Materials used for the presidential elections. The panel on Wednesday heard the ex-parte motion filed by the Peoples Democratic Party and its presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, seeking an order granting them access to inspect the electoral materials used for the February 23 polls. Atiku filed an ex-parte motion at the Court of Appeal in Abuja, asking for various orders of the court to allow him to access all documents used by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for the conduct of the presidential election. The ex-parte motion prayed for an order compelling INEC to allow them to inspect the register and other vital documents used in the conduct of the election unhindered. In delivering its ruling, the panel ordered INEC to allow the appellant access to all electoral material to enable the applicant file and maintain an electoral petition. Invest & Get 20% In Just 90 Days Click HERE >> To Buy Cheap MTN & GLO Data Click HERE >> New Managers SERVICERS' SPOT: Directors want to be considered trusted partners by new managers, Institutions are getting more hands on in seeding and forming new funds Directors want to be considered trusted partners by new managers Leanne Golding A hedge fund director provides her perspective on emerging hedge fund managers. She will happily work with those who have set themselves up for future growth, she says. Directors are not there only for compliance, she adds, managers should see directors as trusted partners, who they can call and ask for advice. Leanne Golding is a Senior Vice President of The Harbour Trust Co. Ltd, a Grand Cayman-based firm which provides directorship and related fund fiduciary services. She joined Harbour in 2009, after working at Goldman Sachs in the Cayman Islands for nine years. Harbor particularly enjoys working with new managers who are setting up a best-in-breed shop from day one and who position themselves to be able to make it a multi-billion firm, she tells Opalesque. "But we understand and respect the fact that that takes time." The right fit is someone who is committed to selecting the right service providers from the start, so that they do not have to switch them a couple of years down the road. Harbour's take-on process includes getting a feel of the managers' framework, their long-term and short-term goals, where they are headed, and where their seed capital comes from. "That way," she continues, "we can get a feel for whether they are going to match with our way of doing things. Obviously not every new manager is a good fit for us, but there is a good number of them out there that are." The right fit, she says, is someone who is committed to selecting the right service providers from the start, so that they do not have to switch them a couple of years down the road. Even if there is tremendous fee pressure, there i...................... To view our full article please login My guest today is Mark Karlin, editor of BuzzFlash at TruthOut. Welcome back to OpEdNews, Mark. JB: We spoke just a few weeks ago but there's plenty to talk about today. You wrote a piece called Scalia's Only "Originalism" Was in Cloaking Right Wing Extremism in Legal Jabberwocky [2.19.16]. You don't appear to be partaking in the current Scalia nostalgia wafting around our nation's capital. Why not? MK: Supreme Court Justice Scalia wore a judicial cloak over his body when he was performing his official duties, and he wrapped himself at the same time in a cunningly crafted image of having a "brilliant" legal mind. Washington insiders and the mainstream media helped Scalia build his brand image of "originalism," which is a hokum right-wing manufactured concept propagated to justify extremist Supreme Court rulings. As far as Scalia's personal ideology and beliefs - which he was quite frank and brash about stating when speaking publicly - he was a pre-Vatican Opus Dei Catholic and Koch Brothers style partisan Republican zealot. His legal opinions were based on his personal political and social outlooks, not the Constitution or legal precedent. In short, he was a guileful hypocrite. Take his most infamous role in the theft of democracy: Bush v. Gore. Scalia accepted a filing from the 2000 Bush campaign to stop the Florida Supreme Court mandated recount in Florida that would have likely found Al Gore the winner of the state and the presidency. Then, Scalia issued a stay to halt the recount so the full Supreme Court could consider the Bush campaign's objections to the Florida recount court order. In the end, as we all know, the 5-4 right-wing majority on the Supreme Court essentially nullified the votes of the majority of Americans (Gore won the national popular vote by more than 540,000 ballots cast) and installed George W. Bush in the White House. Scalia shepherded the Bush coup through the Supreme Court. Beyond the issue of the theft of democracy, it was a betrayal of the "originalist" view that state's were responsible for overseeing voting as part of the state's rights credo of the Republican Party. Also, Scalia had on numerous occasions adopted the so-called originalist interpretation that voting issues were to be deferred to state legislatures and courts. Furthermore, the majority five members of the Supreme Court ruled that the installation of Bush in the White House through the halt of the Florida recount was a one-time decision only and not a precedent. Say what? The Bush anointment was pure Scalia, providing evidence that he was a partisan thug who wrapped himself in "originalist" jabberwocky while often violating the clear intent of the Constitution. Basically, Scalia was sort of a Donald Trump in the disguise of being a former University of Chicago law professor who revered the Constitution, when he really didn't give a fig about it if it interfered with his personal ideology and worldview. JB: I'd like to go back to something you said earlier. "he was a pre-Vatican Opus Dei Catholic and Koch Brothers style partisan Republican zealot." Many of us know who the Koch Brothers are but are not equally well-versed in Catholicism and could use a little help here. MK: In December of 2013, I wrote a BuzzFlash at Truthout commentary, which addresses your question: Antonin Scalia is rumored to belong to the secretive Catholic Opus Dei Society, which is said to number about 100,000 world wide. Its main tenets are that God is an authoritarian and, therefore, Opus Dei adherents support dictatorial societies; that women stand behind men in life; that mass should be in Latin; and that God created a natural order of life in which the rich are rich and the poor are poor -- and the divine order of inequality shouldn't be disrupted. In fact Opus Dei, which is so covert that it won't even reveal its membership, has neither denied nor confirmed if Scalia belongs to the highly conservative theological church within a church. Nevertheless, these and other beliefs of the renegade right wing Catholic cult are basic to Scalia's rulings on the Supreme Court. Next Page 1 | 2 | 3 (Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher). Reprinted from Middle East Monitor As US liberals and some leftists are pulling up their sleeves in anticipation of a prolonged battle for the Democratic Party Presidential nomination, the tussle becomes particularly ugly whenever the candidates' foreign policy agendas are evoked. Of the two main contenders, Hillary Clinton is the obvious target. She is an interventionist, uncompromisingly, and her term as Secretary of State (2009-2013) is a testament to her role in sustaining the country's foreign policy agenda under George W. Bush (as a Senator, she had voted for the Iraq war in 2002) and advocating regime change in her own right. Her aggressive foreign policy hit rock bottom in her infamous statement upon learning of the news that Libyan leader, Muammer Gaddafi, was captured and killed in a most savage way. "We came; we saw; he died," Clinton rejoiced during a TV interview, once the news of Gaddafi's grisly murder was announced on October 20, 2011. True to form, Clinton used intervention in the now broken-up and warring country for her own personal gains, as her email records which were later released, publically indicated. In one email, her personal advisor, Sidney Blumenthal congratulated her on her effort that led to the "realizing" of "a historic moment," -- overthrowing Gaddafi -- urging her to "make a public statement before the cameras (and to) establish yourself as in the historical record at this moment." She agreed, but suggested that she needed to wait until "Qaddafi goes, which will make it more dramatic." Her rival for the Democratic Party nomination, Senator Bernie Sanders and his supporters, of course, pounce on the opportunity to discredit Clinton, which is not entirely difficult. But many have argued that, although Sanders is promoted as the more amiable and trustworthy, if compared to Clinton, his voting record is hardly encouraging. "Sanders supported Bill Clinton's war on Serbia, voted for the 2001 Authorization Unilateral Military Force Against Terrorists (AUMF), which pretty much allowed Bush to wage war wherever he wanted (and) backed Obama's Libyan debacle," wrote Jeffery St. Clair. Aside from supporting the US' current position on Syria, Sanders has "voted twice in support of regime change in Iraq," including in 1998. "It should be the policy of the United States to support efforts to remove the regime headed by Saddam Hussein from power in Iraq and to promote the emergence of a democratic government to replace that regime," the Iraq Liberation Act of 1998 read. On Israel, Sander's legacy is very similar to that of current President Barack Obama. He seemed to be relatively balanced (as "balanced" as Americans officials can be) during his earlier days in various official capacities, a position that became more hawkish with time. It behooves those who argue that Sanders is the lesser of two evils to examine the legacy of President Obama, whose sympathy with the Palestinians was underscored by his friendship with the late Palestinian Professor Edward Said, and Professor Rashid al-Khalidi. The trappings and balances of power, however, led Obama to repeatedly grovel before the Israeli Lobby in Washington DC, and he has stalwartly backed Israel's wars against Gaza. More Palestinians died at the hand of Israel during Obama's terms than those killed during the administration of W. Bush, who was an adamant supporter of Israel. Still, the current administration is negotiating an increase in US funding of Israel to exceed, and by far, the current 3.7 billion dollars a year. As odd as this may actually sound, as First Lady, Clinton, too, was criticized for not being firm enough in her support for Israel, before shifting her position in supporting Israel, right or wrong, just before she eyed a Senator position representing the State of New York. Not that many are ignorant of Sanders' less-than-perfect past records, but some are rushing to Sanders' side because they are compelled largely by fear that a Clinton White House would spell disaster for the future of the country, not just in the area of foreign policy, but domestic policies as well. It is this train of thought that has compelled leading Leftist professor, Noam Chomsky, to display support for Sanders, and, if necessary, even Clinton in swing states to block Republican candidates from winning the presidency. Chomsky, of course, has no illusions that Sanders' self-proclaimed socialist title is even close to the truth. He is not a socialist, said Chomsky in a recent interview with Al Jazeera, but a "decent, honest New Dealer." Thanks to the massive repositioning of the American political system to the Right, if one is a New Dealer, one is mistaken for a "raving leftist." To a degree, one can sympathize with Chomsky's position considering the madness of the political rhetoric from the Right, where Donald Trump wants to ban Muslims from entering the country, and Ted Cruz is advocating "carpet bombing" Middle Eastern countries to fight terrorism. But, on the other hand, one is expected to question the long-term benefit of the lesser of two evils approach to permanent, serious change in society. Chomsky had, in fact, made similar statements in previous presidential elections, yet America's foreign and domestic policies seems to be in constant decline. If seen within the larger historical context, US foreign policy, at least since the end of the Second World War, has been that of "rolling back" and "containing" perceived enemies, "regime change" and outright military intervention. The tools used to achieve US foreign policy interest have rarely ever changed as a result of the type of administration (the lesser of two evils, Democrat, or a raging Republican) but varied, largely based on practical circumstances. Mobile Application Development Outsourcing | Mobile Games Development Outsource to us | SYSPOLY www.syspoly.com Web design outsourcing India System Polygon Pvt. Ltd. is the best company in IT field of Web Design Outsourcing India and we built over 1000 websites of different themes like hotels, handicrafts, real estate, schools etc and SEO programs for both big and small businesses. We focus on everything that a business needs to succeed online. 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The main advantage of running a digital brand promotion outsourcing services, you can get millions of people in short period of time with results and results are instantly measurable. Brand promotion increase you website ranking and also increase visibility of your web pages in search engine visibility.After know the advantages of brand promotion you want to promote your brand and take benefits of brand promoting you can contact us - System Polygon Pvt. Ltd. E-123, Kalpatru Shopping Centre, Opp. Manidhari Hospital Road, Shastri Nagar, Jodhpur for promote you brand in India and all over world.Mobile Application Development Outsourcing System Polygon Pvt. Ltd. is a Mobile Application Development Outsourcing Company in India. All most everyone have a Smartphone. Smartphone change the way of people interact and communication way. Mobile Application is part of Smartphone. Mobile application is a smart computer code design to run on mobile devices, tables and computers. Mobile application Development is became a greatest market in world. So every business man needs a mobile application for her business and they search a mobile application development company.Some mobile application development companies have no more time to develop so they outsource our app development projects. Some time its a big challenge and issue to find the Mobile Application Development Outsourcing Company that puts real efforts and understand her ideas before giving a quote and timeline and getting start with development.SYSPOLY is affordable Mobile Apps and Games Development Company in India. We take outsource mobile application and games development project, android appsNitin Maheshwari+91-8561903387mail@syspoly.comAddress System Polygon Pvt. Ltd.E-123, Kalpatru Shopping Centre,Opp. Manidhari Hospital Road,Shastri Nagar, Jodhpur - 342001 Good atmosphere and intense discussions www.clarionevents.de Confirmation of ZOW as a work platform for the sectorTrade show organiser Clarion Events Deutschland is very pleased to deliver a positive summary of ZOW after the 22nd edition of the event came to an end in Bad Salzuflen on 19 February 2016. Some 6,600 trade visitors came to East Westphalia-Lippe (OWL) over the past few days to find out about relevant innovations and developments at the supplier show for the furniture and interior fittings industry. A good one-quarter of these guests made their way to the event from outside Germany - in particular from the Netherlands, Poland, the Czech Republic and Belgium. From day one of the event, they created a good mood among the 263 exhibiting companies who were extremely satisfied with the quality of the visitors as well as with regard to the subject-related discussions conducted there. "The positive response from the exhibitors and visitors has shown us that ZOW has a future in the furniture cluster East Westphalia-Lippe (OWL)", states Senior Project Consultant Udo Traeger.A total of 263 exhibitors from 27 countries demonstrated once again in impressive fashion the capability and innovative strength of the sector: They showcased a representative mix of all product groups in Halls 20, 21 and 22-1, ranging from semi-finished goods, lighting and pull-out systems to materials, surfaces and fittings through to paints and varnishes, chemical products and services. Foreign suppliers accounted for around 40 per cent of the exhibiting companies, with the majority coming from Italy, Poland, Austria and Denmark. The various special display areas did not only provide the exhibitors with the ideal space to present new ideas to the trade visitors but also with the opportunity to inform them about the latest technologies in the adjacent Speakers' Corner or in the new lecture forum "ZOW_update".Moreover, a total of 40 newcomers participated in this year's trade show, for instance a 3D printing factory which demonstrated the advantages of small-scale serial production now made possible by this technology. Or a member of the leading edge cluster BioEconomy showcasing biomaterials for application in the future industry.A high degree of quality among the visitors and constructive talksThe atmosphere at the event was shaped by networking and business - the majority of the exhibitors were impressed by the technical know-how and the decision-making abilities of the visitors, and were also satisfied with the number of enquiries from potential business partners. "Once again, ZOW proved to be a huge success for us", says Frank Meyrahn, Director of the company Neelsen GmbH based in Bunde. "As every year, we conducted a large number of interesting discussions and are entirely satisfied." The same applies to the company Weienbach, a manufacturer of fittings, on behalf of which salesman Frank Schorege states: "ZOW went really well for us again. Unlike in previous years, many visitors came to our stand right from the first day of the show and we succeeded in establishing some very promising business contacts. I am convinced that some of the talks held during the fair will result in business after the show as a result of this, therefore, ZOW was a complete success for us." Frank Huntebrinker of Deutsche Arturo Salice GmbH and Oliver Hunger of Hunger Mobelproduktions GmbH also provide a glowing report on the fair. "The trade show went extremely well in every respect for us from Salice", remarks Frank Huntebrinker. "The entire spectrum of the furniture industry was represented at ZOW and we were able to conclude two very good business deals." "We are also very satisfied and will come again", states Oliver Hunger. Not only was the stand worthwhile but also our contribution to the igeL exhibition space after all, this year's presentation of the Lightweight Construction Association "Interessengemeinschaft Leichtbau e.V. (igeL)" has been the best to date."Clarion Events Deutschland GmbH, Bielefeld, is a wholly owned subsidiary ofClarion Events Ltd., London. Since its establishment in Germany in2010, it has been the organiser of the annual trade fairs ZOW Bad Salzuflen as well as FMB (The supplier show for mechanical engineering), which is also held in Bad Salzuflen.Clarion Events Deutschland GmbHBirgit SchindlerMeisenstrae 94 | 33607 BielefeldGERMANYT: +49 (0) 521 96533-43E: birgit.schindler@clarionevents.deW: Gimme Vending Grabs TAG Top 40 Innovative Technology Company Award www.tagonline.org http://www.hubga.com http://www.tagedonline.org/ Gimme Vending, maker of innovative vending technology that gives vending executives better sales, cash, inventory and service data, today added the title of The Technology Association of Georgias (TAG), Top 40 Innovative Technology Companies in Georgia to its growing list of accolades. TAG, the states leading association dedicated to the promotion and economic advancement of Georgias technology industry, will recognize Gimme Vending along with other winners at the 2016 Georgia Technology Summit (GTS) on March 17, 2016, at the Cobb Galleria Centre.TAGS Top 40 Awards recognize Georgia-based technology companies for their innovation, financial impact, and their efforts at spreading awareness of Georgias technology initiatives throughout the U.S. and globally."An extraordinary number of truly innovative technology companies participated in this years Top 40 competition, demonstrating the depth and breadth of Georgia's technology community," said Dennis Zakas, managing partner of Zakas & Leonard, LLP, CEO of Zinc., and chairperson of the Top 40 Selection Committee. In fact, based on the quality of the contestants, we could have had a 'Top 60 without losing a beat."Gimmes pioneering technology ushers the vending industry into the digital age, with a mission to connect vending machines to the Internet and turn them into smart machines. The technology provides real-time data wherein vending operators can provide consumers the snacks they want WHEN they want it. Currently, more than 1,000 machines have been Gimme-enabled with tens of thousands more scheduled to come online this year.We are amped about this award and honored to be alongside such incredible talent and innovation, said Cory Hewett, CEO and co-founder of Gimme. It is an incredible feeling to be recognized for developing technology for an industry we are so passionate about.The 2016 Top 40 finalists are an elite group of innovators who represent the very best of Georgias Technology community, said Tino Mantella, president & CEO of TAG. The 2016 Top 40 finalists are shining examples of what makes our State such a hotbed for technology and we applaud them for standing out as leaders in Georgias technology community.About The Technology Association of Georgia (TAG)TAG is the leading technology industry association in the state, serving more than 30,000 members through regional chapters in Metro Atlanta, Athens, Augusta, Columbus, Macon/Middle Georgia, and Savannah. TAGs mission is to educate, promote, and unite Georgias technology community to foster an innovative and connected marketplace that stimulates and enhances a tech-based economy.Additional, the TAG Education Collaborative (TAGs charitable arm) focuses on helping science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education initiatives thrive.For more information visit the TG website ator TAGs community website atTo learn about the TAG-Ed Collaborative visitAbout Gimme VendingGimme Vending provides vending operators with better cash and inventory accountability, and machine state data by connecting vending machines to the Internet of Things. Gimmes software/hardware solution replaces traditional corded handhelds with a modern iOS app which speeds service calls, eliminates the need for manual keying and transmits data instantly to headquarters. For more information, visit gimmevending.com.Gimme Vending3423 Piedmont Road NEAtlanta, GA 30305 The best ways to prepare and pack a Moving www.adt-express.com When the time comes to moving all are tensions and headaches, however, if the proper organization and a complete package can cope much better used in case of doing things lightly and crazy. Many people prefer to take itself all the tools you think put in their new home, but keep in mind that often do not have the optimum vehicle and is overexertion with the body, which may wanting save a few euros becomes pain or injury.To take away from the old home to the new house, the best option lies in hiring a mover to accelerate and assist in the treatment and transfer of all the furniture and belongings. Some customers think is little work that is done, but really what you would expect from a moving company?The mover may offer contracting a shuttle from one place to another, picking up packaged products from the house. By placing them on the vehicle as necessary (either van or either truck) and once in the housing destination, download the means of transport and upload or enter it in the new home.Normally the prices of these jobs can have many variations, because according to the state and location of the house, size and weight of the goods transported vary the final price falls. It may be the case if the building is old or difficult to access, workers mover, machinery need to take apart the furniture and other items to take.As service itself is very useful because the owner of the furniture to be transported saves lot of time and headaches, because the mover will organize all transfer from one house to another, leaving the contractor the time available for engage in packing and organizing all without an overload of responsibility.Whether you move around your home or to another country, moving is never easy. And unless you have a friend owner of a van, a truck, an airplane or helicopter, you'll need to hire a transport service and appropriate changes to your needs.Destined for another countryWork, family, love, adventure, who know the reason you're moving to another country or continent, the fact is you need to move all your stuff now and safely. For international moves, it is likely to have to go to a certain company that is dedicated to these specific subjects. There are freelancers in this section due to the large loads to be carried and the urgent need to provide safeguards against customs.Before deciding on a company it is necessary that you get quotes and find out that warranties and service offers. Also, keep in mind that an international move should be planned properly and well in advance so that there are no loose ends and all your belongings reach their destination so as correct as ordered, which allows you to make quick and effective unpacking .If you've never made a move on a large scale, the type of those in which you move your entire house from one continent to another. In them you will find a list of companies engaged in international moving, and you can also serve for advice and price comparisons.With domestic destinationsOkay, you do not go that far. You're moving into the neighborhood in the same city, or within the country. In this case you will have an advantage that can transpire in trouble: a greater variety of offers companies MOVING where to turn. You can even meet with owners of trucks or vans staff engaged on a freelance basis to make changes in his spare time.When search for a transport company or a freelance to help you move your belongings, you can go to the section of classified Sunday supplements of newspapers both national distance and local, depending on the area results you find or where you want to move out.Many times it can be overwhelming to think about all aspects to consider in a move, so we present the best tips on how to wrap and treat your materials and objects belonging to arrive to the new destination as healthy as possible, and also make it easier to maneuver when unpacking.- Crystals materials of this type, all wrapped in one box, clinking, and at risk of breaking. It is best to wrap each piece with a bit of newsprint, so remember to collect a lot of paper to carry out this task smoothly.- Electronics: These are likely to be greater care items, and they are not easy to replace, because economically it is not easy, and it often leaves moving almost $ 0 to people. The best practice in such cases is to get bubble wrap, that it's fun to explode (we'll do after unpacking), and wrap everything electronic and fragile that. Thus, if you hit will not hurt.- Clothing: clothing reminds wrap well, so it does not stain or wet. It is better to have many plastic bags to wrapping small piles of clothes, and then enter these into larger bags before placing inside the boxes. Remember them as much air as possible to garments to weigh less, and a good way is to fold the clothes, instead of the traditional way, do it (with lots of pressure) a roll. So enters more clothes in smaller space and weighs much less.- Food: everything that is in use, unless you move a few blocks from your current location. And what it is not open, it is desirable that transport in bags, but not in the moving van, but in the car you go to transport, and not mix it with anything that may cause disasters to hit the food, or fall on you, in addition also for reasons of hygiene and proper preservation.Here are some little tips to better organize your move, and wrap everything so that nothing suffers any accident, or at least run the least possible risk. After all, moving is not easy, and always good hand.If you're close to making your move in Best Movers we can help the process or select the best mover for your needsRenting a truck driver can be a very good and economical choice for many large loads, heavy items such as beds, tables, chair ... and those very large items, bring a helper (although this could entail an extra cost ).Check the measurements of the items to be transported, measured as precisely as possible to make it easier to know if the capacity of the truck is properly adjusted to transport their goods.Transporte UrgenteC/ Diputacion , 08011 Barcelona-SpainPhone +34 902024891Contact: Jose CarrerasWe recommend you visit sites such as Applied Software Acquires Tekni www.asti.com Applied Software, a leading systems integrator to the AEC, Construction and Manufacturing industries, announced today the acquisition of Tekni, a reseller of Autodesk software for the manufacturing marketplace headquartered in Chesterfield, Missouri. Since 1989, Tekni has focused on helping companies successfully deploy Autodesk Digital Prototyping solutions, enabling data management and collaboration throughout their operations, from concept to product production.By adding the talents and resources of Tekni to the Applied Software portfolio, well make it easier for our customers to access the tools they need when they need them most, said Richard Burroughs, president of Applied Software. Tekni has a proven track record of supporting their customers as they integrate advanced prototyping software throughout their operations, and we plan to continue that tradition. We also look forward to exploring new ways to add value and give customers more options than theyve ever had.Teknis customer base will further benefit from the acquisition through access to Applied Softwares world-class integration, consulting and training services. Applied Software will also be better equipped to offer several software packages previously offered by Tekni, including a plant design suite, a factory design suite, a product design suite and a building design suite of products.After extensive research of all Autodesk partners, Tekni selected Applied Software due to its strong expertise with the Autodesk suite of solutions, said Vern Heyer, former owner of Tekni and current president and CEO at VMH International. Customers of both companies should see almost immediate benefits from the combining of solutions and resources.Applied Software will continue to leverage Heyers significant knowledge of the manufacturing industry, including his national and international business contacts, through an ongoing strategic partnership. For more information about the acquisition, contact Applied Software at 800-899-2784.About Applied SoftwareApplied Software is a premier, full-service systems integrator firm serving the AEC and manufacturing industries, as well as a leading Building Information Modeling (BIM) services provider. Applied Software is providing delivery and support in North America for construction field solutions in partnership with Autodesks leading resellers. Since 1982, the firm has helped more than 5,000 clients achieve high-performance and competitive advantage through its broad range of world-class solutions and services that extend to 2D and 3D design software, integration expertise, analysis, problem resolution, training and education, mentoring and more. Applied Software further distinguishes itself with the depth of real-world experience of its developers and service professionals. Over the years, the firm has received numerous industry recognitions, including being honored multiple times by Autodesk as a Platinum Club award winner. For more information on Applied Softwares solutions and services, please visitApplied Software2801 Buford Hwy Ste 100Atlanta, GA Poised for Growth, Blackpoint Receives Investment from Telcom Ventures, Announces Additions to it's Board Blackpoint, a leading cyber security technology company, announced a new investment from Telcom Ventures. Dr. Rajendra Singh, the principal owner of Telcom Ventures and a Wireless Hall of Fame inductee has joined the Board of Directors of the company. Telcom Ventures, LLC, is a private investment firm based in Miami, Florida specializing in new wireless communications systems and technologies. Under Dr. Singhs direction, Telcom Ventures and its affiliates have launched numerous wireless and other telecommunication systems throughout the world.As a significant milestone in rapid commercialization of its technologies, Blackpoint announced that Hamid Akhavan, a globally recognized leader in Telecommunication/Media/Technology (TMT) field is also joining the Board of Directors and has been appointed as the Chairman of the Board of Directors. Mr. Akhavan brings extensive international operational expertise to the company, which will strengthen Blackpoints unique product and technology position in the marketplace. Mr. Akhavan previously served as the CEO of T-Mobile International, as well as the Chief Operating Officer (COO) at Deutsche Telekom Group, where he was responsible for the companys mobile operations in Europe, and was also the Chairman of the Executive Operating Board at Deutsche Telekom. "With the addition of Raj and Hamid to our distinguished Board we are well poised to accelerate our growth and development. I am delighted to have the benefit of their vast knowledge and experience which perfectly complements our unparalleled technology and product domain expertise said Jon Murchison, CEO of Blackpoint.Blackpoint develops state of the art proprietary cyber security products. The first product family is a cyber defense fortification, intrusion detection, treatment, and recovery system protecting the entire enterprise information infrastructure with priority on high-value and mission-critical assets known as SNAP - Secure Network Analysis Platform. The second product family, Teton, offers powerful capabilities for corporations to maintain awareness of the location of their personnel in dangerous environments, provide an emergency/panic signal for employees, and allows for secure group communications and automated threat intelligence delivery.We are a company that develops products focusing on cyber defense, fortification, intrusion detection, treatment and recovery, protecting the entire enterprise information infrastructure with priority on high-value and mission-critical assets.Blackpoint6031 University Blvd. Suite 230Katie Friedmankfriedman@blackpointcyber.com Santana Equipment Trading Company Hires Mayra Ramirez to Join Its International Sales Team Mayra Ramirez - International Sales Manager for Santana Equipment Santana Equipment Trading Company, a dealer of used material handling equipment based in the Chicago, IL area, has hired Mayra Ramirez to join its international sales team. Mayra started with the company in 2010 as an administrative assistant, and has recently re-joined the team after gaining outside sales experience. Mayra will primarily deal with wholesale export sales to territories in Mexico and Latin America, but will also work with some domestic territories since she is proficient in both Spanish and English.Matt McKinney, Director of Operations for Santana Equipments headquarters office, notes that Mayra will be a great addition to our international sales team. We have seen a steady growth in our export sales over the past several years, and expect it to continue to grow. Mayra has always been a hard worker for our company, and we expect her to bring significant expansion to our customer base in Mexico and Latin America.Visit santanaequipment.com for more information about the companySantana Equipment Trading Company is an industry leader in the used material handling equipment market. Santana primarily buys, sells, and trades used forklifts and related equipment - working with Fortune 1000 companies, banking institutions, dealers, and industrial businesses in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Santana Equipment Trading Company is a privately held organization headquartered in the Chicago, IL area.Santana Equipment Trading CompanyATTN: Alex Stuckey4175 Grove AveGurnee, IL 60031 Local Company Celebrates 30th Anniversary (Cincinnati, Ohio, February 23, 2016) The Dental Care Plus Group (DCPG), a Cincinnati-based dental insurance company, is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year. Founded in 1986 by a group of dentists practicing in the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky area, the company has evolved into a leading provider of dental insurance benefits in the tri-state region.Our company was founded on the belief that there had to be a better way for patients to get quality dental care, said Anthony Cook, President and CEO of DCPG. Much of DCPGs success comes from maintaining that commitment to providing excellent service. Our clients and customers know they can count on us for a level of service that consistently exceeds their expectations that level of service really sets us apart from so many others.DCPG, headquartered in Sharonville and with offices in both Louisville and Columbus, currently employs 80 individuals. Boasting a 50,000+ growth in membership over the past five years and an average 95% retention rate year-over-year, the company tells an overwhelming local business success story since being founded 30 years ago.Expanding the company footprint, networks and product offerings has allowed DCPG to thrive in recent years. The Affordable Care Act (ACA) made health insurance mandatory however, dental insurance remains an optional add-on for employers. Despite this, DCPG experienced an increase of more than $16 million in annual revenue since the ACA became law in 2010. Additionally, the company has tripled annual revenue since 2002.The company is privately-owned by more than 500 dentist shareholders.# # #The Dental Care Plus Group (DCPG) provides dental insurance to employers and individuals through flexible plans, streamlined processes for care providers and outstanding service focused on patient care and simplicity. Founded 30 years ago in 1986, an unwavering dedication to customer service has propelled the company into becoming one of the regions leading dental insurance benefits carriers. DCPGs dentist networks offer 200,000 provider locations nationwide. For more information visit DentalCarePlus.com.The Dental Care Plus Group100 Crowne Point PlaceCincinnati, Ohio 45241CONTACT:Sarah Frysfry@dentalcareplus.com513-554-1100 ext. 1131 Coffee Company Introduces New Fresh Roasted Gourmet Coffees and Espresso Avita Coffee http://www.avitacoffee.com/onlinestore.html www.avitacoffee.com Miami, FL, February 23, 2016 Avita Coffee, a locally owned coffee company, is pleased to announce online ordering of their new fresh roasted gourmet coffees and espresso.Since 2003 South Floridians have enjoyed Avita Coffee in cafeterias, restaurants and offices. After countless requests they have made their gourmet Arabica coffees available for your home.Their rigorously screened coffees arrive in Miami and are delivered to their roast master. Their coffees are then fresh roasted in small batches and sealed to ensure peak freshness. Avita Coffees main goal is providing the highest quality fresh roasted coffee, by delivering value, consistency, and guaranteed satisfaction.Their coffees are a perfect balance of Arabica coffees each roasted to perfection then combined to assure a rich distinctive flavor. Choose from such delicious gourmet coffees as 100% Colombian Supremo, Cafe Espresso, Cafe Fuerte Dark Roast and Decaffeinated. All of Avitas Coffees are fresh roasted in South Florida.Avita Coffees President James E. Clancy, explains, "Our customers have asked us to make our gourmet coffees and espresso available for their homes. We are more than happy to do so. The secret to our delicious tasting coffees is that they are fresh roasted by an expert roast master with four decades of experience. After being roasted they are shipped directly to our customers."Contact Avita today at 561-995-0700 to order their fresh roasted coffee with a company representative or simply click on the website linkand visit their online store.About Avita CoffeeFresh Roasted Gourmet Coffee and EspressoAvita Coffee is a locally owned family business servicing satisfied customers throughout Miami-Dade, Broward, Palm Beach and Martin Counties. In business since 2003, Avita Coffee features small batch roasted gourmet whole bean and ground specialty coffee. For more information, visitor call 561-995-0700.Avita Coffee & Provision, Inc.950 Peninsula Corporate CircleSuite 1016Boca Raton, FL 33487Tel: 561-995-0700Contact: James M Clancy, Vice President Trisotech and Perr&Knight Empower Consultants and Customers in the BPM Space http://www.trisotech.com http://www.perrknight.com http://www.trisotech.com Trisotech, a global leader in digital enterprise transformation solutions, is pleased to announce that they have entered into a strategic alliance with California-based insurance consulting services provider Perr&Knight.Montreal, Quebec, Canada, December 18, 2015 Trisotech () announced today that they have entered into a strategic alliance with Perr&Knight, Inc., a leading provider of insurance support services based in Santa Monica, California.Perr & Knight works with insurers to provide solution design, requirements gathering, vendor selection, business case development, project planning, risk assessment, business process design, IT governance, data management and staff augmentation services for their technology initiatives. Rob Berg, Principal and Director of Perr & Knights Insurance Technology Group. says, Were thrilled to be entering into this relationship with Trisotech. After reviewing a multitude of commercially-available business process management tools, Trisotech fared better than their competitors by demonstrating products that optimally support our BPM practice and the clients we serve. Their tightly integrated Digital Enterprise Suite provides an access-anywhere, comprehensive toolset for empowering our consultants and enhancing our profile in the BPM space. Were truly impressed and look forward to a long, mutually rewarding association.Trisotech is delighted to work with Perr&Knight. They are an ideal collaborator because they can use advanced digital transformation tools like our Digital Enterprise Suite both for their customers and internal to their own operations. By using the Trisotech process discovery, modeling and improvement tools, we are confident that Perr&Knight and their customers will greatly benefit through reduced fixed costs, improved efficiency and added value to their operations, says Trisotech CSO, George Barlow.Barlow continues, Perr&Knight models critical processes utilized or impacted by IT, identifies root causes of process inefficiencies and then develops improvement plans to address discovered process problems. Our Digital Enterprise Suite provides powerful and comprehensive ways to facilitate client process discovery, documentation and process improvement through the Discovery Accelerator, Business Process Modeling, Case Management Modeling, Decision Management Modeling, and exciting data visualization via the Insight Analyzer all powered by Trisotechs revolutionary Digital Enterprise Graph.About Perr&KnightPerr&Knight is a leading provider of insurance support services and a strategic resource that companies utilize to reduce their fixed costs while increasing the efficiency and value of their insurance operations. Our insurance support services include Actuarial Consulting, Competitive Intelligence, Data Services, Insurance Technology, Regulatory Compliance and Risk Services.Website:Trisotech is a global leader in digital enterprise transformation solutions, offering innovative and easy-to-use software tools that allow customers to discover, model, analyze, transform and find insights into their digital enterprise. Trisotech customers use The Digital Enterprise Suite to provide new and revolutionary ways for their knowledge workers to collaborate and succeed in an increasingly global, connected and competitive world. Trisotech products are providing digital transformation help to manufacturing, financial, healthcare, insurance, energy, distribution, government, and many other types of organizations.Trisotech is a privately held company.Website:3100 Cote Vertu. B380Montreal, Quebec, CanadaH4R 2J8 One Source Process is the legal services company offers skip tracing services http://www.onesourceprocess.com/services/ United States 24-02-2016. One Source Process is the premier legal services company in United States to provide process and legal services. Hiring Maryland process server is good decision whenever you need someone to serve your legal documents in lawful manner. The process servers must have all the knowledge and skills that are needed to meet your custom needs exactly. Methods of serve legal documents may vary depending upon the country in which they need to serve so you can simply prefer to professional and qualified process servers. These certified servers must give you peace of mind while handling your legal documents and also do court filling when you are involved in any of the court case.Mainly, the process servers handle legal documents including: subpoenas, writs, summons, complaints and many other court documents. When any job is assigned to process server like delivering legal notices or documents then they personally went to hand over the documents to the defendant in the household or business. Skip tracing is also performed by process servers if needed in any case.One Source Process is the leading company of expert process servers, notaries and couriers who are available 24/7 to support you professionally. Having professional hand to serve with legal documents can make your life easy and you dont need to get time to handle your legal documents while professional process server is here to assist you. So, if you are involved in court case and need professional assistance to take care of your legal documents then you can simply prefer to professional process servers in Maryland to deliver documents to defendant or the parties involved in case.If you are involved in court case and looking for someone to take care of your legal documents then One Source Process offers all the required assistance to serve legal documents.To know more about this legal services company you can visit at:One Source Process is the leading legal services company of highly specialized and trained process servers in Maryland. It aims to provide professional assistance to everyone who need someone to serve legal documents or legal notices.For the professional, knowledgeable and dedicated process servers for skip tracing and other services you can prefer to One Source Process.1801 18th St NW,2nd Floor,Washington, DC 20009, United states Hydraulic Fracturing Industry Trends, Analysis To 2020 by Grand View Research Inc. http://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/hydraulic-fracturing-market http://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/hydraulic-fracturing-market/request http://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry/conventional-energy The global hydraulic fracturing market is expected to reach USD 90.55 billion by 2020, according to a new study by Grand View Research, Inc. Regulatory support in the form of tax benefits and financial incentives, particularly in North America and Asia Pacific is expected to drive the global hydraulic fracturing market over the next six years. Depleting conventional oil & gas reserves has prompted the industry to shift its focus towards developing unconventional resources of energy which is also expected to have positive impact on market growth. Environment issues on account of ground water contamination have led regulatory bodies across various European countries to ban the use hydraulic fracturing and this is expected to remain a key challenge for market participants.Plug & perf emerged as the leading technology used for hydraulic fracturing and accounted for 85.6% of total market revenue in 2013. Plug & perf is also expected to be the fastest growing technology at an estimated CAGR of 12.1% from 2014 to 2020. Use of plug & perf technique enables multistage fracturing for cased holes. Owing to its ease in accessibility for fracturing horizontal wells, this technology is preferred over sliding sleeve technique in the global hydraulic fracturing market.Browse full research report on Global Hydraulic Fracturing Market:Further key findings from the study suggest: Global hydraulic fracturing market was valued at USD 41.62 billion in 2013 and is expected to reach USD 90.55 billion by 2020, growing at a CAGR of 11.8% from 2014 to 2020. Proppants are one of the most important materials used for carrying out hydraulic fracturing and accounted for 28.5% of total hydraulic fracturing market revenue in 2013. Sand proppants emerged as the leading proppant product segment and accounted for 45.6% of total market revenue in 2013. Ceramic is expected to be the fastest growing proppant product segment at an estimated CAGR of 10.6% from 2014 to 2020. Shale gas emerged as the leading application segment and accounted for 28.3% of total market revenue in 2013. Shale gas is also expected to be the fastest growing application segment at an estimated CAGR of 13.7% from 2014 to 2020. Shale gas boom in the U.S. and rapidly developing shale gas reserves in China is expected to drive the demand for hydraulic fracturing in this segment. North America continued its dominance in the global hydraulic fracturing market and accounted for 88.8% of total market revenue in 2013. Increasing acreages in shale basins in U.S. and Canada coupled with government support for hydraulic fracturing has contributed to the growth of hydraulic fracturing in the region. Asia Pacific is expected to be a high-growth regional market, at an estimated CAGR of 19.1% from 2014 to 2020. Increasing E&P activities in unconventional oil & gas reserves, especially in China is expected to drive the regional hydraulic fracturing market. The global hydraulic fracturing market is moderately fragmented with the top four companies including Schlumberger, Halliburton, Baker Hughes and FTS International accounted for just over 55% of the global market in 2013. Other significant companies operating in the market include Weatherford International, Calfrac Well Services, Cudd Energy, Superior Well Services, Talcrom Services, Trican Well Services and United Oilfield Services.Read detailed report or request for sample of this research report:For the purpose of this study, Grand View Research has segmented the hydraulic fracturing market on the basis of technology, material, application and region: Global Hydraulic Fracturing Technology Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2012 - 2020) Plug & Perf Sliding Sleeve Global Hydraulic Fracturing Material Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2012 - 2020) Proppant Sand Ceramic Resin Coated Sand Others Global Hydraulic Fracturing Application Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2012 - 2020) Shale Gas Tight Gas Tight Oil CBM Others Global Hydraulic Fracturing Regional Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2012 - 2020) North America Europe Asia Pacific RoWBrowse more reports of this category by Grand View Research:Grand View Research, Inc. is a U.S. based market research and consulting company, registered in the State of California and headquartered in San Francisco. The company provides syndicated research reports, customized research reports, and consulting services. To help clients make informed business decisions, we offer market intelligence studies ensuring relevant and fact-based research across a range of industries, from technology to chemicals, materials and healthcare.Sherry JamesCorporate Sales Specialist, USAGrand View Research, IncWeb: grandviewresearch.comRead our blogs - dniamericas.org, mediafound.org, apavirginia.org CustomSoft Implemented Virtual Classroom Software for Canada and USA based Client Custom Soft Successfully Implemented Virtual Classroom Software on time for USA and Canada based client.CustomSoft Virtual Classroom Software gives learners a simple, convenient, and reliable synchronous learning solution thats built for education and training.By using Online Course Software developed by CustomSoft Learners can engage with each other and the material, and feel like theyre together in the same room via collaboration and conference tools. Wherever their day takes them, whatever device theyre using.Customized Virtual Classroom software Features: Clean and clear Full-duplex voice over Internet Use of PPT broadcasting Whiteboard Synchronization Multiuser and Multiple video conferencing at low bandwidths Sharable Applications and desktopsOnline Course Software Advantages: No travel time required No infrastructure cost No communication costs Exact replica of typical classroom by online trainings Recordable trainings for reuse User Accessibility to all comprehensive knowledge storedReview for CustomSoftCustomSoft has designed best Virtual Classroom Software for our students."Miss.NaomDS Software Institute, USACustomSoft provided expert web Virtual Classroom Software to my Company and it helped a lot for expanding our existing corporate education system worldwide."Mr.Kelly Jackson(IT Manager)Online Education Society, CanadaAbout CustomSoftCustomSoft is having talented team to develop Application in various domains successfully. Custom-Soft is successfully moving with the principle of client satisfaction and high quality Applications.CustomSoft is also providing high quality, cost effective custom Application development and many business related outsourcing services to industries and enterprises around world.Shree Parvati Mata Appartment, Shaniwar Peth Pune, India About Me Alan Ross Radio program Caffe Latte began on JOY 94.9 FM (in Melbourne, Australia) in Sept. 1997 through to July 2012. Caffe Latte is now back on JOY Sundays 11 am - 1 pm (Aust. Eastern Time) & can be heard online all over the world and as a podcast on various media platforms. Check back here for my Top 10 current tracks of the week; the latest countdowns; this month's new addition to the Gay & Lesbian Icons & Anthems Gallery; the earlier versions of hit songs, retro in the Time Capsule posts and more. Check out the Caffe` Latte` playlists available on spotify. Become a follower. All images used on this website are the copyright of the respective copyright holder and are used on this site for educational or informative purposes only. View my complete profile Blog Archive Artificial Lift Systems Market to 2022 Market Estimate, Industry Size: Grand View Research, Inc. http://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/artificial-lift-systems-market http://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/artificial-lift-systems-market/request http://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry/hvac-and-construction-technologies www.grandviewresearch.com The global artificial lift systems market is expected to reach USD 29.61 billion by 2022, according to a new study by Grand View Research, Inc. The market is poised for steady growth owing to surge in technological advancements and innovations in order to provide efficient solutions. Recent developments reduce lifting costs through system components, which resists hostile environment, improve reliability, and optimize power usage. Industry players invest heavily in R&D to provide systems that can be easily used in harsh environmental conditions such as high temperature well and ultra low volume wells.Saudi Arabia significantly pursues oil & natural gas drilling programs due to increasing domestic energy consumption. Due to increasing industrialization and construction activities in India, demand for fuel is rising at a faster pace, which is expected to drive artificial lift systems industry growth over the forecast period. African countries continue to drive oil & gas production, thereby increasing drilling activities.Browse to access In-depth research report on Global Artificial Lift Systems Market with detailed charts and figures:Further key findings from the study suggest: Electrical submersible pumps segment captured over 50% of the overall revenue generated in 2014. However, the segment may lose share over the foreseeable future owing to rise in adoption of rod lifts. Rod lifts segment is estimated to witness rapid growth over the forecast period. In 2014, the segment accounted for over 20% of the overall market share and it is increasingly used method for vertical wells, particularly in the U.S. High demand for hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling systems is expected to fuel over the next few years. Hydraulic fracturing activities have led to increased supply of oil & natural gas, especially in North America. Companies, thereby develop products to serve the hydraulic fracturing segment. In 2014, North America artificial lift systems market captured a sizeable share in terms of revenue. This may be attributed to rise in oil and water drilling activities. Further, prevalence of several oil rigs may also positively impact regional demand over the forecast period. On account of high demand for kerosene in local markets, Asia Pacific is estimated to witness rapid growth over the next seven years. The region accounted for over 20% of the overall revenue generated in 2014. The industry is consolidated in nature with the presence of few big players including Halliburton, Baker Hughes Incorporated, Cameron International Corporation, Dover Corporation, and GE Energy. Companies focus on expanding their global footprint through strategic alliances and collaborations. Expansion strategies primarily include provision of improved after-sales services, opening of new facilities, and expanding manufacturing capacity.Request for free sample of this research report:Grand View Research has segmented the global artificial lift systems market on the basis of product and region:Artificial Lift Systems Product Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2012 2022) Rod Lifts Electrical Submersible Pumps Progressive Cavity Pumps Gas Lifts Hydraulic Pumps OthersArtificial Lift Systems Regional Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2012 2022) North America Europe Asia Pacific RoWBrowse more reports of this category by Grand View Research:Grand View Research, Inc. is a U.S. based market research and consulting company, registered in the State of California and headquartered in San Francisco. The company provides syndicated research reports, customized research reports, and consulting services. To help clients make informed business decisions, we offer market intelligence studies ensuring relevant and fact-based research across a range of industries, from technology to chemicals, materials and healthcare.Corporate Sales Specialist, USAGrand View Research, IncPhone: 1-415-349-0058Toll Free: 1-888-202-9519email: sales@grandviewresearch.comWeb: Book About NDE, 'A Flight Without Wings' By Author Brian McLaughlin, Shortlisted In 2015 Book Awards Author Brian McLaughlin http://www.brianmclaughlinBooks.com 'A Flight Without Wings', Brian McLaughlin's new release about his near death experience, is one of 50 books shortlisted in the 2015 Book Viral Book Awards.Brian A. McLaughlin gives us a penetrating glimpse into the near death experience. It provide readers with a totally unique perspective on the near death experience. The book details his amazing near death experience in a way that is raw and real. There is no embellishment, no theology and no hidden agenda. While many books about the near death experience have a decidedly religious tone, McLaughlin's work does not. The book appeals to readers who seek evidence and the real truth about what happens when we die. Hidden agendas, concocted drama and brain wave research play no part in his work. It is a story told as it happened. The reader is left to draw the final conclusions.McLaughlin had his near death experience when he died during a trip to Mexico. In much the same way as other people who have had such an experience, the event changed the course of his life forever. His NDE instilled in him what we all seek - certainty about life after death. And with that came a peace of mind that can never be shaken, nor can it be doubted. It brought a sense of clarity and a sense of real, lasting peace. He now knows with certainty that we exist forever.Initially I thought my experience was a little boring. Although I hadnt read any other accounts of similar events, I had heard some stories about the grand nature of some different experiences. I also had pre-conceived notions in my own head of what I might expect in a visit to Heaven. My actual encounter fell short of fulfilling those expectations.I felt strongly about telling my story as it happened though. No embellishment, no interpretation from helpful editors or contributing writers. My story would be presented raw and as pure as my memory would allow. Recollection of the particulars was akin to describing last nights dinner. I had no issues over remembering.I feel as though the reader may have similar pre-conceived ideas about death and an afterlife. I dont want to interfere with those thoughts by claiming to have seen multitudes of people or flower filled valleys or even the angels. I didnt see those things. The important, hard to explain feelings and visions that presented themselves to me were more than enough to fill my plate. I want the reader to adapt the vision into their own belief system and make it part of their own expectation.The experience was, just as I wrote in my book. Extremely profound, moving and compelling, and not so much entertaining. The powerful tools I brought back continue to surprise me, and harnessing their use continues to benefit my life right here, right now'A Flight Without Wings' has received a number of awards and continues to draw positive reviews. McLaughlin was chosen as one of '50 Great Writers You Should Be Reading' in 2015. Jack Magnus, a reviewer with Readers Favorite called it "a remarkable work that's well worth reading, and it's highly recommended." Another reviewer stated, "Being a mother who lost her only child I found it to be a great comfort to me." Another said, "I have read many accounts such as these, but this beautifully written account simply touched my heart in ways that previous ones have not."Mark Feuerstein, Actor (Royal Pains, USA Network) wrote: I have read it and I think its an inspiring tale of deep insight and so personal and yet so universal . . . such profound perspective.Brian McLaughlin is available for media interviews and can be reached using the information below or by email at bamplaya@msn.com. 'A Flight Without Wings' is available at Amazon, Payhip and other book retailers. More information is available on his website.Brian McLaughlin is the award-winning author of 'A Flight Without Wings'. In his inspirational book, Brian vividly depicts his journey into Heaven and his following return to life caused by a massive head trauma sustained while vacationing in Playa Del Carmen, Mexico twenty-one years ago.PO Box 1613Shallotte, NC 28459 Kristen Siefkin, principal at Ideaspark Interiors of Portland, has been named to the design team of Urban I.D. Interior Design. Siefkin will continue to operate Ideaspark while working out of Urban I.D.'s Northwest Portland offices, located in the Pearl District. Siefkin's background includes storytelling through design while working at McMenamins. She also has served as vice president of a bi-coastal creative agency. Steve Holmes has been hired by M.A. Mortenson Construction as project manager support the company's water and wastewater projects in Oregon. Steve Holmes Holmes has nearly 25 years of experience in civil and heavy highway construction, including roles as laborer, superintendent and project manager. Mortenson, founded in 1954, is based in Minneapolis, Minn., and has regional offices in several U.S. cities, including Portland. The company also has international operations in Canada and China. Shannon Baird has joined the Living Room Realty, a company specializing in Portland's urban neighborhoods. Baird has 14 years of real estate experience and is a member of several professional Realtors(r) organizations. Shannon Baird Living Room Realty has offices in Portland, Manzanita and Vancouver, Wash. They also offer services in property management, tenant placement and commercial properties. UPDATED 2/24: Baird's years in real estate have been corrected. Previous versions of this post had incorrect information. Wayne Patterson has been named executive director of The Partnership For Economic Development in Douglas County. Patterson succeeds Alex Campbell, who recently joined Oregon Gov. Kate Brown's office. Wayne Patterson Patterson comes to The Partnership after serving as CEO at American Performance Technologies in Kansas City, Mo., and later relocating to Oregon to found Patterson Consulting. His consulting firm has worked with such clients as Nike, Sony, Mattel, Trek, Polaris and Alpine. -- Compiled by Roger Gregory Twitter: @washcoaide 503-294-5962 lightbar Two of three boys accused of assaulting a man and stealing his vehicle on Feb. 23, 2016, have been arrested in Vancouver, police said. (The Oregonian/File) Two of three boys accused of assaulting a man and stealing his vehicle on Tuesday have been arrested in Vancouver, police said. The Vancouver Police Department said three boys allegedly assaulted a 50-year-old man in a Vancouver Motel 6 parking lot before stealing his car and later flipping it. The third boy is still at large, police said, and the two who were arrested have been booked into the Clark County Juvenile Detention Center pending first-degree robbery charges. The two boys who were arrested are 15 and 16 years old, respectively. The man, who suffered non-life-threatening injuries, said three boys came up to him while he was inside his vehicle and demanded he hand over the keys. Two of the boys started assaulting the man, police said, and the man eventually gave them the keys. The boys then got into the car, police said, and started to drive away. The man indicated to police he was still in the car at that point and that he jumped out as the boys kept driving away. Several people called 9-1-1 while officers were investigating the alleged assault and robbery to say that there was a one-vehicle crash near the intersection of Northeast 124th Avenue and 8th Street in Vancouver. Callers said three boys had been seen running from the car, which flipped over. The car matched the description of the one allegedly stolen from the man in the motel parking lot, police said. An officer found two of the three boys suspected in connection with the incident, police said. Officers first responded to the motel at about 7:15 p.m. Tuesday, police said, and paramedics treated the man at the scene. The boys who were arrested were not identified by police, and no descriptive information was released about the third boy suspected in connection with the incident. The 50-year-old man was also not identified by police. The case is under investigation. -- Jim Ryan jryan@oregonian.com 503-221-8005; @Jimryan015 King Obama.jpg In October 2015, John King Jr., accompanied by President Barack Obama, spoke in the White House state dining room. (Andrew Harnik / Associated Press) A surprise nominee by President Barack Obama will get a hearing by a Republican-led Senate committee Thursday and has a good shot at being approved. This has nothing to do with the Supreme Court, however. The nominee in question is John King Jr., whom Obama has formally nominated to become Secretary of Education, succeeding Arne Duncan. Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, the Republican chairman of the Senate Education Committee, has scheduled the hearing for 11 a.m. Pacific Time. He pledged to give King "a prompt and fair hearing." King, who was New York state commissioner of education for 3 1/2 years before coming to the federal education department as a top deputy to Duncan in January 2015, has been serving as acting education secretary since Duncan returned to his native Chicago at the end of December. Duncan's confirmation sailed through Congress without a hitch. But Republicans in Congress subsequently grew upset with Obama's pick, after he used waivers to wield greater federal power over state education policy than ever before, including pushing some states to adopt the Common Core State Standards. As a result, King is expected to face tough questioning about how he would operate, now that Congress has rewritten federal education law to veer away from the strong federal mandates under No Child Left Behind. -- Betsy Hammond Phil Knight Phil Knight continues to donate millions to higher education institutions, with the latest $400 million gift to Stanford University for a global fellowship program (The Associated Press) This story was updated with more details about the program and its history Phil Knight, Nike's co-founder and chairman, will give $400 million to Stanford University to start a new graduate scholarship program intended to attract the next generation of global leaders to Stanford to study the world's most complex issues -- climate change, poverty, disease-- for decades to come. Stanford revealed plans Wednesday for the Knight-Hennessy Scholars Program, jointly named for the Oregon business icon and John L. Hennessy, Stanford's current president who will step down from his leadership post this year to run the scholarship program. Knight's gift, Stanford said in a release, is the biggest individual cash gift in the school's history. The Knight-Hennessy program already has a $750 million endowment, which Stanford said is the largest fully endowed scholarship program in the world, besting the Rhodes Scholarship program. "Today is my 78th birthday," Knight said in a webcast Wednesday morning outlining the proposal, "and I cannot imagine spending it in better places under better circumstances." "I view it as Stanford's gift to me," he said. The $400 million gift is the culmination of nearly a year of discussions between Hennessy, Stanford's 10th president, and the Nike co-founder, and it builds on Knight's past gifts to higher education institutions totaling in excess of $1 billion. "We wanted to create something enduring, that would be unlike anything else currently available to the world's brightest minds," Hennessy said in a statement. "And that would make the biggest impact possible toward solving global challenges affecting the environment, health, education and human rights." In a press conference, Hennessy said that the scholarship program will seek to admit two-thirds of its students from outside the U.S each year. The first group of 50 scholars will begin in the fall of 2018, and the following year the program is expected to double in size. Eventually, Stanford will have 300 Knight-Hennessy scholars studying on campus at any given time. The scholars must first apply to any of Stanford's seven professional graduate programs, then they will study - with free tuition and a living stipend -- for three years in California to pursue their degrees with a bent on leading "ambitious change in a complex world." "We want our scholars to graduate with no debt," Hennessy said. Hennessy first announced plans to step down as president last June, and shortly after, he traveled to Portland to visit with Knight and discuss the scholarship program. According to a Stanford spokeswoman, Knight's only two requests were that Hennessy run the program and that they share the name. "John and I dream of a future 20, 30 or 50 years from now, when thousands of graduates - who can think outside the box as skilled problem-solvers - will be working together for a more peaceful, habitable world," Knight said in a statement. Knight graduated from Stanford's MBA program in 1962, and has long been a supporter of the Palo Alto institution. In 2006, Knight gave the business school $105 million. A University of Oregon alum and booster, Knight has given that school upwards of $300 million through the years. Knight's donations have helped pay for UO's law school, library and 27 endowed professorships as well as for splashy athletics-related projects. UO officials declined to confirm the precise amount of the Knights' contributions. "Phil and Penny Knight have been incredibly generous to the university of Oregon," said Tobin Klinger, UO spokesman, "We deeply appreciate that continued support." UO is in the midst of a $2 billion capital funding campaign. As of the end of January, the school had received $918 million in donations, according to Klinger. Knight and his wife, Penny, contributed $500 million toward a new cancer institute at Oregon Health & Science University, too -- part of a $1 billion fundraising campaign started in 2013. The Legislature approved $200 million in bonds toward the project as well, and construction on the first Knight Cancer Institute buildings is expected to begin this year. Knight said Wednesday he and Penny decided years ago "that education will be our primary focus" in how they approach philanthropy. He's often asked for donations. "Most them I say no to," Knight said in the press conference. But Hennessy's proposal, Knight said, was "really kind of irresistible." 'So I said, 'Where do I sign?'" -- Andrew Theen atheen@oregonian.com 503-294-4026 @andrewtheen nightskies The mystery sound, which only comes at night and sounds like a mechanical scream, is also driving pets crazy. (The Oregonian) As the world -- or at least Forest Grove -- awaits an official explanation of the town's freaky noise, a Pacific University physics professor is trying to pinpoint its exact location with crowd-sourcing. On Tuesday, Andrew Dawes told members of the Forest Grove Facebook page that he had started a Google Map in an attempt to triangulate the high-pitched sound that has been haunting the Portland suburb for several weeks. "If you have heard the sound," Dawes writes, "please add a pin with a note for the date and time you heard the noise." Pacific is located in Forest Grove. In order to help Dawes avoid spam, trolls and false edits, we've decided not to post the link to the map. But based on initial entries, the map isn't exactly drawing bull's eye for people trying to solve the mystery. The reports appear to be all over the place. Most of the reports say the noise visits at night. However, at least one map pin lists a daytime manifestation. Dawes has not returned my phone calls requesting an interview. However, I've received dozens of interesting theories about the possible origins of the mechanical scream. At this point, it sounds like someone in Forest Grove needs to fix their faulty HVAC system. Here's the mysterious noise: Mystery sound frustrates people in a west Forest Grove neighborhood. Where it could be coming from? #LiveOnK2 @ 11pm pic.twitter.com/p0inj5TBr2 Chris Liedle (@chrisliedle) February 16, 2016 And here's the sound of a bad heater/air-conditioning unit sent in by a reader in Austin, Texas: You decide. Then again, the possessed manhole theory isn't all that crazy. The engineers I work with, and myself, think it may be trapped air in the sewer lines escaping through the manhole that's located at the intersection near where the sound is located. The hole in the manhole would act as a wind instrument. The manhole riser would act as a resonance chamber and increase the volume of the sound. The manhole wouldn't necessarily move as shown in these videos, but you can definitely hear air escaping from the manholes. -- Rich Forrest The recent history of weird sounds in Portland suggests there's a somewhat reasonable explanation for the oddity. -- Joseph Rose 503-221-8029 jrose@oregonian.com @josephjrose Joel Wilson, 33, of Saginaw, will serve prison time for the Saginaw County portion of his multi-county Ponzi scheme. Wilson was given a sentence of 6 years, 9 months to 10 years in prison, the maximum allowed under the law, for both securities fraud and selling unregistered securities. He was also sentenced to 5 years with a credit for 2.5 years on a third charge of larceny by conversion. Wilson is also required to pay more than $250,000 in restitution plus state and court fees in the case. Saginaw County Circuit Court Judge Janet M. Boes convicted Wilson during a bench trial Jan. 28. This is theft and an outright violation of the trust that was placed in him by his neighbors in Saginaw and Bay Counties, Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette said. I encourage Michigan consumers to avoid being rushed into financial decisions and to keep tabs on any money they invest. After being extradited from Germany, Wilson was convicted in Bay County of nine felonies on March 5, 2015, including racketeering, larceny and fraudulent sale of securities and sentenced to 105 months to 20 years in prison. The new sentence will be served at the same time as the previous sentence. Beginning in 2009, Wilson scammed investors through his operation of The Diversified Group Advisory Fund LLC, an investment company. Wilson told investors that he would use their funds to purchase distressed properties in the Saginaw and Bay City areas. The properties would later be refurbished and sold for profit, which would go to investors. When funds Wilson collected from the sales of the unregistered securities failed to turn a profit, he used new investor funds to pay returns to previous investors the trademark of a Ponzi scheme, Schuettes office stated. In addition, Wilson pocketed approximately $600,000 of the investment funds to pay his personal expenses and acquire personal assets. Wilson failed to disclose the risks associated with the actual investment in question a highly leveraged real estate investment that could result in the loss of all of the investors money. Many investors, including senior citizens, risked their life savings. In 2012, as attorney general investigators closed in on Wilsons operation, he fled the country for Germany. Schuette filed multiple criminal charges against Wilson in January 2013 and worked with federal officials to issue a warrant for his arrest in Europe. On January 20, 2014, Wilson was arrested in Germany by Dresden Police. On January 21, 2014, Schuettes office received notification from INTERPOL that Wilson had been arrested by European law enforcement and summarily filed paperwork to extradite Wilson from Germany to face trial for his pending criminal charges in Michigan. Wilson was successfully extradited on May 15, 2014. Schuette encourages Michigan citizens to exercise caution before investing their money with those who promise exorbitant returns. Key tips to avoid falling victim to a Ponzi scheme or investment fraud include: Check out your broker or adviser. Confirm that your broker or financial adviser is registered and in good standing. Contact the Bureau of Commercial Services with the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, at (517) 241-6345, to check out your broker or adviser. Beware of strangers touting strange deals. Trusting strangers is a mistake anyone can make when it comes to their personal finances. Almost anyone can sound nice or honest on the telephone. Say no to any investment professional who presses you to make an immediate decision, giving you no opportunity to check out the salesperson, firm and the investment opportunity itself. Beware of anyone who suggests investing your money into something you dont understand or who urges that you leave everything in his or her hands. Take your time dont be rushed into investment decisions. Salespersons who use high-pressure tactics to force an investor into an immediate decision are almost always pitching frauds. They dont want you to think too carefully or find out too much because you may figure out that its a scam. Keep tabs on your investments. Be wary when a financial planner says leave everything to me, or the plan is too complicated to tell you. Everything should be clear and explainable to you. Monitor the activity on your account. Insist on receiving regular statements. Ask questions. Never be embarrassed or apologetic about asking questions for trading activity that looks excessive or unauthorized. Its your money, not your brokers. Keep diligent records. Keep all of your records relating to your investments, including notes of conversations you have with brokers, salespeople and financial advisers. For the seventh year in a row, Michigan schools are invited to apply for the Building Healthy Communities program, a private-public initiative designed to fight obesity and improve childhood health through school-based wellness programming. Building Healthy Communities, originally created by Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan in 2009, is an evidence-based, comprehensive, school-wide initiative that supports childrens health by providing students, teachers and administrators with tools and resources to improve student health while creating a healthier school environment. The Building Healthy Communities program is supported by multiple statewide organizations, including Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, the Michigan Department of Education, the Michigan Fitness Foundation, Michigan State University Extension, Michigan Team Nutrition, United Dairy Industry of Michigan, University of Michigan, Wayne State University Center for School Health and Action for Healthy Kids, working together to address childhood obesity and teach kids healthy habits that can be carried into adulthood. Rachael Acker of Midland is a perfect example. When Google wanted to explore how to ignite more interest in computer science among women students, it tapped the Michigan State University College of Engineering senior, partly because Acker has been actively involved in the IgniteCS program to introduce computer science to young minds, but also because she is among the many current students who started in computer science and changed her major. I love computer science, and I actively help take our Ignite CS program into Lansing schools, she said. But my passion is more the mechanical side. I still love computer science, I just love the mechanical stuff more. Acker will graduate in December with a degree in mechanical engineering and a minor in computer science. An internship at Whirlpool in Benton Harbor last summer confirmed that her academic choices are a good fit for her Whirlpool was a blast, she said. Shell spend this summer working at iRobot in Boston. Im deciding on whether to focus on robotics or advanced product development. I think an internship at iRobot will help me decide, she said. Acker was among 15 students from across the United States who spent Jan. 14-15 at Googles Mountain View, Calif., headquarters brainstorming in a retention think tank seminar. A half dozen professors and four Google employees also participated. It was an amazing meeting, Acker said. The faculty were awesome, and I got to meet students from all over the country, including some really small schools. The meeting was a combination of support and enrichment, she said. Acker said they focused on why the drop in computer science majors? and came up with five big points: Introductory classes need to showcase more than just programming; The field needs more mentors; More attention needs to be focused on exclusion issues (its mostly men gamers); Universities need to embrace the surging changes in the field; and Teachers/faculty need to engage with students, rather than lecture to them. We talked about creating a semester-long event that would attract majors from across the university to explore computer science, Acker said. Teams would meet with faculty guides to create a prototype presentation. The cross-discipline idea would feature more than just programming, and perhaps could attract students who might not ever consider computer science. Acker said she will spend time this semester helping MSU continue its IgniteCS efforts in the Lansing area. This semesters work will focus on Lansing Eastern, East Lansing and Okemos high schools. Ill work as a mentor. After my Google experience, I have a new appreciation for the student side of this, she said. Three groups of Medicaid eligible residents will now have an additional option after the Midland County Board of Commissioners unanimously approved agreements between the County of Midland Health Department and UnitedHealthcare Community Plan. The two agreements will cover Childrens Special Healthcare Services (CSHCS) and Maternal Infant Health Care Program services (MIHP). Each agreement will allow the county to provide specific services to provide MIHP and CSHCS to eligible persons, bill UnitedHealthcare Community Plan, and receive Medicaid compensation for each service. CSHCS is for children with special needs and MIHP is for our maternal and infant health program dealing with moms-to-be and their babies and essentially coordinating good pre-natal care and coordination of social worker nutrition, said County Health Director Mike Krecek. Medicaid Health Plans are required for all persons who are Medicaid-eligible and UnitedHealthcare will be one of four entities providing health plans to Medicaid recipients in the county, along with Molina, Meridian and McLaren. UnitedHealthcare is not a new entity, but they are essentially a new entity to the Midland community, Krecek said. They are required by the state of Michigan to enter into a contract with us so that we can help do some care coordination for individuals that are covered by their plans. Medicaid recipients must select a health plan from one of the four entities. They select a plan based on who will provide the best coverage for them, much like we select an insurance company. These people have to be a member of one of these plans, Krecek said. They are agreeing to take on these individuals for services that may be quite expensive. There is a certain amount of risk on their part. Some commissioners shared their concerns regarding the expanding role of government. It seems like another step. It seems like the duplicity of administration groups and the services they supply is part of growing government. Its amazing to see government grow, said Jim Leigeb, R-3th District. Jim Geisler, R-5th District, agreed. They are hiring these not-for-profit corporations to do it for them. Just another add-on as far as Im concerned in the system, Geisler said. Its got a lot of steps. The financial impact on the county budget is projected to be minimal. The county board also unanimously passed a proclamation declaring March 5 as Walk for Warmth Day in Midland County. One hundred percent of the funds raised on Walk for Warmth Day will go to help Midland County residents with any heat-related emergency they may experience. ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) The Michigan Department of Environmental Quality wants $700,000 to better monitor, track and understand a dioxane plume that slowly has been expanding in Ann Arbor. The agency has asked state lawmakers to approve the allocation of Clean Michigan Initiative funds in fiscal year 2017, which starts in October, The Ann Arbor News reported (http://bit.ly/1LFH1QV ). Dioxane is considered a probable human carcinogen. Bob Wagner, the DEQ's Remediation and Redevelopment Division chief, said the agency would be able to use the money for environmental testing, monitoring groundwater, installing new monitoring wells and performing contaminant tracking. It also could be used for providing alternate water to residents and businesses whose water sources might become contaminated. Local officials and residents have been calling on the DEQ to do more to help address the plume from the former Gelman Sciences site. "We will provide safe drinking water to any resident or business that has well water ... exceeding the current criteria of 85 parts per billion, as well as the new proposed criteria that we'll soon be releasing," Wagner said. New state cleanup standards will lower the permissible level of dioxane in groundwater to somewhere under 10 ppb, he said. Currently, agency officials are limited by state law and court orders on what they can do from an enforcement standpoint. The department can't force Pall Corp., which dumped large amounts of the chemical into the environment from 1966 to 1986, to do a full-scale cleanup, and the pollution is still spreading despite ongoing pump-and-treat remediation efforts to reduce the amount of dioxane in the groundwater. Local officials want to ensure the plume doesn't reach the Huron River, which runs through Ann Arbor, and Barton Pond, where the city gets most of its drinking water. "My hope is still that the state and the city and Pall can work together to get the additional monitoring wells we think need to be installed," said Matt Naud, the city of Ann Arbor's environmental coordinator. The plume is one of 13 contaminated Michigan sites in line for a funding boost totaling about $16 million, the newspaper reported. ___ Information from: The Ann Arbor News, http://www.mlive.com/ann-arbor WASHINGTON (AP) The Latest on the 2016 presidential campaign a day before the Republican presidential debate and ahead of Saturday's Democratic presidential primary in South Carolina (all times local): 11:47 p.m. HOUSTON Marco Rubio has attacked Donald Trump by name, criticizing the candidate he called the GOP front-runner for not strongly opposing the federal health care law and for suggesting he could be a moderator in the Israeli Palestinian conflict. At a Houston rally, the Florida senator said "the front-runner in this race, Donald Trump, has said he's not going to take sides on Israel versus the Palestinians because he wants to be an honest broker." Rubio said there was no such thing "because the Palestinian Authority, which has strong links to terror, they teach little kids, 5-year-olds, that it's a glorious thing to kill Jews." He also named Trump in accusing him of thinking "parts of Obamacare are pretty good" drawing boos. Rubio's comments came before Thursday's Republican debate in Houston. 10 p.m. Ted Cruz is pledging to order a federal investigation of Planned Parenthood if elected president and says undercover videos appear to show the health provider is "a national criminal enterprise." The Republican presidential candidate also says he would pardon the person behind the videos, David Daleiden, if his case became a federal one. Cruz made the promises Wednesday night during a candidate forum on Fox News. Activists secretly recorded videos they allege show that Planned Parenthood sold fetal tissue to researchers for a profit in violation of federal law. Planned Parenthood denies wrongdoing and investigations by several congressional panels and states have yet to produce evidence that the organization acted illegally. In Houston, a grand jury did not indict Planned Parenthood but brought charges against Daleiden and a colleague related to their undercover activities. Cruz says the videos appear to expose "vast criminal conduct" by Planned Parenthood. 9 p.m. Bernie Sanders is spending part of the week leading into South Carolina's Democratic primary this Saturday by making his pitch to states that vote in the coming weeks. Sanders told a crowd of about 7,000 in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on Wednesday night that he is ready to "make history" on March 1 and win Oklahoma's primary. "When I look out at this crowd, I don't think there's any way that we're gonna lose on Tuesday," Sanders said, to thunderous applause. South Carolina votes on Saturday, and Sanders - who began Wednesday there with a news conference on poverty - will be back in the state for that contest. But through the end of this week, the Vermont senator is traveling to states that vote later in the calendar. He is also airing ads in the March 1 states of Colorado, Massachusetts, Minnesota and Oklahoma. On Thursday, the campaign announced Sanders will stop in Flint, Michigan, for a community forum on the city's water situation. That state votes March 8. ___ 7:35 p.m. Marco Rubio is showing off his Spanish while campaigning in Houston but ducking an unexpected question put to him in the language. As he addressed hundreds of cheering supporters in a hotel conference room, the Florida senator grinned when a man yelled, "Viva la Constitution!" Many in the crowd laughed and Rubio responded, "You're from Texas, you know what he said." But when another man yelled in Spanish, "Senator, how are you going to win the Latino vote?" Rubio said in English, "Let me finish my speech." Moments later, he referenced the question and said he wanted to win over all Americans. That prompted a woman to yell, "What about Muslim-Americans?" Rubio answered, "The debate's tomorrow." The next GOP debate is Thursday night at the University of Houston. 7:30 p.m. Hillary Clinton says there are a "lot of Flints" out there and she wants to help them. Speaking to about 500 people at Morris College in Sumter, South Carolina, Clinton stressed her commitment to helping Flint, Michigan, which is dealing with a lead-contaminated water crisis. Flint is a majority black city and Clinton questioned if this would have happened in a "white, affluent suburb of Detroit." Clinton said there are other communities going through the same problems and if elected president, she would create a wall of maps in the Executive Office Building, marking where there are water problems, sewer problems and other issues. She says the "most basic thing" government should offer is "a healthy start in life. 7:25 p.m. Bernie Sanders is getting a little firsthand folk music education. Before a rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Sanders and his wife stopped by the Woody Guthrie Center and met with fans and voters awaiting them on the sidewalk. In the 1980s, Sanders recorded a spoken-word album of folk favorites including Guthrie's classic "This Land is Your Land." Folk classics have been part of the warm-up music at Sanders' rallies. 7:20 p.m. Donald Trump is hitting back after Mitt Romney suggested that a "bombshell" is lurking in the tax returns he has so far refused to release. Romney was the GOP nominee in 2012. Trump says on Twitter that "Mitt Romney, who totally blew an election that should have been won and whose tax returns made him look like a fool, is now playing tough guy." Romney said in an interview with Fox News that Trump's foot-dragging on releasing his returns suggests he has something to hide. Trump endorsed Romney in 2012 but has been deeply critical of the former Massachusetts governor's performance as a candidate since mounting his own run. He adds that when Romney asked for his endorsement, "he was so awkward and goofy that we all should have known he could not win!" 6:21 p.m. Mitt Romney says he thinks there's a "bombshell" in Donald Trump's tax returns. The 2012 Republican presidential nominee says on Fox News Wednesday that the contents of Trump's tax returns are the reason the billionaire developer has not released them. Trump has said his accountants are working on his returns and that he'll release them eventually. Romney is also calling on Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz to release their tax returns. The former Massachusetts governor came under intense scrutiny in 2012 over his own tax filings. Romney also says he believes Trump has the clearest path to the Republican nomination and that there is "a slimmer and slimmer opening" for his rivals unless the field narrows. ___ 6 p.m. Ohio Gov. John Kasich said that as president he could bring state and federal regulators up and down the Mississippi River to work together with farm interests to diminish a pollution problem in the Gulf of Mexico. The Republican presidential hopeful was answering questions Wednesday in a New Orleans suburb when he was asked about fertilizer pollution in the Mississippi that leads to harmful algae blooms in the Gulf. He said he faced a serious problem with pollution in Lake Erie when he brought environmentalists and farmers together to work out a compromise to control fertilizer runoff. Kasich trailing front-runner Donald Trump and Sens. Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz visited Metairie, Louisiana and Gulfport, Mississippi, during a campaign swing ahead of March primaries in both states. ___ 5:10 p.m. The wins keep coming for Donald Trump. Two weeks after the New Hampshire primary, Trump has picked up another delegate from that contest. Marco Rubio has lost one. The updated count for New Hampshire has Trump winning 11 delegates, John Kasich getting four, Jeb Bush and Ted Cruz winning three apiece, and Rubio getting two. Overall, Trump has 82 delegates, Cruz has 17, Rubio has 16, Kasich has six and Carson has four. It takes 1,237 delegates to win the Republican nomination for president. The Associated Press is adjusting its delegate count based on final numbers released by the New Hampshire secretary of state's office and the state Republican Party. ___ 4:40 p.m. Jeb Bush is thanking his vast network of donors Wednesday and lamenting that he was unable to break through in "a year of making a compelling case to people that were deeply disaffected and angry." Bush isn't saying who he will support or who his backers should get behind now that he is out of the race. The former Florida governor complained during a less-than three-minute conference call with supporters that the news media covering the campaign are more driven by "who was winning and losing" and "the latest insult" than a discussion of leadership and policy. Bush said he was "sorry it didn't turn out the way (he) intended." He added that he's hitting the gym and catching up on his sleep at his home in Coral Gables, Fla. Bush announced Saturday he was suspending his campaign, after finishing that day in a distant fourth place in the South Carolina primary. __ 4:20 p.m. Hillary Clinton is asking for votes from workers collecting their pay checks at a longshoreman's hall in Charleston, South Carolina ahead of the state's Democratic presidential primary. Clinton thanked the union for its endorsement and said she needs the help of its workers on Saturday. She pledged to the predominantly black crowd that she would build on the "progress" that President Barack Obama, the nation's first black president, has made. Clinton added that she wants to "make sure we don't take any risks and have that progress ripped away." Earlier Wednesday, Clinton visited a residential program that helps rehabilitate criminals and substance abusers in North Charleston. She and rival Bernie Sanders are both pledging to reform the criminal justice system. ___ 3:34 p.m. Texas Sen. Ted Cruz is bristling over questions about whether he'd be pressured to leave the GOP nomination fight if he does not win all of his home state's 155 delegates on Tuesday. Cruz says he is "curious how many reporters ask Marco Rubio, 'After losing four states in a row, so when do you drop out?" He notes that Rubio hasn't won a state nominating contest while Donald Trump has won three in a row after Cruz's Iowa victory. Texas is the largest state voting Tuesday. In order to take every delegate, its winner would have to get a majority of votes cast statewide and in all 36 congressional districts. Cruz wouldn't predict he'd do that, saying only that "We are going to do well." ___ 3:17 p.m. Ted Cruz is shaking off his disappointing third-place finish in Nevada saying, "I believe we are poised to have a very good night on Super Tuesday." Cruz appeared in Houston with Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, his mentor and former boss, who on Wednesday endorsed the tea party-backed senator. Texas offers the biggest delegate prize on Tuesday, and Cruz's campaign is depending on a solid win there to survive. Most polls show Cruz the favorite to win, but not by enough to take all the state's 155 GOP delegates under its proportional system. Cruz called next week's vote in 11 GOP primaries in largely southern states, "the single most important day of this election." Without mentioning Nevada winner Donald Trump, Cruz said Texas won't be swayed by "blustery rhetoric" and that "the time for the clowns and the acrobats and the dancing bears has passed." ___ 3:13 p.m. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton wants to make a "voting issue" out of the Supreme Court vacancy created by Justice Antonin Scalia's sudden death earlier this month. Speaking to a gathering of Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority alumnae in South Carolina, Clinton called on the friendly crowd to "put pressure on the Senate and support the president." Senate Republican leaders have said they will refuse to meet with, hold hearings for and have a floor vote on any nominee President Barack Obama sends to Capitol Hill. Obama says he plans to nominate a potential jurist anyway, citing his constitutional responsibility. Clinton encouraged AKA sisters to "see if we can't find a handful of Republicans who understand and will do their duty, who believe they are called by the Constitution to do just that." ___ 1:27 p.m. Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid is endorsing Hillary Clinton for the Democratic presidential nomination. A spokeswoman for the Nevada senator said Wednesday that Reid was making the endorsement. Reid participated in his state's Democratic caucuses Saturday but voted as "uncommitted." Clinton won the contest. Reid said he took pains to remain neutral in the competition between Clinton and Bernie Sanders so he would not be accused of rigging the caucuses. ___ 12:53 p.m. John Kasich is sending a message to Republicans who think he should drop out of the GOP presidential contest: "Forget about it." With Jeb Bush out of the race, Kasich's and Marco Rubio's campaigns are in a fierce battle to become the so-called establishment alternative to front runner Donald Trump. Kasich's campaign is running a strategy that relies on surviving through the March 1 Super Tuesday contest and winning Michigan's March 8 primary. Kasich says people need to "chill out" because there's a "long way to go" in the GOP nominating contest. Then, Kasich says he'd love to take on Trump in his home state of Ohio, which holds its winner-take-all primary on March 15. ___ 12:12 p.m. John Kasich's campaign is unleashing a stream of attacks against Marco Rubio, saying it's time to "rethink the conventional wisdom" that Rubio is the establishment's best hope for defeating Donald Trump. Kasich's campaign has sent three memos to reporters in fewer than 24 hours slamming Rubio's campaign strategy, saying he's proving to be a poor return on investment when comparing his campaign spending with his early-state finishes. The campaign is attempting to downplay Rubio's second-place finish in Tuesday night's Nevada caucuses as a disappointment given how much he spent in the state. A slate of GOP office holders have lined up behind Rubio, including Bob Dole, Sen. Orrin Hatch of Utag and former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty. Kasich has secured several prominent endorsements as well in recent days, including Tom Ridge, the former Pennsylvania governor and first director of Homeland Security. Kasich's campaign is banking everything on Michigan's March 8 primary and is making clear the candidate has no plans to drop out soon. ___ 11:45 a.m. Republican front-runner Donald Trump has won his first endorsements from sitting members of Congress. Reps. Duncan Hunter of California and Chris Collins of New York said Wednesday they are backing Trump for the GOP nomination for president. Collins said Trump has demonstrated he has "the guts and the fortitude" to help U.S. companies compete with China and take on foreign threats such as the Islamic State and North Korea. Hunter called Trump a strong leader. Hunter sponsored a bill passed by the House last year that would shut down funding for so-called sanctuary cities like San Francisco that shield immigrants from deportation by federal authorities. Democrats accused Republicans of following Trump in demonizing Latinos and dubbed the bill the Donald Trump Act. ___ 11:15 a.m. The Nevada Republican party is reporting that attendance at its Tuesday night caucus set a new record. The party says more than 75,000 voters attended the caucus. That's more than twice the 33,000 who caucused in 2012. Nevada's Republican caucuses have been plagued by low attendance and other problems since they began in 2008. Democrats have seen stronger turnout numbers. They reported more than 84,000 caucus goers in their caucuses on Saturday. As expected, the relatively high turnout Tuesday powered Donald Trump to a commanding victory. ___ 9:50 a.m. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has endorsed Ted Cruz for president, hoping to give the senator a boost as their home state's primary looms. Abbott announced his support in a video released Wednesday morning. He and Cruz are set to appear together in Houston later in the day. Texas is the largest of "Super Tuesday" states voting next week. As Texas attorney general, Abbott tapped Cruz as solicitor general. Cruz calls Abbott a friend and mentor. Cruz was third in Nevada's caucuses Tuesday, edged out by Marco Rubio. Donald Trump was the commanding winner. ___ 9:45 a.m. Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders is adamant that he is not giving up on South Carolina despite leaving the state to campaign elsewhere days before this early voting state's primary. He says his campaign has closed the gap with Hillary Clinton and they are not writing off the state. Sanders is beginning a multi-state campaign trip, returning to South Carolina just before primary voting Saturday. ___ 9:00 a.m. With his commanding victory in Nevada, Donald Trump has won 14 delegates in the state. Marco Rubio won seven and Ted Cruz got six. John Kasich and Ben Carson each got one, with one delegate left to be allocated. Overall, Trump has 81 delegates, and Cruz and Rubio have 17 apiece. Kasich has six delegates and Carson has four. It takes 1,237 delegates to win the Republican nomination for president. ___ 8:50 a.m. Marco Rubio has edged out Ted Cruz for second place in the Nevada caucuses. The Associated Press finds the difference was fewer than 2,000 votes. In an appearance on NBC's "Today" show, Rubio says that it will be easier to stop Donald Trump once the race is narrowed. Trump was the big winner in Nevada's Republican caucuses Tuesday. It was his third straight commanding victory in the race for the Republican presidential nomination. Corpsman Aaron D. Ullom gave his life for his country. Now, his country has chosen to remember the fallen soldier by dedicating the U.S. 10 Bridge over Eastman Road as the Corpsman Aaron D. Ullom Memorial Bridge. Tuesday, in Lansing, Gov. Rick Snyder signed the measure into law surrounded by Ulloms mother, Debi Ullom; father, Kevin Ullom; and step-brother, Sean Bartley. Today was a very happy day. This is just awesome beyond words, said Debi, after arriving back in Midland. It was so very humbling and overwhelming. We are so proud of our son, Aaron. SB 513, sponsored by Sen. Jim Stamas and supported by Rep. Gary Glenn in the House, unanimously passed both chambers before Snyder added his signature. Our country remains the beacon of liberty in the world because of the courage of patriots like Corpsman Aaron Ullom, who too often make the ultimate sacrifice, said Stamas, R-Midland. This memorial bridge is about showing our tremendous appreciation for Aarons service and dedication to the country he loved. May it long stand as a permanent reminder of a native son and American hero who gave his life saving a fellow soldier in defense of our freedom. On a joyous day for the Ullom family, Debi was very thankful for the assistance from Stamas and Glenn in moving the bill quickly through both chambers. We felt very appreciative for this, especially for Sen. Jim Stamas introducing the bill and Rep. Gary Glenn, who spoke on the floor of the House in support of the bill, Debi said. The support we have gotten from them was just amazing. Ullom, a 2009 Midland High graduate, was a hospital corpsman in the U.S. Navy when on July 12, 2011 he was killed by enemy gunfire while in Helmand Province, Afghanistan, after leaving a small ditch to apply a tourniquet to a wounded Marine. For his actions, Ullom was awarded the Purple Heart. To see a lot of the people showing us support was just amazing. They treated us with so much kindness, Debi said. The Michigan Memorial Highway Act of 2001 allows for the naming of bridges and highways within the state to memorialize people or events of significance. The act requires that the cost of constructing, erecting and maintaining the sign and other costs associated with the designation be borne by the individuals or organization requesting the designation. We got to see a replica of the sign to be put on the bridge, Debi said. On the way home we rode over the bridge and I thought, Aaron, were riding over you buddy. Two further events are in the works: a spaghetti dinner is tentatively scheduled for some time in April to raise money for the signage. The dedication of the bridge is tentatively scheduled for Saturday, July 9. We would like to have the dedication around the fifth anniversary of Aarons death, Debi said. July 12 is a weekday. But, if we have it on a Saturday, a lot of Aarons friends can be there. From SWAT trucks to drug-testing kits and the Midland Police Departments newest K9 officer, it was no surprise that last weeks trip to the Law Enforcement Center was a favorite for members of the Midland Citizens Academy. City Attorney Jim Branson introduced himself, and said he has worked about 25 years in his department, and many people still arent aware of his responsibilities and duties. Its a separation of power, Branson said, describing his job to represent the city in legal matters that otherwise may cause a conflict of interest for other city officials or outside representation. He is also responsible for visiting new board and commission members and taking them through proper parliamentary procedure: how to act in an official capacity and the laws behind public meetings. I believe it made it much more accessible and better for the people who are out there, Branson said. Branson joked that his office does not provide legal assistance to residents, but still receives plenty of confused calls. Those contacts are based on a variety of topics, ranging from mini pigs to hunting in the city and even from people who believe the city attorney represents residents in court. Here are a few things the City Attorneys Office is responsible for: Representing the city in all kinds of court cases, including tribunal and federal courts. Branson regularly appears in court as the citys agent for civil infractions, traffic violations and misdemeanor and ordinance cases. Responding to Freedom of Information Act requests. In 2015, Branson was sent 524 FOIA requests. Inspecting and receiving contracts, deeds, easements and small damage and insurance claims. Organizing the collection of fees for overdue library books, emergency response services, delinquent personal property taxes and parking tickets. To date, the city has collected more than $1.5 million from collection services. The point isnt to make money, its to have compliance, Branson said. Were not perfect but were sure giving it a good try. There are about 900 active court files the City Attorneys Office is currently handling. As director of Human Resources and Labor Relations, Carol Stone knows what is going on across all the buildings and departments that make up the city of Midland. She is in charge of recruitment and hiring, employee health programs and benefits administration. Did you know that public safety personnel are not allowed to strike, and do not typically participate in Social Security? It is a part of Stones job to know information like that and assist the city in pension programs for public employees. While Stone shared her concerns about the current unfunded liability of those pensions, she told academy participants that Midland has a very low turnover and is focused on the well-being of its employees, both during and after employment. The class was then turned over to Police Chief Cliff Block, dressed in his best uniform and ready to show the academy what the Midland Police Department is all about. He has been with the city since 1993, when he began his employment as a patrol officer. This is your police department; we work for you, Block said to the academy participants. That statement is backed up by the departments core values: integrity, professionalism and service to community, which are out there everywhere, they mean that much to us, Block said. One of the first questions he was asked was about ticket quotas. Block shook his head and said things like that do not exist, and that the police department does not make any money or profit from writing residents tickets for traffic violations. He noted: Personnel of the Midland Police Department clocked in about 9,000 hours of training throughout 2015. There are 48 sworn-in employees of this department. Police officers responded to 15,584 service calls during the fiscal year of 2014-15. This figure does not include calls from the Midland County Sheriffs Office. There were two fatal traffic crashes during that time: Two is too many, Block said. Midland was designated as one of Americas Safest Cities in 2014, an award that Block remains proud of. When asked about the addition of roundabouts in and around Midland, Block commented on how the nature and factors of the traffic crashes have changed and the intersection at Patrick Road and Business U.S.-10 has greatly improved. My thoughts are its keeping people safe, Block said. One worry on his mind is a recent increase in driving under the influence cases, Block said. The police department is currently reviewing strategies to keep this number in check, and he added that texting while driving is another issue. Some help has been provided through Midlands newest K9 officer, Tzayid, who greeted class members along with his human counterpart, Officer Dubois. These dogs are incredible readers, said Dubois, commenting on how a K9 officer can read the moods of officers and be alert to the moods of residents they interact with, whether good or bad. After that, the academy was split into two groups to tour the Law Enforcement Center. Did anyone else know this property used to be an indoor mall? Our tour guide, Lt. Matthew Berchert, told the group you could still see the little shop opening where The Cobblers Bench used to operate. The Law Enforcement Center went through an extensive remodel when it was sold to the city for public safety use, with multiple hallways joining departments together that are secured to only allow permitted employees through. Berchert led us through the administrative offices, into a briefing room and the juvenile holding area, to our first surprise: a visit to the Midland SWAT Teams vehicle. At 52, I had to use some serious muscle to struggle into the back compartment but luckily, I was allowed to exit after SWAT Officer Mahabir took us through some quick facts on the teams training. Did you know the SWAT team has 10 members, two of whom are snipers? All SWAT officers are required to pass physical and psychological tests, carry an extra 45 pounds of armor versus a patrol officer, and sometimes use 250-pound ballistic shields on top of that. Could you imagine? I could barely lift the bulletproof vest Block handed around earlier that night. We then made our way over to the impressive setup of Midland County Central Dispatch, where large screens show color-coded shapes of different patrol vehicles out keeping the community safe. We learned that some cell providers provide better signals that can be located faster. One of my favorite aspects of last weeks class was meeting Detective Lt. Hurd and seeing the forensic lab and equipment used to evaluate and store evidence. Hurd showed us how magnetic shavings can be used to uncover fingerprints, and how specific drugs can be tested on the scene with little plastic packets with testing solution inside. At this point, it was going on 10:30 p.m. and it was clear the tour was coming to an end. We had a chance to hold some of the regular patrol weapons Midland police carry on them and in their vehicle on a daily basis, checked out the SWAT training room and even caught a surprising odor in the basement of the Law Enforcement Center. That funny smell you are smelling? Thats marijuana, Berchert said as he walked us past a series of evidence lockers, some as tiny as a shoebox and others large enough to fit big evidence like televisions. One last thing before we left: Berchert made sure to take us through the History Hallway, as he calls it, a long space filled with pictures of every officer sworn in by the police department. He pointed out tiny ribbons attached to those who died, but pointed out none have been lost in the line of duty. It was time to head home and think about everything I had learned, but my only thought as I walked out to my car was that I was glad. I was glad I was raised in a place where police officers walk with students to school and know them by name, and glad to continue to work in a community that puts such a high value on public safety. Jessica Haynes plans to continue sharing these little-known facts with Daily News readers in a weekly column during the Citizens Academy, and welcomes readers to share their perspective of living or growing up in Midland by emailing her at jhaynes@mdn.net or engaging with her on Twitter @citizenhaynes. She is also on Facebook at http://on.fb.me/1PBfBga. The following list includes reports from the Midland County Sheriffs Office and the Midland Police Department. Monday, Feb. 22 12:04 a.m. Deputies were called to an Ingersoll Township home for a domestic assault involving a man and woman, ages 56 and 53. A report is being sent to the prosecutor. 12:29 a.m. Police cited a minor for alcohol possession and made a warrant arrest in the 5300 block of Dublin Avenue. 3:04 a.m. Deputies were sent to a Jerome Township home for a report of a loud party and illegal burning. No party was found. An 18-year-old man was cited for burning tires. 1:40 p.m. A deputy assisted Isabella County officials who were transporting a federal inmate to the Midland County Jail when the inmate suffered a medical problem at Meridian Road and M-20. 9:17 p.m. A Lincoln Township man, 28, was arrested in Midland for driving on a suspended license and on two warrants. He was stopped for driving without headlights on. 9:19 p.m. A motorist was arrested at North Saginaw Road and Sturgeon Creek Parkway for driving on a suspended license. 11:49 p.m. Police responded to a domestic assault at an East Pine Street address. Sunday, Feb. 21 2:29 a.m. A motorist was arrested at Jefferson Avenue and Dartmouth Street for drunken driving. 7:40 a.m. A motorist was arrested at Waldo Avenue and Salzburg Road for driving without insurance. 1:55 p.m. Police investigated a case of fraud in the 100 block of East Baker Street. 6:22 p.m. A motorist was arrested at Jerome and Main streets for driving on a suspended license. 9:24 p.m. Officers made arrests for driving on a suspended license, driving without insurance, a warrant and a parole violation at West Union and Gordon streets. 10:04 p.m. A deputy was sent to a Jerome Township home to verify a repossession agent was legitimate. The agents employment was verified and he was allowed to repossess a vehicle. Saturday, Feb. 20 2:28 a.m. Police investigated a domestic assault at a North Saginaw Road address. 6:40 a.m. A 47-year-old man was arrested for drunken driving after a crash in Edenville Township. 11:32 a.m. A Mount Haley Township man, 61, reported he was assaulted by a 25-year-old Gladwin County man. The victim was taken to the hospital for treatment of minor injuries. A report is being sent to the prosecutor. 4:41 p.m. A motorist was arrested at West Main and Post streets for driving on a suspended license. 6:42 p.m. Police investigated a case of sexual assault at a North Saginaw Road address. 9:14 p.m. A motorist was arrested at Eastman Avenue and Sylvan Lane for driving on a suspended license. 11:16 p.m. A Plainwell man, 55, was arrested for drunken driving after a crash in Hope Township. Friday, Feb. 19 1:01 a.m. Two males, ages 23 and 29, were arrested after a Jerome Township traffic stop for marijuana possession. An 18-year-old man was arrested on a warrant. 2:22 a.m. A motorist was arrested at North Saginaw Road and Orchard Drive for drunken driving and cited for an improper plate. 3:10 a.m. A Detroit woman, 20, was arrested in Homer Township for driving on a suspended license. 8:55 a.m. A deputy investigated a report of a personal protection order violation that occurred at the courthouse. The report is being sent to the prosecutor. 4:36 p.m. Police investigated a case of retail fraud in the 900 block of Joe Mann Boulevard. 7:04 p.m. A deputy was called to a crash at West Isabella and South Alamando roads, and found a Saginaw man, 40, who was driving without insurance. The man was cited for the offense. 9:32 p.m. A motorist was arrested at Joe Mann Boulevard and Jefferson Avenue for drunken driving. Thursday, Feb. 18 11:14 p.m. A motorist was arrested for drug possession and cited for no valid license at Wheeler and Washington streets. Instead of the usual howl of jet engines, Team Kadena heard the growl of 120 turboprop blades chopping the air as 17th Special Operations Squadron MC-130J Commando II aircraft dominated the airfield scene Feb. 17, 2016. Within an hour of standing by at stations, the aircraft took to the skies during the Pacific region's first five-ship formation flight involving the new specialized mobility aircraft. The formation was part of the 353rd Special Operations Group's training exercise that tested the 17th SOS and the 353rd Special Operations Maintenance Squadron to launch a short-notice, large-scale tasking. "We routinely fly two ships, but we mobilized five ships to test our ability to generate aircraft in full force to make sure our maintenance can support that, and to make sure we can do the planning in case we are ever asked to fly a large formation," said Maj. Brad Talley, 17th SOS assistant director of operations. As part of that assessment, team members evaluated their formation flying and short runway landings, combat systems operators tested their cargo air drop timing, and loadmasters tested their cargo delivery system rigging capabilities. "We mobilized all available personnel in the squadron to execute this mission, while all five planes were able to accomplish all cargo drops, land in a small landing zone, maintain formation, and return safely," Talley said. Though the team successfully accomplished the exercise objectives, it wasn't a simple process. Despite complex procedures, the 17th SOS Jakal team members overcame the challenges to ensure mission completion. "The most difficult portion was the planning and safe execution of the mission, since most of our squadron isn't used to that level of de-confliction complexity," said Senior Airman Zach Harmon, 17th SOS MC-130J Commando II loadmaster. According to Talley, the best part of the mission was seeing the whole team fly together and build camaraderie. "My favorite part was flying in close formation with all my Jakal brethren, exploring various formation geometries, and seeing how well each crew flew," Talley said. The 17th SOS was activated as a permanent unit at Kadena Aug. 1, 1989, and is instrumental in carrying out wartime and contingency operations in support of U.S. and allied special operations forces. The 17th SOS began the transition from the MC-130P Combat Shadows to the MC-130J Commando II in Dec. 2014, and the latest aircraft arriving on Kadena in Oct. 2015. Technological advances allow the Commando II to set new standards for safety and accuracy in executing clandestine missions. The new aircraft specializes in night-time, low-level infiltration/exfiltration and resupply of special operations forces as well as air refueling missions for special operations vertical lift aircraft. The 353rd SOG, made up of more than 800 Airmen, is the only Air Force Special Operations unit in the Pacific and is integral to the Air Force Special Operations Command. The group conducts wartime and contingency operations planning and execution as well as humanitarian and relief operations, all the while maintaining global mobility readiness for Special Forces around the world. ANDERSEN AIR FORCE BASE, Guam -- Wearing starched, grey field camouflage uniforms, airmen gathered under the orange glow of a canvas parachute suspended in the jungle canopy above. Donned on their shoulders was the Hinomaru, or red circle of the sun the Japanese flag. The group were members of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force participating in Cope North 16 on Andersen Air Force Base. Unsure of what to expect, they were keen to learn more about what it takes to survive in the jungle. In a one-day workshop held Feb. 16, U.S. Air Force survival, evasion, resistance, and escape, or SERE, specialists from the 353rd Combat Training Squadron at Eielson Air Force Base, Alaska, shared basic jungle survival strategies with the participants tips that could save these aviators lives. Wherever we go in the world today, operations can put us into potential harm, such as a jungle environment, said Master Sgt. Kurtis Douge, the 353rd CTS, a veteran SERE specialist of more than 13 years. Today, we made sure this team has some basic survival skills if they did find themselves in a jungle environment and would be better prepared to survive. Over the course of the day, Douge and his fellow instructor, Staff Sgt. Levi Wood, demonstrated a variety of tips and tricks from how to start a fire using bamboo and fire steel to building an effective roof for shelter from tropical elements. You need to build a fire, catch food and be able to signal to get found and recovered, said Staff Sgt. Levi Wood, noncommissioned officer in charge of training with the 353rd CTRS. The tools to accomplish that vary, and sometimes it takes improvisation. The students then learned how to find and prepare food only with jungle materials by boiling water for rice and ramen in simple green bamboo stalks. The instructors also reminded the students that local fruit may be a great resource, such as Carambola, or starfruit, and the simple coconut. The jungle is your hardware and grocery store, Douge told them. It offers tools and food just have to know how to find them. While the training was serious business, Wood lightened some moments using tricks he learned over the years. Would you like to see some magic? he asked. With two strokes of his machete, Wood skillfully disassembled a lithium battery and uncoiled the tightly wound metal paper within. With a few drops of water from a bottle, the tangle ignited into a crimson-red flame at his feet. Of course, he said, this only works once, but its another way of starting a fire in a bind. This is my office, Wood said. I love being out in the wilderness; we get to teach other people more about it and watch them enjoy it. Its great. But the jungle can also hold dangers - snakes, spiders and dehydration are formidable enemies for downed aviators. To reduce anxiety in the real-world, Wood demonstrated how to catch and safely handle one of Guams most infamous predators: the brown tree snake. The goal of the training, Wood said, is to minimize time in the wild and expedite recovery. To allow search and rescue aircraft to see through dense jungle vegetation, participants therefore received training on signal flares, mirrors and the use of ground-to-air symbols to increase their chances of being rescued. As the course progressed, initial apprehension gave way to smiles on the participants faces. If I had to survive in the jungle, I think I would have a better chance at survival thanks to this training, said Tech. Sgt. Shinchiro Sasaki, a pararescue jumper with the JSDAF. We learned many new things in this training, and it was very interesting. My favorite part were the snakes, of course. For Douge and Wood, this may have been another day at the office, but both know that even small tips may well save a service members life when help is far away. Just after a few hours out here with us, you can tell their confidence level is just a little bit higher and sometimes in a survival situation thats what you need to get through that little edge of confidence and knowledge, Douge said. As a SERE specialist, teaching other people new [survival] skills is at the core of what we do and Cope North is a great opportunity because it allows us to share our knowledge with our coalition partners here in the Pacific. NORTHERN MARIANA ISLANDS -- Military members from six nations joined together for a humanitarian assistance and disaster relief deployment throughout the region of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Feb. 14-18. The deployment is part of Cope North 16, a multilateral exercise, including the U.S. Air Force and air forces from across the Indo-Asia-Pacific region. Col. Brian Toth, CN16 lead for the U.S. Air Force, said the HA/DR portion enhances regional capabilities to respond to crises and lays the foundation for the expansion of regional cooperation in the face of real-world contingencies. Humanitarian assistance and disaster response is an awesome capability we can provide, Toth said. The ability to have our forces train together allows us to understand what each part brings to the response and what we can provide together to provide the aid any country in the region may ask for. It demonstrates our commitment to working together with our coalition partner countries across the Pacific, he continued. We work well together and provide a strong presence and we know we can rely on each other in a time of need. Members from the U.S. Air Force, Navy and Coast Guard; partnered with the Japan Air Self-Defense Force; Royal Australian Air Force; Republic of Korea Air Force as well as Royal New Zealand Air Force; and Philippine Air Force, reacted to a fictional yet realistic disaster scenario that was said to affect the Marianas region. What were focusing on is interoperability, learning from one another how to better respond to disaster situations, said Sharon Rohde, CN16 HA/DR lead planner. Its about overcoming not only language barriers but differences to how we do business, whether thats regulatory in nature or based on our understanding of the situation. We open up communication and derive lessons learned to be better prepared in response to disaster. The exercise scenario posed a severe impact from a typhoon traversing between the islands of Tinian and Rota, prompting CNMI to issue a simulated request for immediate assistance to Guams neighboring islands. During the HA/DR response, Guam acted as the hub for all aid efforts. From Guam, crews traveled to two deployed operation centers on spoke locations on Rota and Tinian. Upon notification of the emergency, coalition units responded in a phased approach based on real-world response plans by deploying RAAF combat controllers and Andersen AFBs 36th Contingency Response Group teams to the islands to survey airfield conditions and establish security for incoming aid flights. The notional disaster tested the main training objectives of airfield assessment team insertion and substandard airfield operation. Bringing together Airmen from varying Air Force specialties, multi-lateral contingency teams demonstrated their ability to assess and operate previously inaccessible airfields within 12 hours of notification. Contingency response of this type is one of our major functions, said Lt. Col. Glenn Rineheart, 36th Mobility Response Squadron commander and exercise mission commander on Rota. Cope North provides the ability for our Airmen to respond to a foreign location and operate only with those assets which were brought in order to surmount challenges with equipment and personnel and the environment. There is a lot to be gained from operating away from main base. After declaring the airfields as safe, contingency teams provided continued communications and aerial port support to allow aircrews to deliver aid. Within hours of the airfield opening, coalition teams began set up of the Expeditionary Medical Support Health Response Team mobile hospital, which stands ready on Guam to deploy to real-world disasters. Expeditionary medical teams deploy to save lives From emergency resuscitation to life-preserving surgery, the teams are well-equipped and trained to handle a large variety of possible ailments, yet the priority for medics and nurses lies with triage and initial stabilization of patients. The EMEDS-HRT is the first-line response package in the region, said Staff Sgt. Carlos Rance, a 36th Medical Group medical logistics contracting officer. We set up the ER tent first, and within a 12 hour period we have a fully operational medical facility that allows our teams to treat more than 300 patients. During this exercise we get the opportunity to not only complete a full set up, from the box up, but doctors and medics also get valuable hands-on experience on what its like to operate exclusive with the equipment we carry. Receiving a steady stream of typhoon victims who were hypothetically transported from Tinian for medical care, medical technicians and military doctors practiced real-time care procedures on simulated injuries ranging from burn wounds and open fractures to psychological distress and child delivery. Focused on the patient When patient condition required a higher echelon of care, a team or flight nurses and medical administrators ensured expedient aeromedical evacuation to a location with a fully functioning hospital. The focus of this whole exercise is the patient, said Australian FLTLT Emma J. Dingle, a RAAF flight nurse and CN16 aeromedical evacuation liaison. It is really important for us to understand how each country functions, so that when we do have to come together for joint disaster responses, we can do it smoothly and effectively and have the best outcome for the people who are in need of help. The aeromedical evacuation exercises culminated with a joint rescue event Feb. 17. Coalition search and rescue aviators located simulated downed aircraft crew in open waters off the coast of Guam and subsequent rotary wing evacuation by U.S. Navy's Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 25. Planning success through past lessons learned For the first time, international HA/DR mission planners gathered during a two-day subject matter exchange and table top exercise before kick-off. Airmen from three nations shared their experiences, failures and successes during responses as far ranging as the 2011 Tsunami in Japan and the 2015 earthquakes in Nepal. This year we added a tabletop exercise, which allowed participants to collaborate before exercising, Rhode said. This facilitated discussion about actual disasters that occurred in the Pacific and to hear that firsthand experience from somebody who was actually there and could speak to specific issues that occurred. Experts also discussed the integration with civilian agencies that would take important roles in real disaster response situations, such as international civic aviation authorities and USAID coordinators. Typically the civilian response agencies can handle most emergencies, even large ones, said Scott Aronson, senior USAID humanitarian assistance advisor to U.S. Pacific Command. But the U.S. military has unique abilities that either no one else has or nobody can deploy as quickly. We know, for instance, the CRGs capabilities during an HA/DR event are likely one of the unique abilities we might call on. As the lead federal agency for disaster response, we participated to make sure the exercise is realistic from our perspective and to have that face-to-face time with the people and agencies we will see in the field, Aronson continued. The biggest challenge is understanding each others capabilities and Cope North allows both sides to see what the other brings to the table and how those things work together. Maintaining those relationships is essential. Following the tabletop exchange, the teams practiced multinational interoperability during the stressful team building required during mission planning. The planning group this year was incredible to see, said RAAF Squadron Leader Chris OByrne, Australian HA/DR scenario planning lead and exercise mission commander on Tinian. When you see service members come together and realize that theyre talking about the same thing, while calling it by a different name, and we notice that all the time; its an amazing thing to see. International interest rises Because of the resounding successes of HA/DR exercises in the past, an increased number of medical subject matter experts from Bangladesh, Canada, India, Indonesia, Malasia and Thailand visited the HA/DR portion as observers this year to witness operations firsthand and gather information on how to improve or establish their own contingency programs. Natural disasters are the when not the if of contingency scenarios and HA/DR is becoming more and more important and recognized as a critical capability, which is why our partner nations have sent their observers to the tabletop and field training exercises, OByrne said. During the conduct of the field training, the observers saw the U.S.-led CRG in Rota and the Australian Contingency Response Squadron on Tinian, which will allow them to see how different agencies would react. Success in numbers and increased interoperability Through effective use of its hub-and-spoke relief plan, the coalition teams successfully evacuated approximately 40 patients, moving more than 180 passengers, conducting 30 airdrops and transporting more than 438,600 pounds of cargo from island to island, Rhode said. Each year, this exercise has been getting more advanced, she said. We are learning more about what types of cargo can go on what types of aircraft or what type of communication capability each country uses. We learn it in the exercise and then when things really kick off, we are not starting from square one. Were working in the interest of saving lives and no one country can do it all themselves, so its a lot easier to get on board and figure out the problem together. Currently ongoing, this year marks the 87th iteration of exercise Cope North, which includes a long-standing, multinational HA/DR event designed to increase interoperability and develop a synergistic disaster response capability between the U.S. Air Force, Japan Air-Self Defense Force and Royal Australian Air Force. The second half of Cope North will shift the focus to air combat training, which will including air-to-air and air-to-ground combat and large force employment training. MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. -- For years, Marines and the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force have come together to build upon their storied relationship as allies through Exercise Iron Fist. The exercise requires Marines at all levels to effectively work with a partnered nation to complete tasks and missions. Marines and sailors assigned to 1st Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, trained alongside JGSDF troops, as part of the live-fire portion of Exercise Iron Fist 2016, at Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms, California, Feb. 9-12, 2016. The Japanese worked on their platoon and company-level attacks, utilizing our tracks and our indirect assets, like 81 mm mortars, said 1st Lt. Nicholas Boire, executive officer of Weapons Company, 1st Bn., 4th Marines. They also used their own 81s and 120s to bust the rust and ensure they know how to do everything at the smaller unit level. After conducting small-unit combat training, JGSDF personnel were transported across the open desert in assault amphibious vehicles to stage for follow-on assaults and urban training, using squad rushes and supporting fires. The platoon and company attacks begin with indirect fire assets, such as mortar and artillery systems, engaging the target area to soften the objective for the ground forces. As one squad bounds forward, the other squad fires to ensure the enemy cant engage the friendly forces while they are essentially defenseless during their movement. This is commonly referred to as rushing, where the attacking force can cover an open area with limited cover and concealment. When they werent training alongside their Japanese counterparts, the Marines of Company B were fine tuning their squad and platoon-level tactics on an adjacent range. The exercise presented the battalion with an exceptional chance to share tactics, techniques and procedures to further develop the combat abilities of allied troops, while also honing their own skills. According to Boire, he believes JGSDF benefits from the opportunity to use the live-fire ranges aboard the combat center, which are large enough to allow firing of virtually any conventional weapon. I think that the Japanese troops get a unique opportunity, Boire said. Coming to a different continent, with new terrain theyve never been on before and working through a live-fire scenario is [unique]. Twentynine Palms provides a vast, desert like terrain ideal for field operations and combat training. Marines and their Japanese counterparts were able to use their vehicles and high-powered weaponry to their full capability. Twentynine Palms is awesome because you can bring anything out here and fire it, Boire said. The combined training efforts and lessons learned, along with the long-term rapport built during the exercise is a tribute to the benefit of this exercise. The realistic training Iron Fist provides to the troops on both sides continues to solidify our partnership with Japan as a worthy ally on the modern battlefield. Its important that the Japanese and Marines work together, said Staff Sgt. Alex Deykerhoff, platoon sergeant with Company B. Theyre our allies in the Pacific and its important to train and integrate with your allies whenever possible because you never know when youre going to be sharing a fighting hole with the adjacent force. The knowledge and experience gained from the time spent with the Japanese soldiers will leave a lasting impression with the Marines. I hope that the Marines get a good partnership the Japanese soldiers, Deykerhoff said. [I also hope] the Marines take away the good combined-arms training cause its always a good thing when Marines have the opportunity to get live rounds down range in training so theyre ready to use them in combat. In an ever-evolving world of combat, the Marines and their allies must be ready to protect the land they call home. As a warfighting organization, its always important that we train together, said Deykerhoff. As warriors and as Marines, were always learning and adapting our tactics to the next fight. Its also important to adapt those tactics in tandem with our allies so we can both be on the same page if we are to fight together. The training associated with Iron Fist is relevant to the operations on the modern battlefield. [This training will be used] wherever its needed, said Deykerhoff. Marines specialize in combined-arms, the use of all our assets together on the objective to accomplish a common goal and I think that whenever its going to needed in the future, this training is going to benefit us ten-fold in the long run. The commitment from I Marine Expeditionary Force to conducting Exercise Iron Fist every year is one of the ways it strengthens internal capabilities and interoperability with Japan. Marines with the battalion are slated to attach to the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit as part of the Ground Combat Element later this year. PORT MORESBY, Papua New Guinea - A total of 18 nations and more than 50 participants attended U.S. Pacific Command's (USPACOM) Multinational Communications Interoperability Program (MCIP) Planning Staff Workshop 1 (PSW1) in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea, 22-26 Feb. 2016. The workshop was co-hosted by the Papua New Guinea Defense Force (PNGDF) command, control, communications, and computers/cyber division and USPACOM. The PNGDF Commander, Secretary of Defense, Chief of Staff, Deputy Chief of Staff, plus Indonesia's and New Zealand's Defense Attaches, and Head of Australian Defense Staff (in PNG) all participated in activities at PSW1. Planning objectives for PSW1 focused on developing a construct to support MCIP Pacific Endeavor 2016 (PE16) events. Events for PE16 include the Pacific Senior Communicator Meeting; Table Top Exercise (TTX); Field Training Exercise (FTX); Information Sharing Modules (ISMs); and a Joint Interoperability Test Command (JITC)-led Communications Interoperability Assessment. This year the scenario is a massive flooding preceded by devastating cyclones in metropolitan Brisbane Australia. Study drugs have been around for a long time and the number of students using it is continuously increasing. Those who use it think there's nothing wrong with taking these pills to help them concentrate on studying. However, just because the drug is prescribed by doctor doesn't necessarily make it safe, one health expert says. Highschoolers and college students have always had a stressful time during finals week. Juggling between studying for their SATs, ACT, and final exams, they say they need all the help they can get. That's when the prescription drug, Adderall come in. These drugs which are often called "smart drugs" are originally to manage narcolepsy, according to US News. Selina Oliver, a school psychologist with Anne Arundel County Public Schools in Maryland who works with high schoolers says that some students not having the condition tend to use it to help them focus and concentrate in their studies. In fact, according to Center on Young Adult Health and Development, almost one third of students abuse this stimulant prescription drugs at least once while they are in college, USA Today reported. These teens may be getting these medications from the people they hang out or go to school with, or from a brother or a sister who has a prescription. So here are the 3 most important things to know about what teens like to call "Study Drugs." There will be behavioral signs showing that this drug is abused. Parents should be aware of signs such as decrease in appetite, difficulty in falling asleep, weight loss and being too focused on something. Oliver suggests parents look for changes in habits and behavior. "If you have a student who had previously been studying - had a study routine and now is not studying - but then goes on almost like a binge study, that's a sign that they may be using some type of stimulant medication, like a smart drug." These drugs are not safe for everybody because it is a prescription drug. Rebecca Branstetter, an educational and school psychologist in the San Francisco Bay Area who has worked with high schoolers explained that teens may not think that it is safe to use these drugs because it is doctor recommended but that is not always true for everybody. For example, Adderall can help students with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder focus on something they're doing. However, there may be very life threatening effects to those who take it without this problem. Students may only depend on these drugs instead of developing skills "If they are relying on a medication, then they may not develop that work ethic that goes along with dealing with setting aside the time to study," Oliver says. Branstetter also suggested that parents make sure their children have good skills in executing things so that there won't be any chance for them to try taking the pill. Video Credit: youtube.com/takepart Parents of the students who were killed during the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre strongly believe the lawsuit against Remington Arms will prosper in court. The bereaved party thinks the gun manufacturer is partly to blame for the shooting. For her part, grieving mother Nicole Hockley told NPR that there is credence to the lawsuit. She said Remington Arms displayed negligence by selling a high-powered rifle to Adam Lanza. "There were a lot of guns the shooter could have chosen from his arsenal and he chose the AR-15," said Hockley. "Because he knew it would kill as many people as possible as fast as possible." Remington's legal counsel quickly brushed off the accusation by stating that the company can't be prosecuted for the crimes committed by its independent customers. The lawyers of the defendant claimed that the firearm maker is fully exempted from such liability, as per the Protection of Lawful Commerce and Arms Act of 2005. Radio journalist Katie Toth is on the victim's side. She said the law that was cited by the Remington camp was not absolute. She explained that a retailer is still liable when it knows its buyer can potentially use its product in committing a crime. "The victims' families are accusing Remington of negligent entrustment," Toth clarified. "They say the weapon that was used in the shooting massacre was a military-style weapon and that it should have never been sold to civilians." Joshua Koskoff, an attorney who is representing nine families and one teacher who survived the shooting, also shares the same sentiment. He told CNN News that due to the sheer firepower of the AR-15, even the US Military has been very cautious in using the weapon during its operations. Koskoff accused Remington Arms of negligent entrustment since the company made the high-powered rifle readily available to the public. He said, "They took that same weapon and started peddling it to the civilian market for the purposes of making a lot of money." The license of an Edina dentist has been suspended by the state regulators after a 17-year-old girl went into cardiac arrest and eventually died, following complications during a wisdom tooth extraction. On June 9, 2015, Sydney Galleger, a junior at Eden Prairie High School went into convulsions after her wisdom tooth was removed. She was later rushed to a hospital, where she died on June 15. After reviewing Gallger's case, Minnesota Board of Dentistry found that Dr. Paul Tompach, of Edine Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery "failed to appropriately manage a medical emergency" and allowed medical staff, a licensed dental assistant, a student intern and unlicensed dental assistant to carry out the tasks which "exceeded the legal scope of practice." In addition, the board said that they received "credible information" -- confirming the said claims, according to The Star Tribune. Talking about the case, Bridgett Anderson, the board's executive editor told Kare 11 that they discovered that Tompach allowed an unlicensed assistant to monitor the patient as the teen received anesthesia, which is not legally allowed. In addition, the board is expected to meet on Thursday to vote whether Tompach will face any further sanctions. Meanwhile, Steve Galleger, Sydney's father said his family including him was unaware of the suspension order. "This is all new to us," he said and refused to give further comments. While Sydney's mother, Diane Galleger detailed the June incident to CaringBridge. She said it was just like any other normal days and Sydney went to Tompach's clinic for a common wisdom tooth extraction. Everything was running normal but suddenly her daughter's "blood pressure shot up" and her pulse was dropping, then Sydney went into cardiac arrest. Mrs. Galleger said Tompach started a CPR when the convulsions began. After which, he called 911. Paramedics then quickly arrived and took her to a hospital, where she died. Tompach, on the other hand, refused to give any comments about the incident nor the suspension order. Gynecologists in the US have been criticized by their international colleagues for suggesting less invasive forms of Female Genital Mutilation. Most experts in the medical community want to abolish all types of FGM as the procedure pose a major health threat to women. American doctors explained in the Journal of Medical Ethics that minimal procedures to a woman's genitalia should be tolerated in order to preserve religious and cultural traditions in some countries. Several women's groups heavily opposed the proposal since it would impede the global efforts to curb FGM, as per Fox News. Adwoa Kwateng-Kluvitse, an Anti-FGM advocate, scoffed at the suggestion which aims to standardize the procedure. She believes the cruel ritual, and all its forms, is a grave violation of a child's rights. "Why would you put a little girl through that? There should be no medicalization of FGM," Kwateng-Kluvitse asserted. "They (the gynecologists) are completely behind the times." Bioethicist Ruth Macklin from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine told CNN News that not all cultural traditions merit preservation. She said FGM is mostly done in patriarchal communities as a way to control female sexuality. Brian Earp, a medical scholar, stated that tolerating less invasive types of FGM not only pose a global health problem but a technical dilemma as well. He questioned the American doctors as to who would be responsible in supervising such procedures. In their defense, the gynecologists backed their proposal by saying the global legislation prohibiting FGM has stalled, causing some groups to practice the ritual in secret. "We are not arguing that any procedure on the female genitalia is desirable," they furthered. "Rather, we only argue that certain procedures ought to be tolerated by liberal societies." According to estimates by the United Nations, approximately 200 million women have undergone FGM in 30 different countries. The procedure often involves the removal of a woman's external genitalia. In lesser cases, a woman's clitoris is either cut off or pricked. People who are impatient are not only in the state of stress but also at risk of aging faster, according to a recent study. Huffington Post reports that researchers from the University of Singapore assessed 1,158 undergraduate students. They determined if there was a connection between patience and telomere length. Telomerase Activation Sciences describes telomeres as the caps located at the end of each strand of DNA that protect the chromosomes. They resemble the plastic tips at the end of the shoelaces. If the telomeres become shorter, the cells aged -- telomeres serve as the aging clock in each cell. The researchers asked some hypothetical questions to the students. They were asked if they would receive the $100 right away or wait for a month to receive $101. If they waited further, they will get up to $128. The scholars evaluated the level of impatience of students. Those who took the $100 were less patient and those who waited for a small reward were patient. They also took blood samples of the students. The results show that those who were hasty have shorter telomeres than those who were patient. "Impatience is linked to cognitive and social incompetence, inability to cope with life frustration and risk of mental disorders," Xinh Zhang, the co-author of the study, said. "These untoward effects associated with impatience lead us to contend that impatience can lead to the shorter telomere. It seems unlikely that a group of healthy individuals in their early 20s are able to 'sense' their telomere length is reduced and then make the more impulsive choice," he further added. Meanwhile, some studies show that impatience may also lead to high blood pressure and heart disease. What to do: stay calm whenever there are pressures and difficulties. You never want to age faster. Patience is the key to being young externally as well as young in heart. Syracuse authorities have charged Ryan Lawrence with second-degree murder in connection to Baby Maddox's death. Apart from incriminating evidence, Lawrence also revealed how he killed his 21-month old daughter. According to Syracuse.com, the 24-year old suspect recently admitted to policemen that he burned the toddler's body before hiding her remains at Onondaga Creek. Eye-witness accounts backed Lawrence's shocking revelation. An Amber Alert was issued over the weekend after Ryan failed to pick up his wife Morgan from work last Saturday night. Thinking his husband forgot the memo, the latter decided to go home alone only to be greeted with an empty house and an unmanned car, as per CNY Central. A concerned citizen phoned 911 on Monday saying a man matching Ryan's description has been spotted at Baldwinsville. Police in the area quickly responded and took the man into custody. Authorities later confirmed that he was, in fact, Ryan Lawrence. It was during the interrogation that the suspect admitted to his crimes. He also revealed the location of his daughter's body. The search took several hours around the chilly waters of Syracuse. Police Chief Frank Fowler said his department has already recovered what is believed to be the remains of Baby Maddox. However, they can't be too sure as authorities are still waiting DNA test results. "This is a tough investigation for all involved," Fowler said. "It's a special situation when talking about children. You're supposed to protect children." Rick Henderson, a neighbor of the Lawrences', expressed his sorrow after hearing about the sad news. He condemned the violent act but refrained from speaking ill of Mr. Lawrence. "It's very surprising," he lamented. "However, you can never judge or walk a mile in a man's shoes. So I don't know what he was going through at the time. It's surprising and it's sad." As to why Ryan Lawrence killed Baby Maddox, the suspect was allegedly jealous that her daughter was more eager to spend time with her mom. This service applies to you if your subscription has not yet expired on our old site. You will have continued access until your subscription expires; then you will need to purchase an ongoing subscription through our new system. Please contact the Parsons Sun office at (620) 421-2000 if you have any questions This service is a courtesy for our print subscribers to give them access to our online edition at no additional cost. If you haven't registered on the new site, you must do it now before you do anything else. Videos Sorry, there are no recent results for popular videos. In case you werent aware, the United States and Iran are on good terms now, and the travel sanctions that stood in the wayuntil very recentlyhave been lifted. Iran has been a popular destination among European tourists for years. The Iranian rial has a low exchange rate with currencies like the Euro and U.S. dollar, slashing daily expenses. Youll spend less than $10 on a decent meal. But, Persia has far more to offer than a great deal and new political friendships. Home to one of the oldest civilizations and empires in the world, Iran boasts a rich artistic, architectural and culinary culture and brims with hospitality. And, by the way, the country is geographically beautiful. As an Islamic Republic, Iran enforces rules unfamiliar to Americans, namely prohibition and dressing in the hijab style. As far as the dress code goes, covered extremities and a headscarf will do the trick in most places, and more conservative establishments like historic mosques offer free shawls to anyone whod like to cover up a bit more. Travelers donning extra layers may want to avoid visiting during the summer, especially if theyre coming to the countrys warmer, southern half where temperatures can climb into triple digits. In early spring, many Iranians go on vacation to celebrate Norooz, the Persian new year, so in addition to temperate weather youll encounter less city traffic and lightheartedness among the locals. Sarra Sedghi is a freelancer based in Athens, Ga. She has been to Iran and enjoyed it very much. 1 of 7 Persian cuisine comes in two categories: you'll find the first, kebabs accompanied by basmati rice and a grilled tomato, just about anywhere, but it's the slower dishes, like decorated mounds of rice, minced meatballs and squishy eggplant and beef stews, that deserve celebration. On the street, keep an eye out for stands selling salted green almonds or scoops of thick rosewater ice cream. Iranians also have a soft spot for American junk food, and if you're looking for a taste of home, you won't have to look too far to find a spot that serves hamburgers or "Kentucky" (fried chicken). Photo: JTB/Getty 2 of 7 The dollar is strong in 2016, and that's especially true in Iran. One U.S. dollar currently equals 30,186 rial, so you'll be able to get the basics for cheap. Of course, if you're looking to spend some money, stroll through a grand bazaar and search for deals on gold jewelry, ceramics and high-quality rugs. Photo: Sarra Sedghi 3 of 7 Art exists everywhere in Iran, from sacred shrines with crystalline ceilings to the intricately woven rugs that are woven into everyday life. Mosques dazzle with their swooping architectural arches and public surfaces are paved with azure mosaics, while patronage for literature spans an entire city. Tehran's Carpet Museum of Iran celebrates intricate rugs dating back to 500 B.C., while the literary city of Shiraz honors poets such as Hafiz (Rumi) and Saadi and brims with lavish gardens. Photo: JTB Photo/Getty 4 of 7 Along with a vast history, Iran boasts impressive architecture reflecting its days as an empire. Some of the best examples of Achaemenid architecture exist in the ruins of Persepolis (pictured), the Naqsh-e Rustam necropolis and Zoroastrian temples. In Isfahan, you'll find classical Islamic architecture spanning a spectrum of 800 years, including the Nagsh-e Jahan Square, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Photo: JTB Photo/Getty 5 of 7 Before Iran became an Islamic republic in 1979, it operated under the Persian Empire, which once stretched to present-day Macedonia and Pakistan. Before Islam spread throughout the Middle East, Iran was a center of Zorostrianism, one of the oldest religions in the world. Many of the religion's relics, including the Yezd Atash Behram, a Zoroastrian fire temple, and holy Towers of Silence, still exist in the central Iranian Yazd province. Photo: JTB Photo/Getty 6 of 7 Hospitality is intrinsic to Iranian culture and usually comes in the form of free food or kindness towards a guestin this case, that's you. Don't waste the opportunity to enjoy a local's warm gesture, whether it's in the form of a home cooked meal, a friendly game of backgammon or a strong, steaming cup of tea. Photo: Atta Kenare/Getty 7 of 7 Iran is the 18th largest country in the world, and all that space includes a varied geography. The country's topography is dotted with mountain ranges, deserts, forests and saltwater lakes like the Caspian Sea, the largest lake in the world. Photo: Klaus Rose/Getty If youre reading this section of Paste, you probably already love booze. You love the way it tastes. You love the way it feels. And now, youre going to love the way it looks (I guarantee it). Natalie Migliarini is the mixologist responsible for the aesthetics behind the blog, Beautiful Booze, and with an instagram account over 31K followers. She moved to Seattle seven years back, where she started hosting soirees at her house, and discovered her talent in the home cocktail scene. Having studied textiles in college, she already had a knack for aesthetics, and from her desire to share her recipes and creations, a blog was born. A beautiful one. Paste caught up with Migliarini to talk about taking beautiful boozy pictures. Paste: What was the first cocktail you tasted that inspired you? Natalie Migliarini: I attended college in North Carolina and we consistently drank bourbon and gingers. After college I began to collect all different kinds of bourbon and often had bourbon-tasting parties at my home. This all preceded me discovering and loving classic bourbon cocktails, including my all time favorite cocktail, the Boulevardier. Paste: Where inspires you? NM: Seasonal ingredients, travel, and ingredients from around my home. I like to use items from around the kitchen, leftover ingredients that I was already incorporating in the meals. I have a lot of fun perusing the various aisles in stores finding original and interesting ingredients. I have recently started traveling around Central America and Mexico for inspiration for cocktails. Paste: How do you start a new cocktail? NM: My creative process usually begins when I come across a spirit or liqueur I would like to use. From there I like to find one major complementing ingredient. Paste: On your website, I see you have a background in writing grants. Are there any skill sets that transfer to mixology? NM: Yes, in my former life I worked in public health writing and creating programming for Universities. This experience helps with the business side of Beautiful Booze. With the grant writing you have to bring something to each application that makes it stand out to get funding. This is also true with cocktails. You want to intrigue your audience with flavor profiles and creative cocktails that inspire them on a daily basis. Paste: Where can people taste your cocktails? NM: At home. My website is a home bartender platform with over 350 recipes that I created. I have done occasional cocktail pop ups in Seattle. Paste: Whats the Seattle cocktail scene like? NM: Awesome. I love that you can go into any restaurant and get a great craft cocktail. This cocktail scene is enhanced with all the local distilleries that are right in the city. Paste: Any tips for the amateur trying his hand at home with one of your recipes? NM: Some of my tips would be to just relax and enjoy the process of making the cocktail. I have no training as a bartender, so I am essentially just going with the flow myself. For example, I dont always have a cocktail shaker available so I use a mason jar. One thing that is always helpful when making cocktails is to have a lot of ice on hand, especially if you are entertaining. 1 of 10 Raspberry Pops and Bubbles 2 of 10 DIY Citrus Gin and Tonic Bar 3 of 10 DIY Bourbon Tasting Party 4 of 10 Vanilla bean and Jalapeno Paloma 5 of 10 Pineapple Tequila Sour 6 of 10 Champagne Mint Julep 7 of 10 Strawberry Moscow Mule 8 of 10 Grilled Pineapple and Mint Tequila Lemonade 9 of 10 Earl Grey Mint Julep 10 of 10 Pretzel Dulce de leche bourbon shake The Syrian refugee crisis will certainly not be going away in 2016. The growing civil war has already accounted for roughly 320,000 casualties, and humanitarian organizations have faced considerable difficulty providing shelter and supplies to civilians. As of this past November, an estimated 4.2 million Syrians have fled their country to try to escape the violence. This international crisis has led to heated debates both in the U.S. and Europe as to how nations should best respond. Unfortunately, amidst real concerns regarding the refugees impact on national security, public safety and economic stability, the debate has also spawned a new wave of xenophobia, isolationism and cultural prejudice in the U.S.and its far from the first time. This article attempts to tackle those issues and show that negative sentiments about Syrian refugees, while historically on par with American public opinion, are not grounded in reality. By the end of 2015, the U.S. was slated to take in about 1,500 Syrian refugees. However, according to White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest, that number will likely be going way up. [The President has] informed his team that he would like them to acceptat least make preparations to accept at least 10,000 Syrian refugees in the next fiscal year, he said during a September 10, 2015 press briefing. This of course has led to protests and concerns regarding the burden these refugees will place on our economy and our social welfare programs. Thats because the mountain of evidence that should dissuade these fears continues to be ignored. In October 2013, a report prepared for the Refugee Services Collaborative of Greater Cleveland found that in the past decade, refugees in the city started at least 38 independent businesses, with a total of 141 employees. These businesses contributed 175 jobs and $12 million in spending in 2012. The state collected $1.8 million in tax revenue that came directly from these activities, and refugees accounted for 248 additional home purchases. This is not the only study to reach these conclusions. Another from Texas A&M compared the impact of a select group of refugees to that of traditional immigrants. According to this study, sampled refugees earned 20 percent more, worked more hours, and improved their English skills by 11 percent compared to their immigrant counterparts. As for taking jobs away from native citizens, that hasnt happened in other countries. Researchers at Copenhagen and the University of California, Davis, concluded that the increased supply of non-EU immigrants in a Danish municipality pushed the less educated native workers to pursue more complex and less manual-intensive occupations. As a result, these natives then received higher or at least unchanged wages. If none of these studies are convincing enough, consider this: you can likely thank the son of a Syrian migrant for the very device youre using to read this article. Abdulfattah Jandali was born in 1931 and grew up in Homs, Syria. His son, Steve Jobs, would go on to found Apple, Inc. Jerry, Seinfeld, Mitch Daniels, Mona Simpson, Paula Abdul and Teri Hatcher are descendants of Syrian migrants. Opening the doors to Syrian refugees continues to be an unpopular idea in national polls. According to Gallup, 60 percent of Americans oppose plans to receive the Presidents proposed 10,000 refugees. This position is in keeping with how America has received refugees in the past. Only 36 percent of those polled favored more Vietnamese immigration in 1975, when President Ford signed the Indochina Migration and Refugee Act. Even farther back, the Wagner-Rogers Bill of 1939 would have allowed for 20,000 refugee children from Germanymany of whom were Jewishto be relocated into American homes. More than 60 percent of those polled rejected the idea, and the bill subsequently died. Just after our war with Great Britain ended, stanch Federalist Harrison Otis warned that too many immigrants would undermine the work of getting the Colonials new nation off the ground. There is hardly an era in American history in which many of its citizens did not oppose an influx of foreigners. Republicans have been quite vocal regarding the grave security threats Syrian refugees would pose to their country. As I say, both the profile and the motive of terrorist organizations to me would persuade the administration to go slow, rather than fast, when it comes to admitting individuals who might do us harm, said Texas Representative Lamar Smith during a hearing on worldwide threats and Homeland Security challenges. Donald Trump, as is often the case, has been more blunt on the subject. We have no idea who these people are, we are the worst when it comes to paperwork, he told CNBC. This could be one of the great Trojan horses. A position Julia Cantacuzene would likely agree with. The grand-daughter of Ulysses S. Grant, The Intercepts Lee Feng reports that she became a Republican activist in New York who strongly opposed the arrival of Jewish refugees in the late 1930s, claiming that many would be Communist plants. I have heard on good authority that an Executive Order has given immigration authorities permission to let down the usual bars in favor of the so-called Jewish refugees in Germany, she said in a 1938 New York Times article. Under these lax regulations, many Communists are coming to this country to join the ranks of those who hate our institutions and want to over throw them. These perceived security threats have led many to push for a rejection of visas from Syrian migrants. More than half of Americas governors say that they directly oppose an intake of Syrian refugees. Rand Paul wanted the federal government to reject visas from applicants whose home countries harbor an active jihadist movement. But a denial of visa applications is what most prevented Otto Frank from saving his family in the 1940s. I am forced to look out for emigration and as far as I can see, U.S.A. is the only country we could go to, Frank wrote to a friend in 1941. However, he applied for visas for his family after the Immigration Act of 1924, and restrictions prevented those with family ties still in Germany to be cleared. Despite his social connections, Frank failed in obtaining his visas. His family was arrested in 1944, and all but Otto died during the Holocaust. Our aversion to welcoming refugees from a war-torn Middle East comes out of legitimate concerns regarding safety and our national economy. Yes, we should consider these matters thoroughly as we weigh our obligation to the world community. But the problem lies in how we go about drawing conclusions. As we have so often done in the past, we allow our fears to act as confirmation for themselves, and ignore evidence suggesting that refugees have something to contribute to their adoptive country besides a financial burden and a security risk. As long as our public debate favors ginned up paranoia and fear-mongering over rationalism and intellectual honesty, history will be forced to repeat itself. Since the demise of Boston psych-pop group MMOSS in 2013, guitarist Doug Tuttle has continued the exploration of hallucinogenic muses but reined in the eccentric drones he and his cohorts had gained notoriety for. His 2014 solo debut was a more outlandish vivisection of freak-folk grit, but it was clear that Tuttle was going through a bit of an identity crisis, musically speaking. With the release of his second LP, It Calls On Me, it would appear that that crisis has come to a slow. There are lush, airy employments of guitar interplay throughout It Calls On Me that make it immediately listenable, full as it is of dueling octaves like an arpeggiated fencing match refereed by Peter Buck. Tuttles deft sense of classic melodies and textural experimentation lend a purposeful air to songs like the title track, itself a kind of possessed meditation in the strictest psychedelic sense. Meandering guitar leads and solos travel trippy sonic thoroughfares and wind in and out of structure but always land on their feet. Tuttles rich, hushed vocals come in multi-layered harmonies, too, calling to mind a little more than a passing homage to the easy-breezy, paisley-swathed guitar-pop of groups like The Byrds, The Moon and other similarly heavy-lidded psychsters of yesteryear. Pronounced, plucky bass lines, strings and keys add to the mystique, as Tuttles compositions more often than not occupy zone-out realms. Thats not always the case though; flowery rocker These Times executes in stutters, taking a less fluid and more motorik route, while the enchanting Painted Eye draws the shades again, Tuttle serenading in a weary, lovelorn intonation that carries over throughout most of the record. Falling to Believe probably best executes the albums reluctant power, Tuttles wallowing given wing by the sentiment of finding truth by failing with the introspective line Can you see alone?/Falling to believe/Can you take some time and find out what you mean? Its a pleading line with an unsure recipient (could Tuttle be asking himself the question?) thats uplifted only when he rips into one of a myriad of blistering fuzz guitar leads. The real kicker here, though, is the lazy weekend stoner-jam Saturday-Sunday, which lilts and groans in all the right ways, plotting tasteful keys over dreamy guitars, perfecting the lethargic vibes of workaday millennials, Tuttle singing, If your Saturday comes ringing like a bell/Let your Saturday surround you/If youve stepped outside a world that cant be well/Let your Saturday surround you. Just when your Saturday has finished surrounding you, an onrush of Sunday buzz comes in the form of three minutes of a repetitive instrumental, replete with space-y squalls and a new-day-dawning aural assault. Whether its clear precisely what or who is calling on Tuttle, his ability to harness the message is not in question. The musical algorithm hes concocted, while not entirely unique, is built for pure beauty, and Tuttle has homed in on a fantastic stretch of output as a result. Athens, Ga.s Mothers stopped by the Paste Studio recently to record a few tracks off of their upcoming debut full-length, When You Walk a Long Distance You Are Tired, recorded at the much-lauded Chase Park Transduction studio in their hometown. Started in 2013 as the solo project of Kristine Leschper (who still serves as the bands vocalist/songwriter/guitarist), Mothers has since become a full blown four-piece and opened for of Montreal on tour. Watch Mothers perform Burden of Proof above, as well as Grateful For It and Mother And Wife below. And be sure to grab a listen to When You Walk a Long Distance You Are Tired, releasing this Friday. Samsung officially unveiled its new Samsung S7 and S7 Edge smartphones at an event this weekend in Barcelona ahead of the Mobile World Congress trade show. As expected, the phones look very similar to last years S6 and S6 Edge, but the fact that its a tock year doesnt mean theres nothing to be excited about. The new Samsung flagships come with a number of enhancements over their predecessors. Some of those enhancements are features that were left out last year from previous devices, while others are overall improvements to the Galaxy line. Heres five features of the new S7 and S7 Edge that were most excited about: The switch to metal and glass last year meant that the Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge lost the water resistance of previous Samsung flagships, but the feature is back in 2016. The Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge have an IP68 rating, which means they can withstand up to five feet of water for 30 minutes without a problem. The water resistance also means the phones should be able to handle accidental spills, rain and an occasional dunk in the (hopefully clean) toilet. Even better, the phones achieve their water resistance through a special coating, which means no annoying, breakable flaps covering the ports. Like water resistance, the ability to expand the storage in the Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge is a feature that was in older Samsung phones but was left out in 2015. Both phones this year come with 32GB of internal storage, but you can add up to 200GB of storage by popping a microSD card into the second slot in the phones SIM tray. That gives you plenty of extra space for photos, video, music or whatever else you might store on your phone, without having to rely on the cloud. Both the Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge have a 12MP rear-facing camera, which has fewer megapixels than the excellent 16MP camera in last years models, but that sacrifice could pay off for those who take a lot of night photos. Samsung says the lower-resolution cameras take in 56% more light than the cameras in the S6 and S6 Edge, which should result in better low-light performance. The f/1.7 aperture lens also brings in 25% more light, which combined with the 12MP sensor captures 95% more light than last years cameras. The new dual-pixel technology also lets the camera of the S7 and S7 Edge focus three times faster than last years phones, according to Samsung, which means fewer blurry photos. This one is pretty simple: bigger batteries mean longer battery life. The Galaxy S7 holds a 3000 mAh battery, while the S7 Edge holds a 3600 mAh battery. Thats a big jump from the 2550 mAh and 2600 mAh batteries in the S6 and S6 Edge, respectively. The metal and glass builds mean you cant replace them, but Samsung is touting the quick wireless charging of the phones as an easy way to get through the day without worrying about your phone dying. As youd expect, both the S7 and S7 Edge ship with Android 6.0 Marshmallow, the latest version of Googles mobile OS, with Samsungs TouchWiz interface on top of it. The biggest addition to the new software is the always-on display that will show the time and select notifications whenever the phone is asleep. The feature will shut off when the phone is in a pocket or a bag, but Samsung claims it only takes up half percent of battery an hour to have part of the display on at all times. The S7 Edge also received a few new device specific software updates this year with enhancements to the edge-swipe gesture. The edge panel is larger than it was last year, allowing you to see more information and add new shortcuts, which could help improve the productivity uses of the phone. Scientists have found a way to reduce the amount of energy consumption for a wi-fi connection down to levels used by a Bluetooth connection, according to phys.org. The concept, which has been around for some time but has yet to be proven until now, focuses on consuming at its best 10,000 times less energy than typical wi-fi systems. Researchers at the University of Washington are behind the discovery, which incorporates a re-imagining of how radios work. Radio transmissions include both an analog and digital stream. By separating the two functions out, the more energy efficient digital signal isnt bogged down by the energy-draining analog one. Those involved with the project at the University of Washington report successfully testing the method on campus. It works by plugging a single device into the wall that sends analog waves to special wi-fi sensors, which require very little energy. Those sensors pick up on the waves, reflect them with a digital switchcreating what are called wi-fi packets. The packet, which cna communicate with devices up to 100 feet away, finally send low-energy internet connections to phones and routers, among other things, at up to 11 megabits a second. The full results of the study, funded by the National Science Foundation, the University of Washington, and Qualcomm, will be shared with attendees of the USENIX Symposium on Networked Systems Design and Implementation. Last week Patently Apple posted a report titled "Protest Group 'Fight for the Future' Schedules Feb. 23 for Mass Protest against the FBI Court Order to hack an iPhone." The protest took place as promised but it was a far cry from being a "mass protest." In fact it was quite anemic. USA Today reports that "The 50-state protest organized to show support for Apple's stand against the FBI appears to have attracted mostly small crowds." In Chicago, the protest taking place on Chicago's famous Magnificent Mile, an upscale section of Chicago's Michigan Avenue, was rudely and abruptly overrun by the Black Lives Matter Protesters who set an American flag on fire. The Apple protest was once again only supported by a mere 15 people in front of the Apple Store at 679 N. Michigan, according to CBS Chicago. It would appear that the protests should have been scheduled for a Saturday so as to have allowed working people and students to join in the protests. The anemic turnout gives the public impression that support for Apple's position against the government's court order is weak. 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. Last week Patently Apple posted a report titled "Tim Cook's Decision to go to War with the Government will now veer into a Legal Argument over Free Speech." The report noted that Apple would likely seek to invoke the United States' protections of free speech as one of their key legal arguments in trying to block an order to help unlock the encrypted iPhone of one of the San Bernardino shooters. Late yesterday the Los Angeles Times confirmed that Apple will indeed pursue this legal tactic. The L.A. Times reports that "In Apple's fight to knock down a court order requiring it to help FBI agents unlock a killer's iPhone, the tech giant plans to argue that the judge in the case has overreached in her use of an obscure law and infringed on the company's 1st Amendment rights, an Apple attorney said Tuesday. As reported last week, Theodore Boutrous who frequently represents media organizations, is one of the marquee lawyers hired by Apple to wage its high-stakes legal battle -- outlined the arguments Apple plans when it responds to the court order this week. At the heart of Apple's response, Boutrous said, will be an objection to the use of the All Writs Act as the legal basis of the order compelling the company to assist the FBI. The act, which was first passed by Congress in 1789 and updated periodically, is a sweeping legal tool that allows judges to issue orders if other judicial avenues are unavailable. "The government here is trying to use this statute from 1789 in a way that it has never been used before. They are seeking a court order to compel Apple to write new software, to compel speech," Boutrous said in a brief interview with The Times. Boutrous said courts have recognized that the writing of computer code is a form of expressive activity -- speech that is protected by the 1st Amendment. "It is not appropriate for the government to obtain through the courts what they couldn't get through the legislative process," he said. That very statement echoes the argument made by California Congressman Ted Lieu yesterday. For more on this story, read the full L.A. Times 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. Nearly half of Americans support the U.S. Government's position to be able to look at smartphone data in cases related to terrorism. It's the one poll that shows Republicans and Democrats agreeing to something in principle. The new poll presented by Reuters shows that 46% agree to 42% that disagree. That small margin of difference is where the PR battle rests today. This is why we're seeing both sides trying to score daily PR points with endorsements of one kind or another or with new argument angles. The report quotes Mike Kostrzewa, a 69-year-old retiree from Fairfax, Virginia as saying that "If a person has nothing to hide, there is no reason they should be afraid of the government looking at specific content with a warrant." Yet Reuters notes that "Younger Americans are more likely than older Americans to agree with Apple's stand. Of those between 18 and 39 years old, 64 percent agreed with the company's decision to oppose the court order. That is nearly twice the percentage of older people who are supporting Apple." The poll results reflect a deep sense of skepticism among Americans about the security of their information, said Ipsos pollster Chris Jackson, adding that "There is this tension: Americans want terrorists to be prosecuted, but in the context of issues about security and privacy, it becomes a much more nuanced discussion." The online survey was conducted Feb. 19 to 23 with more than 1,500 U.S. adults, as Apple and the government made public statements to sway public opinion in the high-stakes case. It has a credibility interval of plus or minus 2.8 percentage points for all respondents. What was interesting about the poll was that it was based on two questions. In the first poll result noted above, the Republicans and Democrats almost saw eye-to-eye on the issue. Yet when the question directly slams into the debate concerning Apple specifically, the results appear to slightly swing the other way to somewhat favor Apple. It's also where we clearly see the split between Republicans and Democrats. The same issue asked two different ways yields an interesting dichotomy. For more on this interesting Reuters report covering the Ipsos poll results click here. If you're siding with Apple on this issue, then you'll definitely want to check out the Reuters report that delves further into the second poll result noted above. 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. Yesterday we posted a report titled "It's about the Victims So Stop Saying that the World is ending." The report covered FBI Director James Comey's Lawfare Institute blog entry late Sunday. Comey noted in his guest blog post that "Fourteen people were slaughtered and many more had their lives and bodies ruined. We owe them a thorough and professional investigation under law." Today we can see that Comey's guest post wasn't an off-the-cuff entry but rather a part of a larger legal strategy. Reuters is now reporting that "Prosecutors took unusual steps in enlisting victims of the San Bernardino attack in the government's heated battle with Apple over access to an iPhone belonging to one of the shooters." Reuters has discovered that "Family members of at least two victims will join a legal brief to be filed next week urging Apple to help the government unlock the phone. The lawyer representing them is former federal judge Stephen Larson. He was brought into the case by Eileen Decker, the U.S. Attorney in Los Angeles, who personally asked him if he was interested in representing the victims. Several former federal prosecutors and defense lawyers said they had never encountered a situation in which the Justice Department asked a particular lawyer to represent victims. Yet Larson acknowledged that the move was "unprecedented" in his experience, but said that the refusal of a company like Apple to comply with a court order was also very unusual. 'Apple has close to unlimited resources to litigate this thing,' Larson said. 'It is hardly a surprise the U.S. Attorney wants to make sure victims have someone looking after them.'" The entry of victims into the case gives the Justice Department a powerful and sympathetic ally, with a clear and compelling interest in the case. Supporters of the company, meanwhile, suggest the government's actions are as much a bid to alter the political landscape around encryption as they are a quest for legal remedies in the case at hand. In a statement on Tuesday, San Bernardino district attorney Mike Ramos said victims deserve a voice in federal court. "We owe it to them to do everything we can to make sure justice is served," he said. Yet one of the family members is undecided about this issue. As an iPhone user he tends to lean on Apple's side of the argument. For more on this development, read the full Reuters report here. USA Today's latest report says that "New technology, including the type of security software developed by Apple, has also challenged legal notions of privacy. In this new reality, the question of how private your smartphone data should be from government intrusion is an important one. It's worth having a debate about, and indeed a bi-partisan Congressional committee has invited both Comey and Cook to testify. If Apple had not fought the order approved by a judge at the FBI's request, this important debate would have been squelched and the federal government would have won a powerful legal precedent by default. That's why Cook has done a favor for everyone who feels the nation's long-term commitment to civil liberties ultimately keeps us all safer than knee-jerk moves to restrict them. Yet if the majority of Americans feel differently, Cook's stance has risked alienating some of them as future customers," the report concludes. 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. In a new report today there's a look back at the fact that Apple, Google, Facebook and other companies had accelerated their efforts to implement encryption in the wake of Snowden's disclosures about U.S. spying - including a program called Prism that culled private data from some of the largest U.S. tech companies. In the Big Picture The revelations made by Snowden prompted companies like Cisco and IBM to fight the perception that they were simply arms of the U.S. government because this was beginning to dent overseas sales, especially in countries like China. It was during this time frame that we learned that to appease any of China's concerns, Apple Assured China's Ministry that there were no Secret Backdoors in their new operating system powering the iPhone 6 in 2014. Yet China wasn't swallowing what Apple had to sell on that issue and said that they were considering requiring all tech companies to provide a backdoor to their products. China's government has held back on this thus far due to protests, but that could turn on a dime. In fact the last word on this issue thus far surfaced back in December 2015: "Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei said he was 'dissatisfied' with the U.S. position and hoped they respected China's law-making process and did not adopt 'double standards.' Hong added that "The draft of our anti-terrorism law mandates the obligation of telecommunications operators, Internet servers and service providers to assist public and state security organ in stopping and probing terrorist activities." The Chinese Foreign Ministry was careful to shy away from using any formal verbiage regarding security backdoors. Yet the U.S. Government remained skeptical. On a second front, yet in the same vein, we posted a report back in November 2015 titled "China Seeks to build its Own Secure Smartphones to ensure no Foreign Country Back Doors." In that report we noted that "China is seeking to make its own secure smartphones, in an attempt to insulate its handsets from U.S. surveillance." The Chinese government was to begin supporting Chinese smartphone companies at an accelerated rate in order to assist them in creating their own software needed to achieve their goals. In the end, it's Snowden's revelations that opened a Pandora's Box and Apple's Tim Cook has decided to take this issue to any extreme necessary to win their battle with the government. But what will Apple do if China ever puts their foot down and demands a backdoor? Would Apple stand on free speech principles then and play Russian roulette with the company's future? Apple's future is the Chinese market and without their business they'd collapse on Wall Street in short order. This is nothing to take lightly, for sure. So in the big picture, Apple's gamble here fighting the U.S. Governeme is huge and so much bigger than just this one case at hand. Apple's Fight Opens Door for Government-Proof Devices With security issues being front and center of late, the Reuters report also sees that Apple's fierce fight with the U.S. Government is likely to accelerate development of government-proof devices from other companies big and small no matter what the outcome of the trial. Already, an emerging industry is marketing super-secure phones and mobile applications. An Apple executive said the company will strengthen its encryption if it wins its court battle with the federal government, which last week secured a court order requiring Apple engineers to help extract data from a phone associated with the mass shootings in San Bernardino. But even a government victory could have unintended consequences for law enforcement, potentially prompting a wave of investment by U.S. tech companies in security systems that even their own engineers can't access, said Jonathan Zittrain, co-founder of Harvard University's Berkman Center for Internet & Society. "A success for the government in this case may further spur Apple and others to develop devices that the makers aren't privileged to crack," he said. The fast-growing online storage provider Box has already made it a priority to give customers sole custody of data, said Joel De la Garza, chief information security officer at the company. The intent is to make it impossible for the company to access its customers' data - even under a government order, he said. "Our goal is to achieve a `zero-knowledge' state" for the company, he said, "where our customers have total control over their data." For more on this, read the full Reuters 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. Xiaomi launched its Mi5 smartphone on Wednesday, using its first ever European launch event to take on Samsung and Apple handsets and build up its brand beyond its current markets. Barra told CNBC in a TV interview on Wednesday: "We primarily focus on existing marketswe're beginning to work our way into other markets." CNBC noted that "The big questions for Xiaomi are whether it has overcome the intellectual property challenges it has faced to date and how it builds its brand to Western consumers who will never have heard of the brand?" Hugo Barra, international vice-president, addressed the patent issue at the Mobile World Congress trade show in Barcelona by saying that the company had filed 3,600 patents last year globally. Barra told CNBC in December that Xiaomi had filed over 6,000 patents with 40 percent of them in 2015 being filed outside of China. Barra ignorantly stated last year that Xiaomi couldn't allow a company (Apple) to take ownership of smartphone design, when it was Apple that in fact changed the appearance of so-called smartphones forever in 2007 as the late Apple CEO illustrated in his famed 2007 iPhone introduction keynote as noted below. In January Patently Apple posted a report titled "Major Tech Coalition is Once Again Backing Samsung in Patent Case that may go to the Supreme Court." In respect to the iPhone design, it was noted in one brief joined by the Electronic Frontier Foundation, groups backing Samsung warned the Supreme Court that the verdict, if allowed to stand, "opens the door to a new species of abusive patent litigation." Apple has repeatedly argued that the courts have gotten it right in the case, saying it provided clear evidence that Samsung blatantly copied iPhone and iPad technology in the development of its smartphones and tablets. You have to wonder if Xiaomi's hesitancy of entering the U.S. market for smartphones is due to this case going before the Supreme Court. If the Court allows the verdict to stand for Apple, then Xiaomi's puffery about their patent pool may not be enough against a lawsuit filed by Apple. 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. Even at the age of 80 (or 81 by Tibetan standards), the Dalai Lama continues to blaze a trail of wisdom and compassion across the globe. Last month the Dalai lama spoke from a hospital in Rochester, Minnesota where he was undergoing precautionary prostate treatment (he told audiences in Minnesota this week that hes in good health). There he reminded listeners to not simply say the words happy new year (tashi Losar delek) but to embody the spirit behind them in their actions. In his recent talk he restated his concern for a down-to-earth approach to human welfare and global peace. Reiterating his statements in the wake of last Novembers Paris attacks, he noted that major problems faced by humanity today have been caused by humans and thus are in our hands to solve (as opposed to relying on God or prayer). In my experience, what we need is a calm mind and warm-heartedness provides a basis for that. Thats how we make ourselves happy as individuals in families, local communities and nations. I believe that if we can train those who are young today in these qualities the world will be a more peaceful place later in this century. I try to promote human values because we tend to forget that we are all the same as human beings. If you think of me as your friend, try to do the same. This is not something we can hope the government or the UN can do, real change starts with individuals. We each have to make a contribution. I request you to do so too. Speaking on love in particular, he said that all religions carry a common message of love, forgiveness and tolerance and that if were to think of God, as many religions do, thinking of God as a being of infinite love and seeking to emulate him is a very powerful practice. This message of unity across religious boundaries has long been taught by the Dalai Lama, as we can find in his 2007 book Mind in Comfort and Ease (you can read an excerpt via Wisdom Publications here). Love, he later said, is the antidote to the arising of anger. This allows one to develop compassion even when encountering uncouth, unruly people, to be followed by patience. Teachings like these are sure to keep the Tibetan spiritual leader at the top of lists of spiritually influential people for years to come. Read more about the Dalai Lamas appearance in Minneapolis at dalailama.com. Stay in touch with American Buddhist Perspectives on Facebook: And by nutty, I mean unsustainable, worrisome, a train wreck waiting to happen. In the end, I suppose, having aging parents is like training, for the next life stage of having young adult children. Not so much in terms of how to manage their infirmaties thats yet to come, for the most part but the need to suck it up and accept that theyll make their own decisions, as wrong as you think they are. Whats the latest? Well, since Dads fall two years ago, he has never been authorized to resume driving by his doctor. The explanation had always been that he doesnt have sufficient reaction time any longer, and, so far as I know, the doctor had never particularly held out any hope that this was temporary, either. So his car had sat in the driveway, with Dad periodically complaining about the doctor refusing to authorize driving, but never doing anything about it until yesterday. That is, two weeks ago, theyd received a notification from the city that they had a non-running car in the driveway that they had to deal with, by getting it operational or moving it into the garage (it had been sitting in the driveway with a flat tire and the hood open for who-knows-how-long), so over the weekend, my nephew came over and pumped the tire and charged the battery. And then yesterday, unbeknownst to Mom, Dad got in the car and went on a drive. Just a couple miles worth, and he returned safe and sound, but cr@!, what next? And in the meantime, well, Id been trying my best to encourage Mom to check out the fitness center at the community center where they have their Senior Lunch. You say that when you get home from lunch or from running an errand afterwards, youre tired, but if you start exercising regularly, that can actually help you feel less tired and help you have more energy. Even if you just spend 5 minutes on a treadmill, itll help. That sort of thing. But its a bust or, rather, Ive learned that what I think of as encouragement she thinks of (or is close to thinking of) as nagging, so is counter-productive. Now, its still the case that I think that their quality of life would be significantly improved if they would get out and be more active, by participating in more of the senior activities at the community center, for instance. And its not just a matter of what theyre happy with now, but what would help them preserve their independence in the long term. But I cant make them do it. So maybe theyll just muddle along as they are for some time yet, with no real harm done, or maybe they wont, with a potential outcome worse than if theyd made changes earlier, but theres very little I can do about it. And, after Id talked to Mom yesterday, I then turned on the news, and opened up my usual internet news sources (twitter, RCP, etc.). Lets face it, Trump has a clear path to the nomination, with the combination of winning the winner-take-all states and gaining substantial pluralities elsewhere, unless the Republican field empties very quickly. But Kasich stays in. (Why?) And Carson stays in claiming that as soon as people start discussing the issues, theyll begin to support him. Even if they were to drop out, even if it were left to Trump, Cruz, and Rubio, thats not enough for one of Cruz or Rubio to begin winning, rather than taking second and treating that as a victory. But right now, each of Cruz and Rubio are saying that they agree in principle with the idea that it has to be a two-man race, but simply insist that it has to be the other candidate that does so. Whats going on? How is a bombast like Trump getting so much support? Is it because of his support of The Wall? Yes and no so far as I can tell, the typical Trump supporter sees this as an indicator that hes on their side and that everyone else isnt because they support open immigration as a cheap labor source. The Republican party is fracturing before our very eyes, with Trump supporters (and even Cruz supporters) seeing The Establishment as a nefarious entity, even if they cant identify a specific misdeed. If this were Germany, theyd have formed a new party by now, similar to what happened in Germany with the Euro-skeptic Alternative fur Deutschland. How much of this is about immigration at all? I dont know. Supposedly, polls tell us that immigration (both the overall number of new arrivals and the question of a legalization program) isnt a big issue for the electorate, but it certainly seems to stand in for a whole set of issues: trustworthiness, support for American workers, etc. Ill build a wall is fundamentally about communicating, Ill do whatever it takes to look out for the U.S., and my opponents wont. The Wall is a symbol of much more. And, of course, things arent any better on the Democratic side. Between Clintons corruption and Sanders pie-in-the-sky socialism, I dont know which is worse. Which gets to my question for readers: is there anything any of us, individually, can do about this trainwreck? On the list of the richest people in America, Charles and David Koch stand tied for 5th, each sitting on top of a $41 billion fortune. If you counted them together their $82 billion would easily win them first place, besting Bill Gates by over $6 billion. Bill and Melinda Gates have pledged, and are in the process of giving away nearly all of their fortune to charity. The Koch brothers have pledged to spend $900 million electing the presidential candidate who can best protect the fossil fuel industry. Its hard to imagine the Kochs spending nearly a billion dollars to elect Donald Trump president of the United States. (Although, if you are an aspiring screenwriter looking for inspiration, that scenario would make a phenomenal slapstick comedy.) The Koch brothers have kept a low profile during the primary season, but a new hire by Marco Rubio might signal the end of their impartiality. Politico reported yesterday: Marc Short, the Koch brothers top political adviser in Washington and a trusted member of their inner circle for five years, is making a surprise move to the Marco Rubio campaign as a senior adviser as the Republican establishment ramps up efforts to stop Donald Trump. As the president of Freedom Partners, the hub of the wheel for the Kochs political empire, Marc Short may have the greatest donor list in all of politics, and even better data. Short will now be the Koch brothers man on the inside of Rubios campaign, which means Rubio now has access to the most money and one of the best data-mining operations in politics. The money is good, but the data might be even better. Its a sophisticated databank of voter information that has been augmented with personal information gathered by campaigns and commercial groups. The group has data on millions of American voters and its voter files have become one of the must-have tools for most Republican campaigns. (Mother Jones) You can bet that Donald Trump doesnt have access to that spreadsheet. Seemingly on cue, another story emerged yesterday on Politico that Ted Cruzs top backers have asked him to stop going after Marco Rubio and go after Trump instead. The move could be a change in strategy for a candidate whose unfavorables climb every time he hits Rubio from the right. It could be a signal that the Republican establishment is currently marshaling every available resource to try and halt the Donald Trump vanity-project-slash-presidential-campaign that continues to pick up more and more delegates, and that the candidate they have anointed to do so is Marco Rubio. Cruzs only utility to the Republican establishment at this point is to fire all his guns at Trump. Marc Short is an amazing hire by the Rubio Campaign, and if other republicans pick up the signal we could see a massive shift of resources and attention away from Ted Cruz and toward Marco Rubio. I would not be at all surprised if Marco Rubio begins to pick up some serious steam nationwide. Cruz is all but done. Theres only room for one loose canon at a time atop the national stage, and Trump has confounded all experts, not to mention all good logic and decorum, by sucking all the oxygen from the Im mad as hell and Im not going to take it anymore room. Cruz is out. Rubio is in. If we see a miracle run by Rubio and he unseats the Donald for the Republican nomination, then we should point to yesterday and the Marc Short hire as the turning point. We should also realize that the Koch Brothers may have finally reverse engineered the American political process with enough precision and power to anoint their own presidential candidates and ensure his or her success. This post is part of the Memories of a Massacre Project: Memphis in 1866. This project is designed to bring to public attention the massacre that rattled Reconstruction-era Memphis in May 1866. For more information, click here. Below is a portion of the text of the talk that Dr. Andre E. Johnson gave on Tuesday February 16, 2016 as part of Black History Month at the University of Memphis. The lecture was also part of the Memories of a Massacre: Memphis in 1866 Project. To listen the talk, click here. On Thursday, December 10, 2015, a jury found former Police Officer Daniel Holtzclaw guilty of multiple counts of rape first and second degree as well as sexual battery, procuring lewd exhibition, and forcible oral sodomy. Except for Roland Martin of News One Now and a faithful cadre of folks on Twitter and other social media outlets providing us updates, this case where 13 women came forward to testify against this man, went largely unnoticed. On an episode of the Melissa Harris Perry show, commentator Joy Reid acknowledged the medias disregard toward this case. It just did not seem important to cover the story of a police officer who in fact was a serial rapist in the time when people all on Twitter were connecting this to the Black Lives Matter movement. However, for those following this case, you know that this almost did not happen. During the trial, the prosecution argued that Holtzclaw selected his victims based on their inherent believable. In short, these women that Holtzclaw raped were women that society tended not to believe anyway. Indeed, before this case gain any traction, several of these women and some not part of the 13 attempted to tell officials about their dealing with Holtzclaw. They simply were not believed. It wasnt until Mrs. Jannie Ligons, a 57 year-old grandmother of 12 testified against Holtzclaw that officials began a serious investigation.. But enter Black Lives Matter. The movement birth after the Zimmerman verdict of not guilty, aims at affirming all black lives period. No matter condition or position; no matter ones situation or infatuation, Black Lives Matter. According to Alicia Garza: BlackLivesMatter doesnt mean your life isnt importantit means that Black lives, which are seen as without value within White supremacy, are important to your liberation. Given the disproportionate impact state violence has on Black lives, we understand that when Black people in this country get free, the benefits will be wide reaching and transformative for society as a whole. When we are able to end hyper-criminalization and sexualization of Black people and end the poverty, control, and surveillance of Black people, every single person in this world has a better shot at getting and staying free. When Black people get free, everybody gets free. In achieving this freedom one way it happens is by way of testimony and the sharing of Black Truth. While the Black Lives matter movement operates on many different levels from protest, to research, to teach ins, to even electoral politics, at its core, it has always been a safe space for the sharing of ones testimony. It has been the place where one could tell a story of ones interaction with police, or at work, or at home and not have others questioning your story or looking disapprovingly upon you. Its been the place where one could go and be whoever they were created to be and find the love that the wider society does not give. In short, its been the space where Black Truth has been affirmed. Its a space where Black Truth and testimony come to live because wider society has always viewed black truth as suspect. Black truth and testimony has always been questioned and viewed as inaccurate. Its almost as if truth and Blackness could not coincide togetherthat Black truth was somehow tainted because of the conditions Black folks found themselves. For a long period in this country black testimony was not given in courts and black people could not testify in any case against a white person. This of course led to the banning of black people from juries and from courtrooms period unless they were in the role of defendants. However, there was a time when Black truth seemed to matterat least for a moment. There was this one time, back in 1866 right here in Memphis, Tennessee that some black folks came forward to testify about an atrocity that had happened to them May 1-3. Not long after the vestiges of slavery and still dealing with some form of PTSD, these brave women and men came forward and foreshadowed others would come later bearing Black truth in their bosom and as fire shut in their bones. Shortly after the massacre, a congressional committee arrived in Memphis to investigate the massacre. During their investigation and interview process, the committee discovered that 46 black people died, 285 people injured, over 100 houses and other property belonging to African Americans burned. (And BTW, we dont have the time to talk about the Black wealth that was lost and the serious need for a conversation centering on reparations). However, also part of the massacre was the rape of (at least) 5 black women. According to the report: The crowning acts of atrocity and diabolism committed during these terrible nights were the ravishing of five different colored women by these fiends in human shape, independent of other attempts at rape. The details of these outrages are of too shocking and disgusting character to be given at length in this report, and reference must be had to the testimony of the parties. It is a singular fact, that while this mob was breathing vengeance against the negroes and shooting them down like dogs, yet when they found unprotected colored women they at once conquered their prejudices, and proceeded to violate them under circumstances of the most licentious brutality. One of the testimonies came from Frances Thompson, who had been enslaved and was cripple, using crutches because she had cancer on her foot. On Tuesday night seven men, two of whom were policemen, came to her house. She knew the two to be policemen by their stars. They were all Irishmen. They first demanded that she should get supper for them, which she did. After supper the wretches threw all the provisions that were in the house which had not been consumed out into the bayou. They then laid hold of Frances, hitting her on the side of the face and kicking her.The woman was then violated by four of the men and so beaten and bruised that she lay in bed for three days. They were in the house nearly four hours, and when they left they said they intended to burn up the last God damned nigger, and drive all the Yankees out of town. Another case is that of Rebecca Ann Bloom who was ravished on the night of May 2nd. According to testimony: She was in bed with her husband, when five men broke open her door and came into her house. They professed to have authority to arrest Mr. Bloom, and threatened to take him to the station-house unless he should pay them twenty-five dollars. Not having the money, he went out to raise it, and while absent one of the men assaulted the wife and threatened to kill her if she did not let him do as he wished. Brandishing his knife, and swearing she must submit to his wishes, he accomplished his brutal purpose. Then there was the case of Lucy Tibbs. A party of seven men broke into her house on Tuesday night and demanded to know where her husband was. She had with her two little children of the ages of five and two years, respectively. She implored them not to do anything to her, as she was just there with her two little children. While the others of the party were plundering the house, one man threatened to kill her if she did not submit to his wishes and although another man, discovering her situation, interfered, and told him to let that woman alone that she was not in situation for doing that, the brute did not desist, but succeeded in violating her person in the presence of the other six men. She was obliged to submit, as the house was full of men, and she thought they would kill her, as they had stabbed a woman the previous night in her neighborhood. In listing the atrocities that the white mob committed, the report concludes that Hardly any crime seems to have been omitted. There were burglary, robbery, arson, mayhem, rape. assassination, and murder, committed under circumstances of the most revolting atrocity, the details of which in every case are fully set out in the testimony. In many cases negroes were murdered and their bodies remained on the ground for forty-eight hours, and had reached stage of decomposition before they were buried; the relatives and friends of the murdered parties being afraid to appear on the street to claim the dead bodies, and the authorities permitted them to remain longer than they would have permitted the body of dead dog to remain on the street. It was these and other testimonies that made it in the Congressional Report. As Stephen Ash argued in his book A Massacre in Memphis, that the Massacre provoked the US government to take extraordinary measures to protect freed people. The 1866 midterm elections ushered in Republican majorities in both the House and Senate that struck down President Andrew Johnsons Reconstruction measures. Under Congressional Reconstruction, the federal government imposed temporary federal military rule on the recalcitrant southern states, states had to adopt new state constitutions that granted black men the right to vote, and they must agree to ratify the 14th amendment. In the debates that ensued, the story of the Memphis Massacre and the testimony of black folk figured prominently in their decision making. This led to the first attempt at a bi-racial democracy that scholars now say produced some good outcomes. What lessons can we learn as we navigate our own treacherous waters in our own time? This is what we hope to figure out together as we continue to study the Memphis Massacre together. During the Memories of a Massacre: Memphis in 1866 project, we will have a series of discussions and lectures all leading up to the Symposium in May. So stay tuned for that. However, it is Black History Month and during Black History Month, there is always a lot of talk about what we can do to work together and to solve issues that face us. Well, the way for me that it starts with the recovery of Black Truth and as much as it is disregarded, we must recover it and then, dare I say, believe it. In short, Black Truth Matters! So I live us with some questions to wrestle with. What would it look like today if Black truth was taken seriously by society? What would it look like if we actually believe the folks who tell us time and time again about being harassed, about being beaten, about being set up? For example, what would it look like to have a serious Congressional investigation where the people of Flint, Michigan can testify that they knew something was wrong with the water way before it became news? Indeed, what would that look like if Black Truth Mattered? Thank You For more information on the Memories of a Massacre: Memphis in 1866 Project, click here Donate to the Work of R3 Patna: American Ambassador to India Richard Rahul Verma on Tuesday paid a visit to Patna where he met with Bihar Governor Ram Nath Kovind, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, and a host of social workers to get a firsthand feel of the developments taking place in the state. Verma, an Obama appointee, while talking to reporters in Patna, said that the American conglomerate General Electric (GE), had agreed to a $2.6 billion contract with the Indian Railways in which it would produce 1000 diesel locomotives at a factory to be set in Saran district. "Under Obama-Narendra Modi leadership, the tie between India and the USA has strengthened. In 2005, the India-US trade amounted to roughly $30 billion which has grown more than three-fold in 2015 to the tune of $105 billion," he said adding in 2005, there were less than 200 American companies operating in India in contrast to today's 500 companies serving different industries. Speaking on security issues, the Ambassador, who was accompanied by the US Consulate in Kolkata Craig Hall and Public Affairs Officer Andrew Pozner, said that America was serious about the security of India and stood by it in an age when the world appeared to be in turmoil. He further said an American team recently visited India to explore possibilities of building jets under Modi's Make in India campaign. Verma also visited Samman Foundation, an NGO that helps rickshaw pullers, and took a short ride in a rickshaw on the streets of Patna. "We're not used to seeing growth in our check business," said Deluxe's Tracey Engelhardt, who reports a 6% to 7% increase in revenue for check orders from businesses and consumers in each of the last three quarters, driven by various factors originating from the pandemic. For Iran's Reformists, Getting To The Polls Is Half The Battle 02/24/16 By Golnaz Esfandiari, RFE/RL The rise of the wave of hope (source: Iranian reformist daily Shargh) Kazem has vowed, via a social network that's not blocked to him and his fellow Iranians, not to vote in this week's elections. "I won't let anyone use me as a tool," the Tehran-based businessman declared on Instagram. He described the voting as a "farce" aimed at providing legitimacy for the country's clerically dominated establishment and unelected officials. Kazem says he's only voted once. That was in 1997 for former President Mohammad Khatami, whose attempts at reform were largely foiled by hard-liners and who is still banned from appearing in newspapers or on television or radio. "I realized later that things will never change under the current system," he tells RFE/RL. It's a familiar dilemma for a certain swath of Iran's 55 million registered voters: Does voting makes sense in their Islamic republic, where allegations of rigging are rife and candidates are routinely disqualified by vetters from the notoriously hard-line Guardians Council? Naysayers dismiss the elections as "selections," window-dressing for the supreme leader and his chosen allies; yeasayers counter that despite the shortcomings, elections since the country's 1979 revolution have provided opportunities for political change. The debate has been reignited by scheduled balloting on February 26 for both a new parliament, known as the Majlis, and an Assembly of Experts, the all-male body of mullahs that appoints the supreme leader. The vote pits backers of self-styled moderate President Hassan Rohani against hard-liners opposed to reforms and particularly hostile to any opening up of the country. In the absence so far of any organized boycott of the vote and despite Kazem's arguments against participation, pro-reform voters are more likely to be following Reza's example. Reza, a Tehrani who asked us not to use his real name, says he believes it is crucial to vote for the 290-seat parliament and the 88-member Assembly of Experts. He has been encouraging others to cast their ballots for an alliance of reformists and moderate candidates in order to block hard-liners and help "institutionalize the culture of voting" in Iran, where a Western-backed monarch ruled until the revolution that brought Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini and other clerics to power nearly three decades ago. While Reza says he recognizes that Iran's elections fall short of international norms for free and fair votes, he argues that they allow "a minimum of competition within the system," which he believes is sufficient for gradual reforms to take place and make Iran more democratic. "I believe that elections will in the long run -- despite all the limitations -- result in the imposing of people's will on the establishment through members of the establishment," Reza tells RFE/RL. Test For Rohani Reformists have described the parliamentary elections as a "second step" after the 2013 victory by Rohani, whose popularity has risen since a nuclear accord was reached last year with world powers to limit Iran's disputed nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief. Rohani's first term is due to end next year, and this month's vote is widely seen as a test of his support ahead of a possible bid for reelection. Iran's self-styled moderate President Hassan Rohani's first term is due to end next year The Guardians Council has disqualified half of the 12,000 or so applicants for the legislature, many of them reformists whose loyalty was in question and including prominent figures, leaving around 6,200 candidates for the 290-seat Majlis. A Rohani ally complained that just 33 of 3,000 reformists made the cut. But Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has urged Iranians, including "those who do not accept the ruling system," to vote in large numbers "for the sake of the country's [international] standing." He has said a high turnout would deliver a message to the West, and he has urged people to "act contrary to what enemies want." Enemy pursues infiltration into the elections; people must be aware and act contrary to what enemies want. #IranElections2016 Khamenei.ir (@khamenei_ir) February 17, 2016 Those reformists urging like-minded voters to go to the polls argue that boycotts in the past have given the upper hand to hard-core conservatives, whose supporters turn out in large numbers and are thought to be especially loyal. They cite the victory of Mahmud Ahmadinejad in the presidential election of 2005 and the dominance of the conservatives and hard-liners in parliament since 2004, when many reformists boycotted the polls in a reaction to a ban on many of their candidates. Mobilizing Efforts A former president and onetime head of the Assembly of Experts who allied himself with the opposition following the disputed election of 2009, Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, was quoted by the official IRNA news agency this week as urging Iranians to "deliver an ultimatum to hard-liners" at the polls despite their disappointment at "the behavior of some individuals in some organizations." He criticized the vetting process and warned that such measures "create splits and discords between people" 37 years after Iran's revolution. From left: Hassan Khomeini, Ayatollah Hashemi Rafsanjani and President Hassan Rohani (source: Arman daily) Reformists say a high turnout by the opposition could shake the rule of hard-liners in parliament, where they have repeatedly challenged Rohani and his cabinet ministers over their foreign policy outreach and less restrictive social and cultural policies. "Not voting will not block the hard-liners, it will just make it easier for them to regain control of the parliament," a Rohani supporter wrote on social media. "The only viable option is to do all we can to block them." Some observers believe moderate gains in parliament could strengthen Rohani and allow him to bring modest social changes and push his economic agenda forward following last month's lifting of the international sanctions that had been crippling the Iranian economy. cartoon by Javad Takjou, Ghanoon daily The disqualification process has left less room for maneuver in races for the Assembly of Experts, where some observers say the 76-year-old Khamenei is determined to ensure that his loyalists dominate the body. Just 161 of 800 or so would-be candidates have been approved to run for assembly seats. Blocking Strategy To many Iranians, the Assembly of Experts is an obscure rubberstamp body with elderly members who are disconnected from society. Tasked under the constitution with monitoring the performance of the supreme leader, it is not known to have ever challenged or criticized Khamenei. But the assembly would play the primary role in determining a successor if Khamenei -- whose health remains a question -- should die or become incapacitated in the next eight years. Reformists' "list of hope" Rafsanjani joined former reformist President Khatami this month in urging voters to choose from a "list of hope" of reformist-backed candidates in the elections -- in the case of the Assembly of Experts headlined by Rohani and Rafsanjani. The call included a rare public appearance for Khatami, who is still subject to an official media ban -- in the form of a YouTube and Telegram video in which the 72-year-old theologian and two-time president cited Rohani's election win in 2013 as a prelude to a "second step." WATCH: Former Iranian President Mohammad Khatami Urges People To Vote For Reform (in Persian, no subtitles) Some reformists have responded to the list by taking to social media themselves to encourage participation. They argue that voting for the 16 "list of hope" candidates can prevent the election to the Assembly of Experts of three perceived ultra-hard-liners and Khamenei loyalists in particular: Guardians Council Chairman Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati, Assembly of Experts Chairman Ayatollah Mohammad Yazdi, and Ayatollah Mohammad Taghi Mesbah Yazdi. "Please vote for all the names on this list. Let's kick out Jannati from the Assembly of Experts forever. The next election for the assembly is in eight years, and by then Jannati will hopefully not be alive," a Facebook user in Ahwaz wrote. Some potential voters this week still appeared to be undecided as to whether to cast their ballots or not. "I've never voted. But sometimes I tell myself that if I and many others like me had participated in elections, for example in 2005 when Ahmadinejad came to power, then maybe Iran would have been a better place," one woman wrote in a debate on social media about the February 26 voting. 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 Elections in Iran, a Test for the Regime 02/24/16 By Farhang Jahanpour, Oxford cartoon by Mohsen Zarifian, Iranian daily Etemad Iran will hold two crucial elections on February 26, 2016, which could decide the fate of the Islamic Republic for many years to come. Earlier this month, Iranians celebrated the 37th anniversary of the victory of the Islamic Revolution. During that period, the country experienced revolutionary upheavals, a disastrous eight-year war with Iraq that killed and wounded nearly a million Iranians, eight years of populist rule by a hard-line president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, and crippling Western sanctions. Yet, despite all these crises and upheavals, not only has the Islamic Republic survived, it could be argued that Iran is now the most stable country in the region. This year the election for the 290-seat parliament (Majles), which will serve for four years, coincides with the election of the 88-member Assembly of Experts, which has a eight year term. The Assembly of Experts is in charge of selecting the next Supreme Leader. The current leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is 76 and ailing, and the next Assembly will likely select his successor. In view of the importance of the role that the Supreme Leader plays in Iranian politics, the person who is chosen will decide the direction that the Nizam (the establishment) will take in the coming years. At the moment, the country is split between the reformists and the moderates on one side, and the hardliners on the other. Whether the next parliament and more crucially the next leader are reformist or extremist will have a major impact on the course of Irans domestic and foreign policy. This is why the forthcoming elections are so critical. There have been regular, if flawed, elections in Iran since the revolution, but the fairness of the elections has been compromised by the enormous power that the right-wing Guardian Council wields in vetting the candidates. The Supreme Leader appoints six clerical members of the Guardian Council, and the head of the Judiciary, who is appointed by Khamenei, appoints six jurists to the Council. Therefore, the Council acts as a rubber stamp for the wishes of the Supreme Leader and the clerical establishment. On the eve of the forthcoming elections, the Guardian Council rejected the qualifications of the vast majority of reformist candidates, while the majority of the so-called Principleists, or right-wing extremists, have been allowed to contest the elections. Initially, there were more than 12,000 candidates from the three main political movements, the hardliners, the reformists and the moderates. In total, about 6,200 candidates -- including 586 women -- have now been cleared to run, while the rest have been disqualified. Nine moderate parties issued a statement complaining that only 30 of the 3,000 reformist candidates had been allowed to run. Fatemeh Hosseini is the youngest woman running on the reformists' ticket In the absence of organized political parties, anyone can put his or her name down for election. There is certainly a need for a body to vet the candidates and make the elections more manageable, but the problem with the Guardian Council is that it functions in a very partisan way. In 2009 election, there was widespread support for the reformist candidate Mir-Hossein Musavi, but the Guardian Council declared Ahmadinejad the winner, and Khamenei put his full support behind him. That controversial decision led to the biggest demonstrations and protests since the early days of the revolution, which were brutally put down. A number of protestors were killed, and hundreds, including the leaders of the Green Movement, were arrested and most of them are still either in jail or under house arrest. The hardliners had hoped to repeat the success of their candidates in the last presidential election in 2013, but the rightwing candidate Saeed Jalili received only 11.3% of the vote. When Hassan Rouhani declared his candidacy, opinion polls put his popularity at only 5%, but an energetic campaign with the promises of greater freedoms at home and a policy of engagement with the West, brought more than 72% of the electorate to the polling stations, and he won in the first round with nearly 51% of the vote. It was hoped that after the successful implementation of the nuclear deal with the P5+1, President Rouhanis supporters would have greater success in the forthcoming election and that he would face a less hostile Majles. However, as the result of massive disqualifications of reformist candidates, the Guardian Council has dashed all those hopes. Ayatollah Khomeinis grandson, Hassan Khomeini, who is a reformist and who had supported President Rouhani in the last election, has been barred from running for the Assembly of Experts, and Morteza Eshraqi, another grandson of the founder of the Islamic Republic, was prevented from running for Majles, as were former President Hashemi-Rafsanjanis son Mohsen and daughter Fatemeh Hashemi. These disqualifications have given rise to a great deal of anger and criticism. Speaking at a ceremony commemorating the anniversary of Khomeinis return to Tehran on February 2nd, Hashemi-Rafsanjani criticized the Guardian Councils decision to disqualify Hassan Khomeini. Rafsanjani said: They disqualified the grandson of Imam Khomeini, who is the person who is closest to his grandfather. Addressing the hardliners, Rafsanjani said: Who has given you the right to judge others? Who has given you the right to take all the guns, have all the podiums, have Friday prayer platforms and radio and television? former President Hashemi-Rafsanjani on the front page of Iranian daily Jahan Eqtesad This criticism is extremely significant because it is not directed only at the Guardian Council but at the entire clerical establishment, and at the IRGC that holds all the guns. He is also indirectly criticizing the Supreme Leader who appoints the heads of the IRGC, the Friday prayer leaders and the head of the state-run broadcasting. President Rouhani too strongly criticized the hardliners. Speaking on Tuesday 9 February, referring to the IRGC, Ruhani said: If an organization possesses intelligence, weapons, money, newspapers, news agencies, and if other tools of powers were put altogether in the hands of one organization, even if they were saints they would become corrupted. He said that if Iran wants to move forward, we should get rid of monopolies and move towards real competition. The sanctions were not the only chains tying our hands. Bureaucracy is also a chain that we must remove from our hands one day. These strong criticisms of the Guardian Council, the IRGC and implicitly the Supreme Leader, show that the forthcoming elections are going to be tense. However, despite all these obstacles put in the path of the reformers, former reformist President Khatami, while expressing disappointment that capable and deserving figures have been disqualified, urged the people to vote because your vote is your voice. Iranian personalities on voting in this election (source: Ghanoon daily) At this election, there are around 53 million voters, 30% of whom are under the age of 30, and 70% under the age of 50. The balance of power in Iran has shifted to a younger, more cosmopolitan and more reform-minded generation. The forthcoming elections will set the stage for major changes in Iran. Note: This article was first published by IPS and it's reprinted here with the author's permission. About the author: Farhang Jahanpour, a TFF Associate and Board member and Fellow of The Royal Asiatic Society, is a former professor and dean of the Faculty of Foreign Languages at the University of Isfahan and a former Senior Research Fellow at Harvard University. He is a tutor in the Department of Continuing Education and a member of Kellogg College, University of Oxford. 47 Organizations Urge Waivers for Dual Nationals 02/24/16 By Ryan Costello, NIAC Action On Tuesday February 23rd, 47 organizations including NIAC Action sent a letter to Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson requesting the Secretary to use his authority to waive restrictions so that individuals are not barred from visa-free travel to the United States on the basis of their national origin or family heritage. In December, Congress passed legislation barring dual nationals of the 38 Visa Waiver Program (VWP) countries and Iran, Iraq, Syria or Sudan from visa-free travel to the United States. The legislation has been decried as discriminatory, though it did provide Secretary Johnson with a waiver to protect law enforcement and national security interests. Today, the Department of Homeland Security is expected to release a new Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) form, which is required for any foreign national traveling to the U.S. under the VWP. The rollout of the new form could provide additional clarity on whether any dual nationals will be exempted from the new restrictions, including dual nationals who were never born in Iran, Iraq, Syria or Sudan or who left their countries of origin decades ago. The letters signatories include NIAC Action and several other Iranian-American groups, the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), and the Friends Committee on National Legislation (FCNL). You can see the letter below: President Barack Obama White House 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW Washington, DC 20500 RE: Request for Executive Action to Waive Discriminatory Prohibitions Based on National Origin under the Visa Program Improvement and Terrorist Travel Prevention Act Dear President Obama: On behalf of the undersigned civil rights, immigrant advocacy, and non-profit organizations, we strongly urge you to utilize the waiver authority provided under the Visa Waiver Program Improvement and Terrorist Travel Prevention Act (VWP Act) to ensure that individuals are not barred from the Visa Waiver Program (VWP) on the basis of their national origin or family heritage. Utilizing the waivers for this purpose is in the law enforcement and national security interest of the United States and is fully authorized by the VWP Act. Under the VWP Act, individuals who are citizens of VWP countries and are also dual nationals of or have traveled to Iran, Iraq, Sudan, or Syria on or after March 1, 2011 are prohibited from traveling to the United States under the VWP. This mandatory bar to all persons whom are dual citizens and those whom have engaged in legitimate travel is discriminatory and does not advance U.S. national security or law enforcement interests. Fortunately, the VWP Act includes authorization for the Administration to waive restrictions if doing so is in law enforcement or national security interest. Utilizing these waivers for dual nationals as well as for legitimate travel meets this standard. Targeting individuals based on national origin or family heritage would divert resources from legitimate law enforcement activities. An individuals national origin or family heritage is not a valid or useful criterion by which to judge whether they pose a security threat. Devoting resources to screen people based on their place of birth, residence, national origin, or family heritage is a diversion of resources and counterproductive to securing our nation. Furthermore, targeting dual nationals also risks exacerbating a wedge of distrust between law enforcement and affected communities. Engaging in profiling against members of these communities will only serve to undermine communication and cooperation between these communities and law enforcement for actual legitimate law enforcement activities is destroyed. Finally, prohibiting persons from the VWP based on this criteria risk undermining relationships and cooperation between the United States and its closest allies, which risks making the United States less secure. The European Union has already stated that it may suspend the VWP program for all Americans, which would reduce important intelligence sharing and other cooperative efforts, as well as economic opportunities. Furthermore, even in lieu of full suspension, VWP countries may enact similar restrictions against Americans because the VWP is based on reciprocity. Any EU-imposed travel restriction would impact over 740,000 American citizens solely based on their national origin and/or family heritage. In January 2016, Congressional members introduced in both the Senate and House the Equal Protection in Travel Act with bipartisan support. These legislative actions were taken in recognition of the fact that the prohibition against dual nationals under the VWP Act is discriminatory, perpetuates profiling based on national origin, is ineffective to actually address security, and directly contradicts American values. Nevertheless, ongoing legislative efforts that aim to remove the discriminatory national origin provision of the VWP do not replace the authority of the President to take action. While we welcome the Department of Homeland Security - Customs and Border Protection agency implementation efforts to utilize waivers under the VWP Act for certain categories, the waivers thus far have not addressed concerns regarding dual nationals and other travel. Only by utilizing your legal authority waiver can this Administration protect dual nationals and shield targeting of these communities, and protect U.S. law enforcement and national security interests in the process. We strongly urge your Administration to utilize its authority to legally waive the dual nationality and travel ban provisions under the Visa Waiver Program Improvement and Terrorist Travel Prevention Act. Sincerely, National Organizations American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) Arab American Institute (AAI) Asian Americans Advancing Justice (AAJC) Bill of Rights Defense Committee/Defending Dissent Foundation Church World Service Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) Friends Committee on National Legislation Institute for Policy Studies - New Internationalism Project International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran Iranian Alliances Across Borders Iranian American Bar Association Jewish Voices for Peace Just Foreign Policy KARAMAH: Muslim Women Lawyers for Human Rights League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services (RAICES) National Immigrant Justice Center NIAC Action National Korean American Service and Education Consortium (NAKASEC) National Network for Arab American Communities Peace Action Peace Action West Public Affairs Alliance of Iranian Americans (PAAIA) Reporters Without Borders USA South Asian Americans Leading Together (SAALT) Syria Relief and Development The Sisters of Mercy of the Americas, Institute Justice Team United for Iran Unitarian Universalist Service Committee U.S. Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants State/Local Organizations and Entities Arab-American Family Support Center (New York) Arab Community Center for Economic and Social Services (ACCESS -Michigan) Bay Area Iranian-American Democrats Cabrini Immigrant Services (New York) Dar al-Hijrah Islamic Center (Virginia) Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights Localini Incorporated Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition Needham (MA) Area Immigration Justice Task Force North Carolina Justice Center OneAmerica (Washington State) PARS Equality Center (California) Reformed Church of Highland Park (New Jersey) The Hand Foundation CC: Holly Canevari, Holly Canevari, Chief of Staff, Office of the Assistant Secretary, Department of Homeland Security Mary Giovagnoli, Deputy Assistant Secretary, Office of Immigration and Border Security, Department of Homeland Security Serena Hoy, Senior Counselor, Office of the Deputy Secretary, Department of Homeland Security Megan Mack, Officer for Civil Rights & Civil Liberties, Office for Civil Rights &Civil Liberties, Department of Homeland Security Amy Pope, Deputy Homeland Security Advisor and Deputy Assistant to the President, National Security Council, White House Executive Office of the President Why Iranian government should invite Obama to Iran this year? 02/24/16 By Cyrus Kangarlu Presidents Obama and Rohani on cover of Iranian magazine Mosalas Achievements of Obama presidency in the last seven years are undeniable to friends and critiques of his administration. Just a short list of his numerous achievements are as follows; (1) Passed Health Care Reform, (2) Passed the Stimulus Plan, (3) Ended War in Iraq and Afghanistan, (4) Killed Bin Laden, (5) Saved US auto industry, (6) Implemented Wall Street Reform, (7) Saved US Banks, (8) Improved US reputation with Allies (9) took Federal Student loan program out of the hand of big Banks, (10) Negotiated Nuclear deal with Iran, (12) Added tow liberal seats in US Supreme court (13) gave FDA power to regulate Tobacco, (14) Support of renewable energy, ...... On this list, which is envy of any modern US president, the nuclear agreement with Iran requires special attention. Iran as the perennial topic of US national election is one more time ringing in the ears of campaign goers. While republicans position on Iran borders with insanity even Hillary and Bernie in their debates showed that Iran is one of the bones of contention for their foreign policy. Already, Americans are enjoying the fallouts of the nuclear agreement on the gas pumps where they are paying less for a gallon of gasoline than for drinking water. On top of that, the fact that continued economic benefits of the nuclear agreement for Iran hinges on the endorsement of the US government of their behavior in their neighborhood, Iran has a strong incentive to refrain from acts that grossly undermine US policy in the region. This is the miracle of Obamas exacting of the nuclear concession from Iran, and the role it will force Iran to play in that tumultuous part of the world. Building on this success, US must continue on the path to normalization of relations between with Iran. Obama realized that, faced with increasing isolation, Iran was equally likely to walk down one of the three possible paths of negotiation, weaponization, or diversion. The choice of the first option by Iran is the crown jewel of Obamas vision and policy analytic power of his team led by John Kerry. Now, it is time to pick the fruit of that success. Realizing that no other foreign policy issue by the present or the next administration will serve the economic and security interest of US, requires pursuit of even a bolder move. Given the make-up of the viable candidates for presidential election and a high probability of Hillary winning the race, in all likelihood, either achievements of Obama foreign policy in the middle east will be frozen, at best, or reversed all together. As Obama viewed a trip to Cuba as the icing on the cake of his innovative foreign policy of openness and inducement of liberalization in Cuba by bringing it back to the family of nations, his trip to Tehran will be the pinnacle of his presidency, an achievement comparable to Nixons trip to China. Considering the elimination of the threat of communism by splitting the Communism camp in 1979 by Nixon, the opportunity now exists for the US to attract Iran away from radical Islamic camp and welcome it to the family of nations. Obama can even show the clergies in Iran that such action by Iran will even serve the best interest of their religion by making it distinct from the criminal Jihadi gangs who have defamed all historic achievement of Islam. Rewards for such trip are rather high and risks are pretty low. So, it is up to Iranians to create a national discourse hospitable to receiving the US president in Iran. This can, overnight, turn around the economic woes that have shackled Iran today. Without such bold move, the fallouts of nuclear deal will be too small to provide a jolt to Irans economy that is heading for the cliff. Dividends for the US economy of such opening to Iran are even greater. Ironically, the two countries can scratch each others back in a way that friends can never do. Is there political insight and vision on both sides to go beyond the mere rhetoric and make this happen? Informed citizens of US and Iran can start a campaign to ensure that such trip will take place. Anyone who discourages or hinders such plan will live to regret his action as there are not too many good options left for the US to counter the poisonous winds of radical Islam in a regions where all traditional US allies are trembling as the noose is tightening around their necks. Prominent among those allies is the Saudi royal family who have demonstrated their smell of a violent overthrow by their radical nemesis by pursuing some unprecedented military policies in Bahrain, Yemen, and Syria that runs the risk of a military defeat, economic meltdown and massive popular discontent. Such turn of events will not serve the US interest in the region. Establishment of diplomatic relationship with Iran will also send a strong signal to the Iranian government that US government has come to realization of the benefits of cooperation with the only stable government in the region who has the resource and mandate to help stabilize Iraq and Syria. At the same time, Saudi royal family will be given the assurance that US-Iran rapprochement will not be at the expense of Saudi security. A visit by the US president to Iran before 20 Jan 2017 is a no-risk action with far too many potential benefits to the US and allies to allow to become subject to political bickering of election season or preoccupation with petty politic of rise of a demagogue to partisan prominence. This is the only way we can ensure that Trump will remain a bad memory to US political history rather than a new destructive trend. About the author: Cyrus Kangarlu is the president of Institute of Democracy for Educational Advancement, IDEA Foundation in Los Angeles, CA. Google Drive is much more than just a cloud-based storage and syncing service with an excellent free storage plan. It's also an integral part of a full, collaborative office suite. You can use Google Drive to store documents you create online as well as to back up files on your computer. Consumers can specify any folder on their device for backup and save space by not duplicating files on local storage. Paid plans, which add extra storage space and other perks, are branded as Google One, and you get a lot for your money. Google Drive is truly impressive in how it can help you store, back up, create, and even edit files, whether you work solo or as part of a team. It's an Editors' Choice for file storage and syncing. What Is Google Drive, Exactly? Google Drive is the file storage and syncing component that comes with any Google account. If you use Google Workspace, you can think of Drive as one part of the whole suite, alongside other specific apps such as Google Docs, Sheets, Slides, and so forth. When you create a new Google Doc, it automatically saves to Google Drive. The online storage you get is shared among documents you create there or save to there, plus Google Photos, and Gmail, including email attachments. In addition to using the service as the default save space for all your Google-related files, you can install the Google Drive desktop client to run locally on your device as a file-syncing and storage solution, much the same way Microsoft OneDrive or Dropbox can. When you set up Google Drive locally, it saves and syncs any files you tell it to. If your computer ever suffers a data loss (anything from a hardware failure to a house fire to ransomware), all the files you saved using Google Drive are safe and available to you to access or download from the Google Drive website. That way, if you have to buy a new computer or fully wipe and reset your computer, you can get all your files back. How Much Does Google Drive Cost? It doesn't cost anything to sign up for a Google account and start using Google Drive. For free, you get 15GB of space, which is generous compared with what you get for free with other storage services. If you need more storage space, you have to pay for a Google One account. Google One is nothing more than a bundle of services. In other words, when you become a paying customer for extra storage space, Google throws in a few additional benefits, such as photo editing tools, a mobile VPN service, and discounts on Google products. Google One's Basic plan increases your space to 100GB and costs $1.99 per month or $19.99 per year. You get the bonus photo-editing tools we just mentioned in the Google Photos mobile app, as well as support via phone and text chat. The $2.99-a-month (or $29.99 per year) Standard plan bumps storage up to 200GB and you get a 3% discount in the Google Store on Pixel phones, Nest smart home devices, and other products. If you're interested in the VPN service, you need the $9.99-per-month (or $99.99 per year) Premium plan, which brings 2TB of storage and increases your discount at the store to 10%. Higher price plans go all the way up to $149.99 per month for 30TB of storage. All plans can be shared among five family members and friends. You get a slight discount if you pay annually rather than monthly for a Basic, Standard, or Premium plan. Comparative Pricing For comparison, a $9.99-a-month or $99-per-year Microsoft 365 account gets you 6TB of OneDrive storage1TB each for six people (compared with 2TB from Google for the same price). Microsoft also gives you the installable Office productivity applications, Teams, premium Office templates, Family Safety features, and support by phone and chat. A single user account is $6.99 per month or $69.99 per year. Free users get just 5GB and use of the web versions of Microsoft Office. Apple device owners familiar with iCloud Drive may know that the free storage allotment there is a measly 5GB. You can add 50GB more storage for 99 cents per month; 200GB for $2.99 per month; or 2TB for $9.99 per month. The last two options cost the same as Google One. At all levels, you get the quasi-VPN service Apple calls Private Relay, but it only works in Safari. Plenty of other services offer cloud storage and syncing without turning them into bundled deals. Editors' Choice winner IDrive charges $79.50 per year for 5TB, and the highly-rated Dropbox gives you 2TB for $119.88 per year. Google Drive's Web Interface Google Drive's online design has improved over the years and is now more intuitive than ever. It's easy to change the file view to see either thumbnail images or a list. Creating folders and subfolders to organize your files is straightforward. Other ways to organize than folders include using color-coding and stars. One convenience worth noting is that you can drag and drop files from your computer onto any open folder in the browser to upload them. If you use Google Drive to sync files from other devices, you'll find them in the left pane under Computers. Google Drive automatically calls them by the device name, but you can rename them however you want. One of the few things that's still clumsy and complicated in the web app is figuring out how to free up space in Google Drive by identifying and removing large and unwanted files, especially files shared with you. Admittedly, since the launch of Google One, it's gotten much better. An interface now helps you find the cause of nearly full storage, and as you drill down, it pinpoints potential problem areas. In addition to supporting Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides, Drive can handle Forms, Drawings, Maps, PDF, image files, and more. You can even integrate third-party Web apps to work with other types of files, such as CAD or music files. We won't get into the office suite features here. For that, see PCMag's review of Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides. Google Drive as a Desktop Client In the past, Google called its desktop client for syncing by different names, such as Backup & Sync for consumers and File Stream for business accounts. We mention it for two reasons. First, you may come across those names in old help documents or articles. Second, if you installed one of the older versions of the clients in the past, you'll definitely want to get rid of it and install the new version. It's much better. When you do install the new version, it will alert you if you have the old version installed and ask if you'd like to do away with it. After downloading and installing the desktop client, it asks you to authenticate your account back in the web browser. Then the Google Drive app prompts you to give it access to files in various locations, such as your Desktop and Documents folder. Those are cursory approvals. You haven't yet given the app instructions to start backing up anything. After that, you can open the app and indicate which folders on your computer you'd like to back up. The old desktop app had a much more confusing setup. Now it's clearer, although if you've used other backup and syncing apps before, Google Drive is a bit different. With some dedicated backup services, such as SpiderOak One Backup, you select the areas of your computer that you want to back up from a file tree view, and you can choose multiple locations at once. With Google Drive, you pick individual folders, one at a time. So far we've looked at creating and saving files in Google Drive and syncing and backing up files from the desktop to Drive. But what about syncing those files you created in Drive (or uploaded to Drive) to your computer? We'll dig into that in the next section. Streaming vs. Mirroring When it comes to syncing from Drive to your computer, you have two options for how to do it: streaming and mirroring. Streaming files means you store all My Drive files in the cloud and merely access them from your computer. "My Drive" files here refers to files that you either create right in the Google Drive web app or upload there, that is, files that do not originate from an external source, like your computer or phone. With this option, you can also choose files and folders to make available offline. Any changes you make to the files sync automatically. This option is similar to OneDrive's Files on Demand feature. Mirroring files means you store all My Drive files in the cloud and on your computer. All files and folders will be available offline, so you don't have to choose individual ones for that. Once again, any changes you make to any of the files sync automatically to the other place. Streaming is the better option if you don't want to use up a lot of local storage on your computer. The only time files will take up space on your machine are when you're working on them and the ones you choose to make available offline. Mirroring is the better option if you don't want to mess around with choosing which files should be available offlinebut this option will take up more space on your computer, potentially a significant amount, depending on how much you have stored in Google Drive. Powerful Search and OCR in Google Drive The files you store in Google Drive are highly searchable. One way is through optical character recognition, or OCR. When you save and sync images files and PDFs in Google Drive, the app scans the files for text and makes it searchable. To test it, we uploaded a PDF of a recipe for chocolate cake and made sure the word "chocolate" wasn't in the filename. Seconds after uploading the file, we searched for the word "chocolate" across all our Google Drive files, and the app found it straightaway. Formerly, to get Google Drive to read and interpret text on a PDF or image, you had to first open the file in Google Docs, but that's no longer the case. Now it works almost immediately after you save the file to Google Drive. Microsoft OneDrive uses OCR on images and PDFs, too. It uses AI to apply tags to photos and extract text that you can see in the info panel of any file. If you have more needs for OCR, like wanting to be able to extract text from PDFs and images to make it editable, see our roundup of the best mobile scanning apps with OCR and our tutorial on how to turn PDFs and image files into Word docs. Security and Privacy As mentioned in other PCMag reviews of Google's products and services, Google's data centers are highly secure. They are geographically distributed and have completed all relevant SOC audits and meet all necessary standards to ensure that your data is safe. Could an attacker steal your password and access files you store in Drive? Yes. But Google does give you added protections for securing your account, such as supporting more than one multi-factor authentication option. Additionally, the company says that data is "encrypted when it's stored on disk, stored on backup media, or traveling between data centers." Google's privacy policy(Opens in a new window) is available for you to read and is written in fairly plain language, but it's long, as one might expect. Does Google collect information about you? Yes. To whit: "In some circumstances, Google also collects information about you from publicly accessible sources(Opens in a new window). For example, if your name appears in your local newspaper, Googles Search engine may index that article and display it to other people if they search for your name. We may also collect information about you from trusted partners, such as directory services who provide us with business information to be displayed on Googles services, marketing partners who provide us with information about potential customers of our business services, and security partners who provide us with information to protect against abuse(Opens in a new window). We also receive information from advertising partners to provide advertising and research services on their behalf(Opens in a new window)." It goes one, although the most telling thing about the paragraph above is that it's just one section of one web page among many that discuss privacy, and even it contains three additional links you'd need to read to understand it all. You get some good controls for disabling or deleting(Opens in a new window) information that Google records about you and your activities. The hardest part is reading through all your options and actually finding the information you want to control or delete without going down the wrong rabbit hole first. The company also makes available a transparency report(Opens in a new window)something we like to seeindicating how many requests it gets for things like user information and government requests to remove data. However, Google/Alphabet is a massive company with many divisions, products, and services, so even its transparency report is really just a long list of additional links. It may take a while for you to go through the information and find what you want. Google Drive Mobile Google Drive has mobile apps for all major mobile platforms. They give you access to the most recent versions of all your files from your phone or tablet. You can view more than 90 different file types right in the Google Drive app. In some cases, you can edit files in Google Drive, though often the app will suggest editing in other Google apps, such as Sheets or Docs. You can, however, read and add comments to files from the Google Drive mobile app. Many file syncing and storage apps, such as Dropbox and OneDrive, offer to automatically upload images and videos that you take on your phone or tablet. That way, you never have to remember to back them up. The Google Drive app doesn't have that feature, though the Google Photos app does, so you can get it but you have to install a separate app. Another shortcoming is that when you want to take a picture and upload a new image to the Google Drive app, there is no option for automated document scanning. For that, you need yet another mobile app, Google Lens. Other apps, such as Dropbox, include a mobile scanner within their upload/camera function, so you can scan documents and turn them into PDFs with ease and speed. In short, if you want all the functionality you might expect from Google Drive on your mobile device, you have to install additional apps. You do get more functionality and features if you install the Google One mobile app, which you can use even if you don't have a paid Google One account. Nevertheless, for someone who just wants to backup their data to Google Drive, it's confusing to learn that you have to know all the names of the different products, services, and apps to get what you need. What Else Could You Want? Well, We'll Tell You... Despite its wealth of tools and slick operation, we'd still like to see more from Google Drive. For example, multimedia features aren't all that robust. There are no tools for de-duping photos, except by eyeing them. (OneDrive has the same problem.) Adding a mobile scanner to the camera feature in the mobile app seems like a no-brainer. Additionally, when you share files and folders from Google Drive, the options are limited. You have good control over making a file publicly available to anyone with a link or restricting access to specified people, as well as determining whether someone has read-only or editing privileges, but you can't add a password to a shared file or set an expiration date for when a shared link should expire. Box, Dropbox, and other apps offer more options when you share files, though in some cases you need a paid account to get all those features. One potential concern about Google Drive is privacy. Google collects information from your online activity to serve you targeted ads. Microsoft claims that it doesn't do this, but if privacy is paramount for you, we suggest sticking with a file-syncing service that puts anonymity first. Resilio Sync (formerly BitTorrent Sync) keeps your data off the cloud, instead using direct P2P connections. Several online backup services let you choose an encryption key that's in your possession alone, so that not even the company's employees can decrypt your files. These include SpiderOak OneBackup (which emphasizes privacy) and SOS Online Backup. Just be careful not to lose your encryption password, or your data will be gone for good. You're in the Driver's Seat Nothing is stopping you from using more than one file storage and syncing service, especially considering that you can get free storage. Using more than one service gives you options like compartmentalizing your home and work files or keeping photos separate from documents. It also lets you decide which of your files to put in more-secure cloud spaces and which to leave to the whims of Google's tracking policies. If you have a Google account, take advantage of Google Drive, especially in conjunction with other Workspace apps. Also take the time to learn some secrets to getting the most out of Google Drive. The biggest advantage is that you get a lot of storage space for free. The other Editors' Choice in the category, OneDrive, is well worth your consideration, too. OneDrive inches past Google Drive's PCMag rating thanks to its Files On-Demand, more robust productivity apps (Office is hard to beat), and better sharing options. Google Drive 4.0 Editors' Choice (Opens in a new window) See It Starting at $6 Per Month at Google Workspace (Opens in a new window) MSRP Free Pros Generous free storage space Excellent productivity-suite collaboration Includes desktop-to-desktop file syncing Many third-party integrations Cross-platform apps View More Cons No password-protection for shared files Mobile apps could do more; multiple apps required for all related functions Some privacy concerns The Bottom Line Google Drive is one of the slickest, fullest-featured, and most generous cloud storage and syncing services, with excellent productivity suite collaboration capabilities. Samsung 837(Opens in a new window), which opened yesterday in New York City's swanky Meatpacking district, is the Korean electronic giant's flagship ________. You could put any number of words in that blank, from "digital playground" to "customer care center" to "product showcase," because it's unclear exactly what this place is supposed to be. In fact, Samsung uses(Opens in a new window) a bevy of similar phrases to describe its New York outpost (we lost count at 10). The one missing word is "store." That's right, you can't buy any tech here, but Samsung sure wants you to get excited about it. From refrigerators to the new Galaxy S7, its products look gorgeous, practically begging you to walk away with them. PCMag took a tour of 837 this afternoon. It all starts with an art gallery, a giant walk-through tube that currently hosts an exhibit called Social Galaxy. Designed by Brooklyn programmers-cum-artists Lauren McCarthy and Kyle McDonald (yes, the same Kyle McDonald who got in trouble for his "art" at an Apple store in 2011), the exhibit makes your Instagram profile come to life. Input your Instagram handle into a Samsung phone at the entrance (we used @PCMagOfficial(Opens in a new window), naturally), don some shoe protectors, and step into the tube, which is covered on all surfacesincluding the floorwith shiny, spotless mirrors. As you walk through, LCD displays show curated collections of your Instagram photos, while a female computer voice reads aloud snippets from your captions. It's all quite surreal. The gallery exit spits you out at the back of a stadium-like, three-story theater with a giant screen made of 96 55-inch displays. For the official opening yesterday, Florence and the Machine played here; in the future Samsung says it will host(Opens in a new window) live streams, product demos, and movie screenings. Rounding out the first level are two product showcases, for Samsung's Gear VR ($29.00 at Amazon)(Opens in a new window) headset and the Galaxy S7 ($199.99 at Samsung)(Opens in a new window) . Upstairs, you'll find a cafe with items from Brooklyn's Smorgasbord food market, which represents the only things you can actually buy at 837. Of course, the cafe prominently accepts Samsung Pay. Also upstairs are the Samsung "Techies," who provide one-on-one support for your Samsung mobile devices in an environment that is vaguely Apple Genius Bar-esque. You sign up with the concierge, who pages you when your Techie is ready, at which point you sit down at long communal tables for advice and troubleshooting. More product showcases line the second floor, including a unique kitchen full of Samsung appliances. If you want to test them out the old-fashioned way, you can open and close refrigerator and oven doors. But you can also experience the kitchen appliances on a giant touch screen that fills an entire wall. The place was fairly quiet on its second afternoon of operation, with lots of friendly Samsung employees milling about. One said she was transferred temporarily to the NYC location from a nearby Samsung Experience Shop. In what sounded like a sales pitch, another representative manning the VR demo station was quick to point out a promotion that offers a free Gear VR with the purchase of a Galaxy S7. If you can't buy these products, though, what is Samsung's end game with 837? Certain aspects, such as the Techies, are clearly meant to compete with Apple and Microsoft retail outlets. But at its essence, the store is a buzz generator. In the face of intense competition for mobile devices, having an undefinable outpost in one of New York City's swankiest neighborhoods where ogling window-shoppers couldn't even whip out their credit cards if they wanted to certainly sets Samsung apart. Samsung 837 is located at 837 Washington Street in Manhattan. It's open Monday-Friday from 11am-9pm, Saturday from 10am-10pm, and Sunday from 10am-8pm. Monday Friday 11am 9pm Two days before Apple must respond to a court's request for assistance cracking a terrorist's iPhone, details of the company's legal plan have leaked. Cupertino will reportedly argue in federal court that software code should be protected by the First Amendment as free speech. As explained by Bloomberg(Opens in a new window), all iOS apps sold through the App Store include a cryptographic signature, telling an iDevice the program is approved. In this case, some advocates believe Apple has a strong First Amendment claim, as it is being directed to add that same autographagainst its willto software that would weaken security. Last week, an LA District Court judge ruled that the tech titan must assist the U.S. government in the search of an iPhone 5c owned by San Bernardino shooter Syed Rizwan Farook. The controversial order asks that Apple install a new mobile operating system, allowing the feds to bypass a setting that wipes the phone after 10 incorrect password guesses. The FBI would then use brute force to unlock the device without deleting data. But Apple CEO Tim Cook suggested that a backdoor created for the FBI could land in the hands of folks with nefarious intent. Cupertino already handed over everything it had on the shooter from Apple's servers, but the actual phone is encrypted for personal security purposes. There is some precedent for arguing code as protected legal speech, Bloomberg said, pointing to the 1999 case Bernstein v. U.S. Department of Justice. Historically, however, judges have also ruled that free speech does not apply to software. A final decision may not be left up to a judge, though. As reported by the Associated Press(Opens in a new window), Apple intends to tell a federal arbiter that its fight with the FBI should be handled by Congress, rather than determined by courts. Silicon Valley executivesFacebook's Mark Zuckerberg, Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, Apple co-founder Steve Wozniakhave rallied around Cupertino in its stand-off with the government. But one industry heavyweight is not exactly jumping to the company's defense: Bill Gates on Tuesday stopped just short of saying Apple should not comply with the court's order. FBI boss James Comey, meanwhile, said on Sunday that the government does not "want to break anyone's encryption or set a master key loose on the land." Apple's concern is that while that might not be the FBI's intent, it might happen anyway if crafty hackers have their way. Late last week, the Department of Justice filed a motion to force Apple to comply with the court's original order. The agency said it shared the iDevice maker's concerns that information needs to be protected, but insists the FBI's order does not compromise that goal. Apple has until Feb. 26 to submit its response to the court. The company did not immediately respond to PCMag's request for comment. A new Google robot is running around in the woods of eastern Massachusetts, and this time there's no power cord preventing it from going anywhere it pleases. In a video(Opens in a new window) posted to YouTube yesterday (below), Google subsidiary Boston Dynamics unveiled the latest addition to its lineup of humanoid robots. The video is cleverly edited to evoke a science fiction filmpart E.T., part robot horror movie. It starts with the robot opening the door to the Boston Dynamics headquarters in Waltham, Mass., crossing the parking lot, and entering the snow-covered woods. After returning to the factory, a bearded employee gives the robot the task of picking up a 10-pound box, which it does with no problem. But then the employee cruely strikes the box from the robot's circular hands. It's not fazed, and walks right back over to the box and picks it up again. As if that wasn't enough to prove the robot's resiliency, the employee then hits it from behind with a cardboard tube so hard that it falls over. Eventually, the robot rights itself, and the video ends with it walking out the factory door. Will it seek revenge on an unsuspecting human? The robot's body is very similar to the rest of the Atlas lineup(Opens in a new window) of humanoid robots, which Boston Dynamics has been working on for years. But the lack of a power cord sets this one apart. In an August 2015 video, the company's founder Marc Raibert explained that untethering it was a priority. In addition to being a Google subsidiary, Boston Dynamics also designs robots for the U.S. military under a DARPA grant. Concerned iPhone users and digital security supporters banded together on Tuesday, holding protests in nearly 50 U.S. cities to support Apple in its iPhone encryption fight with the FBI. The protests came one week after a Los Angeles District Court judge ruled that the tech titan must assist the U.S. government in the search of an iPhone 5c owned by San Bernardino shooter Syed Rizwan Farook. Protesters opposed to the government's demand carried banners and iPhone-shaped signs saying things like "FBI: Don't Break Our Phones" and "Secure Phones Save Lives." The rallies(Opens in a new window), called for by digital rights advocacy group Fight for the Future and supported by other activist organizations like Demand Progress and CREDO, took place in cities across the country, from Anchorage, Alaska to New York City. PCMag's Paul Maljak was on the ground at Apple's flagship Fifth Avenue store in New York City, where he said a dozen or so protestors braved wind and rain to show support for Apple while kept inside police barricades. "People are rallying at Apple stores because giving the government easier access to our data also gives everyone else, including terrorists, thieves and stalkers, easier access to our data making all of us less safe, not more safe," Evan Greer, campaign director of Fight for the Future, said in a statement. "The government's unconstitutional attack on our digital security could put millions of people in danger, so it's critically important that we support any fight to keep our most sensitive personal, medical, legal and financial information protected." Outside the U.S., people in London and Muninch also gathered to express their concern about companies weakening encryption in response to government pressure. "Apple's stand will help keep security threats at bay," Demand Progress Executive Director David Segal said in a statement. "But we will all be less safe if the FBI succeeds. Our devices will become more vulnerable and the sensitive data they hold will be more accessible to people who want it for malicious purposes." Not everyone agrees. In a recent Pew Research Center study(Opens in a new window), 51 percent of respondents said Apple should unlock the iPhone; only 38 percent think the company should stand its ground. Many tech companies like Twitter, Facebook, and Google are supporting Apple, but Bill Gates seemingly sided with the FBI earlier this week. For more, see Apple's FBI Battle Is About the Gadgets We Haven't Even Thought of Yet. There's no shortage of Android keyboard apps out there, but the list is growing with a new addition from Microsoft that aims to make your life a little easier. Redmond on Monday released Hub Keyboard(Opens in a new window), a free Android app that helps "you stay in context by bringing information from different services to your fingertips and help complete your tasks faster." Hub Keyboard, for instance, lets you easily search for documents, contacts, paste recently copied items, and translate what you typeright from your keyboard. You can go back to a history of clips you've copied, search for and share document links from OneDrive and SharePoint, easily insert a person's contact information, and even translate what you're writing into another language. "It is a hub of different extensions, and is designed to help you save time and be present in the application you are using," Microsoft said. The app is available in English for those in the U.S., but Microsoft said it's working on supporting more languages and countries in the future. Microsoft is looking for feedback on the app, so if you download it you can share your thoughts with the company here(Opens in a new window). On Google Play, some users have complained that it lacks basic keyboard features like autocorrect and word prediction. Hub Keyboard is the latest app to emerge from The Garage, Redmond's program focused on experimentation and grassroots projects. Other recent Garage apps include Fetch!, which recognizes dogs and classifies them by their breed (and also hilariously tells you what type of dog you resemble), and News Pro, which is similar to Flipboard and Apple News, but aims to set itself apart by providing updates related to your job. Chinas top smartphone maker is thinking about launching its phones in the U.S., the head of its international business said Wednesday. On the radar, Hugo Barra told IDG News Service, when asked about plans to launch its new flagship Mi 5 phone in the U.S. But Barra wouldnt be drawn on whether that would be in 2016. Not sure, it would be hard to say. Barras comments came on the sidelines of the launch of the Mi 5 at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. It was the first time the company used a high-profile international event to launch a flagship phonesomething that some had interpreted as signaling a wider international release. Xiaomi surpassed LG Electronics to became the number five smartphone company in the world in 2015, but most of its sales are concentrated in China, India and Brazil. Its entry into the U.S. and European markets has been long-awaited, but to date the company hasnt taken a step into those markets. Historically, theyve had issues with intellectual property, said Ian Fogg, an analyst with IHS Technology, voicing a common belief in the mobile industry that patent licensing issues are holding the company back. Martyn Williams Hugo Barra, vice president of international at Xiaomi, speaks at a Barcelona news conference on Feb. 24, 2016. Xiaomi has never confirmed that, but on Wednesday Barra sought to underline the 3,600 patents it has applied for over the last few years. And Barra brought on stage Qualcomm President Derek Aberle, with whom Xiaomi signed a patent licensing agreement last year. A sizable patent portfolio would make it easier for Xiaomi to enter major international markets because it could sign cross-licensing deals with other major patent holders, rather than have to get into specific agreements, Fogg said. The cooling Chinese economy might also be pushing Xiaomi to think about wider sales of its phones. Last year it missed its own sales forecast by about 7 million phones, largely because of declining growth in China. To western consumers, Xiaomis main attraction will likely be the high-specs and low price. The Mi 5 that was launched on Wednesday has many of the same or similar features as the new Samsung Galaxy S7 and LG G5 phones, but it costs about half the price. But the company will also have to work on its software. Xiaomi is famous for releasing its own Android user interface, called MIUI, on a weekly basis. Each release includes features suggested by users, but a lot of those features and functions are aimed at consumers in China where Google services are not available, Fogg said. Internationally, that becomes less of a selling point, so the company will have to work on how to make MIUI attractive outside of China. Everyone is expecting it, Fogg said of Xiaomis global launch. I think it will come. Apple Inc. and other U.S. companies wouldnt be able to refuse government orders for access to encrypted data under legislation being drafted by the top Republican and Democrat on the Senate intelligence committee and gaining momentum in Congress. The measure from Senators Richard Burr, a North Carolina Republican, and Dianne Feinstein, a California Democrat, comes amid the bitter standoff between Apple and the FBI over the government gaining access to the contents of an iPhone used by the terrorist gunman in the San Bernardino, California, shooting massacre. Apple is actually breaking the law, Burr said in an interview in Washington. The rule of law is not something that can be applied some time and not all the time. The dispute between Apple and the Federal Bureau of Investigation is part of a larger debate within Congress, the administration and the technology industry about whether law enforcement and intelligence agencies should be able to access encrypted communications. The issue has sharply divided lawmakers, and thwarted past efforts to reach compromise. That may have changed when the FBI served Apple with a court order on Feb. 16 requiring the company to write a new software program to unlock the phone used by Syed Rizwan Farook in the shooting spree in December. Farook, along with his wife, shot to death 14 workers in San Bernardino before the couple was killed by police. The FBI wants to know where they had been and who helped them. Few Details Apple is refusing to cooperate. Apples chief executive Tim Cook has vowed to fight the order, saying the software doesnt exist and creating it would set a dangerous precedent and potentially put billions of iPhones at risk of being hacked or spied on by governments. Apples response to the court is due Friday. The bill is in draft form and may be introduced next month. Burr said it will apply to all U.S. companies not just those in the technology industry. The bill targets a bigger issue than the current debate in that more companies will use encrypted networks in the future, Burr said. Right now, however, he said hes not interested in specifying in the legislation how companies have to abide by orders or any penalties for failing to comply. Spy Agents If we believe that technology is going to be a static product in the future, that its not going any further, then maybe we can accept Apples argument, Burr said. Technology is going to play a role in every business in a very big way. The bill would create a standard of federal preemption by eliminating any legal argument by Apple or other companies that they dont have to comply with court orders for access to data. Democratic Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon, who is backing Apple, said the idea of automatically preempting companies is wrong and would force them to be akin to spy agents of the government. That would in effect be a substantial set back from the standpoint of security, liberty and Americas ability to have high-skilled, high-wage jobs, Wyden told reporters. Wyden said his strategy is to use the Apple case to demonstrate the need for strong encryption. Feinstein, however, expressed a sense of urgency with regard to the Apple case because the FBI still doesnt know if Farook and his wife communicated with any terror suspects overseas or if they are connected to a domestic terrorist cell. Cooperate With Warrants Feinstein said a goal of the bill is to establish in law that companies have to cooperate with warrants based on probable cause. I have been kind of reeling back in surprise because I didnt think a company would set itself above the law, particularly a California-based company like Apple, which is a great company, Feinstein told reporters. I can tell you the FBI is doing everything possible to see that Americans are protected, Feinstein said. You cant do this unless you have the information that enables you to do a complete investigation. National Commission Cook has called for the FBI to back down and instead for Congress to create a national commission to study the encryption issue and make recommendations. Any commission, however, should conclude its work in 90 days and include representatives from state and local law enforcement agencies, Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. said in a statement Tuesday. Vance and other New York officials have said they have iPhones they want unlocked. Time is not a luxury that state and local law enforcement, crime victims, and communities can afford, Vance said. Congress has held numerous hearings on encryption since September 2014 and, to my knowledge, Apple has not testified at any of them. I am pleased that the company is willing to join the conversation now. Prosecutors in New York, Chicago and California have demanded that Apple unlock 12 phones, the company said in a letter to a Brooklyn judge who is overseeing a case involving a drug dealers smartphone. The letter was unsealed Tuesday. House Bill Representative Michael McCaul of Texas, the Republican chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, and Senator Mark Warner, a Virginia Democrat, are drafting legislation that would create a commission. The lawmakers are scheduled to speak on their proposal at an event Wednesday in Washington. Republican Senator Jeff Sessions of Alabama questioned Cooks position. Coming from a law enforcement background, I believe this is a more serious issue than Tim Cook understands, Sessions said. He said accessing phones is critical to law enforcement. In a criminal case, or could be a life and death terrorist case, accessing a phone means the case is over. Time and time again, that kind of information results in an immediate guilty plea, case over, Sessions said. He added that the ability for government to access a phone should not be abused. With assistance from Steven T. Dennis. Court papers will be filed next week on behalf of victims and their families supporting the FBIs effort to get Apples help to unlock data in an iPhone used by one of the terrorists in the massacre that killed 14 in San Bernardino in December. Attorney Stephen G. Larson, a former federal judge, said Tuesday, Feb. 23, that he plans on filing the friend-of-the-court brief in Riverside federal court on March 3. Larson outlined plans last week to file the legal action in the case. Apple CEO Tim Cook has said his company will oppose a court order the government obtained last week, saying creation of the hacking software the FBI seeks will endanger the data security of hundreds of millions of Apple devices. The FBI says the program can be tailored to work only on the iPhone 5c used by Syed Rizwan Farook. It was issued to him by his employer, San Bernardino County. Most of the 14 killed and 22 wounded in the shooting at the Inland Regional Center on Dec. 2 were county Environmental Health Services co-workers with Farook. The attack was carried out by Farook and wife Tashfeen Malik. The Redlands couple died a few hours later in a shootout with police. The government wants to bypass the iPhones security that will permanently lock its data if there are 10 successive failed tries at its user passcode. That will enable the FBI to use a computer to run millions of password attempts on the iPhone. In other related actions on Tuesday: Apples lead attorney said the companys legal challenge will call for Congress, rather than the courts, to resolve the privacy vs. law enforcement access to electronic devices. Legislation is being drafted that will make it illegal for Apple and other American companies to refuse government orders to access encrypted data. Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates said a report that he supported the FBI in its efforts against Apple was incorrect. VICTIMS ISSUES Robert Velasco, whose 27-year-old daughter Yvette Velasco was killed in the shooting, said he didnt have to think long before agreeing to be one of those included in Larsons planned legal filing supporting the FBI. It is important to me to have my name in there, Velasco told The Associated Press on Monday. I lost my daughter in this and I want the court to see that I am seeking justice for my daughter. Velasco said the phone could reveal other extremist plots or that other people were involved in planning the San Bernardino attack. The only way to find out is to open up that phone and get in there, he said. A lot of the families of the victims, were kind of angry and confused as to why Apple is refusing to do this. Larsons filing will come after the Friday, Feb. 26, deadline for Apple to file its opposition to the order for it to come up with the software for the FBI. San Bernardino County District Attorney Mike Ramos repeated on Tuesday his promise to give the victims of the shooting a voice. Ramos has said he will be joined by other district attorneys in a separate friend-of-the-court brief on behalf of victims and their families, also supporting the FBIs efforts in the case against Apple. Our victims deserve a voice in federal court given Apples decision not to comply with a court order. These are victims who were murdered, terrorized, and in some cases, continue to live in fear, Ramos said in his statement. It is our responsibility to assist them. LEGAL STRATEGY OUTLINED The Associated Press reported Tuesday that Apple Inc. will tell a federal magistrate judge in its response that its fight with the FBI over accessing a locked and encrypted iPhone should be kicked to Congress, rather than decided by courts. Cook had hinted at the companys courtroom strategy in an email to Apple employees that was made public on Monday. Apple will also argue that the Obama administrations request to help it hack into the iPhone in a terrorism case is improper under an 18th century law, the 1789 All Writs Act, which has been used to compel companies to provide assistance to law enforcement in investigations. LEGISLATION IN THE WORKS And legislation is being drafted in Congress to bar Apple and other U.S. companies from refusing government orders for access to encrypted data. The measure is from Sens. Richard Burr, a North Carolina Republican, and Dianne Feinstein, a California Democrat. Apple is actually breaking the law, Burr told Bloomberg News Service in Washington. The rule of law is not something that can be applied some time and not all the time. GATES REFUTES REPORT Microsoft co-founder Gates said Tuesday he is disappointed with a recent report suggesting that he supports the U.S. government in its clash with Apple Inc. over unlocking an iPhone, saying it doesnt accurately reflect his opinion on the matter. That doesnt state my view on this, he said in an interview on Bloomberg Go. The extreme view that government always gets everything, nobody supports that. Having the government be blind, people dont support that. The Financial Times reported that Gates sided with the U.S. government. POLL: APPLE SHOULD HELP A Pew Research Center survey issued Monday found that 51 percent of Americans said Apple should help unlock the iPhone, while 38 percent said Apple should not and that it should ensure the security of user information. The remainder gave no opinion. The telephone survey was conducted Feb. 18 through Feb. 21 among 1,002 adults. The Associated Press and Bloomberg News Service contributed to this report. Contact the writer: rdeatley@pressenterprise.com or 951-368-9573 The Charlotte S. Huck Childrens Literature Festival is celebrating its 20th anniversary with a special show of original artwork from childrens books titled Dreams, Schemes, and A Dog in Jeans. Several of the illustrators will be making presentations at the upcoming festival Friday, Feb. 26, and Saturday, Feb. 27, at the University of Redlands. All illustrators with work in the show have appeared at the festival throughout its tenure. The shows 50 entries, done in a variety of styles, materials and techniques, will be on display through March 19 at Peppers Art Gallery on campus. Hours are 1 to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and 2 to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. The gallery will be closed for spring break Feb. 26 to March 4. Admission is free. The art show is a real gift to our area, said Char Burgess, the universitys vice president and dean of student life. The festival is named for her aunt. It represents a collection of original picture book art never before brought together. Each set of illustrations is paired with the book in which they appear so that visitors can see how the original drawings were sketched, fleshed out and eventually used in the publications. Top award-winning artists are represented, with information on the artistic medium used and the books in which the picture is included, making this a not-to-be-missed experience Burgess said. The two-day event will feature presentations and break-out sessions for some 250 attendees, many of whom are teachers and librarians. The festival benefits our students because they have the opportunity to meet with award-winning authors and illustrators, and in some cases have them critique their work, Burgess said. The festival was the brainchild of Huck, who had been a childrens literature professor at Ohio State University and ran a similar conference there. When she retired to Redlands, she wanted to found a festival in the Inland region, but insisted that it be small and intimate so that authors and illustrators would stay throughout the entire conference, according to Burgess. It is one of the longest-running of its kind in the nation, according to Burgess. Illustrators Jerry Pinkney, Kevin Henkes and Debra Frasier will be presenters at the festival. Jerry Pinkney, who will be a keynote speaker at the festival, is one of the first African-Americans to break into the field of childrens book illustration and won the 2010 Caldecott Medal for U.S. picture book illustration for his work on The Lion & the Mouse, a wordless version of Aesops fable. Henkes is an American writer and illustrator of childrens books, including Lillys Purple Plastic Purse. As an illustrator he won the Caldecott Medal for Kittens First Full Moon. Frasier is the author and illustrator of many award-winning picture books, including On the Day You Were Born and Miss Alaineus, A Vocabulary Disaster. In addition to her talks on the creative process, Frasier holds book events to build community creativity through projects that begin with a story. Also included in the exhibit are: Brian Pinkney, David Wiesner, Lauren Stringer, Deborah Nourse Lattimore, Kadir Nelson, Bryan Collier, Eric Rohmann, Anita Lobel, Ashley Bryan, Barry Moser and Gerald McDermott. A book market and book-signing session are also included as part of the festival. Featured speakers include authors Linda Sue Park, Janet Wong, Mike Graf, Marla Frazee and Kristine OConnell George. At the shows opening reception, art professor Penny McElroy described the art exhibit as fabulous and really exciting, the biggest one of its kind that we have had She said she appreciates that the books are paired with the framed illustrations for comparison. This is a book I used for homeschooling my children and to see the artists work is very special, said university employee Kim Womack as she perused some of the artwork and the book in which it appears. Larry Gross, a professor in the race and ethnic studies department observed that the field of childrens literature has come a long way in the high quality of its artwork. Our son is an adult now and it is amazing to me to see all the wonderful books that have been created since he was a child, Gross said. Contact the writer: community@pressenterprise.com Amid a rise in Islamophobia and hate groups across the United States, a Cal State San Bernardino expert said Tuesday, Feb. 23, that its crucial for colleges to host discussions featuring diverse points of view. If our democracy and our educational system is going to mean anything, it is exposing our students and ourselves to divergent, even uncomfortable ideas, said Brian Levin, director of the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism on campus. I think the American university system has failed in that regard. Levin spoke to more than 50 students and university employees during a discussion dubbed Emerging Issues on Hate and Extremism. The event in the Santos Manuel Student Union was part of the universitys inaugural Yotie Talks, which follows a format similar to TED Talks. Yotie refers to coyote, which is the universitys mascot. We have not only the right, but the responsibility to not only say what we think is right, but to have tolerance for views that may make us uncomfortable and that we vigorously disagree with, Levin added. He talked about the threat ISIS poses to the United States, anti-Muslim attacks, the rise of hate groups and conspiracy theories and a decline in discourse. He noted how on the day of the November Paris terror attack, he talked to the news media about significant terror threats facing the United States. A month later, the Dec. 2 shooting killed 14 people and wounded 22 others in San Bernardino In the month after the Paris terrorist attack, there were 37 anti-Muslim attacks in the United States, Levin said, citing his centers research. Thats compared to 12.6 in a five-year calendar month average, Levin said. Citing the Southern Poverty Law Center, Levin said there was a 14 percent rise in hate groups in 2015 when compared to the previous year, after a three-year decline. Levin also noted an upsurge in the mainstreaming of conspiracy theories such as questioning President Barack Obamas citizenship or deeming the president as a secret Muslim. As if theres something wrong with having a faith that is different, Levin said. On top of that, Levin said hes faced threats to his family by talking about these issues. Felix Zuniga, part of the universitys diversity committee that helped plan the event, said the discussion was important in the wake of the Dec. 2 shooting. Hate and extremism were topics that were not being discussed very much, despite having the the mass shooting in our own backyard, Zuniga said. We just want to have a conversation, Zuniga said. Nicole Diaz, 21, a fourth-year student from Hesperia who is majoring in criminal justice, agreed. Some people just dont feel like listening to it, she said. Some people are too busy to take the time to listen or they dont feel like its important enough, but it really is. Diaz said diverse viewpoints should be encouraged. You get an idea of how people think and how theyre going to be taking action toward certain things, Diaz said. Christian Miranda, a third-year student majoring in criminal justice, said Tuesdays talk could help students speak more intelligently about terrorism and hate crimes. For Miranda, the issue is personal. Miranda grew up with Kevin Ortiz, a San Bernardino County environmental health inspector who was wounded in the shooting. We realize we didnt know it would happen here, said Miranda, of Rialto. We would expect it in a major city Its right here. Contact the writer: 951-368-9462 or amolina@pressenterprise.com An investigation into possible trespassing in Victorville led deputies to a house that contained hundreds of marijuana plants and had used thousands of dollars worth of stolen electricity, authorities say. A San Bernardino County sheriffs deputy investigating a trespassing report learned Tuesday, Feb. 23, that there was likely drug activity in a nearby home. The deputy called the sheriffs Marijuana Eradication Team to the home on Gobi Court, a sheriffs news release said. Acting on a search warrant, investigators found more than 1,800 marijuana plants at the home. The grow operation was using advanced lighting systems, air-conditioning systems, fans, exhaust blowers and a filter system to control the climate and smell inside, the release said. A 48-year-old man named Ung A Ta from El Monte was found outside the home and arrested on suspicion of marijuana cultivation as well as utility theft. Investigators discovered that stolen electricity was powering all of the homes climate-controlling systems. Southern California Edison investigators assisted in that aspect of the case, the release says. Investigators determined that more than $25,000 was stolen in electricity alone. Suspects who grow marijuana illicitly will commonly bypass the electrical meter installed by the electrical company so authorities arent tipped off to a grow house by the large amount of electricity it uses. This way, growers electricity bills wont skyrocket, either. The release says the main power lines supplying the residence were so overloaded that an electrical short would probably have resulted in an explosion or fire. SCE crews disconnected the faulty wiring and removed the electrical bypass. The home was later flagged as unsafe to occupy, the release says. Ta was taken to the High Desert Detention Center, but had been released on bail by Wednesday. Sheriffs officials asked that anyone with information pertaining to the investigation call the narcotics division at 909-890-4840. After hours of impassioned public comments, Riverside council members voted unanimously early Wednesday to build a new main library where the downtown bus terminal now stands. Though renovating the existing library could yield a pretty good facility, Councilman Mike Gardner said, The (bus station) site I think offers a lot of opportunities for us. I think we have to make our decision really based on whats best for the library. The vote was 5-0 with Councilman John Burnard absent. Andy Melendrez did not vote on the issue because he owns property near the library, which is a potential conflict of interest. Library supporters packed the council chambers, some of them urging officials to build a new facility and others asking them not to move the library from the prime downtown spot where it has been for more than a century. The council was faced with two decisions: whether to replace the deteriorating library in a different location, and whether to negotiate to put a childrens science museum in the current library building. With a major decision expected on a facility dear to many, the crowd and individual residents got noisy enough to draw two rebukes from Mayor Rusty Bailey. After activist Letitia Pepper repeatedly shouted from the audience, disputing comments from city staff, the council called a brief recess, after which Bailey read an official warning that disrupting the meeting could lead to arrest. City staff made their preference clear, with City Manager John Russo telling the council the old building cannot economically be made into a 21st century library, and Library Director Tonya Kennon said its simply not functional for the needs of today or tomorrow. Some residents agreed, but others said the city has neglected the current building but it could still be salvaged, a cheaper solution than a new building theres no money to maintain. Were not Orange County, were not Silicon Valley, resident Kevin Dawson said. We have a beautiful building we already own, we ought to clean the dang thing up. The decision will determine the librarys fate for decades to come and help shape the future of downtown, where officials hope to attract more stores, restaurants and residents while maintaining the areas historic character. If the library moves from its Mission Inn and Orange Street site, the city may try to develop a childrens science museum in its old building. The council was set to discuss a proposal to work with the Discovery Science Foundation to develop something in Riverside like the Discovery Cubes in Santa Ana and Los Angeles. Several residents said they welcomed the prospect of a science museum, including several students from Notre Dame High School and the schools president, Robert Beatty. Im excited about the opportunity as an educator about having this Cube in our downtown (and) people coming to our downtown not just from Riverside but from the region, Beatty said. Officials and residents have been debating what to do about the main library the hub of an eight-branch system for 10 years. Its boxy mid-1960s building has some fans but probably more haters. Past and present council members have approved a series of plans that were never carried out, including a 2008 expansion, a 2009 proposal to raze the library and build a bigger one, and a 2012 vote to spend about $20 million to renovate the old building. In recent discussions, consensus has been elusive. City staff proposed putting a new library on a lot at Mission Inn Avenue and Chestnut Street, but the site was met with little enthusiasm. Library trustees recommended the downtown bus terminal site on Fairmount Boulevard, which is larger but still occupied. Contact the writer: 951-368-9461 or arobinson@pressenterprise.com For Aisha Randhawa, victory was as satisfying as the word she aced to become Riverside Countys top speller. The 10-year-old Corona fifth-grader calmly spelled cologne, followed by ambrosia, which means something very pleasing to taste or smell. Her mistake-free performance earned her the spelling bee crown Tuesday and a trip to the Washington, D.C., area in May. I feel so great, said Aisha, who attends Garretson Elementary School in Corona. Ive been waiting for this for so long. The 39th annual contest, held at the Moreno Valley Conference and Recreation Center, featured the countys top 29 spellers in fourth through eighth grades. They made it to the finals by capturing first place at school and school district competitions. Aisha said she felt nervous battling older kids. She sailed through the early rounds until she got stuck on succulent. I forgot if it was one l or two, she said. But Aisha kept her composure and spelled the word correctly. After 16 rounds, she had one remaining foe. The lone challenger, John Terry, 13, sat next to her on an otherwise empty stage. Terry, an eighth-grader at Desert Springs Middle School in Desert Hot Springs, missed on obdurate, which means stubborn or inflexible. It wasnt on the list that we practiced, he said, adding he was relieved the event was over. Terry said he spent most of his free time since September practicing. Its exhausting, he said. Of course, Im sorry I didnt win. He congratulated the winner and wished her good luck at the Scripps National Spelling Bee, set for May 22 through 27 in National Harbor, Md., near Washington, D.C. Aisha said her dad has been helping her. She reviewed word origins and pronunciation to improve on her eighth-place finish at last years county bee. I started studying when I was in third grade, she said. I know a lot more words now and have more experience. Aisha is looking forward to visiting the nations capital and seeing the Washington Monument and other historic sites. Claiming third place was Santa Fe Kiler, 11, a seventh-grader at Menifee Valley Middle School. He misspelled fictitious. Three students tied for fourth place: Katherine Spusta, a sixth-grader at San Gorgonio Middle School in Beaumont; Aaliyah Webster, an eighth-grader at Western Center Academy in Hemet; and Nathaniel Moreno, an eighth-grader at Lakeside Middle School in Perris. Benjamin Heick, a 10-year-old student at All Saints Carden Academy in Riverside, was seeking to build on a family legacy of spelling bee success. Benjamin, whose dad, aunt and uncle won seven county titles between them, was eliminated in the first round. Contact the writer: 951-368-9292 or swall@pressenterprise.com Re: Dont allow fear to erode our rights [Editorial, Feb. 20]: If Apple were to invent software that would enable the FBI and other government agencies to access their users secured information, that would be a massive breach of privacy. The government would have the capability to confiscate any and all personal information off an Apple device, shattering users trust in both the company and our government. On the other hand, creating and releasing this technology could help prevent terrorist attacks like those in Paris, Beirut and San Bernardino from happening more in our country and around the world. In the end, isnt preserving privacy less important than preserving lives? That is the question Apple should really consider as it moves forward. Sierra Jones Corona Give teachers credit Re: Schools in need of reform, not riches [Editorial, Feb. 16]: When the Press-Enterprise talks about teachers salaries in its editorial, and you say that it takes 16 years to get to the top, the P-E is not telling the whole story. In order to get to the top, you must continue your education. When I retired, it took me 20 years, plus a masters degree and 45 graduate hours. Those college classes were not free. In addition to supporting my family, I attended Northern Arizona University, University of Redlands and UC Riverside to earn the necessary units to qualify for the top pay. You make it sound as if just putting in 16 years on the job will get you there. But tell the whole story. As far as my retirement, I contributed a percentage of my salary for 36 years. Even then, I only received 72 percent of the average of my top three years. I earned my defined benefit retirement. The state contributed only a few percent to CalSTRS. Just think what would happen if I would have had a 401(k) plan. My consumer spending would be significantly decreased. Also out of my retirement, I pay federal, state and property taxes. So the government is receiving back from what I get in retirement. Harlan McWhorter Rialto Study in Taiwan scholarships for Malaysian students (MOST Taiwan Scholarship). Are you interested to study in Taiwan? Given the opportunity to study in Taiwan, I believe many are excited to do it.This year MOST Taiwan scholarship is once again open for interested and qualified Malaysian students. Bahagian Pengurusan Sumber Manusia (BPSM), Ministry of Education (MOE ) Malaysia published in thier official website that the Public Service Department ( JPA ) is inviting nominations from among pegawai Kumpulan Pengurusan dan Professional (P&P) to apply for the Program MOST Taiwan Scholarship 2016 to further studies for Master or Ph.D full-time in Taiwan. The scholarship is provided by the Ministry of Science and Technology, Republic of China ( Taiwan ) for Malaysians who want to pursue a Masters and Ph.D in Taiwan. Read [Taiwan Scholarship For International Student] 10 Reasons study in Taiwan is the best option Here are some 10 reason why studying in Taiwan is one of the best option for you. According to studyintaiwan.org, Taiwan is a modern, free, democratic society whose people are hardworking, fun-loving, educated and friendly. While eagerly embracing the future, the people of Taiwan hold onto traditional values and ideals. The family, including ancestors, is of utmost importance; education and scholarship are held in high esteem. Traditional forms of writing, architecture and art are part of everyday life. Yes, in Taiwan the ancient and modern, traditional and new are seamlessly woven together, creating a fascinating, dynamic society like no other in the world. Read [Japanese Government Scholarship Monbukagakusho:MEXT] So here is the 10 reasons why 1. A Perfect Place to Learn Chinese 2. A Repository of Chinese Culture 3. Learn Complete, Traditional Chinese Characters 4. An Excellent Environment for Learning Chinese 5. Available Scholarships 6. A Free and Democratic Society 7. Easy to Reach, A Great Place to Travel 8. High Standard of Living 9. Test of Chinese as a Foreign Language (TOCFL) 10. Work While You Study Dont you think the above is not interesting enough? Read student testimonial below. Read [Study in Korea for Malaysian, 6 Tips And Guides For Students] Student testimonials Here are a couple of students testimonials who studied in Taiwan. Read more students testimonials at http://www.taiwanholidays.com.au/testimonials-from-ex-students-studying-in-taiwan Learn Chinese in Taiwan By Joshua K. Hartshone To learn Russian, I studied in Russia. To practice Japanese, I went to Japan. To learn Chinese, I went to Taiwan. That is not the most obvious choice. When I graduated from Oberlin College in 2002, three of my friends moved to China to continue their studies. As far as I know, none even considered Taiwan. As China opened up in the 80s and 90s and China fever caught hold, the flow of students to Taiwan was diverted to China, and Americans increasingly forgot about free China. There are good reasons why you should (re)consider studying in Taiwan. First, strange though it may seem, authentic Chinese culture is better preserved on the island than on the Chinese mainland. In the 1960s, Chairman Mao unleashed the Cultural Revolution and traditional culture was brutally attacked and ruthlessly destroyed. Books were burned, temples were closed, and many of the cultural elite were sent to re-education camps or brutally killed. Taiwan, which was not controlled by Mao, was spared. Second, Taiwan still uses the traditional writing system, which Communist China has replaced with Simplified Characters. Knowing only Simplified cuts the student off from thousands of years of Chinese literature and history. There is a third reason to bypass the Mainland for your studies, which, depending on your temperament, may or may not be important; Taiwan is not a developing country. Taipei, especially, is a modern city with all the conveniences of its Western counterpartsand more. Taiwan allows you to experience the culture and learn the language in relative comfort. Unlike Beijing, highways are never closed because of smog. A final reason to study in Taiwan as opposed to China is that Taiwan has a vibrant and strong multi-party democracy. China obviously does not. In Taiwan you do not have to worry about upsetting the government. The programs offered by National Taiwan Univ. and especially by the venerable Taiwan Normal Univ. (38,000 alumni of its Mandarin Training Program) are the most prestigious. The latter, where I study, runs classes in 3-month quarters with a 1-week break between each term. A normal load is two hours, five days a week, though additional culture courses can also be taken, as well as an extra 3-hour-per-day intensive course. Three months at the normal load runs around $700. National Taiwan Univ.s program, in contrast, has a heavier basic load. There is of course a trade-off. More hours may mean more training but also less opportunity to practice on the street. There are, of course, programs run by major study-abroad organizations. However, you can enroll directly in most of Taiwans programs. The primary advantage is that your classmates will be from all over the globe. Furthermore, programs like the one offered by National Taiwan Normal University offer classes in a wide range of subjects. So how to apply MOST Taiwan Scholarship for Malaysian Students Before submitting your application read the press release from Ministry of Education Malaysia. This is particularly important to not wasting your time submitting your application if you are not qualified. Download MOST Taiwan Scholarship details from JPA For more information download additional details from JPA. You are encouraged to read both documents before submitting your application. Read [KOREA Scholarship For Malaysian Application Form Online] Wraping up If you are interested and qualified, please submit your MOST Taiwan Scholarship for Malaysian students before 29 February 2016 (Monday). More details, contact A. Encik Azmi Tepoli Tel : 03-8884 7947 Faks : 03-8884 7925 E-mel : [email protected] OR B. Encik Danial Abdillah bin Suhaimi Tel : 03-8884 7943 Faks : 03-8884 7925 E-mel : [email protected] For more and up-to-date info about studying in Taiwan MOST Taiwan Scholarship contact the above directly. NEW MILFORD -- The road to these maple trees is easy to miss. A wooden sign with painted black letters points to 3 Lakes Road, an old, gravel stretch that leads to the spot that's the focus of a fight between landowners and pipeline developers. A dense forest of spindly trees -- some already cut down to make room for the Constitution Pipeline -- gives way to an empty field. From here, you can see a single, stout oak tree, its bare limbs pointing toward backyards where natural gas is being extracted thousands of feet below ground. That gas has to be moved, and Oklahoma-based Williams Partners is just one of many pipeline builders to put down stakes to mark its 124-mile path. Orange streamers dot the landscape, serving as a makeshift blueprint that shows how the pipeline will deliver the fracked gas from northern Pennsylvania to consumer markets in New York and New England. The first 24 miles cut through Susquehanna County toward the state line, moving through hundreds of acres of old farmland and taking down thousands of trees. But this oak tree on the hill was spared. An alcove beneath its branches offers the perfect vantage point to see the nearby quarry that naturally forced the pipeline's path to the right, a gathering station for the natural gas waiting to move, three lakes frozen after two months of winter and the small forest of maple trees that are at the heart of one family's fight against the pipeline's federal eminent domain rights. The sounds here speak more to industry than the quiet, country life that first lured landowners across New Jersey and New York borders. There's the constant rumbling of bulldozers at the quarry, the low hum from the gathering station and a steady stream of white pick-up trucks kicking up stones. On the kind of snowy afternoon common in this part of the state - so common local residents say it snows 1 inch 12 times a day - it's hard to see where the road ends and property lines begin. But there are some clues indicating this is the property with the sugarbush. Two pine trees and a mailbox announce the rocky driveway leading to the top of the hill. And there's the campfire, serving as both an early step in maple syrup-making process and a handwarmer for a family protesting in 20-degree weather the taking of their trees. "This is base camp," Meg Holleran said as she pointed to the place where she's been spending her days. Teen Marijuana IQ Harrisburg council members have set two public meetings to discuss a proposal to reduce simple marijuana possession from a misdemeanor to a summary offense, which is the same level as a traffic ticket. (File/Ted S. Warren) HARRISBURG- Harrisburg city council members are planning two public meetings to weigh a proposal to reduce marijuana possession from a misdemeanor to the same level as a traffic ticket. The meetings will be Thursday March 10 at the Harrisburg Area Community College midtown campus, Midtown 2, Room 206, at 1500 North Third Street and Thursday March 24 at the city's public works building at 1820 Paxton Street. Both meetings will start at 5:30 p.m. Councilman Cornelius Johnson, who chairs the public safety committee, said he is hosting the meetings to gather as much public input as possible. "We have to make sure this ordinance is the right fit for Harrisburg," he said "We want any and all comments, whether people are for or against this proposal." As it stands, the proposal by Harrisburg Mayor Eric Papenfuse would reduce the level of crime for possession of less than 30 grams of marijuana to a summary offense instead of a misdemeanor. The fine for a first offense would be $100. A second offense would cost $200. A third offense would revert back to a misdemeanor, which typically carries a much higher fine and stays on a person's criminal record. The proposal could generate some additional money for the city. Summary offense fines stay with the city, whereas misdemeanor crimes and fines are handled by county court. The mayor's proposed fines have been questioned by a few council members as too steep for poor residents. The fines would be much higher than the $25 fines in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh_ two cities in the state that have already decriminalized marijuana possession. Papenfuse said he supported the fines of $100 and $200 because he did not want to encourage drug use. Under his proposal, he said, a judge could waive the fine in lieu of community service. The marijuana proposal contains many provisions that could be changed, based on what the public prefers, Johnson said. The fine structure, the amount of marijuana that is considered a small amount, and the three-strikes you're out provision are among the many areas he hopes to explore during the public meetings. The city solicitor, meanwhile, is studying how a summary drug offense would affect a defendant's driver's license, if at all, and how the city should approach related charges such as possession of drug paraphernalia, which remains a misdemeanor. Council members said they plan to invite county officials and hope the meetings are well-attended. "We want people to understand the law and what is being proposed," Johnson said. A Newmanstown man has been charged with sexually assaulting two 11-year-old girls in a Lebanon Middle School classroom while working there, Lebanon County detectives said Wednesday. Jonathan Kantner Jonathan Michael Kantner, 30, formerly of the 200 block of South Sheridan Road, was charged Feb. 17 with two counts each of corruption of minors, indecent assault and institutional sexual assault of a minor. Kantner is accused of touching the breasts of one of the girls over her clothing, and the buttocks of the other girl on top of her clothing. Detectives said the incident happened Jan. 13. He was suspended from district employment without pay on the day the accusations were made, said Lebanon School District Superintendent Marianne Bartley. Kantner was immediately denied access to any of the buildings and school activities pending the results of the investigation, she added. One of the girls told detectives that Kantner sat down next to her and asked her to show him which cat in her cat planner that she liked, detectives said in court records. She accused him of placing his hand on her shoulder, and moving it down to her breast, rubbing it, records state. The girl said she shrugged his hand off and moved her chest close to the table. The other girl said Kantner sat beside her and started touching her on the bottom of the buttocks, detectives said. Kantner was released on $25,000 bail. Bartley said Kantner was hired as an aide in October 2011 and had background checks. Kantner will remain suspended without pay and revoked of any access to school property and/or students until the investigation is complete, Bartley said. UPDATE: Additional information added to the story on Kantner's employment. A New York man was sentenced Wednesday to life in prison plus 20 years on charges he stole 50 Rolex watches and shot a York jeweler in 2012. The Federal Courthouse in Harrisburg. Jesse Brewer, 41, of Jamaica, N.Y., was convicted in a September jury trial, and was sentenced by Judge William Caldwell in Middle District Court. Brewer is accused of robbing White Jewelers in York on July 12, 2012, with Jamell Smallwood and Timothy Forbes. In the course of the robbery, Brewer was accused of shooting the owner of the store, disabling him. More than 50 Rolex watches worth more than $500,000 were taken, said U.S. Attorney Peter Smith. Smallwood previously pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 17 years in prison for his role in the robbery, and Forbes pleaded guilty and is awaiting sentencing, said the U.S. attorney's office. Teen Marijuana IQ FILE - In this Dec. 6, 2012, file photo, a person holds a freshly-rolled marijuana joint just after midnight at the Space Needle in Seattle. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren, File) (File/Ted S. Warren) A Pennsylvania man who deliberately lit up a marijuana joint in front of some police officers can't avoid paying a $100 fine for the act, a state Superior Court panel ruled Wednesday. It took state Judge Jack A. Panella barely three pages to deep-six Amro Elansari's appeal, which the judge described as a "rambling diatribe on the alleged virtues of marijuana." As Panella noted in his court's opinion on the case, Elansari's May 2014 arrest by Bloomsburg University police "came as no surprise." The 25-year-old Exton man admitted he fired up his pot in the presence of the cops because he wanted to challenge the constitutionality of the state's drug laws. Specifically, the judge wrote, Elansari stated that he wanted to be able to "smoke marijuana on my balcony." A Columbia County judge convicted him of possessing a small amount of marijuana and imposed the fine. Elansari's appeal of that penalty quickly went up in smoke. as Panella observed, Elansari's challenge to his conviction largely focused on "the pleasure he obtains from smoking marijuana." "Simply explaining that an activity gives one pleasure and that it should be protected as a fundamental liberty under the United States Constitution is not a developed legal argument," the judge wrote in snuffing out Elansari's appeal. Mormons A new study from the Pew Research Center finds that Mormons identify overwhelmingly as being Republican or Republican-leaning. The angel Moroni statue is silhouetted against a cloud-covered sky atop the Salt Lake Temple, at Temple Square, in Salt Lake City. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer, File) (Rick Bowmer/Associated Press) What's the most Republican-leaning religious group in the U.S.? Who are the most reliably Democratic? You answered correctly if you said Mormons to the first question and the African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church and the National Baptist Convention to the second. That's according to new data from the Pew Research Center, which on Wednesday released findings culled from the 2014 Religious Landscape Study. The study found that 7-in-10 members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (in the U.S.) identify with the Republican Party or say they lean toward the GOP. Only 19 percent of Mormons said they identify as or lean Democratic. The 51 percent difference represents the biggest gap in favor of the GOP out of 30 religious groups analyzed by Pew. An overwhelming majority of members of the AME Church (92 percent) identify with or lean toward the Democratic Party, while just 4 percent say they favor the Republican Party. Similarly, 87 percent of members of the National Baptist Convention and 75 percent of members of the Church of God in Christ identify as Democrats. All three are major historically black Protestant denominations. Catholics were divided politically: 37 percent reported leaning Republican; 44 percent identified as Democratic. Members of mainline Protestant churches fell in step with Catholics: 44 percent of members of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) identify as or lean Republican 47 percent said they are Democrats or Democratic-leaning. United Methodists and Anglicans are slightly more likely than other mainline groups to say they are Republicans Members of the United Church of Christ are more likely to be Democrats. Jews, Muslims and agnostics broke down almost identically - with a little more than 60 percent of each of the groups reporting leaning Democratic and the difference splitting towards the GOP side. Members of the Church of the Nazarene and the Southern Baptist Convention followed at the heels of Mormons in their support for Republicans with 63 and 64 percents respectively reporting support for that party. These patterns, Pew noted, reflect data from exit polls during the 2012 general election: 95 percent of black Protestants voted for Democrat Barack Obama 78 percent of Mormons voted for Republican Mitt Romney, who also is a Mormon. 79 percent of white evangelical Protestants voted heavily Republican Florida Republican Marco Rubio, who converted to Mormonism in grade school, tried - but failed - to leverage his Mormon background in Nevada. Rubio came in second place in that state's caucus - garnering 23.9 percent of votes to Donald Trump's 45.9 percent. A retired state employee from Lower Paxton Twp. who has been keeping a public vigil at the Capitol on the state's public pension funding crisis in recent years quite literally electrified his call for action Wednesday. Barry Shutt unveiled a public pension debt clock that, second-by-second, is now available for passers-by in the East Wing Rotunda to take in and - whether they totally understand it or not - see the relentless nature of this problem. "I just wish that people across the state will see that ticking and say: 'You know, these people have got to do something,'" Shutt said of his ticking tote board. The clock captures the combined unfunded liability of the state's two major pension funds, which is currently pegged at more than $63 billion and, by Shutt's calculation, is growing at a hypothetical $143 per second. Because that number fluctuates with investment returns, state budget decisions and the rate of state and school retirements, Shutt and his team will periodically re-calibrate the LED ticker. Rooted in lucrative benefit expansions passed by the state legislature and then-Gov. Tom Ridge in 2001, Pennsylvania has fallen woefully behind on its annual taxpayer-funded "employer contributions." The state has moved toward full payment of its obligation in recent years, spending hundreds of million of new dollars at the cost of slowed investment and in some cases - outright cuts - to funding in other areas. Retirement formulas were rolled back to pre-2001 levels for state employees and school teachers hired after 2010, and many Republican lawmakers are now pressing to convert the plans to a 401(k)-style benefit in the future. But pension crusaders like Shutt and his allies believe even more severe steps are needed simply to keep the funds solvent through the next generation. Among the ideas they pushed Wednesday: * Raising the existing $4.1 billion in annual contributions (in 2015-16) funded by state and local school taxes by an additional $2 billion annually for 20 years to get the retirement systems fully-funded. Under a bill drafted by Rep. John McGinnis, R-Blair County, the state would pick up about $1.3 billion of that extra tab, and its 500 school districts would pay $700 million. * A legal challenge to the 2001 benefit enhancement, effectively pro-rating the higher retirement formula going forward to only those years of service that workers had made higher employee contributions. Shutt said he believes that latter change, if implemented, could cut about 20 percent from the current debt level. Shutt said he will maintain his display in the Capitol indefinitely, but especially on legislative session days. "I want the governor and every member of the General Assembly and every Pennsylvanian to see how fast that debt is rising," he said. UPDATE: A Ukrainian national who assumed a false identity and went on to enroll, and apparently excel, at Harrisburg High School, is facing multiple charges, according to police. Screen shot of a photo of Asher Potts via Twitter Harrisburg police said in a news release that the Harrisburg High student known as Asher Potts actually is 23-year-old Artur Samarin, a Ukranian national who stayed in the U.S. after his visa expired. Police said he took on the identity of Potts. Police arrested Samarin at 3 p.m. Tuesday, and he's been charged with theft, identity theft and tampering with public records, according to the news release. Police said Samarin, using a false date of birth and the false identity of Potts, obtained a social security card and other United States documents. When he was arrested, police said Samarin had a Pennsylvania driver's license issued under the name of Potts. Potts, apparently, did well during his time at Harrisburg High School. He was recently one of the youth panelists on a town hall forum to discuss violence, and he was a member of the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank's inaugural Junior Advisory Council. According to ABC27, Potts was a member of the ROTC and Naval Sea Cadet program. State Rep. Patty Kim, D-Harrisburg, also tweeted about Potts in May 2014, stating that Samarin had a 4.16 grade point average and was a new member of the National Honor Society. However, a PennLive reporter who visited Harrisburg High School following dismissal Wednesday was unable to glean more from students, who either declined to comment or said they didn't know Samarin. Harrisburg School District Superintendent Sybil Knight-Burney confirmed Samarin's arrest earlier Wednesday, and she said she was told that he had been arrested at his home. But Knight-Burney declined to provide further details as she said discussing information about any student would be a violation of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act. Kirsten Keys, district spokeswoman, in a district news release issued Wednesday afternoon, said the district didn't know "all of the details surrounding the arrest." "We are treating this as a serious matter," Keys said in the release. "At this time, the investigation is in the hands of the Harrisburg Bureau of Police. The district will continue to cooperate fully with the police department as they move forward with their investigation." Anyone with information is asked to call Detective Paula Trovy at (717) 255-3158, Sgt. Terry Wealand at (717) 255-3115 or the Dauphin County police dispatch at (717) 558-6900 and ask for a detective. brightcove.createExperiences(); Khloe Kardashian is finally revealing the reason for her split from boyfriend James Harden. The reality star says on an upcoming episode of Kocktails with Khloe that Harden, whom she broke up with earlier this month, wasnt faithful during their relationship. You know, I just dont want to put up with people that, you wanna be monogamous but then youre not monogamous, Kardashian tells guest Lisa Rinna in a sneak peek video. Kardashian, 31, goes on to explain of the 26-year-old Houston Rockets player, Ive always said its long distance, its this or that Ive always said, We dont need to be monogamous. Theres a lot of s going on in both of our lives, you live in Houston, I live in L.A., well see each other, when well see each other. She adds, What girl says that and the guy says, Oh, like, why wouldnt you say, Oh, thats great. The reality star, who began dating Harden last summer, says that the athlete insisted he wanted to be committed. I wanted it but I wanted to be realistic, Kardashian says, noting that she thought asking for a serious relationship was unfair considering her busy schedule and estranged husband Lamar Odoms near-fatal October overdose and subsequent hospitalization. But, she says, Harden sought me out. He wanted to be committed, then, wasnt committed. She teased, and I got the receipts to prove it. VIDEO: Inside Rob Kardashians Wild Revenge Romance with Blac Chyna On this weeks episode of the talk show, Kardashian opens up to guests JoJo, Carmen Electra and Ross Mathews about her relationship with Odom, who recently made his first public appearance since his hospitalization alongside the star. When Mathews asks if Kardashian would ever consider restarting a past relationship, she said, I hope that first marriage could happen again, but its really hard to erase everything that happened. Just building a friendship back is what Im doing now, it has nothing intimately, nothing at all, just pure love and I want someone to learn how to love themselves again. Find out more about Kardashian and Hardens break up on the March 2 episode of FYIs Kocktails with Khloe at 10 p.m. ET. CERAWeek: Saudi oil minister says market should be allowed to work AP/Pat Sullivan "I've seen oil at under $2 a barrel and at $147, and much volatility in between. I've witnessed gluts and scarcity. I've seen multiple booms and busts," Saudi Arabia's Minister of Petroleum & Mineral Resources Ali Al-Naimi told the annual gathering of some 2,800 energy executives and professionals. HOUSTON Petroleumworld.com 02 24 2016 Saudi Arabia's oil minister says production cuts to boost oil prices won't work, and that instead the market should be allowed to work even if that forces some operators out of business. Ali Al-Naimi said Tuesday that production cuts by big, low-cost producers like Saudi Arabia would amount to subsidizing higher-cost ones an apparent reference to U.S. shale oil drillers. Booming U.S. production effectively ended oil trades at more than $100 per barrel in that were taking place less than two years ago. A barrel of U.S. crude is now hovering around $30, a price at which many shale operators are assumed to be losing money. "The producers of these high-cost barrels must find a way to lower their costs, borrow cash or liquidate," Naimi said. "It sounds harsh, and unfortunately it is, but it is the more efficient way to rebalance markets." Naimi disputed a common view in the industry: that Saudi Arabia has kept pumping oil to protect its market share and undercut shale producers. "We have not declared war on shale or on production from any given country or company," he said. Naimi spoke at a gathering of global energy leaders in Houston. The price of benchmark U.S. crude fell Tuesday by nearly 5 per cent to $31.81 a barrel. Brent crude, used to price oil internationally, dropped $1.36 to $33.31 a barrel in London. Just a day earlier, oil prices surged after the International Energy Agency predicted that oil supply and demand would balance next year because of a steep drop in new drilling, namely in the U.S. The group's executive director, Fatih Birol, predicted that crude would more than double to $80 a barrel by 2020. Shale and other new sources attracted by years of high oil prices pushed the supply of oil much higher than global demand, leading to the sharp drop in crude prices since mid-2014. OPEC decided in late 2014 that it would not cut production to prop up prices, and Naimi echoed OPEC's thinking. "Cutting low-cost production to subsidize higher-cost supplies only delays an inevitable reckoning," he said. While Naimi rejected production cuts as politically unworkable, he endorsed a freeze on production at current levels if major oil-producing countries go along. The freeze idea, floated last week by Saudi Arabia, Russia, Venezuela and Qatar, would be a more gradual path to higher oil prices, but it faces uncertain prospects. Iran, just coming off international sanctions, wants to boost its production. The 81-year-old Saudi oil minister, who joined Aramco, the old Arabian American Oil Co., as an office boy in 1947, said he had seen oil prices swing from $2 to $147 a barrel. The current price slump, which has led to layoffs across the U.S. oil industry, is just another of oil's inevitable boom-and-bust cycles, he said. "It is going to end," Naimi said. "When, I don't know, but it will end." CERAWeek: Ecopetrol CEO Juan Carlos Echeverry says need focus on selling assets, lower cost Juan Carlos Echeverry, chief executive officer of Ecopetrol SA, speaks during the 2016 IHS CERAWeek conference in Houston, Texas, U.S., on Tuesday, Feb. HOUSTON Petroleumworld.com 02 24 2016 Colombia's Ecopetrol is selling some non-oil related assets, expecting to collect $1.4 billion at the end of 2017, and cutting 10 percent of staff as part of a cost reduction plan due to low oil prices, the state-run oil firm's chief executive said on Tuesday. "We still want to be a pan-American company," CEO Juan Carlos Echeverry told the IHS CERAWeek energy conference in Houston. "This is a difficult year, so we are now depending on what the prices allow us to do, but our portfolio is still active with conservative goals." Assets kept for sale include a petrochemical subsidiary, a gas-transporter firm and some facilities related to power operations, Echeverry said. Ecopetrol's workforce, which has been decreasing over recent years from a peak of 48,000 workers, will suffer an additional cut of some 3,000 people to 30,000 people in the Andean country and abroad. "We had a lot of outsourcing and we are now bringing in-house many activities we were doing abroad, so we need less people," he said. With a smaller corporation, the firm will focus most of its available resources in exploration and production in Colombia to reach a production target of 800,000 to 850,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd) by 2021, from about 700,000 boepd currently, while keeping its planned investments in natural gas. A portion of the expected production increase could come from the Rubiales field, one of Colombia's largest areas with a current output of some 150,000 bpd, which starting in June will be managed by Ecopetrol after being operated by Toronto-based Pacific Exploration and Production Corporation. Joint ventures recently formed by Ecopetrol with companies including U.S. Anadarko Petroleum Corp and Spain's Repsol SA will also continue producing in the U.S. Gulf Coast, while planned investment in Brazil and Mexico will have to wait for a better price environment. The CEO also said that Ecopetrol's 160,000 bpd Cartagena refinery, recently upgraded and expanded to double its output capacity, will import some 30 percent of its crude requirements to configure an "optimum slate." Copyright Photo: D.Wilson/PFN Mactan-Cebu International Airport will be launching four new international flights in March, which will provide passengers travelling from the central and southern Philippines with viable alternatives to bypass the highly congested Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Manila.Passengers departing from Cebu will soon enjoy direct service to four new destinations including Los Angeles, Taipei, Dubai, and Xiamen. The first new flight will depart on March 15 when national flag carrier, Philippine Airlines, introduces non-stop service between Cebu and Los Angeles aboard its Airbus A340-300 aircraft. PAL will be operating the service with three flights weekly.Business travellers will appreciate the arrival of EVA Air, a member of Star Alliance, which will launch daily non-stop flights between Cebu and Taipei on March 27. EVA Air will operate the flights with its 184-seat Airbus A321-200 aircraft. In Taipei, passengers will be able to connect to a wide range of Eva Air destinations throughout Europe and North America.On March 28, Xiamen Air will introduce three weekly flights between Cebu and Xiamen aboard its Boeing 737-800 aircraft. Xiamen Air, a subsidiary of China Southern, is a member of the SkyTeam Alliance with an extensive network throughout mainland China and Asia.Finally, Emirates will be launching direct service between Cebu and Dubai on March 30, connecting passengers to the carrier's extensive network in the Middle East, Europe, and eastern United States. This particular route will operate as part of a triangular routing, which will make a stop at Clark International Airport before continuing onto Dubai.According to Louie Ferrer, President of GMR-Megawide Cebu Airport Corporation, bringing new routes and airlines to Cebu is a critical component of the airport's transformation under its new management. "Many of these flights are a first for Cebu, which will draw inbound tourism and give strong support for export services," said Ferrer.Mactan-Cebu International Airport is currently positioning itself to become an alternative gateway for both domestic and international flights in an effort to ease congestion at Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Manila. The airport is undergoing a US$326 million expansion and is under the private management of GMR-Megawide consortium.The expansion includes the construction of a second terminal building, which will enable the airport to handle increased passenger volume. At present, Cebu handles approximately 4.7 million passengers on an annual basis. The consortium anticipates that annual traffic will rise to 8.9 million by 2018, while daily flights will increase from 220 to 350 once the second terminal is complete.Mactan-Cebu International Airport is planning to tap into the large overseas Filipino worker market, which currently represents 34% of all international passengers in the Philippines. However, less than 5% of those passengers currently use Cebu as a departure point. Meanwhile, the new management at the airport has identified potential new routes and is deploying teams to pitch route opportunities to various carriers.According to a report released by the Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation, Cebu is one of the fastest growing airports in Southeast Asia with passenger growth of 13 percent in the first ten months of 2015. The report added that the new terminal currently under construction will help to position Cebu as a hub for transit traffic, as Philippine carriers continue to deploy aircraft to secondary cities due to infrastructure constraints in Manila. Completion of the second terminal in Cebu will increase the airport's annual capacity to 12.5 million passengers. U.S. Treasury 10-year yields dropped again this week, to around 1.65 percent, with investors worldwide fleeing fallen stocks and energy for safe, slow returns (30-year USTs are at just 2.54.) By contrast, 10-year U.S. municipal bond yields are up again, though not as much as last week, to 1.72 percent, notes Glenn Williams, president of Philadelphia-based registered investment advisor A.H. Williams, citing Bloomberg LP data. The Treasury/muni yield gap is the biggest since October, and shows tax-exempt bonds are "cheap by comparison," Williams tells me. Even at "50-year lows," muni yields are attractively priced, compared to other bonds -- even for towns in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, which share with Illinois the lowest state credit ratings, due to political budget fights and underfunded public-worker pensions. Williams cites a recent small 20-year Radnor Township issue that yielded just 3.1%, and a Bergen County Improvement Authority sale that drew $30 million in orders for just $5 million worth of bonds, yielding just 3.3%. Rates haven't been that cheap "since the 1960s," says Williams. He cautions against buying too many long bonds at very low rates that seem to leave no room for financial turmoil at the issuers. And he notes states tend to solve their financial problems over time: Ten years ago California seemed headed for insolvency; it's now rated higher, and yielding lower, than Pa. or N.J. A second driver allegedly involved in fatal a Northeast Philadelphia drag race last summer turned himself in for arrest Tuesday, police said. Ryan Farrell, 20, of the 10000 block of Northeast Avenue, surrendered to homicide detectives on charges including homicide by vehicle, aggravated assault by vehicle, and involuntary manslaughter, police said. Farrell allegedly raced against 20-year-old Christopher Bloomfield on Sandmeyer Lane off Red Lion Road in the Bustleton section on July 29. Bloomfield was arrested over the weekend. Police said Bloomfield's car crashed into a tree at high speed. Two 17-year-old girls were ejected and killed. A 20-year-old man was also found dead at the scene, trapped inside the car. Police said a fourth passenger in Bloomfield's car, age 17, suffered numerous injuries and remains in critical condition. Farrell did not have any passengers in his car, according to police documents from July. Bloomfield also is charged with homicide by vehicle, driving under the influence and other charges. He is being held on $2 million bail. - Brian X. McCrone The LAST, LAST DOVER REUNION in May 2014 looks like it really was the last one! Of course our number of crew colleagues is dwindling, and the energy to plan another real reunion has evaporated. HOWEVER, a few of us have talked about showing up in Dover together for an informal dinner/gathering sometime in the spring of the New Year, 2016. If you're interested, please let me know at rehanson342@me.com . If you have not seen this TED talk from Al Gore about the Climate Crisis then I would recommend it. Surprisingly optimistic! https://www.ted.com/talks/al_gore_s_new_thinking_on_the_climate_crisis Al Gore makes the point that we can be optimistic because renewable energy solutions are on the verge of becoming cheaper than fossil energy solutions. Is the situation in the energy sector similar to the situation with film and digital photography in the beginning of the 21st century? I would be optimistic and say Yes. Here are some arguments I would like to add to this discussion: - When comparing fossil and solar-wind energy then besides the cost of the energy production it is also important to note the costs of grid. As most of us can read from their energy bill the grid costs stand for more than 2/3 of the whole cost - with the current low energy prices. Grid companies are usually huge monopolies, powerlines are expensive and therefore the costs of the grid will not go down. However, with a solar-wind-wood production unit and a battery one can get off-grid and skip the costs. It is definitely the winning solution in places where there is no grid. - Price decrease of solar, wind production units and batteries has been linear if not exponential. We always underestimate exponential progress. - If usage of renewable energy grows on the expense of fossil energy then soon the fossil fuel installations start becoming more expensive per kW and support of the technology exclusive. Think buying a film camera and finding a studio to print photos from films in 2016. - Fossil fuel energy production is really expensive. Think of the huge infrastructure, tankers, pipelines and so on. If we would add to that the costs of the environment, land and water used....well then there would not be a business case in it at all. So if the turn-around from fossil to renewable happens fast enough then there is maybe hope afterall. And investing in the oil industry or in the East-Estonian "cooking oil from oil shale with no care of the environment" is something one should consider with big skepticism. HOME // Episode 3: Defining Home with Jill Kintner Presented by Maxxis Tires In the final episode of HOME, Jill Kintner rides one of her favorite backyard trails in the Chuckanut Mountains. She pins the straightaways and takes the high line in a fashion that can only come from knowing every turn of the trail. A little extra inspiration comes from a simple question: "What would Bryn do?"Home is a term that has a very solid meaning, yet the concept itself has a very loose structure. Home is a place. Home is people. Home is a trail. Bryn Atkinson and Jill Kintner recently moved to Bellingham, Washington, where all of these aspects converge into a community that matches their own passion for riding. Some things about their new locale might take some getting used tolike 34-plus inches of annual rainfallbut its all these elements together that make it what it is: home.Watch HOME // Episode 1: Defining Home with Bryn Atkinson Watch HOME // Episode 2: East Side Adventure with Jill Kintner and Bryn Atkinson Continue the story in Freehub Magazine Issue 6.4. Pinkbike readers save 40% on subscriptions. @FreehubMag / @jk33 / @Bryn-Atkinson Your Guide to the 2nd Annual American Poker Awards February 24, 2016 Matthew Pitt Editor Members of the North American poker industry and players are gathering at the SLS Hotel in Beverly Hills on Feb. 25, 2016, for the second annual Global Poker Index American Poker Awards, where their achievements during the past 12 months are set to be celebrated. A carefully selection panel of poker's greatest minds will vote for a winner across 11 categories including Tournament Performance of the Year, Breakout Performance of the Year, and Moment of the Year. Two of PokerNews' staff are nominated for awards. Editor-in-chief Donnie Peters finds himself battling with Joey Ingram, Kevin Mathers, and Jason Somerville for the title of Media Person of the Year, while Sarah Herring is nominated for Poker Presenter of the Year alongside newly-announced 888poker ambassador Kara Scott, Joe Stapleton, and David Tuchman. Byron Kaverman and Kelly Minkin are the only people guaranteed to collect awards, as they finished top of their respective GPI Player of the Year tables, and will be honored with a coveted American Poker Awards trophy and have their names written into pokers history books. In full, the 11 categories in the 2nd Annual GPI American Poker Awards are: TOURNAMENT PERFORMANCE OF THE YEAR Jonathan Duhamel, WSOP One Drop High Roller Mike Gorodinsky, WSOP Poker Players' Championship Joseph McKeehen, WSOP Main Event Anthony Zinno, WPT L.A. Poker Classic MOMENT OF THE YEAR Anthony Zinno goes back-to-back, winning WPT Fallsview, WPT L.A. Poker Classic Over 22,000 players enter WSOP Colossus for chance at a gold bracelet Phil Hellmuth wins bracelet #14 in WSOP Razz Championship Daniel Negreanu busts 11th in WSOP Main Event BREAKOUT PERFORMANCE OF THE YEAR Joshua Beckley Asher Conniff Cate Hall Kelly Minkin EVENT OF THE YEAR (BUY-IN UP TO $2,000) WSOP The Colossus, Rio All-Suites Hotel and Casino, Las Vegas WPT500 at ARIA, Las Vegas WSOP Millionaire Maker, Rio All-Suites Hotel and Casino, Las Vegas WPTDeepStacks DSPT Championship, Grey Eagle Resort & Casino, Calgary EVENT OF THE YEAR (BUY-IN OVER $2,000) Super High Roller Bowl, ARIA, Las Vegas WSOP Main Event, Rio All-Suites Hotel and Casino, Las Vegas WSOP One Drop High Roller, Rio All-Suites Hotel and Casino, Las Vegas WPT Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown, Hollywood, FL INDUSTRY PERSON OF THE YEAR Jack Effel, WSOP Vice President and Tournament Director William Mason, Seminole Hard Rock Director of Poker John Pappas, Poker Players Alliance Executive Director Matt Savage, TDA Founder, WPT Executive Director CHARITABLE INITIATIVE OF THE YEAR Chad Brown Memorial Tournament (Maria Ho, Vanessa Rousso) Charity Series of Poker (Matthew Stout) Tiger's Poker Night (hosted by Tiger Woods, WPT Foundation) WSOP One Drop High Roller / Litte One for One Drop MEDIA PERSON OF THE YEAR Joey Ingram Kevin Mathers Donnie Peters Jason Somerville POKER PRESENTER OF THE YEAR Sarah Herring Kara Scott Joseph Stapleton David Tuchman POKER INNOVATION OR INITIATIVE OF THE YEAR Poker Central launches 24/7 television network SHRPO (in conjunction with PNIA) livestreams four FT's in same room/at same time WSOP adds online bracelet event (with live final table) WSOP introduces The Colossus MEDIA CONTENT OF THE YEAR BUST, an Insider's Account of Greenville's Underground Poker Scene (Brad Willis) (Brad Willis) Faraz Jaka: Homeless Poker Millionaire , CNN Money (Jaka, Gayles, Carson) , CNN Money (Jaka, Gayles, Carson) Jason Somerville's record Twitch Broadcast during WCOOP in September 2015 Joe Giron shoots photo of Negreanu crumbled on the floor after WSOP Main Event elimination American Poker Conference On the morning of the awards ceremony, the American Poker Conference takes place and sees subjects such as live pokers ecosystem, E-Sports, women in poker, and the poker media discussed among guest speakers including PokerStars Online Team Pro Randy "Nanonoko" Lew, Team PokerStars Pro Liv Boeree, Rebecca McAdam, and John Caldwell. Busy Day Continues with Global Poker League Draft The excitement continues thanks to the NHL-style draft of the inaugural Global Poker League teams taking place on the same day as the American Poker Awards. Max Pescatoris Rome Emperors have the first pick during the first and third rounds before being last to pick on Rounds 2 and 4. The Hong Kong Stars, run by Celina Lin, have the last pick during Round 1 and 3, but first picks during the second and fourth rounds. The poker world is waiting with baited breath for the GPL draft as they look forward to seeing which of the 203 players are drafted into the GPL franchise for the upcoming inaugural season. Follow All of the Action from the American Poker Awards If youre not one of the 200 guests invited to attend the American Poker Awards celebrations, you can still get in on the action by using social media. Follow PokerNews' Twitter account for plenty of updates throughout the day, and while youre on Twitter it is worthwhile following the Global Poker Index account, or head to Twitch.tv./GPL for coverage of the GPL Draft. Want to stay atop all the latest in the poker world? If so, make sure to get PokerNews updates on your social media outlets. Follow us on Twitter and find us on both Facebook and Google+! Holdem with Holloway, Vol. 67: Honeyman Plays Kings to Keep in Opponents Bluff Range February 24, 2016 Chad Holloway Executive Editor U.S. Day 4 of the 2016 Aussie Millions Main Event a tournament that attracted 732 players and created a $5,124,507 prize pool saw the final 40 players return to play down to the final table of seven. One man in contention was Australias Dylan Honeyman, who was looking to improve upon his 21st-place finish three years before. Honeyman got things started in a big way when he got involved in a big hand against Adam Reynolds. It happened in Level 20 (6,000/12,000/2,000) when Honeyman raised to 26,000 from middle position and was met by a three-bet to 66,000 from Reynolds on the button. The blinds both folded, Honeyman just called, and the flop came down . Honeyman checked, Reynolds bet 78,000, and Honeyman paused for a few beats before check-raising all in. Reynolds wasted little time in calling off for 270,000 or so and discovered the bad news. Reynolds: Honeyman: Both players held big pocket pairs, but Honeyman had the best of it. Reynolds began to get out of his chair and watched the dealer burn and turn the . Reynolds outs were swapped as he needed a king to make a straight, but it wasnt in the cards as the blanked on the river. Reynolds was eliminated in the hand while Honeyman chipped up to 1 million. Adam Reynolds Having personally witnessed the hand play out, I couldnt help but wonder how things might have went had Honeyman either four-bet or shoved preflop, which I think many players would have done with pocket kings. Could Reynolds have gotten away? Its certainly possible. I wanted to know why Honeyman didnt take that route, so I waited for a break to pick his brain. I wanted to keep all of his bluffs in preflop, Honeyman told me. He was three-betting me on the button. He looks like he was a competent player. I didnt really know the guy, but I thought he could have some bluffs in there and I wanted to make sure he kept those. Makes sense. Reynolds could have been three-betting fairly light in position, and if that had been the case, a four-bet would have scared him off. Holding kings, Honeyman definitely didnt want a fold. I didnt want to shove or four-bet, Honeyman continued. I wanted to get his continuation bet as well. The stack sizes were perfect for me to shove over the c-bet. Hopefully theres no ace on the flop and its all good. What Honeyman recognized was the fact that if he just called and then checked the flop, Reynolds was more than likely going to fire out a continuation bet. That allowed the pot to swell before Honeyman shoved. If Reynolds didnt have a big hand, Honeymans play was going to net him another bet, which hed have missed out on had he four-bet preflop. Some of you are no doubt thinking, Id have raised because kings are nothing but ace magnets. Indeed, had an ace come on the flop Honeyman would have been in a bad spot, as he freely admits. However, it was a risk he was willing to take in the hope of winning a bigger pot. If an ace came, he could fold. If it didnt, he was going with his kings. Its frustrating when you hold pocket kings and an ace flops, but the fear of that happening is no reason to get it in preflop when there are clearly better options. In this hand, taking position and stack sizes into account, Honeyman thought things through and decided just calling was his best option. Obviously it led to him getting max value thanks to Reynolds holding a big hand, but even if he hadnt, Honeyman would have won a decent pot as a result of the line he took. The next time you find yourself holding a big pocket pair and facing a three-bet, follow in Honeymans footsteps and consider all your options. Theres definitely more than one way to play it. For the record, Honeyman went on to finish fifth in the tournament for $238,023, his largest cash to date. Want to stay atop all the latest in the poker world? If so, make sure to get PokerNews updates on your social media outlets. Follow us on Twitter and find us on both Facebook and Google+! Sharelines In a new Hold'em w/Holloway, @ChadAHolloway examines Dylan Honeyman playing kings for full effect. Photo: iStockphoto.com In every call for service, you should think things through before you begin your response. Each call can be broken down into three phases: pre-response, response, and post-response. The following scenario is designed to help you think things through rather than give you a specific way to handle the call. Situation You are on patrol when you get a call for assistance from the local PD in your jurisdiction. Apparently they have a "frequent flyer" who threatened his mother, took the phone away when she called 911, and won't let anyone talk to her. He has been drinking, has been known to resist with violence, and a firearm has been implied. The suspect has advised that if anyone comes near his mother he "will take them out." In past clashes with law enforcement, he has thrown around officers as if they were rag dolls. The requesting agency has formed a perimeter and one of their officers is talking directly to the suspect. They are requesting support in the form of your agency's less-than-lethal 40mm multi-round launcher. Since you are on SWAT and have the launcher, your sergeant sends you. He is busy on an in-progress call so he confirms mutual aid has been approved and to respond. Initial Thoughts You have dealt with the suspect one time before. He is generally not a problem except when he's been drinking. This is the first time a weapon has been implied. You are concerned that it's in a mobile home park, as overpenetration of rounds is a big concern in this environment. You also know the sergeant asking for help uses poor tactics and will count heavily on his personal relationship with the suspect. Pre-Response Think It Through Questions Is the scene secure? Do they have a command post set up? Do they have a staging area? Has SWAT been notified? You switch radio channels and speak to the sergeant at the scene. You need to confirm what it is they want and authority from their side for use of the 40mm has been granted. You find out there is no command post, no staging area, and SWAT has been ruled out. The sergeant tells you to come and meet him at his car, which is parked near the suspect's house. Response Think It Through Questions What are my options if I don't like what I see? What can I do as an officer to help the situation? If I have to use the 40mm, what's my best angle for the shot? What if I'm forced to take over the call? You drive into the mobile home park and see the sergeant has parked just to the right of the suspect's location. He is not behind cover as he talks to the suspect, who keeps coming in and out of view from the front entrance foyer. There is another officer in the same close proximity but on the left side. You park across the street and set up at the club house, which is not a mobile home. You have a clear view of the suspect, the two officers, and the distance between you and the suspect is well within your 40mm capabilities. When the sergeant meets with you, you suggest that they have parked too close and need to move. You also ask for someone to secure the rear. You explain that your support depends on the tactics he uses and that you will not be held accountable for poor decisions on his part. The sergeant tells you he knows the suspect and has dealt with him many times in the past. You remind him there might be a firearm involved. This banter of good versus bad tactics goes on for a few minutes and the sergeant finally acquiesces. Rules for engagement are established. It's made clear that if the suspect steps out from the foyer and into the open, you are to engage with your 40mm. The sergeant makes the necessary adjustments and continues to follow your lead. The sergeant keeps a dialogue going with the suspect. From your vantage point you have a hard time making out what it is the suspect is keeping held behind his back. You have to assume the worst but hope you don't have to transition to a firearm. Shooting into a mobile home is never a good idea unless forced to do so. You call your sergeant and keep him posted. The back and forth with the suspect continues for another 30 minutes. Dispatch has not been able to speak with the mother because the suspect has turned off her phone. The suspect decides to take one step out of the foyer. He turns toward the sergeant's position, while still holding something behind his back. You take the shot with your 40mm launcher and the suspect falls to his knees and then fully onto the ground. The sergeant handcuffs the suspect without further incident. The suspect starts crying for his mother and starts apologizing. Post-Response Think It Through Questions What do you do about the PD's lack of tactical planning? Should you have just taken over the call since you have jurisdiction? Should you get your chain of command involved? Who is ultimately responsible during mutual aid? There is a need for debriefing with those involved. You explain your concerns one by one. You cover officer safety, perimeter set-up, and a few other tactical considerations. Those from the other agency seem to take it well. Even the sergeant admits they don't train enough and they get lax with people they know. He also says their lieutenant is anti-SWAT and only calls them when advised from higher up. You report back to your sergeant and request a meeting with your lieutenant. You want to discuss this situation and emphasize this wasn't the first time mutual aid had been requested during questionable tactics. You know politics plays a role but you want to establish clearer guidelines for mutual aid in the future. You also want to suggest some joint training with the agency and offer to help. Final Thoughts Mutual aid calls involve many dynamics. Some are more complicated than others. Working with other agencies can be seamless or it can be problematic. This scenario was designed to make you think about how you will handle a support call that involves poor decision-making by another agency. You have to make some tough decisions about what you will and will not be part of. Orders may be orders but not when you know they will end up getting someone unnecessarily injured or killed. As with anything questionable, make sure you keep your supervisor posted, have dispatch place notes in your call history, make sure you say things over a monitored radio channel, and if you are making phone calls, make sure they are on a taped line. These days officer survival means so much more than walking away from a call unhurt. Office politics and political correctness can hurt you just as much as any weapon. There are always multiple possibilities and potential responses. Thinking it through now saves you time later. Amaury Murgado retired a senior lieutenant from the Osceola County (FL) Sheriff's Office with over 29 years of experience. He also retired from the Army Reserve as a master sergeant. He holds a Master of Political Science degree from the University of Central Florida. Three Park County (CO) Sheriff's deputies were shot, one was killed, while serving an eviction notice in Bailey on Wednesday morning. The man at the home at 36 Iris Drive, Martin Wirth, was armed with a rifle and opened fire on the deputies, according to Susan Medina, spokeswoman for the Colorado Bureau of Investigation. Wirth was shot and killed by deputies returning fire. Wirth has previously run for office and had been fighting foreclosure for years, ABC7 reports. None of the deputies have been identified. The deputy who was killed is a 12-year veteran of the Park County Sheriff's Office. The two deputies who were wounded in the shooting were taken to St. Anthony's Hospital for treatment. One has life-threatening injuries. That deputy is a 11-year veteran of the department, Medina said. The second deputy has non-life-threatening injuries. That deputy is a 21-year veteran. A bomb squad was called in to clear the house. IWI US Inc., a subsidiary of Israel Weapon Industries (IWI) Ltd., and producers of the 2014 American Rifleman "Rifle of the Year" TAVOR SAR, is now expanding its manufacturing capabilities by producing cold-hammer forged barrels for themselves and OEM customers in the United States. The IWI US barrel producing facility is using brand new GFM cold hammer forging machinery producing barrels with tighter tolerances than many currently on the market today, according to the company. Barrel blanks are precision machined, drilled, and honed to exacting standards on state-of-the-art deep hole drilling and honing machines. Having the benefit of IWI Israel's over 50 years' experience in manufacturing precision MIL-SPEC barrels, IWI US is already lined up to start producing AR-15 and M4 barrels for several leading U.S. firearms manufacturers. "Barrel manufacturing is a key element of our long term strategy to have the capability to manufacture key components of our firearms in the United States," says Michael Kassnar, VP of Sales and Marketing at IWI US. "The combination of IWI's experience with the latest manufacturing technology will allow us to produce the finest cold hammer forged barrels available." For more information, visit www.iwi.us. To Download this Press Release as a PDF or get hi-res images visit http://lauraburgess.com/clients/iwi-us/ About IWI US, Inc. IWI US, Inc. is the USA-based subsidiary of Israel Weapon Industries (IWI) Ltd. of Ramat Hasharon, Israel and a member of the SK Group, a leading defense and security group of companies that operate in the global Defense and Law Enforcement markets. The IWI US line of products includes several configurations of the TAVOR SAR, Jericho 941 pistol, UZI pistol and Galil ACE rifles and pistols. For more information, visit www.iwi.us, www.facebook.com/IWIUS, or contact via e-mail at [email protected]. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Email Print The Sanders revolution stormed into South Carolina as the Democratic presidential candidate clearly defined what his political revolution is and what it will look like at the CNN town hall. Sanders began his CNN town hall appearance by calling for a political revolution, and laying out the basics of his campaign. Sen. Sanders immediately brought up the distinction between him and Sec. Clinton on paid speeches to Wall Street. Sanders was asked where historically black colleges fall under his free college plan. Sanders said that historically black colleges must be sustained and strengthened. Sanders gave his word that funding would be increased for historically black colleges. The next question was about why the Sanders message has not resonated with the African-American community. The Democratic presidential candidate answered that when the campaign started, no one knew him, so he has been making progress. He repeated plan to invest in jobs and education, not jails and incarceration. Sen. Sanders was asked about Supreme Court appointments and which Supreme Court justices he admires most. Sanders said that we have been dealing with an unprecedented level of obstructionism since the election of President Obama. He said that the current Supreme Court situation is nothing more than the continuation of the obstruction against Obama. Sanders tied the birther issue to the Republican obstruction of Obama. Sanders then said that Thurgood Marshall was a damn good Supreme Court justice. Sanders called out Republicans for undermining America by trying to delegitimize President Obama. Chris Cuomo asked Sanders if he has also to represent the wealthy if he becomes president. Sen. Sanders said that he would take the wealthy on because they cant have it all. Sanders later asked if the American people have the guts to take on the healthcare industry. Sanders was asked about leadership, and he said that he believes that a person cant be a good leader unless they go into their heart of hearts and passionately believe in what they are leading. Sen. Sanders was asked if he is a single issue candidate, and he said that his rallies are boring because he talks for an hour to an hour a half about a number of issues. He also said that the Clinton campaign is nervous and again mentioned her paid speeches to Wall Street. After running through his liberal positions, Sanders said that he is fighting for a political revolution. In an email to reporters, the Sanders campaign pointed to a Washington Post story that highlighted the 20 different topics that Sanders discussed during a campaign stop in Michigan. He was asked what his political revolution looks like. Sanders said that Republicans won a landslide in 2014 because people didnt vote. Sanders said that his political revolution means a revitalization of American democracy with high voter turnouts, and making it easy for more people to get involved in our democracy. Towards the end of the town hall, Sen. Sanders admitted that he is scared of letting the people down who support him and promised to do his very best to stand up for the people who have very little power. Sanders closed by saying that he likes and respects Sec. Clinton. He said that the Democratic primary is not some personality clash because they arent Republicans. Sanders then earnestly asked for the support of the people of South Carolina. No matter what the delegate count, or how the race for the Democratic nomination turns out, Bernie Sanders has started a populist fire all across the United States. The Sanders political revolution has brought millions of people into the political process. Sen. Sanders offered up the clearest definition of his political revolution that demonstrated a sharpened and more defined message. One gets the sense that Bernie Sanders is fighting for something bigger than a presidential nomination. Sen. Sanders is fighting to change this country. After decades of political and economic shift towards the very wealthy, Sanders is saying no more. Even in the reddest parts of the United States, the Sanders political revolution is awakening a populist rebellion in America. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Email Print Hillary Clintons performance at the CNN town hall in South Carolina demonstrated why Republican fear running against her. Clinton was asked if her campaign has turned a corner. She said that she doesnt think about it that way. Weve had three contests, and weve got forty-seven more to go. Former Sec. Clinton was asked if she will release the transcripts of her paid Wall Street speeches. She answered that she will release them if all candidates release their speeches, including the Republicans. Clinton later asked why there was one standard for her and not for everyone else. She demanded a level playing field for all candidates. Former Sec. of State Clinton backed President Obamas plan to close GITMO and said that the detention center is a symbol for those who want to cause us harm. Clinton began with foreign policy questions from voters, and she shined with her depth and knowledge of global affairs. Clinton was asked how she would fix race relations. She said that racism issues need to be addressed, or we are never going to be the nation that we can be. Clinton called out some places in South Carolina where African-American infants have a higher mortality rate than in third world countries. Clinton took aim at Gov. Nikki Haley and the state legislature for not expanding Medicaid. Later, Clinton was asked about the generational gap with voters between her and Bernie Sanders. Clinton detailed her plan to help students who are being crushed by debt. She brought up a date certain so that students know when their debt ends. She said that she doesnt believe that the federal government should be making money on student loans. Clinton said that she wants the program to be affordable, and stressed her commitment to the historically black colleges. Former Sec. Clinton was asked about the deterioration of the illness in the American family. She answered that strong families are at the core of a strong American society. Clinton said that a lot of families are under economic stress and are just trying to keep food on the table. Clinton called for a raise in the minimum wage and called for more to be done to help families raise their children. Clinton was asked for the millionth time about her emails, and she said that she is aware of the drip, drip, drip. She said that every single time the charges have been hurled against her, and it has proven to be nothing. Clinton said that she had turned over 55 pages of emails. She said that the email scandal wont have any lasting effect and that she is not at all worried about it. Former Sec. Clinton delivered another winning performance at this town hall. Her weakest answer was on the releasing the transcripts of her speeches to Wall Street, but the reality is that her speeches only matter to a segment of the Democratic primary electorate. The speeches wont matter in the general election. Hillary Clinton demonstrated why she is perceived by many as the strongest candidate in either party. It was very subtle, but former Sec. Clinton was able to discuss national emotional themes in personal terms. As this election moves forward; it is clear that there is no one on the Republican side that will match up well against Hillary Clinton Facebook Twitter Pinterest Email Print Something most Americans never think about throughout the year is the Girl Scout organization. However, around this time of year when their favorite flavor of G.S. cookies are finally delivered, many Americans have warm thoughts about the Girl Scouts if for no other reason than those scrumptious treats. In St. Louis Missouri, the Catholic Archbishop spends a lot of time thinking about the Girl Scouts, but not because of their lovely cookies, and not because the organizations mission is to help build young women of courage, confidence, and character who work hard to make the world a better place. No, the Archbishop spends a lot of time thinking about the Girl Scouts as an organization and its increasingly troubling pattern of behavior. The St. Louis area must be a veritable crime-free, upscale Utopia because the Archbishops job of working to make the world a better place does not entail addressing poverty, educational opportunities or criminal justice reform. It is not that those issues are non-existent; they are very clear and ever-present in and around the St. Louis area. However, for Catholic Archbishop Robert Carlson those social issues pale in comparison to the really serious threats facing St. Louis area families; Girls Scouts that are incompatible with Catholics core values. To stop the Girl Scouts from destroying America, or at least the little part of America where Archbishop Carlson presides, he sent out a letter to area churches, priests, and parishioners warning them to beware the pressing evil that is the 21st Century version of Girl Scouts of America. Archbishop Carlson wrote, Girl Scouts is exhibiting a troubling pattern of behavior and it is clear to me that as they move in the ways of the world it is becoming increasingly incompatible with our Catholic values. We must stop and ask ourselves is Girl Scouts concerned with the total well-being of our young women? Does it do a good job forming the spiritual, emotional, and personal well-being of Catholic girls? If the Archbishop had spent a tiny fraction of the time reading the Girl Scouts of Americas mission statement as he had worrying about whether or not the Girl Scouts toe the Catholic line, he would not have to ask a ridiculous question like are Girl Scouts concerned with the total well-being of young women. And, oh by the way Archbishop Carlson, there is one little issue many fathers would like to clear up immediately; none of those Girl Scouts are your celibate-selfs young women. That statement reveals the Churchs patriarchal mindset that women, young or old, are the clergys property to control. That may have been the order of the day during Dark Age Europe, but this is 21st Century America. Apparently what has Archbishop Carlson exercising his religious freedom to issue a warning about those dangerous Girl Scouts is because the organization advocates for sex education and a commitment to reproductive rights. Since the organization is full-on evil for teaching young women about how to prevent unwanted pregnancies and sexually-transmitted diseases, the Archbishop demands oversight of individual Girl Scout troops to bring them into compliance with Catholic dogmata. Since the Archbishop is the man in the St. Louis area that sees the inherent evil in the Girl Scouts organization, he felt a pressing need to alert pastors in the area that he, Takes all of these concerns very seriously. Therefore, I am asking each pastor that allows Girl Scouts on parish property to conduct a meeting with troop leadership to review these concerns and discuss implementing alternative options for the formation of our girls. Our primary obligation is to help our girls grow as women of God. Several alternative Catholic or Christian organizations exist and I ask that you offer one of these programs instead of Girl Scouts. With about 4,000 Girl Scouts in the St. Louis area, it was no surprise that many parents, including those whose daughters attend Catholic schools, were not amused at the Archbishops warning and threats. They are definitely not happy according to Julie Mudd of St. Louis, They are too focused on other people the Girl Scouts may have some associations with rather than what our local girl scout chapters are actually doing. It all comes down to the fact they are threatened by anything that puts females in a leadership position. Ms. Mudd is correct, of course, but it is much more than the Churchs spiritual fear of women in leadership positions, it is fear of losing control. Nothing frightens patriarchs more than an organization dedicated to helping young women and girls cultivate courage, confidence, and character to make the world a better place. In fact, on the Archdiocese website it informs Girl Scout troop leaders to seriously evaluate all elements of the GS program to ensure it fulfills its duty to form our young women into Catholic women of God, and begin to look at alternatives that will form their young women into good Catholic women of god; whether they are Catholics or not. The website even counsels concerned Catholics asking can I still buy the cookies that each person must act in accord with their own conscience. But, only after each Catholic fulfills their duty to form their consciences and learn about the issues. The Archdiocese listed the issues on the website with a few important things every Catholic with the right conscience will consider when making their decision to buy, or not buy, those luscious Thin Mint cookies. There is a licensing fee attached to each box of Girl Scout cookies produced, paid to GSUSA that amounts to millions of dollars every year. Also, several other Archdioceses and Christian organizations issued separate warnings to severe ties with the Girl Scouts such as the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. The Missouri Right to Life has conducted comprehensive research into the Girl Scout issue and published their concerns as well. Finally, the Archdiocese noted that the National Catholic Register published several articles detailing ongoing and upcoming problems with the Girl Scouts in regards to pro-life, cookie sale, and transgender concerns. It is somewhat surprising that while the head of the Catholic Church, Pope Francis, is addressing income inequality and climate change, American Catholics are addressing what they regard as the threat of Girl Scouts not being formed into good Catholic women. The real issue is about the church, including the evangelical right, exerting control over women and inculcating into them that their duty as good Catholic women is to birth children without pause and not grow up to be women of courage, confidence, or character because neither the Catholic nor religious right patriarchs will be able to control them. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Email Print Iowas far right-wing talk radio host Steve Deace has a history of saying really stupid things, and were not talking about an analysis of polling methodology so appallingly flawed that it predicted another win for Cruz in South Carolina and even in Nevada. Nossir, rather we are talking about his threatening to eunuch himself over the faltering and apparently un-manly Cruz campaign. Huzzah! Of all the stupid things he has said, has to take top prize, and is at the same time, the most appealing. What drives his sudden thirst for genital self-mutilation? It turns out Deace is disgusted with the recent absence of the Ted Cruz alpha male conservative leader people fell in love with. I guess if Cruz wont be an alpha male, Deace has decided he wont be a male at all. As evidence, Deace cites Cruz playing hand-slap with Rubio instead of focusing on his real enemy, Trump, and apologies to Rubio and Carson. As Media Matters for America explains, Deace, who was part of Cruzs Iowa leadership team and has given his advice and name in support of the senator, has gone on a tirade against Cruz on social media, his nationally syndicated radio show, and in two parts on Conservative Review. He has denounced Cruzs current messaging and stance against Trump as weak, despite explaining that he is still a Cruz guy. What really got Deaces manly quest to exterminate his own manhood is Cruz showing weakness to Ben Carson, saying, If anyone with the Cruz campaign ever apologizes to Ben Carson again, I may eunuch myself. Well thatll show em! Here is the transcript courtesy of Media Matters for America: If anyone with the Cruz campaign ever apologizes to Ben Carson again, I may eunuch myself, which will make my wife very, very upset. I am desperate at this point. I will do anything, name it, name the price. As a Cruz guy, I will do anything the universe demands, that they never apologize to Ben Carson or really anybody else again. I dont think they should have apologized to Marco Rubio today. Well Steve, they put out a phony video. Yeah they did. It was dumb, and you know what they did, they fired the guy that did it. Thats all. All Ted needed to do was stand up there and say, Yeah this idiot did it. Hes fired. Hes gone. Thats why he is gone. Next question. I mean, why are we apologizing to people? [] The most craptastic figure thats ever attempted to run for president in the history of this republic, who right now has got 70 delegates , and second place has 11, and people want nice? They dont want nice. When your home is on fire, you have no idea, you have no idea when the firemen comes crashing through your front door to rescue your kids, you have no idea if he has kiddie porn on his computer at home. You dont know if he has got a tongue ring and a john account online. You dont know that and you dont care. You have to wonder if the Bible has a term for craptastic. The Bible is full of eunuchs, that is, castrated (i.e. de-balled) males, where they are called sarisim, from the Hebrew word for eunuch, saris. However, sarisim were never Jews, but its not too late for Deace to convert and be the first. Iowa conservatives would love that sort of dedication to the Bible, Im sure, no doubt followed by a trip to Pizza Ranch. Ted Cruz made a woman faint at an Iowa Pizza Ranch. Now he can make Steve Deace castrate himself. Who says God doesnt exist? On Monday, Deace went on his show to say of the South Carolina results, Third place is third place. There is no excuse for Ted Cruz to finish in third place in South Carolina. I love him, we are friends, but I dont believe in victims. Of course, he was in third place like Sanders was in third place in Iowa. The old adage is that pimpin aint easy. Try being a messiah. Deace took to the Conservative Review the same day to write that voters in South Carolina were sending Cruz a message, and I think that message is that they want him to go back to being that alpha male conservative leader that people fell in love with. It is arguable whether Ted Cruz was ever an alpha male. And one should certainly question a worldview that gives weight to the opinion of the Steve Deaces of the world. The truth is, Cruz cant even capture the evangelical vote. Pundits can argue over whether Trumps attacks on his citizenship factored into the voting, or whether Cruz is simply that unlikable, or whether there simply arent enough religious fanatics in America to win an election (an argument I have made here before on many occasions). Things have gotten so bad for poor Deace, who has already likened Trump followers to Pagans, that he tweeted this just after midnight Tuesday: The Republican Party that moment when the apostate denomination you're fighting for hires the Wiccan priestess as its new bishop. Steve Deace (@SteveDeaceShow) February 24, 2016 Steve Deace hitched his wagon to the wrong horse,and now he is blaming the lame, three-legged horse rather than his own judgment, with hilarious results. Its only a shame he didnt come up with this whole eunuch scheme before he reproduced. In the end, Deaces self-emasculation may end up being a metaphor for the entire Republican 2016 race. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Email Print The projected data in Nevada shows a big win for Donald Trump, and the Ted Cruz campaign in complete collapse after losing with conservative and evangelical voters. With only 5% of the vote in, Trump has already been projected as the winner with Marco Rubio in second place, and Ted Cruz sinking to third. If the second and third place results hold, it will be proof that Rubio has passed Cruz. There was much handwringing over Cruz after his Iowa win, but it has all been downhill for the Texas Republican since his caucus win in the Hawkeye State. Cruz fell to a surprise third place finish in South Carolina, and after his campaign had promoted an inaccurate video of Rubio, they fired the campaigns spokesperson. Ted Cruz is not going anywhere. He has lots of money and a lead in Cruzs home state of Texas. The Republican race is a three person race. A three or more candidate race benefits Donald Trump. The Republican Party is absolutely desperate to get the contest down to a one on one showdown between Trump and Rubio. The fact that Trump won with very conservative and evangelical voters suggests that Cruz has fallen way behind Trump with his own constituency. It is difficult to see how Cruz can beat Trump, and it is going to be difficult for him to pass Rubio. The Republican primary is increasingly becoming Donald Trumps race to lose. What Republicans dont want to face is that Donald Trump is running away with their nomination. In a few more weeks, the GOP might not be able to catch Trump. Democrats are very close to getting their wish of Donald Trump being the Republican nominee. Portfolio English Edition's premium content is available only for subscribers Learn about the hottest news of the day, along with immediate follow-up analyses and 1000's of exclusive articles with full access to the premium content. Register and apply for a 14 days free trial period. The Center, founded in 1985, is an environmental organization dedicated to protecting the environment, enhancing human, animal and plant ecologies, promoting the efficient use of natural resources and expanding participation in the environmental movement. Bob Reis passed away Feb. 21, 2016, with his living angel, Linda Hyde, by his side. His four children, Mhdlon (Byron Mozis), Lynn (David Stalker), Robert Reis (Lily,) and Pennie (Joe Eisenbeis), were able to spend Bob's final days with him, reminiscing and affirming to their father the wonderful legacy he leaves. Robert Raymond Reis was born in St. Louis, Mo. Bob enlisted in the Navy at the age of 18. His many duties as a sailor included the upkeep of his battleship's grey painted exterior. From that time on, a paint brush was forever in his hand. His passion for painting turned into his lifetime profession as an artist. His beautiful paintings are now enjoyed by art lovers all across the U.S. Bob moved his family to Minnesota in 1953. There he founded King Productions, a successful store design company. Bob married his high school sweetheart, Joy (Wenger), enjoying 54 years of marriage until Joy's death in 2001. They lovingly raised their four children in Bloomington, Minn., and upon retirement, were able to fulfill their dream to own a lake home in Aitkin, Minn. Memories of bonfires, starry nights and storytelling will live on forever in their four children, nine grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. After moving to Rochester, Bob met his soulmate, Linda Hyde, who enriched his life with love and laughter. He embraced his faith and was a member of Pax Christi Catholic Church in Rochester. Bob was a true giver. He volunteered time, money and ideas for most of his life while active in the Lions Club, Knights of Columbus, and DFL. Bob was a dedicated volunteer with the Kinship program which assisted troubled youth in Aitkin. Through his example of volunteerism and his tenacious fight against cancer and heart disease, he instilled in his children the idea that we are on this Earth to give, not to take; to never give up; and to always see the beauty around us. Bob is also survived by his sister, Anne Heuvelman, of St. Louis. Services will be held Thursday, Feb. 25, at Pax Christi Church in Rochester. Visitation will be at 1 p.m., service at 2 p.m. and fellowship at 3 p.m. In lieu of flowers, please donate to: Pax Christi Men's Club, Pax Christi Knights of Columbus, and the Rochester Area Family YMCA's LiveSTRONG Cancer Survivor Program. Mahn Family Funeral Home-Rochester Chapel is in charge of arrangements. Friends may share a memory at www.mahnfamilyfuneralhome.com. Yes, at the GEC voting center at the Westin. Yes, at one of the satellite voting centers open on Saturdays. No; I'm voting on Nov. 8. No; I'm not voting in the general election. Vote View Results With new polls out showing continuing strength for Trump and not much movement by any of the other candidates, Im starting to think Trump may prove to be unstoppable. And the more I look back on it, the more this election cycle reminds me of . . . 1976. The genius of Jimmy Carter was to understand that after Johnson and Nixon, what the country wanted in a president was someone who taught Sunday school. The genius of Trump is to understand that after the unhappy Bush presidency and the divisiveness of Obama, a large plurality of Americans wants someone who will smash up the existing orderthe details of how are not important. It didnt matter that Carter was inexperienced, that he was out of step with the mainstream of the Democratic Party, and that his positions on the issues were all over the map. It was his persona that carried him. Most importantly, a Stop Carter movement by Democratic Party regulars never got traction. In fact Carter is why the Democrats created superdelegatesso theyd never get taken by a Carter again. (Instead, they landed on Dukakis when Jesse Jackson looked ascendant in 1988. That was a great idea.) Heres my account of some of that campaign from volume 1 of The Age of Reagan (which I wrote more than 15 years ago): Even though Carter had never topped 54 percent in any contested primary, did not win a single head-to-head race, and lost eight of the last 15 primaries, he nevertheless went into the Democratic convention with a solid lock on the nomination. Sixty-four percent of delegates told an NBC survey that they had reservations about Carter, but it was too late; a series of Stop Carter movements among party liberals never gained traction. Sounds kind of like now. We forget now that Carter was publicly crude in ways that sound like Trump: Yet a number of persistent traits seemed to belie his image of a straightforward, upright character. In 1979 he attracted public attention by remarking at a press luncheon that if Sen. Ted Kennedy challenged him for the Democratic nomination in 1980, he (Carter) would whip his ass. This was old hat to journalists who had covered Carter in 1976, when kiss my ass was Carters frequent and favorite epithet. Im glad I dont have to kiss his ass, Carter said of Ted Kennedy in May, 1976, when he (Carter) was closing in on the nomination. When a journalist asked Carter what would he do if a member of his Cabinet lied to Congress, Carter snapped, Id fire his ass. Like Trump, Carter was also capable of surviving a number of gaffes and rhetorical blunders that may not have been unintentional: The biggest flap of his campaign occurred in April 1976 when, during questioning about integration issues, Carter blurted out: I see nothing wrong with ethnic purity being maintained. I would not force a racial integration of a neighborhood by government action. The reporter conducting the interview, Sam Roberts of the New York Daily News, buried the quote in a jump paragraph that appeared on page 134 of the paper. Rather than disappearing, however, the phrase ethnic purity ignited a firestorm. Under fierce questioning four days later, Carter poured gasoline on the fire: What I say is that the government ought not to take as a major purpose the intrusion of alien groups into a neighborhood simply to establish their intrusion. This catapulted the story onto the front page of the New York Times and onto the TV network news. Ethnic purity and alien intrusion were red flags to liberals and civil rights groups, and Carter had to work mightily to mend fences. But was it an unintentional slip? This flap arose after Carter had vanquished Wallace in the Florida primary, and on the eve of a series of crucial northern primaries in states where Wallace had done well previously. Careful observers noted that while Carter included Martin Luther King, Jr. on his roster of great Americans, he conveniently omitted Kings name before audiences of southern or suburban whites. Carter knew that Democrats had been losing the votes of suburban voters in the north because of busing and integration. Sounds similar to Trumps remarks on immigration, no? And rather than hurting him, its been a source of his strength. You can draw your own further parallels and conclusions from here. My work is done. For close followers of developments in the Nigerian petroleum industry, last Tuesdays reconstitution of the National Stakeholders Working Group (NSWG) of the Nigerian Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) by President Muhammadu Buhari, held more than an ordinary meaning. Few weeks ago, concerns mounted about Nigeria facing the embarrassing consequence of being suspended from the global transparency and accountability group, the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI). The countrys membership status in the group currently hangs in the balance. When the EITIs Deputy Head/Regional Director for Africa & the Middle East, Eddie Reich, visited Abuja recently, he warned that Nigeria ran the risk of being suspended from the group for failing to satisfy one of the key guidelines for compliant member-countries. One of those fundamental guidelines is that implementing countries must mandatorily ensure the publication of the audit report on the activities of their extractive industries latest by the last day of the preceding business year. Nigeria, which had been acknowledged as a model in compliance with the EITI rules and standards over the years, has been excluded from the list of the 45 countries that have so far published their audit reports in line with acceptable standards and regulations. Mr. Reich, who spoke in Abuja during the recent visit to Nigeria of the newly-elected EITI international Chair, Fredrik Reinfeldt, said for failing to meet the deadline for the release, submission and publication of the 2013 NEITI oil and gas audit report, Nigeria may be sanctioned. Nigerias failure to publish approved report of the audit of its extractive industry on or before the deadline of December 31 every year breached EITI regulations, rules and standards expected of compliant member countries, Mr. Reich said. To be fair, NEITIs inability to submit the report before the deadline was not entirely its fault. It was a result of the peculiar political circumstance the agency found itself. Shortly after his assumption of office on May 29, 2015, President Buhari had ordered the immediate dissolution of the Boards of about 247 federal government agencies and parastatals in August last year. One of the affected agencies was NEITI. But, the presidents decision did not envisage the international consequences affecting NEITIs mandate today, particularly the gains of its implementation of the EITI process in Nigeria. Without the Board in place, Nigerias preparedness for the validation of its EITI membership status this month was sure to be put in jeopardy. The EITI guidelines recognise the Board of the implementing countries as the only acceptable authority with the power to approve and publish audit reports. Therefore, although the acting Executive Secretary of NEITI, Ogbonnanya Orji, said the report of the audit had been ready long before the expiration of the December 31, 2015 deadline, it could not be published as a result of the August 2015 dissolution of the Board. During his visit to Nigeria, Mr. Reinfeldt said that he was not certain how Nigeria would escape the sanctions, which may include the countrys suspension from the group during the EITI International Board meeting in Lima, Peru on February 22. Although he said reasons by NEITI for missing the deadline were understandable, Nigerias sanctions would be guided by the EITI rules and regulations. Regardless, the new EITI Chair said Nigeria still stood a chance of escaping the sanctions if the federal government made a swift move, by immediately reconstituting the NEITI Board to enable it approve the pending audit report. I cant say with any confidence, which way the decision would go (at Lima). But, there is a significant possibility of Nigerias suspension. Nigeria may however escape being suspended from the global Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) if the federal government moves swiftly within six months to remedy the limitations to its membership status. The country has the opportunity of getting the suspension automatically lifted if the audit reports are published within the next six months, Mr. Reich explained. That, perhaps, is why the announcement of the reconstituted Board on Tuesday, a day after the international Board meeting began in Lima, Peru, was crucial. The new board, which has cerebral journalist, Waziri Adio, as head of its secretariat as executive secretary, includes the Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Kayode Fayemi, as Chairman, as well as the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Finance; President, Miners Association of Nigeria, and his counterpart in the Nigeria Mining and Geosciences Society as members. Other members include the Group Managing Director, Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Ibe Kachikwu; President, Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas (NUPENG), Igwe Achese and representatives of the six geo-political zones and Civil Society Organizations. With the Board now in place, the immediate challenge is for its members to settle down quickly to work and ensure that the approval process for the report is established and the published document summited to the EITI secretariat within the allowable period. The approval and publication of the audit report would automatically restore Nigeria to her position in the EITI group. The National leadership of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN), on Wednesday, frowned at the manner in which sacked chief executives of regulatory agencies in the oil and gas industry handed over to their successors. President Muhammadu Buhari had last week removed the Chief Executive officers of the Petroleum Technology Development Fund (PTDF); Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB); Petroleum Equalization Fund (PEF), and Petroleum Product Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA). However, despite the Secretary to the Government of the Federations memo directing the former heads of the agencies to handover to the most senior officials in their respective organisations, PENGASSAN said most of them breached the presidential directive for ulterior motives. The Acting General Secretary of PENGASSAN, Lumumba Okugbawa, expressed concern over the handling of the succession formalities at the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA) where two acting Executive Secretaries currently hold sway. PENGASSAN is urgently calling on the Federal Government to respect its own directive with regards to the handing-over process and request all parties involved to revert to the status quo, pending the final resolution of the matter, the PENGASSAN secretary stated. He said due to the sensitive nature of the PPPRAs functions and activities, the oil workers union was looking forward to a prompt resolution of the issue to stem the consequences of a prolonged industrial unrest. PENGASSAN as a responsible association will be open to dialogue and meaningful engagement in finding amicable resolution to this embarrassment, Mr Okugbawa said. On Monday, members of the PPPRA Branch of PENGASSAN staged a protest outside the headquarters of the agency in Abuja over alleged imposition of a new Executive Secretary, Stephanie Iyoyo. Mrs. Iyoyo, a General Manager, HSE of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), was said to have arrived the PPPRA on Monday to resume office as the acting Executive Secretary barely four days after the former occupier of the office, Farouk Ahmed, had handed over to Moses Mbaba, the most senior official of the agency. Mrs. Iyoyo did not respond to calls to her phone seeking her side of the story. The chairman of the PPPRA chapter of PENGASSAN, Victor Ononokpono, said Mrs. Iyoyos arrival provoked a coordinated resistance by the protesting workers who said they would not accept any attempt to continue imposing NNPC officials on the agency We would not accept an arrangement where staff of the NNPC, which is the operator/marketing arm of the petroleum industry, would continue to be posted to manage the PPPRA, the regulating arm. This is unprofessional and detrimental to PPPRAs role in the industry, Mr. Ononokpono told the protesting workers. While calling on the anti-graft agencies, namely the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and related crimes Commission (ICPC) to investigate the management of the immediate administration in the PPPRA, Mr. Ononokpono said government should clarify without further delay, who is in charge of the PPPRA. South African mobile phone operator, MTN Group, withdrew its lawsuit against Nigerias National Communications Commission, over a N780 billion fine, and paid N50 billion toward a possible settlement. A judge in Lagos last month gave both parties until March 18 to reach a settlement. The settlement was opted for after MTN had asked the court to arbitrate over the dispute, saying the NCC had no legal grounds to order the fine. MTN said it would withdraw its court challenge in an effort to reach an amicable settlement and make a good faith payment of N50 billion toward a possible settlement. The group makes most of its sales in Nigeria. This is a sign that the fine could be reduced much further. There is some sort of negotiation taking place and the parties are migrating toward a common ground, said Dobek Pater, Managing Director of Africa Analysis. Nigeria has been trying to halt the widespread use of unregistered SIM cards amid worries they are being used for criminal activity, including by the Islamist group, Boko Haram. MTN said in a statement that it resolved to withdraw the case in response to a request by the NCC to afford it the chance to negotiate an amicable settlement. MTN Nigeria Chief Executive Officer, Ferdi Moolman, said the decision to withdraw the case was to create a conducive atmosphere for further negotiations with the Nigerian authorities. This is a most encouraging development, Mr. Noolman said. It demonstrates a willingness and sincerity by both parties to work together towards a positive outcome. The NCC had imposed a N1.04 trillion fine on MTN Nigeria in October 2015, for its failure to disconnect 5.1 million improperly registered lines within the prescribed deadline. The penalty was based on fining the company N200, 000 for every unregistered SIM card in use. Although the fine was subsequently reduced by 25 percent to N780 billion, MTN Nigeria had refused to pay, saying doing so could force the company to go under. The company later went to court. Mr. Moolman said with the withdrawal of the court case and the payment of N50 billion that the company was hopeful about reaching an amicable resolution of the crisis soon. Along with the authorities (NCC), it is clear that we are collectively committed to working towards a solution that is of mutual benefit to all parties. Our industry in Nigeria is an incredibly important example of the remarkable progress in ICT, particularly as a much needed catalyst for socio-economic growth and development at this time, Mr. Moolman said. It is not clear whether the NCC has accepted the condition or terms under which the case was withdrawn by MTN. The Director of Communication, NCC, Tony Ojobo, told PREMIUM TIMES it was too early to comment. He did not elaborate. A Lugbe Grade 1 Area Court in the FCT on Wednesday sentenced three labourers to two months imprisonment each for stealing 67 tubers of yam. The convicts are Isiaka Hassan, 21; Aminu Amodu, 25; and Sani Isah, 25 all residents of Kapwa Village, Airport Road, Abuja. The judge, Garba Ogbede, however, gave the convicts an option of N6, 000 fine each. He warned them to desist from committing crime and ordered that the 67 tubers of yam should be returned to the owner. The convicts could not pay the fines and were taken to Kuje Prisons. The trio had pleaded guilty to the charges of stealing and conspiracy and begged for leniency. Following the guilty plea by the accused, the prosecutor urged the court to try them summarily under Section 347 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015. Earlier, Prosecutor Ndidi Ukaoha told the court that the complainant, Sakoma Yeyeyi of Lugbe Primary School, Airport Road, Abuja, reported the incident at Lugbe Police Station on Feb. 17. She said the accused went to Yeyeyis farm near River Park Estate, Abuja, and harvested 67 tubers of yam. Hassan and his colleagues were apprehended and handed over to the police immediately on Feb.17. The offences contravened the provisions of Section 79 and 287 of the Penal Code, Laws of the Federation. (NAN) The immediate past acting chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, Uche Secondus, arrested Tuesday by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, illegally received 23 luxury vehicles valued at N310 million from controversial businessman, Jide Omokore, PREMIUM TIMES has learnt. A source at the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, said the vehicles included a Mercedes G63 and a Range Rover Autobiography. His (Mr. Secondus) name popped up while we were investigating Jide Omokore who lifted crude oil repeatedly through his Atlantic Energy but failed to remit the money to the government, said the source. Nigerian government insiders had told PREMIUM TIMES two weeks ago that Mr. Omokore had been compelled to release $14 million crude oil royalty his company, Atlantic Energy Drilling Concepts Nigeria Limited, failed to remit to the federal treasury. Mr. Secondus was picked up by the anti-graft operatives on Tuesday after investigators suspected he had served as a conduit for laundering Mr. Omokores funds. Mr. Omokore distributed money and gifts to politicians and investigators are suspicious that actually those money and vehicles might have passed through him (Mr. Secondus) to other politicians, the source said. Mr. Omokore incorporated his company in 2010 and, shortly afterwards, signed a Strategic Alliance Agreement with the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company, the upstream production subsidiary of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation. Under the agreement, Atlantic Energy took charge of providing funds, technical services, drill, and selling of crude from four oil blocks OML 26 FHN, OML 30 Shoreline, OML 34 Niger-Delta Oil, and OML 42 Neconde. The company was later accused of lifting crude oil but remitting only a fraction of its worth to the Nigerian government. Mr. Secondus is currently undergoing interrogation at the Commissions headquarters. Reacting to Mr. Secondus arrest, the PDP criticized the federal governments oppressive and unfair treatments of its key leaders. In a statement on Wednesday, the party said the arrest was part of a grand script by the All Progressives Congress-led government to decimate the opposition. We are also aware that plans have been perfected by the federal government to arrest and detain the Deputy Senate President, Senator Ike Ekweremadu, Senate Minority Leader, Senator Godswill Akpabio and other leaders of the party on imaginary charges, the party said in the statement signed by Victor Kwon, its National Legal Adviser. Indeed, intelligence available to the party shows that the federal government, using its various agencies, is bent on destroying any opposition to the ruling party as all indications show that the government is more interested in humiliating the PDP than fighting corruption. President Muhammadu Buharis administration is in government purely for the Nigerian people and is always open to talk and dialogue, according to Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo. We are here for the people, if not for the people, we will not be here. We got here by the grace of God and the votes of the man on the street who felt it is time for change. Mr. Osinbajo spoke on Tuesday in Abuja, when a delegation of the Trade Union Congress (TUC) visited him at the Presidential Villa. He said it is important to the Buhari Presidency to talk and dialogue, even if we disagree, we must still talk. The reason is that the government itself is the government of the people. Prof. Osinbajo stated that nobody is in government by inheritance, adding we are here today because the people chose us and that is the reason we must be prepared to listen to issues that concern Nigerians. Mr. Osinbajo explained that government had set out a number of initiatives to better the lot of ordinary Nigerians. He listed them as the six social investment programmes for which N500 billion has been earmarked in the 2016 appropriation bill, among others. Mr. Osinbajo told the union leaders that government would take a look at all the issues raised carefully. He recalled that the Buhari administration packaged a bailout for workers last year, and added that no government, especially the Buhari administration would want to punish the people. We are here for the people and we want to identify with the people, he added. On the new electricity tariff, the Vice President urged the union to not just condemn it. We are open to your suggestions, but it is not enough to say it is a wicked tariff. We must answer the question how, referring to the challenge of compensating the electricity value-chain. Mr. Osinbajo enjoined all Nigerians to support government in the fight against corruption, adding: if you dont fight corruption, you cannot even deal with the economy. You need to hold corrupt people accountable because they stole the money meant for the economy. Commenting on the extent of damage that the corruption of past government caused, he observed that our sense of outrage is nowhere near what has happened. Some people are even arguing why are we going after the looters that we should concentrate on the economy. But if we dont fight corruption, we cant deal with the economy effectively. According to him, what has happened in this country is criminal. Earlier, the TUC President, Bobboi Kaigama, said the visit was to avail the Congress the opportunity to discuss with the Vice President on some pertinent issues affecting the nation, especially the working class. The TUC also expressed support for the Buhari administrations zero-tolerance for corruption. According to Kaigama, Nigerian workers are solidly behind you in the fight against corruption, we are ready to come out in solidarity and show our support. In another meeting, Vice President Osinbajo expressed Federal Governments commitment to tackle the decline in the education sector. He stated this when he received a delegation of the Afenifere Renewal Group, led by Olawale Oshun, who lamented recent poor performance in education across the country and especially in the South-West. He also urged the Federal Government to review the existing educational policy and called for devolution of powers towards achieving true federalism in the country. (NAN) The Envoy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to Nigeria, John Groffen, on Wednesday said that about 60 Nigerians last year benefited from the scholarships of the Netherlands Fellowship Programme (NFP). Mr. Groffen told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos that the NFP scholarships had afforded the Nigerian beneficiaries the opportunities to study in different educational institutions in the Netherlands. We have a Netherlands Fellowship Programme (NFP), which enables Nigerians to study in the Netherlands. In 2015, more than 60 Nigerians benefited from our scholarship programme under the NFP, which enabled them to study in the Netherlands, he said. The envoy expressed satisfaction at the growing level of educational and cultural exchanges between Nigeria and the Netherlands. Mr. Groffen said that his government was looking forward to more future cooperation with Nigeria in the area of educational exchanges. The Netherlands representative in Nigeria also said that there were currently about 30 Dutch companies in different parts of Nigeria. He also said that many more Dutch companies had indicated interest in coming to invest and do business in Nigeria. According to him, some Dutch companies are still making inquiries about the legal framework, government and central bank policies, as well as Nigerias overall favourable investment environment. Mr. Groffen, therefore, said that it was imperative for the Nigerian government to create the appropriate environment that would attract more foreign investments to Nigeria. (NAN) President Muhammadu Buhari has been commended for the quality of cabinet members he has appointed to drive the change agenda of the Federal Government. John Odigie-Oyegun, the National Chairman, All Progressives Congress (APC), gave the commendation on Wednesday in Abuja when he received the FCT Minister, Muhammad Bello, who paid him a courtesy visit. He said that the calibre of appointees like the FCT Minister would move the Federal Capital Territory to enviable heights considering his pedigree. The economy of the country was plunged into a sorry state by the previous governments. This is in addition to the down turn of oil price, which has remained the nations major source of revenue thereby making things very difficult, he said. Mr. Oyegun said that if previous governments had diversified the countrys economy all these years, the situation would have been better today. He commended the FCT Minister for the visit, and assured that the APC would work closely with the FCT Minister and the FCT administration to take Abuja to the next level. On the forthcoming FCT Area Councils election, the National Chairman promised to support the FCT Chapter of the APC to deliver the Councils to the party. He stressed the need for teamwork among party faithful to ensure that the APC emerge victorious in the elections. Speaking earlier, the FCT Minister promised to work closely with the party in his efforts to deliver the desired change agenda of the Federal Government. While reminding the chairman of the Area Councils elections slated for March 19, Mr. Bello solicited the support of the partys headquarters to enable the FCT chapter win the polls. We are here to pay homage as loyal party men and to tap from the wisdom of its leadership which transcend several decades, he said. (NAN) By Ebuka Onyeji and Oshi Timothy Members of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, who served as ministers between 1999 and 2015, have rejected the appointment of former Borno State governor, Modu Sheriff, as the chairman of the party. The ministers made their position known in a communique issued at the end of their meeting in Abuja on Tuesday. The communique was signed by a former Minister of Special Duties, Tanimu Turaki. All the organs of the PDP except the Board of Trustees, BoT, had last week approved the appointment of the former Borno governor. The BoT later accepted Mr. Sheriff after a meeting with the PDP governors forum on Tuesday. The forum of ministers however insisted that it rejects Alhaji Ali Modu Sheriff as National Chairman of the PDP due to the illegitimacy of the process that purportedly brought him in. The former ministers said the PDP must conduct congresses at all levels of the party, leading to a National convention that should be held before March 28 to return power to the people in tandem with the constitution of our Party and as encapsulated in our partys motto: Power to the People. The forum condemns all acts of impunity in the running of the affairs of the party, at all levels and implores all members to respect the constitution of the party and that of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, the communique said. Sheriff, Fani-Kayode in war of words Mr. Sheriff and the PDP have come under fire from some members of the party since his emergence, over allegations tying him to the insurgent group, Boko Haram. Chief among the former governors critics is a former aviation minister, Femi Fani-Kayode, who lamented the decision of the partys organs to appoint Mr. Sheriff despite his alleged Boko Haram links. While taking over from the former acting national chairman, Uche Secondus, Mr. Sheriff HAD threatened Mr. Fani-Kayode, saying the former minister will not go scot free this time. The ministers forum noted the threat with dismay saying, The forum considers a threat to one as a threat to all. Mr. Fani-Kayode himself had shortly before the commencement of the meeting took a swipe at Mr. Sheriff. Addressing reporters, the former aviation minister said, My first question is who is Ali Modu Sheriff? Is he a Nigerian or a Chadian? Or both? Secondly you are claiming to be national chairman and wants to move the party forward, the first thing you do is to start issuing threats? The fact of the matter is that he wants to set Nigeria on fire and also wants to set PDP on fire and that fire is going to consume him and him alone. With regards to his personal threats to me, I am more than ready for him and I assure him that unlike anybody he has ever met before in his life, he will meet a resistance he never me before. President Muhammadu Buhari said Tuesday in Riyadh that his administration was fully committed to increasing the productivity of Nigerias agriculture and solid minerals sectors to save the nation from the harsh effects of lower crude oil prices. Speaking at a meeting with leading members of the Council of Saudi Arabias Chambers of Commerce and Industry, President Buhari said with declining revenues from crude oil exports, Nigerias hopes of economic resurgence now lie in the rapid development of its immense agricultural and solid mineral resources. Inviting Saudi Arabian businessmen to invest in both sectors, the president said his administration would welcome greater foreign investment in support of its efforts to rapidly diversify the Nigerian economy. President Buhari said that Nigeria had regrettably depended too much on crude oil exports to the neglect of other resources and was now paying a harsh price for failing to diversify its economy early enough. With the downturn in the global prices of oil, we now have to prospect our solid minerals. We have to return to agriculture. Mining and agriculture are our hopes now. We will welcome investments in these areas. We will appreciate an in-flow of more resources and expertise to help us achieve our objective of economic diversification, the president said. The governors of Osun, Ogun, Katsina, Borno, and Zamfara states, who were part of the presidents delegation, took turns to address the Saudi Arabian businessmen on investment possibilities in their states, assuring them of good returns. The Chairman of the Council of the Saudi Arabian Chambers of Commerce and Industry, Abdulrahman Al Zamil, said agriculture was a very important area of investment for its members, adding that they were already in Brazil, the United States of America and Sudan, where we have huge farms. Declaring that they were willing to invest in Nigeria, Mr. Al Zamil said that the Saudis were the leading investors in Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia, Kenya and Ethiopia. Some members of the House of Representatives from on Wednesday urged defiant senator, Kabiru Marafa, to respect the sanctity of the legislature. Mr. Marafa, an outspoken critic of the senate president, Bukola Saraki, is under investigation by the Senate Ethics committee after his colleagues accused him of disparaging the Senate in a newspaper interview. Mr. Marafa denied the allegation, and accused Senators of lying against him and being afraid of him because of their atrocities. Eleven members of the House of the House of Representatives said in a statement on Wednesday that Mr. Marafa, who represents Zamfara Central, should allow popular will of the senators who elected the leadership of the Senate override his personal interest. The lawmakers said they became interested in the matter after realising that Mr. Marafas attacks on Mr. Saraki, were misconceived. The statement said the attacks had started to cast a slur on the integrity of the entire National Assembly over which the Senate President presides as chairman. It is indeed regrettable that eight months after the contest for leadership in the Senate ended, Marafa and his group have remained in electioneering mode they said. According to the statement, Mr. Marafas claim that there were fifth columnists working against the interest of the executive in the Senate, was not in order. The statement said that any right thinking Nigerian would know that the budget as presented had a number of challenges which needed the collaborative efforts of both arms of government to sort out. According to the statement, Mr. Marafas suggestion that the National Assembly was behind the current budget hiccup was unfortunate. The News Agency of Nigeria NAN) reports that those who signed the statement are Kabir Ajanah, Mustafa Dawaki, Gaza Gbefwi, Supo Adeola, Adamu Kamale, Rita Orji, and Chukwueke Anohu. Others are Zakari Mohammed, Gabriel Onyewife, Ali Issa and Victor Nwokolo. (NAN) The leadership tussle within the Proples Democratic Party in Ondo State resurged on Tuesday as a factional chairman of the party, Olu Ogunye, submitted a parallel list of candidates for the coming local council election. Mr. Ogunye is insisting that he is the authentic chairman of the party, and that he was chosen by authentic members of the party, backed by a Federal High Court ruling. He told journalists in Akure on Tuesday that the judgment declared that the former chairman of the party, Ebenezer Alabi and other state, local and ward executives in the state, had a tenure of four years from March I0, 2012 to March 9th 2016 . He said following the resignation of Mr. Alabi and other members of his executive, he remained the authentic chairman of the PDP in the state. Mr. Ogunye said the list of candidates for the forthcoming local government elections raised by the Clement Faboyede- led PDP faction was illegal. He said Mr. Faboyede was not the state chairman of the party and lacked the capacity to conduct the business of the party in whatever guise. I and my Executive Committee are pleased to inform you that we have no issue with the date and the election, we wish to call the attention of the public to a cog that may stop the process of the election, he said. You are aware of the circumstances that brought me into office as PDP chairman in Ondo state. My ascension was validated by the judgement of Justice Ademola of the Federal High Court , Abuja. The said judgement was delivered on the 28th November, 2014. In our capacity as the official agents of the party in Ondo state, we have organised and conducted party primaries for the chairmanship and councillorship aspirants of our party using the statutory delegates recognised by law. We hereby state clearly that Hon. Faboyede Clement is not the state chairman of the PDP and that he lacks the capacity to conduct the business of the party in any guise, especially a constitutional role of the substantive of the party, he said. However, the partys Publicity Secretary in the state, Banji Okunomo, described Mr. Ogunye as a clown and a dreamer. For anyone to at this stage want to masquerade himself as the chairman of the party in the state, having gone this far, is an exercise in futility, Mr. Okunomo said. He maintained that there was no faction within PDP in the state, stating that Ogunye and his executive had ceased to be members of the party in the state. No faction within PDP in Ondo state and there is no contention as to the authenticity of the Chairmanship position occupied by Faboyede and his executive, Mr. Okunomo said. I want to regard this as a rumour and a huge joke which is far from the truth and cannot hold water. The Osun Government on Wednesday banned the use of cell phones and motorcycles by students in public secondary schools across the state. The states Deputy Governor, Titilayo Laoye-Tomori, gave the order in Osogbo during the Education Stakeholders Meeting with representatives from five local government areas. Laoye-Tomori said the ban became imperative in order to instill discipline in the states public secondary schools. She decried the poor performance of the students during internal and external examinations, saying the results did not reflect the huge spending in educational reforms. The deputy governor then urged communities to set up committees that would monitor activities of students in schools in their localities as means of checkmating them. She said, due to the unruly behaviour of some students, any student caught with cell phone, charms or dangerous objects would be expelled from school. (NAN) The Cuban Ambassador to Nigeria, Carlos Sosa, has said that the Ooni of Ife is the spiritual father of most Cubans all over the world. Mr. Sosa spoke Tuesday while hosting Enitan Ogunwusi, the Ooni of Ife, at the embassy of the Republic of Cuba in Abuja. Ooni is the Spiritual father of most of us Cubans all over the world because 90 percent of Cubans are black Africans and a very large portion of us originated from Yorubaland which is spiritually headed by Ooni of Ife, said Mr. Sosa. Mr. Sosa said the Cubans originated from Ile-Ife, a town they call their ancestral home and which they cannot wish away. The High Commissioner spoke of the tourism potentials of Nigeria, particularly in Ile Ife, describing the ancient town as home to numerous tourist attractions, which he said if developed to international standards, would help Nigeria economically. The coordinator of the event and Chief Executive Officer of La Campagne Tropicana Beach Resort, Lagos, Wale Akinboboye, called on Nigerian investors to join hands with the federal government in developing tourism potentials as a way of attracting more foreigners to the country. Sally Mbanefo, the Director General of the Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation, said the Nigerian government would give credence to tourism business in the country, adding that tourism was Nigerias untapped goldmine. The first thing is to diversify the economy, then the Public Private Participation be encouraged; we need to fight for domestic tourism, we have the population as our greatest strength, Mrs. Mbanefo said. If 20 million out of 170 million Nigerians travel to explore tourism activities, will that not translate to huge revenue generation because you cant stop Nigerians from traveling. What about private organization such as telecomm companies, they make so much money but are they giving back to the society? Government cannot do it alone, they need to come in. Though some of these states are ready like Lagos, Ogun, Nassarawa, Abia, even Kaduna state are all ready to go. Collaboration is all we need; collaboration with other government agencies success. Does Marty Haynes have what it takes to make the tough decisions? The kind that put the taxpayers of Hamilton County ahead of his own personal ambitions? At tomorrow's Commission meeting, the commissioners will have to make one of those tough decisions, and it could cost you and me-- the taxpayers-- millions and millions of dollars in a forced tax increase. The sheriff is asking for an additional retirement plan called the Bridge Plan. This gives a select few officers an additional retirement on top of their current retirement, while not extending that same courtesy to anyone else. If passed, these upper echelon officers can retire early at the age of 55, providing they have their years of service in. This may seem like a great plan, but there are some key problems with it. The plan forces the other officers to retire, whether they want to or not, at the age of 60. By far, the most egregious offense of the Bridge Plan is that it will force our county property taxes to go way up. If Commissioner Haynes supports this, he will then have to fund it. The only way to raise money for county government is a forced tax increase. The city of Chattanooga is more than $10 million behind on their law enforcement Drop Plan. Memphis is more than $20 million behind on their version of an upgraded retirement plan. These schemes stink of cronyism, and they are simply not working. So, will Commissioner Haynes vote to do the right thing and vote No because we can not afford this or a tax increase at this time? Or will he let a handful of officers threaten and intimidate him, because he cares more about his bid to become our next tax assessor than he does the people he is asking to vote for him? Look at Commissioner Haynes' record of folding under pressure. According to his public voting record, he voted: ~ Wrong on the ticket cameras. He asked for a re-vote. ~ Wrong on the Walmart at Middle Valley. He claimed he needed more time and offered a re-vote. ~ Wrong on the whiskey vote, and gave no real clue to his motivations there. ~ Wrong on the Commission Chairman vote. In 2014, the commissioners had to vote nine times because Commissioner Haynes wanted to engineer the vote in his favor. In 2015, he voted for the current chairman, but when this upset his supporters, he then tried to have the chairman, vice-chairman, and the chairman of finance removed for a re-vote. ~ He was also one of the commissioners who signed the secret letter that became so publicized regarding the plot for the commissioners to set their own rate of pay. Commissioner Haynes displays a solid pattern of being willing to vote however it will best help himself. We see this same problem with a few Presidential candidates this season, and the people are growing tired of it. To Commissioner Haynes, please do the right thing here the first time. Vote No on the Bridge Plan. This plan will cost the taxpayers millions and millions of dollars, and is a 50-year commitment if it passes. There is no re-vote with this kind of thing. Once you're in, you're in for good. Show the entire county that you actually do have what it takes to be a good leader, and vote No tomorrow. Do you have Hamilton County taxpayers' best interests at heart, or will you take the easy way out just to get in good with the officers? This vote will determine whether you can be a good tax assessor, or just another department head trying to benefit yourself. Bill Tate * * * In the closing days of a highly contested political campaign, the public has come to expect opinion letters sent in under generic names. These letters are often baseless and full of misinformation and not a true representation of the facts. I will be happy to review the highlights of my voting record. The County Commission's discretionary spending is now listed on line for all to see thanks to my efforts in 2013. Fulfilling a campaign promise from 2012. Any of $900,000 allocated by a commissioner is available for the public is on the county website. When faced with with taking money from the county's reserve fund this year for special projects, I voted to protect to the taxpayers dollars by not taking money from the reserve fund. In August of last year I returned the taxpayers' money to the reserve fund. Earlier this session, I did not sign a letter to send to the state legislature to raise taxes on cigarettes. Just a few actions/votes that seem to me to be conservative. As to the attacks regarding other votes: ~ There was no re-vote on the grocery store in Middle Valley. There was a delay to allow for more public input and meetings. I believe it's always a good thing to engage the public on difficult votes. The majority of folks I received messages from were opposed to the store. I simply voted the wishes of those who lived closest to the proposed store. ~ Whether we like it or not, whiskey is a legal product. Chattanooga Whiskey was being distilled in Indiana. They wanted to move to Tennessee. I would much rather have a legal product made in Hamilton County than elsewhere in the state. ~The two manually operated speed cameras were approved in a combined committee and Commission meeting with little to no public input. After hearing from several residents in District 3, I made the motion the next week to overturn the previous weeks vote. The cameras were never purchased. ~The vote for chairman in 2014 lasted several rounds because two commissioners opted to pass on their votes after the first round of voting. When it became apparent they were not going to vote - I pulled my name from consideration. ~Regarding the vote for chairman in 2015, I proudly voted for Chester Bankston and Randy Fairbanks. I will not rehash the rumors and misinformation regrading what truly happened. As I have said to anyone who asked I stand by my decision to not pursue a revote. ~I did not sign the letter that was sent to Nashville in December of 2015 to remove the Commission salary from being tied to the county mayor's pay. Again, I am happy to discuss my public voting record. But when we do, let's share all the facts and not a warped view from someone obviously in the campaign of a political rival. I do look forward to serving as the next assessor of property should I win the Republican primary and the general election. I have clearly stated ways to modernize the office. Enhance its services to the taxpayers without asking for more money as another candidate has stated. Business people look for ways to save money before looking for additional money. Bureaucrats simply ask for more money without looking for ways to save the taxpayers' dollars. The Bridge Plan for those deputies who protect us and our property every day is projected to cost $350,000 annually. Not millions of dollars annually as wildly stated by Mr. Tate. I will carefully weigh my decision to provide an incentive package for those who protect us. This plan is an additional short term defined benefit. Chattanooga and Memphis Police Department are under a separate municipal plan. The Hamilton County Sheriff's Office participates in the Tennessee Consolidated Retirement Plan which is utilized state wide for all county employees. Marty Haynes Hamilton County Commission District 3 * * * I truly wish that Mr. Tate had received the "Paul Harvey rest of the story" regarding Tennessee Code Annotated (TCA 8-36-211) prior to making such a broad statement. I am amazed though the way he was able to quote Commissioner Haynes' voting record but didn't mention the other eight Commissioners. Sheriff Jim Hammond had no involvement in the passage nor the content of this TCA, which went into effect July 1, 2007. It allows public safety officers to retire with 25 years of creditable service if they are at least 55 years of age and it also creates a pension "bridge benefit" until age 62, the first possible age onset of social security. Should Mr. Tate or anyone else know first hand, as I do, the daily stress placed on law enforcement officers, they would be much more supportive. Lenda Clark Captain, Retired * * * Mr. Tate, in your opinion submission here I see that you chose to use the Chattanooga Fire and Police Pension Funds DROP (Deferred Retirement Option Plan) as an example for some sort of folly. I can think of no polite way to inform you that not only are the DROP and Bridge Plans two completely separate things, I also have no idea where you received information that the DROP is more than $10 million behind. While Im sure you had no ill intent, I have an obligation to correct this for both you and the nearly 800 beneficiaries and the hundreds of active Police Officers and Firefighters participating in this plan that may be understandably and unnecessarily alarmed by this. First, the Bridge Plan allows Deputies to retire from the Sheriffs Office at age 55 and then supplements their retirement pay (currently less than half of their final average salaries) until Social Security benefits kick in, then the payments end. There is an expense to this, but this is generally offset by mortality and disability tables showing the difference between the risk of injury to a 55 to 60 year old versus a 21 to 26 year old. In comparison, Chattanoogas DROP has no age requirements, it is purely optional, it does not mandate retirement if not accepted, and it pays retirees no more than if they had not worked past their retirement eligibility. It is not a taxpayer supplement until Social Security (as Chattanooga sworn Fire and Police personnel do not participate in Social Security), it is a one-time payment and it is funded by the employees own out-of-pocket contributions and the already-budgeted City contributions that were already made in lieu of a higher lifetime pension rate. Second, in regards to its funding the Chattanooga Fire and Police Pension Fund actually allocated a portion of its investments to fund the DROP plan specifically to address such understandable concerns, and its returns since inception have actually exceeded the projected funding levels to the point that excess funds were placed back into the original investment allocation. In short, this is the opposite of a shortfall. The DROP plan has been mischaracterized as a bonus or a golden parachute time and again, but depending on their hire date its actually the employees own contributions and the Citys contributions accepted in lieu of a lower annual pension rate, which over the retirees lifetime actually saves the City (and therefore taxpayers) money. By incentivizing the employees at the highest end of the pay spectrum to be replaced by those at the lowest who are also less statistically likely to receive injuries, not only is this neither cronyism nor not working, its a success in lowering payroll costs, disability costs, and employee retention by way of creating promotional opportunities. These benefits are the only similarity between the two plans. If by any chance you or your source were perhaps referring to a Chattanoogan.com article from February 9th 2016, the dollars mentioned there were in reference to the Tennessee Legislature mandating a change in our actuarial formulas (the Public Employees Defined Benefit Financial Security Act) that will result in a larger funding contribution by the City. This was not a shortfall either, but rather a State mandated increase in pension contributions on the part of the City of Chattanooga in an effort to more responsibly fund our public servants retirement funds, and this is also completely unrelated to the CFPPFs DROP plan. This State law was passed after the City budget had already been passed and the Chattanooga Fire & Police Pension Fund simply wishes to collaborate with the City to slowly phase in these increases rather than face an abrupt increase in 2021. I apologize for the excessive detail, but inaccurate blanket statements such as yours cause a great deal of confusion to understandably vulnerable people, and we are rarely provided a platform to explain this to the public. The specified $10 million DROP shortfall has no factual basis and was not obtained from any independent source, so please feel free to contact us directly at 423-893-0500 or email us at info@cfppf.org if you (or any of our readers here) have any other questions or concerns. Respectfully, Craig W. Joel (CPD) Board President, Chattanooga Fire and Police Pension Fund GALLOWAY TOWNSHIP The restaurants at The Exchange like being part of the place, which opened last week with four of them sharing one roof and 80 seats, with more seats to come outside. So far, they just have one problem with their new business: They dont know exactly how to describe it. The owner, Gerry Bird, started out thinking of it as a food court, minus the mall. But Tom Harris Jr., a partner in Vagabond Burgers Fries and Shakes, figures most people dont expect to find great food in a food court. And Vagabond, a popular Atlantic City bar and restaurant, has enough of a food-world reputation that celebrity chef Guy Fieri featured it last month on his Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives show on the Food Network. The other tenants are El Coyote, the popular Mexican restaurant from Egg Harbor Township; Greens and Grains, which started its vegan menu in Ventnor and expanded into Northfield before Galloway; plus Roots Coffee and Tea. And to Harris and the other owners, theyre not standard food-court joints either. So Bird thought of branding the place as food trucks with no wheels, or a food marketplace. Hes still playing with food emporium. Then theres another tenant set to open soon. And when the Staying Afloat Floatation Tank Center is finished in March, its not all about food. Atlantic County entrepreneurs are in business to help each other Allie Conover was looking for a new space for her yoga studio when she stopped at Bloom Coff The Exchange is on Jimmie Leeds Road in Galloway, just across the road from Stockton University and AtlantiCare Regional Medical Centers Mainland Campus. Right on their side of the highway, near a Garden State Parkway interchange, are 80 medical-related offices, said Nicole Jacoby, a Greens and Grains partner who recruited the other tenants. Other food options are nearby, but shes not worried the area is over-served. Theres not enough out here, she said. And Im thinking this will bring more people to this area. That location across from some of Atlantic Countys biggest employers was a big draw to Harris and his Vagabond partner, Elvis Cadavid. Wed been talking about expanding the brand for the last few years, said Harris, who knew Jacoby and her husband/restaurant partner, Lambros Psounos, from their days at Atlantic City High School. Part of Vagabonds reputation in Atlantic City is for its extensive craft-beer taps, but the strongest drink theyll serve in Galloway is milk shakes. The owners dont expect that to hurt them. As well as were known for the beer, its all about the food for us, Harris said. A lot of people dont even get anything to drink when they come in. The four restaurants all kept each other in mind when they built their menus. Quesadillas are hot items at the original Vagabond, but the owners left them back there with El Coyotes counter just a few steps away in Galloway. The Mexican restaurant is called El Coyote Southwest Grill in Egg Harbor Township, and Mary Corona, one of the family owners, said they were looking to grow too. Theyre playing with their own name for the new branch, but Corona said they didnt have to edit their menu at all. Were strictly Mexican, she said. At the other end of the building, Greens and Grains normally sells coffee and tea, but thats out with Roots next door. Roots is owned by Jennifer Boyce, who runs two businesses in her hometown, Ocean City. She never has been in the coffee business, but she has two consultants with experience. One is her daughter, Lara Weisman, and the other is a mutual friend, Taylor Mallin. Theyre emphasizing organic and sustainable products and other food trends. Boyce saw that as the right fit for this spot. I thought Stockton would be a great draw, especially with their emphasis on the environment, she said. Bird is sure the neighborhood around the college and the hospital isnt too crowded with food. You cant imagine the number of people who called me looking for space in The Exchange, he said. I must have had five pizza guys who wanted in. They arent part of the mix, but two early customers liked what they found there. Missy Trafton tried a Caprese panini with vegan cheese from Greens and Grains. Her friend and Stockton classmate, Leah Braidi, went for a Vagabond burger. Usually, they need to agree in advance on a place that fits both their tastes. But this makes it easy to decide, Trafton said. You have a little of everything. Contact: 609-272-7237 The best in Chattanooga advertising were recognized during the 49th annual American Advertising Awards, presented by American Advertising Federation of Chattanooga (AAF Chattanooga). The award ceremony took place on Saturday at the Camp House. The event was well attended by over 130 professionals and students, said Brittany Lloyd, American Advertising Awards chairwoman. Individuals of the local advertising and media community came out to celebrate the best of online/interactive, film/video & sound, print, cross platform and out-of home. Of the 338 total professional entries, 24 Gold ADDY awards and 50 Silver ADDYs were presented. A wide range of local advertising agencies, in-house marketing departments, and freelancers participated. Entries were judged based on creativity, originality, and creative strategy. A panel of three judges from across the nation reviewed and scored the work. The top award of the evening, Best of Show, went to the local group, Pathfinder, for their online branded content video for Travelier. The video was part of a larger campaign consisting of a website, branding, stationary, app and the video spot. The Judges Choice award went to the Johnson Group for their Cross-Platform, integrated campaign for Mountain Top Toys. The Best of Show Student Entry was awarded to Gregory Van Dyke of Covenant College for his entry, Mistletoe Mingle Poste in the category of Out-of-home Poster The top student entry is awarded a $1,500 scholarship by AAF Chattanooga to encourage creative excellence at the student level. Following is a list of the AAF Chattanooga American Advertising Awards winners: Deer Run Media: 1 Silver ADDY Fancy Rhino: 3 Silver Humanaut: 2 Silver Pathfinder : 1 Gold Super Chief : 13 Silver Tennessee Stillhouse : Home of Chattanooga Whiskey : 3 Gold, 1 Silver The Cloud Council : 3 Gold, 3 Silver The Johnson Group : 17 Gold, 27 Silver The American Advertising Awards is a three-tiered advertising creative competition with the advertising industrys largest and most representative competition for creative excellence. Entry in the local Ad Club competition is the first step toward winning a national ADDY. At the second tier, local ADDY winners compete against winners from other local clubs in one of 15 district competitions. District ADDY winners are then forwarded to the third tier, the national stage of the American Advertising Awards. R Sridharan, president of AIPIMA and Vimal Mehra, past-president of AIPIMA, in this interaction, say, the association is doing all it can to... By PrintWeek Team All eyes are on the Awards Night of the 12th edition of the PrintWeek Awards to be held at the Grand Hyatt (Santacruz East, Mumbai) on 2 Nov... 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. There isnt a whole lot to do in Kearney, Nebraska, where the towns along the Oregon Trail are still few and far between. For the record Kearney is about 185 miles west of Omaha and, in addition to being the place the buffalo used to roam, it is the Sandhill Crane Capital of the World, according to its Chamber of Commerce. Suddenly the nations glare has been drawn to Kearney more specifically to the satellite campus of the University of Nebraska where we are told about 6,700 students matriculate. It seems the students were quizzed on what kind of restaurant they would like to add in the Student Union. They already have a Rustic Range burger store, a Subway, Starbucks, Lantern Asian and a Red Mango. So Nebraska-Kearney officials polled the students who cared and Chick-fil-A got 722 votes in a landslide. The remainder of the 1,222 votes went to A&W, Johnny Rockets, Panda Express, Sbarro and IHOP. But, no, suddenly student body president Evan Calhoun was approached by members of the Queer Straight Alliance who used the occasion to have their mouse-like roar heard. There was a far bigger dustup four years ago when Chik-fil-A's Dan Cathy spoke out in favor of traditional marriage. The GLBT crowd went crazy, demanding boycotts and chanting outside of restaurants around the South when all Cathy did was state his personal beliefs. According to a number of demographic studies the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transsexual population in the state of Nebraska is believed to be 2.7 percent (Georgia is 3.5 and Tennessee is 2.6). That would indicate about 180 at Neb.-Kearney are in the GLBT community as opposed to 770 who would like a breast of boneless chicken in a buttered bun. Tiff Weekley, the president of Queer Straight Alliance, told the local newspaper the Kearney Hub (think covered-wagon wheel) that their goal was a hope to create dialogue on being aware of issues facing diverse and minority students. She said, Though majority students are most often heard, it is important to listen to what issues are facing all students and start conversations around those. Student body president Calhoun soon announced, We decided, after much consideration, to poll students again, replacing Chik-fil-A on the ballot with an eatery appropriately called Raising Cain. Why? When we learned more about Chik-fil-A and its corporate values and discriminatory policies, said Calhoun, we concluded that these corporate values are not aligned with our values, and that it is not in the best interest of our UNK community to pursue Chick-fil-A right now. Forget that Chick-fil-A has never discriminated against any one, despite Calhouns ignorance, and be reminded that when UNK student were first polled, the overwhelming result was probably because Forbes Magazine claims it is the best fast-food franchise in America. Aaron Ohri, who wants a Chick-fil-A, fired back at the GLBT crowd. I understand that a Christian lifestyle in this day and society is completely disrespectful but please do not ever send me an email speaking for the whole student body when you do not have a clue what most of us actually think Ohri called the student government drop Chick-fil-A a complete and total slap in the face to many of us on this campus who believe Chick-fil-A is not wrong in what they believe. Reaction in the prairie town has been fiery. One reader wrote: A bigot a person who is intolerant towards those holding different views. Can somebody tell me which group this defines in the article? Just another example in America we the people where the majority rules and the minorities dictate. I am sick and tired of the gays, blacks, Muslims and every other self-proclaimed minority ramming their (agendas) down everybody elses throats. Show me a constitutional or legal reason Chick-fil-A should not open on campus. Well, I believe it is time to have all the individuals that donate funds to (the University of Nebraska-Kearney) to pull em. In addition, complain to the federal government about discrimination and have federal funds stop. But you want the best line of them all? Brenda Morrow, a public relations specialist at the Atlanta-based Chick-fil-A, told the Kearney newspaper. We are not pursuing a location at UNK. In other words, Chick-fil-A knew nothing about Nebraska-Kearney, its GLBT group or that it was once a stop on the Oregon Trail. School spokesman Kelly Bartling explained the idea was to first learn the students choices and then the universitys Business Service Division will go down the list in popularity and shop until a new franchisee shows an interest. Im betting it wont be Chick-fil-A. royexum@aol.com Senator Lamar Alexander joined 33 other senators and 171 congressmen Tuesday in an effort to overturn President Obamas Clean Power Plan by filing an amicus brief with the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals.The filing, also called a friend of the court brief, is related to a case filed by West Virginia and nearly two dozen other states arguing that the Environmental Protection Agency exceeded its authority when regulating existing power plants under the Clean Power Plan. Republican leaders such as Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and Sen.James Inhofe (R-Ok.) also signed the brief.My principal objection is the Obama administrations so-called Clean Power Plan ignores nuclear power the most important source of clean power, Senator Alexander said. Favoring unreliable sources of electricity such as wind over nuclear is the energy equivalent of going to war in sailboats when a nuclear Navy is available. Both wind and nuclear produce carbon-free electricity, but nuclear power is reliable, while the wind only blows about a third of the time. We should end Washingtons obsession with picking winners and losers through wasteful taxpayer subsidies for mature energy technologies such as wind. Instead we should double funding for basic energy research and rely on our free-enterprise system."In August 2015, the EPA announced final regulations, known as the Clean Power Plan, to cut carbon emissions from existing power plants by 32 percent nationwide by 2030. Over half of the States, electrical utilities, mining companies, and trade organizations have challenged the legality of the regulations. And in February, the U.S. Supreme Court blocked implementation of the Clean Power Plan until legal challenges have been resolved.Senator Alexander, who is the chairman of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development, also cosponsored a Congressional Review Act resolution in November that expressed Congress disapproval of the Clean Power Plan. The resolution passed the Senate and the House of Representatives, but was vetoed by President Obama.Senator Alexander also cosponsored the Affordable Reliable Electricity Now Act, which would delay implementation of the Clean Power Plan until legal challenges have been resolved.An amicus brief is a court filing made by a person or group not specifically involved in a case that involves matters of broad public interest. BARCELONA, Spain, Feb. 24, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- China Mobile launched its 5G Joint Innovation Center project at the GTI Summit 2016, which was held during the World Mobile Congress (WMC) in Barcelona, Spain on Feb. 23, 2016. The world's largest telecom company also announced its business targets of reaching 1.40 million TD-LTE base stations, selling 330 million 4G devices and expanding the 4G subscriber base to over 500 million by the end of 2016. According to Mr. Shang Bing, Chairman of China Mobile, the company has deployed 1.10 million TD-LTE base stations as of the end of 2015, covering over 1.2 billion population and has achieved 4G roaming with 114 countries and regions; China Mobile sold 300 million TD-LTE devices in 2015, indicating the addition of more than 400 TD-LTE users every minute; China Mobile's 4G subscriber base reached 340 million, accounting for about 30% of global number. Moreover, China Mobile has completed the deployment of carrier aggregation (CA) in over 300 cities and has commercialized VoLTE services in 100 cities. Speaking of the goal for next year, Shang Bing said that China Mobile will speed up 4G deployment by increasing the number of TD-LTE base stations to 1.40 million and deploy CA technologies in central and hot-spot areas of all cities by the end of 2016; to commercialize VoLTE services in over 260 cities in the first half of 2016; to commercialize the Rich Communication Service (RCS) in the second half of the year; to accelerate the uptake of VoLTE/CA-enabled devices, sell 330 million 4G devices and expand the 4G user base to over 500 million in 2016. China Mobile supports GTI in driving the global deployment of TD-LTE and the converged development of FDD/TDD and will actively promote roaming of 4G and VoLTE. It will develop dedicated networks for the Internet of Things and aims to develop 100 million IoT connections in 2016. Moreover, Shang Bing pointed out that the company expects to increase the maturity of narrow-band IoT (NB-IOT) and strives to commercialize it in 2017. Mr. Li Zhengmao, Vice President of China Mobile, together with the representatives of the first 11 partners, jointly launched the China Mobile 5G Joint Innovation Center at the summit. The Center aims to conduct joint innovation on applications and products with industry partners in such areas as basic communications, IoT, telematics, industrial Internet, cloud robotics and virtual/augmented reality, through open labs, and thus build an integrated cross-industry ecosystem and achieve win-win cooperation in the process of migrating from 4G to 5G. Early partners include Huawei, ZTE, Ericsson, Nokia, Qualcomm, Datang, Intel, Keysight, Beijing Shougang Automation Information Technology Co., Ltd., Haier, and Hisense. China Mobile also introduced cost-effective VoLTE/CA devices and chip solutions during the summit, including its self-branded VoLTE/CA devices such as A1s, A2 and N2. Together with Samsung, China Mobile introduced 5 new customized VoLTE devices; in partnership with Qualcomm and MTK, China Mobile launched VoLTE+ down-link and up-link CA chip solutions at the price point of $100; jointly with Spreadtrum and Leadcore, China Mobile released VoLTE chip solutions at the price point of $50. The summit marks the 5th anniversary of GTI. Over 700 representatives from the ITU, the Chinese government, GSMA, China Mobile, India's Bharti, Japan's Softbank, Korea's KT participated to share their views and insights on such topics as the converged development of TD-LTE and TDD/FDD across the world, TD-LTE evolution, trends of 3.5GHz industry, 5G strategies and visions, and cross-industry applications. Having released the next five-year strategic plan, GTI is committed to promoting the commercialization of TD-LTE on a wider scale in the world and the deeper integration between TD-LTE and FDD, enabling TDD technology to play a more important role in the 5G era, and building up an eco-system for win-win cross-industry cooperation. SOURCE China Mobile Limited LONDON, Feb. 24, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Global Cloud Xchange (GCX), a subsidiary of Reliance Communications (RCOM) today announced that Broadcast Media Communications (BMC) has successfully deployed BMC Global Media Network across GCX Cloud X nodes in Palo Alto (California), Hong Kong and London, offering media companies global access and full workflow orchestration through the Broadcast as a Service (BaaS) Suite of software solutions by BMC. "Consumers today expect rapid evolution and expansion in their choice of content experiences, making it a priority for broadcasters and media companies to accelerate their technology innovation to keep pace," said Tim Horsfield, Co-Founder and CEO of Broadcast Media Communications. "By leveraging GCX Cloud X platforms to scale out our BaaS offering globally, we can now combine traditional broadcast functions with a secure private cloud environment that enable functionality and work flow to suit the strategic business requirements of the media industries." Cloud X is uniquely designed to deliver applications on a virtualized infrastructure, enabling automated deployment of on-net Cloud services across GCX's privately owned global fiber optic network. The Cloud X platform supports network transparency a key element in accelerating enterprise applications to the Cloud. "Our Cloud X orchestration portal will not only simplify infrastructure deployment but also de-risk migration to the Cloud for leading broadcasting customers such as BMC," said Braham Singh, SVP of Global Product Management, Reliance Communications & Global Cloud Xchange. "We are very pleased to further expand our relationship with BMC and support their business growth globally." This announcement follows last year's successful broadcast of Spain vs England match from Rico Perez Stadium in Alicante, Spain to ITV London studios. About Global Cloud Xchange Global Cloud Xchange (GCX), a subsidiary of Reliance Communications, offers a comprehensive portfolio of solutions customized for carriers, enterprises and new media companies. GCX owns the world's largest private undersea cable system spanning more than 67,000 route kms which, seamlessly integrated with Reliance Communications' 200,000 route kms of domestic optic fiber backbone, provides a robust Global Service Delivery Platform. With connections to 40 key business markets worldwide spanning Asia, North America, Europe and the Middle East, GCX delivers Managed Services to more than 160 countries and offer extensive VPLS-enabled Ethernet network capabilities globally. GCX is equipped to support businesses through the deployment of next generation Enterprise solutions across its Cloud Delivery Networks. About Broadcast Media Communications Broadcast Media Communications (BMC UK) are Live Video experts. Our Media Network services combines years of video network experience to meet your demands of sports, news and special broadcast events. Our Media Quality Network across the City of London and our strategic alliances with Global providers, take your content wherever you want it. Our experience covers carriage and distribution of both compressed and uncompressed broadcast signals. We deploy fibre, satellite and terrestrial RF mediums in any combination. Whether it be audio or video, HD or SD, IP or TDM, we have the end-to-end solution knowledge that can meet your needs. Through our resilient Media Network, BMC UK offer a whole spectrum of connection options, each tailored to the world of Media, and Live Broadcast. Whether your requirement is for a cost effective, occasional use connection or a more permanent and resilient service, our network can deliver. Our media quality backbone not only includes capacity to transport uncompressed HDSDI, but includes multiple 10G Ethernet, and SDH capability. For More Information, contact: Genevieve Li Tel: +852 6028 8236 Email: gli@globalcloudxchange.com SOURCE Global Cloud Xchange NEW YORK, February 24, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The global stepper motor market is expected to grow from an estimated $1,654.1 million in 2015 to $2,172.5 million in 2022, growing at a CAGR of 3.8%. Among the various types of stepper motors, the rotary stepper motor segment accounted for about 73% share of the global stepper motor market in 2015. The advancement in stepper motor technology, in addition with increasing demand of waterproof stepper motors is expected to boost the demand of stepper motor system during the forecast period. During the recent years, the demand for miniature stepper motor has increased, owing to its growing penetration in electronic products with size constrain. (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20150727/756778 ) Explore Report With Detailed TOC: https://www.psmarketresearch.com/market-analysis/stepper-motor-market Permanent magnet (PM) stepper motors are the preferred selection for high power applications, such as navy propulsion and industrial drive applications. The technical advancements, such as design of variable flux PM stepper motor facilitate high power applications with high accuracy and control. The demand for hybrid stepper motors is expected to grow in the medical equipment industry. Hybrid stepper motors are used in array of medical equipment, including surgical hand tools, ventilation equipment, and medical pumps. The information and data in the publication "Global Stepper Motor Market Size, Share, Development, Growth and Demand Forecast to 2022" represent the research and analysis of data from various primary and secondary sources. Top-down approach has been used to calculate the global stepper motor market by type, end user, and technology. The market numbers for countries are obtained through bottom-up approach. P&S Market Research analysts and consultants interact with leading companies of the concerned domain to substantiate every value of data presented in the report. The company bases its primary research on discussions with prominent professionals and analysts in the industry, which is followed by informed and detailed, online and offline research. Request for Sample Pages: https://www.psmarketresearch.com/market-analysis/stepper-motor-market/report-sample The demand for automation solutions in packaging and labeling industry has grown significantly. Modern stepper motor integrated packaging machineries are more efficient, reliable and productive at a reduced cost, which is a trend witnessed in the global stepper motor market. Waterproof stepper motors have facilitated corrosion free operation of motors used in the food and beverage packaging industry, which is another trend observed in the global market. The increased accuracy of closed loop stepper motor, owing to the recent technical development, has increased the cross penetration of stepper motor system in the applications, where servo motors were dominant earlier, such as belt drive. The significant reduction in noise and heat generation under high speed operation is laying new growth opportunities for the stepper motor market at high speed, and high voltage applications in industrial automation. Browse Related Research: https://www.psmarketresearch.com/industry-report/semiconductor-and-electronics The growth of the stepper motor market has been effected from a weak semiconductor market in Japan, slow economic growth in Europe, along with overproduction in China. In terms of revenue, the market is expected to witness slower growth during the forecast period, compared to the current growth of the stepper motor market. Some of the major companies operating in the global stepper motor market include Nippon Pulse Motor Co. Ltd., Schneider Electric SE., ABB Ltd., Applied Motion Products Inc., Delta Electronics Inc., SANYO DENKI CO. LTD., National Instruments Corporation, Nidec Corporation, Oriental Motor Co. Ltd., FAULHABER Group, and Lin Engineering LLC. GLOBAL STEPPER MOTOR MARKET SEGMENTATION By Type Rotary Stepper Motors Fully-enclosed Stepper Drives Integrated Lead Screw Stepper Motors By End User Semiconductor Medical Equipment Packaging & Labeling Industrial Machineries Others By Technology Permanent Magnet (PM) Stepper Motor Hybrid (HB) Stepper Motor GEOGRAPHICAL SEGMENTATION By Region North America U.S. Canada Europe U.K. Germany France . Italy Spain Russia Rest of Europe Asia-Pacific China Japan India South Korea Rest of Asia-Pacific Rest of the World (ROW) Brazil South Africa Rest of RoW Browse Other Published Reports by P&S Market Research Global 3D Camera Market - https://www.psmarketresearch.com/market-analysis/3d-camera-market Global Smart Meters Market - https://www.psmarketresearch.com/market-analysis/smart-meters-market Global MEMS Foundry Outsourcing Market - https://www.psmarketresearch.com/market-analysis/mems-foundry-outsourcing-market About P&S Market Research P&S Market Research is a market research company, which offers market research and consulting services for various geographies around the globe. We provide market research reports, industry forecasting reports, business intelligence, and research based consulting services across different industry/business verticals. As one of the top growing market research agency, we're keen upon providing market landscape and accurate forecasting. Our analysts and consultants are proficient with business intelligence and market analysis, through their interaction with leading companies of the concerned domain. We help our clients with B2B market research and assist them in identifying various windows of opportunity, and framing informed and customized business expansion strategies in different regions. Contact: Abhishek Executive - Client Partner 347, 5th Ave. #1402 New York City, NY - 10016 Toll-free: +1-888-778-7886 (USA/Canada) Email: enquiry@psmarketresearch.com Web: https://www.psmarketresearch.com SOURCE P&S Market Research The Chattanooga Music Club is offering the following scholarships: Chattanooga Music Club, $5,000; Opal Rhea Swaity Scholarship, $3,000; Dr. Hilda and Andres Alisago Jr. & Friends Scholarship Fund, $2,500; Dorothy Price Cobb Martin Memorial Scholarship, $1,500; Fletcher Bright Strings Scholarship, $1,000; Admiral Vance and Mrs. (Charlynne) Fry Merit Scholarship, $1,000; and Jay Craven Clarinet Scholarship, $1,000. The scholarships are open to high school seniors within a 30 mile radius of Chattanooga. Performers on piano, voice, organ, or any orchestral instrument may audition. The audition date is Sunday, March 20, 1:15 p.m. at First Cumberland Presbyterian Church, 1505 North Moore Road in Chattanooga. The deadline to apply is March 8. For information, contact Janet Sump at 423-425-4328 or Janet-Sump@utc.edu. PUNE, India, February 24, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- RnRMarketResearch.com adds "Global and China Lead-acid Battery Industry Report, 2015-2018" and "Global Lead-Acid Batteries Industry 2016 Market Research Report" with 2018 and 2021 forecasts data and information to its online business intelligence library. The center of global lead-acid battery production continues to transfer from developed countries to developing nations. As China's share of global lead-acid battery output has risen from 35% in 2010 to 42% in 2014, the country's development of lead-acid battery industry is of great significance to the world. Americas, primarily United States, made up 27% of global lead-acid battery output in 2014. Complete report of 149 pages and 185 list of charts are available at http://www.rnrmarketresearch.com/global-and-china-lead-acid-battery-industry-report-2015-2018-market-report.html . Global lead-acid battery demand amounted to 478.09 million KVAh in 2014, up 5.7% from a year ago, with China contributing a good portion of increase and the rest of the world maintaining average growth rate of around 2%. With enhanced efforts by the Chinese government to regulate lead-acid battery industry in the aspect of environmental protection since 2015 and the effect of lithium battery replacing lead-acid battery, global lead-acid battery demand growth is expected to fall along with that in China in the future, stabilizing at 2%-3%. China's demand for lead-acid battery grew by 12.4% to 213.50 million KVAh and lead-acid battery revenue went up 11.2% to RMB129 billion in 2014. The demand for the lead-acid battery for electric bicycle increased by -0.8%, the lead-acid battery for automotive starting 12.8%, the lead-acid battery for electric tricycle and low-speed electric vehicle both over 40%, and the lead-acid battery for communications around 14%. Major Players in China are Johnson Controls, Exide Technologies, GS Yuasa, C&D, HOPPECK, Tianneng Power, Chaowei Power Co., Ltd., Camel Group, Fengfan Co., Ltd., Shandong Sacred Sun Power Sources Co., Ltd., Zhejiang Narada Power Source Co., Ltd., Vision Group, Guangdong Dynavolt Power Technology Co., Ltd., Shuangdeng Group and Leoch International Technology Ltd. Purchase a copy of Global and China Lithium Carbonate Industry Report, 2016-2020 at http://www.rnrmarketresearch.com/contacts/purchase?rname=448408 . Since 2015, affected by the effect of lithium battery substitution, the demand for the lead-acid battery for electric bicycle has dropped quickly; sluggish demand from upstream sectors resulted in significantly slower growth in demand for the lead-acid battery for automotive starting and electric tricycle. In addition, as the year 2015 is the deadline for cleaning up excess capacity and the capacity causing severe pollution, a large number of small lead-acid battery producers can't get access permits, and have to stop production for rectification or produce secretively, leading to further slower apparent growth rate. Johnson Controls is the world's largest lead-acid battery producer with a 15.7% market share in 2014. In spite of this, the company is suffering a sustained decline in market share from as high as 26% in 2010. As companies continue to expand capacity, the advantage of market leader is waning. Meanwhile, as China pursues the elimination of outdated capacity, the market space for small companies keeps narrowing. Attracted by emerging markets (lithium battery and PV), some companies (like Panasonic) reduces investment in lead-acid battery. Lead-acid battery finds wide applications in transportation, communications, power, and railway industries. Starting battery (automobile, motorcycle), power battery (electric bicycle, electric tricycle, low-speed electric vehicle, ATV/special-purpose electric vehicle), and communications back-up power hold a combined 90% share of total lead-acid battery consumption. Over the next couple years, the demand for the automotive start-stop battery and Pb-C energy storage battery is expected to present a CAGR of 30%-40%, the battery for low-speed electric vehicle 25%-30%, the battery for electric tricycle and ATV/special-purpose electric vehicle around 10%-15%, and automotive starting battery within 9%. Explore more reports on the Battery Technology market at http://www.rnrmarketresearch.com/reports/energy-power/energy/battery-technology . On Similar lines another research study titled "Global Lead-Acid Batteries Industry 2016 Market Research Report" forecasts the market providing global analysis including development trends, competitive landscape analysis, and key regions development status. With 257 tables and figures the report provides key statistics on the state of the industry and is a valuable source of guidance and direction for companies and individuals interested in the market. Key Manufacturers involved in this research are Johnson Controls, Exide Technologies, GS Yuasa, EnerSys, CSB Battery, Sebang, East Penn, Fiamm, Panasonic, NorthStar, Atlasbx, ACDelco, Trojan, Amara Raja, C&D, Midac Power, Mutlu, Chaowei Power, Tianneng Power, Camel, Leoch, Shoto, Fengfan, Narada Power and Huawei Battery. Order a copy of this Lead acid battery Industry 2016 Market Research Report at http://www.rnrmarketresearch.com/contacts/purchase?rname=461649 . About Us: RnRMarketResearch.com is your single source for all market research needs. Our database includes 500,000+ market research reports from over 100+ leading global publishers & in-depth market research studies of over 5000 micro markets. With comprehensive information about the publishers and the industries for which they publish market research reports, we help you in your purchase decision by mapping your information needs with our huge collection of reports. Connect with Us: G+ / Google Plus: https://plus.google.com/104156468549256253075/posts Twitter: https://twitter.com/RnRMR Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/RnR-Market-Research/413488545356345 Contact: Ritesh Tiwari UNIT no 802, Tower no. 7, SEZ Magarpatta city, Hadapsar Pune - 411013 Maharashtra, India. Tel: +1-888-391-5441 sales@rnrmarketresearch.com SOURCE RnR Market Research DUBLIN, Feb. 24, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/dvwwfr/south_korea) has announced the addition of the "South Korea Temperature Sensors Market - Growth, Trends & Forecasts (2015-2020)" report to their offering. The South Korea temperature sensors market is expected to increase to $0.22 billion by 2018 at a CAGR of 4.82% over the period 2015-2020 Temperature sensing has been gaining importance, particularly in R&D and industrial settings, giving rise to high demand for temperature sensors. Companies operating in the market have been investing heavily in research and development activities in order to develop and enhance temperature sensor functionality. Increasing adoption of HVAC modules is expected to favorably impact the South Korea industry. Even the technological advancements and reduced prices have resulted in Introduction of new applications in the HVAC space. Growing demand for consumer electronics such as smartphones, cameras and media players make use of microprocessors, which is expected to boost market growth, as they have temperature sensing ICs. Temperature controls are essential for manufacturing, handling and storing of medical equipment and drugs. They are increasingly used in communication industry with growth in handheld communication devices. Intense competition and significant price cuts may restrain the temperature sensors market over the forecast period. South Korea is estimated to account for a share of 14% in the Asia Pacific Temperature Sensor Market in 2014. In South Korea, consumer electronics industry is contributing substantially to the demand for temperature sensors. As technical innovation in sensor technologies is low, product differentiation has remained challenging for manufacturers The South Korea Temperature Sensors Market is segmented on the basis of Type (Bimetallic Sensor, Thermistor Sensors, RTD, Thermocouple Sensors, IR Sensors, Fiber Optic Sensors, and Others) Industry (Consumer Electronics, Power Generation, Automotive, Petrochemical, Aerospace & Defense, Healthcare, Industrial, and Others) Key Topics Covered: 1. Introduction 2. Key Findings 3. Market Overview & Dynamics 4. Introduction 5. Porter's Five Forces Analysis 6. Market Segmentation 7. Company Profiles 8. Investment Analysis 9. Future Of Temperature Sensors Market Companies Featured Texas Insturments Stmicroelectronics Mo US er Electronics Microchip Technology Keyence Freescale Danfoss Honeywell Festo Infineon Technologies Maxim Integrated Products Sick Ag Dwyer Instruments Ifm Electronic Gmbh For more information visit http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/dvwwfr/south_korea Media Contact: Research and Markets Laura Wood, Senior Manager press@researchandmarkets.com For E.S.T Office Hours Call +1-917-300-0470 For U.S./CAN Toll Free Call +1-800-526-8630 For GMT Office Hours Call +353-1-416-8900 U.S. Fax: 646-607-1907 Fax (outside U.S.): +353-1-481-1716 Related Links http://www.researchandmarkets.com SOURCE Research and Markets NEW YORK, Feb. 16, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- AmericInn, the largest mid-scale hotel brand in the central United States, is being honored with a Gold Adrian Award for digital marketing excellence from the Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International (HSMAI). The HSMAI Adrian Awards are the largest and most prestigious global travel marketing competition. Last year, AmericInn won a Silver Adrian Award for digital marketing. Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160215/333239LOGO For the 2016 competition, AmericInn won for its Great AmericInn Adventure, an online contest that invited travelers to enter a selfie or other type of photo to win a free AmericInn stay. Entrants could also create a digital postcard with their photo on the contest web site. AmericInn created a directory that included nearly 200 unique attractions located near AmericInn locations to help travelers plan their adventures. The contest increased AmericInn's website traffic by more than 27 percent and boosted the brand's social media presence by five percent. Participants submitted more than 9,000 photos and created more than 3,000 postcards during the contest run. "We tapped into the popularity of the selfie and found that it really connected with our guests," said Paul Kirwin, AmericInn president and CEO. "Participants were excited to submit their photos and create a personalized postcard to share with friends and family." With more than 1,300 entries from around the world, this year's HSMAI contest was one of the most competitive in history, with entries judged by distinguished executives from all sectors of the industry. "We are continually amazed by the creativity of the Adrian Award submissions," said Fran Brasseux, HSMAI executive vice president. "We received an incredible number of outstanding Adrian Awards entries this year, and we are excited to recognize so many innovative companies that will undoubtedly continue to make an impact in the hospitality advertising, public relations and digital marketing industry." HSMAI is paying tribute to AmericInn later today during the annual HSMAI Adrian Awards Gala, a black-tie affair attended by more than 1,000 hospitality, travel and tourism marketing executives at the New York Marriott Marquis. In addition to commending AmericInn's award-winning work, the gala and dinner reception honors lifetime achievement in travel/hospitality marketing, as well as The HSMAI Top 25: Extraordinary Minds in Hospitality Sales, Marketing and Revenue Optimization. All winning entries will be accessible in the Adrian Awards Winners Gallery online following the gala at www.adrianawards.com. Visit www.AdrianAwards.com for more information on the event and competition. About HSMAI The Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International (HSMAI) is committed to growing business for hotels and their partners, and is the industry's leading advocate for intelligent, sustainable hotel revenue growth. The association provides hotel professionals & their partners with tools, insights, and expertise to fuel sales, inspire marketing, and optimize revenue through programs such as HSMAI's MEET , Adrian Awards , and Revenue Optimization Conference . HSMAI is an individual membership organization comprising more than 7,000 members worldwide, with 40 chapters in the Americas Region. Connect with HSMAI at www.hsmai.org, www.facebook.com/hsmai , www.twitter.com/hsmai and www.youtube.com/hsmai1. About AmericInn AmericInn is the largest midscale hotel brand in the central United States with over 200 locations currently open or under development in 24 states. The brand is dedicated to providing an exceptional lodging value for its guests by offering spacious, comfortable guestrooms, great rates and amenities such as free, hot, home-style AmericInn Perk breakfast, free hotel-wide wireless high-speed Internet, inviting swimming pools and a guest loyalty program. AmericInn is part of Northcott Hospitality, owner and developer of successful franchised hospitality brands for more than 50 years. For more information visit www.americinn.com. Contact: Kristi Arndt 763-782-0265 Email SOURCE AmericInn Related Links http://www.americinn.com VERO BEACH, Fla., Feb. 24, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Whenever Stocks decline, Wall Street's mantra is typically the same: "Buy and Hold, and Buy some more." Buy and Hold works in a rising Bull Market. In a Bull Market, every time that the Market corrects down, you buy. Then the Market goes back up, and you look like a hero for "buying the dip." That's a Bull Market: You make money on the way up by simply hanging on. "Buy and Hold" works well as a strategy for a Bull Market. Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160223/336427 But all Bull Markets come to an End. In my 34 year career, I have seen global macro trends change from a tailwind for stocks into a headwind, and Bull Markets are followed by Bear Markets. In a Bull Market, corrections come, but the markets eventually go back up. But in a Bear Market, the declines are part of a larger downtrend. So I don't see how prudent people can view Bear Market declines as a " buying opportunity." Bear Market declines are usually "Bear Traps," part of a long grind down to an eventual market bottom. Think of a rubber ball bouncing down a staircase. That's a Bear Market. A Bear Market can become the definition of Pain, financial as well as psychological. Read the worldwide headlines on my Facebook page (www.facebook.com/fraserallport). The global macro trend of Deflation is unfolding, right now, under your feet. Like an ill wind blowing around the globe, Deflation is slowly enveloping the world's monetary system and markets in a vise grip. Deflation takes years to develop, and then years more to do its cleansing of the system. Historically, global Deflation is painfully simple : Deflation can cascade into a multi-year decline in asset prices, punishing stock prices until the world's bad debt is liquidated. Printing Money is not the answer. Printing too much "Funny Money" is what got the Global Markets in trouble in the first place. Deflation is the hangover caused by too much Debt and speculation. Printing more Money is not the answer. Printing Money is the problem. Read the History of Bear Markets, and look at the charts of long Bear Market declines. "Buy and Hold" does not work well in a Bear Market. In a Bear Market, Buy and Hold can be financial suicide for many people who are over the age of 60 because they do not have time to recover their losses. Every time that you buy more, you lose more, as the markets continue to decline. Buying the dips in a Bear Market is like throwing good money after bad. The risk is that in the end, you will go down with the ship. Historically, Bull Market corrections are usually short and sharp. Stocks takes a dip, and then the Bulls come rushing back in to buy because they want to get on with the party. Think of a Correction as a brief thunderstorm that cools down a hot day. Like a Correction, the storm is intense, but it passes briefly. But the U.S. and Global Stock Markets have been in decline since early in 2015. That's the hallmark of a Bear Market: A long, grinding decline that slowly envelops you and can destroy your Wealth. Bear Markets can be like water torture: Drip, Drip, Drip, slowly taking you down to the bottom. Today's Stock Markets are dominated by Big Institutions, Day Traders, "High-Frequency Traders," and Short-Sellers. Do you think that you stand a chance against these Professionals? You are playing against "The Smart Money," in their House, with their Rules. And paying brokerage commissions, over and over, whether you win or lose. That's a very lucrative Business Model for The Fat Cats on Wall Street, but maybe not so profitable for you. Think on this : If you lose 50% of your capital in the Stock Markets, like the decline in 2008-2009, you then need to make 100% just to break even! Do you have the luxury of time to wait for your Stocks and Mutual Funds to come back? And what about the psychological stress of watching your Retirement Fund evaporate in today's yo-yo "Casino Markets?" It's not just How Much you lose in the Stock Markets. It's also When you lose Money that can wreck your Retirement and psyche. Ask yourself this simple question : Do you have the luxury of Time to ride though a Bear Market and then recoup your losses? And what about your Peace of Mind? If you are age 60+, then ask yourself this Question: Can you afford to lose a big chunk of your Life's Savings in Stocks? And do you have the time to recover from your Stock Market losses? Ask anyone who has suffered through a Bear Market: It can take years to recover your losses, and the psychological damage can wreck your peace of mind and financial security. Paying commissions to lose money, worrying about your money, and waiting years to recover your losses, just so that you can break even. Is this your idea of Smart Investing? Retirement should be about Safety and Income, and enjoying your money. Go spend your money in Retirement instead of losing and stressing about it. Is your intelligence insulted by hearing the same old stale platitudes from your Stock Broker about "Buy and Hold, Don't Worry, Be Happy. Buy Some Buy, and Keep Buying More?" Like a mechanical doll, Stock Brokers often sound like someone is simply pulling a string out of their back, repeating the same old tired lines. Wall Street tells you to "Buy and Hold," but they are often the first ones out the door. Who's been doing all the selling, going all the way back throughout 2015? Is this a Retirement Plan for you, or for your Broker? Stop listening to the people who sell Stocks for a living. They don't work for you. Your Broker works for The House. You are going to go broke listening to your Broker. That's why they call them Brokers! If you are tired of paying commissions to lose money, tired of being patronized by your Broker with boiler-room cliches, tired of being duped by Wall Street, tired of losing money and then waiting years for your investments to recover from losses, then it is time to stand up for yourself. If you are mad at being had by Wall Street and your Stock Broker, then it is time to stand up for yourself and think for yourself. Protect your Wealth by thinking for yourself and making your own decisions. Get involved, get proactive, and get smart about your money. Seek out Advisors who are Fiduciaries, not Stock Brokers. Find an Advisor who listens to you instead of belittling you and ignoring your concerns. Trust your instincts. That's how you got successful in the first place. It's your Money. Take a stand: Stand up for yourself, your Wealth, your peace of mind, and your long-term financial security. You are going to go broke listening to your Broker! For a fresh outlook from a Fiduciary, please read my Biography, learn about my Services, and listen to my Radio Shows, archived at www.safeandsmartmoney.com. Fraser Allport is the Owner of Safe and Smart Money, LLC, a Registered Investment Advisory Firm. Securities are traded through Sound Income Strategies, LLC, a SEC registered investment advisory firm. Safe and Smart Money, LLC and Sound Income Strategies, LLC are not associated entities. This article is the Author's opinion. This article is not intended to solicit, nor give investment, legal or tax advice. Seek professional advice for your specific situation. No matter how " safe, " no investment can provide Guarantees in every situation. Media Contact: Fraser Allport 1880 82nd Avenue, Suite 202 A. Vero Beach, Florida 32966 Tel: (772) 9251601 Email: [email protected] This content was issued through the press release distribution service at Newswire.com. For more info visit: http://www.newswire.com SOURCE Safe and Smart Money, LLC Related Links http://www.safeandsmartmoney.com SAN DIEGO, Feb. 24, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- DB Networks, a leader in database cybersecurity, today announced that it will be speaking at the HIMSS 16 Conference and Exposition, being held in Las Vegas next week. Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160223/336458LOGO Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160223/336459 DB Networks President and COO Steve Hunt will present "Protecting EMR from the Insider Threat" on March 1 from 10:45 am PST to 11:15 PST in the Cybersecurity Command Center of HIMSS 16, being held at the Venetian Palazzo Sands Expo Center. Insider threats are typically not simply "rogue" healthcare employees stealing EMR, but often attackers using stolen credentials to slip through health information security systems. In this session, attendees will learn how security systems based on machine learning and behavioral analysis immediately identify credential abuse and attacks on EMR data stores. DB Networks is dedicated to protecting mission critical databases, including EMR databases, through its patented machine learning and behavioral analysis security technologies. Operating non-intrusively at the database tier, directly in front of the EMR database servers, the DBN-6300 is in the optimal location to conduct deep analysis of the EMR database traffic. The DBN-6300 immediately identifies compromised database credentials, non-intrusively discovers all databases (including the undocumented databases), pinpoints traffic to/from restricted segments, and detects advanced database attacks. For a personal demonstration of innovative products using this approach and the opportunity to meet with members of the DB Networks team, visit DB Networks at HIMSS 16 booth #9908-13 at the Venetian Palazzo Sands Expo Center in Las Vegas from Feb. 29 March 4. About Steve Hunt Mr. Hunt is responsible for leading the development and operation of the company. Prior to DB Networks, Mr. Hunt was SVP, Engineering and Operations at Coradiant, and later was a member of their Technical Advisory Board before it was acquired by BMC Software. He was an early employee and VP Engineering at security company Netsift (acquired by Cisco Systems in 2005). He was also an early employee at Copper Mountain (IPO in 1999), holding several positions starting as VP Engineering and later as GM & SVP Engineering. Mr. Hunt spent many years at Bell Labs, including heading its Internetworking Department. He earned a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from Drexel and a M.S. in Electrical Engineering from Stanford University. About DB Networks DB Networks innovates database cybersecurity products. Its customers include the world's largest financial institutions, healthcare providers, manufacturers, and governments. DB Networks technology non-intrusively assesses database infrastructures through deep protocol extraction, machine learning, and behavioral analysis. Customers gain insights by discovering all active databases, and identifying tables being accessed and the specific applications accessing the databases. In addition, analyzing application database access that deviates from the model of normal application behavior immediately identifies database attacks. DB Networks is a privately held company headquartered in San Diego, Calif. For more information, call (800) 598-0450 or visit the DB Networks website, Twitter page, LinkedIn page, Google+ page, and YouTube channel. DB Networks is a registered trademark of DB Networks, Inc. in the United States and other countries. All other company and product names are either trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies. Contact: Dan Spalding Email (408) 960-9297 SOURCE DB Networks Related Links http://www.dbnetworks.com VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Feb. 24, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Padio Systems Inc., of Vancouver BC, is pleased to announce that finally homeowners and travelers don't have to put up with inconvenient, insecure and unsafe sliding patio door locks any longer. PaDIOLOK is a totally new and innovative lock that is launching via Kickstarter in March 2016. The exact date is a secret, but customers and backers can register on www.padiolok.com website to get advance notice of the launch date. See PaDIOLOK demonstrated... use vid for your website multimedia story PaDIOLOK retrofitted to a vinyl door with an existing mortise latch PaDIOLOK retrofitted to aluminum frame sliding door Patent pending PaDIOLOK is the first and only, keyless, 2-way lock for existing and new sliding patio doors. It enables Homeowner and Hotel Guests to use their sliding patio door as a secure entry and exit door. For Homeowners: It's very CONVENIENT as it provides two-way locking and unlocking whether you are entering or exiting. Keylessly. Just enter a passcode on the keypad. as it provides two-way locking and unlocking whether you are entering or exiting. Keylessly. Just enter a passcode on the keypad. Far more SECURE and tamper resistant than typical latches. Stronger. Can't be jiggled open. Resists high lifting and prying forces. and tamper resistant than typical latches. Stronger. Can't be jiggled open. Resists high lifting and prying forces. It's far SAFER as it is easier and more intuitive to unlock and exit, in case of an emergency, than if you have an assortment of foot buttons and pins to deal with. as it is easier and more intuitive to unlock and exit, in case of an emergency, than if you have an assortment of foot buttons and pins to deal with. Retrofits to almost any existing or new sliding patio door including aluminum and vinyl fiberglass and wood, of various thicknesses and widths. Will be able to add a future Z-wave wireless module for automation and integration to home security systems. Will retail for about USD $150-190 depending on which model but there are door crasher deals for backers on Kickstarter. depending on which model but there are door crasher deals for backers on Kickstarter. An average handyman can install without special tools in just 30-60 minutes. For Hotels, their poolside/beachfront rooms have been inconvenient long enough! Before PaDIOLOK: Guests had to leave slider unlocked when the enjoying the pool or other amenities, or Had to lock from the inside, and walk 'around' through hall and lobby to get to the pool and to the lounge chairs that are right in front of their rooms! Had to carry a room key Had to replace lost keys, while wearing a bathing suit, without any ID! Now when Hotels have PaDIOLOK installed on their walkout rooms: Guests program their own code into the door and use that for their stay, Easily secure valuables, Easily get to the pool beach or garden, and Enjoy the hotel amenities and their room even more. About Padio Systems Inc Padio Systems is a small company founded in 2014 in Vancouver BC, to bring PaDIOLOK to the world. They are committed to making locks that Liberate by developing state of the art locks that are secure AND convenient. In addition to PaDIOLOK, they have serval other related products for sliding and other doors on the drawing board. www.padiolok.com About Kickstarter Kickstarter is a funding platform for innovative projects from young companies. Kickstarter is full of ambitious, innovative and imaginative ideas that are brought to life through the direct support of others. www.kickstarter.com Contact: Bruce White Padio Systems Inc. 604 732-8723 Email www.padiolok.com Padio Systems is open to engaging with media/ reporters on all types of stories from any angle. Video - http://youtu.be/MOOmgOap62c Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160224/336820 Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160224/336821 SOURCE Padio Systems Inc. Related Links http://www.padiolok.com The Senate approved Dr. Robert Califf to lead the Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday. Dr. Califf is now in place to lead an agency that regulates over $4 trillion annually and affects the lives of nearly every single American. A major priority of the Senate health committee this year is our biomedical innovation agenda companion legislation to the Houses 21st Century Cures Act to help get safe and effective drugs and medical devices into doctors offices and medicine cabinets more quickly. Dr. Califf will be a good partner in that effort, helping us get a result for American patients," said Senate health committee Chariman Lamar Alexander. The Senate health committee has been working on its biomedical innovation agenda since last year and earlier this month passed seven bills with bipartisan support. It will consider more proposals with bipartisan support in March and in April. Senator Alexander said of this effort: The House has completed its work on the 21st Century Cures Act. The president has announced his support for a precision medicine initiative and a cancer moonshot. It is urgent that the Senate finish its work and turn into law these ideas that will help virtually every American. The Senate health committee held a hearing on Nov. 17, 2015, to consider Dr. Califfs nomination. The Senate health committee approved Dr. Califfs nomination on Jan. 12. Washington, Feb 19 : Barack Obama will head to Cuba next month for the first visit by a US president to the Caribbean island nation in 88 years, in a trip fraught with controversy at home though it is being hailed across the world as a progressive development. Obama announced last summer the re-establishment of relations with the island nation in a historic move, putting an end to the chill that has featured relations between the two neighbours for more than 50 years, Xinhua reported. But critics in the Republican Party and among the Cuban-American community have decried the move, saying the Obama administration would give Cuba what they called undeserved recognition and would get nothing in return. In an online post after the trip's announcement, Deputy National Security Adviser Ben Rhodes wrote: "There is much more that can be done -- by the US and by the Cuban government -- to advance this opening in ways that will be good for Cubans, and good for the United States. That is why President Obama is travelling to Cuba." But many Republicans continue to view Cuba in an unfavourable light. Two of the biggest critics of Obama's move are Republican presidential hopefuls Senator Ted Cruz and Senator Marco Rubio. Experts said both of them have a shot at clinching the Republican nomination for the 2016 race to the White House. Both senators, sons of Cuban immigrants, hold opinions that reflect a long-standing argument among the Cuban-American community -- namely, Washington should not open up to full relations with Havana till certain stipulations are met on issues such as human rights. In a Wednesday speech on his campaign trail, Rubio said Cuba is "anti-American", reflecting the opinions of a large chunk of the Cuban-American community. Cruz has also slammed Obama's Cuba policy as a kind of "weakness and appeasement". House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce, a Republican, also criticised Obama's visit, alleging on Thursday that "Cuban workers continue to be exploited". The US-based experts are split over whether re-establishing US-Cuban ties is a positive move. Ana Rosa Quintana, Heritage Foundation's Latin America analyst, said Cuba has made no concessions whatsoever to the US, reflecting a common argument that the island nation has given the US nothing in exchange for re-established ties with Washington. She added that re-establishment of relations between the two countries without pre-conditions sends out wrong messages. Although official ties have once again been established, it remains doubtful that the US trade embargo will be fully lifted anytime soon. The embargo has been in effect since 1962 amid the Cold War, as the US worried that Cuba would be allied with the Soviet Union in its back yard. In 1996, the embargo was codified into US law and put under Congressional control, with only the Congress having the full power to reverse it. Though Obama has chipped away at some stipulations within the embargo, most of the sanctions still exist. It is unlikely that the Republican-led Congress will overturn the embargo. The US Congress has been unwilling to work with Obama on lifting the embargo, according to Quintana. "(Obama) is weakening the embargo. He says you know what, I disagree with it, I'm going to see what I can do to undermine it," she said. Brookings Institution's senior fellow Darrell West said Obama wants to push along the relationship with Cuba so the next president can't roll back his rapprochement. "His goal is to open up trade and investment and put the policy back on a more normalised basis. Opening up trade will boost the Cuban economy and generate more trade and commerce between the two nations," West said. "There is likely to be a flood of American tourists to Cuba so that will encourage the construction of new hotels and restaurants. Cuba likely will be a popular destination for many American businesses," he added. Canberra, Feb 19 : Australian scientists have moved a step closer to preventing the spread of Zika virus, after exposing mosquitoes to bacterium that could limit the ability of the virus to be transmitted to humans. The "super-infected" mosquitoes were exposed to two strains of Wolbachia, a bacterium which traditionally reduces the risk of dengue fever spreading to humans. But scientists from the University of Melbourne have said new applications could help reduce the risk of humans contracting the Zika virus, Xinhua news agency reported. Cameron Simmons from the university's Peter Doherty Institute said while the Wolbachia mix was proven in preventing the spread of dengue, it could be some time before researchers are able to restrict the spread of Zika, which has no known cure and has spread rapidly throughout South America and Asia. "(Zika) would be a higher hurdle for the virus to get over the top of," Simmons told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) on Friday. Testing the effectiveness of the Wolbachia is expected to take part in Latin America, Indonesia and Vietnam early next year, and Simmons said he expects the Wolbachia to perform similarly to how it does against dengue. He said laboratory evidence has suggested that Wolbachia could also slow the spread of other viruses carried by the Aedes aegypti mosquito, including chikungunya and yellow fever virus. Previous studies undertaken by the institute found the ability of a virus, in previous cases, dengue, to spread throughout the Wolbachia-infected insect's tissues was "limited". Simmons said the Wolbachia prevents the virus from passing through the mosquito's salivary glands, and therefore, prevents it from being spread to humans. "It's a dead end essentially for the virus," Simmons said. "The Wolbachia stops the mosquito being able to onward transmit the virus to a human host." Hyderabad, Feb 20 : The Joint Action Committee for Social Justice of University of Hyderabad will take out a march in New Delhi on February 23 to demand justice for Rohith Vemula, the Dalit research scholar who committed suicide last month. The students, workers, cultural activists, intellectuals will rally from Ambedkar Bhawan to Jantar Mantar. The JAC, comprising various students' groups, is demanding a legislation 'Rohith Act' end caste discrimination in education. It wants punishment for central ministers Smriti Irani and Bandaru Dattatrya, vice chancellor Appa Rao, BJP legislator Ramchandra Rao, university official Alok Pandey and ABVP leader Susheel Kumar for what it calls 'institutional murder' of Rohith. JAC is also seeking removal of Appa Rao from the post of vice chancellor, job for a family member of Rohith in the university, a minimum compensation of Rs.50 lakh, withdrawal of false police cases against the five research scholars, appointment of a special public prosecutor in the case and a judicial inquiry into all cases of discrimination and harassment of Dalit, Adivasi, OBC, religious minority students in all higher educational institutions. "It has been a month since the institutional murder of Rohith Vemula at the hands of BJP, ABVP and the HCU administration. Rohith was one of the five Dalit research scholars expelled from the hostel and faced social boycott for raising his voice against injustice perpetrated by the fascist and brahmanical forces in the country," JAC said in a statement. It noted that instead of doing justice to Rohith, those involved have received promotions, shielded from judicial scrutiny and while the Dalit identity of Rohith has been questioned. On Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), the JAC said the government declared it 'anti-national' on the basis of fabricated intelligence reports, sensationalised news coverage and blatant conspiracy by the RSS-led BJP and ABVP. It called for united fight against the attempts to establish a fascist rule in the country. New Delhi, Feb 20 : Delhi Police issued a lookout notice for three youth -- believed to be JNU students -- in connection with the alleged "anti-India" sloganeering at the varsity campus last week, a source said on Saturday. "Lookout notice was issued for Umar Khalid, Anirvan Bhattacharya and Riyaz. These are suspected of having raised anti-national slogans at a controversial event in Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU)," the Delhi Police source told IANS. Umar Khalid and Anirvan Bhattacharya are JNU students while it could not be ascertained whether Riyaz is a student of JNU. These youths had resigned from the Democratic Students' Union (DSU) three months back. DSU is alleged to be affiliated to the banned organisation Communist Party of India (Maoist). According to sources, police asked the Foreign Regional Registration Office (FRRO) to alert airport authorities so that these suspects do not leave the country. JNU Students' Union president Kanhaiya Kumar was arrested on February 12 on sedition charges after allegedly raising "anti-India" slogans at a meeting on Kashmir held in the campus on February 9. He was on Wednesday sent to judicial custody till March 2. Kanhaiya Kumar, who is from the CPI-affiliated All India Students' Federation, has denied the charge. Suva, Feb 21 : At least five people were killed as severe tropical cyclone Winston left a path of destruction overnight in Fiji, Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama said on Sunday. Winston, a category 5 tropical cyclone -- the highest possible level -- swept through Fiji between the islands of Viti Levu and Vanua Levu with wind gusts of over 320 km per hour, tearing roofs, uprooting trees and cutting power supply as well as communications, Xinhua reported. The government has declared a 30-day state of natural disaster and imposed a nationwide curfew. Schools around the country were directed to be closed for a week. The curfew remains in effect till 5.30 a.m. Monday, Bainimarama said, adding that the move was aimed at protecting lives and property. Evacuation centres across the country have been opened for the public, and disaster relief teams were working hard to help people resume normal life. The authorities were assessing the extent of damage to property. New Delhi, Feb 22 : President Pranab Mukherjee here on Monday extended his greetings to the people of Guyana on their Republic Day. "I extend warm greetings and felicitations to Your Excellency and to the people of Guyana on the occasion of your Republic Day," Mukjherjee said in his message to the Brig. (Retd) David Arthur Granger, President of Guyana. India and Guyana have traditionally enjoyed warm and friendly relations which have been strengthened in the last few decades through regular exchanges between our two governments. "Your excellency's recent meeting with our Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) in New York imparted fresh momentum to our partnership. We look forward to strengthening the bilateral cooperation between India and Guyana for the mutual benefit of both our peoples," he added. Guyana, a country in South America's North Atlantic coast, celebrates its Republic Day on February 23. Pune, Feb 22 : Bollywood actor Sanjay Dutt is all set to be released from the Yerawada Central Jail here in Maharashtra on Thursday morning, an official source said on Monday. The 56-year-old celebrity prisoner will be released after serving the remainder of his five-year sentence for possession of illegal arms in the March 12, 1993 Mumbai serial bomb blasts case. Dutt is scheduled to step out of the jail around 9 a.m. on February 25 and will be received by his wife Manyata, children and other family members. The jail authorities have rejected a request for a small 'welcome ceremony' planned by the family on security grounds, in view of a large number of the actor's fans and media contingent expected there, said the official requesting anonymity. The release date of Dutt was first announced by his spokesperson in June last year amid speculation that the actor would be reward with an early exit from prison for his good conduct. Of the five-year sentence, Dutt has served more than 50 months in two installments, excluding the parole and furlough he was granted at various times on different grounds. Dutt grabbed headlines when the then Mumbai police commissioner, late A.S. Samra ordered his arrest in 1993 for illegally keeping an AK-47 assault rifle. He spent 18 months in jail as an undertrial before he was granted bail and later, following a Supreme Court order in May 2013, he was sent to the Yerawada jail in Pune to serve the remaining 42 months of his five-year sentence. Chandigarh, Feb 22 : The Haryana government on Monday decided to give full compensation for the damage caused to private property in the state during the violent Jat reservation agitation. The decision was taken by the state cabinet, which met under Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar here on Monday. "Full compensation will be given for damage to private property, whether residential or commercial, and to immediately assess the role of all officers and officials, of both civil and police administration, for any act of omission or commission during the Jat agitation," a state government spokesman said here. The cabinet reviewed the prevailing situation and the steps to defuse the tension across the state at the earliest. "The state government also decided to give an ex-gratia of Rs.10 lakh to the next of kin of those innocent people killed in the ongoing agitation and employment to a member of the family of the deceased. Also, no false case would be registered against anyone," Haryana's Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ram Bilas Sharma announced here. "It was decided that a senior IAS officer shall be deputed as a nodal officer to assess the damage caused to private properties in both urban and rural areas. "A proforma to file claims for compensation for damage to the property would be made available online also in the office of the deputy commissioner and after assessment of the same, compensation would be released within a month," the cabinet decided. Sixteen people have so far lost their lives in the ongoing agitation and 183 were injured, the spokesman said. "(A total of) 320 cases have been registered and 102 people have been arrested," he said. "While blockades at several places have been lifted, efforts are on to remove the remaining 449 blockades on railway tracks and roads," he said. The cabinet meeting was informed that Haryana Roadways suffered a loss of Rs.15 crore as 33 buses were set on fire and 99 buses were damaged. "Out of the 2,370 petrol pumps in the state, 381 have become dry. Out of 387 LPG agencies, 185 are without stock. The state government is trying to ensure its supply through Punjab," the spokesman said, quoting data provided to the cabinet meeting. "Out of 26 petrol pumps damaged during the agitation, eight of these are in Rohtak, five in Bhiwani and six in Jhajjar. However, there is no shortage of kerosene in the state," he said. "The administration and security forces got the Munak canal functional today (Monday) morning by getting the dharna lifted at Akbarpur, but the protesters again blocked the canal at Kabru. "The protesters are now being urged to release water. As an immediate measure, the water of Yamuna canal is being supplied to Delhi through Munak canal," the spokesman said. Trade and industry body Assocham pegged the loss due to the agitation at around Rs.20,000 crore. New Delhi, Feb 22 : After the first round of discussions between top Kerala leaders and the Congress high command here on Monday, a broad consensus emerged on the first round of selection of candidate at the grassroots level -- probably for the first time for the party in the state. Addressing reporters after the nearly 90-minute meeting with Congress president Sonia Gandhi and other national leaders, state Congress president V.M. Sudheeran said it was decided to have a meeting at the district level to prepare a list of probable candidates for the assembly polls where "winnability and acceptability" would be the main yardsticks. "At the district level, the district president will meet general secretaries looking after each of the 14 districts along with senior district leaders and prepare a list. "This will be then discussed between Chief Minister Oommen Chandy, Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala and myself, after which it will be sent to the state election committee which will then hand it to the high command," said Sudheeran. He said simultaneously discussions will also be held between the allies of the United Democratic Front over seat-sharing. Monday's meeting was attended by Sudheeran, Chandy and Chennithala. The focus on candidate selection from the grassroots level is something that has not been heard in the Congress party in the state, where seats and posts have always been divided by the various factions in the party. Asked if he will be contesting, Sudheeran said: "At today's meetings, individual names were not discussed." The Congress in Kerala is aiming to retain power and already both Sonia Gandhi and party vice president Rahul Gandhi on their recent visits to the state asked top leaders to ensure that they put an end to squabbling amongst themselves and work unitedly, especially after the rout in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. Before the meeting, Chandy told reporters that the practice of the party was to follow the guidelines that the high command lays down. "In our party, the high command's decision is final and no one challenges it. One thing I can assure is that there will be new faces who would be fielded," said Chandy. New Delhi, Feb 23 : The central government is committed to the development of rural areas and progress of farmers, President Pranab Mukherjee said on Tuesday, addressing the joint sitting of the two houses of parliament. "The well-being of farmers is vital to the nation," the President said in his address, which marks the beginning of the budget session of parliament. "Acknowledging this fundamental reality, my government has recently launched the farmer-friendly Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana, with the biggest-ever government's contribution to crop insurance and with lowest-ever premium rates for farmers," Mukherjee said. "It has many firsts to its credit like national coverage of post-harvest losses due to inundation and unseasonal rains, no capping on government subsidy, and use of technology for early and accurate settlement of claims," he said, adding "assistance to farmers afflicted by natural calamity has been increased by 50 percent and eligibility norms have been relaxed". "The grant of over Rs.two lakh crore by the 14th Finance Commission over a five-year period from 2015-16, exclusively for Gram Panchayats, has been received with great enthusiasm by the states. This will move development activity closer to the people and enable them to decide how they want to improve their villages and wards," he said. "Shyama Prasad Mukherji Rurban Mission has also been launched for 300 rural growth clusters for developing skills and local entrepreneurship and providing infrastructure amenities," Mukherjee said, highlighting the steps taken by the Narendra Modi government for development of rural areas. "Soil health cards will be distributed to all 14 crore farm-holdings by March 2017 and will result in judicious application of fertilizers, lowering input costs and bettering soil health," the President said. "To promote organic farming, Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana is being implemented, under which 8,000 clusters have been developed so far," he noted. "The Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchai Yojana promises assured irrigation, expanding cultivated areas by improving water use efficiency and enabling drought proofing. My government is committed to the philosophy of 'per drop more crop' and 'Jal Sanchay for Jal Sinchan'," Mukherjee said. To provide the best market price to farmers, the government is working towards setting up a common e-market platform to connect 585 regulated wholesale agricultural markets. "This will immensely benefit our farmers in getting fair and remunerative prices. Targeted policy interventions in the last year have brought down sugarcane arrears from over Rs.21,000 crore to Rs.720 crore," the President said. "My government notified the New Urea Policy which will lead to additional production of 17 lakh metric tonnes annually in the next three years. Providing 100 percent neem-coated urea has not only improved efficiency but also plugged subsidy leakages by preventing its illegal diversion to non-agricultural use," Mukherjee stated. The Narendra Modi-led NDA government also produced the highest ever urea fertilizer in 2015, he said. "India continues to be the biggest milk producing country with an impressive growth rate of 6.3 percent. Implementation of Poultry Venture Capital Fund and Rural Backyard Poultry Development has led to highest ever egg production," Mukherjee said. "To fully harness the agricultural potential of eastern states, the government is taking several steps to usher in second green revolution in the region." "It has taken steps for strengthening agricultural higher education, setting up 109 new KVKs and three new Agricultural Technology Application Research Institutes," the President noted, adding that a 24x7 Kisan Channel has been launched to provide information on policy initiatives, prices and other agriculture related subjects. Suva, Feb 23 : The toll in severe tropical cyclone Winston has risen to 28 in Fiji, the media reported on Tuesday. Besides, at least 21 people were suffering serious injuries, Xinhua quoted Akapusi Tuifagalele, director of Fiji's National Disaster Management Office, as saying. The toll may rise further as police were trying to get confirmation on some reports of missing persons. Over 8,400 people were housed in evacuation centres around the country, Tuifagalele said. Many people have been stranded and urgently need food and shelter following Winston, a category 5 cyclone, which swept through Fiji last Saturday and left a path of destruction. The government has been working to coordinate rescue and relief efforts, and has established bank accounts to receive financial donations to help those affected by Winston, considered the strongest tropical cyclone Fiji has so far experienced. The United Nations has begun its assessment of the needs for international assistance to Fiji, and the UN's Pacific Humanitarian Team was reaching out to the authorities in a bid to determine what expertise and support were needed. Meanwhile, several countries have extended a helping hand to the Pacific island country. The Red Cross Society of China extended an emergency humanitarian aid of $100,000 to the Fiji Red Cross Society on Monday. Expressing heartfelt gratitude for the "timely donation", Cathy Wong, president of the Fiji Red Cross Society said China was the first country to donate to Fiji. A New Zealand plane landed in Fiji late Monday, carrying relief supplies and a joint team comprising military, fire service and health staff. China's Ministry of Commerce has declared that it was working on a plan to provide emergency humanitarian assistance to Fiji. Both Australia and New Zealand have pledged to provide disaster relief fund to Fiji. The US Agency for International Development is providing an initial $100,000 in humanitarian aid to the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies for critical relief supplies and basic water, sanitation and hygiene assistance to Fiji. Bernie Sanders Is Making Two Chicago Campaign Stops Thursday By aaroncynic in News on Feb 24, 2016 6:43PM Bernie Sanders (Photo by aaron cynic/Chicagoist) Democratic Presidential candidate Bernie Sanders will swoop through Chicago Thursday for two evening campaign events. The Vermont senator, whos ran neck and neck in the first few primary elections with Hillary Clinton for the Democratic nomination, will appear at both the University of Chicago and Chicago State University. The events come less than three weeks before the March 15 primary. Sanders will appear at the University of Chicago for MSNBC Hardballs college tour, which will be limited to University of Chicago students. The event open to the general public, dubbed a future to believe in, will be at Chicago State Universitys Emil & Patricia Jones Convocation Center, with doors opening at 6:00 p.m. Tickets are free but the campaign is strongly urging attendees to RSVP. Sanders is expected to discuss a wide range of issues important to the people of Illinois, including making college affordable, getting big money out of politics, combating climate change, and criminal justice reform. He also will likely lean heavily on college affordability, particularly as CSU has been beleaguered with financial troubles and could very well close down due to a lack of state funding. According to the Tribune, the school cancelled its spring break and will end its semester early t his year. The Vermont senator has been ramping up his campaign in Illinois, opening nearly a dozen offices statewide so far, with two in Chicago and others in several in the suburbs, as well as Rockford, Dekalb, Springfield and Champaign-Urbana. Clinton meanwhile has also been courting Illinoisans by opening her own offices and appearing at a rally in Bronzeville last week, along with three high-dollar fundraisers. Recent polling shows Clinton leading Sanders in Illinois. A poll published by the conservative Daily Caller website showed her with an 11 point lead, and NBC5 reports a Paul Simon Policy Institute at Southern Illinois poll shows her with a larger lead of 51 to 32, with 16 percent undecided. Nationally however, the two candidates are nearly tiedwith Clinton at 44 percent and Sanders at 42 according to a Quinnipac University poll. New Delhi : Last month, the major agenda item at the World Economic Forum in Davos was the Fourth Industrial Revolution (FIR). Since FIR is already under way in some of the advanced economies there are fears that it will be very disruptive and create huge unemployment. The Davos meeting was meant to discuss and allay these fears. I feel FIR for developing countries can, in fact, produce more employment and benefits. What is FIR? Our societies are characterised by various industrial revolutions. The first revolution started in the late 1700s when muscle power was replaced by steam - mostly produced by coal. The second one, which can be traced to early 1900s, was driven by electricity and characterised by big machines and assembly line manufacturing. The third, which began in the early 1960s was based on computers, information technology (IT), electronics and automated production. The present revolution is characterised by the internet of things (IOT) -- 24/7 connectivity, rapid communication, miniaturisation of design and 3D printing which allows for manufacturing and production of goods wherever they are needed. I feel that IOT and 3D printing (or additive manufacturing) have the capability of allowing countries like India to leapfrog into the FIR. India is already a decentralised society where more than 60 percent of its population lives in rural areas and lacks the basic amenities of life. They live in one-room huts with nearly non-existent electricity; cook on primitive biomass stoves that produce tremendous indoor pollution; and lack potable water and toilet facilities. Their lives can be improved drastically by providing livelihood opportunities and amenities for households powered by FIR. Around 80 percent of the rural population is involved in the farming sector. At present, farming is non-remunerative and needs to be completely overhauled to make it attractive. Thus, for increasing income for rural households I foresee the use of high-tech precision farming which could either be land-based or container-based. In container farming, all the inputs of farming are applied in an efficient way in enclosed shipping containers. This container-based farming, as opposed to land-based farming, can grow any food (grain, vegetables or fruits) or fodder with the use of precise levels of light, temperature, humidity and nutrients. All these inputs are controlled by smart sensors and computers. This type of farming requires very few labourers, very little soil and water and is based on the principle of hydroponics or aeroponics. There are claims by the practitioners of container agriculture that it uses 90 percent less water than conventional agriculture and produces several times the yields that would have been obtained from land-based agriculture. Such high-tech farms are coming up in urban areas in western countries and provide a model to be emulated in developing countries like India. Today the biggest crisis in farming in India is the lack of labour, low prices of produce, shortage of water and very poor soils. With precision land-based or container agriculture, powered by solar energy and other renewable energy systems, farming can become very efficient, high yielding and hence remunerative. To my mind this is the future of farming. Land-based agriculture can be used for planting mostly perennial crops like grasses for fodder and trees for fruits, timber and the like. Grasses and trees can bind the soil and stop its erosion. Agricultural containers would eventually be owned by restaurant owners. Hence the A-Z of food production and utilisation would be run and owned by the restaurants and may give rise to a large number of rural and urban restaurants. This will also generate huge employment opportunities. Further, FIR based on 3D or additive manufacturing will also usher in a revolution in its own right. In 3D printing, parts or the product is built layer by layer at any place. The designing can be done anywhere in the world and it can be sent by internet to a 3D printer. Thus the raw material -- metal powders in case of production of metal parts,or plastic wires for plastic products -- together with a suitable glue or solidification of raw material, forms the end product. 3D printing is being used to produce parts of rockets, whole machines and even body parts. The technology of 3D manufacturing is rapidly progressing and is already becoming mainstream technology for small, specialised manufacturing facilities. Use of 3D manufacturing will also reduce the energy consumption in transportation of goods since they will be manufactured and made available wherever they are needed. In most cases, prices would come down. We might therefore see a proliferation of high-tech small scale manufacturing facilities in rural areas. For rural mobility electric vehicles can form the backbone and could be charged by locally produced renewable electricity. And 3D manufacturing may help in production of such vehicles in rural areas. The FIR can usher in a decentralised and democratic society since the control of the means of production and usage will be in the hands of locals. (24.02.2016 - Anil K. Rajvanshi is director of Nimbkar Agricultural Research Institute in Phaltan, Maharashtra. The views expressed are personal. He can be contacted at anilrajvanshi@gmail.com) Chennai, Feb 24 : Director Sumanth Radhakrishnan is confident that his upcoming philanthropical thriller "Sadhuram 2", a crowd-funded film along the lines of James Wan's "Saw", will introduce Tamil audiences to a new genre and they will appreciate it. "It's called a philanthropical thriller because it has social consciousness elements attached to it. It belongs to a completely new genre and we're eager to know how audiences react to it," Sumanth told IANS. From the promos, it's evident that the film is based on American psychological thriller "Saw". However, Sumanth says the film is not a frame-to-frame rip-off. "We've given credit to 'Saw'. My music director Girish met someone from the team of 'Saw' long back and authorization was given to make the film. We haven't made anything as gory as 'Saw', because frankly you can't, given our censorship rules," he said. "Even though we've followed the same template used in 'Saw', we've managed to tone down everything. People who loved 'Saw' and films that fall in the same league will love ours too. We've made an honest film," he added. Talking about the film, which features a bevy of theatre artists, Sumanth said: "We are releasing the film as 'Sadhuram 2' because it has an ambiguous beginning and ambiguous end, but it won't be confusing. Hence, we decided to go with this title." The people who invested in the film are all fans of the "Saw" franchise. They loved the idea to see something made on similar lines. "It was really difficult to get the film made because nobody believed in it. Nobody in India could watch 'Saw' on the big screen, so when some fans of the movie heard about my film, they came forward to support it," he said, adding that nearly 30 people contributed to the making of the film. The film stars Yog Japee, Kaushik, Riaz and Sanam Shetty. Havana, Feb 24 : The US Treasury Department has fined a French firm for doing business in US equipment with Cuba in violation of the United State trade embargo against the Caribbean island nation. CGG Services, a company specialising in geophysical services, was slapped with a fine of $614,250 for using "spare parts and equipment of US origin on oil and gas exploration vessels operating in Cuban territorial waters," Xinhua cited a Cuban daily as reporting. The move came against the background of a diplomatic thaw between Washington and Havana, which announced in December 2014 their intention to normalise ties and just days after the first US company was given the green light to set up a factory in Cuba to make farm tractors. Washington has yet to lift its 55-year-old embargo against Cuba, which calls it a blockade as it prohibits third countries from transacting with Cuba. "The fine is yet another example of the extraterritorial scope of the blockade and its deterrent effect on foreign and even US companies," the report said. The fine is also "inconsistent with the current context of relations between the two countries and demonstrates that in order to make real progress towards the normalisation of bilateral ties, the blockade must be lifted," it added. Since December 2014, the US government has fined seven companies -- four from the US -- more than $2.8 billion for violating its trade embargo. Such fines levied since the start of US President Barack Obama's administration in 2009 amount to $14.4 billion. Los Angeles, Feb 24 : Building on the structure of Rudyard Kipling's timeless classic and the power of the 1967 animation film, director Jon Favreau has given a new vision to "The Jungle Book" backed by cutting-edge technology. The director says he has blended technology with the old story to honour the original and at the same time appeal to new audiences with his animation offering. The director also asserted that with the film, which will come out in Indian theatres on April 8, a week before it releases in the US, he has tried to push the envelope by embracing new technology to create a virtual world. Favreau, who began his career in the industry as an actor in "Rudy", sat down to explain his vision at Hollywood's The El Capitan Theatre here with selected mediapersons from all across the world. Why remake a classic? Why give it a technological twist? These are the questions that Favreau set out to answer around Disney's film, which brings a story straight from the enchanting forests of India and presents a modern take on Kipling's classic, originally published in 1894. Favreau said that he was motivated by Walt Disney Studios chairman Alan Horn to take the technological route for the film. "The idea of going out to the jungle and shooting this, it just felt like it wouldn't have the magic that the 1967 film had had. There was a dreamlike quality to it. There was a surreal quality to it. It was a high-water mark for character animation and to me, that's what I remember about it. And so I wanted to make sure we preserved that. "But what Horn said was: look at the technology. Look at 'Life of Pi', 'Avatar'. Why not use the technology to create a whole world that transports you? Let's really embrace this new technology and see what we can do if we push its limit." The live-action epic adventure showcases Mowgli's journey of self-discovery when he's forced to abandon his home in the forest. And Neel Sethi, who traces his roots to India and plays Mowgli, is only just being in an otherwise animation film. The film is supported by a stellar voice-over cast including Bill Murray, Ben Kingsley, Idris Elba, Lupita Nyong'o, Scarlett Johansson and Christopher Walken. Favreau also presented a glimpse of his vision by screening portions of the film. The director explained that by re-imagining the film "you are serving many masters...you are trying to honour the memory, preconceived memory of people who grew up with it, but you are also trying to make a movie that appeals to the full audience -- that is ethically what we set out to do". "We are trying to pay tribute, and we can also see that with the visual effects, we are pushing the technology. We are mixing the old story with cutting edge technology," he added. So, how was the film made? "We went back to the structure of it and saw what Kipling did because he offered a lot. We kind of picked between the two. The story structure of the 1967 film was good and offered a lot; so I stuck to it as much as I could. What I have tried to do is to focus on the images that I remember from it before going back to look at it again," he said. He is brimming with joy after using "level of artistry and technology" to narrate a story with "humour and emotion, and showing nature, animals, and getting into that real deep mythic imagery that I think always marries well with technology, and always has." (The writer's trip is at the invitation of Disney. Sugandha Rawal can be contacted at sugandha.r@ians.in) New Delhi, Feb 24 : Loud anti-government slogans and an uproar over the death of Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula disrupted the proceedings of the Rajya Sabha Wednesday -- the second day of the long budget session of Indian parliament. The upper house was adjourned five times after members assembled for the day at 11 a.m. After earlier adjournments in the morning, Chairman Hamid Ansari adjourned the house till 2 p.m. when members refused to let the house function and wanted the government to discuss Vemula's alleged suicide on January 17. Bahujan Samaj Party members blamed the central government for the scholar's suicide in Hyderabad University. They gathered at the chairman's podium, demanding the government debate the issue first and suspend the Question Hour. Ansari made a passionate appeal to slogan shouting members, requesting them that they should let the Question Hour proceed and raise the issue later in the day. He said that the Question Hour is a privilege of individual members who have asked questions to the government. "The questions have been listed and they have to be answered," he said. The government as well as the chair pointed out that a debate on the Vemula death is listed for later in the day. The protesting members didn't relent and continued with their slogan shouting, seeking justice for the family members of the dead student. They alleged that the government was anti-Dalit. BSP leader Mayawati insisted that the government respond first over the issue. "This is not the first time a Dalit student committed suicide," the BSP chief said. "Rohith Vemula was Ambedkar supporter. RSS did not like this, he was exploited," Mayawati said. Earlier in the morning, BSP members trooped near the chairman's podium raising slogans, following which the house was first adjourned for 10 minutes and then till noon. The death of the Dalit student triggered widespread protests from opposition, who demanded action against central ministers Smriti Irani and Bandaru Dattatreya, who were blamed for forcing Vemula to take his life. New York, Feb 24 : A group of activists gathered here outside Apple's flagship store to protest against the FBI's attempt to install software with backdoors in all of Apple's iPhones. With posters saying "Don't break our phones" and displaying cell phone images saying "No entry" in hands, the high-spirited protesters braved drizzling rain and bitter wind outside the Fifth Avenue Apple Store, Xinhua news agency reported. "We are standing in solidarity with Apple and their decision to oppose the FBI's scheme to put backdoors to the iPhones," said Jeff Lyon, chief technical officer of the activist group Fight for the Future. The protest occurred against the background of a major feud between the country's law enforcement agencies and Apple over its security measures on iPhones. The Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a motion last Friday to compel Apple to comply with a court order to help the Federal Bureau of Investigation access data on an iPhone owned by the terrorist shooter of San Bernadino, California. The FBI has in its possession of the iPhone 5C used by Syed Farook and his wife Tashfeen Malik, but couldn't access the data on the phone without a passcode. The couple shot dead 14 people in December 2015 in San Bernadino and were later killed by police. In response to FBI's request, a federal judge ordered Apple to create a software that bypasses a security feature that erases data in the iPhone after 10 unsuccessful unlocking attempts. "This case sets a dangerous precedent for the FBI to get a court to order Apple to push new software on all their phones that creates a government backdoor," said protester David Moore. In a statement released last week, Apple CEO Tim Cook refused to comply with the court order, saying that "in the wrong hands, this software - which does not exist today - would have the potential to unlock any iPhone in someone's physical possession," which would in turn compromise the data security of all Apple's customers. "Once you break one phone, you break all the phones. All our phones are breakable using the same technology," said protester Theo Chino. Mumbai, Feb 24 : Taiwanese smartphone maker ASUS on Wednesday released a 14-minute short film on YouTube that documents real life experiences of three people in distress who were helped at odd hours by local citizens. The film exhibits how three people -- entangled in various tricky situations in night hours -- used the ASUS' new low-light mode feature available on its smartphones to tackle the problems, the company said in a statement. The film titled "Low Light Heroes," features the real experiences of Pooja Banerjee, Ramesh Narang and Aditya Shah who, when confronted with emergencies in the middle of the night, receive aid from responsible citizens. While Banerjee was helped by an honest cab driver, an auto driver helped Shah reach hospital while he was lying down on the side of the road after meeting with an accident. There was no one in the hospital when a nurse helped Narang's wife while she was having labour pains. "There are inspiring stories about unsung heroes all around us. Yet, most people are unaware about them," Peter Chang, regional head, south Asia, ASUS India, said in a statement. The concept of the film emerged from ASUS' very own "PixelMaster" low-light mode feature which allows the camera to capture sharp images even in low-light conditions. Like the camera mode, the gallant acts of the "Low Light Heroes" only come to light at night, when the rest of the city sleeps. The film can be viewed at this link: https://goo.gl/Qn6dzl Washington, Feb 24 : In an effort to curb battery drainage as you use Wi-Fi to play games or watch movies, a team of engineers including Indian-origin researchers has demonstrated that it is possible to generate Wi-Fi transmissions using 10,000 times less power than conventional methods. The new "Passive Wi-Fi" system also consumes 1,000 times less power than existing energy-efficient wireless communication platforms, such as Bluetooth Low Energy and Zigbee, said computer scientists and electrical engineers from University of Washington. "We wanted to see if we could achieve Wi-Fi transmissions using almost no power at all. That is basically what 'Passive Wi-Fi' delivers. We can get Wi-Fi for 10,000 times less power than the best thing that's out there," said study co-author Shyam Gollakota, assistant professor of computer science and engineering. "Passive Wi-Fi" can for the first time transmit Wi-Fi signals at bit rates of up to 11 megabits per second that can be decoded on any of the billions of devices with Wi-Fi connectivity. These speeds are lower than the maximum Wi-Fi speeds but 11 times higher than Bluetooth. Apart from saving battery life, wireless communication that uses almost no power will help enable an "Internet of Things" reality where household devices and wearable sensors can communicate using Wi-Fi without worrying about power. "All the networking, heavy-lifting and power-consuming pieces are done by the one plugged-in device. The passive devices are only reflecting to generate the Wi-Fi packets, which is a really energy-efficient way to communicate," explained co-author Vamsi Talla, electrical engineering doctoral student. To achieve such low-power Wi-Fi transmissions, the team essentially decoupled the digital and analog operations involved in radio transmissions. The Passive Wi-Fi architecture assigns the analog, power-intensive functions - like producing a signal at a specific frequency -- to a single device in the network that is plugged into the wall. An array of sensors produces Wi-Fi packets of information using very little power by simply reflecting and absorbing that signal using a digital switch. In real-world conditions on the university campus, the team found the passive Wi-Fi sensors and a smartphone can communicate even at distances of 100 feet between them. Because the sensors are creating actual Wi-Fi packets, they can communicate with any Wi-Fi enabled device right out of the box. "Our sensors can talk to any router, smartphone, tablet or other electronic device with a Wi-Fi chipset," noted electrical engineering doctoral student Bryce Kellogg. The technology can enable entirely new types of communication that haven't been possible because energy demands have outstripped available power supplies. It could also simplify our data-intensive worlds. "Now that we can achieve Wi-Fi for tens of microwatts of power and can do much better than both Bluetooth and ZigBee, you could now imagine using Wi-Fi for everything," said Joshua Smith, associate professor of computer science and engineering. The technology has also been named one of the 10 breakthrough technologies of 2016 by the journal MIT Technology Review. A paper describing those results will be presented in March at the 13th USENIX Symposium on Networked Systems Design and Implementation in California. Kathmandu, Feb 24 : All 23 people on board a Nepali airliner were on Wednesday killed when it crashed in the mountains of western Nepal early in the morning, officials here said. The Tara Air Viking 9N-AHH Twin Otter had taken off from the western Nepali tourist resort of Pokhara at 7.47 a.m. for Jomsom from where trekkers usually commence their hike. Deputy director of Pokhara airport Yogendra Kumar told IANS that the plane, which carried 20 passengers besides a three-member crew, lost contact with the air traffic control (ATC) within minutes of taking off. The passengers included two infants and two foreign nationals, Kumar said. The plane remained missing for nearly four hours after losing contact with the Pokhara ATC and its wreckage was found scattered over a forested mountainside in Soli Ghoptebhir of Myagdi district, Civil Aviation Minister Ananda Prasad Pokhrel told news men in Kathmandu. Citing Nepal Army rescue teams which had reached the crash site, Pokhrel said: "The plane has crashed and all its occupants have been killed." Located 200 km west of capital Kathmandu, Pokhara is the second largest city of Nepal. It is a popular tourist destination and the kick-off point for climbing expeditions to the 8,091-metre Mt Annapurna. Jomsom too is the starting point for many trekkers in the Himalayas. The aircraft was added to the Tara Air fleet last September. Among the occupants were a Chinese national and a Kuwaiti and the others were Nepali nationals, BBC reported. Army spokesperson Brigadier General Tara Bahadur Karki confirmed that all 23 people aboard the plane were killed in the crash. Karki said a Nepal Army team had reached the crash site and located the wing and tail section of the plane, the Kathmandu Post said. The plane's wreckage was found after four hours of intense search and rescue operation. Eyewitnesses said the debris of the plane were scattered over a large area and the aircraft was still burning, the report added. One local said the weather at the site was extremely cold and the area was likely to get rainfall. Police constable Phool Kumar Thapa Magar who was among the first to reach the crash site said it was situated on a very treacherous terrain and the debris of the plane were scattered over an area of some 200 metres. "No one has been found alive," Myagdi district Deputy Superintendent of Police Bishwa Raj Khadka said, adding that it was difficult to identify the bodies due to the raging fire at the site. Two helicopters sent for the rescue bid were unable to land due to dense fog, he added. Roshan Manandhar, the pilot of the ill-fated plane, in his final conversation with Pokhara Air Traffic Control, reported that the flight was normal, said Jasoda Subedi, chief air traffic controller at Pokhara airport, the media report added. "See you back, Ghorepani normal, good day," were the last words from the captain. "The weather at Pokhara and Jomsom is fine today (Wednesday). So we have no clue about what went wrong," said Bhim Raj Rai, media officer at Tara Airlines, soon after the plane was reported missing. But the areas adjoining the suspected crash site were covered in a cloud of dust on Tuesday following dry landslides in Mt Annapurna South base since Monday night. The expected flying time for the plane from Pokhara to Jomsom town is approximately 20 minutes. Over 100 people have died in plane crashes in the Himalayan nation in the past five years. The last crash was on February 16, 2014, when a Nepal Airlines Twin Otter crashed in Masinelek, Argakhanchi, killing 18 people. At least 15 people were killed when an Agni Air plane carrying Indian pilgrims crashed on May 14, 2012, near the treacherous high-altitude airport of Jomsom in northern Nepal, while six made a miraculous escape, the Kathmandu post said. Tokyo, Feb 24 : Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will visit Russia despite the US urging him not to do so, a top government official said on Wednesday. According to Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, Abe's top spokesperson, the prime minister will make an unofficial visit to Russia to discuss a long-standing territorial dispute between Tokyo and Moscow, Xinhua reported. "Prime Minister Abe is planning an unofficial visit to Russia at an appropriate time before Russian President Vladimir Putin visits Japan," Suga told a press briefing. The Russian president is expected to visit Japan at some point later this year. The media quoting diplomatic sources said, however, that US President Barack Obama, in talks on the telephone on February 9, had pressed Abe to refrain from making the trip to Sochi in May, due to the US's stance over Russia's actions in Ukraine and Syria. The sources were also quoted as saying that Washington feels that Tokyo is overly cozying up to Moscow as it seeks to resolve the territorial spat. To this end, Suga said that communications between Japan and its main ally the US would continue as well as its special cooperation, and through the Group of Seven countries' mechanisms, Japan would jointly stand up to the challenges facing the international community. "We will closely cooperate and communicate with the United States and Japan will appropriately respond to challenges facing the international community such as the situation in Ukraine through cooperation with the Group of Seven countries," said Suga. Economic sanctions have been slapped on Russia following incidents pertaining to the Ukraine in 2014, by the US, Japan and other countries, and Russia's membership of the Group of Eight highly industrialised nations. The nations in G8 are France, Germany, Italy, Britain, Japan, the US, Canada, and Russia. Despite imposing sanctions on Russia, which has delayed the process, including hopes for an earlier visit by Putin to Japan, Tokyo has been keen to resolve its territorial dispute with Moscow over islands located north of Hokkaido, despite some angst from the US over Abe's eagerness to woo Putin. The islands in question are Etorofu, Kunashiri, Shikotan and the Habomai rocks, which are believed by Japan to be a part of the Nemuro subprefecture of Hokkaido prefecture and are referred to by Japan as the Northern Territories. Russia, however, maintains that the islands that they refer to as the Southern Kurils are Russian territory and were recaptured by the Soviet Union after World War II. The territorial dispute has prevented both sides from inking a peace treaty after the war. County Judge Talks To Serial Stowaway Like An Exasperated Dad By Mae Rice in News on Feb 24, 2016 5:26PM Marilyn Hartman (photo via Chicago Police) The Serial Stowawaya 64-year-old woman arrested at O'Hare International Airport last week trying to sneak onto yet another planehas prompted a local judge to talk like an exasperated dad, according to the Tribune's report from the courtroom. Cook County Circuit Judge William Raines described himself as "disappointed" in Tuesdays hearing for Marilyn Hartman, whose latest stowaway attempt resulted in her sixth Cook County arrest in 10 months, according to the Tribune. After Hartman's last arrest, she was released into a Chicago nursing home, Sacred Heart, on mental health probation. (In 2014, Hartman reported having severe depression and an unrecognized ailment, whistleblower trauma syndrome.) She was ordered to keep away from OHare, Midway Airport and Union Stationwhich she did, until she didnt. Here are some of the things Judge Raines said in Hartmans hearing: "I can't tell you how disappointed I am right now that we're facing this issue. "Whatever we do going forward, we can't keep doing this over and over and over again How many times do we have to revisit this?" On the option of re-releasing Hartman to Sacred Heart: [R]ight now I'm not feeling very confident that that worked so well for you." "And I said that the last time, that this was the last opportunity. So maybe this is the last last opportunity. "I gotta make sure in my mind that Ms. Hartman gets it that there's not many more chances left. So we can make this work. It's going to be a lot more restrictive. It's not going to be as easy." The moral here: Its really hard to figure out how to humanely discipline repeat offenders, as parents of cool teens around the world can confirm. Judge Raines asked a probation supervisor and a representative from Sacred Heart to come to his courtroom next week, where they will decide on next steps for Hartmanwhich, as the judge says above, will not be as relaxed as her previous probation. Colombo, Feb 24 : The Sri Lankan government on Wednesday said it will take immediate measures to provide a safe environment for tourists to the island nation. Tourism Minister John Amaratunga said the government was concerned at the increasing number of complaints of exploitation and harassment of foreign tourists and warned to take stern action against those involved, Xinhua reported. Amaratunga called on the police department to revamp the Tourist Police to suit the current needs. "There is an increasing trend of complaints of harassment and exploitation of tourists, especially in the western and southern coastal belts and in the Cultural Triangle sites. The complaints range from monetary exploitation such as overcharging, short changing and theft to harassment by touts, salesmen, taxi drivers and even tour guides," Amaratunga said. "The emerging trend is causing concern. With tourist arrivals hitting record figures, the number of complaints is also increasing. We plan to take stern measures so that the good name of the industry and the country is not spoilt by a few miscreants," he added. Sri Lanka's tourism industry, which was once heavily scarred by a 30-year civil conflict, has now emerged as the leading foreign exchange earner with an increasing number of tourists. In January, arrivals rose 24.3 percent year-on-year to 194,280, boosted mainly by a massive influx of Chinese tourists. China appears set to be the single largest tourist source for Sri Lanka, overtaking India, statistics from the Sri Lanka Tourism Board revealed. Last year, Sri Lanka received almost 1.8 million tourists, up 17.8 percent from the previous year, largely due to a strong growth of Chinese visitors. Guwahati, Feb 24 : Just days ahead of the union budget, the Assam unit of the Congress on Wednesday took to the streets protesting against the 'indifferent attitude' of the central government to discontinue with the special category status for the northeastern states. Assam Pradesh Congress Committee president Anjan Dutta led the protest rally from the Latasil playground to the office of the deputy commissioner of Kamrup Metro district in Kachari area, and submitted a memorandum to him, to be handed over to Prime Minister Narendra Modi demanding fulfilment of various demands. "We have been protesting for more than one year over some whimsical policy decisions of the central government that has cost Assam and the other northeastern states. However, the Centre's attitude towards our demands has remained indifferent," Dutta said. "It was a whimsical decision of the central government to discontinue the special category state status from Assam and other northeastern states. "The discontinuation of the 90:10 central funding pattern and discontinuation of the North East Industrial and Investment Policy (NEIIPP) affected the development of the state very badly," he said. Dutta urged Modi to restore the earlier status immediately for the overall betterment of the northeastern region. "We also demanded the prime minister to grant Scheduled Tribe status to the six communities -- Tai Ahom, Moran, Mottock, Koch Rajbongshi, Chutia and tea tribes -- for the overall development of the state," he said. The state Congress chief said they also demanded the prime minister execute the central government decision to form the Brahmaputra River Valley Authority for controlling the flood and erosion problem in the state. "The special funding system being enjoyed by a few selected districts of Assam under the Backward Area Region Fund has to be restored immediately," he said. Mumbai, Feb 24 : Actor Sanjay Dutt will walk free from the Yerawada Central Jail in Pune on Thursday. He will reportedly have a relaxed day and spend time with his family rather than partying hard with fraternity members. The 56-year-old will be released after serving the remainder of his five-year sentence for possessing illegal arms in the March 12, 1993, Mumbai serial bomb blasts case. "He will take a charter from Yerawada Central Jail to Mumbai. He won't be partying immediately after his release. He will offer prayers at Siddhivinayak temple and then go to his mother's (Nargis) grave in Marine Lines," a source told IANS. "There is a portrait of his father (Sunil Dutt) in his building in Pali Hill. There will be a small puja there. It will be basically a relaxed day with his family," the source added. Of the five-year sentence, Sanjay has served more than 50 months in two installments, excluding the parole and furlough he was granted at various times on different grounds. He spent 18 months in jail as an undertrial before he was granted bail and later, following a Supreme Court order in May 2013, he was sent to the Yerawada Jail to serve the remaining 42 months of his five-year sentence. To celebrate Sanjay's release from prison, a Mumbai restaurateur will offer a special culinary delight -- named 'Chicken Sanju Baba' -- free of charge to all patrons and fans. Mughlai eatery Noor Mohammadi Hotel here will offer the signature recipe, created by Sanjay himself and gifted to restaurant owner Khalid Hakim. On the film front, his projects are yet to be revealed, but some filmmakers have shown interest in working with the "Khalnayak" star. National Award-winning director Umesh Shukla said he has a film for Sanjay. "Sanjay liked my subject. We will get to know the status of the film once he returns home. First of all, he needs to be with his family. That's his priority. As far as the film is concerned, he certainly liked my script, which I narrated to him last year," Shukla had earlier told IANS. "The script suits him the best. It's content-oriented subject," he added. Filmmaker Vidhu Vinod Chopra, who shares a close bond with Sanjay and also cast him in the highly successful "Munnabhai" franchise, said the actor "committed a mistake and paid for that. Now it's his new birth and we are with him". "We have been writing scripts for him for the last few years and right now we have many scripts for him," he added. He also shared that the pre-production of the third part of "Munnabhai" franchise is in full swing. "Aligarh" actors Manoj Bajpayee amd Rajkummar Rao are "delighted" that actor Sanjay will return from his incarceration. Filmmaker Subhash Ghai has a special message for him. "If I know Sanjay like he was during 'Vidhaata' and 'Khalnayak', he will come out this time with much more maturity and a greater sense of responsibility as a human, a family man and also a star. He just wants to focus on his career as an actor and nothing else. That's what he told me two months back," Ghai said in a statement. New Delhi, Feb 24 : Internet giant Google and global community for tech entrepreneurs TechHub on Wednesday announced their global partnership that will benefit startups from India for the first time. The partnership with Google for Entrepreneurs will bring more opportunities to TechHub's 700-plus tech startups around the world including India, said a statement released here. Google supports TechHub's work to help hundreds of tech companies scale up their businesses. "In Bengaluru, we see a huge variety of startups creating innovative products, and we want to help them succeed both in India and all around the world. TechHub and Google for Entrepreneurs is a strong partnership that will empower Indian entrepreneurs to go global from the very beginning," Elizabeth Varley, TechHub's global co-founder and CEO, said in a statement. Now TechHub members in Bengaluru and other TechHub locations in Riga, Bucharest, Madrid, Warsaw and London will have access to programmes and assistance from Google. "TechHub's 'community first' values and their focus on supporting founders and startups with education and programs align perfectly with the goals of Google for Entrepreneurs," added David Grunwald, Google for Entrepreneurs' head of EMEA Partnerships. TechHub members hail from over 60 countries and every member can access Google in six international cities. TechHub membership gives each entrepreneur access to every TechHub in the world and all the programmes and opportunities available there. TechHub's programme helped startups face the challenges of building and growing a global tech company, the statement said. New Delhi, Feb 24 : After receiving a tremendous response in India, leading Chinese smartphone brand Meizu on Wednesday made its debut for sale on the e-commerce platform Flipkart, the company said in a statement. Already available on Snapdeal for Rs.6,999, Meizu m2 has been acknowledged as one of the most budget-friendly smartphones of 2015. Meizu m2 has a 5-inch 720p high definition display with Dragontrail Glass, 1.3GHz quad-core MediaTek MT6753 processor with 2 GB DDR3 RAM. It is loaded with a 13-megapixel primary camera with flash and 5-megapixel front camera with FotoNation 2.0 for smart selfie enhancement. Having an internal memory of 16GB, which can be extended by a 128GB memory card, Meizu m2 has a single slot for two nano-SIMs and the card. The phone has a 2,500mAh battery, allowing a call time of up to 23 hours and 12 hours of browsing internet with screen and Wi-Fi connection turned on. Meizu has 46 customer service centres across 33 cities in India. Lucknow, Feb 24 : Personal transportation mobile application company, Ola, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Uttar Pradesh government to provide entrepreneurship opportunities for 50,000 men and women across the state over the next five years, a company statement said here on Wednesday. "We aim to create more than 50,000 employment and entrepreneurial opportunities in the state by investing in skill development of youth," Pranay Jivrajka, chief operating officer of Ola said. "Ola's commitment to building mobility for citizens by using cutting edge mobile technology and by enabling entrepreneurship and skilling will be invaluable," Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav said. Now Ola has become a key component of the local transportation space with presence across nine major cities in the state -- Lucknow, Kanpur, Agra, Meerut, Aligarh, Allahabad, Saharanpur, Varanasi and Mathura. Currently, over 2,100 vehicles are registered on the Ola platform in the state and it is expected to go up to 20,000 in the next five years. New Delhi, Feb 24 : The nationalism propounded by the ruling BJP is centralised despotism, Trinamool Congress member Sugata Bose said on Wednesday in thed Lok Sabha while participating in a discussion on the Jawaharlal Nehru University controversy. "I am a nationalist. But I do not vouch for the kind of nationalism propounded by the treasury benches. This nationalism is centralised despotism," Bose said. Bose said although he is not a communist, he would support JNU students union leader Kanhaiya Kumar, a leftist, and other students for the sake of freedom of expression. "The idea of India is not so brittle as to go away with a few slogans," Bose said, referring to the alleged anti-national slogans raised at the JNU campus on February 9. Terming the government's crackdown on some JNU students a "witch hunt", the Trinamool MP said if universities and students are attacked in this way, "the legacy of the anti-colonial freedom struggle is undermined". "What must be avoided is criminality of dissent," he said. Bose also accused the ruling dispensation of diverting the nation's attention from the core issues of governance. London, Feb 24 : Bacteria in the gut of disease-bearing insects -- including the mosquito which carries the Zika virus -- can be used as a Trojan horse to help control the insects' population, reveals a new research. "Our method could also help in the fight against the Zika virus, as the Aedes mosquito that bears the virus has bacteria that would be suitable," said Paul Dyson, professor at Swansea University in Wales in Britain. It can help us to tackle some of the insects and crop pests that have such a devastating impact on human health and the food chain, he added. The research showed decline in fertility up to 100 percent and an increase of 60 percent in the mortality rate of larvae, amongst the insects studied. Researchers used a technique, known as symbiont-mediated RNAi, that uses friendly (symbiotic) bacteria to inhabit an insect's gut as a Trojan horse to deliver a "switch off" command to chosen target insect genes. "This technology allows us to target insects much more effectively than conventional pesticides, and without their side effects. Using bacteria as a Trojan horse gets round some of the problems in delivering RNAi to the insect," Dyson noted. The study revealed that the RNAi can be targeted specifically at the species in question, and does not harm other insects, such as bees and other pollinators. It also does not carry the risk of environmental damage and harm to human health and insects do not acquire resistance to it in the way that they do to chemical pesticides. The symbiotic bacteria are programmed to manufacture the RNAi molecules inside the insect's body, for as long as needed, and they do this without being detected by the insect's immune system. The bacteria are specific to that particular insect and cannot live outside it. The study, published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B, represents a significant advance in the ability to deliver RNAi, potentially to a large range of non-model insects, the researchers said adding that the technique would be transferable to many insect species, including the Aedes mosquitoes, which carry the Zika virus. Damascus, Feb 24 : Syrian President Bashar al-Assad reassured his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin via a phone call on Wednesday that his administration will observe a cessation of hostilities as planned by Russia and the US, according to SANA. President Putin phoned Assad on Wednesday, in which both leaders discussed the current situation in Syria in the light of the agreed upon ceasefire. Both presidents also agreed on the need to continue the war against the terrorist-designated groups, namely the Islamic State and the Al Qaeda-linked Nusra Front. Russia and the US agreed to enforce a cessation of hostilities starting from February 27. Any party engaged in conflicts in Syria will indicate to Russia or the US their commitment to and acceptance of the terms for the cessation of hostilities by no later than 12.00 Damascus time on February 27, according to a joint statement issued by the US State Department. Los Angeles, Feb 24 : Actor Aaron Paul says he still regrets playing a prank about announcing a spinoff series on his character Jesse Pinkman from the popular American crime drama TV series "Breaking Bad". Last year, the 36-year-old actor pranked "Breaking Bad" fans by announcing a spinoff series via Periscope. However, as fans began to write ecstatic comments about the news, Paul realised his mistake and quickly explained that he wasn't serious. But by then, the news had already gone viral. He later apologised on Twitter saying, "Sorry for the joke everybody. I love you all so much. Hugs and kisses." Recalling the incident on "Jimmy Kimmel Live!", Paul explains that he kept being asked about a possible season 6 of the hit series, read a statement. "That hoax kept resurfacing throughout the years. I decided to pull a prank on Periscope, which was terrible. I'm watching the comments as they come in as I'm saying this, and everyone's super excited," Paul said. "And they don't stick around for my conclusion of the story, like letting them know it's a prank. But then it went viral, and everyone thought it was actually happening," he added. So how did Paul feel when the dust from the prank had settled? "I just felt like an a**hole." he told Kimmel. The episode will air on Wednesday tonight at 11 pm on Star World in India. Three New Chicago Bars To Watch This Year By Anthony Todd in Food on Feb 24, 2016 7:33PM A selection of cocktails at GreenRiver. Photo by Kaitlyn McQuaid. There have been some notable bits of bar news floating around this week. Let's dig into the most interesting. First, the Annex at GreenRiver is now open, and Chicago Magazine has photos. GreenRiver, you may recall, is the fancy cocktail bar/restaurant in Northwestern Hospital that we loved last year. Now, in addition to the huge cocktail selection in the main restaurant, they've opened a small adjacent bar, The Annex. It's got even more complicated drinks, a small food menu and only about 20 seats, and if our love of GreenRiver is any indication, it's going to become a quick favorite. North Center is getting a fabulous cocktail bar of its own (to match Lincoln Square's new destination bar, The Sixth) next week. DNAInfo reports that The Victor Bar, a Parisian-inspired spot owned by a trio of local lawyers, will open next week. The atmosphere is intimate, the cocktail list is small but exotic, and they are serving desserts from Amy's Candy Bar up the street. What's not to love? The former Beechwood Inn space in Wicker Park, which has sat vacant for eight months, has been taken over by the Pioneer Tavern Group, reports Eater Chicago. The group, which owns Lottie's, Frontier and the Pony Inn, will open Mae Bell Tavern & Grocery in the space. Executive Chef Brian Jupiter, of Frontier, will be handling the food. No opening date yet, but good to see the space will be back in action again. New Delhi, Feb 24 : Arrested JNU scholar Umar Khalid's sister says her brother has wrongly been branded an Islamist terrorist because the self-proclaimed Marxist has a habit of questioning everything, including the existence of God. Khalid, facing the charge of sedition, surrendered before Delhi Police shortly after midnight and was taken into custody after five hours of questioning early Tuesday. His family is less worried about their son now after he made a dramatic appearance at the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) campus on Sunday night, days after he went into hiding following a police crackdown. His sister, Kulsum Fatima, 25, a post-graduate in history from Ambedkar University, praised her 'bhai' - as she fondly calls Khalid - as a "good human being" who has done nothing wrong. "He has always been a Marxist. He never believed in the Allah. Despite our family being very religious, he chose to be a non-believer, because he also questioned God," Fatima told IANS in an interview at her south Delhi house in a dingy neighbourhood of Zakir Nagar. She said the government was "scared" of people who question. "My brother and hundreds like him are questioning the state about the injustice being done, and the atrocities against Dalits and Muslims (in India). What is wrong with that," she asked. Recalling her childhood with her brother, Fatima said he used to have "sleepless nights" worrying about Dalits in the country. "I wish I was as good as my brother," said Fatima, alleging that she was threatened on social media soon after Khalid's name surfaced on the television branding him a "terrorist" after a controversial February 9 event on Kashmir at Jawaharlal Nehru University campus where Khalid is pursuing his Ph.D. on life of tribals in Jharkhand - one of the impoverished tribal states of India. Khalid and five other accused JNU students - Kanhaiya Kumar, Anant Prakash Narayan, Ashutosh Kumar, Rama Naga, Anirban Bhattacharya - have been alleged to have raised anti-national slogans at the meeting. While Kanhaiya Kumar, the president of JNU Students Union, was arrested on February 12, three others are yet to surrender. They are believed to be inside the JNU campus and police have been barred from entering there. Khalid's father Illyaas, a former chief of banned Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI), hesitates to speak too much about his son, who appeared on TV channels along with his colleagues as a new found hero of student protests in the country. The father, however, said that his son was being "punished in media studios for having a Muslim name". Khalid shares his name with one of Islam's early time warriors, Khalid Bin Walid - a companion of Prophet Muhammad - still remembered in the Islamic history for his military tactics and prowess. But the similarity ends with the name only. Khalid is neither Islamic nor does he vouch for jihad. His sister said that Khalid is her role model. "I wish I were as good and as sensitive towards real issues like him." She said that her brother has been branded "a traitor because his name is Umar Khalid and his ideology is extreme Left. Both things fit the profile." She said that the family was worried a lot when Khalid was absconding and is feels thankful that despite being branded as a terrorist he did not "go the Rohith Vemula way". She referred to the research scholar at the Hyderabad University who committed suicide after being suspended from the varsity following a clash with a leader of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP). "We were scared when bhai was absconding. We weren't scared of his arrest but we were scared of the allegations that has been put on him," Fatima said. "We feel safer now. At least we know he is alive." (Ruwa Shah can be contacted at ruwa.s@ians.in) New Delhi, Feb 24 : The CPI-M on Wednesday expressed "grave concern" over the growing signs of hatred and use of violence to intimidate groups and individuals who hold views contrary to those of the perpetrators. "Particularly disturbing is the inaction, complicity and failure to apprehend the perpetrators by the law enforcement agencies," the Communist Party of India-Marxist said in a statement. "It is also clear that such brazen acts which show utter disregard for laws of the land could not be spreading rapidly but for this complicit role," it said. "No doubt, the overall atmosphere in the country which smacks of intolerance, hatred and polarization has apparently emboldened the perpetrators." The CPI-M urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi, "who recently claimed that he is the PM of the whole country and not just of the BJP, to come out categorically and initiate measures to stop such blatant violations of law and the constitutional principles. "Citizens must be emphatically reassured, constitutionally will not be allowed to be breached." The CPI-M denounced the acid attack on social activist-turned-AAP functionary Soni Sori in Dantewada district in Chhattisgarh. Sori is now in Delhi seeking urgent medical attention. It expressed outrage over the way "an extreme rightwing group" forced a policeman, Yusuf Sheikh, in Latur in Maharashtra to be paraded and install a saffron flag. The CPI-M said similar violence was let loose on JNU student leader Kanhaiya Kumar, academics and journalists while he was in police custody and in the Sessions Court in the Patiala House Court in Delhi. New Delhi, Feb 24 : Union Minister for Food Processing Industries Harsimrat Kaur Badal on Wednesday accused the Congress of stalling the Goods and Services Tax Bill to prevent Prime Minister Narendra Modi from getting the credit for its passage. Taking part in a debate on the motion of thanks on the President's address, she said that job creation could be boosted with the passage of the GST legislation. The Shiromani Akali Dal's Lok Sabha member from Bathinda said many bills were pending in the Rajya Sabha. "Who does not let the house function, does not allow GST? " she said, without naming the Congress. The GST bill is pending in the Rajya Sabha with the Congress insisting that the government meet its demands of including a cap on the GST rate at 18 percent, deletion of the provision for one percent tax by additional levy and an independent dispute resolution mechanism. Harsimrat Kaur said every kind of "disruptive" tactic was being used to stall the bill because the prime minister will get credit if it was passed. She said discussing student politics for hours will not create employment but passage of the GST bill will take the country forward. The minister said though the "disruptive politic" was targeted at the prime minister, it was actually disrupting progress of the country. She also highlighted the government's achievements including increased pace of road construction in comparison to work done during the tenure of Congress-led United Progressive Alliance. The debate was initiated by BJP MP Meenakshi Lekhi who said India had become the fastest growing economy. "Our governance paradigm seeks to undertake development for each and every section of the society. Our goal is to reach out to the poorest of the poor and to the remotest corner of the country and ensure delivery of services," she said. She said that economic development with social justice needs coordination between all stakeholders including the states, local governments, businesses, NGOs and the people. Chennai, Feb 24 : A 68-kg cake was cut, an AIADMK leader floated on water for 68 minutes and 15 lakh people telephoned her birthday greetings as Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and AIADMK star J. Jayalalithaa turned 68 on Wednesday. Prime Minister Narendra Modi was among the political leaders who spoke to her on the occasion, wishing her a long and healthy life. Modi also tweeted: "Birthday wishes to Jayalalithaaji. May Almighty bless her with a long life, filled with good health." At the AIADMK headquarters here, a cake weighing 68 kg was cut and distributed to cheering party cadres and leaders. Some ardent AIADMK members tattooed the actor-turned-politician's image and performed special prayers seeking divinely blessings for Jayalalithaa. Governor K. Rosaiah, union Parliamentary Affairs Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu and people from different walks of life greeted Jayalalithaa. The Chennai Corporation announced a deposit of Rs.10,000 for every girl child born on Wednesday in corporation hospitals. At the Amma Canteen, food and a sweet was given away free. Another AIADMK leader organised a 68-hour 'yagna' for Jayalalithaa's welfare. The government's Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments department organised planting of 6,868 saplings at 12 temples in the state. Around 15 lakh callers greeted Jayalalithaa through a dedicated telephone line. New Delhi, Feb 24 : A court on Wednesday convicted former union minister P.K. Thungon in a corruption case related to the allotment of government shops here during 1993-94. Central Bureau of Investigation Special Judge Sanjeev Aggarwal convicted Thungon on charges of criminal conspiracy and under the Prevention of Corruption Act. The court will hear arguments on the quantum of sentence on Thursday. The court acquitted two other accused, Lhakpa Tsering and Krishna. Two other accused, former Urban Affairs and Employment Minister Sheila Kaul and Tulsi Balodi, died during the trial. In 1996, the CBI registered a case against Thungon and the others for allegedly hatching a conspiracy in allotting shops and stalls in 1994. It has said that in pursuance to the conspiracy, Kaul abused her official position and sanctioned the shops without calling for any tender from the general public on the mere recommendation of Thungon. The CBI said this caused a huge pecuniary loss to the government. Thungon is also serving four and a half years in jail in a 1998 corruption case. New Delhi, Feb 24 : All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) president Asaduddin Owaisi on Wednesday accused the Narendra Modi government of having "double standards" on the issue of nationalism. "Where was their feeling of nationalism when they allied with a party (Peoples Democratic Party) in Jammu and Kashmir that called Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru a martyr and termed his execution a travesty of justice," Owaisi said in the Lok Sabha. "The BJP gives certificates of nationalism, while the Congress gives certificates of secularism. I request them not to impose their ideology upon others," he added. Owaisi also blamed Human Resource Development Minister Smriti Irani for the death of Dalit research scholar Rohith Vemula, who committed suicide, on the Hyderabad University campus. "Had the HRD minister not intervened in the matter, Rohith Vemula wouldn't have died. As far as (Jawaharlal Nehru University Students Union president) Kanhaiya Kumar is concerned, he is innocent and action should be taken against all those (TV news) channels which spread lies about the JNU incident," the AIMIM leader said. Patna, Feb 24 : A total of 412 students caught cheating in Class 12 exams were expelled in Bihar on Wednesday and dozens of people who helped them to cheat have been arrested, officials said. "The students were expelled on charge of adopting unfair means," a Bihar School Examination Board official said. The highest number of students caught cheating and expelled was 40 in Sheikhpura district followed by 29 in Jehanabad district and 17 in Rohtas district. The authorities have decided to take tough measures to conduct cheating-free exams. Around 70,000 officials, including teachers and policemen, have been deployed to hold free and fair exams, said Hariharnath Jha, an official of the Bihar School Examination Board. The examination centres would be monitored by CCTV cameras. To curb mass cheating, the authorities have decided to impose a fine of up to Rs.10,000 on students found using unfair means and punish the guardians found helping their children to cheat. Parents, guardians or friends found helping students to cheat would be sent to jail. Nearly 11.60 lakh students appeared for Class 12 exams at 1,109 centres across the state on Wednesday. Students caught cheating would be expelled for three years. Earlier, the board debarred them only for a year, Jha said. Ranchi, Feb 24 : Unidentified criminals on Wednesday snatched Rs.10 lakh from a person after he arrived at the railway station here from Bokaro, police said. Police said Rajendra Prasad Yadav was in the process of boarding a vehicle at the railway station when the criminals snatched his bag containing Rs.10 lakh. Yadav later lodged a complaint with Chutia police station in Ranchi. On Monday, criminals had snatched Rs.6 lakh from the staff of a petrol station at Mecon Gate here. "Jungle raj seems to prevail in Jharkhand. Criminals are looting cash, killing people on a regular basis in Ranchi," said Jharkhand Congress spokesperson Kishore Sahdeo. New Delhi, Feb 24 : With China's increasing assertiveness on its claims over the South China Sea, Vietnam, the southeast Asian nation that is most vulnerable to this, on Wednesday appreciated India's position on th issue. "We appreciate the position of India on resolving the South China Sea disputes peacefully, without threat or actual use of force, and early concluding of a code of conduct on the South China Sea," Vietnamese Ambassador to India Ton Sinh Thanh said at a workshop on "The South China Sea: Security and economic implications" here. The workshop was organised by the M.L. Sondhi Institute for Asia Pacific Affairs (MLSIAPA) in collaboration with the National Maritime Foundation (NMF) and the Centre for China Analysis and Strategy (CSAS). Speaking at a session on regional security dynamics vis-a-vis the South China Sea, Ton said that External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj correctly stated at the Delhi Dialogue 2016 earlier this month that oceans and seas, including the South China Sea, were pathways to prosperity and security. The Delhi Dialogue is a premier annual track 1.5 diplomatic event for discussing the politico-security, economic and socio-cultural engagement between India and the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean). "The security of sea routes in the Asia-Pacific is essential for India's economy as a majority of Indian global trade flows across the straits of Malacca and beyond," Ton said. He cited the settlement of the maritime disputes between India and Bangladesh in the Bay of Bengal by using the UN's Arbitration Tribunal as a good example for the claimants in the South China Sea to solve their problems. Stating that the Paracel and Spratly islands in the South China Sea, over which China has laid claim to, belonged to Vietnam, the ambassador said Hanoi has full historical evidence and legal foundation to confirm its sovereignty over these islands, "which in fact have been owned and controlled peacefully and continuously by Vietnam since the 17th century when no other countries claimed their sovereignty over these islands". "However, Vietnam is ready to work with other claimants to settle territorial disputes over Paracel and Spratly islands by means of multilateral and also bilateral negotiations in a peaceful manner in accordance with international laws," he said. Asserting that Vietnam would spare no efforts to make the South China Sea a region of peace, stability and cooperation for development, Ton said that there has been a series of escalating illegal activities of China that were threatening the peace and stability in the South China Sea. "Before 1947, all geographical maps printed by China show their territory stopped at Hainan island only. In 1974, China used force to occupy the Paracel islands which were under Vietnam's administration. In 1988, China again used force to occupy some reefs in the Spratly islands of Vietnam," he said. According to ambassador, over the past 20 months alone, more than 2,900 acres of land was reclaimed by China, accounting for 95 percent of all land reclaimed by other countries in the Spratly islands over the past 40 years. "China has built big airstrips on three artificial islands there," he said. "As you are aware, the South China Sea with over 3.7 million sq km area not only provides the surrounding countries with oil and gas, sea food and other natural resources, but also serves as the most critical shipping routes between the Pacific and Indian Ocean. The South China Sea has naturally become important to all countries countries within and outside the region, including major powers like India." Earlier, speaking at the inaugural session, former foreign secretary Kanwal Sibal said that China wanted to solve all issues pertaining to the South China Sea bilaterally. He said that India should deal with the issue with China in cooperation rather than in confrontation. In this regard, he said the security pact signed between India and Japan during Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's visit to New Delhi in December was a step in the right direction. According to Srikanth Kondapalli, professor of China Studies at the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), previously, China only had Tibet and Taiwan as core interest areas, but it now has the South China Sea too. G.V.C. Naidu, professor in the Centre of Indo-Pacific Studies at JNU, said that Asean alone has the clout to deal with Beijing on the South China Sea issue. "But there is clear division within the Asean on dealing with China as only four Asean countries have claims over the South China Sea," he said. Kolkata, Feb 24 : Amid the protests at the JNU and Jadavpur University, West Bengal Governor K.N. Tripathi on Wednesday warned that higher educational institutions were becoming 'platforms of politics'. Addressing an event here, Tripathi said the freedom of speech and expression was being misused to politically influence the governance of the educational institutions. "Higher education institutions are becoming platforms of politics. Generations of unhealthy politics needs to be avoided. Educational institutions have been witnessing political and extraneous influences in the governance of educational institutions. "This is being particularly done in the name of freedom to form associations and freedom of speech and expression, forgetting that these freedoms are subject to reasonable restrictions as provided in the constitution itself," said Tripathi, the ex-offiicio chancellor of various state-run universities in the state. The governor said the "autonomy of a university wasn't unlimited but controlled by statutes". Tripathi's comments come in the wake of the JNU row and the arrest of its student leader Kanhaiya Kumar. Protesting against the government's handling of the issue, a section of Jadavpur University students staged a protest where slogans were raised praising Afzal Guru, hanged for the terror attack on parliament, and seeking independence for Jammu and Kashmir, Manipur and Nagaland. Tripathi's comments were condemned by educationists. "His comments are not that of a governor or a chancellor, rather that of a politician. It is really childish to say that students should refrain from politics. Most of our political leaders came from student politics," said educationist Pabitra Sarkar. Meet The Guy Behind Wicker Park's 'Saved By The Bell' Pop-up By Tankboy in Arts & Entertainment on Feb 24, 2016 9:01PM 'A 'Saved By The Bell' parody pop-up is coming to Wicker Park When we broke the news a Saved By The Bell-themed pop-up was coming to Wicker Park this summer, we had no idea it was going to be this popular. Since news of the dinercalled Saved By The Max and modeled on the after-school hangout The Max in the original television seriesthe project has gotten national attention. The creator of Saved By The Max managed to remain anonymous for a while, but recently revealed himself to be local promoter and Beauty Bar Chicago events manager Derek Berry. Now that Berry's gone public, he took some time to tell Chicagoist how the whole idea came about, and what we can expect from the pop-up when it opens in June. CHICAGOIST: So first off, where did this whole idea come from and what spurred you to actually make it a reality? Derek Berry and his wife showing their love of the '90s dressed as characters from 'The Sandlot' BERRY: Well, I've throw a lot of Saved By The Bell and '90s inspired events over the years at both Rehab Mondays and Beauty Bar Chicago. I've also DJ'd under the alias of "Team Bayside High", so I've always had a weird obsession with the show and referencing it! C: So what spurred turning your "obsession" into and actual physical destination? BERRY: After doing a few "themed" events and seeing how people really got excited about having some hands-on nostalgia past just the music or visuals. For instance, if we made an interactive photo booth, some custom named drinks, and ran with some extra production details, the event would just take off and everyone would have such a great time I wanted to finally take it to the next level. So, I had the idea in my head for a few months, and then the right situation literally fell into my lap with a space that not only was going to be able to facilitate a Saved By The Bell theme, but could easily be made to replicate The Max. After one meeting I knew this space was perfect to make over and the people who own the space are into making this a home run experience nothing short of awesome! C: Obviously the situation has blown up in the news. What are the wildest experiences so far? BERRY: It's hard to choose one. I'm super pumped with the press and hearing them discussing it on The Today Show, and seeing it on the front page of some pretty big publications. But when Mario Lopez Instagrammed a picture of the event page shouting out the "AC Sliders" [a Saved By The Max menu item], I was like, "Oh man, it's on!" I've also been contacted by a few different cast members from the show and had calls with them, and it's been unreal to hear their stories of how The Max was named and what it was used for in real life. A couple times I had to stay, "Don't fanboy Derek, don't fanboy!" to myself. I hear they have a burger called an 'AC Slider' A photo posted by Mario Lopez (@mariolopezextra) on Feb 11, 2016 at 11:48am PST Which cast members? And does it look like there'd be a chance any of them might even stop by? BERRY: We're still working out details on our end, but multiple cast members have reached out asking to come and are showing major support! We haven't confirmed anything on paper yet, so I can't say who, but I'll say it's both students and faculty. We're going to release which cast members will show up along with a full month's schedule, including all our events the last week of March. Did I mention the Zack Attack! all-star house band we're creating? C: No, that's awesome. Who's in Zack Attack!? BERRY: That's also a part of the surprise, but they're well-known Chicago musiciansboth male and femalethat we brought together! And the band's setlist will consist of covers from the original Zack Attack!, Hot Sundae, the doo-wop grouo The 5 Aces, Snow White And The Seven Dorks, and a few different renditions of the theme song. C: So, finally, what made you decide to go public that you were behind the whole thing? BERRY: There was enough buzz and positive feedback behind this thing, but almost every outlet wondered if this was real or actually going to happen. So I think doing it with no face behind it opened doors for that conversation, or for people not to trust that the person behind this has the experience to pull this off. I have teamed up with a well-known chef, and other people with the same vision as me who have also successfully pulled off amazing pop-up events, . So I want everyone to know that the diner leave everyone with an amazing, nostalgic experience! Cats out the bag Im behind #savedbythemax. It's legit and going down! Lease is signed :). Thanks to the today show + washintgon post!Y Derek Berry (@DerekBerry) February 23, 2016 This interview has been condensed and edited for clarity. Saved By The Max will open in Wicker Park on June 1, and you can look forward to our sneak preview of the location before it opens. Ahmedabad, Feb 24 : Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti (PAAS) convenor Hardik Patel's father Bharat Patel on Wednesday said he too was tempted with a monetary offer last year when the quota stir by the Patels had just begun. His revelation comes in the wake of Hardik Patel's statement that he was offered Rs.1,200 crore by an IAS officer to call off his agitation. According to Bharat Patel, he was offered Rs.15 crore to Rs.20 crore to stop his son from attending the 'Mahakranti Rally' in Ahmedabad on August 26, 2015. Hardik Patel's agitation for quota for the Patels in government jobs and educational institutions made a big impact with this rally. Speaking at a rally in Jam Jodhpur in Saurashtra to mark the beginning of the Patidaar Ekta Yatra across the Saurashtra region on Wednesday, Bharat Patel claimed: "They said take this money and just see that your son does not attend the rally." "I spoke to my son Hardik and he also said we do not want such money," he told a massive gathering of the Patels. He, however, did not reveal who made this offer to him. The Patels in Saurashtra region on Wednesday kick-off the 'Patidar Ekta Yatra', which will travel across Saurashtra region in the coming month to press their demand for reservation. Officially though, the rally has been dubbed as an attempt to spread awareness about "saving the girl child" and "favouring de-addiction". Bharat Patel's claim comes less than a month after Hardik wrote a letter claiming that he was offered Rs.1,200 crore by a senior bureaucrat posted with the Gujarat government and considered close to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP president Amit Shah to give up his agitation in the state. Meanwhile, Hardik Patel on Wednesday again confirmed that he held discussions with BJP parliamentarian Vitthal Radadiya on a 35-point agenda about reservation but reiterated that he would not succumb to any compromise with the government. "We are willing to talk on any topic as long as it is in the interest of our community," Hardik Patel told the media at Visnagar in Mehsana district. He was brought to Visnagar for a court hearing there, before he was taken back to the Lajpore jail in Surat. In a related development, as many as 60 members of the Patel community were booked by Ahmedabad police for allegedly resorting to violence in the city late on Tuesday night. A mob, allegedly comprising of Patels, resorted to violence and damaged public transport buses and BRTS corridor in support of their agitation. New Delhi, Feb 24 : More than 200 lawyers marched silently here on Wednesday to demand "strict action" against fellow lawyers who attacked journalists, lawyers and JNU teachers and students at the Patiala House Court here. The march from the Supreme Court to the Bar Council of India (BCI) office was held under the banner of Lawyers for Democracy and Justice. The lawyers demanded that the Bar Council should take proactive action to ensure that the democratic space, right to freedom of expression and right to access to justice was not curtailed in any manner. "There was a sense of deep anguish over the incidents of assault in the Patiala House and the failure of the courts and police to ensure the safety of litigants, journalists and lawyers," a statement said. The lawyers' body said the BCI should comprehensively investigate the matter, initiate disciplinary proceedings and impose strict punishment on the accused within two months. They also demanded setting up a broad-based committee to lay down guidelines and devise mechanisms to prevent recurrence of the violence witnessed in the court on February 15 and 17. The lawyers condemned the assault made in the name of "nationalism" and emphasised that any attempts to create divisions between different sections of society threatened the unity and integrity of the nation. "The joint secretary of the Bar Council received a representation from the advocates and gave an assurance that our demands shall be put up before the BCI chairman and the council and all possible action taken," the statement said. "He said the Bar Council had already initiated action and constituted a committee to look into the conduct of errant lawyers." Chennai, Feb 24 : Nalini Sriharan, serving life term for her role in former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi's assassination, on Wednesday attended her father P. Sankaranarayanan's final rites here during a 12-hour parole. Speaking to reporters here, she said all the convicts in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case were innocent and must be freed from the prison. She is lodged in Vellore prison, around 150 km from here. Though her father died in Tirunelvelli, the body was brought here for final rites. Nalini was sentenced to death by a special court for her involvement in Gandhi's assassination at Sriperumbudur near Chennai on May 21, 1991. The sentence was commuted to life imprisonment after Sonia Gandhi, the former prime minister's widow, petitioned for clemency -- for the sake of Nalini's daughter. Nalini, an Indian, had accompanied the Sri Lankan woman suicide bomber who blew up Rajiv Gandhi with concealed explosives. Nalini, who was a close friend of an LTTE operative known as Murugan, who too is an accused in the case, later gave birth to a girl in prison. Kolkata, Feb 24 : Jailed in the Saradha scam, Trinamool Congress MLA and former West Bengal minister Madan Mitra on Wednesday said it was his party's prerogative to decide on his contesting the upcoming assembly polls. He averred that the Mamata Banerjee government would retain power in the state. "(Chief Minister) Mamata Banerjee's record of development is akin to the unbeatable records of Sachin Tendulkar. So the people of Bengal will repose their faith on her again and the Trinamool will come back to power with at least 225 seats," said Mitra. "I am a Trinamool MLA and go by whatever it decides. If the party says I will contest the polls and if it says no, I won't contest. Mamata Banerjee words are last, whatever she decides will be the best," added Mitra whose judicial custody on the day was extended by a city court till March 9. Mitra also ridiculed the opposition CPI-M led Left Front and the Congress' bids to forge an electoral understanding, dubbing it an "alliance for notes (money) and not for votes". Indicted by the CBI in the multi-crore rupee Saradha scam, Mitra has been behind bars since his arrest December 12, 2014 barring a brief period in October 2015 when he was granted bail by a lower court. The relief subsequently was cancelled by the Calcutta High Court. There have been speculations on whether the Trinamool would field the jailed Mitra in the assembly polls. Although party MP Saugata Roy in January had declared during a meeting that Mitra would contest from Ahis Kamarhati Assembly seat in North 24 Parganas district, the part later said no decision on ticket distribution has yet been taken. Islamabad : Islamabad Feb 24 (IANS) Pakistan's National Command Authority (NCA) here on Wednesday stated that nuclear deterrence is a factor in South Asia's stability. The authority, under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, expressed its resolve to maintain full spectrum deterrence, in line with the policy of minimum credible deterrence. Ahead of the upcoming Nuclear Security Summit to be held next month in Washington, Islamabad has ratified the Convention on Physical Protection of Nuclear Material, the only international legally binding undertaking in the area of physical protection of nuclear material. "As a responsible nuclear state, Pakistan would continue to contribute meaningfully towards the global efforts to improve nuclear security and nuclear non-proliferation measures," said a statement released by the NCA. The NCA also comprehensively reviewed the safety and security mechanism of Pakistan's nuclear programme and expressed satisfaction on the measures in-place to ensure highly effective security of nuclear assets. While taking note of the growing conventional and strategic weapons' development in the region, the NCA expressed serious concerns over the adverse ramifications for peace and security on this account. NCA reiterated its determination to take all possible measures to make national security robust, enabling it to effectively respond to the threats to national security without indulging in arms race. The meeting was attended by the top military and civil leadership of Pakistan. In previous meetings, NCA has noted with concern India's rapidly expanding conventional military asymmetry and dangerous limited conventional war policy called Cold Start doctrine. Kathmandu/New Delhi, Feb 24 : Nepal and India did not issue a joint communique at the end of a state visit by Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli to Delhi on Wednesday due to India's position on the new constitution of the Himalayan nation. Nepalese Ambassador to India Deep Kumar Upadhyay confirmed there would be no joint communique at the end of Oli's visit after the Indian side did not show interest in it. However, sources in New Delhi maintained that every state visit by a foreign leader need not end with a joint communique. The development will mark a departure as the tradition of issuing joint communiques at the end of visits of Nepalese heads of state or government to India has usually been followed - at least since 1990. Officials privy to the visit said preparation were afoot in New Delhi earlier on the joint communique and senior officials from both the sides were engaged in finalising its wording. But at the last moment, no joint statement was issued after India refused to say categorically that it welcomed Nepal's new constitution. On the other hand, Nepal wanted to get 'India welcomes the new constitution in Nepal' incorporated in the joint communique, said a Nepali official. Until Wednesday afternoon, Ministry of Foreign Affairs Joint Secretary Prakash Subedi, who looks after the India desk, and Joint Secretary (North) Abay Thakur, in charge of Nepal and Bhutan, were busy working on the joint communique in Hotel Hyatt in Mumbai but could not finalise it due to no agreement on its contents and wording. The Indian side stressed on the wording as per Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's statement after a delegation-level talks with Oli on Saturday at Hyderabad House in Delhi, said the officials. Oli and Modi jointly addressed the press conference but did not take any questions from the media. Modi said: "...after a struggle of decades, making and promulgation of the constitution (in Nepal) are significant achievements... but its success depends on consensus and dialogue." Both the prime ministers had addressed a joint conference and made statements. The foreign ministers from both sides have also made several statements in New Delhi and so there was no need to come up with such joint statement, the Indian side is said to have told the Nepalese delegation. According to Upadhyay, the Indian side communicated that of late, they have stopped issuing joint communiques during the visits of other heads of state or governments and hence will follow the same during this visit also. New Delhi, Feb 24 : The Delhi government said on Wednesday it would give a job to the brother of Dalit research scholar Rohith Vemula of Hyderabad University who committed suicide last month. "Delhi Government will give an appropriate job to late Rohith Vemula's brother depending on as and when he applies for the same," a government statement said. The decision was among various other decision taken by the Delhi cabinet on Wednesday. Earlier in the day, the family members and friends of Vemula met Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal at his residence. His mother requested Kejriwal for a government job for her younger son since the family does not have any source of income. Vemula committed suicide on January 17 after he and four other Dalit students were suspended in Hyderabad University following an alleged clash with a leader of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad, the student wing of the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh. The suicide triggered in different parts of the country. His family refused to accept government compensation. New Delhi, Feb 24 : An international conference on disaster mitigation and management in India's northeastern region has called for a special cadre of engineers trained to assess damage as well as an "army" of masons and artisans to deal with post-disaster scenarios. The two-day conference, "When the Mountains Move and the Waters Rise", urged governments, scientists, researchers and civil society groups to break out of their silos, disciplines and departments and develop fresh approaches to disaster scenarios. Organised by the Centre for North East Studies and Policy Research at Jamia Millia Islamia in collaboration with National Institute of Disaster Management (NIDM), the North Eastern Council, the central government , and National Centre for People's Action in Disaster Management(NCPDP), Ahmedabad, the two-day conference that concluded on Wednesday focussed on health and shelter. The conference underlined the lack of a network of specially trained engineers "who can be the first assessors of damage" based on sound engineering and science to provide a rational basis for a just compensation package, according to a statement issued by the organisers. This gap was a crucial part of the situation despite many improvements in preparedness and having several institutions to handle disaster conditions. Another priority was to create communities of trained caregivers who can counsel those suffering the effects of trauma. Institutes like National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences (Nimhans) could take a lead in this sector. "The suddenness of calamities often caught governments unawares. Thus, in terms of post-disaster capacity building, governments and partner groups need to have the curriculum and trainers to launch rapid training programs which will create an army of artisans (masons, carpenters etc.) for rebuilding programmes," the statement said. "Disasters are built into the concept of 'development' although the latter has the potential to increase or minimize risks. Development projects carry with them opportunities and risks," the conference said in its recommendations. Those who participated included technical experts from Nepal and India, especially from the northeast, representatives of the NIDM, National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), state disaster management authorities (SDMAs) of Mizoram and Assam, Andhra Pradesh, as well social scientists and other Himalayan scholars, environmentalists, activists and officials from the UN. There were detailed presentations on risks and risk assessment from Nepal, Meghalaya, the Sunderbans, Gujarat, Uttarkhand and Jammu and Kashmir. Assam's SDMA representative Nandita Hazarika described what she called the state government's innovative approach to floods and earthquakes while Young Mizo Association's Lalswamliana and Hari Kumar of Geo-Hazards sketched the acute pressures on a vulnerable town like Aizawl, capital of Mizoram. According to the recommendations of the conference, while it is not possible to make all infrastructure disaster-free, it is important that every vulnerable human settlement in the northeastern region be assessed with regard to multiple, current risks. This information must be put in the public domain in simple local languages. Governments need to have multi-disciplinary and multi-cultural approaches. Governments, academic institutions, the private sector and civil society organisations need to develop innovative partnerships. Local communities need to acquire the sustained competence to innovate and absorb other forms of knowledge, technologies and practices. The role of communities and independent groups in developing local innovative solutions to specific problems such as health care was emphasized - these include best practices such as the boat clinics on the river Brahmaputra. Traditional ways of habitat planning need to be built into a repository while exploring ways of connecting the best of the vernacular to "modern" processes through participatory methods and recognition of local knowledge, the conference recommended Protocols of government engineering institutions require to incorporate new approaches including those which emphasize vernacular architecture. Psycho-social support at times of disasters should be part of an integrated and inter-sectoral approach, especially with promotion of community capacity building In post-disaster conditions, it has been observed that due to lack of preparedness precious time is lost, resulting in avoidable hardships. For example, communication materials which deal with both pre- and post-disaster scenarios (videos, leaflets in the local languages etc) should be accessible to the public. The progress of shelter and rehabilitation construction should be placed in the public domain, the recommendations said. New Delhi, Feb 24 : The Supreme Court on Wednesday asked the Maharashtra government to respond to a plea on imposing of "unreasonable" conditions for the grant of licences for dance performances in beer bars and restaurants in the state. An apex court bench comprising Justice Dipak Misra and Justice Shiva Kirti Singh also made it clear that there was no question of going back on its last year's October 15 order staying the operation of the Maharashtra Police (Second Amendment) Act, 2014, that prohibited dance performances at eating places, beer bars and restaurants. While staying the Act's provisions that prohibited dance performances at eatries and other places, the apex court said: "As we are staying the provision, if the members of the petitioner (Indian Hotels and Restaurant Association) apply for licences, the same shall be considered in accordance with law without taking note of the restriction as Section 33-A has been stayed by us." The court reiterated its order of November 26, 2015, asking the Maharashtra government to "consider and decide" within two weeks the grant of licences for dance performances after it was told that the state government was not implementing the apex court's October 15 order. The court on Wednesday sought government's response after the petitioner, the Indian Hotels and Restaurant Association, told it that the government was imposing unreasonable conditions for the grant of licences. While staying the operation of Section 33-A and 33-B of the Bombay Police Act, 1951, the apex court on October 15 noted that the provision was brought back in the Maharashtra Police Act in 2014 after it was held ultra vires in 2013 by the apex court. These sections prohibiting dance performances in eating house, permit room or beer bar - which came into force on August 14, 2005 - were struck down as unconstitutional by the Bombay High Court on April 12, 2006. Staying the operation of the provisions prohibiting dance performances, the apex court said on October 15: "However, we add a rider that no performance of dance shall remotely be expressive of any kind of obscenity in any manner." New Delhi, Feb 24 : Rajendra Singh, an officer from the Coast Guard cadre, has been named to head the force, the first time an officer who is not from the Indian Navy has been elevated to the position. The director general's post has so far only been held by officers who were commissioned in the Indian Navy. Before this, two officers, Rameshwar Singh and Prabhakaran Paleri, who were from the Coast Guard stream, were elevated to the top post. However, they were Indian Navy officers on permanent secondment to the Coast Guard. The Appointments Committee of Cabinet has approved Rajendra Singh's appointment, an order from the Department of Personnel and Training said. He will replace Vice Admiral H. C. S. Bisht. Rajinder Singh is currently additional director general of the Coast Guard. A 1980 batch officer, he was the first from the Coast Guard cadre to be elevated to three-star officer when the defence ministry approved his apppointment to his currnt post in in 2013. Before that, officers of the Coast Guard could only rise to two-star rank. Singh has commanded each class of Coast Guard Ship in service, which includes the Interceptor Boat, Inshore Patrol Vessel, Fast Patrol Vessel, Offshore Patrol Vessel and Advanced Offshore Patrol Vessel. In the early 1980s, when smuggling was at its zenith in Indian waters, he was actively involved in apprehending numerous maritime economic offenders. The Indian Coast Guard was created under the Coast Guard Act by parliament in 1978. An interim Coast Guard was formed earlier in 1977. Northwest Side's St. Patrick's Day Parade Is Dedicated To Chicago Police This Year By Mae Rice in Arts & Entertainment on Feb 24, 2016 5:05PM The Northwest Side Irish's 2015 St. Patrick's Day Parade (photo via Facebook) This March, the Northwest Side Irish's annual St. Patricks Day Parade will be dedicated to first responders: military personnel, veterans, police and firefighters. The parade, the organizations thirteenth one, will especially honor police: the founder and retired President of the Fraternal Order of Policemen (FOP), John Dineen, will be the parade's Grand Marshall. The FOP, the union that represents Chicago police officers, and the city's police force overall, have come under scrutiny in the wake of the Laquan McDonald police shooting case for how they handle such shootings. Despite a previous report that quoted parade organizer Elizabeth Murray-Belcaster saying that this year's dedication was a "no-brainer" in light of McDonald-related police brutality protests, Murray-Belcaster told Chicagoist that the dedication was settled before the McDonald video was released. We made this decision [about the dedication and the Grand Marshall] before all the protests started [here about Laquan McDonald], Elizabeth Murray-Belcaster, a founder of The Northwest Side Irish, told Chicagoist. Because in every community, throughout the country particularly this year, theres been a lot of hardships with the police, due to the protests. Murray-Belcaster mentioned gang violence as another hardship police departments had faced. The Northwest Side specificallya region that includes suburbs like Norwood Park and Parkdoesnt struggle with much gang violence, Murray-Belcaster said, though theres pockets in every community. However, she explained that a lot of police officers who live in the areas serve neighborhoods where gang violence is an entrenched problem. The choice of Dineen as Grand Marshall, she added, was linked to the parade's history as well as the parade's dedication to first responders. The Dineen family was one of the founding families of the parade when we started it, Murray-Belcaster said. The other founding family behind the annual parade is her own. She and her father, both of them Irish-American, founded the organization 13 years ago in memory of her mother, Murray-Belcaster said. The parade is always dedicated to a cause, she added. This year is no different, though it will be bigger than early parades. Murray-Belcaster said in the early years, attendance was about 200; current attendance is closer to 50,000. The March 13 parade kicks off at noon at 6634 W. Raven St. Kolkata, Feb 24 : Slamming the Narendra Modi government over the JNU row, former Lok Sabha speaker Somnath Chatterjee on Wednesday said police crackdown on the students was a shame for the country. "We have seen that there had been nothing anti-national in the speech of (JNU) students' leader Kanhaiya Kumar. We will have to rethink if we are really independent," Chatterjee said at a meet by 17 mass, rights and cultural organizations here. "The government at the centre is indulging in dividing the people on the basis of religion. It is a shame for the country what happened at the JNU campus. The time has come for us to think if we are going to take everything sitting," Chatterjee, the expelled CPI-M leader. Chatterjee also attacked the state BJP, which had criticised the Jadavpur University (JU) for not acting against a section of students who had allegedly raised slogans in favour of parliament attack convict Afzal Guru. "It becomes clear what the intentions of the BJP are. It is also disheartening that even after making such a statement in media, the Mamata Banerjee government has not come out with any strong statement opposing it," Chatterjee said, referring to state BJP president Dilip Ghosh calling JU vice-chancellor Suranjan Das a "Trinamool Congress appointee". Speaking on the occasion, former Supreme Court judge A.K. Ganguly called on to fight against the BJP's bid to "talibanise" the education system. "It is the Talibanisation of education system which cannot be tolerated. There should be a united fight against this attack on the democratic system of the country," said Ganguly, who blamed the RSS affiliated Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad for the JNU row. The speakers also questioned the legality of the arrest of JNU students' union leader Kanhaiya Kumar who has been charged with sedition. "Even for arguments' sake, if it is accepted that the alleged slogans had been chanted during Kumar's speech, even then, he cannot be legally booked for sedition," said lawyer and former city mayor Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharya. New Delhi, Feb 24 : Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Wednesay assured Lok Sabha that no innocent student will be harassed in JNU row even as HRD minister Smriti Irani slammed Congress, which has accused Centre of seeking to crush opposing point of view. Irani sought to take the battle over the central government actions concerning central varsities to the Congress, as the Lok Sabha witnessed a surcharged debate on the recent incidents in central universities with Congress leader Jyotiraditya Scindia accusing the Narendra Modi government of intolerance over the past 20 months of its rule. The BJP's and government's point of view was articulated by MP Anurag Thakur and Parliamentary Affairs Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu besides Irani and Rajnath Singh. The Congress staged a walk out during Irani's speech. The suicide of Dalit student Rohith Vemula in Hyderabad University figured prominently in the Rajya Sabha also with the house witnessing repeated adjournments and verbal clash between Bahujan Samaj Party leader Mayawati and Irani. Rajnath Singh told the Lok Sabha that the government had not intervened in the row concerning the Jawaharlal Nehru University and police had acted following alleged raising of anti-national slogans at an event on the campus on February 9 to mark the anniversaries of executions of parliament attack convict Afzal Guru. The minister said there could be a debate whether sedition charge should have been applied to JNU students union leader Kanhaiya Kumar and the issue will be decided by the court. "I want to assure the house that no innocent will be harassed," he said. Referring to the violence in the Patiala House court ahead of court proceedings concerning Kanhaiya Kumar, he said the guilty will not be spared. Earlier, Irani made an emotional speech, stating she was taking opposition's allegations against her concerning the JNU and Hyderabad University personally. "No one can raise a finger against me on this issue. I am taking it personally," she said. Strongly refuting allegations that letters by her ministry to Hyderabad university had pressurised Vemula, she cited examples of how her ministry follows up on issues raised by elected representatives. She also refuted allegations of any bias in the working of the government. "My name is Smriti Irani. I challenge you to tell me my caste," she said. Irani said that the unfortunate suicide was being used for political ends. "Have you ever seen Rahul Gandhi go to one spot twice. Never. But in this, he saw political opportunity," Irani said. Earlier, initiating the discussion, the Congress leader Jyotiradiya Scindia hit out at the central government, saying: "Inside parliament, the ministers of this government take oath of constitution and outside they crush it. Using government machinery they are crushing the voices of those who oppose the ideology of RSS." "They targeted Kanhaiya Kumar just because he was opposed to the ideology of RSS and had defeated an ABVP candidate in JNU election," he added. "What we have seen in the last two years is an atmosphere of intolerance in the country. There is every possible attempt to crush opposing viewpoint," Scindia said. He said party had been demanding action against Irani and Labour Minister Bandaru Dattatreya over the suicide of Vemula. Thakur accused Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi of standing with anti-nationals and said the Congress would have to decide "whether you are with those who attacked our parliament or those who protect it? You will have to decide whether you are with ideology of Gandhiji or Maoists." "Your leader goes and sympathises with those who were celebrating Afzal Guru as a martyr," he alleged. Thakur began by invoking the sacrifices of Captain Pawan Kumar, an alumni of JNU, who died in a gun battle with terrorists. "For them (Congress), it is family first, party next and nation last. But for us, it is nation first, party next and self last," he alleged. Naidu, in his speech, also hit out at the Congress, saying no one was terming JNU as anti-national. He said it was duty of entire parliament to speak with one voice against those who had raised anti-national slogans. New Delhi, Feb 24 : Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Wednesday denied the charges that government was interfering in police functioning over the JNU row while assuring the house that no innocent student will be harassed into the matter. "We don't consider JNU as a centre of anti-nationals and there was no interference of the government in police functioning. Police is working in an impartial manner," Singh said in the Lok Sabha while replying to a debate on the situation arising out of recent incidents in institutions of Higher education with reference to JNU and Hyderabad University. "We will not allow any student to be harassed," he added. The home minister, however, also said freedom of speech and expression is not unbridled and anybody who breaches the limit will not be spared. "In his life as student if someone opposes atrocities, it is freedom of speech and expression and no one should have objection to it but if anyone breaches the limit, he will not be spared," Singh said. Singh said sedition case against Jawaharlal Nehru Student Union President Kanhaiya Kumar was not a topic of debate in parliament and will be decided by court only. He also condemned the violence in Patiala House Court in Delhi during hearing of sedition case against Kanhaiya Kumar, stating those indulged in violence in the court would not be spared. Singh also justified his earlier statement in connection with the event organised at JNU campus on February 9 in which anti-India slogans were raised. "What I had said in the matter was based on facts," he said. Chandigarh, Feb 24 : The Punjab and Haryana high court on Wednesday took cognizance of media reports that some women, who were commuting on the Delhi-Ambala highway (NH-1), had been allegedly stripped and raped by rioters during the violent Jat agitation. The Haryana government and the state police vehemently denied any such incidents. Taking suo moto notice of the media report, Justice Naresh Kumar Sanghi, said the high court could not sit as a "mute spectator" to the reported incidents and that these needed to be probed by a "premier investigation agency". The matter has been referred to the court of the acting Chief Justice for further orders. As per the report, rioters had stopped cars on the NH-1 in Sonipat district early on Monday to set them on fire. As the people travelling in these vehicles ran for safety, some women commuters, who could not flee, were pulled out of the vehicles, allegedly stripped and raped in the nearby fields. The victims were left to fend for themselves and were offered clothes and help by villagers later. Haryana Director General of Police (DGP) Y.P. Singhal on Wednesday denied any incident of indecent behaviour and rape of women in Sonipat during the recent agitation. "Investigations conducted by the Principal Secretary, Industries and Commerce, Mr. Devender Singh, and the Inspector General of Police, Mr. Paramjit Ahlawat, had found the allegations made in the report false and baseless," the DGP, while interacting with media persons in Hisar on Wednesday, said. The DGP said the death toll in the Jat agitation violence had gone up to 28, with 200 people being injured. "127 persons have so far been arrested for indulging in violence and 535 cases have been registered. I appeal to people not to believe in rumours being spread by anti-social elements," Singhal said. The Haryana government also denied media reports that some persons behaved indecently with some women who were travelling in cars near village Kurad in Sonipat district. "Principal Secretary Mr Devender Singh and Inspector General of Police Mr Paramjit Ahlawat, who visited the spot and interacted with the people including those whose names were mentioned in the media reports, said that no such incident had occurred." An official spokesman said here. He said that the former Sarpanch of Kurad, Bijender Singh, has also refuted that any such incident had occurred. "When some youth broke window panes of a few cars, some women who were seated inside the vehicles were injured. Such families were given shelter by the villagers in their own homes and gave them first aid and food. The media reports to this effect are totally false, misleading and not based on facts," the spokesman said. The provincial people's congress of Anhui ended on Feb. 21, concluding all local legislative and political consultative sessions. That means the National People's Congress (NPC) and the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), known as the "two sessions," are imminent. Analysts say that local hot topics are often closely connected with those deliberations at the national level. The following is a roundup of highlights from the work reports of the 31 province (or municipalities and autonomous regions). 1. Curbing air pollution Curbing air pollution is found in the work reports of 31 provinces. The State Council released the "Action Plan for Air Pollution Prevention and Control" in 2013, in which it marked a red line for PM2.5 density for the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei cluster, the Yangtze River Delta and the Pearl River Delta. Today, what achievements have been make in smog control? At this year's local "two sessions," Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei all showcased their performance sheets for smog control during the Twelfth Five Year Plan (2011-15). In 2015 alone, the average PM2.5 density in Hebei dropped by 28.7 percent from the 2013 level; the figure for Tianjin was 27.1 percent and the density for particle matter (PM) in Beijing in 2015 was lowered by 15.8 percent against 2012. The air quality in both the Yangtze River Delta and the Pearl River Delta both improved overall. In 2015, the PM2.5 density in bigger cities in Zhejiang fell by 11.3 percent year on year, and the yearly average PM2.5 density in Guangdong Province was 34 micrograms, reaching the national criteria two years ahead of schedule. Hebei has promised that its PM2.5 density will have fallen 40 percent from the level in 2013 by the end of the Thirteenth Five-Year Plan, and the heavily polluted cities in the province would seek to disappear from the national worst 10 list. Beijing has promised this year's PM density would drop by around five percent. 2. Poverty reduction Metadata helps precisely implement poverty reduction measures. Poverty alleviation is the top-priority project during the Thirteenth Five-Year Plan. To improve the life quality of all impoverished, take off counties from the poverty-stricken list, and solve overall regional poverty will be the most demanding undertaking for the building of a comprehensive well-off society during the period. Guizhou is central to the task, for it is one of the most poverty-stricken provinces. Its provincial government work report made clear, for the first time, that poverty alleviation would be at the top of the agenda, and the No. 1 livelihood project for a province with 6.23 million impoverished people. In Gansu's provincial government work report, its resolution of poverty reduction was most evident: "The provincial authorities seek to lift more than one million people from poverty each year for the first two years of the Thirteenth Five-Year Plan, and for the remaining three years, consolidate the poverty relief achievements, and ensure impoverished rural people's basic livelihood, compulsory education, basic medical care and housing." The goal of Sichuan Province's poverty alleviation for this year is "to lift more than 1.05 million people out of poverty and delist more than 2,350 impoverished villages and five impoverished counties." How to carry out carefully targeted measures for poverty alleviation? Many western province's government work reports all directly stated their difficulties before stressing their resolve. For example, Gansu Province has already set up a precise metadata management platform for poverty relief; in the Thirteenth Five-Year Plan, the province will continue to carry on the work based on metadata. Hubei, Yunnan and Sichuan will do likewise. 3. Construction of clean government Rules and regulations will become much stricter. Since the CPC's 18th National Congress, the anti-corruption campaign has been intensified. The effort to build clean government has naturally been an issue of most concern. Almost all the 31 provincial government work reports mentioned increasing the effort to build clean government. Beijing will focus on grass-root agencies and departments that directly serve the people to rectify "negligence and reckless governance." Economic audits will be applied to all agencies, including leaders leaving or who have already left their posts. Guangdong Province will perfect the supervision mechanism for administrative power based on the cooperation among supervisory, judicial and audit departments, deepen its "sunshine governance" service, advance transparent administration, and enhance clean and honest government education among public servants. Henan Province stressed Party and government officials would have the responsibility for the Party's work style and the building of clean government. Inspection and supervision will have no boundaries or restricted areas, and there will be no tolerance ofviolations of Party discipline or laws. 4. Coordinating urban-rural development Coordinated urban and rural development is a matter of social justice. Gradually reducing the urban-rural gap, facilitating fair exchanges of urban and rural elements, ensuring fair access to reasonable resource allocation and basic public services are the key to a comprehensive well-off society. In Beijing, the goal of "everyone enjoys social security" has largely been met in the senior care and medical care systems for both urban and rural residents. The urban and rural minimum living standards have been unified. There is now no difference in the public services and social security policies for urban and rural residents. In Shanghai, the construction focus is shifting to the suburbs, along with the allocation of public service resources with a priority given to rural areas and people with difficulties. For those less developed provinces, perfecting rural infrastructure and public service systems are the main undertaking for coordinating urban and rural development and in shaping a beautiful countryside. Hunan Province, for example, will pioneer a development mode "oriented towards public transport," in that the urban and rural bus services will be unified. Bringing cultural products to rural areas to build a public cultural service system that covers all residents is an important assignment in coordinating urban and rural development. Heilongjiang Province plans to launch a digital wireless network of radio and television, facilitating the merger of telecommunications, radio and TV networks and the Internet, so as to provide more needed cultural products and services to rural areas. 5. Reform of household registration system Basic work will be carried out for inclusive public services. The residence permit system has given all permanent urban dwellers access to basic public services, which is good news for the migrant population. Almost all the 31 provincial governments' work reports mentioned that they would continue with urbanization of agricultural population, and reasonably carry forward the new type of urbanization focusing on people. The comprehensive implementation of the residence permit system will encourage more people to live in cities, be part of the urban development, and share the fruits from their contributions. Regarding controlling the size of metropolises, Fujian Province has implemented differentiated policies in issuing residents permits to lead the rural population to first move to smaller cities or newly established townships. On the other hand, it is exploring new mechanisms to urbanize the rural population without moving them to cities; instead, it encouraged development zones and industrial parks to accommodate rural people by means of offering public affordable housing. In its urbanization effort, Guangdong Province is giving priority to those with the abilities to live in cities with stable employment, while at the same time, accelerating the reform of household registration system and resident permit system. To accommodate the housing needs of newcomers, Guangdong has carried out housing reforms to increase the supply for both affordable housing and homes for rent. For some rural people working in cities, they wish to merge into urban life while still worrying about their old homes and land in the countryside. In light of this, Henan and Shandong, the two provinces with large agricultural populations, made clear in their government work reports that the government will preserve the rights for rural people dwelling in cities. 6. Safety redline Implementation of responsibility is a top priority. Safety is the precondition for development, and it is the most important concept in people's livelihood. Last year, the Tianjin blasts on Aug. 12 and the landslide in Shenzhen on Dec. 20 caused heavy casualties and huge losses, sounding the alarm for the nation. How to strictly guard the safety redline is intensively reflected in the government work report of the Tianjin Municipality. It made clear that no effort will be spared for the construction of a safe city. The Guangdong provincial government, drawing lessons from the Dec. 20 landslide, said it would step up urban safety and public safety in 2016, and raise its capability of emergency response. It stressed that Party and government officials share equal responsibility for production safety and those deemed negligent will be held accountable. Public safety was also found in the local "two sessions" of Beijing, Jiangsu, and Sichuan. For example, Beijing will perfect its citywide safety protection system to ensure that all operations in the city become safe and orderly. 7. Investment in people's livelihood How large is the investment? To which specific areas does the investment go? Investment in people's livelihood has always been a hot topic and focus of discussion for delegates to people's congress and representatives to political consultative conferences. How large will this investment be in this year, and will there be any special focus for this investment? The government work report of Jiangsu Province explained its investment in people's livelihood in up to 1,000 characters. It said the government will expand such investment to patch up the short board, ensure basic social welfare, increase the supply of public servicesand complete 10 major undertakings involved. Noticeably, for the care and protection of the underprivileged, the province will set up 100 provincial e-commerce model stations of women volunteers, who will provide specialized care for left-behind children and women, single and impoverished women, and senior people without children to care for them. The province will also fully implement the aid and protection system for children living in difficulty. Also in 2016, Guangdong Province will set aside 210 billion yuan (US$32.3 billion) from its financial budget to raise the basic living standard, enhance assistance to vulnerable groups, ensuring housing for low-income people, improve living and production conditions in rural areas, and improve grass-root medical services, among the 10 major tasks for enhancing people's livelihood. Sichuan will go on increasing the expenditure on items concerning people's livelihood. The share of such expenditure in the provincial budget will remain at around 65 percent. The provincial government will launch 20 major undertakings for improving people's livelihood. 8. Facilitating the nationwide second child policy Marriage leave, maternity leave, medical service and education should all develop accordingly. Since the nationwide "total relaxation of the policy on a second child" was implemented, many provinces have cancelled the prolonged leave for late-marriage, along with modifications to maternity, paternal and nursing leave. For example, after the adjustment, Shanxi Province prescribed 30-day marriage leave; Anhui and Jiangxi started to grant 158-day maternity leave; in Guangxi and Ningxia, paternal leave will be prolonged to 25 days. But to have the second child is no easy choice. The cost of bringing up the child are inescapable issues in addition to the scarce medical and educational resources. The Shanghai Party Chief Han Zheng has said: "Given the relaxation for a second child, Shanghai will be short of pediatricians in 10 years. I suggest all 3-A hospitals in Shanghai open pediatric departments." On the allocation of educational resources, the Beijing's municipal education chief Xian Lianping, also a member to the municipal people's political consultative conference, said that Beijing would mull increasing by 150,000 the pre-school education openings in the next three years to accommodate the baby boom in the wake of the relaxation. Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan Province, plans to build 300 public kindergartens in 2016 to add 86,000 educational openings also in preparation for the surge in kindergarten-aged children in three years. 9. Simplifying governance and decentralizing powers Perfecting the power list and responsibility list Simplifying governance and decentralizing powers have always been hailed as the first moves in the comprehensive deepening of reform and the transformation of government functions. They take up much space in the government work report each year. As a precursor of reform and a local economic power, Guangdong, in its provincial government work report, stressed it would advance reforms in the administrative approval system. During the Thirteenth Five-Year Plan, the province will implement a provincial-city-county third-level management system of government agencies' responsibility list, continue to reduce the items requiring administrative approval, rectify intermediary services and standardize administrative approvals. Beijing's effort to simplify governance and decentralize powers will be characterized by docking with the central government in that Beijing will also accommodate the powers that the central government devolves. Jiangsu, Henan, Hunan, Tianjin, Xinjiang all promised they will resolutely simplify governance and decentralize powers to lower agencies to ensure "minimal approval items, highest efficiency and best services." It is foreseeable that simplifying governance and decentralizing powers will carry more weight this year. And this issue will attract national attention during the national "two sessions." 10. Paid leave Many provinces wrote this into their report to make it institutionalized In its latest work report, the Sichuan provincial government said that in 2016 it would "implement paid leave, encourage leave on non-peak days, allow flexible paid leaves and promote tourism expending." This raised expectancy among office workers, although many worried it might be an empty promise. A system is only as good as its implementation. Media reports said that Sichuan would unveil policies after the Spring Festival to ensure working people can have paid leave. Through collective consultations and contracts, the provincial government seeks to consolidate "paid leaves" by institutionalizing it. Apart from Sichuan, Jiangsu, Shanxi, Hebei, Jiangsu and Yunnan also mentioned they would implement a "paid leave system" in their latest provincial government work reports. Average private sector rents increased by 0.2% in the 12 months to May 2018 but are rising much faster in Edinburgh and the Lothians, up 3.1%, the latest index data shows. The average rent per calendar month is now 572 with the highest recorded in Edinburgh at 677 per month, according to the figures from the Scotland rental tracker report from Your Move. But other areas of the country are also seeing strong rental growth with the Highlands and Islands region recording an annual rise of 10.6%, taking the average rent 667 per calendar month, just 10 behind the capital. The report says that the main reason behind rising rents in the Highlands is that demand is outstripping supply. It suggests that potential buyers are moving to the Highlands with a try before you buy approach, initially renting before deciding to buy in popular areas like Elgin and Dingwall. In Inverness, rental growth is mainly attributed to the University of Highlands and Islands, and also an influx of doctors from Edinburgh and Aberdeen to Raigmore Hospital. With higher demand for available properties, this has led to rental yields increasing, particularly on two bedroom properties with parking spaces. At the other end of the scale, the East of Scotland continues to have the cheapest rents at 530, down 1.8% in the last year. The only other areas to see rents drop was the South of Scotland, where prices fell by 3.5% in the year to May to an average monthly rent of 547. The report also shows that yields for landlords are stable at an average of 4.7% in May, unchanged from April, and slightly higher than the 4.4% average in England and Wales. The only regions of England to post stronger returns than the Scottish average were the North East at 5% and the North West at 4.8%. Capital cities often attract people from all over the country and Scotland is no different. The lure of the big city has increased demand for properties in Edinburgh and rents have risen accordingly, said Brian Moran, lettings director of Your Move Scotland. He pointed out that Scotlands other big city, Glasgow, also recorded strong growth while more rural parts of Southern Scotland saw prices cool. Despite these changes, landlords across all areas of the country continue to see strong returns on their investment, he added. The National Insurance Restoration Council (NIRC) certifies Roofing Solutions Hawaii as a Platinum Preferred Contractor. Specializing in roof repair, maintenance, and replacement along with insurance storm restoration and emergency repairs, Roofing Solutions Hawaii is an industry leader that applies innovative roofing practices that are currently not available on the islands. The NIRC is a non-profit consumer advocacy organization that protects and educates residential and commercial property owners throughout the nation. The NIRC provides a network of vetted contractors that adhere to strict guidelines of professional conduct. We are committed to setting high standards in the relatively new insurance restoration industry in Hawaii. Many property owners in Hawaii have many questions on how to handle the insurance claims process. We are dedicated to helping our clients deal with their restoration project, every step of the way. 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About the National Insurance Restoration Council Headquartered in Orlando, Florida, the National Insurance Restoration Council (NIRC) is a non-profit organization devoted to protecting and educating property owners and restoration contractors when dealing with insurance claims. The NIRC acts as the principal advocate for improved legislation and case law to protect consumers and contractors when dealing with insurance claims throughout the nation. The NIRC serves the common interest of insurance restoration contractors and protects consumers from unethical contractors. Vetted and certified NIRC certified contractors adhere to a strict code of professional conduct, educate property owners about the insurance restoration process, and give back to communities in storm damaged areas. NIRC certified contractors go through an extensive background check to become members of the Diamond Standard code of business. The NIRC as a self-regulated entity and cooperates with the Department of Insurance (DOI) and other regulatory authorities throughout the United States to improve the ethics of the industry through education and high standards. Learn more at http://www.NIRC4Change.org. About Roofing Solutions Hawaii Roofing Solutions Hawaii has over 30 years of experience in insurance restoration and storm damage repairs. Roofing Solutions Hawaii is proud to have the most elite and educated roofing experts in Hawaii. Roofing Solutions Hawaii is raising the standard and setting the bar in insurance repairs and restoration work. Roofing Solutions Hawaii provides storm damage repairs, roof maintenance and repairs, replacements. To learn more visit http://www.RoofingSolutionsHawaii.com. Media Inquiries: Vera Anderson Elev8 Consulting Group Ph: 386.243.5388 Web: http://www.elev8cg.com ### TSCL Chairman Edward Cates When planning retirement expenses, make sure to budget enough for the growth in healthcare costs over time, says The Senior Citizens League (TSCL). That can be hard to figure, but rapidly rising healthcare costs, declining health, and the need for increased medical services and prescription drugs as you age will take a growing portion of Social Security benefits, says TSCL Chairman Ed. Cates. According to a recent survey by TSCL, healthcare costs take a hefty portion of most retirees Social Security benefits. In a survey conducted last year, nearly one-half of survey participants reported spending from 11 percent to 33 percent of their Social Security benefits on Medicare premiums and out-of-pocket costs. A quarter of survey participants said they paid from 34 percent to 50 percent of their Social Security benefits on healthcare. The portion of Medicare recipients who reported spending more than 33 percent of their Social Security benefits on healthcare costs jumped 7 percent between 2014 in 2015. Steep cost increases in prescription drugs was frequently cited as a major cause by 61 percent who said their drug co-pay or coinsurance was higher than expected. TSCL believes that the extreme cost increases could be putting some Medicare beneficiaries at risk, especially in a year like 2016, when retirees received no annual increase in cost-of-living adjustments (COLAS). In 2010, when retirees received no Social Security COLA, about one-third of Medicare households said they postponed filling their prescriptions or took less than the prescribed amount due to higher costs. Medicare must be given the authority to negotiate pharmaceutical prices with manufacturers for covered Part D drugs, says Cates. TSCL recently submitted a statement on prescription drug costs to the House Committee on Oversight & Government Reform, saying Lifesaving drugs for cancer, heart disease, arthritis, hepatitis and other life-threatening diseases carry such enormous price tags that older Americans worry their life savings will be drained if they are unlucky enough to get sick. They question why Congress hasnt taken legislative action to improve the system and protect the American public from price gouging. TSCL supports the Prescription Drug Affordability Act (S. 2023, H.R. 3513) that would take important steps to reduce drug costs. Is this situation happening to you? Participate in TSCLs 2016 Senior Survey at http://www.SeniorsLeague.org. ### With about 1 million supporters, The Senior Citizens League is one of the nation's largest nonpartisan seniors groups. Located just outside Washington, D.C., its mission is to promote and assist members and supporters, to educate and alert senior citizens about their rights and freedoms as U.S. Citizens, and to protect and defend the benefits senior citizens have earned and paid for. The Senior Citizens League is a proud affiliate of TREA The Enlisted Association. Please visit http://www.SeniorsLeague.org or call 1-800-333-8725 for more information. If you would like to continue receiving these press releases via email, please send your email address to sbenton(at)tsclhq(dot)org. The How Much is Your Home Worth Tool can be found on KoenigRubloff.com and offers an immediate valuation of a property's worth. While no automated model can come close to the knowledge and experience of a broker who knows the neighborhood, it does offer a great starting point for sellers. Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices KoenigRubloff Realty Groups CEO Nancy Nagy has announced the launch of the new How Much is Your Home Worth tool on the KoenigRubloff Chicago real estate website, koenigrubloff.com. It will provide an instant answer to this important homeowner question. Aimed at potential sellers, the tool offers an immediate estimate of a property's value by typing in the address of the home. We are very excited to share it with those potential sellers who are starting to research the value of their home in todays market, said Nagy. This can become the starting point for a personalized market analysis by an experienced broker with local expertise. The tool features a Lenders Estimate powered by Collateral Analytics sophisticated valuation algorithms and broker-quality MLS sales data. Collateral Analytics has decades of valuation experience serving the banking and appraisal communities. What we are able to offer potential sellers is a base number that gives them an idea of the value of their home in just one click of a button, said Michael Pierson, president of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices KoenigRubloff Realty Group. He continued, Homeowners who are thinking of selling, want to do online research earlier in the process. This tool is an incredible value for them. While no automated model can come close to the knowledge and experience of a broker who knows the neighborhood, it does offer a great starting point for sellers. Please visit KoenigRubloff.com to learn more. About Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices KoenigRubloff Realty Group Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices KoenigRubloff Realty Group is a full-service real estate firm with nearly 1,500 real estate professionals and staff in 23 offices serving customers throughout the Chicago metropolitan area, the North Shore, Western Suburban communities and Harbor Country, Michigan. Deep local roots are complemented by the extensive global reach of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices, the top real estate brand in the nation. Affiliated and ancillary services in the form of HomeServices Lending, Fort Dearborn Title, and Fort Dearborn Insurance complete the comprehensive services offered to clients. The company enjoys the #1 luxury market share in Chicago* and is the #1 listing brokerage for new construction**. Visit KoenigRubloff.com. *#1 Luxury Market Share Highest total closed sales volume of listings $1 million+ each, MRED MLS, Chicago, Attached and Detached, 1/1/15-12/31/15. **#1 Listing Brokerage for New Construction New Construction, Sold, List-Side Units and Volume, MRED MLS, Chicago, Attached and Detached, 1/1/15-12/31/15. Camarillo Chamber of Commerce announced today that winners of Startup Weekend Ventura County will each receive in-kind awards worth in excess of $5,000. These awards, in the form of redeemable certificates, are donated by Ventura County businesses residing primarily in Camarillo. Most of them are geared to help entrepreneurs create and organize their startup businesses. They include free articles of incorporation, free company registration, free provisional patent application, free co-work space, free chart of accounts, free employee handbook, and free trademark registration. We want to help Ventura County, and in particular the City of Camarillo, become a hot hub for technology startups, said Gary Cushing, CEO of Camarillo Chamber of Commerce. Startup Weekend Ventura County, collaboratively put together by Ventura Countys private and public sectors, is the platform to help entrepreneurs launch their startups. It offers a startup ecosystem as comprehensive and as valuable as they come. That is not all. We want entrepreneurs to know that if they launch their startups in Camarillo, we will stay with them and help them be successful. The award book we have assembled for each of the Startup Weekend Ventura County winner is designed not only to ease the pain in launching a business but also to introduce the startup to the exceptional business support infrastructure in Camarillo and its neighboring cities. A total of three awards will be given at Startup Weekend Ventura County, one for IoT (Internet of Things) Healthcare, one for IoT Agriculture and one for Peoples Choice. Startup Weekend Ventura County (http://startupweekendvc.com), organized by Dignity Healths St. John Pleasant Valley Hospital and St. John Regional Medical Center and the Camarillo Chamber of Commerce, will be held on March 11, 12 and 13, 2016 at Rancho Campana High School in Camarillo, California. This 54-hour event invites entrepreneurial agriculturalists, farmers, physicians, healthcare professionals, engineers, programmers and system developers to address healthcare and agricultural needs with innovative IoT solutions. At Startup Weekend, you'll be immersed in the ideal environment for startup magic to happen. In just 54 hours, you will experience the highs, lows, fun, and pressure that make up life at a startup. As you learn how to create a real company, you'll meet the very best mentors, investors, cofounders, and sponsors who are ready to help you get started. Youll be surrounded by smart, passionate people and with the best tools and approaches at your disposal. Youll take giant leaps toward creating a business, becoming a founder, and connecting with the right people and resources. Mars chocolate bars. [File photo] US chocolate maker Mars has order a global recall of a range of chocolate bars in 55 countries, the company announced on Tuesday. The recall came after a customer in Germany found a piece of red plastic in a Snickers bar on January 8. The plastic was traced back to the Mars factory in the southern town of Veghel in the Netherlands. The recall only involved products manufactured at the Dutch plant, according to the company. Products affected include bars of Mars, Milky Way, Snickers and Celebrations in various package sizes, with best-before dates from June 19, 2016 to Jan. 8, 2017. "We are investigating exactly what has happened, but we can not be sure that this red piece of plastic isn't in any other of our products from the same production line," said Eline Bijveld, Mars' corporate affairs coordinator for the Netherlands. According to Mars, the recall was "voluntary" and was launched as a precautionary measure. Founded in 1911, Mars is one of the world's biggest food companies with 29 chocolate brands. It has about 12 percent shares of the west European chocolate market. It is the first time that Mars has had to recall products made at its Veghel factory, which opened in 1963 and employs about 1,200 workers. Shay Sidner, flexis NA Director of Operations I am extremely pleased to receive this acknowledgement of my expertise in the supply chain space. flexis North America, Inc., provider of planning solutions designed to create visibility across connected business units and increase throughput throughout the enterprise, today announced that flexis NA Director of Operations Shay Sidner has been named a Pro to Know by Supply & Demand Chain Executive. I am extremely pleased to receive this acknowledgement of my expertise in the supply chain space, stated flexis North America Director of Operations Shay Sidner. Its difficult to minimize the critical importance of a well-designed and managed supply chain in todays global economy. Its gratifying to know that my colleagues at flexis and I are helping companies become more efficient, innovative, and competitive within this key area of business. A respected supply chain expert with more than 10 years experience with supply chain optimization, Sidner has focused her career on ensuring that manufacturers function as efficiently as possible. The Pros to Know Awards recognize supply chain executives, and manufacturing and non-manufacturing enterprises, that are leading initiatives to help prepare their companies supply chains for the significant challenges of todays business climate. This years list includes more than 200 individuals from software firms and service providers, consultancies or academia, who helped their supply chain clients or the supply chain community at large prepare to meet these challengesand more than 40 Practitioner Pros, who do the same within their own companies. Supply & Demand Chain Executive congratulates the 2016 Supply & Demand Chain Executive Pros to Know recipients. The Pros to Know is a listing of exceptional corporate executives at manufacturing and non-manufacturing enterprises who are leading initiatives to help prepare their companies' supply chains for the significant challenges in the year ahead, says Ronnie Garrett, editor of Supply & Demand Chain Executive. We commend recipients for their achievements. Their accomplishments offer a roadmap for other leaders looking to leverage the supply chain for competitive advantage. Their efforts in developing the tools, processes and a knowledge base for supply chain transformation, as well as in promoting new approaches to supply chain enablement, earned these individuals a rightful place in this year's Pros to Know listing. Supply & Demand Chain Executive received more than 350 entries for the 2016 Pros to Know Awards. The entire list of Pros to Know will be published in the March 2016 issue of Supply & Demand Chain Executive magazine and available online at http://www.SDCExec.com. About Supply & Demand Chain Executive Supply & Demand Chain Executive is the executive's user manual for successful supply and demand chain transformation, utilizing hard-hitting analysis, viewpoints and unbiased case studies to steer executives and supply management professionals through the complicated, yet critical, world of supply and demand chain enablement to gain competitive advantage. Visit us on the web at http://www.SDCExec.com. About flexis North America, Inc flexis North America, Inc. is a division of Germany-based flexis AG. flexis is a leading solutions provider of sales & operations planning (S&OP), advanced planning & scheduling (AP&S) and supply chain management (SCM) software and consulting services that enable intelligent manufacturing and minimize the risks of operating in a global network. For more information please go to http://www.flexis.com. We are so grateful for every Mile High United Way corporate partner, and are thrilled to be able to recognize these companies," said Christine Benero, President and CEO of Mile High United Way. This is what happens when a community unites together. Last week, Mile High United Way honored 20 local businesses for their exceptional contribution to the community through their Mile High United Way corporate and employee giving campaigns. The Campaign Victory Celebration held at the Mile High United Way Morgridge Center for Community Change, awarded companies big and small for giving levels, creativity, and demonstration for their overall commitment to the community. We are so grateful for every single Mile High United Way corporate partner, and are thrilled to be able to recognize these companies who have gone above and beyond for their community, said Christine Benero, President and CEO of Mile High United Way. This is what happens when a community unites together. Mile High United Way works with more than 800 companies in Metro Denver to raise nearly $27 million annually. This supports long-term solutions ensuring children are learning and reading at grade-level; young people graduate from high school ready for college or the workforce; and families and individuals have their basic needs met and are afforded every opportunity to move toward economic success. Each year Mile High United Way highlights corporations who demonstrate exceptional commitment to the community through their employee giving and engagement through volunteerism. The 2015-2016 Mile High United Way awardees include: Cornerstone Society Members: Contributing more than $1 million dollars to Mile High United Way this year: CenturyLink, PCL Construction, Wells Fargo, and Xcel Energy. Champion of Hope: The Champion of Hope is the highest award given to companies for not only running an outstanding workplace campaign, but also for their deep commitment to the community. Koala Kare achieved a 95% participation rate and increased their giving by $10,000. Nelnet raised $104,000 this year and saw a 14% increase in giving. KPMG increased their overall campaign giving by $200,000, raising $768,000. Enterprise Holdings pledged over $620,000 to the community and has experienced a 56% increase in participation over the last five years. Spirit of Hope: Spirit of Hope is given to newly-launched giving campaigns. American Family Insurance raised $30,000 and had over 150 donors. Brutons Books, founded by David Bruton, Jr., Denver Bronco, and recent Super Bowl Champion, committed to investing $26,000 to create the first United Way Club Connect in Colorado. Best Employee Engagement and Boots on the Ground: Presented to Xcel Energy for outstanding achievement in employee education and engagement year-round. Xcel Energy is Mile High United Ways largest corporate partner; with more than $20 million dollars in lifetime giving and more than $1.26 million invested this year. Xcel Energy has employees on several Mile High United Way volunteer committees, and hosts their annual Xcel Energy Day of Service in partnership with Mile High United Way and partner agencies. Best Campaign Event: Presented to MillerCoors for utilizing creativity to increase donor participation. MillerCoors had a branding change and hosted a procurement sale for their employees. 100% of the proceeds went to Mile High United Way, and the company matched the donations 1:1, raising $87,878. Best Collaboration and Innovation: 2nd Annual Energy United Duck Derby. Energy United is a new and exciting collaboration with Mile High United Ways energy industry partners. Led by Anadarko Petroleum, Energy United provided ready-made opportunities like sending 800 yellow rubber ducks down Cherry Creek for a duck derby -- for the energy industry to work together to support Mile High United Way and the Metro Denver Community. The seven companies include: Anadarko Petroleum, Xcel Energy, Suncor, Newalta, Suncor Energy, QEP Resources, Black Hills Energy and Atmos Energy. Mike Gardner, President and CEO, Kane Is Able, Inc. Third party logistics company Kane Is Able, Inc. (KANE http://www.kaneisable.com) announced today that its President & CEO, Mike Gardner, was named as a board member of the American Logistics Aid Network (ALAN), an organization that supports disaster relief efforts through supply chain coordination. ALAN recently celebrated the tenth anniversary of its founding. Kathy Fulton, Executive Director of ALAN, stated, Were thrilled to have Mike as a member of ALANs board of directors. His expertise and enthusiasm will make a great addition to the team. Fulton continued, Mike has a diverse background in operations, customer service, business development, and strategic planning. These skills, plus his ability to connect and collaborate, will be a tremendous addition to the organization. ALAN continues to support recovery efforts around the country, however, the Flint, MI water crisis has taken much of the attention recently. ALAN facilitated donations of transportation and material handling equipment for non-profit organizations conducting distribution operations, and helped advise businesses on the best ways to help. ALAN is also preparing a response plan to support non-profit partners in the global response to the Zika virus. In the next couple of months, ALAN representatives will be attending annual conferences/tradeshows for IWLA, MHI (MODEX), and TIA. On February 29, Food Shippers of America will be presenting ALAN with a check for $10,000 in support of the organization. Mike Gardner is scheduled to present at the CSCMP Columbus, Ohio Roundtable Spring Forum on April 15. Additionally, ALAN is conducting disaster simulation exercises at the 2016 Southern California Logistics and Supply Chain Summit on April 28. About American Logistics Aid Network (ALAN) The American Logistics Aid Network (ALAN) saves lives and reduces suffering for disaster survivors in the United States by engaging industry to supplement non-profit organizations logistics capabilities. We serve by coordinating logistics, providing education, and building cross-sector relationships before, during, and after disasters. ALAN is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization supported by generous corporate and private donors. About Kane Is Able Kane Is Able is a third-party logistics provider that helps manufacturers and their retail partners efficiently and effectively distribute goods throughout the United States. KANEs value-added logistics services include retail consolidation, nationwide warehousing and distribution, logistics workforce management, and transportation solutions. Kane Is Able has proudly supported ALAN since 2010. Dr. Harold Koenig, Center for Spirituality, Theology and Health, wrote: This scholarly, well-crafted ethnohistory is a first in the field of public health. It illustrates a process of faith-based health coalition development and maturation." (Foreword) It was a strange building, with mostly black people in it. She was white and needed a bathroom. When she asked a woman where it was, the woman glared: Go back where you came from! That was author Dr. Karen Hahns introduction to Houstons Fifth Ward, a low-income, crime-ridden neighborhood. A local pastor had asked her to help organize the community to provide critically needed services. The resulting Greater Fifth Ward Congregational Health Coalition engages local pastors, volunteers, and agencies. It has coordinated more than 400 volunteers to give more than 300,000 free health and social services worth more than $8 million. Its volunteers have provided 29 home restorations, 130+ wheelchair ramps, medical equipment, senior/caregiver support, monitoring visits, youth programs, disaster relief, health counseling, trainings/classes, nutritious food, and referrals. Like the fable of stone soup, the Coalition multiplies its meager resources to care for its challenged community by mobilizing people to work together. After fifteen years, it is still giving. The book weaves stories, photos, and scholarship from dozens of contributors into a narrative that invites readers to reexamine poverty and abundance, power and privilege, racism and multiculturalism. It instructs and inspires as it reveals the inner workings of a caring, Christian community. Reviewers wrote: "The examination of racism is riveting in its realism and redemption." (Dr. Harold Koenig, Center for Spirituality, Theology and Health, Duke University Medical Center); "Karen Hahn and her collaborators have produced a fascinating cultural, sociological, and historical analysis of enduring compassion in action ... This book ... integrates a myriad of perspectives with integrity and depth ... Dr. Hahn's transparent self-exploration ... is refreshing and challenges us all." (Dr. Mimi Kiser, Interfaith Health Program, Emory University). The book is available for purchase through Amazon for $13.95 plus shipping. This ethnohistory will also be presented by Dr. Karen Jo Hahn at the international faith community nursing conference, the Westberg Symposium, on April 8 2016, in Skokie, Illinois. See the presentation preview and book forward at: http://www.shalompathpress.org. The individuals that we are privileged to honor tonight are true community leaders. Through their words and actions, they continually make a difference and inspire those around them to do and be better. Monroe College, a national leader in educating urban and international students, last night honored five community leaders for their public service and professional achievements at an awards dinner hosted by its School of Criminal Justice. The Black History Month Celebration of Excellence Awards Dinner, which was held at Monroes student-run Dining Lab restaurant in New Rochelle, recognized five African-American professionals whose character, conduct, and leadership have served their communities well and inspired others. The honorees were: Wilbur Chapman, Special Advisor for Public Safety to Mayor of Bridgeport, Connecticut; former chief with the NYPD and Bridgeport, CT police departments Judge Kathie E. Davidson, Supervising Judge of the 9th Judicial District Family Courts Joey Jackson, Attorney with Koehler & Isaacs, LLP and CNN legal commentator Richard Thomas, Mayor of Mount Vernon Dr. Errol D. Toulon, Deputy Commissioner of Operations at New York City Correction Department Black History Month has traditionally been a time to remember the pioneering men and women from the past who made an impact on our society and culture, but it is important that we also recognize the outstanding achievements of those who are having an influence on the course of history today, particularly here in our own backyard in New York, said Michele S. Rodney, Esq., Dean of Monroe Colleges School of Criminal Justice. She continued: The individuals that we are privileged to honor tonight are true community leaders. Through their words and actions, they continually make a difference and inspire those around them to do and be better. It is our great pleasure to thank them for their myriad contributions and celebrate their accomplishments through this awards dinner. ABOUT MONROE COLLEGE Founded in 1933, New York-based Monroe College is a nationally ranked private institution of higher learning with a student-centric learning approach that prioritizes hands-on academic experiences, practical and relevant academic programs, flexible learning schedules, best-in-class instructional technologies, and committed and engaged faculty to ensure that students are well positioned for career success upon graduation. Monroe is among the leading higher education institutions in the country for graduating minority students. Monroe College offers Certificate, Associate, Bachelor's, and Master's degree programs. It has campuses in the Bronx, New Rochelle, as well as in the Caribbean nation of St. Lucia, with programs offered through its Schools of Criminal Justice, Information Technology, Nursing, Education, Business & Accounting, Hospitality Management and Culinary Arts, and Allied Health Professions, as well as through its liberal arts and continuing education programs, and its King Graduate School. The institution was listed in the fall of 2013 by U.S. News & World Report as the most affordable ranked private college in New York State. For more information and admissions criteria, please visit http://www.monroecollege.edu. Dunn&Co., a leading full-service advertising agency and production company, today announced it won 29 total ADDY awards, more than double the amount of any other participating agency, at the AAF Tampa Bay (American Advertising Federation of Tampa Bay) 2016 ADDY Awards, held in Tampa February 18. The awards included: one Best of Bay (for its packaging elements of Banyan Reserve vodka) and two Judges Choice awards for Best Design (Old St. Pete spirits packaging) and Copywriting (Hexa watches website). Of the 29 awards, 19 were Gold in their respective categories. The award-winning work was created for a variety of media, including: TV broadcast, radio broadcast, packaging, digital/web, outdoor, video, illustration and several multimedia campaigns. The ADDYs recognized the agencys work on behalf of clients: Tampa Bay Lightning, Tampa Bay Rowdies, Hexa watches, Joffreys Coffee and Tea Company, CSCU, St. Petersburg Distillery, Ralphs Mob and The United Way. It was quite an evening, hearing our name called over and over again, said Dunn&Co. President and Chief Creative Officer Troy Dunn. As always, we feel creating work that is recognized by our peers as the industrys best is just another form of recognition that what we do will help our clients become famous, which usually leads to improved sales and profits. Winning in so many categories and in so many different media makes me feel were really offering a consistently exceptional product across the board. The AAF ADDY Awards is the nations largest advertising competition, with more than 60,000 entries annually. The ADDY Awards is the only creative awards program administered by the advertising industry for the industry. The AAF Tampa Bay serves advertising professionals from the Tampa Bay community, including Hillsborough, Pinellas, Pasco, Citrus and Hernando Counties. Dunn&Co.s winning pieces will now move on to compete at the district level competition, being held in Tampa, Fla. later this year, for a chance to be forwarded to the national stage of the American Advertising Federation Awards in Anaheim, Calif. About Dunn&Co. Dunn&Co. (http://www.dunn-co.com) is a full-service advertising and marketing communications firm housed in a century-old former cigar factory near Tampas historic Ybor City. Dunn&Co. provides award-winning creative solutions for clients worldwide, including GE Healthcare, Tampa Bay Lightning, Ahold USA, Baxter Healthcare, Monin, Civco, Sabal Trust Company, St. Petersburg Distillery, Majestic Apparel, Hexa watches, Sempermed USA, ATG, and The United Way. Dunn&Co. also provides pro-bono services to the ALS Association Florida Chapter to help fight Lou Gehrigs disease. Whispering Spirits Poster Whispering Spirits uniquely approaches a subject that is often kept quiet in many suburban communities Like Six Degrees of Separation, most all Americans are touched in some way by the drug crisis. The new documentary film Whispering Spirits, being touted as one of the best new films dealing with drug abuse, shows that death from drug use can happen to anyone and to any family. Directed and edited by filmmaker Sean Gallagher, Whispering Spirits tells the story of Justin Veatch, a musically talented suburban New York high school senior who died from an accidental drug overdose in 2008. As a haunting tribute, the entire soundtrack of the film is comprised of Justins music. With the help of the non-profit media company Reconsider, Whispering Spirits is being made available free of charge to community anti drug coalitions searching for impactful new programs dealing with the drug crisis. Being shipped in March the film will be combined with a toolkit that includes a discussion guide authored by Student Assistance Services Corp of Tarrytown, NY. The toolkit will provide helpful ideas for how to maximize the films impact, says SAS Corps executive director Ellen Morehouse. The discussion guide will enable youth and adults to better understand everyones role in preventing substance use disorders and drug overdose. Whispering Spirits was made available to members of the Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America (CADCA) at its National Leadership Conference held in National Harbor, Maryland February 1st through 4th. More than 120 coalition members from 22 states signed up for the film right away says Jeffrey Veatch, Justins father who is featured in the film and who presents the multi-media talk A Message from Justin to students. The comments we have gotten are quite positive says Veatch who also hopes the films distribution will result in his talk being delivered across the country. I have just retired from nearly 40-years as a news writer for ABC News Radio, says Veatch, so the timing is perfect for me. Profits from Veatchs talk benefit The Justin Veatch Fund, a 501(c)3 organization created by the Veatch Family to honor Justins legacy with scholarships and music programs for teens. The Alliance for Safe Kids (ASK) in Yorktown, NY which screened the film at last years Save A Life forum along with Veatchs talk, is among the more than 5,000 CADCA members across the US. Whispering Spirits provided a unique opportunity to share a genuine portrayal of the tragic loss of a talented teen who had many friends and came from a loving and supportive family, says Tricy Cushner, President & CEO of ASK. This film helps to remove the stigma of drug addiction by realizing who can fall prey to substances and who can help. This documentary impacted our community to get more involved through education and awareness as community responders who change the culture from look the other way to a count on me approach. Whispering Spirits uniquely approaches a subject that is often kept quiet in many suburban communities, says Suzie Ross, Co-Founder of the Ossining Documentary & Discussion Series in Ossining, NY which screened the film and hosted a panel discussion last winter. Unlike many documentaries about losing a loved one to heroin, Whispering Spirits perspective has the ability to more profoundly raise awareness to young and old alike of how easy someone can fall prey to this epidemic. Our screening attracted a full representation of our community from school administrators, students, parents, health professionals, musicians, artists, to recovering addicts. It also allowed us to make the easy link to the array of health-related resources in our backyard that many were unaware of. The film took two and a half years to produce. I wanted to provide an intimate look at how one family struggles with their loss but more importantly, how they maintain the legacy of a loved one, says the films director Sean Gallagher. The empathy that comes along with understanding the experience of the Veatch family is something I believe can spark conversation in communities. Gallaghers first feature-length documentary, Brothers of the Black List, about the longest litigated civil rights case in US history, was awarded Best Documentary at the Catskill Mountains Film Festival and was also recognized at DOC NYC, DocuWest, and Dallas International Film Festival. The coalitions that signed up to screen the film at the CADCA Conference are from states all across the United States including California, Washington, Oregon, Colorado, Texas, Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Florida, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Maine. Non-profit organizations that wish to use Whispering Spirits to anchor a community program can view and obtain the film along with its toolkit & discussion guide by visiting whispering-spirits.com. We value good customer service and what we received far exceeded our expectations. We gave our solution specialists every form we distribute to our parents and they developed a turnkey product that efficiently meets our needs. PowerSchool customized an intuitive online student registration solution for Brookfield LaGrange Park School District (IL). In an effort to eliminate a labor-intensive process, collecting and managing student data will be centralized and completed online. Seamless integration between the PowerSchool student information system (SIS) and registration solution will result in up-to-date student data by the first day of school. Brookfield LaGrange was provided with an individualized team to build their solution. We value good customer service and what we received far exceeded our expectations. We gave our solution specialists every form we distribute to our parents and they developed a turnkey product that efficiently meets our needs, said Dr. Mark Kuzniewski, Superintendent of Schools. The electronic format allows families who have more than one child in the district to snap data from one student to another. SmartForm technology, an intuitive tool built into the solution, collects relevant data based on previously entered information or choices (grade, activities, medical history, etc.). The data submitted by families is reviewed, polished, and formatted to meet district policies and then delivered into the SIS, resulting in up-to-date and accurate records on the first day of school. Kuzniewski noted that the online student registration solution will result in more effective time management for both families and staff. Having this solution in place allows us to cut down on renewable resources. We were collecting an average of 40 sheets of paper per student. Placing the registration process online will provide our families with instant access to all of our school-related policies and vital information. The reporting features will allow staff to generate reports that flag families who need to upload residency documentation. Its a mechanism we previously didnt have, which made residency verification difficult to manage. The solution will streamline a number of our processes, maximizing our level of efficiency, said Kuzniewski. The implementation process has been great. Our solution specialist is responsive and has made the transition seamless from a paper-based system to an online solution. Online student registration for incoming kindergarten students launched on February 8th. The solution will be available to the rest of the school community on June 1st. About PowerSchool PowerSchool, the #1 leading provider of K-12 Student Information Systems (SIS), serves more than 40 million users and over 15 million students in more than 70 countries, playing a central role in K-12 education around the world. Additionally, PowerSchool provides award winning cloud-based registration management solutions, including online applications, school choice lotteries, new student enrollment, and annual student registration, designed specifically for Pre K-12 independent, charter, and public schools. The Union Station Hotel Nashville is launching its Marry Me in Nashville social media wedding contest, which will award one lucky couple a luxurious wedding package featuring a venue rental, reception features, hotel accommodations for the bride and groom and more. The winning couple will be announced on March 18. Marry Me in Nashville Prize Package Waived reception space rental A credit of $2,016 toward the reception food and beverage total Bride & Groom signature cocktail, prepared based on the couples preferences Premium guest room accommodations for the bride and groom for the night of the wedding A romantic in-room amenity to include champagne and indulgent sweets Breakfast for two the morning after the wedding Limousine airport service (one-way) for two Individuals can enter the contest by posting on Facebook or Instagram from February 19 to March 4. Participants are required to share an engagement or couple photo along with a statement expressing why they proposed or why they said yes using the hashtag #MarryMeInNashville. Entrants will be required to tag and follow Union Station Hotel on Facebook (@NashvilleUnionStationHotel) or Instagram (@UnionStationNashville) to submit a valid entry. Entries will be reviewed and carefully considered by a judging panel before a special guest judge selects the couple most deserving of the classic luxury and romance provided at Union Station. The winning couple will be announced via Union Station Hotels Facebook and Instagram pages on March 18 at noon CST. As a premier wedding destination in Nashville, the historic Union Station boasts unique architectural features and timeless design, in addition to exemplary service. The hotel is offering two new wedding packages, the Conductors Package and the Stationmasters Package, which are now available for booking through the hotels in-house wedding experts. For more information on Union Stations wedding offerings, call 615-726-1001. Conductors Package Selection of three hors d'oeuvres Entree selection Champagne toast Complimentary guestroom for the bride and groom on the evening of your wedding Stationmasters Package Premium cheese display Selection of four hors d'oeuvres Entree selection A specialty cocktail created just for you, on your special day Champagne toast Complimentary guestroom for the bride and groom on the evening of your wedding Complete rules, regulations and contest details for Marry Me in Nashville are available online at http://www.unionstationhotelnashville.com/marry-me-in-nashville/. About Union Station Hotel Nashville: Union Station is a 125-room, upper-upscale, full-service hotel located on Broadway, in the heart of downtown Nashville. The hotel, a National Historic Landmark, first opened in 1900 as the L&N Railroad Station. The property was converted into a hotel in 1986 and is become an Autograph Collection by Marriott hotel in 2012. Union Station Hotel features a Grand Lobby, with a 65-foot-high, barrel-vaulted ceiling and the Veranda, an outdoor covered terrace. The hotel is within easy walking distance to the various existing and proposed attractions including the Music City Convention Center, the Frist Center for the Visual Arts, Vanderbilt University, Bridgestone Arena, Honky Tonk Row, Ryman Auditorium and the State Capitol. # # # 3GC Group, the leading consulting firm of Converged Network Technologies and On-Net Surveillance Systems, Inc. (OnSSI), leader in Video Management Software (VMS) solutions, today announced a new extension of its longstanding technology partnership solution, integrating OnSSIs Ocularis 5 Video Management Software (VMS) with 3GCs Converged Electronic Physical Security (CEPS) for a seamless solution. 3GC Group integrates traditionally disparate electronic physical security technologies, such as IP Video Surveillance, Access Control systems, and Intrusion Detection Systems, onto the core data network while ensuring an optimized, reliable, and secure overall infrastructure. OnSSI has simplified its product line with the introduction of Ocularis 5, which includes new features such as hardware efficiency, allowing generic settings to be copied across multiple channels for faster installation; and stronger network security with end-to-end encryption. Ocularis 5 also features better storage management with automatic optimization of hard drive volumes and load balancing across multiple storage components. Ocularis 5 provides an efficient, secure and simple platform to build integrated security systems. Together, with 3GCs Converged Electronic Physical Security (CEPS) and OnSSIs Ocularis 5, integrated security systems will provide customers the best support for scalability and capabilities for a seamless converged network solution, said Henry Park, CEO of 3GC Group. The results satisfy each customers requirement for a highly secure and centralized security system network infrastructure. About OnSSI On-Net Surveillance Systems, Inc. (OnSSI) was founded in 2002 with the goal of developing comprehensive and intelligent IP video surveillance management software. OnSSIs Ocularis IP security and surveillance VMS platform increases security, reduces operational costs, and helps organizations move closer to prevention. Ocularis delivers open architecture, flexibility, and scalability for a range of applications including education, gaming, government, healthcare, manufacturing, public safety, transportation, and utilities. OnSSI is headquartered in Pearl River, New York and has representation in over 100 countries. With its acquisition of Germany-based VMS company, SeeTec AG and the launch of Ocularis 5, OnSSI continues to drive global expansion and technological innovations. About 3GC Group 3GC Group is a consulting firm, value added reseller and managed services provider focused on Converged Networks Technologies servicing enterprise organizations locally and globally. 3GC Group provides system design, implementation, integration and management services for a complete end to end turnkey solution. 3GC Group is headquartered in Los Angeles, CA with a global presence and expertise in all areas of business communications infrastructure from VoIP to FMC, IP PBX to Call Center Systems, video conferencing to cloud bridging as well as IT network infrastructure and security, IP Video Surveillance, Access Control systems as well as Point-to-Point, Point-to-Multipoint and Mesh wireless network solutions. For more information, visit http://www.3gcgroup.com. Veterinary antibiotics ingested by humans in the form of tainted food and drinking water have been linked to childhood obesity by researchers at Shanghai-based Fudan University. The discovery, recently published in the United States scientific journal Environment International in the United States, came as a result of five years of study by a team working at the university's Education Ministry-designated public health security laboratory and its College of Public Health. First, the team collected 1,500 samples of children's urine and used these to develop a method of screening that would identify the presence of 21 kinds of antibiotics. This method was then applied to 586 urine samples collected from children aged 8 to 11 in Shanghai, nearly 80 percent of the samples contained traces of the drugs. To assess the relationship between antibiotics and obesity, researchers divided the children into three groups according to the concentration of residues of veterinary antibiotics detected in their urine. According to the report, a "positive correlation" was found between the concentration of veterinary antibiotics ingested and the incidence of childhood obesity. "In the high concentration group, the incidence of overweight and obese children was three times that of the low concentration group, and in the medium concentration group the incidence was almost double that of the lowest group," it said. Wang Hexing, one of the team's lead researchers, said scientists across the globe had for some time proposed a link between the use of antibiotics during infancy and early childhood and obesity. Yet those studies were largely confined to medicines indicated for use in humans, whereas Wang and his team focused on antibiotics used by veterinarians. "We believe that the veterinary antibiotics mainly enter the human body through contaminated water and food," he said. According to Wang, the amount of antibiotics used in China reached 162,000 tons in 2013, accounting for roughly half of global consumption. Around 52 percent is used for veterinary purposes and more than 50,000 tons are discharged into the environment through the soil and water, he said. Sun Guogen, an information officer at Fudan University's College of Public Health, reiterated that the research found no association between obesity and the antibiotics designed for human use. "We didn't find in our research that obesity is associated with medical antibiotics used for humans. Such antibiotics may enter the human body in high doses in the short term but are easily and quickly metabolized. However, those that come from food and drinking water may be at a low dose but can accumulate in the long run," said Sun. Dealer Car Search Receives Driving Sales Dealer Satisfaction Award for Highest Rated Website Provider for Second Consecutive Year However, what is most important is that we deliver results to our customers so that they sell more cars and make more money. Wilson declared. Dealer Car Search has received the Highest Rated Website Award in the seventh annual DrivingSales Dealer Satisfaction Awards. Dealer Car Search received the highest dealer satisfaction ranking in the Website category, as determined by the thousands of auto dealers who are part of the DrivingSales community. We are extremely excited to have received this award two times. Our team works extraordinarily hard to provide the very best Dealer Websites and Value Added Digital Services in the Automotive Industry, and we plan on staying on top for a long time to come. stated Rick Wilson, Dealer Car Search CEO. The company launched its first Responsive Websites at the beginning of 2014. We were one of the first companies to build Responsive Websites, making Dealer Car Search a pioneer in the Responsive Website arena, Wilson said. Two years later we continue to deliver the best, most affordable, and most reliable Responsive Websites in the Automotive Industry. We build them faster than most vendors and for less money, making our solution the best overall value. This is why we receive such high customer satisfaction ratings from our Dealers, Wilson continued. Dealer Car Search customers have an option to add Website Texting to their websites for a fee. End users are more satisfied because of the ability to easily and directly communicate with the dealer. Likewise, Dealers are more satisfied because of the increase in both leads and sales. http://www.dealercarsearch.com/website-texting-for-car-dealers.aspx It does not seem that Wilson has any plans of slowly down or stopping any time soon. Wilson added that Dealer Car Search will continue to innovate and will launch several new products in 2016. Details about the upcoming products were not available, but Wilson declares they will be revolutionary for the industry. We are quickly becoming the one stop digital shop for car dealers by offering a multitude of value added products that operate on one user friendly platform. However, what is most important is that we deliver results to our customers so that they sell more cars and make more money. Wilson declared. We congratulate Dealer Car Search on being recognized as one of the best-of-the-best by the people to whom their services count the most: the dealer community, said DrivingSales CEO and Founder Jared Hamilton. For seven years, and through over 25,000 validated reviews, DrivingSales Vendor Ratings has helped dealers make smart, more informed decisions, leading them to outstanding service providers such as Dealer Car Search. The DrivingSales Dealer Satisfaction Awards are based on cumulative ratings tallied and verified over the calendar year (JanuaryDecember) at DrivingSales.com Vendor Ratings. DrivingSales Vendor Ratings is the industrys only neutral, comprehensive vendor rating forum featuring real-time peer reviews and honest competitor comparisons, and provides dealerships with important information from actual customers who have hands-on experience using vendor products / solutions in their stores. Each rating is verified as coming from an actual dealership employee. Full award results are available online at http://dealersatisfactionawards.com/. Award winners are showcased in the Q1 2016 issue of the DrivingSales DealerExec delivered to more than 2,000 of the top used car dealer in the U.S. For more information on DealerExec, please visit: dealerexecmag.com. About Dealer Car Search Dealer Car Search went to market in 2006 and has been a proven industry leader for a decade. The company provides a full suite of Internet Based Value Added Products and Services to 5000 car dealerships throughout the United States. Dealer Car Search 12912 Shelbyville Rd Louisville, KY 40243 http://www.dealercarsearch.com 502-326-8413 About DrivingSales DrivingSales is a professional network serving the auto industry with dealer-driven news and information, online training, and performance data, all to enable dealers to make critical business decisions at their dealerships. DrivingSales mission is to connect progressive dealership professionals to the people and information they need to maximize their success. Founded by a third-generation car dealer, and opened up to the industry in 2008, today DrivingSales has registered users in over 50% of new car dealerships in the US and is active in several other countries around the globe. To learn more about the DrivingSales community, training or performance analytics visit DrivingSales.com, DrivingSalesUniversity.com and DrivingSalesData.com DrivingSales Media Relations: Christina DeVore christina.devore(at)drivingsales(dot)com Events Marketing Director 866.943.8371 x124 Working with Demac Media makes sense because of their proven track record in implementing a select number of systems and deep ecommerce experience. WebLinc, the commerce platform provider for the fastest growing online retailers, today announced that Demac Media, an award-winning commerce agency, is the first member of the all-new, exclusive WebLinc Solutions Partner Network. The network, an addition to the WebLinc Partner Ensemble, is intended to give mid market retailers access to the most in-demand solutions and commerce expertise. Launching this network, WebLinc has designed a repeatable process to help the most innovative commerce agencies, developers, and strategists implement the WebLinc Commerce Platform. WebLinc Solutions Partners will be vetted and trained in order to ensure smooth implementations, and work alongside the company on every build. We developed our Solutions Partner Network to serve our market better and faster than we could on our own, said Darren C. Hill, CEO and co-founder of WebLinc. Working with Demac Media makes sense because of their proven track record in implementing a select number of systems and deep ecommerce experience. They share our core values and a commitment to supporting the unique needs of the mid market retailer. Headquartered in Toronto with an office in Montreal, and expansion plans in Florida, Demac Media focuses all of their efforts on building commerce solutions. It is because of this focus they have become a recognized industry leader. By joining the WebLinc Solutions Partner Network, the innovative commerce agency is now able to help ambitious retailers launch WebLincs fully scalable platform. Were confident that joining the WebLinc Solutions Partner Network is the right move for us, said Demac Medias CEO, Matt Bertulli. When we looked at WebLincs platform we quickly saw that it is one of the most robust systems. Knowing that the framework of the WebLinc system uses modern technologies was a major draw for us. We are excited to get the WebLinc platform in the hands of Demacs clients who want total control of their system and enterprise-level commerce solutions at an affordable cost. Multiple projects launching in 2016 are in motion between the two companies. About Demac Media For category-leading retailers, Demac is a commerce agency trusted by North America's best brands to deliver their shopping experience to millions of connected consumers. Demacs award-winning team decodes retail trends and uncovers best practices in marketing and web and mobile development to help you sell more, and in more places. With a home office in Toronto and satellite offices in Montreal and Florida, Demac is committed to making commerce better for our planet. Learn more at http://www.demacmedia.com or follow @DemacMedia. About WebLinc WebLinc is the commerce platform for fast growing online retailers. Mid to large-size retailers consistently outpace their competition with the modern, agile technologies of the WebLinc Commerce Platform and the companys strategic expertise. Based in Philadelphia with satellite offices in New York, Los Angeles and Toronto, WebLinc powers commerce sites for dynamic, high-growth retailers including Sanrio/Hello Kitty, Urban Outfitters, Inc.s brands Terrain and BHLDN, U.S. Polo Assn., Stila Cosmetics, Jeffers Pet, and others. To learn more, visit http://www.weblinc.com or follow @WebLinc. Construct-A-Lead is an online construction lead service that helps contractors, service providers, manufacturers and suppliers gain information on all large scale construction projects. The service features apartment construction, hotel construction, retail construction, medical construction, school renovations & more, including those hard-to-find private project leads, to help bid on construction, from planning stage- completion. Plans Move Forward for Sarasota Memorial Hospital and Other Medical Construction Projects Construct-A-Lead reported today that there are numerous new/updated Medical construction leads added to the Construct-A-Lead construction project database. Businesses will have ample opportunities to provide construction bids and other services relative to these projects. Interested parties are invited to visit construct-a-lead.com and sign up for a free trial. This a no obligation, no credit card necessary sampling allowing customers 5 live construction reports over a 3 day period. Users are encouraged to view and track projects, online, an example of which is listed below. Reference the Project ID to utilize the new site features and to obtain direct contact information for each construction lead: Venice, FL Sarasota Memorial Hospital Plans call for a new acute care hospital with 200 beds. Construction start: Q4, 2016, Q1, 2017, $100,000,000 Project ID: 1364687 Lakeway, TX Serene Hills Commercial East Plans call for the new construction of a 24,000 SF office facility to house 15,000 SF ambulatory surgery center. Construction start: Q2, 2016 $10,000,000 Project ID: 1363159 Murrieta, CA Kaiser Permanente medical campus Plans call for the new construction of a 824,500 square foot, 254 bed hospital and medical center over five phases. Plans include a complete medical services facility. Construction start: Q2, Q3, 2017. $650,000,000 Project ID: 1365303 Palatine, IL Cedarhurst of Palatine Memory Care Plans call for a new 34,584 square foot, 56-unit memory care community. Construction start: Spring, 2016, $12,000,000 Project ID: 1363223 Fredericksburg, VA Mary Washington Hospital Plans call for adding 14 psychiatric beds. Construction start: Q1 2017, $16,000,000 Project ID: 1365470 Buffalo, NY 33 High Street Project is currently in pre design phase, early construction plans call for a multi- story, 350,000 square-foot building. Construction start: Q2, Q3, 2017 $150,000,000 Project ID: 1365443 Austin, TX Austin State Hospital Plans call for the new construction of a replacement hospital - plans are very early and specifics have not yet been determined. Construction start: Q2, Q3, 2018. $180,000,000 Project ID: 1365212 Construct-A-Lead Construct-A-Lead.com is an online construction projects database, helping contractors, service providers, manufacturers, distributors, suppliers and businesses in related industries gain information on all large scale commercial construction projects. The service features those hard-to-find private project leads, from planning stage through completion. Construct-A-Lead's daily updates of commercial construction project leads are an ideal solution for those who want to put their product or service into commercial, government and religious structures. For more information, visit Construct-A-Lead.com online or call 855-874-1491. "Today there is an incredible rise in the importance of design thinking. Clients want to move faster & with more agility, with an immersive & comprehensive software project experience. That combination is creating an exciting set of opportunities for us." Eureka Software is celebrating its 30-year anniversary as an industry leader in the design and development of custom software products and solutions. Since 1986, Eureka has successfully completed over 2,000 projects in software product strategy and design, mobile, web, enterprise software development, business process automation, software as a service and cloud infrastructure. Eureka has worked with and for members of the Global 1000, the Fortune 500, notable private companies, and industry leading start-ups through its consulting, product development, and litigation/expert witness practices. In the early days, our customers simply wanted software that worked said Rodney Muras, VP of Solutions and Services at Eureka Software. Fast forward to today and there is this incredible rise in the importance of design thinking - customers are expecting much more out of their solutions. They want to move faster and with more agility, and more than ever, they want an immersive and comprehensive project experience. That combination is creating a very exciting set of opportunities for us. In recent years, Eureka has also established itself as a leading expert in critical intellectual property, project performance, and related concerns. Eurekas truly unique background allows us to add tremendous value for our clients in both avoiding IP and project-related challenges as well as helping them to resolve issues when they arise. CEO Monty Myers went on to say, Regrettably, litigation is a significant component of doing business today Eureka has the proven experience and capabilities to guide our clients through these challenges when they arise. In its 30 years, Eureka has achieved many successes but is perhaps proudest of its dedicated and stable workforce, touting engineering and management tenure upwards of 15-20 years in many cases a rarity in the technology and software industry. Eureka's celebrated client list includes work for firms such as Samsung, Apple, Dell, IBM, Google, Dropbox, Pinterest, Twitter, American Airlines, ATT, Sprint, 2Wire, Siemens, 3M, Reuters, Jefferies, Progressive Insurance, Chevron, British Petroleum, Baron Weather, GNS Healthcare, Jones Day, Alston & Bird, and many others. About Eureka Software: Eureka Software is changing the way companies approach software projects. By combining design thinking with deep technical and operational expertise, Eurekas highly iterative and collaborative development process helps bring better software products to market faster. Learn more at eurekasoft.com or we'd love to visit in person at our Austin, Texas innovation center. Planting the Seeds of Community College Success The role of community colleges in helping students afford and attain a bachelors degree has never been more pronounced. Our mission is to support them in this important role as they scale their success. The Affordable College Public Benefit Corporation, a B Corp founded to help community college students afford and attain a bachelors degree, today announced the Community College Success Fund which will provide financial support for community colleges to increase enrollment, college readiness, and transfer rates. Americas community colleges help millions of students save billions of dollars on bachelors degrees annually, raising their earning potential and increasing their employability, while increasing prosperity and improving equity in society. As part of its mission as a B Corp, The Affordable College Public Benefit Corporation contributes a percentage of its revenue to funding community college success. To be eligible for the success funding, community colleges must demonstrate three key characteristics. First, community colleges must express enthusiasm for innovation. Second, community colleges must seek to expand career and bachelors degree options for students. And third, community colleges must be metrics and data driven. The B Corp announced the Community College Success Fund at DREAM 2016, the Achieving the Dream Annual Meeting on Student Success in Atlanta, GA. This flagship event is expected to bring together over 1,900 influential policy-makers, investors, thought-leaders, and practitioners from around the world, who are dedicated to addressing one of our nations most urgent challenges: helping more community college students succeed. Sean OBrien, Founder of Affordable College, said, The role of community colleges in helping students afford and attain a bachelors degree has never been more pronounced. Our mission is to support them in this important role as they scale their success. For more information, visit http://www.affordablecollege.org At EXHIBITORLIVE, an industry-leading conference and expo for trade show and event marketing professionals, Exhibitus President Brad Falberg and Design Director Matt Beck will present a new conference session Improve ROI Through Smart Design. Since starting Exhibitus 21 years ago, Ive loved consulting with clients and working with design teams from a clean sheet of paper to a final design. Creating beautiful, unique and relevant environments that engage audiences and gain brand awareness is exciting, said Brad Falberg. At Exhibitus, we know from our experiences that Design Matters and have developed a process to measure the link between design and trade show success. EXHIBITORLIVE will be held February 29 March 3, 2016 at Mandalay Bay Convention Center in Las Vegas. The Exhibitus session, scheduled for Tuesday, March 1, 2016 at 3:45 p.m. in South Seas G, will include case studies, worksheets and a take home project that will enable participants to pinpoint their exhibit designs strengths, weaknesses and opportunities to improve future results. In addition, Falberg and Beck will continue the discussion at a Peer-to-Peer Roundtable, The Relationship between Design & ROI, to be held following their Tuesday session at 5:30 pm in South Seas F. Register for EXHIBITORLIVE educational sessions at http://www.exhibitoronline.com/live/2016/session.asp?ID=T111 Attendees are also invited to visit Booth #1269 to learn more about Program Fitness By Design. The Exhibitus Team will guide attendees through different experiential stations that visually demonstrate aspects of a well-designed exhibit program. Exhibitus Exhibitus is an award-winning custom exhibit house specializing in 3-dimensional design for trade shows, corporate events, user conferences, permanent installations, museums and corporate interiors. Driven by the philosophy that "DESIGN MATTERS", the company builds jaw-dropping exhibits that capture brand, inspire action and assure business success. Headquartered in Atlanta with offices in Chicago and New York, Exhibitus also features global service capabilities to support clients abroad. Exhibitus clients include Abbott, AGCO, Alcoa, Astellas, Cessna, Cox Business, Kawneer, Lexus, Mack Trucks, Porsche, Toshiba, ViaSat, Verizon, Wells Fargo, and Yamaha. iGotcha Media, developers of high impact digital signage solutions and content, today announced that it will exhibit with long-standing partner LG, a global leader in electronics, information and communications products, at the upcoming DX3 Conference to be held in Toronto, March 2 3. iGotcha Media will demonstrate innovative digital signage applications, including: a video wall comprising four LG 49-inch Direct LED LCD monitors, radio frequency identification (RFID), geo-locator bracelets, real time mobile-to-screen connectivity and gaze-tracking technology. We are very pleased to be working with iGotcha Media, says Renaud Smith, Sales Manager Eastern Region, LG Electronics Canada. This team has consistently distinguished itself as digital signage innovators. We are committed to developing products of exceptional quality and our virtually seamless bezel Direct LED LCD video walls will provide an incredible visual experience for anyone who comes across iGotcha Medias displays. As a valued partner, LG provides the LED LCD monitors used in many of our applications, continues Greg Adelstein, President, iGotcha Media. We look forward to demonstrating the latest in digital signage innovation at DX3 including applications tailored to limited-time events and permanent installations integrated by iGotcha Media and running on LG hardware. DX3 will be held at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre, March 2 3, 2016. iGotcha Media will be in booth #310. For more information, please visit http://www.igotchamedia.com/dx3. About iGotcha Media iGotcha Media specializes in delivering turn-key digital signage solutions, including: hardware, software, installation, content development and network management. We help businesses achieve their digital signage needs, generate new streams of revenue, reduce costs and gather data. iGotcha Medias clients include: Toronto Congress Centre, Cambridge Group of Clubs, Le Chateau, National Bank of Canada, Reebok, Rockport and Via Rail Canada. For more information, please visit http://www.igotchamedia.com, or call (416) 479-4155 (Toronto office) or (514) 448-4016 (Montreal headquarters). Media Contact: Mark Lowe, PRagmatic Communications, for iGotcha Media. mark(dot)lowe(at)pragcom(dot)com / (514) 499-9632 / (514) 576-2519 Dr. F. Victor Rueckl is extremely pleased and proud to announce the addition of Dr. James Q. Del Rosso to Lakes Dermatology in Las Vegas. Dr. Del Rosso. DO, FAOCP, brings his wealth of over two decades of experience in cosmetic and dermatology care to the practice, thus ensuring that the patients of Lakes Dermatology will continue to receive the highest level of treatment and care. Dr. James Q. Del Rosso was born in Brooklyn, New York, and attended pharmacy school at St. John's University in Jamaica, New York. He completed a hospital pharmacy residency at Temple University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, before graduating with honors from Ohio University. Dr. Del Rosso the completed his dermatology residency at the Atlantic Skin Disease Association in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, before completing a fellowship approved by the American College of Mohs Surgery in Mohs Micrographic Surgery and Cutaneous Oncology at Ohio State. Dr. Del Rosso is board certified in Dermatology and Mohs Micrographic Surgery and is fully licensed in the state of Nevada. Dr. F. Victor Rueckl discusses Dr. James Q. Del Rosso joining Lakes Dermatology at Las Vegas by noting, "I cannot express how happy I am to have Dr. Del Rosso come on board and join Lakes Dermatology. Our ongoing commitment to providing the best possible care to our patients is being met by having someone as experienced and prominent as Dr. Del Rosso joining our practice. He is an internationally renowned educator and speaker and has published several articles in recognized dermatology journals. He is also a past president of the American Acne & Rosacea Society, the American Society for Mohs Surgery, and the American Osteopathic College of Dermatology. Another accomplishment is that he is also the editor-in-chief of the Journal of Clinical Aesthetic Dermatology since its inception back in 2005. Lakes Dermatology and our patients will benefit greatly from Dr. Del Rosso joining our ranks, and it's always special to have someone so acclaimed and experienced join our ranks." About Lakes Dermatology of Las Vegas Lakes Dermatology is a state-of-the-art dermatological facility located in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Spa at Lakes Dermatology houses all of the medical-grade lasers and machines used at the facility, and both entities are located within the same building. Lakes Dermatology is overseen by Dr. F. Victor Rueckl, a board-certified dermatologist with almost thirty years experience, and provides patients with both cosmetic and traditional dermatology services. Services and procedures include Mohs surgery, Botox, Lumecca, Fractora, and many more. For more information regarding Lakes Dermatology of Las Vegas and The Spa at Lakes Dermatology, visit their website at: http://www.lakesdermatology.com or call 702-869-6667. The Guide for your Financial Life Through MoneyNav, we strive to deliver this experience in educational, empowering, and inspiring ways that helps each person make wise financial decisions for their future. AFS 401(k), a retirement consulting firm in Bethesda, MD is pleased to announce the launch of their new online financial wellness platform, MoneyNav (http://www.afs401k.com/moneynav). This interactive website will be home to blog posts, videos, e-books, calculators and other premium content written for those seeking answers to finance and retirement-related questions. There is no cost or registration required to use MoneyNav. While there are certainly many bloggers and writers within the existing marketplace, AFS 401(k) is offering something different: Accessible content backed by a professional, seasoned team of independent advisors. After realizing the value in creating a holistic and interactive employee education program for clients and their employees, AFS 401(k) is expanding this existing service offering by providing an online platform to serve as a guide for anyones financial life, covering topics such as paying for college, budgeting, investing and retirement planning. On the launch of MoneyNav, Lead Advisor with AFS 401(k), Alex Assaley says: Our mission is simple we want people to enjoy all of their life. In meeting with thousands of working Americans, Ive learned that they need simple and straightforward help that captures their entire financial picture. Through MoneyNav, we strive to deliver this experience in educational, empowering, and inspiring ways that helps each person make wise financial decisions for their future. Two areas of interest prompted AFS 401(k) to take on this new venture: Financial Wellness is becoming an increasingly important piece to implement a successful employee benefits program. The 2015 PWC Employee Financial Wellness Survey states that 45% of employees find dealing with their current financial situation stressful and distracting. AFS believes that overall stronger financial literacy for everyone plays a significant role in preparing people for retirement and other financial milestones, as well as reducing stress and can be a contributing factor an individuals overall happiness. In a recent MetLife Study, it was found that, an overwhelming majority (90%) of consumers worldwide want to become better at managing money. For more information on how AFS 401(k) is expanding their Financial Wellness program, visit MoneyNav at http://www.afs401k.com/moneynav or contact our Marketing Manager, Katie Garner at 301-961-8416. About AFS 401(k) Retirement Services AFS 401(k) Retirement Services is an independent retirement plan advisory firm located in Bethesda, MD. Founded in 2006 and with $1.1 billion in assets under management currently, AFS 401(k) has helped companies and their employees simplify complex retirement plans by offering services in fiduciary oversight, plan design and customized employee education programs. AFS 401(k) has received numerous accolades for their work in retirement plans, including Lead Advisor Alex Assaley being honored by Employee Benefit Adviser as Retirement Plan Advisor of the Year. Securities and advisory services offered through Commonwealth Financial Network, Member FINRA/SIPC, a Registered Investment Advisor Our new IaaS platform is the perfect solution for most of our customers, offering the power and options that will optimize their hosting Unlike IaaS solutions available from other hosting providers, North Carolina-based Tranquil Hosting owns its own platform stack users can expect timely updates and faster responses to feature requests than other companies that use a platform developed by a third party. Tranquil Hostings platform allows instant deployment of dedicated servers and cloud servers in more than 25 locations worldwide. Its dual-stack IPv4 and IPv6 capable IaaS platform also features its award winning managed/high touch services. The companys customers have access to its 24/7 dedicated support and technical expertise, US and EU hosting locations, and its fixed pricing schedule. "Our new IaaS platform is the perfect solution for most of our customers, offering the power and options that will optimize their hosting," said Mark Price, Tranquil Hostings CEO. "However for customers who have more demands and who require a more robust solution such as those in in government, financial and big pharma will find it is more than capable of accommodating their needs." In addition to its IaaS services, Tranquil Hosting customers are able to take advantage of a multitude of fully managed services including hybrid deployments, colocation from single servers suites, anycast, CDN, iNOC services, and more. Tranquil Hostings native IPv6 connectivity is key in 2016 as the Internet of things and the new style of IP addressing scheme takes hold, with the exhaustion of legacy or IPv4 address space. To learn more about IPv6, IPv6 capable hosting, colocation, and cloud services Tranquil provides a free IPv6 web presence audit. About Tranquil Hosting: Since its inception in 2002, Tranquil Hosting has strived to ensure the success of its customers by providing zealous commitment to customer service and delivering the most efficient IT solutions. From small businesses and start-ups to the most demanding applications, our highly experienced engineers at Tranquil Hosting can help you design, implement, and scale your Web presence. For more information, visit https://www.tqhosting.com. Beijing has provided aid to medical institutes in neighboring Hebei province to ease overcrowding in the capital's hospitals by treating patients near their homes. Since 2014, Beijing has increased cooperation with hospitals in Hebei province's Yanjiao, Zhangjiakou and Caofeidian by providing experts for surgeries and helping to train doctors and nurses in Hebei hospitals, Gao Xiaojun, spokesman for the Beijing Municipal Commission of Health and Family Planning, said on Tuesday. Gao cited a commission survey that found about 23 percent of patients in Beijing hospitals were Hebei residents in 2014. As the integration of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei cluster was elevated to a national strategy, Beijing's hospitals have been trying to help improve medical services in Hebei that could better serve local patients, he said. "Our goal has been set that locals don't have to go to Beijing but can receive treatment from Beijing's doctors and experts," he said. Yanjiao, a small town in Hebei's Langfang city, is adjacent to Beijing's Tongzhou district on the other side of the Chaobai River. The town is just 30 kilometers from Tian'anmen Square and is home to about 300,000 people - more than 40 percent of its total population - who work in Beijing. Because of those numbers, a pilot program was conducted in Yanjiao in 2014 after President Xi Jinping promoted the integration plan. Yanda Hospital, a private nonprofit medical institute covering 33 hectares of land, formed a cooperative partnership with Chaoyang Hospital in May 2014. Chaoyang Hospital ranks among the city's best. Last year also saw Yanda sign cooperation agreements with three other prestigious hospitals and medical institutes in Beijing - Tiantan Hospital, Beijing Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine and the Hospital affiliated with the Capital Institute of Pediatrics. Hou Yanning, president of Yanda Hospital, said experts from Beijing were able to tackle difficult conditions for patients and would also tutor her doctors. Yanda received 156,000 patients in outpatient services last year, a year-on-year increase of 65 percent. This number was almost triple that of 2013 before the cooperation was undertaken. PR News will hold its annual PR Measurement Conference on April 21, 2016 at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., where attendees will learn the newest best practices in measuring social media engagement and tying PR to the bottom line. PR News has also developed an intensive half-day workshop on social media strategies and tactics for PR and marketing professionals, which will take place the day before the conference also at the National Press Club. Workshop attendees will learn the ins and outs of the big three social platforms and what it takes to succeed in this multimedia digital space. More Information At the PR Measurement Conference, youll hear from thought leaders at Bloomberg, Hill+Knowlton Strategies, Aflac, Paine Publishing and APCO Worldwide, as they'll walk attendees through the steps of creating a measurement dashboard all the way through to tying PR metrics to sales figures. Register now at http://www.prmeasurementconf.com for these events in Washington, D.C. The Early Bird rate ends April 1 and government and nonprofit rates are available for the PR Measurement Conference. Sessions for the PR News Measurement Conference and Social Media Workshop include: Measurement Dashboards That Communicate PRs Business Value Case Study I: PR Measurement at Work in the Real World Pay-to-Play: How to Use Paid Ads on Social to Amplify Your Brands Content Measuring Social: How to Measure Your Impact Across Social Media Platforms Case Study II: PR Measurement at Work in the Real World How to Measure Media Coverage and Tie It to Organizational Goals Go Beyond 140 Characters With Twitter to Build Your Brand How to Get the Most Out of FacebookFrom Video to Organic Posts and Beyond Presented by the industry's most trusted PR and marketing brand, these events will fill up quickly. View the PR Measurement Conference agenda online and the sessions for the Social Media Workshop online. For questions regarding registration, contact Jessica Placencia at jplacencia(at)accessintel(dot)com. To become a sponsor, contact Lindsay Silverberg at lsilverberg(at)accessintel(dot)com. PR News is a daily intellectual hub that serves the communications and marketing community at corporations, agencies and nonprofits. The PR News group focuses on honing and growing PR practitioners' skills in social media, crisis management, digital PR, measurement, employee relations, media training, CSR and writing through its flagship newsletter, webinars, conferences, awards programs, workshops and guidebooks. With the launch of its weekly newsletter over 70 years ago, PR News has remained dedicated to supporting the growth of communicators all while keeping them abreast of the latest news affecting the industry. For more information, please visit http://www.prnewsonline.com. AgGenetics, a Nashville, TN-based animal health and biotechnology company, is launching a $5 million equity financing campaign on AgFunder, the leading agriculture-focused online investment platform. The company uses cutting edge biotechnology developed for human medicine to improve livestock health and productivity. Demand for animal protein is estimated to grow by nearly 40% in the next 20 years[1]. Yet, there is no effective or economically viable model for addressing this demand using common technology, or even through clearing the worlds remaining wilderness. AgGenetics is developing a suite of products to improve animal productivity that could alone meet the increased demand. Using modern biotechnology techniques initially developed for human medicine gene discovery and editing the company is focused on technologies to help farmers combat common ailments that impact livestock production and increase the productivity of cattle. The companys defining feature has been its ability to identify the right genes in a timely fashion, using genomic and data analysis approaches rarely used in animal health. AgGenetics currently has three products in late stages of development, including a low-cost test for brisket disease (also called Bovine high-mountain disease), a copper deficiency and toxicity test, and a new breed of heat tolerant cattle. The technology is protected by more than 20 patent applications in countries around the world, including the U.S., Europe, Australia, Asia and South America. From my many years in the cattle industry, I understood the top concerns, says Dr. Warren Gill, Co-founder and CEO of AgGenetics. But it wasnt until I came together with Dr. West that we found efficient ways to solve them. With this fundraising, it will help us get our first suite of products to market. Dr. Warren Gill and Dr. James West, the companys founders, are leading experts in human and animal health. West, the Chief Science Officer, is the head of an independently-funded laboratory at Vanderbilt University and has been using data collection and analysis to identify genes for human medicine for many years. Gill, a cattle rancher and former Chair of Agribusiness/Science at MTSU, has assembled a team with over 100 years of experience in the cattle industry. The company is also advised by advisory board member Dr. Jerry Caulder, Finistere Ventures Chairman and former Mycogen CEO, one of the first in the field of agriculture biotechnology. AgGenetics first two products are its diagnostic test kits for copper deficiency/toxicity and for brisket disease, which have an annual cost of $2.8B and $130M to U.S. cattle industry, respectively.[2] Copper deficiency is one of the most prevalent nutritional issues facing cattle and affects about one third of them, impacting weight gain, fertility, and milk yields, yet there is still no cost effective, accurate and non-invasive procedure for detecting this condition. Brisket disease affects about 5 percent of cattle at altitudes above 5,000 feet, when they suffer right heart failure leading to swelling in the chest from fluid retention. AgGenetics estimates there are around 8.8 million cattle at these altitudes. The first sales for both products are expected Q2 2017. AgGenetics third product is a potential game-changer for the many cattle farmers in warm to hot climates like Brazil, Australia, India, and much of the Southern Hemisphere, which have 82% of the worlds cattle population[3]. Currently, these farmers can only raise certain types of cattle, which are far less productive than Northern Hemisphere breeds such as the Aberdeen Angus, and the meat less desirable. AgGenetics technology adds genes for white short hair and dark skin to the Angus, creating a White Angus with ability to thrive in hot climates. Its first calves are expected to be born in early 2017, with multiple heat tolerant genetic lines ready for market in 2018. The current funding round will be used for commercialization of both the testing products and the additional development and trials for the white angus. AgGenetics has an incredibly important technology platform for the cattle industry, said Michael Dean, Cofounder and COO at AgFunder. The teams combined cross-functional skills and expertise in both genetics and the livestock industry means that they can execute on their current vision of breeding more productive cattle and cheaper, faster, less invasive testing, and ultimately on future technology in the pipeline. For more details, view AgGenentics investment profile (https://agfunder.com/listings/aggenetics) and a recording of their investor webinar (https://agfunder.com/webinar/aggenetics). Sources: [1] Rabobank, Agriculture, Roundtable Conference November 2010. [2] AgGenetics calculation combining the number of affected animals according to the Aphis/USDA Beef 1997 study, health impacts per animal according to the National Research Councils Nutrient Requirements of Beef Cattle, and State of Tennessee extension estimates for the costs associated with these health impacts. [3] Assessing the heat tolerance of 17 beef cattle genotypes, JB Gaughan, TL Mader, SM Holt, ML Sullivan, GL Hahn, International journal of biometeorology 54 (6), 617-627, May 21, 2009. About AgGenetics AgGenetics, based in Nashville, TN, is using modern biotechnology techniques used in human medicine gene discovery and editing to develop a suite of products to improve livestock health and productivity. The companys first products include tests for brisket disease (also called Bovine high-mountain disease) and copper deficiency and toxicity, as well as a new breed of heat tolerant cattle. About AgFunder AgFunder is the worlds first online investment platform created specifically to connect accredited investors with world-class agriculture and agtech investment opportunities. Every project featured on AgFunder is evaluated for its economic and technical merits by our expert team of agriculture and business experts, providing potential investors access to some of the most promising agriculture investment opportunities. For more information visit https://agfunder.com. ### Contact: Melissa Tilney, melissa(at)agfunder(dot)com ### Important Information: All terms described herein are simplified and provided for convenience only and are qualified in their entirety by reference to the transaction documents. In the event of any discrepancy between the terms displayed herein and the terms provided in the final executed transaction documents, such transaction documents shall control in all respects. All prospective accredited investors are advised to review the transaction documents and consult independent legal counsel prior to making an investment. InfoSystems VP Scott Davis Since there will always be a newer, better perfect solution, we are always looking for opportunities to grow, chasing the market to meet customer needs InfoSystems Inc., a Chattanooga based company, had an incredibly successful year in 2015, hitting $47 million in revenue with an unprecedented 27% growth rate. Our sales team turned in an awesome 4th quarter, with most of the growth coming from our legacy business in storage and server technology, said VP of Sales Scott Davis. Whats most interesting, to me, is we are just beginning to see revenue from our newest offerings. Nearly unheard of for a company of InfoSystems size, double digit growth indicates this regional technology company is far from done. InfoSystems has expanded its services to include innovative solutions for the data center in the form of cloud and managed services, security, and even analytics. If January 2016 is any indication, InfoSystems' team is optimistic that double digit growth will continue. We have an outstanding team of experts partnering with our customers to create the perfect solution, CEO and Founder Clay Hales said. Since there will always be a newer, better perfect solution, we are always looking for opportunities to grow, chasing the market to meet customer needs. Major focuses for the company in 2016 include cyber security and managed services. By sponsoring an exclusive March Madness Security Summit in Nashville, InfoSystems aims to assist customers with security challenges for the foreseeable future. Continued investment in digital re-tooling is also paramount as InfoSystems strengthens how it communicates with its customers and prospects by providing a better user experience and therefore better service. In addition, the company is redoubling its investment in their popular Virtual CIO offering and StREAM Early Warning System, analytics for higher education. Further, new partnerships with vendors like Palo Alto and Permabit will have a huge impact in 2016. But as Clay Hales has often said Our incredible growth is only made possible by the hard work and intelligence of our team. About InfoSystems, Inc. InfoSystems serves small to medium sized businesses in the United States and Puerto Rico offering everything from data centric infrastructure to outcome based solutions like Cloud and Prescriptive Analytics. All of InfoSystems' services are backed by certifications in data storage, virtualization, cloud, server infrastructure, backup and disaster recovery, network security, software development, voice service and unified communications. The company's boutique size, coupled with enterprise capabilities and the ability to give focused attention to each customer's challenges, make them the perfect partner for companies who are looking for an extension of their technology leadership and team. FeedMore CEO Doug Pick receives $10,000 donation from CapTech Principal Dennis Bowne We are able to do what we do because of the continued support of organizations like CapTech CapTech Delivery Teams from three of their largest accounts competed against each other in friendly rivalry to raise food and funds for FeedMore in the CapTech Food Fight. This head-to-head battle raised $10,000, which will help provide for approximately 40,000 meals, for hungry neighbors in Central Virginia. The check presentation took place on February 18, 2016 at the FeedMore headquarters. Launched in 2013, the annual CapTech Food Fight for FeedMore had donated a combined 5,800 lbs of food in prior years. This year, with the addition of a new client delivery team and a renewed focus on the cause, CapTech consultants rose to the challenge and increased this years contribution to FeedMore 85% over previous years. The teams introduced creative fundraising methods including the opportunity to throw a pie at a CapTecher, bake sales, corporate contribution matching days, head and beard shaving contests and weekly mock commercials. Utilizing FeedMores Virtual Food Drive platform, the teams were able to easily keep track of monetary donations. We are able to do what we do because of the continued support of organizations like CapTech, said Doug Pick, Chief Executive Officer at FeedMore. Their dedication to our mission and commitment to raising awareness about hunger in our community allows us to further extend our reach and positively impact our neighbors in need. FeedMore provides comprehensive hunger-relief programs that focus on three key areas: feeding children, feeding families and feeding seniors. With programs like the Central Virginia Food Bank, Meals on Wheels, Kids Cafe and the weekend BackPack program, FeedMore serves 34 counties and cities across Central Virginia and provides more than 17 million meals annually. Working together to effectively and efficiently fight hunger in our community, FeedMore is dedicated to improving the quality of life for those in need and maximizing all resources to achieve a vision that none should go hungry. About CapTech: Headquartered in Richmond, VA, CapTech is a national management consulting firm that bridges the gap between business and technology. CapTech delivers transformation, customer engagement, data & analytics and custom IT solutions for private companies, public companies and government agencies. The company's collaborative approach helps organizations grow their business, engage with customers and turn information into powerful data assets. About FeedMore: FeedMore is Central Virginias core hunger-relief organization comprised of programs like the Central Virginia Food Bank, Meals on Wheels and the Community Kitchen. Spanning nearly one-third of the state, across 34 counties and cities, FeedMore serves more than 200,000 individuals in the regions most vulnerable populations children, families and seniors. Working together to efficiently and effectively fight hunger, FeedMores multi-tiered approach and comprehensive programs are dedicated to nourishing the community while empowering lives. For additional information, please visit FeedMore.org, find us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter. International Port Security 2016 The event agenda features unique case study based presentations from international ports around the globe including: Bremen, Dover, Helsingborg, Liverpool, Long Beach, Rotterdam, Santos and Vigo. - SMi Group SMi Group reports: "The port environment is constantly changing with new technologies and procedures in all areas of port operations, but security will always remain a core part of a ports operations. Security has always been needed for protection against theft, sabotage and the use of the port conduit for criminal purposes but now terrorism has added another dimension. In order to resolve these threats it is important to collaborate and discuss effective means of mitigating these threats with fellow colleagues and experts." - Chris Jones, Event's Chairman, Director, Maritime Security Operations (MAROPS) Limited International Port Security 2016 will bring together key decision makers in the industry to discuss modern methods of port security and how seaports can be protected from external as well as internal threats. Across the 2-day conference 5 key subject areas will be explored: Protecting ports from modern threats Resolving external threats to port security Technological systems in ports Reacting to regulatory systems and change Security mechanisms across ports The event agenda features unique case study based presentations from international ports around the globe including: Bremen, Dover, Helsingborg, Liverpool, Long Beach, Rotterdam, Santos and Vigo. With the vast array of ports included in the speaker line-up delegates will have the opportunity to hear about the unique regional threats that each of these ports face and how they resolve these issues. To download the agenda or to register please visit the event website http://www.internationalportsecurity.com/prweb Port of Rotterdam recently secured second place ranking for Europes most attractive logistics locations.* Security is a key focus point when it comes to maintaining a high standard of logistics. With such credibility, Port of Rotterdam are a key presentation not to be missed at the 2016 event. Reinout Gunst, Security Coordinator, Port of Rotterdam will present on Day Two of the conference about compliance. Mr Gunst will discuss: inspection procedures; challenges faced in further implementing security measures; solutions to these problems and future steps for the Ports security team. As well as this Port of Rotterdam will take part in a panel discussion alongside Port of Dover, Port of Long Beach and Malta Transport Authority which will discuss What Measures Can be Taken by Ports to Improve Security Operations. To enhance delegate learning further; running alongside International Port Security 2016 will be a half-day pre-conference workshop. The workshop entitled Preparing Ports to Mitigate against External Threats will be hosted by Captain John Dalby, CEO, Marine Risk Management. To register or for further information about the workshop/leader, visit the event website http://www.internationalportsecurity.com/prweb There is currently an early bird offer available; book by 29th of February to save 400 off the conference price. For sponsorship enquiries, contact Sadia Malick on +44 (0) 207 827 6748 or smalick(at)smi-online(dot)co(dot)uk For delegate enquiries, contact Paul Deller on +44 (0) 207 827 6194 or pdeller(at)smi-online(dot)co(dot)uk For media enquiries, contact Zoe Gale on +44 (0) 207 827 6132 or zgale(at)smi-online(dot)co(dot)uk 7th annual International Port Security conference 1-2 June 2016 London, UK http://www.internationalportsecurity.com/prweb Contact e-mail: zgale(at)smi-online(dot)co(dot)uk Contact tel: +44 (0) 207 827 6194 #IntPortSec Source* http://bit.ly/1WrF3Jx About SMi Group: Established since 1993, the SMi Group is a global event-production company that specializes in Business-to-Business Conferences, Workshops, Masterclasses and online Communities. We create and deliver events in the Defence, Security, Energy, Utilities, Finance and Pharmaceutical industries. We pride ourselves on having access to the worlds most forward thinking opinion leaders and visionaries, allowing us to bring our communities together to Learn, Engage, Share and Network. More information can be found at http://www.smi-online.co.uk Steve Mikita, JD As patients, our desire is to be meaningfully engaged in clinical research and these kinds of technologies are critically important to achieving that goal. Mytrus, Inc., a pioneer in electronic informed consent and leader in e-clinical technologies, has welcomed J. Stephen Mikita, JD as a member of the companys Innovation Advisory Board. The board comprises leaders with expertise in research and development, translational medicine, compliance, and patient advocacy and advises Mytrus on innovative product development strategy. Mytrus aspires to consider patient perspectives in all that we do. We will look to Steve, as both a lawyer and as a patient living with a disabling condition, to guide us in our own investment and product development, ensuring that our decisions reflect the technology needs of trial participants. Steve is a tireless champion of individuals with disabilities and a seasoned clinical research industry expert. Were delighted to have the benefit of his wisdom and enthusiasm. Mikita is one of the oldest survivors of spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), a degenerative neurological disorder. He lives his life from a wheelchair with round-the-clock assistance, and he has inspired millions of Americans through his example. He is also a veteran of multiple clinical research studies and an expert in the clinical trials process. I am honored and excited to join the Mytrus advisory board and contribute to its line of patient-centric products", Mikita noted. As patients, our desire is to be meaningfully engaged in clinical research and these kinds of technologies are critically important to achieving that goal. " Mikitas involvement with clinical development includes serving as a patient representative to the Clinical Trials Transformation Initiative (CTTI) Steering Committee, through which he has worked on numerous projects, including the recent Informed Consent Project. He is also a patient representative for Columbia University Medical Centers Neuro NEXT program as well as for Sentinel, a safety monitoring initiative sponsored by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. He serves on the planning board of Mini-Sentinel, a pilot surveillance system, as well as on the SMA Foundation board of directors. Mikita was honored with the Muscular Dystrophy Associations National Personal Achievement Award and the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Utah Attorney Generals Office. His book, I Sit All Amazed, was published in 2011. Mikita joins the established Mytrus Advisory Board consisting of well known experts from around the research industry including: Clay Johnston, MD, Ph.D., Dean of Medicine at the University of Texas, Austin Garry Neil, MD, Chief Scientific Officer at Medgenics John Orloff, MD, Executive Vice President and Chief Scientific Officer at Baxalta David G. Forster, J.D., M.A., C.I.P, Chief Compliance Officer of WiRB Copernicus Group (WCG) and Steven Cummings, MD, co-founder of Mytrus, Emeritus Professor of Medicine and Epidemiology from the University of California, San Francisco and Director of the San Francisco Coordinating Center. About Mytrus Founded in 2009, Mytrus is a privately held e-clinical technology company specializing in patient-centered electronic informed consent and data collection tools. After receiving the first FDA approvals for remote electronic consent and virtual data collection, Mytrus has gone on to develop new technologies for patients including ePRO and EDC tools usable from home and mobile devices, bio-sample consent tracking technology, site training and e-learning applications, and patient home dashboards for tracking clinical study progress and data. Mytrus also holds an exclusive patent for conducting virtual clinical trials in the US. Mytrus investors include BioClinica and inVentiv Health. Learn more about Mytrus at http://mytrus.com (http://www.mytrus.com) or find the company on Facebook (https://Facebook.com/pages/Mytrus/321804308635) and Twitter @mytrus. (http://www.twitter.com/mytrus) Two DMS 5 Axis CNC Routers in the Advanced Manufacturing Center Diversified Machine Systems (DMS), an Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) of DMS CNC Routers and Large Format Machining Centers, announces the Phase 1 completion of the Advanced Manufacturing Center (AMC) located at the DMS world headquarters in Colorado Springs, CO. The Advanced Manufacturing Center (AMC) is designed to align manufactures strategically with DMS as a trusted knowledge resource to address key manufacturing challenges. Today manufacturing companies are re-shoring and bridging manufacturing knowledge gaps at astonishing rates, DMS continues to leads the way with customer driven products and services aimed at helping companies produce more products faster, with higher quality, at a lower cost. Through the AMC, DMS is offering training, collaboration on proof of concepts; project consulting and more, with the goal of helping customers improve their manufacturing processes and maximize their return on investment. DMS is also offering a revolutionary quick-change fixture, design to help customers meet their high-production goals. Training and consulting services performed by a certified and experienced DMS technician, offering sessions at the world headquarters facility in Colorado Springs or at the clients site. Training can be customized to meet individual business needs to address the customers specific knowledge gaps. Training can be on an individual level to address complex issues, or on a larger scale to bring an entire production floor up-to-date. Utilizing over 35+ years of experience, the Advanced Manufacturing Center provides expert project consulting for both start-up businesses and Fortune 500 companies. The engineers at DMS specialize in creating custom machinery and bring that same ingenuity and experience to the AMC. By utilizing the AMCs project consulting services, companies can go into production sooner, increase quality and improve operating efficiency. The revolutionary quick change fixture is available exclusively on the line of DMS machine and is produced in the AMC. This tool reduces the fixture swap time from approximately 15 minutes down to just 30 seconds, and solves the widespread problem of changing out bulky fixtures. By drastically reducing the time dedicated to fixture changes, production cycles can be notably improved without incurring any additional labor costs. The Advanced Manufacturing Centers objective is to improve manufacturing processes by providing the necessary guidance and resources to minimize knowledge gaps between concept and production. Clients can receive machine training, address programming challenges and get a head-start toward fabricating products while their DMS CNC machine is being built. This can fast-track a customers time to revenue, so that they can immediately begin production once their DMS machine is completed. The Advanced Manufacturing Center extends Diversified Machine Systems reach as the industry leader in customer support and innovation. Learn more about Diversified Machine Systems at http://www.DMSCNCRouters.com. ABOUT DIVERSIFIED MACHINE SYSTEMS Diversified Machine Systems (DMS) is a leading designer and manufacturer of 3 Axis CNC Routers, 5 Axis CNC Machine Centers, and Large Format Machine Centers headquartered in Colorado Springs, CO. With more than 30 years of innovation and industry experience as an Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM), DMS line of CNC routers and machining centers are routinely used on materials such as wood, composites, aluminum, plastics and foams. Renowned for quality and precision, DMS advanced machining centers are engineered to increase efficiency and productivity, while maintaining the quality and precision leading manufacturers have come to expect. Diversified Machine Systems was awarded the 2015 Governors Excellence in Exporting Award, named a 2014 Colorado Company to Watch and ranked in the 2014 & 2015 Top 250 Private Companies in Colorado. Diversified Machine Systems is also the parent company of CNC router manufacturer, Freedom Machine Tool. Be sure to connect with us socially for the most current news: Twitter.com/DMSCNCRouters YouTube.com/DMSCNCRouters Instagram.com/DMSCNCRouters Facebook.com/DMSCNCRoutersandMachineCenters Plus.Google.com/+DMSCNCRoutersandMachineCenters Cumulus Media Dallas - The Power of Radio The mission of the Putting Texans Back To Work job fair is to land new jobs for top local talent and to provide local companies with a powerful tool to efficiently fill open positions. - Dan Bennett Cumulus Media Dallas Regional Vice President Cumulus Media in Dallas Fort Worth is one week away from their ninth Putting Texans Back To Work Job Fair. This event will be happening March 9th at the Plano Centre in Plano, Texas. Putting Texans Back To Work is a proven commodity, well known for bringing job seekers together with companies that are hiring now. This edition of Putting Texans Back To Work is expected to help between 3,000 and 4000 job seekers to quickly secure new employment. Based on prior job fair successes, Cumulus Media Dallas forecasts large counts of applicants for nearly every employment category. The site of this massive event on March 9th is the Plano Centre, in Plano, Texas. It is an ideal location for access from Dallas, Collin and the Denton County areas of North Texas. And since all seven of our stations reach the entire DFW area, weve seen candidates come from all over the Dallas Ft. Worth area to attend these incredibly successful events. This easy to find location is on Spring Creek Parkway, just east of US Highway 75. As a gesture of good will, Cumulus-DFW has also arranged for free parking for all vendors and attendees. The DFW job market is booming and the quality of the Cumulus Media audience of over 3 million adult listeners has continually supported this event. DFW Companies are hiring and we are expecting over 75 companies at the event. With 70 new corporate headquarters moving into the DFW area in the last three years many companies are finding it more difficult to find quality candidates. The entire Cumulus Media DFW team is committed to serving the North Texas Community of hiring managers, recruiting teams, and area companies in facilitating the success of Putting Texans Back To Work. The Putting Texans Back to Work Spring Job Fair takes place March 9th at the Plano Centre just North of Dallas. Take a look at a quick video of last years event at this link. If your company or firm is looking for one very special candidate, or if you need to fill a number of positions, this even will be perfect for you. No registration is required for job seekers. Limited space is still available for vendors. If your company would like to get involved you can contact Steve Holm directly or you can register at this link. Deadline for entry is Monday March 7th. Michel Escoffier seated in front of a photo of his Great Grandfather Master Chef Auguste Escoffier We are honored to have Michel visit our campus and share his rich heritage about his great grandfather Auguste Escoffier; internationally recognized as perhaps the most famous chef in history, said Boulder Campus President, Kirk T. Bachmann. The Auguste Escoffier School of Culinary Arts located at 637 South Broadway welcomes Michel Escoffier, the great grandson of Master Chef Auguste Escoffier and president of the Escoffier Museum and Foundation in Villanueve - Loubet, France which is affiliated with the school to Boulder. Escoffier, who is a distinguished member of the schools advisory board will serve as an honorary judge at the schools Young Escoffier High School cooking challenge on March 7th at the Renaissance Hotel and will preside over the induction of local professionals into the prestigious Disciples dEscoffier a premier International culinary society on March 8th at Rembrandt Yard. We are honored to have Michel visit our campus and share his rich heritage with our students, staff, employers and farm partners about his great grandfather Auguste Escoffier; internationally recognized as perhaps the most famous chef in history, said Kirk T. Bachmann, Campus President of the Auguste Escoffier School of Culinary Arts. Approximately 20 student teams from across Colorado will compete in the Young Escoffier Market Basket competition for the opportunity to be awarded with valuable culinary scholarships as well as learn more about the schools innovative culinary and pastry programs including its highly popular Farm To Table Experience. During the competition, students will have the unique opportunity to interview Mr. Escoffier. With more than 20,000 members worldwide, the Disciples dEscoffier organization honors the memory of Auguste Escoffier, promotes and preserves his work and promotes culinary education and apprenticeships encouraging people to discover the desire and motivation to work as professional chefs. Incoming Boulder professionals to be inducted include Bertrand Bouquin, Executive Chef of the Broadmoor; Mary Jarrett, Editor-in-Chief of Boulder Magazine; Antonio Laudisio, Owner of Laudisio Mobile Catering; Ashlea Tobeck, Executive Chef and Instructor at the Auguste Escoffier School of Culinary Arts Boulder; and Daniel F. Widmann, Pastry Chef and Instructor at the Auguste Escoffier School of Culinary Arts Boulder. To learn more about the Auguste Escoffier School of Culinary Arts, attend an upcoming open house, visit Escoffier.edu, call 877-249-0305 or follow us on facebook at http://www.facebook.com/escoffierschool. About the Auguste Escoffier Schools of Culinary Arts The Auguste Escoffier Schools of Culinary Arts offer professional culinary arts programs based on the methods, principles and systems of Auguste Escoffier, the international culinary icon and the source of modern cooking. Students have the opportunity to learn history and context directly from the Escoffier family, and expert chef instructors. The schools Culinary Arts and Pastry Arts certificate programs offer rigorous industry skills training, the Farm To Table Experience as well as grounding in the standards of professionalism and excellence sought by employers. Campuses are located in Boulder, Colorado and Austin, Texas. http://www.escoffier.edu In addition to ground campuses, the Escoffier Online Culinary Academy is a certificate program which is part of the Boulder campus. It is the first-ever online culinary school, offering professional culinary training for serious career-seeking students throughout the country. Modeled after the most prestigious culinary institutes in the world and inspired by the world-renowned Escoffier name, Escoffier Online offers a comprehensive curriculum of cooking techniques and fundamentals. http://www.escoffieronline.com About Disciples Escoffier International - USA The Disciples Escoffier International is the premier gastronomic society established in France to maintain the good name and traditions of French Cuisine. The goals of the Disciples Escoffier International are to honor the memory of Auguste Escoffier, in France and worldwide, promoting and preserving his work and maintaining the great culinary traditions; to promote culinary education and apprenticeship encouraging young people to discover the desire and motivation to work as a professional chef. The Disciples Escoffier International continues to work in close cooperation with schools, establishing contacts between professionals and students; to organize culinary events worthy of these traditions; to honor those in the culinary profession who work to maintain the high standards of French haute cuisine and to unite all Disciples Escoffier from around the world and in the true Esprit Escoffier. Today, there is a worldwide membership of more than 20,000 that includes a large membership in France, China, Hungary, Italy, Japan, Benelux, Canada, Mexico, Portugal, Thailand, Germany, South Africa, Morocco, Russia and the United States. It is in this spirit that the Disciples Escoffier International - USA strives to develop a national membership, establish a culinary scholarship fund and continue its charitable endeavors. Media Contact: Laura Nepveux, Patrick Henry Creative Promotions, Inc. 713-594-6404, laura(at)phcp(dot)com School Contact: Kirk T. Bachmann, Campus President, Auguste Escoffier School of Culinary Arts 720-457-9612, kbachmann(at)escoffier(dot)edu Naomi Johnson Our demonstrated skill, knowledge, creativity and passion instill our clients with the confidence and trust that we will aggressively pursue the best result for them. Naomi Johnson joins Ball Janik LLP as a Litigation associate in the firms Portland office. Her principal areas of practice are commercial litigation, employment law, and insurance recovery. As an associate at a prominent New York law firm, Ms. Johnson represented leading global companies in complex commercial litigation in federal and state court, and defended prominent financial institutions in regulatory investigations before the U.S. Department of Justice, SEC, FINRA, and New York State Attorney General. Johnsons expansive commercial litigation practice has included the representation of both U.S. and non-U.S. corporate clients on a wide variety of matters relating to antitrust, commercial contracts, corporate and securities fraud, and deceptive trade practices. She defended a global reinsurance company in a $150 million action by a prominent investment fund alleging fraud, misrepresentation and unfair business practices. She also represented an international electronics manufacturer in a countrywide class action lawsuit which alleged violations of federal antitrust laws in connection with the pricing and sale of TFT-LCD panels. Johnson has represented clients in arbitrations and mediations. She was part of a team that represented the former CEO of a large domestic liquor company in a three-week arbitration arising out of his improper termination and conversion of his equity interests in the company. She has also represented employees and employers in mediations involving employment disputes. As part of her insurance recovery practice, Johnson has represented individuals in connection with denials of health and life insurance benefits. Recently, she successfully recovered a life insurance benefit improperly denied to her client by a large U.S. insurance company. Ms. Johnson also possesses significant experience representing financial institutions in regulatory enforcement actions. In addition to responding to regulatory requests, she has represented a leading global investment banking firm in a criminal insider trading proceeding by the SEC and U.S. Attorneys Office against one of its former directors. Johnson also represented a broker-dealer in an investigation by FINRA concerning trading in foreign exchange derivatives and fixed income emerging market securities. Before joining Ball Janik, Ms. Johnson was Of Counsel at a boutique law firm in New York City, where her practice focused on litigation, employment disputes, and insurance recovery. From 2004 to 2010, Johnson was an associate with Sullivan & Cromwell LLP, an internationally recognized law firm, where she was a member of the firms Litigation and Criminal Defense & Investigations practice groups. Upon earning her law degree, Ms. Johnson served as a law clerk to the Honorable Karen Nelson Moore of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. Johnson is a member of the American Bar Association, the Multnomah Bar Association, Oregon Women Lawyers, and the Gus J. Solomon Inn of Court. She earned her J.D., summa cum laude in 2003 from Brooklyn Law School, and her B.A in International Affairs in 1997 from George Washington University. About Ball Janik LLP Ball Janik LLP is a Pacific Northwest law firm headquartered in Portland, Oregon, with offices in Orlando, Florida and Salt Lake City, Utah. For over thirty years, Ball Janik LLP has been providing outstanding legal services in the areas of bankruptcy and creditor rights, commercial litigation, construction and design, construction litigation, employment, real estate and land use, insurance recovery for policyholders, and securities litigation. Ball Janik LLP represents large and small businesses; state, municipal and local governments; associations; schools and universities; and individuals. Ball Janik LLP provides clients an aggressive, skilled, team approach to solve problems and achieve results. Ball Janik LLP has been recognized by Chambers USA, U.S. News Best Lawyers, The Best Lawyers in America, and Corporate International. Ball Janik LLPs success and integrity have repeatedly made it one of Oregons Most Admired Professional Firms, according to the Portland Business Journals survey results of CEOs throughout the region. Flash The World Health Organization (WHO) chief, Margaret Chan, is in Brazil to assess the Zika virus situation and response, a UN spokesman said Tuesday. Chan is visiting Brazil together with the director of the Pan American Health Organization, Carissa Etienne, Dujarric said at a daily news briefing here. Their itinerary includes meetings with Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff on Tuesday and a visit to the National Center for Risk and Disaster Management, Dujarric said. The visit comes after an increase in babies born with microcephaly in northeast Brazil. The WHO still cautions that more investigation is needed to better understand the relationship between microcephaly in babies and the Zika virus outbreak. The WHO said that an increase in Guillain-Barre syndrome in Brazil has coincided with Zika virus infections. The Zika outbreak in Brazil has caught the attention of the WHO as the virus would cause infants to be born with microcephaly if their mothers are infected during pregnancy. More than 4,000 reported cases of microcephaly have been registered in Brazil, among them more than 400 have been confirmed. Of the confirmed cases, 141 were attributable to the Zika virus. Ability Commerce, a leading provider of ecommerce and retail and direct commerce enterprise resource planning (ERP), announced today their partnership with California based financial solution provider, Dynamic Budgets. Dynamic Budgets is a solution provider specializing in customizable budget forms and analytical accounting to replace forecaster and spreadsheets. The company provides their solution to support Ability Commerces Microsoft Dynamics GP Accounting customers. Dynamic Budgets intuitive and easy-to-use solution is a no hassle process for IT departments and offers a straightforward, quick to implement solution for our customers that requires no data warehousing. Were proud to partner with Dynamic Budgets and are happy to have them as partners at our 2016 User Summit this year, March 15-18 in Delray Beach, FL, said Kimberly Paradise, director of marketing for Ability Commerce. About Ability Commerce Ability Commerce is a leading provider of enterprise resource planning (ERP) direct commerce retail platforms that help growing retail businesses increase revenue, reduce overhead and engage with their customers. The company was named to the Internet Retailers 2016 Leading Vendors of the Top 1,000 E-Retail Clients. Its comprehensive software solutions, which enable companies to acquire, convert and retain customers more efficiently, include Ability CCS (ERP solution that includes Order Management & POS) and the SmartSite ecommerce platform. Also, as a Microsoft Gold Partner, Ability Commerce offers the Microsoft Dynamics GP solution. Ability also provides Professional Services including services for the Ecometry and Blue Martini software platforms. For more information about Ability Commerce, visit http://www.abilitycommerce.com. San Diego County residents are invited to learn about the latest advances in colorectal cancer care at a free presentation on Sunday, March 6, from 3 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Scripps Radiation Therapy Center, located at 10670 John Jay Hopkins Drive, San Diego 92121. Attendees will learn about the latest strategies for prevention, early diagnosis and treatment of colorectal cancer. March is national Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month. More than 134,000 people in the United States are expected to be diagnosed with colorectal cancer in 2016 and more than 49,000 people are expected to die of the disease, according the American Cancer Society. Scripps Clinic colorectal surgeon Laura Goetz, M.D., will lead the presentation. Advance registration for the March 6 presentation is requested by calling 858-678-7128 or emailing bowman(dot)anne(at)scrippshealth(dot)org. ABOUT SCRIPPS HEALTH Founded in 1924 by philanthropist Ellen Browning Scripps, Scripps Health is a nonprofit integrated health system based in San Diego, Calif. Scripps treats more than 600,000 patients annually through the dedication of 2,600 affiliated physicians and more than 15,000 employees among its five acute-care hospital campuses, hospice and home health care services, 28 outpatient centers and clinics, and hundreds of physician offices throughout the region. Recognized as a leader in prevention, diagnosis and treatment, Scripps is also at the forefront of clinical research, genomic medicine and wireless health care. With three highly respected graduate medical education programs, Scripps is a longstanding member of the Association of American Medical Colleges. Scripps hospitals are consistently ranked by U.S. News & World Report among the nations best and Scripps is regularly recognized by Fortune, Working Mother magazine and AARP as one of the best places in the nation to work. More information can be found at http://www.scripps.org. The Catholic Lawyers Guild of Colorado will present its 2016 annual awards to Brian Bates and Maureen Reidy Witt of Denver on Thursday, Feb. 25. Bates will receive the St. Thomas More Award, and Witt will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award. Both honorees are graduates of the University of Notre Dame Law School. This marks the first year in which both the Guilds awardees are Notre Dame graduates. The 2016 awardees join a select group of individuals the Guild has honored since 1977. Past recipients of the St. Thomas More Award include: former Colorado Governor Bill Ritter; and former U.S. Senator and Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazaar. Past recipients of the Lifetime Achievement Award include: former Colorado Attorney General and current Colorado Springs Mayor John Suthers; and former U.S. Secretary of Veteran Affairs Jim Nicholson. Brian Bates: St. Thomas More Award Bates, a partner with Antonio Bates Bernard, P.C., in Denver, will receive the St. Thomas More Award. The Guild presents the award to an attorney who exemplifies the intellect, integrity and moral courage of St. Thomas More in service to God, country and profession. Bates, who specializes in corporate counsel and commercial litigation, is a member of the American, Colorado and Denver Bar Associations, the William Doyle Inn of Court and the Colorado Judicial Institute. He is listed in "Best Lawyers in America" and was a "Best Lawyers" Lawyer of the Year in 2015. His volunteer service includes work with the Colorado Lawyers Committee, Colorado Lawyers for the Arts and the Law Line 9 program with KUSA-TV (Denver). Bates served as a member of the board of directors with the Lupus Foundation of Colorado for 20 years, currently is a member of the Catholic Lawyers Guild of Colorado board of directors, and has served as president of the Guild. A member of St. Elizabeth of Hungary parish (Denver), he serves on the parish council and stewardship committee, as an extraordinary minister, a minister to the sick and homebound, and volunteer with the parishs Soup-n-Sandwich Line. He is a member of the Denver Province review board of The Redemptorists (Denver). Bates serves on the executive advisory committee of the University of Notre Dame Law Association. He has held the positions of regional director and vice president of the universitys national alumni board of directors. Locally, he has served as president of the Notre Dame Club of Denver, and as a member of its board of directors for 17 years. He is a recipient of the clubs Distinguished Service Award and Award of the Year. He received Bachelor of Arts and Juris Doctorate degrees from the University of Notre Dame, and Master of Arts degree from the University of Toledo. Maureen Reidy Witt: Lifetime Achievement Award Witt, a partner with Holland & Hart LLP in Denver, will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award. The Guild presents the honor to an attorney for his or her outstanding lifetime contribution to religion, profession and country. Witt represents clients in complex litigation locally and nationally, with primary areas of focus in commercial litigation, product liability, and labor and employment. She has tried cases in jurisdictions across the country, and is admitted to practice before the United States Supreme Court. Witt served as Holland & Hart's managing partner from 1988 to 1991 and served on the firm's management committee from 2004 to 2006. She has served as a member of the Colorado Lawyers Committee Chairs Roundtable since its inception, has served as a board member of the Notre Dame Law Association since 2008, teaches regularly at the National Institute of Trial Advocacy, and lectures frequently on trial advocacy. A member of St. Thomas More parish (Centennial, Colo.), she has served on the board of trustees at St. Marys Academy (Englewood, Colo.) schools board for 15 years, and has held the position of chairman of the board. She has been named Denver Business Journal's Outstanding Woman in Business, one of Law Weeks Colorado Top Litigators, and a top woman lawyer in Colorado by Colorado Super Lawyers. Witt is a fellow of the American Bar Foundation, and a member of the Litigation Counsel of America, Colorado Supreme Court Commission on Jury Reform, Colorado Defense Lawyers Association, Alliance of Professional Women, and American, Colorado, Denver and Colorado Womens Bar Associations. Witt holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Gonzaga University and the Juris Doctorate degree from the University of Notre Dame Law School, where she served as an editor of the Notre Dame Law Review. The Catholic Lawyers Guild of Colorado (http://www.colocatholiclawyers.com) The Catholic Lawyers Guild of Colorado is an association that promotes the social, intellectual, temporal and spiritual welfare of members of the legal profession. Goals include: the promotion of high standards of religious and ethical ideals and practices among lawyers; instruction in the application of general ethical principles to concrete legal problems; and promotion of the intellectual and spiritual welfare of its members. The organization, which began in 1960 as the Denver Catholic Lawyers Guild, hosts regular educational, spiritual, community service and charity events. Matrox Mura IPX Series 4K capture and IP encoder & decoder cards wins three industry awards at ISE 2016 Matrox Graphics Inc. today announced that its new Mura IPX Series of 4K capture and IP encoder & decoder cards is the recipient of three of the industrys most prestigious technology honors presented at Integrated Systems Europe 2016. CE Pro, Commercial Integrator, Essential Install Magazine and TechDecisions worked with a team of integrators from around the world to judge top products on their technological innovation, benefits to the integrator and benefits to the end user. They awarded Matrox Mura IPX Series the first-ever Top New Technology (TNT) Award in the Video Wall Solutions category. NewBay Medias 2016 ISE Best of Show Awards from Installation and AV Technology were also presented to Matrox for the Mura IPX Series. In a field dominated by innovative solutions, these winning products mark the best of the best in the global pro-AV marketplace, states Margot Douaihy, editorial director of AV Technology. We asked our expert judges at ISE 2016 to evaluate each product based on the proposed value proposition/ROI, richness and relevance of the feature set, perceived ease of installation, ease of management, and user friendliness. Ultimately, what separated these products from other solid solutions is that they have a special appeal for AV technology managers and IT directors in increasingly converged AV/IT environments." Winning awards from these leading publications emphasizes the growing desire and need for innovative, cost-effective AV-over-IP solutions, said Fadhl Al-Bayaty, product manager, Matrox Graphics Inc. The Matrox Mura IPX cards will transform the way OEMs and AV system integrators approach video wall controller designs with the ability to integrate high-quality, low-bitrate, multi-channel 4K or HD encoding and decoding all via a single-slot card. Designed to work with Matrox Mura MPX video wall capture and display boards and Matrox C-Series multi-display graphics cards, Mura IPX packs 4K capture plus high-density encode and decode functionality onto a single PCIe card to simplify integration and reduce installation costs. The MURA-IPX-I4DF 4K capture and IP decode board provides four HDMI inputs for direct high-resolution 4Kp60 or 2560x1600p60 capture plus H.264 decoding of up to two 4Kp60, four 4Kp30, eight 1080p60 or sixteen 1080p30 streams. The MURA-IPX-I4EF 4K capture and IP encode/decode board adds H.264 level 5.2 encoding to stream and record contentincluding video wall sources, displays or regions-of-interestanywhere on the network. Visit our ISE 2016 recap page to watch our show videos: http://www.matrox.com/graphics/ise-2016-recap. About Matrox Graphics Inc. Matrox Graphics is a global manufacturer of reliable, high-quality ASICs, boards, appliances, and software. Backed by in-house design expertise and dedicated customer support, Matrox products deliver stellar capture, extension, distribution, and display. Engineering high-quality products since 1976, Matrox technology is trusted by professionals and partners worldwide. Matrox is a privately held company headquartered in Montreal, Canada. For more information, visit http://www.matrox.com/graphics. Media Contact: Janet Matey Media Relations Manager Tel: +1 (514) 822-6037 "It's great to be able to stay in downtown Brunswick in a more prominent location closer to the square." Owner Beth Johnson A Better Choice Bakery is celebrating its grand opening in its new location at 6 West Potomac Street, Brunswick, on Saturday, February 27, 2016. The ribbon cutting is scheduled for 9AM. Guests are invited to sample cookies and cupcakes and freshly made juices. $20 sample boxes will also be available. A Better Choice Bakery is Maryland and FDA licensed for wholesale distribution from its dedicated gluten-free/dairy-free facility. Owner Beth Johnson states, I'm excited to now be able to provide coffee and breakfast snacks while baking for afternoon deliveries. Its great to be able to stay in downtown Brunswick in a more prominent location closer to the square. Voiceye allows organizations to create talking paper, so all their documents can be read by anyone. Crawford Technologies will showcase a new solution that allows visually-impaired users to read printed pages at the 2016 CSUN Conference in San Diego from March 21 -26, 2016. Innovative Voiceye technology enables people with visual or cognitive impairment to read text from printed pages using a smartphone. Voiceye is possibly the biggest breakthrough in accessible documents since Braille was invented by Louis Braille in 1821, said Ernie Crawford, CEO of Crawford Technologies. Voiceye allows organizations to create talking paper, so all their documents can be read by anyone. Voiceye is based on a patented, ultra-high-density barcode smaller than a QR code - that can hold the information from several pages in a single barcode. Using a free smartphone app, Voiceye barcodes are scanned and allow visually-impaired users to use their phones standard accessibility features to hear the document spoken to them. They can also read the printed document in large font and high contrast viewing modes or display them on refreshable Braille displays. The app can also link to Google Translate for people who need to read their documents in a different language. Crawford Technologies has released a new solution - Voiceye Maker for Operations Express - that allows high-volume document producers to make all their documents into fully accessible pages. By implementing Voiceye Maker for Operations Express to make documents accessible, organizations can significantly reduce the costs of creating separate documents in braille, large print, etext and audio from scratch. CrawfordTechs Dennis Quon and Aimee Ubbink will be presenting two educational sessions at CSUN including: Compliance or Accommodation - Automating Accessible Client Correspondence Date: Wednesday, March 23, 2016 Time: 11:00 AM Location: Third Level, Cortez Hill AB Inclusion by Design: One-Step Alternate Format Automation Date: Wednesday, March 23, 2016 Time: 2:20 PM Location: Third Level, Mission Beach AB CSUN 2016 attendees will have the opportunity to learn more about Voiceye Maker for Operations Express from the CrawfordTech team at the Voiceye booth #912. For more information about CrawfordTechs Voiceye for Operations Express, click here. For more information about the CSUN 2016 Conference, please click here. About Crawford Technologies Crawford Technologies is an award-winning, worldwide leader in print-stream conversions, document re-engineering, high-volume document workflow, document accessibility and archiving software solutions. For 20 years, Crawford Technologies has expanded its solution offerings in Customer Communications Management (CCM), Enterprise Output Management (EOM), Enterprise Content Management (ECM) and Document Accessibility markets. CrawfordTech is dedicated to helping organizations improve their customer communications delivery systems so people can receive their documents in their format and channel of preference. For media and other enquiries please contact the Crawford Technologies Press Office: North America Tel: +1-416-923-0080 UK Tel: +44 (0)20 3289 4724 media(at)crawfordtech(dot)com http://www.crawfordtech.com Steven Powell, M.D. The immune system is very important during chemotherapy and radiation treatment for head and neck cancer. A new Sanford Health clinical trial will explore a drugs ability to activate the bodys immune system to fight head and neck cancer. Oncologist and cancer researcher Steven Powell, M.D., developed and will lead the Merck Investigator Studies Program (MISP) trial using the investigational drug pembrolizumab in combination with chemotherapy and radiation therapy for participants with advanced squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck. Squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck begins in the mouth, nose or throat. It can be caused by alcohol and tobacco use or infection with some types of the human papillomavirus (HPV). When caught early, it can be cured with surgery, chemotherapy and radiation. Pembrolizumab, according to Powell, is an immune checkpoint inhibitor, which allows the bodys immune system to recognize and attack the cancer. Participants in this study will receive standard of care chemotherapy and radiation in addition to pembrolizumab. The goal of the study is to evaluate the benefit and safety of adding this immunotherapy to standard therapy to improve long-term outcomes. After 18 months from initial treatment, annual evaluations will be conducted to monitor each patients cancer status, including if the cancer has returned. This clinical study is the product of laboratory research performed at Sanford by Powell and the head and neck cancer research team led by John Lee, M.D., and W. Chad Spanos, M.D. The immune system is very important during chemotherapy and radiation treatment for head and neck cancer, said Powell. This laboratory research demonstrated that the addition of immunotherapy can enhance the response during treatment. Pembrolizumab was developed by the drug company Merck and is FDA-approved for melanoma and certain types of lung cancer. Numerous clinical trials are underway looking at the drug in a variety of cancers. Participants for the study must be at least 18 years old and have advanced stages of squamous cell carcinoma of the oral cavity, oropharynx, hypopharynx or larynx. MISP is one of four clinical trials open at Sanford for head and neck cancer. A complete list of clinical trials is available at sanfordhealth.org/clinicaltrials. For more information or to enroll, call 87-SURVIVAL. About Sanford Health Sanford Health is an integrated health system headquartered in the Dakotas. It is one of the largest health systems in the nation with 43 hospitals and nearly 250 clinics in nine states and four countries. Sanford Healths 27,000 employees, including 1,400 physicians, make it the largest employer in the Dakotas. Nearly $1 billion in gifts from philanthropist Denny Sanford have allowed for several initiatives, including global children's clinics, genomic medicine and specialized centers researching cures for type 1 diabetes, breast cancer and other diseases. For more information, visit sanfordhealth.org. The 75th anniversary celebration is our time to raise our flag, to show our colors. As Civil Air Patrols Command Council convenes in Washington, D.C., this week to brief Congress on the U.S. Air Force auxiliarys primary missions, CAP members will also launch the organizations 75th anniversary celebration. CAPs 2016 Legislative Day is scheduled for Feb. 25 on Capitol Hill. Every year, delegations from each of Civil Air Patrols 52 wings meet with their representatives in the U.S. House and U.S. Senate to update them on CAPs congressionally mandated missions of emergency services, aerospace education and cadet programs. This will be a special Legislative Day, said CAP National Commander Maj. Gen. Joe Vazquez. In addition to the opportunity to tell CAPs stories of service, sacrifice and love of country to our representatives and senators, we will also celebrate the start of our 75th anniversary year. Civil Air Patrols chief historian, Col. Frank Blazich, said the organizations milestone anniversary provides a unique opportunity to elevate public awareness about CAP, its heritage, programs and future missions. Notably, we are able to reflect upon the accomplishments of our membership and organization to better position both for the next 75 years, he said. CAP doesnt officially turn 75 years old until Dec. 1, 2016, but officials believe the birthday is worthy of a yearlong celebration, beginning with a reception on the evening of Feb. 25 at the Crystal City Marriott at the Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. The anniversary launch event will feature remarks from Capt. Jill Paulson, granddaughter of CAPs founder Gill Robb Wilson. This will give us a chance to thank the many people who have supported Civil Air Patrol members of Congress, our Air Force partners and others. Their support has helped make CAP the premier public service organization it is today, said Vazquez. CAPs 75th Anniversary theme is Civil Air Patrol Always Vigilant for America, 1941-2016. Anniversary activities and displays are planned throughout the year at the Sun n Fun International Fly-in & Expo in Lakeland, Florida; EAAs AirVenture in Oshkosh, Wisconsin; the Air Force Associations Air & Space Conference in National Harbor, Maryland; and the Mid-Atlantic Air Museums World War II Weekend in Reading, Pennsylvania. The observances will culminate with a 75th Anniversary Gala back in the nations capital at the Smithsonians Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center on Dec. 1. Since its earliest days, when more than 200,000 Americans responded to the call for service by volunteering during World War II, CAP has kept a vigilant watch on the homeland, said Blazich. Today that vigilance continues in a myriad of emergency services, disaster relief and homeland security missions, each focused on the well-being and protection of our citizens. Since 2010, CAP has responded to both natural and manmade disasters, including the Deepwater Horizon oil spill on the Gulf Coast, Hurricane Sandy on the Eastern Seaboard, flooding in the Midwest, tornadoes in the South and Southwest, wildfires in California, a mudslide in Washington state and a blizzard in South Dakota. Aircrews have also provided tsunami warnings in Hawaii. CAPs search and rescue efforts, aided by advances in technology, have resulted in nearly 400 lives saved nationwide in the past six years. Homeland security missions include aerial reconnaissance conducted near Americas shipyards and on the nations waterways. CAP also provides air defense exercises for Air Force fighters protecting U.S. airspace and helps train U.S. troops before they deploy overseas. This 75th anniversary celebration is our time to raise our flag, to show our colors, said Vazquez, who will oversee CAPs activities on Capitol Hill, as well as the Command Councils annual winter meeting, scheduled for Feb. 26-27 at the Crystal City Marriott. The Command Council consists of CAPs national commander, national vice commander and executive officer, as well as CAPs eight region commanders and its 52 wing commanders representing the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Its members serve as advisers to the national commander. Civil Air Patrol, the official auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force, is a nonprofit organization with 56,000 members nationwide, operating a fleet of 550 aircraft. CAP, in its Air Force auxiliary role, performs about 90 percent of continental U.S. inland search and rescue missions as tasked by the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center and is credited by the AFRCC with saving an average of 78 lives annually. Its unpaid professionals also perform homeland security, disaster relief and drug interdiction missions at the request of federal, state and local agencies. The members play a leading role in aerospace education and serve as mentors to 24,000 young people currently participating in the CAP cadet programs. Performing missions for America for the past 74 years, CAP received the Congressional Gold Medal in 2014 in honor of the heroic efforts of its World War II veterans. CAP also participates in Wreaths Across America, an initiative to remember, honor and teach about the sacrifices of U.S. military veterans. Visit http://www.capvolunteernow.com for more information. Contact info: Julie DeBardelaben jdebardelaben(at)capnhq(dot)gov 334-953-7748, ext. 250 Steve Cox scox(at)capnhq(dot)gov 334-953-7748, ext. 251 In an effort to give Democrats a leg up this cycle, SpeakEasy Political, a new self-serve platform that dramatically lowers direct mail costs, announces a data partnership with NGP VAN, the premier national data vendor for Democratic campaigns and causes. This partnership eliminates a major pain point for campaigns easy access to top-quality voter lists. "At SpeakEasy, were leveraging technology to democratize modern campaigns and elections. This partnership with NGP VAN helps us advance our mission of empowering Democrats and progressives in all 50 states," said Eric Jaye, SpeakEasys co-founder. "We're thrilled to have SpeakEasy join the growing community of NGP VAN innovation platform apps, focused on making it easier for Democrats to win elections," said Amanda Coulombe, General Manager for Organizing Products at NGP VAN. "Integrated, self-service tools like these provide a tremendous advantage for campaigns up and down the ballot. SpeakEasy is the only data-integrated, self-serve direct mail product exclusively for Democrats, said Andrew Brown, Technology Director at the Democratic National Committee. Making direct mail cheaper and easier to send will help good candidates move their message at an affordable price point. For a video on how SpeakEasy works, click here. Access to reliable voter data is often the biggest roadblock for someone who is trying to move their message quickly, said Bergen Kenny, SpeakEasys CEO. This partnership will allow users to link their VAN and SpeakEasy accounts, so their voter targeting lists are imported directly into SpeakEasy. A user can create a mail piece, select their targets and get their piece out the door in a matter of minutes and for less. Current SpeakEasy clients include Democratic state parties, caucuses, labor federations and individual candidates. Inside California, SpeakEasy also offers data from Political Data, Inc. Users are also able to upload their own lists with SpeakEasys drag-and-drop function. Take SpeakEasy for a spin at http://www.SpeakEasyPolitical.com. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter. There is great value in accreditation, in that it makes each land trust stronger and better able to serve their community. The Land Trust Accreditation Commission, a program promoting public trust and ensuring permanence in the conservation of American lands, announced today that 37 land trusts across the United States have achieved initial or renewed accreditation. There is great value in accreditation, said Tammara Van Ryn, executive director of the Commission, in that it makes each land trust stronger and better able to serve their community. In total, 342 land trusts are now committed to the professional excellence that accreditation represents. The steady growth of that number across recent years up from 301 in early 2015 and 254 in early 2014 means that more than 15 million acres of conservation lands and easements are now stewarded by an accredited land trust. Land trusts achieving first-time accreditation are Silicon Valley Land Conservancy (California), San Diego Habitat Conservancy (California), Save Mount Diablo (California), Colorado Headwaters Land Trust (Colorado), Land Trust of the Upper Arkansas (Colorado), Roxbury Land Trust (Connecticut), Southeastern Trust for Parks and Land (Georgia), Kaniksu Land Trust (Idaho), Kentucky Natural Lands Trust (Kentucky), Upper Saco Valley Land Trust (New Hampshire), Ridge and Valley Conservancy (New Jersey), Rio Grande Agricultural Land Trust (New Mexico), Finger Lakes Land Trust (New York), North Salem Open Land Foundation (New York), Oblong Land Conservancy (New York), Otsego Land Trust (New York), Wallkill Valley Land Trust (New York), RiverLink (North Carolina), Licking Land Trust (Ohio), Wallowa Land Trust (Oregon), Western Rivers Conservancy (Oregon), French and Pickering Creeks Conservation Trust (Pennsylvania), South Kingstown Land Trust (Rhode Island), Beaufort County Open Land Trust (South Carolina) and West Wisconsin Land Trust (Wisconsin). Land trusts achieving renewed accreditation are Marin Agricultural Land Trust (California), Pacific Forest Trust (California), La Plata Open Space Conservancy (Colorado), Kent Land Trust (Connecticut), The Trustees of Reservations and its affiliates (Boston Natural Areas Network, Hilltown Land Trust and Massachusetts Land Conservation Trust, all in Massachusetts), Potomac Conservancy (Maryland), Maine Coast Heritage Trust (Maine), Little Forks Conservancy (Michigan), Mianus River Gorge, Inc. (New York), Eno River Association (North Carolina), Mainspring Conservation Trust (North Carolina, formerly the Land Trust of the Little Tennessee) and Piedmont Land Conservancy (North Carolina). The total number of accredited land trusts fluctuates due to factors such as consolidation among land trusts. For the most current list, visit http://www.landtrustaccreditation.org. The Commission is an independent program of the Land Trust Alliance, a national land conservation organization working to save the places people need and love by strengthening land conservation across America. Andrew Bowman, the Alliances president, cheered todays announcement. Before coming to the Alliance, I helped drive funding for the accreditation program through the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, he said. Its exciting, gratifying and encouraging to see the success that so many accredited land trusts have found through this program. Each accredited land trust meets extensive documentation requirements and undergoes a comprehensive review as part of its accreditation or renewal application. The process is detailed, thorough and helps transform land trusts. More information about the process and benefits are detailed at http://www.landtrustaccreditation.org. About the Land Trust Accreditation Commission The Land Trust Accreditation Commission, based in Saratoga Springs, New York, inspires excellence, promotes public trust and ensures permanence in the conservation of open lands by recognizing land trust organizations that meet rigorous quality standards and that strive for continuous improvement. The Commission, established in 2006 as an independent program of the Land Trust Alliance, is governed by a volunteer board of diverse land conservation and nonprofit management experts from around the country. More information about the Commission is available at http://www.landtrustaccreditation.org. About the Land Trust Alliance Founded in 1982, the Land Trust Alliance is a national land conservation organization that works to save the places people need and love by strengthening land conservation across America. The Alliance represents more than 1,100 member land trusts supported by more than 100,000 volunteers and 5 million members nationwide. The Alliance is based in Washington, D.C. and operates several regional offices. More information about the Alliance is available at http://www.landtrustalliance.org. # # # Flash Nigeria will seek ways to strengthen its cultural ties with China, especially in the area of tourism, Nigeria's Minister of Information, Culture and Tourism Lai Mohammed said Tuesday. Speaking at a meeting with the Chinese Ambassador to Nigeria Gu Xiaojie, the senior Nigerian official said his tenure in office will see the two countries strengthening the existing cooperation in the tourism sector. "China is a veritable development partner with Nigeria. The relationship between the two countries started at the level of cultural collaboration but has now gone beyond that to the developmental level," he said. The minister, who also accepted the Chinese Embassy's invitation to attend the first "World Conference on Tourism Development" to be hosted by China in May, said the trip would afford him the opportunity to exchange views with Chinese authorities on how best to help boost tourism in Nigeria. Speaking earlier at the meeting, Gu described the relationship between China and Nigeria as "excellent and strategic", noting both countries have epitomized a win-win situation in the 45-year partnership. The Chinese envoy said both countries attach great importance to the cultural collaboration and would work hard to strengthen it. Rigaku Corporation is pleased to announce its attendance at the 66th annual Pittsburgh Conference on Analytical Chemistry and Applied Spectroscopy (Pittcon 2016), held Sunday, March 6, 2016 through Thursday, March 10, 2016 at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta, GA USA. Pittcon is the worlds largest annual premier conference and exposition on laboratory science and attracts more than 16,000 attendees from industry, academia and government from over 90 countries. Rigaku provides the worlds most complete line of X-ray analytical instruments and will be exhibiting its diverse lines of X-ray diffraction (XRD) and X-ray fluorescence (XRF) instrumentation at the conference at Booth # 1318. The Rigaku Group of Companies are world leaders in the fields of general X-ray diffraction, thin film analysis, X-ray fluorescence spectrometry, small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS), protein and small molecule X-ray crystallography, Raman spectroscopy, X-ray optics, semiconductor metrology, X-ray sources, computed tomography, nondestructive testing and thermal analysis. About Rigaku Since its inception in Japan in 1951, Rigaku has been at the forefront of analytical and industrial instrumentation technology. Rigaku and its subsidiaries form a global group focused on general-purpose analytical instrumentation and the life sciences. With hundreds of major innovations to their credit, Rigaku companies are world leaders in X-ray spectrometry, diffraction, and optics, as well as small molecule and protein crystallography and semiconductor metrology. Today, Rigaku employs over 1,100 people in the manufacturing and support of its analytical equipment, which is used in more than 70 countries around the world supporting research, development, and quality assurance activities. Throughout the world, Rigaku continuously promotes partnerships, dialog, and innovation within the global scientific and industrial communities. For further information, contact: Michael Nelson Rigaku Global Marketing Group tel: +1. 512-225-1796 michael(dot)nelson(at)rigaku(dot)com Landfill now accepting Type III Low Hazardous Industrial Waste construction and demolition debris It's just a matter of time before the facilities volume doubles Niagara Development has successfully converted the former NewPage Paper Mill disposal facility into a public landfill accepting Type III Low Hazardous Industrial Waste and a full spectrum of construction and demolition debris. Top tier management along with industry best practices assure a long life for this new regional landfill. Nick Ghere, Vice President and General Manager of Niagara Development, is responsible for the facility overhaul. He has spent the majority of his time working with prospective large scale waste producers, service providers and manufacturers with large waste streams that are taking advantage of the opportunity to utilize this uniquely located landfill. The combination of an approximate 60 year life span, depleting local dump sites and an abundance of local opportunities make this site a great commodity to the surrounding region. Being one of the few Type III Low Hazardous Industrial Waste Landfills in the state creates the ability to offer more economical options to the surrounding states. "I am very excited about the all the of the interest expressed," says Mr. Ghere. "It's just a matter of time before the facilities volume doubles". Eric Spirtas, Owner of Niagara Development has always been a visionary. "We see this deal as a great opportunity for the Michigan towns of Iron Mountain, Kingsford, Quinnesec and Norway as well as the Wisconsin town of Niagara" says Spirtas. "More business means more jobs and subsequent higher tax for the two state area and entire region." The former NewPage Paper Mill straddles the Menominee River encompassing 500 acres in Wisconsin and 800 acres in Michigan. Adjacent to the landfill, the property has four free standing buildings equipped with industrial grade electric, gas and water as well as full service indoor rail and docks. A separate 2-story office building has been renovated and is ready for occupancy. Many suitors find the 5 miles of rail and significant transmission services to and from the site, captive waste water treatment, high capacity wells and water intake permits as key for new development. Other highlights of the property include an untapped 60 million ton Basalt reserve, as well as several established tenant businesses. Niagara Worldwide LLC acquires, manages, markets and sells repurposed manufacturing sites, chemical plants, mills, and biofuel and biomass power plants across the United States and Europe. In addition, it manages more than two million square feet of warehouse and office space. Coco Libre, the maker of coconut water beverages with a purpose, announced today a new relationship with the Celiac Disease Foundation (CDF), the nations leading voluntary health organization for celiac disease. Coco Libre Original Organic Coconut Water and Coconut Water with Protein are now available on the CDF Marketplace, a premier online destination for people searching for gluten-free products. It is estimated that celiac disease affects 1 in 100 people worldwide. Two and one-half million Americans are undiagnosed and are at risk for long-term health complications, said Marilyn G. Geller, Celiac Disease Foundation CEO. We appreciate the gluten-free options that Coco Libre has provided for our celiac disease and gluten-sensitive community. Coco Libre will have a presence at the 2016 CDF National Conference & Gluten-Free Expo, to be held April 30May 1 at the Pasadena Convention Center in Pasadena, California. In addition, the CDF team is currently developing creative recipes that incorporate Coco Libre products and will be shared online and through social media. Were proud of our relationship with CDF, said Candace Crawford, CEO of Maverick Brands, Coco Libres parent company. Gluten-free foods and beverages arent a fad. Theyre a real necessity for millions of Americans. But we also firmly believe that being gluten-free shouldnt mean you sacrifice nutrition or taste. Coco Libre beverages are made to always deliver both. Coco Libre Organic Coconut Water is known for its delicious flavor with no added sugar, certified USDA organic, OU kosher, gluten free and Non-GMO Project Verified. Coco Libre Organic Coconut Water with Protein is available in Chocolate, Vanilla, Almond and Coffee flavors. ABOUT CELIAC DISEASE FOUNDATION Celiac Disease Foundation (CDF) was established in 1990 to improve the quality of life for all individuals affected by celiac disease and other gluten-related disorders. Celiac disease is both a serious autoimmune disorder and a growing public health challenge. The prevalence of celiac disease in the public is doubling every 15 years, yet only one in six celiac disease sufferers have been diagnosed. The Foundation leads the fight to increase the rate of diagnosis, to improve treatments, and to find a cure. Learn more about Celiac Disease Foundation at celiac.org. To learn more about the CDF National Conference & Gluten-Free Expo, visit celiac.org/cdf-conference ABOUT COCO LIBRE Coco Libres flagship Organic Coconut Water is the nutritional foundation for a growing family of purposeful beverages. Coco Libre is a 2015 NCW Eco-Excellence Award winner and a finalist for Best New Product Line Extension at the World Beverage Innovation Awards 2014. Coco Libre beverages are available in grocery, natural, specialty and online retailers in the U.S. and Canada. To learn more visit CocoLibreOrganic.com, Facebook.com/CocoLibreOrganic, twitter.com/CocoLibre and Instagram @CocoLibre. Liberate your thirst. Media contact: Celina Cooper celina(at)maverickbrands(dot)com, (650) 739-0555 Opening our doors to startups that have business opportunities in one of the most important markets in the U.S. speaks to our continued commitment to Canada and the partnership we have grown with the Hub. Communitech and Phillips Lytle LLP today announced the opening of Communitech NYC, a workspace for Canadian startups to gain access to resources, business connections, customers, and funding opportunities in New York City. The workspace will be open to Communitech members, as well as to startups affiliated with partner hubs across the Canadian Digital Media Network. The workspace is situated at Phillips Lytles offices within The New York Times Building at 620 Eighth Avenue in Manhattan. It will offer temporary office space and meeting room usage, other professional services and mentoring, as well as connectivity to the firms existing network of contacts throughout the NYC startup and venture capital eco-system. We have always been heavily involved in the startup space, said Phillips Lytle Managing Partner David McNamara. This is a natural progression for us to connect our New York City office and contacts to the Communitech Hub in the Waterloo Region. Opening our doors to startups that have business opportunities in one of the most important markets in the U.S. speaks to our continued commitment to Canada and the partnership we have grown with the Hub. According to the recently released Startup Compass Report, Waterloo Region is home to the second highest density of startups, and some of the top engineering talent in the world. However, the report also noted that Canadian startups scaled slower than counterparts in other top startup ecosystems, and recommended a more aggressive approach to opening up US markets such as Silicon Valley and New York. International sales and investment are essential to driving growth for Canadian startups said Iain Klugman, CEO of Communitech. Having a presence on the ground in New York City, as well as the connections and expertise of Phillips Lytle, will help companies take advantage of opportunities in the huge New York market, as well as find partnerships in New Yorks growing tech sector. One of the first companies to take advantage of the space will be Plasticity Labs, which will be launching its first U.S. sales operation out of the Communitech space. Over the last 12 months, weve seen rapid expansion in our enterprise customer base, with significant traction in the financial services vertical. New York City was the optimal place for our first US office, but given the costs of the New York market, we didnt expect to make that happen for another year, said Jim Moss, CEO of Plasticity Labs. With Phillips Lytle and the help of Communitech, well be able to take that step right away and reach hundreds of new customers looking to build innovative and engaged teams with happiness at the core of their strategic plans. Phillips Lytle and Communitech joined forces in 2011 when Phillips Lytle opened its first Canadian office at Communitech. The law firms history with assisting innovative companies and expertise in cross-border legal services made the partnership a natural fit. Phillips Lytle, the only law firm tenant at Communitech, works alongside several other professional service firms that are also located in the Waterloo Region building in providing early-stage startups with legal advice and business counsel focused on expanding operations outside of the Canadian market. About Communitech Communitech is an innovation centre in Waterloo Region that supports a community of more than 1,000 tech companiesfrom startups to rapidly growing mid-size companies and large global players. A member of the Ontario Network of Entrepreneurs, which is funded by the Ontario Government, Communitech helps tech companies start, grow and succeed. For more information, visit http://www.communitech.ca. About Phillips Lytle LLP Phillips Lytle LLP is a premier regional law firm that is recognized nationally for its legal excellence. With offices in New York State, Washington, D.C., and Canada, our attorneys serve a multinational client base including FORTUNE 1000 companies, global and regional financial institutions, not-for-profit organizations, middle market companies, startups, entrepreneurs and individuals on important matters affecting their businesses and personal wealth. For more information, visit http://www.phillipslytle.com. Farmworker Justice will honor Amelia Moran Ceja at a reception to be held at Sheppard Mullin Law Firm on February 24, 2016. Farmworker Justice holds an annual award reception in Los Angeles to recognize individuals who have significantly contributed to farmworkers efforts to improve their living and working conditions. Amelia Moran Ceja, the CEO of Ceja Vineyards in Napa, will receive the Dolores Huerta Award. She is a Mexican immigrant who worked as a migrant farmworker as a child and has built a successful winery. This past year she helped Farmworker Justice advocate successfully with EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy for the new EPA Worker Protection Standard on pesticides. Farmworkers are routinely exposed to high levels of pesticides in the fields where they work and in the communities where they live. The improved regulation will result in greater awareness by farmworkers of the risks they face and stronger protections from exposure. Ms. Ceja has committed herself and her company to promoting the value and fair treatment of farmworkers in agriculture and the food industry. Farmworker Justice is privileged to present our award to this outstanding individual. Ms. Ceja has served as example of personal commitment to achieving justice for our nations farmworkers. As an immigrant who was a farmworker as a child, her journey and commitment to the farmworker community are a testament to the varied and valuable contributions agricultural workers and immigrants bring to our nation, said Bruce Goldstein, President of Farmworker Justice. Im honored to accept the Dolores Huerta Award on behalf of my family and Ceja Vineyards in recognition of the farmworkers contributions to our wine industry and agriculture across the country, said Ceja Vineyards CEO Amelia Moran Ceja. Without farmworkers there would not be a wine industry nor food on our table and farmworkers must be protected and treated with dignity and respect, added Ms. Ceja. Ceja Vineyards is an ultra-premium Latino family owned winery in Napa Valley founded by Mexican immigrants Amelia, Pedro, Armando and Martha Ceja in 1999. Their dedication to sustainable agriculture to protect farmworkers and the environment and the gentle handling of the grapes in the cellar can be tasted in every sip of their legendary estate grown wines. https://www.cejavineyards.com Farmworker Justice is a nonprofit litigation, advocacy and education organization that seeks to empower migrant farmworkers to improve wages, working conditions, immigration policy, health, occupational safety and access to justice. Farmworker Justice was founded in 1981 and is based in Washington, D.C. http://www.farmworkerjustice.org "Defining The New Older Adult," a new e-book by Dr. Roger Landry. Nonprofit Sun Health and Dr. Roger Landry, physician, author and founder/president of Masterpiece Living, have collaborated on a new e-book aimed at helping older adults get more out of life. "Defining The New Older Adult: How to Create Vitality & Purpose During Your Retirement," contains Dr. Landrys tips for successful aging based on Masterpiece Livings four principles, centered on physical, social, intellectual and spiritual development. To download a complimentary copy of the e-book, go to http://www.sunhealthseniorliving.org/defining-the-new-older-adult. All three of Sun Health senior living communities have been members of the Masterpiece Living program since 2011. Guided by the MacArthur Foundations research on aging, Masterpiece Living helps senior living communities become places where residents and staff members celebrate the many positive aspects of aging. In addition, Dr. Landry will be a keynote speaker at Sun Healths annual Board of Directors and Community Leaders Retreat, Feb. 26, at The Colonnade, a Sun Health Life Care community in Surprise. He will speak about Successful Aging - A Population Health Necessity. Dr. Roger Landry is a preventive medicine physician, author of the best-selling book, "Live Long, Die Short," and founder/president of Masterpiece Living, a group of multi-discipline specialists in aging who partner with communities to assist them in becoming destinations for continued growth. Trained at Tufts University School of Medicine and Harvard University School of Public Health, Dr. Landry specializes in building environments that encourage older adults to maximize their unique potential. About Sun Health A long-standing champion of healthy living and superior health care, Sun Health is a community-based non-profit organization providing pathways to population health through philanthropy, senior living programs and communities, and community wellness programs and services. Sun Health Senior Living includes three independent-living Life Care communities (Grandview Terrace in Sun City West, La Loma Village in Litchfield Park and The Colonnade in Sun City Grand/Surprise) and Sun Health at Home, the first continuing care at home program in the Southwest. Learn more at http://www.sunhealth.org and http://www.sunhealthseniorliving.org Comprehensive vital resource coordination Unlike other software packages we reviewed, Intrigma isnt just a punch card solution, it was the only product that understands the complexity of our schedule needs well enough to help us deliver the patient and staff experience we strive for Intrigma, the first provider of value-based vital resource coordination solutions for the healthcare industry, announced today that CityMD has selected Intrigma Efficient Works tool to continue their quest for operational excellence by optimizing staff schedules across more than 50 facilities. CityMD, a fast-growing, quality-focused urgent care system based in New York City, is founded on the principles of providing high quality care quickly and efficiently. The healthcare innovator is using Intrigma medical staff scheduling software to optimally schedule clinicians, medical scribes and ancillary staff to shifts. CityMD will also use the online medical scheduling software determine the optimal length each shift should be, and when each shift should start for the most effective delivery of care and patient flow. Intrigma will be exhibiting at the HIMSS 16 Conference and Exhibition in Las Vegas February 29 - March 4th at Booth 11112 in Hall G. CityMD will be in attendance to discuss their implementation. Interview requests should be submitted in advance to the contacts listed with this press release. Our number one priority is meeting the needs of patients and our staff with kindness, said Daniel Rothman, vice president of corporate strategy for CityMD Urgent Care. When we realized the headache that our complex scheduling needs created for our scheduling staff, we started looking for solutions. Unlike other software packages we reviewed, Intrigma isnt just a punch card solution, it was the only product that understands the complexity of our schedule needs well enough to help us deliver the patient and staff experience we strive for. Matching physicians to expected patient volumes is difficult, particularly in a rapidly expanding organization with many new regions where historical data is not relevant or available. Senior physicians were spending an unacceptable number of hours each month to prepare schedules for all 50 sites, time that highly skilled individuals could have been spent with patients. Now, the organization is minimizing administrative time and applying those hours to attaining high levels of quality care delivery. Scheduling and staffing optimizations are costly and time consuming activities that must take staff requests and preferences into consideration, as well as trying to predict seasonally varying patient needs, and other operational considerations, said Tal Eidelberg, CEO of Intrigma. Using analytics, automation, and most importantly a very user friendly interface we help healthcare schedulers to easily produce the most efficient schedules for both doctors and nurses in complex environments where such things were previously impossible. This translates into safer care and higher patient satisfaction and at a significantly lower cost due to efficiency gains. CityMDs advanced scheduling needs included: Determining how long shifts should be, and what time each shift should start based on heat maps Automatically scheduling physicians to shifts A unified enterprise-wide solution that would schedule the various types of staff members: physicians, advanced practitioners , scribes, medical assistants, X-Ray techs, and patient care representatives Tight integration with the time and attendance system About CityMD Founded in 2010, CityMD urgent care is dedicated to setting an unprecedented standard of medical care for patients and an enriching work environment for its employees. The company's "People First" philosophy and state-of-the-art personalized healthcare delivery system has taken CityMD from a single Upper East Side practice in Manhattan to 52 (and counting) practice locations in Manhattan, Long Island, Rockland/Westchester, New Jersey, Brooklyn, Staten Island, the Bronx, and Queens. About Intrigma Efficient Works Intrigma Efficient Works helps healthcare organizations reduce the amount of time spent building schedules, preparing staffing plans, and calculating payroll by up to 90 percent. The solution is unique in its ability to simplify complicated scheduling workflows for both physicians and nurses, and create optimal patient flow for efficient delivery of healthcare. The HIPAA-compliant cloud-based solution includes a free mobile application, enabling better communication between teams and improved retention of skilled staff. Efficient Works is available in Free and Premium versions. Get started today with Intrigmas always-free scheduling solution: http://www.intrigma.com/freescheduler/ About Intrigma Intrigma Inc. is the first solution of its kind to provide comprehensive vital resource coordination systems, enabling healthcare providers to optimally schedule staff and deliver cost-effective, quality healthcare. Founded in 2004, with headquarters in New York City, Intrigma customers include Columbia University Medical Center, Sutter Health, the Ochsner Healthcare System, and Legacy Health System, and hundreds of other healthcare organizations in the US and internationally. For more information, please visit http://www.intrigma.com, or connect with us on Twitter, Google+ or LinkedIn. PreCheck Wins 2016 AVA Digital Awards PreCheck is committed to providing our clients and the healthcare community with quality content and resources that can aid them in the advancement of patient care and safety. PreCheck, Inc., an employment and background screening firm specializing in the healthcare industry, recently received two AVA Digital Awards for the 2016 international awards competition. AVA Digital recognizes outstanding achievement by creative professionals involved in the concept, direction, design and production of media that is part of the evolution of digital communication. In 2016, PreCheck received a Gold AVA Digital Award for the PreCheck Pulse E-Newsletter in the category of E-Newsletter and a Gold AVA Digital Award for the PreCheck White Paper: How to Overcome the 5 Biggest Challenges in Healthcare Recruiting in the category of E-Brochure Module. There were about 2,500 entries from throughout the United States and 17 other countries in the 2016 competition. Entrants included digital professionals from audio, video and film production companies; web developers; advertising agencies; PR firms; corporate and government communication departments; and independent creative professionals such as designers, producers, directors, editors and shooters. My team is honored to be recognized for our exceptional educational content, stated Bryan Barajas, Marketing Director at PreCheck. PreCheck is committed to providing our clients and the healthcare community with quality content and resources that can aid them in the advancement of patient care and safety. AVA Digital Awards is administered and judged by the Association of Marketing and Communication Professionals (AMCP). The international organization consists of several thousand production, marketing, communication, advertising, public relations, and free-lance professionals. AMCP administers recognition programs, provides judges and rewards outstanding achievement and service to the profession. Judges are industry professionals who look for companies and individuals whose talent exceeds a high standard of excellence and whose work serves as a benchmark for the industry. Winners were selected from 227 categories in Digital Marketing; Web, Television, Video, Audio Communication; and Electronic, Social, Interactive Media. About 14% of the entries won the Platinum Award, the organizations top honor; about 19% were Gold winners; and 8% won Honorable Mention. A list of Platinum and Gold Winners can be found on the AVA Digital Awards website at http://www.avaawards.com. About PreCheck, Inc. Founded in 1983, PreCheck, Inc. has focused exclusively on serving the healthcare industrys background screening and employment qualification needs since 1993. PreCheck serves over 3,500 hospitals, long-term care facilities, clinics, educational institutions, and other ancillary healthcare organizations, across the U.S. PreCheck has evolved over time from a background screening provider into a turnkey outsourcing solutions provider, offering a full suite of background screening, compliance, and credentialing solutions all designed to help its clients adhere to the complex laws and regulations governing the healthcare industry. Based in Houston, PreCheck has been recognized as an Inc. 5000 company from 2013-2015 and has achieved Background Screening Credentialing Council Accreditation by the National Association of Professional Background Screeners. http://www.precheck.com User Replay, a developer of customer experience management (CEM) software in the cloud, has announced funding of $4.7 million secured from leading investors. Major investors were Longwall Ventures and existing investors Episode 1 Ventures, EC1 Capital and FSE. The funding will be used to support their rapid expansion in the US market and increase the pace of product innovation. With 76% of eCommerce brands in the UK and US planning to increase investment in online channels over the next 12 months, the CEM technology sector is rapidly growing. 89% of eCommerce professionals believe customer experience is a significant differentiator in their sector, according to The Online Customer Experience Counting the Cost of Not Knowing a research study commissioned by User Replay. User Replay is a cloud based or on-premise CEM software solution provider. It provides valuable and actionable insight into what eCommerce customers actually experience and helps to optimize the online channel by identifying, monetizing and fixing barriers to conversion. User Replay is at the forefront of the CEM market and has a proven track record of helping its customers deliver a better online experience to consumers. Recent innovations include the ability to quantify the overall quality of experience on websites, thereby providing a real-time warning if customer experience degrades. In addition to funding from leading investors, User Replay has secured over $350,000 from Innovate UK, the UKs innovation agency supported by the British Government. John Thompson, CEO, UserReplay comments: This latest round brings the total amount of funding raised by the company to date to over $10 million. Sales have grown rapidly since our last round of funding and our cash position was already strong, but we chose to raise further funds now to accelerate product development and to build on our growing presence in the US market. We expect 2016 to be a key year for the CEM space, and we now have the resources to properly exploit an exploding market. Michael Penington, Partner at Longwall Ventures, comments: We chose to invest in User Replay for the potential it has to gain sizeable market share in a rapidly growing industry. CEM software within the eCommerce industry is set to grow exponentially, and User Replay is at the forefront in creating solutions that address real issues companies are experiencing. Adrian Lloyd, founding partner, Episode 1 Ventures, comments: As a long standing investor in User Replay, this latest round of funding demonstrates our ongoing belief in the company, and reflects the progress they are making with innovative product developments and international expansion. As experienced investors in the eCommerce space, we recognize the long-term potential of User Replay and we are confident that they will continue to grow at a rapid pace. Julian Carter, founding partner and MD, EC1 Capital, comments: With large eCommerce customers continuing to divert resources and budgets from customer acquisition to margin optimization, User Replay is ideally positioned to secure a leading share of the fast growing CEM market. We have backed John and his team since 2013, and are excited by the further boost to product innovation and US expansion that this funding will provide. Julie Silvester, head of equity, FSE, comments: Our further commitment to User Replay comes following the success it has proven in increasing sales in the US and Europe. The expansion plans and business strategy it has in place will see it achieve further success within this fast growing industry. -End- About UserReplay UserReplay's session replay technology lets users understand and analyze every visitor's journey through a website. For eCommerce companies this is invaluable as it enables them to improve conversion rates, find and fix site bugs, resolve customer disputes, recover abandoned baskets and prevent fraudulent transactions online. Aimed at medium to large enterprises with e-commerce channels, UserReplay enables users to improve the quality of their websites, enhance customer's shopping experience, and reduce dramatically the time required to resolve any problems and disputes consumers may have while shopping. Longwall Ventures Longwall Ventures invests in innovative early stage, UK-based companies across the technology and health care sectors. It has a total of 70 million under management. Longwall is based at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratories in Harwell in Oxfordshire. Episode 1 Episode 1 Ventures is a software-only venture capital firm that invests 250k to 1m in early-stage, revenue-generating startups and plays an active and supportive role in turning them into growth businesses. With experience of startups from the inside, it provides frank and fast feedback to founders as well as strong entrepreneurial know-how and a passion for building successful businesses. With 20+ years of experience investing in software businesses, its partners have made early investments in some of the UKs best-known success stories including Betfair, LoveFilm, Natural Motion, ScanSafe, Shazam, Shutl, Zoopla and Viagogo. Founded in October 2013 and based in London, the firm is rapidly forming a portfolio of software businesses with enormous potential for growth. Its investments include CarWow, Cluster HQ, Raising IT, Scurri, SwiftShift, Touch Surgery, TripTease, TV Beat and User Replay. For more information visit http://www.episode1.com EC1 Capital EC1 Capital is a London based technology fund focusing on disruptive and scalable web and mobile start-ups in the UK and Ireland. EC1 Capital is an operator led fund investing across seed, pre series A and Series A participation investment rounds of up to 1m as well as providing domain specific advice to portfolio companies through its network of twenty professional technology advisors. Co-founded in Feb 2012 by Julian Carter, EC1 Capital has made 20 investments to date including Kontainers, WeSwap, Cluster HQ, Seene, Truly Experiences, Twizoo, Hypaship and User Replay. More information at http://www.ec1capital.com FSE The FSE Group provides tailored funding solutions and support for ambitious and innovative small and medium enterprises (SMEs), to help them achieve their maximum potential. This includes the Thames Valley Berkshire Growth Fund, which is one of a number of Local Enterprise Partnership backed funds that The FSE Group manage. The FSE Group also provide a wide variety of fund management services, the management of business angel networks, mentoring and training for high growth SMEs. Most recently this has seen FSE provide funding and support to businesses and organisations in the social enterprise sector. For further information about the range of products and services offered by FSE, visit http://www.thefsegroup.com Media contacts pr(at)userreplay.com Cynopsis Media is pleased to announce the honorees for the second annual Top Women in Digital Awards celebrating the unique, the uncommon and the bold in the digital media industry. This must-attend breakfast event on March 24 from 8:15 10:30 a.m. will recognize women who excel in digital content, marketing, advertising, social media, and online. Among the honorees are employees at AT&T, Comcast Cable, Crown Media Family Networks, Deutsch, DigitasLBi, Dunkin Brands, Fox Sports, Hasbro, Horizon Media, Hulu, Maker Studios, Mindshare, MTV, NBCUniversal, Octagon, PBS Kids, Scripps Networks Interactive, Showtime Networks, MediaVest, Xaxis and more. To view the full list of winners and event information, visit: http://www.cynopsis.com/event/2016-twd-event/ Cynopsis will also produce a summit on Programmatic TV in the afternoon, following the Top Women in Digital Awards. This conference is designed to help attendees understand the risks and opportunities of this data-driven method of buying and delivering television advertising. Industry experts will be on hand from AOL, the ANA, Cablevision, Dentsu Aegis Network, TiVo, Turner and more to lead a series of panels. Combination tickets for both events are available, as well as group rates. Register before the early bird rates ends on Friday, March 4. To read more about the Top Women in Digital Awards and the Programmatic TV Summit and to register, please visit: http://www.cynopsis.com/events/ For registration questions, contact Sarah Martinez at sarah(at)cynopsis(dot)com. To place a congratulatory ad in the Top Women in Digital Awards program or to become an event sponsor, contact VP of Sales & Marketing Mike Farina at mike(at)cynopsis(dot)com. About Cynopsis Media: Cynopsis Media is what the TV industry reads first every day. The Cynopsis family of products includes the media industry's most-read daily, Cynopsis, plus sister dailies Cynopsis Digital and Cynopsis Sports, the Cynopsis Jobs board and special reports. Serving TV, agency and brand professionals, Cynopsis Media produces conferences, webinars, and awards programs that are second to none. Find out more at cynopsis.com. Flash Somalia's security officers on Tuesday arrested a senior Al-Shabaab fighter in a hotel in the capital city of Mogadishu. The National Intelligence and Security Agency (NISA) confirmed in a statement that the suspect whose identity was not disclosed was nabbed in a hotel in Bakaro market, the biggest market in Mogadishu. "We have conducted a special operation at Golden Hotel in the busy market. We found and captured a senior terrorist member and his network. He was among the top Al-Shabaab with a huge bounty on his head," NISA said in a statement released in Mogadishu. The security agency said the Al-Shabaab suspect was arrested along with several other suspected militants who are now being questioned by the Somali security forces. NISA officials promised to release his name soon. There was no immediate comment from the Islamist militants on the arrest of their senior official. The latest move came after 300 people were arrested in operations carried out into several districts in Benadir region this week alone, as security officers intensify crackdown on criminal elements in the restive Mogadishu. The Somali National Army backed by the African Union Peacekeeping forces have managed to flush out the insurgents out of the capital, but the group seems to be active and carries out deadly attacks. These students are not only working hard in the classroom, theyre making an impact in their communities. Theyre more than deserving of this award. - David Snodgrass, Lake Trust Credit Union President and CEO. Lake Trust Foundation is accepting applications for its 2016 Community Scholarship award. High school graduating seniors accepted at a Michigan college are encouraged to apply. The Credit Union has awarded scholarships through its Foundation since 2012, and this year, the individual award has increased from $1,000 to $5,000. Applications will be accepted online through March 4, 2016 at laketrust.org. Our young members have worked hard, and that really comes through in the experiences theyre sharing with us, says David Snodgrass, Lake Trust Credit Union President and CEO. These students are not only working hard in the classroom, theyre making an impact in their communities. Theyre more than deserving of this award. Scholarship recipients are community-minded students who exemplify the Lake Trusts core values of trust, teamwork, adaptability, learning and making a difference. Were proud to be part of our college-bound members journey to achieve their dreams, says Chris Pearson, Lake Trust Vice President of Community Development. Education plays a tremendous role in their future success and were honored to be a partner in helping them along the way. For more criteria, and to apply, visit: https://www.laketrust.org/learn/michigan-college-scholarships/ The Lake Trust Foundation is a 501(c)3 dedicated to making a difference by investing volunteer support and financial resources in Michigan counties served by Lake Trust Credit Union. The Foundations mission is to bring people and organizations together to create strong, diverse, vibrant communities through, contributions, grants and Team Lake Trust volunteerism. Learn more at laketrust.org. Lake Trust Credit Union lives up to their name, with branches that stretch from Lake Michigan to Lake Huron. With over 167,000 members and $1.6 billion in assets, theyre the fourth largest credit union in Michigan. By participating in and supporting over 100 local events, they reach across the state to create stronger communities. Membership is open to anyone who lives, works, worships or attends school in their 35 county service area. Follow Lake Trust Credit Union on Facebook or on Twitter @laketrust # Douglas D. Kerbs, a licensed real estate broker in the Denver, Colorado, market, has joined the prestigious Haute Residence Real Estate Network. The Haute Residence Real Estate Network of Hauteresidence.com, affiliated with luxury lifestyle publication Haute Living, is proud to recognize Douglas D. Kerbs as a prominent and award-winning real estate professional and the networks newest partner. Designed as a partnership-driven luxury real estate portal, Haute Residence connects its affluent readers with top real estate professionals, while offering the latest in real estate news, showcasing the worlds most extraordinary residences on the market and sharing expert advice from its knowledgeable and experienced real estate partners. The invitation-only luxury real estate network, which partners with just one agent in every market, unites a distinguished collective of leading real estate agents and brokers and highlights the most extravagant properties in leading markets around the globe for affluent buyers, sellers, and real estate enthusiasts. HauteResidence.com has grown to be the number one news source for luxury listings, high-end residential developments, celebrity real estate, and more. Access all of this information and more by visiting: http://www.hauteresidence.com About Douglas D. Kerbs: Douglas D. Kerbs is one of the most sought-after residential real estate brokers in the country. Consistently out-performing his peers, Kerbs has solidified himself as a top producer since the inception of his real estate career in 2005, and to date, is still recognized as a top producer at LIV Sothebys International Realty, as well as among all real estate brokers in the Denver Metro Area. His well-respected reputation in the global real estate community has afforded him the opportunity to assist in transactions across the United States in Colorado, California, Connecticut, New York, Rhode Island, and Washington, D.C., as well as internationally in Medellin, Colombia; London; and St. Barts. Kerbs results speak for themselves. In 2014, he closed the highest-selling price-per-square-foot of any property in the entire seven-county Denver metro region at $967 per square foot. This sale marked the fourth record to be set and broken by Kerbs since 2011. In 2013, he surpassed the record high by selling a unit in the Four Seasons for $830 per square foot. Simultaneously, Kerbs set the record for the highest price per square foot in the LoHi/Highlands neighborhood at $360. In 2012, he cracked the ceiling in downtown Denver by selling a luxury unit at One Lincoln Park for $649 per square foot, which was one hundred dollars per square foot higher than the 2011 record. Kerbs track record is attributable to his intimate knowledge of the luxury real estate segment at a macro level. His knowledge combined with his marketing expertise and extensive client base affords him success in all facets of the industry. Such success stems from Kerbs extensive background in developing marketing initiatives for key brands in the jewelry and automotive categoriestactics that translate seamlessly into marketing luxury real estate. Under his supervision as a director at Tiffany & Co. for seven years, the internationally-renowned specialty retailer saw double-digit percentage increases annually, earning him the prestigious Tiffany & Company Global Achievement Award. Furthermore, Kerbs was responsible for implementing Tiffany & Co.s philanthropy support program and the community advisory board. Prior to working for Tiffany & Co., Kerbs served as senior manager of brand strategy at Subaru of America, a position responsible for developing and implementing market-based product positioning strategies directing national new model product launch programs for the Subaru Outback, Legacy, Forester, and Impreza; as well as for coordinating the annual National Dealer Meeting. During his tenure, the new model product launches were revered as the most lucrative in the companys history. A native Coloradoan, Kerbs graduated from the University of Denver with a degree in Finance. He is actively involved with the Denver community and currently serves on several board of directors, including the Corporate Development Board of the Denver Art Museum, University of Denver High School, Colorado Neurological Institute, and The Denver Future Forum. In 2013, Kerbs served as the committee chairman for the sixth annual St. Jude Under the August Moon Gala, which raised over $170,000 for St. Jude Childrens Research Hospital and was the foundations most successful fundraising event to date. To learn more, visit Douglas D. Kerbss Haute Residence profile: http://www.hauteresidence.com/member/douglas-d-kerbs The Juvenile Products Manufacturers Association (JPMA) is pleased to announce its newly elected Board of Directors for the 2016-2017 term. The board members were voted on by membership during the Annual Member Meeting held during the recent JPMA Summit in Washington, DC. To be eligible to become a member of the JPMA Board, an individual must be an employee of a member company that, at the time of election and throughout the board members tenure, is in good standing. Regular member manufacturers make up most of the board but one of the 13 seats may be occupied by a representative from an associate member. Responsibilities of the board members include but are not limited to: sustaining JPMAs mission and purpose; ensuring effective planning; monitoring and strengthening programs and services of JPMA; providing oversight of the JPMA budget and financial reporting; building a competent board; ensuring legal and ethical integrity; and enhancing JPMAs public standing. The JPMA Executive Committee consists of four officers. The newly-elected officers are: Andy Newmark, Kolcraft Enterprises, Chairman Andy Newmark is Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Kolcraft Enterprises, a manufacturer of baby products including crib mattresses, bassinets, walkers, activity centers, strollers, and more. Newmark has been in the juvenile products industry for 30 years and has served in many leadership roles on the JPMA board including, most recently, as vice-chairman. Rob Conley, Wow! Branding Building and Trading, Vice-Chairman A member of the juvenile products industry for 38 years, Rob Conley currently works with Wow! Branding and Trading, a company that help leaders develop a strategic foundation and identity that revitalizes their brand and business. Conley has been a member of the JPMA board for five years, most recently serving in the position of treasurer. Ken Wittenauer, Britax Child Safety, Inc., Treasurer Ken Wittenauer is the Vice-President and General Counsel for Britax Child Safety, Inc., a leading manufacturer of juvenile car seats, strollers, baby carriers, bike seats and trailers. Britax has been a member of the association for many years and Wittenauer has served as a director for the past three. Mark Messner, Artsana USA (Chicco), Immediate Past Chairman Mark Messner is the CEO of Artsana USA, a manufacturer of various baby care products under the Chicco brand. Artsana USA products include baby gear, toys and feeding and soothing for infants and toddlers. Artsana USA has been a member of JPMA since 1991 and Messner has been a board member since 2009. Messner has previously served in both officer and director positions on the JPMA board; his term as Chairman ended during the current election cycle. Joining the officers are nine JPMA at-large directors: Nancy Bartley, The Boppy Company Sean Beckstrom, Graco/Newell Rubbermaid Dave Taylor, Goodbaby/Evenflo Vincent DAlleva, Fisher-Price/Mattel Stellario DUrso, Kastel International Brad Mattarocci, Baby Trend Rick Schaub, Dorel Juvenile Group Julianna Shaw, ZoLi Inc. Alan Wolkin, Colgate Juvenile Products Its an honor to have this opportunity to work with volunteer leadership that is so dedicated to the juvenile products industry, said Kelly Mariotti, JD, CPA, CAE, executive director of JPMA. Our board has displayed incredible vision and focus through the years and I expect their focus on our strategic initiatives to propel the association to new heights in 2016. For more information on JPMA, its board, programs and membership, visit http://www.jpma.org. About the Juvenile Products Manufacturers Association The Juvenile Products Manufacturers Association (JPMA) is a national trade organization of more than 200 companies in the United States, Canada and Mexico. JPMA exists to advance the interests, growth and well-being of North American prenatal to preschool product manufacturers, importers and distributors marketing under their own brands to consumers. It does so through advocacy, public relations, information sharing, product performance certification and business development assistance conducted with appreciation for the needs of parents, children and retailers. Each year, JPMA sponsors Baby Safety Month in September to educate parents and caregivers on the importance of the safe use and selection of juvenile products. To find out more information about the JPMA Certification Program, the products certified and for a complete listing of JPMA members, please visit http://www.jpma.org. Follow JPMA on Twitter @JPMA, connect with JPMA on Facebook or on YouTube and visit http://www.jpma.org to learn more about additional safety tips and other JPMA initiatives. Contact: Lauren Schoener-Gaynor 856-380-6878 lgaynor(at)jpma.org # # # Rev. Patrick Desbois, seated third from left, is a world renowned French scholar and adjunct professor for the Program for Jewish Civilization. He conducts interviews with his students while visiting This gift will ensure that the study of the Holocaust remains an integral area of study and scholarship at Georgetown, said Georgetown President John J. DeGioia. Georgetown today announced a $10 million gift that will endow a program on the forensic study of the Holocaust at its Center for Jewish Civilization, located in the School of Foreign Service. The gift comes from businessman and philanthropist Norman Braman of Miami and his wife, Irma. Mr. and Mrs. Braman made the gift to establish a permanent and ongoing capacity to study and teach the Holocaust in all its dimensions - its causes and consequences, its role in the establishment of the state of Israel, and its continuing impact on modern Judaism which has been impacted by a rise in acts of anti-Semitism and questions of Israels legitimacy. The gift will fund an endowed professorship in the forensic study of the Holocaust as well as related research, teaching and public service programs on the Holocaust, its origins, methods and consequences. This gift will ensure that the study of the Holocaust remains an integral area of study and scholarship at Georgetown, said Georgetown President John J. DeGioia. It comes at a very meaningful time, with the launch of a new, permanently endowed home at Georgetown for research and teaching on the history, culture and traditions of the Jewish people. We are deeply grateful to Norman and Irma Braman for their generosity in enabling this important work. World-renowned historian and scholar Rev. Patrick Desbois will be the inaugural holder of the Braman Endowed Professorship of the Practice of the Forensic Study of the Holocaust. Desbois, a Roman Catholic priest from France, has pioneered the application of modern forensic research methods to the study of the Holocaust. We are pleased to make this gift to support Father Patrick Desboiss very important research on the Holocaust and to provide it a permanent home at a distinguished American university, said Norman Braman. As Americas oldest Catholic and Jesuit university, Georgetown was the natural location to focus Father Debois unique research. Furthermore, the universitys commitment to Catholic-Jewish relations is unambiguous, evidenced in the way Professor Jan Karskis memory has been preserved 15 years after his death. It is evident in the establishment of the new Center for Jewish Civilization. And we see it in the work and in the teaching of Associate Director of the CJC Father Dennis McManus, whom we have come to know and whose leadership was critical in bringing our collective thinking together. All these things made us feel that Georgetown is a natural home for this gift. Mr. Braman continued, saying I have decided to make this gift, now, and to Georgetown, in part as a sign of my appreciation for the leadership of Pope Francis and the priority he so clearly attaches to fostering closer relations between Jews and Catholics. Georgetown this week also announced the launch of the Center for Jewish Civilization, permanently endowed through more than $10 million in philanthropy from nearly 500 donors. The Center will continue and expand a 13-year old program dedicated to research, teaching and programming in subject areas encompassing American-Middle Eastern foreign policy as it pertains to Israel, Holocaust and genocide studies, Jewish-Catholic relations both past and present, as well as Jewish literature, culture and religious expression. Since 2006 the Center, formerly the Program for Jewish Civilization, has been directed by Professor Jacques Berlinerblau whose scholarly research has focused on issues ranging from biblical Hebrew, to Jewish-American fiction, to contemporary African-American and Jewish-American relations. Over more than 20 years of innovative scholarship, Desbois has combined a multidisciplinary approach historical, anthropological, psychological and legal with ongoing interviews of eyewitnesses to explain how the Nazis planned and executed the Holocaust by bullets in Eastern Europe through their ruthlessly efficient mobile killing squads, the full death toll from which was previously significantly underreported. The scholar is founder and principal researcher of Yahad In Unum, an organization dedicated to locating the mass graves of Jewish people killed by the Einsatzgruppen and other killing units in the Holocaust by bullets in the former Soviet Union. In 2013, Desbois was recruited by CJC Associate Director Rev. Dennis McManus to teach at Georgetowns Jan Karski Institute for Holocaust Education a summer professional development program for primary and secondary school teachers that prepares them to teach the Holocaust to todays students in schools all across the U.S. Collaborating in the undergraduate program since 2014, Desbois and McManus co-teach the Holocaust by Bullets course named for Desbois 2008 book, which focuses on the mass executions of Jewish people and also won the National Jewish Book Award. Next month several students will travel with Father Desbois to conduct original field research in Eastern Europe and Russia. Our shared goal is to support research, teaching and public programs that deepen our understanding of the many disparate factors that led to the Holocaust, how to best assure none of its remnants ever appear again, Braman said. Father Desbois ongoing and intensive forensic research in the field, with new sources and at new sites is offering fresh insight into an unimaginable crime against humanity. His work reminds us that the study of the Holocaust should never cease; there will always be more to learn. And in that there is hope that it will not be repeated. The Braman Endowed Program Fund will support teaching, research and field study for Georgetown faculty and students. As well, it will fund the development of a new public outreach program intended to ensure that future leaders are equipped to prevent future Holocausts. An annual symposium for young journalists, early-career diplomats and public policy makers from around the world will educate them on new Holocaust-related research and emerging theories about identifying early and responding preemptively to the conditions of society that can lead to genocide. This new initiative is of particular importance to Mr. Braman and Father Desbois, who share the belief that maintaining a sustained, living understanding of the Holocaust can help prevent similar mass violence in the future. Desbois will train future leaders to provide material and legal evidence of these atrocities through field experience and by teaching a forensic methodology. This involves the discovery of evidence of genocide through the corroboration and expansion of written records based on videotaped oral testimonies of eyewitnesses as well as physical proof of the killing fields. The mass shootings of Jews in the ex-Soviet Union was an entire continent of crime, says Desbois. Unfortunately, this form of genocide, Holocaust by Bullets, is the model for mass killings today, thus, the lessons to be learned are practical, and the details need to be exposed for all to see and understand. He continued, the assassins never imagined that 70 years later, men and women motivated by a quest for the truth would interview eyewitnesses to the killings of Jews. To all those who commit genocide we say: sooner or later, wherever the mass murder of humans has taken place, someone will return. Norman and Irma Bramans gift will ensure that this happens. Father Desbois brings students face to face with deep questions of morality through his teaching and his original research which is absolutely changing our understanding of the Holocaust and its history, says CJC director and professor of Jewish civilization, Jacques Berlinerblau. It is an honor to have within our Center for Jewish Civilization a colleague who is making such a monumental contribution to the field of Holocaust studies and providing our students with an opportunity to be part of this work. About Georgetown University and the School of Foreign Service Established in 1789, Georgetown is the nations oldest Catholic and Jesuit university. Drawing upon this legacy, we provide students with a world-class learning experience focused on educating the whole person through exposure to different faiths, cultures and beliefs. With our Jesuit values and location in Washington, D.C., Georgetown offers students a distinct opportunity to learn, experience and understand more about the world. Learn more at http://www.georgetown.edu. Founded in 1919, the Walsh School of Foreign Service provides students with an international affairs education that combines theory and practice and instills the value of service to others. With a faculty of outstanding scholars and practitioners who are committed to teaching, learning and discovery, SFS prepares students to challenge big ideas with the experience of practice from all over the world. A truly global program, SFS covers world regions and cultures and cross-cutting international issues from the convening power of Washington, D.C. About Norman and Irma Braman Norman and Irma Braman are generous philanthropists and have endowed faculty chairs and funded original research in the life sciences and other fields at leading universities including Temple University, his alma mater, and the University of Florida. The Bramans have made significant gifts to support cutting-edge medical research and care at the University of Miami and Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP). In addition, the Bramans have a long history of philanthropic leadership and service to causes benefitting Israel and preserving the memory of the Holocaust. Norman Braman was founding Chairman of Holocaust Memorial Miami Beach. And they have long been active in and generous supporters of Yad Vashem, Israels official national memorial to the victims of the Holocaust, and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. Mr. Braman said he views these as important predicates to this gift to Georgetown. After meeting Father Desbois at a talk several years ago at their Miami synagogue, the Bramans started generously funding his work through Yahad-In Unum. Approximately a year ago, Desbois and Norman Braman began discussing a new, more significant gift, and Father Desbois suggested that the Bramans consider this gift to Georgetown. About The Georgetown Center For Jewish Civilization The Georgetown Center for Jewish Civilization at Georgetown University is an interdisciplinary teaching and research unit in the Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University. The CJC specializes in subjects ranging from American-Middle Eastern foreign policy as it pertains to Israel, to Holocaust and genocide studies, to Jewish-Catholic relations both past and present, to Jewish literature, culture, and religious expression. Judaism is examined as a religion and as a civilization in dynamic dialogue with other peoples and polities. The Center is unique in the American academic context, not only because of the issues it studies, but because of its placement in a school of international relations. This permits its many distinguished scholars and practitioners to focus on the role of religion in public and international affairs, as well as the geopolitical salience of Israel and Jews living in the Diaspora. The interdisciplinary character of the CJC fosters a rich array of activities including scholarship, academic courses, conferences, lectures, cultural programs and participation in campus and community dialogue. Deeply committed to classroom pedagogy and the Jesuit principle of care of the whole person, or cura personalis, the CJC offers an undergraduate certificate in Jewish Civilization through the School of Foreign Service, and a minor in the College of Arts and Sciences. Its courses and curriculum serve students of every religious and ethnic background. Learn more. About Father Desbois and Yahad - In Unum Father Desbois has devoted his life to confronting anti-Semitism and furthering Catholic-Jewish understanding as he serves as director of the Episcopal Committee for Catholic-Judeo Relations under the auspices of the French Conference of Bishops. He also advises the Cardinal-Archbishop of Paris and is an advisor to the Vatican on the Jewish religion. Founded in 2004 by Father Patrick Desbois, Yahad - In Unum is dedicated to systematically identifying and documenting the sites of Jewish and Roma mass executions by Nazi mobile-killing units in Eastern Europe during World War II. To date, Yahad - In Unum has identified over 1,900 mass killing sites and interviewed over 4,800 local, non-Jewish eyewitnesses in Ukraine, Russia, Belarus, Moldova, Lithuania, Romania, Republic of Macedonia and Poland. Yahad In Unum combines the Hebrew word Yahad meaning together, with the Latin phrase In Unum, meaning in one. The objective of this work is to substantiate the Holocaust by Bullets, provide evidence, give proper respect to the victims burial places and disseminate the universal lessons about genocide and mass killings. Between 1941 and 1944, more than 2 million Jews were massacred when Nazi Germany invaded the Soviet Union. In a period of two and half years, the Nazis killed nearly every Jew in the region. The mass murder was part of the Holocaust, Hitlers genocide of the Jewish people. Until recently, this chapter of Holocaust history, referred to as the Holocaust by Bullets, was relatively unknown. GhostBed is on a mission to salute the men and women who serve in the United States military. Recognizing that every member of the armed forces has a personal story of patriotism, the online mattress company by Natures Sleep is donating two mattresses each month to veterans through a community-wide contest. To celebrate the individual contributions of each and every person who puts their life on the line for this country, GhostBed is inviting friends and families to nominate their own special veteran for a chance to win a GhostBed mattress, known for its affordability, quality and comfort. Each month, GhostBed will share ten veterans stories with the GhostBed Community, who will vote on that months two winners. We believe this is a way to include our entire community in changing lives of veterans, says Marc Werner, President and Founder of Natures Sleep, a leader in the mattress industry that manufactures the GhostBed. As the grandson of a Lieutenant Colonel who served in World Wars I and II and the son of a U.S. Army veteran who served in the Korean War, I have made showing appreciation to all veterans one of GhostBeds Core Values. The simple entry form is posted on the GhostBed website (http://www.ghostbed.com/military), and includes an opportunity to share personal stories about friends and loved ones who serve in the military. Discounts are also available for veterans, servicemen and women and their families who purchase a GhostBed. About GhostBed The GhostBed is made in America by Natures Sleep, a mattress industry leader for over fifteen years, focusing on high-quality, low-cost sleep products. With expert craftsmanship and superior materials designed for comfort and durability, the GhostBed offers an affordable alternative in the online mattress marketplace. The only mattress of its kind that comes with an optional matching foundation, the GhostBed ships in 24 hours, delivered to your front door with free shipping, and includes an industry-leading 20 year Warranty and 101-Night free trial period Co-sponsored by In Defense of Christians (IDC) and the Knights of Columbus, a new online petition is urging Secretary of State John Kerry not to exclude Christians from a declaration of genocide at the hands of ISIS. The petition can be signed at http://www.StopTheChristianGenocide.org. The petition is being promoted by a new nationwide TV ad that includes quotes by Hillary Clinton, Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio endorsing a genocide declaration for Christians in the Middle East. Christians in Iraq and Syria have suffered injustice after injustice by being kidnapped, killed, having their homes and churches confiscated or destroyed, and being forced to flee for their lives. Because of hit squads, they fear to enter UN refugee camps and, as a result, are then often excluded from immigration to the West, said Carl Anderson, CEO of the Knights of Columbus, who signed the petition and testified on the matter before a congressional subcommittee in December. He added, After all of this, these people deserve to have the U.S. State Department call what has happened to them by its rightful name: genocide just as the European Parliament, Pope Francis, the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom and so many other prominent individuals and institutions have already done. IDC President Toufic Baaklini added, The worlds leading genocide experts have raised their voices on this issue. The International Association of Genocide Scholars, over 200 members of Congress, the European Parliament, and over seventy human rights experts and organizations all agree that the treatment of these communities by ISIS constitutes genocide as understood by international law, and the international community has a moral obligation to treat it as such. The State Department is required by law to make a designation one way or the other on the matter by mid-March. Signers of the petition implore Secretary Kerry to speak up on behalf of these brutalized minority populations. They conclude by urging him to declare that Christians, along with Yazidis and other vulnerable minorities, are targets of ongoing genocide, arguing that such a declaration meets the criteria established by the United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide. In just its first hours, the online petition attracted some 15,000 signatures, including those of Cardinal Timothy Dolan of New York; U.S. Bishops Conference President Archbishop Joseph Kurtz; Leith Anderson, President, National Association of Evangelicals: Archbishop Oshagan Choloyan Prelate, Armenian Apostolic Church of America (Eastern Prelacy); historian Philip Jenkins; human rights experts and activists; and Hollywood Producers Mark Burnett and Roma Downey. The Knights of Columbus the worlds largest Catholic fraternal organization, with 1.9 million members worldwide began its Christian Refugee Relief Fund in 2014, with a particular focus on the Middle East. To date, more than $8 million has been raised to provide housing, food, medical aid, education and general relief to persecuted Christians and other religious minorities, especially from Iraq and Syria, and to raise awareness about their plight, including through a #40BucksForLent effort launched on Ash Wednesday. Additional information is available at http://www.ChristiansAtRisk.org IDC is a non-profit, non-partisan organization that seeks the protection and preservation of Christians and Christianity in the Middle East through raising global awareness, mobilizing international support, and educating policymakers toward constructive international policies on their behalf. http://www.indefenseofchristians.org ### Ronald McDonald House has been helping families in our area for a generation, and this charity drive is an opportunity for our community to show how much we appreciate their efforts. The Borror Agency, a locally owned insurance firm that provides coverage to hundreds of families and businesses throughout the Atlanta area, is announcing a joint charity effort with the Atlanta chapter of the Ronald McDonald House. Ronald McDonald House provides a home away from home for the families of children receiving care in a nearby hospital. By giving families a place to relax and recharge, RMH is able to keep parents closer to their children during critical periods of surgery, treatment, and recovery. Ronald McDonald House has been helping families in our area for a generation, and this charity drive is an opportunity for our community to show how much we appreciate their efforts, explains Tonya Borror, founder and manager of the Borror Agency. Working with her team, Borror has established an online social media presence and plans to initiate an email awareness campaign in an effort to attract support to the charity drive from other local families. As well, the Borror Agency will produce a feature article of the charity event in the next edition of Our Hometown, an online magazine published by the firm: http://www.theborroragency.com/Our-Hometown-Magazine_39. Borror and her team have also committed to an ongoing community involvement program that will include finding and working with another Atlanta-area charity or cause every other month from here forward. Readers who want to join the Borror Agency during the Ronald McDonald House charity drive are invited to make a donation to the cause here: http://www.theborroragency.com/Supporting-Local-Families-In-The-Community_14_community_cause. Readers who want to see which other charities and causes the Borror Agency supports in the future can do so here: http://www.theborroragency.com/community-cause. About The Borror Agency The Borror Agency provides professional and dedicated insurance services not only to North Atlanta, but the entire State of Georgia. The Borror Agency specializes in assisting families with their home insurance, auto insurance, life insurance and more. As a service-oriented insurance agency, the Borror team treats clients like family, and strives to give personal attention and professional advice to help clients protect their families and their assets. Join with over 900 other families in Georgia who look to the Borror Agency for assistance with all their insurance and financial planning needs. To reach a helpful representative for the Borror Agency, visit http://www.theborroragency.com/ or call (678) 383-1998. Aviation Insurance Quote Commercial aviation insurance can be very complex. ZANETTE Aviation, a leading broker of commercial aircraft insurance at http://ZANETTEaviation.com/, is proud to announce new information on its newly revised page focused on commercial aviation insurance. With clients going to the Internet as a first step towards understanding policy needs, the company is responding with in-depth information on topics such as commercial aviation insurance. "Commercial aviation insurance can be very complex," explained Chris Zanette, owner of ZANETTE Insurance. "Nonetheless, people turn the Internet as a first step towards purchasing a policy or towards evaluation their current policy vs. competitive quotes and coverage options. Thus, our newly updated page responds to the first step." To view the updated information page on commercial aircraft insurance, visit http://ZANETTEaviation.com/insurance-services/commercial-aviation-insurance/. New Information on Commercial Aircraft Insurance The reality of commercial aviation insurance is that policies are complex and expensive. Smart businesspeople shop around, both in an information sense, and in a purchase sense before engaging with a carrier. As a broker working with the top-rated aviation insurance companies, ZANETTE aviation is uniquely positioned to provided independent information for potential clients in the industry. The newly updated page on commercial aircraft insurance explains basic exposures ranging from the types of aircraft insured, the commercial use of the aircraft, and the employees or others who may either be piloting or on board the aircraft during a business trip or engagement. Every situation is different, and after using the Internet for basic research, interested parties are urged to reach out to an experienced commercial aircraft broker to research their unique situation and set up policy and carrier options that fit their unique commercial needs. About ZANETTE AVIATION ZANETTE Aviation Insurance brings decades of experience writing policies for the top-rated aviation insurance companies in the business. Whether a person is in the market for aircraft insurance of any type, commercial airplane insurance or private airplane insurance, or specific policies such as helicopter insurance, DRONE (UAS / UAV) insurance or even a airplane charter jet company seeking coverage, ZANETTE can help. The company's friendly agents are among the best brokers in the USA, experienced giving affordable aircraft insurance quotes at the best rates available for corporate or business uses, or just private airplane insurance. Tel. 650-593-3030 Web. http://ZANETTEaviation.com Community colleges represent the only sector of our society with the potential for filling the growing gap between supply and demand. There will be one million cybersecurity job openings this year with more than 200,000 of those positions unfilled in the U.S. alone. The Community College Cyber Summit (3CS) is helping address that growing void and how to rapidly expand and enhance cybersecurity programs in community colleges at its third annual conference, Friday through Sunday, July 22 to 24, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. 3CS is the only national academic conference tailored to cybersecurity education at community colleges. With the continuous growth of cybersecurity jobs and the shortage of qualified workers to fill those positions, community colleges have become the best response to educate not only students, but educators while helping develop new programs. Community colleges also have established relationships with industries and businesses, all of which contributes to curriculum to eventually put forth qualified cybersecurity employees. Over 200,000 cybersecurity jobs in the U.S. went unfilled in 2015, and this number is expected to grow to 1 million by 2022, states Dr. Bob Spear, 3CS Chair. Community colleges represent the only sector of our society with the potential for filling the growing gap between supply and demand. A principle objective of 3CS is to get more community colleges, academic programs, faculty, and students into the cybersecurity game. According to Forbes.com, demand to fill cybersecurity jobs will rise to 6 million by 2019, and those workers can demand more compensation than other IT employees. All the more reason to assure that students are properly educated in the field. The 3CS is aiming to better instruct faculty and administrators that are new to cybersecurity, help experienced educators share principles, safe practices and hands-on skills, and explain how to teach all that to technicians/managers outside the IT arena. Networking opportunities also will be prevalent. Registration is open for 3CS, which will take place at the Community College of Allegheny County. To register or for more information, visit 3CS.nationalcyberwatch.org. About Community College Cyber Summit: The Community College Cyber Summit (3CS) is organized and produced by the National CyberWatch Center, National Resource Center for Systems Security and Information Assurance (CSSIA), CyberWatch West (CWW), Cyber Security Education Consortium (CSEC), Broadening Advanced Technological Education Connections (BATEC), and Advanced Cyberforensics Education (ACE) Consortium, which are all funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF). The outcomes of 3CS will leverage community college cybersecurity programs across the nation by introducing the latest technologies, best practices, curricula, products, and more. To learn more, visit 3CS.nationalcyberwatch.org. SMi's Fast Jet Pilot Training Eastern Europe conference Fast jet fighter capability is the mainstay of any air force; the ability to defend and control airspace is of paramount importance to any nation. Countries with smaller air forces are looking to improve interoperability to maximise the effectiveness of their jet fighter fleets. Furthermore, the Czech Air Force has announced it is actively seeking to establish an international training centre for regional pilots to meet that very demand with support from NATO by 2018. Against this backdrop, SMi is proud to announce that Fast Jet Pilot Training Eastern Europe is being held with support from the Czech Air Force. The two-day event will provide the ideal platform to discuss the implementation of new technologies such as simulated flight training and new advanced trainer aircraft into current pilot training systems for improved interoperability amongst regional partners, as well as conversion to more modern fighter jets in the wake of higher operational demands. We are also delighted to announce that CAE and Draken International have joined the highly anticipated Fast Jet Pilot Training Eastern Europe conference as sponsors. Furthermore, industry spotlights will be provided by Aero Vodochody, VR Group and CAE who are confirmed to lead sessions at the two-day event: Feasibility and Sustainability of Jet Pilot Training in the 21st century Jakub Fojtik, Head of Business Department - Defence & MRO Division, Aero Vodochody Simulation and Air Force Integrated Training System Ivo Gamba, Technical Director, VR Group Training System Integration Peter Eadie, Strategy and Business Development Manager - Defence and Security, CAE Host Nation Keynote Speakers: Tomas Kuchta, Deputy Minister for Industrial Cooperation and Defence Industry Management, Ministry of Defence of the Czech Republic Brigadier General Stefanik, Commander, Czech Air Force Major General Bohuslav Dvorak, Former Deputy Chief of General Staff, Czech Armed Forces Colonel Petr Tomanek, Chief of Combat Training, Czech Air Force Colonel Petr Hromek, Commander of the 21st Tactical Air Base, Czech Air Force Colonel Jiri Kacer, Head of Department of Air Force and Aircraft Technology, University of Defence, Czech Republic Regional Expert Speakers: Major General Max Nielsen, Chief of Air Staff, Royal Danish Air Force Major General Jan Sliwka, Deputy Commander of General Command, Polish Armed Forces Colonel Eberhard Freiherr von Wintzingerode-Knorr, Operational Forces Command, German Air Force Lieutenant Colonel Albin Swanz, Deputy Commander of the Pilot Training Institute and Head of Jet Pilot Training, Austrian Air Force Lieutenant Colonel Stefan Ungerth, Head of the Swedish Air Force, Combat Simulation Centre, Swedish Air Force Lieutenant-Colonel Jerome Armand, Deputy Head of Air Training Command, French Air Force Lieutenant Colonel Afonso Gaiolas, Operations Division, Portuguese Air Force Air Commodore (Retd) Terry Jones, Former Director Flying Training, Royal Air Force To view the conference programme and complete session details, visit http://www.fastjettraining.com/prweb Fischer & Van Thiel, LLP Fischer & Van Thiel is proud to announce Natasha Pereira is the winner of our 1st annual scholarship. Ms. Pereira will be attending the University of Virginia and we wish her much success. Past News Releases RSS Fischer & Van Thiel, LLP Raises... Fischer & Van Thiel, LLP Mark... Fischer & Van Thiel is proud to announce Natasha Pereira is the winner of our 1st annual scholarship, said Mike Fischer, founding partner of Fischer and Van Thiel. Ms. Pereira will be attending the University of Virginia and we wish her much success. The Fischer & Van Thiel $500 scholarship is available to deserving students and is intended to help defray educational expenses for the winning applicant that has been accepted into a school anywhere in the United States. In addition to announcing the winner of the first scholarship, Fischer is pleased to announce the 2nd annual scholarship application is now available to students anticipating attending school in the fall of 2016 as either a pre-law undergraduate or first-year law student. To be eligible, applicants must be a U.S. citizen or otherwise authorized to work in the United States, accepted and attending their first year school in the fall of 2016 and have an undergraduate cumulative minimum 3.0 GPA. To apply, applicants must submit by July 1, 2016: a completed resume, one-to-three-page typed essay on the topic of the students choice, an official and complete copy of undergraduate college transcripts, an acceptance letter from a school within the United States and proof of legal residency in the U.S. (e.g., birth certificate, passport, permanent resident card, etc.). The scholarship is to be used exclusively for school tuition and related expenses, and a check for $500 will be made payable to the award recipient directly to cover these expenses, said Fischer. The scholarship award recipient will be notified of the selection on or about August 1, 2016. We would like to offer beforehand a special thanks to all who apply for this scholarship, and wish them good luck. To apply for the scholarship, please visit http://fischervanthiellaw.com/scholarship-application/. About Fischer & Van Thiel, LLP Fischer & Van Thiel, LLP focuses on family law. The firms reputation is built on its comprehensive legal services, aggressive approach and extensive experience effectively handling the many complexities associated with family law cases. For more information, please call (858) 924-0476, or visit http://www.fischervanthiellaw.com. The law office is located at 10620 Treena Street, Suite 230, San Diego, CA 92131. About the NALA The NALA offers small and medium-sized businesses effective ways to reach customers in the digital age, while providing a single-agency source that helps them flourish in their local community. The NALA offers its clients an array of marketing tools from press release campaigns and social media management to a cause marketing program. The NALAs mission is to make businesses relevant and newsworthy, both online and through traditional media, by providing increased exposure at reasonable costs. For media inquiries, please call 805.650.6121, ext. 361. I am very honored and humbled to be given this opportunity. MCA-Russell Johns has been at the forefront in the advertising industry for over 40 years, the new general manager said. Past News Releases RSS Representatives From MCA-Russell... My Classified Ads-Russell Johns... Alex Clevenger has been named General Manager at My Classified Ads-Russell Johns, a media sales/advertising firm formed in 2014 when two nationally known Bay area firms combined to form MCA-RJ and consolidated their operations under one roof in Tampa. Clevenger was hired three years ago at MCA (http://myclassifiedads.net). Clevenger has a BA in advertising from Michigan State University (MSU). He started with MCA right after graduation as a Media Coordinator. Prior to his most recent promotion, he was a Senior National Media Executive, responsible for managing a large portfolio of niche marketing and retail accounts. In his new position Clevenger will manage many of MCA-RJs day-to-day operations. In addition to acting a liaison with national clients, hell work with employees to streamline processes and increase sales. I am very honored and humbled to be given this opportunity. MCA-Russell Johns has been at the forefront in the advertising industry for over 40 years, the new general manager said. I believe were just getting started in the industry and have big things to come. I look forward to working with our employees to help drive MCA-Russell Johns into the future. Clevengers major at MSU was in Communication Arts and Sciences; Advertising. He has experience in social media, public relations, customer service, account management, digital marketing, social networking, SEO, and time management. His specialties: newspaper and magazine advertising. He also has experience in TV and radio placements. MCA-RJs CEO Blaire Fanning made the official announcement of Clevengers promotion. Alex is a talented individual with a great work ethic and positive mental attitude, she said. The key to our companys progress has been staffers working together to help our clients achieve success. We expect Alexs experience and initiative to play a major role in making that effort even more efficient and effective. Clevenger was already an MCA employee when the full-service ad agency took over Russell Johns Associates in March 2014. At that time MCA was in Hillsborough County; Russell Johns was based across the Bay, in Pinellas County. MCAads.com is part of an awarding-winning, decades-old media group made up of My Classified Ads, Print & Radio, Media Mix Power and Blaire.co. Fanning felt that Russell Johns (http://russelljohns.com) was a good fit so she consolidated MCA-RJ under one roof at a state-of-the-art facility with a Tampa address: 5020 W. Linebaugh Ave., Suite 210. MCA Ads always believed in the value of print advertising, and we were excited about the ongoing potential of Russell Johns, Fanning said. We felt that it was a perfect fit for our growing business. Helping take that business to the next level will be a primary duty of its new general manger, Alex Clevenger. For more information on MCA-RJ and how it can help make advertisers and publishers more successful, call (813) 920-0197 or visit http://myclassifiedads.net. ABOUT: MCA is a full-service advertising agency that leverages strategically placed volume buys to help clients target the largest potential audience for the least amount of money. Russell Johns connects advertisers with the nations top media brands in the publishing industry, including USA Today. Joe Maiorana launches Paragon Strategic Solutions. The sad thing is, small businesses dont know its coming. They won't know this is going to happen until its time to renew, and theyre left scrambling to find a solution. Joe Maiorana Founder, Paragon Strategic Solutions Small business owners are expected to face rising workers compensation rates, for some, up to three times what they paid in 2015. These businesses have an advocate in Paragon Strategic Solutions. Paragon Strategic Solutions understands what small businesses with injury risk potential can expect to face in 2016. Companies with premiums less than $70,000 are most likely to see changes in workers compensation rates this year. This prompted Joe Maiorana to start Paragon Strategic Solutions. The sole mission is to help protect small businesses who will be told by their current insurers that their rates are increasing dramatically, or worse, that theyll be dropped altogether. The sad thing is, they dont know its coming, said Mairorana. They wont know this is going to happen until its time to renew, and theyre left scrambling to find a solution. That is what happened to Maiorana. As the owner of a staffing company who paid $33,000 in premiums annually, he was told in 2015, that his policy would not be renewed. He couldnt find another insurer that would take him without doubling or tripling the rates, even though his company had not filed a workers compensation claim in 10 years. His only alternative was a state regulated program and according to him, the rates were astronomical. So he set out to find a solution. The team at Paragon Strategic Solutions has identified the obstacles that small businesses will face this year regarding workers comp rates. They will be partnering with business owners that have less than 50 employees, and educate them on how to obtain the breaks that big businesses receive. The reality is, many insurers dont view small businesses as valuable clients, said Maiorana. If a small business pays $30,000 in premiums each year, then has an employee who gets injured and has a $50,000 hospital bill claim, then the insurers lose, he explains. So logic tells you, wokers comp insurance companies would prefer to work with larger companies who are less of a risk to their profitability; hence, the significant rate increases, or the decision not to insure at all. According to Maiorana, solutions are available and business owners need to know where to look. The Paragon Team has offices in North Carolina and Florida. Theyre accepting calls from companies in those areas who would like a free consultation. They can be reached online at Paragon Strategic Solutions, and at 407-708-9995 About Paragon Small Business Solutions: The new company is comprised of experienced professionals; each one specializing in a particular area. They provide solutions and administrative relief so that their clients can stay focused on profitability and growth. 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. The page you are trying to access has been moved, renamed or doesn't exist. Go to our home page for the latest information, or use the navigation menu above to browse the site. You can also search inside the site using the search box below. If you are searching for a Discussion Topic from our Forum, make sure to include the word "Forum" in your search terms and select the option "Find ALL Words" The NoHo neighborhood of Manhattan surrounding the headquarters of Phaidon Press is nothing if not bustling on a Tuesday late afternoon. The area is a commercial and retail hub, with trendy watch shops, bakeries, and even a charming haberdashery. Like much of New York City, its a neighborhood as steeped in history as it is up-to-the minute. Phaidon, a publisher with its own storied past, is fittingly housed in the handsome, white terracotta Bayard-Condict Building, a New York historic landmark. Yet the publisher is also moving forward in new directions. PW paid a visit to Phaidon earlier this month, to learn about the publishers refashioned childrens department, its current offerings, and whats being dreamed up for the future. While sampling homemade chocolate graham crackers in a cozy nook of the spacious Phaidon offices, childrens publishing director Cecily Kaiser and childrens art director Meagan Bennett shared the story of Phaidons transition into creating a full catalogue of kids titles. Traditionally a publisher of fine art, cookbooks, and architectural books for adults, Phaidon is a model of global publishing, said Kaiser. The company was founded in Europe in 1923, and while for years Phaidon had a U.S. sales presence, there was no physical publishing presence in America until 1998. Today, the global publisher has offices in London, New York, Paris, and Berlin. Phaidon moved its New York offices to the current Bleecker Street address in 2014. Since 2005, Phaidon has published some childrens books with a primarily European leaning. The line was very author-illustrator driven, said Kaiser, including titles from Tomi Ungerer and Herve Tullet, both of whom are extremely popular in Europe. In 2012, Phaidon came up for sale and was purchased by the family of Debra and Leon Black, chairman of the private-equity firm Apollo Global Management. Black was enthusiastic about growing the childrens wing of Phaidon, with the goal of creating a distinct new entity, while also maintaining many of the qualities that have defined Phaidons books since its inception. Kaiser and Bennett both came on board in 2014, from the Appleseed imprint at Abrams (Kaiser launched the imprint), with the express purpose of building Phaidons childrens list, along with senior editor Maya Gartner, based in London. Kaiser, who has a background in childhood development, began to think about target age ranges and corresponding developmental stages as entry points to conceptualizing books for the list. In keeping with Phaidons style, they wanted the books to be driven by a high-concept design aesthetic. We want to do whats never been seen before in unexpected, unexplored ways, said Bennett. Their unofficial mission statement might be: bringing non-mainstream publishing into the mainstream, said Kaiser. Of course, the changing face of childrens publishing has also paved the way for Phaidon to experiment with new formats and content. What would have been niche products in the past, Kaiser believes, are not considered so anymore. She specifically noted how author-illustrators like Mo Willems really cracked something open in terms of peoples expectations of what a picture book can be. While many picture books of recent decades were defined by more painterly art styles, all of a sudden, heres one pigeon and text bubbles (referencing Willemss Dont Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!) that communicated strongly with young readers. Klassens I Want My Hat Back was also a game-changer, Kaiser said, as it suggested that a picture book need not have a happy ending to be embraced by kids. Bennett sees this as not only an aesthetic shift in childrens books, but a psychological one as well. More sophisticated concepts appearing in childrens books suggest to her that people are giving children the respect that they deserve.... People have been underestimating children for a long time, she said. And yet its a fine line between being punchy and sophisticated and going over childrens heads, Kaiser believes. Finding books that communicate directly to children while also resonating on this higher level of sophistication is our number one priority, Bennett added. Books to Grow On Phaidons spring childrens list features seven titles, directed at various age ranges up to age eight. Roughly half of the titles were initially conceived of in-house with the team then seeking outside talent and the rest of the projects arrived via outside sources. Kaiser and Bennett also intentionally sought out authors and artists who had not before created childrens books, which led to delightfully unexpected results, Bennett said. Kaiser also noted that Phaidon publishes adult titles under broad categorizations, which she and Bennett have been cognizant of when coming up with childrens book concepts. As Phaidon is a well-established publisher of cookbooks for adults, it was only natural that the reconceived childrens department would venture into foodie territory as well. We wanted to create a book about food but in a non-didactic way, said Kaiser. The idea led them to food critic Joshua David Stein, who collaborated with illustrator Julia Rothman on Can I Eat That? The nonfiction title matter-of-factly explores different types of foods that people can and do eat across different cultures, as well as those that people do not (like a tornado: No, you cant eat a tornado! Its made out of wind). In fact, food seems to play a big thematic role in Phaidons first season of childrens titles, Kaiser observed with a laugh. Harolds Hungry Eyes by Kevin Waldron features a Boston terrier, Harold, that sees food everywhere he turns (such as a water tower that strongly resembles a muffin). Kaiser and Bennett first discovered Harold (which Waldron describes as my own imaginary dog) in a five-second animated GIF. While Waldron had written and illustrated childrens books before, he embraced an entirely new collage and line-art style in the cityscape for Harolds Hungry Eyes. In that way, while the story of a hungry dog is familiar enough, said Kaiser, the art technique offers something fresh, even for the illustrator himself. Keeping with their interest in experimenting with new design formats is Animals Are Delicious, a set of three fold-out books about food chains in different habitats. Food chains are already of interest to kids, Kaiser believes; when children play with stuffed animals or other toys, the question of which animal might gobble up another often arises. However, Kaiser and Bennett wanted to avoid the more unpleasant aspects of animals eating animals. The way around that was to make the images as close to toys as we could. They worked with the husband-and-wife design team Dave Ladd and Stephanie Anderson, who crafted animal models that they then positioned in photographs of wildlife scene sets; the effect is almost like looking into museum display cases featuring animal replicas. Also publishing this spring is an oversize board book from French graphic designer Jean Jullien (known for his iconic Peace for Paris illustration) called This Is Not a Book. which includes a spread that transforms the book into a laptop notebook and a gatefold that opens to create a house. Phaidon is also releasing the first in a series of fine-art board books, Blue & Other Colors with Henri Matisse, and a boxed collection of four new books from Taro Gomi, Growing Together. And rounding out the list is a visual reference guide to nautical flags, Morse code, semaphore signaling, and the phonetic alphabet, called Alpha, Bravo, Charlie: The Complete Book of Nautical Codes. Kaiser also gave a little taste of upcoming fall offerings. Still in development is a novelty cookbook, which takes readers step-by-step through a recipe for pancakes. Through a meta-twist, by the end readers have cardboard pancakes that they can flip themselves (though the recipe can also be replicated with real ingredients in the kitchen). A second in the series, which offers a recipe for pizza, is also in the works. While the list crosses age ranges, genres, topics, and formats, Kaiser and Bennett agree that there is a gratifying sense of cohesion that unites the titles and its not just the food theme. Kaiser believes that the titles share two main qualities: Each book is inspired by the interests and behaviors of real children and designed to engage them by challenging their notions, she said. Each of the books also challenge the conventions of traditional book-making with unusual and innovative approaches to familiar themes, to art and design, to packaging and printing. Whats clear from Kaiser and Bennetts passion is that every project matters, from conception to positioning in retail outlets. We are putting a ton of energy behind each book we are publishing, said Kaiser. Energy fueled, in part, by homemade chocolate graham crackers. Anderson's Bookshop in Naperville, Ill. has won Sourcebooks' promotional contest that the publisher held to support its The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend by Katarina Bivald. Sourcebooks, which published Bivalds debut novel in January, announced that Andersons Naperville location won the $3,000 top prize, based on the number of readers naming it as their favorite local bookstore during a six-week campaign that ran from January 4-February 19, "Readers, Recommend Your Favorite Bookstore." Out of the 12,615 votes cast, Andersons received 934. Coincidentally, Andersons is the local indie for many Sourcebooks employees. As the flagship store of the three Andersons Bookshops the Naperville outlet is located in the same Chicago suburb as Sourcebooks headquarters. Besides the Naperville store, there is an Andersons Bookshop in Downers Grove and LaGrange, Ill. This recognition is doubly special because it is from our local independent publisher. One we have been supporting and partnering with for over 25 years, Andersons Bookshop co-owner Becky Anderson told PW, We hosted Sourcebooks launch celebration event at our Naperville store back in 1987" when Sourcebooks CEO Dominique Raccah founded the company. Anderson told PW that she and her siblings, the stores co-owners, intend to use the $3,000 as seed money to open cafes in possibly two of the three stores. Page and Palate in Fairhope, Ala. and Brilliant Books in Traverse City, Mich., the two runners-up, were each awarded $637, in a nod to the fictional small town setting of Bivalds novel, which is the story of Sara Lindqvist, a Swedish bookseller who travels to the U.S. to visit her bibliophile American pen pal. When she arrives in Broken Wheel, Iowa (pop. 637) she discovers that her friend has passed away. The community embraces Lindqvist, and she ends up opening a bookstore that becomes the community hub, where customers are always matched with the perfect book. When asked why Sourcebooks had invited booklovers to vote for their favorite indie, Raccah explained, Bookstores are the heart and soul of their community and have enormous impact on readers lives. The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend inspired us to create a campaign that will not only give back to a few deserving bookstores, but, hopefully, highlight all the many wonderful bookstores that service communities across the country. Booksellers embraced The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend even before it pubbed in mid-January. It topped the ABA Indies Next list for January and debuted on the National Indie Bestsellers list at #13 upon its release. It has also landed on six of the eight regional bookseller association bestseller lists, including #3 on MIBAs list; 17 Iowa indies are MIBA member bookstores. PW gave the book a starred review, calling it a delight. With a 50,000-copy initial print run, the book is in its third print run, with 125,000 copies total in print. Bivald, a part-time bookseller, wrote The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend without having set foot in Iowa. She has since visited there and will return this spring. After appearing at BEA in Chicago, Bivald will embark upon a two-week, seven-city tour that will include one or two stops at indies in the Hawkeye State. CHICAGO ConAgra CEO Sean Connolly doesn't bemoan the challenge of turning around a food company known for brands like Slim Jim, Reddi-wip and Chef Boyardee. Since Connolly, 50, took the reins of ConAgra last April, the changes have been bold and the cuts deep. "This is a highly competitive industry," he said. "This is not for the faint of heart." A quick recap of ConAgra changes under Connolly's watch: First, ConAgra announced it would cut about 1,500 jobs and move its headquarters from Omaha to Chicago. That move is expected to happen this summer. Next, the company found a buyer, TreeHouse Foods, for its struggling private-label business. And in November, ConAgra announced it was spinning off its Lamb Weston frozen potato business and splitting into two independent publicly traded companies. Before joining ConAgra, Connolly was CEO of Hillshire Brands, the meat business that remained after Sara Lee spun off its international tea and coffee business. There, too, Connolly cut costs and introduced new products before Hillshire was bought by Tyson Foods in 2014. "One of the things I learned very early in my career is that these iconic brand equities are tremendously resilient," he said. "And they can not only survive, but they can thrive decade after decade after decade. If, and that's the key word, if, you are clear-eyed that the consumer's ever changing and you keep the brands fresh and contemporary so that they're relevant to today's consumer priorities, which are different than yesterday's consumer priorities. Connolly said he spent the first 20-plus years of his career in two companies being a "builder" of brands, portfolios and teams. "Our focus at ConAgra Foods right now is on splitting into two independent pure-play companies each of which we expect to have an enhanced performance through a much greater degree of focus and a much greater degree of discipline and a ramped up innovation agenda," he said. He acknowledged ConAgra has had challenges. "We haven't performed," he said. "We're very clear-eyed about our stumbles in the past. And we are absolutely determined that we're going to perform better and perform more consistently. "When you get under the hood of a lot of these large consumer packaged goods companies, what you see are organizations that over 30 or 40 years have become tremendously complicated," he said. "You end up with what I call giraffelope ideas," Connolly said. "It's collaboration gone amok. You've got a speed to market that resembles that of a snail. And you've got a lot of office politics that are getting in the way of what really matters, which is are we doing a great job of pleasing the consumer." He said the company is focusing on more premium, more gourmet, more organic and more natural foods. He noted Simply Ground, a new peanut butter more similar to what's found at a Whole Foods than at a mainstream grocery store, and Wicked Kitchen, frozen meals that mimics food truck fare. A Davenport man is accused of sending nude photographs to an underage female. Bryan O'Neal Watkins-Jenkins, 24, was booked into the Scott County Jail just after 8 p.m. Monday. At an initial appearance Tuesday, Scott County Judge Mark Fowler found probable cause to believe Mr. Watkins-Jenkins had committed charges filed against him. The judge appointed attorney Michael Motto to represent Mr. Watkins-Jenkins and continued the case to hearings Friday and March 3. Mr. Watkins-Jenkins is charged with felony counts of sexual exploitation of a minor and enticing a minor under 16 for sexual purposes. He also is accused of telephone dissemination of obscene material to a minor, an aggravated misdemeanor. Charges say that, between Jan. 9 and Jan. 28, Mr. Watkins-Jenkins made contact with an underage female via social media. During conversations, he allegedly made "inappropriate/sexual comments," said he wanted to meet up and "repeatedly requested" the girl to send him photographs of her body. Mr. Watkins-Jenkins also allegedly sent the minor two images of his genitals, charges say. He remained in custody late Tuesday on a $5,000 cash-only bond. The Chicago Tribune reports 64-year-old Marilyn Hartman appeared in court Tuesday in Chicago. Police say she was arrested Feb. 17 at a bus shuttle center at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport. The judge called for a probation supervisor and a nursing home representative to attend court next week to figure out the next step. Hartman has tried numerous times in recent years to board planes without a ticket, succeeding at least once. She was arrested twice in two days last summer at O'Hare and Chicago's Midway International Airport. Hartman was released on probation to the nursing home in December, and ordered to avoid airports and Chicago's Union Station. GENESEO Discussion continued Tuesday on a newer proposal for a cell tower site in central Geneseo. The proposal for a 165-foot monopole at 504 E. Exchange St. had been submitted by Buell Consulting on behalf of Central States Tower, who would build the pole for Verizon with space for up to three other carriers. On Feb. 1, Geneseos planning commission recommended the city approve a conditional use permit for the tower. The council voted Feb. 9 to have the plan reviewed by consultant Jim Weinmann of Wireless Planning, who reviewed the firms original site at First and Spring streets last fall. City administrator Lisa Kotter said Mr. Weinmann should review site information and get back to the city in the next three weeks. On Tuesday, Mayor Nadine Palmgren proposed that the city invite a representative from Verizon to a council meeting to ask them what is the most significant factor with regard to the Exchange Street location in order that the city could work on something more palatable. She said she would also like to survey other communities regarding revenue from a potential lease of the tower, noting shes heard of others getting $2,500 per month. Ald. Michael Smith, 1st Ward, suggested Verizon might respond to the citys questions in writing. Theres no way we could compel them to do that and they may not want to, he said. Ald. Keith Kennett, 3rd Ward, said he would like input from an independent, third-party consultant on the impact on property values. A resident expressed concern about a fall zone and also suggested proximity to the railroad tracks and vibrations from trains might damage the towers base over time. In other business Ms. Kotter said a small group of community leaders is looking at marketing efforts in light of last springs similar efforts coming to naught because of the state budget impasse. She said any proposal would be brought back to the council. No action was taken on a subdivision on South Illinois Street north of Chestnut Street where Jim and Art Ries plan to build a duplex on land they bought from Larry Vandersnick. Appraiser Joyce Webb maintained a small addition to the lot to create the minimum 13,000-square-foot size had not been replatted, comparing it to a like situation in a old, old subdivision in the city. Regardless of which way youre subdividing, the process is always the same, she said. City attorney Dan Alcorn said the deed with the new legal description had been recorded with the county and the city has determined its a minor subdivision that the building inspector may approve. A deed is the most fundamental form of subdivision, he said. Thats how lawyers draft deeds all the time. "I'm going to do my job," Obama said. Obama, weighing in during an Oval Office meeting, acknowledged that Republicans are under "enormous pressure from their base" to oppose his nominee. But he said if Republicans defy the Constitution by snubbing his nominee, the ability of any future president to pick judges will further erode. "At that point, not only are you going to see more and more vacancies and the court system break down, but the credibility of the Court begins to diminish because it's viewed simply as an extension of our politics," Obama said after a meeting with Jordan's King Abdullah II. Senate Republicans want to hold off a Supreme Court pick until Obama leaves office in January. Just a day earlier, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said his 54-member GOP caucus was united against taking any step in the Senate's "advise and consent" process. The Judiciary Committee won't hold confirmation hearings, he said. The committee and the full Senate will not vote. The White House insists that unambiguous declaration doesn't mean game over for the president. Rather, Obama and his team are hoping to select a well-regarded candidate Republicans would be hard-pressed to oppose, then build a public campaign of support for him or her while ratcheting up political pressure on Republicans for standing in the way of fair consideration. Once Republicans are faced with an actual candidate instead of an "abstraction," Obama said, opposition might soften. He said he hoped Judiciary Committee members would "recognize that it is their job to give this person a hearing" and then let their conscience dictate their vote on the nominee. "I don't expect any member of the Republican caucus to stick their head out at the moment and say that," Obama said. "But let's see how the public responds to the nominee that we put forward." But Republicans showed no signs of backing down. A few Republicans, includingMcConnell, have said they would not even meet with the nominee when that person makes introductions on Capitol Hill. "Why would I? We've made the decision," said Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, a committee member. Obama's scuffle with Senate Republicans has reverberated on the presidential campaign trail, with growing prospects that the next president will take office without a Scalia replacement in place. Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton in a statement Wednesday called Republicans' refusal to consider any appointee "shameful and indefensible." She said it is offensive to Obama and the American people. "It's time for the Senate to put statesmanship over partisanship, and live up to our constitutional principles," Clinton said. In his blog post earlier Wednesday on the legal site SCOTUSblog, Obama tried to quell conservative concerns that he would choose an unabashedly liberal who would upend the court's balance. He said he would pick someone who recognized the court's limits and knows that a judge's job is to interpret law, not make it. "I seek judges who approach decisions without any particular ideology or agenda, but rather a commitment to impartial justice, a respect for precedent, and a determination to faithfully apply the law to the facts at hand," Obama said. Yet in a nod to Democrats' interests, Obama also said the law isn't clear in all cases that reach the high court. He said he was looking for someone whose "life experience" outside the court would allow that person to understand how decisions affect "the daily reality of people's lives in a big, complicated democracy." "There will be cases in which a judge's analysis necessarily will be shaped by his or her own perspective, ethics, and judgment," he wrote, adding that he would announce a nominee in the next few weeks. Filling the vacancy left by Scalia's unexpected death on Feb. 13 is crucial because the Supreme Court now has a 4-4 ideological split between justices who are usually conservative and its liberal wing. The battle has invigorated both sides' interest groups and voters who focus on abortion, immigration and other issues before the court. "He hasn't seen the pressure that's going to build," Sen. Democratic leader Harry Reid of Nevada said of McConnell. "It's going to build in all facets of the political constituency and the country." After meeting privately with GOP senators Tuesday, McConnell and other leaders said rank-and-file Republicans were overwhelmingly behind the decision to quickly halt the nomination process. "Why even put that ball on the field?" Sen. Pat Roberts, R-Kan., said of hearings. "All you're going to do is fumble it. Let the people decide." Moderate Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Sen. Mark Kirk, R-Ill., who faces a tough re-election race this fall, are among the few who've voiced support for at least holding hearings on an Obama nominee. Since the Senate started routinely referring presidential nominations to committees for action in 1955, every Supreme Court nominee not later withdrawn has received a Judiciary Committee hearing, according to the Senate Historical Office. There was a time when gentlemen didnt read other gentlemens mail. That, of course, was when spying was considered a dirty business and some were punished by death for doing so. But without the allies code breakers of World War II, the end result might have been considerably different or at least prolonged. The technological revolution has changed the gentlemens unspoken truce. The government not only cant seem to protect its secrets, it finds itself unable to convince one of the nations major corporations to unlock the private communications of a major terrorist even on a limited basis. Privacy vs. terrorism Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook has decided that it is more important to preserve the privacy of its customers and the principles of a society free of government surveillance than to allow the FBI access to the encrypted messages on the iPhone of a mass murderer. The bureau has possession of the phone Syed Rizwan Farook used before he and his wife unloaded on a banquet hall full of his fellow workers, killing 14 in San Bernardino, Calif., in December. But it hasnt been able to open the devices secrets. A judge last week was persuaded to order Apple to create software that would accomplish that. Apple is challenging that order in court. Apples stance as a defender of security is in many ways admirable. The Big Brother aspects of potentially unfettered government intrusion into our lives make the technological giants concerns real. Americans already must deal with the prospect of less and less privacy in their daily activities. But Farook was a terrorist, motivated by the distorted beliefs that have produced death and destruction by fanatics in the Middle East. This is not just a routine criminal case and it needs to be examined in a different light. How must one deal with the threat of unfettered communications and plots by those who would try to destroy our social fabric if those designated to stop such acts are denied the tools to thwart them? Increasingly sophisticated technology has made that among the most difficult questions we must solve. The answer must come initially not from the courts but from the White House and the Congress. President Obama said last year he would not seek legislation to force tech companies to open encrypted data to law enforcement agencies, obviously fearing ultimately unfettered access that would be misused not only by official government bureaus but by our enemies and competitors abroad. Apple, for instance, sells more of its iPhones in China than in the U.S. and one of Cooks arguments is that foreign powers would find and misuse the key to the private business of its customers. That may be well and good, but it doesnt solve the current problem of ferreting out those who would harm us who can be linked to the likes of Farook and his wife. There has to be a solution to this quandary. The FBI has said it wanted only to crack the code to this one device. The bureaus defenders argue that the narrowness of the FBI request makes Apples resistance unreasonable if not downright unpatriotic. Donald Trump, the front runner for the Republican presidential nomination has suggested boycotting Apple products until it complies with demands. That hardly seems a viable or fair solution. A viable solution However, a knowledgeable friend of mine proposes that Apple crack the encryption itself and deliver the contents of the phone to the bureau. No bureau person would be present and the Apple technicians would not be allowed to review the material under strict supervision of the companys top officials. This sounded like a reasonable suggestion to me, but I am also sure that there would be any number of arguments against it and certainly it doesnt provide a long-term answer. What happens next time? Whether Obama or the next president likes it or not, there needs to be some sort of solution provided by legislation that protects our rights to privacy at the individual and corporate levels while setting up supervised access to information necessary to track and derail those with murderous intent. It is one of the thorniest problems we face and no solution is likely to be infallible. In some instances the price we pay for our freedom from intrusion may be quite high. But it always has been. Meng Brings NASA Astronaut To Queens On October 17, U.S. Rep. Grace Meng (D-Queens) brought NASA astronaut Dr. Jonny Kim to Queens where he met and spoke with students at Francis... Celebrating Columbus The Federation of Italian-American Organizations of Queens (FIAO) held their annual Columbus Day parade in Astoria, on Saturday, October 8, during Italian Heritage Month. The... Russo-Elling Mourned More than 300 first responders lined up on Thursday night to honor FDNY EMT Lt. Alison Russo-Elling, as her body was placed into a waiting... With a number of current and past On-Air and programming radio talents involved with Channel [V], Foxtel has confirmed it will close its 21-year-old music platform on Friday. A Foxtel spokesperson said: We are making some changes to our music channels on Foxtel. Starting from this Saturday, February 27 you will begin to see some changes to Channel [V]. Following on from that, from March 25 we will no longer use the Channel [V] brand, which will change to V Hits and V Hits +2. V Hits features a line-up of music videos and countdowns, including the latest hits from Australia and around the world. The media companys Executive Director of Television, Brian Walsh and Head of Channels & Operations for the Foxtel Networks, Stephen Baldwin sent an all-office email to its staff last night. The email, leaked by Pedestrian, cites the competitive landscape as a reason behind the closure, and the ubiquity of services like YouTube, which continue to apply pressure to the traditional music television model. Over the past several years music clips have become ubiquitous with availability on services like YouTube, whilst linear broadcast audiences for music channels have been in steady decline, reads the email. In order to run the Foxtel music services more efficiently we have decided to merge Channel [V] and [V] Hits. The pair also hinted at staff cuts with the closing sentiment: I would also like to thank those team members leaving us today. You leave with our best wishes for your onward journey. After 20 years of music television, @channelv says goodbye this friday..Thanks for the memories and the great times. I loved working wit you Jane Gazzo (@JaneGazzo) February 23, 2016 Speaking to TMN, past presenter and current Triple M presenter Jane Gazzo said she was made aware of Foxtels decision last night. It was shocking but not surprising. I kind of heard that the leadership at Channel [V] hadnt been great over the last 18 months and the direction was going all over the place as far as the brand was concerned. Gazzo said although she was concerned about her former colleagues, she didnt think the channels shuttering would happen so soon. I feel really awful for a lot of my work colleagues because theyre such a talented bunch. The wonderful thing about working at Channel [V] when I was there was that we made incredible music television that cost next to nothing, we managed to make some incredible stuff with no money [] if theres anything that can be taken from it is that these all these wonderful creatives now that in North Ryde and can go freelance and go into other avenues. Channel [V] launched the careers of past presenters Yumi Stynes, Fuzzy, Andrew G (now Osher Gunsburg) and James Mathison. But while its hosts form part of the channels legacy, its fans and groundbreaking content will place it at the forefront of youth broadcastings most exciting epoch. In 2007 we did Live Earth for the global warming situation that happened, said Gazzo. We did the Sound Relief concert for the fire and flood victims Coldplay played and Midnight Oil got back together we did countless ARIA Awards, countless Homebakes and Big Day Outs Theres just so many legacies that this channel leaves behind. TMN reached out to past Channel [V] presenter Osher Gunsberg, who said: I owe my career to Channel [V], a platform that celebrated Australian music and the fans that keep the industry alive. It must have been a hard call for management, my thoughts are with the team there but I know that having worked there myself every employee is now over qualified for their next job in television. Longtime Channel [V] presenter Danny Clayton, who started out doing photography for the channel as a 16-year-old, confirmed the news on Twitter, prior to media reports. Decades of music, concerts, punters, rock-stars, laughs, gaffs, jokes, tears, smiles and mostly love went into a sensational place. Danny Clayton (@DannyjClayton) February 23, 2016 In a statement to TMN, Clayton said: Channel [V] has been a huge part of my life and I will always look back on it fondly. You will still see me on Foxtel doing interviews with asorted musicans/actors and celebrities. Channel [V] will be remembered as a friend of the festivals and the bands. Most importantly, it documented a generation of Australian live music. In December last year, [V] Hits was the leading music channel on Foxtel, Max was second and MTV Music and Channel [V] were a joint third. While the channels closure sees Foxtel cut costs on production, marketing and talent, its yet to announce plans for its other music channels CMC, Max and Smooth. Foxtels two owned-and-operated channels that currently seem the most safe are the companys joint venture with Nova, Smooth, and its country music channel (CMC). The CMC Music Awards next month are close to selling out and its sister event CMC Rocks completely sold out with 13,500 tickets sold. As TMN reported last year, ratings for Channel [V] were at their worst in 2015. Its total audience figures were down 28% between May and November last year, compared to the same period last year (Source: OzTAM). The obvious shift in how music fans are consuming video has brought the longterm security of Foxtels music channels into question. Social media is the main driver for Foxtel channel MTV with 3.3m social media connections in Australia alone. In an interview with TMN, Vice President, Head of MTV & Comedy Central ANZ Simon Bates discussed the shift in behaviour in how we consume audio and video. Theres no doubt music videos are really popular on YouTube, every year some of the most popular videos watched are music videos, Bates said. I think if you hear that Adeles new video is out, youre less likely to turn on Channel [V] or MTV and wait for us to play it [] youre going to just search for it and watch it. Bates told TMN Foxtels announcement does not impact MTVs channels. We tip our hat to the people at Channel [V] for their contribution in making Australian music television vibrant, exciting and ground breaking for over 20 years. Change is never easy, but it always fosters creativity. The changes announced by Foxtel today do not impact MTV, MTV Music or MTV Dance. All three will continue to be available in every Foxtel home. The news follows TMNs exclusive announcement last November that a dispute between Foxtel and the worlds leading record label, Universal Music, meant no Universal artists were being played on the media companys five music channels. With the new format being rolled out over the next few weeks, the dispute between Universal and Foxtel will most likely continue to affect programming. Read more in The Music Network here. As many readers of the Financial Edge know, the end of 2015 saw the purchase of General Electric Railcar Services, one of the largest and in some ways oldest of the operating lessor companies that lease railcars to their customers on primarily shorter (think seven years and less) lease terms. Wells Fargo Rail (formerly First Union Rail) purchased the majority of the cars and locomotives, and Union Tank Car Company (a unit of Warren Buffets Berkshire Hathaway) purchased the tank railcars and railcar repair shops. This is a dramatic change in the railcar leasing marketplace. I had a chance to sit down with Wells Fargo Rail President Barbara Wilson and ask her about the acquisition, the outlook for the company and how she views todays railcar leasing market. Financial Edge: Post-GE acquisition, whats the size of WFR? Barbara Wilson: We were delighted to close on the acquisition of GE Railcar Services on Jan. 1, 2016. This acquisition allowed us to expand our available fleet of rail equipment by more than 77,000 railcars and 1,000 locomotives. In addition, on that date we rebranded the company to Wells Fargo Rail. We are very proud to take on our parent company name. Our fleet of equipment available for lease now totals more than 174,000 railcars and 1,800 locomotives. That fleet is very diversified, but heavily focused on freight cars. At this time we own fewer than 10,000 tank cars but look forward to growing that portion of our fleet to continue to support the needs of our customers. In addition, we manage more than 20,000 railcars on operating leases for other owners. FE: To which market segments do you feel is WFR particularly exposed right now? Is that exposure something that immediately begins to require active management, or as a result of the overall scale of WFR do individual market segments not move the needle in the way they used to in the past? BW: Our present railcar fleet diversification largely mirrors the diversification of the North American railcar fleet. Therefore we do have meaningful exposure to coal, sand, grain and centerbeams. As you know, the strong U.S. dollar has negatively impacted virtually all commodities that get exported. We see weakness in the volumes of those commodities (steel, scrap, grain etc.) and therefore reduced demand for railcars to move those commodities. We have a very small tank car fleet, and our Packing Group 3 tank car fleet consists of fewer than 2,500 cars, so our exposure to the new tank car design regulations is very limited. Our locomotive operating lease fleet consists primarily of high quality four-axle road and switcher units. Presently there is some weakness in demand for those units due to the decrease in rail freight volumes. FE: In what markets does WFR maintain limited exposure? Do those markets, now in retrospect, offer you vindication vs. the peer (or previously peer) group that is also working to grow? BW: We are clearly underweighted in tank cars. That is because we entered that market late and were very selective in the equipment we acquired. Prior to July 2013 no one saw the significant new equipment specifications coming for flammable liquid tanks, so our position is somewhat a result of luck, not planning. Today we see the tank car market as very attractive to invest in. We hope to expand our customer base through investment in the tank car market and are committed to supporting the needs of our existing customers through investment in the tank cars that they require. FE: GE had made market noise for years about selling its operating lease fleet, and throughout your career you had participated in a number of evaluations of that fleet. What made the final push successful this time around? BW: We were fortunate that in April 2015 the management and board of directors at GE corporate decided to exit the financial services business and focus on industrial technology businesses. The GE Rail business was put up for sale as a result of that decision, not due to specific qualities of the GE Rail business. Once we saw the detail and the quality of the GE Rail fleet, we knew it would be a very complementary and accretive acquisition for our business. Most important, we believe that our acquisition of the fleet allows us to better serve our customers. With a significantly larger inventory of assets, we are much better positioned to have the railcars and locomotives needed by our customers, allowing us to be a better strategic partner to them. FE: Are there risks in a relationship business of being too big? BW: The breadth of our fleet means that we serve many different customers in many different businesses. The Wells Fargo vision is,We want to satisfy our customers financial needs and help them succeed financially. In the rail operating lease business, that requires us to have the assets that our customers need to operate their business. Wells Fargo has committed a large amount of capital to the rail operating lease business with the goal of better serving the needs of our customers. We believe customers in our all business segments can be better served, and save time and money, if they bring their rail equipment needs to one trusted provider that knows them well, provides reliable guidance and advice, and can serve their full range of equipment needs through a wide choice of products and services. That is why we have made billions of dollars of investments in all railcar types, why we have a fleet of locomotives available for lease, and why we provide management services to owners of railcar assets that need a hands-on, fully in-house staffed asset management partner. FE: Will the market see some large offerings of excess product from the WFR to begin rebalancing the fleet or to reduce exposure to certain markets? BW: As you can imagine, the integration of the GE Rail fleet into our legacy fleet will take some time. That integration requires that we fully understand the needs of our customers and analyze how our existing fleet aligns with those needs. Our company has not historically been a large seller in the secondary market because of the impact that selling has on our customer base. By the second half of this year we will be in a much better position to assess our fleet mix and answer the question on future asset sales. FE: With a company this size, does it become harder to grow? Do your return criteria change going forward? BW: We have made a significant long-term commitment to the rail equipment operating lease business. As you know, this is a cyclical business that requires a large capital commitment and reasonable return expectations. Over the long term it is a relatively low risk business that provides core assets to meet the needs of railroad shippers throughout North America. Wells Fargo Rail has the largest fleet of any rail operating lessor; however, we see continued opportunities to thoughtfully grow our fleet to support the needs of our customers. This growth will occur through buying new railcars, and railcars and locomotives in the secondary market. We believe that soft markets, like the one we are currently in, provide us opportunities to acquire assets at attractive prices, often from small competitors who need to sell assets due to liquidity issues. Because we look at asset returns over a long period of time, assets acquired at depressed prices in soft markets often show better returns over time than assets acquired at the peak of a hot market. We have capital that we have committed long-term into a business that we like long-term. FE: How do you see the 2016 market for operating lessors? Are we headed into a cyclical downturn in rail? BW: Rail equipment demand in the aggregate tends to follow railcar loadings in the aggregate, and 2016 is off to a soft start for both. Crude oil and sand shipment volumes are down meaningfully due to weakness in the energy space, and coal volumes remain depressed due to numerous new regulations combined with mild weather. Add in the strong U.S. dollar, which has depressed all exports, and we are clearly experiencing significant headwinds in the business. However, significant investment in the petrochemical space is providing solid demand for plastic pellet cars that we expect will continue for the next several years. The reality is that in the operating lease market our leases typically are several years in length, so we do not feel the immediate impact of a weak market in the utilization (and earning power) of our equipment. We aim to stagger the maturities of our lease portfolio to mitigate demand risks. FE: Theres a lot of talk about rail market growth generally. With the crude by rail phenomena having done its best imitation of a supernova, what will drive rail expansion in 2017 and beyond? BW: The rail market equipment has historically grown at about the same rate as GDP. The CBR phenomenon was driven by a unique and not likely repeatable set of demand drivers. As we look past 2016, the plastic pellet car fleet will grow to service the new plants built in the Gulf, and tank car replacements will need to be built for some portion of the tank car fleet that does not meet the new regulatory specifications. Then of course, annual railcar replacement demand gives us a baseline for new railcar builds. Each year a portion of the North American fleet is casualtied or retired, and that requires new replacement railcars to be built. Finally, in many sectors, larger capacity railcars are more economical to utilize, and we see shippers demand for larger railcars pushing some of the older, less commercially desirable railcars into retirement. We view the slow and steady growth of the rail equipment market as a positive and healthy market to continue to invest our capital. Welcome to Railway Gazette. This website uses cookies to improve your experience. By continuing to browse this site you are agreeing to our use of these cookies. You can learn more about the cookies we use here. OK While much of the focus during the UK's renegotiation of its EU membership has been on the in-work benefits of EU migrants, wider issues related to the qualifications and skills of EU migrants should be considered as well. Findings from a study on the socioeconomic inclusion of migrant EU workers in a number of EU countries suggest that the 'skills mismatch'EU migrants having jobs that are not consistent with their skillsis a more pressing issue for Europe. Analysing data across Europe, we know that EU nationals predominantly migrate for economic reasons, such as seeking employment. They also tend to be better educated on average than the host population. In England and Wales, for example, 23% of the working-age, native-born population has no qualifications (e.g., did not complete lower-secondary school). This compares with only 13% of migrants from countries that had joined the EU prior to 2004 (excluding Ireland and the rest of the UK, the EU-15) and 16% of EU migrants from the 2004 and 2007 accession countries (EU-12). Despite having the higher level of completed education on average, it has been suggested that large proportions of migrant EU workers might be over-qualified for the jobs they have in their host countries. The over-qualification is particularly striking for EU-12 migrants. Cross-examining 2011 census data for England and Wales on qualifications with data on occupations, we found that the risk of the native population and EU-15 migrants being overqualified for their jobs is relatively small, but disproportionately high for EU-12 migrants. While only 16% of EU-12 migrants come to England and Wales with no qualifications, as many as 42% have low-skilled jobs. Job qualifications of England and Wales natives, EU migrants Qualifications and Occupations England and Wales Native Population EU-12 Migrants No Qualifications 23% 16% Low-skilled Occupations 22% 42% High-level Qualifications 26% 24% High-skilled Occupations 22% 12% Similar conclusions are found in other Western EU countries, although direct comparisons are more difficult to make. In Frankfurt, compared to the German-born population, migrant workers were underrepresented in the occupations that require expert knowledge and specialist skills. This does not align with the level of educational attainment among migrants in Germany when compared to the German-born population. With four out of ten European employers (PDF) reporting difficulties in finding employees with the right skills, EU migrants could help fill this gap and provide a boost to local economies. While there isn't a single 'silver bullet' that can facilitate a better match between EU migrant populations and job vacancies, our research provides some potential solutions to these challenges, namely language support and recognition of qualifications. Our studies show that EU migrants often have insufficient language skills, which limits their performance and professional development opportunities, such as promotion and career progression opportunities and finding other jobs requiring a higher skills level. Since the knowledge of a local language is often a prerequisite to getting a higher-skilled job and moving up the professional ladder, EU nationals should be encouraged to invest more time in learning the host country's language, both before they migrate and while they are living in the host countries. Increasing the promotion of language courses to prepare migrants before they leave their countries will be important. These courses can be expanded through a mix of national and EU funding, possibly through the European Social Fund (ESF), the main European funding instrument for supporting jobs. In addition, the role of the European Employment Services (EURES), a cooperation network designed to facilitate the free movement of workers within Europe, could be enhanced to provide further information on job opportunities and living abroad. Strengthening the recognition and validation of professional qualifications and diplomas could be considered another priority, as it facilitates better job matching. Despite several initiatives at the EU level, EU migrants often do not get recognition for qualifications gained in their home countries. For example, when looking at Frankfurt, specifically, many EU migrants appeared unable to find information on how to get their qualifications recognised. When qualifications are transferrable the probability migrants will find a job that matches their skill level is likely to increase, along with their income. National skills recognition schemes in the host countries, supported by a mix of national and European funds, could further improve opportunities for EU migrants to have their qualifications recognised. Additionally, a further simplification of the current system to recognise professional qualifications in the EU will help to aid understanding for migrants, but this is likely to require MEPs to call for an evidence review of the most recent reform of the system. The current debates on EU mobility are focused on what EU migrants take away from their host countries, and the costs they may bring taxpayers. As shown in our study, EU migrants increase pressure on local services and the increased competition for jobs creates possible tensions between local and migrant workers. But what may often be ignored in these debates is the contribution that EU migrants bring to local labour markets and how this contribution can be further enhanced if they are employed in jobs using their skills and qualifications to the full potential. This argument can be substantiated by examining EU migrants' economic contributions, both to the tax base and the economy of their host countries, and their potential to help close the skills gap for employers. Barbara Janta and Joanna Hofman are both EU migrants originally from Poland, who work in the UK as senior analysts at RAND Europe. They have recently completed a study looking at the socioeconomic inclusion of migrant EU workers across European countries. This commentary originally appeared on EurActiv on February 24, 2016. Commentary gives RAND researchers a platform to convey insights based on their professional expertise and often on their peer-reviewed research and analysis. As several authors have noted previously, there are good reasons to care about professional satisfaction among physicians.[1-3] First, better professional satisfaction in any field (including more joy in practice[2] for physicians) is inherently good. Second, some have warned that the United States faces a looming shortage of physicians. Better professional satisfaction could address impending shortages by improving recruitment among college students (which may not be necessary, given that medical school applications are on the rise) and encouraging fully trained physicians to spend more hours in practice per week and have longer careers. However, the accuracy of predicted physician shortages is unclear, as the Institute of Medicine pointed out in its recent report on graduate medical education reform.[4] Third, greater physician professional satisfaction might lead to higher quality care and improved patient safety. This idea certainly has intuitive appeal. After all, who wouldn't feel uncomfortable receiving care from a burned-out, possibly depressed physician who is on the cusp of quitting? It seems completely reasonable to assume that a happier, more professionally satisfied physician would deliver better care. Despite the face validity of this association, empirical evidence to support it is sparse. One of the most comprehensive quantitative investigations of this topic, the Minimizing Errors, Maximizing Outcomes (MEMO) study by Linzer and colleagues, found no associations between physicians' overall professional satisfaction and measures of technical quality and errors in ambulatory care.[5] And when observational studies have found quantitative associations between physician professional satisfaction and quality of care, the direction of causation is unclear.[1] In other words, it just isn't apparent which is driving which. What could explain the absence of strong empirical links between physician professional satisfaction and the quality and safety of care? On one hand, there might be no true relationship. On the other hand, there might truly be a relationship, but the available measures of quality and safety could be too narrow or insensitive to detect it. Or, perhaps this is the wrong question. In studies based on physicians' overall levels of satisfaction, analytic models typically treat all satisfied physicians as if they are alike. In reality, the reasons for professional satisfaction and dissatisfaction can vary from physician to physician, and even satisfied physicians encounter frustrations in day-to-day patient care. Some of these frustrations, which are poorly captured by overall satisfaction measures, may have direct implications for quality and safety. This brings us to a fourth reason to care about physician professional satisfaction: as an indicator of health system performance. Proponents of this idea, including me, believe that when a group of physicians is dissatisfied, stressed, or burned out, the key step is to investigate why these physicians are so miserable. If the underlying causes of physician dissatisfaction also seem likely to threaten the safety of patients and quality of care, these factors may be high-priority targets for remediation. In this view, physician professional satisfaction can serve as the proverbial canary in a coal mine for health systems problems that also affect patients. But everything hinges on detailed investigation. Some causes of professional dissatisfaction may have little to do with patient care (just as canaries can die from causes other than poison gas), and it is not reasonable to expect physicians to be perfectly satisfied with every aspect of their professional lives, even in an optimal health system. In a 2013 study carried out by RAND and the American Medical Association, our team undertook a detailed mixed-methods analysis of contributors to physician professional satisfaction.[6] We found that in general, the main, unifying determinant of professional satisfaction was physicians' perceptions that they were delivering safe, high-quality care. Conversely, physicians were annoyed, frustrated, angered, and otherwise dissatisfied by factors that they perceived as limiting their ability to provide optimal care. To illustrate this point, the greatest predictor of professional dissatisfaction in the quantitative portion of the study (judging by estimated effect magnitude) was agreement with the statement I am overwhelmed by the needs of my patients. In both qualitative and quantitative analyses, we found many specific factors contributing to physician professional dissatisfaction that will probably sound familiar to patient safety experts. These included clinic leaders who ignored physicians' ideas for improving patient care, payers that refused to cover necessary services, practice models that did not foster collegiality with other care providers, schedules that prevented physicians from spending enough time with each patient, and mandated activities that physicians perceived as distractions from patient care. Physicians also reported frustrations with certain aspects of electronic health records that can undermine patient safety[7]: crowded and poorly designed user interfaces, lack of health information exchange, and degradation of the quality of clinical documentation (including the proliferation of information that physicians do not trust). I believe that health system leaders should view regular and detailed assessment of physician professional satisfaction as an invaluable early warning system for potential threats to quality and safety. But simply surveying physicians on their overall levels of job satisfaction isn't enough. It is far more useful, as the qualitative component of our study demonstrated, to talk with frontline physicians at length and ask tough questions: What is and isn't working? What are the obstacles to providing optimal patient care in your day-to-day practice? What are the main sources of frustration at work? When the answers to these questions suggest that problems are present in patient care delivery, the best leaders will avoid the temptation to dismiss physician reports as whining or to apply quick but ineffective fixes. Instead, as with other indicators of threats to quality and safety, the best responses to physicians' perceptions of these problems will be to seek corroborating evidence, assess the magnitude of threat, carefully design and implement solutions, and check to make sure the solutions workedideally with the same physicians who reported the original problem. References Mark Friedberg is a senior natural scientist at the nonprofit, nonpartisan RAND Corporation. This commentary originally appeared on Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Perspectives on Safety on February 23, 2016. Commentary gives RAND researchers a platform to convey insights based on their professional expertise and often on their peer-reviewed research and analysis. In mid-February, the first ever Association for Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit to be held on U.S. soil took place at Sunnylands resort in California. Some critics dismissed the summit and the joint statement issued at its conclusion as failures because neither explicitly addressed the tensions stemming from China's massive land reclamation and militarization in the South China Sea. This line of attack misses the forest for the trees, however. U.S. goals in holding the summit were always symbolic more than material in nature. Success should be measured by the fact that the United States prioritized relations with the region enough to host its first ever summit. By that metric, the summit should be regarded as the beginning of a new era in U.S.-ASEAN relations. The summit comes on the heels of the third ASEAN-U.S. summit held last November in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, in which the relationship was elevated to a strategic partnership. The Sunnylands summit brought together foreign ministers and heads of state from all 10 ASEAN countries for two days of discussions on economics, security and human rights, among other issues. The participation of President Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry for both days of the summit was an important signal of U.S. commitment to the region. ASEAN joint statements are frequent targets of criticism for their failure to address the central security issue facing the bloc of nations ongoing territorial disputes in the South China Sea. This year's joint statement, along with remarks issued by President Obama during a press conference following the summit, however, contained subtle but important language condemning aggression and coercion in the South China Sea that reflects growing concern over China's recent actions in the region. The seventh and eighth clauses of the Joint Statement of the U.S.-ASEAN Special Leaders' Summit: Sunnylands Declaration warrant attention. They call for: Shared commitment to peaceful resolution of disputes, including full respect for legal and diplomatic processes, without resorting to the threat or use of force in accordance with universally recognized principles of international law and the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS); Shared commitment to maintain peace, security and stability in the region, ensuring maritime security and safety, including the rights of freedom of navigation and overflight and other lawful uses of the seas, and unimpeded lawful maritime commerce as described in the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea as well as non-militarization and self-restraint in the conduct of activities; These two items, taken together, signal that consensus was reached by United States and ASEAN leaders on the need for states to abide by the principles of UNCLOS and international law and to refrain from the threat or use of force. The eighth clause is especially relevant in light of the United States decision to initiate freedom of navigation operations in the South China Sea. The clear target of the language in both clauses was China, which undoubtedly was observing the declaration and proceedings with great interest. President Obama, early on in his post summit press conference, made explicit reference to the South China Sea issue: We discussed the need for tangible steps in the South China Sea to lower tensions including a halt to further reclamation, new construction and militarization of disputed areas. When ASEAN speaks with a clear and unified voice, it can help advance security, opportunity and human dignity. Finally, the promotion of trade and entrepreneurship was an important feature on the U.S. agenda. For example, President Obama unveiled a new initiative, called U.S.-ASEAN Connect, which seeks to open new channels of economic engagement among the energy, information technology (IT) and infrastructure industries. As the fourth-largest trading partner of the United States, ASEAN represents an important and increasingly vital component of the United States' rebalance policy in Asia. Closer relations with ASEAN is quietly becoming one of President Obama's foreign policy success stories. He has already made seven visits to the ASEAN region more than any previous U.S. president and is planning another trip to Vietnam in May. Time will tell whether such high level engagement will bear fruit. At the very least, it is an important signal that the United States values ties with a region where symbolism is a form of political currency. Lyle J. Morris is a project associate at the nonprofit, nonpartisan RAND Corporation. Commentary gives RAND researchers a platform to convey insights based on their professional expertise and often on their peer-reviewed research and analysis. IPTV provider SK Broadband has procured over 600 hours of multi-genre BBC content for its transactional video-on-demand (TVOD) service BTV in South Korea. The deal, announced at the BBC Worldwide Showcase in Liverpool, extends over two years and includes natural history titles including Life Story and Africa, as well as the latest incarnation of Tolstoys epic drama War and Peace. Season nine of cult series Doctor Who, starring Peter Capaldi and Jenna Coleman, is also included in the BTV deal.We are committed to bringing great quality programming to viewers in Korea. SK Broadband is a valued partner and we are excited to be working with BTV to bring award winning and the best programmes from the BBC to their VOD subscribers, to watch them at their convenience, said Soojin Chung, GM of BBC Worldwide in Northeast Asia.You Chang Wan, head of media business HQ, SK Broadband, added: We are excited to further develop our partnership with BBC Worldwide Asia to provide high quality programming to our BTV subscriber. With content from BBC Worldwide, we are confident that the VOD service on BTV will help to cement SK Broadbands status as the leading IPTV service in South Korea. Moscow court extends detention of Sakhalin ex-governor until late May MOSCOW, February 24 (RAPSI) The Moscow City Court has extended until May 27 the detention of former governor of the Sakhalin Region, Alexander Khoroshavin, who stands accused of taking bribes, his lawyer Ivan Mironov told RAPSI on Wednesday. Detention of Andrei Ikramov, former advisor of Khoroshavin who is charged with being involved in a bribery scheme, has been also extended for three months. 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. Last April, Khoroshavin was charged in another criminal case with taking a bribe of at least 15 million rubles ($194,500) for providing credits on advantageous terms to one of the local businessmen. He pleaded not guilty. In January, the third criminal case was opened against Khoroshavin. According to investigators, he took 27 million rubles ($350,000) in bribes from candidates for the positions in Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk City Duma in 2014. President Vladimir Putin dismissed Khoroshavin from his post due to loss of trust in March 2015. Two defendants in 2011 terror attack case denied $65,000 bail MOSCOW, February 24 (RAPSI) The Moscow City Court on Wednesday refused to release former director of Domodedovo Airport Vyacheslav Nekrasov and Managing Director of Domodedovo Airport Aviation Security Andrei Danilov, who stand charged with the provision of services that allegedly do not meet security standards in connection with 2011 terrorist attack that left 37 dead, on 5 million-ruble ($65,000) bail, RAPSI learnt in the courts press office. Nekrasov and Danilov will remain in detention until February. However, earlier the court changed a measure of restraint of the third defendant, Svetlana Trishina, to the house arrest. According to investigators, the defendants have not provided sufficient security level that let the suicide bomber freely enter the arrival lounge and set off an explosive. On January 24, 2011, a suicide bomber detonated a bomb in the Domodedovo Airports international arrivals hall, killing 37 people and injuring 172. Doku Umarov, Russias most wanted terrorist at the time, claimed responsibility for the attack. Altogether, 28 men connected with the terrorist organization called the Caucasus Emirate were linked to the attack, according to the investigators. Seventeen of them were killed in special operations in 2011, and four were detained. In November 2013, a Moscow Region court sentenced three men to life in prison and a fourth man to 10 years for their role in the suicide bombing. Today, the House Committee on Ways and Means will hold a crucial hearing on international tax reform. Specifically, members will hear how the international tax environment is destroying American jobs and undermining the economy. As Chairman Kevin Brady (R-Texas) succinctly stated in his hearing announcement, "Our outdated international tax rules and sky-high corporate tax rate continue to create an unfriendly environment that ultimately hurts our economy and American workers. Other countries around the world are also targeting American employers and making it even harder for them to create good jobs here at home." Chairman Brady is exactly on point and given actions by the European Union designed to penalize American multi-national corporations (MNC), the hearing is perfectly timed. In recent weeks, the back and forth between the United States and the European Commission has finally awakened the U.S. Treasury to the fact that European tax officials are disproportionately targeting American companies. Google for instance just shelled out $185 million in back UK taxes, yet some critics claim that's not enough and other countries are lining up for an additional bite. Next up on the list: Amazon, Starbucks and Apple. Meanwhile the EU is set to press ahead with the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development's (OECD) Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) project. The idea behind BEPS is the fallacious belief that MNCs are not paying their fair share of taxes. However, as I have argued previously, "many [of the proposals] would be detrimental to the United States, though some are harmless and a few are actually useful." Add in the fact that the U.S. corporate tax rate is one of the highest in the world, and unlike nearly all other countries, the U.S. taxes American firms on their earnings abroad, and it's clear that American companies are operating at a global disadvantage. There is a way to level the current playing field for American companies who also do business overseas: tax reform which sharply lowers the corporate tax rate and moves to a territorial tax system - just taxing earnings here in the United States. The U.S. corporate tax rate stands 39.1 percent when you combine federal and state taxes. Compare that the average OECD average of 24.1 percent. And while other countries such as Canada, Japan and England have all cut their corporate tax rates in recent years to increase competitiveness, the U.S. has made no such move. Even President Obama agrees the rate is too high, proposing in 2012 to lower it to 28 percent. Passing comprehensive tax reform that lowers the corporate tax rate while moving to a territorial tax system would boost the national economy and create American jobs. In addition, comprehensive reform would go a long way towards encouraging U.S. businesses to keep their headquarters right here at home. The right way to deal with corporate inversions is to make America an attractive country to do business, not to pile on new penalties. The U.S. should serve as a tax model to the world, not as a lesson in what not to do. Candidates for president are loudly promising that if elected, they would restore America's position as the unchallenged leader of the world. But the only way we can do that is by rebuilding our country at home. We cannot be stronger in the world if our own society continues to weaken. When the Soviet Union collapsed a quarter-century ago, Americans celebrated our unrivaled military power. We proclaimed ourselves the indispensable nation. But we failed to define a coherent vision of a new world order, and we failed to pronounce an inspiring role for the United States within it. Our incompetence in foreign affairs has become a serious international problem. Today the United States is steadily less geopolitically dominant, less internationally competitive, less emblematic of equal opportunity, less faithful to the core values of our republic, and less looked to for leadership by foreigners. We have worse relations with each of our great power rivals than any of them has with any other. Even our allies, while not turning against us, are often no longer with us. Our global standing has been diminished not just by the rise of others and the estrangement of allies, but by structural changes in our economy and disinvestment in education and research. We are becoming less competitive. Social mobility in America now compares unfavorably with that in other industrialized democracies. Meanwhile, we are defending our freedoms by curtailing them. We have suspended much of our Bill of Rights and become accustomed to a perpetual state of war. Our panicky reactions to the activities of terrorists abroad are increasing the risk of terrorism at home. The combination of militarism and the uniquely American impulse to redeem the world by democratizing it translates into armed evangelism. The military power of the United States is universally acknowledged, but our moral authority, our reputation for considering the interests and listening to the counsel of friends, and our lustre as a just society with aspirations to continuing self-improvement have all taken hits. Post-constitutional America is adrift. Americans are understandably unhappy about this. We blame everyone but ourselves. Yet there is absolutely nothing wrong with America that Americans cannot fix. Despite all our afflictions, the United States clearly has what it takes to get our groove back. We are very large, richly endowed by nature, remarkably diverse in ethnic origins and talent, and possessed of a healthy amount of greed and entrepreneurial drive, even if we are not notably agile or wise at present. We continue to enjoy the superb defensive advantages of a uniquely favorable geopolitical position. Getting America's act together will require repairing and reversing the damage to our human and physical infrastructure that decades of neglect have wrought. Diverting more capital to the military-industrial complex, as virtually all of our politicians demand, will not offset that damage so much as compound it. The ultimate foundation of American global influence lies not in our ability to bomb or assassinate foreigners. It is instead carried in our capacity to enrich them and ourselves through trade and investment. It is in our potential to inspire them by our example to want to emulate and cooperate with us, not shun or injure us. We are strongest abroad when we are most just and prosperous at home. A country that can no longer conduct a civil dialogue; agree about domestic priorities or adjust revenue and spending to achieve them; ratify a treaty; or develop coherent foreign policy objectives along with strategies to attain them, has no business pretending it is entitled to lead internationally. What hand we will play in world affairs depends on the extent to which we cure partisan dysfunction and restore civil discourse in Washington. We must address neglected domestic priorities such as the need to invest in education and physical infrastructure. We must reform our banking system, tax code, and regulatory structure to promote entrepreneurship, innovation, and social mobility, rather than to protect vested interests. We must bring our nation's foreign policy objectives and commitments into balance with the resources we are prepared to devote to them. And we must focus on correcting the defects in our own society, and its performance, rather than on imposing our ideas on other societies. The question is not whether that can be done. It can be. The question is whether we Americans will muster the vision, courage, and determination to do it. That is entirely up to us. (AP photo) Throughout the Cold War, the symbolic center of the standoff between the Soviets and the West was Germany, split in two - much as the whole of Europe was - by the infamous Iron Curtain. But now, in Ukraine, a new center has emerged in the rivalry between East and West, dividing the country in ways that could prove just as enduring as the decadeslong partition of Germany. This week marks the second anniversary of the Euromaidan uprising that drove former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich from power, shaking Ukraine to its foundations and driving Russia-West relations to their lowest point since the end of the Cold War. Much has changed in the two years since: A pro-West government formed in Kiev, Russia annexed Crimea, and a rebellion in eastern Ukraine developed into a full-fledged war. Meanwhile, the United States and the European Union have levied sanctions against Russia. Moscow has responded with countersanctions against the West. Economic activity between Ukraine and Russia has ground to a halt. As the Ukrainian conflict enters its third year, a flurry of negotiations aimed at ending hostilities is taking place. At higher levels, officials are holding talks in Normandy to address the conflict's political aspects, while on the tactical front, there are discussions in Minsk to sort out the details of a cease-fire. Alongside both, countless bilateral meetings are being held. Occasionally, these talks renew hope that a lasting agreement can be reached. In reality, though, Ukraine's crisis is not a short-lived skirmish that a little additional negotiation can resolve. Rather, it is a deep-seated conflict, rooted in geopolitics, that stretches back centuries and will likely continue to exist in some form for many more years. Understanding Ukraine's role in the Russia-West rivalry, with its similarities to Germany's role during the Cold War, is crucial to envisioning how Europe's future may evolve. Ukraine: Divided Between East and West Ukraine has long been a polarized country. Strategically located on the open plains of Eastern Europe, the country can trace its divisions to the numerous powers and empires that sought to claim shares of its territory. Ukraine first belonged to Kievan Rus, a medieval Eastern Slavic state centered on Kiev that encompassed modern-day Russia, Belarus and Ukraine. But the kingdom began to decline, eventually falling to the Mongols in the 13th century, and the center of Eastern Slavic power shifted to Moscow. Kiev, and the territory that today makes up Ukraine, languished. Still, Ukraine was not left to its own devices for long. To the east and west, respectively, Tsarist Russia and the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth each controlled parts of Ukrainian territory and jockeyed to gain more. Over time, the Russian Empire chipped away at the commonwealth's hold over Ukraine, until the Polish Partitions eliminated that state altogether. The Russian Empire subsequently divided Ukraine with the Austro-Hungarian Empire to the west until both fell during World War I. After a brief period of independence, Ukraine was divvied up once again, this time between the Soviet Union and the newly independent Poland. Nazi Germany occupied Ukraine during World War II, after which Ukraine was reincorporated into the Soviet Union until the bloc collapsed in 1991. Ukraine has thus been a site of competition between Russia and Western powers for most of its history, a truth that has not changed since Ukrainian independence in 1991. While Ukraine is no longer directly ruled by outside forces, it continues to be influenced by - and torn between - Russia, on one hand, and Europe and the United States on the other. The country's political orientation roughly aligns with historical borders; Ukraine's west and center lean toward Europe while its east and south pull toward Russia. Every major election in Ukraine has reflected these preferences. Pro-West parties have long competed with pro-Russia parties for control of the government, which has led to abrupt about-faces in Ukrainian foreign policy. For example, the 2004 Orange Revolution set Ukraine on a pro-West path, while Yanukovich's 2010 electoral win brought it closer to Moscow. Competing Visions for Ukraine's Future Just as the people of Ukraine held different ideas of which orientation and foreign policies Kiev should have, so, too, did Russia and the West. The Euromaidan uprising that led to the current standoff in Ukraine was not just a reflection of the country's own polarization; it was also a product of competition between two conflicting geopolitical imperatives. Russia must maintain a buffer on its periphery, particularly Ukraine, to feel secure and project power, while the United States and Europe must prevent Russia's rise as a regional power in Eurasia. Though it took several years for these colliding imperatives to manifest in the Euromaidan uprising, the groundwork was nevertheless being laid as soon as Ukraine became an independent state. WASHINGTON - On February 15, EU foreign ministers agreed to remove the sanctions first imposed in 2004 on Belarus's President Alexander Lukashenko and other Belarusian officials and companies, following the temporary lifting of EU and U.S. sanctions last October. This is only a small part of a bigger picture of the winners and losers of the West's conflict with Russia. The big winner, at least in the short term, is illiberalism. First, there is Syria's Bashar al-Assad. Putin's escapade in Syria has at least temporarily boosted his position in the country's civil war. Second, there is China, which since the onset of the conflict has been steadily advancing its One Belt One Road project. Chinese financial assistance usually comes without political strings attached. Illiberal regimes in between China and Europe may find this approach more desirable than the West's insistence on democracy or Russia's insistence on its "sphere of influence." Third are the far-right populist movements and parties of Europe, a few of which have received funding from Russia as the Kremlin tries to capitalize on divisions in Europe. Their popularity is growing as Europe grapples with a flood of refugees hastened by Russia's airstrikes in Syria. Moreover, while trying to stay united in its approach on Russia, the EU has pushed the problems of Hungary's "illiberal democracy" to the bottom of its priority list, while the new Polish government seems to be following the Orban model. A fourth winner, somewhat inadvertently, is the self-proclaimed Islamic State group (ISIS) and other terrorist groups. First, the Russia-West conflict stands in the way of a real international coalition against terrorism. Second, Russia's economic woes have spilled over to Central Asian countries, enlarging the recruitment pool. The International Crisis Group has reported that during the last three years, approximately 4,000 Central Asians joined ISIS. And governments increasingly worry that these numbers may grow, as their guest workers might return home from Russia and, disheartened by the lack of opportunities, respond to ISIS recruitment. Finally, the conflict that started with Ukrainian citizens striving for democracy seems to have progressed to a silent victory of Russia's illiberal neighbors over the EU's customary insistence on democracy and human rights. For instance, Armenia snubbed the EU's Association Agreement, implying that Russia had forced its hand. However, the past years have seen very little reform in Armenia, with the president strengthening his power through a rigged referendum on a constitutional amendment. Two years ago, the EU rejected a watered-down deal that would not include the free trade agreement, but in December 2015, it seemed to offer just that with negotiations over a new framework agreement. And then there's Belarus. Last week's decision marked a clear softening of the EU's position, which had imposed sanctions over democracy and human rights violations. The Belarusian government freed some political prisoners, but as even EU officials admit, it has done virtually nothing to comply with the rest of the EU's requirements. Shortly before the EU's decision, the UN special rapporteur on Belarus said the dismal situation with human rights had not changed. The annual Freedom House report published on February 19 also noted a lack of change. The timing of the lifting of sanctions is directly related to Russia. In private conversations, EU officials and experts also note that EU-Belarus relations depend largely upon EU-Russia relations, as Belarus now feels like a "battleground of powers." President Alexander Lukashenko's current approach may seem friendlier to the West, but it does not mean he is on the EU's side. The day after the EU's vote, Belarus together with Russia adopted a new military doctrine, which some Belarusian officials have characterized as a response to NATO expansion. There is nothing strange in being strategic or pragmatic, or for that matter, realistic. But consistency and credibility are essential. Flip-flopping on the very values that the EU regularly pledges to protect sends a signal to possible offenders. It also aggravates the existing claims of double standards: Belarus is hardly the worst offender in the post-Soviet space, but it has less strategic importance and leverage than energy-rich and highly autocratic Azerbaijan. Finally, it diminishes the EU's credibility regarding its incentives or threats, while providing Putin with grounds to complain about the sanctions on Russia. Finally, let us not forget the losers. Among those are the post-Soviet countries that have always supported closer cooperation with the West. As comparative frontrunners in democracy and human rights, they expect more from the EU than another vague agreement. Countries like Georgia consistently request consideration for NATO membership and prove their readiness for security cooperation by providing troops for NATO and U.S. military missions. Yet the so-called enlargement fatigue in the EU, aggravated by Russia's firm counteractions, seems stronger than ever, putting the problems of the countries in between on the backburner. (AP photo) Find a great selection of commercial real estate, manufactured homes, timeshares and more for Sale Buy real estate. Find a great selection of commercial real estate, manufactured homes, timeshares and more for Sale in US and Canada. Search Real Estate , We're sorry, this article is not currently available This website is intended for U.S. visitors only. Having an out of style exterior or interior can depreciate your home value yet there's something more that really kills it and drives away any potential buyer. CNN Money says a homicide is a bigger home value killer. In fact, a non-natural death that took place in a house drops 10-25 percent of its home value, according to Real Estate Broker Randall Bell, specializing in real estate damage valuation. But, how does a death incident depreciates the value of a house? Bell shared it's all about perception. "When you have an image that someone was murdered, it can be uncomfortable when you are living there," Bell added. Homes that have high-profile deaths like Adam Lanza's house, O.J. and Nicole Brown Simpson's condo, and the gunman at Sandy Hook Elementary School have reportedly lost their value because of how they are perceived after the incident. In fact, the Lanza home in Newtown, Connecticut was demolished as it totally lost its value. "Some circumstances are so horrific...that the property loses all value," Bell said. Moreover, Yahoo! said that people experience psychological distress thinking about a home where murder happened. People would think there is a higher crime rate and a lower degree of security and safety. The area becomes a little less desirable to live in. Murder does affect home prices then, even if the murder did not directly take place in that particular house you are interested in but in the neighborhood, Fred Schebesta, co-founder and director of Finder.com, told Yahoo! Real Estate. This is the most valid reason that disclosure is a must in the real estate. Although disclosure laws vary by state and county, some are very strict about requiring the seller to disclose everything about their home, including its history. Builder Online says half of the states require a full disclosure of homicide incidents. To date, California and New York are the strictest about disclosures. On the other hand, there are some buyers who don't care about a home's history at all. According to Samantha DeBianchi, luxury real estate broker of Southern Florida, says it depends on the personality of the buyer. Some are completely fine with it while some won't even step their foot into the home with a crime scene. Indeed, finding buyers who are willing, not just to pay for the price of a home with a horrible past but to accept it including its criminal history, is a real struggle. The pressure now is on the real estate's shoulders. The singer-songwriter path is a crowded road that often leads to late night bar shows and restaurant gigs. Lily Rose is attempting to break out of that crowd by releasing music early and performing shows when she isnt hitting the books. A senior finance major from the University of North Georgia, Rose moved to Athens three years ago when she started college, and it has turned into her musical hometown. She has her debut EP release party at the 40 Watt Club on Feb. 26. Every student understands the feeling of boundaries and expectations, whether parents or society as a whole forces them. The teenagers in Roberto Aguirre-Sacasas Good Boys and True are no different as they struggle with the tension between whats assumed of them and who they actually become. Student-run theater group, the Thalian Blackfriars, will tackle issues of social class, sexuality and identity on March 3 and 4. SHARE By Jenny Espino of the Redding Record Searchlight Traffic and water issues dominated a session Tuesday at which the Redding Planning Commission heard of Bethel Church's plans for a two-auditorium campus north of Highway 299 in northeast Redding. The presentation was part of the scoping period expected to conclude March 11. The public comments received will be included in an environmental impact report that will take the rest of the year to complete. Construction of the 171,708-square-foot campus on a 39.3-acre parcel at Collyer Drive and Twin Tower Drive is not expected for at least two years. It will take two building seasons before the new worship center and School of Supernatural Ministry are complete, Bethel's project manager, Charlie Harper said. "We don't design (in) detail until we know what we can do and what mitigation measures might change," Harper said after he and consultants had concluded their reports to the commission. Commissioners listened to Harper speak about Bethel's history, starting with 33 students in 1998 to its present enrollment of 1,900 students. They also heard from Omni-Means, the firm hired by Bethel for its traffic study, and Kimley-Horn, which has been retained to prepare the EIR. Plans show a worship center that can seat up to 2,600 people, a school with enough classroom space to enroll up to 3,000 students and a parking lot with 1,851 spaces. Harper anticipates the proposed campus will meet Bethel's needs well into the future. He told the panel, after Commissioner Bert Meyer asked how long it would take Bethel to outgrow its proposed campus, that enrollment will be capped at 3,000. After the meeting, he expanded that classes already are recorded, and those videos are shared with hundreds of schools around the world, he said. Commissioner Frank Coughlin had concerns about exits out of the campus and increased speeds in the area if roads are widened. Russ Wenham of Omni-Means said the traffic study has gone through four versions, all of which have been reviewed by the city and the California Department of Transportation. He said the final report is nearly complete and both agencies have said it has addressed all of their comments. Commissioners heard from six residents. Some asked them to consider traffic to the surrounding neighborhoods or the water restrictions, given that the project would be served by the Bella Vista Water District. That district has faced among the toughest water cutbacks in the North State during the historic drought. One of the residents said she lives on Posey Lane. She expressed concern she and her neighbors will be trapped for long periods of time during Bethel's busy periods. Ron Largent, a local Realtor and radio show host, encouraged the public to look beyond the water and traffic issues. "Bethel is not just a church," he said. "It is a major business. I have personally seen the impact it has had on housing." He said if it had not been for the church, the local housing market would have not stayed as stable as it did. Mary Pfeiffer asked the commission to consider the effects on neighborhoods when 10 or more Bethel students are sharing a house. David Ledger, the conservationist chair for the local chapter of the California Native Plant Society, urged the use of native, drought-resistant plants to cover landscaped areas in the parking lot. The campus could generate 1,513 weekday trips before peak evening hours and 1,606 on Sundays at noon, according to traffic estimates in a city staff report. The draft EIR will be complete by July or August. The final report will be issued either at the end of this year or early the following year. SHARE Bethel Church's plans for a two-auditorium campus north of Highway 299 in northeast Redding will be heard today by the Planning Commission. The meeting is scheduled at 4 p.m. at Redding City Hall's council chambers, 777 Cypress Ave. The hearing is part of the scoping period, which concludes on March 11. Feedback received will be factored as part of the environmental impact report. Plans on 39.3 acres at the northeast corner of Collyer Drive and Twin Tower Drive call for a worship center that can seat up 2,600 people, classroom space at the School of Supernatural Ministry to enroll up to 3,000 students and a parking lot with 1,851 spaces. Because of its size, the 171,708-square-foot Bethel project is expected to raise traffic and water issues. The campus would generate 1,513 weekday trips before peak evening hours and 1,606 on Sundays at noon, according to traffic estimates in a city staff report. Bethel's relocation would be to the Bella Vista Water District, one of the North State agencies that has felt the effects the most of the drought restrictions. The church would represent an increase in demand of the district no matter how small the percentage may be. Because of restrictions, the district may not be able to bring in all the water. Conversation regarding that water issue are only just beginning, Planning Manager Kent Manuel has said. Jim Schultz/Record Searchlight Mark Able, who was on a ship off Iwo Jima as the U.S. flag was raised atop Mt. Suribachi, fought in a number of fierce World War II battles after joining the U.S. Marine Corps in 1943. SHARE Joe Rosenthal/The Associated Press Tuesday marked the 71st anniversary of the raising of the U.S. flag atop Mt. Suribachi at Iwo Jima. Greg Barnette/Record Searchlight Mark Able has scores of chilling war stories to tell, clearly remembers narrowly surviving a number of attacks by the Japanese while on patrol deep behind enemy lines during World War II. By Jim Schultz of the Redding Record Searchlight As the battle for Iwo Jima raged in February 1945, Mark Able, who turned 91 on Monday, spent his 20th birthday on a ship offshore with Marine Corps reinforcements watching and waiting for the call to go ashore. Thankfully, that call for him to enter into the deadly fray never came. U.S. forces lost more than 6,800 men during that ferocious fight for Iwo Jima. "They caught hell," he said. While Tuesday marked the 71st anniversary of the raising of the U.S. flag atop Mt. Suribachi at Iwo Jima, Able's memory of that day is a bit out of focus. But his recollections of his sharpshooter days in the Marine Corps and the injuries he suffered during World War II, including an enemy bayonet wound to his back and a mortar wound to his cheek, remain sharp and clear. Able, a Shasta Lake resident who is now residing at Amber Oaks Assisted Living in Redding following a broken hip from a recent fall, is one tough Marine. But he's also got a sentimental streak a mile wide. Just ask him about the beloved dogs he has owned over the years. Up until only a few months ago, Able could be found nearly every morning without the use of a cane and in remarkably good health taking long walks with a friend's dog, Skeet, at the Turtle Bay East Open Space Area. He took daily walks there previously with his now-late Australian shepherd-border collie mix, Three. And Able vows he will be back on the trail before too long as he continues to recuperate. A New Mexico native, Able was only a year old when he and his parents moved to California, settling on a farm in tiny Rio Oso in Sutter County. "Dad was a cowboy, a real cowboy," he said. But Able decided to enlist in the Marine Corps in 1943 and went on to fight in a number of battles and campaigns, including the battles for Guam and the Marianas Islands. And, he admits, he wasn't too sure if he would make it back home alive. "I was a scared kid," he said. "I didn't know what was up." But he quickly learned. Able, who has scores of chilling war stories to tell, remembers barely surviving a number of attacks by the Japanese while on patrol deep behind enemy lines. He still has a tiny piece of shrapnel in his cheek after fending off a sniper and mortar attack on Guam while trying to rescue a badly wounded Marine who later died. A member of the 3rd Marine Division, Able Company, First Platoon, Able was a part of the first wave of attack to recapture the Japanese-held island of Guam in 1944. "All you heard was 'corpsman, corpsman,' he said. The call was used to get medical aid for a wounded Marine. Fighting through its jungles, the division killed more than 5,000 enemy soldiers with nearly 700 Marines dying and another 3,625 wounded by the end of the lengthy battle to retake the island. Following the later invasion of Iwo Jima, which saw 21,000 strongly entrenched Japanese soldiers killed, Able found himself back in Guam in April 1945 as the began preparing for the expected invasion of Japan. Again, thankfully, that anticipated battle never happened as Japan surrendered in August 1945 following the dropping of the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Discharged with the rank of corporal, Able returned to California and worked in a capacity of jobs, including a forklift driver with Diamond Walnut Growers in Stockton, a truck driver, sheetrock worker and finally a certified barber in Shasta Lake. As a barber, he worked with his now-late brother, Tex, until his retirement years ago. Divorced with two sons who live in the Modesto area, Able has been a Shasta County resident since the early 1970s and has touched a number of lives. They include Nancy Kieri, a Shasta Lake resident who has known Able for about 35 years and often accompanied him on his long dog walks with her own dogs. "He's a great guy, an all-around great guy," she said while visiting him at Amber Oaks on his birthday. Another close friend is Brian Horton, 46, of Redding, who has known Able for three years and treats him like a cherished family member. "He's like my grandpa," said Horton, noting his own grandfather was also a Marine Corps veteran. Able said he firmly believes in the saying that once a Marine, always a Marine, quickly reciting another favorite saying, "If you're not going forward, you're going backward." "I never met a Marine who ran," he said. A cat eats Friday at a feeding station at the entrance to Turtle Bay Exploration Park. SHARE By Damon Arthur of the Redding Record Searchlight Bird lovers and cat caregivers got together in one room Tuesday afternoon to hash out their concerns over feral cats in Redding. Mark Storrey, Haven Humane Society's CEO, said he thought the meeting over concerns about feeding feral cats opened lines of communication between the two groups. However, whether the session changed minds wasn't clear. Steve Woodrum of Redding, a critic of feral cat feeding in city parks and in open spaces, had a different point of view than Storrey. "It shows the battle lines. There's not much overlap on this issue," Woodrum said. Woodrum and many of the other 60 or so people who attended the meeting at Redding City Hall are worried about feral cats preying on wildlife. Cats, domestic and feral, kill a median 2.4 billion birds and another 12.3 billion mammals each year in the U.S., the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said in 2013. At one point during the meeting, Woodrum suggested the cats be trapped and killed. But Storrey said trapping and killing does not reduce the number of feral cats because it doesn't stop them from breeding. He said some groups have tried unsuccessfully to reduce feral cats by introducing diseases and poisoning them. Even those measures don't work, he said. One group was able to kill 2,500 to 3,000 cats through an intense effort to kill them, but it took 14 years to achieve, he said. He said trapping and killing doesn't work because not all cats are caught when traps are set out, and when a group of cats are removed from an area, other cats move into to replace them, he said. And then the cats left behind continue to breed, he said. Storrey suggested trapping cats, spaying and neutering them and then releasing them where they were caught. "It doesn't work to kill cats. We don't want to kill cats," Storrey said. Ellis Goad told the group in eight years he and other volunteers have reduced the number of cats living near Turtle Bay Exploration Park from around 200 to about 14 through trapping, sterilizing and releasing them. Goad also feeds the cats that remain at the park. Mike Warren, Turtle Bay's president and CEO, said he endorsed Goad's work, and said killing cats goes against the mission of the park. "Everybody in the room wants there to be zero feral cats, including Turtle Bay. What's the best way to do that?" Warren said. Randy Smith of Redding said trapping and releasing wild animals is against the law, under the Redding Municipal Code. He asked how the city could endorse trapping and releasing when it is against the law. "There are cats all over this town," Smith said. Storrey said the Redding city attorney has ruled the trap and release law does not apply to feral cats. Those who feed feral cats should do it responsibly, including not leaving behind pet food containers and feeding cats out of the way from where people use parks and open spaces, Storrey said. At one point during the meeting, Storrey held up a trash bag filled with empty cat food cans and other trash left behind at cat feeding areas around the city. Feeding centers should also be spread out to reduce the number of cats at any one spot. Storrey also recommended feeding with dry cat food. Sharon Clay, animal curator at Turtle Bay, said she was concerned about other wild animals, such as skunks and raccoons eating cat food. While Storrey said much more cat spaying and neutering needs to be done to reduce the feral cat population in the Redding area. But some at the meeting said the cost of trapping cats and having them spayed and neutered could be expensive. Bob Miller, who owns Bella Vista Farms animal rescue in Cottonwood, said he and his wife, Chic, have raised hundreds of animals that no one else wanted and they did it on their own. He said if people want to solve the feral cat population in Redding then they need to pitch in to help. "My point is, get up off your dead butts, and start getting your work done," Miller said. SHARE Tami Joy Huntsman By Staff Reports New details have emerged in the case of a couple accused of killing two children under their care and putting their bodies in a Redding storage unit, including that the family had gotten over 50 referrals for social services and that the woman may be pregnant. The Monterey County Weekly reported the findings were the result of a public records act request submitted by the paper and a news station in the area, where Tami Huntsman, 39, and Gonzalo Curiel, 18, once lived. They are accused of abusing to death Delylah, 3, and Shaun Tara, 6, and storing their bodies in a Redding self-storage unit. The paper reported that an anonymous official confirmed that Huntsman is pregnant, though it remained unclear how far along she is or who the father is. Meanwhile, a just-released report by California Department of Social Services Deputy Director Gregory Rose detailed the handling of the numerous complaints against family members before the children died at the end of November. The weekly reports that the families of Shaun and Delylah had at least 53 social referrals from all over Southern California, some going back as far as 1998. Other findings included that social workers did not physically examine the children for abuse after getting reports of it, including from the children themselves. Social workers said they couldn't do the examination in one case because the family was being evasive, the weekly reported. SHARE By Nathan Solis of the Redding Record Searchlight Shasta County staff members may draft a letter for supervisors review expressing support of Costco as it continues to seek expansion, looking to convey a business-friendly stance while balancing various views among the five elected representatives as to where a new store should be built. Supervisor David Kehoe brought up the topic during a period of the regular meeting dedicated to supervisor reports. Kehoe, whose district includes the city of Redding, said rumors surrounding Costcos desire to relocate have caused some angst. The discussion comes a week after Costco and the city of Redding announced that a tentative deal for the warehouse store to purchase land and build a new location at the intersection of Oasis Road had fallen apart. Kehoe asked County Executive Officer Larry Lees if the board should take a stand on the issue. Would it be appropriate for us to convey to the city of Redding and Costco our support for a store location within the city of Redding or, in the alternative, a location Costco deems appropriate? Kehoe asked Lees. Lees replied, Well, it would bode well for the county to show support. You know, were in this together. We want to make sure that we put on this friendly business face to help out wherever it may end up. County supervisors took the opportunity to point out that they have sent a letter to city officials to open talks of a possible tax-sharing agreement. It is the latest of many attempts over the years to develop an agreement. In this case, the Blueprint for Public Safety which Redding and the county funded together was the catalyst. The blueprint calls for closer coordination, and both agencies have toyed with the idea of asking voters to raise the sales tax to raise public safety funds. Such an agreement could define how they split the proceeds. But tax-sharing agreements also allow agencies to share the sales tax from new development, regardless of where it is located. Since cities and counties often fight over development because each covets the sales tax, such agreements are seen by some as promoting more rational decisions about where retailers should locate. Supervisors emphasized that no agreement talks have yet taken place. Supervisor Leonard Moty said a tax-sharing agreement would show Redding officials that the county is in the same position and there would be mutual support moving forward. Supervisor Les Baugh, whose district includes the city of Anderson, sought to diffuse what he said is misinformation about the discussions. There is a tremendous rumor going around that the county is negotiating through those tax-sharing agreements conversations, the possibility for the city of Anderson pardon me for the county to cooperate with the city of Redding and place Costco in county property (on the corner of Knighton Road), Baugh said. Meanwhile, Baugh has not been shy about his desire to have Costco relocate to Anderson. He has actively promoted the idea on social media. His wife, Susie Baugh, is the mayor of Anderson. Still, he expressed concerns about the countys official position. I would say in terms of Costco, wouldnt we be more apt, if were going to support its move to the county proper, where the county would receive those tax dollars, rather than the city of Redding? Baugh asked. County officials may present a letter of support at the next Board of Supervisors meeting for approval. During his supervisors report, Bill Schappell remarked on attending the Feb. 11 Lloyd Pendleton talk on homelessness hosted by The Womens Fund of Reeding of the Shasta Regional Community Foundation. Schappell said the event piqued his interest on the approach Salt Lake City has taken with its chronically homeless population and how a pilot program to house a handful of people would make more sense, as opposed to committing large amounts of funds. I talked to him (Pendleton) after the meeting. Its pretty hard to explain the different matrixes in helping the homeless. But it would be interesting to visit Utah, to see their program, Schappell said. Chairman Pam Giacomini, who attended the Pendleton event, did not make any reference to the meeting in her supervisors report. Giacomini did say before the meeting there are no firm plans on housing five chronically homeless people, a challenge issued by Pendleton to county and city of Redding officials at the Feb. 11 meeting. Giacomini did say Redding and county officials will meet at a future date to discuss a coordinated approach. Supervisors agreed on a letter of support for a proposed Assembly bill from the state Legislature that would give county public works a one-time exemption from the states Endangered Species Act. Authored by Assemblyman Brian Dahle, AB 1845 would allow for the authorization of repairs of the Spring Creek Road at Fall River Bridge. The bridge project has been stalled since 2009, according to the letter of support approved by the supervisors, as the repairs would have some impact on the rough sculpin fish. The bottom dweller fish is located in northeastern Shasta County. Because of its protected status, the State Department of Fish and Wildlife cant issue a permit for the bridge project. County officials believe they can continue the project with minimal impact to the fish. AB 1845, which has a committee hearing on March 11, would allow the project to move forward. A recent survey targeting homeless people attempted to find out what their needs were at the Shasta County Library. SHARE By Joe Szydlowski of the Redding Record Searchlight A survey of mostly homeless people at the Redding library shows they mainly use it in the same way as everyone else. That non-scientific survey, along with a wider scientific poll of area residents, and a new location for the Burney Library, will be taken up by the Redding Municipal Library Board at its meeting Monday at 5:30 p.m. The board will take up the in-person census of library users, which is a step in a new partnership to connect the homeless at the library to resources. It paints a picture that helps you go in the right direction, said Jonathan Anderson, executive director of the Good News Rescue Mission in Redding. According to that report, 100 people, out of 145 surveyed, said they were homeless. Almost 60 were staying at a shelter, while about 30 were living on the streets. Its nice place to be. It is safe, and it is climate-controlled and access to lots of reading materials. If youre homeless that would be comfortable, said Kim Niemer, Reddings community services director, of the library. The most common reason theyre going to the library is to use its computers and other services, such as a copy machine or its books, according to the survey. Except for using computers to access the internet, bathrooms, shelter and sleeping, they matched up well with the general public. Only 15 of the 100 homeless surveyed said they sleep in the library. Anderson added that while some homeless may be loitering, the survey shows most were using it for its intended purpose. Theyre not there for what the intended purpose of the library is, but youre going to have that everywhere, he said. But the Mission and the library staff are teaming up to reach out to the homeless, Niemer said. In the past few weeks, mission staff have begun training workers at the library how to interact with the homeless for outreach, such as how to alert them to resources. If theyre there, what can be done to help them on their journey back out of homelessness, Niemer said. Mission staff will also work with those who would accept help or cant access it on their own, Anderson said. Maybe some are those harsh, standoffish (individuals). Thats what our staff is trained for, he said. Niemer said the library decided to conduct the in-person survey because of a different survey that the library board, at its meeting Monday night, will also go over. That poll asked 3,000 area households about their opinions of the library and its services. The 2015 Community Survey, conducted by National Research Center, Inc., was mailed out to area homes. That mostly by-mail survey garnered 625 replies, a response rate of 22 percent, according to a staff. Those who responded gave the library glowing reviews almost across the board for its services and getting its message out. However a little less than two thirds agreed that people do not need public libraries as much as they used to because they can find most information on their own. It also found that slightly more than half of responses said theyd read at least six books in the previous year. About 56 percent said theyd used the library at least once in the previous year. The chief concerns they cited in using the library were safety concerns and comments about the homeless population. However, the vast majority of the homeless are using the library for the same purposes as those with housing and arent causing problems, Anderson said. Niemer noted that the door count for the library is more than 2 million per year. This is just a percentage of our total customer base, she said. We really have very few incidents reported at the library. The board will also hear an update on the search for a new home for the Burney Library, which is eyeing a property on Main Street expected to cost up to $450,000. Niemer declined to say which property it was. However she said it would offer more than 4,000 square feet more than double the current librarys. Most of the money would come from a community fund established by the Hatchet Mountain Wind, LLC. It included a $1 million initial payment and an agreement for $100,000 payments annually for 20 years. In 2014, the Shasta County Board of Supervisors approved a $400,000 grant for the Burney Library Project Capital Campaign, which is managed by the Friends of the Intermountain Library, which has also raised money for the project. Julie Swann-Paez, left, moves around her living room with a walker trying to get comfortable as her daughter Ellie, 11, watches in her home on Jan. 15, 2016 in San Bernardino, Calif. Julie has a metal rod in her pelvis after being shot twice at the Inland Regional Center. (Francine Orr/Los Angeles Times/TNS) SHARE Julie Swann-Paez does her physical therapy at home on Jan. 15, 2016 in San Bernardino, Calif. Julie has a metal rod in her pelvis after being shot twice at the Inland Regional Center. Swann-Paez has a positive attitude, and says she is completely humbled by all the people who have helped her. (Francine Orr/Los Angeles Times/TNS) Julie Swann-Paez folds a hand made blanket someone donated to her on Jan. 15, 2016 at her home in San Bernardino, Calif. Julie has a metal rod in her pelvis after being shot twice at the Inland Regional Center. (Francine Orr/Los Angeles Times/TNS) Julie Swann-Paez during an interview on Jan. 15, 2016 in her home in San Bernardino, Calif. She was shot twice at the Inland Regional Center on Dec. 2, 2015. She is recovering at home. She has a positive attitude, but becomes briefly tearful as she talked about the people that have helped her. She said she is completely humbled by their kindness. (Francine Orr/Los Angeles Times/TNS) By Sarah Parvini, Los Angeles Times She spread her sneakers the width of her shoulders as she struggled to take a step just inches from the security of her walker. Her fingers wrapped around the kitchen sink to hold on tight. Two stabilizing rods protruding from her hips slowed her down, and she winced as she dipped into squats like an ungainly ballerina. Julie Swann-Paez, a mother to three children, doesnt dwell on the day that led her here. Her dreams dont take her to the room where it happened. That room was the conference room at the Inland Regional Center in San Bernardino, where the 50-year-old Swann-Paez found herself curled on the floor, hugging her knees as bullets tore through the air and into bodies. Someone walked up behind her and fired a bullet through her pelvis, shattering it into pieces. Blood and urine soaked her pants. She felt around for wounds and tried hard not to sink out of consciousness. Three minutes later, Swann-Paez was shot in the pelvis once more. She thought of her children and her husband and sent them a text: Love you guys. Was shot. Two months after 14 people were killed and 22 wounded in the worst terrorist attack in the United States since Sept. 11, Swann-Paez has endured four hours of surgery and a month in a hospital and rehab. She spends her days practicing walking and building strength in her core. The furniture decorating her home now doubles as exercise equipment. She works her way back to the living room, where her physical therapist watches from the doorway, warning her not to overdo it. Her arms find the bar top in front of her and she braces against the counter, lowering into a push-up position while teetering on her toes. My son says, Well, you need to strengthen your core, Mom, Swann-Paez says. And I say, Well, you know, theres a little problem in the abdominal area here. She laughs and looks down at the rods tugging at her pajama pants. After a light breakfast potluck of muffins and doughnuts, the San Bernardino County health department employees gathered at the Inland Regional Center on Dec. 2 took a break. It was around 11 a.m. Some headed toward the bathrooms. That would be a stroke of luck. Swann-Paez and a few of her co-workers decided to grab their cameras and take pictures in front of the Christmas tree. As they struck their first pose, Swann-Paez heard a loud noise near the back door. Thats when I saw him come in and I got down, she said. I thought, This couldnt be. I thought it was a drill. The shooter who walked into the conference room had the build of a man, Swann-Paez said. Authorities identified Syed Rizwan Farook and his wife, Tashfeen Malik, as the perpetrators of the attack. Swann-Paez knew Farook in a casual way, but the gunman was covered in black from head to toe and wearing a mask, she said. Whoever was shooting didnt say a word. It wasnt until Swann-Paezs son, Nick Paez, visited her in the hospital later that day that she learned who was behind the attack. They think its your co-worker, Nick Paez told his mother. That doesnt make sense, she replied. They were congratulating him for having a baby. She spent those first days after the shooting connected to a morphine drip. One of the bullets had ruptured her bladder. For about a week she couldnt drink water. On a Sunday night, she was handed her first cup after being shot. She clutched it, cool to her face. She was so happy, Paez, 26, said. She looked like she was going to Disneyland, the smile she had on her face. Im honestly just not used to being cooped up, Swan-Paez says, adjusting herself on the recliner on a recent afternoon. I am used to being on the go. Now Im stuck. Cant move, cant get out of bed, cant lay on your side. And you know its very isolating. Swann-Paez had been the family manager, handling household errands and making sure everyone else was doing fine. Before, she used to struggle with accepting help even from her husband, Jesus. But after she was shot, she had to rely on him as the easiest of tasks rolling over, walking down the hall became grueling challenges. She takes Tylenol to endure the pain; a muscle relaxant to sleep through the night. In her first weeks at home, Jesus Paez lifted her legs onto their bed when it was time to turn in for the night. In rehab, he helped her bathe and get to the bathroom. He still picks things up off the floor and ties her shoes because she has difficulty bending down. She hates inconveniencing her family. Thats my struggle, she says. What she wont do, Swann-Paez says, is let her mind linger too long on the day of the mass killing. With each session of physical therapy, she hopes to get closer to the dream she will allow to invade her mind time and again: a sand-filled summer playing on the beach and walking next to her 11-year-old daughter, Ellie. Swann-Paez said she struggles with finding the best way to express her gratitude for being alive with her husband and children. She wonders how she can thank all the people, including those she never met, who sent her get-well cards and quilted her blankets. The shooting didnt make her a fearful or more cautious person. It showed her the good, Swann-Paez says. She falls silent to keep from crying, then gives in. Its the only thing that brings her to tears: gratitude. That weighs heavily on me, she says. I cant figure out how to tell people how thankful I am. This is the hardest part of recovery, she says much harder than dealing with the shooting itself. 2016 Los Angeles Times Visit the Los Angeles Times at www.latimes.com Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. SHARE By Phil Willon, Los Angeles Times SACRAMENTO, Calif. Devout cannabis advocates and social justice reformers believe this may finally be the year California voters legalize marijuana, and that optimism has led to a mashup of proposed statewide ballot measures more than 20 filed so far. They vary from a one-sentence constitutional amendment that simply declares California adults are free to grow, own (and) purchase marijuana to a 62-page treatise on how to best regulate and tax legal pot. But just one has attracted the deep-pocketed donors and leading advocacy groups to emerge as the clear favorite to make the November ballot the so-called Adult Use of Marijuana Act. The initiative would allow those age 21 and older to possess and use up to an ounce of marijuana, making California the fifth state in the nation to legalize recreational use. The measures stature is in no small part thanks to the backing of former Facebook president and Napster co-founder Sean Parker, who has donated $1 million of the $2.25 million raised by the campaign. The initiatives bankroll dwarfs the funds collected by rival marijuana initiative campaigns and has prompted a few to abandon efforts because they lacked the money to compete. Momentum behind the Parker-backed initiative was further strengthened by an endorsement from Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom. The 2018 Democratic gubernatorial hopeful chaired a blue-ribbon commission to determine the best way to legalize marijuana in California while still limiting childrens access, targeting illegal activity and regulating the drugs cultivation and sale. We stood down. Basically, he sucked all the funding oxygen out of the air, and we were left high and dry, Dale Gieringer, director of the state chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, said of the Parker donations, tongue firmly in cheek. Still, these groups take it seriously. Id describe it as a hostile buyout by a billionaire so small growers are going to be in real trouble, Gieringer added. Gieringer was involved in a competing marijuana initiative sponsored by the Coalition for Cannabis Policy Reform, also known as ReformCA. The group suspended its campaign in December after some of its board members opted to join with the Parker-backed initiative. Of the 20 separate ballot measures to legalize marijuana or expand protections for medical marijuana users and suppliers, six already have failed to qualify, and supporters of four others have, in effect, abandoned their efforts. None yet have qualified for the ballot. Lynne Lyman, California director of the Drug Policy Alliance, said her organization held more than 100 consultation meetings with local governments, law enforcement agencies, environmental leaders and the cannabis industry as it drafted a version of the legalization. It ultimately joined forces with Parker, who for years has been one of its generous financial supporters. It was rough and tumble politics 2015 was not easy for any of us, Lyman said. But in the end, what came out of that was the best initiative to have ever been drafted. The California chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People also abandoned its legalization measure. Alice Huffman, president of the civil rights organization, said after getting scooped by the Parker initiative she decided to join his effort, and negotiated for changes to address the NAACPs top priorities: to end the arrest of thousands of nonviolent cannabis users and to resentence those already convicted of marijuana crimes that would be reduced or rescinded under the initiative. Im not advocating for the use of marijuana. Im advocating for social justice, Huffman said. They gave us the five or six things we asked for. The Adult Use of Marijuana Act if passed would prohibit advertising targeting minors and would impose a 15 percent tax on retail sales of the drug, and the cultivation, distribution and sale of recreational marijuana would be regulated by the state, and exporting marijuana out of California would be prohibited. We have the largest coalition thats ever supported a marijuana measure, probably in the country, said Jason Kinney, spokesman for the Adult Use of Marijuana Act campaign. We were determined that this measure would be the consensus measure on the ballot regarding regulating marijuana not everyone is going to get what they want. Along with the money from Parker, the political committee running the campaign for the measure has received $500,000 from Drug Policy Action, (backed by wealthy investor George Soros). The group also got $250,000 from New Approach PAC, formed by family members of the late billionaire insurance executive Peter Lewis of Progressive Corp., state campaign finance records show. Both groups championed legalization campaigns in other states and Proposition 19, a 2010 pot legalization initiative that California voters rejected 53.5 percent to 46.5 percent. Californians for Sensible Reform, a political committee funded by Weedmaps Inc. in Orange County, also donated $500,000. Weedmaps, founded by Justin Hartfield, maps medical marijuana dispensaries on mobile devices. Hezekiah Allen of the California Growers Association, which represents growers and other businesses in the cannabis industry, fears the interests influencing this vote could wipe out Californias small marijuana operations and lead to big marijuana companies akin to the nations powerful tobacco giants. We dont want there to be a Philip Morris of marijuana, he said. For an initiative to qualify for the November ballot, supporters must collect 365,880 petition signatures from registered voters. And competition this year is stiff: More than 60 statewide initiative campaigns have been authorized to circulate petitions. Well-funded campaigns have the edge, since they have the resources to pay $3 or more per signature to hire workers to stand outside stores and on street corners corralling bypassers. For those campaigns relying on volunteers to pass around petitions, the threshold can be daunting. Well see, said John Lee of Americans for Policy Reform, which has two initiatives depending solely on volunteers. Our measure, by far, has the most support from the cannabis community. We were grass-roots from conception, he said. But theres no money except for the money going to the Sean Parker initiative. Lee muttered an expletive when asked if anyone from the Parker-backed initiative asked for his support. They did nothing to reach out to the cannabis community, he said. In fact, people are talking about counter campaigns to oppose it. California was the first state to legalize medical marijuana after voters approved Proposition 215 in 1996. Since then, Colorado, Washington, Oregon and Alaska have legalized recreational use, to varying degrees. Recent opinion polls show Californians are warming to the idea of legalization. A 2015 poll conducted by the Public Policy Institute of California found 53 percent of Californians supported legalizing recreational use of the drug, a high since polling began. There used to be a lot less enthusiasm about legalization, said Berton Duzy of Simi Valley, statewide coordinator for one of the measures using volunteers and vying for the ballot, the California Cannabis Hemp Initiative. But were finally getting some traction. This is Duzys fourth effort since 2008. Other groups are trying to keep the recreational use of pot illegal and ban privately owned medical marijuana cultivation and dispensaries. Instead, their initiative seeks government-run operations. The vast majority of people have no idea of the dangers of todays high-potency pot, said Roger Morgan, a Sacramento-area businessman supporting the initiative. If we lose, I feel that California and America are never going to be the same. Under California law, if two or more initiatives on the same issue qualify for the ballot, the one that receives the most votes trumps all others. Dale Sky Jones of ReformCA said fighting Parkers measure would have been costly and could have turned negative in a way that would hurt the overall effort. We stood down to avoid mutually assured destruction, Jones said. At a certain point, the writing is on the wall. Why fight it? This is something we all want. 2016 Los Angeles Times Visit the Los Angeles Times at www.latimes.com Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. SHARE Dear President George W. Bush, House Speaker Paul Ryan, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Gov. Mitt Romney: I am writing you in your role as the de facto leaders of your party. Gentleman, the Republic is in peril. Donald Trump poses a mortal danger not just to the Republican Party, but also to the American democratic experiment itself. Imagine America in 1968 if George Wallace were leading in the polls. Or if Franklin Roosevelt in 1933 at the depths of the Depression had given way to the urging of prominent liberals like Walter Lippmann for "a mild species of dictatorship." This is not the normal hyperbole that both parties trot out every four years that transforms a ho-hum race like Bill Clinton versus Bob Dole in 1996 into a struggle between good and evil. Candidate Trump represents something that goes far beyond pedestrian fears of damage to the Republican brand or the loss of Senate and House seats. He is the embodiment of the authoritarian temptation that has imperiled liberty since the days of the Roman Republic. At every stage of the campaign, he has thumbed his nose at democratic norms. Start with his admiration for Vladimir Putin. Instead of position papers, Trump offers the voters fact-free assertions about the Mexicans paying for a wall and the Chinese knuckling to his superior negotiating ability. Never in modern history has a serious presidential candidate displayed such contempt for responsibilities that come with the Oval Office and custody of the nuclear codes. His ignorance of the nuclear triad and his claim that he gets his foreign policy expertise from watching TV talk shows symbolizes an ego that makes Napoleon seem self-effacing. Equally alarming is the brazenness of Trump's lies. He insists that he never called for a 45 percent tariff on Chinese imports and still clings to that denial even after The New York Times released a tape of him saying just that. Even more horrifying was Trump's insistence (in the face of overwhelming evidence to the contrary) that hundreds of Muslims in New Jersey celebrated when the twin towers collapsed on 9/11. You have seen how Trump's temperament in public borders on the unhinged. And you have witnessed the vitriol that Trump directs at anyone who gets in his way from other Republicans (recall how he likened Ben Carson to a "child molester") to the news media. But now, sensing how the political winds are blowing, prominent Republicans in Washington are busy convincing themselves that Trump is an authoritarian they can do business with. House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy just said on MSNBC, "I think I can work with Donald Trump." Work with Donald Trump? Everything in this campaign has demonstrated that Trump is only using the Republican Party for ballot access. He has no allegiance to any Republican ideology and offers no guarantee that Republicans will even be welcome. The looming danger is that Trump could be elected president. If he prevails at the Cleveland Convention, only a wounded Hillary Clinton and a divided Democratic Party would stand between him and the White House. Think for a moment of President Trump a man who revels in getting even in charge of the IRS, the FBI and the CIA. None of you, I know, is comfortable imagining President Trump. And there's no time to delay; the enemy (and that is not a word I use lightly) is at the gates. Which is why I urge all four of you to go public with an Anybody But Trump alliance. You have all dedicated significant portions of your lives to public service. You do not want to be remembered as leaders who sat on the sidelines privately despairing in the face of the gravest threat to American democracy in decades. God bless America. Walter Shapiro is a columnist for Roll Call. Donald Trump's success has been based on the anti-Trump vote being divided between a number of contestants, rues Deepal Lal For the last two months I have been in Los Angeles basking in the unseasonable heat and looking incredulously at the presidential election race, which has seen extraordinary heat and upended all the expectations of the pundits. Starting from about two per cent in June 2015, the two insurgents -- the Republican Donald Trump and the Democrat Bernie Sanders -- have seen their poll numbers rise to over 30 per cent. Adding the other insurgent Ted Cruz' numbers to Trump's, half the Republican electorate is backing insurgents. Of the two candidates expected to be their party's nominees, Jeb Bush has dropped out after his dismal showing in South Carolina, and Hillary Clinton is hanging on by her fingertips. What explains these insurgents' success? It cannot be differences in financial resources. For both Mr Bush and Ms Clinton had the largest war chests and have spent more than any other candidates on their campaigns, including the billionaire Donald Trump. There are three largely economic reasons for the resonance of the insurgents in the two parties. Mr Sanders' insurgency is fuelled by the millennials (the 18-29 years age group), who account for the same proportion (31 per cent) as the "baby boomer" generation of the electorate. Their major worries are their personal and the nation's debt (run up by the boomers) which they will be responsible for paying off. Much of their personal debt is related to the costs of college education, and they warm to Mr Sanders' desire to make college free. Not having lived in anything but a capitalist economy, they do not know of the failures of socialism. Moreover their unemployment rates are above the national average, and their stagnant wages have forced many to continue to live with their parents. They see the monetary policies of the Fed leading to a rise in asset prices benefiting their boomer elders without translating into good quality jobs for them. They have supported Mr Sanders by margins of 70-80 per cent over Ms Clinton in the primaries to date. Whether Ms Clinton can win them over to create the winning 'Obama coalition' of minorities and millennials -- along with the outcome of the Federal Bureau of Investogation probe into her email shenanigans -- will determine her prospects in the presidential election in which she is still likely to be the Democrat nominee. The Republican insurgency has been fuelled by the backwash effects of globalisation on the white working class. One of the major propositions of international economics is the so-called Stolper-Samuelson theorem. This states that when trade is opened up between countries with different factor proportions there will be income distributional consequences, with the more abundant factor of production benefiting and the scarce factor losing in each country. As the US opened up trade with relatively uneducated, unskilled labour-abundant countries like China and Mexico, the relatively scarce US lowly educated working class saw its relative incomes decline. The same effect also occurs if there is (as there has been with the IT revolution) skill-biased technical change. It appears from recent studies (see Ronald Findlay and Kevin O'Rourke: Power and Plenty for details) that foreign trade has had a large negative impact on unskilled labour in rich countries. This has fuelled the protectionism advocated by both insurgencies. As immigrants are tarred with the loss of native jobs, Mr Trump's desire to build a wall between Mexico and the US has also resonated with his base. This also consists of evangelical Christians, particularly in the early primaries of the mainly Southern states -- in which the Wall Street Journal estimates there are 32 per cent evangelicals without a college degree, 25 per cent college-educated evangelicals, 19 per cent non-college non-evangelicals and 25 per cent college-educated non-evangelicals ("Blue-collar evangelicals to test Trump", 11 February, 2016). In the recently concluded South Carolina primary, evangelicals accounted for about three in four voters; Mr Trump won most, except for the more educated voters who voted for Mr Cruz or Marco Rubio. Nor has Mr Trump been derailed by his own colorful personal life, his tiff with Pope Francis or other seeming gaffes. His voters lap it all up, partly because he is seen as not giving into political correctness and "telling it as it is", and partly because given the revulsion of many Republicans with their political representatives in Congress, as one of his supporters said this week, "We're voting with our middle finger" ("Trump rolls over his GOP rivals", LA Times, 21 February, 2016). The final economic strand fueling voting anger against both party "establishments" is the lack of retribution for the perpetrators of the financial crash. Neel Kashkari, the head of the Minneapolis Fed (FT, 18 February 2016), bemoaned the lack of trust in US economic managers which he blames on the bailouts after the Great Crash which he oversaw. "Those actions had 'really violated a core American belief' that risk takers had to bear the consequences of things going wrong," he said. He called for "regulators to consider breaking up the largest US lenders, which were still 'too big to fail'". Both Mr Trump and Mr Sanders have made attacks on Wall Street a part of their insurgent rhetoric. This anger is coupled with the feeling that the elite look down upon the working and lower middle classes (see Charles Murray, "Trump's America", WSJ, 13-14 February 2016). But this raises a question: how has the white working class taken to a billionaire real estate developer and reality TV celebrity who is very much part of the elite? Garret Keizer ("Workers for Trump? Why?", LA Times, 31 January, 2016) says the answer lies in "their refusal to be envious, which is a long standing act of moral resistance on the part of working- and lower-middle class people." They see themselves as victims of an oppressive government rather than losers "in a failed competition in the sacred contest of the Almighty Market. "In the first mythology, you figure as Prometheus; in the second as Willy Loman". Mr Trump has played on this attitude painting all his opponents as losers and his supporters as victims. But, his success to date has been based on the anti-Trump vote being divided between a number of contestants. As they are increasingly winnowed out, the best hope for the Republicans is that it leaves Mr Rubio, who so far has shown the widest appeal, and polls best on electability in the presidential election against Ms Clinton. But he has not yet won a single primary. If and when the race reduces to one between him and Mr Trump, we will know if the last remaining electable Republican will in fact face an increasingly diminished Ms Clinton. Image: Donald Trump speaks at a press conference in Mumbai. Photograph: Rajesh Karkera/Rediff.com Read our complete Budget coverage 'In a typical Telugu film, the sub plot would be the love story. That is not there in my film.' 'The focus is on the job. There is no heroism. The main character is a normal cop.' Terror director Satish Kasetty talks about the film. National award-winning director Satish Kasetty returns with his third film, Terror, after making brilliant films like Hope and Kalvaramaye Madilo. Starring Srikkanth, Nasser and Nikitha, the film will release on February 26. Satish tells Rediff.com contributor Radhika Rajamani all about it. What triggered the idea for Terror? I have immense respect for uniformed people: the army and the police. I have done a film on the police and will do one on the army. The premise of the film is that the Intelligence Bureau cautions about a terror act that may happen. If someone wants to take advantage, they can. In this situation, I place a corrupt police officer with a tagline Mr Dependable. Did you feel you were treading on difficult ground with this subject, since terrorism is a sensitive issue? No, not even for a second. The film is not about terrorism. Terror activity is going to happen. In parallel, there is a cop story and the film is from his point of view. There are no details about the terror group. What kind of research did you do for this film? I had to do plenty of research. I had to talk to cops in different departments. I had to know what kinds of bombs are there, and for that, one had to speak to the army. The film also has an emotional story -- a conflict between a father and a son. It is a family drama sans songs. Why family drama? If there is a cop, he has to have a family -- parents, wife and children. There is an undercurrent of emotions. Terror is a small thing in his line of duty. There are dilemmas, questions and frustrations in his life. How did you select the cast? I chose Srikkanth as I wanted someone in that age group. I wanted to give the best for the film, so I got Nasser Sir for the fathers role. Did you face any difficulties while filming this movie? No. I shot with three-four cameras. It was difficult for the cinematographer as he had to light up the areas and the actors had to get the right look. The film had to be pacy, so shots had to be cut. We also did some guerrilla shooting with hidden cameras. There are many cop stories. How different is your film? Generally, there is a plot and a sub plot. In a typical Telugu film, the sub plot would be the love story. That is not there in my film. The focus is on the job. There is no heroism. The main character is a normal cop. It is very realistic thriller with a running time of two hours 10 minutes. The film has no songs or comedy. Were you inspired by any cop films? The Bourne series inspired me because of the way it is shot. Why did you take long to make your third film? Your second film Kalavaramaye Madilo released in 2009 After my second film, producers approached me but I did not have a script. It took me a while to write. I worked on four-five scripts for two and a half years. Then, I got busy with Terror for two years. Each of the stories had to be researched. I had to work on characters. I wanted to do something different from Kalavaramaye Madilo. A cop story was radically different. Srikkanth loved it but the producer wanted some time. Are you ready with scripts to take up after Terror? I have about five-six stories. I have fine-tuned two and will do one of them. When state Rep. Kathy Bernier walked out of a regular meeting Monday with the Chippewa Falls, Altoona and Eau Claire school districts, she may have thought she was closing the door on the matter. But by the next day her actions had spread across the state, drawing plenty of reaction and some criticism. Bernier (R-Lake Hallie) said she would not change her decision to leave the Breakfast with Our Legislators after an Eau Claire School Board member, Wendy Sue Johnson, began comparing the economies of Minnesota and Wisconsin. Bernier objected to that topic and a prior one, comparing the two states spending on prisons, because they were not on the agenda. She did look at our direction and said, This isnt about education. Im going to leave, said Chad Trowbridge, business manager for the Chippewa Falls School District. He thought the conversation was healthy and not directed at her. To have a reaction like that doesnt feel very positive, Trowbridge said. Bernier said she was taking exception to what she felt were partisan comments. Its worse than going to a dentist, going to these meetings, she said of the sessions with the three school boards. Bernier admitted that leaving the meeting might have been unusual and politically incorrect, but her actions have gotten peoples attention and she believes that the next meetings between legislators and educators will stay on topic. Others react Several people attending the meeting had varying reactions to Bernier walking out. I felt it was very unfortunate that she felt that she had to (leave). It didnt serve anyone well, said Kathy Strecker, the lone Chippewa Falls School Board member to attend the meeting at the Avalon Hotel and Conference Center in Chippewa Falls. Altoona Superintendent Dr. Connie Biedron said, I thought it was inappropriate. I was kind of shocked that she was leaving. She added that Johnsons statements were not vile, the word Bernier used to describe the discussion. Biedron said was it good to talk with the Republican and Democratic legislators about school funding and other issues districts are facing. She said its easy from a political standpoint to say Republican Gov. Scott Walker doesnt want to raise taxes. But she said Walker is making cuts and forcing local districts to increase taxes. Hes trying not to take the blame for it, Biedron said. Democratic State Rep. Dana Wachs of Eau Claire, who was part of the legislative contigent at the meeting, was very surprised Bernier walked out, and said hes never seen anything quite like it. If we cant talk about these issues, how does policy get made? he asked. Another Democratic state representative, Sondy Pope of Cross Plains, did not attend Mondays meeting but issued a press release criticizing Bernier: Saying Minnesota is funding their schools better than Wisconsin isnt a sweeping partisan statement its a fact. Rep. Bernier can run away from facts all she wants, but that doesnt make them any less true. State Sen. Terry Moulton (R-Chippewa Falls) said hes taken away some good suggestions during meetings with local school districts. In fact this meeting here, one of the school board members brought up an invitation to visit the kindergarten collaboration theyre doing with one of the private schools. Moulton said Berniers actions will not have any affect on him. I will continue to go to the meetings. Its something we need to do in our jobs, listen to constituents, he said. The only way that we as legislators can learn about some of the problems in education is by working with people on the ground, so (these sessions) can be a valuable thing. But if its all about education and the kids, lets just make it about that and leave the politics out of it. We need to stop some of the rhetoric and work together. State compares well Bernier said she wanted to bring some positives to the meeting, including praising the work of Locust Lane School in the Eau Claire School District. Dont be so cynical about the state of Wisconsin and how were doing, because were doing great, she said. Wisconsin spends nearly as much per pupil, $11,071, as does Minnesota $11,089, according to figures released by Berniers office Tuesday. Wisconsins graduation rate far exceeds that of Minnesota, 88 percent to 79.8 percent, she said. In 2013, Wisconsin had the third highest graduation rate in the nation while Minnesota ranked 27th. We are doing well. And I am so tired of hearing how bad we are, she said. Bernier said one reason Minnesota is running a surplus is that a Republican majority was elected in the state House and put the brakes on planned programs. Berniers actions were noticed by others in Wisconsin, including Doug Mering, vice president of the Baraboo School Board. I want Wisconsin schools to be world class, Mering wrote in an email to Bernier Tuesday. That can be done only if we have conversations on how we can make things work better financially for all of our public schools. This should start with conversations on school funding reforms. Bernier replied: You are correct. We should be addressing the problems facing our local schools. Persistent partisan assaults are out of place in a meeting with legislators and nonpartisan board members. Bernier said ever since she became a member of the Assembly in 2011 the three districts have tried to embroil legislators in partisan battles. However she intends to attend the next meeting with the area school districts. I guess the next meeting with these districts will be far more productive, she said. I thought it was inappropriate. I was kind of shocked that she was leaving. Dr. Connie Biedron, Altoona superintendent Its worse than going to a dentist, going to these meetings. Rep. Kathy Bernier, 68th District Assemblywoman Aseem Chhabra spots 10 must-see movies at the Berlin Film Festival. George Clooney was pissed. He was the headliner at the opening day press conference at the Berlinale, for his new film Hail Caesar, along with directors Joel and Ethan Coen, when a journalist asked Clooney why his work did not reflect the current crisis affecting Europe -- the massive tide of refugees entering the continent. Now Clooney has reasons to be mad. For one, his political activism in Darfur, Sudan and other parts of the world is widely reported. But Clooney had also just explained that even celebrities like him find it hard to raise money to finance film projects that have political themes. Despite Clooney's anger -- though he spoke to the journalist with a smile -- this year's Berlinale had a strong political tone, at least as reflected in the top award-winning films, the Golden Bear winner in the Competition section -- Italian documentary Fire at Sea and the audience award topper in the Panorama section -- Junction 48 from Israel and Palestine. Politics apart, this year's Berlinale had a lot to offer for just about every film lover -- from celebrity sightings (Meryl Streep who headed the Competition section jury, Jude Law, Tim Robbins, who was honoured with a special tribute on the 21st anniversary of his Oscar-winning classic film, Dead Man Walking, and the hugely obese French star Gerald Depardieu), to films dealing with a wide range of matters. While Hail Caesar is a lightweight project from the otherwise brilliant Coen brothers and it is already playing in theatres in North America, there were many other very good films I saw this past week at the Berlinale. My top ten films at this year's festival -- many will stay in conversations through this year. IMAGE: A scene from Little Men. Little Men New York indie filmmaker Ira Sachs explores stories and characters that reside in the city's five boroughs. Little Men, played in the Generations section -- focused on films for children and teenagers -- but this sweet little film will appeal to adults as well. The screening I attended was packed with adults who were deeply moved by the story about the friendship between two 13-year-old boys living in Brooklyn. In Little Men, Jake and Tony become friends, but their trust, moments of sharing -- whether it is playing video games, or roller blading on the streets of Brooklyn -- is shaken by the adult world around them. Little Men is a gem of a film. It will make the audience smile with joy, but it will also make them sad as memories of their childhood flood their minds. IMAGE: A scene from Fire At Sea. Fire At Sea It is not often that documentaries win top awards at film festivals. Italian master Gianfranco Rosi's new film is a remarkable story about refugees -- mostly from Africa, but others from the Middle East as well -- who arrive at an island in the Mediterranean on their way to Europe. The island Lampedusa -- an Italian territory -- becomes a metaphor for the hopes and aspirations of the refugees, who through much hardship arrive at the southern most point in Europe. They are all heroes in Fire at Sea, but the biggest hero in the film is Samuele, a 12-year-old boy, a resident of the island, whose daily life of adventures and outdoor games is in stark contrast to the arrival of the refugees. Samuele's world hardly connects with the lives of the refugees. But his medical condition -- a lazy eye, which needs immediate attention -- is Rosi's way of pointing fingers at European politicians who close their minds and remain unconcerned about the urgency of the plight of the refugees. Fire at Sea has a calm way of stating the facts -- the way our world exists today. In an engaging manner it shows us that it is not just for celebrities like George Clooney to worry about the world's refugees, it is our problem too. IMAGE: A scene from Ottaal. Ottaal It looks like Indian cinema is being celebrated every year at the Berlinale. The Malayalam children's film Ottaal is the third in so many years (Killa in 2014 and Dhanak in 2015) to play in the Generation section at Berlinale, and also win the jury award. In Jayaraj Rajasekharan Nair's Ottaal, an eight-year-old boy is brought up by his grandfather in Kerala's backwaters. The grandfather's job is to herd the ducks in the local river. Raising a child without parents becomes a challenge for the old man who decides to send the boy to work in a factory in a nearby town. Beautifully shot -- one can't go wrong with locations in Kerala -- Ottaal makes a strong case for preserving the environment while also speaking out against child labour. It is a very important film that was recognised for a National Award in 2015. IMAGE: A scene from Junction 48. Junction 48 Winner of the top audience award in the Panorama section, this is a tough story about young Palestinians and Israelis living together in Lod, 15 kilometres from Tel Aviv. The harsh realities of the Israeli occupation are expressed in Arabic hip-hop music. The protagonist is inspired by real life Palestinian rapper Tamer Nafar. It is packed with a rich, energised, soundtrack that can be best enjoyed in a theatre with perfect Dolby sound. Junction 48's popularity with the German audience in Berlin is understandable. After the film won the audience award it gained a larger political tone. Israeli director Udi Aloni spoke at a press conference branding his country's current government as fascist and asking Germany not to provide military weapons to Israel. Politics apart, Junction 48 is one cool film where the realities of the region merge so beautifully with the musical sounds that once originated in the inner cities of America. IMAGE: A scene from Goat. Goat Straight from its success at the Sundance Film Festival, the American indie Goat shocked audiences at Berlinale. Goat takes place in a fictional American university where a group of young men strive to join a male fraternity house. A well-known fact about fraternities is the initiation phase where freshmen students are subjected to the most humiliating forms of hazing (ragging) -- from excessive drinking to being asked to perform repulsive acts. Hazing is banned in many American colleges, and yet the practice continues. Taking the story of one young man, who is already fighting the demons of having been beaten up by three random men, director Andrew Neel then follows his protagonist through the frightening initiation rituals, all in the name of tradition. Goat is a disturbing film, and a strong reminder of much that is wrong with American society at large. IMAGE: A scene from Things to Come. Things to Come In director Mia Hansen-Love's film, French actress Isabelle Huppert plays a professor of philosophy coping with a personal crisis -- her husband of many years is dating a younger women while her mother is going through severe depression. Things to Come won a Silver Bear for the 35-year old director who has made a very mature film that takes the audience through her protagonist's emotional journey. Huppert is a master performer who brings so much truth to her character's ups and downs, her good days and bad days, as she struggles to keep her head above water. There was speculation that Huppert could win the best actress award, but that honour was given to an equally worthy actress -- Trine Dyrholm, who also plays a woman on the verge of a nervous breakdown in the Danish film, The Commune. IMAGE: A scene from Mapplethorpe: Look at the Pictures. Mapplethorpe: Look at the Pictures An American documentary that will play on HBO in April, Mapplethorpe follows the life and work of the controversial gay American photographer Robert Mapplethorpe. Mapplethorpe was a favourite poster child and punching bag of right-wing American politicians like the late US Senator Jesse Helms and then New York mayor Rudy Giuliani whenever they wanted to criticise government funding of controversial art. Directors Fenton Bailey and Randy Barbato were given complete access to Mapplethorpe's archives by the photographer's family and a group of museum curators. The result is a compelling narrative of an artist who died at 42, from AIDS-related complications, and who left behind a large body of black and white images -- celebrity photographs, self-portrayals and homoerotic pictures which earned him the wrath of right-wing politicians. The experience of watching Mapplethorpe is quite similar to having spent an afternoon at a photography gallery. The film is educational, entertaining and very satisfying. IMAGE: A scene from Midnight Special. Midnight Special Actor Michael Shannon has performed in all four of director Jeff Nichols' films including the latest, Midnight Special, a gripping and violent science fiction story that could be described as E.T. and Close Encounters of the Third Kind for grown ups. Shannon plays the father of a gifted child Alton Meyer (Jaeden Lieberhe), who is being hunted by a Texas commune leader (Sam Shepard), by the FBI and an NSA investigator (Adam Driver). Most of the film is a race to save a child who cannot be exposed to light and yet has to be taken back to his home (the plot is heavily inspired by E.T.), while all the bad guys want to take hold of him. Midnight Special is bound to draw fans of many genres of cinema and should be a sure shot hit when it opens in theatres next month. IMAGE: A scene from A Dragon Arrives. A Dragon Arrives A cool hipster film from Iran with a strong dose of magic realism. A Dragon Arrives is such a joy for the senses with stunning cinematography, gorgeous landscapes and a loud engaging soundtrack. There is a bright orange Chevy Impala, a sharply dressed passenger, a ship sitting in the middle of a desert and a group of investigators searching for clues about a man's death. Director Mani Haghighi's film can be confusing in the way David Lynch's works sometimes are, but it is also a lot of fun to watch. And it is hard to believe that such an avant garde film can be made in a closed society like Iran. A Dragon Arrives's press screening stirred extreme reactions. A stream of critics walked out in the middle of the screening; those who stayed back applauded loudly at the end. IMAGE: A scene from Dog Days. Dog Days Stripper Lulu searches for her child who has been kidnapped by her boyfriend, who is also the boy's father. In search for the baby and the father, Lulu meets a young man in drag and learns about a gay relationship between the two men. Dog Days takes us from the seedy streets of a small town in China to the harsher realities of Shanghai. Through the film we see the cracks that have appeared in Chinese society and how tough life is for its poorer citizens. Director Jordan Schiele's film is also about a mother's quest, a harrowing journey that eventually has a positive outcome. In a shocking first in Maharashtra's history, a mob attacked a police station last week, assaulted two policemen, dragged one of them out, paraded him with a saffrom flag and made him chant, 'Jai Bhavani, Jai Shivaji.' In an exclusive interview, District Superintendent of Police Dr Dnyaneshwar Chavan tells Prasanna D Zore/Rediff.com what really happened. IMAGE: A video grab of a mob assaulting Assistant Sub Inspector Yunus Shaikh of the Pangaon police station, Latur, Maharashtra. District Superintendent of Police Dr Dnyaneshwar Chavan, left, below, is in the eye of a storm. Last Friday, February 19, two policemen under his charge, Assistant Sub Inspector Yunus Shaikh and Head Constable K Awaskar of the Pangaon police station were attacked by a mob inside the police station. Shaikh was then forcibly taken to the spot, saffron flag in hand, and forced to chant 'Jai Bhavani, Jai Shivaji' where, the previous night (February 18), Awaskar and he had prevented a mob from erecting a saffron flag near a mosque in the communally sensitive Ambedkar Chowk. Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis tweeted on Wednesday, February 24, that he has asked state Director General of Police Pravin Dixit and Minister of State for Home (Rural) Ram Shinde to travel to Latur and investigate the incident. This is what DSP Chavan said when asked if the policemen in Pangaon felt insecure and unsafe: "This is, after all, a numbers game. When you are smaller in number compared to those who you face being larger in number... definitely (there is fear)..." How many accused have you arrested in the attack on ASI Shaikh? 16 people have been arrested till now. How many people have been registered as accused in the case according to the FIR (first information report)? 65. By when will you arrest the rest? Definitely, we have been making efforts to arrest the rest. They are absconding. They are not in the village (Renapur) as well as at their relatives' houses. They may have left the district. Their mobile phones are also switched off. We will arrest them 100 per cent. Could you tell us what exactly happened on the day of the attack and the previous night when ASI Shaikh and Head Constable Awaskar stopped people from erecting a saffron flag near Ambedkar Chowk, close to a mosque? The gathering had plans to dig up the road and erect a (saffron) flag at the spot about which our officers came to know. On that night there were two officers on duty. Yunus Shaikh was not alone. Awaskar was also there. These two along with two other policemen went to the spot in a jeep and convinced them not to erect the flag there. They (the gathering which wanted to erect a flag) then went away with their flag at around 1.30 am. Our jeep maintained a vigil at the spot till 3.30 am. Later, at around 8.30 am, the next morning, some 8 to 10 people came to the police station and threatened the officers there with a bandh and other consequences. In another 15, 20 minutes, a big mob gathered outside the police station and seeing these two policemen inside the police station (Shaikh and Awaskar) the mob attacked them. Both suffered head injuries as well as swelling of their hands and legs in this attack. In the melee, Awaskar managed to escape, but the mob caught hold of the other police officer (Shaikh) and took him to the spot where they had asked the mob the previous night not to erect the flag. Were these two officers asked by by their superiors to stop anybody from erecting flags at Ambedkar Chowk? Listen my dear friend; This is our job to stop this nonsense. How can we allow people erecting flags at any place that they want? Once they erect such flags they refuse to remove it, leading to tensions in the area. Once a saffron flag gets erected during one jayanti (birth anniversaries of historic figures), some people come and erect a blue flag on some other jayanti, and then again you have some people erecting a green flag. This is how our society is evolving right now. People think they have done a great job when they erect such flags. Why have you not added Yunus Shaikh as a complainant when it was he who was attacked and paraded by the mob asking him to raise slogans? Why make Awaskar the complainant? Because of the attack on him (Shaikh), he was very nervous. He was not in a condition to give a statement properly. He was conscious, but he was under mental trauma. So, we registered a complaint from Awaskar. Is Yunus Shaikh stable now? Yes, Shaikh and Awaskar, both are stable now. Will you then add Yunus Shaikh as a complainant now? Sir, you have started to change the CrPC (Criminal Procedure Code) now. For one crime there is always one FIR registered and then investigations are done. So you are saying that the CPC doesn't allow you to name two complainants for an attack like this. No. Only one FIR is filed in one incident. Yunus Shaikh's son claims this will weaken the case against the rioters... He must have said this to you. When I met him, when the IG (Inspector General of Police) met him, nothing of this sort has come to light. If there are 10 people injured in a crime, we don't take complaints from all 10 people. But here there were just two people who were attacked. And that too two policemen, who were attacked by the mob who entered a police station and dragged them out, paraded them in full public view. Yunus Shaikh has claimed that the police did not help him when he had asked for reinforcements, informing them that a mob of over 100 people had attacked the police station. The attack took place around 8.30 am and the reinforcements came only at 10.30 by when the assault was over and rioters had fled. It is correct that the incident (the attack on the police station and the police officers; not once did Chavan refer to it as an 'attack'; he stuck to 'incident') started at 8.30 and he (Shaikh) informed about it (for additional police force) and three of our employees (policemen) were on their way at around 9 am to the police station, but the injured constable (Awaskar) met them on the way and informed them that just three policemen were not enough because it was a huge crowd and asked them to come back with a bigger force so that they (policemen in strength) could control them. The distance between our police station (from where the reinforcements took off in a jeep) and the chowki (the police station where the attack occurred) is about 16 km. Because of bad roads any vehicle easily takes about 25 minutes to cover this distance. Did Yunus Shaikh, when he called for help, not say that it was a huge mob? When told that (informed by Yunus) it was a 100-plus mob and given that it was morning time and policemen were amid their shift (night to morning when they change their duties) change and also there were about 8 such processions organised that day (February 19, Shiv Jayanti) our force was distributed for duty at these places too. Another rally was supposed to cross its way from around a mosque at 9 or 9.15 am. For that too we had to requisition policemen. There were about 105 processions across Latur district that day. Isn't this the first time in Maharashtra that a policeman was dragged out by a mob from inside a police station and then attacked? A policeman was paraded in full public view, forced to carry a saffron flag and chant 'Jai Bhavani, Jai Shivaji'. Isn't this a huge failure on the part of the Latur police? Also, such instances were not happening at all the 105 places you mentioned. Only Yunus Shaikh sent you a SoS, but still the police couldn't reach the spot in time with adequate force. It is the duty of every policemen to inform when such incidents happen. You say there were processions happening at 105 places and so you were short on manpower, but across the district only one police station was attacked. Yet you couldn't send adequate timely help. Do you think you failed to give priority to this attack and send immediate help? Shouldn't you have dispatched a larger police force when Yunus Shaikh informed at around 8.30 am that the police station was attacked by a 100-plus strong mob? Our total strength was about 46 that day. Out of which 10 to 12 policemen do the night rounds at different place. Of the remaining 36, we had sent 16 policemen across eight different areas and 10 policemen were stationed at the village. Of the remaining five policemen we sent three of them to his (Yunus Shaikh's) assistance. Our PI (police inspector, Shaikh's senior), who came in later when these policemen who had gone to help him (Shaikh), had come back and then he along with eight policemen went again. You had just 46 policemen at your command? Yes. At these rural police stations the strength is always between 30 and 35. And for a little bigger area the strength at rural police stations is maximum 45 to 50. You may have seeing 200 policemen at a police station in a city like Mumbai. Every police station has a jurisdiction of at least 60 to 70 villages. In the entire Latur district we have 980 villages and our entire police strength (for the district) is 2,100. When Yunus Shaikh called for help, what was the available police strength you had? Only seven to eight reserve policemen were available then, out of which three policemen left immediately. To which organisation are these people, who paraded Yunus Shaikh and attacked a police station, affiliated to? These so-called people wanted to celebrate Shiv Jayanti. There are all kinds of organisations here (in Latur) affiliated to different political parties. These villagers have become extremely politicised. Comparatively, in the cities, since people have jobs, politics is not a big craze. But here in villages, people have only farming that earns them a livelihood and after doing that, they have all the free time to indulge in politics and groupism. Every individual has loyalties to a number of groups here. There is nobody who can be pinpointed as belonging to one (political) party. Which political parties do these rioters belong to then? All parties. Do they belong to the Shiv Sena, BJP, Samajwadi Party, Congress? People belonging to all political parties are here. We are doing individual verification. Here, you don't have official lists that can throw light on political affiliations of the rioters. So, nobody can point towards one political party. There are people who keep shifting (changing their political affiliations). To which political party do the majority of the 16 people you have arrested so far belong to? It (those arrested) is a mix of all political parties. You cannot point fingers at any one political party. Are they Samajwadi Party workers, Congress workers, Shiv Sainiks or BJP workers? Whichever way you ask me, the answer will remain the same. Yunus Shaikh said he did not receive timely help. What do you have to say about this? See the PI (Police Inspector L V Rakh of the Renapur taluka police station) who was there should have reached in time or should have sent reinforcements, but since he could not do it, we have transferred him. So action has been taken against a PI and not his superiors? The PI knew about the incident that had taken place the previous night, but still he did not take any action against it. He did not send extra manpower to the police station nor did he reach the police station in time which was expected of him as he knew about the tension the previous night. Also, he did not inform any of his superiors about this incident... neither the DySP (Deputy Superintendent of Police), nor additional SP (Superintendent of Police), nor SP. No one knew about this until we got a call the next morning at around 8.45 or so. Then we immediately sent a team of 25 officers along with the DySP. They reached there at 9.55. What are the charges under which these 16 accused rioters have been arrested? The Renapur Police station has registered an FIR under Section 307 (attempt to murder), 353 (assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty), 332 (voluntarily causing hurt to deter public servant from his duty), 427 (committing mischief and damage above Rs 50), 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention) of the Indian Penal Code and other Sections of Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act against 150 offenders out of which 65 have been arrested. Who was the mastermind of this attack? Has your investigation thrown up any names? There are two people who led the mob. One of them is Dhananjay Chavan, who is absconding; the second is Chandrakant Chavan, who is under arrest. There are five to six masterminds, but most people are naming Dhananjay as the mastermind. We will arrest the rest of them soon. Has this attack on a police station led to a feeling of fear and insecurity among your officers? This is, after all, a numbers game. When you are smaller in number compared to those who you face being larger in number... definitely (there is fear)... but we are trained to handle such situations. Sometimes we do not anticipate what the mob has in mind. Was Yunus Shaikh singled out because his outward appearance indicated that he was a Muslim? As far as we are concerned, we do not think that this is a communal attack. Both policemen were attacked. But the crowd paraded Yunus Shaikh in public, made him carry the flag and chant 'Jai Bhavani, Jai Shivaji'. Have you taken an oath to not listen to what I am saying? Are you a lawyer cross questioning me or what? I am just asking a question. So, let me tell you: Both the policemen were attacked. Both received head injuries. Both tried to escape, but only Awaskar succeeded. It is not that Awaskar was let off by the mob. You should not draw your own conclusions. We have made sure that this was not a communal attack and Yunus Shaikh was not singled out. Both were attacked, both suffered injuries. The incident was unfortunate. When the police is on duty they do not have a caste or religion. We keep our caste and religious affiliations aside when we adorn the Khaki and do our duty. How citizens or other elements view us is what I cannot comment on. Neither do we look at the caste or religion of those who we face. You are not looking at this attack as a police failure? We should have taken precautionary measures after the incident that took place the previous night, (but we did not). If we had had enough strength (police force) then we could have done much more. Can you anticipate an attack like this at 8.30 in the morning when a similar situation had taken place the previous night at 2.30, 3 am? The police are not mind-reading machines. Why don't you take this into consideration? You think of us as super robots who can read people's thoughts and actions. We do take precautionary measures based on a situation and our experience. The time between the two incidents were just about six hours. Had this happened three, four days after the previous night's incident one can understand that we could not anticipate or read the situation correctly. But here we just had six hours and taking this into consideration you decide if this was a failure or not. Will you arrest the other accused within a week? We are doing our best. A day after former MP and Nationalist Congress Party leader Samir Bhujbal was arrested by the enforcement directorate in a money laundering case, party chief Sharad Pawar on Tuesday said he has not seen such "blatant misuse of power" in last 40 years. "I have seen other governments besides the Congress and the NCP. I have very closely observed the Shiv Sena and the Bharatiya Janata Party government in 1995. But, in a democracy, I have not seen such a blatant misuse of power in the last 40 years," Pawar said, while addressing reporters here. Samir, nephew of NCP leader Chhagan Bhujbal was arrested last evening after over six hours of grilling under the provision of Prevention of Money Laundering Act with the contention that he was not co-operating with investigation and thus his custodial interrogation was necessary. Pawar however, while answering a query, said that Chhagan Bhujbal should co-operate with the investigation and come out clean of all charges. "This is not a matter of protests. There are more important issues concerning the people of the state that need urgent attention at the moment," the veteran politician said. The 75-year old former Union Minister said that he has worked for many years at the Centre and that decisions are taken by a Group of Ministers and not by a single person. "Like the Centre, the state also has a group of ministers who take decisions collectively. What is being shown as (Chhagan) Bhujbal's decision, is actually the decision of the cabinet," he said. "It is unprecedented that three Central agencies investigate one allegation. It means that they want to continue to keep investigating till they get what they want. There is just one family that is being targeted here for political gains," he added. The ex-CM of Maharashtra while replying to a query also said that the NCP will not be intimidated by such acts and that it will continue to raise issues concerning people. "If anybody wants to misuse power against us, we are ready for it. There is nothing to worry about. They can accuse as many people of indulging in corruption as they want to. Tomorrow they may take my name as well. Instead of getting intimidated, we will undeterringly continue to focus on issues concerning people," Pawar said. On Monday, the ED arrested Samir Bhujbal in a money laundering case here after the agency conducted multiple searches in connection with its probe against Bhujbals and others. Samir was arrested after over six hours of questioning under the provision of the PMLA at the agency's office in Ballard Pier in Mumbai. He is scheduled to be produced in court on Tuesday. Sources claimed he was not cooperating with the investigators and hence his custodial interrogation was necessary. On Monday, ED conducted searches on at least nine premises, including properties and offices, belonging to former Maharashtra PWD minister Chhagan Bhujbal, son Pankaj, nephew and ex-MP Samir and few others. A team of 20 officers of the Mumbai zonal unit of the agency conducted the operation. The agency's action came days after the Bombay high court on January 28 sought progress reports from the Maharashtra Anti-Corruption Bureau and the ED in four weeks on their probe against Bhujbal and his family members. The agency has filed two FIRs against the Bhujbals and others under the provisions of the PMLA, based on earlier filed Mumbai police FIRs, to probe the Delhi-based Maharashtra Sadan construction scam and the Kalina land grabbing case. The agency has also brought out three property attachment orders worth over Rs 280 crore in this probe case under money laundering laws. The Bombay high court, in December 2014, had constituted a Special Investigation Team comprising the ED Director and the Director General of state Anti-Corruption Bureau to conduct the inquiry against the politician and others and submit a report to it. The Mumbai police complaint names Pankaj and Samir and they had been booked under IPC Sections related to cheating, criminal conspiracy, criminal breach of trust and relevant provisions of Maharashtra Ownership Flats Act. Jawaharlal Nehru University students Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya were on Wednesday sent to three days' police remand by a city court, after their midnight surrender and subsequent arrest in a case of sedition. The South Campus police station near the JNU where they are being kept, was turned into a makeshift court room following a order by the Delhi high court to "maintain confidentiality" during their remand proceedings. "Umar and Anirban have been sent to three days' custody," Deputy Commissioner of Police (South) Prem Nath told media persons on Wednesday night. During the hearing, the police demanded seven days' custody of the duo, who allegedly had organised a controversial event at the JNU on February 9 where anti-India slogans were said to have been raised. The police has also applied for production of JNUSU President Kanhaiya Kumar, also arrested on sedition charges, so that all the three students can be interrogated together. Earlier, the Delhi high court ordered to "maintain confidentiality" during the remand proceedings of Kumar, Umar and Anirban and directed the police to ensure that no one "suffers even a scratch" and there is no ruckus this time. Lawyers had allegedly assaulted Kumar when he was brought to Patiala House Court for remand proceedings, in defiance of an Supreme Court order. Two days earlier, when Kumar was to be brought to the court, the same set of lawyers had thrashed journalists and JNU students and teachers. The court order came during the hearing on Kumar's bail plea after it was informed that the student leader and two arrested co-accused -- Umar and Anirban -- were apprehending threat to their safety and security during production before Patiala House courts for remand proceedings. Delhi Police on Wednesday told the Delhi high court that further custodial interrogation of JNUSU President Kanhaiya Kumar is required in the wake of the arrest of two other accused students Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya in the sedition case. As soon as the hearing on Kanhaiya's bail plea commenced before Justice Pratibha Rani, Additional Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told the court that police have a statutory right to take police custody of an accused for 15 days and due to new developments Kanhaiya's custodial remand is necessary. "After yesterday's development, two of the accused have surrendered and are in safe custody. Their remand is yet to be taken. In the backdrop of the new development and as per our statutory right of 15 days police custody of an accused, we will be seeking remand of Kanhaiya Kumar to confront him with Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya," Mehta submitted. The ASG said, "Our right cannot be curtailed and the present bail petition be deferred." However, during the hearing, when the court was informed about violence at Patiala House court complex during Kanhaiya's remand proceedings, the bench observed, "We have to ensure that no one suffers even a scratch this time. The Registrar of the Delhi high court and the police should ensure that no ruckus, as happened in the past, should take place while the accused are being produced." Then Mehta told the court to defer the bail petition in wake of the new development. The bench has now fixed February 29 for further hearing on the bail plea. Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for Kanhaiya, contended that as per the status report filed by Delhi Police, in pursuance to the court's direction yesterday, there was no evidence of any anti-India slogans being raised by his client. "I would like to tell the court that in the light of the status report filed by the police, there is no evidence of anti-India slogans raised by Kanhaiya. So he should be granted bail," Sibal said. Mehta, however, said that as per the new circumstances and evidence which have emerged, Kanhaiya is required to be confronted with the two arrested accused. Kanhaiya, who was arrested on February 12, was in police custody till February 17 when he was remanded in judicial custody till March 2 amidst violence at the court premises during the remand proceedings. During the proceedings, the bench said this time only the counsel for the accused, the lawyers representing the investigating agency and police officials will remain present in the court room during the remand proceedings which have to be done secretly so that no untoward incident takes place. The Delhi government's senior standing counsel Rahul Mehra told the bench that he should also be heard in this matter. The bench, however, observed, "This inside fight should not be carried on. Let the court proceed with the matter." on Tuesday, when the hearing on Kanhaiya's bail plea had commenced, Mehra had opposed the appearance of Additional Solicitors General (ASGs) Tushar Mehta and Sanjay Jain and Special Public Prosecutors of Delhi Police Anil Soni. Mehra had said that he has been appointed as senior standing counsel by the full court reference of the high court and if there was no notification empowering the ASGs to appear in the matter, they cannot represent the State. Besides Mehta, Jain and Soni, another Special Public Prosecutor of Delhi Police Shailendra Babbar appeared before the court on Wednesday. During the day's proceedings, when ASG Mehta told the court that police has a statutory right to take 15 days police custody of an accused, the bench said, "You have the statutory right and no one can deny this." At this juncture, Sibal contended that police had themselves sought to send Kanhaiya in judicial custody before the trial court. "How can they seek fresh police custody. However, if they are going to do so permit us to oppose the remand and keep this bail plea pending subject to the outcome of the trial court's decision as to whether Kanhaiya will be remanded in police custody or judicial custody," he said. Sibal also appealed to the court that he should be informed in advance about the content of the remand application so that he can oppose it, saying that it was his statutory right. To this, Justice Rani said, "I will ask them to inform you in advance about such application. This right cannot be denied." She said, "You (police) will have to perform this religiously. I don't want to hear anything in future that you have not followed the order of this court. It has to be followed in black and white." When the bench said it will hear Kanhaiya's bail plea on February 29 at 2:15 pm, some of the office bearers of the Delhi high court bar association, who were present in the court room, said that in the post-lunch session there might be a security issue as most of the lawyers are free by then. Rahul Mehra, however, said that police should ensure safety and security and even the lawyers should not indulge in such kind of activity which was witnessed at the Patiala House court premises. Sibal told the bench that he should also be allowed inside the court room during the remand proceedings of Kanhaiya. "If the police will pray for your remand, the you will be there. The remand proceedings should be done secretly. How it will be conducted, I will discuss with the police and lawyers of the accused in my chamber and will pass an order accordingly," it said. At this stage, Mehta assured the bench that police will comply with the court's direction and will ensure safety and security of the accused. "It is the requirement of the law that the proceedings should be conducted in a peaceful manner," the court said. In pursuance of the court's direction on Tuesday, Delhi police filed a status report of its investigation in the sedition case. In its status report, police have said that besides the video footage in which the accused are allegedly raising anti-india slogans, they have other evidence against Kanhaiya as well. In the status report, police opposed Kanhaiya's bail plea, saying if released at this stage, he may influence witnesses as the investigation is at an initial stage and statements of witnesses are being recorded. It said that problem may arise with regard to law and order situation if the accused is granted bail. Besides these, the police mentioned 30 anti-India slogans which were allegedly raised by the accused and said that these slogans were against the country. Delhi Police Commissioner B S Bassi, who had last week said that police would not object if Kanhaiya applied for bail, had yesterday justified changing its stand of opposing the bail plea in the high court, saying the circumstances have changed. Bassi had said Kanhaiya showed repentance on his part when he issued an appeal on the day he was produced before a court but later denied having issued any such appeal and made certain allegations which were "false". "We have reasonable apprehension that if he (Kanhaiya) comes out on bail, he is bound to impact the investigation and influence witnesses. He is also likely to indulge in activities that are violative of penal laws. That is why we have opposed grant of bail to Kanhaiya and shall oppose it further too," Bassi had said. The high court had on Tuesday posted the matter for Wednesday while asking the police to submit a status report of the probe in the case limited to the extent of bail only. Kanhaiya had moved his bail plea in the high court following a direction of the Supreme Court which had refused to hear it, saying it will set a "dangerous precedent". In his petition, Kanhaiya has claimed he was "falsely implicated" and he had not raised any anti-national slogan. The JNUSU leader has claimed that he was wrongly arrested on the basis of an FIR which was devoid of evidence to book him under such a serious charge. He has said that no case is made out against him as there is no evidence as he had never raised any anti-national slogan during the event organised in JNU on February 9. Kanhaiya had approached the SC directly for bail claiming threat to his life in Tihar Jail. Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Wednesday said the attack on policemen in Latur district is an attack on the entire police force and such acts will not be "tolerated" in the future. Police ASI Yusuf Sheikh forced to chant 'Jai Bhawani'; assaulted, paraded by local goons in Latur, Maharashtra. Photograph: ANI "I have told the DG Police and Minister of State for Home to visit Pangaon in Latur," he said. "The government feels that it is not an attack on an individual but on the (police) force. Won't tolerate such act," the CM tweeted. Sixteen people have been arrested so far in connection with the assault on two policemen in Latur when they prevented them from putting up a flag at a spot in Pangaon village. Meanwhile, Inspector L V Rakh, of Renapur police station near Pangaon, has been suspended in connection with the incident. MIM legislator from Aurangabad, Imtiaz Jaleel, said the guilty needs to be punished. On the night of February 19, Yunus Shaikh, an assistant sub-inspector in Latur district, and his colleague K Awaskar allegedly stopped a group of local youths from erecting the flag in the "sensitive" area. The group included Marathas and other Hindus celebrating Shivaji Jayanti, police said. Awaskar and Shaikh, both on duty at Pangaon police chowki, reached the spot and asked the youth to leave. They told them that erecting the flag could lead to communal clashes, a police official said. At 9 am on Saturday, a mob of around 200-300 people from the village, including the youths, showed up at the police chowki. "They (youths) had incited the mob by telling them that the two policemen had crushed their flags under their feet," the official said. The mob then allegedly began to attack the duo with fists and lathis. The ASI and his colleague suffered head injuries, but Shaikh was hit worse and was hospitalised. A video of the purported attack, which has gone viral, shows Shaikh being made to parade a street with the saffron flag by the mob. Vikram Singh Chauhan, the face of two brazen attacks on journalists and Jawaharlal Nehru University students and teachers at the Patiala court complex in New Delhi last week, was arrested on Wednesday in connection with the assaults. He was, however, freed on bail later in the evening, a senior police official said. Chauhan was booked on charges of rioting, unlawful assembly and causing hurt pertaining to two separate cases. "While one case against Chauhan pertains to the February 15 incident, the other relates to the violence on February 17," the official said. Chauhan was caught on camera leading a group of lawyers in mounting the assaults on two occasions -- February 15 and 17 -- at the Patiala House court complex, triggering widespread outrage. The lawyer appeared before the police, six days after he was served summons in connection with the violence in the court complex. There have been angry protests over alleged police inaction against the lawyer though he was the most prominent among the lawyers involved in unleashing violence at the court complex on two occasions. On Monday, a news channel had aired a sting operation in which the lawyer was seen boasting about beating arrested JNUSU President Kanhaiya Kumar, charged with sedition, when he was brought to the court on February 17. In the video, he was purportedly heard saying "we bashed him (Kumar) for three hours. He wet his pants. We beat him up so much." Before presenting himself to police, Chauhan on Wednesday said "none of the charges against me has been proved. A few channels are projecting me as a goon. I did not beat the reporters. Others did." Groups of lawyers, led by Chauhan, had thrashed journalists and JNU students and teachers on February 15 and repeated their act on February 17 against Kumar and some media persons, in open defiance of the Supreme Court instructions. Yashpal Singh, one of Chauhan's colleagues who was also caught on camera thrashing journalists and JNU teachers and students, was arrested on Tuesday night and released on bail immediately. Image: The lawyers protesting outside the Patiala House court on Wednesday. Photograph: PTI All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam general secretary and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa on Wednesday turned 68, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi greeting the leader on her birthday. Modi wished Jayalalithaa over phone and the latter thanked the prime minister for his greetings, an official release said. In a tweet, the Prime Minister said, "Birthday wishes to Jayalalithaaji. May Almighty bless her with a long life, filled with good health". AIADMK workers also celebrated their leader's birthday with usual fervour. Ministers participated in special prayers in places of worship while mega feast, 'annadanam' and distribution of welfare measures were undertaken by AIADMK workers all across the state. At Chennai a 68 kg cake was cut by ministers and party workers. A similar initiative was held at Villupuram. As many as 18 lakh callers had greeted Jayalalithaa on a dedicated phone line established for this purpose, party's IT Wing Secretary K Swaminthan said. "We have received 18 lakh calls as of noon on Wednesday and we expect to cross 25 lakh by midnight," he said. The popular Amma Unavagam (subsidised canteens) under Corporation of Chennai, distributed free food for people. The Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Department, which manages a large number of temples across the state, launched a massive tree sapling planting drive, covering 6868 Shaivite and Vaishnavite temples across the state. While Vilvam (bael) saplings were planted in Shaivite temples, Punnai (Alexandrian Laurel) and Magizham (ape flower tree) were planted in Vaishnavite temples, by the department. Songs from films featuring AIADMK founder M G Ramachandran and Jayalalithaa, both yesteryear stars, were being played out even as distribution of welfare measures and special prayers marked the occasion. A massive sapling plantation drive would be taken up in 6,868 temples across the state by the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Department besides other programmes. Many AIADMK members got her picture tattooed on their arms. The tattoos read 'Amma everything for us'. "Amma is everything for us; she is like a god to us. To show gratitude, we tattooed her picture on our body parts. During the recent floods, she helped and gave Rs 5000 as a relief amount to us and helped us to return back our normal lives," said Devi, one of Jayalalithaa's supporter. Sparks flew in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday as the raging Jawaharlal Nehru University row and suicide of Dalit student Rohith Vemula was taken up for discussion, with opposition accusing the government of muzzling the voice of the youth and "mercilessly crushing" the principles of democracy. To counter the opposition onslaught, the Bharatiya Janata Party targetted Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi for his "support" to those standing with hanged Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru and said the House has to decide if it stands with those who attacked Parliament or those who laid down their lives defending it. The debate, on the first working day of Budget session, saw accusations and counter-accusations, with both ruling and opposition sides underlining their credentials as "nationalists". Initiating the debate, Congress' Chief Whip Jyotiraditya Scindia alleged "undue interference" by Union HRD Minister Smriti Irani and Labour Minister Bandaru Dattatreya in Vemula's case. "Bandaru Dattaterya in his letter had called Rohith a castiest and an anti-national. Where in the world can you see a HRD minister writing five letters in any case," he said. Scindia also raised the issue of FTII, IIT Madras and JNU and said, "the government was trying to muzzle the voice of the youth." Lambasting the government, Scindia attacked External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, Tribal Affairs Minister Jual Oram and Irani for emphasising that Vemula was not a Dalit. Criticising the role of HyderabadUniversity administration, he said protests and fights are the part of academic institutions but in this case the vice-chancellor should have tackled this issue in a better way. However, he instead suspended the Dalit students and compelled them to stay in an open tent because of the the "politics of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and BJP," Scindia said. "What is the duty of the government? It is to protect the democratic institutions and work for the betterment of the people. But since last two years, with the atmosphere of intolerance, no one feels secured. It is mercilessly crushing the democratic principles," the Congress leader said. "The prime minister speaks of demographic dividend of the youth. But what do we see in the country? In Madhya Pradesh, we see Vyapam in Madhya Pradesh, the problem of drugs in Punjab, the way the voice of students in FTII was muzzled. The government machinery is being misused and is trying to crush the voice of the dissident and those having the contrary view," he said. He also questioned the silence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying "He tweets on every other thing, but it took five days for him to speak on this matter, only after a worldwide uproar. There is no reference on in the Mann Ki Baat." Scindia said while the government was celebrating 125th century of Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar, it was not following its path. "There is huge gap between the talk and the act of the government." Scindia said nobody supports the slogans which were chanted in JNU but slogans cannot be criminalised and termed as treason. He alleged that the government was angry with the JNU because it stood against "saffron terrorism", Dadri lynching, RSS and the suicide of Rohith Vemula in the HyderabadUniversity. JNUSU President Kanhaiya Kumar was targeted for his opposition to RSS and ABVP, the Congress leader said. From the BJP side, Anurag Thakur raised the nationalist pitch over the JNU issue and attacked Congress, saying for the party, "it is 'family first', 'party next' and 'nation last'. For us, it is 'nation first', 'party next' and 'family last'." He alleged that Rahul Gandhi went to the university to support such outfits which were named by the previous United Progressive Alliance government as "frontal organisations" for Maoists. "I want to ask Sonia ji, why your young leader was standing with those who stand with Afzal Guru," Thakur said addressing the Congress president who was present there. His speech saw protests from Congress members who raised a point of order, saying he was levelling "derogatory allegations" against Rahul, a contention rejected by the speaker. He alleged that when 74 security personnel were killed in a Naxal attack in Dantewada in Chattisgarh a few years back, there were celebrations in JNU. Thakur also referred to the Batla House encounter in which a Delhi Police inspector had died in an encounter with terrorists and said that a Union minister belonging to Congress had then said Sonia Gandhi "cried" over the death of terrorists. "You did not go to the house of the martyred Inspector. Rahul also could not go. But he went to JNU," he said. Earlier, Scindia said, "Live and let live in India.' In a swipe at Home Minister Rajnath Singh over his claim that Lashkar-e-Tayiba founder Hafiz Sayeed had supported the controversial JNU event, the Congress leader said Singh had no face to show after it was found the Hafiz's tweet was fake. He also referred to controversial statements by several BJP leaders, including a member of Legislative Assembly remarks that Rahul Gandhi be shot, and said action should have been taken against them. He termed as a joke the HRD Ministry's decision following the JNU row that all universities will hoist tricolour. Sugata Bose (Trinamool Congress) accused the government of being "heartless" in dealing with the students and said the situation in the JNU should have been handled with sensitivity. Observing that similar problems were witnessed at JadhavpurUniversity, he said, the West Bengal government did not over-react but tried to defuse the situation. He said people could disagree with students but it would be incorrect to brand them anti-national and slap sedition charges on them. "They too have the right to make mistake," he added. Nobody, Bose said, should claim monopoly on nationalism and the government should respect the right of everyone including that of students to freedom of speech and expression. Quoting Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, he said, it would be wrong to pursue nationalism which is "narrow, selfish and arrogant." He suggested that laws dealing with sedition should be repealed as they were enacted by colonial rulers to subserve their ends. The passionate speech of Bose was appreciated by several members of the House. Congress leaders Sonia and Rahul walked up to his seat to congratulate him. Participating in the discussion, Biju Janata Dal member Tathagata Satpathy described Azfal Guru as a "scoundrel" and said the system gave the dreaded man full chance to defend himself. However, he added, the government should have handled the JNU episode with care and the Home ministry should not have made a statement on the basis of tweets, "which are no more than gossips". Arvind Sawant (Shiv Sena) demanded that Article 370, which grants special status to Jammu and Kashmir, should be repealed and stressed that those who may try to break this nation "should be torn into pieces". Sawant said that today some sections were praising Afzal Guru and Maqbool Butt and tomorrow they would even praise Kasab, that would be regrettable. Samajwadi Party President Mulayam Singh Yadav said the JNU is a prestigious institute and for the first time it has been labelled as "desh drohi". The incident of February 9 in JNU should be investigated properly, he said adding people who have raised anti-national slogans should be punished. Telugu Desam Party member P Ravindra Babu termed the suicide of Dalit student Rohith Vemula as "unfortunate" and said sedition charge against the JNU student "is too harsh a measure". He said several banks have declared NPAs and it is weakening the Indian economy and "those people need to be charged with sedition charges". He said if students are punished, "they will become hardcore criminals". On the Dalit student suicide in HyderabadUniversity, TRS member Konda V Reddy, whose party is in power in the state, said this was not the first incident. "Just as secularism is not the patent right of Congress, nationalism is not the patent right of BJP," he added. Reddy said the laws are ambiguous about sedition and "we should have definite laws". Communist Party of India-Marxist member M B Rajesh said the incidents of the Hyderabad University and the JNU have shaken the conscience of the entire nation. He alleged the suicide of Vemula is an "institutional murder" and that some union ministres have made insulting statements against Rohith and "now they are targeting the JNU". "The JNU is always their prime target," he said. Several respected people are alumuni of JNU, he said, adding "how can you brand such institutions as a centre of nati-national? Do you have an iota of evidence? There have been fabrication of evidences, fake tweets". Lok Janshakti Party member Chirag Paswan said if some people are involved in anti-national sloganeering, action should be taken against them. "Freedom of speech does not mean that you become the voice of anti-nationals," Paswan said adding "I am proud of JNU and we need not politicise the issue". Tariq Anwar of NCP said the government showed unnecessary haste in taking action on the JNU students. "The entire central government has become active and are saying that JNU is nati-national...people who have raised anti-national slogans should be punished and not the innocent ones...the work which should be handled at the level of the vice-chancellor, police and the Home minister are there". Image: Congress President Sonia Gandhi and party MP Mallikarjun Kharge in Lok Sabha in New Delhi. Photograph: PTI Photo Here's this week of photos that prove we live in a mad world. A passenger not wearing pants stands as he reads a book inside a subway train during the "No Pants Subway Ride" in Mexico City, Mexico. The event is an annual flash mob and occurs in different cities around the world, according to its organisers. Photograph: Carlos Jasso/Reuters Competitors chase the ball during a "Tuk Tuk" (Three-Wheeled) Polo game in Galle. Photograph: Dinuka Liyanawatte/Reuters Australian dog trainer and former surfing champion Chris de Aboitiz rides a wave with his dogs Millie (left) and Rama off Sydney's Palm Beach. An Australian dog trainer and former surfing champion is using the discipline of surfing as a way of teaching owners to build healthy relationships with man's best friend. Photograph: Jason Reed/Reuters A cat stands near a horse in Beirut, Lebanon. Photograph: Mohamed Azakir/Reuters A skater wearing a heart-shaped costume skates during a Valentine's Day celebration at the Medeo skating rink in Almaty, Kazakhstan. Photograph: Shamil Zhumatov/Reuters A participant falls on vintage skis during a traditional historical ski race in the northern Bohemian town of Smrzovka, Czech Republic. Photograph: David W Cerny/Reuters Bride Jintara Promchat, 28, and groom Kittinant Suwansiri, 29, fly while attached to cables during a wedding ceremony ahead of Valentine's Day at a resort in Ratchaburi province, Thailand. Four Thai couples took part in the wedding ceremony arranged by the resort. Photograph: Athit Perawongmetha/Reuters Men wearing high heeled shoes take part in a Guinness World Record attempt for the largest amount of people running in high heels in Melbourne, Australia. The World's Largest High Heel Race 2016 raised funds for the The Warwick Cancer Foundation. The current record is 967 people, completed in Indiana, USA in 2010. Photograph: Scott Barbour/Getty Images The recently unveiled new statues of Paul McCartney, George Harrison, Ringo Starr and John Lennon of the Beatles stand outside the Liver Building at Liverpool Waterfront in Liverpool, England. New research commissioned by Liverpool City Council has shown that the legacy and continued popularity of The Beatles adds GBP 81.9 million to the local economy each year and supports 2,335 jobs. Photograph: Christopher Furlong/Getty Images Monkey sculptures stand at Quancheng Road in Jinan, Shandong Province of China. Photograph: ChinaFotoPress/ChinaFotoPress via Getty Images A guest in an unusual inflatable outfit attends punk themed 'On'Off Presents Punk Diversity' fashion show during London Fashion Week in London, England. The show is part of Punk London which is a series of events across the capital in 2016 to mark 40 years since the birth of punk culture. The show features three designers with 10 designs each. 'On'Off Presents' was established in 2007 to showcase designers that they believe are the ones to watch. Photograph: Chris Ratcliffe/Getty Images Monkeys perform on the monkeys gala at Crazy Appleland Theme Park to mark the Year of the Monkey, in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province of China. Photograph: /Reuters China MILWAUKEE Gov. Scott Walker signed legislation Thursday that cuts millions of dollars in funding for Planned Parenthood in Wisconsin, which denounced the move as politically motivated and a detriment to the 60,000 women and men it serves in the state. One of the two bills the Republican governor signed at a faith-based counseling clinic in Waukesha requires clinics that participate in a federal program that allows them to purchase discounted drugs to bill Medicaid for the actual acquisition costs and a dispensing fee. The change will cost Planned Parenthood an estimated $4.5 million per year, according to the organization, because lower reimbursement rates are offered to clinics linked to abortion services. Although the bill doesnt mention Planned Parenthood by name, Democrats and others say it treats the organization differently than other clinics. The law is directed just at Planned Parenthood. Its to cut our funding so we cant provide services, said Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin director of government relations Nicole Safar. Legal action is certainly on the table. The law singles out Planned Parenthood. The other bill Walker signed at Lifes Connection prevents the state from directing any federal Title X grant money to an organization or affiliate that provides abortions. That could mean a loss of $3.5 million in federal dollars for Planned Parenthood. Safar said her organization will compete on its own for the Title X funding when the new grant cycle comes up in several years. Walker said the bills require the state Department of Health Services to apply for federal funding for womens health services on behalf of less controversial providers and ensures that prescription reimbursement processes are handled in a cost-based and transparent manner. Safar said the location of the bill signing sends a clear message about Walkers political motivation. It really is disingenuous to be talking about cuts to health care at an organization that provides religious counseling, but no health care, she said. Planned Parenthood has operated in Wisconsin for 80 years and has 22 health centers, three of which provide abortions. The bill signing comes four years after Republicans made other funding cuts to Planned Parenthood, which the organization said caused it to close five clinics. Why does this Kerala district see so many political murders and revenge killings? Shobha Warrier/Rediff.com finds out. On the night of February 15, P V Sujith, 27, seen left, was hacked to death at his home at Papinassery in Kerala's Kannur district. His terrified parents tried to protect their son, but were injured in the murderous attack. Before dawn, the police arrested six Communist Party of India-Marxist workers for murdering Sujith, a member of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. Sujith's slaying is the latest in over 180 political murders committed in Kannur district from the 1980s onwards. "The earliest political murders were reported in the early 1960s, though on a small scale," says Babu Bhaskar, a well-known journalist. The reason was usually because an individual left the Communist Party -- later the CPI-M -- and joined a rival political party. If it was to join the Socialist Party and the Congress in the 1960s, it is the RSS today. Sujith was a member of the CPI-M till three years ago. His abandoning the party was apparently not taken kindly to by some in the local Marxist leadership. What is the connection between Kannur and Communism, you ask. Historians say the guerrilla war launched by Pazhassi Raja, the ruler of Kottayam province, against the British had a huge impact in Kannur, which is located in Malabar, north Kerala. Having spawned giants in the Communist movement like A K Gopalan, E K Nayanar and Azhikodan Raghavan, a large section of the electorate in Kannur tilts towards the CPI-M. Seventy per cent of the panchayats in Kannur are governed by the CPI-M-led Left Democratic Front. The Bharatiya Janata Party increasing its vote share three fold startled the CPI-M. In the recent local body elections, the BJP won 13 village panchayats, which did not go down well with the Left. Most of those killed, Bhaskar points out, are from the toddy-tapper community: The Thiyyas, a caste variant of which is called the Ezhavas in south Kerala. "The Thiyyas have been traditionally with the Left and when someone deserts the party," says Bhaskar, "we see that there is an attempt to kill him. The CPI-M somehow dissuades people from leaving the party by killing deserters." As the Thiyya and Ezhava communities are seen as mostly CPI-M supporters, more so in Kannur, the party is not happy that Velapally Natesan, the head of the community outfit, the Sree Narayana Dharma Paripalana Yogam, has aligned with the BJP for the coming assembly election. Those who leave the CPI-M and take refugee in a rival political party are also suspected of involvement in political murders and violence at some time or the other. RSS worker E Manoj, who was murdered on September 1, 2014, was an accused in the case where P Jayarajan, the CPI-M district secretary, was stabbed in 1999. Kannur is considered the CPI-M's strongest bastion in Kerala, says V Muraleedharan, former president of the state BJP. "So they cannot tolerate anyone deserting their party and joining another party. When workers find that CPI-M leaders preach something and practice something else, they get frustrated." "They understand that the CPI-M leaders are in real life not pro-poor," alleges Muraleedharan. "They fight against foreign universities coming to Kerala, but they send their children to study abroad. They fought against self-financing colleges. Now the CPI-M is the largest owner of self-financing colleges in Kerala. The rank and file understand this." Both the BJP-RSS and CPI-M blame each other for the revenge killings. Sathyaprakash, the BJP's Kannur district secretary, says the Marxist party's "fascist nature is the reason behind all the attacks and murders." Kannur is one district where the Marxists have a huge influence, says Sathyaprakash, and the CPI-M considers it insulting when a party worker joins another party. "When youngsters frustrated with the CPI-M got attracted to the RSS," he says, "the party could not accept it. So, they resorted to killings. The first such killing was that of Chandran, a college student in 1978. He was tied to a coconut tree and murdered in a gruesome manner." Sathyaprakash claims innocence when asked if the BJP-RSS has been involved in political murders. "We have not planned any murder of any Marxist leader," he says, adding cleverly, "we have only retaliated." M V Jayarajan, a well-known CPI-M leader from Kannur, says that most of those murdered belonged to his party. "All these murders are happening because we fight against communalism and the dangers it spreads in the state," he says. The politics of intolerance and revenge, Jayarajan says, began in Kannur in the 1970s, but it became a battle between the CPI-M and RSS because "we are in the forefront to stop the RSS from spreading communalism in the area." Kannur Superintendent of Police Hari Shankar describes something unique about Kannur -- villages in the district are literally owned by political parties. In a village dominated by say CPI-M members, they see to it that land and houses are only sold to people within the party fold so that the village is controlled by the Marxists. "It is very difficult for any outsider including the police to enter such a set-up," says Hari Shankar. "There are many such pockets in Kannur. If we have to arrest an accused from such a place, it is very difficult for us to enter and arrest the person as the entire community will object to it." "There are areas where we have to do a lathi-charge for every arrest. This is one place where people live based on party lines." The BJP's Muraleedharan accuses the CPI-M of not allowing BJP and RSS workers to enter villages "owned" by the Marxists so that they can propagate their ideology. "We don't accept that. We have every right to propagate our ideology anywhere," he says. "They can't oppose it through violence." When someone in the village changes his party affiliation and others follow him, Hari Shankar says tension in the community inevitably follows, leading to violence and even murder. The superintendent of police describes Kannur as a place where people are passionate about politics and ideology. "You see the most disciplined, well mannered and polite people here, but the problem is they are so passionate about politics that once they take up a cause it is very difficult to bring them back to a different route." "One character of this district is all are passionate and political violence happens because they are passionate," the police officer adds. Hari Shankar admits that Kannur is a difficult district to manage because of the kind of passion the community has for politics. He cites Sujith's murder which occurred at 11.30 pm. "When something like that happens at night," says Hari Shankar, "we have to do two things. We see that there is no retaliation. We had to see that every CPI-M office and leader is safe from retaliatory attacks." "Second, we have to find and arrest the accused as soon as possible because if we don't do it before the next day's martyr's procession, there will be violence." "If we arrest the accused," he adds, "the procession of 5,000 to 6,000 people will be peaceful. Or else, we will see aggression against the police and public property. We hardly get hours to prevent retaliation and arrest the accused." "Sujith's martyr's procession," the police officer says, "was one of the most peaceful because we had arrested the accused at night itself. In fact, those who participated in the procession shook hands with the police for doing our duty so diligently." The folk songs of Malabar (vadakkan paattu) are full of stories of revenge killings and Bhaskar thinks that could be one reason why people in the region resort to revenge politics and murders. "Some people have come out with this explanation that the ballads have glorified revenge killings. The folk songs challenge the deserters and bay for their blood," says Bhaskar. "The good thing is that this kind of violence is confined to Kannur and has not spread to other parts of Kerala." A few years ago though, Bhaskar recalls, in retaliation to what happened in Kannur, RSS workers attacked the CPI-M's national headquarters in Delhi, the CPI-M state secretary in Karnataka, Visakhapatnam and Madurai on the same day. "After that, there was a softening on both sides and violence happened only in the villages of Kannur," he adds. Jayarajan blames the BJP and RSS for scuttling peace talks. "When the collector called for peace talks, they boycotted the meeting five times. Even the day after RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat called for peace, we saw violent activities by the RSS. If the CPI-M is for debates, the RSS is for violence," he says. "We don't believe in weapons and violence," the Marxist leader claims. "If you see the politics of intolerance in northern India now, it has been there in Kannur for decades." Muraleedharan scoffs at this accusation, saying that the dialogue did not happen because the CPI-M's offer for talks came with several riders. "We want peace in Kannur and Kerala. We are ready to have a dialogue with them if an independent body arranges it," says the BJP leader. "The CPI-M is facing a big crisis in Kannur because the former district secretary is in police custody as an accused in the E Manoj murder case. CPI-M workers are losing confidence in the leadership." "The BJP is a negligible force in Kerala. Why should they kill people who join such a party?" asks Muraleedharan. "They claim they have 50 per cent of the votes and we have hardly 5 to 10 per cent vote share. Why should they fear such a party?" "Is the RSS such a big organisation that it can kill so many people? We are a small organisation. This kind of barbaric politics is deplorable and all of us should make an effort to put an end to this." Georgia: Proposed insulting religious feelings law withdrawn for now Publisher Forum 18 Author Mariam Gavtadze & Eka Chitanava Publication Date 23 February 2016 Cite as Forum 18, Georgia: Proposed insulting religious feelings law withdrawn for now, 23 February 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56cd716c4.html [accessed 21 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. A draft law in Georgia, that would have imposed fines for insulting religious feelings, has been withdrawn, Forum 18 News Service notes. Deputy Sergo Ratiani of the largest opposition party, the United National Movement, thought the Law might have been proposed as "politicians are using the subject in the pre-election period", he told Forum 18. "Withdrawal was the result of resistance from civil society", Giorgi Gotsiridze of the Georgian Young Lawyers' Association told Forum 18. Journalists and artists including artist Lia Ukleba threatened with violence for her painting attacking doing violence in the name of religion - also warned of the dangers to their freedom if the Law were passed. Baptist Bishop Rusudan Gotsiridze told Forum 18 that "the Law, which contains the unclear category of 'feelings', would serve as a tool against opponents in the hands of any powerful institution". "If the government decides that politically it needs a similar proposed Law, it might initiate it again in the future", Gotsiridze of the Georgian Young Lawyers' Association noted. A similar law backed by the powerful Georgian Orthodox Church was proposed in 2013. Displaced people need to be given opportunity to rebuild their lives, Ban says at camp in DR Congo Publisher UN News Service Publication Date 23 February 2016 Cite as UN News Service, Displaced people need to be given opportunity to rebuild their lives, Ban says at camp in DR Congo, 23 February 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56cd747f40d.html [accessed 21 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. 23 February 2016 - United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today reiterated his call for support from Member States to resolve such global humanitarian issues as the refugee and migrant crisis and ensuring human dignity for all, during a visit to a site hosting internally displaced persons (IDPs) in North Kivu, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). "We have to give hope to [] young people," said Mr. Ban on the first stop of his two-day visit. "Particularly, we have to do much more to bring all these children back to school; we have to do much more to protect human dignity and human rights of women and girls to save them, to protect them from sexual violence." He said he plans to meet with President Joseph Kabila and other senior Congolese Government officials to discuss all these matters tomorrow. Today, he spoke with women in the IDP camp in Mungote, describing the experience as "very humbling." As Secretary-General, "I will do my best efforts, working together with the United Nations Member States," he said. He said his visit to IDP camps, meeting so many people, particularly young people, reminded him of when he was six years old in Republic of Korea in 1950. "When the Korean War broke out, it was a deadly horrible war. There were millions of people killed and tens of millions had been separated, displaced. I was one of them. I had to flee," he said, adding that the United Nations had been a "beacon of hope" then and had rescued his country "from the brink of collapse." Now the United Nations are doing the same, despite a lack of resources, to protect the rights of 60 million IDPs and refugees around the world, the highest number since the end of the war. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon visits Bwerangula Primary School in Kitchanga, North Kivu, eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon visits Bwerangula Primary School in Kitchanga, North Kivu, eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon visits Bwerangula Primary School in Kitchanga, North Kivu, eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon visits Bwerangula Primary School in Kitchanga, North Kivu, eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon visits Mungote IDP Camp, in Kitchanga, North Kivu, eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon visits Mungote IDP Camp, in Kitchanga, North Kivu, eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon visits Mungote IDP Camp, in Kitchanga, North Kivu, eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon meets with Denis Mukwege, Founder and Medical Director of Panzi Hospital. Located in Bukavu, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), the hospital treats survivors of sexual violence, as well as providing legal and psycho-social services to its patients. UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe To that end, he will convene the first-ever World Humanitarian Summit in Istanbul, Turkey, in May, as well as a summit on global migration and refugee issues in September. "We need support from the Member States as the UN cannot do it alone," he said. "No country can resolve all these issues alone." Responding to a question about authorities wanting to close some IDP camps in North Kivu, he said he told the Governor not to close them. The authorities seem to be lacking resources, but the UN will work together with the local and central Governments. "It is important to provide life-saving assistance to those people who need daily humanitarian assistance," he said. On a question on efforts to improve security in the areas of origin of IDPs, he said people should be protected from violence, particularly women and girls. But there are clearly limits for peacekeepers to do it all. That is why the UN Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo or MONUSCO, the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo, known by the French acronym FARDC, and the national police are working very closely. "The protection of civilians is the number one priority for UN peacekeepers," he said. On 24 February, Mr. Ban will be in the DRC capital, Kinshasa, for the opening session of the Great Lakes Private Sector Investment Conference. He is also expected to meet with President Kabila, as well as several Government officials, and political and civil society representatives. On 25 February, the Secretary-General will leave Kinshasa for Juba, South Sudan, where he is expected to meet with President Salva Kiir and visit a Protection of Civilians' site that is run by the UN mission th Burundi: Ban welcomes promise of 'inclusive dialogue,' release of detainees Publisher UN News Service Publication Date 23 February 2016 Cite as UN News Service, Burundi: Ban welcomes promise of 'inclusive dialogue,' release of detainees, 23 February 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56cd751240c.html [accessed 21 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. 23 February 2016 - United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has welcomed the decision today by the President of Burundi to withdraw some media bans, cancel arrest warrants and release detainees as goodwill gestures to try to end months of violence in the crisis-torn country. Speaking at a press conference in Burundi, Mr. Ban said that President Pierre Nkurunziza told him this morning that, among other measures, he will release a list of 1,200 detainees. "This is an encouraging step," the UN chief said, emphasizing that he would expect that additional measures should be taken. Mr. Ban said that at his invitation yesterday evening, representatives of the political actors, from both the Government ruling party and opposition party, sat down together to discuss Burundi's future, and promised to engage in inclusive dialogue. "Nothing prevents them from continuing on this course," the Secretary-General stressed, adding that President Nkurunziza also confirmed that he will be engaging in an inclusive dialogue. Noting that he was last in Burundi in June 2010, only weeks before the general elections, Mr. Ban said that at the time, he spoke about the peace dividends of the Arusha Peace and Reconciliation Agreement and the Global Ceasefire Agreement, which put the country on a path to economic recovery and national reconciliation. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon meets with President Pierre Nkurunziza of Burundi, in Bujumbura. UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon meets with President Pierre Nkurunziza of Burundi, along with other UN and Burundian officials, in Bujumbura. UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon plays a ceremonial drum with a Burundian boy as he prepares to depart on the completion of his official visit to Burundi. He is seen off by First Vice-President Gaston Sindimwo. UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon departs from Bujumbura, Burundi, on the completion of his official visit to the country. UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon signs the guest book upon his meeting with President Pierre Nkurunziza (red tie), in Bujumbura. UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon (centre) addresses a press conference in Bujumbura following his meeting with President Pierre Nkurunziza (left). To his right is Jamal Benomar, Special Adviser to the Secretary-General. UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe "The effort that ended the civil war hinged on the willingness of former battlefield enemies to sit at the same table and become partners in Burundi's common future," the UN chief said. Mr. Ban also underscored that it is necessary to shift from a focus on crisis response to a culture of early action - what he called a "preventive diplomacy." "That is one of the main reasons I am in Burundi today and it is one of the main calls to action when I am convening world leaders at the World Humanitarian Summit in Istanbul in May 2016," he said. Mr. Ban added that his Special Adviser on Yemen, Jamal Benomar, has deployed his team in Burundi and is working with the Government to support a "credible and inclusive political dialogue" and advise the authorities on addressing security concerns. "I have full confidence and trust in Mr. Benomar and I hope that the Government of Burundi will work closely with him," Mr. Ban said. "Burundi's political leaders must be willing to summon the courage and confidence that will make a credible political process possible and ensure that the people of this beautiful nation can once again live in peace and enjoy human rights," the UN chief concluded. Burundi was thrown into crisis this past April when President Nkurunziza decided to run for a controversial third term that he went on to win in July. To date, it has been reported that more than 400 people have been killed, more than 240,000 have fled the nation, and thousands more have been arrested and possibly subjected to human rights violations. Council suspends investigative magazine for one month Publisher Reporters Without Borders Publication Date 23 February 2016 Cite as Reporters Without Borders, Council suspends investigative magazine for one month, 23 February 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56cd75bb40d.html [accessed 21 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 the investigative bimonthly L'Evenement's sudden suspension by Burkina Faso's High Council for Communication (CSC). The magazine has been suspended for a month from 19 February for allegedly revealing "military secrets." The sanction was imposed because an article in the magazine's 10 February issue about an attack on a munitions depot in Yimdi by former members of the presidential guard was accompanied a map of the various munitions depots used by the army in the past and now no longer in use. When military prosecutors questioned L'Evenement director Germain Nama Bitiou and editor Newton Hamed Barry on 18 February, they appeared to be satisfied by Bitiou's explanation that the article had simply aimed to show how the military managed its infrastructure, and that the former depots had no strategic value. The two journalists were very surprised when the CSC announced the paper's suspension the next day without contacting them and without giving them any chance to present their arguments to the CSC's members. "We condemn this measure, the way it was taken and the reasons given," said Clea Kahn-Sriber, the head of RSF's Africa Desk. "Known for incisive investigative reporting, L'Evenement is one the leading publications in a country whose media have distinguished themselves by the courage and seriousness of their reporting during the difficult events of the past two years. It would be a pity if the new government yielded to the temptation to censor so soon after the restoration of democracy." Accusing the CSC of "ill will," Bitiou said: "There is a dangerous shift in the CSC, which has gone from being a media regulator to 'media judge.' In its allegations, the CSC confuses many things or tries to use them clumsily to justify its decision." Defending his magazine's record and the criticized articles, he said: "I can understand that some people (...) may have been annoyed by this information but it is not wrong (...) What do people expect of journalists unless it is making sure their facts are right!" On 15 October 2015, a month after an abortive coup attempt, the CSC cited the national situation as grounds for calling on the media to "refrain from publishing or broadcasting strategic military or defence information or any other information that could endanger state security or compromise the actions of the defence and security forces in the field." Bitiou added: "If what we very roughly put on a map (...) constitutes secrets then we need to be really worried about the failure to protect our secrets!" Two cases of armed unrest (in November 2014 and September 2015) were contained in Burkina Faso and were followed by a transition to democracy and elections recognised as legitimate. The country is ranked 46th out of 180 countries in RSF's 2015 World Press Freedom Index. Journalist held incommunicado for past six weeks in Juba Publisher Reporters Without Borders Publication Date 22 February 2016 Cite as Reporters Without Borders, Journalist held incommunicado for past six weeks in Juba, 22 February 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56cd762240c.html [accessed 21 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) welcomes Al-Tabeer reporter Joseph Afandi's release on 19 February after two months of arbitrary detention by the National Security Service. At no point during his detention was Afandi allowed to speak to a lawyer or contact his family, and he was never told on what charge he was being held. ******************************************************************** Reporters Without Borders (RSF) calls for the immediate and unconditional release of Joseph Afandi, a journalist with the Juba-based daily newspaper Al-Tabeer, who has been held without charge for more than six weeks. Since being arrested at the newspaper in the early hours of 28 December, Afandi has been held at the headquarters of the National Security Service (NSS) in Juba. His family has still not been allowed to talk to him and is very concerned for his physical condition. Treatment of detainees in South Sudan is such that his relatives fear that he may have been mistreated and beaten. Afandi has not been allowed access to a lawyer, he has not been taken before a judge and no charge has been brought against him to justify his detention, which is clearly arbitrary. An article he wrote in December criticized the ruling Sudan People's Liberation Movement and the government's passive response to the civil war that has been ravaging the country since December 2013. Al-Tabeer stopped publishing after Afandi's arrest and its editor, Wazir Michael, announced that he was resigning in an attempt to appease the NSS. The newspaper, which has not resumed publishing, was launched to replace Michael's previous newspaper, Al-Rai, which the authorities closed earlier last year. "Holding Joseph Afandi incommunicado is completely illegal under international law and South Sudan's own laws,a nd violates the journalists rights to a fair trial," said Clea Kahn-Sriber, the head of RSF's Africa desk. "If the government is unable to say what this journalist is charged with, he must be released at once." The situation in South Sudan has worsened dramatically since the start of the civil war. The authorities have banned any critical coverage of their actions or any interview with rebel groups, although a peace accord has now been signed. In August 2015, RSF criticized President Salva Kiir's threats against the media and the impunity for violence and abuses against journalists. South Sudan is ranked 125th out of 180 countries in the 2015 Reporters Without Borders press freedom index. Photo: Joseph Afandi, http://www.jubatv.net/ What a difference 5 years makes Publisher IRIN Publication Date 18 February 2016 Cite as IRIN, What a difference 5 years makes, 18 February 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56cd77904.html [accessed 21 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. On the fifth anniversary of Libya's uprising against Muammar Gaddafi, there isn't much to celebrate for the residents of Bin Jawad. Once at the heart of the 2011 rebellion, they have either fled for their lives or find themselves under the brutal rule of so-called Islamic State. Residents of the sleepy coastal town slowly became accustomed last year to IS militants fuelling up their trucks at the town's only petrol station or shopping for supplies at the local stores. They watched with growing anxiety as IS's reign of terror spread along Libya's central coastline until it stretched for some 300 kilometres and encompassed eight towns and villages, including the major town of Sirte. Made vulnerable by their town's remote location - half way between Benghazi and Misrata - and targeted for its strategic proximity to several of Libya's oil facilities, the people of Bin Jawad were powerless to protect themselves against their own inevitable takeover in early January. Many residents took flight. Nadia was eight months pregnant when she fled for the capital Tripoli with her husband a week after IS arrived. "I didn't want my baby to be born under such horrible circumstances," she told IRIN. "They were letting people leave but we weren't allowed to take any baggage with us, so I left with almost nothing." Double displacement This is the second time in 15 months that Bin Jawad's residents have been forcibly displaced. The entire town was evacuated in December 2014 for three months, when Tripoli government forces used it as a base to launch an assault on the oil port of Es Sidra, 30 kilometres to the east and controlled then by a former head of Libya's oil field guard, Ibrahim Jadhran, who operates independently from either of Libya's rival governments. But most of the town (11,000 according to a 2006 census) came back. This time, the displacement is different. IS shut down the town's telephone and internet communications within days of seizing power, so Nadia can only keep in sporadic contact with her family via letters sent with local people who drive 640 kilometres to the capital. It's the only place to withdraw money as IS shuttered the town's bank. "It's very hard for me here, in this big city with no friends or family," she said. "Every morning I wake up worrying about my relatives and the people of my town. Most people there cannot afford to leave and have no choice but to stay." For 46-year-old Mohamed, another resident of Bin Jawad now living in Tripoli, seeing IS carry disembodied heads through Bin Jawad is something he's been unable to forget. "They drove through the streets, sounding their horns and standing in the back of their trucks holding up three cut heads by their hair," he said. "It was terrible and I didn't want to watch, but I had to look to see if I recognised the faces of those poor men, to see who they were. I cannot remove this image from my head." The victims were security guards from a nearby village; IS later released images of their execution on social media. Mohamed described the move as a scare tactic to force local people into submission. It seems to have worked. He fled the following day, saying it was just a matter of time before IS started killing people from Bin Jawad. "I saw the pictures, and they slaughtered those men like sheep," he explained. "I used to work for the government, which IS hates. So if I had stayed, one day, one of those heads could have been mine." Mohamed said his wife and daughter were deeply traumatised from living under IS just for two weeks. "Every night I woke to find my wife weeping in her sleep and all I could do is reassure her she is safe now. I can't say anything else because I just don't know when we will be able to return home." Financially trapped With the bank shuttered, salaries delayed and the oil ports - one of the main employers for residents in the region - barely functioning for two years, many cannot afford to flee IS. "About 20 percent of families have left, but for those of us who cannot, we just have to obey the new IS rules," said 57-year-old Hassan, a Bin Jawad resident visiting Tripoli to try and withdraw money to take back to his family. "If you are captured by IS doing anything against them, you will pay with your life, so we do exactly what they say." He described Bin Jawad as a paralysed town, with deserted streets and few stores open. Lorry drivers are unwilling to take the risk of delivering into IS-controlled areas, so basic goods are already starting to run low. Despite cash shortages, Hassan said IS had begun charging residents for using electricity, a resource few have paid for since 2011. Although people in the town need food and medical supplies, as well as cash and petrol, Hassan said sending aid would be pointless, as it would inevitably fall into IS hands. Mohamed complained that neither of Libya's rival governments had taken any meaningful action against IS. "Over a month has passed and still no one has done anything to help. It is an impossible situation and Libyan people affected by IS would welcome international intervention, as it is the only thing that could protect us now," he said. "Military from the two governments here seem either unable or unwilling to fight IS and every minute that passes is a chance for IS to expand." Growing mistrust Among the many residents who can't afford to leave Bin Jawad, there is a growing sense of mistrust. Locals say people inside the town were clearly giving IS information before it took control, and some residents detained by IS - which has made more than 150 arrests in the town - have become pro-IS since their release. "While in captivity, they had a lot of religious instruction and some of them are now saying how good IS are, even though they were against them before," Hassan said. "We are a rural community, and some poorly educated people are vulnerable to being brainwashed into supporting IS. It is impossible to know who to trust anymore." He said militants continued to make arrests, capturing wanted individuals at checkpoints set up inside the town where residents are routinely stopped and quizzed, and their phones searched for any evidence of anti-IS activities. "People are basically living in a constant state of fear, of IS and now even of each other, with most afraid even to leave their homes," Hassan said. "IS have also seized properties for their own use and to accommodate fighters, and no one knows who will be targeted next." He described the early days of IS rule in Bin Jawad as following patterns seen in other Libyan towns - a slow erosion of human rights, interspersed with violence. Armed militants with loudspeakers patrol the streets at prayer times. Vehicles, fuel and homes have been commandeered, women working in schools and the town's hospital must fully cover their faces, and the risk of arrest or detention is ever-present. Earlier this month, US Secretary of State John Kerry said IS was gaining a "stranglehold" in Libya, but ruled out military intervention by the American-led coalition that is fighting the group in Syria and Iraq. Increasingly, voices like Mohamed's are wishing otherwise. Dadaab refugees caught in the middle Publisher IRIN Author Moulid Hujale Publication Date 19 February 2016 Cite as IRIN, Dadaab refugees caught in the middle, 19 February 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56cd78244.html [accessed 21 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. Nine years after completing high school in Kenya's Dadaab refugee camp, Mohamed Abdullahi finally got a scholarship to study in Nairobi. But a security-related squeeze by the Kenyan authorities on refugee movements means his long-held dream of a university education is under threat. Dadaab, in northeastern Kenya, is what's known as a closed camp. The Department of Refugee Affairs issues special movement passes for refugees to travel outside. But that dispensation was scaled back in the wake of an attack in April last year by the Somali jihadist group al-Shabab on Garissa University that killed 147 students. Kenya was stunned by the assault. The refugees in Dadaab, two hours by road from Garissa, were left in no doubt of the coming clamp down when Deputy President William Ruto warned: "The way America changed after 9/11 is the way Kenya will change after Garissa [attack]." The DRA stopped issuing travel documents in the immediate aftermath, and Abdullahi missed his exams over two semesters. "I tried all means to convince them to allow me to do my exams but all in vain," he said. Even an appeal on his behalf by the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, was rebuffed. But the freeze is not absolute - which is perhaps even more frustrating. "The last time they gave us only one document for a group of about 14 students going to different universities in Garissa, Thika and Nairobi," said Abdullahi. "We had to make copies for each student but the police on the way detained us, demanding that we bring original documents for individual students." Education a right, unless in Dadaab Any student in Dadaab who makes it to secondary school, much less university, is lucky. There are 350,000 refugees in the sprawling complex of five camps - together they would form Kenya's third largest city - but only seven secondary schools. Education is poorly funded by international donors, so access and enrolment is extremely limited. See also: The refugee camp that became a city The relationship between residents and the Kenyan authorities is a fraught one. Kenyan politicians accuse al-Shabab of using the camps as a base, and there are periodic calls for Dadaab's closure and the eviction of the refugees - most recently by Ruto, until international pressure forced him to backpedal. In 2011 the Kenyan military intervened in southern Somalia, initially with the support of the government in Mogadishu, to put an end to cross-border raids by al-Shabab. It did not have the desired effect. Scapegoating Rather than containing the jihadists, there has been an escalation of violence inside Kenya, including the attack on the Westgate shopping mall in 2013 that killed 67 people, and several grenade attacks in Nairobi. The government's response was a round-up in 2014 of Somalis deemed to be living in Nairobi illegally. Human rights groups said the dragnet was an excuse for extortion, and in scapegoating all Somalis, was ultimately self-defeating. "We felt the pressure here in the camps. When our fellow refugees were being harassed in Nairobi, we were also subjected to a similar crackdown," said refugee Halima Ahmed Saney. "It was one of the most difficult times for us. We could not even dare to take our sick ones to Nairobi. We were afraid they would force us to leave Dadaab, and Somalia was not safe." Caught in the middle Refugees in the camps feel caught between the Kenyan security forces that distrust them, and al-Shabab elements who punish those they consider traitors. "We really supported the Kenyan Defense Force entering Somalia because we thought it would stabilise the region and we would get a chance to go back to our country for the first time in two decades," said Hassan Abdi*, a community security volunteer. Aid workers have been kidnapped in Dadaab, and insecurity restricts the movement of humanitarian staff. As a result, community leaders play an important role, including organising security patrols by volunteers. But al-Shabab views them as collaborators and refugee leaders have been killed. Abdi chose to quit and move camp rather than continue volunteering. "I could not continue risking my life. When my colleagues were killed, I knew I was next and I had to stop and flee for my safety," he told IRIN. "Even if I had to sacrifice my life to collaborate with the police and serve my community, the police were treating us like al-Shabab and cracking down on innocent refugees, so I was disappointed." The Kenyan government's encampment policy is supposed to deliver better security. Refugees have to carry identification cards at all times issued by the DRA. However, petty corruption undermines the government's intent - and also wins little favour among the refugees. "I was detained at a random checkpoint between Ifo and Dagahaley camp last week. I showed the police my refugee ID card but they said it had expired. I paid some money and was later released," said Fatuma Ibrahim, a mother of five living in Dagahaley camp. Not everyone has the all-important ID. "It is now one of the biggest challenges that refugees are facing in Dadaab. Whether you are seeking a new one or a replacement, you have to pay money to get one," one refugee leader, who asked not to be named, told IRIN. "This service is supposed to be free of charge but unfortunately it has now become a business - according to the complaints we are getting from the community." Miserable Dadaab never was a comfortable existence. A day in the camp ends at 6pm, and, as darkness falls, people head to their tents. Only a few people have privately supplied electricity that runs up to 10pm, and then that's it. "As the sun sets, the aid agencies are locked in their heavily-guarded, well-fortified compounds, while the refugees are left alone in their tents," said Dadaab resident Haad Hashi. "It's too risky to report anything such as robbery or rape to the police station at night because you may end up being arrested. The police are not friendly during the night. They fear being attacked." Abdullahi Farah is among the students who missed their exams last year. He paid money to register for special exams to make up, and is now doing his final semester. He's determined to complete university at whatever cost. "This is my exist strategy. I want to go back and use my knowledge to rebuild Somalia," he told IRIN. "Returning is worth the risk because at least I will live in freedom," he said. "I don't want to waste my skills and talent in the camps, because whatever degrees I earn, I will remain a refugee before anything else." *Not his real name WASHINGTON Sen. Ron Johnson plays a mean game of Twister. Right hand red! Lets let the American people decide and let the next president nominate. Left foot blue! I never said that we shouldnt vote. Left hand yellow! I would also say that doing nothing is also an action. Right foot green! By the time I would actually take the vote if it comes to that Ill take a vote. These varying views were all offered in the span of just a few minutes by Johnson, a Wisconsin Republican, when the embattled legislator called in to the Jerry Bader radio show Tuesday morning. His contortions were emblematic of the Republican response to Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalias death, and Senate majority leader Mitch McConnells immediate declaration that no replacement should be considered until we have a new president. Sen. Chuck Grassley, the Iowa Republican who heads the Senate Judiciary committee, took one position Saturday evening, another position two hours later, and a third Tuesday morning but its still unclear where he stands. Sen. Orrin Hatch of Utah, another member of that committee, said he would support a decision not to hold hearings on anybody nominated by President Obama, but also said he doesnt support a filibuster, which yet another member of the panel, Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, has threatened. And Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina said in a radio interview Tuesday that if Republicans block a nominee sight unseen, we fall into the trap of being obstructionists. Obstruction was evidently what Donald Trump, front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination, had in mind when he advised: Delay, delay, delay. The skittishness among Republican senators is well-grounded: McConnells reflexive decision to keep the Supreme Court seat vacant for what would be more than a year requires both logical leaps and political risk. In blocking the seat from being filled, McConnell and Grassley would be relying on something called the Thurmond Rule, named for the late segregationist, Sen. Strom Thurmond, R-S.C., which has it that no judicial nominees should be confirmed in the final months of a presidency. But eight years ago, Grassley called the Thurmond Rule bunk and McConnell said its clear that there is no Thurmond Rule. Then theres the assertion that Obama isnt representing the peoples wishes because hes in the final year of his four-year term. So shouldnt the same apply to senators in the final year of their six-year terms? That would sideline 24 Republican senators (including Grassley) and 10 Democrats. Of far more consequence: the GOP plan to put the Supreme Court seat to what is essentially a national referendum could have the effect of taking the focus of the election away from where Republicans have an advantage (economic and security fears) and shifting it to where Republicans are at a disadvantage: social issues. Republicans are starting up the culture wars again, but the electorate has shown little appetite for it. A Pew Research Center poll last month found that the economy and terrorism are by far Americans top concerns (75 percent cited each as a top priority). Another Pew poll, in December, found that Republicans have substantial advantages on those top two issues: Americans think the GOP would do a better job than Democrats handling the terrorist threat (46 percent to 34 percent) and the economy (42 percent to 37 percent). By attempting to make the election about the Supreme Court, Republicans would turn the discussion to topics on which Democrats have large advantages: climate change, business regulations, abortion, same-sex marriage, voting rights and campaign finance. (Polling on immigration and gun control, two other hot-button issues associated with the court, is more mixed.) The refusal to seat a justice would also further the impression, already widely held, that Republicans are more to blame for Washingtons dysfunction. Obama is already pressing that advantage. Now, this will be a test, one more test, of whether or not norms, rules, basic fair play can function at all in Washington these days, he said Tuesday. And what says Ron Johnson, facing a tough re-election fight? I have no idea how the process plays out. Im not in control of it. Maybe I havent quite heard exactly what Leader McConnell or Sen. Grassley has said. Why not let the American people decide by their votes? If this president nominates somebody, well handle it. Not handling it is also action. Careful, senator. Youre liable to tear a ligament in that position. Nellie Doneva/Reporter-News Dan Hendrickson, right, assisted by his son Cole, left, do a bird hunting dog demonstration with a tethered pigeon during the Texas Farm Ranch Wildlife Expo Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016. SHARE Nellie Doneva/Reporter-News People visit the booths at the Texas Farm Ranch Wildlife Expo Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016. By Dan Carpenter, Special to the Reporter-News Wyatt Walton may have felt a bit like a little "piglet" in a big "pen" Tuesday, but he and his partner, Blaine Garcia did their best to make their mark. Walton, a 2014 Hardin-Simmons graduate, is co-owner of Lone Star Trapping, a cellular feral hog trapping company based in Abilene. He and Garcia were one of more than 130 exhibitors who showed their wares at the 17th Texas Farm Ranch Wildlife Expo at the Taylor County Expo Center. "This is our first year to exhibit," said Walton, who launched his business 10 months ago. "It has been a great venue for us to get exposure for our business. We've talked to a lot of people who don't know anything about what we do, and they are surprised to learn about the technology we have." Lone Star Trapping uses a state-of-the-art system that interfaces with the user's cellphone, to bait, attract and trap feral hogs. Manufactured by JagerPro Thermal Hog Control, Lone Star is only JagerPro's second dealer in Texas. "It has been really fun to explain the system to people," said Garcia. "Most of them have tried traditional methods of hog trapping, and are amazed when they see how effective our system can be." The Expo also featured several presentations Tuesday, including a bird dog demonstration by champion trainer, Dan Henderson. In addition, the Rolling Plains Cotton Growers Association held their annual meeting in conjunction with the Expo. Kim Bosher, director of events for the Abilene Chamber of Commerce, said they were pleased with the turnout. "The weather may have actually helped us today," said Bosher, of the colder, rainy conditions. "Many of these guys would have been out in the fields if the weather had been nice, so we're thankful not only for the rain, but for the additional attendance." Bosher added that the Chamber hoped the Expo would help continue to build bridges between the local economy and agribusiness, stating that more than $800 million annually is added to the area economy because of agribusiness. Ely Long, of Giant Rubber Water Tanks, said he was glad to be back at the Expo for the third year. "This is great exposure for us," said Long, of his company, which makes water and feed troughs out of giant recycled tires ranging in diameter from six to 12 feet. "We are a great alternative to traditional metal troughs, and it's interesting to talk with people about how they can incorporate our troughs in their operation, and increase water and feeding options on their land." The Expo continues today beginning at 9 a.m. and wrapping up at 4 p.m. Displays can be viewed in the Taylor County Coliseum, and outdoors on the north and south sides of the coliseum. For more information, visit the Chamber website at www.abilenechamber.com/programs/signature-events/texas-farm-ranch-wildlife-expo/. We heard about University Baptist Church being torn down. What happened to the beautiful stained glass windows? Did someone buy them? Will they be used somewhere else? David Phillips of Abilene wishes they can be used somewhere, but there's a problem. Phillips asked Walmart, which is tearing down the abandoned church so a Neighborhood Center can be built at the corner of Ambler and Grape streets, for some of the stained glass windows and pews. He got part of what he asked for about 15 pews in various lengths ranging from about 8 feet to about 20 feet. He had planned to give them to the Food Bank of West Central Texas. However, the pews were too long for the food bank to use, so Phillips says he started asking around elsewhere. He learned from a friend that the Alameda Community Center at South Seventh and Corsicana streets was looking for pews to replace its chairs, so he took them there. Phillips says he would like to get the stained glass windows and donate them to The Grace Museum and for a cross in front of the community center. However, the problem is asbestos was used in the caulk used to hold the stained glass windows in place, says Walmart spokeswoman Anne Hatfield. Asbestos, which was once widely used in buildings, has been connected to a variety of cancers and lung problems. 'We don't have any plans to donate the stained glass because of the high cost of removing the asbestos,' Hatfield says. When we talked Monday evening, Phillips hadn't heard back from Walmart. He's still hoping that if you ask, it shall be given to you. I love eating foods from other countries, but correctly pronouncing the dish names usually is challenging. What I hear and what I can get my thick tongue to say rarely sound alike. The latest pronunciation buster was Gateau Chocolat, a French dessert that is translated Chocolate Cake in English. I found the recipe from Mrs. Eleanor Weed in "Flavors," a cookbook with more than 1,000 recipes published by the Junior League of San Antonio in 1978. My husband asked the name of the cake. "Something French called," I paused. "GA-toe CHOO-co-lat." "Chocolate cat?" "What? No. GA-toe. It's spelled G-A-T-E-A-U in this cookbook. It's French for cake." "Are you sure? Ga-TOO means cat in Spanish." "Well, it's not that." (Cat in Spanish is spelled gato.) Thankfully, my husband liked the cake a lot more than the sound of it. For fans of the bitterness of dark chocolate, this cake is the ideal sweet but not too sweet treat. It's a one-layer, 9-inch cake with a chocolate sauce poured on top for a no-fuss icing. When you have an itch for a chocolate cake but do not want a two- or three-layer chocolate mountain tempting you in the kitchen for days, Gateau Chocolat is the answer. I made one major change to the recipe. It called for bittersweet chocolate to be grated and added to the batter. The final cake had flakes of chocolate inside. They did not melt evenly throughout the cake, which also was a little dry. In online Gateau Chocolat recipes, melted chocolate usually is added to the batter. So, I reworked the recipe using chocolate melted with butter, and the result was a light brown, moister cake. The recipe also included instructions for making creme fraiche, a cream common in French sauces. The closest American substitute is sour cream, but that is not as thick, creamy or tangy as creme fraiche. Homemade creme fraiche is easy to make but time-consuming. Mix one cup heavy cream and two and one-half teaspoons buttermilk in a jar, cover and let it sit on the counter at room temperature for eight to 12 hours, until thick. It is then stored in the refrigerator until ready to use. This originally sounded like a great way to induce food poisoning, but according to an article on creme fraiche by J. Kenju Lopez-Alt at seriouseats.com, the "good bacteria from the buttermilk multiplying in there prevents the dangerous bacteria from taking over." But, who wants to wait overnight for cream to evolve from microscopic jujitsu when the chocolate cake craving hits? Thankfully, I found creme fraiche in Market Street's fancy cheese section. My other changes to the recipe include updating the instructions and adding a dash of salt to the icing. Despite all the French words in this week's column, the first bite of this cake is sure to elicit a "yum" and that is universal for "good" in any language. GATEAU CHOCOLAT Ingredients 4 eggs (let sit on countertop for 15 minutes) 3/4 cup sugar 8 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, divided 4 1/2 tablespoons butter, divided 1 cup all-purpose flour, sifted 3/4 cup creme fraiche 2 tablespoons strong coffee 1/2 teaspoon oil (such as olive or vegetable) - Dash salt Directions 1 Butter and flour a 9-inch round baking pan. To further prevent the cake from sticking to the bottom of the pan, cut a piece of parchment paper into a circle and place inside baking pan. Set aside. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. 2 In a large mixing bowl, beat eggs and sugar for 5 minutes until light and thickened. 3 Melt 4 ounces chocolate and 2 ounces butter in the top of a double boiler, stirring constantly until smooth. 4 Carefully fold flour, creme fraiche and chocolate into sugar-and-egg mixture until well combined. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Cool on a rack for 15 minutes. Carefully flip cake onto serving plate and remove parchment paper. 5 After the cake is cooled, make the icing. Melt 4 ounces chocolate and 2 1/2 tablespoons butter in the top of a double boiler with coffee. Remove pan from heat and beat in oil. Spread while hot over cooled cake, letting the icing drizzle down the sides of the cake. After icing has cooled, serve. Share your own old recipes or food-related historical recollections by emailing Laura Gutschke at lgutschke@gmail.com. SHARE Incident reports released Tuesday by the Abilene Police Department: Aggravated assault, 2200 block of West Overland Trail, Tuesday Two men reportedly got into "mutual combat" after consuming alcohol, but one of the men then left and returned with a hammer. Deadly conduct, intersection of North Ninth Street and North Clack Street, Tuesday A woman reported that a man shot multiple times at her vehicle with a firearm. Theft, 3600 block of Hunters Glen Road, Monday An estimated $300 worth of yard equipment was reported stolen from a backyard. Burglary, 3400 block of Sayles Boulevard, Monday Someone reportedly kicked the door of a residence, causing $350 in damage. Credit card abuse, 1200 block of Anson Avenue, Sunday A woman reported that someone stole her debit card and ran up charges of $318. Aggravated assault, 5600 block of South First Street, Sunday A man reportedly fired a gun through the wall of a motel, striking a person sitting on a bed in the back. Hoping to continue the Abilene Neighborhood Initiative's success in curbing crime in disenfranchised areas of Abilene, the city discussed plans Tuesday night for a pilot program to improve the quality of life for residents west of downtown that potentially could be applied to other sectors of the city. The Abilene City Council directed staff to proceed with the pilot program, a joint effort with the Town West Homeowners Association, at a special workshop meeting Tuesday night. It also requested staff look at ways to leverage the Abilene Neighborhood Initiative to foster development in other parts of the city. ANI, the brainchild of Mayor Pro Tem Anthony Williams and Police Chief Stan Standridge, began in 2008 with the intent of listening to residents' concerns rather than the city simply reacting to problems as they arise. Initially, the initiative targeted the Carver, Stevenson, Alameda, Holiday Hills and Butternut/Chestnut neighborhoods, Standridge said. The objective of ANI is to improve residents' quality of life; engage community partners such as nonprofits and churches; and encourage the redevelopment of "under-resourced neighborhoods," according to its website, WeCareAbilene.org. "We show up and shut up," Standridge said of meetings held with local clergy, business owners, residents and others. At one of the first meetings, Standridge said, residents complained of poor street lighting, weeds, junk cars and a lack of sidewalks and crosswalks. They did not complain about crime, he said. "I walked out of that meeting with a paradigm shift," Standridge said. Within three months, a crosswalk was completed, he said. That meeting convinced the chief to change his department from one that reacts to problems to one that is proactive, he said. That is where ANI comes into play: it builds relationships with residents that lead to trust, which leads to more reporting of crime. For example, overall crime in the Holiday Hills neighborhood decreased 57 percent from 2012 to 2013, while violent crime dropped by 57 percent, Standridge said. "How do we leverage that relationship further?" said City Manager Robert Hanna about ANI. Hanna said to do that, the city must engage entities such as the Abilene Housing Authority, neighborhood associations, churches and community leaders. Together, they can secure federal grants that will help revitalize neighborhoods. Additionally, Hanna said, the city could designate Empowerment Zones to spur development in those areas. An Empowerment Zone is a geographic boundary in a city created to encourage the development of affordable housing, economic development, social services, education or public safety services, according to the local government code. The city could offer incentives to promote development, such as tax abatements and the waiver of certain fees, Hanna said. "It starts with communication," he said. "It starts with ANI." Mayor Norm Archibald said he didn't know whether Abilene would ever be "Mayberry," but that we can at least be neighbors who help neighbors. "We're making progress," Archibald said, "and we're going to have a better community in the long run." Twitter: BrookeCrum_ARN As the battle for two state races heats up locally, there continues to be plenty of spending by a majority of the 13 candidates running for either the District 71 Texas House or District 24 Texas Senate seats. Campaign reports, due to the Texas Ethics Commission Monday, showed plenty of fundraising and spending by several candidates between Jan. 22 and Feb. 20, the reporting period covered in the latest filings. With early voting underway as the candidates vie for the Republican Party spot on the ballot, Susan King, running for the senate seat, and Stan Lambert, running for King's current seat in the house of representatives, outspent their competition. Lambert, an Abilene ISD trustee, in the reporting period raised $38,870 and spent $69,233. The totals more than doubled any of the other four candidates in the race in either category. The Abilene banker received a $10,000 donation from Associated Republicans of Texas, a conservative group dedicated to maintaining the Republican majority in the Legislature, according to the group's website, www.artexas.org. He also twice spent more than $24,000 on television advertising this month with Strategic Media, an Ohio company that helps candidates produce content to win elections. Lambert reported having $23,526 in cash on-hand with a $12,500 loan. Raising and spending the second most in the campaign for House District 71 was Abilene attorney Chris Carnohan, who received $15,536 and spent $24,176 this reporting period. Carnohan's largest donation came from rancher Winston Ohlhausen, a $5,000 gift, in early February, according to his campaign's filing. As for expenses, Carnohan's report shows his largest payments went to Axiom Strategies, a Kansas City, Missouri company, and Austin-based Conviction Digital for advertising. He finished the reporting period with $26,739 in cash and a $15,000 loan. Hamlin attorney Isaac Castro took in $3,670 and spent $10,810 in his quest to win King's seat in the house, a venture he attempted in 2014. According to paperwork filed with the ethics commission, Castro used personal money for $7,651 of the total he spent in the latest reporting period. Abilene businessman and former firefighter Brian Scalf raised $2,750 and spent $349 this reporting period, ending with $513 cash on-hand. Stacey Scaief, a retired paramedic, reported zero dollars both raised and spent this period, ending with $100. In the state senate race to replace the retiring Troy Fraser, King spent the most at $729,100 this reporting period through her Friends of Susan King political action committee. The PAC paid The Eppstein Group of Fort Worth $616,413 for advertising and consultant services, as well as Las Vegas-based Advanced Micro Targeting Inc. $106,000 for consulting services. King's PAC raised $22,775 this period, with the largest contributions, $5,000 each, coming from the Texas Medical Association Political Action Committee and the Texas State Teachers Association. King's campaign also reported a $100,000 loan, leaving the PAC with $620,000 in outstanding loans and $224,425 cash on-hand. Dawn Buckingham of Lakeway was the top fundraiser in the period, receiving $77,918 in donations. She spent $625,731 between Jan. 22 and Feb. 20. Her largest contribution of the period came in the form of a $4,457 donation by Constituents Focus PAC, a group focused on selecting and supporting liberty-minded candidates, according to its website. She also reported a pair of personal loans to her campaign totaling $75,000, which is not included in the donations total. Her campaign reported $847,826 in loans and $15,134 in cash on-hand. Buckingham paid Smart Media Group of Alexandria, Virginia, $294,299 for advertising and Axiom Strategies, of Kansas City, $233,188. Through the Cobb for Texas PAC, Lakeway businessman Jon Cobb reported $45,816 raised in contributions and $335,696 in expenses. He reported three $5,000 donations this period. Among his expenses, the PAC reported spending $162,740 on advertising through SRH Media Inc., of Spencerville, Maryland. Cobb for Texas reported $500,000 in outstanding loans and $151,403 cash on-hand. Brent Mayes, a retired physician living in Fredericksburg, received $4,950 in donations and spent $285,242 during the reporting period, including $174,841 on advertising through Anthem Media, of Austin. Mayes reported a $100,000 personal loan, increasing his campaign's outstanding loans to $500,000. He reported having $42,066 cash on-hand. Reed Williams, of Burnet, raised $500 and spent $36,916, leaving his campaign with $108,260 cash on-hand, according to his report. The campaign reports $140,000 in outstanding loans through the Texans for Reed Williams PAC. Twitter: @TimothyChippARN Although parts of Abilene didn't receive much rain, the precipitation was welcome, meteorologists at the National Weather Service said. The city received 0.8 of an inch of rainfall Monday evening through about 6:15 p.m. Tuesday, according to meteorologists at the National Weather Service office in San Angelo. The last bit of precipitation came Jan. 9, when the city received 0.4 of an inch. "Through yesterday, the average rainfall we could expect is 2.12 inches," said Terry Huber, senior meteorologist. "That means we're about deficit of 1.4 inches below what we would call a normal or average for the year up to this point." A large swath of the Big Country received rain, said meteorologist Matt Groh. "The coverage of the rainfall was widespread last night as a storm system moved into Texas," Groh said. "And today scattered showers have been occurring across the Big Country." Groh said the heavier rainfall occurred east of Anson, going up toward Throckmorton. But do not expect more rain any time soon, he said. "From Wednesday all the way through the weekend, we're expecting mostly clear skies, dry weather," he said. "The temperature will be cool on Wednesday, and we'll have a (warming) trend by the end of this week." Wednesday's forecast calls for a high near 61 degrees and a low around 33. By Saturday, high temperatures are expected to be in the low 70s, with lows around 50 degrees. Your seven day forecast: Wednesday: Sunny, with a high near 61. Northwest wind 10 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 25 mph. Sunny, with a high near 61. Northwest wind 10 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 25 mph. Wednesday Night: Clear, with a low around 33. Southwest wind 5 to 10 mph. Clear, with a low around 33. Southwest wind 5 to 10 mph. Thursday: Sunny, with a high near 59. Northwest wind 5 to 15 mph becoming north northeast in the afternoon. Sunny, with a high near 59. Northwest wind 5 to 15 mph becoming north northeast in the afternoon. Thursday Night: Clear, with a low around 34. North northeast wind 5 to 10 mph becoming south southeast after midnight. Clear, with a low around 34. North northeast wind 5 to 10 mph becoming south southeast after midnight. Friday: Sunny, with a high near 66. South wind 5 to 15 mph. Sunny, with a high near 66. South wind 5 to 15 mph. Friday Night: Clear, with a low around 43. South wind 5 to 10 mph. Clear, with a low around 43. South wind 5 to 10 mph. Saturday: Sunny, with a high near 71. Southwest wind 5 to 10 mph. Sunny, with a high near 71. Southwest wind 5 to 10 mph. Saturday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 52. Breezy, with a south wind 10 to 20 mph. Mostly clear, with a low around 52. Breezy, with a south wind 10 to 20 mph. Sunday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 76. Breezy. Mostly sunny, with a high near 76. Breezy. Sunday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 47. Mostly clear, with a low around 47. Monday: Sunny, with a high near 72. Sunny, with a high near 72. Monday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 51. Tuesday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 73. Breezy. Twitter: ARN_Titus Advertisement - Continue Reading Below This just in... In this file photo a naval patrol boat donated by China in 2007 departs from the Cambodia Naval Base in Sihanoukville. China is expected to give Cambodia another pair of ships soon. China is beefing up its naval commitment to Cambodia this week, just as the saber-rattling over the South China Sea hits a new high water mark. While Phnom Penh and Beijing said the two counties first-ever joint naval exercise will focus on rescue operations, the mission comes as Chinas moves in the South China Sea are grabbing international attention. The Chinese-Cambodian exercise coincides with an expected announcement that the Asian giant will provide Cambodia with a pair of ships. A Sihanoukville Port official told RFAs Khmer Service that three Chinese navy warships with 737 Chinese sailors docked Monday morning for a 5-day visit in Cambodia. About 30 Cambodian sailors will join their Chinese counterparts for the exercises. "This will be a big cooperation and joint exercise training in rescue operations," Cambodia's deputy navy chief, Vice Admiral Vann Bunneang, told Reuters. "This is to boost readiness for when boats sink and natural disasters occur." Chinese Peoples Liberation Navy representatives were also to travel to Phnom Penh Wednesday to meet with Minister of Defense Tea Banh and Cambodias Commander of Navy Forces Tea Vinh, the port official told RFA. In todays meeting Tea Vinh is expected to secure a commitment from the Chinese Ministry of Defense for a pair of warships to defend Cambodias coast, but Tea Vinh said the request is still being negotiated and no official has stated what type of vessel the countries are discussing. China and Cambodia may view the exercise as benign, but it comes as Beijing appears to be fortifying its outposts in the South China Sea with missile batteries and radar stations. China is also reported to have landed fighter jets on one of the islands it has been building in the area that is also claimed by Vietnam. Currently China is the major aid donor for the Cambodian military, supplying helicopters and ground vehicles as well building a military institute and training forces in China. The naval exercise and the ships show that relationship is in little danger. Tea Vinh said the South China Sea conflict should be solved peacefully, but he told Chinese Admiral Yu Manjiang that Cambodia supports China on the issue, RFA has learned. While Cambodia has a small navy operating mostly small patrol craft, the nation could become an important player in the dispute as it is one of Chinas most reliable allies in the region. Cambodia has split from its neighboring Southeast Asian nations before in support of China. In 2012, when Cambodia chaired the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, ASEAN suffered a period of division and dysfunction after Cambodia repeatedly stymied efforts to discuss the South China Sea issue at a regional summit. While 2016s ASEAN meeting ended with a joint statement that includes a commitment to ensuring maritime security and safety, including the rights of freedom of navigation and overflight and other lawful uses, it avoided any mention of Chinas activities. Reported by Mengchou Cheng. Translated by Pagnawath Khun. Written in English by Brooks Boliek. As Republican presidential candidates invoke Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalias legacy, all insisting that his suddenly vacant seat shouldnt be filled until a new president is in place, it is helpful to ask: What would Scalia do? First, Scalia would read the law and, without much chin-stroking, recommend the obvious intent of Article II, Section 2 of the Constitution, which reads: [The president] shall nominate, and by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, shall appoint ... judges of the Supreme Court. See? That wasnt complicated. And the Senate can always reject a nominee. Yet Majority Leader Mitch McConnell made it clear that no Supreme Court nominations will get to the floor. Somewhat less rigid, Sen. Chuck Grassley, chair of the Judiciary Committee, has said hell wait to see who the nominee is before deciding whether to convene a hearing. All Republican candidates have expressed agreement with McConnell, with Donald Trump being the most vocal and least nuanced: Delay, delay, delay, he said inimitably at Saturdays debate in South Carolina, just hours after the nation learned of Scalias death. As unseemly as such political proclamations are so soon after the justices death, Scalia likely would have found the shenanigans childishly amusing. Unerringly faithful to the rule of law and deferential to the executive and legislative branches he would have understood the politics but not the point. The law is clear. But politics are something else, and Republicans have decided that, at least on this matter, the people should have a voice. Inarguably, with three justices likely to retire during the next presidency and Scalias seat now empty, the stakes couldnt be higher. But, if youll pardon this intrusion of logic, havent the people already had a voice? Didnt a majority of the people re-elect President Obama, and doesnt he have nearly a year left to serve out his term? Lame duck doesnt mean dead duck and this presidents still quacking. Now, if you dont really like democracy, we can talk. Originalists well know that the Founding Fathers had no interest in everybody having a voice. But these same originalists would have to concede that its the presidents job to nominate a replacement for an empty Supreme Court seat and the Senates job to advise and consent or dissent, as the case may be. Yet to Republicans, the idea of Obama fulfilling his constitutional responsibilities falls somewhere between apocalyptic and absurd. Sort of like when people used to walk up to Scalia and ask, When did you first become an originalist? prompting the justice subsequently to remark: As though its some weird affliction, you know, When did you start eating human flesh? Love or hate Scalia, the Supreme Court just became a far, far duller place. So why would the GOP, professedly stewards of original intent, seek to thwart the Constitutions clear purposes? Again, not complicated. First, because several cases that Republicans hoped would result in their favor hang in the balance. With a four-four vote, the lower courts rulings stand. Second, payback. All will gladly remind us that Democrats have behaved similarly. In 2007 18 months before President George W. Bushs term was up Democratic Sen. Chuck Schumer recommended that the Senate shouldnt confirm any Bush nominee to the Supreme Court except under extraordinary circumstances. And, Republicans will never forgive Democrats for the circus-like confirmation hearings of Robert Bork and Clarence Thomas. Theyve been keen to return the favor when the balance of powers shifted their way. Even understanding these reasons, the GOP is playing with fire. Is this really a precedent they wish to set? Which of these men in his fourth or eighth year of his presidency would surrender his own nominating powers to a successor? And, finally, what if the next president is Hillary Clinton or Bernie Sanders? The GOPs calculation, apparently, is that the greater risk lies in Obamas nominating a reasonably moderate liberal who passes all the usual tests that Republicans cant rationally block. If Obama were feeling frisky, he might select a Hispanic or Asian judge, thus helping ensure that the Republican Big Tent collapses from the weight of emptiness. All things considered, it may seem wiser to avoid the advise-and-consent process, but hypocrisy takes no prisoners. You cant attach yourself to Scalias originalist virtues and also ignore the rule of law he so passionately defended. Scalias advice might be his own reflections on being a good and faithful judge: You have to resign yourself to the fact that youre not always going to like the conclusions you reach. Authorities in the northeastern Chinese province of Jilin have indicted a citizen journalist who reported on the self-immolation of a petitioner on Beijing's Tiananmen Square for "picking quarrels and stirring up trouble," paving the way for a second trial at a district court, her lawyer said. Wang Jing was initially detained in March 2014 by Beijing police after she posted reports and photos of a self-immolation protest on the first day of China's annual meeting of the National People's Congress (NPC). She was tried last July, but while judges ruled that there was insufficient evidence to convict her, they stopped short of finding her not guilty. Now, a district court in her home district of Chuanying has issued a fresh indictment against her, Wang's lawyer Li Jinglin told RFA on Wednesday. According to the indictment issued by the Chuanying District People's Procuratorate, Wang is accused of posting reports to the Sichuan-based rights website Tianwang, Tencent Weibo and other sites regarding the activities of petitioners, which "caused serious disruption to public order." "They are pursuing her for spreading rumors online, but these are all excuses to shut her up," Li said. "They are going after citizen journalists right now, and that's what Wang is." Li said he planned to visit Wang, who denies the charges against her, at the police-run detention center where she is being held to discuss the details of the indictment, which paves the way for a trial. Another of Wang's lawyers has previously told RFA she was repeatedly tortured while in detention, causing her existing medical problems to worsen sharply. Meanwhile, Wang's mother said she is very concerned for her daughter's health. "Her health is very poor and she suffered from a brain tumor back in 1999," she said. "She had surgery, including cranial surgery, on two occasions, and she was doing fine." "But since she was detained ... her illness has come back. We have applied for her release on medical parole, but they won't give it to us," Wang's mother said. "When we request medical treatment at the detention center, they say there's nothing wrong with her ... but she has numbness on one side of her head and face since they [beat her up]," she said. Insufficient evidence Another of Wang's defense attorneys, Li Weida, said in a recent interview that Wang should have been released unconditionally after the court decided there was insufficient evidence to convict her in July. "But the state prosecutor has sent the case back again with a request for further investigation, and it's back with the police with a lot more in the files now related to the material facts of the case," he said. Tianwang founder Huang Qi, who is currently in detention himself, said in an interview on Feb. 9 that Wang was one of the best-known citizen journalists in China before her arrest. "She reported on a number of cases in Jilin and quite a few big cases nationally, and she clearly angered the authorities," said Huang, who was detained alongside three colleagues in Sichuan's Mianyang city last Thursday after he went to investigate a land grab and speak to victims of the 2008 earthquake. "She has refused to succumb to threats during her period in detention, and now they are cooking up fresh charges against her," he said. "But they don't stand up in law, because it's not a crime for Wang Jing to post articles on Tianwang." The ruling Chinese Communist Party has passed a number of restrictive security laws in recent months that further limit freedom of expression in the name of protecting "national security," Amnesty International said in its annual human rights report on Tuesday. A proposed Foreign NGO Management Law, if enacted in the form presented for public consultation in May, would "severely restrict the rights to freedom of association, peaceful assembly and expression," the group said in its State of the World 2015 report. According to citizen journalist and rights website founder Liu Feiyue, several hundred people were detained and questioned under the new laws last year, including more than 300 human rights lawyers. "This just shows how strongly the authorities are cracking down on human rights," Liu said. "It's much tougher than it was." "There are also other issues such as academic freedom and unofficial labor unions, all of which have become targets," he said. Amnesty International China researcher Patrick Poon said that the authorities have now formally arrested 18 of the detained human rights lawyers. "We are extremely concerned about their situation right now," Poon told RFA. "The report also mentions the authorities' targeting of the culture and religious rights of ethnic minority groups, including Tibetans and Uyghurs." "There are a lot of people ... who have been put on TV, confessing to their crimes since the beginning of last year," he said, citing Hong Kong bookseller Gui Minhai as an example. Reported by Ka Pa, Wong Lok-to and Hai Nan for RFA's Cantonese Service, and by Qiao Long for the Mandarin Service. Translated and written in English by Luisetta Mudie. US Secretary of State John Kerry and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi during a news conference in Washington, Feb. 23, 2016. The top diplomats for the United States and China said they had made headway on Tuesday in forging a response to North Korea's recent nuclear and missile tests, but the two powers remain far apart on Beijing's increasing military buildup in the South China Sea. Secretary of State John Kerry and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met in Washington to try to break weeks of stalemate in U.N. Security Council negotiations on sanctions to impose on North Korea over its Jan. 6 atomic test. "Important progress has been made in the consultations and we are looking at the possibility of reaching agreement on a draft resolution and passing it in the near future," Wang said at a news conference with Kerry. "We have made significant progress, it has been very constructive in the last days, and there is no question that if the resolution is approved, it will go beyond anything that we have previously passed," Kerry said. "I believe that what we are considering is significant but, as I say, it is in the appropriate evaluative stages and we both hope that this can move forward very soon," added Kerry. Both China and the U.S. oppose North Korea's development of nuclear weapons and the missiles to deliver them, but Beijing has balked at imposing the tough sanctions Washington is seeking. While China fears that imposing those strictures could destabilize neighboring North Korea, a traditional ally, President Barack Obama signed legislation last week imposing even more stringent U.S. sanctions that aim to restrict North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's access to hard currency. Those restrictions could hurt Chinese banks and companies that do business connected to the North's nuclear and missile programs and its human rights abuses. Negotiations between the U.S. and Seoul over plans to install the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system (THAAD) in the South as a response North Koreas nuclear test and rocket launch have also angered China. On Tuesday China's ambassador to South Korea, Qiu Guohong, warned that deployment of the missile defense system could irreparably damage Beijing-Seoul ties, the AFP reported. Adm. Harry B. Harris Jr., commander of the U.S. Pacific Command, told a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on Tuesday that China's stance on the missile shield is "preposterous" and called on Beijing to focus on reining in North Korea. "I find it preposterous that China wedges itself between South Korea and the United States for a missile system designed to defend Americans and Koreans on the peninsula," he said. "If they were truly concerned, if they truly interested, I believe China would and should intervene with North Korea and convince them to quit their cycle of provocation," Harris added. Harris' testimony and remarks by Kerry and Wang underscored the wide gap over the South China Sea, where Washington and Beijing have been accusing each other of militarizing a vital waterway contested by China and several of its smaller neighbors. China 'clearly militarizing' disputed seas Harris said Chinese DF-21 and DF-26 anti-ship missiles deployed on Woody Island and other recent steps meant that China is "clearly militarizing" the South China Sea. "You'd have to believe in a flat Earth to think otherwise," he told the hearing. In his news conference with Wang, Kerry said moves by China, Vietnam and others had created an "escalatory cycle." "What we are trying to do it break that cycle," he said. "Regrettably there are missiles and fighter aircraft and guns and other things that have been placed into the South China Sea and this if of great concern to everyone who transits and relies on the South China Sea for peaceful trade," he added. Wang criticized U.S. air and naval patrols in the South China Sea, through which more than $5 trillion in global trade passes every year. "We dont hope to see any more close-up military reconnaissance, or the dispatch of missile destroyers or strategic bombers to the South China Sea," he said. China has been building islands on top of the reefs and atolls it controls, then adding air strips, harbors and other infrastructure that would help consolidate its control. Five other governments also hold maritime claims that overlap with Beijing's, and the U.S. has said it is concerned about China's militarization of the area. Beijing rejects the accusations, saying it is merely installing defensive measures on islands, primarily for civilian purposes. Fox News reported on Tuesday that China had deployed fighter planes on Woody Island, where the missile batteries were detected last week. The Center for Strategic and International Studies said satellite imagery show possible radar installations on Gaven, Hughes, Johnson South and Cuarteron reefs that could be key to helping China establish effective control over the strategically vital area's sea and airspace. Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said she had no specific information about the CSIS report, but said China had undisputed sovereignty over the area, AP reported. "It's within China's sovereignty to carry out constructions on its own territories," Hua told reporters. "By deploying some necessary defensive facilities on the relevant islands and reefs it defends in the South China Sea, China is exercising the right of self-preservation that every country enjoys according to international law, which is beyond reproach." Traditional herding communities in a county-level district in China's northern region of Inner Mongolia have stepped up protests over the loss of their grasslands this week, local sources said. Ethnic Mongolian herders gathered in protest on Tuesday outside the offices of the Haliut township government in Inner Mongolia's Urad Middle Banner, according to local residents and a U.S.-based rights group. They held up a banner which read: "Defend herders rights, take away land occupied by officials!" The protest was sparked by "local government officials illegal occupation of herders grazing lands," the New York-based Southern Mongolian Human Rights and Information Center (SMHRIC) said in a statement on its website. Local residents are also demanding the immediate return of their grazing lands and adequate compensation, it said. A local resident told RFA: "Herders from Urad Middle banner went to the government on Feb. 23 to hand in a petition for the return of our grasslands and land." But he added: "The government officials didn't take any notice of us." A second protester said that a second group had gathered outside the Urad Middle Banner government offices on Wednesday. "We went and took photos outside the gates of the government compound," the herder said. "The herders are trying to stand up for their rights; things aren't very good for us right now." A third herder said the protest had lasted from around 11.00 a.m. to noon local time. "It's for the grasslands," he said. "They still won't give them back to us." "Around 25 of us herders were there today," the third herder said. "To start with, there were about 30 of us, but then some of them left." 'Illegal appropriation' A spokesman for the herders, Burinzayaa, told SMHRIC that local government officials have "illegally appropriated" their grazing lands. "Hundreds of government officials have illegally occupied our collective land under various pretexts," he said. "In accordance with relevant laws and regulations, these officials must give up the land immediately and unconditionally." The local government's bureau of animal husbandry has also auctioned off some of the grazing lands for which the herders had signed a collective "responsibility contract," which typically lasts for 30 years. More than 1,000 ethnic Mongolian households are affected by such illegal land transactions, SMHRIC said. It quoted another herder, Gerlee, as saying: "We have been protesting for years. We appealed to the regional government and even the central government in Beijing. Our demands are completely ignored." The herders were intercepted during a petitioning trip to Beijing in November 2013 and brought back from the capital, RFA reported at the time. They have since been confined to their communities and barred from communications with higher government authorities, SMHRIC said. Environmental destruction In addition to the appropriation of grazing land and illegal land sales, the herders' traditional way of life has also been threatened by environmental destruction caused by Chinese mining companies and People's Liberation Army (PLA) military bases, it said. The government has yet to address the herders' complaints, nor has it paid out any form of compensation, according to SMHRIC. Organizers of these protests and petitions have repeatedly been arrested, detained, and locked up by local police. Last November, at least nine herders were detained for staging a protest during a visit to Urad Middle Banner by regional ruling Chinese Communist Party secretary Wang Jun. Urad Middle Banner resident Mengke said he was unable to speak to RFA on Wednesday. "There are a few people here in my home right now, so it's not convenient for me to talk," Mengke said. Asked if the visitors were police, he said: "Uh huh. The police from our commune are here to pay me a visit." 'Upgrade' The Inner Mongolia regional government is currently implementing a three-year "upgrade" program, including the demolition of buildings "at risk of collapse," the securing of safe drinking water, and the urbanization of rural communities. The plan also aims to set higher "hygiene standards," and to deliver electricity, radio, and television to all areas, and to improve local schools. It aims to speed up the urbanization of traditional ethnic Mongolian herding communities, offering lump sum payouts of around 10,000 yuan (U.S.$1,500) per household. SMHRIC estimates that at least 160,000 ethnic Mongolians have been forcibly evicted from traditional grazing lands in recent decades, while local activists also blame Chinese companies for damaging the fragile ecosystem in the region, leading local authorities to impose grazing bans to prevent further desertification. In China, all land is ultimately owned by the state, so herders have little redress when it comes to safeguarding their grazing rights, they say. Reported by Qiao Long for RFA's Mandarin Service. Translated and written in English by Luisetta Mudie. Bodies of three Lao soldiers shot dead in a clash with an anti-government group in Xaysomboun Province around Nov. 23-24. A Lao military officer who was deputy minister of national defense has been appointed governor of Xaysomboun province to tamp down increased unrest since last November, which has left 10 dead, a retired soldier close to a high-ranking officer in the Ministry of National Defense said. Major General Thongloy Silivong, a member of the Party Central Committee and former chief of the National Defense Academy, was appointed the new party secretary of Xaysomboun province on Feb. 16, replacing Sombath Yialiher. Thongloy was one of 69 people elected to the Party Central Committee during the 10th Party Congress of the ruling Lao Peoples Revolutionary Party, the countrys most important political event, held in the capital Vientiane in January. The appointment of a high-ranking military official to govern the province was expected because of the unrest, the retired soldier, speaking on condition of anonymity, told RFAs Lao Service. Unrest in the mountainous province in central Laos is nothing new, but recent violent incidents mean it can no longer be ignored because of the effect on local development and the lives of area residents, he said. Lao authorities imposed a curfew in the north-central part of the province in early December after a spate of violence the previous month in which three government soldiers and three civilians were killed. Last month, a bomb blast at a road construction site near a work camp outside Pha Nok Kok village, Long Cheang district, killed two Chinese officials and injured a third, and forced work on the project to stop temporarily. Previously, soldiers defused another bomb on the same road in Namphanoy village on Dec. 30. Anti-government group While authorities blamed the events on bandits, a source close to the government told RFA that an anti-government resistance group was behind the killings, a rarity in the tightly ruled country where no known armed rebel groups have operated in recent years. It is well known that the province is the base of an anti-government group, and no one can deny it, the retired soldier said. The reason the government has appointed Major General Thongloy to oversee that province is because hes not a hard-line soldier, but a politics-minded one who will focus on a peaceful strategy. Some believe that ethnic Hmong who live in the province may be the ones behind the recent attacks, he said. The Nam Ngiep 1, a 290-megawatt hydropower dam being built in Xaysomboun and neighboring Bolikhamxay province, has forced about 300 Hmong families to relocate to two other villages in Xaysomboun. The villagers did not want to be moved because they were not satisfied with the compensation offered to them, he said. Behind the scenes At first, General Souvone Leuangbounmy, a military hard-liner, was supposed to be appointed governor of Xaysomboun province, but the government decided on Major General Thongloy to work out a peaceful solution, the retired soldier said. Thongloy was not endorsed by former President Khamtay Siphandone, who has played a key role in selecting new Central Party Committee members and the 11 Politburo members. He campaigned hard before the party congress to ensure that certain candidates were elected. Before the 10th Party Congress, former president [Khamtay], backed by Vietnam, worked hard to get involved in the selection of the new Central Party Committee members and eliminate any pro-Chinese leaders, the retired soldier said. The 92-year-old worked so hard behind the scenes that he fell ill after the congress and is currently receiving medical treatment in Vietnam, he said. After the congress, it was clear that Mr. Khamtay still had the power and influence to decide the nations future and is one of only two people that can determine the destiny of the country, he said. Xaysomboun was once a base for thousands of ethnic minority Hmong who fought under U.S. Central Intelligence Agency advisers during a so-called secret war backing the Lao Royal Army against Pathet Lao communist forces. After the communist takeover in 1975, a ragtag band of Hmong resisters hid in the jungle, fearing government persecution for having fought for the pro-American side during the war. Reported by RFAs Lao Service. Translated by Ounkeo Souksavanh. Written in English by Roseanne Gerin. Human rights in Myanmar backtracked in key areas in 2015 despite November elections widely seen as free and fair, according to a report released Wednesday, which counted discrimination ahead of the vote and restrictions on freedom of expression among the worst violations in the country. In its annual report on the state of the worlds human rights, London-based Amnesty International noted an alarming rise in religious intolerance in the country, particularly against Muslims, in the lead up to the polls that saw the opposition National League for Democracy (NLD) claim the majority of seats in parliament. Although widely praised as being credible and transparent, the elections were otherwise marred by the disenfranchisement of minority groups and ongoing restrictions on freedom of expression, the report said. The authorities failed to address incitement to discrimination and violence based on national, racial and religious hatred, it said. Myanmars parliament adopted four laws aimed at protecting race and religion which were originally proposed by hardline Buddhist nationalist groups, despite containing provisions that Amnesty said violate human rights, including on religious and gender grounds. People who spoke out against discrimination and rising religious intolerance faced retaliation from state and non-state actors, the report said. The situation of the ethnic Muslim Rohingyas in the country deteriorated further still in 2015, Amnesty said, with ongoing discrimination in law and practice, and authorities failing to hold perpetrators of anti-Muslim violence to account. Myanmars government also intensified a clampdown on freedoms of expression, association and peaceful assembly in 2015, using broad and vaguely worded laws. Authorities intimidated and monitored human rights defenders and peaceful activists, while journalists remained subjected to harassment, arrest, prosecution and imprisonment solely for carrying out their activities peacefully, according to the report. Cambodia Amnesty also cited arbitrary restrictions on freedom of expression and peaceful assembly as contributing to a decline in rights in Cambodia, with authorities increasing arrests for online activity. The report said that impunity continued for human rights violations in the policing of demonstrations in 2013 and 2014, including at least six deaths resulting from what it called unnecessary and excessive use of force. Local human rights groups continued to receive complaints about new land disputes affecting thousands of families and involving well-connected military and political figures. Amnesty also documented Cambodias flagrant violations of the United Nations Refugee Convention, including refoulements, in 2015. Vietnam In Vietnam, the report said, severe restrictions on freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly continued, while the media and the judiciaryas well as political and religious institutionsremained under state control. Amnesty counted at least 45 prisoners of conscience imprisoned in harsh conditions after unfair trials, including bloggers, labor and land rights activists, political activists, religious followers, members of ethnic groups and advocates for human rights and social justice. A reduction in criminal prosecutions of bloggers and activists coincided with an increase in harassment, short-term arbitrary detentions and physical attacks by security officers, the report said, adding that members of civil society were also targeted. Scores of ethnic Montagnard asylum-seekers fled to Cambodia and Thailand from Vietnam between October 2014 and December 2015, citing harassment and discrimination by authorities. Laos Amnesty said that tough restrictions on freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly also continued in Laos, as authorities prepared to further tighten control of civil society groups in the country. After the enactment of a decree on management of information through the Internet in 2014, at least two individuals were arrested in relation to information posted online, it said. The group cited reports of restrictions on practicing Christianity, including arrests and prosecutions. No progress was recorded in the case of prominent civil society member Sombath Somphone, three years after his enforced disappearance. China In China, a series of new laws with a national security focus were drafted or enacted which presented grave dangers to human rights, according to Amnesty. The government launched a nationwide crackdown against rights lawyers, while other activists and human rights defenders continued to be systematically subjected to harassment and intimidation, it said. Authorities also further regulated the Internet, mass media and academia. Religious freedom was systematically stifled as the government continued its campaign to demolish churches and Christian crosses in Zhejiang province. Authorities also stepped up restrictions on religious affairs in the predominantly Muslim Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region and maintained extensive controls over Tibetan Buddhist monasteries. North Korea North Korea, routinely ranked among the worst nations with regards to human rights, continued to languish in 2015, Amnesty said. Authorities continued to arbitrarily arrest and detain individuals without fair trial or access to lawyers and family, including nationals of [South Korea], the report said. Households, particularly those with members suspected of having fled the country or trying to access outside information, remained under systematic surveillance. Amnesty noted that North Koreas regime arranged for more than 50,000 people to work in other countries, collecting their wages directly from employers and keeping the majority for its own revenue. Representatives from Myanmar's government met with a team from the opposition National League for Democracy (NLD) party on Wednesday in Naypyidaw to discuss the transfer of political power that will formally take place on April 1, a member of the presidents office said. Todays meeting mainly focused on the transfer-of-power ceremony scheduled to be held at the Presidential Palace, Zaw Htay, deputy director general of the presidents office, who attended the meeting, told RFAs Myanmar Service. We [also] agreed to hold another meeting sometime in early March, he said, but did not offer any further details. The government formed the support committee to handle the power transfer following a meeting between President Thein Sein and NLD chairwoman Aung San Suu Kyi in early December. The committee members include information minister Ye Htut, director-general of the presidents office Hla Tun, deputy director-general of the Ministry of Construction Maung Maung Ohn, and director of the presidents office Zaw Htay. The members of the NLDs power-transfer team who attended the meeting included central executive committee member Win Htein, physician and NLD operative Myo Aung, and former rector of Yangon University Aung Thu. Advancing peace As representatives from the current and incoming governments met to plan the political transition, leaders from the 88 Generation Peace and Open Society Group, formerly known as the 88 Generation Students, discussed the nationwide cease-fire agreement (NCA) with leaders from the armed ethnic groups that signed the accord with the government last October. Eight rebel groups signed the accord at that time, while others declined to sign it or were excluded by the government. The incoming NLD government should consider how it will seek peace with non-NCA signatories, said dissident and activist Min Ko Naing, who is a member of the a member of the 88 Generation Peace and Open Society Group which had worked with the opposition party to ensure free and fair general elections last November. The NLD won the elections, receiving more than 80 percent of the vote. It is very important for the new government to know how to advance peace in the country and how to carry out the work initiated by current government, he told RFA after the meeting in Yangon. We have to think about the opinions of non-NCA parties as well as political timing. The meeting participants discussed how the rebel groups that have not signed the NCA should proceed in a proper and fair manner as have those which have signed it, he said. 'Very delicate' transition The most important thing is to have a discussion on the future union since todays political transition is very delicate, Min Ko Naing said. The peace process, whose goal is to end decades of civil wars between the government army and ethnic rebel groups so Myanmar can move forward towards peaceful democratic development, calls for an all-inclusive union-level conference, he said. The team from the incoming NLD government should discuss this, he said. Aung San Suu Kyi has made national reconciliation and lasting one of the NLD-led governments goals. Leaders from Karen National Union (KNU), Chin National Front (CNF), Pa-O National Liberation Organization (PNLO) and All Burma Students Democratic Front (ABSDF) attended the meeting. Members of the United Nationalities Federal Council (UNFC), an alliance of the armed ethnic groups that did not sign the NCA, met earlier this week in Thailand to discuss their peace negotiation strategy with the NLD government. The ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) governments main peace negotiator also met with UNFC leaders this week to try to get the rebel groups to agree to the peace accord, but the council said it was firmly sticking to its all-inclusive policy for any future negotiations. Reported by Kyaw Thu and Htat Arkar for RFAs Myanmar Service. Translated by Kyaw Min Htun. Written in English by Roseanne Gerin. Nguyen Van Hai (L) and blogger Ta Phong Tan (R) speak to reporters at the Los Angeles airport, Sept. 19, 2015. The release of prisoners like Ta Phon Tan's doesn't erase Vietnam's poor human rights record. Amnesty International Campaigner for Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam Janice Beanland discussed the state of human rights in Vietnam with reporter Viet Ha of Radio Free Asias Vietnamese Service. Amnesty International just released its report on human rights in 160 countries and territories during 2015. In addition to the more typical threats to human rights, the organization found that the governments are painting the protection of human rights as a threat to security, law and order or national values. RFA: Focusing on Vietnam, what did you find in 2015? Janice Beanland: As in previous years Vietnam in 2015 was characterized by severe restrictions on freedoms of expression, association and peaceful assembly. This has the effect of preventing peaceful activists from exercising their fundamental rights. Its really quite severe in Vietnam. RFA: Is there any improvement, or is it just getting worse? Janice Beanland: Compared to 2014, what we have seen is a reduction in the number of prosecutions of individuals for exercising their right to freedom of expression. This seems to be have been compensated for by the increase in physical attacks against activists. Some have been very violent, and this is a grave concern that we are worried about. RFA: Amnesty International says short-term national self-interest and draconian security crackdowns are threatening human rights across the globe, is this true for Vietnam? Janice Beanland: Yes, in a way. Vietnam has continued this trend for many years now. The really quite sad thing about that is there is no shift from this sense that you cant be critical of the government and you cant hold different opinions because thats a threat to the state. RFA: Is there any data that illustrates the breadth of the issue in Vietnam? Janice Beanland: We know that during 2015 there were at least 45 prisoners of conscience who are still in prison after unfair trials, and we have seen reports that there were physical attacks against almost 70 individuals during the year and more than 30 violent attacks. Thats a large number. RFA: Who were the attackers? Janice Beanland: In some cases it was uniformed police. In some cases it was plainclothes people where there are allegations that they are police, or they were recognized as police. RFA: The government in Vietnam signed the Trans Pacific Partnership, and theres pressure internationally to protect human rights. Does that have any impact? Janice Beanland: Vietnam tends to fall under the radar for the international community. It tends to face less criticism than other countries, despite the fact that it has some very, very serious human rights concerns. Amnesty International would like to see the international community be much more forthright about the problems there currently are in Vietnam. We will see with the TPP. RFA: But Vietnam made a big show of releasing some prisoners of conscience last year, doesnt that show a good-faith effort? Janice Beanland: In most cases those released had reached the end of their sentences. Thats not a step forward for human rights, and the high-profile person who was released last year, Ta Phong Tan, was forced into exile. Thats a very cynical way of trying to put forward that you are taking these steps to respect human rights. Thats a very dubious way of doing things. RFA: With this years election in Vietnam, do you have any hopes for Vietnam that the government will relax its restrictions? Janice Beanland: I dont think there are any indications that that will happen, but I hope we will be surprised. The Afghan Taliban's office in Qatar has told RFE/RL that it continues to insist that all foreign troops in the U.S.-led coalition must leave Afghanistan before it will join direct peace talks with the government in Kabul. Mohammad Naim, the official spokesman for the Taliban's political office in Qatar, made the statement in an interview with RFE/RLs Radio Free Afghanistan after a four-nation group trying to set up direct peace talks said it expects negotiations to start in Islamabad by the first week of March. The so-called Quadrilateral Coordination Group -- which includes Afghanistan, Pakistan, China, and the United States -- announced its expectations after meeting in Kabul on February 23. But Naim said late on February 23 that the Taliban's Qatar office was "unaware of plans for talks" and that it had not changed its preconditions for joining the peace process, which he had announced at the Pugwash research center in Doha during a conference that lasted from January 23 to January 25. The Taliban has long held that it would not join talks with the Afghan government in Kabul until all foreign troops in the U.S.-led coalition leave Afghanistan. At the Doha conference, Taliban representatives said in a statement "the invaders should leave the country and give the Afghan people opportunity to determine their fate themselves." Other Taliban demands announced in Doha in January included official recognition of the Taliban's political office in Qatar, the removal of the Taliban from a United Nations terrorist blacklist, a halt to the "arrest and elimination" of Taliban fighters, and the release of Taliban inmates from prisons. The Taliban demands also included an end to what its Qatar office called "poisonous propaganda" against the Taliban. The Afghan government said in late January that it could not accept the Taliban's preconditions for the resumption of the stalled peace talks. Kabul said negotiations should move forward only in line with the decisions of the Quadrilateral Coordination Group. Afghanistan's High Peace Council has urged the Taliban to avoid setting preconditions, saying the group should raise their issues at the negotiating table. The High Peace Council also warned that there will not be a breakthrough in the peace process unless there are face-to-face talks between government negotiators and Afghan Taliban representatives. Despite his insistence on the Taliban preconditions announced in January, Naim told told RFE/RL that the Taliban "will take part in talks that end the foreign occupation and bring an Islamic government to the country." Some Taliban delegates met in Islamabad during the summer of 2015 with Afghan officials for an initial round of peace talks. But the fledgling peace process was derailed by the revelation that the Talibans founder and spiritual leader, Mullah Mohammad Omar, had been dead for more than two years. A power struggle between rival Taliban factions then emerged with rival field commanders expressing loyalty to different leaders. The Talibans Qatar office says it is the only "authorized and responsible entity" that can represent Afghanistan's Taliban at peace talks. With reporting by AP, Reuters, and Tolo-TV Amnesty International has warned that human rights and the laws and institutions meant to protect them are under threat around the world from an "insidious and creeping trend" among governments that are deliberately attacking or neglecting them. In its latest annual report, The State Of The World's Human Rights, the London-based human rights group calls on governments to give full political backing and funding to systems whose task is to uphold international law and protect individuals' rights. The group says the UN's human rights bodies, the International Criminal Court, and regional institutions such as the Council of Europe and the Inter American Human Rights system are being undermined by governments attempting to elude control of their domestic rights records. "Your rights are in jeopardy; they are being treated with utter contempt by many governments around the world," Salil Shetty, the group's secretary-general, told reporters ahead of the document's release. The authors say the trend is a result of many governments' efforts to respond to evolving security threats, including war and terrorism. "The misguided reaction of many governments to national security threats has been the crushing of civil society, the right to privacy, and the right to free speech; and outright attempts to make human rights dirty words, packaging them in opposition to national security, law and order, and 'national values,'" Shetty said. "Governments have even broken their own laws in this way." The report warns that "respect for human rights regressed" even in parts of the world with established and institutionalized traditions of safeguarding human rights, like the European Union, in the face of crises like the unprecedented influx of refugees prompted by the conflict in Syria, or terrorist attacks in France. "The European Union, the world's richest political bloc with a total population of over 500 million people, singularly failed to come up with a coherent, humane, and rights-respecting response to this challenge," the report says. A Turbulent Year Amnesty International says 2015 was a turbulent, difficult year for human rights across Europe and the former Soviet Union. In Russia, freedoms of expression and peaceful assembly continued to be severely curtailed, and attempts to silence civil society were made with the aid of the repressive use of vague national security and antiextremism laws. The report says Russian nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) face further harassment and reprisals under a 2012 law that stipulates that NGOs that receive foreign funding and engage in political activities must register with the government as "foreign agents." "We have seen more crackdowns on the freedom of expression, on the freedom of peaceful assembly, on the freedom of association," Denis Krivosheev, Amnesty's deputy program director for Europe and Central Asia, told RFE/RL. "NGOs have been under pressure for a number of years and [the pressure] has massively increased over the last year. We see them being closed, heavily fined, and it's probably not long before we see the first criminal cases against NGO leaders." The report also points to new Russian legislation that criminalizes the repeated violation of rules on public assembly, which are already restrictive. "So repeated violations have been made a criminal offense, and now we have seen four people prosecuted and one has already a three-year [prison] sentence," Krivosheev said. 'Worrying Situation' In Ukraine The rights group also points to a negative effect that the continued Moscow-backed conflict in eastern Ukraine has had on the human rights situation in both countries. "In Russia, we have seen criminal prosecution of people who have publicly criticized Russia's policies towards Ukraine, and this has been particularly evident on the Internet," Krivosheev said. The report cites the situation in Ukraine as worrying, adding that it has become increasingly dangerous for journalists to express pro-Russian views. "One journalist, Oles Buzina, was killed, and he was known for his pro-Russian views," Krivosheev said. Another journalist, Ruslan Kotsaba, who spoke out publicly against the war in the east and against mobilization, was arrested by Ukrainian authorities and is now awaiting trial for state treason. "He is the first person in Ukraine in five years whom we recognize as a prisoner of conscience," Krivosheev said. Central Asia 'Replicates' Russia Among Central Asia's ex-Soviet republics, the report warns that human rights remain under attack and the region's negative trend "is going further," with some of the countries attempting to replicate methods used by Russia. "For instance, in Kyrgyzstan, the parliament tried to adopt a law similar to Russia's so-called 'foreign agents' law to oblige NGOs that receive foreign funding to use this toxic label," Krivosheev said. "It was initially approved in the parliament, then it was recalled for consultation; but there is every change that it will come back and will become a law." The human rights situation also regressed in Kazakhstan, where authorities established a state agency to supervise the distribution of grants to NGOs, including possible foreign funding, according to Amnesty International. Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and Turkmenistan have remained as repressive as before, says the report, with torture and other human rights violations continuing. Growing Insecurity Meanwhile, Afghanistan has seen growing insecurity, the report says, with insurgency and criminality worsening throughout the country. Champa Patel, Amnesty International's interim director for South Asia, Southeast Asia, and Pacific regional offices, told RFE/RL that Afghanistan also grapples with the huge problem posed by millions of internally displaced persons, as well as a continued lack of accountability for civilian casualties. "I think it's often forgotten that Afghanistan has the second-highest refugee population in the world [after Syria], and that continues to be an area of concern for us," Patel said. Pakistan, on the other hand, is criticized in the report for its resumption of executions following a Pakistani Taliban-led attack on a school Peshawar in December 2014 in which 141 people, mostly children, were killed. "Pakistan is the top executioner after only China and Iran," Patel said. "More than 300 people were put to death last year, so it's an area that we feel is of great concern and that we want to see the Pakistani authorities tackle." Other issues facing Pakistan include the use of torture to extract confessions, the lack of fair-trial safeguards, and the use of military courts with little transparency, according to the report. Amnesty International says that in Iran, authorities severely curtailed human rights, including freedom of expression, association, and assembly, jailing journalists, human rights defenders, trade unionists, and others who voiced dissent, on vague and overly broad charges. "Authorities carry out cruel punishment, including blinding, amputation, and flogging, and courts have imposed death sentences for a range of crimes including on at least four juvenile offenders. So it's an area that remains of great concern for us," Patel said. "We continue to have concerns about torture and other ill treatment in Iran." BAKU -- Azerbaijan's Supreme Court has upheld the imprisonment of the Caucasus nation's noted lawyer Intiqam Aliyev. Aliyev was arrested in August 2014 and sentenced in April 2015 to 7 1/2 years in jail after a court found him guilty of illegal business activity, tax evasion, and abuse of authority. Aliyev's sentence was upheld by the Court of Appeals in Baku in July 2015. Aliyev's lawyers and supporters say the charges were retaliation for his professional activities. Aliyev founded the Legal Education Society in 1998 to provide legal assistance to marginalized groups. He has represented many Azerbaijani activists and human rights defenders. His lawyer, Cavad Cavadov told RFE/RL that he plans to appeal the ruling at the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg. Amnesty International has recognized Aliyev as a prisoner of conscience. FREE Joyce Meyer Conference Tour Coming to Winston-Salem Joyce Meyer Conference Tour 2016 Comes to Winston-Salem Free conference with New York Times bestselling author Joyce Meyer, with special music by Matt Redman March 10 12, 2016 at the LJVM Coliseum Collecting household items for distribution to local families in need Contact: Lori Potter, Joyce Meyer Ministries, 860-460-7993, lpotter@joycemeyer.org WINSTON-SALEM, N.C., Feb. 23, 2016 /Christian Newswire/ -- Thousands of men and women will gather at the free Joyce Meyer Conference coming to Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Held on March 10-12 at the LJVM Coliseum, located at 2825 University Parkway in Winston-Salem, conference attendees will come together to hear author and speaker Joyce Meyer share a unique message at each session. There is no charge for each of the four sessions. Special musical guest Matt Redman will also be there. Sessions start at: 7:00 p.m. on Thursday 10:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. on Friday 10:00 a.m. on Saturday Doors open 2 hours prior to each session Interpretation for the hearing impaired, as well as Spanish translation, will be provided. This section will be reserved until 30 minutes before the start of each session. Multiply Hope, an outreach of Joyce Meyer Ministries that benefits the local area by mobilizing conference attendees to help the community, will be supporting the Love Out Loud organization, with donations of household items, such as cleaning supplies, kitchen supplies, towels and washcloths, paper towels, toilet paper and trash bags. These items will be collected at the conference and distributed locally to those in need. To cover this event, contact Lori Potter at lpotter@joycemeyer.org. For all conference details, contact Joyce Meyer Ministries at (866) 733-5692 or visit joycemeyer.org/conference. About Joyce Meyer Ministries Joyce Meyer Ministries (JMM) is an international nonprofit organization that focuses on reaching people through media with a potential audience of 4.5 billion people. Impacting lives around the world, through its outreach arm, Hand of Hope, JMM provides life-changing global humanitarian and missions relief. In 2015, JMM provided more than 31.9 million meals supporting feeding centers in 33 countries and free medical care to over 225,000 people in multiple remote areas. JMM also provides support for 27 children's homes globally and provides a host of other disaster, missions and humanitarian aid. JMM also operates the Dream Center, an inner-city church and outreach center in North St. Louis. Please visit www.joycemeyer.org. Tamerlan Aguzarov died last week in a Moscow clinic at the age of 52, having served just five months as head of his native Republic of North Ossetia (RSO). The cause of death was officially given as pneumonia, but unnamed local officials were quoted as saying variously that Aguzarov had suffered for years from leukaemia, or that he had succumbed to a heart attack. Residents of Vladikavkaz, the republic's capital, were quoted as expressing shock and regret at the passing of a man whose pledges to end years of economic stagnation and mismanagement had engendered tentative hopes that living conditions might finally improve. Whether those hopes would have come to fruition if Aguzarov had, in the words of one commentator, "had time to become a reformer" is debatable, however. A former republican Supreme Court judge who subsequently represented North Ossetia for three years in the State Duma, Aguzarov was not the most obvious candidate to succeed Taymuraz Mamsurov, who was appointed republic head shortly after the Beslan hostage-taking in September 2004. Russian President Vladimir Putin nonetheless named him acting republic head in June 2015. He was confirmed in that post by the republic's parliament three months later, having secured the approval and support of the influential opposition Patriots of Russia parliament faction headed by former wrestling champion Arsen Fadzayev, who observers believe would himself easily win a popular ballot for the post of republic head. In his first address to parliament as acting republic head, Aguzarov identified the economy as his most pressing priority, pledging to attract badly needed investment, given that "there is no way to implement social projects if the economy is not developing dynamically." Industrial Woes The small, mountainous republic with a population of approximately 700,000 is less dependent (52.6 percent) than its North Caucasus neighbors on subsidies from the federal center for its annual budget. But, although primarily agricultural, it is not self-sufficient in food: the main crop is maize which, together with crystal-clear natural spring water, constitutes the basis of the vodka-distilling for which North Ossetia is a byword. In recent years, however, several major distilleries have either been stripped of their licenses or gone bankrupt. Other industrial enterprises are obsolescent, some stand idle; as a result, industrial output has fallen by 24 percent in the past couple of years, the largest such decline in the whole North Caucasus Federal District. Unemployment is a major problem. Although the officially registered level is just 2 percent, the true figure is closer to 8-10 percent, and there are eight applicants for every vacancy. In light of those economic problems, it is puzzling and illogical that one of Aguzarov's first moves was to expand the government, increasing the number of ministries from 13 to 14 and of state committees from five to eight. At the same time, he complained that the state debt had risen from 9 billion rubles ($119.59 million at todays exchange rate) in late 2014 to 10 billion rubles in October 2015, which was almost equal to planned annual budget revenues. On the plus side, Aguzarov won respect for expediting the completion of longstanding construction and renovation projects, and for his handling of the controversial death in police custody in late October of Vladikavkaz resident Vladimir Tskayev, who had been arrested on suspicion of an attack on a police officer to which one of his friends subsequently confessed. The Interior Ministry claimed the injuries Tskayev died of were self-inflicted; his family believe he was beaten to death. Aguzarov met with relatives of the dead man and promised to monitor the investigation into what happened. Russian President Vladimir Putin subsequently dismissed RSO Interior Minister Lieutenant-General Artur Akhmetkhanov (a Bashkir). In accordance with the RSO constitution, Prime Minister Vyacheslav Bitarov will serve as acting republic head until President Putin names his own candidate for that post. The RSO parliament will then formally elect a new republic head on September 18, concurrently with the elections to the State Duma. Bitarov, who made his fortune from the Bavariya brewery chain, is not seen as a likely candidate in light of his limited state experience (Aguzarov named him first deputy premier in June and prime minister in mid-September). Possible contenders are businessman Taymuraz Bolloyev, RSO Public Chamber secretary Elbrus Bokoyev, and parliament speaker Aleksei Machnev. It's not every day that cigarette smugglers get convicted of espionage. But that is exactly what just happened in Estonia -- and it's a sign of the times. Prosecutors announced this week that three men -- all smugglers of contraband cigarettes -- were convicted of collaborating with Russia's security services, providing them with information on the operations and movements of Estonia's border guards and defense forces. Now espionage cases involving Russian spies in Estonia are not uncommon, but they usually involve high-level officials with access to state secrets. On one hand, the prosecution of low-level informants indicates heightened vigilance on Estonia's part as Moscow continues to menace and threaten the Baltic states. But it also starkly illustrates the dark alliance between organized crime and Russia's security services -- the nexus between its spooks and its crooks. It is worth noting that when Estonian law-enforcement officer Eston Kohver was abducted by Russian agents in September 2014, he was investigating a smuggling ring run jointly by organized crime groups and Russia's Federal Security Service. Russia's nationalization and weaponization of its many mafias is one aspect of the hybrid war it is waging on the West. And as a result, the West's response needs to go beyond traditional notions of defense. In this environment, law enforcement, counter espionage, and national security are intertwined. The Estonians are on the front lines, and they clearly get this. And it's a lesson the rest of the West needs to learn as well. Keep telling me what you think in the comments section, on the Power Vertical's Twitter feed, and on our Facebook page. Iranian authorities have arrested the 80-year-old father of an Iranian-American citizen who's been in jail in Iran since October, the family said in a Facebook post. Baqer Namazi, the father of Siamak Namazi, was arrested on February 22 and taken to Tehran's Evin prison, his wife, Effie Namazi, wrote on Facebook. Namazi's son, Siamak, is also being held at the notorious prison. "We are aware of reports that a U.S. citizen was detained in Iran," State Department spokesman Mark Toner said in a short statement e-mailed to RFE/RL. "The U.S. Department of State has no higher priority than the protection of U.S. citizens overseas," the statement said. "Due to privacy considerations we have no further information at this time." The reason for their arrest and the charges against them is unclear. Siamak Namazi was arrested by the intelligence unit of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC). The IRGC has arrested a number of journalists and activists in recent months. With reporting by Reuters Iranian hard-liners are trying to undermine their moderate opponents ahead of the February 26 parliamentary elections by alleging that their list of candidates is supported by Great Britain. The vote will pit moderates against hard-liners running for the parliament's 290 seats and the 86-member Assembly of Experts that could choose Iran's next supreme leader. Many prominent reformists have been reportedly barred from running by the conservative Guardians Council that screens all candidates for office in the Islamic republic. "The British government is evil, and when it supports only some of the election lists, we should be worried," said Ayatollah Hassan Mamduhi, a member of the Assembly of Experts. Speaking to the Tasnim news agency, which is affiliated with the powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, Mamduhi added that "those candidates that are being supported by Britain" should declare their innocence. Many pointed the finger at the BBC, claiming that the British news service had told Iranians which candidates to vote for. Among these accusers was ultraconservative cleric Ahmad Khatami, also a member of the Assembly of Experts, who claimed that "arrogant powers" are intent on an "infiltration" of Iran's center of power. "Isn't it interference by the British media to present a list of candidates and tell [people], 'Vote for this, don't vote for that'?" Khatami said over the weekend. The Persian service of the BBC appears to have angered Iranian hard-liners due to its popularity and attempts to provide Iranians with news and information they don't get from heavily censored Iranian state broadcasts. The news portal Mashreghnews.ir posted pictures of several people in the western province of Ilam holding signs that said "I will not vote for the BBC candidate." The "British list" allegations prompted a sharp reaction from Iranian President Hassan Rohani, a self-proclaimed moderate, who said the intelligence of Iranian voters should not be insulted. "There is no need to add color to the old face of worn-out colonial [powers] and belittle the people," Rohani was quoted as saying on February 24. Rohani's ally, former President Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, also dismissed the allegations of British meddling. "Such interpretations regarding a 'British list' [of candidates] is an insult to the Iranian people's wisdom," Rafsanjani said on February 23. 'House Cleaning' Both Rohani and Rafsanjani are running for the Assembly of Experts, which is tasked with monitoring the performance of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, 76, and choosing his successor should he die or become incapacitated. Pro-reform activists have called on voters to back an alliance of reformist and moderate candidates to provide a counterweight to hard-liners in the parliament and the Assembly of Experts. Among those who have taken to social media to encourage Iranians to vote for moderates is Parvin Fahimi, whose son, Sohrab Arabi, was killed in the 2009 crackdown that followed the disputed reelection of former President Mahmud Ahmadinejad. "I will vote for the list of reformists, the list that has been endorsed by [former reformist President Mohammad] Khatami," Fahimi said in a video while holding a picture of her dead son. The daughters of Iranian opposition figures Mir Hossein Musavi and Zahra Rahnavard have also announced that they will participate in the elections despite "pressure and shortcomings." Musavi and his wife, Rahnavard, as well as reformist cleric Mehdi Karrubi, have been under house arrest since February 2011 for repeatedly challenging the Iranian establishment and condemning human rights abuses. Karrubi's family has urged voters to participate in the elections to push for a "house cleaning" in the parliament and the Assembly of Experts. Iran has ordered 50 planes from Brazil's Embraer, the world's third biggest commercial aircraft manufacturer, to modernize its aging aircraft fleet, a government spokesman said on February 23. Like other orders since the lifting of sanctions on January 16, it will be a lease-purchase deal, spokesman Mohammad Bagher Nobakht said. "The government is not going to spend its limited resources on things like buying planes," he said. Iran has already announced orders for 118 Airbus aircraft and up to 40 planes from ATR, a European turboprop aircraft manufacturer. The Airbus deal is worth $10 to $11 billion, and is also a lease-purchase deal, Nobakht said. About 80 to 85 percent of the financing will come from Airbus and European banks, Iran Air's chief executive Farhad Parvaresh told reporters. Iran's aviation industry before sanctions were lifted was under a U.S. embargo that since 1995 had prevented Western manufacturers from selling Tehran equipment or spare parts. The embargo hindered maintenance operations and grounded part of Iran's aging fleet. Iran needs 400 to 500 aircraft over the next decade to modernize the fleet. Based on reporting by AFP and Reuters Japanese media are reporting that U.S. President Barack Obama has asked Prime Minister Shinzo Abe not to visit Russia in May for talks with President Vladimir Putin. Obama asked Abe to cancel his scheduled trip, which runs counter to U.S. policy of isolating Moscow over its aggression in Ukraine, the Kyodo and Jiji news agencies reported on February 24. But Abe refused to comply with Obama's request in a phone conversation on February 9, and he remains likely to travel to Sochi, Russia, in early May to meet Putin. The Japanese Foreign Ministry has not revealed what Abe and Obama discussed regarding the scheduled trip. It said most of the conversation was about responding to a rocket launch by North Korea. The Japanese premier is keen to settle a decades-old territorial dispute with Russian over islands off Hokkaido that Japan claims but which are held by Russia. The dispute prevented the two countries from signing a peace treaty after World War II. Kyodo said Abe told Obama that resolving the territorial dispute will contribute to stability in the East Asian region. Based on reporting by Kyodo, Jiji, and dpa Kazakhstan plans to resume direct passenger flights to Egypt in March. Kazakhstan's Investments and Development Ministry said on February 24 that the flights between Almaty and the Egyptian resort town of Sharm el-Sheikh will be operated by Fly Egypt and the Kazakh airline SCAT. Kazakh authorities suspended flights to Egypt in November after a crash of a Russian passenger plane in the Sinai Peninsula on October 31. Authorities say 224 people were killed when an Airbus A321, owned by the Russian airliner Kogalymavia, crashed shortly after it took off from Sharm el-Sheikh for a planned flight to St. Petersburg. Investigators determined that an explosive device was detonated aboard the plane, and suggested an Egyptian airport employee loaded explosives into the baggage compartment. Russian officials have said the crash was the result of a terrorist attack. Based on reporting by kaptal.kz and zakon.kz ALMATY -- An Almaty court has transferred to house arrest Seitqazy Mataev, the head of the Kazakh Journalists Union and the chairman of the National Press Club. The Medeu district court ruled on February 24 that Mataev can stay under house arrest while investigations into his case are carried out. Mataev and his son, Aset Mataev, who is the director of the KazTAG news agency, were detained for questioning on February 22. The latter was released several hours later. Kazakhstan's Anticorruption Agency has said that Seitqazy Mataev is suspected of embezzlement and tax evasion and may face up to 12 years in jail if convicted. Mataev pleaded not guilty and said in the courtroom on February 24 that he is "ready to prove his innocence." It is not clear if Mataev was officially charged. Rights organizations have said Mataev is being prosecuted on trumped-up charges because of his work as a journalist. Hundreds of demonstrators are spending a second night camping in the center of Pristina, the capital of Kosovo, to demand new elections and to try to scuttle the election of a new president. Opposition politicians and the protesters are against an EU-backed deal with Serbia that they say infringes upon the country's sovereignty in giving rights to ethnic Serbs in Kosovo. "This regime tried to forcefully implement these agreements and they have not resigned.... We are going to be here 24/7," said Ramush Haradinaj, the head of the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo party, on February 24. The demonstrators have said they will remain outside the Kosovar parliament building until the government resigns and snap elections are called. The opposition has since September used tear gas and pepper spray to repeatedly disrupt parliament sessions to show its opposition to the agreement with Belgrade. The deal gives greater autonomy to Kosovo's minority ethnic Serbs and includes a border-demarcation agreement with Montenegro. The protesters also want to prevent parliament from voting on February 26 for the candidacy of Foreign Minister Hashim Thaci as president. Albin Kurti, an opposition deputy, called on all Kosovars to join the protest against Thaci's election. Based on reporting by AFP and AP BISHKEK -- Kyrgyz police have detained several women who allegedly are members of a banned Islamic group. The southern Osh region's police department said 15 women were detained on February 24 in the Kara-Suu district on suspicion of being members of Hizb ut-Tahrir. The committee said investigators found books containing possible extremist materials. The books were sent for theological and linguistic analysis. Arrests of alleged members of Hizb ut-Tahrir and other banned Islamic groups have increased since the beginning of 2015 in Kyrgyzstan. Kyrgyz authorities say Hizb ut-Tahrir plays a role in a strategy used by Al-Qaeda and Islamic State militants to radicalize youth and recruit them to fight in Syria and Iraq. Hizb ut-Tahrir, which is banned across Central Asia and in Russia, says it is a peaceful group. The stated goal of the international pan-Islamic political organization is to unite Muslim countries in global caliphate ruled by Shari'a law. We are the most effective way to get your press release into the hands of reporters and news producers. Check out our client list. Macedonia's main political parties agreed to demands by the opposition to delay early elections previously scheduled for April 24 by more than a month until June 5. Lawmakers voted 83-3 to postpone the formal dissolution of Parliament, which starts the 60-day countdown to the elections, that had been set for midnight on February 23 after the main opposition group threatened to boycott the elections over concerns they were open to fraud. The elections are being held two years early as part of a deal brokered by the European Union last year to end a political crisis sparked by a wiretapping scandal. Opposition parties backed by the EU and the United States had complained that April 24 was too early, as the necessary conditions to hold elections were not yet in place. The ruling conservative party had resisted postponing the timetable. The political crisis stemmed from opposition allegations that the conservatives illegally wire-tapped 20,000 people, including police, judges, journalists, and foreign diplomats. Social-Democrat opposition leader Zoran Zaev charged that the conversations revealed corruption at the highest level of government. Based on reporting by AFP and AP A team of open-source researchers investigating the crash of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 has published a report it provided to Dutch prosecutors linking the commanders of a Russian military unit to the planes downing. The latest report, released on February 24 by the British group known as Bellingcat, links higher-ups in Russia's military chain of command to the tragedy and adds other details building on earlier investigations into the July 2014 downing of MH17. Its previous reports had identified Russias 53rd Anti-Aircraft Missile Brigade as being the likely source of the missile that Dutch aviation officials say brought down the jet, killing all 298 people on board. But it adds to the growing body of circumstantial evidence suggesting Russian complicity. This includes personal information about Russian military officers and enlisted soldiers who Bellingcat alleges specifically knew of, and possibly even manned, the Buk-M1 surface-to-air missile system believed to have brought down MH17. Bellingcat in December provided a full version of the report to Dutch prosecutors, who said they would "seriously study" the group's claim that its research identified up to 100 Russian military personnel who might have knowledge of the movements of the missile launcher that destroyed the Boeing 777. The group redacted most of these soldiers' names and blurred images of their faces -- culled from photographs and video published on social media and news sites -- in the public version it released on its website. MH17 was flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur on July 17, 2014, when it disappeared from radars over eastern Ukraine. Wreckage from the plane and its victims was found strewn over a wide area where Russia-backed separatists had been battling Ukrainian government forces. In October 2015, the Dutch Safety Board, a government agency charged with investigating aviation disasters, said the jet was downed by a surface-to-air missile, and identified the 320-square-kilometer area from which the missile was fired. The area was mostly controlled by separatists at the time. The board stopped short of assigning criminal blame, however, something the four-nation Joint Investigative Team has been charged with doing. The Joint Investigative Team did not immediately respond to an email from RFE/RL seeking comment. Russia has strenuously denied the fighters it supports in eastern Ukraine were responsible or that it supplied the missile system. A leading separatist commander initially appeared to take credit for firing a missile and downing a Ukrainian jet, but those claims on social media were later removed. Russian officials have also put forth myriad alternate theories, including claims that MH17 was downed by a missile fired from a Ukrainian fighter jet. Bellingcat has previously documented what it says is evidence that the Buk-M1 missile system purportedly used to shoot down MH17 was moved between June 23 and 25 to the Ukrainian border, near the town of Luhansk, and ultimately fired on the plane from a position near the Ukrainian town of Snizhne in Donetsk Oblast. It says that the convoy was largely made up of vehicles from the 2nd Battalion of the 53rd Anti-Aircraft Missile Brigade, based near the southern city of Kursk. The new report details the chain of command for this battalion. "There is no direct evidence that soldiers or officers of the 53rd Anti-Aircraft Missile Brigade were part of the crew of the Buk-M1 that likely downed MH17 on 17 July 2014," the report notes, though it adds that a Russian crew may have moved together with the Buk-M1 across the border into Ukraine. Bellingcat said that if "the Buk crew consisted of Russian soldiers and officers, they were likely selected by" a man identified only as "Dmitry T.," who was "very likely" the battalions commander, or the commander of the 53rd Brigade, Colonel Sergei Muchkayev. Bellingcat also said it explored the theory that Russian units transferred the Buk-M1 to separatists in eastern Ukraine. "This scenario, however, seems unlikely, mainly because a Buk missile launcher is a very sophisticated and expensive weapon and it is very unlikely that Russia would turn it over unsupervised to a group of separatists without having adequate training," it said. The chain of command that Bellingcat ties to the MH17 shootdown includes Muchkayevs superior, Colonel Aleksei Zolotov, who was promoted to Chief of the Air Defense Forces of the 20th Army, which encompasses the 53rd Brigade. But while Muchkayev may have made operational decisions regarding crews and the makeup of the Buk convoy, Bellingcat said the order more broadly to move military equipment across the border was likely made at top levels of the Russian military hierarchy, the Kremlin, and even by President Vladimir Putin himself. Bellingcat said that, if its conclusion about the Russian Buk missile launcher that allegedly downed MH17 is correct, the Russian Defense Ministry "bears the main responsibility for the MH17 tragedy, shared with the military commanders and leaders of the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk Peoples Republics," the names of the separatist organizations in eastern Ukraine. Other international media, including The Associated Press, have pinpointed Buk-M1 systems in the eastern Ukrainian town of Snizhne on the day of the planes downing, and accompanying soldiers who spoke with accents from Moscow and other regions in Russia. Cell phone conversations intercepted by Ukrainian intelligence services and subsequently released by the Ukrainian government show rebel commanders on the day of the jets downing discussing the firing of a missile, thinking that the aircraft that was targeted was a military jet. The Joint Investigative Team is expected to release the results of its criminal probe sometime later this year. Saudi Arabia and Bahrain warned their citizens against visiting or staying in Lebanon amid a deepening dispute with Iran and its allies in the Mediterranean nation. The two Gulf nations said their citizens are not safe in Lebanon because the Iranian-backed Hezbollah Shi'ite militia has armed militants there. The United Arab Emirates went a step further and said it was banning its nationals from visiting Lebanon. The moves to evacuate citizens comes after Saudi Arabia suspended $3 billion in aid to Lebanese armed forces last weekbecause Beirut had not condemned the sacking of Saudi diplomatic facilities in Iran. Saudi Arabia has sanctioned Hezbollah, which has been fighting in support of Syria's regime with Iran's backing in the five-year Syrian civil war. Saudi Arabia supports rebels opposed to Syria's government. Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah last week accused Turkey and Saudi Arabia of dragging the region into war, and said "victory" was imminent for his group and its Syrian ally. Based on reporting by AFP and Reuters DUSHANBE -- A Tajik woman has been sentenced to prison for joining the extremist Islamic State (IS) group and calling on Tajik youth to join "jihad" in Syria. The Ismoili Somoni district court in Dushanbe on February 24 found 34-year-old Zarina Sardorova guilty of "training, financing, and materially supporting mercenaries taking part in military conflicts" and the "organization of activities of a banned group." The court sentenced Sardorova to 13 years in prison, making her the first woman in Tajikistan to be sentenced for involvement with IS. Investigators say the mother of two set up an account with the Russian Odnoklassniki social network using a false name. She was accused of using the page, which featured a picture of her brandishing an AK-47 assault rifle, to call on young Tajiks to join "jihad" in Syria and Iraq. Later, in early 2015, Sardorova traveled to Syria via Turkey, where she married an unidentified man. It was her third marriage. According to the Interior Ministry, one of Sardorova's previous spouses was an active member of the Islamic Renaissance Party of Tajikistan, which was branded a terrorist organization and banned in 2015 Tajik authorities arrested Sardorova at Dushanbe's international airport in October as she arrived on a flight from Turkey. Sardorova's sentencing took place two days after 14 men in the country's Yovon district were detained for questioning after they "liked" an Islamic extremist video posted on Odnoklassniki. The men were detained and questioned as part of an investigation into the video, which called on Tajik men and women to join IS. Tajik authorities say at least 1,000 Tajik citizens have traveled to Iraq and Syria to fight alongside IS militants. Dmitry Medvedev recently played a telling little head game. When the Russian prime minister said at the Munich Security Conference that Moscow and the West had "slid into a new Cold War," he essentially created a damned-if-you-do-damned-if-you-don't situation. "If the West agrees that it is a new Cold War, then it automatically acknowledges Russias global-power status. If it doesn't -- then why the sanctions? -- Can we lift them now? Can we go back to business as usual?" Anton Shekhovtsov, a fellow at the Legatum Institute, wrote recently on his Facebook page. As is often the case, Shekhovtsov is right on target. And Medvedev's rhetorical trick is something of a metaphor for Russia's behavior writ large -- and it has implications beyond the cute little mind games Vladimir Putin's favorite mini-me played in Munich. "With his choice of words, the prime minister is pursuing the same goal as the Russian fighter planes that are shadowing German Tornado reconnaissance jets over Syria or operating near the airspace of NATO member states," German foreign-affairs commentator Mathieu von Rohr wrote recently in Der Spiegel. "They are gestures aimed at intimidating the West against trying to counter Russian aspirations to power." Actually, it's more subtle and more insidious than outright intimidation. Manipulate Your Superiors This game is called "reflexive control," a doctrine developed by Soviet military strategists back in the 1960s that aims to compel adversaries to behave in a manner advantageous to Moscow. It does this by preemptively shaping of the environment through disinformation campaigns, psyops, business ties, political meddling, establishing military facts on the ground -- or any combination of the above. It's a game that anybody who has ever dealt with a manipulative teenager -- or adult for that matter -- will recognize. And it's a game that Putin's Kremlin has been playing with the West in ways big and small for years. It has forced the West to treat Russia like part of the solution in Ukraine and Syria, when in reality, Moscow is a big -- or in the case of Ukraine, the biggest -- part of the problem. It has compelled Europe to tread lightly with Putin, even as the Kremlin exacerbates the continent's migrant crisis and backs the xenophobic parties that are exploiting it. And it has nudged the United States toward reluctantly treating Russia like the rival superpower it longs to be. "The idea behind reflexive control is to shape the environment in such a way that the enemy chooses Russias preferred course of action voluntarily, because it is easiest and all the others appear much more difficult and risky, if not impossible," military analysts Frederick and Kimberly Kagan wrote recently. "Reflexive control allows a much weaker force to constrain and even control the activities of a much stronger force." Forcing Bad Choices Russia's intervention in Syria, its relentless bombing campaign in Aleppo, and its creative interpretations of the cease-fires it signs are textbook examples. By creating military facts on the ground with one hand while pushing for a diplomatic solution with the other, Moscow has effectively hamstrung Western efforts to remove Bashar al-Assad. As foreign-affairs analyst Frederic C. Hoff of the Atlantic Council noted recently, the Kremlin is "trying hard to force upon the United States a binary choice" between Assad and the Islamic State extremist group "by eliminating militarily all alternatives to the twin wreckers of Syria." Moreover, by indiscriminately bombing civilian targets, Russia is exacerbating Europe's refugee crisis. And in doing so, it has sent a message to Brussels that things will only get better once relations with Moscow are normalized and sanctions are lifted. And if Europe doesn't play ball? Well, this is where reflexive control becomes outright extortion. "If this wave of humanity -- some of it terrified, some of it simply disgusted -- enables the political bottom-feeders of Western Europe to rise to the top, will this not serve the purposes of Mr. Putin?" Hoff wrote. Russia has also played the reflexive-control game in Ukraine, which defense analyst Can Kasapoglu called a "laboratory" for the technique in a recent research note for the NATO Defense College. Moscow managed to prevent the authorities in Kyiv from offering any resistance to the forceful annexation of Crimea, it has kept the West confused about its troop levels and military goals in Donbas, and it has gotten itself recognized as a signatory of the Minsk cease-fire, but not as a combatant in the conflict in eastern Ukraine. "Moscow has used this technique skillfully to persuade the U.S. and its European allies to remain largely passive in the face of Russia's efforts to disrupt and dismantle Ukraine through military and nonmilitary means," Maria Snegovaya wrote in a recent report for Institute for the Study of War. She added that Kremlin has also "sowed discord within the NATO alliance and created tensions between potential adversaries about how to respond." The Limits Of Extortion Reflexive control has also had its limitations, as it has thus far not prevented the West from imposing, and maintaining, sanctions that are helping cripple the Russian economy. And as Western elites become increasingly aware of what Moscow is doing -- and how they are doing it, these tactics "will return to haunt Moscow," Maksim Trudolyubov, editor at large of the Russian daily Vedomosti, wrote in The New York Times. "The Kremlin can change facts on the ground, stage quasi cease-fires and create zones of influence to exert pressure on other nations. It has done so in Moldova, Georgia and Ukraine, and the pattern is now being repeated in Syria," Trudolyubov wrote. "But if you have the reputation of turning everything you touch into a weapon, everything you say and do might be construed as an attack. You become everyones enemy. Russias leaders have become so adept at their game of projecting menacing ambiguity that it is now impossible for them to persuade anyone that sometimes the Russians might just simply want to do business." Ukraine's government and Russia-backed separatists have accused each other of violating a fragile cease-fire agreement by launching heavy mortars against each other in eastern Ukraine. Ukraine's military press office said on February 24 that separatist fighters had fired 84 rounds at government forces during the previous 24 hours. Russia-backed separatists said Ukrainian government forces fired 30 rounds at their positions on the outskirts of Donetsk and Horlivka. The fighting in eastern Ukraine comes after the German and French foreign ministers visited Kyiv on February 23 and urged Ukraine's leaders to push ahead with reforms needed to fulfill the Minsk peace agreements and stabilize the situation in the east. More than 9,000 people have been killed in the conflict since fighting broke out in April 2014 in Ukraine's eastern Donetsk and Luhansk regions. Based on reporting by Reuters and TASS Marauders have looted the hunting residence of former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych to the point where scarcely anything remains, aside from three chairs, a sofa, and four tables. "It was broken into. In one place a glass door was broken with a boulder," Denys Tarakhkotelyk, who checked in on the property on a whim, told Ukrainian TSN television. "They took everything from the house starting from expensive electronics to toilets -- even electrical sockets." Besides the main lodge, thieves looted the adjoining two servants' houses and a sauna complex from which marauders even stole the "veniky," the traditional Russian birch-branch sauna accessory. The only building that was left mostly untouched was a small church. Located 40 kilometers north of Yanukovych's infamous presidential estate Mezhyhirya, his hunting residence has sat unsupervised since the fall of 2015, when the Kyiv-2 Battalion that guarded it was dispatched to eastern Ukraine. This apparently opened the door to thieves. "Clearly, this wasn't done in a week," said Tarakhkotelyk, who supervises Mezhyhirya and other properties tied to former government officials. "A group looted on a large scale. Others just picked things up, maybe locals, maybe somebody else." Tarakhkotelyk said he discovered the break-in a week ago. His team had been guarding the already looted summer residence of former Prosecutor-General Viktor Pshonka, which is situated nearby, and decided to check Yanukovych's hunting residence as well. Tarakhkotelyk said he reported the break-in to prosecutors, but police only came two days later. The officials sealed the buildings and appointed around-the-clock security to supervise the premises. The Prosecutor-General's Office has opened a criminal case. The land surrounding the property, which the Ukrainian prosecution prices at 7 million hryvnyas (approximately $257,000) belongs to the government. However, the buildings themselves officially still belong to their owner. The situation is the same with Yanukovych's main residence, Mezhyhirya. Technically, it still belongs to the Tantalit company, one of the assets Yanukovych and his entourage used to allegedly embezzle funds. Journalists and activists famously first discovered the ostentatious tastes of Yanukovych on the 130-hectare presidential residence the day after he fled Kyiv for Russia in 2014 amid violent protests across the country. Mezhyhirya quickly became a popular tourist destination, often called a "museum of corruption," with security and an entrance fee. Ukrainian activists now say the Prosecutor-General's Office itself is at fault for failing to seize such properties and prosecute those involved in Yanukovych's corruption schemes. "Nothing was done," Daria Kalenyuk, executive director of the Anticorruption Action Center, told RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service. "Only a year after Mezhyhirya was opened it was seized. The property is losing its value, it somehow appears at auctions in London." "The current prosecution did not and does not want to resolve this." WASHINGTON -- The U.S. Defense Department says it has no evidence to corroborate Serbia's claim that two of its citizens were killed in an air strike in Libya last week. Captain Jeff Davis, a Pentagon spokesman, said U.S. officials had reviewed photos of the dead Serbian citizens and gathered more information about the February 19 strike. "So far we have not seen any credible information that would indicate that these people were killed in the strike that we conducted," Davis said in a statement on February 24. U.S. officials said the attack killed dozens of people and was primarily aimed at Nureddine Chuchane, a senior Islamic State operative blamed for two terror attacks in Tunisia last year. Serbian Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic and Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic said two embassy staff members who had been kidnapped in Libya in November were believed to be killed by the air. There was no immediate reaction by Serbia to the Pentagon statement. For full functionality of this site it is necessary to enable JavaScript. Here are the instructions how to enable JavaScript in your web browser Mills Godwin, as governor in the tumultuous 1960s, said that Virginia was of the South but also of the nation. At the time, many Virginians felt otherwise and voted accordingly. A half-century later, because of rapid growth and increasing diversity, the state more fully reflects the nation, and many Virginians vote accordingly. The Virginia presidential primaries Tuesday, part of the lopsidedly Southern Super Tuesday delegate contests, will be the first that come closest to measuring the preferences of the nation as a whole, affirming the states battleground status, set by Barack Obamas victory eight years ago that snapped a four-decade Republican win streak. Among the early states, Iowa and New Hampshire are small with few minorities. South Carolinas Republican primary draws a cross-section of the partys conservatives. The South Carolina Democratic primary is disproportionately black. Heavily Hispanic Nevada also is thinly populated. WalletHub, an online monitor of the intersection of finance and demographics, recently rated Virginia 10th overall among the 50 states as the one that most closely resembles the nation. The finding is based on population, education levels and economy. But its Virginias demographics that is, the gender and race of its residents that make it one of the top-three most American states. It was No. 3 behind Illinois and Connecticut. Virginias diversity is no longer concentrated in its Washington suburbs. Its evident all along the Interstates 95 and 64 corridors that bind the states politically and economically dominant cities and suburbs. They are the bulwark of Hillary Clintons expected triumph in the Democratic primary and where there arent enough Republicans to prevent Donald Trump from winning or pairing his victories elsewhere with a strong second-place finish that would still assure him a hefty chunk of Virginia delegates. Virginia is not quite as white as the nation and is more African-American, according to census figures. The nation and state have comparable percentages of Asians. Virginias percentage of Hispanics is about half that of the United States. Nation and state are almost identical in their percentages of young, seniors and women. Since 2000, more than three-quarters of the states population growth has been people of color. Just under one in 10 Virginians is foreign-born, with 40 percent Asian and 36 percent Hispanic. They are voting in huge numbers for Democrats, as continuing efforts by Republicans to discourage their participation attest. Its no coincidence that new restrictions on voting, most notably photo-ID requirements, and the elevated precision with which Republicans carve legislative and congressional seats, track the growth of the states foreign-born population. The speed with which these changes are occurring is stunning. In 2009, when Virginians chose a governor and the customarily sharp, off-year decline in turnout augured a Republican landslide one year after Obamas win, 78 percent of voters were white and 22 percent minority. Four years later, the electorate was 72 percent white and 28 percent minority. The makeover contributed to a slender Democratic win for governor that ended a peculiar Virginia tradition: Since 1976, the party that won the presidency had lost the governorship the following year. The Virginia primaries will be important markers for the political parties, one of which is competitive in high-turnout elections; the other, dominant in thinly attended off-year contests concentrated in gerrymandered districts. The primaries also will measure the pulling power of political personalities, some of whom are preoccupied with keeping their party unified and on-message; others who try but find their party increasingly ungovernable because activists are resentful of authority. The numbers indicate as much. Participation in Virginia Democratic presidential primaries is exploding, while its shrinking on the Republican side. In 2008, when the presidency was last open, more than 986,000 votes were cast in the Democratic primary, about 20 percent of the total voter pool. Less than half that many voters 489,000 went into the Republican primary. And four years later, when Republicans selected a challenger to Obama, only 265,000 participated in the GOP primary. In both elections, Obama carried Virginia by roughly the same margins he achieved nationally. This enlarged Democratic Party in this presidential cycle is heavily hierarchical. Most of its leaders fell in with Clinton over the past two years and the grass roots, save some of the urban young and college students sweet for Bernie Sanders, are following suit. All statewide elective officials Republicans have been shut out for governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, and U.S. senator as well as many of the legislative and congressional Democrats who survive in Republican-drawn liberal ghettos are walking advertisements for Clinton. The best known is Gov. Terry McAuliffe, a longtime member of the Clinton privy council. Delivering Virginia for her in the March primary and the November general election is, for him, strictly personal. Its more so, having failed to restore a Democratic majority to the Virginia Senate last fall, denying him much-needed traction in the General Assembly this winter. National news reports suggest hes often pitching ideas and intel to the Clinton high command. Clinton and McAuliffe share a campaign manager, Robby Mook. A strong win for Clinton in Virginia could improve Sen. Tim Kaines chances that hed be selected for the vice presidency. He was ahead of the curve in arguing that Virginia for years, on autopilot for Republicans and ignored by Democrats was in play nationally, endorsing Obama for the Democratic nomination in early 2007. Kaine was the first Southern governor to back Obama, who considered him for vice president. Republicans, in contrast, are deeply divided over their field or keeping their mouths shut. Trump gets the big crowds in Virginia and favorable polling numbers, despite little support from party regulars. Two of the partys candidates for the 2017 gubernatorial nomination, Washington fixer Ed Gillespie and 1st District U.S. Rep. Rob Wittman, are silent on their choices. Gillespie says public neutrality now means its easier later to work for the nominee. But Gillespies deep roots in the Establishments mean hes likely still suspect among tea party and libertarian Republicans, despite nearly beating the supposedly unbeatable Mark Warner for the Senate in 2014. A third prospect for governor, Ken Cuccinelli, defeated for the office in 2013, has shown no reluctance to pick a presidential candidate. He turned his back on Rand Paul, who endorsed Cuccinelli three years ago, in order to support Ted Cruz. Like Cuccinelli, Cruz is an in-your-face conservative whose certitude resonates strongly with religious voters, abortion opponents, gun-rights advocates and home-schoolers. The Republican business class, meanwhile, is bereft by the Jeb Bush flame-out. Polls put him at the back of the field in Virginia, where John Kasich, too, struggles. Marco Rubio, whos surged to second here, is picking up Bush stragglers. Seems Virginia Democrats arent alone in reflecting the nation. In 1953, the hill overlooking the James River along Belvidere Street was home to a couple of small buildings and a billboard for Purelube motor oil. Three years later, it would become the site of glass and marble walls etched with 10,342 names of Virginians who died in World War II and the Korean War, a towering statue called Memory, and an eternal flame. The Virginia War Memorial, the $900,000 tribute to fallen servicemen and women that has become one of Richmonds most treasured landmarks, turns 60 on Monday. Since the dawn of history, it has been customary for governments to erect memorials, permanently expressing the appreciation of a grateful people for the patriotic service and heroic sacrifice of their sons and daughters in time of war, John J. Wicker Jr., then chairman of the Virginia War Memorial Commission, wrote after the memorial opened. When everyone living today has passed away, this memorial will remain for the education and inspiration of generations unborn, and as tangible evidence that patriotic service of Virginians will never be forgotten. But for decades, the memorial often stood vacant atop Gambles Hill except for the few holidays each year, when a couple hundred people would come to pay their respects. Even with its view and its prime spot at one of the gateways into Richmond, the memorials surroundings were so rough that many around the state questioned the idea to place it there. Until its demolition in 1992, the state penitentiary was one of the memorials most visible neighbors. For many years it was almost an afterthought. A lot of that had to do with where it was, said Jeb Hockman, spokesman for the memorial. *** By the mid-1990s, the eternal flame had been snuffed out, the reflecting pool was drained, and the wall filled with names was on the verge of collapse. But a renewed focus by the state, which in 1997 hired its first employee to take care of the memorial, jump-started a transformation. By 2010, a private fundraising effort along with state funding culminated with the opening of an educational center next to the shrine and an amphitheater on the backside of the hill. Since then, the memorial has become vastly busier, attracting many more visitors and hosting a variety of events. The new building bears the names of Paul Galanti, a retired Navy officer who spent three years as a prisoner of war in Vietnam, and his wife, Phyllis, who died in 2014. Its the biggest honor they ever had, said Paul Galanti, who still regularly visits the memorial, often to speak to groups of children. Have you looked in a history book lately? They talk about people manning barricades and protesting this and protesting that. A lot of my friends died, and a lot of my friends ended up being POWs, Galanti said. And a lot of really bad stuff happened there, and a lot of the publicity went to folks who didnt do anything but just complained about it. Sharing the personal history of war veterans, as Galanti does, is one of the less visible elements of the memorials mission. The educational center played host to more than 50 programs last year, bringing in students, Scouts and other groups. And war memorial staff travel the state to capture veterans stories and so far have amassed nearly 2,000 hours of video interviews that often are used in short films sent to classrooms across the state. If you just have names on a wall, youre a cemetery almost, Hockman said. We want to make sure these peoples names are known and their stories are known. *** More than 12,000 names now are on the wall, which now includes the names of Virginians who died in Vietnam and Desert Storm. Another addition is in the works, to make room for the Virginians killed since 2001 in what often is called the Global War on Terror. The expansion will include a second glass wall, a new education wing, a parking garage and a 300-seat auditorium. Galanti, a former Navy pilot, compared the trajectory of the museum to one of the planes he used to fly, which starts off rolling really slowly and starts building speed over speed. More than 71,000 people visited the memorial last year. On Monday at 5 p.m., a ceremony will commemorate that day 60 years ago when two Medal of Honor recipients and dignitaries from 10 countries came to Richmond to dedicate the memorial. Today we harvest the fruits these honored men planted, enjoy them in abundance beyond their powers to imagine, Gen. Matthew B. Ridgway, a native Virginian who commanded the 82nd Airborne Division during World War II, said in a speech marking the memorials opening. Register for more free articles. Sign up for our newsletter to keep reading. It looks like nothing was found at this location. Maybe try a search? Search for: Search A Place for All Conservatives to Speak Their Mind. When national school safety expert Ken Trump talks to administrators about dealing with reports of threats, his advice is twofold: Plan extensively ahead of time, and let parents know when somethings happening. Mess up the communications part, and parental anxiety is likely to overshadow the safety threat itself, he said. What you end up with is a bigger communications crisis than a safety and security crisis, Trump said. School officials can handle the threat assessment, along with police, perfectly, but if the ball is dropped in the communications piece, theyre going to lose community confidence. A big gap, as Trump puts it, between a school districts response to threats and the communitys perception of the response, is what Roanoke County school officials acknowledged happened last week, when reports of a shooting threat at Northside High School spread rapidly on social media for hours before administrators issued any kind of parental notification. By that point, police had long determined the threat wasnt credible, but the message from the school district and the unanticipated presence of extra police cars at Northsides campus left parents wary and resulted in many making the decision to keep their children home from school that day. At a well-attended forum Monday night, parents told administrators they wanted future incidents to be handled differently. School board member Tom McCracken, who represents Northside, told parents the district has heard their concerns and is reviewing and revising its school crisis and emergency management plan in response. The plans address how to the district will address any type of critical emergency, ranging from reports of threats like the one last week to emergencies caused by natural disasters, but dont specifically detail how or when parents will be informed. Things are going to change, McCracken said. Were learning from this, and were going to get better. In neighboring Roanoke, Superintendent Rita Bishop said her team of administrators approach potential threat situations from the perspective of a parent but are careful in still-developing situations not to contribute to misinformation. We will often say, if I was the mom, or the dad, what would I want to know? Bishop said. We try to think like the parents, and we give them as much information as we can that we are sure is accurate. Bishop has consulted Trump, president of the National School Safety and Security Services, for years and reiterated what he said about the importance of communication with parents. The district regularly sends recorded robocalls to parents when potential threats arise, like last month when a James Madison Middle School student was found with a BB gun on a bus, or in December and January, when threats were found in bathrooms at Patrick Henry High School. Central office administrators, including spokesman Justin McLeod, collaborate on the text of the robocalls but theyre recorded by the schools principal, whom parents tend to know more closely, Bishop said. If a recorded call has to be sent, it can happen in a matter of minutes. If an incident is isolated, the district might notify only the parents of students involved. Every case is evaluated individually, Bishop said. Its never rote, she said. Every one of them is individually dealt with. Just when you think youve heard it all, guess what: You havent. The public relations aspect of responding to a report of a threat has changed drastically over the past 10 years as social media has become more prolific, Trump said. It used to be that a district would handle reports of threats sequentially: receive a report, investigate a report and then, usually after the situation is resolved, inform the public. More and more though, threats themselves or reports of the threats quickly spread beyond school walls, increasing the need for communication about the situation even as school leaders are responding to it, Trump said. Now, you have to deal with those issues side by side, he said. School districts often have less control these days over the information, said Curtis Hicks, Salems assistant superintendent. Credible threats, and those that are not credible, can spread at the same pace through social media and sometimes it means incorrect information gets into the hands of students and parents. Probably the biggest problem is information can be so widely spread without it being in our control, Hicks said. Theres often no perfect way of handling communication, and school districts just have to do the best they can with the information you have, he said. In Salem, the district errs toward not telling parents about a threat unless its determined its credible. The thought is the district doesnt want to contribute to spreading rumors itself, he said. Parents sometimes question that decision when their children come home and report something they werent formally notified about. The district even made a frequently asked questions handout in response, he said. Our answer to them is because it was not ever a credible threat, Hicks said. Thats really it in a nutshell. Generally, rumors the district has dealt with have been relatively confined. But if the district faced a situation where rumors of a threat were so widespread they were disrupting the school day, Salem would consider notifying parents to dispel the rumor, Hicks said. Theres no real black and white answer, Hicks said. Two New Jersey residents face charges of using shell businesses and accomplices to purchase $9.5 million worth of Virginia cigarettes and transport them to New Jersey for illegal resale in a major cigarette trafficking operation. Authorities allege one suspect, Laila Alayat, 37, who was warned last month that any attempt to leave the U.S. would be construed as an attempt to flee prosecution, was arrested Feb. 11 after passing through security at JFK International Airport with a ticket to Amman, Jordan. The other suspect, Eyad Salahedin, 39, was arrested shortly after dropping Alayat off at the airport but was freed on a $75,000 bond by a federal magistrate in New York. Alayat is a Jordanian citizen, and Salahedin is believed to have Jordanian citizenship. The U.S. Attorneys Office, arguing that Salahedin is a flight risk and a danger to the community, is asking U.S. District Judge James Spencer to revoke his bond or at least order electronic monitoring. A hearing was scheduled for later Tuesday afternoon. Virginia has the second-lowest cigarette excise tax in the country at $3 a carton, making it a center of a bootlegging industry in which cigarettes are transported for illegal resale in such high-tax states as New Jersey, where the tax is $27 a carton, or New York City, where the combined state/city tax is $58.50 per carton. A 23-page affidavit filed with the federal complaints was written by Stacey Ivie, a detective with the Alexandria Police Department assigned to a drug trafficking task force, who also has been deputized with the U.S. Marshals Service. Ivie reported that law enforcement agencies involved in the investigation include the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the New Jersey Department of Treasury. The two are charged with conspiracy to traffic contraband cigarettes, trafficking contraband cigarettes and structuring the cash transactions to avoid triggering the federal reporting forms. Alayat also is charged with witness tampering. Complaints filed in U.S. District Court in Richmond allege the two and others acting on their behalf purchased millions of dollars worth of cigarettes from Virginia wholesale club stores using cash and structuring the transactions to keep each purchase below $10,000. Cash transactions above $10,000 trigger the filing of a federal form that would report their identity to the government. The form is used to detect organized criminal activity. It is alleged that of 1,735 cash transactions between March 26, 2014, and Aug. 18, 2015, at Virginia Sams Club stores totaling $6.3 million, none exceeded $10,000. Authorities allege, for example, that on May 9, 2014, Salahedin completed four cash transactions totaling $33,480 in an eight-hour period at four different Virginia Sams Club stores. On Nov. 13, 2014, Alayat allegedly completed eight transactions totaling $41,000 at four different Sams Club stores in the Richmond and Colonial Heights areas. Additionally, by purchasing the cigarettes under the names of false businesses ostensibly with the aim of reselling them to retailers who would collect Virginia sales tax Virginia apparently lost out on the sales tax, though Virginia authorities did not respond Monday to a request to estimate the tax loss. Court papers show the two met with authorities and were offered a plea deal on Jan. 7, but it expired without either of them accepting it. Salahedin, according to the affidavit, was arrested by New Jersey authorities in October 2013 in a cigarette trafficking investigation. Afterward, law enforcement learned Salahedin allegedly continued to be involved in trafficking contraband cigarettes. Among other things, the affidavit alleges that controlled buys of cigarettes with Virginia tax stamps were made from Salahedin in New Jersey and that he used a storage unit in Clifton, New Jersey, to store cigarettes until transferring them to various individuals known and unknown to law enforcement. Of the six Virginia businesses linked to the two all created online three were purported to be in the Richmond area and three in Woodbridge, and at least five of them never paid any Virginia taxes. All of the businesses, however, had obtained certificates exempting them from paying sales tax when buying the cigarettes in Virginia because they were supposed to be reselling the cigarettes wholesale to legitimate retailers who would collect the sales tax. Alayat also is alleged to have asked an unidentified confidential informant to lie to investigators if shown photographs of Alayat and say the images were of a cousin who has returned to Jordan. Alayat allegedly offered the informant $500 in exchange for the lie. It is time for voters of both parties to listen and work together. Decide what is reasonable and what is not. A Congress that votes to shut down the government programs that include our parks and many important services that a lot of people really depend on is not being reasonable. Taking away health coverage for millions of people is not reasonable. My daughter-in-law, who was working at Target, saved a lot of money on her insurance. She and a lot of other minimum wage people needed insurance. Would you deny your neighbors, who work at a minimum wage job, the luxury of taking a sick child to the doctor? Maybe religious reasons prevent you from voting for some candidates. Well, I have religious reasons for voting for certain candidates as well. I want a more charitable democracy. I want drug companies to stop gouging us. People die because they can't afford their medicine. Maybe you can't vote for some candidates because you think they might try to take away your guns. Keep your guns. However, don't you think it is reasonable to keep guns out of the hands of wife beaters and mentally ill people? I am turning 65 this year and my insurance is really costly. Don't you think we owe it to the elderly to provide affordable care? These people have worked all their lives and raised families and contributed a lot to our society. Our tax laws give too much to people who don't need a break. We need someone who will at least try to do something about this. Don't you think it's time to vote for a reasonable and more charitable government? Close your eyes if you must, but I urge you to think about what all that needs to be changed and vote accordingly. And is it reasonable to under-fund veteran benefits? FRANK MATHEWS RADFORD The testing official, Michael Gilmore, also confirmed the accuracy of CQ reports last fall disclosing that the F-35s flawed ejection seat poses a serious risk not just to the lightest weight F-35 pilots, as some Defense Department officials have suggested, but also to pilots weighing up to 200 pounds. CQ Senior Defense Reporter John M. Donnelly has the story. More on Donnellys continuing coverage of the F-35 program is here. POTUS v. GOP: Gitmo Edition. President Barack Obama on Tuesday released his long-awaited plan to shutter the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, and he was met with the expected response from Republicans in Congress and on the campaign trail. That is to say, forceful opposition. CQs Megan Scully and Ryan Lucas have a rundown on the reaction plus a history of the back and forth. Shusters proposal would move the air traffic control operation to a separate corporate entity with the ability to issue bonds and borrow money in the private sector. The FAA would retain safety oversight. Advocates of the spinoff hope that by giving the corporation the ability to raise funds, it would be better able to find capital to fund projects such as a new navigation system known as NextGen. The FAAs handling of that technology has drawn strong criticism. Ranking member Peter A. DeFazio, D-Ore., offered an alternative that would have restructured the FAAs procurement and personnel practices and moved the Airport and Airway Trust Fund out of the reach of appropriators, the sequester and Office of Management and Budget directives. His alternative aimed to ensure that revenue collected from passengers would be invested in the aviation system. The panel rejected DeFazios amendment 25-34. THREE men and two women have been found guilty of 45 child sex abuse offences committed against 12 victims over a 16-year period. The jury in the Rotherham child sex exploitation trial today returned guilty verdicts on five out of seven defendants after more than three days of deliberations. Another defendant admitted ten offences before the trial began. Arshid Hussain (40), of East Cowick in Goole, was convicted of 23 allegations including rape, assault, indecent assault and conspiracy to rape. He was found not guilty of five offences. His brother, Basharat Hussain (38), who was on remand, was convicted of 15 offences including indecency with a child, procuring a female for sex, indecent assault, rape, false imprisonment and threats to kill. A third brother, Bannaras Hussain (36), pleaded guilty to ten charges including rape and indecent assault against seven victims. His victims included three women who were not complainants in the trial. Karen MacGregor (58), of Wath, was found guilty of two counts of conspiracy to rape, conspiring to procure a child to become a common prostitute and false imprisonment. Basharat Hussain (38), who was on remand, was convicted of 15 offences including indecency with a child, procuring a female for sex, indecent assault, rape, false imprisonment and threats to kill. Qurban Ali (53), of Clough Road, Rotherham, was found guilty of conspiracy to rape but cleared of three other charges. Shelley Davies (40), was convicted of conspiracy to procure a woman under 21 for sexual intercourse and false imprisonment and convicted on both counts. Brothers Sajid Bostan (38), of Sherwood Crescent, Rotherham, and Majid Bostan, of Ledsham Road, Broom, were both cleared of all the charges against them. The 55 offences against took place mainly in Rotherham, but also spanned Sheffield, York, London and Blackpool and were committed between 1987 and 2003. The six guilty defendants will be sentenced on Friday. None of the defendants present in court showed any visible reaction as the verdicts were read out. Arshid Hussain appeared by video link from his home, where he lay in bed with his eyes closed. The camera, initially pointed at his face, was moved as guilty verdicts against him were read out and sounds like crying could be heard. When all verdicts had been read Hussains bail was revoked and police officers were ordered to escort him to court. UKIP MEP Jane Collins this week welcomed the convictions of six defendants in the Rotherham child sex abuse trial this week but insisted: There is still a way to go before victims get justice. Ms Collins, a 2015 general election candidate in Rotherham, said: There are still many more perpetrators on the streets, who frankly should be behind bars. It is essential that the authorities are seen to be pursuing those who have committed these horrific crimes, not only for the survivors who are entitled to justice, but also to help rebuild public confidence. For survivors, convictions are an important part of the healing process. I cannot imagine what it must be like for young people to see their abusers getting away with these awful crimes. I would also like to pay tribute to the victims whose bravery made these convictions possible and would encourage all those who suffered abuse to speak out to someone they trust. (polishedprices.com) - Whatever is or is not going in the domain of the producers, the world outside has changed, and my visit to Surat really brought it home to me by just how much and how much it is continuing to change. The internet means that information is almost instantaneous to one and all, everyone is constantly rushing about buying goods from here and there, technology provides boundless possibilities, which the cutters seem to have taken to with enthusiasm, producers more with a yawn of ennui. Therefore, why not end the fixed cycle for selling. Why shouldnt producers sell on a continuous basis as and when various goods are available rather than having to wait for everything to be available. Why not sell the goods by individual mine rather than going for mixes? As diamonds fight against losing even more ground to other luxuries let alone other commodities, could not the whole issue of provenance be used as a powerful marketing inducement. Selling by mine would also stop cross subsidisation from mine to mine, that might work, for example, in particular for Namibians high quality but marginal production. This in turn might make producers look harder at the numbers of individual mines and prevent the hiding some of their more costly mistakes, i.e., Snap Lake which everyone knew was a dog when it opened, indeed everyone knew it should not have been opened but too much ego had been invested in it. An added rationale for this would be to put a premium on higher quality mines, which often have lower grades. Rough diamond exports from Botswana in the year 2015 reached the value of US$2.41 billion, falling from rough exports worth US$3.97 billion in 2014. This is the lowest level of rough diamond exports from the country since 2009 when rough exports were worth US$1.86 billion. In the first quarter of 2015 the African countrys rough diamond exports were worth US$918.4 million, compared to rough exports worth US$1.2 billion in the first quarter of 2014. Second quarter rough diamond exports were worth US$845.5 million, marking a decrease from the countrys rough diamond exports worth US$919.2 million in the second quarter of 2014. The countrys exports refer to the value of rough diamonds produced at the major mines in Botswana. This is recorded at the time these diamonds are first sold, which may be some time before leaving the country as they still have to undergo final aggregation and sale. These figures do not include re-exports of diamonds mined in other countries, which are recorded at the time the goods leave the country. Zimbabwe has ordered diamond mining companies in Marange to cease their operations forthwith. The Herald newspaper quoted mines minister Walter Chidhakwa as saying that the companies had refused to be part of the new Zimbabwe Consolidated Diamond Company (ZCDC). Harare was set to a 50 percent shareholding in ZCDC while the diamond companies were supposed to scramble for the remaining shares. Since they no longer hold any titles, these companies were notified this morning to cease all mining activities with immediate effect and to vacate the mining areas covered by Special Grants for diamonds Chidhakwa was quoted by Zimbabwe Independent as saying to reporters and executives from the affected mines. They have been given 90 days within which to remove their equipment and other valuables. During this period, access into the premises will be by request which will be considered by the ministry of Mines and Mining Development. Companies affected included Anjin Investments, Diamond Mining Company, Jinan, Kusena, Marange Resources and Mbada Diamonds. The Zimbabwean government held 50 percent shareholding in the firms and wholly-owned Marange Resources. Harare would now hold all the diamond claims in the country. ZCDC was expected to embark on underground mining operations once fully capitalised. Mathew Nyaungwa, Editor in Chief of the African Bureau, Rough&Polished GIA (Gemological Institute of America) hosted a grand opening of its new, expanded offices in Ramat Gan's Diamond Exchange Complex during the International Diamond Week in Israel (IDWI). GIA's Israel Manager, Gabriel Alayon, said that with the establishment of its new offices, GIA Israel would continue to expand and grow and provide the services the community needs. Expressing her delight to be in Israel, GIA President and CEO Susan Jacques noted that the diamond and jewelry business had its ups and downs. She recognized that while 2014 had been a good year, the year 2015 had been much less so. However, she expressed her belief that the downturn had bottomed out. At the conclusion of the ceremony, Susan Jacques was given a certificate attesting to her induction into the Israel Diamond Exchange League of Honor, in recognition of her "dedication to transparency and professionalism in the field of gemology and her contribution to the international diamond industry." Theodor Lisovoy, Rough&Polished, Moscow JLK Design The economic benefits and number of passengers anticipated by the Coast-to-Coast Passenger Rail Ridership and Cost Estimate Study justify moving the Detroit to Grand Rapids, Mich., project forward, according to project manager Liz Treutel Callin, transportation policy associate for the Michigan Environmental Council. Business leaders, economic developers, local governments and college students have all told us they support the idea of knitting together our cities, cultural centers and other institutions by rail, Callin said. Now we have an in-depth report showing that the Coast-to-Coast passenger rail project is one worth pursuing, with significant potential benefits for Michigans economy and quality of life. This study puts us one important step closer to the exciting possibility of reconnecting our coasts by rail. Conducted by Transportation Economics and Management Systems, Inc., the study examined three potential routes from Detroit to Holland via Lansing and Grand Rapids that could be established by upgrading existing rail. One route passes through Ann Arbor and Jackson. Another passes through Ann Arbor and Howell. The third route bypasses Ann Arbor, heading from Wayne to Howell. The study considered several scenarios for trip frequency: two daily round trips at 79 miles per hour; four round trips a day at 79 and 110 mph and eight daily round trips at 110 mph. Key findings include that both of the proposed routes that pass through Ann Arbor are viable options that deserve further study. The third route likely does not merit further study, since it bypasses Ann Arbor and would not directly serve that citys large ridership demand. While the route through Jackson showed the greatest potential ridership and revenue, the route through Ann Arbor and Howell promised the greatest return on investment. By 2040, the latter route could provide up to 1.59 million trips per year with eight daily round trips at 110 mph. Establishing basic 79-mph service on the 186-mile route through Ann Arbor and Howell would require an annual subsidy of about $3 million and an upfront investment of $130 million. Although establishing 110-mph service would require greater capital investment, it would yield higher ridership that would allow the service to recover its operating costs and in fact could generate $12 million in annual profits on the route through Ann Arbor and Howell. Michigan Environmental Council and Michigan Association of Railroad Passengers collected feedback on the Coast-to-Coast project from 575 Michigan residents online and in person at 11 town hall meetings and five meetings on college campuses along the potential routes. The public input showed that residents are eager for more transportation options and supported the studys findings that Coast-to-Coast service would see high ridership. As home to a major airport, we see huge economic development potential in having Coast-to-Coast passenger service come to our community, said Steve Peterson, planning director for Cascade Charter Township. This service will expand travel options for Michigan residents and create opportunities for our businesses. We are eager to see it become reality. I love the idea of connecting Ann Arbor to Grand Rapids, Lansing and Detroit by passenger rail, said Richard Sheridan, chief executive officer of Menlo Innovations, an Ann Arbor software design firm. The Coast-to-Coast service would open up new business opportunities in those markets and allow my employees to travel across Michigan and still be productive. Ive also found that younger workers expect to work and live in a place that does not require them to buy a car. More rail options will improve our talent recruitment and make Michigan a place that fits their idea of a vibrant community. The next major step toward establishing Coast-to-Coast passenger rail service is a full feasibility study to include environmental impact analyses, an implementation plan and a review of public-private partnership options. Indian shares opened lower on Wednesday, tracking losses on Wall Street overnight and weak Asian , as a slew of worries such as sliding oil prices, weakness in the yuan for a second session in a row and sluggish German and U.S. data spurred demand for safe-haven assets. The benchmark BSE Sensex was down 172 points or 0.74 percent at 23,237 in early trade after tumbling 1.6 percent the previous day amid renewed concerns over the scale of bad loans in the country's banking sector and anxiety ahead of the upcoming Budget. The broader Nifty index was down 54 points or 0.76 percent at 7,055, with BHEL, ICICI Bank, PNB, Vedanta and Cairn losing 2-3 percent. Punjab National Bank fell 3 percent after declaring 900 firms as willful defaulters. Kotak Mahindra Bank lost 1 percent. The private sector lender has bought 19.9 percent stake in Airtel M Commerce for Rs 98.38 crore. ONGC dropped 2 percent on a report that it will invest some $500 million in PDVSA's San Cristobal joint venture. TVS Motor Company fell more than 2 percent despite news that it is expecting a 16 percent market share in the two-wheeler segment next year. Wipro shed half a percent on a report that it is in the race to bag a BPO contract from Uber. Maruti Suzuki India traded half a percent higher after resuming production at two facilities in Gurgaon and Manesar in Haryana. For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Market Analysis The Cabinet office is set to release final Japan leading economic indicators data for December at 12:00 am ET Wednesday. The preliminary reading for leading index was 102 in December. Ahead of the data, the yen rose against its major rivals. As of 11:55 pm in the Asian deals, the yen was trading at 123.11 against the euro, 156.21 against the pound, 112.52 against the Swiss franc and 111.76 against the U.S. dollar. For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Forex News Owens Corning (OC), a manufacturer of insulation, roofing, and fiberglass composites, announced Wednesday that it has signed an agreement to acquire InterWrap, a manufacturer of roofing underlayment and packaging materials, for $450 million. The transaction, which is subject to regulatory clearance, is anticipated to close in the first half of 2016. Privately held InterWrap operates facilities in the United States, Canada, India and China. They primarily produce synthetic roofing underlayment, including the Titanium and RhinoRoof brands, and lumber and metal packaging products, including the Duramet and WeatherPro brands. InterWrap reported 2015 sales of $250 million. Brian Chambers, president of Owens Corning's Roofing and Asphalt Business, said, "The acquisition of InterWrap's products, brands, and will significantly expand Owens Corning's position in the Roofing Components segment." For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Business News In spite of staunch opposition from Senate Republicans, President Barack Obama is moving ahead with the process of selecting a replacement for the late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia. In a post on the SCOTUSblog website on Wednesday, Obama outlined the qualities he is looking for in his third nominee to the nation's highest court. "First and foremost, the person I appoint will be eminently qualified," Obama wrote. "He or she will have an independent mind, rigorous intellect, impeccable credentials, and a record of excellence and integrity." He added, "I'm looking for a mastery of the law, with an ability to hone in on the key issues before the Court, and provide clear answers to complex legal questions." Obama said the nominee must recognize the limits of the judiciary's role but also understand that justice is not about abstract legal theory. The president said a potential nominee must also have the life experience necessary to grasp the way the law affects the daily reality of people's lives. "A sterling record. A deep respect for the judiciary's role. An understanding of the way the world really works," Obama wrote. "That's what I'm considering as I fulfill my constitutional duty to appoint a judge to our highest court." He added, "And as Senators prepare to fulfill their constitutional responsibility to consider the person I appoint, I hope they'll move quickly to debate and then confirm this nominee so that the Court can continue to serve the American people at full strength." Despite the president's optimistic tone, Senate Republicans have repeatedly stated they will not consider any Obama nominee to the Supreme Court. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ken., said Tuesday virtually every member of the Senate GOP Conference agrees the nomination should be made by the next president. "The overwhelming view of the Republican Conference in the Senate is that this vacancy should not be filled by this lame duck president," McConnell said. All eleven Republican members of the Senate Judiciary Committee sent a letter to McConnell on Tuesday declaring they will not hold hearings on any Supreme Court nomination made by Obama. According to the Des Moines Register, Judiciary Committee Chairman Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, has not even responded to a White House invitation to discuss the Supreme Court vacancy with the president. A Grassley spokeswoman told the Register the invitation is "under consideration" and that the senator previously spoke with Obama as well as ranking member Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., and White House Counsel W. Neil Eggleston. Meanwhile, Democrats continue to urge their Republican colleagues to allow the Senate to fulfill its constitutional duty and have vowed to make the GOP obstruction a campaign issue. For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Political News Coca-Cola Co.'s (KO) attempt to win European Union trademark protection for its "iconic" bottle failed after the EU judges felt that the bottle was no different "from other bottles available on the market." The company had introduced a flat surfaced bottle but European Union authorities rejected its trade mark request as they said the new design lacked any "distinctive character." Coca-Cola then challenged the decision in the court, however, the General Court of the EU, the bloc's second highest court, ruled that the shape of the bottle "is like the majority of bottles on the market." "The General Court finds that the sign at issue is devoid of the distinctive character required for registration under the Community trade mark regulation," it said. "In those circumstances, the General Court dismisses in its entirety the action brought by Coca-Cola." Coca-Cola can now have the option to appeal to the European Court of Justice, the highest court in European Union. For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Business News Australia will on Thursday release Q4 numbers for capital expenditure, highlighting a light day for Asia-Pacific economic activity. Capex is expected to have fallen 3.0 percent after tumbling 9.2 percent in the three months prior. Taiwan will see January figures for unemployment, with the jobless rate expected to come in at a seasonally adjusted 3.9 percent - up from 3.88 percent. Hong Kong will provide January numbers for imports, exports and trade balance. Imports are expected to fall 6.3 percent on year after losing 4.6 percent in December. Exports are called lower by an annual 3.2 percent after slipping 1.1 percent. The trade balance is expected to show a deficit of 25.2 billion Hong Kong dollars - up from the 45.7 billion HKD shortfall a month earlier. For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com . . Saudi bombing wounds girl in Sa'ada SA'ADA, Feb. 23 (Saba) - The Saudi brutal aggression launched on Tuesday an air raid on a house Razih district of Sa'ada province wounding a girl seriously. The aggression carried out a missile strike on a number of areas in the district and left severe damage to farms and citizens' properties, a local official said. The official said that the Saudi warplanes bombed al-Azgool area of Sihar district with four raids caused considerable damage to houses and properties of citizens. AF Saba Facebook Facebook Twitter Twitter Whatsapp Whatsapp Telegram Telegram Email Email Print Print [23/February/2016] For the underdogs its impossible: Rents in Halifax reach unreachable heights Amanda needs to separate from her husband and move out of their house, but shes stuck. Shes been searching for about four months for a rental in the Halifax area, and even though she has the money to offer three months of rent and a damage deposit ... 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 I give my consent to Sakshi Post to be in touch with me via email for the purpose of event marketing and corporate communications. Privacy Policy Another car wash company is coming to Salina The growth of car wash services have been increasing in Salina the past few years, with another coming after approval by the city. 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Principe, Democratic Republic of Saudi Arabia, Kingdom of Senegal, Republic of Serbia and Montenegro Seychelles, Republic of Sierra Leone, Republic of Singapore, Republic of Slovakia (Slovak Republic) Slovenia Solomon Islands Somalia, Somali Republic South Africa, Republic of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands Spain, Spanish State Sri Lanka, Democratic Socialist Republic of St. Helena St. Kitts and Nevis St. Lucia St. Pierre and Miquelon St. Vincent and the Grenadines Sudan, Democratic Republic of the Suriname, Republic of Svalbard & Jan Mayen Islands Swaziland, Kingdom of Sweden, Kingdom of Switzerland, Swiss Confederation Syrian Arab Republic Taiwan, Province of China Tajikistan Tanzania, United Republic of Thailand, Kingdom of Timor-Leste, Democratic Republic of Togo, Togolese Republic Tokelau (Tokelau Islands) Tonga, Kingdom of Trinidad and Tobago, Republic of Tunisia, Republic of Turkey, Republic of Turkmenistan Turks and Caicos Islands Tuvalu Uganda, Republic of Ukraine United Arab Emirates United Kingdom of Great Britain & N. Ireland Uruguay, Eastern Republic of Uzbekistan Vanuatu Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of Viet Nam, Socialist Republic of Wallis and Futuna Islands Western Sahara Yemen Zambia, Republic of Zimbabwe By Peggy Kelly Santa Paula News Sixty chairs were set up for Wednesday evenings Caltrans Highway 126 Safety Enhancement scoping meeting but it soon became apparent more seating was needed for the crowd, including those that strongly objected to the long controversial plan. Citizens and elected officials alike voiced their concern about the proposal to widen the highway, adding a median and roundabouts including ranchers that live and work along the stretch of the 126 targeted by the proposed project for 7 miles from Santa Paulas Hallock Road to Fillmore. Santa Paula City Councilmembers Ginger Gherardi and John Procter as well as Vice Mayor Jenny Crosswhite attended the session, as did Mayor Martin Hernandez who introduced Supervisor Kathy Long. Hernandez noted the great turnout and said Long would offer remarks regarding how we got here tonight A series of horrific accidents led to the initial meeting in 2008 to address how to turn around the fatality accident rate on the 126. Caltrans was asked to address the situation and Long said traffic calming methods such as rumble strips, lowering the speed limit and signage telling drivers how fast they were traveling were initiated. As for doing more, Long said We heard then and will hear again tonight, how those living and ranching operations that line the 126 on either side will be able to access the highway and not be impeded by what is proposeduntil now much was done on this for a variety of reasons, but the scoping process now has been formally launched. Long said she hoped attendees would not just voice their concerns but also offer ideas of alternatives, but, You cant legislate stupid, and bad drivers will always be an issue. Although there is no question the corridor has improved, with the traffic calming improvements, Long noted there still have been crossover accidents. The purpose of scoping a Caltrans representative told the crowd is to help the agency define the project and alternatives, as well as identify major environment issues as You are the experts on your community that know potential impacts and issues of concern. Another agency representative detailed the project background noting a traffic investigation report was launched in 2007-2008, a 2011 report recommended a median barrier, and in 2014 a federal road safety assessment was done. The median option was added in 2015 including the roundabouts. Some comments by and images used by Caltrans officials puzzled those in attendance including concerns about bulky, slow farm equipment traveling the highway Never seen that! several audience members told each other and animation of a roundabout. The Range of Options shown during the Power Point is no build, a concrete median barrier and a raised median island with visual markers. The latter two options also include four roundabouts; railroad crossings would have an additional truck lane so the vehicles would not slow traffic. Brian Frazer, a Caltrans design reviewer, explained the roundabout concept noting the design may be new to Caltrans with about 300 statewide but more common nationwide with about 5,000. Roundabouts offer great reductions in accident severity and fatalities, with 35 percent less overall crashes and 76 percent reduction of fatalities by slowing traffic to 25 mph to 35 mph and not providing potential of a T-bone or head on collision. Such safety measures are also extended to pedestrians and bicyclists. Tami Podesta, branch chief of the Caltrans Division of Environmental Planning, said the agency is the lead agency for the state and federal studies, which are expected to be finalized later this year with a project introduction in the spring of 2017. The EIR will include a range of studies from community impacts, traffic circulation and hazardous waste to construction, water quality/runoff and visual and aesthetic impacts. We value your comments, to help Caltrans make a better project. There was a 15-minute question and answer period requested by Supervisor Long after the Fillmore scoping session where no public comment was allowed. Podesta said the Caltrans representatives would answer general questions, we dont have all the answers now Many of the questions and comments focused on the no build option with growers and citizens questioning anything other than more basic traffic calming enhancements. Caltrans representatives said it is too early in the process to abandon same as studies must be completed and more input is necessary. Youre spending a lot of money for something that is probably not necessary, said one resident who asked why Caltrans did not use more traffic calming measures and more policing. Santa Paula News The Museum of Ventura County is pleased to announce the hiring of Betsy Blanchard Chess will serve as its new Director of Fund Development. Ms. Chess will help lead the organization in its efforts to sustain its two locationsthe second site being the Museum of Ventura Agriculture Museum in Santa Paulaand to build an endowment. CEO Pattie Mullins stated, The Board of Directors and I are thrilled to have someone of Betsys caliber join the executive team here at the Museum of Ventura County. Her extensive background in the region both personally and professionally will help draw resources to the Museumthe keeper of the Countys rich stories. Born into a pioneer Santa Paula ranching family, Betsy Blanchard Chess grew up with a desire to understand and preserve Ventura County agriculture and an awareness and respect for the contributions of the past as they enrich the future. She continues her familys deep commitment to community involvement and support. Betsy attended high school at the Bishops School in La Jolla and did both graduate and postgraduate work at the University of Southern California, earning a Masters of Arts degree in Modern European History. She has written extensively on Ventura County agricultural history and in 1988 became editor and publisher of The Broadcaster Magazine for the Farm Bureau of Ventura County. In 2004, the magazine was expanded to include Santa Barbara County and renamed Central Coast Farm & Ranch. She retired from the magazine in 2013. During this same time period, Betsy became a volunteer for the Ventura County Symphony, first with the Design House and then on the symphonys board of directors. In 1994, she briefly served in a professional capacity as Executive Director for VCS. She returned to the board as a volunteer and helped to oversee the birth of the New West Symphony in 1995. In 1998 she was hired as Executive Director of New West, a position she held until 2002. Betsy has worked with numerous arts organizations in the County including the Rubicon Theatre where she served professionally as Interim Managing Director in 2003. As a volunteer she has chaired the Fine Arts Committee at the Museum of Ventura County and served on the Artistic Director Search Committee for the Ventura Music Festival. She is now on the Board of the Music Festival where she served as Board president from 2012-2014. Albany, NY -- (SBWIRE) -- 02/24/2016 -- 'Personal Accident and Health Insurance in South Africa, Key Trends and Opportunities to 2019' report provides detailed analysis of the market trends, drivers, challenges in the South African personal accident and health insurance segment. It provides key performance indicators such as written premium, incurred loss, loss ratio, commissions and expenses, combined ratio, total assets, total investment income and retentions during the review period (20102014) and forecast period (20142019). The report also analyzes distribution channels operating in the segment, gives a comprehensive overview of the South African economy and demographics, and provides detailed information on the competitive landscape in the country. Browse Market info, get a Sample PDF with TOC: http://www.researchmoz.us/enquiry.php?type=S&repid=584770 The report brings together Timetrics research, modeling and analysis expertise, giving insurers access to information on segment dynamics and competitive advantages, and profiles of insurers operating in the country. The report also includes details of insurance regulations, and recent changes in the regulatory structure. Summary Personal Accident and Health Insurance in South Africa, Key Trends and Opportunities to 2019' report provides in-depth market analysis, information and insights into the South African personal accident and health insurance segment, including: - The South African personal accident and health insurance segments growth prospects by insurance category - Key trends, drivers and challenges for the personal accident and health insurance segment - A comprehensive overview of the South African economy and demographics - The various distribution channels in the South African personal accident and health insurance segment - Details of the competitive landscape in the personal accident and health insurance segment in South Africa - Details of regulatory policy applicable to the South African insurance industry Scope This report provides a comprehensive analysis of the personal accident and health insurance segment in South Africa: - It provides historical values for the South African personal accident and health insurance segment for the reports 20102014 review period, and projected figures for the 20142019 forecast period. - It offers a detailed analysis of the key categories in the South African personal accident and health insurance segment, and market forecasts to 2019. - It profiles the top personal accident and health insurance companies in South Africa, and outlines the key regulations affecting them. Enquiry at: http://www.researchmoz.us/enquiry.php?type=E&repid=584770 Key Highlights: - Personal accident and health was the smallest segment in the South African insurance industry in terms of gross written premium in 2014. - The segment posted a review-period (20102014) compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 12.6%. - The health insurance category was the largest contributor, and accounted for 68.3% of the segment's gross written premium in 2014. - The most prominent growth driver for personal accident and health cover during the review period was the launch of HIV/AIDS insurance, which appeals to a large proportion of the population. - The personal accident and health segment is overcrowded and fragmented with the presence of 90 insurers in 2014. About ResearchMoz ResearchMoz is the world's fastest growing collection of market research reports worldwide. Our database is composed of current market studies from over 100 featured publishers worldwide. Our market research databases integrate statistics with analysis from global, regional, country and company perspectives. ResearchMoz's service portfolio also includes value-added services such as market research customization, competitive landscaping, and in-depth surveys, delivered by a team of experienced Research Coordinators. Contact Us: Mr. Nachiket Albany NY - 12207 United States Tel: +1-518-621-2074 Tel: 866-997-4948 (Us-Canada Toll Free) Email: sales@researchmoz.us Doylestown, PA -- (SBWIRE) -- 02/24/2016 -- With the New Year officially rung in, the United States Post Office (USPS) is beginning to roll out and dedicate their new stamps for 2016. In honor of its unveiling, the internet's premier stamp album retailer, SAFE Collecting Supplies, has released an article about the USPS's latest collection. In the article, SAFE Collecting Supplies goes into detail about what they believe are the most noteworthy stamps for this year. It begins with a write-up on the Sarah Vaughan stamp, which is based on an oil painting depiction of the iconic Hugh Bell photograph of her. From there it delves into the Repeal of the Stamp Act of 1766 stamp, the Planets Collection and finally the Amish Star Quilt business-class stamps. SAFE Collecting Supplies is also reminding philatelists who are in search of stamp albums to look no further than to their extensive inventory. Between their books, albums, binders and single pages, SAFE Collecting Supplies has something to pique the interests of any stamp enthusiast. Featured on their site at the moment is a collection of classic 14-ring albums and pages. Included in the collection are albums with country seals and classic slipcase binders. Also available are classic executive leather albums in black, brown and red, and Morocco albums in red, green, blue and black. Extra-large albums and pages, 11-ring albums, 14-ring stationary pages, compact, three-ring and horizontal albums and pages, and more are also available to purchase. To read SAFE Collecting Supplies' write-up on the USPS 2016 stamps, or to purchase a stamp album, please visit their website. Those with further questions about the company and their services can call 877-395-SAFE for more information. About SAFE Collecting Supplies Since 1953, SAFE Collecting Supplies has been the leading manufacturer of high-quality collecting supplies around the world. The company is dedicated to helping collectors find the appropriate collecting and storage system for coins, paper money, stamps, pins, postcards, rocks, minerals and more. For more information, please visit http://www.safepub.com/. Archaeologists from Tel Aviv University and the Israel Antiquities Authority have uncovered an extensive fabric collection in the ancient copper mines of Timna Valley, Israel. The textiles dating back to the times of kings David and Solomon may give archaeologists insight into the lives of the early Edomites, a semi-nomadic tribe that operated the copper mines at Timna. We found fragments of textiles that originated from bags, clothing, tents, ropes and cords, said Dr. Erez Ben-Yosef, senior lecturer in archaeology at the Tel Aviv Universitys Department of Archaeology and ANE Cultures. The small pieces of fabric some only 22 inches (55 cm) in size vary in color, weaving technique and ornamentation. The wide variety of fabrics also provides new and important information about the Edomites, who, according to the Bible, warred with the Kingdom of Israel, Dr. Ben-Yosef said. We found simply woven, elaborately decorated fabrics worn by the upper echelon of their stratified society. Luxury grade fabric adorned the highly skilled, highly respected craftsmen managing the copper furnaces. They were responsible for smelting the copper, which was a very complicated process. According to the team, ancient miners in Timna Valley may have been slaves or prisoners. To support copper production in the middle of the desert, food, water and textiles had to be transported long distances through the unforgiving desert climate and into the valley. We found linen, which was not produced locally. It was most likely from the Jordan Valley or Northern Israel, explained team member Vanessa Workman, also from Tel Aviv University. The majority of the fabrics were made of sheeps wool, a cloth that is seldom found in this ancient period. This tells us how developed and sophisticated both their textile craft and trade networks must have been. Nomad does not mean simple. This discovery strengthens our understanding of the Edomites as an important geopolitical presence, Dr. Ben-Yosef added. The fabrics are of a very high quality, with complex designs and beautiful dyes. Stimulating sustainable development across all Asia-Pacific nations is the UN groups goal in a bid to cut poverty, says Fatima Arkin. The UN Development Programme (UNDP) marked its 50th anniversary on 24 February with an eye to expanding its reach in the Asia-Pacific and helping the region effectively localise the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). One thing we want to do in 2016 is work with all the governments in Asia and the Pacific, Nicholas Rosellini, deputy regional director for Asia and the Pacific at UNDP, tells SciDev.Net. In the future youll see much more joined up approaches to development. Here are some of the main challenges Rosellini anticipates. Vulnerability to climate change The Asia-Pacific region suffers from some of the highest rates of natural disasters in the world. According to the 2016 Global Climate Risk Index, compiled by the German environmental nonprofit Germanwatch, Myanmar, Philippines, Vietnam and Thailand are among the top 10 countries globally most affected by climate change over the past 10 years. We need to help countries cope with natural disasters, to be prepared for them and to mitigate and reduce their impact, says Rosellini. The UNDP already has a wide range of programmes focused on climate change in the region. For example, it has helped the Cambodian government access support from the Global Environment Facility Small Grants Programme to help preserve the countrys forests and expand rural electrification and transmission. UNDPs presence and support is particularly important for Cambodia right now when the country is embracing a new phase of environment governance reform to improve environment protection and natural resource management, Tin Ponlok, secretary general of Cambodia's National Council for Sustainable Development, tells SciDev.Net. The UNDP is also working with various Pacific small island developing states (SIDS) to ensure their budget system integrates climate risk reduction into their development plan. In some Pacific SIDS, this means ensuring that schools are built to withstand cyclones and hurricanes so that they can be used as refuge when people need shelter. But as scientific studies predict climate change to only get worse, the UNDP will need to ramp up efforts to help the regions many climate vulnerable countries adapt to flooding, biodiversity loss and poor harvests. Inclusive development Several South-East Asian countries have seen strong economic growth over the past few years but the region is still struggling to translate that growth into decent jobs for the poor. According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, growth in the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations was projected to average 4.6 per cent in 2015 and increase to 5.2 per cent in 2016-2020, led by the Philippines and Vietnam. [1] But for the wider Asia-Pacific region, employment in developing economies only increased by 21.3 million (or 1.2 per cent) in 2014, a slight deceleration from trends in 2013, according to the 2015 survey by the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific. [2] High quality employment, which is productive and well compensated, is vital for raising living standards, especially for workers at the bottom of the income ladder. Yet job quality and growth varied across the region due to differences in economic and demographic trends, notes the report. One of the main challenges to achieving inclusive and sustainable development in the Asia-Pacific is concerning the widespread use of vulnerable employment which include unpaid family workers and self-employed people. Workers in vulnerable employment are less likely to have decent earnings, formal work arrangements and access to social protection, which are all critical components for boosting living standards, says the report. Over 978 million people or over 54.7 per cent of the total number employed in 2014 were engaged in vulnerable work. Holistic approach to SDGs Since the SDGs were adopted last year, it has received much criticism for being unrealistic. Ted Alwin Ong, vice chair of the local NGO Iloilo Caucus of Development Non-Government Organization, says The SDGs are overly ambitious, especially since the MDGs fell short of attaining targeted goals. The UNDP needs to increase its campaign to popularise the SDGs at the local level. A lot of people are not aware of the MDGs more so on the SDGs. Rosellini acknowledges this. The highly interdependent goals mean that issues tied to urbanisation and climate-resilient cities requires also looking at urban poverty, climate vulnerability, and the ways local governments are organised and regulate the cities. Thats why he plans on drawing support and expertise from people both within and outside of UN. We need to work together in a much more integrated fashion than we have done in the past, says Rosellini. The achievement of the goals will require a much more holistic approach to development. One way the UNDP plans to do that is to frame each countrys unique developmental challenges in terms of sustainability, whether it be economic, social or environmental. For instance, in Indonesia, renewable energy is important but certain types of renewables, such as wind, are a high-risk investment. The UNDP is working with the national government to come up with ways to minimise that risk and develop a strong renewable energy market that will attract more private investors. When the Millennium Declaration was signed in September 2000, it took several years before its aspirations embodied in the Millennium Development Goals (MDG) were localised at the country level into national plans and budgets. Rosellini says that this time, the UNDP wants to help countries in the Asia-Pacific region start early with the SDGs, which comprise 17 goals and 169 targets that build upon the MDGs. We have to do a lot of work at the subnational level and at the local level to make sure that we see more balanced development, he stresses. This piece was produced by SciDev.Nets South-East Asia & Pacific desk. About 4,000 babies have now been born with microcephaly abnormally small heads, often with underdeveloped brains in Brazil alone. Evidence is mounting that this is because of infection during pregnancy by the mosquito-borne Zika virus. Media attention on the epidemic has mainly focused on how to stop babies being born with microcephaly, whether by killing mosquitoes, finding a vaccine or easing abortion laws. Similarly, the WHO strategic response to Zika focuses on preventing outbreaks and controlling them when they occur. [1] But what are the implications for the thousands of babies born with microcephaly? This is barely considered within the WHO response: disability is mentioned just twice. Microcephaly has many different causes, all with varying impacts. This means the implications for babies with what appears to be Zika-related microcephaly are not yet clear. But we do know that microcephaly can cause wide-ranging physical and mental disabilities, including learning difficulties, hearing problems and physical impairments. There is already evidence from Brazil that Zika-related microcephaly is linked to eye disease. [2] Interventions are therefore needed to teach parents to better stimulate their child or pick up on cues from their children about what they need. Hannah Kuper So the support babies need will vary. But some basic steps will benefit all of them. Firstly, intervening within the first year of life will improve things for babies at risk of disabilities. [3] Programmes should ideally target both the babys motor and cognitive skills, as these are intertwined and reinforce each other: interventions such as physiotherapy or playing games will stimulate the childs overall development. These programmes should take place within the community, rather than at central clinics, to minimise dropout rates. Information and communications technologies can help too: one programme in India for children with disabilities uses community workers and mobile tech to deliver interventions how to best feed the child, for example informed by evidence. Despite Brazils strong primary healthcare service, support services for children with disabilities are limited. Philanthropic national organisations, such as APAE, fill some of the gaps. But essentially it will be parents, in particular mothers, will be mainly responsible for caring for children with microcephaly. Interventions are therefore needed to teach parents to better stimulate their child or pick up on cues from their children about what they need. The parents of these babies will also need emotional support, particularly as a lot of stigma and discrimination is reported around childhood disability in Brazil. Evidence shows that parents of children with disabilities can suffer acute anxiety and may feel socially isolated. [4] Parents may also face financial pressures as they forego work to look after their child or pay for extra healthcare. Establishing support groups for parents will help provide emotional and practical support. [4] Such groups have been set up around the world for the parents of children with cerebral palsy, providing a forum for parents to come together and learn skills but also share experiences. Schemes like these could work in Brazil. Children have many fundamental rights, including the right to an education . [5] Schools and teachers must adapt so they can give children with microcephaly an effective education. The Beyond Boundaries programme in India does this by training teachers in inclusive methods and providing services such as resource centres stocked with special equipment and adaptive devices for children with special needs. Governments and international health campaigners must act now to ensure these kids arent forgotten, so they and their families can have the best lives possible. Hannah Kuper is codirector of the International Centre for Evidence in Disability at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, United Kingdom. The centre is on Twitter as @ICED_LSHTM, and Kuper can be contacted on [email protected] Boosting the number of pollinators could increase crop yields on small farms in developing countries, a study says. In a five-year study published in the journal Science last month (22 January), researchers examined the gap between the highest- and lowest-yielding farms for pollinator-dependent crops, using a standard protocol across 344 fields in Africa, Asia and Latin America. They found that, on farms of less than two hectares, increasing flower visits from 2.5 to 5.5 pollinators for every 100 flowers can reduce this yield gap by a quarter. The findings, if properly utilised, will help to revive this sector, and more so in developing countries that only depend on wild pollinators. Hakim Baliraine, ESAFF For larger farms, crop yields were also greater when there were more pollinators, but only when the variety of such species was high. Many crops rely on wild pollinators bees in particular, as well as other insects and vertebrates such as birds to move pollen from the male organs of a flower and fertilise the female gametes of the same, or another flower. The study really shows that there are already pollinator deficits out there. Its not an if anymore, says coauthor Bernard Vaissiere, a researcher in the bees and environment unit at French agricultural research institute INRA. Parthiba Basu, director of the Centre for Pollination Studies at the University of Calcutta in India, agrees that pollinator populations are declining in intensively farmed areas across the world. For example, there is evidence of such pollination limitation in India because of habitat loss and pesticide use, among other factors, Basu says. But the papers authors say it is possible to reverse this trend and attract pollinators, for example by sowing strips of flowers, planting hedgerows, providing nesting sites and limiting pesticide use. The report addresses an important area that has not been researched much in Africa, says Hakim Baliraine, board chair of ESAFF (Eastern and Southern Africa Small Scale Farmers Forum) Uganda. The findings, if properly utilised, will help to revive this sector, and more so in developing countries that only depend on wild pollinators, he says. Eric Lonsdorf, an ecologist at Franklin & Marshall College in the United States, praises the researchers for beginning to quantify the gap in food production from various inputs, including pollination. The study could be used to show how much more food could be produced per unit area of crop, he adds. [NAIROBI] Kenya has launched a five-year strategy to integrate the conservation of genetic resources into national climate change adaptation planning and strategies. The national strategy on genetic resources within the context of climate change for 2016-2021 was launched last month (27 January). Biodiversity is a valuable asset, which if appropriately leveraged, will provide most solutions to impacts of climate change and other social hardships. Eliud Kireger, Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organisation Eliud Kireger, director-general of Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organisation (KALRO), one of the institutions involved in implementing the strategy, told participants at the launch: The project interrogates causes and impacts of climate change and loss of biodiversity in the country and proposes necessary coping mechanisms and action plans for effective conservation and sustainable utilisation of genetic resources. The project is being coordinated by Genetic Resources Research Institute (GeRRI) an organisation created by KALRO and the countrys Ministry of Agriculture, Livestockand Fisheries in partnership with the United Nations Development Programme. Kireger explained that climate change has resulted in increased variability and intensity of drought and floods, higher temperatures, loss of biodiversity and increased incidents of pests and diseases. According to Kireger, climate change is already affecting the production of and access to food for different social groups, rendering domestic agriculture less effective in meeting nutrition and food security needs. Biodiversity is a valuable asset, which if appropriately leveraged, will provide most solutions to impacts of climate change and other social hardships, said Kireger, adding that the projects partners are still looking for funding and proposing the idea to investigators. Willy Bett, the cabinet secretary in Kenyas Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries, said that resources such as diversity in plants, animals, insects and aquatic plants constitute a rich national heritage that need to be conserved and harnessed to sustain human livelihoods in terms of food, shelter, medicines and environmental health. Bett added that seeds of crops such as finger millet, Bambara nut and wild lettuce could be preserved, thus increasing their cultural and genetic diversity to counter economic monopoly. The basis and source for the development of quality seed or planting materials are the genetic resources or germplasm, which are maintained for the purpose of breeding, preservation and other research uses, he explained. Bett explained that genetic resources may take the form of seed collections stored in seed banks, trees growing in nurseries or animal breeding lines maintained in gene banks. Desterio Nyamongo, the director of GeRRI, called for the development of partnerships among institutions to raise awareness of genetic resources conservation and use, as well as investment in the strategy. Lack of a comprehensive biodiversity conservation facility for animal, microbial and aquatic genetic resources compromises germplasm security, Nyamongo said. Ruth Vaughan, technical manager at Crop Nutrition Laboratory Services (CROPNUTS), East Africa's leading accredited agricultural laboratory and agronomy services company, applauds the strategy and tells SciDev.Net that biodiversity, plant cover and mixed farming systems should be studied and enhanced. Vaughan says susceptible plant species should be stored and protected. Suitability for different plants in different climatic zones will obviously change with climate change. One never knows the usefulness of existing plants, microbes, insects and animals in the future and the study of interactions between these is important. Saving the gene pool is incredibly important. Kenya is in a sensitive zone, where some areas will receive enhanced rainfall and much more importantly bigger storms. Anything that will help drainage, water storage or reduce erosion is highly important to stop flooding and water source contamination, says Vaughan. Noting that soil health is important in the recycling of nutrients and building up of soil carbon to reduce climate change effects, Vaughan adds: Micorrhiza is one such soil organism that I believe would go a long way to reducing the impact of climate change. This piece was produced by SciDev.Nets Sub-Saharan Africa English desk. On the remote Pacific Island of Mussau, several hundred kilometers off the coast of its parent island Papua New Guinea, a new species of blue-tailed monitor lizard has been discovered, and it reigns supreme. "Veranus Semotus" is formally described as "isolated," as it is the only large land-dwelling predator native to the island. The study, conducted by students from the University of Turku in Finland, found the lizard and described it as a "biogeographical oddity." Valter Weijola, a graduate student, led the group in the discovery, which was the first of a new monitor lizard on Papua New Guinea in more than 20 years. Due to the isolation of the islands, predatory mammals have not colonized the region, leading monitors to play a big role in the ecosystem. Monitors, being large and intelligent, have filled the role of lead predator and scavenger so well, in fact, that they've spread across almost every island in Indonesia, the Solomons and Micronesia, according to a news release. "Isolation is the keyword here," Weijola said. "It is what has driven speciation and made the South-Pacific region one of the World's biodiversity hotspots. For anything to arrive on Mussau (from New Guinea or New Britain) it would need to cross 250-350 kilometers of open sea, and this doesn't happen frequently. So, once the ancestor arrived, perhaps in the form of a gravid female, the population must have been completely isolated." Monitors can range in size from as small as 8 inches to as large as 10 feet (like the Komodo dragon). This new species, a female, was measured at 3.2 feet, with its tail being 1.5 times the length of the body, but can grow to be larger. Its body is black with yellow and orange markings, a pale yellow tongue, and turquoise to blueish tail pigmentation. Its been found to eat crabs, small birds, and other reptiles and their eggs. "Usually monitors like these will eat just about anything they can catch and kill, as well as carcass and turtle eggs when available," Weijola said. "While young, Pacific monitor lizards are highly secretive and subsist mainly on insects and other small animals." The islands of Papua New Guinea and the South Pacific are filled with animals not found anywhere else in the world. The region is expected to continue to be studied extensively, as researcher still know very little about the species there, and continually discover new species all the time, according to Weijola. The findings were published in the journal ZooKeys. Related Articles Frozen 'Water Bears' Revived, Reproduce After 31 Years (VIDEO) Animal Attacks: Half Of Large Carnivore Attacks Caused By Human Behavior For more great science stories and general news, please visit our sister site, Headlines and Global News (HNGN). A new study by researchers at Boston Medical Center shows that children given medications for asthma right after they left the hospital versus those given a prescription to fill were less likely to need further assistance upon leaving. The findings showed that children who received medications from the doctor before leaving the emergency room (ER) were less likely to require additional treatment than counterparts who did not. "While our study was small, it shows that a fairly simple intervention can be administered by the inpatient team to help decrease future emergency department visits for patients with asthma," Dr. Jonathan Hatoun, a former researcher at Boston Medical Center, in a press release. "We might expect similar results for other diseases, though more studies need to be done." The study looked at the "Meds in Hand" program, which was designed to get at least 75 percent of patients their medication before leaving the hospital. Thus, an in-room delivery service is set up to prevent the need for patients to go to another pharmacy. The program also included instructions on how to use medications, increasing the chance for instructions to be followed. During a two-year trial period, the 75 percent goal was achieved, and researchers reported patients were 78 percent less likely to come back to the hospital in the 30 days following discharge. The study is published in the journal Pediatrics. Related Articles Exercise Improves Asthma Symptoms: Get Moving For more great science stories and general news, please visit our sister site, Headlines and Global News (HNGN). Singapore-listed FSL Trust, reported a $14.15m profit for 2015 and has a fleet of 22 vessels on a mix of long term charters and spot exposure through trading in pooling arrangements. Looking ahead Alan Hatton, ceo of FSL Trust Management told Seatrade Maritime News that the main thing it was focusing on was the refinancing of its fleet. Now its looking at how we can provide real runway for the fleet. Although the Trust has 18 months remaining on its existing financing arrangement that covers 21 of the 22 vessels in its fleet Hatton said they wanted to be proactive in their approach to refinancing rather than leaving it until 2017. He said it was very much their preference to retain financing for the fleet as a whole. As to whether the trust planned to renew or expand its fleet this will in part depend on whether capacity for that can be included in its financing discussions. While FSL Trust has returned to profitability for the past two years it is yet to start paying distributions which were suspended in 2013 and Hatton said they had resisted the temptation to restart distributions and did not say when it would restart payments. The trust had been aiming to start paying distributions again by the third quarter of 2015, however, an anticipated slowdown in earning in the second half of the year meant it has held back from the plan. FSLs Q4 profit was just $83,000 as it took a hit from having two product tankers in dry dock in the quarter. In the first quarter of 2016 it expects to take a $4.2m hit from the loss on the sale of two panamax containerships Ever Radiant and Ever Respect. Press Release February 24, 2016 Legarda Commends Lav Diaz for Alfred Bauer Prize in 66th Berlin Film Festival Senator Loren Legarda commended filmmaker Lav Diaz for garnering the Alfred Bauer Prize at the 66th Berlin International Film Festival for his critically acclaimed feature film Hele sa Hiwagang Hapis (A Lullaby to the Sorrowful Mystery.) The Alfred Bauer Prize is given to a feature film that "opens new perspectives on cinematic art." The Berlin International Film Festival is one of the world's leading cinema events. It annually brings together the global industry's top filmmakers, actors, actresses, and producers in one venue to celebrate the best works in the cinematic world. Legarda said, "Diaz is a catalyst and his works elevate Philippine artisty in the global arena by challenging the convention of filmmaking and the film experience." "More importantly, the subject of his films raise a discussion on what it is like to be Filipino, in the midst of our rich history, our struggles through imperialism and colonization, to our present reality. Through his work the world hears about our nation's story or at least one perspective of it," Legarda added. Diaz's latest film focused on the Philippine revolution in the 19th century, a poetic, recounted and reimagined narrative on the country's struggle for emancipation after 300 years of Spanish ruling and the turbulent struggle that ensued among the nation's revolutionary leaders. The 8-hour long film is the longest film to ever compete at the festival and was warmly received by the audience when screened last February 18. According to Diaz in a previous interview, "The struggle of the Filipino, his history, is central to my works." "Through his art, Diaz documents the lives of Filipinos and instigates that we demand for a better life. For this, I offer him my warmest congratulations," Legarda concluded. ANAK TV HONORS 'CREDIBLE, WHOLESOME' POE Presidential race frontrunner Sen. Grace Poe scored a pre-election win with unusual voters--children. On its 18th year, Anak TV honored Poe among the female Makabata stars. Such recognition is bestowed upon personalities who are "credible, wholesome and worth emulating by the youth." The senator, the first foundling to run for president, emerged from a roster of over a hundred nominees reviewed by a national jury. The national jury, carefully selected to represent children, is composed of educators, concerned parents, lay and religious leaders, businessmen, civil society members and government officials. The members participated in a year-long assessment to identify the most admired yet most child-sensitive male and female personalities on local television. The jurors also assessed TV programs. Joining Poe in the roster of female Makabata stars are actresses Judy Ann Santos-Agoncillo, Kathryn Bernardo, Maine Mendoza, Marian Rivera, Lea Salonga, Liza Soberano, Jodi Sta. Maria, Alex Gonzaga, Janella Salvador; news personalities Kara David and Vicky Morales; ABS-CBN executive Charo Santos-Concio; and Sen. Miriam Santiago. Poe has always been an advocate for the rights of children, stressing in a political rally in Baguio City the importance of making sure that they grow up with their values intact. "Sabi ng aking ama, 'huwag kang susuko kung alam mong ang ipinaglalaban mo ay para sa tama.' 'Kailangan ay matapang ka,' sabi naman ng nanay ko. Pero sabi ng tatay ko, 'dapat matapang ka pero huwag kang mayabang,'" Poe said. "Sa ating mga kababayan, kinakailangan ang ating kilos ay ehemplo para sa ating mga anak," said the senator. Poe served as chairman of the Movie Television Review and Classification Board from 2010 to 2012 and instituted a new ratings system to help parents guide their children in watching movies and TV programs. As a senator, Poe also prioritized measures that focus on children's health and nutrition, passing legislation that gave free lunch to public school children from pre-school to sixth grade. Press Release February 24, 2016 POE WANTS MORE SOLAR, WIND POWER FOR PH Presidential race frontrunner Sen. Grace Poe wants cleaner sources of energy in the country to power up the homes of some 15 million Filipinos, particularly in remote areas, who still have no access to electricity. Poe, who has been campaigning in the Cordillera Administrative Region since Tuesday, said she would push for the development of more solar and wind power sources, if she wins, as these were more sustainable and environment-friendly. "Ang kailangan natin ay renewable sources of energy. Dagdagan natin yung wind power, yung mga windmills, yung mga solar panels, yung mga hydro-electric energy producers. Lahat 'yan dapat mag-invest po tayo para naman pagdating ng pagkakataon ay mas maging malinis ang ating energy sources at mas mura," Poe said in an interview with Bontoc's Radyo Natin. The Philippines has one of the highest electricity rates in Asia. According to the Philippine Statistics Authority, electricity accounted for 4.5 percent of a Filipino household's expenditures in 2012. The Manila Electric Company (MERALCO), the largest electric distributor in the Philippines, charges P7.4176 per kilowatt-hour as of December 2015. To increase renewable energy share in the market, Poe said the government needs to encourage more private investments in the energy sector, especially as the country's energy requirement increases with its population. As per Department of Energy estimates, the Philippines will need an additional 11,400 megawatts (MW) of generating capacity to meet the energy demand from 2016 to 2030. The additional requirement is distributed as follows: 8,100 MW in Luzon; 1,700 MW in Visayas; and 1,600 MW in Mindanao. When she announced her presidential bid in September last year, Poe mentioned renewable energy development in her 20-point government agenda, if she wins. "Siguraduhin po natin na magiging sapat ang kuryente para sa lumalagong ekonomiya. Paunlarin natin kasabay nito ang renewable energy," Poe had said in her proclamation speech. Poe, who will visit Abra on Thursday, called on the government to implement the mechanisms of the Renewable Energy Act of 2008. These include the establishment of the Renewable Energy Market, which will mandate power distributors to source a portion of their energy from renewable energy suppliers. She said the lack of a market for renewables are hindering the development of cleaner power, which has a high upfront cost for development. To set an example, the senator said the government can study the possibility of installing solar panels in government buildings, which would be cheaper and more sustainable in the long term. Press Release February 24, 2016 POE PUSHES FOR CREDIT ASSISTANCE, INVESTMENT INCENTIVES FOR OFW FAMILIES Leading presidential contender Sen. Grace Poe is pushing for credit assistance and tax incentives for overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) who would go into business, saying this would encourage migrants to participate in the local economy. Bringing her campaign to La Union, one of the biggest OFW-sending provinces in the Philippines, Poe said her "Gobyernong may Puso" will have a strategic roadmap that will give OFWs not only prospects for future employment or enterprise-building but also a solid life track for building and enjoying their resources. "Our OFWs leave the country with the hope that when they come back, they will have the financial capacity to stay," Poe noted. "We should encourage and support the dreams of our migrants to be reintegrated in our society." Poe said labor agencies, together with private businesses, can help in building OFWs' capacity for entrepreneurship and OFW families' skills for personal financial management. According to 2014 data from the Philippine Statistics Authority, only 35 percent of OFWs have savings. Most OFW families lack the knowhow to grow their capital or stretch their resources beyond meeting basic needs. In La Union, where 6.2 percent of La Union's population aged 20 and above is working overseas, remittances contribute a fifth of total household income. The province has the highest share of households that are highly dependent on remittances, the International Labour Organization said in its La Union Strategic Migration and Development Plan. Poe said the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration should intensify its information and education drive in La Union's barangays to ensure that locals do not fall in the hands of illegal recruiters. "We want overseas work to be a matter of choice and not compulsion," Poe said. "However, we also have to ensure that Filipinos who do want to go abroad are well-informed about their rights and the realities in their destination countries." Poe said the government could also look into giving OFWs certain privileges in retail establishments, such as what senior citizens enjoy, and study the feasibility of easing taxes on specific OFW investments. "We should encourage, support and incentivize domestic investment decisions of our OFWs and their families, especially in real estate, capital market, insurance investments, and other asset-building initiatives," she said. In 2013, Poe filed Senate Bill 1421 seeking to establish a credit assistance program for OFWs with valid employment contracts. The senator proposed that OFWs be allowed to avail of a P50,000 loan from the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration to defray the living expenses of their families in the first few months of their absence. Poe will be in La Union with her running mate, Sen. Francis "Chiz" Escudero, the vice presidential race frontrunner, and the senatorial bets of their coalition, Partido Galing at Puso. The tandem visited Bontoc and Baguio City on Tuesday, where they held Partido Galing at Puso's first political rally in the north. MIRIAM: WE HAVE FAILED THE LUMADS Sen. Miriam Defensor Santiago lamented that the alleged attack on a refugee site in Davao City early Wednesday showed that government has failed to protect indigenous peoples driven out of their homes by violence in Mindanao. "I condemn in the strongest terms the alleged arson of the Lumad evacuation center in Davao City, and I urge authorities to investigate the incident promptly," the senator said. Reports say two unidentified men were seen setting fire to dormitories used by Lumad evacuees at the United Church of Christ in the Philippines Haran compound at around 2 a.m. The fire razed the building and hurt five people. "The indigenous peoples at the UCCP Haran compound were driven out of their homes by violence. The Lumads are now again rendered homeless. They deserved state protection, but were instead harassed by state agents, who once attempted to forcibly evict them," Santiago said. She was referring to an incident in June 2015, when the Davao police and other armed personnel reportedly attempted to forcibly evict the Lumad evacuees from the church compound and back to their homes. Santiago has earlier filed a resolution calling for a Senate inquiry on the June 2015 incident. She has also sought probes on the alleged militarization of indigenous communities and the reported closure of schools for Lumad children. "I urge the next Congress to fast-track the passage of the Rights of Internally Displaced Persons Act and to include in the bill specific provisions on the rights of indigenous peoples," Santiago said. "We have failed the Lumads. Let us not renege further on our obligation," she added. On Jan. 14, the National Park Service announced that Yosemites iconic Ahwahnee Hotel will become the Majestic Yosemite Hotel on March 1. A news release explained that because of a trademark dispute with outgoing concessionaire Delaware North of Buffalo, N.Y., the Wawona Hotel will become Big Trees Lodge and Curry Village will become Half Dome Village. People readily saw a case of corporate greed. At Mother Jones, Kevin Drum posted a blog with a photo of company executives and the heading: Meet the corporate suits who claim to own the trademark to Yosemite National Park. The next day, Drum conceded his initial take was probably wrong. The story is less of an outrage than a fairly pedestrian contract dispute. It turns out Delaware North does have rights to its concessions intellectual property including names because the company had to buy those intangible assets from the previous operator. The National Park Service acknowledges this fact and values these assets at $3.5 million. Delaware North wants $51 million. The matter will be settled in federal court. The back and forth, or as Oakland composer Guillermo Galindo puts it, the call and response, lies at the heart of his collaboration with Berkeley photographer Richard Misrach. For three years, Misrach has been photographing the approximately 2,000-mile border between the United States and Mexico, and bringing back to Galindo objects that hes found along the way battered shoes, childrens clothing, backpacks, water bottles, border police shotgun shells, even parts of the border wall itself. The composer would build the scavenged debris into instruments and record, in turn giving the photographer more ideas. Their haunting findings and lyrical evocations, which range from Misrachs large-scale high-definition digital photographs to Galindos 13-cycle Sonic Borders composition based on the 20-week, 13-day tonalpohuali or Venus calendar, surface this week in Border Cantos: Richard Misrach | Guillermo Galindo at the San Jose Museum of Art. Sometimes the projects call and response was even more direct, though no less mysterious. The Border Patrol ranged from really nice guys who were really helpful sometimes theyd show me their pictures to others who were totally hostile. It was just bizarre because 99 percent of the places I photographed were public land, says 66-year-old Misrach. After a year and a half of being hassled, I remembered the Jedi mind meld, and so when Id see the Border Patrol along the wall somewhere, Id say, Hi, Im Richard Misrach. Im a photographer. Im going to be working here for the next couple hours. They loved it, and it made their job easier because I was so assertive it worked every time. Both artists journeys toward Border Cantos began long before Misrach first saw Galindo play in 2011 in San Francisco. The instruments Galindo had built were made of clothing, shoes and other found objects at the Laredo Rio Grande border. The feeling around the discards hit home for Galindo, a Mexico City-born U.S. citizen and California College of the Arts instructor. It is painful to see my own people escaping from unbearable violence and poverty and risking their lives through the scorching desert in search of a better life just to be treated worse than animals, says Galindo, who invokes pre-Columbian animistic beliefs about the connection between an instrument and its materials when talking about his work. It just breaks my heart. It is not just, and I can only hope that our project contributes a grain of salt to make this tragedy visible and audible. Misrach began photographing the border in 2009, across four states, from the Pacific Ocean to the Gulf of Mexico, as part of his continuing work on his landmark Desert Cantos series. When he saw Galindo perform, he knew he had to ask Galindo about the eerie human effigies made of agave and clothing that he found near the Jacumba (San Diego County) border, and a collaboration was born. Of their productive time together, Misrach says: There were always symbols and ideas (in the desert) that suggested where this country is going. A lot of my work has been about photographing floods, fires, nuclear test sites and bombing ranges, but the border issue is a 21st century issue. There are so many things going on. Collaborating with Guillermo took it to another level. I have to say its one of the most profoundly moving and exciting and affecting projects Ive worked on. There were so many layers to this project. We come from two different countries, cultures and mediums, and working together was very much a metaphor for what the U.S. and Mexico needs to do. Faced with such powerful work as Galindos large sculptural, gallows-like gong, Angel Exterminador (Exterminating Angel) an effort at reverse musicology, as its creator describes it and Misrachs images of epic desert expanses bisected by a wall, assistant curator Rory Padeken says the main challenge around the exhibition lay simply in selecting the work that reflected the projects breadth and depth, as well as the individuals who cross (or attempt to cross) the border, so often left out of conversations on immigration. Lets face it, immigration has always been and continues to be a hot topic for discussion and debate in this country, even more so with the current presidential campaigns and the coming election, Padeken says. This exhibition attempts to humanize those discussions and debates to recognize migrants as humans and not as facts, figures or threats. Kimberly Chun is an East Bay freelance writer. Border Cantos: Richard Misrach | Guillermo Galindo: Opening reception 7-8:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 25. $15. Through July 26. Lunchtime lecture by Dan Millis, noon-1 p.m. Wednesday, March 2, free with museum admission. Creative Minds: Richard Misrach and Guillermo Galindo: 7-8 p.m. March 17. $6-$12. Gallery Talk: Border Cantos 12:30 p.m. April 28, free with admission. Galindo performs at noon May 5, free with museum admission. Art 101: Found-Object Musical Instruments 1-4 p.m. May 14, $15-$30. Gallery hours 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday-Sunday and 11 a.m.-8 p.m. or later on the third Thursday of the month. $5-$8. San Jose Museum of Art, 110 S. Market St., San Jose. (408) 271-6840. www.sanjosemuseumofart.org. It started quietly at first, on a New York City subway train. Brittani Sensabaugh was keeping to herself, wearing a hoodie that read Oakland, when an older white woman looked right at her. Dont go there, she said as she pointed at her sweatshirt. That place was full of drugs and violence. She was just saying really negative things about a place that I grew up in, Sensabaugh says. I was getting off the train, and I stopped her and said, You know, Im none of those things, and Im from there. Sensabaugh left the train angry. Disappointed, too, she says, now that she thinks about it a few years later. She wondered how a woman who had probably never been to Oakland could so easily dismiss it so easily dismiss all the people who called it home. It made me want to come back home and show the Oakland that I was raised in, and just the love and culture that I came up in, and also bring awareness to why the destruction is happening in these areas. So she did. She came home to East Oakland, the place where shed grown up, and walked the same drags she used to walk years before, only this time she carried a camera, and she created a visual archive of the place she had known. It taught me struggle, but it taught me even more love, she says. What I saw in East Oakland is what I see even now when I document it. Our people are beautiful. Homecoming show A selection of the photographs that grew out of this work along with others taken in other communities form something of a homecoming show for Sensabaugh at the Betti Ono Gallery in Oakland that shes called #222ForgottenCities: The Power of Melanin. (The exhibition was scheduled to run through April, but will be closing Friday, Feb. 26.) Sensabaugh, who still lives in New York City, has assembled a multifaceted portrait of black communities or, as she prefers to call them, melanated communities that are frequently ignored. Outsiders see these places as hopeless, she says, but thats because they dont know them. Who is documenting us? Who is documenting the moments that are pure? she asks, waving toward a gallery wall that shows a daughter riding high on her fathers shoulders and a mother leaning down to kiss her little girl. These moments right here love being shown who is documenting that? Sensabaugh has wide, expressive eyes. Maybe thats the reason, being around her, you sometimes get the feeling she might see deeper than most. She wraps herself, more often than not, in strong colors and patterns and begins emails with the greeting Peace love! She calls people kings and empresses, little children are seeds, and she makes a special effort to compliment their natural hair. Ahh. Your hair is so beautiful, shell say. I love your hair. (A considerable part of the show is dedicated to children staring straight into the camera and to the natural hairstyles she finds as she walks the streets.) Wanting to write Back in high school, when she was just 17 and growing up in East Oakland, Sensabaugh was setting her mind toward writing something she got from her mom. My mothers a beautiful writer, she says. She would always write me these uplifting notes. Her brother thought some visuals to go with all the words might be nice, and Sensabaugh didnt disagree. But it would be years before shed figure out what to do with the Kodak camera he gave her then. It would take six years to be exact, six years that would unfold in a staccato, two-year rhythm. Two years after he gave her the camera, Sensabaughs brother died, unexpectedly, in his sleep at the age of 28. His death stirred something in her and she picked up the camera and began cataloging street fashion. Fashion photos Two years after her brothers death, Sensabaugh followed fashion photography to New York, only to realize the subject was wearing thin. There, people traded in designer names. I was doing it because I like expression, she says. The label didnt matter; the story did. Then, two years after the move to New York, the woman on the subway had something to say. During the years that followed, Sensabaughs project grew well beyond East Oakland. She went back to New York and shot in Queens, Brooklyn and Harlem. Then she started making her way to places in Philadelphia, Baltimore, Chicago, Los Angeles and Houston. Detroit and New Orleans are up next. There were times I couldnt afford my damn rent in New York, but I made sure I documented a city. I made sure I did it. When she plans a trip, she purposefully seeks out neighborhoods and projects that are talked about only because of their crime rates. She builds up trust first, starting with conversations, being as open as possible, always with the goal of bringing out the light that is there. Acknowledging realities Still, theres evident struggle in her work, too. She highlights and uplifts while acknowledging certain realities. In one photograph, a man smokes crack cocaine. Several images draw attention to how difficult it is to find nutritious food in these areas a liquor sign floats in one background and a street vendor pumps his fists, full of soda, into the air. One image shows only a womans hands, fresh with red acrylic nails, holding a pack of Newport cigarettes. (Later, after shes left the gallery, Sensabaugh posts two documents on her Instagram account, outlining the way tobacco companies target vulnerable communities.) We are beauty, we are love, but we are at war. We are in the trenches, we are fighting every day, Sensabaugh says. But if you leave it to outsiders, these stories dont get told, that beauty never comes out, and the scene on the subway repeats itself. Ryan Kost is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: rkost@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @RyanKost Vice President Joe Biden will headline a conversation at UCSF Saturday about the long-term moonshot to eradicate cancer. Biden, whose 46-year-old son, Beau, died of cancer last year, was tapped by President Obama in January to spearhead a national $1 billion initiative to eliminate cancer. The White House estimates that more than 1.6 million new cases of cancer will be diagnosed and the disease will kill 600,000 Americans this year. While in San Francisco, the vice president will tour the Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, then headline a roundtable discussion at 11 a.m. Saturday at Genentech Hall at the UCSF Mission Bay campus. Biden will hear from regional leaders on precision medicine and the role of data in improving cancer research and treatment. After the UCSF visit, Biden will head to San Jose to address the California Democratic Party convention. We're calling it a moonshot, and that's because I believe that this effort, like President Kennedy's call to land on the moon 55 years ago, is truly a call to humankind to be bold and do big things, Biden said in an email to supporters earlier this month. Every single federal agency with a part to play in this mission from the National Institutes of Health and Food and Drug Administration to the Department of Veterans Affairs and Department of Energy and its national energy labs will be in the same room together to make sure we're working from the same playbook, Biden said. Joe Garofoli is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: jgarofoli@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @joegarofoli Constance Crowley Bowles Hart Peabody, a philanthropist who hailed from a pioneering San Francisco family and through marriage united two California empires built on land and at sea, died of complications of old age Sunday. She was 97. Mrs. Peabody was born in San Francisco in 1919 to Jane Gade Crowley and Thomas Crowley, a poor Irishman who worked on the waterfront as a child and founded Crowley Launch and Tugboat Co. in 1892. In time, it became Crowley Maritime Corp., one of the nations largest private maritime operations. It ran tugboats and the Red & White fleet before becoming a global shipping enterprise with more than $1 billion in annual revenues. Married in 1941 She attended Grant School and Katherine Delmar Burke School in San Francisco, and Sarah Lawrence College in New York and returned to California, where, in 1941, she married Henry Miller Bowles. His great-grandfather, Henry Miller, a poor German immigrant and butcher, became a land baron and cattle rancher who founded Miller and Lux Inc. in 1858. He owned more than 1 million acres in California, allowing him to drive cattle from Mexico to Oregon without ever leaving his property. A succession of legal battles led to the firms dissolution, and to the creation of Bowles Farming Co. in Merced County in 1965, an enterprise that survives to this day. Clubs, philanthropy Mrs. Peabody was involved in Save the Bay, the Sierra Club, Strybing Arboretum and the Francesca Club. With her family, she supported the Crowley Maritime Corp.s donation of the Marin Islands, which the company owned, to the Trust for Public Lands and later the National Park Service. The islands are now a bird sanctuary. With Mr. Bowles, she reared three children and, along with her husband and his brother, the late George McNear Corky Bowles, became involved in the collecting of English soft paste porcelain. The threesome amassed such an assortment that they donated it to the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, where a special Constance and Henry Bowles Porcelain Gallery was created to house the 18th century English and French porcelain. It is considered a keystone of the museums European decorative arts collection. She was an extraordinarily forceful person, but always a lady, recalled one of her sons, Henry Bowles. She was a natural networker and connector. She could talk to anyone, whether a plumber or a guy from the waterfront. She was not a snob. She came from a guy who started on the waterfront with nothing, and she remembered that. Still, he observed, One of the frustrations of her life was that she never became a business executive. She would have been very good at it. She just couldnt see herself breaking those barriers. After her first husbands death in 1981, she married again, to James Hart, a professor and literary scholar at UC Berkeley who was head of the Bancroft Library and wrote The Oxford Companion to American Literature. He died of a brain tumor in 1990. Her 3rd marriage In 2004, she married a third time, to Julian Livingston Peabody, a lawyer who died at the age of 100 in 2014. Her long life, Henry Bowles said, may have been due in part to being active. She had a couple of glasses of wine every night, and she never formally exercised, but she was active she loved the out-of-doors, he said. She was big on fly-fishing, she hunted pheasants, quail and grouse, and she walked. In addition to son Henry Bowles of Alameda, Mrs. Peabody is survived by another son, Philip Bowles, and a daughter, Beatrice Bowles, both of San Francisco; and eight grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren. Funeral services will be private. Memorials may be made to the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco. Carolyne Zinko is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: czinko@sfchronicle.com This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate A group of roughly two dozen students walked out of Lowell High School in San Francisco Tuesday morning in response to an offensive sign posted on a window at the schools library this month. The sign, which was posted on Feb. 5, read Happy Black History Month #Gang along with photos the schools principal said were insensitive to the racial stereotyping of black people that is far too prevalent in our society. The photos showed several hip-hop artists and other African American entertainers along with President Obama, according to the school. Seeking support While the message was removed, black students remained outraged by the use of #gang as it refers to black students and Black History Month negatively. In response to this clear anti-blackness, past incidents of racism and an uncomfortable climate for black students, the Black Student Union scheduled the walkout according to the student youth group Afrikan Black Coalition. Just after 9 a.m., at least a couple dozen students emerged from the school and stood in line at the main entrance holding signs that said, Black Minds Matter, Dont Stereotype Us and We Are Young Black Scholars. They later held a rally at City Hall. A lot of students from other ethnic groups stereotype us without really knowing us, said Mikayla Sherman, a junior at the school who joined the walkout. We are protesting to make a stand against the SFUSD for not handling the situation the way we felt they should. We dont have black history at this school. We want teacher support. We want all the support we can get. Some of that support came from Daryle Washington, a parent of a student at Phillip and Sala Burton Academic High School in San Francisco, who said he saw Lowell as a steppingstone for bringing change in the district. Student remorseful Lowell Principal Andrew W. Ishibashi spoke outside the school as well Tuesday morning, voicing support for the students right to protest. I want to assure you that we stand against racism and racist behavior, he said. The inappropriate posting of pictures and comments that occurred Feb. 5 is wholly unacceptable. The school has 2,650 students, fewer than 2 percent of whom are African American. In a letter sent to students and parents this month, Ishibashi said school officials have spoken to the student who put up the offensive poster. While the intent was not malicious, the student who put the message up has been made aware that it was insensitive. The student is deeply remorseful, Ishibashi wrote in the letter. We recognize that this message, though not intentional, can have damaging effects on our entire community. Love it or hate it, marijuana seems to be baked into the culture of the Upper Haight. From the throngs of visitors who arrive for 4/20 to the everyday solicitations to buy pot while strolling Haight Street, it's hard to escape the high times constantly occurring around the neighborhood, and many locals and business owners aren't pleased. But support for marijuana legalization tends to be high in San Franciscoto say nothing of the numerous folks who hold medical cards. As a result, some neighbors are up in arms about active dealers and transient tokers on Haight, while others think pot is relatively harmless, and should be the SFPD's last priority. SFPD Park Station Captain John Sanford, however, has said that dealers won't be tolerated on Haight, and that the department will arrest them. "We try to put the message out that's very simple: it's illegal. You are not allowed to sell drugs on Haight Street," he said at February 9th's Park Station community meeting. Sanford articulated his thoughts about the neighborhood's contradictory positions regarding marijuana in the recent Park Station newsletter. Here's what he had to say: Try being a district captain where you have half of your merchants telling you to stop the drug dealing on Haight, and the other half saying 'It's the Haight, and we understand it is a part of the culture.' Many of the residents tell me they do not like it, and we need to make the streets safe for those who shop, visit and stroll on Haight Street. There are some residents who have told me they are used to it and understand it is part of the Haight and that is just the way it is, and they accept it. To add to the complexity, visitors come from all over the world just to indulge in drugs on Haight Street. Originally, I thought this was just a myth or a rumor started by those intrigued by the '60s era. Little did I know, it is actually the truth, and after walking Haight Street for almost a year now, I have personally run into drifters, transients, and tourists who all have stated to me personally that there is just something 'cool' about smoking dope on Haight Street. He goes on to say that what he calls "freelance" drug dealers (gig economy, indeed) aren't part of gangs or drug turf wars, but instead "come and make some quick money by selling drugs on the streets surrounding the Haight, and escape undetected due to a lack of law-enforcement attention." Even though it might appear to be a friendly way to make a quick buck, Sanford says, the reality is much darker, and the arrests are worth the resources, even if the cases aren't ever prosecuted. Often, those who sell drugs will carry weapons or replica guns for protection from other would-be drug dealers, or those attempting to "rip" them off. There is no need to get into how replica guns are often mistaken for real guns, and the tragedies associated with such actions. I am not a drug expert, but many argue that these drugs are a gateway into other drugs. The bottom line is that selling drugs on the street is still illegal, and it will not be tolerated on Haight Street or any other part of the Park District. Some have argued and told me that if the DA is not going to prosecute the case, it makes no sense for us to use police resources to arrest the individuals. My response is simple: I have no control over the DA's office, but I know from experience that doing nothing at all only exacerbates the situation further, and opens the gates to so many other related crimes. What do you think? Are marijuana arrests worth Park Station's time, or are they just part of the Haight's culture? Should cops be making arrests that aren't likely to be prosecuted? Take it to the comments. This post originally appeared on Hoodline.com Waves averaging upwards of 12 feet pounded Northern Californias shoreline Wednesday, and officials warned beach goers to steer clear of the water due to powerful currents and sneaker waves. The Bay Area branch of the National Weather Service issued a high surf advisory from 4 a.m. until 9 p.m. for the coastline between Sonoma and Monterey counties, though weather service divisions farther south, including those in San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara, issued their own advisories as well. Forecasters said breakers up to 20 feet will be possible Wednesday afternoon in Northern California. Anybody near the beach should not turn their backs on the water, said Bob Benjamin, a weather service forecaster. Rip currents and sneaker waves can come up and grab people, which we know they often do. Wednesdays waves were forecast to be three to four times larger than normal, crashing down about every 17 seconds, compared with the normal rhythm of every six to 10 seconds. On Tuesday afternoon, the U.S. Coast Guard needed to airlift a swimmer from Ocean Beach. The semi-conscious victim was then transported to St. Marys Medical Center in San Francisco. The Marin County Fire Department increased staffing of its rescue watercraft operations in anticipation of the high surf, according to Battalion Chief Bret McTigue, a fire department spokesman. Its going to be an interesting swell period, he said. Youll have a seemingly safe beach and then the next period sets in. During a stretch of high surf last month, a San Rafael surfer died in dangerous waters near Rodeo Beach in the Marin Headlands. When another two surfers attempted to help the unconscious man to the beach, they were both slammed by a large wave and lost contact with the man. McTigue warned beachgoers to call 911 and not go in the water if they see someone in distress because you can become a victim yourself, he said. The weather service may issue another surf advisory for Friday and Saturday, but the swells are not expected to be as large, Benjamin said. Those who avoid the coastline may still get soaked this weekend in the Bay Area. Forecasters say there is a chance of sprinkles Friday night into Saturday morning and Sunday night into Monday morning. Itll be a couple hundredths of an inch if were lucky, Benjamin said. A storm system expected to hit the Bay Area around Wednesday or Thursday next week will bring in more significant rainfall, forecasters say. Kimberly Veklerov is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: kveklerov@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @kveklerov Apple Inc. will tell a federal judge this week in legal papers that its fight with the FBI over accessing a locked and encrypted iPhone should be kicked to Congress, rather than decided by courts. Apple will also argue that the Obama administrations request to help it hack into an iPhone in a terrorism case is improper under an 18th century law, the 1789 All Writs Act, which has been used to compel companies to provide assistance to law enforcement in investigations. A lead attorney for Apple, Theodore Boutrous, previewed some of the companys arguments, and Apple CEO Tim Cook has also hinted at the companys courtroom strategy. Apples effort would move the contentious policy debate between digital privacy rights and national security interests to Congress, where Apple one of the worlds most respected technology companies wields considerably more influence. Apple spent nearly $5 million lobbying Congress last year, mostly on tax and copyright issues. Key lawmakers have been openly divided about whether the governments demands in the case go too far. Magistrate Judge Sheri Pym in California ordered Apple last week to create specialized software to help the FBI hack into a locked, county-issued iPhone used by a gunman in the mass shootings last December in San Bernardino. Syed Rizwan Farook and his wife, Tashfeen Malik, killed 14 people at an office holiday party in an attack at least partly inspired by the Islamic State group. The government is really seeking to push the courts to do what they havent been able to persuade Congress to do, Boutrous said. Thats to give it more broad, sweeping authority to help the Department of Justice hack into devices, to have a backdoor into devices, and the law simply does not provide that authority. White House spokesman Josh Earnest this week disputed that Congress should settle the issue and called the governments request narrow. Earnest said the magistrate judge came down in favor of our law enforcement after evaluating arguments by Apple and the FBI. Apple hasnt yet made any filings in the case because the Justice Department asked the magistrate to rule before Apple had an opportunity to object. Sending complicated things to Congress is often not the surest way to get a quick answer, Earnest said. In fact, even asking some of the most basic questions of Congress sometimes does not ensure a quick answer. Apple intends to argue that the 1789 law has never been used to compel a company to write software to help the government. Michael Zweiback, the former chief of the cybercrimes section of the U.S. Attorneys Office in Los Angeles, said it is highly unusual for the government to ask Apple to give the FBI specialized software that would weaken the digital locks on the iPhone. Theres a significant legal question as to whether the All Writs Act can be used to order a company to create something that may not presently exist, Zweiback said. He said that as a former prosecutor, he is sympathetic to the governments case, but he described Apples arguments as strong and said the issue has broad implications. We are not the only ones who are asking for encryption keys, he said. The Chinese government has made similar demands upon them, the European Union has made similar demands upon them, so the implications are really not even national. Theyre international in scope. Another expert, Mark Bartholomew, a professor specializing in cyberlaw at State University of New York, said Apple may have a compelling case, arguing that it would be unfair to force it to make its devices less secure, though its not clear whether courts would agree that Congress should decide the matter. When youre requiring a private entity not just to unlock something, or not just to show you something, but to actually change their design then you start getting into different grounds, Bartholomew said. It makes the stakes higher. It makes us, I think, more sympathetic to what Apple is arguing for. It seems more violative of Apples independence. The All Writs Act has been used at least three times most recently in 1980 to compel a phone company to provide a list of dialed numbers, but in those cases the technology and tools already existed, said Jennifer Granick, an attorney and director of civil liberties and the Stanford Center for Internet and Society. This is a terrorism investigation thats solved. We know who did it, Granick said. What happens so often is we do something thats justified for terrorism, but its going to get used in regular, run-of-the-mill cases. Apple is challenging government efforts to overcome encryption on at least 14 electronic devices nationwide in addition to the iPhone in California, according to court papers filed Tuesday in a similar case in New York. Lawyers told U.S. Magistrate Judge James Orenstein in Brooklyn that Apple is opposed to relinquishing information on at least 15 devices in a dozen court cases in California, Illinois, Massachusetts and New York. Before then, the government said Apple had helped it retrieve information from at least 70 devices since 2008. Those phones, with operating software designed earlier than the iPhone used in California, allowed Apple to use a physical tool to extract data from them. Since late 2014, that capability has not existed on newer phones. Candles 2.0 A new Facebook feature lets you wish a friend a happy birthday by recording a video of up to 15 seconds. The company says that on iOS devices, people will be able to go to a friends profile, tap the banner video prompt and record. They can then swipe through birthday-themed frames to add to the video before posting it. Getting it together A temporary peace is in the air between American Airlines, at left, and Gogo Inc., which provides its in-flight Wi-Fi service on about 200 planes. This month American filed an action in a Texas district court asking a judge to protect its right to terminate its Gogo contract if the airline secured a better Wi- Fi service offer, but now it wont pursue the case at least for the moment. American is considering ViaSat Inc. for faster, cheaper service, but the contract gives Gogo a chance to prove to American that it can beat competing offers. Doing it right Technology will help strengthen an old friend for television viewers this year. Planet Earth, the popular BBC documentary series from 2006, will come back with a series of six one-hour programs, the Guardian has reported. This time, though, the series will include not only ultra high-definition filming, but also remote recording and drones. The Daily Briefing is compiled from San Francisco Chronicle staff and news services. See more items and links at www.sfgate.com. Twitter: @techbriefing This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Nearly six years after Google began setting up cities with some of the fastest Internet in the country, the company will extend its lightning-fast gigabit fiber Internet service to its neighbor to the north, San Francisco. Its news long awaited by a city that has struggled to bring reliable and affordable high-speed service to businesses and residents. In 2007, the city, Earthlink and Google failed to set up free wireless Internet access throughout San Francisco. When that deal failed, it sent a message to companies looking to expand that San Francisco was a hostile environment, Supervisor Mark Farrell said. Fast forward to today, and access to the Internet is no longer just nice to have it has become an economic right. Its something we should be viewing as a utility on par with water and electricity. No one can function in modern society without the Internet. Gigabit Internet speed is roughly equivalent to 1,000 megabits per second, or fast enough to download an HD movie in about seven seconds. Google is not the first company to announce its intention to bring this kind of service to the city AT&T, Comcast and smaller companies have already committed to start gigabit service in San Francisco. And it wont be a cure-all for the citys connectivity issues, Farrell said. Shaking up the market But experts expect Google will still shake up the market, particularly given the power its brand name wields. Everywhere Google goes, the incumbent response is speeds go up and prices go down, said Blair Levin, former executive director of the National Broadband Plan. Since Google Fibers initial 2013 launch in Kansas City, the company has set up its fiberop network in five municipalities and announced its intentions to extend its reach to six more in recent months, including Huntsville, Ala. No cost to San Francisco Googles approach to setting up in Huntsville a city of 180,000 and San Francisco will be similar in that the company will use existing fiber networks in both cities to introduce its high-speed Internet. The new service will come at no cost to San Francisco. Its a new approach for Google, which had traditionally built its fiber networks from scratch. Limiting itself to areas where fiber cables are already in place will restrict Googles reach, but also expedite the amount of time it will take to roll out the program which could position San Francisco as the first California city with Google Fiber connectivity. Were looking for more ways to serve cities of different shapes and sizes, Google Fibers director of business operations Michael Slinger said in a statement Wednesday. San Francisco has a long history of creativity, innovation, and development, with its iconic cultural centers, countless startups, and dozens of colleges and universities. In thinking about how best to bring Google Fiber to some residents in this unique city, we considered a number of factors, including the Citys rolling hills, miles of coastline, and historic neighborhoods. No timeline established Google did not immediately specify a timeline for when Google Fiber would begin its expansion to apartments, condos and affordable housing properties, or detail what fiber cables it would be co-opting for its San Francisco expansion. Low-income housing properties will be eligible to receive the service for free. A 2015 report by the cloud-service company Akamai Technologies put average peak speeds for Internet access in California at about 58 megabits per second the 10th fastest statewide rate in the country. Delaware has the fastest Internet in the country with 75 megabits per second a fraction of the speed of gigabit service. Last year, Comcast committed to bring 2-gigabit fiber-speed Internet to the Bay Area, and AT&T announced plans to expand its gigabit service, GigaPower, to parts of San Francisco, Oakland and San Jose. Lesser-known company Sonic, which provides business Internet and phone services to local companies like Uber, Lagunitas and the Golden State Warriors, built an at-home fiber network in the Richmond and Sunset districts of the city. AT&Ts gigabit Internet plans start at $70 per month, and Sonic offers gigabit Internet and unlimited home phone calling for $40 a month. Increased availability and variety are steps in the right direction, Farrell said, but not a solution to the citys main problem: universal Internet connectivity. We need to be focused as a city and looking long term and determining how were going to provide this kind of high-speed access to every home in San Francisco, Farrell said. Farrell helped author a report expected to be released this spring that details various plans for how the city can guarantee Internet access to every home and business within city limits. Bridging digital divide To help address the citys digital divide, Google and the Nonprofit Technology Enterprise Network will also extend its Digital Inclusion Fellowship to San Francisco. The program, aimed at increasing digital literacy and broadband adoption among low-income residents, minorities and non-English speakers would work with local community organizations to offer classes to teach people to set up email accounts, apply for jobs, access content across the web and more, according to Googles announcement. Those interested in getting Google Fiber can sign up for updates online. Marissa Lang is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: mlang@sfchronicle.com This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate San Francisco Police Chief Greg Suhr on Tuesday offered his department as a test bed for smart guns once the technology is more fully developed. Suhr, speaking at an event sponsored by smart-gun technology proponents, said hed be willing to give tech-savvy officers the option of trying a weapon that can be fired only by its authenticated owner. Officer safety is huge, so you wouldnt want to compel that upon officers, Suhr said. But we have so many officers who are so into technology, I am all but certain there are officers that would be willing to do such a pilot. If technology can disable stolen mobile phones, he asked, why couldnt stolen guns be bricked? If we in law enforcement had guns that were only of use to the officer identified with the gun, that would be a good thing, Suhr said. What if every gun that fell into the wrong hands was of no use to anybody? Suhr spoke at a news conference preceding the San Francisco Smart Gun Symposium, which focused on a technology that so far has generated more hope and controversy than sales. The event was sponsored by the Smart Tech Challenges Foundation, which is funding smart-gun entrepreneurs, and Washington CeaseFire, an anti-gun-violence group. The conference comes in the wake of President Obamas recent 10-point executive order on gun control that included a call for research into smart-gun technology. The politically powerful National Rifle Association has consistently said it is not opposed to smart-gun technology. But the organization does oppose the government telling gun makers to install specific equipment on their products. We just think that it should be for the consumer to decide, NRA spokeswoman Amy Hunter told The Chronicle last month. Stolen or misplaced guns have become an embarrassment for law enforcement. Last week, a federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent in San Francisco reported that he drove off after leaving his loaded service weapon on top of his car. Suhr said there were four Bay Area murders last year committed with guns stolen in auto burglaries. Those included Oakland muralist Antonio Ramos, killed by a gun stolen from an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer, and Kathryn Steinle, shot on Pier 14 in San Francisco with a pistol stolen from a Bureau of Land Management ranger. What if those guns had been useless to the person who did those auto burglaries? Suhr said. Thats four people we know would be alive today. Smart-gun technology isnt about gun control, but about giving consumers the right to chose technologies that will make guns safer, said Margo Hirsch, Smart Tech Challenges Foundation president. The symposium focused on guns that use biometric technology to identify the proper owner, much like an iPhone gets unlocked by a fingerprint reader. However, designing a smart firearm is far more complicated than designing a smartphone, because its reliability in life and death situations is critical. Speakers at the conference said phone fingerprint technology is bringing smart guns closer to market. But smart-gun entrepreneurs said it could be two years or more before current prototypes are ready for testing, and three or four years until production might begin. To find a market, smart guns must prove to skeptical gun owners that they are as reliable as traditional weapons, said smart-gun designer Ernst Mauch, a former executive of German firearm maker Armatix. Im sure there are some people who want to replace their dumb guns, Mauch said. This is not a toy. It needs to do the job when a soldier or policeman needs it, but it does not need to kill friends. Established firearms makers, meanwhile, have shied away from smart-gun technology after the NRA led a 2000 boycott of Smith & Wesson over a deal with the federal government to install smart-gun features in some of its weapons. Within a year, Smith & Wessons revenue dropped by 40 percent. Silicon Valley venture capitalist and longtime gun-control proponent Ron Conway optimistically predicted that half the guns sold in 10 years will be smart guns because Silicon Valley will come to the rescue. Gun companies are an old-line industry who have decided they dont want to innovate, so we will help them out, he said. Benny Evangelista is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: bevangelista@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @ChronicleBenny For months, activist investors have pushed Yahoos board to oust CEO Marissa Mayer, to no avail. Starting Thursday, they may try to oust the board. Starboard Value, a hedge fund with a track record of winning board seats at large companies, is expected to wage a proxy battle for Yahoo. Shareholders can submit their slate of candidates for the board from Thursday until March 26, and the majority of Yahoo shareholders will determine the winner at the annual meeting in summer. Who ends up controlling the board Starboard or Yahoos management will play a huge role in deciding the direction of the company, and Mayers fate. Starboard, which holds a 0.75 percent stake in Yahoo, is pushing to change the leadership and either spin off or sell Yahoos Internet properties. Last month, Starboard threatened to challenge for the majority of seats on the Sunnyvale companys board. Although Yahoo announced last week that it has hired bankers to explore a sale of the company, critics remain unconvinced that Mayer and the current board will follow through. The board must accept that significant changes are desperately needed, Starboards managing member, Jeffrey Smith, wrote in a letter sent to Yahoos board in January. This would include changes in management, changes in board composition, and changes in strategy and execution. Analysts say shareholders will probably support Starboard, especially after years of seeing Yahoo CEOs come and go, with no successful strategies for improving the business. Youve just had a bunch of people try a bunch of different things, and nothing really worked, said Neil Doshi, an analyst with Mizuho Securities USA Inc. I think thats why theres this hopelessness, or even helplessness, that Yahoo cant survive as an independent company. Investors closely watched for signs of revival after Mayer became CEO in 2012. Under her leadership, Yahoo has invested heavily in mobile, video, social and native advertising a category that Mayer says was relatively nonexistent before she joined. While revenue in that category increased to nearly $1.7 billion in 2015, adjusted earnings for the core business have not shown the improvement that analysts had been looking for. That has caused investors to pressure Yahoos board to sell its Internet properties and start entertaining offers from buyers. But Mayer is considered to be an obstacle to any sale, said Shyam Patil, an analyst with Susquehanna Financial Group. Shes probably the reason why there hasnt been a sale, Patil said. People dont have a lot of confidence that a sale would occur under her. Companies like Verizon have expressed interest in buying Yahoo. SunTrust Robinson Humphrey estimates that the core business, including real estate, could net $6 billion to $8 billion. While Yahoo explores a sale of its core business, Mayer is still trying to turn around the company by focusing on fewer products, with a leaner staff. This plan sets out to make Yahoo the very best version of itself, and Im confident in the companys ability to successfully execute it, Mayer said in an earnings call with investors this month. Because the board would need time to review any purchase offers, analysts say the soonest a sale might be announced is the second quarter. That could buy Mayer more time to turn around the core business, they said. But those who have watched the company over the years say its time for Yahoo to sell before it loses even more value. Over the years, CEOs have tried to pursue e-commerce, mobile, desktop and search products, but none of them have turned the company around, Doshi said. Each CEO that has come into Yahoo has had their own agenda, he said. Yahoo has been their petri dish to implement that agenda, and each of those agendas has become failed experiments. Wendy Lee is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: wlee@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @thewendylee Waiters and other tipped employees can be required to share their tips with one another, but not with supervisors or other non-tipped employees, a federal appeals court ruled Tuesday, upholding Obama administration regulations. In a 2-1 decision, the Ninth U.S. Court of Appeals in San Francisco overruled federal judges in Oregon and Nevada who had struck down regulations the U.S. Department of Labor enacted in 2011. The rules limited tip-pooling an employers requirement that employees share their tips to employees who customarily receive tips and excluded others from the pool. The regulations, if they survive further court challenges, apparently will limit tip-pooling in California as well. California law prohibits employers from deducting tips from an employees minimum wage of $10 an hour, but allows them to require tip-pooling as long as the tips dont have to be shared with supervisors or managers. In 2009, a state appeals court ruled that a restaurant could order its waiters and waitresses to share their tips with all employees who contribute to the service of that patron, including dishwashers, cooks and other kitchen staff, and those who bus tables. The U.S. Labor Department said Tuesday that its regulations do not extend tip-pooling to cooks and dishwashers, who are not generally tipped by customers. That means employers in California and elsewhere could not require their employees to share tips with those co-workers. Joshua Buck, a lawyer for Nevada casino dealers in Tuesdays case, said the regulations were meant to stop casino executives from scooping up dealers tips and using them to defray their costs of paying management employees. Leon Greenberg, another attorney for the card dealers, said theyve been required to turn over 15 percent of their tips to supervisors. Under that practice, tips are converted into an income stream for the business, Greenberg said. Paul DeCamp, a lawyer for Oregon restaurant owners who also challenged the federal regulations, said the ruling probably would be appealed. In 2010, a year before the new regulations, the appeals court had ruled that federal labor law allowed employers to require tipped workers to share their tips with non-tipped employees, as long as employers didnt deduct the tips from the minimum wage. On Tuesday, however, the court said the Obama administration rules were also a reasonable interpretation of the labor law. Congress, which passed the law in 1938, did not express any intent to let employers do whatever they wish with their employees tips, Judge Harry Pregerson said in the majority opinion. Bob Egelko is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: begelko@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @egelko Courtesy/Watsonville Police Department A 14-year-old boy suffered critical injuries when he was shot multiple times in Watsonville on Tuesday evening by a gunman on a bicycle who opened fire on him and a group of friends, authorities said. Around 5:40 p.m., officers responded to reports of gunshots and a person lying in the road on the 500 block of East Beach Street, Watsonville police said in a statement. Four burglary suspects were arrested in Milpitas on Wednesday morning after an ill-advised attempted heist at a gun store next to the police department, authorities said. Around 2 a.m., a sergeant was leaving the station on North Milpitas Boulevard when he heard an alarm coming from the Target Masters West gun store and shooting range on Minnis Circle, which shares a fence with the police station parking lot, said Lt. Raj Maharaj, a police spokesman. The sergeant went to take a look and saw a man jump from the roof of the gun store and hop into a waiting car, Maharaj said. The sergeant called for backup and the getaway car was pulled over a few blocks away, and two of the four suspects were taken into custody without incident. Meanwhile, back at the gun store, officers spotted a third suspect inside the business through the glass doors holding a gun. He was ordered to drop the weapon, which he did, but because he had broken into the store through the roof, police were unable to take him into custody for more than two hours while they figured out how to unlock the doors. Investigators learned that a fourth suspect had also fled from the scene, and officials called for backup from the San Jose Police Department and the Santa Clara County Sheriffs Office, Maharaj said. A perimeter was set up and the fourth suspect was spotted hopping a fence onto nearby railroad tracks. After a brief pursuit, he was taken into custody without incident, Maharaj said. Investigators were working with employees from the shop to make sure all the inventory was accounted for and no weapons were missing. Officers also did a thorough sweep of the surrounding area to make sure no guns were tossed as the suspects fled. As for why the would-be burglars would target a gun store so close to police headquarters, Maharaj said they likely werent aware of the proximity of the station, but he wouldnt speculate further as he hadnt interviewed any of the suspects. Kale Williams is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: kwilliams@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @sfkale This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate A firefighter who admitted setting dozens of fires in an attempt to earn overtime pay and impress his peers was sentenced Tuesday to five years in prison for arson, the U.S. attorney said. Benjamin Cunha, 33, of Placerville (El Dorado County), pleaded guilty in October in U.S District Court in Sacramento to one count of arson for lighting the 80-acre Mine Fire in 2007 while he was a volunteer firefighter in Diamond Springs, near his home. He was sentenced by District Judge John Mendez after a plea deal reached in return for his cooperation. This defendant set a multitude of fires with a callous disregard for the danger to life and property that he was inflicting, said U.S. Attorney Benjamin Wagner. Five years is a just result that takes a serial arsonist off the streets. The sentence spared Cunha a more lengthy sentence had he been convicted of several other fires he admitted setting or was suspected of lighting, including two blazes during the summer of 2013. He had previously served a 365-day jail sentence, which allowed him to work during the day, after he confessed to using a time-delay incendiary device to light at least 30 wildland fires in El Dorado and Amador counties during the summers of 2006 and 2007. Cunha finished his probation for those arsons in 2012. Cunha, who had worked from 2001 to 2003 as a seasonal firefighter for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, was also ordered to pay $246,862 in restitution for the cost of fighting the Mine Fire, which burned onto national forest land on July 6, 2007. The U.S. attorney said the arsons caused $7 million in damage. Given that his earlier conviction had not ended the arson activity, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives worked with the U.S. attorney to bring the federal charges. Cunha had no consideration for Cal Fire fighters safety when he set the fires, placing them in grave danger during the fire suppression efforts,said Jill Snyder, the special agent in charge of the investigation. Cunhas apparent obsession with lighting fires was outlined in the sentencing memorandum, which described how he developed and built a time-delay device that he used specifically in dry grass during high winds. His goal was to create fires big enough that significant firefighting resources would be required to extinguish the fires, the document says. Two of Cunhas stated goals were to impress his fellow firefighters with his skill in fighting the very fires he started, and to accrue overtime pay. Peter Fimrite is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: pfimrite@sfchronicle.com. Twitter: @pfimrite Four Oakland police officers have been placed on paid administrative leave in connection with a bizarre incident that ended with the arrest of one officer on suspicion of assault, and allegations that the Police Department attempted a coverup. The case revolves around a Dec. 7 incident involving the alleged victim, Olga Cortez, an Alameda County probation officer, who called 911 to say that two men in their 20s tried to force their way into her home in Oaklands Redwood Heights neighborhood. Cortez, 42, said she heard loud knocking on the door about 9:30 that night, and that when she and her husband, Nemesio Cortez, opened the door, an apparently intoxicated man tried to push his way in, demanding to speak with the residents of the house. As the Cortezes confronted the man on their stoop, they noticed a second man emerge from behind their home. Olga Cortez said the second man appeared to be holding a gun beneath his shirt. The men, according to the Cortez familys attorney, John Burris, were Oakland police officers who had apparently been out drinking and did not appear to be on duty. My children were scared, said Olga Cortez, who explained during a news conference in which she fought back tears that she and her husband were home that Monday night with their two children getting ready for bed. The man who appeared to be armed fled down the street, while the other man turned toward Olga Cortez, who by then was standing outside her home in her bathrobe. The man, according to a complaint filed by the family against the city, then tackled Mrs. Cortez in a bear-hug type hold. According to the complaint he squeezed Mrs. Cortezs scantily clad body close to his, and knocked her on to the concrete in only her short bathrobe, exposing her nude lower body. Nemesio Cortez pulled the man off of his wife and pinned him down. The man tried to break free but neighbors heard the commotion and helped Nemesio Cortez hold him down until police arrived. When the man learned that police were on their way, he began yelling, the complaint states. Once police arrived and took him into custody, he began violently and repeatedly banging his head on the car window. Olga Cortez said she was bruised on her arms and right leg. At the news conference, she recalled the man being very, very intoxicated. His vocabulary wasnt straight, she said. Few details released After the incident, the Police Department did not release information about the case, and police officials provided little information after the East Bay Express broke the story this week. The department confirmed that four officers involved in the incident were placed on leave and one, Officer Cullen William Faeth, was arrested that night. Faeth was arrested on suspicion of assault and public intoxication. Police said that at the time he did not have a gun and was wearing plain clothes. Police said the criminal investigation is complete, and the case is being reviewed by the Alameda County district attorneys office, which will decide whether to file charges. The office could not be reached for comment. An internal affairs investigation within the department is ongoing. Oakland police spokesman Marco Marquez said Faeth was hired in December 2013 and graduated from the the third transitional academy, which is an eight-week academy for lateral transfers from other jurisdictions. Burris filed a claim Wednesday against the city of Oakland seeking more than $25,000 in damages and accusing the Police Department and its officers of committing assault, battery, trespassing, infliction of emotional distress, negligence and negligent hiring. The lawyer said he believes the department tried to cover for the officers. When police arrived at the scene, they never disclosed to Cortez that the man who had tackled her was one of their own officers, Burris said. Obviously it was a terrifying event, Burris said. The part thats equally disturbing is the cover-up (and) the sense of protectionism. Police return Olga Cortez said the police came back to her house a few hours after the incident, and again at 3 a.m., asking her to re-enact what happened. The whole time, I felt revictimized, she said. I felt like they wanted me to change my story. They kept asking, Are you sure? Are you sure? She said she found out the men were police officers the next day, from an Oakland lieutenant who assured her that the department was conducting internal affairs and criminal investigations and said that everything was going to be OK. I called back a month later, she said. Still no police report. Burris said: Olga tried to get information about who these officers were. She tried to get reports. She was stonewalled all the way. Cortez, who has spent 19 years with the county Probation Department, said she has lost faith in Oaklands police force. The incident comes just months after Oakland police were lauded by the head of President Obamas Task Force on 21st Century Policing, who praised Police Chief Sean Whent for instituting numerous reforms. Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf has made law enforcement a top priority in her administration, promising to boost the police force to 800 officers by 2017. I expect all city employees to conduct themselves with the highest level of professionalism whether they are on or off-duty, in or out of uniform, Schaaf said in a statement. So I take this allegation of misconduct extremely seriously. As Mayor, its my job to ensure that the investigations are thorough and fair, and that the process yields a complete resolution that we can all be confident in. San Francisco Chronicle staff writer Kimberly Veklerov contributed to this report. Rachel Swan is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: rswan@sfchronicle.com. Fremont police have launched a suspicious death investigation after fishermen found a womans severed torso in marshlands near Dumbarton Pier, authorities announced Tuesday. A group of people fishing by Marshlands Road in Fremont found the remains on a levee in the area around 8:15 p.m. Sunday, police said. When officers arrived to interview witnesses, they found the body and confirmed it was human. The Alameda County Coroners Bureau took the body around 11 p.m. Sunday. By Monday, officials confirmed the torso was female but could not identify the woman. Authorities did not find the bodys arms, legs, and head, which all appeared to have been chopped off, police said. The area where the torso was found is now a crime scene. It was not known how long the body was in the water, or how long it had been in that particular area. Crews are searching the surrounding area and consulting tide maps as they look for the remaining body parts, said Geneva Bosques, a Fremont police spokeswoman. Our primary purpose right now is to try to identify the body, Bosques said. Anyone with more information can call Fremont police detectives at (510) 790-6900 or email cgaches@fremont.gov. Jenna Lyons is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: jlyons@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @JennaJourno Police blocked off traffic in San Franciscos Financial District due to a suspicious package incident Wednesday morning, officials said. Officers closed Pine Street between Battery and Montgomery streets for nearly three hours to investigate. An employee on the 300 block of Pine Street in a commercial business called the police around 9 a.m. to report a suspicious device in the building, said Officer Albie Esparza, a spokesman for the San Francisco Police Department. The buildings occupants and those in the adjacent buildings were evacuated. Everyone else on the block was told to shelter in place, he said. Bomb squad units came on scene and determined the device was indeed suspicious. The units took it in a secure canister away from downtown for further analysis, Esparza said. It may need to be detonated but investigators werent sure as of 11:15 a.m., according to Esparza. Explosives are usually taken to a remote area of Ocean Beach for detonation. We want to make sure we get it away from here, Esparza said. In this day and age you have to take everything seriously. Emergency vehicles left the scene at around 11:15 a.m. and officials reopened streets in the area by around 12 p.m. Kimberly Veklerov is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: kveklerov@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @kveklerov A pair of juveniles were taken into custody Monday in connection with two violent muggings at a Pleasanton shopping center and a carjacking at the Bay Fair BART station, officials said Tuesday. Oakland police made the arrests after two victims reported having their purses yanked away from them over the weekend at the Stoneridge Mall. Two of the suspects were arrested while a third remained on the loose. The first robbery happened Saturday evening when a 17-year-old victim and her friends were walking in the malls parking lot and were confronted by the three suspects who drove up in a Honda Pilot. One of the muggers punched the teenage victim in the face and pushed her to the ground, police said. Her purse and its contents, valued at $600, were stolen. Later that night, the three suspects carjacked a Mercedes at the San Leandro BART station, police said. The three suspects returned to the mall on Sunday in the Mercedes and robbed a 63-year-old woman around 1:30 p.m. During the incident, police said, one of the suspects brandished a rifle or long gun. The woman fell to the ground while struggling to hold onto her purse, containing $1,200 in valuables, and was kicked while on the pavement, officials said. Lt. Kurt Schlehuber, a Pleasanton police spokesman, called the attacks brazen. The city rarely sees armed robberies, he said, especially in broad daylight. He said police received calls from numerous community residents concerned about the crime spree. We put all of our resources on this, he said. We wanted to bring this to a quick conclusion. The Pleasanton Police Department alerted neighboring agencies of the spate of crimes, and several Oakland officers recognized the stolen Mercedes and took its two occupants, ages 16 and 17, into custody. They also recovered an air-soft rifle, police said. Kimberly Veklerov is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: kveklerov@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @kveklerov SALT LAKE CITY Several top leaders from Warren Jeffs polygamous sect were arrested Tuesday on federal accusations of food stamp fraud and money laundering marking one of the biggest blows to the group in years. Prosecutors say the sect based on the Utah-Arizona border diverted funds from Utahs nutrition assistance program for inappropriate use by its leaders. A total of 11 people were charged in the scheme, including Lyle Jeffs and Seth Jeffs, top-ranking leaders of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and brothers of imprisoned sect leader Warren Jeffs. Warren Jeffs is serving a life sentence in Texas for sexually assaulting his 12- and 15-year-old child brides at a secretive church compound in that state. Lyle Jeffs runs the day-to-day operations in the polygamous community of Hildale, while Seth Jeffs leads a branch of the group in South Dakota. This indictment is not about religion. This indictment is about fraud, U.S. Attorney John Huber said in a statement. Federal, state and local police served search warrants and made arrests Tuesday in Hildale, Salt Lake City and Custer County, South Dakota. Hildale resident Andrew Chatwin said officers went into five businesses Tuesday, including a dairy store, produce store and a contractor. The raids were the federal governments latest front in targeting church leaders. A civil rights trial against the twin polygamous towns of Hildale and Colorado City, Ariz., is under way in Phoenix, in which prosecutors say they discriminated against nonbelievers by denying them housing, water services and police protection. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Concerned parents squared off against health and education officials Tuesday night as the San Francisco school board voted unanimously to allow access to condoms in city middle schools. The new policy will allow staff to individually give students condoms in conjunction with a session with a school nurse or social worker to identify risk factors and provide referrals or resources as necessary. Condoms are already available in district high schools. This is not a giveaway program, board member Rachel Norton said. They are going to be in a private, controlled space with an educator. This policy really is about the handful of students that really need it. Parents opposed to the new policy said it was an affront to families who want to have a say in issues related to their childrens sexual activity. They said they believe that school is for academics not contraceptives. The proposal undermines the authority of the family, said Victor Seeto, issues chairman of the Chinese American Democratic Club, which called for a more inclusive community discussion on the issue. The programs message says sex is normal, is acceptable, but disease is bad, he said. Let us strengthen the family and not weaken it. The parents noted that they have to sign a permission slip for a field trip but would not for the receipt of a condom. The new policy, initiated by Superintendent Richard Carranza, specifies that parents will not be allowed to opt out of the program. District officials say state law allows minors to access pregnancy prevention without parent permission or knowledge. That means parents cant prevent their children from obtaining condoms at grocery stores, health clinics or schools. There are no age restrictions in California when it comes to contraceptives. While Los Angeles Unified has a policy requiring condom distribution in high schools that also allows parents to opt out, representatives from the ACLU of Northern California said their position on the law is clear. Students have the right to access reproductive health care confidentially, said Phyllida Burlingame, the organizations reproductive justice policy director. Really nothing limits schools from being a place that provides that care. Parent Emily Grimm voiced strong support for the condom policy. Its latex; its an inanimate object, she said. Its not going to tell my kid what to do. I dont see what the problem is. Several other districts across the country already allow access to condoms in middle school, but they typically provide an opt-out option for parents. In San Francisco, surveys show that on average more than one child in every sixth-, seventh- and eighth-grade classroom has had sexual intercourse one out of every 20 students. Yet of those sexually active, fewer than 40 percent used a condom. San Francisco has among the highest rates of sexually transmitted diseases in the country, and adolescents in particular are at an increased risk for chlamydia. The policy is about giving students information, said board Vice President Shamann Walton, who added he had children when he was 16 and 17. If I had the information at the right time, I might not have had children so young, he said. The districts proposal does not give unfettered access to condoms in middle schools. The districts program is not a distribution program, said Susan Philip, sexual transmitted disease controller for the city Department of Health. It really is a tailored ability (for a student) to have a conversation with someone who is knowledgeable about sexual health. Jill Tucker is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: jtucker@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @jilltucker This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Stanford University unveiled the worlds largest scholarship program on Wednesday, a $750 million fund larger than the famed Rhodes scholarship at Oxford and buoyed by a $400 million gift from Nike co-founder Phil Knight. Under the new Knight-Hennessy Scholars program, 100 brainy students plucked from universities around the world each year will win a full ride to a Stanford graduate school, whether for a masters or doctoral degree and including living expenses. The idea is to cultivate future leaders who will change the world for the better, said Stanfords outgoing President John Hennessy, who will direct the program when he leaves next summer after 16 years at the helm. We see the need for great leadership around the world to address climate change, peace and security, the refugee crisis, infectious diseases and other complex problems, Hennessy told The Chronicle. Students may already be hungry to apply. But even the admissions criteria wont be ready for another year. Applications will be accepted beginning in summer 2017, and the first 100 winners will enter Stanford in fall 2018. The university announced the scholarship on Feb. 24, Knights 78th birthday. The idea for it originated with Hennessy and Stanford deans in 2014. Last summer, they approached Knight, who had created his business plan for Nike while a student at the Stanford business school in the early 1960s. By August he was all in. John and I dream of a future 20, 30, or 50 years from now, when thousands of graduates ... will be working together for a more peaceful, habitable world, Knight said, noting in his statement that he intended for the Knight-Hennessy scholarship to serve as a tribute to Hennessy. Another business school graduate, Robert King, and his wife, Dorothy King, philanthropists, contributed $100 million. Their gift will fund Knight-Hennessy scholarships for students from less developed parts of the world. Another $50 million came from Roberta and Steven Denning, chairman of Stanfords Board of Trustees, who are among dozens of contributors who have so far donated more than $700 million. The total is expected to grow to $750 million. Other well-known scholarships include the Fulbright Program, the Gates Scholarship, and the Rhodes whose endowment stands at $213 million. As the beneficiary of a Rhodes Scholarship, I can attest to the value of such programs to provide ... exposure to a dynamic, international network of peers, said Marc Tessier-Lavigne, who will take over as Stanfords 11th president on Sept. 1. Nanette Asimov is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: nasimov@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @NanetteAsimov Stephanie Wright Hession / Stephanie Wright Hession / Special to The Chronicle With a little imagination, you can almost see Charlie Chaplin, knapsack in hand, waddling along a dusty road in Niles Canyon, as he did in his 1915 silent film, The Tramp. Chaplin arrived in Niles from Chicago, hired by Gilbert Broncho Billy Anderson, who paid him an astounding $1,250-per-week salary and a $10,000 signing bonus when most movie actors earned $150 a week. Having already co-founded the Essanay Film Manufacturing Co. in Chicago with George Spoor, Anderson traveled west in 1912 to establish a second studio. The sunny weather and rural environment in Niles provided an ideal setting. The transparent ceiling and walls of the production facilitys hangar-like structure meant hours of natural light in which to churn out a multitude of motion pictures. Susan Walsh / Associated Press BRIDGEPORT - A grand jury has handed down an indictment against a man suspected of running a seven-year mortgage scam under more than a dozen aliases shortly after finishing a prison term for a similar scheme in New Jersey. Federal prosecutors announced Wednesday that a federal grand jury has indicted 64-year-old Timothy W. Burke of Easton on four counts of mail fraud, three of money laundering and one each of wire fraud, aggravated identity theft and tax evasion to the tune of $1 million. Police work is dangerous, but one hazard in particular doesnt get much TV treatment or public attention. State Police face a literal brush with death whenever they make motor vehicle stops on the side of busy highways, and seven Connecticut troopers have been killed in the line of duty over the years at motor vehicle stops. This week State Police are promoting their Move Over and Slow Down campaign, urging motorists to slow down and to move into another lane, if possible, whenever they see a cruiser with its blue lights flashing at the side of the road. Next week they plan to follow up that effort with increased enforcement of a 2009 state law setting a $181 fine for motorists who dont comply. The goal is to gain the publics awareness and compliance of the Move Over Law, and to issue zero tickets, said Trooper Kelly Grant, the State Police spokeswoman. Lives are more important. Last November, a Bridgeport man was arrested after his vehicle traveling at speeds as high as 85 mph came within inches of hitting four people, including two state troopers, on the shoulder of Interstate 95. Grant described the incident as a hair-raising experience in which no one was seriously injured. The troopers and the drivers of two vehicles were on the side of southbound I-95 after a crash near exit 19. People were standing on the right shoulder when a Nissan Maxima sped by and smashed into one of the vehicles, pushing it across two lanes of the highway. Yoni Rojas, 21, of Pond Street, Bridgeport, was arrested on charges of reckless endangerment, reckless driving, misuse of plates, failure to maintain a proper lane and failure to meet minimum insurance coverage requirements. Grant said at the time that the accident stresses the dangers of being stopped on the highway, even if you are in the shoulder, and one of the many reasons motorists are required to move over when approaching stopped emergency vehicles. Its something thats always in the back of my mind, Trooper Carly Topulos said. This danger is one that the public can help eliminate. I have a husband and three small kids and they need me to come home to them every night. Some troopers from or working in this area have not come home. Auxiliary Trooper Philip Mingione, of Milford, was killed on May 25, 1994, as he stood outside his vehicle on Interstate 91 in North Haven. Trooper Jorge Agosto was killed on Nov. 22, 1989 when he was walking along the shoulder of I-95 in Greenwich and a motorist veered off the road and struck him from behind. Agosto, 27, had pulled his cruiser behind another troopers to assist in a motor vehicle stop during the Thanksgiving holiday. Fire engines and ambulances, highway maintenance crews and tow trucks are also covered in the state move over law, officials said. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate HARTFORD Prosecutors on Wednesday urged the state Supreme Court to deny accused murderer and Kennedy relative Michael Skakel a new trial for the decades-old killing of 15-year-old Greenwich neighbor Martha Moxley. States Attorney Susann Gill said Skakel received a more than adequate defense during his 2002 trial, and stressed that a disagreement over tactics is not a valid reason to grant a new trial. (He) hired three sets of investigators, consulted with numerous experts and secured pretrial victories for his client, Gill said of Skakels former lawyer, Mickey Sherman. This was a well-planned and thought-out defense. Skakels new attorney, Hubert Santos, painted a very different picture of Sherman, portraying him as a lawyer caught up in the celebrity of defending Ethel Skakel Kennedys nephew and facing an IRS debt that later landed him in prison. When you look at all of what happened, this defendant didnt get a fair shake, Santos said. You can assemble all of the errors and when you put them together, its clear my client didnt get a fair shake. The arguments were part of an appeal by the state of a 2013 decision by a Superior Court judge to order a new trial after concluding Shermans personal financial problems and the distractions caused by the celebrity status he gained while representing Skakel prevented him from providing a proper defense. Skakel was originally sentenced to 20 years to life for the 1975 killing of Moxley, who was savagely beaten and stabbed with a golf club. Skakel is now free on bond pending a new trial and the Supreme Courts ruling, which could grant that trial or send him back to jail. Dorthy Moxley, Marthas elderly mother, attended the hearing and faced a gaggle of reporters and cameras after the proceedings as Skakel and his team slipped out of the court building through a side door. Moxley said she is convinced Skakel killed her daughter and rejected claims that the more likely killer was his brother, Thomas. I am sure Michael is the one who was swinging the golf club, said Moxley, who now lives in New Jersey. Who did it? The question of who killed Moxley occupied portions of the hearing, much as it did during the first trial and the 2013 challenge. Santos maintained Skakels brother was the killer and said Sherman should have offered jurors that alternative. He also said his team found a new witness to bolster Skakels alibi that he was watching television when Moxley was killed. The evidence led to the conclusion that the probable killer was Tommy Skakel, Santos said. My client does not want me to say that because hes his brother. Gill disputed that contention, saying the state had no reason to believe Thomas Skakel was the murderer. Our evidence was Michael and Thomas were infatuated with Martha Moxley, Gill said. He (Michael) was intoxicated on drugs and found out his brother had been with her. Thats when he hit her with a golf club. Gill said Shermans tactical decisions were his to make. As long as any decisions Sherman made are reasonably competent, they must be respected, she said. Lots of money Gill argued that Sherman assembled an adequate team for the original trial and spent a fortune on experts and investigators. Mr. Sherman pulled in lots of resources and pulled together a quality defense, Gill said. The state had three confessions and a dozen other admissions the defendant had made over the years. Santos said Sherman was paid $1.2 million for the case, and received an additional $450,000 from Skakel that was not applied to the case. It was put in his operating budget and not one dime was spent on expenses, Santos said, adding Sherman used some of the money to buy a motorcycle. He was being hounded by the IRS, Santos said. Instead of using the money for fees, he put it in his operating costs. Reasonable doubt Santos said during closing remarks Sherman never once mentioned the concept of reasonable doubt. I cant remember a case where a defense attorney didnt mention the concept of reasonable doubt, Santos said. He didnt even mention the phrase. The truth is (Sherman) got caught in the celebrity of it. Gill noted Sherman didnt need to explain the concept of reasonable doubt because the court would instruct jurors on it. If you concentrate on his lawyering, that certainly met the constitutional requirement, Gill said. He poked holes in the states case. He didnt need to explain reasonable doubt. He knew the court would explain it. The Colombian feature Embrace of the Serpent is in varying parts an anticolonial screed, an exploration of the noble savage concept and a mystical trip down the river into self-knowledge. Shot in bracing black and white, it nevertheless unfolds like a troubling fever dream, a response that South American rivers seem to bring out in imaginative filmmakers (Herzog, for one, whos an obvious influence here). Director Ciro Guerra is enraged by the depredations to his homeland caused by the European rubber trade, even as he laments of the cost of imperialism to its perpetrators, who, in his view, have sold their souls for things that arent worth having. The movie interweaves two river voyages by Western explorers loosely based on real people separated in time but linked in that both were led by the same native, a shaman named Karamakate who believes himself to be the last of his tribe. Both men search for a rare plant, here fictitiously called yakruna, that creates profound visions in those who consume it. The earlier trip involves German ethnologist Theodor Koch-Grunberg, who in the first two decades of the 20th century visited and described the tribes he encountered. The other Westerner is an American, based on botanist Richard Evans Schultes, who specialized in hallucinogenic plants and knows the work of Koch-Grunberg. Only with the greatest reluctance does the young Karamakate (Nilbio Torres), who despises the whites for their cruelty and inability to recognize the wisdom of nature, agree to help Koch-Grunberg (Jan Bijvoet). The native man is fearsome, built like a warrior and with a commanding demeanor. The German explorer is sickly and rail thin, but convinces Karamakate that he is not like other Westerners, and whats more may be able to guide him to surviving members of his tribe. Accompanying the German is a native guide (Yauenku Miguee) who earns Karamakates scorn because of his loyalty to the foreigner, but makes the case that not all Europeans are malicious. By the time Karamakate (now played by Antonio Bolivar) agrees to accompany the American (Brionne Davis), he is an old man who senses that his powers are fading his memories are unclear, and he can no longer interpret pictograms from long ago. He points out the absurdity of the Westerners packing huge amounts of gear in the jungle, more gently than he did decades earlier with the German. As both river voyages unfold, stops along the way (a la Apocalypse Now) mean hard lessons will be learned. We see the horrific cruelty of working conditions on the rubber plantations; in another, a mission school for native children is shown as a hellhole. Some of these sequences have a didactic air. (Spoilers in this paragraph.) Near the end, the film, surprisingly, indulges in an old-school psychedelic scene of colorful and supposedly mind-blowing abstractions. Not a good decision by the filmmaker. The same goes for an overwrought scene involving a demented would-be Christ. Putting aside these misfires, the film largely maintains its haunting, visionary sensibility, conveying glimmers and hints of a different way of knowing the world. The double time frame helps make the case. Its also quite moving to see the contrast between the two Karamakates, who are truly the movies center. Showing him in his declining years broadens and complicates what in a lesser filmmakers hands would have been a conventional portrayal of the uncorrupted aboriginal man. Creating this kind of otherworldly mood takes exceptional talent, and this is a film worth experiencing. Embrace of the Serpent is Colombias entry for the best foreign language film Oscar. Walter Addiego is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: waddiego@sfchronicle.com Embrace of the Serpent Drama. With Nilbio Torres, Jan Bijvoet, Antonio Bolivar, Yauenku Miguee, Brionne Davis. Directed by Ciro Guerra. In Spanish, German, French and several Colombian tribal languages, with English subtitles. (Not rated. 125 minutes.) Dear Mick LaSalle: The least said about this awful person (Michael Moore) the better. I can only say to him, Why do so many people from other countries try their best to become citizens of the USA? John Hodges, Deer Park, Texas Dear John Hodges: In Where to Invade Next, Michael Moore isnt saying people dont want to live here. Hes just saying that there are things Americans can learn from other countries. And the countries that he goes to in the movie, such as France, Iceland, Portugal, Norway and Germany, arent full of citizens cramming themselves onto boats to go live in the United States. They wouldnt switch. Of course, theres a lot to recommend this country over others its founding documents, its constant mission to improve, and a whole cultural history that allows people to reinvent themselves at any stage of life. (And I havent even gotten started on our movies, music and literature.) But America can also be pretty harsh, lonely and unforgiving, where other countries have a gentler way of life. The point Im making, and that I think Moore is touching on, is that, at a certain level of affluence and functionality, choosing one way of life over another becomes a matter of preference or maybe just what youre used to. This is so obvious a point that no one would even bother making it, except that many Americans grow up thinking of themselves as chosen, and of everybody else in the world as somehow less, and this doesnt do wonders for our national personality. Interestingly, the most strident on this score are people who have never had the chance to travel. This is why Rick Steves, who should know, calls travel a political act. Dear Mick: What do you think of Richard Dreyfuss body of work? Recently, on a radio interview, he said his body of work stacks up against any other actors work. Alan Rossi, San Anselmo Dear Alan Rossi: Im always disappointed to hear about actors extolling their own achievements. It makes me picture the old Second City TV skit, with John Candy staggering around drunk, saying, You cant do this to me! Dont you know who I am? Im Johnny LaRue! But then, thats the disease that besets everybody at middle age the desire to be respected. I dont know what actors Dreyfuss is comparing himself to, but he has every reason to be proud of himself, even if hed do well to keep quiet about it. Dear Mr. LaSalle: (Your reviewing Deadpool) is like letting a homeless man rate the French Laundry. If you go to a movie tailor-made for a niche group of nerds/geeks and expect it to win an Oscar, you, sir, are a fool. Jaiden Daniel Willats, San Francisco Dear Mr. Willats: Thank you for that, but I have to say your French Laundry analogy confuses me. If you said, for example, Having you review Deadpool is like having a neckless man model scarfs then Id get it. But what about homelessness disqualifies a person from recognizing a good restaurant? As you know, the newspaper business took some serious hits during the recession, and it may even be possible that there are homeless restaurant critics out there. In any case, a hungry and destitute person would be more, not less, likely to enjoy a great dinner; whereas I think you meant to suggest the opposite about my predisposition to Deadpool. As for your other point, were in agreement. Yes, Id be a fool if Id expected Deadpool to be a potential best picture winner. Likewise, Id be a perfect moron if I expected my cat to weigh in on electromagnetic field theory. But if I were annoyed with my cat, wouldnt the more likely reason be that the cat just did something outside the box, and I had to clean up the mess? In the case of Deadpool, thats the analogy to reach for. Have a question? Ask Mick LaSalle at mlasalle@sfchronicle.com. Include your name and city for publication, and a phone number for verification. Letters may be edited for clarity and length. The fatal shooting of Mario Woods in the Bayview neighborhood of San Francisco stirred a rightful furor that put police weapons use and tactics under serious review. Now Mayor Ed Lee is responding with steps that promise major changes and a shift in police culture. This new outlook aims to lessen the need for police shootings by 80 percent by relying on more training, supervision and a wider use of devices ranging from stun guns to 3-foot batons. It intends to downplay firearm use by offering less lethal options and buying more time to defuse a dangerous situation. The need for these changes is beyond debate. Nationally, police tactics have infuriated communities that are demanding new approaches that avoid shooting and head-on confrontation. In San Franciscos case, a knife-wielding Woods was shot by a group of officers. His death created an uproar over race, police tactics and the departments image, not to mention heavy pressure on the mayor to come up with a plan that went beyond words of sympathy. These changes outlined by Lee and backed by Police Chief Greg Suhr and Police Commission President Suzy Loftus cant instantly repair the damage. An outside review of the Woods shooting will continue, as it should. But the policies move beyond angry words with steps that show the potential to save lives and protect officers at crucial moments. Finding the right balance lies at the heart of police work. The response to the changes is instructive. NAACP Chapter President Amos Brown praised the outlines of the package. Martin Halloran, head of the police union, was less generous. He warned that the guidelines may put officers at risk and called for more consultation with his group. San Francisco could be a turning point where a hard experience is producing reform. Carrying out this shift in tactics will be a challenge, but its one that must be done. SFPD changes Here are several key steps to cut police shootings: Extra firearms training that emphasizes other options. Extra devices stun guns, bean bags, batons and helmets will be issued to protect officers and reduce the need for firearms. Reporting of all firearm use, including pointing a gun. MANCHESTER, Conn. - Police are searching for suspects involved in a massive brawl at a Manchester Chuck E. Cheese's Sunday. Manchester police said a 1-year-old child was knocked down and a 4-year-old was scraped and bruised after getting caught in the middle of the chaos. A senior also suffered a panic attack. None of the injuries were serious, according to cops. Video of the incident has since surfaced and gone viral. In the video, individuals can be seen arguing, taking swings and lunging at others while Chuck E. Cheese's employees and patrons try to calm the irate adults. Police said the 12 to 15 adults fighting in the video were long gone once they arrived. "As of this Saturday, we will have a security guard in place during peak hours on Saturdays and Sundays," Alexis Linn, a public relations representative with Chuck E. Cheese's, said in a statement. "The safety of our guests is our number one priority." More for you Dozens brawl at NYC racetrack casino as chairs go flying Police have yet to identify the adults or figure out the cause behind the brawl. LAS VEGAS Ted Cruz is fighting to keep from spiraling out of contention. Marco Rubio is fighting to prove he can build on his recent momentum. And Donald Trump, with his rivals locked in a battle for second, is fighting for a third straight victory to expand a delegate lead that soon could become insurmountable. Tuesday nights Nevada caucuses force a critical test on the Republican Partys leading presidential candidates. I think its the most unpredictable of all the races weve had so far. You go in really knowing less about this than any other election, said a less-than-confident Rubio. Well see. Cruz, a fiery conservative popular among voters on the GOPs right, needs a spark to recover from one of the weakest moments of his campaign. After denying charges of dishonest tactics for several weeks, the Texas senator on Monday asked for and received the resignation of a senior aide who spread an inaccurate news report suggesting Rubio had criticized the Bible. That was just days after Cruz finished a disappointing third in South Carolina after spending much of the past two weeks defending his integrity. Another disappointing finish in Nevadas low-turnout caucuses would raise new questions about Cruzs viability heading into a crucial batch of Super Tuesday states on March1. Theres something wrong with this guy, Trump said with his usual measure of tact during a huge Las Vegas rally Monday night. The former reality television star tweeted on Tuesday, He used him as a scape goat-fired like a dog! Ted panicked. Nevadas caucusing takes place in schools, community centers and places of worship across the state a process thats been chaotic in the past. Expecting confusion Please make sure you understand exactly where youre supposed to be tonight, because there could be a lot of confusion, Rubio told supporters. The state marks the first Republican election in the West, the fourth of the campaign. And its not one thats gotten much attention from the GOP candidates. Through Tuesday, the Republican candidates and the super PACs supporting them had spent a combined $3.8 million on television and radio advertisements in Nevada less than a tenth of the $39.3 million spent ahead of last weekends South Carolina primary, according to Kantar Medias CMAG data. That primary reduced a GOP field that included a dozen candidates a month ago to five, with former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush the latest to drop out after a disappointing finish in South Carolina. Ohio Gov. John Kasich and retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson remain in the race and could play spoilers as the trio of leading candidates, Trump, Cruz and Rubio, battle for delegates with an increasing sense of urgency. Running out of time Trumps rivals concede they are running out of time to stop him. The election calendar suggests that if the New York billionaires rivals dont slow him by mid-March, they may not ever. Trump swept all of South Carolinas 50 delegates, giving him a total of 67 compared with Cruz and Rubio, who have 11 and 10, respectively. 30 delegates at stake There are 30 delegates at stake in Nevada, awarded to candidates in proportion to their share of the statewide vote so long as they earn at least 3.33 percent. While proportional contests give Trumps weaker rivals a chance to accumulate delegates, proportional contests also make it difficult to catch up if one candidate runs up a significant lead. Rubio and Cruz have been laying into each other viciously in recent days, an indication they know Trump can be stopped only if one of them is eliminated. But neither of the first-term Hispanic senators is predicting victory in Nevada. Rubio left the state before voting began, preferring to campaign in Minnesota and Michigan instead. He lived here as a boy, from grades three through eight as his father tended bar and his mother cleaned hotel rooms. He told supporters Tuesday before heading out that he was the candidate who could best grow the GOP here especially among its many Democratic-leaning casino workers. GOP heavyweights When Im our nominee they will hear from us, Rubio said. This is a city where tens of thousands of people are living how I grew up. After finishing third in Iowa, fifth in New Hampshire and second in South Carolina, Rubio needs a win soon to support the idea that he is the prime heir to Bushs supporters. Indeed, Republican establishment heavyweights have been flooding to Rubio in recent days, including Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson, North Carolina Sen. Thom Tillis and Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch. South Floridas three Cuban American members of Congress announced their support for him in the hours before the Nevada contest. Rubio: Room to grow We have incredible room to grow, Rubio says. After accusing Cruz of leading a campaign culture of lies, the Florida senator asserted that Trumps support is capped at roughly one-third of the Republican electorate. That means 65 percent of the party is against him, Rubio said. Once that 65 percent consolidates, he said, Trump will lose. MIAMI With geology akin to a wet sponge and fragile underground aquifers that supply almost all its drinking water, Florida has never been considered part of the agitated battle over fracking as a technology for extracting oil and gas. But that began to change two years ago when a Texas oil and gas company was found to have been using hydraulic fracturing, known as fracking, and matrix acidizing, a fracking-like method that dissolves rocks with acid instead of fracturing them with pressurized liquid. Neither residents nor local governments knew about it because well stimulation, the catchall term for both techniques, does not require a separate permit and is not regulated. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate The question now is who will blink: the mayor or Supervisors Jane Kim and Aaron Peskin? That was the takeaway from a long Board of Supervisors meeting Tuesday, when the supervisors in a 7-4 vote rebuffed Mayor Ed Lees push to amend Kim and Peskins charter amendment requiring developers to sell and rent 25 percent of units in new developments at below-market-rate prices for the foreseeable future. Next vote Tuesday The board will vote Tuesday on whether to put the charter amendment on the ballot. If the mayor and the supervisors cant come to an agreement on what to offer the voters, the June ballot could include three housing measures. We know that San Franciscans want to see this, Kim said of changes in the citys affordable-housing quota. Weve seen the polls. (Support for affordable housing is) at unprecedented levels here in San Francisco. The competing housing measures have generated intense controversy at City Hall in recent weeks and have been the subject of increasing political calculation and brinksmanship, underscoring the deep distrust between the mayors office and Peskin and Kim. Their charter amendment, which was the subject of debate at Tuesdays meeting, would remove from the citys charter the current 12 percent affordability requirement and give the Board of Supervisors the power to change it. In the interim, it sets the new requirement at 25 percent. Developers and construction trade unions have argued with increasing alarm that the new requirement will impede market-rate construction and as a result lead to less affordable housing and jeopardize thousands of union worker jobs. To date, no major development has achieved 25 percent affordable housing without upzoning making a project bigger or denser or another form of city subsidy. Lee seeks amendment Echoing those concerns, Lee sent a letter to the Board of Supervisors asking them to amend the ballot measure to say the board will modify the 25 percent requirement by March 2017 to conform with a future feasibility analysis, which he says would determine the highest affordable housing percentage possible without jeopardizing development. Kim and Peskin were opposed. They dont trust the controller to do an objective analysis that would not favor developers. On a 7-4 vote, the board rejected the mayors amendments. Meanwhile, the mayor doesnt trust Kim and Peskin to introduce legislation that would endorse an updated percentage based on a feasibility study. All that mistrust means three housing measures may be headed to the June ballot. The first is the charter amendment. The second is a ballot measure by the mayor that says the city controller and Planning Department should figure out the best affordable housing percentage and then forward legislation to the Board of Supervisors based on that analysis. And the third is yet another measure by Kim and Peskin that says the Board of Supervisors can never set a percentage below 25 percent. It remains to be seen how the two sides will resolve their impasse, or if they will. Kim and Peskin are counting on the mayor to pull his measure from the June ballot and if he does, they say they will pull theirs. The mayor, facing an unfriendly Board of Supervisors, is in the weaker bargaining position. If it all goes bad, all three of the measures will end up on the ballot. I have been in that rodeo a lot of times. I know how to win that rodeo, Peskin said at Tuesdays meeting. Additional drama That wasnt the only drama at the board Tuesday. The boards progressives won a 6-5 vote to increase the fee that builders must pay to support the citys transit system. Shortly after it passed, Lee promised a veto. Supervisor John Avalos argued that developers can and should absorb a higher fee that will pay for improvements to the citys transit system. He won at the Board of Supervisors on a 6-5 vote, with dissenters noting that the board had just established the fee in December. Within a few hours, the mayors office said Lee would veto the legislation. Emily Green is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: egreen@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @emilytgreen 1 Spike Lee endorses Sanders: In a 60-second commercial released Tuesday, film director Spike Lee, who has spent his career making films about race and discrimination, may help Sen. Bernie Sanders as he struggles to cut into Hillary Clintons support from black voters. I know that you know the system is rigged. For too long we have given our vote to corporate puppets, he says, echoing Sanders crusade against a rigged economy. Ninety-nine percent of Americans were hurt by the great recession of 2008, and many are still recovering, Lee says in the ad. And thats why I am officially endorsing my brother Bernie Sanders. Bernie takes no money from corporations. Nada. Which means he is not on the take. And when Bernie gets into the White House, he will do the right thing. 2 Black Sunday compensation: A jury awarded $183 million to five firefighters or their families in a case stemming from a 2005 tenement blaze on a day known as Black Sunday. Two firefighters were killed in the Jan. 23, 2005, Bronx fire. Four others were severely injured, including one who died in 2011. The jury found the city 80 percent responsible for the deaths and injuries. The buildings owner was found liable for 20 percent. 1 Peace talks: Four countries trying to end Afghanistans 15-year war with the Taliban said Tuesday that direct talks between the Afghan government and the insurgent group will take place next week. Representatives of Afghanistan, Pakistan, China and the United States met in the Afghan capital for a fourth round of discussions to set conditions for eventual peace talks between Kabul and the Taliban. In a joint statement, they invited insurgents to join the talks, which will be the first between the two sides since the peace process was restarted last month. 2 CIA-abduction case: The Italian government abused state secrecy to provide impunity in the 2003 abduction of an Egyptian cleric, who was spirited out of Milan for interrogation and torture in his homeland under the CIAs extraordinary rendition program, the European Court of Human Rights ruled Tuesday. The court ordered Italy to pay $78,000 in compensation to Osama Moustafa Hassan Nasr, also known as Abu Omar, and $16,500 to his wife. The court said Italy violated the clerics rights not to be mistreated and tortured. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate WASHINGTON Ridiculed as a Train to Nowhere, Californias multibillion-dollar high-speed rail project is now a Train to Somewhere, rail officials said Wednesday, touting their decision last week to radically alter course by building the bullet trains first leg to the Bay Area instead of the Los Angeles area. In Washington to meet with federal agency partners, rail officials said that with construction under way near the town of Madera in the San Joaquin Valley, the $68 billion project will become a reality within a decade. The idea is to speed workers to their jobs in unaffordable Silicon Valley and back again, to their homes in the more affordable towns of the San Joaquin Valley. It will be quicker for a Google worker to travel by train from Madera to San Jose than from the Amador Valley to San Jose at rush hour, said Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-San Jose, who joined rail officials in a meeting with reporters. Dismissing criticisms of the bullet trains cost, Lofgren said the alternatives 4,300 new miles of highway and five large new airport terminals estimated to cost upward of $140 billion are the truly unaffordable transportation options for the states projected 50 million people by 2030. Seeing is believing, said Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Dublin, who toured the Madera site last week and described large vertical structures rising and dilapidated buildings falling in the construction zone. The decision to build the first line to San Jose was all about getting a train up and running the fastest way possible, said Dan Richard, chairman of the California High-Speed Rail Authority. We didnt have the money to get to L.A. Going to Anaheim would have meant tunneling through the Tehachapi Mountains and facing a lot of resistant ranchers in Kern County. Private investors needed By contrast, Richard said, We know we can get a line up and running on the 250 miles between the Central Valley and Silicon Valley. Officials hope completing the line will get private investors to pony up $10 billion or so for the rights to operate the system, money the planners desperately need to complete the project. Richard conceded that the line must extend all the way to San Francisco on the north from Bakersfield in the south to draw riders. For that, the authority will need an additional $2.9 billion from Congress, which Republicans refuse to spend. Richard said officials are laying the groundwork for the request to Congress but wont ask for money for four to five years. Rep. Jeff Denham, a Stanislaus County Republican who chairs the railroad panel of the Transportation Committee, said Congress is never going to allocate more money to the project, citing projections for lower-than-promised ridership numbers, lower train speeds than initially projected and private funding that has not materialized as expected. Denham said by switching the first leg to San Jose, rail officials are finally acknowledging what the rest of us have known for years tunneling through the Tehachapis is going to cost them billions more than they have. Denham said the rail authority must stop their efforts to put down tracks that will never connect in other parts of the state. Rail officials are doing just the opposite, breaking ground in time to tie down the $6 billion in federal funding California secured under the Obama administrations 2009 Recovery Act, and proceeding in the face of a blizzard of lawsuits, as well as a potential ballot proposition funded by farming interests that would divert rail funding to dams and other water projects. 2008 bond measure Initiated by a voter-approved $9.9 billion bond in 2008, Californias bullet train plan envisions trains linking Anaheim with San Francisco via the flat lands of the San Joaquin Valley. It has the potential to be the largest infrastructure project in the country. The Obama administration initially envisioned a national high-speed rail system, but California grabbed the bulk of the 2009 stimulus funds because Republican governors in Ohio, Wisconsin, Florida and elsewhere refused the seed money out of fear of embarking on a costly boondoggle. When Republicans took control of Congress in 2010 and cut off further funding, Californias project appeared doomed. The Brown administration kept the project alive through infusions of revenue from the states cap-and-trade greenhouse gas auctions. By switching the initial leg to San Jose, rail authorities can leverage the Caltrain line between Gilroy and San Francisco slated for a $1.7 billion electrification. California Democrats remain enthusiastic. Rep. Jim Costa of Fresno called high-speed rail a game changer for the rapidly growing San Joaquin Valley, where 6 million people now live. People still arent sure its happening, said rail authority CEO Jeff Morales. The work is under way. We will have high-speed trains for the first time in the United States. Carolyn Lochhead is the San Francisco Chronicles Washington correspondent. Email: clochhead@sfchronicle.com This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate A transgender inmate whose case led to a ruling requiring California prisons to allow sex-reassignment surgery when doctors recommend it settled her claims Tuesday against the state, which agreed to drop its appeal and pay her legal costs. Michelle-Lael Norsworthy, 52, was released on parole in August after serving 30 years in prison for second-degree murder in Orange County, and now lives at a halfway house in San Francisco. She became aware of her female identity in the mid-1990s and started taking hormone therapy, with prison doctors approval, in 2000. Kept at a male prison and called Jeffrey, her birth name, by guards and prison officials, she was gang-raped by nine male inmates in 2009 and was infected with hepatitis C, which she still suffers from. After officials rejected years of requests for male-to-female surgery, a federal judge ordered the state in April to allow the operation the first such ruling in California, and the second in the nation. U.S. District Judge Jon Tigar of San Francisco said prison officials had disregarded Norsworthys doctor and the recognized standards of care and had instead assigned their own medical experts to submit reports justifying a policy of denying all such surgeries. The prison system was spared the cost of the operation when the state parole board approved Norsworthy for release after rejecting her since 1998. She is now trying to arrange Medi-Cal coverage for the surgery. In August, prison officials approved the procedure for another transgender inmate, Shiloh Quine, the first time any state prison system has authorized sex-reassignment surgery. Tuesdays settlement in Norsworthys case was announced by the Transgender Law Center. The center said the state will pay her lawyers nearly $500,000 to cover their fees and costs, and leave Tigars ruling intact as a possible precedent for other courts. What the state of California did to me was not right, Norsworthy said in a statement. I was denied medical care, experienced repeated and brutal sexual assault, and suffered the daily rejection of my basic humanity and identity for 30 years. This settlement is a message that transgender peoples medical needs are real and cannot be dismissed by the state just because of who we are. Bob Egelko is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: begelko@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @egelko Months before Marc Newlin discovered he could remotely download malware onto a laptop from across a room, he repurposed a classic Nintendo controller. Using the devices directional control pad, he made it so that he could control a computers cursor as long as that computer was unlocked and ready to be connected to one of a number of popular wireless mice. Over the summer, at the hacking conference Def Con in Las Vegas, Newlin first tried out what was, at the time, something more akin to parlor trick than a serious weakness. We were essentially trolling people, he said. Moving mice, clicking buttons. An account associated with the conference tweeted in delight: Guys at (Bastille) Newlins Atlanta employer just borrowed my Logitech mouse dongle and possessed my cursor :: By November, that amusing maneuver had evolved into a method that could not only point-and-click remotely, but also force a computer to type fast: Once every 8 milliseconds. Roughly 1,000 words a minute. Such a tool could allow for much more dangerous operations ones that could issue commands to download an insidious file from the Internet in less time than an unsuspecting person might use for a bathroom break. Theres no evidence to date that any such attacks have successfully taken place. But Bastilles research calls into question the security of sets of wireless keyboards and mice, and their accompanying USB dongles, made by several tech giants, Dell, Microsoft, Logitech, Hewlett-Packard, Amazon, Lenovo and Gigabyte. The Chronicle was among publications briefed on the discovery in advance of Bastilles public disclosure. The vulnerability it found relies on an unencrypted link between the mouse and the USB dongle, wirelessly connecting it to a computer. While a similar link between a keyboard and that same dongle is protected, the one moving the cursor across the screen is not. To exploit it, a hacker needs only a $15 USB radio dongle and a similar number of lines of code, said Newlins boss, Chris Rouland, Bastilles chief technology officer and former chief executive of Endgame a company that once controversially sold hacking tools to the government. The method also requires that a hacker be close enough for radio signals to reach the targeted computer. That suggests that unless youre the president of a country or perhaps an executive at one of the countrys biggest banks using a wireless mouse in an open office or at a Starbucks, its unlikely someone might go through all that trouble to pry their way into your computer. It is unclear exactly how many of the vulnerable devices have been sold over the past several years. But Rouland, noting that the companies involved have millions of customers, said: We think this is a big deal. People need to replace or fix their mice or keyboards. All the wireless keyboards and mice in question connect to computers employing a widely used protocol, similar to Bluetooth, called Enhanced ShockBurst. The technology largely comes attached to the software inside microchips made by Scandinavian company Nordic Semiconductors, said Newlin. So far, he added, of the affected companies, only Logitech, Dell and Lenovo have indicated to Bastille that they are planning to fix the issue. Logitech said in an email that it is making an update to its firmware available on its website. To our knowledge, we have never been contacted by any consumer with such an issue, Logitech senior director of engineering Asif Ahsan said in the email. He called Bastilles research an unlikely path of attack. Dell told Bastille they are making fixes on all their future keyboard, mice and dongle sets, Rouland said. Lenovo said that any of its customers can exchange their affected products for new ones by contacting its customer support center. Lenovo has been notified by an independent security researcher who discovered a security vulnerability in older versions of the Lenovo 500 Wireless keyboard, a spokesman said in an email. Lenovo has updated this device's firmware to eliminate the vulnerability. Microsoft said that it has a customer commitment to investigate reported security issues, and will provide resolution as soon as possible. In a white paper in 2009, Logitech acknowledged that it doesnt encrypt the traffic between its mice and its unifying dongle. Since the displacements of a mouse would not give any useful information to a hacker, the mouse reports are not encrypted, the company said. Logitech apparently did not consider that hackers could exploit that same connection to transmit keystrokes. Aptly, Bastilles research is being released less than a week before the annual RSA Conference at Moscone Center, a cybersecurity industry event known as much for its panels and presentations as its parties and networking. Bastille is calling the bug its first noteworthy vulnerability disclosure MouseJack. The startup has set up a website to highlight the issue, and developed other marketing materials including a logo and video. Sean Sposito is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: ssposito@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @seansposito A Yelp employee and aspiring writer caused a stir last week when she posted an open letter to Yelp CEO Jeremy Stoppelman on Medium saying her paltry pay ($8.15 an hour after taxes) barely covered the cost of Bay Area rent. Talia Jane, who uses a pseudonym for privacy, also said she hadn't been able to buy groceries since starting the job and was living off a giant bag of rice. "So here I am, 25-years old, balancing all sorts of debt and trying to pave a life for myself that doesn't involve crying in the bathtub every week," Jane wrote. "Every single one of my coworkers is struggling. They're taking side jobs, they're living at home. One of them started a GoFundMe because she couldn't pay her rent." Two hours after posting the letter, Jane, 25, was fired. Now, a 29-year-old television screenwriter has posted a rebuttal titled "An Open Letter to Millenials Like Talia..." on Medium. In the incendiary letter filled with snark, Stefanie Williams rips Jane for whining about the path she has chosen and gives her a pageful of unsolicited advice. "It sounds like you've hit some real post Haitian earthquake style hard times, so maybe some advice will help while you drink the incredibly expensive bourbon you posted on your Instagram account and eat that bag of rice, which was the only other thing you could afford!" Williams wrote in the beginning of her letter. Williams goes on to recount the struggles she faced in her personal career journey to become a writer. She faced looking for a job after the Lehmann Brothers crash, living with her mom and taking a waitress job to pay the bills when she would have preferred a sexier unpaid internship at Conde Nast to put on her resume. Williams wrote that by climbing the career ladder in the restaurant industry and writing on the side, she was able to eventually sign with the United Talent Agency in LA and achieve her dream of becoming a television screenwriter. "All of this was afforded to me not in the first month I was working at a restaurant, but after I put in the hours, made the sacrifices and sucked up my pride in order to make ends meet and figure out what I wanted to do and how to do it," she wrote. Sympathy is something Williams has none of for Jane and she makes that clear in the second half of her biting letter. She wrote: Had you ended your whole whining disdain about full health coverage and expensive copays by saying you had taken a job at Starbucks, or a waitressing job in order to make money while you were on the search for a new job that requires the basic knowledge most teenagers with a Twitter account hold these days, I'd have maybe given you credit. Saying you moved in with several roommates to cut costs, tried to budget in a way that was more practical, and applied for jobs that were more about salary and growth than bragging rights and trends, I'd say hey, she's making an effort. But you are a young, white, English speaking woman with a degree and a family who I would assume is helping you out at the moment, and you are asking for handouts from strangers while you sit on your ass looking for cushy jobs you are not entitled to while you complain about the establishment, probably from a nice laptop. She went on: Work ethic is not something that develops from entitlement. Quite the opposite, in fact. It develops when you realize there are a million other people who could perform your job and you are lucky to have one. It comes from sucking up the bad aspects and focusing on the good and above all it comes from humility. And she tops it all of with an extra dose of snark: One of the biggest obstacles to sending astronauts to Mars is the arduous journey itself. But a NASA scientist hypothesizes that the trip can be done much quicker thanks to recent science innovations. Philip Lubin joined NASA 360 for a video on a concept involving energy propulsion. The Mars voyage currently would take about five months. Through a system called photonic propulsion a shuttle carrying astronauts could arrive in a month. A lightweight robotic craft could travel the same distance in three days. The same technology could be used to explore outer reaches of the solar system and beyond. SACRAMENTO California lawmakers have reached a deal to close a $1 billion hole that the states health care program for the poor was facing this summer by expanding a tax on managed care organizations. The deal also provides a big boost to services for the developmentally disabled that were cut during the recession, and moves to pay down the states retiree health care debt. Gov. Jerry Brown called a special session on health care last year, tasking lawmakers with finding a long-term solution for funding Medi-Cal so the program doesnt rely so heavily on the general fund, which pays for most state services. One of the key priorities was to expand the states tax on managed-care organizations a tax that the Obama administration said did not comply with federal law. That tax which raises revenue for Medi-Cal is set to expire July 1, but under the deal would be expanded and continued. We think this is crucial for maintaining about a billion in federal funds into our health system and economy with virtually no impact on premiums or patients, said Anthony Wright, executive director of Health Access, which advocates for affordable health care California now taxes health plans that accept the states 12.5 million Medi-Cal patients. In turn, the state reimburses those plans for their Medi-Cal costs using federal matching funds. The Obama administration warned California officials that their tax structure doesnt comply with federal law because all health plans not just those accepting Medi-Cal must pay the tax. Private insurance plans that dont accept Medi-Cal patients argued that they would be subject to the tax without the federal reimbursement, which would result in new costs that they would pass along to their customers. Under the compromise reached among the Legislature, stakeholders and the governors office this week, the plans that dont accept Medi-Cal patients would pay the additional tax, but the state would reduce their corporation and insurance tax liability by $371 million so that the plans will not raise patient premiums. The overall effect is a net increase to the plans, state Senate senior policy staff said. With the change, health plans now support the proposal. Two-thirds vote needed A vote on the expanded tax is expected Thursday, with a two-thirds approval needed in both the state Senate and Assembly. This was hard work over many, many months, said Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de Leon, D-Los Angeles. The deal, which is spread across three bills, includes earmarks meant to earn Republican votes, such as $307 million for community-based developmental services. Developmental services was cut deeply during the recession, and its advocates have pushed lawmakers to restore their funding. Skilled-nursing facilities that are part of acute care hospitals will also receive $123 million in restored rate freezes, a move that Republicans pushed to be included in the special session bill. Lawmakers will amend the current budget proposal to earmark money for programs Republicans wanted, which include $173 million in transportation loan repayments and $240 million to pay down the states retiree health care liability. The earmarked money would come from general fund money that was freed up due to the expanded tax on health plans. Bipartisan priority De Leon said the trade-off in spending was needed to earn Republican votes during negotiations but is also a priority for Democrats. Its good policy, he said. De Leon said lawmakers will continue to work in special session over the next few weeks to see if they can reach an agreement on new tobacco taxes, which Republicans have not supported. Democratic lawmakers want to create a revenue source for Medi-Cal by raising the tobacco tax by $2 for a pack of cigarettes. The states current tobacco tax is 87 cents. Several tobacco-control bills are also being considered in the health care special session, including a bill to regulate e-cigarettes in the same way as tobacco and a proposal to increase the smoking age from 18 to 21. We have a strong interest to resolve the tobacco issues before us sooner rather than later so we can shut down the extraordinary session, de Leon said, adding that hed like to close the session in the next couple of weeks. Melody Gutierrez is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: mgutierrez@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @MelodyGutierrez Paul Chinn/The Chronicle Back in 2012, Zynga used some of its profits from the virtual game CityVille to buy real city property, namely its own headquarters at Eighth and Townsend streets, for $228 million. But Zyngas fortunes have since waned, and that version of CityVille disappeared last year. So now, the company is exploring a sale of the building with plans to lease it back. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Maybe Mark Zuckerberg isn't wrong to have all those bodyguards. A recently released video from ISIS directs threats at Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, both of whom are at the helm of companies attempting to eradicate ISIS from their platforms. The 25-minute video levies threats against Zuckerberg and Dorsey, called "Mark" and "Jack" in an oddly conversational way, and shows a picture of them riddled with bullet holes. "If you close one account we will take 10 in return and soon your names will be erased after we delete you [sic] sites, Allah willing, and will know that we say is true," the video's graphic reads. One of ISIS's primary recruiting grounds is on social media, where the terrorist group is able to easily disseminate its propaganda. After taking heavy criticism for letting terrorists operate with relative impunity on Twitter, the company has cracked down on pro-ISIS accounts. The strategy is working, according to one study by George Washington University. "We found suspensions typically had a very significant detrimental effect on these repeat offenders, shrinking both the size of their networks and the pace of their activity," the study says. "Returning accounts rarely reached their previous heights, even when the pressure of suspension was removed." Twitter has reportedly taken down 125,000 ISIS-affiliated accounts since mid-2015. HAVANA Olive-clad soldiers are going door-to-door across Cuba, filling houses with mosquito-killing fog in a nationwide mobilization to keep the Zika virus out of one of the last countries in the hemisphere without it. President Raul Castro announced this week that he was throwing 9,000 military personnel and hundreds of police into what he called Cubas inadequate fight against the mosquito that carries the virus linked to birth defects and paralysis elsewhere in Latin America. Our people will know how to demonstrate their ability to organize and maintain the public health achievements of the revolution and prevent our families from suffering, Castro declared. We must be more disciplined and demanding than ever before. Castros call to action included an unusual admission of deficiencies in Cubas vaunted free neighborhood-level health care system, which has suffered in recent years from lack of equipment, short-staffing and low morale among poorly paid state health workers. It was also a test of the communist governments once-legendary ability to marshal the entire country behind efforts ranging from civil defense to bigger sugar harvests to disease prevention. The government announced Tuesday that it was activating the Committees for the Defense of the Revolution, a neighborhood watch organization that enforced government dictates for decades but has lost importance in recent years. The government said that committees across the country would distribute anti-Zika information to every Cuban and inspect at-risk sites for mosquitoes in coming days. Gaps have been increasingly obvious in the effort to spray homes and businesses for the Aedes aegypti mosquito, which has infected thousands of Cubans with the dengue virus and dozens with chikungunya, a disease that causes fever and severe joint pain. Cubans frequently claim allergies or asthma to put off fumigation crews composed of public health workers and teenagers completing obligatory military service. Unwilling to force homeowners to let them in, the crews often mark the residence as fumigated and move on to the next house or apartment. Those days appear to be ending as troops deployed across the country with hand-held foggers are now armed with the threat of fines for anyone who resists fumigation. Cuba has a series of advantages: Its an island, it has a homogenous population and a health infrastructure that generally reaches every street corner, said Jaime Torres, director of tropical medicine at the Central University of Venezuela. And its political system allows it to take measures, including imposing punishments, that are harder to impose in other places. HLUHLUWE-IMFOLOZI GAME RESERVE, South Africa In hills where Zulu royalty once hunted wildlife, South African conservationists now scan live video from a thermal-imaging camera attached to a drone, looking for heat signatures of poachers stalking through the bush to kill rhinos. The unarmed drone, which resembles a model airplane, flies several miles from a van where an operator toggles a customized video-gaming control, zooming and swiveling the crafts camera. The nocturnal surveillance in Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Game Reserve comes amid international discussion about whether technology, particularly drones, will make a real difference in antipoaching efforts that often rely on the boots on the ground of rangers on patrol. Several years ago, drones were touted by some as a silver bullet for conservation, but some experiments have foundered. Even so, drone technology is developing quickly, and the aircraft have been used around the world, including: In Belize, where the Wildlife Conservation Society helped deploy drones to successfully monitor a protected reef area for illegal fishing, according to David Wilkie, director of conservation measures for the group. In Indonesia, where drones have surveyed threatened orangutan habitats. In Africa, where the World Wildlife Fund is exploring the use of drones and other antipoaching technologies, using funding from Google. Its a very dynamic battle space where the poachers are continually responding to advances in technologies, said Arthur Holland Michel, co-director at the Center for the Study of the Drone at Bard College in Annandale-on-Hudson, N.Y. Poachers could, for example, seek vegetation cover to try to avoid being spotted by drones or use informants to monitor drone teams and learn when the skies are clear. They have great potential, Wilkie said of drones. I think theyre not there yet. Wilkie said groups with limited budgets often opt for types of drones used by hobbyists. A military-grade, aluminum drone with a powerful engine and sophisticated radar that can look through canopy and detect metal a poachers car or motorcycle, for example could be more effective, he said. Searching for poachers with drones in Africas vast wildlife reserves can seem like a needle-in-a-haystack operation. Costs mount, crashes are frequent, equipment breaks down, rain or high wind can scrap a mission and legal and bureaucratic obstacles must often be overcome in countries that tightly regulate airspace. MANILA Its not just difficult to predict who will win Philippine presidential elections this year thanks to some of the candidates legal woes, its difficult to predict who will be allowed to run. Four are within striking distance. Sen. Grace Poe, a political newcomer, leads opinion polls ahead of the May 9 elections, with Vice President Jejomar Binay, close behind. They are followed by former Interior Secretary Mar Roxas and Rodrigo Duterte, mayor of the southern city of Davao. Poe, 47, has seen her popularity soar since she first ran for office three years ago. She is the adopted daughter of one of the countrys most famous movie couples. Her late father mostly played roles as a defender of the downtrodden in a country still plagued by widespread poverty and corruption. But the Commission on Elections ruled in December that Poe was not a natural-born Filipino as required by the Constitution because she was abandoned as a baby by her unknown parents at a Roman Catholic church. The U.S.-educated Poe, who renounced her Filipino citizenship for about five years to live with her own family in America, also lacked the required 10-year Philippine residency ahead of the vote, the commission said. That prompted Poe to bring her case to the Supreme Court, which could deliver its verdict soon and have a huge impact on the presidential race. This particular election has the most uncertainty, said Ana Maria Tabunda, research director of Pulse Asia, an independent pollster whose latest survey last month showed Poe leading with support from 30 percent of respondents, with Binay garnering 23 percent. Roxas and Duterte each got 20 percent in the survey that polled 1,800 people nationwide and had a margin of error of plus or minus 2 percent. Its a very tight race, Tabunda said. President Benigno Aquino IIIs successor will need to grapple with poverty, corruption and Marxist and Muslim insurgencies in the south persistent problems facing the country that three decades ago toppled the dictatorship of Ferdinand Marcos through a people power movement. Aquinos antigraft campaign led to the detention of his predecessor on an elections fraud charge and three senators, and the economy has grown steadily. However, a tenth of the countrys 100 million people still seek better-paying jobs abroad. He ends his six-year term in June. Aquino, who has had a falling out with Binay, has endorsed Roxas, a former investment banker who served as Aquinos transport chief and later as interior secretary in charge of local governments and the national police. Legal woes have also hounded Binay and Duterte, a tough-talking mayor who has caught national attention for threatening to take down criminals, drug lords and corrupt bureaucrats within half a year if elected president. Binay, 73, faced several months of investigation by a Senate committee over alleged corruption when he was still mayor of Makati city, Manilas version of Wall Street. He has denied the allegations, which have weighed down his popularity. PARIS A decision by Macedonian authorities to block thousands of Afghan asylum seekers from crossing into the country from Greece set off violent clashes between refugees and the police Tuesday, highlighting the challenges facing European nations as they seek to check the flow of people to the continent. Greek riot police forcibly removed groups of Afghan protesters from train tracks at a refugee camp in Idomeni, Greece, a crossing point to Macedonia and a gateway toward Northern Europe, after Macedonia abruptly announced that Afghans would be classified as economic migrants, disqualifying them from political asylum. The policy shift, unveiled over the weekend after Austria, Croatia and Serbia announced they would restrict refugee entries, means that newly arriving Afghans, who make up a third of asylum seekers in Europe, can now pass no farther north than Greece. Thousands more who are migrating north are stuck in countries where borders have temporarily closed. The measures taken recently by individual countries to restrict the flow of refugees heading for Germany have added to the confusion in the European Union, where the response to the crisis has been marked by disarray and political sniping. The Balkan route was a humanitarian corridor; it could close after consultations and not by turning one country against the other, the Greek migration minister, Ioannis Mouzalas, told the Greek channel Skai TV. We are faced with an action that has elements of a coup. European Union officials are considering a long-term suspension of passport-free travel around most of Europe, now permitted under the so-called Schengen accord, if the refugee wave is not slowed. The suspension would be a drastic step that could cost European economies billions of euros. Some officials in Germany, the most popular destination for refugees, and in other countries are also starting to argue that because European nations have troops in Afghanistan to help quell the conflict, Afghan citizens should no longer be eligible for asylum in Europe in the same way that Syrians or Iraqis are. Austria faced renewed criticism from European Union authorities Tuesday for unilaterally imposing a cap on asylum applications and entries, after its decision to place a daily limit of 3,200 entries and 80 asylum applications spurred a cascade of tightened borders that rippled south to Macedonia. We are concerned by the fact that some member states are acting outside of the agreed framework, said Natasha Bertaud, a spokeswoman for the European Commission, adding that the commission was investigating the legality of Austrias decision. Asked about complaints by Greece that Austrias decision would lead to a backup of refugees in southern Europe, Bertaud said the commission was trying to develop a response. Obviously, with the tightening of controls along the Western Balkans route, the commissions concern is now to prevent any humanitarian crisis from occurring, she said. CALAIS, France The clock is ticking for hundreds of refugees in the northern French port city of Calais waiting for a judge to decide whether to postpone an eviction order. The Lille administrative court ruling on the question says that the decision could come on Thursday two days after the deadline expired for the state-ordered mass evictions. A group of humanitarian associations had asked that the state expulsion order for a large swath of the camp be postponed. Authorities say the order concerns 800 to 1,000 refugees, but humanitarian groups put the count at more than 3,000. Most refugees in the camp want to sneak to Britain by ferry or the Eurotunnel rail service. Belgium, fearful of a flood of evicted refugees, announced a restoration of border controls Tuesday. Also Wednesday, Austria and nine Balkan states agreed on several measures to choke off the flow of refugees from Greece, effectively imposing their own response to the crisis at a time when the European Union has been paralyzed over what to do. the New York Times reported. The moves, by the foreign and interior ministers of the 10 countries, came as Europe prepares for another surge in people fleeing war and poverty in the Middle East and beyond after months in which winter weather held down the numbers of migrants trying to reach the Continent. The practical effect of the steps they agreed on during a meeting in Vienna is likely to keep more of the refugees in Greece, the primary point of entry into the European Union by people coming from Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria and other troubled countries. Athens objects to what it sees as attempts to leave it to handle the burden. Among the measures was an agreement on granting entry to the 10 countries only to those in proven need of protection, which would effectively limit passage to Iraqis and Syrians and exclude Afghans and people from countries where the main problems are economic. Judge Ann Yalman decided to call it quits after a decade running Santa Fes municipal court because if you look at the prior judges, they all get into trouble beyond 10 years, she says with a bit of a laugh. I had no desire to run into trouble. With just weeks left on the bench, Yalman says, the plan is to keep her head down and go quietly into retirement, before any occasion might arise that would see her exit under the cloud of criminal or ethical investigation that hung over her predecessors. Two candidates, Ignacio Gallegos and Virginia Vigil, vie for her seat judging what they characterize as the people's court, the place where most people who wrangle with the judicial system find themselvesoften for a traffic ticket, though a barking dog, a drunken driving charge and lots of other violations of the city code could land you there, too. In the time Yalman has spent judging cases, she's worn holes in the elbows of one of her black robes. She wears the patched robe now only for homeless court, a program she instituted that takes the municipal court staff to Pete's Place for one afternoon a month to check in on cases there, rather than demanding those folks make the trip all the way down Cerrillos Road to the courtroom. That court, and the DUI and drug courts that deal with those offenders separately, are part "problem-solving courts" that have ramped up under Yalman's tenure. "What they're trying to deal with is problems that are really more than just whether or not somebody shoplifted, but underlying substance abuse issues, underlying homeless issuewe try to address those," she says. When she started 10 years ago, those courts were seeing minimal use. The DUI court had just three participants. Between 2007 and 2013, the DUI courtwhich targets repeat offenders and those with severe alcohol problemsgraduated 150 participants, 131 of whom have not been convicted of another DUI in New Mexico. Those with long memories may recall the antics of previous municipal court judgesFran Gallegos and the pink hats convicted drunk drivers wore during their community service, and the alternative sentencing program in drug court that used meditation and acupuncture, or Tom Fiorina's collecting fines near the holidays in the form of a frozen turkey. The careers of those two judges came to an end amid investigations of misconduct, though penalties were waived by the New Mexico Supreme Court after the judges were voted out or resigned from office. The sum of the changes that have come with Yalman, appointed to finish Gallegos term and then twice elected to the job, is an added level of professionalism. For a visual on that, look to the court paperwork. Yalman describes inheriting a loose array of files that werent date-stamped and frequently went missing. "I'd see three people roaming the court for hours on end, looking for files. It drove me crazy," Yalman says. "I'm not saying we never lose files. We do, but much less, and we started imaging just a couple years ago, so if you can't actually find the file, it's there in the computer." The court now runs "more like a real court," says Yalman, who practiced law in federal court before taking this job. Other than an interim judge who served for 90 days before her, she's the first lawyer to serve as Santa Fe's municipal judgea qualification that city law now requires of all candidates for the post. "To me, a court is just a court. It's not all things to all people," she says. "I really don't think a court can be all things to everybodyit can't solve all the world's problems and if you read where non-lawyer judges get into trouble, it's that they don't seem to understand the limits of their jurisdiction. They don't seem to understand the limits of their authority, and they often have the best of intentions but they mess things up, so I kind of made an effort to clear everything out of the court that had nothing to do with the court." Teen court and educational events held at the court, for example, were moved out. Other changes legitimized the court's decisions, like assigning a public defender to all DUI cases. Digitizing records, allowing mediation and using video arraignments to save transporting prisoners to the courthouse or bringing the judge to the jail have also streamlined operations. Yalman gives others credit for these ideas; the changes simply came about during her watch. "I think we run a very fair and efficient court, and that's really what I tried to do," she says. Anyone in Santa Fe who drives should care about who becomes the next municipal judge, Yalman says, because traffic violations are the bulk of what the court handleson the order of more than 10,000 a year. She knows just how pervasive the job's reach is, because everywhere she goes, she says, she runs into people who have come before the court. "I don't always recognize them, and they don't always recognize me but it becomes clear," she says. "They'll say, 'Oh, you look like my teacher'I know I was not their teacher, you know? I know what it is. Then all the sudden, the light bulb goes on." At some point, most people or a member of their family come to the municipal court. "The most important quality you want to see in a judge is someone who has the ability to listen and be fair-minded, and she's definitely both of those things," says Elena Cardona, who has worked as a public defender in municipal court for the last three years. "And she's very respectful of the people in court, not just the lawyers but the individuals who are unrepresentedanyone who comes in." With a new judge on the way, and a new city prosecutor, Chad Chittum, having taken over on Feb. 1, now in place, Yalman says, "It's like a new court," and that change may be good for the city. Vigil works as a criminal defense attorney, often for assault-and-battery cases and DWI cases. She has been an assistant district attorney and worked with New Mexico Legal Aid. She also served as one of four pro tem judges called to step in when there's a conflict of interest or Yalman is absent. "I know I can do this, because I'm doing it," Vigil says. She talks about making changes to the court hours to prevent people from needing to take time off work to come before the judge; she's also looking at Bernalillo County's veterans court program to see if something similar could be crafted here that would connect veterans to some of the services available. The restorative justice model deployed in teen court, where she's worked as a judge, is also something she's eyeing. In the time since she became a lawyer, she says, she's seen the courts become much friendlier toward alternative programs, recognizing that rehabilitation and treatment can be more effective than incarceration. She points to a childhood in Santa Fe and familiarity with the history and culture as sources for understanding and compassion she could bring to the bench. Gallegos, who grew up in Belen and Dallas before attending college in Portland, Ore., and attaining a law degree from the University of New Mexico, works now as an administrative law judge for the state, hearing DUI cases. "I had been wanting to be a judge for some time and been encouraged to do that because it's in my nature to be balanced, to see both sides," Gallegos says. His commitment to unbiased judgments extended to the point that when he lost a family member in a car accident caused by a drunk driver, he asked the lawyers he worked with to let him know if they saw any change in his decision-making. So far, he says, he's heard no complaints. Watching Yalman at workpresiding in DUI or homeless court, or running a trialhe says, he sees her deploying an ability to make everyone feel comfortable but accountable. "That's something I'll probably need to finesse and will need some JT foron-the-job training," he says. Same goes for the task of managing the 18-person staff at the municipal courthouse. Reforms he mentions take aim at the docket, which often leaves people waiting all day for a hearing. A staggered docket could mean the court doesn't essentially call for 40 cases at a time, but instead for each case as it's ready. And he's interested in the Courts to Schools program, which brings the elements of DUI court to 11th and 12th graders to talk about the consequences of drunk driving. Of the two candidates, Yalman says, "They're both very good. They both have different qualities, different attributes. I think they'll be different judges. Either one of them would be fine for the court." Santa Fe Reporter Chances are, youre in one of two camps as Santa Fes municipal election approaches: You have already got this all figured out and hope SFR endorses the people you know will do the best job. You arent sure whos on the ballot or why you should care. Our advice for March 1: Ignacio Gallegos for Municipal Judge Since 2008, the city has required that all candidates for the job be trained as lawyers, so both candidates are that. But then the similarities fade. On one side is newcomer Ignacio Gallegos. No relation to former Judge Fran Gallegos, this Gallegos is on the uphill side of what looks like a promising career in the judicial system. The 2005 graduate of the University of New Mexico Law School is working now as a state administrative law judge who hears license revocation matters related to DWI cases. The other choice on the ballot is former Santa Fe County Commissioner Virginia Vigil. Termed out after two relatively noneventful consecutive stints on that policymaking board, she turned to lobbying at the state Legislature. Vigil says she's been handling pro bono cases in addition to being "retired" and serving as a pro tem substitute judge in the court, at least until she started campaigning for the job. In the characteristic that sometimes rules all else in local elections, we're asking you, voters, to resist the often-used bait: Gallegos is not from here. Unlike Vigil, he didn't grow up on Canyon Road. His cousins and aunts and uncles are down in Belen. He grew up in Dallas and DC. But we hope you give Gallegos your vote anyway. He chose Santa Fe as his home and wants to stay here. Here's one reason why he's our pick for the local court: When we brought back our Pop Quiz this election season, to see what the candidates know about the way the office operates and the responsibilities of the judge, Gallegos practically aced it. Vigil had a lot to say, but she didn't really say much. As a commissioner, her rambling speeches were sometimes head-scratchers. Gallegos has a reputation in his current job for precise, well-researched opinions. His answers in campaign forums show that he is what he says he is: even-tempered and thoughtful. And what he is not: a politician. Renee Villarreal for City Council After voting for municipal judge, most of you are done with the ballotas three of four districts have just one person running for an open seat on the City Council. But if you live on the north side in District 1, four candidates are vying for your attention. Renee Villarreal has a fresh take that the council desperately needs. She offers education and experience with community planning that should be an asset to a body tasked with making tough calls about appropriate development. While we are super proud of Skylight co-owner Kate Kennedy for taking a first try at a public office, we hope that the next time around, she does a little more homework to match her passion with strong policy ideas. Villarreal's heart is most certainly in the race, too. But she's also demonstrated a solid understanding of the city budget and other facets of the existing framework at City Hall that will help her hit the ground running. Two other candidates, former city councilor and school board member Frank Montano and artist Marie Campos, have done a good job of pointing out what every incoming and seated councilor should learn, and learn fast: The people of Santa Fe are disappointed in your leadership and deserve innovative solutions to bridging gaps in the budget and in the social fabric of our community. Santa Fe Reporter Calling The Club (originally El Club) heavy in terms of subject matter and emotional resonance would be an understatement. Indeed, this film lulls you into a false sense of security, with stunning shots of sunsets on a beach in a nigh-idyllic small town somewhere in South America (in this case, Chile), with dog-racing as a local pastime and charming communal dinners. But what lies beneath the surface is entirely more serious than what the audience is led to believe in the first half-hour. A quiet house on the coast is the residence of four priests and a nun, all living out some sort of enforced spiritual penance for various crimes (all involving children in some way) in an effort to simultaneously sweep them under the rug from the eyes of the press and public and somehow pray away their moral lapses. Director Pablo Larrain's latest movie explores the myriad depredations of the Catholic Church in troubling detail, without being too graphic in imagery. Even so, the past transgressions of the household members are held up to excruciating scrutiny through dialogue and situational context that proves all too real. The Club succeeds in making the audience uncomfortable in that the crimes committed by the main characters are well rooted in reality. Every moment is a multifarious connection of fear and disgust, of humanity and misery, all beneath a thick layer of psychological loathing. The performances are powerful and exquisite. Hermana Monica's (Antonia Zegers) eyes betray her feelings of quiet desperation in the face of an official investigation by Vatican priest Padre Garcia (Marcelo Alonso). Padre Vidal's (Alfredo Castro) callow weakness, coupled with his fanatical devotion to the quintet's adopted greyhound, has a depth that illustrates a paradoxical kind-heartedness, considering the egregiousness of his past. Padre Ortega's (Alejandro Goic) unapologetic and incendiary rebellions are entirely believable. A victim of one of the clergy, Sandokan (Roberto Farias), is somehow touching despite being a drug-addicted and mentally broken indigent. The characters in the film are indeed a paradox in and of themselves, wherein the writing provides moments of emotional contact with the lives and motivations of the principals, despite their sordid histories. The cinematography is remarkable, and as director of photography, Sergio Armstrong made some interesting choices. For instance, it appears some shots utilized very old lensesevident in several scenes where barrel distortion (kind of a fish-eye effect at the edges of the picture) accompanies a somewhat soft picture. Use of practical lighting (a lamp or ceiling light that can be seen in frame) brings a certain verisimilitude to the film. The blocking of the scenes is also worthy of mention. Many scenes are filmed in the interior of the small house where the erstwhile clerics reside, conveying an almost claustrophobic (or is it cloister-phobic?) theme, considering the close proximity the cast is situated in each scene. It may also illustrate how they've all become close, with Padre Garcia on the outside, trying to penetrate their inner circle, and the silence that surrounds an event that triggers the conflict. Violence appears sparingly, but with a profound and visceral result. It's a graphic representation of the injustice they've perpetrated on the innocent, and when it occurseither by surprise or by sinister designit never fails to make the audience feel something. The Club is a haunting fictional exploration of recent events concerning the widespread abuse perpetrated by the Church. It may be a movie that you see only once, but you'll remember it well after you've left the theater. THE CLUB Directed by Pablo Larrain with Farias, Zegers, Castro, Goic, Alonso CCA, R, 98 min. Santa Fe Reporter Her favorite piece in the collection is easy to choose. Even though Wendy Bustard manages more than 1 million artifacts from 120 sites in Chaco Canyon that are in the custody of the National Park Service, it takes her just a few seconds to come up with it. "Probably, at the moment, the badger," she says. This rare ring vessel depicts a badger, an animal still living in Chaco today. Julie Ann Grimm Bustard is talking about what researchers call a "ring pot," a fascinating archaeological object in that they're rareonly 20 are known to existbut widespread, as in they're scattered around the entire Southwest. Some look like snakes, but others don't seem to have an animal motif. No one has a solid theory about what they were used for. And this badger ring pot is even more rare still because of its artistry. Its distinctive face with vertical black lines leaves no doubt that it depicts the predator that still lives in America's grasslands. Yet today's visitors to New Mexico's Chaco Culture National Historical Park have a much better chance of seeing a live badger than this object of art. That's because he currently lives in a locked cabinet in the basement of a building on the University of New Mexico campus, where tours are by appointment only. "He is absolutely unique," Bustard says, holding him gingerly. "He came to us through the mail. The US Postal Service." Bustard has been the collection's curator since the mid-1990s. And although the vast majority of the items she takes care of came from archaeological excavations in the 1970s and '80s, in a joint project between the Park Service and the university, some of them were collected much earlier and in less official ways. The badger was among other objects in a box that once belonged to people who had lived and worked at the Chaco trading post in the 1920s. Wendy Bustard, Chaco collections curator for the National Park Service in Albuquerque, gives tours by appointment only. Pictured holding a sandal thats hundreds of years old, shes been working for six years to bring a new exhibit to the national park in northwestern New Mexico. Julie Ann Grimm It was only a few years ago, I think five, that a grandson found them in the attic and realized what they were, she says. And he realized that they should not be in the family attic. No one knows how much of Chaco's treasures ended up in private hands. Even the vast number of artifacts now in the Park Service collection pales in comparison to the rich material from the region that's been sitting for almost 100 years in museum vaults back East. When Bustard and her colleagues complete a plan now in the works to mount a new exhibit at the park, they'll be bringing at least some of it back. There's almost too much to see in Chaco. Once you make the long trek down a dirt road, past Navajo hogans and grazing sheep and long stretches of uninterrupted landscape, you could spend days and still not lay eyes on every excavated structure in the canyon, not to mention what it would take to identify all formerly occupied places that no one's touched for centuries. You could walk for miles and miles and view only a fraction of the petroglyphs etched roughly 1,000 years ago. Line up on a crisp morning to stand next to a green-clad park ranger as she talks about how 19th-century looters poked holes in the great houses and emptied rooms of their carefully stored caches. They hauled out baskets preserved away from the elements. They blew the dirt from huge pots and hand-sized bowls. They pocketed effigies and beads by the thousands. And many of them were paid to do it (some even directly or indirectly by the US government), their booty landing in two venerable museums. Chacoan communities have worldwide fame for the curious value system apparently at play. While life was no doubt difficult and farming time-consuming, we know from the objects left behind that the people who lived here spent great portions of their waking hours devoted to creating things of beauty. Julie Ann Grimm Yet you wont see any of them on display at the park. The closest you can come to viewing its distinctive black-on-white cylindrical jars are replica coffee mugs for sale in the gift shop. As a film that depicts the cultural crossfire over the land flickers with the image of a turquoise-inlaid frog made of black stone, theres not one bead, one basket, one sandal physically present. Not one shred of yucca cordage behind fingerprint-smeared glass. Just an empty room in the visitors center thats temporarily used to show the film. Otherwise, theres a shiny white floor and water bottles emblazoned with the park logo. Its dry out there. Drink up. So where can you find the artifacts from Chaco? Outside of the National Parks storate facility in Albuquerque, visitors to the New Mexico Museum of Indian Arts and Culture in Santa Fe can see beadwork and pots from Chaco in its dated central displayalmost exclusively collected from the Chetro Ketl site, which was partly excavated between 1930 and 1948 by the students in the UNM Chaco Field School. A loan on its way to the Farm and Ranch Heritage Museum in Las Cruces contains a woven headband and other items from Chaco. But the bulk of the state-held materials are in locked basement cabinets. The frog from the movie, for example, is often pictured, but seldom seen. Its image appears in a recent blog post about the Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Hall inside the American Museum of Natural History in New York City. The exhibit honors Roosevelt's efforts to protect the area with the passage of the Antiquities Act in 1907 to slow the plunder and vandalsor at least redirect most of it through official channels, which ensured that recovered items landed in public museums. But the frog isn't actually on display with Teddy's stuff. It's in storage, too. Bowls recovered from Chaco Canyons communities show a wide range of decorative designs in the National Park Service collection, stored in Albuquerque Mostly, the artifacts from Chaco are in the dark and far away. Theyre filed in wood and metal cabinets in places like the Smithsonians Museum of the American Indian in Washington DC, resting in narrow drawers, labeled with numbers and letters. Steve Plog, a researcher who has assembled a comprehensive online repository of Chaco material over the last 15 years, says there's deep significance in the part of the Parks Service plan to access the other major collections. Between the late 1800s and the 1930s, artifacts steadily left Chaco at the hands of amateur and professional archaeologists, who collected them for the likes of the Smithsonian and the National Geographic Society. Their names, like Wetherill, Hyde, Pepper and Moorehead, sometimes come out of modern mouths with a bitter tone. Together, those men oversaw the complete excavation of Pueblo Bonito, the iconic great house that now appears on the US quarter depicting the park. "Even back in the early 1900s," Plog says, "New Mexicans were upset about the fact that all these eastern museums were coming out not just to New Mexico but to Colorado and Arizona and excavating these sites and taking all the materials away." The new exhibit, Plog says is, "sort of like bringing part of your heritage back to where it originally belonged." While the artifacts and the information in reports about how and where they were found are still providing researchers with important data, vaults aren't the ideal resting place in all circumstances. "Anytime you have materials from archaeological sites sitting in a storage cabinet on a shelf, in some ways, is unfortunate because it's been removed from the context," Plog says. Without knowing, for example, that the rooms of Pueblo Bonito contained skeletons of macaws, birds that were likely transported from hundreds of miles away in Mexico, it's hard to fathom that the great houses of Chaco were hubs for trade. "It doesn't allow the people to understand how remarkable that was," he says. Park caretakers never intended for this to happen, explains Bustard. Objects crafted by the people in and around Chaco had been displayed for visitors formally at the park since about the 1950s. Building renovations at its visitor's center in 2010, however, revealed that the exhibit that had been doing the job since the 1980s had a big problem: no foundation; built on shifting sand. So rather than shore up the bad construction, they removed the exhibit, tore down the building and put up a new one. Yet since no one had planned that wrinkle, the bureaucracy didn't have funding to restore the exhibit or design a fresh approach. Six years later, the wheels are in motion. And what's on the way promises to be a first-of-its-kind display, bringing together the Park Service collection and items on long-term loan from the big museums. "Right now, if everything aligns properly in the universe, there will be an exhibit opening probably sometime around February of next year," Bustard says as she's wrapping up a tour of the Park Service collection this winter. Then she backtracks a bit. Well, at least the plan is to start installing the exhibit then. "What we're trying to doand why it is so complicated and it has taken so long and will be very expensiveis that we're trying to bring back some of the Chaco material from the institutions back East. And that is a challenge." Negotiations with those "back East" players started in earnest several years ago, and Bustard travelled to New York and Washington DC to shop in the vaults for objects that would fit her vision of the best Chaco showcase. A serving bowl from the National Parks Chaco collection has been repaired. Of the 450 artifacts now slated for the exhibit, about 175 will make that 2,000-mile journey. It's not as simple as choosing the items and ordering extra bubble wrap before the FedEx guy comes. The process of getting fragile artifacts from point A to point B, in good condition, requires what curators call conservation, which entails a careful examination for structural integrity, preparation of extensive paperwork required for the transfer of custody, and, of course, packing, which might include using specially constructed cases. The transportation and conservation alone will likely cost over $100,000, Bustard says. Even the items in possession of the Park Service need attention before they go on display. Over the last year, curators have moved almost all of the material for the exhibit from Albuquerque to its Western Archeological and Conservation Center in Tucson, driving van-loads of them at a time. There, specialists will also make mounts to hold artifacts securely in place for the upcoming decades inside the Chaco visitor's center. While the exhibit from the '80s focused on daily life, the new plan will cover different territory, touching on the rare and intricate decorative objects, the artistry and the vast trade networks at play. The Park Service partnered with the School for American Research to hold talks with interested parties in 2010; participants included members of local Native communities. The floorplan of the new exhibit includes a section called "Tribal Connections," which is part of the result of that outreach. Many are waiting with interest to see what happens with the exhibit. C L Kieffer, for example, is a doctoral candidate who works as the archaeology collections manager at the Center for New Mexico Archaeology in Santa Fea long-term research repository for artifacts found on state land and other special collections. Boxes containing pot sherds and stone tools from Chaco, along with drawers of ancient yucca fibers and feathers, and several manos and metates (flat rocks used for processing food there) are in her care. "Chaco is one of those sites that they tell you about in school," Kieffer says. "There's always been hype behind anything that comes out of Chaco, and what we've always been taught is to save a little [untouched] because the techniques will get better. I am sure that Chaco will be talked about 100 years from now." Maxine McBrinn shows off some of the artifacts in the vaults of the Department of Cultural Affairs Museum of Indian Arts and Culture.Julie Ann Grimm Maxine McBrinn, her colleague who curates the Museum Hill archaeology collection and is planning to revamp its feature exhibit soon, says shes been watching for the re-establishment of the display at Chaco, too. "In 2011, when I took a field school out there and they had just opened the new facility, it was like, well this is really nice but there's all this space. I heard they were thinking of putting an exhibition in, but then I went back in 2012 and 2014, and there was still nothing there," she says. McBrinn oversees the storage of enough Chaco material to concentrate on the site if she wanted to, but with a mission to cover the greater Southwest and its diversity, her scope is more broad. Just this year, though, the museum showed a series of new aerial photographs of the Chaco park, next to similar images taken in the late 1920s. "There are more scholars working on Chaco than on any other place and period in the Southwest," she says. "What is really interesting is that we still have widely divergent ideas about what Chaco is and who the Chacoans were and even who are all their descendants." Just being able to walk through the towering structures that still stand strong against the wind in the canyon is stirring, she says, but getting to see the art the people made, the clay that carries their fingerprints, the impression of a foot in a sandal, that's getting closer to human connections. A frog made of jet and turquoise is stored at a museum in New York City. Julie Ann Grimm It helps create that knowledge that these were complete people who lived real lives, and it gives you a little more insight into what those lives were, McBrinn says, and then you can see that incredible masonry in those huge sites and start to fill it in, in your head. And about that frog. Dave Thomas, curator at the American Museum, tells SFR that the iconic effigy is among items heading for the new exhibitthe first time it's been loaned out from the institution. Welcome home, little guy. Its about time. Santa Fe Reporter NZX's chief executive Tim Bennett sees a strong pipeline of debt listings in 2016, and predicts funds management will diversify as KiwiSaver balances keep growing, although he wouldn't be drawn on potential initial public offerings in the year ahead. NZX lifted annual profit 82 percent in 2015 as the one-off gain from the sale of its Link Market Services share registry division made up for flat operating earnings. Revenue got a boost from the stock market operator's expanded funds management business. Net profit rose to $23.9 million in calendar 2015, from $13.1 million a year earlier, the Wellington-based exchange said. That included an $11.8 million gain from the sale of Link Market Services. Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation were unchanged at $24.6 million, on a 12 percent rise in revenue to $73.2 million. Operating expenses increased 20 percent to $48.6 million. The company expects annual ebitda to be in the range of $22.5 million to $26.5 million in 2016, subject to market conditions and assuming no acquisitions or divestments. The exchange said it sees a relatively wide range of possible revenue outcomes in 2016, with the year off to a volatile start. In a briefing this morning, Bennett said that while it would be remiss to think the local economy wouldn't be impacted by a sharp slowdown in China, the market's lack of exposure to resources and commodities would lessen the fallbacks in valuation seen globally since the beginning of the year. "We've got a great group of listed companies, relatively high yields, and an economic environment which is much stronger than most developed markets," he said. "Over the last couple of months we have seen quite a lot of renewed offshore investor interest in New Zealand, but the combination of those two things makes it quite difficult to predict what might happen over the next 12 months." NZX has been diversifying from its capital markets core business by expanding into funds management, buying SuperLife in December 2014 as part of a plan to roll out new ETFs which it could then offer as a low-cost KiwiSaver option. Sales in NZX's funds management business more than tripled to $10 million, reflecting a boost in earnings from the acquisition. SuperLife contributed $6.4 million in revenue and $1.7 million in net profit for the year, NZX said. Its funds under management grew 14 percent in the year, with 22 percent growth in its KiwiSaver funds. Based on Australia's experience with compulsory superannuation, Bennett said the local market is "at the start of a 10 to 15 year growth journey." The Australian fund management industry became fragmented as individual's balances grew to 'new car' levels of $50,000 to $100,000, and savers became more conscious of how their money is managed. "Over the next three- to five-year timeframe, we'd expect to see what we saw in Australia," he said. "I would expect to see the development of much more focused or boutique fund managers in New Zealand. That will be very good for our capital markets, because it will provide some capital into smaller, high-growth businesses. We are continuing to focus on making sure there's capital available for those businesses to grow." Bennett said NZX's SuperLife product was a good option for people wanting a more active management of their savings. NZX also bought investment platform Apteryx in August for an initial consideration of $1.5 million and will make an additional payment of up to $2.5 million depending on Apteryx's performance by September this year. Apteryx contributed revenue of $700,000 and a loss of $200,000 to the group's annual results. Revenue in its capital markets division rose 5 percent business to $39.3 million, with a significant increase in secondary capital raising activity driven by dual-listed banks, NZX said. Initial public offerings dropped away in 2015, with just four new listings. Bennett said he wouldn't comment on whether 2016 would see more IPOs than last year due to recent volatility in equity markets, but doesn't expect to see the same level of secondary capital raising this year. Listed debt issuance grew 374 percent to $8.1 billion, boosted by the Local Government Funding Agency listing its six series of bonds worth a cumulative $5.6 billion. "We see a good pipeline of debt listing this year," Bennett said. "There's obviously a lot of retail investor demand for debt, and we're starting to see the benefits of debt listing picking up more liquidity in that market, and we're starting to see some more offshore interest." Bennett said the company's $8 million growth in operating expenses was driven by $5 million in acquisition costs for SuperLife and Apteryx and $2.1 million from fees associated with its Ralec litigation. It is set to go to the High Court in May this year, and the company anticipates a similar level of litigation costs this year. The shares fell 1 percent to trade at $1 and are down 7.5 percent this year. BusinessDesk.co.nz Comments from our readers No comments yet Add your comment: Your name: Your email: Not displayed to the public Comment: Comments to Sharechat go through an approval process. Comments which are defamatory, abusive or in some way deemed inappropriate will not be approved. It is allowable to use some form of non-de-plume for your name, however we recommend real email addresses are used. Comments from free email addresses such as Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail, etc may not be approved. Anti-spam verification: Type the text you see in the image into the field below. You are asked to do this in order to verify that this enquiry is not being performed by an automated process. Related News: Mainfreight Investor Day / Market Update GFI - Greenfern - Offer closes 27th Oct MCY - Quarterly Operational Update VCT - Operational performance for the 3 months ended 30 Sept 2022 NZL - Forestry Estate Acquisition October 21st Morning Report Air New Zealand Limited Retail Bond Offer Books Close Spark welcomes C-band spectrum allocation AIA - 2022 Annual Meeting Chair & Chief Executive Addresses MOVE Completes Purchase of Vessel for Trans-Tasman Service Intueri Education Group, which is under investigation by the Serious Fraud Office, wrote down the value of its schools, resulting in a $48.5 million annual loss. New Zealand's largest private training college said the loss for the year ended Dec. 31 compares with forecast profit of $13.8 million in its prospectus ahead of its listing on the New Zealand stock exchange in May 2014. It also missed its prospectus forecast in its 2014 financial year, when it posted a profit of $4 million compared with a projection of $7.9 million. Intueri wrote down the value of its Quantum Education Group by $53.1 million, including wiping $27 million off the value of its the school's brand and goodwill to take it down to zero, reflecting stricter enrolment criteria imposed by the Tertiary Education Commission which saw student numbers drop 34 percent to 2,093 last year. The Quantum school is also the subject of an SFO investigation, with the white-collar crime investigator seeking information dating back to 2012. "Enrolment restrictions have been put in place at Quantum which are expected to have a significant impact on the future financial performance of the school," Intueri said. "Therefore the board has taken a full impairment on Quantum Group." The company said TEC has confirmed its total funding for 2016 will be 6 percent ahead of the level of funding consumed last year, but with a restriction on the number of unfunded students who can be enrolled at Quantum, which is expected to dent the company's annual course fee revenue by $8 million to $9 million. Intueri said it's undertaking a strategic review to match capacity at Quantum with the reduced student numbers and to identify and realise costs savings across the wider group. Quantum is expected to post a loss in 2016 before returning to profitability in 2017 once any benefits of the strategic review are realised and when a partial reversal of the impairment may be considered, the company said. The company's shares gained 8.9 percent to 30.5 cents. Prior to today, the stock has shed 90 percent the past year, making it the worst performer on the S&P/NZX All Capital Index. The stock is rated a 'buy' according to two analyst recommendations compiled by Reuters. Intueri also wrote down the value of its Dive School by $3.9 million and its Design and Arts College by $2.9 million. "Performance at both schools has been weaker than anticipated with legacy issues continuing to impact on the Dive School, and a slower than expected rebound in enrolments at the Design and Art School in Christchurch following the 2011 earthquake," the company said. "All other domestic colleges delivered a satisfactory performance, whilst the strong online and international profit performances partially offset the profit shortfalls of the domestic sector." The company has suspended its dividends until the TEC reviews into its Quantum and Dive Schools announced in November are completed, which it expects by the middle of the year. In Australia, the government said in December it would cap funding to companies offering vocational education courses via its VFH scheme while it undertakes a review. Intueri's annual revenue increased 40 percent to $91.6 million, which is 6 percent ahead of its prospectus forecast, due to growth in its online segment and the benefit of acquisitions. Its debt rose to $52.7 million from $11.4 million, primarily due to acquisitions. "We have seen good growth in our online and international segments, where we have high performing and well regarded schools," said chairman Chris Kelly. "We have also seen good performances from a number of our domestic colleges and realised additional earnings from strategic acquisitions. However these have been offset by the disappointing performance of Quantum as we implemented our quality strategy and introduced stricter enrolment criteria. This has meant that our growth, while positive, has been lower than expected at the time of listing." BusinessDesk.co.nz Comments from our readers No comments yet Add your comment: Your name: Your email: Not displayed to the public Comment: Comments to Sharechat go through an approval process. Comments which are defamatory, abusive or in some way deemed inappropriate will not be approved. It is allowable to use some form of non-de-plume for your name, however we recommend real email addresses are used. Comments from free email addresses such as Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail, etc may not be approved. Anti-spam verification: Type the text you see in the image into the field below. You are asked to do this in order to verify that this enquiry is not being performed by an automated process. Related News: Mainfreight Investor Day / Market Update GFI - Greenfern - Offer closes 27th Oct MCY - Quarterly Operational Update VCT - Operational performance for the 3 months ended 30 Sept 2022 NZL - Forestry Estate Acquisition October 21st Morning Report Air New Zealand Limited Retail Bond Offer Books Close Spark welcomes C-band spectrum allocation AIA - 2022 Annual Meeting Chair & Chief Executive Addresses MOVE Completes Purchase of Vessel for Trans-Tasman Service Air New Zealand posted a 132 percent increase in first-half pretax profit as the countrys national airline carrier benefits from lower jet fuel prices, efficiencies from its new fleet, and a rise in tourist numbers. Pretax earnings rose to $457 million in the six months ended Dec. 31, from $216 million a year earlier, the Auckland-based company said in a statement. The company forecast earnings of $400 million, excluding any equity accounting contribution from its 26 per cent stake in Virgin Australia, at its annual meeting last October. Net profit in the first half rose 154 percent to $338 million. Revenue rose 12 percent to $2.7 billion on the back of a 10 percent rise in domestic passenger demand as it added capacity to meet Jetstars competition on regional routes. Chief executive Christopher Luxon said on the long-haul network it was pleased with demand and performance on new routes to Houston and Buenos Aires. Starting in June, it is launching seasonal services to Vietnam. Chairman Tony Carter said it was a stellar performance in the first half. Air New Zealands profitability, healthy free cash flow and solid balance sheet reflect the successful execution of the strategic plan by CEO Christopher Luxon and the executive team, which is focused on sustainable and profitable growth, he said. Air New Zealands stake in Virgin and its share of the Christchurch Engine centre earnings contributed $15 million and $10 million respectively for the first half. The board declared a 10 cent fully imputed interim dividend, with a March 11 record date, payable on March 19. The board also forecast that based on current market conditions and fuel prices, earnings before tax for the full 2016 financial year are likely to exceed $800 million, excluding Virgin earnings. The shares last traded at $2.86 and have gained 10 percent this year. Earlier this week Australias biggest airline Qantas Airways, Air New Zealands main competitor on the trans-Tasman route and domestically through its budget offshoot Jetstar, posted a record first-half profit of A$688 million, up from A$203 million in the previous half due to revenue growth, lower fuel prices, and further benefits from its A$2 billion transformation programme. BusinessDesk.co.nz Comments from our readers No comments yet Add your comment: Your name: Your email: Not displayed to the public Comment: Comments to Sharechat go through an approval process. Comments which are defamatory, abusive or in some way deemed inappropriate will not be approved. It is allowable to use some form of non-de-plume for your name, however we recommend real email addresses are used. Comments from free email addresses such as Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail, etc may not be approved. Anti-spam verification: Type the text you see in the image into the field below. You are asked to do this in order to verify that this enquiry is not being performed by an automated process. Related News: Mainfreight Investor Day / Market Update GFI - Greenfern - Offer closes 27th Oct MCY - Quarterly Operational Update VCT - Operational performance for the 3 months ended 30 Sept 2022 NZL - Forestry Estate Acquisition October 21st Morning Report Air New Zealand Limited Retail Bond Offer Books Close Spark welcomes C-band spectrum allocation AIA - 2022 Annual Meeting Chair & Chief Executive Addresses MOVE Completes Purchase of Vessel for Trans-Tasman Service Ebos Group's businesses are spinning out enough cash that the animal and healthcare company can continue to make acquisitions and invest to grow, while meeting its target for returns to shareholders, said chief executive Patrick Davies. Ebos stock rose 4 percent to $14.25 after the Christchurch-based company posted a 19 percent gain in first-half profit to $64 million and declared a bigger-than-expected interim dividend. The stock is up 41 percent in the past 12 months. The first-half results show Ebos was holding cash of about $116 million at Dec. 31, up 68 percent from a year earlier, while unused debt facilities stood at $87.7 million. At the same time, the company's net cash inflow from operations jumped 53 percent to $46.6 million. Ebos announced the $80 million purchase of New Zealand vitamin and herbal tea maker Red Seal last November, adding to a string of recent acquisitions including specialty pharmaceuticals firm Zest, Australian pharmacy retailer Good Price Pharmacy Warehouse and the BlackHawk Premium Pet Care pet food business. Davies declined to comment on reports Ebos was interested in buying current business partner Green Cross. "The cash flow we're generating from the current crop of businesses if very good," Davies told BusinessDesk. "Our board policy on dividends is about 60 percent to 70 percent of net profit. The interim dividend is within that range and that's likely to continue. And it still gives us room to pay back debt and grow." Davies said he is "very relaxed about where our balance sheet is today." Hong Kong-based Zuellig took a 40 percent stake in the company when it sold Australian pharmaceutical wholesaler and distributor Symbion to Ebos in July 2013, transforming the company and tripling its revenue. Australia generates almost four times the revenue of Ebos's New Zealand operations, with 7.8 percent growth to $2.6 billion in the latest half. New Zealand sales climbed 9.7 percent to $737 million. Davies reiterated that the company is ambitious to expand into Asia, a region where it has previously said access could be facilitated in partnership with Zuellig. "We've started to do that a little bit with Red Seal," he said. "It's very early in that journey. There's demand for quality products that have a local market presence in New Zealand and Australia" such as vitamins, which do very well in supermarkets in Asia, he said. The acquisition of Red Seal has increased Ebos's role as a brand owner and developer rather than just a distributor of third-party products, which meant taking responsibility for developing and marketing new products, but also offered higher profit margins. Ebos's ebitda (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation) margin widened by 14 points to 3.36 percent across its two divisions in the first half, although Davies said it was difficult to draw conclusions on margin given the spread of businesses. "Really, the big revenue contributors, the wholesale and distribution businesses, typically margins are very fine," he said. "There's very large quantities of medicines and we clip a very small margin. Any time we can see a little bit of improvement, we're happy with that." BusinessDesk.co.nz Comments from our readers No comments yet Add your comment: Your name: Your email: Not displayed to the public Comment: Comments to Sharechat go through an approval process. Comments which are defamatory, abusive or in some way deemed inappropriate will not be approved. It is allowable to use some form of non-de-plume for your name, however we recommend real email addresses are used. Comments from free email addresses such as Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail, etc may not be approved. Anti-spam verification: Type the text you see in the image into the field below. You are asked to do this in order to verify that this enquiry is not being performed by an automated process. Related News: Mainfreight Investor Day / Market Update GFI - Greenfern - Offer closes 27th Oct MCY - Quarterly Operational Update VCT - Operational performance for the 3 months ended 30 Sept 2022 NZL - Forestry Estate Acquisition October 21st Morning Report Air New Zealand Limited Retail Bond Offer Books Close Spark welcomes C-band spectrum allocation AIA - 2022 Annual Meeting Chair & Chief Executive Addresses MOVE Completes Purchase of Vessel for Trans-Tasman Service The Kate Korpi Salon and Academy has been developed and is managed by the non-profit Justice and Soul Foundation. The teaching salon was established to provide its students with the fundamentals of Western-style cosmetology (hair, skin, nails, and makeup). Students attending the Academy include survivors of sex trafficking and those at risk for sexual exploitation. They do not pay tuition, but are instead awarded scholarships. The program also includes a compensation plan for the students so that they can begin experiencing sustainable financial independence while learning this valuable trade. The first-annual Fashion SOULstice, held in April 2014, drew 275 guests and raised just over $47,000. Last years event, held in March 2015, had over 600 guests and 200 volunteers, models and artists. We raised over $75,000. Weve accomplished so much since the first Fashion SOULstice, explained Justice and Soul Co-Founder Matthew Fairfax. Weve opened the Kate Korpi Salon and Academy, graduated the first class of students from Phase 1 of training, and are now expanding. This third-annual event will be an opportunity for us to raise money to further the mission of the Academy, enroll additional students, and encourage salon and spa professionals to consider joining us in Cambodia to help educate our students. "We cant wait to share the news of our accomplishments and plans for the next 12 months. Tickets to this years event start at $50.00 and can be purchased online. The Justice and Soul Foundation is a non-profit organization focused on eliminating the sexual exploitation of young women, young men, and children globally as well as the restoration of the survivors. Video from our 2015 event: Fashion SOULstice 2015 video The Justice and Soul Foundation is a non-profit organization focused on eliminating the sexual exploitation of young women, young men, and children globally as well as the restoration of the survivors. Through shared connections to the salon and fashion industry, and after several years of research, planning and interviews, the Founders are enlisting the support of the beauty industry to create a sustainable, systemic solution that addresses the ongoing effects of sex trafficking. BENGALURU: Apart from the worlds popular Chinese brands such as Gionee, Lenovo and Xiaomi, some new brands are trying to bloom out in the world of technology. Various Chinese and Indian firms are looking forward for an opportunity to disseminate their latest smartphones in the market. MWC (Mobile World Conference) 2016 will definitely be the perfect platform to launch their new form of innovation. Tech lovers across the globe can wait and see some incredibly smart smartphones emerging out from the MWC launch. To get a broader insight of the upcoming smartphones, we have enlisted the top 5 brands expected to be launched at MWC 2016, as reported by Gizbot. Read Also: LG G5: 7 Exciting Improvements in a Flagship 10 New Gadgets You May Want To Consider Adding To Your Collection LAS VEGAS: Donald Trump and other Republican politicians are making "racist" efforts to try to delegitimise US President Barack Obama, Democratic presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders alleged today. "Trump is clearly not the only person involved in this. There was an effort to try to legitimatise the president," Sanders told a CNN town hall in Columbia South Carolina, ahead of the crucial Democratic primary here over the weekend. Sanders was responding to a question, if he believed Trump was motivated by racism by raising the birth issue of Obama. "Look, you can disagree with Obama all you want but to say that the President of the US who won an election fair and square was not a legitimate president, it really undermines what we are as a nation," Sanders said. "I am not going to speak to Trump but do I think that at least in some parts of that Republican base there is race involved in that. Absolutely," the Senator from Vermont said. Sanders alleged that the birther issue from Trump and others was a racist effort to try to de-legitimatise the president of the US. "Can you imagine that? To say he is not really the president. He was not born in the US which is nonsense. You know, it is a funny thing on that issue. My dad, as I mentioned, came from Poland. I am running for president. Guess what? Nobody has asked for my birth certificate. May be it is the colour of my skin, I do not know," Sanders said. The "birther" controversy erupted during the 2008 presidential campaign when conspiracy theories asserted that Barack Obama was not a natural born citizen of the US and was ineligible to be President of the US. Theories alleged that Obamas published birth certificate was a forgery, that his actual birthplace is not Hawaii but Kenya. Other theories alleged that Obama became a citizen of Indonesia in childhood, thereby losing his US citizenship. Later, Obama released his original birth certificate and said the controversy surrounding the issue had become a "sideshow". Read Also: Trump Wins Nevada Caucus: Projections Bihar Acts Tough Against Cheating in Board Exams BENGALURU: If you wish to be a better manager and want to motivate yourself to smartly grow your business then bootstrapping is one of the great options to follow. Running a bootstrap company is not easy; effectively handling the not easy part makes you a great leader with product/service-centric approach. Chase customers or investors? This is one of the major decisions and questions faced by a budding startup. The situation of the venture depends on the timing of the decision that they make for pursuing either of them. The growth, success and the roadmap of the startup depends on the choices mentioned above. With investors talking about changing the regulations and rules of the investing game and also about the funds drying up, it is wise to stage your start up in profitable areas and with a steady revenue stream. Sujata Sangwan in her article for I Am Wire site has compiled a list of 6 Indian startups that are reaching their way to the top of their respective industries and learning from their fellow startups to build a foundation in their initial bootstrapping period. Shopvop Currently dealing with women garments including custom made outfits, and educational books, Shopvop plans to expand the book catalog, sorting it according to the syllabus of different universities in India. They even plan to target and create a customer base in countries like UK, USA, Middle East and Canada for their women garment sector. Expanding its vendor network, the company aims to sell all traditional wear stretching from Assams Mekhela chador to Odisha's Sambalpuri Sari. Read Also: 'MTV Kickstart': New Initiative to Promote Startups Among Youth Indonesian Startup GO-JEK Acquires Bengaluru-based Firm WASHINGTON: Democratic presidential front runner Hillary Clinton's popularity appears to be dropping nationally while her primary rival Bernie Sanders gained a slight lead for the first time, according to a latest national poll. Sanders, 74, now has support of 47 per cent of Democratic primary voters as against 44 per cent people who back Clinton. A month ago, Clinton, 68, had support of 49 per cent of the Democratic primary voters. And last summer, Clinton had a lead of 46 points and that of 22 points as recently as two months ago. This is the first time that Sanders is leading a national poll against Clinton, who not long ago was regularly described as the "presumptive" Democratic nominee, according to the poll released by Fox news ahead of the South Carolina primary on February 27. "One thing that is clear from our poll - and others - is that Clinton has been losing support and Sanders has been gaining. And this process appears to have accelerated since the contests in Iowa and New Hampshire," said Democratic pollster Chris Anderson. "Historically, lesser-known candidates beating establishment candidates in early contests have seen the biggest boost in their national support," said Republican pollster Daron Shaw, who jointly conducted the Fox news poll with Anderson. Read Also: Indian American Keen to Make 'Neglected' Gujarati Food World-Famous Indian American Danseuse Named for U.S. Presidential Scholars Source: PTI WASHINGTON: With two wins in three states under his belt, a triumphant Donald Trump rolls into Nevada as a hot favourite in the Republican presidential nomination contest Wednesday with Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz fighting for the second place. The real estate mogul, an easy winner of primaries in New Hampshire and South Carolina, is ahead by double digits in Nevada caucuses or party meetings, and leading in 10 of the 14 states set to vote in Republican primaries or caucuses over the next two weeks. According to Real Clear Politics, his biggest lead is in Massachusetts, where he is 35 points ahead of Florida senator Marco Rubio. Trump's lowest margin of victory is predicted to come in Minnesota, where he leads Rubio by 6 points. But in Texas Senator Ted Cruz's home state, Trump trails him by 6.7 percent. The candidates are now revving up their campaigns for Super Tuesday, March 1, when voters in 12 states go to the polls. Ohio Governor John Kasich and retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson also remain in the Republican race but are not likely to make any great impression in Nevada. Rubio, who edged out Cruz for second place in South Carolina, said that primary turned the Republican presidential race into a three-person contest. As in South Carolina, Rubio's campaign strategy relies heavily on endorsements from local lawmakers and celebrities. Cruz, seeking to recover from a disappointing third place in South Carolina, has stressed the fact that he is the one candidate who has prevailed in a contest with Trump: a February 1 triumph in the Iowa caucuses. The Texas senator also announced on Monday he was firing spokesman Rick Tyler for spreading false information on social media that Rubio had mocked the Bible. Trump has called Cruz a "liar". Rubio and retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson have also riled him for his ethics ever since Cruz's victory in Iowa. The Nevada contest comes as an increasing number of Republicans say Trump may well be the nominee, whether the so-called establishment likes it or not. Meanwhile, on the Democratic side, self-styled Democratic socialist Bernie Sanders accused frontrunner Hillary Clinton of copying his message. He also suggested that she might be improperly influenced by Wall Street donations to her candidacy. Sanders, who is giving a tough fight to Clinton thanks to the support of young people and working-class whites, is hoping to bounce back after a close five-point defeat in Saturday's Nevada caucuses. "I have to say that I am delighted that Secretary Clinton, month after month after month, seems to be adopting more and more of the positions that we have advocated. That's good," he said at a news conference in Boston Monday. Clinton was "beginning to use a lot of the language and phraseology that we have used", he was quoted as saying by the New York Times. "In fact, I think I saw a TV ad and thought it was me. But it turned out it was Secretary Clinton's picture in the end." Sanders went on to imply that Clinton's stances on issues were not as genuine as his own. "But the people of Massachusetts and the people of the United States need to know the difference between hastily adopted campaign rhetoric and the real record and long-held ideas of the candidates," Sanders said. Read Also: Clinton Slides Behind Sanders In National Polls 6 Indian-Americans Among Early-Career Scientists Honoured By Obama Source: IANS WASHINGTON: A top American diplomat is visiting India this week to hold talks with Indian officials on issues related to ocean. Acting Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs Judith Garber will be in India February 23-27, an official statement said. "During her visit, she will meet with government leaders and NGO representatives to discuss ocean issues in the lead up to the September 2016 Our Ocean conference in Washington D C," the State Department said. She will also meet with Indian experts on air quality, climate change, hydrofluorocarbons and wildlife trafficking. Read Also: U.S. Companies to Invest $27 Bn in India, U.S.-India Business Council Chief Says Indian-American Couple Gifts $3.5 Mn for Sanskrit Studies at Chicago Varsity Source: PTI Hurricane Irene looting In this photo showing damage from Hurricane Sandy, neighbors helped police catch two men who allegedly broke into the El Jardin Deli & Grocery at 274 Sand Lane in 2011. (Staten Island Advance Photo) STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Police are looking on Wednesday for a man who committed a violent, knife-point robbery where an employee was injured in a deli on Sand Lane in South Beach. A male suspect walked into the El Jardin Deli & Grocery at 274 Sand Lane at about 8:30 p.m. on Tuesday. The suspect asked for change and a 28-year-old male employee replied that none was available, according to a spokesman for the NYPD's Deputy Commissioner of Public Information. The suspect then brandished a knife, jumped over the counter and removed about $400 in cash from the register, according to the police spokesman. The suspect punched the 28 year old employee in the face, causing bruises and a cut to the mouth. The suspect then fled on foot, according to the police spokesman. Police described the suspect as a black male standing about 6 feet tall who wore a grey jacket and black jeans. Emergency radio transmissions at the time of the incident indicated that the man was cut with the knife, but a police spokesman was unable to confirm that information on Wednesday. EMS transported the victim suffering from a laceration to Staten Island University Hospital in Ocean Breeze, according to a spokesman for the FDNY/EMS. Advance records indicate that the deli was broken into after it was boarded up from damage by Hurricane Sandy and that two people were arrested in that incident. STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- The arson fire that swept through the original convent on the grounds of St. Joseph Hill Academy in Arrochar in October 2013 destroyed the chapel and caused damage on all three floors of the historic hilltop mansion that was built in the 1860s for a wealthy British banker. "But out of the tragedy arose a blessing and something good," said Sister M. William McGovern, president of St. Joseph Academy, who was born and raised in Great Kills and entered the order of the Daughters of Divine Charity in 1953. "As a result of the fire, we rearranged offices and had two empty floors" in the old convent building, she said Tuesday afternoon. "We thought perhaps we could provide a service, to serve the needs of the Staten Island community, in this historic, beautiful setting." And so the idea of the St. Joseph Retreat Center was born. It moved forward with the renovation and restoration of the fire-, smoke- and water-damaged elegant mansion -- and now features nine beautifully appointed guest rooms and one spacious guest suite on the second and third floors for overnight accommodations, as well as a conference room, smaller meetings rooms, dining spaces and an outdoor patio. The retreat center is available for both religious and lay events, including meetings, conferences and seminars hosted by businesses and community groups. Arts groups are welcome to stage performances in the newly built chapel, with seating for 100. Spaces can be rented by the day, half-day or hour. Guests who stayed at the retreat center last weekend left handwritten notes of appreciation, including these: "A beautiful gem on Staten Island!" "The Ritz-Carlton of retreat houses." "A peaceful, relaxing, healing experience." HISTORY OF THE MANSION Sister William is expert about the history of this old hilltop mansion. St. Joseph Retreat Center in Arrochar -- on the 17-acre grounds of St. Joseph Hill -- was built as an estate in the 1860s for a British banker. Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016. (Staten Island Advance/Virginia N. Sherry) She explained that it was built before the Civil War -- with the first owner a British man named Pickersgill, who purchased the property and built the red-brick mansion for $60,000, an enormous sum at that time. Pickersgill sold it to Mr. MacFarland, who was of Scottish ancestry and named the estate Arrochar, after his family's ancestral home village. After MacFarland's death, the estate was sold to German banker William T. Knauth, who lived there until the outbreak of World War I. It was in 1919 that the Daughters of Divine Charity -- Sister William's order -- purchased the property from Knauth, using it as a convent and school. The now-renovated building includes restored details such as parquet floors, elegant stairs and bannisters, and original fireplaces and mantles. David Darcy is the architect who worked on the renovation, along with Liz Imbro, Todd Smircina and Charles Imbro of Imbro Designs LLC. The address of the St. Joseph Retreat Center is 850 Hylan Blvd. For information about booking reservations, call Ronnie Keane: 718-720-1097. STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- If you're a beer lover you might want to check out the new app Untappd, find a designated driver and take a Five Borough Road Trip. The free app will help you discover what people are enjoying and where to find it. You can start in the comfort of your own home borough, even your own home, and sip the brews that Staten Islanders favor most. They are listed among New York City's favorite beers broken down by borough. Most New Yorkers tend to enjoy IPA beer (Indian Pale Ale), Greg Avola, the co-founder of Untappd told NBC. (He expects Sour Ale will be the next craze.) On Staten Island, the IPA at Flagship Brewing Co. was second on the list of the borough's favorite beers. It came in second to Sam Adams Cold Snap. And the Tompkinsville brewery's APA (American Pale Ale) came in third in the borough's faves, followed by Sierra Nevada Tropical IPA. That is no surprise to fans of the local brewmeisters, who flock to the brewery's Tap Room to buy untraveled brews and more often than not enjoy the music of a local band, a craft fair or festival - Made in Staten Island Craft Fair and the Oyster Festival. And there is one of my favorites the monthly Staten Island Seisiun (an Irish music gathering). Now being bottled, Flagship's beers can be found in supermarkets as well as on tap in local pubs -- Adobe Blues, Randall Manor Tavern, Craft House, Pier 76, 120 Bay -- and in three other boroughs. In Brooklyn, it'll be at The Federal Bar in Williamsburg. Manhattan: Ulysses and Taproom 307. In Queens: The Other Place in Forest Hills. By clicking Agree, you consent to Slates Terms of Service and Privacy Policy and the use of technologies such as cookies by Slate and our partners to deliver relevant advertising on our iOS app to personalize content and perform site analytics. Please see our Privacy Policy for more information about our use of data, your rights, and how to withdraw consent. Agree Another source of tensions with the U.S. has been differences over how to respond to North Korea's latest nuclear test and rocket launch. It's been seven weeks since the nuclear test and the U.S. and China still haven't agreed on how to censure North Korea. While China has joined in the international criticism, it has balked at imposing the kind of tough economic sanctions that the U.S. wants, fearing it could threaten the stability of North Korea, a neighbor and traditional ally of Beijing. "I don't want to pass this problem onto the next president, whoever it is," Obama said at the White House. "If we don't do what's required now, I think future generations are going to look back and ask why we failed to act when the right course, the right side of history, and justice and our best American traditions was clear." Best Canadian Blog 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007 About Kate Why this blog? Until this moment I have been forced to listen while media and politicians alike have told me "what Canadians think". In all that time they never once asked. This is just the voice of an ordinary Canadian yelling back at the radio - "You don't speak for me." (goes to a private mailserver in Europe) I can't answer or use every tip, but all are appreciated! Katewerk Art Support SDA I am not a registered charity. I cannot issue tax receipts. Reconnaissance Man Economics for the Disinterested ...a fast-paced polar bear attack thriller! Want lies? Hire a regular consultant. Want truth? Hire an asshole. Weather Shop Click to inquire about rates. Dow Jones What They Say About SDA "Smalldeadanimals doesn't speak for the people of Saskatchewan" Former Sask Premier Lorne Calvert "I got so much traffic after your post my web host asked me to buy a larger traffic allowance." Dr.Ross McKitrick Holy hell, woman. When you send someone traffic, you send someone TRAFFIC. My hosting provider thought I was being DDoSed. - Sean McCormick "The New York Times link to me yesterday [...] generated one-fifth of the traffic I normally get from a link from Small Dead Animals." Kathy Shaidle "Thank you for your link. A wave of your Canadian readers came to my blog! Really impressive." Juan Giner - INNOVATION International Media Consulting Group I got links from the Weekly Standard, Hot Air and Instapundit yesterday - but SDA was running at least equal to those in visitors clicking through to my blog. Jeff Dobbs "You may be a nasty right winger, but you're not nasty all the time!" Warren Kinsella "Go back to collecting your welfare livelihood."Michael E. Zilkowsky Intelliweather Seismic Map Comments Policy Read this Best Of SDA Hide The Decline The Bottle Genie (ClimateGate links) You Might Be A Liberal Uncrossing The Line Bob Fife: Knuckledragger A Modest Proposal (NP) Settled Science Series Y2Kyoto Series SDA: Reader Occupation Survey Brett Lamb Sheltered Workshop Flakes On A Plane All Your Weather Are Belong To Us Song Of The Sled The Raise A Flag Debacle (Now on Youtube!) (.mwv Video) Abuse Ruins Life Of Girl Trudeaupiate Kleptocrat Jeans Child Labour I Concede Small Dead Feminist Protein Hoser: THK Interview The Werewolf Extinction Dear Laura (VRWC) We Wait Blogging The Oscars Jackson Converts To Islam Just Shut The HELL Up Manipulating Condi Gay Equality Rights 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: 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: 28: 29: ... code stack: /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html:25 /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm:948 /var/cache/mason/obj/2011159162/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj:17 /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html:149 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(0x5612f024b660)', 'main') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 948 HTML::Mason::Request::call_dynamic('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f02610b8)', '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(0x5612f024b660)') 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(0x5612f02610b8)') 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(0x5612f015f920)') 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(0x5612f02610b8)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 165 HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f02610b8)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 831 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handle_request('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612e2573060)', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x5612f0213a88)') called at (eval 592) line 8 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handler('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x5612f0213a88)') called at -e line 0 eval {...} at -e line 0 One of Mr de Jonk's former panel beating partners is Vahe "Wayne" Geokjian, who was jailed for four-and-half years in 2009 after pleading guilty to the importation of almost two kilograms of cocaine hidden inside the brake drum of a Volvo truck. Mr Geokjian also pleaded guilty to cannabis and firearm offences. Crown prosecutor Margaret Cunneen, SC. Credit:Peter Rae When police arrested Mr Geokjian in 2007 they also found two loaded pistols and a .22 rifle with a silencer attached. Mr de Jonk has not been charged with any offence. Fairfax Media has previously revealed excerpts of two conversations caught on tape by the crime commission show Ms Cunneen told Mr de Jonk she had sent a message to Ms Tilley to "start having chest pains" to avoid a breath test at the scene of the accident. Ms Tilley, a P-plate driver, was not allowed to drive with any alcohol in her system. She admitted that she had consumed alcohol prior to the motor vehicle accident. In the second intercepted call, Ms Cunneen told Mr de Jonk that the "chest pains" had "bought her a few more hours". Ms Tilley returned a zero blood alcohol reading when eventually tested at the hospital. New details show that Mr de Jonk and Ms Cunneen were both at the accident scene. The phone intercepts reveal that Mr de Jonk called his mate, smash repairer George Kharadjian, who was at the Willoughby Hotel, to tell him Ms Cunneen's car had been involved in the accident. He then put Mr Kharadjian, who is one of Ms Cunneen's local drinking buddies, on the phone to speak to Ms Cunneen himself. "I could get away with a member of my family [driving]. I am just hoping she hasn't had a f---ing drink," Ms Cunneen said to Mr Kharadjian. In a new twist, the phone taps which Ms Cunneen is trying to prevent from becoming public suggest Ms Cunneen one of NSW's most senior legal figures knew Mr de Jonk prior to the accident and that they planned to meet for a drink. In the conversation on the night of the accident, Ms Cunneen handed the phone back to Mr de Jonk, who told Mr Kharadjian of the conversation he'd had with Ms Cunneen's son, Stephen Wyllie, at the scene of the accident. He said he'd remarked to Mr Wyllie that it was a government car to which Mr Wyllie said: "I'd rather not say who my mum is" and Mr de Jonk replied, "I know your mum". Mr de Jonk instigated the second conversation with Ms Cunneen, which took place just before midday on June 2, 2014. Much of the conversation was about praying to St Anthony, to whom many Catholics pray for miracles and help finding lost items. "You know I have been so worried about it. I have been praying to my favourite saint, St Anthony, ever since [both laugh]." Ms Cunneen said that Ms Tilley "is praying too ... I'm not sure how severe they get on a .01 or a .02 [blood alcohol reading] and you should be nothing. Theoretically, she might be liable for the whole lot." Mr de Jonk finished the conversation saying, "Nice to see you again but yeah not on that occasion." Ms Cunneen replied: "Yeah, yeah. That's right. Next time we'll have a beer and won't drive home." Mr de Jonk: "Willoughby pub and yeah, all right." Ms Cunneen: "And we'll all be safe. Thanks Ben, see ya." In a brief conversation with Fairfax Media on Wednesday, Mr de Jonk said that he had met Ms Cunneen once prior to the accident. Asked if he had ever been to the pub with Ms Cunneen, Mr de Jonk said, "I can't remember." Earlier in the day he had threatened to "kick the shit out of" the car of a Fairfax photographer, which was outside Prestige Auto Body Repairs. For her part Ms Cunneen says she has never heard of Mr de Jonk. "I've never spoken to him on the phone either." The senior prosecutor also said, "I don't know him at all" and that she had only met him "on that single occasion". "I was terribly distressed at the time, to arrive at that scene with ambulances, multiple police cars and fire brigade all in attendance and the cars obviously write-offs, as the many eye witnesses can attest." Ms Cunneen has previously told News Corp she might have jokingly referred to Ms Tilley's "fake chest pains" with Mr Kharadjian . In December Mr Kharadjian told Fairfax Media "I've known Margaret for years just through the area. We drink at the same pub." He said that after the accident he'd had a "tongue-in-cheek conversation with Margaret about Sophia's fake boobs." Asked how this topic had come up, Mr Kharadjian said, "Because when I first met Sophia she was in the pub and Margaret and I were just having a laugh about her fake boobs." Ms Cunneen is fighting the potential release of the phone taps tapes by a NSW parliamentary inquiry examining ICAC's investigation of Ms Cunneen, which it was forced to abandon after the High Court ruled it was beyond its jurisdiction. The accused murderess had once dreamed of settling down with her victim and building a family, the court was told. Even after the man allegedly stabbed her in the leg, she still reportedly harboured hopes of a romantic reunion. But when Raymond Pasnin emerged from jail and rejected her entreaties and advances, Louise-Catherine Spiteri-Ahern, 25, allegedly arranged for him to be shot outside his mother's Sydney home. "She was motivated by anger, passion, scorn, jealousy and feelings of rejection," Crown prosecutor David Patch said in his opening address to the trial of Ms Spiteri-Ahern and three co-accused in the NSW Supreme Court on Monday. In the lead-up to the alleged murder, Ms Spiteri-Ahern allegedly sent Mr Pasnin a series of text messages including one that declared "Oh boy, you deserve everything that is coming for you. Two men accused of posing as police officers and robbing a man and his stepson near Newcastle have been committed for trial. Justin Glen Beckingham, 23, and Paul Colvin, 30, are accused of approaching the two men while they were in a car in Heaton Street, Jesmond, on April 14 last year, shining a torch in their eyes, ordering them out of the vehicle, searching them and stealing car keys, a phone and wallet. Mr Beckingham allegedly told the driver: "Mate it's like this, we're the most corrupt detectives you'll ever see operating out of Sydney and these number plates are known", court documents state. The victims told police the driver was repeatedly hit with a metal bar, pushed into the car and grabbed in a bear hug during the alleged robbery. When neighbours came outside to see what was happening, the men allegedly assuaged them by saying they were undercover police investigating a stolen car. "You'd have to believe in a flat Earth to think otherwise," he said. Admiral Harry Harris, head of the US Pacific Command, told reporters that China is "clearly militarising" the disputed waters. A top US naval commander has warned that China is "changing the operational landscape" in the South China Sea to control one of the world's busiest waterways. Admiral Harris made the comments as new satellite images appear to show that China has been building a series of radar facilities on islands closer to the shores of Vietnam, the Philippines and the island of Borneo than to China. Cuarteron Reef: Think tank CSIS says China appears to be building radar facilities in disputed South China Sea waters. Credit:CSIS Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative/DigitalGlobe The images emerged only days after the US and Taiwan said China appeared to have deployed surface-to-air missiles on another island, prompting a blunt response from Beijing's Ministry of Defence, which said in a blog that China had established "necessary defence facilities" in the region that were "legal and appropriate". "China's deployment of limited, necessary defence facilities on its own territory is its exercise of its right of self defence to which a sovereign state is entitled under international law," said Hua Chunying, a spokeswoman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry. China has long claimed that its development of artificial islands was for civilian purposes, including weather observation, prompting Australia's foreign minister Julie Bishop to ask Beijing if other countries could have access to the facilities. A Canberra public servant has lost her bid for compensation after claiming she was bullied and humiliated by her boss causing anxiety, depression and high blood pressure. The veteran Disability ACT staffer claimed an email from her supervisor about shift allocations in 2013 left her devastated, nauseous and suffering heart palpitations and dizziness. The Canberra based public servant told the tribunal her managers were trying to bully her into working a roster that would affect her well-being. Credit:Michel OSullivan Comcare initially accepted liability the woman's repetitive strain injuries in 2011, although she lodged a claim for compensation in 2013 based on the anxiety allegedly caused by her supervisor. According to an Administrative Appeals Tribunal of Australia judgement, the woman claimed to have been bullied and discriminated by her manager who she accused of making unprofessional accusations. A Canberra man who allegedly blew a whistle near the site of a kangaroo cull has faced court to fight charges he hindered workers at the annual shooting operation. Police allege that protester Christiaan Klootwijk, 70, repeatedly blew his whistle to frighten off animals and disrupt the cull at Wanniassa Hills Nature Reserve in Canberra's south. Christiaan Klootwijk pleaded not guilty to two charges he hindered a public official. Credit:Graham Tidy More than a dozen animal rights activists gathered outside the ACT Magistrates Court to support Klootwijk when the case came before Chief Magistrate Lorraine Walker on Wednesday. Klootwijk pleaded not guilty to two charges he obstructed a public official during the cull in July last year. If I were to believe in theatre ghosts I could have sworn that the spirit of the late Ralph Wilson hovered around us as I spoke with Gorman Arts Centre director, Joseph Falsone and creative producer Adelaide Rief. Wilson died in 1994, but he is still affectionately remembered by the many students of Canberra High School where he was principal. He is purported to have known the names of every single student. He is also fondly remembered by many in Canberra's theatre community, who would visit the black box theatre that bears his name to enjoy his minimalist interpretations of the classic works of such playwrights as Chekhov, Ibsen, Beckett and Brecht. After his death, the Ralph Wilson Theatre experienced a chequered career, sporadically used by hirers and subleased for a period by Janine Ayres and her Dance Aerial Theatre. From 2001 to 2013, Gorman House as the Arts Centre was then known received no funding and the theatre gradually fell into disrepair and was closed for a lengthy period of time. In 2014, Ainslie Arts Centre and the renamed Gorman Arts Centre combined and the funding began to flow again from ArtsACT. The initial seeding grant of $48,000 for a year has now grown to a sizeable $149,000 for each centre, allowing Falsone and his team to embark on a program of revitalisation for the Centre and its various venues. Joseph Falsone says Ralph Wilson was a respected figure with a reputation for quality. Credit:Rohan Thomson "We agonised over changing the name of the theatre," Falsone says, "but decided to keep it. Ralph was a respected figure and had a reputation for quality. He had boldness in the work he did. We're not consciously trying to repeat or build on his work, but we felt that he was honoured by the community. Honouring that legacy and respecting that name was something we really felt like doing." And so the challenge became to bring the theatre up to proper, professional standards. Safe access to the bio box was no longer possible; the electrics were old and unsafe and a basic lighting rig was missing. "The idea of having a black box theatre sitting in the heart of the city, effectively mothballed, is something that had to be addressed. This is our way of minimal investment within a means to get it going, and the nature of the programme reflects the strength and opportunity and also the level of resourcing that it requires." The failed extradition of a Canberra man on unsubstantiated war crimes allegations shows the need for stronger safeguards for Australian citizens, independent senator John Madigan has told Parliament. The senator's comments come as the federal government continues negotiations on an extradition treaty with China - a nation that refuses even to reveal the number of people it is sentencing to death. Barrister Bernard Collaery, pictured, convinced Bosnia there was not enough evidence to justify its extradition of Canberra man Krunoslav Bonic, 40. Credit:Graham Tidy Australian extradition law currently has a "no evidence" rule, which effectively allows foreign governments to have Australians extradited without having to show any evidence to support their allegations. The rule means Australian courts are not required to consider the strength of the allegations being used by a foreign nation to justify the extradition. The man behind a successful light rail development in Arizona says Canberra will see increased property prices, public transport use and growing density as a result of the Gungahlin tramline. This week Planning Minister Mick Gentleman toured the Sun Link streetcar system in Tucson, Arizona, as part of an overseas delegation considering planning and urban renewal in the United States and Canada. Planning Minister Mick Gentleman and members of an ACT delegation in Tuscon, Arizona, in February 2016. The $US196 million ($270 million) Sun Link development took less than two years to build and includes a fleet of eight trams running on a six kilometre route. The system started operations in downtown Tucson in July 2014, taking 60,000 people on its opening weekend. A new financial technology industry body, Fintech Australia, has provided the federal government with a manifesto to build a thriving ecosystem to help protect the financial services industry from disruption by global technology giants. The formal organisation of leading fintech players comes as the government established a fintech advisory group to be chaired by Westpac Banking Corp director and Stone & Chalk chairman Craig Dunn. Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull on his way to meet the fintech advisory group in Parliament House on Wednesday. Credit:Andrew Meares Members of the new group spent an hour meeting with Prime Minster Malcolm Turnbull, Treasurer Scott Morrison, Assistant Treasurer Kelly O'Dwyer, Industry Minster Chris Pyne and Innovation Minister Wyatt Roy in Parliament House on Wednesday. The ministers told the group they accepted Australia has a natural competitive advantage in financial services and they want to understand what policy reforms might give fintech players the best chance of success in an increasingly competitive international market. A review of governance at non-profit superannuation funds has been told the sector needs to stop using its track record of delivering stronger investment returns than its retail rivals as an excuse for resisting a push for more independence on boards. Women on Boards executive chair, and former independent chairman of super fund Australian Ethical, Ruth Medd was one of those who told Bernie Fraser's industry-funded review of governance in the super sector that the industry fund lobby was wrong to resist the government's push to force more independence on trustee boards. Four expert panel members have been appointed to help Bernie Fraser assess submissions to his review of governance at industry super funds. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen Ms Medd said claims that representative directors were more focused on members' best interests and had contributed to the historically superior financial performance of industry funds over retail funds "would not stack up into the future". More transparent processes around the appointment of independent directors also gave qualified women a fairer chance, reflected in better gender diversity on retail fund boards, she said. The Sunshine Coast Daily, Fraser Coast Chronicle and Gympie Times are among some of the iconic titles up for sale as APN News & Media moves to offload its regional publishing business. Chief executive Ciaran Davis says there is already interest in the sale, which will allow APN to free up investment and focus on its growing outdoor advertising and radio businesses. Advertising markets in New Zealand and regional Queensland remain challenging, APN chief executive Ciaran Davis says. Credit:Christopher Pearce Mr Davis told Fairfax Media that it was early on in the sale process "but there are a couple of interested parties" although there was not a set timeframe on the sale. With the opportunities to grow revenue in radio and the out-of-home advertising market, APN cannot justify diverting money away from those areas in Australian Regional Media (ARM), Mr Davis said. The clash of technology giants Google and Yahoo against ad-blockers turned "nuclear" overnight at the Mobile World Congress- It's easy to see why. In the 12 months to August, ad-blocking cost advertisers $US22 billion as the use of some type of ad-blocking software increased 41 per cent globally to 198 million users. Without advertising revenue, publishers and websites will struggle to pay staff. Credit:Bloomberg Advertising pays the bills for much of the online world, for publishers and tech giants alike. At the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Google managing director of media and platforms Ben Faes and Yahoo vice president and general manager of advertising Nick Hugh joined Roi Carthy, the chief marketing officer of Shine Technologies, an ad-blocker that allows telecommunications network operators to block ads before they even reach the customers' phone, joined a panel where tensions soared. Brazilian police are seeking a court order to arrest six Samarco Mineracao executives for alleged negligence in a tailings dam spill that killed at least 17 people in November. Minas Gerais state police released the findings of an initial inquiry in an e-mailed statement on Tuesday. Also under investigation is an engineering contractor. Rescue workers search for victims at the site where the town of Bento Rodrigues stood before the dams burst. Credit:AP Samarco, a joint venture owned by Vale and BHP Billiton, said in an e-mailed response that the proposed detentions are misguided and that it will wait for the court's decision before taking action. Samarco is undertaking its own investigation of the collapse and is collaborating with authorities, it said. In a separate statement, BHP and Vale said they are studying comments made by police in Brazil. "These are serious allegations that need to be fully considered," the companies said on Wednesday in a joint statement. "We will study the statement of the civil police closely." Wesfarmers chief executive Richard Goyder says it is unlikely the Perth-based conglomerate will offload its struggling resources division, which posted its first loss in 16 years on Wednesday. The resources division, which includes Curragh Coal in Queensland and the 40 per cent-owned Bengalla coal mine in NSW, was one of only two divisions to record a drop earnings in the six months to December 31, driven by currency hedge losses and lower export coal prices. Wesfarmers' resources division has posted its first loss since it bought Curragh Coal in 2000. Credit:Darren Pateman The souring performance left Merrill Lynch analyst David Errington warning the resources division would continue to suffer as he described the operation as Wesfarmers' equivalent to Woolworths' doomed Masters hardware operation. "Your earnings are going to get poleaxed and that's a statement of fact," Mr Errington told Wesfarmers chief executive Richard Goyder on a conference call on Wednesday. "Over the past few years, over 40 per cent of all new mortgages originated have been interest-only mortgages. "This is truly Ponzi financing, where home buyers only make money if their houses keep rising in value," he writes, later describing interest only loans as a "disaster waiting to happen." The negative gearing effect... It is one of the most contentious issues in the national political discourse at the moment. Sir Ross Smith's final flight over Sydney Sir Ross Smith and Sir Keith Smith departed from Richmond in the great Vickers Vimy, rising "like a gigantic bird into the sky" before making a final pass over the city then turning southwards for Melbourne. At their stop in Cootamundra after a four-and-a-half-hour flight ,Sir Ross said it would make an ideal centre for an interstate aerodrome, and he again urged the importance of aviation to Australia. Sir Ross Smith's Vickers Vimy plane at Mascot in Sydney about 1920. Credit:Fairfax Sensational police raid in Dublin One hundred police and fully armed soldiers, a tank, motor lorries and two armoured cars with machine guns turned on the gathered crowd in a raid on a window-blind factory in Dublin, which resulted in the arrest of the two brothers of McGrath, who was injured in an earlier attack on police in Westmoreland Street. The crowd gave the prisoners a thunderous cheer, and hissed the soldiers and police. When Bill Shorten is one of the few people talking sense on Senate voting reform, you know we have a problem. On Tuesday, he observed that "it is not in the nation's interest or our economic future to give the Greens party the balance of power in the Senate". Shorten is well-qualified to comment. Labor was forced into a deadly embrace with the Greens once before. It wasn't a pleasant experience for them or Australia, and Shorten is right to want to avoid it again. The irony is that former Greens leader Bob Brown won the first Senate seat for the Greens in 1996 based on the current Senate voting system. The Liberals won three of the six Tasmanian Senate seats up for grabs, Labor won two, and Labor was ahead of Brown by 3450 votes in the race for the last seat. That's where the race would have ended if optional preferential voting the voting system the Coalition is about to enact into law with Greens support was used to count the votes. Labor would have won the last seat, allowing Labor and the Liberals to strengthen their grip on national politics. Thanks to Group Voting Tickets, the race for the last spot didn't end. Instead, the Electoral Commission saw that more than 17,000 people had voted for the Democrats, who hadn't won a seat. And the Democrats had told the Electoral Commission that if their votes didn't elect a Democrat, those votes should be used to help elect a Greens candidate. The Democrats had also made this known to their members and anyone else who cared to listen. So the Electoral Commission transferred these 17,000 votes from the Democrats to the Greens. Bob Brown overtook Labor, won the last Senate seat, and the era of the Greens on the national political scene was born. The criterion for judging electoral reform is simple: will it help elections better reflect the intent of voters? The government's proposed Senate changes will. Micro-party crossbenchers can hardly take the moral high ground or claim to be hard done by. They cynically gamed the system by paying advisers to structure preference deals specifically to bypass the intention of voters. Most electors had never heard of candidates who were preferenced. Some chose party names to confuse voters. It was undemocratic. Confidence in the electoral system was eroded. What comes around goes around. Some of the losers from the preference whispering ploy the Coalition, the Greens, South Australian independent Nick Xenophon are quite rightly moving to close the loopholes. If the new rules were passed, and the Senate blocked for a second time legislation seeking to re-establish the building industry watchdog, an early double-dissolution, full-Senate election is possible on July 2, rather than a House and half-Senate election in August or September. Early elections usually mean the government seeks political advantage. Rarely are they about improving the functioning of government or democracy. This time might be different. NSW is about to get a new Biodiversity Act that, if enacted, will replace a number of hard-won pieces of environmental law. Triage and reductionist science may play a role in the new Act. Such has been the rate of species extinction on Earth over recent years due to human impacts that a new geological epoch, the Anthropocene, is proposed. The World Wildlife Fund estimates as many as 100 million species may exist on Earth. If one assumes the current extinction rate is at least 0.01 per cent, this amounts to 10,000 species lost each year: thousands of times above the natural background rate. In NSW, more than 1000 species of plants and animals and 100 ecological communities (habitats) are listed as threatened. NSW has the worst extinction record for middle-sized mammals. A tree change might be on the cards for tens of thousands of Baby Boomers. Credit:Erin Jonasson Ethical considerations towards the natural world arose in antiquity but accelerated in 19th and 20th centuries. Concrete action to address nature conservation arose 130 years ago with the establishment of the world's first national parks and controls on taking wildlife followed by laws on pollution, threatened species and habitat clearing. Society was beginning to place weight on intrinsic and economic values of species and ecosystems as concurrently science was advancing our understanding of ecosystem function and our reliance on it. Recent research on human interaction with nature suggests humans may even benefit from exposure to beneficial bacteria and natural chemicals and there is ample evidence of the benefits of ecosystem services to agriculture. By the beginning of the 21st century, NSW was a world leader in environmental regulation with advanced laws on protecting threatened species and controlling vegetation clearing. Effective provisions of these laws could be revoked or weakened in the proposed NSW Biodiversity Act. Meanwhile, nature continues to be pummelled as raised in Jeff Angel's recent piece. And future directions in protecting our natural environment may be influenced by application of triage underpinned by unreliable habitat mapping produced through reductionist modelling methods. Triage came to prominence during 17th and 18th century European wars for prioritising the treatment of wounded soldiers. Its application in nature conservation is advocated by influential scientists with access to government and industry who in term are attracted to simplistic solutions to the complex issue of protecting biodiversity. Triage would allow particular habitats and species to be destroyed with compensatory funding allocated to protecting habitats that are less in the way of development. In this sense, the new Act could facilitate the loss of habitats and their species under the most threat from intensification of agriculture, mining and urban development. Land caveat funds could be skewed towards landscapes that require less attention owned by landholders already sympathetic to nature conservation. A means of countering this bias in expenditure is to mandate that caveat funds be directed to the most threatened regions of NSW such as over-cleared coastal valleys, vegetation on higher nutrient soils on the tablelands, western slopes and inland plains, and native grasslands and wetlands wherever they occur. A key reason for enacting threatened species and land clearing laws in the first place was to protect what was left in over-cleared or degraded landscapes. Most degraded ecosystems can recover if we protect what is left and undertake rehabilitation. A complementary issue is the rise of reductionist theoretical modelling in biodiversity conservation. Increasingly, politicians and bureaucrats are attracted to modelling for decisions, blaming theorems if things go wrong. There are significant benefits when models work. For example, the strong correlation between dieback of River Red Gum and Black Box eucalypt trees on inland floodplains with a specific water table depth can guide water extraction rules. However, models can fail especially if data are limited, as revealed in Peter Hannam's articles (SMH 16/1/16) on the unreliability of NSW plant community "segmentation" mapping. Using inaccurate mapping in land-use decisions facilitates a form of triage. It could compound losses of species and ecosystems already under stress. For example, a situation may arise where an endangered habitat is present on a property but not mapped there so it is allowed to be legally destroyed. Small patches or difficult to map threatened ecosystems such as ephemeral wetlands, herblands, inland shrublands, valley and inland open woodlands, could be legally destroyed. The most threatened terrestrial ecosystem in Australia, "temperate native grassland" is likely to suffer most because invariably it is poorly mapped. Hadyn Washington cites, in his book Demystifying Sustainability, Alfred Whitehead's explanation of the "fallacy of misplaced concreteness" as "neglecting the degree of abstraction involved when an actual entity is considered, merely so far as it exemplified certain categories of thought". Put otherwise, modelling poses the risk that the model becomes more real than reality. Washington notes: "Policy decisions are determined by mathematical theorems whose virtue is their deductive fruitfulness rather than their connection to the real world." Amidst the chaos of Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Huawei Australia's chairman John Lord took time out to discuss how our little country has become a testbed of sorts for exporting the Chinese brand into western markets. A former admiral with the Australian Navy, Lord joined Huawei in 2012, when he was approached by the company to steer the ship. Lord's appointment gave the little known brand some much needed authority and political clout. Lord took seven months researching the role and Huawei before deciding to take the offer. Four years later, it seems the fit was a good one. The Australian office was the first in the company to establish an independent board, to allow Huawei to shape the product line and marketing message specifically for Australians. When asked about the main point of contention between the Sydney and Shenzhen offices, Lord was diplomatic. "Our colleagues in China are patient, considered. We would sometimes like to move a little faster than them". In Australia, Huawei offers phones and tablets that approach or rival the capabilities of other brands on the high end of the market, but tend to be sold at a slightly lower pricepoint. Current devices on offer here include the flagship P8 phone ($699), the Google-commissioned Nexus 6P ($899) and the Huawei Watch, with the phablet Mate 8 coming soon. At MWC, Huawei unveiled its MateBook hybrid device. "It's growing rapidly," he says. "It's very interested in entertaining stories and films. Maybe there was a long period where there was no exposure to outside. Now those films are coming in, there's a bit of an appetite for that." Rendall has one concern as he edits the movie. "I don't know if I'm doing a great job for the tourist industry," he says. "They might pay me to stop making these types of films. But you never know: people might want to come and see the dreaded funnel web." Rendall wants to complete a "man versus nature" trilogy now but is guarded about what the dangerous creature will be after sharks and funnel webs. "I'm just thinking about that," he says. "I've got some clues in Nest but I'll let you know further down the track." In the hands of the Gods Brenton Thwaites plays a young thief in It's a big weekend for Australian director Alex Proyas whose action-fantasy movie Gods of Egypt opens on wide release in the US and this country. With a preview held back by the distributor until the night before it opens, there has been little word of mouth on the movie shot in Sydney since the release of the poster and trailer sparked a social media outcry late last year over the casting of predominantly white actors as ancient Egyptian gods and mortals. That prompted a rapid apology from Proyas (Dark City, I, Robot), who said: "The process of casting a movie has many complicated variables but it is clear that our casting choices should have been more diverse." The $US140 million movie centres on a young thief (Brenton Thwaites) who teams up with the god Horus (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) to battle the god Set (Gerard Butler) and rescue his beloved (Courtney Eaton). Proyas, who has been finishing IMAX and 3D versions almost up to release day, calls the movie a "fun rollercoaster ride". If it's unlikely to be one for the critics, that doesn't worry him too much. "Critics often have all sorts of elements that are kind of dictating their opinion about certain movies and I really don't have a lot of time for that," he told Short Cuts. "To me, it's all about people enjoying the movie. If it's meant to be a fun experience, that's what I hope people get out of it." Critics go down Fury Road Best young actor winner Coco Jack Gillies (left) with Sarah Snook, Shane Jacobson and Kai the Maremma in Like the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts and the Melbourne-based Australian Film Critics Association, the country's other critics body has named Mad Max: Fury Road as the year's best film. The Sydney-based Film Critics Circle of Australia also awarded George Miller's action movie best director, cinematography and editing, with a tie for best production design with Holding the Man. Kate Winslet and Judy Davis won best actress and supporting actress for The Dressmaker, with Michael Caton and Mark Coles Smith winning best actor and supporting actor for Last Cab To Darwin. There was a good spread of films winning awards with Antony Partos collecting best music for Tanna, Tommy Murphy best script for Holding the Man, Paper Planes best children's film, Coco Jack Gillies from Oddball and Ed Oxenbould from Paper Planes best young actors and Sherpa best feature documentary. Costume win for Mad Max Mad Max: Fury Road's chances at the Academy Awards on Monday our time have received a timely boost in one category with Jenny Beavan winning at the Costume Designers Guild Awards in Los Angeles. She won for excellence in a fantasy film over Cinderella's Sandy Powell, who is another leading contender to win best costume design at the Oscars. Other winners include The Danish Girl for excellence in period film and Beasts of No Nation for excellence in a contemporary film. Stunt community protests about Oscars With no recognition for the spectacular stunts in Mad Max: Fury Road and The Revenant at the Oscars, the stunt community will hold a rally at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in Los Angeles to protest at the lack of recognition for their work. Variety reports that protesters seeking an Oscar for best stunt co-ordinator plan to deliver an online petition signed by more than 45,000 people to Academy president Cheryl Boone Isaacs. "For almost 90 years, the Film Academy has blatantly discriminated against stunt people and their contribution to the medium we all love and literally bleed for," said stunt co-ordinator Jeff Wolfe, president of the Stuntmen's Association of Motion Pictures. "There are no colour lines or gender lines here. "Stuntwomen and stuntmen of all walks are affected by the disregard of their significant contribution to the films we watch. After all, what would most movies be without the action?" While the stunt community have pushed for their own Oscar for decades, the Academy rejected the idea in 2011. At the Screen Actors Guild Awards, which added stunt ensemble categories for film and television in 2008, the winners were Mad Max: Fury Road and Game of Thrones. Alien cast adds another Oscar nominee The cast continues to grow for Ridley Scott's Alien: Covenant, which is gearing up for production in Sydney. According to Deadline Hollywood, Demian Bichir, the Mexican actor from The Hateful Eight who was nominated for an Oscar for A Better Life in 2012, will join Michael Fassbender, currently nominated for an Oscar for Steve Jobs, Katherine Waterston, who played opposite him in Steve Jobs, and Danny McBride from Aloha, and the TV series Eastbound & Down. Brady holds up the carpet python that reportedly bit the boy on the face. Credit:Facebook/Craig Baker "I saw his face and the blood and his eyes were still closed so I don't think he was fully awake. "I tried to check him over but he wouldn't let me touch him anywhere." Within five minutes Tamara's cousins arrived at the property and "dealt with the snake" while Tamara drove her son to Macksville District Hospital. "Tyler doesn't remember anything - which is the best part," Tamara said. "He was only complaining about his finger hurting. He tapped his head on the way to hospital and he asked me why he was bleeding. "He wouldn't know that a snake had bitten him if we hadn't told him or if people hadn't been talking about it." A family friend, Craig Baker, posted an image of Tyler's bloodied face on Facebook, with another photograph, of her cousin Brady, holding up the snake. Brady is seen holding the snake above his head - but it is so long it drapes on the ground at his feet and is curled around his hand. Mr Baker wrote that the python bit Tyler several times on his face and hand, before Tamara heard his screams and ran to his aid. "Tammy ... had to pull the snake off him," Mr Baker said. When contacted, a spokeswoman for the Mid North Coast Local Health District said a six-year-old boy was taken to Macksville District Hospital just after midnight on February 19. The child was transferred to Coffs Harbour Hospital, and was released later that morning. Mr Baker said Tyler was "fine" following the bite. Attack very rare: snake experts Two snake experts told Fairfax Media that such an attack was extremely rare. Carpet pythons, which are not venomous, are found right along the east coast of Australia, and usually eat small animals such as possums, flying foxes or rats, they said. "I've worked with snakes for well over a decade, and it's unheard of in my experience for a carpet python to attack a child," said Gary Pattinson, a reptile handler for the wildlife rescue organisation WIRES. Mr Pattinson said snakes were "pretty fantastic, and can eat things much larger than themselves, but there's not a chance on this planet that that snake could have eaten that child". Tim Faulkner, the general manager of the Australian Reptile Park, said it was possible the carpet python has miscalculated the size of the child. "The snake wouldn't usually go for a food item that big, but it would comfortably swallow a brush-tailed possum, or something like that, which is about the same size as a small child's head," he said. "If the snake couldn't see the rest of the body - see it with heat sensitivity and the rest - it might have miscalculated how big the little fellow was." He said such an incident was "very, very rare". "Places like Borneo or Indonesia have got snakes - reticulated pythons, Burmese pythons, anacondas - that could swallow someone," he said. He considered this incident to be "a freak accident on the snake's behalf". Tensions in the South China Sea, the rise of the Islamic State group and the danger of crippling cyber attacks mean the Turnbull government's defence blueprint will tackle "a broader range of threats" than Australia has faced before, a senior Defence official has said. The Defence white paper, to be released on Thursday, will unveil what government sources said would be a $29.9 billion increase in defence spending over the next 10 years. This boost will help pay for what sources say will be the most powerful and capable defence force the nation has ever had, in particular a modernised navy in recognition of the growing strategic uncertainty in Asia. "It's fair to say that this white paper has had to take account of a broader range of threats than any previous white paper," the defence official with close knowledge of the document told Fairfax Media. A senior cabinet minister's stumble on morning television has led to a rare public backdown and revived confusion over the Turnbull government's policy agenda. Assistant Treasurer Kelly O'Dwyer quickly sought to clarify comments about the impact of proposed negative gearing changes after they appeared to be at odds with those of Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull. But the damage was already done, with Labor seizing on the contradiction as evidence the government is "all over the shop". Ministerial chiefs of staff have been ordered to finalise their new policy proposals for the federal election and submit them to Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull's office. The reminder, delivered by Mr Turnbull's chief of staff Drew Clarke at a closed door meeting on Tuesday, came after some offices missed the February 19 deadline for new policy proposals - NPPs - to be submitted. And in another sign the next election is unlikely to see big spending promises from the Coalition, ministers have also been told that any policy proposal they put forward must be offset, or more than offset, by savings elsewhere in the budget. The reminder for so-called NPPs to be filed has increased chatter in government ranks about a 53-day election campaign that would begin on May 11, a day after the federal budget is handed down, and culminate in a July 2 double dissolution election. But Cory is at least a head taller than Bill, and walks with the sort of strut that makes an observer fear the average corridor isn't quite wide enough to contain him, which befits a fellow who once rowed for Australia's coxless four. Australian rowing veteran, and Liberal senator Cory Bernardi. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen Bernardi is a man of firm opinions. He's not keen on Islam, objected to the government paying for the funerals of asylum seekers and resigned as Tony Abbott's parliamentary secretary in 2012 "in the interests of the Coalition" after suggesting that the next step after gay marriage could be a push to legalise bestiality. Bernardi felt the need to insert himself into a press conference Shorten was giving on Wednesday when talk turned to another of his concerns about the hair-raising direction of modern society. To wit, the Safe Schools program designed to eradicate the bullying of students who might be of diverse sexual orientation. Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has ordered an independent investigation of the Safe Schools Coalition after Bernardi and several other conservative Liberal politicians and the Australian Christian Lobby campaigned against it, partly because they believed it was veering towards advocating gay and transsexual lifestyles. The tagline for the collection is: "Because every kid deserves a great pair of jeans." The capsule collection features 22 pieces ranging from skirts to shirts and even jeans, which often present problems for children who use wheelchairs or other mobility devices. Each of the pieces retails at a comparable price to the brand's existing children's collection. The designer has partnered with US disabled children nonprofit Runway of Dreams to develop adaptive versions of his established children's line, it was announced on Tuesday. Tommy Hilfiger's range is a collaboration with Runway of Dreams. Credit:Tommy.com It is available to buy through Tommy Hilfiger's online store in the US, however it will not be available in Australia, with a representative from PVH Brands Australia, which manages the Tommy Hilfiger's Australian distribution, telling Fairfax Media the line has been "specifically developed for the US market". This is the first designer collaboration for Runway of Dreams, a nonprofit started by New Jersey mother, Mindy Scheier. Scheier started the organisation in 2013, when her then 8-year-old son Oliver, who has a rare case of muscular dystrophy and uses a wheelchair, wanted to wear jeans like his friends at school. The mother of three, who has a background in fashion design, altered a pair of jeans to go over her son's leg braces, however the design meant she had to go to Oliver's school at lunchtime to help him take them off so he could use the bathroom. The abuse of older people is likely to worsen as Australia's population ages and relatively wealthy baby boomers become vulnerable to mercenary family members and carers. The federal government is "appalled" at the extent of elder abuse and has asked the Australian Law Reform Commission to find ways to safeguard older Australians, Attorney-General George Brandis said on Tuesday. Widowed women who live alone are at increased risk of elder abuse. Credit:Education Images/UIG It is likely between two and 10 per cent of older Australians (those over 65), have experienced elder abuse, Senator Brandis told a national elder abuse conference in Melbourne. "It is a symptom of attitudes which fail to respect and recognise the rights of older Australians to make decisions and to live with dignity," he said. The mother of a baby girl allegedly attacked and killed by her new boyfriend has told of the moment she knew something was seriously wrong with her daughter. Renee Jones, 33, told the Victorian Supreme Court in Melbourne on Tuesday how her 11-month-old Charlotte Rose Keen would normally stand up in her cot after waking. Charlotte Rose Keen died three days before what would have been her first birthday. However, the baby was lying down when Ms Jones walked into her bedroom in Phefley Court, Wodonga, about 8.30am on December 12, 2004. Ms Jones described Charlotte, who was three days short of her first birthday, as being "floppy in the neck". Independent senator Nick Xenophon has vowed to oppose swingeing cuts to Australia's chief science organisation if they come before the Senate. The Opposition and the Greens will also unite to make job losses at the CSIRO an election issue, Senator Xenophon told a rally of about 120 scientists, STEM students and unionists outside Parliament House on Wednesday morning. A man in a 'ghost of Tony Abbott' costume at the rally to save CSIRO jobs on the front lawn of Parliament House. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen More than 350 are to lose their jobs over two years, the CSIRO confirmed in an email to staff earlier this month, after $140 million was slashed from their budget. CSIRO's chief executive Larry Marshall indicated in the email since climate change had been established, further work in the area would be a reduced priority. "If you're working for someone and you're not getting paid they need to be providing something for you in terms of training and that's extremely important," she said. "I've had really great experiences but I've had friends who have gone to a PR internship and ended up taking out the bin and cleaning up plates for people - I think that's completely inappropriate." The final year UNSW student won the 2015 Jacoby-Walkley Scholarship where she undertook a paid eight week internship with the Nine Network in Sydney and four weeks with The Walkley Foundation. She was then offered a full-time job with Nine in Sydney, before moving to Perth. Professor Pattison said internships were increasingly viewed as a prerequisite for graduates who are looking for full-time work and said the success rate of students with experience was "anecdotally high". "Genuine new learning occurs, because students are challenged by situations they have not yet have encountered; students come to understand their own capabilities and gain confidence in what they know and can do, as well as in what they can learn, work out and create on the fly," she said. It is illegal for Australian employers to withhold pay from interns, unless the work contributes to their university or training course credit. Unpaid work experience involves a short-term placement that provides students with an opportunity to advance towards their learning goals in a field related to their course and intended career. It is a learning experience, and is there to primarily benefit you and not the organisation. Enormous clusters of wet wipes are creating "fatbergs" that are clogging up sewer pipes across NSW, including a one-tonne cluster that blew out a pumping station near Lake Macquarie. Three-quarters of the one-tonne cluster of sewage and wet wipes was removed with specialised equipment from the station at Eleebana. But the rest, 300 kilograms, was removed by hand, one bucket at a time, according to Hunter Water Corporation spokesman Nick Kaiser. "Wet wipes are responsible for around 80 per cent of all sewer blockages in Hunter Water's system," Mr Kaiser said. Indigenous artists are creating the dreamtime of the future, according to last year's winner of the Telstra National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Award. Queensland artist Tony Albert took out the award last year for his work Brothers, inspired by a police shooting in Kings Cross in Sydney. Queensland artist Tony Albert won the 2015 Telstra National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Award He worked with a group of young Aboriginal men at a hostel in the Sutherland Shire in Sydney and the resulting piece was portraits of the boys with targets painted on their chests. Albert said works like this, and others created by his contemporaries, would form part of his culture's storytelling into the future. Police have praised the courage of good Samaritan Norman Olsen, whose intervention in a domestic dispute in Toowoomba on Monday cost him his life. James Callow, 22, was remanded in custody in Toowoomba Magistrates Court on Tuesday, where he appeared charged with the 65-year-old's manslaughter. It is alleged the Sydney man shoved Mr Olsen when the passing motorist stopped and attempted to intervene in an assault between himself and a former girlfriend about 3pm Monday. Mr Olsen, of Tweed Heads, fell backwards onto the road, cracking his skull against the bitumen. Infamous Queensland bank robber and prison escapee Brenden Abbott could be about to learn if he'll finally get parole. Abbott, known as the Postcard Bandit, has challenged the Queensland Parole Board's decision last year not to release him. Abbott, who's being held at the Woodford Correctional Centre, has served 17 years of a 25-year sentence for a number of armed robberies and escapes. During a hearing in the Supreme Court in Brisbane last month, Abbott told Justice Jean Dalton he'd been "squeaky clean" since 2005 and hadn't breached any prison rules during that time. Queensland could join four other Australian states and territories in banning single-use plastic grocery bags. Environment Minister Steven Miles will meet with his interstate counterparts next week, and is set to discuss how Queensland might follow South Australia, Tasmania, the ACT and Northern Territory in reducing their use. Queensland might follow other states in reducing the use of plastic bags in supermarkets. Credit:John Veage In those states, the common grey supermarket bag is banned. "One of the messages we've heard from industry is that it makes it very difficult for them if there are lots of different policies in different states," Dr Miles told the ABC on Wednesday. A hefty chunk of space rock that's small enough to go almost unnoticed yet big enough to wreak havoc if it collided with Earth is whizzing our way at more than 14 kilometres a second. The asteroid, roughly 30 metres across and about the weight of Sydney's Harbour Bridge, follows an elliptical, egg-shaped route as it orbits the sun, routinely crossing Earth's path. A circular hole in the ice where a piece of asteroid debris reportedly struck a lake near Chelyabinsk, about 1500 kilometres east of Moscow, in February 2013. Credit:AP Photo During the last lap two years ago, it flew by at the reassuringly safe distance of more than 2 million kilometres. Detected as a faint moving spot in the sky, 2013 TX68, as the rock is known, will not hit our planet when it sails by about 11am, Eastern Standard Time, on March 8, NASA scientists predict. The Christian Brothers hired a private investigator in 1995 to "dig up dirt" on victims of a notorious paedophile priest in Ballarat. The Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse was told today the private investigator, Glynis McNeight, of Ballarat, visited two victims of Brother Ted Dowlan at home just before Dowlan was charged by police for historical sex crimes against boys. Brian Brandon leaves the Ballarat Magistrate's Court after giving evidence on Wednesday. Credit:Simon O'Dwyer The object of the exercise, the commission heard, was for the Christian Brothers' legal team from a small firm in Ocean Grove to find out what kind of witnesses the victims would be in court and whether, according to counsel assisting the commission Stephen Free, they would be "easily torn apart in the witness box". The company selected to build the dumped East West Link is now vying to carry out early work for the Melbourne Metro Rail project. A consortium bid including Lend Lease is among three short-listed from 44 entrants for the first stages of the $11 billion rail project. The company was also awarded the contract to remove nine level crossings. Lend Lease Engineering has teamed with Coleman Rail to bid for the Melbourne Metro contract. The former headmaster of St Kevins College in Toorak, Brother Brian Brandon a senior Victorian Catholic administrator - admitted today it was "questionable" to give paedophile priest Ted Dowlan a job at an orphanage housing young victims of clerical sexual abuse. Brother Brandon a former head of legal affairs and provincial council member of the Christian Brothers for Victoria and Tasmania said there were "suspicions" but not "knowledge" of Brother Dowlan's sexual interest in boys at the time of the appointment. Ted Dowlan. Brother Brandon has also held a role with the church's professional standards team. Brother Dowlan started working at the St Vincents Boys Orphanage in South Melbourne in 1989. A jury could be called to decide whether a teen who was riding the mini-motorbike involved in a fatal crash outside a shopping centre was negligent, as he disputes part of the most serious charge against him. Melbourne Magistrates Court heard on Wednesday prosecutors and lawyers for Caleb Jakobsson had been unable to negotiate a plea on the charge of culpable driving causing death, and that the matter would now go to a committal hearing. Caleb Jakobsson appears at the County Court. Credit:Eddie Jim That hearing will then determine whether he stands trial. Mr Jakobsson, 19, faces a string of charges over the death of Andrea Lehane, who was hit by a "monkey" motorbike outside a shopping centre in Carrum Downs on September 23 last year. Ms Lehane was on a zebra crossing at the time. The Australian widow of a passenger who died on board the missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 is suing the airline for compensation. Jennifer Chong, 48, from Kew, has launched legal action in the Victorian Supreme Court over the death of her husband of 23 years, Chong Ling Tan. Jennifer Chong, whose husband Chong Ling Tan was on missing flight MH370, is suing Malaysia Airlines for compensation. Credit:Eddie Jim In her writ filed with the court, Mrs Chong said her husband had been seated in business class seat 1C on the doomed March 8, 2014, flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing when it disappeared. Mrs Chong said that in late January 2015, the Malaysian Department of Civil Aviation declared the plane's disappearance had been an accident and there were no survivors. All Victorians conceived by egg or sperm donation will from next year be able to discover the identity of their donor regardless of whether the donor wants to remain anonymous. The legislative council passed a long-awaited amendment to the Assisted Reproductive Treatment Act on Tuesday night, which opens up access to information for donor-conceived Victorians regardless of when they were born. People born people born before 1998 will now be able to access information about their donor. The change comes into force on March 1, 2017 and will affect thousands of people born before 1998 who will be able to access information about their donor, including their name, date of birth or ethnic background, without the donor's consent. Men who gave sperm donations before 1998 had done so believing their identity would be kept anonymous. The felling of an ancient jarrah tree in Coolbellup - an act a biologist likened to "burning the Mona Lisa" - has raised questions about who Main Roads WA allows to work on environmentally significant land. The death of the 'king jarrah', which at about 500 years old was one of just a handful of its kind left on the Swan Coastal Plain, was greeted with outrage by academics, the arboriculture industry, the local council and residents. Save Beeliar Wetlands convenor Kate Kelly with the giant jarrah tree. Questions have arisen about the qualifications, suitability and independence of the subcontractor who both wrote the report that recommended the lopping, then carried out the work. Paul Haning, who declined to comment, has not listed arboriculture or tree risk assessment qualifications on his business' website Arbor Plus or any other online profile or professional document. He is not listed on the national public register of qualified arborists. A teenage boy was seriously injured on Tuesday when he was clotheslined by a wire placed across the track where he was dirt-biking in Perth's outer northern suburbs. The 16-year-old was riding with a friend on a property on Pinjar Road, Mariginiup, WA Police spokeswoman Susan Usher said. Anyone with information should call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000. "As he rode down the fire burn track on the southern side of the property next to a strawberry farm, he collided with a metal wire which had been placed from one side of the track to the strawberry farm fence on the other side," she said. The boy is in stable condition at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. No matter how you slice and dice, the food furore surrounding 'Deli-gate', it's a dog's breakfast. Former My Kitchen Rules contestant turned-STM food critic Kelly Ramsay's claim her MKR partner-in-crime Chloe James was at the West End Deli restaurant in her original review was a fat, plump, juicy porky pie. The Sunday Times were seduced by an odd phenomena: the blind fascination to give a voice to 'celebrity' about a subject they may have not previously written about. Once it was revealed by the TV cooks' manager that Ms James was elsewhere on the night of the original review, the offending lines from the STM review made it hard to swallow: "On the walk back to my place, Chloe sighed: 'Shall we head to the Leedi for dinner take two?' A small town medical practice in New Zealand has offered a $NZ400,000 ($370,000) annual salary for a junior doctor to join but has had no applicants in two years. Dr Alan Kenny, 61, who co-owns the practice in Tokoroa, a town on the North Island with a population of 13,600, has tried using four medical recruitment firms but failed to find a candidate. He moved from Britain 30 years ago to take up the job. "Auckland has the biggest medical school and most kids who go to medical school come from wealthy families in the Auckland area," he said. The death toll in Fiji from Cyclone Winston stands at 42 with Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama warning his devastated nation it faces a long and difficult recovery. "Almost no part of our nation has been left unscarred," Mr Bainimarama said in a national address on Wednesday. He said Winston, believed to be the most powerful storm ever to hit Fiji, had left "a terrible trail of destruction in its wake" and created a need that is great and urgent. "Right now the priority is on restoring essential services and supplying our people with sufficient food, water and shelter," he said. Every night, for six months, she slept with her phone on the pillow, waiting for a call that would never come. Now Zhou Shiqin is waiting again, this time to see if her quiet life in south-east suburban Melbourne is about to be taken from her, as China announces a renewed push to repatriate its wanted alleged criminals hiding overseas. Melbourne grandmother Zhou Shiqin is one of China's most wanted Credit:Interpol Ms Zhou, a small, mild-mannered grandmother with short, loose curls, ranks Number 42 on China's most-wanted list of international fugitives, accused of embezzling 8 million yuan ($A1.7 million) while working at a state-owned railway authority. As the Turnbull government edges closer to formalising an extradition treaty with Beijing, she is still fighting to clear her name. The United Nations carried out its first airdrop of humanitarian aid to the Syrian city of Deir al-Zor , UNaid chief Stephen O'Brien said, delivering 21 tonnes of relief to civilians besieged by Islamic State militants. "Earlier this morning a WFP (World Food Programme) plane dropped the first cargo of 21 [metric] tonnes of items into Deir al-Zor," O'Brien told the UN Security Council on Wednesday. "We have received initial reports ... that pallets have landed in the target area." However, UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric later told reporters the WFP was still trying to get information on where the aid ended up, suggesting it may not have all reached the target area. Former prime minister Mahathir Mohamad has called for Malaysians to rise up against embattled Prime Minister Najib Razak, escalating political tensions in the south-east Asian country. "I think the time has come when parties do not matter anymore. This is a problem affecting the nation," Dr Mahathir told reporters in a pitch for political adversaries to put aside their differences to act against Mr Najib, including members of the long-ruling United Malays National Organisation. 'I want everybody to act as citizens who are concerned with what is happening in this country' ... former Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohamad. Credit:AP "I want everybody to act as citizens who are concerned with what is happening in this country," he said. "As a citizen, it does not matter whether you are for the opposition or the government now is the time to act as citizens, irrespective of party affiliations or loyalties." The New Zealand GP who couldn't find a doctor to take up a $NZ400,000 ($370,000) position at his practice has been inundated with "trash" applicants since the job went global. Alan Kenny, of Tokoroa, has been looking for a junior doctor to work in his surgery in the South Waikato town for two years with no successful applicants. Tokoroa GP Alan Kenny has been inundated with calls from across the world - but most aren't worth considering. Credit:Aden Miles/Fairfax NZ The $370,000 a year job includes three months annual holiday and no night or weekend work. Since his plight went public this week, there are reports Dr Kenny had been inundated with applicants from around the world including Brazil, Central America, Poland, Ukraine, India, Bosnia, South Africa, Canada and France. Kabul: Afghan officials took delivery of 10,000 automatic rifles and millions of rounds of ammunition as a gift from Russia on Wednesday, another sign of deepening involvement by Moscow in the war-torn country. Dependent almost entirely on foreign aid, Afghan security forces are struggling to secure the country amid a rising insurgency. As the NATO-led coalition's military presence dwindled last year, Afghan leaders reached out to Moscow, which fought a war of its own in Afghanistan during the 1980s, for more Russian-made weapons, including small arms, artillery and attack helicopters. "This donation represents a deep friendship between two nations," Afghan national security adviser Hanif Atmar said at an event marking delivery of the arms shipment. "This important donation is from an important friend of Afghanistan in a crucial time for Afghanistan and the region." Cairo: As alibis go, this one would seem to be airtight: Your honour, my client was only a year old at the time of the crime. But it did not stop an Egyptian military court from convicting the accused, a boy now three and a half, of killing three people, carrying guns and firebombs, blocking a road with burning tires, and trying to damage government buildings, and sentencing him to life in prison. The verdict came last week in a mass trial of 107 people suspected of being members of the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood, and the charges stemmed from the protests, street clashes and police crackdowns in Egypt after the military overthrow of the elected president, Mohamed Morsi, in 2013. Hundreds of people were killed and thousands were jailed. PHILIPSBURG:--- Minister of Public Health, Social Development and Labour (VSA), Emil Lee approached the Nature Foundation St. Maarten for advice on sustainable and environmentally friendly measures to reduce disease spreading mosquitos and Director Tadzio Bervoets responded immediately. In addition to eliminating mosquito breeding grounds, Mr. Bervoets came out strongly in support of the lethal ovitraps that Minister Lee promptly ordered for a field trial. These traps use a pesticide that is strong and effective and as it is contained in the traps does not get into the environment and kill other natural organisms that are part of the ecosystem. Director Bervoets also presented Minister Lee with a bat house that will give St. Maartens only native mammal a place to live as human development has reduced bats native habitats. Bats eat thousands of mosquitos and it has been scientifically established that a healthy bat population significantly reduces mosquito populations. Along with the bat house, which is made from natural wood, Mr. Bervoets also presented Minister Lee with easy to build plans for the houses. Minister Lee in the spirit of inter-ministerial cooperation requested the involvement of Minister of Education, Culture, Youth and Sports, Sylveria Jacobs. Minister Jacobs who fully supports environmental conservation, suggested that the students from St. Maarten Vocational School could build the traps for the Nature Foundation initiative and would look for business groups to donate the supplies. In conclusion Minister Lee stated, The war against mosquitos must be fought on all levels. Residents are called upon to get rid of breeding sites, which is any container that holds stagnant water, an uncovered or unscreened cistern or rain barrel must be dealt with, mosquito dunks should be placed in stagnant water pools and if you see a breeding site report it to the CPS hotline 550-CALL. This reporting hotline can also be accessed through WhatsAPP. Prison short-staffed confirms Minister of Justice --- Persons aiding and abetting criminals can face up to 4 years in prison. PHILIPSBURG: --- Minister of Justice Edison Kiridongo confirmed that the prison is short-staffed and he is currently looking for someone to assist the prison director to recruit extra manpower. Kiridongo made clear that the process have not yet started but it is part of his plan since he is fully aware that the prison is understaffed. As for the escape of Kathron Fortune aka Cuchi from prison guards last week the Minister said that the prosecutors office is in constant communication with the French authorities and the search that was conducted last week on the French side was a joint effort. The Minister further explained that so far the police has no information on the prisoner being seen on the Dutch side of the island, however that does not mean he is not on the Dutch side of the island. Minister Kirindongo said police have mobilized their crime investigation team and observation team. He said the patrol units do have information the escaped prisoner, while the prosecutors office did send out two press releases with detailed description of the escaped prisoner and his photograph. The Minister of Justice further explained that currently there are two investigations taking place on the escape, one being to recapture the escaped prisoner while the other one which is conducted by the National Detectives is to determine how the prisoner escaped from prison guards. Minister Kirindongo said that prisoners who escape from prison faces a maximum of nine years when they are recaptured while those that are involved in aiding and abetting criminals can face up to four years behind bars. Invitation to TECSYS Conference Call on March 2, 2016 MONTREAL, QUEBEC (Marketwired) 02/24/16 TECSYS Inc. (TSX: TCS) will release its financial results for the third quarter ended January 31, 2016 on March 1, 2016 after the market close. TECSYS President and CEO, Mr. Peter Brereton, and Mr. Berty Ho-Wo-Cheong, Vice President, Finance and Administration and CFO, will host a conference call on March 2 at 8:30 a.m. EST to present and discuss the results with the analysts. The call can be replayed by calling 416-626-4100 (access code: 21806779) or 800-558-5253 (access code: 21806779). About TECSYS TECSYS provides transformative supply chain solutions that equip our customers to succeed in a rapidly-changing omni-channel world. TECSYS solutions are built on a true enterprise supply chain platform, and include , and , as well as complete financial management and analytics. Customers running on TECSYS are confident knowing they can execute, day in and day out, regardless of business fluctuations or changes in technology, they can adapt and scale to any business needs or size, and they can expand and collaborate with customers, suppliers and partners as one borderless enterprise. From demand planning to demand fulfillment, TECSYS puts power into the hands of both front line workers and back office planners, and unshackles business leaders so they can see and manage their supply chains like never before. TECSYS is the market leader in supply chain solutions for . Over 600 mid-size and Fortune 1000 customers trust their supply chains to TECSYS in the healthcare, , , and general wholesale high-volume distribution industries. TECSYS shares are listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol . The statements in this news release relating to matters that are not historical fact are forward looking statements that are based on managements beliefs and assumptions. Such statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to a number of uncertainties, including but not limited to future economic conditions, the markets that TECSYS Inc. serves, the actions of competitors, major new technological trends, and other factors beyond the control of TECSYS Inc., which could cause actual results to differ materially from such statements. More information about the risks and uncertainties associated with TECSYS Inc.s business can be found in the MD&A section of the Companys annual report and annual information form for the fiscal year ended April 30th, 2015. These documents have been filed with the Canadian securities commissions and are available on our website () and on SEDAR (). Copyright TECSYS Inc. 2016. All names, trademarks, products, and services mentioned are registered or unregistered trademarks of their respective owners. Contacts: Solutions and general info: Investor relations: (514) 866-5800 ext. 4120 Media relations: TECSYS Inc. (514) 866-0001 or (800) 922-8649 SS8 Names Faizel Lakhani President and COO MILPITAS, CA (Marketwired) 02/24/16 , the leader in communications analytics and network forensics, today announced that Faizel has been named president and chief operating officer (COO), and is now a member of the SS8 Board of Directors. Faizel joined SS8 in 2011 as the companys chief marketing officer, and has since architected the adaption of SS8 technology in use by the worlds most advanced intelligence agencies and leading telecommunications service providers for the needs of modern enterprises. Faizel now joins CEO Dennis Haar in leading SS8s global operations and will focus on driving the rapid expansion of the companys business. Faizel has been instrumental in establishing SS8 as a leader in communications analytics within the and service provider markets, said Dennis Haar, CEO of SS8. We have tremendous confidence in Faizels ability to bring ground-breaking enterprise breach detection solutions to benefit the broader enterprise market. Faizel has extensive experience in data security, network security, switching, routing, and Voice-over-IP technologies spanning both the enterprise and service provider markets. Prior to SS8, Faizel was VP of Data Loss Prevention (DLP) at McAfee, where he led the DLP business worldwide. Prior to McAfee, Faizel was responsible for products and marketing at Reconnex and held executive leadership roles in product and marketing at ConSentry, Caspian Networks and Nortel Networks. Faizel has an MBA from The University of Ottawa, a Masters in Engineering from Carleton University and a Bachelors in Engineering from McMaster University. We are at a critical inflection point in enterprise security, said Faizel Lakhani. Despite the best efforts of a barrage of perimeter, network and endpoint security defenses, breaches have continued and will continue to occur. Todays enterprises have no way to quickly and efficiently determine if they have been breached or if a breach is imminent. SS8 solves this problem with a Time Machine for Breaches that allows organizations to go back to when the activity started and quickly remediate. Faizel adds, Cyber attacks are growing increasingly sophisticated. The attackers are slowing down their activities to hide in the noise of normal traffic. This is where SS8 shines. Our deep application knowledge and extensive retrospective analysis of enriched communication metadata summaries enables us to uncover otherwise concealed anomalies and threats. SS8 will be exhibiting its ground-breaking breach detection solution in booth #4805 at the , being held at the Moscone Center in San Francisco from February 29 to March 3. SS8 gives enterprise security teams, service providers and intelligence agencies the quickest and most cost-effective solution for identifying, tracking and remediating network threats. By generating, storing and analyzing months and even years of enriched metadata summaries of all communication flows, SS8 customers gain unprecedented content- and context-aware intelligence that allows them to find what matters most. SS8 is trusted by six of the worlds largest intelligence agencies, five of the 10 largest communications providers and two of the top five critical infrastructure providers. Learn more at . Image Available: CensorNet to Present to AGC Investors Complete Cloud Security BASINGSTOKE, UNITED KINGDOM and SAUSALITO, CA (Marketwired) 02/24/16 the complete cloud security company, protecting over 4000 customers with more than 1.3 million users in 47 countries, has been invited to present at the first day of at 9:45 AM on Monday, February 29, 2016. During the presentation entitled, Complete Cloud Security, CensorNet Chief Executive Officer, Ed Macnair, will discuss the need for a unified approach to cloud security. CensorNet helps organizations meet the challenge of benefiting from all the advantages of cloud applications while minimizing security risks by giving them greater visibility and control over internet access and the use of cloud applications across all devices, regardless of whether users are in-office or mobile. The company recently acquired SMS PASSCODE, a multi-factor authentication vendor, to integrate SMS PASSCODEs adaptive multi-factor authentication technology into its cloud-based Unified Security Solution, which brings together email and web security with Cloud Application Control. With the growth of cloud applications use and an increasingly mobile workforce using multiple devices, CIOs are under immense pressure to encourage productivity and protect sensitive data at the same time. Enterprises need visibility of the complete, bigger security picture. Our unified security platform combines email, web and cloud application control, and soon to include integrated adaptive multifactor authentication, will give enterprises complete control and visibility over its security environment through one single pane of glass, said Ed Macnair, CEO of CensorNet. The AGC Conference comprises keynotes, panel sessions and private and public company presentations. It is hosted by Americas Growth Capital (AGC), a full-service, partner-owned boutique investment bank with offices in Silicon Valley, Boston and Israel, which provides private capital, mergers and acquisitions and capital market advisory services. The conference annually attracts more than 1,600 attendees, including entrepreneurs, investors and buyers. Ed Macnair was formerly CEO of Marshal, a UK web and email security company acquired through a management buyout from NetiQ. In November 2008 he merged Marshal with US-based 8e6 Technologies to create M86 Security (now Trustwave). He founded SaaSID, a UK application security provider in 2011 which was subsequently acquired by Intermedia Inc. in September 2013. Macnair acquired CensorNet in October 2014 with three other industry-leading experts to accelerate the development of web security solutions that bridge the gap between traditional web security and cloud application control solutions. The company acquired SMS PASSCODE, a multi-factor authentication vendor in February 2016. If you would like to meet Ed Macnair, CEO of CensorNet, at the AGC conference or during the RSA conference, please contact: Ed Macnair at . CensorNet, the complete cloud security company, helps organization s step up to the challenge of managing the rise of cloud applications in an increasingly mobile work environment. Its solutions give greater visibility to senior management and much better control to IT in the supervision of company-wide internet access and the use of cloud applications across all devices, regardless of whether users are in-office or mobile. It gives organizations the power to address the security, audit, compliance and productivity issues associated with the growing use of cloud applications and mobile devices in todays digital workplace. CensorNets cloud security solutions also enable organization s to control Shadow IT and safely implement BYOD initiatives. The company is headquartered in Basingstoke, UK. For more information, please visit New President and Appointments to 2016 Board of Directors Announced by SCSI Trade Association SAN FRANCISCO, CA (Marketwired) 02/24/16 Coinciding with the consolidations and changes in the storage industry, the (STA) (), a member-run industry association established to support and promote SCSI technology, today announced a new President and a new officer along with three new members to its Board of Directors for 2016. The board would like to thank former President Marty Czekalski for his decades of service, technical expertise and dedication, said Kutcipal. We also extend a warm welcome to our new board members and look forward to working with them to vigorously promote SAS as the proven platform of innovation for storage professionals seeking fast, flexible and reliable data access. The STAs executive officers and board of directors serve in a governance and fiduciary role by representing the interests of the organizations strategic planning and on-going operations. This translates into topnotch ideas and wisdom that turn into executable programs that benefit all STA members and the storage industry at-large. Rick Kutcipal, Product Planning, Data Center Storage Group, Broadcom, STA President Mike James, Director, Engineering, Enterprise Storage Solutions, SanDisk, STA Secretary Mike Miller, Executive Director, Advanced Development, Seagate Technology Jeremiah Tussey, Sr. Product Marketing Manager (Alliances), Scalable Storage Business Unit, Microsemi Corporation Paul Wassenberg, Director, Storage Marketing, Marvell Semiconductor Vice President: Greg McSorley, Technical Business Development Manager, Amphenol Treasurer: Chet Mercado, Technical Marketing Engineer/Third Party Alliance, HGST, a Western Digital Company Board Member-at-Large: Cameron Brett, Director of SSD Product Marketing, Toshiba America Electronic Components Board Member-at-Large: Gary McCulley, Product Line Manager, Storage Group, Intel Corporation Board Member-at-Large: Jay Neer, Industry Standards Manager, Molex In 2015, the industry witnessed dramatic changes and consolidation in the enterprise storage market, said Michael T. LoBue, executive director, STA. With change and disruption come fresh perspectives, which is reflected in the 2016 STA board of directors. STAs leadership will continue to evolve its strategies to ensure that SAS remains the data storage interface of choice as it has for three generations. 2015 was notable for new 12Gb/s SAS innovations and the continued growth of 12Gb/s SAS products in the marketplace. In addition, planning for the next generation 24Gb/s SAS moved forward with the expectation of commercial devices becoming available in 2018. Proven over three generations, SAS provides robust error handling and mechanisms in place within the protocol to protect data from corruption, said Dennis Martin, Founder and President, Demartek, a computer industry analyst organization. The capability of SAS to scale to thousands of devices is another one of its many features that makes it attractive as an enterprise-class storage solution. Amphenol BizLink Technology Broadcom ConnPro Industries Dell FCI Electronics Foxconn Interconnect Technology Fujikura Ltd./DDK HPE Intel Corporation Marvell Semiconductor Microsemi Corporation Molex Samsung Semiconductor SanDisk Seagate Technology SerialTek TE Connectivity Teledyne LeCroy Toshiba America Electronic Components UNH (Honorary) Western Digital Wieson Technologies The SCSI Trade Association (STA) was established in 1996 to provide a focal point for members to communicate the benefits of SCSI to the industry. STA promotes the understanding and use of Serial Attached SCSI (SAS) technology and influences the evolution of SCSI standards to meet future industry needs. The Association has a ten-member Board of Directors, which oversees the Marketing Communications and Technology Committees and all STA activities. For more information, please visit the STA web site at , send an email to or call the STA office at (415) 561-6273. Linda Capcara TechTHiNQ 480-229-7090 International Relations February 24, 2016 Dan MacFadden Toward Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions at McGill Six years before the fall of the South African apartheid, an editorial by The Daily (South Africa Love it and Leave it, September 12, 1985, Editorial, page 4) noted optimistically, Now, even the most conservative authorities are recognizing that revolution is inevitable. Now, they are divesting not on principle, but out of self-interest. McGill would later, in November 18, 1985, join dozens of other North American universities in divesting its holdings from South Africa, also becoming the first Canadian university to do so something that played an important role in taking down legislated apartheid in the country. Thirty years later, the end of Israeli apartheid appears distant on the horizon as it has been ever since the occupation of Palestinian territories by Israel in 1967. The use of the term apartheid is a parallel drawn by human rights organizations and activists between the past racial segregation of South Africa and the Israeli concept of Hafrada (separation), whereby Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip are literally walled off via the Israeli West Bank barrier and the Gaza barrier. Palestinians in the West Bank one of two self-governing Palestinian territories as per the Oslo Accords of 1993 live under Israeli military occupation, or are confined to small islands of land under limited self-control. The Gaza Strip, the other Palestinian territory, home to 1.8 million people in one of the most densely populated areas in the world, suffers the consequences of Israels blockade and over a decade of periodic wars with Israel. Israeli settlements in these territories, including East Jerusalem, are considered illegal under international law, especially the Fourth Geneva Convention, though Israel disputes this. Meanwhile, Israel expands its domination over all the land between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean, driven by the most right-wing government in the countrys history. While many Palestinians continue to resist this situation with remarkable steadfastness, no conservative authorities are making the claim today that a revolution is inevitable in Palestine, or are divesting from Israeli corporations out of self-interest, let alone on principle. Growing Influence of BDS But the growing influence of Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) campaigns have the potential to impose a cost on the ordinary operations of Israeli apartheid. The BDS Movement was launched in 2005 by a call from 171 Palestinian Civil Society organizations and, to quote the call, was inspired by the struggle of South Africans against apartheid. It specifically called on people of conscience all over the world to impose broad boycotts and implement divestment initiatives against Israel [] until [it] meets its obligation to recognize the Palestinian peoples inalienable right to self-determination and fully complies with the precepts of international law. The dominant trend for BDS campaigns has included passing divestment resolutions that target Israeli and multinational corporations that are complicit in the violations of the rights of Palestinians. Such campaigns dont strictly adhere to the 2005 call, which supports boycott, divestment and sanctions campaigns against Israel, rather than multinational companies profiting from the occupation. However, such campaigns are generally supported or initiated by the Palestinian BDS National Committee (BNC) the organization in Palestine responsible for directing BDS campaigns worldwide and have successfully compelled companies to withdraw their services from the occupation and settlement expansion. The creation last week [on February 4th] of the McGill BDS Action Network, or simply McGill BDS, is a part of the spread of these campaigns, and the networks first goal is to pressure the University to divest from companies profiting from the occupation of the West Bank and Gaza. Documents from McGills Office of Investments show that the University holds investments in at least four companies that profit from activities in the occupied territories: G4S, L-3 Communications, Mizrahi-Tefahot Bank, and RE/ MAX. The money invested in these companies constitutes a small portion of the McGill investment portfolio less than 1 per cent of the Universitys total investments making divestment a reasonable possibility, fiscally speaking. The McGill Board of Governors Committee to Advise on Matters of Social Responsibility (CAMSR)s terms of reference make explicit their stance toward investing in companies like these that arguably do cause social injury. CAMSR defines social injury as the grave injurious impact which the activities of a company is found to have on consumers, employees, or other persons, or on the natural environment. Such activities include those which violate, or frustrate the enforcement of rules of domestic or international law intended to protect individuals against deprivation of health, safety, or basic freedoms, or to protect the natural environment. One can argue that many of Israels actions in the occupied territories and within its own territory constitute serious violations of human rights and international law, and the complicity of these companies in such activities gives reason to believe CAMSR can be persuaded to divest. Support for the Prison System The British private security systems corporation G4S has become the target of BDS campaigns in Europe and around the world especially after 13 Palestinian organizations made a statement call for action against the company in the midst of hunger strikes by Palestinian political prisoners in 2012, mostly due to its service to the Israeli Prison Service (IPS). According to Who Profits, a research centre that details commercial involvement in the Israeli occupation, the company has provided a perimeter defense system for the walls of the Ofer facility [in the West Bank] and installed a central command room inside, from which the entire facility could be monitored. Who Profits also states that the company also provided the entire security system for the Ketziot Prison, a central command room in the Megiddo Prison and security systems in the Damon Prison, all of which are located in Israel and have Palestinian detainees. G4S systems have also been installed at the Jerusalem and Kishon interrogation and detention centres. Israeli prison facilities often hold Palestinians under administrative detention that is, detention without charge or trial, which can last for periods of several months, sometimes years. By comparison, according to the Associations for Civil Rights in Israel, Israelis living in Jewish-only settlements throughout the West Bank are judged under an ordinary criminal court system and live as right-bearing citizens under Israeli law and the Israeli court system. The difference in these legal systems was even recently acknowledged by the American Ambassador to Israel, who rightly stated that it seems Israel has two standards of adherence to rule of law in the West Bank one for Israelis and one for Palestinians. Palestinian political prisoners are tortured at Israeli prison facilities. A 2013 UN report wrote that even Palestinian children arrested by [Israeli] military and police are systematically subject to degrading treatment, and often to acts of torture. Under intense pressure from European BDS groups, G4S stated in 2011 that when certain contracts expired [they] would not renew them, and reaffirmed this in June 2014. The ongoing campaign has had success with interrupting the usual operations of the IPS, and bringing awareness to the illegitimacy of administrative detention and the treatment of Palestinian political prisoners. BDS campaigns against G4S will continue, however, following a call from the BNC to escalate efforts against the company until it cancels all the contracts the company has with Israel. Support for the Military Occupation G4S and L-3 both provide goods to the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF), enabling violence against Palestinians. Research by Who Profits on both companies shows that they provide equipment to military checkpoints in the West Bank and to the Erez (border) Crossing at the Gaza Strip, which is controlled by the IDF in order to limit the flow of goods and people into the Strip. L-3s subsidiary L-3 Combat Propulsion Systems also signed a multi-year contract with the Israeli Ministry of Defense for the production and remanufacture of diesel engines for tank and armed personnel carriers. According to a November 2007 news release by L-3, the companys subsidiary L-3 Communications MAS and Israeli drone manufacturer Elbit Systems built on their respective knowledge to offer the state-of-the art Hermes 900 UAS [Unmanned Aerial System], which was used for the first time in Operation Protective Edge, the 2014 military campaign launched by Israel, resulting in the wounding and death of thousands of people, many of whom were Gazans. Israels periodic military assaults against Gaza are another method of imposing control over the Strip, the most recent of which was Operation Protective Edge. Israel deployed battle tanks and UASs on a large scale in this assault, including the Elbit Hermes 900. Elbit Systems and the IDF are secretive about the details of how their drones operate, although advertisements for the Hermes 900 boast that the drones multi-payload capacities help to close the sensor-to-shooter cycle, quicker than ever before. Further, the matrix of military checkpoints in place throughout the West Bank restricts the free movement of Palestinians between cities. Who Profits reported that G4S provided these checkpoints with luggage scanning equipment, metal detectors, and services, while L-3 provided them with SafeView magnetometric scanners and ProVision personal screening machines used to detect concealed objects on individuals. Any Palestinian from Ramallah wishing to visit their relatives in Jerusalem, for instance, will be one of hundreds or thousands of people herded through the Qalandia checkpoint each day. There, they may be detained and searched alongside other Palestinians of all ages and possibly scanned with equipment from L-3 and G4S delaying the short journey by several hours. According to Who Profits, the IDF uses the same scanners at the Erez Crossing into the Gaza Strip. While scanners provided by G4S and L-3 are used for screening people entering Gaza, and not economic goods, it is still relevant to note that Israeli control over Erez and all other crossings into the territory is maintained in order to enforce the blockade of goods into Gaza, strangling the Gazan economy and maintaining Israeli control over most aspects of daily life for the 1.8 million people living there. Support for the Settlements The remaining two companies, RE/MAX and Mizrahi-Tefahot Bank, profit from settlement activity in the West Bank. The settlements that are built on occupied Palestinian territories could be considered illegal under article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention. According to this article, so long as the territories remain occupied, the Occupied Power shall not deport or transfer parts of its own civilian population into the territory it occupies. A Human Rights Watch (HRW) report from January 19 notes that in November 2015, for example, [RE/MAX] listed 80 properties in 18 settlements on its Israeli website, and operates an office in Maaleh Adumim, one of the largest settlements in the West Bank. By selling real estate in these territories, usually to settlers coming from Canada and the U.S. or from within Israels internationally recognized borders, the company facilitates the transfer of Israelis into the West Bank. UN Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in the Palestinian Territories Occupied since 1967 Richard Falk, in a report for the UN General Assembly, said that the company assist[s] in the growth of settlements [] by selling settlement properties. Mizrahi-Tefahot, the fourth-largest commercial bank in Israel, operates branches in the settlements of Karnei Shomron, Alon Shvut, and Ramat Eshkol. More significantly, it provides mortgages to homebuyers in settlements, and finances settlement construction. Their mortgage services to these homebuyers, like RE/MAXs real estate sales, enable settlement growth and expansion. Settlement construction is financed by accompaniment agreements made between construction companies and Israeli banks, in which the banks provide the loan for the construction and protect buyers during the construction phase, according to the HRW report. According to Who Profits, one such agreement was signed with Mizrahi-Tefahot and Israeli construction company Kotler-Adika to develop a housing project in Maaleh Adumim. Furthermore, it is also alleged that the bank has financed the building of several hundred housing units in other settlements. For these reasons, RE/MAX and Mizrahi-Tefahot have become targets for BDS. The United Methodist Church in the U.S. blocked Mizrahi-Tefahot from its investment fund last month, and Luxembourgs state pension fund divested in 2014, while a campaign led by U.S. anti-war group Codepink is encouraging people to boycott RE/MAX. The Rationale for BDS Divestment from these companies could have meaningful outcomes for Palestinians. RE/MAX and Mizrahi-Tefahot are significant candidates for divestment not simply because of their services and operations in Israeli settlements, but because they play a crucial role in helping transfer Israeli citizens into occupied territory. BDS initiatives targeted against these companies and others like them have the potential to restrict further Israeli colonization of the remaining fragments of land belonging to Palestinians. Campaigns aimed at companies servicing Israels military or prisons, like L-3 and G4S, also serve their own purpose. Although such initiatives have yet to result in Israel losing contracts with the defense industry, successful campaigns have the potential to impose a real economic cost on the occupation. Furthermore, the anxiety in Israel generated by the prospect of BDS campaigns against the Israeli military infrastructure could limit state violence against Palestinians. For instance, in the fall of 2015, the Israeli repression of a growing revolt by young Palestinians elicited protests and actions around the world under the banner #SolidarityWaveBDS. Actions like these especially if theyre targeted at military infrastructure might compel IDF soldiers to exercise some caution in their operations, perhaps by avoiding use of live ammunition on demonstrators, in order to prevent the possibility of provoking greater international support for BDS. The BDS movement obviously wont lead to Palestines emancipation. But the efforts of BDS organizers, if guided properly, might prove important in supporting resistance to further colonization and oppression in Palestine. There is a willingness amongst many non-Palestinian organizers to ask the difficult question of how to properly exercise solidarity with these struggles. Lending support to BDS campaigns is by and large the best way to do this, as it allows non-Palestinians to work alongside Palestinians, using the resources available to those abroad, in countries such as Canada and the U.S., to impose pressure on Israel, while working within the framework outlined in the initial call for BDS. In this way, efforts abroad can supplement Palestinian struggles for self-determination without infringing on them. This article first published by the The McGill Daily . On Thursday February 18, the Official Opposition Conservative Party introduced a motion into the House of Commons calling on Parliament to reject the BDS movement and for the Government of Canada to condemn the varied groups and organizations supporting it. It followed on similar attacks on the Palestine Solidarity Movement in Britain, France and the USA. This past Monday, the motion passed with the support of the Conservatives and the governing Liberal Party of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. As in so many other areas, it is the continuities with the prior Conservative government of Stephen Harper, and its pro-Israel and anti-Palestine policies, that stand out. Here are two responses to the House of Commons motion. The BDS campaign and the movement for the liberation of Palestine from Occupation will continue to grow. Liberals are set to vote for motion against BDS What happened to free speech? As a Canadian I ought to be glad glad that the Tory motion which comes before Parliament on Monday calls merely for the rejection of Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) against Israel. It could be worse, it could be that Canadas Parliament would try to criminalize BDS supporters as they do in France, or penalize them as they do in Israel. In France, citizens can face jail time for calling for BDS, or boycotting Israeli products in a public way. But a boycott is a time-honoured tradition. It is one of the only non-violent and peaceful ways that members of civil society can use to persuade a government or a country to change its policy. Think back to the 1980s. What would progressive Canadians have thought if Parliament had passed a motion that Canadians reject the boycott of South African wine or produce to protest Apartheid? Other than an armed insurrection, or a war, how else could Apartheid have been dismantled? Make no mistake, today boycott, divestment and sanctions against Israel are no different. Over the last 50 years, the United Nations has passed more than 77 resolutions which have condemned Israels illegal and brutal occupation of the West Bank and Gaza. The UN even declared 2014 the International Year of Solidarity with the Palestinian People. Just a few months ago, the majority of UN member states voted to upgrade the Palestinian Authority to non-voting but official observer status. Those countries which voted against were Israel, the U.S., Canada, Micronesia and Panama. Israel, an Occupying Power Recently, another UN resolution denounced Israel as the Occupying Power, and called on Israel to comply strictly with its obligations under international law. Typically, the nations that oppose the UNs resolutions in support of Palestine include Canada, the U.S. and its half dozen client states such as the Marshall Islands and Micronesia. Canada has played a nasty role in its blanket and unwavering support of Israel to the dismay of more than 150 other nations. Indeed in the last two years, Canada has voted against more than 20 UN General Assembly resolutions that condemn Israel for seizing illegal control over Jerusalem, and for grabbing Palestinian refugees property. But as a Canadian and a Jew I am angry that the new sunny ways Liberal government has been held captive by the following absurd Tory motion: That, given Canada and Israel share a long history of friendship as well as economic and diplomatic relations, the House reject the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement, which promotes the demonization and delegitimization of the State of Israel, and call upon the government to condemn any and all attempts by Canadian organizations, groups or individuals to promote the BDS movement, both here at home and abroad. In their pledge to support the motion against BDS, one Liberal MP after the other has dispensed with any qualms about threats to free speech. The NDP, to their credit, took a principled stand. Though the NDP does not support BDS, the party does oppose the motion above because it shreds free speech. If the Liberals dont respect free speech, what do they support? Many Liberal MPs, including newly-elected Halifax MP Andy Fillmore, have gone on junkets to Israel, courtesy of CIJA (The Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs). Fillmore is not the only one. Along with Fillmore, Tory MP Michelle Rempel (Calgary Centre-North) also just returned from an Israel junket which took place in early 2016. Thats right, at least two MPs just returned from a CIJA mission to Israel, and the CIJA site boasts that at least one third of our MPs have been guests on one of their trips. Whats wrong with a junket? Though CIJA claims that the funds for the junkets come from fundraising and donations with some costs borne by those participating in the mission, the fact is that these trips are offered at low cost (if any) to participants or Canadian influencers who have shared values with Israel. According to an article in ipolitics , from 2005-2013 more than 116 MPs from all parties have benefited from free airfare and luxury accommodation in Israel courtesy of the pro-Israel lobby in Canada, including CIJA. Ipolitics suggests that more than one quarter of Canadian MPs in the last Parliament have travelled on CIJA sponsored missions to Israel. And the trend, helped by CIJAs deep pockets, shows no signs of slowing. The Liberals should use their parliamentary majority to defeat the motion. Now is the time for our MPs to stand up for free speech it is 2016, after all. Judy Haiven is a member of Independent Jewish Voices-Canada (Halifax chapter) and teaches at Saint Marys University. She writes for the Media Co-op , where this article first appeared. Independent Jewish Voices Slams Conservative Partys attack on BDS campaign in House of Commons In what is clearly designed to be an attention-grabbing opposition-day move, the Conservatives are demanding that the House of Commons back a motion to reject the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement, urging the government to condemn attempts by Canadian organizations, groups, or individuals to promote it both in Canada and abroad. This is so disappointing, said Tyler Levitan, campaigns coordinator for Independent Jewish Voices Canada. At a time when we need real leadership, were getting old ideas that have passed their moment. Around the world, support is growing for the BDS campaign to exert pressure on Israel to change its ways. The red herring that BDS is anti-Semitic is now clearly nothing more than a way to shut down legitimate discussion regarding Israel/Palestine. Debate on the Conservatives motion began in the House of Commons on Thursday, but the vote will take place today. Were well aware that the major political parties feel a need to protect themselves from criticism in the mainstream Jewish community in Canada, which continues to give unquestioning support to Israel. Unfortunately, it appears that the Trudeau government will echo the position of the Conservatives on this issue, Levitan continued. This is really shameful. Israel has long been in violation of international law but apparently no one is allowed to say this or oppose it. BDS is a completely non-violent exercise of free speech, a global campaign that has been attempting to increase economic, political and moral pressure on Israel for positive change, concluded Levitan. While both the NDP and Green Parties are opposed to BDS, both intend to vote against the Conservatives resolution on the grounds that advocating BDS constitutes a legitimate form of free speech. The Bloc Quebecois also intends to oppose the motion. This press release first published on the Independent Jewish Voices website. More news on this issue: Solar Novus Today Has Been Integrated With Novus Light Technologies Today Visit Novus Light Technologies Today to see all the cutting-edge stories and products that you have come to enjoy on Solar Novus Today. In addition, you will find more information on related light-based technologies. Get the latest solar and renewable energy news delivered right to your inbox. Sign up for the Green Technologies newsletter CLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE TO OUR GREEN TECHNOLOGIES NEWSLETTER Guest Editorial By Dr. Paul Kengor | February 24, 2016 Donald Trump on Bushs WMD Lie George Bush made a mistake, said Donald Trump in the South Carolina debate last week. We should have never been in Iraq. Trump added that we destabilized the larger Middle East. Those are legitimate points of contentionthough Trump should not exclude President Obamas decision to premature pull troops from Iraq. That move by Obama in 2011 was disastrous, as so many (including Bush himself) warned it would be. It unquestionably helped enable the surge of ISIS and its establishment of a self-proclaimed Islamic State caliphate. But then Donald Trump went way overboard. I want to tell you, they lied, said Trump. They said there were weapons of mass destruction. There were none. And they knew there were none. The they means George W. Bush, and (we must assume) basically Bushs administration and entire security and foreign-policy and intelligence team. Trumps accusation is outrageous. Given a chance to walk-back that remark in an interview with Sean Hannity, Trump seemed unwilling. Some people felt like you were going conspiratorial, said Hannity, suggesting that they knew that there were no weapons of mass destruction. Trump answered: No. I dont haveyou know, I cant tell you that. I can only tell you that getting into the war was a disaster. That was all that Trump said. No further elaboration. Was he backing down a bit? Maybe, but it was hardly a major retraction or apology. Either way, Trumps initial assertion should be dealt with. The idea that George W. Bush lied about WMDs is an old, ludicrous canard that needs to be dispatched to the ash-heap of history. It is a very unfair smear. Lets recall the history leading up to 2003: The war debate was not over whether Saddam Hussein had WMDs. Everyone was convinced he did, including Democrats, Bill and Hillary Clinton, Kofi Annan at the U.N., the French, the Russians, the worlds intelligence agencies, and on and on. The debate was not if Saddam had WMDs but how to best go about disarming him. The debate within the international community was whether an American-led invasion should be pursued to disarm Saddam (the approach favored by George Bush and Tony Blair) or whether sanctions and arms inspections should be pursued to disarm Saddam (the French-Russian approach), but never whether Saddam had WMDs. For years, since at least 1990, the world was certain that the Iraqi dictator was ever-assuredly securing WMDs. If I may, my personal experience is instructive: I began working this issue at the Center for Strategic & International Studies (CSIS) in 1991, and then continued in graduate school, as a professor, and as a researcher for various think-tanks. All along, I supported the Democrats in the White Housethat is, Bill Clinton and Al Gore and crewwhen they bombed Iraq because of its ominous WMD threat. The last such occasion was December 1998, after Saddam again kicked out U.N. inspectors as they demanded entry to clandestine WMD sites. By 2003, inspections had not occurred in Iraq in five years, which concerned George W. Bush and his team greatly in the post-9/11 world. In my lectures on Iraq still today, I quote lengthy articles from The New York Times to Newsweek that detailed Saddams frightening covert biological and nuclear programs. Check the Washington Post (Barton Gellman, Iraq Works Toward A-Bomb, September 30, 1998); The London Times (Defectors say Iraq tested nuclear bomb, February 25, 2001, and Iraq will have nuclear bomb in months, September 16, 2002); The New Yorker (Jeffrey Goldberg, The Great Terror, March 25, 2002); U.S. News & World Report (Richard J. Newman, Stalking Saddam, February 23, 1998); Newsweek (John Barry, Unearthing the Truth, March 2, 1998); or Time, the Los Angeles Times, the Wall Street Journal or other publications. Some of these articles laid out not merely nuclear programs but supposed secret nuclear tests conducted by Saddam. Peruse transcripts from major TV news broadcasts: CBS, ABC, NBC, CNN, MSNBC, CBC. Check the BBC and NPR. And dont neglect the full-blown books published by top houses, like Khadhir Hamzas Saddams Bombmaker. Watch the terrifying November 23, 1997 clip of Bill Clintons secretary of defense, Bill Cohen, on Meet the Press with Tim Russert, laying out the Clinton administrations horrifying projections on Saddams WMD production in the absence of inspections. Russert, usually merciless in grilling people, naturally accepted Cohens details; there was no reason to doubt them. I used to show my students an amazing video of Clintons security teamCohen, Sandy Berger, and Madeleine Albrightbeing shouted down by extremely rude students in a forum at Ohio State University in February 1998, which CNN broadcast as an International Town Meeting. Despite the embarrassing behavior of the students, the Clinton team hung in there, urging that America must get those WMDs. I also regularly showed my students the November 1997 CNN special report, Showdown with Iraq. This is just the tiniest sample of what was always fresh and available. I began collecting such material at CSIS. I maintained the briefing book (actually, literal briefing boxes) on this subject for our senior analysts, who were CNNs regular analysts, and most of whom voted for Bill Clinton. In one case, we discovered and blew the whistle on a suspected Iraqi WMD site near Kirkuk. Dan Rather grabbed the story and made it his lead in an October 1992 CBS Evening News broadcast. Yes, that was way back in 1992, when even then we were being told that Saddam was on the cusp of an operational nuclear weapon. George W. Bush, like all of us, first heard about suspected Iraqi WMDs from the media in the 1990s, long before he was governor let alone president. The press was unanimous in reporting daily that Iraq was producing if not harboring WMDs in defiance of the 1991 U.N. ceasefire. There were never-ending reports that Saddam was months away (estimates ranged from six to 18 months) from a nuclear bomb, on top of his equally alarming bio and chemical weapons arsenals, which he previously employed against enemies ranging from Kurdish children to the Marsh Arabs to the Iranians and Israelis. He promised to scorch half of Israel with chemical gas. It was because of Saddams obstruction, remember, that the Clinton administration unceasingly bombed suspected Iraqi WMD sites throughout the 1990s, so often that Thomas Friedman of the New York Times quipped that Saddam Hussein was the reason God invented the cruise missile. Thus, by 2003, President George W. Bush had correctly calculated that Saddams WMD arsenal, after at least five years of no inspections, was an intolerable, unacceptable risk in the wake of 9/11. This was a fully legitimate fear, with Bushs suspicion of Saddams stockpiles first informed not by his advisers but, instead, by the media that informed all of us in the 1990s, years before Bush became president. In short, all of that very recent history was forgotten by an emotional, angry political left after our troops didnt find the WMD stockpiles we all expected. Of course, we did discover some WMDs in Iraq after 2003 (everyone forgets this), and chief inspector David Kay found both Iraqi infrastructure and intent to ramp up WMD production once Saddam later figured he was in the clear. We did not, however, find the warehouses of WMD stockpiles we expected. (The better question is why not and what happened to the WMDs.) Finally, aside from these facts, imagine strictly for the sake of argument that George W. Bush did lie about WMDs. That would mean that he and his administration went to war in 2003 for a fallacious if not treacherous reason they knew would be exposed the moment we got to Iraq and found no WMDs. They would have pursued this self-defeating tactic realizing it would be revealed as a farce very soon, certainly by the next year, meaning the very year (2004) that Bush ran for re-election. It would have been a mission of political suicide, probably even impeachable. In short, Donald Trump can legitimately question Bushs decision to invade Iraq. But his charge that George W. Bush lied about WMDs is outrageous. This is an old smear that needs to be ended, not resurrected by the Republican front-runner for president. --Dr. Paul Kengor is professor of political science and executive director of The Center for Vision & Values at Grove City College. His latest book is Takedown. His other books include 11 Principles of a Reagan Conservative, The Communist: Frank Marshall Davis, The Untold Story of Barack Obamas Mentor and Dupes: How Americas Adversaries Have Manipulated Progressives for a Century. By Robert Romano | February 24, 2016 Grassley: 'Defer to the American people' in 2016 on next Supreme Court Justice "Given the huge divide in the country, and the fact that this President, above all others, has made no bones about his goal to use the courts to circumvent Congress and push through his own agenda, it only makes sense that we defer to the American people who will elect a new president to select the next Supreme Court Justice." That was Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) on Feb. 13 telling the American people in no uncertain terms that his committee would not allow any Supreme Court nominee by Obama to the Senate floor to replace the late Justice Antonin Scalia. In other words, whoever Obama might nominate to replace Scalia is all but dead on arrival. Grassley might not even have a hearing on the nominee. When asked about the possibility of a hearing, Grassley told reporters on Feb. 16, "I would wait until the nominee is made before I would make any decision. In other words, take it a step at a time." "But," Grassley added, "I think you need to know that I have made a statement, and a lot of other Republicans have made a statement that this is a very serious position to fill and it should be debated during the campaign and filled by either Hillary Clinton, Senator [Bernie] Sanders or whoever's nominated by the Republicans and make this important decision a very important part of the election coming up." Got it? The outcome of the election will determine who gets to pick the next Supreme Court Justice. No ambiguity. For those opposed to filling the Scalia seat prior to the next president being sworn in, Grassley's is actually a very positive statement. Grassley went on to cite a July 2007 statement by Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) that then-President George W. Bush should not be allowed to appoint any more Supreme Court spots during the remainder of his term except during "extraordinary circumstances." As Grassley said, "I think that since [Schumer] thought that the balance on the Supreme Court was so important that particular year that we're very consistent with [the] philosophy that he expressed." As it turns out, Bush never went on to appoint any new Justices after Schumer's July 2007 statement simply because the opportunity never presented itself. But, Grassley told reporters, the principle still stands. "It is a very important position because Senator Schumer talked about balance and we had balance: 4 conservatives, 4 liberals and 1 moderate, and maintaining that balance for the Supreme Court is just as important now as it was in 2007." So, who would Obama appoint? When asked if he would appoint a moderate Justice by Reuters reporter Jeff Mason at a Feb. 16 press conference, President Obama laughed and gave an emphatic, "No." Well, since Scalia was a conservative, and Obama is indicating he will appoint a liberal, allowing that nominee to be confirmed by the Senate necessarily would mean changing the balance of the nation's highest court. Without question. Post-Scalia, there would be a liberal majority on the court, with only 3 conservatives and 1 moderate. Grassley is right. Of course Obama would like to fill that slot. But the Senate is under no obligation to rubber stamp that nominee with so much at stake. So why not leave it up to the American people? Do voters like the balance of the court of the past several years, or would they rather have a more liberal court in the future? 2016 could very well be a referendum on that and other issues. But only if Senate Republicans hold the line. First and foremost, that will be determined by Chuck Grassley. If he keeps his embargo on whoever Obama nominates, and the Senate does not fall into recess, Obama can appeal to the American people all he wants, but the nomination will be dead before a hearing even happens. Yes, elections have consequences. And Republicans actually won the Senate majority in 2014. It is something Grassley will need to remember this year as the pressure is ratcheted up on him and his Senate colleagues to rubber stamp's Obama's pick for the court. This is Chuck Grassley's moment. The one that will define his time in the Senate. If he stands his ground to stop the Obama Supreme Court nominee, it could change the course of not only the nation but of history itself. By Rick Manning | February 24, 2016 LEADS Act stops DOJ cloud-based power grab Imagine that the government of Ireland suspected you of nefarious and illegal activity and demanded that Microsoft or Google hand over all of your emails, even though you are a U.S. citizen living in the United States. Fourth Amendment attorneys would be coming out of the walls to assist your fight against the breach of your information stored in the cloud. Yet, that is exactly what the U.S. government is seeking to do right now as they sue Microsoft to access the private email files of an Irish citizen suspected of illegal/non-terror related activity. The ramifications of Attorney General Loretta Lynch's demand that she be allowed access to everyone in the world's emails and information stored in the cloud are enormous, particularly in the wake of Edward Snowden's accusations about U.S. government snooping activity. House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) is entering the fray by holding a hearing on law enforcement and the Internet, looking at a body of law that hasn't changed since before the Internet came into widespread use. It is almost certain that the LEADS (Law Enforcement Access to Data Stored Abroad) Act which clarifies the law to ensure that U.S. law enforcement may not use warrants to compel the disclosure of customer content stored outside the United States unless the account holder is a U.S. person will be part of the discussion. This is especially likely as the act also strengthens legal processes by which governments of one country can allow other governments to obtain evidence in criminal proceedings, an important consideration in the Internet Age. While at some level, it can be argued that few American citizens really care if an Irish dude suspected of non-terrorist malfeasance gets his personal records rifled through by Lynch's investigative goon squad, few would think it is a good idea for the government of Ireland to be able to reverse the roles and engage in a witch-hunt through the cloud against a U.S. citizen. And that is why the LEADS Act enjoys broad bipartisan support (normally not a good thing, but this case breaks that rule), with 78 Republicans ranging from Freedom Caucus Chairman Jim Jordan (Ohio) to more liberal GOP members like Mimi Walters (Calif.) being joined by 60 Democrats as co-sponsors of the legislation. The loss of liberty is rarely done in the bright light, but instead occurs through obscure legal maneuvers that in their totality construct the dim gray walls of tyranny around society. Goodlatte's opening the door to begin the process of slapping down Lynch in this latest attempt to put one more massive gray brick in the wall of oppression is a great example of Congress reasserting its Article One powers in a smart, meaningful way. With the broad support the LEADS Act enjoys, it can only be hoped that the bill lands on President Obama's desk and he is compelled to allow it to become law before confidence in a U.S. company's ability to manage the cloud free from government intrusion is fully eroded. Protests in India over caste quotas for jobs and education have been called off, but Delhi was still struggling with water shortages after demonstrators damaged infrastructure, officials said Tuesday. At least 19 people have been killed and more than 200 injured in the agitation by the Jats, a farming caste in north India, who were demanding quotas in government jobs and higher education institutions for their community. They called off the protests after the Haryana state government said it would introduce the quotas in state-level legislation, state Home Secretary PK Das said. "While most Jat groups ended the agitation on Monday, a few groups were defiant," Das told dpa from the state capital Chandigarh. "But they also agreed to end the protests after negotiations with the government late Monday night." Protestors had also lifted blockades on a key highway to Delhi and other roads in the state. No violence was reported since Monday night. In Delhi, Water Minister Kapil Mishra said partial water supply resumed from Haryana's Munak canal, that provides water to the northern, central and western areas of the city with a population of 17 million. Protestors damaged equipment at the pumping station, causing shortages in Delhi, but the army managed to secure the facility on Monday. "Till the time [the canal] is totally repaired, supply will be limited," Mishra said in post on Twitter. "The crisis is not yet over. Use water diligently." The shortages affected as many as 10 million residents over the weekend as the canal accounts for about 60 per cent of Delhi's water supply. Water board spokeswoman Sanjam Cheema defended the efforts by authorities to ensure continued supply. "Many areas did not get piped water but it would be inaccurate to say 10 million were left without any water, they did get water through hundreds of tankers," Cheema said. Households also drew groundwater with pumps or bought bottled water. "Its been an ordeal to line up for hours at groundwater pumps or tankers. We are tired of fetching water from different areas," resident Saurav Dendona said. The crisis highlights the precarious water supplies in the Indian capital where water for the growing population is in short supply even in normal times. The week-long agitation in Haryana saw protestors set fire to homes and shops, and block highways, roads and rail links across northern India. The unrest could cost the region's economy 5 billion dollars, according to the PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry, a trade association representing the northern states in the country. India has an affirmative action policy which includes quotas for the lowest castes, members of which have benefited under the system for centuries. Over the years, the government has expanded the quotas to include other communities that are economically or socially disadvantaged. Jats are largely a well-to-do land-owning community, but say the quota policy is unfair and demand that the benefits be extended to them as well. Square-jawed, cleft chin and hair untidily spiked, Vikas Thakaran glowered as he explained why he was here in this scrum of young men blocking Bakhtawar chowk, 30km southwest of Indias capital, part of a violent weeklong agitation that has left 12 dead, vehicles and railway stations burnt, and the army deployed. Thakaran, 24, is a computer-science engineer, but he is unemployed. I applied for government jobs four-five times, many times elsewhere, but I didnt get through, he said. There are many educated, angry and unemployed young men like Thakaran, or those unable to find a job commensurate with their aspirations and education, among the thousands of protesters from a caste group that many say has no reason to protest. Traditional landowners, the Jats are a powerful Hindu caste now demanding classification as a backward caste a contention rejected last year by the Supreme Court so that government jobs can be reserved for them. However, an IndiaSpend analysis of employment data and evaluation of aspirations of young Jats revealed that the protests are manifestations of Indias slow, inadequate job-creation and a failing education system creating thousands of unemployable graduates. This disconnect between education, aspirations and jobs explains similar demands to be classified as backward and other-backward-caste (OBC) by socially powerful caste groups Gujjars (Rajasthan), Marathas (Maharashtra), Patels (Gujarat) and Kapus (Andhra Pradesh), among others struggling to find satisfactory employment. Organised industry added 500,000 jobs in 2014. India needs more than a million a month. Saurabh Rangi, 24, a native of Rohtak city, scored 75 per cent in the All India Engineering Entrance Exam (AIEEE), but he is on the streets of Haryanas Gurgaon city 30km northwest of Delhi-because he did not get admission to a government college and had to pay lakhs of rupees to graduate from a private college. Range is angry; he holds a public-relations trainee job at cardekho.com, an automobile website, but wants a government job. I got a BTech in 2013, but I am unemployed even after two years, said Keshav Lather, as he protested in Gohana, Sonipat, 43km west of Rohtak. I have applied for a Central government job. But I always lose out because of reservationa professional education does not necessarily mean a good job. We were surprised at the type of jobs and money offered to many of our friends. Labourers, guards and maids form the majority of the jobs available to more than a million Indians some estimate it is nearly two million who join the workforce every month. Over 30 years, India generated no more than seven million jobs every year, with only a fraction being the kinds of jobs the young Jats desire. This is why protesters across India demand secure government jobs; it is why engineers and doctors throng job openings for peons, clerks and constables (as they did in Uttar Pradesh last year, when 2.3 million applied for 368 positions of peons). As we also reported, new employment data indicate two disquieting trends. One, a slowdown in employment in the formal, organised sector (which in any case employs only 12 per cent of Indias labour force), the prime staging ground of Prime Minister Narendra Modis Make in India programme. In Indian factories, more than 400,000 people lost their jobs during the financial year 2012-13, according to government data. Two, this slowdown hides a larger, long-term trend: India Inc is automating and squeezing more output from its workers and so needs fewer of them. In isolation, the latest government data show that organised industry added nearly 500,000 jobs in 2013-14. Unemployment in India, according to labour ministry data, is less than five per cent, but these data do not reflect under-, partial- or disguised-employment, such as Rangis. No more than 17 per cent of all Indians were wage earners, as a 2013-14 labour ministry report acknowledged, with no more than 60 per cent of those above 15 years old who sought work over the year getting it (more than 46 per cent in urban India did not find work). What India needs annually is not just 23 or 24 million jobs but livelihoods, said economist Ajit Ranade. He said job opportunities would come only with new investments and enterprises. If we need to create two million jobs every month, then we need to also create 20,000 to 50,000 new enterprises every month, he said. At this stage of our business cycle, we need a big push in the form of investment in infrastructure. Jat youth on the streets do not want informal-sector jobs, as our interviews indicated, but here too, as IndiaSpend has reported, employment declined by six per cent since 2004-05-and this is the sector that offers the most jobs 340 million. Photo caption: Indians talk while Chinese do./ Photo: EPA/Divyakant Solanki By T.N. Ninan Special to The Post The question has often been asked, what lessons can India learn from the Chinese success story? Can they be applied to Indiaor is the national genius, or DNA, so different that copycat strategies wont work? It is when one confronts these questions that the similarities assumed on the basis of size, scale and (once upon a time) income level are seen to be superficial. The historical and cultural differences between the two entities, and, therefore, their political and economic choices, are more substantive factors. Chinas geographical core has been a centrally administered empire for a couple of millennia, whereas Indias history mostly comprises multiple feuding monarchies. China is overwhelmingly Han, while India is a polyglot nation with every kind of diversity: ethnic, linguistic, religious, caste. China has a long experience of being run by a merit-based bureaucracy, India does not. China has a sense of destiny (the Middle Kingdom with a mandate from heaven), history and continuity, while Indias history is the cause of current political contestations. Chinese nationalism is unifying, while some kinds of Indian nationalism are divisive. Differences in the modern era are equally substantial. China became a one-party dictatorship while India imitated Westminster democracy. Chinas rulers emerged hardened from a civil war and could take the tough decisions about breaking down old ways of doing things in order to create a new reality, whereas India won its freedom through non-violence, so its leaders were inclined to make the softer choices. China mobilised its masses to bring about revolutionary change, whereas India sought change through laws passed in Parliament and implemented by a bureaucratic set-up inherited from colonial rulers. China began under Mao by emphasising change in the countryside while India under Nehru sought industrialisation. China achieved rapid progress on the key human indicators while India did not. China began reforming its economy in 1978 with a sense of national purpose; Indias reforms since 1991 have been half-hearted at best and without much political conviction. The end results have thus been very different for the two economies; China has become a global power that casts a shadow over Indias regional status. The two countries paths to development have been almost polar opposites. For a long time, China was seen to have a better macro story than its micro-story: that is, its state performed better than individual companies. India, in contrast, had an underperforming state that failed to deliver the basics, while its entrepreneurs (usually from the traditional trading castes) ran a better-performing private corporate sector. China, therefore, attracted more foreign direct investment in job-creating new factories, while India attracted portfolio investment in existing companies. In recent years, following sweeping reform of its public sector, Chinas micro story has improved as well, though in general corporate governance norms remain superior in India. China achieved what it did by throwing resources on an unprecedented scale into the development of infrastructure, by offering factory owners swarms of workers with no real rights to industrial action or collective bargaining, and by keeping its currency artificially low in order to capture export markets while suppressing local demand. It operated an opaque banking, financial and pricing system in which outside observers found it hard to understand cost structures; also by stealing or copying technology from foreign firms that invested in China; and by achieving exceptionally high productivity norms on factory floors. India is not about to do any of these; it couldnt even if it wanted to. While the Indian state has never been able to deliver adequate physical infrastructure (electricity, roads, ports), the existence of a capital market meant that the relationship between capital investment and increased output (the incremental capital-output ratio) has always been better in India than in Chinathat is, it can achieve similar rates of economic growth with the use of less capital. At the same time, the attempt to apply private-sector efficiency to building infrastructure (through public-private partnerships) has resulted in bad investments, stalled projects and debt-laden balance sheets. Taking away the collective bargaining rights of industrial labour, as China has done for all practical purposes, would be unthinkable in a multi-party parliamentary democracy with a long-term left-of- centre bias. A mercantilist currency policy to keep the rupee cheap is ideologically taboo among Indian policymakers who buy into mainstream orthodoxy about not manipulating the exchange rate, and in any case, is not without its costs if pursued for any length of time. Indias politicians, in turn, have often confused a strong currency with national strengthas some Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) politicians did during the 2014 election campaign. Meanwhile, the wholesale theft of industrial technology is impossible in a country with an independent judiciary. Importantly, the combination of large-scale production and very high productivity, which seems to have an East Asian patent, appears to be a leap too far for India. Chinese workers are better educated and better fed, and seem to take willingly to the monotony of repetitive shop-floor work. Those in charge of Indias National Skill Development Corporation report, in contrast, that young Indian men show a marked preference for training that will help them get white- collar jobs, even if manufacturing work pays more. Anecdotal evidence suggests that they are willing to take up to a 50% cut in pay, to switch from blue- or brown-collar to white-collar work (such a preference could be linked to caste and status; among other things, it improves prospects in the marriage market). Similarly, whereas young, single women in China are willing to move far away from home and stay in dormitories located next to factories, their Indian counterparts prefer to stay at home and get bussed to work. This is slower, costlier, less efficient, and results in higher absenteeism. The Chinese system has fewer checks and balances, so the alignment of objectives is easier, with coordinated action to follow. In India, the two major political parties can agree on the need for a new law, yet each will try to stop the other from getting it passed in Parliament. Much of Narendra Modis initial legislative thrust and policy stance were on issues that his party had opposed when in opposition (higher foreign investment in the insurance sector, a border settlement with Bangladesh, the goods and services tax, majority foreign investment in organised retail trade, and so on). Even more ironically, its principal political battle after it formed the government was to try and undo something it had voted in favour of when in opposition (the 2013 land acquisition law). The separation of powers between legislature, executive, and judiciary makes getting project clearances a complicated hurdle race. This is especially so when populism comes easily to politicians seeking votes and legislatures pass unrealistic laws. The executive is rule-bound rather than result-oriented, and the judiciary given to overreach, issuing sweeping judgments that sometimes show a divorce from economic logic. The result, as Singapores Lee KuanYew declared tersely a few years ago, is that Indians talk while Chinese doa remark that drew raucous laughter in the Singapore business forum where Lee was speaking. This piece was originally published in qz.com. See http://qz.com/616878/india-can-make-in-india-but-will-probably-never-catch-up-with-china/ Jan. 6 committee issues subpoena to Donald Trump The extraordinary move puts the panel, which the former president has repeatedly criticized as political, into a legal confrontation with Trump. Welcome to SwanseaOnline - your home for the best news, sports and what's on coverage of the city. Never miss a Swansea story with our daily newsletter Sign up to comment on our stories here Follow us on Facebook and Twitter | Swansea City news | Ospreys news | InYourArea Long before it was demoted to the status of a dwarf planet, Pluto stood out in many regards. Regarded as the most distant planet for over 75 years, its orbit is extremely tilted in regards to the other planets, and sometimes brings it closer to the sun than Neptune. How far is Pluto from Earth? The planets in the solar system travel in elliptical orbits rather than perfect circles, and so the distances between them are constantly changing. At its most distant, when the two bodies are on the opposite sides of the sun from one another, Pluto lies 4.67 billion miles (7.5 billion kilometers) from Earth. At their closest, the two are only 2.66 billion miles (4.28 billion km) apart. How far is Pluto from the sun? After the sun formed, the remaining dust and gas evolved into the planets that make up our solar system. This means that most of them orbit on a nearly flat plane in relation to one another. But after its formation, Pluto wound up out of sync, its orbit tipped to an angle of about 17 degrees in relation to this plane. The dwarf planet's orbit is also highly elliptical, making it a very stretched-out circle. This allows the Pluto to dip inside of the orbit of Neptune for 20 of the 248 years it takes the dwarf planet to orbit the sun. Pluto last entered Neptune's orbit on Feb. 7, 1979, where it remained until Feb. 11, 1999. Its highly elliptical orbit means that the atmosphere of the dwarf planet changes over time, expanding and contracting as its components freeze and melt. Because the distance to Pluto is so great, it lies inside the Kuiper Belt, a group of rocks and ices left over from the formation of the solar system. With its icy crust and rocky core, Pluto is the largest known object in the belt. Far from the sun, bodies in the Kuiper Belt suffer freezing temperatures. While most planets swept the area around them clean of smaller bodies soon after their formation, Pluto lacked the mass and gravitational force necessary to do so. This is one of the reasons it was demoted to the status of a dwarf planet in 2006. Despite its demotion, Pluto continues to have some fame in the solar system. Dwarf planets found in its neighborhood are referred to as plutoids. How long does it take to reach Pluto? When scientists send probes to planets and other bodies, the spacecraft rarely travel in straight lines. Visiting the more distant parts of our solar system, the satellites often use the gravity of moons, planets, and even the sun to provide them with fuel-less acceleration. The constant motion of the solar system means that the bodies aren't always in the most ideal position at the time of launch and with bodies such as Pluto, waiting for the ideal lineup could mean a delay of decades or even centuries. As such, it sometimes takes longer to travel to a distant body with faster rockets than it may have decades ago, simply because one journey may utilize a straighter line. The most distant-traveling spacecraft in the solar system, the Voyager and Pioneer missions, never made it to the tiny body. Thus, NASA's New Horizons mission is the only spacecraft that has visited Pluto. Launched on Jan. 19, 2006, the craft arrived at the Pluto-Charon system on July 14, 2015, more than 9 years after leaving Earth. New Horizons passed by Mars, and used Jupiter for a gravity assist on its way to Pluto. When it passed within 7,800 miles (12,500 kilometers) of Pluto's surface, it was traveling at a relative velocity of 30,800 mph (49,600 kph). The discovery of Pluto Because Pluto lies so far away, and is so tiny, it wasn't discovered until 1930. However, a number of sky surveys unknowingly captured images of the dwarf planet; they simply failed to identify them. After the discovery of Neptune, many astronomers thought that the orbit of Uranus was affected by another planet, termed "Planet X." Clyde Tombaugh was hired at the Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff, Arizona, to search for the mysterious planet by searching photographs of the night sky for changes. On Feb. 18, 1930, Tombaugh identified an object that could fill the role as the missing planet. Subsequent photographs confirmed the moving body. The name for the newly discovered body was selected by an 11-year old girl, Venetia Burney of Oxford, England. Pluto, the Roman god of the underworld, seemed a fitting name for the icy distant planet. The suggestion was sent to Lowell Observatory, along with more than a thousand other proposals from around the world, and was unanimously selected by the observatory staff on March 24, 1930. Follow Nola Taylor Redd on Twitter @NolaTRedd or Google+. Follow us at @Spacedotcom, Facebook or Google+. Originally published on Space.com. After 76 years of classification as a planet, Pluto was demoted in 2006 to a dwarf planet, in part because of its size but also because of its minor gravitational effects on the bodies around it. When NASA's New Horizons mission visited in 2015, it took the most accurate measurement of the world, revealing it to be larger than previously thought, but still not large enough to be qualified as full-grown planet. Pluto remains one of the most well-known non-planetary bodies in the solar system. Radius, diameter and circumference When New Horizons arrived at Pluto, it measured the diameter of the world to be 1,473 miles (2,370 kilometers) across, about two-thirds the diameter of Earth's moon. This makes it larger than the dwarf planet Eris, once thought to be larger than Pluto. Eris is 1,445 miles (2,326 km) in diameter. "This settles the debate about the largest object in the solar system [beyond Neptune]," New Horizons principal investigator Alan Stern of the Southwest Research Institute in Boulder, Colorado, said during a NASA press briefing reviewing the mission flyby. [See a video of Alan Stern discussing Pluto's size] Unlike many of the planets in the solar system, such as Earth, Pluto does not bulge at its center; its radius 1,185 km (737 miles) is the same at its poles and at its equator. Circumference: If you were to take a walk around the equator of Pluto, you would travel about 4,627 miles (7,445 km). That is just a bit less than the distance from Denver to London (4,683 miles). Pluto is thought to have a rocky core covered by ice, which would mean that its surface features would change with temperature as it travels closer to and farther from the sun. In fact, as the ice melts, the atmosphere of the tiny body expands outward. Density, mass and volume Although all of the planets beyond Mars are gas giants, Pluto is small and rocky. The tiny body has a mass of only 1.31 x 1022 kilograms, about two-tenths of a percent of Earth's. It has a volume of 1.5 billion cubic miles (6.4 billion cubic km). Pluto's small size and low mass mean that it has a density of 1.86 grams per cubic centimeter according to recent measurements by New Horizons, about 40 percent of Earth's density. This graphic presents a view of Pluto and Charon as they would appear if placed slightly above Earth's surface and viewed from a great distance. (Image credit: NASA) Demoted from planetary status Since its discovery in 1930, Pluto's status as a planet has been debated. It is less massive than seven of the moons in the solar system Earth's moon, the four Galilean moons of Jupiter, Neptune's moon Triton, and Saturn's moon Titan. [Infographic: Pluto's 5 Moons Explained] In 2003, the icy body of Eris was found far beyond the Kuiper Belt. Originally, it appeared to be larger than Pluto. The discovery sparked a debate about what it meant to be a planet. In 2006, the International Astronomical Union came up with four criteria that cause an object to be classified as a dwarf planet. A dwarf planet: Orbits the sun Has enough mass to assume a nearly round shape Is not a moon Has not cleared the neighborhood around its orbit Under this criteria, Pluto's low mass does not directly keep it from full planetary status, but the fact that it fails to sweep clean the area surrounding it. Of course, the reason it can't clear out the Kuiper Belt it orbits through is because it lacks the gravitational force to do so, a fact related to its mass. Follow Nola Taylor Redd on Twitter @NolaTRedd or Google+. Follow us at @Spacedotcom, Facebook or Google+. Originally published on Space.com. Editor's note: This article was updated on March 18, 2016, to correct Pluto's mass, volume and density. Hello space fans! If something seems a little different on Space.com lately, you're not seeing things. We've got a new logo, and we recently tidied up our design a little. It's part of a broader effort to continually improve the site and amazing stories we bring to you every day. Our new logo (which you can see here) is the latest update to Space.com as we celebrate our 17th year bringing the journey of space exploration down to Earth. Earlier this month, we launched a new responsive design that greatly improved the site's look on smartphones and tablets. If you've been frustrated by our mobile design in the past, we invite you to take another look. There's an interesting story behind the evolution of our logo. Until today, Space.com had essentially three major logos since our founding in July 20, 1999. The first, which you'll see in the graphic below, aimed to "launch" our dot com with a visual depiction of a spherical dot streaking over a planet. It also emulated the historic 1957 launch of Sputnik, which ushered in the Space Age with the launch of a round, beeping satellite. Space.com grew and changed over the years, and so, too, did the logo. The first update, a year after launch, stripped out the streak and, frankly, made the logo rather bland. It didn't last long. In late 2000, the logo underwent another transformation, into the "SPACE" over a curved horizon with a stylized "A" that was both a nod to NASA's worm logo and sci-fi fonts. That look endured - in one form or another - for more than 15 years. As Space.com and the digital landscape continues to evolve, it was time to revisit the logo. A look at Space.com's logo evolution through the years. (Image credit: Space.com) As our creative director, Mark Hardin, explains, the "horizon" logo, while visually appealing in the right circumstances, did not lend itself well to all our needs. Think Facebook and other social media. But we also wanted to make sure that any update paid proper homage to the earlier logo even as we improved its versatility. "So with this in mind we dropped the horizon and moved .com to the end of the word mark in a vertical display," Hardin said. "We opted to keep the letter A with the lack of a crossbar representing the vast openness of space. Topped off with an update to the font that retains our bold name in a more contemporary style. All of this equates to a logo that we can enjoy in many differing formats and mediums without having to tip toe around what used to be too symmetrical an execution." Starting today, you'll see the logo on all Space.com pages, as well as in the Space.com Store. And we have more changes on the way this year to improve the content, design and experience of Space.com. So, Houston (and everyone else), we have a new logo. Stay tuned for more space-y updates from Space.com. I'll go order new business cards now. Email Tariq Malik at tmalik@space.com or follow him @tariqjmalik and Google+. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. This is the trail of Chelyabinsk asteroid which exploded about 14 miles above ground with a force nearly 30 times more powerful than the Hiroshima atomic bomb in 2013. If a space rock hits the atmosphere, and no one is around to hear it, does the tabloid press still report it as an Earth-shattering event? Of course! This pretty much summarizes a large-ish meteor impact over the South Atlantic Ocean, which occurred on Feb. 6, and was recorded by the Fireball and Bolide Reports page of NASA's Near Earth Object Program. PHOTOS: Russian Meteor Strike Aftermath The event itself is notable because it is the largest atmospheric impact recorded since the famous Chelyabinsk bolide that exploded over Russia in 2013, causing widespread structural damage and injuries to the city with a population of 1 million. This recent Feb. 6 event unleashed an energy equivalent of 13,000 tons of TNT exploding instantaneously (a.k.a. a "13 kiloton" explosion); the Chelyabinsk impact ripped through the Ural Mountain skies with a whopping energy of 440 kilotons. Initially noticed by NASA's Ron Baalke and then investigated by Bad Astronomer Phil Plait, it quickly became clear that the high-altitude impact was likely caused by a chunk of space rock approximately 5-7 meters (16-23 ft) wide. The Chelyabinsk impact was caused by a rock nearly 20 meters (65 ft) wide. The Feb. 6 meteor most likely burned up the majority of its mass during atmospheric entry, any pieces falling as small meteorites safely into the ocean. ANALYSIS: How Many Tiny Asteroids Buzz Earth? This didn't happen over a populated region and, as far as I can tell, there have been no eyewitness reports from mariners or pilots who happened to be in the area at the time. Though this is certainly an important and scientifically interesting event, the impact on the lifeforms of Earth (barring a few unlucky fish 600 miles off the coast of Brazil) was minimal. But the fact that NASA "failed" to tell the world about the impact has gotten some news outlets excited. "Space agency fails to warn the world about massive blast, even though it's the largest atmospheric explosion since the Chelyabinsk meteor," writes Mirror.co.uk. But possibly the best headline comes from another UK news outlet, The Express: "FRONT-room-sized meteor came out of nowhere and exploded with force of Hiroshima bomb." Because your front room (British to US translation: living room) is now a universal standard of meteoroid measurement. Noted. NEWS: Russian Meteor: Chelyabinsk Asteroid Had Violent Past The Mirror also wandered down the conspiracy path, questioning how NASA even recorded the Feb. 6 impact, highlighting Plait's analysis that the atmospheric impact was likely detected by classified military technology. Normally, atmospheric explosions are recorded by seismic monitors, microphones and/or satellite observations. As Plait pointed out, as the impact was in open ocean, it's not likely that seismic monitors would have been used to record the impact energy. As the military has pretty obvious reasons for monitoring atmospheric explosions, it seems likely the data came from a classified source, probably satellites. Though an interesting energetic event, Feb. 6 isn't the only time the Earth has been hit by space rocks since Chelyabinsk. Every single day Earth is peppered with around 100 tons of space debris. The vast majority of this mass is no bigger than a grain of sand, and on a clear night you might be lucky to see these tiny specks burn up in the high atmosphere as meteors. As they slam into the upper atmosphere, these tiny pieces of space rock create a shock wave which, through rapid heating of atmospheric gases, incinerates the debris, erupting in a fast blaze of light. These are called meteors (or "shooting stars"). Larger (and rarer) pieces of space rock will hit the atmosphere as a meteor and may explode as a bolide (as the Chelyabinsk event dramatically showcased), some pieces hitting the ground as meteorites. ANALYSIS: Why I'm Sad Asteroid 2011 MD Missed Earth Monitoring the regularity of these larger impacts is key for scientists to better understand our Earth's interplanetary environment and although the Feb. 6 event is now grabbing the headlines, remember that most large impacts will happen over water (as the Earth is 70 percent ocean) and impacts of space rocks of around Chelyabinsk meteoroid dimensions are (statistically-speaking) a once in a century thing. Oh, and as for NASA not reporting a bolide impact that no one saw, well, it looks like the tabloid press has that covered. Originally published on Discovery News. Michelle Thaller is an astronomer who studies binary stars and the life cycles of stars, and is deputy director of science communication at NASA. She contributed this article to Space.com's Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights. Scientists are just the same as everyone else. On most days, you could be out walking around town, doing a little grocery shopping, and not even realize that you passed right by a scientist. I say this, only partially jokingly, because I am often amazed at the assumption that we (speaking as a scientist) think differently, feel differently and generally do not participate in the same flow of life as other people. I remember, at a recent public talk, someone asked a question that roughly came out like: "If scientists discovered [insert threatening phenomenon here], would they tell us?" I had to turn around and ask, "Who is the 'us' here?" We scientists are part of "us." Such issues came up recently when the news about the frustrating, and intriguing, object KIC 8462852 came to the fore. It's a star from which NASA Kepler spacecraft measured huge and intermittent drops in brightness, and despite some months of dedicated study, scientists haven't been able to add much to the discussion. But the gist of the comments I got from people, both in person and via the interwebs, was disbelief. People couldn't accept that, among other much (much) more likely natural phenomena, one of the possible explanations put forth by serious scientists was that this might be a giant artificial structure built by aliens. This made people's jaws drop. Isn't that idea too imaginative, too based in fantasy to be something scientists should consider? These reactions made me think hard about the respect I have for unbounded imagination, and how useful, if used correctly, it can be for science. A most curious star To back up a bit, this intriguing star was observed by the Kepler spacecraft, which is being used to search for signs of planets around other stars using the transit method. One of the simplest, most direct ways of finding exoplanets is to measure the amount of starlight that drops off when a tiny, distant planet swings into astronomers' line of sight and creates a minuscule version of a partial solar eclipse. Usually, these "transits" are pretty clear-cut affairs. Any planet large enough to be detected this way is spherical, and produces a nice, regular light curve as it passes in front of its star. Also, if you have indeed found a planet, you expect it to come around again and again, hopefully in a regular, predictable orbit. The predictability is key; a random drop in brightness could be due to a starspot (yes, the distant equivalent of a sunspot), or even a passing comet. Find a nice, clear drop in stellar brightness that comes around like clockwork, and you can call it a detection of a new exoplanet. And that's where KIC 8462852 got so weird. For one thing, whatever is blocking the light from that star is blocking a whole lot of it, up to 22 percent of the starlight. Even giant planets block only a small percentage of a star's light. Any planet big enough to directly block a fifth of a star's light would most likely be so large that it would have to be another star. Which we would see. The light variations aren't periodic, either; astronomers haven't found any clear pattern to them, and the light curves are very strange, as if whatever is blocking the light is not spherical. Some astronomers have proposed a huge, irregular cloud of comets orbiting the star, but even this doesn't work very well as an explanation. It's hard to imagine a swarm of comets blocking that much light, and there is no hint of these comets in the infrared, where even cold, icy objects glow like lightbulbs. We've seen other comet swarms around nearby stars already, and we should have been able to pick up the radiation from a big one around KIC 8462852. The lead author on the KIC 8462852 detection, Tabetha Boyajian, an exoplanet scientist at Yale University showed her measurements to her colleague, Jason Wright, an astronomer at Penn State University, who had an amazing suggestion: Could these dips in the light be caused by a vast, engineered structure built by a technologically advanced civilization? All involved scientists, including those two astronomers, said that this conclusion is highly unlikely but that maybe it shouldn't be discounted. Maybe scientists can at least throw it on the heap of possible explanations about what's going on here. And that is where my friends' stereotypes of cold, linear, logical scientists, really came into the fore and showed me just how wrong their assumptions about scientists can be. Here is the accusation: This seemed like an awfully imaginative idea for a scientist to propose. I had a chance to talk to my friend, well-known astronomer and science communicator Phil Plait, about this when he was my guest on Orbital Path, a podcast I do for PRX. During the conversation, we mused not only about the fabulously unlikely scenario of an alien superstructure, but also how wonderful it was to allow ourselves to imagine that it might be the real answer. The idea of a huge alien structure around a star is nothing new; in fact, it was proposed by a very serious, if somewhat eccentric astronomer named Freeman Dyson. He proposed, many decades ago, that an advanced civilization, with tremendous energy needs, might build a huge orbiting shield of solar panels around a star, with the intent of soaking in as much free energy as possible. Some people visualized this as a continuous, closed-in sphere, but Dyson's idea was more of a fleet of disconnected, vast solar-array structures. The idea came to be known as a Dyson sphere , and when I was working at the Infrared Processing and Analysis Center at the California Institute of Technology, well-respected scientists would sometimes propose observing programs to look for the infrared signatures of such structures. And make no mistake Boyajian and Wrigher are also serious, excellent scientists. These are not tinfoil-hat types, but instead are careful scientists who are looking for any possible explanation their data would support. And I feel the need to put some very clear caveats in here. I would bet my mortgage that we are not looking at a Dyson sphere, but instead some kind of a much less romantic but still fascinatingly unusual debris disk. Using the imagination, always Phil and I agreed that, as scientists, we are allowed to be imaginative. We certainly can't currently say that we have discovered an alien civilization or even that one is a likely explanation for the data. But it's not an impossible explanation. And for a few minutes, Phil and I allowed ourselves a little flight of fantasy. What if, somehow, we could prove the light dips were caused by an artificial structure? What if there really was a star you could look at in the sky, and know that there was an advanced alien civilization around it? Can you just imagine dragging your little telescope out to a dark field, getting a shimmering point of light in the view field (it looks like any other star if you're not measuring the brightness very accurately over many weeks) and allowing yourself that shiver of ecstasy and a little fear in knowing you are looking at aliens? Real aliens. Perhaps there are even alien astronomers looking in our direction tonight? As strange as that may sound, such thoughts feel very human to me. Solar panels and giant orbiting space stations are things people can conceive of today, even without the engineering know-how to build such structures. It's just a logical next step of technology, but that's usually not the way things play out. Picture the ancient Egyptians imagining a pyramid 100 stories high, but not imagining a smartphone. Someone, the idea of a Dyson sphere lacks, well, imagination. It is an extension of our very human technology. Being a scientist means being very aware of controlling your conclusions, even your emotions, when dealing with things that you really want to be true. Your hopes and dreams about the universe have no bearing on the data you collect and honestly interpret, nor should they ever. But scientists are also deeply imaginative people. Who else becomes an astronomer? Almost to a person, we scientists are fans of science fiction and fantasy. And for my part, I became an astronomer mainly because of the beautiful stories the universe has to tell us. True tales of how the atoms that make up humans were forged in stars, or how the water in human blood, sweat and tears was brought here largely by asteroids and comets. I loved the stories, couldn't get them out of my head. This Hubble Space Telescope composite image shows a ghostly "ring" of dark matter in the galaxy cluster Cl 0024+17. (Image credit: NASA, ESA, M.J. Jee and H. Ford (Johns Hopkins University)) I have respect for scientists allowing themselves to be a bit taken away by imagination. I have a feeling that's how science advances. Yes, there is the classic scientific method of forming hypotheses and designing experiments to test those ideas, but there is also a large dose of intuition and "what if this happened?" Honestly, maybe there's more of this in science than many scientists would like to admit. A darker look at dark matter Recently, I read Lisa Randall's book, "Dark Matter and the Dinosaurs (opens in new tab)" (Ecco, 2015), in order to interview her for my podcast. Randall bases the book on an astounding conjecture: Is it possible that the dark matter in the galaxy is not distributed in a ghostly, amorphous halo, but instead has actual structures, namely, a dark disk hidden inside the main stellar disk of the Milky Way? As the solar system orbits the galaxy and bobs up and down through the disk, Earth may periodically pass through a phantom disk of enhanced gravity, capable of pulling large objects out of the Oort cloud or Kuiper Belt and hurling them in toward the sun and Earth. Might there be a cycle of mass extinctions linked to the motion of the sun around the galaxy, caused by an unseen disk of dark matter screwing with the orbital dynamics of the outer solar system? At first, this idea seemed preposterous, but it was fun. To begin with, there is no compelling evidence that past mass extinctions fell into any sort of clear pattern of timing, but that's hardly proof of a negative. Perhaps some passages through the dark disk fail to send many dangerous objects into the Earth's path, or the planet was just lucky to miss them. The other objection is what the current understanding of dark matter (such as it is) suggests to us: that this material doesn't interact with itself the same way regular matter does. The familiar sort of matter it's kind of hard to call it "normal matter" since it is well in the minority, mass-wise, for the universe has all sorts of forces acting on it. Not only do people feel gravity from other matter, but they interact electromagnetically, throwing photons back and forth to heat up and cool down. You need that in order to form a disk like the Milky Way's. In the early history of galaxy formation, gravity brought gas and dust together, and the conservation of angular momentum spun it up. But then, cooling had to happen; nothing can collapse into a disk unless it can lose energy, radiating away the heat of the interactions. Preliminary data about dark matter suggests that it doesn't do this: Scientists have observed collisions between galaxy clusters in which the dark matter seems to just pass on through the whole train wreck. It doesn't smash into itself; it doesn't heat up. It just keeps on going. If that is indeed the case, then dark matter should mainly be found in a sparse, extended halo, just barely bound to the gravity of the galaxy. Now, very recently, scientists wondered if, in fact, there is evidence that dark matter interacts with itself. A recent paper asserts that given simple gravitation, dark matter haloes should have denser cores than what astronomers observe. (That paper, from Manoj Kaplinghat is titled "Dark Matter Halos as Particle Colliders: Unified Solution to Small-Scale Structure Puzzles from Dwarfs to Clusters" and appears in the journal Physical Review Letters.) Perhaps there is some sort of heating that puffs up the haloes. If you're a topical expert researcher, business leader, author or innovator and would like to contribute an op-ed piece, email us here (Image credit: SPACE.com) This is more exciting and weird than you would think, because if dark matter does have an electromagnetic-type force acting on it, that constitutes an entirely new form of radiation. Famously, dark matter does not radiate any sort of light, no photons at all. So if dark matter can lose energy through radiation, there must be a sort of "dark light" that scientists have been entirely unaware of. So you think scientists lack imagination? I'll raise you a disk of self-interacting dark matter, glowing with completely invisible light that may have lobbed a comet at the Earth 65 million years ago, killed most of the dominant life forms on the planet and allowed for your tree-shrew great-great (great, great, etc.) grandmother to get a leg up on competition for resources. Or there's an alien-made superstructure millions of miles across gathering energy to power technology today's humans can't possibly imagine, coincidentally making a distant star twinkle. Think about the leap of imagination that entails. Scientists can imagine some pretty preposterous things, like a universe that is mostly made up of a form of matter that passes right through people like a ghost through a wall and that bit turned out to be completely true! Science is so much better than pure fantasy. The reason scientists allow themselves to imagine such things is that these ideas best match our data, and slowly we form a new view of reality. So let's tip our hats to Albert Einstein, who reminds us that the universe is not stranger than we do imagine, but stranger than we can imagine. About the Podcast: Orbital Path with Michelle Thaller takes a look at the big questions of the cosmos and what the answers can reveal about life here on Earth. It comes from podcast powerhouse PRX, with support from the Sloan Foundation. Learn more and subscribe at orbital.prx.org. Follow all of the Expert Voices issues and debates and become part of the discussion on Facebook, Twitter and Google+. The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher. This version of the article was originally published on Space.com. Pluto and its largest moon Charon as seen in natural color by NASA's New Horizons spacecraft during its historic July 2015 flyby of the dwarf planet. Among the five moons of Pluto, it is the largest, Charon, that makes the dwarf planet unique. Charon is so big that, with Pluto, the pair are considered a binary planet system. When NASA's New Horizons space probe made its historical flyby of the system in 2015, it captured a wealth of data about the amazing moon. A husband's gift to his wife Although Pluto was discovered in 1930, its largest moon, Charon, wasn't spotted until 1978, by astronomer James Christy at the Naval Observatory in Washington, D.C. According to an article in Sky & Telescope magazine, Christy first thought of naming the moon after his wife, Charlene. The article states that Christy had a brainstorm and told his wife, "I could call it after you! How about Charon? He pronounced it SHAR-on. Putting on at the end made it sound genuinely scientific, like electron or neutron. However, his colleagues wanted to call the moon Persephone, after the daughter of Zeus and Demeter, who was kidnapped by Pluto and made queen of the underworld. Wanting his proposal to stand a chance, Christy did some research and discovered that Charon was the ferryman who took souls across the river Styx to the underworld. Although it would officially be pronounced "KAR-on" or "KAR-en," Christy and others who want to honor his discovery pronounces it "SHAR-on." Binary system The moon orbits its planet every 6.4 Earth days, the same amount of time it takes Pluto to rotate once. The two are tidally locked, with one face permanently turned toward the other. The Pluto-Charon system is considered a binary planet, the only one in the solar system. At 750 miles (1,200 kilometers) in diameter, Charon is about half as wide as Pluto. The center of mass of the two bodies lies outside the surface of the dwarf planet. "In terms of the dynamics of how planets form around binary star systems, Pluto is the closest example we have," Scott Kenyon, a theoretical astrophysicist at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics (CfA), told Space.com previously. The pair likely formed at the same time, when two objects collided. Unlike most of the planets and moons orbiting the sun, the Pluto-Charon moon system is tipped on its side, and Pluto has a retrograde orbit compared to other worlds, both suggestive of a violent beginning. The proto-Pluto and proto-Charon were likely quite different, leading to two different types of worlds. The remaining debris likely formed the other four smaller moons of Pluto. The south pole of Charon entered polar night in 1989, and will not see sunlight again until 2107. New Horizons was able to study some of the nighttime landscape as it was very slightly illuminated by light from Pluto. The moonlight of Charon also helped scientists to study Pluto once the spacecraft left the daytime side. They gazed back on the dwarf planet in the reflected moonlight of Charon, gathering even more information about the world with the help of its companion. NASA's New Horizons spacecraft obtained this high-resolution enhanced color view of Pluto's moon Charon just before the closest approach on July 14, 2015. (Image credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Southwest Research Institute) Surface & composition New Horizons revealed an unusual feature, a surprising red formation at Charon's northern pole. This reddish hue comes from Pluto's atmosphere. Pluto itself is too small to hold onto its atmosphere for its lifetime, so the nitrogen, methane and carbon monoxide leave the surface. Close-orbiting Charon captures some of the material, which is then funneled toward the surface. As the material collects, galactic cosmic rays and ultraviolet light from the sun interact to create tholins, complex compounds that form through the irradiation of simple organic compounds. While Pluto is able to hold onto a tenuous atmosphere, Charon is not large enough. The moon is extremely cold, with polar temperatures ranging from minus 433 to minus 351 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 258 to minus 23 degrees Celsius). According to researchers, the gas that reaches Charon likely freezes directly onto the surface, skipping over the liquid phase. The remainder of the surface of the large moon is made up of water-ice, creating a grayish-white. Charon is more heavily cratered than Pluto, suggesting that the surface is older than its companion. Only a single mountain stands on the moon, and it's a strange one. Nicknamed the "mountain in a moat," the mountain sits in a deep hole. "This is a feature that has geologists stunned and stumped," Jeff Moore of NASA Ames Research Center in California, who leads New Horizons' geology, geophysics and imaging team, said in a statement. Charon also boasts a spectacular canyon that stretches more than 1,000 miles (1,600 km) across the surface. The chasm is at least four times longer than Arizona's Grand Canyon and twice as deep in some places, according to New Horizons team members. The enormous slice likely wraps around to the unseen dark side of Charon. "It looks like the entire crust of Charon has been split open," John Spencer, of the Southwest Research Institute in Boulder, Colorado, said in a statement. To the south of the enormous canyon lies a smoother plain informally known as Vulcan Planum. The surface here is less cratered than the northern region. Grooves and faint ridges on the plain suggest wide-scale resurfacing that may come from cold volcanic activity known as cryovolcanism. The team is discussing the possibility that an internal water ocean could have frozen long ago, and the resulting volume change could have led to Charon cracking open, allowing water-based lavas to reach the surface at that time, said Paul Schenk, a New Horizons team member from the Lunar and Planetary Institute in Houston, said in a statement. Pluto is also thought to have once housed a liquid ocean beneath its crust. Follow Nola Taylor Redd on Twitter @NolaTRedd or Google+. Follow us at @Spacedotcom, Facebook or Google+. Optimization Are you frustrated with a slow pc or a hard disk not performing as it should? Try SLOW-PCfighter to speed up boot time on a slow PC, or try a free scan of FULL-DISKfighter to recover space on a full disk. The latest offering is DRIVERfighter to update your driver updater. Get complete PC optimization and extend the life of your PC with these must-have software tools. In January, Hayali visited two viewers who had taken to Facebook to criticize the network's reporting. She filmed a segment about the meeting for a ZDF program. One of the two viewers, a tourism manager from Bavaria, criticized the media for always getting bogged down on a single issue. First it was Ukraine, then Greece, and now it's the refugees. But no one, he said, pays any attention to unemployment or the problems of the retail industry. The other viewer, a manager of a company in Brandenburg, said ZDF is lying and its strings are being pulled by someone, though he couldn't say by whom. Hayali assured him that no one had ever told her what to say, and that she was free to write her own questions. Nevertheless, said the man, there were many things he didn't believe, such as the ZDF reports about refugees at the Hungarian border. He said he preferred to watch amateur videos about the issue on YouTube. When Hayali asked why, he said: "Because there are so many different ones." Her editorial office contacted 110 critical viewers to prepare for the story, says Hayali, but many were unwilling to meet with her. Others were disqualified in the preliminary interview for things such as denying the Holocaust. Others were simply incapable of arguing effectively. Only a handful was left in the end. Hayali is satisfied with the outcome. At the end of the conversations, both men told her that while they did not share her view, they did appreciate the fact that she had approached them. "If we want to regain our credibility, we must have a dialogue with our critics. We have to explain to them how we work," says Hayali. "Maybe that's our new task for the year 2016. Part of that is admitting our mistakes. But mistakes are not lies." After the incidents in Cologne on New Year's Eve, Hayali, whose family is from Iraq, wondered: Have we done something fundamentally wrong? Were we blind when we celebrated Germany's Willkommenskultur, or welcoming culture , in August? Did we overlook things? "Clearly there were taboos in the discussion of how refugees are being treated. But for me, there was no such thing," she says. "At ZDF, we were reporting early on about fights in refugee hostels . I was always able to tell it like it is, and I don't think that has anything to do with my immigrant background." Still, she says, she has noticed how quickly one can become jaded as a journalist. Since September, when the chancellor began allowing refugees from Hungary to enter Germany, Hayali has repeatedly received messages on Facebook telling her how German women had allegedly been raped or how mass robberies were being committed by refugees. "I pursued every lead at first. But none of them were true." 'I'm No Conspiracy Theorist, But...' Philipp Karger, a 33-year-old engineer, hardly gets any of his news from classic media anymore. "It's obvious that you get your information from above," he says, citing coverage of the New Year's violence in Cologne as evidence. The fact that the media took so long to report on the ethnic background of the presumed perpetrators was the result of instructions from the federal government, or at least an organization affiliated with the government, says Karger. He is so sure of himself that he reacts with genuine surprise when his accusation is rejected. "I thought that had already been officially confirmed," he says. According to Karger, the media had to respond as they did so as not to undermine Merkel's refugee policy. Until recently, Karger still believed the prime time "Tagesschau" evening news program on public broadcaster ARD was neutral. He changed his mind after New Year's, when some media organizations took a long time to report on the story emerging from Cologne. He gets his information from the Internet and his Facebook timeline. On Facebook, he subscribes to pages such as: "Today we're tolerant -- tomorrow we'll be strangers in our country" and "Schweinfurt TAKES A STAND -- no thank you to asylum abuse." He also follows the Facebook pages of the Germania Wurzburg fraternity and the AfD. He realizes that Facebook pages also spread "a lot of junk," says Karger, and yet he stopped believing the media years ago. He believes media organizations assist individual parties in return for donations or exclusive information after an election win, for example. "I'm no conspiracy theorist, but I do believe we're really being taken for a ride," he said. An 'Unlimited Echo Chamber' Rumors are what fuel skeptics' belief in a "lying press." Things that "one" has heard about somewhere but that hasn't turned up anywhere in the media. It doesn't matter whether a rumor is true or false. It derives its power from the "escalation of the emotions associated with it, when people infect one another," the Russian sociologist L.A. Bysow wrote as long ago as 1928. One look at the comments left below online articles that deal with the subject of refugees is enough to understand this. "Once the tone has gone in a certain direction, there is rarely a change of mood," says Georg Diedenhofen, editorial director of a talk show on broadcaster ARD called "Hart aber Fair," or "tough but fair." The comments section of the show's website was a case in point after Jan. 18. There was talk of "doctored police reports and patronized citizens -- is anything off-limits nowadays?" The majority of viewers who submit comments to the website do not believe in a free press or critical reporting. Some even suspect the press has a direct phone line to the Chancellery. It's a creepy, languorous community in which one person validates what someone else heard somewhere. It's an echo chamber of hearsay. Granted, such downward spirals of rumors told and retold have always existed. In war, opposing sides have always availed themselves of rumors. Rival corporations are no stranger to them either. But the Internet lends a special dynamic to rumors, which creates problems for journalists. "Readers and users are demanding faster and faster categorization and evaluation of events," says Brigitte Fehrle, editor-in-chief of the Berliner Zeitung newspaper. "They want fast truths, which is absurd. As journalists, we must stick to the facts. A journalist has to call a presumption a presumption and a rumor a rumor. There is no other option." She has noticed that reactions vary depending on the medium. Readers of printed newspapers are also outraged, she says, "but for the same articles, colleagues have received aggressive, insulting posts as well as threats of violence and death threats when their articles were published online." Fehrle is not hostile to technology. She is grateful for the reach her paper has now, thanks to the Internet. But she also notices that with some people, digital media are conducive to more coarse communication. "Twenty years ago, five people would sit around a table at the bar, discuss all kinds of crazy things and perhaps even make threats. But they left it at that." With the Internet, she says, the same people have an "unlimited echo chamber, which apparently emboldens them to make even more radical statements." The More People Know, the Less They Believe This brings us to a question that not only affects journalism, but is also fundamental: How compatible with the Internet is democracy? Or, to put it differently: How is the Internet changing democracy? Germany currently has a representative democracy. Voters vote and lawmakers decide. The counterpart to that is direct democracy, in which, ideally, everyone decides on everything. When the Federal Republic of Germany was established in 1949, its founders decided against direct democracy, partly out of fear of what the direct will of the people can bring about. In a sense, the media in Germany are also representative. Trained journalists have made it their profession to weigh the news and decide what is important and what is not. Power does not lie in the hands of individual journalists, but in the institutions for which they work, such as newspapers or magazines. They have to prevail in the marketplace and can freely choose their positions. From the conservative FAZ to the left-leaning Die Tageszeitung (taz), this has been a social process practiced for decades in Germany, more or less successfully. The Internet has confused everything. It encourages an anti-institutional impulse in people, one that is also anti-elitist and autonomous. This isn't bad in itself. On the contrary, at first the Internet raised hopes that it could decisively democratize the process of informing people and forming opinions. Knowledge was to be set free, and control over knowledge, news and information was to be lifted. The Internet was the promise of a radically different public. And in many respects, this dream is coming true. Today, we can know, learn and discuss more than ever before. Mankind is potentially smarter than ever before. At the same time, the oversized freedom brought by the Internet also has its negative side: A person who can know everything at any time eventually loses perspective. The problem is that the Internet suggests constant availability and, ultimately, constant control. If everything can be known, then there are answers to everything. This has made many people more suspicious. They can no longer cope with the contradictions, to which they were not nearly as exposed in the past. They protest against the complexity of reality, reducing it to black and white, lies and truth. The more people believe they know, the less they can handle it. On the one hand, they no longer believe anyone. But on the other, they often fanatically believe the wrong things. This is the paradox of the digital age. 'The Media Are Reacting Hysterically' How do we confront this? How do journalists cope with the accusations, the insinuations and the blatant hatred? To answer this question, one must look back to last summer. It was a time when Germans, if only fleetingly, looked in the mirror and saw a completely different Germany. It was the infancy of the Willkommenskultur, the welcoming culture that is the object of so much hatred by some people today. Back then, the country was surprised by itself and its popularity abroad. Sure, some Germans were setting refugee hostels on fire as the new foreigners arrived, but millions more were helping. In those days, this different Germany was the big news story. And like every big news story, it outshone everything else. Perhaps it would have been asking too much of the media to immediately interject the critical question of whether all of this could work. Even journalists do not live outside their own time, nor are they immune to the public mood. Reporters also have their own expectations and fears, political convictions and moral values. It is important for journalists to keep reminding themselves of this. Only then can they ensure it doesn't distort their view of reality or bias their reports. Only then can they see when too few critical questions have been asked and take action to rectify it. Most of all, journalists must constantly allow themselves and their work to be questioned -- by themselves, colleagues and their audience. But they should be careful not to allow the enemies of the press to drag them into a battle, one in which these enemies can portray themselves as victims. 'We Do Not Accept Their Declaration of War' Stefan Raue, the executive editor of MDR, a public broadcaster covering much of the eastern German states, including Saxony, says this about his relationship with all groups that accuse the media of being liars: "We do not accept their declaration of war." MDR reports critically on AfD and PEGIDA. But Raue has always refused to sponsor anti-PEGIDA events and fundraisers. He speaks with the AfD politicians in the state parliaments. MDR journalists invite PEGIDA supporters to their editorial offices to observe their work. Allowing one's work to be questioned without feeling provoked also means not reacting hysterically. And it means not allowing others to compromise your standards of what is and isn't news, for fear of being pilloried as a suppressor of truth. Raue believes this point has been reached. "The AfD and its issues are overly present in the media. The media are reacting hysterically." According to Raue, the media have become disproportionate in their reporting on the risks of immigration. "Suddenly someone being groped in the pool becomes one of the most important stories of the day." And what about the distrust of the press? What about the many people who are no longer quite sure who to believe, or whether they should trust journalists at all? Austrian TV host Armin Wolf, a journalistic institution in the Alpine country, has a simple answer to these questions: "Explain, explain, explain." How journalists work, how they form their opinions and how they check facts. "Of course journalists make mistakes," he says. "But I don't know a single journalist who makes mistakes on purpose." Wolf has followed the rise of the right-wing populist Freedom Party of Austria and its former leader, Jorg Haider. Austria, he says, is an admonitory example of what can happen. Nevertheless, Wolf recommends more composure for the German media. "We should not overestimate our clout," he says. As a host, says Wolf, he often receives the suggestion that he attack the empty content of the right's message. "But it isn't that simple. Most are so well trained that they can even endure a tough interview for 10 minutes." Only research, fact-checking and caution are effective against rumors and rumor-mongers, says Wolf, and they take time. There is one point, however, on which he at least partly agrees with the criticism of the media from readers and viewers: that journalists hardly even recognize everyday life at many levels of society, and that they no longer directly perceive social conflicts at the lower end of society. "The academization of our profession is a problem as well," Wolf says. "The fact that journalists are not as present where society needs them most -- there's something to that." By Markus Brauck, Georg Diez, Alexander Kuhn, Martin U. Muller, Ann-Kathrin Nezik, Vanessa Steinmetz Jean-Claude Van Damme is ready to give TV a swing.The action star is set to topline an original scripted comedy for Amazon, The Hollywood Reporter has learned, with the streaming service picking up Jean-Claude Van Johnson to pilot.Jean-Claude Van Johnson marks a reunion for Van Damme with The Expendables' Dave Callaham, who is attached to pen the script and exec produce alongside Scott Free Television's Ridley Scott and David Zucker. Peter Atencio will direct. The project has been in the works since late 2014. Production is being eyed to start in mid-May in Los Angeles. Amazon, Gersh, who reps Van Damme, and WME, who rep Scott Free, all declined comment.Jean-Claude Van Johnson will star Van Damme as a version of himself a famous actor and martial arts pro who comes out of retirement to resume his alter-ego: an undercover private contractor by the name of Jean-Claude Van Johnson. The comedy/action thriller will see Johnson's cover as the lead role in a reimagined action film version of Huckleberry Finn that lands him back in the midst of the danger he secretly always craves. It also brings him back in the orbit of Vanessa, his fellow operative and the love of his life that got away. A weekly feature highlighting the best quotes on TV as picked by the Spoiler TV team. We'd love to hear your picks too so please sound off in the comments below. Agent Carter - 1. Whitney Frost: Without Isodyne where would you be? Would you be scrubbing toilets? Shining shoes for a living? Has there ever been a day when you felt like a real man in this country? I simply want to change things for people like us. People that have been ignored, held back. 2. Dottie: Your idealism blinds you Peggy and it will kill us all. 3. Peggy: I never intended to encourage the affections of two quality suitors. It simply happened. Jarvis: You underestimate your allure, Ms. Carter. I'm not in the least surprised. 4. Daniel: Sometimes you have to put your faith in others to get the job done. American Crime - 1. Anne: It doesn't matter what they do I'm not giving up on you. 2. Anne: Are you asking me because you care or because you're looking for something to write about? 3. Dan: Im not defending, youve got me out there attacking. Meanwhile, youve got this way of saying nothing. I feels like your swimming and the rest of us are sinking a little deeper. 4. Leyland Receptionist: Taylor, I have to say, I thought you got a I thought the school could have handled your situation better, I see things, hear things sometimes, and I just think you deserve better, than how you were treated. A lot of us do. Arrow - 1. Felicity: "I knew we should have had Slade Wilson do the party planning." Brooklyn Nine-Nine - 1. Jake: "It's time to get these mice out of their hice. Gah, that was lame. Life is meaningless and we're all going to die. Mouses out of their houses! Yes, I am the greatest! Every breath is a gift. Sorry about the roller coaster." 2. Holt: "A very important, very high profile celebrity was robbed within our vicinity." Jake: "What celebrity is it, sir? Is it a Chris? Hemsworth? Evans? Pratt? Pine? Brown? Cross? Is it a non-Chris?" 3. Rosa: "STAB ME! STAB ME! DO IT! JUST DO IT!" Amy: "Rosa?" Rosa: "I'M PSYCHING MYSELF UP. [...] DON'T LOOK AT THEM, LOOK AT ME! DO YOUR JOB! DRAIN MEEEEEE!" Castle - 1. Martha: "You're our favorite reality show" CSI Cyber - 1. Andrew: "Dead men can't marry." 2. Stella: "What the hell is this?" Elijah: "Invitation to our private after party. Come on." 3. Avery: "Is this some new spin on identity fraud?" DB: "That's what I thought too but a stolen identity you can recover. Currently there's no clear way to come back from the dead." The Flash - 1. Barry: You may not have been struck by lightning over here like I was, but today you risked you life for someone else. That's a hero, Barry. 2. Killer Frost: Guess my heart is as cold as you thought after all. 3. Earth-2 Barry: And Im sorry, fellas, but I demand to know what the heck is going on here, this instant. 4. Cisco: You just dont want to hear it because it reminds you of someone you used to be. Trust me, I know that person very well. 5. Cisco: "We need to find his lair." Wells: "Lair?" Cisco: "Hes a bad guy; Im calling it a lair." 6. Earth-2 Barry: "Her names starts as Killer, this comes as a shock to you?" Greys Anatomy - 1. Meredith: A terrible thing happened. I did get knocked around, but nobody died. And any day where nobody dies, that's a good day. 2. Therapist: Meredith, you were attacked in your own hospital, and you consider that small stuff? Meredith: Have you read my file? 3. Arizona: How do I look? Do I look hot? Richard: You're very hot. Now let's go. How to Get Away with Murder - 1. Joyce: "Hate won't win. Don't you get that?" Annalise: "Well it just did. Your boy's still dead." Joyce: "It might be easy for me to go through life hating Jason but that only destroys me and I want to feel better. And my feelings are what's important here, not the DA's, not yours. Mine because I lost my son. Me. And I don't want an eye for an eye." Annalise: "Oh I don't buy you" Joyce: "I want to heal and I want Jason to heal and he's not doing that on death row. So get over yourself and do your job." 2. Michaela: "If Catherine deserves to go to jail, then an actual murderer definitely does." Annalise: "Your guilt about Catherine is not about her. It's about your feelings towards Caleb." Michaela: "No, it's about the fact that I actually have a conscious and don't tell me there's something wrong with that." 3. Michaela: "She hates us." Connor: "Good. The feeling's mutual." 4. Asher: "What's shakin', bacon?" Oliver: "Oh, you know, just enjoying the morning with my two favourite guys." Asher: "Awww, you know what I have to say to that?" [Asher farts] Oliver: "Oh, come on." Connor: "Dude." 5. Wes: "You don't have to worry. I talked about my childhood to get her off my back. It worked." Asher: "Must have been nice, though, to talk to someone. I mean, we don't ever really do that. And I get it It's not like we need to be up each other's butts all the time. It's just I don't know. I thought maybe it'd be nice if we didn't lie to each other from now on." Laurel: "Who's lying to you?" Asher: "That I know of? Walsh. Connor: "What?" Asher: "I overheard you say you only hang out with me out of pity. Connor: "No, I-" Asher: "Don't lie, man." Connor: "Yeah, all right. Look, I said that, but I I just worry about you, is all." Asher: "Yeah, because you think I'm gonna snitch." Connor: "No. But, I mean, if you thought about it, I wouldn't blame you. After Sam, that's all I wanted to do. And the only reason I got through any of this was-" Michaela: "Us? Because we're all besties?" Connor: "No. Oliver." Michaela: "Awww." Connor: "Look, I'm just saying that we clearly don't have Annalise to look out for us anymore, so that's our job from now on." Michaela: "Okay, I'm gonna open the window to throw up now." Laurel: "Michaela." Michaela: "I'm allowed to be weirded out by this conversation." Laurel: "Why? 'Cause you're afraid to have feelings?" Michaela: "Around you people? Yes." Wes: "Why can't we count on Annalise anymore?" Connor: "Today she showed her true colors." Michaela: "Or we finally opened our eyes." Laurel: "She's sick. She just needs time to get better." Michaela: "She needs therapy." Connor: "We all need therapy." Asher: "No, we don't. 'Cause we gots each other. Right, Mr. Softy-Wofty?" Connor: "Okay, look, I only said that to make you feel better, so can we all just not talk for the rest of the ride, please?" 6. Frank [to Laurel]: "I killed Lila." 7. Annalise: Show our colleagues that we need to stop blaming the defendants and start blaming ourselves for a system that tears apart families by incarcerating every man of color that steps foot in a courtroom and then we scold them for not raising their children right. I mean, let's end the cycle. Limitless - 1. Brian: "Hear that? He said my team." Boyle: "I heard. He's just ignorant, that's all." 2. Boyle: "Was I sorry when I found out Finch had to go back to being a temp? To sitting in a cubicle filing papers all day? Yeah, my heard bled for him." 3. Brian [to Mike and Ike]: "Alright, we got work to do, boys." The unique product exhibition format for the ZETOR portfolio thus again proved successful. Both the general public and experts could test their tractor-handling skills directly in the fields and further had an opportunity to participate in a contest for attractive prizes. The main prize was a trip to the Czech Republic, including an excursion to the manufacturing plant of ZETOR TRACTORS, a.s. and a visit in the ZETOR GALLERY. The winner of the prize is an Irish farmer. The Zetor Tractor Show launched in April last year. The ZETOR promo truck together with aptly named FUN VAN travelled a total of 25,699 kilometres during a campaign that lasted eight months. The first stop was Ireland, after which the show travelled through 12 other European countries. The show also travelled to Switzerland and Norway for the first time. More than 15,000 spectators gathered at 69 stops of the Zetor Tractor Show convoy. The Zetor Tractor Show is a unique event allowing us to not only present the ZETOR brand and our new products to the wider public, but also to allow current and potential customers to familiarise themselves with the characteristics and quality of our machines. We are in personal contact with the participants of the event, we obtain direct feedback from them and we can react to it immediately, commented Adam Zert, the Sales & Marketing Department Manager, about the event. So, what could visitors see during the show in 2015? First of all, they were able to see our newly introduced ZETOR CRYSTAL, the most powerful six-cylinder tractor in the company's portfolio thus far. Furthermore, the FORTERRA HD was introduced to the audience, and the ZETOR MAJOR and ZETOR PROXIMA model lines, which are greatly admired by our customers, were also part of the show. A demonstration of the tractors directly in the fields involving the possibility of testing the machines and aggregations properly under operation was possible at the majority of stops that the show visited. Part of the event included an accompanying programme dedicated to the extensive history of the brand. Thus, the classic ZETOR 25 also travelled together with the latest models in the show. The pan-European roadshow further offered a competition for attractive prizes. The main prize was two flight tickets to the Czech Republic encompassing an excursion of the production plant and a visit to the ZETOR GALLERY. Every visitor of the Zetor Tractor Show could take part in the contest. The rules were simple. A correct answer to the question "How many kilometres will the promo truck truck travel during the course of this year's entire Zetor Tractor Show?" The prize went to Irish farmer Pat Carroll, whose estimate of 25,500 kilometres was closest to the actual total kilometre amount. The ten next closest guesses won a tablet. Other contestants received promotional items. In addition to the main prize, visitors at each individual stop could also take part in a contest, which saw winners from each country receive a new tablet. In total, ZETOR distributed tens of tablets and hundreds of valuable prizes. We congratulate all the winners! This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate The student at the center of the Stamford High scandal that turned the school board on its ear did not report to police or the citys investigators that he told his principal hed been having sex with his English teacher. Yet that is what the student told the state hearing officer who then recommended that the school board fire the principal, Donna Valentine, which the board did. Now Valentine is appealing her termination, saying the hearing officers findings run contrary to the record of evidence compiled by Stamford police and Pullman & Comley, a firm the city hired to investigate. Indeed, there is nothing in the evidence like what the student said in his deposition before the hearing officer. Questioned by school-district attorney Floyd Dugas, the student said that just before Christmas 2013, I actually went to her office crying and I had a discussion with her. Dugas: Her is Dr. Valentine? Student: Yes, went to her office upset, crying. We had a discussion. She told me she knew everything that was going on and if I needed to go talk to anybody to come to her and dont worry about it, just (pass) English. English was the only class the student, a 12th-grader, needed to graduate high school. His teacher was Danielle Watkins, now in prison for having a year-long sexual relationship with him. Dugas: Okay. Now, when you had the discussion with (Valentine,) did the subject of you having sex with Ms. Watkins come up? Student: Yes. Dugas: Who raised it? Was it you who raised it? She raised it? Student: Dr. Valentine. Dugas: Did she ask you if the rumors were true? Student: No, she said she knew what was going on. The student was cross-examined by Ryan ONeill, the attorney representing Valentine, who denies the conversation took place. ONeill asked the student to provide details about their talk. Student: I just started crying straight up. I just started crying. I was overwhelmed. I didnt know what to do. I didnt know who to talk to because I didnt really know her like that so I didnt know if she could be trusted so I just broke down. ONeill: So you were crying and didnt really say too much after that? Student: She just said she knew and if I needed anything, to come talk to her and that just keep doing what youre doing. Keep doing good and pass. Later in the deposition ONeill asked the student to describe the conversation again and the student said Valentine told him pass the class and were going to graduate you. ONeill asked what led to the conversation. Student: I was told from the security guard that I needed to go to her office because it was brought to her attention that they had some type of pictures of me driving a teachers car and something else. Alternate versions The Pullman & Comley report states that in June 2014 Valentine sent School Resource Officer James Stackpole to the Stamford High parking lot because shed heard that the student had been driving Watkins car. Stackpole found the student standing in the lot and told him that Valentine wanted to see him in her office but the student never showed up, the report states. According to Watkins arrest affidavit, the student told police that Stackpole asked what he was doing in the parking lot and he told him nothing. At that point Officer Stackpole told (the student) to go see the principal, Dr. Valentine, because she wanted to talk to him but he never went to see her, the affidavit reads. The victim stated that he never sat down or told any adults at the school about what was going on with Watkins. Later in the students deposition, ONeill asked whether he remembered specifically telling police about his meeting with Valentine. Student: I dont remember specifically, no. For two years the case has been examined by police, the states attorney, private investigators, the school district and the newspaper, but this information is new. It was backed up by a counselor for the student. The counselor, Josh Brown, has known former Superintendent Winifred Hamilton since he was a student at Dolan Middle School, where Hamilton was principal. When things fell apart at the end of the school year in 2014 -- district officials suspended Watkins, who called the student to say her husband knew about their relationship and was threatening to kill him - the student confided in Brown. Brown immediately called Hamilton. During his deposition Brown was asked whether hed reported to police that the student claimed to have told Valentine about the sexual relationship directly. Brown said he did. ONeill: And so it would be a surprise to you if Sergeant Scanlans report did not contain any mention of Brown: Yeah, it would probably be a surprise to me. Yeah. There is nothing about the conversation in the police report. ONeill then asked Brown whether he told Pullman & Comley investigators about it. Brown: I dont recall. I think I did, yes. But Pullman & Comley investigators did not report Brown mentioning the conversation. It would seem that prosecutors and the court would have reacted strongly if they believed Valentine had counseled a student who came to her office crying because he was entangled in a sexual relationship with his teacher by saying dont worry about it, get a good grade in her class and well graduate you. As it is, the court granted Valentine probation for not reporting the incident sooner. But the information was presented to the state hearing officer and influenced his conclusion that Valentine be fired. Now it may feature prominently in Valentines appeal. The following excerpt is from Perry Marshall's book Ultimate Guide to Local Business Marketing. Buy it now from Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iTunes or click here to buy it directly from us and SAVE 60% on this book when you use code MARKET2021 through 4/24/21. Perry Marshall and lead generation expert Talor Zamir introduce you to the basic framework behind a successful local marketing campaign. In this edited excerpt, Perry and Zamir reveal how to create a landing page that will increase your conversion rate. We're sure you understand why a good landing page is so essential to your success, so lets look at what a high-converting landing page should include. This information we're sharing with you is the result of years of testing and millions of dollars in ad spend, and has proved successful across dozens of different local business verticals. It's what we've found works the best for local businesses looking to get their phones ringing. Header The header is the section at the very top of your site. It should be relatively narrow because you don't want it taking up too much of the all-important above-the-fold space at the top of your site. There are just two things to include in the header: your logo, which goes on the far left side of the header, and a call to action, which goes on the far right side of the header. This call to action should be in a fairly large font so it stands out and people can read it easily. For a local business, we almost always have the businesss phone number here. However, don't just put the phone number up there. Add a specific call to action above the phone number to give people a reason to call you. We recommend something like Call Now for a Free Estimate/Consultation/Quote. Video or Image Under the main headline, on the left side of the page, you should have a video or image. (This video or image could go either above or below the main headline. We've tried it both ways, and it doesn't seem to make much of a difference in conversion rates.) The strategy for the image or video is pretty much like it is for the rest of the landing page: Put your best foot forward. You simply want something that looks professional and helps convey the benefits you offer. For a video, keep it on the short side: around a minute or a few minutes at the most. For the image, make sure its relevant to your business. Ideally its a photo of you/your staff looking happy or one that visually shows the benefits your clients get from using your services. Headline/Subheadline Hands down, the headline is the most important copy on your landing page. Its so important because its going to be the most read copy on the page and will largely determine whether your prospects pay attention to the rest of the page or simply hit the back button. There's no shortage of detailed information out there on copywriting and creating headlines. Most of them require you to think really deeply about this, come up with a customer avatar, think about a lot of theoretical stuff, come up with 100 ideas, etc. A lot of this information is really helpful; we're not dismissing it at all. But our goal is to make things as simple and straightforward for you as possible. Obviously we cant write your headline for you -- you'll still have to do some thinking about this and at least come up with a list of your best benefits and main selling points. However, we're going to share a headline template that's proved to be successful on a number of landing pages we've created for clients. Here's the headline and subheadline template: Would You Like to ... (Insert Benefit 1, Benefit 2, Benefit 3) If the answer is YES, then call us now for your free consultation and learn ... Lets look at a few examples and then discuss this formula in more detail. Heres one for a title loan company: Would You Like Fast Cash in 15 Minutes or Less With No Credit Check at the Lowest Rates in Las Vegas AND You Keep Your Car? If the answer is YES, then call us now at (888) 555-5555, or come visit us at (location address). For a mortgage broker: Would You Like to Refinance Your Home to Todays Low Rates and Lower Your Monthly Payments Even If You Owe More Than Your Home Is Worth? If the answer is YES, then call now for your free consultation where youll discover. . . One of the keys to the success of this headline template is putting your prospects in Yes mode, which psychologically makes them more likely to take you up on your offer. At this point, your prospect will see the yes, so you're getting them in a yes state of mind. That's why we follow up with If the answer is YES . . . to build off them being in that state of saying yes, then we follow up with a call to action. That call to action leads into the promise of discovering the biggest benefit you offer prospects. Body Copy/Bullet Points This section goes under your headline and subheadline on the left side of the page and expands on the promise/offer/value proposition they started. Most people aren't going to read all your copy; they're going to skim it. So a few short paragraphs are all you need along with three to five bullet points. Bullet points are a list of short, punchy sentences that convey the main benefits/key points that prospects should know about your business. Again, keep things short, sweet, and focused on the main benefits you offer your clients. Contact Form Not everyone who lands on your page is going to call. So for those who don't want to call, the landing page should have a contact form where they can submit their information. The form should have a clear call to action at the top that reinforces why they should contact you and what benefit they'll receive for doing so. For the form itself, only ask for the information you absolutely need from a prospect -- that's generally a name, email address, phone number, and an optional comments field where they can enter any comments or questions they have. You can also get creative with the button that a visitor needs to click to submit their information. You can use a generic Submit button or a more action/benefit-oriented button such as Get Free Estimate or Get Free Consultation. The Proof Zone The space under the contact form is a great place to demonstrate your businesss credibility. We call it the Proof Zone because the information here should help prove to your prospects that you are a credible and trustworthy business. How do you do that? One common way is to provide testimonials from happy clients. Having these testimonials in the form of a video or audio clip is very powerful. A text testimonial with a photo is the next best option. With testimonials, the more specific they are and the more they reinforce the main benefits of your business, the better. Here's an example of a lame testimonial: These guys are great. Im really happy with them. -- Joe Compare that to this testimonial: Following my car accident three years ago, Id experienced nearly constant chronic back pain. I tried physical therapy, pain meds, and a few natural remedies, and nothing helped. I visited Dr. Smith after a friend recommended her, and Im glad I did. After six visits, Im moving better than I have in years and am virtually pain free! -- Joe Williams, Seattle, WA If you don't have testimonials, there are plenty of other ways to demonstrate your businesss credibility. These include using logos of media outlets you've been featured on, logos of well-known clients, and/or special recognition/credentials/awards your business has received from industry/business organizations. Another Call to Action At the bottom of the page, below the fold, reinforce your call to action. Put your phone number there again so people don't have to scroll up to find it. And again remind them of the benefit they'll receive for taking action and contacting you. Tiny Links at the Bottom of Your Landing Page If it were up to us, there would be no links on your landing page because we want people focused on the one action we want them to take. However, since we're advertising on Google, we need to keep them happy and follow their rules. And to satisfy Googles terms and conditions, there need to be a few links on the page. We place these, in a very small font, in the footer at the bottom of the page. The bare minimum you need to include here are links to a privacy policy, terms and conditions, and a contact page. The contact page exists so Google knows you're a real business and should include both your phone number and your physical address. Did you enjoy your book preview? Click here to grab a copy todaynow 60% off when you use code MARKET2021 through 4/24/21. Copyright 2021 Entrepreneur.com Inc., All rights reserved The crew at Mental Floss has come out with another entertaining U.S. map of Google searches. This one provides a state-by-state look at what people are musing about when they do Internet searches. T o all appearances, Julie Meyer the founder and chief executive of investment and advisory firm Ariadne Capital is every inch the dot-com doyenne and small-business champion. Shes been a guest at Downing Street, honoured as a global leader for tomorrow by the World Economic Forum, and in 2010 joined then-Business Secretary Vince Cables entrepreneurs forum. A year later, she won an MBE for her services to entrepreneurship. The glittering CV also includes a stint as a Dragon on the online version of Dragons Den. Among the countless columns and interviews, Michigan-born Meyer wrote in the Financial Times in 2014 about creating a society where responsible business is the cultural norm. That rings hollow with one former member of Ariadnes team, consultant Rachel Lowe, who has had to fight a legal battle lasting more than three years to get money owed by Ariadne. Ariadne is no stranger to litigation. Start Up Loans, then chaired by former Dragon James Caan, last year won a case against it to reclaim 50,000 Ariadne was supposed to hand out to businesses under a taxpayer-funded scheme to help entrepreneurs. (Meyer argued the costs of the scheme had left Ariadne out of pocket, and insisted her involvement had been public spirited.) Court records show Ariadne in legal disputes with chartered accountant Kingston Smith, GQ Employment Law and international law firm Nabarro in the past three years. (Meyer says four cases in 15 years is not a lot.) Lowe, 48 a highly experienced saleswoman named among BTs top 1% of staff before she struck out of her own as a consultant sued for non-payment of invoices and lost commission and has stuck with her battle, despite a failed attempt by Meyer to counter-sue for 200,000. Still scarred: Rachel Lowe finally got her day in court but calls Meyers behaviour despicable For Lowe, who worked with Meyer for five months from May 2012, the fight has been stressful and expensive. Despite numerous efforts by Meyer to have the case dismissed or adjourned, when Lowe finally had her day in court the judge described Meyer as not credible and said her evidence at times bordered on the hysterical in a damning judgment in the Central London County Court on December 23. Meyer counters that she was stressed giving evidence by video link while negotiating a $100 million deal abroad. Lowes job was to support Ariadne clients and find sponsorship partners for Entrepreneur Country, Ariadnes community for start-ups and small businesses. Meyer assured Lowe that Ariadne was an honourable company which paid invoices on time. At first, it was. Meyer told Lowe she was doing a fantastic job, and it was a given that she was staying. Then Ariadnes payments for Lowes work began coming in late. Finally, after repeatedly chasing her September invoice, she was stunned to get an email from Meyer on October 15 saying only half of it would be paid. Not only that, the message was filled with untrue allegations over her poor performance. Lowe said they were such a shock she cut short a holiday in St Lucia. Within a week of her return to London, she added, it became clear that Meyer was not going to honour her contract. Not only that, but the American had emailed Ariadnes staff, warning them to be careful being in touch with her as we are in a dispute of her making right now. Fast-forward to Decembers ruling on that dispute, and Judge Baucher found Meyers criticisms of Lowes work were without foundation; indeed the American had called it outstanding on many fronts. The judges verdict added: Ms Meyer sought in oral evidence to persuade me as to Ms Lowes inadequacies. I found her evidence emotional and... at times it bordered on the hysterical. When challenging matters were put to her, she used that as an opportunity to besmirch Ms Lowe Meyer also wanted to paint a picture to the court which was simply not supported by the objective evidence. Further, when challenging matters were put to her, she simply used that as an opportunity to besmirch Ms Lowe. Despite Meyers email to staff warning about Lowe, the judge found it was the American who lost control and was aggressive during a telephone conversation between the two. Lowe offered to settle for 9000 three years ago. The judge finally awarded her 64,500.90 of which 35,000 was in costs, with more costs to follow. The payment was due on January 13 this year but the money only finally arrived, after the threat of a winding-up order, hours before the deadline last week. Lowe may have won but the scars are raw, and she calls Meyers behaviour despicable, adding: The battle isnt yet over. Julie still has approximately 20k of legal fees to pay my solicitor within the next few weeks. For now, though, I am celebrating. Apart from Lowes lengthy claim, the jobs review website Glassdoor contains 13 comments purportedly from ex-Ariadne employees with headings including dont work here and run for the hills and attacking Meyer personally. What does Meyer say in response? She emailed: There are a lot of people much more important than me who get written up on anonymous websites. Comes with the territory. She also related a grateful email from an intern who said: I never thought I was going to learn so much in just two years. She dismissed Judge Bauchers findings, saying she seemed rather biased against me. But her attempts to appeal were refused as completely without merit by Lord Justice Sales, who found no arguable case that the judge demonstrated bias or the appearance of bias. Meyer, who stands by her low opinion of Lowes work despite the ruling, said: Deeply ambitious, smart, hard-working, professional people do well at Ariadne, love the firm, and stay for years. We have a great team and a lot of fun together. Fun isnt the right word to describe Lowes experience. But her case has put a public spotlight on a little-seen side of the entrepreneurs champion. A flurry of bosses and City figures today declared their stance on a Brexit from Europe as the pound continued to slide to new seven-year lows. Sterling dropped below $1.40 for the first time since 2009 as the clamour of warnings about the potential damage to the currency if the electorate votes out on June 23 grew. HSBC added its voice to the chorus today, warning that the pound could fall by as much as 20% and that economic growth could be stunted so much as to knock 1.5% off Britains gross domestic product. The pound fell 0.94 cent to $1.3933. Guy Hands, the private equity supremo, threw his weight behind the stay campaign at the SuperReturn Conference in Berlin today. He declared: The only certain winners from Britain leaving the EU will be Russia. Drawing on the history of Europe since the Second World War, Hands said: International institutions such as the EU and the UN have made the world a better place in spite of their obvious failings and need for reform. Britain staying in the EU is the right thing for Britain and for Europe. Tim Martin, founder of the Wetherspoons pub empire, weighed in on the side of Brexit. It makes no sense, in the UK, for sensitive issues to be decided on by faceless bureaucrats in Brussels, when were just as capable of deciding for ourselves, he said. But Martin also acknowledged that his business among others had done well thanks to the influx of Europeans into the UK to work behind his bars. He said: I strongly believe that the UK has been a big beneficiary of the migration of large numbers of Europeans to this country, as, indeed, we have benefited from an influx of people from other regions of the world. Manny Roman, chief executive of hedge fund manager Man Group, joined those warning of the potential dangers of a UK exit. Whilst it is hard to say exactly what the impact would be, the uncertainty and potential negative consequences for the economy should not be underestimated, he said. Paul Kahn, UK boss of Airbus, which today upped its dividend after a 15% rise in net income for the year, said a Brexit could impact on the free movement of labour for employees of multinational companies like his. This would bring less opportunity for our British employees to go to France, Germany and elsewhere in Europe. He added that Brexit could mean more, not less red tape, for EU states wanting to do business with the UK. W ell, what did he expect? As David Cameron mocked his position on Britains membership of the European Union during Mondays Commons debate, a look of vexed incredulity crept across Boris Johnsons features. This, surely, was not in the script? Rubbish! shouted the Mayor, with all the municipal fury of Derek Hatton heckling Neil Kinnock at the 1985 Labour conference. This was politics red in tooth and claw, stripped of twinkle and bonhomie. As they say in Boriss native land (he was born in New York in 1964): welcome to the NFL. Let us first praise the excitement with which the referendum campaign has now, quite suddenly, been charged. As a member of the political Cabinet, Boris is merely taking advantage of the Prime Ministers decision to suspend collective responsibility during the campaign, richly entitled to adopt whatever stance he wishes on the EU. That said, the manner in which Johnson declared himself a Leaver was bound to trigger a sharp response. I gather that he gave the Remain camp reason to believe he might come on board until very late in the day. Then, on a dime, vacillation was supplanted by provocation. In his long Telegraph article, he implied heavily that he was the man to carve out a new deal with the EU: There is only one way to get the change we need and that it to vote to go; because all EU history shows that they only really listen to a population when it says No Its time to seek a new relationship, in which we manage to extricate ourselves from most of the supranational elements. TODO: define component type apester What sort of reaction did Boris anticipate to this challenge? Last week, the PM spent 30 sleepless hours in Brussels negotiating revised terms of membership for the UK in Europe after several punishing days of shuttle diplomacy. You may not think much of the deal but only the churlish could fail to respect his stamina. Yet now, bold as brass, here was the Mayor of London explaining how much better the job could be done if only we followed his lead. Worse much worse our classicist Mayor employed the rhetorical device of apophasis, whereby the speaker or writer gives cunning prominence to an idea by seeming to reject it. Speaking to reporters outside his north London house on Sunday, Boris declared: I want to make another thing clear: whatever happens at the end of this and Ive said this to the Prime Minister hes got to stay. In Mondays Telegraph he was at it again: At the end of it all, we want to get a result, and then get on and unite around David Cameron. In fact, Boris is the first senior Conservative to make an issue of Camerons future in this context. None of his colleagues has hitherto raised the prospect of regime change. But, in asserting that the Prime Minister should not resign if he loses the referendum, he subtly planted the idea that there might indeed be a vacancy in Downing Street quite soon, and that we should all start thinking about the identity of Camerons natural successor. Who could he have in mind? Students of Margaret Thatchers fall and Tony Blairs expulsion will know that this is how the British stage a coup. Protestations of loyalty are always the first step remember Michael Heseltine, Boriss erstwhile mentor, insisting that he could not foresee the circumstances in which he would challenge the Iron Lady for the leadership? By spelling out the fact that Cameron would be extremely vulnerable after defeat in the referendum, Boris signalled to Westminster that he was well aware that much more was at stake on June 23 than Britains membership of the EU. He is quite right, of course: a likely consequence of Brexit would indeed be Dexit. But it was a dramatic escalation by Johnson to refer so flagrantly to the prospect of Camerons departure. Lets be frank: Johnson is used to special treatment, to exemption from the normal, grey rules and protocols of daily politics. But when that exemption has been suspended, the results have been riveting. In March 2013, he was subjected to a brutal interrogation by the BBCs Eddie Mair, who asked him: Youre a nasty piece of work, arent you? As I wrote at the time, Johnson resembled an English sheepdog who had gambolled up expecting a pat only to be smacked squarely across the chops. When you travel through life enjoying special status, it is vexing suddenly to be treated like a normal citizen. Whatever he claims to the contrary, Boris is now running for the highest office in the land, and the age of cosseting and cuddly questions is drawing to a close. Consider: in less than a week, Cameron spent two days in Brussels hammering out the minutiae of a diplomatic text, flew back to address his Cabinet, appeared on The Andrew Marr Show, and took questions in the Commons for three hours. Thats on top of all the usual running-the-country stuff the security briefings, the pound tumbling to its lowest point since March 2009, the Governments preparations for the Budget three weeks today. Now that Boris has raised the issue of Camerons future, the question Tory MPs and members should be asking themselves is this: which of the two politicians would have better handled this punishing week-long itinerary? So when Steve Baker, the pro-Brexit Tory MP for Wycombe, asked Cameron on Monday to please be kind to Boris, he was making an absurd request. Should the Prime Minister just smile beatifically while his swashbuckling colleague plots to take his job? Should he just suck up the indignity of a backbench MP undermining him so insidiously? Time to get real. This is not, as Cameron told MPs this week, a free-for-all: words freighted with menace. What began as a constitutional reform project has become a deadly duel between two remarkable politicians, and one must prevail. There is, to coin a phrase, no turning back. I t seems that the people wanting to take Britain out of the EU, who claim they want to give control back to the British people, are also those who pushed privatisation, taking control of vital services and infrastructure out of the hands of the British people and giving it to big corporations. Those behind the Brexit campaign are using sentimentality and genuine concerns over immigration to fool people into voting for something they really want for very different reasons. Among themselves, what they really dont like about the EU is the idea of international co-operation and countries joining together to stop the super-wealthy playing off one against another to avoid taxes. Their vision of Britain outside the EU is of some sort of tax haven a paradise for the super-rich but with the rest of us reduced to servile status. I would urge anyone thinking of voting to leave the EU to look at the people encouraging them to do so and consider whether they really have your interests at heart. Matthew Huntbach Sadiq Khans claims that a Brexit would be catastrophic and irresponsible, threatening our jobs, livelihood and security, are ridiculous [February 22]. He says half a million jobs in London, as well as the continued success of the City of London, are dependent on the EU. But it is naive to suggest countries within the EU would cease to trade with the UK following a Brexit. Britain would instantly become the EUs biggest export market and, of course, we would be free to make independent trade deals with the rest of the world. Even the financial sector disagrees with him Barclays previously claimed a Brexit would lead to the UK becoming a safe haven from the unstable eurozone. It is clear Mr Khan is wrong in his assessment of London this is a great global city, not a backwater dependant on a failing EU. Jayne Adye, director, Get Britain Out Like many other people I am yet to decide which way to vote in the forthcoming EU referendum. Clearly it is a very important, once-in-a-lifetime decision and I hope we can hear constructive arguments from both sides. Unfortunately, Sadiq Khans article quite honestly pushes me towards a Brexit. His arguments lack any substance why would a Brexit threaten our economic and national security? A Brexit may be a step into the unknown but Mr Khan and other figures should give us as many of the facts as possible so we can make our own balanced decisions. Craig Silver Keep real fur out of fashion The fashion industry is guilty on two counts [Cut the fashion world down to size, February 22], not just the designers using size-zero models but also for bringing back the use of real fur. It is crawling back on to the high street at an alarming rate in the form of fur pom-poms and fur-trimmed hoods. When I have asked wearers and shop assistants if they know they are promoting one of the cruellest industries, they are surprised as they are under the impression its fake. Once we would pretend fake products were real so it is ironic that people now pretend real fur is faux. To be sure that you dont end up with a piece of mans best friend on your head, dont buy anything that looks as though it might once have been worn by an animal its rightful owner. Angela Humphery Dont cut funds for negligence claims The NHS brings hope, health and life to millions of people, but on rare occasions it also fails, leaving patients injured and families bereaved. To save money, the Government plans to cut its legal bill for medical negligence compensation claims. While the public purse is indeed not bottomless, paying compensation is necessary when the NHS causes unnecessary harm. The Governments priority should be to help people when things go wrong and to ensure injured patients and their families get the guidance and legal representation they require. Jonathan Wheeler, president, Association of Personal Injury Lawyers (APIL) Show humanity to the Calais refugees It was heartbreaking to read about people at the Calais refugee camp who are worried about their future because two thirds of the camp is likely to be destroyed [Online, February 20]. These people have taken unimaginable risks and endured horrific journeys to get there regardless of whether they are refugees or economic migrants. I am tired of digesting news of this crisis it is high time our politicians found a solution once and for all. Handsen Chikowore Lord Avebury was a fighter for justice I wsih to pay tribute to Lord Avebury, the Liberal peer who passed away on February 14. Eric was a remarkable man who was seen as the voice of the oppressed and neglected minorities throughout the world. His tireless struggle on behalf of human rights abuse victims earned him respect and his passing will leave an immense void that will be felt not only by his family but also the people whose lives changed as a result of his fight for justice. Mahmood Hussain 1 . Mesmerised by a fiendish sock puppet (Harry Melling, brilliant) at the Vaudeville Theatres Hand to God, pork goulash with spatzle afterwards at The Delaunay is balm to the soul. 2. Cuttlefish from the Josper oven on campanelle pasta blackened in its ink with chilli and ginger is a standout dish at merry Canto Corvino. As is dish of the day of satiny Norwegian skrei (cod). 3. Modeum gooi mixed Korean barbecue at revamped Koba in Fitzrovia puts the hubcap table grill through its paces. 4. Burrata with carrots and artichokes, and grilled octopus with smoked peppers at Osteria, opened by Anthony Demetre for Searcys at the Barbican Centre, extends post-theatre dining somewhat not far. 5. A ravishing salad of barbecued and raw courgettes with pine nut praline, Sussex Slipcote, basil and pea shoots prepared by Ollie Dabbous for a neighbours party. 30 must-try dishes in London restaurants 1 /41 30 must-try dishes in London restaurants Bone marrow on toast with parsley salad at St John Not only has this dish kicked off countless wonderful meals over the course of St Johns 25 years, but it also gets credit for putting British cooking back on the global culinary map. Roasted bone marrow, coaxed out onto toast, cut perfectly with salad of parsley, shallots and capers. A nose-to-tail revolution, and utterly divine. Whole turbot at Brat Tomos Parrys talents with a turbot first came to feverish acclaim at Mayfair restaurant Kitty Fishers, but they are now the star attraction at his Michelin-starred solo spot. This whole fish grilled Basque-style, over hot coals and in a specially designed cage softens as if it has melted, and is basted at the table in an emulsion made with its own juices. Benjamin McMahon Marinara at 50 Kalo di Ciro Salvo Superlatives should be used in moderation but heck it, this might just be Londons best pizza. This under-the-radar London iteration of a Naples pizzeria serves an unrivalled marinara: just tomato sauce, oil, garlic and oregano. No need for any more with a sauce this good and a base so fine and perfectly charred, you can stop mourning your cancelled Italian holiday at first bite. Luciano Furia Clay pot baked pork and crab glass noodles at Kiln When we say Kiln is one of the hottest spots in town, we mean it hang over the counter at the Thai barbecue and youre not far out of range for the odd flame. Baking in the heart of the swirling heat is this must order: shimmering glass noodles, coated with a silky sauce enriched with fatty slicks of Tamworth pork belly and improbably unctuous crab meat. Lamb chops, Melabes Perhaps because its quietly tucked in among its unassuming neighbours down on the wrong end of High Street Kensington, Melabes is often overlooked by Londons food lovers. An unwarranted shame, as this partly Middle Eastern, partly Mediterranean set-up is really very good; it is somewhere to pick and choose from bits and pieces, and put a meal together yourself. The lamb chops, which come all smokey and burnished from the grill, are perfect; pink as a Vegas sign inside, but the fat all soft and dripping and delicious. A must, whatever the order. Steak tartare imperial at Bob Bob Ricard Theres Press For Champagne buttons, lobster in your mac and cheese and anything that stays still long enough gets gilded there is no point in going small at Bob Bob Ricard. Steak tartare is a luxurious pick at the best of times, but the Imperial upgrade here comes with a dollop of caviar even without the finishing touch, the tartare itself is one of the best in the capital. Bacon naan at Dishoom Londoners spent decades believing bacon in a bap with some ketchup (or brown sauce, but lets not have that argument now) couldnt be beaten and then Dishoom came along. This breakfast sandwich fills a fresh naan with bacon, a slathering of cream cheese, a luxurious tomato and chilli chutney, coriander and an oozing fried egg if you feel so inclined. Hangover be gone. Cacio e pepe at Padella Five years ago, you would have thought anyone queuing for pasta in London to have lost their minds this dish changed that. The starlet of Padellas much coveted is this plate of pici hand-rolled fat worms of eggless pasta with a mirror-shine sauce of parmesan cheese and pasta. Simple but unrivalled and itll set you back just 6. Jamon croquetas at Barrafina A dish like this should be elusive it is far too easy to eat seven portions of croquetas in a single sitting, which is why we presume Barrafina makes you queue. Very sensible. As the crunchy coating gives way to the oozing centre, enriched with the flavour of Spanish jamon (the best ham in the business), were already planning our next visit. Biang biang noodles at Xi'an Biang Biang Noodles There are oodles of noodles in the capital, but Guirong Weis triumphant take is one of the finest. First finding followers at her north London restaurant Xian Impression (soon to reopen for dine-in, but not yet), the dish of has inspired a whole spin-off restaurant in Spitalfields. Thick, hand-pulled, chewy noodles soak up all the spice and zing of the special sauce they swim in very special indeed. Souffle Suissesse, Le Gavroche Le Gavroche the street urchin is perhaps not for everyone. It is a Mayfair time machine, a reminder of how things were done once upon a time. Fortunately, it happens that how things were once done was very well indeed, and lunch or supper here is a masterclass in traditional French luxury (and often, happily, includes very large glasses of wine). Staff make the place, anyone who has been gently teased by the twins pretending to be each other will know. A tendency towards the old ways does mean the cooking offers little in the way of evolution or revolution, but new, after all, isnt always better. Michel Roux Jrs cheese souffle, baked on double cream, stuns, so overwhelmingly tasty, utter decadence that clings to the taste buds. Buttermilk Jamaican Jerk Chicken, Around the Cluck / 12:51 James Cochran found his signature dish early on, but its good it should stay with him for the rest of his career. While he has chops, and can do more beyond, theres something special in the way he works with his chicken; hotly spiced, gorgeously crispy, beautifully soft on the inside. A long-standing favourite and, though 12:51 cant operate as it did before, there are tables at his new project Around the Cluck, which is operating out of the same site. Breakfast at Hawksmoor Guildhall Your Full English is not full in comparison to the Hawksmoor breakfast at the steak connoisseurs Guildhall restaurant. The mind-boggling two-person spread swaps bacon rashers for an entire smoked chop, serves its bubble and squeak with short rib, puts trotter meat into its baked beans, and adds grilled bone marrow to all the usual trimmings. Cauliflower shawarma at Berber & Q Its not often that the main event at a barbecue restaurant is the veg, but Berber & Q have achieved just that. The cauliflower shawarma here is cooked on their flaming grill until softened and charred, before being doused liberally in tahini, pomegranate molasses, coriander, pomegranate seeds and a scattering of dried rose petals. BBQ Butter Chicken Wings at Brigadiers Brigadiers is a bold, boisterous sort of place: a labyrinthine City dining room, packed to the rafters with beer and Indian food that is indisputably gutsy. But arguably its finest moment comes in one of its smallest packages these chicken wings may be diminutive, but are mightily spiced, deftly charred and dripping with ghee-fuelled succulence. Beef brisket bun at Smokestak David Carters Shoreditch restaurant occupies itself by giving the entirety of Kansas City a run for its money on a daily basis. The star turn at this lauded barbecue restaurant is its beef brisket bun the meat is soft and juicy, riddled with its fats in the centre, while charred and treacle-like on the outside, paired perfectly with pickled chillies. To remember it is to salivate, we assure you. Snails, LEscargot LEscargot is one of Sohos old aristocrats and in its grand, beret red dining room there is always a mischievous sense of fun perhaps because it is still such a smart, suited, chandeliered place, and people are often drinking themselves rather silly. The clue to good eating is in the name; the snails come still clinging to their shells and submerged in their butter and parsley sauce. Dive in; you will emerge stinking gloriously of garlic. It wont matter a jot; roll on the red wine and settle in for a long, comforting night. Confit potatoes at Quality Chop House Yes, there are some high quality chops on offer at this 150-year-old Clerkenwell restaurant but blimey, leave room for the chips. Fine slices of potato are stacked into architecturally sound wedges, and confited until shatteringly crispy on the outside and devastatingly soft in the centre. They have been much imitated in recent years, but never bettered. Smoked eel sandwich at Quo Vadis Jeremy Lee cooks many things to a legendary level at Quo Vadis his pies could so easily have also made this list but he gets the nod here for his unrivalled take on the fancy sandwich. Smoked eel, horseradish cream and Dijon mustard, served with red onion pickle a combination so popular Lee says he nearly ran out of eel on post-lockdown reopening. Classic bao at Bao London has buns in abundance, but we still bow down to the fluffy superiority of Bao. The Taiwanese restaurant has become a cross-town favourite, thanks to its pleasingly pert rice buns (they are genuinely very pert, no crassness intended) and carefully considered fillings. The classic order comes filled with braised pork, fermented veg, coriander and a dusting of peanut powder. Carol Sachs Potato and roe, Core by Clare Smyth Clare Smyth has a knack that must infuriate other chefs; she is able to take the simplest of ingredients say, a single carrot and a smattering of lamb mince do something devilish with it and charge rather a lot for it; so good are the results, though, that few mind. Smyths sorcery is perhaps best witnessed with her signature, the potato and roe. It is simply a potato on a plate in a little sauce, but then it is also perhaps the best potato dish in the world; it has this wonderful salty richness, a certain seaside intenseness. It is glorious; so too is the smoked chicken that tends to come as an amuse bouche. Youll be treated here. Omelette Arnold Bennett Dont worry, no Arnolds were harmed in the making of this dish. Alongside impeccable service and an arguably perfect dining room, you could add another highlight to your breakfast at The Wolseley by ordering this creamy, haddock-filled dish, named for the writer who inspired its creation while staying at the Savoy. Fish pie, J Sheekey Long an actors favourite, J Sheekeys glamour has never lost its lustre. Its kept its regulars and charmed newcomers with a menu that plays the greatest hits of fine dining favourites. Seafood is Sheekeys thing; simply done sole is beautiful here, crab comes three ways, brill brushed in butter has a meatiness thats beyond satisfying. The fish pie is famous though, and rightly so; beneath the flaking pastry is a sea of cream, mustard and white wine, in it bobbing cod, haddock and salmon. It is simple but never fails; it does on its own for lunch, but is a failsafe at supper, too. John Carey The Ari Gold at Patty & Bun Theres a cheeseburger on every high street in the capital but not all of them are created equal. Patty & Bun has got the classic combination down to a tee with its curiously named Ari Gold burger: a fat, 35-day aged patty is served medium rare, and topped with gooey American cheese, smokey house mayo and tangy pickled red onions. Xiao long bao at Din Tai Fung Few dishes in the capital have been known to cause queues of four hours. Thats exactly what the world-famous xiao long bao dumplings did when top Taiwanese restaurant group Din Tai Fung first opened in Covent Garden. An intricately folded out layer (made by chefs trained for at least 18 months) gives way to succulent meat and a broth you could take on by the bowlful. Pig's trotter, the French House Upstairs in the Soho local, Neil Borthwick is quietly running one of the areas best kitchens. He orders in particularly good oysters, does brilliant things with brill and with his pigs trotter, has a dish that is rich and fatty, but with a beautiful salty cut that makes it madly moreish. The menu tends to change often upstairs in the French, but have this if its on. That little dining room is somewhere to go in early for lunch and stay until late, eventually spilling down into the pub below, to drink pints they do pints now, not just halfs all while merrily reliving the joys upstairs. Peter Clark Dover sole with crab butter at Bentley's Oyster Bar and Grill There are so many delights at Bentleys, its tricky to pick a single one. This could so easily have been a plate of rigorously sourced oysters, the fish pie, the decadent Royal seafood platter (pictured). It is however, the Dover sole that wins. A sublime piece of fish always, expertly cooked without fail choose it either filleted with beautiful crab butter, or grilled and whole for a simple pleasure. Over in the City, Corrigan does similarly brilliant things with lobster at Daffodil Mulligan. Ragu, Lina Stores Sohos Lina Stores the pasta bar, not the longstanding Italian deli it comes from is the sort of restaurant one longs for; small, fun, friendly, not too pricey. They do small plates of near perfect pasta; their ragu, whether lamb or veal, is a gem. A good ragu is hard to find too often theres too little meat, or meat not cooked for long enough but here, they spend the time over it, cooking slowly, carefully. No restaurant can compare with a Nonna, but Lina gets gratifyingly close. Porterhouse steak, the Guinea Grill London is not short of steakhouses, but the Guinea does not number among them. A pub a proper one it is tucked down a Mayfair sidestreet, away from everything and yet still perpetually busy. Besides the small bar is a dining room that looks much as it must have done when the likes of Sinatra was in (or Bette Midler, or Kylie, or Regan, or, or, or), where theyve served prime Aberdeen Angus cooked on a smoking hot grill. The Guinea is all about having a good time pints, red wine, brandies, the lot but they cook beautifully, and their handling of a good piece of beef is second to none. Puree de pommes de terre, Le Comptoir Robuchon The late Joel Robuchon may have been the most decorated chef of his and perhaps any other era, but his signature stayed humble mashed potato. Until youve had it, it is hard to believe it could be quite so good; mash, after all, is mash. No matter the scepticism, it will always surprise; it is almost silly that so little could taste of so much. A side, it will match almost everything on the menu; of which, the lamb with aubergine on the menu of classics is extraordinarily good. @fay_maschler Follow Going Out on Facebook and on Twitter @ESgoingout H owever much you dont want to be a coffee snob, a lot of importance is placed on the first order of the day. When it goes wrong and you are served a crappuccino it can derail the whole morning. Even old faithfuls can disappoint when the queue makes you late for work or your favourite barista goes on holiday and is replaced by someone who doesnt get that you need a large shot with space for cold milk. Still, you are loyal, and independent shops are recognising this by combining apps with ccinos to make it easier to have a special brew. DripApps founders Ruben Grigri and Jeremy Cortial describe theirs as an Oyster Card for Londons best cafes. Download, top-up and pay with a tap on your phone at any of the cafes that have partnered with it. Grigri and Cortial had the idea over flat whites, when they were discussing that Starbucks does more than 20 per cent of its transactions through its mobile app. They say: We wanted to create a platform where the independents have the chance to compete with the large chains by increasing their visibility while also offering benefits to the customer. Things such as discounts, ease and discovering hidden gems around London. There is a long list of DripApp partners, including White Mulberries in St Katharine Docks, Paper Dress on Mare Street in Hackney and Brockley Deli. Each has a profile on DripApps website and there is a map to help you find a hidden hotspot that might be just around the corner. There is a financial incentive coffee is up to 50 per cent cheaper, your first drink is free and you never have to worry about having exact change. Grigri used to work in finance and Cortial exported toys. They would like to expand to other cities and say some new features are on the way: We are aiming to empower independent stores and make the coffee drinking experience as delicious, seamless and cheap as we can. 'We are aiming to empower independent stores and make the coffee drinking experience as delicious, seamless and cheap as we can.' The London Coffee Network is another loyalty scheme that helps you find good brews and then allows you to stockpile points. Meanwhile, Grind & Co, the independent coffee and cocktail group, has an app to speed up the morning fix. Order and pay on your way to the shop, so theres no need to queue and search for your purse once you arrive. Its inspired by the simplicity of ordering an Uber and aims to streamline coffee runs so you are never late to work because of a dithering barista. Loyalty is rewarded with points and free drinks. David Abrahamovitch, founder of Grind, says: The iPhone is increasingly the remote control for our lives and it struck me that we have tons of regulars who order exactly the same thing every morning and that we could make this process much more efficient. @susannahbutter Follow Going Out on Facebook and on Twitter @ESgoingout P icture a chef. Sparklingly clean whites? Check. Massive Psycho-style knife? Check. Tall pleated toque on head? Steady on, were not in Ratatouille. But theres one uniform accessory that is fast becoming a basic requirement for any top London chef worth their Halen Mon: arms, legs, backs (and other body parts protected from kitchen implements) covered in tattoos. Glance into the open kitchen of countless top London restaurants, and the main maverick whipping up magic on their Josper is likely to have sleeves covered, not in sauce, but in the swirls of indelible ink. The food-ink crossover is such that, this week, TV chef Gizzi Erskine is even hosting a tattoo-focused supperclub, where guests can get advice on their next inking. Lee Tiernan, the heavy metal fiend behind Islingtons hipster destination du jour, Black Axe Mangal, is a perfect specimen of the new tribe of ink-fiends: images and patterns bedeck his body, from the globe artichoke on the inside of his bicep to the empty martini glass on his leg. It might suit the Hells Angels dive bar look of BAM but the grunge rock vibe of tattoos is one we used to link less with top-notch food, more with sailors and prisoners. Given the macho environment of the kitchen, the fact that chefs are frequently hidden back of house, and their impressive pain tolerance, it wouldnt seem odd for chefs to have always been plastered in ink, but for one thing. Past studies have suggested employer prejudice against tattooed applicants appearing dirty hardly an ideal look for a public kitchen aiming to exude impeccable hygiene. Little wonder that the old guard of Michelin-starred or celebrity cooks from Roux Jr and Blumenthal to Pierre White and Ramsay, have no visible marks on their skin bar kitchen burns. Needle point: Gizzi Erskine is hosting a night of food and body art advice with tattooist Mo Coppoletta Andrew Clarke, the heavily inked head chef at Vauxhalls Brunswick House, recalls that when he first started in kitchens, I was always looked at differently to other chefs, particularly in Michelin-starred places, where at the time very few chefs had tattoos. It wasnt cool to have them back then. But the old guard is dying out, and nowadays tats are not scummy but as ultra-cool as fermented tea and foraging. From Bermondsey (Restaurant Storys Tom Sellers) to Clapham (The Dairy and The Manors Robin Gill), Bishopsgate (Duck & Waffles Dan Doherty) to Carnaby Street (Crumbs and Doilies Jemma Wilson), chefs are getting their ink on. Neil Rankin, executive Smokehouse chef, London Union food boss and author of meat book Low and Slow, insists that chefs are more inclined to go for it than ever, simply because they can in the modern, ultra-hip kitchen. Im no longer an outcast or rebel, rues Clarke. I am a cliche of a modern hipster chef, complete with beard and kimchi. But then they say cooking is the new rock n roll 30 must-try dishes in London restaurants 1 /41 30 must-try dishes in London restaurants Bone marrow on toast with parsley salad at St John Not only has this dish kicked off countless wonderful meals over the course of St Johns 25 years, but it also gets credit for putting British cooking back on the global culinary map. Roasted bone marrow, coaxed out onto toast, cut perfectly with salad of parsley, shallots and capers. A nose-to-tail revolution, and utterly divine. Whole turbot at Brat Tomos Parrys talents with a turbot first came to feverish acclaim at Mayfair restaurant Kitty Fishers, but they are now the star attraction at his Michelin-starred solo spot. This whole fish grilled Basque-style, over hot coals and in a specially designed cage softens as if it has melted, and is basted at the table in an emulsion made with its own juices. Benjamin McMahon Marinara at 50 Kalo di Ciro Salvo Superlatives should be used in moderation but heck it, this might just be Londons best pizza. This under-the-radar London iteration of a Naples pizzeria serves an unrivalled marinara: just tomato sauce, oil, garlic and oregano. No need for any more with a sauce this good and a base so fine and perfectly charred, you can stop mourning your cancelled Italian holiday at first bite. Luciano Furia Clay pot baked pork and crab glass noodles at Kiln When we say Kiln is one of the hottest spots in town, we mean it hang over the counter at the Thai barbecue and youre not far out of range for the odd flame. Baking in the heart of the swirling heat is this must order: shimmering glass noodles, coated with a silky sauce enriched with fatty slicks of Tamworth pork belly and improbably unctuous crab meat. Lamb chops, Melabes Perhaps because its quietly tucked in among its unassuming neighbours down on the wrong end of High Street Kensington, Melabes is often overlooked by Londons food lovers. An unwarranted shame, as this partly Middle Eastern, partly Mediterranean set-up is really very good; it is somewhere to pick and choose from bits and pieces, and put a meal together yourself. The lamb chops, which come all smokey and burnished from the grill, are perfect; pink as a Vegas sign inside, but the fat all soft and dripping and delicious. A must, whatever the order. Steak tartare imperial at Bob Bob Ricard Theres Press For Champagne buttons, lobster in your mac and cheese and anything that stays still long enough gets gilded there is no point in going small at Bob Bob Ricard. Steak tartare is a luxurious pick at the best of times, but the Imperial upgrade here comes with a dollop of caviar even without the finishing touch, the tartare itself is one of the best in the capital. Bacon naan at Dishoom Londoners spent decades believing bacon in a bap with some ketchup (or brown sauce, but lets not have that argument now) couldnt be beaten and then Dishoom came along. This breakfast sandwich fills a fresh naan with bacon, a slathering of cream cheese, a luxurious tomato and chilli chutney, coriander and an oozing fried egg if you feel so inclined. Hangover be gone. Cacio e pepe at Padella Five years ago, you would have thought anyone queuing for pasta in London to have lost their minds this dish changed that. The starlet of Padellas much coveted is this plate of pici hand-rolled fat worms of eggless pasta with a mirror-shine sauce of parmesan cheese and pasta. Simple but unrivalled and itll set you back just 6. Jamon croquetas at Barrafina A dish like this should be elusive it is far too easy to eat seven portions of croquetas in a single sitting, which is why we presume Barrafina makes you queue. Very sensible. As the crunchy coating gives way to the oozing centre, enriched with the flavour of Spanish jamon (the best ham in the business), were already planning our next visit. Biang biang noodles at Xi'an Biang Biang Noodles There are oodles of noodles in the capital, but Guirong Weis triumphant take is one of the finest. First finding followers at her north London restaurant Xian Impression (soon to reopen for dine-in, but not yet), the dish of has inspired a whole spin-off restaurant in Spitalfields. Thick, hand-pulled, chewy noodles soak up all the spice and zing of the special sauce they swim in very special indeed. Souffle Suissesse, Le Gavroche Le Gavroche the street urchin is perhaps not for everyone. It is a Mayfair time machine, a reminder of how things were done once upon a time. Fortunately, it happens that how things were once done was very well indeed, and lunch or supper here is a masterclass in traditional French luxury (and often, happily, includes very large glasses of wine). Staff make the place, anyone who has been gently teased by the twins pretending to be each other will know. A tendency towards the old ways does mean the cooking offers little in the way of evolution or revolution, but new, after all, isnt always better. Michel Roux Jrs cheese souffle, baked on double cream, stuns, so overwhelmingly tasty, utter decadence that clings to the taste buds. Buttermilk Jamaican Jerk Chicken, Around the Cluck / 12:51 James Cochran found his signature dish early on, but its good it should stay with him for the rest of his career. While he has chops, and can do more beyond, theres something special in the way he works with his chicken; hotly spiced, gorgeously crispy, beautifully soft on the inside. A long-standing favourite and, though 12:51 cant operate as it did before, there are tables at his new project Around the Cluck, which is operating out of the same site. Breakfast at Hawksmoor Guildhall Your Full English is not full in comparison to the Hawksmoor breakfast at the steak connoisseurs Guildhall restaurant. The mind-boggling two-person spread swaps bacon rashers for an entire smoked chop, serves its bubble and squeak with short rib, puts trotter meat into its baked beans, and adds grilled bone marrow to all the usual trimmings. Cauliflower shawarma at Berber & Q Its not often that the main event at a barbecue restaurant is the veg, but Berber & Q have achieved just that. The cauliflower shawarma here is cooked on their flaming grill until softened and charred, before being doused liberally in tahini, pomegranate molasses, coriander, pomegranate seeds and a scattering of dried rose petals. BBQ Butter Chicken Wings at Brigadiers Brigadiers is a bold, boisterous sort of place: a labyrinthine City dining room, packed to the rafters with beer and Indian food that is indisputably gutsy. But arguably its finest moment comes in one of its smallest packages these chicken wings may be diminutive, but are mightily spiced, deftly charred and dripping with ghee-fuelled succulence. Beef brisket bun at Smokestak David Carters Shoreditch restaurant occupies itself by giving the entirety of Kansas City a run for its money on a daily basis. The star turn at this lauded barbecue restaurant is its beef brisket bun the meat is soft and juicy, riddled with its fats in the centre, while charred and treacle-like on the outside, paired perfectly with pickled chillies. To remember it is to salivate, we assure you. Snails, LEscargot LEscargot is one of Sohos old aristocrats and in its grand, beret red dining room there is always a mischievous sense of fun perhaps because it is still such a smart, suited, chandeliered place, and people are often drinking themselves rather silly. The clue to good eating is in the name; the snails come still clinging to their shells and submerged in their butter and parsley sauce. Dive in; you will emerge stinking gloriously of garlic. It wont matter a jot; roll on the red wine and settle in for a long, comforting night. Confit potatoes at Quality Chop House Yes, there are some high quality chops on offer at this 150-year-old Clerkenwell restaurant but blimey, leave room for the chips. Fine slices of potato are stacked into architecturally sound wedges, and confited until shatteringly crispy on the outside and devastatingly soft in the centre. They have been much imitated in recent years, but never bettered. Smoked eel sandwich at Quo Vadis Jeremy Lee cooks many things to a legendary level at Quo Vadis his pies could so easily have also made this list but he gets the nod here for his unrivalled take on the fancy sandwich. Smoked eel, horseradish cream and Dijon mustard, served with red onion pickle a combination so popular Lee says he nearly ran out of eel on post-lockdown reopening. Classic bao at Bao London has buns in abundance, but we still bow down to the fluffy superiority of Bao. The Taiwanese restaurant has become a cross-town favourite, thanks to its pleasingly pert rice buns (they are genuinely very pert, no crassness intended) and carefully considered fillings. The classic order comes filled with braised pork, fermented veg, coriander and a dusting of peanut powder. Carol Sachs Potato and roe, Core by Clare Smyth Clare Smyth has a knack that must infuriate other chefs; she is able to take the simplest of ingredients say, a single carrot and a smattering of lamb mince do something devilish with it and charge rather a lot for it; so good are the results, though, that few mind. Smyths sorcery is perhaps best witnessed with her signature, the potato and roe. It is simply a potato on a plate in a little sauce, but then it is also perhaps the best potato dish in the world; it has this wonderful salty richness, a certain seaside intenseness. It is glorious; so too is the smoked chicken that tends to come as an amuse bouche. Youll be treated here. Omelette Arnold Bennett Dont worry, no Arnolds were harmed in the making of this dish. Alongside impeccable service and an arguably perfect dining room, you could add another highlight to your breakfast at The Wolseley by ordering this creamy, haddock-filled dish, named for the writer who inspired its creation while staying at the Savoy. Fish pie, J Sheekey Long an actors favourite, J Sheekeys glamour has never lost its lustre. Its kept its regulars and charmed newcomers with a menu that plays the greatest hits of fine dining favourites. Seafood is Sheekeys thing; simply done sole is beautiful here, crab comes three ways, brill brushed in butter has a meatiness thats beyond satisfying. The fish pie is famous though, and rightly so; beneath the flaking pastry is a sea of cream, mustard and white wine, in it bobbing cod, haddock and salmon. It is simple but never fails; it does on its own for lunch, but is a failsafe at supper, too. John Carey The Ari Gold at Patty & Bun Theres a cheeseburger on every high street in the capital but not all of them are created equal. Patty & Bun has got the classic combination down to a tee with its curiously named Ari Gold burger: a fat, 35-day aged patty is served medium rare, and topped with gooey American cheese, smokey house mayo and tangy pickled red onions. Xiao long bao at Din Tai Fung Few dishes in the capital have been known to cause queues of four hours. Thats exactly what the world-famous xiao long bao dumplings did when top Taiwanese restaurant group Din Tai Fung first opened in Covent Garden. An intricately folded out layer (made by chefs trained for at least 18 months) gives way to succulent meat and a broth you could take on by the bowlful. Pig's trotter, the French House Upstairs in the Soho local, Neil Borthwick is quietly running one of the areas best kitchens. He orders in particularly good oysters, does brilliant things with brill and with his pigs trotter, has a dish that is rich and fatty, but with a beautiful salty cut that makes it madly moreish. The menu tends to change often upstairs in the French, but have this if its on. That little dining room is somewhere to go in early for lunch and stay until late, eventually spilling down into the pub below, to drink pints they do pints now, not just halfs all while merrily reliving the joys upstairs. Peter Clark Dover sole with crab butter at Bentley's Oyster Bar and Grill There are so many delights at Bentleys, its tricky to pick a single one. This could so easily have been a plate of rigorously sourced oysters, the fish pie, the decadent Royal seafood platter (pictured). It is however, the Dover sole that wins. A sublime piece of fish always, expertly cooked without fail choose it either filleted with beautiful crab butter, or grilled and whole for a simple pleasure. Over in the City, Corrigan does similarly brilliant things with lobster at Daffodil Mulligan. Ragu, Lina Stores Sohos Lina Stores the pasta bar, not the longstanding Italian deli it comes from is the sort of restaurant one longs for; small, fun, friendly, not too pricey. They do small plates of near perfect pasta; their ragu, whether lamb or veal, is a gem. A good ragu is hard to find too often theres too little meat, or meat not cooked for long enough but here, they spend the time over it, cooking slowly, carefully. No restaurant can compare with a Nonna, but Lina gets gratifyingly close. Porterhouse steak, the Guinea Grill London is not short of steakhouses, but the Guinea does not number among them. A pub a proper one it is tucked down a Mayfair sidestreet, away from everything and yet still perpetually busy. Besides the small bar is a dining room that looks much as it must have done when the likes of Sinatra was in (or Bette Midler, or Kylie, or Regan, or, or, or), where theyve served prime Aberdeen Angus cooked on a smoking hot grill. The Guinea is all about having a good time pints, red wine, brandies, the lot but they cook beautifully, and their handling of a good piece of beef is second to none. Puree de pommes de terre, Le Comptoir Robuchon The late Joel Robuchon may have been the most decorated chef of his and perhaps any other era, but his signature stayed humble mashed potato. Until youve had it, it is hard to believe it could be quite so good; mash, after all, is mash. No matter the scepticism, it will always surprise; it is almost silly that so little could taste of so much. A side, it will match almost everything on the menu; of which, the lamb with aubergine on the menu of classics is extraordinarily good. Thats why Erskine, who has six tattoos including a massive pair of wings on her back, is first in line to cook her punk rock versions of classics (think roast chicken and chips) for ink advisory website The Inksiders first tattoo-focused supperclub at Mark Hixs Tramshed on February 25. Shell be talking tatts with The Family Business Tattoo Shops Mo Coppoletta, the internationally acclaimed tattoo artist behind those wings on her back. These days, its hard to find chefs without tattoos, says Erskine, so the next logical step was to create a place where over food you could develop an sense of where the two ideas merge and listen to the stories from both sides. Something similar happens down in Deptford at the popular Kids Love Ink parlour. Customers waiting to get their sleeves filled or needing the post-needle solace of a massive wodge of cake nip along to vegetarian cafe The Waiting Room two doors down, which is owned by the tattoo parlour. Yummie mummies drawn in by the snob-friendly coffee mix with goths and bikers waiting to go under the needle over a slice of vegan coffee cake. Its weird, but its great. After all, excellent food acts as a great post-tat solace: hence Kids Love Inks collaboration with Wahaca at last years Day of the Dead festival, where the freshly inked could numb their pain by crunching on tacos and downing mezcal at the adjoining food market. Clearly its only a matter of time before theres a full-on food and tattoo pairing pop-up in an underground toilet in Hackney. Hey in terms of proving youve eaten THAT cult dish, it beats Instagram. To book tickets for Inksiders Chef Series: Gizzi Erskine and Mo Coppoletta head to tabl.com @franklymccoy Follow Going Out on Facebook and on Twitter @ESgoingout I s it possible to switch from a frantic job in graphic design to one making fiendishly good hot sauce under your own name? According to Dalston Chillies founder and DJ, Ben Kulchstein - who quit his job in December 2014 and has since matched his previous wage - it is. Ive gone from working in a high stress job to a job where the worst thing that can happen is that the chillies arent good or you could crack a bottles. So Im much more relaxed and happy than when I had a day job. You just do it, he laughs. Last week I met Kulchstein at The Old Ship Pub off Mare Street, E8, after he had spent a busy morning making his hot sauce in the kitchens of the pubs basement. He is tired, but happy, and has recently spent three weeks auditioning new bottles, saying new ones will be available soon. As part of our Made In London series he tells me what its like running a small London condiments business. How many products do you make? So there are three flavours Original Hot, made with Scotch bonnet chillies, The Chipotle Ketchup and Ive just launched the Bajun Hot Sauce, which went down well, in September 2015. Why did you start the business? I used to make the original hot sauce for myself at home, and in 2011 I entered the amateur hot sauce competition at the Fiery Foods Festival where big chilli fanatics and writers go and came second out of 40-50 others. So I figured I might give it a push. And then I bumped into Jonathan Downey who took some sauce, and then he basically tweeted daily for about a month, giving it a lot of show. And then restaurants and street food traders started taking it. Ben with his bottled chillies / Victoria Stewart How many products have you sold since you started? Ive sold thousands since I started. I used 16 kilograms of Scotch bonnets today, and Ill use another 16 kilograms tomorrow. What has the reaction been like? Great. After I started, I spoke a lot about it on Facebook so my friends began to hear about it, and because I DJ too (early Nineties, Jungle, and stuff like that) everyone would start asking me bring it along to my gigs. So Id be there handing about 30 or 40 bottles of sauce over the decks! Then their friends told their friends and so on. Did you always want to work in the food and drink industry? I didnt think about starting a food business but my mum was a chef and she often had us in the kitchen, grinding up nuts to make sauce. Im a vegetarian and Ive always thought of food as quite important Im an obsessive cook. I do it to wind down. So it all came from a love of cooking, really. But before this I was working in graphic design for a clothing company. Where do the ingredients come from? Is anything produced in London? I get my chillies from New Spitalfields Market in Leyton, the chipotle comes from Mexico, the turmeric from India. So they come from all over, which is a nightmare at the start of the year when theres always a drought because its not like you can use green chillies in a red chilli sauce. Luckily, though, at this time of year, people have over ordered and stocked up before Christmas so its OK actually. That said there are always problems at the port, so I tend to stockpile when the goings good. How important to you was it to produce something in London? Dalston is where I lived when I entered the competition and at that point I called it Ben Keis F****** Hot Sauce. And it is f****** hot! But I realised I couldnt call it that, and a year earlier I had started a blog called Dalston Chillies, detailing my successes of growing various chillies Thai, Arabian, etc on my roof, so I used that. I think the blog still exists but I no longer grow chillies because we have a cat in the house! Whats it like running a business in London? I buy in the produce and buying exotic ingredients is easier in London than anywhere else at New Spitalfields Market you can pretty much buy from any continent on earth. Certain things in London can be tricky such as couriering things around to the smaller shops, which might only want about six bottles of each sauce. I say Ill deliver anywhere within 20 minutes on foot. Further out than that, and I charge a delivery cost. Victoria Stewart Where are your products sold? We have the chipotle ketchup at Whole Foods Markets, as well as loads of smaller places like De Beauvoir Deli, Harringay Local Store, Bens House and Sourced Market plus it comes with the rotisserie chicken at The Old Ship pub where I use the kitchens. Last year we had all sorts of people doing Christmas hampers, too, like Hackney Hamper, World of Zing and Craved. Rotary Bar, when it existed near Old Street, was the first place to take it, and the chef Carl Clarke used it in all his stuff. Do you still eat your sauces on a regular basis? All the time. My Bajun sauce is new so it goes with everything on crackers, with Stilton cheese, on a sandwich, into a stew. I also love sourdough (probably from Sourced Market as its where my girlfriend works) with avocado and my hot sauce, sometimes with peanut butter in there too. Chilli is addictive, you get an endorphins boost from it and its great for digestion. Also the Bajun sauce has turmeric in it and mustard, Scotch bonnets, garlic, onions and other things. So you get that earthiness from turmeric, the warmth from the mustard and the heat from the Scotch bonnets. Tell us about a day in the life of a London hot sauce maker? Im up at 5am to get the 5.50am bus to New Spitalfields Market, where I get as many chillies as I can carry. Ill be back in the kitchen under the Old Ship pub for 7am and, having done all the cooking and bottling here, Ill be done by about 1pm. Then Ill lug as much home as I can, label it all, then Ill be sending stock off with couriers in the afternoon. Finally Ill cook to de-stress and I listen to a lot of Sixties Jamaican Ska because its what I grew up with its such a jolly happy bouncy music. If Im not in the kitchen then Ill be running around and delivering to the smaller businesses myself, or doing the books. Do you still have time to eat and drink for pleasure? My girlfriend is a foodie, so we eat out quite a lot but being a veggie is not easy, especially as Im also egg white intolerant too. My favourite places are Rasa in Stoke Newington, and I could eat all the starters at Chick n Sours in Haggerston. Which other London producers you admire? There are a few people I speak to regularly, for example the Urban Cordial Company, and were all meeting soon to discuss getting larger premises together. I also adore Wildes Cheese hes a brilliant guy and his cheese is phenomenal. Its nice to watch him go from making it in a tiny kitchen to this. I also know Joel who runs The Hop Locker, having worked for him on Fridays for six months last year. He runs the bar at the Southbank Centre Market serving a great range of British craft beer. Follow Dalston Chillies on Twitter @dalstonchillies for updates and details of where its stocked A n evangelical pastor administered spiritual discipline by spanking female members of his congregation on the bottom, a jury was told. The spankings were to satisfy self-styled Reverend Howard Curtiss desire for power and sexual satisfaction, Croydon crown court heard. Former pastor Curtis, 73, from Wallington in south London, ran the Coulsdon Christian Fellowship as a cult, prosecutor Toby Fitzgerald said. The father of three ordered one woman, a student nurse, to strip naked before putting her over his knee to slap her. He continued the beating when she collapsed to the floor. One of the dozen sessions took place in front of her husband. He introduced the woman to his version of Christian domestic discipline, following Bible teachings of keeping women in their place. Her offences included untidiness and lacking femininity, the jury was told. Mr Fitzgerald said: She trusted him completely as a man of God. Curtis has pleaded not guilty to two sample counts of sexually assaulting the woman between January 1, 2009 and July 15, 2013 and one count of assault. He has pleaded not guilty to further allegations of sexual assault against a second woman, and of indecent assault against a third. He denies all the charges against him. The trial, which is expected to last four weeks, continues. T he 13 climate change activists who caused 25 flights to be cancelled and triggered "immense" financial costs with a runway protest at Heathrow Airport have escaped immediate jail terms after a high court judge, barristers, MPs and actors came forward to provide references. The six women and seven men, dubbed the Heathrow 13, were described in court as "people of real conscience who care about the planet", before they were sentenced to six weeks suspended for 12 months for aggravated trespass. The demonstrators were found guilty in January of aggravated trespass and entering a security-restricted area of an aerodrome, after they staged a protest at the UK's largest airport in the early hours of July 13 last year. Some of the protesters had to sit in front of the dock at Willesden Magistrates' Court today, which was packed with co-defendants. Protesters on Heathrow runway, courtesy of Met Police Kirsty Brimelow QC, representing four of the defendants, told the court "there is a range of in-depth, genuine and excellent testimonies" in support of them from people including Downton Abbey and The Royle Family actress Sue Johnston. In mitigation, she said: "These are people who are professional. They are qualified and highly educated. "They have references from a high court judge, barristers, the MP John McDonnell and the actress Sue Johnston." District Judge Deborah Wright said her understanding was that "immense" costs had been caused by the protest which saw the demonstrators chain themselves to railings and force the cancellation of 25 flights. Escaped jail: Thirteen members of activist group Plane Stupid led by Danni Paffard (centre) / Stefan Rousseau/PA Wire Prosecutor Robert Short said prosecution costs were running at about 14,000. The group cut a hole in a fence and made their way on to the north runway, as part of a long-running Plane Stupid campaign to end airport expansion. Having managed to get into the restricted "airside" area of Heathrow Airport, they erected a tripod and chained themselves to some fencing on the runway. It took six hours before the last of the activists were removed. Ms Brimelow looked back to the Suffragettes and said the 13 had carried out an act of civil disobedience because they believed they were " acting in the public interest". They felt that "all other avenues had been exhausted" in the fight to cut carbon emissions. Arguing against a prison sentence, Ms Brimelow said this country had a "hard-fought for" tradition regarding civil disobedience. Activists: Other climate protesters gathered outside the court / Stefan Rousseau/PA Wire She told the court: "We have come a long way since the days of the Suffragettes, since those people would have been locked up and treated appallingly." Ms Brimelow also pointed out that the last time anyone had been jailed for a direct action protest was in 1932 following a mass trespass of the Moors. This was held because the land was shut to the public by the gentry. Ms Brimelow said the 13 had acted on "deeply-held beliefs" and as "people of real conscience who care about the planet". The judge said she "acknowledged" the good character of the defendants and that they all had "genuinely-held beliefs". Campaign: a large crowd gathered outside the court in support of the 13 / Stefan Rousseau/PA Wire Those who have been convicted are Danielle Paffard, 28, of Blenheim Grove, Peckham; Rebecca Sanderson, 28, of Newton Road, Machynlleth, Powys; Richard Hawkins, 33, and Kara Moses, 32, both of Heoly Doll, Machynlleth, Powys; Ella Gilbert, 23, of Magdalen Street, Norwich; Melanie Strickland, 32, of Borwick Avenue, Waltham Forest; Graham Thompson, 42, of Durlston Road, Hackney; Sheila Menon, 44, of Pellerin Road, Hackney; Cameron Kaye, 23, Edward Thacker, 26, Alistair Tamlit, 27, and Sam Sender, 23, all of Kenwood Close, Sipson, West Drayton, and Robert Basto, 67, of Blackborough Road, Reigate, Surrey. A rmed police surrounded a restaurant in Leicester Square on Wednesday evening after a man took a woman hostage inside. The siege got underway at about 9.50pm at Bella Italia in Irving Street, where the man was holding the woman against her will, police said. A Metropolitan Police spokeswoman said the man had intimated that he was possession of a knife, and was refusing to let the woman leave. There were also two other people inside the building at the time, according to police. The police spokeswoman said the incident was not terror related. Hostage situation: Riot police have surrounded the doorway @iamemilborbon / @iamemilborbon Onlookers said armed police surrounded the building, and a negotiator was sent to the scene. Musician Jordan Brown was playing a gig in Caffe Concerto across from the restaurant and first became aware of the incident when police came in and asked for the music to stop. Mr Brown, 39, who lives in Streatham, spoke to the Standard from inside Caffe Concerto, where police had told people not to leave. He said: "We were playing a gig and the police came around and said please stop singing. "We thought we were being too loud, but turns out there's a hostage situation. "We can't leave the restaurant, they've closed closed the whole place down. "I think they're trying to get him out without any problems. "There's lots of police, big men in full gear with shields and helmets, ready to intervene. "They guys are on one side but ready to go, everyone seems to be in control, they have a grip on the thing." Sara Brown from Bromley had been watching a show at the nearby Garrick Theatre and came out to find the situation unfolding. She told the Standard: "From what I can understand there's a man, and he's holding a knife to a woman in Bella Italia. "I came out of the theatre and they were saying walk out to the left or the right, don't cross the road. "There were at least ten police vehicles and an ambulance and an ambulance car. Watching on: Police were called after a siege was reported in Leicester Square Sara Brown / Sara Brown "About ten police with helmets and shields got out and have headed over towards the building. "What looked like armed guys got out of a red police car. "It's all very quiet, there are no wailing sirens." She said a large police cordon was in place from Charing Cross Road to Leicester Square, stretching from the National Portrait Gallery to Global Radio. The situation was resolved about an hour later. Police said a man was detained by officers, and nobody was injured during the siege. A n unemployed man who conned victims out of tens of thousands of pounds to fund his luxury lifestyle has been jailed for four and a half years. Idris Ogunsanya, 29, of Blackwall Way, Canary Wharf, was found guilty of ten counts of fraud or possession of articles used in fraud at Snaresbrook Crown Court on Friday. Police found he swindled victims, including his neighbours, out of at least 40,000 to pay for business class flights and plush hotel stays in Dubai. He was arrested after he used a stolen credit card to buy a 375 bottle of Dom Perignon champagne at the four-star Radisson Blu Edwardian hotel in Canary Wharf. The purchase took place in November 2013. Police in Tower Hamlets attended his home to arrest him and became suspicious because of items in the flat. He was further arrested as officers seized a large number of stolen and blank credit cards, 6,000 cash, a device for skimming card details from ATMs and a credit card reader Among the possessions seized was a 60-inch television, champagne and several pairs of expensive and unworn trainers. An investigation found Ogunsanya defrauded his victims out of at least 40,000. He was sentenced on the same day he was found guilty. A High Court judge who decided that a woman had fractured her baby son's skull has said his decision should be reviewed in the light of new evidence. Mr Justice Cobb ruled the woman had deliberately inflicted the injury, causing permanent damage to her child at a private hearing in the Family Division of the High Court in London three years ago. But the woman, who is in her 30s, says fresh evidence demonstrates that her son had "particular bone fragility" - and Mr Justice Cobb has decided that the case should be re-examined. The judge said none of the people involved could be identified but said social services staff from the London Borough of Newham had welfare responsibilities for the little boy. The boy had arrived at hospital in late 2012 aged 10 months in a "critical, life-threatening" condition, Mr Justice Cobb said. Specialists discovered he had a fractured skull and spine, and they operated on the child. He was discharged from hospital after two months but was left "permanently damaged", the judge said. Mr Justice Cobb said he oversaw a fact-finding hearing in the Family Division of the High Court in London in 2013 after social services staff asked for decisions on the cause of the injuries. The judge said he concluded the injuries had been caused by the boy's mother and were "non-accidental". He said the woman had subsequently been charged with causing grievous bodily harm with intent but had not been convicted. A crown court judge had dismissed the case late in 2015 on an "abuse of process" basis after prosecutors repeatedly said they were not in a position to proceed to trial, said Mr Justice Cobb. Mr Justice Cobb said he had analysed a claim by the woman that evidence obtained from "reputable medical experts" during the criminal proceedings "cast doubt" on the findings he had made in 2013. Prosecutors had discovered a piece of the boy's skull had been removed during surgery and sent to an expert for testing - but had "in fact" never been tested. The judge said for "all intents and purposes", the bone sample had "been lost". He indicated the sample had since been located and tested, and the boy's mother had said tests demonstrated her son had "particular bone fragility", which the judge said cast "doubt" on his findings. He said the scope of a new fact-finding hearing has yet to be decided. Mr Justice Cobb said the boy had returned to his family and his care was supervised by social workers. T his was the moment a security guard fought with a robbery suspect after being attacked from behind at a Post Office in north London. The guard whipped off his heavy-duty riot helmet and started swinging in an attempt to stop the man, landing a blow as the pair stumbled over a sofa and out of shot. The CCTV footage was released by detectives searching for the hooded man. Police said the incident happened at the Post Office in Hampstead High Street, Hampstead, on Tuesday, February 16, at about 1.40pm. A spokesman for the Metropolitan Police said: The suspect attacked the guard from behind, pushing him and punching him in the face. The victim suffered head and shoulder injuries and was taken by London Ambulance Service to a north London hospital. He was released later that day. Police said the suspect was a tall white man wearing a black padded coat with a hood. Anyone with any information should contact the Flying Squad on 020 8785 8655 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111. T hree men have been charged over the shooting of a wealthy businessman in his home. The victim, named locally as Timothy Mardon, suffered a gunshot wound to his leg during the raid on his Grade II-listed home in Sible Hedingham, Essex, at about 4.40am on Saturday February 6. Essex Police said earlier that Mr Mardon was shot through a door after locking himself in a bedroom. Officers have said he faced the prospect of having his leg amputated after it took the full force of the blast. The suspects fled empty-handed, the force added. Police confirmed on Wednesday that Charlie Simms, 22, of Great Yeldham, Kalebh Shreeve, 23, of Halstead, and Christopher Bergin, 27, also of Halstead, have all been charged with aggravated burglary, grievous bodily harm with intent and possession of a firearm. They will appear before Colchester Magistrates' Court later in the day. Father-of-two Mr Mardon, who is in his 40s, is a division president at Ace Tempest Re, a Bermuda-based insurance company. He is believed to spend much of the year living in Bermuda with his wife. R eal life drama unfolded before a film crew when armed police arrived on set after guns used as props were mistaken for real ones. Actors, make-up artists and crew members were shooting a short film at Hussars Coffee House in Hampton Wick, south-west London, when police interrupted filming. Director Tarryn Meaker, 37, described how three officers with big guns arrived at the coffee house after someone had reported seeing guns in the cafe. She believes a passing motorist may have raised the alarm. Replica guns were used during the short film That Day Comes Robyn Harper / Robyn Harper She told the Standard: I think someone must have driven past and seen something because anyone walking past would have seen the cameras, lights and the crew in the window. We had a sign up at the window to say filming was in progress but at one point it was taken down so maybe someone saw something they didnt like. I feel bad someone might have been thinking there was a serious crime going on. Her film, entitled That Day Comes, which she is co-directing with her brother Graeme, is a short detective film in which replica guns are used. She said she hopes to enter the film at the Cannes Film Festival when it is completed. Ms Meaker said she contacted police four days before the shoot and believes there may have been confusion as to why police responded. She added: There must have been a mix-up in communication because I contacted my local Met Police officers on the Wednesday.. But the guys who came were very cool about it and also very gracious. Obviously the police have better things to be doing. Ms Meaker said the crew was surprised by the police presence but added no one was frightened to see them carrying guns. She said: It was more of a nervous excitement, no one needed to be pacified afterwards. A spokesman for the Met said: "Police were called at 15:47hrs on Sunday, 21 February to High Street, Hampton Wick to reports of man in possession of a firearm. "Officers attended and found it was a film production. No offences were disclosed." A n assistant headteacher who sent a 16-year-old pupil a series of flirtatious and sexual emails has been banned from the profession. Catherine Towey encouraged the pupil's crush on her in a string of emails between the pair while she worked at The Elmgreen School, Tulse Hill, south London. Towey told him she would 'just want to lie' with him and had a series of meetings with him. A National College for Teaching and Leadership panel found that MsTowey's actions were sexually motivated and she was thrown out of the profession. On November 28 2014 a sixth form student at the school informed a staff member that they had concerns about Towey becoming very close to the Year 11 student. The student provided screen shots of Ms Towey's emails in which she mentioned her "proper boobs." She offered to wear lipstick more because pupil liked it. Ms Towey responded to the pupil's request of a kiss by saying she felt 'properly close' to him and that a kiss "would be weirdly natural and just lovely". She continued to encourage the boy by calling him a tease and asking him "Why d'ya think I'm always trying to hold your hand?". After one meeting the pupil emailed Towey to speak of his annoyance with "gate-crashers" who caused their liaison to end prematurely. Ms Towey responded with an email which said: "Think they assume we're close and they know we're doing work and school stuff...which we are usually!". Michael Lesser, chair of the panel, said: "In spite of Ms Towey's vociferous denial of sexual motivation, the panel is clear that Ms Towey was flattered by Pupil A's growing infatuation and increasing sexual ambition. "The attention and personal interest he was expressing in her physical appearance, clothes, and make up, fed her emotional needs at that time following the break-up of a previous relationship. "Ms Towey's conduct was both seriously inappropriate and related to a vulnerable and relatively young pupil. "Her actions towards Pupil A were clearly deliberate, and the panel does not consider that she was acting under any form of external duress. "The panel accepts that Ms Towey was in emotional turmoil at that time and so acted in a selfish and thoughtless manner. "The panel accepts Ms Towey's evidence that she never wanted nor would have let the relationship between her and Pupil A become physical. "Nevertheless, the panel is of the view that prohibition is both proportionate and appropriate." A Burger King outlet near one of Londons busiest stations has been shut down after health inspectors discovered a rat infestation. The fast-food giants branch at 27 London Street, near Paddington Station, was forced to close after environmental health officers visited last week. A hygiene emergency prohibition notice stuck on the window of the restaurant by Westminster council warned customers that a serious rat infestation and dirty conditions had been found at the premises. Inspectors said both the presence of rodents and the uncleanliness of the fast food joint posed a significant risk of food contamination. Drainage problems and poor structural repair were also found during the inspection on February 18. A hygiene emergency prohibition notice at Burger King in Paddington Station A Westminster City Council spokesperson said: Environmental health officers served a notice on a branch of Burger King at 27 London Street, Paddington, on February 18 as there was a significant risk of food contamination. Issues included a serious infestation of rats, dirty conditions, drainage defects and poor structural repair. "The Hygiene Emergency Prohibition Notice will remain in place until we are satisfied that there is no longer a risk to public health. "Westminster City Council is working with the food business operator Adil Catering Limited to address the problems that exist. The Standard has contacted Burger King for comment. P olice are bidding to clamp down on a celebrity nightclub after a dancefloor riot at closing time led to up to four people being knocked unconscious. The Met has called for a review of the Love & Liquors premises licence after bouncers struggled to contain the brawl at the trendy nightspot in Maida Vale, according to police reports. A company director caught up in the violence told police how he was dragged bleeding into the clubs toilet after he was bottled and locked inside for ten minutes. The catering company boss had taken ten colleagues to the venue - which claims Leona Lewis, Rita Ora and Tinie Tempah among its clientele - for a birthday party last November when troubled flared between two rival gangs who squared off at closing time. The man, whose name has been withheld, told police how he was in the VIP area at the back of the club when a massive brawl broke out on the dancefloor. He described how he tip-toed around the venue in search of a friend who had got lost in the melee when he saw another colleague being attacked. Upmarket clientele: Love & Liquor in a publicity photo He told police: His turban was knocked off and he was outnumbered. I naturally ran to him to pull him out. As he escaped, someone bottled my kneecap and I hit the ground. Then there were just constant kicks and punches as I was on the ground. I couldnt get up nor could I get out until someone dragged me out to the toilets. I was shut in the toilets and saw my employee and knew we were both safe. I looked at myself in the mirror and realised my eye was bleeding, I had cuts in my head as well as bruising to the other side of my face. When police arrived they reported riot conditions as violence spilled out onto Kilburn High Road. At least four people were captured on CCTV sprawled in the street out apparently unconscious, with one victim being filmed being subjected to a most ferocious attack. Traffic was forced to swerve as he was attacked by eight men who stamped on his head, according to police reports. The man, described in the police report as a prominent London gang member, refused to co-operate with the police investigation. PC Christopher Malone in his report listed a string of violent incidents dating back to August 2014. He said: The venue has been trying to market itself as a West End-style nightclub. Our view is that as a geographically isolated venue it will always attract a certain undesirable element from the locale. Only a significant change in business model will allow this venue to uphold licensing objectives. Rita Ora is said to be one of the celebrities who frequents the club (Getty) / Angela Weiss/Getty Images The Met feels that this latest incident was so serious and that sufficient improvement to the business model of the venue has not been forthcoming that we feel the licensing panel must now take a view to its future. They have suggested a series of measures to clamp down on trouble which include bringing closing time forward from 3am to 1am on Fridays and Saturdays, installing police-approved CCTV, designing out flat surfaces in toilets to prevent drug taking and serving drinks in plastic glasses after 9pm at weekends. Darko Martin, who manages the club, told the Standard the incident in November was totally out of character for the venue. He said the incident at the club could have happened anywhere and was not down to how it was run, adding that they had altered their security arrangements and already implemented some of the changes police were asking for. Mr Martin, formerly manager of exclusive Mayfair casino Les Ambassadeurs, said: We understand why the review is taking place but do not agree with some of the licence changes being asked for and will be fighting them. We want to attract a more upmarket clientele and people want to drink expensive cocktails from a crystal glass. We have a good relationship with the police and council we will continue to work with them to ensure we are a club which London can be proud of. The review will be heard by a Camden Council licensing panel on Thursday. A man has died after collapsing in a gym on the ground floor of a skyscraper in Canary Wharf. Paramedics rushed to Nuffield Health in the Citi Bank building at 33 Canada Square at lunchtime today, after the man suffered a cardiac arrest. Medics battled to save the man, but were unable to resuscitate him and he was pronounced dead at the scene. The IB Times, which is also housed in the building, reported that the gym was closed for the day as members were sent an email reading: "Due to an incident gym facilities will be closed today. Apologies for any inconvenience caused." A London Ambulance Service spokeswoman said: "We were called at 1.23pm today to reports of a person collapsed at Canada Square in E14. "We sent a single responder by car, an ambulance crew and an advanced paramedic to the scene. "We treated a man in cardiac arrest. Sadly, despite extensive efforts to resuscitate the patient, he died at the scene." The spokeswoman was not able to provide details of the man's age. A Nuffield Health spokesperson said: "We are aware of an incident that took place earlier on today at our gym in Citibank and at this moment in time we cannot comment any further." A man has died after being hit by a car as he ran into the road to catch his dog, police said. The 35-year-old was struck by a silver Peugeot 307 at 10.40pm on Friday February 19. He was treated by paramedics but died at the scene on Stockley Road roundabout in West Drayon, west London. A post-mortem examination has yet to be completed and the man's next of kin has been informed, although he is yet to be formally identified. The driver of the Peugeot has not been arrested and is helping the Metropolitan Police, which has appealed for witnesses. Detective Sergeant Stephen Pidgeon, leading the investigation, said: "We understand the deceased was trying to catch his dog, described as a German Shepherd or Alsatian, in the moments prior to the collision. As a result of this the deceased ended up in the road where he was struck by the car. "If anyone remembers seeing this scenario or the collision itself, please contact police." T he owner of a family-run newsagent facing closure to make way for new homes has told of his hopeless situation as he anxiously awaits a court date to learn the fate of his business. Sunny Patel, who bought Sunny News in Wimbledon Park Road, Southfields, 28 years ago, was asked to leave by the freeholder in March last year. The landlord issued a Section 25 order under the 1954 Landlord and Tenant Act declaring the lease had ended and applied for planning permission from Wandsworth council to convert the building from retail to residential use. Residents backed Mr Patel, who runs the shop with his wife Jamie, by sending 430 objection letters and a petition to the council. Planners unanimously decided not to grant the landlords request and granted Asset of Community status which protects businesses from development. But both have been overturned by the Planning Inspectorate on appeal. Mr Patel, 55, is now taking his case to court and is awaiting a hearing date. If he is not successful, he will have 90 days to leave the property. International Development Secretary Justine Greening, who is MP for Putney, has backed efforts to save the shop. Mr Patel told the Standard the situation had been incredibly stressful and said his case could set a dangerous precedent and change the fabric of the British high street forever. He added: We feel a bit hopeless. My wife keeps bursting into tears. We have spent a fortune already. I am losing my business and not getting anything for it. I get compensation but thats 13,000. I paid 74,000 in 1987 for it. Its also hard as we cant plan for our future as we dont know what is going to happen. We cant stock much stuff as we dont know if it will sell in time. Jim Hickman, 71, a retired council worker and shop regular, said: I really do think that disaster is an appropriate word to use in connection with the potential loss of Sunny News... [It] is truly the hub of the community. A spokesman for Wandsworth council said: We were bitterly disappointed to have our committees unanimous decision overturned. This case clearly shows the limits and shortcomings of the planning system when it comes to recognising a sites real value. The Planning Inspectorate decision states that although objections had been considered: If the retail unit at 161 Wimbledon Park Road was lost, the provision of services within the area whilst reduced would remain adequate and therefore it is not undesirable. I conclude the appeal should be allowed and approval granted. Solicitors for the landlord refused to comment. E ight of the UK's nine best hotels are in London, according to a list of the world's finest places to stay by travel guide Forbes. This year, The Goring in Belgravia has joined the growing ranks of the capitals best hotels in Forbes Travel Guide Star Awards. It brings the London's number of venues given the guide's five-star rating to eight, with the UK's only other place to get the top ranking being Coworth Park in Windsor. The awards, which have been running since 1958, sees a group of inspectors sent to each hotel, assessing them against a list of 800 standards and coming up with a final star rating. The Goring Hotel, Belgravia / Rex The Goring, a favourite with the Royal family, was opened in 1910 and is smaller than a lot of entries on the list, with only 69 rooms and suites. According to the guide the signature four-room Royal Suite is arguably the most glamorous accommodation option in England. Forbes recommends it as a top place to take a traditional high tea and said: The Goring may be small, but theres far more to it than meets the eye. Forbes' best London hotels The Connaught The Savoy Four Seasons Hotel London at Park Lane The Lanesborough Claridges 45 Park Lane The Dorchester The Goring Retaining their places on the list are classic venues like the Savoy, Dorchester and Claridges, all praised for their luxury facilities and rooms. Mayfairs Connaught also gets a rave review, with the guide saying: Theres an air to The Connaught that can only be achieved by a property of this age and grandeur. It oozes the glamour of those who have walked its halls since it opened in 1897, from actors Lauren Bacall, Dirk Bogarde and one-time resident Alec Guinness, to presidents, directors and fashion names that the hotel staff, in its utmost professionalism, refuses to divulge. The Lanesborough in Hyde Park, meanwhile, occupies perhaps the grandest location of any London hotel, Forbes say. Following an 18-month restoration, the guide claims now its a veritable feast for the senses. Paris and Macau now have the most hotels in the five-star category, with nine each. A meerkat expert cleared of glassing a monkey-handler in a row over her llama-keeper boyfriend at London Zoos Christmas party today said: The truth has finally prevailed. Caroline Westlake, 30, said the 14-month battle to clear her name had been a rollercoaster nightmare which had cost her job, damaged her reputation and threatened her ambition to present television wildlife documentaries. She told the Standard: I had been convicted of something I wasnt guilty of.. then my whole family were thrown into this media glare. Its been a rollercoaster nightmare of being constantly told youve done this awful thing that you know that you havent, when you know it was an accident. Monkey keeper Kate Sanders National / National News Miss Westlake was sacked after being accused of recklessly but not intentionally assaulting Kate Sanders with a wine glass, causing a 1cm wound to her cheek, when an argument flared in the cloakrooms in December 2014. The pair had earlier traded insults in the toilets after Miss Sanders, who dated zoo-keeper Adam Davies for five years before he began a relationship with Miss Westlake, was overheard criticising her looks. Westminster Magistrates Court found Miss Westlake guilty of assault by beating in September 2015. The conviction was quashed in the High Court yesterday with Lord Justice Laws and Mr Justice Nicol ruling that magistrates had applied the wrong legal test for recklessness. Miss Westlake was joined by family and friends to celebrate at their family home in Banstead, Surrey last night. She added: To have glassing with your name next to it was horrible. I just feel really, really sad. It was my dream job. I worked really hard and volunteered for a long time to get it. It was traumatising to have that taken away. It didnt feel real, it felt like a nightmare. The only thing thats kept me going throughout this whole thing is really good friends, a strong family network and the knowledge that it was an accident. Zoo-keeper Adam Davies dated both the meerkat handler and the monkey-keeper National / National News Miss Westlake had worked at the zoo for almost five years, giving public presentations about aardvarks and mongooses alongside the meerkats, when she was dismissed over the row. She won a claim for unfair dismissal in November last year on the basis that both women should have been fired. Miss Westlake said: The only reason I took them to tribunal was because I wanted my job back. I want to continue doing the work I love with the animals I love, but still the future is confusing. I did have an aspiration to go on and present wildlife films and documentaries, but I dont know if this is a career crusher. Miss Westlakes lawyer Suzanne Kelly said: Miss Westlakes life has been destroyed by something that was no more than an unfortunate accident. ZSL, which operates London Zoo, said the judgement did not mean Miss Westlake could return to work. A spokeswoman said: We hope this ruling provides some closure for Ms Westlake. Our employment decisions are based on internal policies and therefore will not be affected by this ruling. Quashing the conviction, Lord Justice Laws said the prosecution had failed to apply the correct subjective test for recklessness, which was whether the defendant foresaw the risk of harm but went on to take it. The judge also ruled there should be not be a retrial because the magistrates had made a positive finding that Miss Westlake did not foresee a risk of injury. In any event, said the judge, she had completed her sentence of 80 hours community service. T heatre-goers were left stunned by graphic scenes of rape, torture and violence at the National's latest show. Some were said to have passed out from shock after going to Katie Mitchell's production of Cleansed, by Sarah Kane. The play features scenes of electrocution, incest and a woman having male genitalia transplanted on to her body. A man also has his tongue ripped out in one of the show's most shocking scenes. A publicity image of the show released by the National Theatre / Tristram Kenton The new production, which opened for previews on February 16, comes with a warning that it contains graphic scenes of physical and sexual violence. But that hasnt stopped theatre-goers flocking to the hour and 45 minute production. Each of the six previews played to sold-out crowds of 318 people, the Daily Telegraph reported. Overall, five people are said to have fainted and 40 are said to have left the theatre in disgust. Blogger Victoria Sadler also claimed at least one audience member fainted. In her review, she added: One man even collapsed 30 minutes in. Lights had to go up in the auditorium and ushers had to come in to escort him out. Cleansed was first performed in 1998, when audiences had a similarly shocked response. A year later playwright Sarah Kane, who battled depression, took her own life. Mitchells production is set on a university campus that has been converted into an interrogation centre, where a man tortures a series of characters in what she describes as a test of their love. Speaking on the BBCs Front Row programme on Radio 4, she said: The play is not about violence, the play is about love. She added: All of the torture that is going on is led by a doctor who's making tests about love, its durability. The gay couple in it, the durability of their love is being tested and they're being tortured to see whether their love will survive. On Twitter, the show has so far met with mixed reviews, with theatre-goers praising its raw nature while expressing reservations about the level of gore. The National Theatre did not immediately respond to requests for comment. S adiq Khan really wants to be in Vogue. On Sunday the mayoral hopeful slipped into the London Fashion Week Paul Smith show almost unnoticed the crowd of photographers (and tweeting audience) were far more interested in fellow guests Bianca Jagger and Jessica Brown Findlay. Khan, however, knows how to work a room. He charmed the most important front rowers with promises of extending Londons cultural and creative output and chit-chat about the colourful sartorial heritage of Pakistan. Alexandra Shulman, editor-in-chief of British Vogue, was impressed. As the closest thing the fashion industry has to a reigning monarch, Shulmans approval is make-or-break for designers and fashion folk to the point at which she remains self-consciously removed from any kind of outspoken preference. Imagine The Londoners surprise then, when Shulman gave Khan the fashion equivalent of a royal warrant. With a firm handshake, she spoke the unspeakable: Well, you have my vote. Could it be that red is the new blue? Is Zac Goldsmith already last seasons news? And how will this play out Shulmans longstanding friendship with Zacs former missus and well-known Voguette, Sheherazade Goldsmith, who is still good friends with her ex? If Khans clinching of the Vogue vote is indeed a sure thing, it may be time for Zac to talk the talk and walk the catwalk: he can surely depend on his ever-stylish sister Jemima, nee Khan. Or perhaps Shererazade can have a word? *** Boden, the British clothing brand, has considered David Cameron an unofficial ambassador since he wore a pair of its swimming shorts in 2008, but owner Johnnie Boden is now after new clientele. Politically Im an Outer, economically Im an Inner, he said at the Old Etonian Association lecture at the Royal Geographical Society last night. But on personalities, he said, Im definitely with Boris. Not surprising, considering Bodens slogan is New British. Rees-Moggs go for the obvious baby name Our warmest congratulations to Jacob and Helena Rees-Mogg on the birth of their fifth child. An announcement in todays Telegraph welcomed the arrival of Alfred Wulfric Leyson Pius into the family of the Tory MP and his wife. Given that their youngest until then was Anselm Charles Fitzwilliam, the names shouldnt come as a shock. The choices, too, are mostly obvious: Alfred the Great was famous for fighting off the Vikings, Wulfric of Haselbury is a Catholic saint, and 12 popes have been called Pius. Leyson, however, remains a mystery. The Londoner also wonders if Jacob is a secret Potterhead: Wulfric is one of Dumbledores middle names. Martine and Terry toast Hugh Last night the British Film Institute honoured Hugh Grant, inset, for spinning two acting styles loveable British fop and loveable British cad into a 20-year career, honouring him with a special fellowship and a dinner at the Corinthia Hotel. The perfect moment, then, for actress Martine McCutcheon and director Terry Gilliam to show support for their old friend. McCutcheon starred alongside Grant in romcom classic Love Actually, playing the tea lady who falls in love with Grants bachelor Prime Minister. We do hope she brought him a few choccy biccies as a congratulatory treat. Brexit blah at Bob's book launch To the library of the Carmelite Chambers in Blackfriars last night, where The Londoner toasted the launch of new book Camille and the Lost Diaries of Samuel Pepys, Camille being the Frenchwoman who discovers the buried notebooks of the diarist after the Great Fire of London. Written by Bob Marshall-Andrews QC, pictured, the books status as non-fiction has been questioned but Marshall-Andrews is unmoveable. Some say this is fiction, he said, bemoaning the sniffers after verisimilitude. Also there were broadcasters Jon Craig and Jim Naughtie, both of whom have accidentally used an obscene word when naming Jeremy Hunt on air, but the hot topic of the evening was, inevitably, Brexit. Historian Peter Hennessy explained that the discussion is still a whisper in Parliament. Its not that loud, he said, but the electricity is crackling. Stanley Johnson, who stands in the opposite camp from his son Boriss, explained that even he cant say which way his daughter Rachel, the only undeclared member of the family, will fall. No idea, he smiled. MP David Davis was more interested in love, suggesting that his pal Marshall-Andrews may be enamoured with the books heroine. Is she based on his wife, The Londoner inquired. Not unless shes an expert swordswoman, actress and cross-dresser, Davis laughed. *** Forget being on the right hand of God. Joseph Stiglitz, chairman of the US Council of Economic Advisers under Bill Clinton, is interviewed by Monocle's podcast and explains that his influence came down to a smart seating choice. He doesnt turn his eyes left or right that much. Youre more likely to catch his eye if youre sitting across from him. How to get ahead in business without really trying. Janet's part of the union Earlier this week The Londoner dug up a 1975 European election poster from the In campaign, with nine luminaries, including J B Priestley and Henry Moore urging voters: People of Britain: join us. Of those pictured, four are still with us. Yesterday we tracked down photographer David Bailey, who said hes now changed his mind. But his fellow Seventies campaigner, actress Janet Suzman is made of sterner stuff. I would still vote to stay in, said Janet, star of several films, as well as treading the boards in many a Shakespeare play. I dont perceive a particular genius at work for conducting our island history outside the EU were we to leave. We should stay in and use our experience to forward all nations, not just our own. The selfish ideal does not appeal. They should put that on a poster. Cheeky manoeuvre of the day: just as our referendum debate starts, Frankfurts Deutsche Borse launches a takeover bid for...the London Stock Exchange. E urope moved to the heart of Londons mayoral battle today as it emerged that the votes of a record half a million citizens from other EU states could be critical to the contest. Labours Sadiq Khan launched an unprecedented campaign to persuade them to take revenge against Tory rival Zac Goldsmith for backing a British exit from the European Union. Mr Khan said the Brexit campaign was putting at risk the rights of around a million EU citizens in London to live and work here. If Britain left the EU they could end up having to leave London, he said. The army of Europeans in London could become a significant political force as they make up around 10 per cent of the capitals electorate. A record 559,543 people from European countries outside the UK are registered to vote in the capital, according to figures released to Parliament. Although they are not entitled to vote in the EU referendum or in Westminster elections, they all have the right to vote for a new Mayor on May 5 and for members of the London Assembly. Only 62,538 votes separated Boris Johnson from rival Ken Livingstone at the 2012 mayoral election. The most recent mayoral poll suggested the gap between Mr Khan and Mr Goldsmith was about 140,000 votes. A spokesman for Mr Goldsmith accused Mr Khan of divisive scaremongering and claimed the Labour candidates policies were a bigger risk to all Londoners. This divisive scaremongering shows Khan doesnt want to talk about the issues at stake in this Mayoral election more homes, better transport, safer streets and cleaner air, he said. Zacs job, if he is elected, will be to bring London together and make sure it flourishes. The real risk to Londons families is a four year KhanCorbyn experiment in City Hall, with a 1.9 billion budget black hole, and the threat it presents to all our futures. Conservative MEP for London, Charles Tannock, said it could be the first major election where EU citizens are a major factor. Generally EU citizens dont turn out in large numbers for local elections and have been traditionally ignored by mainstream parties and candidates for that reason, he told the Evening Standard. TODO: define component type apester Things could change on May 5. There is no indication of that at present but the EU Referendum happening the following month may raise awareness of UK elections. The number of EU citizens has risen since the last mayoral race in 2012 because of the arrival of young workers from countries such as Bulgaria and Hungary, whose citizens gained full freedom of movement in 2014. London boroughs with the largest number of European citizens are Ealing (31,339), Lambeth (28,035) and Newham (25,562). Mr Khan said that Euro-voters could become a significant factor because of the In-Out referendum. Britains role in Europe is absolutely critical for all Londoners supporting hundreds of thousands of jobs, and helping us keep Londoners safe, he told the Standard. But our relationship with Europe is of even greater concern for the half a million European citizens in London. If Zac Goldsmith has his way and drags London out of Europe, they face massive uncertainty and even the prospect of having to leave London altogether. EU citizens in London wont get a vote in the referendum, but they can still have their say by backing a Mayoral candidate who will campaign for Britain to remain in Europe. Its clearly in all Londoners interests for Britain to remain in Europe. D avid Cameron wheeled out the Governments top lawyer today to slap down old friend Michael Gove for claiming his EU deal could be pulled apart by European judges. In a sharp retort, Attorney General Jeremy Wright QC said Mr Gove was not correct and said the deal being put to a referendum would have legal effect from the moment a Stay vote is delivered. That is not just my opinion - it is the opinion of this Governments lawyers, lawyers for the EU, and, I suspect, the majority of lawyers in this country, went on Mr Wright. Justice Secretary Mr Gove, who oversees British courts and the legal system, said in a BBC interview that the European Court of Justice was not bound by the agreement reached in Brussels last week. His assertion contradicted the Prime Ministers claim that the deal was already legally binding and irreversible. No 10s counter-attack came as senior military figures and more business chiefs piled into the EU referendum battle on the side of the Stay campaign. General Lord Dannatt, the former head of the Army, told the Evening Standard that Nato would be put at risk if Britain left the EU, placing security in Europe and the Middle East in danger. A survey of 200 London business leaders by the Confederation of British Industry found that 95 per cent regarded access to the European Unions Single Market as the capitals single greatest strength. Whitbread, which owns Costa Coffee and Premier Inn, joined businesses publicly arguing against a Brexit. Its board ruled that the firms best interests are served by remaining within the EU because of uncertainties for the wider economy. Mr Gove, one of six Cabinet ministers campaigning for an Out vote, said it would only become binding if there was treaty change, which will not happen for about five years. The facts are the European Court of Justice is not bound by this agreement until the treaties are changed and we dont know when that will be, said Mr Gove, adding: I do think its important that people also realise that the European Court of Justice stands above every nation state, and ultimately it will decide on the basis of the treaties and this deal is not yet in the treaties. The claim was quickly denied by No 10, which issued a formal statement insisting the deal was both binding in international law and irreversible. TODO: define component type apester Former attorney general Dominic Grieve also piled into Mr Goves analysis, saying it was a fanciful interpretation. However, he conceded it was a theoretical possibility. Its always possible that an interpretation of the treaty may turn out to be different from what the United Kingdom may argue, said Mr Grieve. All international treaties that can be interpreted by third parties have that risk. That is always a possibility but the fact that it is a possibility shouldnt take us into the realm of the fanciful. It is fanciful to say that the agreement that the Prime Minister has arrived at does not have a force in law. Lord Richard Dannatt, who joined a group of former military chiefs warning against a Brexit, said: This plays very much into President Putins agenda. As a KGB colonel he had to witness the destruction of the Soviet Union and the Warsaw Pact at the hands of Nato. What hes been doing for quite some time is chipping away at the edges of Nato trying to break up the cohesion of Nato and if we start to unpick our European cohesion, we actually will start to unpick Nato cohesion as well which is what he would absolutely love to see. Speaking of the situation in Syria, Lord Dannatt said the EU was crucial to efforts to find a political solution. He explained: The EU Foreign Affairs representative is speaking on behalf of 28 member nations, so that person does speak with a lot of clout. The CBI business survey found three-quarters of firms had customers in EU countries and nearly two-thirds used suppliers from the EU. CBI London director Lucy Haynes said: Access to the European Single Market of 500 million consumers is obviously a major boon to Londons firms, and this survey shows the strong desire of the capitals firms to remain in a reformed European Union. The soap opera elements of the Tory splits on Europe continued as Mr Goves wife, journalist Sarah Vine, described her husband being locked in an internal struggle of agonising proportions over opposing Mr Cameron. He decided to put his own heartfelt beliefs over loyalty to his old friend, the Prime Minister, she wrote in the Daily Mail. Hundreds of thousands of students and other young people have had their vote taken away by a controversial new voting registration system, shock figures suggested today. They also showed a drop of more than 230,000 in the number of people registered to vote in London for the May 5 mayoral election. Despite the capitals growing population, the number of registered voters for local polls fell from 5,876,329 at the end of 2013 to 5,645,254 as of December 1, 2015. An even more dramatic decline was seen among 16 and 17-year-olds in London who will turn 18 within the next two years down by more than 20,000 from 51,182 in 2013 to 30,736 as of December. TODO: define component type apester The latest figures are the first using only the system of individual electoral registration which was pushed through by the Government a year early in the face of strong opposition. It was introduced in June 2014 to tackle voter fraud and clean up the register, replacing the old system of registration by household. But MPs, peers and electoral experts warned that it risked disenfranchising hundreds of thousands of people across the country as it would make it less likely that they would register. The Electoral Commission was particularly alarmed in the fall in the number of attainer voters across the country, of 40 per cent between February/March 2014 and this December. This decline suggests that the requirement for attainers to register individual under IER, rather than be registered by a parent or guardian, is having a negative impact on the number registered, it said. The Commission highlighted big falls in the number of people registered to vote in university cities, down by 14 per cent in both Oxford and Cambridge between Feb/March 2014 and December 2015 and ten per cent in Southampton. Londons population has been growing so the number of electors would have been expected to rise. So the number of voters who have been taken off the London register is likely to be significantly more than 230,000. The borough with the biggest fall from 2014 to 2015 was Redbridge, down 8.7 per cent, followed by Kensington and Chelsea, 8.2 per cent and Hackney, 6.6 per cent. The figures sparked an immediate plea from Labours mayoral candidate Sadiq Khan to Londoners to register to vote on May 5 to choose Boris Johnsons successor. He said: Despite the warnings that their plans would see Londoners lose their vote, including from the independent Electoral Commission, theyve arrogantly ploughed on regardless. My message to Londoners is clear: it is more important than ever that you register to vote and have your say. Dont let the Tories take your vote away. Liberal Democrat mayoral contender Caroline Pidgeon said: The Government were warned about the risks to of the electoral register of removing so many voters earlier than planned. It is a shameful railroading of our democracy by the Conservatives. The drops could be down to churn in voters, demographic changes, votingfraud, and more foreign owners of properties who do not vote in the UK. The Cabinet Office said individual registration was an essential measure to tackle electoral fraud and to take ghost voters off the register. We have worked hard with local authorities to clean up the register any entries removed will be people who have moved house, died or never existed because they were registered fraudulently, said a spokeswoman. Z ac Goldsmith has pledged not to campaign for Brexit but to focus full time on the mayoral race instead. The Tory candidate, who will vote to leave the European Union, said he had a job to do persuading Londoners of the choice they faced. He told a hustings on housing that the real risk to businesses in the capital was not its position in Europe but being left behind if Sadiq Khan makes it to City Hall. His Labour rival, however, said he would campaign alongside David Cameron, George Osborne and other senior figures to make sure London remained an integral part of the EU after the June 23 poll but failed to mention his own leader Jeremy Corbyn in the line-up. Mr Goldsmith told the audience at the LandAid debate: I can absolutely commit to you that I will not be campaigning for Brexit because I have a job to do. My job is to ensure that London has a clear understanding of the choice we face in May. Zac Goldsmith mayoral policies explained A choice between a mayor who will protect Boris Johnsons success and make it work for Londoners across the board, or a mayor who will preside over four years of utter chaos. A stand-off between City Hall and Government, four years of gridlock, inaction, squabbling and blame in my view a disaster for London. The Tory MP admitted the capital faced risks in coming months, but added: It is not staying in Europe or coming out of Europe though both of those possibilities are risky. TODO: define component type apester Mr Goldsmith dismissed Remain claims that leaving th EU would put Britains security at risk. The idea that we would just close our shutters and cease sharing information is extraordinary, he said. He stressed that business in London does not speak with one voice as many of the capitals small firms oppose EU red tape while some larger ones have said uncertainty is more damaging than either final outcome. The next mayors job will be to take whatever decision is made by the British people just a few weeks after the election and make that decision work for London, he said. We are a big global city... we will flourish, whether we stay in or whether we come out. Earlier this week, Mr Goldsmith admitted it would be easier for me to quietly U-turn away from long-held Euroscepticism, as opinion in London was at best divided on the issue, but that he had not got into politics to flip flop on every issue. F ormer Top Gear host Jeremy Clarkson has issued an apology to a producer he punched in a row over lunch which led to him being axed from the show. The apology came after lawyers for Oisin Tymon revealed a 100,000 settlement was reached in a racial discrimination and personal injury claim. Clarkson reportedly flew into a rage after being told he could not order a sirloin steak after a day of filming, calling Mr Tymon a "lazy, Irish c***" during a confrontation at a hotel in North Yorkshire. Mr Tymon's lawyers, Slater & Gordon, revealed the case has been settled. In an apology issued through the law firm, Clarkson said: "I would like to say sorry, once again, to Oisin Tymon for the incident and its regrettable aftermath. "I want to reiterate that none of this was in any way his fault. Clarkson: "Off to job centre" "I would also like to make it clear that the abuse he has suffered since the incident is unwarranted and I am sorry too that he has had to go through that. "I am pleased that this matter is now resolved. Oisin was always a creatively exciting part of Top Gear and I wish him every success with his future projects." No details of the settlement were given, but it is understood to be in excess of 100,000. Clarkson and the BBC both contributed. The BBC refused to reveal how much it contributed towards the payout. TODO: define component type apester The BBC dropped Clarkson, 55, from Top Gear following the outburst, and his co- presenters, James May and Richard Hammond, also left. A BBC spokesman said: "The action involving Mr Tymon and the BBC has been resolved. Oisin is a valued member of the BBC who behaved with huge integrity in dealing with the very difficult circumstances last year a situation in which, as Tony Hall has stated, he was completely blameless. "We are pleased that matters have now been resolved. "Oisin has made an important contribution to the BBC in his 12 years with us, and we hope to see him continue to realise his potential in his role as a Development Executive. "We believe Oisin has a very exciting future at the BBC." Clarkson has reportedly tried to apologise to Mr Tymon before, and last June he tweeted that he was "so sad and sorry it's ended like this" after his last Top Gear show with Hammond and May was aired. Mr Tymon's lawyer, Paul Daniels, from Slater & Gordon, said: "The action involving Mr Tymon has been concluded. Oisin is keen to put the matter behind him now that it has been brought to a close. "Oisin greatly appreciates all of the support he has received, including from the BBC. He remains focused on the creative work he loves at the BBC." Clarkson, May and Hammond have signed up to launch a rival on Amazon's TV service, while Chris Evans is currently filming a new series of the BBC's Top Gear show with fellow presenters Matt LeBlanc and Eddie Jordan. T ravel companies are expecting a rush on bookings to Spain and Portugal this summer after recent terror attacks in other popular destinations. Ryanair has warned British families wanting to travel to the two countries to book within the next few days because hotels are being filled by tourists looking for "certainty". The airline claimed UK holidaymakers will be "fighting" for hotel vacancies with people from Germany after citizens of both countries were killed in Tunisia and Turkey respectively in the past 12 months. The airline's chief marketing officer, Kenny Jacobs, said: "I was in Portugal last week talking to hoteliers. "A lot of the hotels in the Algarve and a lot of hotels in Andalusia are already completely sold out for July and August. "Our advice to anyone here in the UK is if you're looking to go to Spain or Portugal make sure that you book your holiday - I would suggest - by the end of February. "People always want sunshine in July and August and the UK has the most constrained school holidays so anyone with kids is going to be fighting for hotel beds in Spain and Portugal. They already are." Thirty Britons were killed by a gunman on a beach in Sousse, Tunisia in June last year, while 10 Germans died in an explosion in the Turkish city of Istanbul last month. Mr Jacobs told a press conference in central London that these events have led to a reduction in Ryanair bookings for north Africa. "There's been a drop off in demand for people from the UK going to north Africa because of the terrorist attacks last year in Tunisia. "That has benefited Spain and Portugal because people in the UK still want to get sunshine," he said. "With the terrorist attack where German citizens were killed in Istanbul we have seen a big reduction in Germans going to Turkey, which is a huge market for them," he added. "About 40 per cent of the Germans who were planning to go to Turkey are now not going to Turkey and the first places they're looking at are Spain and Portugal. "You just don't want the uncertainty. You don't want that when you're planning your holiday. You want certainty on sunshine and everything else to be as you expect." Ryanair has released its largest ever London winter schedule for 2016 with five new routes including Alicante, Hamburg and Toulouse, in addition to services to places such as Gran Canaria, Sofia and Vilnius which are being extended into the winter. T esco has issued an apology after condoms were stocked in a section marked for childrens health. Stunned shopper Ollie Whittingham tweeted the supermarket giant after he spotted the error at a branch in Shepton Mallet, Somerset. He tweeted: @Tesco you might want to revise where you place your stock in the Shepton Mallet store... Mr Whittingham told the Standard: It was mid-afternoon and after spotting it in the aisle, I was a bit surprised an employee hadn't noticed this earlier. "I found it slightly funny because it was either an innocent mistake or someone poking a little fun at the culture of young people today. "There were children's health products there, Calpol, Sudocrem, all the usual children's medicine." Tesco issued an immediate apology after it had been informed of the gaffe. The supermarket tweeted: I'm sorry about that. I've spoken with Lucy in store and she's has checked the shelves and the products have been removed. A Tesco spokesman said: "Our customer made us aware of this error and we quickly moved the products to the correct aisle of the store. Mr Whittingham tweeted Tesco on Saturday, after shopping at the Tesco Superstore in Townsend Road. A rt lovers can step into a famous Vincent Van Gogh painting after an Airbnb rental was created to look like one of the artists masterpieces. The bedroom, designed in the style of Bedroom in Arles, was created ahead of the launch of the Art Institute of Chicagos Van Goghs Bedrooms exhibition. The modest room, which contains a double bed, two chairs, a bedside table and comes complete with Wi-Fi, in the River North area of Chicago is being rented out for just 7 [$10] a night. The listing, advertised by Vincent, reads: This room will make you feel like you're living in a painting. It's decorated in a Post-Impressionist style, reminiscent of Southern France and times gone by. Similarities: The Bedroom in Arles paiting, left, and the room, right / Art Institute of Chicago via AP, File Its furniture, bright colours, and artwork will give you the experience of a lifetime. One visitor named Heidi said she thoroughly enjoyed her stay in the room, adding the hand-written note and flowers were a very nice touch. What is airbnb and why is it controversial? Another reviewer, Brian, said he felt like he stepped into the painting. He added: Waking up this morning in the midst of it was such a delight. This painting is my favorite painting, so I'll cherish my stay here for the rest of my life. Vincent was such a gracious host. Even though he couldn't be there to greet me, he left a kind, handwritten note and two tickets to see the "Van Gogh's Bedroom" exhibit at the Art Institute of Chicago. What a treat. A British tourist has died after being swept away while swimming at a treacherous fast-flowing waterfall in Australia. The man, 25, went missing after jumping off a rock ledge into the water at the picturesque but notoriously dangerous Josephine Falls in Queensland. He was with a 21-year-old Canadian woman who managed to swim to safety amid the fierce current, only injuring her ankle. A helicopter search was mounted after his disappearance at about 5.30pm on Tuesday, but his body was not found until Wednesday. Police have yet to identify the man after his body was found about two kilometres downstream. Senior Constable Russell Parker told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation: There's quite a strong current running with the current wet weather and the female of the party was able to swim to the river bank. The man did resurface [and] attempted to make it to land but appeared to be swept somewhat downstream by that current." A spokeswoman for the Foreign & Commonwealth Office said: We are providing support to the family of a British national who has died in Australia. D onald Trump has moved a step closer to winning the Republican nomination for US president after claiming victory in Nevada. It means the billionaire businessman has now won in three successive battles to put his name on the ticket. Mr Trump saw off challenges from rivals Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio to win the caucus. Early results gave him more than 43 per cent of the vote, with contenders Cruz and Rubio each behind with around a quarter of the share. In a victory speech, Mr Trump told a crowd of roaring supporters: "We're winning, winning, winning the country, and soon the country is going to start winning, winning, winning." At his Las Vegas victory party, he said: We won the evangelicals. We won with young. We won with old. We won with highly educated. We won with poorly educated. I love the poorly educated. Were the smartest people, were the most loyal people. He got the loudest applause when he pointed out that exit polls showed he won close to half the Latino vote, despite in the past having called Mexicans rapists and criminals. Number one with Hispanics, he said. Im really happy about that. He also made clear he would oppose Barack Obamas decision to close the Guantanamo Bay detention camp, telling the crowd: Gitmo, were keeping that open. And were gonna load it up with a lot of bad dudes out there. Referring to his flagship policy of building a wall between the US and Mexico, which drew criticism from the Pope who called it un-Christian, he said: Were gonna have our borders nice and strong, and were gonna build the wall, insisting that Mexico would pay for it. Clash: Mr Trump has faced criticism from the Pope for his pledge to build a wall between the US and Mexico / EPA/SASHENKA GUTIERREZ The property mogul is on a roll after winning primaries in New Hampshire and South Carolina. Mr Cruz claimed victory in Iowa. Nevada marks the first Republican nominating contest in the West and the fourth of the campaign as the candidates try to collect enough delegates to win the party's nomination at the national convention in July. Mr Trump is now well positioned to score heavily in states across the South that vote in Super Tuesday next week. Democrat frontrunner Hillary Clinton beat rival Bernie Sanders in Nevada last week. A Republican field that included a dozen candidates a month ago has been reduced to five, with former Florida governor Jeb Bush the latest to drop out after a disappointing finish in South Carolina. Caucuses are open group sessions between Republican supporters where they can discuss candidates before selecting one in a secret ballot. The vote share translates into delegates who will be sent to the partys convention later this year where the nominee will finally be chosen. T he family of a woman who died from ovarian cancer have been awarded 51 million after her lawyers claimed her condition was linked to using Johnson and Johnsons (J&J) baby powder. Jackie Salter Fox, 62, from Alabama died in October last year, but was reportedly already proceeding with a civil lawsuit along with nearly 60 other people. Ms Fox's son, Marvin, took over as plaintiff following her death and on Monday, a jury ruled Ms Foxs family would be awarded $10 million in actual damages and $62 million in punitive damages. Ms Fox used the baby powder for 35 years before being diagnosed with ovarian cancer and her family claimed J&J knew of the risks, but did not warn users. In court on Monday, J&J was found to be liable for fraud, negligence and conspiracy and ordered to pay Ms Fox's family compensation. The company are reportedly considering appealing. More than 1,000 similar cases are now reportedly pending nationwide in the United States. A spokeswoman for J&J said: "We have no higher responsibility than the health and safety of consumers, and we are disappointed with the outcome of the trial. "We sympathise with the plaintiff's family but firmly believe the safety of cosmetic talc is supported by decades of scientific evidence." C radling her baby with joy, Maryam Asgari says three-month-old Rosi would have died in the Jungle migrant camp if it wasnt for British volunteers. The Iranian, 29, told of a series of charitable acts by UK aid workers which have offered her and husband, Amir Rostami, a ray of hope in the mud-covered shanty town. Mr Rostami, 32, and his pregnant wife fled Iran in fear of their lives, and are thought to be the first parents to have had a baby while living in the camp. He said: Almost every week we have people from the UK visiting, bringing baby clothes and milk. If it wasnt for these volunteers who care about humanity, my baby girl would have died in a country where they claim they uphold human rights. But I still watch my baby suffer and I wish I could die rather than see it. I tried to save my babys life when I ran away. I didnt realise I would bring her to a place where we will all die slowly and painfully instead. He spoke of the couples relief when a French judge yesterday postponed a decision on whether local authorities can bulldoze up to two thirds of the Calais camp. Their tiny caravan, provided by UK aid group Help Refugees when Ms Asgari became heavily pregnant, lies in the southern part of the camp among clusters of more than 140 ramshackle homes earmarked for demolition, along with more than 1,200 makeshift shelters. Charities say more than 3,000 people would be affected by the demolition, including 300 to 400 lone children. They argue local authorities have drastically underestimated the number of people living in the area and they should not be forced to move until enough alternative accommodation is on offer. The judge is due to decide this week. Ms Asgari and Mr Rostami fled Iran eight months ago, claiming their lives were threatened over Ms Asgari marrying a non-Muslim. Mr Rostami is from an unorthodox sect with strong Christian roots. The couple say such unions are forbidden in their home country. The pair travelled through Turkey before paying traffickers 20,000 euros to cross the Mediterranean to Greece. Mr Rostami said: We had a trafficker who put us all in a boat that was only supposed to carry eight people, but they put 12 on it. All the people were scared and we thought we may die. After being admitted to a United Nations-run camp, they were transferred to France. Three days after Rosis birth, which Help Refugees workers drove her to a Calais hospital for, Ms Asgari says temperatures plummeted so low in their caravan that she and Rosi were hit with chest infections. Hers required emergency surgery which has left her unable to breastfeed. The couple, who want to seek asylum in the UK, now rely on powdered milk and other nutrients provided by British aid workers at the camps Womens Centre and other community centres. Ms Asgari said: It is so hard staying here and bringing up a baby. Now shes here we are so sad about her and so sick in this situation. My baby girl hasnt had a shower in weeks, this isnt fair or just. We have had so much help from British volunteers. If it wasnt for these people, my baby would be dead. This place is not where a baby should be. Im always scared we will never get out of here. FC Cincinnati Ends 2022 With Playoff Loss to Philadelphia Union in MLS Cup Even with a loss to the conference's top seed, FC Cincinnati has plenty to be proud of. By Allison Babka Oct 21, 2022 FC Cincinnati may have been eliminated from its MLS Cup playoff run, but it ends with the team's best season so far along with hope for the future. Cincinnati's pro soccer team came up short during the Eastern Conference semi-final round on Oct. 20, losing 1-0 on the road to the Philadelphia Union... A woman hijacked a bus and took it on a short joy ride after she was told to stop smoking by the driver. New York City transit officials said the incident took place shortly in Manhattans upper East Side just after 7am on Tuesday. Metropolitan Transportation Authority spokesman Kevin Ortiz said the driver asked the woman to leave the bus after he noticed her smoking a cigarette. However, she became angry and refused to leave. The driver left his seat to help passengers transfer onto another bus at which point the woman took control of the wheel. She drove off for about four blocks before a dispatcher reached through the window to stop the bus manually. According to the New York Times, the woman was fired from her job as a bus driver last July for extended absences. The New York Daily News said she has been charged with unauthorised use of a motor vehicle and was taken to hospital for a mental health assessment. A dele was the big winner at the Brit Awards 2016 after picking up four awards. Adele, 27, scooped the Global Success Award - presented to her by Tim Peake from the International Space Station - before picking up British Single for her record breaking track, Hello and Best British Album for 27. She publicly voiced her support for Kesha as she picked up British Female Solo Artist while James Bay described his male equivalent as "insane". A tour de force of talent was honoured at the annual ceremony at Londons O2 Arena on Wednesday night. Star style: One Direction's Louis Tomlinson arrives at the Brits in an Audi JAB / JAB The award for British group was presented by Simon Pegg to Coldplay who fought off tough competition from Blur, Foals, One Direction and Years & Years while International Group went to Tame Impala. Craig David and Fleur East presented the International Female Solo Artist to Bjork while Justin Bieber took the male equivalent. Lorde's BRITs tribute to Bowie Annie Lennox and Gary Oldman paid an emotional tribute to David Bowie as he was posthumously honoured before Lorde sang Life On Mars. The public voted for One Direction to win the British Artist Video Award. Hosted by Ant and Dec, the star studded ceremony also saw performances from Justin Bieber who performed with James Bay, Adele, Coldplay, Little Mix, Jess Glynne, The Weeknd and Rihanna. Full list of winners: British Female Solo Artist Adele British Male Solo Artist James Bay International Group Tame Impala Best British Single Adele Best British Group Coldplay Critics Choice Jack Garratt International Male Solo Artist Justin Bieber International Female Artist Bjork Best Breakthrough Act Catfish and the Bottlemen Best British Album Adele Global Success Adele C harlotte Church has apologised for her wild 30th birthday party after several neighbours complained about the noise. Church celebrated her milestone birthday with a party at her mansion in Dinas Powys, Wales on Saturday night. But some residents complained about the appalling noise while another told The Telegraph that the party had turned the street into a war-zone. Defending herself on Twitter Church wrote: To some of my 'neighbours', I'd really appreciate you coming and speaking to me direct if there's an issue rather than the gutter press. Also the description of my 30th party turning my village into a 'war zone' is utterly hysterical. Loud Abba is not similar to a war zone!!!! Also apologies to those who were affected by the noise. It won't happen again. Xx. She later joked: I'm just trying so hard to be a grown up y'know. But some failed to accept the apology with one user tweeting: "Frustrating Sunday for neighbours near @charlottechurch ? Good that she's apologised but in future, be a good girl & have your party indoors." Another posted: "Shouldn't really need telling that noise til 5:30am is not OK. You are an adult. You should know." D ick Van Dyke proved age is just a number as he reprised his role as Bert from Mary Poppins. Dyke, 90, joined actor Derek Hough to recreate the films iconic Step In Time Dance for ABC's televised special, Disneyland 60. The event which celebrated Disney Californias landmark anniversary saw Dancing With the Stars Hough lead the routine before opening a window to welcome Dyke to the stage. The actor joined the group to kick [his] knees up as he recreated the chimney sweeps famous choreography. The actors special appearance was met with rapturous applause from the audience who gave him a standing ovation. READ MORE The two hour showcase saw a host of artists pay tribute to a string of famous Disney classics. Idina Menzel took to the stage for a performance of Let It Go from Frozen while Elton John entertained guests with a rendition of Circle of Life from The Lion King before returning to the stage to perform Wonderful Crazy Night. Jessie J sang When You Wish Upon a Star from Pinocchio while Tori Kelly and Fall Out Boy also got involved. Follow @StandardShowbiz for more entertainment news. K ristin Scott Thomas has criticised English women for the way they dress. The BAFTA winning British actress, 55, who lives in France, isnt a fan of her countrywomens taste in clothing. In an interview with French magazine Marie France, she said: French women make getting dressed seem simple and they can be attractive without abusing their sexy side. There is no vulgarity, its all about subtlety. She added: The English are terrible and very much the opposite, like they wear miniskirts when they dont have the legs for it. In France, that would obviously be in bad taste. French women would never get drunk on a Saturday in a mini skirt in November. And it seems that the A-lister isnt a fan of how English women wear their hair or what they do to their skin either. They follow all the latest trends, even though they all look the same. Right now, for example, English girls are all wearing buns on their heads, she added. And they love tanning, especially fake tan, which means, by summer, everyone is orange. TODO: define component type apester Scott Thomas has previously spoken out about how ageist the British film industry is towards women. Im still asked to do leading roles in France; never in the UK, she explained. People will ask me why, and I dont really know, apart from this idea that in France, people are less afraid of older women or of getting old. Efforts are underway to expand Medicaid in Nebraska again. To date, the Legislature has wisely rejected three previous attempts. Expanding Medicaid under the federal Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, would cost almost $1 billion for Nebraska taxpayers. Last week, Senator John McCollister of Omaha brought before the Health and Human Services committee LB1032, which would require Nebraska to significantly expand eligibility for Medicaid. To determine the cost of this proposal, the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) commissioned an actuarial analysis of LB1032. The analysis found this expansion would add nearly 126,000 people to Medicaid or state support by June 2019, including over 60,000 individuals who already have private insurance today. This represents a 50 percent enrollment growth in the program. A similar plan in Arkansas has resulted in 40 percent of their state population now being on Medicaid. As outlined in the bill, not only would expanding Medicaid require nearly $1 billion in new state spending in its first 10 years, but those costs could quickly rise to over $600 million a year in Nebraska state general funds if Congress ever required the state to fund the program at its traditional Medicaid matching rate. Supporters of the bill claim the legislation requires automatic termination of the program should that ever occur. In the past, however, termination of a state-managed entitlement program has resulted in lawsuits and court-ordered reinstatement of state benefits. On two occasions in the early 2000s, the state reduced eligibility for Medicaid in the face of significant budget challenges. These actions resulted in lawsuits that required the state to continue providing services, and the State of Nebraska ultimately reinstated Medicaid for some individuals. The increased government spending for this expansion of an entitlement program will impact generations of Nebraska taxpayers. Today, every American shares in a national debt of over $19 trillionamounting to nearly $60,000 per person. Our country has an unfortunate history of borrowing from our children to fulfill the promises we do not have the resources to pay for today. We dont do that in Nebraska. This growth in spending would also threaten our ability to meet the commitments to our current Medicaid enrollees, which primarily include children, pregnant women, elderly, and people with disabilities. The current effort to expand Medicaid would require the state to buy private health insurance for the vast majority of the newly eligible individuals, which promises better access through broader networks and higher reimbursement than Medicaid. Because of better reimbursement rates, there is a built-in incentive for care providers to serve these able-bodied enrollees rather than our truly vulnerable Nebraskans who rely on Medicaid. The state should not prioritize the needs of able-bodied working-age adults over our truly vulnerable, Medicaid-dependent populations. Supporters of LB1032 claim this is a conservative, or private-market, version of Medicaid expansion. The reality is that this approach will prove costly to taxpayers. The Government Accountability Office has already raised serious concerns over a similar program in Arkansas, estimating that it will cost over $778 million more than projected in its first few years. Projections are proving true: The Arkansas plan was $137 million, or 61 percent, over budget in its first six months. Additionally, Iowa has already abandoned a similar plan. Taking a gamble on this unproven model isnt worth the risk for Nebraska taxpayers. Its an especially risky gamble when you consider that Medicaid spending in Nebraska has already doubled since 2000from $983 million to over $2 billion today or from about 12 percent of our budget to nearly 20 percent. As Ive travelled the state I have heard a clear and consistent message: our citizens need tax relief. They are demanding we exercise the highest possible restraint in growing the size and cost of government. We cannot be lured into committing future generations to the cost of expanding Medicaid in return for a fleeting promise of free federal money. I urge you to contact your senator and thank them for protecting us from this unreasonable risk or express your concerns that Medicaid expansion is something that Nebraska cannot afford. You can find their contact information by visiting www.NebraskaLegislature.gov. 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To help you find what you are looking for: Enter Search Term(s): Still cant find what youre looking for? Send us a message using our contact us form. To report a broken link or other problems with the website, please include the URL. Thank you for visiting state.gov. Turns out there's a fair bit both individuals and Apple could do to FBI-proof their phones and shield private information from investigators and cybercriminals alike. Those measures include multiple passcodes and longer, more complex ones. Of course, increased security typically comes at the expense of convenience. Most efforts to improve phone security would make the devices harder to use, perhaps by requiring you to remember more passwords. Making it more difficult for law enforcement to crack open iPhones could also spur legal restrictions on phone security, something that neither Apple nor other technology companies want to see. "They are walking a tightrope," says Mark Bartholomew, a law professor at the State University of New York at Buffalo who specializes in privacy and encryption issues. Requiring longer passcodes might annoy most Apple users, he says, while boosting phone security "sort of amplifies the whole argument that Apple is making things too difficult and frustrating law enforcement officials." Apple had no comment on any future security measures. In a recent letter to customers, it noted that it has routinely built "progressively stronger protections" into its products because "cyberattacks have only become more frequent and more sophisticated." In the current fight, the FBI aims to make Apple help it guess the passcode on the work phone used by Syed Farook before he and his wife killed 14 people at an office party in December. The FBI wants Apple to create special software to disable security features that, among other things, render the iPhone unreadable after 10 incorrect guesses. Apple has resisted, maintaining that software that opens a single iPhone could be exploited to hack into millions of other devices. The government insists that its precautions would prevent that, though security experts are doubtful. Should the FBI prevail, it would take computers less than a day to guess a six-digit passcode consisting solely of numbers, the default type of passcode in the latest version of the iPhone operating system. Even with security features disabled, each passcode guess takes 80 milliseconds to process, limiting the FBI to 12.5 guesses per second. For security-conscious individuals, the simplest protective move would be to use a passcode consisting of letters and numbers. Doing so would vastly increase the amount of time required to guess even short passcodes. Apple estimates it would take more than five years to try all combinations of a six-character passcode with numbers and lowercase letters. Adding capital letters to the mix would extend that further. Changing to an alphanumeric code is as simple as going into the phone settings and choosing "Touch ID & Passcode," then "Passcode options." Another option is simply to pick a much longer numeric code. An 11-character code consisting of randomly selected numbers that means no references to birthdays or anniversaries that could be easily guessed could take as long as 253 years to unlock. But longer, more complex codes are harder to remember, and that's probably why Apple hasn't yet required their use. It could, however, easily do so. In fact, iPhones moved to six-digit passcodes from four last September. Apple may have other tricks up its sleeve. For instance, the company could add additional layers of authentication that would thwart the security-bypassing software the FBI wants it to make, says computer security expert Jonathan Zdziarski. Apple phones rely on a feature known as the "secure enclave" to manage all passcode operations. The software demanded by the FBI would alter the secure enclave, Zdziarski says. But the software couldn't do so if the secure enclave required the user passcode to approve any such changes. "This is probably the best way to lock down a device," Zdziarski says. Apple could also require a second passcode whenever the phone boots up; without it, the phone wouldn't run any software, including the tool the FBI is requesting. "It would be like putting a steel door on the phone," Zdziarski says. Currently, iPhones automatically load the operating system before asking for a passcode. For now, Apple CEO Tim Cook is focusing on winning the current battle with the FBI in a Southern California federal court while also trying to sway public opinion in the company's favor. The skirmish could go all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court. In the meantime, Apple is probably already working on security improvements for the next version of the iPhone operating system that it will probably announce in June and release in September. President Obama vowed as he took office seven years ago to close the Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, prison, whose use for the holding of terrorist suspects arrested abroad long ago proved counterproductive. Thanks to congressional opposition, he has not fulfilled the pledge. On Tuesday, the president offered one more plan for doing so, only to be swiftly rebuffed by Republicans. Though the proposal was flawed, he deserves more of a hearing. As Obama rightly argued, this festering legacy of the George W. Bush administration's response to the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, should not be passed on to the next president. This administration bears some responsibility for Guantanamo's continuing role as a warehouse for prisoners who were captured in the early 2000s, mostly in Afghanistan and Pakistan, and held ever since. Since 2009, the Pentagon has moved only in fits and starts to review the cases of those held and to arrange the transfer of those freed for release. Obama has nevertheless managed to reduce the population from 238 to 91, of whom 10 are on trial in military commissions and 35 have been cleared for release to other countries. The Pentagon plan submitted to Congress calls for the transfer of those who cannot be safely released to other countries - about 60 prisoners - to a location, most likely a federal prison, in the United States. The military commission trials, including of several of the prime authors of the 9/11 attacks, would continue. But as Obama pointed out, the proceedings have resulted in "years of litigation without a resolution." He said the administration would soon propose reforms to the commissions requiring congressional action. Part of the resistance to closing Guantanamo comes from Republicans who insist that it would be too dangerous to hold al-Qaida militants anywhere in the United States. This is unserious: Federal supermax prisons already securely house a number of dangerous terrorists, both foreign and domestic. The Obama administration has made a practice of transferring al-Qaida suspects to the federal court system for prosecution, with good results. A legal study attached to the Pentagon report largely dismisses concerns that militants could eventually be released inside the United States. A more serious objection comes from Sen. John McCain, R-Arizona, the Armed Services Committee chairman, who has favored closing Guantanamo. He says the Pentagon plan punts on crucial specifics about how present and future terrorist detainees would be held. Though it studied more than a dozen potential domestic facilities, the administration did not settle on a recommended site; nor did its report - which was mandated by Congress - specify what would be required to modify a domestic prison to hold war prisoners. What would happen to the major al-Qaida figures now on trial was not spelled out. And the plan does not provide for terrorist operatives who might be captured in the future and held under the laws of war. McCain said his committee will "closely scrutinize and hold hearings" on Obama's proposal. That provides an opening for the administration to work with those in Congress who favor closing Guantanamo to develop a more detailed plan. It's not enough for the president to give speeches about shutting down the prison; he must offer specifics, and follow through on Capitol Hill. Wednesday, 24 February 2016 23:27:48 (GMT+3) | Sao Paulo As forecasts for Brazil s economy worsen, the nations GDP is expected to decline 3.4 percent in 2016, according to a government report. The expected decline of GDP rose to 3.4 percent from a previously-forecasted 3.33 percent, but growth is not expected until 2017, according to the report of the nations central bank. Brazil s central bank said GDP should grow 0.5 percent in 2017, instead of 0.59 percent, as previously forecast. The inflation rate should reach 7.62 percent in 2016. Forecast for the dollar exchange rate has slightly declined from BRL 4.38 to BRL 4.36 by the end of the on-going year. For 2017, the outlook remains stable with the USD quoted at BRL 4.40. Wednesday, 24 February 2016 17:08:47 (GMT+3) | Istanbul Demand in the local Turkish merchant bar market has remained sluggish over the past week. However, market sources state that the increases seen in raw material and semi-finished steel prices have started to be reflected in long steel quotations, and so Turkish domestic merchant bar prices are expected to increase in the coming period. In the local Turkish market, merchant bar prices depending on size, thickness and region are at the following levels: Equal Angle Prices: Region Prices (TRY/mt) Price change (TRY/mt) 10.02.2016 Denizli Region (30-100 mm) 1,140-1,160 ($386-393/mt) 0 Karabuk Region (30-100mm) 1,080-1,090 ($366-369/mt) 0 Iskenderun Region (30-100 mm) 1,030-1,050 ($349-356/mt) 0 Izmir Region (30-100 mm) 1,110-1,130 ($376-383/mt) 0 Flat Bar Prices: Region Prices (TRY/mt) Price change (TRY/mt) 10.02.2016 Denizli Region (30-100 mm) 1,170-1,190 ($397-403/mt) 0 Karabuk Region (30-100mm) 1,110-1,120 ($376-380/mt) 0 Iskenderun Region (30-100 mm) 1,060-1,080 ($359-366/mt) 0 Izmir Region (30-100 mm) 1,140-1,160 ($386-393/mt) 0 NPI-NPU Prices: Region Prices (TRY/mt) Price change (TRY/mt) 10.02.2016 Denizli Region (30-100 mm) 1,140-1,160 ($386-393/mt) 0 Karabuk Region (30-100 mm) 1,080-1,090 ($366-369/mt) 0 Iskenderun Region (30-100 mm) 1,030-1,050 ($349-356/mt) 0 Izmir Region (30-50 mm) 1,110-1,130 ($376-383/mt) 0 All prices are ex-works, on actual weight basis, for February shipment and excluding VAT. It should be considered that offers below the prices ranges in question may be available, depending on the buyer and on the method of payment. $1 = TRY 2.95 Wednesday, 24 February 2016 11:25:46 (GMT+3) | Brescia According to the latest figures provided by the German steel scrap recycler association (BDSV), in the first 20 days of February this year domestic steel scrap prices in Germany decreased by 10.9/mt ($11.99/mt) on average compared to the corresponding period of the previous month. On year-on-year basis, in February this year German domestic scrap prices indicated a significant decrease of 72/mt ($79.2/mt) on average. Prices are average prices for domestic transactions across Germany in the first 20 days of the given month. The prices are provided by Bundesvereinigung Deutscher Stahlrecycling-und Entsorgungsunternehmen e.V. (BDSV). Scrap grade Price: Feb. 2016 (/mt) Price: Jan. 2016 (/mt) Price: Dec. 2015 (/mt) Price: Feb. 2015 (/mt) E1 - Old steel scrap 119 ($131/mt) 128.9 ($142/mt) 130.5 ($143/mt) 188.80 ($208/mt) E2/E8 - New steel scrap 133.9 ($147/mt) 143.1 ($157/mt) 146.9 ($162/mt) 207.6 ($228/mt) E3 - Heavy old steel scrap 134.6 ($148/mt) 145.8 ($160/mt) 148.6 ($163/mt) 208.2 ($229/mt) E40 - Shredded scrap 139.7 ($154/mt) 154.5 ($170/mt) 157.0 ($173/mt) 215.2 ($237/mt) E5 - Steel turnings 96.8 ($106/mt) 106.2 ($117/mt) 107.9 ($119/mt) 164.3 ($181/mt) Specifications: E1 - Old steel scrap: thickness 4 mm, maximum dimensions 1.5 m x 0.5 m x 0.5 m E2/E8 - New steel scrap: maximum dimensions 1.5 m x 0.5 m x 0.5 m E3 - Heavy old steel scrap: thickness 6 mm, maximum dimensions 1.5 m x 0.5 m x 0.5 m E40 - Shredded scrap: excluding incinerator steel scrap and collection scrap; density 1.1 mt/m3, Fe 92% E5 - Turnings: excluding iron and automatic steel turnings 1 = $1.10 Mackinac Island The weather has been up and down this past week. We had some very nice days, and other were cold,... Outdoors This Week in the Eastern U.P. I know its fall, but, for some reason, the white stuff has started falling already and frost is covering my... West Mackinac Thats all folks, the fall fashion show is over and Mother Natures winter wardrobe is waiting in the wings. In... The Senate lifted the immunity of Senator Gabriel Oprea, a former vice prime minister and minister of home affairs, in a 71-to-52 secret vote on Wednesday, with one vote cancelled. The Senate thus approved the request of the National Anti-corruption Directorate (DNA) to prosecute Oprea for office abuse, in connection with expenditures of the Ministry of Internal Affairs under his tenure as minister.In an address to the plenum before the vote, Oprea claimed his innocence and asked his fellow senators to reject the DNA's demand.Former ministers who are also members of the Parliament can be prosecuted only if the relevant chamber - Senate or Chamber of Deputies - approve it by a plenary vote. AGERPRES President Klaus Iohannis on Tuesday signed a decree decorating Honorary Chairman of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance Yehuda Bauer, the Presidential Administration reports. Iohannis bestowed on Bauer a For Merit National Order in rank of Grand Officer "in recognition of the high esteem for the significant personal contribution to the research of the Holocaust for the purpose of keeping alive the memory of this tragedy that the mankind should never witness, as well as for fruitful and prodigious cooperation with Romania."The decoration was made at the proposal of Romania's Foreign Minister Lazar Comanescu.Romania is scheduled this March to take over the chairmanship of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance. AGERPRES The Senate allowed the arrest of Senator Doina Tudor, in a 61-to-57 secret vote with two votes cancelled on Wednesday. Liberal Senator Tudor is prosecuted by the National Anti-corruption Directorate (DNA) as an accessory in a bribery case against her husband Daniel George Tudor, a former president of the Insurance Supervisory Committee, who has been already placed under house arrest by the High Court of Cassation and Justice ( ICCJ Romania's Supreme court).The Senate vote allows the DNA to detain the senator for 24 hours and request the ICCJ to arrest her for a maximum of 30 days, pending trial.Parliament members can be detained only with the approval of the respective chamber - Senate or Chamber of Deputies - by a plenary vote. AGERPRES The National Agency for Fiscal Administration (ANAF) has filed a petition with the Bucharest District 1 Courthouse for the eviction of Antena TV Group SA, Intact Production SRL, Antena 3 SA and Sangold Development SRL from the buildings repossessed by the state. According to the courts' website, the petition was filed on Tuesday by the General Regional Directorate with the Bucharest Public Finances as governmental representative for an eviction.The court set March 17 for hearings in the new case.The new case started after officials of the Intact group of companies argued there was no court ruling for the eviction of its television channels from the buildings located on the Bucharest-Ploiesti Road.Last week, ANAF sent a five-day eviction notice to Antena 1 and Antena 3 broadcasters.The notice was drawn up in order to enforce court order 701/26.09.2013, made final and binding under court order 888/A/08.08.2014, issued by the Criminal Branch II of the Bucharest Court of Appeal.Shortly after, Antena 3 executives claimed that ANAF stormed the buildings with unprecedented forces, thus directly threatening the freedom of expression by endangering the broadcasting by Antena 3, Antena 1, Antena Stars, Euforia tv and Zu tv, all Intact media members.Antena 3 also complained about what it called an abusive demarche of the authorities because, they argued, the Intact media organisations were refused the right to a fair solution following a court order of August 8, 2014: ''they were not allowed to take under lease the spaces, over which the same laws and courts of Romania have established Intact's preemptive rights, and they also failed to come up with a reasonable schedule for vacating the impounded premises."On August 8, 2014, the Bucharest Court of Appeal issued a final and binding 10-year-sentence on Dan Voiculescu, a former owner of the Intact media holdings, for fraudulent privatisation of an agricultural research institute, on which premises a building was erected housing some of the Intact media organisations. The court also established the damage in this case at 60 million euros, ordering the impounding of real estate owned by Dan Voiculescu that will be switched under Government's ownership free of encumbrances. CLAYTON A former guest is suing the Ritz-Carlton hotel here, complaining that a clerk gave him a key to the wrong room, which led to his crawling into bed with a 9-year-old girl and ending up prosecuted. A St. Louis County jury found Daniel Hughes not guilty in April 2014 of three counts of child molestation and one count of statutory sodomy. Prosecutors and the girl alleged that Hughes, then 42, a stranger, got into her bed early in the morning of March 6, 2011, wearing only underwear, and touched her sexually. Hughes attorney, Scott Rosenblum, told jurors his client was drunk and only cuddled the girl, thinking he was in bed with a woman hed been out drinking with earlier. During the trial, Rosenblum said that Hughes, visiting from home in Conshohocken, Pa., for a business conference, had been in Room 1619 at his previous hotel, and was supposed to be in 811 at the Ritz. But he mixed up the digits, and when his key didnt work in room 1611, he went to the front desk and obtained its key. Hughes lawsuit against the hotel, filed Feb. 19 in the same courthouse where he had been acquitted in the criminal case, says he could not find his room key that night and could not remember his room number. The suit says the Ritz-Carlton and Maritz, Wolff & Co., which runs it, were negligent in failing to check his identification and the guest register, and failing to give him the correct key. Hotel staff also failed to conduct any reasonable and customary key-security precautions that are standard within the hotel industry and particularly within the luxury hotel market to which the Ritz-Carlton belongs, the suit says. Because of the error, Hughes lost a lucrative position with Enterprise Leasing Co., his suit says. He earned $480,000 in the year before the incident, it says, and probably would have earned more than $1 million in fiscal year 2015. In 2014, after the criminal trial, Hughes settled a lawsuit filed by the parents of the girl, who live in St. Louis County, for $50,000. Later that year, the Ritz settled with the parents for an undisclosed amount. The University of Missouri Board of Curators succumbed to legislative bullying and failed to stand up for academic freedom when they fired assistant communications professor Melissa Click on Thursday. The action also may invite scrutiny from powerful national and local educational organizations dedicated to advancing academic concerns, such as the American Association of University Professors and the University of Missouri Faculty Council. ST. LOUIS James W. Murphy, the city's longtime sheriff, didn't file for reelection on Tuesday, opening the door for five other candidates to take his place. Murphy, who couldn't be reached for comment, has been sheriff since 1989. It was widely anticipated that he wouldn't seek another term. St. Louis is an independent city which also acts as a county, necessitating the need for a sheriff's department. An effort to make the sheriff's position selected by circuit judges instead of elected by a public vote failed to gain traction in Jefferson City. (By comparison, St. Louis County has an appointed sheriff.) Murphy, who comes from an influential family in city politics, narrowly defeated Vernon Betts in the 2012 Democratic primary. Murphy had fired Betts, a former sheriff's deputy, for actively campaigning for the officesomething that Murphy had banned for employees. Murphy later lifted the ban, which has kept his employees from challenging him at the ballot box. Betts has filed to run again in the 2016 Democratic primary in August. Four others will join him. Notably, Alderman Joe Vaccaro. Vaccaro has been seeking to use sheriff's manpower to help the city with crime. Right now, the department's chief role is courthouse security, in addition to prisoner transport and juror protection. Also running are sheriff's deputy John K. Klupe, Johnnie Chester, and Charley L. Williams, Sr. More candidates could still file before the March 29 deadline to get on the August 2 primary ballot. FERGUSON With the swearing in on Tuesday night of Laverne Mitchom to fill a vacant seat, Ferguson for the first time has a majority black City Council. But the significance of that historic moment was soon overshadowed by shouts of protesters who felt that city leaders betrayed them by rebuffing a proposed agreement with Justice Department under false pretenses earlier this month. The activists eventually surrounded the council with banners while Mayor James Knowles III worked through the nights agenda, the sound of his voice overwhelmed by cries of the crowd. Among the banners messages was Demand Constitutional Policing and No Consent No Bu$iness. Mitchom, 65 and a protester herself, was appointed two weeks ago to fill the seat vacated when Brian Fletcher, also a former mayor, died of a heart attack last month. Her appointment followed the councils decision to unilaterally revise a proposed consent decree, a decision that provoked a lawsuit from the Justice Department the next day. At Tuesdays meeting, moved from City Hall to the Community Center to accommodate the expected crowd, the stage appeared set for a major disruption. Many people arrived in black and wearing berets outfits reminiscent of the Black Panther Party, a black nationalist organization founded in the 1960s. As Knowles asked everyone to stand for a silent prayer, the protesters broke out in the familiar civil rights anthem We Shall Overcome. The singing continued, drowning out the Pledge of Allegiance. Some residents were upset by estimates provided by Finance Director Jeffrey Blume for how much the decree would cost the city. Blume had said that a clause in the agreement would mean officers and other employees would get 25 percent raises, increasing the price of carrying out the reforms to as high as $3.7 million. Those figures served as the basis for the council to amend the decree. Knowles frequently cited them as evidence that the cost of a lawsuit was less than abiding by the decree. But the accuracy of the numbers have since been called into question. Im seriously disappointed because you werent straight with us, said resident Winfred Cochrell. Several activists in addressing the council invoked the names of black men and women who have died at the hands of police or in their custody, such as Sandra Bland, Kimberlee Randle-King and Michael Brown, whose shooting death by a white Ferguson police officer sparked months of protests and a Justice Department investigation that accused the citys police department of illegal stops, searches and arrests, driven partly by racial bias and of using its police and court to raise revenue rather than provide justice. Tension escalated when two residents shouted expletives at each other from across the room. Knowles repeatedly pounded the table, using a water bottle as a gavel to restore order and threatening to end the public comment section of the meeting. At one point someone accused him of not caring about black people. The mayor smiled, turned to black Councilman Dwayne James and uttered a few words not broadcast by the microphones. When resident Gerry Jasper spoke, she put on a clown nose and said, Its like a circus here, a remark that elicited laughter and applause. She also held up a flashlight, as she criticized the figures provided by Blume. Nothing hidden can stay hidden, she said. Its scary to be around so many people that lie. Tell the truth. This month, the council sought to make seven revisions to the proposed agreement with the Justice Department, noting that they were among several hundred mandates contained in the document. But one of those revisions eliminated the so-called poison pill clause, which made the agreement apply to any agency providing police services in Ferguson. Without that provision, Ferguson could have circumvented most of the decrees requirements by disbanding its police force. Nevertheless, Knowles has said the City Council unanimously voted in favor of the most expansive and comprehensive consent decree issued to date. But some residents said those statements were deceptive. There is nothing holding you to that consent decree except the false narrative saying that you are, said Karl Tricamo. City leaders have said they still hope to reach an agreement with the Justice Department, and that as a sign of good faith, the council will begin putting the reforms in place. But as that process got underway on Tuesday, activists moved to the front of the room, yelling, No Justice, No Peace, No consent decree, bank-rupt-cy and You cant amend justice. Protesters held up a banner in front of City Attorney Stephanie Karr a prominent figure in a Justice Department report published last March that read Stop the KARRuption. The council finished working through the agenda, and then left under police escort through a side door. After a few minutes, newly hired City Manager DeCarlon Seewood and interim Police Chief Al Eickhoff returned to the room, exchanging hugs and handshakes with the protesters who were still celebrating their success at disrupting the proceedings. Activist Tony Rice said that similar interactions have been common at protests over the 18 months since Browns death, as officers and protesters began to understand each others perspectives. Today worked out pretty good, Rice said. I think they realize our issue isnt with the police department. Its with how the city has allowed the police department to operate. As Rice spoke, Eickhoff stood nearby joking and laughing with two of the more fervent female protesters. Rice nodded in their direction. They got him on speed dial, he said. An earlier version of this story misspelled Gerry Jasper's name. JEFFERSON CITY Missouri's public defenders would see a minimum increase under a Missouri House budget plan unveiled this week. Republican House Budget Leader Tom Flanigan's $27.1 billion plan for the budget that begins July 1 would earmark only $500,000 for conflict case management -- an amount lower than Gov. Jay Nixon's recommended $1 million increase. The plan still must be approved by the House Budget Committee. Flanigan's plan falls far short of the $23.1 million general revenue increase in 2017 requested by the State Public Defender System for caseload relief. The state system's 376 public defenders handle about 100,000 cases per year. Based on a 2014 study, the system needs almost 270 additional attorneys to meet the current needs based on last budget year's caseload data. The system has a budget of $39.5 million during the current year. Flanigan's budget plan is based on an estimated 3.1 percent increase in revenue growth in the 2017 budget year, an amount more conservative than the governor's 4.1 percent growth projection. In response to the difference, Flanigan plans to implement a surplus revenue fund, where money would be funneled if revenue exceeds the Legislatures estimate. Such a fund was last created for the 2015 budget year, but was never tapped. If the state reaches Nixon's projection, the public defender system would receive an additional $4 million. The House Budget Committee still must approve these and other changes before the measure is sent to the House floor. Lawmakers have until May 6 to complete the budget. The bill is House Bill 2013. JEFFERSON CITY Missouris highest court heard arguments Wednesday in a case questioning whether state senators are illegally limiting citizens from recording public meetings. Progress Missouri, a liberal advocacy organization, is asking for the court to intervene in its fight with the Republican-controlled Senate after it was denied permission to record video of committee hearings last year. The seven justices are acting on the case after a lower court judge ruled in favor of the Senate, saying the state constitution gives the Legislature the power to establish its own rules above and beyond statutes governing the states Sunshine Law. This is a direct challenge to the constitutionality of the Sunshine Law, said Christopher Grant, an attorney representing the advocacy group. The states open government law says recording must generally be allowed in public meetings. But it lets some governmental bodies establish guidelines to minimize disruption. Under Senate rules, only state-recognized news organizations are allowed to record. Deputy State Solicitor General Jeremiah Morgan, representing the Senate, said the Senates rules are similar to those dictating coverage of the U.S. Congress. And, Judge Richard Teitelman said that the court also sets its own rules for recording courtroom activity, such as barring allowing only one photographer in the chamber when the court is in session. Morgan said Progress Missouris arguments could be silenced in the future if the Senate moves forward with a plan to make recordings of its committees. The Senate is trying very hard to record all of its hearings, Morgan told the court. After the hearing, Progress Missouri Executive Director Laura Swinford said the Senate should follow the states Sunshine Law in order to promote openness and citizen engagement. We dont believe the Senate is above the law, Swinford said. The court took the case under advisement. Updated at 4:15 p.m. with details from the committee hearing. JEFFERSON CITY A bill to require photo ID at the polls passed one last test Wednesday before heading to the Senate floor where St. Louis Sen. Jamilah Nasheed, a Democrat, has vowed to lead a filibuster to stop it. The Senate Governmental Accountability and Fiscal Oversight Committee unanimously approved the bill, though its two Democratic members were absent. It would cost an estimated $16.6 million to advertise the new law and pay for the IDs and underlying source documents needed to acquire them. The Missouri Secretary of State's office estimates that about 225,000 Missourians are registered to vote but don't have a photo ID. This year's proposal comes in two parts. The first would put the question on the ballot in the form of a proposed constitutional amendment. If passed, another bill that needs to win passage of its own would dictate how the law would be enforced. The two measures passed the House in the first weeks of this year's legislative session. The proposed amendment only needs House and Senate approval to go on the ballot. The other bill won with enough support in the House to override any potential veto from Democratic Gov. Jay Nixon. Voter photo ID bills have been a mainstay in GOP-dominated Jefferson City for more than a decade, but with limited success. The only time a Voter ID bill was signed into law in Missouri was in 2006 by then-Republican Gov. Matt Blunt. But the Missouri Supreme Court struck down the law before that year's midterm elections. The majority ruled it "represent(ed) a heavy and substantial burden on Missourians' free exercise of the right of suffrage." Democrats have opposed photo ID requirements, saying they suppress the voting power of poor people, minorities, students and the elderly groups less likely to have the necessary identification. But Republicans argue in-person voter impersonation fraud saying you're someone who you're not at the polls is a problem worth stamping out. But their stance is contradicted by a growing body of research, news reports and court rulings that say in-person voter impersonation fraud is nearly nonexistent and places an undue burden on voters especially constituencies that tend to support Democrats. A new working paper released by political scientists at the University of California, San Diego suggests that the strictest voter ID laws which require showing an ID at the polls "skew democracy in favor of whites and those on the political right." "Strict voter ID laws diminish the participation of Democrats and those on the left, while doing little to deter the vote of Republicans and those on the right," the paper concluded. "They produce a clear partisan distortion." The researchers bill their study as the only one to date to assess the effects of the strictest voter ID laws. The researchers compared turnout between 2008 and 2012 in states with strict voter ID requirements to states without strict laws, controlling for other election laws in those states, the differing contexts of each election and differing demographics. Voter turnout among strong liberals is an estimated 10.7 points lower in strict voter ID states, contrasted with an estimated 2.8-point drop for conservatives. The study also suggests lower turnout among racial minorities. For example, turnout among Latinos is estimated to be 10.3 points lower in states with strict laws than in states without them. The study also points out an existing turnout gap between white and non-white voters. In states with strict ID laws, the gap among African Americans and whites increased in primary elections from 4.8 points to 8.5 points. And is in-person voter impersonation fraud a widespread problem? A team of journalists at Arizona State University studied the type of fraud during the buildup to the 2012 presidential election and found only 10 documented cases nationwide since 2000. Another researcher, Justin Levitt, at the University of Loyola, Los Angeles, only counted 31 credible cases out of more than 1 billion ballots cast between 2000 and 2014. But Rep. Justin Alferman, R-Hermann, the sponsor of this year's bill, says that people have more of an incentive to commit voter fraud and get away with it without tighter controls. Under current Missouri law, it's requested that voters show some sort of ID, and if election judges can determine the voter's identity without one, the ballot can still count. Alferman also said his proposal would be more reasonable than the laws in the nine states where photo ID is required. People with physical or mental disabilities, people born before 1946 and people with religious beliefs against photo identification would not be required to show photo ID. And if someone is unable to obtain a source document needed or haven't been issued an ID, they too would be given an exemption after signing an affadavit, Alferman said. Anyone who had been issued an ID but forgot it on election day would be given three days to bring it to their election authority for the vote to count. Voter ID requirements would also only take effect if the Legislature appropriates money to cover the cost of obtaining IDs and source documents such as birth certicficates. "I want to make sure there is enough provisions and safeguards in there to where we can make sure that everyone that is eligible to cast a ballot, can," Alferman said. "There is not a single voter ID bill in the entire United States that has been as thought out as this bill has." The two measures are House Joint Resolution 53 and House Bill 1631. A slushy, blustery snowstorm that whipped through the metro area Wednesday morning closed a section of interstate highway and downed power lines serving about 40,000 customers. High-power lines that fell across Interstate 270 near Dougherty Ferry Road forced the closing of all lanes for about seven hours. That busy stretch of highway serves nearly 200,000 vehicles per day. If you wanted to pick a bad place for power lines to fall, thats about as good as you can get, said Andrew Gates, a spokesman for the Missouri Department of Transportation. Snowfall varied widely across the area before the storm moved toward the Great Lakes region by mid-afternoon. Lambert-St. Louis International Airport had 3.6 inches. Parts of south St. Louis County had five inches, High Ridge had eight, Edwardsville had 5.5 and St. Louis city, less than than three. Western St. Charles County had but a trace. Wentzville and Fort Zumwalt schools remained open, but most of the two-state areas other districts canceled or shortened the school day. Tom Spriggs, a meterologist at the National Weather Service office in Weldon Spring, said the storm lingered over some places as it moved through, causing the uneven accumulations. Snow blown by winds gusting to 40 mph made the morning commute hazardous and continued after the snow stopped, but a high temperature of 44 melted away almost all of the sloppy snow by evening. The forecast is promising, with highs in the 60s over the weekend. Theres a chance of rain Monday. Wednesdays storm boosted to 10.6 inches the areas running total for snow this winter. The annual average is about 20 inches. Patrick Smith, Amerens senior director for metro operations, said heavy snow and wind probably brought down four wooden utility poles in Des Peres, causing 34,000-volt transmission lines to fall across I-270 and douse power in the area, including at nearby Des Peres Hospital. The hospitals emergency generators kicked on as designed, said spokeswoman Simone Valle, but the hospital had to cancel elective surgeries. Power was restored to the hospital by 10:30 a.m. Service also was lost for eight hours at two office buildings next to St. Anthonys Medical Center in South County, but the hospital never was affected, a spokesman said. Smith, of Ameren, said the wintry combination also dropped numerous feeder lines in neighborhoods, causing most of the residential outages. About 40,000 customers on both sides of the Mississippi River lost power, but crews had restored service to all but 4,500 of them by late Wednesday. That number was cut by more than half by Thursday morning. It was the weight of the snow on tree limbs that usually are well outside the (wire) zones, but were pushed by high winds, Smith said. Des Peres Public Safety Director Chief Keith Krumm said closing I-270 caused gridlock on alternative routes, including Ballas Road. Krumm said a utility pole fell onto the engine hood of a womans car on Dougherty Ferry, but she was not injured. He said some motorists on Big Bend Boulevard drove around barriers to the I-270 ramp and added to the jam. I guess they thought that road blocked was meant for everyone but them, Krumm said. Be the first to know Get local news delivered to your inbox! Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. WASHINGTON Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval, a Republican and former federal judge, is being considered by President Barack Obama for appointment to the U.S. Supreme Court, a source close to the process said on Wednesday, as Obama sought to overcome Senate Republican resistance to any nominee. The source, who asked not to be identified, said Sandoval met on Monday in the U.S. Capitol with Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid, at which time Reid asked the governor whether he would be interested in being considered for the high court job. "He said he was interested," the source said of Sandoval, adding that "a number of people are being checked out" for the job. An intense political fight has erupted since the Feb. 13 death of long-serving conservative Justice Antonin Scalia. Republicans are maneuvering to foil Obama's ability to choose a replacement who could tilt the court to the left for the first time in decades. The Republican-dominated Senate must confirm any high court nominee. Sandoval, 52, who is of Mexican heritage and was elected governor in 2010, was in Washington for a meeting of the National Governors' Association. He spent about 30 minutes with Reid in the Democratic leader's office. The two also had talked by telephone last week, the source said. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell announced on Tuesday that the Senate will not hold hearings or vote on any Supreme Court nominee until after the next president takes office in January. Obama vowed on Wednesday to move ahead with a nominee and said Republicans would risk public ire if they blocked a qualified candidate for political motives, as well as diminishing the credibility of the high court. Obama said he expected the Senate Judiciary Committee to extend his nominee the courtesy of a hearing and then vote on whether he or she is qualified. "In the meantime, the American people are going to have the ability to gauge whether the person I've nominated is well within the mainstream, is a good jurist, is somebody who's worthy to sit on the Supreme Court," Obama told reporters during a meeting in the Oval Office. "I think it will be very difficult for Mr. McConnell to explain how, if the public concludes that this person's very well qualified, that the Senate should stand in the way simply for political reasons." OBAMA SYMPATHETIC The president said he understood the political predicament Republicans faced and said he had expressed sympathy in calls to their leaders. He said they were sheepish in their arguments that a nominee should not be confirmed until next year and predicted their posture would change. "I think the situation may evolve over time. I don't expect Mitch McConnell to say that is the case today," he said. Obama, who was meeting with King Abdullah of Jordan, rarely takes questions from reporters in the Oval Office. But he was ready on Wednesday and seemed to relish striking down Republican arguments against his future nominee. Earlier on Wednesday, in a post on the independent SCOTUSblog.com website, Obama listed his criteria for a nominee including "an independent mind, rigorous intellect, impeccable credentials and a record of excellence and integrity." In an apparent nod to conservatives who decry "activist judges," Obama said his appointee "will be someone who recognizes the limits of the judiciary's role; who understands that a judge's job is to interpret the law, not make the law." Liberals vowed to pressure Senate Republicans into considering an Obama nomination this year, with several groups banding together to deliver to the Senate boxes of what they said contained 1.3 million signatures from citizens demanding that a confirmation process go forward after the president announces his pick. Senator Chuck Schumer, the second-ranking Democrat in the Senate said the petitions being delivered were "just the beginning of the public rising up." Democratic Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut said Republicans "are giving a middle finger to the American people and they are giving a middle finger to this president. The American people elected Barack Obama for four years and they knew what they were doing." The U.S. presidential election is set for Nov. 8 and Republicans want the next president to fill Scalia's vacancy, hoping a Republican will be elected. Scalia's death left the shorthanded court with four liberals and four conservatives, with Obama's nominee positioned to change the court's ideological balance. Obama already has appointed two Supreme Court justices during his seven years as president. The Senate confirmed his prior two nominees Sonia Sotomayor in 2009 and Elena Kagan in 2010 but the chamber was controlled by Obama's fellow Democrats at the time. Additional reporting by Richard Cowan Releases from NASA, NASA's Galex, NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, HubbleSite, Spitzer, Cassini, ESO, ESA, NASAs Chandra X-ray Observatory, Royal Astronomical Society, NRAO, Astronomy Picture of the Day, Harvard-Smithsonian Center For Astrophysics, Max Planck Institute for Astrophysics, Gemini Observatory, Subaru Telescope, W. M. Keck Observatory, Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope, JPL-Caltech, Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, ICRAR, etc LONDON MARKET CLOSE: FTSE 100 ends higher; Mordaunt makes UK PM tilt Friday, October 21, 2022 - 17:22 The pound regained some poise on Friday afternoon but remained in precarious territory, after falling below the $1.11 mark in afternoon trade. The pound was quoted at $1.1203 at the close on Friday, down versus $1.1294 at the London equities close on Thursday. It hit an intraday low of $1.1063 not long after midday. Sterling was hurt by continued political uncertainty. Speculation about who will join Penny Mordaunt in throwing their hats in the ring in the race for Number 10 continues. Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak, one-time neighbours at Number 10 and 11 Downing Street - but now bitter rivals - have pockets of support from Tory MPs. Adding to the pressure on sterling, disappointing UK retail sales data showed a bigger-than-expected decline in September, according to figures from the Office for National Statistics. Retail sales fell 6.9% annually in September, with the decline accelerating from a 5.6% fall in August. It also was worse than FXStreet-cited market consensus, which had expected a fall of just 5%. The pound had initially found some support on Thursday after Liz Truss called an end to her disastrous tenure as prime minister - poking above $1.13 - but has since been dragged lower. The FTSE 100 index closed up 25.82 points, or 0.4%, at 6,969.73 - closing out the week up 1.6%. The FTSE 250 lost 182.38 points, or 1.1%, at 17,206.55, but still managed to gain 1.0% this week, and the AIM All-Share ended down 1.04 points, or 0.1% at 785.40 - but advanced 0.8% over the past five days. The Cboe UK 100 closed up 0.4% at 696.31, the Cboe UK 250 ended down 1.0% at 14,694.15, and the Cboe Small Companies lost 0.3% at 12,240.46. In European equities on Friday, the CAC 40 in Paris lost 0.9%, while the DAX 40 in Frankfurt gave back 0.3%. The Tories have begun to declare their allegiances in the party's second leadership contest of the year as speculation mounts over who will seek to replace Truss at the helm of the party. Supporters of Johnson are backing the former prime minister to make an extraordinary political comeback, while ex-chancellor Sunak and Commons Leader Mordaunt also have the public support of several MPs. Mordaunt become the first to declare her candidacy, with a pledge to re-unite the bitterly divided party. The leader of the House who finished third in the last leadership election said she had been encouraged by the support she had received from fellow Conservative MPs. There has also been no declaration yet from Sunak, who did not answer questions from reporters as he left his home on Friday morning. Whoever does win will face an immediate test, choosing whether to go ahead with the planned Halloween statement setting out how the government intends to get the public finances back on track, Downing Street has said. Work is continuing in Whitehall, led by Chancellor Jeremy Hunt, in preparation for the medium-term fiscal plan to be announced on October 31 along with an updated set of economic forecasts from the Office for Budget Responsibility. However, a Number 10 spokeswoman said it would be up to Liz Truss's successor to decide whether to proceed with that approach and with the same timetable. In London, blue chip miners helped push FTSE 100 higher. Glencore gained 3.6%, Anglo American 3.1%, Antofagasta 2.7%, and Rio Tinto added 1.6%. Retailers, however, were showing weakness after the disappointing UK retail sales data. A profit warning from Adidas did nothing to help the mood either. JD Sports closed down 6.1%, Frasers 4.0%, Burberry 2.2%, and Next shed 2.9%. On Thursday, Adidas lowered annual guidance as it struggles with "deteriorating traffic" in China and high inventory levels. The sports apparel maker said it has needed to turn to "higher clearance activity" to try and shift stock. It lost 9.0% in Frankfurt. Deliveroo gained 3.6%. The London-based online food delivery service said gross transaction values rose 8.3% annually in the third quarter to 1.70 billion from 1.57 billion, though orders fell by 1.1% to 72.8 million from 73.6 million. Deliveroo said the decline in orders was due to a difficult consumer environment. With economic data on Friday showing that UK consumer confidence remains near record lows, this seems unlikely to change anytime soon. InterContinental Hotels gave back 2.2% but reported strong revenue growth in the third quarter to September 30, saying that high global employment levels are boosting occupancy levels. Revenue per available room, or RevPAR, rose 28% year-on-year and now exceeds its pre-pandemic level, being up 2.7% on the third quarter of 2019. In the third quarter of 2022, the average daily rate increased by 13% compared to a year ago and was up 11% on 2019. Chief Financial Officer & Head of Strategy Paul Edgecliffe-Johnson will leave the company in six months time to become CFO of Flutter Entertainment in the first half of 2023. IHG has started the process of finding a new CFO. The euro stood at $0.9802 Friday evening, down against $0.9822 at the close on Thursday. Against the yen, the dollar was trading at JP148.03, compared to JP149.77 late Thursday. The yen was staging a fightback after the open on Wall Street, after nearly hitting JP152 during the Asia session. Stocks in New York opened higher on Friday, with the DJIA up 1.1%, the S&P 500 index up 0.9%, and the Nasdaq Composite was 0.6% higher. Brent oil was quoted at $92.84 a barrel late Friday, down from $93.29 late Thursday. Gold was quoted at $1,643.70 an ounce Friday, up against $1,641.90 from Thursday. In the international economics events calendar next week, Monday will be dominated by a slew of composite PMIs, with Japan overnight followed by Germany, eurozone and the UK in the morning then the US in the afternoon. A quiet Tuesday will be headlined by a US house price index. On Wednesday, there is Chinese GDP, retail sales and industrial production overnight, then on Thursday attention will be on the European Central Bank interest rate decision at 1315 BST. Friday will be headlined by a Bank of Japan rate decision. In the local corporate calendar on Monday, there are half-year results from Dr Martens, while education publishing firm Pearson will issue a third quarter update. Copyright 2022 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved. In Pakistan the military is being asked embarrassing questions about the continuing Islamic terrorist violence. According to the generals, the ongoing offensive in the northwest tribal territories (mainly North Waziristan) has been declared a success at shutting down the only Islamic terrorist sanctuary in Pakistan. So how do you explain the continuing Islamic terrorist violence? In 2015 Islamic terrorist attacks fell by half but going into 2016 these attacks continue. Of particular concern to many Pakistanis is the fact that one of the worst attacks so far in 2016 was on a private university. This one left 21 dead and the Taliban not only took credit but said it was only the first of many attacks on colleges that provide secular education for future military and government leaders and the growing middle class in general. This terrified the middle and upper class families that send their children to these schools and many shut down until better security measures can be implemented. The Taliban threat actually applies to all secular schools and that has an impact on the majority of Pakistanis. In response the generals blame foreigners, mainly India and the West. Official accusations against the United States (which most Pakistanis believe) are rare because the Americans are still a major source of military and economic aid. But thats about all the United States gets for its money because the reality is that Pakistan is still a major supporter of Islamic terrorism, as it has been since the late 1970s. Initially this support was for Islamic terrorists who would attack Russians in Afghanistan and Indians in Kashmir. After the Russians left Afghanistan in 1989 nearly all Pakistani support for Islamic terrorism shifted to India but in the early 1990s the generals saw a need to create the Taliban in order to take advantage of the continuing chaos in Afghanistan. Attacks against India continued and Islamic terror groups carrying them out have always had sanctuary in Pakistan. So does the Afghan Taliban, which has been safe in the southwest (Quetta) since 2002. All this Islamic terrorist support is quite open in Pakistan and most Pakistanis believe that this provides Pakistan with protection from attacks by true Islamic terrorists. Thus any Islamic terrorist violence against Pakistan must be instigated by India, Israel and/or the West. This includes the creation and support for groups like ISIL (Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant) and al Qaeda. No real Moslem would commit the atrocities against Moslems that those two groups are accused of. But because ISIL and al Qaeda have been declared outlaws by most of the world (including the UN) public statements in Moslem nations must go along. On the street, however, there is no such pretense. Any time an Islamic terrorist attack kills non-Moslems it is a victory for Islam. Whenever the victims are Moslems, its another example of non-Moslems attacking Islam. Of course many educated Pakistanis know better, but in many Moslem countries the Islamic conservatives can get away with murder if the victim is someone who has openly questioned these myths. This has long been true in Pakistan and is even occasionally true in Bangladesh, which at least goes after the killers and makes a real effort to shut down all Islamic terror groups. In southwest Pakistan (near the Iran border) several hundred additional police and soldiers have recently arrived to provide more security for the growing Chinese workforce in the city of 100,000. Pakistan has assured China that there would be no terrorist violence against Chinese working on upgrading the port of Gwadar. This is a key part of the $46 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). This project began in 2013 when China agreed to spend $18 billion to build a road from Gwadar into northwest China. This will require drilling long tunnels through the Himalayan Mountains on the border (in Pakistani controlled Kashmir.) The road and a natural gas pipeline are part of the larger CPEC project. This will make it much easier and cheaper to move people, data (via fiber optic cables) and goods between China and Pakistan. China also gets a 40 year lease on much of the port facilities at Gwadar, which India fears will serve as a base for Chinese warships. The thousands of Chinese coming into Pakistan for this project will be prime targets for Islamic terrorists and tribal separatists in Baluchistan (southwest Pakistan). The people in Gwadar will benefit greatly from the construction and the expanded port. Because of that Pakistan is recruiting another 700 local policemen, whose intimate knowledge of the area will be key in keeping the peace. These new police will serve in a unit dedicated to keep the foreign (mainly Chinese) workforce safe. Afghanistan and Pakistan are increasing their joint efforts to track down and kill members of the growing local (for Pakistan and Afghanistan) branch of ISIL. This group is attracting many of the most fanatic Islamic terrorists in Pakistan and Afghanistan. These men are attracted to the ISIL view of the world. For example ISIL insists that the Pakistani military controls the Afghan Taliban as well as Islamic terrorist groups based in Pakistan that operate in India. These accusations are nothing new but they are the reason ISIL considers Pakistan un-Islamic and worthy of some lethal retribution delivered by ISIL. To underscore that ISIL has been carrying out suicide bomber attacks in Afghanistan and Pakistan. So far there have been few such attacks because ISIL is under attack by Afghan and Pakistani security forces as well as rival Islamic terrorist groups. For most of 2015 ISIL has been trying to establish a base area in eastern Afghanistan but that has led to constant skirmishing with Pakistani Taliban hiding out there. The local tribes are largely hostile to ISIL and all this has provided better intel for the security forces on what ISIL is up to and exactly where they are. This has led to more effective American air strikes and raids by Afghan troops and American commandos. ISIL is hanging on but not growing rapidly. There are some ISIL members operating in Pakistan, which is an even more hostile environment for them because of widespread hostility towards ISIL tactics by most Pakistanis. Since ISIL considers all other Islamic terror groups enemies the group has to become large enough to crush the local Islamic terrorist competition before it can become a major threat. Pakistan Taliban continue to make attacks in Pakistan and most of these efforts can be traced back to bases in eastern Afghanistan. These attacks tend to take place in the tribal territories of the northwest and southwest but not in Waziristan, where security is too tight. So far this year Islamic terrorism related deaths in Pakistan continue to decline. These deaths fell by a third in 2015 (compared to 2014) and so far in 2016 the decline continues. At the moment it looks like the deaths in 2016 will be nearly 50 percent less than in 2015 and only a third of what they were in 2014. Yet that is still over 1,500 Islamic terrorism related deaths compared to 189 in 2003, when the current wave to Islamic terrorist violence began escalating (initially to 863 in 2004). That violence peaked in 2009 when there were 11,700 deaths and has been declining ever since. This in sharp contrast to India, which has six times the population but, in 2015, 86 percent fewer terrorism related deaths. In 2003 India had 3,700 terrorism related deaths compared to fewer than 200 in Pakistan. Most of the fatalities in India were from Islamic terrorists based in Pakistan. India had been fighting this problem since the 1990s and terror related deaths peaked in 2001 (at 5,800) and steadily declined after that. So far in 2016 India has suffered about 18 terrorism related deaths a week compared to 37 for Pakistan. Taking into account the population differences Pakistan still has twelve times as many terrorism related deaths per capita than India. Bangladesh suffered a recent spectacular Islamic terrorist murder when ISIL took credit for the beheading of a Hindu priest in a Hindu temple. While that got a lot of media attention it took away from the fact that Bangladesh has far less Islamic terrorism activity than most other Moslem nations. For example, with 75 percent of the population of Pakistan it has less than two percent as many Islamic terrorism related deaths. Bangladesh had 56 Islamic terrorism related deaths in 2015, down from 60 in 2014 and a record 379 in 2013. The 2013 surge was 69 percent of all Islamic terrorist deaths since 2005 and a sign that Islamic terrorism continues to have a difficult time getting a foothold in Bangladesh. Actually most of the terrorism related deaths were political rather than religious but in the last few years Islamic terrorism has gotten a lot more attention in the news. The government is also increasing its cooperation with India and the United States in identifying and tracking Islamic terrorists. Its efforts like this that have kept Islamic terrorist activity low in Bangladesh. February 22, 2016: In Bangladesh a series of weekend raids led to the arrest of two Islamic terrorists and the seizure of twenty bombs plus bomb making materials. The police were seeking members of the Ansarullah Bangla Team, an Islamic terror group that has been going after foreigners and local bloggers who criticize Islamic terrorism. In northern India (Haryana state) a week of rioting ended with the government and local Jat caste leaders working out a peace deal. The week of violence left 17 dead and over 150 wounded. Economic damage is estimated to be as high as $5 billion. This violence was all about an effort by an organization representing one of the lower Hindu castes (Jats) to be reclassified as one of the lowest castes, and thus become eligible for government benefits (cash, college admission, job preferences). The caste system is an ancient components of Hindu culture and religion. It separates all Hindus into four main castes, and many minor ones. Tradition discourages relationships with those in the lowest caste, who are often called the untouchables. Caste is technically illegal now, but it still exists, and the government provides all sorts of aid to help the hundred million or so people in the lowest castes. This has caused increasing resentment by relatively poor but not untouchable castes. In northwest Pakistan (Kurram) an American UAV missile attack killed at least three members of the Haqqani Network. This is the second such attack in Pakistan this year. The first one was on January 9th in North Waziristan and killed five members of the Pakistani Taliban. The Haqqani Network used to be based in North Waziristan but moved to nearby Kurram after the mid-2014 Pakistani offensive into North Waziristan. February 21, 2016: India announced that its first locally designed and built nuclear powered submarine, the 5,000 ton SSBN (ballistic missile carrying sub) INS Arihant had completed its sea trials and was ready for service. This comes after twelve years of planning and construction. Arihant was supposed to enter service before the end of 2015 but there were more unforeseen technical problems to fix. Arihant was launched in 2009 but completing the sub kept running into problems. Nevertheless the success of Arihant led to an SSN (nuclear attack submarine) program, which is now underway. In 2015 India announced ambitious plans to build six SSNs but admits development and building will probably take at least fifteen years. One locally made nuclear sub doesn't change the balance of naval power much for India, which is already dominant in the region but it does show that India can build nuclear subs and six SSNs will make a difference. February 19, 2016: Pakistan officially lifted all economic sanctions it had imposed on Iran. Pakistan was obliged to enforce these sanctions because of international treaties (like belonging to the UN). Now that a July 2015 international agreement has lifted those sanctions Pakistan is free to resume trade and revive joint economic projects that had been stalled by the growing list of sanctions. India and Pakistan were both doing a lot of business with Iran before the sanctions and both countries are now reviving those activities. February 18, 2016: In northwest Pakistan (Mohmand Agency on the Afghan border) Pakistani Taliban made two nigh attacks on border troops killing nine of them. It was unclear which side of the border this group of Islamic terrorists was operating from. February 13, 2016: In eastern India (Chhattisgarh) police, acting on a tip, found a Maoist storage site and seized over a dozen firearms, four bombs, bomb making equipment and other equipment. The campaign against communist rebels (Maoists) continues with the Maoists unable to reverse the steady erosion of their strength because of the persistent police campaign. February 12, 2016: In eastern Pakistan (Karachi) security forces carried out a series of raids that led to the arrest of 97 Islamic terrorists belonging to al Qaeda and the Pakistani Taliban. These men were believed responsible for multiple attacks (on military, police and civilian targets) since 2009. One operation being planned was an attack on a prison to free the Islamic terrorists who murdered American journalist Daniel Pearl in 2002. The United States finally agreed to give Pakistan another eight F-16 fighters. This gift (military aid) is worth $699 million and includes support and training. A month ago the U.S. Congress was able to halt this deal for 30 days in an effort to get Pakistan to reduce its support for Islamic terrorism. Pakistan delivered enough assurances and convincing lies to get the F-16 deal approved. There is growing American political opposition to this support for Pakistan. But Pakistan has made the most of its weak position. After all Afghanistan is landlocked and the most convenient land access is via Pakistan. This access tends to be interrupted whenever the Americans threaten to halt the flow of cash and equipment. When cornered on the issue of support for Islamic terrorism Pakistan gives as little ground as possible in order to keep the American gifts coming. Since 2001 Pakistan has received over $25 billion in military (mostly) and economic aid. Pakistan insists this is insufficient because they estimate that Islamic terrorist violence has cost Pakistan over $100 billion since 2001. The Islamic terrorism violence in Pakistan sharply increased after the Pakistani Taliban was formed in 2007 (via a coalition of existing Islamic terrorist groups). The operations in North Waziristan have led some Pakistani factions to announce they are renouncing violence and turning to political activity to achieve their goals. There are already a lot of Islamic radical political parties in Pakistan and they are a major force in parliament and local politics. But other Taliban factions have announced they are joining ISIL and thus going for even more extreme violence. The real reason Pakistan needs the American aid is because the Pakistani generals justify all their power (and expensive lifestyles) by portraying neighbor India as a constant threat. Pakistani generals insist they need more money to deal with this threat. After all India spends over $40 billion a year on Defense, which is five times what Pakistan can afford. As a result India is constantly modernizing its forces while Pakistan, with half as many troops but only 20 percent of the Indian budget is obviously not keeping up. February 8, 2016: In northwest India the first joint military exercise between Chinese and Indian troops took place. Thirty troops from each country spent the day doing joint disaster relief chores. The object of the drill (aside from the diplomatic benefits) was for both sides to discover and eliminate any differences in procedures that would disrupt future joint operations along the border area. Earthquakes are frequent in the area as are avalanches. February 6, 2016: In southwest Pakistan (Quetta) a Taliban suicide bomber on a bicycle attacked a military convoy leaving nine dead and over 30 wounded. Most of the casualties were civilians. February 3, 2016: Afghanistan turned over the bodies of 18 Pakistanis killed in a recent UAV missile attack in eastern Afghanistan. The 18 dead were identified as members of the pro-Taliban Mehsud and Ahmadzai Wazir tribes. These men were killed while working for the Pakistani Taliban and were in a convoy that had just crossed the border into Afghanistan. The 18 men were buried in Waziristan, where they came from. Afghanistan will return bodies to Pakistan if they can be identified as Pakistani. This complies with Pushtun tribal tradition in the area and, since Pushtun are on both sides of the border (sometimes the same tribe) neither governments interfere with it. For the Afghans it demonstrates that something is being done about Pakistani Islamic terrorists who have moved to Afghanistan. These men were moving back and forth between Afghanistan and Pakistan and the Afghans want more cooperation from Pakistan on this issue. Then again the UAV attack that killed these men appears to have been possible because Pakistani intelligence (or Afghan informants in Pakistan) warned of the movement. Dirty Little Secrets NATO Outmaneuvers Russia In Ukraine by James Dunnigan February 23, 2016 In early 2016 Lithuania, Poland and Ukraine agreed to form a joint peacekeeping brigade. It was no secret that this was an effort by two NATO nations to form military links with Ukraine without really involving NATO. This gives Russia less incentive to violently oppose the deal and enables two NATO nations to train with and their new peacekeeping partner. The new brigade would have 4,000 troops from Lithuania, Poland and Ukraine and, presumably, most of the equipment would come from Lithuania and Poland. Thatas because, in order to join NATO, nations have to standardize a lot of their military equipment and procedures so that cooperation with other NATO allies is automatic. Poland has also asked for a small number of American and other NATO troops to be permanently stationed in Poland, to further dissuade Russia. Since the 17th century American governments have been hiring Native Americans as military auxiliaries, usually as scouts and trackers. The job paid well and the many tribes were often fighting one another or waiting to because of ancient feuds. So it was easy to hire the more expert tribesmen to do what they were eager to do (find and kill their enemies). The use of the Indian Scouts grew after the American Revolution was over and peaked in the late 19th century. There was a major revival during World War II as thousands of Alaskans Eskimos were recruited to patrol the vast arctic borders. Early in the war the Japanese did invade a few of the Aleutian Islands but were soon driven out. All Indian Scouts were officially disbanded in 1947 but the Alaskan Scouts (now part of the 201st Infantry Group) continued to serve during the Cold War, to keep Soviet agents out. That apparently worked because after the Cold War ended Soviet era records revealed that the only Russians who got into Alaska (often with an assist from Alaskan Scouts) were Russians fleeing to the United States. Since (and before) World War II American troops overseas have continued to hire knowledgeable locals as scouts and interpreters. Perhaps the most famous and enduring of these were the Philippines Scouts, who were organized before World War II as the core of the army for the soon-to-be independent Philippines. That independence was delayed a year by Japanese invasion and occupation. After the invasion many of the scouts refused to surrender and headed for the mountains and were a major part of the anti-Japanese resistance. After the war the Scout Rangers became the elite infantry of the Filipino Army. Meanwhile one American tribe, the Tohono O'odham of Arizona (and northern Mexico), still provides a small units of scouts and trackers for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and works along a 122 kilometers stretch of the Mexican border. These scouts are called the Shadow Wolves and are sometimes called to assist along other parts of the border. The Shadow Wolves usually has only 12-20 scouts (or Patrol Officers) and currently employ expert trackers from other tribes (Navajo, Kiowa, Sioux, Blackfeet, Yurok, Omaha, Yaqui and Pima). The Tohono O'odham were long neighbors of the Apache. Often enemies, the two tribes were sometimes allies against Mexicans and Americans moving into their territory. A ceasefire is supposed to begin on the 27 th but there is widespread doubt that it will actually work. The main reason is the fact that ISIL (Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant) and al Nusra (nearly as large as ISIL and affiliated with al Qaeda) have not agreed to stop fighting. This is the second attempt at a ceasefire this month. That first effort failed for the same reasons the new effort will. The UN and most of the West is eager for peace in Syria but for most Moslem nations Syria is a main battleground in the current Shia (led by Iran) and Sunni (led by Saudi Arabia) civil war as well as a joint effort to destroy ISIL, which threatens everyone. The West is not willing to use enough force to make a difference and the pro-government forces are better armed and more determined than the rebels. The UN is caught in the middle and goes along with whatever seems most inoffensive. Meanwhile the rebels willing to negotiate demand a lot of pre-conditions aimed at the Russians. At the very least the rebels wanted the Russians to halt their Assad support while peace talks go on. That never went anywhere. The rebels are asking for other concessions, like release of captured leaders and lifting of sieges of some pro-rebel civilian areas. Russia refused to consider this as well. Another issue the rebels are angry about was the UN agreeing to keep the Syrian Kurds out of the peace talks. This was something Turkey insisted on. There were other problems, like the tensions between Russia, Saudi Arabia and Iran which have also helped cripple UN efforts obtain a meaningful Syria peace deal. The growing tensions between Saudi Arabia and Iran has made cooperation over brokering a Syria peace deal less likely. Russian efforts to mediate are also compromised because of tensions with Iran and the Saudis. ISIL sees Syria as its primary concern. About two-thirds of ISIL resources are devoted to the war in Syria, the rest to Iraq (where ISIL is also losing ground). ISIL is losing everywhere but shows every sign of fighting to the end. Thus while ISIL has been losing much territory in Iraq the number of terror attacks has not diminished. ISIL has not only lost ground in the last year but its personnel strength in Iraq and Syria has declined about 20 percent (to some 20,000 members). There is a smaller, but growing ISIL presence in Libya where strength has doubled to about 6,000 since late 2015. ISIL has smaller operations in Afghanistan and a few other places. The losses in Iraq and Syria are from casualties, desertions and fewer foreign volunteers. Building up the Libya operation is seen as an effort by ISIL leadership to provide a backup base because of the increasing possibility that ISIL will be crushed in Iraq and Syria. The ISIL strategy of attacking everyone has been one of its main attractions for new recruits. But it is becoming obvious to many current and potential supporters that in the long run this approach will not work. What ISIL will do is delay an end to the war in Syria. The government offensive to take Aleppo has been going on since the first of the month and has largely achieved its goals. There have been several thousand casualties, about half of them civilians. Russian air power has continued the Assad strategy of attacking pro-rebel civilians in order to force them out of the country. Several hundred thousand civilians have shown up at the Turkish border because of this. A majority of the rebel fighters are from Aleppo and it is their kin who are being bombed and driven out of the country. Thus the loss of pro-rebel civilians in an area means fewer rebels willing to defend the area. The Assads have used this collective punishment tactic successfully for decades and the Iranians and Russians have no problem with it. UN threats of war crimes prosecutions are ignored because it is easier to get away with that sort of thing in the Middle East and the Assads have Russia to block unwelcome resolutions by the UN. There are still over 300,000 civilians threatened by the Aleppo fighting and at least half of them are poised to flee to other parts of Syria or out of the country entirely. In the rest of Syria the government forces are making gains or holding on to what they have. The rebels continue to be hampered by a tendency to fight each other, something the Assads have learned to take advantage of. While the Turks would like the Assads gone the Turks are more concerned about Kurds and Russians. Exactly how many have died since 2011 in Syria is a mystery because it is impossible for outsiders to get reliable data from many parts of the country. For that reason the UN stopped making estimates in 2014. Since then there have been estimates from pro-rebel and pro-government sources that vary quite a lot. It does appear that over 300,000 (at least) have died so far. About 30 percent of the dead have been civilians, most of them victims of deliberate government attacks meant to force pro-rebel civilians out of the country. Less than two percent of the civilian dead are the result of air attacks by the American led coalition. Thats because of the highly restrictive ROE (Rules of Engagement) and the blatant use of human shields by ISIL. Russian air attacks since October 2015 have killed more than twice as many civilians as the U.S. led coalition has since August 2014 but that is because of a less restrictive ROE. Russia is apparently not deliberately attacking civilians like the government aircraft and artillery continue to do. About 35 percent of the dead are pro-government forces and the remaining 35 percent rebels. About half the rebel dead belong to ISIL and al Qaeda affiliate Islamic terrorist groups. Many of the other rebel dead are Islamic radicals but not into terrorism to the extent that ISIL and al Qaeda are. The 2015 death toll in Syria was apparently about 55,000, which was down 38 percent from the 76,000 in 2014. Thats over 69,000 dead (down 24 percent from 91,000 in 2014) for the two countries where ISIL is most active. So far this year the death toll in Syria appears to be about a thousand a week. The death toll has declined in both Iraq and Syria because ISIL has become less effective and in Syria there is a lot more war weariness. Most of the rebels and government forces in Syria are just playing defense and even ISIL has been less active in attacking with large forces compared to 2014. Iraq continues to be a lot less violent than Syria with a death toll for all of 2015 of about 13,400, compared to 15,600 in 2014. Thats still a big jump from 2013 when the death toll was 8,900 for all of Iraq. Despite an expected increase in combat casualties in mid-2016 when the attack on Mosul begins the total 2016 deaths are expected to be at least 20 percent lower than 2015. While 2015 was 14 percent less deadly than 2014 both years were much less than the worst year. That was 2007 when nearly 18,000 died. Then as now the main cause of the mayhem and murder was Sunni fanatics who want to run the country as a Sunni dictatorship. As bad as the war in Iraq was the one in Syria is worse. Russia is now the major player in Syria. While Iran still supplies a lot of manpower (mostly via foreign Shia it has recruited) Russia has the modern military gear and troops who can use it. Russia also has a veto at the UN and an eagerness to achieve some kind of victory in Syria. To achieve that Russia is concentrating most of its considerable firepower on rebel groups that are hurting the Assad government forces the most. By American count only about ten percent of Russian air strikes have been against ISIL and those targets were usually hit to protect Assad forces. Russia justifies (to the UN and the world in general) its military presence in Syria because it is part of the effort to destroy the ISIL threat. While Russia does not hide its support for the Assad government (which the UN and most of the world accuse of war crimes and want gone) it insists that its presence in Syria is not primarily to keep the Assads in power. Yet thousands of Russian troops are working with the Assad forces, the Russian troops are all based in Assad controlled territory and the majority of rebels, who are not ISIL or the local al Qaeda franchise al Nusra, are the main targets of Russian firepower. Not surprisingly these rebels refuse to participate in peace talks as long as the UN allows Russia to get away with their lies. By late February this Russian support has enabled Assad forces to push most rebels away from Aleppo and cut them off from Turkey (a primary source if reinforcements and supplies). This is a major defeat for the rebels and if the government regains control of Aleppo (or what is left of what used to be the second largest city in the country) Russia will be in a better position to sell its proposal for a UN approved partition of Syria and a de-facto pardon for the Assads so the war against ISIL and al Qaeda can continue. Forgiving the Assads will be a hard sell but the Russians are feeling heroic at the moment and the Assads will take whatever salvation they can get. Russia further complicates the situation by getting involved with increasingly strident disagreements with Turkey. The Turks are angry at Russia for flying its aircraft too close to the Turkish border and for bombing Turkish backed rebels. A particular sore point has been Russian attacks on Syrian Turkmen rebels. As these people are fellow Turks, Turkey has long felt obliged to help them. Now Russia and Turkey are threatening to go to war with each other over this. NATO is debating whether or not this would trigger the mutual-self-defense clause of the NATO treaty. Russia is threatening to use nukes if Turkey gets too aggressive. Via the Internet an international team of investigators (including Russians) has compiled evidence (mainly from social media activity by Russian troops in Syria) that Russian ground troops, mainly special operations and some technical experts, are involved with the ground combat alongside Syrian troops. It is to Irans advantage that ISIL hold the attention of the West and the Arabs. Iran is fighting ISIL, but mainly in Iraq, where Sunni Islamic terrorists have long focused their attacks on Shia civilians. Since the Shia are a majority in Iraq Iran becomes even more popular there as Iran backed militias and other military assistance plays a crucial role in driving ISIL (and eventually all Sunni Islamic terrorists) out of the country. Iranians speak openly (especially inside of Iran) of how well they have exploited their enemies and duped into fight for Iran instead of against Iran. All this has come at a cost. Reports from Iran indicate that over fifty Iranians have died in Syria so far this year. By December 2015 Iran revealed that 67 Iranians had died in Syria since October. Before the Russian intervention there the government played down Iranian deaths in Syria and denied there were many Iranians there at all. Now Iran admits that their troops have been actively involved in Syria since 2013 and over 300 have died so far. A thousand or more Iran recruited and supported foreign mercenaries in Syria have also died. February 23, 2016: Southeast of Aleppo ISIL forces continue to threaten a key road linking government forces around Aleppo and the main government areas in the south (Damascus) and the west (the Mediterranean ports). There is a lot of open space in this area and the government does not have enough ground or air forces to keep ISIL raiding parties out. February 22, 2016: Turkey is accusing Russia of using a new spy place (a recently arrived Tu-214R) to monitor Turkey, not Islamic terrorists in Syria. Russia only has two Tu-214Rs and these entered service in 2015. Russia is testing a lot of their new military gear in Syria. February 21, 2016: ISIL took credit for suicide bombings that left fifty dead in a government held part of Homs and over a hundred dead in a Shia neighborhood of Damascus. February 17, 2016: In the Turkish capital (Ankara) a suicide car bomb attacked a military convoy, killing 28 and wounded more than 60. By the end of the week a Kurdish terror group with links to the PKK (Turkish Kurdish separatists) took credit for the attack and said it was revenge for Turkish attacks on Kurds in the southeast. The government believes the Syrian Kurdish separatists (YPG) were also involved. Turkey has been attacking the PKK in Turkey, Syria and Iraq since July 2015 because of the growing PKK violence inside Turkey. These incidents were seen as a violation of the 2013 ceasefire with the PKK. The Turks also ordered air strikes against PKK bases in Kurdish controlled northern Iraq and Syria. While the Iraqi Kurds continue condemning the PKK they have not tried to expel the PKK based in remote areas. The Turks cannot force the issue as it is pretty obvious that the Iraqi Kurds have all they can handle with ISIL. In response there has been more PKK violence in southeast Turkey and the Turkish security forces have responded with more raids and arrests. This comes after Turkey decided in mid-2015 to join the air campaign against ISIL in Syria. This included allowing American fighters to launch strikes from a Turkish airbase. Since late 2015 Turkey has been shelling Kurdish fighters in northeast Syria when they get to near the border. This is because the Turks insist that members of the YPG must stay away from certain border areas. The Syrians accuse the Turks of being more interested in hurting the Kurds than in stopping ISIL. This became more of an issue when the PKK broke a ceasefire with the Turks in mid-2015 and reignited the three decade old war between Turkey and its Kurdish minority. Kurds see Turkey as tolerating Islamic terrorists inside Turkey if they only attack Kurds and foreigners (especially Syrian refugees). There is some truth to this as the Turkish government has, since 2000, been increasingly tolerant of Islamic conservatives and radicals. Meanwhile some Syrian Kurds (like the YPG) are accused of driving non-Kurds out of villages the Kurds capture from ISIL in what the YPG considers Kurdish territory in northeast Syria. Turkey fears that any partition deal in Syria will see another autonomous Kurdish are in northeast Syria, adjacent to the Iraqi Kurd autonomous area that has existed since the early 1990s. Israeli warplanes fired three missiles at a Syrian army base south of Damascus. This created more explosions as ammunition and explosives exploded as well. This was the first such attack in 2016 and there were several in 2015. Israeli warplanes have made dozens of attacks in Syria since 2013, several of them to destroy Russian weapons being moved to Lebanon (by Hezbollah) and all to prevent more violence against Israel. February 12, 2016: The UN sponsored peace talks appeared to make progress as the Russians, Syrians, Iranians and most Western nations agreed to a ceasefire to begin by the 19th. Joy soon turned to dismay when Russia and Syria pointed out that they would continue attacking ISIL and al Qaeda affiliates (mainly al Nusra) because these groups had not agreed to any ceasefire. The main purpose of the ceasefire was to allow supply trucks to reach civilians surrounded and cut off by aid. That may still happen in a few areas but the ceasefire deal is dead-on-arrival largely because Russia has been lying about why it is really in Syria and that lie is both obvious and a major factor in preventing the peace talks from achieving anything. The UN then began trying to arrange another ceasefire. February 5, 2016: Saudi Arabia announced that it was ready to send ground troops into Syria to fight ISIL. In response Syria, Russia and Syria (the Assads) went public with their belief that Saudi ground troops could not handle ISIL or Syrian soldiers. Iran and Russia have long felt that the Saudi armed forces were second rate. There is some truth to this and it has long been an open secret even among Gulf Arabs. But after decades of efforts (including a lot of blunt criticism) by foreign (mainly American and British) military advisors and trainers change did occur. The Gulf Arab ground forces proved quite capable (or at least more so than Iran expected) in Yemen. Foreign Arabs have been fighting there since early 2015. Iran was also dismayed to see the skill of Saudi and other Arab pilots in Yemen (and earlier in Iraq and Syria). In this part of the world publically demeaning a neighbors troops after those forces have recently displayed competence is a form of compliment. It also sends a message to Iranian commanders and troops to try harder because the Arabs may not be as easy to beat as would they expect them to be. The fact that Iran went public with disparaging remarks about Saudi troops ensured that the war of words stayed in the media and more recently Iran has threatened Saudi troops with Iranian supplied violence if the Saudis dared to send troops into Syria. Iran knows that such an invasion would be as much against the Assads and their Iranian backers as against ISIL. The Saudis have warned Russia to stand aside if the Saudis and Iranians get violent with each other inside Syria. Turkey then warned Russia that an attack on Saudi forces would compel the Turks to enter Syria to assist their Arab ally. Turkey and Saudi Arabia have had good relations for a long time so this Turkish pledge should come as no surprise. The Saudi threat of intervention on the ground still stands but has yet to be carried out. Broadpeak and NexStreaming Improve OTT Multiscreen Experience RENNES, France( ) Broadpeak, a leading provider of content delivery network (CDN) technologies and live and video-on-demand (VOD) servers for cable, IPTV, OTT, hybrid, and mobile TV operators worldwide, today announced that its BkS350 origin server, BkS400 video cache server, and BkA100 analytics tool have been integrated with the NexStreaming NexPlayer SDK to improve OTT multiscreen delivery. Using an end-to-end solution that includes Broadpeak's server, CDN analytics solutions, and the NexPlayer SDK, pay-TV operators can ensure a superior quality of experience (QoE) for subscribers on any screen. "By teaming up with Broadpeak, we are able to elevate the video experience on devices using the NexPlayer SDK video player for both HLS and MPEG-DASH formats," said Carlos Lucas, vice president at NexStreaming. "In addition, Broadpeak's analytics solutions provide useful information to operators, allowing them to quickly resolve content delivery issues and bring increased satisfaction to their subscribers." Broadpeak's video server and analytics solutions form a complete video delivery chain for pay-TV operators, simplifying their OTT multiscreen operations. Video is packaged using HLS or the next-generation MPEG-DASH ABR standard and protected with DRM, ensuring a high-quality, secure experience for end users on any device. After being stored on Broadpeak's BkS350 origin server, video is then streamed to end-user devices via the BkS400 cache server and played out on the NexPlayer SDK. Included in the solution is Broadpeak's BkA100 analytics system which allows operators to dig deeper into the root causes of video delivery issues, providing feedback on what is going on at the delivery system (i.e., servers and network) and player levels. The BkA100 can also ingest information from third-party CDNs that may be used by operators for offload, fail-over, or extension reach scenarios, to offer a single point of display for all analytics information. Through Broadpeak BkA100 Analytics, operators and content providers using NexPlayer SDK video players can get QoE feedback based on various metrics. Metrics include start-up time (i.e., whether a video starts instantly or takes more than a few seconds to be launched), freezes (i.e., the number and duration of frozen video), displayed video profile (i.e., the bitrate connected to the type of screen), completion rate of content (i.e., the percentage of content that has actually been watched), and errors (i.e., errors due to encoding, the network, the content rights, etc.) This feedback is crucial, as it enables operators to investigate the root causes of issues. NexStreaming's NexPlayer SDK supports MPEG-DASH, HSL, and all major DRM solutions including Playready and Widevine, making it easy for operators to integrate into any Android(TM) application and provide secure HD video quality on all Android phones, tablets, STBs, and TV sets. "Today's pay-TV operators must have access to detailed analytics in order to understand the end-user experience," said Jacques Le Mancq, CEO of Broadpeak. "By integrating NexStreaming player with our analytics solution, we enable operators to extract crucial analytics about the QoE. By allowing operators to dive deeper into the end-user experience, we enable them to deliver a better QoS and QoE, giving them a competitive edge in the marketplace." Broadpeak will demonstrate the complete solution at Mobile World Congress 2016, stand 8.1 I18. More information about Broadpeak solutions can be found at www.broadpeak.tv. About NexStreaming (www.nexstreaming.com) NexStreaming is a global mobile software company with Headquarters in Seoul (Korea) and branches in Spain, US, Taiwan, Japan, and China. NexStreaming is known for its excellent customer support and highly competitive time to market. The most popular product is NexPlayer SDK, a HLS player SDK integrated in the mobile applications of the most famous video service providers worldwide. NexPlayer SDK is available for Android, iOS, Windows Phone 8, and Android TV and included in the apps of more than 200 premium video service providers worldwide. NexStreaming is a publicly traded company listed on the Korean stock market, KOSDAQ 139670. About Broadpeak (www.broadpeak.tv) Broadpeak designs and manufactures video delivery components for content providers and network service providers deploying IPTV, cable, OTT, and mobile services. Its portfolio of solutions and technologies powers the delivery of movies, television programming, and other video content over managed networks and the Internet for viewing on any type of device. The company's systems and services help operators increase market share and improve subscriber loyalty with superior quality of experience. Broadpeak supports all of its customers worldwide, from simple installations to large delivery systems reaching capacities of several million of simultaneous streams. Broadpeak systems leverage the long legacy of Technicolor's excellence in broadcast and broadband content delivery from where the founders and technology originated. The company is headquartered in Rennes, France. Pump jacks are seen at the Lukoil company owned Imilorskoye oil field, as the sun sets, outside the West Siberian city of Kogalym, Russia, January 25, 2016. REUTERS/Sergei Karpukhin By Barani Krishnan NEW YORK (Reuters) - Crude oil futures jumped 3 percent on Thursday, reversing earlier loses after confirmation of a meeting of major producers and news of project delays and job cuts in the industry. Venezuela reaffirmed a mid-March meeting of oil producers that would include Saudi Arabia, Russia and Qatar, to stabilize prices that have slumped 70 percent in a 20-month rout. The four countries are involved in an effort to get oil producers in the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and elsewhere to freeze production at January's highs. Many traders believe an output cut and not freeze is what the market needs to clear the global crude glut. "It's the Venezuela headline that got the market excited enough to rebound, though it's baffling why as everyone knows of this meeting and that it's not going to achieve anything," said John Kilduff, partner at Again Capital, a New York energy hedge fund. U.S. crude futures settled up 92 cents, or 2.9 percent, at $33.07 a barrel. It had slid more than $1 at the session low. Brent crude futures finished up 88 cents, or 2.6 percent, at $35.29 a barrel, hitting a three-week high. It had also dropped more than $1 earlier. The rally in crude also boosted gasoline futures , which settled up nearly 5 percent after rallying from early in the day on strong demand for the motor fuel. Aside from the March meeting, traders said sentiment in oil was helped by project deferments in the U.S. shale industry and job cuts that will slow production. Continental Resources Inc (NYSE: CLR), one of the biggest shale drillers in North Dakota, said it planned to continue deferring project completions in the Bakken fields due to low crude prices. Oil services provider Halliburton said it will start a new round of global layoffs that will cut 5,000 jobs. Oil prices had fallen as much 3 percent earlier on Thursday after data indicating new record highs in U.S. crude inventories. Stockpiles at the Cushing, Oklahoma delivery point for U.S. crude futures rose by more than 503,000 barrels to reach above 67.5 million barrels between Feb. 19 and Feb. 24, traders said, quoting data by market intelligence provider Genscape. Officially, the U.S. government reported on Wednesday that Cushing added 333,000 barrels last week to reach 65.1 million for a fourth straight week of record highs. Nationwide, inventories rose to all-time peaks above 507 million barrels. [EIA/S] (Additional reporting by Amanda Cooper in London; Editing by Marguerita Choy and Bernadette Baum) (Updated - February 24, 2016 7:02 AM EST) Chesapeake Energy (NYSE: CHK) reported Q4 EPS of ($0.16), $0.01 better than the analyst estimate of ($0.17). Revenue was $2.65 billion, with the consensus at $2.63 billion Adjusted EBITDA was $298 million, versus the consensus at $392.3 million. Doug Lawler, Chesapeake's Chief Executive Officer, commented, "In light of the challenging commodity price environment, our focus for 2016 is to improve our liquidity, further reduce our cost structure and address our near-term debt maturities to strengthen our balance sheet. Our tactical focus areas remain asset divestitures, of which we are pleased to have approximately $500 million in net proceeds closed or under signed sales agreements, liability management and open market purchases of our bonds. We are also renegotiating gathering, transportation and processing contracts to better align with our current development plans and market conditions, aggressively working to minimize the decline of our base production and making shorter-cycle investments with our 2016 capital program. We have set our initial capital program for the year at $1.3 to $1.8 billion, including capitalized interest, and will remain flexible to raise or lower based on commodity prices." 2016 Capital Program and Production Outlook Chesapeake is budgeting total capital expenditures (including capitalized interest) of $1.3 to $1.8 billion for 2016. Using the midpoint of the range, this represents a 57% reduction from the company's 2015 total capital expenditures of $3.6 billion. The company's planned 2016 capital program will be focused on shorter cash cycle projects that generate positive rates of return in today's commodity price environment and in mitigation of the company's commitment obligations. As a result, Chesapeake's planned 2016 capital program will be dedicated to more completions and less drilling, with total completion spending representing approximately 70% of the company's total drilling and completion program. This program, combined with the improving quality of the company's operations, its capital efficiency and lower service costs will provide incrementally positive economics, even in today's commodity price environment. In 2016, Chesapeake plans to place approximately 330 to 370 wells on production, resulting in total production that declines approximately 0% to 5% compared to 2015, after adjusting for asset sales. At February 23, 2016, the company had approximately $700 million in asset divestitures that had closed or that signed and are expected to close between now and the end of the 2016 second quarter. The company expects that these asset sales will result in lower production of approximately 31,000 barrels of oil equivalent (boe) per day of production in 2016. The planned divestiture of certain of the company's Granite Wash assets in Western Oklahoma and the Texas Panhandle requires Chesapeake to repurchase the overriding royalty interests related to three of the company's previous volumetric production payment transactions for approximately $200 million. As a result, the projected net impact to the company's full year 2016 production will be a reduction of approximately 25,000 boe per day. In addition, to help improve the company's cash flow and provide protection against lower commodity prices, Chesapeake has hedged more than 590 billion cubic feet of its projected 2016 natural gas production at approximately $2.84 per mcf and more than 19 million barrels of its projected 2016 oil production at approximately $47.79 per barrel. A summary of the company's planned 2016 capital program is shown below in the "Capital Spending and Cost Overview" section, while the company's 2016 forecasted production volumes are provided in the Outlook dated February 24, 2016. For earnings history and earnings-related data on Chesapeake Energy (CHK) click here. Southern Company (NYSE: SO) and AGL Resources (NYSE: GAS) today received unanimous regulatory approval of the companies' proposed merger from the Virginia State Corporation Commission. AGL Resources is the parent company of Virginia Natural Gas, a regulated utility providing natural gas distribution services to approximately 290,000 customers in southeastern Virginia, including the Hampton Roads region. When completed, the combination of Southern Company and AGL Resources is expected to create the second-largest utility company in the U.S. by customer base, bringing together: Eleven regulated electric and natural gas distribution companies providing service to approximately 9 million customers; Operations of nearly 200,000 miles of electric transmission and distribution lines; More than 80,000 miles of gas pipelines; and Approximately 46,000 megawatts of electricity generating capacity. The companies expect to complete the transaction in the second half of 2016. For more information about the proposed merger, visit www.doingenergybetter.com. TAINAN, Taiwan--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Nancy Davis Lewis from the East-West Center in Honolulu, Hawaii, gave a speech on the topic The Journey to Sustainable Development Charting a Gender Responsive Course on Feb. 22 at the NCKU Y. S. Sun Green Building Research Center. This is also the second plenary speech given on during the Gro Brundtland week, a science event featuring female scientists in sustainable development. Lewis is introduced by Professor Shih-Chun Lung as one of the first female scientists in sustainability science. The speech consists of two journeys of the speaker: the journey of women as scientists and engineers in Asia and the Pacific and the journey of women as agents of change for sustainable development in a changing climate. Women and men working together may make better decisions with respect to sustainability and also advance scientific understanding further, said Lewis. She stated that the phenomenon of leaky pipelines, glass ceilings and sticky floors are what keeps women from advanced workplace including the field of science research. She also quoted a research done in Taiwan. Reasons that stop women from doing science research involve Socio-cultural factors including family, work-life balance and pervasive impact of masculine culture on training and promotion. Women are critical agents of social change. Their understandings of social networks and community resources as well as their life experiences have much to contribute to sustainable development. Lewis stressed the importance of involving women in the position of decision making. One of the reasons that its important to have women in the highest level is because they make the decisions about funding and research. I think we all have to work together as a global community to try to address that. As to cope with the situation, she said, I think what is important is to get the government ministries to work across ministries. We need all the human resources to solve these problems. In sharing experiences as female in the field of science with recipients of the first Gro Brundltland award, Lewis said, In the male dominated environment, be professional but move forward. Be firm and speak up for the right things. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160224005579/en/ National Cheng Kung University Sonia Chuang, +886-6-275-7575 Ext. 50042 News Center [email protected] NCKU news: http://news-en.secr.ncku.edu.tw/bin/home.php Source: National Cheng Kung University WEST BRIDGEWATER, Mass., Feb. 24, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Versago Vascular Access Inc. (www.versagovascularaccess.com), developer of the world's first "reverse needle" subcutaneous access port, has closed $1.65MM in seed funding from Primo Medical Group's network of individual and institutional investors. Versago Vascular Access, a spinoff of Primo Medical Group, designed and developed a new subcutaneous port to access the body's bloodstream and anatomical cavities that collect serous or ascitic fluid. The technology provides a large bore, reusable, power injectable conduit directly into a patient's bloodstream or other anatomical areas and in certain applications could potentially replace current technologies like ports, peripherally inserted central catheters (PICC) and central venous catheters (CVC) for a myriad of procedures. The company's new funding will be used to further develop the Versago line of port technology, initiate regulatory review and conduct animal testing. Versago will also be initiating discussions with potential strategic partners in early 2016. Steve Tallarida, Board Chairman and President of Primo Medical Group, stated, "No one could have ever imagined that subcutaneous port access could be simplified by having the needle advance out of the port body instead of into the body of the port. This will truly simplify port access." Andrea Patisteas, CEO and Co-Founder of Versago also commented, "Because our products offer larger gauge cannulas, much higher flow rates can be achieved than the current standard of care. Those higher flow rates open up entirely new applications and will overcome some challenges in accessing the vasculature and other fluids in the body." According to industry sources, the vascular access market alone is valued at nearly $5 billion in the US. The current options for long term bloodstream and corporeal fluid access are limited to the flow rates of the small needles that are used to access them. The Versago port system replaces the typical port septum with a large bore conduit topped with removable dilating needle tips that are externally triggered from the implanted port body. The needle pierces the skin from the inside-out wherein the clinician delivers therapy or performs a fluid extraction. When finished, the clinician replaces the needle tip and pushes the needle back into its housing where it remains until it is redeployed. The implantable port has the potential to replace CVCs, PICC lines and port-a-caths in chemotherapy infusion and total parenteral nutrition delivery as well as opening up new markets in high flow apheresis, ascites drainage, hemodialysis and solid tumor or systemic artificial T cell receptor infusion. About Primo Medical Group Primo Medical Group, Inc. (www.primomedicalgroup.com) is a leader in the development, manufacture and assembly of medical devices and precision machined components. Established in 1953, Primo Medical Group is a privately held company with 4 facilities in Massachusetts and has incubated and developed six innovative medical device technology companies. Primo Medical is ISO 13485:2003 and ISO 9001:2008 certified, JPAL and FDA registered. Contact: Ron Murphy Vice President of Investor Relations Primo Medical Group t: 781-828-4400 [email protected] To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/versago-vascular-access-raises-165mm-in-funding-to-develop-worlds-first-reverse-needle-access-port-300225427.html SOURCE Primo Medical Group, Inc.; Versago Vascular Access Inc. FORM 4 UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION Washington, D.C. 20549 STATEMENT OF CHANGES IN BENEFICIAL OWNERSHIP Filed pursuant to Section 16(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 or Section 30(h) of the Investment Company Act of 1940 OMB APPROVAL OMB Number: 3235-0287 Expires: December 31, 2014 Estimated average burden hours per response: 0.5 Check this box if no longer subject to Section 16. Form 4 or Form 5 obligations may continue. See Instruction 1(b). 1. Name and Address of Reporting Person * ADDISON PAUL T (Last) (First) (Middle) 76 SOUTH MAIN STREET (Street) AKRON OH 44308 (City) (State) (Zip) 2. Issuer Name and Ticker or Trading Symbol FIRSTENERGY CORP [ FE ] 5. Relationship of Reporting Person(s) to Issuer (Check all applicable) X Director 10% Owner Officer (give title below) Other (specify below) 3. Date of Earliest Transaction (Month/Day/Year) 02/22/2016 4. If Amendment, Date of Original Filed (Month/Day/Year) 6. Individual or Joint/Group Filing (Check Applicable Line) X Form filed by One Reporting Person Form filed by More than One Reporting Person Table I - Non-Derivative Securities Acquired, Disposed of, or Beneficially Owned 1. Title of Security (Instr. 3) 2. Transaction Date (Month/Day/Year) 2A. Deemed Execution Date, if any (Month/Day/Year) 3. Transaction Code (Instr. 8) 4. Securities Acquired (A) or Disposed Of (D) (Instr. 3, 4 and 5) 5. Amount of Securities Beneficially Owned Following Reported Transaction(s) (Instr. 3 and 4) 6. Ownership Form: Direct (D) or Indirect (I) (Instr. 4) 7. Nature of Indirect Beneficial Ownership (Instr. 4) Code V Amount (A) or (D) Price Common Stock 100 D Table II - Derivative Securities Acquired, Disposed of, or Beneficially Owned (e.g., puts, calls, warrants, options, convertible securities) 1. Title of Derivative Security (Instr. 3) 2. Conversion or Exercise Price of Derivative Security 3. Transaction Date (Month/Day/Year) 3A. Deemed Execution Date, if any (Month/Day/Year) 4. Transaction Code (Instr. 8) 5. Number of Derivative Securities Acquired (A) or Disposed of (D) (Instr. 3, 4 and 5) 6. Date Exercisable and Expiration Date (Month/Day/Year) 7. Title and Amount of Securities Underlying Derivative Security (Instr. 3 and 4) 8. Price of Derivative Security (Instr. 5) 9. Number of derivative Securities Beneficially Owned Following Reported Transaction(s) (Instr. 4) 10. Ownership Form: Direct (D) or Indirect (I) (Instr. 4) 11. Nature of Indirect Beneficial Ownership (Instr. 4) Code V (A) (D) Date Exercisable Expiration Date Title Amount or Number of Shares Phantom Stock Units 02/22/2016 A 1,017 Common Stock 1,017 $ 33.18 41,016.807 D Explanation of Responses: Jennifer L. Geyer, attorney-in-fact 02/24/2016 ** Signature of Reporting Person Date Reminder: Report on a separate line for each class of securities beneficially owned directly or indirectly. * If the form is filed by more than one reporting person, see Instruction 4 (b)(v). ** Intentional misstatements or omissions of facts constitute Federal Criminal Violations See 18 U.S.C. 1001 and 15 U.S.C. 78ff(a). Note: File three copies of this Form, one of which must be manually signed. If space is insufficient, see Instruction 6 for procedure. Persons who respond to the collection of information contained in this form are not required to respond unless the form displays a currently valid OMB Number. POWER OF ATTORNEY Know all persons by these present that the undersigned hereby constitutes and appoints each of Rhonda S. Ferguson, Daniel M. Dunlap and Jennifer L. Geyer, signing singly, the undersigneds true and lawful attorney in fact to: (1) execute for and on behalf of the undersigned, in the undersigneds capacity as an officer and/or employee of FirstEnergy Corp. and/or any of its subsidiaries and affiliates (referred to as the Company), as applicable, Forms 3, 4 and 5 in accordance with Section 16(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (Section 16) and Form 144 (Form 144) pursuant to Rule 144 under the Securities Act of 1933 (Rule 144) and the rules thereunder; (2) do and perform any and all acts for and on behalf of the undersigned that may be necessary or desirable to complete and execute any such Forms 3, 4, 5 or 144 and file such form with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission and any stock exchange or similar authority; and (3) take any other action of any type whatsoever in connection with the foregoing which, in the opinion of such attorney in fact, may be of benefit to, in the best interest of, or legally required by the undersigned; it being understood that the documents executed by such attorney in fact on behalf of the undersigned pursuant to this Power of Attorney shall be in such form and shall contain such terms and conditions as such attorney in fact may approve in such attorney in facts reasonable discretion. The undersigned hereby grants to each such attorney in fact full power and authority to do and perform any and every act and thing whatsoever requisite, necessary, or proper to be done in the exercise of any of the rights and powers herein granted, as fully to all intents and purposes as the undersigned might or could do if personally present, with full power of substitution or revocation, hereby ratifying and confirming all that such attorney in fact shall lawfully do or cause to be done by virtue of this power of attorney and the rights and powers herein granted. The undersigned acknowledges that the foregoing attorneys in fact, in serving in such capacity at the request of the undersigned, are not assuming, nor is the Company assuming, any of the undersigneds responsibilities to comply with Section 16 or Rule 144. This Power of Attorney shall remain in full force and effect until the undersigned is no longer required to file Forms 3, 4, 5 and 144 with respect to the undersigneds holdings of and transactions in securities issued by the Company, unless earlier revoked by the undersigned in a signed writing delivered to the foregoing attorneys in fact. Additionally, this Power of Attorney revokes any and all previous Power of Attorney forms for this same purpose which was entered into by the undersigned. This Power of Attorney shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the law of the State of Ohio, regardless of the law that might be applied under principles of conflict of laws. The undersigned has caused this Power of Attorney to be executed as of this 19th day of January, 2016. /s/Paul T. Addison State of Ohio ) ) ss: County of Summit) The foregoing Power of Attorney was acknowledged before me this 19th day of January, 2016, by Paul T. Addison. /s/Samantha B. Sarah Samantha B. Sarah, Notary Public State Wide Jurisdiction, Ohio My Commission Expires December 21, 2019 There has been an outcry over the council's plan to "upzone" areas and allow more housing density. Auckland Mayor Len Brown is promising a special council meeting to debate controversial rezoning proposals will continue on Wednesday "until the cows come home" if necessary. The meeting before a packed council chamber is being held following a public outcry over plans to "upzone" many of Auckland's leafy suburbs to allow for more housing density. The chamber was so full members of the public were turned away and had to watch the meeting via a live stream. Residents' groups are outraged the council has made "out of scope" changes to its zoning plans without consulting the public. READ MORE: * Special meeting on upzoning could create chaos * Zoning changes put pressure on schools * Auckland Council backs down after pressure over "upzoning" * Group takes legal advice over Auckland "upzoning" plans But council officials are urging the city's politicians not to withdraw the rezoning proposals, lest it throw the process of developing Auckland's incoming Unitary Plan into disarray. The four-year process is almost at an end, with the city's first overall plan due to be decided in August. "The consequences are the hearings process will be disrupted," director of regulatory services Penny Pirrit told media in a briefing. The council had submitted its evidence to the Unitary Plan as a package. "Pulling part of it is going to make it almost impossible to follow." However, Wednesday's gathering was in no mood to listen to officials, who were shouted down during their public presentations. "This is not a public hall meeting," the mayor reprimanded the hecklers. "You say nothing please and let us do the business." Lisa Prager, of the Westmere Heritage Protection Association, said the council's evidence on zoning was "a load of hogwash designed to baffle and bamboozle the public". Richard Burton of residents group Auckland 2040 said the issue was the lack of democratic process in proposing the zoning changes without consulting the public. Don Stock, of the Mission Bay and Kohimarama Residents' Association, said 60 to 80 per cent of his area was affected by the upzoning proposals. "These are not only affecting a small number of people, this is a big deal." There was enough capacity for intensification in the Unitary Plan as it stood, he said. However Community Housing Aotearoa spokesman Peter Jefferies said the ability to build low rise, three storey accommodation was critical to improving housing affordability in Auckland Alex Johnston, chair of the council's youth advisory panel, said young people needed to be able to live where the opportunities were in the city. "The voices of young people have largely been drowned out by those already on the property ladder," he said. Award winning Persian cat breeder Noeline Cullum with Dixykatz Andromeda, which she is entering in this weekend's Catzinc 15th Birthday Show at Bombay School. The flat face of a fluffy Persian cat can deliver expressions to make the heart melt. "Once you've had a Persian, you realise there's no other cat like them," Glenbrook's Noeline Cullum said. Cullum is an award-winning breeder of the popular feline, and her pedigree is in hot demand. This weekend she will defend her all breeds 'best in show' title with her prized puss Dixykatz Andromeda at the Catzinc 15th Birthday Show at Bombay School. Pretty Andromeda is a classy cat - her tiny ears, flyaway fur, short body and snub nose wowed the judges last year as a kitten and on Saturday, she will compete - for the first time - as an adult cat. "She's an outgoing cat, a bit of a rat bag." Cullum is entering a total of four cats (three kittens) - and it's been all hands on deck preparing her stock for the national show. "There's a lot of bathing, grooming - every exhibitor has something special they do with their cats in preparation for a show." Cullum owns Dixykatz Cattery, and started breeding six years ago. A cat lover as a child, she was first introduced to Persians by her daughter. She started showing in neutered and spade sections and as she began collecting prizes, decided to venture into breeding. "I was coming up to 60 and I said to my husband 'wouldn't it be wonderful to put something on the show bench that I had bred'". Cullum imported her breeding stock from Australia and Germany. She loves the expressions her cats present and said Persians were quiet and lazy cats, "perfect cats for an apartment as they are not a hugely energetic cat. "They're quite happy to lie down . . On a show bench, if you can get your Persian to stand up, you are doing pretty well, usually they just lie down and go to sleep." - The Catzinc 15th Birthday Show is on Saturday. Viewing to the public opens at 10am till 4pm. Entry is $2 for children and senior citizens, $4 for adults or $10 for a family pass. Cats on display including Norwegian Forest Cats, Siamese, American Curl, British, Persian, domestic and more. A hat featuring a swastika in the window of an Invercargill store. An Invercargill store owner has removed a hat with a Nazi swastika from a front window position, but Jewish leaders and the Human Rights Commission say the continued sale of such items is deplorable and distressing. The shop owner said on Monday he had been away on Friday when the World War II German Luftwaffe beret, featuring a swastika, was put in a window display. He said he was unaware it featured a swastika and removed the hat from the window display on Monday. He said the hat was a replica that had come from a wholesaler. The primary customers for such items were historical collectors, he said. READ MORE: * Nazi collectible sales 'abhorrent' * Nazi relics auction 'distasteful' * What goods does Trade Me ban? * Nazi Goebbels artifacts at auction He said he still planned on selling the hat and other WW II-related items. In a statement, Human Rights Commission Race Relations Commissioner Dame Susan Devoy slammed the decision to sell such items. "While they do not fall under the Human Rights Act, the Nazi swastika is an icon of hatred and genocide; it's not a fashion icon," she said. "Understanding the horrors of the Holocaust is important if we are to learn from the past. However, selling replica Nazi memorabilia is about making money." New Zealand Jewish Council president Stephen Goodman said selling Nazi memorabilia was not illegal in New Zealand, but that didn't mean it was appropriate. "It is very disappointing people are making money out of other people's suffering," he said. "Many New Zealanders fought and died in overthrowing that regime. Having it [the hat] prominently displayed makes people think this sort of behaviour is acceptable." Holocaust Centre of New Zealand director Inge Woolf also condemned the sale of such items. "The Holocaust Centre of New Zealand obviously finds it deplorable and distressing that people wish to trade, profit from and collect items that represent a regime that espoused race hatred and anti-Semitism," she said. "We would doubtless be joined by many New Zealanders that fought against the tyranny of the Nazis and especially those families that lost sons doing so. However this distasteful business is legal. The people concerned should realise that their involvement reflects badly on themselves and the values they hold and refrain from this practice." Goodman said the case sounded similar to an incident in Rotorua, where a shop was selling Nazi flags. He said the shop later removed the flags from display. TradeMe banned the sale of Nazi-related items in 2005. Auction house Dunbar Sloane also banned such items in the late 2000s. Auckland's Unitary Plan will replace the 13 legacy regional and district plans of the eight former Auckland councils. Auckland Council will not have a say at hearings over its own regional plan following a controversial vote by the city's politicians. At a marathon six-hour extraordinary meeting on Wednesday night councillors voted 13-8 to throw out unpopular zoning proposals allowing for greater housing density in many suburbs. The council had enraged residents' groups by putting the upzoning proposals before the panel considering Auckland's incoming Unitary Plan without consulting the public. Phil Walter/Getty Images Councillors understand the consequences of their no vote, Auckland Mayor Len Brown says. The "out of scope" upzoning affected around 28,000 properties, and would have permitted more townhouses and apartments in areas of traditional detached housing. READ MORE * Auckland Council abandons controversial zoning proposals * Special meeting on 'upzoning' could create chaos * Group takes legal advice over Auckland "upzoning" plans However, abandoning the upzoning evidence means the council has to withdraw all its residential zoning evidence, due to be considered by the Unitary Plan's Independent Hearings Panel next month. ALICE PARMINTER / FAIRFAX NZ Over 600 residents turned out to a meeting in the suburb of Kohimarama on the proposed Unitary Plan on February 10. Asked if councillors fully understood what they had done by voting out the upzoning proposals, Mayor Len Brown answered, "that's democracy". "Thirteen around our chamber have listened to the advice, (they) understand the legals, and have made their choice." Council officials had urged the city's politicians not to withdraw the rezoning evidence, lest it throw the Unitary Plan into disarray. The four-year process is almost at an end, with the city's first region-wide blueprint due to be decided in August. The council is a submitter along with everybody else. It presented its zoning evidence as a package and couldn't selectively pull parts out, director regulatory services Penny Pirrit said. "It's not possible to unwind that evidence without it coming out full of holes and not able to be supported by experts," she told the meeting. Other submitters to the Unitary Plan, in particular Housing New Zealand, had proposed far more intensive zoning than Auckland Council had, the politicians were told. The council had also put forward the upzoning evidence as an antidote to "spot zoning", where submitters proposed a different zone for a particular property that was out of step with the rest of the neighbourhood. But councillors opposed to the upzoning proposals argued that natural justice had not been served in not allowing homeowners any input. Mayor Brown, who voted to keep the upzoning evidence, said the council would now have to deal with the consequences. "We could have been of obvious assistance to (the Independent Hearings Panel) through that process particularly for a range of the other submitters, for example Housing New Zealand who have a range of significant proposed upzoning. "But we are not now in that process." Brown is likely to face a difficult conversation with Housing Minister Nick Smith, who wants more affordable homes built quickly to address the city's housing crisis. Last week the minister reminded the council it must have the Unitary Plan in place by October to succeed Auckland's expiring Housing Accord with the government. Red Cross cross cultural worker Ramia Saidawi, who migrated from Syria to Wellington two years ago, is helping to resettle Syrian refugees arriving in the capital on Friday. New Zealand's first emergency intake of Syrian refugees arriving in the capital on Friday are coming to a much windier climate than their war-torn homeland. Weather is one of the many differences the group will face as the settle in Wellington, Hutt Valley and Porirua. While Syria had a similar climate to Auckland in summer and Dunedin in winter, such windy conditions were rare there, unlike Wellington's four-seasons-in-one-day weather. "In summer, we put away our winter clothes and in winter, we put away our summer clothes," said Wellington-based Red Cross cross-cultural worker Ramia Saidawi. READ MORE: * Syrian refugees to be greeted in Wellington by a forest of helping hands * Last-minute health funding found for Wellington's new Syrian refugees amid threats from GPs "Here, you have to have them both." During the past year, Wellington had become home to about 80 to 100 Syrian refugees who entered New Zealand as part of its annual 750 refugee quota. Last September, the Government announced it would take 600 Syrian refugees over the next two and a half years, plus another 150 as part of the annual quota. Seven of the Wellington-based Syrian refugees recently travelled to Auckland's Mangere Refugee Resettlement Centre to visit the new arrivals, who were completing a six-week introduction programme. They told the newcomers about their new home and welcomed them into their community, offering support for their arrival. Saidawi, who migrated to Wellington with her husband and children two years ago, and began working with Arabic-speaking and Muslim refugees about a year ago, had also met the new arrivals in Auckland. "They feel really excited coming to Wellington." One fear was discrimination over their Muslim clothing, but their fellow refugees reassured them that Wellingtonians had proved very welcoming, safe and non-judgmental, she said. "They're nervous about that, but it was definitely good having some of the community members telling them that this is a free country and they are well respected for who they are and their deeds, and not their faith or dress." Another change they faced was that Kiwi life typically ran from 9am to 5pm, whereas 5pm was when life kicked off in Syria. Also, the main meal was at midday, and public transport was very frequent so timetables were unnecessary. "These are little things, but sometimes you feel disoriented, especially in a country that works on a different clock." Some of the current refugees were investigating the possibility of setting up a Syrian cafe or start a catering business, which would likely be a New Zealand first, Saidawi said. About 240 Red Cross volunteers from around greater Wellington had been working hard to prepare for the new group of refugees, the city's largest influx. That outpouring of help was very touching and welcoming for refugees, she said. "It reflects the true face of Wellington. People here have this high sense of humanity. That shows the culture of Wellington and New Zealand." * Comments on this article have now closed. Kerry Grant, who died in Wellington Hospital from a suspected overdose of the drug known as bath salts. A Kapiti man who died from a suspected overdose of the drug known as bath salts is believed to be the fourth person from the area taken to hospital after misuing the hallucinatory drug. Friends of Kerry Grant, 27, were stunned by the news of his death after he was flown to Wellington Hospital from Waikanae on Monday and died in the intensive care unit on Tuesday night. If confirmed, it would be the the first known death from an overdose of bath salts in New Zealand, the NZ Drug Foundation says. NZ POLICE The drug Alpha-PVP, also known as "bath salts", has contributed to a number of recent deaths in the Wellington region, according to police. The drug is called Alpha PVP, or APVP, and is commonly referred to as bath salts. Reactions include hallucinations, erratic and aggressive behaviour, seizures and loss of consciousness. READ MORE: * Wellington man imported 7.3kg of "bath salts", worth up to $1.4m * Bath salts drug ring suspects face losing million-dollar swag Police arrested and charged a 25-year-old Waikanae man on Tuesday night with supplying a Class B drug. Alex Nathan Webster appeared in the Porirua District Court on Wednesday and was remanded in custody until Friday. JOHN NICHOLSON/ FAIRFAX NZ Kerry Grant, 27, died in Wellington Hospital on Tuesday night. Police said they were continuing their investigations, and believed at least three other people from the Kapiti Coast had been hospitalised recently after using APVP. Kapiti Youth Support manager Raechel Osborne said the group was seeing increasing numbers of young people presenting for "substance misuse". "It is concerning that many young people appear unaware of not only what they are taking but also the damaging effects that these substances can cause." Friend Philip Catlow, who emigrated from England about five years ago, said "everybody loved Kerry". "He gave me the feeling of being welcome here, and helped me settled in. I do appreciate everything he did for me when I first came here." Catlow said the last time he saw Grant was on Sunday in Paraparaumu, in the hours before the suspected drug overdose happened, when Grant invited him out to have a drink. He didn't hear about what happened until Tuesday night. By the time he reached the hospital, Grant had died. Catlow said he wished he'd taken up the invitation to go out with him, and "spend that last time with him". "I never got to say goodbye. He was one of the best people I've met over here. He had a heart of gold." Senior Sergeant Anita Dixon, of Kapiti, said police were concerned more people may have bought the drug from the same supplier or another, not knowing exactly what they had bought. She advised anyone who had bought such a drug over the past week to destroy it. She said police were seeing more cases of dealers "cutting" drugs with other substances, which made the effects unpredictable and highly dangerous. "There is no such thing as a 'reliable' or 'safe' high. In this case, the pursuit of a high has cost this young man his life, and at least three others have been very lucky to survive." A friend said he and others were shocked to learn Grant had died as a result of taking bath salts. "He was always the happy-go-lucky kind of guy, he loved to have fun. There was never a dull moment when he was around. "He was doing courier work. He loved his job, he was doing great . He really started to get his life on track." Ross Bell, of the New Zealand Drug Foundation, said Grant's death was the first time from an overdose of bath salts in New Zealand. "This should be a wake-up call. We have this perfect storm at the moment of people cooking up and brewing these toxic and unknown substances," he said. "It is a new drug on the market and the users don't know what they are taking. This is terrible for New Zealand." At Alex Webster's court-listed address, an upset resident said the events were "mind-blowing". She was struggling to understand what was happening and said she and Webster both felt bad for Grant's family. "He's upset too," she said. "Of course my heart goes out to the family." She said the first she heard of the allegations was when a police officer mentioned something like "A-PVP." At Grant's family home in Paraparaumu, neighbours were also coming to terms with the news. Two women said a "lovely lady" lived at the Grants' house. They heard Grant had died, and were shocked to learn his death was possibly connected to bath salts. They said Paraparaumu and Waikanae were tight-knit communities, and many young local people knew both Grant and Webster, and many had been voicing their grief on social media. WHAT ARE BATH SALTS? * The white or pink crystals share a chemical structure with the amphetamine-like stimulant cathinone, derived from the African plant khat. * The latest incarnation of "bath salts" is Alpha-PVP, or alpha-pyrrolidinopentiophenone. * According to the US National Institute on Drug Abuse, it can produce a state of "excited delirium", characterised by hyper-stimulation, paranoia and hallucinations, leading to violent aggression or injury. * Reports from Florida have included one suspected user impaling himself while trying to scale a police station fence, another waving a gun around on a rooftop, shouting: "I feel delusional, and I'm hallucinating!", and another trying to kick down the door of a police station as he fled an imaginary car chase. * The first death officially attributed to Alpha-PVP was reported in a 2015 Oxford University toxicology journal. The armed offenders squad were called out to Wairarapa on Wednesday. A man triggered an armed offenders squad callout in Wairarapa after standing outside his own home and firing a shot in the air, police say. The incident in the Wairarapa town of Carterton, north of Wellington, started about 8pm on Wednesday. The man's family were inside the house when, for unknown reasons, he went outside and fired the single shot in the air. His family, including his 22-year-old son, fled the house after the shot was fired. Sergeant Wade Fale of the Wellington District Command Centre said the armed offenders squad from Wellington and local police were called to the house, and set up a cordon around the area. The man, 54, was arrested without any issues just before midnight. A .303 rifle was found by police. One man is dead after his car crashed into a ditch on Te Mawhai Rd in Kihikihi on Wednesday. One person has died after a slow-speed car crash in the Waikato. Emergency services were called to the intersection of State Highway 3 and Te Mawhai Rd, south of Te Awamutu, at 12.15pm on Wednesday. A man, who was the driver and the sole occupant of the vehicle, died at the scene. One man said he was first on the scene with another man. "Some poor guy's died, you know. That's a personal issue to the family, I mean it's news, but there's a family suffering because this guy's passed away. "I feel sorry for the family." Waikato Police Senior Sergeant Stephen Ambler said police were still investigating the circumstances around the man's death. The vehicle was travelling west on Te Mawhai Rd, in Kihikihi, and it appears the vehicle crossed the centre line and collided with the bank on the other side of the road, Ambler said at the scene. He said it was a slow speed crash. "We're unsure of how it has happened at this stage. We're investigating to determine exactly what has happened." He said no other cars were involved. Ambler said they were yet to make contact with next of kin. "We know who the family are and we're in the process of advising them." Northern Fire Communications shift manager Steve Smith said initial reports were of a car crashing into a bank. The blue vehicle ended up facing east at the intersection. Firefighters dragged one man from the vehicle and attempted CPR, Smith said. Police have shut down the road on the Te Mawhai side, which was being treated as a crime scene. Te Mawhai Rd remained closed shortly after 3pm. Superintendent Chris Scahill has said police are investigating the source of the phone messages sent to six schools around the country that threatened bombings on February 24, 2015. Police believe bomb threat calls to six schools may have come from overseas, but one principal says it was a local number. Logan Park High School in Dunedin, Wellington High School in Wellington, Tamatea High School in Napier, Burnside High School in Christchurch, Central Normal School in Palmerston North, and Brookfield School in Tauranga all received threats about 12.30pm on Wednesday. Do you know anything more about the bomb threats? Send your newstips, photos and video to newstips@stuff.co.nz SUNLIVE Police officers guarded Brookfield Primary School following a hoax bomb threat on Wednesday. Police said their investigation had indicated that the origin of the calls may be overseas. READ MORE: Bomb threats to NZ schools 'very similar' to global robo-hoaxes in US, Australia However Burnside High School principal Phil Holstein said the bomb threat call received by the school was from a Wellington number. He said the school had received a "pre-recorded automated voice message". "We took this threat very seriously and immediately contacted the police." The school continued its last class of the day as normal, so as not to alarm or stress students, he said. TRACY HARDY/SUNLIVE Police have responded to hoax bomb threats to at least nine schools during the past two days. Police earlier said they were aware of very similar incidents occurring overseas in countries such as Australia and the United States. These involved recorded voice messages being directed towards schools in these countries - similar to what schools had reported in New Zealand, Superintendent Chris Scahill said. Police would be liaising with law enforcement agencies overseas, he said. 'THE THREAT' Brookfield School principal Robert Hyndman said the threat was made in a phone call to the school's reception at 12.30pm. "They said there was a threat and we don't have much time," he said. His secretary alerted him immediately and the school's emergency evacuation procedures commenced. "I listened to part of the message...it sounded like a male, almost like it had been from a computer, it didn't sound like a natural voice." Teachers gathered the school's 213 children during lunchtime and evacuated them to nearby Sydenham field. "We rang the emergency bell and got down to our emergency evacuation area. Everyone was accounted and when police arrived we took them to the reserve where there is more space for them to run around." Hyndman said the school used its Facebook page to alert parents and request them to pick up students. Most had been picked up by the time police gave the all clear to return to the school at 2.30pm, he said: "The kids did really well, showed how resilient they were." "This is the first time and I hope it will be the last time. It's frustrating and a waste of time." 'NOT WILLING TO GAMBLE WITH THAT' A bomb threat had been received by Tamatea High School in Napier. "We got a call at 12.30-12.40pm saying there was a bomb planted at the school," principal Robin Fabish said. "It was lunch time so we rang the alarms and gathered at the school's muster point." Once the staff and students were briefed everyone was sent home, and within minutes police arrived to search the school grounds for a bomb. Nothing was found. Fabish said staff were in the process of notifying parents to let them know it would be business as usual tomorrow. "It was highly likely it was a hoax but I'm not willing to gamble with that," Fabish said. "I'm really pleased with our systems and the way they kicked into place." He said most kids thought it was a hoax when he told them after the evacuation, but support was available for anyone upset by the incident. A parent of a Tamatea High School student described what happened: "My daughter was at the school. She was in the toilet the fire alarm went off. "The teachers said it wasn't a drill and students were asked to run to the field. "When everyone was there the principal said it wasn't a drill. Someone had text the school saying that there was a bomb at the school. "They were told the police were there searching the school and everyone was dismissed for the rest of the day." Roy Sye, Tamatea Intermediate School principal, said unlike their sister school they did not receive a bomb threat. "There was no bomb threat at Tamatea Intermediate School, a threat was made to the High School. They sent their students home. Tamatea High School advised us and we contacted police for advice. "Our teachers kept students in class as a precaution. We posted messages on Facebook and the school website to advise our parents that all of our students were safe. "We organised additional staff to respond to parent phone calls. Teachers were kept up to date. "We received the all clear from police. This 'all clear' was communicated to teachers, students and our community via Facebook and the school website. "Students were released at the normal time of 3pm. An email will be sent to all families shortly." CALLER ID Wellington High School principal Nigel Hanton said police were called after they received a bomb threat about 12.40pm. "We received a phone call which said that there was a device on the site. "We got in touch with the police who advised us on evacuation and the risk of that and the likelihood of it being a hoax call. "They said that they would follow up and they called back soon after and said there had been other calls so it was probably unnecessary to evacuate." "Based on that we decided to continue with the rest of the afternoon." "It was lunchtime so the children were all out of the buildings at the time." Hanton said evacuating would have meant calling the children inside, making sure all were accounted for before sending them outside again. "The police did plan to do a investigation of the buildings but given the other calls it was decided that it looked to be a hoax." The school would be operating as usual tomorrow. The school had caller ID and had provided information on the call to police. THREAT SOUNDED VERY JUMBLED Central Normal School principal Shona Oliver said they received the threat around 12.30pm. She said it came through as a phone call to their reception and sounded automated and was very jumbled and hard to understand. After receiving the message she said they called the police and their telephony people to see if they could interpret the message. "The [police] have been down to visit us. "We followed our protocols and got in touch with police and we have informed our board of trustees." The school was not evacuated in this instance but she said they had good systems in place should the need to evacuate ever arise. Police cars have been outside Logan Park High School in Dunedin. A threat was made against the school in January. STUDENT SAFETY MAIN CONCERN The Ministry of Education said parents could be assured of their children's safety. Deputy secretary of sector enablement and support Katrina Casey said the ministry contacted affected schools and offered support. Schools responded to the telephone bomb threats according to their individual emergency plans and on advice from police, she said. "Student safety was the main concern in all areas. "We'd like to assure parents that they can continue to feel confident in sending their children to school, and that schools have the processes and systems in place to manage any threat to student safety. "Police are dealing with the actual threats." Police say they urgently require help from the public to help identify the offender. Another woman has been assaulted as Auckland Police continue their hunt for the serial offender. Police say there have been more than 10 reports of a man indecently assaulting young women in Onehunga over the last six months. In the latest incident, a woman fell victim to a man as she walked along Oranga on February 20 at about 4pm. Police say the offender is similar to descriptions in the other indecent assault cases. Earlier this month, there were reports of two attacks in the One Tree Hill and Oranga area. The incidents occurred around Rawhiti Rd, Waitangi Rd, Mt Smart Rd and Victoria St. Prior to this, a concerned resident advised police that two young girls were followed by a male along Victoria St after they got off the bus at around midnight. The two girls told a neighbour who called a taxi for them but did not call the police at the time. Onehunga Police have spoken to several suspects and the issue was also aired on television show Police 10/7. Police are yet to find the offender. He has been described as Polynesian, 15 or 16-years-old with black hair and is likely to be familiar with the area and public walkways. Police say they urgently require help from the public to help identify the offender. Anyone who witness an assault should contact 111 immediately. Information regarding the assaults or offender can also be forwarded to Onehunga Police on 213 8691 or 0800 555 111 to report anonymously to Crimestoppers. Life Friends volunteer Bruce Moore (left) visits Owen Queree every week for some friendly chat and a laugh. The elderly and their families can rate and review aged-care facilities in much the same way millions of holiday-makers already do online. Christchurch man Nigel Matthews launched website Aged Advisor in May 2015 to enable people to find and compare retirement villages, elderly care, rest homes and aged care facilities. "We want to have an honest forum, with as many facilities listed as possible, so people can see the great jobs people are doing," Matthews said. DAVID WALKER/FAIRFAX NZ Volunteer Val Moore visits Patricia Lahore once a week as part of a new initiative to address loneliness among elderly. The online site was created as a means to fund Life Friends, a volunteer visitation programme to people in aged care. Although in its pilot stage and limited to four aged care facilities in Papanui, Matthews hoped to expand the project to other parts of New Zealand. The web site had since attracted over 700 reviews. Of those, there was a "small handful" of facilities that had received bad reviews. New Zealand Aged Care Association chief executive Simon Wallace said he would encourage prospective residents of retirement homes to do their due diligence and not base decisions on websites like Aged Advisor. "For those that have the choice of a rest home, and not everyone does have that choice, having the best information they can to select the best home is absolutely critical to them making that call, but it's not like booking a hotel or motel for the night." "I think it is about family going out and looking at prospective rest homes and everyone will be different." Facilities on Aged Adviser could only respond to reviews regularly by paying a fee. Half of the profits would go towards funding the visitation programme, which was aimed at addressing loneliness among elderly. Presbyterian Support Upper South Island Elder Care Canterbury coordinator Valda Reveley said reviewing resthomes was a subjective process that was not without risks. Pilot volunteer programme Life Friends was born out of the need for a visitation service in care homes and then launched with the help of Matthews' fellow congregants at Papanui's St Paul's Anglican church. Retirees and Life Friends volunteers Bruce and Val Moore were required to spend just 15 minutes a week visiting the Golden Age Rest Home. "It's extra company," said 89 year-old Owen Queree of Bruce Moore's visits. While Bruce and Owen shared stories, Bruce's wife Val caught up with 84 year-old Patricia Lahore, who like Queree, had "lovely" family who visited a lot. "It's the opportunity to meet somebody different and to have a chat every week about what's going on," Val said. "Twenty minutes is never long enough." Late-night crane climbers are putting their lives at risk, often to take selfies, on central Christchurch construction sites. The latest incident involved two foreign nationals who were spotted on a crane near Re:Start Mall about 2am Thursday. Acting Senior Sergeant Jim Currie said security spotted the two men and called police. "The police spoke to them and they came down quite happily." READ MORE: * Razor wire to stop uni students climbing big cranes * Man arrested in Wellington after climbing Hikitea crane * Drama as man in Australia dangles from crane for hours Currie said the men, an Irishman and an Italian, were arrested and would appear in court at a later date. SafeGuard Security chief executive John Stringer said crane climbing was an "ongoing issue". While it was not known why the latest two climbed the crane, he said crane climbing often involved alcohol. "This would be at least the fourth, they are usually drinking and they go up there to take selfies and post them on Facebook." He said climbing a crane while drunk was "really concerning". "They only have to slip once and they are dead. "There's a lot of galvanised iron sticking up there, they could be impaled on it, just the fall alone would kill them." In September, Canterbury University erected razor wire to stop adventurous students climbing construction cranes on campus after three incidents. Brookfield Primary School is one of six schools from around the country that received a bomb threat today. Students and staff were evacuated from the school after a threat was called in around 12.30pm. Cyclone Winston isnt yet being described as an old blowhard gasping its last as it comes ashore in New Zealand. This indecisive storm idoesnt know whether to swing left or right, and is hanging around Northland, says Weatherwatch.co.nz meteorologist Phil Duncan. A new initiative with the potential to improve biosecurity at all New Zealand ports is being launched in Tauranga this morning. Minister for Primary Industries Nathan Guy will be in town to launch the Biosecurity Operational Excellence at Port of Tauranga, a scheme aiming to encourage everyone involved in port activities to play a role in keeping pests out of New Zealand. At this mornings launch, the minister will unveil new on-site biosecurity signs designed to help raise awareness of potential threats to primary industries from unwanted pests which may get into the country through the port. The initiative has arisen from a working group formed by the Port of Tauranga Limited, Kiwifruit Vine Health, the Ministry for Primary Industries and local government and industry organisations, with the common goal of pursuing Biosecurity Operational Excellence at the Port of Tauranga. The aim is that everyone involved in port activities works together to better understand the common biosecurity risks faced, and do their bit to identify and manage those risks. The working group also explores opportunities to innovate and strengthen MPIs current screening and inspection programmes to reduce risks even further. The initiative is Bay of Plenty-focused and tailored to the organisms and particular imported goods most relevant to the region. However, opportunity exists to develop the model and apply it across all New Zealand regions and ports. Those attending the launch will be welcomed by Leonard Sampson, Port of Taurangas commercial manager. Kiwifruit Vine Health president Peter Ombler and Barry ONeil, CEO of KVH will give an overview of the project, followed by an address by Nathan Guy. Guest will also have the chance to observe the passenger biosecurity screening processes at a visiting cruise ship. Although today is the schemes official launch, some extra biosecurity measures have already been put in place with detector dogs introduced at all first and second cruise ship ports of arrival in 2014/2015. MPI is negotiating the loading of fruit that meets NZ standards on cruise ships offshore. Port community awareness programmes have included biosecurity induction materials, regular MPI biosecurity presentations at port forums and a current stink bug awareness campaign. Following this mornings event, the Minister will attend a Future Leaders Group lunch where he will provide an update on biosecurity, labour shortage and horticulture collaboration. The Future Leaders Group aims to develop potential future leaders of the horticultural industries by engaging young people through regular learning, networking and social activities. The Minister has one other function to attend in Tauranga this afternoon, the details of which are currently under wraps. The bomb threats that saw six schools around New Zealand evacuated has been traced to a caller or callers from overseas. Police are continuing our investigation into the source of these calls, however, our inquiries at this stage indicate that the origin of these calls may be overseas, says Superintendent Chris Scahill. Tauranga resident Payal Rajs parents Hari Sharma and Rup Wati hunkered down at their neighbours home in Sigatoka while the worst cyclone in history hit Fiji, claiming at least 42 lives. Now Payal is among many in Taurangas Fijian community who are desperately trying to contact family members back home, with the Pacific Island nation rationing water and electricity supplies making this difficult, thousands still sheltering in evacuation centres and more wet weather forecast. Tecnofil.JPG The federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration has proposed $124,740 in fines against copper wire manufacturer Tecnofil Chenango SAC in Sherburne, N.Y., for what the agency said were repeat safety violations. (Google Maps) (Google Maps) Sherburne, N.Y. Copper wire manufacturer Tecnofil Chenango SAC has again been accused by federal inspectors of exposing workers to safety hazards at its Sherburne factory where a worker was severely burned in an explosion three years ago. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration cited the company for several hazards and fined it $33,000 after a Feb. 2, 2013, explosion sprayed molten copper on a worker, severely burning him. It said a more recent inspection found numerous instances of new and recurring guarding hazards on die presses, saws, lathes and other machinery. This time, OSHA has proposed fining the company $124,740. The company has 15 business days to meet with the agency's area director to discuss a settlement or contest the findings before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission. Hazards cited by the agency included bypassing interlocks designed to stop machines from operating when their doors opened. In addition, the company did not lock out machines' power sources before changing dies or performing maintenance and did not adequately train employees to do so, OSHA said. It said it also found that workers were exposed to falls of up to 8 feet from unguarded work platforms. "The breadth and recurring nature of these hazards is disturbing," Christopher Adams, OSHA's Syracuse area director, said in a statement. "The purpose of machine guarding is simple to prevent any part of an employee's body from coming in contact with a machine's moving parts." The company's manufacturing facility is at 40 S. Main St. in Sherburne, a Chenango County town 50 miles southeast of Syracuse. Contact Rick Moriarty anytime: Email | Twitter | Facebook | 315-470-3148 2015-10-29-sdc-cuomonan_5.JPG Gov. Andrew Cuomo announces on Oct. 29, 2015, that Soraa Inc. will open an LED manufacturing facility in DeWitt that is to employ 420 people. The state is providing $90 million for the project. (Stephen D. Cannerelli | scannerelli@syracuse.com) DeWitt, N.Y. The state is using $70 million of Central New York's $500 million Upstate Revitalization Initiative award to fulfill its commitment to a LED manufacturing hub in DeWitt. Empire State Development Corp.'s directors voted Feb. 18 to allocate the URI funds for a LED manufacturing plant under construction at Collamer Crossing Business Park for California-based Soraa Inc. Soraa has pledged to invest $1.3 billion into the facility and projects that it will create 420 jobs over the next 10 years. The state has committed to contributing $90 million to the project. The company's funding and the state's money are to be used for acquisition of real estate, facility and infrastructure build-out, and purchase and installation of specialized manufacturing equipment, according to Empire State Development. The facility will be owned by the State University of New York Polytechnic Institute. In December, the administration of Gov. Andrew Cuomo named Central New York one of three regions in the state that will each receive $500 million in state aid over five years to help revitalize their economies. The Soraa project was not one of the developments listed by the Central New York Regional Economic Development Council in its application to the URI program. However, officials said the application was not intended to be a complete listing of projects that could be funded with the URI award. Robert Simpson, co-chair of the council, referred questions about the funding to Empire State Development. Jason Conwall, a spokesman for Empire State Development, said the Soraa project "aligns with the region's stated URI strategies of investing in advanced industries and STEM-related fields" and will benefit the Syracuse area with 420 new jobs and a local investment of more than $1 billion in private sector money. Soraa is to relocate its global manufacturing and research and development operations from California to the new, 82,500-square-foot center. The company makes LED lighting with high-quality color, brightness and efficiency. Contact Rick Moriarty anytime: Email | Twitter | Facebook | 315-470-3148 SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- Before Central New Yorkers learned that Maddox Lawrence was missing, she'd already been killed, her body burned and hidden in Onondaga Creek, according to a source familiar with the investigation. Maddox's father, Ryan Lawrence, told police he'd killed the girl in Labrador Hollow, a remote area of Cortland County, on Saturday, the source said. Lawrence admitted he then partially burned her body, drove it to Syracuse and hid her remains in the creek, the source said. Police recovered a body from the creek shortly after noon today. It appeared to have been burned, the source said. Syracuse police charged Lawrence with second-degree murder after recovering the body. After disposing of the body on Saturday, Lawrence left his car in the parking lot of Destiny USA, where he was supposed to pick up his wife, Morgan Lawrence, the source said. Ryan Lawrence has apparently been without a vehicle since then, and has been getting around by foot, the source said. Lawrence left an eight-minute video for his wife in which he says, "I'm leaving and I'm taking her with me," the source said. Lawrence also left a note for his wife in which he indicated he might harm his daughter and himself, police have said. Morgan Lawrence notified police, which prompted an Amber alert Sunday morning. Lawrence was buying a comforter at a thrift store in Baldwinsville on Monday when an acquaintance spotted him and called 911, the source said. Police then stopped Lawrence as he was walking along Downer Street. He had a backpack with camping gear, a wig and a book about how to avoid being captured, the source said. After police interrogated Lawrence, they took him with them to point out where he'd hid Maddox's body, the source said. Lawrence indicated to police that, before killing Maddox, he'd been jealous that she'd been taking his wife's attention from him, the source said. State police investigators have begun processing the scene in Labrador Hollow, the source said. Contact John O'Brien anytime | email | Twitter | 315-470-2187 glenn collins arraignment.JPG Glenn Collins kept driving to Turning Stone casino the night his 6-year-old daughter died and his 14-year-old son suffered from carbon monoxide poisoning. (Julie McMahon | jmcmahon@syracuse.com) Syracuse, NY -- A Salina man who is spending up to 15 years in prison for his daughter's carbon-monoxide death admitted today to trying to rent out his unfit house after her death. That plea nearly wraps up the saga of Glenn Collins in the tragic death of his 6-year-old daughter Gabriella on Aug. 29, 2014. Collins was found guilty of leaving his two children, Gabriella and Jaidon, inside 106 Carlton Drive which filled up with poisonous gas while he went on a date to the Turning Stone casino. He was convicted and sentenced in October to 7 1/2 to 15 years in prison for recklessly leaving the children in a house with an improperly installed power generator, causing Gabriella's death and Jaidon's injuries. But that wasn't all Collins faced. He was also indicted on grand larceny and scheme to defraud charges for trying to rent his unfit house after his daughter's death. Under the agreement with two tenants, Collins promised to make necessary repairs. But instead, he took their $2,400 in security deposits and never did any work. The tenants' case appeared headed for trial after a chaotic court appearance in January. Instead, Collins pleaded guilty today to scheme to defraud. Under today's plea agreement, Collins agreed to pay the tenants back $1,200 each, said prosecutor Melissa Carden. Collins' family calculated that they could repay $500 a month. At that rate, his family would pay back the money by July. Sentencing was delayed until July 8. If he can't pay back the money, an additional 2 to 4 years will be added to his prison term, Carden said. Collins is serving his prison sentence at Wende Correctional Facility in Erie County. Ryan Lawrence_Horizontal.jpg Mug shot of Ryan Lawrence, 24, of Valley Drive, Syracuse that Syracuse Police Department released on Feb. 23, 2106. (Syracuse Police) Attorney Mike Vavonese leaves city court after the arraignment of his client Ryan Lawrence Wednesday Feb. 24, 2016. Lawrance was arrested for the murder of his 21 mos. old daughter Maddox. Dennis Nett | dnett@syracuse.come SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- Ryan Lawrence, who is accused of killing his baby daughter Maddox Lawrence, is being held without bail after he was arraigned this morning. Lawrence, 24, pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder in Syracuse City Court. He is being held in the Onondaga County Justice Center. The arraignment was over within minutes. Lawrence, wearing shackles and jail scrubs, spent most of the appearance looking at his feet. He occasionally gazed at the audience -- squinting at the rows of people filling the courtroom. Defense attorney Michael Vavonese spoke on behalf of Lawrence. Senior Assistant District Attorney Jeremy Cali represented the Onondaga County District Attorney's Office. Related: Watch a video of what attorneys said after Lawrence's arraignment Lawrence and Maddox, his 21-month-old daughter, disappeared from Syracuse late Saturday night. Police said Lawrence left a note for his wife indicating he might harm himself and his daughter, prompting police to issue an Amber Alert. A concerned citizen called 911 Monday afternoon after spotting Lawrence buying a comforter in a Baldwinsville thrift store, a source familiar with the investigation said. Police stopped Lawrence while he was walking on Downer Street and took him into custody. Lawrence was found with camping gear and a wig, the source said -- but not his daughter. Syracuse police, FBI agents and state police swarmed the Onondaga Creek area near Destiny USA Tuesday morning in search of Maddox. Police brought Lawrence to the scene during the search. Divers found a body in the Inner Harbor shortly after noon. Police believe the body is Maddox. Lawrence killed Maddox on Saturday night in Labrador Hollow, said Onondaga County District Attorney William Fitzpatrick. Lawrence then dumped the baby in the Inner Harbor near the Destiny USA mall, sources said. After the arraignment, Onondaga County District Attorney William Fitzpatrick answered a lingering question: if Lawrence dumped his daughter's body in Onondaga Creek Saturday, how were her remains still there during the search Tuesday? Lawrence weighed her body down with a cinder block, the DA said this morning. Douglass Dowty contributed to this report. By Marnie Eisenstadt and Patrick Lohmann Syracuse, N.Y. -- A year ago, Morgan and Ryan Lawrence's weekend routine was unwavering: The young couple would pack up their car and drive their daughter, Maddox, to New York City to get treatment for a potentially deadly cancer in her eye, according to a fundraiser page. The child wasn't even a year old. Now, Ryan Lawrence is accused of killing the same child he and his wife struggled to keep alive. What went so wrong is unclear. Hours before Ryan Lawrence took Maddox on a last car ride, Morgan Lawrence posted a picture on her Facebook page of Ryan holding Maddox. He smiles as she holds her up; she's laughing. She looks healthy and happy. Maddox Mary Lawrence was born in 2014. "She was born healthy and full of energy ... such a happy baby girl, yet you wouldn't think it because she makes little monster noises," wrote Shaylyn Leonard on the fundraiser page she set up to help Ryan Lawrence, her brother, with medical expenses. But when Maddox was a few months old, her parents noticed that her left eye was turning a darker color. "So they went to the doctor only to find out this darling baby has cancer, not even a year old," Leonard wrote. Leonard detailed how her niece had retinoblastoma - cancer in her eye. At the time, Maddox had undergone four of eight treatments at Sloan Kettering in New York City. There, she sat for intense chemotherapy that targeted the tumor in her eye and the blood vessels feeding it. The treatments lasted as long as six hours, Leonard wrote. Leonard was asking for family and friends for money to help with the expenses Morgan and Ryan Lawrence faced. "With your donation you can ease some high stress and give Maddox a better shot at kicking this tumor!" Maddox's aunt wrote. Ryan and Morgan Lawrence both worked a series of low-wage jobs. Morgan Lawrence was at one of the two jobs she works at Destiny USA when, authorities say, Ryan Lawrence put Maddox into the car and drove her to her death. Morgan Lawrence expected both of them to pick her up at the mall after her she finished her shift. It's unclear whether Ryan Lawrence was working lately. At one point, the couple worked in shops next to each other at the mall. The family rented a place in the Valley. At the time the Amber Alert was issued Sunday morning, police said Ryan had a history of mental illness. They've given few details about what happened or what they think motivated the father to kill his child. District Attorney William Fitzpatrick suggested in an interview with WTVH that Ryan Lawrence was jealous of the attention his daughter was getting. Ryan Lawrence, who grew up in Baldwinsville, was a kid who excelled at art and loved the outdoors. While at C.W. Baker High School in Baldwinsville in 2009, he won honorable mention in the Scholastic Art Awards. He also was on a team of students that competed in the CNY Envirothon, a test of environmental knowledge at Baltimore Woods in Marcellus. In those years, he wore his hair in dreadlocks. Ryan Lawrence was no stranger to the pain of cancer when he found out a tumor was growing in his baby's eye. When he was 17, his mother, Mary Lawrence, died of kidney cancer. Lawrence worked for the Onondaga County District Attorney's office as a victim advocate. She was known for working tirelessly for the families of crime victims. Her office wall was covered with children who were victims of violence. Just like Maddox Mary, the granddaughter she never met. It's possible that Maddox Mary Lawrence died on what would have been her grandmother's 59th birthday. "Happy Birthday Momma!! ... miss you soooo much," one of Ryan Lawrence's sisters wrote on her Facebook page Feb. 21 under a picture of Mary Lawrence. Maddox went missing Feb. 20. A yearbook picture of Ryan Lawrence from C.W. Baker High School in Baldwinsville. Ryan Lawrence's path after graduating from C.W. Baker High School in 2009 appears to be one of entry-level, low-wage jobs. For two years, he worked at the Real Food Co-Op in Syracuse. He also worked at Pastabilities and Teavana at Destiny for a time. Jeremy DeChario, the general manager at Real Food, said Ryan Lawrence worked there from 2012 to 2015. "He was a good person, it seemed like, to me," DeChario said. He said he and Lawrence both kept cichlids, colorful and rare African fish. DeChario met Morgan Lawrence a few times. "The times I met her, she seemed super great," DeChario said. "Nice, kind and decent." DeChario said he couldn't comment on why Ryan Lawrence stopped working at the co-op in 2014. And he couldn't begin to fathom who Ryan Lawrence seemed to have become: "How would you expect this?" When Lawrence was found by police, Maddox was nowhere. And now it seems she was likely already dead. Lawrence was wearing a disguise, including a wig. He had a backpack stocked with camping gear and a book on how to hide and avoid being captured. As he packed for his escape, Ryan Lawrence's wife stood in front of television cameras at the Syracuse public safety building. Morgan Lawrence begged her husband to call home and let her know that he and their daughter were safe. She held the sides of the podium with her hands as she choked back tears and looked out into the lights, "Maddox, I love you, honey." Marnie Eisenstadt writes about life and culture in Central New York. Contact her anytime: email | twitter | 315-470-2246. IMG_1336.JPG Sheriff's deputies are investigating a fatal two-car crash on I-81 south near LaFayette. May 8, 2015. (Provided Photo) Amy Dell Syracuse, NY -- A Rome woman is accused of being extremely drunk after bar-hopping in Armory Square when she drove the wrong way on Interstate 81 and killed another driver. Amy Dell's defense lawyer revealed today that there were actually two conflicting lab reports on her drunkenness in May 2015. Dell is accused of driving northbound in the southbound lanes of I-81 in LaFayette, killing driver Bruce Ham, of New Jersey. One lab result came back with a 0.21 blood-alcohol content and another one came back wit a 0.16 result, said lawyer Stephen Lance Cimino. Both are above the legal limit of 0.08 to drive and leave Dell open to prosecution for the crash. But to prosecute Dell on the harsher, aggravated vehicular homicide charge, there needs to be proof that she had a blood-alcohol content of 0.18 or above, Cimino said. Otherwise, it appears she would be charged with vehicular manslaughter, a serious but lesser charge. The conflicting reports could shave up to 10 years off Dell's prison sentence, if she's found guilty, according to state law. She could face up to 25 years in prison under the harsher law, and up to 15 years on the lesser charge. But Cimino is taking the logic a step further: if the lab produced such wildly different results, what are the chances that the results are credible at all? Under that scenario, the defense lawyer might fight to have all the lab results of drunkenness thrown out. That is still down the road, though. Now, Cimino is demanding all information relating to the conflicting lab reports before determining his next move. SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- Chief Frank Fowler said the search for a missing 21-month-old girl that ended with the toddler found dead and her father charged with murder has weighed heavily on everyone involved. Ryan Lawrence, 24, of Syracuse, has been charged with second-degree murder in the death of his daughter, Maddox Lawrence, who was 21 months old. Fowler began a news conference Tuesday at Syracuse police headquarters by extending "our deepest condolences" to the family of Maddox Lawrence. The search for the missing toddler had weighed heavily on everyone involved, Fowler said, including the army of city and county police, state troopers and federal agents. "It's tough to be standing here at this podium, for everyone who worked this case it's difficult," he said. "We're supposed to protect our children." The case began when Ryan Lawrence failed to pick his wife Morgan Lawrence up from a job at Destiny USA Saturday. He instead left their car in the mall parking lot. When Morgan Lawrence got home she found a note from her husband and called 911 around 11:30 p.m. Saturday. Both father and daughter were gone. The note made her concerned for their safety, Fowler said, though he declined to say exactly what the note said. Ryan Joseph Lawrence Police began searching for Ryan and Maddox Lawrence and issued an Amber Alert Sunday morning. The Amber Alert said that Ryan Lawrence had left a message that suggested he might harm himself and his daughter. A citizen who saw the Amber Alert called 911 Monday at about 4:30 p.m. Baldwinsville police stopped Ryan Lawrence and Syracuse police later took him into custody, but his daughter was not with him. Fowler said Ryan Lawrence was wearing a disguise when he was found, but Fowler would not say what the disguise was. Another law enforcement said he was wearing a black wig, a hat, sunglasses and a bandanna. Syracuse police, working with state troopers and the FBI, questioned Ryan Lawrence and searched several places in Tully and along Onondaga Creek in Syracuse. Fowler said Ryan Lawrence was not armed when he was taken into custody and was not confrontational. The police chief would not say how cooperative he was when questioned by police. Police focused their search heavily along the Onondaga Creekwalk. State police divers were called in and located what are believed to be the remains of Maddox Lawrence, Fowler said. The remains were found in the water, he said. Fowler declined to discuss Ryan Lawrence's motive for the crime. Fowler declined to talk about how or where Maddox was killed. Fowler said it's not clear how long Ryan Lawrence was apart from his daughter before he was found. Onondaga County District Attorney William Fitzpatrick said Maddox was killed at Labrador Hollow, a state recreation area in Cortland County. He said she was killed Saturday night. Ryan Lawrence told police he killed his daughter because he was jealous of all the attention she got because she was undergoing cancer treatments, Fitzpatrick said. Police are still investigating the case, but are not looking at other suspects, he said. contractor.JPG Matthew J. Valletta (Provided photo) MANLIUS, NY - A Jamesville man has been charged with several felonies after Manlius police said he stole items from several customers' homes. Matthew J. Valletta, 53, of Jamesville, was charged Tuesday with second-degree grand larceny, two counts of third-degree grand larceny and two counts of scheme to defraud, all felonies. He also was charged with petit larceny, a misdemeanor. Manlius police said Valletta was charged after it was discovered he had stolen items while working at four customers' homes in the town of Manlius. Items taken include high-end jewelry, a wristwatch and several Oriental rugs, police said. Valletta was remanded to the Onondaga County Justice Center on $5,000 bail. Manlius police said anyone who hired Valletta and feels they may be a crime victim can call police at 682-2212. SALINA, N.Y. -- Authorities have identified a man who was critically injured when he was hit by a freight train Tuesday while walking on the tracks. Armand Berg, 35, of Vine Street, Liverpool, was walking on the middle of the train tracks just after 5 p.m. at Vine Street and Commerce Boulevard in the town of Salina, just outside the village of Liverpool, the Onondaga County Sheriff's Office said. As Berg was walking north on the tracks a 67-car CSX freight train was traveling in the same direction. When the crew spotted Berg on the tracks the conductor sounded the horn several times and the engineer began to stop the train, the sheriff's office said in a news release. But Berg did not move off the tracks and was hit just south of the Vine Street crossing. Detective Jon Seeber, a sheriff's office spokesman, said deputies are not sure how fast the train was going, but that trains typically go through that area at slow speeds. There were about three train cars between where Berg was hit and where the train stopped, Seeber said. Sheriff's deputies and emergency crews responded to the accident at 5:08 p.m. Deputy Shawn Bergman arrived first and gave first aid to Berg, Seeber said, applying a tourniquet to his leg. Berg suffered severe injuries including a traumatic leg injury. He was rushed by ambulance to Upstate University Hospital in Syracuse and underwent surgery. He remains in critical condition. Deputies haven't been able to speak with him. Seeber said deputies still don't know why Berg was walking on the tracks and why he did not move when the train sounded its horn. Robert Doolittle, a CSX spokesman, said Tuesday night that the train was hauling lumber, cardboard, wood pulp and rock salt from a CSX hub near Albany to Massena. The train was about 4,300 feet long, an average length for a freight train, he said. Traffic was blocked by the train for several hours Tuesday night on Old Liverpool Road as deputies collected evidence. Seeber said detectives are continuing to investigate. Contact Ken Sturtz: 315-766-7833 | Email | Twitter | Facebook | Google+ SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- The rain has not stopped the community from coming out to mourn the death of baby Maddox Lawrence. Soon after bright-yellow police tape was removed from the Onondaga Creek area where a body believed to be Maddox was found, makeshift memorials started to pop up along the trail lining the creek. And as the memorials for Maddox continue to multiply, a vigil has been planned. The vigil at the Inner Harbor Amphitheater in Syracuse is slated to start at 6:30 p.m., rain or shine. Candles will be provided to community members who wish to attend the vigil at 390 W. Kirkpatrick St. In a Facebook event page created for the vigil, John Ferrini said the Lake Effect Run Club will dedicate their weekly Wednesday evening run to Maddox. The memorials created for Maddox along Onondaga Creek near the Bear Street bridge continued to grow in the hours before the vigil. By 7 a.m. Wednesday, a park bench near the bridge was completely covered by stuffed animals and balloons. A poster emblazoned with a photo of a smiling Maddox sat at the center of the memorial. Candles -- both real and battery operated -- flickered on the rain-soaked grass. Maddox Lawrence Despite the rain, some of the candles continued to burn. Hours later, memorials had spread to the path below the Bear Street bridge. An approximately 5-foot-tall blue cross was spray painted on the angled wall below the bridge above a white heart with wings. One spray-painted message read "Angel Baby." Another read "Fly High." A brick memorial stone for Maddox emblazoned with the words "rest in the arms of the lord" leaned against the wall. A handwritten note slipped into a clear plastic bag filled with dolls read "may heavenly angels surround your sweet soul." Elizabeth Alexander was one of the people who stopped by Onondaga Creek to pay her respects. Alexander, of Syracuse, and a friend left balloons and a cross near the memorial-covered park bench. Alexander said she made the cross herself -- adorning it with pink yarn and a pink bow. "We're mothers and cancer patient survivors," Alexander said quietly. "It's tragic." Maddox was diagnosed with eye cancer before she was a year old, according to a fundraising page. Maddox and her father, Ryan Lawrence, disappeared Saturday night from Syracuse. An Amber Alert was issued after Lawrence's wife found a note from Lawrence stating he might hurt himself and Maddox, police said. Lawrence was taken into custody Monday afternoon in Baldwinsville. A day later, divers found a body believed to be Maddox in the water of the Inner Harbor. Lawrence, 24, has been charged with murdering his daughter. Tom Cruise Syracuse native Tom Cruise played the titular character in 1996's "Jerry Maguire." "Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn." A new list of the 100 best movie quotes of all time picked the line from "Gone With the Wind" as the most memorable in cinematic history. The Hollywood Reporter compiled the list based on surveys of 1,600 people in Hollywood: Actors, producers, directors, studio execs, writers, agents and craftsmen. Highlights include pop culture phenomenons like "The Dude abides," "I'll have what she's having," "May the Force be with you," "Here's Johnny!" and "That'll do, pig." A few classic lines are also revealed to be often misquoted: Bette Davis says "Fasten your seatbelts, it's going to be a bumpy night" (not "ride") in 1953's "All About Eve." Some movies, such as "Casablanca" and "The Godfather," had multiple quotes appear while oft-quoted titles like "Ghostbusters" and "Mean Girls" didn't make the cut at all. Here are 11 quotes from movies with Upstate New York ties that made the list: 95. "You complete me." ("Jerry Maguire") Syracuse native Tom Cruise delivers this romantic line. 73. "I don't want to survive. I want to live." ("12 Years a Slave") Chiwetel Ejiofor says the line straight from the book by Solomon Northup, a free black man from Upstate New York who is abducted and sold into slavery. 67. "Argo f--- yourself." ("Argo") Syracuse native Rory Cochrane plays Lee Schatz in Ben Affleck's 2012 movie that repeated this salty one-liner. 57. "Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain!" ("The Wizard of Oz") Chittenango native L. Frank Baum wrote the "Wonderful Wizard of Oz" books that the 1939 classic is based on. 53. "I'll get you, my pretty, and your little dog, too!" ("The Wizard of Oz") 42. "Every time a bell rings, an angel gets his wings." ("It's a Wonderful Life") The fictional Bedford Falls is believed to be based on Seneca Falls, N.Y. 32 "Show me the money!" ("Jerry Maguire") Another memorable line from Syracuse native Tom Cruise. 25. "You had me at hello." ("Jerry Maguire") Renee Zellweger says this oft-quoted line to Syracuse native Tom Cruise. 20. "You can't handle the truth!" ("A Few Good Men") Syracuse University alumnus Aaron Sorkin wrote the play the 1992 movie is based on. 9. "There's no place like home." ("The Wizard of Oz") This line is taken right out of Chittenango native L. Frank Baum's book. 4. "Toto, I've a feeling we're not in Kansas anymore." ("The Wizard of Oz") See the complete list at The Hollywood Reporter and tell us what's your favorite movie quote of all time in the comments below. heroin.jpg A heroin user prepares to inject the drug (New York Times) Mayor Svante Myrick ITHACA, N.Y. - Ithaca Mayor Svante Myrick's proposal to open a facility where heroin addicts can shoot up under medical supervision is being met with a mix of praise and criticism from Central New York addiction treatment specialists. Dessa Bergen-Cico, a Syracuse University professor and addiction specialist, applauded Myrick's proposal, calling it "bold and politically challenging." She has been researching and teaching about supervised injection facilities since visiting one in the Netherlands in 2007. "Overdose deaths decrease significantly where these facilities are available," Bergen-Cico said. "What we have been doing as a society has not worked - it is time for a new approach." Professor Dessa Bergen-Cico Others like Beth Hurney of the Prevention Network, an Onondaga County agency that helps people with alcohol and drug problems, fear an injection center would compound the drug problem by making it easier to get drugs. Ithaca would be the first U.S. city to open a supervised injection facility. The state Health Department has not commented on the proposal. The facility would allow addicts to receive health care, counseling and referrals to drug treatment and social services. There are about 100 supervised injection facilities, also known as drug consumption rooms, in Switzerland, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Luxembourg, Spain, Denmark, Australia and Canada. The proposal is one of several recommendations in a report Myrick plans to unveil today. His plan to address drug use and addiction was developed over 18 months with input from more than 350 Ithaca community members. It is backed by Tompkins County District Attorney Gwen Wilkinson, who co-chaired the committee that wrote the report. That committee also recommended that police stop arresting people for low-level drug possession and sales, and instead steer them to treatment and other services. Bill Rusen, director of Cayuga Addiction Recovery Services in Ithaca, said he cannot support the proposed supervised injection facility until he sees evidence showing it will work. "If the mayor wants to do it, it's up to him to do it," Rusen said. "But me personally, I'm not willing to go out on that sort of limb." He's concerned the facility could add to the stigma surrounding addiction treatment. "People already look askance at our work and askance at the people who come in our door to be helped," he said. Dr. Brian Johnson, an addiction psychiatrist at Upstate Medical University, doubts supervising heroin addicts will work. Dr. Brian Johnson "The horrible thing about addicted people is they don't do what you tell them to do," Johnson said. Angela Sullivan, executive director of the Alcohol and Drug Council of Tompkins County, worries about how Ithaca would pay for and staff the proposed facility. "In the addiction treatment field, we are struggling to get enough medical personnel to support what we already have," she said. The Drug Policy Alliance, a national group pushing for drug policy reform and decriminalization, praised Myrick's proposal. In a prepared statement, the group said Ithaca is following the lead of cities in Europe and Canada that have reduced overdoses, stopped the spread of infectious disease and improved public order by taking a harm reduction approach to drug abuse problems. Dessa Bergen-Cico of SU said society needs to look at the issue from the perspective of a parent with an addicted child. "Do you want that child sharing used needles, hiding under a bridge, shooting up and alone in the dark or do you want that person's child to have connection on a regular basis with trained harm reduction staff?" she said. Contact James T. Mulder anytime: Email | Twitter | 315-470-2245 More than 14,000 Facebook users united Tuesday night in lighting a "virtual candle" on their Facebook pages in memory of baby Maddox Lawrence. The Facebook event, started by two Central New York women, launched at 8 p.m. with the invite: "Let's all light a candle at 8pm in memory of this sweet innocent baby girl -may she rest in peace." Facebook users everywhere accepted the invitation. With 110,000 invited, 14,000 said they were participating. Baby Maddox Lawrence is believed to have been killed in Labrador Hollow in Cortland County and then dumped in the water by the Onondaga Creekwalk, according to Onondaga County District Attorney William Fitzpatrick. The 21-month-old was found Tuesday shortly before 12:30 p.m. by police divers. Maddox's father, Ryan Lawrence, has been charged with second-degree murder in the death of his daughter. The Facebook event was being shared on social media by people all over the country. One of the 'virtual candles" on Facebook. Here some of the posts from those mourning baby Maddox. Here is my candle from Forestport NY. God bless our newest angel Fly high sweet angel! Got my candle lit in Alabama! Rip beautiful baby Sweet girl, all of us are your moms and dads tonight. No one will ever hurt you again, May you rest with the angels and play in the clouds, sweet Maddox I'm not allowed to light candles in my dorm (I don't think I even have any here) but I heard about this earlier today and it hasn't left my mind. Here is my candle. Friday is the last day landowners can enter bids for the federal Conservation Reserve Program, and with lower grain prices and higher CRP payments, area farmers are showing greater interest. CRP is a federal program through the U.S. Department of Agriculture that compensates landowners for voluntarily devoting agricultural land to environmental conservation. Producers submit a proposal detailing the acreage and type of conservation activity and how much they would like to be compensated. County Farm Service Agencies (FSA) complete on a cost-benefit analysis on each proposal to determine whether it's accepted. Colfax County FSA executive director Bruce Coffey and Butler County FSA executive director Pat Lechner said theyve seen a significant increase in interest from landowners. In Platte County, interest levels are about the same, according to FSA director Chris Hoffman. Coffey and Lechner said the increase in CRP payment rates over the past three to five years has made them competitive with cash rents. That, coupled with lower grain prices, makes CRP more appealing to farmers. When we had $8 corn, $10 beans, guys were more likely to put those crops in the ground, said Lechner. With tighter cash flows, taking a risk is on the lower end of the spectrum than taking in a set amount on those delicate pieces of ground that have less of a chance of getting a good crop. In Platte County, cash rents for land have gone up, so CRP isnt as appealing, according to Hoffman. Its somewhat competitive, but still lower than some cash rents, Hoffman said of CRP. Most guys are going to farm their better soils. CRP general signups occur every couple of years or so the last one was two years ago. Theres also a program called continuous CRP, which is available for producers with more environmentally sensitive land, including ground bordering wetlands or streams. CRP contracts are 10-15 years, depending on the program. In the counties where interest is growing, the percentage of acreage devoted to CRP is low, less than 5 percent, which is nowhere near the limit of 25 percent set by the USDA. Hoffman said the most common programs in Platte County were for growing native grasses, legumes and habitats for pollinators like bees. In Colfax County, Coffey said they have more programs that involve smaller plots of land, such as strips of grass along waterways and tree planting, though they do have some pollinator habitat, as well. And in Butler County, grass strips along waterways are common, though Lechner said the most popular programs are for wild bird habitat such as quail and pheasant. The quail and pheasant habitat program is the most popular mostly because its the most profitable, according to Lechner. Nebraskas hunting tradition is also an incentive. That definitely helps with that, to see those birds come back into the area, said Lechner. This Page Is Under Construction - Coming Soon! Why am I seeing this 'Under Construction' page? Looking for fun things to do this weekend? Here are our Top 5 events Kristen Rispoli, 22, 8100 block of Kenwood Road, Fort Pierce; warrant for organized fraud. John Banek, 35, 6400 block of Fifth Place, Vero Beach; warrant for petty theft. Sabra Campbell, 62, 2100 block of 19th Street, Vero Beach; warrant for violation of probation, petty theft. Michael Carver, 32, 100 block of Admiral Circle, Sebastian; warrant for driving while license suspended. Jan Close, 43, Morris, Illinois; warrants for fraudulent use of a credit card, uttering a forged instrument. Edgar Gonzalez, 23, 200 block of Palmetto Circle, Fellsmere; warrant for violation of probation, burglary of a structure, grand theft. Marcy McClenahans cat always came when she called until one evening when he never returned. She was only 11 years old at the time. As an adult, the feeling of hopelessness and sadness she felt from losing a pet is unforgettable. I was absolutely devastated, she said. Now, McClenahan and her husband, Dan, are searching Columbus to make sure one cats owner doesn't have to go through the same experience. A lost cat was discovered Friday afternoon inside a semitrailer at NC Minerals in Lakeville, Minnesota, where Dan works. He believes the black and white feline hopped inside the trailer at the driver's previous stop BD Medical East in Columbus before being transported around 400 miles to the Minneapolis suburb. The second the trailers doors opened, the collarless cat walked out, warming up to the workers. Dan knew by its temperament that the animal wasn't a stray because the cat was friendly and clean. McClenahan said its unusual for her husband to warm up to any cat, but the feline has been cuddly with him, another sign the cat is likely someone's pet. "(Dan) even stopped at the store on the way home, buying him a litter box and food, she said. Its so unlike him. He doesnt hate cats, but theyre not his favorite so I was surprised he went to this much work and brought him home. The couple has housed the cat since they found it last week, but aren't giving up on finding its owners. This could be some little boy's or girls favorite pet. I want to make the effort to get it back to them, McClenahan said, adding that their dog isnt fond of the newfound friend so they're trying to work quickly to find the cat's owner. McClenahan has spent the last few days calling area animal shelters and law enforcement for reports of missing cats, along with posting on social media sites in hopes of finding the owner. She has yet to get it checked for a microchip. She said someone posting on Facebook offered to embark on the nearly seven-hour drive to fetch the cat and bring him back to Columbus. McClenahan believes the cat might belong to someone in the Christopher's Cove area because that's the closest neighborhood to the BD facility. If anyone recognizes the green-eyed, calico cat, the McClenahans can be reached at 630-901-0167. INDIAN RIVER COUNTY A lack of minority teachers and a weak success plan for minority students still are among the NAACP's biggest issues with Indian River County School District. Officials from both organizations met on Tuesday to hash out a way to move forward with the federal desegregation order that has lingered over the district since 1967. It aims for an equitable school system for minority students. The district must improve its efforts to recruit minority teachers, Tony Brown, president of the NAACP's Indian River County branch, said Tuesday. That means doing more than visiting historically black colleges, doing a presentation and leaving behind business cards, he said. The American Civil Liberties Union of Florida in a Nov. 6 complaint to the U.S. Department of Education claimed 18 percent of Indian River County students are black while 7.2 percent of the teaching staff is black; 23 percent of students are Hispanic while 5.6 percent of instructors are Hispanic. The district, according to the ACLU, has not made a "significant effort" to employ minority teachers, which would equate to 20 percent to 40 percent of new hires and replacement teachers. The district is attempting to hire minority teachers but they are declining the offers, School Board Member Shawn Frost said. It's like being invited to a party where you know people don't really want you to come, he said. "We're under a desegregation order. That doesn't exactly scream ... diversity," Frost said. Indian River schools should create a plan with measurable outcomes, to prove the work has been put in, said Willie Finklin, NAACP chapter secretary. To bolster minority teacher hires, Finklin suggested the district offer recruitment bonuses, invite recruits to Indian River County for an open house and create a homegrown program to foster future educators from the local student pool. Superintendent Mark Rendell said the NAACP will be included in the discussion when the district begins organizing recruitment trips this spring, and invited NAACP members to join district officials on the recruitment trail. The district's multicultural-achievement plan required by the desegregation order to bolster the academic success of minority students also is inadequate, according to NAACP officials. Last year, 56.7 percent of black students in Indian River County graduated with their class, while 71.6 percent of Hispanic students, 73.1 percent of Asian students and 81.8 percent white students graduated, according to the state Department of Education. The district does have an achievement plan but it was written in 1994, said Jacqueline Warrior, NAACP education chairwoman. The plan is out of date and hardly used, she said. NAACP officials on Tuesday called for an updated and tangible multicultural achievement plan. Representatives from both sides said the meeting was beneficial for the students of Indian River County. In March, the School Board and NAACP are scheduled to reconvene. VERO BEACH IRMC cardiologist to speak Indian River Medical Center cardiologist Dr. Daniel Wubneh, a board-certified physician who was chief cardiology fellow at OhioHealth Doctors Hospital in Columbus before becoming IRMC's newest cardiologist on staff, will speak at the Mended Hearts meeting at 3:30 p.m. March 10 at First Presbyterian Church, 520 Royal Palm Blvd., Vero Beach. The meeting is free and open to the public. Mended Hearts is a community-based, nationwide heart patient support network with more than 18,000 members in 300 chapters across the United States and Canada. For more information or questions, call 772-562-3996 or email mendedhearts235@gmai.com. com. Oysters in the St. Lucie River are pretty resilient. They thrive in normal rainwater runoff into the estuary and can cope with even temporary low salinity from large amounts of local runoff. One thing they can't survive: extended discharges from Lake Okeechobee. That's according to a new study by Ed Proffitt, biology professor at Florida Atlantic University's Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute near Fort Pierce, and graduate student Elizabeth Salewski published in the March issue of the scientific journal Estuaries and Coasts. Healthy oysters are a sign of a healthy river. Oyster beds support more than 300 species of aquatic animals. More than that, they help make the estuary healthier by filtering impurities out of the water. Proffitt and Salewski studied the St. Lucie from 2009 through 2011, including the spring and summer of 2010, when nearly 85 billion gallons of Lake O water was dumped into the St. Lucie. By comparison, when 136.1 billion gallons of Lake O water was discharged into the river in the summer and fall of 2013, killing practically all the oysters in the estuary. Since Jan. 30, more than 50 billion gallons of lake water has been released, and the Army Corps of Engineers has said the discharges are expected at least two more months. BIGGEST THREAT Proffitt said tiny particles of sediment pose the biggest threat to oysters. During the first 20 days of the current discharges, for example, more than 800,000 pounds of sediment have turned the estuary chocolate brown; and a plume of brown water extends out the St. Lucie Inlet into the Atlantic Ocean. "The sediment that's suspended in the discharged water rains down on top of the oysters, clogging the filters they use to feed," Proffitt said. The oysters close up to keep the sediment out, but that means they can't eat. "The adults can last a little while," Proffitt said, "but the young ones can't." Vincent Encomio, an oyster expert at the Florida Oceanographic Society in Stuart, called sediment "the gift you don't want that keeps on giving." Even after the sediment forms muck on the bottom of the estuary, "it keeps getting re-suspended in the water by boat propellers and strong winds. Then it falls back down on oysters and kills them." NO SALT The discharges of freshwater from the lake drop or completely wipe out salinity levels in the estuary, which naturally is a mixture of saltwater and freshwater. Proffitt said low salinity alone can kill small oysters but has no effect on larger ones. But if Lake O discharges occur in the summer, when oysters are already stressed due to warm water, low salinity is more likely to kill all oysters. For that reason, Proffit and Salewski recommend discharges be limited to the winter. And Proffit suggested discharges be "pulsed": on for a couple of months, then off long enough for salinity to recover. The ultimate goal, Proffitt and Salewski said, should be "to eliminate or severely curtail the frequency of multi-month high freshwater discharge events." BOOM-BUST In the meantime, Proffitt said, even though oysters die during long discharges every few years, money spent on building oyster beds in the St. Lucie isn't wasted. Martin County has built more than 25 acres of oyster beds throughout the estuary with a grant under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act in 2009. Florida Oceanographic and about 500 volunteers have built more than 30 smaller oyster-shell beds along the Riverwalk in downtown Stuart. "Even when there are boom and bust cycles in the oyster population," he said, "that's better for the estuary's ecosystem, for the oysters and the numerous other species the oyster beds support, than just having a bunch of muck at the bottom of the St. Lucie." In November 1970, a joint Special Forces team executed a covert, heavily armored assault into enemy territory. Code named Ivory Coast, this nighttime raid was mounted to rescue 70 American POW's held at Camp Son Tay in North Vietnam, just 23 miles from Hanoi. Retired Command Sergeant Major Edgar C. Britt of the Veterans Council of Indian River County was a member of that raid. He's lived in Sebastian since 1981 and joined the Veterans Council in 2008 representing both the 82nd Airborne Division Space Coast Chapter and the Special Forces Association, Chapter 85. The Son Tay Raiders, as they're known, were all volunteers. Their mission to rescue American POW's was a high priority for the U.S. military during the Vietnam War. An estimated 500 Americans were held captive at the time under brutal conditions, many being tortured. Britt was a Special Forces, Green Beret A-Team Sergeant with two previous tours of Vietnam, Airborne jump wings, HALO (high altitude low opening) parachute training and UDT/Navy Swimmers badge. He was chosen to train and be deployed for the raid. They shipped out to Duke Field near Elgin Airbase in northern Florida Watering Hole Number 3, as the men knew it. The abandoned base came to life overnight. It was so secure that even the cooks needed background checks. Britt says his wife, Helen, knew he was going on an operation but couldn't know the details. 'She was a good Special Forces wife,' he says. They were married for 46 years until she passed away in 2011. Barbara The Son Tay raiding teams were organized with colorful call signs: Greenleaf, Red Wine and Blue Boy. With no idea of their objective, they trained for three months on a scale model of the camp created from photo and observation intelligence. Code-named Barbara, the model replicated their target, down to the finest details. Barbara was set-up every night and taken down each morning, avoiding Soviet satellite detection that passed overhead every 12 hours. Britt trained as an alternate for any raider unable to finish the mission, gaining a working knowledge of each position. Orders Around Nov. 17th, they flew to Udorn Airbase in Thailand for final preparations at a clandestine CIA compound nearby. 'To this day I don't know that exact location,' Britt says. There, 56 men were selected for the raid, 44 for support assignments. Colonel Arthur D. 'Bull' Simons, raid commander, told the men that President Nixon had given the thumbs up. Now, Barbara now had a different name: they were told they'd be going to Son Tay to rescue American POW's. 'After the hundreds of hours, the hard training, hours of rehearsals, studying and planning, we knew where we were headed, and why,' Britt recalled. The mission launched deep into the heart of enemy territory, departing Udorn at 10:32 p.m. on Nov. 20. Locked and loaded They went in fully armed: M-16's, CAR-15 assault rifles, grenade launchers, Claymores, M-60 machine guns and Colt pistols, among others. They also brought everything from rations to blankets, to aid the POW's. Aircraft code names became a fruit salad: HH-53 helicopters were designated Apple 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5. The HH-3 chopper, a smaller ship, was Banana-1. And a massive C-130, dubbed Cherry-1, led the Apples in, 'flying in total blackout, 10 knots slower than landing speed,' Britt explains. This technique maxed out the choppers' speed, as they drafted in the C-130's drag. The only reference to help keep the helicopters in the plane's draft was a string of blue lights on the upper wing. The assault began with the gunship Apple-3. Door gunners blew away the camp's towers and guardhouse with mini-guns mounted on each side. Banana-1 broke off and went in. Mattresses on the interior cushioned the blow as the chopper intentionally crashed in the compound, dropping into an area the size of a volleyball court. Silence Blue Boy Team Commander Captain Dick Meadows was first off the chopper. He raised a bullhorn and spoke in a calm voice, 'We're Americans, we're here to rescue you.' No one answered. Apple-3 set-down outside and Red Wine assault team blew an entry and exit hole in the compound wall. The last choppers landed nearby, ready to extract the POW's. It was a joint military forces operation in the true sense of the word. 'The Navy Task Force Group 77 flew 59 sorties, with 200 aircraft dropping illuminations to draw fire over Haiphong Harbor to the east,' Britt says. 'And it worked.' The raiding teams approaching from the west had a free hand. Britt, back at the Thai airbase, hunkered down with his colleagues and waited through a long, torturous night. The assault team engaged the enemy, taking down North Vietnamese Army guards. As the team gained control of the camp, Captain Meadows checked each cell himself. Then he radioed the other teams: 'Search completed, negative items,' he said. The compound was empty. No POW's to release, no one to rescue. The disappointment was palpable. Let down As they pulled out, Meadows activated a delay timer for Banana-1. It was rigged with C-4. Six minutes out and heading west from Son Tay, the choppers felt a blast and saw an enormous fireball as Banana-1 went up. The raid was impeccably executed. The raiders had been on the ground a total of 28 minutes. The only flaw was that not a single prisoner was recovered. Despite the courageous recovery attempt, Edgar Britt remembers the atmosphere when the teams returned to base. 'It was clear immediately, there were some super sad faces,' he says. By Thanksgiving, everyone was back at Fort Bragg. 'Joy should have been in our hearts,' Britt says. 'But it was very sad for our comrades we left behind.' They later learned that the POW's had been temporarily moved to another nearby prison and moved again three days after the Son Tay Raid, to Hoa Lo Prison otherwise known as the Hanoi Hilton. They would remain there for another three years. Still serving These days, Britt is a dedicated volunteer at the Victory Center Military Store in the Indian River Mall, where proceeds benefit local vets. He has put in three days a week there for the past five years. On the other two, he works as a case manager in the Upward American Veterans Committee, which helps the county's needy veterans and their families. Britt's commitment to local veterans in Indian River County is an extension of his long, highly decorated military career. He holds a Legion of Merit, three Bronze Stars with V for Valor, two Purple Hearts, and more than a dozen other service awards a local hero with a lifetime of service to the U.S. The Son Tay Raiders and the POW's they attempted to rescue now gather for an annual reunion. The next is at Fort Bragg in September, just shy of the 46th anniversary of the raid. Edgar Britt plans to be in attendance. As we rush around trying to keep up with our busy lives, we've all grumbled 'There aren't enough hours in the day.' Well, this year, on Monday, Feb. 29, you get a whole 24 extra hours thanks to Roman emperor Julius Caesar and his plan to straighten out the calendar. Leap day was created more than 2000 years ago to keep the calendar year in sync with the astronomical year. Originally, every four years was a leap year, but that created too many. The system we now follow takes a few out: years that are multiples of four are leap years except for century years, which must be divisible by 400. Interestingly, leap years are the only ones that don't begin and end on the same day of the week. Forever young The question has been debated for centuries: 'Does it count if it happened on leap day?' Or for that matter, how does one count a leap day? For Frederic in the Gilbert & Sullivan comic opera, 'The Pirates of Penzance,' his Feb. 29 birthdate required him to apprentice until he was in his 80s since he only had a birthday every four years, it took him that long to reach his 21st. There's also a humorous newspaper printed on leap day dedicated to Camember, a soldier in an 1896 comic book who had a birthday on Feb. 29. He'd only celebrated four when he joined the army. Camember is not the only comic book hero to be a 'leapling.' Superman not only leaps tall buildings in a single bound, he also leaps from one birthday to another every four years. Most adults with leap year birthdays relish the perk of being able to claim they're a quarter of their age. Not that they will turn down gifts on years with only 28 days in February. These leaplings are rare the odds of being born on Feb. 29 are one in 1,461. But they have their own festival in Anthony, Texas, which has been declared the Leap Year Capital of the World by the governors of Texas and New Mexico. They've been holding a huge birthday party for leaplings every leap year since 1988. For the asking While, many feel that to be born on leap day is a sign of good luck. And there are some who believe it is bad luck to get married during a leap year. But another nuptials-related tradition was created to create a modicum of balance between men and women, the same way leap day restores balance to the year. The legend says the women of Ireland complained to St. Brigid about their suitors being too slow to pop the question. She brought their concerns to St. Patrick, who decreed Feb. 29 as the day when men must accept a women's proposals. Queen Margaret of Scotland made this law by requiring compensation if a man declined on leap day: a pair of leather gloves, a single rose, 1 and a kiss. This European tradition became Sadie Hawkins Day, celebrated on leap day in the U.S. Another legend declares that during leap year, the weather always changes on Friday. Historical perspective Turning to the facts about Feb. 29, it has been a day for profound occurrences that reflect both good and bad fortune: 1620: The Pilgrims' landing in North America 1848: The discovery of gold in California 1856: The Battle of Little Bighorn 1912: The sinking of the Titanic 1964: Passage of the Civil Rights Act In Vero Beach leap-day news, through the years: 1916: Three young bachelors announced they were going to rent a cottage and blockade themselves 'against the devastations of leap year,' much to the dismay of the Hon. J.T. DuBois. 1932: A victory dinner was held by the Democrats 1940: Bob Sylvester and Orchestra played at the Leap Year dance 1954: First Methodist Church held an open house for their new educational building and social hall 1964: Vero Beach was mentioned in The New York Times 1968: A 196-ton trawler raked the open draw span of the Wabasso Bridge and ran aground 1968: Betsy Bunnell, 13, won the 'Name the Teen Center' contest Perhaps the most significant local happening on a Feb. 29 came in 1952 when Walter O'Malley signed the lease for the Dodgertown land from the City of Vero Beach. The story goes that there were two pages of legal jargon outlining the ramifications of failing to make the annual $1 payments. O'Malley's response was, 'Tell you what I'll do. I'll pay the rent for 21 years in advance and then we can unload all this legal junk.' He then counted out $21 in cash and handed it over. If that leap day hadn't occurred, Vero Beach and Dodger history would read quite differently. This coming Monday is an extra day for the taking whether you choose to follow a tradition, make history or simply catch up on a few things like sleep. What do you have planned? The National Weather Service has issued a wind advisory for St. Lucie, Martin and Indian River counties, as the severe weather continues. The advisory is in effect until 6 p.m. At 3:41 p.m., Doppler radar was tracking a strong line of thunderstorms moving east at 40 mph, according to the Weather Service. Wind gusts of 40 to 50 mph are possible. The primary threats are high winds, lightning and heavy rainfall. The cold front responsible for all the unsettled weather also spawned a funnel cloud in Indian River County. The National Weather Service confirmed that a funnel cloud formed about 12:45 p.m. in Vero Beach before heading east over the ocean. Spotters reported it from around the shopping area of State Road 60 and 58th Avenue. The tornado warning was discontinued at 1:08 p.m. No damage was reported. Neither Florida Power & Light Co. nor Vero Beach Utilities reported significant outages. An FPL spokesman said they had just a pair of customers lose power. Still, people are advised to stay tuned for weather alerts. More storms are to move through the Treasure Coast this afternoon. "This is another example of why a NOAA radio is important to have, said Etta LoPresti, director, Indian River County Emergency Management. SCHOOLS Students at Indian River County schools were kept inside because of the tornado warning, but after-school activities are to go on. The same can't be said at schools in Martin and St. Lucie counties, where athletic directors have canceled or postponed some games and practices because of the weather. COLD FRONT TO BLAME A cold front is venting its strongest weather, forecasters say. On the Treasure Coast, the front is forecast to move through from midafternoon to early evening Wednesday and bring with it a slight chance of isolated damaging thunderstorms. Those are to last from one to two hours, said Scott Spratt, warning coordination meteorologist with the National Weather Service, Melbourne. A wind advisory is in effect from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Winds could gust to 30 or 40 mph late in the day. Lawn furniture and empty trash cans could be blown around. Boating could be hazardous on inland lakes and the Indian River Lagoon. A week ago, forecasters had expected severe weather to come across Central Florida, then the weather pattern shifted north. The storm system coming through on Wednesday is the same one that spawned tornadoes in Gulf Coast states Tuesday night. Those storms mangled trailers at an RV park, ripped roofs from buildings and killed at least three people in Louisiana and Mississippi. Thursdays high is to be around 71. Conditions will be clearer, but windy. Winds could still gust to 25 mph. By Friday, the early morning low should be 45, followed by a daytime high around 67 under sunny skies. The weekend forecast is similar. By Sunday, the high should be 70. Mondays high should be 74. STORMS LINKED TO EL NINO The storms are linked to an usually strong El Nino that started last year. Because of it, Florida has seen twice as many tornadoes 23 as it usually sees this time of year, the winter dry season. Through the end of February, expect one storm every seven to 10 days, said meteorologist Scott Spratt. The frequency could double in March. Over the past eight years all non-El Nino years Florida averaged eight tornadoes annually. An El Nino is an occasional warming of the eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean. Its effects include conditions conducive to winter storms in Florida. That increases the likelihood of long-lasting thunderstorms that can produce tornadoes, Spratt said. The current El Nino is predicted to slowly weaken, yet its influence will continue to be strong over the next two months. CEO Tim Cook on Tuesday took Apples battle with the FBI directly to the public, penning an open letter in defense of the companys resistance to a court order mandating it to create a way to access data in the iPhone used by the San Bernardino terrorists. A federal magistrate issued the order because the high level of encryption built into the device had impeded the FBIs investigation. Cook called for a public discussion of the issues surrounding Apples objections to the demand, noting that the FBI was asking Apple, in essence, to create a backdoor that would unlock an encrypted iPhone. That type of technology could threaten the privacy of all iPhone users, he argued. The FBI may use different words to describe this tool, but make no mistake, Cook wrote. Building a version of iOS that bypasses security in this way would undeniably create a backdoor. And while the government may argue that its use would be limited to this case, there is no way to guarantee such control. Tool to Thwart Terrorists U.S. Senator Diane Feinstein, D-Calif., in the wake of the Paris and San Bernardino shootings, introduced legislation calling on technology companies to assist the government by preventing terrorists from using social media and other technologies Apple should comply with the judges order to develop a means for unencrypting the San Bernardino shooters iPhone, she said, joining a chorus of agreement among government and law enforcement officials. The U.S. Attorney should be able to fully investigate the San Bernardino terrorist attack that killed 14 Californians, and that includes access to the terrorists phone, Feinstein said. I understand there are privacy concerns, but in this case the phone is owned by the county which has consented to a search and there is a valid search warrant, she pointed out. The problem appears to be that such a technological solution likely wouldnt be limited to a single use. Essentially, the government is asking Apple to create a master key so that it can open a single phone, said Kurt Opsahl, deputy executive director and general counsel at the Electronic Frontier Foundation. And once that master key is created, were certain that our government will ask for it again and again, for other phones, and turn this power against any software or device that has the audacity to offer strong security. Dangerous and Unconstitutional The order is unlawful, unprecedented and unwise, said American Civil Liberties Union staff attorney Alex Abdo. The Constitution does not permit the government to force companies to hack into their customers devices, he told the E-Commerce Times. Apple is free to offer a phone that stores information securely, and it must remain so if consumers are to retain any control over their private data. The government request sets a dangerous precedent, Abdo suggested, because if the FBI can order Apple to create a means to access the encrypted data on a customers device, any repressive government around the world could have the same expectation. The ACLU is aware of at least 70 instances in which the government has used the All Writs Act to get Apple to unlock older phones, he said, noting that Apple had the software to help people who forgot their passcodes. However, with the newer versions of iOS, Apple does not have that capability, Abdo noted. The ACLU has filed a Freedom of Information Act request to get additional information on the earlier government requests. Fight For the Future has scheduled a protest for Feb. 23, asking iPhone users and civil liberties advocates to rally at Apple Stores across the country. Governments have been frothing at the mouth hoping for an opportunity to pressure companies like Apple into building backdoors into their products to enable more sweeping surveillance, said Evan Greer, campaign director for Fight for the Future. Its shameful that theyre exploiting the tragedy in San Bernardino to push that agenda. The group, which in 2014 rallied for Net neutrality in 20 U.S. cities, has launched a Facebook page calling for supporters to protest the court order and support Apples fight against the FBI demand. Dell on Tuesday announced the release of its first purpose-built industrial PC products for the mainstream market: the Embedded Box PC 3000 Series and 5000 Series. The products are a response to the growing embedded computing market and the lack of reliable devices, Dell said. The embedded systems market was valued at more than US$11 billion in 2014 and is expected to reach $23.1 billion in 2019, growing at a compound annual rate of almost 15 percent, according to aTechnavio study that Dell cited. Falling component costs, improved power efficiencies, increasing return-on-investment needs, and demand from the Internet of Things are fueling that growth. Known Quantity Customers have consistently told us that current embedded solutions do not meet the level of cost-effective sophistication, scale and support they need for these to be a critical, reliable component of their operations, said Andy Rhodes, Dells executive director of commercial IoT solutions. Dell provides global scale and an end-to-end IT and operations technology security portfolio, he said. The products rugged design can withstand extreme temperatures while using a fanless cooling system, which is beneficial in several applications, according to Dell spokesperson Sarah Luden. These were made to be used in a wide range of industries, from digital signage to factory automation and transportation and construction. Within factory automation, the fan is the first thing to go down, she told TechNewsWorld. Its also much quieter, so in a hospital setting, think of MRI machines, where patient care and comfort is important, Luden added. The IoT is a new arena for many business owners, and investing in costly computers and programmers can be a scary proposition, she noted. For some people, the Internet of Things is new, so they want to go with a brand they know. Why This Box Is Different What makes the Dell PC appealing is its out-of-the-box capabilities, said Christian Juarez, an instructor atTechShop. Dell Embedded Box PC The IoT is helping industries streamline their processes to make work more efficient. The whole point of IoT is bringing everything to the cloud and then connecting to the Internet and then having a control center for it, Juarez told TechNewsWorld. What happens a lot of times is that you have to set up the control center yourself. If youre setting it up yourself, as opposed to what Dells offering, you have to decide on your distro, have all kinds of software running to get everything working together, you have to code things yourself, things of that nature, he said. With Dell, they have software built in for you, so you dont have to do that much. Software can be a huge issue, so with something like an out-of-the-box embedded machine youre going to appeal to a lot more people, Juarez added. Microcomputers like Raspberry Pi are used for control centers, he noted, but that kind of device requires expert-level programming skills that a Dell doesnt necessarily need, which may help companies save money in the long run. The Embedded Box PCs will be available this summer. Pricing starts at $1,099 for the 3000 series and $1,699 for the 5000 series. New Delhi, India, February 24, 2016: HOOQ, Asias largest video-on-demand service has just been named Best Mobile App in the Media, Film, TV or Video category at the The Global Mobile Awards 2016 in Barcelona. HOOQ customers have been indulging in a diverse and expansive selection of over 30,000 hours of movies and TV series with hot favorites and award-winning series such as Gotham, The Flash, Mad Men, Ash vs Evil Dead, Nashville and awesome blockbusters, Spider-Man, Kill Bill and Harry Potter. Peter Bithos, Chief Executive Officer of HOOQ, said, Its been a great year for us and we are so very proud for this award as a validation of our hard work in building an app here in Asia for Asia. What better gift to us as we celebrate HOOQs first birthday! We look forward to an exciting 2016 and are working very hard to bring to all our customers an even better experience to keep them HOOQd!. With HOOQ, you can catch the best of Hollywood blockbusters and all-time favourites local dramas on any Internet-enabled device. Simply download the HOOQ app from the Apple Store or Google Play, sign up or log in, and your device is ready to access HOOQs library of Hollywood and local hits. Viewing movies and TV series on HOOQ is made even better with Chromecast support, now available on the iOS and Android apps. Sign up today for a 30-day free trial now on www.HOOQ.tv. Technuter.com News Service Agartala, India, February 24, 2016: Airtel has announced the launch of its Platinum 3G network for customers in Agartala under Project Leap. Airtels Platinum 3G will deliver faster internet speeds, enhance voice clarity and offer a superior network experience for customers in the circle. Additionally, Platinum 3G will help optimize the backend engagement between the network and mobile devices, thus allowing customers to enjoy extended battery life on their phones. Airtel has recently commenced the implementation of its network transformation program Project Leap in North East and Assam. With a national investment of Rs. 60,000 Crores over the next three years, Airtels Project Leap is a strategic company initiative aimed at perceptibly improving its network quality and delivering the best customer experience. Commenting on the launch of Platinum 3G, Sameer Anjaria, CEO, Airtel North East and Assam, said, Today we are pleased to offer Platinum 3G services to our customers in Agartala. In line with our long term growth strategy for North East and Assam, we will be investing heavily in upgrading our network and providing seamless customer experience across various technologies under Project Leap. Earlier in July 2015, Airtel had introduced 4G services in North East. With Airtel 4G and Platinum 3G both available in the circle now, Airtel is uniquely positioned to become the only network in North East to leverage these world class technologies towards delivering the ultimate Smartphone Network experience for its customers. Technuter.com News Service K7 Total Security detects and eliminates threats in real-time, so you can stay secure as you browse, shop, bank, learn and work online. K7 Total Security works in the background with no impact on device performance. That's not all - With PC Tuneup features, it can optimize your device to perform at it's best. Protect your kids online K7 Total Security's Parental Control features let you filter harmful websites, block malicious and dangerous websites and secure their devices. Control their time spent online and block specific websites or applications from use. Secure online transactions All your financial details: bank account and credit card numbers, your passwords are 100% secured. Stay safe even while using a public Wi-fi connection. Web & Internet Protection K7 Total Security provides robust protection against hackers with the virtual keyboard feature, preventing keyloggers and phising attempts. Comprehensive Device control Set read/write/execute access to external devices. Scans USB disks as soon as they are plugged in. Prevents malicious autoruns when any external device is plugged in. Vaccinates USB drive from getting infected. Carnivore - Zero day threat blocking Detects & Blocks PDF based exploits Carnivore - Drive-by-download blocking Detects and blocks browser exploits Detects and malware based on its behavior. Vulnerability Scanner Detects and informs the user about vulnerable applications that can be exploited to infect the computer. Enhanced Scan Engine Enhanced detection capability for Flash and PDF based malware. K7 Bootable Rescue CD Use the product CD as a bootable rescue disc, scan your system and remove the viruses [only for offline purchase] Web Protection Safe Search - Cloud based annotation for every URL in search results and special annotation for VeriSign Certified Sites. Safe Surf - Cloud based website verification and blocking of Phishing and Unsafe sites. Identity Protection - Automatic security alert when Passwords are entered into non-secure sites. Internet Security Stealth mode keeps the system invisible while it is connected to internet Improved network connection identification while connecting to any new network. No prompts, automatic decision making when any trusted application connects to the internet. Smart IDS to stop network based attacks. Fine grained configuration for security savvy users. Privacy Provides option to protect your confidential data from being sent on the internet without your knowledge. Parental Control Helps user to block or allow websites Block third party browsers from accessing the Internet Control the programs or games your kids can use Nano Secure Technology Nano Secure Technology is the next generation Security Software CORE Enables prudent security solutions at multiple layers analyzing & collating Various events to detect and block threats Bonus Tools Leaked images of the HTC A16 appeared on the web as revealed by tipster Evan Blass (@evleaks). Based on the handset's front and back sides that were exposed in the photos, it is highly likely that the A16 will belong to the Desire lineup of HTC. However, it may be difficult to know just yet if the A16 will actually be a re-branding of Desire or if it will simply carry the full model name of HTC Desire A16 when it officially launches. The images depict the handset as a colorful device with some even showing the back cover as having eye-catching design features. On the front side, it shows a small camera and some dual BoomSound speakers which are reminiscent of the Sony Walkman logo. There is also a camera on the rear which seemed a bit large although this could mean that it will have a higher resolution. The leaked photos also show the presence of a single-LED flash on the rear which appeared a little like it's protruding. One thing that may attract some attention is the pair of odd holes placed within a circular module on the rear side of the handset. There could be a number of reasons why it was there in the first place. Perhaps it is meant for a case, an accessory or a port for charging. Specs of the HTC A16 are still unknown at the moment. If it does end up as one of the handsets in the Desire series, the A16 may carry mid-range specs and may feature either a MediaTek SoC or a Snapdragon. There is also a speculation that the A16 will come with HTC's Sense and that it will have a polycarbonate plastic build. A Taiwanese website (translated) known as 3C Talk suggests that the A16 may have a $150 price tag which further stresses the handset's mid-range appeal. The HTC A16 may also look appealing to consumers who want to see more colors in their handsets. Its color theme could just be the most creative-looking theme yet that has ever been seen on the Desire series. HTC is yet to officially announce the A16. Since the company will not be unveiling the One M10 flagship at this year's MWC, it may still appear at the event with some other announcements. Perhaps one of these would be the leaked A16. 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. LG has announced the G5 smartphone, which packs high-end specs. With the presence of a number of top-end devices in the market, the new LG offering cannot escape competition. While there are many rivals of the LG G5 in the market, here is a quick comparison of the mobile phone with the Microsoft Lumia 950 XL. Display The Lumia 950 XL touts a 5.7-inch AMOLED display with a resolution of 2,560 x 1,440 and a pixel density of 518 ppi. On the other hand, the LG G5 has a smaller 5.3-inch IPS LCD display and packs in the same resolution as the Lumia 950 XL. However, the pixel density of the LG G5 is 554 ppi, higher than the Microsoft offering. Processor And RAM The Lumia 950 XL features a Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 processor clocked at 2 GHz and 3 GB of RAM. The LG G5 has the new Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor clocked at 2.2 GHz and 4 GB of RAM, which is expected to offer faster processing and seamless usage experience in comparison to the Lumia 950 XL. Storage Both the devices have 32GB of internal storage. The LG G5 as well as the Lumia 950 XL has a card slot that allows users to expand the memory with a microSD card. Battery The LG G5 has a smaller 2,800 mAh battery in comparison to the 3,340 mAh battery found on the Lumia 950 XL. The battery of the both the devices are removable. The smartphone company has also launched a camera module for the LG G5 called LG CAM Plus, which can be attached to the handset through the battery slot. It brings in addition 1,200 mAh to the mobile phone. The LG G5 does not support wireless charging but the Microsoft device supports Qi wireless charging. Camera The LG G5 has a 16-megapixel (f/1.8) rear-facing and an 8-megapixel (f/2.4) front-facing camera. The Lumia 950 XL is equipped with a 20-megapixel (f/1.9) primary camera and a 5-megapixel (f/2.4) selfie camera. Both the handsets have optical image stabilization (OIS) for shooting better quality images. Customers who want a better camera may prefer the Lumia 950 XL over the LG G5. Operating System Only a small number of devices run on Windows 10 Mobile operating system and the Lumia 950 XL is one of them. Windows 10 Mobile users also have access to number of productivity tools such as Microsoft Office. The LG G5 comes with Google's latest Android 6.0 Marshmallow operating system, which is currently available only on select Nexus and non-Nexus devices. The new operating system also includes a number of new features that attract smartphone lovers. Colors The Lumia device is available only in black and white colors. However, the LG customers can buy the G5 in four different hues: Silver, Titan, Gold and Pink. Others The Lumia 950 XL is available with a Microsoft Display Dock and Office 365. Owners of the Microsoft smartphone will be able to connect their mobile phone to an external monitor. Using an external keyboard and a mouse, users can get full PC experience via their Lumia 950 XL. On the other hand, LG has announced a number of accessories for the LG G5 such as the LG CAM Plus, LG 360 VR, LG 360 Cam, LG Tone Platinum and more that can be connected to the latest G5 and enhance the overall usage experience. Both the LG G5 and the Lumia 950 XL are great smartphones. The accessories for both the devices boost customer involvement and experience. Mobile phone customers looking for a bigger display, bigger battery, enhanced camera and Windows 10 Mobile operating system may opt for the Lumia 950 XL. However, LG G5's new and fast processor along with a higher RAM capacity that lifts up the performance may attract many smartphone customers. The LG G5 may also get an edge over its rival due to the launch of wide array of accessories for the device. 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Among teenage girls in the United States, cases of the human papillomavirus (HPV) have been slashed by almost two-thirds thanks to a vaccine developed a decade earlier. Immunization rates, however, remain low only around 40 percent of those ages 13 to 17 get the shot. What accounts for this poor popularity of the HPV vaccine? The Gardasil vaccine works against four HPV strains, which cause all cases of cervical cancer. The virus, though, is also a scourge causing genital warts and cancers of the mouth, throat and anus. Most parents are believed to take a pass on the vaccine due to fears of it being a license for increased sexual activity. Pediatrician Dr. Alix Casler of Orlando Health Physicians Associates said this does not make sense, as the goal is to immunize kids when there is not any risk of exposure yet. "There's an extreme amount of data that shows educating our children does the exact opposite," she revealed in an interview, pertaining to parental fears of the vaccine pushing kids toward risky sexual behavior. Together with two dozen other pediatricians, Casler launched an initiative in 2013 to promote HPV immunization across the country, writing and speaking extensively about the topic. And sex education could be key to alleviating these fears. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 87 percent of teens in a 2012 survey saying it would be much easier to delay sexual activity and avoid getting pregnant if they only have open conversations with their parents about sex. The New York Times echoed this possible reason behind low HPV immunization rates, pointing out that the vaccine may be linked more to adolescent sex than cancer prevention, which is its real purpose. A study back in October discovered that many doctors passively discourage HPV vaccination, possibly out of factors such as discomfort in discussing sexually transmitted infections, focusing on perceived high-risk groups instead of everyone in the age group, and assumptions that parents consider the vaccine unimportant. At present, only the District of Columbia, Virginia and Rhode Island, require the HPV shot. Early this month, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released an updated childhood immunization schedule, which now recommends the vaccine earlier for children with sexual abuse history. Photo: NHS Employers | Flickr 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Officials from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and the Maryland Natural Resources Police (NRP) are looking into the death of 13 bald eagles that were found near a farm on Eastern Shore over the weekend. The incident is considered to be the largest single die-off of bald eagles in the state in the past three decades, as it was only a year ago when the American bald eagle was declared to be no longer threatened by extinction. According to the NRP, a man called in on Saturday afternoon to report that he found four dead bald eagles near a farm in Caroline County. When the representatives from the state environment agency arrived at the farm, they discovered an additional nine dead eagles next to a road in Federalsburg. NRP spokeswoman Candy Thomson said that while they have yet to determine the exact cause of the eagles' death, they didn't see any indication that the birds suffered any form of trauma. The agency said that at least three of the eagles had brown bodies and white heads, which suggest that they were already adults. Two of the eagles were close to becoming mature birds, while the rest of the birds were young ones with no white feathers on their bodies. Thomson said it was sad that three mature bald eagles died, which could have helped grow the population of the birds in the area. The government is offering $2,500 reward to any person who could provide information regarding the death of the bald eagles. Thomson said they have tagged and photographed the dead birds. Officials from the FWS will send the carcasses to a laboratory in Oregon where they will undergo forensic investigation. A similar die-off of bald eagles occurred in the state 30 years ago, when officials came across eight dead birds. They were not able to identify what caused those animals to die. Meanwhile, two eagles were shot and killed by locals in Montgomery County two years ago. This strictly prohibits the hunting of eagles without any permit from the Interior Department. Investigators from the NRP believe the birds in the recent die-off could have been poisoned after ingesting spoiled meat from the carcasses of other dead animals. Photo : Joel Olives | Flickr 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Although the majority of Canadians believe that climate change is real, some think that it is partly or mostly caused by human activities, while some do not think so. A new study conducted by researchers from four different universities found that public opinion about climate change is significantly divided. The group of scientists from the University of Montreal, Yale University, University of California Santa Barbara, and Utah State University had surveyed a total of 5,000 Canadians over the last five years. Researchers asked participants if they believed the Earth is indeed getting warmer; and if global warming is partly or mostly because of human activities. They also asked them if they support cap and trade system, which sets a limit on carbon emissions and creates a market for carbon allowances; and if they agree on increasing taxes on carbon-based fuels. About 79 percent of participants believe that climate change is real, while about 61 percent of them believe the Earth is getting warmer partly or mostly due to human activities. About 66 percent support the trade cap system, while 49 percent agree on increasing carbon-based fuel taxes. "Our research shows that across the country, a majority of Canadians are aware of the problem of rising global temperature on Earth, and many believe humans are directly contributing to this warming," said Erick Lachapelle, who is an assistant professor from University of Montreal and one of the co-authors of the study. "This is true across Canadian regions and across the urban-rural divide as well." Lachapelle said the divided belief among Canadians is somehow usual. "This is a complex issue. It's kind of normal that people would have more nuanced opinions," he said. In particular, the opinions varied depending on where the participants were living. He directs to the differences in opinion among those living in Calgary and Edmonton to those from Alberta towns. "Urban dwellers are more progressive in general," he said. "They are younger, better educated, and have better access to solutions like active transport or public transit, than people in small towns." Unlike previous studies, the team's research did not ask what non-believers felt was causing the changes in climate. It also did not note whether the proportion of participants who thought climate change was caused by humans had changed over the course of five years. Anyone who wants to see the statistics per region in Canada are free to view it on the university's new interactive tool online. How Humans Cause Climate Change A previous study featured in the journal Nature Scientific Reports revealed that record-high temperatures in the last 150 years were more likely caused by human activities. Human-induced climate change is driven by factors such as greenhouse gas emissions and land use. When we burn fossil fuels such as petroleum or coal, greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere, traps heat and cause temperatures to rise. Today's carbon dioxide levels are at around 400 parts per million, and scientists at the Environmental Defense Fund said this is about 40 percent higher than natural levels over the past 800,000 years. The year 2015 was declared as the hottest year on record, and 2016 may even be hotter. At the rate that human activities are spewing out carbon from fossil fuels into the atmosphere, Earth may suffer irreversible damage that could last until tens of thousands of years, scientists said. Still, experts are optimistic. They said understanding climate change records will help us find ways to adapt to it and fight against it. Preparation is key. Photo : Ken Okamoto | Flickr 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. A medical panel in Canada opposed the use of colonoscopy for routine screening of colon cancer among low-risk individuals. Instead, symptom-free adults aged 50 and above should be screened for colon cancer using the fecal occult blood test every two years or a flexible sigmoidoscopy every 10 years. While colonoscopy can offer other clinical benefits that are the same with or greater than the ones provided by flexible sigmoidoscopy, there is a current lack of direct evidence of its efficacy compared the other screening procedures, explained Dr. Maria Bacchus, chair of the Canadian Task Force on Preventive Health Care. "[H]owever, ongoing clinical trials are working to address this research gap," added Bacchus, who is also a general internist at the University of Calgary's department of medicine. The new guidelines were published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal on Monday. It is also available online at the Canadian Task Force on Preventive Health Care's website. Flexible sigmoidoscopy allows doctors to examine the lower colon and the rectum instead of the entire tract. This test is not commonly performed in several jurisdictions in Canada. The procedure can be done in the same facilities where colonoscopy is conducted. It also uses the same equipment, but does not require a gastroenterologist. This could lead to further consideration for the use of flexible sigmoidoscopy in colon cancer screenings. The revised Canadian guidelines echoes that of the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force. The latter advised that senior adults aged 50 to 75 should be screened using flexible sigmoidoscopy, fecal occult blood tests or colonoscopy. While the Canadian task force said there isn't enough evidence to back up colonoscopy, other U.S. experts said otherwise. "There is strong literature supporting the benefit of colonoscopy in the appropriately selected patient," said colorectal surgeon Dr. Jules Garbus from the Winthrop-University Hospital in New York. American Cancer Society's Vice President for Cancer Screening Dr. Robert Smith told Reuters that in the U.S. colonoscopy's advantage was "judged to be clear" despite the absence of data resulting from randomized, controlled trials. "New data also show very clearly that a substantial fraction of adults are not willing to undergo colonoscopy and thus recommendations to get a colonoscopy in this group will go unheeded," Smith said. Photo: A Healthier Michigan | Flickr 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Hunters steered clear of Zimbabwe after Cecil the lion's death ignited worldwide anger towards the American dentist who shot him in 2015. This resulted in the overpopulation of lions in the country's biggest wildlife area. More than 500 lions are now living in Bubye Valley Conservancy, the biggest number by far. The overpopulation is dubbed "the Cecil effect." Unfortunately, the sudden surplus makes the lion population unsustainable. This could lead to the culling of about 200 lions if other institutions or sanctuaries will not help take care of the lions outside of Bubye. "I wish we could give about 200 of our lions away to ease the overpopulation," said Bubye Valley Conservancy's general manager Blondie Leathem. The conservancy is appealing to groups and looking for suitable places for their transfer where they will not affect human activities. The search for a new home should also consider the existing prides that can potentially beat up the Bubye lions. Rancher Charles Davy founded the conservation 22 years ago. Today, Bubye lions are reducing the antelope populations as well as cheetahs, giraffes, wild dogs and leopards. They are also reproducing at an increasing pace. UK-based charity Lion Aid director Peter Kay said that officials should have introduced contraception at the Bubye conservancy years ago. Kay expressed that it is too late for contraception now and that there is no area in Africa that could take in so many lions. Wildlife scientist Paul Bartels from the Tshwane University of Technology in South Africa said that contraceptive implants for the female lions are impractical for some clans in the Bubye conservancy. These implants are used in other smaller reserves. "There are a lot of lions on that [Bubye] conservancy. It would cost hundreds of thousands of dollars for contraception to make any real difference," Bartels added. Cecil lived in the Hwange national park in Zimbabwe. One day, the lion wandered out of the national park but some claimed he had been lured out by the American dentist Walter Palmer who eventually shot him. A research from the Universities of Southern Denmark and Oxford came up with a demographic model for the estimated risks the lions in Hwange face. They estimated that 69 out of 100 male lions died of "age-independent causes." Finding suggested that many male lions die from hunting-related activities or from protection of farmers who guard their herds. The study was published in the Journal of Applied Ecology on Feb. 22. Photo: Edge Earth | Flickr 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Google is shutting down Google Compare, a comparison shopping website for mortgages, credit cards and auto insurance after only one year in operation in the United States. The shutdown marks Google's exit from the sale of such financial products, as the website did not take off in popularity among consumers. The United Kingdom version of Google Compare, which has been in operation longer at three years, is also being shut down alongside its U.S. version. The closure of the websites will happen on March 23. Google formed several partnerships in the insurance industry to be able to gain access to the broker networks that were utilized by Google Compare. The partnerships did not pay off with Google Compare, as the company will now instead be focusing on its main advertising product, AdWords, which has insurance as among its most lucrative search terms. "Despite people turning to Google for financial services information, the Google Compare service itself hasn't driven the success we hoped for," said an email by the Google Compare team to the website's partners. Google Compare allowed consumers to enter their personal information to take a look at different offers from mortgage lenders, credit card issuers and auto insurers. Google made revenue on the website through referral commissions paid to it by lenders and insurers. There were also some cases when Google was allowed to directly sell the financial products to the website's visitors. Usually, consumers go on different websites to compare financial products, which lengthened the time it took to make a decision on which one to purchase. This was one of the problems Google Compare encountered, along with the fact that Google was not able to strike partnerships with some of the major lenders and insurers, leaving out offers from these big names on the website. In addition, analysts have previously warned Google that because Google Compare applied for authorization to directly sell mortgages and policies, some lenders and insurers who were advertising clients of Google could be angered. "Insurance is very complicated. It's not like selling a flight or shoes online," said insurance shopping website Zebra co-founder Joshua Dziabiak. Zebra is one of Google Compare's competitors. 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. IBM wants to secure a strong position in the cloud enterprise app development world, and Apple facilitates its efforts via Swift. Aiming to simplify the end-to-end development of apps, IBM has a new strategy. To do this, the cloud computing provider enables developers to work on their apps directly in Apple's programming language, Swift. To make things even easier for coders who provide enterprise solutions, IBM has taken Swift to the cloud. In order to assist developers in building apps, IBM offers a preview of Swift runtime alongside a Swift Package Catalog. Developers now have three possibilities to interact with Swift on IBM's Cloud. Here, coders can toy around with an open-source variant of Swift. It allows them to polish their skills and to accustom themselves with Swift's opportunities and Swift for enterprise use. The Swift Sandbox reveals the enhancements that the programming language received. While coders can get to work on end-to-end applications on Bluemix, they will deploy them using Kitura. Kitura is a novel open-source Web server that IBM rolled out, and it plays nicely with Linux and OS X. Generous developers are able to share code across projects. Coders can submit their work to the Swift Package Catalog on Bluemix, thus contributing to the global Swift open-source knowledge and expertise. IBM claims that due to its cloud service, it's already ahead in terms of Swift understanding. "Swift is easy-to-learn, reliable, fast and interactive, the key traits that CIOs look for when building the next generation of enterprise mobile apps," says Michael Gilfix, IBM's vice president of MobileFirst Offering Management. Gilfix explains that for enterprise level apps to be efficient, they need to be founded on a modern programming language. He notes that enterprises have a lot to earn from using Swift on Cloud, due to a simplification in the development of end-to-end apps. This, Gilfix says, will lead to unprecedented levels of productivity. IBM points out that using Swift on Cloud demolishes the barrier between front-end and back-end development. This means that enterprise solutions could resort to using only one programming language in order to craft back-end business logic and rich front-end experiences. One advantage is that this program merges development resources, and at the same time it speeds up development and deployment of new solutions. The streamlining should upgrade enterprise agility by a long shot. What is more, having Swift on the server enables developers to get a more direct and safe toolchain when they create end-to-end applications. In December 2015, Apple took the first steps toward this cooperation with IBM. The iPhone manufacturer delivered Swift as open source, while IBM pushed out an intuitive browser-based catalog enabling developers to start writing code in Swift almost instantly. IBM's marching toward a stronger Cloud presence has to be understood in perspective. The company already stated that it works toward cloud-focused partnerships. Some of the big names that IBM shook hands with are Bitly, VMware and GitHub. "[Swift will be] the major language for the next 20 years of programming in our industry," Craig Federighi Apple senior vice president of Software Engineering says. Stay tuned to learn more about the evolution of cloud based enterprise apps, as well as Swift's role in the process. 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Wednesday officially marks the two-year anniversary of the launch of the WWE Network, opening the massive vault of archival pay-per-view footage to legions of pro-wrestling fans around the world. Today, the network has grown to offer ample new programming and fresh content to supplement the unbelievable amount of pay per views and throwback events, which can be streamed in their entirety. That being said, there's so many pay per views to sift through that it can be mind-boggling to pinpoint some of the hidden gems. Well, we want to make that latter part much more easier for you, as we've compiled a list of 10 of the most underrated WWE pay-per-view events to check out on the WWE Network. Sit back, relax and enjoy these. Hey ... who are we kidding? You're going to be on the edge of your seat the entire time. Backlash (2000) This card was stacked from top to bottom, still standing as one of the most underrated WWE pay per views that you will ever see. From the Big Show taking on Kurt Angle to Edge and Christian up against Degeneration X's Road Dogg and X-Pac and Chris Benoit battling Chris Jericho, Backlash truly had a little bit of it all. The main event memorably had The Rock getting past Triple H despite the latter having Vince McMahon and Stephanie McMahon in his corner with Shane McMahon as the special guest referee. Classic. Spring Stampede (1994) The matchups and the legendary names involved say it all, from Lord Steven Regal fighting Brian Pillman to a time-limit draw to the blond Steve Austin defeating The Great Muta and Sting edging Rick Rude. The main event even had Ric Flair and Ricky Steamboat battling to a double pin. You can't make this stuff up. Canadian Stampede July 1997 at the Saddledome in Calgary, Alberta, had thousands of raucous fans cheering on their heroes The Hart Foundation, consisting of Bret Hart, Owen Hart, Jim Neidhart, British Bulldog and Brian Pillman. With the crowd on their side, they memorably went up against a team led by Stone Cold Steve Austin, as he was joined by Ken Shamrock, Goldust and the Legion of Doom. The undercard, if you can even call it that, had The Undertaker defending his title against Vader and Triple H up against a twisted Mankind. Awesome event ... and pretty cool to see that the then-WWF didn't dare go against the Canadian crowd, giving the victory to The Hart Foundation. Hey ... it would have been an ugly scene if they didn't, right? In Your House 13: Final Four Call it unchartered territory for the company at the time, but its In Your House 13: Final Four pay per view revolved around a Four Corners Elimination Match, in which Bret Hart outlasted the likes of Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Undertaker and Vader to win the then-vacant WWF World Heavyweight title. The Excellence of Execution, baby! The undercard even had a young Rocky Maivia defeating Triple H for the Intercontinental strap. Backlash (1999) This April 1999 event was action-packed with great matches, from Stone Cold Steve Austin defeating The Rock in a No-Holds-Barred match with Shane McMahon as the special guest referee to The Undertaker getting past Ken Shamrock and Mankind scoring a win over The Big Show. But perhaps the reason the WWE Universe should hit select on this In Your House: Backlash event is it happened to be the last pay-per-view event that Owen Hart wrestled in, before the tragic fall that killed him at the Over The Edge event the next month. Owen teamed with Jeff Jarrett to take on the New Age Outlaws at Backlash. Unforgiven (2006) John Cena vs. Edge in a Tables, Ladders, Chairs (TLC) match and D-Generation X against Vince and Shane McMahon and The Big Show. What's there not to like about this? The McMahons were at the height of their all-time gall with this one. In Your House: Over The Edge (1998) The Stone Cold Steve Austin/Dude Love no disqualification, falls count anywhere match with Vince McMahon as the special guest referee and The Undertaker as the special enforcer is the kind of thing pro-wrestling fan's dreams are made of. In Your House 11: Buried Alive (1996) Sure, The Undertaker-Mankind Hell in a Cell match will always go down in history as being one of the most hardcore performances a pro-wrestling crowd has ever seen. But don't ever forget about their war at In Your House 11: Buried Alive, which was pretty brutal in its own right. The card also had Stone Cold Steve Austin against Triple H and Shawn Michaels up against Goldust. One Night Only (1997) Trying to appeal to its European faithful, the WWF's One Night Only pay per view in England had Shawn Michaels defeating the British Bulldog to become the first-ever European champion, with the Heartbreak Kid boasting that he was the company's first Grand Slam winner, having won the World Heavyweight, Intercontinental and Tag Team titles before that. In Your House (1995) The then-WWF held its first In Your House pay per view in May 1995 as a way to have a moniker event between its big ones like The Royal Rumble, WrestleMania, King of the Ring, SummerSlam and Survivor Series. If the nostalgia alone doesn't hit you, the British Bulldog battling brother-in-law Owen Hart to a time-limit draw or Razor Ramon defeating Jeff Jarrett will. 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. A giant fireball zoomed through the Earth's atmosphere and fell into the southern Atlantic Ocean on Feb. 6. The fireball likely exploded approximately 30 kilometers above the ocean yet, surprisingly, almost no one noticed it. The fireball is said to be the largest one to hit the Earth since the Chelyabinsk explosion in February 2013. Yes, it is that significant. The Unnoticed Giant The incident happened around 9 a.m. EST (14:00 UTC) off the coast of Brazil. The fireball was brimming with energy that is said to be equivalent to 13,000 tons of TNT. If compared, the Chelyabinsk explosion boasted groundbreaking energy of 500,000 tons of TNT as it passed through the skies above the Ural Mountains. Based on the high-altitude impact felt, the space rock is estimated to be about 5-7 meters (16-23 feet) in width. In comparison, the rock that caused the Chelyabinsk explosion was almost 20 meters (65 feet) in width. Looking at the numbers, the Feb. 6 event seems like a repeat of the Chelyabinsk, so the question is, why didn't it create noise right after it happened? Why Unnoticed? With the seemingly significant descriptions, the question is why the incident went unnoticed. Astronomer Phil Plait investigated and made some calculations to explain what happened. A big chunk of rock from space has the ability to cause a blazing and shattering impact as it enters the Earth's atmosphere. If the rock is big, it can go deep into the atmosphere first before burning. The rock then compresses the gas in front of it, increasing the temperature of the meteoroid until it is eventually glowing. Next, it can either evaporate or blow off, which leads to the rock slowing down or completely disappearing. If the rock is bigger, then it can shatter as the atmosphere puts massive pressure on it. The resulting debris burn up, turning it into smaller pieces. The Chelyabinsk meteor broke up as it entered Earth's atmosphere and was observed as a series of bright lights, which can occur quickly as tremendous energy is burned away at the same time. This unravelling is why the event was so significant that it was called an explosion. But of course, a major event cannot create a buzz if there is no audience. While the Feb. 6 event would have been an epic one, it occurred some 1,000 kilometers, about 620 miles, away from the coast of South America, east-southeast of Rio de Janeiro. "That's far enough out over the ocean that it's unlikely anyone saw it," says Plait. Chelyabinsk happened in a rather more populated location, with more than 1 million residents. NASA came to know about the giant fireball through the military, which is always on the lookout for explosions in the air for safety reasons. However, the amount of information that NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory received was limited to the basics such as time and direction. Implications Despite the growing buzz, it is safe to say that impacts like these aren't unusual. In fact, events like these occur numerous times in a year, but because about 71 percent of the Earth's surface is covered by water, most of these space rocks crash into oceans. Although such incidents are relatively common, this still calls for better ways to detect such events. While the rocks can get very small while passing through the atmosphere and often land in an ocean, causing relatively little damage, it is still good to know when one is coming. 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. One Starbucks barista sure knows how to take the extra mile and brighten a customer's day with a simple yet meaningful act. This is because she learned sign language so she could communicate with a regular customer who is deaf. Ibby Piracha, 23, went to his usual Starbucks branch in Virginia to get his frappuccino fix. While a visit to the coffee shop has become a routine for him, nothing was ordinary during his Friday morning visit mainly because he was greeted by a familiar barista with sign language. An Unusual Experience Piracha usually sends a text message to the barista on duty for his order, but on that particular day, he did not need to. The barista told her that she has been learning American Sign Language (ASL) because there are lots of customers who come in and use text to order their drinks. "I've been learning ASL just so you can have the same experience as everyone else," wrote the barista on a note to Piracha. Piracha said he was very surprised at the barista's willingness to learn ASL and that such act demonstrates how the barista respects deaf people. She's an inspiration, he said. Sharing The Blessed Feeling Piracha took to Facebook and Twitter his experience. He posted a photo of the barista's note, which was shared for more than 4,000 times as of this writing. In his post, he explains that he goes to Starbucks thrice in a week; therefore, the barista was able to realize that he was deaf so she learned sign language. "I think she realized Leesburg, VA have deaf people.," he wrote. He then encouraged people to share the post to everyone and said that he feels so blessed with her. Because of Piracha's overwhelming feeling, he even talked to the Starbucks manager and expressed his joy, saying he was very impressed. Starbucks Speaks The Starbucks manager at the branch said he can neither release a comment about the story nor could he reveal the identity of the employee. However, he confirmed that Piracha's statement is true. Meanwhile, a Starbucks spokesperson said they are proud of their employee for making the first move in learning ASL so she could better assist her customers. She also said that they love hearing stories that show how their partners and clients connect. Raising Awareness Piracha hopes that the incident would help raise awareness that hearing people and deaf people are trying to communicate. He wants the world to know that the deaf community can have a great review. In a Twitter update posted by Piracha before the event happened, he explained that yelling at deaf people would not result in anything. He said that deaf people are natural lip readers so it is best to speak naturally when talking to them. Ultimately, he dissuaded people from exaggerating their words and tone and talking to deaf people like they are mentally challenged. 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Fear could be utilized by environmentalists looking to balance delicate ecosystems, according to a new study. This new research could lead to new means of managing wild areas. Raccoons living on the Gulf Islands in British Columbia have little reason to experience fear in the wild. Large predators, including wolves and cougars, were eliminated from the islands nearly 100 years ago. Now, the animals are wreaking havoc on songbird populations, as well as some fish and intertidal crabs. These animals were exposed to sounds of natural predators, including wild dogs, designed to elicit fear. These recordings, as well as non-threatening sounds such as those made by seals, were played in the raccoon's habitat. Investigators found the sounds of predators reduced the amount of foraging carried out by the medium-sized mammals. The calls of wild dogs reduced foraging times of raccoons by 66 percent below seal sounds. Predators in the wild elicit fear in prey, and these effects appear to ripple down to smaller animals, serving to conserve the ecosystem, researchers determined. "We have now experimentally verified that, by instilling fear, the very existence of large carnivores on the landscape in and of itself provides an essential 'ecosystem service,' and failing to consider fear risks dramatically underestimates the role large carnivores play in structuring ecosystems," said Liana Zanette of the University of Western Ontario. Researchers have argued before that fear of predators reduces the amount of plant life eaten by the animals. This new study positively shows that "fear itself" can help reduce the damage done to ecosystems by herbivores and other prey animals. Once the behavior of one species of top predator is affected, the effects cascade down to other forms of life in a given ecosystem, investigators determined. After the reintroduction of wolves to Yellowstone Park, foraging by elk was reduced, resulting in increased populations of plants and songbirds. A similar effect had been noted before in groups of insects, as grasshoppers altered their daily patterns when frightened by a spider, even if the predator was unable to attack its prey. Researchers questioned, however, if similar behavior took place among larger species of animals. Farmers, ranchers and other people living near wild areas can be apprehensive about the reintroduction of top predators, such as wolves, into once-natural habitats. Study of how fear of predators could assist in preserving ecosystems was published in the journal Nature Communications. 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Earth experienced a firestorm of multiple meteor impacts 790,000 years ago, a new study finds. Researchers gathered their data from analysis of tektites, pieces of natural glass formed as material from the Earth is lifted high into the atmosphere by asteroid impacts and heats on reentry. Heidelberg University researchers examined the gravel-sized impact remnants using a new dating technique. Material was gathered from several sites around the world, including from sites in Australia, Canada, Central America and Asia. The investigators were surprised to find that, despite the fact that these samples possessed radically different chemical compositions, they all appeared to be roughly the same age. This strongly suggests that a series of impacts occurred all over the Earth at around the same time. Researchers measured levels of various isotopes in the rocks, in an effort to determine the age of the impacts. A new method of measuring levels of isotopes of argon allowed investigators to measure the ages of these tektites with unparalleled accuracy. Analysis revealed an age for these artifacts of 793,000 years, give or take 8,000 years. "That's how we know when, where and how often projectiles struck the earth, and how big they were," said Mario Trieloff of Heidelberg University. The Darwin Crater in Tasmania, around 0.75 miles in diameter, was likely formed by one of these associated impacts. The meteor responsible for this basin was at least 0.6 miles across, resulting in a blast equal to one million megatons of TNT. This is 20,000 times as powerful as the largest hydrogen bomb ever developed. Investigators believe this event resulted in the formation of earthquakes and fires in areas hundreds of miles away from the impact site. This blast also lifted vast quantities of dust into the air, blocking sunlight from reaching the surface of the planet, causing plant life to die back. Chemistry of the tektites recovered from Australia, Canada and the Antarctic was similar to one another, suggesting a single "flight path" for the extraterrestrial impactors. The specimens from Central America were chemically unique, suggesting a different source. Previous research has provided evidence that a series of impacts occurred around the globe approximately one million years before our own time. Some of these ancient events created tektites that exist to the modern day. 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. LINCOLN Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts is not revealing who he might endorse in the Republican presidential race, but it's a safe bet presidential candidate Donald Trump isn't on the short list. Although Ricketts wouldn't talk about the candidates specifically at a news conference Tuesday, he did say what the country needs is someone like former President Ronald Reagan, who could pull people together. "Somebody who shares that uplifting vision of America like Ronald Reagan did. That's how he brought groups of people together, and that's what I'd like to see" in a presidential candidate, he said. Ricketts isn't sure he'll make an endorsement, he said. He's waiting to see how the campaign unfolds. He addressed comments Trump made Monday when he tweeted: "I hear the Rickets family, who owns the Chicago Cubs, are secretly spending $'s against me. They better be careful; they have a lot to hide." Trump was referring to a report in the New York Times identifying Marlene Ricketts, the governor's mother, as the donor who contributed almost $3 million to Our Principles PAC, which is almost entirely funded by the Ricketts family. "Certainly I've got a very politically active family who care very much about this country," Ricketts said when the question came up of what he thought of Trump's comments. "So my family does get involved in the different aspects of our public policy debate, and of course we want to make sure that we have the best nominee here on both sides of the aisle," he said. The governor said he couldn't begin to guess what the Twitter feed was referring to when Trump wrote the Ricketts have a lot to hide. "I know that he didn't even spell my name right," he said. When asked, Ricketts said he didn't feel threatened by the tweet. The Ricketts super PAC has spent roughly $4 million on Trump attack ads in Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina, according to The Hill, a political news website. At the CES 2016 held in January, Lenovo made the announcement that it is teaming up with Google to develop an augmented reality smartphone. The smartphone will be the first consumer mobile device that will incorporate Google's Project Tango, which is a platform that uses consumer vision, depth sensing and motion tracking to create on-screen 3D experiences. The result would be a smartphone that will allow users to transform the rooms where they are in into a game level, or a shopping mall where they can walk through to look for a specific item, for example. A month later at the ongoing 2016 Mobile World Congress, Lenovo CEO Yang Yuanqing revealed that the Project Tango smartphone will be hitting the shelves in July, which is more specific than the previously known information that the device will be released within the summer. In addition, Yuanqing said that the Project Tango smartphone will be pushed in "mature markets," as the device manufacturer looks to establish a more prominent presence in these markets. "If you want to access the mature markets you need two things: innovative products and a premium brand," Yuanqing said, adding that the company has so far haven't done well in the two aspects. However, with the work that it has done for the Project Tango smartphone, the Lenovo CEO believes that the company is finally ready to break through into these markets this year. Yuanqing, however, did not reveal any more information regarding the Project Tango smartphone. It is previously known that the device will have a size of less than 6.5 inches and will be powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon chipset. It will also be packing a depth camera, a fisheye lens and an RGB camera. The smartphone is an important one as it could start the change on how users perceive and interact with their environment, as Project Tango does not have the limitations of Wi-Fi mapping, Bluetooth beacons and GPS, which primarily function outdoors. The Project Tango smartphone by Lenovo and Google will carry a price tag of $500 upon its release. 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Chocolate lovers, look out. U.S. chocolate maker Mars Inc. recalled its chocolate bars across 55 countries because of choking risk after a piece of plastic was found inside a Snickers bar in Germany. The recall affects mainly Europe including Germany, France and Britain. Some chocolates were also exported to certain countries in Asia. A Dutch factory in Veghel manufactured all of the recalled products, including Mars, Milky Way, Mini Mix, Snickers and Celebrations bars. The company spokesman in Netherlands, Roel Govers, said that the company would not provide any more details about the recall but it would send a news release later. Germany Reports First Case So Far The recall followed a complaint by a customer who found a piece of red plastic inside a Snickers bar. The customer sent the bar back to the company. "We cannot be sure that this plastic was only in that particular Snickers," a spokeswoman for the company in Netherlands said. "We do not want any products on the market that may not meet our quality requirements, so we decided to take them all back." The company added that they are working with the Dutch Food Safety authorities to address the problem. The company in Germany confirmed that it was one of the countries affected. "We have intentionally chosen a long production time frame in order to ensure that all possibly affected products are recalled," the company said in a German-language statement. Recall As Abundance Of Precaution Though only one Snickers bar was reported to contain plastic, a sweeping recall of Mars chocolate in over 50 countries is an abundance of precaution. The recall only affects the products manufactured in the Dutch factory and was shipped to certain countries. For consumers, bars labeled with Mars Netherlands are affected. Since Mars can't guarantee that only one bar is affected, it is recalling everything with Best Before labels between June 19, 2016 to Jan. 8, 2017. Recall's Financial Impact The company did not disclose the financial impact of the recall. The spokesperson declined to comment on the financial implications on the factory and the company as a whole. Mars Inc., based in Mount Olive, New Jersey, is one of the biggest food companies in the world with 29 popular chocolate bars including M&M's, Twix, Galaxy and Maltesers. Consumer product recalls can lead to heavy financial problems. Other companies in the past that dealt with several million dollars' worth of product recalls learned from their experience in making sure food safety and quality are always evaluated. Photo: Ludovic Hirlimann | Flickr 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Quite a few Android and Windows apps developed on Baidu's software development kit are leaking users' personal data. The researchers at Citizen Lab, a Canadian-based research firm, said they have uncovered issues in an Android SDK built by Baidu. They said it affected Baidu's mobile browser and apps that Baidu and other companies created through the same SDK. Moreover, they said that the Windows browser of Baidu was also affected and the apps have already been downloaded millions of times. "It's either shoddy design or it's surveillance by design," told Citizen Lab director Ron Deibert to Reuters. Citizen Lab said that while Baidu had already resolved a few of the issues since it brought them to the firm's attention back in November, the Android browser continues to send critical information, including the device ID, in a format which can be effortlessly decrypted. Baidu, meanwhile, informed Reuters that it would be correcting the encryption holes in its SDKs. It said, however, that it would continue to gather information for commercial purposes. It also added that it is sharing a few of the obtained data with third party entities. The company said that it is only providing "what data is lawfully requested by duly constituted law enforcement agencies." While Baidu said that its interest in the information was merely commercial, it refused to share with Reuters who else might also have the access to the users' data. Jeffrey Knockel, Citizen Lab's chief researcher, said that the unencrypted users' data which have been gathered include their search terms, location and website visits. The researchers went on to say that it is not possible to assess the exact number of users affected by the issue. This past year, Citizen Lab also exposed similar issues with personal data which weren't protected in Alibaba's UC Browser. Alibaba said it had already fixed those security flaws by asking its users to have their web browsers updated. Additionally, it said that there wasn't any evidence that its users' data were taken. The research into UC Browser was motivated by documents from Edward Snowden, a National Security Agency whistleblower. These docs claimed that Western intelligence agencies had allegedly used holes found in Alibaba's browser to spy on its users. Reuters says in its report that the problem illustrates how hard it is for users to be aware on what details their phone gathers and transmits. On top of that, it shows that personal info might leak due to weak or no encryption. 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Jack Griffin, the CEO of Tribune Publishing Co. which owns the L.A. Times, Chicago Tribune and several other daily newspapers, has stepped down in the midst of a management change, which comes close on the heels of entrepreneur Michael Ferro becoming the company's biggest single shareholder. Even though Tribune Publishing announced Griffin's departure on Tuesday morning, it did not offer any explanation on the change in leadership. Jack Griffin will be replaced by Justin Dearborn, Merge Healthcare's CEO. Dearborn will take over as the company's CEO and board member with immediate effect. Chicago-based Merge Healthcare was acquired in October 2015 by IBM for $1 billion and is backed by Ferro. Dearborn and Ferro have worked with each other since 1997. "The board thanks Jack Griffin for his significant contributions and wishes him the best of luck in his future endeavors," notes Ferro, Tribune Publishing's non-executive board chairman. Griffin's investment firm Merrick Media has a 16.6 percent stake in Tribune Publishing after he invested $44.4 million earlier this month. Media analyst Ken Doctor was the first to report of Griffin's ouster on Monday and revealed that the ex-CEO did not see the decision coming. Doctor also said that Ferro had been in consultation with top executives of Tribune Publishing in the past few weeks and convinced the board to relieve Griffin. The board reportedly gave Ferro "quick approval to fire Griffin." Interestingly, Griffin's contract was to expire in March 2017 and, therefore, he will receive a severance of $2 million double his annual salary. Moreover, Griffin will receive $1.5 million as stock options and grants that the ex-CEO would have accumulated in the next one year. This is in addition to any stock options or bonuses Griffin is eligible to get from the 2015 fiscal year. His dental and health benefits will be paid for by Tribune for a year or till he gets a new job. Dearborn has a two-year contract which is modest by comparison and will be earning $600,000 per year. He will be entitled to a bonus of $420,000 and not given any stock rewards. Ferro and Dearborn have been working since 1997 when the latter joined startup Click Commerce, which was an e-sales platform for manufacturers. Click Commerce was the brainchild of Ferro and sold for $292 million to Illinois Tool Works in 2006. Dearborn also worked with Motorola, before it split, prior to his stint at Click Commerce. At Motorola he specialized in intellectual property transactions. Dearborn is an Illinois State University alumnus he pursued B.A. in accounting. He also has a degree in law from DePaul University. Whether Dearborn will be able to utilize his experience effectively and pull off the demanding role remains to be seen. He is, however, optimistic that he will be able to live up to the challenges despite the management changes. "Although this is a different medium than my last technology company, it has the same challenge on how to create the highest value for our content," says Dearborn. 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg is betting big on virtual reality headsets. At the MWC 2016, during Samsung's Unpacked event, Zuckerberg revealed that VR is set to be the platform of the future. Judging by what Zuckerberg says, Oculus VR which is owned by Facebook is going to potentially alter technology, including the manner in which one connects with the world around them. "VR is the next platform where anyone can experience anything they want. It's going to change the way we live and work and communicate," noted Zuckerberg. Zuckerberg shared that he had begun drawing out what at the time seemed to be an improbable vision of VR when he was as little as 11 years old. However, this vision is now turning into reality. The Facebook CEO envisions sitting around a virtual campfire with friends from all over the globe, sharing the firsts of a baby in a 360-degree view or seeing a movie together. The VR is set to become the future of social media and Samsung and Facebook will be at its core. With this far-sighted goal in mind, Zuckerberg is forecasting that with the vision expanding and the industry looking beyond smartphones and tablets, the Oculus VR venture, which is set to ship the $600 Oculus Rift VR headsets in March, could lay the groundwork for the future. Watching videos in 360 degrees in VR can often be blurry or grainy or, if it is high quality, then it loads slowly. However, thanks to Facebook's dynamic technology for streaming content from the Oculus Gear VR, things could change dramatically. This technology basically used several video copies in multiple resolutions to ensure that the viewing version is with the best quality, whereas the video on one's periphery is of a lower quality. The adjustments are made on the go as one moves their head around while viewing the scene. Seeing dynamic streaming technology in use makes one realize that this is something every VR platform would benefit from. At the MWC 2016, during the Galaxy S7 press event in Barcelona, the attendees were greeted with their own Gear VR headset at the Samsung venue. People were encouraged to wear the headset and then Zuckerberg made his surprise entry. An image posted to Zuckerberg's Facebook account went viral, giving a glimpse of what the future of technology could hold. Will it be the next best thing? We don't know. Will it redefine the future for good or worse? Yes. 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. A crowdfunding campaign for a beach in New Zealand turned out to be a successful one, raising over NZ$2 million, equivalent to about $1.3 million, to purchase the property and prevent it from being snatched up by a private entity. The Awaroa Inlet beach, which stretches for almost half a mile, will be donated to the adjacent Abel Tasman National Park and will be opened for public use. According to the crowdfunding campaign page for the cause, the project started out as a Christmas Day conversation that turned into a dream, in which the beach up for sale is to be gifted to the New Zealand public. A month since the creation of the campaign page and after pledges made by almost 40,000 backers, supported by the government stepping in to make a contribution, the crowdfunding idea is now a success story. "Congratulations everyone! We did it!!" the organizer of the campaign, emphatically wrote on his Facebook page after the target was reached. Duane Major said to Radio New Zealand that the exact details of the transaction would be revealed soon, but the important thing was that the campaign succeeded in bringing the pristine beach to the New Zealand public and to their children. "It's an outstanding outcome. I love the idea that the people of New Zealand have not only spoken, but they've put their tuppence-worth in," said Maggie Barry, the country's conservation minister, who added that the government's contribution to the purchase was drawn from its nature heritage fund. There was also some last-minute drama, as a businessman and philanthropist offered to make a contribution for any shortfall that the campaign would need filled in exchange for being granted exclusive access to a part of the beach. The offer was rejected. The campaign also had to negotiate with local Maori groups, who insisted that the beach should be gifted to them instead. Crowdfunding, as a means of raising money for a certain project or cause, has always been a hit-or-miss proposition. While there are cases when a campaign leads to the development and release of amazing video games and very useful products, for example, there are also instances when the raised by crowdfunding is spent on strippers or other trivialities. 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Researchers in Japan have identified a courtship behavior between fruit flies that may help explain how environmental factors can alter the sexual orientation of individuals. In a study featured in the journal Nature Communications, Daisuke Yamamoto, a professor of neurogenetics at Tohoku University, examined how the sexual behavior of male fruit flies is affected by the mutated version of the fruitless (fru) gene. According to Yamamoto, the neurons responsible for expressing the fru gene help determine the entire aspect of sexual behavior in male individuals. In his 30-year study of fruit fly sexual behavior, Yamamoto has observed that male flies normally would touch the abdomen of their prospective female partners in order to get a scent of their sex pheromones before they proceed with their mating. Those that have the mutated fru gene, however, do not show any interest in mating with female flies. They tend to pursue other male flies instead. Courtship Behavior Of Male Fruit Flies With The Mutant Fru Gene For his latest research, Yamamoto sought to understand how the vision of fruit flies with or without the mutated fru gene impacts the insects' courtship behavior. Together with his colleague, Soh Kohatsu, Yamamoto optically activated the neurons in the fruit flies' brain that are known to affect their decision-making when it comes to courtship. He did so by showing the insects a screen with flashing white spots, which were meant to represent female fruit flies that were walking. Fruit flies that did not have the mutated fru gene had to be primed with pheromones before making any moves to pursue the white spots. Those that had the altered gene, on the other hand, pursued the spots without the need of brain stimulation or priming through pheromones. They quickly went to follow the white spots around and even vibrated their wings, which is a common behavior during courtship. What makes this behavior particularly interesting is that it was only seen in mutant fruit flies that were raised along with other flies. Male flies that were reared individually did not show any such behaviors toward the white spots. Yamamoto said that this was a surprising discovery since he has always thought that courtship between male fruit flies with the mutated fru gene was purely genetically programmed. The findings suggest that interaction between the insects plays a crucial role in activating the neurons that cause mutant males to become more hypersensitive to visual factors. Yamamoto cautions other researchers in relating their findings on fruit fly sexual orientation with those of humans. However, he does agree that there are certain aspects of human sexual orientation that may have similarities to the mechanistic tendencies of the flies. He said that their study provides a plausible explanation to how the relationship between nature and nurture helps determine the sexual orientation of humans. Photo: John Tann | Flickr 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Amid concerns over the safety of hoverboards, ]independent product testing company Underwriters Laboratories (UL) has shown off how its conducts the new hoverboard safety standard. At its Northbrook, Illinois headquarters, UL showed off the comprehensive tests the hoverboards or the self-balancing scooters are put through before being given the new UL 2272 certification. The UL standards focus on the "safety of the electrical drive train system and battery and charger combination and does not evaluate the performance or reliability of these devices. In addition, it does not evaluate the overall safety of the self-balancing scooters." Hoverboards have come under scrutiny as they have been catching fire suddenly. The concerns surrounding the safety of hoverboards are not only related to circuitry or battery, but also how the gadget has been assembled. Due to escalating concerns, the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has stepped in and issued a letter to manufacturers, importers and retailers, asking them to adhere to the voluntary standard outlined by UL. The evaluations are done at UL's Fluid Lab, where the employees conduct a series of tests such as dropping the hoverboards from a height of 1 meter (3.28 feet), puncturing the batteries with nails, jamming the wheels of the self-balancing scooter and making the device run for 7 hours to check if it catches fire, etc. Jamming the wheel can result in the scooter overheating as it tries to free itself during the 7-hour period. Should it fail this test, the hoverboard does not get the UL certification. The lithium ion cell burst during the "torture tests" it was subjected to, such as the nail being pushed into the middle of the battery. The indirect heat applied near the battery remotely also led to the cell bursting into flames. On Friday, one of the popular hoverboard brands - Swagway - declared that in a bid to comply with the CPSC's standards, the customers who had bought a self-balancing scooter should desist from "using their boards in the interim." While this was viewed by many as a near recall, the company did a complete U-turn on Monday, saying that it never intended that the customers stop using the Swagway. "The original Swagway from the very beginning already meets the newly required standard and we are currently evaluating if our product complies with the new voluntary standard as recommended by the CPSC. We stand by our products and are confident that Swagway still remains the safest on the market," a company representative wrote to Mashable. While Swagway's X1 and Swagtron hoverboards meet the new UN38.3 certification, which is imperative according to the United Nations and the U.S. Department of Transportation, it is not clear if the products meet the UL 2272 voluntary certification for safety. 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Standing in long queues, waiting for the stoplight to turn green, killing time when your flight gets delayed all of these can trigger the impatient monster lurking within us, and it's bad for the health. People who are short-fused are more likely to age faster than those who aren't impatient, a new study revealed. This is because of shorter telomeres. Telomeres are caps at the end of DNA strands that protect our chromosomes from fraying, and the longer these caps are, the better they are at protecting cells from damage. Think of those plastic tips on our shoelaces, which are known as aglets, only at the genetic level. In a new study, scientists from the National University of Singapore examined 1,158 undergraduates to determine if there was an association between the telomere length and patience. The participants were asked a series of imaginary questions that involved instant or delayed gratification. First, they were asked if they'd take $100 right away or wait a month to receive $101, a relatively small reward. The delay amount increased all the way up to $128 if the participants waited. Researchers rated the students based on their level of impatience depending on just how much reward money it took to motivate them to wait for the payout. Those who were ready to wait for a small reward were rated as more patient, while those who needed more to be swayed were considered less patient. Then, the team took blood samples for each participant to analyze their telomere length. Researchers were surprised to find the link that those who were hastier had shorter telomeres than their patient counterparts. Xinh Zhang, co-author of the study, said impatience is linked to cognitive and social incompetence, the inability to cope with life frustration as well as the risk of mental disorders. The length of telomere has also been linked to life expectancy. "These untoward effects associated with impatience lead us to contend that impatience can lead to shorter telomere," said Zhang. He said it is unlikely that healthy individuals in their early 20s are able to sense the length of their telomere and then make the more impulsive choice. Although Zhang and his colleagues admit the findings do not prove a causal relationship, they plan to conduct a follow-up study to see if the meditation method of mindfulness can help lessen impatience and protect telomeres for longer periods. The study is featured in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Aside from killing off their favorite characters by surprise and in a brutal manner, "A Song of Ice and Fire" writer George R.R. Martin appears to have another way of venting his frustrations: taking his custom-painted purple Tesla Model S for a spin. The author did just that on Feb. 21, heading to a Tesla Motors Club of New Mexico meeting in Santa Fe. While out there, he chatted with other club members-likely received questions on Jon Snow's fate in "Winds of Winter"- and checked out Tesla's new Model X. Now, Martin has already explained that distractions were the main reason for the "Winds of Winter" getting delayed but let's all just take a step back and let the man enjoy a short afternoon surrounded by Tesla cars and his fellow Tesla Motors enthusiasts. After all, Martin does love cars and he definitely loves his own electric car- plus the fact that it is purple may be a personal statement about enjoying the Purple Wedding more than the Red Wedding. "She's gorgeous, she's comfortable, and she goes like a bat out of hell," he said of his Model S in 2014. According to a club member, however, Martin explained that his car is purple because it is a unique color on the Model S and he is a unique guy. That sounds about right. Martin is probably back in his home and writing away before he has to attend the Mysticon from Feb 26 to 28 in Roanoke, Virginia as a guest of honor. "Truth be told, I need a good con just about now. I am tired and I am stressed [...] So... let's raise a few glasses and have a few laughs at MystiCon," he wrote on his blog. At least he seems to be optimistic about the event. 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. LINCOLN Sen. Ken Haar of Malcolm on Tuesday urged a legislative committee to consider turning his bill proposing Public Service Commission oversight over public power electric rates into an interim study. The bill (LB1068) was opposed by a parade of public power representatives who argued that such regulation does not fit the nonprofit public power model. "It's an unnecessary erosion of local control," Shelley Sahling-Zart, vice president of the Lincoln Electric System, told the Transportation and Telecommunications Committee. Sahling-Zart said LES rates are subject to public hearings and extensive review and submitted for city council consideration. "It's a really difficult balancing act," she said, and LES budgets some money for an energy assistance fund to help customers who are financially challenged. Other opponents of the bill suggested that rate-setting is a task for technical experts and engineers rather than a regulatory commission. Haar told the committee that electric rates in Nebraska have been increasing at an accelerated rate, and rising fixed charges that apply to all customers disproportionately impact low-income consumers along with those who have invested in measures to improve power use efficiency. State oversight through an electric rate review process would be valuable, Haar said, with the Public Service Commission essentially acting as a public advocate. An interim legislative study could lead to agreement on "a review process that can make public power stronger and more viable for the future," Haar said. Supporters of the bill particularly zeroed in on a sharp increase in fixed charges recently imposed on ratepayers by Omaha Public Power District. Prominent security researcher Troy Hunt reveals that a flaw in the Nissan Leaf can create vulnerabilities and compromise the driver's recent journeys data. Hunt learned about the vulnerability in the Nissan Leaf while conducting a training in Norway last month. It all started from a workshop attendee who also owns a Nissan Leaf, the best-selling electric car in the world. "What the workshop attendee ultimately discovered was that not only could he connect to his Leaf over the Internet and control features independently of how Nissan had designed the app, he could control other people's Leafs," says Hunt. Hunt tried to demonstrate the issue in a video with the help of Scott Helme, a friend and a security researcher who owns a Leaf as well. According to Hunt, the root of the issue is based on how the NissanConnect EV app would only require the car's vehicle identification number (VIN) in order for anyone to take control of some settings. These include heating, air-conditioning system and even the driver's recent journeys. Some Nissan Leaf owners also confirmed about the vulnerability through emails that soon started flooding Hunt's inbox. "I read your Vtech article and though[t] that you would be well placed to appreciate this," wrote one Canadian follower. "Im a Nissan Leaf owner and I found out that Nissan security is pretty abysmal. They have an App to remote start charging, start/stop the AC/Heat, and get updated on current state of the vehicle." Hunt also published a disclosure timeline that explains how he made several attempts to have the issue resolved by Nissan. "I made multiple attempts over more than a month to get Nissan to resolve this and it was only after the Canadian email and French forum posts came to light that I eventually advised them I'd be publishing this post," says Hunt. So far, there are at least five dates included in the timeline. The latest is on Feb. 24, which is when Hunt published his blog post on the vulnerability issue. The date also marks 4 weeks and 4 days since the issue was first disclosed. Nissan, according to Hunt, should take action to solve the issue because of the potential impact it can bring to the vehicle's physical function and the risk it poses to privacy. Furthermore, the issue is now a shared knowledge among Canadian owners of the Leaf who, through an online forum, discuss the flaw. 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Justice Department seeks to force Apple to unlock 12 more iPhones Apple is fighting against a court order to unlock one iPhone for the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). But according to the Wall Street Journal, the Department of Justice is currently pursuing court orders to force Apple Inc. excerpt data from about a dozen iPhones around the country. Just like in the San Bernardino terror case, the government agencies are using the All Writs Act of 1789 to force Apple to bypass the passcode locks on the devices used by criminals, reports WSJ, referring to unidentified sources familiar with the matter. While the details of these investigations have not yet been made public, the report claims that none of them involve terrorism charges like the San Bernardino case does. This information adds burden to Apples concerns and those of many others that the San Bernardino case will not be a one-off event, but the start of a slippery slope into unwanted surveillance by US government. If Apple helps the FBI unlock this iPhone, whats to prevent law enforcement agencies from expecting the same when other cases arise? Last week, Tim Cook in his open letter had warned, While the government may argue that its use would be limited to this case, there is no way to guarantee such control. Once created, the technique could be used over and over again, on any number of devices. Apple and its allies have described the court order in San Bernardino as amounting to government pressure. They have argued that the government has taken an unprecedented step, asking the company to manufacture an encryption backdoor that would weaken the security of not just one iPhone, but all of them. Apple insists the FBiOS would hypothetically work on other iPhones. However, law enforcement leaders, cite the existence of the other cases as evidence that the encryption of personal devices has become a serious problem for criminal investigators in a variety of cases and settings. In the San Bernardino case, the FBI is trying to force Apple to help it bypass the passcode system on a work phone used by Syed Rizwan Farook, who along with his wife, carried out a terror attack on his co-workers on December 2 that killed 14 and injured 22. A judge has granted the Department of Justices request for a court order directing Apple to help the FBI, and Apple is fighting the order. Apple has until Friday, February 26 to file its first legal arguments in a California court. In another case in New York, which contains an iPhone seized during a drug investigation, prosecutors filed a letter with U.S. Magistrate Judge James Orenstein late Monday that indicates there are other cases in which the government has obtained similar court orders, explains WSJ. However, in most cases, rather than challenge the orders in court, Apple simply deferred complying with them, without seeking appropriate judicial relief, the prosecutors said. For years, Apple has abided with these orders, say prosecutors. However, in late 2015, the company decided to step up its position on privacy and protecting user data, and began asserting that it should not be compelled to obey such government requests. Apple has received overwhelming support from the vast majority of its users and peers in the technology industry, including Google, Facebook, and Twitter. In his interview to Bloomberg, Bill Gates too said that he does not back the FBIs side of this particular case, and that the matter should be decided by the courts. Facebook Is Making The Worlds Most Detailed Population Map Facebook is making a map of every human-occupied building on Earth to track the people in the most remote areas of the world and how that affects their internet connections. About 10 percent of the worlds population still lives in remote or rural areas without internet connectivity. This new mapping project is part of Facebooks Internet.org Connectivity Lab, which announced this week that it has created new, high-resolution population-distribution maps of 20 countries, most of which are developing. The group is tasked with using drones, satellites, and lasers to improve internet access in rural areas and developing countries. Robert Chen, director of Columbias Center for International Earth Science Information Network, believes the maps will have many uses beyond Internet access projects. These higher resolution data will be useful in optimizing the location of health and sanitation facilities, planning energy and transportation networks, improving resource management and access, and facilitating humanitarian assistance, he says. Few months ago, Facebooks Connectivity Lab took up this project along with the companys data science division, infrastructure unit, and machine learning and artificial intelligence groups. The company covered 21.6 million square kilometres across 20 countries, including India, Mexico, Sri Lanka, Nigeria, and several other African nations, which accounted for 14.6 billion images (over 350TB of data) and analysed this graphical data to find evidence of human settlements. The company used regular visual processing techniques including the image-recognition engine Facebook uses to recognize peoples faces in photos and used deep learning to store data about human built structures. The main aim of this project was to determine what Internet connection technique (mobile data or WiFi hotspots) is for bringing people online that would significantly increase the websites traffic. Our goal is to figure out how we can develop technologies and understanding how we can connect every person on the planet, said Yael Maguire, the director and head of Facebooks Connectivity Lab. If we want to think about the best technology to connect people especially outside of the cities, this is a very misleading piece of information. Currently, the social media giant is developing drones which would be able to beam internet signals down to remote areas without wireless access; this map will also help inform the company where to use this technology. On Monday, Facebook Founder-CEO Mark Zuckerberg at the World Mobile Convention said that the social media giant plans to make the project open to the public this year. We believe this data has many more impactful applications, such as socio-economic research and risk assessment for natural disasters, Facebook wrote in its blog. It is also working with Columbia Universitys Center for International Earth Science Information Network to release its new maps so that other companies and organizations can use them too. Nissans Leaf electric cars can be easily hacked using insecure APIs from anywhere in the world Some of Nissans Leaf cars can be easily hacked, allowing their heating and air-conditioning systems to be hijacked, according to two security researchers. The two security researchers, Scott Helme and Troy Hunt demonstrated vulnerabilities in the Nissan Leaf remote management APIs that allow anyone with the VIN number of the car to access certain features of it from anywhere across the Internet. Troy Hunt reported that a flaw with the electric vehicles companion app also meant data about drivers recent journeys could be spied on. The hack attack can be carried out from anywhere in the world as demonstrated by Hunt, who lives in Australia and Helme in the north of England, over 10,000 miles apart. Nissan has mobile app for Apple and Android devices for Nissan Leaf owners. The App which is called NissanConnect, allows the owners to check the following : Check state of battery charge Start charging Check when battery charge will complete See estimated driving range Turn on or off the climate control system Hunt and Helme found that the APIs used by the App to communicate with the care is open and unauthenticated and can be manipulated easily. All Nissan Leafs share a VIN prefix of SJNFAAZE0U60 with the last 5 characters unique for each. Hunt says that to access the APIs the hacker just needs to know the full VIN. This code is usually stencilled into a cars windscreen, making it relatively easy to copy. The initial characters of a Vin refer to the brand, make of car, and country of manufacture/location of the firms headquarters. So, Hunt said, it would only be the final numbers that varied between different Nissan Leafs based in the same region. To conduct the attack, the hacker need not even use the App, says Hunt. The commands could be sent via a web browser to conduct the hack. To confirm the problem, Australia-based Hunt used the Vin number of a Nissan Leaf-owning acquaintance based in the UK. Mr Hunt acknowledged that the issue was not life-threatening, but said hackers could still exploit the NissanConnect apps vulnerability to cause mischief by running down peoples batteries. Hunt said that they had notified Nissan about the vulnerability and had given the firm a month to fix the issue before he decided to make it public. As of now the vulnerability has not been patched by Nissan as such Hunt said car owners could protect themselves by disabling their Nissan CarWings account. Those who have never signed up are not at risk. Ricochet is the most secure encrypted anonymous messenger that sends no metadata The security experts have approved a new internet messaging tool that bypasses the federal governments metadata collection system to help human rights activists and journalists protect whistleblowers. Called the Ricochet, this software has been in development for around two years. However, following a formal security audit conducted in the United States, the team that is behind its creation says it is ready for use. Security authorization of Ricochet was a main step forward for investigative reporting said Dr Suelette Dreyfus, a vocal privacy advocate and University of Melbourne information system researcher who has already been teaching journalism students how to use it. The release of Ricochet with its audit is a moment for celebration because, even if youre not a journalist or a source, as a member of the public you should feel happier that its now a little safer for sources to reveal wrongdoing to journalists and for journalists to tell the truth about that wrongdoing. Thats definitely something worth celebrating, Dr Dreyfus said. An internationally recognised security podcaster and one of the leading figures behind the Ricochet project, Patrick Gray said that as a journalist his interest in the software was selfish. He said that the important aspect of the software was to offer sources and whistleblowers with a secure, anonymous and simple means to reveal details to journalists without leaving a communication trace that could uncover them. Mr Gray said Its that first contact problem that is a big issue in journalism and this software essentially solves that. He said that Ricochet would be able to provide a level of security and secrecy that is unthinkable with current messaging software, including Wickr the self-destructing message platform preferred by Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull. Talking about the infamous online black on which drug dealers prospered until the FBI closed it in November 2014, Mr Gray said, The key difference between Ricochet and anything else thats out there is that it does not use a server. It uses the same technology that ran Silk Road, it uses dark web technology. Hearteningly, Mr Gray said, the software seems to have already managed to get all the attention from Chinese nationals. Ricochet is the outcome of hundreds of hours of volunteer work. Mr Gray has not only worked with other high profile personalities in the information security sector including HD Moore and another anonymous but also with widely known security expert nicknamed as thegrugq. To begin with, the group branded its efforts under a project known as invisible.im a short form for invisible instant messaging. The group had made plans to create the system from scratch. However, a young software developer called John Brooks who around 18 months ago had developed Ricochet in his spare time approached invisible.im looking for support. Invisible.im put all its efforts behind Ricochet, while Mr Gray managed to get a modest amount of financing that could let Mr Brooks to give more time to work on it. In order to carry out a security audit on the software, Dr Dreyfus assisted the group get a grant from the US-based Open Technology Fund to pay US security consultancy NCC Group. Before this we had a disclaimer on it warning people not to use it for anything serious. It was experimental software and we couldnt encourage people to use it as they would other messenger software. Now we can say its been checked, its been audited and people can use it. We cant say there are no bugs in it but we can say its not a hopelessly vulnerable, bug-riddled mess. Its less experimental, Mr Gray said. Dr Dreyfus said that the advantage of making the software available would offset any hazards that it could be used for malicious purposes such as terrorist operations and cloaking criminal. You have to accept that there are tools, which on balance are a much greater good to society even though theres a tiny possibility they could be used for something less good, she said. Ricochet meant for one-to-one communications would be less interesting for criminal and terrorist organisers that need many-to-many communications to perform attacks and operations, Mr Gray disputed. Nevertheless, the criminals and terrorists had so many encryption and anonymising technologies at their disposal that directing fingers at any one of them was useless, said Mr Gray. Currently, Richochet is available on GitHub and ricochet.im. 3 members of French Anonymous hacktivist group go on trial for Operation Megaupload Three French Anonymous activists went on trial Tuesday, in a Paris court for an operation carried out in 2012. The three were produced before the court for hacking a police union website, collecting contact information for hundreds of police officers and disclosing the details online in 2012. A prosecutor asked a Paris court to hand the three men, aged 22 to 27, a one-year suspended sentence and a 5,000 euro (5,500 dollar) fine each, a lawyer for the police officers. The three member of French wing of Anonymous are also accused of breaking into two government sites and blocking public access for days. Back in Jan,2012, Anonymous had called for Operation Megaupload in retaliation for the shutdown of the file sharing service Megaupload and the arrest of four workers. The French Anonymous unit had hacked into the website of SGP-FO police union and released the names, phone numbers, and personal and professional email addresses of 541 police officers who were members. Under Operation Megaupload, Anonymous had also DDoSed the websites of UMG (the company responsible for the lawsuit against Megaupload), the United States Department of Justice, the United States Copyright Office, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the MPAA, Warner Brothers Music, the RIAA, and the HADOPI the afternoon of January 19, 2012. The operations by Anonymous were speculated to have been driven further by anger over the House of Representatives Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and the Senates Protect Intellectual Property Act (PIPA) Three members from French unit of Anonymous were subsequently arrested and now the affected police officers are asking for 73,000 euros ($80,400) in damages from them. The criminal court will deliver its ruling March 22. The greatest outrage from Mobile World Congress this week is the sheer amount of hype surrounding 5G. Hardware vendors and service providers are offering tantalizing promises of multi-gigabit wireless speeds delivered to phones and vehicles. Does anyone really believe that we'll see commercial 5G services in two years? I get the "Mobile" part means "Wireless," but it is fiber, fiber, and more fiber that will be necessary to make 5G gig speeds real. Service providers around the world are in the process of deploying and polishing existing 4G LTE networks. Current wireless spectrum is so tight that carriers want to spill over into the already messy space of Wi-Fi in order to increase download speeds, even as they deploy ever smaller 4G cells in higher densities for better in-building and urban coverage. Keep in mind the upper end for LTE Advanced speeds -- and this is before we go 5G crazy -- is a peak rate of 1 Gbps downlink and 500 Mbps uplink, with various trials - not commercial deployments, trials -- around the world bouncing around in the neighborhood of 250 Mbps to 300 Mbps in Europe and up to 700 or so Mbps in Asia. But the world isn't really at LTE Advanced speed yet. OpenSignal's latest crowd-sourced LTE speed data for the second half of 2015 puts Singapore and South Korea at top of the LTE pyramid with 34 Mbps to 37 Mbps average. The U.S. has broad geographic coverage at anywhere from 70 percent to 90 percent, but download speeds are a paltry 8 Mbps to 15 Mbps. When the smoke clears, you have to consider how U.S. carriers intend to deliver 5G. If they are lucky, they already have a decent, fiber-based network built out to support LTE and all they have to do is roll into all the towers they just finished upgrading to drop in newer, faster network equipment for more bandwidth along with new, not-yet-out-of-the-lab-or-in-production radios for faster wireless speeds. Two years to 5G? Sure... More realistically, carriers are going to have to get more fiber into their network for three reasons. One is sheer speed, assuming they want to deliver on the promise of multi-gigabit wireless services. SK Telecom and Ericsson demonstrated 25 Gbps download speeds while Verizon has been whispering into reporters ears about "multiple gigabits per second speeds." You can't do that over copper, bonded copper or even older fiber, because the baseline assumption I'd be making is you want to support multiple users for multiple gigabits. Give the state of the art with network speeds at anywhere from 40 to 100 Gbps, it is likely you will want more than one broadband pipe going to a distribution point to prevent congestion if you are servicing multiple customers. More fiber will be needed for reliability. Delivering reliable gigabit broadband will mean sweeping away the mess of copper and fiber deployed over the past decade or two and installing clean sheet fiber able to be upgradable from GigE up to 100 GigE. Single point distribution of broadband might have worked if you were expecting the max load on a cell tower was around 1 Gbps; in case of a backhoe incident, you might be able to fall back to broadband copper until someone could get out and splice things. Multi-gig speeds will require more robust networks that are agile enough to route around either physical issues such as fiber breaks and hardware failure, as well as to deal with network congestion and any SDN/NFV hiccups. Finally, more fiber will be needed because more "towers" will be needed. The radio frequencies to be used for 5G don't go very deep into buildings and structures and don't travel very far. If you thought LTE needed more towers, you're going to love 5G because carriers will need more distribution points and clever ways to route and bounce signals around to reach end-user gigabit speeds. The first harbinger of more fiber may be found in Verizon's $1.8 billion purchase of XO. Verizon gets more fiber something it hasn't really done a lot of with organically since shutting down new FiOS deployments a couple of years ago. Some of that fiber will no doubt get tapped for supporting further 4G and future 5G deployments. AT&T may be in better shape, having gone gigabit and fiber crazy with threats from Google Fiber in its markets. And where AT&T doesn't have a fiber footprint, it (and Verizon) will be able to leverage gigabit fiber deployments around the country by CenturyLink, Frontier, and Windstream. The key takeaway here is anyone that has put fiber down over the past decade should be able to find buyers in the cell tower space and by selling directly to wireless carriers, because 5G is going to need plenty of capacity. 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. From Armani to Versace, via Bulgari, Ferragamo and Missoni, Italys pre-eminent luxury labels are steadily moving into hospitality. Perhaps its unsurprising then that Fendi should be following suit. For although the company began life in 1925 as a purveyor of furs and leather goods, four decades later it hired Karl Lagerfeld as creative director a role he has held for more than half a century with the brief to turn it into a more multi-faceted luxury brand. With its style credentials firmly established, in 1989 a furniture and accessories line, Fendi Casa, was born. Its no wonder the label now needs an appropriate setting in which to showcase its wares. Having recently completed the transformation of one of Romes most imposing modernist landmarks the Mussolini-commissioned Palazzo della Civilta Italiana into Fendis new global headquarters, Italian architect Marco Costanzi, who has created private residences and luxury boutiques for the likes of Elie Saab and Valextra, was the natural choice for the companys next project. Current cancer treatments often involve aggressive treatment with high doses chemotherapy in an attempt to wipe out as many tumour cells as possible. But complete eradication of cancer is rare, and the toxic side effects of chemotherapy can be highly destructive - not only leading to hair loss, nausea and extreme fatigue, but also crippling the body's immune system or triggering anaemia. Some experts believe high-dose chemotherapy may actually worsen cancer by exerting a natural selection pressure that helps drug-resistant tumour cells to become more abundant which means if cancer returns it will be fatal. The new strategy is designed to prevent drug-resistant tumour cells getting a handle. 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. 23 May 2022 - Understand the French healthcare system, how you access it and how you are reimbursed - Useful if you are new to the French healthcare system or want a more in-depth understanding - Reader question and answer section Aimed at non-French nationals living here, the guide gives an overview of what you are (and are not) covered for. There is also information for second-home owners and regular visitors. "The decision firstly includes giving an amount worth $7,000 to every family of a martyr of the intifada in Jerusalem," Ambassador Mohammad Fathali said in Beirut, Reuters reported. $30,000 will be paid to every Palestinian family whose house has been demolished as a result of the violence, the ambassador added. Antonio Tajani and Matteo Salvini will be vice presidents in the first government led by a woman in the history of this European country. | Read More First Official Pic of Bahubali-the Conclusion Rajamouli's upcoming film Baahubali 2 Shooting was started few days back and some photos from the film sets have been leaked and making rounds on social media. Here is the first official snap of Baahubali 2 from the sets and it was officially released by the film producer Shobu. Have a look at the first snap from Baahubali The conclusion sets, where in the director Rajamouli, Srivalli, Cinematographer KK Senthil and Art director Sabu Cyril were in a serious discussion. Young Rebel Star Prabhas has recently joined shooting for Bahubali the Conclusion. The shooting is expected to be complete by this year end and movie will release in 2017. News Posted: 23 February, 2016 First Look: Ashta Chamma Combo Is Back After scoring back to back hits with Bhale Bhale Magadivoy and Krishna Gadi Veera Prema Gaadha young hero Nani is coming up with yet another romantic entertainer. The film will be directed by Mohanakrishna Indraganti who introduced Nani as hero with Ashta Chemma.The yet to be titled film's first look has been unveiled and Nani appears stylish with black shades and grown beard. Nani is said to be playing a dual role in this flick. Malayalam actress Niveda Thomas and Surabhi will pair with him for the first time. Actor Srinivas Avasarala who was also introduced by Mohan Krishna is playing a crucial role in this movie.Yesteryear composer Mani Sharma has been zeroed into render songs. News Posted: 23 February, 2016 Another Kadapa District MLA Joins TDP YSRCP has suffered another big blow. After losing four of its MLA'S now the party has lost another MLA. T Jayaramulu, MLA from Badvel in Kadapa district, native of YSRC president Y S Jaganmohan Reddy defected to the ruling party. Jayaramulu met chief minister Chandrababu and joined the party along with his followers. Addressing media Jayaramulu said that Badvel constituency is backward in many aspects and said he joined the TDP only for the sake of "development" of his constituency. He further revealed that Chandrababu had assured to develop the Badvel constituency and also focus on the higher education for Dalits and their children. Jayaramulu said that he will resign and face the election if circumstances compel him for the elections. With this, the total number of YSRC MLAs to switch sides has gone to five. Jayaramulu's desertion is a shock to the YSRCP because the party has declared that there would be no more desertions from the party. Jayaramulu is the second legislator from Kadapa district, who had jumped the fence. Already Jammalamadugu MLA C Adinarayana Reddy along with his MLC brother C Narayana Reddy had joined TDP. News Posted: 24 February, 2016 TS EAMCET-2016 on May 2 Hyderabad, Feb 24 (INN): The entrance examination for admission into medicine, agriculture and engineering streams, EAMCET-2016, will be held across Telangana State on May 2. Speaking to media persons after releasing the schedule, Telangana State Council for Higher Education (TSCHE) Chairman Prof. Papi Reddy informed that the notification for EAMCET-2016 would be released on Thursday. The candidates will be able apply online from 28th February. They can submit the applications without fine till 29th March. They can apply with a fine of Rs. 500 from 29th March to 3rd April, with a fine of Rs. 1,000 till 13th April, with a fine of Rs. 5,000 from 22nd April and with a fine of Rs. 10,000 till 29th April. Prof. Papi Reddy said that the candidates would be given an opportunity to correct the mistakes in their applications from 3rd to 13th April. The hall tickets can be downloaded from 24th to 30th April. On 2nd May, exams for Engineering stream will be conducted from 10 AM to 1 PM and exams for Agriculture and Medicine will be conducted from 2.30 PM to 5.30 PM. The Preliminary Key for the exam will be released on 3rd May and objections and suggestions will be accepted till 9th May. The EAMCET rankings will be announced on 12th May. The entrance fee for SC and ST students will be Rs. 250 while for other candidates it will be Rs. 500. Candidates reaching the examination hall late by even one minute will not be allowed to appear for exams. News Posted: 24 February, 2016 KCR didn't respond to my call: Smriti Irani Hyderabad, Feb 24 (INN): Union HRD Minister Smriti Irani has alleged that Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao did not respond to her calls on day when HCU research scholar Rohit Vemula committed suicide. Making a statement in Lok Sabha on Wednesday, the Union Minister said Rohit's dead body was not allowed to be taken to a hospital from the premises of Hyderabad Central University. This was done only to play politics over the dead body, she alleged. 'I made a call to KCR but I was told that he is busy. I even called up his daughter and MP Kavitha' she said. On this, TRS MP Jitendar Reddy countered stating that the Chief Minister has ordered a probe and also sought details from Intelligence Chief Shivdhar Reddy. He said that the Telangana Police have already registered a case in this regard. Stating that she was moved by the death of Rohit Vemula, Smriti Irani said she was in receipt of letters from several MPs including V. Hanumantha Rao, Asaduddin Owaisi and Union Labour Bandaru Dattatraya seeking justice on Rohit Vemula's issues. The Union Minister also accused Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi of playing politics over Rohit's dead body. "Rahul Gandhi had no time to visit a single family of over 600 students who ended their lives for the cause of Telangana statehood. He never visited any other house whose sons or daughters have committed suicide. But he went to HCU, consoled Rohit's family and even staged dharna with them' she said. News Posted: 24 February, 2016 The Economic and Cyber Crime Division (ECD) of the Royal Thai Police conducted a raid of two outlets of a leading technology retail seller at The Mall Bangkhae Department Store in Bangkhae District, Bangkok. The police seized two Lenovo notebooks, one flash drive and one external hard disk, all of which contained pirated Microsoft software. The registered owner of the shop, whose business consisted of loading pirated software onto new PCs purchased by consumers and small businesses, faces criminal prosecutions. ECD police say shops such as this are the source of pirated software. As soon as peoplebuy new PCs, shops such as this illegally load pirated software. Many consumers are unaware of the risks associated with pirated software, such as malware and cybercrime. Police are cracking down on shops that sell pirated software as it is a direct link to malware and cybercrime. ECD Deputy Commander, Pol. Col. Dr. Kittisak Plathong said shops that sell pirated software will be raided as violation of intellectual property. Pirated software and malware pose a threat to Thailands cyber security. Pirated software is also illegal to sell and a violation of the Thai Copyright Act. Last year, the Economic Crime Suppression Division (ECD) found over 500 million baht of unlicensed and illegal software, nearly 20 percent higher than 2014. This indicates that consumers and corporations need to have a better level of understanding about the Copyright Act, the associated legal penalties for infringement and critical implications to their business and financial security. But the newest and most dangerous aspect of the high level of illegal software in Thailand is the link between pirated software and cyber criminals. Some less reputable computer manufacturers and retailers may use counterfeit copies of popular software products to build machines more cheaply to increase their profit margins. When people buy a new PC or laptop, they expect that machine to be secure out of the box. The malware, embedded in counterfeit software, is engineered to spy on users and conduct denial-of-service attacks including stealing personal information, locking the PC, using PC to send spam, or downloading other malicious software without notice and consent. It is a fact that pirated software contains security gaps. Any PC with pirated software is an easy target for criminals and hackers. With a software piracy rate of approximately 70 percent in Thailand, the nation is vulnerable, said Pol. Col. Dr. Kittisak. We urge everyone to stop buying, selling and or using pirated software. When you consider to buy a new PC or laptop, please check whether the shop is certified with genuine products. This should be taken very seriously indeed, as the impact could be far-reaching, costly and destructive. It is not worth the risk. Non-mining business investment is still failing to compensate for the resources downturn, an assessment of first-half profit results by Australian companies shows. The US investment bank Citi said early analysis of results and company statements over the past three weeks pointed to a continued drag on gross domestic product growth by weak capital expenditure. Non-mining business investment looks set to remain sluggish in 2016 and 2017. Credit:Bloomberg The Australian Bureau of Statistics will publish on Thursday fourth-quarter business investment data, with revised estimates for this financial year and first intentions for 2017, in the lead-up to complete national accounts next week. Capital expenditure includes investment in new buildings and other structures, as well as equipment, plant and machinery. Demand from China for raw materials helped drive massive investment in new mines and related infrastructure throughout much of the 10 years until 2012. About Me Ms. Gamzon BFA, Drama (Directing) Carnegie-Mellon University MA, SUNY-Brockport, English Literature MA, University of Rochester, English Literature, Ph.D candidacy. Community theatre director--Shipping Dock Theatre, JCC, Blackfriars, RAPA, Rochester Shakespeare Players, former GeVa stage manager View my complete profile Blog Archive For Erik Ly, the importance of the Safe Schools program is simple: it saved his life. Erik, who describes himself as a trans masculine person, went to five different high schools by the time he graduated last year. Only his last two schools had signed on to the Safe Schools initiative, which aims to make school more inclusive for young lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex people. A Brunswick woman in her 30s has become the 15th confirmed case of measles, in an outbreak of the highly infectious viral disease that continues to spread through Melbourne's north, northwest and east. A Health Department spokesman revealed the tally rose to 15 overnight after authorities were notified of the woman's condition. It comes on the back of five new confirmed cases on Tuesday and five the day before. A Footscray West Primary School student suspected of contracting the measles infection yesterday has since been cleared. A woman was allegedly raped while being held captive for days at a house in Melbourne's outer eastern suburbs. Police arrested a 35-year-old man after the woman managed to escape a house on Alfred Street in Lilydale at about 7.15pm on Tuesday. The woman, who knew her alleged captor, was able to raise the alarm after being held against her will for "a number of days". A Lilydale man was arrested a short time later and has been charged with unlawful imprisonment, rape and intentionally and recklessly cause injury. As Australian drug trafficker Van Tuong Nguyen was in a Singapore cell facing the end of his life, one of his lawyers, Julian McMahon, offered him some solace in words written by Sir Thomas More as he awaited his own execution almost 500 years earlier. Mr McMahon, a Melbourne barrister who was a national finalist in the 2016 Australian of the Year awards for his human rights work, is due to speak on Wednesday night at the Saint Thomas More Forum in Canberra. Anti-death penalty campaigner Julian McMahon in Canberra on Wednesday. Credit:Jay Cronan While representing Van Nguyen, who was hanged in Singapore in 2005, Mr McMahon referred back to the case of Sir Thomas, the Lord Chancellor of England, beheaded in 1535 after standing firm in his Catholic faith and refusing to swear that the Crown had supremacy over the Church. "In the last year of Van Nguyen's life, he had become much more interested in his Catholic faith so I had actually given him copies of a few pages written by Thomas More while More was in his cell awaiting his execution," Mr McMahon said. 9.22am: Watch out for a two-car crash on the corner of Coulter Drive and Belconnen Way in Belconnen. Police say the tow trucks have not been called yet. 8.50am: Ginninderra Drive at Charnwood is all clear after an earlier crash. 8.11am: We're got reports one eastbound lane is still closed due to an accident on Ginninderra Drive at Charnwood . Police say there are no new updates in their system, and that they're still waiting on street sweepers. 7.20am: A two-car crash is still blocking access to Tillyard Drive from Ginninderra Drive. Street sweepers are on the way but police are warning people to be cautious in the area. 6.50am: There's been a crash at the intersection of Ginninderra Drive and Tillyard Drive in Charnwood. Police say Tillyard Dr is blocked off at the moment. If you see any accidents or have any info on the morning commute, let us know whenever it is safe to do so. Email morningblog@canberratimes.com.au or tweet us @canberratimes. Dryandra Street in O'Connor and Turner will be closed in both directions from Frith Road to Scrivener Street tonight from 7pm to 5am while the roundabout at Dryandra Street and Fairfax Street is resurfaced. Fairfax Street will remain open. Morshead Drive and Pialligo Avenue will have partial lane closures each night this week until Friday February 26 from 6.30pm to 5am for resurfacing works associated with the Majura Parkway. Work will be conducted on Morshead Drive from the Duntroon roundabout to the Pialligo Avenue and Fairbairn Avenue intersection and in stages along Morshead Drive and Pialligo Avenue with one lane remaining open to traffic in both directions. The Australian War Memorial's Voices from the Front exhibition continues, telling the stories from the First World War through the letters and diaries of those who served. More details here. The National Portrait Gallery's Sideshow Alley exhibition promises to give infamy and the macabre through death masks, post-mortem drawings and other spooky portraits. More details here. See 2015's best political cartoons at the Behind the Lines exhibition at the Museum of Australian Democracy at Old Parliament House. Touch or click through for more David Pope Today: Sunny. Winds north to northwesterly 20 to 30 km/h tending west to northwesterly 25 to 35 km/h in the afternoon. Max 37. Friday: Partly cloudy. Slight (30%) chance of a shower. Light winds becoming north to northwesterly 15 to 20 km/h in the late afternoon then shifting easterly 15 to 25 km/h in the evening. Min 18, Max 31. Saturday: Partly cloudy. Slight (30%) chance of a shower. Light winds. Min 15, Max 27. Sunday: Partly cloudy. Slight (20%) chance of a shower. Light winds. Min 15, Max 28. Flight Centre Travel Group is making its first major push into pure online travel brands in more than a decade, in an acknowledgement that not all consumers prefer the higher touch and higher margin service from traditional travel agents. Managing director Graham Turner said the company would focus on building up its newly acquired Student Universe and BYOjet brands and its soon to be released Aunt Betty package holiday brand alongside the more blended Flight Centre brand model. Flight Centre managing director Graham Turner says the online market is competitive, but having specialist brands should help. Credit:Bradley Kanaris "I think [with online travel agents] if you are in a specialist area like youth and student or very low cost there is plenty of our opportunity there," he said. "If you are competing just head to head with booking.com and Expedia it is very hard since they are spending $3 billion or so marketing globally." His comments came after Flight Centre reported a 3.4 per cent rise in half-year underlying pretax profit to $145.9 million at a time when consumer confidence in the Australian market remained weak. It declared an interim dividend of 60, up from 55 last year. Bega Cheese executive chairman Barry Irvin says the company's partnership with vitamins maker Blackmores will extend beyond infant formula, and the two businesses have already began developing a range of products to help fuel the next boom in the dairy industry. Strong sales growth in Bega's nutritionals division, which includes infant formula, helped power the company's underlying net profit 9.9 per cent higher to $14.8 million in the six months to December 31. Andrew Robb, Li Na, Barry Irvin and Christina Holgate. Credit:Cameron Bloom Mr Irvin expected more revenue growth in nutritionals in coming years, and said the Blackmores' partnership would underpin that forecast. "We are running fast on new product development," he said. Are Australian bosses overpaid or highly skilled wealth creators? It's a question that's surfaced again after a bout of better-than-expected earning results from some of Australia's largest listed companies helped to line the pockets of chief executives from Westfield, Caltex and Amcor. Frank Lowy with sons Peter (centre) and Steven. Credit:Rob Homer On the same day that official statistics showed the nation's wage growth has eased to record lows, Westfield revealed it had forked out a staggering $US32.1 million ($A44.4m) to keep its top three executives fed over the 12 months to December 31, including handsome payments to two of chairman Frank Lowy's sons, Peter and Steven Lowy. Sydney-based Steven Lowy took home $US9.2 million for the period, while his Los Angles-based older brother Peter Lowy received total cash remuneration for the year of $9m. Steven Lowy's pay was slightly higher due to being paid out some of his annual leave and long service leave entitlements. Packaging company Pact Group is lessening it dependency on the food and beverage sector to boost growth in coming years. The company, backed by billionaire Raphael Geminder, delivered a 10 per cent lift in underlying net profit to $45.9 million in the six months to December 31. Pact Group chairman Raphael Geminder says the company is increasing its exposure to higher-growth sectors such as health and personal care. Credit:Pat Scala Revenue rose 8.4 per cent to $690.6 million, thanks to acquisitions, which included Barry Smorgon's Jalco business. Chief executive Malcolm Bundey said full-year earnings and revenue should be higher than 2015, and the company would look to fuel further growth in coming years through making its factories more efficient, snapping up more companies and changing its product portfolio mix. Sirtex investors reacted savagely to the cancer treatment company's disappointing sales for the December half, pushing its shares down sharply amid weariness whether the company will recoup the lost sales in the second half. Dose sales in the six months to December 31 rose 15.7 per cent, falling short of the 19.7 per cent growth flagged for the full year. The miss was partly due to a lack of progress with reimbursement negotiations in some markets in Europe, coupled with a two-month delay in the publication of a research study in an influential medical journal, which Sirtex hoped would open the door to more sales, particularly in the key US market. The study was finally published this week. Even so, revenues and earnings rose strongly, thanks in part to the weaker Australian dollar. The company's net profit for the half jumped 46.9 per cent to $25.9 million on revenue that was up 40 per cent at $12.6 million. Qantas workers have urged their boss Alan Joyce to back off plans to freeze their pay after the airline posted a record half-year profit of almost $1 billion. After Qantas announced its $921 million profit before tax on Tuesday, Linda White, the assistant national secretary for the Australian Services Union, said it was "going to make it a bit hard" to ask her low-paid members to accept a pay freeze in their next enterprise agreement. The comment was posted on social media after the airline announced on Tuesday it would return $500 million to shareholders as a result of the profit, which was helped by lower fuel prices, strong demand for international flights and ongoing cost cutting. The union said workers had increased their productivity since Qantas started shedding 2000 to 5000 jobs in 2014 and did not deserve to have their pay frozen. Even now, long after the festive season, the national bushfire alert a service mapping active fires across the continent is lit up like a Christmas tree. In Tasmania, hotter, drier conditions mean fires will need to be fought " for months to come" and incredible as it seems the British Met Office has predicted 2016 is likely to be hotter still . The recent bushfire in the south-west of Western Australia a monster blaze that created its own weather pattern and raged for 17 days, claiming two lives and razing the town of Yarloop is just one chapter in this year's devastating bushfire saga, which included the devastation around Victoria's Great Ocean Road in December. Just weeks ago, Perth broke the benchmark for the number of summer days over 40 degrees, so this spike takes us sailing into uncharted territory: a phenomenon repeated across the continent as records fall like dominoes, starting with the summer's widespread record temperatures across the south-east and Victoria's highest-ever minimum temperature, clocked in December 2015. As I'm writing this, the mercury is heading towards 40 degrees outside. Again. I've only just recovered from the recent four-day swelter-thon that broke the 50-year record for Perth. It's all very well if you want to cook Heston Blumenthal's slow-roast chicken in your car , but not if you'd prefer not to broil yourself or your offspring at the 3pm school pick-up. Maybe I'm missing something, but it seems like an odd time to slash our climate-modelling capacity and fundamentally limit our ability to prepare for what's coming down the pike. Yet, that's precisely the decision CSIRO chief Larry Marshall has been scrambling to defend for the past fortnight, claiming the agency needs to shift from measuring and modelling to mitigation. "CSIRO. We ask, we seek, we solve": except under Marshall's venture capitalist-flavoured leadership in relation to climate change, at least it looks like the organisation is going to just scrap the first two. It's a problem, perhaps, with applying start-up principles to a national research strategy and "crowd-sourcing" priorities in a tight fiscal environment. But maybe it's also a sign that climate science in Australia is simply too hot to handle. The Prime Minister was allegedly "blindsided" by news of the restructure, while Industry Minister Christopher Pyne expressed surprise that climate science programs were hit. But that's all a little hard to swallow even before you consider testimony to the Senate's Economics Legislation Committee revealing that both the minister and Prime Minister were briefed on the changes. What's more, Pyne, who played down the move as an "operational decision", is required by law to be provided with the strategic plan prior to its commencement. If slashing climate science is not a strategic shift then I don't know what is, but for a government hell-bent on doing the bare minimum on climate change, turning a blind eye while the nations' top climate scientists are quietly shown the door seems like not a bad move. Marshall insists the media has fundamentally misrepresented his February 4 announcement. If that's true, then so have senior researchers within CSIRO's own ranks, who have characterised his public statements as "inaccurate' and 'misleading". Anyone who wades through the testimony of senior executives to Senate estimates, though, will conclude the organisation plans to jettison up to 100 researchers out of 140 full-time positions from its core climate science programs. As for new priorities crafted, no doubt, with the good of the Australian community in mind climate-change mitigation is getting harder and harder to spot, despite Marshall's avowed enthusiasm for it. Years of federal funding cuts have seen CSIRO investment in geothermal energy and energy efficiency slashed in favour of research areas such as coal-seam gas that some analysts suggest are more likely to curry favour with the government. With Super Tuesday fast approaching March 1, when 12 states and one territory will hold their primaries it is timely to ask: what kind of Republican is Rubio? And what does he stand for? He has been called a "policy wonk". Hard-right Republicans rebuke him as a "moderate". Hard-left Democrats denounce him as a "reactionary". Yet neither label is appropriate for him. He is perhaps best described as a "maverick" a conservative, but not one that fits a single mould. Rubio defies simplistic ideological categorisation. Take his position on climate change. Unlike many Republicans, Rubio believes it is "real and not a hoax". Yet, unlike most Democrats (and scientists), he does not believe it is caused by human activity. Indeed, he has opposed Senate measures that attempt to define global warming in this way. Rubio's stance on immigration is not standard Republican fare. Like others in the party, he talks tough about securing the borders. Despite his Latino identity, he proposes to build a 700-mile fence to stop Mexicans illegally crossing into the US. Yet, at the same time, Rubio believes that the government should move to recognise undocumented immigrants who are already in America (subject to certain conditions). In 2013 he was one of the chief sponsors of a bill that proposed a path to citizenship for these people. This bill was deeply unpopular with most Republicans and was ultimately abandoned. However, in conservative circles, Rubio won praise for his engagement with foreign policy and the economy. An opponent of the Iran nuclear deal and diplomatic outreach to Cuba, he is the most articulate Republican critic of Obama's foreign policy and the most credible-sounding proponent of the need for a more "muscular" US approach to the outside world. Given the wishy-washy, please-all, please-none performance of our Prime Minister, I can well understand those longing for a return to firm, fearless leadership in Canberra. By all means, bring back Peta Credlin. William Franken Rose Bay More in sadness than anger, Ross Gittins shows that Malcolm Turnbull is either consumed by ambition to stay Prime Minister as long as possible or is nowhere near as bright as many (including himself) think he is. It might be wise for Australian politicians to take heed of the political developments in North America. A do-nothing government with a huge majority was emphatically dumped in Canada for an opposition promising to do something to match the world in the 21st century, while in the US Bernie Sanders and especially Donald Trump are laying waste to their respective parties. It may be the political class in Canberra has not yet recognised that rather than leading, they are very much bringing up the rear. Tony Mitchell Hillsdale Come on, Malcolm Turnbull, you're in the driver's seat, so put your foot down. Most of us want to see you fulfil your potential. Stop worrying about the opposition and their policies and come up with your own. There are heaps of ways to raise revenue, although most of them should affect the more well-off and the big end of town. I suspect you are quite aware of this and are afraid of putting them off-side. Stewart Copper Maroubra I feel Malcolm Turnbull would genuinely like to introduce taxation reform but is severely hamstrung for fear of a backlash from the right and the big end of town. He should forget them and bite the bullet and introduce real reform aimed at a more equitable distribution of the tax burden. He could then pick up half the Labor vote as compensation. Brian Collins Cronulla Unfortunately, I agree with Ross Gittins that Malcolm Turnbull is losing his chance to be a great leader. As a mostly Liberal voter I was pleased when Turnbull deposed Tony Abbott to hear him say he would treat voters as intelligent beings and not resort to three word slogans. But, as Gittins says, Turnbull is now launching into an Abbott scare campaign against Labor's sensible suggestions on negative gearing and capital gains tax. What a shame. I may end up having to vote for Labor if Turnbull keeps on in this unedifying way. Diana Hazard Woollahra With the government's obsession with the budget emergency, whether real or contrived, should we not ask who we would prefer as Treasurer, rather than Prime Minister? It seems to me that the current incumbent is still in his car with his family and is still asking "Where the bloody hell are we?" And he hasn't even got to the next two questions: where do we want to be and how do we get there? Alan Parkinson Weetangera (ACT) Ross Gittins sees federal politics dominated by "moral pygmies". Brilliant image and and can we please have the T-shirt? Elizabeth Blackmore Kalaru Government by captain's pick, followed by no government at all. Makes the carbon tax seem positively inspired. Peter Leonard Kingscliff Forget the Senate Stan, the people need you as you are Stan Grant, please don't join one of the major parties (Letters, February 24). You present as a man of vision and commitment not only to your people but to the greater good of this country. With few exceptions, the major parties are populated by party-machine representatives who appear to have become more interested in retaining their seats than any genuine reform or progress. They will promise you the world and give you nothing. Just ask the Australian people. Lyn Savage Coogee Stan Grant has stepped forward as a prominent voice for our indigenous community. He has a positive and reasonable approach. The only way he can realistically achieve any of his aims is through our national Parliament. If either of our major parties entice him into their fold he will be absorbed into that party's agenda. He would be a natural partner to Nick Xenophon to their mutual advantage. Just imagine two politicians of principle in the Senate at the same time providing a voice for the under dog. Brian Greene Neutral Bay Don't go into politics Stan Grant, it will diminish you. Keep your dignity and keep on inspiring us. You might do more good just being you. Jill Power Manly Vale ACL prefer lies to dealing with reality The Australian Christian Lobby referred to the decision to review the Safe Schools teaching manual as a win against "rainbow ideology" ("PM accused of buckling over LGBTI school program", February 24). Hardly ideology, just a simple truth. Some people have a sexuality that does not fit into straight male/female stereotype. The Christian churches hold up the virtue of honesty, however, when it comes to homosexuality and gender diversity, the ACL would rather hear lies and force people back into the closet than deal with the reality. While ever the likes of Cory Bernadi and the ACL think homosexuality is a perverted lifestyle choice, they will never understand that gay adults start out as gay children. These children need love and support to shield them from this 1950s homophobia. Owen Torr Redfern Homophobia is alive and well and I hate it. I also hate bullying. One other thing I hate is people being labelled a homophobe when they simply hold a different view on an issue to the person doing the labelling. So it couldn't have been more ironic for Bill Shorten, when defending a program supposedly attempting to stop bullying, to label Cory Bernadi a "homophobe" ("At least I'm not a homophobe mate", smh.com.au, February 24). It seems Shorten will stop at nothing to wipe out bullying, even bullying. Steve Morrison Allambie Heights It's a bit rich for Malcolm Turnbull, Cory Bernardi and the rest to be instigating an investigation into the Safe School program for supposed indoctrination when they are spending a fortune on funding school chaplains. Indoctrination is clearly in the eye of the beholder. Nick Hendel Roseville The federal government's review of the controversial Safe Schools Coalition program is long overdue. This "anti-bullying" program focuses only on students who have homosexual or transgender feelings, or the minuscule percentage who are intersex. But there are far higher rates of bullying of students who appear different from others, or have high or low school grades, or belong to a minority race or religion. Some of these commit suicide. Where is the million-dollar program to help them? The Safe Schools Coalition program needs to be completely rewritten. Every student deserves respect. Roslyn Phillips Tea Tree Gully (SA) The question is: should Christians allow the secular to go about teaching tolerance? Rod Hibberd Picton I see the Australian Christian Lobby is commenting on the decision of Newtown High School regarding their dress code. Last time I saw Cardinal Pell on TV, he was wearing a dress, and I think that many priests and ministers follow his lead in wearing long frocks. Grahame Burton Hurlstone Park Profit before public The news that Coca-Cola is sponsoring research that protects its products, like the news that Exxon supported anti-climate change research for public consumption, shows the problems of academic research being dependent on the business sector for funding, as seems to be inherent in the government's new "innovation nation" policy ("What Coca-Cola isn't telling you about its health funding in Australia", February 24). Pleasing business, or making money for business, is not necessarily always in the public interest. However, it will always be in the interest of profit. Jon Marshall Lilyfield Just hanging around If we discover the bats' secret to lives unaffected by the viruses they carry, and incorporate it into our disease-ridden existences, do we get to spend the rest of our lives just hanging around and flying by the seat of our sonar ("Bats immunity could help humans fight deadly diseases", February 24)? Helen Bersten Roseville Vote for smiley face Stewart Fist (Letters, February 24) is right to see the proposed changes to Senate voting as another step away from voting for individuals and towards voting for parties. But the horse has already well and truly bolted. Even in lower house elections, the majority of people think they're electing a prime minister or a premier. These days, and with all due respect, the local candidate is little more than an anonymous smiley face stuck on the party logo to give it some local flavour. True electoral reform is one of the many elephants in the tally room. Tom Mangan Woy Woy Bay Why not Nauru? Malcolm Turnbull says, "Keeping this facility open is contrary to our values. It undermines our standing in the world. It is viewed as a stain on our broader record." Full respect, Malcolm! The sign of a great leader is someone prepared to do the right thing, despite opposition. Oh, hang on a minute, that wasn't Malcolm, it was Barack ("Obama outlines plan to close Guantanamo", February 24). Sorry, everyone, as you were. Annie Gurton Freshwater Debt disaster threat I wonder if Jeffrey Mellefont (Letters, February 24) would be so pleased with the prospect of falling house prices if he was a young person who had just managed to purchase a home only to find a year later that his loan was now considerably more than the value of his house. The effect of house price rises and falls varies enormously depending on where a person is in the buy-sell spectrum, regardless of their means. For the less well off, the collapse of their hard-won equity could mean debt disaster. Alynn Pratt Killara Tattoos give eyes have it a new meaning I hope the Minister for Health, Jillian Skinner does not outlaw eye ball colouring and eye ball tattooing ('Appalling' eyeball tattooing legalised by the state, smh.com.au, February 23) Anyone stupid enough to have that done to them may also take ice or engage in other reckless behaviour. What better way for us to identify these people than to watch for a pair of brilliant green or purple eyes approaching. That will give us time to cross to the other side of the road. Lin Sinton Killarney Heights Eye ball tattooing, the literal example of beauty is in the eye of the (tattooed) beholder. Peter Lloyd Asquith Julie Bishop's "death stare" would be something else if she had her sclera dyed red she'd win every staring contest. David Gordon Emu Plains Missing the next bus Oh dear! So the man on the Clapham bus will have to decide whether he still wants to remain a milking cow for Brussels, or part of a perhaps greater Britain (The big decision on future of EU, Britain, February 24.) Best of British luck with that one, eh wot, ol' chap. Roger Cameron Marrickville Return defies definition The prospect that Tony Abbott might return as Opposition Leader if Malcolm Turnbull loses the next election (Letters February 24). Now that really does fit the definition of a scare campaign! There is no fundamental disagreement among the major political parties, nor among some of the minors, that Australia's system of voting for Senate candidates is deeply flawed and needs fixing. The existing arrangements, whereby parties predetermine which other party or candidate will receive their Senate preferences, has led to freakish results. In 2013, for example, it resulted in the election of candidates such as Ricky Muir of the Australian Motoring Enthusiasts Party, who garnered only 479 primary votes but secured the sixth Senate seat in Victoria due to a cascade of preferences from similarly obscure micro-parties. Change is vital to ensure that the democratic system is as transparent and equitable as it can be. To that end, we believe the framework of the Turnbull government proposal to amend the Commonwealth Electoral Act, which has the support of the Greens and independent senator Nick Xenophon, is sensible, fair and worthwhile. The reform flows from a report by a joint parliamentary committee examining electoral matters which, in May 2014, recommended unanimously, it should be noted that substantial reforms were needed to avoid what has become known as "gaming" the preferences. The most important aspect of the change is the abolition of group voting tickets, the process whereby parties advise the Australian Electoral Office, in advance, where they want their preferences directed. Voters have not been privy to that information, so they have not known how the fall of preferences could affect the outcome. Opponents claim the changes would eliminate micro-parties and diminish the prospects of minor parties or independent individuals achieving a Senate seat. They claim it will cause power to consolidate with the Coalition, Labor, Greens and the South Australian independent Nick Xenophon. We believe that is unduly alarmist. Nothing is stopping individuals or micro-parties from entering the contest. Their names will still be on the ballot, and if their campaigns are sufficiently potent they should attract votes. Primary votes are not affected. What is curtailed are the secret preference deals struck between candidates, beyond sight of the voters, that funnel undue weight to micro-parties. A second aspect of the proposed reform would change the way votes are cast on the ballot paper. For now, voters are required to lodge a single vote for one candidate above the line, or to preferentially number every candidate below the line. The reform would place the names of at least six parties or groups of candidates above the line (each state has 12 Senate seats available, six of which become available every three years) and a voter would mark these from one to six in order of preference. Alternatively, the voter could number one to six for any of the individual candidates below the line. Labor opposes the proposed reform. We suggest it is on the wrong side this time. We also suspect it is acting to protect its own interests. Among other things, Labor has argued the changes will increase the number of informal votes. Considering the Senate paper in Victoria in 2013 was a metre long and had 97 candidates below the line, we do not consider the risk is elevated. I found no credible evidence that the elderly or disabled were threatened. In fact, spokespeople for these groups explained to me how these laws had empowered their members by offering them a choice about the treatment they could ask for at the end of their life. Another surprise: the tiny number of people who use these laws. In the Netherlands, less than 4 per cent of all people who die a year. In Belgium, less than 2 per cent. And in Oregon? A microscopic 0.5 per cent. As one doctor put it: "I cannot imagine why they would expect an avalanche anywhere. It just turns out that people don't want to die!" Having seen the careful way end-of-life medicine is practised overseas, I wondered how Australia, with no law for assisted dying, compared? Here was the next big surprise. It turns out that, even without a law, doctors here have been assisting people to die for years. Not only did I get this anecdotally from most of the doctors to whom I spoke, surveys down the years confirm it. The only problem is unlike overseas we don't really know how much it is happening. Or whether it's being done well, or for the right reasons, or even with the consent of patients, because the absence of a law here means we have no guidelines, no reporting mechanisms, and no system of review. All we have is doctors doing what they believe is best, depending on their personal beliefs. As Marshall Perron, the former Northern Territory chief minister, put it to me: If you want to have a conspiracy with your doctor to put down grandma and inherit the estate, do it here, because today in Australia a doctor can assist a patient to die with no witnesses, no second opinions and no cooling-off periods. I discovered that, despite having one of the best palliative-care systems in the world, even with optimal care, 20 per cent of Australian palliative care patients spend their last days enduring moderate to severe pain. As a past president of the Australian Medical Association, Dr Brendan Nelson, put it, there is "a small group of patients for whom no amount of medical treatment is going to relieve their suffering". The stories I heard about what it is like to be one of those patients were harrowing. Most shocking was this: in Australia today, it is ethically unacceptable for someone in unbearable pain to die quickly and painlessly by taking doctor-prescribed medication, as they do overseas. But it is ethically acceptable for that same person to die slowly and painfully, by refusing all treatment, including food and water, until they dehydrate and starve themselves to death. That's hard to believe, but that's the country in which we live. Why should a competent adult who is dying, and who begs for help to die quickly, be told they have to die slowly instead? There is no good answer to that question. But the bigger worry is that not too many of our politicians want to answer it. Worse, and this was the biggest surprise of all, neither, it seems, do the people at the top of our medical professions. Unlike overseas, where doctors took the lead in framing laws to help people die an honest acknowledgment they were already doing it and that guidelines to protect both them and their patients might be a good idea in Australia, the leadership of the AMA, the Royal College of Physicians, and Palliative Care Australia are all against assisted dying. They won't even poll their members to see if they feel the same way. It's probably no coincidence that the one group of medical professionals who favour assisted dying are the ones who see the suffering up close: nurses. Then, of course, there's us. The patients. For 20 years now, whenever we've been asked if we want a law for assisted dying, more than 70 per cent of us have screamed "yes". Interestingly, when doctors themselves are polled outside the profession, more than 50 per cent of them support assisted dying, too. Yass residents have hit out at a scheduled power outage which saw hundreds of homes lose electricity, and some water, on a day when the temperature was forecast to reach 40 degrees. Up to 240 occupants of rural properties around Yass were scheduled to lose power from 8.45am until 3pm on Thursday, but Essential Energy said on the morning they would reduce the hours; from 9am until 1pm. Economists are as worried by climate change as anyone but have had little impact on public debate about the threat. Credit:Nic Walker The outage was part of a series scheduled each Thursday for four weeks as the new Walgrove housing estate is built. It left many rural properties which rely on water pumps without running water for the duration, while the temperature was forecast to hit 40 degrees and the fire danger rating was very high. Bill Shorten and Cory Bernardi have clashed during a press conference at Parliament House, with the Opposition Leader calling the conservative Liberal senator a "homophobe". Mr Shorten was using a press conference to attack the Turnbull government's decision to review the Safe Schools program, which is designed to reduce bullying of LGBTI students. But things got heated when Senator Bernardi - the program's leading critic - walked past. Australia's most senior Defence official has delivered a stinging rebuke to critics of Australian of the Year David Morrison, branding them a "stalking horse" for resistance to the gender reforms the former chief of army imposed. Dennis Richardson, the Secretary of the Defence Department, suggested in Canberra on Wednesday night that retired Lieutenant-General Morrison had become a lightning rod for people with a deeper agenda against improving the military's culture on dealing with sexual and other abuse. "The [Australian Defence Force] leadership is genuinely committed. This is not a passing fad. A lot of the focus has been on David Morrison and a lot of the criticism he's come in for has been really bad," Mr Richardson told a gathering held by the Menzies Research Centre political think tank. "For instance, attempts to denigrate him for doing his job as chief of army because some people didn't like the cultural direction he wanted to go, I think, is second-rate to say the least. Okay, end of the day. Time to wrap up: the government released its Defence white paper which included $29.9 billion of spending; released its which included of spending; the white paper provides for a significant upgrade of naval capabilities including 12 new submarines ; provides for a including ; the opposition offered broad support for the white paper but devoted its question time capabilities to attacking the government's position on tax ; offered broad support for the white paper but devoted its capabilities to attacking the ; this was prompted by reports Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull will eschew widespread tax reform and adopt more modest measures; will eschew widespread and adopt more modest measures; however his backbench remains nervous about any changes to negative gearing. My thanks, as always, to Andrew Meares and Alex Ellinghausen for their superb work and to you for reading and commenting. You can follow me on Facebook. Andrew, Alex and I will be back - with Parliament - on Monday. We look forward to your company. She had an awkward encounter with the youngest member of the famous Kardashian/Jenner clan when sitting front row at Vera Wang's New York Fashion Week show last week, but Jesinta Campbell explains it was all above board. The model and former beauty queen appeared on Nine's Today to reveal there is a no-talking rule for those in the coveted seats, aka the frow, which she used to explain why Kylie Jenner looked to be blanking her. "There is this weird code at fashion week. You don't talk to anyone, you don't make eye contact with anyone," Campbell said, adding "Anna Wintour was across the runway from me." "The trustees became concerned about the actions of the council and exercised its constitutional right to govern the college directly," the letter said. A letter from the Bellevue Hill school to parents said the 13-strong council had not been dismissed, "although a number have now resigned". The Presbyterian Church has replaced 12 members of the Scots College school council largely with senior church figures. The school has deleted all history of its former council members from the internet and immediately renewed principal Ian Lambert's contract, which had been up for review by the former council. The Scots College in Bellevue Hill. Credit:Dallas Kilponen ANZ director Andrew Leithhead, TressCox partner Phillip Mitchell, Macquarie Bank's former head of strategy Greg Simitian, Blue Summit Financial Solutions director Ben Graham, prominent Cronulla lawyer Rod Simpson and former UNSW academic Gillian Heard are no longer on the council in the wake of the church's power grab. Only one of the school's former council members has survived: Scots old boy Bill Mclaren, an aged-care adviser. Fairfax Media can reveal that at least six of the eight newly installed council members on the rebranded "management committee" are deeply connected with the Presbyterian Church. The Tax Office has conceded that trust in Commissioner of Taxation Chris Jordan is "an issue" in wage negotiations with the agency's 18,000 public servants, according to one workplace union. The Australian Services Union says a workplace-wide survey into the reasons behind the rejection in December of a new enterprise agreement identified "trust in the commissioner" as an issue in the continued wages deadlock at the department, ATO negotiators have told unions. Tax Commissioner Chris Jordan says sometimes, when businesses are not doing well, they want to blame the ATO. Credit:Dominic Lorrimer But the account of the bargaining meeting is 'misleading, inaccurate, nonsensical' and a grab for publicity by the ASU, says the ATO in a tough-talking response to the union's claims. The Muslim prayer room at the University of Sydney has been trashed, with an abusive note left at the scene. The Sydney University Muslim Students' Association says it is the fifth time in three months that the prayer room has been targeted by vandals and thieves. The Islamic prayer room at Sydney Uni has been trashed Credit:Islamophobia Watch Australia The association's spokesman Shahad Nomani said a student at the university had discovered the ransacked room about 10am on Monday. "She walked in and found the cupboard open and all the things thrown down on the floor. I think some money was also stolen from the donation box and a note was left on the table," Mr Nomani said. One of Australia's most notorious armed robbers has beaten the parole board in his latest bid for freedom. But Brenden Abbott, dubbed the "postcard bandit", will remain behind bars until the board can take another look at his case. On Wednesday afternoon, Supreme Court Justice Jean Dalton set aside the board's decision to knock back Abbott's fifth parole bid but didn't have the power to order he be released. Instead, the case was adjourned for at least a week, with more discussion to come on when and how the two-time prison escapee would reapply for parole. Students at more than 200 catholic schools around the state will be affected by strike action by teachers fighting for better wages and conditions. Members of the Independent Education Union of Australia voted to stop work after 10 months of negotiations over a pay rise and increased demands on teachers and support staff. More than 8500 employees at 242 schools are expected to stop work on Thursday. About 200 schools will see staff stop work for the entire day, while about 40 schools will see staff out of action between 9am and noon. On Wednesday a group of space entrepreneurs and government figures are meeting in Canberra at an invitation-only event to take up the issue. In a sign of how important space is to the Turnbull government which has staked a lot on the mantra of innovation the Minister for Industry, Innovation and Science Christopher Pyne is expected to deliver the opening speech. The European Space Agency - not necessarily the model for Australia. ESA's Mission Control Room in Darmstadt, Germany. Credit:ESA - Jurgen Mai Public consultation on the review kicks off this week, giving everyone with a stake in space, which is arguably everyone, a platform to be heard on how the industry can be fostered. One area expected to be addressed by the review is the rules around cubesats, the new class of small, inexpensive satellites embraced by unis and research organisations. Whether the review will spark a full overhaul of Australia's space sector or make only changes at the margins remains to be seen. Seeking broad input on Australia's future role in space: Western Sydney University professor of international law Steven Freeland. Credit:WSU Professor Andrew Dempster at the University of New South Wales warns that if changes to existing space law focus chiefly on cubesats and smaller satellites it would be "too modest and narrow." Dempster, who is director of the Australian Centre for Space Engineering Research, says what's needed is a broader policy in Australia for space. Sign of the future times? Expectations are riding high for commercial space. A poster from NASA that imagines a future when Mars has been explored. Credit:NASA/JPL Australia doesn't "have any entity in the government that guides our activities in space, with a forward-looking strategy," he said. The falling costs of some technologies usable in space could reshape the economics of the industry, a change from the historically high costs of programs in the past. Currently there are about 1100 active satellites in orbit around Earth. Satellite industry research firm NSR forecasts the launch of more than 2500 sub-100 kg satellites over the next decade, generating revenues of nearly $US6 billion ($8.33 billion) by 2024. "When you're talking about these cubesats, you can put these things in space cheaply so we're no longer talking about big dollars in space," said Dempster. And those high costs are one of the things that have made space anathema to many a politician in past years. The expert adviser to the review, Western Sydney University professor of international law Steven Freeland, rejects the notion that the scope of the review will be narrow. "I don't feel this review is particularly limited at all. It's only limited by the terms of reference," he said. "It's really about looking at the best way for Australia to build upon its excellent research and science to further participate in space commercially. "It's much more than just changing words in legislation." According to the review's terms of reference, it seeks to learn whether existing law "supports innovation and the advancement of space technologies" and "promotes entrepreneurship and private investment in Australia". To stakeholders in Australia's space industry, Freeland says: "Tell us what you want and how you envisage the implementation of our existing expertise into new and additional realistic commercial opportunities for the country." Since the review of space law was announced in October 2015, interest has poured in from overseas, outpacing the local level of curiosity. "Everybody is asking these same questions given that space technology is changing so quickly," Freeland said. Much of the excitement around the space sector is being driven by the Big Data revolution on Earth, allowing for a depth of data-rich space-based ventures unthinkable in past years. These include everything from providing internet for Earth from space, to more accurate weather forecasting and environmental and resources management. The combination of such cheap and ubiquitous space technology with 3D printing may open up other possibilities, such as space mining, or the construction of space stations on a grand scale. The possibility of structurally lower costs in the price of launch services has moved closer, too, with breakthroughs by Elon Musk's SpaceX and Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin. The ability of businesses, governments and organisations to launch greater and more complex structures into orbit could create a bonanza in space-related services and products. To give an idea of the scale of change at stake, the UK Space Agency projects the space-enabled market is likely to be worth 400 billion ($778 billion) by 2030. For Australia to get a bite of that growth, however, changes are needed on the ground in terms of the industry, economic incentives and the path to production. To that end, a group of Australian space entrepreneurs and universities founded the delta-5 accelerator in early 2014 to try to foster start-ups that can grow into fully fledged companies independent of government programs. But the quest for greater coordination remains. Despite the starry-eyed wishes by some advocates for an Australian equivalent to NASA or the European Space Agency, Dempster doesn't think organisations of that scale would be needed. Rather, the UK Space Agency's may serve as a better example for Australia, he said. The UK Space Agency has the goal of seeking to gain 10 per cent of the global space market by 2030. Moreover, the UK Space Agency's built on existing government operations that didn't require the huge expenditures politicians associate with space. "I think [it is] a great example of what you can do with a modern approach to how you would set up a space agency." "I'm aware that courts and tribunals aren't used to hearing about social media and social media analysis, but I think they should [be]," Dr Anthony McCosker said. A social media expert called as a witness in the drawn-out battle over the Palace Theatre says it is the latter. The appearance of the Swinburne University lecturer marked a break in tradition for Victoria's planning tribunal, which is far more accustomed to hosting professors in heritage and architecture. The campaign to save the former Metro Nightclub from demolition and replacement with a boutique hotel has garnered enormous support on social media, with more than 36,600 people "liking" its Facebook page. Dr McCosker, a witness for those fighting to preserve the theatre, believes those virtual likes should be given more weight than a traditional petition of the same size, because by liking a page, you are not only approving of the cause, but staying involved in the whole process. "A petition is something that we would be used to in terms of gauging community support for something, where people collecting signatures have a hard and fast number [of people that have signed the petition]," he said "Facebook goes far, far further than that. It allows a continual discussion, a continual place to come back to, to react to things that are happening in real time." A Melbourne man accused of wrongfully claiming he could not attend court because of "urgent military duty", despite having allegedly left the army almost four decades earlier, will stand trial on a string of deception charges. Records show Neville McBryde Donohue, 63, served in the Australian Army between 1970 and 1976, but police allege that in 2014 and 2015 he presented three signed statutory declarations to Ringwood Magistrates Court that claimed military duty prevented him from meeting upcoming court dates. Neville Donohue is facing deception charges. He is also alleged to have given the court a statutory declaration in November last year that claimed he could not meet a future court date because he would be in another state on government business. Police allege he actually travelled to Hobart in his role as a salesman, a non-government job. Mr Donohue on Wednesday pleaded not guilty to 22 combined charges of using a false document, attempting to pervert the course of justice and perjury in Melbourne Magistrates Court. He pleaded guilty to 14 counts of making a false document. When Jodie Sparke heard the tragic news that a student at her former school had died on camp, the dreadful memories came flooding back. In 1995, when Ms Sparke was a 16-year-old student at the Huntingtower School, she almost died on the same remote camp in South Australia. She still lives with the scars. She suffered burns to 37 per cent of her body when a camp stove exploded like a "molotov cocktail". "My parents had to have that awful phone call," she recalls. "I was very close to death. It could have been a tragedy." A GROUP of women claiming to have been abused by the Ballarat clergy in the 1950s and 1960s have started a protest outside Nazareth House, the Ballarat nursing home where Bishop Ronald Mulkearns now lives. Bishop Mulkearns, now retired, is due to give evidence to the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse on Thursday via video link from the Mill Street nursing home. Gabby Short and Wendy Eldridge with a photo of the orphanage girls with paedophile priest Gerald Ridsdale. Credit:Luka Kauzlaric Gabby Short and Wendy Eldridge were among the group of women who demanded answers from the staff at the site, which was formerly also a girls' orphanage. They are demanding to know why the home is now "giving sanctuary" to the priest, whose testimony has regularly been delayed by Bishop Mulkearns' ill health. At one point the women tried to enter the building but were asked to leave by staff. Victoria's first vertical school will offer a different perspective on learning from five storeys high. It will boast impressive views of the CBD skyline, have an early-learning centre on its roof, and students will study outdoors and grow vegetables on the school's seven spacious balconies. An artist's impression of the planned five-storey school. The state government has released the architectural designs for a new primary school on Ferrars Street, South Melbourne, which will open in 2018 and accommodate more than 525 students. It is hoped the project alleviates enrolment pressures across inner Melbourne, where many schools are bursting at the seams. Beijing: The first red alert over air pollution in Beijing almost brought the capital to a standstill in December, with schools shut, construction halted and driving restricted. Now, in a swift policy shift, Beijing plans to issue a red alert based on higher thresholds: neatly changing the equation without necessarily reducing the smog. A red alert, the highest level of a four-tier warning system, will be issued if the daily average air quality index is forecast to exceed 500 for one day, 300 for two days or 200 for four days, Xinhua, the state news agency, reported on Sunday, quoting Beijing's environmental agency. The new standards will take effect before the end of March, it said. The air quality index, used in many countries, is an aggregate measure of various pollutants in the air. Currently, any reading above 200 for more than three days in Beijing will prompt a red alert, which activates numerous contingency plans that can disrupt jobs and businesses. Phnom Penh: Australia warned travellers that terrorists may be planning attacks in the Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur but never told Malaysian police what prompted the warning. "I strongly call upon Australia, if they have something, share with us," Malaysia's police chief Khalid Abu Bakar told reporters in Kuala Lumpur. Soldiers stand guard before the arrival of Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak for a joint police-army exercise in downtown Kuala Lumpur on Monday. Credit:AP "In this case, I do not know on what basis the advisory was issued," he said. Australia's travel advisory website smartraveller.gov.au warned of a possible attack in Kuala Lumpur last Sunday, indicating Australian agencies had received specific information about a potential terrorist plot. Over 5 million Americans are currently living with Alzheimer's, a number set to increase by 40 percent over the next decade, according to the Alzheimer's Association. By 2026, a quarter of America's adult population will be 65 and older. Staggering as these statistics are, they don't even begin to reveal the full implications of an aging (and increasingly senile) population with fewer and fewer care options. Thankfully, Colman Domingo tackles the subject with intelligence, heart, and humor in his magnificent new play, Dot, now making its New York debut at Vineyard Theatre. Through Domingo's sensitive treatment, real flesh-and-blood people emerge from the spreadsheets, engrossing us in their story. Once upon a time, Dotty (Marjorie Johnson) reigned supreme over her domain: politically active and holding little tolerance for foolishness, she raised three children and sent them off to college, even as the neighborhood seemed to crumble around her. Now the family has reconvened for Christmas at mom's row house in West Philadelphia. Oldest daughter, Shelly (Sharon Washington), thinks this might be the right time to discuss putting Dotty in a home. She's in the early stages of Alzheimer's and pretty soon it will be more than Fidel (Michael Rosen), her Kazakh home caregiver, can handle. Shelly's brother, Donnie (Stephen Conrad Moore), and his husband, Adam (Colin Hanlon), seem like her most natural allies in this endeavor, but they're distracted by their faltering relationship and weakened by their latest juice cleanse. Shelly certainly can't rely on her little sister, Averie (Libya V. Pugh), a loudmouthed D-list YouTube sensation. Playing the part of the cherry on top of this dysfunctional sundae, Stephen's ex-girlfriend, Jackie (Finnerty Steeves), has decided to join them for the holidays. The stage is alternately set for an explosive family drama or an uproarious farce. Dot doesn't disappoint on either front. Dotty (Marjorie Johnson) looks through photographs of disappearing memories. ( Carol Rosegg) This is very much an actor's play, full of plum roles and juicy dialogue, some of which causes the forward thrust of the plot to meander off-course. For instance, Jackie doesn't add much to the central themes of the show and her surprise B-plot (no spoilers here) is never satisfactorily resolved (Steeves does her best in this generally thankless role). Despite its shagginess, this kind of digression is preferable to the type of "writer's play" we're seeing a lot of on stages now, in which the performers are forced to make academic dissertations sound natural and spontaneous. Domingo (a Tony-nominated performer) knows how to write words and situations that actors can knock out of the park, which this cast happily does. Washington easily embodies the role of Shelly, the middle-aged lawyer with chameleonic hair. She's at her wit's end with mom and frustrated that her younger siblings won't help out. "I sound like such a bitch," she says, exasperated. "Girl, I don't feel like myself. This isn't me. I'm fun. Fun! Right?" Certainly, many American women will commiserate. Moore and Hanlon are masters in the kitchen whisper fight, while Pugh is just plain fun as Averie, the life of the party. Everyone has spot-on comic timing. It is Johnson, however, who truly astounds us with her performance. Somewhat cruelly named, Dotty is a woman used to being on top of everything. Over the course of the play, Johnson navigates a dozen little realizations that her memory is slipping each hitting us like a punch in the gut. We can see the disappointment and fear washing over her face. It is one thing to be completely gone (like Momo in The Humans), but to see one's oblivion coming, powerless to stop it, is truly terrifying. In addition to thoughtfully portraying this too-common scenario for the elderly, Domingo should be applauded for writing the character of a Central Asian immigrant: those exceptional children of the Soviet twilight who move our furniture, peddle our pedi-cabs, and have not hitherto been portrayed in our theater (to my knowledge). That ends with Fidel, a dynamic character made even more real through Michael Rosen's nuanced performance. Quietly speaking Russian, he engages in a fraught Skype conversation in the corner, but keeps his bad news to himself (which is easy since any interest expressed by his navel-gazing American employers is fleeting). He sublimates his pain as he shuffles around the house, cleaning up and serving coffee with a plastered smile. Like Academy Award winner Hattie McDaniel before him, Rosen proves that there's no such thing as playing "just a maid." Michael Rosen plays Fidel and Marjorie Johnson plays Dotty in Dot. ( Carol Rosegg) Accustomed to helming giant musicals like Bullets Over Broadway and The Producers, director Susan Stroman has marshalled the cast and designers in an intimate yet captivating production, with utmost attention given to the little details. Allen Moyer's first act set looked like it was plundered from my grandmother's house, all yellow cabinetry and busy fruit-print wallpaper. Ben Stanton's natural lighting trickles through the ground floor windows of the townhouse, slyly alerting us to the passage of time. Costume designer Kara Harmon exhibits a remarkable handle on her characters and their fashion choices: from Fidel's baggy jeans and fleece to Averie's knee-high boots. Nothing seems out of place. And that is another reason we can forgive Domingo's verbosity: When the design is this perfect, the acting this good, and the one-liners this witty, we have no desire to hastily vacate the theater. Full of laughter and heartbreak, Dot is an evening well-spent. Somalia, Afghanistan, Rwanda, and the newly thawed Arctic: Pulitzer Prize-winning Canadian photojournalist Paul Watson has covered some of the most volatile places on earth, taking unforgettable pictures along the way. Dan O'Brien's new play, The Body of an American, which takes on Watson as its subject, is now making its New York debut with Primary Stages at the Cherry Lane Theatre. Although the play received critical acclaim in London and won the 2013 PEN Center Award for Drama, it is difficult to see what all the fuss is about in this disappointing two-hander. The Body of an American is about the relationship between two men: Watson (mostly Michael Cumpsty) and playwright Dan O'Brien (mostly Michael Crane). I say "mostly" because the two actors play a myriad of other characters and occasionally switch roles (not as confusing as it sounds, but still needlessly complicated). After Dan hears an interview with Paul on NPR's Fresh Air, he becomes intrigued and begins an e-correspondence with the journo. Eventually, the two men meet in person on Paul's new beat: Victoria Island in the frozen north. Throughout, Dan states his intention to turn it all into a play. So meta! Michael Cumpsty plays Paul Watson, and Michael Crane plays Dan O'Brien in The Body of an American. ( James Leynse) The titular American body is that of Staff Sergeant William David Cleveland, a crew chief on one of the two U.S. Army helicopters shot down over Somalia in 1993 (an event immortalized in the 2001 film Black Hawk Down). Watson took a photo of Cleveland's dead body as it was dragged through the streets of Mogadishu, earning his subsequent Pulitzer. The public backlash from this image led the Clinton administration to pull out of Somalia. "If you do this, I will own you forever," the disembodied voice of Cleveland allegedly told Watson before he snapped the picture. What begins as a compelling ghost story (a meditation on guilt and its relationship to success) sadly devolves into an exercise in maudlin self-importance when Paul calls Cleveland's family looking for closure. "I believe your brother would still be alive today if people had known the truth," he tells Cleveland's brother (he had witnessed a similar desecration of the bodies of dead American servicemen a week before, but hadn't caught it on film). In response, the brother curtly requests that Paul never contact his family again. Crane's portrayal of this no-nonsense airman is among the most truthful and enlightening of the evening. Even at his most vulnerable, there is an impassable barrier to Paul's soul, a callus developed from decades of war reporting. "Everything has this kind of Hemingway patina to it," Dan complains about Paul's war stories. It is never pierced by the end of the play. Navigating that fact, Cumpsty brings an implacable creepiness to the role: Describing the misery of a Rwandan refugee camp in which a young girl wanders through a field of corpses, he slightly grins and says, "This would make a great picture." As unnerving as it is, it feels credible. Crane is equally believable as the sensitive playwright with a penchant for depression. Snowbound in an Ulukhaktok hotel room with no booze, they make quite a pair. One gets the sense that this story actually wants to be a buddy memoir, a dark answer to Tuesdays With Morrie (the annoying convention of projecting scene titles on the upstage wall reinforces this notion). Despite all the war and death and globally relevant stage action, the author can't seem to help himself from butting into the story: When Dan begins to talk about his estranged (and strange) family, the play takes on the frustrating undertones of a therapy session. Dan O'Brien (Michael Crane) talks as Paul Watson (Michael Cumpsty) listens in The Body of an American. ( James Leynse) On top of this, O'Brien's text often veers into theatrical cliche: "Sand snow sand snow sand snow sand snow," Dan rhythmically chants before discussing his flight to the Northwest Territories. At another moment, Paul crouches around Cleveland's body, repeating the word "click." The actors furiously circle, cross, and shift character in Jo Bonney's deceptively lackadaisical staging. Richard Hoover's minimalist set consists of two chairs backed by towers of white slats on which Alex Basco Koch displays his illustrative projections. It's mostly forgettable though. A few false epiphanies wrapped in self-pity and uninspired stagecraft, The Body of an American looks and feels a lot like a one-man show in a fringe festival (but with two men). None of this is to say that Watson's life and work is unsuitable for theatricalization. On the contrary, Watson (who recently departed his job at The Toronto Star after receiving pushback on his reporting about the fabrications of a well-connected businessman) seems a human synthesis of controversy and conviction an ideal subject for drama. Unfortunately, O'Brien never satisfyingly gets under Watson's Kevlar vest of mental self-preservation to offer us a deeper understanding of the man and his motives. It's hard to walk away not wishing for our 90 minutes back. This is going to end not just badly but disastrously. If it ends at all. Via The Guardian: Refugee arrivals in Greece exceed 100,000 in less than two months. Excerpt and then a comment: More than 100,000 refugees and migrants have arrived in Europe so far this year, at triple the rate of arrivals over the first half of 2015. At least 102,500 have arrived on the Greek islands of Samos, Kos and Lesbos, according to the International Organisation for Migration (IOM). Another 7,500 have reached Italy, and in the first six weeks of the year 411 people are known to have died attempting to make the journey. In 2015 the threshold of 100,000 arrivals was not reached until the end of June. As spring approaches and the weather improves, the rate of arrivals this year is expected to climb further. The IOM said 20% of the arrivals were from Afghanistan and nearly half were Syrians. On Monday the US and Russia agreed to organise a partial truce involving the Assad regime and most of the Syrian armed opposition, but not Islamic State or the Nusra Front. There are widespread doubts about how effective the ceasefire will be and how long it will last. The influx of refugees has been met with a chaotic response among European countries. On Friday Austria imposed of a cap on the number of people it would admit each day to 80 asylum seekers and 3,200 people seeking transit to other EU countries. The restriction prompted Macedonia to stop Afghans crossing its border from Greece, triggering riots by Afghans and bitter complaints from Athens and the UN refugee agency, the UNCHR. The agency said: These newest restrictive measures risk violating EU law and undermine efforts for a comprehensive and coordinated approach to deal with the refugee and migrant crisis in Europe. It called for a unified approach from Europe. A UNHCR survey published on Tuesday found that 94% of Syrians arriving in Greece in January had risked the sea crossing to escape war, and 71% of the Afghans surveyed cited conflict and violence. And yet, with every passing week, it appears some European countries are focusing on keeping refugees and migrants out more than on responsibly managing the flow and working on common solutions, the agency said. Greek police rounded up hundreds of Afghan migrants stuck on the Macedonian border and bused them back to an army-built camp near Athens on Tuesday. Medecins Sans Frontieres said its teams had witnessed police in the town of Polykastro kicking Afghan refugees, including women and children, for refusing to board a bus that would forcibly take them back to Athens. MSF said refugees stranded on the border are being provided with no information, little to no humanitarian assistance and are at risk of violence and abuse. As I wrote in The Tyee last September, behind Alan Kurdi are 70 million other refugees. We'd better get used to them for the next century or two. After all, many of us are the descendants of the "barbarian" refugees who swamped the Roman Empire over 1,500 years ago. The empire lasted more as memory than reality, but if the barbarians hadn't survived, where would we be today? Via the Brazilian MOH: Casos suspeitos chegam a 4.107 em todo o pais.[Suspected cases reach 4,107 nationwide] Edited excerpt from the Google translation, and then a comment: A report released on Tuesday (23) also points out that 950 notifications have been dropped and 583 confirmed for microcephaly and other nervous system disorders. The suspected microcephaly cases under investigation by the Ministry of Health and the states have reached 4,107 nationwide. The figures are part of the Epidemiology of Microcephaly report, released on Tuesday (23). The report also shows that 950 notifications have been discarded and 583 confirmed for microcephaly and other nervous system disorders, suggestive of congenital infection. The 583 confirmed cases occurred in 235 municipalities located in 16 Brazilian states: Alagoas, Bahia, Ceara, Maranhao, Rondonia, Espirito Santo, Goias, Mato Grosso do Sul, Para, Paraiba, Pernambuco, Piaui, Rio Grande do Norte, Goias , Rio de Janeiro and Rio Grande do Sul. Since the 950 cases were discarded because they had normal exams, or other infectious causes were found for microcephaly and/or changes in the central nervous system. It should be noted that the Ministry of Health is investigating all cases of microcephaly and other disorders of the central nervous system reported by the states, and their possible relationship with the Zika virus and other congenital infections. Microcephaly can be caused by various infectious agents beyond Zika, such as syphilis, toxoplasmosis, other infectious agents, rubella, cytomegalovirus and viral herpes. The 4,107 cases under investigation represent 72.8% of the total cumulative reported 5,640 cases since the beginning of investigations on October 22, 2015 up to February 20, 2016. The total reported is spread over 1,101 municipalities in 25 Brazilian states. Amapa and Amazonas are the only states of the federation which have no record of cases. In all, 120 deaths were reported from microcephaly and/or alteration of the central nervous system after birth (stillbirth) or during pregnancy (miscarriage or stillbirth). Of these, 30 were confirmed as microcephaly and/or alteration of the central nervous system. Investigation continues on 80 cases, and 10 have been discarded. Of the total confirmed, 67 were reported by specific laboratory criteria for Zika virus. However, the Ministry of Health points out that this figure does not adequately represent the total number of cases related to the virus. The ministry considers that there was Zika infection in the majority of mothers whose babies were eventually diagnosed with microcephaly. Residents in the hamlets that surround Mount Zion in Massachusetts are torn. They love nature, but theyre not sure they want an island near their hometown filled with a bunch of poisonous snakes. Im guessing, but Id say [the amount of people in town who want an island nearby filled with hundreds of venomous snakes] is totally split, Daily Hampshire Gazette Editor-in-Chief Larry Parnass told The Daily Beast. Lets back up. The Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife wants to dump up to 200 endangered timber rattlesnakes onto an island in the Quabbin Reservoir, which sits between eight towns in central Massachusetts. They are, according to Massachusetts Wildlife Foundations Tom French, the species that has declined the most of any of our other listed species in modern times. The timber rattlesnake is imperiled the most, he said. If theyre gonna be saved, they need to be saved now. Problem is, Island With a Bunch of Goddamn Poisonous Rattlesnakes on It does not sound like a particularly good tourist destination. Plus, theres an access road to Island With a Bunch of Goddamn Poisonous Rattlesnakes. Plus, the goddamn poisonous snakes can swim, but probably not far enough to make it to the mainland. Probably. A lot of people dont think public money should ever be spent on something that is an enemy of people, said Parnass. But the governor already signed off on it. Some of the early letters said things like, If Boston people think this is such a good idea, why dont they let em loose in the statehouse? said Parnass. Those letters hes referring to are the ones he received at the Daily Hampshire Gazette. In addition to being editor-in-chief, he also oversees the Opinion page and residents have provided a lot of color since the snake storys inception, and even more so since it became a borderline national news story. (See: This thing is like pole-vaulting over a mouse turd. Theres some people who want to make it of some monumental interest that is not deserving of the attention that its getting.) Because, you know, Goddamn Poisonous Rattlesnake Island. But heres the sad, disgusting truth: Its probably the right thing to do. You hear the state wants to incubate a colony of rattlesnakes and you think, Is this The Onion or what? But the truth is, the science is pretty settled on this, Parnass said. It comes down to, Do you want a species to go extinct on your watch? After all, nobodys going to stumble upon the island without trespassing or messing with the water supply. (The Quabbin is part of that.) There are some more timber rattlesnakes up in nearby Mount Tom and they dont tend to interact with people as it is, they just nestle on loose rocks on the cliffsides. In terms of public safety, its really a no-brainer, said Parnass. Still, the public had a chance to comment on Rattlesnake Island on Tuesday night, this time at a nearby high school in Orange, Massachusetts. Parnass said hes heard every side of the debate already, inside the pages of his paper. One letter to the editor from last week, he said, brought up a very good point. Say Rattlesnake Island springs a leak and theres goddamn poisonous rattlesnakes everywhere, from Orange to Belchertown, from sea to shining sea. What happens next? Rattlesnakes feed on rodents; mice are the incubators of ticks and their diseases, writes Northamptons Becky Shannon. It is the rodents that must be dealt with if we are to reduce the prevalence of Lyme and other tick-borne diseases. After all, goddamn tick-borne illnesses are up 12 percent in Massachusetts since 2012. Maybe 200 poisonous rattlesnakes isnt enough. MALAKAL, South Sudan Like a ferocious tornado, a black cloud of smoke rose over the United Nations-run Malakal Protection of Civilians site, which had been home to almost 50,000 people. Inside the camp, fires raced high into the dusty sky. Around 3 oclock in the afternoon, roughly half the shelters were in flames or smoldering. Gunfire erupted sporadically. Stray bullets pinged through sheets of metal siding, making a sound like marbles crashing onto a floor. At least 24 people had been killed, scores more injured, and thousands had been driven from their makeshift homes. That was on Thursday, Feb. 18, when The Daily Beast first broke the story of a massacre here in Malakal. In the days since, it has been possible to piece together a detailed timeline of the violence that may well justify a war crimes investigation. The evidence so far strongly indicates that soldiers from the government forces of President Salva Kiirs Sudan Peoples Liberation Army (SPLA), possibly working with militias, planned, prepared, and carried out the attack. The incident here comes even though a peace deal has been signed between President Kiir and Vice President Riek Machar, the main opposition leader, and seemed to be on the verge of implementation. On Thursday this week, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon will arrive in South Sudan on a previously planned visit to help broker a permanent peace agreement. But the incident here in Malakal, carried out right in the face of UN peacekeepers, who did little to stop it, raises questions about whether peace is achievable at all and what useful role the UN can play. Since South Sudans civil war started more than two years ago, the conflict has taken on an overwhelmingly ethnic tone. Most of the SPLA are from the Dinka tribe, while members of Machars SPLM-IO forces are largely Nuer. Added to the mix here in Malakal are the Skilluk, who claim the city as their historic home. Interviews were conducted and corroborated over four days with individuals from these three major ethnic groups, Dinka, Nuer, and Skilluk, in addition to interviews with UNMISS troops, security personnel, UN officials, and humanitarian personnel. Names of some witnesses have been changed to protect their identities in this violent environment. The scene last week was utterly tragic as people with very few possessions saw them lost to the flames. A group of women in colorful robes frantically rummaged through their burned shelters. Many items were still too hot to touch, and soot filled the air. Almost everything they owned had turned into black and gray ash. Outside the main gate of the PoC (Protection of Civilians) site, thousands of people had crowded onto a narrow dirt path. A military official from the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) explained to me the apparent last push to get the SPLA out of the camp. He had just come from the PoC. The general went down and pushed this way with vehicles, he said, gesturing with his pen. There was anything up to a 10-second firefight. The armed men subsequently fled outside of the PoCunwilling to engage with lethal force. It appears that when UNMISS troops decided to engage with the SPLA or allied militia, they were easily able to stop the threat. Why it took UNMISS troops around 16 hours to do this is unknown. In that period of time, around 15,000 shelters were burned to the ground. The United Nations Security Council, in response to the actions in Malakal, stressed that attacks against civilians and United Nations premises may constitute war crimes. There are several signs the attack was premeditated. On any given afternoon, the dust in the Malakal PoC is so thick that when you open your mouth, grains of dirt coat your teeth. It is overcrowded and lacks water. Looped razor wire on top of chain-link fences give it the impression of an open-air jail in the middle of the desert. Around 48,000 people had taken refuge in the camp, which was supposed to be protected by the blue-helmeted United Nations soldiers. Many of the displaced come from the nearby Malakal town, which sits on the east bank of the White Nile. It was once the second-largest city in South Sudan, but is now a garrison town of destroyed buildings, burned cars, and men with guns slung over their shoulders racing around in trucks. Malakal has changed hands between the government and opposition more times than locals can count, and the fighting here is largely ethnic. People of all ethnicities sought shelter from the violence in the UN camp, including some refugees from nearby Darfur, but most are Nuer, Shilluk, or Dinka. On the night of Tuesday, Feb. 16, a group of men approached one of the gates of the Malakal PoC and tried to sneak in with several loaded clips for automatic rifles. The men were likely from the Dinka tribe, the tribe of President Salva Kiir, yet most of the people in the PoC are from the Nuer and Shilluk tribe. The men were not allowed to enter and left for the Malakal town, but appear to have returned with more men who made threatening gestures outside the gate with guns, but did not fire their weapons. Tuesday night, we saw people on foot, they had no vehicle. They were hanging around. They didnt make any shooting, and they disappeared, said a woman from the camp well call Mary. She said they carried AK-47s and FAL automatic rifles. Multiple eyewitnesses reported that the men cut the fence of the PoC on Tuesday night, and began to evacuate Dinka women and children as well as some from among the Darfur refugees. The youths took stones on the ground and started to throw them, said a community leader, who The Daily Beast has made anonymous out of concern for their safety. I came from there, I went the chairman of the Peace and Security Council, the internal camp leadership. I said to him, please, there is another problem, can we solve it, because I saw the SPLA soldiers moving around. According to two members of the Peace and Security Council, they met with the acting head of UNMISS in Malakal and were informed of the exodus of women and children in addition to the increased clashes. They requested razor wire so they could repair the fence themselves, but did not receive it until Wednesday afternoon, when it was too late in the day to work on it. For the whole clan of Dinka, they took the children and the women, said another woman, whom well call Elizabeth. The men remained. By Wednesday afternoon, fights between the Dinka and the two other ethnic groups, the Nuer and Shilluk, had reached a boiling point. It appears likely the exodus of Dinka and Darfurian women and children continued. As night fell on Wednesday, the PoC erupted in intense gun fighting that would not stop for around another 16 hours. Eyewitness accounts that have been corroborated say that around 80 men, among them uniformed SPLA troops, individuals wearing civilian clothing who appeared to have advanced weapons training, and young men who lacked military sophisticationengaged in urban warfare in the overcrowded PoC. It appears the Shilluk fought back, but The Daily Beast has not been able to confirm that the Nuer joined the melee. The military official from the UN reported seeing multiple small clusters of men in SPLA uniforms working in unison, and spotted transport trucks. A witness supplied the names of two SPLA commanders whom he recognized from his previous job while working in government, but The Daily Beast has chosen not to publish their identities at this time because they cannot be independently corroborated. Credible eyewitnesses described to me SPLA soldiers and allied militia using grenades, Molotov cocktails, as well as red tracer bullets visible in the dark, which suggests SPLA soldiers came prepared for night fighting. Many witnesses said they saw soldiers in uniform wearing red hats, a sign of specialized troops or military police in the SPLA, and identified the insignia of specific divisions in the South Sudanese army. There is overwhelming evidence and credible accounts that suggest that SPLA soldiers began to deliberately burn Nuer and Shilluk homes. Satellite imagery supplied to The Daily Beast shows the pattern of destruction clearly, with the homes of the Nuer and the Shilluk community obliterated while, just a few feet away, the section where the Darfurian community lives remained untouched by flame, and the Dinka populations homes also, for the most part, remained standing. In the dark early hours of Thursday, the PoC was in panic. Amid the hail of bullets and the chaos cased by men burning down their homes, thousands of Nuer and Shilluk sprinted to the main gate of the PoC to escape, but ran up against a thick steel door roughly three meters high. Pleading for their lives, they appealed to the UNMISS personnel to open the gate. The guards refused, according to PoC residents, who became trapped inside. In their desperation, people began to climb over the razor wire and break down the fence, and several women showed me fresh cuts on their legs that they said came from their attempt to escape. One woman, furious at the UNMISS performance, demanded, If I came running because someone is beating me, would you lock the door, or would you open the door to see what was happening? Four days later, the fence around the main gate still had major holes. UNMISS sent a fire truck into the PoC with a small contingent of troops to protect it, but they encountered gunmen, affiliation unknown. After a brief exchange of fire, the truck and accompanying troops exited the PoC. This is not the first time that UNMISS troops have backed down in the face of such threats. In April 2014 armed men, also allegedly from the SPLA, carried out an attack on the UNMISS site at the town of Bor, and the UN would not fight. Its the most open piece of knowledge out there that UNMISS doesnt fight, said one UN official, even though it has a mandate to use force under Chapter 7 under the UN Charter. Its essentially meaningless. In hindsight, it s easy to find the warning signs. Local political leaders, security experts, and UN officials agree that the attack appears to be a deliberate attempt to provoke the Shilluk and Nuer. High ranking SPLA officials have been bragging that they can attack these groups with impunity, according to UN sources. The governor of Malakal, General Chol Thon, was a former high ranking SPLA officer. Without directly blaming Thon, a UN official notes that there was an order given to cut off the PoC from the west bank. So tensions had been building. After the night of violence on Wednesday, around 10 oclock on Thursday morning the thousands of Nuer and Skilluk crowded against the main gate in the PoC finally breached the steel doors and spilled out, according to a humanitarian worker. According to the UN military officials account, UNMISS troops began to prepare to engage the SPLA troops, who were still lurking inside, firing weapons with impunity. During a meeting to discuss military tactics, some of the UN troops resisted the idea of using lethal force and asked that they be given permission to shoot in writing, even though it is permitted under UN regulations. When they received it, they were still reluctant to fire, until they were coaxed by the UNMISS military leadership. Around 3 p.m., the soldiers finally piled in at least two white armored vehicles, and drove near where the most serious fires were. By the time they were inside the PoC, however, the gunfire had more or less stopped, and its unclear when UNMISS engaged the SPLA and allied militia. Outside the gate, men in civilian clothing continued to walk around, at least one carrying what appeared to be an AK-47. Around 24,000 South Sudanese fled from of the main PoC into a narrow strip of land near the UN residential complex. Men and women raced back and forth with their belongings against the backdrop of the towering black cloud from the still-raging fires. I came across one man lying on the ground and staring at the blue sky, apparently oblivious to the destruction around him. I asked him what happened. Everything is bullshit, he said. Marlow: Now that weve gone through the Oscars not-so-beautiful, dark, twisted history of getting it wrong, from the innovative Orson Welles masterpiece Citizen Kane being bested by How Green Was My Valley to the last two years of all-white acting nomineesand subsequent #OscarsSoWhite backlashlets discuss the reasons why so many people, present company included, tune in to the Academy Awards year after year: the moving and fun moments. Kevin: The Debbie Allen interpretive dance numbers! Yes, please! Marlow: Im going to start with a throwback to 1940, when the Academy awarded Hattie McDaniel with the Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her turn as Mammy in Gone With the Wind. Its a problematic character in a problematic film, one that essentially romanticizes plantation life, but at a time when segregation was still rampant in the Jim Crow South and beyondMcDaniel was barred from attending the films premiere in Atlanta, Georgia, and forced to sit at a segregated table during the Oscars ceremonyits noteworthy for being the first time an African-American actor was nominated for, and won, an Oscar. And watching her acceptance speech is enough to make even the most hardened cynics tear up: Marlow: Im going to start with a throwback to 1940, when the Academy awarded Hattie McDaniel with the Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her turn as Mammy in Gone With the Wind. Its a problematic character in a problematic film, one that essentially romanticizes plantation life, but at a time when segregation was still rampant in the Jim Crow South and beyondMcDaniel was barred from attending the films premiere in Atlanta, Georgia, and forced to sit at a segregated table during the Oscars ceremonyits noteworthy for being the first time an African-American actor was nominated for, and won, an Oscar. And watching her acceptance speech is enough to make even the most hardened cynics tear up: Kevin: Marlow, dont get too excited but I bet you did not know you were speaking to a bona fide expert in tearful Oscar speeches. Oh, I have logged hundreds of pinot grigio-soaked hours weeping to clips of old acceptance speeches on YouTube to reach tenured status on the topic, to the point that I can recite the best of them by heart. Marlow: I see a Kevin Fallon Re-enacts the Greatest Oscars Acceptance Speeches viral video in your future. Kevin: Which brings me to one of my all-time favorite Oscars moments: Tom Hanks winning for Philadelphia. It is the perfect awards acceptance speech. Its emotional. It stands for something important, without seeming patronizing or didactic. He chokes up while thanking his wifenothing gets me like a reaction shot to a sputtering spouseand is genuinely thankful. By the time he pays tribute to those who lost their lives to HIV and AIDS by saying, The streets of heaven are too crowded with angels, I need to rehydrate. The clip should be required viewing by all nominees. Marlow: I love that moment. And speaking of Hankss co-star in that film, Denzel Washington, the 2002 Academy Awards was a monumentally important one when it comes to inclusion. It had been 38 years since a black actor had won a lead actor/actress OscarSidney Poitier for Lilies of the Field in 1964and on that night, both Washington and Halle Berry took home Oscars for Best Actor and Actress. That it happened on the same night Poitier received an honorary Oscar made it all the more poignant, with Washington shouting to him in the rafters, Ill always be chasing you, Sidney. Ill always be following in your footsteps. Theres nothing I would rather do, sir, and Berrys tearful speech: This moment is so much bigger than me. This moment is for Dorothy Dandridge, Lena Horne, Diahann Carroll. Its for the women that stand beside me, Jada Pinkett, Angela Bassett, Vivica Fox. And its for every nameless, faceless woman of color that now has a chance because this door tonight has been opened. Kevin: Her speech was glorious, and the perfect example of an Oscars momentas was her quivering emotional meltdown after her name was called. A GIF-ready moment before the age of GIFs. Marlow: Ah, the halcyon pre-GIF age. More recently, Marion Cotillards Best Actress acceptance speech in 2008 for La Vie en Rose, one of the most award-worthy performances in recent memory, was lovely, with the luminous Cotillardwho could barely speak a lick of Englishshrieking, Thank you life, thank you love, and it is true, there is some angels in this city! Kevin: My favorite thing about the Oscars, in that I have a torrid love-hate affair with it, is its insistence on flooding the telecast with musical performances, whether they make senselike an original song nominee, for exampleor are epic exercises in deranged artistic lunacy, like Rob Lowe and Snow White singing Proud Mary, the most beautiful fail in award-show history. Nothing, though, was as magnificent as Beyonce, Jennifer Hudson, and their Dreamgirls co-star Anika Noni Rose donning siren red evening gowns to belt a medley of three nominated songs from their film. They performed amid buzzing rumors that Beyonce was jealous of Hudsons award-season success, culminating in a torching diva song-off as their voices and egos dueted and battled on the medleys first two songs. Whatever was going on behind the scenes, the on-stage performance was pure fire. Marlow: Probably the last time Beyonce was ever upstaged in a performance. Speaking of musical performances, a lot of people remember Bjorks glorious swan dressdesigner Marjan Pejoskis bizarre body stocking replete with a giant white swan draped around the Icelandic chanteuses neckbut few remember that she also turned in a fantastic performance of her Oscar-nominated song Ive Seen It All from Dancer in the Dark, sadly sans Thom Yorke. Kevin: If Ive said it once Ive said it a thousand times: When you wear a dress that looks like water fowl you are dooming yourself to having your musical performance overshadowed. Marlow: Its perhaps the most unconventional musical routine in Oscar history, swan dress and all. A moment that changed the course of music history came when 14-year-old Michael Jackson performed the ballad Ben, about a rat, at the 1973 Oscars, showcasing his impressive pipes and signaling the start of his massive solo career sans The Jackson 5. And who can forget Three 6 Mafias rowdy rendition of their Oscar-winning hip-hop track Its Hard Out Here for a Pimp, bringing some much-needed musical diversity to the buttoned-up proceedings, and with co-star Taraji P. Henson belting out the chorus to boot. Kevin: I love the fashion and I love the musical moments, but Im honestly really just tuning into the Oscars to have a good cry. Its why if I could travel back in time I would go to the 1972 ceremony to witness and weep along live to the 12-minute standing ovation for Charlie Chaplin when he received his honorary Academy Award for his lifetime of achievements. Marlow: That honorary Oscar is less impressive when you consider how many times the Academy fucked him, though! Chaplin never received a single Best Director nod, not even for his masterpiece The Great Dictator. But alas, I digress Kevin: Or I would record the 1975 telecast and just replay Michael Douglas openly crying while dad Kirk Douglas picked up his honorary Oscar soon after suffering a stroke that left him with nerve damage. Then, because I obviously need a pick-me-up, Id rewatch Billy Crystals opening montages, where he inserts himself into the years big films. Its a conceit thats been done to death now, but they were a hoot and a half when he started it. Marlow: They were. And who can forget Crystal serenading Jack Nicholson from his lap. He really was the consummate Oscar hostsomeone with enough industry friends that he was in on the joke, but also enough of an outsider to roam freely. Im a big fan of the ceremonys batshit moments, too, and its here we should pay homage to Robert Opel, the man who famously streaked naked across the stage flashing a peace sign during the 1974 Academy Awards ceremony as David Niven was introducing Elizabeth Taylor, leading Niven to remark, Well, ladies and gentlemen, that was almost bound to happen. But isnt it fascinating to think that probably the only laugh that man will ever get in his life is by stripping off and showing his shortcomings. The whole thing may have been a planned stunt by producers of the ceremony, but a naked hippie flashing a peace sign during the final months of the Vietnam War does, in retrospect, bear some significant cultural resonance. Opel later opened a gallery of gay art in San Francisco before he was murdered in 1979. RIP, you Oscar legend you. Kevin: The ceremony could use more nudity in general, in my opinion. Although, based on the reaction to Neil Patrick Harris in his skivvies last year I may be alone in this sentiment. (You looked great, NPH, you really did.) There are so many other (clothed) moments I could name. Sandra Bullocks speechparticularly her ode to her mothermade me cry. Ben Stiller dressed as a character from Avatar made me laugh. Diana Ross singing Somewhere Over the Rainbow, still the greatest movie song of all time, with live-streamed movie fans from around the world, gave me the gay chills. Hell, count me among the millions who ate up that Ellen DeGeneres selfie like the traffic bait it was. The Oscars are, for all the frustration they cause, still just plain fun to watch. Comics and Cool Stuff will feature an array of Marvel and DC comic books, including a full wall dedicated to Spider-Man. Elgard said he will also include a horror section, as well as space for manga, or comic books and graphic novels originally produced in Japan. After seeing an article eight years ago that showed tariffs on women's clothing were generally higher than for men's apparel, Lori Taylor thought it was something worth talking about. The professor at the George Bush School of Government and Public Service at Texas A&M conducted research recently that showed the U.S. tariff on women's imported clothing is on average 25 percent higher than the tariff on men's imported clothing -- the result of which she said is directly detrimental to female consumers. While Taylor said she couldn't claim the U.S. tax code is deliberately discriminatory, she said it still has a discriminatory effect on consumers. In a policy brief for the Mosbacher Institute for Trade, Economics and Public Policy, Taylor wrote that differential taxation of apparel based on gender cannot be defended and called for the inherent gender bias in U.S. tax code to be eliminated. "Tax policy shouldn't discriminate," she said. "U.S. consumers bear the burden of this tax policy." There are several factors that come into play when determining tariff rates. Materials used in an article of clothing, what country the material came from and where the clothing was assembled can all influence the tariff rate. Taylor said sometimes tariff rates can be an artifact of a policy decision made so long ago, nobody remembers who made it. Taylor's research showed differences in tariff rates based on the sex of the buyer for clothing items such as suits, jackets, leather shoes and silk shirts. Based on what she found while looking through the Harmonized Tariff System, sometimes the tariffs on men's clothing were higher than women's, but most of the time it was the tariff on women's goods that were higher. She said there is no obvious, underlying pattern to explain the differentials for gender-classified items. She said it didn't matter what the reasons were, but that differential taxation based on the sex of the consumer is not good public policy. Taylor said the easiest way to rectify the issue is for Congress to pass a law allowing for importers to choose the male or female tariff rate -- whichever was lower. That kind of change might hurt the apparel manufacturing industry, but she said it would help the retail industry, as well as result in substantial savings for the U.S. consumer, a more equitable tax code and a reduction in the "pink tax" -- or the term given to the extra amount of money women are charged for certain products or services. "I don't know if there's any traction on Capitol Hill, because people don't seem to be aware of the differences," Taylor said. "It will require Congressional action. I doubt this kind of change could be an initiative from the existing bureaucracy." As the race to represent Bryan and College Station in the Texas House moves into final stretch with Tuesdays Republican primary, the incumbent and his challenger continue to spar over who the more true conservative is in the race. John Raney who was elected to the District 14 seat in a special election in December 2011 and twice since serves on the House Appropriations, Higher Education and House Administration committees. He grew up in Bryan and served as chairman of the Republican Party in Brazos County in the early 70s. Fields, who is making his first run at a state office and worked at a Republican think tank in Austin for several years, served a term on the College Station City Council that started while he was in college. Both Aggies, Raney and Fields also have entrepreneurship in common: Raney, 68, opened Texas Aggie Bookstore 46 years ago while he still was a student at Texas A&M; Fields, 28, owned and operated Texas Avenue Cigars while still in college. Each campaign has focused on trying to show who has been the most consistently conservative candidate. Fields, who has criticized a number of Raneys votes cast as a legislator, said the proof of his own conservative policies can be found in several big-name GOP groups that have endorsed him, including Texas Right to Life, Texas Values Action and Texas Home School Coalition, as well as the vast majority of precinct and committee chairs within the Brazos County Republican Party Executive Committee. People recognize that I am a strong conservative, Fields said. If you want someone thats going to fight against the expansion of government, you want to know that persons going to do it whether the cameras are on or not, and Ive done it consistently. Raney, who has been endorsed by the Texas Retailers Association, Texas Municipal Police Association and Texas Alliance for Life, said the 84th legislative session was one of the most conservative in history. Being told hes not a true conservative is an accusation he said he cant recall being leveled against him. To try to call me a liberal or him [Joe Straus, speaker of the Texas House] a liberal is absolutely bunk, because most of the stuff that they wanted has passed, Raney said. We passed open carry. We passed campus carry. We passed a record pro-life bill in the previous session. I just dont know what else we could do that would be any more conservative than those things. And to call me a liberal ... I voted for all those things. Its just throwing words out that dont mean anything. Fields said while serving as a councilman he routinely voted against proposed budgets that increased spending on what he believed were non-core services, as well as discretionary items. He thought more funding should go toward police, fire and public safety. In a race thats been marked by aggressive and critical campaign mailers and advertisements on both sides, both candidates are questioning their opponents political beliefs. Raney has said Fields has libertarian leanings, while Fields has repeatedly called Raney the fifth-most liberal Republican in the Texas House, citing a Rice University study. Raney disagrees, saying hes the better candidate because hes honest and has shown he can work with other people. He said Fields, however, showed during his time on the council that he was a lone wolf and frequent sole dissenter on many votes, which means he has a difficult time reaching consensus with colleagues. Fields, though, said he has more experience running for office today than Raney did when he first ran. Fields acknowledges that hes young, but said his experience as a small business owner and councilman, as well as work on conservative policy issues at the national, state and local level has prepared him well. Recent work Several of the accomplishments of which Raney said he is proud include his push to keep more of the money paid by the students at Blinn Colleges Bryan campus in Bryan, rather than using it to finance facilities such as a recreation center in Brenham. Raney said hes prepared to continue to speak up about the issue as long as the money is so overwhelmingly inequitable. He also believes theres a need for more vocational and technical programs at Blinn. Raney cites his efforts toward helping to create a local provider participation fund for Brazos County hospitals, which helps pay for indigent health care without increasing taxes or expanding Medicaid. Two bills he authored regarding the hotel occupancy tax one to earmark a portion to help pay for the Kyle Field renovation and another allowing the use of hotel occupancy tax revenues in Bryan and College Station to build sporting facilities to promote tourism were achievements he feels will serve his constituents well. Fields said among the work hes most proud of during his time on the City Council include his efforts to have every city check posted online to increase fiscal transparency, his urging to reduce what he calls a hidden tax in the utility rate that was being transferred out of the electric fund and his fight against the annexation of Wellborn. During his time at the Texas Public Policy Foundation, a conservative Austin organization, Fields also worked on annexation reform and did extensive research on a number of other issues such as property rights, and helped with several bills, including one that would have prevented economic development deals from being struck in secret meetings. He moved back to Brazos County last summer and works for his familys funeral home business in Humble. Border security At a recent candidate forum hosted by the Bryan-College Station Chamber of Commerce, Fields challenged Raney on several of his past votes, including one against an amendment to the states budget that would have added another $92 million to the budget for border security. He asked me did I vote to kill that amendment to the budget about sending more money to the Border Patrol, Raney said. I said yes, I did, and I did because we didnt feel like we needed to put any more money in that. The legislature had done everything it could, Raney said the Senate passed a sweeping $800 million border security budget. Anyone can take a single vote on a broader issue and make something out of it if you want to, Raney said, but its incorrect to say that he doesnt support border security. Raney said an additional 250 licensed Department of Public Safety officers were able to be trained and sent to the Texas-Mexico border thanks to action taken during the last session, and he thinks thats a better approach than putting more National Guardsmen on the ground there. Fields said making sure the state has technology to surveil the border is crucial, and thinks expanding DPS Operation Drawbridge the law enforcement initiative using motion-detection cameras should be explored. Fields said he cannot stress enough the importance of manned surveillance to monitor activity at the border. Hes also interested in expanding the Texas State Guard. They are a unit that picks up a very large number of veterans who want to continue to serve in a somewhat more limited capacity, but serve their state, Fields said. If we adequately funded the state guard and encouraged the recruitment of more veterans, we would have an incredible opportunity to create a military force that would be valuable in assisting federal authorities on our southern border. Federal issues Raney said most of Fields campaign is based on federal issues. Fields campaign website states hes running because the federal government has gotten out of control from personal liberty and small businesses to executive amnesty and sanctuary cities, but the state cant overturn the Supreme Court. Raney said hes not in favor of those issues either, such as sanctuary cities, but the state has to abide by the law. Were going to have to wait until we can get judges appointed or constitutional amendments to take place we have to abide by the law, Raney said. Fields feels addressing federal overreach is one of the most important things for state legislators to address, especially with changes to the Supreme Court changing in the next few years. He said states have to be willing to stand guard for their rights and be creative with how to address those issues. States should be able to resist and say, No, were not going to roll over and play dead while the Tenth Amendment is fretted, Fields said. : , ; February 13, 1924 - February 23, 2016 Annie Marie Hyde entered her Heavenly home in the company of angels on February 23, 2016. Marie was born on February 13, 1924, to James and Lillian Watson in Leesville, Louisiana. She was the fourth of six children. Marie, her sisters Tommye, Doris and Marion, and her brothers Eddie and Jimmy, lost their mother when all of them were still children. Family stories of the Watson clan after their mother's death paint a picture of what would most certainly be known as a "handful" these days. It was through this adversity that Marie and her siblings emerged as a strong group, capable of achieving great things. Evidence of that strength can be seen in all the families of these Watson children. Marie met James Frank Hyde in August, 1945 while he was awaiting final discharge from his WWII service as a Navy Seabee. After a whirlwind courtship, they were married in February, 1946. They had three children, Janie, John and Sandy. Frank's career as a public school teacher and administrator took them from East Texas to West Texas, then a final trek back across the state to Corrigan where Frank served as principal of Corrigan-Camden High School before retiring. They moved to Bryan, Texas in 1997. Marie was a gifted seamstress and homemaker. Her daughters were always beautifully dressed, especially at Easter, when Marie would make sure they looked their best. In later years, Marie was a longtime secretary for Dick Baldwin, plant manager of Champion Paper in Camden, Texas and later in Corrigan. She took pride in everything she did, and her attention to detail was well-known. She loved playing bridge and hosted bridge parties frequently at her home. Marie was preceded in death by her husband, parents, brothers and sisters. She leaves behind her daughter Janie and husband Lee Roberts of San Angelo, son John and wife Lydia of Bryan, and Sandy and husband Chris Farris of Bryan; 10 grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren. The family wishes to thank her caregivers in the skilled nursing unit at Crestview Retirement Center. They always treated Marie with the utmost care and kindness and she loved them all. A graveside service will be held Thursday, Feb. 25 at the Bryan City Cemetery at 2 p.m., where Marie will be laid to rest beside her husband. Marie was a member of Central Baptist Church. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to Messiah's Ranch in Robertson County or the Central Baptist Children's Wing building fund. April 16, 1928 - February 18, 2016 Jeff Travis Penick passed away on February 18, 2016, at the age of 87. A small gravesite service will be held on Friday, February 26, at 3pm, at the Heard's Prairie / Petteway cemetary. Jeff's ashes will be interned at the heart of Sue's grave. A reception will follow at The First Baptist Church of Bremond. Cremation services are in the care of Callaway-Jones Funeral Home and Crematory. Jeff was born on April 16, 1928, in Thornton, Texas to Sally Davis Penick and Roy Bolan Penick. Jeff had one brother, Roy, and three sisters, Wanda, Neva and Linda. Much of his childhood was spent on a sharecropping farm in the Thornton / Kosse area of Texas. He graduated from Kosse High School (where one of his noteworthy memories was being the only boy in home economics class, an advantageous place to meet girls, no doubt). Jeff met the love of his life, Emma Sue Brantner, at the M&M Cafe in Bremond. He would sit far from the cafe kitchen, so that when she filled his order, he could watch the pretty waitress walk. They were married 54 years before Sue tragically passed away in January of 2004. Jeff spent the remaining years of his life profoundly missing her. Jeff and Sue had five children: Joe Kenneth, Jim Allen, Sue Elizabeth, Carol Marie and Robin Ann. They have ten grandchildren: Justin Penick, Sarah Heckendorn, James Penick, Jennifer Gongora, Penny Vega, Joshua Rowan, Matthew Rowan, Andrew Gray, Elizabeth Gray and Elliott Gray. Jeff and Sue currently have twenty great-grandchildren. A new great great granddaughter was born on the day that Jeff passed away. Jeff spent the multitude of his adult years in Bremond. He was a man who valued hard work and was known for his remarkable mechanical abilities. There was never a vehicle, no matter the size, that Jeff could not repair. He was meticulous and exacting in his work. Jeff particularly enjoyed reading Louis Lamour westerns and working Soduku puzzles. He loved Sue's homemade red beans and biscuits and Blue Bell ice cream. He often as not could be seen with a Pepsi or a peppermint in his mouth. The family takes great comfort in knowing that their dad has been reunited with mom in Heaven. The family would like to thank the St. Joseph Nursing Home in Caldwell, as well as Brazos Valley Hospice for their support during this difficult time. Express condolence at CallawayJones.com For all these reasons many of my constituents and I have been campaigning for many years against additional terminals and runways at Heathrow. We have used a wide range of methods in these campaigns including lobbying their local councillors, Members of Parliament and Government ministers. In addition they have used traditional methods of public meetings, marches, demonstrations and peaceful direct action. The opposition to expanding Heathrow became a lot more visible, and more powerful, in the last ten years, as the environmental movement focussed on aviation, and particularly aviation growth, as a major threat to the climate, and the issue grew to become the defining local issue for many MPs and other politicians representing west London. During 2010, along with counsellors, residents and environmental campaigners we took the government to the high court over plans to expand Heathrow. During this case we argued that the case for a third runway was neither economically nor environmentally sound. We won this case on these grounds and the judge said that expansion of Heathrow was untenable in law and common sense. This is still the view I hold today. This campaigning has secured recommendations and promises from planning inspectors, politicians and indeed the owners of Heathrow airport that no further expansion would or should go ahead. The Planning Inspector at the Terminal 5 inquiry advised against further Heathrow expansion and the airport owners wrote to my constituents saying that they did not need and would not seek a third runway if they were given permission for a fifth terminal. The current prime minister prior to the 2010 general election famously stated: "No ifs, no buts, there will be no third runway!" For many of us who had devoted enormous time and effort to this cause, this felt like a momentous event. We thought we had quite deliberately been given an unequivocal promise by the man who now has the final say. The case for direct action Unfortunately these promises have not been held to and we are faced with a renewed lobby by the owners of the airport for expansion and the prime minister has argued that his promise was only for the lifetime of a Parliament and has set in train a process, which may believe is aimed at delivering expansion at Heathrow. This has resulted in many considering that a return to campaigning including lobbying, demonstrating and direct action is needed to try and ensure that the promises of politicians and the airport owners are adhered to. At times the debate around whether to expand Heathrow has been a disgrace to our democracy. The manoeuvring to keep the decision away from parliament and the people, including my constituents, and keep it between ministers and lobbyists, pushed me to stage my own protest by taking the mace during a parliamentary debate in 2009 on the expansion of Heathrow, as a result of which I was suspended from parliament for five days. My experience in politics over the last 40 years has shown me that these campaigning methods can be extremely successful in bringing the public's attention to an issue and in influencing government decisions. Securing publicity by means of direct action can alert people across the country to an issue that then leads them to a closer examination of that issue and often taking the matter up with the relevant policy makers. In this way policies are influenced and changed for the good of the whole community. But in order to be a direct action rather than an extension of political speech, it also stops, or at least interrupts, the problem it is addressing, which makes it a disruptive act. Civil disobedience - sometimes there really is no alternative Although the specific direct action can at times cause some short term inconvenience, by highlighting a threat like climate change, it can have a longer term and more significant effect on averting the impact of a greater risk. When an activist or group decide to intervene to interrupt a problem directly, they take on a huge responsibility to ensure what they do is safe, proportionate and reasonable. No-one should disrupt other people's lives lightly or without good cause. But modern history is full of examples of peaceful civil disobedience which was both necessary and effective, and in many cases a vital defence of democracy. Some governments and some corporations need more than just a sternly worded letter. Of course I will have always sought to and will continue to maximise the use of Parliamentary methods to seek to influence the Government's decision on Heathrow. But one of the most effective methods of securing political change on this issue in the past has been the demonstration by campaigning of the large scale and extensive opposition to an additional runway at Heathrow. Direct action campaigns have made a significant contribution to this. Given the urgency of the environmental problems Heathrow is causing, and the deeply disappointing lack of commitment shown by Heathrow and the government to unequivocal promises they have both made, it's almost inevitable that activists will lose patience with a process that they no longer trust and do what they can to solve the problems themselves. John McDonnell is the Labour Member of Parliament for Hayes and Harlington, home to Heathrow Airport, since 1997, and in 2015 became Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer in September. His website is at john-mcdonnell.net. This statement was originally published by Plane Stupid. More information: Latest news on Heathrow 13 trial. On a cold moonlit night last week in the valleys of south Wales, I witnessed the coal industry struggling in its death-throes. I was in Varteg, a tiny village on the eastern edge of Wales' old coalmine belt, in a hall packed with people from surrounding valleys who'd come to hear about plans for a new opencast coal mine right on their doorstep. I say 'new' but this scheme is actually a zombie: first proposed over a decade ago, it was roundly rejected by the council back in 2011. That decision was appealed, then finally thrown out by the Welsh government. But now the firm has resubmitted it, trying - it seems - to breathe life back into this corpse of a coal mine one last time. There was a sense of weariness in the hall amongst the residents who'd been fighting this zombie for the better part of a decade. One person spoke up: "When will we get some certainty?" The dying coal economy The Varteg proposal is to opencast mine some 256,000 tonnes of coal from an area of old deepmine workings, about 30 metres from homes in the village, and close to a primary school. As one might imagine, this has proved controversial with local residents. Not everyone is opposed - a vocal minority in the hall last Thursday spoke about the need for new jobs in the area. Few would argue with that, and it's undeniable that south Wales owes much to its history of coal mining. But, those campaigning against the Varteg mine argue, it's surely now time to move on. As one member of the audience in the hall pointed out, last week it emerged that five out of the UK's 10 remaining big coal power stations will close this year. Britain's last deep coal mine, Kellingley, closed in December. This is largely down to a downturn in the coal market, with prices at rock-bottom - hovering around 30-35 per tonne of coal, when to turn a profit opencast mining really needs a price more like 45-50/tonne. That means proposals like Varteg just don't stack up. "This company is pursuing a dying industry that should be consigned to the dustbin of history!" said one resident, with feeling. The spectre of climate change action And then there's a climate change deal finalised at the UN summit in Paris late last year. Its purpose, to limit warming to no more than 1.5C, essentially requires that 80% of all known fossil fuel reserves are left in the ground. That is especially true for coal. Before that summit, Energy Secretary Amber Rudd announced that the UK would pursue a coal power phaseout by 2025 - a decision with major implications for opencast mining. Meanwhile, the case for increased efficiency has ironically been undermined by research by European universities funded by the European Union. The project examined the relationship between employment, productivity and quality of public services undergoing a process of privatisation in six European countries and concluded that it "promoted a model of competition that is largely based on the reduction of wage costs and not on the improvement of quality and innovation." As well as reducing wages and undermining labour rights, other evidence shows privatised companies tend to increase costs for consumers. In the 34 OECD countries, for example, the average price for energy charged by private companies is 23.1% higher than the price charged by public companies. In France, which has a long history of privatised water supply, the price of water provided by private companies is 16.6% higher than water provided by municipal utilities. Perhaps most perversely, the European Commission's argument in favour of private as opposed to public ownership, falls apart when you realise that significant numbers of state-owned companies in Greece and elsewhere are currently being taken over by state companies from other nations. Greece's regional airports for example are being sold to Fraport, majority-owned by the German state. Meanwhile Chinese state companies have been actively buying up state companies across Europe, notably energy companies in Portugal, Italy and the UK. A nexus of financial power comes in for the kill So if the arguments for privatisation no longer stand up to scrutiny, what is driving the process? Along with an ideological fixation with neoliberal policies in the Commission, it is notable how many powerful legal, accountancy and financial firms are reaping profits from the process. The report, The Privatisation Industry in Europe shows that the privatisation of state-owned assets depends on the participation of a small coterie of corporations, that provide the financial and legal advice. In terms of financial advice, Lazard and Rothschild are the big players; legal advice features mainly UK-based law firms, such as Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer and Allen and Overy, and in all of the deals the so-called 'Big Four' accountancy firms (Deloitte, KPMG, PricewaterhouseCoopers and Ernst & Young) are involved. Their advice does not come cheap: Lazard made profits of 1.5 million as an advisor in the privatisation of Royal Mail. In a few cases, these large corporate firms have had both the legal and financial departments of their company involved in privatisation which means they have been able to profit from their own advice. For example, in the aforementioned sale of AENA in Spain, Lazard advisory branch helped determine the price of shares, and its asset management branch, Lazard World Dividend & Income Fund, acquired AENA shares at the IPO and sold them roughly a month later netting a 60% profit. The firms argue that a 'Chinese wall' between their different divisions prevent conflicts of interest, but perhaps a more honest assessment is provided by William Cohan, a former Lazard banker who said: "This is a very high-margin business ... All their expenses are paid, and they have no capital at risk. This is as sweet as it gets." 'The drive for austerity was about using the crisis, not solving it. It still is.' It comes as no surprise that these institutions are all involved in powerful European lobbying groups, such as the European Financial Services Roundtable, Business Europe and the Society of European Affairs Professionals. Many of the firms have their own lobbyists in Brussels: Freshmans Bruckhaus Deringer openly states that it is present there to "help to shape EU legislation and administrative decisions." Collectively, these lobbyists have turned privatisation into a capitalist virility test; used to judge whether an indebted country is truly committed to economic reform and competitiveness. The fact their advice reaps considerable private profit for themselves in the process is rarely mentioned. The fact that the financial sector emerged not only unscathed, but strengthened in the wake of the financial crisis is a conundrum that the left and progressives still grapple with. It showed that popular awareness and anger was not enough to overcome the combined force of a powerful financial industry and a neoliberal ideology deeply entrenched in political and cultural life. So it is perhaps no surprise that privatisation has accelerated in Europe rather than slowed down since the economic crisis. As Nobel prize-winning economist, Paul Krugman put it: "The drive for austerity was about using the crisis, not solving it. It still is." However, just as in the financial crisis, this powerful nexus of forces cannot hide the social costs of policies that put private profits before human needs. Along with anger at the surging inequality expressed in the rise of anti-establishment party candidates on both sides of the Atlantic, there is also growing disaffection with growing cases of privatisation that have led to declining public services and rising prices. In the area of water, for example, 235 cities worldwide in the last 15 years have brought water services back under public control in frustration at rising prices and declining service delivery. This trend is one that European Commission bureaucrats would do well to learn from before ploughing ahead with the next wave of austerity-drive privatisation in its most indebted countries. Their failure to listen, will only contribute to a growing disaffection with the European Union project, from both the left and the right, that won't be reversed until economic policies are designed for the benefit of the majority rather than a privileged minority. Sol Trumbo is an economist and political activist working for TNI since November 2012. He is focussing on the construction of a pan-European social movement to resist and provide alternatives to the current neoliberal EU policies. Sol has a BSc degree in Economic science from the Universidad de Valencia in Spain and a MSc in International Relations from Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Spain. Since their uprising in 2011 he has been involved in the Indignados and Occupy movements, acting locally while working towards the international convergence of these new grass-roots movements with other civil society organizations that share the same objectives and values. Nick Buxton is a communications consultant, working on media, publications and online communications for TNI. He has been based in California since September 2008 and prior to that lived in Bolivia for four years, working as writer/web editor at Fundacion Solon, a Bolivian organisation working on issues of trade, water, culture and historical memory. This article is published under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International licence. There was nothing safe about the safehouse in Pasig, Philippines where during the early Marcos Martial Law years, then teacher Loretta Ann Etta Rosales and her five companions were brought to. It was in this place where Rosales, who would later head the Commission on Human Rights, was interrogated and tortured for a month by her captors - military agents who turned out to be her students at the Jose Rizal College. Rosales was electrocuted and sexually abused. Hot candle wax was also poured on her skin and a wet cloth was used to suffocate her, according to her published testimony. Despite her anguish, Rosales says she never thought that it would already be her end. I wasnt thinking of dying, I was fighting for life. Domiciano Amparo was one of five persons arrested by government troops in the Mountain Province town of Sagada in 1984. Buried up to his chest in the ground, his captors stomped on him, kicked his face until he lost all feeling there, rode him like a horse, made ashtrays of his shoulders until, feeling he would no longer make it, he was advised to pray, pray all the prayers you know, your time has come These are just some of the stories that have emerged over the years about the brutal era under Ferdinand Marcos when tens of thousands of Filipinos were tortured, imprisoned and killed. Now, angry victims of the late dictator have vowed to derail his sons vice-presidential bid as they demanded long-delayed retribution. Hundreds who endured torture and imprisonment during Marcos two-decade reign gathered in Manila last week chanting No More Marcos! Marcos Dictator! as they announced plans to dog Ferdinand Marcos Jr.s electoral effort. We will hound his campaign, the groups convenor, torture victim Bonifacio Ilagan told told media. He will redeem the family, rewrite history and bring back his fathers abusive leadership framework. Human rights groups say tens of thousands of people were murdered, tortured and imprisoned during Marcos tumultuous rule. The government estimates Marcos and his family stole $10 billion from the already desperately-poor country during his rule. The group Campaign Against the Return of the Marcoses to Malacanang or CARMMA, said Marcos Jr. was not the guiltless son that he claimed to be. Opinion polls give Marcos Jr. known as Bongbong the lead in the vice-presidential race, three months before the May 9 general elections. The president and vice president are elected separately in the Philippines, each serving a single six-year term. The 58-year-old, an incumbent senator, denies his family stole from government coffers and insists his fathers rule was one of peace and progress. Victory in the elections will cement a remarkable political comeback for the Marcos family, who held mostly local positions in their home provinces until Bongbong won a seat in the national Senate in 2010. The familys flamboyant matriarch, former first lady Imelda Marcos who was famously found to have amassed hundreds of pairs of shoes while her husband was in power has made no secret of her desire for her son to become president. Marcos Jr. is trumpeting his fathers infrastructure achievements to a young electorate that has no firsthand experience of the brutality of martial law. In a glossy Internet video, he proclaims I am not my past. We are the future. The Marcos family fled to exile in Hawaii after being ousted by a military-backed popular revolt in 1986. Marcos Sr. died three years later. By Victor Ing, Special to The Post Beginning on March 15, 2016, foreign nationals from visa-exempt countries who are entering Canada by air will need to obtain an Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA) to travel to Canada. Before the introduction of this new travel requirement, foreign nationals from visa-exempt countries such as Italy, Germany, Korea and Japan (to name only a few) could travel to Canada by air without having to apply for authorization in advance. This new travel requirement allows the Canadian government to pre-screen travelers to Canada for security purposes. The new ETA system essentially mirrors the American Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) system that became mandatory in the US in 2009. In order to apply for an ETA, applicants will be asked to make an online application with Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) prior to their travels. The application can be approved within minutes of submission and credit card payment of the application fee of $7 Canadian dollars. Once an ETA application has been approved, it will be valid for five years or until the expiry of the passport of the ETA holder. In addition to basic background information, the ETA application will require applicants to declare their current residential address and whether they have previously applied to enter or remain in Canada, which would include all previous applications for any visitor visas, work permits or study permits. The new ETA requirement does not apply to all foreign nationals entering Canada, however. A foreign national entering Canada will not need to obtain an ETA if they are travelling to Canada by land or sea. Foreign nationals who have obtained a visa in advance to travel to Canada will also not be required to separately apply for an ETA. Finally, American citizens are exempt from the requirement, but permanent residents (Green Card holders) of the United States will need to apply for ETAs. Due to these new changes there is now also confusion about whether the new ETA system can be used by Canadian permanent residents living or travelling abroad. Under Canadas immigration laws, foreign nationals are all persons who are not Canadian citizens or permanent residents. According to IRCC, this means that the new system is not intended to be used by Canadian permanent residents, although there do not seem to be any requirements that prevent a Canadian permanent resident from successfully obtaining an ETA. In the past, many Canadian permanent residents without valid PR Cards could return to Canada by air if they come from a visa-exempt country. Now, if a Canadian permanent resident is outside Canada with an expired PR Card they might have trouble boarding a flight to return to Canada if they cannot successfully use the ETA system. This means that Canadian permanent residents who are outside Canada without valid PR Cards may need to apply for a Travel Document before they can return to Canada by air. Based on this new change, foreign nationals and Canadian permanent residents alike should plan in advance and determine whether and how the new ETA requirement will affect their upcoming travel to Canada. It is best for Canadian permanent residents to ensure they can return to Canada from their trips abroad before their current PR Cards expire. Victor Ing is a lawyer of Sas & Ing Immigration Law Centre. He provides a full range of immigration services. For more information go to www.canadian-visa-lawyer.com or email [email protected]. SHARE By Brad Bowman, The (Frankfort) State Journal As the 2016 legislative session moves into its second half, many questions remain with no agreed solution on how the General Assembly and Governor's Office will solve the state's more than $30 billion of unfunded liabilities in its ailing pension systems. State Budget Director John Chilton didn't bring any new information during his testimony Monday to the Public Pension Oversight Board, but repeated Gov. Matt Bevin's budget proposal. Bevin's proposal includes the state making the annually required contribution and more for the state employees non-hazard plan, which the state employee pension groups advocated for lawmakers to do before the session started in January. With a proposed 4.5 percent cut in spending for the current fiscal year for state departments and public universities and colleges, with an additional 9 percent decrease for the next two fiscal years, lawmakers have questioned whether the cuts are too costly. University and college presidents from throughout the state rallied Thursday against the cuts in a House budget hearing saying the governor would leave them no choice but to fire employees, raise tuition and cut programs. Many questioned how they could properly educate Kentucky's next-generation workforce if the governor proposed state university and colleges undergo such reductions. On Monday, Sen. Gerald Neal, D-Louisville, asked Chilton when the governor put his budget proposal together if an analysis was conducted on the exact adverse effects, if any, of such reductions. "When the universities began alerting us that these cuts would be devastating to their operations impact on students, impact on carrying out their progressive plans on behalf of Kentucky which also includes economic development then should they be alarmed or not alarmed?" Neal asked. Chilton said he supposed universities should be alarmed, but said "I don't think any university gets over 50 percent of their funding from the state." He added that the 4.5 percent and then 9 percent in following fiscal years would be from the state, including money sent to universities, but it would not be 4.5 percent and then the additional 9 percent cuts from the universities' respective budgets. The proposed cuts, according to Bevin's budget proposal, would amount to $650,000,000 over 30 months. "They should be alarmed then is what you are saying," Neal said. "The other agencies that are subject to that cut, should they be alarmed as well?" The answer to most questions, Chilton said, is the $30 billion in unfunded pension liabilities and the situation is severe. While the state employees and Kentucky Teachers' Retirement System pensions have become the elephant in the room, Neal commented that the state hasn't taken any action for tax reform, which, Neal said, would lay the foundation "for us to project in the future." There are 27 bills in play in the current session addressing funding solutions for the pension system, transparency in reporting placement agent fees, expenses and reemployment after retirement for state workers. Only two of those bills have passed the Senate while the rest remain in committees. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Ky. walks to a closed-door GOP policy lunch on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016. Senate Republicans, most vocally Senator McConnell, are facing a high-stakes political showdown with President Barack Obama sparked by the recent death of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia. Republicans controlling the Senate o which must confirm any Obama appointee before the individual is seated on the court o say that the decision is too important to be determined by a lame-duck president. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) SHARE By Gleaner Staff U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell made the following remarks on the Senate floor Wednesday regarding the president's announcement on the secure terrorist-detention facility in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba: "President Obama has left the American people to wait many years for a serious plan one that poses no additional risk to our nation or our armed forces, for instance in pursuit of his desire to close the secure detention facility at Guantanamo Bay. "Americans have been waiting seven long years to find out what that serious plan might look like. "They're still waiting today. "What the President sent to Congress yesterday isn't a plan. It's more of a research project if anything. It does call on Congress to act though. "Turns out, we already have. "Congress has repeatedly voted to enact clear bipartisan prohibitions on the very thing the President is again calling for: the transfer of Guantanamo Bay terrorists into our local communities. "We've enacted bipartisan prohibitions in Congresses with split party control. "We've enacted bipartisan prohibitions in Congresses with massive, overwhelming Democratic majorities. "Just a couple months ago, Members of Congress in both parties expressed themselves clearly once again not once but twice, and on an overwhelming bipartisan basis. "President Obama signed these bipartisan prohibitions into law too. "So let's not pretend there is even the faintest of pretenses for some 'pen and phone' gambit here. "Congress has acted: clearly, repeatedly, and on a bipartisan basis. "The President now has a duty to follow the laws that he himself signed. "It shouldn't be that hard when you consider his admonition yesterday about 'upholding the highest standards of rule of law' in our country. 'As Americans,' he said, 'we pride ourselves on being a beacon to other nations, a model of the rule of law.' "That's interesting in light of a recent GAO ruling that the Administration's detainee swap of Taliban prisoners for Bowe Berghdahl violated the law. It's especially interesting in light of the President's continuing refusal to rule out breaking the law if he doesn't get his way on Guantanamo. "President Obama's own Attorney General says he can't unilaterally do that. "President Obama's own Defense Secretary says he can't unilaterally do that. "President Obama's own top military officer says he can't unilaterally do that. "In the words of one of our Democratic colleagues, 'He's going to have to comply with the legal restrictions.' "Simple as that. "Breaking the law as a way to supposedly uphold the rule of law is just as absurd as it sounds. It's time the President finally ruled that option out categorically. And then, he should finally move on from a years-old campaign promise and focus on the real problems that need solving today. "My own hope is that the commander-in-chief will not put his own chain of command in the position of having to carry out an unlawful direct order. "But look: Closing Guantanamo and transferring terrorists to the United States didn't make sense in 2008 and it makes even less sense today. We are a nation at war. "The Administration's efforts to 'contain' ISIL thus far have not succeeded. "The next President may very well want to pursue operations that target, capture, detain, and interrogate terrorists, because that's how terrorist networks are defeated. "Why would we take that option away from the next commander-in-chief now? "And let's be clear. "The two options on the table are not keeping Guantanamo open or closing it, but keeping Guantanamo terrorists at Guantanamo or moving them to some 'Guantanamo North' based in a U.S. community. "Changing the detention center's ZIP code is not a solution. It's not even serious. "The fact that the President missed a deadline for submitting a plan to defeat ISIL last week, presumably because he was too busy working on this ancient campaign promise, is just completely unacceptable. "Some of the most senior national security officials within President Obama's own administration are already working to better position the next President for the national security challenges we will face in 2017. "It's time President Obama finally joined them, and us, in the serious work of keeping Americans safe in a dangerous world." WESTPORT -- The stories behind the novel and antique objects featured on Greg Van Antwerp's website are "a reflection of who we are as a society, or who we are as people," Van Antwerp said. "I'm finding things that are lost or forgotten to time." Van Antwerp, a Brookfield resident and self-described "urban archeologist," is the proprietor of UrbanArcheologist.net, a website devoted to uncovering the stories behind curios and items of historical interest unearthed by Van Antwerp in garages, cellars, attics and estate sales. "I'm finding things that are lost or forgotten to time," Van Antwerp told The Hour. "I find things that deserve a deeper look. They have a story to tell, and I'm interested in trying to draw out the story." The site now boasts over 650 posts and has spawned books and a lecture series titled "Confessions of an Urban Archeologist" -- which Van Antwerp will bring to Westport Historical Society on Feb. 28 -- but Van Antwerp's career as a webmaster began with a somewhat arbitrary decision to begin blogging about something -- anything. "It was a New Year's resolution in 2009," Van Antwerp told said. "I was reading a lot of blogs, (but) I didn't know what it meant to be a blogger. I wasn't on social media; I resented Facebook -- I didn't understand it. I didn't know what Twitter was." To cure his technophobia, Van Antwerp prescribed himself a sort of Internet exposure therapy by challenging himself to start a blog. Letting his eyes drift over the objects in his home office, Van Antwerp noticed a tiny novelty candle shaped like a foot that he'd found at one of the garage sales he habitually browses. The candle became the first item featured on UrbanArcheologist.net. "I have an eclectic nature; I'm into a lot of things," Van Antwerp said; his eyes could have landed on any number of things in his home and altered the direction of his website completely. "It could have been a house plant!" As it turned out, Van Antwerp's lifelong passion for collecting oddities from garage and estate sales was perfectly compatible with his new hobby. "I was born to be a digger," Van Antwerp said. "Just discovering things, finding things, I think is an innate part of my nature." To find objects that are suitably obscure, Van Antwerp spends over an hour at each sale he visits and inquires about interesting objects that might be stored elsewhere on the premises. On a recent visit to an estate sale in Southbury, Van Antwerp used his intuition to uncover a set of Aurora AFX slot cars from the early Sixties. Approaching the man holding the sale, "I said to him, 'I come looking for things that haven't been found yet, so I like digging around,'" Van Antwerp told The Hour. "If I'm going to look, I want to look where people don't normally look." Granted permission to peruse the basement of the house, Van Antwerp found the forgotten slot cars behind a piece of burlap high on a shelf. "I don't think they'd been touched since the mid-Sixties," Van Antwerp said. "I pulled them down, and (a woman who had grown up in the house) said, 'Oh my god, these were my brother's! ... My brother has to know about these.'" Van Antwerp took photos of the vintage toys and streamed some footage on Periscope, but he didn't try to convince the family to part with them. He emphasizes that he is an enthusiast, not somebody looking to find cheap antiques and flip them online. "I'm not a dealer, I'm not an eBayer. I'm just looking for a good story," Van Antwerp told The Hour. "I take more pictures than I take items." Greg Van Antwerp will present "Confessions of an Urban Archeologist" from 3 to 4 p.m. on Feb. 28 at Westport Historical Society. A 5 dollar donation to support the Historical Society is requested. Space is limited and registration is required: call (203) 222-1424. Light refreshments will be served. WASHINGTON -- Apple Inc. will tell a federal judge this week in legal papers that its fight with the FBI over accessing a locked and encrypted iPhone should be kicked to Congress, rather than decided by courts, The Associated Press has learned. Apple will also argue that the Obama administration's request to help it hack into an iPhone in a terrorism case is improper under an 18th century law, the 1789 All Writs Act, which has been used to compel companies to provide assistance to law enforcement in investigations. A lead attorney for Apple, Theodore J. Boutrous Jr., previewed for the AP some of the company's upcoming arguments in the case. Apple's chief executive, Tim Cook, has also hinted at the company's courtroom strategy. Apple's effort would move the contentious policy debate between digital privacy rights and national security interests to Congress, where Apple -- one of the world's most respected technology companies -- wields considerably more influence. Apple spent nearly $5 million lobbying Congress last year, mostly on tax and copyright issues. Key lawmakers have been openly divided about whether the government's demands in the case go too far. Magistrate Judge Sheri Pym in California ordered Apple last week to create specialized software to help the FBI hack into a locked, county-issued iPhone used by a gunman in the mass shootings last December in San Bernardino, California. Syed Farook and his wife, Tashfeen Malik, killed 14 people at an office holiday party in an attack at least partly inspired by the Islamic State group. "The government is really seeking to push the courts to do what they haven't been able to persuade Congress to do," Boutrous said in an AP interview. "That's to give it more broad, sweeping authority to help the Department of Justice hack into devices, to have a backdoor into devices, and the law simply does not provide that authority." The White House spokesman, Josh Earnest, this week disputed that Congress should settle the issue and called the government's request narrow. Earnest said the magistrate judge "came down in favor of our law enforcement" after evaluating arguments by Apple and the FBI. Apple hasn't yet made any filings in the case because the Justice Department asked the magistrate to rule before Apple had an opportunity to object. "Sending complicated things to Congress is often not the surest way to get a quick answer," Earnest said. "In fact, even asking some of the most basic questions of Congress sometimes does not ensure a quick answer." Apple intends to argue that the 1789 law has never been used to compel a company to write software to help the government. Michael Zweiback, the former chief of the cybercrimes section of the U.S. Attorney's Office in Los Angeles, said it was highly unusual for the U.S. to ask Apple to give the FBI specialized software that would weaken the digital locks on the iPhone. "There's a significant legal question as to whether the All Writs Act can be used to order a company to create something that may not presently exist," Zweiback said. He said as a former prosecutor he was sympathetic to the government's case, but he described Apple's arguments as strong and said the issue has broad implications. "We are not the only ones who are asking for encryption keys," he said. "The Chinese government has made similar demands upon them, the European Union has made similar demands upon them, so the implications are really not even national. They're international in scope." Another expert, Mark Bartholomew, a professor specializing in cyberlaw at SUNY Buffalo, said Apple may have a compelling case arguing that it would be unfair to force it to make its devices less secure, though it's not clear whether courts would agree that Congress should decide the matter. "When you're requiring a private entity not just to unlock something, or not just to show you something, but to actually change their design -- then you start getting into different grounds," Bartholomew said. "It makes the stakes higher. It makes us, I think, more sympathetic to what Apple is arguing for. It seems more violative of Apple's independence." The U.S. has used the All Writs Act at least three times -- most recently in 1980 -- to compel a phone company to provide a list of dialed numbers, but in those cases the technology and tools already existed, said Jennifer Granick, an attorney and director of civil liberties and the Stanford Center for Internet and Society. "This is a terrorism investigation that's solved. We know who did it," Granick said. "What happens so often is we do something that's justified for terrorism, but it's going to get used in regular, run-of-the-mill cases." Apple is challenging government efforts to overcome encryption on at least 14 electronic devices nationwide in addition to the iPhone in California, according to court papers filed Tuesday in a similar case in New York. Lawyers told U.S. Magistrate Judge James Orenstein in Brooklyn that Apple is opposed to relinquishing information on at least 15 devices in a dozen court cases in California, Illinois, Massachusetts and New York. Before then, the government said Apple had helped it retrieve information from at least 70 devices since 2008. Those phones, with operating software designed earlier than the iPhone used in California, allowed Apple to use a physical tool to extract data from them. Since late 2014, that capability has not existed on newer phones. Associated Press writers Eric Tucker in Washington and Larry Neumeister in New York contributed to this report. ___ Follow Tami Abdollah on Twitter at https://twitter.com/latams This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate WASHINGTON -- President Barack Obama's plan to close the detention center at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba slammed into a wall of Republican opposition on Tuesday, stopping cold Obama's hope for a bipartisan effort to "close a chapter" that began in the aftermath of the Sept. 11 attacks. The long-awaited proposal, which was requested by Congress, is Obama's last attempt to make good on an unfulfilled campaign promise by persuading Congress to change the law that prohibits moving detainees accused of violent extremist acts to U.S. soil. Fourteen years after the facility opened and seven years after Obama took office, the president argued it was "finally" time to shutter a facility that has sparked persistent legal battles, become a recruitment tool for Islamic militants and garnered strong opposition from some allies abroad. "I don't want to pass this problem onto the next president, whoever it is," Obama said in an appearance at the White House. "If we don't do what's required now, I think future generations are going to look back and ask why we failed to act when the right course, the right side of history, and justice and our best American traditions was clear." Despite the big ambitions, Obama's proposed path remained unclear. The plan leaves unanswered the politically thorny question of where in the U.S a new facility would be located. It offered broad cost estimates. The White House described it as more of a conversation starter than a definitive outline. Republican leaders in Congress showed no interest in having that conversation. "We will review President Obama's plan but since it includes bringing dangerous terrorists to facilities in U.S. communities, he knows that the bipartisan will of Congress has already been expressed against that proposal," said Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Kentucky. House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., said Obama had yet to convince Americans that moving detainees to U.S. soil is "smart or safe." "It is against the law -- and it will stay against the law," Ryan said. Even Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., a former prisoner of war and an advocate of closing the prison, called Obama's report a "vague menu of options," which does not include a policy for dealing with future detainees. Obama has "missed a major chance to convince the Congress and the American people that he has a responsible plan to close the Guantanamo Bay detention facility," he said. It's not clear whether that chance ever existed. Momentum to close the facility has slowed dramatically under Obama's tenure. Congress remains deadlocked on far less contentious matters, and the issue has little resonance on the presidential campaign trail. Still, for Obama, the facility stands as painful reminder of the limits on his power: His first executive order sketched out a timeline for closing the prison, but was ultimately derailed by Congress. The White House has not ruled out the possibility that the president may again attempt to close the prison through executive action -- a move that would directly challenge Congress' authority. The plan submitted Tuesday does not address that option. Instead, the proposal reflects the administration's strategy of shrinking the population, hoping the cost of housing the diminished population would ultimately make closure inevitable. Under the plan, roughly 35 of the 91 current detainees will be transferred to other countries in the coming months, leaving up to 60 detainees who are either facing trial by military commission or have been determined to be too dangerous to release but are not facing charges. Those detainees would be relocated to a U.S. facility that could cost up to $475 million to build, but would ultimately be offset by as much as $180 million per year in operating cost savings. The annual operating cost for Guantanamo is $445 million. The U.S. facilities would cost between $265 million and $305 million to operate each year, according to the proposal. The plan considers, but does not name, 13 different locations in the U.S., including seven existing prison facilities in Colorado, South Carolina and Kansas, as well as six other locations at current correctional facilities on state, federal or military sites in several states. It also notes that there could be all new construction on existing military bases. The plan doesn't recommend a preferred site. Naming a site would have certainly further antagonized some members of Congress. Those representing South Carolina, Kansas and Colorado already have voiced opposition to housing the detainees in their states. Advocates of closing Guantanamo say the prison has long been a recruiting tool for militant groups and that holding extremists suspected of violent acts indefinitely without charges or trial sparks anger and dismay among U.S. allies. Opponents, however, say changing the detention center's ZIP code won't eliminate that problem. Obama's proposal faced criticism even from those who endorse closing the detention center. His initial campaign pledge was widely viewed as a promise to end the practice of detaining prisoners indefinitely without charge, not to bring that practice to the U.S., said Naureen Shah, director of Amnesty International USA's Security and Human Rights Program. "Whatever the president proposes, even if it doesn't come to fruition, the administration is changing the goal posts on this issue," she said. Associated Press writers Deb Riechmann and Donna Cassata contributed to this report. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate SALT LAKE CITY (AP) -- Investigators say they noticed something strange when they began tracking food stamp transactions coming out of two small convenience stores in a polygamous community on the Arizona-Utah border. The volume of food stamp purchases was so large that it rivaled big-box stores like Wal-Mart and Costco. They said they ultimately learned that residents were scanning their food stamp debit cards at the stores but getting no items in return, allowing leaders of the polygamous sect to funnel the money to front companies. The proceeds paid for a John Deere loader, a Ford truck and $17,000 in paper products, federal prosecutors said Tuesday. The alleged scheme is at the heart of a major takedown of top leaders of the secretive sect in which followers believe that having multiple wives brings exaltation in heaven. Eleven people were charged with food stamp fraud and money laundering, including Lyle Jeffs and Seth Jeffs, top-ranking leaders of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and brothers of imprisoned sect leader Warren Jeffs. Lyle Jeffs runs the day-to-day operations in the polygamous community of Hildale, Utah, while Seth Jeffs leads a branch of the group in South Dakota. Their brother Warren Jeffs is serving a life sentence in Texas for sexually assaulting girls he considered brides. Prosecutors accuse church leaders of orchestrating a yearslong fraud scheme that included meetings during which they told members how to use the food-stamp benefits illegally and avoid getting caught, charging documents say. The practice has been called "bleeding the beast," taking money from a government they disdain and using it as they see fit, said Amos Guiora, a University of Utah law professor who has studied the church. The sect does not have a spokesman or a phone listing where leaders can be contacted. The Associated Press could not verify if the defendants had attorneys yet. The arrests -- which were made Tuesday in Salt Lake City; Custer County, South Dakota; and the sister cities of Hildale, Utah and Colorado City, Arizona -- are the government's latest move targeting the sect. They come amid a civil rights trial in Phoenix against Hildale and Colorado City, Arizona, in which prosecutors say the communities discriminated against non-members by denying them housing, water services and police protection. Federal labor lawyers also are going after the group on allegations that leaders ordered parents to put their kids to work for long hours for little pay on a southern Utah pecan farm. The communities deny those allegations. Prosecutors said the actions in this new case weren't coordinated. But Sam Brower, a private investigator who has spent years investigating the group, said one common theme in the cases is that authorities are finding more willing witnesses with inside knowledge because large numbers of people have been kicked out or left. Lyle Jeffs and Seth Jeffs and the others are expected to make their initial court appearances Wednesday in three different federal states. Federal prosecutors are asking the judge to keep them behind bars, arguing that they are flight risks. They contend that if allowed out on bail, the polygamists are likely to flee and hide in the group's elaborate network of houses throughout North and South America, using aliases, disguises, false identification and pre-paid cellphones. U.S. Attorney John Huber said repeatedly Tuesday that the indictment was not about religion, but fraud. Guiora, the law professor, said the bust goes well beyond fraud -- putting the group's leadership in doubt. ___ Associated Press writers Jacques Billeaud in Phoenix and Felicia Fonseca in Flagstaff, Arizona, contributed to this report. NORWALK -- ElderHouse Adult Day Services Executive Director Denise Cesareo has been honored for her work with an appointment to Connecticut's Legislative Commission on Aging by Sen. Bob Duff. "I am honored, absolutely honored in this capacity," said Cesareo. "I received my official letter on Feb. 5th and saw Bob (Duff) on Monday morning where he congratulated me." Connecticut's Legislative Commission on Aging is a nonpartisan public policy and research office that deals with everything in regards to the state's elderly and aging populations. "The commission is phenomenal in their support of the elder community," said Cesareo. "They really are a unique utility that keeps growing in leaps and bounds." Sen. Duff, who served on the Board of ElderHouse has worked with Cesareo and admires her work. "(The Elder House) is very well run. They have shown their passion for seniors and Denise will be a perfect fit," said Sen. Duff. "She will bring a unique perspective to the commission." Cesareo has been the executive director for the ElderHouse since 1992 where she has been responsible for the overall management of the facility as well as setting a direction to address the future needs of our senior citizens. "There are a lot of needs to meet, when it comes to our elderly population," said Cesareo. "And the commission is the driving force behind the legislation and policies that will address these needs." ElderHouse has provided the community with care to their senior citizens, achieving many awards and state certification with commendation ever since it first opened its doors in 1977. "Denise will bring many of the aging issues that are needed to be addressed to the commission," said Sen. Duff. "She will (do Connecticut a great service) by helping those who can't advocate for themselves." Cesareo has served as president of the Connecticut Association of Adult Day Services and Senior Services Coordinating Council and board advisor for Under One Roof and The Marvin senior housing and senior nutrition program. Cesareo has a master's degree from C.W. Post College and has completed postgraduate work in not-forprofit management and health care administration at Columbia, Harvard and UCONN. "It's always good to have someone on a state board from Fairfield County," said Sen. Duff. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 3 1 of 3 Show More Show Less 2 of 3 Show More Show Less 3 of 3 NORWALK -- St. Paul's on the Green has began a new tradition with their Wall of Community Cares which will stand (at least) through the rest of Lent. "In terms of the community, we have a pretty big presence, but we want to broaden it," said Rev. Nicholas G. Lang, Rector at St. Paul's on the Green, located at 60 East Ave. "We want them to share their concerns with us -- even if they don't want to worship with us. As a community, we want to pray for the concerns." For much of the school year, students in Diane Meyers classroom at Knickrehm Elementary School spend their time before school starts working on art contests. That effort pays off. Three students in Meyers fifth-grade classroom were the winners of this years Tobacco Free Hall County annual art contest. First place went to Ava Buckner. She was followed in second place by Abigail Gamage and in third place by Aisha Martinez. The winners of the 11th annual contest were announced at a lunchtime gathering Tuesday at the Central Nebraska Council on Alcoholism and Addictions. The announcement doubled as a pizza party. Buckner, the daughter of Eric Buckner, received $100 for finishing first. Gamage, the daughter of Rachel Paullins and John Gamage, was presented $75. Martinez, the daughter of Maricruz and Jose Martinez, received $50 for her third-place finish. All three students also received a gift basket. During the school year, Meyer has her students enter five art contests, most of which are statewide. The students work on their creations between 7:20 a.m., when they arrive, and 8, when school starts. How well do her students do in those contests? When he was governor, Dave Heineman visited Meyers classroom three times. I think it brings out their creativity, Meyer said of the students involvement. Before they take part, many of the students dont realize their potential in drawing and art, she said. Its also an educational experience for the fifth-graders. They often do research and share that information with the other students, Meyer said. The three girls are strongly opposed to tobacco use because it can harm kids, Buckner said. Its not good for them. It can affect their health. Tobacco use can give a person a shorter life, said Martinez, 10. She also said that if she saw students smoking, she would confront them about it. Gamage, 10, said she did a lot of research on her project. The Knickrehm pieces were all crafted with colored pencils. Many of the students began their posters at school and finished them at home, Meyer said. Buckners father said he was very proud of his 11-year-old daughter. She is, he said, an excellent student, a great role model, a leader and a good friend to a lot of students. About 40 entries were received in this years contest, said Sandy Yager, prevention coordinator for Tobacco Free Hall County. Meyer has 22 students in her class. Most of those students entered the contest. The Knickrehm students won the grade school category. There were no middle school entries this year. The contest, open to grades one through eight, encourages a tobacco-free lifestyle. The three winning entries will be displayed on three billboards in Grand Island. Theyll also be shown at the Grand Island Public Library and Conestoga Mall. Funding is provided by the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services/Tobacco Free Nebraska Program as a result of the tobacco master settlement agreement. 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Ireland United States Minor Outlying Islands United States of America Uruguay, Eastern Republic of Uzbekistan Vanuatu Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of Viet Nam, Socialist Republic of Wallis and Futuna Islands Western Sahara Yemen Zambia, Republic of Zimbabwe The Board of Health for South Heartland District Health Department (SHDHD), serving Adams, Clay, Nuckolls and Webster counties, is directly concerned with the protection and promotion of health, safety, and welfare of community residents, particularly children and youths. The board supports LB1013, a bill that would raise the tax on cigarettes and other tobacco products. The board is alarmed that the number of Nebraska high school students who smoke is 11,000 (1 in 10), and approximately 1,800 Nebraska youths start to smoke each day. Smoking kills about 2,500 residents of Nebraska each year. The amount of health care costs in Nebraska directly caused by smoking and tobacco use is $795 million annually, a cost burden shared by all residents. Tobacco price increases are one of the most effective ways to deter smoking initiation and reduce tobacco use, especially among youths. Research shows that as the cigarette pack price goes up, youth smoking prevalence goes down. Nebraskas cigarette tax is 39th lowest in the U.S. and LB1013 would raise the cigarette tax by $1.50 per pack (up from 64 to $2.14/pack). The economic impact from reduced absenteeism and improved work productivity from workers who quit smoking after a tobacco tax increase is estimated to be $6.8 million annually for Nebraska. Tobacco-related death and disease are tremendous burdens on the health and welfare of each resident of Nebraska. Whereas the Board of Health for South Heartland District Health Department believes the residents of Nebraska are the greatest resource of the state, the Board of Health supports LB1013 to deter smoking initiation and reduce tobacco use. Therefore, on Feb. 5, 2016, the Board of Health passed a resolution recommending that the Nebraska Legislature adopt a policy increasing the taxation of cigarettes and other tobacco products. Looking for the big games to watch in Week 9? We have them right here. football The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum in Springfield has acquired a law book that Lincoln used as an attorney and considered one of the most important for a young lawyer to master. The book is the second volume in a three-volume set called A Treatise on the Law of Evidence by Simon Greenleaf. It will be reunited with the first volume, which the library has owned for decades. The location of the third, if it still exists, is a mystery. We learn a little more about Lincolns career every month, and each discovery raises new questions to explore. When and why did the firm get rid of this book that Lincoln used so often? Did they buy a later edition? Maybe the answers will be in the next book or document that someone donates, said James Cornelius, curator of the presidential librarys Lincoln Collection. The Montana Historical Society generously donated the book to the Lincoln Presidential Library. The society received the book in 1927 from a Helena resident who had gotten it from his father, who had bought it years earlier. The book does not fit in our collection, so we are very happy that the presidential library is interested in it, said Roberta Gebhardt, library manager of the Montana Historical Society. We always like to reunite sets if we can. Its a pleasure to have these two volumes reunited here at the Lincoln Presidential Library, and we appreciate the Montana Historical Societys generosity, said Nadine OLeary, acting executive director of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum. A Treatise on the Law of Evidence was an important reference work in Lincolns mind. In two surviving letters to aspiring young attorneys, he lists it as one of four books they must master. The book is signed Lincoln & Herndon by Lincolns law partner, William Herndon. Lincoln and Herndon, partners for 17 years, had more than 120 thick law and statute books in their library. The firm Lincoln & Herndon eventually became Herndon & Orendorff, which closed in 1909. Afterward, many of the firms law books were sold. Today about half of those reside in the Lincoln Presidential Library, and the other half are in the Regenstein Library at the University of Chicago. In the newly acquired Greenleaf book, Herndon starred or underscored a few passages and added minute index entries. The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum, a division of the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency, is dedicated to telling the story of Americas 16th president through old-fashioned scholarship and modern technology. The library holds an unparalleled collection of Lincoln books, documents, photographs, artifacts and art, as well as some 12 million items pertaining to all aspects of Illinois history. The museum uses traditional exhibits, eye-catching special effects and innovative story-telling techniques to educate visitors. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Bobby Hermanus (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, February 24, 2016 As we proceed into 2016, we have witnessed waves of layoffs of thousands of workers. At least 12,680 workers were laid off during January and February, most of them in the electronics, automotive, and textiles and garments industries. In the midst of a decelerating economy, rising unemployment needs to be addressed seriously. In attempts to anticipate the current labor force situation, the government has taken several steps to encourage investment, both domestic and foreign direct investment, through the launch of a series of economic policy packages. It is hoped the subsequent investments will open up a lot of job opportunities. The question is how to encourage job creation in a more systematic, effective and sustainable way. To answer this question, we need to examine first the distribution of labor in business sectors in Indonesia. Based on data from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS), the share of employment by micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) continues to rise, from around 73.4 percent in the period of crisis in 1998 to reach 95.7 percent in 2012. This indicates that MSMEs are crucial for job creation and absorb the labor force. Development of MSMEs is closely related to the dynamics of the entrepreneurial ecosystem itself. Based on International Finance Corporation (IFC) MSME Country Indicator data in 2010, Indonesia was among five countries in the world that had the highest density of MSMEs (number of MSMEs per 1,000 people), namely Brunei Darussalam (122), Indonesia (100), Paraguay (95), the Czech Republic (85) and Ecuador (84). The average world MSME density is 31. Some neighboring countries have a much lower ratio, for example Malaysia (21.4), the Philippines (9), Singapore (34.9), Thailand (34), Vietnam (34) and China (7.7). Overall, economies with higher income per capita tend to have more formal MSMEs per 1,000 people. Micro-sized businesses (with asset values and maximum turnovers of Rp 50 million [US$3,728] and Rp 300 million) dominate the number of MSMEs in Indonesia amounting to 98.9 percent. Small businesses (with asset values between Rp 50 million and 500 million and turnovers between Rp 300 million and Rp 2.5 billion) and medium-sized businesses (with asset values between Rp 500 million and Rp 2.5 billion and turnovers between Rp 2.5 billion and Rp 50 billion) only account for 1 percent and 0.1 percent, respectively. In Malaysia, the Philippines, and Japan, for example, micro-sized businesses still dominate, but their proportion of total MSMEs is smaller than Indonesia. The proportion of micro-sized business in total MSMEs in Malaysia, the Philippines and Japan stands at 79.3 percent, 92.3 percent and 61.1 percent, respectively. The more micro-sized business that can be elevated into small and medium-sized business, the better for the economy, as this increases output and employment. Indonesia has a larger micro-business proportion of total MSMEs and overall MSME contribution to gross domestic product (GDP) than Malaysia and Japan. According to the BPS, Indonesia's MSME contribution to GDP reached 57 percent in 2012, while in Malaysia and Japan it was only about 33.1 percent and 50 percent, respectively, in 2014. This is partially affected by the large number of Indonesia's MSMEs in the national economy as indicated by MSME density. Another factor is associated with industrial structure. For example, compared with Indonesia, Japan is perceived as an economy of large manufacturers, thus the cumulative output of these larger manufacturers has a significant contribution to GDP. In order to enhance the MSME's contribution to the national economy, fostering a national entrepreneurial ecosystem is absolutely necessary. The scaling up businesses from micro-sized to small-sized and small-sized to medium-sized must be promoted, along with the ongoing efforts to foster new entrepreneurs (startups) in the country. To achieve this, at least three things can be done together by the government and the private sector, which involve government policies and programs, research-and-development (R&D) transfers and innovation and business financing. In regard to government policies and programs, it is recommended to focus on enhancing the capacity of start-ups and the scaling up of businesses by enabling business service providers, including teachers, lecturers, business development services (BDS), integrated public service centers (PLUT) and education institutions to provide better entrepreneurship education. In addition to this, backward and forward linkage between businesses must be enhanced in order to strengthen the production capacity of MSMEs and upgrade their technical and business capabilities so as they will ready to scale up their businesses. This will require close cooperation among government, big companies and MSMEs. When it relates to R&D the focus should be on technology transfers, which require the assistance of universities and research institutions such as the Indonesian Institute of Science (LIPI) and the Agency for the Assessment and Application of Technology (BPPT). Some executable initiatives could be taken to support R&D transfers. These include the commercialization of research, facilitating collaborative action of commercialized research between R&D providers (universities and research institutes) and the private sector, and improving protection for existing intellectual property (IP) rights by regulating tolerance levels for new variants or ideas that have similarities to existing products. Financing is considered one of the two biggest obstacles for businesses in developing countries, according to the IFC MSME survey in 2010. Access to finance affects small businesses much more than it does medium and large businesses. There are some problems in entrepreneurial financing, especially for start-ups and SMEs, in terms of lack of awareness of suitable financial products and the anxiety experienced during the application process. Another drawback is also related to loan collateral, the requirements for which are difficult to fulfill by micro or small entrepreneurs. To support the emergence of startups, the government can provide seed funding from state owned-enterprises' corporate social responsibility funds combined with an entrepreneurship mentoring program for students. Then it can continue by providing tax allowances for financial institutions that develop financing schemes for MSMEs in leading or priority sectors or commodities and tax exemptions for startups and MSMEs in leading sectors or commodities as well. Redefining the role of SOEs' venture capital and the venture capital sector to increase equity participation in start-ups or MSMEs would be another strategic choice that should be made by the government given the disinclination of the banking sector to finance start-ups because of the risks. Scaling up micro-sized businesses and supporting the emergence of new entrepreneurs in the country will require collaborative action involving all stakeholders. As the government is the main stakeholder that orchestrates the overall ecosystem, any programs and initiatives will meet success only through effective coordination among government bodies before other relevant stakeholders become involved. __________________________________ The writer is an industry analyst at Bank Mandiri Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Tertiani ZB Simanjuntak (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, February 24, 2016 World artist Sri Astari Rasjid pays homage to all mothers in a retrospective to be held in Yogyakarta from Feb. 27 to March 5. Titled 'Yang Terhormat Ibu' (Dear Mother), the exhibition at the Koesnadi Hardjasoemantri Cultural Center (PKKH) in Bulaksumur will showcase Astari's works representing her 26-year journey as an artist. At least eight paintings 'some borrowed from the collectors of her works ' will be displayed side-by-side with her latest artistic ventures: four photos, seven sculptures and nine works of installation art, including one featuring china made by Astari. Among the sculptures is a 1.5-meter kebaya made of steel and decorated with a bronze butterfly. Armor for Change was displayed at the entrance of Singapore Art Week in January. 'I'm still finishing four paintings for the exhibition. Let's see if I can make them in time,' Astari told a media briefing in Jakarta, adding that most of the installation pieces would be assembled on location. A contemporary artist since the early 1990s, Astari, a trained fashion designer, said the exhibition would be a tribute to her mother, whom she decribed as a dominant factor in her life. 'It is also a tribute to Mother Nature, our motherland, the goddesses in Javanese myth and legend, all mothers and even to my daughter who has become a mother herself.' Curator Adi Wicaksono explained that the theme was chosen as it reflected the artist's thoughts and contemplation of life. 'Astari is a Javanese woman who adheres to Javanese culture even though she spent much of her childhood abroad. In the culture she lives by, the concept of mother symbolizes the womb, where the power of creation lies.' In her works, Astari uses many symbols close to Javanese culture that embody the feminine and masculine sides of a woman. Her varying phases of thought are manifest in the works, beginning with her initial questioning of the women's traditionally subservient role in Javanese culture to the stage where she concluded that the competition between masculinity and feminism was no longer an issue for her. Art critic Carla Bianpoen said Astari's works were strongly rooted in Javanese culture. 'She looks at traditions from a modern perspective. Instead of pushing it away, she gives value to it, without losing her sense of humor,' Carla said. Astari, who has also ventured into performance art, will set up a dance performance as part of one of the installations ' a joglo (verandah) decorated with nine wooden puppets. The contemporary dance titled Garba (Womb) created by choreographer Retno Sulistiarini was inspired by the Javanese sacred dance Bedhaya. The exhibition will be opened by the Yogyakarta sultan's wife, GKR Hemas. Other fringe events include a charity night by the Children with Asthma Foundation, an NGO chaired by Ike Nirwan Bakrie, Javanese poetry reading and shadow puppet play by master Ki Seno Nugroho. The newly appointed ambassador to Bulgaria will leave for her post, which also includes Albania and Macedonia, a few days after the exhibition. 'It's not a farewell exhibition because I will focus on soft diplomacy in those countries, putting on cultural events that in turn will bring in trade and investment.' Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Dylan Amirio (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, February 24, 2016 Online store Bhinneka hopes to see 100 percent growth in transactions this year, partly as a result of improving its services for corporate customers and its strengthening advertising campaigns. Bhinneka, one of the country's pioneering online retail players, sees the ever growing e-commerce market to have high potential. Bhinneka CEO Hendrik Tio said the company would set up a streamlined service within the bhinneka.com website to better assist its corporate customers with their transactions, called the Bhinneka Business service. The service, which Hendrik said would help the company achieve its triple digit growth target, is likely to be launched in March. 'We have 20,000 corporate customers in our user base, with 5,000 to 6,000 of them being very active in our service for the last six months,' Hendrik said on Tuesday. 'Within our user base, corporate customers account for 50 percent of our user revenue figures. This service will benefit both parties a lot more,' he added. The site currently gets 185,000 visits per day and up to 21 million page views per month. Online transactions made up 40 percent of the site's revenue in 2015. Eighty percent of the items it sells are computers and consumer electronics. The company will also spend up to Rp 100 billion on advertising in all forms of media except television. He said, however, that Bhinneka would take a different approach to other e-commerce marketplaces. 'I see Bhinneka having a different approach than its competitors because it seems their advertising is focused on intensity and bombarding customers with ads or promotions,' he said. 'We will do the same thing but aim more smartly, thus not spoiling the customer too much.' Bhinneka launched the Bhinneka Marketplace in 2015, allowing brands to directly sell to customers rather than through Bhinneka beforehand. That program is projected make up for up to 50 percent of Bhinneka's revenue. Bhinneka was first established in 1993 as a printing solution business, before formally launching the Bhinneka online store in 1999. In 2001, Bhinneka's first physical store in Jakarta opened, and the firm now operates seven physical stores in Jakarta and Surabaya, with 17 representative offices nationwide. There are plans to open more offices this year, with a target of 35 representative offices nationwide by the end of 2016. Hendrik said all the measures being taken were in line with the company's ultimate goal of holding an initial public offering (IPO) in 2018. 'The road to an IPO is not easy. We have to ensure our internal growth as well as guarantee our profit, as well as our legal and financial readiness. This can be helped though, as we have experienced triple digit year-on-year profit growth so far,' he said Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Rendi A. Witular, Tassia Sipahutar and Khoirul Amin (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, February 24, 2016 The draft bill on a tax amnesty, submitted by the government to the House of Representatives on Tuesday, is expected to pave the way for an unprecedented repatriation of billions of dollars kept overseas by wealthy Indonesians, but at a cost of immunity from prosecution for all manner of tax crimes. If the bill is passed, with its implementation scheduled for the second half of this year, Indonesians with illicit cash overseas will receive hefty incentives to repatriate the funds. A copy of the draft, obtained by The Jakarta Post recently, stipulates that such individuals will only have to pay penalties of between 1 percent and 3 percent of their repatriated assets ' far lower than the current corporation taxes of up to 25 percent on and 30 percent income tax for individual taxpayers. The repatriated assets will be required to be invested in government or state-owned company bonds with a holding period of at least three years. Such rupiah-denominated bonds usually offer a yield of at least 8 percent per year. However, the bonds can then be switched to other investment instruments such as private company bonds upon request. The repatriated funds can also be invested in the government's infrastructure projects, property and government-priority industries, according to the bill. 'The tax amnesty is more than just a tool to increase state revenues. It will be the catalyst for the repatriation of Indonesian assets deposited overseas,' said legislator Johnny G. Plate. 'The expected repatriations will help strengthen domestic liquidity, as we are in need of more funding for infrastructure.' Finance Minister Bambang Brodjonegoro had earlier estimated that around Rp 2.7 quadrillion (US$195 billion) worth of assets are kept by wealthy Indonesians overseas and Rp 1.4 quadrillion of domestic assets have not been properly reported. Inflows of such funds are greatly anticipated by policy-makers at fa time when Indonesia is in dire need of foreign funding to keep its economy intact amid fears of another global economic meltdown. A source at the ministry said the government particularly expected the amnesty to trigger repatriation of cash deposited in Switzerland worth billions of dollars owned by 84 Indonesians who appeared to be heavyweight politicians and businessmen. The ministry received the data on the individuals from intelligence exchanges with authorities in the US, France and South Korea. Rich Indonesians with assets overseas are likely to feel comfortable with the repatriation as anyone joining the amnesty will be immune from possible criminal prosecution for their tax evasion and avoid administrative penalties on their declared assets. Data and information provided when applying for the amnesty will not be able to be used as a legal basis for criminal investigations or prosecutions of any kind, according to the bill. 'Many businessmen will be comfortable joining the amnesty and repatriating their assets as there will be a raft of legal protections and certainties,' said businessman Sofjan Wanandi, who is also chief advisor to Vice President Jusuf Kalla. Since the fall of president Soeharto in mid 1998, many members of Indonesian conglomerates with close links to the former dictator and their families have parked their assets overseas to escape prosecution. 'What's important is for the repatriated funds to be invested here to generate jobs and bolster economic activities,' said Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin) chairman Rosan Roeslani. 'It's better for the funding not to be invested in paper here but in real economic activities.' Sofjan, who is among the architects of the amnesty along with Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Luhut Pandjaitan, expects the facility to be implemented in the second half of the year. However, the bill's deliberation is likely to be contentious as the ruling Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), the biggest faction in the House, has refused to support the bill unless President Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo agrees to amend the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) Law to curb the authority of the antigraft body. ________________________________________ Excerpts of key articles in tax amnesty bill Article 2: All taxpayers have the right to an amnesty except for those suspected of a tax crime and under investigation by the Attorney General's Office (AGO) or who are currently on trial or serving prison time for a tax crime. Article 3: Penalties on assets registered in Indonesia: * 2% if lodged less than three months after the law is passed, * 4% if lodged between month four and six, * 6% if lodged between month seven and 12 (the amnesty will last for one year). Penalties on assets registered overseas: * 1% if lodged less than three months after the law is passed, * 2% if lodged between month four and six, * 3% if lodged between month seven and 12. Article 4: The penalties are calculated based on net assets as reported in 2015. Article 11: Taxpayers wanting to apply for an amnesty on their cash or equivalent registered overseas should first repatriate funds into a designated local bank. Repatriation of non-cash assets should be completed with such a bank a year after the law is passed. Only assets registered overseas before Dec. 21, 2015 can be repatriated. Article 12: Repatriated assets are required to be invested in government or state company bonds within holding period of at least three years. Taxpayers can switch the bonds after a year to other investment instruments: bonds of private companies whose trading is supervised by the Financial Services Authority (OJK), government infrastructure projects, sectors categorized as government priorities; property. _________________________________ To receive comprehensive and earlier access to The Jakarta Post print edition, please subscribe to our epaper through iOS' iTunes, Android's Google Play, Blackberry World or Microsoft's Windows Store. Subscription includes free daily editions of The Nation, The Star Malaysia, the Philippine Daily Inquirer and Asia News. For print subscription, please contact our call center at (+6221) 5360014 or subscription@thejakartapost.com Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Farida Susanty (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, February 24, 2016 The House of Representatives passed the controversial public housing savings (Tapera) bill into a law on Tuesday despite opposition from employers. The new law will become the legal basis for the establishment of a housing savings program for workers called Tapera. The housing savings program is a way for the government to help low-income people attain proper housing, Public Works and Public Housing Minister Basuki Hadimuljono said in his speech after the bill's approval. He said that the new program would help tackle the country's current housing backlog, which stood at 13.5 million homes in 2014. Following the approval of the bill, the government will establish a Tapera committee in three months and a body to manage the fund in six months. Under the Tapera program, formal workers and independent workers with a salary above the minimum wage are obliged to join the program, while independent workers with a salary below minimum wage and foreign workers working in the country for more than six months can voluntarily join. The mandatory savings amount has not been decided in the new law, but it will be about 2.5 percent of a worker's salary. Two percent will be paid from the workers' wages, while the other 0.5 percent will be contributed by the employers. The Indonesian Employers Association (Apindo) strongly opposed the program as it deemed that the contributions for the savings program would place a burden on finances. The association said the program also overlapped with another government housing program covered in the Workers Social Security Agency (BPJS Ketenagakerjaan), which also provides its members with down payment assistance for home purchases. Employers are currently required to pay at least 19 percent of workers' wages for workers' compensation, such as for old-age benefits, life insurance, workplace incident insurance, pensions, medical insurance, in addition to annual wage increases, which reach 14 percent a year. Apindo chairman Hariyadi Sukamdani said that the association would file a judicial review with the Constitutional Court. Basuki added that the ministry would also merge its housing loan liquidity facility (FLPP), which has total funds of Rp 33.3 trillion (US$2.4 billion), with the Tapera savings program, to aid financing for low-income people's housing. The government will also source funds amounting to Rp. 10 trillion for the Tapera management body from the existing Housing Savings Advisory Board for Civil Workers (Bapertarum-PNS). Basuki said that the technical details, including the percentage of the contribution for the savings program, will be stipulated in seven government regulations to be issued within two years, as well as one presidential regulation, one presidential decree and a regulation on the Tapera fund management body. 'When we draft the government regulation, we will involve businesspeople, and we will also adjust the percentage to their financial capability and economic conditions,' said Tapera special committee head Yoseph Umar Hadi. He said that the timing would be used by the government to consolidate the current employment burden bore by businesspeople, including the old age benefit (JHT) fund and pension fund. The ministry's director general for housing finance, Maurin Sitorus, said that the program might take full effect in 2018, providing time for businesspeople to join the program. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Prima Wirayani (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, February 24, 2016 The country's pharmaceutical industry is slated to grow by almost 50 percent, by 2022, thanks to the government's universal healthcare program and the opening up of the sector to foreign investment, research firm Frost and Sullivan forecasts. The value of the generic medicine industry will expand to US$5.73 billion by 2022, up 48 percent from $3.86 billion recorded last year, Frost and Sullivan Indonesia healthcare consulting analyst Jyoti Nagrani said. Brand-name pharmaceuticals is seen as expanding by 33 percent to $1.63 billion, from $1.22 billion in 2015. 'The growth is backed by the JKN [national health insurance] program,' she said on the sidelines of the firm's Investor Growth Opportunity Briefing 2016 in Jakarta on Tuesday. Through the healthcare program, the government mandates the use of generic medicine, a policy that has caused a spike in drug demand and production. Local pharmaceutical companies have the capacity to cater to the high demand, with Nagrani saying that state-run drugmakers Kimia Farma and Indofarma had the potential to upgrade their production capacity by 123 percent and 200 percent, respectively, last year. 'But maybe in the future, if demand continues to increase, you'll see more foreign players addressing the increasing demand for generics in the country,' she added. The number of pharmaceutical companies operating in the country stood at 239 firms in 2014, up from 206 in the previous year, according to Health Ministry data. Ninety percent of drug ingredients are imported, although 70 percent of drugs consumed in the country are made by local firms, data from the Food and Drug Monitoring Agency (BPOM) showed. In a bid to encourage the raw material industry, the government announced earlier this month that it would revise the nation's negative investment list (DNI) ' which includes sectors restricted for foreign investment ' to allow 100 percent foreign ownership in pharmaceutical companies, from 85 percent previously. Frost and Sullivan Asia Pacific transformational health director Milind Sabnis said during the same event that the new regulation would channel more foreign investment into raw material development for medicine manufacturing in the country. 'Developing products locally will be very much easier,' he added. Publicly listed pharmaceutical company PT Kalbe Farma has commenced construction on its first biotech-based drug factory in Cikarang, West Java, in a bid to reduce its dependency on imported raw materials for drug production. Meanwhile, Kimia Farma has established a joint venture with a South Korean-affiliated company to ensure the supply of raw materials for drug production. Sabnis went on to say that in addition to investment in the raw material industry, foreign investors would also look to investing in healthcare services, which are currently open for a limited percentage of foreign investment, as patients had started to look for not only products but also services. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Corry Elyda (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, February 24, 2016 Amid controversy, the city administration is continuing its plan to build a state-of-the-art cancer hospital and a 40-story palliative care center on a troubled plot of land adjacent to the Sumber Waras Hospital in Grogol, West Jakarta. Jakarta Governor Basuki 'Ahok' Tjahaja Purnama said recently that the cancer hospital would have at least 1,000 beds while the palliative care center, likely be the first of its kind in the country, would have about 500 units. 'The prevalence of cancer is quite high in Indonesia. With the huge population, we should have at least 800 chemotherapy machines,' he said, adding that the country now has only 40 machines. He said almost all patients had to come to Jakarta to get their cancer treated as most of the machines were in Jakarta's hospitals. Indonesia has only two cancer treatment centers, the Darmais Hospital in West Jakarta and the newly launched Pasar Minggu Hospital in South Jakarta. Ahok's idea of building the cancer hospital has been hampered by a Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) report saying that the land purchase in Sumber Waras was superfluous. In the BPK's audit of the city administration's 2014 financial report, the agency included a report on the city's Rp 775.69 billion (US$55 million) purchase of the land. The BPK said the price was inflated and the land should have been purchased for the same taxable value of property (NJOP) as the surrounding buildings. The land, the agency report said, could have been bought for Rp 564.35 billion, which would have saved the city budget Rp 191 billion. BPK handed over the Sumber Waras case to the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) in December last year. As of today, there is no news about any follow-up on the case. Jakarta Health Agency head Kusmedi Priharto said previously that the city would continue with the plan regardless of the report. 'They can continue [investigating] the report and we will continue the construction plan,' he said after meeting with an architectural consultant to discuss the hospital and palliative care center. Kusmedi said that the city was now reviewing designs proposed by many different parties. 'We aim to start construction in 2017 and complete it in 2019,' he said. He said that the need to have more cancer hospitals was quite urgent. 'I do not know the exact number, but people need to wait for five to six months for surgery, seven months for radiation and three months for chemotherapy,' he said. Kusmedi said that the adjacent Sumber Waras Hospital would also be allowed to cooperate with the cancer hospital. The Sumber Waras Hospital, which has sat on almost seven hectares of land on Jl. Kyai Tapa for more than half a century, is a less prestigious hospital compared to others in West Jakarta, like the Siloam Hospital in Kebun Jeruk or the Harapan Kita Hospital in Slipi. Kusmedi added that the palliative care center would be like an apartment compound. 'The building will have about 500 apartments with deluxe facilities like swimming pools and gym,' he said. He added that the city administration aimed to take care of dying residents as well as possible. 'At least they can enjoy their lives in their last moments,' he said. Palliative care is an approach to providing medical care for people with serious illnesses. It focuses on offering patients relief from the symptoms, pain, physical stress and mental stress of terminal conditions. Housing and Administration Buildings Agency head Ika Lestari Aji said that her agency was now discussing the design concept of the area, which would consist of three main buildings. 'We are considering having an investor who would build the hospital and the center and we would pay the investor back gradually,' she said, adding that it would be like the 'operate-build-transfer' schemes that were usually used in public-private partnerships. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Nany Afrida (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, February 24, 2016 The government is trying to locate hundreds of boats that have disappeared to avoid law enforcement. Based on Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Ministry data, 414 fishing boats, formerly owned by foreign companies, have disappeared from the country's waters. 'These boats should be deregistered and [the owners] solve several matters such as taxes and illegal, unregulated and unreported [IUU] fishing practices,' Mas Achmad Santosa, the head of the ministry's illegal fishing prevention task force [Satgas 115], told The Jakarta Post on Monday. The ministry suspects that the boats have fled as the country intends to implement a new policy on evaluating permits for foreign fishing boats or foreign-made fishing boats. Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Minister Susi Pudjiastuti previously imposed a moratorium on the issuance of licenses for fishing vessels weighing more than 30 gross tons (GT). The ministry said the measure was necessary to stem the tide of IUU fishing practices, which had resulted in depleted fish stocks in Indonesian waters. The moratorium on foreign fishing vessel permits ended on Oct. 31 last year. 'It is possible that the boats have left Indonesia and not returned because the owners took them to their places of origin, mostly Thailand,' Mas Achmad said. Another possibility is the boats left Indonesia even though the moratorium mandated that banned vessels were not to set sail and that matters related to their previous activities should be settled. Satgas 115 has been instructed to track down the boats. One strategy is to submit the boats' names to Interpol's purple notice database in order to get information on their movements. 'We will also use flag-state responsibility access by asking the country where the boats have anchored to hand over the boats to Indonesia as the flag state,' Mas Achmad added. International law requires such boats to register in a country, called the flag state. A boat is bound to the law of its flag state. Usually the vessel sails under the flag of the country of registration. A vessel's flag state exercises regulatory control over the vessel and is required to inspect it regularly, certify the ship's equipment and crew and issue safety and pollution prevention documents. The government found that 1,132 former foreign boats had violated the regulation, with 718 of them still being in Indonesia at the time. Following an analysis and evaluation (Anev) audit by Satgas 115, it was revealed that 907 ships ' roughly 80 percent ' had committed operational and administrative infractions. As a result, the ministry revoked 15 business licenses (SIUP) and 279 operational licenses (SIPI/SIKPI), in addition to pressing criminal charges against 18 large fisheries firms. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin The Jakarta Post Jakarta Wed, February 24, 2016 The city administration cleared homes and buildings in Kampung Ambon, on the banks of the Apuran River in Cengkareng, West Jakarta, on Tuesday despite meeting initial opposition. The area has long been notorious for drug dealing. The situation was tense on Tuesday morning when hundreds of residents waylaid combined personnel from the police, military and the city's Public Order Agency (Satpol PP) who were assisting staff from the city administration demolishing the structures, wartakotalive.com reported. The evictions, however, went ahead as planned, and as many as 75 homes, housing 320 people, were demolished. 'We have lived here for a long time. You cannot just evict us as you like,' resident Urip, 45, screamed at the combined personnel. Urip said he had lived in his semi-permanent wooden house, one among many demolished on Tuesday, for 25 years. 'I've paid [building] tax but they [the administration] still oppress us. We have lived in this house for 25 years.' Another resident Rian, 32, refused to be relocated to a low-cost rental apartment (rusunawa) in Marunda, North Jakarta, that the administration has promised for evicted residents, saying it was located too far from Kampung Ambon where her children went to school. 'We do not want to be relocated to the Marunda rusunawa. It's very far. Our children attend schools here. It's not easy to arrange for school transfers and we don't have any money.' Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin The Jakarta Post Jakarta Wed, February 24, 2016 The West Jakarta Police on Tuesday arrested a man for allegedly beating and extorting money from a resident of Kembangan subdistrict in West Jakarta last month. Kembangan Police chief Comr. Imam Santoso said the police had been searching for the suspect, identified as Kiweng, 38, since last month after the alleged victim reported him to the police. Police officers eventually arrested the suspect in Meruya Selatan, West Jakarta, on Tuesday morning, he added. 'The suspect, who was wearing a mask [and on a motorcycle], tried to run away from patrolling police officers who had stopped him,' he said on Tuesday as quoted by wartakotalive.com, adding that Kiweng, who was a member of a mass organization, often made trouble in the area by extorting money from residents. 'He frequently caused problems. He usually extorted money from residents, and when he was given the money, he was still angry.' Kiweng reportedly assaulted the victim last month, resulting in bruising to the latter's face. 'The suspect will be charged with violating Article 351 of the Criminal Code on torture, and he faces a maximum sentence of four months behind bars,' said Santoso. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin The Jakarta Post Jakarta Wed, February 24, 2016 As many as 400 Metro Mini minibus owners have established a legal entity called Koperasi Metropolitan Transportasi Jakarta in order to pave their way to joining city-owned bus operator PT Transportasi Jakarta (Transjakarta). Previously, Metro Mini owners had difficulties in coordinating with one another as, unlike Kopaja bus owners, they did not operate under one legal entity. As a result, Metro Mini owners could not independently procure buses, which is a requirement in order to join Transjakarta. While Kopaja owners operated under one legal entity, Metro Mini owners had been divided into several camps, which made it difficult to have meetings or hold discussions. Metropolitan Transportasi Jakarta deputy chairman Ahmad Bahar said the legal entity had been established after a recent meeting with Transjakarta and the Jakarta Transportation Agency. Ahmad said that through Metropolitan Transportasi Jakarta, owners could easily seek loans to procure new buses in order to conform with Transjakarta's standards. Ahmad said that new buses would arrive in four to five months' time, and that Metro Mini would have joined Transjakarta by then. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin M. Ari Margiono (The Jakarta Post) Queensland Wed, February 24, 2016 Following the recent US-ASEAN summit, President Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo visited Silicon Valley to talk with CEOs of the world's digital and technology companies, such as Facebook, Twitter, Google and Plug and Play. The President invited the companies to invest in Indonesia as part of the country's plan to be a US$130 billion market by 2020. The visit is timely and important given that this year the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) will take effect. Here are the reasons. While AEC allows free trade among all 10 ASEAN member countries, there are several interesting characteristics of intra-ASEAN trade that are worth scrutinizing. First, intra-ASEAN trade has always been lower than external-ASEAN trade ' i.e. with countries outside ASEAN, such as Japan, the US and China. Statistics from the ASEAN Secretariat show that intra-ASEAN trade covers only 25 percent of total trade in the region; this trade is also dominated by companies in Singapore (34 percent), Malaysia (19.6 percent), and Thailand (17 percent). Second, intra-ASEAN trade has proven more difficult in some sectors because of regional business competition. For example, the competition in the car industry between Thailand and Malaysia. Another example is the competition between Malaysia's Air Asia, the struggle to enter the lucrative Indonesian domestic airlines market and the reluctance of Indonesian airlines to face this open competition. Third, intra-ASEAN trade seems to be more beneficial for the other nine ASEAN countries than it is for Indonesia, because these countries may only need to deal with one regulation, one language, and one set of cultural considerations to tap into the largest market in ASEAN, namely the 250 million people of Indonesia. On the other hand, the 'costs' for Indonesian businesses to enter the ASEAN market are rather 'expensive'. This is because Indonesian companies need to deal with nine different regulations and nine different languages, as well as nine different sets of cultural considerations in order to tap into the 350 million people residing in those countries. Although our small and medium enterprises (SMEs) have significantly contributed to the Indonesian economy, it seems that ' with these challenges ' we may have little capacity or capability to go beyond. What would be the most logical strategy for Indonesia to face these challenges? The immediate logical move is for Indonesia to become a part the global value chain. Because there are no trade barriers, global companies can think of the ASEAN region as their regional 'backyard'. This has been a strategy that many Indonesian top companies have embraced for some time. For example, Astra International has long been a part of Toyota's global value chain. Further, Indonesian SMEs should also become a part of this global value chain. For example, Indonesian SMEs should be able to manufacture components for these global companies. The other strategy is to 'conquer' local markets. Indonesian companies, especially SMEs, should be able to sell their products to domestic markets. In fact, this should also be a low-hanging fruit for Indonesian SMEs ' and may serve as a comparative advantage ' because we should be more familiar with the Indonesian market. These two strategies seem to have begun to be implemented; and the government has also developed several schemes to ensure that Indonesia is moving in this direction. Yet, while the strategies may work because they are a 'business-as-usual' approach for the Indonesian economy, the only loose end of this particular approach is the fact that the digital economy is becoming more and more important globally. With the rise of digital technology, entrepreneurs in ASEAN countries will be able to capture the Indonesian market easily. This is because entrepreneurs can be based in any ASEAN country, and with the help of digital technology, they can tap into the largest market in the region, Indonesia. And this may pose a threat to our AEC strategy. Take a look at the example of Malaysia's GrabBike. If Go-Jek had never been launched, GrabBike ' with their experience in the Malaysian market and backed by strong capital ' would have easily dominated the Indonesian market. Now, considering the level of mobile phone usage and coverage in Indonesia and the vast opportunities that may arise from this, imagine what other countries can do with the potential of digital technology in the Indonesian market. Therefore, the call from President Jokowi to increase collaboration with these large digital companies and also the call to Indonesian technopreneurs in Silicon Valley to come home is a strategic one. Indonesia needs more technopreneurs to make the country more competitive. And these technopreneurs also need capital and resources. By collaborating with US companies, Indonesian technopreneurs should have better access to capital and resources. At the end, strengthening digital entrepreneurship in Indonesia is not only important, but is essential. It is, in fact, the holy grail for our success in the AEC. ______________________________________________ The writer, a faculty member of the Binus University Business School in Jakarta, is studying for his PhD at the QUT Business School, Queensland University of Technology, Australia. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Agnes Anya (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, February 24, 2016 The murder case of Wayan Mirna Salihin has entered a new episode with the lawyers of Jessica Kumala Wongso challenging her suspect status in a pretrial hearing on Tuesday at the Central Jakarta District Court. In her plea, Jessica's legal team read out 21 objections, which concluded that the police arrested Jessica without proper evidence and carried out inappropriate procedures during the investigation. Lawyer Hidayat Bostam argued that the police acted inappropriately when they raided Jessica's house on the evening of Jan. 10 without a warrant from the North Jakarta Court. By that action, he added, the police violated Article 33/1 of the Criminal Code Procedures. He further claimed that the police had also acted inappropriately by asking the immigration office to slap a travel ban on Jessica, preventing her from going abroad, while she was still just a witness. The lawyer claimed that the police had abused their power by requesting the ban. 'We hope the judge will accept and grant our motion to suspend the current status of Jessica Kumala Wongso as the decision to name her a suspect was not supported by concrete evidence,' Hidayat said to lone judge I Wayan Merta. The judge then demanded the legal team from the Jakarta Police to prepare a defense to be delivered on Wednesday. Merta added that the court would decide on Jessica's status by March 2. The police's legal team, however, refused to comment on the hearing. A legal expert from the University of Indonesia, Chaerul Huda, said that the police's evidence, which includes expert testimony and closed-circuit television recordings, was strong enough to name Jessica a suspect. He also said that the police had the authority to prevent someone from traveling, regardless of his or her status, in a bid to help an investigation. 'The police are only able to request travel bans on suspects. They can do so to anyone who has very important information to help the police in a case,' Chaerul said. Jessica, who has so far maintained her innocence amid a media circus, was accused of killing her friend Mirna by putting cyanide into iced coffee meant for the latter. Mirna died on Jan. 6 after sipping the coffee that had apparently been ordered and paid for by Jessica, who had arrived 40 minutes early to meet Jessica and another friend, Hani, at a high-end restaurant in Central Jakarta. After three weeks of investigation, the police named Jessica a suspect, but remained tight-lipped over details concerning the evidence and the suspect's motive. Meanwhile, the Jakarta Prosecutor's Office said that instead of looking at a motive, the prosecutors focused more on the evidence showing Jessica's involvement in the crime. 'The motive is the second important matter. We are focusing more on the evidence,' said office spokesman Waluyo Yahya. He added that the police handed over Jessica's case dossier to the prosecutor's office last Friday. The prosecutors are currently examining the dossier and will make a decision on Thursday whether to give it back to the police or proceed with it to court. Separately, Jakarta Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Muhammad Iqbal said that the police used at least two pieces of strong evidence to name Jessica a suspect in the case. Therefore, he said they were still optimistic that they would be able to put her behind bars despite the pretrial motion. Nevertheless, he added that the police respected all legal measures Jessica decided to carry out as she was exercising her rights. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Ina Parlina (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, February 24, 2016 In a move to enhance support for the Indonesian Military (TNI), President Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo promised on Tuesday that he would allocate more funds to it if the economy got better this year. Arguing that primary weaponry systems (Alutsista) were essential for building a professional TNI, Jokowi said he would put as much as 1.5 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP) into the defense budget, about Rp 250 trillion, if economic growth reaches above 6 percent. The Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) politician said that the TNI budget is currently set at about 1.1 percent of the country's GDP. In comparison, the average military budget between 2005 and 2014 was 0.82 percent of the country's GDP, while the average between 2000 and 2004 was 0.78 percent. 'This plan [to allocate 1.5 percent of the GDP] should be prepared now. It means that there should be comprehensive and detailed planning so that the budget can be used appropriately and efficiently,' Jokowi said during a limited Cabinet meeting. Aiming to reduce imports by developing the domestic defense industry, Jokowi also ordered any future plans to involve the use of Indonesian military products. Jokowi expressed an aggressive plan for military spending in his election campaign in 2014, during which he vowed in front hundreds of retired military and police generals that it would be raised if economic growth stayed at least at 7 percent. At that time, he unveiled his programs on defense and security issues that included the modernization of Alutsista and increasing the numbers of military and police personnel. In his pledge, Jokowi also said that he would gradually increase the defense budget from US$7.2 billion in 2014 to $20 billion in 2019 and he intended to procure new jet fighters, radars and military transportation aircraft, as well as to improve border security. The President seemed to be unnerved by the economic slowdown last year as well as by a number of accidents involving old military equipment since he took office. The latest accident was the fatal crash of a Brazilian-made Super Tucano aircraft in a densely populated area of Malang in East Java during a test flight, killing the pilot, an onboard technician and two people in a building. In December last year, a T50i Golden Eagle jet fighter crashed during an acrobatic airshow in Yogyakarta, killing the two pilots on board. One of the most fatal incidents occurred in July last year when a Hercules C-130, which was received by Indonesia from a foreign country under a grant scheme, crashed into a residential area in Medan, killing more than 120, including civilians on board the plane. In April last year, a F-16 jet fighter from the US government burst into flames at Halim Perdanakusuma Airport in Jakarta after failing to take off. During the Tuesday's Cabinet meeting, TNI chief Gen. Gatot Nurmantyo presented an example of development programs that should be made, including to develop air force bases outside Java and navy posts on border islands, as well as to improve equipment and capacity in eastern Indonesia. All this time, military development has been focused on Java where a number of air force bases are located, like those, for example, in Madiun, Yogyakarta and Malang. 'We will develop Biak, Morotai and Merauke, etc. [to provide facilities to ensure pilots can fly and train any time],' said Gatot who also admitted that naval development has often taken place elsewhere and not on the border islands. 'We will pay attention to outer islands like Lerang and Wetan so that we can have eyes and ears there to inform us about any situation at any time,' he added. However, Gatot said his office would see first whether the future state budget would able to give them flexibility to support such programs. The TNI also seeks to improve cyber units and military intelligence units. Iis Gindarsah, a defense expert at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies, criticized the ambitious plan, saying that 'tripling the defense budget is ambitious, but realistic only if Indonesia's economic growth rate is at least 7 percent'. ________________________________ To receive comprehensive and earlier access to The Jakarta Post print edition, please subscribe to our epaper through iOS' iTunes, Android's Google Play, Blackberry World or Microsoft's Windows Store. Subscription includes free daily editions of The Nation, The Star Malaysia, the Philippine Daily Inquirer and Asia News. For print subscription, please contact our call center at (+6221) 5360014 or subscription@thejakartapost.com Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Safrin La Batu and Agnes Anya (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, February 24, 2016 One week prior to planned evictions, Kalijodo, an infamous red-light district in the Penjaringan subdistrict on the border of North and West Jakarta, was quiet on Tuesday as most of its residents had left their homes and the buildings where they used to run their businesses. Those who still remain in the area are also preparing to leave before the evictions that were scheduled to take place on Feb. 29. Thirty-five-year-old Tio was busy removing items from the 3-square-meter room he has been renting for a few months to sell cigarettes, coffee and snacks to the customers of nearby bars and cafes. 'I just spent Rp 10 million (US$744) to buy items to fill this kiosk. I just started to sell the items but I was told to leave,' he told The Jakarta Post, adding he would temporarily store the items at a friend's house while looking for another place to restart his business. 'What a bad move the administration is making. It evicts people without thinking about the impact the eviction has on small people like me,' he said. Tio, who originally comes from Pemalang in Central Java, said he came to Jakarta three years ago, leaving his wife and three children at home, in the hope he would find a job to support his family, including his children's education. 'On average, I earned Rp 600,000 a day from this kiosk. How can I feed my family now?' he asked. The Jakarta administration, which plans to turn Kalijodo into a green zone as stipulated in a 2014 bylaw on spatial planning, has promised apartments in low-cost rental buildings (rusunawa) in Marunda, North Jakarta, and Pulo Gebang in East Jakarta. However, not all affected residents are eligible to get apartments. Ika previously said that those who have work connected with Kalijodo's nightlife would not be eligible, saying that the administration is afraid they would cause 'social problems' in a new place. Those who do not hold Jakarta ID cards will not be eligible either. Data from local authorities shows that of Kalijodo 3,052 residents, 1,405 have jobs related to the area's nightlife, including 450 prostitutes, 100 security guards and parking wardens and 300 support workers, like cleaners. The remainder, about 1,600 residents, have work or businesses outside of the area's nightlife. Penjaringan subdistrict head Abdul Khalit was quoted by kompas.com as saying that, after checking residents' documents, only 202 families from 1,340 were found to be eligible to get rusunawa apartments. 'Ninety-five families have been relocated to the Marunda rusunawa,' he said. Some residents who have secured an apartment in one of the two rusunawa have also expressed fear that they will not be able to find good jobs in the new place, as they have so far earned money from running kiosks in front of their houses, or from renting out their garages as parking spaces for people in search of the nightlife. Nur, 48, who runs a kiosk at her home, said that although her family had secured an apartment in the Marunda rusunawa, her life would not be the same again because she would lose her income. 'I will definitely move from here, but I would say that life will not be easy [in the new place] because I have lived [and earned money from] this place for 23 years.' The Jakarta Police chief Insp. Gen. Tito Karnavian said recently that police officers were in Kalijodo to clear the area of thugs and criminals. Last week, police officers raided the house of Abdul Aziz, or better known as Daeng Aziz, a notorious figure in the area, and found hundreds of sharp weapons and dozens of crates of alcohol. The police subsequently named him a suspect for possessing the items. The police also charged him with human trafficking offenses for allegedly employing girls as prostitutes in his bars. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Stefani Ribka (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, February 24, 2016 Private lender Maybank Indonesia has booked net profit growth well above industry averages thanks to a significant income paired with unchanged operating costs last year. According to its 2015 performance report published on Tuesday, the firm's profit after tax and minority interest went up by 60.9 percent year-on-year (yoy) to Rp 1.14 trillion (US$84.4 million). The banking industry overall, meanwhile, recorded a 7.6 percent net profit decline, posting Rp 104 quadrillion, based on Financial Services Authority (OJK) data. 'The solid performance was achieved on the back of better net interest margin [NIM], strong growth in the bank's fee-based income, an outstanding performance in sharia [Islamic] banking and disciplined cost management' Maybank Indonesia president director Taswin Zakaria said in Jakarta during a public gathering on Tuesday. The bank's NIM improved to 4.84 percent from 4.76 percent, its net interest income (NII) increased by 9.4 percent to Rp 6.49 trillion and its sharia banking net profits nearly tripled, jumoing 193 percent to Rp 288 billion. Its fee-based income also improved by 40.8 percent to Rp 2.73 trillion. 'This was mainly driven by bancassurance fees, arranger and advisory services for corporate clients, foreign exchange transactions, loan administration [and] insurance,' Taswin said. Asset-wise, the bank, a subsidiary of Malaysian Maybank Group, also enjoyed growth of 9.9 percent to Rp 157.6 trillion, 10.1 percent of which was contributed by its sharia banking services. Its Islamic business booked a 123 percent surge in asset value, rising to Rp 16 trillion. This figure takes the bank to the top of the sharia business unit (USS) category for December. Unlike other above-industry performance, however, the bank, formerly Bank Internasional Indonesia, recorded loan growth of 5.9 percent, lower than the industry's 10.1 percent. Taswin insisted that such growth was good enough given the economic slowdown last year. Last year the bank disbursed Rp 112.5 trillion in loans, 41 percent of which was for business banking customers, followed by 40 percent for retail banking customers and 19 percent for corporate banking customers. While business and retail segment loans increased by 12.5 percent and 9 percent respectively, corporate loans decreased by 10.7 percent. The bank expects to grow its loan this year by 10 to 11 percent, while trying to maintain the quality of its loans amid pressure from its consolidated non-performing loans (NPL) that rose to 3.67 percent last year from 2.23 percent in 2014, while its net NPL went up to 2.42 percent from 1.48 percent. The NPL of the overall commercial banking industry was recorded at 2.48 percent as of December, based on OJK data. Taswin said that the bank managed to maintain its liquidity thanks to third-party funds growth of 12.7 percent yoy to Rp 115.5 trillion, comprising deposits (64 percent), savings accounts (22) and current accounts (14 percent). The data also shows that the bank's loan-to-funding ratio (LFR) was 90.6 percent, down from 96.44 percent in December 2014. Its loan-to-deposit ratio (LDR) also fell, to 94.44 percent from 101.07 percent. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Dian Arthen (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, February 24, 2016 A new facial mask from Taiwan has officially entered the Indonesian market. Said to be the number one selling facial sheet mask in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Singapore, My Beauty Diary offers four variants that cater to different skin types. The brand's representative, Revata Pingkan, told a press conference on Wednesday that the masks would complement Indonesian women's skincare regime since those living in a tropical climate with excessive sunlight exposure needed more than just a basic skincare routine. Dermatologist Tina Wardhani Wisesa added that sheet masks helped deliver the serum, nutrition and moisture optimally and evenly deep into the skin's layers. My Beauty Diary mask reportedly contains two double-acting patented moisturizing ingredients called Cosphingo, which forms a protective barrier to lock in moisture for long-lasting hydration, and Aquaroad, an active ingredient that rotates aquaporins (integral membrane protein that form pores and a hydration channel to circulate water in the cells, thus the serum can easily penetrate deep into the skin's layers). The ultra-silky hydrating fabric is made from a very thin and elastic tencel fabric woven with spulance that fits the contour of the face. Priced at Rp 29,900 (US$2) per mask, the four products offered in Indonesia include Black Pearl (for dark, dull or tired skin), Hyaluronic Acid (for dry skin), Collagen Firming (for dull, lacking-elasticity skin) and Apple Polyphenol (for large-pores skin) and are available at Guardian stores and sociolla.com. (kes)(+) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Ina Parlina (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, February 24, 2016 President Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo has yet to make a final decision on the development of the gas-rich Masela block in Maluku, operated by Japan's Inpex, despite a minister's claim that the President had agreed to build the plant onshore. In another round of conflicting statements between ministers and the President, Coordinating Maritime Affairs Minister Rizal Ramli claimed on Monday evening that the President had opted for an onshore scheme for the Masela liquefied natural gas (LNG) plant amid prolonged uncertainty over the development plan for the block. Presidential spokesman Johan Budi, who repeatedly stressed that he spoke on behalf of the President, was quick to deny Rizal's claim, saying that Jokowi was still studying numerous aspects of both the onshore and offshore development plans, including business aspects, economic benefits to local communities and multiplier effects on the national economy. 'We need to make a prudent decision for such a big project,' Johan said on Tuesday. 'However, it will indeed be decided soon.' It was not the first time confusion regarding major government development projects have resulted from divisive statements by ministers. Rizal previously expressed his disagreement over the government's 35,000 megawatt electricity-generation expansion and Transportation Minister Ignasius Jonan recently declined to issue a permit for one of Jokowi's priority projects, the China-backed high speed railway. Jokowi encourages his ministers to express their different views in Cabinet meetings, but not publicly as it could create confusion among investors, said Johan. All ministers should understand completely that they are the subordinates of the President and the ones who carry out the President's policies, he added. 'Just as the President has said, don't create noise,' Johan said, stopping short of explaining whether Jokowi would summon Rizal for clarification on the Masela issue. A number of limited Cabinet meetings have previously been held to discuss the block ' which is located in the Arafura Sea in Maluku and is 65 percent controlled by Inpex and 35 percent by Shell ' but to no avail. The controversy over the block development began late last year after Rizal criticized Inpex's original offshore plan as it would not benefit the economy in the area and instead proposed the idea of an onshore plant. Inpex and Shell have waited since last year for approval after finding larger resources in the area that could boost the LNG plant capacity to up to 7.5 million tons per year from 2.5 million tons previously. The Masela development is seen as important as it will be a major new future energy source. Failure to monetize the assets could force the country into becoming a net importer of gas sooner than expected. The development of Masela had initially be due for completion by 2018, but under the revised plan, completion is now scheduled for 2024. Representatives from Inpex and Shell have met with presidential chief of staff Teten Masduki where they presented the pluses and minuses of both onshore and offshore schemes. However, no further details have been announced since then. Cabinet Secretary Pramono Anung declined to comment on Rizal's claim, but said that Jokowi would soon have the final say after he finished weighing all data and input. _______________________________________ To receive comprehensive and earlier access to The Jakarta Post print edition, please subscribe to our epaper through iOS' iTunes, Android's Google Play, Blackberry World or Microsoft's Windows Store. Subscription includes free daily editions of The Nation, The Star Malaysia, the Philippine Daily Inquirer and Asia News. For print subscription, please contact our call center at (+6221) 5360014 or subscription@thejakartapost.com Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Bambang Muryanto (The Jakarta Post) Yogyakarta Wed, February 24, 2016 Police banned on Tuesday activists from Democracy Struggle Solidarity (SPD), a lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) support group, from holding a rally at the Yogyakarta Monument. 'We didn't let them hold the rally because their notification was submitted too late,' Yogyakarta Police chief Sr. Comr. Pri Hartono said. About 60 SPD activists jostled with 300 police officers as the activists attempted to approach the monument. Occasionally protesters and officers were seen to trade blows. Pri said the police banned the activists from holding the rally to avoid a clash with members of the hard-line Yogyakarta Islamic People's Forum (FUI) who had already asked to hold a rally opposing the LGBT community at the monument. 'I hope they [the SPD] can change their schedule. Tomorrow? Whenever, we will protect them,' Pri said. SPD spokesperson Ani said the demonstration was a counter rally to that held by the FUI. 'Stop hate speech against minorities and marginalized groups. Tear down banners with hate speech against the LGBT in the city,' Ani said. She said her group demanded that the government protect equally the rights of all citizens, including LGBT people, to express their opinions and determine their own sexual orientation. She added that the group would fight against practices that violated democracy in Yogyakarta, such as racism, sealing of houses of worship and hate speech against minority groups. 'These represent the real face of Yogyakarta, which is hidden behind a slogan of 'Yogyakarta, City of Tolerance',' she added. Meanwhile, members of the hard-line Muslim group erected banners at the monument, expressing their opposition to the LGBT. Earlier, the group organized a competition to make anti-LGBT banners and put them up in many locations in the city. Separately, Muslim scholar AM Safwan of Muthahari Islamic boarding school, spoke out on the pros and cons of the LGBT issue, urging both camps to engage in dialogue. 'Both camps should respect the law of the country. Allow all groups the right to strive for their rights,' Safwan said. On Nov. 20, 2014, a group of assailants attacked dozens of transgender people participating in a rally to celebrate the Transgender Day of Remembrance (TDOR) at the monument. At least four demonstrators were injured in the attack. No arrests were made. The FUI have past form in expressing opposition to LGBT proponents. In September, 2014, the University of Sanata Dharma (USD) was forced to cancel a seminar on LBGT issues following threats from the FUI. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Callistasia Anggun Wijaya (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, February 24, 2016 The police have defended their move to name Jessica Kumala Wongso a suspect in the premeditated murder of Wayan Mirna Salihin, who died in early January after drinking an iced coffee at Olivier cafA in Central Jakarta together with Jessica and another friend, Hani. Responding to a pretrial motion submitted to the Central Jakarta District Court, the police told sole judge I Wayan Merta at a pretrial hearing on Wednesday that they had ample evidence to name Jessica a suspect in the case. On Tuesday, Jessica's lawyers told a pretrial hearing that the police had violated existing procedures in naming their client a suspect. They argued that the police did not have a permit from the court when they first raided Jessica's house. The lawyers also questioned the validity of other police actions including the detention and travel ban for their client as well as the Jakarta Police's authority to investigate the case, which was initially investigated by the Tanah Abang Police. Regarding the raid, which was not carried out with a permit from the court, Jakarta Police lawyer Adj. Sr. Comr. Aminullah said the police had not violated procedures. "The raid could be conducted without a permit from the court due to its urgency. After the raid, we reported it to the court," he said. Police also rebutted objections from Jessica's camp about the travel ban. According to the Criminal Law Procedures Code (KUHAP), the police are authorized to file a travel ban for anyone involved in a legal case, especially witnesses who have the potential to become suspects. Regarding the authority to investigate, Aminullah said the murder case had been transferred to the Jakarta Police on Jan. 10. 'Therefore, all of the lawyers' objections regarding the arrest, raid, suspect status and travel ban of Jessica cannot be accepted,' Aminullah said, adding that the police had deemed Jessica to be a witness who had the potential to become a suspect. During the pretrial hearing on Thursday, Jessica's lawyers will present two criminal experts to testify. The judge plans to reach a decision in early March. (bbn)(+) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Fedina S. Sundaryani (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, February 24, 2016 Even after the Attorney General's Office (AGO) decided to drop the criminal prosecution against Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) investigator Novel Baswedan, the National Police have continued to challenge the move, saying that there is enough evidence against him. National Police spokesperson Brig. Gen. Agus Rianto questioned the AGO's claim that it lacked evidence to proceed with the case against Novel. 'We respect whatever decision has been made but the statement that the case lacks evidence contradicts the prosecutor's previous decision to declare [Novel's] case dossier complete,' he said at the National Police headquarters in South Jakarta. Agus said that if the AGO had lacked evidence for the case to be tried in court, the AGO would have notified police investigators about it. However, the Bengkulu prosecutor's office, which handled Novel's case, had accepted the case dossier and had even submitted it to the Bengkulu District Court for a court hearing. On Monday, the AGO dropped the controversial case and claimed that the evidence investigators had compiled was unreliable. AGO junior prosecutor for general crimes Noor Rachmad said that a gun presented by the police as evidence had been registered under the name of 'Polres Bengkulu' instead of 'Polresta Bengkulu', as it was initially coded. Noor also indicated that the police had not found anyone who had witnessed the alleged assault. The AGO also cited the case expiry date, Feb. 18, as another reason it had decided to drop the case. Novel was accused of shooting two robbery suspects during his tenure as Bengkulu Police chief detective in 2004. However, the National Police reopened in the case in 2012 after the KPK senior investigator led a graft investigation into then National Police Traffic Coprs chief Insp. Gen. Djoko Susilo. On order from then president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono the police decided to halt the probe, but police investigators dug it up last year in a second standoff between the antigraft agency and the police, reportedly due to one-time police chief candidate Comr. Gen. Budi Gunawan's graft suspect status. The KPK's move to name Budi a suspect in January last year voided his inauguration as National Police chief, a position that was eventually handed over to former National Police deputy chief Gen. Badrodin Haiti. Novel's case was scheduled for trial on Feb. 16 but Attorney General M. Prasetyo withdrew the case two weeks earlier following an instruction from President Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo to settle the cases as soon as possible. Former KPK commissioners Abraham Samad and Bambang Widjojanto had also been named as suspects for minor offences but the AGO has since strongly insinuated that these cases would also be dropped. Agus said that the National Police would not be looking into the case anymore. 'We already handed it over and it has been declared complete, what other evidence should we look for? There is no need to do so. The National Police fully respects the AGO's decision,' he said. Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Luhut Pandjaitan applauded the AGO's move to drop Novel's case. However, he also denied that Jokowi had demanded the case be dropped as 'the President has never intervened [in Novel's case]. The President had only asked that it be settled quickly'. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Fedina S. Sundaryani (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, February 24, 2016 The National Police have vowed to follow up on reports that five mosques in Jakarta have been used as recruitment centers for the Islamic State (IS) movement. Police spokesman Insp. Gen. Anton Charliyan told reporters on Tuesday that the police force and the National Counterterrorism Agency (BNPT) were working together to monitor any possible terrorist threats or radicalization centers. 'We are following up [on information that five mosques are being used as recruitment centers] to make sure that it is not a hoax. We will follow up on any information, no matter how insignificant. However, we do not just suspect mosques. A lot of places can be recruitment centers because of the openness of the internet,' he said at police headquarters. A report published by abc.net.au on Monday described a secretive gathering of IS supporters at the As-Syuhada Mosque in Jakarta led by hardline Syamsuddin Uba, who declared IS as a place where sharia is upheld. Another recording uploaded as IS propaganda on YouTube showed a different cleric promising that those who join IS would have their welfare guaranteed without having to shell out a single penny. The article claimed that at least five mosques in Jakarta were being used to host IS sermons, including the Al Fataa Mosque in Menteng, a wealthy part of the capital. One of the terrorists involved in last month's deadly attack, Afif, was said to have regularly prayed at the Al Fataa Mosque. Anton noted that although mosques remained one of the locations where police suspected IS recruited its members, the radical movement is thought to be concentrating on those with low levels of faith. 'They are now recruiting those who are weak in the faith. It is actually more difficult now to recruit people who have strong faith, such as students from pesantren [Islamic boarding schools]. Although there is an exception for pesantren with particularly hardline beliefs,' he said. Data from the BNPT shows that the counterterrorism agency found 19 pesantren that were in danger of becoming radicalized. Ten of the pesantren are found on the island of Java, while the remainder were found in Lampung, West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) and South Sulawesi. Only one potentially radical pesantren can be found in Poso, Central Sulawesi, where the Santoso-led East Mujahiddin (MIT) group is active. The pesantren are said to be affiliated with several known radical groups, such as Jemaah Islamiyah (JI), Jama'ah Ansharut Daulah (JAT), Darul Islam (DI) and the Indonesia Mujahidin Council (MMI). The same data also noted that there were several characteristics that radicalized people displayed, including a refusal to eat meat that has been butchered by other people, not praying at a mosque and also marrying without a guardian since they no longer believe their relatives to be real Muslims. Both the BNPT and the police force have pointed their fingers at terrorist convict Aman Abdurrahman for being the main distributor of IS propaganda since the movement burst onto the international scene in 2014. Despite being heavily guarded on the Nusakambangan prison island in Central Java, Aman was able to translate IS propaganda and even convinced fellow terrorism convict Abu Bakar Ba'asyir to make a pledge to IS. Two weeks ago Aman, Abu Bakar and three other terrorism convicts had been moved into isolation at the Pasir Putih prison on Nusakambangan to prevent any contact with their radical networks. _________________________________________ To receive comprehensive and earlier access to The Jakarta Post print edition, please subscribe to our epaper through iOS' iTunes, Android's Google Play, Blackberry World or Microsoft's Windows Store. Subscription includes free daily editions of The Nation, The Star Malaysia, the Philippine Daily Inquirer and Asia News. For print subscription, please contact our call center at (+6221) 5360014 or subscription@thejakartapost.com Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Erika Anindita (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, February 24, 2016 The United Development Party (PPP) kicked off its fourth mukernas (national meeting) on Wednesday, drawing protests from internal parties, which questioned the legality of the event. Dimyati Natakusuma, the secretary-general of the PPP central executive board, which was elected at a muktamar (national congress) in Jakarta in 2014, called into question the legality of the meeting, which took place in Ancol, North Jakarta. 'I just contacted Pak Suryadharma. He didn't mention anything about the congress. He didn't approve it. There should be no congress,' Dimyati told journalists at the House of Representatives complex in Senayan, Central Jakarta, on Wednesday. He referred to former religious affairs minister Suryadharma Ali, who was appointed PPP chairman, accompanied by Muhammad Romahurmuziy as secretary-general, at a national meeting in Bandung, West Java, in 2011. The Ancol congress was organized by the PPP leadership from the Bandung muktamar, following the issuance of a Law and Human Rights Ministry decree on Feb.16, which reactivated a previous decree recognizing the party leadership from the Bandung muktamar. The decree was applauded as a wise move to end internal conflicts between the Djan Faridz-led PPP leadership, which emanated from the Jakarta muktamar, and the party's splinter faction elected during a meeting in Surabaya, East Java, in 2014, which was led by Romahurmuziy. Representatives of PPP regional executive boards from across the country, the party's executives, members and advisory council members will attend the working meeting. Dimyati said the congress must be well organized and should have steering and organizing committees. He added that although Suryadharma was serving a sentence at the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) detention facility, he should participate in the Ancol congress as the party chairman. According to the PPP's rules of association and internal bylaws, a mukernas is the party's second highest forum after a muktamar. PPP deputy chairman Hasrul Azwar said on Tuesday that the national meeting would determine the organizing of the party's eighth muktamar, which is scheduled for April. He said representatives of regional executive boards from 32 provinces had confirmed their attendance at the congress. A number of current issues, such as the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) movement, alcohol control, corruption prevention, and the fights against drugs and terrorism would be discussed during the congress, Hasrul said. Home Affairs Minister Tjahjo Kumolo is set to open the congress while Law and Human Rights Minister Yasonna H. Laoly is scheduled to attend a session at the event. (ebf) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Albert Aji and Bassem Mroue (The Jakarta Post) Damascus, Syria Wed, February 24, 2016 Syria's government on Tuesday accepted a proposed US-Russian cease-fire that is to go into effect later this week, but reserved the right to respond to any violations of the truce. The main opposition and rebel umbrella group approved the deal but set its own conditions. The developments followed an agreement between Washington and Moscow for a new cease-fire set to take effect at midnight Friday local time in the 5-year-old civil war, even as major questions over enforcement remain unresolved. The truce does not cover the Islamic State group, Syria's al-Qaida branch known as the Nusra Front, or any other militia designated as a terrorist organization by the UN Security Council. But exactly where along Syria's complicated front lines the fighting would stop and where counterterrorism operations could continue under the truce is still to be addressed. The five-page plan released by the US State Department also leaves open how cease-fire breaches would be dealt with. While accepting the proposed truce, the Syrian Foreign Ministry said its operations will continue against IS, the Nusra Front and "other terrorist groups." It also stressed the right of its armed forces "to retaliate against any violation carried out by these groups." Cabinet minister Ali Haidar said the government will respect the cease-fire in principle, although he could not "speak on behalf of the armed groups." "Violations will happen from other parties and not from the Syrian state's side," Haidar told The Associated Press after talks in Damascus with Peter Maurer, the president of the International Committee of the Red Cross. The main umbrella for Syrian opposition and rebel groups, the High Negotiations Committee, gave conditional approval late Monday. The HNC said acceptance was conditional on the government ending its siege of 18 rebel-held areas, releasing detainees and halting aerial and artillery bombardment. However, Talal Sillo, a spokesman for the predominantly Kurdish Syria Democratic Forces, told the AP that his group will not abide by the truce because it's fighting against the Islamic State group in northern Syria. US Secretary of State John Kerry said won't vouch for the success of the agreement but said it's the best pathway for ending the bloodshed. "I'm not going to say this process is sure to work because I don't know," Kerry testified in Washington before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. The Russian military said it has set up a coordination center to help enforce the cease-fire. The center is located at Syria's Hemeimeem air base, which hosts Russian warplanes, said Defense Ministry spokesman Maj.-Gen. Igor Konashenkov, adding that it was established in line with the US-Russian agreement. Its purpose, Konashenkov said, would be to help organize cease-fire negotiations between the Syrian government and the opposition. Russia has given out its hotline numbers for enforcing the truce to the US, he added. Some Syrians in the northern town of Qamishli expressed skepticism that the truce would hold. "If the international community had wanted to stop the bloodshed, the killing and shelling, this could have happened three or four years ago," Bakr Safir told the newsgathering Arab agency Arab24. UN envoy Staffan de Mistura halted the latest Syria talks in Geneva on Feb. 3 because of major differences between the two sides, exacerbated by increased bombings and a large-scale government offensive near the northern city of Aleppo. It was not immediately clear if de Mistura will set a new date for the talks, initially scheduled to resume Thursday. He was quoted last week by the Swedish newspaper Svenska Dagbladet as saying they won't resume Feb. 25 because he cannot "realistically" get the parties back to the talks by then. A new humanitarian aid convoy of 44 trucks entered the besieged Damascus suburb of Moadamiyeh, Syria's state news agency SANA reported Monday. The delivery was supervised by the Syrian Arab Red Crescent and the UN, it said. State TV reported Tuesday that aid entered another rebel-held suburb, Kfar Batna. The UN humanitarian agency confirmed the delivery. Spokesman Jens Laerke of the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said the shipments were under way to help about 20,000 people in Moadamiya and another 10,000 in Kfar Batna. The latest distribution of aid came as Maurer, the ICRC president, began a five-day visit to Syria ' his fourth since taking office in 2012. "This is a critical situation at the present moment with millions of people in need," he said. The Islamic State captured the northern town of Khanaser, cutting supply lines for government forces between Aleppo and central and western Syria. The militants also seized 12 surrounding hills, the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. The Aamaq news agency, which is affiliated with IS, also reported the extremists were in "full control" of the town southeast of Aleppo. The Observatory said 35 troops and 16 IS fighters were killed, with many wounded. The Observatory, which tracks Syria's civil war, said it has documented 271,138 deaths since the conflict began in 2011. But the actual death toll is estimated by the activist group to be about 100,000 higher than that, based on lists of names of the dead. The UN, which last released a death toll several months ago, says the war has killed 250,000 people. ___ Mroue reported from Beirut. Associated Press writers Jamey Keaten in Geneva and Richard Lardner in Washington contributed to this report. (**) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Tama Salim (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, February 24, 2016 Two months ahead of the upcoming Golkar Party chairmanship election, a strong contender has already taken to mudslinging. A civil society group reported House of Representatives Speaker Ade Komarudin to the legislature's ethics council (MKD) on Tuesday, accusing him of having received a favor from a businessman in the form of a private jet service to help him campaign for the race. Presenting photographs of Ade and his cohorts onboard the luxury airplane, the group argued that it was not ethical for the senior Golkar politician to receive such forms of gratuity in order to crisscross the country and garner support from leaders of the party's regional representatives council (DPD). Ade, currently a most powerful politician with close links to the government, quickly refuted the allegation, saying that he had not even declared his intention to run. 'I completely understand [...] that this could be a maneuver by some 'friends' who might feel threatened if I were to run as a candidate,' Ade told reporters at the House complex. 'I urge all candidates to compete in a healthy fashion if I do decide to run,' he warned. Ade stalwart Bambang Soesatyo, who was also featured in the circulated photograph, criticized an unnamed candidate hopeful who he accused of masterminding the 'cowardly smear campaign' against the House speaker. Bambang explained that the private jet belonged to PT Kodeco-Jhonlin, a South Kalimantan-based mining and logistics company, adding that he had been a shareholder since 2005. He claims to have used the airplane for a trip to a regional congress for the Central Organization for Indonesian Employees (SOKSI), which Ade chaired. 'How could my own airplane be considered a gratification?' the House Commission III lawmaker said in a statement to The Jakarta Post. After a period of dual leadership, the country's oldest political party is set to hold a national congress in April, during which a new chairman will be elected. Among those who have declared an intention to run are the party's House faction leader, Setya Novanto and party secretary-general Idrus Marham. Setya, the former House speaker, resigned from his position at the House amid a scandal surrounding a contract negotiation between the government and mining company PT Freeport Indonesia. Prior to submitting its report to the MKD, the Public Policy Advocacy Agency (LAKP), the group that reported Ade, had not been heard of. The group's coordinator, Muhammad Adnan, merely attached two photographs, scans of pictures that had been circulating on social media, as proof to back up their claim. When asked whether the report was tied to the contestation of the Golkar chairmanship, Adnan outright denied the speculation. MKD deputy chairman Junimart Girsang of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) ensured those concerned that the ethics council would carefully scrutinize the report and conduct a background check. 'We'll check their legal standing first because we've experienced a number of cases involving CSOs who neglect to attach an establishment deed [akta pendirian]. In such cases, we drop the report,' Junimart told reporters at the House complex. The PDI-P lawmaker also ensured those concerned that the MKD would screen for any reports that might be politically motivated, citing the upcoming Golkar congress as a case in point. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Nurul Fitri Ramadhani (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, February 24, 2016 Responding to a survey that shows an increasing trend of violence against minority groups, the government said that it faced difficulties in promoting religious tolerance. A religious freedom watchdog, the Wahid Institute, published findings on Tuesday that saw an increase in cases of discrimination against minority groups. The Wahid Institute recorded 190 violations against freedom of religion and faith in 2015, a 23 percent increase from 154 cases in 2014. The violations were mostly in the form of sealing places of worship and the prohibition of their construction, as well as obstructing celebrations or the performance of rituals of certain faiths. West Java tops the list, with 46 violations, followed by Aceh with 36 cases and Jakarta with 23, making them the most intolerant provinces. Confirming a recent finding from a survey by the Religious Affairs Ministry, the institute found a smaller number of violations in places where Muslims were the minority. East Nusa Tenggara and West Papua recorded the least number of violations, with only one case, each, during the year. Institute director Yenny Wahid said that West Java was vulnerable to religious violations owing to the fast growth of conservative groups, including hard-line Islamic groups determined to expel minorities, which they considered deviant, in the name of public security. The institute also found that the National Police were responsible for the most violations with 28 cases, followed by local administrations with 22 cases. As for non-state actors, unaffiliated citizens topped the list, with 29 cases. The Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) and the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) followed, with 21 and 13 cases, respectively. Findings from the institute were also consistent with those from the National Commission of Human Rights (Komnas HAM), which also revealed an increase in the number of religious freedom violations: Around 87 cases in 2015, from 74 in the previous year. West Java was again the region with the most violations, according to Komnas HAM data, followed by Jakarta and East Java. The local administrations were the top violators. Both the institute and Komnas HAM data showed that the victims of the violations were mostly the Ahmadis, Christians, Shiite and Gafatar followers. Religious Affairs Minister Lukman Hakim Saifuddin acknowledged that it was now more difficult to promote tolerance among people of different faiths on account of the growing influence of radical ideas. Lukman also said that people held different perspectives in interpreting their faiths. 'The laws concerning religion in our country remain unclear. We don't have a precise benchmark to determine whether a faith is deviant,' Lukman said. Komnas HAM commissioner Imdadun Rahmat said that officials at local administrations usually had political agendas. 'The way things work, many hard-line groups can press local authorities to relent to their demands, and this usually ends with the issuance of bylaws discriminating against minority groups,' Imdadun said. Home Minister Tjahjo Kumolo said that the central government had taken measures to keep growing intolerance in check by evaluating around 139 bylaws that had the potential to discriminate against minority groups. 'Many local administrations issue bylaws that violate the Constitution, but, only the central government has the absolute authority to issue regulations concerning religion. We have given a warning [to those regions issuing the bylaws]' Tjahjo said. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin The Jakarta Post Wed, February 24, 2016 Your comments on the government's decision to confine a number of the country's top terrorists in isolation, including radical clerics Aman Abdurrahman and Abu Bakar Ba'asyir, to prevent them from spreading firebrand propaganda to fellow inmates and to cut them off from terrorist networks: Why only terrorists? Big-time corrupters should also be isolated on Nusakambangan, because both are extraordinary criminals. Eduard Iseli It is useless to confine a number of the country's top terrorists unless they are stripped of communication devices such as cellphones and highly paid couriers. They simply use religion to incite the people to unite, and make them drag themselves into poverty to more easily convince them of the need to fight for their cause. Moeljono A Topic of the day Plastic bag fees Retailers in Jakarta and many other cities began to charge customers on Sunday for plastic bags in a concerted effort to reduce plastic waste. What do you think? Send your thoughts by email, SMS, Twitter or Facebook. Include your name and city. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Ayu Mellisa (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Wed, February 24, 2016 While the world is busy with the rise of radical groups that spread terror, we may be ignoring what are in the hands of the terrorists, the weapons. Weapons of mass destruction are no longer nuclear arsenals ' but the Avtomat Kalashnikova 47, the famous AK-47. Having originated in what was then the Soviet Union, the AK-47 is one of the world's most used and profilic automatic assault rifles. This iconic weapon has been used in more than 100 countries. With a reputation as tough, reliable and easy to maintan, the AK-47 has been modernized and copied to make various types of firearms. A Geneva-based think-tank, the Small Arms Survey, noted that at least 70 million AK rifles have been produced to date. The popularity of the AK-47 and the result of the Soviet-Afghan war led to the infamously labeled Kalashnikov culture in Pakistan where belligerent groups tend to resolve political disputes with assault rifles. Sadly, the proliferation of the AK-47 is just the tip of the iceberg. According to the London-based NGO, Amnesty International, there are now 875 million firearms in the world and 12 billion bullets, enough to kill everyone in the world twice. Despite the abundance of weapons production, there is no universally agreed and clear regulation to control the production and distribution of them, specifically regulations on illicit arms trade. The definition of illicit arms trafficking or gunrunning itself is quite problematic. The UN Office for Disarmament Affairs (UNODA) defined it as trade that is contrary to the laws of states and/or international law. Meanwhile, there is no clear global agreement regarding the arms trade. Even the newest international Arms Trade Treaty only has 53 signatures and has been ratified in 80 countries, with the rest remaining undecided, including Indonesia. The gap between state law and international law creates a grey area of arms trade: the trade can be legal by state regulation, but may defy international law. While it is challenging to have an international agreement, every country should have strict regulations on arms control. This would help to minimize the illicit trade as well as the misuse of weapons. Strict regulation of deadly weapons would also limit terrorists' access to them. From the Sarinah tragedy of Jan. 14 alone, several firearms were traced to a Tangerang prison, acquired from a former prisoner. While revising the law on counterterrorism, Indonesia cannot ignore the convoluted distribution of illegal weapons. As a country that has not even agreed on ATT, Indonesia must ensure that local rules can regulate the trade and distribution of weapons. The government should include a regulation on weapons within the counterterrorism framework. Integrated management of terrorism and weapons could be an example for other countries looking at military intervention to deal with extremists. Indonesia must also remember to take care of the state-owned weapons producer, PT Pindad, which is growing steadily. Pindad will launch a new assault rifle this March 2016 named SSX Pindad. This weapon's ability reportedly exceeds that of the legendary AK-47. Indonesia must be able to control the use and distribution of this weapon, to avoid new terrorist acts using the new firearm. It is our choice, to be controlled by the terror of the weapon or to control both the spread of weapons and terrorism. _____________________________________________ The writer is a researcher at the Center for the Study of Religion and Democracy (PUSAD), Paramadina Foundation, Jakarta. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Suherdjoko (The Jakarta Post) Salatiga, Central Java Wed, February 24, 2016 UK Ambassador to Indonesia, ASEAN and Timor Leste Moazzam Malik has called on all elements of society in Indonesia to make a more concerted effort to tackle the spread of radical movements in the country. He reminded that preventing radical movements could not be conducted by only one country. 'It needs cooperation,' the UK envoy said. He made the comments during his visit to Edi Mancoro pesantren (Islamic boarding school) in Salatiga, Central Java, on Wednesday. Ambassador Malik said that he learned pluralism, tolerance and radicalism prevention by visiting pesantren across Indonesia. In those visits, he said, he tried to speak not only with the leaders of the schools but also with their students, both males and females. 'During my assignment in Indonesia, I tried to communicate face-to-face with Indonesian youths. I saw that through education, young people can pave the way to knowledge in all fields. They can further play roles to maintain world peace,' he said during his dialogue with students at the pesantren. Ambassador Malik said Indonesia was special as it was a country with the biggest Muslim population in the world. 'Indonesians have tolerant religious practices, and this is very relevant. I hope this situation will not be influenced by the current extremism trends abroad,' he said. Ambassador Malik said radical movements in the Middle East that adopted takfirin, an ideology that easily referred to people as infidels, had spread to many countries. 'Don't use violence to encourage other people to understand differences among us. The spread of the takfirin ideology from Middle East is quite dangerous. To fight any form of takfirin ideology, we must cooperate,' said the ambassador. Edi Mancoro foundation chairman Muhammad Hanif said radical groups adopting takfirin also deemed people that had adopted different ideologies or Islamic teachings as infidels. 'The takfirin ideology is very dangerous,' he said, adding that all Edi Mancoro students were taught that Islam promoted peace and prosperity for all human beings. During his visit in Central Java, Ambassador Malik also visited Futtuhiyah pesantren in Demak regency and the University of Wahid Hasyim in Semarang. (ebf) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin The Jakarta Post Washington Wed, February 24, 2016 The Obama administration is convening a meeting this week to discuss efforts to counter the propaganda of the Islamic State and its recruitment of Westerners to become terrorists. The meeting scheduled for Wednesday at the Justice Department involves government officials as well as dozens of representatives from advertising and social media companies and Silicon Valley. It will be followed by a reception at the White House. The summit reflects ongoing concerns about slick Islamic State propaganda that encourages disaffected young adults to join the terror group's cause in Syria or to commit acts of violence closer to home. Officials and private sector executives have been brainstorming ways to fight that messaging, which has often spread through social media platforms such as Twitter. The Justice Department in the last year has brought charges against dozens of people tied to support for the Islamic State, many of whom were drawn to online propaganda. "Over the past year, organizations and companies across a range of industries have asked how they might contribute to efforts to counter radicalization and recruitment activities by ISIL and other violent extremists," the Justice Department said in a statement Tuesday. The government recognizes that the private sector has "a crucial role to play in developing creative and effective ways to undermine terrorist recruiting and counter the call to violence," the statement said. The meeting takes place amid an ongoing technology encryption clash that has divided the Obama administration and Silicon Valley, though a government official said the meeting had nothing to do with that topic and was planned long before the current flare-up between the Justice Department and Apple Inc. over access to a locked iPhone became public last week in a California court. In that matter, a federal magistrate has ordered Apple to help the FBI gain access to a phone used by one of the gunmen in the December terror attack in San Bernardino. The company is expected to file a written objection on Friday. (**) Read the digital edition 2020-09-25 E-Edition The Jewish Advocate is a not-for-profit reader-supported 501(c)3 organization. We rely on your donations which are tax-deductible. 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The judge in Sheldon Silvers federal corruption case plans to release documents on March 2 not allowed during the trial, reports Newsday. More on the arrest of a man accused of slashing an employee of the Silver Spurs restaurant. The Daily News reports hes 16-year-old Dominico Howington. He was picked up at the Lillian Wald Houses. Dual language programs, including the one at P.S. 20, are struggling to find teachers, according to DNA Info. The broker handling leasing for a 1500 sq. ft. space at 149 Essex St. says the landlord has taken a visionary approach to the property. Our goal is to bring the kind of retail to the space that will complete the revitalization of the entire block-front. The state has temporarily pulled the liquor license at Dahlias on 2nd Avenue due to underage drinking, reports EV Grieve. Bedford & Bowery posted a video from Sundays oyster eating contest at Grey Lady. NBC News profiles Haijing Zing Bai, a former lawyer who has opened Zings Awesome Rice on Ludlow Street. Unfair but balanced commentary on tax and budget policy, contemporary U.S. politics and culture, and whatever else happens to come up Privacy Overview This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful. I don't think there's been a better time to look back on the life of Hugh Gaitskell. In my opinion, he was the best Leader of the Opposition Labour could have wished for - certainly the most formidable - and would likely have been a successful Prime Minister. The Labour Party of today - fragmented over everything from Syria to shoot-to-kill - contains no credible centrist force in its ranks, and seems set on a crushing defeat in 2020 unless we see drastic change. Gaitskell - whose ambition it was to make Labour "relevant and realistic" - would be disappointed by the Corbyn leadership. Hugh Gaitskell was a Labour MP at a glorious time in the party's history. In the aftermath of the colossal world war, the British people elected the war-hardened Labour Party into government in a landslide victory for the party. Attlee, the new PM, oversaw a massive expansion of the welfare state: the NHS was founded, national parks drawn up, a system of national insurance created, and 20% of the economy - coal, railways, transport, electricity and gas - was nationalised for efficient administration. The qualities that Corbynites admire in the present party leader - conviction, principle, rebelliousness - are also to be found in the best PM Britain never had. Hugh Gaitskell became Leader of the Opposition in 1955 following Attlee's resignation. His time as Chancellor of the Exchequer saw the introduction of prescription costs for glasses and false teeth under the NHS to pay for rearmament, earning him widespread hatred. This dislike came, most prominently, from the Nye Bevan's hard-left wing of the party. Subsequently, the leftist rebels became known as Bevanites, and the supporters of the future Leader of the Opposition became known as Gaitskellites. Labour was ruptured by infighting. It is no secret that Labour scores great victories for itself when it adopts a system of pragmatism over idealism, and Gaitskell knew this. Conflicts between these two perspectives are Labour's greatest and most frequent enemy. The party has spent long years in the politically wilderness because of it. The First Labour Government's downfall coincided with a split between Labour and the ILP. Labour in the 80s was divided between Tony Benn and Denis Healey, leaving a power vacuum in which Margaret Thatcher stepped into 10 Downing Street utterly unopposed by a coherent Opposition. Factionalism is Labour's greatest opponent, and the Gaitskell period of Opposition was one of tremendous infighting. Despite this, Labour enjoyed great success under his leadership - no-one else could have moulded the party into its best form. Whilst Harold Wilson and John Smith and other leaders tried to balance competing interests and factions, Gaitskell grabbed the party by the scruff of its neck, vigorously forcing it to become "relevant and realistic". In his book Speak For Britain: A New History of the Labour Party, Pugh summarises the problem faced by Labour most often - namely, the party's "enduring weakness [is] the tendency to choose the wrong leaders - and hang onto them for too long". But the appointment of Gaitskell as Leader of the Opposition was not a mistake. His modernising efforts were accompanied with a sense of principle. It made the party once again a significant fighting force in British politics, without compromising its key ideals. Everything he advocated - from his opposition to joining the European Economic Community, to his condemnation of the Macmillan Government over Suez - was consolidated with principle and conviction. Although he didn't favour a carefully-balanced, delicate approach when dealing with competing factions, his efforts to modernise the party and prepare it for government were always substantiated with a set of underlying beliefs. In my opinion, there can be no more remarkable achievement in politics than this. It demonstrated his tremendous capacity for the post of Prime Minister. Such capacity was never fully demonstrated. January 1963 saw the death of Gaitskell from severe lupus. But his legacy was tremendous. The 1964 general election saw Labour - now under the leadership of Harold Wilson - propelled into power, largely due to Gaitskell's efforts. Labour has a habit of deifying former leaders who died before their time - just look at the rightful reverence of John Smith. Despite being, according to Margaret Thatcher, "the most formidable Leader of the Opposition", Gaitskell's name is somewhat taboo in the Labour Party. Tony Blair - who has been called Gaitskell's political successor (if not ideological one) - never even mentioned his name. Perhaps this fear derives from the fact that, after Michael Foot assumed power, the former Gaitskellites broke away from Labour, forming the SDP. But Labour can learn, too, from the SDP, which came within 2% of Labour in the polls! By following Gaitskell's ideas, the fledgling party drew immense support from the British people. Jeremy Corbyn - and his Labour opponents - could learn a thing or two from the political life of Hugh Gaitskell. Like the present leader, he was often at odds with his party. Most prominently, he renounced Britain disarming unilaterally, and led the opposition to Britain entering the European Economic Community (the predecessor of the EU). Yet the chances of victory for the Labour Party in the 1964 general election was not marred because of this. His strident denunciation of those who supported unilateral disarmament show his strength, moulding his party into its best form in spite of internal and external opposition. So I implore Mr Corbyn to employ the methods of Gaitskell - a man I believe to be the best Prime Minister we never had, as well as the best Leader of the Opposition we did have. He may not have unified the party ideologically, but he ensured it always had momentum. It was a principled vote-winning machine. Unfortunately, The Content Is Not Here You have arrived at this page because the page or post you were looking for no longer exists. Please check our main navigation pages for other content: Home Page Reckless driving to blame for Patong hill bus crash say Phuket police PHUKET: Reckless driving is to blame for the Patong Hill bus crash which killed the driver and injured 17 tourists police told The Phuket News today (Feb 24). accidentsdeathtransport By The Phuket News Wednesday 24 February 2016, 04:53PM The 17 injured tourists and bus driver, 40-year-old Jeerasak Kimbuathong, were taken to hospital where the driver was later pronounced dead. Kathu Police Capt Yingyong Chuykit told The Phuket News that their investigation concluded that the accident happened because of the driver's recklessness. The tour bus carrying Chinese tourists crashed at the bottom Patong Hill little before 9pm on Monday night (Feb 22). The bus driver's lost control of the vehicle then scraped the side of the temple wall before slamming into the light pylon. (See story here) The 17 injured tourists and bus driver, 40-year-old Jeerasak Kimbuathong, were taken to hospital where the driver was later pronounced dead. The bus was operated by Phuket Smile Travel and it had full insurance cover. The auto insurance company will pay for any damages once officials get all the damage estimations to them, Capt Yingyong said. The 17 tourists that were taken to hospital that night suffered only minor injuries and they were discharged from the hospital soon after receiving treatment. Im sure that they have left the country already. The bus company did not pay any compensation for the injured, however, they took care of all their medical expenses, he added. Thaksin gives more interviews Thaksin Shinawatra continued his media offensive yesterday (Feb 23), warning the junta of the dangers if it stays on and pushes an undemocratic constitution. politics By Bangkok Post Wednesday 24 February 2016, 09:09AM Former Thai PM Thaksin Shinawatra speaks to journalists at the Laotian capital Vientiane in April 2012. Photo: Nicholas Asfouri/AFP Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha waved off criticism and demands for talks, saying the fugitive ex-premier should be speaking with police. The foreign minister announced new rules to cut down the number of Thailand-based foreign media. Many are not reporters, he said, and their misleading reports gave rise to misleading headlines. In an interview with Reuters in Singapore, the former prime minister criticised the government for lacking the vision and talent. It is a government with no freedom and no pool of talent to drive the economy, he said. The longer they stay, the longer economic hardship is going to be there. Thaksin denied long-standing reports he had struck a back-room deal with the military to leave his personal and family interests untouched in exchange for a retreat from politics. We are not talking. I have never telephoned anyone. I dont know why I would get in touch with them and I have no need to, Thaksin said. Prime Minister Prayut yesterday directly rebuffed former premier Thaksin Shinawatras offer to hold talks with the government over political divisions, saying he was not paying him any attention. Repeatedly asked if the government would talk to Thaksin, Gen Prayut said: Theyve already answered that. He should speak with the law. To which Thaksin replied: They said they cant talk to me because of the cases against me but a coup is a bigger crime. In another interview with Al Jazeera on yesterday, Thaksin chose to be blunt when he talked about the state of the economy and the new constitution. I see [the country going] backward more than forward. So, this is why we start to worry. And when it comes to the draft constitution, [this] is the worst constitution ever, Thaksin told Al Jazeera, comparing it with something that could have been written in North Korea. To the junta, he sounded similar warnings. I think the situation will not allow them to enjoy the power that much because of the way they run the country. Any regime that is careless about their own people will not last long, he said. The military keep urging publicly that they want to do reconciliation ... They want to move the country forward, but this is one and a half years [later], and there is no sign of reconciliation, Thaksin told Al Jazeera. Vice versa ...They are really siding with one side and then pressuring the other side. Thaksin, who told Reuters he spends his time meeting up with old friends including former heads of state, said he has adjusted to his nomadic life and makes, on average, 120 landings a year in his private jet. He believes he will return to Thailand one day but wont go back to face charges or live under house arrest because of previous assassination attempts. I am confident I can return, he said. I am not the bad person I am accused of being. Thaksins decision to speak to media this week has riled the junta. He remains a person without credibility who thinks he is above the law, government spokesman Maj Gen Sansern Kaewkamnerd told reporters. Army commander Gen Theerachai Nakwanich also brushed aside Thaksins offer, saying his attention was focused on people suffering from the drought. Lets not pay attention to him. Let him say whatever he wants to, but dont attach importance to him. Our attention should be on people suffering from the drought, Gen Theerachai said. Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Don Pramudwinai said yesterday it is time to stop being lenient on foreign journalist visas, to end misleading reporting. International standards are applied to visa controls for foreign journalists and the proper scope of their work, but authorities have not enforced them strictly and have been lenient, the minister said at a Government House appearance. Officials have now been ordered to rigidly follow the regulations, and the Foreign Correspondents Club of Thailand (FCCT) had been kept informed of the changes, Mr Don said. Many are not reporters, he said, and their misleading reports gave rise to misleading headlines. We have issued warnings, because they have caused misunderstandings and had an impact on the national interest, the foreign minister said. He denied strict enforcement of conditions for issuing M-visas was a restriction on media rights, claiming reporters in Thailand actually enjoyed the most freedom in Asia. There were about 500 foreign reporters in Thailand and only 10 per cent of them were problematic, Mr Don said. If they were able to clearly show who they worked for, the Foreign Ministry would be ready to consider their visa applications. The FCCT earlier voiced concerns over the rules, saying the restrictions on those applying for a journalist's visa might affect bona fide journalists. Read original story here. Two men dead, one missing after canoe capsizes during Phuket fishing trip PHUKET: The bodies of two men who went missing while canoeing off Phuket on Saturday (Feb 21) have been found. One man is still missing, whilst a ten year old boy who was also out on the canoe is safe The Phuket News has learned. accidentsmarinetransportdeath By Eakkapop Thongtub Tuesday 23 February 2016, 11:28AM Marine Police and rescue workers go out in search of the bodies of the missing men. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub More than 15 Marine Police and Kusoldharm rescue workers went out to search for the missing pair yesterday (Feb 22) after they had been reported missing from the waters off Koh Sireh since Saturday night. (See story here) There were four people who went out fishing on one canoe, explained Lt Col Panya Chaichana of the Phuket Marine Police. The canoe, carrying Wisuth Prasert, 58; Mard Pantip, 52; Laong Thongpitak, 53, and a 10-year-old Sontaya Kasikul when it began to sink when they were about 100 metres offshore. As it was sinking, the canoe has hit by a big wave and this threw all four on board into the water. The boy managed to swim to shore and alert residents who were able to rescue Mr Wisuth. He was taken to hospital by rescue workers but was pronounced dead shortly after, he said. The body of a second man, Mr Mard, was found this morning (Feb 23) floating in a mangrove near the Klong Tha Chin canal in Rassada, about 1.8 kilometers from where the canoe sunk. The mans sister has identified the body. Sontaya said All the men are my relatives. We took out the canoe to go fishing but a big wave flipped the canoe and sank it. We all tried to swim back to shore but only I managed to reach it. Mr Wisut was close to shore but was unconscious. Residents pulled him from the water and rescue workers revived him and took him to hospital. I thought he would be all right but I was told later that we had lost him, he said. Marine police are continuing to search for Mr Laong who is still missing. How to watch and what to know about South Dakota State at North Dakota Tom Stocky wants to tell you what people think about things that are happening around the world right now. It sounds a lot like the mission of Twitter, but Stocky works for Facebook, tackling a problem the company has continually struggled with: search. There are 1.5 billion searches a day on Facebook, but the vast majority are for peoples names the kind of search one might surreptitiously conduct after meeting an alluring stranger in a bar. Last October, the company quietly made it possible to search for all public posts on Facebook, not just material posted by friends or pages. Stockys team developed the new function, which uses an algorithm to rank and refine trillions of posts from Facebook users. What we really tried to do was make Facebook a place where you could tap into the global conversation of what was happening in the world, Stocky said at Facebooks Menlo Park, Calif., headquarters, unwittingly (or perhaps not) trotting out a favourite phrase of executives at rival Twitter. We really want to basically make Facebook the best place to find what people are saying about something right now. A usable search tool on Facebook could have big implications for the social network. People might rush to restrict their privacy settings once they understand that their posts are discoverable by anyone. Or they could scramble toward the limelight, crafting timely posts for a mass audience and giving the social network into the kind of topical and pulse-quickening timeline currently featured by Twitter. It could be Twitter, but with 1.6 billion users instead of 320 million. It could be Google, but personalized and populated by friends. If search on Facebook really takes off, I think Google is under pressure, said Victor Anthony, an analyst at Axiom Capital Management. If they get it right and theyre able to monetize against searches, its extremely lucrative for Facebook-billions in revenue. But first, theres a lot to get right. Search was one of the first features chief executive Mark Zuckerberg built for Facebook when he started it at Harvard in 2004. Those first students could have a profile, and they could search for friends to add, and that was it. Throughout the years, Facebook has made some moves to enhance the search bar that it prominently placed on the top of the page, but for the most part, it languished. When people actually associate Facebook with answering the questions they have, thats when well be successful. In 2010, the company made a deal to let Microsoft show its Bing Web results there. A couple years later, Facebook made an attempt at its own social database crawler, which it earnestly dubbed Graph Search. Zuckerberg introduced the product at a press conference in January 2013. It required users to enter queries in a highly stylized way, as if they were talking to a robot: My friends who went to high school in Long Island and live in Philadelphia or Google employees who like national parks. Not surprisingly, it never caught on. A year later, Zuckerberg admitted to Bloomberg that Graph Search didnt work as intended even half the time. The idea behind the new search effort, according to Mike Vernal, Stockys boss and a vice president of search, is that the average Facebook post is interesting for longer than the customary five hours it might be immediately findable in the news feed. People are commenting on Bernie Sanders tax plan, sharing dinner recipes or bragging about a recent vacation outing, and those contributions might have lasting value. Our founding belief is that theres a huge amount of wisdom and knowledge in that information after 12 hours, after 24 hours, Vernal said. Over the last couple years, the company started ramping up its recruiting, luring search engineers from competitors and building new types of hardware and infrastructure for its data center to handle the enormous amount of storage. Building search on Facebook, like elsewhere on the Web, starts with indexing. The moment someone posts on Facebook, the sentences are scanned for keywords. Facebooks computers then ask some more qualitative questions: Is this well-written? Are there grammatical errors or misspellings? Does the writer usually get many likes and comments on their posts? Are they an authority on this subject, based on what theyve written in the past? In order to have Facebook have the best most accurate results, we need to make sure that all the updates every single photo, every single video, link, share, like, comment is reflected in our index in a matter of seconds, said Girish Kumar, Facebooks director of engineering for search, who used to be the head of search quality for Microsofts Bing. When you perform a search, the company asks thousands more questions to draw the best results and ranks them based on how recent and relevant they are. Kumar says Facebooks algorithm prioritizes results from original sources and authorities on the news. Friends will be high in the results. But brands, pages, celebrities and strangers will, too. Theres been a lot of trial and error. The company has hired hundreds of testers, both permanent employees and contractors, to spend hours painstakingly searching the social network. As recently as a couple months ago, the results werent that good, Stocky said. Getting recipe results when searching for Turkey, the country? Facebook didnt factor that the phone was in Istanbul during the search. Most people are using the new search algorithm without even realizing it, and in the process theyre helping to make it better. When you click on a post and share an article, Facebook now uses the search tool to provide a link that shows how many people are talking about it, and suggests related stories that are also being shared on the site. When you use Facebook to check in to a restaurant or other location, Facebook search finds other people who have been there and offers up their posts about it. Search will become more of a habit for Facebooks users the more invisible it feels, says said Nicolas Dessaigne, the CEO of Algolia.com, a search tool for businesses to use internally. But using the main search bar is a different story, and people may not want to change the way they use Facebook, said Mark Mahaney, an analyst at RBC Capital Markets. They think of Facebook as the place they communicate and share with their friends, he said. Even though Facebook offers something different than Google the wisdom of friends the company would have to come up with a better search experience to get people to consider using their search functionality instead of Googles. The odds are very slim. Facebook search is already paying minor dividends at least for its own executives. While he was testing the service last year, Stocky needed to buy a baby monitor. He searched for the names of two brands, found friends who had posted about them, messaged them both and borrowed their old monitors for trial runs. Search didnt turn up much of a global conversation, but Stocky hopes that will change. You should be able to tap into these perspectives and experiences from people you dont know, Stocky said. When people actually associate Facebook with answering the questions they have, thats when well be successful. Read more about: SHARE: Though they will eventually be driven away by your long rants about why that last Oscar was given to the "wrong" film and/or actor, your friends are apt to stay at your Oscar Party longer if you provide a nice spread of food. In the grand tradition of all parties happening on the night of February 28, your selection of food should, of course, be thematic to the movies that have been nominated. (Puns. We're talking about pun-ny names for foods that sound like Oscar nominated films. It's essential.) If your creativity is at a low point (like the writing on most of the Hollywood movies, this year), we've got you covered. Here's our fun-filled, pun-filled romp through appropriate foods for each of the Academy Award-nominated films, each linked to recipes by celebrity chefs and/or a notable foodie website. Course: Main Dish Both the movie and the dish give your guests something to sink their teeth into as the meaty and complex issue that was the 2008 financial market crisis is reflected in the meaty and complex flavors of slowly-braised beef. Put a terrible wig on the top of it, to complete the thematic look. Course: Soup Super-thematic, as it's a) a traditionally Russian dish and b) served cold' (like the war'' that is the backdrop for this movie!) Offer this one to your guests and they'll say, "T. Hanks!" And be sure to add plenty of cumin seeds, coriander seeds, and dill seeds for heat. (Because it's spicy. Spies-y. Look, we needed to make the pun work.) Brooklyn-zer Cookies Course: Dessert Your guests will fall in love with this delicate, fancy dessert, yet their affection will be torn between this and the other desserts you offer (see below). Course: Main Dish Hot like a post-apocalyptic Australia, Phall is about 10,000 times hotter than tabasco sauce and often considered the hottest form of curry you can make. Will your guests be guzzoline it down, despite the heat? Might want to keep a glass of milk (mother's milk? Gross.) nearby, as spice experts say it's the best way to cool a burning mouth. (Not with a silver spray, as once thought.) Course: Dessert Besides being delicious, marzipan can be molded, so you can go a step further and form it into tiny Matt Damons. Don't have any artistic sculpting skill? Leave it as tiny, misshapen lumps that look like potatoes, which is also thematic! Course: Bread Your guest won't be able to bear how delicious this tasty Indian flat bread is as they tear into it with a savage, animal viciousness that will leave audiences stunned. Course: Dessert As a presentation suggestion: Lock them away in a cabinet, until much later in the evening, when you release them to your party guests. Course: Appetizer Spinach and feta wrapped in layers and layers of dough which are reminiscent of the layers of conspiracy and coverup portrayed in the film. Unlike the movie, once you get to the center of the dish, you're not going to be disgusted by what you find... unless you hate spinach. Want to push your guests to the limit of their tolerance for Oscar-pun foods? Try to figure out more recipes like SKATE Blanchett, BRIE Larson, Charlotte RAMPS-ling, SaoirSHAWARMA Ronan, Bryan Cranberrysauce-ston, or Leonardo DiCappicola! What about you guys? What pun-based movie foods are you making for your Oscar Party guests? Let us know, in the comments! Related DealNews Features Outrage is exhausting. I was talking about Donald Trump with a close friend over coffee, and we both agreed we seemed to be, on a daily basis, far more outwardly agitated than others we know over the prospect of the bombastic bigot winning the GOP nomination and even going on to win the U.S. presidency. Some nights I have trouble sleeping, she said. Why dont others? Please dont urge her to get a life she is among the busiest, most community-minded and productive people I know. And yes, I know its not our country, although we both have family ties there. She was sadly sensing something in the air. When it comes to Donald Trump, outrage may be becoming passe. As the British magazine the Economist noted last week after Trumps South Carolina win: There is a risk of becoming desensitized to Mr. Trump because he has been saying the same stuff for months. And such ugly and dangerous stuff it is, which Trump, as only a canny businessman could, is compounding interest on daily, so that it continues to deliver a nice fat payoff of rage, racism and entitlement to his growing throngs of supporters. Ban all Muslims from entering the U.S? That Trump edict happened months ago. Bring back waterboarding? Weeks ago. But tweeting as Trump did last weekend, over President Obamas decision not to attend the funeral of the suddenly departed right wing Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, I wonder if President Obama would have attended the funeral of Justice Scalia if it were held in a mosque? accomplishes so much in 20 words that its a work of evil genius. That little tweet not only includes Muslims (gotta keep them front and centre) but slyly references Trumps former vehement birther campaign against Americas first black president during which he falsely claimed for years that he had proof Obama had not been born in the U.S. and was therefore an illegitimate, not to mention Muslim, president. Trump also delivered a jaw-dropping speech the same weekend in which he approvingly told a questionable tale about an American general during the First World War killing Muslims with bullets dipped in the blood of pigs. The Republican front-runner actually said: He took 50 bullets, and he dipped them in pigs blood. And he had his men load his rifles and he lined up the 50 people, and they shot 49 of those people. And the 50th person he said: You go back to your people and you tell them what happened. And for 25 years there wasnt a problem, OK? As many media reported, to loud applause, Trump added: We better start getting tough and we better start getting vigilant, and we better start using our heads or were not gonna have a country, folks. Muslim leaders in the U.S said with horror that Trump was now overtly inciting violence against Muslims. In a brave gesture, Suzanne Barakat, the sister of a Muslim student killed alongside his wife and sister-in-law last year in an attack in North Carolina, challenged Trump to meet with her and tell her to her face why her family members recently deserved to die. Barakat, 28, was quoted in the New York Times saying that Trumps persistent rhetoric against Muslims allows for the Average Joe to see Muslims As The Other, as subhuman, because of their faith. So its not as if people affected are not responding. But its the people who think they are not being targeted Christians, Jews, all tolerant Republicans, Democrats, the rest of the world, who are not keeping their outrage continually cranked to meet Trumps vitriol. Instead, many political analysts are now realistically talking about Trumps astonishing campaign and his possible road to the White House. Maybe many people got tired after last fall when the hate and the outrage was at fever pitch. Maybe they believed he would never make it as far as he has in the primary campaign. Maybe they think he will still be stopped by his own party from becoming the nominee. Maybe they understand and agree with growing anger among voters at a system that is rigged. But that doesnt excuse Trumps violent, offensive language and bigotry. I wondered recently whether a candidate with this level of disjointed hateful rhetoric would be prosecuted under hate speech laws in Canada, but then I remembered the Ford era. And our agitation and outrage that our city was being hijacked by ignorance, bullying and bigotry. It took an election with twists and turns but we finally got rid of what seemed like toxic waste as daily political dialogue. Pundits are already talking about how Trump will start to pivot from his most ludicrous and bigoted stances to make himself more acceptable to the masses. I hope he doesnt pivot. As painful as it is to listen to, to read about and to absorb, Trumps belligerence and bigotry has to stay where it is now out in the open. It got him where he is today, the most dangerous demagogue in recent history to get even this close to the White House. Let the outrage grow to meet him. To paraphrase the man himself, Americans better start getting vigilant or were not gonna have a country, folks. At least not an acceptable one. Judith Timson writes weekly about cultural, social and political issues. You can reach her at judith.timson@sympatico.ca and follow her on Twitter @judithtimson Read more about: SHARE: OTTAWASen. Mike Duffy was mum as he left an Ottawa court Tuesday to await a judges verdict due April 21. Instead, he left his lawyer Don Baynes scathing attack on prosecutors, the Harper PMO and the Senates top officials to speak for itself. Through a full day of final oral argument, Bayne urged Judge Charles Vaillancourt to acquit Duffy of 31 criminal charges of fraud, breach of trust and bribery. He said Crown prosecutors failed to prove the accusations beyond a reasonable doubt; misstated and misrepresented evidence, ignored Canadian law and brought forward senior PMO witnesses who were the very paragon of unreliability. It was a surprisingly sharp attack on the professionalism of Crown attorneys Mark Holmes and Jason Neubauer. Bayne said they were deliberately attempting to have the judge make legal errors. He slammed the Crowns main witnesses, Nigel Wright and Chris Woodcock, and suggested Senate staff and the current Senate Speaker, George Furey, were out to cover their own failings as administrators of public funds and policies. Furey, a former Liberal and lawyer who now sits as an independent, was past vice-chair of the Senates executive committee on internal budgets, and is the Senates top arbiter. Bayne acknowledged there may have been minor imperfectly, human fallibilities and contradictions in Duffys evidence, but he said the onus is not on Duffy to prove his innocence, but on the Crown to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. Trials are not credibility contests. That is not the law in Canada. Bayne conceded Duffy benefitted personally as he travelled at the request of the Conservative party or conducted other Senate business he visited with family members on trips for public or partisan purposes, or exercised while he consulted a personal trainer. But Bayne said real work was done, and all was within the rules of the Senate and within the law. If there were any questionable claims, they were administrative irregularities and did not meet the threshold of criminal offences, he argued. Duffy never had criminal intent nor committed any criminal acts, Bayne said. Brandishing an Oxford dictionary, he said Crown allegations Duffy had a slush fund were ridiculous. A slush fund is a reserve used for illicit purposes, its not used for genuine Senate work, said Bayne. If there was a slush fund here it was the Conservative fund, Bayne said at one point, referring to Wright and Conservative Sen. Irving Gersteins initial discussions about using the partys treasury to help defray Duffys Senate bill for questionable expenses. He urged the judge not to take on the administrative oversight that the Senates internal economy committee or its finance staff never did. Bayne reserved his most caustic dismissal for the charge of bribery, which was laid for Duffys acceptance of a $90,000 payment from Wright, Stephen Harpers former chief of staff, and Chris Woodcock, another top PMO aide whom Bayne said scripted lies for Duffy. He called Wright a scripture-spouting, self-righteous, certainly self-justifying chief of staff, who actually ruled with an iron fist. And Duffy, far from being in the drivers seat of the whole thing, was a man taking a dive because of political threats to evict him from caucus and cause him to lose his Senate seat, Bayne said. He said Duffy and his lawyer had only limited input into the ultimate deal that saw Wright pay. Bayne said the Crown proved no financial motive that Duffy may have had to demand Wright pay, citing evidence that Duffy had access to a line of credit just like all Canadians that he could draw on. Bayne said the Crown failed to cross-examine Duffy on the $90,000 payment a duty they had if the wanted to challenge his version of events; and failed to call key witnesses to contradict his testimony, including Harper, and his top Conservative Senate leaders Marjory LeBreton and Sen. David Tkachuk. He scoffed at the Crowns suggestion that Duffy acted corruptly to obtain a benefit for himself. Sen. Duffy never got a benefit. Look at where he is sitting now, does anybody really think that by capitulating, to the PMOs demands, said Bayne that he got an advantage or benefit? Far from criminal, Bayne said, all of Duffys actions whether it was claiming a housing allowance, travel expenses or handing contracts to friends were permitted by broad Senate rules. The only restriction prevented travel on the Senate dime for partisan activities during an election or nomination period, he said. You can combine personal and public business; thats not just what the rules provided, its what Sen. Duffy believed. Hes entitled to be assessed on his subjective belief. Read more about: SHARE: Gold digger: A person who dates men purely to extort money from them, in particular a woman who strives to marry a wealthy man. Thats the common definition, though the genders could easily be reversed when exploitation via sex extortion even is the game. This is the gold: A $7.5-million lawsuit brought against 85-year-old Ron Joyce, co-founder of the Tim Hortons empire, by a complainant half a century younger who alleges the billionaire sexually molested her at his Burlington home in 2011. The dig-dig-dig could describe a suitcase full of documents affidavits, cross-examinations, depositions, factums, all the many pounds of legal paper this case has generated in the last year which the plaintiff brought into court Tuesday for a hearing wherein the defendants lawyers are trying to have the action tossed. Deep inside that heap o docs is the transcript of a May 2013 conversation between Joyce and the complainant which the latter surreptitiously recorded. She tells Joyce that she is willing to negotiate a position for herself as his personal assistant if he would take responsibility and apologize for the incident that allegedly occurred two years earlier. She asked Joyce: Why dont you marry me? Then they went for dinner. In his cross-examination last year, the twice-divorced Joyce said hed responded: Christ, Id love to marry you. So why not? she countered. Joyce: Im too old. Reaching further into the bag of he-said, she-said, there is the affidavit sworn by prominent real estate tycoon Hunter Milborne, claiming he had an affair with the woman shed worked for him as a mortgage broker and had shelled out $330,000 after shed threatened to expose the liaison with the married father of seven, years after it had ended. Shed demanded $1 million. Around May or June of 2011, Milborne reluctantly agreed to pay her $330,000 in exchange for her silence about our affair and nullify any future claims. Joyce paid, too cut a cheque for $50,000 in November 2011, (her then-lawyer deposited the sum of $49,478.87 into her account), marking it PAID IN FULL. He also forgave the woman at least $100,000 in loans that she owed. This, he argues, was a gesture of friendship, in recognition of a five-year relationship that was from time to time sexual, though never exclusive, and the sexual aspect had ended by May 6, 2010 a year before the alleged molestation. They remained friends thereafter. And thats essentially where this judge-alone hearing turns. Was there a handshake contract between them with the plaintiff PAID IN FULL? Joyce says yes, adamantly. She says no that the money was never a settlement; merely intended to cover legal bills shed rung up and therapy. Superior Court Justice Paul Perell expressed befuddlement with the plaintiffs explanation for the money. You say there was no deal. So why did you get $50,000? Youre telling me he gave you money to use to sue him. Its kind of bizarre that this sort of thing is alleged to have gone on, on the basis of a handshake. Complainant: It was an advance on the suit. It was never a settlement. Yet the plaintiff also claims that money was earmarked as Joyce purportedly knew to pay legal bills shed accrued in a separate sexual harassment case (since dropped) that shed brought against a co-worker at Milbornes company. It is indeed hard to keep all the narratives, claims and counterclaims straight. And the complainant, who burned through three law firms getting to this point, is now representing herself in court, up against Joyces high-profile lead lawyer Chris Kostopoulos. Yesterday, Perell demonstrated the patience of Job trying to steer the plaintiff through her legal submissions while the lay-lawyer offered dimpled smiles and a sometimes-coquettish demeanour to excuse her incomprehension with the process. For example: The complainant cited civil-court sexual assault tort law which she said allowed her four years after the alleged assault to bring her suit forward. Perell pointed out the law has changed since the 2000 law-book text she quoted; its now two years. Thats the other underpinning of the defences motion to have the suit dismissed the plaintiff missed the file deadline by two weeks. But deadline exceptions in sex-assault civil suits can be obtained if the complainant can prove that awareness of the assault only dawned at a later date, perhaps after a period of time to evaluate the trauma. (Perell denied the complainants request for a publication ban on her name, which, unlike criminal cases, is not automatic in civil procedures. The Stars policy is not to name alleged victims of sexual assault without their consent.) Lets go back to the beginning of this tangled liaison, which began when the plaintiff was 24 and Joyce 74. Or rather, lets go to the midpoint, the crux of the allegation from 2011. The complainant notes that she then weighed 115 pounds now 165 pounds. Excessive weight gain is common in rape victims as a subconscious way to protect themselves, the complainant asserts in her factum response to Joyces defence motion a document replete with the gospels of sexual assault. She had gone to Joyces home with the purpose of driving him next day to an important doctors appointment and had slept alone in a guest bedroom. The plaintiff claims Joyce entered the room without permission around 6:30 a.m. and that she awoke shocked to find him in the bed, naked, with his arms wrapped around her. Joyce, she says, had the fingers of his right hand inserted into her vagina and the other hand feeling her breast. It felt like an eternity, she said of the episode, as she tried to understand what was happening and who was violating her. She finally screamed and told him to stop, get off her. Joyce (he wasnt in the courtroom yesterday), testified in earlier cross-examination that he did get into the bed, but only to wake her and snuggle, then left, changed out of his bathrobe and drove himself to the doctors. I dont know how much more clearer I can be than that. There was never a sexual assault of any kind. Left alone at the house, the plaintiff called her mother to pick her up. They stopped at a Starbucks on the way home, where the complainants mother spoke to a police officer who was in the lineup, describing the alleged sexual assault her daughter had just experienced. The mother was supposedly told by the officer that a complaint would likely go nowhere because her daughter had showered at Joyces home before leaving. There would be no physical evidence, and the case would come down to duelling versions of events. The complainant repeated that purported conversation with the cop yesterday. I had showered that morning, and I didnt have semen on me. Semen? Rape? Where did that come from all of a sudden? Cue the rape culture myths. Or, as the complainant put it in her response statement: Our misogynistic society re-victimizes and shames women into silence. The plaintiff refuses to stay silent and be made to feel ashamed for something she didnt do. The hearing continues. Rosie DiManno usually appears Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday. Read more about: SHARE: LONDON In a gamble of historic proportions, Prime Minister David Cameron is betting his own political future and the future of his country on his ability to coax the British people to vote Yes in a referendum on whether the United Kingdom should remain a member of the European Union. The In/Out vote on June 23, will turn on calculations of national interest, emotional feelings about the level of immigration, and a centuries-old wariness about the dangers for this island kingdom if it draws too close to the continent. Cameron managed to lead his party to a majority victory in Britains general election last spring. But with that victory came the prime ministers pledge, made well before the election, to hold a national referendum on British membership in the EU. Following a summit of the leaders of the 28 member countries of the EU in Brussels, last week, Cameron emerged with what he called special status for Britain in the EU. Cameron came home with a deal he claimed would guarantee British sovereignty, allow his country to withhold in-work benefits from migrants from EU countries for an emergency period of seven years, and enable British financiers and exporters to maintain secure access to the vast continental market. On Sunday, Boris Johnson, the highly influential mayor of London announced to a media scrum in front of his home in North London that he will campaign for the No side. In a body blow to David Cameron, Johnson explained that he had to oppose British membership in what he called the increasingly undemocratic EU. Political insiders here have said that Johnson is calculating that in the current mood of populist anger against elites in Britain, he has the charisma to lead the disparate forces of the No side, including a sizable proportion of the Conservative Party, to victory. A No vote would certainly force David Cameron to resign as prime minister and it is no secret that Boris Johnson wants his job. The emotional issue at the heart of the EU debate is immigration. Hundreds of thousands of people, many of them from Poland and Romania, have taken jobs in the UK. A fundamental principle of the European Union is the right of citizens of member countries to seek employment in any EU country on the same terms as the local population. Playing the anti-immigrant card to great effect for the past few years has been Nigel Farage, who leads the right-wing United Kingdom Independence Party. He tours towns with high unemployment to rail that employees in some workplaces speak only Romanian and that local Brits cant get jobs in them. Countering anti-EU rhetoric, leading figures in the financial sector in the City of London have warned that if Britain leaves the EU, companies could decide to shift jobs to the continent. Last week, for instance, Douglas Flint, the Chairman of HSBC, announced that while his companys headquarters will remain in London, if Britain votes to leave the EU, his bank could shift 1,000 investment-banking jobs to Paris. How long London could remain the greatest financial centre on a continent to which it would have no political link is a major question on the table. At issue is not only the UKs relationship with the continent but the internal unity of the UK itself. The day Boris Johnson announced that he would support the No side, Nicola Sturgeon, the First Minister of the Scottish government and the leader of the Scottish National Party, stated that if England votes to leave the EU, while Scotland votes to stay, this would almost certainly trigger a second Scottish independence referendum. The British have always resisted the idea that the EU should be a political and social as well as an economic union. At present, the EU contends with the volatile Syrian refugee crisis in addition to persistently high unemployment and slow economic growth. Summoning the political will to push ahead to a closer union to complete the unfinished European edifice is essential if these and other problems are to be overcome. Paradoxically, this could well prove more achievable if Britain leaves the EU. How well little England would do as an independent offshore island, on the other hand, is another matter entirely. James Laxer is a professor of political science in the Department of Equity Studies at York University. He is the author of Inventing Europe: The Rise of a New World Power. Read more about: SHARE: Just how many Canadians had their personal information handed over to the Americans and other allies when Ottawas electronic spies dropped the ball a few years ago and unlawfully passed along metadata to foreign security services without scrubbing it first? Was it hundreds, thousands, millions? Jean-Pierre Plouffe, the commissioner-watchdog for the Communications Security Establishment, cant say. Because he doesnt know. Its impossible to know the exact figure, he told the Senates national security committee a few days ago. We can only wonder. How long did the CSE security breach go on before it was noticed? Was it a year? Two? More? Again, Plouffe is in the dark. CSE didnt know for how long the problem existed, he told the committee. And just what personal information ended up in the hands of Canadas Five Eyes allies, the United States, Britain, Australia and New Zealand? Theres no prize for guessing that, either. Plouffe doesnt know. After a certain time, data disappears, he said. But rest assured, CSE said in a press release after Plouffe addressed the committee, the privacy impact is assessed as low. Really? CSE, which reports to Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan, is barred by law from targeting Canadians. Yet it passed on a torrent of so-called metadata information and now wants to wave off the breach as small potatoes. If anyone needed more evidence that our security agencies ought to be more transparent and accountable for their activities, this is it. Prime Minister Justin Trudeaus government has good reason to press ahead expeditiously with legislation to create an all-party committee of parliamentarians chaired by Ottawa Liberal MP David McGuinty to monitor the countrys fast-expanding national security establishment. As the Star has argued before, the committee should have a robust mandate to provide active oversight as its British counterpart does, not just retrospective review. It should be able to probe policy, administration, spending and operations. And it should have a strong research team. Maybe a committee along those lines might have had more success than the Senate panel in cutting through the fog surrounding this affair and holding those responsible to account. It might even have blown the whistle on CSEs bungling long before it finally became public after a change in government. CSE is the high-tech spy agency that trolls cyberspace and telecom networks, hoovering up millions of electronic signals to track foreign cyberthreats, spies, terrorists and other bad actors. Its not supposed to spy on Canadian citizens, here or abroad. With its budget of $572 million up 11 per cent in recent years it scoops up metadata, the information used by computers to manage communications across vast networks. While metadata doesnt include the content of a phone call or email, it does include Internet Protocol addresses, telephone numbers, a devices location and the time of a call or message. That can convey a lot about the user. As former Ontario privacy commissioner Ann Cavoukian has told CBC News, metadata can actually be far more revealing than the contents of communications. She says its unconscionable that they have no idea how much metadata has been collected, where it is, and theyre saying now its all deleted. Thats irresponsible. Before sharing with the Five Eyes partners, CSE is required by law to minimize or scrub the data to remove Canadians personal information, passing along only intelligence related to threats from abroad. CSE didnt do that scrubbing, in what has been blamed on an inadvertent software glitch. A flood of unscrubbed data poured into a Five Eyes sharing point. And while CSE alerted the former Conservative government about this security breach years ago, they never told the public. Since then CSE has stopped sharing this information, and Sajjan says it wont resume until a reliable scrubbing system is in place. In the meantime, CSE says theres nothing more to know. Just move along, folks; nothing to see here. Well, nothing CSE wants us to see. Canadians deserve better. SHARE: Gallows at Tokyo Detention Center The nation's top court has upheld the death sentence of a man convicted of arson in which 5 people died. The Supreme Court on Tuesday rejected Sunao Takami's appeal against a lower court ruling in the 2009 case, in which he poured gasoline on the floor of an Osaka pachinko parlor and set it alight. The sentence is now set to be finalized. The presiding judge, Toshimitsu Yamasaki, said the 48-year-old Takami carries an "extremely grave liability for committing a premeditated, indiscriminate murder that targeted a pachinko parlor on a Sunday, when it was expected to draw a large crowd." The top court's 5-justice No. 3 Petty Bench said the death penalty is justified for Takami, despite certain circumstances being in his favor. These include the fact that he surrendered to authorities on the day following the attack. According to rulings by the Osaka district and high courts, Takami set the gaming parlor in Osaka's Konohana Ward on fire on July 5, 2009, killing 5 people and injuring 10 others. Takami's defense counsel argued that execution by hanging is a cruel punishment that runs counter to the Constitution. The country's supreme law forbids cruel punishments and torture by public officials. But the top court's petty bench dismissed this argument, noting that the Supreme Court has in the past upheld the constitutionality of capital punishment. In a 1955 ruling on execution by hanging, the top court declared that it was constitutional and is not considered a cruel punishment for most serious crimes. In handing down the ruling on Takami's case in October 2011, the Osaka District Court's presiding judge, Makoto Wada, noted that there is "controversy" over whether death by hanging is the best way to punish a person, but he added that "the death penalty system in the first place entails that a person pay for his or her crime with death. Agony and cruelty to some extent are inevitable." Meanwhile, the Supreme Court played down the defense counsel's assertion that Takami was delusional at the time of the attack and in a state of diminished capacity, saying that while such a state of mind does affect the motives of someone accused, it cannot be considered a major factor in this case. It was the 1st time lay judges participated in a decision regarding the constitutionality of capital punishment. The Osaka High Court upheld the lower court's ruling in July 2013. Source: The Japan Times, Feb 24, 2016 Hyderabad: The information technology boom seems to be penetrating into all sectors and many companies whether big or small are adopting various solutions like big data, internet and mobile solutions. Keeping pace with the growing trend, many telecom services are offering special business opportunities to small and medium companies so as to adopt these services seamlessly. The telecom services market is valued at about Rs 2,00,000 crore and the enterprise segment share is 10 per cent or Rs 20,000 crore. Meanwhile, the SME enterprise segment is growing between 10-12 per cent and to tap into this segment many telcos are offering services like location based services, data protection, separate lines for transferring data, mobile apps for marketing people, cloud-based services and are allotting specific budgets for the same. Companies like BSNL, Bharti Airtel, Vodafone and Tata Teleservices are gaining a lot from the enterprise segment. While PSU BSNL is planning to increase its market share by 20 per cent, RCom is focusing on cloud services and nearly 15 per cent of Vodafones income comes from enterprise segment. According to Tata Teleservices senior vice president and head, B2B operations, Harjit Singh Chauhan, TTSL SME business is growing double in comparison to industry year-on-year and its contribution to overall revenue is about 30 per cent. Disruptive technological forces such as social, mobility, cloud etc are playing a ubiquitous role in redefining business capabilities and thought leadership. We have moved beyond providing just traditional voice and data services to enterprise customers. The company now provides solutions across ICT, IoT, cloud and mobile applications domain, among others. Going ahead, we see that companies will be using digital technologies across various aspects of their organisations. The extant tax structure of India is heavily fragmented with multiple indirect taxes levied by different authorities at different stages of a transaction. New Delhi: Rooting for passage of GST in the ongoing Budget Session, industry body IAMAI said the move will bring in clarity in tax rules for online marketplaces and ease shipping of products by small and medium enterprises across states without worrying about multiple taxation. "It is crucial that the GST Bill is passed in the Budget Session. This will bring huge benefits to the SMEs and e-commerce companies. "The extant tax structure of India is heavily fragmented with multiple indirect taxes levied by different authorities at different stages of a transaction," IAMAI President Subho Ray told reporters here. The Bill, which subsumes all indirect taxes to create one rate and integrate the country into a single market, will help digital industry by providing clarity and uniformity in tax rates and regulations across the country, he added. Currently, different procedures and rates of VAT and other forms of LBTs prevail across various states. "This has created logistical challenges for the industry, besides giving rise to compliance related complications. Conflict of interests between tax authorities in case of inter-state transaction is a major pain point for us," Paytm founder Vijay Shekhar Sharma said. Ray cited the examples of states like Uttarakhand, Kerala and Karnataka that charge a tax on online purchases ranging up to 10 per cent. "This often affects deliveries to these states and also, higher costs for consumers if the tax is passed on. Bringing GST will take away this multiplicity of taxes and boost e-commerce in the country," he added. The Constitution Amendment Bill on GST is stuck in Rajya Sabha as the opposition Congress is seeking three key amendments in the proposed law, derailing the government's plans to roll out GST from April 2016. The ruling party does not enjoy majority of its own in the upper house. Congress, the main opposition party in the house, wants three amendments in the bill. Its three demands are a cap on the GST rate in the Constitution itself, removal of the proposed one per cent additional tax on inter-state movement of goods and setting up a judicial panel to adjudicate disputes among states. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley had said he hopes the Congress would "see reason" and help in passage of GST legislation in the Budget Session of Parliament. New Delhi: Mutual funds lowered allocation to banking stocks by Rs 6,662 crore (nearly USD 1 billion) to about Rs 78,600 crore in January, primarily on account of mounting bad loans of public sector banks. Fund managers have been continuously trimming allocation to banking stocks since November, lowering exposure by over Rs 9,000 crore in two months. "In recent months, banking stocks, specially public sector banks like PNB and Bank of Baroda have declared massive NPAs (as part of the RBI's push to clean the banking system) leading to downgrade in their stocks. Consequently, MFs have reduced their exposure to such banking stocks as they are no longer growth bets for the short term," Wealthforce.com Founder Siddhant Jain said. "However, due to the sheer size of the financial sector in India, MF exposure to this sector is still the highest as compared to others such as auto and software and also because in the long run, finance/banking is a major part of the growth story which is India," he added. In percentage terms, exposure to banking stocks was at 19.24 per cent of equity AUM last month as against 19.97 per cent in December. Overall deployment of equity funds in bank stocks stood at Rs 78,644 crore at the end of January as compared with Rs 85,306 crore in the preceding month, as per the data available from Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi). The industry's exposure to banking sector was at Rs 88,000 crore and Rs 85,376 crore in November and October respectively. The BSE bankex index slumped by 9 per cent during the period under review, while the benchmark Sensex witnessed a plunge of nearly five per cent. The gross non-performing assets (NPAs) of banking sector are estimated at over 5 per cent of total loans, while overall stressed assets (including declared and potential bad loans) are at about 11 per cent. An analysis of their latest quarter results shows that the cumulative gross NPAs of 24 listed public sector banks, including market leader SBI and its associates, stood at Rs 3,93,035 crore as on December 31, 2015. Despite the current decline, banking is the most preferred sector with fund mangers as they cannot take a bearish call on banking stocks, given the high weightage attached to the index. After banks, IT was the second-most preferred sector with fund mangers. Equity fund managers' deployment in software stocks was at Rs 43,115 crore followed by pharma (Rs 33,785 crore, auto (Rs 26,653 crore) and finance (Rs 23,131 crore). Mutual funds are investment vehicles made up of a pool of funds collected from a large number of investors. They invest in stocks, bonds, money market instruments and similar assets. Railways could eliminate 1,000 unmanned level crossings as per the figure available till middle of Februray this year. New Delhi: The Rail Budget is likely to lay strong emphasis on safety. With over 9,000 unmanned level crossings yet to be eliminated, Union railways minister Suresh Prabhu is expected to earmark substantial funds for their elimination. The last years Rail Budget had allocated Rs 6,581 crores to eliminate over 3,438 level crossings. The Railways could eliminate 1,000 unmanned level crossings as per the figure available till middle of Februray this year. Incidentally, the speed to eliminate the unmanned level crossings seemingly did not match the target because of non-cooperation by the state governments. There are many instances where even after the road over bridges or road under bridges have been built, but the concerned state government did not close down the unmanned level crossing apparently due to local pressure. There are instances where the state governments did not provide the required land for the approach roads, said a senior official of the railway board. Incidentally, the west-central zone of the railways has become the first zone to have completely eliminated all the unmanned level crossings. The Madhya Pradesh government showed a lot of co-operation, and the result is that there is no unmanned level crossing in the state. Similarly, the work is progressing at a satisfactory pace in Rajasthan where the state government has been able to cooperate with the railways and provide for the necessary land to build the approach roads, added the official. In the current financial year, the accidents have also come down at the unmanned level crossings. There were 122 accidents at the unmanned level crossings in the financial year 2014-15 till the month of February. The number of accidents has come down to 98 in the same period in the current financial year, said the official. Sanjay Dutts family and friends have been patiently counting days to February 25, 2016, when the actor would step out of Yerawada Jail, Pune as a free man. Well, the day has finally arrived and from what we gather, they have planned a big welcome for Sanju baba. According to sources at the Yerwada jail, a low-key farewell was planned for the actor a day before his release. Hell be stepping out of jail with Rs 450 in his pocket, the sum he earned making paper bags during his term. The actor also worked as a radio jockey for the jails in-house radio channel, where he would mimic actors and politicians, besides giving talks on how to remain positive in life and so on. His radio stint added to his popularity in the jail. It has been learnt that Dutts family has arranged a chartered flight for him from Pune to Mumbai. And once in the city, the actor already has a busy itinerary. He plans to visit the famous Siddhivinayak temple after which hell head to his mother Nargis grave. In the evening, there will be a big puja at his Bandra apartment after which he will interacting with the media. Paris: Timothee clenches his jaw and grips his sweatshirt as the tattooist's needle sinks into his skin. The angel he wants on his shoulder is not going to get there by itself. He is going to have to suffer for his body art. Like many teenagers, Timothee has not waited till his 18th birthday to get his first tattoos and piecings. In fact this is the blond 18-year-old's seventh tattoo. He had the names of his parents tattooed on his wrist at 16, and six others elsewhere to go with his nose piercing and the little stud on the inner lobe of his ear. So far he has spent 2,500 euros ($2,800) on various bodily adornments, but he is far from finished. "For the next one I want something written down the length of my spine," he said, convinced that he will never regret his tattoos. According to a 2010 Ifop survey, one in 10 French people -- and nearly a quarter of 18 to 24-year-olds -- have a tattoo. Every year Marina gets another piercing. She started with her bellybutton at 13, followed by each end of her lower lip. Next she had her earlobes stretched, before having her eyebrows, tongue and inner ear lobes pierced, and then topped it all off with a tatoo on her wrist at 17. Oh, and she has a nose ring too. Clementine couldn't wait either for piercings between her breasts and on her temple. Since she was 12, the 17-year-old has been begging her parents for a bull-style nose ring. "They didn't want me to have it, they were worried what people would think. But in the end they gave in to piercings on her temple" when she was only 14. After a few more years of arguments her parents finally cracked and allowed her to get a nose ring after she had got her high school diploma. It's my body For sociologist David Le Breton, author of "Signs of Identity: Tattoos, Piercings and Other Body Markings", the need to alter their appearance is a "a way of saying, 'It's my body and I can do what I like with it... And I cannot stand the idea of anybody saying no to me.' "For teenagers it is a way of taking back their bodies that they don't believe they were responsible for creating. "So putting their own mark on themselves is a way of saying, 'My body belongs to nobody but me,'" he said. No matter how intent teenagers are on transforming themselves, the law in most of Europe and US is clear. Minors need written consent from their parents, with many tattooists also demanding that they also bring their parents along. In Japan regulation is even tighter, with tattoos prohibited for anyone under 20. In the United States, according to a Harris Poll study in 2012, one adult in five now has at least one tattoo, and while there is no federal law regulating tattoos or other body art or modifications, most of the 50 states allow tattoos for minors provided they have parental consent. In Europe, some 100 million residents have tattoos, or 10 to 20 percent of the adult population, according to figures cited in the publication "Tattooed Skin and Health", which was published in 2015 for a medical congress entitled the Second European Congress on Tattoo and Pigment Research, held in Belgium. So no matter how much a rebellious a teenager might be, they have to negotiate with their elders, even though a growing number are turning to so-called "scratchers" who operate illegally. Timothee's mother Severine was very reluctant to give him permission to have a tattoo. "We did not want to affect his chances of getting work, and we didn't want it to be visible, above all on his neck and face." But in the end he so won her over that she and her husband got tattoos themselves. Body tuning Corinne Dubosque, a tattooist in the suburbs of Paris, said most parents are realists: "They know (their children) will have it anyway so they prefer to check out the parlours themselves to make sure they are hygienic." Charlotte began by having her inner ear lobe pierced at 15, and two months ago had a "vertical labret" inserted, a lip piercing that comes out on the chin. "I felt my body didn't suit me so I am carrying out some improvements," she said. "It is going to take years and it is going to cost," said the arts student, who lives in Metz in eastern France. Timothee calls this "body tuning" while Clementine insists all her piercings have nothing to do with youthful rebellion or politics "but simple aesthetics". And of course fashion has a lot to do with it too. "Younger people are more likely to follow trends, to imitate their peers or an actor, singer, footballer or swimmer," sociologist Le Breton said. LONDON (The Deal) -- European markets followed Asia lower on Wednesday as oil prices dipped, with commodities and energy stocks leading declines. In London, the FTSE 100 tumbled 1.44% to 5,876.29, while in Frankfurt the DAX erased 2.43% to 9,187.74. In Paris, the CAC 40 retreated 2.02% to 4,143.00. S&P 500 futures were down 0.64% at 1,903.75. Brent crude dipped to $32.66 after Iran's oil minister dismissed as "ridiculous" a proposal by Saudi Arabia and Russia to freeze production. The news took the mojo out of blue-chip energy stocks including Total (TOT) , which was 2.3% lower in Paris, and Royal Dutch Shell (RDS.A) , which fell more than 3% in London. Miners were the morning's worst performers on London's resource-heavy FTSE 100, with Glencore (GLNCY) , BHP Billiton (BHP) and Anglo American (AAUKF) all losing more than 5% by late morning local time. Standard Chartered Bank (SCBFF) fell 5.03% in a sequel to Tuesday's slump after missing full-year profit and revenue expectations amid a growing bad-loan pile. Hedge fund company Man Group was down more than 7%. Profit fell from $418 million in 2014 to $400 million in 2015, with CEO Manny Roman cautioning of continued "very challenging" market volatility. Assets under management rose from $72.9 billion in 2014 to $78.7 billion in 2015. In Frankfurt, Bayer also lost some steam on a management shake-up that will see Werner Baumann succeed Marijn Dekkers as CEO with effect from May 1. Shares were down 2.5%. Airbus Group shed 2.73% after rising earlier this morning. The company posted a 15% rise in earnings per share and a 1.6% rise in 2015 profit. In 2016, Airbus is betting on stable earnings before interest and tax compared with 2015, along with stable free cash grow, amid expectations that the world economy and air traffic will grow in line with prevailing independent forecasts and assuming no major disruptions. Among gainers, Petrofac jumped 6.4% in London after the oilfield services company reiterated its 2016 net profit target. It also stuck to its 2015 dividend pledge despite the Laggan-Tomore North Sea project putting a dent in profits. In Paris, carmaker PSA Peugeot Citroen rose 1.21% as investors welcomed news of its first dividend payment since 2011. It also promised to unveil a new plan in April for returning to growth after declaring its turnaround complete. In Frankfurt, Fresenius rose 2.33% on a bullish 2016 outlook from Europe's largest health care provider. The company said it expects revenue to grow between 7% and 10% in 2016, and that it plans to spend around $750 million on acquisitions out of $1 billion to $1.1 billion in capital expenditures. In Amsterdam, Delta Lloyd was 2.8% higher after the insurer scaled back a planned rights issue to 650 million from its previous goal of up to 1 billion and 2015 results that was largely a mixed bag. Later Wednesday, the focus shifts to the other side of the Atlantic for a barrage of data from the world's largest economy including the latest Markit Purchasing Managers' Index, January new home sales, and weekly crude oil stocks. In Asia, the Tokyo's Nikkei closed 0.85% lower, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng erased 1.15% to close at 19,912.45. Bucking the negative trend, China's mainland CSI 300 added 0.65% to 3,109.55. FGM is practiced in a swathe of African countries, pockets of Asia and the Middle East, as well as by diaspora communities living in the West. (Photo: Pixabay) London: Countries that have banned female genital mutilation (FGM) should allow less invasive practices such as small surgical nicks to girls' genitalia as a compromise, two American gynecologists said on Monday. But campaigners against FGM strongly criticized the proposal, saying it would undermine global efforts to eradicate the internationally condemned ritual. At least 200 million girls and women have been subjected to FGM in over 30 countries, according to U.N. estimates. The ancient practice usually involves the partial or total removal of a girl's external genitalia. In some cases the vaginal opening is also sewn up. But some communities practice less invasive rituals such as pricking or nicking the clitoris. The U.S. gynecologists, writing in the Journal of Medical Ethics, argued that permitting more minimal procedures could allow families to uphold cultural and religious traditions while protecting girls from more dangerous forms of cutting. Communities which support FGM often consider it a prerequisite for marriage. Many also see it as a religious obligation although it is not mentioned in the Koran or Bible. But FGM can cause a host of physical and psychological problems. Gynecologists Kavita Shah Arora and Allan Jacobs said procedures that slightly changed the look of a girl's genitalia without damaging them were comparable to male circumcision or cosmetic procedures in Western countries like labiaplasty. Laws against mild modifications were "culturally insensitive and supremacist and discriminatory towards women", they wrote in the specialist journal, which is published by the British Medical Journal. "BEHIND THE TIMES" FGM is practiced in a swathe of African countries, pockets of Asia and the Middle East, as well as by diaspora communities living in the West. The gynecologists suggested that global attempts to stamp out FGM with legislation had failed and may by driving the practice underground. "We are not arguing that any procedure on the female genitalia is desirable," they said. "Rather, we only argue that certain procedures ought to be tolerated by liberal societies." They said the term "female genital mutilation" should be replaced with the less emotive "female genital alteration" (FGA) to avoid "demonizing important cultural practices". But experts on medical ethics, commenting on the proposal, said procedures to modify girls' genitals could not be compared to male circumcision because they are designed to control women and curb their sexual desire. They also predicted that legalizing more minimal procedures would generate a litany of legal, regulatory and medical problems. Global campaigners against FGM said doctors should challenge harmful social norms, not condone them. "Any form of FGM is a violation of a child's rights," said Adwoa Kwateng-Kluvitse, head of global advocacy at the charity FORWARD which campaigns against FGM in Africa and Europe. "Why would you put a little girl through that? There should be no medicalization of FGM. They (the gynecologists) are completely behind the times. "This is very different to male circumcision. With male circumcision there is no intention to attenuate sexual desire, control sexuality or enforce chastity." Rights group Equality Now said the "medicalization" of FGM remained one of the biggest threats to its elimination. It said FGM prevalence rates had fallen significantly in many countries and that properly implemented laws had been very effective in countries like Kenya. NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- U.S. futures are pointed down on Wednesday, continuing the drop major indices experienced in trading Tuesday. World markets, for the most part, aren't fairing much better today as the Hang Seng and Nikkei closed trading down 1.2% and 0.9%, respectively. The Shanghai Composite was the lone major Asian index to finish in the green, closing trading up 0.9%. In Europe, indexes were also declining as falling crude prices take their toll on the market. The DAX was down 2.5%, the CAC 2.2%, and the FTSE 100 1.5%. Industry standard Brent crude futures contracts for April delivery were down $0.80 to $32.48 per barrel while West Texas crude futures were off $1.11 to $30.76 per barrel. Crude prices reversed their earlier gains on Tuesday after Iran's oil minister -- whose oil was recently made available to the world market after sanctions against the country were lifted -- called Russia and Saudi Arabia's plan to halt production "ridiculous." The comments came before Saudi Arabia's oil minister Ali al-Naimi told a conference in Houston yesterday that freezing production at January levels was the beginning of a process. "Maybe not all of them, but most of the countries that count will freeze," al-Naimi said. Iran is not one of those countries and has historically been one of Saudi Arabia's staunchest political rivals. While signaling that it would be amenable to a production freeze, Saudi Arabia said that it would be dependent on other countries like Iran and Iraq also not raising their production. Domestically, U.S. retailers are in the spotlight premarket as some of the biggest names in the sector reported their earnings results this morning. One day after Macy's (M) and Home Depot (HD) posted strong quarterly results, Lowe's(LOW) matched analysts' earnings expectations and beat on sales. For the current year, the company also provided upside full-year revenue growth guidance, forecasting sales to grow 6% to $62.6 billion vs. analysts' 4.8% growth expectations. Despite these positive factors, Lowe's was falling 3% premarket. Shares of Action Alerts PLUS holding Target (TGT) were declining premarket after the retailer reported fourth-quarter earnings that missed expectations by $0.02. This afternoon, Jim Cramer will be watching the earnings release of Salesforce.com(CRM). "Investors are looking forward to this earnings report because it should give the company a chance to trade on its own merits once again," said Benjamin Stoto, director of research for CNBC's "Mad Money." We'll also be watching billings and bookings growth. Last quarter, both came in above 20%. If they can do that again, the stock should be able to regain some momentum." Analysts are expecting the company to report a fourth-quarter profit $0.19 per share on revenue of about $2 billion. Research shows that sperm count can also be reduced by talking on a phone that is charging, or even keeping it close by on a bedside table at night. (Representational image) Men who carry their mobile phone in a trouser pocket or talk on it for just an hour a day risk suffering with fertility problems, scientists warn. Research shows that sperm count can also be reduced by talking on a phone that is charging, or even keeping it close by on a bedside table at night. The quality of sperm among men in Western countries is steadily decreasing, and is considered the factor in 40 per cent of cases in which couples have difficulty conceiving a child. Heat and electromagnetic activity which emanate from a mobile phone are thought to be cook sperm, causing them to die. The findings have led to a leading British fertility expert to warn men about the risks of being addicted to mobile phones. Israeli scientists monitored 106 men attending a fertility clinic for a year. The study revealed that men who chatted on the phone for more than an hour daily were twice as likely to have low sperm quality as those who spoke for less than an hour, while those who talked on the phone as it charged were almost twice as likely to suffer problems. It also found that 47 per cent of men who kept their phones within 20 inches of their groin had sperm levels that were seriously affected, compared with just 11 per cent of the general population. The findings, published in Reproductive BioMedicine, support a link between dropping male fertility rates and the prevalence of mobile phones. Professor Martha Dirnfeld, of the Technion University in Haifa, which carried out the study, said: The sperm levels were down to a number that would make conception difficult. If you are trying for a baby and it doesnt happen within a year you might want to think of whether it could be your mobile phone habit that is to blame. The study concludes that men planning to conceive should turn off their devices while charging, or keep it at least 20 inches from the groin. Source: www.dailymail.co.uk In the financial media's coverage of emerging markets, Asia tends to hog the headlines. But investors shouldn't give short shrift to Latin America, which is home to an expanding, increasingly educated and computer-savvy middle class. And growing ranks of these Latin consumers are flexing their purchasing muscle online. Burgeoning e-commerce activity in Latin America chiefly benefits one company: MercadoLibre (MELI) , the region's leading e-commerce player. MercadoLibre is scheduled to report fourth-quarter 2015 earnings on Thursday, Feb. 25, and analysts expect the company to see its revenue to continue to grow. Below, we explain why the stock could gain nearly 50% this year, while the broader markets languish. MELI data by YCharts Wall Street's consensus calls for fourth-quarter earnings per share to come in at 69 cents, down 9.2% from the same quarter a year earlier. But revenue is expected to increase 6.4% year over year, to $171.62 million, a year-over-year increase of 6.4%. This underappreciated company belongs in your long-term growth portfolio. And yet, MercadoLibre mostly flies under the radar. That's because many investors still view Latin America as undeveloped and riddled with civil strife, poverty, corruption and violent crime -- in short, too risky. Many Latin countries undeniably grapple with a plethora of problems, but a preoccupation with the region's age-old afflictions misses the bigger and substantially more optimistic picture. You should put aside the media's redundant coverage of China, at least long enough to examine other regional opportunities that the pundits are missing. The surest way to build wealth over the long haul is to invest in companies that are tapped into unstoppable trends. MercadoLibre exemplifies this breed of stock. Often referred to as "the eBay of Latin America," MercadoLibre functions in the same manner. Indeed, eBay (EBAY) holds a major ownership stake in MercadoLibre. Headquartered in Buenos Aires, MercadoLibre (which means "free market" in Spanish) hosts automated Web-based commerce platforms that allow businesses and individuals to list items and conduct sales and purchases online in an auction or fixed-price format. MercadoLibre's mode of operation is familiar to anyone who's used eBay or Amazon. MercadoLibre also offers MercadoPago, an integrated payments mechanism similar to PayPal (spun off in 2015 by former parent eBay). In addition, MercadoLibre's "MercadoClics" program allows businesses and individuals to promote their products and services through online display and text advertisements. MercadoLibre now operates e-commerce platforms tailored towards Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Panama, Peru, Portugal, Uruguay and Venezuela. As the largest company of its kind in Latin America, MercadoLibre's dominance confers competitive advantages that even eBay and Amazon can't match. The countries south of the border represent a rich variety of languages, currencies, customs and regulations. It's a high barrier to entry over which MercadoLibre has already vaulted. MercadoLibre is riding a strong multiyear trend. According to market research firm eMarketer, e-commerce sales will exceed $3.5 trillion within the next five years. The firm estimates that the Web accounted for 7.3% of global retail sales in 2015 and that it will account for 12.4% by 2019. MercadoLibre's room for regional growth is considerable. Factors for e-commerce growth in Latin America include greater credit and debit card usage; the proliferation of social media and group shopping sites; enhanced online security that reinforces consumer confidence; and an expanding pool of "e-tailers" that reach customers through their Web sites. Even if emerging-market economies continue to sputter this year, the case for investing in MercadoLibre isn't solely based on the region's future gross domestic product growth, although it certainly plays a role. Instead, the company is a direct play on the rise of a sophisticated, newly affluent middle class that's eagerly embracing the online shopping behaviors of the developed world. The stock's trailing-12-month price-to-earnings ratio of nearly 45 seems a bit pricey compared with the industry's trailing P/E of 30, but it's certainly a bargain compared with Amazon's trailing P/E of 436. Don't dismiss the potential for an earnings beat this week. Over the last four quarters, the company has twice exceeded earnings estimates, and analysts may have been too aggressive in lowering their earnings estimates for this company based on slowing overall economic growth in Latin America. Investors were bidding up shares of the company on Wednesday, apparently in expectation of an earnings beat. The stock now trades at about $102, and the median 12-month price target from analysts is $125, suggesting shares could gain 22%. The highest price target among analysts is $150, suggesting shares could gain 47% over the next year. As we've just explained, buying MercadoLibre is a smart move right now. Are you making the right investment moves for your retirement, or are you blowing it by making all-too-common money mistakes? There are crucial steps that you should be taking now, to build wealth over the long haul. To find out whether you'll have enough money in your later years, download our free report: Your Ultimate Retirement Guide. John Persinos is editorial manager and investment analyst at Investing Daily. At the time of publication, the author held no positions in the stocks mentioned. Editors' pick: Originally published Feb. 24. In the hours leading up to the Nevada caucus, Donald Trump mused about punching a protestor and againfloated the idea of murdering someone to test the loyalty of his support base. Yet, on Tuesday night Trump won his most astounding victory so far. Evidence continues to mount that there is nothing Trump can say or do to torpedo his campaign. Trump crushed his competition in Nevada, landing more than 45% of the vote. His chief rivals, Senators Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz, trailed more than 20 points, despite the real estate billionaire's bombast. He pulled the same move in his successful South Carolina campaign. In the days leading up to the primary, Trump said he likes the Obamacare individual mandate for everyone to have health insurance, the cornerstone of the health care law and also the aspect most hated by Republicans. He criticized the Iraq War and President George W. Bush heavily in a state that loves Bush and that is home to a large population of military personnel and veterans. And he won handily, at the same time forcing once-presumed GOP nominee Jeb Bush out of the race. "Clearly, there is something about his candidacy and what he represents that protects him against desertion based on his behavior," said Dave Hopkins, political scientist at Boston College and co-author of the 2011 book Presidential Elections: Strategies and Structures of American Politics. "His supporters, maybe they don't care, or they just don't care enough, about his criticisms of Republicans, his idiosyncratic behavior, his outspokenness. He's become a symbol of a broader disaffection that seems to sustain his campaign despite sort of violating the usual laws of politics." There seems to be nothing Trump can do or say to stop his own momentum. He's not in control of the GOP nomination race; nobody is. "The old rules don't apply anymore," said Bob Shrum, Democratic strategist and Carmen H. and Louis Warschaw Chair in Practical Politics at the University of Southern California. "He's not winning these voters because of a set of programs, principles and policies, even though has some signature ones, like on immigration. His power is that he speaks the resentments, angers and alienations of a collection of folks who want to America back." Essentially, Trump's base has decided that he speaks to their anger and that he's the candidate who will change things for them. According to a Nevada caucus entrance poll conducted by the Associated Press, nearly six in 10 Nevada caucus goers said they are angry with the way government is working, and half of that group supported Trump. Moreover, many expressed a strong desire for an outsider to take the White House; no matter what he says or does, that Trump is an outsider will not change. "Trump has tapped into a feeling among a certain group of Americans who feel like the American dream is no longer attainable to them or to their family," said Joshua Dyck, associate professor of political science as the University of Massachusetts Lowell. He uses this anger to his advantage and redirects it at politicians and a ruling class who many in the public view as incompetent or corrupt, or perhaps both." Tapping into that emotion is perhaps why Trump can't seem to get in his own way, as much as he seems to try. "When Donald Trump says something offensive about immigrants, or members of the media, or his opponents, he is harnessing an anger and resentment that already exists in the public," said Dyck. "This is why he doesn't pay political costs for saying outrageous things and sometimes even tends to benefit." Trump beat his competitors in Nevada among voters who consider themselves somewhat conservative or moderate and those who want a candidate who "tells it like it is." Trump did especially well among Nevada voters over the age of 45 and those without a college degree. On the issues, caucus-goers most concerned about immigration were most likely support Trump, but he also did well among those worried about the economy, government spending and terrorism. Trump won, by varying degrees, both men and women, voters in every age group over 30 and evangelical voters as well as non-evangelicals, according to a separate entrance poll from NBC News. In fact, Americans are warming up to Trump. According to a January poll from NBC News and The Wall Street Journal, 65% of Republican primary voters say they can see themselves supporting Trump. Back in March of 2015, just 23% of respondents said the same. "We've seen protest candidates before, but this is one of those rare occasions where I think a protest candidate could very well become the nominee," said Shrum. As to what may stand in Trump's way now, it's impossible to tell. If Trump apparently can't stop himself, and voters don't want to, it is up to his rivals to figure out how to slow his march toward the nomination. "Certainly if he is able to beat [the other candidates] in their own states, that's bad news for them, that's sort of decisive," said Hopkins. Texas, where Cruz is a senator, votes on Super Tuesday, March 1. Ohio, where John Kasich is governor, and Florida, Rubio's home state, vote on March 15. Trump leads in the polls in every contest but Texas, where Cruz has the edge. The storyline emerging in recent days has been that defeating Trump requires the race to be whittled down to two, with the establishment appearing to back Rubio as the party's chosen fighter. The prevailing wisdom is that the anti-Trump vote will coalesce around whomever is left as his opponent. This may not actually happen. "That assumes that all of the people who get out, that their voters are going to vote for Rubio, and if you look at the data, the data do not support that," he said. "It's storyline of a Republican establishment that is desperate to not have him be the nominee." Another question is whether or not Trump actually means the things he says -- a concern voiced by numerous Republicans since Trump threw his hat into the ring -- or is simply a public relations mastermind who has figured out that free media will continue to propel his campaign forward. "Whatever he is doing, we haven't really seen anything like this since Andrew Jackson ran for president in the 1820s," he said. Now three-for-four in early state voting and heading toward Super Tuesday with a commanding lead in the polls, Donald Trump is riding a wave of momentum that appears to be unstoppable. No one at the top seems to be in control of the Republican presidential race -- not the establishment, not the candidates, and perhaps not even Trump himself. Consumers should be wary when old debt resurfaces, whether a notice appears in your mailbox from a debt collector or one shows up on your doorstep. That''s because there's a good chance this accusation of some liability you owe could turn out to be a scam. Debt collectors who appear at your home or your workplace are an extremely rare occurrence, and ensuring the person is not a fraudster should be a consumers first priority. First Steps Old debt that was already settled with the creditor or another debt collector, discharged in a bankruptcy, debt that is past the statute of limitations, debt that does not appear on your credit report or ones that you never owed due to identity theft, can come back to haunt consumers, said Amy Hebert, a consumer education specialist for the Federal Trade Commission, the federal consumer fraud protection agency, in a blog post. When a collector revives the debt, start by checking that the debt is real. If the debt does not sound familiar, it is likely a fake debt collector is calling. Beware of your rights and obtain a copy of your free credit report at www.annualcreditreport.com to check out if the debt is listed. Consumer Rights Consumers are federally protected by law when faced with debt collectors such as asking the collector to send a written validation notice with information including the amount owed and the creditors name, Hebert said. Scammers have posed as debt collectors in the past, so verify the debt by asking for written documentation. By law, the debt collector has to send you this notice within five days of contacting you, she said. Since there is a statute of limitations on debt, bad debt should fall off credit reports within seven years of the date of the original delinquency, said Jim Triggs, a senior vice president of counseling and support of Money Management International , a Sugar Land, Texas-based non-profit debt counseling organization. While there is a federal statute of limitations on debt, it does not prevent debt collectors from trying to obtain money from a person, because "it's not illegal to attempt to collect on old debt, Triggs said. Ignoring a lawsuit from a debt collector is never a good idea, said Hebert. Responding personally or through an attorney by the date listed in the court document is the only way for consumers to preserve their rights, she said. Although it is rare, one could even be sued over old debt, Triggs said. If that was to happen, the statute of limitations regarding the debt can be raised to attempt to avoid judgment against you. Resetting the Debt Clock If it has been seven years since the unpaid debt occurred, do not make any promises or start making payments on the bill, Hebert said. The debt collector could opt to sue you for the entire amount of the bill, along with interest and fees. If a debt collector threatens, harasses or intimidates you into paying a zombie debt thats illegal, she said. Report it to the FTC and your state Attorney Generals office. Your old debt that you thought was dead can be sold to debt buyers or placed at different collection agencies, Triggs said. While it is unusual for a debt collector to come to your house or office, you have the right to send the creditor a certified letter asking that the person or agency only communicate with you regarding the debt via mail. Most legitimate creditors or collection agencies will abide by this request, Triggs said. It will not cease collection activity or the possibility of a lawsuit, but it may keep them from making unplanned visits. Bruce McClary, spokesman for the National Foundation for Credit Counseling, a Washington, D.C.-based non-profit organization, said that he's even seen a local sheriff serve warrants for unpaid debt. The debtor was given a court date and the option to contact the collection agency before the hearing. If there was no resolution by the time of the court date, consumers were able to plead their case before the judge, he said. If the judge decided in favor of the plaintiff, a judgment was issued for the amount owed, plus court fees and a nominal interest charge. Never during my time handling these matters was a person arrested or detained for the debt they owed. One exception occurs when a company is attempting to repossess property such as your car, said Mark Parsells, CEO of Global Debt Registry, a Wilmington, Del.-based debt clearinghouse for consumers and collectors. As long as the repossession is consistent with federal and state law, these protections do not apply, he said. Federal Student Loans Take Priority Student loan borrowers who are in a quandary because they can not make the minimum payments should ensure that paying their federal student loans is the first priority. The consequence of not paying your federal student loans after nine months is grim, because both your wages and taxes can be garnished and your credit score will drop several hundred points immediately. Both private and government-backed student loans are not included if consumers file for bankruptcy with few exceptions. Knowing when you have to call the loan guarantor to discuss options is crucial because government-backed student loan guarantors wont work with you after its been nine months. Last December, the government added a new income-based repayment option called REPAYE, which allows qualified borrowers to cap their student loan payments at 10% of their monthly discretionary income, a decline of the previous 15% threshold. In addition to the monthly payment cap, this new plan will forgive remaining student loan debt after 20 years for undergraduate studies and 25 years for graduate study if borrowers are enrolled in the REPAYE program. Once it has been nine months, consumers have defaulted. Even if you believe you have exhausted all of your options, work out a plan with your lender before the situation becomes this dire. Once you reach this level, you are not eligible for deferment, forbearance or repayment plans, said Triggs. Even worse, the entire unpaid balance of your loan and any interest is immediately due and payable. The consequences of a default can be severe because both your federal and state income taxes may be withheld, he said. This means that the IRS can take your federal and state tax refund to collect any of your defaulted student loan debt, Triggs said. Unlike private student loans, federal loan lenders can move through the process of garnishing your wages quickly. Since they do not have to go court and wait for a judge to approve garnishing your wages, once they sue you, these lenders can go straight for your paycheck, McClary said. NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- General Motors Co. (GM) stock is down 3.96% to $28.22 in afternoon trading on Wednesday after Credit Suisse analysts suggested U.S. auto volumes have peaked, threating automakers' earnings in the "most critical market." Incentives and inventories have gained since the 2015 third quarter, while credit quality remains weak, Credit Suisse analysts wrote in a note this morning. The firm does prefer the "outperform"-rated GM over Ford Motor Co. (F), which was downgraded to "underperform" from "neutral." "We favor GM due to continued self-help costs savings, a favorable product cycle in '16/'17, very favorable inventory position in U.S., and a potential trough earnings scenario that should be less severe vs. F," analysts noted. Morgan Stanley analysts, however, do not agree. The firm resumed coverage of GM's stock with an "underweight" rating because the economic recession could eliminate the company's profits, The Fly reports. "This is so out of sync with what I'm seeing," TheStreet's Jim Cramer said about Morgan Stanley's move on CNBC's Squawk on the Street this morning. "This thing was so negative." Separately, GM has a "buy" rating and a letter grade of B- at TheStreet Ratings because of the company's earnings per share, net income and revenue growth, notable return on equity, and attractive valuation levels. You can view the full analysis from the report here: GM TheStreet Ratings objectively rated this stock according to its "risk-adjusted" total return prospect over a 12-month investment horizon. Not based on the news in any given day, the rating may differ from Jim Cramer's view or that of this articles's author. GM data by YCharts Porn actress Ekaterina Makarova, who Ruslan has won, says that 16 was a good age to be independent. (Photo: Twitter) One schoolboy in Russia couldnt believe his luck when he won a prize in an online competition a month to live with a top porn star. Naturally, the news has not only garnered controversy in the country but has also made his mother furious. Ruslan Schedrin won a month's stay with a porn star after winning an online competition. (Photo: YouTube) 16-year-old Ruslan Schedrin got lucky after he became the 100,000th visitor to a new website selling virtual arms for computer games, according to the Daily Mail. Porn actress Ekaterina Makarova, who Ruslan has won, says that 16 was a good age to be independent and was hoping that they both would go somewhere abroad for the holiday prize. She has seen his photographs and admits to liking him. The hormonal teenager has been quoted saying that Makarova has good sizes and that he is boiling inside. However, his family is concerned that this prize will distract him from his exams and studies. Relying on "Big Data" to understand customer demands can only take a retailer or brand so far, said Martin Lindstrom, author of "Small Data." In order to find the next big breakthrough, marketers need to go small. "Big Data is all about the correlation, while Small Data focuses on causation, or the reason behind a specific observation," said Lindstrom, whose previous books include "Buyology" and "BRANDsense." Lindstrom defines Small Data as the seemingly insignificant behavioral observations that consumers make on a daily basis, but can point companies to huge insights about human desires and unmet needs. Lindstrom said a good example of Small Data changing the trajectory of a company was LEGO's decision to revert back to smaller bricks after studying the habits of an 11-year old German boy. As a result, the company saw its sales surge and the company became the largest toy manufacturer in the world. "That taught LEGO that if you put the kids in the driver's seat time is not of the essence," said Lindstrom, adding that companies can be "blinded by Big Data," which is why Small Data has to come first. Lindstrom said a quick look into a person's refrigerator tells marketers a lot about the choices that consumer makes. For example, if somebody puts their Coca Cola (COKE) below the salad, it shows that they are guilty about the purchase. He said brands should speak to this type of shopper differently because this type of purchase is guilt-based. He said Wal-Mart (WMT) is the largest user of Big Data in the world, but they have become addicted to the data. "They want to get closer to the community, but they do not understand the heartbeat of the community," said Lindstrom, adding that this type of conundrum can be solved with Small Data. "They are trying to run their consumers on a remote control and because it works they are just changing the batteries," said Lindstrom. "And that's the same case with Macy's (M) ." Facebook (FB) has finally upped its "reaction" choices for users, allowing them do just more than "like" their friends' pictures or statuses. Although the oft-talked about dislike button isn't making an appearance, the company did introduce five new reactions in addition to the "like" button, including: "love," "haha," "sad" and "angry." Users have been requesting new options from Facebook for quite some time. But management likely wanted to get its options right the first time, thinking of all the possible outcomes -- such as a dislike button -- could have on the platform and its users. The expansion of reactions should be helpful. For instance, many users may not want to "like" something that is sad, but don't feel comfortable enough to comment either. Now, they can use the "sad" reaction instead. Some users might be concerned about the bombardment of buttons they'll have to see. But that's actually not the case. Facebook will still only display the "like" button. Uses can push it to simply "like" something, or hold it down to see their additional options. Facebook closed at $106.88 on Wednesday, up 1.4%. Ever heard of one of Google's Fiber cities? Roughly six years ago, the company -- now called Alphabet (GOOGL) -- launched Google Fiber, "with the goal of making the web better and faster for everyone." The company started in Kansas City, and has added Atlanta and Austin and Provo, Utah. Upcoming cities include Salt Lake City, Charlotte, Nashville, San Antonio and San Francisco, among others. Google will look to hook into existing fiber networks in some cases, which would allow it to provide its services in apartments and condos more quickly. Part of the goal -- aside form just making faster Internet -- is to get residents online for the first time, for free. The company is doing this by connecting certain public housing properties. The tech giant has also addressed other big-name cities and potential sites, including: Chicago, Tampa Bay, San Diego, Los Angeles, Portland, Oklahoma City and Louisville. Shares of Alphabet closed at $720.90 on Wednesday, up 0.5%. 500 miles. That's how far Tesla Motors (TSLA) is willing to tow your Tesla vehicle for service-related issues that fall within the Roadside warranty. Previously, the automaker would only tow vehicles 50 miles, so the ten-fold increase is a big change. Although Tesla said in an email that 93% of owners "are within the 50-mile tow radius to the nearest Tesla Service Center," the company is looking to expand its efforts in order to better serve customers. Of course, as Tesla continues expanding, even more customers will likely fall within the 50-mile radius. But the added cushion certainly is nice. In any light, it was a good move for Tesla, especially considering less than 10% of its current customers are outside of the towing bubble. Good press, without likely having to pony up much in the event of a long-haul tow should be viewed as a win - albeit small - for the automaker. Shares of Tesla closed at $179 on Wednesday, up 1%. Investors who thought the S&P 500's gain of 0.44% was impressive after falling more than 1.5% in early trading clearly don't own a piece of Mobileye (MBLY) . Shares of the camera-based driver assistance company plunged more than 10% early Wednesday after the company reported earnings. Despite topping both earnings per share and revenue expectations, the company's full-year guidance for 2016 was blamed for the shellacking. Mobileye expects sales of $336 million to $340 million for the year, vs. analysts' expectations of $344.5 million, and EPS expectations of 68 cents to 69 cents versus EPS estimates of 70 cents. Apparently, investors either shrugged off the news, or decided that 40% year-over-year sales growth wasn't too shabby. After being down double-digit percentages, the stock rallied on the day. Shares closed at $29.27, up 1.8%. This article is commentary by an independent contributor. At the time of publication, the author held no positions in the stocks mentioned. 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. The adage East meets West has never been more true of late and this weekend, the Japanese Consulate, in association with ABK-AOTS Dosokai, Chennai, will be hosting their annual cultural festival. But, this year is going to be like never before! Five Japanese dancers, experts in their field, will be sharing the stage for an Indian classical performance titled Night of Jasmine featuring the dance forms of Kathak, Odissi, Kuchipudi, Bharatanatyam and Mohiniyattam. Its the first time we have planned such an event Japanese artists who have learnt Indian classical dance for years, together on one stage, says Junichi Fukao, researcher and advisor at the Japanese Consulate. The dancers who will be performing are Keiko Watanabe (Kuchipudi), Tomiko Daya (Bharatanatyam), Kimiko Yanadiga (Odissi), Masako Sato (Kathak) and Keiko Okano (Mohiniyattam). But, bringing together five international artistes was a daunting task, and all the credit goes to Keiko Watanabe, a familiar face in Chennai. The Kuchipudi exponent has learnt under many gurus like Sathyapriya Ramana and Sailaja, Uma Muralikrishna, and is currently learning under Padmavani and Jaikishore Mosalikanti. Keiko went on to establish her own dance school in Tokyo, dividing her time between India and her home-country. The name Night of Jasmine is because, years ago, when I started learning Kuchipudi and participated in kutcheris, my memories were filled with the scent of jasmine in the air! The flowers adorned everyones heads, and that thought stayed with me for years to come and now, I can express it, muses Keiko. Talking about how she brought the artistes together, she says Being a part of the Indian classical dance culture in Japan, I know all the dancers quite well. They are the top-ranking artists in the field in Japan, and we will be exploring the style, footwork and expression that make these classical dances what they are. The festival, which is happening between February 26 and 28 will also host Ikebana and Hina doll exhibitions along with Kendo demonstrations and more. But Night of Jasmine has us all excited, and were already crossing off the dates on our calendar! Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup. remaining of Thank you for reading! On your next view you will be asked to log in to your subscriber account or create an account and subscribepurchase a subscription to continue reading. In this Feb. 14, 2011 file photo, Calif. State Sen. Leland Yee,, D-San Francisco, attends a news conference to oppose a bill to ban the sale of shark fin soup, in San Francisco's Chinatown. A federal judge sentenced former California state senator Leland Yee on Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016, to five years in prison after he acknowledged accepting thousands of dollars in bribes and discussing helping an undercover FBI agent buy automatic weapons from the Philippines. (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma, File) In this Sept. 25, 2015 file photo, former Texas Gov. Rick Perry speaks at an event in Washington. On Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016, Texas' highest criminal court tossed the second and final felony charge against Perry, likely ending a case the Republican says helped sink his short-lived 2016 presidential bid. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, File) Damaged RVs sit at Sugar Hill RV Park following a storm in Convent, La., Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. Tornadoes and severe weather ripped through the Gulf Coast on Tuesday, mangling trailers at an RV park and ripping off roofs from buildings in Louisiana and Mississippi, authorities said. (AP Photo/Max Becherer) Super model and former Miss New Zealand Sarah Harris Louise, and ace photographer Ramachandran, the first Indian photographer who shot for Playboy Magazine were here in Chennai for their upcoming lingerie line campaign. The gorgeous lady, who has been featured on top magazine covers like Playboy, FHM and Maxim, speaks to DC about how she looks at nudity, why NZ shares a similar culture to Indians, and being open to work in a film here! Different countries have different opinions about nudity. Personally, I have no issues. I look at it as an art, Sarah asserts. But it is considered taboo in India and Ramachandran on his part responds, The Kamasutra originated from India and if you look at most of the temples, you find such sculptures! So it is art, no? We quiz Sarah if she is open to porn films and pat she shoots back, No no, never! Porn films are totally different. New Zealand and India share a similar culture; we are very family-oriented and friendly in nature. My mom is very particular that every time around Christmas, she expects all our family members to be back home in Wellington! When we inform her about Amy Jackson, a model from Liverpool who made it big in Kollywood, Sarah responds that shed look forward to such an opportunity, if it came calling After I go back home, I am going to watch Indian movies and try to get the feel of it. I am open to working in a project here! Being part of an industry, which is known for its party culture, Sarah says she is averse to some vices. I am a non-smoker and very particular about my health, especially my teeth. I am a social drinker though when I came back to my hotel here, the hospitable staff asked me if Id care for a drink but I replied saying I said needed some rest and want to hit the bed! (laughs) I find the people of Chennai very warm and courteous, Sarah quips, and quickly adds, But the weather is too hot and Im trying to get used to it since Im here for the next few weeks. I also find the food quite spicy. People were talking about a fluffy rice pan cake (idlis!) and sambar which is said to be tasty and not spicy. I want to try that out though! Two Singaporean Photographers Shortlisted For Worlds Biggest Photography Competition The 2016 Sony World Photography Awards Shortlisted Images taken by Jonathan Tan (left) and Kajan Madrasmail (right), 2016 Sony World Photography Awards Record number of entries 230,103 images from 186 countries Entries from Singapore up over 120% Overall winners to be revealed on 21 April 2016 Images available for publication at press.worldphoto.org (SINGAPORE, 24 February 2016) Two Singaporean photographers are today named on the shortlist of the worlds biggest photography competition, the Sony World Photography Awards one in the awards Professional competition with a stunning series of work investigating an architectural quirk unique to Singaporean housing, and one in the Open competition. Entries to the awards from Singapore were up over 120% from 2015 and the photographers were selected from a record-breaking 230,103 entries from 186 countries to secure their place on the shortlist. The total number of entries received by the Sony World Photography Awards since its launch in 2007 has now surpassed 1 million images, reinforcing the awards position as one of the most respected and influential photography competitions in the world. Selected by an expert panel of judges (full list here ) the shortlisted photographers are: Jonathan Tan , Professional Architecture category Kajan Madrasmail, Open Travel category Both Tan and Madrasmail are now competing to win their category and the LIris dOr Photographer of the Year and Open Photographer of the Year titles plus a share of the $30,000 (USD) grand prize. All winners will also receive the latest digital imaging equipment from Sony. The winners will be announced at the Sony World Photography Awards Gala Ceremony in London on 21 April 2016. In addition, both photographers will also have their works shown in London as part of the 2016 Sony World Photography Awards exhibition in April and May. Their works will also be published in the 2016 edition of the Sony World Photography Awards book. The exhibition at Somerset House will also include the first major European exhibition of the artistic duo and fine art photographers, RongRong & inri, recipients of the Outstanding Contribution to Photography prize at the awards. RongRong (China) & inri (Japan) have shaped contemporary photography in Asia and are being recognised for both their careers as artists, as well as their significant impact on Asian photography. The exhibition will include new works from their critically acclaimed series Tsumari Story. Jonathan Tan Your House Downstairs Professional Architecture category Tan is a Senior Account Executive for the award-winning marketing agency DDB Group Singapore, and a photography enthusiast with a particular interest in street photography. His shortlisted series Your House Downstairs was shot entirely on a smartphone Tan believes that photography isnt about the equipment, but about observing and capturing the fleeting sights around us. In this series, Tan captured the architectural wall features of the void decks of Housing Development Board flats the homes of more than 80% of Singaporeans. This hole-in-the-wall feature comes in various shapes and bright pops of colours which jazzes up the void decks, which are also common spaces for Singaporeans to gather. While they are more commonly found in older flats, these holes are recognisable by Singaporeans as part of Singapores landscape and heritage. This series aims to compile these holes that are found in what Singaporeans would colloquially describe as, your house downstairs. Talking about being shortlisted, Tan commented: As a casual photography hobbyist, I am truly honoured to be shortlisted for such a prestigious competition. I am glad that my photos depicting a part of Singapores architectural heritage are showcased on an international platform. Kajan Madrasmail Spin Fun Open Smile category Madrasmail is a self-taught photographer based in Singapore who has captured beautiful images across the Asia-Pacific; from India to Malaysia, and from Sri Lanka to Thailand. His shortlisted image Spin fun was taken during a regular walk at the playground with his seven year old son, who loves to spin around. With a camera hanging around his neck, Madrasmail was able to capture the panning shot of his spinning son smiling. Madrasmail said, I am very happy to be shortlisted in the 2016 Sony World Photography Awards Open Competition as it is the most precious photography contest in the world. The Sony World Photography Awards rewards and recognises the worlds best contemporary photography. Attracting photographers of all abilities, the awards incorporate four competing categories: Professional; Open; Youth and Student. More information about the awards can be found at www.worldphoto.org Speaking about all the photographers who have been shortlisted this year, Scott Gray, CEO of the World Photography Organisation and organiser of the awards said, We are extremely pleased with our jurors choices this year. Despite the increase in the number of photographers, and the amount of imagery that required judging, this year above all others we have witnessed a wealth of powerful imagery in both traditionally strong social documentary categories, as well as the art and conceptual work. It is wonderful for the medium that it can offer such rich diversity. Images from the shortlist are available for download at press.worldphoto.org Please hashtag #SWPA and tag @WorldPhotoOrg when using the images on social media For the LATEST tech updates, FOLLOW us on our Twitter LIKE us on our FaceBook SUBSCRIBE to us on our YouTube Channel! Hospital acquires new surgical robotics technology Burke Health announced the purchase of new robotics technology for use during spine surgical procedures last week. The Globus ExcelsiusGPS is a revolutionary robotic navigation platform system designed to be intuitive and streamline the surgical workflow. Real-time tracking of instruments and implants, along with audible, visual and tactile feedback, enables... County center wins senior trike Local seniors now have access to an adult tricycle. Director Kimberly Mathis attended the Move Augusta Senior Expo and Bike Rodeo sponsored by Augusta Urban Ministries October 8. The event, held at The Salvation Army Kroc Center, was aimed at people over 50 years old, and included resources and health... 4-H Food Challenge Team takes State For the first time, Burke County 4-H decided to put together a junior food challenge team this summer. Teams are compromised of 2-4 students in the 6th-8th grades. This competition is very competitive and teams must advance to state after the district competition. Our team started practicing weekly in July... County rehashes trash problem I am bringing up the trash again, Commissioner Evans Martin said during the October 11 meeting. We have to do something about the trash. Martin asked that the record show that he wants to do something about the countys dumpster sites. He made a suggestion that eliminating 10 sites would... New Delhi: In a shocking incident, at least ten women passengers were allegedly pulled out of a train and raped in fields close to the national highway in Murthal and Haryana, according to a report in The Tribune. Though Jat protestors have been vandalizing in areas in an around Haryana and Murthal, the reports lay off possibilities of the episode being related to the ongoing Jat protest. The police have dismissed the episode, claiming that it never took place; however, eyewitnesses have conceded to the alleged incident. According to some witnesses, senior officers in an attempt at hiding the incident, requested the victims to refrain from reporting the brutal assault. As reported in the daily, a senior IPS official had tried to lay off the situation on grounds that it was just a rumour and it shouldnt be given undue attention. A witness, as quoted in the report, said, Three women were taken to Amrik a dhaba and united with their families in the presence of senior police officers. Despite the deplorable condition of the victims, the District officials who arrived there, instead of investigating the matter, persuaded the families to take the women home. Adding to the horror, these women were raped and left in the fields in a precarious condition. It was only after their male relatives found them in the field that they were taken care of and given required help. Few residents from Hassanpur and Kurad rushed to the spot and offered them blankets and clothes. When the eyewitnesses were further prodded to give information about the incident, they disagreed to do so, fearing that they would get into trouble as the senior police officials were not ready to investigate the episode. All too often its takes a tragedy to bring about change and this is exactly the case here, regarding the regulation in the IDF compelling soldiers to leave their weapons on base when returning home. This regulation was set into a place in 2005 in response to the theft of 95 military weapons in one year. Soldiers at times left weapons unattended in vehicles or in other locations and military commanders decided to compel soldiers to leave their weapons in base. In truth, many soldiers were pleased for when they take their weapons home, if lacking a proper lock, the soldier is required to carry the weapon every place his goes. There were exceptions, including officers and soldiers returning him from the line, meaning they were in the field and not on base and commanders did not wish to compel them to travel to their bases to give in their guns before returning home. Once the regulation was in place, weapons thefts dropped 50%. While one cannot know if IDF Sgt. Tuvia Yanai Weissman would be alive if he had his automatic weapon, it is certain that he might have been able to respond to the fatal attack. It was Weissman who tried to take out the terrorists before being killed but unfortunately, he was unarmed. Weissman was murdered by terrorists who first wounded another man while shopping in the Rami Levi supermarket in the Shar Binyamin shopping center a few kilometers from his home community of Maale Michmas in the Shomron. Since the attack it was learned the Weissman asked his platoon commander for permission to take his weapon home but permission was denied by the young lieutenant in line with regulations. It is now announced IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-General Gadi Eizenkott has amended the regulation and soldiers will be carrying their weapons home with them. Prior to leaving base they will receive instructions how to safeguard the weapons. The new regulation is expected to go into effect in the coming days. (YWN Israel Desk, Jerusalem) Health Minister Yaakov Litzman on Tuesday, 14 Adar-I, accompanied Education Minister Naftali Bennett on an official visit to Arad. Litzmans participation appears to be a response to reports Arad City Hall has been far from accommodating to the citys growing chareidi community. The growing Gerre Chassidic community in the city accuses the mayor of ignoring their needs and as a result there is a critical shortage of kindergartens and shuls. The two ministers were greeted in a dati leumi girls high school and then another school followed by a visit to a Gerrer talmid torah. They also visited a business employing 300 chareidi women from the city. In a joking tone Litzman told girls in the high school If you really do well in your studies, I promise you that you will not be a Member of Knesset. The best MK does not reach the level of a moderate student. Litzman added Studies are the most important and that which we learn when we are young stays with us forever. Now is the time to put all your efforts into school. Litzman then commented on his relationship with Bennett, adding A good school, Ministry of Education, an excellent minister so no need to say too much. Our personal relationship is excellent as well. We work together and I hope you will succeed. During their visit to the Gerre talmid torah the mayo joined them. Seated aside the mayor and Bennett, Litzman said I dont look for places to visit. One visit to a hospital is more important to me than everything. I have a difficult system stated Litzman in reference to the tensions in the city between the Gerre Chassidim and Mayor Ben-Chamu. Unfortunately, I have had to deal with this once or twice weekly. I am compelled to come here to put out fires. Litzman then stated how the mayor has ignored him a number of times regarding shuls in the city but next time around he will okay new ones as well as the existing one. Ben-Chamu responded You are the Health Minister, not Minister of Religious Services to which Litzman sated You will be passing it, you said you wanted to continuing by telling the mayor if he makes the land allocations, he will see to it that the caravans are provided to place on them, adding You have to do yours to solve the problem, the shortage of shuls. Litzman then called on the mayor to also authorize new kindergartens for there is a critical shortage. Bennett was full of praise, adding Gerre Chassidus has a unique pride, a chassidus that learns Torah, Kiddush Hashem, and does a great deal of chessed but remains very modest. Litzman is also a representative of the chassidus as Minister of Health for all the citizens of the State of Israel. He does them both simultaneously. (YWN Israel Desk, Jerusalem / Photo: via Media Resource Group) A U.N. panel on Monday approved a temporary ban on cargo shipments of rechargeable lithium batteries on passenger planes because they can create intense fires capable of destroying an aircraft. The decision by the Montreal-based International Civil Aviation Organizations top-level governing council isnt binding, but most countries follow the agencys standards. The ban is effective on April 1. This interim prohibition will continue to be in force as separate work continues through ICAO on a new lithium battery packaging performance standard, currently expected by 2018, said Olumuyiwa Benard Aliu, the ICAO councils president. Namrata Kolachalam, a U.S. Transportation Department spokeswoman, called the ban a necessary action to protect passengers, crews, and aircraft from the current risk to aviation safety. Lithium-ion batteries are used in a vast array of products from cellphones and laptops to some electric cars. About 5.4 billion lithium-ion cells were manufactured worldwide in 2014. A battery is made up of two or more cells. A majority of batteries are transported on cargo ships, but about 30 percent are shipped by air. Airlines flying to and from the U.S. that accept lithium battery shipments carry 26 million passengers a year, the Federal Aviation Administration estimates. The ban doesnt apply to batteries packaged inside equipment like a laptop with a battery inside, for example. PRBA The Rechargeable Battery Association, which opposed the ban, said in a statement that the industry is preparing to comply with the ban, but there may be significant disruption in the logistics supply chain, especially for batteries used in medical devices. Aviation authorities have long known that the batteries can self-ignite, creating fires that are hotter than 1,100 degrees. Thats near the melting point of aluminum, which is used in aircraft construction. Safety concerns increased after FAA tests showed gases emitted by overheated batteries can build up in cargo containers, leading to explosions capable of disabling aircraft fire suppression systems and allowing fires to rage unchecked. As a result of the tests, an organization representing aircraft manufacturers including the worlds two largest, Boeing and Airbus said last year that airliners arent designed to withstand lithium battery fires and that continuing to accept battery shipments is an unacceptable risk. More than other types of batteries, lithium-ion batteries are susceptible to short-circuit if they are damaged, exposed to extreme temperatures, overcharged, packed too close together or contain manufacturing defects. When they short-circuit, the batteries can experience uncontrolled temperature increases known as thermal runaway. That, in turn, can spread short-circuiting to nearby batteries until an entire shipment is overheating and emitting explosive gases. Its not unusual for tens of thousands of batteries to be shipped in a single cargo container. Since 2006, three cargo jets have been destroyed and four pilots killed by in-flight fires that accident investigators say were either started by batteries or made more severe by their proximity. The International Federation of Air Line Pilots Associations lobbied the ICAO council unsuccessfully to extend the ban to cargo carriers. This has been a long time coming, and is justified by the risk these batteries pose in transportation, said Mark Rogers of the Air Line Pilots Association in North America. We now call on ICAO to recognize that the same risk is present on cargo aircraft and to extend the prohibition to all aircraft, until safe methods of transport can be implemented. Besides the ban on shipments on passenger planes, the ICAO also approved a requirement that batteries shipped on cargo planes be no more than 30 percent charged, and imposed new limits on small packages of batteries. Dozens of airlines have already voluntarily stopped accepting battery shipments, but others oppose a ban. KLM, the royal Dutch airline, made a presentation to a lower-level ICAO panel arguing against a ban, according to an aviation official familiar with the presentation. KLM and Air France are owned by a Franco-Dutch holding company. Representatives from the Netherlands and France on the dangerous goods panel voted last fall against a ban. The official wasnt authorized to speak publicly and spoke on the condition that he not be named. KLM officials didnt respond to requests for comment. ICAOs decision frees the Transportation Department to begin work on regulations to impose a ban. A law passed by Congress in 2012 at the behest of industry prohibits the department from issuing any regulations regarding air shipments of lithium batteries that are more stringent than ICAO standards unless there is a crash that can be shown to have been started by batteries. Since most evidence in crashes is destroyed by fire, thats virtually impossible to do, critics of the provision say. Rep. John Mica, R-Fla., who authored the provision, has said that since batteries are an international industry there should be a single, international standard because it would be too confusing for shippers to follow multiple rules. (AP) According to the ISA, its agency along with Israel Police and the IDF arrested 3,100 suspects related to terror attacks in 2015, one-third will Hamas affiliation. The information was released on Tuesday, 14 Adar-I by the ISA (Israel Security Agency Shin Bet), showing 83% of the suspects live in PA (Palestinian Authority) areas of Yehuda and Shomron. Those arrests led to 1,933 criminal indictments. The facts show an upward trend when it comes to the involvement of Israeli Arab citizens in terror, but this trend is described as minor. Since the beginning of this ongoing wave of terror on erev Rosh Hashanah 5776, there has been a more visible Israeli Arab involvement including the attack in the Beersheva Central Bus Station in which two people were killed. This was carried out by an Israeli Bedouin. Another attack carried out by an Israeli Arab that made headlines was in Gan Shmuel Jct., in which four people were injured. Attacks that occur in so-called Green Line Israel appear to receive more international and local media coverage than attacks in areas of Yehuda and Shomron. The data also addresses Jewish terror, citing in 2015 there were 16 attacks perpetrated by Jews as was the case in 2014 however in 2015 the attacks became more serious. Leading that list was the arson attack in Duma in which three members of the Darawshe family were killed and another injured. There was also the abduction and heinous murder of 16-year-old Mohammed Abu-Khadir, who was doused with gasoline and set afire while alive. There was an increase in the number of people murdered in acts of terror in 2015 as compared to the previous year, 28 in 2015 including three members of security forces as compared to 20 in 2014. This is attributed to the ongoing terror that began erev Rosh Hashanah, for in October, November and December of 2015, twenty-four people HYD were killed as opposed to four in the nine months preceding October. Four of the twenty-eight killed were inside Green Line Israel, two in Beersheva and two in Tel Aviv. (YWN Israel Desk, Jerusalem) The Knesset Welfare Committee on Tuesday, 14 Adar-I discussed what is a common occurrence today, the release of photos and information pertaining to an emergency scene by emergency responders operating at the scene. The discussion was prompted by a Facebook posting by Assaf Passi, a spokesman for Yishuv Otniel, who expressed criticism over the fact that responders acted without permission and released the name of terror victim Mrs. Dafne Meir HYD before her husband was made aware she had been murdered. In his post he explains that as spokesman for the community, he relies on various sources for credible information, including the media reports on events in Yehuda and Shomron. Two minutes from the notification we were aware of the house and five minutes later I knew that Dafna had been murdered. At that moment I requested from other WhatsApp groups that include members of the media and news websites not to release any information pertaining the victim before receiving the okay. He explains that unfortunately, the information was released by different EMS organizations that confirmed they did so without prior approval and this is not the first incident. Passi then speaks of the erev Shabbos terror attack in which Rabbi Yaakov HYD and his son Yaakov Litman HYD were murdered. He explains he was among the first on the scene with the IDF and after the victims were removed, one ambulance remained, the ambulance that brought the photographer. His job was to type the information to various WhatsApp groups and to interview people on the scene. Here too I had to fight to prevent leaking names of the victims and the horrific photos of the site he adds. One participant in the committee discussion was MK Shuli Muallem, a bereaved wife, explaining how she learned her husband Lt.-Colonel Moshe Muallem, 31, was killed in the chopper disaster on live broadcast. She calls for dismissing EMS personnel and other responders who release information and photos from a scene without authorization. The session was initiated by MK Betzalel Smotrich, who explained that today, in the era of WhatsApp, Twitter, and Facebook, the job of EMS personnel remains the same; to save lives and not to photograph. Smotrich insists that as a society certain lines must not be crossed and the EMS organizations must make sure patient privacy is maintained at all times. The chopper disaster: The helicopter disaster occurred on 4 February 1997. 73 IDF soldiers and officers were killed when two Yassur 2000 helicopters collided over Shar Yashuv in northern Israel. The helicopters were supposed to cross the border into Israels security zone in southern Lebanon, but were hovering while waiting for official clearance to go. (YWN Israel Desk, Jerusalem) One of four men accused of raising money for a former al-Qaida leader can remain free on bond after it turned out a GPS glitch made it look like he had violated terms of his release, a federal judge in Ohio said Tuesday. Federal prosecutors wanted Sultane Room Salim sent back to prison after saying it appeared he had briefly left a Columbus mosque during prayer services in January while he was out on bond. U.S. marshals took Salim into custody in early February. But U.S. District Judge Jack Zouhary noted that an official with the company that provided the GPS device concluded it had malfunctioned and there was no evidence Salim left the mosque. Court officials in charge of monitoring Salim said he also stayed in the mosques parking lot for close to 20 minutes another time in January. But the judge said that incident was a minor violation and did not warrant returning Salim to prison. Federal prosecutors did not object to the judges decision to drop their request to revoke Salims bond. His attorney, Cherrefe Kadri, said she was frustrated that it took two weeks to figure out that the device had a glitch that put Salim back in jail. She said it became obvious something was wrong when the GPS showed him to be in several places at once and moving in directions and speeds that arent possible. Salim was released from prison in November on a $500,000 property bond. Another judge ordered him to live with his wife and mother in the Cambridge area of eastern Ohio while awaiting trial. His attorneys have denied his involvement in what prosecutors say was an effort to raise money for al-Qaida leader Anwar al-Awlaki. U.S. officials considered al-Awlaki, who was killed by an unmanned U.S. drone in Yemen in 2011, to be an inspirational leader of al-Qaida, and linked him to the planning and execution of several attacks targeting American and Western interests, including the 2009 Christmas Day bombing attempt on a Detroit-bound airliner. The three other suspects accused of raising money for al-Awlaki remain in jail, including Salims brother. (AP) Jayalalithaa had written to her Andhra Pradesh counterpart Chandrababu Naidu, seeking legal assistance for Tamil prisoners held in connection with red sanders smuggling, considering their indigence. (Photo: PTI) Chennai: An Andhra Pradesh court on Wednesday acquitted 288 Tamils in cases related to murder of two forest officials and red sander smuggling. "Third Additional District and Sessions Court, Tirupati has acquitted 288 innocent Tamils today due to the legal efforts taken by Chief Minister Jayalalithaa," Tamil Nadu government said in a release here. A legal team headed by Tamil Nadu government advocates Mohammed Riyaz and Arul and Tirupathi-based lawyers represented the Tamils in the court and 20 hearings were held since November 3, 2015 in the cases, the government said. The accused were charged for the 2013 twin murder of Andhra Pradesh forest officials in Seshachalam forests and red sanders smuggling, the government said. PMK chief Ramadoss welcomed the release of the prisoners and alleged that they had undergone inexplicable torture at the hands of police in Andhra Pradesh and dubbed the cases against them as foisted and false. Last year, Jayalalithaa had written to her Andhra Pradesh counterpart Chandrababu Naidu, seeking legal assistance for Tamil prisoners held in connection with red sanders smuggling, considering their indigence. She had also sought legal steps for bail to prisoners who were in various jails for more than 90 days without chargesheets being filed against them. A total of 312 petitions seeking free legal assistance were procured from relatives of those in prison by district collectors and it was sent to Andhra Pradesh Legal Services Authority by its counterpart here on October 29, 2015. Subsequently, a legal team headed by two Tamil Nadu government advocates were sent to Andhra Pradesh for securing bail to those facing charges related to red sanders smuggling. An amount of Rs eight lakh was allotted by the government as advance for legal expenditure. As many as 172 Tamil prisoners received bail last year. SUMMARY: Earlier reports, video and photos in the extended article. A lone Arab terrorist, 27, from a PA (Palestinian Authority) area in the Hebron district approached Gush Etzion Junction shortly after noon. He headed to the hitchhiking post facing southbound, in the direction of Kiryat Arba and Hebron. He attempted to stab a victim. It is unclear if he did so but a soldier or a civilian nearby fired at him, neutralizing him but also hitting an innocent person. The man in his 20s who was hit by gunfire was transported to the trauma unit of Shaar Zedek Medical Center in Jerusalem is in critical condition, arriving in traumatic cardiac arrest. It is reported he was hit by the gunfire directed at the terrorist. The terrorist was taken to a hospital in moderate condition from gunfire. END of SUMMARY [VIDEO & PHOTOS IN EXTENDED ARTICLE] 12:22: First reports of a terrorist attack at Gush Etzion Junction. At present it appears one person has been stabbed and another shot, possibly the terrorist. additional information to follow. 12:28: Hatzalah Yosh is reporting the victim is in very serious condition and unconscious. Police are working to clear area roadways to expedite transport to a Jerusalem trauma center. The Hatzalah Yosh report adds the victim was stabbed in the upper body. The terrorist was shot and appears to be in moderate condition. It appears the attack occurred at the hitchhiking post heading south, towards Kiryat Arba and Hebron. A civilian appears to have shot and neutralized the terrorist, not a soldier or policeman. 12:39: According to the ID card found on the terrorist, he was born in 1989 and is a PA resident of Hebron. 12:45: According to the ID card found on the terrorist, he was born in 1989 and is a PA resident of Hebron. Authorities cannot make an absolute determination at this time but the victim may have been hit by gunfire directed at the terrorist as well. This information will follow after surgeons in the trauma center begin working on the victim, whose condition is now listed as critical. 12:53: Shaare Zedek Hospital: The victim has arrived in the trauma center as CPR is being performed. (YWN Israel Desk, Jerusalem/Photos: Gush Fire & Rescue via Media Resource Group & MDA Spokesman) Many Verizon Wireless customers in the New York City area had data service outages on their phones, Wednesday morning. The attached image from downdetector.com shows the area that was affected. WABC says they spoke with a Verizon spokesperson which gave the following statement: We started experiencing intermittent data outages a little after 7:30 this morning in Midtown and Upper Manhattan, the Bronx, Westchester, Rockland and Putnam Counties. Service began restoring at 9am and we are back to normal service levels. A hardware failure is suspected as the culprit. Were doing a full investigation. (Chaim Shapiro YWN) On February 18, 2016, Mrs. Leah Steinberg, Director of Project LEARN, the Special Education Affairs Division of Agudath Israel of America, participated in an exclusive discussion group at the White House on the potential for growth in disability awareness and inclusion. What transpired was a spirited conversation on the Jewish communitys need to include their disabled members, and on areas that need improvement. Mrs. Steinberg said, Im proud that I could represent Agudath Israels Project LEARN at the White House, and I am hopeful that this opened the door for more top level dialogues that will translate into true inclusiveness in every area of our community. In the conversation, the group agreed that it should become natural for people with disabilities to be accommodated within the community; it should not be seen as a chesed project, but as a matter of course. In recent years, our community has taken that message to heart. While there is still room for improvement, attending this event made me proud of the strides taken for the disabled in the Orthodox Jewish community. (Judith Dinowitz YWN World Headquarters NYC) According to a recently released report by the Liba (Core) Center, an organization seeking to strengthen the Jewish character of the State of Israel, the Reform Movement and its affiliates have filed over two dozen petitions in the past five years challenging the chareidi way of life. Of late, pressure and political lobbying have led to a number of successes, including (1) the allocation of an egalitarian prayer area near the Kosel, (2) moving the IDF consciousness unit from the IDF Rabbinate to the Manpower Branch, (3) and the High Court decision compelling the Beersheva Religious Council to permit a Reform convert to toivel in front of a Reform beis din. According to the report, at least 25 petitions were filed in various courts with many addressing efforts to change the character of education in the chareidi community as well as changing the religion and state status quo. This the center documents the constant effort to change reality and the organizations working against the chareidim are trying to get involved in every aspect of life. The report adds in some cases the petitions were turned down by the courts and in others, a court decision was circumvented by Knesset legislation. One petition, filed about two months ago by Hiddush and the Israel Religious Action Center sought to eliminate funding for daycare centers, funding that was tailored for the chareidi tzibur. That resulted in a court order to halt funding pending the states response in the case. Three years ago, the Israel Movement for Reform and Progressive Judaism filed to compel introducing the scholastic achievement tests given in public schools into chareidi schools. Eventually, the petition was canceled and then Education Minister Shai Piron eliminated the tests nationwide. There have also been petitions seeking to compel the state to recognize civil marriage as a solution to the growing number of people categorized being without any religion who wish to marry. This petition was also pulled after the High Court explained the place for this is the Knesset, where appropriate legislation must be passed. Just a few weeks ago the IRAC (Israel Religious Action Center) filed a petition seeking defined criteria for national service programs in what appeared to be an effort to eliminate the possibility of one serving in EFRAT (Committee for the Rescue of Israels Babies) for one sheirut leumi service. This too was withdrawn as the matter was addressed in Knesset. Four years ago there were two petitions against Tzfat Chief Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu Shlita in addition to demand to place him on trial for racist statements when he spoke out against selling or renting homes in the city to Arabs. The petitions were rejected but an investigation was launched and eventually, the attorney general ordered the closure of the case against the rabbi. There were petitions to change the procedure for the appointment of a director-general of the nations rabbinical courts, demanding the appointment of a woman to the post. This two was not accepted. Other petitions and legal challenges included the former Tal Law, which permitted chareidim to continue learning and not serve in the IDF for seven years, to permit non-Orthodox converts to toivel in municipal mikvaos, to recognize Reform converts to permit them to receive Israeli citizenship under the Law of Return, to receive state funding from the Ministry of Education for schools and institutions, and more. The center adds that based on its wealth of experience, based on the many petitions filed that have been studied in-depth, the moment the government adopts a position, the High Court would generally back down and therefore, the center believes the chareidi MKs are incorrect and the High Court would not have ruled to permit the Reform mixed prayers at the Kosel as they fear. They explain that Prof. Aviad HaCohen, an expert, is also of this opinion especially if the government decided to accept the position the rav in charge, Kosel Rav Rabbi Shmuel Rabinowitz, is the person who decides the character of the holy site. Hence the statements by chareidi MKs who were passive regarding the egalitarian prayer area are not based in reality the center feels and it could have been prevented without High Court interference. The center points out that despite recent victories by the Reform Movement and its affiliate groups, the High Court by and large did not accept most of their petitions, adding credibility to their position. Center officials told Kol Chai Radio that they regularly consult with dozens of rabbonim including gedolei yisrael shlita. (YWN Israel Desk, Jerusalem) New Delhi: Vexed by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA Gyandev Ahuja's bizarre statement claiming that the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) was a hub for sex and drugs, party president Amit Shah has summoned Ahuja. The BJP MLA from Ramgarh in Rajasthan's Alwar district had claimed that those studying in JNU are involved in activities including "sex and drugs" among others. Listing out the "illicit" activities been conducted at JNU, Ahuja claimed, "More than 10,000 butts of cigarettes and 4,000 pieces of beedis are found. 50,000 big and small pieces of bones are found. 2,000 wrappers of chips and namkeen are found, and so are 3,000 used condoms. They commit misdeeds with our sisters and daughters there. And 500 used contraceptive injections are also found." He also alleged that "students are mostly found taking drugs after 8pm inside the campus. Those studying in JNU are not children, but parents of two children. They indulge in peace protests in the mornings and during the nights, they perform obscene dances," he added. The comments made the BJP trend on social media with the hashtag #BJPCountsCondoms. The BJP MLA's comments came during a march on Monday in Alwar against JNU students. The bishops of the Anglican Church of Southern Africa have issued this statement. Also available here. The Prayer Book affirms that marriage by divine institution is a lifelong and exclusive union partnership between one man and one woman; therefore the draft guidelines affirm for now that partnership between two persons of the same sex cannot be regarded as a marriage accordingly our clergy are not permitted to bless such unions nor are they permitted to enter into such unions while they remain in licensed ministry The bishops again discussed and worked over their draft Pastoral Guidelines in response to Civil Unions within the wider contexts of Marriage and Human Sexuality in readiness for decision at Provincial Synod. These reaffirm our assurance that all baptised, believing and faithful persons, regardless of sexual orientation, are full members of the Body of Christ. However, they they do not change our current policy, which is that the Province cannot advise the legitimising or blessing of same sex unions nor ordaining those involved in same gender unions (Resolution 1:10 of the Lambeth Conference of 1998). Additionally the primate of this province, Archbishop Thabo Makgoba of Cape Town has published this pastoral letter. Also available here. We have issued a joint statement from the Synod, but I want to report to you in more detail to give you the full context of one of the more challenging matters we discussed. One of the key tasks before us was to fulfil the mandate given to us by Provincial Standing Committee and to finalise pastoral guidelines for couples in South Africa who are in same-sex civil unions. Against the backdrop of the international debate on this issue in the worldwide Anglican Communion, our discussions were frank, open and robust. We sensitively considered our role as the Anglican Church in Southern Africa within the broader family of the Communion, cognisant of the divergent strands of theological thinking within the Province of Southern Africa and of the different pastoral challenges that the different dioceses and the different countries of our Province are facing. The document we have agreed upon will go to Provincial Synod for adoption in September, and will be published a few months ahead of Synod in the First Agenda Book. I believe that its adoption by Provincial Synod would be an important first step in signalling to the LGBT community that we in the Anglican Church of Southern Africa, through our top deliberative and legislative body, see them as welcome members of our body as sisters and brothers in Christ. In the words of the guidelines: We reaffirm our assurance to them that they are loved by God and that all baptised, believing and faithful persons, regardless of sexual orientation, are full members of the Body of Christ. Many of these are baptised and confirmed members of the Church and are seeking the pastoral care, moral direction of the Church, and Gods transforming power for the living of their lives and the ordering of relationships. In another section, the bishops declared that: We are of one mind that gay, lesbian and transgendered members of our church share in full membership as baptised members of the Body of Christ This has important implications in parishes where, for example, same-sex couples who are living in civil unions under South African law bring their children for baptism and confirmation. No child brought for baptism should be refused merely because of the sexual orientation of the parents, and particular care should be taken against stigmatising not only parents but their children too. We also tried at the Synod of Bishops to draw up guidelines for clergy wanting to bless couples in same-sex unions, or who want to enter same-sex unions themselves. We constituted a group of bishops reflecting a cross-section of our views to discuss such guidelines. On this issue, I had to report back to the Synod, the only agreement we reached is that we were not of one mind. Our differences do not only revolve around the theology of marriage, but are also a result of different pastoral realities in different dioceses. For example, most of our dioceses across Southern Africa are predominantly rural, and for many the urgent priorities of food security, shelter, healthcare and education crowd out debate on the issue of human sexuality. In some rural dioceses, responding to challenges to the Churchs restrictions on polygamous marriages is a much higher pastoral priority. As a consequence, the Synod of Bishops has agreed that we will continue to regard ourselves bound by the broad consensus in the Anglican Communion, expressed by the Lambeth Conference in 1998, which is that we cannot advise the legitimising or blessing of same-sex unions nor ordaining those involved in same gender unions. Having said that, we did address the questions of whether that decision is immutable, whether it has replaced scripture, and when a Province of the Communion, or a diocese within a Province may deviate from it Cash, they would have us believe, is on its way out. Over the past ten years there's been a monumental shift in the way we use money. First came Chip and Pin, then online shopping and most recently tap-to-pay contactless cards that let you zip in and out of coffee shops, pubs and newsagents. We're bombarded with statistics from banking lobby groups that paint a bleak picture for coins and notes. Changing times: First came Chip and Pin, then online shopping and most recently tap-to-pay contactless cards that let you zip in and out of coffee shops, pubs and newsagents Take these: in 2006 cash accounted for around 45 per cent of spending in shops. Today, it covers less than 25 per cent - the remainder is electronic money on debit and credit cards. The next stage of the revolution involves contactless cards and smartphones. You can now buy anything worth up to 30 - covering pretty much all everyday spending - by waving a piece of plastic over a reader. These cards will gradually be replaced by mobile phones. Google and Apple already offer apps where you enter your bank details and the handset acts like a contactless credit card. It's no coincidence that banking industry lackeys bang on about cash being 'dead within a decade'. Privately, their bosses are in love with the idea of ditching cash. The more digital we go, the easier it is for big organisations to control the flow of money around our society - and profit from it. But there's more to this than greed. As we reveal today, the death of cash poses a major threat to our privacy. If cash disappears, every transaction, its time, place and the retailer involved, will be logged on to a computer somewhere. Apart from degrading our fierce British tradition of a right to privacy, this poses an enormous security risk. The Metropolitan Police admits it's losing the battle against online shopping fraudsters, with 1,000 people a day hit. And sophisticated scammers are now routinely cajoling unwitting victims into transferring money to their accounts - and vanishing without a trace. By collating a complete picture of our financial lives and putting it on file, banks are inviting attacks by criminal hackers like those who burst past TalkTalk's security last year. Cash is also vital because it's reliable. Without it, I dread to think how we'll cope with a major computer systems crash that locks people out of their accounts. Imagine the week-long account lockout suffered by RBS/NatWest customers in June 2012 - but much, much worse. It may sound far-fetched but how would we cope with a power blackout caused by whimsical Russian and Saudi oligarchs meddling with the energy market? A cash safety net just seems like a sensible thing to keep going. I suspect that bank bosses will end up shooting themselves in the foot by killing off paper money. If we go fully digital, Google, Apple and Facebook could steal in and make High Street banks surplus to requirements. For all banks' ills, we might be even worse off if ambitious internet startups gain full control over our money system. Can we trust them to keep our salaries safe? Will they be on the end of the phone if our life savings disappear into the ether or the taxman says a payment went missing? I'm yet to be convinced. Fight: Violeta and Perry Beaver had to battle cancer and their insurer Legal and General who refused to pay their life cover claim Abysmal L&G We all know a smart aleck. You're in the middle of explaining a tricky situation and suddenly that voice butts in. 'Well, what you need to do is...' Usually it's just a clumsy effort to help. But conversations can get heated when one friend starts lecturing another about a topic he or she knows little about. That infuriating trait is a stain on insurer Legal & General. The way it treated Violeta Beaver is abysmal. Her specialist cancer consultant says she has less than six months to live, but L&G decided its own experts knew better. It point-blank refused to pay her 130,000 life insurance claim until Money Mail threw the book at it. But unlike a pal's clumsy advice, L&G was toying with a patient's precious final moments with her loved ones. Every day it delayed was another that Violeta and her husband Perry will never get back. This isn't the first time L&G has been caught wriggling out of legitimate life insurance claims from terminally ill customers. Last year we revealed how Michael Brown, a 68-year-old from Newark with a rare form of cancer, was similarly fobbed off. L&G must learn its place. Yes, it must root out spurious claims, such as for whiplash that never actually occurred in a car accident. But it has no right to overrule experienced, specialist medical experts who've given someone the terrible news they're going to die. For insurers, a simple principle would go a long way in these situations: treat your customers as you'd hope to be treated yourself. Dream on, George! Money Mail has been campaigning to stop George Osborne raiding pensions in the Budget next month. Our fear is that the Chancellor will spin the reform as a giveaway to the lower-paid when in reality he'll be hitting them in the pocket. For the millions who earn less than 42,385 a year, the idea of saving for retirement is fanciful. You've just about scraped enough to pay the mortgage, bring up the kids and care for elderly parents every month - now you're asked to find more money for retirement? Dream on, George! Offering basic-rate taxpayers a larger top-up only really helps if they've got more to put aside. Cat fight: Gucci owner Kering is not happy about Burberry's plan to sell hot off the catwalk In the world of fashion, catty remarks are almost par for the course. But a top French label has launched a particularly dismissive assault on British brand Burberry over its plans to let fashionistas buy straight from the catwalk. The owner of Gucci and Saint Laurent declared it will not follow Burberry's plan of 'see-now, buy now' catwalks as it 'negates the dream' of luxury. In fact, in Paris Burberry (down 55p to 1234p) is not even deemed to be in the same class as the leading French names. Francois-Henri Pinault, chief executive of Paris-based Kering, which owns Gucci as well as London Fashion Week participants Alexander McQueen and Christopher Kane, told Bloomberg that making consumers wait months to buy a collection 'creates desire'. Burberry and Tom Ford plan to change the timing and structure of their businesses and will sell their collections immediately after runway shows rather than customers having to wait months to buy the designs. Burberry hosted its last 'traditional' fashion show on Monday at London FashionWeek. Warning: Simon Segars, chief executive of chipmaker ARM Holdings Tech bosses have warned that criminals may be able to hack in to the latest gadgets, including toys, to steal information. Simon Segars, chief executive of chipmaker ARM Holdings, told the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, that technology linking together household items and toys posed a security risk. The so-called internet of things means fridges, central heating and TVs can be run by apps on smartphones. The first connected devices are already available, with apps such as Nest allowing homeowners to control their heating remotely. But Segars warned of a sinister side, with even a childs teddy bear vulnerable to hackers. He said: That really is something to worry about. Mattels Fisher-Price smart teddy bear, an interactive cuddly toy that can learn a childs name, was hacked a few weeks ago. Researchers at Rapid7, a Boston-based security company, found that the toys app had flaws that allowed hackers to steal a childs name, date of birth and gender. Segars said: The moment we start connecting everything up we have to worry about security. In something as innocuous as a connected toy, such as a teddy bear, there are security implications. A lot of the data that is at risk is becoming very, very personal, he said. Nothing could be more personal than your healthcare records. Speaking about connected cameras that allow users to monitor their homes from their phone, he added: Having a camera around should be a good thing. Money Mail has received a flood of letters accusing Age UK of pushing expensive insurance deals and offering poor service. Two weeks ago we revealed how the charitys insurance quotes often appeared much higher than those on price comparison websites. Many of you wrote to offer evidence that the company was charging too much. Ticked off: Age UK has been infuriating readers by pushing expensive insurance deals and offering poor service James Short, from Durham, said his 80-year-old mothers annual travel premiums went from 280 to 3,150 in four years. He found another quote for a third of the price and switched. Mike Cunliffe said Age UK quoted his mother-in-law 180 to renew her home and contents insurance policy in Bolton. He said he found more comprehensive cover online for 113. An Age UK spokesman says it ensures each and every insurance policy cost is representative of the risk taken on. While we never promise to be the cheapest, Age UK Enterprises aims to offer fair pricing. The charity was also criticised for hearing aid services. These are promoted by Age UK in a tie-up with retailer UK Hearing Care. Age UK is set to make 400,000 from the deal this year. Murray Haddow ordered hearing aids through the charity for his wife Jeans birthday. They arrived two weeks late and the couple, who are both 90, had to wait five months for a follow-up visit to check the devices worked properly. After contacting customer services, Mr Haddow, from Largs, North Ayrshire, discovered there was only one hearing aid agent for Scotland based in Stonehaven, 160 miles away. Windfall: Chancellor George Osborne is hatching plans for the bank levy Some of Britains biggest banks could have to cough up hundreds of millions of pounds more in tax, under plans being drawn up by the Treasury. While the bank levy is gradually being reduced it will no longer apply to global operations from 2021 a new 8 per cent surcharge is being introduced on UK profits. This was welcomed by international lenders, such as HSBC and Standard Chartered, which had complained they had been unfairly penalised by the bank levy, which applies to a banks funding and debt. But they may not be too pleased with the latest plans being hatched by the Treasury. Global banks often raise money from their UK parent, which is passed to overseas subsidiaries. The Government is proposing to include this funding within the scope of the bank levy in certain circumstances. In the name of academic autonomy, angry academics should not wage their ideological wars, the letter said (Photo: DC) New Delhi: Wading into the JNU row, a group of IIT-Madras faculty has expressed concern on institutions of higher learning being converted into "war zones", saying that calling for the country's "dismemberment and ruin" in the name of dissent is not acceptable. In a letter to President Pranab Mukherjee, the 56 faculty members said there is a need to save educational institutions from the scholarship of abuse and hate and sought his intervention. "We feel concerned about the situation in the country where institutions of higher learning are being converted into war zones by some academicians, politicians and sections of media. "We support intellectual freedom, and alternative views are a must for democracy and creativity. However, there is a deep distortion of the meaning of academic freedom which is leading to a vitiated atmosphere in the campuses," they said. They have requested the President to take steps for saving educational institutions from the "scholarship of abuse, hate and discord" and restoring the atmosphere of sobriety, reflection and harmony necessary for genuine scholarship, Shreepad Karmalkar, a professor and one of the signatories, said in a statement. "In the name of academic autonomy, angry academics should not wage their ideological wars, nor can an institute campus be beyond the norms of the society outside in matters of abusive and hateful expressions. Calling for dismemberment and ruin of our country in the name of dissent is not acceptable, even in a university," the letter said. New Delhi: Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday said the BJP-led NDA Government would not let him speak in the Parliament because they are scared of his remark. "The government said they are open to a discussion. Yes. But they will not let me speak in the Parliament because they are scared of what I will say," Gandhi said. Meanwhile, the Rajya Sabha was adjourned thrice on the first day owing to persistent sloganeering and protests by the Opposition over the suicide of research scholar Rohith Vemula at the Hyderabad Central University last month. Later today, a high-decibel debate is expected when the Rajya Sabha discusses the JNU controversy from 2 p.m. MBABANE His Majesty King Mswati III has assigned new responsibilities to the entire Cabinet and thus, revoking the Assignment of Responsibilities to ministers Notice 2009 when the current ministries were set up. The new legal notice was signed by the King on November 10, 2015 at Lozitha. This is according to Legal Notice N0.189 of 2015 which was tabled by Prime Minister (PM) Sibusiso Barnabas Dlamini in the House of Assembly on Monday where he explained to Members of Parliament (MPs) that these were the new duties assigned to them (Cabinet). This is the same legal notice that states that the PM shall be responsible for Parliament Affairs. When asked by this reporter why he had waited so long to table the Legal Notice or working instrument, the PM said it had always been his intention to table it in Parliament and that is why his office had even bounded it to make it presentable to the legislators. However, with the sudden turn of events when my responsibilities have been questioned by the Senate President, Gelane Zwane, I also felt it was proper to inform the legislators as early as possible, said Dlamini. The notice states that where according to the notice there is no specific minister it relates to, the PM may give directive in writing as to which minister shall be vested with such a responsibility. This is done under the powers conferred by Section 70 of the Constitution of Swaziland, which states that the King may, after consultation with the prime minister, assign to the PM or any other minister responsibility for the conduct of any business of government including the administration of any department of government. About 2 000 students outside the main gate after the Kwaluseni campus closure. KWALUSENI There was a violent clash between students and security forces during a protest on Monday night at the University of Swaziland (UNISWA) which led to a student being run over by an OSSU Casspir. Students at the Kwaluseni campus said a Royal Swaziland Police (RSP) Operational Services Unit (OSSU) Casspir drove at high speed into a group of about 2 000 students, who, when they realised that the vehicle was not stopping, ran in all directions. Ayanda Mkhwanazi (22), a second year B-Ed-Science student, was run over by the RSP vehicle and is fighting for her life at the Raleigh Fitkin Memorial (RFM) Hospital. When journalists arrived at the hospital yesterday morning, the student was having a blood transfusion, since she reportedly lost a lot of blood when the incident occurred. She was then wheeled out of the ward to the Manzini Clinic. RFM Hospital Administrator Leonard Dlamini said the student was going to the private clinic for a CT Scan to ascertain further injuries. RFM Hospital currently does not have a CT Scan. Mkhwanazi is said to have suffered severe injuries, including a broken spinal cord, fractured ribs and further injuries to the body, face and legs. When asked what transpired on Monday night, she said she could not remember anything except that she was among the students who were protesting on the night. Honestly, I cannot remember the incident, I do not have an idea how I got here and what happened on the night. I just woke up and found a team of police officers who told me that a group of students fell on top of me when trying to escape from a police Casspir. I then received calls after they had left and informed that the same vehicle was the major cause of my severe injuries, the student said, fighting back tears. UNISWA Student Representative Council (SRC) President Brian Sangweni said the horrific incident occurred at the graduation arena at about 11pm, on Monday. MANZINI Where should we go because we are also civil servants, asked members of the police service when told to get out of the hall during the mass meeting yesterday. About 30 police officers, in full uniform, who had been stationed at Bosco Skills Centre Hall in Manzini, were almost thrown out of the venue yesterday by uncompromising marshals before the start of the meeting. The officers, who were spotted climbing stairs intent on settling among the civil servants, were stopped in their tracks and told to vacate the hall by the marshals. You are not even supposed to be here, this meeting is for civil servants not timpimbi (informers), the marshals said. The uniformed police officers, who were in the company of Manzini Police Station Desk Officer Assistant Superintendent Aaron Methula, were told to step out of the hall and not interfere with proceedings. Why must we go, are we not civil servants? an unidentified officer asked cheekily before advancing up the stairs to take a seat with other officers. It was noted that the police were present throughout the meeting, while some were warned not to take pictures and videos of proceedings. President Pranab Mukherjee greets MPs as he walks along with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan and parliamentary affairs minister M. Venkaiah Naidu towards the Parliament House for his address on the first day of the Budget Session, in New Delhi on Tuesday. (Photo: PTI) New Delhi: President Pranab Mukherjee made a strong pitch Tuesday for the smooth functioning of both Houses of Parliament, stressing that the democratic temper depends on debate and discussion, and not disruptions. After the near washout of Rajya Sabha proceedings both in the Monsoon and Winter Sessions, the Presidents remark takes on a lot of significance at a time when the Narendra Modi-led NDA government is unable to push its legislative agenda. In his customary address to a joint sitting of both Houses of Parliament, Mr Mukherjee took note of the frequent disruptions and obstruction of Parliament. He suggested members of Parliament function in a spirit of cooperation, reminding them that Parliament reflects the supreme will of the people. Separately, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, speaking to reporters, expressed the hope that the Budget Session will be fruitful and utilised for constructive debate. Mr Modi added that friends from some Opposition parties had shown a positive attitude in various interactions. Chennai: As the political heat rises ahead of coming Assembly elections in Tamil Nadu, DMK on Tuesday launched a hard-hitting advertisement campaign against AIADMK in newspapers and television channels, drawing a counter-offensive from the ruling party using the social media. In (the past) five years, you would have seen the Chief Minister (Jayalalithaa) in stickers, banners and even in television...have you seen her in person? asked full-page advertisements in some Tamil and English dailies. The reference reiterates DMKs charge that the CM had not personally visited flood-hit people across the state. DMK was also critical of her practice of inaugurating projects through video-conferencing rather than going to the spot. During flood relief work last year, charges were levelled in social media that AIADMK workers were persuading NGOs to paste stickers of Jayalalithaa on relief material, which was dismissed by the ruling party as false. It is a rumour, a canard spread by unscrupulous elements, AIADMK had said. Jayalalithaa had toured parts of Chennai, including her R K Nagar constituency after the October-November rains. After the December rains, she did an aerial survey of the flood- affected regions. She also reached out to people through her audio messages. DMK advertisements on the front page of select newspapers used a popular comical dialogue Ennamma Ipppadi Panreengaley ma? (Why are you doing like this?). After posing the question, it ended with Let it (AIADMK rule) end, let it (DMK rule) dawn, a slogan coined for DMK treasurer Stalins Namakku Namey campaign and DMKs symbol of rising sun appearing prominently. Television commercials in leading Tamil channels also had the same content packed in a voice over. Responding quickly, AIADMK sought to ridicule its arch rival by posing questions in the same fashion and it was circulated in social media and mobile messaging platforms. In (the past) five years, you would have seen Karunanidhi in the weddings of actresses, in felicitations arranged for him by himself, in Maanada Mayilada shows (a dance show on DMK-run Kalaignar TV). Have you seen him in Tamil Nadu Assembly ? it said. It retained the comical slogan of Ennamma and said Ozhiyattum (Let it go) and embossed it below the DMK symbol of the rising sun. By Anis H. Bajrektarevic Economic downturn; recession of plans and initiatives; -crisis; Brexit and irredentism in the UK, Spain, Belgium, Denmark and Italy; lasting instability in the Euro-Med theatre (debt crisis of the Europes south countries scrutinized and ridiculed under the nickname PIGS, coupled with the failed states all over the MENA); terrorism; historic low with Russia; influx of predominantly Muslim refugees from Levant in unprecedented numbers and intensities since the WWII exoduses; consequential growth of far-right parties that are exploiting fears from otherness which are now coupled with already urging labor and social justice concerns, generational unemployment and socio-cultural anxieties The very fundaments of Europe are shaking. Strikingly, there is a very little public debate in Europe about it. What is even more worrying is the fact that any self-assessing questioning of Europes involvement and past policies in the Middle East, and Europes East is simply off-agenda. Immaculacy of Brussels and the Atlantic-Central Europe-led EU is unquestionable. Corresponding with realities or complying with a dogma? One of the leading figures of European Renaissance that grossly inspired European renewal, Dante, puts Prophet Muhamed to the 8th circle of his famous Inferno. The only individuals bellow Muhamed were Judas, Brutus, and Satan. Islam was seen as the negation of Christianity, as anti-Europeand Muhammed as an Antichrist in alliance with the Devil as Rana Kabbani noted in his luminary piece Imperial Fictions. However, both religions trace their origins back to Abraham. They both lived in harmony (or at least they cohabitated for centuries within the MENA proper, notably in Lebanon, Syria and Iraq). Why was than there no harmonious relationship between Christian Europe and the Middle East? Was Europe opting to repress the Muslims in order to artificially generate a homogenous European self? This is a story of the past centuries one may say. Still, absence of any self-reflection on the side of the EU towards its policy in the Middle East today, makes it worth to revisit some of the bleak chapters of European history, and the genesis of its pre-secular and secular thoughts. Civitas Dei Brussels: Extra Euro-Atlanticum, nulla salus Europe came to be known as Christendom because its identity was imagined or invented as the Catholic in contradistinction to the Islamic Middle East and to the Eastern (true or Orthodox) Christianity. The Christianity, of course, originated in the Middle East not Europe. It was subsequently universalised and Europeanised by the Balkan-born Roman Emperor, who spent much of his life on Bosporus and hence buried in Asia Minor Constantin the Great. Surely, it was by design of this glorious Emperor that the city of Rome was (re)turned into an administrative periphery, politico-ideological outcast and geostrategic suburbia. Therefore, the post Roman/Byzantine inauguration of Christendom as a pure western culture necessitated a sustained intellectual acrobatics: Such an inversion (ideological and geopolitical periphery presenting itself as a centre) required both physical coercion and imposed narrative over the extensive space and time. This a la card creation of Catholic Christendom or to say: Western Ummah, served two vital objectives: domestic and external. Both helped solidification of the feudal socio-economic and politico-military system, and based on that of a precolonial European collective identity. Domestically, it served for a coherent sense of selfhood (us vs. them paradigm): unity, oppression and obedience (extra ecclesiam nulla salus no salvation outside the church, following the old Roman rational no world beyond Limes line, or the modern one: no prosperity outside the EU). Externally, here was the justification for military voyages and other forms of organized plunders, all coupled with a coercive societal identity. A Catholic Renaissance Europe soon realized that, in order to effectively project itself to physically and/or mentally colonise overseas territories it needed either coercion (rarefying and assimilation), labour-camp detention (slavery) or final solution (physical extermination). These strategic dilemmas influenced and dominated European debates of the time. It brought about the conception of the noble savage who could be assimilated, versus the ignoble savage who was destined for either labour detention or final solution. That coerce-or-exterminate dilemma of soul salvationists even culminated within the pre-Westphalian Christian Ummah. It was in the famous Valladolid controversy of 1550, by which Juan Gines de Sepulvedas notion of the ignoble savage faced off against Bartolome de Las Casas view of the noble savage. In both cases the claim was offered the Amero/AfroAsian Natives deserve salvation as they have a strong desire for it, but the views differed on whether the Natives prone wishes exceeded their mental capacity to receive Christianity. Hence, the debates which were the roots and origins of the later liberal theories as well as the early precursors of the subsequent regime change, humanitarian intervention and preemption doctrines always presupposed the inferiority (and passivity) of the Natives. Frankly, this remains a constant behaviour in international relations: E.g. views on Libya differed, as they differ today on Syria. However, what is common to all views is; nobody consults the local population and considers what they would like for themselves. The West as a constructed male vs. the East as a constructed female. A mind-oriented west vs. a body-oriented east. Phallusoid peninsulas and islands of (Atlantic-Scandinavian) Europe vs. womb-like continental landmass of Afro-Asia; Erective and explosive vs. reflective and implosive; an Omnipresent (ever seafaring and trading) extroverted male vs. humble, handcrafting, waiting female. Masculin, phallusoid, progressively erected temporal linearity vs. periodic menstruation leakages in regressive cycles of stagnation. Clearly, anything beyond that was deemed inconsequential. Physical, material, ideological, active, polarizing, determined vs. metaphysical, spiritual, esoteric, atmospheric, inclusive, holistic. No wonder that all operationalized ideologies originated solely in Europe. What else, since no one ever, but Asians revealed any significant religion to the world. Who was/is the Eastern Sleeping Beauty? Rudyard Kiplings famous 1899 poem, The Whites Man Burden offers some answers while describing the Eastern peoples as half-devil and half-child. The blame of those ye better / The hate of those ye guard Kipling warns and instructs, he describes and invites. In his classic novel of 1847, Tancred, much celebrated British Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli claims A Saxon race, protected by an insular position, has stamped its diligent and methodic character of the century. And when a superior race, with a superior idea to Work and Order, advances, its state will be progressiveAll is race! Quite an intellectual acrobatics for Disraeli himself, who was neither Saxonic nor Christian. Over the period, western Catholic missionaries constituted one of the most powerful and influential lobbying voices for this civilizing mission. It was of course weaponisation of religion, a notorious misuse for ideological purposes. Same like today, fanatics then and there, were identified and further radicalised, to say inspired. Eventually, they usually got hired as the AGITPROP/Ideological police by the predatory elites, hid behind the Feudal European states. Naturally, the justification was looked upon in any Biblical narrative. E.g. the re-invoking the Genesis story of Noahs three sons, and interpreting it as the duty of Japheth (Europe) to absorb Shem (the Asians) and enslave and colonise Ham or Canaan (the Black Africa and Indianos of America). Amazingly, according to Genesis ch.9, verse 27: God shall enlarge Japheth and he shall dwell in the tents of Shem, and Canaan shall be his servant. The later Protestant revival infused the next wave of Christian missionaries to force this narrative into the matrix of colonisation as wilful implants onto the minds and bodies of overseas peoples. Therefore, James Lorrimer and other architects of that-time political and international legal order divided the world in three segments: civilized White, barbarous Yellow and savage Black. Yellows were fallen people, a terra infantilis to civilize (what will later evolve into indirect rule, with a social apartheid in place), the area occupied by the Blacks, Redbones and Aborigine was a borderless space, terra nullius just to conquer and settle, since the indigenous have no birthright to it (meaning: physical colonisation and direct rule, final solution and genocide). Unfinished business of salvation came back to Europe of 20th century. Hitlers interpretation of it was: civilized White (Arian) Central Europe; Yellows (to be put under indirect rule, with only social apartheid in place) Atlantic and Scandinavian Europe; Blacks (predestined for a physical colonisation of superior race upon a decisive final solution and genocide) all Slavic states of Eastern and Russophonic Europe. Indeed, ever since the 18th century on, European notion that civilization was the monopoly of the West, clearly implied that there is no civilization and therefore, salvation outside the western model. Famous historian Toynbee calls it a secularized version of the primitive Western Christian proposition Nemini salus nisi in Ecclesia. See for yourself how much current debates, sparked by the ongoing refugee crisis, follow the above patters. Triangular economy of othering There is a consensus within the scientific community that the critical factor in redefining Europe as the advanced West was the expansion of its strategic depth westward to the America upon 1492. This enabled the so-called triangular transcontinental trade, brutally imposed by Europeans: Enslaved Africans shipped to America in exchange for gold and silver from there to Europe, in order to cover European deficits in importing the cutting-edge technologies, manufactured products, other goods and spices from a that-time superior Asia and the Middle East. (Likewise, while the US economy contributed with 54% of the world output in 1945, today it hardly has 1/3 of that share.) Simply, the Old Continent is not a wealthy club anymore. It is a place with a memory of its wealthy past. The EU has to learn how to deescalate and compromise. It is in its best interest, for the sake of its only viable future. Therefore, it is a high time for the Brussels-headquartered Europe to evolve in its views and actings. Let us start by answering the question: Is the so-called Russian expansionism or MENA Islamofascism spontaneous or provoked, is it nascent or only a mirror image of something striking in front of it? And after all, why the indigenous Europes Muslims (those of the Balkans) and their twins, indigenous Christians of MENA (those of Levant) are now two identically slim shadows on a bulletproof wall. CPM general secretary Sitaram Yechury (right) interacts with Rohith Vemulas mother Radhika and brother at a protest rally at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi on Tuesday. Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal (left) is also seen. (Photo: PTI) New Delhi: Thousands of students from various universities across the country on Tuesday hit the streets of the capital demanding justice for Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula and protesting the JNU row with Rahul Gandhi and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal joining them in slamming the Modi government against crushing voices of dissent. In the second such protest in less than a week, the students marc-hed from central Delhi's Jhandewalan to Jantar Mantar where they held a rally which was addre-ssed by Rahul, Kejriwal, CPIs D. Raja, CPM general secretary Sitaram Yechuri, social activist Medha Patkar and mother of Rohith Vemula and all of them warned the NDA government against messing with young minds. Mounting a fresh attack, Mr Rahul accused the Modi dispensation and the RSS of stifling voices of dissent of college and university students while Kejriwal accused those in power of distributing certificates of patriotism, alleging that goondaism has been unleashed to crush dissent. Rahul said his party will fight for enactment of a law to protect them from discrimination and suppression. We need a law to ensure that students in colleges and universities do not face discrimination and their voice is not stifled, Rahul said, lending support to the students. The Congress Vice President also slammed the government for not including issues like Rohith's death and difficulties being faced by students of universities in the President's address to Parliament today. Kejriwal, who came to rally an hour after Rahul left, said the Centre was at war with the students of the country and asked the Prime minister to mend his ways. Otherwise, he said, students will teach him a lesson. What happened that youth who had supported Modi have risen against him today? This government seems to be at war with students of the country. Now they have started distributing certificates of patriotism. They are distributing certificates as to who is a patriot and who is a traitor. They will beat anyone up, or rape anyone and justify it by saying that they were raising slogans against India. This goondaism won't be tolerated. For them the biggest patriot is Nathuram Godse and the biggest traitor is Kanhaiya. The biggest patriot is Adityanath and traitor Mahatma Gandhi. Biggest patriot Sadhvi Ritambhara and biggest traitor Aamir Khan. For them all these hoodlums are patriots, he said. Kejriwal said youth of the country will come down hard on Modi if he does not mend his ways. If Modiji does not mend his ways then very soon the youth and students will come together to teach him a lesson, Kejriwal said, adding I had said earlier, 'Modiji students se pange mat lena' (don't mess with students). Otherwise they will rock your government and you won't have a clue. Slamming the Centre for taking action against students for expressing dissent, he said everybody has the right to raise voice against anything which is wrong. JNU den of sex, drugs: BJP MLA A BJP MLA alleged that JNU is a hub of sex and drugs where over 3,000 used condoms and 2,000 liquor bottles are daily found. Gyandev Ahuja, BJP MLA from Ramgarh in Rajasthans Alwar district, said, Over 10,000 butts of cigarettes and 4,000 pieces of beedis are found daily in the JNU campus. 50,000 big and small pieces of bones are left by those eating non-vegetarian food. They gorge on meat...these anti-nationals. 2,000 wrappers of chips and namkeen are found, as also 3,000 used condoms the misdeeds they commit with our sisters and daughters there. Rohith foster granny dead A 74-year-old woman, who is said to have raised the mother of dalit scholar Rohith Vemula, died in Guntur on Monday and the family claims it was because of the tension created by the probe into the students death. This is the second blow for the family, Rohiths younger brother Raja said on the death of Anjani Devi. The person who raised us is no more. She was a heart patient and had undergone a bypass surgery. She was questioned for five-six hours a day (after the death of Rohith) by local officials. And due to this tension, she died, said Raja, who had his mother by his side. 5 things to watch on Friday night in the Beaver Valley: Week 8 football TRN Archives SHARE By Bridget Knight of the Times Record News One of the largest commercial fires in the city's history broke out Feb. 3, 1983, when the Flake Industries main plant and offices at 1000 Burkburnett Road were engulfed by flames that left little more than a pile of charred equipment. The company, which supplied a linen and uniform service that stretched into Oklahoma, had been founded in 1949 as a neighborhood washeteria. A passer-by first noticed flames biting through the roof of the building about 5:15 a.m., but Flake's corrugated metal plant, plus a two-story home next door, were already fully engulfed when firefighters arrived. It took fire crews more than two and a half hours to bring the conflagration under control. Flake Industries rebounded quickly, first by operating two night shifts at space offered by National Linen, then at a new location north of town on the Red River Expressway. The company's president, Leon Flake, used the determination he had so well demonstrated as a medal winner in the Korean War to make good on his promise that the company would not quit. Not so quickly resolved were the legal claims related to the fire, which federal and local officials ruled had been intentionally set. While the arsonist was never found, Flake sought to place some of the blame on the company that had installed the plant's fire alarms, which failed to notify the fire department as they were designed. The lawsuit went on for some five years before an 89th District Court jury cleared the alarm company of any blame in the fire. Somehow, jurors concluded, the alarm's notification system had been switched to "silent" before this fire, even though the same alarm system had saved the plant in six previous fires. SHARE Stockinger The Texas Department of Public Safety seized over $1 million in marijuana near Iowa Park Monday. About 4 p.m. a DPS trooper stopped a 2016 Chrysler mini-van for a traffic violation on U.S. 287. During the traffic stop, a DPS canine unit alerted to the smell of narcotics. The trooper discovered several large duffle bags of marijuana in the back seat. The total combined weight was over 174 pounds. The driver of the mini-van was identified as Samuel Herschel Clauder II, 64, of Arcata, Calif. Clauder was arrested, booked into the Wichita County jail and charged with felony possession of marijuana. The suspected illegal drugs were being transported from California to Florida, according to DPS. He was not in jail Tuesday. Man charged in assaults, threat A Wichita Falls man is jailed following alleged assaults on three people with a crowbar and a sickle in a home on Roanoke Street. Police went to the address Friday after a woman reported her common law husband had assaulted her and threatened to kill her. Officers found the woman bleeding from a leg injury. According to a probable cause affidavit: The woman told police she and Bobby Stockinger, 23, had argued and he slapped her and struck her in the face, then struck her on the shin with a crowbar. Stockinger's mother and grandmother were in the house at the time and Stockinger threatened to kill all of them. His grandmother said Stockinger began striking walls with a sickle and a pipe. Stockinger then left the home. Police found him several blocks from the house. He is charged with three counts of aggravated assault and his total bail was set at $300,000. He was in the Wichita County Jail Tuesday. SHARE Gary Arnold Griswold Matthew Allen Bennett By Barbara Green, Bowie News Two Montague County men have been arrested in unrelated sexual abuse cases in incidents that occurred several years ago. Sheriffs Office Investigator Chris Hughes said Gary Arnold Griswold, 68, of Bowie, was arrested on Feb. 17 and charged with a complaint of continuous sexual abuse of a young child. Griswold posted a $20,000 bond and was released. The allegations against him came under scrutiny after a 16-year-old girl made an outcry, telling a family member of the alleged abuse. Interviewed at Patsys House Child Advocacy Center, the teen told officers she was abused multiple times between the ages of seven and 13. Griswold was interviewed and arrested the next day. Hughes said due to the age of the alleged victim, this is a special first-degree felony that carries a prison term of 25 years to 99 years if convicted. In a separate case, Matthew Allen Bennett, 38, Nocona, was arrested on a complaint of sexual assault. Hughes said Bennett was previously convicted of indecency with a child in 2015 and received probation. Recently, he served time in jail for a driving while intoxicated charge in Collin County. According to the report, after Bennett got out of jail on Feb. 3, he was required to register for probation as well as a sexual offender. By Feb. 16, he reportedly had done neither and police began looking for him. Hughes said while looking into this case he learned of a possible sexual assault victim from several years earlier. I found out she was in Missouri and is 20 now. She met with us and disclosed the sexual abuse by Bennett began when she was 15 and continued until she was 16. At that time they lived in the Saint Jo area, and at one point, in the same household, Hughes said. Bennett was arrested on suspicion of failure to comply with sexual offender registration and Hughes served a warrant to him in jail Tuesday for sexual assault on multiple offenses allegedly occurring in 2011-2012 and 2012. Claire Kowalick/Times Record News Keith Dyer, Iowa Park city council member tells Wichita County Commissioners Monday that he previously voted to support the income-based housing development, but no longer supports it. SHARE Claire Kowalick/Times Record News Iowa Park resident Peggy Robertson speaks to Wichita County commissioners Monday against a income-based housing complex in the city. Claire Kowalick/Times Record News More than a dozen Iowa Park residents came to the Wichita County commissioners work session to speak for and against a income-based housing developent near Iowa Park. Claire Kowalick/Times Record News Lance Windel, owner of LW Development, LLC, speaks Monday afternoon with Wichita County Commissioners about a possible income-based rental housing development just outside Iowa Park. By Claire Kowalick of the Times Record News Wichita County Commissioners' Court chambers were packed with Iowa Park residents Monday waiting to weigh-in on the possibility of an income-based housing complex near the town. The special work session lasted nearly three hours with more than a dozen residents speaking for and against the project. The housing tax credit program, part of the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs, allows for private industry to invest in affordable housing in urban and rural parts of the state. The TDHCA program is not part of Housing and Urban Development or Section 8, but does offer homes to people who earn 30-60 percent of an adjusted gross income. Lance Windel, owner, of LW Development, LLC, based in Ardmore, Okla., gave a presentation to the court on his plan for a development of 39-49 single-family income-based houses at 1800/1900 Johnson Road in Iowa Park to be named Cornerstone Ranch Homes. Windel said this was his first venture in building this type of development in Texas, but he has seven similar projects in five cities in Oklahoma. In an Iowa Park city council meeting two weeks ago, staff decided to support two income-based units this housing complex just outside the city limits and an apartment complex at 1550 West Johnson Road. Based on a score sheet of criteria, Iowa Park was chosen by the TDHCA as an opportune location because of the high-performing school district and relatively low poverty level. Windel said was he also further convinced to pursue this location because a market study he purchased showed a market of about 700 residents in need of affordable housing. At the Iowa Park council meeting, Windel said he received a resolution of support and he requested the support of the county before applying for the TDHCA tax-credit program. Iowa Park City Manager Jerry Fleming said the location Windel wants to build on is not part of the city and concern was the additional water/sewer usage and drainage issues if the homes were attached to city infrastructure. "The city decided to support both projects with the understanding that only one could win the tax credits," he said. The main benefit for the city is the availability of affordable housing for residents, Fleming said. About a dozen Iowa Park residents spoke for and against the project, including three co-owners of the land. David Padgett is a partial owner of the land and said he was not aware of the negotiations for the area and claims he was not informed by Windel that it would be used for income-based housing. For many years, Padgett said he allowed the city to use the area as a dumping ground for dirt, trees, asphalt, and other refuse. Currently there are several gravel pits on the land 12-15 feet deep that fill with water. He said there are concerns for the land and possible soil compaction issues for building on top of the former landfill. Keith Dyer, an Iowa Park city councilor, said he initially voted for the project at the council meeting, but upon further inspection he is no longer in favor of it. Dyer said he has concerns about asbestos pipes and other environmental hazards that may be in the land. Padgett's wife, Barbara, said she and her husband would not have agreed to the project if they had known the housing was to be rental properties. Other residents expressed concerns including additional traffic on Johnson Road, foundational issues of building on a gravel pit, safety concerns for nearby communities, andmore work for the school system. Mark Temple is competing for TDHCA tax credits in Iowa Park with an apartment complex named Hawks Landing. Temple said the complex would be a mix of income-based and full-market value units. One of these projects, either the apartments or the housing area, is likely to win the TDHCA tax credits Windel said, and he feels houses are a better fit than apartments for the city. "Nobody is excited about what they perceive as low-income housing, especially in this area of Texas," he said. If his project is chosen in July, Windel said he could have the project complete as soon as August 2017. County Judge Woody Gossom said the county lives in partnership with surrounding communities and they tend to go along with what the cities decide. The commissioners will decide at their regular meeting Monday on a resolution of support for the LW Development project. Gossom said the public is invited to attend and comment if desired at the 10 a.m. meeting at the Wichita County Courthouse, Commissioners Court. An Army Cpt. shows the media a room and article of clothing in Camp VI at U.S. Navy base Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, August 2012. SHARE By Times Record News President Barack Obama on Tuesday proposed to "once and for all" close the detention center at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and transfer remaining detainees to a facility in the U.S., though his plan does not specify where. But Texas lawmakers said the ploy is nothing more than the president making good on a campaign promise in the final year of his administration. Obama said that despite significant political hurdles and congressional opposition he is making one last effort to shutter the facility. "I don't want to pass this problem on the next president, whoever it is. Are we going to let this linger on for another 15 years?" Obama said, in an appearance at the White House. "Keeping this facility open is contrary to our values. It undermines our standing in the world. It is viewed as a stain on our broader record of upholding the highest standards of rule of law." U.S. Sen. John Cornyn said the president's desire to close the facility and bring those detained there to the U.S. is "reckless, naive and bewildering." "Bringing these detainees to the U.S. would not only violate current law, it would defy the will of Congress and the American people who do not want dangerous, radical terrorists in their backyards," he said in a statement. "Between negotiating a bad deal with Iran and the ongoing threat of a terrorist attack here in the U.S., it's disappointing to see the president continue to prioritize his political agenda at the expense of the American people." U.S. Rep. Mac Thornberry, chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, continued his stance that Congress requested Obama send a detailed plan to Congress so that it can be mulled in a committee hearing. Anything less that a detailed plan, the congressman told the administration in a letter, would be unacceptable. He reiterated that claim Tuesday in a statement, saying there is no substitute for a full plan. "Among the information missing is the proposed location for a new detention facility," he said. "More than seven years after he first ordered the detention center at GTMO closed, I find it telling that the White House has either failed to work out these important details or they know, but refuse to disclose them, to the American public." Thornberry said the president is making it difficult for the HASC to provide a fair hearing by withholding pertinent information. Obama's proposal ducks the thorny question of where the new facility would be located and whether Obama could complete the closure before he leaves office. The plan, which was requested by Congress, makes a financial argument for closing the controversial detention center. U.S. officials say it calls for up to $475 million in construction costs that would ultimately be offset by as much as $180 million per year in operating cost savings. The proposal is part of Obama's last effort to make good on his unfulfilled 2008 campaign vow to close Guantanamo and persuade lawmakers to allow the Defense Department to move nearly 60 detainees to the U.S. But with few specifics, the proposal may only further antagonize lawmakers who have repeatedly passed legislation banning any effort to move detainees to the U.S. Obama, meanwhile, planned to make a midmorning statement on Guantanamo at the White House. U.S. officials say the plan considers, but does not name, 13 different locations in the U.S., including seven existing prison facilities in Colorado, South Carolina and Kansas, as well as six other locations on current military bases. They say the plan doesn't recommend a preferred site and the cost estimates are meant to provide a starting point for a conversation with Congress. The seven facilities reviewed by a Pentagon assessment team last year were: the U.S. Disciplinary Barracks and Midwest Joint Regional Corrections Facility at Leavenworth, Kansas; the Consolidated Naval Brig, Charleston, South Carolina; the Federal Correctional Complex, which includes the medium, maximum and supermax facilities in Florence, Colorado; and the Colorado State Penitentiary II in Canon City, Colorado, also known as the Centennial Correctional Facility. According to the officials, the U.S. facilities would cost between $265 million and $305 million to operate each year. The annual operating cost for Guantanamo is $445 million, but the officials said the Cuba detention center will need about $225 million in repairs and construction costs if it continues to be used. They said it will cost between $290 million and $475 million for construction at the various U.S. sites, depending on the location. Some of the more expensive sites are on the military bases, which would need more construction. Because of the annual operating savings, the officials said the U.S. would make up the initial construction costs in three to five years. Srinagar: Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister and working president of National Conference, Omar Abdullah, on Wednesday accused the Centre of dishonouring the conditions under which the formerly princely State acceded to India in 1947. Delhi has dishonoured the terms and conditions of the States accession to the Union of India, he said terming the erosion of the States autonomy guaranteed under Article 370 of the Constitution and Delhi agreement between his grandfather legendary Sheikh Muhammad Abdullah and first Prime Minister of India, Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru, as a breach of faith that, he said, has manifested itself as political turmoil and instability in Jammu and Kashmir. Mr. Abdullah while speaking at the commemorative function held at the NC headquarters here on the first death anniversary of its former general secretary Sheikh Nazir Ahmed said the Centre will have to honour all the terms and conditions of the accession and reverse the erosions in the States autonomy to restore a sense of faith and trust among the people of Jammu and Kashmir. While Delhi expected the people of J&K to honour the States accession to India, it left no stone unturned to violate the terms and conditions of the same accession, he said adding systematic erosions were engineered by the Centre to rob the State of its autonomy which, he said, has created a sense of deep mistrust. The former Chief Minister said that while one side is expected to honour the agreement, the other side cannot dishonour it. He also said that the NC never abandoned its political struggle for the restoration of autonomy and it will continue to strive for this just demand. He asserted, Unlike others, National Conference doesnt believe in rank political expediency at the cost of our ideology and principles. Our flag is our pride. It represents all three regions of the State-Jammu, the Valley and Ladakh- and we will protect our flag with our blood. As alliance partners PDP and BJP have failed to form the new government in the State following the death of former Chief Minister, Mufti Muhammad Sayeed, on January 7, the NC president and former Union minister Dr. Farooq Abdullah while speaking on the occasion said the State cannot be expected to remain engulfed in political uncertainty. He said PDP and BJP should either form a government or the Centre should dissolve the State Assembly to pave the way for holding of fresh elections in the State. He said the NC was fully prepared to go again to the people who deserved a chance to elect a popular government. If PDP and BJP cannot offer the State a government despite continuing to be in an alliance, the Assembly should be dissolved without any further delay, providing the people with a chance to elect a new, popular government, he said. The Senior Abdullah said the NC will neither interfere into the internal dealings of the PDP-BJP alliance and nor will it bail either of them out from this prevailing situation. They promised the people of J&K good governance and development and their first year in power has exposed their failure to perform the most basic duties of a government. They have deceived the people of Jammu and Kashmir and continue to be in an alliance for their own, partisan interests, he alleged. Omar Abdullah lashing out at PDP said its president Mehbooba Muftis recent statement that she was neither capable nor prepared to take on the responsibility of leading the State was factually correct. Mehbooba Mufti is right. She is neither capable nor prepared to do justice with this responsibility. That said, what is this prolonged delay about then? he asked. He also said that while PDP and BJP continue to profess their unquestionable allegiance to each other and have adequate numbers, their refusal to form the government is strange. PDP leaders have publicly declared that the Agenda of the Alliance is a sacred document for them. Sadly, its evident that they are completely ignorant about the meaning and connotations of the word sacred. On one hand they led the people of the State to believe that PDP had sought CBMs from the Central government as a prerequisite to government formation and now senior PDP leader Muzaffar Hussain Baig has come out to admit that the party has not sought any CBMs from Delhi, he said adding Now PDP has publicly admitted that their relationship with BJP continues on the existing arrangement and no fresh demands have been put forth. This is the nature of deception that is being peddled. People are happier under Governors rule than they were under the PDP-BJP government, he asserted adding that apart from those PDP workers who have personal, illegitimate interests to further and protect, not a single common man wants to return to the hopelessness and indignity that the PDP-BJP government brought along since the first day of its tenure. The former Chief Minister said that while PDP promised political packages and economic revolutions in the State, it failed to deliver on a single promise. If Mehbooba Mufti succeeds in achieving a political package for the people of Jammu and Kashmir, I will be glad to congratulate her. In absence of such a political initiative, any other measure is not only inadequate but also ineffective. We have seen what became of the promised 80,000 crores package and how brazenly and shamelessly PDP abandoned the cause of the flood victims, he said. The father-son duo and other speakers paid glowing tributes to Mr. Ahmed who was also the foster brother of Senior Abdullah. Associated Press photo A detainee is seen in the communal area inside Camp 6 in the U.S. detention center at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, in this Feb. 2 photo. U.S. Rep. Mac Thornberry said said senior military leaders and Attorney General Loretta Lynch have advised the President Barack Obama that any attempt to transfer detainees from the Cuba detainment camp to a location in the United States would be illegal. SHARE By John Ingle of the Times Record News President Barack Obama cannot take any action on moving detainees from Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, to a location in the United States without breaking the law, the House Armed Services Committee chairman said Tuesday night. U.S. Rep. Mac Thornberry, in an exclusive interview with the Times Record News, said the president's senior military advisers and Attorney General Loretta Lynch have advised Obama that the National Defense Authorization Act prohibits the him from closing GTMO and moving the detainees. He said he doesn't believe Obama will use some sort of executive order because even that doesn't circumvent the law, and senior military leaders have said they will not violate to law despite such an order form their commander in chief. "I can't exactly predict what Barack Obama is always going to do, but I think trying to move those detainees to the U.S. in violation of clear, specific laws is not something he's going to be able to do," Thornberry said. The NDAA, signed into law by Obama in November, prohibits funding any move to "transfer or release detainees at Guantanamo to or within the United States, its territories, or possessions." The president had threatened to veto the bill. Thornberry said Congress has repeatedly requested and required the Obama administration to provide a detailed plan that would outline a better option to the detainment camp in Cuba, and the president's announcement Tuesday morning still fell short of the mark. The president said having GTMO does not fit into the country's values, but the congressman said that is just more rhetoric from Obama that is not specific and not concrete. "I think American values include keeping the country safe, and American values include keeping known terrorists locked up so they can't kill more Americans," he said. "Maybe the president wants to wish that danger away, but it's not going away. "I think that the president cannot come up with a better option for housing these people than GTMO, and that's part of the reason all of his rhetoric and this little plan is so vague that there's little to it because he doesn't have a better option." Thornberry said there is evidence that at least 30 percent of detainees released from GTMO have returned to the battlefield in the Middle East, so releasing detainees would increase the danger to the American public and military. He said housing them in a community in the United States, which would require a brand new facility because an existing prison cannot be used, also puts that community at a higher risk of an incident like the December attack in San Bernardino. The congressman said the he has never said GTMO will be open forever, but Obama and his successor, whomever it my be, still has to submit a plan that will receive the support of Congress and the American people. But for now, he said, GTMO is the best option. The American Flag SHARE By Los Angeles Times The United States has for 86 years banned the import of goods produced using forced labor unless, as the Tariff Act of 1930 put it, the goods "are not mined, produced, or manufactured in such quantities in the United States as to meet the consumptive demands of the United States." That's right, you read it correctly: The nation stands against importing goods made by slave labor unless we really want them. That repugnant loophole is about to get closed, and the ramifications could be significant. President Obama is expected this week to sign the recently passed Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act of 2015, which would do away with the exemption. This is no symbolic step. Forced labor fuels $51 billion a year in profits in international trade, not including sex trafficking, according to the International Labor Organization, which estimated that more than 14 million people worldwide work "as a result of force, fraud or deception" in homes, factories, mines and farms. The U.S. Department of Labor lists 319 foreign goods that it believes are produced with child labor (usually forced), and 102 goods with forced adult labor, including Brazil nuts from Bolivia, cocoa from West Africa, rice from India and seafood from Thailand. It is the use of forced labor on fishing boats and factory ships based in Southeast Asia that have helped drive this despicable practice into public view. For years, migrant workers there have fallen into the hands of unscrupulous human traffickers who sell them to ship captains, who use brutal violence and the isolation of the high seas to maintain control. The Guardian and the Associated Press have documented the practice, closely linked to Thailand's fishing industry, as have some advocacy groups. Efforts to undermine seagoing slavery could be further helped by an unrelated rule that has been proposed in the United States to protect overfished species and make it tougher to mislabel fish. The rule would require importers to divulge the "chain of custody" of seafood from the ship that caught it or the farm that raised it to "the point of entry into U.S. commerce," creating a database that federal officials say can help customs agents pinpoint the sources of imported fish. Human rights groups have hailed the closing of the import loophole, as well as similar steps being taken in Europe, as significant actions to curb international slavery. Enforcement will be key, but banning forced-labor imports and requiring more transparency in supply chains will make it harder to exploit vulnerable people around the world. Will this mean higher costs for consumers? Maybe. But if the trade-off for cheap imports is supporting slavery, then let the prices rise. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Albany More than two dozen Albany residents filed an appeal Wednesday with the state Education Department seeking to throw out the results of a controversial Feb. 9 vote to rebuild Albany High School. The project passed by 189 votes, but the outcome was marred by widespread reports of crowding, confusion and delays at the polls. The chief cause was a shortage of ballots. The city school district, which was in charge of the referendum, ordered about 5,300 ballots ahead of the vote, but the turnout was nearly 7,800. Nearly half of the 15 polling places in the district ran out of ballots by midday, causing long lines and voting delays while officials raced to print more ballots. In a petition filed Wednesday, 27 district residents asked the state education commissioner to throw out the results and order the county Board of Elections to conduct a new election. Residents cited problems ranging from insufficient paper ballots and absentee voters who never received ballots to privacy rights violations and "illegally crowded" polling places. "The election problems were so pervasive that they destroyed the validity of the electoral process," said Albany County Comptroller Michael Conners, a leading opponent of the $180 million plan to expand and rebuild the high school on Washington Avenue. He is not a city resident. Conners has organized the effort to throw out the vote and, with the help of Albany attorney John Sweeney, a former Republican congressman, recruited residents to file a formal appeal to the state. The state Education Department said Wednesday that it had not yet received a petition. At a news conference earlier in the day, Conners said he recently learned of new privacy rights violations on the day of the vote. While multiple voters had previously reported having to write their names on envelopes in which their ballots were placed, Conners said others told him they observed poll workers at Eagle Point School and elsewhere opening ballots and counting them before the polls closed at 9 p.m. Conners accused the school district of using public funds to distribute "vote yes" literature, citing a resident who received the literature with her children's report cards. The resident, Mary Beth Farr, said Wednesday she believed the flier was "biased and illegal advocacy." The district has disputed this allegation, saying the literature in question was a nonpartisan flier postmarked Feb. 4 that provided information about the upcoming vote. A copy is available on the Times Union Schools blog. "Nowhere on our flier did it say to vote yes," said district spokeswoman Lisa Angerame. "It was consistent with all of the information we had on our website and had been sharing with parents all along." The district has been conducting its own review of voting problems from the referendum. Jeff Honeywell, an attorney for the school district, will deliver a presentation on the review at the school board's regular bimonthly meeting at 7 p.m. Thursday at Giffen Memorial Elementary School at 274 S. Pearl St. bbump@timesunion.com 518-454-5387 @bethanybump This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Ballston Work on an railroad bridge will close Route 67 near Ballston Spa this week due to repairs after a garbage truck damaged it. Workers from Canadian Pacific Railway will repair the span from 6 p.m. to 4 a.m. each night. The road will be fully closed each night until Thursday, March 3. The bridge is approximately two miles south of Ballston Spa. A garbage truck damaged the bridge Feb. 8 when its driver neglected to lower the boom, a sergeant with the Saratoga County Sheriff's Office said. A ticket was issued for an over-height vehicle and the driver is expected to be in Town Court Thursday. The garbage truck belongs to a private contractor not associated with Saratoga County, the Sheriff's Office said. Staff report This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Albany Dan Diaz is on a mission to honor his wife's memory by urging states to pass laws that give mentally competent, terminally ill people the right to end their own lives. Diaz is the widower of Brittany Maynard, the 29-year-old woman who garnered national attention in 2014 with her move from California to Oregon to take advantage of the state's physician-assisted suicide law. No family should have to do what he and Maynard did, Diaz said Wednesday during an emotional interview in the office of state Sen. Diane Savino, who has sponsored one of two state proposals to allow the practice in New York. When told by doctors that her brain cancer had left her with only six months to live, Maynard and Diaz uprooted their lives, moved into an Oregon apartment, found new doctors and kept fighting her disease. Meanwhile, Maynard acquired the medication to hasten her death, should her suffering become unbearable. More Information Competing bills in New York Both Allow a terminally ill, mentally competent adult to request a lethal dose of medication that can be self-administered Terminal illness must be confirmed by two doctors Require two witnesses to a patient's written request for medication Require a counseling referral if doctors believe a mental condition is impairing judgment Grant doctors immunity from legal penalties Do not require doctors' participation End of Life Options bill Age of consent is 18 Provides penalties for coercing patients to request medication Defines "informed consent" Defines "self-administration" Contains model consent forms Patient Self-determination bill Age of consent is 21 Allows a doctor to assist the patient in taking drug Makes an exception to doctors' immunity if patient changes mind Contains opt-out for pharmacists and health-care residences Sources: Legislation, Compassion & Choices See More Collapse As Diaz told it, her other choices were to submit to a cruel and painful death, or put Diaz at risk of committing a crime by asking him to help her overdose on the opioids she'd been legally prescribed for pain. It's been less than 16 months since Diaz, 44, lost Maynard, and during parts of his conversation, he had to stop and catch his breath, his eyes welling with tears. Yet his agenda for visits with lawmakers was clear: to dispel what he called misconceptions touted by opponents of the proposals to allow what supporters call "aid in dying." "Their campaign is based on fear, instead of what a terminally ill individual is really facing," Diaz said. Key among the misconceptions, he said, is the idea that family members could end patients' lives without their consent. This argument has been made by groups representing seniors and the disabled, worried about the vulnerability of the people they advocate for. Diaz sees the law as a way to ensure the patient is the one who wants the lethal drug. Both legislative proposals require patients to request the medication in writing and administer it to themselves. One would also allow a doctor to help the patient take the drug. "This legislation protects the most vulnerable in our society the elderly, the disabled all the people the opposition likes to say they have an interest in protecting," Diaz said. "As soon as Brittany spoke up it was clear to her physicians, to her family in her case, of course, the entire country that she was the person that would be in control of how her days played out." Another misconception, Diaz said, is that aid in dying replaces hospice or palliative care. Once in Oregon, Maynard kept fighting for her life, and embraced care meant to make her more comfortable in the end stages, Diaz said. But it was not enough, as she knew from her diagnosis that it might not be. Diaz described his wife as "tortured" in the end: she couldn't sleep for days at a time, vomited frequently, suffered pain that drugs could not relieve and experienced severe seizures. Sign up for The Knick Get the latest news and features with our afternoon newsletter. She took the lethal medication that she had stored in her medicine cabinet on Nov. 1, 2014. "On Nov. 1, Brittany was able to pass away in her sleep," Diaz said. In addition to disability groups, the Catholic Church opposes bills to allow aid in dying. Diaz and Savino, both Catholics, said they distinguish between what the church dictates, and what its members approve. "Attempting to get the support of the Catholic Church is a waste of time," Savino said. "We don't make laws for the church, we make laws for the people." Savino's bill, the End of Life Options Act, is co-sponsored in the Assembly by Assemblywoman Linda Rosenthal. A competing bill, the Patient Self-Determination Act, is sponsored by Sen. John Bonacic and Assemblywoman Amy Paulin. There are differences in the bills' details, but both require patients to be mentally competent and have their terminal illness confirmed by two doctors. Diaz is working as a consultant to Compassion & Choices, a group advocating for aid in dying bills in multiple states. chughes@timesunion.com 518-454-5417 @hughesclaire Chandigarh: Curfew was on Wednesday lifted in Hisar district and relaxed in violence-hit Rohtak and Bhiwani districts while rail and road traffic resumed on routes which had remained blocked for over a week due to the Jat stir that claimed 19 lives. In Bhiwani, one of the worst-affected districts in the agitation, authorities gave a four-hour relaxation in curfew as the situation was improving, officials said. Curfew was lifted from Hisar and its nearby town Hansi, though prohibitory orders under Section 144 banning assembly of five or more persons will remain in force. Day-long relaxation in curfew was given in Rohtak, the epicentre of the pro quota agitation in Haryana, where extensive damage has been caused to property that includes destruction of many shops, showrooms, hotels, malls and vehicles. "The situation is peaceful in Rohtak city today. No untoward incident has been reported from anywhere," a senior police official said. Both Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar and former Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, who visited Rohtak yesterday, had to face the ire of traders and shopkeepers, who had suffered heavy losses. While Khattar was heckled and shown black flags as residents demanded strict action against people who took the city to ransom, Hooda was also ghearoed by the angry traders when he reached his stronghold. Life was also returning to normal in violence-hit Sonipat, where three persons had died in a clash with security forces two days back. Security forces were patrolling sensitive areas including Bhiwani, Hisar, Sonipat and Rohtak, officials said. New York City One minute, Dotty's eyes are clear, and her mind is as steely sharp as her tongue. A minute later, clouds seem to shroud those big, bright peepers, and she has the bewildered look of a toddler who's lost track of her mother at the mall. Dotty (Marjorie Johnson), the widowed matriarch of a black middle-class family from Philadelphia, is 65, and although she mostly avoids directly admitting it to anyone sometimes even to herself she has Alzheimer's. In Colman Domingo's thoroughly entertaining comedy-drama "Dot," Dotty's failing mind becomes the focus of a fraught family gathering. The play, now at the Vineyard Theatre, is an impressive advance for Domingo, also a gifted musical-theater performer, whose previous plays include the autobiographical "A Boy and His Soul" and "Wild With Happy." One indicator of its quality is the somewhat surprising director: Susan Stroman, winner of five Tony Awards and an eminent director and choreographer of musicals, who rarely stages shows in which people do not regularly break into song and dance. Domingo appeared in Stroman's production of "The Scottsboro Boys," first seen at the Vineyard before moving to Broadway, and perhaps their relationship helped bring her aboard. More Information If you go "Dot" When: Through March 20 Where: Vineyard Theatre, 108 E. 15th St., New York Tickets: (212) 353-0303 or www.vineyardtheater.org See More Collapse But "Dot" would earn a director of some stature on its own merits. While conventional in form, it's uproariously funny, if naturally streaked with sadness (and at times, a pinch or two of sentimentality). Domingo draws a complex portrait of a family in crisis, as Dotty's three children grapple with the rapid decline of their mother. Managing Dotty's illness has fallen like a ton of bricks on the shoulders of her 45-year-old daughter, Shelly, played with ferocious gusto by Sharon Washington. Attempting simultaneously to serve her mother breakfast, nudge her to take her pills and get her to sign legal documents, Shelly careens like a pinball around the sunny kitchen of Dotty's West Philadelphia home, where Shelly is temporarily living. Tougher than any of those tasks is keeping her mother's wandering mind on track. It's 10 in the morning, but Shelly makes a pit stop at the freezer to yank out a bottle of vodka. You can't blame her, especially when Dotty, who has plenty of moments of lucidity, cracks that Shelly's new hairdo makes her look like a "mean pineapple" twice. Exasperation radiates like an electric force field around Shelly, who is also trying to entertain Jackie (Finnerty Steeves), an old friend from the neighborhood who has dropped by unexpectedly, having fled a personal crisis in New York. Shelly is determined to use the impending Christmas holiday to corral her younger brother, Donnie (Stephen Conrad Moore), who lives in New York, and younger sister, Averie (Libya V. Pugh), who lives in Shelly's basement, into sharing the burden. Although Shelly has hired Fidel (the sweet Michael Rosen), a shy young man from Kazakhstan, to help take care of Dotty three days a week, she cannot afford more help, and she needs to get back to her work as a lawyer. Domingo certainly doesn't stint on stirring this simmering pot of family angst. When Donnie and his husband, Adam (Colin Hanlon), arrive, we learn that they are weathering relationship problems Donnie's a homebody and wants kids; Adam likes to party which are not helped by the nerve-fraying juice cleanse they are on. Donnie's finances are precarious, because his career as a music journalist is unsteady. Averie cannot be relied on for financial help, either, since her acting career kicked off when she became an Internet sensation for about 10 minutes is stalled. Oh, and there's some tension between Jackie and Donnie, who were high school sweethearts; on some level she's never quite found a man to match him and has now unhappily become pregnant by a married man. Sign up for The Knick Get the latest news and features with our afternoon newsletter. But Stroman's streamlined direction, which sometimes has the snappy rhythms of musical comedy (there is even a brief dance break), keeps the play from tilting too far toward soap opera or sitcom territory. The rapprochement between Donnie and Adam in the second act runs a tad long and approaches the treacly, but when the focus is on Dotty and her family's reckoning with her disease, the play is on firm footing, and consistently generates laughter. The cast is terrific. Moore's Donnie exudes a sense of aggrieved dissatisfaction, while Hanlon brings a sunny sweetness to Adam, whose close relationship with Dotty is gently touching; at one sad point Dotty's mind slips into the past, and she imagines that he is her long-dead husband. As the unfiltered Averie being filter-free is a trait that all the women share Pugh puts an accent on the sass without overdoing it. And Steeves brings a sense of bewildered near-defeat to Jackie, who has come home to lick her wounds, only to find herself embroiled in more trauma. At the center of the play, of course, is Dotty, played with glowing warmth and sensitivity but also fierce humor by Johnson. Dotty's almost constant shifts between lucidity and fogginess cannot be easy to negotiate, but Johnson makes us aware, at every moment, of just when Dotty's grasp suddenly slips away. Most important, she accentuates her character's bracing lack of self-pity. As the play progresses, Dotty's gradual acceptance of her illness becomes deeply moving. Always a woman of strong spirit, she must now channel that fortitude to face the difficult present and the darker future. "Well, the time has come," announced presenter Barbra Streisand at the 2010 Oscars, revealing that Kathryn Bigelow had won the best director prize for "The Hurt Locker" the first woman in history to win the award. It was a watershed moment in Hollywood, and many were hopeful if not certain that it would usher in an era of increased opportunity for women directors. Six years later, though, the slate of best-director nominees is all-male, as it has been every year since Bigelow won. In fact, women have been nominated only four times in the Oscars' 88-year history. "Of course, the 'Bigelow effect' never materialized," says Martha Lauzen, executive director of the Center for the Study of Women in Television and Film at San Diego State University. The center's latest annual study found that just 9 percent of directors on the top 250 films in 2015 were women, the same as in 1998. Studies have shown similar disproportion for women in other key behind-the-camera roles. But is the tide turning? While recent attention has focused intensely on the lack of racial diversity in the Oscar nominations, some women in Hollywood are heartened albeit cautiously by recent developments that should benefit women and minorities, both behind the camera and in front. "What we're seeing is an undercurrent of anger over the lack of inclusion in Hollywood," says Janice Min, a veteran industry observer who oversees both The Hollywood Reporter and Billboard. "That conversation can only have beneficial effects on women." Min notes that the recent focus on unequal pay for women sparked by Patricia Arquette's fiery Oscar speech last year, then intensified by high-profile comments from Jennifer Lawrence has for the moment receded from the spotlight amid questions of racial diversity. But it's all part of the larger picture. "Yes, there will be some parts of the issue that will be resolved first, and some later," she says. "But the fact that discussion is happening at all is stunning. It's a real revolution in Hollywood." A few recent developments have provided cause for some hope. The first, of course, is the pledge by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to double the number of women and people of color among its membership ranks by 2020. There is also an EEOC investigation under way into possible discriminatory hiring practices of women directors, prompted by the American Civil Liberties Union. More recently, Ryan Murphy, one of the more powerful figures in television, said he aims to have 50 percent of all director slots on his shows filled by women, people of color and members of the LGBT community. "I personally can do better," he told the Hollywood Reporter. Still, cautions Lauzen, there is a huge gap between talk and action. "While it appears to be a step in the right direction, at this point it is just a promise," she says of the Academy's move. And of the EEOC investigation, she says, "any hiring goals that may result will need to be mandatory, and there will need to be significant oversight. That would be a tall order and a move without precedent in the film industry." Lauzen's report, "The Celluloid Ceiling," found that in 2015, women comprised 19 percent of all directors, writers, producers, executive producers, editors, and cinematographers on the top 250 domestic grossing films an increase of 2 percentage points from last year, and the same as in 2001. It also found that women in certain roles more traditionally identified with males such as directors and cinematographers increased steadily as more films (the top 500, say, instead of the top 100) were examined, suggesting that on the biggest-budget films, "hiring decisions for these roles may be most susceptible to mainstream film industry biases." A bright spot, Lauzen notes, is that films with at least one woman director also employ greater percentages of women in other roles. "On films with at least one female director, women comprised 53 percent of writers," Lauzen says. On films with male directors, women accounted for only 10 percent of writers. Films with female directors and writers also tend to have higher percentages of female characters, and especially female protagonists. Some high-profile Hollywood actresses have found they needed to become producers themselves to get the substantive roles they desired. "I was seeing a deficit in leading roles for women," Reese Witherspoon said in a 2014 interview. "It was just the lack of complex characters, of interesting, dynamic women onscreen." Witherspoon has produced both "Gone Girl" and, starring herself, "Wild," both films with complex female protagonists. And Halle Berry said recently that she'd set up her own production company in 2014 partly because she had found it difficult, since becoming the first black best-actress Oscar winner in 2002, to find the right substantive roles. Sign up for The Knick Get the latest news and features with our afternoon newsletter. Actresses of color face a tougher climb than anyone, says Chris Rock, who will host the Oscars on Sunday. "Black women get paid less than everybody in Hollywood," he recently told Essence magazine. "Everybody's talking about Jennifer Lawrence. Talk to Gabrielle Union ... talk to Nia Long. Talk to Kerry Washington. They would love to get to Jennifer Lawrence's place, or just be treated with the same amount of respect." What will it take to change? Lauzen says the issue is the mindset at the top. "Many of those with the power to shift the gender ratios executives at the film studios, and leaders at the academy and at guilds have not perceived women's under-employment as a problem. In other words, there has been little real will to change." Attorney Melissa Goodman of the ACLU of Southern California, which last May asked the EEOC to investigate studios' "systemic failure to hire women directors," says she is hopeful for change. "I'm optimistic that with time, our most important cultural product our films and television shows will increasingly come to reflect the diversity and diversity in viewpoints in our society," she says. "In the meantime, Hollywood decision-makers must remember that they do not get a free pass to discriminate and violate civil rights laws." As for Min, she notes that despite some evidence of "diversity fatigue" people at lunches and dinners who are saying, "enough with all this already" she still thinks things are looking up. "In a world where it's always been all talk and no action, it's pretty stunning to see action being taken." Besides, even where intentions aren't the best, there's always the fear of shame to get things moving. "One of the things you can count on in Hollywood is a climate of fear," Min says. "People will be motivated by fear of being shamed." This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Albany A heroin overdose claimed 18-year-old Laree Farrell-Lincoln's life in 2013. So as local officials in Ithaca begin to consider a first-in-the-nation supervised injection facility for heroin users, Laree's mother, Patty Farrell, doesn't mince words. "It's absolutely ridiculous," the Colonie woman said Tuesday. "It's absurd. This stuff is deadly. Spending taxpayer money for heroin addicts to shoot up with nurses monitoring them so they don't die is not the answer. We need more prevention education, more treatment, better insurance coverage, longer rehab and much tougher penalties on users." Farrell's voice of opposition is just one in a debate over the ethics and morality of providing a safe space for heroin usage staffed by medical professionals trained to address overdoses. The idea is part of a broader action plan to be unveiled Wednesday that was recommended to Ithaca Mayor Svante Myrick by a city Drug Policy Committee. As Myrick defends such a progressive proposal, his city faces myriad messy questions over the legality of taboo supervised drug use. "That is the epitome of a gray area," Albany County Sheriff Craig Apple said of what criminal ramifications nurses and doctors would face. How much power the state wields over the Ithaca plan is unclear, even with the state health commissioner having broad powers to set regulations deemed to be in the interest of public health. New York has taken steps in the drug realm that push boundaries, though they don't rise to the level of condoning heroin usage. As the federal government barred use of its taxpayer funds for needle exchange programs until 2009, the state implemented its program in 1992. A 2014 state report touted its success in dropping the percent of newly diagnosed HIV cases attributed to intravenous drug usage from 52 percent to 3 percent in two decades. More controversial was the state's recent move to establish a medical marijuana program despite that drug's federal Schedule I status. A 2013 federal Department of Justice guidance gave a de facto blessing to state-specific marijuana regulations that eased some concerns ahead of the New York Legislature's approval of the program in 2014. Legal marijuana products went on sale for the first time in January. But passing a state law the exact language of which is unclear to smooth the way for a supervised injection facility would appear to be vastly different than clearing the way for medicinal marijuana. "In the case of medical marijuana, we were allowing production and sale, and in order to get a company to do that, you need to tell them that it's legal," said Assembly Health Committee Chair Dick Gottfried, D-Manhattan. He later added, "The legal question would be whether providing the space somehow implicated you in the possession (of a controlled substance) crime." The political will to at least look into the state's role in hosting the first supervised injection facility in the nation appears to be mixed. While Gottfried, an Assembly Democratic Majority member, said he is comfortable with the concept of such a harm-reduction model, state Sen. George Amedore, R-Rotterdam, expressed vehement opposition. "It is an absolute, total misguided approach on how we're going to eradicate this heroin addiction problem we have in this state," said Amedore, who co-chairs the Senate's Heroin and Opioid Addiction Task Force. "I have not heard from one family, from one educator, one treatment provider, one law enforcement official, even the recovery peer support individuals or someone in recovery ever say that, 'I wish I could go to a drug den to inject more heroin.' " Gov. Andrew Cuomo's office declined to comment. Federal law presents its own challenges aside from heroin's Schedule I status. There also is a federal "crack house" statute that makes it illegal to open, lease, rent, use or maintain any place at which controlled substances are manufactured, distributed or used. As on the state level, modifying such regulations is subject to political will. There is a place for regulators to look if they do want to consider the merits of a supervised injection facility: Vancouver remains the only place in North America where such a facility exists. The facility, Insite, is geared toward long-term addicts and is part of a broader suite of treatment and supportive housing resources. Sign up for The Knick Get the latest news and features with our afternoon newsletter. Insite, which is operated by Vancouver Coastal Health, must obtain an exemption each year from the Canadian federal health agency to operate, Vancouver Coastal Health spokeswoman Anna Marie D'Angelo said. That has at times been a political struggle, with the Canadian health minister being ordered in 2011 by the Supreme Court to grant exemptions to such facilities if they do not have a negative impact on public safety. The exemption in part serves as a safety net for doctors and nurses who risk losing insurance coverage and their medical licenses as they work in a facility where the illegal activity is taking place. Insite has the support of city law enforcement and top provincial officials, D'Angelo said. For his part, Myrick, whose office did not return a message left Tuesday morning, maintains that for all the barriers, an alternative proposal to address the heroin scourge is needed. "If you keep seeing the same problems and proposing the same solutions, then you'll never make progress," he told the Ithaca Journal "So it's not enough to get angry, you've got to get smart, and you've got to be willing to try." Among Ithaca's initial supporters is Andrew McKenna, a former heroin addict who served time in federal prison after robbing banks to feed his habit, who said heroin addiction is a complex problem. "This idea hits my gut in a weird way and doesn't sound good at first, but the more you think about a harm-reduction approach, the more it starts to make sense," said McKenna, a former Justice Department prosecutor, who chronicled his heroin addiction in a memoir, "Sheer Madness: From Federal Prosecutor to Federal Prisoner," published last year. "It's not a flop house where junkies can break the law as much as they can," said McKenna, of West Sand Lake. "If the goal is to steer people into recovery, I think it has merits. Studies have shown it to be a successful approach. The alternative is that young people are getting robbed and stabbed and young women are prostituting themselves in heroin houses, where they're shooting up and where some end up dying from overdoses. That's not desirable either." mhamilton@timesunion.com 518-454-5449 @matt_hamilton10 This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Guilderland Every breath Carolyn Nichols takes feels like "a new life" following her successful lung transplant surgery at Duke University Hospital in Durham, N.C. She spent years of agonizing, waiting on a transplant list in New York, and endured several false hopes with lungs that turned out to be not viable. Her overwhelming emotion these days is gratitude. More Information Contact Paul Grondahl at 518-454-5623 or email pgrondahl@timesunion.com See More Collapse "I can't thank my donor enough. I feel like I have a new life. It's a miracle that I feel this good," said Nichols, 65, who was transplanted with two donor lungs the day before Thanksgiving. She now breathes without the use of bottled oxygen for the first time in many years after cystic fibrosis progressed and cut her lung capacity to less than 25 percent. Instead, she recently walked a few miles on an ocean beach, no longer tethered to an oxygen tank, breathing freely and deeply. It was a sublime moment for a woman profiled in the Times Union in August as she faced a slow-moving death sentence. "This has all been so emotional," Nichols said, her voice cracking over the phone. Nichols has beaten medical projections during her recovery. With lung function now at 100 percent, no rejection issues or complications, her physician at Duke said she can return to her home in Guilderland in early April, more than two months ahead of schedule. "I cried so hard," she said. The procedure was not without strains. Nichols, a retired cardiovascular technician at St. Peter's Hospital, and her husband, Don, who worked installing heating and air conditioning systems, moved to an apartment near the hospital in North Carolina at their own expense. They paid $50,000 in out-of-pocket expenses. Nichols' Medicare coverage and Capital District Physicians' Health Plan paid for most of the procedure, estimated at nearly $1 million. Duke is one of the top-ranked lung transplant centers in the nation and sees about 1,500 potential lung transplant patients each year, with about 150 completed transplants annually. Starting in late October, Nichols finished 23 sessions of pulmonary rehab, a prerequisite for a lung transplant. Twice she was called and told to report to the hospital, but the lungs proved not viable. "Dry runs are hard," she said. "You get your hopes up." Finally, it was a go and she was on the operating table 10 hoursafter she got a nighttime call. The four-hour operation went well and took about half as long as others. "The surgeon told me the lungs were a perfect fit and he didn't have to shave the lungs at all," Nichols said. The surgeon said her left lung was completely dead and her right lung was greatly diminished. Nichols spent a total of 17 days in the hospital and started out in the intensive care unit with eight chest tubes and a ventilator that helped her to breathe with the new lungs. A brief, minor rejection issue was cleared up with medication and fluid was drained from her lungs on three occasions nothing unexpected. About 12 hours after surgery, she was taken off the ventilator and moved out of the ICU. She was walking one day after surgery and taken off oxygen after five days. At the 10-day mark, she was walking the equivalent of one mile around the hospital and was released on Dec. 12. Sign up for The Knick Get the latest news and features with our afternoon newsletter. "To walk outside and take that first breath of fresh air felt wonderful," she said. She continued rehab sessions that include a treadmill, light weights, floor exercises, a stationary bike and walking increasing distances outside. "I'm walking four miles now. It's just amazing," she said. Under transplant guidelines, Nichols does not know anything about the donor. After waiting several months, she is free to write a thank you note that will be sent to the donor's family. Discussions about what to say to the donor are common in support group sessions, which includes a group of 12 lung transplant recipients between ages 18 and 67. "I'll express my thanks and gratitude, and I'll pray the donor's family will want to meet me," she said. Nichols is already beating the odds, but lung transplants carry risks. She'll return to Duke every three months for checkups. The one-year survival rate is more than 90 percent, 55 percent for five years and 30 percent for 10 years. She credits her husband, children, grandchildren, relatives and friends for visits to the hospital, holding fundraisers and showering her with gifts and cards. "The support I've gotten has been phenomenal. I'm so lucky," she said. She wants others on transplant lists to have a chance for a new lease on life, too. The United Network for Organ Sharing has 121,444 people awaiting a variety of organ transplants. To learn more, go to the organization's webite, https://www.unos.org/ pgrondahl@timesunion.com 518-454-5623 @PaulGrondahl THE ISSUE: Some believe a dam along the Mohawk River is causing floods in Schenectady. THE STAKES: New York state should fund a study to explore this reasonable theory. More Information To comment: tuletters@timesunion.com or at http://blog.timesunion.com/opinion See More Collapse For decades, residents along the Mohawk River in Schenectady County could count on one thing: floods happen. Whether it's from ice jams after a harsh winter or torrential rains like those Tropical Storm Irene brought in 2011, residents of Schenectady's Stockade neighborhood are used to the river overflowing every few years. Damage can be in the millions. The unanswered question is who's responsible: humans or Mother Nature? State officials blame nature. But some residents of Schenectady and Scotia make a reasoned case that the situation is exacerbated by a century-old concrete dam seven miles east of downtown Schenectady, the site of a hydroelectric plant and Lock 7 on New York's barge canal system. The dam stretches across the Mohawk from Niskayuna to the Clifton Park hamlet of Vischer Ferry, from which it gets its name. While it's one of many dams along the Mohawk, the 30-foot high, fixed concrete structure is different from the many steel dams upstream that can be adjusted to allow some water to flow beneath, keeping water from rising over the river's banks. Since 2007, James Duggan, a retired state architect, amateur hydrologist and former Stockade resident, has suggested the Vischer Ferry dam is at least partly to blame for the frequent flooding. Others, including a geology professor at Union College who is an expert on the Mohawk River and a retired state engineer, give credence to his theory. They have urged the state to study the situation and, if warranted, modify the Vischer Ferry structure. Those calls are being amplified now that the multimillion-dollar Mohawk Harbor project is under way at a former brownfield immediately east of the Stockade. The plan includes a marina and a casino being built upon an bluff that has been built up in some cases by eight feet to protect it from future floods. Sign up for The Knick Get the latest news and features with our afternoon newsletter. State officials, though, have pretty much dismissed Mr. Duggan's theory. A spokesman for the New York Power Authority, which was recently given oversight to the state's Canal Corporation, boldly asserts: "There is no evidence that this will solve the issue." Of course, homeowners in the flood-prone area could just follow the lead of casino developers and raise their homes. Lifting just one house would cost more than a study to examine any link between the frequent floods and the Vischer Ferry Dam. So let's imagine that there is such a study. If it concludes the old concrete dam has no measurable impact, the issue could be put to rest. If it finds otherwise, the remedy could be expensive by one estimate, as much as $100 million. But at least knowing the facts would be a place to start. The report could be essential in the effort to secure state and federal funds to modify the dam. That may not happen overnight, but it could mean the floods that have been commonplace in Schenectady for decades might become a thing of the past. Why wouldn't New York at least want to know? New Delhi: Within a week of meeting the Chief Justice of India T.S. Thakur in Delhi, Justice C.S. Karnan of the Madras High Court sent a letter to him on Tuesday in an apologetic tone that his letter dated February 15 staying the transfer order suo motu was done out of frustration resulting in his loss of mental balance. A bench of Justices J.S. Khehar and Ms R. Banumathi saved the embarrassment caused to the CJI by staying the judicial order passed by Justice Karnan. On Tuesday Justice Karnan addressed letters to the CJI Thakur and Justices Khehar and Banumathi repenting for what he did on February 15. Justice Karnan said, On February 15, I had sent an erroneous order due to my mental frustration resulting in loss of mental balance, since I was disturbed through various incidents. My disturbances can be summarised in two instances. For example, in one instance, a brother judge had intentionally kicked me and then apologised. This took place at a marriage reception at Anna Arivalaya Marriage hall, Teynampet (when he went on the basis of an invitation to the judiciary). Justice Karnan said, Now the same brother judge player another prank by untying the arm chair reservation slip of my chair, placing it on the ground and trampling it with his feet. The same was noticed by a brother and a sister judge who silently ridiculed me. I sent an official complaint to the SC/ST Commission chairman and other higher dignitaries. Both the print and electronic media reported the incident and urged me to reveal the names of the judges, but I refused to do so only to uphold the sanctity of the judiciary and also to maintain communal harmony. Now I am constrained to point out these past unfortunate happenings only because I maintain a very social outlook in the mainstream of society and to my allegiance to the high reputation of our prestigious court. He said, Hereinafter I will continue to foster a harmonious attitude to one and all and will appreciate your (CJIs) kind reciprocation. He sent copies of this letter to the Prime Minister, President of India, Union Law Minister and Congress leader Sonia Gandhi. General Election candidate Michael Lowry TD is to appeal a decision of the High Court to proceed with a case for alleged tax liability, he has told The Tipperary Star. The Independent candidate who is expected to top the poll in the Tipperary constituency in Friday's election stated that following the unanimous decision of both Tax Appeal Commissioners, he has no tax liability. And, his lawyers have asked the High Court to halt the Director of Public Prosecutions action agianst him for the alleged offences. The High Court held that the case should still proceed and that it should be dealt with in Dublin and not Tipperary, even though I have no financial liability and never resided in Dublin. I will be appealing the decision to the Court of Appeal and if necessary to the European Courts. I wish to confirm, both I personally and my company are in procession of tax clearance certificates, Deputy Lowry told The Tipperary Star this week. [February 24, 2016] Aegis Identity Software Awarded Colorado Community College System-wide Contract DENVER, Feb. 24, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Aegis Identity Software, Inc., a leading provider of Identity and Access Management solutions for the Education marketplace is proud to be selected as the identity management solution for the Colorado Community College System (CCCS). The CCCS comprises the state's largest system of higher education, with 13 colleges across Colorado serving approximately 144,000 students annually (www.cccs.edu). This award was granted after a formal RFP explored industry leading Identity Management Solutions. Aegis Identity Software's TridentHE, will provide the foundation for the CCCS identity management infrastructure. The System will utilize the power of TridentHE to provide key identity management functionality such as password management, onboarding new users, identity synchronization and auditing of user activity. This solution will positively impact CCCS' Cyber Security initiatives, enhance the student/faculty digital campus experience, an offload calls to the IT helpdesk, all of which will provide a positive ROI to the administration. "We are happy and proud to have been awarded the Colorado Community College System's Identity Management Business. TridentHE will provide this network a robust solution developed specifically for higher education, which will establish an identity management foundation supporting the evolving requirements of the system into the future," said Bob Lamvik, CEO Aegis Identity Software, Inc. About Aegis Identity Software, Inc. Aegis Identity Software is based in Denver, CO and has built a sophisticated enterprise-class software platform to serve the needs of cyber-security, digital identity management and access management. In 4+ years it has taken the education market by storm gaining product adoption in both the Higher Education and K-12 markets. Aegis Identity has brought contemporary, open systems technology to this market replacing higher-cost, legacy, and proprietary solutions which increases security and decreases operational costs at prestigious institutions throughout North America and its rapidly growing customer base. Learn more at www.aegisidentity.com and follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and Pinterest. Contact: Annie Smiley, Field Marketing Coordinator Phone: 303-222-1060 Email: [email protected] Web: www.aegisidentity.com To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/aegis-identity-software-awarded-colorado-community-college-system-wide-contract-300225013.html SOURCE Aegis Identity Software, Inc. [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [February 24, 2016] Keysight Technologies, Spreadtrum Communications Announce MoU to Collaborate on Mobile Chipset Advanced Technology BARCELONA, Spain, Feb. 24, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Keysight Technologies, Inc. (NYSE: KEYS) and Spreadtrum Communications (Spreadtrum) today announced a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to collaborate on the research and development of mobile chipset advanced technology. The Keysight and Spreadtrum teams will work together to develop test solutions for new testing needs, including mobile chipset baseband, RF module and conformance test. This strategic collaboration brings Keysight's expertise in mobile chipset test together with integrated hardware and software solutions. Spreadtrum is a worldwide top 10 fabless semiconductor company headquartered in China. The company's focus is on the advanced technology within the area of 2G, 3G and 4G wireless communication standards. Keysight has dedicated a technical team in Shanghai to work directly with the Spreadtrum teams on establishing the technology center, which is expected to open publicly in May 2016. Ron Nersesian, president and CEO of Keysight Technologies and Dr. Leo Li, Chairman and CEO of Spreadtrum Communications, signed the strategic partnership (MoU) on Feb. 24 at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. With its deep understanding of the semiconductor industry and premier local technical support, Keysight is respected as a reliable partner and the best choice for the design and test of a chipset-a total solution supplier. Spreadtrum chose Keysight as its strategic partner to collaborate on a chipset test technology center, focusing on leading technology development, chipset design flow process optimization, and enabling custoers with turnkey solutions. "With the strong support from Keysight in providing us with the latest measurement instruments and superb professional knowledge, Spreadtrum is always able to qualify chipset specifications accurately, improve development efficiency and optimize the design flow process." said Dr. Leo Li, Chairman and CEO of Spreadtrum Communications. "For future mobile devices, highly integrated, power-efficient chipsets with customizable software and reference designs in a complete turnkey platform, will enable customers to achieve faster design cycles with a lower development cost. This collaboration with Keysight will allow us to provide our customers with the best user experience. And the technology center is essential for the effective evaluation of candidate core technologies and architectures in the pursuit of chipsets and the timely demonstration of the key capabilities of future mobile chipsets." "Our strong collaboration with Spreadtrum on mobile chipsets will allow us to lead the technology exploration of China's fabless customers' real needs." said Ron Nersesian, president and CEO of Keysight Technologies. "We will provide Spreadtrum's dedicated technical teams with the measurement expertise required to design, develop and validate their new chipsets; and to set up a new technology center. The MoU also includes working closely today on MIMO, wideband DPD, VoLTE and VoWiFi test solutions, while expanding to 5G solutions as we move forward." About Spreadtrum Communications Spreadtrum Communications is a fabless semiconductor company that develops mobile chipset platforms for smartphones, feature phones and other consumer electronics products, supporting 2G, 3G and 4G wireless communications standards. Spreadtrum's solutions combine its highly integrated, power-efficient chipsets with customizable software and reference designs in a complete turnkey platform, enabling customers to achieve faster design cycles with a lower development cost. Spreadtrum's customers include global and China-based manufacturers developing mobile products for consumers in China and emerging markets around the world. Spreadtrum is a privately held company headquartered in Shanghai and an affiliate of Tsinghua Unigroup, Ltd. Additional information is available at www.spreadtrum.com. About Keysight Technologies Keysight Technologies (NYSE:KEYS) is a global electronic measurement technology and market leader helping to transform its customers' measurement experience through innovations in wireless, modular, and software solutions. Keysight's electronic measurement instruments, systems, software and services are used in the design, development, manufacture, installation, deployment and operation of electronic equipment. The business had revenues of $2.9 billion in fiscal year 2015. Information about Keysight is available at www.keysight.com. To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/keysight-technologies-spreadtrum-communications-announce-mou-to-collaborate-on-mobile-chipset-advanced-technology-300222876.html SOURCE Spreadtrum Communications, Inc. [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [February 24, 2016] Once More the United States is the Largest Market for German Electrical Exports FRANKFURT AM MAIN, Germany, February 24, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The US-business of the German electrical industry has developed dynamically in 2015. Exports increased in 2015 by 16.4 percent to 15.9 billion euros. As a result, the United States is again the largest foreign market for the industry, China slipped to second place. Overall, exports increased over the same period by 6.7 percent to 174.1 billion euros. Imports from the US grew sharply by 16.6 percent to 10.4 billion euros. After China, the country is the second most important supplier for the German market. "Trade relations between the two countries are developing energetically," says Dr. Klaus Mittelbach, Chief Executive Officer of ZVEI management. "Since the crisis of 2009, the electrical industry has increased its exports to the United States by about 80 percent." ZVEI - German Electrical and Electronic Manufacturers Association - is convinced that through the transatlantic trade partnership TTIP, the good trade relations between the two countries can be further expandd. However, it is essential that existing tariff and non-tariff trade barriers are eliminated. For the German electrical industry in particular, it is crucial that existing barriers to market entry are removed. "The market approval in the United States is in need of reform - TTIP must create a level playing field for all market participants," explains Dr. Mittelbach. "Instead of a hasty recognition of the currently different standards, harmonisation of existing technical regulations shall be aspired to." TTIP is a great opportunity for Europe. ZVEI expects the free trade agreement to spur additional stimulus for growth and investment. A joint study with the German bank Helaba shows that previous agreements have regularly been positive on exports of the electrical industry. "TTIP can not only strengthen Europe's economy," said Dr Mittelbach. "We have close historical, political and cultural ties which connect us to United States. A well-negotiated free trade agreement based on partnership may on the whole inject new vigour to the transatlantic relations. ZVEI: manufacturers association of Germanys most innovative industry The 'ZVEI - German Electrical and Electronic Manufacturers' Association' promotes the industry's joint economic, technological and environmental policy interests on a national, European and global level. The ZVEI represents more than 1,600 companies, mostly SMEs. The sector has about 850,000 domestic employees in Germany plus nearly 680,000 employees all over the world. In 2015 the turnover was Euro 178.5 billion. The electrical and electronics industry is the most innovative industry sector in Germany. One-third of the industries sales are based on new products. Every third innovation in Germanys manufacturing sector stems from solutions of this sector. More than 20 percent of all industrial R+D spending comes from this industry. Contact person for the press: Thorsten Meier, Phone: +49-162-2664902 SOURCE ZVEI - German Electrical and Electronic Manufacturers Association [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [February 23, 2016] Industrial Radiography Market by Imaging Technique, Industry, and Geography - Global Analysis and Forecast to 2020 LONDON, Feb. 23, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Industrial radiography is a method of inspecting materials for hidden flaws using the capacity of short-wavelength electromagnetic radiation (high-energy photons) to penetrate various materials. In this report, the market has been segregated on the basis of imaging techniques, application industries, and geographical regions. The market on the basis of imaging techniques has been further subdivided into film-based radiography and digital radiography. Digital radiography is further segmented into computed tomography, computed radiography, and direct radiography. Industrial radiography is widely used in petrochemical and gas, power generation, manufacturing, aerospace, automotive and transportation, and others. The automotive and transportation industry is expected to hold the largest share of the industrial radiography market during the forecast period, mainly because it provides automotive manufacturers the ability to engineer products of higher quality with tighter tolerances, while also providing them a way to inspect the products during the production process. The total market is expected to reach USD 539.0 million by 2020, at a CAGR of 8.2% between 2015 and 2020. The market for the petrochemical and gas industry is expected to grow at a CAGR of 9.1% during the forecast period mainly owing to the increasing use of industrial radiography by the petrochemical and gas industry t inspect the manufacturing process and during in-service operations above water and underwater.. The report analyzes the entire market on the basis of all the major geographical regions, namely, the Americas, Europe , Asia-Pacific , and Rest of the World which comprises the Middle East and Africa . The Americas are currently a major market for industrial radiography; however, APAC is expected to grow at the highest CAGR of 9.6% during the forecast period. A complete competitive landscape of the current market for industrial radiography is analyzed and all other details of the key players are discussed in their company profiles. The competitive information provided in this report includes key developments, core strategies adopted by various players, mergers & acquisitions, new product developments, collaborations, and joint ventures of key manufacturers along with their company profiles. Key players in the industrial radiography market are 3DX-RAY LTD. (U.K.), Anritsu Corporation ( Japan ), Bosello High Technology srl ( Italy ), PerkinElmer, Inc. (U.S.), General Electric (U.S.), FUJIFILM Holdings Corporation ( Japan ), Nikon Corporation ( Japan ), Shimadzu Corporation ( Japan ), Mettler-Toledo International Inc. ( Switzerland ), and COMET Holding AG ( Switzerland ) among others. Download the full report: https://www.reportbuyer.com/product/3359947/ About Reportbuyer Reportbuyer is a leading industry intelligence solution that provides all market research reports from top publishers http://www.reportbuyer.com For more information: Sarah Smith Research Advisor at Reportbuyer.com Email: [email protected] Tel: +44 208 816 85 48 Website: www.reportbuyer.com To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/industrial-radiography-market-by-imaging-technique-industry-and-geography---global-analysis-and-forecast-to-2020-300225164.html SOURCE ReportBuyer [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] New Delhi: JNUSU President Kanhaiya Kumar, arrested on sedition charge, had not only participated in the event where anti-national slogans were allegedly raised in the JNU campus but had "actually organised" the programme, Delhi Police on Wednesday told the Delhi High Court. In its 13-page status report filed before Justice Pratibha Rani, the police claimed that besides Kanahiya and other accused persons, some "foreign elements" were also present during the event on February 9 in JNU and they had covered their faces to hide their identity. Read: JNU row: HC adjourns hearing on Kanhaiya's bail plea till February 29 "During the course of the investigation, statements of various eye-witnesses, who were found present on the spot, were recorded. It has come during the course of investigation that accused Kanhaiya, the petitioner herein (for bail), not only participated in the said event but actually organised the same in connivance with other accused persons," the police said in its status report. It said, "It is pertinent to mention here that shockingly the incident dated February 9 records the presence of foreign (elements) with their mouths covered which sufficiently came during the course of investigation. Read: Cops to seek Kanhaiya's custody; HC defers hearing on bail plea "The investigation agency is looking for linkage between the petitioner (Kanhaiya), his co-accused and the said foreign elements who were hiding their identity by covering their faces," it said. While opposing Kanhaiya's bail plea, the police said that it was "an open secret" that the event has ramification not only within India but has "an international impact" as well. The investigation of the present case is at a stage and in case the liberty of bail is granted to the petitioner, the very line of investigation will be adversely affected, it said. Read: JNU students Umar Khalid, Anirban questioned for 5 hours after surrender The status report, which was filed in pursuance to the court's direction, said that the unedited video footage of the incident, which was procured from a private news channel, was "not the footage which is being debated as 'doctored' in various sections including petitioner as alleged by the media". "But it is a totally different and contemporaneously recorded raw unedited video footage. However, video is not the sole evidence on the basis of which the investigation is proceeding with," it said. Read: Court violence: Lawyer Vikram Chauhan claims innocence, says I am not a goon The status report was filed in the court during the hearing on Kanhaiya's bail plea which has now been posted for February 29. Police alleged that Kanhaiya had not cooperated during the interrogation and he is "likely to commit same/similar offences if released on bail". It said that the probe regarding source of finance for all the activities which resulted into the alleged incident was going on and police is also examining the CCTV footage of the cameras which were provided by the university. "After the seditious act of the petitioner (Kanhaiya) and the co-accused, the said anti-national perception has percolated in other parts of the country and there are stray instances wherein processions were taken out 'honouring' the 'martyrdom' of Afzal Guru, Maqbool Bhat etc. "If the petitioner is released on bail, he can become a relying point to encourage such anti-India movements which would not only spread disaffection but would also be contemptuous since the conviction recorded by the competent courts including the Supreme Court is termed as 'judicial killing' which according to the petitioner and co-accused persons is the result of 'Brahminical collective conscience," it said. Police said they were analysing CCTV footage provided by JNU authorities and were probing as to whether "any person with a possible anti-national background entered and or stayed in the complex which may have a direct nexus with commencement of a possible anti-national movement in the country since some persons hiding their faces are found to be present". It contended that if Kanhaiya is granted bail, it would send a "very wrong signal" to the students community across the country that such alleged anti-India activities can be conducted with immunity and eventually one comes out after imprisonment of couple of weeks or days. The report also said that police have identified the students who were leading the procession and were found shouting slogans which were "anti-national, anti-constitutional, against the organs of the government and against the sovereignty and integrity of the nation". Police said they were conducting a probe regarding the persons and organisations which were behind such "non-educational activities in the campus and the object behind it in larger national perspective". [February 24, 2016] Batelco Successfully Obtains Indian Freezing Orders Against Assets of Related Parties of Chinnakannan Sivasankaran and Siva Limited to Enforce its USD 210 Million Judgment MUMBAI, India, February 24, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Batelco Group (Ticker: BATELCO ), the international Telecommunications Group with operations across 14 countries, has successfully obtained Indian freezing orders from the Madras High Court against certain Indian assets of Chinnakannan Sivasankaran (Mr Siva) and his related parties namely: his ex-wife Mrs Jayalakshmi Sivasankaran, his father R.C.K. Vallal, his mother Chinnakannan Chandrammal, his long-term associates Baskaran, Nithyavathi Venkatesan and his related company, Siva Limited. The value of the assets frozen by such orders is estimated to be approximately 500 Crore (US$ 74 million). (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160216/333596LOGO ) The orders that have been made by the Madras High Court are intended to py down a substantial UK judgment that was awarded to BMIC Limited (a fully owned subsidiary of Batelco) by the English High Court of Justice totaling US$ 212 million in June 2014 (the UK Judgement). The UK Judgement was awarded against Mr Siva and Siva Limited, following BMIC's successful litigation against them (the defendants). The UK Judgment found that the defendants failed to honour a Settlement Agreement signed with BMIC in November 2011, relating to a commercial venture into which such parties had entered in 2009. According to the UK Judgment, full payment should have been made to BMIC by the defendants by 26 June 2014. To date the defendants have failed to pay such sum to BMIC. Ihab Hannawi, Group CEO of Batelco said: "We fully expect all of the respondents to honour the Indian Court Orders and pay to BMIC the monies owing to it under the UK judgement. We will pursue all legal avenues available to us against such parties to secure this outstanding payment." [BMIC acquired a 42.7% stake of Indian registered S Tel in 2009. S Tel had been awarded a 2G Licence in 2008. Following the cancelation of 2G licences by India's Supreme Court in February 2012, BMIC sought to implement an agreed put option which under certain circumstances, such as the cancelation of its 2G licence, or in the event of a failure of Siva to secure financing, would ensure Siva bought back the shares acquired by BMIC at the price paid originally. BMIC and the defendants entered into the binding Settlement Agreement to give effect to this commitment which contained a promise by Mr Sivasankaran and Siva Limited to make payment to BMIC in agreed circumstances.] SOURCE Batelco Group [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [February 24, 2016] International Business Times Announces New UK Editor-in-Chief LONDON, February 24, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- International Business Times, a fast growing digital global news publication owned by IBT Media, today announced that John Crowley has been named as the new Editor-in-Chief for the UK edition. (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160201/327796LOGO ) Crowley will oversee the UK edition of IBT Media's flagship title as of March 29th and will be based out of IBT Media's newly expanded Canary Wharf office. Most recently, Crowley served as Digital Editor EMEA at The Wall Street Journal where he managed the output across the title. He will report directly to Co-Founder and Managing Director of IBT Media for EMEA, Dev Pragad. "John is a world-class editor who thrives on the dynamism of the ever-changing modern media landscape," said Pragad. "He's a terrific shaper of stories, a great communicator and a pioneer of digital innovation. His hire represents a significant step forward in our evolution an we are thrilled to have him join us." "He is the ideal leader to take us to the next level," added Global Editor-In-Chief, Peter S. Goodman. "His dedication to exploring stories using all the digital tools, plus his truly global perspective will yield terrific and engrossing journalism. We are greatly excited to gain his talents and vision." "I am thrilled to be joining International Business Times at an exciting point in its development as a global business news organisation. Like any editor, I want us to break more exclusives and get refreshing new angles on stories, but as the media landscape changes before our eyes, I also want to explore innovation and new ways to tell stories," said Crowley. International Business Times in the UK is the second largest edition of IBT globally and Crowley joins a growing team. In recent weeks, IBT Media has made significant hires to strengthen its corporate management team and hired Justin Evans, as Director of Strategy, and Greg Witham as its first Chief Operating Officer for EMEA to help steer its continued growth. "We sought a leading figure in digital to accompany us on our journey to become the most trusted source of information, and John's track record in news, his deep grasp of and passion for the digital media landscape makes him the perfect leader for our flagship brand in this critical market," added Pragad. About International Business Times: International Business Times is a trusted source of real-time news, intelligence and analysis on the forces reshaping global and national economies. It reaches over 55 million people every month in seven global editions and four different languages. International Business Times is owned by IBT Media. For more information, visit: ibtimes.co.uk or corp.ibt.com Contact: Sharon Ezzeldin +44(0)920769665 [email protected] SOURCE International Business Times [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [February 24, 2016] 1World Online Most Accurately Predicts South Carolina Primary SAN JOSE, Calif., Feb. 24, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- 1World predicted better than any other entity in the country the Republican primary results in South Carolina; only 1World predicted Donald Trump would get 33% of the vote with Marco Rubio second and Ted Cruz third. The prediction and results, as published prior to the election, were as follows: PREDICTION ACTUAL Trump 33% 33% Rubio 20% 22% Cruz 19% 22% Kasich 12% 8% Bush 10% 8% Carson 6% 7% 1World's research team, led by Chief Research Officer (and University of South Carolina Journalism Professor) Dr. Augie Grant, conducted an analysis that combined the results of 15 selected polls conducted among South Carolina voters since February 1st. The results from each poll were weighted to adjust for sample size and response rate. These results were then adjusted to account for individual candidate trends, projections of voter participation, and allocation of undecided voters. As a combination of weighted results that includes projections regarding undecided voters and short-term trends, the margin of error can't be determined; but, what you end up with is a simple, numerical projection of the final South Carolina vote count. 1World methodology includes spot polling on trending aspects of a campaign using its innovative digital intelligence platform, which includes tools for polling, surveying, quizzes, debates, and analytics. In this primary race, 1World introduces "1PoP," a new Poll of Polls methodology. Weighted adjustment and spot polling are also used as needed. The next 1World prediction is scheduled for the South Carolina Democratic primary election on February 27th. Of the 45 polls captured for this Republican primary election in South Carolina, closeness was measured as a sum of the squared deviations. This partial measure of accuracy showed 1World was a close second to Emerson University, but Emerson incorrectly picked Cruz to finish second, ahead of Rubio, and thus missed all the implications that carries for the Republican election race. "Polling, whether it is for political elections or for corporate research, has become a very difficult proposition," said Dr. Grant, "In today's fractured world, it takes cutting edge research and listening to signals others might miss to make accurate predictions." 1World will partner with select newspapers and online publishers to do co-branded or white-labeled polling for that publisher's local state primary or general elections, at both the Presidential and Congressional levels. Please contact 1World to learn more. About 1World Online 1World Online has developed and maintains a Web Engagement & Analytics Platform and also has a world-class research competency that helps publishers, corporations, or campaign teams perform cutting-edge insightful research. 1World is headquartered in Silicon Valley and has offices in San Jose, CA and on the USA East coast. Internationally, 1World has operations in Europe, India, Latin America and Singapore. Please visit us at http://www.1Worldonline.com or contact us at [email protected]. To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/1world-online-most-accurately-predicts-south-carolina-primary-300225320.html SOURCE 1World Online [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [February 24, 2016] HomeActions and IndustryNewsletters Announce Major Improvements to E-Newsletters GREEN COVE SPRINGS, Fla., Feb. 24, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- HomeActions and its IndustryNewsletters division announce Version 3 of their exclusive e-newsletter product, putting it on the cutting edge of the e-newsletter industry. The companies provide professionally written articles and a system that lets a range of professionals send out e-newsletters to clients and prospects. They primarily serve real estate professionals, payroll companies, accounting firms and estate planning attorneys. With Version 3, the newsletter system becomes even more customizable and user-friendly. Among the improvements: A more contemporary look for the user interface, and a better design for tablets and smartphones. A cleaner and more functional client dashboard that shows readership stats at a glance. A completely revamped image system that lets users choose among three different sizes of images to put into their newsletters. A smoother, more intuitive system to allow users to add their own content to company-provided content. The ability to easily remove company-provided content and replace it with an article from extensive article libraries available to sers. The addition of a completely new Web banner library so users can easily find and post banners to make their newsletters even more useful. And as always, help is just a click away. The system comes with an easy-to-use, automated help feature that lets users follow along step by step as the tool gives interactive answers to questions. Barry Friedman, CPA, founder and CEO of HomeActions and IndustryNewsletters, said, "Our clients are busy and successful professionals, and they want a system that lets them communicate with their clients with perfect ease while providing sophisticated options without any hassle. That has always been our goal, and with Version 3 our system is even better than ever." About HomeActions and IndustryNewsletters IndustryNewsletters and HomeActions were founded by Barry Friedman, CPA, who managed many CPA firms for over 25 years and subsequently sold them to American Express. He then created BizActions LLC, which became the largest marketing e-newsletter company for CPA firms and payroll companies, and he sold that to Thomson Reuters in 2012. He has over 15 years' experience in the email newsletter space. HomeActions and IndustryNewsletters are virtual companies that employ more than 30 people. Both are headquartered in Green Cove Springs, Florida. For more information, please visit our websites, HomeActions.net and IndustryNewsletters.com, or contact Richard J. Koreto, chief content officer, at 845-642-4314 or Email. To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/homeactions-and-industrynewsletters-announce-major-improvements-to-e-newsletters-300225209.html SOURCE HomeActions [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [February 24, 2016] Women to Watch Media Announces Growth With World Class Guests, Strategic Partners and New Contributors PHILADELPHIA, Feb. 24, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Women to Watch Media, one of the fastest growing media platforms focused on women in leadership, today announced their upcoming guest lineup, brand partners and expanded list of contributors. The company also announced that Heather Kernahan joins the team as a strategic advisor and partner. Launched in 2012 by Susan Foley Rocco, Women to Watch Media has grown from a radio show reaching 30,000 listeners in the Philadelphia Tri-State area on WWDB Talk 860 radio to a multimedia platform with access to millions through podcasts, partnerships and global connections. "The women in leadership ecosystem is expanding and Women to Watch Media is committed to advancing the conversation," said Susan Foley Rocco, founder of Women to Watch Media. "Our mission is to inspire and encourage more women to pursue leadership roles worldwide and we will continue to innovate as we move forward in fulfilling our mission." Upcoming Guests Include Best Selling Authors, Successful Entrepreneurs, C-Suite Executives and Thought Leaders from Around the Globe World renowned authors, global business leaders and high profile start-ups are joining Women to Watch Media each week to tell their stories. Upcoming guests include: Amy Cuddy, Author of the New York Times bestseller Presence and TED speaker April 11, 2016. Michelle Zatlyn, Co-Founder of CloudFlare March 7, 2016. Maggie Fox, SVP, Digital & Content at SAP May 2, 2016. Ingrid Vanderveldt, Founder and Chairwomen of Empowering a Billion Women by 2020 May 16, 2016. Maria Black, President of ADP Total Source June 13, 2016. Previous guests include: Sallie Krawcheck, Founder of Ellevate Women's Network Jaclyn Baumgartner, CEO of Boatsetter Tracey Welson-Rosman, Founder of TechGirlz Martha Raddatz, AC's Chief Global Affairs Correspondent Brand Partnerships Fuel Growth and Ecosystem Expansion Women to Watch Media attracts brand partners who are eager to reach women business leaders and who support the mission of equipping more women to pursue leadership positions globally. Women to Watch Media sponsors include: Holy Redeemer Health System Vice President, Head of Surgery and Founder of The Healing Consciousness Foundation, Dr. Beth Baughman DuPree has a regular feature on the Women to Watch Media show. Holy Redeemer is a Philadelphia area leader in the continuum of HealthCare, Home-Care and Life-Care, and is committed to supporting talented women serving in leadership roles. Entrust Financial Joslyn G. Ewart is the founding principal of Entrust Financial, LLC and has a monthly segment on the Women to Watch Media program. Entrust Financial partners with a select group of women and their families, assisting them in the achievement of all that is important to them, while having a strong focus on the education of money matters for women. CANDOR Consulting Tish Squillario, CEO and Founder of CANDOR Consulting, Author of "HeadTrash" and Founder of "The Roadmap" has a monthly segment on the Women to Watch Media program. CANDOR Consulting helps others achieve both personal and professional greatness with a focus on leadership development. Mount Saint Joseph Academy - Mount Saint Joseph Academy has been educating women as founders for over 155 years, and is proud to support the vision of sharing stories which encourages women of every age to be agents of change in the world. Marketron is the media industry's leading provider of business software solutions and services, with many exceptional women serving in leadership roles. CRO Deborah Esayian, a previous guest of the show, is a staunch supporter of women in leadership and is the driving force behind Marketron's sponsorship of Women to Watch Media. New Contributors Join Women to Watch Media also welcomes new contributors. Manvi Pant is a new contributor and also Operations Analyst and Global Data Steward at A.T. Kearney. Manvi is based in India and brings stories and topics that focus on the successes of young women in India and the surrounding countries. Julie Green is the second new contributor and is Senior Sales Director at etouches, a cloud event management software company. Green's focus will be on the successful endeavors of young women from across the US. This year promises to be a landmark year for women in leadership and Women to Watch Media will continue to aggressively expand its content, partnerships and contributors so that we're moving from conversation to action with the results being of expansion of women entrepreneurs and business leaders. About Women to Watch Media Women to Watch Media is one of the fastest growing media platforms for women in leadership. Founded in 2012 by Susan Foley Rocco, Women to Watch Media has featured interviews with more than 150 business leaders. The purpose is to reveal the real stories behind their titles in order to inspire and encourage more women to pursue leadership roles. Today, Women to Watch Media is a rapidly expanding media company reaching business leaders in every sector and in every part of the world. This content was issued through the press release distribution service at Newswire.com. For more info visit: http://www.newswire.com To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/women-to-watch-media-announces-growth-with-world-class-guests-strategic-partners-and-new-contributors-300225451.html SOURCE Women to Watch Media [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [February 24, 2016] Rohde & Schwarz Wins GTI Gold Award for Its User Experience Test Solution for TD-LTE Mobile Services BARCELONA, Spain, February 24, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Rohde & Schwarz, a world leader in all areas of RF test and measurement, has been awarded the Global TD-LTE Initiative (GTI) Award for "Outstanding Contribution on Innovative Technical Product." Each year at Mobile World Congress, the GTI awards acknowledge the achievements and success of industry players participating in the TD-LTE ecosystem. Rohde & Schwarz has won this highly esteemed award for the third year in a row. This year, the company's user experience test solution consisting of the leading multi-standard test platform R&S CMW500 and the unique sequencer software tool R&S CMWrun has been singled out in the category "Outstanding Contribution onInnovative Technical Product." Anton Messmer, Vice President Mobile Radio Tester at Rohde & Schwarz, commented, "We are proud to receive this award for the third time as it is a further recognition of our commitment to GTI. We aim to provide our customers with the market's highest-performance solutions for their applications and to help them improve the TD-LTE user experience by offering an easy-to-perform lifetime test." With this award-winning user experience test solution, Rohde & Schwarz addresses the growing demand for test, verification and optimization of end-to-end applications that goes far beyond pure RF testing. Mobile network operators, device manufacturers and app developers are able to ensure and improve the quality of experience for a wide variety of mobile services. The solution, which is based on R&S CMW500 and R&S CMWrun, provides a detailed view of parameters such as audio quality, signaling traffic, IP data traffic and power consumption on a single platform. The solution is another milestone in supporting the TD-LTE mobile industry with innovative test and measurement solutions. Contact: Katrin Wehle, Phone: +49-89-4129-11378 E-mail: [email protected] SOURCE Rohde & Schwarz [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [February 24, 2016] Minister Carr Meets with Global Counterparts to Strengthen Energy Relations HOUSTON, TX, Feb. 24, 2016 /PRNewswire/ - The Honourable Jim Carr, Canada's Minister of Natural Resources, today was joined by Pedro Joaquin Coldwell, Mexico's Secretary of Energy, the Honourable Josh Frydenberg, Australia's Minister for Resources, Energy and Northern Australia, and Dr. Yuval Steinitz, Israel's Minister of National Infrastructure, Energy and Water, for a panel discussion during Cambridge Energy Research Associates (CERA) Week 2016 in Houston, Texas. (Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160224/337231) Minister Carr highlighted Canada as one of the world's most reliable and sustainable sources for energy products, services and technologies. Minister Carr took the opportunity to reiterate one of the Government of Canada's key priorities: to ensure resource industries can achieve market access sustainably and remain a source of jobs, prosperity and opportunity. He also emphasized Canada's unique position to provide cleaner fossil fuels and technologies to a world that increasingly values sustainable practices and low-carbon processes. Minister Car also discussed key actions recently taken by the Government of Canada with respect to energy. The first is joining Mission Innovation the new global initiative bringing 20 countries together in support of clean energy research and development. The second is the Government's interim approach for major resource project reviews to restore confidence and certainty in Canada's environmental assessment process. And third, the signing of the North American Memorandum of Understanding in Winnipeg. While in Houston, Minister Carr held private discussions with each of his fellow panelists, as well as the Honourable Tord Lien, Norway's Minister of Petroleum and Energy, and the Honourable Margaret McCuaig-Boyd, Alberta's Minister of Energy. He also met with Secretary Joaquin Coldwell and U.S. Secretary of Energy, Dr. Ernest Moniz, to discuss the latest actions in support of the recently signed North American Memorandum of Understanding on Climate Change and Energy Collaboration. Quotes "Canada remains one of the world's most attractive developers of reliable and sustainable energy but we can do even better. We can reset the course for our economy to create opportunities for years to come through initiatives like Mission Innovation. By reinvigorating energy innovation through investment in transformative, clean energy research and development, Canada can be both a major energy producer and a world leader in combating climate change." Jim Carr Canada's Minister of Natural Resources Associated Links Canada's Participation in Mission Innovation Government of Canada Moves to Restore Trust in Environmental Assessment Follow us on Twitter: @NRCan (http://twitter.com/nrcan) NRCan's news releases and backgrounders are available at www.news.gc.ca. SOURCE Natural Resources Canada [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] BENGALURU: There can be serious trouble for the former Lokayukta Justice Bhaskar Rao after sources told this newspaper that the government may reportedly give its nod to the Special Investigation Team (SIT), which is investigating the alleged extortion and corruption racket in the Lokayukta, to prosecute Justice Rao in the First Information Report (FIR) 56/2015. The FIR was registered by the Lokayukta police in July last year against former joint commissioner and public relations officer, Lokayukta Syed Riyazathullah, Ashok Kumar, Srinivasa Gowda, Shankare Gowda, V. Bhaskar alias 420 Bhaskar and Justice Raos son Y. Ashwin in the extortion racket. The case was later handed over to the SIT. The SIT had sought permission from the government under Section 197 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) to prosecute the former anti-corruption ombudsman and retired chief justice of Karnataka High Court. The 500-odd page document, which was submitted to the Chief Secretary 12 days ago under Section 197 of the CrPC, has documented details of the case with also proves alleged abetment to the corruption scandal by Justice Rao. It is being examined by the Department of Personnel & Administrative Reforms (DPAR) and will be sent to the Governor, who is the appointing authority after the government gives its nod to the SIT, said and official source. The SIT has sought government permission to chargesheet the former Lokayukta under the sections mentioned in the FIR against the accused, which include Section 8 of the Prevention of Corruption Act (PCA), Sections 384 (extortion) r/w 419 (punishment for impersonation), 420 (cheating) r/w 120b (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). The SIT is also likely to chargesheet Justice Rao under Sections 202 (intentional omission to give information of offence by person bound to inform) and 217 (public servant disobeying direction of law with intent to save person from punishment or property from forfeiture) of the IPC. Adi case: Impleading application filed In a new twist to the ongoing case before the High Court with regard to the petition filed by Justice Subhash B Adi, challenging the motion adopted against him by the Assembly for his ouster as Upa Lokayukta, an impleading application has been filed over the alleged tampering on the webpage uploaded on the site of the Legislative Assembly on November 27, 2015. The High Court on earlier occasion had expressed concern while seeking clarification over the allegation of tampering of the web-post in the official website of Karnataka Legislature - http://www.kla.kar.nic.in and further sought details of records in the web server. Advocate K.V. Dhananjay said that now a High Court in this country is now faced with the task of finding out whether the transcript of the proceeding in the Legislative Assembly placed before it is forged. The application is likely to be listed shortly in the High Court. Prime Minister Narendra Modi flanked by parliamentary affairs minister Venkaiah Naidu and MoS Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, Jitendra Singh and Rajiv Pratap Rudy addressing the media on the first day of budget session in New Delhi on Tuesday. (Photo: PTI) New Delhi: Bracing for a stormy Budget Session of Parliament, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday pinned hopes on a constructive app-roach from the Opposition, even as he asked NDA MPs to take the Opposition head-on on the JNU issue, which is listed to come up in the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday. The issue came up for discussion during the BJP parliamentary party executive meeting and also the NDA leaders meeting. The Prime Minister, it was learnt, said that the ruling alliance leaders should not be seen on the backfoot on the issue and that MPs should debate aggressively. A short-duration discussion on the situation arising in Central institutions of higher education with specific reference to Jawah-arlal Nehru University and University of Hyderabad is listed to come up in the Upper House. Talking to the media earlier, Mr Modi said he was counting on friends from the Opposition parties who had shown a positive attitude during various interactions. He also said that there had been one-on-one talks with Opposition leaders. I am sure Parliament will be utilised for constructive debate and there will be intensive discussion on the countrys hope and aspirations, he said. PM: Opposition must criticise government Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said that the Opposition should severely criticise the government and highlight its shortcomings, which will only strengthen democracy. The Budget Session begins at a time when the Opposition is training its guns at the government over the suicide by dalit student Rohith Vemula at Hyderabad University, the row over JNU, and the violent agitation for reservations by Jats in Haryana. While the President didnt touch on these contentious issues, he said the government will constantly strive for the smooth conduct of parliamentary business. The President spoke for about 75 minutes. He said India was a haven of stability in a turbulent global economy. The President also said the government was taking steps for a mutually respectful relationship with Pakistan. New Delhi/Chandigarh: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday took stock of the situation in violence-hit Haryana even as the Manohar Lal Khattar-headed state limped back to normalcy following the Jat agitation for reservation. Union home minister Rajnath Singh briefed the Prime Minister on the Haryana situation. Mr Khattar, who was heckled and shown black flags by a crowd when he visited Rohtak, the epicentre of Jat quota stir, apparently described the Jat reservation issue as sensitive during his meeting with the Union minister M. Venkaiah Naidu-headed high-powered committee in New Delhi. The BJP committee is looking into the pros and cons of various options on the quota demand for the Jats in government jobs. This committee has called BJPs Kurukshetra MP Rajkumar Saini, an OBC, who is opposed to Jat reservation in his state and was issued a show cause notice for airing his views on the issue. The ruling BJP in Haryana has assured the agitators that a bill in this regard would come up during the Assembly session beginning from March 17. Hyderabad: The government has failed to pay input subsidy to farmers, because, it says, the Centre has not released drought aid. While the government had sought Rs 3,000 crore drought aid, the Centre has announced Rs 790 crore so far. New Delhi has released Rs 53 crore. Farmers who suffered huge losses because their crops withered away due to the consecutive droughts are awaiting the subsidy so as to invest afresh on crops. Farmers are entitled for an input subsidy of Rs 10,000 per acre in drought-hit mandals. The government had declared 231 mandals as drought-hit in November last. The state government received a communication from the Centre last week that there is a shortage of funds meant for drought aid, and it would release the money when it is available. The state government is dependent on Centre to provide input subsidy to farmers due to dearth of funds. If the Centre does not pay up, the chances of farmers receiving input subsidy till the kharif season in June looks remote. Agriculture minister Pocharam Srinivas Reddy said, We are trying to pay input subsidy by June. If the Centre releases grants at the earliest, it would be done faster. According to Home Ministry data, there were 330 incidents of communal violence between January and June, 2015. (Photo: PTI) New Delhi: Uttar Pradesh witnessed the maximum number of communal violence incidents and killings in the country last year followed by Bihar and Maharashtra, the Parliament was informed. Data on this, in a written reply format, was shared by Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju in the Rajya Sabha. As per the data for communal incidents for 2015, a maximum of 155 such incidents took place in Uttar Pradesh in which 22 people were killed and 419 injured. In Bihar, 20 people were killed and 282 injured in 71 such incidents followed by 14 deaths in Maharashtra in 105 such incidents. In Maharashtra, 323 people were injured. The data said nine people were killed in 92 communal violence incidents in Madhya Pradesh and 177 injured. Eight people each were killed in Gujarat and Karnataka in these incidents. While 105 incidents took place in Karnataka injuring 337 people during 2015, 55 took place in Gujarat injuring 163 people. Accusing the Haryana government of having completely failed in controlling the violent mob, the traders and shopkeepers compared the arson and violence with partition riots of 1947. (Photo: PTI) Rohtak: The business community in Rohtak, which faced extensive property damage in arson and violence during the pro-quota Jat stir, on Wednesday pegged their loss at Rs 1,000 cr in this district alone and sought a CBI probe into the incidents. Accusing the Haryana government of having completely failed in controlling the violent mob, the traders and shopkeepers compared the arson and violence with partition riots of 1947. The trading community sought licences for keeping arms and ammunition to protect their property in future as their faith in administration has been completely shattered. We want a CBI probe into the whole incident. We want to know who were behind the incidents which caused heavy financial losses to us, Ashok Bhambri, president, Rohtak Hotel and Banquet Association said. Mr Bhambri, whose hotel was ransacked, alleged the security personnel acted just as mute spectators when their property was being looted and burnt. He said most businessmen after partition shifted and settled in Rohtak. An FIR was registered in Rohtak against Virender and Man Singh Dalal, who also allegedly figured in the taped conversation, under various IPC sections, including those relating to sedition and criminal conspiracy. (Photo: PTI) Chandigarh: The Haryana police on Wednesday booked Virender Singh, a senior aide of former chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, on sedition charges for allegedly inciting violence during the recent Jat quota agitation. An FIR was registered in Rohtak against Virender and Man Singh Dalal, who also allegedly figured in the taped conversation, under various IPC sections, including those relating to sedition and criminal conspiracy. An audio clip of a controversial conversation between Virender and a retired captain recently surfaced during the Jats agitation, but while he (Virender) earlier admitted the voice in the clip was his, claimed the conversation was doctored. He said he had not talked about instigating Jats or anyone else. Sources said the FIR was registered on the complaint of Bhiwani resident Pankaj Kumar. Tom's Guide is supported by its audience. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Heres why you can trust us. Best Android games of 2022 Here are the best Android games for your phone or tablet. Some games are free, others are paid, but every one of them is awesome. New Delhi: Tamil Nadu chief minister Jayalalithaa could not satisfactorily explain the legal sources of her income, which was disproportionate to her known sources of income, and she was rightly convicted and sentenced to four years imprisonment by John Michael DCunha, a trial judge in Bengaluru, argued senior counsel Dushyant Dave, appearing for Karnataka. Continuing his submissions before a bench of Justices Pinaki Chandra Ghose and Amitav Roy, counsel argued that under the provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act the burden of proving the legal means of income was on the accused but they could not do so. He said the trial court had rendered a finding on each count of assets and expenses and came to the conclusion that the disproportionate assets totalled Rs 53 crore after accounting for Rs 13 crores towards expenses. He alleged that the three other accused who were staying in the Poes Garden residence were taking bags of currency notes and depositing them in banks and that this was not properly accounted for. Whether the amount was received from party cadres or whether a loan was received from a bank, the main accused, Ms Jayalalithaa, being a public servant, ought to have informed the authorities about the receipt of such income. They chose not to report to the authorities and whatever defence they had presented in court was only an afterthought. Reading the trial court judgment relating to the marriage of Sudhakaran, counsel said that right from the erection of pandals to the performance of marriage, the reception of guests and the accommodation of guests, all expenses on the marriage were met by A1 [Ms Jayalalithaa] except to the extent of Rs 14 lakh, which is said to have been contributed by the father of the bride. He said the court was of the view that the Rs 6.45 crore amount spent on the marriage, as determined by the DVAC, appeared exorbitant and that it had arrived at an amount of Rs 3 crore even by modest and conservative estimation. At this juncture Justice Ghose made a revelation that judge Cunha had committed a mathematical error by not including Rs 45 lakhs from the original figure of Rs 6.45 crore. Hitherto it has been the contention of Karnataka and others that the high court had committed grave mathematical mistakes, but today the apex court pointed out a calculation error in the trial court judgment. The bench asked the counsel to find out whether in Tamil Nadu there is a provision or a rule that mandates a public servant to disclose gifts or other sources of income to the competent authority, and whether in the absence of any rule whether the general rule can be applied in such cases. Arguments will continue on Thursday. Troy Hunt, a security researcher uncovered a vulnerability in the NissanConnect app, which can allow attackers to connect to a car if they know their car's ID number. After that, they can hijack the car's air conditioning and heating systems. The fault lies in the complete lack of authentication for the application that enhances the car's dashboard with Internet-connected features. The vehicle identification number (VIN), which is written on each Nissan Leaf's windshield, can be copied by anyone that passes by that car. However, the VIN is composed of characters that refer to the brand, make of car, and the country where it was manufactured. Only the last five digits vary between different Leaf cars in the same region, so someone could just build a script to attack all of the Nissan Leafs in a given region. "There's nothing to stop someone from scripting a process that goes through every 100,000 possible cars and tries and turn the air conditioning on in every one," said Troy Hunt. "They would then get a response that would confirm which vehicles exist." The security expert also noted that attackers don't even need to use the NissanConnect app, because they can deliver the attack through a web browser by spoofing the app. The Australia-based researcher tested this on a Nissan owned by his friend Scott Helme, who lives in the U.K. "As I was talking to Troy on Skype, he pasted the web address into his browser and then maybe 10 seconds later I heard an internal beep in the car, said Helme. "The heated seat then turned on, the heated steering wheel turned on. And I could hear the fans spin up and the air-conditioning unit turn on." Hunt said that the test didn't work when the car was in motion, but it did show the owner's registered username, which could help reveal their identity. Times and distances of recent journeys were also revealed. When Helme unregistered the app, Hunt's attack no longer worked. This is why Hunt suggested that this vulnerability could be easily fixed if the company disables the ConnectNissan service. The researcher said that although this isn't a life-threatening attack, it could be used in ways that could put the cars' owners in danger. For instance, if the attackers hijack the car this way, they could see over the course of a week where the driver goes to work, and then they could drain the car's battery to make it so the driver can't get back home. Hunt alerted Nissan about the flaw a month ago, but so far he hasn't gotten a proper response about it, so he decided to make it public to force the company to fix the issue. He said he has already seen some Canadian Leaf owners share information about this vulnerability online, so the issue is already out there, whether he would've kept it a secret or not. This is why sometimes security researchers, who discover vulnerabilities in some products, can't wait for the companies to provide a fix if it takes longer than a few months and it looks like they are dragging their feet. Usually, it's not just one person that finds that vulnerability, but many others, who exploit it for their own purposes; therefore allowing the company to drag the process of fixing the issue doesn't mean that others aren't taking advantage of that vulnerability during that time. This case also shows that although most car manufacturers are rapidly trying to build connected cars, electric vehicles that are almost completely controlled by software, and even self-driving cars, where the danger of software insecurity is even bigger, they aren't taking security all that seriously. Software security in these modern cars should be treated at least as seriously, if not more so (because software security is so hard), as any other safety mechanism in a car. A software feature that could slightly increase the owner's convenience in using such a modern car could be turned into something that's used to crash that car. That's why car manufacturers need to think very carefully about each new software feature that they add to their cars, and it always needs to be written in a context of high security. Lucian Armasu is a Contributing Writer for Tom's Hardware. You can follow him at @lucian_armasu. Follow us on Facebook, Google+, RSS, Twitter and YouTube. After 20 years as a staple of the Australian music scene, Australian cable music channel Channel V Australia will cease operations this week. The news comes amid changes to the way Foxtels dedicated music channels are organised. In an official statement given to The Music, a Foxtel spokesperson confirmed the cable organisation will be discontinuing the Channel V brand. Channel V will merge with Channel V Hits and will become a solely music video-based channel. We are making some changes to our music channels on Foxtel, the spokesperson said. You will start to see some changes to Channel [V] from this Saturday, February 27. From Friday, March 25 we will no longer use the Channel [V] brand and will change to V Hits and V Hits +2. V Hits features a line-up of music videos and countdowns, including the latest hits from Australia and around the world. The spokesperson confirmed there wont be any changes to Foxtels other music channels MAX, CMC, and Smooth. In a leaked internal email published by Pedestrian.tv, Foxtels Executive Director of Television, Brian Walsh, said the changes are part of a bid to keep the organisation match fit in an increasingly competitive landscape. Over the past several years music clips have become ubiquitous with availability on services like YouTube, whilst linear broadcast audiences for music channels have been in steady decline, he wrote. In order to run the Foxtel music services more efficiently we have decided to merge Channel [V] and [V] Hits. The new service will be called [V] Hits and we will create a +2 of this channel. [V] Hits will continue to be a clip based channel with no long form content. Decades of music, concerts, punters, rock-stars, laughs, gaffs, jokes, tears, smiles and mostly love went into a sensational place. Danny Clayton (@DannyjClayton) February 23, 2016 But don't believe the hype. Danny Clayton (@DannyjClayton) February 23, 2016 In 4 months time I'll celebrate my 14th year at Channel V. That is nearly half my life and 1000s of hrs of live TV. I loved every moment Danny Clayton (@DannyjClayton) February 23, 2016 Channel V is closing on Friday. Must have been a tough call to make for MGMT. 20yrs of cutting edge TV, sad to see it go. Osher Gunsberg (@oshergunsberg) February 23, 2016 After 20 years of music television, @channelv says goodbye this friday..Thanks for the memories and the great times. I loved working wit you Jane Gazzo (@JaneGazzo) February 23, 2016 Love to all the talented people at @channelv It must be tought times for the final curtain. Loved working with you luv you guys x Jane Gazzo (@JaneGazzo) February 23, 2016 Live tweeting my first day of #redundancy. Will probably be mostly GIFs #vtrending pic.twitter.com/au3zHJAj2y Josh Newman (@joshnewmania) February 23, 2016 This change will begin to take place this Saturday, with the channel branding completed by late March. I would like to thank the music team for their hard work and dedication in making Channel [V] an integral part of the Australian music landscape throughout the years. Channel V presenters Danny Clayton and Osher Gunsberg have taken to social media to hail the iconic music channel where they got their start. But whilst Clayton insists hell be celebrating his 14th year at Channel V in four months time, other staffers do appear to have been let go. In the leaked email, Walsh thanked those team members leaving us today, adding, You leave with our best wishes for your onward journey. Meanwhile, Josh Newman, who previously worked in Channel Vs digital video department, has been live-tweeting his redundancy. Tone Deaf have reached out to Foxtel for official comment. Universities and tertiary education centres around the country are in the midst of their exciting O-Week celebrations, welcoming new generations of young minds and introducing them to the privilege of higher learning. And for students lucky enough to be attending the University of Sydney, theyll be sung into the next phase of their lives by a man who knows the meaning of struggling and never giving up in the face of adversity. Of course were talking about Shannon Noll. As Junkee reports, the University of Sydney Union has revealed the greatest Australian Idol runner-up we could ever ask for will be playing a surprise gig for Sydney Unis O-Week. The performance is set to go down at 12.30pm this afternoon, so if youre looking for a message of hope and something about a big, black, shiny car, head on down to the University of Sydney to see Nollsy in the flesh. The gig comes as a new Nollsy-centred petition begins to generate steam online. Apparently incensed that Nollsy was once again passed over in favour of Guy Sebastian, Brisbane native Patrick Connors wants to send Nollsy to Eurovision. Can you honestly think of one man that embodies the Australian ideals of persistence and mateship more than Shannon Noll?, Connors writes. A measly fifth place wouldnt be enough for Nollsy, the man would very well lead us to 1st given his calibre. At the time of writing, the Change.org petition has managed to accrue more than 350 signatures, showing the amount of faith and trust the Australian people have in Nollsy as the artist who can bring Australia its much-deserved Eurovision glory. Gold Coast based producer Paces is gearing up to unveil his debut album in a handful of weeks. Titled Vacation its set to be a collection of sparkly upbeat electro gems. Following the release of 1993 (No Chill) Paces has received a heap of national and radio love thanks to his uncanny ability to craft summery pop bangers (case in point: his production work on Tkay Maidzas hit single Switch Lanes). To celebrate 1993 (No Chill) Paces has curated a killer holiday mix for us along with a little rundown below. Check it out and if you like what youre hearing pop by Paces Facebook page for more info. Vacation is out March 4th. Portishead Mourning Air When I was 18 my parents sent me to Fiji on a surf trip instead of having a big party at home. It was definitely the right choice, I loved it over there. I was right into Portishead at the time (still am) and I had this song on repeat in my headphones the whole trip. Kanye West Bad News When I was beginning to write the tracks for Vacation I was called down to Sydney for a week to work on Guy Sebastians album. It was a really busy time working in his studio and then Id go back to my unit and just vibe out to these two tracks to unwind. They definitely influenced my album. I think you can hear it most on 1993 and Hard For Me. Gorillaz Clint Eastwood (Ed Case/Sweetie Irie Refix) This just reminds me of being a rowdy young man in Bali with a bunch of mates on a surf trip. Its always so exciting for me to head over there and I remember giving this a good rinsing on one trip. Jamie XX I Know Theres Gonna Be Good Times On a more recent trip to Bali I had this one on repeat because lets face it, theres no better holiday anthem in existence. Katy B Katy On A Mission Before I started this Paces project I was in a DJ duo called Surecut Kids. We toured a lot and I think that I played this song at every single show ever. Takes me back to those tours when I hear it (BTW this song is still so good!). Hermitude Ukiyo My girlfriend and I go beach-camping pretty regularly. We went on a trip right when Hermitudes Dark Night Sweet Light album came out and I could not stop playing it. Couldve picked any track from that album but Ill go with this one because it feels the most vacation-appropriate. Sam Gellaitry Long Distance Late last year I spent 10 days in Sydney to wrap up things for Vacation. I was staying in this shitty Air BnB place that was super messy and had dusty old bottles and dirty dishes everywhere and smelled like cat poo. Also the tap in the bathroom was stuck on. I crushed the handle trying to turn it off. There was water dripping through the shower ceiling from the unit above. The place was a nightmare but I had this track keeping me sane through it all. LCD Soundsystem All My Friends When I was touring Nothings Forever I rediscovered LCD Soundsystem because Id just watched Shut Up And Play The Hits (BTW you should really watch that). This was the track that Id listen to every time I was about to land in a new city. Shlohmo & Jeremih Fuck You All The Time I sometimes get a bit anxious on planes if theres a lot of turbulence so I need a steady supply of calming music. This whole EP if fire and totally works a treat when youre stressing out as the plane shudders through stormaggedon. Cashmere Cat With Me Cashmere Cat is one of my biggest inspirations. Most plane trips, I end up listening to his music and trying to pick apart what hes done. I get lost in there and I dont think that Ill ever fully understand how he does it but its brilliant travel music. DEAD TREE MEDIA SCRIBES NOT ONLY STAND UP FOR EMBATTLED MELISSA CLICK AND HER MEDIA CRACKDOWN BUT ALSO ARGUE THAT TAXPAYERS SHOULD PAY FOR THE PRIVILEGE OF HER ADVOCACY!!! Star Editorial Board: Missouri lawmakers factor revenge toward MU into states budget SHOULD ELECTED OFFICIALS AND THE TAXPAYERS THEY REPRESENT HAVE THE RIGHT TO SHOW MIZZOU THAT THEIR EMBRACE OF #BLACKLIVESMATTER PROTEST CULTURE DOESN'T HAVE THEIR SUPPORT??? The topic of Free Speech and funding once again has local pundits talking out of both sides of their mouth.Sadly, the hypocrisy is hard to swallow . . .TKC coudln't do their screeds justice so take a look at double Tuesday headlines in their own words . . .TKC will let Republicans do their own fighting just like we're not interested in standing up for Mel Click unless she takes up our tube top photo shoot offer.Here's our only question . . .Like it or not, that's the issue that everybody is dancing around and doesn't want to mention . . . It's not really about 1st Amendment or academic freedom or any other straw man . . . This is a debate about the crackdown on a protest movement from the State's ruling party who enjoysvoters support. Failing to realize this fact of life and explain it to readers is part of the ongoing American culture war hypocrisy that keeps people unable to talk about what's really on their mind.You decide . . . STL Post-Dispatch: Police report reveals past Diehl affair with Nixon staffer "A 31-year-old consultant and former gubernatorial aide told police that she had an affair with Diehl last year, according to a Jefferson City police report released this week. At the time of the affair, the consultant, Brittany Burke, was lobbying the Legislature on behalf of Gov. Jay Nixon. Burke made her statement to police April 9 of this year, when she asked detectives to investigate whether she had been sexually assaulted the night before. She said she must have blacked out after heavy drinking with politicians and lobbyists in Jefferson City. She told officers she couldnt remember a block of time that ended with her sobbing at Diehls doorstep." SHE WENT ON TO PICK UP EPIC COIN IN A JACKSON COUNTY CONSULTING CONTRACT THAT WAS PART OF MYSTERIOUS CIRCUMSTANCES CULMINATING WITH MIKE SANDERS RESIGNING LIKE A HOBO IN THE NIGHT!!! "The FBI is investigating his office's involvement in awarding a $75,000 county contract to Brittany Burke, a former adviser to Gov. Jay Nixon." CHECK THESE SEXUALLY CHARGED AND ANGRY TWEETS FROM THE MISSOURI HOTTIE WHO HAS ALREADY BEEN A PART OF THE DOWNFALL OF TWO ADMINISTRATIONS IN THE PAST YEAR!!! "She is going off on a tangent, glad she is making $75,00 from the taxpayers in Jackson County." Last night the Twitter account of a Missouri media consultant vixen engaged in a tirade ofproportions over ethics reform and the sexually suggestive hot tweets caught the attention of politicos throughout the state.For those who don't remember. . . Here's a quick refersher:Deets . . .The local connection . . .The definitive article on that front . . .And now . . .In fairness,doesn't seem to be hacked and looks legit, social media messages offer a bit more flavor to the political communication cycle but this lady seems to be playing fast and loose with her online words . . . Which is strange for a marketing professional. Maybe . . .Let's take a look at the highlights . . .Here's heragainst recent Jeff City talk of reform . . . Remember that her Jackson County contract was for healthcare lobbying.Sex tape, sadly no link . . .Another. . . On the chance that it's for realz, TKC is totally willing to stand in line for this one and skip today's Bernie Sanders festivities.Weirdest line of all . . .. . .A Missouri Insider says, "Nobody knows what that means . . ." So far Montgomery County,hasn't tweeted back.Finally, here's what has to bewho seems to be doing quite well and has the swagger that comes with financial success.Now that we've summed up "the sitch" here's a quote that offers a more accurate perspective better than TKC ever could . . .And all of this CLEARLY demonstrates the hypocrisy in Missouri and Jackson County politics. Those on the right team with insider connections can do or say whatever they want without any accountability while everyone else is forced to live by politically correct double standards devised by hypocrites.Social media ranting is just one aspect of dysfunction in our American discourse and while this consultant hottie seemingly. . . Media elites, politicos and all types of snobs want toYou decidce . . . The US supports the best chance in decades for a Cyprus settlement The US supports the best chance in decades for a Cyprus settlement, a US State Department Deputy Spokesperson said, highlighting that as for timelines, that is something for Cypriots to decide. Mark Toner was replying to a question on the UN Secretary Generals optimism about a solution in Cyprus this year, the Cyprus News Agency (CNA) reported. UN backed talks resumed last May aiming to reunite the island under a federal roof. The United States fully supports the UN-facilitated process under UN Special Adviser Espen Barth Eide, he said. Encouraged by the progress As we have said, he added, we are encouraged by the progress Cypriot leaders have made in recent months. We continue to support efforts by the parties to reach a settlement to reunify the island as a bizonal, bicommunal federation, which would benefit all Cypriots as well as the wider region, Toner continued. As the Secretary stated last month in Davos, he pointed out: Were supporting the best chance in decades for a Cyprus settlement. As for timelines, he said, that is something for the Cypriots to decide. RELATED TOPICS: Greece, Greek tourism news, Tourism in Greece, Greek islands, Hotels in Greece, Travel to Greece, Greek destinations , Greek travel market, Greek tourism statistics, Greek tourism report Lawyers holding a march from Supreme Court to Bar Association of India under the banner of Lawyers for Democracy and Justice to condemn the recent attack on JNU students by a group of advocates at Patiala House court, in New Delhi on Wednesday. (Photo: PTI) New Delhi: The six-member panel of Supreme Court appointed lawyers have blamed inaction by Delhi Police for the violence witnessed in the Patiala Court on February 15 and 17. In its report which was released on Wednesday, the committee also mentioned that they were abused in filthy language and pelted with flower pots, pebbles and water bottles. It was also informed that lawyers and journalists were locked inside the court room. It said the accused, Kanhaiya Kumar, was badly beaten up by lawyers and journalists were bashed up and the police failed to maintain law and order. It said, The atmosphere outside was surcharged and intimidating. Abuses were hurled at Mr. Kapil Sibal and all other committee members. There was an effort create an atmosphere of fear and terror. The upbeat mood of the crowd in lawyers dress who were continuously shouting slogans and abuses to present a terrorising atmosphere was clearly visible. But for the security ring provided by the officers of the Supreme Court security police it would not have been possible for the committee members to come out unscathed. Though there was a large number of police personnel deployed, they could not contain other lawyers present in large numbers to intimidate one and all. It said two persons brazenly went inside the court room where the accused was kept and assaulted him and police did not apprehend them. The report wanted responsibility to be fixed against policemen who were present and were aware of the apex court direction to ensure safety of the accused. However, the police in its report denied that accused was assaulted in the court room. Justi-fying the inaction, the police said past experiences had clearly shown that the police has always been at the receiving end and has been castigated for either excessive use of force or for not exercising enough restraint in the tackling of lawyers in court promises. It has also been seen that mostly innocent lawyers face flipside of any action and the unruly ones manage to go scot free. Hence, the police personnel deployed in the court premises were asked to exercise restraint till the situation warranted retributive action. Meanwhile, the Supreme Court has been moved on Wednesday for a probe by an SIT into the contents of a sting operation conducted by two TV channels exposing the role of three lawyers in the assault of Kanhaiya Kumar Adv. Kamini Jiswal, through her advocate Prashant Bhushan has filed this writ petition which also seeks initiation of contempt of court proceedings against three lawyers, Vikram Singh Chouhan, Yashpal Singh and O.P. Sharma. Tourexpi, turizm haberleri, Reiseburos, tourism news, noticias de turismo, Tourismus Nachrichten, , travel tourism news, international tourism news, Urlaub, urlaub in der turkei, , holidays in Turkey, , global tourism news, dunya turizm, dunya turizm haberleri, Seyahat Acentas, This site is best viewed with Microsoft Internet Explorer 6.0+, at a minimum screen resolution of 1024 x 768. More than 500 delegates from 24 countries will discuss financial impact of sustained fall in oil prices at the fifth Euromoney GCC Financial Forum that opened in Bahrain today (February 23). Co-hosted by Bahrain Economic Development Board (EDB), the two-day forum is running Four Seasons Hotel. The inaugural welcome note was presented by Richard Banks, consulting editor of Euromoney Conferences and the keynote interview was held with Khalid Al Rumaihi, chief executive of the EDB. The keynote address was delivered by Gazi Ercel, chief executive officer and founder, Ercel Global Advisory. Rasheed Mohammed Al Maraj, Governor of Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB) participated in an open Town Hall session which proved to be the highlight of the event. He was posed questions by the audience and live on Twitter. Al Maraj said: I very much enjoyed the opportunity to participate in todays forum. Sustained low oil prices are of course a concern for us. However, Bahrains highly developed regulatory environment, the increasingly diverse makeup of our economy and the fiscal measures taken by the Government recently will help us to address the challenges in the current climate. CBB will continue to ensure the safety and stability of the financial sector in Bahrain amid a changing market environment. As the GCC economies have expanded and developed, the region has become an increasingly important location for investment and expansion for international businesses, and this in turn has been one element that has helped to grow the financial services sector, said Al Rumaihi. Bahrain has been a centre for the financial services sector for over forty years, building on the countrys unique value proposition, including a well-educated workforce, cost competitive environment and tried and tested regulations as well as access to the Gulf market. Looking ahead, Bahrain will continue to develop its strong regional offering, including key sub-sectors that we have identified as strategic priorities, such as Islamic finance, ancillary services and asset management, he added. Alissa Amico, managing director of Govern said: In the current macro-economic context, it is crucial to discuss the development of the capital markets in the GCC as a viable alternative to bank-based financing. Attracting greater foreign institutional investment is imperative not only to continue improving corporate governance practices but also to finance corporate growth in the region which requires more equity-based financing. The regulatory environment for listings also merits further re-thinking to ensure capital markets can adequately support growth companies. This has proven to be a formidable challenge on which we are working with the regulators and exchanges in a number of countries in the Mena region. This year the forum was supported by Bank of Bahrain and Kuwait (BBK) and National Bank of Bahrain (NBB) as lead sponsors, Bahrain Development Bank Group and Mumtalakat as co-sponsors, Baker & McKenzie as exhibitor and Bahrain Islamic Bank (BiSB), BNP Paribas, Standard Chartered and Tamkeen as supporting organisations. TradeArabia News Service Omans National Centre for Statistics & Information (NCSI) and Ithraa, the sultanates inward investment and export development agency, recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding towards data sharing. NCSI is ideally placed to provide the trusted and independent trade and business data we need to promote Omans investment offer and non-oil exports. It has a strong international brand thats increasingly seen as offering a fair and accurate account on trade issues that can be accepted and used with confidence when decisions are being taken, said Azzan Al Busaidi, Ithraas director general for Planning & Studies. Official statistics play a crucial role in informing public policy debate and enabling sound trade and investment decision making. They support the formulation of effective government policies, the management of public service delivery and the direction of economic and commercial activities. Khaled Al Muzaffar, NCSIs director general of Economic Statistics pointed out that the signing of the MoU comes at a time when the need for accurate, up-to-date business, trade and investment data is on the rise. We fully recognize that the public sector and business community require reliable statistics to make informed policy, investment, sales and marketing decisions. And this is where NCSI excels, he said. We understand that companies make investment and export decisions on the basis of their information pool and understanding of a countrys location offer. So, its important that we provide accurate data. Indeed, its an essential tool for the work we do at Ithraa. In this regard, were delighted to have signed a MoU with colleagues at NCSI, Al Busaidi concluded. TradeArabia News Service The Japanese government is loaning 10 billion yen ($89 million) to support the construction of a large-scale solar photovoltaic (PV) and storage project near the Egyptian city of Hurghada, said a report. The project will comprise a 20 MW solar PV plant and a 30 MW storage facility, which will utilise several different types of battery technology, including lithium-ion and sodium-sulphur batteries, reported the PV magazine. The Japanese government is funding and providing technical expertise for one of Egypts promising solar PV sectors. Sumitomo Electric Industries and NGK insulators are two of the favourites for the project contracts, thus opening the floodgates for more Japanese investment in the growing Mena region. A written agreement on the project is expected to be signed at next weeks PV Expo in Tokyo, when Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah Al Sissi is scheduled to visit Japan to discuss the project, said the report. The project is the first in Egypt to boast a large-scale storage facility, it added. New Delhi: The Rajya Sabha could not transact any business on Wednesday as continued ruckus by BSP members over the suicide of Dalit student Rohith Vemula led to repeated adjournments. Tempers ran high as the House witnessed a clash between BSP supremo Mayawati and Union human resource development minister Smriti Irani. Accusing the government of trying to neglect the issue, Ms Mayawati demanded inclusion of a Dalit member in the committee that is probing Vemulas death. However, Ms Irani accused the BSP of using a dead child (Vemula) as a political tool and strategy and offered to reply to all questions. If the BSP leader is not satisfied, I am ready to behead myself and lay my head at your feet, Ms Irani said. Ms Mayawati also dubbed the Vemula incident as an insult to 25 crore Dalits in the country and wanted resignation of two union ministers over it, sacking of the vice-chancellor of Hyder-abad University besides inclusion of a Dalit member in the probe committee. Since the time the BJP came to power at the Centre, nefarious means are being used to impose RSS ideology, she said. She added that prestigious institutions like Hyderabad University, Aligarh Muslim University, Jamia Milia and Jawaharlal Nehru University were being interfered with. She also attacked the Congress and said Vemulas suicide is not the first case and many Dalit students have committed suicide in the past when the UPA was in power at the Centre. On her demand for inclusion of Dalit member in the probe committee, Ms Mayawati alleged the NDA government was waiting for a signal from Nagpur, indicating RSS headquarters, as well as Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Amid sloganeering by BSP members, the HRD minister said the Opposition was using a dead child (Vemula) as a political tool and strategy and asked the Opposition to start discussion on the issue right now. To Ms Mayawatis persistent demands, Ms Irani said, I am ready to reply to all questions. First you allow the discussion... You are senior to me. You are a woman. If you want, I am ready to reply. If you are not satisfied with my reply, I am ready to behead myself and lay it at your feet. Trouble began as soon as the House met for the day with Ms Mayawati speaking about the Vemula issue. Deputy chairman P.J. Kurien said the issue is already listed for a discussion later in the day. Etihad Etisalat (Mobily), a leading telecom provider in Saudi Arabia, has signed a five-year agreement with Cisco to provide next-generation cloud and managed services solutions at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain. The deal sees Cisco expand its current scope of work to include management and operation of Mobilys network, including third-party vendor equipment and devices across multiple markets, bringing Mobily enhanced automation and efficiency gains. Ciscos Managed Services solutions combine the companys renowned networking expertise and intellectual capital with analytics and real-time device monitoring to improve overall reliability and performance. This will reduce the number of human resources interventions in Mobilys network operations, delivering significant cost savings. Ciscos Managed Services solution is expected to significantly reduce Mobilys operating expenses. Changing customer dynamics, the growth in connected devices and processes, and increased traffic demands are putting new pressure on service providers. Ciscos comprehensive service offering will provide complete monitoring, management, and support of multivendor infrastructure and applications to increase agility of Mobilys business operations. This will enable Mobily to focus on its strategy of driving service innovation and helping to accelerate revenue growth by bringing new services to market faster. As part of the new Cloud and Managed Services agreement, Ciscos tools, resources and processes will allow many solutions to work together as one open architecture to create a platform of possibilities. The solutions have been developed on a modular model to allow future expansion and support Mobilys development of new experiences for consumers and businesses. By simplifying operations, Mobily will be able to accelerate time to value and respond faster to market changes. Ciscos capabilities will also enable Mobily to provide improved network reliability and service consistency as demands on its network increase, positioning the service provider to take full advantage of the unprecedented opportunities created by the advent of big data and the Internet of Things. Ashraf Ismail Mohamed Ibrahim, senior executive officer, Technology Operations, Mobily said: This agreement builds on our longstanding collaboration with Cisco and paves the way toward enhanced network performance and operational efficiencies. This represents a significant milestone in our evolution as we continue on our journey to deliver superior service levels and develop new offerings that meet fast-evolving customer and business demands. Andy MacDonald, vice president, Global Service Provider, Middle East, Africa & Russia, Cisco said: The awarding of a broader mandate for Cloud and Managed Services to Cisco reflects the confidence in our solutions to deliver tangible business value. We are committed to supporting leading service providers like Mobily in achieving the most value from new technology investments to attract more revenue growth, increase overall operational agility and enable better customer experiences. TradeArabia News Service Saudi Arabia and Bahrain warned their citizens on Tuesday against travel to Lebanon, citing safety concerns, and the United Arab Emirates said it was banning its nationals from visiting the Mediterranean country. The moves by the Gulf Arab allies came after Saudi Arabia last week suspended aid worth $3 billion to the Lebanese army over the Beirut government's failure to sign up to statements condemning attacks on Saudi diplomatic missions in Iran. Saudi Arabia and Bahrain both urged citizens currently in Lebanon to leave quickly for their own safety. They have both issued previous warnings on security grounds for Lebanon, which is located next to war-ravaged Syria. In a terse statement carried by the state news agency WAM that gave no reason for its new travel ban, the UAE foreign ministry said it would also reduce the number of its diplomats stationed in Beirut. Reuters Consultations and co-operation between OPEC and non-OPEC crude producers are the best ways to keep oil markets stable, Saudi Arabian and Nigerian government oil officials said, state news agency SPA reported on Tuesday. Saudi Deputy Oil Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman and Nigerian Oil Minister Emmanuel Ibe Kachiwkuto discussed the conditions of the oil market at a meeting in Riyadh, SPA reported. SPA gave no specific details of the talks. Both countries are OPEC members. Last week, top oil exporters Russia and Saudi Arabia agreed to freeze output levels but said the deal was contingent on other producers joining in. Saudi Arabia led the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries' decision in November 2014 to keep heavily pumping oil even though mounting oversupply was already sending prices into free-fall. The oil price has collapsed 27 per cent in the past 20 months. - Reuters Studies on an undersea pipeline to transfer 20 million cu m per day of Iranian gas to Oman for a period of 25 years will be completed in six months, a report said. An Iranian delegation will visit Oman soon to discuss the gas price and other issues related to the $60-billion deal, reported Muscat Daily, citing media reports. Expert and commercial studies of the pipeline for export of Iranian gas to Oman are being carried out and will be completed in the next six months, Yusuf bin Alawi bin Abdullah, Omans Minister of Foreign Affairs was quoted as saying. Given the favourable relations between the two countries, Oman is interested in Iranian gas and is okay with all the details of the plan, he added. According to a 2013 agreement, Iranian gas will be piped through Oman to world markets, he explained. Jordan can fully realise its economic growth potential - expected to be amongst the strongest in the region - over the next five years if all aviation stakeholders in the country closely collaborate, The International Air Transport Association (Iata) said. According to the latest Iata Global Passenger Forecast, the number of journeys to, from and within Jordan is expected to more than double over the next 20 years, from 6.2 million in 2014 to just above 15 million by 2034. The total contribution of aviation towards Jordans GDP, including the wider effects from investment and the supply chain was $2.1 billion in 2014 (6 per cent of GDP) and is expected to more than double over the next 20 years, in line with forecast passenger growth, said Hussein Dabbas, Iata regional vice president Africa and the Middle East speaking to a group of key industry stakeholders at Iata Aviation Day in Jordan. These are significant numbers for the countrys economy. In order for the Hashemite Kingdom to realise its full economic potential, it is more important than ever that the countrys aviation stakeholders work together to enhance safety, efficiency and customer service, he continued. Dabbas also called for cooperation and collaboration at a regional level. He reinforced the need for all countries in the Middle East to adopt a forward looking emphasis and work together to position aviation as a central component of the regions long-term growth, ultimately enabling them to reap the economic benefits of the regions unique geographic position. In light of the many emerging business realities facing the region, collaboration, cohesiveness and cooperation are more important than ever. It is predicted that the Middle East will require 3,180 new aircraft over the next 20 years. Their arrival will further exacerbate the very real issue of airspace congestion. It will put more pressure on the region to align with the global industry strategy for reducing aviations CO2 emissions. It will drive the development of innovative solutions to ensure the extra 9 million passengers forecast to travel in the region over the next 20 years are catered for, he said. Dabbas identified four key challenges needing to be addressed: Reducing airspace congestion: Calling on the region to urgently adopt a vision for seamless airspace management and start working together to make it happen, Hussein commented, Aviation in the Middle East supports 2 million jobs and $116 billion in GDP. Over the next 20 years, air traffic in the region is predicted to grow at an average 6.3 per cent per annum, support 4.4 million jobs and generate almost $350 billion in GDP. However this will only be possible if growth is not constrained by airspace issues. The flexibility of the regions airspace must be improved if air traffic management is to match growth on the ground. States must commit to making this happen and support all initiatives such as the Middle East ATM Enhancement Program (MAEP) designed to coordinate policy and facilitate operational and technological change. Innovation Travel Solutions: Dabbas praised the region for showing real global leadership on both its commitment to adopting the latest technology and improving passengers experience through its adoption of many of Iatas Fast Travel initiatives such as self-service check in and flight re-booking. He said, According to the worldwide Iata Corporate Air Travel Survey, 50 per cent of passengers said they would prefer more self-service options to speed up their journey and reduce queuing times. The region is leading the way in the implementation of innovative solutions that help achieve this. This has led to not only more choice and more control to passengers but cost savings for the industry, translating into a healthier bottom line. He also briefly touched on airline distribution which he said was on the verge of a major modernization as the New Distribution Capability (NDC) standards begin to be implemented. NDC is the development of a modern, internet-based data standard for communications between airlines and travel agents. Showcasing the advantages of the NDC he demonstrated how passengers will benefit from greater transparency and access to all of an airlines offerings when shopping via a travel agent or online travel site and how travel agencies will have a wider range of products and services to sell. Safety first: Safety, the industrys number one priority was also a focus at the event. Dabbas highlighted the positive results of Iatas 2015 Industry Safety Report which saw the industry enjoy a safer year overall but emphasized that challenges still remained specifically in Africa and the Middle East. He called on government in the region to accelerate the implementation of ICAOs safety-related standards and recommended practices (SARPS), according to the Universal Safety Oversight Audit Program (USOAP). Greener skies: Touching on the environment, Dabbas stressed the importance of the support of governments in the region for the adoption and implementation of a global market-based measure (MBM), to help the aviation industry achieve carbon-neutral growth from 2020. - TradeArabia News Service Tourism Minister Hisham Zaazou announced The Cairo Tourism Declaration, setting out four elements that will be the focus of work and resources to grow the countrys tourism sector. The declaration was made at the Planning for Growth Egypts Tourism held in Cairo today. At the conference today, attended by 200 senior tourism sector representatives from 25 countries as well as several Ambassadors to Egypt from several important tourism markets, Zaazou laid out the main elements: Security: Ensuring safety and security for everyone travelling within the country, using our airports, visiting our historic sites or enjoying our resorts is a top priority for the Egyptian Government; Cultural Tourism: The role that Egypts historic sites and antiquities plays in attracting tourists is a key factor that will receive enhanced focus around the world, especially with the tantalising possibility of a discovery of something behind Tutankhamuns tomb; Resorts: The recent establishment of the Cabinet Committee chaired by Sherif Ismail, prime minister of Egypt, demonstrates the commitment to progress Egypts tourism sector. Its sub-committee, coordinated by Zaazou, also includes eight representatives from the private sector. These committees will work very closely with the tourism sector in the country to ensure impactful policy delivery in order to both support and enhance the resorts and hotels and provide an even better experience for visitors; Telling our story to the world: Impactful international promotion campaigns to tell the world about: The stunning, colossal monuments of Ancient Egypt; The heat, sight and the light of the desert; The turquoise waters; And that no place on earth has the magic and mystery of Egypt. Zaazou made a commitment to hold this event on an annual basis, bringing together the key leaders and influencers within global tourism which will include a review on progress on the Declaration and all the actions committed to. The minister also announced that in order to maximise the use of international expertise he was immediately establishing an international advisory group, including some of the leading organisations represented today, to work with the Ministry to find ways to boost international tourism to Egypt. The Declaration follows recent research conducted by US polling firm Penn Schoen Berland for the Ministry of Tourism. It covered seven key markets around the world (Saudi Arabia, the UAE, UK, Russia, Germany, US and Italy) with 2,805 quantitative interviews with travellers who fly abroad for a holiday at least once a year. According to the research, 61 per cent of tourists stated Egypt is a place I want to visit in my lifetime and 53 per cent defined it as a destination that will be a must visit or next big thing in the near future. This provides a huge potential number of tourists to Egypt given, according to the United Nations World Tourism Organisation, there were 1.2 billion international tourist arrivals globally in 2015. Zaazou said: Our market research demonstrates that there is huge interest for tourists to visit Egypt. We need to maximise that potential. This is why the Cairo Tourism Declaration is so significant. TradeArabia News Service Riyadh Travel Fair (RTF) 2016, Saudi Arabias leading travel industry showcase, will open its doors for the eighth consecutive year, with the 2016 edition to be held at the Al Faisaliah Hotel, Riyadh in April. Running from April 12 to 15, the four day event will become the focus of business networking opportunities, insightful seminar sessions, ministerial discussions and the recognition of twelve months of the tourism industrys achievements. The 2016 edition will be the largest on record with an increase in both the number of exhibitors and expected visitor arrivals. More than 250 exhibitors will be representing more than 55 countries. Over 50 national and regional pavilions will have a prominent presence with the show floor space which is also increased by 11 per cent compared to the 2015 event and will welcome an anticipated 20,000 visitors. Last year the Riyadh Travel Fair featured 219 exhibitors with visitor attendance at 17,573. That was an increase of 15 per cent compared to the 2014 edition. This year will continue our year-on-year growth as exhibitors hit over 250 and expected visitors numbers over 20,000, said Bander' Al Gryni general manager ASAS Exhibitions organiser of Riyadh Travel Fair. Al Gryni added: With Saudi nationals increasingly travelling both domestically and overseas, the opportunities that the Riyadh Travel Fair provides for domestic and overseas destinations, hospitality service providers and other tourism related businesses, to directly meet with the kingdoms leading travel professionals and travellers has never been more significant. The Riyadh Travel Fair is open to both travel professionals and the general public looking for in-depth destination information and special deals. Visitors to the 2016 edition will be able to interact directly with various tourism authorities, hotels, airlines and travel agents from around the world. The Arabian Gulf region will have a strong presence at the fair including pavilions sponsored by; Abu Dhabi Tourism & Cultural Authority, Qatar Tourism Authority, Sharjah Commerce & Tourism Development Authority, Ras Al Khaimah Tourism Development Authority and Oman Tourism. National pavilions confirmed to attend include those of: Austria, Hungary, Jordan, Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Seychelles, Turkey, Morocco, Tunisia, Bursa and Korea, to name just a few. Exhibitors from Asia, Oceania, Europe and North Africa will also be present, along with hotels, airlines, travel agencies, online booking sites, and car rental companies such as Rotana, Lufthansa, Al Riyadh Travel and Tourism, Matato, TravZilla, Dollar Rent A Car, Fursan Travel, and Flyin , to name a few. Riyadh Travel Fair is organised by ASAS Exhibition and Conference Organising company under the sponsorship of Abu Dhabi Tourism and Culture Authority & Qatar Tourism Authority as (Strategic Partner), Sharjah Tourism (Diamond Sponsor), Al Riyadh Travel and Tourism (Gold Sponsor), Fujairah Tourism and Antiques & Flyin.com (Silver Sponsor). TradeArabia News Service You can opt out of certain types of cookies (e.g. those used in social media sharing) by choosing "I do not accept". The website will still largely function well, but with slightly less functionality in places. To manage your cookie preferences in future, visit the "Cookie Statement" link at the bottom of any page. HRD Minister Smriti Irani speaks in the Lok Sabha in New Delhi on Wednesday. (Photo: PTI) New Delhi: The raging Jawaharlal Nehru University controversy rocked Lok Sabha proceedings on Wednesday with an emotionally charged human resources development minister Smriti Irani saying the JNUSU president, Kanhaiya Kumar, and other students were found indulging in anti-national activities by the varsity authorities themselves. She also made an emotional pitch on Hyderabad Central University student Rohith Vemulas suicide, saying that her ministry had no role in his death and that the deceased himself had said in his suicide note that nobody should be held responsible for his action. Union home minister Rajnath Singh assured the Lok Sabha that no innocent student would be harassed. Bandaru Dattatreya called Rohith anti-national: Jyotiraditya Scindia The issue of the sedition charge slap-ped on some students should be left to the courts to decide. The home minister also told the House that those found guilty of attacks on the media in the Patiala House courts would not be spared, Rajnath Singh said replying to a discussion on the JNU row and Vemula suicide incident. Sparks flew as soon as the House started a discussion on the JNU row and Hyderabad Central University student Rohith Vemulas suicide. Initiating the debate, Congress chief whip Jyotiraditya Scindia alleged undue interference by Union HRD minister Smriti Irani and labour minister Bandaru Dattatreya in Vemulas case. Bandaru Dattatreya in his letter had called Rohith a castiest and an anti-national, Mr Scindia said. He also raised the issue of FTII, IIT Madras and JNU. Mr Scindia attacked external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj, tribal affairs minister Jual Oram and Ms Irani for emphasising that Vemula was not a Dalit. The school later, clarified saying that the situation arose due to confusion (Photo: PTI) Ranchi: In a shameful incident, a private school in Ranchi allegedly asked a 6-year-old rape survivor to dropout of her classes as they did not want any trouble. The childs stepmother who went to receive her kids from the school was shocked when the Principal requested her to pull her daughter out of the school on grounds that she was a rape victim, provoking an hour-long argument. According to a report in The Indian Express, the child and her 9-year-old brother were sexually abused by a minor boy from the neighbourhood, who would frequent their house with the ruse of helping them with their studies. The accused was arrested in 2015 after an FIR was registered against him by the childrens father, but is currently out on bail. Wondering if people with such narrow view should be in teaching profession, the childs father, a vegetable vendor, revealed that the Principal referred to a previous incident in the school where a senior boy was allegedly involved in another rape case, and said that the school did not want any trouble again. What is the connection between that boy and my daughter? asked the father. Following the incident, some local women from the girls neighbourhood attempted to register their protest with the Principal Reena Kumari, who remained inaccessible. However, the school authorities later claimed that no such request was made and that the whole incident was just product of confusion. Clarifying that he did not want to create a fuss, the childs father said I only want my daughter to get a good education. Bengaluru: Janata Dal (Secular) which has emerged as the kingmaker in at least 11 zilla panchayats following the fractured verdict, is yet to respond to an alliance offer from Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee President and Home Minister Dr G. Parameshwar. Sources told Deccan Chronicle that former Prime Minister and Janata Dal (Secular) President H.D. Deve Gowda is very upset with the Chief Minister's statement on finishing off Janata Dal (Secular) during the election campaign. Since then, Mr Gowda is not ready to talk about alliances without consulting his son and State Janata Dal (Secular) President, Mr H.D. Kumaraswamy. Mr Gowda who is in new Delhi, in connection with the Parliament session, is expected to return to Bengaluru after two to three days. After his return, the Janata Dal (Secular) supremo is expected to hold parleys with party legislators and Mr Kumaraswamy on whether to accept the alliance proposal from the Congress to come to power in the 11 zilla panchayats and win the chairpersons post. Meanwhile, Dr Parameshwar said that his Congress party was ready for an alliance with any secular party, where the electorate had given a fractured verdict. Sources in Janata Dal (Secular) said that the father-son duo were not happy with the attacks by Mr Siddaramaiah after Mr Kumaraswamy exposed the expensive watch being used by the Chief Minister. Mr Siddaramaiah too had accused Mr Kumaraswamy of possessing expensive cars and watches. Earlier, Mr Kumaraswamy was upset with his father giving the green signal for an alliance with the Congress party after the fractured verdict in the elections to the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) Council. Now, sources said that the ball is in Mr Gowda's court and he has to decide on accepting the alliance proposal made by Congress leaders. Mr Kumaraswamy was not available for comment. Sore HDK: No comment While JD(S) state president Mr H.D. Kumaraswamy refused to comment on the poor show in the Zilla Panchayat and Taluk Panchayat elections, party patriarch Mr H.D. Deve Gowda put a brave front saying he was not disheartened by the results. Blaming caste and money factor for playing dominant role in the elections, Mr Gowda said the results were not a pointer to the likely trends in the next general elections to the state Assembly. I and Mr Kumaraswamy were not well and could not campaign in all the districts. I could campaign only in Hassan. We have a presence in all the districts which means we have flag bearers everywhere. I will travel to every district in the coming days and prepare the party for the Assembly elections,'' said Mr Gowda, who is in Delhi. The former PM said he and Mr Kumaraswamy not campaigning in all districts was one of the reasons for the setback. However, the issues during the general elections would be different and he would ensure the party bounces back, Mr Gowda said. Mr Kumaraswamy refused to comment on the issue saying he had a bad throat! New Delhi: Union Minister Smriti Irani on Wednesday said that she would retire from active politics if any vice-chancellor of a University accuses her of "saffronising education", while debating the Rohith Vemula suicide and JNU issue in the Lok Sabha. "There still are many VCs appointed by UPA, I challenge that even if one of them says I do saffronisation I will leave politics," said a furious Irani, who hit out at the Opposition for politicising the death of Vemula. "No attempt was made to take Rohith Vemula to a doctor, his body was used as political tool," Irani added. "My name is Smriti Irani, I challenge you to tell my caste, you cannot tell." Read: Centre will not let me to talk, alleges Rahul Gandhi An emotional Smriti Irani said she had taken the issue personally and challenged the Opposition to prove that she had meted out justice based on the caste of a student. "I am taking it personally and I will tell you why, I will tell you how they have used a child, I had called the Chief Minister KCR as soon as the I came to hear the news of Vemula's death. It's his government, I called to ask for assistance to prevent any law and order situation in the state. But my call was turned down, I was told 'sir is busy, he cannot talk now', and I am not making this up, my call is on record," she said. Irani claimed that she had even spoken to KCR's daughter on the issue and that never received a call back from the Chief Minister. Read: Left is the 'witch' in India's growth story: BJP in Lok Sabha Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh addressed the Lok Sabha, right after Irani and lauded her for her speech. "This speech by Smriti Irani not just an eye opener for the Lok Sabha but for the nation too". Irani had earlier accused Rahul Gandhi of political opportunism and asked if he had ever gone to the same venue twice, as in the case of him visiting the Hyderabad University. Rohith Vemula was a research scholar who was found hanging in a hostel room on the campus of Hyderabad University in January this year. His death soon took a political turn when a letter addressed to Smriti Irani from Union Minister surfaced, demanding action against Vemula and other students who were accused of beating up an ABVP leader. Bengaluru: The insider-outsider bug seem to have bitten the legislature secretariat too, with Assembly Speaker Kagodu Thimmappa considering appointing a senior district judge to the post of Assembly secretary, which will fall vacant after incumbent secretary, S.Y. Kulageri retires on February 29. It is reliably learnt that Mr Thimmappa is hesitant to promote anyone from the Legislature Secretariat especially after the embarrassing episode involving Justice Subhash B. Adi. Speaking to Deccan Chronicle, a senior bureaucrat observed that Mr Thimmappa felt such a post should only be occupied by a person well versed in legal issues. According to the source, Mr Thimmappa was upset with his existing team of officers who he thought, had misguided him on the issue of moving an impeachment motion involving Upalokayukta, Justice Subhash Adi last year. The Speaker has powers to appoint a senior district judge to this post. His predecessors K.R. Pete Krishna had appointed Robinson D Souza during the tenure of the Janata Dal (Secular)-Bharatiya Janata Party coalition government and H.M. Bharateesh was appointed when Jagadish Shettar became Speaker during the Bharatiya Janata Party rule, the source added. Upset over the development, several employees in the Assembly secretariat have started lobbying hard to convince Mr Thimmappa that the post needs to be filled from the bureaucracy itself, as an outsider might not be able to understand the nuances of functioning of the legislature. Whoever occupies the position will be qualified for it. But he or she may not know much about the sensibilities required while dealing with legislators. Apart from this, eight to ten staff members get promotions automatically if one of them is promoted, so it would not be right on the part of the Speaker to think of installing an outsider in the post, the source contended. Meanwhile, sources said Mr Thimmappa has convened a meeting of the Special Board comprising Legislative Council chairman, D.H. Shankar Murthy, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Law and Parliamentary Affairs minister, T.B. Jayachandra to take a final call on this matter. The meeting is likely to take place in a day or two. After incumbent Assembly secretary S.Y. Kumlageri retires on Feb. 29, automatically, Chief Minister, Siddaramaiah's OSD Mirza Mehdi qualifies for the post based on seniority. But his chances of returning to his department look bleak as he is reportedly happy to be with the Chief Minister. Thiruvananthapuram: The final session of the13th Kerala Assembly today ended on a stormy note with CPI(M)- led LDF opposition members boycotting proceedings, demanding resignation of "tainted" and "corrupt ministers" in the Congress led UDF government over solar and bar scams. With Opposition members continuing their protest and raising slogans, the House passed a resolution suspending the sitting scheduled for tomorrow, moved by Chief Minister Oommen Chandy, who said "the decision was in view of difficulty in carrying on the proceedings due to Opposition protest." LDF has been on the warpath since start of the session on February 5, demanding resignation of Chandy, Power Minister Arayadan Muhammed and Excise Minister K Babu.They had taken up various issues, attacked government and disrupted proceedings on every day of the sitting that lasted for 11 days. Though the brief Budget session was scheduled for 14 days till Feb 25, the House did not meet for three days due to various reasons. The session witnessed presentation of 2016-17 budget by Chandy, who took up the finance portfolio following resignation of former Finance Minister K M Mani over the bar scam. The presentation assumed significance as it was after a 29 year gap that a?CM was presenting it in the Assembly. LDF members came to the house today carrying placards with slogans against the government and attacked it over an observation against Chandy by a Vigilance Court in the 23-year old palmolein graft case. They raised slogans against Chandy since question hour and trooped to the Well of the House as Speaker N Sakthan denied permission to move an adjournment motion over the observation. Yesterday, the Court while acquitting two top officials involved, had observed that Chandy, the then Finance Minister, was aware about the deal, which pertains to import of palmolein at an inflated price from Malaysia, causing a loss of Rs 2.32 crore to the state exchequer. Rejecting the charges, Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala said the court had made just an observation and it could not be treated as a final verdict. Raju Abraham of CPI(M), while seeking permission for the motion, said the palmolein case was one of the first scams witnessed by modern Kerala. Though the amount involved was not as big as in the bar and solar scams, it was also one of the biggest corruption cases the state had faced, he said, adding that Chandy should quit office, taking moral responsibility. The House witnessed noisy scenes when Opposition members stood up and disrupted the speech of the Chief Minister. Unfazed, Chandy continued his speech and said the case was politically motivated and opposition was trying to create a 'smokescreen' over the recent Vigilance Court observation. He claimed the exchequer had not incurred losses over the deal and actually helped government gain Rs 9 crore profit. As the opposition did not go back to their seats, the Speaker hurriedly took up other business of the day, including Vote on Account for the next four months. Mysuru: The Congress has only marginally improved its performance in the Mysuru ZP, although it is the home district of CM Siddaramaiah. Of the 49 seats, Congress has won 22, leaving it two seats short of a clear majority. In the last elections it had won 21 of the 43 seats although it was not the ruling party then. The JDS has retained its second position with 18 seats, and the BJP has come in third with eight, the same number it had won the last time. The Congress also won only three of the six ZP seats in the CMs home constituency of Varuna. As for the TP elections in Mysuru district, it has come in second to JDS, winning the highest number of seats in only three TPs , KR Nagar, Nanjangud and T Narsipur. JDS has won in Mysuru (20), HD Kote, Periyapatna and Hunsur taluks. But the Congress has won a clear majority in the Chamarajangar ZP, bagging 14 of the 23 seats here, and leaving the BJP with nine. As for the Taluk Panchayat elections here, the Congress has won in three taluks, Kollegal, Gundlupet and Yalandur, while Chamarajnagar has gone to BJP. Congress had won all four TPs in the last election. While the BJP has won 18 of the 29 seats in the Kodagu ZP, the Congress seems to be gaining ground here with 10 seats. JDS has bagged one seat. Meanwhile, in the TP polls, the BJP has won a clear majority with 54 seats. The Congress has won 22 and JDS, three. The JDS has performed the best in the Mandya ZP, winning 27 of the 41 seats. Congress has won 13 and an independent. The party has won 92 of TP seats, leaving Congress with 51 and the BJP with three. Jawaharlal Nehru University students take part in solidarity march for Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya who are facing charges of sedition, in JNU campus in New Delhi. (Photo: PTI) Delhis Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) is the epicentre of the ongoing culture battle in India. But the war goes far beyond JNU and the immediate triggers that have catapulted this famous institution into the headlines. The nub of the matter is an attempt to define who or what is anti-national. And this boils down to basics: The legitimacy of choice. Does reported slogan-shouting in support of Afzal Guru and dismemberment of India at an event in the JNU campus amount to sedition? Was the arrest of JNU Students Union president Kanhaiya Kumar warranted? The legal battle over sedition, and the midnight drama on Tuesday, leading to the surrender of two other students, Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya, will boost the spirit of agitators on both sides. However, one must not lose sight of the big picture. The vicious and divisive theatre of war that the country has become is reflected only a little in these ideological jousts. Those who value choices in the way one thinks, lives, loves, views patriotism and conceives the nation are pitted against those who have been taught to demonise choices and who fervently believe that sentiment of the nation is only what they think it is, and that it is the only thing that matters. Culture crusades thrive on fear and paranoia. Cultural crusaders typically create a climate of intolerance towards the norms and values of their cultural targets. In this respect, the JNU events are eerily similar to what is happening in the United States though the issues at stake differ. Americans have been denouncing one another as blasphemers and traitors since the inception of the republic. Typically, the fault lines of culture wars in the US have been abortion, God, guns and gays, to cite a few telling examples. And it has often veered towards violence. Many doctors and abortion providers in the US have been killed by anti-abortion extremists in the name of right to life. Now, the culture wars underpinning the 2016 elections, as many analysts have pointed out, boil down to a more basic issue: what does it mean to be a real American? Donald Trump stands in a really long line of cultural warriors who want to exclude this group or that group from the real American family. Mr Trump is the acknowledged heavyweight champion of culture wars in todays America. In response to the terrorist attacks in Paris last November, the Republican presidential front-runner called for closing down some American mosques and for creating a database to track all Muslims living in the US. When US President Barack Obama was calling on fellow Americans not to turn against one another in the aftermath of the terrorist attack in San Bernardino, California, Mr Trump proposed a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States. Predictably Mr Trump would like others to believe that his brand of nationalism is the only one that counts. Cut to Indias ongoing culture wars. We dont have US-style presidential elections. Nor Donald Trump. But there is the increasing othering of liberalism, as Saib Bilaval, a JNU research scholar, puts it. The argument of anti-nationalism is increasingly being made through insidiously clever use of cultural markers. So anti-nationalism in the context of JNU, the Indian Berkeley and an old bugbear of social conservatives, is not just chanting offensive slogans which sound secessionist. Anti-nationals are so labelled also because their lifestyle choices differ from those of self-styled nationalists. A Delhi police report on the controversial Afzal Guru event held in the JNU campus on February 9 claimed that students ate beef on the campus and worshipped Mahishasur instead of Goddess Durga. This was cited as an example of anti-national activities. In a recent blog in the wake of the JNU controversy, prominent television anchor Zakka Jacob wrote about trying to convince a bunch of apolitical JNU students to come on his show. Mr Jacob says he was told that some of the students while attending another TV debate the previous night had been forced by a BJP spokesperson to say, Bharat Mata ki Jai. The students were scared that if they didnt, they would all be branded as traitors and anti-nationals. There is nothing wrong in chanting Bharat Mata ki Jai, but is this the only one way of expressing love for ones nation? Isnt it dangerous to reduce love for ones nation to a slogan, actions be damned? As Mr Jacob notes, the mere utterance or the reluctance to utter a slogan does not make any of us any less Indian than the other. Perhaps the most bizarre marker for anti-nationalism comes from the utterances of Gyandev Ahuja, BJP MLA from Ramgarh in Rajasthans Alwar district. Mr Ahuja shot to international infamy by alleging that JNU is a hub of sex and drugs where over 3,000 used condoms and 2,000 liquor bottles are found every day. These, along with thousands of butts of cigarettes and beedis, big and small pieces of bones, presumably left by meat-eaters, proved to Mr Ahuja that JNU was a den of anti-nationals. Oh! And they also, apparently, dance naked. The students, on campus. In normal times, such remarks would elicit mirth. But in todays charged atmosphere, when everyone, including journalists, have been attacked simply because they didnt conform to a specific idea of patriotism and nationalism, this is not a laughing matter. It is also not funny when a lawyer proudly tells a journalist that he would consider throwing a petrol bomb at someone he considers anti-national. The culture war is an effort to restrict our liberty. And most people do not like such restrictions, though they may not say so out aloud. This dislike of restrictions is the reason why conservatives have been the big losers when it comes to culture wars in the US, argues Stephen Prothero, noted religious historian and author of a new book, Why Liberals Win the Culture Wars (Even When They Lose Elections): The Battles That Define America from Jeffersons Heresies to Gay Marriage. India and the United States are different. But the ongoing culture battles offer us a valuable lesson and an opportunity to whole-heartedly reject the fallacy of false choices and the pigeonholing of fellow Indians into pariahs and patriots. Let the law take its course in the JNU row as in everything else. But how we live and love our nation, whether we are inspired by the anganwadi worker, the teacher, the Armyman guarding the borders, the factory worker or the artists and writers who nourish our souls, is really our business. To rejig Pink Floyd, no Indian needs no validation from another Indian. The recent visit of Nepal Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli to New Delhi seems to have eased back the bilateral relationship between the two countries to greater equanimity from which it had been dislodged by the Madhesi agitation in recent months. This was Mr Olis second visit to India. He had made this country his first port of call last October on becoming Prime Minister. The discussions in New Delhi in the course of these trips have evidently helped clear misunderstandings, in Mr Olis words. This was the primary purpose of the Nepal leaders meetings in India and he acknowledged as much at a public lecture last week. The Madhesis, people of Indian origin who live in Nepals southern plains bordering India, had protested violently late last year in the belief that Nepals recently promulgated Constitution had not provided for sufficient political representation for them. They blocked goods entering Nepal from India, creating an acute crisis of essential commodities of everyday use, including petroleum, in the country. Kathmandu believed India was punishing it through proxies, an allegation India stoutly denied and urged Nepal to sort out its internal difficulties through political means by seeking to assuage Madhesi sentiment. When Mr Oli says misunderstandings have been cleared, we hope he means that the allegation against India of complicity with the terai dwellers no longer holds. If thats not the case, the political class in Kathmandu could again rake up needless controversy and cast suspicions on this country. Kathmandu deserves credit for at last passing amendments to its newly created Constitution to accommodate Madhesi sentiment. A political committee has also been set up to look at Madhesi grievances. In light of these recent developments foreign secretary S. Jaishankar noted that the tone and tenor of Mr Olis visit had been helpful. But he added that if Madhesi complaints went unaddressed, instability may ensue in Nepal. This suggests an attitude of caution. External affairs minister Sushma Swaraj, who chaired the meeting at which Mr Oli spoke, made a pointed reference to the fact that those who resented friendly India-Nepal ties accused India of playing big brother while in reality India was Nepals elder brother. Such wordplay is fatuous in inter-state relations and liable to misleading interpretations. It was decent of Mr Oli to assure India that Nepal territory would not be used for anti-India acts and that his government was happy about India and Nepal having an open border. He has evidently gone some way in seeking to normalise ties, considering that in his political life his stance on India has generally been quite critical. New Delhi should also take some visible positive steps to further the present climate. BJP wants to divide and rule Shehzad Poonawalla For over 10 days Haryana burnt, scores of lives were lost and the exchequer suffered in excess of Rs 20,000 crore. No matter how strongly we condemn vandalism, blaming only the protests by Jats (which did turn violent due to some anti-social elements egged on by the states complicit inaction) would be a dishonest assessment of the situation that would end up absolving the original sins of the Bharatiya Janata Party-led government in Haryana and at the Centre. Of course, violence cannot be justified, but then the BJP itself has been the biggest votary of the much loathed action-reaction brand of politics, be it in Gujarat 2002 or Ayodhya. The problem is a simple one to diagnose and treat, provided there is political willingness to follow the Ambedkarian social justice narrative of the Constitution and not the Manuvadi programme of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. But as a pracharak of the Sangh, Prime Minister Narendra Modi seems to have his loyalties mixed up. Having used Jats for electoral gains, be it Haryana or in western Uttar Pradesh, they felt cheated when the BJP government gave conflicting signals on a long-standing demand of reservation for Jats within the Other Backward Class quota, after having paid lip service to it. If, as claimed in its election manifesto for Haryana, the BJP was indeed committed to this then why not restore the Supreme Court decision (which struck down the unique formula which the previous government devised to meet expectations of Jats and other communities) by means of an ordinance that would take less than five minutes to be issued just like the one Mr Modi promulgated to snatch away parcels of lands held by farmers, both Jats and non-Jats? Why wait till the next Assembly session? Why not follow in the steps of the Hooda government which gave reservations to Jats, Jat Sikhs and also economically backward sections from forward castes without disturbing existing shares of OBCs and dalits? For over a year, since the decision of the apex court in March 2015 (which many attribute to a fixed match by the anti-reservationist lobby of legal officers of the BJP government), Mr Modi and Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar failed to move an inch on the promises made to Jat leaders, including Mahendra Singh Tikait. They peddled false hopes just like they dangled empty promises in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections of depositing into our accounts that now elusive Rs 15 lakh of black money that they were going to bring back from Swiss banks. It doesnt help at all that while the state is burning, Mr Khattar and Anil Vij, Cabinet minister in the Haryana government, are allowing their petty politics to play out instead of ensuring that violence by anti-social elements is halted, or statements that incite hate against Jats by the BJP MP from Kurukshetra is acted upon. Clearly, it seems the stakes of the BJP in allowing this to escalate further is far greater, perhaps with a cynical aim to now pit Jats against OBCs and non-Jat groups. This is similar to the divide and rule policy the BJP has used every now and then in Gujarat, western Uttar Pradesh, etc. RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat says that apolitical committee should decide on reservation eligibility. In the light of this comment, there is no doubt that the BJP is both anti-backward and anti-reservation. Dalits and OBCs must beware; they are next after Jats. Shehzad Poonawalla, a lawyer-activist, is founder member of Policy Samvad Jat stir is Congress doing Shrikant Sharma It is the guiding principle for all development policies and programmes of the Bharatiya Janata Party-led government at the Centre to embrace the aspirations of all states: to amalgamate these aspirations and demands into policy formulations rather than working on the old paradigm of trickle-down effect. The Congress advocates and actively pursues the politics of division, on the basis of caste, religion and region. The recent agitation for reservation by Jats is the consequence of vote-bank politics and misrule of the Congress since Independence. Between 2004 and 2014, the Bhupinder Singh Hooda government forced the Jats and other communities to sell their high-yielding cultivable lands to close relatives and acquaintances of the Gandhi-Nehru family at very low cost. Therefore, a large number of people in the state became landless and jobless. While virtually looting Haryana, the Congress tried to appease the Jat community for votes leaving nothing for their future. The Congress even ignored the constitutional provisions. The United Progressive Alliance government eyeing the votes ahead of the 2014 Lok Sabha elections hurriedly decided to include the Jat community in the other backward class list in nine states. It may be noted that National Commission of Backward Classes (NCBC) had clearly submitted its advice, dated February 26, 2014, to the UPA government stating that the Jat community did not fulfilled the criteria for inclusion in the Central list of OBCs. Yet, the UPA, on March 2, 2014, set aside the advice of NCBC and included the Jat community in the Central list of backward classes for the states of Bihar, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, National Capital Territory of Delhi, and Bharatpur and Dholpur districts of Rajasthan. When this decision was challenged in the Supreme Court on March 17, 2015, it quashed the UPA governments decision of inclusion of Jats in the OBC list. Had the Congress done its homework and not taken this decision in haste, things could have been different. Now, the Haryana Police has booked Mr Hoodas close aide Virender Singh for sedition after an audio clip of his conversation in which he allegedly incited violence during the Jat quota agitation surfaced. This is proof that the Congress is trying to divide the people of Haryana. It is unfortunate that some people lose their lives due to the Congress tactics to divide. The Haryana government has announced full compensation for damage caused to private properties as well as ex-gratia of Rs 10 lakh to the kin of the 19 killed in the Jat agitation for reservation. It has decided to give full compensation for the loss of properties, both commercial and residential, in the Jat stir. The state government has also ordered an inquiry into the matter of inciting violence. We all know that reservation is a form of quota-based affirmative action, governed by constitutional laws, statutory laws, and local rules and regulations to uplift certain backward sections of society which missed the race to match pace with others. This cant be achieved through divisive political tricks or by destabilising the peace at the behest of some malicious incitement. If this is the case, it is a very sorry affair. Let it be the prerogative of the government and not those who have been misled by the Congress to take the law in their hands. Shrikant Sharma is national secretary, BJP Barcelona: Facebook Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg tried to extend an olive branch to mobile phone companies, on which the popular social network company increasingly relies, but which are also among his biggest critics. Speaking for the third straight year to an annual gathering of telecoms executives at the Mobile World Congress here, Zuckerberg sought to show his company could be a valuable, if truculent, ally to the wireless industry. He described a new project Facebook is working on with major telecom players, including Nokia, Deutsche Telekom, SK Telecom and Intel to help rapidly build far faster mobile networks at lower costs. But while listing the various ways Facebook was prepared to help network operators contend with spiralling consumer appetites for data, he also criticised and made more demands on the industry. Zuckerberg challenged the priorities for next-generation 5G networks, which the industry is gearing up to deliver around 2020. He called them "faster connections for rich people" and said the companies should make more effort to "finish the job of making sure that everyone in the world gets Internet access." More than 4 billion people have no access to the Internet, he noted. Telecom operators complain that companies like Facebook and Google Inc that offer data-heavy mobile services are effectively free-loading on the big investments they must make to keep fixed-line and mobile networks from becoming overloaded. "Facebook has always had a love-hate relationship with carriers," Forrester Research analyst Thomas Husson said after Zuckerberg's comments. Further complicating his relationships with the telecom industry, Zuckerberg said video would be the next big driver for Facebook growth, putting more pressure on existing networks. Its users watch more than 100 million hours of video daily. While criticizing the industry for failing to do more to reach unconnected populations, Zuckerberg is a leading proponent of new virtual reality cameras that he said could be a killer app for 5G but which would place vast new demands on networks. He also defended Facebook's Free Basics program, through which the company works with operators in emerging markets to offer a pared-back free Internet service to reach consumers who cannot afford data plans. The Indian government introduced rules blocking Internet services from having different pricing policies for accessing different parts of the web, effectively shuttering the Free Basics program in that country, one of Facebook's most important emerging markets. Zuckerberg is kicking off a tour of Europe on Monday that includes a town hall meeting in Berlin on Thursday. Facebook has faced criticism in Germany in recent months from politicians and regulators over its privacy practices and a slow response to anti-immigrant postings by neo-Nazi sympathisers on the popular social network. Click on Deccan Chronicle Technology and Science for the latest news and reviews. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter. Woody Island, which is also claimed by Taiwan and Vietnam, has had an operational airfield since the 1990s. (Photo: AFP) Washington: China has deployed fighter jets to the same contested island in the South China Sea to which it also has sent surface-to-air missiles, US officials said on Tuesday. Citing two unnamed US officials, Fox News said US intelligence services had spotted Chinese Shenyang J-11 and Xian JH-7 warplanes on Woody Island in the disputed Paracel Islands chain over the past few days. Navy Captain Darryn James, a spokesman for US Pacific Command, confirmed the report but noted that Chinese fighter jets have previously used the island. Woody Island, which is also claimed by Taiwan and Vietnam, has had an operational airfield since the 1990s but it was upgraded last year to accommodate the J-11. "We are still concerned that the Chinese continue to put advanced arms systems on this disputed territory," James said. The move was reported as US Secretary of State John Kerry hosted his Chinese counterpart, Foreign Minister Wang Yi, in Washington. Last week, China confirmed it had placed "weapons" on Woody Island, defending what it said was its sovereign right to do so. A US official told AFP that Beijing has deployed surface-to-air missiles on the island, apparently HQ-9s, which have a range of about 125 miles (200 kilometres.) Wang had been scheduled to visit the Pentagon earlier Tuesday but the visit was cancelled due to a "scheduling conflict," officials said. On Monday, the Washington-based Centre for Strategic and International Studies released satellite imagery showing what appeared to be a high-frequency radar installation under construction on an artificial island on Cuarteron Reef in the Spratlys. China's land reclamation and military buildup in the South China Sea have drawn international condemnation and the United States has said it will continue to sail through waters claimed by Beijing. United Nations (United States): Women are breaking glass ceilings worldwide and the next one to be shattered may well be at the United Nations, the world body's top-ranking woman Helen Clark said. In an interview, she talked of her plans to enter the race for next UN secretary-general. She is yet to decide whether she will contest for elections and succeed Ban Ki-moon, who steps down in 10 months. "Every country, every major organisation like the UN should expect in the fullness of time to have a woman leader," Clark said. "But it's still too rare a thing around the world. So for sure, the UN's day will come." The former prime minister of New Zealand, who heads the UN's largest agency, the UN Development Programme (UNDP), also warned that climate change could wipe out gains in fighting poverty over the coming decades. The challenge for UN development experts is to help countries "build resilience" so they can confront turbulent eco-systems and extreme weather, she said. Clark will lead a ministerial-level meeting on Thursday to take stock of the UN's development agenda at a time when raging crises in Syria, Yemen and South Sudan are making a dent in global aid funding. Development aid from the world's big donors totalled $135.2 billion in 2014, but some of those funds have since been diverted in Europe to refugee resettlement or fallen victim to austerity cuts. UN humanitarian appeals have hit record levels in recent years as agencies struggle to address the world's worst refugee crisis since World War II and growing humanitarian needs. "The countries that are not in severe conflict do worry about how much is left for development, after all, the major needs of the conflict crises are met," said Clark, 65, who served as prime minister from 1999 to 2008. The meeting attended by some 80 ministers will seek to build on a summit in September during which the United Nations agreed on a new set of global goals to end poverty by 2030. At the helm of UNDP for nearly seven years, Clark has been tipped as a possible candidate to succeed Ban and become the first woman in the top UN job, after eight men. But Clark said she hadn't "offered an opinion" on whether to present her candidacy and sidestepped questions about her being naturally considered for the job as the UN's number three. "I think there would be a difference," she said of a woman in the top job. Washington: Two top Republican lawmakers have accused Pakistan of "duplicity" when it comes to fighting terrorism as they criticised the Obama administration for giving away US taxpayers' money to Islamabad. "Do you agree with my position that should not occur until they stop the duplicity that has continued for 14 years while we have been in Afghanistan?" Chairman of the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee Senator Bob Corker asked Secretary of State John Kerry during his testimony before the hearing on State Department's annual budgetary proposals. "They (Pakistan) have asked to be able to purchase F-16s. I would rather ask them to purchase from a US company than some other company but they also want US taxpayers to subsidise more than half of that purchase over time," Mr Corker said yesterday. "We are evaluating all aspects of the counterterrorism efforts with respect to Pakistan's impact on Afghanistan obviously... I just met with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif a few weeks ago and we discussed our concerns about the need to rein in particular terrorist groups that are either homegrown in Pakistan or are using Pakistan as a sanctuary. And we have been very, very clear that they have to target all militant groups," Mr Kerry said to a question from Mr Corker. Mr Corker, who was in Afghanistan a few months ago, said he "witnessed continued duplicity on Pakistan's part, outright blatant duplicity, where they continue to support the Taliban, the Haqqani network, and give safe haven" to Al Qaeda. "Most of us have been to the Waziristans and seen the tremendous amount of taxpayer money that has gone into changing the context of those areas, but they continue to give them safe haven," he said. Mr Corker alleged that the Pakistan army is not taking actions against terrorists. Meanwhile, Senator Rand Paul said Pakistan can be described as a "frenemy" - sometimes friends, sometimes enemy. "But really duplicitous is probably the best way to put it. We have given them (Pakistan) USD 15 billion over the last 10 years," Mr Paul said. "I do not think I will convince you but I think the American people are convinced that we do not have the money to be sending money all around the world when our infrastructure here is falling down and our country is struggling. We just simply do not have the money and it makes no sense to borrow it," he said. Mr Paul said it is equally absurd for a country to borrow money from China to send to Pakistan. Seoul: South Korea's military warned North Korea today to halt all "provocations", saying its reckless actions would only speed up the "collapse of its dictatorial system." The verbal volley comes a day after North Korea's military supreme command, angry over upcoming joint US-South Korean exercises, threatened to attack Seoul's presidential Blue House. "We strongly urge North Korea to immediately halt provocative actions that are propelling it to destruction," the South's Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement. North Korea will face "stern punishment" if it ignored Seoul's warning, it said. "North Korea must keep in mind that it will be responsible for all situations arising from its reckless provocations and we warn it will only speed up the collapse of its dictatorial system," it said. Seoul and Washington will next month hold their largest-ever annual exercise in response to the North's recent nuclear test and long-range rocket launch. Pyongyang habitually claims that the annual Key Resolve/Foal Eagle exercise is a rehearsal for invasion while Seoul and Washington say it is purely defensive. Tensions are high on the peninsula, with the United Nations considering tougher sanctions against the North to punish it for January's nuclear test and this month's rocket launch. That came a step closer on Tuesday, when the US and China -- Pyongyang's chief protector and only major ally -- said they had made progress in talks. The South, in an unprecedented move, has shut down a Seoul-financed and jointly-run industrial estate in the North, saying it was helping finance its neighbour's military programmes. Tribune News Service Kathunangal/Amritsar, Feb 24 Launching a frontal assault on the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Punjab Revenue Minister Bikram Singh Majitia said people of the state will not allow Arvind Kejriwal to play his politics of duality. Majithia, who had come to his constituency Majitha to distribute a grant of Rs 40 lakh, said Kejriwal was answerable to the Sikhs for embracing Jagdish Tytler, the Congress leader accused in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots and the reason behind the Special Investigation Team (SIT) file on Tytler getting lost. Today, when Kejriwals proximity to Tytler has become public, the former is enacting the drama of writing to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for taking action against him. Why didnt Kejriwal remember writing the letter over a year ago, said Kejriwal. On Punjab Congress president Captain Amarinder Singhs remark asking Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal to quit politics after 2017, Majithia said the Captain had made similar statements in 2007 and 2012, but the wise Punjabis had not heeded him and had forced him into political wilderness. He added that during the Captains regime, people had to pay hefty power bills while they reeled under spells of long power cuts. There were no schemes for the common man like atta-dal, shagan or pension. He accused the Captain of not paying attention to people-oriented schemes. Majithia said the opposition was making false claims about the state coffers lying empty whereas there was no dearth of funds for development. Talking about the Union Budget, Majithia said it may bring opportunities for farmers, labourers and border areas for setting up industry. Prominent among those present were Major Shivi, Talbir Singh Gill, Ravipreet Singh Sidhu, media advisor Sarchand Singh, Kulwinder Singh Dhariwal, Sukhwinder Singh Goldy, SE Maninderpal Singh, BDO Zeenat Khaira, sarpanch Baldev Singh Mian Pandher, Surinderpal Gokul, Sarwan Singh Ramdiwali and Baldev Raj, among others. G Parthasarathy PRIME MINISTER Narendra Modi struck an emotional chord in his address to Sri Lankas parliament when he proclaimed: For India, the unity and integrity of Sri Lanka are paramount. Referring to the shared heritage and shared future of the two countries, Mr Modi averred: I bring the blessings from the land of Bodh Gaya to the land of Anuradhapura. Referring to the realities of the geopolitics of the Indian Ocean Region, where India and Sri Lanka occupy centre stage, Indias Prime Minister noted: We should expand maritime security cooperation between India, Sri Lanka and Maldives, to include others in the Indian Ocean area. Fortuitously, the atmosphere for India-Sri Lanka relations has changed substantially, with the election of Maithripala Sirisena as President and Ranil Wickremesinghe as Prime Minister, heading a coalition of both national political parties UNP and SLFP. This coalition enjoys the support of the charismatic and politically influential former President, Chandrika Kumaratunga. The SLFP-UNP alliance came about as public disillusionment grew against the increasingly authoritarian rule of President Rajapakse and his family, whose strong-arm tactics, excessive dependence on China and violations of human rights also earned the wrath of the western world. While India was ready to take a liberal and understanding view of Chinese assistance for developing the port facilities in Hambantota, the constituency of the Rajapakse family, visits by Chinese warships to Colombo and the award of the Colombo Port City Project involving allocation of 576 acres on freehold to a Chinese company set alarm bells ringing in New Delhi. Moreover, a triumphant and remorseless Rajapakse repeatedly went back on his assurances to meet the legitimate aspirations and grievances of the Tamil population in the northern and eastern provinces of the island. The induction of Sarath Fonseka, the successful military commander during the ethnic conflict into the coalition, is evidently aimed at eroding the claims of Mr Rajapakse of being the sole architect of the victory over LTTE. It would, however, be a mistake to underestimate the ability of Mr Rajapakse to exploit issues like western pressures on trials of Sri Lankan nationals, for alleged war crimes. New Delhi and Colombo, however, appear keen to cooperatively address issues of common concern, including the welfare and wellbeing of the displaced Tamils. Sri Lanka is proposing to initiate a process of constitutional amendments to meet Tamil aspirations in the north, reaffirming the country as a unitary state, while devolving meaningful powers to provincial governments. Prime Minister Modis reiteration of Indias irrevocable commitment to the unity and integrity of Sri Lanka was thus timely. India has provided massive relief assistance to the Jaffna Tamils, including building 50,000 homes, establishing the Vocational Training Centre and Agriculture Research Institute, while expanding scholarship programmes. Rail and road infrastructure have been reestablished, linking Jaffna to Colombo, while port and airport facilities are being refurbished. While much has been done for the relatively well-off Jaffna Tamils, it is time that New Delhi focused more attention on the Indian Tamils living in the coffee, tea and rubber plantations in Sri Lankas central highlands. India is today Sri Lankas largest trade partner. Indian investments in Sri Lanka exceed $1 billion in areas ranging from telecommunications and tourism to railways, power and food processing. While there are some understandable fears in Sri Lanka, especially in the IT sector, inhibiting the conclusion of a comprehensive economic partnership agreement, it is only appropriate that ways are being examined to expand the scope and width of the existing economic partnership. Sri Lanka has consistently maintained the highest growth rate amongst our SAARC partners. But given the volatility in the global situation and slowing of growth in western economies, India has stepped forward with a $1.5 billion currency swap agreement between its Reserve Bank and the Central Bank of Sri Lanka, to stabilise the Sri Lankan rupee. The growing Chinese interest in port facilities in Sri Lanka and the offer by Pakistan to supply Sri Lanka Chinese designed JF 17 fighter aircraft at favourable terms, suggests the emergence of the joint China-Pakistan axis to establish a cooperative defence network, across the Indian Ocean. Cash-strapped Pakistan that has never had grandiose maritime ambitions is in the process of acquiring four frigates and eight submarines from China. One can only conclude that existing military, missile and nuclear weapons cooperation between Pakistan and China is set to attain new maritime dimensions across the western Indian Ocean. In any case, China has all the facilities it needs in Gwadar, at the mouth of the Persian Gulf. Just after the visit of former Chinese Prime Minister Zhu Rongji to Pakistan in 2003, President Musharraf had warned that in the event of a conflict, India would find the Chinese navy operating out of Gwadar. Sri Lanka appears determined to go ahead with the Colombo Port City Project with China, though it is likely to have the terms amended to address concerns of its other partners. There are concerns in India that the original project parameters would have to be modified to ensure that the Chinese-built port city does not become a centre for surveillance and snooping in the Colombo Port, whose earnings as a point of transit for goods destined for India are substantial. In a larger perspective, India will have to balance Chinese power in the Indian Ocean with strategic partnerships and intensive dialogue with Japan, ASEAN partners like Indonesia and Singapore, together with the US. We cannot ignore the importance of expanding the utilisation of the Trincomalee Port in the Bay of Bengal in this effort. Prime Minister Modi had indicated New Delhis readiness to make Trincomalee a petroleum hub. India would do well to undertake such projects in collaboration with Japan and even perhaps ASEAN members like Singapore. Given the manner in which Pakistan is stalling the entire process of economic integration and connectivity in SAARC, India should now activate its cooperation across its eastern borders through BIMSTEC, where Sri Lanka is a member. Pakistan has secured its participation as a sectorial dialogue partner of ASEAN, though it shares no land or maritime borders with any ASEAN member. India would do well to promote similar Sri Lankan partnership with ASEAN, given its location and proximity to ASEAN members. President Pranab Mukherjee has announced the governments intention to induct women in all military combat roles. Since time immemorial, men have apportioned to themselves the leading role in fighting and hunting. It has stayed that way with a variety of arguments and customs barring women entry into the armed forces of nation states. The main arrow in the quiver is the primordial fear of the enemy violating captured women warriors. The other argument is of a modern make and makes the point that India is not culturally as advanced as the Nordic countries to have mixed dormitories and common toilets. Both fears against the entry of women in combat roles, one old and another of recent make, ignore the history of their participation in modern warfare. Lyudmila Pavlichenko was one of the deadliest snipers in World War II with 309 confirmed hits. Armies of the post-revolution Soviet Union, China and Cuba have accommodated women in combat roles. And women guerrillas have taken on men-only armies in Sri Lanka, Nepal and Colombia. Recently, women fighters of the Kurdish Peshmerga and the Syrian YPJ successfully took on the ISIS known for press ganging captured women into sex slavery. The third argument is that men are genetically programmed to kill and women balk at shedding blood. As women guerrillas and soldiers have shown, this is a misplaced notion. Candidates are selected after a gruelling psychological examination for aptitude and the ones falling short are winnowed. Though women have been inducted into the fighter stream of the Indian Air Force, this was an easier decision. Air force bases are family stations and pilots operate from the cockpit where issues of cohesion, etc. are absent. It will be tough to create space in infantry and combat units or on warships. If the example of other countries is an indication, the number of women in combat units will be miniscule. This means the costs of additional facilities will not be much but the Presidents declaration has succeeded in sending a clear signal that India will embark on the path of full gender parity in the armed forces. Sunit Dhawan Tribune News Service Rohtak, February 23 Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar and Congress leader Bhupinder Singh Hooda had to face the wrath of Rohtak residents and traders as they visited the violence-torn town today. Sensing the gravity of the situation, the Chief Ministers visit was cut short and he was taken to the local Police Lines, from where he was flown to Delhi in a helicopter. Rohtak residents, including the traders who have suffered heavy financial losses due to the recent incidents of arson during the Jats agitation for grant of reservation, gheraoed Khattar, showed black flags and raised slogans against the CM, his Cabinet colleagues Capt Abhimanyu and Om Prakash Dhankhar, as well as local police-administration in Khattars presence at the Canal Rest House here. The protesters also demanded removal of the local Deputy Commissioner as well as the SSP. Some residents raised slogans in support of Health Minister Anil Vij. Hooda, late in the evening, was asked to leave Rohtak "to ensure peace and harmony," official sources said. Hooda told PTI that he had received the order advising him to leave Rohtak and not stay here for the night by the district administration for maintenance of law and order. "As a law-abiding citizen I complied with the directions issued by the Principal Secretary AK Singh and left the town immediately, he said, adding he was on his way to Delhi. Earlier, Hooda was heckled by protesting traders and other residents near D-Park at Rohtak. Faced with stiff opposition, Hooda rushed back to his house located nearby. As the protesting residents tried to enter his house, Army personnel tried to stop them at the gate. The protesters also pelted Hoodas Rohtak residence with stones. On his arrival at Rohtak, an unidentified person reportedly hurled a shoe at Hooda. Read also: A chaos broke out at the press conference as reporters belonging to different communities got engaged in a verbal clash, as a journalist questioned Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar about the recent happenings and their repercussions. However, the CM left the conference amidst chaotic scenes. Security personnel had a tough time in getting Khattar seated in his car and clearing the way from the protesting residents. The residents, who were livid at the police inaction in the entire scenario, even maintained before the Chief Minister that they did not want a police force. Addressing the hurriedly convened news conference, Khattar termed the recent incidents of arson and violent clashes witnessed in different parts of the state as unfortunate and asserted that a high-level inquiry would be conducted to get to the bottom of the matter. The Chief Minister remarked that the episode smacked of a conspiracy. He also announced a probe into the audio-clip containing a controversial conversation involving an aide of former Chief Minister BS Hooda. Stating that as many as 19 lives had been lost as a result of the violence, Khattar announced a compensation of Rs 10 lakh for each innocent person who had been killed during the agitation. WATCH: People affected by #Jatreservation protests raise 'murdabad' slogans against Haryana Government in Rohtakhttps://t.co/M0iEOvfDSq ANI (@ANI_news) February 23, 2016 The biggest loss to human life has been reported from Jhajjar, while Rohtak has borne the biggest financial losses. Assocham has pegged the financial loss at Rs 30,000 crore, but we will get the actual losses assessed at our own level and suitably compensate the traders and residents who have suffered losses, he maintained. The Chief Minister affirmed that the government would not spare the police as well as administrative officers who are found guilty of negligence or dereliction of duty. The persons who had indulged in arson and violence would also be identified and punished, he added. Meanwhile, Rohtak traders and their supporters staging a protest demonstration on the Delhi road in Model Town here reportedly made former Congress MLA Bharat Bhushan Batra, who had gone there to express his solidarity with the protesters, to leave the venue. The traders have been staging the dharna to press for the grant of compensation for the losses suffered by them due to the arson. However, when Batra, who is considered a confidant of former Haryana Chief Minister and senior Congress leader Bhupinder Singh Hooda, went to extend his support to the traders, some protesters reportedly refused to accept his solidarity and support, following which he left the venue. Batra has, however, denied any misbehaviour with him by any of the protesters. On Hooda being told to leave, Batra said two IPS officers first came to the fomer CM's residence and verbally asked him to leave the town. "But Hooda declined saying he cannot leave on verbal instructions," Batra said, adding the former Chief Minister sought an administrative order. Batra said that later an order was issued by Principal Secretary A K Singh, who has been appointed the Special Officers for Rohtak during the Jat agitation. He issued the order on ground of maintenance of law and order. The former Chief Minister immediately complied with the order and left for Delhi, Batra said. With PTI inputs Vishal Jasrotia Samba, February 23 A day after the death of a Gujjar youth in the alleged police firing in the Sarore area of Samba, locals, including the relatives of the victim, blocked the Jammu-Pathankot national highway at Vijaypur in protest on Tuesday. The protesters laid Mohammad Yaqoobs body in the middle of the road and raised slogans against the authorities. Despite inputs, no preventive measures were taken by the district administration and security agencies to avert the protest, which led to disruption in vehicular movement for more than two hour. The blockade led to a massive traffic jam on both the sides of the highway The protesters demanded compensation to the victims family and registering of criminal case against the police personnel responsible for the incident. Later, Deputy Inspector General Ashqoor Wani, senior National Conference leader Mian Altaf, Surjeet Singh Slathia and senior district officials reached the spot and assured the protesters of compensation and a magisterial probe into the incident. We assured Rs 5 lakh from district administration as compensation to the deceaseds family. Directions have also been given for providing tents and relief material to the affected families. A magisterial inquiry has been ordered and the situation is control, said Deputy Commissioner, Samba, Sheetal Nanda. An FIR into the killing of the youth has already been registered and police have constituted a team headed by Additional Superintendent of Police Faizal Qureshi to investigate the case, said a police spokesperson. A civilian was killed and seven police personnel, including two women constables, were injured after a clash over an anti-encroachment drive by the Jammu Development Authority in the Sarore area. New Delhi, February 24 India on Wednesday approved a $150 million credit line for the development of Irans Chabahar port. The port in southeast Iran is central to New Delhis efforts to circumvent arch-rival Pakistan and open up a route to Afghanistan, where it has developed close security ties and economic interests. Under the agreement signed last year between the two countries, India will equip and operate two berths in the first phase of development at Chabahar Port and extend a credit line of $150 million through its external lending arm. Both berths will commence operations within 18 months of the signing of a final contract. India will make a capital investment of $85.21 million and annual revenue expenditure of $22.95 million on a 10-year lease following which the ownership of equipment will be transferred to Iran. New Delhi and Tehran agreed in 2003 to develop Chabahar on the Gulf of Oman, near Irans border with Pakistan, but the venture has made little progress because of the sanctions over Irans atomic programme. Western nations last month lifted some of those sanctions. The Cabinet also authorised the Shipping Ministry to form a company in Iran for implementing the Chabahar Port Development Project and related activities. As per the per the pact, operation of two berths will commence within a period of maximum 18 months after the signing of the contract. Among other significant clearances by the Cabinet today was the approval of an agreement between India and Maldives for avoidance of double taxation on income from international air transport and an arrangement for the establishment of an Indo-French joint committee on science and technology cooperation. TNS/agencies Amaninder Pal Tribune News Service Chandigarh, February 23 The states plan of encouraging farmers to set up solar power plants in their fields has run into rough weather after the Centre slashed the share of solar power in the states total consumption from 10.5 per cent to 8 per cent. The worst sufferers are around 280 farmers who have already paid heavy amounts as processing fees to set up plants. They are now facing uncertainty about the fate of their venture. Notified on January 28, the revised policy has put Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) and the government in a position where the power utility cant buy power from the yet-to-be-commissioned plants at prices quoted by their owners. Such units would sell power at rates between Rs6.25 and Rs6.99 per unit, which is double the average rates the PSPCL purchases power from other sources. The government is thus left with two options either to compensate the PSPCL the extra amount that the power utility will pay to solar units or simply put off the scheme. The agitated farmers today landed at the headquarters of the Punjab Energy Development Agency (PEDA) the executing agency demanding justification behind the delay in execution of agreement between them and PEDA. Earlier, the Centre had mandated that each state should be generating 10.5 per cent of their total power consumption from solar plants by 2020. This component is termed as renewable purchase obligation (RPO). In January, the limit of RPO was slashed to 8 per cent. Punjab was earlier bound to install solar plants of 4,772 MW by 2020, the target was reduced to 2,552 MW. Since the solar power costs almost double, the PSPCL has the right to compensate the difference by charging slightly more from its consumers. But the share of solar power should not cross the RPO limit. If Punjab allows such solar plants to come up, the PSPCL will not be able to compensate itself with this methodology. The question now is who will bear the differential cost. The RPO has been slashed to 8 per cent. We have apprised the government of the changed scenario. Now it is up to government to take a call, said Anirudh Tiwari, secretary, Department of Power, Punjab. MS Randhawa, a farmer, said: PEDA is delaying the issuance of agreement letters. Despite this, we (farmers) have to sign a power purchase agreement with the PSPCL before March 31 otherwise our bidding will stand null and void. What the revised policy means The state had planned to install solar plants of 4,772 MW by 2020, but the target has been reduced to 2,552 MW after the new policy. This lowered the state's commitment to set up new solar plants. Its implication on farmers solar plants If the state allows farmers to set up solar plants in excess of its given limit, the PSPCL will not be able to compensate for costly solar power by charging its consumers. The question now is who will bear the differential cost. Manish Sirhindi Tribune News Service Patiala, February 24 Investigations carried out by the West Midlands Police (WIP) into the allegations levelled against Paramjit Singh Pamma of being involved in killing of Rashtriya Sikh Sangat (RSS) head Rulda Singh provided Protugal authorities grounds to block his extradition. Almost a year after Rulda Singh was shot at his shop-cum-flat at the Grain Market on July 28, 2009 in Patiala, the West Midlands Police had put Pamma under house arrest in July 2010 along with three other suspects, including Gursharan Bir Singh, Piara Singh Gill and Amritbir Singh, who were detained. As nothing concrete was established against the four during the investigations held against them in UK, an eight-member team of WIP investigators under detective superintendent George Tracy visited Punjab in December 2010 and separately interrogated Jagmohan Singh and Darshan Singh, who were arrested in connection with the same case. The two were lodged at Patiala and Nabha jails, respectively, at that time. The team was here to collect evidence to put the four UK-detainees on trail. They had been detained after the Punjab police shared information with its British counterparts. As per the allegations, Paramjit Singh Pamma, who was said to be associated with Babbar Khalsa International had masterminded the murder while Piara Singh Gill and Gursharan Bir, both from UK, had travelled to India to execute the plan. The fourth suspect Amritbir Singh was also involved in planning of the murder. Both Piara Singh and Gursharan had returned to UK after murdering Rulda Singh. It came to light that long before the Indian authorities got a Red Corner Notice issued in the name of Paramjit Singh Pamma in 2012, the investigations carried out by West Midlands Police had given Pamma and other a clean chit and were released from detention. Patiala-based Human Rights Lawyer Birjinder Singh Sodhi, who has been providing local support to Pammas legal team which was contesting his extradition case with the Portugal authorities, said clean chit given by the WIP police to Pamma had become a major ground for the Portugal authorities to deny his extradition to Indian authorities. He claimed that the five accused arrested by the Punjab police were also acquitted by the court in February last year which also went in favour of Pamma. The announcement, and the appointment of his successor Mullah Akhtar Mansour, accentuated divisions among the militants. (Photo: AFP) Kabul: The Afghan Taliban said on Wednesday they had not been officially contacted by Kabul about the resumption of direct talks aimed at ending their conflict. The comment came a day after the latest round of dialogue in the Afghan capital between officials from Afghanistan, the United States, China and Pakistan. The representatives of the four states called on the militants to return to the negotiating table and said they expect the process to begin by the first week of March. "We are not aware of this, I cannot say anything regarding talks in Islamabad," said the Islamist group's spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid in a phone conversation. "We have not received anything officially in this regard, we only heard it from media." A first round of direct talks with the Taliban took place in the Pakistani resort town of Murree last July, but came to a standstill after the Kabul government leaked news of the death of Taliban leader Mullah Omar two years before. The announcement, and the appointment of his successor Mullah Akhtar Mansour, accentuated divisions among the militants, with many holding Mansour responsible for lying to them about Omar's death. A splinter group formed under Mullah Rasool and challenged Mansour's leadership. But the disunity has not dented the Taliban's fighting ability. The insurgents are waging an unprecedented winter campaign of violence across Afghanistan, underscoring a worsening security situation more than 14 years after their government in Kabul was toppled by a US-led invasion. In January, during a seminar organised by the Pugwash peace movement in Qatar, Taliban representatives called for their cadres to be removed from US and UN blacklists which have frozen their assets and restricted their freedom of movement. In addition, they have said talks cannot take place until the withdrawal of some 13,000 NATO troops still deployed in Afghanistan. "We have expressed our position clearly in the Pugwash conference," Mujahid told AFP. Washington, February 24 China is changing the operational landscape in the South China Sea by deploying missiles and radar as part of an effort to militarily dominate East Asia, a senior US military official said on Tuesday. China is clearly militarising the South China (Sea), said Admiral Harry Harris, head of the US Pacific Command, adding: Youd have to believe in a flat Earth to think otherwise. Harris said he believed Chinas deployment of surface-to-air missiles on Woody Island in the South China Seas Paracel chain, new radars on Cuarteron Reef in the Spratlys and its building of airstrips were actions that are changing in my opinion the operational landscape in the South China Sea. Soon after he spoke, US government sources confirmed that China recently deployed fighter jets to Woody Island. It was not the first time Beijing sent jets there but it raised new questions about its intentions. US Navy Captain Darryn James, spokesman for US Pacific Command, said Chinas repeated deployment of advanced fighter aircraft to Woody Island continued a disturbing trend. These destabilising actions are inconsistent with the commitment by China and all claimants to exercise restraint from actions that could escalate disputes, he said. Thats why weve called for all claimants to stop land reclamation, stop construction and stop militarization in the South China Sea. But US and Chinese foreign ministers signaled that despite disagreements over the South China Sea, they were near agreement on a UN resolution against North Korea for its recent nuclear and missile tests and stressed their cooperation on economic and other issues. Hegemony in East Asia Speaking before the meeting in Washington between Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, Harris said China was escalating the situation in the South China Sea with new deployments. Asked about its aims, he said: I believe China seeks hegemony in East Asia. Responding to another question, Harris said Chinese DF-21 and DF-26 anti-ship missiles could pose a threat to U.S. aircraft carriers, but added the vessels were resilient and that the United States had the capability to do what has to be done if it comes to that. Harris also said he supported regular U.S. air and naval patrols to assert freedom of navigation in the South China Sea, a vital waterway through which more than $5 trillion in global trade passes every year. At a news conference with Kerry, Wang said there had been no problems with freedom of navigation and China and countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations - several of which have competing claims with China - have the capability to maintain stability in the South China Sea. He said militarization was not the responsibility of one party alone and added in apparent reference to U.S. patrols: We dont hope to see any more close-up military reconnaissance, or the dispatch of missile destroyers or strategic bombers to the South China Sea. Escalatory cycle Kerry said steps by China, Vietnam and others had created an escalatory cycle. What we are trying to do it break that cycle, he said. Regrettably there are missiles and fighter aircraft and guns and other things that have been placed into the South China Sea and this is of great concern to everyone who transits and relies on the South China Sea for peaceful trade, he added. A US think tank reported on Monday that China may be installing a high-frequency radar system on the Cuarteron Reef in the Spratly Islands that could significantly boost its ability to control the strategic sea. Last Thursday, the United States accused China of raising tensions by its apparent deployment of surface-to-air missiles on Woody Island. China has also built military-length airstrips on artificial islands in the South China Sea. Chinas Foreign Ministry said ahead of Wangs visit that Beijings military deployments in the South China Sea were no different from U.S. deployments on Hawaii. Chinas Ministry of Defense said on its microblog on Tuesday that China had established necessary defensive facilities that were legal and appropriate. Reuters tricountyleader.com expired on 09/23/2022 and is pending renewal or deletion. Backorder Domain n January, a nursery school teacher was sent for psychiatric tests after admitting he lied about an attack in his classroom. (Photo: AP) Marseille: A Jewish teacher in France who claimed he was attacked by Islamic State jihadists was taken into custody on Wednesday, accused of lying to police. The man invited the press to his house in Marseille in southern France the day after the supposed attack in November, saying he had been beaten by three men claiming to represent the jihadist group. But a police source confirmed today that the man had been arrested for allegedly fabricating the story. He is not the only French teacher to be accused of lying about an IS attack. In January, a nursery school teacher was sent for psychiatric tests after admitting he lied about an attack in his classroom. The 45-year-old man in Aubervilliers, northeast of Paris, initially said a man had burst into his classroom and cut him with a box cutter and scissors. But he later admitted inventing the story and cutting himself on the neck and side. The cases came with France still on edge in the wake of the November attacks in Paris, claimed by IS, that killed 130 people. There is no doubt over another attack in Marseille in January, when a teacher wearing a kippa, a Jewish skullcap, was set upon by a self-radicalised teenager, the latest in a series of anti-Semitic incidents in the port city. The city's top Jewish leader, Zvi Ammar, called on Jewish men and boys to stop wearing the kippa "until better days", saying: "Unfortunately for us, we are targeted. As soon as we are identified as Jewish we can be assaulted and even risk death." Last month I was over in Norway doing training for ProgramUtvikling, the good folks who run the NDC conferences I've become so attached to. I was running my usual Hack Yourself First workshop which is targeted at software developers whod like to get up to speed on the things they should be doing to protect their apps against todays online threats. Across the two days of training, I cover 16 separate discrete modules ranging from SQL injection to password cracking to enumeration risks, basically all the highest priority security bits modern developers need to be thinking about. I also cover how to inspect, intercept and control API requests between rich client apps such as those you find on a modern smart phone and the services running on the back end server. And thats where things got interesting. One of the guys was a bit inspired by what wed done and just happened to own one of these the worlds best-selling electric car, a Nissan LEAF: What the workshop attendee ultimately discovered was that not only could he connect to his LEAF over the internet and control features independently of how Nissan had designed the app, he could control other peoples LEAFs. I subsequently discovered that friend and fellow security researcher Scott Helme also has a LEAF so we recorded the following video to demonstrate the problem. Im putting this up front here to clearly put into context what this risk enables someone to do then Ill delve into the details over the remainder of the post: We elected for me to sit outside in a sunny environment whilst Scott was shivering in the cold to demonstrate just how remote you can be and still control features of someone elses car, literally from the other end of the earth. Following is a complete walkthrough of the discovery process, how vehicles in other countries can also be controlled and a full disclosure timeline of my discussions with Nissan. Connected LEAFs The LEAF is an electric car which is particularly popular in countries like Norway which offer massive financial incentives to stay away from combustion engines. It does all the things youd expect of a modern EV and because its here in the era of the internet of things, it also has a companion app: Back at my workshop in Oslo and being the curious type, Jan (not his real name he requested to remain anonymous) goes back to his hotel after the first day of the course and proxies his iPhone through Fiddler running on his PC as wed done during the day (this was on January 20). This takes a few minutes to setup and effectively what it means is that he can now observe how the mobile app talks to the online services. Jan then fires up the NissanConnect EV app: Im using publicly available screen grabs of the app in part so as not to disclose personal information about Jan and in part because his app runs in Norwegian. When the app opens, he observes a request like this (Ill obfuscate host names and the last five digits of VINs throughout this post): GET https://[redacted].com/orchestration_1111/gdc/BatteryStatusRecordsRequest.php?RegionCode=NE&lg=no-NO&DCMID=&VIN=SJNFAAZE0U60XXXXX&tz=Europe/Paris&TimeFrom=2014-09-27T09:15:21 Which returns the following JSON response: This is pretty self-explanatory if you read through the response; were seeing the battery status of his LEAF. But what got Jans attention is not that he could get the vehicles present status, but rather that the request his phone had issued didnt appear to contain any identity data about his authenticated session. In other words, he was accessing the API anonymously. Its a GET request so there was nothing passed in the body nor was there anything like a bearer token in the request header. In fact, the only thing identifying his vehicle was the VIN which Ive partially obfuscated in the URL above. The VIN is the Vehicle Identification Number which uniquely identifies the chassis of his LEAF. It is by no means a secret suitable for authorisation purposes, the significance of which Ill come back to shortly. On the surface of it, it looked like anyone could get the battery status of Jans vehicle if they knew his VIN. Not ideal, but not exactly serious either as its a passive query (it doesnt actually change anything on the vehicle) and theres also nothing of a personal or sensitive nature returned in the response beyond potentially telling you when it was last driven based on the OperationDateAndTime field. So Jan kept looking. He found he could check the status of the climate control using this request: GET https://[redacted].com/orchestration_1111/gdc/RemoteACRecordsRequest.php?RegionCode=NE&lg=no-NO&DCMID=&VIN=SJNFAAZE0U60XXXXX Which then returned a similar status result: This is reflected within the app on this screen: But again, its passive data is the climate control on or off and as a result, what should the buttons say. But then he tried turning it on and observed this request: GET https://[redacted].com/orchestration_1111/gdc/ACRemoteRequest.php?RegionCode=NE&lg=no-NO&DCMID=&VIN=SJNFAAZE0U60XXXXX&tz=Europe/Paris That request returned this response: This time, personal information about Jan was returned, namely his user ID which was a variation of his actual name. The VIN passed in the request also came back in the response and a result key was returned. He then turned the climate control off and watched as the app issued this request: GET https://[redacted].com/orchestration_1111/gdc/ACRemoteOffRequest.php?RegionCode=NE&lg=no-NO&DCMID=&VIN=SJNFAAZE0U60XXXXX&tz=Europe/Paris All of these requests were made without an auth token of any kind; they were issued anonymously. Jan checked them by loading them up in Chrome as well and sure enough, the response was returned just fine. By now, it was pretty clear the API had absolutely zero access controls but the potential for invoking it under the identity of other vehicles wasnt yet clear. Connecting to other vehicles When Jan came into the workshop the following day, he also brought in a picture hed managed to locate by searching the web: This was the vehicle's VIN which clearly, left us curious (obfuscation is mine, its legible in its entirety on the web). Let me clarify something before going any further and its something I harp on about in my workshops too; when a potential security flaw is identified, youve got to think very carefully about how you proceed with verification. You need to have a sufficient degree of confidence that its a legitimate flaw before reporting it ethically (which is what we ultimately did), but you also need to ensure you dont breach someone elses privacy or impact them adversely in any way. We wouldnt, for example, want to start operating mechanical features of someone elses car such as turning on the climate control nor would we want to retrieve personal information about them, even if it was just their username. The VIN above differed merely by the last 5 digits. We grabbed the number and plugged it into the request to get the battery status a request that didnt change anything nor disclose anything private and got this response: This appeared to indicate that the response couldnt be processed but it wasnt clear why. On reflection, its possible that the VIN hadnt been registered for the app. It could also be possible that one of the query string parameters in the first URL I shared above wasnt valid for that VIN. For example, the RegionCode field may not have matched with the vehicles location. Without a positive result from the API, we couldnt emphatically conclude that there was indeed a lack of authorisation. The thing about VINs though is that theyre easily enumerable. Both Jans and the VIN found on the web were identical except for the last 5 digits which meant we could easily test for other matches using a tool like Burp suite. We proxied Chrome through Burp then issued the battery status request again: We then sent it over to the Intruder feature and added one position for payload insertion: This was the last five digits of the VIN, those being the ones which differed across both Jans and the number found online. (Note: not all LEAF VINs necessarily differ by just the last 5 digits, the VIN specification allows for the range to be broader, i.e. it may be the last 6 digits. Our test simply kept the range constrained between known numbers for the sake of time.) We then configured Burp to randomise those last 5 digits and choose integers between 10,000 and 30,000 which is the range both Jans and the VIN online fell within: This gave us the ability to issue requests one after the other, each differing only by a unique VIN in the payload column. We didnt need to test all 20,000 possible VINs within that range, we just had to issue requests until we found one that returned the battery status of another vehicle. We started Burp issuing the requests: Request 0 in the screen above is the one to Jans car which returned a response size of 631 bytes. The subsequent responses with the randomised VINs mostly returned 288 bytes and the response you see in the screen above. Until we found one that didnt: This wasnt Jans car; it was someone elses LEAF. Our suspicion that the VIN was the only identifier required was confirmed and it became clear that there was a complete lack of auth on the service. Of course its not just an issue related to retrieving vehicle status, remember the other APIs that can turn the climate control on or off. Anyone could potentially enumerate VINs and control the physical function of any vehicles that responded. Thats was a very serious issue. I reported it to Nissan the day after we discovered this (I wanted Jan to provide me with more information first), yet as of today 32 days later the issue remains unresolved. You can read the disclosure timeline further down but certainly there were many messages and a phone call over a period of more than four weeks and its only now that Im disclosing publicly, right after I received an email from a Canadian follower Vulnerable LEAFs in Canada By pure coincidence, just as we hit the four-week mark since initial disclosure and I was about to revert to Nissan yet again, an email landed in my inbox from a Canadian follower titled weird Nissan api. It started out like this: I read your Vtech article and though that you would be well placed to appreciate this. Im a Nissan Leaf owner and I found out that Nissan security is pretty abismal. They have an App to remote start charging, start/stop the AC/Heat, and get updated on current state of the vehicule. http://itunes.apple.com/ca/app/nissan-canada-leaf/id450031231?mt=8 This came in just last weekend on 20 Feb and it went on to explain the following: I found out that the whole API is unauthenticated and only require the VIN to target a vehicle. To add insult to injury those action are from simple http Get request. details on how to: (site in french) http://menu-principal-forums-aveq.1097349.n5.nabble.com/Nissan-Canada-Leaf-Carwings-td37239i20.html#a38494 This is precisely what Jan had found in Oslo and whats more, it was being discussed openly on a forum. Browsing through the discussion courtesy of Google translate, clearly people were not happy with the Nissan app. In fact, they were so unhappy that one post suggests taking the app out of the picture altogether and controlling the vehicles functions by making requests directly to the APIs: For hard-core, the following information: URL to activate / deactivate air conditioning / heating. Put your VIN in the URL, this works very well in your browser. Create bookmarks with these 2 https://canada.nissanconnect.com/owners/leaf/setHvac?vin=1N4A.....5520&fan=on https://canada.nissanconnect.com/owners/leaf/setHvac?vin=1N4A.....5520&fan=off They go on to conclude precisely what we had earlier on: In all this, it works for me without being authenticated, which is very surprising, and not safe at all, this means that anyone can act on any vehicle, provided it knows the VIN (in more is it not written down the visible windshield everyone?). Looks like the authentication uses has get the VIN in the user profile. Now this was back in December so were talking a couple of months ago already. Note also that the URLs above are different to the API endpoints we saw for the Norwegian instance (I obfuscated the other host names as Ive not seem them discussed publicly, but even the paths are different). Its an odd design decision for a global car manufacturer to segment their app in this way. There are always local idiosyncrasies to be considered (particularly in the auto industry), but there appears to be very little reuse across Canada and Norway in terms of how the API is implemented. It has me wondering if perhaps the build of these apps is delegated to local groups who perhaps dont pass through the same levels of rigour youd expect at the global level. The person who reported the Canadian finding to me finished up by saying this: My hypothesis on this is that it was bound to surface due to the poor quality of the app, the more tech savvy "with free time" users will thinker with broken things to get them working for them. The fail was probably discovered soon after the app change and multiple times but by people that didn't fully appreciate the greater implication or by people like me that didn't know what to do with that knowledge. His first sentence is spot on the ease of discovery of this risk is high as is evidenced by three separate parties already finding it independently (my Norwegian student, the Canadian follower and the folks in the forum). The Norwegian case alone was cause for concern and the Canadian one showed that the issue was now well and truly out there in the public domain, but I wanted further verification which is where Scott Helme came into the picture. Nissan LEAFs in the UK It was by pure coincidence that Scott Helme from the video in the intro has a LEAF, that hes a security professional and that I spent some time with him in the UK just after my Oslo workshop. It was then that the penny dropped and we both realised that he could be of assistance. Hes proofed everything Ive written here and obviously also offered up his own car to verify that indeed, its only the VIN required to operate the functions described in this blog post. Given his involvement, I asked him if he wouldnt mind sharing his own view of the situation and he gave me this paragraph: Fortunately, the Nissan Leaf doesn't have features like remote unlock or remote start, like some vehicles from other manufacturers do, because that would be a disaster with what's been uncovered. Still, a malicious actor could cause a great deal of problems for owners of the Nissan Leaf. Being able to remotely turn on the AC for a car might not seem like a problem, but this could put a significant drain on the battery over a period of time as the attacker can keep activating it. It's much like being able to start the engine in a petrol car to run the AC, it's going to start consuming the fuel you have in the tank. If your car is parked on the drive overnight or at work for 10 hours and left running, you could have very little fuel left when you get back to it... You'd be stranded Of course the other thing we covered in the video was pulling the driving history from the vehicle which looks like this: These are two trips he took on Feb 21 when he dropped his son off at his parents. He took two other trips that day, one to go snowboarding and another one to return. They were all recorded by the vehicle and are publicly accessible if you know his VIN which again, is displayed in his windscreen or can simply be guessed by enumerating through those last five digits. This gives you details on movements per day which raises all sorts of privacy risks. Scott gave me a comment on that too. The other main concern here is that the telematics system in the car is leaking *all* of my historic driving data. That's the details of every trip I've ever made in the car including when I made it, how far I drove and even how efficiently I drove. This could easily be used to build up a profile of my driving habits, considering it goes back almost 2 years, and predict when I will be away from home. This kind of data should be collected and secured with the utmost respect for my privacy. Whilst its not specifically personally identifiable information such as the individuals address, by the time you have a VIN which you know belongs to a LEAF registered within a specific country, it may not take too much effort to fill that gap. For example, down here in Australia we have services such as revscheck.com.au which can report on a pretty extensive set of data based on nothing more than a VIN. Jan sent me an equivalent service for Norway at vegvesen.no. I suspect that there are multiple other avenues where additional data about the vehicle and the owner can be retrieved once the VIN is known and that opens the door to a raft of other possible privacy risks. Rectifying the risk and opting out of the service The underlying risk is simple and Ill quote Scotts comments on it: This API thing is just nuts. It's not even like they just missed auth or didn't check, it's actually not implemented. It was built, intentionally, without security... Clearly the answer is to implement appropriate authorisation on all API calls, which when building an app in the first place would be a trivial feature to add. Its trickier to add to a brownfield app though and in Nissans case, even trickier again because of the design of it. Whats unique about their approach is that Norway and the UK seem to be hitting a completely different set of APIs to Canada. In fact the European API is on a host not even owned by Nissan, its registered to ZENRIN DataCom CO.,LTD. which may mean that were looking at multiple API endpoints controlled by different parties that need to be rectified. Then of course the apps have to be updated across different client devices (iOS, Android, etc) and for different languages then pushed out to consumers. Whilst waiting for this to happen, LEAF owners remain at risk. Because the question would inevitably arise, I asked Scott how hed opt out of the service and he provided some steps: Given the ease with which someone can enumerate valid VIN numbers, this issue raises a few concerns. It could be a huge inconvenience to have someone run my car flat by using the heating and accessories all day and the exposure of my entire driving history poses quite the privacy concern too. To disable CarWings, owners need to login to the service form their browser, it can't be done through the mobile app. Once logged in, select 'Configuration' from the menu and there is a 'Remove CarWings' button. It appears to be greyed out but the button does work. Once clicked you will receive a prompt to confirm that you wish to disable CarWings and asked to provide a reason why. Click 'Validate' when the appropriate option has been selected and you will get a confirmation message that CarWings has been disabled. You should also receive a confirmation via email. Once Nissan have resolved this issue it should be safe to re-enable your CarWings account and resume using features associated with it. Simply login to your account and follow the prompts on screen. Nissans CarWings is their telematics service and its accessible in the UK via this page on their website (other countries will have different URLs). Existing public domain knowledge One of the key factors in publishing this now is the existence of multiple other public discussions about the unauthenticated API. The fact that only the VIN is required to invoke these services has been covered at length and published in locations including: A GitHub repository documenting the API including the observation that All other operations take the DCMID and the VIN of your vehicle as parameters for authorizing the requested operation (although the DCMID value is not actually required and is empty in many of the examples above) Another GitHub repository, this time a Python script to connect to and manage vehicle features via the API (also includes region codes for managing vehicles in other parts of the world) Yet another GitHub repository built to target an earlier generation of the service and referenced as inspiration for the previously mentioned project A blog post on reverse engineering the API which observes that curiously, it seems like you just need the constant DCMID and VIN fields (again, the DCMID parameter wasnt actually used in our tests) A forum post on integrating the data into Domoticz (a home automation system) which makes this observation: No other authentication necessary! Whilst I havent linked directly to the resources, theyre easily discoverable via Google and demonstrate that there is ongoing public discussion via multiple channels, each documenting the lack of authorisation on the services. Disclosure timeline I made multiple attempts over more than a month to get Nissan to resolve this and it was only after the Canadian email and French forum posts came to light that I eventually advised them Id be publishing this post. Heres the timeline (dates are Australian Eastern Standard time): 23 Jan: Full details of the findings sent and acknowledged by Nissan Information Security Threat Intelligence in the U.S.A. 30 Jan: Phone call with Nissan to fully explain how the risk was discovered and the potential ramifications followed up by an email with further details 12 Feb: Sent an email to ask about progress and offer further support to which I was advised We're making progress toward a solution 20 Feb: Sent details as provided by the Canadian owner (including a link to the discussion of the risk in the public forum) and advised Id be publishing this blog post later next week 24 Feb: This blog published, 4 weeks and 4 days after first disclosure All in all, I sent ten emails (there was some to-and-fro) and had one phone call. This morning I did hear back with a request to wait a few weeks before publishing, but given the extensive online discussions in public forums and the more than one-month lead time thered already been, I advised Id be publishing later that night and have not heard back since. I also invited Nissan to make any comments theyd like to include in this post when I contacted them on 20 Feb or provide any feedback on why they might not consider this a risk. However, there was nothing to that effect when I heard back from them earlier today, but Ill gladly add an update later on if theyd like to contribute. I do want to make it clear though that especially in the earlier discussions, Nissan handled this really well. It was easy to get in touch with the right people quickly and they made the time to talk and understand the issue. They were receptive and whilst I obviously would have liked to see this rectified quickly, compared to most ethical disclosure experiences security researches have, Nissan was exemplary. The ethics of discovery and disclosure Just one last thing on how these vulnerabilities are discovered and reported because the ethics of this often comes up in my workshops. Risks like the one above were discovered by doing nothing more than using the app as it was intended to be used and observing the traffic going backwards and forwards. This is the mobile equivalent of opening your browsers dev tools and watching the network tab. Sometimes (such as with the realestate.com.au vulnerability I reported last year), this is all thats required. Other times and as was the case with the LEAF, it meant testing that the theory of one user being able to access another users resource could be proven. In a situation where its a car involved, you cant exactly head out and buy a second one in order to prove that when accessing one you can change a parameter to access another and whilst the proof above did involve checking the battery status of another vehicle, it didnt involve accessing any personally identifiable information or disadvantaging anyone in any way. To me, its this simple: if the intent is ethical and any findings are reported privately and immediately the moment youre confident a serious risk is present and especially if it can be done without viewing anyone elses private data then Im comfortable thats in everybodys best interests. If you report before being confident theres a risk you end up wasting peoples time and if you dont report, then you end up leaving people and the organisation involved at risk. A post such as this one is reviewed dozens of times over by myself and where possible, a peer or peers (Scott, in this case) to ensure fairness and accuracy. Summary Nissan need to fix this. Its a different class of vulnerability to the Charlie Miller and Chris Valasek Jeep hacking shenanigans of last year, but in both good and bad ways. Good in that it doesnt impact the driving controls of the vehicle, yet bad in that the ease of gaining access to vehicle controls in this fashion doesnt get much easier its profoundly trivial. As car manufacturers rush towards joining in on the internet of things craze, security cannot be an afterthought nor something were told they take seriously after realising that they didnt take it seriously enough in the first place. Imagine getting it as wrong as Nissan has for something like Volvos digital key initiative where you unlock your car with your phone. By pure coincidence, this week Nissan unveiled a revised LEAF at the GSMA Mobile World Congress. Clearly, like many car makers, their future involves a strong push for greater connectivity in their vehicles: In a fully connected, fully mobile world, in-vehicle connectivity is an absolute must for todays drivers. That is why Nissan is proud to be at the forefront of developing efficient and reliable in-vehicle connected technologies that are available and accessible to all Amongst the list of features the media release talks about being added to the NissanConnect app is the ability to remotely show the vehicle position on a map and analyse your driving. Whilst there are obvious upsides to drivers having access to these features, seeing them presented within the security implementation of the current app would be very worrying for obvious reasons. I would have preferred to see faster action from Nissan. In my view, this is the sort of flaw that needs to have the service pulled until it can be fixed properly and restored; its not a critical feature of the vehicle yet it has the potential to impact its physical function and theres the privacy risk as well. Plus of course its already being discussed publicly via that Canadian forum so the risk is well and truly out in the public domain already. I want to see Nissan secure this; I own a Nissan myself (albeit not a connected one) which Im passionate about and am very invested in the brand, both emotionally and financially. But they do need to take action on this because clearly the current state is not satisfactory. Update 1, 25 Feb, 12:00: Nissan has now taken the service offline. Update 2, 25 Feb, 14:20: Per the comment below and further correspondence I've had via email, it appears that Canadian resources are still accessible using only the VIN. SAF-Holland has a removable and replaceable 2-inch AAR kingpin system for hot-dip galvanized upper couplers. The patented system meets Association of American Railroads specifications, and features a machined kingpin and housing. The kingpin housing is welded into the trailers upper coupler prior to the hot-dip galvanization process, completely protecting the upper coupler against corrosion. After galvanizing, the kingpin is secured in the housing with a special nut and coller fastener, allowing the kingpin to remain removable and replaceable over the life of the trailer. This new AAR Kingpin System answers the OEMs challenges of hot dip galvanizing upper coupler assemblies by allowing the kingpin to be installed after the galvanizing process, said Jeffrey Talaga, SAF-Hollands VP of sales and strategic development, Americas. This design allows for the easy removal and replacement of the kingpin for dealers, fleets and OEMs. The system is compatible with -inch, 5/16-inch, and 3/8-inch bolster plates, utilizing the same housing and different length kingpins to accommodate the thickness variations. Islamabad: India's newly appointed High Commissioner in Pakistan Gautam Bambawale on Wednesday called on Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif who said mutual cooperation was vital for the socio-economic uplift of both the countries. Bambawale, who arrived in Pakistan last month to assume the charge of the High Commission, called on the prime minister here at the PM House. "High Commissioner Gautam Bambawale had a meeting with H.E. the Prime Minister of Pakistan today at the PMs House," the Indian High Commission tweeted along with a picture of their meeting. "Pakistan was pursuing good relations with all its neighbours including India as mutual cooperation was vital for the socio-economic uplift of both the countries," Sharif was quoted as saying by the state-run APP news agency. Bambawale, an IFS officer of 1984-batch, replaced T C A Raghavan. He has worked in Germany, US and China. In 2007, he became the first Consul General of India in Guangzhou, China. DENVER Sue Klebold doesnt break down in tears anymore when she learns about another mass shooting. The attacks have become too common in the 17 years since her own son killed 12 of his classmates and a teacher at Columbine High School in Colorado. Now, she is analytical, wondering if the gunman hid weapons at home the way her son Dylan did. Whether there were warning signs like the ones she missed with him. Most painfully, Klebold wonders if the shooter used images of her son and details of his crime, still widely available online, as a model to gain fame through the slaughter of innocent people. Every time I see a photograph of Dylan on the (Columbine) surveillance tapes, I cringe, Klebold said. Because every time that occurs, somewhere there is a disenfranchised individual that is using that as a blueprint. Klebold spoke to The Associated Press on Tuesday, a week after the release of her memoir, A Mothers Reckoning: Living in the Aftermath of Tragedy, exploring the causes of her sons violence and ways to prevent future attacks through mental health awareness. Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris opened fire at the suburban Denver school on April 20, 1999, killing 13 people before taking their own lives. Another 24 people were injured in the attack. Sue Klebold knew her son had some problems but wrote in her book that she dismissed them as teenage angst while he quietly plotted the killings and detailed the depths of his pain in journals she discovered after his death. I wish I had learned how to communicate differently with him and how to listen better, Klebold said. I wish I had realized that things can seem perfectly fine when they are not, and the other lesson I wish I had learned is to shut up and listen. With the book, Klebold said she tried to commemorate his life without glamorizing his troubled final years in a way that would inspire copycats. In the years after the Columbine attack, she and her ex-husband Tom Klebold vigorously fought the release of videos that her son and Harris filmed in her basement that offered glimpses of their methods and motives. The parents worried that the details would offer a roadmap for future violence. Other mass killers have been obsessed with the Columbine attack, drawing on a wealth of information in books and movies, fan websites dedicated to the shooters, and even a Broadway show. Klebold said she still receives mail from young women across the country professing their love for her son. To Klebold, conversations in the media and elsewhere that followed other mass shootings have been frustrating. They seemed to dwell on the gory, voyeuristic details of a shooters life while avoiding the larger problems that made the person want to kill and allowed it to happen. She said she published her book after finally mustering the courage at a time when the public seemed eager to talk about violence and mental health. People who engage in acts such as this are not well, they are having significant malfunction going on, she said. This is the result of a mental or brain health condition that escalated to a stage-four lethal condition. She is donating any profits from the book to mental health charities and research, hoping for solutions that will help parents and professionals spot and thwart signs of trouble. That could be as simple as doctors offices requiring mental health screenings during routine checkups or having school officials undergo suicide-awareness training, she said. Speaking out has been cathartic, she said. And some victims found it helpful to hear from her, too. Coni Sanders, whose father, Dave Sanders, a Columbine teacher, was killed in the attack, said its a relief to hear a less sensational conversation about the shooting. We seek answers, and she doesnt have a magic answer for what happened, and people needed to know that, Sanders said. There is no magic answer. These are important issues that we need to continue to look at. BISMARCK, N.D. North Dakota is assessing an additional $100,000 fee to pay for an independent review of the construction of the biggest-capacity pipeline proposed to date to move crude from the states oil patch. The state Emergency Commission voted Wednesday to charge Dallas-based Energy Transfer Partners to cover the cost of the third-party monitoring for the proposed Dakota Access Pipeline, a $3.8 billion, 1,130-mile pipeline to move nearly 600,000 barrels of crude daily from North Dakota to Illinois. The pipelines capacity is about half of North Dakotas current production, and the states portion is the longest leg of the pipeline and the most expensive, at $1.4 billion. The North Dakota Public Service Commission approved the permit for the Dakota Access Pipeline last month and also hired Mandan-based Keitu Engineers and Consultants Inc. in a contract worth about $111,000 to perform the additional monitoring that will focus on the removal, replacement and reseeding of soil. PSC chairwoman Julie Fedorchak said the goal is to hold the company responsible for high standards. The company has paid the state $100,000 and the additional money will offset the cost of the contractors monitoring, and other expenses that could arise such as legal fees and additional hearings and inspections. The Emergency Commission unanimously endorsed the PSC request. Gov. Jack Dalrymple chairs the six-member panel, which includes the secretary of state, the chairmen of the state House and Senate appropriations committees and the majority leaders of the House and Senate. The panel considers money questions when the Legislature is not in session. Fedorchak said third-party monitoring of pipelines has been done since 2008, but its the first time a review of a project exceeded the states required $100,000 processing fee. She said the PSC likely will make a similar request for additional monitoring money from Enbridge Energy for its proposed $2.6 billion Sandpiper pipeline that would administrative judge is siding with Enbridge Energy on its route for a new pipeline to carry North Dakota crude oil to Superior, Wisconsin. State law allows companies to be assessed up to $10,000 for each $1 million of a projects estimated cost. Regulators in South Dakota and Illinois also have already approved permits for the Dakota Access Pipeline. Iowa still remains, though the company has said it expects that approval to come soon. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers also must approve the pipeline because it would cross beneath the Missouri River twice in North Dakota, near Williston and Mandan. Energy Transfer Partners has said the company is optimistic the necessary permits will be obtained in all states, with completion set for late 2016. The company already has begun stockpiling steel pipe across four states in anticipation of getting the needed permits to build the pipeline. Energy Transfer Equity announced a $37.7 billion merger agreement with Tulsa-based Williams Cos. in September. Matrix Service Co., another Tulsa firm, has been awarded the engineering, procurement and construction of six gathering terminals for the Dakota Access Pipeline by Dakota Access LLC, a subsidiary of Energy Transfer Partners. Karachi: Pakistani police raided two militant hideouts on the outskirts of the port city of Karachi, sparking shootouts in which 12 militants were killed, a senior police officer said on Wednesday. Seven of the slain men belonged to Pakistan's anti-Shiite Lashkar-e-Jhangvi terrorist group while five were from al-Qaeda's branch in the Indian subcontinent, said the officer, Rao Anwar. The shootouts occurred over the past 48 hours, Anwar told reporters, adding that the slain suspects were involved in killings of civilians and attacks on security forces. He said two policemen were also wounded in the shootouts and that officers recovered bomb-making material, guns and assault rifles from the militants' hideouts. Karachi is the capital of southern Sindh province, which has witnessed multiple militant attacks in recent years. Earlier today, the Pakistani military said army chief General Raheel Sharif ordered troops to launch the final phase an operation to purge militants in a tribal region near the Afghan border. In a statement, the military said Sharif issued the instruction during a visit to North Waziristan, where the army launched a massive operation to eliminate local and foreign militants in June 2014. The military claims it has cleared 90 per cent of the region, which once served as the base of the Pakistani Taliban. Ongoing issues with a gas leak at Oologah Public Schools prompted officials to cancel school Wednesday, the third consecutive day school won't be in session since the leak was discovered. The leak was first reported Sunday night. A post on one of the district's Facebook pages indicated that the gas leak was repaired Monday and protocol required the school to stay closed throughout the day. A Tuesday post says the district is still having issues with the leak and school would remain closed that day. Parent-teacher conferences scheduled for Tuesday evening were canceled, according to a post. The school announced Tuesday night that classes would not be in session Wednesday because of the leak, according to its website. LAS VEGAS Donald Trump notched a win in Nevadas Republican caucuses on Tuesday as Marco Rubio edged out Ted Cruz for second place in an increasingly urgent effort to slam the brakes on the Trump juggernaut. Trump now has three straight victories in the West, the South and Northeast a testament to his broad appeal among the mad-as-hell voters making their voices heard in the 2016 presidential race. Six in 10 caucus goers said they were angry with the way the government is working, and Trump got about half of those angry voters, according to preliminary results of an entrance poll. Marco Rubio edged out Ted Cruz for second place in the Nevada caucuses. The Associated Press finds the difference was fewer than 2,000 votes. In an appearance on NBC's "Today" show, Rubio says that it will be easier to stop Donald Trump once the race is narrowed. Nevada was a critical test for Rubio and Cruz, the two senators battling to emerge as the clear alternative to the GOP front-runner. Rubio was out to prove he can build on recent momentum, while Cruz was looking for a spark to recover from a particularly rocky stretch in his campaign. Rubio, already campaigning in Michigan as caucus results rolled in, was projecting confidence that he can consolidate the non-Trump voters who have been splintering among an assortment of GOP candidates, saying, we have incredible room to grow. Cruz, a fiery conservative popular among voters on the GOPs right, finished a disappointing third in South Carolina after spending much of the past two weeks denying charges of dishonest campaign tactics and defending his integrity. Another disappointing finish in Nevada would raise new questions about his viability heading into a crucial batch of Super Tuesday states on March 1. Theres something wrong with this guy, Trump said with his usual measure of tact during a massive Las Vegas rally Monday night. The former reality television star tweeted on Tuesday, He used him as a scape goat-fired like a dog! Ted panicked. Nevadas caucusing played out in schools, community centers and places of worship across the state a process thats been chaotic in the past. Count Tracy Brigida, fed up after her husband was laid off from his mining job, among those caucusing for Trump. I want a businessman to run the biggest business in the world, Brigida said as she caucused at a Las Vegas high school. Jeremy Haight drove straight from his marketing job to caucus for Marco Rubio at the same high school. Hes the most level-headed. He hasnt said anything stupid or crazy ... which is really what I think the country needs, Haight said. It was Cruz for Megan Ortega, who declared: Hes consistent, hes bold and hes a class act. Preliminary results of the entrance poll found that about 3 in 10 early caucus goers said the quality that mattered most to them in choosing a candidate was that he shares their values, slightly more than the quarter who said they want a candidate who can win in November. About a quarter said they want a candidate who can bring change. About 2 in 10 want one who tells it like it is. Nevada state marks the first Republican election in the West, the fourth of the campaign. And its not one thats gotten much attention from the GOP candidates. Through Tuesday, the Republican candidates and the super PACs supporting them had spent a combined $3.8 million on television and radio advertisements in Nevada less than a tenth of the $39.3 million spent ahead of last weekends South Carolina primary, according to Kantar Medias CMAG data. That primary reduced a GOP field that included a dozen candidates a month ago to five, with former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush the latest to drop out after a disappointing finish in South Carolina. Ohio Gov. John Kasich and retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson remain in the race and could play spoilers as the trio of leading candidates, Trump, Cruz and Rubio, battle for delegates with an increasing sense of urgency. Trumps rivals concede they are running out of time to stop him. The election calendar suggests that if the New York billionaires rivals dont slow him by mid-March, they may not ever. Trump swept all of South Carolinas 50 delegates, giving him a total of 67 compared to Cruz and Rubio who have 11 and 10, respectively. There are 30 delegates at stake in Nevada, awarded to candidates in proportion to their share of the statewide vote so long as they earn at least 3.33 percent. While proportional contests give Trumps weaker rivals a chance to accumulate delegates, proportional contests also make it difficult to catch up if one candidate runs up a significant lead. After finishing third in Iowa, fifth in New Hampshire and second in South Carolina, Rubio needs a win soon to support the idea that he is the prime heir to Bushs supporters. Indeed, Republican establishment heavyweights have been flooding to Rubio in recent days, including Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson, North Carolina Sen. Thom Tillis and Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch. South Floridas three Cuban-American members of Congress announced their support for him in the hours before the Nevada contest. The entrance poll survey was conducted for The Associated Press and the television networks by Edison Research as Republican voters arrived at 25 randomly selected caucus sites in Nevada. PHOENIX (AP) Authorities trying to rescue a family begging for help after their 26-year-old son opened fire in their Phoenix home arrived to a chaotic crime scene they could not prepare for. The shooter ignited a raging fire and was still inside. Officers donned breathing gear, grabbed fire hoses and ran in, hoping to save lives. They pulled out two victims, but they had to make a hasty retreat as bullets flew their way. The violence played out in a cul-de-sac of quiet, suburban family homes Tuesday morning. Authorities eventually found Vic Buckner, 50, Kimberly Buckner, 49, and their 18-year-old daughter, Kaitlin Buckner, who were all pronounced dead. A 6-year-old daughter, Emma, later died at a hospital. The shooter was the couple's son, Alex Arthur Buckner, who was fatally shot by police, Sgt. Trent Crump said. Three officers were treated for smoke inhalation. The chaos woke up residents in surrounding houses, forcing some to evacuate just before dawn. Yolanda Strayhand, who lives behind the burned home, said her elderly mother woke her up after hearing gunfire. Strayhand went outside and said her front yard looked like a movie scene, with lights and noise from several fire engines, SWAT officers and a helicopter. "We were approached by a lady firefighter who said, 'There's a live shooter,' " Strayhand said. She got a glimpse of the back of the home engulfed in flames. "Every room on the top floor was lit, and they were pointing guns toward the basement," she said. An officer came by and told her to leave. Strayhand gathered clothes, medications and her mother's walker, and they both walked down the street. The ordeal began shortly before 5 a.m. when Kaitlin Buckner called 911, pleading for help and saying that her brother had shot her, Crump said. The first officers on scene ran into the burning house because they felt they had to act quickly. "You have people that need you to come and rescue them, and you now have not only a fire, but somebody who's also firing a gun in there," the police sergeant said. Authorities pulled out two victims, then a tactical team stormed in 45 minutes later when the gunfire stopped and shot the gunman, Crump said. Officers were looking for the rest of the victims, but they had to leave because the fire reignited in the attic, sending flames through a ceiling. They took Alex Buckner's body with them. After the fire was extinguished, they found the other victims. Investigators will likely be gathering evidence at the burned home into the night, Crump said. The police have no record of ever having been called to the house. A next-door neighbor said the family had lived in the home for about two years after moving from Oklahoma. Tulsa County records show they lived in Owasso. James Graham said he was not close to his neighbors, but they chatted occasionally and never mentioned any problems. Family members told investigators that Alex Buckner, who lived in the home, had received treatment in Oklahoma for drug abuse. "They knew that there was some drug abuse in the past," Crump said. "They didn't suspect this now and this was completely out of character and they did not see this coming." All the victims had gunshot wounds, but a medical examiner will determine their causes of death, authorities said. Police said they believe the gun used belonged to Vic Buckner. Sammie Evans, who lives across the street, said Emma Buckner was learning how to write and would show Evans notes she had written. They would chat a bit before the girl went back to her house. "I used to call her Miss America. She was so sweet," Evans said. Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton was at the scene after crews tamped down the fire. "This is what heroes look like," he said of police and firefighters. "Their professionalism and their heroism under the worst possible conditions has truly blown me away." One of the candidates for Chairman in the People's National Movement's internal election says there is a major detachment between those in office and people at the grass root level. Kenneth Butcher says things need to change from the inside. Would those state powers be, powers they did not give the federal government? Is a state, sovereign? Do you understand the meaning of "state" as used in the Constitution? Do the citizens of any particular state have the right to set standards they choose to live by? Next month ABC premieres Keeping Australia Alive a 7 part documentary series which takes the temperature of the Australian health system. The ITV series used 100 cameras to take a snapshot of the health system across a single day. This series is about us. And its about the Australian health system. Its both. Its a snapshot of what happens over a single day in our unique health service, stretched from one end of the continent to the other. How healthy is our health system? What are the challenges of distance, of recurring national problems (like obesity, melanoma, substance abuse and mental health)? These are the human stories (patients and staff), the character, jeopardy, drama and heart. This series is about us and our relationships; about joy, fear, uncertainty and hope. As individuals our relationship with the health system begins when we are no more than the blue line on the pregnancy test and ends when we are a flat line on the ECG. By looking closely at our health system we also put ourselves under the microscope. How do we live? What do we value? What is the quality of our lives? What are our priorities? How do we want to live and die? It is also about the future. With advances in medicine, the escalating costs of sophisticated or ongoing treatment, and our ever-aging population how will we as a nation face the challenges ahead? This landmark series will confront and surprise the audience with the real stories of what makes up Australias massive system of care and service, which we often take for granted. What are the inequities between public and private systems, between east and west, between country and city? What specific challenges do we face with a system that needs to cater for everything from the most remote indigenous community to the busiest city hospital? What human dramas unfold, every day, within it and what do they tell us about ourselves? What do they tell us about modern Australia? What do we (staff and patients) feel about our health care system? What does it mean to us collectively, as well as individually? What do we discover when we dissect the health system slicing through its layers, its wonder, its horror, its enormity, all on one selected, ordinary day? Tuesday 15 March at 8.30pm on ABC. Media organisations have given a mixed report card to the Turnbull governments proposals for media reform. Here is a selection of their quotes: SEVEN: We said we were opposed to piecemeal reform and that hasnt changed. Its hard to know what these changes will actually deliver to ordinary Australians. And very difficult to support this proposal in the absence of any moves to address the regulatory constraints that are jeopardising the future of Australian free-to-air broadcasting, particularly licence fees. -Tim Worner, CEO. TEN: We welcome reports that cabinet has agreed to repeal the two-out-of-three rule and the 75 per cent reach rule as an important first step in reforming our outdated media laws and freeing up Australian media companies to compete on a level playing field with large, overseas-based content and technology players. CEO Paul Anderson. The removal of the ownership rules, and the abolition of the highest television licence fees in the world, are now urgent reforms and should be supported by anyone who wants to see a vibrant and diverse Australian media industry going forward. ASTRA: The future of the media industry will require a long-term program of reform to increase competition within the sector and dismantle protections that continue to skew investment away from innovative technology and towards old business models, -Andrew Maiden, CEO. We would be naturally disappointed to have to wait longer for further reform. FAIRFAX: Fairfax has consistently supported media law reform and welcomes cabinets decision to remove outdated restrictions in the present legislation. -Fairfax spokesperson. NEWS CORP: We are disappointed that, despite the broad recognition that Australias media laws are outdated, the government is proposing that only the reach and two-out-of-three rules be changed. Michael Miller, executive chairman. The fact that broader media reform issues such as the anti-siphoning regime are not part of the proposal makes it difficult to accept this as genuine media reform. WIN: These rules were from a pre-internet era and the sooner they are removed the better. -CEO Andrew Lancaster. PRIME MEDIA: This will hopefully see an end to analog media laws in a rapidly changing digital world where regional broadcasters are under pressure. -CEO Ian Audsley. SOUTHERN CROSS: We are keen for reform to progress through the parliament as soon as possible. CEO Grant Blackley. Source: The Australian, Australian Financial Review Producer Imogen Banks will head up a new drama division within Endemol Shine Australia, to be known as Endemol Shine Banks. Banks has worked closely with renowned producer John Edwards who announced late last year he was setting up his own production company following the merger of the two media groups. She has co-created and produced such titles as Tangle, Party Tricks, Offspring and Puberty Blues and produced Paper Giants, Gallipoli, Dangerous and The Beautiful Lie. CEO Carl Fennessy said: Imogen is one of the finest drama producers in the industry. She brings with her a wealth of experience, passion and a proven track record as a creator and producer of hit series. Were delighted shes committed her future to ESA where shell lead and inspire the next generation of scripted producers. Its an exciting time to be making drama and Im thrilled to be in business with Mark and Carl, Banks said. Their drive and skill are second to none and I fully intend to harness that force. I love what I do and am looking forward to creating new projects with my much valued, long-term collaborators, and developing an environment in which emerging writers and producers can thrive. She is currently in pre production on season 6 of Offspring. Endemol Shine Australia also has other drama projects operating separately to the ESB division. The PIU had been investigating the Cancer Research and Prevention Institute (CPRIT), a $3 billion dollar taxpayer funded project that awarded research and investment grants to startups targeting cancer cures. The entire scientific review team, including Nobel Laureate scientists, resigned because they said millions were handed out through political favoritism. Investigations by Texas newspapers indicated much of the money was ending up in projects proposed by campaign donors and supporters of Governor Perry. In fact, one of the executives of CPRIT was indicted in the PIU investigation for awarding an $11 million dollar grant to a company without the proposal undergoing any type of review. Why not make sure your contributors get some of that sweetness? The idea that he was concerned about Lehmberg's drunk driving is also fatuous nonsense. Two other Texas DAs were arrested for DUI during Perry's tenure in office and he spoke not a discouraging word about their indiscretions. Kaufman County D.A. Rick Harrison drove the wrong way into traffic and was found guilty of drunk driving in 2009 and in 2003 Terry McEachern, DA of Swisher County, was convicted of a DUI. Perry said nothing. It's probably only coincidental that both of those individuals were Republicans and did not oversee an investigative unit responsible for keeping elected officials honest in the capitol. If the court of public opinion has an impact on a jury's decisions, Texas Governor Rick Perry may have a chance of beating his indictments. While poorly informed Democrats like Obama advisor David Axelrod call the indictments "sketchy," Perry's advisors have him concentrating on defending his constitutional authority to exercise the line item budget veto.Except that's not what this case is about.Perry is accused of using his veto authority to coerce a publicly elected official into leaving office. And when the veto threat, and later the actual exercise of the veto didn't work, he may have tried a bit of bribery, which is why he is facing criminal charges.Not because he exercised his constitutional veto authority.Some of the media appear to have adopted the Perry narrative that he wanted to get rid of an irresponsible Travis County District Attorney Rosemary Lehmberg because she had been arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol. Lehmberg, whose blood alcohol level was about three times above legal limits, was recorded on video as drunk and belligerent during booking. Perry is arguing he eliminated the $7.5 million dollar budget that Lehmberg managed for the Public Integrity Unit (PIU) because she was no longer responsible enough to run the operation.But the governor probably had another motive.2014-08-18-url.jpgPerry might have been the next target.The same cronyism appeared to be at work in two other large taxpayer accounts called the Emerging Technology Fund (ETF), and the Texas Enterprise Fund, (TEF), which were supposed to be used to help technology startups and assist companies wanting to move to Texas. In total, the governor and his appointees had purview over about $19 billion and where they wanted it invested.If Perry were able to get Lehmberg to resign, he'd have the authority to appoint her replacement. We can assume that would have been a Republican, and that any investigations might have stuttered to a halt. The DA, however, refused, and began to field threats from the governor's office that the PIU budget was to be zeroed out via line item veto. But the exercise of the veto is not what got Perry indicted.First, he used the veto to threaten a public officeholder. This is abuse of the power of his office. Presidents and governors frequently use the possibility of vetoes to change the course of legislation. But that is considerably different than trying to force an elected officeholder to resign. What Perry did, if true, can be politely called blackmail, and, when he sent emissaries to urge Lehmberg to quit even after his veto, he may have indulged in bribery.According to sources close to the grand jury, Perry dispatched two of his staffers and one high-profile Democrat to tell Lehmberg if she left her office the governor would reinstate the PIU budget. One report indicates there may have been a quid pro quo of a new, more lucrative job for the DA, which is why this case has nothing to do with his right to use the veto.But that's where Perry will focus his public defense.Of course, he will also continue his argument this is another manifestation of partisan politics in Austin. That claim is as misleading as his veto rhetoric.There wasn't a single Democrat involved in the investigation and indictment.In fact, Perry appointed the presiding judge in the case, Billy Ray Stubblefield of the 3rd Judicial District. Stubblefield named retired Judge Bert Richardson of Bexar County (San Antonio) to handle the grand jury investigation, and Richardson picked Mike McCrum to be the special prosecutor in the case.McCrum, who withdrew his name from consideration for U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Texas, had the support of the two Republican Texas U.S. Senators and the state's Democratic officeholders, which hardly makes him a Democratic Party hack. (A Washington gridlock over the confirmation process in the U.S. Senate caused him to withdraw.)That all makes it hard to sell the partisan attack narrative that reporters are spreading for Perry.The indictments, however, have not left the Texas governor chastened. During his six-minute news conference after they were handed down, he threatened retaliation for the people involved in getting him into this mess, which is probably another form of official abuse he has promised to deliver to his fellow Texans. His central complaint was that the legal and grand jury investigative process was being used to settle political differences and that wasn't something we did in America, which is a startling irony for anyone who knows how Rick Perry first won statewide public office in Texas.When Perry ran for Texas agriculture commissioner in 1990, he benefited from a federal investigation of his opponent's office, which had been facilitated by his campaign manager Karl Rove. Rove worked with an FBI agent to investigate Democrat Jim Hightower and two of his senior staffers at a time when Perry was challenging Hightower for the agriculture commissioner's job. The FBI, in fact, served search warrants at Hightower's state office on the day he was out of town announcing his reelection plans.Perry had been a Democrat and Rove had convinced him to change parties. Rove ran Perry's winning campaign while also constantly leaking information on the federal investigation to reporters. Hightower escaped indictment but the two senior administrators of his office were convicted of raising campaign money for the Democrat during after hours while traveling on state business. One long-time Austin political operative said that if that were a crime, it was "something that only happened about 1000 times a day in Texas."Consequently, Perry is demonstrably incorrect that Texans don't use the legal system to settle political scores. Instead, we often turn it into a form of tragicomedy. The PIU has prosecuted seventeen officeholders since it was created; thirteen were Democrats. And it will be no minor irony that Perry, who came into statewide office as the result of a grand jury investigation, might just end his carer as an outcome of the same process. (Editor's note: This story has been updated to reflect a new deadline of March 29 for poster abstract submissions.) 10:56 a.m., Feb. 24, 2016--On Wednesday, April 20, the University of Delaware will host Rising Seas and Extreme Events on Vulnerable Coasts, a symposium honoring UD alumnus Brian F. Atwater, a geologist with the U.S. Geological Survey and the recipient of the Franklin Institutes 2016 Benjamin Franklin Medal in Earth and Environmental Science. The symposium, set for 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. in the Trabant University Center Multipurpose Rooms, is free and open to the public. To register for the symposium, or submit to the call for posters, click here. Since 1824, the Franklin Institute has honored the greatest men and women of science. The endowed Benjamin Franklin Medals are given annually in the following seven science disciplines: chemistry, civil and mechanical engineering, computer and cognitive science, earth and environmental science, electrical engineering, life science, and physics. Atwater, who earned his doctoral degree in geology from UD in 1980, was selected for his pioneering studies of coastal sedimentary records, which revealed a history of great earthquakes and tsunamis in the Pacific Northwest over millennia and led to a vastly improved understanding of these hazards globally. About the symposium The Rising Seas and Extreme Events symposium will be held in conjunction with the Franklin Institutes Awards Week, which culminates in the Franklin Institute awards ceremony and dinner, at which gold medals will be bestowed upon Atwater and his fellow laureates. At the symposium, five invited speakers will discuss coastal processes and associated hazards: Brian F. Atwater, U.S. Geological Survey, Early Accounts of Coastal Warping During Subduction Earthquakes. Elizabeth Burke Watson, Academy of Natural Sciences, Drexel University, Impacts of Sea Level Rise on Coastal Wetlands in the U.S. Northeast. James T. Kirby, University of Delaware, Modeling Tsunami Impacts on the Atlantic Coast of the United States. Robert E. Kopp, Rutgers University, Global Sea-Level Change, Past and Future. Daria L. Nikitina, West Chester University, Sea-Level Change in the Delaware Estuary. An open discussion will follow the speakers, as well as poster presentations by select registrants. Faculty, scientists, graduate and undergraduate students at UD and outside institutions are encouraged to submit for the call for posters; deadline for poster abstract submissions is Tuesday, March 29. UDs College of Earth, Ocean, and Environment and Department of Geological Sciences are hosting the symposium, with support from the Delaware Environmental Institute (DENIN) and the Franklin Institute. The Franklin Institute Awards is one of the most important ways we continue the strong legacy set forth by Benjamin Franklin, explained Larry Dubinski, president and CEO of the Franklin Institute. These are some of the greatest minds and most influential pioneers of our time who are recognized here in Philadelphia for their accomplishments that will no doubt impact each and every one of us in some way, at some time. They are the Franklins of today, who will certainly help inspire the Franklins of tomorrow. Brians scientific contributions have significantly improved understanding of coastal sediments and the natural disasters that affect their distribution. We are proud to celebrate his accomplishments with this symposium and even more proud to call him a UD alumnus, said Mohsen Badiey, acting dean of the College of Earth, Ocean, and Environment. About Brian Atwater In addition to his role with U.S. Geological Survey, Atwater is currently an affiliate professor in the Department of Earth and Space Sciences at the University of Washington in Seattle. Atwaters early work involved studying sea-level changes and tidal marsh vegetation in the San Francisco Bay, which later transitioned into his award-winning work in earthquakes and tsunamis. His current research focuses on geophysical sciences and natural hazards. He is the author of The Orphan Tsunami of 1700 (2005), a monograph on Japanese clues to the 1700 Cascadia tsunami. His other publications include public-safety booklets on tsunami survival in Chile and Indonesia, along with testimonies from tsunami eyewitnesses in the Middle East. Atwater is a member of the National Academy of Sciences and a fellow of the American Geophysical Union and the Geological Society of America. Among his other career accolades, Atwater was a Fulbright scholar in Indonesia from 2009 to 2011, and was named one of the 100 most influential people in 2005 by Time magazine. At UD, he is also a member of the Deans Advisory Council for the College of Earth, Ocean, and Environment. Photo courtesy of the University of Washington 1:53 p.m., Feb. 24, 2016--The University of Delaware Institute for Global Studies second annual Fulbright Spring Lecture Series will kick off Thursday, Feb. 25, with a lecture by Xiaoyan Xiao, co-director of the UD Confucius Institute and professor of languages, literatures, and cultures at Xiamen University in China. Xiaos passion for language initially led her to research the status of the more than 20 million deaf people in China. She will brief the audience on family life, education and career opportunities for the Chinese deaf community. In addition, Xiao will describe how her time as a 2011 Fulbright Visiting Scholar to Gallaudet University ultimately led her to understand the problems, prospects and path forward for this, the largest community of its kind in the world. Co-sponsored by the UD Confucius Institute and the vice provost for diversity, the event will take place beginning at 7 p.m. in the Gore Recital Hall of the Roselle Center for the Arts, with a reception immediately following. American Sign Language interpreters will be on hand to translate for members of the deaf community. In conjunction with her lecture, Xiao will also speak to UD students during an Introduction to Disability Studies class, and will work with children at the University of Delaware Early Learning Center on a special activity. The lecture series will continue in the Gore Recital Hall at 7 p.m., Wednesday, March 23, with a presentation by Adrienne Harding, a flutist who received both her undergraduate (1999) and graduate (2001) degrees in music from UD. Harding, who was awarded a Fulbright U.S. Student Award to Austria in 2011, will describe her experience researching historical dance and instrumental music at the University of Salzburg, and how she found her groove during her global journey. Students and community members interested in music and theatre are invited to join in for an afternoon workshop co-led by Harding and Caroline Copeland, the associate director of the New York Baroque Dance Company. Here, Copeland will connect historic dance and music, allowing participants to understand classic pieces within their interpretive context through meaningful experience with movement. Hardings lecture and workshop are co-sponsored by the UD Department of Music. The New York Baroque Dance Company is renowned for its recreations of 17th and 18th century ballets and operas and research in performance practice and dance notation, and is a forerunner in the field of historical dance pedagogy. The workshop will take place from 2:30-4:30 p.m. on March 23 in the Gore Recital Hall. The series will come to a close on Tuesday, April 5, with an Arctic Month presentation by Mark Moline, director of UDs School of Marine Science and Policy and 2011 Fulbright Arctic Chair. Moline and Jonathan Cohen, assistant professor of marine science, will recount their most recent investigations of the Arctic polar night. Until recently, the Arctic winter is thought to have pushed the surrounding environment into a sleep-like state. Instead, the team has documented a system in which diversity, activity levels and biological interactions across most trophic levels and phyla remain high during the winter. The team will review their work, discuss findings and share experiences of living and working in this extreme environment. Co-sponsored by the UDs College of Earth, Ocean, and Environment, the Arctic lecture will take place beginning at 7 p.m. in the atrium of the Harker Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Laboratory. All are welcome to attend a reception to follow. For more information on each of the speakers or to RSVP, visit the Institute for Global Studies website. The Fulbright Lecture Series is hosted each year as a hallmark of UDs Fulbright Initiative. Founded by the Institute for Global Studies in 2014, the initiative seeks to increase student, faculty and alumni awareness of opportunities for international scholarship and service available via the Fulbright Program and to recognize the more than 150 members of the UD community who have received one of these prestigious awards. Students interested in learning more about the Fulbright Program are invited to attend a spring information session held on the following dates at 3:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 16, in the Wright House at 44 Kent Way. Thursday, April 14, in Purnell Hall, Room 229. Wednesday, April 27, in Purnell Hall, Room 229. About the Fulbright Program Each year the U.S. Fulbright Program provides 8,000 grants for research or teaching in one of over 140 countries throughout the world. Introduced by U.S. Sen. J. William Fulbright in 1946, the program seeks to foster international partnership and cultural exchange by funding research and teaching opportunities worldwide. In addition, the University welcomes Fulbright Scholars for research and graduate study, with scholars hailing from Afghanistan, Colombia, Egypt, Iraq, Mexico, Pakistan, Spain, Tunisia and Ukraine. In August 2016, the University will host its second annual one-week Fulbright Gateway Orientation program for Fulbright Foreign Students administered by IGS. Article by Nikki Laws 12:50 p.m., Feb. 24, 2016--Two alumni of the University of Delaware Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering are among an elite group of researchers to receive Presidential Early Career Awards for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE), the highest honor bestowed by the United States government on science and engineering professionals in the early stages of their independent research careers. William Tisdale, who earned his bachelors degree in 2005, and Michelle OMalley, who received her doctorate in 2009, will receive their awards along with 103 other winners at a ceremony in Washington, D.C., this spring. In announcing the awards on Feb. 18, President Barack Obama said, These early-career scientists are leading the way in our efforts to confront and understand challenges from climate change to our health and wellness. We congratulate these accomplished individuals and encourage them to continue to serve as an example of the incredible promise and ingenuity of the American people. Tisdale, whose award includes research funding from the Department of Energy, is the Charles and Hilda Roddey Career Development Professor in Chemical Engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He joined the MIT faculty in 2012 and received a Department of Energy Early Career Award in 2013. Tisdale also was the recipient of MITs student-nominated 2014 Baker Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching. Tisdales research focuses broadly on understanding and controlling the movement of energy in nanostructured materials. OMalley is now an assistant professor at the University of California, Santa Barbara, where her lab engineers protein synthesis and manipulates cellular behavior for biomedical and environmental applications. She received a 2016 National Science Foundation Faculty Early Career Development Award, and in 2015 she was named one of 35 Innovators Under 35 by MIT Technology Review. In May, OMalley will deliver the Allan P. Colburn Memorial Lecture at UD, which recognizes young faculty who exemplify Colburns scholarly abilities. Her PECASE award is funded through the Department of Energy. Past PECASE recipients at UD include Anne Robinson, chemical engineering (2000); Javier Garcia-Frias, electrical engineering (2002); Thomas H. Epps, III, chemical engineering (2010); and Matthew Oliver, School of Marine Science and Policy (2011). A number of other UD alumni have won the award, as well. About the awards The Presidential Early Career Awards highlight the key role that the administration places in encouraging and accelerating American innovation to grow the economy and tackle the nations greatest challenges. This years recipients are employed or funded by the following departments and agencies: Department of Agriculture, Department of Commerce, Department of Defense, Department of Education, Department of Energy, Department of Health and Human Services, Department of the Interior, Department of Veterans Affairs, Environmental Protection Agency, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, National Science Foundation, and the Intelligence Community. These departments and agencies join together annually to nominate the most meritorious scientists and engineers whose early accomplishments show the greatest promise for assuring Americas preeminence in science and engineering and contributing to the awarding agencies missions. The awards, established by President Bill Clinton in 1996, are coordinated by the Office of Science and Technology Policy within the Executive Office of the President. Awardees are selected for their pursuit of innovative research at the frontiers of science and technology and their commitment to community service as demonstrated through scientific leadership, public education, or community outreach. Article by Diane Kukich Photo of William Tisdale by Denis Paiste/MIT Materials Processing Center Photo of Michelle OMalley by Sonia Fernandez/University of California, Santa Barbara There is no perfect solution. If there was we wouldn't have spent decades trying to figure it out. From Hoover to Ike, from Reagan to Obama, we've struggled with this issue. Here's what I know for sure. Illegals need to pay penalties, pay taxes, learn English and then go to the back of the line. They need to be vetted. They need a path to citizenship, but must be deported if they can't tow the line....follow our laws. Immigration is good for the economy and illegals DO PAY taxes--sales tax, income tax, Medicare and Social Security without getting most of the benefits. Many refer to illegals as criminals, but the fact is that crossing the border illegally is a misdemeanor--not a felony. And in spite of what Trump says, most illegals are law-abiding people...and hard workers. Rounding up 11 million people is an idiot's solution and Rubio knows it. What he also understands is that if a presidential candidate is spouting that nonsense he/she is also advocating a massive expansion of federal government bureaucracy. Now let's talk about the fence/wall. Dubya signed the Border Security Act in 2006--a new 700-mile fence, planned for the southern border with Mexico. Two years later this country plunged into a recession. The last time I checked the fence was completed in a haphazard way. What Trump and Cruz are claiming is pie in the sky. Finishing 1300 miles of fencing is cost prohibitive, especially considering that illegals can either tunnel under it or climb over it. At a cost of $10 billion...just for the materials. And remember that border includes every twist and turn of the Rio Grande and steep terrain in Arizona, and private property. Wealthy landowners want to be compensated for their property and/or have refused to cooperate with the feds. My point is this. Building a wall doesn't solve the problem. Deporting 11 million people is impossible. Trump and Cruz are morons for even suggesting THAT is the solution to our immigration woes. The lineup for the UEFA Youth League quarter-finals has been confirmed. Holders Chelsea and Benfica maintain their records of having reached the last eight in all three editions of the competition, while inaugural champions Barcelona are back after missing out 12 months ago. Quarter-final fixtures Chelsea v Ajax Paris Saint-Germain v Roma Anderlecht v Barcelona* Real Madrid v Benfica *Anderlecht have been reinstated at the expense of Dinamo Zagreb. Full explanation. The single-leg ties take place on 8 and 9 March, with dates and times to be confirmed. The winners go through to the final tournament in Nyon. Where to watch the matches. Semi-finals (15 April, Nyon) Real Madrid/Benfica v Paris Saint-Germain/Roma Chelsea/Ajax v Anderlecht/Barcelona Final (18 April, Nyon) Winners of semi-final 1 v Winners of semi-final 2 Hi, my name is Scott C. Waring and I wrote a few books and am currently a ESL School Owner in Taiwan. I have had my own UFO sighting up close and personal, but that's how it works right? A non believer becomes a believer when they experience their first sighting. You witnessed it, your perceptual field changes, so now you need to share it. I created this site to help the UFO community get a little bit organized. I noticed that there was a lot of chaos when searching for UFO sighting reports, so I hope this site helps. I wanted to support those eyewitnesses who have tried to tell others about what they have seen, yet were laughed at by even closest of friends. More and more each day the governments of the world leak bits and pieces of UFO information to the public. They have a trickle down theory in hopes of slowly getting citizens use to the idea that we are not alone in universe and never have been. The truth is being leaked drop by drop until one day we look around and find ourselves neck high in it. The discovery of alien species in existence is the most monumental scientific event in human history, suppression of that information is a crime against humanity. About me: I live in Taiwan. I OWN MY OWN ENGLISH SCHOOL, AND ONCE HAD 5 SCHOOLS. Am Former USAF at SAC base (flight line). Age: 42 Educ: BA in Elem ed. Masters in Counseling ed. I had two UFO sightings, (30+bus size orbs) in military and in 2012 personally saw the UFO over Taipei 101 building on New Years Day (and recored it). The situation in eastern Ukraine, where the constant attacks from the Russian side have recently resumed, causes concern in Washington and is a matter of constant attention of the U.S. Secretary of Defense. Pentagon Press Secretary Peter Cook said this at the briefing on Tuesday, an Ukrinform correspondent reports. "I know the Secretary continues to closely monitor what's happening in Ukraine. Obviously, we have concerns as others in the international community do about the level of violence there," the Pentagon spokesman said. He stressed that the U.S. training being conducted of Ukrainian forces was the indication of the American commitment to Ukraine. Cook said that the Pentagon continued to work closely with the Government of Ukraine regarding the support that can be provided by the United States as well as the necessary training. "In that sense, we'll just continue to partner with them [Ukrainian authorities] and provide the kind of assistance that we feel is appropriate at this time," the representative of the U.S. Department of Defense summed up. ol No Ukrainian servicemen were killed, but two soldiers were wounded in the ATO area in eastern Ukraine over past 24 hours. Spokesman for the Presidential Administration on the anti-terrorist operation, Colonel Oleksandr Motuzianyk said this at the briefing in Kyiv, an Ukrinform correspondent reports. "No Ukrainian servicemen were killed as a result of military operations over the past day, but two soldiers were wounded near Putylivska coal mine and Krasnohorivka [Donersk region]," Motuzianyk said. ol The military threat from the east will remain relevant in the short and the long-term even under the most optimistic scenario and the long-term truce in Donbas followed by political settlement and permanent peace. President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko said this during the graduation ceremony for operative-strategic and operative-tactical specialists at Ukraine's National Defense University on Wednesday, an Ukrinform correspondent reports. "The early graduation of officers in the higher military education establishments of Ukraine has taken place for the second consecutive year. Reducing the terms of training and prompt graduation are caused by the fact that the military threat from the east will remain in both short-term and long-term even under the most optimistic scenario in Donbas followed by political settlement and permanent peace, the President said. ol Canadas Defense Minister Harjit Sajjan in the near future will pay an official visit to Ukraine, First Deputy Verkhovna Rada Chairman Andriy Parubiy has said. We have agreed with the defense minister that he in the near future will visit Ukraine. He has promised to gather a two-party delegation and come, Parubiy said, being on a working visit in Canada, the parliaments press service reports. According to Parubiy, at the meeting the sides discussed the issue of transferring lethal and non-lethal arms to Ukraine. "We have raised the issue of lethal weapons and conducted more detailed consultations on non-lethal equipment needed for Ukraine. It was a special conversation with the documents, he said. According Parubiy, the sides also discussed the issues of secured communications systems, counter-battery and electronic warfare units, as well as anti-tank weapons, coast guard and armored vehicles. In addition, Canada's defense department officials agreed to retain the same number of military instructors in Ukraine. iy Organizers of the "bear blockade" have vowed to block highways again if the government does not ban the transit of Russian commercial vehicles. One of the organizers of the blockade in westernmost Transcarpathian region Taras Deiak told Ukrinform in an exclusive interview. "Today in Lviv city we gather all coordinators of the blockade to make a decision on how to act from now on. Whatever the government's resolution will be on transit of Russian trucks, we will block their movement and insist on banning transit of Russian trucks. And then on enactment of ban on all Russian businesses," he said. According to him, this will be peaceful protests. "We believe that by organizing peaceful, but long lasting actions can we eventually ban all Russian businesses in Ukraine. Therefore the blockade and actions will go on now before the issue of transit is settled. We will demand that it must be banned. If the government opens highways - we will still set up highway roadblocks," the activist noted. Now activists are holding consultations with lawyers, economists and political scientists on the format of protest actions against Russian businesses. "We live in difficult times, and it must not be the case when some people give their lives for the country, while others complain about their falling profits. War is war," he said. He said the activists had a conversation with minister of infrastructure Andriy Pyvovarsky. German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier says that the situation in Ukraine is complicated and he will continue to demand conduct of reforms in Ukraine. He said this after completion of his joint visit with French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault to Kyiv, an Ukrinform correspondent in Germany reports. It remains not clear for the German Minister when the majority focused on conduct of reforms can appear in Ukraine, and whether it can appear at all. "The German-French message in this situation is clear: the expectation and requirement towards all responsible politicians is to save more time now, to stop political squabbles and to focus on decisive implementation of the reform program in the interest of consolidation of the independent and free Ukraine," the Foreign Ministry of Germany quotes Steinmeier as saying. ol Another regular round of talks is likely to be held in Minsk, Belarus, on Wednesday regarding peaceful settlement of the situation in Donbas. Recall that this is the 33rd meeting of Trilateral contact group on peaceful settlement of the situation in Donbas. The previous meeting was held on February 17, 2016. Trilateral contact group was formed in June 2014 and includes the representatives of Ukraine, the OSCE and Russia. A wide range of issues that are being discussed at the talks of the Group relate to the implementation of the Minsk agreements concluded on 12 February 2015, including ceasefire in Donbass, withdrawal of heavy weapons, release of the hostages, access to humanitarian assistance and many others issues. The voting at the United Kingdom European Union membership referendum will mean the British support for Ukraine and No to any tolerance of military aggression from Russia. James Wilson, British expert, director of the EU-Ukraine Business Council, said this in exclusive comments to an Ukrinform correspondent in Brussels. "I am a European first and I am and a proud Scot, I am disappointed that my Prime Minister has yielded to populist tabloid pressure to hold this sham referendum in the UK. It is stoking the worst kinds of nationalistic and jingoistic rhetoric from the Muppets of British politics like Boris Johnson, George Galloway, Nigel Farage - a generation of political losers. My hope is that this referendum gives us the opportunity to consign these Muppets to the dustbin of political history where they belong. I will vote Yes for Europe, I will vote Yes to support Ukraine and No to any tolerance of military aggression and expansionism from Russia," the British expert stressed. According to James Wilson, by opening Pandoras Box and declaring a national referendum to be held on 23 June in the UK, David Cameron has plunged Britain into 4 months of uncertainty, and hot national political debate about Britains role in Europe - yet again. But business and the financial markets are unforgiving; they do not like uncertainty. They must factor into their strategy and risk management that having a referendum means that the British public may actually say no to Europe. "So the markets must take this into account; there will be a high degree of anxiety over the next four months and volatility in the stock market and in the international exchange rate for the British pound. All elections are highly unpredictable, and referenda on Europe are notoriously so. They cannot be controlled by the ruling political classes," he noted. The expert explained what it would mean for Ukraine if Britain were to vote No in this referendum. "Firstly, Ukraine would lose its best friend in the EU. Secondly Russia would be delivered a PR victory for its loathsome supporters from the extreme far right and far left parties in the UK. Thirdly, English as a language would start to disappear from the EU," he said. In addition, the expert noted that Scotland would demand independence from the UK in order to secure its future as a Member State of the EU. "These are important issues for Ukraine, and Ukrainian politicians should not underestimate the importance of the consequences of Brexit for their country," the director of the EU-Ukraine Business Council summed up. 1958 Communist Warning About America Eerily Happening Nowby Bethany BlankleySep 8, 2015Cleon Skousen, a former FBI agent wrote The Neked Communist, which was published in 1958. He listed 45 areas in which he believed Communist goals would applied to radically transform America. A few years later, in 1963, Skousens list was entered into the U.S. Congressional Record by Congressman Albert S. Herlong Jr. (D-FL).Since then, Skousens warning has been referred to numerous times, but apparently not heeded. Remarkably, his predictions about changing American hearts and minds through transforming public attitudes about social, economic, educational, military, and familial roles while also using the media to propagate false and misinformation are evident throughout every area of society in 2015 America.In fact, Barack Obamas Hope and Change resembles most of what is described on this list. Perhaps he read it and took it to heart. Regardless, it is an indictment of generations of failed leadership both public and private, both individual and corporate, in America.Below is a transcript of the U.S. Congressional Record taken from Appendix, pp. A34-A35, published on January 10, 1963.[From The Naked Communist, by Cleon Skousen] 1958CURRENT COMMUNIST GOALS1. 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 [by] 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 Khrushchevs 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 *********** 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 cultureeducation, 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 [or treat].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 domestic problems. Give the World Court jurisdiction] over nations and individuals alike. A meeting of the Trilateral Contact Group for settling the conflict in Donbas is being held in Minsk. The Foreign Ministry of Belarus made a relevant post on Twitter. The meeting of the Trilateral Contact Group for settling the situation in eastern Ukraine is taking place in Minsk, reads the report. As Ukrinform reported, earlier on Wednesday a joint session of working groups on economic, humanitarian and security issues of the Trilateral Contact Group took place in the capital of Belarus. This is the 33rd meeting of the Trilateral Contact Group for settling the situation in Donbas. The previous meeting was held on February 17, 2016. The Trilateral Contact Group was formed in June 2014. It involves representatives of Ukraine, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) and Russia. iy UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi visits Lesvos in the framework of his first official visit to Greece. UNHCR/A. Zavallis LESVOS, Greece, Feb 24 - Europe is backing into an even greater refugee crisis by tightening border restrictions on the hundreds of thousands who have fled war and conflict in Syria, Afghanistan, Iraq and other countries. That was the message of UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi on his first official visit to the island of Lesvos on Tuesday (February 23). "I am very worried about the news we are getting about the increasing closures of the European borders along the Balkans route," Grandi said. "Because that will create further chaos and confusion and it will increase the burden on Greece which is already shouldering a big responsibility managing these people. "We are worried that these closings are happening and that there are no corresponding openings through relocation and resettlement." Grandi, who took over as the head of UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, on January 1, visited the port and the registration centres for refugees and migrants on a day that at least 1,800 of people made the dangerous crossing by rubber dinghy from Turkey. He said he was impressed by the dedication and effectiveness of the Greek coast guard in rescuing refugees. He also said he was pleased by the progress in processing the flow of refugees and migrants coming to Lesvos. But he emphasized the need to further promote the option of relocation. He noted that while a system for distribution was in place, far too few places - 1,200 - are being offered by EU countries and too few refugees are agreeing to take part in the scheme. The scheme would significantly reduce the numbers moving to Austria, Germany and Sweden and ease the pressure on Greece. Last year more than 500,000 refugees first touched European soil on Lesvos. And so far this year more than 50,000 more have come to the island. Grandi noted that "Europe has not shown much solidarity, but here we see the best face of Europe" with the significant efforts made by the local community, local authorities, volunteers and NGO partners. He also denounced what he called "the tendency to classify people along the route by nationality. Some are OK and can go through," like Syrians and Iraqis while others are blocked like Afghans, Somalis and Palestinians. Grandi spelled out ambitions for a UNHCR conference to be held on March 30 to promote legal avenues for Syrian refugees to reduce their dependence on criminal smuggler networks and regularize the flow. He said both Europe and the world must commit to taking many more Syrians, to relieve the burden on the principal refugee-hosting countries - Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan. "But we're not going to tell them, take a few hundreds or a few thousands as is the case now. We're going to tell them to take hundreds of thousands. In fact our hope would be 10 per cent of the whole Syrian refugee population, this is almost half a million people." Grandi heard the stories of several refugees at the port and in the reception centre. Hallal said he fled his bombed home in Hamaa a year and a half ago and spent 18 months working, with his wife and his 11-year-old son, picking cotton to find $4,000 to make the dangerous crossing to Lesvos. Hallal's goal is to provide security and an education for his seven children, even at the price of abandoning their country. "This is their fate," he said. "I hope, God willing, the war will end in Syria, and we can return. My country is good, my country is precious to me. But because of my children, I was scared and I had to leave my country." UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi visits the Agios Panteleimonas cemetery in Mytilene to pay his respects to refugees and migrants who lost their lives trying to cross the Aegean sea from Turkey to Greece. UNHCR/A.Zavallis In late afternoon the High Commissioner paid homage to refugees who never left Lesvos. Grandi climbed to the top of St. Pantelaimonas cemetery where more than 150 are buried. Most drowned, many were children, their short lives marked by soft toys and simple words - 'unknown little one'. A quiet hour in a quiet corner bears testimony to the tragedy that exile can bring. Don Murray, Lesvos, Greece Pete Moss said: In your mind, perhaps, and in the mind of progressive democrat socialists. The most hate I see is directed towards anyone that defends traditional Christian American culture. Click to expand... What you see is coming from your mind. There is no one attacking your "Christian American Culture", at all. So it needs no defending. Your imaginings about this are a thin veil those like you use to shroud their real agenda, which is keeping everyone else out from sharing in the same liberties and privileges that in this country have been historically heaped upon the "Christian American culture", which really means white male Christian American culture. No, it's about Ben Carson's insane claim that the president isn't really black since he was raised by white people. And other people here saying that because he was middle class and not from the ghetto, that means he isn't really black. Some here pointed out that he was from a single parent household and even raised by grandparents and used scholarships and loans to pay for education, after someone else said he was born with a silver spoon, and your point is useless since it was already pointed out that he didn't really know his dad. Any personal attacks against his father by you serve no purpose and prive no point. So it's more business as usual from you. Might I ask, which previous poster are you again? This is getting old. 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. For his 78th birthday, Nike chairman and co-founder Phil Knight donated $400 million to Stanford University, but not so its student-athletes could wear the iconic "swoosh" logo. Stanford announced the donation Tuesday, and that the gift would go toward establishing the Knight-Hennessy Scholars Program for graduate students. The program will aim to "prepare a new generation of global leaders with the skills to address the increasingly complex challenges facing the world." Knight, who turns 78 Wednesday, told The New York Times he saw an opportunity to invest in the future of the entire world. "This is using education to benefit mankind and I think it really could be transformative," he said. "I jumped on it right away." Stanford President John Hennessy will serve as the program's director when he steps down from his current position. The scholars who eventually take part will be a diverse group of graduates nominated by their respective schools based on civic duties and leadership qualities, Stanford stated. Forbes estimates Knight's net worth at $25 billion, having co-founded one of the most recognizable, famous brands in the world. His $400 million donation matches one John A. Paulson gave to Harvard for its engineering school, The Times reported. Knight is an Oregon native, and attended the state's flagship university, Stanford's Pac-12 rivals. However, Knight received his MBA from Stanford and has donated to both schools over the years. "We wanted to create something enduring, that would be unlike anything else currently available to the world's brightest minds, and that would make the biggest impact possible toward solving global challenges affecting the environment, health, education and human rights," Hennessy said in the school's statement. "We will bring together outstanding, courageous scholars to benefit from Stanford's innovative educational environment, who then go on to lead governments, businesses, nonprofits and other complex organizations and develop creative solutions to effect positive change." 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 All the latest Uttoxeter news Story Saved You can find this story in My Bookmarks. Or by navigating to the user icon in the top right. A convoy will leave Albany Wednesday morning to deliver the Wall of Honor: Faces of The Fallen to Canyonville. Members of Albany-based Vets Helping Vets HQ maintain the 20- by 30-foot traveling wall, which displays the names of all U.S. service members who died in combat since September 11, 2001. The group maintains a decorated trailer that houses the wall when it travels. There are 5,800 in our trailer right now who died to helped make our freedom possible, said Victor Kuhn, CEO of the veterans advocacy group. Kuhn said a little more than 100 will be added to the wall in coming months as well. The Wall of Honor was originally developed by a high school student in Milwaukee, but Kuhn said just before Veterans Day, 2015, his group took over its maintenance, enlisting Xtreme Grafx of Albany to revitalize the images and the lettering on the walls 34 panels. Additionally, the company donated vinyl wraps to the trailer that carries the wall, and also provided graphics for a second trailer that pays honor to Tyler Troyer, a West Albany High School graduate, who lost his life as a marine fighting in Al Karmah, Iraq, on Nov. 19, 2005. Kuhn said the traveling wall serves three purposes. On one level, it offers healing to those who have lost people to the wars since 9/11. It also acts as a memorial to their sacrifice, and finally, the wall serves to educate the public on the value of service. Albany Police Lieutenant Alan Lynn, who served as a Marine during the Gulf War, will help escort the convoy to Canyonville. Lebanon police Lieutenant Scott Bressler will also accompany the convoy, with members of the Vietnam Veterans Motorcycle Club riding in the Missing Man formation, a traditional memorial pattern used normally by aircraft pilots, which involves one rider leaving the V shaped formation to announce the absence of a comrade. As the wall travels south, members of veterans motorcycle clubs will join the convoy, and Kuhn expects more than 200 riders to be present once they arrive in Canyonville, where the wall will remain on display through Sunday. UW Saturday U Program Returns to Jackson March 12 Mexican-American workers in wine country, glacier exploration in the Wind River Range and church tithings for the Black Power movement are discussion topics for a University of Wyoming program Saturday, March 12, in Jackson. The spring term of Saturday University -- the University of Wyomings popular, free one-day college education program -- concludes with three lectures at the National Museum of Wildlife Art beginning at 8:30 a.m. with refreshments. Area residents have the opportunity to go back to college for a day, with two UW professors and a Central Wyoming College (CWC) faculty member lecturing. Participants may attend one, two or all three lectures in Jackson, plus the final luncheon and roundtable discussion at 12:30 p.m. In its eighth year, Saturday U is a collaborative program that connects popular UW and Wyoming community college professors with lifelong learners. Offered six times a year -- twice each in Jackson, Gillette and Sheridan -- Saturday U is sponsored by the university, the UW Foundation and Wyoming Humanities Council, and is presented locally by CWC, the National Museum of Wildlife Art and Teton County Library Foundation. Listed below are program topic descriptions and professors lecturing: 9 a.m. -- Mexican-American in the Napa Valley: Wine, Tourism and Race in the Wine Country, Lilia Soto, UW American studies and Latina/o studies assistant professor. Soto will examine the experiences of Mexicans in Californias Napa Valley as workers and as wine makers. Soto says the workers have been hidden from the Napa Valley narrative, rendering them new immigrants at best and invisible at worse. To uncover their stories, Soto will provide multiple historical moments in her presentation. 10:15 a.m. -- Living the High Life: A 12,000 Year Love Story of Humans and Ice Near the Dinwoody Glacier, Todd Guenther, CWC anthropology and history professor. Last summer, CWC students conducted research as part of the colleges interdisciplinary climate change expedition. The expedition was organized to document recession of the glaciers, water flow and quality, and human relationships with ice and water in the high alpine during the last 12,000 years. The group discovered the highest known bison jump in North America at 11,000 feet above sea level near the Dinwoody Glacier in the Wind River Mountains, thousands of feet higher than the next known jumps. It became immediately apparent that Wyomings prehistoric cultures were much more diverse than previously understood, Guenther says. The bison jump and other sites discovered are attracting international attention because they suggest that from Clovis times, Native Americans have routinely sought out the highest and seemingly most forbidding places to hunt mammoth and other big game, and even wintered in what seems to us a prohibitively harsh alpine environment, he says. CWC serves the Wind River Indian Reservation, and about 30 percent of the schools archaeology students are Native American. These young people are excited about providing information that could require the rewriting of textbook accounts of their ancestors lives, Guenther adds. 11:30 a.m. -- Tithes and Offerings for Black Power, Kerry Pimblott, UW African American and Diaspora Studies assistant professor. During the late 1960s and early 1970s, church executives from several of the nations largest denominations united in extending massive financial support to Black Power organizations. In communities across the country, this controversial move helped improve legal services, housing and employment, but also attracted fierce opposition from within and outside the church, Pimblott says. Using the city of Cairo, Ill., as a case study, Pimblotts presentation explores both the promises and perils of church-based funding for the Black Power movement. For more information, visit the Saturday U website at www.uwyo.edu/saturdayu/. UW Students to Present International Research Results Across Wyoming Three University of Wyoming students next month will visit Cody, Jackson and Sheridan to present results of their international fieldwork. The students will make presentations at the Sheridan Fulmer Library Thursday, March 3, at 6 p.m.; the Park County Library in Cody Saturday, March 5, at 1 p.m.; and the National Museum of Wildlife Art auditorium in Jackson Sunday, March 6, at 4 p.m. The presentations are free and open to the public. The students will discuss their independent research conducted abroad as part of the What in the World? program. The program highlights the varied fieldwork that UW students complete for their degrees. Listed are the students, hometowns and their presentations: Lindsey Ehinger, Jackson, Kyrgyzstans Community-Based Tourism. She is an M.A. candidate in international studies in the Global and Area Studies Program. BJ Bender, Lake Forest, Calif., Managing Resources from Wyoming to Patagonia. He is a senior majoring in rangeland ecology and watershed management, and environment and natural resources. Guy Litt, Lancaster, Ohio, Panama Canal Watershed Management. He is a Ph.D. candidate in hydrology in the Department of Civil and Architectural Engineering. The program is sponsored by UWs Center for Global Studies, UWs Global and Area Studies Program, the Wyoming Humanities Council, the UW Foundation and Laramie County Library, with additional support from the Ruth R. Ellbogen Foundation. For more information, contact Center for Global Studies Director Jean Garrison at (307) 766-6119 or email garrison@uwyo.edu. Republican presidential hopeful Ben Carson kicked off an interesting discussion in our newsroom today when he declared Obama to have been "raised white," and therefore not really able to identify with the experience of black Americans like himself. As I, too, have unquestionably been "raised white," I don't think it's possible for me to have an opinion on that statement that would be valid in any form. But it did, as I said, prompt an interesting discussion. How, exactly, do you raise someone "black"? What does it look like if you do? What might you expect that person to do, or think, or believe, that would be different from a person who looks the same on the outside but has been "raised white"? That, in turn, led to a discussion of racism we have or haven't experienced in our own lives, and how that's affected us. Again, it's hard for me to even weigh in: all my schools and most of the communities I've lived in have been remarkably homogeneous. I can remember exactly one African-American family in my high school and none during my elementary years. My college had a few, but the most prevalent "minority" were the Pacific Islanders (the thing I remember most about them was how excited they were whenever it snowed). Professionally, I have worked alongside a small handful of people with Latino backgrounds but that's about it. Given that lack of experience, then, I don't exactly know how I feel about racism. I would like to think I'm not a racist, but I've never been in the position to have it tested. It all feels so far away from me. I remember how shocked I was to find out, in high school, I think, that (at the time) Rosa Parks was still alive. In my mind, her experiences belonged to a mindset that should have expired a century ago. Separate water fountains, bus seats, restaurants, schools and more for "colored people" as late as the 1950s? In what so-called modern world could that possibly be OK? I also remember, also sometime in high school, watching "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner" on TV with my folks. For those unfamiliar (first, go watch it, right now), it stars Spencer Tracy and Katherine Hepburn as parents struggling to accept the engagement of their daughter to a black doctor, played by Sidney Portier. I remember thinking it was a good movie, but kind of a quaint old thing. Surely nobody would really have a problem with this today. Afterward, I asked my parents, separately, how they would react if I brought home a boyfriend who happened to be black, fully expecting them to say something along the lines of, "Oh, color doesn't matter; we'd be happy to meet anyone who makes you happy, sweetheart." Instead, I was stunned by the fact that, separately, both told me they'd want me to think very seriously about entering such a relationship not so much because they minded, but because society might react in a way that would be harmful to myself and my beloved, and was I really ready for that? And what if we someday had kids? Thinking back on that, however, I realize that what seemed like ancient history for me made up nearly the first three decades of their lives. "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner" was released in 1967. It wasn't until June of that year that the U.S. Supreme Court ruled marriage could not be denied on the basis of race. My father and mother were 25 and almost 23 then, respectively. I was born the following year. It's not so easy to see blacks as anything other than "separate" and "other" when you've been born, educated, even married in a world that has always presented them that way. If I had grown up with them, I might feel the same way. That said, it's easy for me to feel virtuous, thinking, well, I don't feel that way because that's not my world. But the truth is, I don't know if it's my world or not. I simply haven't had enough exposure. I have been "raised white." My coworkers and I agree that at least when it comes to Latinos and people who hail from the Middle East, racism is rampant in our community. That, I have seen and continue to see. You don't need to look any further than the comments on our Facebook page every time something is posted about immigrants or terrorism. As for African-Americans, I still don't hear much, but I do remember doing a story in 2011 about a woman who removed her children from a Lebanon-area school after what she said was repeated race-based bullying, so from that alone, I know we're not free. Probably not even close. I don't have any answers. I just hope someday we can get away from the whole idea of being "raised white" or "raised black." I hope someday "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner" will indeed be a quaint piece of history, because we really have come away from that line of thinking and not just because people like me have been ignorant of the realities of the world. Weve written in the past about the growing American addiction to opioid painkillers, and the issue is garnering much-needed attention nationally. For example: Over the weekend, the National Governors Association, meeting in Washington, D.C., decided to devise treatment protocols to reduce the use of opioid painkillers. Association officials said the guidelines likely will include numerical limits on prescriptions and possibly other restrictions. Its potentially an important step in the nations battle against this new drug scourge which actually is a new variation on an old drug scourge, with an unwelcome new twist: Its taking a deep toll in the nations rural areas. In a surprising (and welcome) development, the governors push against opioid addiction drew bipartisan support. In fact, the governors leading the charge were Peter Shumlin of Vermont, a Democrat, and Matt Bevin of Kentucky, a Republican. (Vermont and Kentucky are two states not noted for having a wealth of urban areas, which says something about the new face of opioid addiction.) According to a New York Times story about the governors meeting, Shumlin cited federal data showing that health care providers are writing more than 250 million prescriptions for painkillers every year. In 2014, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 47,000 drug overdose deaths occurred in the United States. Opioids, mainly in the form of heroin and prescription pain medications, were the main culprits. And the toll in Oregon is just as sobering: Opioid overdose deaths have increased by some 450 percent over the past decade. In Oregon in 2013, opioid overdoses were linked to 226 deaths. The link between prescription opioids and heroin addiction is unfortunately clear: Addiction that begins with a reliance on the painkillers often ends with heroin. States such as Massachusetts are working on legislation to limit the number of opioids that could be given to patients on their first prescription. Despite the fact that 1,100 people died of opioid overdoses in that state in 2014, the bill isnt necessarily a slam dunk: Doctors have legitimate concerns about any legislation that limits their abilities to prescribe drugs to their patients. In the mid-valley, a task force with representatives from a number of health and public-safety organizations has been meeting on this issue since August, and has said it hopes to roll out some of its goals this year. The local group has the advantage of building on a framework created by a statewide prescription task force appointed in 2014. The primary goal of the state effort: to reduce the number of opioid pills in circulation in the first place. Thats a mammoth undertaking. But, increasingly, this looks like an issue thats finally reaching critical mass. (mm) Budding entrepreneur of the year A Girl Scout made headlines over the weekend for selling cookies right outside the Foster Buds Marijuana Dispensary in Portland. And the girl, who was not identified in press accounts, had done some market research: The handwritten sign attached to her cookie table read Satisfy Your Munchies. (An aunt offered supervision.) The scout hoped to sell 35 boxes of cookies for the day. You will not be surprised to learn that she hit that goal. She even got a little help from the staff at Foster Buds, which posted an offer on its Facebook page: Customers who showed their box of cookies got a special price on the dispensarys Farmer 12s Girl Scout Cookies weed. The national Girl Scout organization says it doesnt condone this marketing, but its not against the rules. Nevertheless, we foresee a successful business career for that young Scout. (mm) The campaign for Ann Roe, who is running for Congress against Lyin' Bryan Steil has come out with the best one-liner of this cycle so far: I can't argue... 11 months ago Researchers have identified a possible mechanism by which house dust mites could trigger the development of atopic dermatitis in individuals with a genetic predisposition. The study, published online Feb. 10 in Science Translational Medicine, took skin and blood samples from individuals with atopic dermatitis and healthy controls, then exposed the samples to house dust mite allergen. They found that in individuals with atopic dermatitis, this exposure modified phospholipids in the skin to release lipid antigens that then drove T-cell reactivity and inflammation (Sci Transl Med. 2016 Feb 10. doi: 10.1126/scitranslmed.aad6833). Furthermore, the study suggested that the skin barrier protein filaggrin can inhibit the modified phospholipid activity and decrease the skin inflammation caused by allergen exposure in atopic dermatitis; however, individuals with atopic dermatitis are more likely to have defective filaggrin. "The data would support therapeutic approaches to inhibit allergen-derived PLA2 [phospholipase A2] activity, together with treatments that target the downstream immunological effector pathways," wrote Dr. Rachael Jarrett of the University of Oxford (England) and coauthors. The study was funded by the U.K. Medical Research Council and National Institute for Health Research Biomedical Research Centre, the National Institutes of Health, and the Burroughs Wellcome Fund in Translational Medicine. Several of the researchers acknowledged grants and pharmaceutical company support. No conflicts of interest were declared. AT&T, a US-based telecommunication company, on Monday announced its intention to spend about $10 billion this year in order to provide its "integrated solutions" for enterprises globally. The company expects its net monetary investment to be in the range of $22 billion in 2106. With the purchase of DirecTV in 2015, the company began focussing mainly on pay-TV services. The current investment activity will reinforce AT&T's network system and its abilities to improve client experience. The Dallas-based company also intends to broaden its inventive platforms by introducing fresh solutions worldwide. The company noted that nearly half of its investment will be expended on incorporating over 6,000 kilometres of fiber wireless operations in Mexico with its wireline network. The telecommunication firm plans to employ hundreds of staffs to market their solutions in Mexico. AT&T intends to use the investment amount in other business related projects like improving its wireless connectivity to link more places globally. The company intends to widen its software oriented platform that enable faster delivery and also allows users to shift their network services easily. AT&T also wants to widen its US and Europe IoT services to link assets in fleets, utility meters, shipping containers, air cargo and other related industries. The company's investment strategy also includes its idea of expanding its business solutions in the US, Asia-Pacific, Canada and EMEA. As part of this strategy, the company aims to improve its safety features and to offer telecommunications implements for enterprises and customers worldwide. The company's customers include almost the entire Fortune 100 firms. According to Steve McGaw, chief marketing officer of Business Solutions at AT&T, the company's investment strategy is focused mainly on speed. He continued that with this innovation, AT&T helps clients across the world to improve their businesses. The Progressive Policy Institute has ranked AT&T as the highest US spender. The company had invested nearly $62 billion during the period from 2012 - 2014. AT&T missed nearly 256K post-paid clients during the final three-month period of 2015, while its peers like T-Mobile and Verizon added 917,000 and 449,000 customers respectively. Financial Times quoted a financial expert at New Street Research, Vivek Stalam, who said that nearly two-thirds of the company's operating profit comes from its mobile phone clients. Meanwhile, the company is planning to test its 5G technology at enterprises and residences. The 5G trial will help the company to improve its broadband services to many places in the US. Reuters quoted John Donovan, chief strategy officer at AT&T, who said that the company is well positioned in the industry and the 5G broadband service will add more advantages to its profile. AT&T will continue its spending approach to accelerate its business solutions as well as to enable clients across the globe to broaden their business portfolio and enrich their customer base. The company is trying hard to boost its financial strength. Syrian refugees have been bringing a positive impact on Turkish output as the world's largest refugee population help boost Turkish economy. Turkey's economists and government acknowledged the fact, amid contradicting effects as the refugees are also straining the country's housing and jobs systems. According to Reuters, the Syrian refugees are contributing to the Turkish economic growth in several different ways. It's reported that the migrants have bought goods such as refrigerators and cookers, as well as cooking oil, bread, flour, and building materials as the flee their country. The amount of goods adds up to a significant amount, considering there are currently 2.6 million Syrian refugees spreading across Turkey. The refugees' spending also help the local economy. Most Syrian refugees have not been given work permits. However, reports said that some of them managed to get jobs and work illegally. The money they earn were in turn spent in the country, help feeding the economy. A statement from the government also revealed that it has spent almost $10 billion since the Syrian civil conflict started, pumping more cash into goods and services. Syrian refugees in Turkey are spending at least 346 lira a month, as reported by Daily Sabah. That accounts for 0.5 percent of the country's GDP. It's believed to be partly responsible for an unexpected economic rise in third-quarter growth as the government also revised up its expectations for 2016 growth from 4 percent to 4.5 percent. Global Risk Insights elaborated both the positive and adverse consequences Syrian refugees brought into Turkey. On a domestic scale, the refugees have filled many positions for cheap labor such as in manufacturing and agricultural sectors otherwise unfilled by local populations. Furthermore, some of the refugees also managed to set up successful firms, especially in the border towns of Gaziantep and Mersin. In turn, the Syrian refugees' involvement in the Turkish economy has also established a favorable environment for investors due to cheap labour costs. On the other hand, other economic aspects in Turkey had undergone some setbacks due to the influx of refugees in the country. Turkey's unemployment rate has been increasing and peaked at 10.5 percent, with an even higher youth unemployment rate. Also, the fast-increasing population has strained public services including free health care. The influx of refugee is also pushing up prices, especially for food and rent in areas with large refugee populations. Despite causing strains on some economic aspects, Turkish economists and government officials acknowledged that the 2.6 million Syrian refugees in the country have brought some positive impacts. Turkey's economic growth has seen an unexpected growth as the government raise its expectations for 2016 growth. The shares of Lumber Liquidators dropped nearly 15% following a report from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), which revealed the increased the risk of cancer from the laminate flooring that contains formaldehyde. The US-based health regulator released a health report linked with increased cancer risk in certain flooring laminated with formaldehyde. The CDC report showed that the continuous exposure to formaldehyde raised the risk of cancer factor. According to the report, formaldehyde could result in 6 to 30 cancer victims from per 100,000 people with direct contact to the laminate flooring. Earlier, the CDC had anticipated cancer cases to be in the range of 2 to 9 victims. The previous report failed to mention the name of the manufacturer. However, the recent report linked the cancer risks to formaldehyde laminate flooring manufactured by Lumber Liquidators. The company was charged in 2015 that its flooring products contain formaldehyde that poses cancer risks in people having continuous exposure to the flooring. As a result of this allegation, the chief executive officer stepped down from the company's board. Lumber Liquidators also stopped the sale of the contentious product from China. During the previous fall, the company entered into a settlement deal worth at $10 million and begged mercy for providing false details in the import documentation regarding the source of its certain flooring products, as reported by CNN Money. The company sells flooring products worth over $120 million on an annual basis. Apart from the cancer risk factors associated with the flooring surface, the CDC report showed that there also greater risks of eye irritation, asthma, throat irritation, and nose irritation. The US Environmental Protection Agency advises people to reduce formaldehyde exposure by improving their ventilation, using air conditioners to normalise the environment temperature, and by using humidifiers, USA TODAY reports. The surface flooring products accounted for 13.2% of total sales in the nine-month period of 2015, a decrease of 18.5% from the previous period. Lumber Liquidators' third quarter net sales dropped 11.3% to $236.1 million over the last year period. Bloomberg quoted the company's email statement, in which the Virginia-based firm pledged to work with veracity and supply flooring products of high quality to its customers. Formaldehyde, a flammable, hue less chemical used for manufacturing household products, could become a toxic substance for humans. The shares of the company stumbled 20% to $11.40 during the closing trading session in New York. The company is facing many health issues related to its flooring products and it is working hard to settle the issues by focussing more on the sources of the flooring materials. Lumber Liquidators need to reduce the level of formaldehyde content while manufacturing the laminate flooring products. With successful completion of infrastructure projects, Northern Mindanao is expected to receive more funds this year. The Department of Public Works and Highways completed 94.38 percent of the projects in 2015. The restoration of peace in the region will also further enhance the investment potential. Northern Mindanao is a region in the Philippines and has five provinces. The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) R-10 is anticipating an encouraging inflow of investments into the region in 2016. Over 717 infrastructure projects involving PHP18.7 billion investments have been completed early this year. Business World Online reports that DPWH has implemented 39 projects including the preservation of national roads. Other projects include 41 road network development projects, 23 road upgrades, 68 bridge construction and maintenance projects, 17 flood management services works, 12 water supply and rainwater collector points and 512 other infrastructure projects. Evelyn T. Barroso, Director, DPWH, said out of 875 projects, 717 projects involving PHP 18.7 billion of investment have been completed. The completion of infrastructure projects was 94.38 percent. DPWH hopes that the successful completion will enhance the investment potential of Northern Mindanao. The construction works on remaining 156 projects are in progress and will be completed during the first half of 2016. Northern Mindanao may get a major chunk of infrastructure budget allocation by DPWH for 2016. Northern Mindanao will get PHP 30.14 billion budget support for this year. After the completion of 717 infrastructure projects, DPWH region 10 emerged as best performing among 17 DPWH regional offices nationwide, according to Official Gazette, Government of Philippines. Northern Mindanao will lead other regions in DPWH's budget allocations. Central Luzon (Region 3) may get PHP 25.21 billion; Southern Tagalog (Region 4-A) to get PHP 21.28 billion; Eastern Visayas (Region 8) to receive PHP 20.68 billion; and National Capital Region to get PHP 19.7 billion. Meanwhile, the Regional Board of Investments in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (RBOI-ARMM) is also hoping to attract more investments during 2016. Led by its Chairperson Atty Ishak Mastura, RBOI-ARMM is targeting PHP 900 million investments and creation of 900 new jobs in 2016. Based on the performance in 2015, the agency has drawn up investment plans on conservative mode, according to PIA (Philippines Information Agency Northern Mindanao). RBOI-ARMM posted Peso 6.5 billion new projects in 2015. It was much higher than the original investment target of PHP 700 million made early 2015.The government is also implementing good governance measures in ARMM administration. DPWH is planning for early procurement of projects under 2016 General Appropriations Act ensuring timely availability of funds. The budget of DPWH was Peso 303.2 billion for 2015. ARMM recorded best performance in 2015 as it attracted highest investment inflow in 26 years. The ongoing efforts to restoration of peace in the region is expected to boost investors' confidence. Mark Zuckerberg has extended his support on Monday to Apple in fight with the US government while speaking on stage in Barcelona at Mobile World Congress (MWC). Apple has appeared in a bitter battle with the federal authorities over attempts to gain access to information protected by its sophisticated encryption technology. While addressing the annual tech and telecommunications conference, Zuckerberg has pledged that Facebook will play its part in the fight against global terrorism. However, he opposed the idea for weakening the digital security of technology companies, reports The New York Times. The Facebook CEO has also rejected the idea on creating backdoors for intelligence and law enforcement agencies by the technology companies. Upholding his belief on encryption as an important tool, he has expressed his sympathy towards Apple, according to a report published in USA Today. The Koch Brothers, dynamic duo of Texas, have appeared in a tug of war with Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla Motors. The brothers are fighting against possible threats to their fossil fuel interests, electric cars. Tesla Motors is trying to represent itself as the pioneer in manufacturing the cars driven with alternative energy. The oil and gas industry may have breathed a sigh of relief after demolishing the electric car manufacturing industry due to continued lower oil prices. But surprisingly, sales of the electric cars have been boosted during 2010 to 2014 followed by allocation of government subsidy. Now the energy giants are worried fearing the electric cars may come back to life, reports Huffington Post. The war have started on Thursday with publishing the news article in Huffington Post entitling- 'The Kochs Are Plotting A Multimillion-Dollar Assault On Electric Vehicles'. The article suggests, a new group led by the Koch Brothers may spend $10 million a year, fueling the campaign against electric vehicles, according to news published in Green Car Reports. As G20 finance minister meeting will be held starting this Friday in Shanghai, Japan Finance Minister Taro Aso stated his expectation, He wished that G20 will discuss ways to move economy amidst global market fluctuation. Speaking to after cabinet meeting on Tuesday, as Reuters reported, minister Aso told reporter, "We want to consider ways to firmly respond to the global economic situation, which has been the factor behind market fluctuations." In the meeting, according to NDTV, member of G20 is scheduled to also discuss structural problems in China. Such problems to address are excess capacity and excess credit, U.S. monetary policy and its communication with the market, and oil price declines Group of twenties, or G20 is an international forum consist of government and central banks from 19 individual countries and one countries union, the European Union. The group was a continuing effort by initiatives to increase coordination between coutntries in the world's economic policy. G20 was established in 1999 after an inaugural meeting in Berlin, to supersede G33, which was founded as a successor of Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum. The forum, called G22 was created following the APEC 1997 meeting in Vancouver to increase cooperation between global economies to reform the global financial system. Since its early days, the G20 aimed to increase multilateral cooperation in the world's finance. Therefore, minister Aso's expectation is a reminder for G20 to increase cooperation between its members in financial sectors. The Shanghai's meeting will the 18th finance ministers meeting held by G20. This meeting is held annually and last year's was held in Istanbul, Turkey. This year's two-day meeting will be held at the Shanghai Grand Hyatt Hotel. As finance ministers from the group will attend the meeting, discussion forum is also scheduled which will be attended by government and private-sector leaders in the international financial community. Key agenda topics to be discussed in the forum are global economy and world trade, capital flows, infrastructure investment; sovereign debt restructuring, and sustainable finance. United States, as one of the member also mentioned its expectation in the meeting. As U.S. has growing conern about global economy, it will press G20 powers to boost their economies. Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew will represent Washington in the meeting and will press the group to stick to its reform plans. One U.S officials told Channel News Asia, "Globally there remains a shortage of aggregate demand." The treasury official which insisted to speak on anonymity also added, "We think the global economy can do much better." The 18th finance ministers meeting of G20 will be held starting Friday in Shanghai. Japan Finance Minister Taro Aso has voiced his expectation regarding the meeting to move the global economy. His U.S. counterparts, the U.S. Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew has also similar concern. EEF, the association of British manufacturers warned that Brexit will bring U.K. to uncertainty and risk. Meanwhile, poundsterling and British stock market continues to be under pressure as uncertainty over U.K. to exit EU continues. EEF was one of the oldest manufacturer organization in the world. Established in 1896 as Engineering Employers' Federation, the federation was formed to unite companies in enginering. In 1918, National Employers Federation was integrated into EEF to become the largest organisations for manufacturing companies. As many of big industries and corporations in the U.K. has raised their concern regarding growing possibility of United Kingdom to leave the European Union, EFF also took a stance. The chairman of the manufacturers organization will urge political leaders to campaign in staying in the EU. Chairman of EEF Martin Temple told The Guardian, "The great risk of leaving is that our country would be economically poorer. Being in the EU gives us certainty, whereas those who argue we should leave can only offer uncertainty and risk with few, if any, real tangible benefits." He also criticized the politicians who used the issue to boost their popularity. He said, "The EU is a useful whipping post for populists but the facts of our economic lives in Britain are European. The job of our elected politicians is to commit themselves to using the power and influence they have to make it work better, rather than make excuses about the limitations they face, and simply giving up and taking us out into an abyss of uncertainty and risk." As part of the European Union Referendum Act 2015, people in the U.K. will vote in June to decide whether the country should stay in the EU or leaving the union. The nations are bitterly decided over the issue, while there are many people still undecided. Previously on Monday, one third of companies listed on the FTSE 100 index have signed letter to denounce Brexit, as a response to London Mayor Boris Johnson's decision to support Brexit on Sunday. His announcement was soon followed by a more than 2% drop to poundsterling against dollar as USA Today reported. Agitation of the Brexit possibility has driven the currency to its lowest level in seven years. In the stock market, UK property stocks plunge as concern about leaving the EU will impact the demand from foreign buyers. Analysts also cited uncertainty over referendum will also upset other sectors in British stock market. European Equities Fund Manager at Royal London Asset Management Andrea Williams told Reuters, "A Brexit would be worse for the UK than for Europe." Although the referendum is still months away, but the debate over Brexit has affected the market, as currency and stock price is affected. Following other companies, manufacturers' organization EEF has also stated its position to denounce Brexit and support U.K. to stay in the EU. Contributed Photo William D. Carrigan, an Organization of American Historians distinguished lecturer, will present Why Ordinary People Lynched at 7 p.m. March 3 at California Lutheran University in Thousand Oaks. SHARE Events/festivals Ventura County Medicinal Plant Walk: Ojai herbalist Lanny Kaufer will be joined by professor James Adams of USC School of Pharmacy for a slow-paced medicinal plant walk on the Ojai Valley Land Conservancys Ventura River Preserve. Adams will identify and discuss the medicinal uses of a wide variety of native plants. The walk will run from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Feb. 27. $35 general admission, free for kids 5-17, one per adult. To register or for more information, call 646-6281 or visit herbwalks.com. The Black Genesis Festival: CSU Channel Islands will host its inaugural Black History Month festival featuring singing, dancing, historical exhibits, barbecue, face painting for kids and storytelling from celebrated storyteller Oba William King and others. 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Feb. 27, 1 University Drive, Camarillo. 437-8400; csuci.edu. Family Day: The Museum of Ventura County, in partnership with the Channel Islands National Park, will host a family day in celebration of the National Park Services 100th anniversary. Themed Island Chumash Traditions, the event features demonstrations and ceremonies led by Chumash elder Julie Tumamait, cave painting, an archeological dig, group readings of the childrens novel Island of the Blue Dolphins and traditional craft making. 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Feb. 28, 100 E. Main St., Ventura. $5 general admission, free for kids under 18. 653-0323; venturamuseum.org. Wild and Scenic Film Festival: Ventura Hillsides Conservancy presents its seventh annual film festival featuring 10 award-winning short films each night, popcorn, food, beer, wine and a high-end raffle offering original artwork, outdoor gear, restaurant gift cards and more. March 4-5, Poinsettia Pavilion, 3451 Foothill Road, Ventura. $15-$30. 643-8044; venturahillsides.org. Minecraft at the Movies: A limited number of players up to about 100 will receive Super League team jerseys and play the imaginative building block video game as part of the Mega-Sized Video Game Series. Players will need their Super League credentials and a laptop with Minecraft version 1.8.0 or higher. Tickets must be pre-purchased. 10:30 a.m. Saturdays, Feb. 20 through March 12, Muvico Thousand Oaks 14, 166 W. Hillcrest Drive, Thousand Oaks. $60 general admission, $40 with the promo code Carmike. 494-4702; superleague.com/carmike. NPHS Mystery Dinner Theater: The Newbury Park High School Theatre Department presents this live whodunit mystery in which guests participate and dine on a spaghetti and meatball dinner. A silent auction will be held throughout the evening. 6:30 p.m. Feb. 26-27, 456 Reino Road, Newbury Park. $15 general admission, $10 students. For tickets and information, call 498-3676 or email mstrange@conejousd.org. Up North Carpinteria Valley Museum Marketplace: The museum will hold its last-Saturday-of-the-month benefit marketplace offering antiques, collectibles, plants and handcrafted gifts from 70 vendors. 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Feb. 27, 956 Maple Ave., Carpinteria. Free. 684-3112. Special Screenings Ventura County "The Assassin": Oxnard Film Society continues its Monday Night Foreign Film Series with the 2015 Taiwanese drama set in 9th-century China, about a 10-year-old general's daughter who is abducted and trained in the martial arts, transforming her into a skilled assassin. Not rated. In Mandarin with English subtitles. 3:30 and 6:30 p.m. Feb. 29, Plaza Cinemas 14, 255 West 5th St., Oxnard. $10 general admission, $6.75 seniors. 798-0830; oxnardfilmsociety.org. Lectures and Appearances Ventura County Sex Testing Talk: Stanford University researcher Katrina Karkazis will discuss the ethics of testing Olympic athletes to determine their sex. Karkazis will meet guests and sign copies of her books from 3:30-4:30 p.m. and 7-8:30 p.m. March 2, Lundring Events Center, California Lutheran University, 60 W. Olsen Road, Thousand Oaks. Free. 493-3512; callutheran.edu. Lynching Talk: William D. Carrigan, an Organization of American Historians distinguished lecturer, will present "Why Ordinary People Lynched," a discussion exploring how people came to think that mob violence was an acceptable means of maintaining social order. 7 p.m. March 3, California Lutheran University, 60 W. Olsen Road, Thousand Oaks. Free. 493-3512; callutheran.edu. Up North Photographer Sebastiao Salgado: UCSB Arts & Lectures presents a conversation with celebrated photojournalist Pico Iyer. 8 p.m. March 2, Arlington Theatre, 1317 State St., Santa Barbara. $25-$35 general admission, $10 UCSB students. 893-3535; artsandlectures.ucsb.edu. "Serial" Talk: UCSB Arts & Lectures presents "Binge-Worthy Journalism: Backstage with the Creators of Serial," a behind-the-scenes conversation with Peabody Award-winning journalists Sarah Koenig and Julie Snyder in which they will discuss their popular podcast and the ups and downs of creating a new form of modern journalism. 8 p.m. March 3, Campbell Hall, 574 Mesa Road, Santa Barbara. $45-$125 general admission, $15 UCSB students. 893-3535; artsandlectures.ucsb.edu. Dance Clubs Ventura County Poinsettia Ballroom Dancers: The group's weekly dance features ballroom and Latin music. 7:30-10 p.m. Mondays, Poinsettia Pavilion, 3451 Foothill Road, Ventura. $11 general, $9 members. 290-0321. Channel Cities Jazz Club: The Club hosts a public dance with live music performed by the house band and guest jammers on the third Sunday of every month. Food and beverages are available for purchase. 1-4:30 p.m., ongoing, Pacific Corinthian Yacht Club, 2600 S. Harbor Blvd., Oxnard. $10 general admission, $7 members. 487-3062; channelcitiesjazzclub.org. Country Lovers Western Dance Club: The Country Lovers Western Dance Club holds a dance featuring a dance lesson and music by DJ Jammin' Country. 6:45-9 p.m. Tuesdays, Ventura Moose Family Center, 10269 Telephone Road, Ventura. $6 general. On the third Saturday of each month, the club hosts a social dance at House of Dance, 3007 Bunsen Ave., Ventura. 456-9067; countrylovers.com. Oxnard Ballroom Dance Club: The club will hold a weekly dance party featuring live ballroom, line dancing, Latin and swing music. A dance lesson will be offered at 6:30, with open dancing following from 7:30-10 p.m. Light refreshments included. Thursdays, Oxnard Performing Arts Center, 800 Hobson Way, Oxnard. $12 general, $10 members. For more information, call 340-5226 or 407-1709. Classes Ventura County Drawing Class: The Ventura County Arts Collective presents an eight-part drawing series based on the book "Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain." Artists of all skills levels are invited to participate. 6:30-8 p.m. March 3 through April 21, Pacific View Mall, 3301 E. Main St., Suite 2167, Ventura. $140 early registration (before March 1), $160 regular registration. To register, email vcartscollective@gmail.com. Readers' Theater Classes: The Santa Paula Theater Center will offer a six-week series of readers' theater classes for actors and community members under the direction of Judy Blake. Participants will develop characters, tell stories, develop creative expression and take part in a culminating performance. 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Saturdays, through March 26, 125 South 7th St., Santa Paula. $60. 525-4645; santapaulatheatercenter.org. SHARE Camarillo Photo exhibit shows story of homeless The Proverbs CoffeeHouse will present a photo and story exhibit "Lift Up Your Voice" from 1-5 p.m. Friday, Saturday, Sunday and again March 4-6 at Peace Lutheran Church, 71 Loma Drive. The exhibit tells the story of 12 families through photos where a child has slept while homeless. For more information, call 630-6208. Grant writing class geared to charities Grants To You will have a grant writing and research class for nonprofit volunteers from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Saturday and March 5 in the United Way meeting room at the Ventura County Community Foundation, 4001 Mission Oaks Blvd. Cost is $40. Limited scholarships are available. For more information, email info@grantstoyou.org or call Paul at 419-4599. Newbury Park Semiannual blood drive set for church St. Julie Billiart Church will host its semiannual blood drive from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sunday at 2475 Borchard Road. For more information, call Robert Hicks at 990-8989. Port Hueneme Army jazz band to give free concert The Jazz Ambassadors of the U.S. Army Field Band will give a free concert at 3 and 7 p.m. March 12 at the Oceanview Pavilion, 575 S. Surfside Drive. There's a max of four tickets per household. For tickets, call 986-4818. Simi Valley Council No. 1 will have meeting Neighborhood Council No. 1 will meet from 7:30-9:30 p.m. March 3 in the Community Room at Simi Valley City Hall, 2929 Tapo Canyon Road. For more information, call 583-6756. Thousand Oaks Youth club hosts annual celebration The Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Conejo Valley will host the 13th Annual Superstars of the Year Celebration at 2:30 p.m. March 5 in the Fred Kavli Theatre at the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Center, 2100 E. Thousand Oaks Blvd. Attendance is free and open to the public. For more information, visit www.bgcconejo.org. Ventura Group talks to focus on foreign policy An eight-session Great Decisions group will meet Sunday afternoons starting this Sunday at First United Methodist Church, 1338 E. Santa Clara St. Great Decisions is a program of the Foreign Policy Association. This year's topics include "Shifting Alliances in the Middle East," "The Rise of ISIS," "The Future of Kurdistan," "International Migration," "Korean Choices," "The United Nations Post-2015," "Climate Geopolitics," and "Cuba and the U.S." For more information, visit www.fpa.org/great_decisions. Call 643-8621 to sign up. Artist presents solo art exhibition Katie Fagan's solo exhibition will be on display through March 5 at Buenaventura Art Association's downtown Ventura Gallery at 700 E. Santa Clara St. The show features about 20 recent works in acrylic on Masonite, ranging from 6-by-6 inches up to 20-by-24. Fagan will be present from 5-8 p.m. March 4 as part of First Fridays Ventura. For more information, visit www.buenaventuragallery.org or call 648-1235. File photo SHARE By John Scheibe of the Ventura County Star The number of foreclosed homes in the Ventura County area fell to 0.31 percent in December, a 0.11 percentage point decline from a year earlier, according to data released Tuesday. The December rate of foreclosures in the Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura metropolitan area was below the national foreclosure rate of 1.2 percent, according to a report released by CoreLogic, an Irvine-based company that tracks the real estate and credit industries. Lower foreclosure rates were accompanied by a decrease in mortgage delinquency rates, with just 1.26 percent of homes in the Ventura County area being 90 days or more late on payments of mortgage loans in December. The rate for December 2014 was 1.56 percent. The county's mortgage delinquency rates were below the statewide rate of 1.63 percent in December and the 3.28 percent national rate. Mortgage delinquency rates in the Ventura County region also showed a month-to-month decreases in just about every month of 2015, going up only once in July to 1.37 percent compared to 1.32 percent in June. The December figures for foreclosures and mortgage delinquencies came as another CoreLogic report showed home sales showing sharp month-to-month declines across Southern California in November. Ventura County saw the biggest drop, with sales of new and existing homes and condos declining 25.7 percent from October, according to CoreLogic. A total of 714 homes sold in November, compared with 961 in October. The monthly decline was 19 percent across Southern California, which also includes Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino and San Diego counties. A total of 16,122 homes sold across the region in November, compared with 19,920 in October. The month was one of the slowest Novembers for home sales in 25 years, CoreLogic research analyst Andrew LePage said in December. "It's normal for activity to drop between October and November, but the 19 percent decline between the two months this year was roughly double the typical decrease," LePage said. Year over year, the picture was more positive, with Ventura County seeing a 5 percent increase in sales from November 2014. The median home price in the county was $510,000 in November, up 10.9 percent from $460,000 a year earlier. It was $438,000 for all of Southern California, a 6.8 percent increase from a year earlier, according to the CoreLogic report. Fewer homes were sold in November compared to October in each of the six Southern California counties listed by CoreLogic. While Ventura County saw the biggest drop, Los Angeles County came in second, with a 22.8 percent decline over October. San Bernardino County came in third, with a 19.1 percent drop, followed by an 18.4 percent drop in San Diego County and a 14.1 decline in Riverside County. Orange County had the lowest decrease, with 14 percent fewer homes sold in November. Duke Cunningham moved to a gated religious community in Arkansas after he was released from prison DWT in 2004 these are the Republicans, who, for one reason or another, are no longer serving in Congress: Earlier this evening I mentioned how so many of the villains among California Republicans who inspired me to start this blog were no longer in Congress. Duke Cunningham went to prison but many of the other crooks, like John Doolittle and Jerry Lewis were forced nudged into retirement. A few, like Dick Pombo and Jim Rogan, were defeated at the polls. Once again, since we startedin 2004 these are the Republicans, who, for one reason or another, are no longer serving in Congress: Wally Herger Doug Ose Dan Lungren John Doolittle Dick Pombo George Radanovich Bill Thomas Elton Gallegly Buck McKeon David Dreier Jerry Lewis Gary Miller Mary Bono Christopher Cox Duke Cunningham Duncan Hunter The only ones still felt from back them are Darrell Issa, Dana Rohrabacher, Ken Calvert, Ed Royce and Devin Nunes. Issa, Calvert and Royce were certainly no less corrupt than the Culture of Corruption All Stars (Lewis, Doolittle, Pombo, McKeon, Cunningham and Hunter)-- just luckier and a tiny bit more cautious when it counted. But, according to a Sacramento Bee story by Phillip Reese yesterday, they may have been gone from Congress by now anyway, even if they weren't brigands-in-suits-and-ties. In just the last 4 years 8% of the GOP evaporated-- 400,000 fewer Republicanos in the Golden State. The ones who die or move to Idaho or Texas aren't being replaced by newer models. The Democratic Party stayed stable and more voters registered as unaffiliated than ever, part of a national trend. About 4.7 million California voters are registered as Republicans, down from 5.1 million at this point in 2012. Republicans now make up about 27.6 percent of the electorate, down from 30.4 percent four years prior. No county in the state now has a majority of its electorate registered as Republicans. By comparison, about 7.44 million Californians are registered as Democrats, a very slight increase from 2012. Democrats are 43.1 percent of the electorate, down slightly from 43.4 percent as the party did not grow as fast as the population. The number of Californians registering as independent grew fast: about 500,000 more voters are unaffiliated today than in 2012. With 24 percent of the electorate, the number claiming "no party preference" are on pace to surpass the number of Republicans within two or three years. Even with the most breathtakingly incompetent DCCC anyone can remember, there is a chance that another couple of Republican congressmen can be eliminated this cycle. A competent DCCC would rid the state of these 4 Republicans immediately Jeff Denham in CA-10, which Obama won twice David Valadao in CA-21, which Obama won twice by BIG margins Steve Knight in CA-25, which Obama won once and which now boasts a Democratic registration edge for the first time Darrell Issa in CA-48, which Obama won once The DCCC is hated by the local Democratic parties for screwing up the last 4 election cycles and for preparing to screw up 2016 as well. Just one winnable Republican-held seat is on their Red-to-Blue list (CA-10) and it is only listed as a low priority "emerging race." Worse yet, their interference in CA-25 and CA-21 may cost the blue team both blue districts. This cycle, Blue America is backing 3 progressive challengers in California, Lou Vince (CA-25), Nanette Barragan (CA-44) and Bao Nguyen (CA-46). The DCC has been working furiously to sabotage Lou Vince's campaign and are ignoring the primaries involving Nanette and Bao. Nanette was part of tonight's opening night of the Progressive Summit. Please check out her conversation with Marianne Williamson here. And if you'd like to lend these candidates a hand, you can do it by tapping the thermometer below: ANTHONY PLASCENCIA/THE STAR Derik Stanley, an Army veteran who was 19 years old when his unit participated in Operation Desert Storm, discusses the memories he carries of fellow soldiers during the ground offensive. SHARE COURTESY PHOTO Derik Stanley, who was 19 years during Desert Storm, stands in the desert in this undated photo. ANTHONY PLASCENCIA/THE STAR David Sasek, a retired Navy officer and current director of water and sanitation for Ventura County, remembers the role he and his fellow Seabees played during the buildup of forces in the first Gulf War. COURTESY PHOTO David Sasek, a retired Navy officer and current director of water and sanitation for Ventura County, stands in the desert as U.S. forces prepared the area as a military staging point during the first Gulf War. ANTHONY PLASCENCIA/THE STAR Leo Brunker, an Army veteran who participated in Desert Storm, said he and other veterans continue to suffer from exposure to dangerous chemicals. Related Coverage For the Troops fundraiser in Simi honors Gulf War vets By Tom Kisken of the Ventura County Star Derik Stanley watched seabirds. The 19-year-old Army private from Shafter stood in a Saudi Arabia port, gas mask clasped over his face, hunting for reasons not to think he was being poisoned. If the seagulls were flying, it meant the chemical weapons alarm making his heart race was a false alert. "If the birds were falling" he said, "it was legit." This was Operation Desert Storm. At 4 a.m. on Feb. 24, 1991 25 years ago Wednesday coalition troops moved into Iraq and Kuwait in a massive ground attack. As Americans watched live coverage around the clock, more than 30 nations united to chase dictator Saddam Hussein's forces out of Kuwait where they burned oil wells and left as many as 5,000 people dead. This was the war of desert camouflage uniforms, a cease-fire that came 100 hours after the ground offensive began, chemical weapons and surging patriotism stamped by seas of yellow ribbons. For Stanley, sitting outside an Oxnard doughnut shop before a Friday appointment with a Veterans Affairs psychiatrist, it was a conflict stamped by a word. "Scary," he said. "You didn't know what was going to happen." Fighting injustice David Sasek was young, intense and motivated. He was a 25-year-old lieutenant helping lead for the first time in something other than an exercise 125 Navy Seabees from Port Hueneme. Part of their job was to help build what they called Wally World. It was a massive military encampment in Saudi Arabia designed to hold 15,000 troops. The Seabees lived in tents with sand floors. They worked 18 hours a day, beginning before sunrise in useless attempts to avoid heat that reached 120 degrees. It was a brutal job but they did it. They knew others were depending on them the Marines they were assigned to support, as well as the Brits, the Aussies and others in encampments that seemed like the United Nations. Saddam's aggression made them feel they were fighting injustice. "I think the whole world felt that," said Sasek. " People will do amazing things if they see what they do really matters." School groups and others the Seabees never met sent care packages of crossword puzzles, candied treats and toothbrushes. Back home, massive rallies painted in red, white and blue sent the message: "We've got your back." Leo Brunker didn't feel much of that. He enlisted in the Army at 18 because he wanted to go to school through the GI bill. He was stationed in Wurzburg, Germany, when the call came to serve as driver for a stinger team that shot missiles at enemy aircraft. He left for Saudi Arabia, and worries about chemical alarms that somehow always registered as false alerts, because that's where he was told to go. His goal was to return Wurzburg in time for his birthday in May. "It felt like I was going to perform my job," he said. Friendly fire Stanley's Army infantry unit was one of the first to enter Iraq. His first battle came a week before the massive ground attack kicked off the Hundred Hour War. It didn't go well. A scout team in a camouflaged Bradley tank was struck by Hellfire missiles American missiles. Cpl. Jeffrey Middleton and Pvt. Robert Talley died. "I knew them really well," said Stanley. "We were on ground and watched the whole thing. It was our first experience with contact. We were scared to death." According to military records, 148 Americans died in combat. In Stanley's task force, eight people died: Middleton, Talley, Tony Applegate, David Crumby, Manuel Davila, Anthony Kidd, James Murray and David Kramer. "I have all their names on a vest," Stanley said, offering memories. Applegate was a gunner. Davila made him laugh. Talley was 18, the youngest American killed. Stanley remembers the Iraqis too. He feels no empathy for the Republican Guard that invaded Kuwait. But he still worries about what happened to the Iraqis who weren't military, who were forced to fight and who surrendered as soon as they could. "People had families. They didn't know what was going on ... They didn't even shoot on us," he said. "I always wondered if they made it back to their families." Yellow ribbons everywhere It ended quickly. About 100 hours after the ground assault began, President George H.W. Bush called for cease-fire as the Iraqi resistance crumbled and Saddam said he would withdraw from Kuwait. Brunker spent the entire ground war driving through Iraq in a Humvee equipped with weapons to shoot down Iraqi aircraft. "I literally never slept," he said, adding he was enduring the headaches, diarrhea and asthma-like attacks that would haunt him later. Sasek remembers the confidence surrounding the ground offensive that circulated among the Seabees who were then working 12-hour days building roads and prisoner of war camps in Saudi Arabia. "It was 'these guys are going to do their job and we're going to go home,'" he said. The Seabees flew back to Point Mugu in April 1991. Hundreds of people were waiting for them. Yellow ribbons were everywhere. "It was a pretty amazing homecoming," Sasek said, remembering how his uncle was spat on when he returned home from the Vietnam War. "When we came home it was totally different," he said. "I think they were trying to send their support." Still fighting Sasek stayed in the Navy 26 years. He led a Seabee unit in Gulfport, Mississippi, that helped people survive Hurricane Katrina. He spent nearly three years as second-in-command at Naval Base Ventura County. Now, he supervises 66 people as director of water and sanitation for the Ventura County Public Works Agency. Desert Storm, he said, taught him how to lead. Sometimes, that meant giving orders. Sometimes, it meant putting trust in other people to do their jobs. "They were the ones swinging the hammers, turning the wrenches and moving the dirt," he said of the Seabees. "They deserve recognition." Brunker lives in a small home in east Ventura with his wife and two children. Visit and he offers a letter from Col. Forrest Smith. The words detail how possible exposure to Sarin, Cyclosarin, depleted uranium and what the colonel calls "known and unknown environmental circumstances" could have affected Smith's men. Brunker was one of them, one of 250,000 veterans who face symptoms of what is called Gulf War Illness. He said he suffers severe headaches and chronic pain that makes it feel as if his skin is on fire. Respiratory symptoms make it hard to breathe. A sensitivity to light means he always wears sunglasses. He has chronic bronchitis, chronic fatigue syndrome, nerve damage, arthritis and diverticulitis. Aspects of his condition were passed on to his children, all born after the war, he said. The illness forced his medical retirement from his job as a physical education teacher for disabled students. It brought ongoing battles with the Department of Veterans Affairs. It triggered financial hardships. Now, he throws all of his energy into making people aware of the illness and its wartime cause. "A lot of people were hurt and (the government) knows it," he said. "Admit what's really going on and give us treatment. Ringing ears Stanley, now 44, works as an oil field operator outside of Ventura. He's part of a motorcycle club made up mostly of combat vets. They're called the Militants. Desert Storm is known as the Hundred Hour War. It has lived with him for 25 years. His ears ring from the explosions. He receives treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder. He thinks about the war every day, sometimes dreaming about it. Asked if he thinks Desert Storm and its participants are sometimes overlooked because the war ended so quickly, he said the question is irrelevant. "I'm alive," he said. "I don't need the recognition." KAREN QUINCY LOBERG/THE STAR Alex Virzi (left) and his brother Sean, 23, gather with their third triplet Mitchell earlier this month to discuss possible topics for their a comedy routine, The Virzi Triplets Variety Show, at their home in Simi Valley. SHARE KAREN QUINCY LOBERG/THE STAR Mitchell Virzi wears green, his stage color, as he listens to his brothers pitch ideas for their comedy routine, the The Virzi Triplets Variety Show, at their home in Simi Valley earlier this month. KAREN QUINCY LOBERG/THE STAR Alex Virzi listens to his brother Sean pitch an idea for their comedy routine, the The Virzi Triplets Variety Show, at their home in Simi Valley earlier this month. KAREN QUINCY LOBERG/THE STAR Sean Virzi, 23, meets with his brothers earlier this month at their home in Simi Valley about what material they want to focus on for upcoming performances of The Virzi Triplets Variety Show. KAREN QUINCY LOBERG/THE STAR A poster of Steve Martin hangs on the wall as Sean Virzi (bottom), Mitchell (top) and Alex, all wearing their stage colors, gather in Mitchells bedroom to work on their comedy routine, The Virzi Triplets Variety Show, earlier this month. By Robyn Flans, Special to The Star Alex, Sean and Mitchell Virzi 23-year-old Simi Valley identical triplets might just be the comeback kids. They're interested in returning to show business, which they gave up around their high school years, and they've reunited with a stand-up routine. All three are funny guys. When asked the pros of being a triplet, Sean answered: "I have spare organs." On how to tell them apart, Alex teased: "I'm the best looking." "We're actually tell-apartable," he added, explaining that he has slightly longer hair and a little scar over his left eye from a toy accident. Sean, he said, is more conservative in his dress and mannerisms, and Mitchell is more personable than Sean. They always get questions about pranks: Did they play any on their teachers? Only one, comes the answer. Mitchell and Sean had a substitute teacher in their public speaking class one day and switched seats. "I did everything I could to embarrass Sean," Mitchell recalled. "He was in the front pretending to be me, and I was in the back pretending to be him, doing everything I could to make him look bad so the sub would write notes and the teacher would find out that Sean did terrible that day." Did they ever send one of their brothers in to take a test for another? "I don't want my brothers taking my test," Mitchell said. "I could do a much better job." Did they ever switch out on a date? "You would never want your brother to go on a date for you," Alex said. "You would never want them to touch your lady." Mitchell said they all tend to have the same taste in women, and they talk about it in their routine. "Sometimes we all gun for the same girl," Mitchell said. "I play by the rules of 'May the best man win.' You kinda have to stake your claim sometimes. You have to find a way to get solo time. It can get interesting." The boys have a brother 15 months older, and Alex recalls that getting along was "hit or miss" and when it was miss, there was havoc everywhere. But mostly, he said, it was fun. "With my older brother, there were even teams for everything so there was always someone to play with," he said. When they were 5, the triplets did their first commercial for Sparkletts Water, followed by others for MasterCard and Lincoln Financial. When they were 8, they traveled to South Africa to film a commercial for Colgate toothpaste. "It was fun, but towards high school we had kinda burned out," Alex said. They all attended Simi Valley High School. When it came time for college, Sean and Alex went to California Lutheran University, while Mitchell went off to Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. Sean said the separation provided time for him to bond with Alex, but he missed Mitchell. "It felt like a piece of me was missing, especially when I saw his room emptied out." For Mitchell, it was a huge adjustment. "It was the first time in my entire life I was ever truly on my own. It took a while for me to get comfortable without them," Mitchell admitted. "For the first two years it always felt like a part of me was missing, but don't tell them that." A couple of years ago they decided to put their uniqueness to work for them. They formed a trio stand-up comedy act. "With the stories between us there is a wealth of material," Alex said. They have shows coming up at the Junkyard in Simi Valley on Wednesday at 8 p.m. and in the main showroom at Flappers in Burbank on March 6 at 9 p.m. They have also created a web series for their YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/user/VirziTriplets. Mitchell describes the series as a "Mockumentary following our journey to get rich and famous in Hollywood." "We definitely have a lot to draw on," Sean added.

STAR FILE PHOTO | Derek Bazan works as a gaffer for a thesis film class at Brooks Institute at the Ventura campus in this 2011 photo.

By Arlene Martinez, amartinez@vcstar.com It's a move designed to put coffee shops, breweries and, potentially, their residence within walking distance of their school. As Ventura officials see it, it's 430 more people eating, shopping and energizing downtown. Come fall, a major part of the operations for Brooks Institute will be heading downtown specifically, into the fourth and fifth floors of the building adjacent to City Hall. It will be a "transformative moment" for Ventura, said Edward Clift, who became president of the for-profit arts school last year. The idea of bringing Brooks into town is part of Clift's goal of creating an urban campus. Students want to be able to walk to places like Starbucks and be near housing, he told the City Council on Monday night. Its current location is off Highway 33 in an unincorporated part of the county. When Clift approached the city last fall about the possible relocation, officials were eager to get involved. The "economic impacts are undeniable," said Leigh Eisen, the city's economic development manager. On Monday night, the council approved an up-to-five-year lease with Brooks that would have them officially moving in June 1. The city owns 505 Poli St., a five-story building that currently houses nonprofits, the Ventura Ventures Technology Center and The Trade Desk, its anchor tenant. To get Brooks in, the nonprofits will swap floors. The lease with The Trade Desk expires next week. Brooks would occupy roughly 20,000 square feet as well as other spaces downtown. It already has a presence planned on the first two floors of the Erle Stanley Gardner Building at California and Main streets. The building will serve as a welcome center for students and their families, and host the 70th anniversary celebration for the school. Marlyss Auster, executive director of the Ventura Visitors and Convention Bureau, said she was "thrilled" Brooks was headed downtown. "We drive our city's tourism economy through story telling and connect to prospective visitors through images," she wrote in an email. Brooks students will be part of that, and students will be able to foster relationships with locally owned businesses and artists, she said. Brooks' move will be a "huge economic generator for years to come," said the downtown's business improvement district executive director Kevin Clerici. With school officials eager to increase enrollment, the impact could only get bigger, he said. Not everybody embraced the arrangement. Council members Jim Monahan and Mike Tracy voted against the lease, with Monahan expressing concerns over the lack of parking and Tracy not on board with offering Brooks below market rent. He questioned why the city was "giving a for-profit company what I think of as subsidized rents." Brooks will pay $5,603 for the fourth floor and $6,622 for the fifth floor (55 and 65 cents per square foot, respectively) through the end of the year. That will climb to $6,622 and $8,150 in 2017, and $8,150 and $12,735 in 2018. It will remain there until the lease expires June 30, 2021. Brooks' move means the 10 nonprofits now on the fourth floor will be displaced. The city offered them space on the third floor at the same rate they pay now 50 cents per square foot for at least another year. Several nonprofits spoke of the difficulty in moving and asked for a guarantee the rent would remain the same for the next five years. A couple said they had only just learned of the pending move, and said it would be quite costly to move. The council took no action on their requests. Green Planet Inc., a privately owned company in Waltham, Massachusetts, that helps place exchange students in the U.S. bought Brooks last year. The school continues to deal with drops in enrollment. In fall 2005, Brooks enrolled 2,563 full-time students, according to U.S. Education Department data. It currently has 344 students, according to a city staff report. SHARE On Thursday, Donald Trump called Pope Francis a "pawn" of the Mexican government and accused the leader of the world's Catholics of "disgraceful" rhetoric. On Friday, he approvingly retold an apocryphal story about a U.S. general ordering Muslims shot with bullets dipped in pig's blood. On Saturday morning, he wondered on Twitter whether President Obama would have attended Justice Antonin Scalia's funeral "if it were held in a mosque." And yet on Saturday night, Trump won the South Carolina primary, affirming him as the front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination. Are Republican voters really choosing as their standard-bearer a man who preaches such hatred and spews such vitriol? No, they aren't at least not yet. But they may get Trump anyway. The good news is only 32.5 percent of South Carolina Republicans voted for Trump. The bad news: Trump may not need the support of a majority of Republican voters to secure the nomination. Five months ago, I wrote that I was so sure Trump wouldn't win the nomination that I would eat a column 18 inches of newsprint if he did. I argued that he "won't prevail in the Republican primary because voters, in the end, tend to get it right." Trump's inability to rise above about 35 percent of the vote vindicates so far my faith in the voters. But even if that holds, I may be soliciting recipes for wood pulp anyway, because given the three-way race emerging between Trump, Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio, Trump could clinch the nomination with minority support. The Cook Political Report, handicappers par excellence, observed over the weekend that Trump's 35 percent "ceiling" of support could be enough to win a five-person race (including John Kasich and Ben Carson) and even enough to "squeak out a victory" in a three-way race. Cook's Dave Wasserman explained that 38 percent of the 2,472 Republican convention delegates are from winner-take-all contests, which means Trump can get them with a slim plurality of the vote. And in a number of the other states that award delegates proportionately, Cruz and Rubio are in danger of slipping below the 20 percent threshold required to get a share. This increases the odds that nobody will get the 1,237 needed, or that somebody will without winning a majority of votes. The long-awaited consolidation behind a consensus alternative to Trump has finally begun. Jeb Bush has joined Chris Christie on the sidelines, and Rubio, after his sound-bite disaster in New Hampshire, appears to have returned as the consensus anti-Trump. But Kasich remains, potentially denying Rubio a huge haul of delegates from Ohio on March 15. And while the primary map gives Cruz no plausible path (none of his strongest states is winner-take-all), Cruz can remain in the race and deny Rubio a clean shot at Trump. On Sunday, Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus told ABC's George Stephanopoulos that it would be a "no-brainer" to support the nominee, even if it's Trump. "Winning is the antidote to a lot of things," he reasoned. An antidote to having a nominee who, echoing one of his supporters at a rally this month, called Cruz a vulgar name? To having a nominee who said in front of thousands that he would "bomb the s--- out of" ISIS? Perhaps the most disturbing of Trump's latest outrages beyond lashing out at the pope or again implying that Obama is Muslim was his decision to validate a hateful Internet hoax. In South Carolina on Friday, Trump was defending torture (he said the United States should "go much further" than waterboarding) when he told a story of Gen. John Pershing, who allegedly dipped bullets in pig's blood before executing Muslim prisoners in the Philippines. "He lined up the 50 people, and they shot 49 of those people, and the 50th person, he said, you go back to your people and you tell them what happened," Trump proclaimed. "And for 25 years there wasn't a problem." Historians and others have found no substantiation for this allegation and plenty of evidence that Pershing wasn't that sort of man. When a Massachusetts state senator floated a version of the Pershing claim in 2003 in a flier, the Anti-Defamation League called it "incendiary and bigoted" and an "offensive caricature of Muslim beliefs." And now, in 2016, the front-runner for the Republican nomination floats the same vile libel, and the chairman of the RNC says it would be a "no-brainer" to support him? The voters may yet get it right, but that doesn't mean the Republican Party will. Follow Dana Milbank on Twitter, @Milbank. Hook Jaw Net Radios On Air with Robert & CC will host a live interview with the Seth Grabel at Rockhouse in The Venetian | The Palazzo Grand Canal Shoppes on Friday, November 22 at 6:00pm. There are plenty of magic shows to choose from in Las Vegas, but only a few have been able to distinguish themselves from the masses. Seth Grabel is one of them, combining old fashioned magic with new age acrobatics and stunts. Ever pleasing to all audiences, Grabel has taken his show all the way to Americas Got Talent, finally settling here in the valley. His crowds walk away from the show entertained and in awe. Robert and CC will be grilling him about his newest project taking place at Sunset Station; wonder if this magician will shed light on any tricks up his sleeve? In celebration of the National Park Services 100th anniversary, visitors traveling to Las Vegas via RV this year can explore one of the United States most visited national parks, the Lake Mead National Recreation Area. Forever Resorts Lake Mead RV Village, offers two locations: Boulder Beach, located just 45 minutes from Las Vegas, as well as Echo Bay, located 95 minutes from Las Vegas. Both offer RV travelers magnificent views of the beautiful lake and its varicolored surrounding landscape. Lake Mead RV Village at Boulder Beach offers Wi-Fi at most sites, a Bocce ball court, horse shoe pits, picnic areas with barbecue grills, 24-hour laundry facility, onsite propane for purchase and a convenience and gift store. Nightly rates include cable TV service and begin at $30 ($45 for lakeview); weekly rates begin at $180 ($240 for lake view) and monthly rates begin at $575 (no lake view sites are available for monthly use and a six-month maximum length of stay applies). Well-behaved pets are welcome. Reservations at Boulder Beach may be made by calling +1 (702) 293-2540. At Echo Bay, RVs have access to free Wi-Fi, large restroom and shower facilities, free launch ramp, barbecue and fire pit areas, recreation room with a 40-person capacity, 24-hour laundry facility and convenience and gift store. Echo Bay offers the closest overnight RV accommodations to Valley of Fire State Parkhome to extraordinary red rock formations and ancient petroglyphsmaking it a convenient place to stay before or after an active day of exploration. Nightly rates begin at $28, weekly rates begin at $154 and monthly rates begin at $462 (a six-month maximum length of stay applies). Reservations at Echo Bay can be made via telephone: +1 (702) 394-4000. In addition to camping, activities available at Lake Mead include boating, fishing, kayaking, swimming, hiking and biking. Black Canyon River Adventures smooth-water raft tours depart daily from Lake Mead RV Village and launch just below Hoover Dam on the Colorado River. These five-hour, 12-mile raft trips cost $97 for adults with special pricing for children under 16. Reservations may be made at www.BlackCanyonAdventures.com. For boating and kayaking, Forever Resorts Willow Beach Harbor, located 23 miles from Lake Mead RV Village, offers a variety of motor boats, canoes and kayaks for hourly or daily rental; hourly boat rentals start at $25 per hour. In addition, bicycle rental shops located near Lake Mead in nearby Boulder City, Nevada, make exploring the park with a scenic bike ride simple. Aid for AIDS of Nevada (AFAN) will host the 26th Annual AIDS Walk Las Vegas on Sunday, April 17 at Town Square starting at 8am (Photo credit: Las Vegas Photo and Video). Last year, more than 6,000 people walked, raising more than $400,000 to directly benefit supportive services to stabilize and empower more than 3,000 clients living with or affected by HIV. Penn & Teller will serve as grand marshals for the 15th consecutive year and leaders of the Penn & Teller Challenge, with exclusive fundraising incentives. Mercedes and JC from Mercedes in the Morning on Mix 94.1 will host the opening ceremony with appearances and performances from Las Vegas entertainers, artists, politicians and dignitaries. EU investors can now compete with state-owned firms for public contracts-Photo: Le Toan Under the agreement (EVFTA), whose negotiations were officially concluded last December and expected to be ratified by late 2016, Vietnam will allow EU companies to bid for its public contracts with ministries, including for infrastructure such as roads and ports; with Electricity of Vietnam (EVN) and Vietnam Railway Corporation; with 34 public hospitals; and with Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. In these two major cities, the value of the procurement for goods and services is estimated to equal or exceed 3 million in special drawing rights (SDR, a weighted average of various convertible currencies defined and maintained by the International Monetary Fund) from the date of entry into force of this agreement to the end of the fifth year after entry into force. Meanwhile, the figure is 40 million in SDR for construction over the same timeframe. Still, procurement with EVN does not cover procurement for transport and distribution of electricity, but is confined to goods and services including consultancy, construction, and installation of project equipment covered by Vietnams Law on Public Procurement. According to a European Commission statement, the EU and Vietnam have achieved a degree of transparency and procedural fairness comparable to other EU FTAs with developed countries and more advanced developing countries. EU businesses will be the first foreign companies to get such a level of access to Vietnamese procurement markets. Vietnam is considered one of the nations with the highest ratio of public investment out of total investment in the world. Since 1995, this ratio has remained at over 39 per cent annually, a large part of which has been invested in infrastructure projects. This has drawn massive attention from foreign investors who wish to join these projects. Nguyen Thu Trang, director of the WTO Centre under the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said that over recent years, the above-mentioned public contracts had almost never been awarded to foreign investors. Meanwhile, public procurement was quite transparent throughout all the 28 EU member states. Thus Vietnam has to open its public procurement markets to a large extent, Trang said. Such a move will facilitate EU investors to join these markets. For example, if the state wants to purchase medical equipment for public hospitals, it will have to organise public tenders, and EU enterprises will be entitled to join the tenders on an equal basis with local enterprises. Duong Kim Khanh, general director of a pharmaceutical firm in Ho Chi Minh City, told VIR that many foreign firms, including pharmaceutical firms in Vietnam, wanted to engage in contracts at local hospitals, but failed. Vietnams commitment regarding procurement under the EVFTA sounds good. However, foreign firms are waiting to see how the commitment will be implemented, Khanh said. Commenting on how this FTA would affect the power sector, Nguyen Thu Hien, head of EVN Hanois Division for Public Procurement Management, told VIR that the power sector would not be affected remarkably by the FTA because the sector did not need as many types of equipment as other sectors such as healthcare or construction. According to the Ministry of Planning and Investments Department for Public Procurement Management, Vietnam has taken the initiative in making its international procurement commitments in its Law on Public Procurement, which is considered on a par with international standards. Under this law, all information on projects put out to tender must be publicised. However, despite Vietnam opening public contracts to EU investors, it requires that only goods and services sourced from the 28 EU member states must be accepted in Vietnam. The lake is the backdrop for a scene in which a pilot is seriously injured after his helicopter crash-lands onto the island. The crew of 150 people had landed at Dong Hoi airport in Quang Binh at 9:40 am earlier the same day. They were welcomed by hundreds of reporters and locals who had been waiting for their arrival with bouquets of flowers and hand-held signs reading Welcome Titan to Quang Binh. Titan is the codename assigned to the film aimed at keeping its identity a secret during prior negotiations with local authorities. Local officials hold signs saying Welcome Titan to Quang Binh at Dong Hoi airport in Quang Binh Province, Vietnam, February 22, 2016. Photo: Tuoi Tre Lead actors Tom Hiddleston and Brie Larson were given the most attention by the welcome party, and greeted fans with bright smiles and friendly handshakes. Brie Larson smiles at fans after arriving at Dong Hoi airport in Quang Binh Province, Vietnam, February 22, 2016. Photo: Tuoi Tre The crew took off shortly after their arrival, boarding vans to Phong Nha, a town in Quang Binh and home to Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Phong Nha is known for its primitive landscapes and cave systems, and previously welcomed the crew of another Hollywood movie, Pan. Three vans carry members of the film crew straight from Dong Hoi airport in Quang Binh Province, Vietnam, February 22, 2016. Photo:Tuoi Tre The newly surfaced path leading to the film's sets in Phong Nha, Quang Binh Province, Vietnam, February 22, 2016. Photo: Tuoi Tre The crews camp site near the sets in Phong Nha, Quang Binh Province, Vietnam. Photo: Tuoi Tre A close-up view of the camp site in Phong Nha, Quang Binh Province, Vietnam. Photo: Tuoi Tre The stream in Phong Nha, Quang Binh Province, Vietnam where the crew is expected to film scenes from Kong: Skull Island. Photo: Tuoi Tre All hotels in Phong Nha have been fully booked since late last year and will house the crew during their stay for the shoot. The principal cast including Tom Hiddleston, Brie Larson and Samuel L. Jackson are staying in two separate resorts 8km away from the town center. Many hotels and restaurants in the town have put up Welcome Titan to Phong Nha banners in an effort embrace the crew. A welcome banner hung at the front of a tourism center in Phong Nha, Quang Binh Province, Vietnam. Photo: Tuoi Tre The crew is scheduled to shoot at Yen Phu Lake on February 23. The shooting in Quang Binh is expected to continue until March 27. Kong: Skull Island tells the story of a group of adventurers who set foot on an uncharted island in the Pacific Ocean one so breathtaking that people cannot believe it is real. Little do they know that they have just walked into the territory of the legendary King Kong. The film, produced by Legendary Pictures and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, is expected to hit cinemas in March 2017. According to SAV, the violations were identified in the preparation for investment, capital mobilisation, bidding, and receiving the finished components. To avoid stringent measures, the violations should be corrected before the whole project is received. The VND5.26 trillion ($236 million) project to renovate National Road 20 between Km0+00 and Km123 +105, spanning across Dongnai and Lam Dong provinces, is the first infrastructure project that borrows foreign capital to be carried out in the BT format. The equity put forward by investors is VND601 billion ($27 million), while the rest of the capital was borrowed by the project company from a group of foreign financial institutions represented by Goldman Sachs. According to Notice no. 65/TV-KTNN issued by SAV, dated January 25, 2016 on the results of the audit, the primary violation was an overestimation of the total cost of the project by a cumulative VND55.7 billion ($2.5 million), due to erroneous calculations. Also during the process of receiving the project, the related parties were billed according to the approved estimation despite taking over a project area falling short in various aspects. The violation amounted to another VND46.1 billion ($2.06 million). Another breach of terms was identified as the investors were slow to submit the sum registered as the projects equity. As of June 30, 2015, three months before the road opened for traffic, the investors were VND136.1 billion ($6.1 million) short of the pledged equity of VND601 billion ($27 million). Only on November 13 did the investors submit the full pledged amount. SAV also called attention to the fact that during the projects financial planning the return over equity of investors was set at 12 per cent, but this percentage is not mentioned in any legal documents. SAV suggested that the Ministry of Finance should issue documents on the return on equity. The National Road 20 project is one of the biggest that ever implemented in south Vietnam, boasting the total initial investment of VND4.5 trillion ($201.8 million), which was then adjusted to VND5.26 trillion ($236 million). The project company is BT20-Cuu Long, a representative of a consortium of domestic investors, namely Cuu Long Corporation for Investment Development and Project Management of Infrastructure (CIMP Cuu Long), Building Materials Corporation no. 1 Co. Ltd. (FICO), East Mekong Co., and Viet Ren JSC. Project Management Unit 7 (PMU 7) was assigned by the Ministry of Transport as the representative authorised government agency. The 123-kilometre section starts at Dau Giay crossroad and ends in Bao Loc City in Lam Dong, linking to provincial road 725. The stretch of road is 12 metres wide, with two lanes for motorised vehicles and two for mixed vehicles. At some parts its width exceeds 14 metres. The road is very important as it links Ho Chi Minh City and Da Lat City. An intended result of the upgrade is to accommodate travelling speed of 80 kilometres per hour so that the road can be of more use, especially as a connection to deep water ports to facilitate the logistics of Tan Rai and Nhan Co bauxite mining and refinery complexes. The construction of the road was finished on September 15, 2015, seven months before the scheduled deadline. At the time SAV started auditing the project, the construction had already been finished. Two additional parts, namely the bridge that goes over Dau Giay crossroad and the road to skip Bao Loc, are seeing their administrative procedures completed in order to start construction in the first quarter of 2016. Falling numbers of tourists from Russia has set back Pegas Touristiks ambitions for an airline in Vietnam Photo: Le Toan In late July, Abdullah Cankaya, director of Asia-Pacific Countries of Pegas Touristik, submitted a proposal to base the airline in the south-central province of Khanh Hoas Cam Ranh area. Still, Hoang Thi Phong Thu, chairwoman of Pegas Misr Travel Vietnam, told VIR that although we received support from leaders of the province, we have not taken any further steps since then. Worsening economic conditions and the weakened ruble caused the number of Russian visitors to Vietnam to plummet during most of 2015. Pegas also suspended flights to Ho Chi Minh City and Phu Quoc island in early 2015 due to low flight frequency, she added. According to statistics from Vietnams National Administration of Tourism, Khanh Hoas Nha Trang city typically welcomes around 200,000 Russian tourists annually. However, in the first quarter of 2015, this number fell 27 per cent on year. The situation became even more serious when the three dominant players in Russias packaged travel industry Pegas Touristik, Anex Tour, and Coral Travel were named among 19 Russian tour operators that Rosturizm Russias Federal Agency for Tourism excluded from the federal register as of January 1, 2016. These companies were left out in the cold, so to speak, because of their association with businesses from Turkey, which downed a Russian jet last November. In addition to the decrease in Russian arrivals to Vietnam, lower-than-expected business performance in some markets may be another reason for Pegas Touristiks second thoughts about this plan. Pegas Touristik has also decided to suspend its flights to China and India due to poor business performance to focus on the Thailand and Vietnam markets during this challenging time, Thu said without giving any further details. According to Thu, Pegas Touristik still had ambitious plans to establish an airline in Vietnam. It held high hopes for the Southeast Asian nations improvements in investment attraction, and was buoyed by the recent announcement by US Secretary of State John Kerry that the US might lift the sanctions it imposed on Russia over the months to come. Pegas Touristik established its subsidiary Pegas Misr Travel Vietnam in late 2015. It now operates 51 aircraft, half of which are operating in collaboration with other companies, and taking Russian tourists to 22 destinations worldwide. The company is planning to expand its business operations to many countries, with Vietnam being considered one of its long-term investment destinations. A view of the stadium in Munich. (AFP Photo) Berlin - A former German bank robber has been charged with blackmail for allegedly trying to extort millions in cash and diamonds from Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich with bomb threats, police said on Tuesday (Feb 23). The German league leaders received two letters on Feb 9 and Feb 15 containing vague threats, involving bombs and drones, and reported demands for 1 million (US$1.1 million) in cash and 2 million worth of diamonds. Munich police on Monday arrested a 63-year-old man, saying he is a notorious former bank robber who was sentenced to over 13 years in jail in 1999 on 17 counts of bank robbery and freed on parole in 2009. Known in the Munich region as the "broomstick robber" during the 1990s, the man was known to hold hostages and lock bank doors with a broomstick before escaping with the money, netting millions in his string of robberies. The suspect appeared before a judge on Tuesday, police said. Saudi Arabia's minister of Oil and Mineral Resources Ali al-Naimi (C) hopes other countries join Saudi's pledge to freeze oil production at January levels. (AFP/Joe Klamar) NEW YORK: Saudi Arabia's oil minister Ali al-Naimi said on Tuesday (Feb 23) he hoped additional producers would join a potential deal to freeze output next month, saying it could help address a global glut. But Naimi again ruled out a cut in output that many had hoped for to shore up crude prices. "Freeze is the beginning of a process," Naimi said at a Houston energy conference in a speech broadcast online. "That means if we can get all the major producers to agree not to add additional barrels, then this high inventory we have now will probably decline in due time. It's going to take time." Naimi's comments helped press crude prices lower. Near 1730 GMT, US benchmark West Texas Intermediate dropped US$1.69 to US$31.70 a barrel, while the London standard, Brent crude, was down US$1.41 to US$33.28. At a meeting last week, Saudi Arabia, Russia, Qatar and Venezuela agreed to freeze output at January levels on condition that other major producers followed suit. "We had one meeting, four countries agreed," Naimi said. "We sent emissaries to other countries. There is a lot of talk, and hopefully sometime in March, there will be another meeting and probably gather more agreements on freezing." Naimi said freezing output was more realistic than cutting because "not many countries are going to deliver, even if they say they will cut production." "There is a common sense and there is a need for more money, and I think those two things will cause, maybe not all of the countries, but most of the countries that count to freeze," including Iran, Naimi said. But in Iran, oil minister Bijan Zanganeh on Tuesday dismissed an output freeze as "a joke", the ISNA news agency reported. "Some neighbouring countries have increased their production over the years to 10 million barrels per day and export this amount, then say let's all freeze our oil production," Zanganeh said. "They freeze production at 10 million bpd and we freeze at 1 million bpd. This is a very funny joke." Iran has increased production since a deal with Western powers ended sanctions over its controversial nuclear programme. Syrian refugees wait for aid in Bab al-Salama, near the city of Azaz, northern Syria, near the Turkish border crossing, on Feb 6, 2016. (Photo: AFP/Bulent Kilic) KILIS: After a harrowing 15-hour journey by minibus, dodging gunfire and explosions, a group of Syrian refugees reached a village near Turkey, desperate to cross the recently shut border into safety. "The people smugglers are there and they're shouting 'Turkey! Who wants to go to Turkey?'" Fatima al-Ahmed recalled, after reaching the town of Kilis on the Turkish side of the frontier. "They are mean, violent, and only think about money. They push us like beasts, hitting the women who don't walk fast enough, even when they are carrying babies. It's terrible, it's the law of the jungle." The 27-year-old woman told AFP about her clandestine escape from Aleppo to Kilis in southern Turkey a week ago - a journey that in peacetime would have taken little more than 90 minutes. Turkey's decision to close its border with Syria has become a boon for smugglers who are charging refugees to secretly cross over. Like the traffickers who make thousands of dollars off each boat-load of migrants crossing the Mediterranean to Italy or the Aegean to Greece, smugglers at the Turkish border take advantage of Syrians who refuse to wait in overcrowded tent camps for Ankara to possibly open up the crossing. Fatima, sitting at a table outside a cafe in Kilis, said she crossed the border with her two-year-old son in her arms through an opening cut in the barbed wire fence. She had decided to flee her home in the rebel-held neighbourhood of Sakhur in eastern Aleppo, when her husband was killed a month ago in the bombing while he was out looking for food. 'TOO MANY PEOPLE' The smugglers organised them "in groups of eight, with our neighbours," she said, speaking in a soft voice. "They helped me pay, I didn't have enough money. Before, everything was organised in Aleppo, we used smugglers we trusted. "But now since the Russian bombing, there are too many people," she said referring to the Russian aerial bombing campaign launched in September last year in support of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's government. Like others in Kilis, Fatima told how the Syrian smugglers were in constant contact, by cellphone and walkie-talkie, with the Turkish smugglers who would take charge of the refugees once they were over the border. "They made us wait, sitting on the ground under some trees, until it was time - the time when the Turkish soldiers who they paid are on guard and look away while we pass," she said of the clandestine journey that cost around 300 (US$330). That sum was too high for the family of Ahmad, a scrawny 14-year-old, who looks even younger than his age. He was among the last to survive in the ruins of Marjeh, his battered Aleppo neighbourhood. When a barrel bomb dropped from a helicopter killed two of his brothers and wounded their father, the family piled into a truck and took off for the border. 'WE WERE LUCKY' "We couldn't pay the smugglers, so we hid. We crawled up to the barbed wire fence and slipped underneath it," said the teenager with a mischievous look, who has never been to school. "We were lucky, the Turkish police found us but since we were with a lot of children, they didn't send us back. They even called for a bus." At Kilis, the flow of refugees has begun to slow down, a sign that the closing orders given to the Turkish guards are being adhered to more. The price of the secret passage has risen to as high as US$1,000. And no matter the price, a planned escape sometimes just doesn't work. Yazan Ahmad, 35, has been waiting for his parents who fled the Syrian town of Tal Rifaat, which was seized last week by Kurdish militia. "They are in a camp just on the other side," he said. "Last night, my brother paid some smugglers to try to get them out ... But they failed. The Turks fired over their heads." Meanwhile those who are stuck in Aleppo live as prisoners of Syria's five-year civil war. "My neighbour in Aleppo, she's alone with five children, and she's desperate," Fatima said. "I spoke to her yesterday. She was crying. She doesn't know what will happen next." The Agreement for the Avoidance of Double Taxation and the Prevention of Fiscal Evasion with Respect to Taxes on Income (Agreement) is similar to the US Model Income Tax Treaty (version 2006). The Technical Explanation that provides the interpretation of the US Model Income Tax Treaty can be found on IRS website. Although the Agreement has been signed, it remains subject to ratification by each country. It contains 30 Articles and a protocol, and deals only with income taxes (not indirect taxes) imposed in Vietnam and in the US. Currently, Vietnam imposes two income taxes: personal income tax (PIT) and corporate income tax (CIT). Important concepts and definitions To have a better understanding of the Agreement, we start with a discussion of the Agreements key two concepts: resident and permanent establishment (PE). Resident of the US A resident of the US is defined in the Agreement as any person who, under the laws of the US, is liable to taxation in the US by reason of his domicile, residence, citizenship, place of incorporation, place of registration, place of management, or any other criterion of a similar nature. Resident of Vietnam A resident of Vietnam is defined in the Agreement as any person who, under the laws of Vietnam, is liable to be taxed in Vietnam by reason of his domicile, residence, citizenship, place of incorporation, place of registration, place of management, or any other criterion of a similar nature. The Agreement also addresses the situation in which a person is deemed to be a resident of both countries. PE concept A US company is taxed in Vietnam if it carries on its business through a PE in Vietnam. If the same company has no PE in Vietnam, it is taxable only in the US and it is not taxed in Vietnam. For tax planning purposes, a US company should address PE-related issues when it carries on business in Vietnam. The concept of a PE under Vietnamese tax regulations is generally broader than the concept defined in the Agreement. As a general rule, the concept of a PE under the Agreement will prevail where it differs from Vietnamese tax regulations. The concept of a PE, as defined in the Agreement, means a fixed place of business through which the business of an enterprise is wholly or partly carried on. The term PE under the Agreement generally encompasses: (a) A building site, construction, exploration, assembly or installation project or supervisory activities if such site, project or activities last more than six months. (b) The provision of services, including consultancy services in Vietnam through employees or other personnel engaged by a US company for such a purpose if such services continue (for the same or a connected project) within Vietnam for a period or periods aggregating more than 183 days within any 12-month period. (c) A US company may be deemed to have a PE in Vietnam if it carries on business in Vietnam through a broker, general commission agent, or any agent having a dependent status. (d) A US company may be deemed to have a PE in Vietnam in circumstances where a person acts in Vietnam on behalf of a US company in respect of any activities which that person undertakes for the US company, if such a person has and habitually exercises in Vietnam authority to conclude a contract in the name of the US company. Tax benefits Once the Agreement comes into effect, residents of the US and Vietnam can enjoy tax benefits previously unavailable. Residents of the US Currently, a resident of the US who derives income, profits or gains is taxed in Vietnam. The same income, profits or gains of the same person could be non-taxable after the effective date of the Agreement. To enjoy tax benefits under the Agreement, a resident of the US must be a qualified person. That is, tax exemption under the Agreement is not automatic. An eligible person must file and provide documents required by the local tax authorities in particular and actual circumstances. Particular conditions and criteria for an individual or company to be a qualified person are set out in Article 23 of the Agreement. For example, an individual resident of the US will be entitled to all benefits under the Agreement. However, if the same individual resident receives income as a nominee on behalf of a third country resident, such benefits may be denied because the Agreement requires that the beneficial owner of income must be a resident of the US. In addition to the above tax benefits, the Agreement provides a limitation on withholding taxes imposed on certain incomes [e.g. dividends (5 per cent or 15 per cent), royalties (5 per cent or 10 per cent), and interest (10 per cent)]. These capped rates are equal to or higher than the current rates in Vietnam. Subject to US law, under the Agreement, the US will allow a tax resident or a citizen of the US a credit against US tax on income taxes paid or accrued in Vietnam. Residents of Vietnam A US citizen may become a resident of Vietnam, by staying in Vietnam for 183 days or more within a calendar year or within 12 consecutive months, or if they have a permanent home in Vietnam, or if they have a close personal and economic relationship to Vietnam, etc. Consequently, he/she may be taxed in both the US and Vietnam. There is a regime for him/her to subtract tax amounts paid in the US from tax liabilities in Vietnam. However, the amount of the credit must not exceed the amount of Vietnamese tax computed in accordance with the tax regulations of Vietnam. In addition, a Vietnamese company holding at least 10 per cent of the voting stock of a company that is a resident of the US and from which the Vietnamese company receives dividends, is entitled to certain benefits. It may subtract from its tax liabilities in Vietnam tax amounts paid to the US by or on behalf of the payer in respect of profits out of which the dividends are paid. As in the case of individuals, the credit must not exceed the Vietnamese tax computed in accordance with Vietnamese tax regulations. As a result of the execution of the Agreement, several individuals or entities that are residents of the US may avoid certain income taxes imposed in Vietnam. This includes individual consultants who provide services on a short-term basis; employees who work in Vietnam on a short-term assignment; US firms with income in Vietnam but with no PE in Vietnam; qualified sellers in share transfer arrangements; US airlines and shipping lines, etc. A US citizen who is a resident of Vietnam can also subtract taxes paid in the US from his tax liabilities in Vietnam. These tax benefits are available only after the Agreement has been ratified. The execution of the Agreement and the recent TPP Agreement are further signs of enhanced economic co-operation between the two countries. Although the Agreement accords tax benefits to tax residents of both countries, the current value of the Agreement to US investors is probably greater because inbound investment from the US to Vietnam is greater than outbound investment from Vietnam to the US. The imbalance may change when implementation of the TPP increases Vietnamese investment in the US. Cross ownership and regulatory actions in Vietnam According to Vietnams Enterprise Law, cross ownership takes place when two or more companies hold shares in each other. De facto cross ownership includes indirect joint ownership. In the local banking industry, typically banks own shares in other banks, the leaders of these banks own shares in various banks as individuals, and bank directors own companies that also own the same banks. All these forms of cross ownership have one thing in common: the shareholdings of many banking financial institutions are controlled in order to strengthen and consolidate power by one individual or one organisation for their benefit. To prevent the abuse of this consolidation of power, the Banking Law 2010 prohibits an individual shareholder of a bank owning more than 5 per cent of the banks charter capital, a corporate shareholder no more than 15 per cent, and an individual shareholder and all of their related parties no more than 20 per cent. A bank and its related companies may not own more than 40 per cent of another banks stakes. In 2010, the SBV issued Decree 13 regulating the safety ratio for banking activities, in which it defines certain limits for lending to companies that a bank controls. In 2014, the SBV issued Decree 36 tightening lending for the purchase of bank shares and prohibiting lending to customers to purchase shares of the lending banks, except for state-owned banks in the process of equitisation. In 2015, the SBV issued Decree 06 requiring banks that still have shareholders with shares exceeding the regulatory limits, to submit plans to reduce such excessive shareholdings to the limits allowed under current laws by the end of 2015. Despite all regulatory actions, cross ownership remains a thorn in the side of the banking authority. Cross ownership among banks continues to exist, with many corporate and individual shareholders still owning shares above limits set by law. While those shareholders are under pressure to comply, the stock market for bank shares has seen a downturn, with the market price of many bank shares falling far below nominal value, discouraging shareholders to sell them off. Furthermore, many shareholders are reluctant to lose control of the banks that have made them wealthy. Cross ownership goes against international banking standards and can cause banks to fail Photo: Le Toan How much damage has been caused by cross ownership? There hasnt been a comprehensive study on the damages caused by cross ownership as it takes so many forms, partially open, partially shrouded in secret arrangement and hidden from the banking authority. Cross ownership came from the historical development of the banking system in Vietnam. When Vietnam entered the market economy some 30 years ago, banks were formed under state ownership. From there, joint-stock banks were founded with capital contributions from state-owned banks, as well as central and local governments. This created a web of inter-related ownership and investment where individual and corporate shareholders formed special interest groups that controlled many financial institutions. The consequence now is a massive burden of bad debts created by the special interest groups that lent money to themselves and related parties for risky real estate projects. When the real estate market collapsed, a huge number of real estate loans fell into default. In 2015, under the order of the SBV, the banks sold VND110 trillion ($5.04 billion) in non-performing loans (NPLs) to the Vietnam Asset Management Company (VAMC), thus reducing the NPL ratio on the books of commercial banks to below 3 per cent at the end of 2015. The VAMC, however, has only been able to recover roughly 8 per cent of the NPL it purchased from banks. Over the past six years, as a result of the bank restructuring, ten banks have merged with stronger banks or have been taken over by the SBV. Many of these failed banks had lent money to each other or to the companies that were owned by the banks shareholders. In a nutshell, these banks became a financial playground for some powerful people and financial groups. This situation was exacerbated when banks were required to increase charter capital to VND3 trillion ($137.6 million) in 2010. To meet this regulatory requirement some banks lent money to individuals buying shares of the lending banks. This lending practice was tolerated until the SBV issued Decree 36 in 2014, prohibiting banks from lending money for people to buy shares in their own banks. The banking practice that allowed individuals to borrow funds from banks to invest in those same banks goes against international norms. Raising capital funds this way only allows cross ownership to prosper and creates unreal capital contribution. In 2015, the SBV took over three commercial banks by completely acquiring their stocks for zero VND. A closer look at these cases reveals that cross ownership was the major cause of these banks failure. Many of these banks directors owned companies that borrowed funds from the banks in question, and then defaulted on their loans, causing the erosion of the shareholders capital and wiping out liquidity. Currently, there are still some weak commercial banks that are being reorganised. The SBV indicated that they would not rule out bankruptcy proceedings for banks from now on. However, bankruptcy is not the only remedy. What to do next? No one expects that the system can be reformed overnight, but any delay in vigorous reform will diminish public trust and will hamper international integration. A few things can be done right now. Banking M&A needs to be sped up. Merging banks is an effective way to eliminate cross ownership. Weak banks should be publicly identified and forced to shore up capital funds or find a stronger bank to merge with. Failing to do this, they should be forced into bankruptcy proceedings. For those banks recently taken over by the SBV, if they prove too costly to save, they should be sold or liquidated, rather than kept alive at great cost to the state. Banking scrutiny needs to be enhanced. The arrest of bank examiners, who supervised and examined one of the banks taken over by the SBV in 2015, shows that the banking authority must pay more attention to the integrity and capability of its bank examiners. Also, the methodology of bank examination should be changed to implement a bank rating system in line with international banking standards. The practice of borrowing money from a bank to purchase stock in another bank does not help resolve the issue of cross ownership. Borrowing money to purchase bank stock is contrary to international norms and not a reasonable investment plan because the source of funds is time-limited while the use of funds is permanent. Last but not least, the governments plan to register all banks stock on the stock exchange needs to be implemented immediately. Some banks likely fear they are not ready yet because their accounting practices do not conform to Vietnamese and international accounting standards, or their stock price has plummeted and will not result in a favorable IPO. Registration on the stock exchange will force banks to comply with many State Securities Commission requirements, such as periodic financial reporting and disclosing auditors opinions as well as changes in management and shareholdings. But these disclosures enable the public to assess the financial conditions of the banks and any cross ownership that may exist. They are now the norms in the international banking world. The suggestion was made during a conference on the climatic condition in Ninh Thuan Province, which was attended by officials from eight provinces along Vietnams south-central coast and Central Highlands. Drought starting in late 2015 is expected to persist until June this year, with rainfall absent in some localions until September. This is arguably the longest and most extreme drought in recent decades, more serious than those in the 1997-98 and 2004-05 periods, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Cao Duc Phat said during his opening speech at the meeting. The water level in many of the artificial lakes and hydropower reservoirs in the two regions has been lower than previous years' average, according to a report by Hoang Van Thang, Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development. Nine out of 21 reservoirs in the Cai River in Ninh Thuan are unable to provide water for the production of local people, resulting in the farming area being narrowed by 10,000 hectares, Deputy Minister Thang said. A similar situation is also present in Khanh Hoa Province as water levels in the man-made lakes are down between 30 and 40 percent of their designed capacity, the deputy minister stated, warning that about 35,000 people in the province will be deprived of their normal water supply. In Binh Thuan Province, nearly 15,500 hectares, accounting for 40 percent, of paddy fields in the area have been affected by the water shortage. People in the Central Highlands have had to cease cultivation in about 2,900 hectares as available water can only supply 30 percent of the regions farming area, he continued. The water supply is not forecast to be able to meet the demand of 100,000 hectares of coffee plantations, Thang said, adding that 25,000 households in Dak Lak Province alone will be confronted by a lack of water throughout the dry season. The insufficient capital investment in an irrigation system was also addressed by leaders of the provinces at the conference. Temporary measures should be figured out to cope with the urgent water dearth while comprehensive long-term and specific solutions should be studied to deal with the drought not only at present but also in the future, Deputy PM Phuc suggested. Local authorities are encouraged to balance and ensure the economical and efficient use of water resources, and pay better attention to local citizens who are under the direct impact of drought, preventing them from being deprived of their water supply as well as those suffering from implications including starvation and potential epidemics, he elaborated. The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has been ordered to regularly inspect the water level in reservoirs and establish a suitable crop calendar for local farmers to follow. Deputy PM Phuc has urged all competent authorities to provide necessary financial support to speed up the implementation of anti-drought projects in 2016 as well as renovating old reservoirs and building new ones. In addition, Minister Phat suggested that local authorities encourage people to limit the farming of rice and focus on cultivating crop varieties with higher drought tolerance during the dry season. Photo by ASSOCIATED PRESS Members of the audience hold up signs before the start of a City Council meeting vote on the nondiscrimination ordinance in Charlotte, N.C., on Monday. Following an interview with top EU officials about the current state of Europe's immigration crisis per VOA's Adrift: The Invisible African Diaspora we asked Elizabeth Collett, director of the Brussels-based Migration Policy Institute, Europe, to provide some background on the nuts of bolts of existing EU immigration policy, and whether recent forecasts that indicate an increased number of arrivals for 2016 are accurate. VOA: The European Commission's 2015 Autumn Forecast projects another 3 million migrants in the coming year. Do you feel that's a reasonably accurate number? Collett: That's a number that comes from an economic forecast that was put forward by Moscovici's team [Pierre Moscovici European Commissioner, Economic and Financial Affairs, Taxation and Customs]. Having looked very briefly at where they got that number from, I don't think that's a reliable number. That said, it's really difficult to make accurate predictions about what's going to happen in the next few years in terms of the numbers of migrants arriving in Europe. There a lot of different variables, including real-time geopolitics and foreign policy i.e., conflicts brewing, ongoing, ending in the European neighborhood and whether the EU will take further measures to prevent arrivals in the European Union itself. I think all you can say is that, at this point, none of the drivers impelling people towards Europe have disappeared. VOA: From a governance perspective, in terms of managing Europe's irregular arrivals, how is realistic is it that the responsibility should fall to the EU as is often portrayed by some media outlets and critics of EU policy as opposed to the responsibility of individual European nations? Collett: Right now it does fall on individual member states. So, each EU member state is still responsible for managing their own external borders. They're also responsible for managing their own asylum system and immigration systems writ large. What the EU has done is create a set of coordinating mechanisms: basic standards for the reception and adjudication of asylum seekers [and] common rules in terms of the management of external borders. They created these baselines because there is a Schengen area with no internal borders, which means each country has to rely on the country next door doing the job at least as well as they do it in order for this to function. Now, that looks good on paper and in theory as long as everyone lives up to their commitments, but we have seen this is not the case in many countries. Also, geographic realities mean that responsibility falls extremely unevenly across the European Union: obviously countries that have long external borders or are more geographically proximate to particular crises will find themselves receiving larger numbers of people initially. Countries that do take those responsibilities seriously and here, I think, Sweden is probably top of the list find themselves receiving far more claims than the countries next door, because asylum seekers understand that they would be safe and treated well in those countries. So, it's ultimately member-state competence and responsibility overshadowed by a set of rules at EU level. But, ultimately, it is a very national determination about how seriously they take those responsibilities and standards, which is of course the source of this tension. We're in a halfway house between a European regime and a national regime. VOA: And exactly how binding are EU-level rules and standards? Collett: Formally speaking, they are legally binding on EU member states, and in September of the last year the EU Commission started infringement proceedings towards a number of member states that had not fully transposed EU legislation which is to say, member states that havent translated EU legislation into their own national sets of rules. But repercussions of infringement proceedings are fairly weak. While the infringement proceedings are typically the EU's main tool for addressing countries that haven't transposed, the reality of the infringement procedures is that they take a long time. It's a very bureaucratic process and can sometimes end up in a court case that can take years and years to resolve. So it doesn't have a huge effect, normally, on EU member states; political pressure has a much greater effect if placed by other key member states. Here, for example, Germany has been telling [non-compliant countries] "you have to do these things, you must do these things." So these EU rules and standards are binding in a formal sense, but in reality the penalties for non-compliance with some of these standards that have been set for asylum seekers are fairly weak, particularly at a time of crisis. Managing follow-up and managing to meet reception standards when countries are seeing exponential rises in the number of [asylum] applications has proven really hard. VOA: And beyond this, a given member state's level of voluntary compliance may depend on how much that particular country has invested in being an EU member state or maintaining its status as such, right? Collett: Yes. And it also depends on how they conceptualize this relationship within the EU. And we really saw this first with the euro crisis and now through this asylum crisis or refugee crisis or migration crisis or whatever you want to call it. For example, around five years ago, EU member states realized that while the Greek government had formally transposed all EU-level legislation for building an asylum system, they hadn't actually built an asylum system, triggering a great deal of approbation; the EU created an action plan and started funding the Greek government. The Greek government, meanwhile, had other things on its mind a financial crisis that was cutting extremely deeply. And so, historically speaking, in some cases we see that it's a question of prioritization: i.e., is this the main thing on everyone's minds? For some EU member states Sweden, Germany, The Netherlands, Belgium, Austria this is the top priority. Right now, for other states, it is just not important. But then there's a more complex situation wherein countries very strongly buy into some parts of the "immigration/asylum EU world," but not other parts. And towards the end of last year you saw Poland, Hungary, The Czech Republic, Slovakia come together and call themselves "the friends of Schengen," in which they jointly stated: "We will defend Schengen in the absence of internal borders to our dying breath." It was a very political statement about how they didn't want to see other countries namely Germany, Austria and others destroy Schengen because of asylum seekers. For those countries that are reimposing border controls, Schengen is intrinsically linked to meeting obligations on asylum; you cannot maintain a system of free movement internally or free crossing of borders within the EU unless everyone is on the same page with respect to offering asylum, developing capacity within an asylum system, and meeting the standards that have been set at the EU level. For those core member states, asylum rules are a corollary of the Schengen system. But for the Central European member states, Schengen is a completely separate issue. And there you see fundamental difference in philosophy that's really, really hard to overcome, whereby central European member states are just really not sure this is their problem. VOA: You've written that confronting the migration crisis requires a whole-governance approach that's currently lacking in Brussels. Has the 2015 reorganization of the EU Commission improved its ability to address the crisis? Collett: On paper there's certainly recognition that better coordination is necessary. And over the last year, we had seen a foreign policy on migration led from DG home [Directorates-General Migration and Home Affairs], which is the department responsible for migration affairs. You've now seen the External Action Service take that role more centrally, so it's moved up high enough in prioritization, for example, that it led this recent EU/African Union heads of state conference in Malta in November. So, that service has moved up the ladder politically. In terms of a coordinated approach, however, there is still, I think, quite poor coordination, but also quite different philosophies just within in European Commission, and the same thing is replicated at national level. In other worlds, most EU member states suffer from the same absence of coordination and differing philosophies. So, for example, interior actors actors responsible for home affairs and immigration policy would like to see funding conditionality become part-and-parcel of EU foreign policy: that you cut funding for states that are not willing to cooperate on migration management and asylum issues, whereas the development actors are deeply, deeply and fundamentally opposed to this way of working. It's these development actors who would say, "You cannot cut development funding because someone doesn't cooperate on one aspect of foreign policy, however important it is to you, because the people who are hurt by that are citizens, not government, and ultimately you are not going to resolve any of the tensions inherent within migration policy." And so that debate goes on. The middle ground is the "more for more" principle, which is the idea that you pay countries more when they do cooperate, rather than take money away, which was really exemplified in the EU-Turkey deal. VOA: In terms of prospective EU policy in 2016, is there anything that could be a game-changer? Collett: So, the European Commission has put the building blocks in place from its point of view, which is a deal with Turkey to try and limit the number of people arriving through the Western Balkans route. You now have this sort of management of flow through the Western Balkans route, which is primarily centering on the Greek-Macedonian border and letting certain nationalities through. But everyone is holding their breath for May, for several reasons. First, as the weather improves, there's an expectation that more people will try to make the crossing that becomes very dangerous in winter, even though numbers haven't dropped as much as I think people expected them to over the winter period so far. And second, the countries that implemented temporary border controls within the Schengen area in mid-October for example, on the German-Austrian border EU rules allow member nations to maintain those controls for only a limited period of time. This means that by mid-May they will have to decide whether to lift those controls or maintain them. So you will then, in mid-May have a big political discussion about the future of Schengen, when member states will grapple with the question of whether to change rules to manage this crisis. That is, "do we accept that we have to lift borders or do we say goodbye to Schengen?" And although the latter, I think, is nearly impossible, you'll see a flash moment there. Also, I think they'll be greater investment on the foreign policy and bilateral negotiations with key third [non-EU] countries over the next month. And I think the difficulty for many EU states along this line is that, first, they don't have much money left or at least there is a funding shortfall that is global, and do they have enough money raised to manage the asylum populations nationally as well as maintain humanitarian development aid? And, second, the public are becoming increasingly concerned, and we've seen a shift toward the more populist parties in more countries. And a number of countries are really concerned about what happens should any of those parties gain power and what would subsequently happen to the asylum system and asylum principles. So, yes, there's a lot of stuff to look for this year. VOA: Can you speculate on which way the Schengen debate may go this March? Collett: I think it will depend a great deal on whether the number of arrivals from Turkey has decreased sufficiently, and capacities increased sufficiently in places like Austria and Germany to be able to deal with those new arrivals, to allow them to feel comfortable to lift those border controls. I think the instinct in Germany would be to lift them if at all possible, rather than change rules or walk away from Schengen. Ultimately I think the longer-term questions are probably more important: What is the future of Schengen when it's now become clear that not everyone is signed up to it on the same basis? And of course that's a more philosophical debate to be had within the European Union. But ultimately, the pragmatic point of view is: it's extremely expensive to reinstall borders across the EU as a whole. Not just the direct cost of human resources and the physical cost of maintaining internal borders, but the indirect cost that come from a commuter taking an hour longer to get to work; goods and services crossing borders, etc... Quantifying those indirect costs, I think, hasn't really been done yet. But they would be significant, so the European economy as a whole would suffer if we lost Schengen. So, ultimately, I think people are keen to see Schengen maintained. VOA: I've assumed consideration of trade variables alone would keep Schengen intact. Collett: Yeah, and I haven't seen any numbers or estimates on that, but certainly. And the frustration of people who work cross-border; [even along the] German-Austrian border, there are a lot of people who depend on that. You can see the numbers that the Danish transport companies have put out after threats to close the Oresund Bridge between Denmark and Sweden. If you look at some of those figures that train companies and hauling companies have put out the added costs to their businesses on a day-to-day basis you can see that it's significant for the private sector. VOA: Beyond primary push and pull factors that compel people to undertake these dangerous journeys, what do you make of the opinion of some migration experts that more lives could be saved not by addressing root causes via development abroad and/or by tightening domestic border security, but by getting EU economic realities synced up with its prevailing migration policies? Collett: For me, it's true that it's not a case of preventing people arriving in Europe and dealing with root causes: As any development expert will tell you, development policy alone won't limit migration. In fact, it might give people more expectations of mobility in the future. So, the idea that you address root causes and migration goes down doesn't hold. Also, the idea that you can do that within 5 to ten years or the timelines that the policymakers are thinking about is ridiculous. We're talking about generational policies that have still yet to bear fruit. The timelines just do not match up. And so there is a lack of coordination between migration ambitions, trade policy, agricultural policy you know, all aspects of foreign policy put forward by the EU and its member states. There does seem be some fundamental disconnect. But one of the things I think that is overlooked is the idea of trying to create regional economic hubs for example, in sub-Saharan Africa. Rather than thinking about trying to develop everywhere, but instead thinking about regional mobility, which is much more accessible for a larger portion of the deeply impoverished. You know, moving south-south, well, what can the EU do there to help create industrial hubs or places where there is growth and development and job opportunities that do offer people a different kind of life? There are things that are much more specific and perhaps short-term that aren't necessarily about limiting mobility, but are about trying to create opportunities that don't require people taking extremely dangerous journeys to what, as I'm sure some of your subjects know, can often be a very disappointing end. You know, the disappointment upon arrival. Having spent so much money for so many people, it's huge. And [they come to find] it's not necessarily the life that had been put forward by smugglers and others, or by family members who've gone and reported an overly-rosy view of what Europe is like. VOA: And you're familiar with then-Italian foreign minister Franco Frattini's 2011 proposal for a so-called Marshall Plan for the Mediterranean basin, jobs programs and development on both sides of the Mediterranean. Collett: And I think that was a discussion about 4 or 5 years ago, probably when the Arab Spring really taking hold. One of the EU failures, I think, was the inability to capitalize on the opportunity presented by the Arab Spring fully. It came out with a lot of policy papers and a lot of wishy-washy words. If there was ever a moment to say, okay, let's look at this youth population, let's see what we can do to make a different future for them. And that was a missed opportunity from the perspective of the European Union, because everyone was scared that that entire youth population would look towards European Union and say, "we want to come there." And if you look at a country like Turkey, if you talk to young people in Turkey, they're not that interested in coming to Europe. Europe is dying for them. They're interested in the economic opportunities in Turkey and elsewhere. You know, I think the fear of the numbers that may come prevents a lot of smart policymaking. Amnesty International said the global situation for human rights deteriorated in 2015, with the systems designed to protect basic rights themselves under attack by governments. In the groups annual report released Wednesday, researchers highlighted the situation in Syria as the worlds most urgent crisis, particularly for refugees. We documented cases of airstrikes against schools, against hospitals and against civilian homes. Russia and Syria are targeting civilians and civilian objects, and that most definitely is a war crime, said Tirana Hassan, Amnestys crisis response director. Hassan recently visited the Turkish-Syrian border at Kilis, where 58,000 newly displaced refugees have massed, waiting to cross into Turkey. Ankara has refused to open the border. Europe has basically tried to make Turkey its border guard, and that is not working out," Hassan said. "The people who are at the Turkish border right now are absolutely desperate, and theyre resorting to using illegal smuggling routes. And we documented multiple cases where Turkish border guards had been firing live rounds on refugees. Global deterioration While Syria is at the forefront of the worlds conflicts, Amnesty Secretary General Salil Shetty said there is a broader trend of deteriorating human rights. The U.N. Security Council and the so-called international community continue to watch helplessly as Syria faces a complete meltdown," he said. "But its not just Syria. Iraq, Yemen, Libya, Burundi, North Korea are all in a precarious condition. Shetty warned that the systems designed to protect human rights are under attack. Countries that have signed up to the refugee convention are shamelessly flouting it in the face of millions fleeing war and persecution," he said. "Many African countries have clubbed together, threatening to walk out of the International Criminal Court. At the regional level, the European Human Rights regime is under threat. The Amnesty report highlights some successes in 2015, including the release of three Al Jazeera journalists detained in Egypt and the opening of an International Criminal Court investigation into the situation in the West Bank and Gaza. Syrian President Bashar al-Assads ruling Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party would win a landslide victory in any parliamentary elections held either in the next few months or during a political transition following a permanent cessation of hostilities in the war-ravaged country, election experts and diplomats warn. President Assad Monday announced parliamentary elections for April, issuing a decree for polls to be held for the countrys 250-member legislature, known as the Peoples Council, which is elected for a four-year term from 15 multi-seat constituencies. The election announcement is being dubbed a PR gimmick by opposition politicians and election experts, who argue that even in the highly unlikely event the vicious five-year-long Syrian civil war ended abruptly in the next few weeks, any such election would fail to meet acceptable international standards. It would not be in line with any standards, says Vladimir Pran, a consultant for the International Foundation for Electoral Systems, a Washington-based non-profit that provides technical assistance for elections in new and emerging democracies. IFES frequently partners with the United Nations to organize post-conflict elections. There would be several problems on so many different levels and that is even before you take into account the Assad regime wants to hold an election during wartime. No one in the international community will recognize the April polls, if they go ahead, he added. Aside from the April election proposal, Western diplomats are trying to get opposition politicians and Western policy-makers to think ahead, and more deeply, about a political transition in Syria. Election law They warn that without complete reform of the countrys election law, which would prevent millions of refugees and Syrians displaced inside the country from voting, Assads Ba'athists and allies would score a huge victory in a parliamentary poll due to a system of block voting. Russian diplomats appear to understand the quirks of Syrian election law they tabled a demand recently during behind-the-scenes international talks on a political transition for the war-torn countrys election law to be left unchanged. The Russians appear to be thinking several chess moves ahead of us, admitted a European diplomat based in Istanbul. They are already maneuvering, trying to shape what happens to ensure that the regime remains in power, with or without Assad, he says. The diplomat asked that his name be withheld. Under Syrias current law, electors vote for multiple candidates with several seats assigned to each constituency. The voter has up to as many votes as seats available and the candidates with the highest vote totals win the seats. This gives an advantage to the more developed and established parties. Even in a political transition with a free and fair environment, the block vote system would work against the opposition because it is so fragmented. Block voting would favor the regime with a disproportionate advantage, amplifying its vote, giving it an overwhelming edge while minimizing the representation of parties that have received sizable minorities of the vote. The party that has even a slight lead in the popular vote wins all the seats in the district, said Pran. You saw the consequences of block voting in the Palestinian elections in 2006 when Hamas, on 44 percent of the vote, won the lions share of seats in the Palestinian Legislative Council, almost double what Fatah won, even though Fatah attracted 41 percent of the popular vote, Pran said. There are also other provisions in the current election law which would undermine any polls held under it being an accurate reflection of popular will. Refugees, displaced Syrians More than 2.3 million Syrian adults are refugees, and 3.3 million other voting-age Syrians are displaced within the country. Under the current law, they would have no right to vote, although the Vienna peace deal framework states that all Syrians, including the diaspora, should be eligible to participate in elections. At least 120,000 Syrian Kurds also have no eligibility to vote under a 1962 nationality law that stripped them of their Syrian citizenship. Some subsequently were given back their Syrian nationality under a 2011 presidential decree, but the number of disenfranchised Kurds could be much higher than in 1962 because of knock-on effects on the voting eligibility of offspring. Election experts worry also about the oversight powers provincial governors wield under the current law. Nomination committees vet candidates, deciding who can stand. The committees are appointed by the governors. The Russians appear to be taking a leaf out of their Ukraine playbook, says another Western diplomat. Assads April election proposal and the Russians early attempts to ensure block voting remains for any political transition reminds me of the sham separatist vote in Donetsk, he added. In May 2014, pro-Moscow separatists in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions held a referendum on secession from Ukraine. Analysts and Western governments said the referendum was marred by fraud, criticized the process for observing no proper controls over ballot papers or voter lists and questioned the integrity of a vote that was held while separatist intimidation and abductions were going on. The referendum was viewed widely by the international community as a bid to polish the separatist agitation with an electoral sheen. The last time Syrians voted in parliamentary elections was in May 2012. The Assad regime proclaimed the election law adopted weeks earlier was a historic step for reform as it introduced for the first time a multi-party contest. Nine newly-licensed parties challenged the front dominated by the Ba'ath Party, which has ruled since 1972. The Financial Times accused the government of orchestrating the vote in a bid to entrench its power. Opposition politicians said the government was using the poll as a way to avoid political negotiations; the Obama administration described the election as bordering on ludicrous. The election announcement came on the day when regime forces launched a fresh assault on anti-Assad rebel strongholds in the countrys northwest. The election result handed the Ba'ath party and allies 168 seats in the 250-seat legislature. The opposition received six seats with the remainder going to non-partisans, most considered regime placemen. As a long mining boom comes to an end, Australia is pinning its economic hopes on a free-trade agreement with China that came into force in December 2015. While tariffs have been cut, opportunities have soared. But there is still a beguiling maze of cultural differences that remains to be negotiated between the two trading partners. There was triumph in the air when Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull announced the signing of a historic free trade agreement with China. One of the deals main architects is the former trade minister, Andrew Robb. Robb admits that cracking the Chinese code of Guanxi, or the nurturing of long-term business relationships, is a critical challenge. 'Not understanding the culture' The other constraint is, you know, not understanding the culture, not having an awareness of how business is done, the cultural norms, the things that we take for granted in our own country, well, China is no different," he said. "Theyve got a whole lot of things they take for granted. We need to have that mutual understanding, mutual respect for the differences, and then once you do that then you have got an opportunity to really maximize the relationship." Chinese New Year is a glittering spectacle in Sydney. The cultural, social and commercial ties between Australia and its biggest trading partner have never been stronger. But it can be tough for foreigners to unlock the secrets of doing business in China. Do you shake hands before a meeting? Will pointing a finger during a conversation cause offense? And should you bring a gift, and, if so, what kind? Several companies now offer tailored cultural training for executives. "If a Chinese business person gives their business card to me, I have to receive it with both hands and I need to make sure that Im not putting it in any kind of indecent place, and by indecent I mean even if I put it in my back pocket, that is not okay because then when you sit down you are sitting on their name, which is disrespectful," said Della Dang, a marketing specialist at the Australia Asia Executive Center. Bridging the cultural gap Monika Tu sells multimillion-dollar real estate in Sydney to Chinese buyers. She moved to Australia from southern China in the late 1980s, and said bridging the cultural gap hasnt been easy. You know, I have been here for 27 years. It take me a lot of time to really get the essence of what Australian or Westerner people have [and] has to offer as well," Tu said. "It is just so different. But I think if you learn both cultures, take the initiative, you really enjoy it. That will benefit your social life, and your lifestyle and also importantly, will help your business. It is a long way for us to go, so everybody will have the opportunity to work together and to make a beautiful world," she added. Australian companies looking to expand into China are hoping this first year of the new free trade agreement will be fortune-changing. But academics warn there are pitfalls ahead. Cultural understanding Sally-Anne Gaunt, the senior lecturer for cross-cultural management at the University of New South Wales, said, in parts of Asia, Australians are not seen as hard-working, and she recalls giving advice to an executive in Singapore. This young lady was very critical of her client, saying they are lazy, they all go home at 5 oclock, they all go to the beach and were here working very, very hard," Gaunt said. "Of course what she failed to realize is when you are working somewhere like Australia, you do not have an extended family, you dont have home help, you really have to do everything yourself. "When I actually started to point these factors out she was absolutely shocked. She went Oh, do you mean you do not have maids in Australia? I said Well, no. Many people do not.' " Australia is party to 10 free-trade agreements. Most are in its backyard in Asia, including Japan, South Korea and China. Taking advantage of the opportunities they offer is not just about products, prices and performance, but understanding the complex cultures that make businesses work. A team of investigative journalists claims to have evidence showing that the missile that shot down a Malaysian airliner over Ukraine in July 2014 belonged to a Russian battalion that had recently deployed to the region. Two hundred ninety-eight people died when the flight from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur was downed. A Dutch-led Joint Investigation Team is still probing the crash. Investigators from the website Bellingcat.com claim to have put together a mass of evidence pinpointing the origins of a specific Russian-made missile launcher - firing a so-called BUK missile - that it claims was used to shoot down Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17. Eliot Higgins, the founder of Bellingcat, told VOA via Skype his team was able to identify a number of individuals involved. Rather than talk about this missile launcher has come from the Russian army and its all rather nebulous, we can say these are the names and faces, these were the people who knew what was happening to this BUK missile launcher, who would have passed on the orders, he said. Distinctive markings Higgins team collated videos of a military convoy in eastern Ukraine - posted on the Internet in the hours and days following the shooting down of flight MH17 - and identified a BUK launcher they believe fired the missile. Some of the photographs of the BUK missile launcher from July 17 in Ukraine, theres marking visible on the side of the missile launcher that match perfectly with markings on the side of the missile launcher that was part of a convoy in Russia in June, Higgins said. Bellingcat then plotted the route of that June convoy in Russia, using videos posted online by soldiers and civilians filming from the roadside. It appears to have started at a military base close to Kursk, the home of the 2nd Battalion of Russias 53rd Air Defense Brigade, and ends close to the Ukrainian border. What weve been able to find is a vast number of social media accounts belonging to soldiers who were part of the 53rd Air Defense Brigade. And based on that we were able to piece together who they were, which members of the brigade were in that convoy, said Higgins. So they would have been people who would have seen this missile launcher, they would have seen it leave at some point; so these are key people for the investigation to be speaking to. Details passed to Dutch investigators Bellingcat partly identifies the commander of the 2nd battalion as a man named Dmitry T. - and names the overall commander of the 53rd Russian Air Defense Brigade as Colonel Sergey Borisovich Muchkaev. All details have been passed to Dutch investigators. The Bellingcat investigation concludes that even if the BUK launcher was given to separatist forces in Ukraine, Russian soldiers were likely still present to advise on its operation. Russia has consistently denied involvement - and at the time offered photographic and satellite evidence purporting to show that Ukrainian forces shot down the airliner. Ukraine dismissed the accusation, while Bellingcat says the Russian evidence was forged. Brazilian police are investigating potential bribes of $3 million from Latin America's largest engineering conglomerate Odebrecht to Peruvian President Ollanta Humala, court documents showed. Documents seized from Marcelo Odebrecht, the former CEO of the family-run company, cite "Program OH," which police said in the documents they interpreted as referring to the initials of the Peruvian president. They noted the funds were not allocated for any specific purpose. Humala in a statement on Tuesday denied taking bribes and said he summoned Brazil's ambassador to his offices late on Monday to request official information about the inquiry following initial news reports on the Brazilian court documents. Peru's attorney general's office said that because of presidential immunity prosecutors would not be able to investigate Humala until after his term ends in late July. Odebrecht has won contracts worth several billions in Peru in the past decade, including a $5 billion natural gas pipeline during Humala's term after its sole bidding competitor was disqualified from a public auction at the last minute. The inquiry comes amid political campaigning for Humala's successor and will likely drag further on his already-low approval ratings during his last five months in office. Presidents in Peru cannot hold two consecutive terms and the ruling party candidate is trailing far behind in polls. Presidential hopeful Julio Guzman, second in the race to April elections, said on Twitter Humala should be banned from leaving Peru until the bribe allegations were cleared up. Brazilian federal prosecutor Carlos Fernando dos Santos Lima said at a press conference on Monday investigators had evidence Odebrecht had bribed officials abroad, including a former transportation secretary in Argentina. The largest-ever corruption investigation in Brazil has revealed an elaborate scheme of price-fixing among engineering firms, allegedly led by Odebrecht, to overcharge state-run oil firm Petroleo Brasileiro SA and use the access funds to bribe officials, many in President Dilma Rousseff's coalition. Marcelo Odebrecht was jailed in June and is on trial for corruption and money laundering, charges he denies. Police noted in documents filed with the federal court in Curitiba, Brazil, that Brazil's investment in Peru jumped from $50 million per year to $900 million annually when Rousseff's predecessor Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva became president. Many of the Brazilian investment projects were hydro-electric dams built by Odebrecht. Odebrecht did not immediately respond to request for comment about the alleged bribes to Humala. China has again sent fighter jets to a disputed island where earlier this month it redeployed surface-to-air missiles and appears to be building a sophisticated radar system, according to U.S. officials. Fewer than 10 jets a combination of Shenyan J-11 and Xian JH-7 aircraft have been spotted on Woody Island in the Paracel chain in the South China Sea, officials in Washington, who spoke on condition they not be named, told reporters late Tuesday. On Wednesday, Nina Hachigian, the U.S. ambassador to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, told reporters, "We are very concerned that these actions are increasing tensions in the region and are counterproductive." The fighter jet sightings follow the placement of HQ-9 surface-to-air missiles on the 210-hectare island, known in Chinese as Yongxing and called Phu Lam by Vietnam, which also claims it. Analysts express more alarm about the construction of a high frequency radar facility on the island, 400 kilometers southeast of China's Hainan island. Radar advantages The radar would bolster Beijing's ability to monitor surface and air traffic in the tense waters and along with the development of new runways and air defense capabilities, they speak to a long-term anti-access strategy by China one that would see it establish effective control over the sea and airspace throughout the South China Sea," according to the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington. After Chinese state media last November published images of J-11 fighter jets on Woody Island, the U.S. Navy sailed a guided-missile destroyer past another contested island in the South China Sea and flew B-52 bombers and sailed another warship in the region for a freedom of navigation exercise. "Our freedom of navigation operations are routine, they are lawful, said Ambassador Hachigian, speaking from Jakarta on a conference call. They're conducted in accordance with international law. We've conducted these operations around the globe since 1979, including in the South China Sea and the South China Sea cannot be an exception." Such activities have prompted Chinese officials to blame the United States for increasing tensions. Diplomats meet China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi, visiting the U.S. State Department on Tuesday, said he hoped that such flights and patrols by U.S. forces near the contested islands would cease. "Regrettably, there are missiles, fighter aircraft, guns, artillery and other things that have been placed in the South China Sea, and this is of great concern to everyone who transits and relies on the South China Sea for peaceful trade, commerce and use," U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, standing alongside Yi, told reporters. Kerry said, however, not only China but Vietnam and others were also responsible for creating an escalatory cycle of reclamation and militarization in the disputed waters. Earlier Tuesday, the head of the U.S. militarys Pacific Command, in testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee, was less diplomatic, bluntly blaming Beijing for clearly militarizing the South China Sea. "Youd have to believe in a flat Earth to believe otherwise," Admiral Harry Harris told senators. Asked by lawmakers about the strategic goal of China's military buildup in the region, Harris replied: "I believe China seeks hegemony in East Asia." WATCH: U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry criticizes China militarization of South China Sea island President Barack Obama is vowing to finally close down the military detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, as he pledged to do when he first ran for office eight years ago. But the Republican leadership of the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate was quick to reject the presidents plan, calling it vague and dangerous. Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky said the Senate would review Obamas plan, but added, "Since it includes bringing dangerous terrorists to facilities in U.S. communities, he should know that the bipartisan will of Congress has already been expressed against that proposal. Republican Senator John McCain of Arizona has been a strong advocate of closing down Guantanamo, agreeing with Obama that the facility is contrary to American values. McCain, who is chairman of the Armed Services Committee, said his committee would hold hearings on the presidents proposal. But he also criticized the plan. What we received today is a vague menu of options, not a credible plan for closing Guantanamo, let alone a coherent policy to deal with future terrorist detainees," said McCain. He and other Republican lawmakers faulted the president for not saying where he would house current and future detainees. Ryan: Against the Law On the House side, Republican House Speaker Paul Ryan of Wisconsin sharply rebuked the plan. Congress has left no room for confusion," he said. "It is against the law and it will stay against the law to transfer terrorist detainees to American soil. We will not jeopardize our national security over a campaign promise. To thwart efforts by the president to close down Guantanamo, Congress has repeatedly passed legislation making any effort to transfer detainees to the United States illegal since 2011. The presidents plan names 13 possible transfer sites in the United States, including seven federal prisons in Colorado, South Carolina and Kansas. But the plan does not recommend any particular site. Lawmakers from those three states have been particularly vocal in opposing any plan to transfer detainees to U.S. soil. South Carolina Senator Tim Scott said the location the White House is looking at in his state is within five miles (eight kilometers) of a dozen schools and multiple neighborhoods. He tweeted, There is no reason to put a target on an American community when the U.S. already has an isolated facility, well-guarded by Marines. The president argues that U.S. federal courts have successfully prosecuted, convicted and imprisoned hundreds of people for crimes related to terrorism, with no incidents of prisoners escaping. But the Republican-led House and Senate are not likely to consider new legislation to reverse course and allow detainees to be transferred to U.S. soil which would be a highly charged issue during an election year. Obama has not ruled out taking executive action to close down Guantanamo, but this would most likely provoke outrage in Congress. Democrats: Guantanamo a Blight Democratic leaders and rank-and-file members from both chambers came out in strong support of the presidents closure plan. The reality is Guantanamo hurts rather than advances our efforts to keep America safe and combat terrorism abroad, said House Democratic Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi of California. She called on Congress to thoroughly review the plan. Ive been there it is a blight on our country," tweeted Democratic Representative Judy Chu of California. "We must remain a nation of laws and justice. She said the president is right to close down the controversial prison, but Democrats cannot bring legislation to the floor since they are currently in the minority in both the House and the Senate. A significant minority of South Koreans oppose Washington and Seoul led efforts to impose harsh economic sanctions on the Kim Jong Un government. These critics say this confrontational approach has fueled regional tensions and they warn that further punitive measures will only worsen the poverty stricken conditions in the North and greatly increase the risk of war. "Its not only North Korea that creates the atmosphere of fear and anxiety. It is also the U.S. and South Korean governments and politics," said Park Jung-eun with the Peoples Solidarity for Participatory Democracy. The Peoples Solidarity for Participatory Democracy (PSPD) speaks for a large number of critics of President Park Geun-hyes ruling Saneuri Party. It is a South Korean alliance of pro-democracy and human rights organizations often aligned with the political opposition in Seoul. Kaesong closing A recent South Korean public opinion poll found majority support for President Parks decision to close the Kaesong Industrial Complex following North Koreas fourth nuclear test in January and rocket launch this month. But a significant minority 42 percent of those polled opposed closing the complex. Park claimed that 70 percent of the wages for the 54,000 North Korean workers, and other funding paid to the Kim Jong Un government to operate the jointly run facility, were used to fund the countrys nuclear program. Critics say the government has provided no evidence to support its assertion. Rather than cutting funds from North Koreas nuclear program or pressuring the Kim Jong Un government to comply with U.N. sanctions, they contend that closing Kaesong will disproportionally hurt hundreds of thousands of average people living in the region. From a humanitarian perspective, the shutdown actually has imposed the greatest impact on workers of the complex and their families, said Father Park Chang-il, a Catholic priest with PSPD. Engagement versus pressure Washington also recently passed harsh new financial sanctions that could seize the U.S. assets of any company linked to illicit North Korean activities. Opponents of a punitive or pressure based approach to North Korea say Washington and Seouls uncompromising stance is also contributing to an increasingly tense regional security situation. Demanding Pyongyang halt its nuclear program before international peace talks can begin and offering no incentives to comply, they say, only pushes the Kim Jong Un government to take a confrontational stance in return. In order to resolve the North Korean nuclear issue, we have to pay the corresponding price, said Lee Seung-whan with the PSPDs Civil Peace Forum. U.S. and South Korea responded to the recent North Korean nuclear test by bringing in nuclear capable aircrafts and ships. Critics say this show of force, along with this years largest ever joint military drills, which include practicing pre-emptive strikes against targets in the North, will only strengthen the resolve and power of hardline leaders in Pyongyang. On Tuesday North Korea's People's Army threatened to strike the South Korean presidential office and U.S. military installations in retaliation for the joint military drills. South Korea's military responded Wednesday with a strong warning, saying any direct provocation would expedite the "collapse of [Pyongyangs] dictatorial system." Sunshine sunset Recent history undermines the position of advocates for peace through engagement. Public support in the rich, democratic South for basically paying for peace with the poor and repressive North, had dwindled in the last decade. Most aid and trade programs that began under Seouls Sunshine policy in 2000, ended in failure in 2010 after an alleged North Korean attack on a South Korean warship that killed 46 sailors. North Koreas withdrawal from international nuclear talks in 2009 and refusal to comply with a 2005 agreement to dismantle its nuclear weapons program greatly increased public support for a more conservative and punitive approach to dealing with the Kim government. Also criticism that the administration of U.S. President Barack Obama has been inflexible on North Korea is inconsistent with other recent foreign policy efforts by Washington, including the nuclear agreement reached with Iran and normalizing relations with Cuba. Prior to the January nuclear test, Washington says it agreed to a Pyongyang request to engage in peace treaty talks, reportedly without requiring the North to halt its nuclear program. However, the U.S. says it did insist that the nuclear issue be on the agenda and it was North Korea that rejected the compromise. Aligning with China The views of these South Korean critics align with Chinese leaders, who had been reluctant to support harsh international sanctions on North Korea for fear of destabilizing the country and triggering a surge of refugees across their border. However on Tuesday Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, at a joint news conference with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry in Washington, indicated the two sides are close to agreeing on new, stronger U.N. sanctions to impose on North Korea. China is North Korea's most important ally and largest trading partner. Without Beijings support, measures being considered to cut off trade and aid to its ally will likely have limited impact. Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi said on Wednesday that the Russian plane that crashed in Sinai last year was downed by terrorists seeking to damage Egypt's tourism industry and relations with Moscow. "Has terrorism ended, no it has not but it will if we unite. Whoever downed the Russian plane, what did he mean? He meant to hit tourism, and to hit relations with Russia," Sissi said in a televised speech. The comments were the first official Egyptian indication that the plane was deliberately downed. Russia had already said that a bomb was to blame but Egypt had said it had yet to find evidence of foul play. This week, Iranians will select a new parliament and Assembly of Experts in twin elections that many Western analysts regard as a defining moment in Iran, one which will test the countrys openness to reform and the future of the nuclear deal. But, some observers close to Iran believe that regardless of whether reformists or conservatives come to power, the ultimate power holders in Iran will remain unchallenged. The elections taking place Friday are significant for two reasons: First, in the aftermath of the nuclear deal, President Hassan Rouhani is hoping for a parliament that will support his desire to open up Irans economy up to foreign investment and tradenot to mention uphold its end of the deal, now that its assets have been released and most sanctions lifted. Second, the Assembly of Experts, whose chief job is to monitor, dismiss and elect Irans Supreme leaders, may get their chance to name a successor to the Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who is elderly and said to be in poor health. But even if moderates do realize a victory in Fridays vote, analysts doubt they will be able to usher in any meaningful reforms. To understand why, one only needs to examine some key elements of Irans political structure. Top down management The Supreme Leader, Irans top political and religious leader, is tasked with safeguarding the theocracy formed by the Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini in 1979. His successor, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, controls all branches of the government, the military and the press, and has final say on foreign policy, military and security matters and Irans nuclear policy. The Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) are, in essence, an ideological army originally created to protect the supreme leader from foreign intervention or a military coup. Over time, the IRGC have evolved into a powerful force that permeates all aspects of Irans society, politics and economy, both over- and underground. They are believed to control a big chunk of the countrys GDP. The Guardian Council is made up of six religious jurists appointed by the supreme leader and six lay clerics named by the head of the judiciary, who himself is appointed by the supreme leader. The Guardians decide who may or may not run for office, and because the supreme leader can dismiss any of them at will, they are perceived as his yes men -- or, as Khamenei himself put it, the governments seeing eye. The Assembly of Experts is a group of 80 Islamic scholars whose chief job is to monitor, dismiss and elect Irans Supreme leaders. Because they are vetted by the Guardian Council, they can be seen to have been indirectly appointed by the supreme leader, noted Iranian-American political scientist Majid Rafizadeh. And the Guardian Council only vets candidates based on their religious authority and their loyalty and fidelity to the supreme leader. Parliament, the 290-seat body that drafts laws, ratifies treaties, and supervises government spending. Parliament has some wiggle room on policy, said Rafizadeh, but it basically looks to the supreme leader on fundamental policies. And when the Supreme Leader favors a policy, regardless of whether the Parliament is moderate or reformist or hardline, it goes along with the Supreme Leader, because thats just how the system works, he added. The president, the highest-elected leader in Iran, heads the executive branch of the government, the national security council and the council of cultural revolution, which is tasked with preserving religious nature of the Islamic Republic. It has been the rule in Iranian politics that once a president is elected, he wants to put some distance between himself and the supreme leader because after all, he cannot ignore a rather sizeable segment of the Iranian public that wants to have more reformist policies adapted, said Mehrzad Boroujerdi, professor and chair of the political science department at Syracuse Universitys Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs. That said, Rouhani ultimately answers to the supreme leader and is mindful of the fact that parliament has the power to recommend a presidents removal from office. Vote rigged from outset? The Guardian Council this month eliminated half of the roughly 12,000 candidates who signed up to run for the Assembly and parliament, most of them moderates. Given this and the power configuration in Iran, Boroujerdi said he doesnt expect much to change. At best, I expect the reformists will be a small minority within the parliament, but not necessarily a force that is going to be facilitating what President Rouhani really wishes for, he said. Indeed, say experts, getting what he wishes for could ultimately hurt him. Consider what happened to former reformist president Mohammad Khatami, who was elected for two consecutive terms on promises of more jobs, more freedoms and a free market. The reformists took over the parliament, and the next thing you know, the IRCG, basij [paramilitary] and police, they shut down newspapers, they shot at point blank range the political strategies of Khatemi, and they just silenced him, said Harvard scholar Majid Rafizadeh. Later, the government accused Khatemi of sedition and has since banned him from appearing in the media, speaking in public or leaving the country. The media ban, however, did not stop Kahtemi from issuing a video message on YouTube this week in which, speaking Farsi, he urged voters to select reformist candidates, saying that "the more the people participate in the elections and the more enthusiastically different ideologies are represented, the closer the elections will be to the people's will, the interests of the country, and the people's goals." (Below): Nor does there appear much chance that the Assembly of Experts, if given the chance this term, will name a reformist Supreme Leader. That decision, said Boroujerdi, may already have been made. If we accept the premise of the argument that the current supreme leader is a micromanager, my sense is that he might have handpicked his successor and might therefore tell the Assembly of Experts, here are my last wishes, Boroujerdi said. Just like you saw with Ayatollah Khomeni when he passed away -- he basically had already suggested the Khamenei as his successor. Because this state's presidential primaries are the first in the southeastern United States, experts say they are among the most important early battlegrounds in the nominee selection process. For weeks, Republican and Democratic candidates have crisscrossed the state. From major rallies packing thousands of supporters into convention centers and town halls to smaller discussions in churches and university buildings, candidates on both sides of the aisle have fought hard for each vote in this pivotal state. Spread out over two weeks, the campaigning ends Saturday when Democratic Party voters go to the polls to choose between Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders. African-American support For the Democrats, one key demographic will go a long way in determining who is better suited to represent their party. "The South Carolina Democratic primary is going to be over half African-American," said Scott Huffmon, a political science professor at Winthrop University in Rock Hill, South Carolina. "This is the first test of black support. And of course, African-Americans vote over 90 percent for the Democratic Party, so knowing who is the favorite for this core constituency is really important for the Democrats." Based on opinion polls, that candidate is Clinton. To bolster her support among African-Americans, she hosted an emotional forum Tuesday at a Baptist church in Columbia with mothers who have lost children to gun violence including the mother of Trayvon Martin, the Florida teen who was shot and killed by a neighborhood watch coordinator. Sybrina Fulton, Martin's mother, was clear about whom she supported: "We have an opportunity to have someone who is going to stand up for us as African-Americans, for us as women. I say my vote goes to Hillary Clinton." Other members of Clinton's forum included the mother of Eric Garner, who was choked to death while in police custody, and former U.S. Representative Gabrielle Giffords, who was shot while meeting with her constituents in Arizona. While Clinton has ramped up events like this across South Carolina, Sanders, who trails heavily in early polling, has chosen to campaign in other states. He is expected to return to South Carolina on Friday, the day before the primary. Some observers have said this is a sign Sanders has conceded defeat in the state; Sanders has denied this. Southern appeal As for the Republicans, Huffmon said Trump's win in South Carolina last Saturday showed he can appeal to different types of conservatives and also was important for strategic reasons. "If you are the type of candidate who can appeal to the electorate of South Carolina, you're the type of candidate who can appeal to the entire South, and that's really important for the Republicans," Huffmon said. For Republicans, South Carolina is vital. It's the first state where support among different types of conservatives can be truly measured. Since 1980, every Republican who has won South Carolina has gone on to win the nomination until Newt Gingrich won the state in 2012, beating out eventual nominee Mitt Romney. Some analysts believed this was the end of South Carolinas predictive ability, but Huffmon said he thought the state in 2012 was the "canary in the coal mine," foretelling the rise of anti-establishment, insurgent candidates like Trump and Ted Cruz. Many analysts like Huffmon agree it's not yet inevitable that Trump will win the Republican nomination, with Marco Rubio building establishment support and Cruz remaining a contender. But Huffmon said, "The more Trump wins in these earlier contests, the more likely it becomes." WATCH: Hillary Clinton Addresses a Town Hall in South Carolina Two weeks after the worst riot in years, Hong Kong is still feeling the shock waves. During his annual budget address Wednesday, Hong Kong Financial Secretary John Tsang warned that the territory's economy will suffer without political stability. "We anticipate that political disputes will only intensify over the coming months," Tsang said. "Politics and economics are closely intertwined. Political volatility will unavoidably impact our economy. It is the duty of the government to take on challenges in our society." But Tsangs statement, some protesters say, did little to help alleviate their anger over the city governments failure to address structural reforms. "Unless we have true universal suffrage and also we can use our surpluses to have to genuine reform in terms of the social welfare system, as well as the education system, a one-time sweetener wouldnt help alleviate the anger of Hong Kong people," said Avery Ng, chairman of the League of Social Democrats. Worst riot in years On February 8, protests against police clearing illegal food venders in the bustling district of Mong Kok turned violent after masked demonstrators hurled bricks and bottles at the officers, who responded with batons and pepper spray. The tension peaked after a police officer fired two warning shots in the air. The overnight violence left more than 130 people, including 80 police officers, injured while 74 were arrested, according to local media reports. One leader of a radical local group accused of instigating the riot, 22-year-old Ray Wong, was released on bail late Tuesday on a charge of rioting. If found guilty, he faces up to 10 years in jail. A rise in localism The riot signals rising anti-China sentiments among a younger generation frustrated by the lack of democracy and widening economic disparity following closer ties with Beijing, analysts say. "This [is] rooted in the fact that the wealth gap the disparity between the very rich and the very poor in Hong Kong is widening. A lot of people do not see hope in terms of what their future is going to be like," says Oh Ei Sun, senior fellow with Nanyang Technological University's Malaysia Program at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies. The younger generation's frustration has fueled the rise of localism and calls for political independence from Beijing, said Dixon Sing, associate professor of social science at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. Harm to pro-democracy movement? The February 8 violence has alienated youth further from the pro-Beijing government in Hong Kong, but it also has hurt the reputation of pro-democracy activists, who have insisted on peaceful protests the past two years, the professor added. "The whole saga has multiple consequences," Sing said. "For the general public, it could be more to the downside in terms of diminishing the support for the pan-democrats." But, he added, "I think it has angered further, alienated further, the younger generation from the government, and has radicalized further some of them." Because Hong Kong doesnt have a tradition of supporting violent movement and revolution, such violent action may fail to garner strong support from the majority of people. That will end up lending ammunition to the citys pro-Beijing forces, Sing added. To ease social unrest, authorities in Hong Kong should take the protesters seriously, Nanyang Universitys Oh urged, saying that "Hong Kong authorities should really, proactively, take the first step in terms of reaching out to this dissatisfied segment of the society." Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives are preparing to take legal steps to prevent President Barack Obama from closing the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba and transferring some detainees to the United States. House Speaker Paul Ryan told reporters Wednesday that lawmakers are preparing a legal challenge to ensure the prison remains open. He said lawmakers have the votes to block Obama's plan in Congress and enough votes to override any veto. On Tuesday, President Obama outlined plans to transfer roughly 35 of the 91 Guantanamo detainees to other countries while sending the remaining prisoners to a facility in the United States. Transferring detainees, closing facility Current U.S. law bans the transfer of Guantanamo Bay detainees to locations within the United States. Some say those transfers could bring security concerns. The White House has left open the possibility Obama could use an executive order to close Guantanamo. The President has stressed the importance of closing the facility since taking office in 2009. A senior administration official said moving the prisoners from Cuba to the U.S. will save the Pentagon between $65 million and $85 million per year, and would offset the initial cost needed to move the prisoners within three-five years. The Guantanamo facility opened in 2002 under the administration of former President George W. Bush following the September 11 terror attacks in New York and Washington. Nearly 800 detainees have been held there at some point since then, many for long periods without being charged or put on trial. Most of the detainees have been transferred back to their respective home countries or other nations willing to take them in. Hungarys prime minister has called for a national referendum on the European Unions mandatory quotas for migrants and refugees. Speaking in parliament Wednesday, Viktor Orban reiterated that Brussels has no right to "redraw Europe's cultural and religious identity," adding that introducing resettlement quotas without voter approval equals an abuse of power. "We Hungarians feel I am convinced that the government is responding to public sentiment now we think that introducing resettlement quotas for migrants without the backing of the people equals an abuse of power," Orban said. He said that the referendum question would be: "Do you want the EU to prescribe the mandatory relocation of non-Hungarian citizens to Hungary without the approval of the Hungarian parliament?" Orban said the question has been submitted for approval to the National Election Office, but did not say when the referendum would take place. His right wing government has rejected the initiative of migrant quotas since the migrant crisis escalated last year. Hungary drew strong criticism from the EU for erecting a steel fence along Hungary's southern border to keep out migrants, a policy now adopted by other countries affected by the unprecedented influx of migrants since World War Two. As Iranians go to the polls Friday in parliamentary elections, some voters will pass giant murals where Irans rising casualties in Syrias war are publicized. But Tehrans deepening involvement in Syria has largely not been a campaign issue. Candidates have not mentioned the topic, except for a few in the conservative camp who have praised Irans sacrifice in the war, especially in targeting the Islamic State group. Irans hard-line regime is making sure the human cost Iran is paying in Syria does not become a domestic election concern, analysts and rights activists say. Iranian authorities have engineered public opinion in a way that if we do not fight IS abroad, Iran will fall apart and will experience a similar scene as Syria, Ahmad Farahani, an Iranian journalist in exile in Copenhagen, told VOA. In public comments and in the government-run media, the Iranian regime says it has teamed with Russia to support the Syrian regime of Bashar al-Assad against opposition rebels and IS. Tehran has sent its elite Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) to fight ground battles, joining with Iranian-backed Hezbollah fighters from Lebanon. They are backed by Russian air support. Larger force Analysts say the number of IRGC and Hezbollah fighters in Syria grew substantially last year, and casualties among them have mounted. Tehran reportedly increased the number of IRGC personnel in Syria in the final months of 2015, sending as many as 3,500 militia fighters to the front lines to defend Zeinab Shrine, a holy site for Shiite Muslims in the southern suburbs of Damascus. In a recent interview with Irans state-run IRIB TV2 channel, the IRGCs deputy commander, Brigadier General Hossein Salami, said the number of Iranian casualties in Syria had increased as a result of an escalation in fighting. The Iranian regime portrayed the deaths as part of a great sacrifice in the fight against IS and its threat of a spreading caliphate. The Iranian fight in Syria is a fight against IS, a media researcher at the Bureau of Media Studies in Tehran told VOA, speaking on the condition of anonymity. This is all what most Iranians know about the fight in Syria. Support for Bashar is truly secondary. Public's support The IS threat does not let Iranians oppose their countrys involvement in the Syrian war, analysts say. With over 89 percent national approval on Irans involvement in the Syrian war, according to a recent survey conducted by the University of Maryland, the Iranian regime feels confident of its Syrian policy, said Ebrahim Mohseni, a research scholar at the University of Maryland. Two in three Iranians support Iran sending military personnel to Syria to fight IS. In Isfahan, one of Iran's major cities, a conservative camp demands in campaign posters to know whether voters believe reformers can stand up to IS. If IS cannot be contained through someone elses blood alone, it is better for us to fight it in someone elses land, not ours, Mohseni said. That logic goes with the Iranian regimes dedication to protecting Iran from foreign enemies, analysts say. The Iranian authorities well-defined their legitimacy by stating the threats coming from the enemy, a term that high-ranking officials use to name the United States, said Ali Akbar Mousavi Khoeini, a former member of the Iranian parliament. Could policy backfire? But Iranian leaders are running a risk of their war policy turning against them, analysts say. As casualties mount, more Iranians seem to question Tehrans involvement in the Syrian war, they say. Public funerals are on the rise, and some memorials have been erected in some cities commemorating the fallen ones. This must raise public concern and become a major debate in elections in a healthy society, by all means, said Javad Nateghpour, a U.K.-based sociology scholar and expert on Iranian life. Iran has turned into a polarized society now. Some zealous supporters of the supreme leader have made it a mission of their life to say yes to whatever he suggests, and the rest feel alienated. Most people believe that the ones who go to war in Syria are either so gung-ho for [the supreme leader] and the ideology or are being compensated for the service they offer, he said. If the elections yield a reformist majority, considered unlikely, Iranian involvement in Syria could be challenged, analysts say. A reformist parliament will clearly support dialogue in the international arena and prefer negotiation to confrontation, said Ali Afshari, a Washington-based analyst of Iranian affairs. A U.S. federal judge ruled Tuesday that aides to former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton can be questioned under oath in connection with a lawsuit over the release of emails from a private server she used while in office. A conservative group called Judicial Watch said in court filings it wants to question top Clinton aide Huma Abedin as well as several senior State Department officials. The judge's order gives Judicial Watch and the State Department until April 12 to come up with a plan for moving forward with the depositions. The Washington Post quoted Judge Emmet Sullivan saying there is "at least a reasonable suspicion" that access under federal open records laws was undermined. Clinton, who is running for president, has been hounded by questions regarding her use of private email instead of a government account. Critics say was trying to shield her communications from the Freedom of Information Act. The lawsuit filed against the State Department in 2013 focuses on a request for records involving Abedin. Judicial Watch said the State Department responded in 2014 that it had completed its search of relevant records, and the group at that time accepted the result. But last year the New York Times published stories about Clinton's email use, including information that her aides had used the private email server as well. Those reports prompted the court to grant a Judicial Watch request to revive the proceedings in order to consider its records request in light of the wider potential pool of relevant emails. The case is one of dozens of lawsuits involving Clinton's emails. All those selfies may turn out to be useful after all. Credit card company MasterCard says its customers could soon use selfie photos (and a fingerprint) instead of passwords to make payments online. The company thinks a biometric system that could read a photo of your face would be more secure and could drive sales. Speaking with CNBC at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, the company said biometric security has been used on a trial basis in the United States and the Netherlands. MasterCard said that 53 percent of shoppers forget their passwords at least once a week, causing them to waste more than 10 minutes resetting them. This, the company said, leads to people giving up on potential purchases. "I think the whole biometric space is a great way of protecting yourself when you are doing payments,"said Ann Cairns, head of international markets for MasterCard. "There are a whole range of biometrics that say 'I'm me, I'm making a payment' and it just makes the whole thing more secure." "People shop on all sorts of devices, and they expect technology to simplify and secure the transaction," said Ajay Bhalla, president of enterprise security solutions at MasterCard. "This is exactly what Identity Check delivers." Another potential benefit of a biometric system would be to help those in the developing world who might not have government issued identification. "If you think about some of the things we've rolled out in some emerging markets, in places like Africa, where people don't have identities because they don't maybe have passports or driving licenses, then biometric authentication is a way of saying 'I'm me," said Cairns. MasterCard first announced the system last October. One day after Senate Republicans slammed the door on confirming a Supreme Court nominee this year, President Barack Obama and Senate Democrats pledged to continue working to fill the vacancy created by the recent death of Justice Antonin Scalia. The Constitution says that I nominate candidates for the Supreme Court when theres a vacancy, and the Senate exercises its constitutional authority to advise and consent. Im going to do my job, Obama said. We just keep pushing it, and I think the publics on our side, Democratic Senator Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota said when asked about her partys strategy to force Republicans, who control the chamber, to alter their stance. Klobuchar sits on the Senate Judiciary Committee, tasked with holding confirmation hearings on federal court nominees. On Tuesday, the committees entire Republican membership said there would be no hearings and no consideration whatsoever of any Supreme Court nominee Obama put forward. A day later, those committee members vowed to hold firm. A majority in this Senate is not going to move a nominee this year, said Republican Jeff Sessions of Alabama. Its not going to happen. The Senate has every right not to have a hearing, and we shouldnt go through some motions [of considering a nominee], said Senator John Cornyn of Texas, also a Republican Judiciary Committee member. This nominee will not be confirmed. 'Their job' is to review Obama said he aimed to convince them otherwise. My hope and expectation is that once there is an actual nominee, once this is no longer a hypothetical, that those on the Judiciary Committee recognize that their job is to give this person a review, to show the courtesy of meeting with them, the president said. Democrats on the Judiciary Committee echoed that message. My hope remains that the president will nominate someone who is so obviously qualified and so eminently confirmable that it will cause them [Republicans] to reconsider, Senator Chris Coons of Delaware told VOA. Republican Lindsey Graham of South Carolina scoffed at the suggestion, saying it mattered not one lick who Obama nominated. He could nominate me and I wouldnt vote for me, Graham added. For now, Democrats are declining to say what they are prepared to do in the event of a yearlong Republican blockade of a Supreme Court nominee. When asked by reporters, Senator Patrick Leahy of Vermont, the top Democrat on the Judiciary Committee, responded with a question of his own. You mean force senators to actually follow their oath of office and uphold the Constitution? Leahy said. Gosh. You know, if someone has taken a solemn oath to uphold the Constitution, you would think they would have a sense of morality and do it. Others are counseling patience. Look, lets not get ahead of ourselves, Coons said. The president hasnt yet offered a nominee." With the announcement of a new round of Afghan peace talks by the first week of March, Pakistan's military appears to be retaining its role as a key dealmaker in the process. On Monday, Pakistans army chief, General Raheel Sharif, met officials from Qatar, where the Taliban maintain a political office, to prepare the way for the talks, which are expected to take place in Islamabad. Pakistan's military leaders have rarely taken such a public role in the Afghan peace process. The country's spy agency has maintained ties with the Afghan Taliban since the group came to power. Since the 2001 U.S.-led invasion, Afghan and U.S. officials have accused Pakistan of giving safe harbor to senior Taliban leaders and allowing militants to use Pakistan's border regions to plan attacks. Pakistani authorities deny the allegations, but their relations with the Afghan Taliban are seen as important to the peace talks, Pakistan defense analyst Hasan Askari told VOA Deewa. The Pakistani military "has a long history of dealing with the Afghan Taliban and can exert its influence over [the] Taliban," Askari said. Afghan President Ashraf Ghani has accused the Taliban of being a proxy force for Islamabad's regional interests. However, the president has also defended involving Pakistan in the peace talks. Key realization Hamid Arslan, a defense analyst associated with Washington-based National Endowment for Democracy, said the Afghan government has realized the significance of the Pakistani military's sway over the Afghan Taliban. "I think President Ghani realizes that reaching an agreement with Pakistan and especially the Pakistani military establishment will be part of an agreement reached with the Taliban," he said. Others see Pakistan militarys influence as necessary after years of inaction by the political leadership in both Kabul and Islamabad. Afghan analyst Sarwar Ahmadzi told VOA Urdu, Between Afghanistan and Pakistan, the political leaders did not come to an agreement to deal with the Taliban negotiations, and that is why the [Pakistani] army stepped in. I think the international community has more confidence in [the] Pakistani military [leaderships ability] to bring [the] Taliban to the negotiating table." The peace talks have been suspended since July, when it was revealed that the Taliban's longtime leader, Mullah Omar, had been dead for years. Since then, there has been speculation that the Taliban are splintering under their new leader. However, the militants have kept up pressure on Afghan security forces, seizing territory and carrying out attacks that have led to further instability. The peace talks are expected to go on for months. Leaders of two key U.S. Congressional committees involved in national security joined together Wednesday to propose the creation of a national commission to explore the sometimes conflicting issues of privacy and security in the digital era. Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX) chairs the House Homeland Security Committee and Senator Mark Warner (D-VA) is a leading member of the Senate Select Intelligence Committee. Together, theyre calling for the creation of the bi-partisan McCaul-Warner Digital Security Commission that would bring together experts who understand the complexity and the stakes to develop viable recommendations on how to balance competing digital security priorities. This is a 9/11 style commission to address the biggest challenge to federal law enforcement Ive ever seen in my lifetime, said Rep. McCaul during a discussion at the Bipartisan Policy Center in Washington. If you cant see what the terrorists are saying, you have a very urgent security issue. The proposal was months in the making, but comes just as digital privacy and national security have moved front and center in the legal standoff between Apple Computer and the FBI. Apple and the FBI have been at loggerheads since a U.S. district judge issued an order forcing Apple to help the FBI break into a locked iPhone allegedly used by one of the two shooters in last Decembers San Bernardino terror attacks. Apple CEO Tim Cook has so far refused to comply with the order. Encryption Since 2014 the FBI has repeatedly expressed concern about the spread of encryption on digital devices, with FBI Director James Comey warning that encryption threatens to lead all of us to a very dark place. This isnt a commission on encryption, said Sen. Warner. Encryption is here to stay, and it protects Americas personal and financial information and intellectual capital. Digital security is the purpose [of the commission]; this is not a battle between privacy and security. Cornell Tech Associate Professor at Cornell University Tom Ristenpart agrees. Privacy versus security? Thats a pretty broad brush to apply. Its a complicated situation. These technologies are both for privacy and security, so one persons security measure might be anothers investigative hurdle," he said. "Saying this is some kind of choice that Americans need to make between their information privacy and their security in terms of safety is too loaded of a framing. Ristenpart acknowledged that some terrorists and other criminals are using various encrypted apps and devices to communicate. But, he says, the encryption genie is already out of the bottle, for bad actors as well as good. Preventing Apple from securing their phones for average users isnt going to stop the terrorists from using encryption, its just going to degrade average users security, he told VOA. Cornells Ristenpart says the new commission should consider not just the limits of technology, but of the law as well. What Id love to see come out of this commission is a recommendation on the procedural issues when its valid to get a warrant to get access to data, he said. There should be some judges who are approving these warrants but there should be privacy advocates, and weve seen some of that evolving out of the Snowden revelations. Congressional responsibility Sen. Warner and Rep. McCaul arent just members of differing political parties; their professional experiences outside Congress mirrors in some ways the competing interests at stake. Before being elected, Rep. McCaul was a federal prosecutor and Chief of Counterterrorism and National Security for Texas's branch of the U.S. Attorney's office. For his part, Sen. Mark Warner was an early telecommunications developer and investor and has deep connections within the tech community and Silicon Valley. Were in unique positions to bring stake-holders together to find a solution to a Paris-style attack where terrorists were using end-to-end encryption, said Chairman McCaul. We want to act in Congress to prevent that from happening in the U.S. Congress has a responsibility to act on this, he added. The McCaul-Warner bills are expected to be officially introduced in both chambers of Congress next week. Stroke is a brain attack caused either by a broken blood vessel that results in bleeding in the brain or, more commonly, a blockage by a blood clot or plaque. The blockage interrupts the flow of oxygen, and brain tissue dies. Stroke was the second-leading global cause of death behind heart disease in 2013, accounting for 11.8 percent of total deaths worldwide, and it was the leading cause of preventable disability, according to the American Stroke Association. Brad Worrall, a professor of neurology at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, said stroke "is a relatively generic term that actually comes from antiquity"; it is drawn from the notion of the victim being "struck down by the hand of God. Researchers led by Worrell have now discovered the biological underpinnings of the blockage-type stroke, called ischemic stroke. This type "can be caused by a clot forming in the heart and breaking loose and going and causing blockage, by an embolism or something traveling through the blood, [or] by hardening of the arteries in the blood vessels of the neck or blood vessels at the base of the brain. The genes that predispose people to ischemic stroke were found in a massive study involving 17,000 stroke patients and healthy people. Researchers then replicated the search in tens of thousands of patients around the world. Worrall said the discoveries, published in the journal Lancet Neurology, give scientists avenues through which to explore the biological mechanisms of stroke. And at the end of the day, the most important thing is to prevent the disability from stroke," he said. "We want to identify ways to prevent this horrible disease from claiming more victims. The findings, Worrall said, might one day help lead to the development of targeted treatments to prevent strokes. Syrian rebel commanders acknowledge they are in an existential, make-or-break moment of the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad. The five-year civil war has seen plenty of tortuous battlefield ups and downs. Between May and August last year, the Assad government looked almost defeated after suffering some stunning military reversals, losing Idlib to an alliance consisting mainly of al-Qaida affiliate Jabhat al-Nusra and the hardline Islamists of Ahrar al-Sham, and then Palmyra to the Islamic State. Rebel commanders talked of marching to the coast and grabbing Latakia or heading south to Homs, where they thought they might be confronting an advancing IS before storming into the Syrian capital, Damascus. In August, a growing number of soldiers and civilians in government-controlled areas of Syria were expressing rare public disaffection with the Assad regime. In traditionally loyal coastal regions, noncombatants as well as the military were complaining that not enough was being done to relieve enclaves besieged by rebels. Now the battlefield map has been turned upside down and no thanks to the Syrian army, which has not been doing most of the heavy lifting. Eighty percent of the regimes ground forces in offensive are not Syrian they are Iranian, Lebanese, Iraqi and Afghan Shiites, says Gen. Salem Idris, former chief of staff of the Western-backed Free Syrian Army. Outside Influence And the strategic brains behind the offensive that has swept the northern Aleppo countryside, tightening the noose around rebels in the districts they hold in the city of Aleppo, have not been Syrian either. Most Syria watchers and Western military analysts believe the offensive was planned in July 2015 by Iranian military commanders led by Major General Qasem Soleimani, head of the Quds Force, the special forces of Irans Revolutionary Guards, and Russian generals experienced in the counter-insurgency operations in Chechnya. The overall strategy to crush the more moderate armed factions in the opposition, leaving the extremists is straight out of the Chechnya playbook, say military analysts. So too are the scorched-earth indiscriminate tactics of the airstrikes that are meant to sow panic and force civilians to flee. According to local eyewitnesses, civilians have stampeded out of villages and towns in the northern Aleppo countryside such as Tell Rifaat and Mare, once the headquarters of the FSA in northern Syria. The build-up for this months blistering offensive was done patiently, says a European diplomat. First the Russians slipped a few warplanes into the Khmeimim airbase in Latakia to see if they would get a Western reaction. And when they didnt, they dispatched more, and we still reacted in just a muted way as evidence mounted of ground forces, tanks and mechanized units being sent in, he says. Then they focused on pressing offensives around Latakia, ensuring the safety of their bases and creating a buffer zone running north to south, sealing off the northern Hama border with Idlib, he says. The Syrian government-Russian offensive was then extended to the al-Ghab plains between northwest Hama and southwest Idlib. The objective was to cut off Idlib and by extension the province of Aleppo from the center, west and southwest of the country. As the government pressed offensives in Hama and Idlib, it also launched a large-scale campaign in the northern Latakia countryside, seizing 200 square kilometers of rebel-held territory bordering Turkey. By then, says the diplomat, they had the bulk of rebel forces boxed in the provinces of Idlib and Aleppo with no chance of them forcing their way to Homs or trying to link up with rebels around Damascus or insurgents trying to come up from the south of the country. And then, in late October and November, the government launched a large-scale offensive in the southern Aleppo countryside, with the main objective of the operation being to secure the Azzan Mountains and to establish a buffer zone around the Syrian governments only highway leading to the parts of Aleppo city it controls. The rebels made a strong stand, destroying dozens of tanks. But they were unable to deny government forces - including the 4th Mechanized Division - Hezbollah and Iraqi Shiite militias, as well as Afghan volunteers and Iranian Revolutionary Guardsmen, from accomplishing their objectives. Aleppo Offensive The even stronger offensive this month in northern Aleppo has three objectives: to sever supply lines from Turkey to rebels in the city of Aleppo and to prepare a siege; to expel anti-Assad insurgents from their long-standing stronghold in the north of the countryside; and to take back control of the border around Bab al-Samah. Western intelligence and military officials tell VOA that with the help of Kurdish fighters from the Peoples Protection Units (YPG), those goals have now nearly been reached. I think Moscow will halt most airstrikes in the northern Aleppo countryside by March 1 they wont need to maintain them with the intensity they have the past week, says a British military official. And if they need to pop off a few missiles they will claim they are hitting terrorists therefore abiding by the Munich cessation of hostilities agreement, he added. That agreement will allow them to turn their focus on Idlib, the stronghold of Jabhat al-Nusra and Ahrar al-Sham, he says. Gen. Idris agrees, the focus will now swing to Idlib. They want to close down Bab al-Hawa, he said, referring to the border crossing west of Bab al-Samah. Authorities in Nepal say a small plane crashed Wednesday during bad weather, killing all 23 passengers and crew. The Twin Otter aircraft, operated by domestic Tara airliners, lost contact with ground controllers during a short flight from Pokhara, a major tourist center located about 200 kilometers west of Kathmandu, to Jomsom, a popular spot for mountain hikers. Search crews found the wreckage just hours after the plane disappeared. Officials say the plane was still burning and bodies scattered across the crash site. Two foreigners, a Chinese national and Kuwaiti citizen, were among the passengers. The U.S.-based World Outreach Ministry Foundation has distributed thousands of relief items to South Sudanese living in a leprosy isolation camp in Bor Countys Malek Village, located in Jonglei state. The 150 patients at the camp say for the past two years they have received no humanitarian aid because insecurity has prevented workers from accessing the area. The camp, known in the local Dinka language as Pan ne Koch-Lojik, was set up in the late 1960s to host people suffering from leprosy, in a bid to prevent the disease from spreading to nearby communities. Since 2006, World Outreach Ministry Foundation has been working with a local church called the Jonglei Worship Center to help the leprosy sufferers. The churchs founder, Pastor Nhial Dhuor, collected medicine, clothes and other items from South Sudanese living in Australia and delivered them to the camp. We support them, we treat the leprosy and we supply them with food and clothes," said Dhuor. Enormous challenges Speaking in Dinka, 60-year-old leprosy patient Madhor Maker said the camps residents havent received any support from NGOs since violence broke out in Juba in late 2013. The U.N.s World Food program supported us sometime back, but since the outbreak of war our children fled the area and a few people remained here," he said. The residents have subsisted since then on spotty government food aid. Maker, who is also the areas traditional chief, says the camps residents face enormous challenges, including a lack of shelter since many of them are physically unable to build traditional small huts made of grass-thatched roofs and mud. Leprosy affects the nerves and mucous membranes and causes discoloration of the skin, deformities, and disfigurement. The mechanism for transmission is not known, though scientists believe it is spread through coughing or contact with fluid from the nose of an infected person. Camp resident Mary Ayen praised the Jonglei Worship Center for providing aid to those in the camp. Since the conflict broke out no other person came here to support us. The government provides us with food aid [but] sometimes we go for two months without food. Now we are happy indeed because our sons have visited us and supported us, Ayen said. The church is working to secure more funds to support the leprosy patients, said Dhuor. He says he hopes to construct a clinic for leprosy patients and a school for the camps children. In 2014, young children deserted the camp after four leprosy victims were killed, reportedly by forces loyal to armed opposition leader Riek Machar. Opposing groups in the South Sudan peace process have agreed on an arrangement to allow 1,370 opposition forces into the capital, Juba, in preparation for rebel leader Riek Machar to join a transitional government. South Sudan's Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission said in a statement Tuesday that police and military officers loyal to the opposition are expected to travel to Juba immediately. More security forces are expected to join them after the power-sharing transitional government is formed. After two years of civil war, rebel leader Machar and South Sudan President Salva Kiir signed a peace deal in August, agreeing to run a unity government for 30 months before holding elections. Kiir appointed Machar as his vice president last week, in the first step toward forming the unity government. Despite the moves toward solidarity, fighting continues in parts of South Sudan. Over the past two years, tens of thousands of people have died and more than two million have been displaced because of the violence. United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon is due in Juba on Thursday to meet with Kiir and visit a UN shelter for civilians affected by the conflict. Syria and North Korea will come under close scrutiny for rights violations by the 47-member Human Rights Council during its upcoming four-week session, which begins Monday in Geneva. The 47-member U.N. Human Rights Council will discuss the records of more than 40 countries. It will examine current developments in Burundi, following last years special session on that countrys deteriorating situation. The Council also will discuss more than 40 reports on universal themes, including torture, summary executions, forced disappearances, religious freedom, and countering terrorism. Among them, a report by the U.N. Commission of Inquiry on Syria is to be submitted on March 15. New Council President Choi Kyong-lim said he expects a very focused discussion on the human rights conditions in Syria. Staying focused on the human rights conditions in Syria... will also send a very strong message to the people in Syria who are committing these atrocities that their crimes will be eventually accountable in the future, Choi said. Ambassador Choi is from South Korea, but assured VOA he will maintain a neutral and impartial stance in all matters, including the examination of North Koreas human rights record. Like in the case of Syria, we may not be able to see immediate improvement in the human rights conditions in North Korea. But I think it is still very important for the international community to continue to discuss, highlight the terrible human rights situations in North Korea, he said. Choi said some encouraging signs can be seen in North Korea agreeing to have its human rights record examined under the Councils Universal Periodic Review. In addition, he said talks are underway for a possible visit to North Korea by the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights. President Barack Obama is hosting Jordan's King Abdullah II at the White House on Wednesday for talks focused on the battle against the Islamic State group and the humanitarian fallout from the war in Syria. Jordan has been taking part in the U.S.-led coalition conducting airstrikes against Islamic State targets in both Iraq and Syria. A White House statement said the two leaders will discuss efforts to counter the militants as well as ways to resolve the five-year Syrian conflict. The meeting comes as the U.S. and Russia work to convince opposing sides in Syria to participate in a cease-fire starting on Saturday. The Syrian war, and to a lesser extent the violence in Iraq, have prompted a massive wave of refugees to seek safety in Jordan. The United Nations said 638,000 Syrians and tens of thousands of Iraqi refugees are currently in Jordan, a nation of about 8 million people. Refugee populations Jordan and other countries in the region that are supporting large refugee populations have struggled with the burden of providing services. Wednesday's meetings will include discussion of how the U.S. can support Jordan in that effort. The leaders are also due to discuss how to move forward the Israeli-Palestinian peace process. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry was in Jordan Sunday to meet with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, and reiterated his urge for calm and a decrease in violence. Afghanistan's Taliban says it is unaware of upcoming peace talks with the Kabul government, reiterating no such move can succeed until foreign forces completely withdraw and Sharia (Islamic system) is enforced in the country. Tuesday, a four-nation group working for Afghan peace invited all Taliban and other groups to participate through their authorized representatives in the first round of direct peace talks with the Afghan government by the first week of March in Pakistan. A spokesman for the Talibans so-called political office in Qatar, Mohammad Naeem, told VOA he has seen media reports about possible peace talks with the Afghan government, but said the insurgent group was unaware of any such plans. We do not have any information in this regard so far. So to say anything will be premature, Naeem asserted. He said the presence of foreign invaders in the country was the real issue and there could be no resolution to the Afghan problem unless all foreign troops withdrew and an Islamic system was enforced in Afghanistan. These are not conditions, but are ground realities and facts, and without addressing them problems could not be solved. Unless there is a determination [by the other side] to solve them difficulties will increase and not decrease, said the spokesman. Afghan, Pakistani, U.S. and Chinese diplomats have been holding regular meetings since the beginning of the year to try to arrange Afghan peace talks. Their meeting Tuesday Kabul ended with great hopes and optimism that a peaceful resolution to the conflict in Afghanistan was in sight, a Pakistani official with direct knowledge of the discussions told VOA. Meanwhile, speaking in Kabul Wednesday, Afghan national security adviser Hanif Atmar urged all insurgent groups take the opportunity to attend the upcoming peace talks with the government. But if they do not use this opportunity we are determined to take both defensive and security actions against them, he warned. Atmar went on to assert that in Tuesdays four-way talks in Kabul, participating nations vowed to take joint steps, including military means against insurgent groups who refuse to join the Afghan peace process and continue with their violent acts against the people of Afghanistan. The national security adviser was speaking in the Afghan capital after receiving 10,000-automatic rifles and millions of rounds of ammunition as a gift from Russia. He explained the guns and ammunition were provided under an existing bilateral agreement between Kabul and and Moscow. The donation of weapons is the first Russian military assistance to Kabul and another sign of Moscow's deepening involvement in Afghanistan. Donald Trump won his third victory in four contests with a commanding lead in the Nevada caucus Tuesday, securing his status as the Republican front-runner heading into next week's crucial Super Tuesday votes in more than a dozen states. The win follows his first-place finishes in New Hampshire and South Carolina, two states no candidate has won without going on to become the Republican nominee. Trump's seemingly inevitable path to the Republican nomination, however, is fueled by a fractured, five-candidate field. "Donald Trump still has to prove that in a one-on-one or three-man race, he can consistently get to 35, 40, 45 percent of the vote, or 50 percent. Right now that's still unclear," said analyst Stuart Rothenberg, founder of the Rothenberg & Gonzales Political Report. The billionaire businessman beat opponents Texas Senator Ted Cruz and Florida Senator Marco Rubio in the Nevada Republican caucus Tuesday with almost 46 percent of the vote. Rubio won second place, but with a lead of less than 2,000 votes over Cruz. Ohio Governor John Kasich and retired surgeon Ben Carson placed fourth and fifth respectively. The win in Nevada garnered Trump his first congressional endorsements Wednesday, from New York Republican Rep. Chris Collins and Rep. Duncan Hunter, a Republican from California. Recent public opinion polls show Trump leading in the majority of Super Tuesday states. William Galston, a senior fellow in governance studies at the Brookings Institution, said the chances of stopping Trump in a divided field are not high. "People who say they support Mr. Trump are typically very committed to him and they come out and vote for him, so there's a reasonably good case, based on experience so far, to take the surveys seriously," he said. Path forward for Rubio Rubio solidified his position as the Republican alternative to Trump by securing several key party endorsements, while benefiting from the failure of one-time front-runner Jeb Bush, who faltered and dropped out of the race after the South Carolina primary. Rubio has not yet won a caucus or primary, and has trailed at least 10 percentage points behind Trump in each of those votes. Rothenberg said Rubio's path forward is "narrow but simple" and involves waiting until the middle of March for primaries in Ohio, Illinois and Florida that award significant numbers of delegates. "I wouldn't expect any dramatic movement on his part until the middle of March and that means staying alive, convincing his donors that he's still credible, convincing folks in the media that he's still credible," he said. Just as Trump benefits from a fractured field, Rubio benefits from fewer challengers. After a strong second-place finish in New Hampshire, Kasich came in fifth in South Carolina and Nevada. He remains in the race, but with little hope of securing the nomination. "If I were Marco Rubio, I would size up the situation," Galston said. "I would say to Mr. Kasich, 'John, you can't win the nomination, but you can sure keep me from winning the nomination and in the process hand over the Republican party to Mr. Trump. So why don't you and I get together and you agree to bow out?" WATCH: Trump and Cruz supporters in Nevada The other remaining candidate, Cruz, said he was looking forward to returning to his home state of Texas, one of the states voting on Super Tuesday, after his third-place finish in Nevada. Cruz said he was looking forward to returning to his home state of Texas, one of many states voting on Super Tuesday, after his third place finish in Nevada. Cruz's poor showing among his core base of evangelical voters in South Carolina contributed to another third-place finish, but he pointed to his caucus win in Iowa, saying, "The only campaign that has beaten Donald Trump and the only campaign that can beat Donald Trump is this campaign." Cruz leads in polls in Texas and neighboring Arkansas, but his path forward is unclear. "Cruz has framed his appeal quite narrowly and specifically, Galston said. There's a ceiling on his support. He has been unable to commandeer the loyalties of more than one-fifth of the Republican base, and that's just not enough. After the March 1 Super Tuesday vote, more than 700 delegates will have been awarded, nearly one-third of the Republican total. Democrats' final stop Democratic presidential candidates face a final test Saturday in South Carolina, before heading into Super Tuesday voting. Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders face off again after Clinton's win in Nevada's Democratic caucus. "The road ahead for her over the next two weeks looks really appealing and attractive, and I think she will build up some momentum," Rothenberg said. Clinton won the support of Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid on Wednesday, following her Nevada caucus win. She is expected to do well in South Carolina due to significant support among African-American voters and the endorsement of the state's influential congressman, James Clyburn. A win Saturday will boost Clinton's argument that she will be a stronger candidate than Sanders in the November national general election. PHOTO GALLERY: Presidential candidates build momentum A leave vote in the June 23 British referendum on continued European Union membership will change Europe forever and "for the worse," the European Council president warned Wednesday. Donald Tusk told the European Parliament in Brussels that there would be no second chance if Britons voted to exit the union. Tusk said that he fully agreed with the British prime minister that now is not the time to split the West. "The European Union will respect the decision of the British people. If the majority votes to leave, that is what will happen. It will change Europe forever," he said. "And it will be a change for the worse. Of course, this is my personal opinion. [British] Prime Minister [David] Cameron said in the House of Commons on Monday that 'now is not the time to split the West'. I couldn't agree more." Tusk said that EU leaders agreed to a settlement that will take effect if the British people vote to stay in the EU. "The 28 heads of state or government unanimously agreed and adopted a legally binding and irreversible settlement for the United Kingdom in the EU. The decision concerning a new settlement is in conformity with the treaties and cannot be annulled by the European Court of Justice, he said. Tusks comment followed a statement made by British Justice Secretary Michael Gove that Britain's renegotiated terms for its membership in the EU could be undone by the court of justice, despite support from all member states. Although a close friend and political ally of Cameron, Grove is a senior figure among British politicians who want Britain to leave the EU. Tusk urged the European Parliament to approve the deal. On the issue of Europes migrant and refugee crisis, Tusk and European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker told the parliament that European Union leaders will hold a special summit with Turkey on March 7. Turkey and the EU signed an agreement last November that Ankara would curb the number of refugees crossing into Greece in return for $3.2 billion in aid and for accelerating its EU membership bid. Unlike the last week's tense presidential election, which was marred by late delivery of voting materials and election-day unrest, local elections got off to a mostly smooth start Wednesday in Kampala. At most voting centers, materials arrived within an hour or two of polls opening. And although minor problems were reported, voters said, for the most part, they were happy with the process. However, polling agents noted that voter turnout was low, despite President Yoweri Museveni urging Ugandans to vote for local mayors and council members. 'Disappointed' Gloria Paga, an observer at one polling station, said she thought some people were disappointed with the presidential vote, in which Museveni was re-elected to a fifth term. The [turnout] is very low, I think it has been a setback from the last presidential elections. I'm not even certain if half of the people that voted last time are coming to vote today," Paga said. "Last time the queues were very long, but today you can see practically at this time there is no one on the line. So probably people are disappointed with what occurred in the presidential elections, but we are optimistic. At one station in Nakesero, nearly 600 people were registered to vote, but only 83 had cast their ballot by noon. Police presence One Ugandan named Desmond said he feels intimidated by the heavy police presence in the area. The regime is succeeding at controlling the people's anger and the hope. It's holding people's hopes at bay. Ugandans have accepted that this regime maybe sort of is here to stay, I can't do anything with it. Unless I come out to say a thing or two, everything of mine will be gone and the last thing I have in my life will be lowered into a grave," he said. Many within Uganda noted on the distinct lack of reaction when Museveni's victory was announced by the Electoral Commission last Saturday. The usually bustling streets of downtown Kampala were deserted, as many worried violence could erupt. Although protests never took place, and city life has returned, residents are still uneasy. Opposition leader arrested Such feelings are compounded by the continued house arrest of main Museveni's rival, Kizza Besigye, with many Ugandans wondering how long he will be held without charges. Besigye has called his detainment illegal and said officials are keeping him from challenging the election results. However, officials in Uganda contend that Besigye's call for protests at the Electoral Commission amount to plans to disrupt public order. They say he has been put under preventative arrest to keep the peace. The U.N. humanitarian chief said Wednesday that a nationwide cessation of hostilities due to start in Syria on Saturday must not be squandered. Enough is enough. This brutality must be brought to an end, Stephen OBrien told the U.N. Security Council in his monthly update on efforts to get life-saving aid to millions of desperate Syrians. In the Syrian conflict, there are no winners; everyone is losing, he said, calling for an end to the five-year old conflict. Since international talks in Munich earlier this month, aid access has improved to some hard-to-reach and besieged areas, but the need remains constant and urgent. Obstacles Humanitarian operations cannot continue to be bogged down by unnecessary and unacceptable restrictions, obstructions and deliberate delays that are costing people their lives, OBrien said. He noted that health supplies for 30,000 Syrians have been denied for aid convoys by the Ministry of Health. He also complained of lengthy bureaucratic delays and the need for multiple layers of approvals and repeated rounds of negotiations to approve aid deliveries. OBrien said there are currently over 40 outstanding requests to the government for aid convoys to deliver assistance to difficult to reach areas. He also noted the excessive amount of time it takes to make deliveries once approved. He cited the town of Moadamiyeh, which, in peace time, is a 15-20 minute drive from central Damascus, but an aid convoy there this month needed 48 hours to clear all the checkpoints along the way. Deliveries The aid chief said that earlier Wednesday the U.N. had made a first air drop of 21 tons of aid items in the besieged northern town of Deir Ezzor. The Islamic State militant group seized much of that town last year. Air drops are an option of last resort because of their logistical complexity. OBrien said that initial reports from the Syrian Arab Red Crescent in the town said the pallets of aid had landed in the intended target area. This month aid workers have had some success in reaching cut off areas of Syria with long-overdue aid to about 110,000 people. Deliveries have been made to 40,000 people in government-besieged Madaya and a thousand in Zabadani. In rebel-controlled Fouah and Kefraya humanitarian workers have reached 20,000 people. Aid has also been delivered to 10,000 people in Eastern Ghoutas Kafr Batna. They also reached 40,000 people in Moadamiyeh. Political process This week, a task force created by the International Syria Support Group (ISSG) will meet to help monitor the planned cessation of hostilities. The U.N. Security Council will receive an update on the political process during a private meeting Friday. U.N. Syria envoy Staffan de Mistura will brief council members from Geneva in a video conference. We welcome the agreement that the U.S. and Russia have forged and we look forward to the cessation of hostilities coming into force on Friday, and to the political talks starting the week after that, British U.N. Ambassador Matthew Rycroft told reporters. Envoy de Mistura suspended an initial round of proximity talks between the Syrian parties earlier this month. The Russian news agency Tass reported Wednesday that Russia wants a U.N. Security Council resolution supporting the cease-fire agreement. When asked about this by reporters, Russian deputy ambassador Petr Iliichev said yes. Top diplomats of the U.S. and China said Tuesday that they had made "significant progress and were hopeful of reaching an agreement in the near future on a new U.N. Security Council resolution for tougher measures against North Korea after its recent nuclear and missile tests. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi at the State Department, their third meeting in the last month. "We have made significant progress. It has been very constructive in the last days, and there is no question that if the resolution is approved, it will go beyond anything that we have previously passed," Kerry said in response to a question by a VOA reporter. Kerry added that the draft was in the appropriate evaluative stage. He did not elaborate on the specific language in the new Security Council resolution. We are looking at the possibility of reaching agreement on the draft resolution and passing it in the near future, Wang said, adding that the two countries shared the goal of bringing North Korea back to the negotiating table. Six-party talks Launched in 2003, the so-called six-party talks are aimed at ending North Korea's nuclear program through negotiations involving China, the United States, North and South Korea, Japan and Russia. The talks have been stalled for years after multiple nuclear tests by the North Koreans. Pyongyang is already under strict U.N. sanctions that limit its imports and exports and measures that ban top leaders from traveling. Wang said China has put forward a proposal that will pursue in parallel tracks the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and the replacement of the Korean armistice with a peace agreement. The 1950-53 Korean War ended with an armistice rather than a peace treaty. Kerry expressed openness to an eventual peace agreement to bring the Korean War to a conclusion. What we need is for the DPRK to understand that it can rejoin the community of nations, it can actually ultimately have a peace agreement with the United States of America that resolves the unresolved issues of the Korean Peninsula, if it will come to the table and negotiate the denuclearization, he said. Pyongyangs nuclear test on January 6 and missile test on February 7 drew international condemnation. China has criticized North Koreas nuclear and missile tests but has been reluctant to back tougher punitive measures, fearing they could lead to the collapse of Pyongyangs regime and a flood of refugees across the border. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says it is investigating 14 new reports of Zika virus infection in the United States, all suspected to be sexually transmitted. The Atlanta-based CDC made the announcement Tuesday and said all of the 14 cases are women whose only known risk factor is sexual contact with a male partner who had recently traveled to an area with local Zika transmissions. In its statement, the CDC said the new reports suggest that sexual transmission may be a more likely means of Zika transmission that previously thought. Several of the cases involve pregnant women. Zika virus has been linked to a birth defect known as microcephaly, in which babies are born with abnormally small heads and can suffer developmental delays. Scientists have not yet proven a definite cause-and-effect. CDC is recommending that men who have recently traveled to regions with local Zika transmissions use condoms or refrain from sexual contact with pregnant women or women who could become pregnant. While sexual transmission of the virus is possible, health authorities note that the primary means of infection by the Zika virus is still from mosquito bites, and they urge people to prevent mosquito bites using mosquito repellent, window screens, and long-sleeved shirts. On Monday, a study to determine whether the Zika virus is causing babies to be born with the birth defect microcephaly began in Brazil. A 16-member team from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention started work in Joao Pessoa, in northeastern Brazil, that is the epicenter of the country's Zika outbreak. The World Health Organization (WHO) declared the Zika outbreak an international health emergency February 1. The WHO cited a "strongly suspected" relationship between Zika infection in pregnancy and microcephaly, although much remains unknown about Zika. The real-time counter on the GSMA Intelligence website shows the constant rise of mobile phone subscribers worldwide. The market is huge and there's plenty of money to be made, but there's a design challenge for manufacturers. "How do you differentiate a rectangular block with a touchscreen, a battery and a camera? said Ben Wood, chief of research at CCS Insight. What we've seen at Mobile World Congress is some of the manufacturers addressing that with some of the launches they've delivered." Mobile World Congress, one of the world's biggest mobile shows, is taking place through Thursday in Barcelona. The cool factor For Sony, the focus is on the phone's camera. Its Xperia X phone has a camera that is ready to take a picture in less than 0.6 second. For LG, the new G5 has a modular design and an assortment of attachments that add battery life and upgrade the phone's camera function. For Samsung, the Galaxy S7 has a larger battery and the ability to add memory as much as 200 gigabytes. The price point But these gadgets cost a lot, so manufacturers in China and India are coming out with cheaper smartphones. "We are seeing a swing from developed markets to developing markets, said Neil Mawston of Strategy Analytics. So, more Chinese brands. More Indian brands. And I think, potentially, also more African brands in the future, as well." But with cameras that can shoot 360 degrees, another opportunity is opening up: virtual reality. Samsung is already pairing its phone with VR goggles. The VR key "These are the devices that are going to generate loads of content, Wood said, and user-generated content is going to be key to driving the market." Manufacturers are hoping that, very soon, almost everybody will want a set of VR goggles for gaming, exploring distant places or mingling with friends and family who are not physically present. And connectivity may soon be available to new areas. "We are, this year, going to launch our first satellite over Africa in order to be able to work with operators to extend connectivity and beam down Internet there," said Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook. CCS Insight predicts that by the end of this year, consumers will buy as many as 13 million virtual reality headsets. Rights group Amnesty International is denouncing the high price paid by populations in West and Central Africa in the fight against terrorism. In its annual global report the group also emphasized there has been some progress in the region regarding human rights. Amnesty International said populations in West and Central Africa have suffered directly from the fight against terrorism. In Cameroon, Niger, Chad and Nigeria, entire towns have sometimes been caught in the crossfire between government forces and Boko Haram militants, resulting in hundreds of deaths. People in those countries also feel the effects of anti-terrorism laws, such as one passed in Cameroon in 2014 that gives extra powers to authorities and has led to arbitrary detentions, notably of human right activists, children and journalists. Speaking at the regional launch in Ivory Coast, West and Central Africas campaign deputy director Samira Daoud said that "it is imperative that governments fight terrorism adequately by protecting the population and certainly not by sacrificing freedoms and the lives of some communities." But the organization also highlighted progress for human rights in the region. "In Togo, torture has been criminalized," said Daoud. "Also, Ivory Coast has abolished the death penalty, which is extraordinary progress for the region," she added, also mentioning some progress in Mauritania with slavery now considered a crime against humanity. With regard to international justice, Daoud said the organization of the trial of former Chadian leader Hissene Habre in Senegal was a step in the right direction, but expressed concerns over the growing criticism of the International Criminal Court, or ICC, by a certain number of African countries. She said that Amnesty considered the ICC to be the court of last resort. "One can be credible in criticizing the ICC if one is capable on a national or regional level to fight impunity. It is fundamental that justice be done, wherever that is," she said. Regarding the future, Daoud said Amnesty hopes to make progress with Burkina Faso on eliminating the death penalty and ending forced child marriage. A global human rights watchdog, Amnesty International, has expressed concern over the slow pace of implementing the new constitution in Zimbabwe and the continued hindrance of freedom of association and speech as well as the failure by the state to deliver justice to those whose rights have been infringed. The organization, which on Wednesday released its 2015/2016 annual human rights report at a press conference at the Nelson Mandela Foundation in Johannesburg, noted that like Zimbabwe, many countries in Africa and the rest of the world continue to violate human rights. The report said there is lack of freedom of association, freedom of speech and other fundamental rights in most African nations. In its report, Amnesty International cited the disappearance of activist Itai Dzamara in March last year which remained unresolved as one of the gross human rights abuses that are dogging the country. The organisation also noted that forced evictions of informal traders by municipal police are still continuing, including illegal demolitions of houses. "The enforced disappearance of prominent pro-democracy activist Itai Dzamara in March remained unresolved. Freedom of expression, association and assembly continued to be restricted and a number of journalists were arrested. Forced evictions continued throughout the year with thousands of informal traders being forcibly evicted by municipal police from Central Harare, resulting in clashes and arrests. The slow pace of legal reform to bring legislation into line with the 2013 Constitution restricted access to rights guaranteed by the Constitution," read the report. Human rights expert, Arthur Gwagwa, told VOA Studio 7 there is need for Zimbabwe to align all laws with the new constitution in order to fully protect peoples rights. Gwagwa agreed with the views expressed by Amnesty International on the alignment of laws in line with the 2013 constitution. "But what's more important is that after aligning the law with the constitution is there going to be any change in the country but where it really matters is compliance with the laws whilst realigning the constitution and what is also important is to prioritise other pieces of legislation that are more pressing for example the Criminal (Codefication and Reform) Act that penalizes people when they insult the president. Although the constitutional court struck out that provision a few weeks ago we are yet to see if that judgement will be respected," said Gwagwa. Gwagwa added that it is important for African states and the rest of the world to respect the rights of freedom of association and speech because they are fundamental to the realisation of political participation. The Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights on Wednesday told Parliaments Senate Human Rights Thematic Committee that violations of Zimbabwean citizens social and economic rights are increasing as a result of the deteriorating economic situation in the country. The lawyers also told the committee that they are concerned about the deteriorating human rights situation in the country and governments failure to find missing Occupy Africa Unity Square political activist, Itai Dzamara, who was abducted almost 11 months ago. In a brief to the committee on the state of human rights in the country, Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights senior programs manager, Dzimbabwe Chimbga, said it was regrettable that these violations are occurring despite the adoption of a constitution that guarantees these rights. It is our observation that the key drivers for the these violations include the state of the economic situation, the threats of the looming drought and to some extent the embedded political polarization and also to some extent the lack of political will by some state agencies to implement human rights especially in the realm of economic, social and cultural rights, he said. Chimbga said evictions and destruction of houses in urban areas were increasing while informal traders were also being targeted by local authorities. We have observed in the past year running battles that continue between this group and authorities that include local authorities as well as the police and always the informal traders are at the receiving end of law and sometimes unfairly and they invariably lose some of the goods that they have that they try to use to eke out a living during these difficult times. Chimbga said most worrying is the fact that government departments were behind most of the violations. For example, he said, the Zimbabwe Republic Police continues to make arbitrary arrests under the Criminal Law Codification Act and the Public Order and Security Act and the organization has successfully challenged the arrests in the courts. Chimbga said in drought-hit rural areas, food was being distributed along partisan lines in direct contravention of the constitution. The human rights lawyers also expressed concern over the states failure to find democracy activist, Itai Dzamara, who was abducted by unknown assailants almost 11 months ago. Another senior manager with the organization, Roslyn Hanzi, said also of concern was corruption and failure to enforce court judgements that enhance the protection of human rights. He added that the recent arrest of the Prosecutor General Johannes Tomana was worrying the legal fraternity. We are concerned this may make it impossible for future exercise of the prosecutorial discretion without fear or favor this also has a knock on effect within the judiciary legal practitioners in the private and public sectors. Committee members commended the organization for detailing human rights abuses with some like Chief Daster Chisunga of Mbire saying there was need for the committee to investigate the abuses. I think there is need to seriously interrogate and integrate these issues into our work plan so that maybe we investigate deeply as to which areas are affected. Others like Senator Judith Mawire said the lawyers organisations should also make noise about other missing persons and not to only concentrate on Dzamara, whose organization is calling on President Mugabe to step down for allegedly failing to properly run Zimbabwe. Some youths in Zimbabwes Masvingo city are planning to stage peaceful protests over plans by the ruling Zanu PF party to host President Robert Mugabes lavish birthday party in the province hard-hit by a crippling drought. The Masvingo chapter of the Youth Advocacy for Reform and Democracy or YARD says its youth will stage the protests on Friday, a day before the ruling party hosts an $800,000 birthday party for President Mugabe at Great Zimbabwe monuments. YARD coordinator for Masvingo province, Munyaradzi Rushaya, told Studio 7 more than 200 youths are expected to take part in the peaceful demonstrations that are designed to disrupt and ultimately stop the lavish event. Rushiya said President Mugabe and his inner circle cannot be spending thousands of dollars while the majority of people in the province and other parts of the country can hardly have a decent meal a day due to the severe drought gripping the country. On Friday 26 we will be holding a peaceful demonstration in the town of Masvingo. We are demonstrating against the idea of holding birthday celebrations in the province facing drought. "They are investing over $800,000 to drink beer and eat cakes. As youth we begin to wonder what kind of a leader is he who thinks of beer when the people are starving and suffering. He also said his organization is determined to stop the birthday bash as they have the backing of other young people from various political parties. We are definitely going to stop the party. We have members from various parties and we are saying the president was supposed to use the money to import grain from neighbouring countries to feed the people. Eight hundred thousand dollars is a lot of money that can feed the whole province up to August. YARD said it has informed the police about the intended peaceful demonstrations. Police were not available for comment. We are law abiding citizens and we have notified the police. We are expecting to that the security forces will descend on us but that will not take us back. We will go ahead with the demo and our comrades from other cities will be joining us. The demonstration comes amid reports that some sections of disgruntled ruling party officials and war veterans were allegedly planning to disrupt the birthday party following heightened friction in Zanu PF over the succession of 92-year-old President Mugabe. In a recent speech at Stanford University, Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights and Labor Tom Malinowski spoke of an age-old contest: the struggle between the desire of people to be free, to be treated with dignity, and to have control over their own lives; and the fundamentally authoritarian impulse that believes ordinary men and women are too small-minded to govern their own affairs the impulse that fuels the dictators desire to seize and cling to power. Today the latter impulse, said Assistant Secretary Malinowski, is seen in its most extreme manifestation in ISIL, where terrorists seek to use the veneer of religious legitimacy to justify a thirst for control that includes the desire to kill, rape and subjugate. But there are other places that reflect the authoritarian urge: Bashar al-Assads Syria, with its brutal reaction to the aspirations of the Arab Spring; Vladimir Putins Russia, where human rights organizations are now being vilified as traitors; China, where the government is lashing out at dissidents at home, and kidnapping them abroad. But the ardent desire for people to control their own lives is also having its successes, said Mr. Malinowski:in Burma, where the people were able to cast their ballots for elected lawmakers for the first time in decades; in Sri Lanka, where the two communities that had long divided the country - the Sinhalese and Tamils - came together in an election to oust an authoritarian government. The United States, with its own ideals of democracy and the rule of law, has a great stake in the battle that is being waged. So it makes great sense, Mr. Malinowski said, that we defend people around the world who are trying peacefully to advance respect for human rights, before conflict between power and people leads to devastating consequences; that we speak out when governments try to stifle dissent, or control the internet, or pollute their citizens efforts and aspirations with corruption. Our hopes for the world may notbe fully realized, said Assistant Secretary Malinowski. But the world is not falling apart. It is presenting a challenge to which we must rise. And if we keep doing so, I believe things will get better, slowly but surely. Photo: Getty Images On FXs The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story, Connie Britton plays the late Nicole Brown Simpsons best friend, Faye Resnick, and Tuesday nights episode revisited her most notorious claim to fame: that salacious moment in history when Resnick released a tell-all book about her friend during the 1995 murder trial and appeared on Larry King temporarily halting the trial of the century. Britton, who stars in ABCs Nashville, took a break from shooting a concert scene to talk to Vulture about how she prepared to play a bad girl and being out of the loop on the Friday Night Lights reunion. The People v. O.J. Simpson is serious business, but you were such a hoot as Faye Resnick. Please tell me we are going to see more of her in the series. Thats the end of Faye, yeah. When we were shooting it, some of the writers would come up and be like, We need more Faye, we need more Faye, but the truth of the matter is we have to stay focused on what the story is, and once the Larry King interview happened, Faye did not really figure that prominently in the case anymore. Unfortunately, that was all we get. Tell me a little bit about how you prepared for Faye. Weve seen her on Real Housewives recently, and theres certainly a lot of footage from back then. How did you get into the mind-set? I did a lot of research. Its a little nerve-racking playing a character that is still living and in the public eye, so I really wanted to be as accurate as I could. I watched as much video as I could get my hands on, particularly video of that time video and photographs. Obviously, there were things that are more recent, but I wanted to stay as close to that period as I could, because I think as we all evolve, sure, shes a different person now. I really want to have that version of Faye in my mind, and I read the book that she wrote about Nicole. It was a very incendiary book that caused all this trouble, which was awesome. I felt so decadent that I had the excuse to read that book. She is kind of a bad girl, not the typical role for you. Did you enjoy that? I really did. Youre right. I constantly have to apologize for my pathetic social-media presence; I dont pay that much attention, but even I was aware there was a little bit of Oh, Connie plays these good characters. People were judge-y, judge-y, judge-y. And I sort of felt like, first of all, as an actor I want to play as many variations on women as I can. And beyond that, shes such a rich character. Shes a very interesting person. To me I never judge a character, ever, in the same way that I dont think of some of the characters that Ive been playing more recently as good women or characters. So I didnt think of Faye as not being that. But I do see her as different, and I see her coming from a different point of view and a different life experience. That made it really fun and challenging for me. Also, to have her as a guideline was really a good challenge because theres a lot of freedom when a characters pure fiction. You can really dream up anything you want when youre playing a character like that. But this is the opposite, where it was really about specificity, and I love specificity as an actor, so that part was really a joy for me. Do you think Tami Taylor would ever give a Brentwood Hello? [Laughs.] You know what? You never know. She might. Tami had her wild days. We touched on that a little bit. Thats true. Her ex-boyfriend showed up. Thats right. She had her days. Are you a Real Housewives fan? Theres a whole new generation that knows Faye differently, from Beverly Hills. I know! I dont really watch TV, but I have to admit: I have watched Real Housewives. Ive sort of gone through periods not really since I had my son, so its been a while but Ive gone through periods of Real Housewives watching. Particularly, I really was into Real Housewives of New York, which I thought was just fantastic. Was there anything you learned about her that helped you connect to the character and shape how you wanted to play her? With Faye, Im never gonna question whether what somebody says is true or not true, but she does talk about having a very difficult childhood, suffering abuse, things like that, and that was part of the reason why she was very impassioned about the domestic-abuse aspect of what happened to Nicole. I think that is something that is very real, and people deal with that life experience and that perspective differently, and it alters them and impacts them. So, for me that was very important information, and I tried to start from there. Were you interested in this project because you wanted to work with [executive producer Ryan Murphy] again, or was it the topic? Yeah, mostly it was working with Ryan again. I really love working with him, and I particularly love working with him when hes on to a new idea, because his mind sparks. And when he sparks to a new idea its a very exciting thing to be around. I had heard that he was doing this and I reached out to him and was like, I wanna do that with you! Is there a part for me in it at all? One of our bloggers had suggested you should play Nicole Brown Simpson. Thats what started the whole thing for me. Isnt that amazing? It was in Vulture and my friend read it and sent it to me. Shes like, Connie, look at this. Thats totally how I found out that Ryan was doing this project. So then I reached out to Ryan and said, Hey! Whats up with this? and thats how it all started. Did he immediately think of Faye? Not to be too blunt about it, but he was basically like: Well, Nicoles dead. So that would not be the thing, but let me figure it out. And he pretty quickly came back to me about Faye. And he was like, There arent a lot of women parts in this movie, but this would be really great. Its almost a comic relief in a very heavy show. In a way, at the time it wasnt necessarily comic, but it definitely was, in the midst of something that was a really dark and difficult case, to have everything come screeching to a halt because of this scandalous and flamboyant moment. Thats what it was at that time. Im glad it comes across that way, even for those few moments that Faye is in this incarnation of the story. Lets switch gears to Nashville for a moment. What can you tell us about Rayna and Deacons wedding? Rayna and Deacons wedding is going to be beautiful, and it is actually going to happen, but surprise, surprise there will be a lot of drama surrounding it. There you go. You heard it from me first. And theres going to be a Friday Night Lights reunion in Austin? I just read about that. They never even reached out to me about it. I read about it, and Im like, Im there. First of all, I need an excuse to get to Austin, but I also always look for an excuse to get together with the guys, and some of them Ive seen more recently, but a few I havent seen in a long time, so I think itll be really fun. I hope I can be there for that. Okay, this ones for the internet: Hows your hair today? [Laughs.] Im so glad that you asked because, no, actually, my hair is so glad that you asked because were performing today, were performing at the Ryman Theater. Rayna is performing a big number. So my hair is particularly snappy today. Macaulay Culkin and Better Luck Tomorrow. Photo: Getty Images, MTV Films Hot on the heels of a USC study calling the film industry a straight, white, boys club, the New York Times brings a selection of interviews about what Hollywood is like for those who arent lucky enough to be members of that club. The most darkly comic of all comes from director Justin Lin, who recalls the struggle to finance his debut film, Better Luck Tomorrow, a thriller about a group of amoral Asian-American high-schoolers. Race is central to the story, but the nonwhite cast made it a hard pitch. I was meeting with potential investors, and right away everybodys like, Its an Asian-American cast. Itll never sell. And a lot of them were Asian-American investors, Lin recalls. One of them even had a brilliant idea, which would be hilarious if it werent so sad: A guy offered $1 million for the budget, and he said, Well get Macaulay Culkin to be the lead. That didnt happen, of course; Lin stuck to his guns and cast Parry Shen as the lead, and the film became a Sundance sensation. Other tales of Hollywood not walking the walk on race include: America Ferrera resorting to whiteface: I was 18 and putting myself on tape for a movie I really wanted. I got that phone call: They cast a Latino male in another role in the film; theyre not looking to cast [a Latina]. So I defiantly bleached my hair blond, painted my face white and made the audition tape. I never heard back. I just remember feeling so powerless. Casting directors explaining to Wendell Pierce that black people couldnt do Shakespeare: In 1985, Im sitting in the casting office of a major studio. The head of casting said, I couldnt put you in a Shakespeare movie, because they didnt have black people then. He literally said that. I told that casting director: You ever heard of Othello? Shakespeare couldnt just make up black people. He saw them. Eva Longoria not being Latin enough: I remember moving to L.A. and auditioning and not being Latin enough for certain roles. Some white male casting director was dictating what it meant to be Latin. He decided I needed an accent. He decided I should [have] darker-colored skin. Sam Esmail on casting Rami Malek in Mr. Robot: [In auditions], it was mostly white guys. I opened up the process, and Rami [Malek] was just brilliant. He looks different, whether thats because he is Egyptian [or] just Rami. The conversation with the network was tough; I dont think it had to do with race or Id like to think it didnt. The show is already unusual. The barrier to entry for a show from a networks point of view is, can the audience identify with this person, and is race going to be a roadblock? Producer Lori McCreary on how even Morgan Freeman wasnt considered presidential: If [a script doesnt specify, a role is] presumed to be white and male. For Deep Impact, Mimi Leder, the director, wanted to cast Morgan as the president, and somebody at the studio said, were not making a science-fiction movie; you cant have Morgan Freeman play the president. But she really fought for it. And there is much, much more where that came from. Read the whole thing over at nytimes.com. The first part of tonights iZombie is easygoing. It cheerily bounces along as Liv, fresh off the brain of an overly optimistic barista, investigates the case of the week. But in the last ten minutes things take a turn, and the writers start throwing out twists all over the place. By the time Eternal Sunshine of the Caffeinated Mind is over, were very far from that rosy beginning. This episode contains three major plot developments, so Ill break each down separately. Lets start with the Drake of it all. Schemin on the Low To celebrate his first kill for Mr. Boss, Drake decides to cancel plans with Liv and go out on the town with his boys. To be honest, I wasnt surprised that Drake is the type of guy to have boys. As theyre leaving the club later that night, however, Detective Lou Benedetto (Veronica Marss Enrico Colantoni) shows up and arrests Drake. Inside a police-interrogation room, its revealed that hes a deep undercover agent. If youre keeping track, that means Drake is a triple agent hes playing both Mr. Boss and Blaine. Ive got to applaud iZombie for this one, because I didnt see such a big reveal coming. Remember when Drake was supposed kill Terrell Johnson? Well, that didnt happen. Terrell is now enjoying life in witness protection. (And Im just going to assume that hes protected by a no-nonsense U.S. Marshal played by Mary McCormack.) Before his fellow detectives let Drake leave, they show him surveillance footage of him visiting the morgue. They order him to stop dating Liv because its placing their operation in too much jeopardy. Drake refuses to do so; Liv, he claims, is the only good thing in his life. What isnt clear, though, is how much the detectives know about Drakes activities. Do they know he is also working for Blaine? Also, since Drake is an agent, does he already know that Blaine is the new dealer theyre trying to find? He must, right? Even if he did know, I guess he wouldnt be able to tell them because that would risk revealing that hes a zombie. Coffee, Please! This case of the week is pretty lackluster, ending with both satisfying and unsatisfying notes. The victim, a very cheery owner of a Seattle coffee shop called Positivity, suffers a Looney Tunesesque death: Shes crushed by an AC unit. Eventually, Clive and Liv realize that the coffee-shop owners daughter, Cher (Hannibals Kacey Rohl), was behind the murder. She convinced her gullible boyfriend to kill her mother for her so they could use her inheritance to move to France and study art. At first, Clive and Liv convince Gilbert to confess for the crime and implicate Cher, but she then manipulates him into taking the blame for everything. With no confession and no direct evidence tying her to the murder, Clive is forced to let her go. In the end, Cher sells her mothers business and hops in a cab heading to the airport. Honestly, I liked the fact that Clive and Liv couldnt tie this case up neatly. It shakes up the formula, and itll be interesting to see how this loss affects them. Throughout the episode, Liv rides the caffeine high from the victims brain. And, as with every high, theres a crash. While she cooks dinner in anticipation of Drake coming over that night, the effects of the brain wear off, and she realizes how naively shes been acting. Before Drake arrives, Major shows up, clearly intent on coming clean to Liv about what hes been doing. Before he spills the beans, hes interrupted by Gildas arrival. Its awkward, but they play it off like they havent met. But as Major leaves, he yells, Bye, Rita, and Liv figures it out Rita is the girl who Major slept with. A furious Liv punches Rita in the face, then kicks her out of the house. Dead Again One of Mr. Bosss henchmen tells him a story about a time when Blaine convinced local cops to crack down a rival gang by murdering a beat cop, all so he could secure a corner. From this story, Mr. Boss figures out that Blaine is the new Utopium dealer and is using the D.A.s office to take out Mr. Bosss operation. Later, Mr. Bosss henchman shows up at the funeral home and kidnaps Blaine, who is playing the organ after having sex with Candy Baker in a two-person coffin. (I guess thats relaxing?) Blaine wakes up in a car with Mr. Boss and his men, and they drag him out to the forest. Then they slit his throat and bury him. The next day, Don E. returns to the funeral home and finds the formerly human Candy munching on brains. Meanwhile, in the forest, a now-zombified Blaine claws his way out of his grave, steals a blanket from a group of Girl Scouts, and marches back into town to get revenge. The Candy reveal means that Blaine was closer to turning back into a zombie than we realized, which means Major is in the same dire situation. On the upside, if things dont work out with Drake, Liv will be able to sleep with Major again. But once she finds out what hes been doing, will she actually want to? Postmortem: the real estate The Only Reason We Got It Was That I Lied The Only Reason We Got It Was That I Lied This weeks New Girl is pretty funny! I am so pleased about that, I might get up and jump around in my comfortable Im-not-having-sex-tonight outfit! Okay, probably not. But it is a strong episode! The setup, though, is inane. Winston and Nick cant decide where to go to brunch, and its the doofiest, stupidly Millennial discussion you can imagine. (But frankly, its kind of real, too.) Reagan, newly integrated into the group, is frustrated with their inability to choose and resolves to make this a larger lesson in the necessity of Making Decisions. So Reagan tells Nick and Winston that tonight, at 9 p.m., she will have sex with one of them. But they have to decide which one of them will have sex with her. And look, this is pretty dumb. Its made clear very quickly that Reagan has no intention of actually doing this, and is just trying to force Nick and Winston to make a choice about something. More accurately, she just wants to mess with them. This is dumb for any number of reasons, not least of which is that theres not a ton of evidence for Nick being an especially indecisive character. Hes weird, sure. But he usually commits to his choices. (Take for instance, the last few episodes, in which Nick had no trouble committing to his crush on Reagan and deciding to invite her to join the gang. Or how about Nicks speedy decision to have a baby with his cousin? Or take on a boss role at the bar?) Given the shaky premise that Nick is indecisive, and the fact that the idea does make some sense for Winstons character, what follows is a pretty entertaining half-hour of television. While Schmidt and Cece make sure that Reagan isnt actually going to keep her end of this sex bet (This is not an 80s summer-camp movie!), Nick and Winston have some initial discussions about who deserves the sex most. As it turns out, back in middle school, Winston had dibs on someone named Cindy Delagarza, whom Nick was then found French-ing with at an eighth-grade dance. Due to this early betrayal of dibs, the guys decide that Winston should be the one who gets to have sex with Reagan. Nick knew that French-ing would come back to haunt him, and hes correct. Nick and Winston proudly inform Reagan that theyve made a decision, and thanks to Cindy Delagarza, Winston will be the winner. Sowing the seeds of her eventual reneging, Reagan coolly tells Winston how to prep for their night together. In addition to bringing his A game, she tells Winston not to eat for two hours beforehand, asks whether he has any previous injuries, and mentions that he should bring something to numb his mouth. Apparently Reagan likes her sexual partners to have the drooling, slack-jawed look of a dental patient, but you know to each her own. So then we get a few scenes where we watch as, inevitably, the fast and easy decision to let Winston be the one who bangs Reagan falls apart. Notably, Reagan herself is the one who undermines Nicks decision. She achieves this by questioning the wisdom of allowing Winston to have dibs on someone for years without acting, and also by delivering a sexed-up version of a pharmaceutical sales pitch for a hepatitis C drug. Mmmm double-blind studies. The idea that Reagan convinces Nick to stand up for his chance with her also sets up their eventual romantic relationship, which is something thats clearly been in the works but has seemed nevertheless dubious. Guess what, Nick: You might actually have a chance! While Reagan tears apart Nicks commitment to the dibs (and also suggests that such a thing as a singular dib might exist heresy!), Winston and Aly talk about his soon-to-be sex with Reagan. Sorry, let me back up. Winston is actually at work. At his job. As a cop. I know. Anyway, Winston freaks out about bringing his A game to the sex-with-Reagan thing, and needs some pep talk about his sexual worth. Disgusted, but trying to deal with him, Aly agrees to exchange compliments with Winston. She tells him he has kind eyes; he says she has a very attractive neck. Aly quickly and correctly points out that, no, neck compliments are terrible compliments. In the midst of all this, Nick calls to say the decision is off, so Winston rushes home from his job as a Los Angeles police officer to have a fight with his roommate about who gets to have sex with their other roommate. Yeah. I am so happy to see you at your job, Winston! But this sequence makes eminently clear why you should never have been hired in the first place. I get that were in wild and wacky New Girl land where the rules are made up and the points dont matter, but maybe dont give your character a job laden with such fraught political and ethical consequences. As Nick and Winston deal with their very odd prisoners dilemma, Schmidt and Cece go out to look for a wedding venue. This idea may not feel especially fresh, but the whole plot was exactly the right amount of silly and fun and fast for me. After checking out several undesirable options, Schmidt steers Cece into the Lisbon, which is out of their price range but, as Cece says, is so beautiful its like Im inside Cate Blanchett. While they think about it, Schmidt and Cece are interrupted by two horrible people, Benjamin and Mimi, who were distinctly horrible to Schmidt back when he was fat. And Ill say this about New Girl: It is so great at writing jerks. Some of the best bits of The Decision come in these scenes. I love, for instance, Ceces ill-advised decision to make her relationship with Schmidt more romantic by claiming that theyre cousins (?!). My favorite is the singular deep burn of defining Benjamin and Mimis awfulness by having Benjamin proclaim, Maybe its just us, but we love Pixar. Were NERDS! How it is possible to write such a seemingly innocuous line that nevertheless makes me feel such deep loathing for these people, I do not know. But its glorious. In spite of Ceces willingness to drop all their savings on this place in order to get back at Benjamin, Schmidt and Cece have an almost-too-sweet moment and realize they have each other, so they dont need fancy things. Time to RSVP for Cece and Schmidts wedding! It will be held in a warehouse soon to be abandoned by a failed startup company, and it will no doubt take place during Nielsen sweeps. Meanwhile, the Winston versus Nick sex fight breaks down along predictable lines back at the loft. Once again incapable of deciding, they push the choice back onto Reagan with the lazy but smartly self-aware justification that, Its 2016, youre a lady, your decision is important to us. As they talk it out, though, Reagan and Nick push Winston to realize that he actually likes his partner Aly. This plot somehow feels both obvious and out of the blue, but its also endearing. Aly seems nice! Even though she has a new boyfriend who works as an agent for animal actors? And boy, that had better be a setup for next week, because I have a sneaking suspicion that Nicks commentary on his career would be quite satisfying. This leaves Nick as the winner of Reagans sex bet, but in further support for their romantic development, he decides that if hes going to get together with Reagan, this is not the way to do it. Good for you, Nick. And I must say, your Im-not-having-sex-tonight outfit looks very comfortable. The Decision certainly has flaws. The entire premise feels unmoored, and as per usual, Winston is all over the place. But this was the most Ive liked Reagan so far, and its because of a small but vital shift in her role. Last week, she was still in coolly aloof and separate mode; now, shes coolly aloof and manipulative. This might seem like a distinction without much useful difference, but its so much better to have Reagan invested in roommate stories, even if its just to mess with everybody else. This also felt like the first episode in a long time that wasnt constantly looking at the hole in the room where Jess used to be. All right, new New Girl. You got me. 100% Not Guilty covers a lot: the preliminary hearing, the plea hearing, and the selection and swearing-in of the O.J. Simpson trial jury, which brings the show up to early November, 1994. The trial itself would begin the following year, on January 24, and end with the verdict on October 3. For the viewers at home and I was one of them, watching after I worked hourly job shifts in the limbo between undergrad and grad school it cannot be emphasized enough how long this eight-month trial felt, how numbing it was to experience day after day. This was surely true of the jury, too, who were sequestered for an absurd amount of time and asked to sort through an endless series of exhibits and witnesses, each larded with objections sustained and overruled. In other words, it was boring. And that was favorable to Simpsons defense, which aggressively sought to muddle and obfuscate. As the months wore on, it became all too easy to forget that Simpson was being tried for double murder or at least it was difficult to imagine the inciting event as a bloody crime of passion. And it was particularly easy to forget about Ron Goldman, who didnt fit into anyones narrative about the fraught relationship between O.J. and Nicole Brown Simpson, other than being in the wrong place at the wrong time. The one reminder came from Fred Goldman, whose anguish and fury over his sons marginalized death burned through the verdict, the successful civil trial, and even the production of this mini-series, which he anticipated with great dread. His face red behind an ash-gray handlebar mustache, Goldmans emotions ran so hot that he approached a kind of apparent derangement, like a real-life version of Ray Wises character on Twin Peaks. The appearance of Fred Goldman and his daughter Kim in tonights episode of The People v. O.J. Simpson does for the series what the Goldmans did for the trial when it happened. For a few minutes in this hour-long episode, the Goldmans offer a brief but bracing reminder that two people were murdered a fact that had already been engulfed by the cultural phenomena swirling around the case. Joseph Siravo overplays Fred Goldmans rage, if only slightly, when he answers Marcia Clarks hushed I know what youre going through with a face-peeling blast of Do you?! Do you have a son who was murdered?! Sarah Paulsons reaction tells a story in itself: Clarks emotional engagement in the case has been total from the start, but the meeting is still a splash of cold water. Beyond the strategy and politics of pursuing a case against Simpson which in this episode includes details from the number of hairs available for sampling to the 294 questions posed to prospective jurors she has the burden of carrying the grief of the victims families. (And also the shame of their disappointment should she fail.) The Goldman scene stands out because much of 100% Not Guilty is about understanding the larger forces that will soon hijack the case. Among them: Faye Resnick (Connie Britton, in wondrous form), the cash-for-trash legend who briefly derailed the trial with her quickie book and made the rotation of Larry Kings nightly guests; Johnnie Cochran, whose power plays made him the face of the prosecution and brought the issue of race to the fore; a jury-selection process that scored a critical early victory for the defense; the introduction of Lance Ito, celebrity judge; and the reality that presumptions of innocence or guilt were split sharply along racial lines. Of any figure on either side, Cochran had the best feel for the cultural dynamics at play and how he could marshal them to his clients favor. One of the many great things about The People v. O.J. Simpson is how much generosity its writers extend to the lead attorneys. Tonights episode offers a taste of the sexist treatment Clark would receive, but since the sixth episode (Marcia, Marcia, Marcia) will presumably cover that in detail, lets focus on Cochran, who becomes a fully dimensional character here. If you believe O.J. is guilty, then you might remember Cochran as a talented flimflam artist, cynically pressing a race-based defense for a client with little connection to the black community. (Im not black. Im O.J.) And its this Cochran whom Clark underestimates. Cochrans gifts as a storyteller come through in the extraordinary scene where he gives a despondent O.J. a pep talk in prison. Cochran explains how, in 1978, O.J.s gritty performance in a game against the Atlanta Falcons inspired him to pick himself up during a low point in his life. The story may be bullshit, but O.J. believes it, and so do we. While warning Clark of Cochrans abilities, Christopher Darden offers the most important insight: Hes real. He may be a showboat, but at the end of the day, he always fights for community. He talks like a preacher, but he goes to church every Sunday. Thats Courtney B. Vances reading of the character, too. His Cochran is a man not only of immense charisma, but of equally significant charisma. Hes appalled when Shapiro opens a meeting with the question, Who thinks O.J. did it? and hes appalled again by Shapiros blinkered refusal to play the race card. Racism is both central to Cochrans experience as an African-American and to his understanding of this case its unfathomable to him that the defense wouldnt recognize that. And for now, the value of The People v. O.J. Simpson lies in his dismay: We can learn more about the preacher on TV, and we can still go to church. Dancing Itos: The United States has expanded its offer of rewards for information on key leaders of terrorist organizations to include a leading figure with in one of the groups conducting attacks in the Sahel and other areas of North Africa, al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb, or AQIM. Yahya Abu el Hammam has played a key role in perpetuating the groups terrorist activities and took part in several attacks in Mauritania. In July 2010, Hammam was reportedly involved in the killing of a French hostage in Niger. In 2006, he was sentenced to death in absentia by Algerian authorities for terrorism-related charges. He has also been sanctioned by the U.S. Department of Treasury and the United Nations. El Hammam was born September 5, 1978 in Reghaia, Algeria. He has used the aliases Abu Yahia and Akkacha Djamel. The Rewards for Justice Program is offering a reward of up to five million dollars for information leading to el Hammams location. The U.S. promises that all credible reports will be investigated and the identity of all informants will be kept confidential. If appropriate, the U.S. is prepared to protect informants by relocating them and their families. If you have information on this man, contact the nearest U.S. Embassy or Consulate and the tip line at www.rewardsforjustice.net or e-mail information to info@rewardsforjustice.net. In North America, call 1-800-877-3927. A benefit to help cover medical bills for Clint Cummings, who is battling cancer, will be held from 2 to 10 p.m. Sunday at Infamous Ink, 933 Lake Air Drive. The event will include food, live music, auctions, raffles, art, a bounce house and more. To donate an auction item or for more information, call 757-1903. KWBU pledge drive Waco public radio station KWBU-FM (103.3) will hold its third annual Power Morning pledge drive from 6 to 9 a.m. Thursday. The station is encouraging supporters to phone in their financial pledges during that time to secure matching funds that increase the amount raised for KWBUs operating budget. Listeners can phone in pledges Thursday morning by calling 710-1033. Art Center exhibit Art Center Waco, 1300 College Drive, will have a My Time at the Movies exhibit opening event from 5:30 to 8 p.m. Thursday. The exhibit celebrates the life and work of G.S. DeFoore, whose work focused on illuminating the tension and drama inherent in the moviegoing experience. For more information, visit artcenterwaco.org or call 752-4371. Writers Workshop Jamie Foley, author of the young adult adventure novels Sentinel and Arbiter, will speak at this weeks session of the Christian Writers Workshop at 6 p.m. Wednesday in Room 210-11 at First Baptist Church of Woodway, 13000 Woodway Drive. Foley, who has worked as a digital marketing specialist for Harper Collins/Thomas Nelsons live events division, will discuss her writing, self-publishing and marketing. The free workshop will continue weekly at 6 p.m. Wednesdays through April 6, except March 9. For more information, call 339-3060. Guest recital at BU The husband-and-wife duo of flutist Sabrina Hu and pianist Cathal Breslin will perform a guest recital at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday at Baylor Universitys Roxy Grove Hall. Hu is on the flute faculty at Rhodes College in Memphis, Tennessee, and Breslin is an assistant professor of piano and director of piano studies at the University of Memphis. For more information about the free recital, visit www.baylor.edu/music or call 710-3991. Submit items for Briefly in printed or typed form to Briefly, P.O. Box 2588, Waco 76702-2588; fax to 757-0302; or email to goingson@wacotrib.com at least one week before an event. Citizens of the Democratic Republic of Congo, or the DRC, should go to the polls in November to vote in a new President and members of parliament. Nevertheless, the country is rife with political tension: incumbent President Joseph Kabila, having served two consecutive terms in office, is bound by the constitution to step down in December; electoral preparations, including the revision of the electoral register, have yet to begin in earnest. Moreover, President Kabila has indicated that he may not relinquish the Presidency when his term ends. In January of last year, his government attempted to change the electoral law to tie elections to the completion of a complex national census; this proposed delay of elections for at least three years sparked mass protests. The government has claimed that the only way to get electoral preparations started would be via a national dialogue convened by President Kabila, an idea which the opposition and civil society have roundly rejected as unfair and rigged. In the meantime, authorities have cracked down on those calling for Kabila to step down using intimidation, violence and arbitrary arrests. Incensed, the political opposition civil society, activists and students, called for a one-day general strike on February 16 to protest these delaying tactics. Just hours prior to the strike, six youth activists from the Fight for Change or LUCHA youth movement were arrested for allegedly helping to organize the stoppage. They join 19 other LUCHA members, who have been in prison since early 2015. The United States is troubled by the harassment and detention of peaceful activists and opposition leaders in the Democratic Republic of Congo, including those detained in connection with [the] general strike, said State Department Spokesperson John Kirby in a written statement. These detentions stifle the free expression of diverse political viewpoints, contributing to a closing of political space while undermining the credibility of the Government of the DRC during the electoral period. We call on the government to respect the freedoms enshrined in its own Constitution, which was promulgated 10 years ago. We also call on the DRC to honor its international human rights obligations and immediately release all those being detained or, short of that, accord them the protections and fair trial guarantees to which they are entitled. The co-owners of the 25th Street Theatre signaled this week that theyre ready for action on the dilapidated North Waco landmark. But they apparently have different ideas of just what action that would be. The Richard Olsen estate this week prepared to list the property with a Waco real estate agent for $120,000 but backed off Tuesday after objections from co-owner Paul Trey Concilio. Concilio, a Waco businessman who has had a stake in the theater since 2013, said he is expecting his nonprofit group to begin renovations of the theater this year. Concilio, president of the Texas Museum of Theatre and Broadcast, said an out-of-state donor has expressed interest in funding the groups effort to turn the abandoned 71-year-old theater into a community event center. Were probably close to having something break loose in the next two or three weeks, Concilio said. He said he hopes to renovate the facility to be a shining star of the neighborhood, a place for receptions, parties and special screenings of movies. The building has been unoccupied since 1993 and has been tagged by city inspectors as unsafe since 2001, while preservationists and neighborhood leaders have expressed hope that it could be saved. C.E. Olsen, of Clifton, the administrator of the estate, could not be reached for comment Tuesday, but an agent with Magnolia Realty confirmed that Olsen had called off the sale. Ownership issues have kept the theater off the market since the 1993 death of the owner, Richard Olsen, son of C.E. Olsen. Richard Olsen and his partner, Richard Keiffer, had run the facility as a popular nightclub known as the 25th Street Club. Concilio said Keiffer had part ownership in the building, and Keiffers estate deeded that stake to Concilios museum group in 2013. Concilio said he has been trying for the last decade to get control of the building so his group could renovate it. He said he has had an engineering study done of the building and has spent about $30,000 of his own money on costs related to the project. Part of the reason it hasnt been able to move forward is ownership, said Concilio, owner of Brazos Communications. Caught off-guard But he said he has been working hand in hand with C.E. Olsen in the past couple of years and discussed the renovation plans over dinner a few weeks ago. Concilio said he was caught off-guard when he heard Olsen was trying to put it on the market, but he said he thinks the premature listing was just the result of a misunderstanding. Concilio said he hopes to get full ownership of the building, though he doesnt want to pay anywhere near $120,000 for it, since he is already part owner and because it would take some $250,000 to remediate the mold and asbestos inside. The McLennan County Appraisal District lists an assessed value of $110,570 for the two tracts that make up the property, totaling about 1.5 acres. The property has a large parking lot and fronts on four streets, including 25th and 26th streets. The 780-seat theater opened in 1945 and set the standard for postwar theaters in Waco, with air conditioning, a wide screen and elaborate murals of charioteers inside. The facade of the building, including a giant neon sign with the words 25th Street Theatre, became a landmark for the Sanger-Heights neighborhood. The theater showed first-run movies, including Star Wars, but competition from other theaters caused it to close in 1982. Keiffer and Olsen ran the spot as a nightclub from 1986 to 1993. After two decades of decline, Waco City Council considered filing a nuisance abatement lawsuit against the owners in 2013 but backed off, saying they wanted to give the historic property a chance for renovation. Waco Main Street Manager Andrea Barefield, who oversees revitalization for City Center Waco, said the building has great potential for a performance space or other use. I think its one of those Waco jewels that deserves to be preserved, Barefield said. Councilman Dillon Meek, who represents North Waco, agreed that saving the 25th Street Theatre is a priority. I know the neighborhood association has deep care for that landmark, and I think the possibilities are exciting, Meek said. J.H. Hines Elementary School students stood in the cafeteria before a group of more than 50 people Tuesday explaining the reasons why they dont want their school to close. The reasons included their love of the teachers and staff and their enjoyment of learning. Its our school, Trinity Smith, 10, shouted into the microphone. J.H. Hines is one of three schools that held transformation committee meetings Tuesday so district officials could meet parents and better explain the struggles facing the campuses. Community members also met at Indian Spring Middle School and South Waco Elementary School. Six schools are facing potential closure by the state if they dont reverse their academic standing. J.H. Hines Elementary and Brook Avenue Elementary School have failed state academic standards four years in a row, and if they dont improve their scores, a new state law could force them to close by 2018-19. G.W. Carver Middle School, Indian Spring Middle School, Alta Vista Elementary School and South Waco Elementary School have failed three years in a row and could eventually face the same fate if they dont improve. After brief explanations of the law and its effect on Waco schools, district officials facilitated discussions on why the school is good for residents and the importance of their involvement. Community members said that if the schools close, the neighborhoods would lose cultural identity and the stability they offer families. You need stability in a community, and a school offers stability, said Anthony J. Fulbright, a resident of the neighborhood surrounding J.H. Hines. Others explained how the school offers a point of connection for residents to take pride in. Trustee Angela Tekell proposed the district form the transformation committees after an October hearing with the Texas Education Agency. During the hearing, administrators at J.H. Hines Elementary School and Brook Avenue Elementary School explained the efforts being made to reverse the downward trend of the schools academic ratings. This will be the first of multiple transformation committee meetings held with community members to produce strategies to turn their schools around. But residents already have begun working on ways to help the district. In a meeting of the local NAACP chapter Monday, opinions and recommendations flowed freely. NAACP President Peaches Henry led a conversation on how to help the campuses encourage more parent involvement. Henry said parents tell her they dont feel welcome on campus and say the former Brook Avenue principal dissuaded them from coming to the school. Theyve being invited out of those schools, Henry said. NAACP attendees agreed that having activities on school grounds would help improve parent-staff relationships, such as restarting parent-teacher associations or even having a social room for parents to meet each other. Many of the same recommendations were brought up the next evening at Hines to supportive applause. We are never hopeless, Henry said. A Precinct 3 McLennan County commissioner candidate listed a contribution from a corporation in the latest campaign finance report, which may violate state law. Ben Matus, who is running for the Precinct 3 seat against Commissioner Will Jones, listed a $1,000 campaign contribution from Jupe Mills Inc., in West, on the report submitted to the Elections Office on Monday. But when asked about the contribution, Matus said the report should have listed the owner of the West business, Ervin Jupe, as having made that donation, not the company itself. I need to correct that, Matus said. McLennan County Sheriff Parnell McNamara also listed in his campaign finance report accepting money from a corporation, but in the same report documented that he had refunded the money once the error was caught. McNamara received $500 from Waco Good Fellows Inc. in Woodway. When we realized that was a corporate check, we just had to give that money back, McNamara said. He said one of his campaigns paid workers deposited the check. Corporation officials and candidates could face third-degree felony charges and civil penalties if a corporation donates to a candidate and the candidate knowingly accepts the contribution. A Texas Secretary of State spokesperson said Jupe Mills Inc. is listed as a corporation. Ian Steusloff, assistant general counsel with the Texas Ethics Commission, said under campaign finance laws, a corporation is prohibited from making political contributions to a candidate and a candidate is prohibited from accepting that donation. The statute lists the different entities considered corporations. A limited liability company, for example, is permitted to make political contributions, Steusloff said. If a complaint is made, the Texas Ethics Commission has the authority to investigate an allegation that a corporation made a prohibited contribution or that a candidate unlawfully accepted that donation, he said. The commission can assess a civil penalty. A criminal penalty also can be assessed for a corporation making contribution or a candidate unlawfully accepting that donation, Steusloff said. A prosecutor would bring that third-degree felony charge, not the commission, he said. Steusloff said corporations have an additional knowledge requirement that does not apply to candidates. A corporation can violate the policy without knowing its existence; however, a candidate has to accept a contribution from a corporation knowing it is unlawful in order for that candidate to face penalties, he said. Jones declined to comment on Matus report. Jupe did not return repeated calls seeking comment. Early voting Early voting continues from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. The primary election is March 1, with a runoff election set for May 24, if needed. The first campaign finance reports were due to the county Jan. 15 and included contributions and expenditures through Dec. 31, and the second round of reports was filed Feb. 1 detailing contributions and expenditures through January. The latest reports picked up at the last report and ran through Feb. 20. Matus, 63, of West, has been an auto-repair instructor at Texas State Technical College for the past 29 years. Matus latest campaign finance report ran from Jan. 22 through Feb. 20 and listed $1,200 in contributions and $4,073.17 in expenditures. In total, he has raised $1,350 in political contributions and spent $9,465.57, according to his filings. Jones, 44, of Waco, reported in his most recent campaign finance report a $1,500 donation from the Texas Association of Realtors PAC. Since July 1, Jones raised $28,405 in political contributions and spent $20,277, according to his reports. Jones defeated Democrat Brian Scott in November 2012 in the race to replace retired Commissioner Joe Mashek. In the beginning of the race for Precinct 3, Matus said Jones twice offered to pay him the price of his filling fee to drop out of the race. Jones confirmed he made the offer, but said it was a business transaction, not a bribe. McLennan County Sheriff candidates also submitted their latest campaign finance reports, showing continued high contributions for McNamara. McNamara, Waco police Sgt. Patrick Swanton and Pastor Willie Tompkins are all running as Republicans. There is no Democrat in the race. Since July 1, 2015, McNamara has received $125,320 in political contributions and spent $111,973, according to his reports. McNamaras highest donors this campaign finance report cycle include $5,000 from Steven Cutbirth, of Waco; $3,000 from the Waco Association of Realtors PAC; $2,000 from John Cawthron, of Waco; and $2,000 from Randy Crook, of Waco. Since July 17, Swanton has received $49,024 in political contributions and spent $42,188, according to his latest report. Tompkins has received $2,148 in political contributions and spent $1,660, according to his reports. Tompkins ran as a Democrat against McNamara in 2012. During that race, he received 29 percent of the vote in his first run for sheriff. The McLennan County Commissioners Court has a second contested race as well. Cory Priest, of Lorena, has challenged Precinct 1 Commissioner Kelly Snell, who owns Texas Electrical Energy Savers Inc. Since July 1, Priest, who owns a cattle business and real estate and is co-owner of a construction company in Waco, has received $5,338 in political contributions and spent $11,407, according to reports. Since July 1, Snell has raised $14,345 and spent $14,878, according to his reports. Snell also received $1,500 from the Texas Association of Realtors. Snell was first elected in 2009 after defeating three-term incumbent Wendall Crunk in the 2008 Republican primary. Investigators believe a fire that damaged a vacant rental home on North 22nd Street on Monday afternoon was intentionally set, Waco Fire Marshal Kevin Vranich said. Fire crews were called to 1910 N. 22nd St. shortly before 1 p.m., after flames and smoke were seen coming from the home. Fire crews quickly extinguished the fire and took a report of a man seen fleeing from the property shortly before fire fighters arrived. The cause is still under investigation, but at this point we are thinking it was intentionally set and we are investigating it as arson, Vranich said. Neighbors reported seeing a man running from the home shortly before hearing glass breaking and seeing flames coming from a window, Vranich said. The owner of the home declined comment Monday. Vranich would not specify the point of origin of the fire and said the cause remains under investigation. Owners of a pet boarding facility near Dallas are struggling to care for nearly 250 dogs after a local rescue agency stopped paying its bill. Gene Mason, owner of Camp Diggy Bones in Lavon, said he and his wife have laid off staff and used about $100,000 from their 401K to keep the dogs alive after Happy Endings, a Hewitt shelter specializing in pit bull and Rottweiler rescue, abandoned the dogs at his facility. Meanwhile, other regional boarding facilities report similar past problems collecting payment for services rendered to Happy Endings. Linda Robinson-Pardo, CEO of Happy Endings, released a statement on the situation and answered questions by email. Robinson-Pardo said her organization stopped paying for the dogs at Diggy Bones because a large donor of (Happy Endings) partially cut their donation because of issues beyond their control. Robinson-Pardo would not disclose the identity of the donor, but said Happy Endings lost about one-third of its funding. She said her organization continues to fundraise for the dogs at Diggy Bones and will continue to provide food and medicine for them. She said Happy Endings paid Diggy Bones more than $400,000 for boarding in 2013. Mason said Camp Diggy Bones has cared for Happy Endings dogs since summer 2010. Payments from the rescue became spotty last summer, and by December the business was owed about $200,000 and was boarding 300 Happy Endings dogs, Mason said. Robinson-Pardo said in an email that she does not agree Happy Endings owes $200,000, but did not elaborate. $400,000 paid in 2013 Mason said he has not seen any money, food or medicine for the dogs from Robinson-Pardo since sometime in January, but did confirm that the business was paid $400,000 in 2013. It sounds like a lot of money, but it only comes out to about $3 per day per dog, Mason said. Last month, Happy Endings turned over ownership of the dogs to Camp Diggy Bones. But Mason said his business is not a rescue facility and does not have the funds to support the dogs. The dogs consume about 10 50-pound bags and 60 cans of dog food a day. The cold weather has forced the business to run heaters for the dogs, inflating Masons electric bill. And the cost of it all has forced Diggy Bones to lay off staff, Mason said. Its absolutely overwhelming, he said. Diggy Bones is trying to get the dogs adopted. So far, they have found homes for about 50 of the original 300. Robinson-Pardo said in an email that Diggy Bones effort was minimal in adopting out dogs (in 2013) compared to prior years, as the adoptions in the DFW area plummeted. But Mason said adopting out dogs was never something Diggy Bones agreed or was equipped to do. He said Diggy Bones is a boarding and training facility, so adoption responsibilities fall on Happy Endings. He said one trainer at Diggy Bones sometimes found homes for dogs, but it was something she did because she felt it was the right thing to do. Robinson-Pardo disputed Masons claims. During the 3-4 year relationship, all conversations between the owner of (Diggy Bones) and the staff members of (Happy Endings) were about medical welfare of each dog, adoptions, adoption applications and home visits, she wrote. If the dogs arent adopted, euthanizing them is a last resort, but Mason hopes it doesnt come to that. Some of these dogs have been with us for three years, Mason said. We know these dogs. We know their names and what they like to play, so euthanizing would be doomsday for us. Theyve become our pets. Its just a mess. Billing disputes Tracey Brown Lightfoot, owner of Brazos Valley Boarding Kennels in Lorena, said when she took over the business in May 2009, the facility was boarding about 30 dogs for Happy Endings, and the organization was already two payments behind. Lightfoot said she continued to send Happy Endings bi-weekly invoices but received no payment. I was going broke fast, Lightfoot said. She said employees from Happy Endings finally came to get the dogs in July 2009, but refused to pay the remaining $23,000 balance, so she would not release the animals to them. She said Happy Endings tried to get law enforcement agencies to force her to return the dogs. When that didnt work, Happy Endings paid the bill, and she gave them the dogs, Lightfoot said. Butch Cappel, owner of K9 Kountry in Burleson, had a similar story. He said he boarded about 30 dogs for Happy Endings starting in 2008. The rescue paid on time at first, but eventually stopped. The only way I got paid is I would drive to Waco, walk in the front door and refuse to move until they handed me a check, Cappel said. Cappel said ultimately his business relationship with Happy Endings ended when the rescue took the dogs back without paying him in 2010. Another owner of a boarding facility near Austin who did not want to be identified said she too had trouble collecting payments from Happy Endings. The owner said she boarded about 25 dogs, and after more than two years of doing business with the group, the payments stopped around August 2011. She said Happy Endings employees came to get the dogs to take them to Camp Diggy Bones, but she would not release them until she was paid. She said Robinson-Pardo threatened to get law enforcement and the media involved. I heard from other kennels that is the way she played, and I put my foot down about it, the owner said. Eventually the owner was paid and said she released the dogs. Barbara Tynes, a former Happy Endings employee, said when she worked she would answer calls from kennels asking when they would be paid for services rendered. I saw constant battles over finances between Mrs. Pardo and all of the facilities, Tynes said. We were asked When are we going to get paid? all the time. Robinson-Pardo cited the fact that all dogs were eventually released back to Happy Endings as proof that the entities were paid. None of the boarding facilities would have released the dogs to us if we had not paid the bill in full or in a timely manner, she wrote in an email. Despite the financial hardship, Mason said he is trying to take care of the rescue dogs from week to week. He said Diggy Bones plans to sell T-shirts to try to raise money, and a local Girl Scouts troop is doing a fundraiser for them. But he fears the money will run out soon. We dont see any light at the end of the tunnel, he said. On Thursday, Donald Trump called Pope Francis a pawn of the Mexican government and accused the leader of the worlds Catholics of disgraceful rhetoric. On Friday, he approvingly retold an apocryphal story about a U.S. general ordering Muslims shot with bullets dipped in pigs blood. On Saturday morning, he wondered on Twitter whether President Obama would have attended Justice Antonin Scalias funeral if it were held in a mosque. And yet, on Saturday night, Trump won the South Carolina primary, affirming him as the front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination. Are Republican voters really choosing as their standard-bearer a man who preaches such hatred and spews such vitriol? No, they arent at least not yet. But they may get Trump anyway. The good news is only 32.5 percent of South Carolina Republicans voted for Trump. The bad news: Trump may not need the support of a majority of Republican voters to secure the nomination. Five months ago, I wrote that I was so sure Trump wouldnt win the nomination that I would eat a column 18 inches of newsprint if he did. I argued that he wont prevail in the Republican primary because voters, in the end, tend to get it right. Trumps inability to rise above about 35 percent of the vote vindicates so far my faith in the voters. But even if that holds, I may be soliciting recipes for wood pulp anyway because, given the three-way race emerging between Trump, Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio, Trump could clinch the nomination with limited support. The Cook Political Report, handicappers par excellence, observed over the weekend that Trumps 35 percent ceiling of support could be enough to win a five-person race (including John Kasich and Ben Carson) and even enough to squeak out a victory in a three-way race. Cooks Dave Wasserman explained that 38 percent of the 2,472 Republican convention delegates are from winner-take-all contests, which means Trump can get them with a slim plurality of the vote. And in a number of the other states that award delegates proportionately, Cruz and Rubio are in danger of slipping below the 20 percent threshold required to get a share. This increases the odds that nobody will get the 1,237 needed, or that somebody will without winning a majority of votes. The long-awaited consolidation behind a consensus alternative to Trump has finally begun. Jeb Bush has joined Chris Christie on the sidelines, and Rubio, after his sound-bite disaster in New Hampshire, appears to have returned as the consensus anti-Trump. But Kasich remains, denying Rubio a haul of delegates from Ohio on March 15. And while the primary map gives Cruz no plausible path (none of his strongest states is winner-take-all), Cruz will remain in the race and deny Rubio a clean shot at Trump. On Sunday, Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus told ABCs George Stephanopoulos that it would be a no-brainer to support the nominee, even if its Trump. Winning is the antidote to a lot of things, he reasoned. An antidote to having a nominee who, echoing one of his supporters at a rally this month, called Cruz a vulgar name? To having a nominee who said in front of thousands that he would bomb the s--- out of ISIS? Perhaps the most disturbing of Trumps latest outrages beyond lashing out at the pope or again implying that Obama is Muslim was his decision to validate a hateful Internet hoax. In South Carolina on Friday, Trump was defending torture (he said the United States should go much further than waterboarding) when he told a story of Gen. John Pershing, who allegedly dipped bullets in pigs blood before executing Muslim prisoners in the Philippines. Historians find no substantiation for this allegation and plenty of evidence that Pershing wasnt that sort of man. When a Massachusetts state senator floated a version of the Pershing claim in 2003 in a flier, the Anti-Defamation League called it incendiary and bigoted and an offensive caricature of Muslim beliefs. And now, in 2016, the front-runner for the Republican nomination floats the same vile libel, and the chairman of the RNC says it would be a no-brainer to support him? The voters may yet get it right, but that doesnt mean the Republican Party will. Dana Milbank covers political theater for The Post. The State Commission on Judicial Conducts clearing of McLennan County Justice of the Peace W.H. Pete Peterson of judicial misconduct in his handling of defendants in the controversial Twin Peaks shootout is surely one for the law books. While the commission doesnt entirely absolve Peterson, it dismisses as significant not only his setting of identical million-dollar bonds for 177 bikers arrested after the deadly May 17 parking-lot debacle but also his stated sentiment that he did so, in part, to send a message. Mondays commission finding in response to complaints about Justice Peterson notes that his conduct in this instance, while not necessarily appropriate, did not rise to the level of sanctionable misconduct. The commission said it made its decision after interviewing individuals with knowledge of the matter (including Peterson), reviewing relevant documents and conducting legal research on judicial proprieties. Judges have long been given a certain latitude to send messages in the orders they hand down, but some defense attorneys in this particular case, plus the Texas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association, argue with at least some justification that rubber-stamping bonds for 177 bikers crossed an ethical line, showing not only obvious bias but lack of respect for individual rights and the unique evidence involving each biker taken into custody. Solid legal points all. Then again, hindsight is 20/20. Its critical to remember that Peterson, who is not a lawyer (but almost as good a retired highway trooper), was working through an avalanche of arrests in the immediate wake of a chaotic situation that left several bodies in the parking lot of a shopping center and Waco police sorting out the surviving bikers, many of them sporting colors associated with criminal motorcycle gangs. Like it or not, state law says thats credible evidence for police to consider in making arrests. Its also relevant to note that most of those million-dollar bonds were reduced drastically following negotiations between biker attorneys and prosecutors. And, yes, justification does exist for outrage at the weeks that passed before our local criminal justice system finally kicked into full gear to reduce these bonds and allow possibly innocent bikers to be released to their families. But thats an issue beyond Petersons initial responsibilities. At last autumns press conference conducted by more than two dozen attorneys protesting the lack of prompt discovery evidence from District Attorney Abel Reyna, colorful Adam Reposa, an attorney representing several bikers associated with the Bandidos, made a viable point to a Trib editorial board member: After the jury trials are done and judgment is passed, law schools and criminal justice seminars will be dissecting the legal protocol in Wacos Twin Peaks cases for decades to come and for very good reasons. Healthy community Altrusa International of Waco recently held a fundraiser featuring Patricia Sulak, M.D., a practicing physician, author, medical school professor and researcher, whose presentation focused on what makes us sick, what makes us healthy and what we can do about it. The event was quite a success, and net proceeds will be used to fund service projects selected annually by members. The publicity we received from the Trib, including the Briefly column; Community Calendar sponsored by Community Bank; and a story in Waco Todays Around Town column were instrumental in showcasing the event across McLennan County. We thank you for enabling nonprofits in their endeavors to raise money for worthy projects which can and do lead to a better community. We also thank Dr. Sulak, event sponsors, the public who supported us and the Baylor Club for assistance in planning this event. Anna Kazanas, president, Altrusa International Vote for McNamara I have enjoyed your letters concerning the sheriffs election. A couple of Sundays ago, you had all three candidates with their bios. Let me say that I am prejudiced because Im 74 years old and have lived in McLennan County most of my life. We have had some good sheriffs and some not so good, but we have never had one as qualified as Parnell McNamara. I have known Parnell since we were teenagers, and you can take whatever he says to the bank. I have a cousin who is a deputy U.S. marshal and he says Parnell was the example of what a U.S. marshal stands for. Parnells competitors are telling about what they have done in their lines of work, and Im sure they both are nice people. But the idea of them doing Parnells duties better than he has done and what all their duties involved is like two Chihuahua pups trailing a mountain lion. Dan Willis, Ross Vote for Snell I am pleased to support the conservative, hardworking, caring, results-oriented approach taken by Precinct 1 McLennan County Commissioner Kelly Snell, and I support his re-election campaign. As American citizens, those of us who do not vote are no better off than those who cant. Steve Smith, Spenco Medical Corp., Waco Vote for Trump We the people are fed up with the lies and deceit of the greedy politicians who think more of themselves than the people they represent. They are a group of self-righteous individuals who capitalize on every opportunity to benefit themselves. Our voice is being heard loud and clear. Politicians, you will mistreat us no more. We will elect a person who is not a politician and cannot be bought, one who is on a mission to take this country back and restore the greatness that it once had. We will elect one Donald J. Trump. And so it shall be. George Devine, Kokomo, Indiana Gregory Pappy Boyington, the legendary leader of VMF-214, Blacksheep Squadron, is one of those characters in military lore whose deeds and abilities have largely been swallowed up by the myth that has grown up around the man in the decades since WWII. It is very difficult to separate the man from the fiction, but what we can examine the contemporary documents from his time leading VMF-214 to get some sense of what he was as a leader and tactician, but without the confusion of later hyperbole. Newly minted WarbirdsNews contributor, Dr. John M. Curatola, former US Marine, and associate professor in the Department of History at the US Army Command and General Staff College in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas has taken a look through Boyingtons reports from his time at VMF-214, and written a fascinating appraisal of the man as commander and tactician. We hope you enjoy what he has to say in the following article. Pappys Procedures by John M. Caratola, PhD. Of the many brave men whove participated in aerial combat, Pappy Boyington stands out in the annals of aviation history. As the commander of VMF 214, flying F4U Corsairs in the south Pacific in late 1943, his combat skills have become the stuff of legend. However, like any legend there are kernels of truth wrapped around hyperbole. What most dont realize is that while Pappy was indeed an unconventional Marine officer, he was an excellent tactician and practitioner of aerial combat. The image of him as a renegade, devil-may-care warrior belies his professionalism as an aviator and deliberate approach to the many nuances of aerial combat. In contrast to his popular persona as an undisciplined and unruly aviator, he recognized the importance of careful preflight planning, preparation, and attention to detail. In a February 1944 report that specifically studied Boyingtons tactics, it is clear that he was not just a seat-of-the-pants aviator with a reckless, cavalier attitude. Quite the opposite is true as his preparation for combat and development of tactics, techniques, and procedures were deliberate, thoughtful, and well considered. Even before take-off Pappy conducted thorough briefings that addressed the nature of the mission in detail, its purpose, specific navigation and heading information, altitudes, alternate targets, leader/wingman responsibilities, rendezvous points, possible contingencies, and accurate weather information. He also understood the importance of exploiting the sun, weather, and terrain in the conduct of the mission and used it to his squadrons advantage. Furthermore he required aircrew to conduct methodical preflight checks, especially of their Corsairs oxygen systems. Interestingly, he was also concerned with the maintenance of the national insignia on the aircraft. In order to facilitate identification, he required that the stars and bars be freshly painted and maintained. Due to the nature of the environment in the combat zone, the national insignia would often fade because of exposure to the sun or from the abrasion from sand, dirt and coral dust prevalent at the airfields and the regular washing the maintenance teams had to do because of it. Once airborne, Pappy was just as methodical. He emphasized that all pilots be vigilant and develop an individual scanning method of the surrounding airspace for any possible enemy attacks. Furthermore, crews were to develop the ability to quickly identify friend from foe. For the fighter pilot, speed is life, and it was key to the Corsairs success in combat. Boyington made a point to maintain high speeds through danger areas at a rate that all aircraft in the formation could maintain. In the same vein, he usually sought to avoid a climb into the attack from a lower altitude. Instead he preferred to dive on the enemy from above using the power of the Corsairs 2,000hp R-2800 engine and attack from the front or rear of a Japanese formation. Having an understanding of enemy aircraft engine horsepower limitations, he also knew that his foe could not catch the Americans in such a profile. Furthermore, his close appreciation for the F4Us sturdy construction told him that, should the Japanese give chase, the Corsairs self-sealing fuel tanks and armor plate minimized the aircrafts rearward vulnerability to fire. Slashing attacks were the preferred method for the faster and more powerful Corsairs, while avoiding a close turning fight that usually played to a Japanese fighters advantage. When attacking, the Corsair packed considerable firepower with its six .50 caliber machine guns. Through his own field testing and experience, Boyington determined the best mix of tracer, armor piercing, and incendiary rounds in the machine gun ammunition belts was not the standard even mix of 1 tracer, 1 armor piercing, and 1 incendiary for a 1-1-1 combination. His squadron went with the combination sequence of 2 incendiary, 1 armor piercing, 2 incendiary, and one tracer for a 2-1-2-1 belting combination. This mix of ammunition was more effective against the lightly-built and easily flammable Japanese fighters that also lacked the armor plate and self-sealing fuel tanks that American aircraft had. Boyington also saw the need for proficiency training for his crews. Boring duties such as fighter patrols and task force top cover flights were considered opportunities to develop required combat skills. Pilots receiving these duties were to practice their formation flying for both section leads and their wingmen, with the crews switching positions periodically. Pappy also had them practice combat air maneuvers such as tight turns, violent rolling scissors, and section movements. Additionally, he wanted crews to develop their long range observation and scanning practices. As a result, mundane activities were turned into training opportunities to increase overall squadron proficiency and combat effectiveness. In addition to air-to-air combat tactics, Boyington also developed methods for effective ground strafing maneuvers. Understanding the effectiveness of such attacks, he developed procedures that minimized aircraft vulnerability to ground fire, while maximizing damage to the enemy. He concluded that low-level runs should be made at high speed. While this minimized the number of rounds delivered and diminished observation during any given pass, it had the overriding benefit of reducing the enemys ability to target an individual aircraft during its attack run. Pappy also had pilots fly at a constant power setting, allowing them to focus more closely on the target, thus increasing accuracy and lessening the risk of overshooting a given target, which could easily happen with a quick throttle boost. Aircraft were to fly, not in column, but in a flat echelon to maximize damage on the ground. If the target was too small to attack in a flat echelon, the Corsairs were to attack from different angles as simultaneously as possible. Once the aircraft has completed the strafing run, egress from the target was to be low and fast with a watchful eye for rising water spouts resulting from enemy fire from the rear. As well-documented, VMF 214 under Boyington was a marvel of combat efficiency. In a short span of about four months his Blacksheep squadron destroyed 94 enemy planes in aerial combat, claiming another 32 as probables, with 50 more counted as damaged. Not only did Pappys squadron claim victories over enemy aircraft, but they were also credited with destroying 20 enemy barges and 15 other vessels during strafing attacks along with many Japanese troop concentrations on various islands. Boyington is often represented as a misfit and undisciplined officer, but this persona belied his true professionalism, diligent study, and preparation for aerial combat. While Boyington may have been irreverent and struggled with inner demons in his personal life, he was a calculating, attentive, and conscientious aerial tactician once he made his way to flight line. - WarbirdsNews wishes to express its gratitude to Dr. John M. Curatola for this fascinating insight into the legendary Pappy Boyington. We look forwards to Curatolas next article, which expect will cover the fascinating subject of aircraft nose art. Our loving wife, mother, sister, daughter, grandmother and friend left this earth peacefully after a hard battle with cancer. Sherry Rene Thompson was born to Mary and Joe Buchanan on April 6, 1960 in Topeka, Kansas. As a daughter of an air force serviceman she got to travel the country. She met her husband Lon while he was working for her dad in New Mexico. Lon and Sherry were married on November 27, 1980 in Globe, Arizona. They raised 5 children over the years. Sherry and her family have been in the Elko area for over 20 years. Sherry was diagnosed with colon cancer in 2011 and she moved to California for chemo treatment and to be cared for by her mother. After putting up a hard fight, she decided to move back to Carlin to be closer to her children and grandchildren. After years of being apart, Lon and Sherry found their way into each others lives again, not only as husband and wife, but mother and father and grandpa and nana. Lon cared for her for the last year of her life, giving her what she needed, love and companionship. They remarried just a short time before she passed on February 18, 2016. Sherry is survived by her mother Mary, brother, Joe; husband Lon, daughter Jill (Terry), sons David and Ben, daughter-in-law Erica, daughter Kate (Andy) and 7 grandchildren. She's up in heaven with her father Joe, her grandmother Ruby, her brother David and her son Nick all watching Nick do his Carlton dance. Services will be held Saturday, February 27, 2016 at the Carlin LDS Church at 2pm. Higher sales at its offshore malls has seen Frank Lowy's Westfield Corporation report a profit of $US2.3 billion ($3.2 billion) for its first full year since it was spun off Westfield's Australian and New Zealand centres in 2014. Westfield, now one of the most high-profile Australian companies in the United States, was born from the split of the local and international arms of the business. Big projects: Westfield's World Trade Center Transportation Hub mall. Credit:Bryan Thomas The Australian-focused sister business, Scentre Group chaired by elder statesman Frank Lowy, last week also beat market expectations with a healthy full-year result. The 2015 Westfield result was boosted by property revaluations of $US632 million and a 6.4 per cent rise in speciality store sales to $US726 per square foot. I am not a scientist. I never studied science past the most elementary level. I certainly don't pretend to know anything about the effects on human brain cells of electromagnetic waves in the radio frequency. But I do have a lifetime's experience of long-form television journalism, as a producer, reporter and editor. And, in my opinion, Dr Maryanne Demasi, of the ABC's Catalyst program, just doesn't understand the difference between journalism and advocacy. Ms Guthrie has had a tumultuous start to the job, criticised for cuts to science program Catalyst (pictured) and programming changes to Radio National. Credit:ABC TV Demasi's modus operandi is becoming all too familiar. Find a scary thesis that is bound to resonate with many ordinary Australians: people who take statins to lower the chances of cardiovascular disease; parents of young people who are being prescribed antidepressants; people who use mobile telephones a lot, and a far bigger cohort the parents of children who use Wi-Fi devices. Find advocates in the scientific world who have plausible credentials plausible, at least to the layperson and who challenge the prevailing scientific orthodoxy: advocates who claim statins are not decreasing, and might even be increasing, the risk of mortality in many of those who are taking them; that antidepressants are inducing psychosis or suicidal tendencies in young people; that prolonged mobile telephone use is probably increasing the risk of brain tumours, and that all Wi-Fi devices might yet prove to be dangerous, especially to children. He may have apologised for the lack of diversity in the cast of the action-fantasy movie Gods of Egypt but Australian director Alex Proyas remains convinced he chose the right actors. Gerard Butler in Gods of Egypt. Controversy blew up over the casting of the movie when the poster and trailer for the movie were released last year. On the eve of the Australian-shot movie opening wide in the US and this country, the filmmaker behind The Crow, Dark City, I, Robot and Knowing has a pragmatic view of the controversy that blew up when the poster and trailer for the movie were released late last year, drawing flak on social media for the predominantly white cast playing ancient Egyptian mortals and gods. "It's a fact of life," Proyas says. "It's the world we live in right now. The movie is not the best platform for this debate so I'll leave to others to discuss inclusiveness in Hollywood movies. Okay, time to wrap up. What happened? the government has been at sixes and sevens over its message on Labor's negative gearing policy ; has been at sixes and sevens over its message on ; Assistant Treasurer Kelly O'Dwyer was forced to clarify comments she made in which she said the policy would result in increased house prices; was forced to clarify comments she made in which she said the policy would result in increased house prices; Ms O'Dwyer was brought into line in time for another question time which zeroed in on what the effect of the policy will be; was brought into line in time for another which zeroed in on what the effect of the policy will be; Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull suggested it would cost the economy hundreds of millions of dollars; suggested it would cost the economy hundreds of millions of dollars; Labor frontbencher Gary Gray has criticised his party's position on Senate voting reform but will still vote along party lines; and has criticised his party's position on but will still vote along party lines; and Opposition leader Bill Shorten called Liberal senator Cory Bernardi a "homophobe". It definitely feels like the second half of the week, doesn't it? As usual, my thanks to Andrew Meares and Alex Ellinghausen for their super work and to you for reading and commenting. You can follow me on Facebook. Andrew, Alex and I will be back in the morning and we hope to see you then. Until that time - good night. A police hunt is underway for a pregnant prisoner who escaped from custody on Wednesday morning on the way to hospital. Janaya Edith Williams was last seen around 8.30am at King Edward Memorial Hospital. Janaya Edith Williams. The 21-year-old is classed as a maximum security prisoner at Bandyup Women's Prison. She was scheduled to appear in a Perth court on Friday to face several charges against her including possession of stolen or unlawfully obtained property, stealing, burglary and gains benefit by fraud. Washington: The Centres for Disease Control and Prevention has revealed it is investigating 14 new reports of potential sexual transmission of the Zika virus in the United States. Several of the cases involve pregnant women. In at least two of the cases, a Zika infection was confirmed in women whose only known risk factor was sexual contact with an ill male partner who recently had returned from one of the nearly three dozen countries where the virus has now spread. Four other women have tested positive for Zika in preliminary lab tests but are awaiting final confirmation. The CDC on Tuesday said eight other cases remain under investigation. Four people were feared dead on Tuesday night after a building collapse at Didcot power station in south Oxfordshire. Emergency services declared a "major incident" with one person dead, three missing and five in hospital following the collapse. Didcot Power Station after Tuesday night's collapse Credit:PA The incident took place at about 4pm in the turbine hall of the former coal-fired Didcot A plant, which closed in 2013 and was in the process of being demolished. It is thought to have been caused by work to prepare two boilers for demolition. A spokesman for owner RWE npower said workers would have had to weaken the building prior to its demolition, which was scheduled for next month. ELKO Elko County Republicans lined the halls and filled the rooms of the Elko Conference Center Tuesday night to make their voices heard for who they want to see as their presidential nominee. Upon entering the building, voters signed in and were directed to their respective precincts where they would not only discuss the candidate of their choice or possibly confirm the selection through conversation but were handed a sheet of paper listing the names of the candidates. Once his or her nominee was selected, the voter turned the ballot over to an official, where it was placed in an envelope, and was then free to leave. The three candidates who seemed to be on everyones minds were Sens. Ted Cruz and Macro Rubio and businessman Donald Trump, with the aforementioned senators appearing to be at the forefront. Cruz won Elko County with 1,039 votes or about 43 percent and Trump came in second with 600 votes or 25 percent. Rubio was third in Elko County with 503 votes or about 21 percent. Statewide Trump won the caucus with 34,531 votes or almost 46 percent. Rubio came in second with 17,940 votes and Cruz came in third with 16,079 votes. Dr. Ben Carson and former Ohio governor John Kasich came in fourth and fifth, respectively. Neither had a double digit percentage of the votes in the state. Tuesdays caucus vote also helps to allocate who attends both the county and state conventions. Help us have a voice at the state convention, at the county convention thats why were here tonight, said county party member-at-large Lynne Hoffman in Precinct Eight, as the process began. She fervently stated the voices of the voters will make a difference in the coming election. Precinct Captain Dave Mathewson spoke about his support for Sen. Ted Cruz. Comparing him to President Ronald Reagan, Mathewson called Cruzs beliefs strong and said he has unwavering conservative values. Mathewson voiced issues that resonate with him: federal lands and the nomination to late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalias seat. He called the latter an extremely serious matter, which he would entrust to Sen. Cruzs judgment. I felt like he had a better grasp on the issues in the West than some of the other candidates, said Peggy Miller, explaining Cruzs address to Elkoans Monday night impressed her. She likes his strong conservatism, particularly his views concerning the Constitution. She said she will vote Republican no matter who the candidate is, but she hopes it will be Cruz. Precinct Five showed the duality of the Cruz versus Rubio debate. One precinct member, in particular, felt every election they are faced with the lesser of two evils and that Cruz is a candidate who has a backbone. Judy Hemenway spoke to the group, not as a supporter of a particular candidate, but of the issues important to her. We need to make this our country again, she said, explaining fellow Republicans need someone who can stand up for the Constitution and look toward a man who is not part of the Washington establishment. County Commissioner Delmo Andreozzi spoke to the same precinct of his support for Senator Marco Rubio. He said, telling the group his family emigrated from Italy, the Florida senator spoke to the American Dream and that everyone has the ability to reach greatness. Andreozzi concluded he felt Rubio has the best chance for nominating a confirmation to Scalias seat. Others around the caucus commented they like Rubio because he is not a polarizing candidate. Back in Precinct Eight, attendees discussed the differences between Trump and Cruz. Cruzs birthplace was a point of contention; it was also said Cruz had far more integrity that Trump, with one voter stating her future is more secure with Cruz. County Commissioner Glen Guttry spoke to the Free Press after he voted. Rubio is the one I think has the best chance of beating Hillary Clinton. So, thats who I like, but whoever the nominee is, whoever the candidate is, at the end of the day, thats who Im going to support, he said, explaining he was not undecided before coming to the caucus. Guttry said he finds Rubio to be more down to earth and has good ideas, including his stance on immigration. All the candidates, in my opinion, have good reason to be president and they all have some good ideas, he said, explaining his main motivation to vote for Rubio was that Clinton could be the likely Democratic nominee. Guttry and his wife, Casey, signed up for the Nevada State Convention and the Elko County Convention. Casey Guttry will also be on the Central Committee, he said. We all have to do our part. Its easy to sit back say somebody else can do it, but we have to stand up and fight for what we believe in, the commissioner concluded, discussing why they will be taking part in the conventions. The Central Committee serves as a link between the party and the community in Elko County. After coming into his precinct undecided, Duane Hoem said he was going to vote for Rubio. Im retired military, and Ive seen the military be deflated over the last seven years or so, and I think security of our country is really at risk. I think we need a president that understands international relations and understands the need for a really strong military, he said, telling the Free Press Rubio is the candidate who seems to focus on that. Hoem said he would vote for any of the three front-runners but Rubio best exhibits his beliefs. The caucus was not only a place where voters could express their preferences, but also where a petitioner came for signatures. Were concerned as business owners what this could do to Nevada business, said Debbie Pawelek, of Natural Nutrition, as she was gaining more signatures to help repeal the Nevada Commerce Tax. She said 55,000 signatures are needed from the State of Nevada and the store has gotten over 700. Were hoping to get the 55,000 by June 21, and that will put it on the ballot where it can then be voted for or against, said Pawelek, explaining that being at the caucus was a great place for registered voters and for her to inform others about the tax. She said there are now 15 businesses carrying the petition. Patrick Norman Pat Chapman is a 34-year-old, Caucasian male who was last known to be in Piedmont which is near the area of Greenville, Missouri on May 10, 2020. Pat had stayed the night with a friend and his wife at their home. In the early morning when the friend woke to go to work. Pat was gone in his own Burgundy color 1995 Ford Escort. That is the last anyone was known to have seen him. The vehicle was later recovered on May 29, 2020 in Mill Spring, Missouri. Nov. 18 Charges of drawing a deadly weapon in a threatening manner, three counts of trespassing and two counts of disturbing the peace against Karl Guy Armstrong, 53, of Elko were dismissed as the defendant was found to be not competent. Nov. 23 Amber Cheyenne Shoumack, 20, of Spring Creek pleaded guilty to disturbing the peace and consumption by a minor prohibited. Dec. 2 Steven Robert Johnson, 56, of Spring Creek was sentenced after previously pleading guilty to DUI of alcohol and or drugs. Dec. 8 Jedidiah JV Truitt, 34, of Spring Creek pleaded guilty to battery. Dec. 18 Andrew Paul Leahy, 31, of Elko pleaded no contest to obstructing a public officer. Dec. 22 Canika Lynn McGarva was bound over to district court on a charge of possession of a controlled substance. Dec. 23 Travis Blaineguy Johnston was bound over to district court on a charge of eluding police and endangering a person or property. Jan. 4 Nicolas Valdez Valenzuala was bound over to district court on two counts of uttering forged instruments and burglary. Jan. 5 Leland Phillip Smith was bound over to district court on a charge of third-offense DUI of alcohol and or drugs. Khajuraho Dance Festival Place : Khajuraho, Bundalkhand, Madhya Pradesh Venue : Western Group of temples, Khajuraho Date : February Schedule 2020 The small village of Khajuraho situated in the northernmost part of Madhya Pradesh, lies 395 Km southeast of Agra. Once the religious capital of Chandela dynasty, one of the powerful Rajput dynasties of Central India, Khajuraho is now famous for it's enchanting temples and it's legendary Khajuraho dance festival. The week- long festival of classical dances is held every year in February/March against the spectacular backdrop of the magnificently lit temples. The temples, classified into three groups-the western group, the eastern group, and the southern group are beautifully sculptured in stone and more than a thousand years old. The sculptures reflect mainly the life, moods and religious faith of that time. This cultural festival highlights the richness of the various Indian classical dance styles such as Kathak , Bharathanatyam, Odissi , Kuchipudi , Manipuri and Kathakali with performances of some of the best exponents in the field. Modern Indian dance has also been added recently. The dances are performed in an open air auditorium, usually in front of the Chitragupta Temple dedicated to Surya (the Sun God) and the Vishwanatha Temple dedicated to Lord Shiva, belonging to the western group. Along with the renowned performers, a number of craftsmen display their crafts to the visitors. There is an open market where local articles are there for sale. Khajuraho Dance Festival is conducted as a celebration of the cultural heritage of Khajuraho temples and preserving it for the coming generation. Besides enthralling the vast audience with dance performances by new or younger artistes, the 43rd edition of Khajuraho Dance Festival (2017) opened gates to aspiring sculptors and artists within India and from foreign lands, and set up an 'Art Mart' at the venue. Be it an authentic food festival, crafts & handloom from different places for people to buy or workshops by traditional artisans where you can partake in making a product, the Dance Festival has something for everyone. How to get there Danny Chun Danny Chun Danny Chun 2016218Danny Chunwikipedia February 18, 2016 The Honorable Judge Danny Chun Supreme Court of the State of New York County of Kings 320 Jay Street, 19th Floor Brooklyn, New York 11201 Re: People v. Peter Liang Indictment No. 9988/2014 Dear Judge Chun: The Committee of 100 (C-100) is an organization of distinguished Chinese American leaders in the fields of business, law, academia, government, the arts, and sciences. As a non-profit, non-partisan organization committed to the full inclusion of Chinese Americans in the U.S., C-100 has been at the forefront for 25 years in promoting due process and equal protection for Chinese Americans and all Asian Americans. On behalf of C-100, I write regarding the case of People v. Peter Liang. Like most Americans, our members lament and deplore the killing of African Americans without justification. The loss of black lives at the hands of police officers is a complex societal issue that urgently needs to be addressed by all who care about our ideals. The Committee of 100 supports appropriate and fair prosecution of these matters. We regretfully note the general lack of accountability in such killings prior to this case. C-100 promotes the full participation of Chinese and Asian Americans in every aspect of American life, including law enforcement. There has never been an Asian American law enforcement officer in the news such as this, and how he is treated will signal to Asian Americans and others whether we are equal members of our society. The evidence in People vs. Peter Liang suggests the situation was an unintentional event involving a frightened rookie policeman who may not have been fully trained nor adequately supported. As importantly, Peter Liang does not appear to be a danger to society. We respectfully ask for leniency in this upcoming sentencing. We trust that you will decide on a fair and just outcome commensurate with the applicable law and the circumstances of this case. All Americans should feel that justice has been served. Thank you for your attention. Sincerely, Herman Li Acting Chairman (ChineseAmerican.org) lwen66 2016-02-24 07:56:57 2016-02-23 20:13:26 --------------------------------------------------- wen1 2016-02-23 21:16:31 2016-02-23 20:13:26 . , . , , , , , . , , 480 (, , , ). , , . 480 , . , , , . , , . . , , . , , (, ). . , , : , , . 480 ? , , , 5. , . , . , . , , , , , . , , , . , , , . , . , , , . State Attorney ()State Attorney 5 Is America ready to embrace socialism? Editor: It is beyond belief to have heard the rhetoric of Marx and Lenin issuing forth from U.S. Presidential candidate Bernie Sanders on his visit to Elko. Is the mood of America changing? Are the people evolving to a state where they are willing to see the Stars and Stripes replaced by the Red Flag of Socialism? Marx and Lenin were social democrats ... Nazism is socialist. The Heritage Foundations Economic Freedom index for 2016 shows that the U.S., long the model for economic freedom for the rest of the world, now trails behind Hong Kong, Singapore, New Zealand, Canada, Ireland and five other nations. In 2008 the U.S. was sixth in the world for economic freedom. It has the highest corporate tax rate in the world 35 percent. This has driven new jobs to other, more competitive nations and has meant fewer jobs and lower wages for Americans. Crystal gazing is not an accurate way of foretelling the future, but I think that one can predict from the track record of Socialist governments in Europe, and not forgetting Socialism/Communism in the former USSR, that the United States would be much lower in world economic freedom after a four-year session with Bernie Sanders. Socialism by its very nature is totalitarian. People are treated as masses, a sort of raw material to be thinned when they think it too thick. It is indifferent to property rights, loves higher taxes, the nationalization of banks and industry, and they love to hate the middle class and the rich. The trouble with Socialism is that it eventually runs out of other peoples money. Changing from a Capitalist to a Socialist system would transform all aspects of life in the United States. Winston Churchill remarked Socialism will only work in two places Heaven where it is not needed and Hell where they already have it. Kathy Mosses Montello By West Kentucky Star Staff Feb. 24, 2016 | 06:24 AM | PADUCAH, KY During Tuesday night's Paducah City Commission meeting, commissioners introduced a change order for the 432 Broadway demolition project. The change order would increase the project amount by $10,830 and increase the contract time by 30 calendar days, for a completion date of March 27. The additional time and costs result from the need to stop demolition work while steel reinforcement work was being finished. For safety reasons, Environmental Abatement, Inc. did not want to continue with the demolition work until crews with Darnell Steel and Construction were finished, which led to increased costs for the rental of equipment and the need to extend the contract deadline. The change order brings the total cost with EAI to $490,448. In July 2015, the City of Paducah purchased the condemned building at 432 Broadway for $1 from a limited liability company. The buildings owner indicated that he did not have the financial means to stabilize the building or bring it up to code. Preliminary estimates to stabilize the building were between $1.9 and $2.0 million. The city had been working with the buildings owner since 2010 on correction measures. The city will receive Community Development Block Grant funds in the amount of $500,000 for the project. A match of $125,000 is required from the city. The City had to own the building in order to submit the grant application. Musk may lay off 75% of Twitter staff after purchase By West Kentucky Star Staff Feb. 24, 2016 | 06:19 AM | WEST PADUCAH, KY A home search Tuesday night resulted in an arrest on probation and drug charges. At approximately 11:15 p.m. Tuesday, McCracken County Sheriffs deputies received information that a man with an outstanding probation violation Warrant was staying at a home on Jason Drive in West Paducah. Deputies made contact with the homeowner and received consent to search the home for the man, identified as 48-year-old Kenneth Brunston of Paducah. Brunston was found in a bedroom inside the home. Brunston was reportedly in possession of methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia. Brunston was arrested for the warrant and drug-related charges. He was lodged in McCracken County Regional Jail. Podemos leader Pablo Iglesias in Congress on Tuesday. Fernando Alvarado (EFE) Podemos, the left-leaning group that emerged as the third force in Spanish politics at the December 20 general election, says it will not support Socialist Party (PSOE) leader Pedro Sanchez in the vote to make him prime minister next week if he cuts a deal with the smaller center-right Ciudadanos formation. Speaking after the Socialists on Tuesday announced that they were ready to sign an agreement with Ciudadanos after accepting its demands for fast-track constitutional reform, Podemos leader Pablo Iglesias rejected a deal that he said would ultimately include the Popular Party (PP), which won the most seats in the December poll but fell short of a majority. Podemos and the Socialists have so far been unable to reach an agreement in their own ongoing talks to form a coalition government with other leftist groups, principally over its demands for an independence referendum in Catalonia. Assuming a deal between Sanchez and Rivera whose parties came second and fourth respectively in the election is approved today by their respective executive committees, it would likely fail to garner support in Congress on March 1, the date the session to vote in a new prime minister is due to start. If the PP doesnt support the deal, then there is no government and no investiture Between them, the two parties have 130 seats out of the 350 in Congress, and would need the backing of Podemos 69 deputies, as well as those of the United Left and regional parties in Catalonia, the Basque Country and the Canary Islands, among others, to get Sanchez invested as prime minister. Alternatively, the backing of the PP, which has 123 seats, in the form of an abstention would also allow the Socialist leader to be voted in. However, the conservative party has made it clear that it will not support Sanchez, who was tasked with forming a government after acting Prime Minister and PP leader Mariano Rajoy refused to bid for reinstatement because he lacked sufficient congressional support. If the PP doesn't support the deal, then there is no government and no investiture, said Iglesias on Tuesday evening. Ciudadanos plan to reform the Constitution includes reforms to the tax system, labor market and regional powers that Podemos opposes According to its demands, the constitutional changes that Ciudadanos wants would have to be implemented within three months of a government being formed. They include measures to tackle corruption and political interference in the judiciary that Podemos supports, but also reforms to the tax system, the labor market, and the role of central government in regional affairs that it opposes. Podemos says it is still talking to the Socialist Party about a broad coalition that would also include the United Left and the Valencian Compromis party. If no agreement is reached in time for the investiture, fresh elections will be held on June 26. Email To : Multiple e-mail addresses must be separated with a comma character(maximum 200 characters) Email To is required. Your Full Name: (optional) Your Email Address: Your Email Address is required. Advertisement By West Kentucky Star Staff Feb. 23, 2016 | HARDIN COUNTY, KY By West Kentucky Star Staff Feb. 23, 2016 | 05:13 PM | HARDIN COUNTY, KY Authorities may be closing in on a fugitive who escaped from a western Kentucky jail last week. WDRB in Louisville reports police have discovered that escaped inmate Lostia Shreves was hiding at a vacant home in the Flint Hill area of Hardin County on Monday afternoon, and the Sheriff's Department is warning people to lock their homes. Shreves, of Cecelia, KY escaped from the Western Kentucky Correctional Complex on Wednesday, Feb. 17. On Monday morning, carpenters reportedly arrived at an abandoned barn and found a truck parked inside. The carpenters then reported the truck in to local authorities. When local deputies ran the tag on the truck it came back stolen. They then located a man near the vehicle, Randy Harrington, and arrested him for receiving stolen property. Police used a helicopter to search the area, but didn't have any luck finding Shreves. They are asking anyone who sees her to call 911. By Joe Jackson Feb. 24, 2016 | 01:04 PM | MAYFIELD, KY A Marshall County woman was arrested in Graves County over the weekend on theft and drug charges. According to the Mayfield Police Department, just before 6:00 am Saturday, officers investigated a suspicious van in the parking lot of Jackson Purchase Medical Center. When officers arrived on scene, they found the van near the emergency room entrance and spoke with a woman inside, later identified as Kelly Oakley, of Benton. While officers were speaking with Oakley, they reportedly saw two "Sharps" containers of used syringes and vials of drugs in plain view inside the van. Police said they learned that Oakley went into the hospital's same day surgery wing, where she stole the two containers. According to police, Oakley then took the containers to her van and began injecting herself with the different drugs she stole. Police said they found about 30 to 40 used syringes and more than 100 vials of stolen controlled substances in Oakley's van. Oakley was arrested and charged with public intoxication, burglary, possession of controlled substance, theft by unlawful taking and possession of drug paraphernalia. She was booked into the Graves County Jail. Rita Redmond was a true lady who felt that every pupil had something to gift to the world After celebrating its first birthday in the West End yesterday evening, Beautiful - The Carole King Musical has extended its run at the Aldwych Theatre, now booking until 18 February 2017. The award-winning show currently stars Cassidy Janson in the title role with Alan Morrissey as King's husband and song-writing partner Gerry Goffin, Lorna Want as song-writer Cynthia Weil and Ian McIntosh as song-writer Barry Mann. Beautiful was nominated in this year's WhatsOnStage Awards for Best New Musical and has just received an Olivier Magic Radio Audience Award nomination. The show features Carole King classics including "Will You Love Me Tomorrow", "Up on the Roof", "Locomotion", "One Fine Day", "You've Got a Friend" and "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman". Commenting on the extension, Carole King said: "I had the great pleasure of seeing the West End production of Beautiful on opening night with my dear friends Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil. We were all so moved that we joined the company onstage after the show in singing "You've Got a Friend" and of course we couldn't help but think of Gerry Goffin, who passed away in 2014. "I know that Gerry would join Barry, Cynthia, and me in expressing gratitude not only to the company but to audience members, many of whom are coming to see the show not just once but twice or thrice. London is one of my favourite cities. Here's to another brilliant year. Cheers!" President Evo Morales during a news conference in La Paz. DAVID MERCADO (REUTERS) More information Bolivia le dice no a la intencion de Evo Morales de buscar otra reeleccion Bolivia has voted against a proposal that would have allowed President Evo Morales to run for an unprecedented fourth term in 2019, official results show. After a count lasting more than 48 hours, the countrys Electoral Tribunal released the final tally from Sundays referendum, which showed that 51.30% of Bolivians voted against changing the Constitution while 48.70% said yes to Morales re-election bid. The outcome marks the biggest political setback and first electoral defeat for the leftist Aymara Indian leader since he came to office in 2006. If he had won the referendum and was re-elected, Morales would have been able to remain in office until 2025. The issue had greatly divided Bolivians, but exit polls on Sunday revealed that the president had narrowly lost the referendum. The outcome marks the first electoral defeat for the leftist Aymara Indian leader since he came to office in 2006 Life goes on and the fight continues, Morales said on Monday after learning the preliminary results. Even though Morales has been credited for the social progress and development Bolivia has enjoyed over the past decade, a string of corruption scandals involving his Movement for Socialism (MAS) party has angered many people. One of the highest-profile cases involved the Fondo Indigena (Indigenous Fund), a public entity set up to help rural communities that is run by various union leaders, including MAS officials. According to conservative estimates, around $30 million has been diverted from the agency over the years. What embarrassed the Morales government was that the union leaders ostensibly spent the money without any consideration for the indigenous communities, who were watching what was happening. Morales was also caught up in a personal scandal perhaps the biggest controversy in his political career when he admitted that he had had a romantic relationship with Gabriela Zapata, a lobbyist for Chinese companies that hold investments in Bolivia. The unmarried president had a son, who later died, with Zapata. Corruption and personal scandals did not help Morales win votes in the referendum While the government tried to play down suggestions of influence peddling, the scandal directly marred Morales image. The president accused the opposition of launching a dirty war against his administration with the help of the United States. The economy has also taken its toll on the Morales administration. The fall in the global price of oil has affected Bolivia, which is a supplier of natural gas to its neighboring countries. English version by Martin Delfin. Venezuelan ambassador to Madrid Mario Isea. KIKO HUESCA (EFE) More information Exteriores avisa a la Embajada de Venezuela que no acose a la oposicion The Spanish Foreign Ministry has issued a warning to Venezuelas ambassador in Madrid to order the missions military attache to stop harassing Venezuelan opposition groups in Spain. For the moment, Spanish diplomats have preferred issuing the warning instead of ordering Venezuelan Lt. Colonel Jose Rafael Vasquez Mora, who is assigned to the embassy, to leave the country for spying on Venezuelan citizens. Spain does not want to further escalate the tensions that already exist between the Popular Party (PP) government of Mariano Rajoy and President Nicolas Maduro. Last month, the Association of Venezuelan Students in Spain (EVE) filed a complaint with the Attorney Generals Office against Vasquez, accusing him of infiltrating different events and activities for the purpose of identifying its leaders. Vasquez Mora reportedly hid his true identity while attending the opposition rallies, EVE charged. Vasquezs alleged spying has resulted in personal attacks against some student leaders in pro-government media outlets back home His spying, according to the complaint, has resulted in personal attacks against some student leaders in pro-government media outlets back home and has caused problems for families in sending money to students in Spain. According to sources, Vasquez has 13 people many of them military officials from Venezuelan intelligence working with him at the embassy in Madrid. After an investigation, the Foreign Ministry found that Vasquez was performing duties incompatible with his diplomatic status and warned Venezuelan Ambassador Mario Isea to order Vasquez to stop his spying activities. For now, Spanish Foreign Minister Jesus Garcia-Margallo does not want to order the expulsion of Vasquez because he fears the Caracas government would respond by doing the same to a staff member at the Spanish Embassy in Venezuela. Such a move would only further escalate tensions between the two governments and may cause problems for the 200,000 Spaniards living in Venezuela and the Spanish companies that operate there, Spanish officials fear. Spain fears an expulsion may cause problems for the 200,000 Spaniards living in Venezuela Spain has complained on a number of occasions about the public insults that Maduro has hurled at Rajoy and other PP leaders. Despite the tensions, the two countries respective embassies remain open. Sources have said that the warning to the Venezuelan Embassy is the best diplomatic route for the moment. But they add that the lieutenant general could eventually be expelled if he continues to harass opposition groups or if the Attorney Generals Office decides to take legal action. Although Vasquez is not a diplomat, he could claim immunity from prosecution under the Vienna Convention. The last crisis between Spain and Venezuela occurred on January 22 after a Spanish television station broadcast footage taken in December 2014 of members of Podemos, the Catalan anti-establishment party CUP, and the father of a convicted ETA terrorist boarding a Venezuelan presidential plane in Madrid. Maduro had sent the aircraft to Madrid so that they could attend a conference in Caracas on human rights, independence and other issues. Acting Deputy Prime Minister Soraya Saenz de Santamaria called the trip interference by Venezuela in Spains internal affairs. English version by Martin Delfin. Traffic jams on roads leading into central Barcelona. albert garcia Barcelonas image as a European business capital has been tarnished this week as a result of a series of transport strikes and breakdowns that have made life difficult not only for residents of Spains second-largest city, but for the 100,000 or so delegates attending the huge Mobile World Congress (MWC) being held there. Opposition parties in City Hall have criticized leftist Mayor Ada Colaus handling of the walkouts that have hit bus and subway services hard, accusing her of lack of preparation and naivety in talks with labor unions. Representatives of the hotel trade have also joined the chorus of rebukes, saying the strikes have damaged the citys reputation. After an initial walkout on Monday, transportation workers began a second planned 24-hour strike on Wednesday after the collapse of talks late on Tuesday. This time, however, bus and train services were running at 65% during rush hour after regional authorities increased minimum services. Nevertheless, it failed to prevent major tailbacks on main highways as people took to their cars. On Tuesday, a breakdown on line nine of the subway system and a bus strike also caused difficulties. At the same time, a combination of heavy traffic and Sahara dust blown across the Mediterranean from Africa led the Catalan regional government to declare an air pollution alert. The city authorities recommended people use public transport. Delegates have had trouble getting to MWC, which is only 15 minutes by bus from Barcelonas center The week-long MWC, which will continue to be held in Barcelona until 2023, generates around 460 million for the city, and is one of its most important business events. MWC organizers have publicly criticized Barcelona City Halls handling of the strikes, highlighting the difficulties delegates have encountered getting to the trade show, which is being held in the Fira de Barcelona, some 15 minutes by bus from the center of the city, in the Hospitalet de Llobregat district. SUBSCRIBERS OF UCOMS ALL TIME BEST OFFER TO ENJOY ADDITIONAL BENEFITS 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 Google Ad 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 UCOMS SPECIAL OFFER OF THE UNLIMITED INTERNET IS NOW TERMLESS 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 Google Ad The statement of the Defender on the video of the execution of Armenian PoWs by the Azerbaijani armed forces LEVEL UP ONLY FOR STUDENTS: UCOM OFFERS X2 AND X3 MORE INTERNET 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 Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 24/02/2016 (2431 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. TORONTO Finance Minister Charles Sousa will introduce the Ontario budget Thursday. Here are five things to expect in the Liberal governments fiscal plan: The ninth consecutive deficit budget is expected to clearly outline how the Liberal government will eliminate $7.5 billion in red ink by 2017-18. Ontarios net debt is expected to surpass $300 billion, with bond rating agencies watching closely to see if the debt-to-GDP ratio will be heading down from nearly 40 per cent. There will be more details on the governments cap-and-trade plan to fight climate change, which will drive up the price of most consumer goods, adding 4.3 cents a litre to the price of gasoline. It will outline already announced plans to let some grocery stores sell wine, which will get a new minimum price and could also be hit with a new tax. There will also be more details on the governments strategy to combat violence against indigenous women, which Premier Kathleen Wynne announced Monday would get $100 million in funding over three years. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 23/02/2016 (2432 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Police are asking for the publics help as they investigate the citys fifth homicide of 2016. Winnipeg mother Marilyn Rose Munroe, 41, was found dead in her Pritchard Avenue home Monday after police were called there for a report of someone in medical distress. Autopsy results are still pending and the Winnipeg Police Service said in a release Tuesday they arent sure of the circumstances surrounding Munroes death. Facebook Marilyn Rose Munroe Homicide investigators are asking anyone who had contact with Munroe in recent weeks to call them at 204-986-6508. Munroe lived at the rental house in the 200 block of Pritchard Avenue with her boyfriend and at least one other tenant, neighbours said, but had recently been given an eviction notice. The home was considered abandoned and had been boarded up. Munroes neighbour, Angela Schaefer, told the Free Press the couple often fought and police had been called to the home before. Schaefer said she didnt know what happened to her neighbour, but had concerns about domestic violence and all kinds of stuff like that. Its on recurrence, she said. Asked whether investigators believe this case may be linked to domestic violence, Winnipeg Police Service spokesman Const. Jason Michalyshen said they werent ruling anything out. He said someone who knew Munroe called police Monday morning to report she was injured and police arrived to find her dead. We have to allow our investigation to take its course and were not closing any doors. Were certainly not identifying any specific circumstance at this point; we remain open-minded and were going to conduct a thorough investigation, he said. Any information from people who saw Munroe recently could be helpful to investigators, Michalyshen said. Were encouraging anyone who knew Marilyn and had recent contact with her to give us a call and lets have that conversation that could, potentially, move our investigation forward. katie.may@freepress.mb.ca Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 23/02/2016 (2432 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. TORONTO The Bank of Montreal saw its first-quarter profit climb seven per cent to $1.07 billion, even as lagging energy prices took a bigger bite out of its loan books to the oil and gas sector. We expected an increase in impaired loans in the oil and gas franchise in particular and we saw that, but it certainly wasnt a disaster, Edward Jones analyst Jim Shanahan said after BMO issued the results Tuesday. Analysts have been predicting that the dramatic decline in the price of crude would lead to higher loan losses for the banks, as both energy companies and consumers in oil-dependent provinces begin to default on their debts. BMO Financial Group CEO William Downe, right, speaks to shareholders at the company's annual general meeting in Toronto on March 31, 2015. The Bank of Montreal saw its first-quarter profit rise seven per cent to $1.07 billion as it grew revenue in its personal and commercial banking segments on both sides of the border. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Frank Gunn But any credit issues that have surfaced in the lenders loan books during recent quarters have been mild and manageable, and if BMOs results are any indication, that trend could continue as other banks report their first-quarter results in the days ahead. BMO kicked off the earnings parade on Tuesday, and will be followed by Royal Bank on Wednesday and CIBC and TD on Thursday. Scotiabank will wrap up the earnings season for the big banks next week. On the consumer side, Shanahan said, Canadian borrowers have proven to be more resilient than many analysts had predicted. Despite what appears to be a very difficult environment, particularly in Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba where unemployment rates are near 10- or 20-year highs Canadians are continuing to pay their bills, Shanahan said. That says a lot about Canadian households. On the corporate side, BMOs loans to oil and gas companies that are unlikely to be repaid in full rose to $162 million during the quarter an increase of nearly 60 per cent from the previous quarter. Despite the uptick, Barclays analyst John Aiken said impaired loans to the energy sector are modest, representing only 2.2 per cent of the banks oil and gas loans. While weakness continues to permeate through BMOs energy portfolio, it is still not showing any cracks, Aiken said in a note to clients. During a conference call to discuss the banks earnings, BMOs chief executive expressed optimism about the banks ability to perform well in spite of challenges that include depressed oil prices, volatile stock markets and sluggish economic growth. In this environment, the opportunity for the bank to grow is grounded in our ability to execute on our clear and consistent set of priorities, which recognize the potential for technology to transform the business of banking, said Bill Downe. As weve shown over the last three quarters, as the economy performed below expectations, our diversified businesses and strong capital position continue to drive good growth. BMOs Canadian personal and commercial banking business saw its profits climb by five per cent from a year ago to $529 million, despite the lacklustre economy and continued warnings that debt-laden borrowers have started to tap out. South of the border, the bank benefited from the purchase of General Electric Co.s transportation-finance business. BMOs U.S. personal and commercial banking division increased its net income by 31 per cent to $251 million. Weak market conditions caused net income at BMOs wealth management divisions earnings to slip roughly seven per cent to $148 million from $159 million a year ago. Follow @alexposadzki on Twitter. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 23/02/2016 (2432 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. MONTREAL Concerns about Valeant Pharmaceuticals were renewed Tuesday after it announced it had to restate its financial results for 2014 and 2015 while Moodys Investor Service downgraded its outlook for the company. The Quebec-based drugmaker said the source of the problem for its results involves US$58 million of sales to U.S. mail-order pharmacy Philidor that were recognized at the wrong time. Valeant said it should have recognized the revenue when the products were dispensed to patients, rather than when delivered to Philidor, an associated company that sold some Valeant drugs before the two companies parted ways last October. We remain committed to improving reporting procedures, internal controls and transparency for our investors, interim CEO Howard Schiller said in a statement late Monday. Valeant estimated the companys 2014 earnings will be reduced by 10 cents per share, in U.S. currency, and 2015 earnings will be increased by nine cents per share. The amount involved is tiny compared with Valeants total revenue and profit in 2014. It reported US$8.3 billion of revenue and US$1.56 per share of earnings for the 12 months ended Dec. 31, 2014. Still, Valeants announcement late Monday was cause for concern, said Vicki Bryan, an analyst with corporate bond research company Gimme Credit. Bryan said in a note that the revelation supports concerns she and others have about Valeants persistently poor disclosures and liberally opaque and inconsistent accounting, adding that the cost of fixing those problems could be significant. Other observers downplayed concerns. RBC Capital Markets analyst Douglas Miehm wrote that the risk posed by Philidor is mostly mitigated, except for potential penalties. He said the successful implementation of a program with Walgreens, one of the biggest pharmacy retail chains in the U.S., to replace Philidor satisfies operational concerns. Neil Maruoka of Canaccord Genuity said the market will continue to view everything about Valeant through a lens of suspicion but he awaits the findings of an internal investigation into its business relationship with Philidor. We do not believe that the restatement is a major concern at this point, Maruoka said. Later Tuesday, Moodys revised its ratings outlook for Valeant to negative from stable. It said its decision came after Valeant also announced it was expecting to delay filing audited full-year results a decision Schiller said was very disappointing but necessary. Shares in Valeant got a positive bounce Tuesday, closing up more than five per cent at $109.40 on the Toronto Stock Exchange. The stock had fallen more than $25 per share in the previous three days. The company plans to discuss unaudited fourth-quarter results on Monday. Note to readers: This is a corrected story. An earlier version misspelled Philidor. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 23/02/2016 (2432 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. EDMONTON Albertas governing NDP fought donation controversies on two fronts Tuesday, pulling the plug on a big-ticket fundraiser in Edmonton just hours before it was set to begin. Cheryl Oates, who speaks for Premier Rachel Notley, confirmed the party cancelled a portion of a fundraiser at the Art Gallery of Alberta after Ethics Commissioner Marguerite Trussler announced she was investigating whether it squares with the Conflicts of Interest Act. The dinner has been postponed pending the outcome of the ethics commissioners investigation, which she has agreed to do based on a complaint from the opposition, said Oates. The main part of the art gallery event was a reception with tickets sold for $250 apiece, and that function still went ahead. However, the party had also sold tickets at $1,000 apiece guaranteeing those ticket holders a private dinner with Notley and her MLAs at a separate room in the art gallery prior to the main event. It was that $1,000-per ticket event that was cancelled and is under investigation. Trussler had originally signed off on the $1,000-per-ticket event as meeting the provisions of the act. But she reopened the matter after the opposition Wildrose party sent a letter early Tuesday asking for clarification. Jason Nixon, the Wildrose critic for democratic accountability, said he doubts Trussler was given all the required information when she signed off on the $1,000-event in the first place. I never did think that the NDP were telling the ethics commissioner that they were having an exclusive, private, select-invite access to premier and cabinet event for money, said Nixon. Also Tuesday, the Wildrose asked Trussler to investigate Notleys role at a big-ticket Ontario NDP fundraiser last week that solicited donations from blue-chip multinational companies, some of whom do business in Alberta. Nixon said that event in Toronto, hosted by Ontario NDP Leader Andrea Horwath, cost almost $10,000 a ticket, and he said it, too, raises questions around impartiality and the selling of access. Alberta companies who cannot donate to the NDP in Alberta can pay 10 grand in Ontario to get special face-to-face interaction, said Nixon. It is unseemly and it is unethical. In Alberta, corporations and unions are banned from donating to political parties under legislation passed by Notleys government last spring. Notley said she also cleared that event beforehand with Trussler. Im the leader of Albertas NDP. Andrea Horwath is the leader of Ontarios NDP, Notley told a legislature news conference. Its not uncommon for certain sections of the party to ask leaders of other sections to come along to events to attract people. Andreas a friend of mine, she added. She asked me to do (this). I said, You know, I can probably give you one event in a year and she invited me to come out to this. I actually dont think theres an issue here. She said the Ontario NDP paid for her trip and kept all donation money raised. Advertising for the event at the Royal York hotel was low-key. The fundraiser was billed on tickets as an evening with Horwath, whose party sits third in the Ontario legislature. Karla Webber-Gallagher, provincial secretary for the Ontario NDP, said donors were eventually notified that Notley would be attending. Legislature reporters in Alberta were told by Notleys office she was going to Toronto to accept an award. Webber-Gallagher, in an email exchange, said the intimate dinner was with 20 donors. Webber-Gallagher initially declined to name those who attended. However, as Notley faced repeated questions in a news conference over whom she met with, the Ontario NDP released to Notleys office a list of those at the table. They were: the Insurance Bureau of Canada, Labatt Canada, Chartered Professional Accountants of Ontario, the Society of Energy Professionals, United Association, USW National, Teranet Inc., Borealis Infrastructure, Canadian Generic Pharmaceutical Association, General Electric and Eli Lilly Canada. Nixon said the Toronto fundraiser reflects poorly on a premier who has fought to remove corporate influence in Alberta politics. (And) given the fact that all NDP parties across the country are under the same banner, we have to wonder if money or volunteer labour is being kicked back to the Alberta NDP, Nixon said. Last May, the NDP was forced to backtrack after it tried to leverage the swearing-in of Notley and her cabinet into a party fundraising event. Last November, the NDP caucus apologized to the legislature chamber after it was revealed the party was promoting access to Notley in her role as premier at a Calgary fundraiser. Note to readers: This is a corrected story; an earlier version misidentified the Art Gallery of Alberta as the Alberta Art Gallery SUBSCRIBERS OF UCOMS ALL TIME BEST OFFER TO ENJOY ADDITIONAL BENEFITS 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 UCOMS SPECIAL OFFER OF THE UNLIMITED INTERNET IS NOW TERMLESS 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 Google Ad The statement of the Defender on the video of the execution of Armenian PoWs by the Azerbaijani armed forces LEVEL UP ONLY FOR STUDENTS: UCOM OFFERS X2 AND X3 MORE INTERNET 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 Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 23/02/2016 (2432 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. GUELPH, Ont. A 16-year-old Canadian teenager who died on Monday after being injured in a helicopter crash in Hawaii last week has been identified as Riley Dobson of Guelph, Ont. He and three family members were aboard a tour helicopter when it crashed near the Pearl Harbor Visitors Center last Thursday. His parents remain in hospital in Hawaii in stable condition and his brother has been treated and released from hospital. In this image taken from video provided by Shawn Winrich, a helicopter crashes near Parl Harbor, Hawaii on Thursday, Feb. 18, 2016. A 16-year-old Canadian teenager who died on Monday after being injured in a helicopter crash in Hawaii last week has been identified as Riley Dobson of Guelph, Ont. He and three family members were aboard a tour helicopter when it crashed near the Pearl Harbor Visitors Center last Thursday. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP, Shawn Winrich Dobson, who was well-known in Ontarios show jumping community, attended Centennial Collegiate Vocational Institute in Guelph. The Upper Grand District School Board issued a statement Tuesday that said it is extremely saddened to learn of the death and that supports are available for staff and students through guidance counsellors and other staff. Witnesses have said Dobson was trapped underwater and had to be cut free from his seat. Gidget Ruscetta, the chief operating officer at Pali Momi Medical Center, said Dobsons family has chosen to donate his organs to patients in need. (570News) The cause of the crash remains under investigation. with files from The Associated Press Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 24/02/2016 (2431 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. TO paraphrase a popular song, Manitoba MLAs return to the legislature today for a good time, not a long time. There are only 12 sitting days scheduled before the fifth session of the 40th Manitoba legislature concludes and the writ is dropped, signalling an election set for April 19. The sessions final days are expected to be a raucous affair, as the three parties represented in the legislature position themselves for the vote. DAVID LIPNOWSKI / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Premier and NDP Leader Greg Selinger at a news conference Tuesday, flanked by cabinet ministers Flor Marcelino (left) and Melanie Wight. Under the rules, the formal campaign could begin as early as March 15. On Tuesday, Premier Greg Selinger served notice he isnt waiting for the writ to drop to get the show going. While a pre-election blackout that prohibits government announcements is in force, that didnt stop Selinger, as NDP leader, from promising that, if re-elected, he would target nine downtown surface parking lots for redevelopment. We just think this is an important moment right now in the future of the downtown, the premier said when asked about the timing of the announcement. And its a good time to get out in front and show that we have good policies and good initiatives that we can use to take the downtown to the next level. Manitobans can expect more campaign- style announcements from government and Opposition parties before the writ is dropped as the line between the campaign period and the pre-writ period continues to blur. The post-Christmas resumption of the legislative session will not begin with a budget, as it so often has in recent years. The NDP doesnt plan to present a formal budget before the election. Instead, it will offer a scaleddown fiscal update. That wont occur until March 8, after which only four sitting days are scheduled. Progressive Conservative House Leader Kelvin Goertzen says the Opposition will focus on the need for a pre-election budget in the coming days. We believe that the budget is already finished, and Greg Selinger shouldnt be hiding it, the Steinbach MLA said. People have a right to know how bad things are and how bad Greg Selinger has managed the economy. And hiding the budget and not releasing it gives people a feeling that things are probably worse than they could even imagine. The government has 17 bills before the house and intends to introduce a few more before the sitting ends. The session began Nov. 16, with the speech from the throne, and recessed Dec. 3. Included among the carryover bills are measures providing leaves from work for victims of domestic violence and protection against stalkers. Goertzen said the NDP cant expect its entire legislative agenda will be passed in a few short days. We will not obstruct bills, but it is very, very unlikely that a great number of bills will pass in (12) days because I dont think that would be respectful to people who expect that bills will have a reasonable amount of time for debate in the legislature, he said. Winnipeg political scientist Paul Thomas said he expects an intense session, one in which the Opposition will attempt to generate a lot of headlines and bad news for the government, particularly during question period. He said he expects Selingers opponents to try to be very imaginative in their tactics to obtain maximum media coverage. Otherwise its like shouting in the dark. It just goes on but it doesnt really reverberate beyond the hallways of the legislative building, he said of the legislature debates. Liberal Leader Rana Bokhari said she doesnt have high expectations for the short legislative sitting. She said she expects a lot of recycled promises from the governing NDP, similar to its pledge Tuesday to work to redevelop downtown surface parking lots. Bokhari said she also expects a higher level of fear-mongering from the government as it attacks its opponents in a bid to improve its standing with voters. A December Probe Research poll pegged NDP support among decided voters at 22 per cent compared with 43 per cent for the PCs and 29 per cent for the Liberals. larry.kusch@freepress.mb.ca Opinion Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 22/02/2016 (2433 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. When I made a choice several years ago to try to be a voice for change in health care, I had no idea what I was getting into. For those of us who have logged an inordinate amount of hours in a hospital as a patient or a caregiver, we volunteer our time for one simple reason: we want to help. If there is anything we can do to make someone elses health-care journey a little easier or a little less rocky, we would gladly do it. I have heard that sentiment from so many patients and caregiver volunteers I have lost count. As a father of a boy with multiple medical and developmental issues, I have spoken many times to quality committees, to senior management of the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority and to the health ministers office about the shortcomings of the medical system in Manitoba. I have always walked away feeling Im wasting my time. I tell a compelling story, but the willingness or ability to change is just not apparent. Ive looked at many of these people and seen the look of exasperation. It has become abundantly clear to me to make real change in health care we need to start looking to the top. Imagine my frustration when I heard Premier Greg Selingers now-infamous Im sorry advertisement, which actually doesnt say hes sorry, just that weve had a tough year and that sometimes we (the NDP government) dont get things right. In the commercial, Selinger has the audacity to say the NDP is reducing wait times in health care. A quick review of Canadian Institute for Health Information shows Manitoba is not making significant improvements in health-care wait times. ER wait times consistently show Winnipeg facilities ranking near the bottom of 200 hospitals (in Canada) the institute tracks. A reduction of 0.1 or 0.2 hours is not significant change. Yes, Mr. Selinger, you have gotten a lot of things wrong in health care. I have many questions for you. First and foremost, are you willing to listen? Are you willing to listen to the patients who may not view health care the same way you do? Can we put away politics and just do whats right? Can we achieve excellence instead of languishing in mediocrity? I am sure there are many who work in health care who take exception to my comments. I dont blame them; they have a right to be upset. I know how hard they work and how dedicated they are. Unfortunately, they have been asked to succeed without the support necessary. They dont make decisions on staffing or the lack of bed space, yet they are asked repeatedly to make do. Health care will play a significant role in the upcoming April provincial election. The three major political parties are going to have to address health care. We need to elect problem-solvers. We need to elect people who are willing to listen to what patients and their families are telling them. We need to elect people who get things done. Most importantly, for those who work in health care and for those of us who use it, we need to accept change. The status quo is not working. For those of us who are frequent users of health care those who live with a chronic illness this is a matter of life and death. There is no single greater issue. We need to get involved and try to be part of the solution. We need to do what we can. I am not giving up. Regardless who is elected April 19, they will have to deal with us, the patients and families who depend on health care to manage our day-to-day lives. We are not only on the playing field, we are the goal line the measure of success and failure in health care. Most importantly, we want to work with the government, regardless of party banner. We cant afford not to. It is our sincere wish that whoever is placed in government will meet us halfway and for once finally understand what it takes to put the patient first. Sorry is not good enough. Donald Lepp is a board member at Seven Oaks General Hospital and a council member of the Stollery Childrens Hospitals Family Centred Care Council. While Taff Roberts was planning to sail the Northwest Passage there was one small detail he declined to share with his wife, Anne. Most people who tried, died. He finally shared that detail Monday night, as he and the film production crew celebrated the coming debut of the documentary account of his Arctic adventure Attempting the Northwest Passage. In August 2014, Roberts, Winona craftsman, sailor and adventurer, was aboard the 41-foot sailing packet Catryn with four companions bound from northern Baffin Island in the high Canadian Arctic,west to Nome, Alaska, via the route vainly sought by Henry Hudson and John Franklin. Plans called for setting sail Aug. 1 from Pond Inlet, an Inuit community of about 1,500 on the northwest coast of Baffin Island and regional metropolis. Its six to seven weeks to Nome, depending on wind and ice and whatever God throws at us, Roberts said, before embarking on the journey. There was reason to be hopeful. In recent years, summer sea ice had retreated to the point where a navigable coastal channel regularly opened,allowing for a short sailing season, five to six weeks of open water, before prevailing westerly winds blow ice out of the Beaufort Sea north of Alaska to seal the channel until the following summer. But God, it seems, threw the adventurers a curve. "2014 had the most ice seen in the Arctic in 40 years," Roberts said. Their progress blocked at every turn, they were forced to turn back, bringing with them film and photographs of a wild, unspoiled land. "The loneliness, the intense beauty of that sculpted landscape ... I don't know if I'll ever get there again," Roberts said. That film and those photos are the visual backdrop to the film adventure to be shown Saturday. A preliminary rough cut of the the film was featured at last year's Frozen River Film Festival, but what will be screened this year is "a completely different film," film editor Harry Kline said Monday. In the intervening year, the focus of the film shifted dramatically. "We had a nice movie," story editor Dan Munson said, "but the passion and excitement, all the things that Taff talks about weren't in that movie. They are now." "The message is very strong and powerful," Roberts said, a message that speaks to the question of the how and why of doing something a person has always wanted to do. To find answers called for additional journeys, Roberts traveled to Panama, Australia, Wales and England to interview crew members aboard other boats met along the way, also challenging the Northwest Passage. Most of the other crew members were in their 60s and 70s and they share their passion and thoughts about attempting such a voyage. Finding them was no small challenge in itself. Full-time sailors, living aboard their craft, they wander the world. It took seven months of sleuthing using Facebook and online contacts to reconnect and collect their stories. I want to inspire people who are 50, 60, 70 not to resign, retire, be so fearful of the world but keep going, Roberts said. If theres something you want to do ... do it. If youre still able to get around ... theres no reason not to do it. Winona County is closer to filing open committee positions, but there are still openings for citizen involvement. The county board at its regular meeting Feb. 9 decided to continue advertising on the countys and the Extension websites, as well as use word-of mouth to fill the openings. Instead of spending money to advertise, I would ask that we all try to drum up some candidates, commissioner Marcia Ward said. That day, the board also discussed the potential for an updated strategic plan and board goals based on earlier discussions. The broad plan includes engaging the community, improving infrastructure both in county operations and in areas like roads and bridges, and working out sound fiscal plans. The board will make a decision soon on what kind of funding levels should be set aside as reserves from year to year. Reserve money factored heavily into the 2016 budget discussion, with the ultimate decision to use about $1 million to keep the tax levy increase at 3.5 percent. Winona County administrator Ken Fritz said having a set fund balance level provides a good basis for decision-making and long-term budgeting, and is recommended by state accounting practices. This follows government accounting standards, Fritz said. This puts us in good stead with national accounting practices. The county currently projects an ending fund balance of $20.1 million for the end of 2016, which doesnt include restricted funds that have mandated uses. The unrestricted reserves are often earmarked for different uses, but could be used in case of emergency, Fritz said. State standards recommend maintaining an unrestricted fund balance of between 35 percent to 50 percent of fund operating revenues, or at least five months of operating expenditures. Commissioner Steve Jacob said setting an amount would let everyone know what to expect about the use of the funds. I think this will give us a clear picture, Jacob said. This is really taking steps toward transparency. Possible vehicle leases The board directed Fritz to look into revamping the countys fleet of vehicles. Wang Nystrom, a representative from Enterprise, said the company could save the county $85,493 over a five-year period by leasing vehicles, and reducing the need for the county to pay as much for maintenance and replacement. Enterprise would replace vehicles every four to seven years. Enterprise identified 49 light-duty vehicles that could be included in the program. The remaindercounty sheriff patrol cars, dump trucks, loaders, and other equipmentwould continue to be managed by the county. Other Minnesota counties using Enterprise include Isanti, Chisago, St. Croix, Becker, Pope, Clay and Douglas, Nystrom said. Fritz said that aside from saving money, the county would hope to see other benefits, like less staff time used on repairs. Back for the eleventh year, the annual Frozen River Film Festival in Winona, which drew about 4,500 people last year, will be starting its main showings Wednesday and running through Sunday. The festival was showing films last week but the majority start Wednesday with 9 films and then run Friday through Sunday with over 60 films in different theaters and venues around Winona. Festival board member Mike Kennedy said that theyve continued to grow the variety of their documentaries, covering a wide range with different topics, lengths and tone. The diversity of films this year is unbelievable, Kennedy said. One of the highlights of the festival will be the film I am Able, which follows the recovery and experiences of Rwandan artist Frederick Ndabaramiye. Ndabaramiye was ambushed by rebels following the 1994 Rwandan genocide and lost both his hands. He will be speaking at showings of the film on both Friday evening and Sunday on late morning. Kennedy said that the Nbadaramiyes story and recovery are a tremendous inspiration for people, and festival organizers try to have someone to represent a film who was involved in the process to answer questions and share the experience with the crowd. Thats been a lot of the high points, Kennedy said, the people weve had. In addition to longer documentaries, there are dozens of shorter, high-energy films and ones specific for smaller children. Films for Kids includes 11 shorter films showing from 10 a.m. to noon Saturday at the Winona 7 theater. The festival has seen changes recently in its administration too, forming as an official 501c3 nonprofit after operating with the assistance of other organizations in town in previous years. The festival continues to work to make use of a number of Minnesota-produced films, which accounted for around 25 percent of their content last year. This years Minnesota films include The Dinkytown Uprising, detailing protests in Minneapolis in 1970, Lost Conquest, a study of supposed Viking conquest into Minnesota, and the new and final version of Winona adventurer Taff Roberts film Attempting the Northwest Passage. About half of the films are submitted and the others were selected specifically, Kennedy said, and in the past several years theyve been seeing more submissions from all over the world. Others were picked by FRFF representatives from several different film festivals, particularly Mountainfilm, the festivals partner organization in Telluride, Colo. Kennedy said that their longtime partnership with Mountainfilm, which also focuses on documentaries, has long given them access to bigger names and films, since theyve also chosen a little more of a unique position. Human rights organizations demand immediate release of Vardges Gaspari (video) A number of human rights organizations in Armenia have issued a joint statement demanding immediate release of prominent civil activist Vardges Gaspari. On February 19, 2016, a Yerevan court made an illegal decision to detain Gaspari. The civil activist was not present at the court hearing where the decision to take him into custody was made. This is the second time in the last two months, when courts in Armenia deprive the civil activist of his freedom, executing an obvious political order. Gaspari is well known as a bold man with firm political beliefs, a staunch government critic who persistently and consistently raises various important issues related to human rights and illegalities in Armenia. He shows no selectivity in the choice of protest addressees and criticizes equally representatives of the political elite and the opposition. State agencies, namely the police fight Gaspari's uncompromising relentless stance and sharp criticism with targeted unlawfulness, such as persecution, violence, torture, and degrading treatment, trying to suppress his freedom of speech and his constitutional right to freedom of expression. The activist refused to participate in court hearings, taking into account their formal nature and the biased attitude of the judge and rightly expressed his mistrust for the legal system. The appeal has been signed by the following organizations: Transparency International Anti-corruption Centre Helsinki Citizens' Assembly Vanadzor Journalists' Club "Asparez" Helsinki Committee of Armenia Open Society Foundations Armenia Journalists for Human Rights Hope NGO Peace Dialogue NGO Public Information and Need of Knowledge (PINK Armenia) Youth for Human Rights NGO Helsinki Citizens' Assembly Armenian Centre Army in Reality Public Initiative At least 3 dead as storms, tornadoes rip through Deep South KENNER, La. Tornadoes and severe weather ripped through the Gulf Coast on Tuesday, mangling trailers at an RV park, ripping off roofs from buildings and killing at least three people in Louisiana and Mississippi, authorities said. One of the most hard-hit areas appeared to be a recreational vehicle park in the town of Convent, in southern Louisiana, where two people were killed. 14 more US reports of possible Zika spread through sex NEW YORK U.S. health officials are investigating more than a dozen possible Zika infections that may have been spread through sex. The 14 cases all involve men who visited areas with Zika outbreaks, and who may have infected their female sex partners, who had not traveled to those areas. Zika virus is mainly spread by mosquito bites, and sexual transmission has been considered rare. San Francisco declares homeless tent city a health hazard SAN FRANCISCO San Francisco health officials declared a tent city that has been growing along a city street a health hazard and gave homeless people living on the sidewalk 72 hours to clear the area. The Department of Public Health said notices declaring the area along Division Street a public nuisance and encouraging homeless people to move to city shelters would be posted Tuesday. Leaders of polygamous sect arrested for food stamp fraud SALT LAKE CITY Several top leaders from Warren Jeffs polygamous sect were arrested Tuesday on federal accusations of food stamp fraud and money laundering marking one of the biggest crackdowns on the group in years. The charges are the governments latest move targeting the sect based on the Utah-Arizona border, coinciding with legal battles in two states over child labor and discrimination against nonbelievers. New trial for ex-officers stands in Katrina shootings NEW ORLEANS A sharply divided federal appeals court on Tuesday rejected prosecutors efforts to re-instate the convictions of five former New Orleans police officers connected to deadly shootings of unarmed civilians in the chaos that followed Hurricane Katrina. U.S. District Judge Kurt Engelhardt had ordered a new trial for the five following a scandal involving federal prosecutors improper, anonymous comments about the case on a newspapers website. Mississippi lawmakers not erasing Confederate emblem on flag JACKSON, Miss. Mississippi legislators this year wont attempt to redesign the last state flag that features the Confederate battle emblem because leaders say they cant find a majority to remove the symbol from the 122-year-old banner. Tuesday was the deadline for legislative committees to act on general bills, and flag proposals are among hundreds of measures that died without being brought up for debate. Teens arrested after puppy shot with 18 BBs ROCK HILL, S.C. Police in Rock Hill say they have arrested two teenagers who they say shot a 6-week old Labrador mix 18 times with a BB gun and threw a knife at it. Capt. Mark Bollinger of the Rock Hill Police Department said the suspects, ages 14 and 17, were arrested Tuesday and charged with cruelty to animals. On a beautiful May evening in 1931, the Wisconsin riverbank was the backdrop as womens suffragist and writer Zona Gale presented the keys to her family home to The Womens Civic League of Portage at a dinner meeting. It had been a tumultuous few years for Gale and the rest of the country. Gales political hero Fightin Bob LaFollette had died six years earlier. The Stock Market crash effects were in full force. The Midwest drought found people hungry or starving with unemployment at 16.3 percent. The dinner date was May 24, 1931. Britain had just recently released Mahatma Ghandi from a prison term. Ghandis writings during that time probably influenced Gale such as his paraphrased quote, Be the change you want to see in the world. Even though times were quite tough for most of the country, Gale wanted the women of Portage to support womens issues, but also work for betterment of the entire community despite their own situations. Gale had certainly worked hard to assure the world was changed for women. She had worked for two decades to assure that the 19th Amendment of the United States Constitution was ratified in 1920, granting American women the right to vote a right known as woman suffrage. Gale continued her political work after Fightin Bob died, working hard to help Bob La Follette Jr. (Young Bob as he was called) when he replaced his father as a Wisconsin senator after his dads death in 1925. They worked tirelessly to form the Wisconsin Progressive Party. Gales fiction writing was stippled with her feminist views and a great vehicle for her to continue to challenge social norms, especially womens frustration at the lack of opportunities for them. According to former Civic League President Nancy Beasley the newly formed organization in 1931, as well as the organization today, is a place where all women are welcome to gather each month to support their community through civic projects, to improve the status of women and families and offer educational programs regardless of race, creed or caste. Zona was Eleanor Roosevelt before Eleanor Roosevelt. She put her energy where her vision was, Beasley said. It is that kind of spirit that the Civic League still instills in women. To live your life without being a part of your community and helping your neighbors is to miss out on life. I think Zona Gale is overlooked in history. Young people in Wisconsin and throughout the nation should know more about our Portage native, who often used her life in Portage to fuel her fictional Friendship Village. It spoke volumes about issues and events surrounding life in the early 20s. She is someone to be admired and studied. With the position of U.S. president up for grabs this year its an interesting time to look back in history. The year that Gale donated her home was also the year the Herbert Hoover administration added 245 immigration agents in response to local and state communities that felt deportation of immigrants, especially Mexicans, might be a relief for the Great Depression. The 1931 Wickersham Commission described immigration officials as forcibly detaining groups of people many of whom are aliens lawfully in this country, or even United States citizens, without any warrant of arrest or search the immigrant inspectors often jail suspects, however apprehended, without a warrant of arrest or any other kind of warrantThe apprehension and examination of supposed aliens are often characterized by methods unconstitutional, tyrannic, and oppressive. In 2006, a bill called the Apology Act for the 1930s Mexican Repatriation Program offered an apology for the forced migration to Mexico in the 30s of U.S. citizens and legal residents. In this election year, as in the early 30s, the immigration issue and womens issues are again found in heated debates, with some thinking the civility has been thrown out the window. But now, just as in Gales lifetime, there are some things that maintain their politeness. A proper dinner meeting was the Womens Civic Leagues first event, which eventually evolved into an annual afternoon tea, and most recently into a morning coffee. The tradition has survived almost a century. And while some issues still divide us, food is usually a great way to unite all. Its interesting that the centerpiece of most of the Leagues events have a link to food, just like the very first meeting, says Beasley. Gales stories about Friendship Village are peppered with stories about casserole pies and fruit pies being brought to grieving families or those in need. My favorite Zona Gale story is one where a family befriends, and breaks bread, with another family being shunned by most of the community. Her stories and the Womens League withstand time and provide a direction for leading your life. Zona Gale is absolutely fascinating. Beasley says that the first dinner, the morning coffees and several of the current Womens Civic League fundraising events feature pies. This week lets take a look at the turn of the century food and a modern and healthier version of an old favorite peanut butter pie. ChefDocs New Twist on Old School Peanut Butter Pie Ingredients 1 cup all-natural low-fat peanut butter (I like Justins Classic Peanut Butter found at The Grainery in Baraboo) 1 cup coconut sugar (Coconut sugar contains traces of iron, zinc, calcium, and potassium, and antioxidants. It also contains a fiber called inulin, which may slow glucose absorption. Coconut sugar has minimal effects on blood sugar, making it a better option for people cutting calories or diabetics.) cup egg substitute Light vanilla bean ice cream 1 tablespoon coconut oil Directions For the cookie-type crust: in a bowl, mix 1 cup peanut butter, 1 cup coconut sugar, and cup egg substitute until dough forms. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Use coconut oil to grease pan, and press cookie-type dough mixture into pie pan to make the crust. Bake the cookie crust until edges are golden, about 15 minutes. Let crust cool completely. Storing it in the fridge for about an hour will help the cooling process. Fill crust with the ice cream. Let ice cream soften slightly before filling the crust. Place in freezer for at least 3 hours, until firm. Before serving, microwave 1 tablespoon of peanut butter and drizzle over the top of the ice cream This recipe is gluten-free and the bad fat that comes from a flaky pie crust and flour has been left out. The average cream pie has over 350 calories and thats been reduced by more than 30 percent. NEW YORK (AP) Silver shakers and the silver screen go back a long time. Think French 75 from Casablanca and Agent 007s dry martinis. So for those of you planning to drink along at home for Sundays showing of the Oscars this year, now might be a good time to get your cocktail act together. And Tim Federle, author of Gone with the Gin, has a few ideas about that. From The Moon-Shining moonshine, ruby red grapefruit juice, rum, thats right, red rum to Tequila Sunrise Boulevard (probably best NOT served poolside), the best-selling author has a lineup of cinematically inspired cocktails meant to be shaken, stirred and sipped with tongue planted firmly in cheek. Bubbly as a Champagne cocktail, Gone with the Gin nonetheless has serious underpinnings. Federle worked with talented bartender Cody Goldstein, founder of Muddling Memories, a craft cocktail and bar consulting firm in New York. There also are useful sections on tools, techniques and even some fun food recipes. The approach was humorous and, yeah, theyd better taste good, too, said Federle. This cinematic cocktail collection follows Federles Tequila Mockingbird, which featured literary libations. For Gone with the Gin, Federle started by making a spreadsheet of the American Film Institutes Top 100 films. Then, he looked for cocktail-friendly titles. So White Christmas plus white Russian became a drink called White Russian Christmas. Then he and Goldstein looked for ways to tweak the recipes to match the movies. For the White Russian Christmas, the classic recipe vodka, coffee liqueur and cream got a seasonal twist of vodka, creme de menthe, coffee liqueur, eggnog and crushed candy cane for a garnish. (And for those movie buffs for whom this particular drink conjures up only one flick, the book also contains a Big Le-Brewski, a vodka, coffee and cream of coconut concoction in honor of the white Russian-loving Dude of The Big Lebowski.) In all, Federle serves up 50 recipes organized by genre (drama, sci-fi, etc.), and each recipe comes with a brief but informative blurb about the movie in question. And if you are a punster, the titles will be a delight. A standout: Muppets Make Manhattans. Some of the cute drink names were arrived at with the help of Federles thousands of Twitter followers, who also voted on which proposed title for the book they liked best. Recipes arent just cleverly titled; they also have cunning tie-ins to the films. For example, hibiscus tea in the cocktail Boozy and the Beast echoes the roses of Beauty and the Beast. And Citizen Grain, named for the groundbreaking Citizen Kane, includes grain alcohol and just a touch of rose water. No promises that drinking it will help you better get to the bottom of the whole, Rosebud thing, though. Goldstein was particularly pleased with Star Wars-themed The Empire Likes Jack, which contains Jack Daniels, ice cream and root beer. Its basically a root beer float. Youre dropping the light aspect, the vanilla ice cream, into the root beer, which is the dark side, Goldstein said. Some sections took more time than others. We had a lot of days sitting and eating take-in and just going over some stuff, Goldstein said. He admitted that was a really good time. Federle, who grew up in San Francisco and Pittsburgh before moving to New York to dance on Broadway as a teenager, writes in multiple genres, including young adult fiction. His current project is co-writing Tuck Everlasting, a forthcoming Broadway musical based on the novel by Natalie Babbitt. Everything that got me sent to the principals office as a kid gets me paid now, he said. State Rep. John Nygren, R-Marinette, has been a leader in the fight against heroin and opiate related deaths. Nygrens campaign has been aggressive, but I challenge him, and the rest of the Legislature, to go further. Two years ago, Nygrens Heroin Opiate Prevention and Education agenda targeted the improper disposal of illegal substances, required a photo ID to pick up prescription drugs which contain opiates, provided limited immunity to those who call emergency services of an overdose, and allowed first responders to administer Narcan, a drug designed to counter a heroin overdose. Last fall, the Assembly passed a bill that would allow pharmacies to sell Narcan without a prescription. The latest round passed last week again targeted the dispensing of these medications. Most of these bills will help track where these narcotics are coming from and should help us track down the dealers. Nygren told the Capital Times, "Heroin has gotten a lot of headlines," Nygren said. "Lets begin to change the dialogue from heroin to opiates. He added, But statistics show that in 80 to 90 percent of the cases, thats not where it starts. It starts with prescription drugs, oftentimes prescribed by a doctor legally and obtained legally." The latest trend in this opiate battle is fentanyl. Fentanyl is a synthetic drug known as white China and is often made in underground labs. When it is laced with heroin it is 50 to 100 times stronger. It is an incredibly dangerous and lethal combination. Fentanyl claimed 19 lives in Milwaukee County just in January. On Christmas Eve, it claimed the life of my cousin. He was the youngest cousin on that side of the family. My cousin was a great kid. He was a cute, pudgy little guy who loved to laugh and enjoyed life. He is not the kid you would see having a future as a drug addict. Yet, he spent most of his adult life battling his addiction. He wanted to be clean, but could not defeat the demon that had taken over his body. Its a battle he didnt have to wage if he had made the right choices early on but, unfortunately, he didnt. With the addiction in place, he couldnt make another choice. The legislation adopted in 2014 provides immunity to those who call for help, but were still not getting to the dealers. In the end, when it comes to getting a name, the friends of the victim clam up. The reason is that while they may be immune from the law, they are not immune from the criminals who work in this business. Even with the protections in place, no one has talked in the case of my cousins death. It took a toxicology report to determine the cause of death, despite the fact he was with friends that night. I suspect that every single one of the people with him on Christmas Eve knows who the dealer is. No one is spilling the beans. Being a narc is just as deadly as taking the drug itself. When you have a buyer and a seller and the buyer ends up dead, the seller isnt talking and neither are the other customers. The threat of a year in jail and a $25,000 fine for a first-time offense is the cost of doing business when a gram of meth yields $1,000 or a gram of heroine yields around $200. The stakes are high enough that anyone who talks is cut out and not just simply cut out of the loop. They can end up at the morgue with their other victims. Two years ago, I wrote that we needed stronger enforcement against the drug dealers and called for stronger penalties against first-time offenses for dealing drugs. I also stated we should treat them like sex offenders and create a registry. Let people know when a dealer has moved into the neighborhood. If we want the users to start talking when a buddy dies from a drug overdose, they need assurances that the guy they rat out wont be back out on the streets a year later seeking revenge. When someone dies as a result of taking these illegal drugs, the law needs to be strong enough to ensure a homicide charge will stick and lock these guys away for life. Nygrens program will help round these dealers up. Now lets make sure we get them locked away for good. The Gold Star Memorial trail, a paved, 10-foot-wide, non-motorized path that will connect Mayville, Horicon and Beaver Dam, has received almost enough money for its first phase. The project is being supported and funded by members of the Friends of Dodge County Parks. The purpose of the trail, according to Andrew Johnson is to, Remember and honor those who gave their all. The Gold Star Memorial Trail will honor six service members from Dodge County who gave their lives protecting the nation since 1991, as well as all soldiers killed in action. Bill Ehlenbeck, manager of parks and trails for Dodge County, said the trail was originally proposed by a group of Mayville residents and was originally called The Cardinal Connection, after the Mayville High School mascot. Over time, the families of fallen soldiers from Dodge County proposed that this trail honor those who gave the ultimate sacrifice and the Gold Star Memorial Trail was born. The project has come a long way since Beaver Dam Community Hospital Foundation made the first donation, pledging $10,000 in early 2014. The project has been divided into five phases with phase one including a 2.1 mile paved trail from Mayville to the Horicon Marsh Education and Visitor Center. The design for this phase of the project is expected to cost $140,000, with construction expected to cost $500,000. Ehlenbeck said that while the county has been supportive of the project, The county board said 100 percent of that development needs to come from grants and donations. No county money would be dedicated to the phase one segment. In November, the Gold Star Memorial Trail phase one was selected to receive a major DNR Stewardship and National Recreation Trails Grant of more than $195,000. Johnson said, Our goal is to fully fund the Mayville segment first. He added that he feels it will be easier to raise money for the remainder of the project once construction begins on phase one. It will show people that this is really happening, Johnson said. Currently Phase one is $100,000 shy of its goal. Design work for the first phase is expected to start this year with construction beginning in 2017. Phase two of the project will connect the city of Horicon to the Wild Goose Trail. The third phase will connect Beaver Dam to the Wild Goose Trail and the fourth and fifth phases will connect phase one to phase two through Horicon Marsh and the city of Horicon. Phase two is expected to cost $750,000. Ehlenbeck said, We just wrote a grant application for that phase and we will be going to the county board in March to request support and approval of that grant. If received, the grant would pay for 80 percent of the construction costs for phase two. If we get this grant we would start design work next year, Ehlenbeck said. Ehlenbeck will present a resolution to the county board in March asking for its support, as well as $115,000 to fund the second phase. A citizen group in Horicon agreed to match the countys contribution and will raise $115,000. The Horicon Common Council voted 4-2 on Tuesday to contribute $5,000 to the Gold Star Memorial Trail. While a previous motion to contribute $10,000 to the project failed during a committee of the whole meeting earlier this month, the council agreed to earmark $5,000 for that purpose. The council previously passed a resolution stating their support, but that resolution did not include any monetary contribution. Aldermen Donald Miller and Nathan Anfinson voted against the contribution. Anfinson said, There is a lot of stuff to be done in our parks. I can see our $5,000 spent better in the city. Alderman Carl Fausett argued that the city wants the county to make a contribution to this trail saying, I think we have to show that we want this thing to go through in order to get the county to vote on our behalf. The Gold Star Memorial Trail was included in the county parks departments capital improvement plan with county contributions anticipated. The capital improvement plan currently states that the county contributions to the trail will be funded by the half-percent sales tax revenue. Ehlenbeck said the resolution that will be presented to the county board has not been completely drafted. Johnson said that the entire project is expected to cost about $4 million, not including monuments to fallen soldiers and other remembrances. Those interested in learning more about the Gold Star Memorial Trail may visit their newly launched website at www.GoldStarMemorialTrailWI.org. There visitors can learn about the proposed trail, the meaning of the Gold Star and make tax deductible donations to the trail. Columbus FFA members and alumni have an extra reason to celebrate National FFA Week this year: The school district just announced that a new teacher has been hired to head up the agriculture program, which has been on hiatus for the current academic year. Glenda Crook, who has taught ag classes at Lodi High School for the past 19 years and has been a teacher for 22 years, was offered a contract last week, Superintendent Annette Deuman said. She starts July 1 and will teach classes at both Columbus High School and Columbus Middle School, beginning in the fall. The exact classes that she will teach have not been determined yet. Crook is a longtime Columbus resident and a graduate of Columbus High School. Shes built a very successful ag program in Lodi, as well as an FFA chapter, so were very much looking forward to having her come home, so to speak, Deuman said. The ag teacher opening had originally been posted back in November, to give the district the option of hiring a mid-year graduate who could start second semester, teaching on a limited basis while developing curriculum for the fall. As an experienced teacher, Crook will be bringing her knowledge and curriculum with her, and is expected to be able to hit the ground running at the start of the 2016-17 school year. Crook previously served on the Wisconsin FFA Center Board and is the Region 3 vice president. She is also the Wisconsin Supervised Agriculture Experience chair. She just comes with a wealth of knowledge and proven success in the agriculture program and in the FFA chapter, so were very much looking forward to having her join our team, Deuman said. JUNEAU | A 38-year-old Beaver Dam woman must pay more than $67,000 in restitution after she pleaded guilty to making out almost $54,000 worth of checks from an office she was managing, and sending the money to men who may have been scamming her. Bridget L. Mincheski pleaded guilty to three felony counts of uttering a forgery. An additional 15 counts were dismissed but read into the record. Judge Brian Pfitzinger found Mincheski guilty of the three counts and sentenced her to four years of probation, withheld. Mincheski must pay restitution of $67,050.14 and must complete 160 hours of community service. If Mincheski pays her restitution on time and completes her community service she will not be required to serve any jail time. If she does not, she must serve 60 days in the Dodge County Jail with huber and transfer privileges. According to the criminal complaint, Mincheski was the office manager for Dr. Mary Grote when Beaver Dam police investigated a forgery incident at the dental office. Police spoke with Grote on Aug. 28 and she told them she had been contacted by her bank about several suspicious business check transactions. Grote said she believed Mincheski had cashed 18 checks in less than two months. The checks totaled $53,994. The checks were created with a computer program and they were made out to Mincheski. Grotes name was signed using a business stamp. The checks ranged from $450 to $5,000. An employee at the bank saw Mincheski cashing some of the checks. According to the criminal complaint, police went to Mincheskis home on the same day, and she told police that she knew why they were speaking to her. She allegedly said, I was taking money from Dr. Grotes account. According to the criminal complaint, Mincheski said she had been sending a lot of the money to two men who had told her that they were in the army and that she had been in contact with them on social media sites. She believed one of the men was from Nigeria. She had started an online relationship with the other man and said she had been sending money for him to come and meet her. Mincheski said she was told a trunk of money had been sent to her by the two men and she had full intention of paying the money back to Grote. Grote said that Mincheski had worked for her for 13 years and had been the office manager for 10 years. Almost a year after its first projected release, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources officials say an updated master plan for the Lower Wisconsin State Riverway is days away. More than 25 years after the original plan was released, Lower Wisconsin Riverway DNR property manager Matt Seguin said the new proposal will focus on recreation and resource management. He said he could not discuss any highlights or details ahead of its release. Were just finishing the draft, so it could be as soon as by the end of the month or first of March, Seguin said. DNR planner Ann Freiwald said developing the plan took longer than expected. When we posted the 2015 date, we were being maybe a bit too optimistic about the time it would take for us to put this extensive document together, Freiwald said. But we are very close now. After it is released, the DNR will schedule public forums in Sauk Prairie and Boscobel to gain more input. The state Legislature created the Lower Wisconsin State Riverway in 1989 and gave the Riverway Board authority over construction, timber harvests, utility installations and other activity with the goal of preserving the regions scenery. The Riverway stretches 92 miles from the Prairie du Sac hydroelectric dam to the Mississippi River and includes nearly 100,000 acres of public and private land along the Wisconsin Rivers shorelines. Riverway Board executive director Mark Cupp said the board has a number of priorities it anticipates will be addressed in the new plan that are paramount for continued protection of the Riverway into future years. Cupp said the board asked the DNR to clarify the Riverways boundaries, establish limits on what can be built within sight of the Riverway, and follow through on agreements with landowners regarding land purchases. This year, the DNR began selling property to pay down debt in the Stewardship Fund, rather than purchasing scenic easements with Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Funds. Friends of the Lower Wisconsin Riverway President Timm Zumm said agreements made with landowners regarding planned purchases were breached. The state has already broken a covenant with landowners along the riverway backing off and even stopping, not just scenic easements but also land purchases. Zumm said. Landowners were assured there was a covenant to give them a scenic easement or a serious look at buying their property. Friends group members also expressed concern about declining water quality the Wisconsin River near Spring Green. Friends group board member Ron Grasshoff said in May the group hosted some DNR staff members on a tour of area river sloughs and backwaters. We had a verbal commitment they would address our concerns in the backwater sloughs and come up with some sort of recommendations on habitat and water quality not just maintained, but improved, Grasshoff said. In Prairie du Sac and Sauk City where there has been a growing, if not thriving bald eagle population, Ferry Bluff Eagle Council vice president Gene Unger said he is eager to see boundaries of the riverway clarified or enhanced to maintain eagle habitat in the area. Our long term goal is to protect the known roosts and habitat areas and thats the riverway and viewshed adjacent to it, Unger said. I think there will be challenges if the plan narrows the viewshed. Roosts could be impacted. A Columbus man is facing a possible three-year prison sentence following an arrest for operating a vehicle while intoxicated as a seventh offense. Michael Shumate, 56, appeared in Columbia County Circuit Court on Tuesday for a single count of felony drunken driving. The previous night, around 9:30 p.m., an officer with the Columbus Police Department responded to a driving complaint about a man driving a white Dodge Ram heading toward the Columbus West Travel Center. When the officer spoke with Shumate at the Travel Center, Shumate reportedly said that his vehicle had a ball joint issue that makes his truck pull to the left. The officer noted signs of intoxication and after asking, Shumate told the officer that he had one drink, then two one after work and another on the way to the gas station, referring to an empty Propel bottle in the cup holder. The officer asked him to perform a field sobriety test and they started, but quit after less than a minute. According to the on-site test, Shumate had a blood alcohol content of 0.108. This is an operating while intoxicated as a seventh offense, said District Attorney Jane Kohlwey, requesting a substation cash bond be set. In addition to protection of the public, there is an initial three-year confinement. Wisconsins statute for operating while intoxicated as a seventh, eighth or ninth offense carries a minimum sentence of three years confinement, giving Shumate, as Kohlwey explained, additional incentive to flee. Defense attorney Leonie Dolch requested a signature bond. It has been 12 years since he has committed an offense like this, he said. Shumates previous convictions came from three incidents in 1990, one in 1991 and two in 2004. Judge W. Andrew Voigt explained that, with credit to the 2013 Supreme Court case Missouri v. McNeely, he was made aware of Shumates case when his phone rang at home that night for a request for a court-ordered blood draw, after Shumate had refused to cooperate at the hospital. Voigt ordered that Shumate remain in jail pending payment of a $2,000 cash bond, with release conditional on his not possessing or consuming any alcohol and not driving without a valid license. The competing interests of personal privacy vs. national security and law enforcement will get one of its biggest court tests now that Apple has decided to fight the federal government over control of the iPhone. The issue is encryption and plays out against a backdrop of terrorism and Constitutional rights. It will almost surely end up before the U.S. Supreme Court. The fight was joined last week when a federal judge in California issued an order directing Apple to assist law enforcement in unlocking the county-owned phone used by Syed Farook and his wife, Tashfeen Malik, in their murderous terrorist attack in San Bernardino, Calif., that left 14 people dead. The court order was rebuffed by Apple CEO Tim Cook who said the government was trying to force the software company to build a backdoor to bypass digital locks protecting consumer information on the iPhone an encryption system that allows the iPhone contents to be accessed only by the user, not even Apple and is configured to erase data after 10 consecutive unsuccessful unlocking attempts. And the government doesnt know how to get past that. Cook said his company doesnt have any sympathy for terrorists, but said the government wasnt seeking access to this one phone, but to compel the company to create a master key that would be able to access private data on nearly 900 million iPhones worldwide. Once this information is known or a way to bypass the code is revealed, the encryption can be defeated by anyone with that knowledge. The FBI chose this fight wisely it pits national security interests in the fight against terrorism against a company trying to protect the privacy of its customers. But they are also making a stretch: They are not simply asking for a password to the phone, which Apple would have had to cough up given a court order, but they are seeking to compel a private company to work on the governments behalf. Thats usually not done outside a war setting, but then again the U.S. is involved in a war against terror declared or not. Apple could argue that such a directive contravenes its protections against unreasonable search and seizure under the Fourth Amendment, or that it is compelled speech and a violation of its Constitutional rights under the First Amendment. The implications of this fight are enormous and will not stop at one phone. Apples high-road arguments that it is protecting its customers privacy rights is fine and good, but the company also has a vested competitive and commercial interest, particularly in markets like China. If the U.S. government can force it to make a master key, there is little question that other countries would force Apple to do the same and they might use those keys for intercepting all sorts of private information (and perhaps prosecuting the users). Its easy to see how Apples interests would be harmed. Similarly, the U.S. government wont be satisfied with just getting into Farooks phone. As Sen. Richard Burr, R-N.C., chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, put it in a commentary last week, The newest Apple operating systems allow device access only to users even Apple itself cant get in. Murderers, pedophiles, drug dealers and the others are already using this technology to cover their tracks. We dont underestimate the possibilities that a security bypass developed by Apple might be misused by government ours or those of other countries. But the encryption devices invented and employed by the iPhone essentially put the phone beyond the reach of legitimate law enforcement investigation. Once a judge issues a warrant to a law enforcement agency, the search is by definition a reasonable one and the access should be full. It would not be out of the realm of consideration to argue that Apple itself could be prosecuted for obstruction of justice or destroying evidence for marketing a phone with an encryption system that erases possible evidence. The legal fight will have long-ranging effects for Apple, for other high-tech companies like Google, for the fight against terrorism and common lawbreakers. Out of the blocks, it would seem to us the government has made a more compelling argument. After recounting some of the potential international conflicts that could arise over the declining availability of fresh water, individual countries are being forced to face increasing drought conditions. The economic impact those conditions will have on a country, and the changes that need to take place in our everyday lives due to the scarcity of fresh water, become more real each day. The easiest place to start is here in the United States and Lake Mead. Background and research for this column and subsequent columns produced numerous reports from the Smithsonian Institute, the Scripps Institute for Oceanography, NASA, the University of Minnesota, tuscon.com, the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute, Scientific American, the Goddard Institute, and the Las Vegas Review-Journal. Lake Mead has dropped 120 feet. It is at its lowest level since the 1930s, when the lake was first being filled, when Hoover Dam was being built. In a worst case scenario, with the extreme drought, and if the current falling levels of Lake Mead continue, this would mean that there would not be enough water in the lake to power the turbines used to generate electrical power and provide fresh water to the 22 million people it currently serves. Some projections show the lake could dry up by 2021. The Colorado River feeds into Lake Mead. Currently, every drop, literally every drop, of the Colorado River is being used. The river, which used to flow through the very northeastern part of Mexico, is now 100 percent dry in that region. The riverbed in Mexico is dust. For every foot Lake Mead continues to drop, the hydroelectric capacity decreases by five megawatts. That is enough electricity to power 1,100 homes. Since 2000, because of the declining water level of Lake Mead, the electrical capacity has already decreased by 25 percent. The generators at Hoover Dam are being upgraded to accommodate the falling water levels. If they are not upgraded, and with the current drop in water level expected to continue in Lake Mead, the turbines used for hydroelectric power will not be able to operate. This would cut off all electric supplies to Las Vegas and the surrounding area. Even more distressing, the drought concerns are being upgraded as new research has been done. Results show that the earlier projections were too lenient and the continued drought will be worse than first expected. Not too long ago, in response to the drought conditions in the state, then California Gov. Jerry Brown issued an order to decrease the use of water by 25 percent throughout the state. The state has already experienced a loss of over $2 billion in lost agricultural revenue and seen the loss of 17,000 jobs. The Ogallala Aquifer is the largest underground water source in the U.S. It accounts for 40 percent of all irrigated farmland in the country. With the current drought, the aquifer is now only 80 percent of its former capacity as water is being pumped out of the ground faster than it has been naturally replenished. In some parts of Texas, the aquifer has dried up completely. San Diego has begun construction of a desalination plant to take water from the Pacific Ocean. Turning salt water into fresh water to meet the needs of a major city is a natural option and a good one. But two major concerns must then be addressed. One is that the by-product is three times more salty than the ocean and pumping those by-products back into the ocean as is currently proposed, must be done correctly, which it can be. If not, mankind begins to destroy the oceans. It is not an exaggeration to state that if the oceans die, mankind ceases to exist. The human race simply cannot continue to see the world around them as some limitless source of bounty to sustain life. The Earth has a finite amount of resources. Many blame the drought conditions around the world on global warming, created and supported by mankind. Eventually, whether you agree or not becomes moot. A child crying in anguish for the lack of fresh water does not care what the reason is. He or she only understands the misery and the wretchedness that must be for lack of fresh water. Disagreeing over the cause does not solve the problem. The problem exists, is real, and grows each year. USDA announces $1 billion debt relief for 36,000 farmers The USDA announced a program to provide $1.3B in debt relief for about 36,000 farmers who have fallen behind on loan payments or face foreclosure. Zaruhi Postanjyan urges Cabinet members to visit Vardges Gaspari (video) During the Armenian governments question-and-answer session in the parliament, lawmaker Zaruhi Postanjyan called everyones attention to the condition of jailed civil activist Vardges Gaspari. She reminded the Cabinet members that in the morning Gaspari was taken to a psychiatric hospital for forensic examination. His lawyers motioned to cancel the illegal examination after which Gaspari was taken back to his cell. As Gaspari reports from prison they pour cold water on him and systematically beat him in the cell. Dear representatives of the government, no one is guaranteed against such behaviour. I just urge you to go to the prison and find out what is going on there and take urgent measures to see Gaspari at large as soon as possible, she said. Answering her question, Minister of Justice Arpine Hovhannisyan said Gaspari was kept in a cell where there were other inmates. He lay on the ground and had some disagreement with the other inmates. Therefore, he was taken to a separate cell with one more inmate. The investigator requested that he [Gaspari] undergo psychiatric examination. I want to assure you that until now Gaspari has not made any claim about his health problems. Moreover, I instructed doctors to see him and inquire about his health but Gaspari said he had no complaints, she said promising to clarify all details and inform the lawmaker. HHK and ARF sign formal document (video) The ruling Republican Party of Armenia (HHK) and the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF, Dashnaktsutyun) formally signed a coalition agreement on February 24. The document was signed by HHK Deputy Chairman Armen Ashotyan and representative of the ARF Supreme Body Aghvan Vardanyan at the Presidential Palace. After the ceremony, Armen Ashotyan and Aghvan Vardanyan talked to journalists about the deal that gives ARF three ministerial and two gubernatorial posts in Shirak and Aragatsotn provinces. Both men were in high spirits. This is not a classic coalition, but political cooperation. First, we amended the countrys Organic Law and then, considering the ideological similarities of our parties, we signed an agreement on cooperation, the HHK Deputy Chairman said. The document is a roadmap which encompasses our ideas and approaches. "Instead of splitting, political forces should try to find a new way to ensure development in different spheres of the countries. I hope we shall be able to implement all our plans with Gods help, Aghvan Vardanyan said, in turn. Under the document, Dashnaktsutyun will get three ministerial posts in the government. Levon Mkrtchyan will become Minister of Education and Science, Artsvik Minasyan and David Lokyan will be appointed Minister of Economy and Minister of Territorial Administration and Development respetively. In addition, Hovsep Simonyan will be appointed Governor of Shirak province and Gagik Gyozalyan that of Aragatsotn province. Blackness and racial divisions The clamour for economic freedom and transformation of higher education reflect a society searching for sustainable social equilibrium. A former head in government has empathised with the student movements in their call for transformation at South African Universities. Joel Netshitenzhe, who was the head of communication in former President Nelson Mandelas office said that the student protests and resurgence of racism are characteristic of a society that has failed to bring about social and economic transformation. The impatience is palpableand is growing louder by the day. There is a sixth sense in society that something dramatic needs to happen in the second transition of democracy in South Africa, said Netshitenzhe during a race dialogue titled Blackness and its entanglement with essentialisms, intersections and faultlines in post-apartheid South Africa. The dialogue was hosted by the Wits Centre for Diversity Studies in conjunction with the Foundation for Human Rights, the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development and the Ahmed Kathrada Foundation. His address was titled The black mans burden...South Africas collective burden. Netshitenzhe was joined on the panel by Nomasonto Mazibuko, activist for the rights of people with albinism. Mazibuko shared her experiences of not being black enough and the enduring discrimination against albinos. Josephilda Nhlapo-Hlope from the Office of the Presidency delivered a unifying message reminding delegates that race is social construct and it can be deconstructed. Her address was titled Celebrating Diversity: Governments Plans. The next dialogue on race will focus on whiteness and the new Afrikaaner. Enquiries: Prinola.Govenden@wits.ac.za China News on Women Sorry, the page you requested was not found. If you're having trouble locating a destination on Womenofchina.cn, try visiting the Womenofchina Home page EDF calls for urgent EU electricity market reform 24 February 2016 Share French utility EDF is calling for "rapid and radical reform" of Europe's electricity market structure to allow for future investments in new generating capacity. This is needed, it says, to "face up to current challenges of the energy transition and to consumers' expectations". EDF chairman and CEO Jean-Bernard Levy said in a statement yesterday, "Through its energy mix and its significant investment efforts, EDF actively supports the work undertaken by the European Commission in the energy sector, and calls for a redefinition of the European electricity market model in order to reconcile consumers' interests with the transition to a low carbon world." The company said it sees "two key actions" that should be prioritized in reforming the market model in order to provide a low-carbon electricity mix in Europe. Firstly, it calls for a "significant" floor price for carbon dioxide to be established within the EU to encourage investment in generation facilities using non-fossil fuels. According to EDF, this floor price should be set at a minimum of 30 to 40 ($33 to $44) per tonne. Secondly, EDF seeks the promotion of "effective capacity mechanisms so as to ensure that the continent has long-term security of energy supply, despite market turbulence, and in the best interest of all customers". On 16 February, while presenting EDF's results for 2015, Levy noted the current problems faced in the European electricity market: low electricity prices, overcapacity due to sluggish growth and renewable energy development. Wholesale electricity prices, he said, have dropped by 30% in EU markets over the past year. "Operators today can barely cover their variable costs with this market model," Levy said. "Energy supply is secured, but no operator is able to invest in building new means of production without public subsidies to support them." "It is now urgent to reform the current market and to adapt it to the energy transition, by quickly implementing capacity mechanisms in order to secure energy supply, by setting a European carbon price which will be in line with the commitments made by Europe at COP21, and by introducing a new and enhanced regulation," Levy said. He said the current EU carbon market - the Emissions Trading System - is "at a level which is not meaningful to the energy mix". Levy said that EDF believes there is an urgent need for the European Union, and for many countries within Europe, to look again at the way that deregulation and competition have been implemented. All investments in electricity generation are currently only driven by regulation and not by market, Levy said. "The market design guidelines that are expected from the EU by the end of the year are an essential part of what should be the energy industry in the future," he said. Researched and written by World Nuclear News Related topics The mayor of Ithaca has indicated his desire to open up a facility where addicts can shoot up under the safety of government supervision -- this would be the first facility of its kind in the United States. Government sponsored heroin? New proposed legislation in Ithaca, New York that would offer government facilities for addicts shoot up in, and critics on both sides of the argument arent sure what to make of it. According to ABC, Ithaca mayor Svante Myrick wants a government run facility where heroin addicts can shoot up under the supervision medical specialists. Its not surprise that this idea has proven to be divisive, with vocal critics both for and against the idea. For example, Dessa Bergen-Cico, a Syracuse University Professor, lauded the mayors proposal and called it bold and challenging. While Ithaca would be the first U.S. city to open a supervised injection facility, this phenomena if far from new. The idea is that addicts can not only receive health care and counseling for their addiction, but a clean and safe environment as well. There are around 100 similar facilities around the world, located in countries like Switzerland, Germany, Norway, Spain, Canada and more. Not everyone, however, is pleased with the controversial idea. If the mayor wants to do it, its up to him to do it, said Bill Rusen, director of Cayuga Addiction Recovery services in Ithaca. But me personally, Im not willing to go out on that sort of limb. The proposal was developed with a committee of over 350 Ithaca community members and includes a recommendation that police stop arresting people for low-level drug possession and sales. Mayor Myricks hope is that drug offenses can be treated less severely and that offenders be offered treatment and other helpful services rather than jail. Edin Mehic By: Wayne Morin A police officer in Austria, who didnt like the smell of a burp, decided to slap a fine on the man who belched in his face. 27-year-old Edin Mehic of Vienna, blamed the incident of burping on eating too much kebab and onions while spending his day in the Prater Park. Moments after the burp, the police officer notified him that he violated public decency. Mehic had a long talk with the officer about why he was not going after real criminals who were consuming and selling illegal drugs nearby. However, the officer did not relent and gave him a fine of 70 euros ($77). Mehic published a photograph of the fine on his Facebook page, which states that he violated public decency with a loud belch next to a police officer. Mehic plans to fight the fine in court. Since going public with his story, 118 people have vowed to attend a flash mob featuring loud belching on Saturday, at the crime scene. One of the suspects By: Chan Yuan (Scroll down for video) A man was shot and his lottery ticket was stolen after thieves heard him saying that he won the jackpot. Patricia Manning of Louisville, Kentucky, said that was on the phone with her 19-year-old son when he was shot. Manningas son bought a scratch off lottery ticket and he won $1,000. Store owner Mehr Dad said that the teenager was very happy. aHe was so excited to get $1,000 it was big money for him,a Dad said. Dad told the teenager to sign his ticket so that nobody but him could cash it. The teenager did so. He then called his mother and told her the good news. When the teenager walked out of the store, his mother was still on the phone. Suddenly, an armed robber who overheard him talking about his big win, shot him. The armed robber shot the teen in the stomach and then demanded the winning ticket. The teen took the ticket out of his pocket and handed it to the armed robber while his accomplice was waiting in a car nearby. Manning said that her son told the armed robber ayou didnt have to shoot me dude.a When the thieves tried to cash the ticket, they were declined as the ticket had another manas signature. Police have released a photo of the man who tried to cash the stolen ticket. After reviewing surveillance videos, police arrested the man in connection with the armed robbery. He was charged with facilitation to commit robbery. The 19-year-old was able to collect the $1,000 winnings after officials verified his signature. Arts Council Of Wales Approve 2.3m Funding For Town Arts Hub This article is old - Published: Wednesday, Feb 24th, 2016 The Arts Council of Wales has approved 2.3 million of funding to develop an Arts Hub in Wrexham town centres Peoples Market, with Wrexham Council adding 1.5m. The plans have previously been seen as controversial locally, with the secret business plan revealing the ongoing planned loss, which were subsequently deemed the cost of culture. Cllr Hugh Jones, Lead Member for Communities and Partnerships, said: This is excellent news and I am delighted that the Arts Council of Wales has recognised the potential of, and its support for, this project. The investment of 1.5m by Wrexham Council in the future of the Arts Hub and Peoples Market has attracted a further 3m in funding. We will now work together with our partners in art and culture, together with market traders, to develop an Arts Hub and integral Market that will serve to attract visitors to Wrexham and across the region. Cllr Neil Rogers, Lead Member for Economy and Regeneration, said: I am very pleased that this grant has been awarded which will signal the start of over 4.5 million of investment in the market and the town centre itself. It is an innovative scheme and one which see the regeneration of the Peoples Market for use as a dual purpose facility for the benefit of the traders and the arts in Wrexham. I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Arts Council for their generous support and all the staff who have worked tirelessly to reach this stage of the process. Kath Davies, Director of Investment and Funding Services said: This project provides an exciting opportunity to create an innovative hub for creative activity that will inspire and nurture the ambition of communities across Wrexham and the wider area. This is an unique opportunity for the arts community and market traders to work alongside each other to develop a vibrant space which will play a key part in the regeneration of the town centre. Council Leader, Cllr Mark Pritchard, said: I am delighted we have been granted this money and hope this is one of many partnership opportunities to regenerate Wrexham town centre. The Councils release notes: Once completed, which is expected to be in early 2018, the new facility will be two tiers. The ground floor will have space for over 650 sq m of market stall provision, a main gallery exhibition space and second gallery, performance areas, one including tiered seating, casual market stalls such as for an arts and craft market or Christmas market, a food court, a visitor welcome area and arts gift shop and new WCs and baby change area. On the second floor there will be creative space studios, a learning studio, office accommodation, informal seating spaces, further WCs and utility facilities. Works are expected to start on site in January 2017 following the production of final designs and a tender process to appoint a building contractor. Whilst works are ongoing the Peoples Market will be open for business as usual. The total cost of the redevelopment of the Peoples market building is in the region of 5 million. In addition to the Arts Council of Wales Grant 700,000 funding has been made available from the Welsh Governments Vibrant and Viable Places Programme and 1.5million from Wrexham Council. This week marks ten years since the first prisoners in Washingtons global war on terror arrived at the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base in Cuba, drugged, hooded and shackled. A decade has passed, and the infamous prison camp remains open, its criminal operations codified by Congress and President Barack Obama into US law. The Bush administration established the detention center with the explicit aim of holding prisoners as enemy combatants, a term invented to deny them any rights either under the US Constitution as criminal defendants or under the Geneva Conventions as prisoners of war. The Bush Justice Department ruled that the naval base lay outside the jurisdiction of any American court, and therefore those held there could seek no legal redress over their imprisonment. This arrangement was designed to create the ideal environment for a regime of torture and war crimes against those who were swept up by the US military and intelligence apparatus and dragged to Guantanamo from around the world. Detainees were subjected to waterboarding and dryboarding (in which rags are stuffed down a victims throat and his mouth and nose are taped shut to induce asphyxiation), hung from the ceiling, placed in stress positions, beaten, tortured with barbed wire and broken glass, subjected to sleep deprivation and to prolonged detention under extreme temperatures or in the dark. Sexual humiliation was routinely employed to break down detainees as was degradation of their religion. Those who protested torture by engaging in hunger strikes have been subjected to excruciating forced feedings, with plastic tubes shoved through their nose and throat and into their stomach. Men were tortured to death, driven to suicide and left blinded, crippled, and mentally and emotionally devastated by years of such treatment. While the Bush administration insisted that the 775 people who were imprisoned at Guantanamo were the worst of the worst, according to the US governments own records 92 percent of them had no connection whatsoever to Al Qaeda or terrorism. Only seven individualsless than one percent of those detainedhave ever been charged with any crime. The vast majority were hapless victims of the US terror war, sold to the Americans for bounties offered in Pakistan and Afghanistan or grabbed off the streets elsewhere solely because of their nationality and religion. Internationally, the name Guantanamo became synonymous with US militarism, criminality and aggression. Obama, now completing his third year in the White House, was elected in 2008 in large measure thanks to his promise of change, which appealed to popular hostility and revulsion toward the years of aggressive war, sweeping attacks on basic democratic rights, and the shameless use of torture under the Bush administration. Within the American ruling elite, it was hoped that the election of the Democrat and first African-American president could refurbish Washingtons image abroad, even as US imperialism continued to pursue the same essential policies. More than any other single act, Obama sought to symbolize the supposed change embodied in his administration by pledging to close down Guantanamo within his first year in office. He declared Guantanamo a sad chapter in American history that would be brought to a close. By November of 2009, the administration acknowledged that it would not comply with its own deadline, instead postponing Guantanamos closure to an unspecified date in 2010. Obamas pledge was never anything more than symbolic. As his administration subsequently made clear, it was not renouncing the practices that made the Guantanamo prison camp notoriousindefinite detention without trial, extraordinary rendition and torture. It was merely seeking to close the facility itself, while continuing such criminal operations elsewhere. Indeed, it prepared plans for the opening of a Guantanamo north, under which detainees would be transferred from Cuba to a prison facility in the US where they would continue to be held without charges or trials. Meanwhile, thousands were kept under similar conditions of imprisonment at facilities, such as Bagram in Afghanistan and secret CIA sites, while the Obama administration rigorously defended its predecessors against any lawsuits over the torture and other crimes they committed in office. In January 2011, Obama signed into law a military funding authorization bill that prohibited the transfer of Guantanamo detainees to facilities in the US and effectively barred the prison camps closure. Two months later, the White House issued an order for the resumption of drumhead trials before military commissions. Obamas executive order also made indefinite detention the official policy of his administration. Then on December 31 of last year, Obama signed the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which contains provisions legalizing the militarys indefinite detention without charges or trials of citizens and non-citizens alike. The measure essentially upends the US Constitution, the Bill of Rights and the centuries-old right of habeas corpus, writing into the law of the land the methods of a military-police dictatorship. There are still 171 men imprisoned at Guantanamo. Twelve of them have spent the entire decade there, only one of them having been charged and convicted of any offense. Their continued detention is a crime that cries out for immediate redress, including the holding of all those who sent, kept and tortured them there accountable. This is hardly just a matter of clearing up some unfinished business from the previous administration. The continuation and deepening of the turn towards police state methods initiated under the Bush administration are proof that they were not merely the product of one party or political ideology, but rather the outcome of deep-going contradictions within American capitalism. Above all, they have been driven by the unprecedented polarization between a tiny wealthy elite, the top 1 percent, which monopolizes wealth and political power, and the vast mass of working people, who are politically disenfranchised and have seen their incomes, jobs and living conditions undergo relentless assault. The levels of social inequality existing in America today make any genuine democratic processes impossible. With the protracted economic crisis giving rise to social protest and class struggle, the ruling elite is turning to ever more direct forms of state repression to defend its power and privileges. The actions taken by the Obama White House threaten to bring the criminal methods of Guantanamo home to the US itself for use against the American working class. The defense of democratic rights, including the dismantling of the entire repressive system associated with Guantanamo, can be prosecuted only by the working class mobilizing its independent strength in the struggle to take political power, put an end to capitalism and reorganize the economy to meet human needs rather than private profit. Bill Van Auken As the Academy programmethe flagship education policy of the previous Labour governmententers its 14th year, all Westminster parties have embraced it. Under the Conservative government, there has been an exponential increase in academies, allowing all schools to convert or to be forcibly converted by the Department of Education. There were 4,676 Academies created in June 2015 and hundreds more are planned. The Academy programme has created a fragmented system of education and has forced through the privatisation of state education behind a smokescreen of a professed aim to improve pupil performance and break the cycle of low expectations. In August 2015, Prime Minister David Cameron announced that he wanted to make all schools academies. I want the power to be in the hands of the head teacher and teachers rather than the bureaucrats, he asserted. In reality, as 2016 begins, the biggest academy chain in England, the Academies Enterprise Trust (AET), has been accused by the Office for Standards in Education, Childrens Services and Skills (Ofsted) of failing too many pupils. Inspectors say that 40 percent of pupils in primary schools run by the AET are in academies that do not provide a good standard of education. It is even worse in secondary, where 47 percent of pupils attend academies that are less than good, says Ofsted. Across the AETs 67 academies, there is a particular weakness in the progress of disadvantaged pupils, with poorer pupils performing particularly badly. Inspectors also warned about unacceptably low attendance levels. There was also criticism of insufficient detail about how the trust is governed. Ofsted cannot give a judgement on an academy chain. They can only carry out multiple inspections of individual schools under its control. The Academy programme has left parents with an unregulated education system that is going unchecked. Similar problems have been found at other large academy chains. E-Actwhich in the past had been heavily criticised by inspectors, leading to it losing control of 10 schools two years agohas been judged by Ofsted as having low standards. Attempts to improve have not had enough impact, Ofsted said. There is no substantial evidence that the Academy programme has improved education. In fact, the privatisation of schools has led to a substandard level of education for swathes of children and large academy chains controlling schools across wide geographical areas. The AET has education establishments in the Isle of Wight, Hull, Birmingham, Essex, Leicestershire and Gloucestershire. E-Acts 23 schools are spread across England, with a number in places including the West Midlands, Buckinghamshire, Bristol, Yorkshire and the North West. The aggressive privatisation agenda is continuing. The Conservatives intend to completely break the link between local authorities and schools by forcing every school into becoming an academy. The conversion from local authority-controlled to academy status is also being offered to further education centres like sixth-form colleges, with the option to convert as in the primary and secondary sectors. The financial gain promised to state-run schools (controlled by the local authorities) when converting to academies is instead leaving head teachers in a desperate funding situation. Some schools need to find savings as budgets are squeezed to pay for further academy conversions. This has led to staffing cuts and the setting of unrealistic targets for performance pay. The Newark Academy moved to new 20 million buildings in January, and it has made staffing cuts, which the trust said was due to reduced income and a short-term staff surplus. It has also led to schools and academy trusts scrambling to raise funding from elsewhere. The Inspiration Trust headed by Jesuit Rachel de Souza, which runs 14 schools in the East of England, took over the Hewett School in Norwich. School land is to be sold off to the private sector to generate funds. It is owned by the Central Norwich Trust, which in itself has a variety of members including the business Aviva. The selling off of land by an academy (and its sponsor) can be forced through by the governments education secretary if no deal can be brokered satisfactorily. This demonstrates the dictatorial state of play where the government can ignore democratic process and enforce its rule across the country. There has been widespread opposition to conversion of schools into academies over the last decade from communities across the UK, with protests including people chaining themselves to railings to protest forced conversions. But this opposition has been isolated and localised by the teaching unions. The National Association of Schoolmasters Union of Women Teachers (NASUWT) led strike action in response to academy conversion and redundancies in Newark, but is now in further talks with the trust. The leader of the National Union of Teachers (NUT), Christine Blower, has recently spoken about the academy chain AEG. She said the chain had been allowed to expand too quickly, and this speaks to a wider problem with the chaotic system of academies and academy chains. The government continues to promote the expansion of academies and the growth of chains against all the evidence. The same arguments are repeated again and again by the unions, but there has been no mobilisation of their membership nationally to challenge the government. Instead, the strategy of the NUT and NASUWT is to carry out local and regional token strikesthe most recent being a nine-day strike at Small Heath School in Birmingham, where the NUT rep has been suspended. The pseudo-left Socialist Workers Party (SWP) declared, There is overwhelming support. Workers can winbut the national union needs to ramp up the pressure on school bosses. There is no chance of this happening, as has been proved again and again. The SWP plays a central role in insisting that the trade unions and Labour Party can be pushed to fight in the interests of teachers and in opposition to the destruction of state education by the Tories. Alasdair Smith, a member of the SWP and a leading figure in the NUT in London, is the national secretary of the Anti-Academies Alliance (AAA). In December, Smith stated, Lucy Powell and the Labour Party need to clearly state that they will reverse this harmful academies programme. He chooses to forget that the Labour Party began the academies programme and has no intention of reversing this policy as it serves the interests of big business. The AAA is affiliated by the Trades Union Congress and a majority of teachers unions. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), along with 27 other civil rights groups, recently requested that the US Justice Department investigate whether the San Diego Police Department engaged in a pattern or practice of civil rights violations by using unnecessary and excessive force against residents. The letter detailed numerous incidents between 2010 and 2015, which involved a fatal shooting by an SDPD officer and a person suffering from mental illness. The announcement follows the aftermath of the April 30, 2015 shooting of Fridoon Rawshan Nehad, an unarmed Afghan immigrant who had suffered from mental illness and was shot dead by Officer Neal Browder. Although SDPD claims that Browder shot in self-defense have been disproven by a newly released video, the citys District Attorney declined to press charges and Browder was cleared of any wrongdoing. This incident along with many others involving the mentally ill, led the ACLU and others to conclude that the SDPD was involved in a pattern or practice of violating the fundamental rights of people with mental illness or experiencing a mental health crisis. They detailed a series of incidents where lethal force was used and situations were worsened and escalated by police. As recently as March 17, 2015 the Justice Department released a critical report of the SDPD, which revealed gaps in policies and practices, a lack of consistent supervision at many levels, and a failure to hold personnel accountable. .. (which) allowed misconduct to occur and go undetected for some time. David Loy, legal director for the San Diego ACLU, said, These deadly incidents cannot be ignored, particularly because they continue in spite of the Department of Justices recent report documenting longstanding leadership and accountability failures within the San Diego Police Department. He added, The fact that these violent encounters span a period of years demonstrates either an inability or unwillingness on the part of the SDPD to learn from experience and take measures to avoid similar incidents in the future. The request seeks answers to a number of questions, including why police escalated confrontations, why officers perceived a threat from certain individuals, whether officers were properly trained in de-escalation tactics, whether SDPD officials gathered evidence properly and investigated instances of alleged brutality, and why there are contradictions between initial statements of police and other evidence. Various Justice Department investigations under Obama and his predecessors have done nothing to stop escalating police brutality across the country. Although its appeals for reform will fall on deaf ears, the ACLU letter nevertheless sheds light on how the police in a major American city routinely treat the homeless and mentally disabled. The following are some of the cited cases: April 30, 2015: Fridoon Rawshan Nehad, an Afghan immigrant who suffered from post-traumatic stress after being captured and tortured in the army, was wandering in a dark alley when police were called to respond to a disturbance. Upon exiting his patrol car, Officer Browder shot and killed Nehad within two to three seconds, not once identifying himself or telling Nehad to put his hands up. The SDPD initially said Nehad was armed with a knife, which turned out to be a pen. The new video proves Nehad never charged or threatened Browder, who was 25 feet away. The SDPD failed to interview Browder immediately after the shooting and only resumed questioning five days later, after he and his attorney watched the video of the incident. District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis refused to release the video because she said it could lead the public to rush to judgment. Dumanis, however, released a completely unrelated video of someone else twirling a butterfly knife to help visualize how menacing Mr. Nehad might have looked as he twirled a pen. February 16, 2015: Philip McMahon, 27 years old, was shot and severely wounded by an SDPD officer after his neighbors called the police following a manic episode in which a naked McMahon had broken and cut himself on their window. The SDPD claimed McMahon had charged them before they shot him. July 12, 2014: Ja Ma Lo Day, a 21-year-old Burmese refugee, threatened to kill family members, prompting them to call police. When they arrived, Day was alone in the house holding a knife and a stick. The police failed to use a translator for Day, who understood little English, and instead broke the door down and sent in an attack dog within 20 minutes of arrival. Day responded by injuring the dog with a machete, prompting two officers to fire multiple shots at Day, killing him. May 20, 2010: Nathan Manning, a man with a long history of mental illness, was having a fight with a roommate when SDPD detective Edward Jones used lethal force, only after, according to Jones, Manning charged him and began choking him. District Attorney Dumanis concluded that Jones, fired at Mr. Manning in self-defense and he therefore bears no criminal liability for his actions. However, Tom Montes, the roommate, told local media that he and Manning were not fighting when Jones arrived, and while Manning had bipolar disorder and manic episodes they were never violent. Mannings family also reported alleged inconsistencies in the SDPDs press release and their refusal to provide them with a copy of the police report. April 26, 2010: Bradford Sarten had been living with mental illness since the early 1980s and had been committed numerous times. When family members called the SDPD to evaluate Sartens mental health, officers found him in his kitchen and ordered him to come out. According to SDPD Lieutenant Kevin Rooney, he emerged with a knife and told officers they would have to kill him. He then allegedly advanced toward the officers with the knife and was shot and killed. The ACLU letter also mentions a recently commissioned study by the citys District Attorneys Office that revealed that, of the 367 people shot by police in San Diego County between 1993 and 2012, 124 had a documented mental illness or were exhibiting unstable behavior or both. At least 67 shootings, or 19 percent, were considered suicide-by-cop, as the Bradford Sarten case was presumed to be. Nationally one-quarter and as many as one-half of all fatal encounters with the police involve mental health disabilities. On Tuesday, Fairfax Medias Sydney Morning Herald devoted the top half of the front page of its print edition to a photo of visiting American Vice Admiral Joseph Aucoin, accompanied by a headline which asserted: US naval commander urges Australia to carry out patrols in the disputed islands in the South China Sea. The Murdoch-owned Australian no less sensationally entitled its article: Send in the ships: US chief urges challenge to Beijing. The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) web site headline declared that the admiral urges Australia to launch freedom of navigation operation. The impression conveyed by media was that the US, in the person of Aucoin, had made an overt intervention into domestic Australian politics, seeking to pressure the government of Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull to join its American ally in sending warships inside the 12-nautical-mile territorial limit around islets controlled by China. The Sydney Morning Herald claimed: Aucoins comments go considerably further than any US figure has done before. In fact, Aucoin, the commander of the US Seventh Fleet based in Japan, was decidedly more muted. His comments at Mondays press conference were largely pro-forma. Echoing the Obama administration and his superiors, such as Pacific Command head Admiral Harry Harris and Pacific Fleet commander Admiral Scott Swift, Aucoin indicated that the US would continue to conduct provocative freedom of navigation operations around islands and reefs in the South China Sea claimed by China, regardless of the Chinese militarys recent deployment of missile systems on Woody Island in the Paracel chain. When asked if other countries should also conduct such operations, Aucoin, a senior but by no means top-ranking commander, diplomatically replied: Personally, its up to those countries but I think its in our best interests to make sure those sea lines remain open and Ill leave it at that. Aucoins only comment regarding Australia specifically came in reply to a question. A journalist, pressing for a more explicit statement, asked if those remarks could be interpreted as saying it would be valuable for Australia to do freedom of navigation operations. The admiral answered: Yes. Aucoins one-word response about Australia was not considered newsworthy by American armed forces publications, such as Stars & Stripes, Navy Times and military.com. Instead, they focussed on his remark that he would prefer the South China Sea tensions not to be portrayed as US versus China and his reassertion of Washingtons now standard position that the US military will fly, sail, operate wherever international law allows, including those areas. The Australian media clearly decided to exaggerate Aucoins remarks. The aim was to lend an air of urgency to a decision by the Australian government to order a military response to alleged Chinese activities in the South China Sea. To embellish its story, Fairfax Medias Australian Financial Review appears to have even put words into Aucoins mouth, reporting that henot a journalisthad said that it would be valuable for Australia to do freedom-of-navigation exercises. The backdrop to Tuesdays coverage is numerous reports over recent weeks, generally based on unnamed American sources, that an Australian freedom of navigation operation against China is imminent. According to the Australian, such action was discussed during Turnbulls visit to Washington and a subsequent stopover in Hawaii for talks with Admiral Harry Harris last month. Turnbull, Foreign Minister Julie Bishop and Defence Minister Marise Payne have each made recent statements endorsing the US operations and asserting Australias national interest in freedom of navigation in the South China Sea. The Australian Navy has reportedly drawn up the plans to carry out a military incursion. The Labor Party, led by its defence spokesperson Stephen Conroy, is at the very forefront of agitating for aggressive military action. Following Aucoins remarks, Conroy again insisted that warships must be sent. Instead of waffle, Conroy declared, the Turnbull government should be clear about whether it supports Australia conducting a freedom of navigation operation as a demonstration of our support for the international system in the South China Sea. The international system is the new euphemism for the strategic and military domination of the Asia-Pacific by the United States and its allies. If Turnbull does not order action, it will be taken in ruling circles, both in the US and Australia, as a signal that he is wavering on the commitments made under successive Labor and Liberal-National governments to fully support Washingtons pivot to Asia and preparations for a confrontation with China. However, the problem that faces not only Turnbull, but the entire Australian ruling class, is that public opinion has not been conditioned for the political shock that would be provoked in the event of a military clash between Chinese and Australian warships. Despite Australias linchpin role in the US pivot, a conspiracy of silence has surrounded the mounting danger of war throughout the mass media and the political establishment, including by the Greens and pseudo-left organisations. Apart from occasional commentary, generally buried deep inside the newspapers, little is written or discussed outside of specialised strategic circles. The tabloid press and television news generally report nothing at all. The character of Tuesdays coverage is further evidenceon top of the Labor Partys bellicose statementsthat a shift is developing in the political and media establishment. On the eve of an Australian operation in the South China Sea, the years of silence are giving way to a campaign of crass propaganda, in which China will be demonised as aggressive, expansionist, bullying and threatening. At present, millions of Australian workers and youth would, if asked, oppose any action that could trigger the catastrophe of warsuch as a reckless and provocative freedom of navigation mission to challenge Chinese territorial claims. Anti-Chinese hysteria will be used to try and mobilise support among more backward layers and to suppress the instinctive anti-war sentiment within the working class and among young people. The campaign continues today, in the lead-up to the publication tomorrow of Australias latest Defence White Paper, which will define the threats to the nation and seek to justify hundreds of billions of dollars in new military spending. In a column in the Australian, Paul Dibb, a leading strategist and author of White Papers during the 1980s, wrote: The way in which China is flexing its muscles and issuing threats means that Australias defence policy has to consider how we would react, and what sort of forces we could commit, in the event that there were armed conflict between China and the US or, indeed, China and Japan. Initial results from Sundays constitutional referendum to grant Bolivian President Evo Morales a fourth term show the controversial measure failing by a slim margin. With over 85 percent of the vote counted, the results from the Supreme Electoral Tribune (TSE) show the no vote substantially ahead, with 53.3 percent of the vote, of the yes campaigns 46.7 percent. In an official press conference Monday, Morales refrained from conceding defeat but said he would respect the result. The no campaign shouldnt celebrate too early, he said. This was followed Tuesday morning by a press conference in which Vice President Alvaro Garcia Linera denounced the release of the initial results as an electoral fraud against the peasant vote based on the claim that the uncounted ballots were from rural areas where the government thought it would fare better. The defeat of the referendum would mean that Morales would be constitutionally prohibited from running in the 2019 elections and his term will conclude in 2020. Morales, who leads the ruling Movement For Socialism party (MAS), was elected president in 2005 as a self-proclaimed socialist and was reelected in 2009 and 2014. In the lead-up to the referendum, Morales proclaimed the vote was to determine whether the people want me or dont want me. The no vote reveals the declining popularity of the Morales government, particularly within the Bolivian working class, with the government facing defeat in virtually every major Bolivian city. Turnout on Sunday was 88 percent due to Bolivias compulsory voting laws. On the Wednesday before the vote, thousands demonstrated in the working class neighborhood of El Alto in response to revelations of poor conditions in the areas public schools. Demonstrators were refused an audience by El Alto Mayor Soledad Chapeton, a member of the right-wing opposition National Unity (UN) party. After the demonstrators dispersed, an explosion and fire struck a nearby government office, leaving six dead. Antagonism between the Bolivian working class and the Morales administration has grown in recent years as the government has responded with fierce hostility to strikes and protests. In July, police fired into crowds of striking miners who demanded the Morales government implement promised economic reforms. Last year, Morales announced that multi-national energy corporations would be allowed to begin oil and gas exploration within Bolivias national parks, which were established to protect Bolivias large indigenous population. Morales received the praise of Wall Street rating agencies Fitch and Moodys, which hailed the administration for its prudent fiscal policy in favor of foreign corporate investors. The vote also took place with Bolivia at the center of a struggle by Washington to counter growing Chinese economic and political influence in what US imperialism long regarded as its backyard. A scandal that surfaced in the run-up to the referendum was indicative of both the class character of the Morales government and of the geostrategic tensions that underlie Washingtons hostility to the Morales government. It was revealed that a woman with whom Morales had a child during a two-year relationship, Gabriela Zapata, had been given a top post at a Chinese company which signed $576 million worth of contracts with his administration. The US is primarily concerned with Chinas increased investments in the region. In 2015, Chinese President Xi Jiping announced that his government would invest $250 billion in Latin America over the next decade. In a 2015 US Army War College journal article titled Expanding the Rebalance: Confronting China in Latin America, Colonel Daniel Morgan argues that the Obama administrations pivot to Asia must be accompanied by a pivot to target Latin America. In it he notes that Bolivia has formed anti-western alternatives that deny US access and facilitate Chinas expansion. The article warns, In the past decade, China sold 58 million dollars worth of K-8 Karakorum jets to Bolivia, as well as other military and space exploration equipment. Even as Morales has proven himself capable of waging attacks on the working class on behalf of the Bolivian bourgeoisie and international finance capital, his governments ties to China have provoked hostility from the United States. According to 2006-2009 US government documents released last week by WikiLeaks, the US government was funneling millions of dollars into Bolivian opposition groups who planned to assassinate Morales in 2008. As Norwegian journalist Eirik Vold said last week , The US had full knowledge of opposition groups terrorist plans, which also included attacks on Bolivias natural gas pipelines. According to Vold, the cables give an understanding of the importance of Bolivia, a country rich in hydrocarbons and other natural resources, to American strategy. In December 2015, Bolivia expelled US Vice Consul Ari Avidar, who was revealed to be a Central Intelligence Agency operative working within Bolivia. Earlier in 2015, a longtime confidential informant for the US Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) named Carlos Toro filed court papers confirming that the DEA was involved in a plot to destabilize the Morales administration. The plot, which the DEA codenamed Operation Naked King, attempted to link top Morales officials with cocaine trafficking operations. There is no doubt the United States was backing the no campaign, whose ultimate aim is to remove Morales from power. The corrupt bourgeois government of Evo Morales is incapable of mounting any defense against the machinations of US imperialism because its rule is based on crushing working class opposition to its own anti-social capitalist program. After eleven years in power, the significance of the period of Morales rule is increasingly clear. Morales was brought to power in 2005 after five years of social protest which rocked La Paz and brought the country to a veritable standstill. Efforts to privatize the water supply of the city of Cochabamba in 2000 provoked nationwide protests and forced the government to declare a national emergency and a state of siege. From 2003 to 2005, massive demonstrations against corporate exploitation of the countrys natural gas supply forced the resignation of President Carlos Mesa after 500,000 workers and peasants descended upon the capital. Morales election in December 2005 provided a means of diverting this mass social movement with the promises of reforms within the existing bourgeois state setup. Over a decade later, the experiment of left bourgeois governments in countries like Bolivia, Argentina, Brazil, Ecuador and Venezuela has been revealed as a failure for the workers and peasants of South America. In Bolivia and across South America, popular disillusionment with the self-proclaimed left governments is only emboldening the more extreme right-wing tendencies of the ruling class. After Sundays vote, both Morales and the pro-US opposition will use the referendum to pave the way for new attacks on the living standards of Bolivian workers and peasants. According to leaked documents, the Obama administration's use of metadata to identify and target terrorists in Pakistan would misidentify over 99,000 innocent people. The SKYNET program, named after the antagonist in the Terminator movie series, is used to examine the cellular network metadata of over 55 million people in Pakistan and flag suspicious patterns to target for counter-terrorism operations like kidnapping, interrogation or drone assassination. The drone assassination program, begun in 2002 under Republican president George W. Bush, has been greatly expanded under Democratic president Barack Obama. The Bureau of Investigative Journalism conservatively estimates the death toll from these targeted killings at over 3,200. An unknown portion of these strikes were based on automated programs like SKYNET. According to the former director of the National Security Administration (NSA) as well as the CIA, retired General Michael Hayden, We kill people based on metadata. Documents reviewing the metadata targeting program were leaked by NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden and then published by The Intercept last year. Patrick Ball, a director of the Human Rights Data Analysis Group, told Ars Technica in an interview that the methods used by the NSA in SKYNET are ridiculously optimistic and completely bullshit. In order to process the records for millions of cell phone users the NSA uses a process called machine learning, where the computer is fed a set of known terrorists and then looks for new targets by how closely an individual's behavior matches the known set. It is essentially the same method used by corporations to target Internet advertising. Overall the NSA examines 80 different variables such as travel patterns, co-travelers, SIM card swapping, phone contacts and turning off a phone which the NSA sees as an attempt to evade surveillance. The assumption of the NSA is that the behavior of terrorists significantly differs from innocent people in consistent ways. The method the NSA uses to measure success however is fundamentally unsound. To test the program, the NSA began by taking a random sample of 100,000 people and adding seven known terrorists. The NSA then gave the program six of the individuals marked as terrorists to analyze and tasked it with finding the seventh. The exceedingly small seed of known terrorists, makes the results of the test unreliable. This is combined with the fact that the terrorists tested were handpicked as belonging to the same network, while the ordinary people were randomly selected, removing a significant portion of their social network from the test. Applying the same program to the full database would result in a significant increase in false positives. In the leaked documents, when the NSA applied their method to the full data set of 55 million, only one of the known terrorists was in the top 100 suspects, and only five of them were in the top 500. According to the NSA slides, they expect to falsely categorize 0.18 percent of the sample as terrorists. This may sound like an exceedingly small number, but when applied to the data of 55 million people, it comes out to 99,000 innocent people wrongly accused. This is much larger than the Haqqani Network, one of the largest groups targeted by the US which is estimated to have anywhere from a 4,000 to 12,000 members, significantly smaller than the number of expected false positives. The absurdity of the NSA's method is exposed in a slide that presents Al-Jazeera 's longstanding Islamabad bureau chief, Ahmed Zaidan, as the highest rated target. The top secret slide lists him, in sharp contradiction, as a member of both al-Qaeda and the Muslim Brotherhood, two opposed organizations. As a journalist, Zaidan has traveled extensively through Pakistan speaking to all sides of various conflicts. Disturbingly, Zaidan appears to have already been assigned a watch list number as an al-Qaeda member before being flagged by SKYNET, demonstrating significant inaccuracies in the NSA's set of known terrorists. It is unclear what steps, if any, exist between SKYNET flagging someone as a terrorist and someone being targeted for drone assassination. What is clear from Hayden's statement is that some people are killed based on metadata and the use of programs like SKYNET. Within Pakistan where SKYNET operates, the drone assassination program is run with fewer restrictions than in other countries. In 2013, Obama ostensibly tightened the guidelines for targeted killings requiring the CIA to have evidence that the target was an imminent threat and that they have near-certainty that no civilians would be hit. The drone program in Pakistan has been operating under a waiver that explicitly removes those guidelines. Overall the drone assassination program is thoroughly brutal and inaccurate. Other leaked documents showed that out of 235 people killed by Operation Haymaker in Afghanistan between 2012 and 2013, only 35 were targets; the rest were bystanders. Obama has relied heavily on assassination during his presidency in order to avoid the political difficulties of actually trying people accused of terrorism. Many of those detained for terrorism at Guantanamo are being held on circumstantial or inadmissible evidence gathered from CIA torture or illegal NSA spying. According to the former head of the Defense Intelligence Agency, Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn: The drone campaign right now is really only about killing. When you hear the phrase 'capture/kill' capture is actually a misnomer. Increasingly, the Obama administration is relying on metadata and signals intelligence for identifying terrorists and selecting drone targets. In Somalia and Yemen, over half of the intelligence used to select targets is based on electronic signals like phone calls that do not directly identify the target. The Department of Defense announced last August that it was going to expand its drone program by 50 percent over the next four years and Italy has recently agreed to allow US drones to operate out of a base in Sicily to target Libya. Enormous civilian casualties can be expected from the growth of these mechanized killing operations. On January 12, the Philippine Supreme Court ruled that the US-Philippines Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA), which allows for the return of US bases to the country, was constitutional. In reaching its decision, the Supreme Court dismissed two appealsone written by Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (BAYAN), the umbrella front organization of the Maoist Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP), and the other to which BAYAN was a signatory. On January 16, the World Socialist Web Site published an analysis of BAYANs appeal, revealing that to the extent that it opposes the treaty, BAYAN does so entirely from the standpoint of extreme Philippine nationalism and anti-Chinese warmongering. BAYANs argument is that the EDCA is too weak and does not go far enough in ensuring all-out war against China and securing US military protection of the Philippines. The CPP is articulating the interests of the most reactionary layers of the Philippine bourgeoisie, who are spearheading Washingtons drive to war with China, but looking to secure guarantees of US support and military protection in the event that war breaks out. It was on this basis, that BAYAN filed a motion for reconsideration before the Supreme Court on February 3. The new motion does not have a prayer of altering the decision of the court, which voted 10-4 in favor of EDCAs constitutionality. It presents no new evidence or argumentation. BAYANs stance is utterly two-faced. It is in a political coalition with presidential candidate Grace Poe and is running a candidate for Senate on her ticket. Poe announced her support for the Supreme Courts decision, and BAYAN did not raise a word of criticism. At the same time, BAYAN is using its motion for reconsideration to posture in the media as if it were opposed to US imperialism and the new basing deal. An examination of the new motion reveals just how phony this posturing is, and confirms that the CPP and its front organizations are serving the interests of US imperialism. BAYANs reconsideration motion stated that an underlying assumption and judicial notice made by the majority to uphold the EDCA is that China is a bully. True. In agreeing with the court that China is a bully threatening the Philippines, BAYAN is fully in line with the propaganda used by both Manila and Washington as the pretext for the US military build-up, not only in the Philippines but throughout the region. The CPP and BAYAN have repeatedly insisted that China is an imperialist power, which is threatening to invade the Philippines. Teddy Casino, the leading political spokesperson and former congressman of Bayan Muna, the electoral party-list organization of BAYAN, wrote a response to the World Socialist Web Site, in which he stated: China is an emerging imperialist power that does not have second thoughts about invading Philippine territory in its face-off with the US. Unlike the United States, which has engaged in one military intervention after another over the past 25 years, China is not an imperialist power and is not threatening to invade anyone. The CPP does not label China imperialist to express political opposition to the Stalinist regime in Beijing, with whom it had intimate ties through the mid-1970s and from which it traces its political genealogy. Rather, the CPP and BAYAN use the label imperialist to whip up anti-Chinese chauvinism. Their war-mongering denunciations of Beijing serve to cultivate support for Washingtons military preparations for war with China. China is threatening to invade, they argue, but there is no guarantee that Washington will protect the Philippines. To the extent that they oppose the basing deal, it is from the reactionary perspective of attempting to secure an airtight guarantee of US protection in the event of war with China. BAYANs motion continued: But we cannot rest our backs on the pretext that another bullygreedy and giddy one at thatthe US will fly to our side the moment confrontations escalate to defend our backyards and home front. Do we expect the US to prod their federal government to go to war for us? The vast majority of the working classin both the Philippines and the United Statesare opposed to war. The CPP, which is hostile to the interests of the working class, sees mass opposition to war in the United States as a problem that must be overcome. Manila must secure a binding commitment that Washington will go to war with China on behalf of the Philippines. BAYAN concluded its motion with the same logic. Finally, EDCA will not defend the Philippines against an armed attack by China Certainly, this is so because there is nothing in EDCA that assures automatic US involvement in an armed conflict between the Philippines and China. Significantly, BAYANs motion for reconsideration made no reference to the separate concurring opinion of Justice Antonio Carpio. While agreeing with the majority decision, written by Chief Justice Ma. Lourdes Sereno, which upheld the constitutionality of the EDCA, Carpio wrote a separate opinion in which he directly addressed the threat supposedly posed by China to the Philippines and the need for a basing deal in order to respond militarily to Beijing. In his concurring opinion Carpio asserted that China had already invaded repeatedly Philippine national territory. He further claimed that the 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT) between Manila and Washington automatically obligated the US to go to war in the event of the invasion of Philippine territory, including in the South China Sea. However, Carpio wrote: Without the EDCA, the MDT remains a toothless paper tiger. With the EDCA, the MDT acquires a real and ready firepower to deter any armed aggression With the EDCA China will think twice before attacking. BAYAN ignored Carpios opinion entirely because he is a key political ally and is largely articulating their own perspective. In June last year, BAYAN spearheaded the formation of a group calling itself Pilipinong Nagkakaisa para sa Soberanya (P1NAS) [Filipinos United for Sovereignty]. The organization is composed of former senators and long-standing friends of US imperialism, who have united with BAYAN to assert Philippine sovereignty. Their founding statement announced that they vehemently oppose China and are wary of the United States. The keynote speaker at the founding meeting was Antonio Carpio. Justice Carpio delivered a lecture on the threat of China in the South China Sea. At the same event, BAYAN secretary general Renato Reyes announced that P1NAS would be staging protests at the Chinese consulate and American Embassy. Jose Ma. Sison, head of the CPP, hailed Carpios ideas as the most concise and yet comprehensive and profound material. In October, while ostensibly in the midst of adjudicating on the constitutionality of EDCA, Carpio traveled to Washington and delivered the same lecture on the South China Seawith the same PowerPoint slidesthat he had given before P1NAS in June. He addressed the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), which has functioned as the leading think tank on Washingtons war drive in the Asia Pacific region. Ernie Bower, chair of the CSIS on Southeast Asia, directly asked Carpio if he felt the EDCA was an adequate deterrence against China. Carpio said he could not speak publicly on the matter as he was involved in the adjudication. Both chuckled, clearly signaling that the unstated answer was yes. If BAYANs opposition to the restoration of US bases in the Philippines was in any way genuine, it would have focused sharp criticism on the Carpio opinion. Yet BAYANS 82-page motion for reconsideration is completely silent on this matter. It raised not a word of objection. This was not an oversight. Carpio articulates the same fundamental interests as the CPP and BAYAN. The only difference between Carpios legal opinion and the political position of BAYAN is that BAYAN is looking for additional guarantees that Washington will go to war, while Carpio is convinced that Washington has already made such a commitment. On December 10, 2015, an experimental device 14 years in the making, called Wendelstein 7-X, achieved an important first milestone in its mission to prove that fusion, the process that powers the sun, can be harnessed by mankind for power generation. The device produced its first helium plasmamore on what this actually means later. Wendelstein 7-X, known more technically as a stellerator, is located at the Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics (IPP) in Greifswald, Germany and is the result of an international collaboration, with funding coming predominantly from the German government and the European Union (EU). To commemorate its maiden voyage, the event was streamed live to fusion laboratories across Europe. It received widespread media coverage in Germany and abroad. The source of the excitement surrounding the operation of the device derives from what it hopes to achieve. The scientists and engineers who designed and built the stellerator are attempting to show that a new type of reactor design could provide a more attainable path to the coveted prize of commercial fusion power. Fusion could be the silver bullet for humanitys energy woes; it is carbon-neutral, and its source of fuel is cheap and practically limitless. Moreover, fusion reactors would produce far less troublesome radioactive waste than nuclear fission and there is no risk of chain reactions like the one that caused the Chernobyl disaster. However, it has been notoriously difficult to prove that a viable fusion reactor can be created: the physical conditions necessary for fusion to occur are extreme. An individual fusion reaction requires two small, positively charged atomic nuclei, composed of protons and neutrons, to fuse together. The result is a comparatively large amount of energy, in accordance with Einsteins famous equation, E=mc2, but since the nuclei are both positively charged and so repel each other, they need to be travelling at high speeds to overcome this barrier. Correspondingly, the fusion fuel must attain temperatures about ten times hotter than the centre of the Sun. At these temperatures, the fuel enters the fourth state of matter, known as plasma: the electrons and nuclei that are typically bonded in atoms become partially or completely disassociated (or ionized). Evidently, there are no materials capable of containing such energetic charged particles without themselves disintegrating, and one scheme to confine the fuel plasma is to use magnetic fields of extraordinarily high magnitude. As a stellerator, Wendelstein 7-X uses numerous, strangely shaped electromagnetic coils in a toroidal or donut arrangement to create a correspondingly bizarre magnetic cage. This complex design required over ten years of planning and theoretical calculations conducted on incredibly powerful supercomputers to produce what the physicists hope will be an optimal result. The 70 coils, each about 3.5 metres tall and weighing a few tons, are made of expensive superconducting material and needed to be placed with millimetre precision. In all, the magnets and supports weigh 425 tons and must be enclosed in a cryogenic vacuum vessel, all cooled to a few degrees above absolute zero. It is hoped that this arrangement will optimally confine the fusion plasma, avoiding the instabilities and particle losses endemic to other strategies. The December 10 event marked the first plasma produced in Wendelstein 7-X using helium atoms as fuel. A further step was taken on February 3, 2016 using a different fuel, hydrogen. This is important because the ideal fusion reaction is between isotopes (i.e., heavier forms) of hydrogen. Of course, to reach this impressive achievement and conquer the numerous complexities, many man-hours and extensive funding were necessary. In total, over one million assembly hours and 370 million for components, rising to 1.03 billion if operating costs are included, were required. Such logistics are not uncharacteristic of large-scale, international scientific endeavours. A related project to build the worlds largest fusion reactor, called ITER, has a current estimated cost of between 13 and 15 billion, earning the title of humanitys most expensive experiment, and construction will not likely be completed until the early 2020s. Cutting-edge science is necessarily costly in every sense of the word, but some context is required to evaluate whether enough resources are being directed towards fusion research. An apt comparison is with the fossil fuel industry, since fusion will one day enter the energy market. Minimal new research funding has been directed to fossil fuel extraction because it is a fairly mature industry, but in 2013 alone, it is estimated by the IEA (International Energy Agency) that global government subsidies for the fossil fuel industry totalled $530 billion. This is staggering to contemplate. Even if the costs for the most expensive science experiment in the world, viz. ITER, were condensed into one year, this would still only account for about 3 percent of the amount governments spend in supporting the consumption and production of fossil fuels. Even more perplexing is the fact that the scientific community widely accepts that fossil fuels are the main contributing factor to anthropogenic climate change. In this light, it would seem foolish to quibble over the comparatively minor budgets of scientific research projects that could directly assist in providing clean, abundant energy. Yet the exact opposite is the case. For instance, NCSX, a similar device to Wendelstein 7-X, which was being built at the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) in the United States, was cancelled by the Department of Energy due to cost overruns. Similarly, the ITER project is at risk because of its budgetary woes, construction delays, and the looming threat that the US government may pull its support. Such a contrast in funding and neglect of foresight can only be explained by a global political and economic system that is completely subservient to short-term profits and capital accumulation. It is solely through a mass movement of the working class that this system can be overturned, so that science is at liberty to solve humanitys problems and fully conquer nature. The Pentagon is expected to send Congress a plan this week detailing the closure of the infamous Guantanamo Bay detention camp. President Barack Obama stated in remarks made Tuesday from the White House that he wishes to complete the closure of the facility by the end of his term next year. The recent move, made at the end of Obama's career, is a cynical ploy aimed at assuaging the fears and discontent of the American populace over the horrific crimes committed in the name of the so-called War on Terror. The prison has become a symbol of all the crimes of US imperialism over the last fifteen years. Revelations about Guantanamo and the torture program carried out at various black sites by the CIA have exposed the true face of the War on Terror. The Pentagon's most recent proposal, crafted in close collaboration with President Obama, will transfer some inmates to foreign countries while relocating the remainder to detention facilities within the borders of the United States. Even if this proposal is somehow able to overcome the fierce opposition from the Republican-controlled Congress, it will legitimize the illegal and indefinite detainment in the United States of anyone suspected of terrorism. Guantanamo founded in 2002 by President George W. Bush amidst a massive curtailment of democratic rights following the September 11 attacks, has held a total of 779 detainees. As many as 22 detainees were detained when they were under the age of 18. Many had never even been accused of a crime. It is now known that the CIA oversaw widespread sexual abuse and torture at the camp for years. Both the Bush and Obama administrations have justified the mass detention at Guantanamo, describing prisoners as enemy combatants. This term, invented to deny individuals any rights either under the US Constitution as criminal defendants or under the Geneva Conventions as prisoners of war, has been used for the last decade and a half to justify the most monstrous crimes of US imperialism. Since the prison's inception, the US government has falsely imprisoned and tortured hundreds, only to later release them with little or no explanation as to why they had been taken from their friends and families in the first place. The story of innocent men such as Australian citizen David Hicks, who spent five and a half years in Guantanamo after being captured in Afghanistan by the Northern Alliance in 2001 and sold to the US government on trumped up terrorism charges, is all too common. In fact, a report prepared by the Center for Policy and Research at Seton Hall University Law School demonstrated that over 80 percent of the 571 detainees remaining at Guantanamo in 2005 had not been captured by US military-intelligence forces, but rather, by Afghan or Pakistani forces that exchanged them in return for bounties. At the time, the US government offered $5,000 for every captured prisoner. President Obama, elected on the mandate of the closure of Guantanamo, has played an important role throughout his presidency in keeping the facility open. In 2012, the Obama administration prosecuted CIA whistleblower John Kiriakou after he exposed the capture and brutal interrogation of Al-Qaeda suspect Abu Zubayda. Later that year, Obamas Attorney General Eric Holder closed a three-year probe investigating the torture and murder of inmates by the CIA with no charges against any of those involved. As recently as last November, Obama supported a $607 billion Pentagon spending bill which mandated Guantanamo stay open. In 2009, Obama made his first empty call for the prison to be closed. At the time, the prison still held 242 detainees. Over the following years, detainees were transferred to various different countries, leaving 91. A number of the detainees are not eligible for transfer, and Congress banned moving them into the United States via a defense bill passed at the end of 2010. The current Congress shows no intention to revoke the bill. Thirty-five of the 91 inmates are expected to be transferred to foreign countries by the end of the year. Of the remaining 56, ten have either been convicted on terrorism charges or are currently facing pending cases by the military commission created to prosecute terrorism suspects. The 46 other detainees find themselves in a perverse limboneither convicted nor facing pending cases, but still ineligible for transfer. Under the current proposal, these detainees would be relocated to prison facilities in Kansas, South Carolina or Colorado. Three of the five US prisons currently under consideration by President Obama and the Pentagon are military prisons. All five range between medium and supermax security levels. The Midwest Joint Regional Correctional Facility in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, a military prison currently in the running to take detainees, held Private Chelsea Manning from 2011 to 2014. Manning, a US military whistleblower who gave information to Wikileaks detailing war crimes in Iraq in 2010, endured brutal treatment in the US military prison system. Lawyers representing Guantanamo inmates have stated that as many as ten of these detainees would be willing to plead guilty to charges such as providing material support to terrorism or conspiracy to commit terrorism. American officials are also considering the possibility of sending detainees to other allied countries that would be willing to prosecute them, including the Al-Sisi dictatorship in Egypt or even the Saudi monarchy. An editorial in the New York Times Tuesday presented the toothless argument that the transfer of prisoners would make the cost of running the overseas prison increasingly hard to justify and result in the closure of the camp. It is likely, however, that no decision regarding Guantanamo will be made within the year, leaving a decision on the ultimate fate of the prison camp to the next president. Previous proposals to transfer detainees to detention centers in the United States have elicited strong opposition from the political establishment, particularly amongst Republicans. As far as I'm concerned, every last one of them can rot in hell, but as long as they dont do that, they can rot in Guantanamo Bay, Republican Senator Tom Cotton of Arkansas said last year. For its part the Obama administration has moved away from the widely unpopular program of extraordinary rendition and detention by dramatically expanding the illegal drone assassination program initiated by Bush. Instead of capturing and detaining terrorism suspects, the military-intelligence apparatus now uses drone strikes to murder anyone deemed an enemy combatant. Since Obama's inauguration, anywhere from 2,497 to 3,998 have been killed by drone missile strikes. According to a report published by The Intercept last October, nearly 90 percent of people killed in recent drone strikes in Afghanistan were not the intended target. Obama has publicly asserted the right to assassinate and carried out assassinations of American citizens using drone strikes in the interest of national security. The best-known instances of Americans being murdered were in 2011, when Anwar al-Awlaki, an imam accused of supporting Al-Qaeda, was killed in a drone strike in Yemen. His sixteen year old son Abdulrahman al-Awlaki, also an American citizen, was killed two weeks later in another drone strike. New York City Mayor Bill De Blasio signed legislation last week that would raise the pay of each member of the City Council by 32 percent, bringing their annual salaries up from $112,500 to $148,500. The City Council members themselves had approved the raise by a vote of 40 to 7 earlier this month. The Democratic Party-dominated councils decision to give itself a massive pay raise in a city riven by some of the most severe social inequality on the planet exposes the self-interested and morally corrupt character of this upper middle-class layer of elected officials. Although this is the first raise they have had in ten years, it nevertheless highlights the gulf between these big-business politicians and the struggles of most New Yorkers. Following only one hearing of the bill, the Council disregarded recommendations from the Quadrennial Commission, appointed by the mayor, which suggested council members receive an annual salary of $138,350, and awarded its members an annual salary of $148,500. The members also ignored the commissions other recommendations, increasing the City Council speakers salary to $164,500, the district attorneys salary to $212,800, and the Comptrollers salary to $209,050. The legislation also makes the increase retroactive to January 2016. The bill also allows New York City Mayor de Blasio to increase his salary from $225,000 to $258,750. De Blasio stated prior to the vote that he would not accept a pay raise in his first term in office, but he gladly helped his fellow politicians to an income hike that most New Yorkers can only dream of. Melissa Mark-Viverito, the Council Speaker, sought to justify the decision, stating, The Quadrennial Commission report indicated specifically that because its been so long since the implementation of a quad commission that it was appropriate for this raise to be effective immediately. A Quadrennial Commission is supposed to convene every four years. The last commission was convened in 2006, however, and that was the last time the councilmembers received a pay raise. The councilmembers have also argued that the massive pay increase was necessary in order to compensate them for minor reforms recommended by the Quadrennial Commission, including limiting outside income for councilmembers and the elimination of committee chairmanship bonusesfrequently referred to as lulus. On average, councilmembers make $8,000 in lulus per member, with some taking in as much as $25,000. Both figures are well below the $36,000 pay increase approved by the Council. The legislation also classifies the councilmembers as full-time employees, limiting their income from outside jobs. However, this legislation will not affect the majority of councilmembers, since 39 of them, out of the 51 members of the City Council, have no outside employment. Despite the fact that the majority of councilmembers are unaffected by this provision, Mark-Viverito made the ludicrous claim that These reforms will increase transparency and fairness, reduce the potential for conflicts of interest and improve the process for considering future changes in compensation for local elected officials. This body of elected officials complain about a salary of $112,000 a year because it simply does not fit the standard for the upper middle class in New York City, the top 5 to 10 percent of income earners. The new salaries, in fact, would put these defenders of big business only in the top 12 percent of income earners in the city, far behind top trade union bureaucrats, CEOs of many major nonprofits, and top-earning public university officials. These salaries, of course, are a pittance compared to the income and assets of the wealthiest New Yorkers, who set the tone in the economic, political, and cultural life of the city. The councilmembers are relative small fry, but insist on a pay increase to bring them slightly more in line with the ruling elite. Like the rest of the United States, New York City is dominated by a few billionairesthere are 78 who claim the city as their primary residence, the most in the worldand a larger number of mere multimillionaires. Currently there are 8,855 ultra-high-net-worth (UHNW) individualsusually defined as those with net assets of more than 30 millionin New York, more than in any other US city. The flip side of the Councils orientation toward the moneyed elite is its distance from the lives and struggles of the vast majority of New Yorkers. Even before the legislation was enacted, an individual councilmember was being paid more than double the median household income in New York City, estimated at $52,259 annually, a figure that has barely increased since the economic crisis in 2008. In addition to this, slightly more than 20 percent of New York City residents live in poverty, while homelessness also remains at extreme levels, with an official count of 60,096 in the citys homeless shelters last December. A 2014 study also found that 46 percent of New Yorkers are poor or near poor. It is worth noting that one of the most vociferous advocates of a pay raise was Democratic Councilman Ydanis Rodriguez. Rodriguez is fond of posing as an opponent of social inequality. In 2011 he was arrested by the NYPD as part of the Occupy Wall Street protests. Photographs of his bloodied face appeared in the media, and he was profiled in an essay on Time magazines Person of the Year: Year of the Protester. Rodriguez argued during the single hearing on the pay-raise bill that he deserved a salary of $175,000 a year because he has a family and works more than 60 hours a week. In spite of its frequent and flabby rhetoric on poverty, homelessness and low wages, the New York City Council has demonstrated more graphically than usual where its social interests really lie. Its members aspire to belong to the ruling elites top rung of lackeys, and they expect to be paid well for their efforts. With its highly public court battle with Apple over access to an encrypted phone, the Obama administration is very deliberately seeking to create the framework for a massive expansion of police state spying powers in the United States. The claim by White House officials, backed Tuesday by Microsoft founder Bill Gates, that what is involved is a single case involving one phonethe smartphone used by one of the shooters in last years San Bernardino attackis a lie aimed at covering up the governments intentions. Supporting the Obama administration, Gates said in an interview with the Financial Times that a February 16 court order requiring Apple to help the FBI access a phone used by Syed Rizwan Farook was a specific case where the government is asking for access to information. He added, They are not asking for some general thing, they are asking for a particular case. The comments of Gates, who has the closest relations with the White House, echoed those of FBI Director James Comey, who wrote over the weekend that the San Bernardino litigation isnt about trying to set a precedent or send any kind of message. In fact, this is precisely the administrations intention. The context of the present case is a concerted effort by the political establishment and the media to counter the wave of popular anger that followed the revelations by Edward Snowden, beginning in the summer of 2013, of illegal and unconstitutional spying by the National Security Agency (NSA) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Snowden exposed programs that accumulate vast databases of information, including telephone records, emails, Internet traffic and anything else that can reveal the political activity and relations of anyone, anywhere in the world. In part in response to these revelations, security measures to prevent government snooping have become more popular and more widely accessible. Last year, Congress began preparing legislation to require technology companies to install backdoors that would allow the government access to encrypted data on demand. The White House decided in the fall not to press forward with the bill. Citing senior administration officials, the Washington Post noted at the time that the decision was motivated, in part, by an effort to repair global trust in the US government and US tech companies, whose public images have taken a beating in the wake of the Snowden revelations. While continuing to warn about encryption (what Comey called going dark), the White House waited for better conditions to press forward. Behind the scenes, it was quite explicit about how it intended to push its spying agenda. Robert Litt, the top lawyer for the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, wrote in one email obtained by the Post that the legislative environment could turn in the event of a terrorist attack or criminal event. The intelligence agencies should be keeping our options open for such a situation. An unnamed senior administration official complained to the Post that we do not have the perfect example where you have the dead child or a terrorist act to point to, and thats what people seem to claim you have to have. The San Bernardino killings, which left 14 people dead, provided the desired perfect example. Immediately, the demand was raised by CIA Director John Brennan, Comey and other intelligence officials for legislation to force companies to provide a backdoor to encryption. The FBI, with the backing of the White House, decided to make the case against Apple a public battle for this purpose. The legislation shelved last year is being revived in Congress. The specific powers the government is seeking in the court case are themselves extremely far-reaching. Data on more recent iPhones is encrypted and protected by a password or passphrase. The phone has an additional security feature that deletes all data if too many incorrect passwords are entered, preventing the government from using a brute force technique of entering every possible combination. These smartphones contain an immense amount of personal information, including lists of contacts, emails and texts, phone records, photographs, historical data on physical movements, private PGP keys for encrypted emails, bank account data and much more. The government is seeking to require Apple to write and install a new version of its operating system to override the phones security features. If the government succeeds, it will give it the power to use the same procedure on any other phone it wants to access. Even more significantly, a precedent will be established to require any company to do something similar: create and program backdoors to allow government access to encrypted communications. This overrides the basic purpose of encryption, which is precisely what the administration is seeking to do. These efforts are a continuation of the policy of the American ruling class since the beginning of the war on terror, now in its 15th year. Democratic rightsincluding the Fourth Amendment safeguards against unreasonable searches and seizureshave been under relentless assault under cover of a phony crusade against terrorism. First Bush and then Obama have overseen an immense expansion of state powers to spy on the population. In doing so, the government has worked closely with the gigantic companies that control the communication networks, a fact that is underscored by Gates intervention in the dispute between the government and Apple. For its part, Apple is motivated not by principled considerations, but by business interests. It has its own ties with intelligence agencies and has made clear that it would have been willing to work out some sort of arrangement behind the scenes if the administration had not decided to make its demands public. Within the political establishment, there is uniform support for the destruction of democratic rights. It is notable that, alongside the war plans of the American ruling class, domestic spying is a non-issue in the presidential election campaign. When it has come up, the various candidates have backed the intelligence agencies. Bernie Sanders, when asked in a debate earlier this month about his position on the Apple case, said that he supported both sides. Accepting the framework of the war on terror, Sanders said that he worries about the possibility of another terrorist attack against our country. He hoped that Apple and the government could find a middle ground. This is consistent with Sanders call for the prosecution of Snowden. Terrorism is being used as a pretext. The expansion of state powers is aimed fundamentally at the working class. Presiding over a social system riven by extreme levels of social inequality, and anticipating growing anger over its policies of war and social reaction, the financial aristocracy is preparing accordingly. It is on the working class, organized as an independent force in opposition to the entire capitalist system, that the defense of democratic rights must be based. On Wednesday, several hundred Detroit teachers and other school employees attended a meeting at Cass Tech High School with former US bankruptcy judge Steven Rhodes. The retired judge has been picked by Michigan Governor Rick Snyder to be the new emergency manager of the Detroit Public Schools after the departure of Darnell Earley on February 29. Officials from the Detroit Federation of Teachers met with Rhodes and Snyder on Monday and requested the meeting as part of an ongoing effort to suppress protests by rank-and-file teachers against deteriorating conditions and years of pay and benefit concessions accepted by the DFT. Rhodes who oversaw the 2013-14 Detroit bankruptcy has been brought in to implement a bipartisan school restructuring plan, now being drafted in the state legislature, which will further attack teacher jobs, wages and pensions and funnel more money to for-profit charter schools and educational businesses. Many teachers at Wednesdays meeting expressed skepticism and anger towards Rhodes who is infamous for violating the state constitution and ruled in favor of city worker pension cuts in during the citys bankruptcy proceedings. A full report of the meeting will be posted on the WSWS tomorrow. Below is the statement that supporters of the Socialist Equality Party and the WSWS Teacher Newsletter distributed to educators and other school employees attending Wednesdays meeting. *** Teachers and other Detroit Public School employees are being brought to Cass Tech today for a meeting with former US bankruptcy judge Steven Rhodes, who has been picked to head the DPS transition team after the departure of Darnell Earley next week. According to Detroit Federation of Teachers officials, who met with Rhodes and Michigan Governor Rick Snyder on Monday, the retired judge is looking for input from educators on the future of the public schools. This is a fraud. The governor did not handpick Rhodes because he is a good listener. On the contrary, Rhodes was chosen because he is a highly political judge who postures as a neutral and even-handed arbiter while doing the dirty work of Wall Street. He personifies the alliance of the two big business parties in their mutual determination to intensify the assault on teachers and all sections of the working class. Rhodes essential task is to transfer the methods and results of the Detroit bankruptcy to the current target, public education in Detroit. What was Rhodes record during the bankruptcy? On December 3, 2013 the federal judge ruled that Detroit was eligible for bankruptcy even after acknowledging that the majority of the population believed the proceedings were the result of a years-long conspiracy to extend the power of the state government and strip the city of its assets. In an unprecedented ruling the same day, Rhodes declared pension benefits are not entitled to any heightened protection in a municipal bankruptcy. With one stroke Rhodes discarded the Michigan Constitution, which explicitly states that such benefits shall not be diminished or impaired and gave the green light to destroy the pensions of millions of public employees in Michigan and across the US. In April 2014, Rhodes approved a $85 million payment to Bank of America and UBS even after acknowledging that the two banks likely broke the law when they inveigled the city into rate swap deals, which were sold to willing Detroit officials as a protection against rising interests rates. On September 30, 2014, Rhodes threw out a motion to stop mass water shutoffs in Detroit and dismissed a lawsuit filed by victims who argued that the shutoff of nearly 400 households a day was doing irreparable harm and threatened to create a public health disaster. Rhodes insisted that there is no enforceable right to free or affordable water. In November 2014, Rhodes approved a bankruptcy plan that slashed pensions, imposed brutal cuts to retiree health benefits and sold off and privatized public assets like the citys lighting and water system, with the Detroit Institute of Arts handed to a private nonprofit run by corporate interests. The deal funneled even more money to billionaires like Dan Gilbert and Mike Ilitch and the major financial institutions. The services of Rhodeswho has also been tapped to help loot the assets of the people of Puerto Ricoare now being deployed to see what private investors and educational businesses can extract from the Detroit Public Schools. Rhodes particular task is to shepherd through the DPS restructuring plans crafted by Snyder and currently being considered by the state legislature. Earlier this month, DPS Emergency Manager Darnell Earley was forced to announce his resignation in the midst of outrage over his role as the former emergency manager of Flint who oversaw the poisoning of the citys water supply. The political establishment also confronts growing anger among teachers, expressed in the wave of sickouts that were organized outside of the control of the Detroit Federation of Teachers, and the student walkouts that followed. Though Earley is leaving, the attack on public education is by no means slowing down. Snyders plan is to split the district into a bad DPS and a good DPS. Even after the election of a school board in 2017, the new district will be essentially be run by a financial review commissionan emergency manager in another namethat will have dictatorial powers to enforce spending cuts and oversee the expansion of for-profit charter schools. Making clear that he perfectly understands his role, Rhodes recently said that the governors plan, or a plan like it, [has to be] in place as promptly as possible. Teachers confront not only Rhodes, but a political conspiracy that involves the Democrats no less than the Republicans, with the critical assistance of the Detroit Federation of Teachers itself. Democrats have hailed the departure of Earley, claiming this is the beginning of a process of returning local control over the schools. The demands by Mayor Duggan and the rest of the Detroit political establishment for the restoration of democracy and local control have nothing do with the interests of teachers, parents and students. Instead the corporate-controlled politicians and union bureaucrats use these honeyed phrases to conceal their own desire for a piece of the action from the dismantling of the public education system and the opening up of Detroits multi-million dollar education market. Nationally, the attack on public education has been spearheaded by the Obama administration, which has gone well beyond the reactionary policies of its Republican predecessor in using test-based accountability schemes to scapegoat teachers, close so-called failing schools, and undermine public schools in order to make education a new source of profit for the corporations and banks. As for the unions, they have long functioned as a partner of the Democrats and Republicans in the attacks on teachers and public education. The American Federation of Teachers has colluded with President Obama and Arne Duncan and billionaire enemies of public education like Bill Gates. The AFT and DFT are not opposed to corporate-backed school reform, they only want a seat at the table and a share of the spoils. This includes getting a foot in the door of the fast-growing charter school sector so they can collect union dues from low-paid teachers with little or no rights. Indeed, the particular talent of Rhodes is his ability to find the right price to pay off the trade unions for their cooperation. The Grand Bargain crafted by Rhodes during the bankruptcy included a half billion payoff to AFSCME in the form of a retiree trust fund and investment vehicle, which they took in exchange for sanctioning the destruction of their members jobs, wages and social rights. The only constituency concerned with defending the right to quality education is the broad mass of working people. While the DFT and the Democrats did everything they could to shut down the teacher sickouts and the student walkouts as fast as possible, these actionstaken independently of and in defiance of the DFT/AFTwon widespread support among workers and youth. Every section of the working class is facing relentless attacks even as trillions are handed to the financial aristocracy and wasted on endless and ever-growing wars. Earlier this month teachers rebelled against the Chicago Teachers Union, which attempted to push through Mayor Rahm Emanuels attacks on jobs and pensions, and on Monday, more than 200 teachers in the southern California district of Compton, near Los Angeles, carried out sickouts to demand decent wages and conditions. To take these struggles forward, teachers need to build new organizations of struggle, democratically controlled by rank-and-file teachers and other school employees, and free from the control of the bought-off unions and big business politicians. The enemies of public education are strong but the allies of teachers are much stronger. The question is uniting all of the individual struggles of the working classof Flint residents, autoworkers, teachersinto a single, political movement against and the two corporate-controlled parties and the capitalist system they defend. The aim of such a politically independent movement of the working class must be to break the economic and political stranglehold of the financial aristocracy and advance a socialist program that would use societys vast resources to greatly improve public education and guarantee a future for young people free of poverty, social inequality and war. News reports from the start of the week were difficult to bear. The reports of racist attacks on a bus of incoming refugees in the Saxon community of Clausnitz, Germany, were repugnant. But even worse were the cynicism and hypocrisy of politicians and commentators. Government press secretary Steffen Seibert declared Monday morning that the German government condemned the xenophobic protests at refugee shelters in no uncertain terms. What had taken place in Clausnitz was deeply shameful, he said. Adopting an angry pose, Merkels spokesperson said: How cold-hearted, how cowardly must one be to stand before a bus full of refugees and curse and shout to scare the people on board, many of them women and children? Such feigned outrage is revolting. The racist attacks in Clausnitz and several other cities and communities in Germany are the direct result of the xenophobic policies of the federal government. One could ask Seibert in return: How brutal, cold-hearted and dishonest is a government that claims to be in solidarity with people in need and to treat them with decency and compassion, but at the same time restricts the basic right to asylum, eliminates family reunification, seals off the external borders of the European Union and deploys the naval forces of NATO in the Aegean Sea to repel refugee boats? What happened in Clausnitz? On Thursday evening, an angry group of right-wing demonstrators attempted to prevent the arrival of some 20 refugees at a shelter in the Saxon community. Shouting, We are the people! the right-wing mob blocked the bus. SpiegelOnline reported on an amateur video taken at the scene. Among the phrases shouted on the recording were: Just look at what kind of vermin is getting off here! Get rid of this trash! and Refugee scum! In the bus sat intimidated and frightened refugees who, because of the threatening situation, did not want to get off. The video then shows how police violently forced the refugees to disembark. A picture of a crying boy yanked off the bus in the clutches of police made the rounds online and provoked a wave of outrage. A report by Central German Broadcasting (MDR) revealed that the director of the refugee shelter in Clausnitz, Thomas Hetze, is a member of the xenophobic Alternative for Germany (AfD) party and has on several occasions openly and sharply criticised the asylum policies of the federal government. His brother is said to have been an organiser of the racist protest action. A second incident took place in the town of Bautzen, where a fire broke out in a planned refugee shelter on Sunday night. According to details released by the police, 20 to 30 people gathered during the blaze. A police spokesperson said that some commented on the fire with derogatory remarks and open delight. Several people had attempted to prevent fire-fighting operations. That the actions of the police in Clausnitz were directed not at the right-wing demonstrators and thugs, but against the refuges, led to vehement protests, especially in online forums. As a result, Police Chief Uwe Reimann called a press conference on Saturday at which he vehemently rejected criticism of the police. Reimann stressed that the use of direct force on refugees was not only justified, but had been absolutely necessary. He blamed refugees for escalating the situation. They had taken videos from inside the bus and provoked the crowd with obscene gestures. It was this that caused the situation to get out of hand, he said. The German Police Union also justified the police operation. The goal had been to bring the refugees to safety in the shelter, said the union. On Sunday, German interior minister Thomas de Maiziere (Christian Democratic Union, CDU) also defended the police. From 1999 to 2005, De Maiziere was himself a member of the Saxon government, ultimately serving as the states interior minister. He told the ARD networks news show Report from Berlin that the police in my view acted appropriately in taking the people off the bus. They were brought to safety in the shelter. I dont understand criticism of this police operation. The events in Clausnitz are a direct result of right-wing, xenophobic policy. For months, the Christian Social Union (CSU), a member of the federal government, has beaten the drum for a more aggressive approach toward refugees. They call for caps on the number of refugees permitted in the country and a de facto closing of the borders. Saxonys minister-president Stanislaw Tillich (CDU) supports this right-wing course. Continued uncontrolled entry can no longer be permitted, he said during the CDUs state party congress at the end of last year. Delinquent asylum applicants would have to be deported more quickly. Chancellor Angela Merkel opposes the closure of borders at a national level, but she also supports a drastic reduction of refugees and expedited deportations. In this, she has the support of the Social Democratic Party, the Greens and the Left Party. Foreigners are almost never spoken of without the word criminal being associated with them, and all parties call for speeding up the deportation process for criminal foreigners. In mid-January, Sahra Wagenknecht, the chairwoman of the Left Partys parliamentary fraction, joined in the agitation against refugees and the call for a stronger state with the words: Whoever abuses the right to hospitality has forfeited the right to be a guest. Significantly, Wagenknecht was immediately praised by the AfD for her remarks. Frau Wagenknecht has summed up the situation very well, said Alexander Gauland, deputy chairman of the far-right party. For the Greens, Boris Palmer, mayor of Tubingen, called for a much stricter course in refugee policy. In an interview with Spiegel, he said the time for Pippi Longstocking or pony farm politics is over. Palmer declared that effective border controls would have to be re-established and border fences built wherever necessary. This all-party coalition against refugees is grist for the mill of the far right. It strengthens right-wing parties like the AfD and Pegida, and creates the kind of pogrom climate recently displayed in Clausnitz and Bautzen. TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) A man in prison 36 years for stealing the very mechanic tools his father left him in a will could finally get a chance to go free. The Florida parole commission on Wednesday will review the case of Gadsden County native Mark DeFriest, who was dubbed the "prison Houdini" after a series of escapes that added more and more time to his sentence. If DeFriest had just been patient and claimed his tools after his father's will had been executed, he never would have gone to prison. But his original burglary conviction eventually turned into a virtual life sentence after his escapes and other disciplinary issues in prison. The commission reduced DeFriest's sentence more than a year ago and now can decide to release him. TALLAHASSEE Fla.--A Leon County Commissioner says he's worried about the schools in Tallahassee's southside, so he wants to hand them over to state control. Commissioner Bill Proctor, who represents District 1, held a press conference at the Florida Department of Education this morning, making the request. The Leon County school system received an "A" grade from the department, but Proctor says six schools in his district received a "D" or "F." Proctor says students at these schools, which are mostly black children, are being failed by the current system. He is also asking the department, with the help of FAMU and FSU, to start a four year pilot program in Leon County to help these schools, because he says the options available under state law will not be able to help make the necessary transformation. The Leon County school system says they had not heard about Proctor's request until this morning. Superintendent Jackie Pons says the school system is working to close the gap between the District one schools and other schools in Leon County and that he wants to work with Proctor to help turn the schools around. Statement from Florida Department of Education We appreciate the opportunity to tout the tremendous success Florida students have achieved. We are proud school districts have great flexibility to make policy decisions that best meet the individual needs of their students. Commissioner Stewart would have welcomed the chance to meet with Commissioner Bill Proctor had he requested so she could have shed light on the progress our students, specifically our African American students, have made. There was a time when Florida ranked toward the bottom of most national rankings, but those days are long gone. Since the turn of the 21st century, our students have consistently improved, and, as a result, they are more prepared than ever to succeed in college, career and life. Commissioner Proctors comments highlight the fact that many Floridians are still in the dark about our students success, and we need to continue sharing this good news. Now that we have shared these statistics, we hope Commissioner Proctor will help spread the word about Florida students outstanding accomplishments: BONITA SPRINGS, Fla. (AP) Officials are investigating a southwest Florida house fire that claimed the life of a woman and a dog. The News-Press reports that 75-year-old Shirley Corriga died in a fire at that destroyed her home Tuesday morning. She lived with her daughter and her grandchildren, who escaped the burning home. When Bonita Springs firefighters arrived, the house was totally engulfed. A landscaping crew and a Lee County sheriff's deputy were on the scene when firefighters arrived and had tried to rescue a person they were told was inside. Fire and smoke thwarted that effort. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan already has a publicized event in the works, the kind he likes, in which he will announce the end of his countrys conflict with Israel. He took care to send a message to the Turkish and Israeli negotiation teams working on the official reconciliation agreement, stating that Israel has been and remains essential to Turkey, which is willing to go back to the close relationship from before the eruption of the Marmara affair (In 2010, a flotilla of ships attempted to break the Israeli naval blockade of Gaza. The IDF sent commandos to take over one of the ships, the Turkish MV Mavi Marmara, meeting violent resistance. Several Israeli soldiers were hurt in the incident, as well as some of the ships people. Ever since, relations between Israel and Turkey have been highly tense. -ed). Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter Its not simple. Too many parties, in the political and security realms, are lurking behind the scenes. The Sultan from Ankara intends to personally travel to Gaza once the agreement is reached, stand in front of news cameras, and declare that thanks to his efforts the blockade has been lifted. Erdogan has said he doesnt plan on entering Gaza through Israels Erez Crossing, and he surely understands that coming in through the sea isnt a realistic option. Whats left? Egypt refuses to open the Rafah Crossing for him. President Al-Sisi has no intention of rolling out the red carpet for him. Turkish President Erdogan. (Photo: AP) Theres no clear schedule for a Turkey turning point, and Israel is unsurprisingly choosing to remain silent. Erdogan is the one whos heavily hinting about a coming agreement. Hes already appointed a new ambassador in Tel Aviv, but those who pay attention will see that, all of a sudden, Israel is in no hurry. Jerusalem continues to suspect Erdogans fickle mood swings. Its a tough dilemma: Whats more important to Israel, strategic cooperation with Egypt or renewed use of Turkish airspace for military flights (with the IAFs electronic gaze aimed at Syria and Lebanon)? How do you solve this complex equation without stumbling? Its no secret that the Islamist Erdogan has been in a wild battle with Egyptian President Al-Sisi over the latters fight against the Muslim Brotherhood, and the hundreds of death penalties handed to the organizations leaders. Beside the curses and threats, Erdogan also refuses to acknowledge the legality of Sisis administration. On the other side, Egyptian intelligence is paying close attention to the Turks hosting Hamas leaders. The Marmara incident started a period of tense relations between Israel and Turkey. (Photo: IDF Spokesperson) The Saudis are also engaged in a slow-going background effort to make peace between Egypt and Turkey. That complex triangle features neither a lot of trust nor a great amount of enthusiasm. Its more comfortable for everyone there to just freeze things and keep the status quo going (as it is for Israel when it comes to its relations with Turkey). Its not just Gaza thats on the table, as Saudi Arabia and Turkey seek to remove Bashar Assad from power in Syria; in that, they contrast with the Middle Easts newest major player Russian President Vladimir Putin, who is sending his fighter jets to protect Assad. Hes also made sure to send a clear message to Israels government, saying hes not happy about the possible consequences of a Turkish-Israeli reconciliation. Jerusalem is weighing their understandings with Moscow on the Syrian front in contrast with interests and goals they have on the Turkish front. While Egypt is neutral on the matter of Assad, our secret friend Saudi Arabia is threatening to send planes over to Syria. What does Israel think about a regime change in Damascus? Much like the Turkish reconciliation, its not really urgent. The longer Bashar Assad lasts, under Russian sponsorship, the calmer Israel will be. Those whove gotten to know the fragmented and warring factions of rebels and opposition forces are likely to prefer a weakened and obedient Assad. Russian President Vladimir Putin. Not too pleased with a renewed Israel-Turkey freindship. (Photo: AP) Its interesting to try and figure out the division of labor between Russia and Iran. Putin took on the Syrian task five months ago, and the Iranian Revolutionary Guard isnt giving up on their alliance with Damascus. Al-Sisis assertion that hes willing to befriend the new Iran is threatening to hurt the incoming flow of Saudi aid money. Saudi Arabia has recruited the oil principalities into the coalition against the Revolutionary Guard in Syria. The Turks have a pretty comfortable relationship with Teheran. Its interesting to imagine what Ankara might think about the first missile shipment going from Russia to Iran, and how our government might respond if these missiles find their way to Hezbollah in Lebanon. The Energy Ministry has tripled its estimate of the volume of still-undiscovered natural gas in Israeli waters. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz, has been presenting to international energy companies the new assessment of a potential 2,100 billion cubic meters (BCMs) of natural gas, in contrast to the 680 BCMs that the Tzemach Committee relied on to examine the government's policy regarding the natural gas market. The Tamar and Leviathan gas fields have already yielded 750-950 BCM of natural gas. The Leviathan gas field (Photo: Albatross) The ministry based its new assessment on a report prepared by French consulting firm BeicipFranlab. It found that the seabed has four relevant layers that potentially contain geological structures that could contain gas. According to the report, the potential amount of petroleum is estimated at 6.6 billion barrels. After years in which the search for gas and oil was essentially frozen, mainly because of regulatory delays, the Ministry of Energy now hopes that if the High Court of Justice does not interfere the endeavor can be restarted. Armed with these new figures, Steinitz has been attempting at an international conference held in Houston, Texas to convince companies to come search for oil and gas in Israel. A likely obstacle in this effort will be the decline in oil and gas prices worldwide and the problems this has caused for many fuel companies. The report's data also appear in an official promotional flyer that the representatives of the Ministries of Energy and Finance presented at the conference. BecipFranlab believes that the territorial waters of Israel have four layers with the potential for finding oil or gas deposits. It estimates that the deeper layer, where the Tamar and Leviathan fields were found, has the potential forabout 480 BCM of natural gas, while shallower layers could contain about 1,640 BCM of gas. This assessment is based on a re-examination of existing seismic maps and new models. The numbers are based on an estimate believed to have a likelihood of 50 percent. Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates on Tuesday urged their citizens not to travel to Lebanon, days after Riyadh cut $4 billion in aid to Lebanese security forces. The Saudi Foreign Ministry's announcement, carried by the state-run Saudi Press Agency, urged citizens already there to depart or to be in contact with the Saudi Embassy in Beirut. It gave no reason for the warning other than unspecified safety concerns. The United Arab Emirates followed by saying it would pull most of its diplomats out of Lebanon and warned its own citizens not to travel there, according to a statement carried by the state-run WAM news agency. It did not elaborate or offer a reason for the decision. Bahrain issued its own statement late Tuesday, telling citizens of the tiny island kingdom off Saudi Arabia to avoid travel to Lebanon, while telling citizens already there "to promptly leave and to exercise extreme caution at all times." It offered no reason for the order. The B'Tselem and HaMoked NGOs on Wednesday issued a draft report containing testimony from 116 Palestinian security detainees accusing Israel of extremely harsh conditions, including deprivation of sleep and food. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter In one case, A., a Palestinian in his thirties from a refugee camp near Ramallah, described his imprisonment in the interrogation facility of Shikma Prison in Ashkelon in 2013. "I was forced to sit for three or four days on a very low chair in a freezing room, with the air conditioner constantly on cold," he said. "I complained that I want to see a doctor because at some point I felt bad, and only after two days was I examined. The doctor handed me a paracetamol pill and that was the end of the medical treatment. The behavior towards me was very bad. They put me in solitary confinement in a dirty little cell where I was detained for a month. There was a bright light that was on 24 hours a day. One day, after a month, suddenly they told me they were letting me go. I came home and I suffered for a long time from pain in my body and especially in my back. " Did it have a psychological effect on you? "I do not want to talk about it." Prisoners in Shikma Prison (Photo: Gadi Kabalo, Yedioth Ahronoth) The report suggested that this detainee's experience is typical. The authors collected testimonies of 116 Palestinians who were interrogated in Shikma Prison between August 2013 and March 2014. The testimonies suggest that the harsh detention conditions are an integral part of the interrogation itself, and the authors state that the goal is to weaken the prisoner's body and spirit, in parallel with the questioning in interrogation rooms. According to the report, this combination is abuse that in some cases amounted to torture, and is used systematically against Palestinian detainees in Shikma Prison in violation of international law and the High Court of Justice ruling that banned the use of torture during interrogation. One of the interrogated prisoners: "I asked myself if I am alive or if I was dead" (Photo illustration: Shutterstock) The testimonies include multiple reports of a policy that includes violence and humiliation during detention, inhumane conditions in crowded and filthy facilities, cutting off a detainee from the outside world while causing loss of orientation, decreased amounts and inferior quality of food, exposure to extreme heat and cold, prolonged handcuffing to the interrogation chair at various painful angles and postures, long-term sleep deprivation, threats, curses, shouts and insults. "Being in solitary confinement was difficult," said Awad Raydan, 21, from the village of Qibya. "You do not know when it is day and night. You feel like you're in the grave and you begin to dream and imagine things. I wondered sometimes if I was alive or dead." Hosni Najjar from Hebron talked about the sleep deprivation he experienced: "For three or four days I was interrogated continuously without a break. Both of my hands were bound behind me all the time, except when eating and going to the bathroom. Sometimes I fell asleep and the interrogator yelled loudly in my ears and woke me up. The interrogators switched and it went on and on." Shin Bet: Detainees have full rights The Justice Ministry said in response: "The report was written in a biased manner and is based on an unrepresentative sample intended to distort the existing realities in terms of treatment in the detention facility, including various procedures relating to detention and interrogation. Presenting a report with individual cases containing identifying information denies the relevant actors the possibility of examining the allegations. " The Shin Bet said in response: "The Israel Security Agency wishes to clarify that there is in the High Court a pending appeal dealing with BTselems draft report. Because the state submitted a detailed response that rejects the claims, the Shin Bet does not intend to address the claims made in the draft report in a biased and distorted manner. It should be noted that the Israel Security Agencys investigations are carried out in accordance with the law and with the aim of preventing activities designed to harm national security. The agencys activity is subject to supervision and extensive control by internal and external factors, including the state comptroller, the State Attorney's Office, the attorney general, the Israeli Knesset, and the courts ". The Prison Service said: "The prevailing conditions in Shikma Prison are not similar to those described in the report and comply with the legal requirements regarding the holding of detainees. It is must be further emphasized that the physical conditions in the interrogation facilities are not designed to serve the Shin Bet's interrogation practices. Prison Service detention facilities are under constant review by several internal and external auditing entities that supervise what is happening in the detention facilities. " Amnesty Internationals annual report, released Wednesday, also criticized human rights in Israel, accusing the country of extrajudicial executions, arbitrary arrests, torture, excessive use of force, and more. A 30-year-old Reserves Captain Eliav Gelman was killed Wednesday afternoon by gunfire targeting a terrorist who attemped a stabbing attack at the Gush Etzion Junction south of Jerusalem. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter Gelmans brother is married to the sister of soldier Benaya Sarel, who was killed during Operation Protective Edge. Eyal Gelman, the deceaseds brother and Kiryat Arbas security guard, eulogized him. My brother fell in battle, he said. In a battle that we have known for a long time. But the people of Israel have experienced the battles and the pogroms since the first battle in 1873. My brother, too my dear brother you entered this circle, the same silver tray that for 150 years this people, this revival generation continues to redeem the land of Israel and build the State of Israel. God have given and God has taken away, may the name of the Lord be blessed. Eliav Gelman The terrorist, Mamduh Amru, a 27-year-old school teacher from the village of Dura south of Hebron, attempted to stab the officer at Gush Etzion Junction. Soldiers from the Haruv Battalion of the Kfir Brigade shot the terrorist and wounded the latter moderately. A 17-year-old Palestinian residing in Israel illegally was arrested by security forces on suspicion of committing a stabbing attack in Rahat two weeks earlier, it was cleared for publication on Wednesday. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter Shlomit Ganon, 65, from Kibbutz Mishmar Hanegev, was lightly wounded in that attack. The suspect was arrested three days after the attack. He confessed to the act, reenacted the stabbing and led the investigators to the knife that he threw away. The prosecution is expected to indict him for attempted murder. The suspect, a resident of Yatta, south of Hebron, with no previous criminal record, exploited breaches in the security fence to enter Israel. He did agricultural work with relatives in Rahat, where he lived with family. Several relatives were also arrested on suspicion of helping him enter Israel and helping him hide in the days after the attack. During his interrogation, he said that he had been influenced by Palestinian propaganda against Israel and took part in riots and stone-throwing against Israelis near Yatta in recent months. The knife used in the attack (Photo: Israel Police) Shortly after the stabbing, he returned to the scene of the crime, and ran away again after noticing police forces. "He ran at first, not knowing where he was going," said an official source. "At some point he even returned to the scene, saw the commotion and continued to run away." X The suspect eventually returned to his residence in Rahat. Once a video of him showing him running away was posted online, he confessed to his brother that he committed the attack. They both fled to Hebron with the help of traffickers of undocumented immigrants, who did not know about their ties to the attack. Several days later, security forces arrested him at Yatta. Security forces search for the terrorist The stabbing occurred when Gonen and her family visited the market in Rahat. The investigation revealed that the attacker stabbed her after noticing that her family had gone into a store in the market and she was left alone. Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit confirmed Wednesday Culture Minister Miri Regevs controversial cultural loyalty bill. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter Regev said in response: "I am proud and happy to announce that a cultural institution of culture which undermines the country will not enjoy its support. For the first time, the Ministry of Culture, which is responsible for funding cultural institutions, has now been given the authority to ensure that cultural institutions are not above the law." The significance of Mandelblits decision is that today a memorandum of the bill will be distributed, and within 21 days the bill will be placed before the Ministerial Committee for Legislative Affairs. If it is approved there then it will be approved, in a brief period of time, by the Knesset when it returns from its break. Culture Minister Miri Regev at Habima theater (Photo: Motti Kimchi) In January Regev began lobbying for a bill under the title cultural loyalty. The bill seeks to deny state funding to artists and cultural institutions who denigrate the state flag or state symbols; incite to racism, violence or terrorism; support armed struggle and terrorism against Israel; mark Independence Day as a day of mourning; or deny Israel's existence as a Jewish and democratic state. Regev added that she thanks the Ministry of Justice for allowing me to realize my policy of the hand that feeds is the hand that withholds. It is a great achievement for democracy that the government will have the freedom to fund, the freedom to choose what the state funds, in accordance with its laws, its values and policies." Regev is also trying to pass a new criterion that would allow her to fine a cultural institution that refuses to appear everywhere in Israel - including in the West Bank - to the amount of hundreds of thousands of shekels. Artists sharply criticized the law Many artists expressed outrage at the bill and strongly criticized Regev.The Israel Prize laureate poet Meir Wieseltier was the most explicit saying: "I support this bill because it brings us closer to the rise of fascism and the exposure of its true colors. Regev was also booed, two days after the bill was first announced, when she took the stage at HaBima Theater in Tel Aviv at the premiere of the musical "Evita". "I won't stand for the state allowing activity that undermines Israel's existence as a Jewish and democratic state," Regev told the artists in the audience. Hamas members warned on Wednesday that a change in the situation in Gaza is inevitable in the shape of either an explosion of violence or the opening of a new exit route, while Israel's head of Military Intelligence warned that deteriorating conditions in Gaza endanger Israel's security. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter At a closed meeting with the members of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, Military Intelligence Chief Herzl Halevi said that "the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip is deteriorating, and if it explodes, it will explode on Israel." Hamas, for its part, said a seaport is a legitimate Palestinian right, said Hamas. Building a seaport in Gaza is also a Turkish condition in ongoing negotiations to rehabilitate its relationship with Israel, which collapsed following the Marmara raid in 2010. The Turks have made it clear that reconciliation would have to involve free access to the Gaza Strip in order to provide aid to the Palestinians. Halevi also stated that "the Palestinians are doing everything they can in order to press Israel unilaterally and internationally through the UN Security Council and the French initiative to impose a political solution upon Israel." In the first report, General Halevi stated before the committee that he agrees with the UN assessment that the Gaza Strip will be uninhabitable by 2020 if the humanitarian situation doesn't improve. He warned that the rehabilitation of the strip is going too slowly, and that one of the most important causes of the dire situation there. He added that the Palestinians in the West Bank view themselves to be in good economic shape, especially in comparison to the situation of their Arab neighbors. Yet, they look to Israel and yearn for an even better economy. More than this, they want a country, and they will not be satisfied with economic improvement only. Palestinain families leaving their houses in Sajaiyya during Operation Protective Edge (Photo: AFP) However, Halevi highlighted that Hamas isn't interested in a war with Israel at this time in fact, the situation is the opposite. He argued that Hamas is working to restrain the other groups in Gaza, and noted that the terror group has prevented other terror groups from firing rockets, even after incidents on the border fence where Palestinians get killed. Knesset Member Merav Michaeli, who is a member of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, said in response to General Halevi's statements that "the Head of Military Intelligence basically said the same thing that we have been hearing from all of the security chiefs for years without a political solution, the danger of terror increases. This isn't a political opinion; it is a professional stance which is based on reality. The fact that Netanyahu and his ministers dont like the reality doesn't give him the authority to lash out at the heads of the IDF and the security establishment." Knesset Member Issawi Frej (Meretz) said that "the Head of Military Intelligence has is trying to pull the heads of the cabinet members out of the sand. They are hiding like ostriches in order to keep from dealing with the truth. His starting statement was that Palestinian youths are committing terror attacks because they have nothing left to lose, and stated that without a political process, the scope of terror will widen." MK Frej continued, "When he spoke of the dangerous consequences of the poverty in Gaza, Halevi was one of the only people who spoke the truth. Instead of ignoring or shooting the messenger, it is worth it for the Prime Minister and his cabinet to internalize that the truth won't change if they ignore the facts. As long as Israel continues to refuse dialogue and continues to make Gazan lives difficult, the violence directed at Israel will only increase." Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon on Wednesday accused Iran of building an international terror network that includes "sleeper cells" that are stockpiling arms, intelligence and operatives in order to strike on command in places including Europe and the US. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter Yaalon added that any element in the Mideast that is willing to help stabilize the region will find a partner in Israel, including nations that do not have relations with Israel possibly a tacit gesture towards Gulf states, many of which are strongly oppposed to, and are threatened by, Iran's goals for geopolitical expansion and its support for terrorism. Moshe Ya'alon with his Cypriot counterpart (Photo: AP) The minister said that Iran aims to destabilize the Middle East and other parts of the world and is training, funding and arming "emissaries" to spread a revolution. He said Tehran is the anchor of a "dangerous axis" that includes Baghdad, Damascus, Beirut, Sanaa and other cities in the region. "The Iranian regime through the Iranian Revolutionary Guard corps is building a complex terror infrastructure including sleeping cells that are stockpiling arms, intelligence and operatives and are ready to act on order including in Europe and America," Yaalon said after talks with his Cypriot counterpart. He stated that there is an ongoing war of civilizations, which is in certain ways a Third World War unlike any we have previously known. The defense minister offered no direct evidence of such sleeper cells existing in the US or Europe, but referred indirectly to the case of a Hezbollah member who wasjailed in Cyprus last June following the seizure of nine tons of a chemical compound that can be converted into an explosive. A Cypriot court sentenced Lebanese Canadian Hussein Massam Abdallah to six years in prison after prosecutors said he admitted that Hezbollah aimed to mount terrorist attacks against Israeli interests in Cyprus using the ammonium nitrate that he had been ordered to guard at the Larnaca home of another official of the Iranian-backed group. Yaalon said Cypriot authorities had "defeated attempts by Hezbollah and Iran to establish a terror infrastructure" on the island that aimed to expand "throughout Europe." He said that apart from the refugee crisis, the war in Syria has resulted in "widespread infiltration by murderous, merciless terror organizations" that belong to global jihad and are partly funded by Iran. He added that this requires western nations to counter attempts to carry out "massive terror attacks." Yaalon also addressed reports that Hamas has rebuilt its attack tunnel capabilities, saying that when Israel finds a tunnel that crosses the border, everyone will know including the Palestinians. Yaalon's trip to Cyprus was the first official visit by an Israeli defense minister to the east Mediterranean island. US President Barack Obama said on Wednesday that it is important to give both Israelis and Palestinians hope, as violence continues to wrack the region. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter The situation in Israel and the West Bank, the increasing tensions that exist between Israelis and Palestinians there His majesty has been a critical component of reducing some of the immediate sources of tension around the Temple Mount and visits there, but we continue to agree that its important for us to provide both sides a sense of possibility and hope and not simply despair, Obama said during a meeting with Jordanian King Abdullah II. Obama's comments during meeting with Jordanian King Abdullah II X Thats hard to do and so we have explored ideas in terms of how we can make progress, but his majestys continued to be a voice of reason and moderation and tolerance for all the parties concerned in this issue and we very much appreciate his partnership in the process. So were lucky to have a friend like Jordan. Obama's comments came after meeting with Jordan's King Abdullah II at the White House, where the two leaders said the political process and taking the fight to IS are their top priorities in Syria. Meanwhile, US Secretary of State John Kerry that increased Israeli settlement building is not helping to ease tensions between Israelis and Palestinians. Barack Obama and John Kerry (Photo: AP) "I don't think that the situation is helped by additional settlement construction and building," Kerry told a House of Representatives Appropriations subcommittee at a hearing on the State Department's annual budget request. "I think that I know we need to see measures taken on both sides to indicate a readiness and willingness to try to proceed forward and reduce the violence," Kerry said, when asked about heightened violence. Kerry also said he spoke to Russia's foreign minister on Wednesday and that their teams would meet soon to discuss plans for a planned 'cessation of hostilities' due to go into effect in Syria on Saturday. "I talked this morning - the reason I am late - I was talking with Foreign Minister (Sergei) Lavrov and we have a team that will be meeting in the next day or so, the task force for the ceasefire, cessation of hostilities," Kerry told lawmakers. "I am not here to vouch that it's absolutely going to work ... Everybody has said you've got to have a diplomatic solution at some point in time. The question will be, is it (ripe)? Will Russia work in good faith, will Iran work in good faith to try to bring about the political transition?" Kerry warned Israel in December about the dangers of the possible collapse of the Palestinian Authority, saying it would lead to a situation that would threaten the security of Israel and the Palestinian people. Iran will pay thousands of dollars to families of Palestinian terrorists who were killed while committing attacks, or whose homes have been demolished, Tehran's ambassador to Lebanon said on Wednesday. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter "The decision firstly includes giving an amount worth $7,000 to every family of a martyr of the intifada in Jerusalem," the ambassador said at a Beirut news conference. Iran will also offer $30,000 to every family whose home was demolished after a relative committed a terror attack, he said. Iran will not abandon the Palestinian people, who are faced with killing, theft, and explusion, said the ambassador. The blood of the martyrs will bring the liberation of all Palestine from the sea to the river. Demolition of terrorist's home in Jabel Mukaber Israel's Foreign Ministry released a statement condemning the news. This is further proof of Irans deep involvement in promoting terror against Israel, read the statement. After the agreement with the powers, Iran is permitting itself to continue being a central player in international terror. Kuwait and Qatar on Wednesday became the latest Arab countries to follow in Saudi Arabia's footsteps by urging their citizens already in Lebanon to leave and issuing a travel warning for nationals planning to visit there. Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain all member-states of the tight-knit Gulf Cooperation Council have called for their citizens to avoid travel to Lebanon. The Kuwait News Agency, which carried the travel advisory by Kuwait's Embassy in Lebanon, gave no details on the nature of the security threat. Qatar's Foreign Ministry issued a similar advisory later Wednesday, published on state-run news agency. DIYARBAKIR - Turkish military helicopters killed 12 Kurdish fighters in strikes near the southeastern border with Syria on Wednesday, security sources said, in a conflict becoming increasingly intertwined with developments in Turkey's war-torn neighbour. The Cobra attack helicopters launched the assault at around 6 a.m. (0400 GMT) as a group of Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) fighters travelled through a mountainous area near the Idil district of Turkey's Sirnak province, the sources said. Israeli Ambassador to Egypt Haim Koren gave a rare interview to Egyptian journalists in his residence in Cairo on Tuesday, and surprisingly, the transcript of the interview was published, and what's more, the journalists were not afraid to expose the fact that they had spoken to the representative from Israel. On the Israeli Embassy in Egypt's Facebook page, the entire transcript was published next to a picture of Ambassador Koren with the flags of both Israel and Egypt. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter "We respect the President of Egypt, Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, because he is an open president who is interested in bringing stability to the region in general and Egypt in particular, and because he knows the face of the Middle East has changed, and knows the experiences of Egypt the best, and the experiences of Israel," Koren said to the journalists, one of them from important government newspaper "Al-Ahram." Israeli Ambassador Haim Koren in Egypt in a rare interview with Egyptian media In the past, journalists were afraid to mention the fact that they had "dared" to meet the Israeli ambassador. But according to officials in the Foreign Ministry, the barrier of fear has been broken. This stems first and foremost from the warming of relations and the strategic alliance between Israel and the Egypt of President al-Sisi. When asked about his work in Egypt, Koren stated that "the neighborly relations and cooperation between us are very good. I love the Egyptian nation. As you all know, there is a mutual interest between Egypt and Israel, as there is a mutual interest between Israel and the Arab world in general - be it Saudi Arabia, Jordan, or the other countries in the Arabian Gulf." Further in the transcript of the interviews, the ambassador noted that "we can't only cooperate on the security level. We need to establish economic relations, cultural relations, and also relations relating to investing in Egyptian businesses. This ideology has to be implemented from a young age through schools. It is important to learn about the Camp David Agreement. Times have changed, and it is the leaders' responsibility to change themselves in order to adjust to this new era." Israeli Amassador to Israel Haim Koren in Egypt following an interview with Egyptian journalists When asked about what he will say to his family about his life in Egypt if he returns, the ambassador said: "My children have been here, and we always talk about Egypt and that Egypt is a warm nation that loves to joke around. We have great memories of Egypt, and we have had no problems. You all as a society it is the responsibility of all of you to develop. We are friends and not enemies. The Egyptian people benefit from Israeli developments in all field,s technological and agricultural, and I hope that we will overcome the hardships, and we will together develop better relations." Koren also spoke of how impressed Israelis are with Egyptian culture, and noted how amongst other things, that there is an Israeli tradition on Fridays to watch Egyptian movies. "The Egyptian movie on Friday turned to be part of the Israeli cultural experience," he said. "Many people, and not just people of Egyptian origin, were driven to sit and watch these movies. This was a known and loved ritual in Israel." At last years, participants learned lessons on improving parks from other cities in Canada. At this years summit, which takes place on March 5, the agenda takes a more global perspective, with a keynote speaker from Medellin, Colombia, a once troubled city thats reinvented itself, partly through its public spaces programs.Keynote speaker David Escobar-Arango, former planner of Library Parks in Medellin, will talk about how the citywhose reputation for innovation has helped sweep aside a past where drug gangs was prevalentworked closely with local communities to develop a series of public libraries set in city parks, many of them located in some of the citys most disadvantaged communities.Its so amazing that cities that can be so different can learn from each other, says Dave Harvey, executive director of Park People, which hosts the annual summit. A key lesson from the dramatic turnaround in Medellin is that community rejuvenation started with improvements to parks and the public realm, and that the cornerstone for successful new public realm was strong community engagement and input at all points in the projects, as well as after the projects are complete.At the last summit, participants discussed how successes in other Canadian cities have been the result of strong partnerships between city park staff and community. Thats something Park People and more than 100 park friends groups across the have built on over the past year, working toward stronger and more productive relationships with city staff.Its our sixth summit and weve seen a dramatic increase in community involvement in our parks and a much stronger sense of partnerships from the city as well, says Harvey. I think the summits have really helped spur the growth in park friends groups from 40 to over 100 in every ward in the city and helped inspire such interesting new park projects as theThe summit, expected to hit its 400-participant capacity, takes place between 1pm and 5:30pm on March 5 atin Regent Park.Writer: Paul GallantSource: Dave Harvey Last summer, City Council voted to keep the Gardiner Expressway as a continuous elevated freeway through downtown, with direct ramps to the Don Valley Parkway, eschewing proposals to tear down orTorontos favourite eyesore.Now council is being asked to pick a particular variation of the Gardiner reconstruction known as Hybrid 3, so the Environmental Assessment can move ahead, since the Gardiners eastern surface deck, in its current state, is only expected to last until 2020.The hybrid option championed by Mayor John Tory has been considered in more detail over the last few months, producing three possible variations. Hybrid 1 will provide tighter ramps in the Keating Channel Precinct but stick close to the Gardiners existing route. Hybrid 2 moves the expressway further north to create more space between Lake Ontario and the expressway. Hybrid 3, which also aligns the Gardiner further north, would also widen the rail bridge underpass. At a stakeholder advisory committee and a recent public open house, Hybrid 3 was the best received option.Hybrid 3 supports the city-building potential of the Keating Channel Precinct, a planned mixed-use waterfront community that will evolve as the gateway to a revitalized Port Lands and accessible Keating Channel. This would be accomplished by rebuilding the elevated portion of the Gardiner as far north from the Keating Channel as is feasible, states the staff report. Implementation of the design would provide unencumbered access to a planned waterfront promenade, better conditions for creating future high-quality park, open space and pedestrian-friendly environments and more valuable development blocks. By comparison, Hybrid 2 would achieve some but not all of the urban design benefits described above. Hybrid 1 would result in a neighbourhood flanked on both sides by rail and expressway infrastructure, bisected by Lake Shore Boulevard and separated from the water's edge by an elevated expressway with associated on/off ramps.The staff report, which will be considered by the Public Works and Infrastructure Committee on February 29, and by council on March 30, says Hybrid 3 would have the least physical and visual impact on the planned revitalization of the Don River. Implementation of this design would have the least impact on future sediment management activities, as well as the least amount of physical infrastructure, including structural piers, to be located within the river itself (with details to be confirmed at the detailed design stage).Writer: Paul GallantSource: City of Toronto With the death of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia one of the issues in this years election has taken on a new urgency; that being the ideological make-up of the court. The Republicans of course dont want Barack Obama to make the nomination of a replacement for Justice Scalia. Shortly after Justice Scalias death Marco Rubio said on Face the Nation; There has been a precedent established over 80 years that in the last year, especially in the last 11 months, you do not have a lame-duck president make a lifetime appointment to the highest court. Other candidates in the Republican field have made similar statements. Lets first take a look at the term lame-duck. The term is commonly used to refer to that period of time between a general election and the swearing in of the new office holder, generally speaking early November to mid-January. With 11 months left in his presidency Barack Obama isnt a lame-duck. He was elected to a four-year term not three years. He won reelection in 2012 with 51.1 percent of the vote to Mitt Romneys 47.2 percent, a four point margin. With his reelection Obama became the first presidential candidate to win two terms with vote totals of 51 percent or more since Dwight Eisenhower. He was able to do so with the electorate knowing that he had appointed two liberal judges, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan, to the Supreme Court. Now to the accuracy of Rubios assertion of an 80-year precedent. According to the Annenberg Public Policy Centers website factcheck.org; There have been only six outstanding court vacancies in an election year since 1900, and in every case the vacancy was filled. As for Rubios statement; he failed to acknowledge that over the last 76 years there have been no election year nominations necessary. On January 4, 1940 Franklin Roosevelt successfully nominated Frank Murphy to the high court in what was the final year of his second term. When Rubio cited an 80-year precedent I guess he was just rounding up to the nearest 10. Republicans like to call on the founding fathers in matters of the constitution. In that John Adams gives us an interesting example to consider. For those unfamiliar with his bona fides, Adams served in both Continental Congresses, was the first vice president and second president of the United States. Having been defeated in his 1800 reelection bid he nonetheless successfully nominated John Marshall as Chief Justice. Marshall joined the court with just over two months of Adams term remaining. Thomas Jefferson, as vice president, presided over the over the senate as Marshall was confirmed. According to Jean Edward Smith, author of John Marshall, Definer of a Nation, Jefferson made no public or private comment, apparently content with Adams choice even though he was the president-elect. John Marshall was chief justice for 35 years and is today rated as being among the greatest of those who served on the court. Justice Frank Murphy, Roosevelts election year appointee, hasnt been heralded as an intellectually strong Justice. However, he was seen as showing mercy for the common man. His rulings have been described as having tempered justice with Murphy. His expansive view of justice is best exemplified by his dissent from the courts ruling in Korematsu v. United States. In that 1944 case the internment of Japanese-American citizens during World War II was held to be constitutional. As a nation we would be served well by an election year appointee like Judge Frank Murphy, lame-duck or not. The distinct sound of helicopters hovering mixed with the roar of jet engines and automatic weapons fire from a nearby range filled the air on a cool, sunny day in southeast Georgia. Busy crews jointly worked to accomplish their tasks, while in a simulated deployed environment. Members from the 315th Airlift Wings Airlift Control Flight initiated Patriot Sands, a training exercise that kicked off here Feb. 17. The exercise incorporated the resources of several ALCF (pronounced: al-sif) units as well as affiliate agencies such as the FBIs Rapid Response Team and the U.S. Coast Guard Maritime Security Response Team. ALCF is a rapid response unit comprised of experienced airlift and operations team members. This includes Airmen from nine Air Force career fields, who manage, coordinate and control air mobility assets in austere locations under combat conditions. Unit members are ready to deploy to any part of the world in 36 hours. Exercises like Patriot Sands are essential to our mission, said Maj. John Ramsey, 315th ALCF Swampfox commander. The pilots get to experience heavier loads than they normally do. The aerial porters get to work away from their home station, which helps them develop their skills. The loadmasters get operational experience with rolling stock, which isnt normal to their everyday mission. And finally, we get the chance to practice and train on our mission set, which is setting up an airfield where we are able to handle the command and control of aircraft. For Team Charleston, the exercise started at Joint Base Charleston, where they loaded a C-17 Globemaster III, piloted by a crew from the 317th Airlift Squadron, and flew to Hunter AF, Savannah, Georgia. This type of training is an excellent example of how we stay mission ready and mission focused, said Col. Caroline Evernham, 315th AW operations group commander and pilot. The ALCF works hard with their affiliates to ensure they are trained and ready to prepare their equipment for transport at any time. The efficiencies gained from this week's training will help us when we really need it." It directly supports ALCFs war mission, said Lt. Col. Mark Laverne, the aircraft commander and 317th AS pilot. We are conducting currency training for the pilots and the loadmasters are getting some check-rides, all while providing mobility for their training. One of the main items that the Swampfoxes loaded onto the C-17 for the training was a large, tan-in-color container, which was a hardside expandable light air mobility shelter or HELAMS for short. The HELAMS, once set in its desired location, transforms from a plain box to a fully expanded and functional command and control center with doors, windows and electricity. This workspace is then used to house the communications equipment and gear needed for ALCFs operational readiness. Other than the hands-on training that ALCF receives from setting up their equipment during the exercise, team members also benefit from the affiliate agencies that they have partnered with to accomplish their training objectives. We make sure that the sister services and Department of Defense affiliates are current and ready for a real-world missions, said Master Sgt. Mark Schmidt, 315th ALCF Operations NCO in charge. ALCF teaches the FBI and other affiliate agencies to properly prepare their equipment for air mobility, Schmidt said. This includes the standardization of weighing, fuelling, packing, cleaning, inspecting and sorting of their equipment so that its ready to load when the aircraft gets on station. Patriot Sands is an annual Air Force Reserve Command exercise for ALCF to train in accordance with their designed operational capability mission statement to deploy as a contingency response element. The exercise is scheduled to last for five days. The exercise involved other ALCF units from the 512th Airlift Wing at Dover Air Force Base, Delaware, and the 439th AW at Westover Air Reserve Base, Massachusetts. These units then operated from Hunter, Pensacola Naval Air Station, Florida, and Homestead Air Reserve Base, Florida. Other participants of the exercise included the following: 38th Aerial Port Squadron at JB Charleston, 46th APS at Dover AFB, 58th APS at Westover ARB, FBI Rapid Deployment Teams from Washington, D.C., New York, Miami, U.S. Coast Guard Maritime Security Response Team from Norfolk, Virginia, Florida Advanced Surgical Transport Team from Miami, Urban Search and Rescue Team from Miami and 302nd Maneuver Enhancement Brigade at Westover ARB. The Real Estate Institute of Victoria (REIV) believes the move will greatly increase the effectiveness of communication between landlords, property managers and tenants and result in more harmonious relationships. REIV chief executive officer Enzo Raimondo said the current legislation, such as the requirement that a notice of entry be given to tenants by post, has become outdated. The current legislation is no longer relevant. A tenant may now wait up to a week to receive a notice in the post, which is redundant and impractical. The proposed changes, which would allow communcation such as notices of entry to be issued via email, will enable greater communication between stakeholders. Raimondo said. Timely and effective communication between tenants, property managers and landlords will go a long way towards improving these important relationships, he said. While some organisations, such as the Tenants Union of Victoria, have concerns about the effectiveness and formality of using email as a communication tool between the parties in a residential tenancy agreement, Raimondo said a move to more contemporary communication methods will provide more safeguards to ensure notices have been received. The change is a positive one for all parties, including tenants. An email allows for a read receipt to ensure that the notification is received, he said. With a posted letter, it is far more difficult to know whether it has reached its intended destination. The changes are long overdue and the Victorian Governments move to amend the legislation is definitely welcomed by industry. As a homeowner, you probably already know that you should be working to maintain your home. But, chances are, you Read More The Global and United States Hydrobike Market Report has been published by QY Research recently. Hydrobike Market Analysis and Insights This report focuses on... THAT THERE MAY BE A FAIRER SOCIETY IN GHANA - ONE IN WHICH ALL THE PEOPLE, NOT JUST A POWERFUL AND GREEDY FEW, BENEFIT FROM THE NATION'S WEALTH! First Year Active on YouTube First Studio Release Origin Most Popular Track (by 2015 YouTube views) Top 3 Countries (by 2015 YouTube views) Genre (Wikipedia) Jess Glynne 2012 August 21, 2015 London England Hold My Hand 1. U.K. 2. Italy 3. U.S. R&B, Pop Years & Years 2010 July 10, 2015 London England King 1. U.K. 2. Poland 3. U.S. Synthpop Catfish & the Bottlemen 2007 September 15, 2014 Llandudno Wales Cocoon 1. U.K. 2. U.S. 3. Australia Alternative rock, Indie rock James Bay 2013 March 23, 2015 Hertfordshire England Hold Back the River 1. U.K. 2. U.S. 3. Germany Indie rock, Folk rock, Soul Wolf Alice 2010 June 22, 2015 London England Moaning Lisa Smile 1. U.K. 2. U.S. 3. Brazil Alternative rock, Indie rock All roads lead to London Heat Map of Breakthrough Artist Nominees Origins Jess Glynne and Years & Years vie for Most Watched title Daily Views for BRIT Awards 2016 Nominees for Breakthrough Artist Views expressed as a proportion of the highest view count, based on content ID, for U.K. viewers Catfish and the Bottlemens Cocoon British Artist Video: All Hail Adele Daily Views for BRIT Awards 2016 Nominees for British Artist Video, Jan 1 - Dec 31, 2015 Views based on Content ID for U.K.-based users Daily Views for BRIT Awards 2016 Nominees for British Artist Video Views based on Content ID for U.K.-based users Ed Sheerans Photograph -- Posted by the YouTube Culture & Trends Team London: Red wine and chocolate make for a deadly combination to keep your mind sharp and alert, a study suggests. Polyphenols, plant chemicals abundant in dark chocolate and wines, dilate blood vessels, speeding the supply of blood to the brain. "This provides it with a rush of oxygen and sugars, making complex calculations easier and quicker. Besides polyphenols are more effective in combination than alone," a newspaper reported. The theory follows two Northumbria University studies into the effects of polyphenols on the mind. In the first, healthy adults were set a series of tests after taking a capsule packed with resveratrol, the `wonder ingredient` in red wine. Scans showed a marked increase in blood flow to their brains after taking the supplement. "Greater improvements may be seen in the elderly," said doctoral researcher Emma Wightman from Northumbria, because blood flow to the brain naturally decreases with age. Unfortunately for wine lovers, the quantities of resveratrol used in the study would equate to drinking crates of the stuff. But it is easy to get the same amounts from supplements sold in health food stores. "And with resveratrol credited with abilities from extending life to burning off junk food," Wightman says. "There is nothing to stop people from stocking up." "There is research showing quite a lot of health benefits and there is nothing to suggest there are any adverse effects. You are not going to come to any harm," she said. IANS Patna: Asking officials to keep the capital clean, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Wednesday said he often faces embarrassment when VVIPs tell him about the garbage here and such remarks belittle the work done by the state government. "Whenever some VVIPs meet me, they point towards dirt prevailing in Patna. I feel such adverse comments belittle all the development work done by the state government. Its very sad," Kumar said while addressing a function after inaugurating a sting of projects of Urban Development Department. Hitting out at Patna Mayor Afzal Imam who was present at the programme, Kumar said "I am fed up reading news about the clash between Mayor and Patna Municipal Corporation officials." "The government could use the Patna Municipal Corporation's 'last right' (if the situation does not improve because of the clash)," he said without elaborating. "See how Mumbai Municipal Corporation and other municipalities are working efficiently," he said. The Chief Minister expressed the concern in wake of a recent survey which listed Patna among the ten dirtiest cities of India. Noting that the growing noise pollution in Patna was due to unnecessary honking by vehicles, Kumar said the state government has initiated steps to curb noise pollution. "Blowing of siren in the convoy of CM and others has been banned. Permission has been given only to cars of Governor and Chief Justice of Patna High Court to use siren in addition to Ambulances," he said. Kumar also expressed concern over the rise in level of carbon emissions and suggested greater use of public transport to minimise use of private vehicles. The CM flagged off 140 new buses of Bihar State Transport Corporation, including two women specials. Kumar travelled in a women special bus on a Rs 5 ticket. In the women special buses, there would be female conductors and drivers should also be woman, he said. The CM inaugurated a sting of projects on the occasion, including water supply, electronic traffic light for Patna and a multi-storeyed parking near Patna junction. New Delhi: It's a story no one in Delhi-NCR would like to believe. Vehicles were stopped on National Highway 1 near Murthal, famous for its dhabas; women commuters dragged to the fields and gang-raped. But that's what 'The Tribune' has claimed in a report. The English daily, quoting sources said that commuters going towards Delhi were attacked by goons in the wee hours of Monday. Their cars were set ablaze and the women were pulled out and dragged to nearby fields and gang-raped. Terrified by the ordeal, the women lay still in the fields till their menfolk came looking for them. Residents of nearby Hassanpur and Kurad villagers provided clothes and blankets to the victims, The Tribune adds. Shockingly, as per the newspaper, the police dismissed the incident as rumour even as eyewitnesses said at least 10 women were sexually assaulted. The victims and their families were 'advised' by officials not to report the matter to anyone for the sake of their honour, the report said. Three victims were taken to Amrik Sukhdev Dhaba and united with their families in the presence of senior police officers. They appeared lifeless. District officials who arrived there, instead of investigating the matter, persuaded the families to take the women home. Many were provided transport," an eyewitness told the The Tribune. Sukhdev Dhaba's owner Amrik Singh, was quoted as saying that he learnt about the incident at 3 am when some travellers heard the victims wailing. Singh said a blockade on the highway near his dhaba was forcibly removed by security forces after a mild lathicharge. Some of the protesting youth hid in the fields as the security personnel escorted the stranded vehicles. Another eyewitness said that after the security forces left, the youth returned to the highway and started to throw stones on vehicles that arrived in the meantime. After they started to torch the vehicles, the occupants started to flee. Some women were left behind and fell prey to the goons. The Tribune also quotes Jai Bhagwan, who too runs a dhaba in the area, as saying that four young women took refuge inside a water tank near his dhaba. We turned off the lights so as not to attract the attention of the goons. The hapless women remained there for hours till they were escorted out at daybreak, he was quoted as saying. New Delhi: Yet another incident of crime against women has come to the fore. A 26-year-old woman was allegedly gang-raped by three men on Mehrauli-Gurgaon Road in a car. The incident took place on Sunday night, when the woman was coming back from a shopping mall on MG Mall in an auto-rickshaw. While she was one her way, three men pulled her inside the car. Notably, another woman was already present inside the car. The men then gang-raped the woman and dumped her. She is a resident of Munirka in south Delhi On Monday morning, the alleged rape victim filed complainant at Vasant Kunj Police station, which further transferred the case to Gurgaon Police. The 26-year-old has claimed that she had seen the woman accomplice in the Mall Sunday night. She has given her statement before the magistrate. The woman has told police that she didn't know the accused and also failed to note down the car's number. Chandigarh: Haryana remained calm on Wednesday, with people pouring out of their homes in violence-hit districts and supplies of essential commodities restored. Shops and business establishments, which survived the wrath of the Jat community rioters in the last few days, opened in Rohtak, Bhiwani, Jind, Jhajjar, Sonipat, Hisar, Panipat and other districts. Traders, businessmen, companies and government officials started assessing the damage to immovable and movable property during the peak of the violence in the state. Several government buildings, private shops, malls, educational institutions, hospitals and showrooms were set on fire by the hooligans. Hundreds of shops were looted and set on fire. Experts have pegged the losses in Haryana due to the agitation at around Rs 20,000 crore. Soldiers and paramilitary forces continued to be deployed in the worst affected areas. Traffic was restored on all highways and roads and railway tracks were being repaired to restore railway traffic. The Jat community is demanding reservation in government jobs and educational institutions. Political developments in the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) shifted to Delhi where all its Haryana MPs were called to meet Parliamentary Affairs Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu. Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar and some other ministers and legislators are also camping in Delhi. Non-Jat leaders within the BJP are upset with the party leadership for bowing before the demands of the Jat community which brazenly resorted to violence. The Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) said on Wednesday that the BJP government in the state and Congress leaders were responsible for the mindless violence during the Jat agitation. "A case should be registered against Bhupinder Singh Hooda as his close aide Varinder Singh was caught on audio tape trying to instigate violence," a party leader said. Chandigarh: The Punjab and Haryana High Court has taken cognizance of media reports about gang-rape of at least 10 women near Murthal in Haryana during the recent stir by Jat community for reservation. Justice NK Sanghi of the HC has written to the acting chief justice seeking appropriate action. The Haryana Police has dismissed the media reports as mere rumours. In his letter, Justice Sanghi wrote that reports of rapes during the protests was shameful and it was painful that senior police officials, instead of taking action, asked the victims to go home. He further said that the High Court cannot be a mute spectator, otherwise it will fail in its duties. The Hindustan Times reports that Justice Sanghi has stated that an independent probe was needed in this case. English Daily 'The Tribune' had reported that vehicles were stopped by goons near Murthal in the wee hours of Monday. Women occupants were dragged to the fields and gang-raped. The newspaper quoted eyewitnesses as saying that at least 10 women fell pray to them that night. New Delhi: Expressing disappointment over Haryana being divided on the basis of caste, the Congress Party on Wednesday asked the Centre and the state government to compensate for the losses in the wake of the protests by members of the Jat community. "Whatever has happened in Haryana in the last week is extremely unfortunate. And this episode sends a very wrong message not only to Haryana but the entire nation. There is a Constitution in independent India and we must work as per the law," Congress leader PL Punia told ANI. "The manner in which Haryana is being seen divided on the basis of caste, approximately properties worth Rs 30,000 crore has been damaged and many people have been killed. Neither the Centre nor the state government is taking adequate steps to compensate for the damage. Even this is an issue, which needs attention," he added. Earlier, Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu called on all the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MPs from Haryana for a meeting in wake of the violence across the state by the members of the Jat community demanding reservation in government jobs. Union Ministers Mahesh Sharma, Rao Inderjit Singh and Sanjeev Baliyan were present in the meeting along with Ashwini Chopra, BJP general secretary in-charge of Haryana Anil Jain and Haryana BJP chief Subhash Barala. Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, who was yesterday heckled by protesters and shown black flags when he visited Rohtak, met with the members of the high-level committee headed by Naidu. The committee formed by the BJP is looking into the pros and cons of various options on the Jats` demand. The Haryana Government has asked insurance companies to settle within 15 days the claims of the persons, whose insured establishments have been damaged due to arson, loot and vandalism during the recent agitation. Zee Media Bureau Washington DC: Hollywood actor Charlie Sheen's disclosure about his human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-positive status seems to have had a huge impact on the public, particularly in the US. As per a new research, Google searches for information about HIV hit a record high in the US after the troubled star made the stunning revelation in November last year about his HIV-positive status. Sheen admitted that he caught HIV because he was irresponsible but said never contemplated suicided after diagnosis. The research shows that web searches for condoms, HIV symptoms and HIV testing also rocketed after Sheen's public disclosure. The study also reveals that all searches regarding HIV were 417% higher than expected the day of Sheens disclosure. The researchers found that media coverage of HIV on the day of Sheen's disclosure ranked in the top 1% with more than 6500 stories on Google News alone as compared to the last seven years, While no one should be forced to reveal HIV status, they feel that Sheens disclosure may benefit public health by helping many people learn more about HIV infection and prevention. Just as with celebrities Rock Hudsons and Magic Johnsons disclosures of their HIV-positive status, Sheens disclosure may be similarly reinvigorating awareness and prevention of HIV, the study said. In 2013, Angelina Jolie's double mastectomy had a similar effect on breast cancer awareness, which led to doubling in NHS referrals for genetic tests of breast cancer risk. The researchers suggest the 'Charlie Sheen effect' be capitalised on, to further raise HIV awareness. The research has been published Monday in JAMA Internal Medicine. Zee Media Bureau Missouri, US: World's largest healthcare firm Johnson & Johnson (J&J) was ordered by a Missouri state jury to pay $72 million of damages to the family of a woman whose death has been linked to the company's talcum powder. Jackie Fox, aged 62, died of ovarian cancer in 2015, two years after being diagnosed with ovarian cancer. Family said Fox used used J&J's baby talcum powder for more than 50 years before being diagnosed three years ago with the illness, and claimed her death was caused by the use of the company's products. In a verdict announced late Monday night, jurors in the circuit court of St. Louis awarded the family of Fox $72 million of damages, say lawyers for the family. The lawyers said the verdict is the first by a US jury to award damages over the talc claims. It is said that more than 1,000 similar cases are pending nationwide and thousands more could now be filled. J&J, however, denied the claim and said that its products are safe. Meanwhile, researchers are divided over the potential risks of talc. While the American Cancer Society says it is not clear if talc products increase cancer risk, the International Agency for Research on Cancer, which is part of the World Health Organization, classifies talc as "possibly carcinogenic to humans." Mumbai: A Christian organisation has sought ban on publication of a controversial book penned by brother of Hindutva ideologue V D Savarkar, claiming Jesus Christ was a Tamil Hindu. The book Christ Parichay is being re-launched 70 years after it was first published. The United Christians Council, an NGO, today asked Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis to ensure the publication doesn't take place. "The contents of the book are defamatory and will evoke strong emotions in the community," it said in a letter. "There will be a law and order situation in case the publication takes place," it said. The book, penned by Ganesh Savarkar, elder brother of V D Savarkar, is scheduled to be re-launched here on February 26, the death anniversary of the Hindutva icon, President, Swatantryaveer Savarkar National Memorial, Ranjit Savarkar said. The book, first published in 1946, also claims that Christianity was initially a Hindu cult and that Jesus died and attained 'Samadhi' in Kashmir. Asked about the claims in the book, senior priest and director of the Bombay Archdiocesan Heritage Museum, Father Warner D'Souza, said such books will not shake the faith of Christians. Bahraich: Raising the pitch on the JNU issue, BJP chief Amit Shah on Wednesday said Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi and other opposition leaders should clarify in Parliament if "anti-national" slogans should be tolerated in the name of freedom of speech. Attacking Rahul Gandhi, who had joined the agitating JNU students, Shah alleged that he was supporting the forces dividing the country for "votebank politics". "Today debate is being held in the Parliament whether raising anti-national slogans should be tolerated in the name of freedom of speech or not. "I specially want to ask Congress and its workers whether those raising slogans like 'Afzal Guru tere hatrayre zinda hain' and 'Bharat ke tukde honge' were traitors or not," Shah said at a public meeting at the unveiling of the statue of 11th century king of Shravasti, Raja Suheldeo. "I want that members of all parties sitting in the biggest panchayat of the country which is Parliament should clarify whether raising anti-national slogans was freedom of speech or sedition. This also has to be decided by the people of the country," he said. Targeting Rahul, Shah said, "I want to ask him to clarify before the people whether he supports the anti-national slogans...If not then he should condemn it." "Rahulji don't stoop so low for votebank politics. The country got freedom due to the sacrifice of thousands of martyrs. You are supporting the forces dividing the country in the name of freedom of speech," he said Rahul has come out in support of JNU students, who are protesting the arrest of JNU Students' Union leader Kanhaiya Kumar on sedition charge, and has accused the RSS and BJP of imposing their ideology. Describing the contribution of Raja Suheldeo, Shah said his name is taken with pride not only in Uttar Pradesh but the entire country. Shah said when a foreign mercenary, Salar Gazi (Ghaznavid general and nephew of Mahmud of Ghazni), came to destroy Surajkund, Suheldeo thwarted his mission and destroyed Ghazi's entire army. The BJP president said if those, who participated in the freedom struggle remembered Suheldeo, then young generation should take inspiration from him. He said those who do not remember their brave ancestors cannot create history. He said by unveiling Suheldeo's statue a message would be sent to every village and coming generations about how mercernaries can be defeated. Suheldeo is mentioned in Mirat-i-Masudi, a 17th-century Persian-language historical romance. Twentieth century onwards, various Hindu nationalist groups have characterized him as a Dalit Hindu king who defeated a Muslim invader. Rampur (UP): Senior VHP leader Pravin Togadia has criticised the government's policy for minorities, alleging they "are worried about Muslims alone". "In India, governments are worried about Muslims alone and tuition fees of lakhs of girls and boys of this community are being paid from the state exchequer, whereas parents of lakhs of students belonging to the majority community are not capable of paying their wards' fees," the International Working President of VHP said. Addressing a gathering of Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) in Shahabad town of Rampur district last evening, he said if the trend continues and Hindus are pushed to the minority status, "who will enjoy the benefits of development?" He said such a policy has continued despite the fact that "political parties including Congress, BSP, SP and BJP do exist due to the support of the Hindus". The VHP leader said said if this is not checked, "Hindus will be thrown out of Assam, Meerut, Moradabad and Rampur the way Kashmiri Hindus were compelled to migrate". New Delhi: The Delhi Police interrogated Jawaharlal Nehru University students Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya, who have been booked on charges of sedition, in the wee hours on Wednesday and asked them about the sequence of events that took place on February 9. The two will be produced before a magistrate today. Here are the updates: Delhi Police tells the Delhi High Court that JNUSU president Kanhaiya Kumar had not only participated in the event where anti-national slogans were allegedly raised in the JNU campus but had "actually organised" the programme. In its 13-page status report filed before Justice Pratibha Rani, the police claimed that besides Kanahiya and other accused persons, some "foreign elements" were also present during the event. "During the course of the investigation, statements of various eye-witnesses, who were found present on the spot, were recorded. It has come during the course of investigation that accused Kanhaiya, the petitioner herein (for bail), not only participated in the said event but actually organised the same in connivance with other accused persons," the police said in its status report. According to a news report, Umar Khalid planned the pro-Afzal Guru event in JNU campus on February 09, while Anirban Bhattacharya prepared posters and collected other materials for the event. During police questioning, the Khalid and Bhattacharya have reportedly told the interrogators that Reyaz-ul Haq Student of International Language (Spanish) JNU - arranged the sound system for the program. Another name which came out was of Banjoyotsna Lahiri. She is associated with DSU and works as a guest faculty at Ambedkar University. She is alleged to have conceptualised the program in consultation with Umar Khalid. Both of them reportedly said that Afzal Guru's hanging was debated in the past in the campus. Notably, Khalid said that he was very much associated with the Afzal issue. He also maintained that he had left 'Democratic Students Union' (DSU) on ideological reasons. However, both of them disagreed that anti-India slogans were raised by the students of universities saying, if at all they were raised, it would have been a handiwork of some outsiders. HC to pass directions with regard to place where Khalid and Bhattacharya will be produced after consultation with authorities concerned. HC asks police to conduct remand proceedings secretly so that arrested students -- Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya -- are not harmed. JNUSU president Kanhaiya Kumar's bail plea hearing deferred to February 29. Cops tells HC that Kanhaiya's further police remand is necessary for confronting with other two accused. The Delhi Police posed series of questions to both the JNU students regarding the February 09 event. The police asked why such event was organised and from where did the money came. During interrogation, Umar confessed to raising pro-Afzal slogans. It also asked the JNU students about the anti-national slogans and former Du professor SAR Geelani, who has been charged with sedition for organising a pro-Afzal Guru program at Press Club of India. It is being learnt that the police asked Umar about his call detail records. Both Umar and Anirban revealed to the police about their location when they were absconding and also assisted the police in the interrogation. Reports say that the other JNU students Rama Naga, Ashutosh Kumar and Anant Prakash, accused of allegedly shouted anti-national slogans are expected to surrender before police today. Hearing on JNUSU president Kanhaiya Kumar's bail plea to resume today in Delhi High Court. Kumar, arrested in a sedition case, has claimed he is a victim of conspiracy and falsely implicated by "fabricating" evidence. Umar's counsel says that police should verify the videos being circulated before arresting his client. Khalid and Bhattacharya surrendered to police at around midnight and were placed in police custody at South Campus police station. They were questioned by the police for almost five hours. Khalid and Bhattacharya are among the five students who, along with JNUSU president Kanhaiya Kumar, had allegedly shouted anti-national slogans at an event organised in the university campus to mark the death anniversary of parliament attack convict Afzal Guru on February 9. Besides Kumar, Khalid and Bhattacharya, the other students are Rama Naga, Ashutosh Kumar and Anant Prakash. JNU has been on the boil over the arrest of its students' union president Kanhaiya Kumar on sedition charges after some students organised a meet to mark the anniversaries of executions of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru and Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front co-founder Maqbool Bhat. Anti-India slogans were raised at the gathering. New Delhi: Lawyer Vikram Chauhan, who was twice caught on camera first while beating up the journalists at Patiala House Court and later while boasting about hitting JNUSU president Kanhaiya Kumar is expected to surrender before the Delhi Police soon. Chauhan, who joined the investigation at Tilak Marg police station, is expected to surrender later, states India Today report. In a sting operation by India Today, Chauhan was caught admitting that he had beaten up the scribes and some students outside Patiala House Court over JNU's alleged 'anti-national' protests. He also revealed that the Delhi Police personnels took no action against him when he took the law in his own hand. While speaking to ANI, Chauhan said, "There is absolutely no pressure on me. I am common man and I do not represent anyone. The media is trying to portray me as a goon. I am an Indian and if praising Mother India and saying 'Vande Matram' makes me a goon then so be it. Yes there are allegations against me but I'm sure I will be vindicated. The Supreme Court has agreed to consider a plea seeking contempt action against three lawyers allegedly caught on camera bragging and boasting that they had beaten up JNUSU President Kanhaiya Kumar in police lock-up for three hours at the Patiala House Court complex here. Yashpal Singh, another lawyer, who was caught on camera attacking teachers, students and journalists at the court hearing in the JNU case in Delhi last week, was arrested and released by the police on bail on Tuesday. (With Agency inputs) New Delhi: The Government on Wednesday denied that a large number of innocent Muslim youths were in jails on fake terror charges. Replying to a question in Rajya Sabha about whether a large number of innocent Muslim youths are in jails on fake terror charges, Minister of State for Home Affairs Haribhai Parathibhai Chaudhary said "no". "The data of undertrial prisoners is maintained by the state governments since public order and police are state subjects as per the 7th Schedule of the Constitution of India. At the level of central government, the cases relating to terrorist acts are investigated by the National Investigation Agency (NIA)," he said. The Minister said during the last 10 months, five cases of NIA have been decided by different NIA special courts, wherein 43 accused have been convicted and 30 acquitted. "The NIA is in the process of filing appeals on a case-to- case basis against the acquittal. There are adequate constitutional and statutory provisions available to all persons including those who are accused of any offence including terrorism to seek legal remedies," he said. The Minister said every action of the investigation agency is subject to court and legal scrutiny--including the issue of bail, conviction and sentencing. "The acquittals by the courts are also an outcome of a free and fair trial. The law enables the courts at the conclusion of trial, if it results in an acquittal, to pass strictures on the nature and quality of the investigation and evidence collected," Chaudhary said. He said in every case, acquittal from charges cannot be considered to prove that innocent persons had been wrongly framed. "The acquittal by the courts can also be due to lack of sufficient evidence which could prove the charges beyond all reasonable doubt," he said. The Minister said security agencies are sensitised from time to time to keep the investigation of terror cases scientific, fair, impartial and transparent, so that no innocent person suffers. New Delhi: A media report on Wednesday claimed that the National Security Advisers of India and Pakistan had a secret meeting in Paris last month amid the stalemate over talks in the wake of Pathankot airbase terror attack. As per Hindustan Times, NSA Ajit Doval met his Pakistani counterpart Lt Gen (retd) Naseer Khan Janjua in the French capital in the second week of January. This was a second such meeting between the NSAs of the two countries after they held talks in secret in Bangkok on December 6. The Paris meeting took place within days of the terror attack on the Pathankot Air Force base in Punjab on January 2. Doval was in Paris in mid-January and also held talks with French President Francois Hollande, who was the chief guest at the Republic Day parade this year. Highly-placed sources told the newspaper Doval made it clear to Janjua that Pakistan needed to act against Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM), responsible for the Pathankot attack, talks between the Foreign Secretaries could be held. The deadlocked bilateral ties got a fillip when Prime Minister Narendra Modi made a surprise visit to Lahore on December 25 and met his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif, while on his way back from Kabul. Delhi: Heated exchange of words was witnessed in Lok Sabha on Wednesday as the raging JNU row and suicide of Dalit student Rohith Vemula was taken up for discussion with both ruling and opposition sides underlining their credentials as 'nationalists'. The Opposition on the one hand accused the government of muzzling the voice of the youth and "mercilessly crushing" the principles of democracy, while the BJP on the other targeted Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi for his "support" to those standing with hanged Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru. HRD Minister Smriti Irani led the government's charge and said that she was being targeted by the Congress for contesting against Rahul Gandhi in Amethi Parliamentary constituency. Others who articulated government's point of view was BJP MP Anurag Thakur, Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu and Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh. Congress' Jyotiradiya Scindia slams govt Earlier, initiating the discussion, the Congress leader Jyotiradiya Scindia hit out at the central government, saying, "Inside parliament, the ministers of this government take oath of constitution and outside they crush it. Using government machinery they are crushing the voices of those who oppose the ideology of RSS." "They targeted Kanhaiya Kumar just because he was opposed to the ideology of RSS and had defeated an ABVP candidate in JNU election," he added. "What we have seen in the last two years is an atmosphere of intolerance in the country. There is every possible attempt to crush opposing viewpoint," Scindia said, as per IANS. He said party had been demanding action against Irani and Labour Minister Bandaru Dattatreya over the suicide of Vemula. Anurag Thakur, Venkaiah Naidu take on Opposition On the other hand, Thakur accused Rahul of standing with anti-nationals and said the Congress would have to decide "whether you are with those who attacked our parliament or those who protect it? You will have to decide whether you are with ideology of Gandhiji or Maoists." "Your leader goes and sympathises with those who were celebrating Afzal Guru as a martyr," he alleged. Thakur began by invoking the sacrifices of Captain Pawan Kumar, an alumni of JNU, who died in a gun battle with terrorists. "For them (Congress), it is family first, party next and nation last. But for us, it is nation first, party next and self last," he alleged. Naidu, in his speech, also hit out at the Congress, saying no one was terming JNU as anti-national. He said it was duty of entire parliament to speak with one voice against those who had raised anti-national slogans. HRD Minister Smriti Irani makes forceful statement in Lok Sabha When it came to her turn to speak, HRD Minister Smriti Irani made a forceful statement in Lok Sabha, saying Kanhaiya Kumar and some other students had been found indulging in anti-national activities by the JNU authorities themselves. She also made an emotional pitch with regard to the suicide by Dalit student Rohith Vemula of Hyderabad University, insisting that her ministry had no role in his death and the deceased himself had said in his suicide note that nobody should be held responsible for his action. Replying to the charged day-long debate on recent incidents in JNU and Hyderabad University during which the government faced Opposition onslaught, a combative Irani said she was being targeted by Congress for contesting against Rahul Gandhi in Amethi Parliamentary constituency. "I will not seek forgiveness for doing my duty. You (Congress members) never wanted to listen to my reply," she said aloud, as the Congress members, Left parties and Trinamool Congress staged a walkout as she was speaking. During last 20 months as Minister, Irani said she tried to do justice to students by trying to address their complaints without asking for their "caste or religion". Rejecting the charge of saffronising education, she said, she would quit politics if it was established she made any attempt to do so. Most of the vice chancellors are Congress appointees, Irani said, adding she had asked them to listen to the students who come from different backgrounds and address their issues. "Help me build the nation, not destroy it from within," she said stressing, "I respect your patriotism, don't demean mine. I have my idea of India. Don't demean it," she said, as per PTI. Citing documents, she said, report by JNU's security people observed that some students were indulging in anti-national sloganeering even though the students had sought permission to hold a "poetry" event. Although the permission was denied, the students went ahead with the programme which turned into a platform for shouting anti-India slogans like "Bharat teri barbadi tak jang rahegi, jang rahegi" (the struggle would continue till destruction of Indian state), she said. The Minister based her contention on the report filed by the private security staff of JNU with regard to the developments on January 9. Accusing the Communists of using students as weapons against state, she asserted that anti-national slogans cannot be allowed under the garb of freedom of speech. To buttress her case about undeserving activities on the JNU campus, she cited an event to observe 'Mahishasura Martyrdom Day' in which Goddess Durga is depicted in a derogatory manner. Producing pamphlets to support her contention, she challenged Trinamool members to a discussion on this and dared them to show these pamphlets in West Bengal. She wondered how such things got into the minds of students and added that it was because of the wrong policies of the previous government and added "don't make education a battle field" as the consequences could be grave. As regards the issue of suicide by Vemula, Irani responded to attacks on her by saying in a choked voice, "a mother who gives birth, cannot take lives". She said Vemula had been denied financial assistance and was expelled by the Executive Council of the University, none of whose members had been appointed by NDA. "They were all Congress appointees," she added. Irani also replied to questions as to why she wrote letters to the Hyderabad University authorities which are alleged to have led to Vemula's suicide. The HRD Minister said Congress leader Hanumantha Rao had repeatedly written to her seeking her intervention in the affairs of the university for "justice". Contending that she had only fulfilled her responsibilities for which she will not apologise, she named a number of MPs, including Pappu Yadav, Saugata Roy, Assadudin Owaisi and Shashi Tharoor, who had made requests like admissions in various schools. She said as soon as she came to know about Vemula in the morning of the fateful day, she had tried to speak to Telangana Chief Minister KC Rao but was told that he was busy. "I am still waiting" for his return call, she said. Citing a report of Telangana police, she said Vemula was not provided any medical aid for over 12 hours as there was effort to make it a political issue. "Politics took precedence and medical aid could not reach Vemula in time," she said. (With Agency inputs) New Delhi: After two JNU students surrendered before police in connection with a sedition case, uneasy calm prevailed in the varsity campus on Wednesday amid confusion whether three more students will adopt the same approach. The five students - Umar Khalid, Anirban Bhattacharya, JNUSU General Secretary Rama Naga, Ashutosh Kumar and Anant Prakash - had gone missing from the campus since February 12 after JNU students union president Kanhaiya Kumar was arrested on sedition charges for allegedly raising anti-India slogans during a controversial event at the campus. While Khalid and Anirban had surrendered before police late last night, the remaining trio maintained that they will not surrender. "We will not surrender. We have reiterated many times that we have nothing to hide and we are open to questioning as and when police approaches us," Ashutosh said. The students who have been agitating demanding Kanhaiya's release ever since he was arrested took a break today from the slogan shouting at the varsity's administration block. While the JNUSU office bearers met today to decide on further strategy, a group of students went to India Gate to participate in a candle light vigil in solidarity with Hyderabad varsity students who are in Delhi demanding justice for Rohith Vemula. "We have been hoping that Kanhaiya will be granted bail and will join us in protest against this branding of the university as anti-national but unfortunately that has not happened so far," JNUSU vice president Shehla Rashid Shora said. In the evening, members of ABVP had invited a group of Army veterans to address a gathering who spoke about the difficulties officers of three forces have to face to guard the country and how any "anti-national" activity is a disrespect to them. Bengaluru: The Karnataka government is hoping the railway budget for fiscal 2016-17 will allot funds to run a full-fledged suburban rail service linking Bengaluru with towns in the hinterland, a senior official said here on Wednesday. "We have convinced Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu on the urgent need to operate a dedicated suburban rail service in Bengaluru for daily commuters and a floating population from nearby towns and villages to ease vehicular pressure on roads," the urban land transport directorate official told IANS on the condition of anonymity. Though Prabhu, who was in the city on February 4 to participate in the state`s global investors` meet assured the state government of considering its plea, it remains to be seen if the rail budget on Thursday would earmark funds to initiate the project due to the challenges it faces on multiple fronts. "The chief minister (Siddaramaiah) has petitioned Prabhu with a detailed project report of Rites for providing alternate transport and ease congestion on highways and roads in and around the city of 10-million people, with a 1.5-million floating population daily," the official said. Though the South Western Railway (SWR) submitted its views on the project feasibility to the railway board on January 27, the state government assured Prabhu of facilitating its execution by providing land, shifting utilities and clearing hurdles for integrating the suburban rail service with the metro rail network across the city and the three main stations for long distance passenger trains. The report by the state-run Rail India Technical and Economic Service (Rites) has raised concerns over bottlenecks the project will face in execution, as land acquisition and demolition of built-up area needs the state`s intervention at every level and dislocation of the limited service currently will affect its commuters. To ensure the project will take-off at the earliest with an integrated approach for seamless transportation in and out of the city, Bengaluru development minister K.J. George recently suggested connecting the suburban rail service to metro stations at three terminals where long distance trains also originate, terminate or pass through and passengers can inter-change over to either local transport mode. Washington D.C.: Initially, ads that show up within apps were little more than an annoyance, but now, they have become a possible danger as they can leak your personal data. The personal information of millions of smartphone users is at risk due to in-app advertising that can leak potentially sensitive user information between ad networks and mobile app developers, according to a new study by the School of Computer Science at the Georgia Institute of Technology. The study examined more than 200 participants who used a custom-built app for Android-based smartphones, which account for 52 percent of the U.S. smartphone market according to comScore's April 2015 report. Georgia Tech researchers reviewed the accuracy of personalized ads that were served to test subjects from the Google AdNetwork based upon their personal interests and demographic profiles; and secondly examined how much a mobile app creator could uncover about users because of the personalized ads served to them. Researchers found that 73 percent of ad impressions for 92 percent of users are correctly aligned with their demographic profiles. Researchers also found that, based on ads shown, a mobile app developer could learn a user's gender with 75 percent accuracy; parental status with 66 percent accuracy; age group with 54 percent accuracy and could also predict income, political affiliation, marital status, with higher accuracy than random guesses. Some personal information is deemed so sensitive that Google explicitly states those factors are not used for personalization, yet the study found that app developers still can discover this information due to leakage between ad networks and app developers. Lead researcher Wei Meng said that free smart phone apps are not really free. Apps, especially malicious apps, can be used to collect potentially sensitive information about someone simply by hosting ads in the app and observing what is received by a user. Mobile, personalized in-app ads absolutely present a new privacy threat. Unlike advertising on a website page, where personalized ad content is protected from publishers and other third parties by the Same Origin Policy, there is no isolation of personalized ad content from the mobile app developer. People use their smartphones now for online dating, banking, and social media every day, said Wenke Lee, adding that mobile devices are intimate to users, so safeguarding personal information from malicious parties is more important than ever. The study acknowledges that the online advertising industry is taking steps to protect users' information by improving the HTTPS protocol, but researchers believe the threat to user privacy is greater than HTTPS protection can provide under a mobile scenario. Results have been presented at the 2016 Network and Distributed System Security Symposium (NDSS '16) in San Diego. Tokyo: A Japanese startup has developed an app that will help students speak and pronounce their English language correctly. TerraTalk, a Japanese company, wants to help English learners with a new app that promises to correct their pronunciation and grammar, says a report in TechCrunch. As of now, the company has launched its app on Android with $1.34 million in funding from Incubate Fund, but plans to have an iOS version ready later this year. Although other language apps include pronunciation correction among their features, TerraTalk differentiates by using artificial intelligence to analyze things like grammar as well, adds the report. Currently, the apps interface is in Japanese only, but according to the company's founder Yoshiyuki Kakihara, TettaTalk is language agnostic, which means that it can easily be localized and marketed to English language learners in other countries. At present, the app is free of cost, but can be charged later on a monthly subscription plan. Islamabad: Describing its nuclear arsenal as a "factor of stability in South Asia", Pakistan on Wednesday said it will maintain a full-spectrum deterrence and take steps to effectively respond to the threats to its national security. During the 22nd meeting of the National Command Authority under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, the nuclear watchdog reviewed regional and international security environment. "NCA took note of the growing conventional and strategic weapons' development in the region. It expressed serious concerns over the adverse ramifications for peace and security on this account," a statement by the army said. The NCA reaffirmed its determination to take all possible measures to make national security robust, enabling it to effectively respond to the threats to national security without indulging in arms race. "Reiterating that nuclear deterrence is the factor of stability in South Asia, NCA expressed the resolve to maintain Full Spectrum Deterrence, in line with the policy of Credible Minimum Deterrence," the statement said. Today's meeting was held ahead of the nuclear security summit scheduled next month in the US. It was attended by Federal Ministers for Defence, Finance and Interior, Advisor on Foreign Affairs, Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, Services Chiefs, Director General Strategic Plans Division. In previous meetings, the NCA has noted with concern India's rapidly expanding conventional military asymmetry and dangerous limited conventional war policy called the 'Cold Start' doctrine. Today, it re-emphasised Pakistan's desire for establishing the Strategic Restraint Regime in South Asia and the inescapable need of a meaningful and sustained comprehensive dialogue process for resolution of all outstanding disputes, ushering in an era of peace and prosperity in the region. The NCA noted that Pakistan has the requisite credentials to become part of all multi-lateral export control regimes, including the Nuclear Suppliers Group, for which it seeks a non-discriminatory approach. The participants reviewed the security and safety mechanism of Pakistan's nuclear programme and expressed satisfaction over the measures in-place to ensure highly- effective security of strategic assets and installations. They reposed confidence in the command and control system of the national strategic capability and appreciated the standard of operational preparedness of strategic forces. Details of inter-agency process to ratify the Convention on Physical Protection of Nuclear Material (Amended) by Pakistan were presented to the NCA and it gave approval for its ratification. The NCA said as a responsible nuclear State Pakistan would continue to contribute meaningfully towards the global efforts to improve nuclear security and non-proliferation measures. Madurai: The Madras High Court Wednesday ruled that money demanded by a man from his in-laws for doing business does not come under the category of 'dowry'. Disposing of a petition filed by the man's family against a complaint of dowry harassment, Justice C T Selvam of the Madurai bench said money demanded by a person from his wife and in-laws for investing in business cannot be construed as dowry demand and tried under Section 4 of Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961. He said it was necessary for a complainant to prove that money was demanded only as dowry. The Judge accepted the petitioner's submission that money had been demanded for conduct of business, but that the same was not demanded as dowry. Such a demand for money for conduct of business would attract IPC Section 498A (husband or relative of husband of a woman subjecting her to cruelty), the judge said and ordered that the petitioners be prosecuted under this provision, apart from IPC Sec. 506(I) (criminal intimidation). The Judge exonerated?the complainant's father-in-law, saying he was in no way connected with the case. He directed the Judicial Magistrate in Tiruchirapalli, where the case was filed in December last year, to prosecute the victim's husband, mother-in-law and two sisters-in-law alone. Chennai/Vellore: Nalini Sriharan, a convict in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case, was lodged back in the Vellore Central Prision, after she attended the last rites of her father. Nalini was granted 12-hour parole to travel to Chennai to be with her family at the hour of grief. The sole women convict in the case, Nalini, has spent the last 25 years in prison. It was only the second time in 2004, she was granted a similar parole to attend her brother's marriage she was allowed to come out of the prison. Nalini had left the Vellore prision at 6:50 am, under police escort, for her brother's residence in Kottupuram, Chennai. She reached there at 10 am and attended the last rites of her father Sankara Narayanan. She began her return journey at around 3:30 pm and was back inside the prision by 6:45 pm. 92-year-old Sankara Narayanan, a former police inspector, passed away yesterday in Tirunelveli District. His body was brought here to his son Bhagyanathan's house at Kotturpuram. Political party leaders including actor-director turned chief of Naam Tamizhar Katchi Seeman, Manithaneya Makkal Katchi legislator Jawahirullah, Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi chief Thol Thirumavalavan paid their last respects to Mr Sankara Narayanan. They expressed their condolences to family members including Nalini. Nalini's brother Bhagyanathan said that his sister and others convicted in the case like Perarivalan alias Arivu had spent over 25 years in prison. "I request the government to release them. They have parents in advanced age who are eagerly expecting their release," he told reporters. Nalini was sentenced to death by the trial court in the case on January 28, 1998. Her sentence was commuted to life term by the Tamil Nadu Governor on April 24, 2000. In December 14 last year, she had moved Madras High Court seeking a direction to Tamil Nadu government to consider her representation for premature release, saying she has undergone imprisonment for more than 24 years. With PTI inputs Moscow: Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has assured Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin of his government's readiness to respect a ceasefire deal brokered by Moscow and Washington, the Kremlin said on Wednesday. The Kremlin said the two leaders discussed the deal in a phone call and that Assad noted that the proposals laid out in the agreement were an "important step in the direction of a political settlement." "In particular, (Assad) confirmed the readiness of the Syrian government to facilitate the establishment of a ceasefire," it said in a statement. The ceasefire agreement, which does not apply to jihadists like the Islamic State group and Al-Nusra Front, calls for a "cessation of hostilities" between regime forces and opposition groups from midnight Friday Damascus time. Putin and Assad "stressed the importance of continuing an uncompromising fight" against the IS group, Al-Nusra Front and "other terrorist groups included in the relevant UN Security Council list," the Kremlin said. Putin, whose air force is flying a bombing campaign to support Assad's troops on the ground, on Monday pledged to do "whatever is necessary" to get Damascus to uphold the deal after sealing the agreement with US President Barack Obama. But some Washington officials have expressed doubt over whether Russia will respect the ceasefire. Secretary of State John Kerry yesterday warned that the United States was considering a "Plan B" to deal with Syria if Damascus and Moscow do not keep their end of the bargain. The Russian foreign ministry said Moscow was not aware of "any Plan B" and that it was important to stick to the current deal. "We are proceeding from the fact that so many efforts have been put into the preparation of a joint communique that it's necessary now to implement it and not work out some additional plan Bs," spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told reporters today. "This may end up contravening the agreements that have been reached because the opposition may get the wrong impression that there is an alternative to the joint communique." Washington: President Barack Obama presented a long-shot plan Tuesday to shutter the Guantanamo Bay detention center, hoping to fulfill an elusive campaign promise before he leaves office next year. Describing the jail as a stain on America`s reputation and a catalyst for jihadists, Obama said "I don`t want to pass this problem on to the next president." "For many years, it`s been clear that the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay does not advance our national security. It undermines it," Obama said from the White House`s Roosevelt Room. He outlined a USD 290-475 million plan to move the 91 remaining detainees abroad and to one of 13 possible -- unnamed -- facilities in the United States. Obama has tried for almost eight years to close the jail, but has been thwarted by Congress, the Pentagon, some in his own party and foreign allies who refuse to host the terror suspects abroad. As a candidate and as president, Obama has argued that the indefinite detention without trial of Guantanamo inmates harms America`s image and its national security. "It undermines our standing in the world," he said. "This is about closing a chapter in our history." Lawmakers in the Republican-controlled Congress have blocked the most obvious path to closing the facility by banning the transfer of detainees to the United States, and there is little prospect of Republicans changing tack in the runup to the November presidential election. House Speaker Paul Ryan immediately rejected the proposal, saying bringing "Guantanamo terrorists" to the United States was neither smart nor safe. "It is against the law, and it will stay against the law, to transfer terrorist detainees to American soil," he added. Obama appealed for the closure plan to be given "a fair hearing, even in an election year." But Senator Marco Rubio, a Republican presidential candidate, doubled down on opposing it, promising to increase the Guantanamo population if elected. "Not only are we not going to close Guantanamo -- when I am president, if we capture a terrorist alive... they are going to Guantanamo and we are going to find out everything they know," he said. Obama also has faced opposition from within his own administration, with the Pentagon accused of slow-pedaling transfers and overstating closure costs. The president could still try to force the closure through an executive order, but such a move would expose him to accusations of ruling by decree. Obama got strong backing from one prominent Democrat, presidential contender Hillary Clinton. "Closing Guantanamo would be a sign of strength and resolve," she said, urging Congress to implement the plan "as quickly and responsibly as possible." Her campaign also pointed to her efforts to help close the facility while serving as Obama`s secretary of state.The Guantanamo Bay closure plan, which took months to produce, offers no specifics on the potential location of a US facility. But military officials have previously listed Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, or the US Navy brig in Charleston, South Carolina, among possible destinations for inmates. Those locations, however, face objections from local politicians. Obama has long argued that many Guantanamo prisoners should be transferred overseas and some should be tried by military courts. A small number -- those deemed too dangerous to release but too difficult to prosecute -- would be held in the United States. Human rights groups worry this would only extend detentions without trial and create a "Guantanamo North." "The possibility of a new, parallel system of lifelong incarceration inside the United States without charge would set a dangerous precedent," Amnesty International said in a statement. The plan says a US facility would save money over time. It currently costs about USD 455 million each year to run Guantanamo, and a US site would reduce that amount by up to USD 180 million. Most of the savings would come from a decrease in the number of troops guarding the reduced population on the US mainland, although it could cost up to USD 475 million in one-time expenses to move the men and build or update a facility to hold them. Efforts to transfer prisoners overseas have been stymied by unrest in Yemen -- a likely destination for many -- and by recidivism among those already released. Still, Defense Secretary Ashton Carter has in recent weeks signed off on a flurry of transfers, and last month, the prison`s population dropped below 100 for the first time. Today, 91 inmates remain. Of them, 35 have been approved for release. The rest face ongoing, indefinite detention. Perhaps the most notorious prisoner is Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, who along with four co-defendants is charged with plotting the September 11, 2001, attacks. Guantanamo opened in January 2002 on a US naval base on a coastal spit of land in southeastern Cuba leased from Havana under a treaty dating back to 1903. It was set up after the 9/11 attacks under then-president George W. Bush`s administration to deal with "enemy combatants" denied many US legal rights. Washington: China is "changing the operational landscape" in the South China Sea by deploying missiles and radar as part of an effort to militarily dominate East Asia, a senior US military official said on Tuesday. China is "clearly militarising the South China (Sea)," said Admiral Harry Harris, head of the US Pacific Command, adding: "You`d have to believe in a flat Earth to think otherwise." Harris said he believed China`s deployment of surface-to-air missiles on Woody Island in the South China Sea`s Paracel chain, new radars on Cuarteron Reef in the Spratlys and its building of airstrips were "actions that are changing in my opinion the operational landscape in the South China Sea." Soon after he spoke, US government sources confirmed that China recently deployed fighter jets to Woody Island. It was not the first time Beijing sent jets there but it raised new questions about its intentions. US Navy Captain Darryn James, spokesman for US Pacific Command, said China`s repeated deployment of advanced fighter aircraft to Woody Island continued a disturbing trend. "These destabilising actions are inconsistent with the commitment by China and all claimants to exercise restraint from actions that could escalate disputes," he said. "That`s why we`ve called for all claimants to stop land reclamation, stop construction and stop militarization in the South China Sea. But US and Chinese foreign ministers signaled that despite disagreements over the South China Sea, they were near agreement on a UN resolution against North Korea for its recent nuclear and missile tests and stressed their cooperation on economic and other issues. `Hegemony in East Asia` Speaking before the meeting in Washington between Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and US Secretary of State John Kerry, Harris said China was escalating the situation in the South China Sea with new deployments. Asked about its aims, he said: "I believe China seeks hegemony in East Asia." Responding to another question, Harris said Chinese DF-21 and DF-26 anti-ship missiles could pose a threat to US aircraft carriers, but added the vessels were resilient and that the United States had "the capability to do what has to be done if it comes to that." Harris also said he supported regular US air and naval patrols to assert freedom of navigation in the South China Sea, a vital waterway through which more than $5 trillion in global trade passes every year. At a news conference with Kerry, Wang said there had been no problems with freedom of navigation and China and countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations - several of which have competing claims with China - "have the capability to maintain stability in the South China Sea." He said militarization was not the responsibility of one party alone and added in apparent reference to US patrols: "We dont hope to see any more close-up military reconnaissance, or the dispatch of missile destroyers or strategic bombers to the South China Sea." Cairo: Egypt`s interior ministry said on Wednesday it was still investigating the brutal killing of an Italian graduate student in Cairo, and suggested he may have fallen victim to criminals. Giulio Regeni, a Cambridge University PhD student who was researching Egyptian labour movements, disappeared on January 25 and his badly mutilated body was found a week later. Italian media have suggested he may have been detained by Egyptian security forces, something the interior ministry has strongly denied. The ministry said it had not yet determined who abducted Regeni, but "available information suggests all possibilities." "These include a criminal motive or personal revenge," the statement said, adding the ministry was cooperating with Italian investigators in Cairo. Regeni went missing on the fifth anniversary of the start of the uprising which overthrew longtime autocrat Hosni Mubark. Police had been deployed across the city to prevent demonstrations. The interior ministry has been on the defensive over a string of deaths in police custody and other abuses that prompted the interior minister to apologise to the country this week. Berlin: Tensions reached boiling point between European states worst affected by the migrant crisis ahead of a meeting of Balkan states on Wednesday, as new figures showed no let-up in the influx of people. With migrant and refugee arrivals in Europe surpassing 110,000 in the first two months of the year alone, the United Nations warned border restrictions being imposed by some states could cause chaos. A diplomatic spat broke out between Greece and Austria, while Vienna lashed out at Germany`s "contradictory" refugee policy. The European Union voiced concerns about the risk of a "humanitarian crisis," particularly in Greece, which lies on the frontline of Europe`s greatest migration challenge since World War II. Thousands of people have been left stranded in Greece after Macedonia abruptly closed its border to Afghans, creating a fresh bottleneck on the Balkans route to northern Europe. Athens also hit out at Vienna for failing to invite Greek representatives to a meeting on the crisis with ministers from western Balkan states on Wednesday. Greece`s foreign ministry blasted the meeting as "one-sided and not at all friendly", and has accused Austria of undermining efforts to reach a joint European response to the crisis. Austria retorted that it was a "fixed" meeting format and its summary would be available to EU interior and justice ministers when they meet on Thursday.Austria lashed out at Germany`s "contradictory" refugee policy after Berlin sharply criticised a daily limit introduced by Vienna on migrants registering and passing through the Alpine country. "Germany should decide which number is acceptable to it," Austrian Chancellor Werner Faymann told reporters. A statement added that he wished for a "respectful treatment of Austria`s political decisions". New figures published by the International Organization for Migration showed 102,547 people had arrived in Greece and another 7,507 in Italy so far this year. Another 413 lost their lives trying, including 321 who perished on the journey to Greece, the IOM said. The Mediterranean was the scene of another tragedy on Tuesday, with Italy saying it had found four bodies off the coast of Libya and rescued more than 700 migrants. Amnesty International on Wednesday hit out at Europe`s "shameful" response to the crisis, saying most EU countries had "simply decided that the protection of their borders is more important than the protection of the rights of refugees". In the latest in a series of measures by European states, Macedonia closed its border to Afghans and introduced more stringent document checks for Syrians and Iraqis seeking to travel to northern and western Europe. The move caused a bottleneck at the Greek-Macedonian border -- where nearly 4,000 people were waiting to get through on Tuesday -- and forced Greek police to keep hundreds of others from travelling to the frontier. On the Greek side, Afghan families boarded nearly a dozen buses for the long trip back to the capital, where they will be temporarily housed in relocation camps, local police said."We are concerned about the developments along the Balkan route and the humanitarian crisis that might unfold in certain countries, especially in Greece," EU migration commissioner Dimitris Avramopoulos and Dutch Migration Minister Klaas Dijkhoff said in a statement. Their sentiment was echoed by Filippo Grandi, the head of the UN refugee agency. "I am very worried about the news that we are getting about increasing closures of European borders along the Balkans route because that will create further chaos and confusion," Grandi said on a visit to the Greek island of Lesbos. "We have said to European states... that they should take more refugees through legal ways, to accept them directly so that they don`t go through smuggling rings," he said. "If Europe can`t do this, what Europe have we built?" The arrival last year of more than one million refugees and migrants on Europe`s shores, many fleeing war, poverty and persecution, has caused a chain reaction of border clampdowns, in a blow to the EU`s border-free Schengen zone. Skopje`s move followed decisions by countries further up the migrant route to turn back groups of Afghans. "Everything we are doing is in coordination with the agreement from Zagreb," a senior government source in Skopje told AFP. On February 18, police chiefs from Austria, Croatia, Macedonia, Serbia and Slovenia agreed to created a joint refugee registration point on the Greek-Macedonian border. London: Hardline Iranian news media outlets have raised USD 600,000 to add to a bounty for the killing of Salman Rushdie, it emerged on Wednesday, 27 years after a death fatwa was issued by Iran's former supreme leader Ayatollah Khomeini over one of the India-born author's controversial novels. About 40 organisations, including state-run media outlets, raised the sum to reinforce the religious edict calling for Rushdie's assassination issued by Khomeini in 1989 on charges of blasphemy after the publication of 'The Satanic Verses'. "The fatwa against Salman Rushdie is a religious fatwa. Nobody in the world can nullify a religious fatwa. It has been, it is, and it will be," a senior member of the editorial team at state-run Fars New Agency in Tehran told The Times. The original fatwa against the 68-year-old British-Indian Booker Prize winner had caused international outcry, with the UK severing diplomatic ties with Iran for nearly a decade. It was suspended in 1998 when Mohammad Khatami, then the president of Iran, announced that as a pre-condition to the restoration of ties with Britain the Iranian state would "neither support nor hinder assassination operations". The new bounty came to light in an account by an unnamed journalist at Fars of a digital media fair in Tehran. The story included a declaration by a man known as "Mr Amini", setting a bounty equivalent to USD 600,000, and listed 40 organisations, including NGOs and private donors, which had pledged the money, The Times reported. Fars, which pledged 100 million Tomans (23,500 pounds), was among the top three cash donors named on the list, which also included the Centre for Cultural and Science Research, Miqat Radio and the Iranian Centre for Training Journalists. A religious organisation called the 15 Khordad Foundation initially offered a USD 2.7 million reward to anyone carrying out the fatwa, then increased it to USD 3.3 million in 2012. The new money brings the total bounty to nearly USD 4 million. Jo Glanville, director of English PEN, an organisation that defends freedom of expression and has worked with Rushdie for many years, said: "Given the new relations between Iran and the West, I think we rather hoped [the fatwa] might disappear." In the early years of the fatwa, Rushdie was forced to go into hiding under police protection as bookshops across the world were destroyed and people associated with the translation or publication of his book were attacked. His son, Zafar Rushdie, who is also his publicist, declined to comment on the new bounty. Hardline organisations in Iran make symbolic gestures involving the Rushdie fatwa every year around its anniversary on February 14. But it's unclear whether the bounty would really be paid. Jerusalem: A Palestinian attempted to stab an Israeli in the occupied West Bank on Wednesday and Israeli forces opened fire, wounding the intended victim and the attacker, the army said. Jerusalem`s Shaarei Tzedek hospital, where both men were taken, said the Israeli was in "critical condition" while the assailant was moderately wounded. "An assailant attempted to stab an Israeli at the Gush Etzion junction," an army statement said. "Forces at the scene fired toward the assailant in order to thwart the attack. As a result the Israeli was injured. The Israeli and the assailant were both evacuated to hospital." A wave of Palestinian knife, gun and car-ramming assaults that erupted in October has claimed the lives of 27 Israelis, as well as an American, a Sudanese and an Eritrean. The violence has also seen 176 Palestinians killed by Israeli forces, most while carrying out attacks but others during clashes and demonstrations, according to an AFP count. The Etzion bloc of Israeli settlements, in the southern West Bank between Bethlehem and the flashpoint city of Hebron, has been a focal point of the unrest. Jerusalem: Israel`s Shin Bet domestic security agency abuses Palestinians under interrogation in a manner so systematic it points to official endorsement, two Israeli NGOs said in a report published on Wednesday. The 70-page joint study by rights groups B`Tselem and Hamoked is based on accounts by 116 suspects interrogated at Shikma prison in the southern Israeli city of Ashkelon between August 2013 and March 2014. The report, a third in a series on interrogations of Palestinians, said there are marked similarities with other facilities. "Time and again, the detainees interviewed described unlawful conduct by the authorities," said the report, entitled "Backed by the System". "The descriptions bear a striking resemblance to accounts previously provided by detainees held at other interrogation facilities. Taken together, it would seem that this conduct constitutes official interrogation policy." The Shin Bet called the data in the report "misleading and distorted," and said in a statement that all its interrogations were carried out "in accordance with the law and to prevent activities aimed at harming the security of the state." Its activities were "subject to ongoing review and inspection by internal and external bodies," it added. A Shin Bet spokesman told AFP that the Palestinians interrogated at Shikma were "terror suspects." The report said that practises in the Shin Bet detention block at Shikma included sleep deprivation for long periods, being bound hand and foot to a chair for hours on end and exposure to extreme cold and heat. "Being denied the possibility to shower or change clothes for days and even weeks; incarceration in a small, foul-smelling cell, usually in solitary confinement, for many days...are some of the standard features," it added. A 1999 ruling by Israel`s High Court of Justice forbade interrogators to use violence during interrogations except in the case of a "ticking bomb" when measured physical pressure could be used, but the report accuses the Shin Bet of torture. "The combination of conditions both in and outside the interrogation room constitutes abuse and inhuman, degrading treatment, at times even amounting to torture," it read. The report also noted that 39 of the Palestinians interrogated by Israel had been arrested and tortured by the Palestinian Authority prior to their interrogation at Shikma. Some of them said that the questioning by Israeli agents implied that the PA had shared its information with the Shin Bet. Daniel Shenhar, who was part of the team that compiled the report, lamented the lack of response of Israeli legal authorities to the allegations arising from the testimonies. "No investigations lead to no accountability, and de facto immunity to investigators and human rights breachers," he told reporters. Nevada: US Republican presidential candidates faced off in Nevada on Tuesday with Donald Trump poised for a third straight victory ahead of next week`s all-important "Super Tuesday" votes. As the caucuses got underway, the billionaire real estate mogul was all but certain to triumph, with the big question being which candidate would come in second. Voting got underway in the early evening, with initial results expected after the polls close at 9:00 pm (0500 GMT). The contest is the fourth for the Republican presidential candidates, with Trump so far winning in New Hampshire and South Carolina. He came in second in Iowa. Although the caucus in Nevada is not expected to have a significant impact on the overall race -- only 30 delegates or slightly more than one percent of the total are up for grabs -- it is the first contest for the Republicans in the US West. It is also the first test of Republican voter sentiment after Jeb Bush pulled out of the race last week following a poor showing in South Carolina. And candidates here are facing the most diverse electorate thus far in the race, more representative of the US population as a whole. Experts said the focus was on whether Florida Senator Marco Rubio and Texas Senator Ted Cruz would be able to slow Trump`s momentum and which of the two candidates would come in second. "Who is going to be the strongest guy to go against Trump... is going to be more clear after today," said Dan Lee, assistant professor of political science at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. "Today we are going to see whether voters are going to move over more in support of Rubio." He noted that the Nevada caucus was taking place as mainstream Republicans are grudgingly accepting the fact that the bombastic Trump may well end up the party`s nominee given his seemingly unstoppable winning streak. "A lot of Republicans -- especially the Republican establishment, professionals, governors -- don`t really want Trump to win the nomination," Lee said. "They want to get Cruz out and have Rubio go against Trump," he added. "A lot of people think it`s the best chance to beat Trump."Katie Packer Gage, who heads Our Principles, a political action committee aimed at derailing Trump, said in a memo that "it`s critical we come together to prevent Donald Trump from becoming the GOP nominee." "He is, to put it simply, a conservative of convenience -- as his own words and actions over the past 30 years have made abundantly clear," she wrote. The real estate magnate dished out his trademark rhetoric against his rivals ahead of the vote Tuesday, comparing Cruz to a "soft, weak, little baby" at a rally. "But for lying, he`s the best I`ve ever seen," he added. Cruz fired back, accusing Trump of consistently vacillating on issues and saying his insults showed how rattled he was. "@realDonaldTrump, showing class & grace, calls me a `soft weak little baby,`" Cruz tweeted. "Hope he doesn`t try to eat me!" Rubio, who has received a flood of endorsements from fellow lawmakers who see him as the mainstream candidate who can topple Trump, for his part urged registered Republicans in Nevada to turn out in force for the caucus. The Republican field, which once stood at 17, has shrunk to five, with Bush the latest to pull out on Saturday. Apart from Trump, Cruz and Rubio, the remaining two candidates in the race are retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson and Ohio Governor John Kasich. After Nevada, the real test on where the presidential candidates stand will come on March 1, when 12 states go to the polls in what is known as "Super Tuesday." Unlike primaries, caucuses allow participants to openly engage with one another and hear arguments from candidates` supporters or surrogates, in meetings at schools, community centers and churches. Republicans then vote by secret ballot, in 130 caucus sites across Nevada. The results will be used to determine the number of Republican delegates who represent the state at the party`s nominating convention in July. Erbil: A Swedish teenager rescued from Islamic State militants in Iraq has said life in the so-called caliphate was "really hard" and that she was duped into going there by her boyfriend. In her first interview since Kurdish special forces recovered her in northern Iraq, the 16-year old told a Kurdish TV channel she had met her boyfriend in mid-2014 after dropping out of school in Sweden. "First we were good but then he started to look at ISIS videos and speak about them and stuff like that," she told Kurdistan 24 in a brief interview, using another name for the Islamic State group. "Then he said he wanted to go to ISIS and I said ok, no problem, because I didn`t know what ISIS means, what Islam is -- nothing," said the girl. The couple set off from Sweden in late May 2015 and made their way across Europe by bus and train until reaching the Turkish border province of Gaziantep, from which they crossed into Syria. From there, Islamic State militants ferried them by bus with other men and women to the city of Mosul in neighboring Iraq and provided them with a house. There was no electricity or running water. "I didn`t have any money either - it was a really hard life," she said, looking relaxed and healthy. "When I had a phone I started to contact my mum and I said `I want to go home`." The teenager, who was rescued on February 17, is currently in Iraq`s Kurdistan region and will be handed over to Swedish authorities. Security services estimate that hundreds of Western men and women have left home to join Islamic State since the group overran large parts of Iraq and Syria in June 2014. A mother who took her 14-month-old son to Syria to join Islamic State fighters was jailed for six years by a British court earlier this month. Smiling occasionally, the girl compared life under Islamic State to that in Europe: "In Sweden we have everything, and when I was there, we didn`t have anything". Kabul: Russia delivered 10,000 Kalashnikovs to the Afghan government today, with officials saying they were for the fight "against terrorism", a day after Kabul hosted talks on reviving the peace process with the Taliban. The assault rifles, delivered with pomp at a ceremony on the tarmac at Kabul's military airport, will be directly transferred to security forces, said President Ashraf Ghani's national security adviser Hanif Atmar. "We are trying to continue our efforts for peace, but in the meantime our nation should have the ability to defend itself," Atmar said. He said "international terrorism" in Afghanistan was a threat not only to the country and the region, but also to "our friends in Russia". Despite the USD 60 billion spent by Washington over more than 14 years to equip and train the Afghan security forces, they have struggled to contain the resurgent Taliban. Kabul is trying to resume a dialogue with the militants, and after talks with the US, China and Pakistan yesterday said it expects to relaunch the stalled peace process by early March. Russia is not part of the quartet. In a recent interview with state news agency Ria Novosti, Zamir Kabulov, the Kremlin's special representative to Afghanistan, described Washington's efforts to restore peace as "futile". At today's ceremony Russia's ambassador in Kabul Alexander Mantitski said cooperation between his country, NATO and the United States in Afghanistan ended in April 2014 "at the initiative of the West". The decision was taken in retaliation for Russia's annexation of Crimea. However the diplomat said Moscow would continue to cooperate directly with its Afghan partner. Russia remains concerned about the growing influence of Islamic State in the east of the country, where the group counts fighters from Uzbekistan and Tajikistan - two former Soviet republics bordering Afghanistan - in its ranks. Seoul: South Korea Wednesday dismissed China`s warning that the planned deployment of a US missile defence system could damage ties, stressing that it was to counter "growing threats" from North Korea. "The deployment of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defence system (THAAD) is a measure of self-defence against growing nuclear and missile threats from North Korea," presidential spokesman Jeong Yeon-Guk said. Jeong said the issue would be "decided in accordance with security and national interests," adding that "China will have to recognise the point." The remarks came after Chinese ambassador Qiu Guohong Tuesday warned that installation of the THAAD system on the Korean Peninsula could "destroy" relations between Beijing and Seoul. China has repeatedly protested since Washington and Seoul announced plans to deploy the missile defence in the South, in response to North Korea`s recent nuclear test and rocket launch. But Tuesday was the first time that a Chinese diplomat or official has warned of the effect on diplomatic ties with Seoul. South Korea`s foreign ministry said it was taking "necessary measures" about Qiu`s comments without elaborating further. "Before raising an issue about the THAAD deployment, it will be reasonable to consider the root of the problem," the ministry said. The THAAD system fires anti-ballistic missiles to smash into enemy missiles either inside or outside the Earth`s atmosphere during their final flight phase. The interceptor missiles carry no warheads, instead relying on kinetic energy to destroy their targets. The allies announced their intention to begin talks on its deployment following Pyongyang`s long-range rocket launch on February 7, which was seen by the US and its allies as a covert ballistic missile test. South Korea`s defence ministry said it expects official talks on THAAD to begin next week. Madriud: Spain`s Socialists, racing to try and form a minority coalition government following inconclusive elections, on Wednesday got their first pledge of support after signing a deal with centrist party Ciudadanos. The deal is a boost for Socialist leader Pedro Sanchez as he seeks enough backing from lawmakers to become Spanish leader when they vote for or against his government programme next week. But it still leaves him short of the votes needed, which means Spain still has no government in sight nearly 10 weeks after elections. "There is a first deal with Ciudadanos, there are way more groupings that can make (Sanchez`s) investiture possible," the Socialists` Senate spokesman Oscar Lopez told Spanish radio. Sanchez and Ciudadanos chief Albert Rivera shook hands to applause after signing the agreement, which centres on what a new government led by the Socialists would look like. It includes major territorial and judicial reforms, including changing the constitution to, for instance, modify rules governing lawmakers` immunity from prosecution -- demanded by Rivera in return for backing Sanchez.Spain has been mired in political deadlock since December elections resulted in a hung parliament split among four main parties -- none of which have enough seats to govern alone. The ruling conservative Popular Party (PP) won the most seats but without an absolute majority, and leader Mariano Rajoy gave up attempts to form a government after he failed to get support from other parties fed up with corruption scandals plaguing his grouping and years of austerity. As a result, King Felipe VI nominated runner-up Sanchez, whose Socialists won 89 seats out of 350, as prime ministerial candidate and he has been negotiating hard since then. But even with Ciudadanos, which won 40 seats, Sanchez would still not have enough votes and would therefore need the backing of other parties -- a difficult task as all have conflicting agendas. Anti-austerity party Podemos, an ally of Greece`s Syriza, won 65 seats and would therefore be a valuable partner. But the long-established Socialists are wary of joining forces with an upstart party born just two years ago out of anger over austerity, and which ultimately seeks to supplant it. The two parties are also deeply divided over Catalonia`s independence movement. Although it does not want to see Spain split, Podemos backs the idea of a Scotland-style referendum in the northeastern region. Sanchez, however, is resolutely against this. And crucially, it refuses to enter a government that would also include Ciudadanos, pushing instead for a left-wing coalition with Podemos chief Pablo Iglesias as deputy prime minister. The United Nations on Wednesday carried out its first humanitarian airdrop in Syria to reach thousands of people facing severe food shortages in a city besieged by Islamic State jihadists. "Earlier this morning, a WFP plane dropped the first cargo of 21 tonnes of items into Deir Ezzor," in eastern Syria, UN aid chief Stephen O`Brien said. Reports from aid teams on the ground confirm that "pallets have landed in the target area as planned", he told a UN Security Council called to discuss the humanitarian crisis. UN agencies are working to scale up aid deliveries to Syria before a cessation of hostilities enters into force at midnight Friday to shore up peace efforts. Last month, Russia said it had dropped aid into Deir Ezzor, where some 200,000 people are in dire need of food and medicine since IS fighters surrounded the city about a year ago. The air drops carried out by the World Food Programme are considered less efficient than land deliveries, but O`Brien argued that there were "benefits to this approach as a last resort." The UN aid chief said some 110,000 people living in besieged towns had received aid and that deliveries to a further 230,000 people in cut-off areas including through air drops had been approved. "We are still waiting for approval for an additional 170,000 people. We expect those approvals to happen immediately," he said.Syrian Ambassador Bashar Jaafari accused the United Nations of using the humanitarian crisis as a political tool and argued that no such attention was directed to Yemen, which he argued was in a much worse state. "It is clear that our government is doing its best to deliver assistance," he told the council. The ambassador blamed armed groups for civilian suffering and said delays in approving aid deliveries were due to concerns for the safety of humanitarian workers. "We have not witnessed any humanitarian crisis other than in the areas where these terrorist groups entered," he said. The United Nations is calling on all sides to lift starvation sieges across Syria, where it estimates that 487,000 people live, although some non-governmental organizations say the figure is much higher. The council has approved several resolutions demanding full access for humanitarian workers, but these have been largely ignored. O`Brien stressed that the ceasefire deal agreed by the United States and Russia must produce an "immediate end" to attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure such as hospitals, schools and markets. "Enough is enough. This brutality must be brought to an end," he said. More than 260,000 people have died in Syria`s conflict, which began in March 2011 with anti-government protests but has since imploded into a multi-sided proxy war. The tainted water that poisoned an entire generation of children in Flint, MI, was the most expensive water in America. At $864/year/household, Flint's water rates were nearly double the national average. The price rose to its heights when Flint's corporate manager appointed by Republican governor Rick Snyder, who gave the CEO the power to override elected officials illegally imposed a new tariff on the city's water bills whose surplus was used to fund the city's other operations. The data on Flint's water rates comes from The State of Public Water in America, a new study just released by Food and Water Watch. "It far exceeds what the United Nations designates as affordable for water and sewer service," said Mary Grant, one of the study's authors. The United Nations recommends that water and sewer service shouldn't exceed 3% of a household income. In Flint, the charges totaled about 7%, Grant said. A Flint lawyer who sued to reduce the rates says they are high in part because city officials and state-appointed emergency managers have tapped water and sewer money for other needs. "They've been using that money improperly for years to fund the general operations of the city," said Valdemar L. Washington, who has been battling the rate increases in court since 2012. The city's sewer fund had a balance of $36 million in 2006 but was running a $23-million deficit by 2012, Washington said. The State of Public Water in America [Food and Water Watch] Flint residents paid America's highest water rates [John Wisely/Detroit Free Press] (via Reddit) General YK Museveni has been president of Uganda for 30 years, presiding over a grinding and brutal civil war as well as a series of far-reaching laws that limit the human rights of Ugandans. Last week's Ugandan general election was, in some ways, typical of elections under Museveni, in that it was characterized by corruption and intimidation. Some of those tactics were age-old, like arresting the leader of the opposition, police violence against opposition supporters, and poll workers handing out pre-marked ballot papers. But one tactic was novel: just before the election, Museveni ordered a three-day social media blackout, which was possible because Uganda's highly concentrated telcoms sector has built a UK-style national firewall that allows the government to issue blocking orders that apply to the whole country. Uganda has the world's youngest population. 77 percent of Ugandans are under 30. Despite being a predominantly rural and very poor nation, the country's national discourse is dominated by social media. The ban lasted three days. During that time, a whopping 15% of Ugandans with Internet access downloaded a VPN client that let them escape the country's national firewall and access social media, where they converged on the hashtag #Ugandadecides, documenting abuses. These rulebreakers became an information conduit to those who were offline, a thin pipeline that spread news from one side of the country to the other in an eyeblink. Museveni stole the election. He's won another term. The state has vowed to track down all those who used social media and arrest them for treason. The ban extended to a ban on mobile payments, made through a very popular platform called Mobile Money, which had the effect of freezing commerce for vulnerable individuals but also for opposition politicians who had planned on hiring poll workers. Massive crowds all on the streets of Kampala, celebrating Museveni's re election #UgandaDecides pic.twitter.com/boedGSS0PR #Uganda (@kevrx) February 20, 2016 "Social media is a lifestyle, you can't just switch it off and on," said Daniel Gilbert Bwete, a Ugandan photographer based in Kampala. "It's a priority to a lot of our lives and we have to live on even as we are in the electoral process. We have to keep in touch with our businesses, our friends and family." Badru Kiggundi declared Museveni the winner. But in finding ways to counter suppression of speech, Uganda's young citizens may have eked out a victory too. "The social media blockage has strengthened the online activist movement in Uganda and evoked their inner creativity that sets a new standard for the country moving forward to our daily activities," Bwete added. "It's sending us to investigate and find out what other alternatives we have with the shrinking political space." How Ugandans Overturned An Election Day Social Media Blackout [G.S. Phillips and Grace Atuhaire/Motherboard] (Image: Jeff 3.6.3) It was veteran celebrity real estate snitch Vlad the Revealer at Celebrity Address Aerial from whom we first heard that Charlize Theron sold a penthouse apartment at the Broadway Hollywood Lofts building smack in the heart of Hollywood for $1.75 million. But, unfortunately for the drop-dead gorgeous 2004 Oscar winner (Monster), she lost a celebrity-sized bundle on the loft-style condo that she picked up in 2007 for a sliver more than $2.75 million. The two-floor aerie has just one bedroom but two bathrooms in 2,350 square feet, a stainless steel kitchen, and interconnected living spaces with lustrous ebony hardwoods and extra-high ceilings with exposed duct work. Floor-to-ceiling steel-framed windows in both the living and dining areas open to a pair of terraces, one with a head-on view of the iconic Capitol Records building, while a floating steel staircase climbs to the upper floor where, along with the master bedroom and bathroom, theres a third terrace with outdoor fireplace and glittery city view. The top floors of the Renaissance-style edifice, originally built in 1927 as a department store, were converted to luxury condominiums in the mid-aughts, and the, mid-rise tower is well known for its glitterati condo-owners, including Jason Statham, Jack Osbourne and Wilmer Valderrama. Theron, who has at least half a dozen projects in development notably, The Last Face, penned by her ex, Sean Penn continues to own a secluded house in the Hollywood Hills, a couple of unassuming Spanish bungalows on different blocks of the same West Hollywood street, and a Mediterranean villa in the Outpost Estates neighborhood that she picked up in 1998 for $1.65 million. listing photos: Partners Trust Related stories Kim Kardashian and Kanye West Close to Selling Bel Air Mansion (EXCLUSIVE) Stars Go Skin Deep When Cleaning Up For Awards Season Jennifer Lopez Chops Price on L.A. Estate (EXCLUSIVE) By Se Young Lee SEOUL (Reuters) - Smartphone maker LG Electronics Inc plans to boost marketing spend in a bid to lift sales of its new flagship handset, the South Korean firm's mobile division chief said. LG is trying to establish itself as a top smartphone player with the G5, which was unveiled at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona on Sunday and praised by industry experts for its creative design. The phone's modular set-up allows users to enhance functions such as camera or audio by plugging in accessories. The device is also key to LG's efforts to turn around its mobile division, which lost money last year on slower-than-expected sales of its flagship G4 smartphone. "We're at a point in time when we need to overspend a bit in order to get the word out and create fans," division chief Cho Juno told reporters at a briefing in Seoul ahead of the Mobile World Congress trade show. He declined to give further details. Cho said he expected profitability to improve this year, adding that LG plans a global launch for the G5, breaking from its past practice of debuting flagship products in South Korea. The G5's unveiling has helped push LG shares up 3 percent so far this week, with investors and analysts saying the model was distinct enough to drive a pick up in sales. Daishin Securities said in a report the company could sell 10 million units or more by year-end, which would be a record for an LG handset. "The G5 gets LG back on the radar in the smartphone market," CCS Insight analyst Ben Wood said. Separately, Cho said the firm could start using organic light-emitting diode (OLED) screens for some of its key phones starting in the second half of 2017. LG Electronics relies on affiliate LG Display Co Ltd, which is investing heavily in OLED technology, for its displays. (Editing by Tony Munroe and Miral Fahmy) (This February 15 story was corrected to remove reference to first use of chemical agents since Saddam Hussein era from first paragraph) By Anthony Deutsch AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - Islamic State militants attacked Kurdish forces in Iraq with mustard gas last year, a diplomat said, citing tests by the global chemical arms watchdog. A source at the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) confirmed that laboratory tests had come back positive for sulphur mustard, after around 35 Kurdish troops were sickened on the battlefield last August. The OPCW will not identify who used the chemical agent. But the diplomat, speaking on condition of anonymity because the findings have not yet been released, said the result confirmed that chemical weapons had been used by Islamic State fighters. The samples were taken after the soldiers became ill during fighting against Islamic State militants southwest of Erbil, capital of Iraq's autonomous Kurdish region. The OPCW already concluded in October that mustard gas was used last year in neighbouring Syria. Islamic State has declared a "caliphate" in territory it controls in both Iraq and Syria and does not recognise the frontier. The matter is expected to be raised at the next meeting of the OPCW's 41-member Executive Council in a month, an official said. If Islamic State used chemical weapons, experts are still uncertain of how the group might have obtained them, or whether it could have access to more. Another diplomat, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Syrias stockpile was a possible source of the sulphur mustard used in Iraq. That would mean Damascus had failed to fully disclose its chemical weapons programme, which was dismantled under international supervision in 2013-2014, the diplomat said. "If Syria has indeed given up its chemical weapons to the international community, it is only the part that has been declared to the OPCW and the declaration was obviously incomplete, the diplomat told Reuters. Syrian officials could not immediately be reached for comment but have previously denied any part of the country's former stockpile remains undestroyed. Syria agreed to give up its chemical weapons stockpile after hundreds of people died in an attack with Sarin nerve gas in a Damascus suburb in 2013. Western countries blame that attack on the government of President Bashar al-Assad, which denies it. Iraq's chemical arsenal, part of a "weapons of mass destruction" programme used to justify the U.S.-British invasion of 2003, proved to have been mostly destroyed and dismantled in the Saddam Hussein era, although U.S. troops occasionally encountered old Saddam-era chemical munitions during the 2003-2011 occupation. Hamish de Bretton-Gordon, a specialist in biological and chemical warfare, said Islamic State fighters may have developed their own chemical weapons capability, and could be preparing to use it again. Im pretty convinced that the mustard IS are using in Iraq is made by them in Mosul," he said, referring to the main city in northern Iraq, which Islamic State fighters have occupied since 2014. "They have all the precursors at hand from the oil industry and all the experts at hand to do it. Sulphur mustard is a Class 1 chemical agent, which means it has very few uses outside chemical warfare. Used with lethal effectiveness in World War One, it causes severe delayed burns to the eyes, skin and respiratory tract. (Reporting by Anthony Deutsch; editing by Peter Graff) Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban says his country will hold a referendum on the EU's refugee quotas. The right-wing leader has consistently opposed the quota system which was agreed by EU member states last September. The plan, drawn up by European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker, is to redistribute 120,000 asylum seekers across the 28-member bloc. The system was designed to deal with the influx of hundreds of thousands of people into the EU from Africa and Asia. Some countries on the migrants' route into Europe, like Italy, Malta and Greece, were claiming they were being forced to take in a disproportionate number of arrivals. Mr Orban said the quotas - which would result in the removal of some asylum seekers to countries where there were less - would redraw the ethnic, cultural and religious map of Hungary and Europe. He told a news conference: "The government is responding to public sentiment now, we think that introducing resettlement quotas for migrants without the backing of the people equals an abuse of power." The Prime Minister did not say when the referendum would be held. Poland, Romania, the Czech Republic and Slovakia also opposed the quota system when it was pushed through by qualified majority. Finland abstained. Hungary subsequently launched a legal challenge against the system at the European Court. At the time, Hungary was building a fence along its southern border to stop migrants , including refugees, entering the country. Like the UK government - which has opted out of the quota system - Hungary believes that the solution to the migration crisis is to improve conditions for those living in refugee camps around Syria's borders. Changes to the EU's Dublin rules, which state that refugees are required to apply for asylum in the country they arrive in the bloc, are due to be published in March, paving the way for the quotas to be introduced. It comes as several thousand migrants have been left stranded in Greece after Macedonian authorities closed the border to migrants from Afghanistan. On Tuesday, the International Organisation for Migration said more than 110,000 migrants and refugees have crossed the Mediterranean to Greece and Italy so far this year, with 413 losing their lives while trying. By Colin Packham and Jarni Blakkarly SYDNEY (Reuters) - The significant sympathy generated by the detention and likely deportation of a baby girl born in Australia to Nepalese parents could be a watershed in public opinion about the country's harsh asylum seeker policies. The infant, known only by the pseudonym Asha, Nepalese for "hope", has humanised hundreds of anonymous asylum seekers who are faced with deportation from Australia to a detention camp on the South Pacific island of Nauru. The outpouring of public support, including an overnight blockade at a Brisbane hospital where she was treated for severe burns, has been likened by some to the shocking images last year of a young Syrian asylum seeker dead on a Greek beach. Supporters credited the week-long protest at the hospital with forcing the hand of Immigration Minister Peter Dutton, who on Monday had Baby Asha and her family moved to a local community detention facility, which allows some freedom of movement. "What is resonating is that a lot of people are looking at that baby and thinking that could be my baby," said Kon Karapanagiotidis, chief executive officer of the Asylum Seeker Resource Center. People at the blockade carried posters with the pixilated face of the baby girl and the hashtag #BabyAsha was Twitter's fourth highest trending topic worldwide over the weekend when the hospital stand-off reached its climax. The number of asylum seekers trying to reach Australia is small compared with those arriving in Europe, but border security has long been a hot-button political issue. The coalition government led by the conservative Liberal Party came to power in 2013 on a campaign to "Stop the Boats", adopting tough measures as a deterrent. Everyone who arrives by boat is detained and sent to Nauru or Papua New Guinea's Manus Island. The government also conducts tow-backs, or turning a boat back to its origin. The policies have been widely criticized by international human rights groups and the United Nations. Medical groups have been particularly critical of detaining children in the offshore camps, where abuse has been frequently reported. Doctors at the Brisbane hospital had refused to release Asha. LEGAL CHALLENGE REJECTED Still, Australia's High Court this month rejected a legal challenge to the country's right to deport 267 refugee children and their families brought to Australia from Nauru for medical treatment. Asha, the first baby born in immigration detention in Australia to be transferred to Nauru, was flown back to Australia last month for medical treatment after she scalded herself with boiling water while learning to walk in a tent at the detention center. "In terms of a dramatic shift in community attitudes, there is no going back from this one," Ian Rintoul, coordinator of the Refugee Action Coalition, said of the public support for Asha. "I think for a large number of people this has been a turning point." However, others said any public shift in attitude was unlikely to impact government policy. Immigration Minister Peter Dutton strongly hinted at that when he said on Monday that Asha and her family would be returned to Nauru at a later date. "We are not going to allow people smugglers to get out a message that if you seek assistance in an Australian hospital, that somehow that is your formula to becoming an Australian citizen," Dutton told the Australian Broadcasting Corp. "I couldn't be any clearer - once the medical assistance has been provided and the legal issues resolved, people will go back to Nauru." (Writing by Jane Wardell; Editing by Richard Borsuk) By Samia Nakhoul TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iran's top leader warned voters on Wednesday the West was plotting to influence elections pitting centrists close to President Hassan Rouhani against conservative hardliners in a contest that could shape the Islamic Republic for years to come. In remarks reflecting an abiding mistrust of Rouhani's rapprochement with the West, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said he was confident Iranians would vote in favor of keeping Iran's anti-Western stance on Friday in the first elections since last year's nuclear accord with world powers. Rouhani's allies, who hope the deal will hasten Iran's opening up to the world after years of sanctions, have come under increasing pressure in the election campaign from hardliners who accuse them of links to Western powers including the United States and Britain. Those accusations seek to tap into Iranians' wariness of Western motives and memories of a 1953 coup against nationalist prime minister Mohammad Mossadegh that was orchestrated by the United States and Britain and strengthened the Shah's rule. Rouhani on Wednesday denied accusations from hardliners that the candidates close to him were affiliated with Western powers, calling it an insult to the intelligence of Iranians. In remarks on his official website, Khamenei was quoted as saying he was certain the United States had concocted a plot after the nuclear deal to "infiltrate" the Islamic Republic. "When I talked about a U.S. infiltration plot, it made some people in the country frustrated," said the Shi'ite clerical leader, who has final say on all major state policy in Iran. "INFILTRATION" "They complain (about) why we talk about infiltration all the time ... But this is a real plot. Sometimes even the infiltrators don't know they are a part of it," he said. "One of the enemy's ruses is to portray a false dichotomy between a pro-government and anti-government parliament," Khamenei was quoted as saying by state news agency IRNA. "The nation does not want a pro- or anti-government parliament, but rather a strong and faithful parliament that is aware of its duties and is not intimidated by the United States," he said. Supporters of Rouhani, buoyed by Iran's nuclear deal, aim to gain influence in the elections for the 290-seat parliament and the 88-member Assembly of Experts, which will choose the country's next supreme leader. But potential detente with the West has alarmed hardliners, who have seen a flood of European trade and investment delegations arrive in Tehran to discuss possible deals in the wake of the nuclear agreement. Since then, hardline security officials have arrested dozens of artists, journalists and businessmen, including Iranians holding joint U.S. or British citizenship, as part of a crackdown on "Western infiltration". Rouhani had criticized the arrests before, saying some "play with the infiltration word" to pursue their own political goals. Moves by hardliners to block moderate candidates and portray them as stooges of the West have soured the mood in the final days of campaigning, and Rouhani complained on Wednesday of a public discourse rife with "abuse, accusations and insults". Addressing political activists, former president Hashemi Rafsanjani, one of Rouhani's most powerful allies, said Rouhani's election in 2013 "was Iranians first step to bring the country back to a path of moderation". "I hope people take the second step in Fridays elections," he said. In an apparent reference to hardliners' accusations that moderates were under Western influence, Rafsanjani said in a statement published on ISNA news agency: "Labeling rivals, in order to turn peoples hopes into despair, has no results." "The Iranians ... will prove that they are seeking Irans political independence and will say no to colonialism, extremism and tyranny." Opposition figure Mehdi Karoubi, under house arrest since 2009, will cast his vote in elections on Friday, his son Taghi said in a Facebook posting, a move that may provide a boost to reformist candidates close to Rouhani. It would be the first time Karoubi has voted in an election since his arrest. His son said a mobile ballot box may be taken to his father's house. Karoubi and fellow reformist Mirhossein Mousavi, both in their 70s, ran for election in June 2009 and became figureheads for Iranians, many of whom protested against a contest they believed was rigged to bring back President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. The government denied wrongdoing and said foreign enemies had plotted to overthrow Iran's leaders by stirring up the biggest opposition demonstrations since the 1979 revolution. Hardliners have asked the judiciary to execute the two opposition leaders, calling them seditionists who aimed to topple the clerical establishment. But authorities have chosen so far to isolate rather than prosecute them. In his 2013 election campaign, Rouhani promised to end their house arrest: Critics say his failure to make good on that pledge shows human rights is less of a priority for him than improving the economy. Karoubi is a cleric and ex-speaker of parliament. Mousavi is a former prime minister. (Additional reporting by Bozorgmehr Sharafedin and Sam Wilkin; Editing by William Maclean and Dominic Evans) A Missouri jury has awarded $72 million US in damages to the family of a woman who died of ovarian cancer following decades of use of Johnson & Johnson's talc-based powders. The family of Jacqueline Fox was awarded $10 million US in actual damages and $62 million in punitive damages late Monday. Lawyers for Fox claimed she used Johnson & Johnson's baby powder and Shower to Shower products for feminine hygiene for more than 35 years before she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer three years ago. The Birmingham, Ala., woman died at age 62. The family argued Johnson & Johnson failed to warn consumers of the risks of talc-based products. The jury found Johnson & Johnson liable for fraud, negligence and conspiracy, the family's lawyers said. Johnson & Johnson spokeswoman Carol Goodrich said Tuesday that the New Jersey-based company was considering its next legal move. "The recent U.S. verdict goes against decades of sound science proving the safety of talc as a cosmetic ingredient in multiple products, and while we sympathize with the family of the plaintiff, we strongly disagree with the outcome," Shelley Kohut, director of communications and public relations with Johnson & Johnson added in a statement to CBC News. At trial, Fox family lawyers introduced into evidence a September 1997 internal memo from a Johnson & Johnson medical consultant suggesting that "anybody who denies (the) risks" between "hygenic" talc use and ovarian cancer will be publicly perceived in the same light as those who denied a link between smoking cigarettes and cancer: "Denying the obvious in the face of all evidence to the contrary." Jere Beasley, a lawyer for Fox's family, told reporters the company knew of the risk "as far back as the 1980s" yet resorted to "lying to the public, lying to the regulatory agencies." The World Health Organization's International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) says there is "limited evidence in humans" for an association between genital use of talc-based body powder and ovarian cancer. Story continues Dr. Daniel Cramer, an obstetrician-gynecologist with the Epidemiology Center at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, first found epidemiologic evidence of an association in 1982. "We provided evidence that talc can be found in tissues from ovarian cancer patients, particularly in lymph nodes," Cramer, who provided written testimony at the trial, told CBC News. "Johnson & Johnson contacted me after that [1982] study. Obviously they ignored my advice that they put a warning label on." Paul Demers of Cancer Care Ontario sat on the International Agency for Research on Cancer committee that weighed the evidence and classified talc as possibly carcinogenic. "We have some evidence to be concerned about it is not definitive enough to say probably carcinogenic," Demers said. More than 280 agents are listed as possible carcinogens. "If you're concerned overall about talcum powder, then there's enough things to worry about in life. I would simply not use it," Demers suggested. The UK ovarian cancer support charity Ovacome's fact sheet puts the risk into perspective. "Even if the risk of ovarian cancer is increased, studies suggest that using talc increases the risk of ovarian cancer by around a third. Although this may sound frightening, to put it into context, smoking and drinking increases the risk of esophageal cancer by 30 times." The group notes women with ovarian cancer understandably look for a cause for their disease and may have been more likely to remember using talc than those who did not have cancer. Nora Freeman Engstrom, a Stanford University law professor not involved in the Missouri case, said it's unlikely the $72-million award will stand. Talc was once mixed with asbestos, which is known to cause cancer. Baby powder has been asbestos-free since the 1970s. By Jeff Mason and Tom Perry WASHINGTON/BEIRUT (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama expressed caution on Wednesday about a plan to stop fighting in Syria, while the main opposition group said it had yet to commit to the deal. Combatants are required to say whether they will agree to the "cessation of hostilities" by noon on Friday (1000 GMT), and to halt fighting at midnight Saturday. The United Nations hopes the planned halt in the fighting will provide a breathing space for Syrian peace talks to resume. The last round in Geneva broke up earlier this month without progress after the Syrian government launched a Russian-backed offensive on the city of Aleppo, where more fighting was reported on Wednesday. Obama told reporters in Washington that if some progress was made in Syria, that would lead to a political process to end the five-year-old war there. "We are very cautious about raising expectations on this," he said. Although U.S officials have raised the question of a political transition in Damascus, President Bashar al-Assad, backed by Russia, shows no sign of stepping aside. The Saudi-backed HNC, which groups political and armed opponents of Assad, said on Monday it had "given its acceptance of international efforts for a cessation of hostilities". But HNC chief negotiator Mohamad Alloush said on Wednesday that the council had not yet decided whether to commit to the agreement, underlining rebel doubts over a deal they fear will not prevent Russian air strikes against them. The cessation of hostilities plan does not include Islamic State or the Nusra Front, an al Qaeda affiliate which is widely deployed in opposition-held areas. "How can (Russia) offer guarantees while it is part of the problem?" said Alloush, who heads the political office of the Jaish al-Islam rebel group, in an interview with the pro-opposition Orient TV station. The Syrian government, its war effort buoyed since September by the Russian air force, has accepted the cessation of hostilities agreement announced on Monday. Assad told Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday that his government was ready to help implement the deal. Putin and Assad, who held a telephone conversation, stressed the importance of a continued "uncompromising" fight against Islamic State, the Nusra Front and other militant groups. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said he had spoken to Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and their teams would meet in the next day or so to discuss the planned ceasefire. "I am not here to vouch that it's absolutely going to work," Kerry said in Washington. While there had to be a diplomatic solution at some point, the question was whether the time is ripe, he added. He asked whether Russia and Iran would work "in good faith" to bring about a political transition in Damascus. TELEPHONE DIPLOMACY Putin has embarked upon a round of telephone diplomacy, speaking to Assad, the Saudi king, the Iranian president and the Israeli prime minister. The Kremlin described the calls as an effort to explain the substance of the U.S.-Russia-brokered ceasefire. The Russian Defence Ministry said it had significantly reduced the intensity of its air strikes in Syria in the past two days in areas where armed groups had expressed their readiness to join the ceasefire. Russian state media have presented the fact that Moscow helped broker the potential ceasefire as a sign that Russia matters again on the world stage and has shrugged off what it has cast as U.S.-led efforts to isolate it over the Ukraine crisis. Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said he feared the ceasefire plan would do little more than benefit Assad. Turkey has grown increasingly frustrated by the international response to the Syrian war, in particular U.S. support for a Kurdish militia it sees as a hostile insurgent force. The Syrian Kurdish YPG militia, which is fighting in northern and northeastern Syria, has yet to say if it will join the cessation of hostilities. Ankara is also incensed by a Russian intervention which has tipped the balance of power in favor of its arch-enemy Assad. "If this is a ceasefire that is up to the mercy of Russia, which has brutally attacked the moderate opposition and aligned with Assad under the pretext of fighting Islamic State, we fear that the fire pouring over innocent people will never stop," Erdogan said in a televised speech. The United Nations said it was ready for a huge aid effort if the fighting stops. "We are now standing by ... waiting for the signal," a U.N. spokesman said. The war has killed more than 250,000 people and left 4.5 million hard to reach with humanitarian aid, the U.N. says. The United Nations carried out its first airdrop of humanitarian aid to the Syrian city of Deir al-Zor on Wednesday, delivering 21 tons of relief to civilians besieged by Islamic State. The Syrian army and Islamic State fought fierce battles on Wednesday near Aleppo, where an attack by the jihadist group has cut the main land route to the city. A government military source denied reports the town of Khanaser had fallen to Islamic State, although its fighters were firing on it from nearby positions. Islamic State is escalating its assaults on government-held areas. The attacks appear to be a preemptive move, the military source said, because the militants expect to come under more pressure from the Syrian army soon. (Additional reporting by Arshad Mohammed, Humeyra Pamuk, Tulay Karadeniz, John Davison, Ali Abdelatti, Michelle Nichols, Tom Miles and Dmitry Solovyov; writing by Tom Perry and Giles Elgood; editing by Philippa Fletcher) SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korea warned on Tuesday of harsh retaliation against South Korea and its ally the United States, which are preparing for annual joint military exercises next month amid heightened tensions following the North's nuclear test and rocket launch. The North calls the annual exercises preparations for war and routinely vows to retaliate. "All the powerful strategic and tactical strike means of our revolutionary armed forces will go into preemptive and just operation to beat back the enemy forces to the last man if there is a slight sign of their special operation forces and equipment moving to carry out the so-called 'beheading operation' and 'high-density strike,'" the Supreme Command of the Korean People's Army said in a statement carried by state media. It said its first target would be South Korea's presidential Blue House, while U.S. military bases in Asia and on the U.S. mainland would be its secondary targets. About 28,500 U.S. troops are based in South Korea. Last week, South Korean President Park Geun-hye warned of tough measures against the North following its January nuclear test and its long-range rocket launch this month, saying Pyongyang's pursuit of nuclear weapons would speed the collapse of the regime. South Korea and the United States say both actions were violations of U.N. Security Council resolutions, and are pushing for further sanctions. Days after the rocket launch, South Korea suspended the operation of the Kaesong industrial zone just north of the border, which had been run jointly with the North for more than a decade. Isolated North Korea and the rich, democratic South are still technically at war after their 1950-53 conflict ended in a truce, not a treaty. (Reporting by Tony Munroe and Ju-min Park; Editing by Nick Macfie) By Susan Cornwell and David Morgan WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Republican-led U.S. Senate on Tuesday ruled out taking action on any nominee put forth by President Barack Obama to the Supreme Court in a political power move intended to thwart his ability to change the court's ideological balance. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said the Senate will not hold hearings or vote on any nominee to replace long-serving conservative Justice Antonin Scalia until after the next president takes office next January. Scalia died on Feb. 13. McConnell, a Republican nemesis of Obama during the president's seven years in office, said he even would refuse the standard courtesy of meeting with whomever Obama chooses. Under the U.S. Constitution, the Senate has the power to confirm or reject a president's Supreme Court selection. With the U.S. presidential election looming on Nov. 8, Republicans were aiming to allow the next president to fill Scalia's vacancy, hoping a Republican will be elected. "This nomination will be determined by whoever wins the presidency in the fall," McConnell said, adding that the overwhelming view of Senate Republicans was that "this vacancy should not be filled by this lame-duck president." Obama's nominee could tip the court to the left for the first time in decades. Scalia's death left the court with four liberal and four conservatives. Not since the contentious nominations by Republican presidents of Robert Bork in 1987 and Clarence Thomas in 1991 has there been such an intense fight over a Supreme Court vacancy - and Obama has yet to announce his pick. The White House and Senate Democrats condemned McConnell's stance. Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid called it "obstruction on steroids," adding: "Gone are the days of levelheadedness and compromise." McConnell and other congressional Republicans have sought to block numerous Obama initiatives, including his signature healthcare law, the Iran nuclear deal, immigration policy and efforts to battle climate change. McConnell invoked a past statement by Obama's vice president, Joe Biden, to help justify Supreme Court inaction. McConnell noted that Biden, as Senate Judiciary Committee chairman in 1992, argued for postponing action on Supreme Court nominees during an election year. Biden has since said he was speaking hypothetically because there was no Supreme Court vacancy at the time. McConnell made his announcement after Chairman Chuck Grassley and the other Republican members of the Judiciary Committee sent him a letter saying the panel would not hold confirmation hearings. Grassley had previously left open the possibility of convening hearings. 'FULL AND ROBUST DEBATE' Alluding to the Nov. 8 presidential election, Republican senators told McConnell in the letter they wanted "to ensure the American people are not deprived of the opportunity to engage in a full and robust debate over the type of jurist they wish to decide some of the most critical issues of our time." If the Senate does not consider a nominee until after a new president takes office, it would be unlikely that the Supreme Court would have its full complement of nine justices any sooner than early 2017. That would mean the court would be shorthanded for more than a year, hampering its ability to decide cases. In cases that end in 4-4 rulings, lower-court decisions stand and no national precedent is set. Reid said the Republican strategy was driven by the Republican partys right wing. "Its what Donald Trump and Ted Cruz want, Reid said, referring to two of the Republican presidential candidates. But Reid said Senate Democrats would not become "the obstruct caucus" and block legislation such as appropriations bills in retaliation for the Republican inaction. White House spokesman Josh Earnest said blocking a hearing for Obamas nominee would be unprecedented and would subject the Supreme Court to the kind of politics that they've been insulated from for more than two centuries. Since 1875, a president's nominee has never been denied a hearing unless that president later withdrew that nomination, Earnest said. In remarks on the Senate floor, McConnell said, "Presidents have a right to nominate, just as the Senate has its constitutional right to provide or withhold consent. In this case, the Senate will withhold it." Chuck Schumer, a member of the Senate Democratic leadership, predicted that the Republican position would crumble as voters put pressure on vulnerable Republican Senate incumbents seeking re-election to consider Obama's nominee. "Its not just a risky strategy, it's the wrong strategy and it's going to fail," Schumer said of the Senate Republicans. But Senator Orrin Hatch, a Republican Judiciary Committee member, countered, "Im not concerned about that (public pressure). Were standing for a principle that the next president ought to resolve this problem." Democrats are badly outnumbered in the 100-member Senate, falling far short of the 60 votes needed to advance controversial legislation much less a Supreme Court nomination. Counting the two independents who caucus with them, Democrats control 46 seats, with the remaining 54 held by Republicans. (Additional reporting by Richard Cowan, Lawrence Hurley, Roberta Rampton and Susan Heavey) By Wendell Roelf CAPE TOWN (Reuters) - South Africa will relax some of its tough rules on genetically modified crops so it can ramp up maize imports from the United States and Mexico to avert a potential food crisis amid a severe drought, officials said. Almost 90 percent of maize in South Africa is genetically modified and the country bans commodities with strains not approved by the government and does not allow imports to be stored, stipulating they must be transported immediately from ports to mills. Makenosi Maroo, spokeswoman at the Department of Agriculture, told Reuters on Tuesday that the government planned to permit importers to temporarily store consignments of GM maize at pre-designated facilities, to allow much bigger import volumes. "In anticipation of the volumes expected to be imported into South Africa, the (GMO) Executive Council has approved the adjustment of a permit condition which relates to the handling requirement," Maroo said. "There is therefore no intention to relax safety assessment or risk management procedures prescribed." The government, however, has not said when the rule changes would come into effect or whether they would be permanent. The worst drought in a century has scorched vast swathes of croplands, affecting around 2.7 million homes in Africas most advanced economy where shortages of white maize - a staple food for the black majority - could reach crisis proportions by October if expected summer rains do not fall, analysts say. The country needs to import about 1.2 million tonnes of white maize and 2.6 million tonnes of yellow maize, according to the government, based on the current conservative domestic crop estimate of 7.4 million tonnes, with only Mexico and the United States able to plug the shortfall. South African maize producers called for much more far-reaching rule changes to cope with the situation. Maroo said the government was also considering applications to register additional GMO varieties that would boost maize trade between the United States and South Africa. The South African National Seed Organisation, which represents firms such as Monsanto and DuPont Pioneer, said it has six such applications pending approval. Advocates for GM crops argue it boosts yield and productivity in tough climate conditions and pestilence-prone regions, but critics say its effects on humans and the environment remain unproven. As U.S. crops have significantly higher numbers of GM strains, fears of contamination during handling means suspect cargoes could be rejected as illegal at South African ports due to a "zero tolerance" policy. "We want the zero tolerance regulation changed to at least one percent; to have it relaxed and help prevent bottlenecks occurring when we need to import," Heiko Koster, a feed mill owner and member of the maize steering committee. Most of the maize imports could come from the United States rather than Mexico because U.S. maize is cheaper and supplies more abundant, analysts said. (Editing by James Macharia and Susan Fenton) By Tim Hepher TEHRAN (Reuters) - In December 2012, aircraft trader James Kim received a letter from a company based in Cyprus offering to buy four jetliners. It was brief and to the point. The hitherto unknown firm was "ready, willing and able" to buy four used Airbus A340 jets for which Kim was trying to broker a sale. "I talked to them and when I got the Letter of Intent with an Iranian name, I informed them that a deal was not possible because of sanctions," Kim, managing director of British-based aircraft trading company AvCon Worldwide, told Reuters. The company that tried to buy them, registered in a Nicosia apartment with two directors with names that sounded Iranian, vanished from the radar, Kim said in a telephone interview. The planes, for which there is little demand, remain with their Asian owner but the suspected approach typifies a shadowy trade in airplanes and parts that spanned the globe for decades. Suspected front firms sought to trade in spare parts and even whole aircraft, according to people involved in the trade and other experts who mostly spoke on condition of anonymity. "The Iranians would set up companies to try to do deals and then fold them up. They didn't stay around for long," said Kim. The methods used to evade sanctions mirror those used in other countries that are or have been under international sanctions in recent decades, such as South Africa, Cuba, Zimbabwe, Iraq and North Korea. After the lifting of nuclear-related sanctions on Jan. 16, Iran's aviation industry is coming out of the shadows. With an order for 118 Airbus jets witnessed in Paris by President Hassan Rouhani, Iran moved swiftly to exchange a collection of vintage jets held together with smuggled parts for a new fleet capable of taking on rival Gulf carriers. Like Cuba's preserved 1950s automobiles, the aircraft they will replace symbolize the ingenuity wrought by sanctions but also the scale of the task needed to reconnect the economy. "Our strategy until now has just been to survive," Iranair chairman Farhad Parvaresh said. AIRLINE "MASTERMINDS" At Tehran's airport, rows of mothballed aircraft still sit with bright orange covers on their engines, ready to give up their parts for other old planes needing repairs. Through constant patching, transplants from grounded donor jets and discreet purchases, Iran's fleet stayed aloft although with an alarming safety record. "It was state-of-the-art 'Under the Table'," Heydar Vatankhah, deputy managing director for engineering and maintenance at Iran's Kish Air, said of the overall effort. "Every airline has a mastermind on this," he said. Vatankhah spent 31 years helping to maintain an ancient fleet at state-owned Iranair including the world's oldest passenger 747, built in 1976 before the majority of Iranians were born, according to aviation consultancy CAPA, which organized an aviation summit in Iran in January. One Iranian airline official, who asked not to be identified, said he had obtained a Western-built engine weeks after it left the factory by passing it through three countries. While Iran says it can manufacture parts, the preference was for genuine components, but they came at a price. "It's simple. If this costs $10,000, I had to pay $70,000," the engineering chief of an Iranian airline said, waving a can of soda to illustrate his point. Others said they paid four or five times over the odds. As they did so, the middlemen prospered. "After decades of doing this you see a lot. Everyone takes their cut. It's a dirty business," the engineering chief said. As confidence grew, a smuggled jet flew directly to Tehran Mehrabad airport, a former senior Iranian official said. However, Iran's covert resupply operation clashed increasingly with foreign law and intelligence agencies. The United States has targeted dozens of front companies suspected by diplomats of links to Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards, widely seen as a beneficiary of the sanctions trade. "They (the West) listened to our calls and read our emails; of course we knew that," said one airline employee. "But we are commercial people, not military men," he said, adding the deals had been elusive but not always complicated. "They know where the wall is, but not where the hole is," he added. NEW AMBITIONS, NEW CHALLENGES The United States last year imposed sanctions on two firms in Iraq and the United Arab Emirates for helping Iran's Mahan Air purchase second-hand aircraft. The airline, Iran's largest, was blacklisted in 2011 for allegedly ferrying operatives, arms and funds for the Revolutionary Guards' overseas unit. It remains under sanctions. Iran says it has been forced to use the black market to preserve safety following fatal accidents and sanctions that prevented it from gaining access to parts and manuals. The West says the sanctions were effective in convincing Tehran to negotiate the recent deal on curbing its nuclear activities. "It was a great suffering for all of us, so we haven't been able to develop in this field," lawmaker Mahdi Hashemi, head of the parliament's Development Commission, told the CAPA event. Now, Iran's plans to absorb 500 new aircraft in the next decade look set to turn the well-worn system of improvised repairs and clandestine purchases on its head. As middlemen dissolve into the post-sanctions landscape, with many of them expected to reinvent themselves as legitimate partners for investors, the airlines must contend with foreign regulators and insurers whose mindset is compliance. The can-do mentality which kept Iran's rotting fleet flying through sanctions will be less welcome in future. That means airlines must adapt to a forest of norms required by manufacturers, investors, lenders, lessors and regulators, said Mark Tierney, director of Crabtree Capital, which provides strategic advice and transaction execution services for airlines, aircraft and engine-leasing companies and financial institutions. The problems of resuming normal operations do not end there. A revolution in plane design has taken place while Iran was off the market. While mastering every nut and bolt of the Boeing 747, its engineers must get used to new types like the A350. "The level of training and technology in airlines to be able to bring those aircraft in and operate without problems doesn't happen overnight," Dick Forsberg, strategy chief of leasing company Avolon, told a panel of Iranian officials. Even with sanctions lifted, airlines may struggle to get some existing aircraft repaired while waiting for the new European jets, to which Iran hopes to add over 100 Boeings. Many are so riddled with contraband parts that they would be unlikely to pass muster with repair shops, an engineer said. In response, Airbus has agreed to help Tehran comply with foreign regulators and to provide repairs and training: crucial steps as Iran rebuilds its aviation industry from scratch. (Editing by Timothy Heritage) By Mariam Karouny BEIRUT - The leader of al Qaeda's Syrian wing tried unsuccessfully at a recent meeting to convince rival Islamist factions to merge into one unit, several insurgency sources have told Reuters. Abu Mohamad al-Golani, head of the Nusra Front, even suggested he was willing to change the name of his group if the others, including the powerful Ahrar al-Sham organization, agreed to the deal, the sources said. But he made clear that Nusra would not cut its ties with al Qaeda, and its allegiance would remain to Ayman al-Zawahri, who took over as leader after U.S. Navy SEALS killed Osama bin Laden in 2011. Much was riding on the outcome of the meeting, which the sources said took place about 10 days ago. Nusra and Ahrar al-Sham are the most powerful groups in northern Syria: when they briefly teamed up with other Islamists last year in an alliance called the Fatah Army, the rebels scored one of their biggest victories by seizing the city of Idlib. Some rebels believed a merger would create a stronger rival to Islamic State and might attract much-needed military support and recognition from regional and international powers. But the leaders left without an agreement, and the sources said the atmosphere was tense, with Nusra blaming Ahrar al-Sham for the failure. A few days later, members of the two groups clashed in the towns of Salqin and Harem in Idlib province, near the border with Turkey. Several fighters were killed on both sides, but other insurgent groups brokered a quick ceasefire. Jihadi sources, including some from Ahrar al-Sham, say it is only a matter of time before another battle between the two erupts. They say the rift between them is getting deeper, although mediation continues. One restraining factor has been an imminent assault by the Syrian army and its allied forces in northwestern Syria. "The situation is charged, the failure of initiatives could cause an explosion," said a jihadi in Idlib who is close to the two groups. "What happened just avoided all-out conflict, all-out battle. But it will be hard to tell what will happen in the future." Outright war between Nusra and Ahrar al-Sham would still further complicate the five-year Syrian conflict, in which rebel groups are mushrooming under different slogans and sometimes fighting each other. A delegation from Syria's main opposition group, the Saudi-backed Higher Negotiation Committee (HNC), arrived in Geneva on Saturday to join United Nations-mediated peace talks, demanding President Bashar al-Assad's government be made to comply with a U.N. resolution on humanitarian aid and human rights. Nusra and Islamic State - designated as terrorists by the U.N. - have been excluded from the Geneva talks, the first attempt in two years to end a war that has killed a quarter of a million people. Ahrar al-Sham, which presents itself as a Syrian nationalist force in contrast to al Qaeda's global jihadist ideology, recently joined the HNC but Russia opposes its participation in the talks. LACK OF TRUST Distrust between Nusra and Ahrar is mutual. Nusra accuses its Islamist rival of being a front for Turkey, addressing not the "interests of Muslims" but the agenda of Ankara in order to be part of a future political deal to rule Syria. Ahrar and other groups are pushing Nusra to cut its ties with al Qaeda as a step towards becoming more fully engaged in the struggle against Assad. "The problem is with the Qaeda link and its ideological implications. Nusra insists on its agenda, it doesn't want to maneuver at all," said a frustrated Ahrar commander, accusing it of "damaging the revolution". In the first few weeks after last year's capture of Idlib, the two groups divided responsibilities and territory without problems. But gradually divisions began to surface, as Ahrar and other insurgents became wary of Nusra and accused it of trying to seize power and sidelining them. "Nusra cannot work with others, they have a dominating project, they do not accept the others," said a fighter from Ahrar al-Sham in Idlib via the Internet. Some insurgents are suspicious of Nusra's long-term agenda in the region and globally, distrusting its declaration that it has no ambitions outside Lebanon and Syria. "This declared goal is an interim one. After it wins and establishes itself in Syria, they will move to the next step, which objects to the goal of the revolution," said an Islamist rebel who is allied with Ahrar al-Sham. "They will join the global jihad and this is against our revolution. Our revolution is limited to Syria." NO JEANS On the ground, Nusra imposes strict Islamic rules in villages and towns where it shares power. It has banned women from wearing make-up, showing their hair or wearing tight clothes like jeans, and applied a policy of segregation between the sexes. All these moves have served to assert its dominance, while provoking other groups. "There is no group on the ground that actually objects to having an Islamic government but the implementation and methods are different," said another Islamist fighter from a group that is allied with Ahrar. Highlighting the dilemma facing Syrian rebels, a local commander of an Islamist brigade that works closely with Ahrar al-Sham said: "It will be difficult for Nusra to disengage from Qaeda and it will be difficult for us to work with them. The situation is really difficult. Things are complicated and interlocked all together." Asked how long the groups could avoid hostilities, an Ahrar al-Sham military commander said: "We can avoid fighting with Nusra for now. For how long? That is a difficult question. Only God knows." (Writing by Mariam Karouny; Editing by Mark Trevelyan and David Stamp) (Reuters) - Two brothers of imprisoned Utah polygamist Warren Jeffs and nine other members of a breakaway sect of the Mormon Church were charged on Tuesday with diverting money from a government food assistance program for the poor, federal prosecutors said. The charges were contained in a grand jury indictment unsealed in U.S. District Court in Salt Lake City on Tuesday as FBI agents and sheriff's deputies raided church-owned businesses and arrested leaders of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Utah-Arizona border towns and in South Dakota. The church, a breakaway sect of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the Mormon Church, preaches that polygamy leads to a favored place in heaven. "This indictment is not about religion. This indictment is about fraud," U.S. Attorney John Huber said in a statement. The indictment charges 11 defendants with one count each of conspiring to defraud the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), commonly called food stamps, and with conspiring to commit money laundering. Among those charged was 56-year-old church leader Lyle Jeffs, the brother of polygamist sect leader Warren Jeffs who is serving a life prison sentence for sexually assaulting two young girls at a religious compound in Texas. Jeffs and another high-ranking official, John Wayman, were arrested on Tuesday in Salt Lake City. Another Jeffs sibling, Seth, was arrested in rural South Dakota, where he leads an FLDS congregation. Prosecutors allege church leaders directed adherents starting around 2011 to funnel food bought with SNAP funds into an FLDS Storehouse to feed the broader church community. In some cases, church leaders withdrew cash from food-stamp cards they took from congregants and used the money for bill-paying. Winford Barlow, among those indicted, spent $30,236 for a 2012 Ford F-350 pickup truck, according to prosecutors, and Kimball Barlow signed a check for $16,978 in paper products. Story continues FLDS Church members in the Hildale, Utah and Colorado City, Arizona border communities receive millions of dollars in SNAP benefits per year, according to prosecutors who did not give a total value for the alleged fraud. Six of the 11 people charged have been arrested so far. Those arrested are to appear on Wednesday in federal courts in Utah and South Dakota. Those convicted could face as much as 25 years in prison. (Reporting by Eric M. Johnson in Seattle; Editing by Dan Whitcomb and Cynthia Osterman) By Elizabeth Piper LONDON (Reuters) - When Prime Minister David Cameron sealed a deal designed to keep Britain in the European Union after two days of talks in Brussels, his relief was short-lived. Within hours of Friday's agreement, one of Cameron's closest allies, Justice Secretary Michael Gove, and five other ministers declared they would campaign against him in a June 23 referendum on whether Britain should stay in the bloc. It was the first blow in what could be a new "civil war" in Cameron's Conservative Party over Europe. Divisions over Britain's place in Europe contributed to the downfall of two of his predecessors, John Major and Margaret Thatcher. It is a war Cameron tried hard to avoid when he came to power in 2010. The following year he ordered his party in the strictest terms to vote down a bill suggesting a referendum on membership of the EU, saying it was the "wrong answer for Britain". But within two years, he had changed his mind, paving the way to a membership referendum, by declaring: "I believe in confronting this issue - shaping it, leading the debate. Not simply hoping a difficult situation will go away." Cameron, 49, now finds himself fighting a referendum which will determine Britain's future in world affairs and shape the future EU - Britain is the bloc's second-largest economy and one of its two main military powers. In a quirk of the British political system, the prime minister is in the unusual position of being more sure of the backing of the opposition Labour Party than of his own party. "He didn't want a referendum, he was bounced into doing it," said Douglas Carswell, a Conservative Party member until he defected to the euroskeptic UK Independence Party (UKIP) in 2014. "He's been the actor in this production, he is not writing the script, or directing it, or producing it." As a euroskeptic, Carswell has an axe to grind, but his view that Cameron has almost sleep walked into such a crucial referendum is shared by some of the prime minister's allies and supporters as well as other critics. "I think it's pretty clear ... there was no plan," said Jonathan Portes, principal research fellow at the National Institute of Economic and Social Research who specializes in immigration issues. SUSPICION The deal reached on Friday followed weeks of negotiations across Europe in which Cameron tried to win better terms for Britain if it remains in the EU, hoping to win over skeptical voters including many in his own party. He said he had won his country a "special status" from the agreement, which excludes Britain from the founding goal of "ever closer union" and hands the government welfare curbs to try to tackle concerns over high levels of migration. A spokesman for Cameron said the prime minister had always focused on winning "the best deal for the British people" and denied the negotiations had been about "party management". But Cameron's path to the referendum shows he is clearly sensitive to the opinions in his party. He initially steered clear of discussing the EU with party euroskeptics after coming to power and avoided meetings with them and, to reduce their hold, portrayed them "as a crackpot minority banging on about Europe", one Conservative lawmaker said. Allies say Cameron knew he had to counter the threat of rebellion and took a calculated risk by calling a referendum he expects to win. But as the prime minister tried to ignore the issue, Britain's largely euroskeptic press kept the issue alive. Over decades Britain's press has fueled suspicion of a bloc praised by many Europeans for ensuring peace after World War Two, but derided in Britain for wanting to ban curved bananas and rename sausages. A natural, if not passionate, europhile, Cameron increasingly seemed out of step with many in his party as they opposed moves toward further integration in Europe and saw a referendum as the logical next step. In 2011, when Cameron ordered Conservative members of parliament to vote down a bill suggesting a membership referendum, about 80 rebelled. John Baron was one of them. Immediately afterwards, Baron said he and at least eight rallied more than 100 lawmakers to force Cameron to abandon his no-referendum policy and, after they wrote letters and lobbied fiercely, more than a year later he relented. He then made holding a referendum a central policy. Baron told Reuters that Cameron was "ultimately confronted with logic but also a realization that one, we weren't going to go away, and two, we were much more sizeable than the spin operation portrayed". Baron is keen to take credit for his role in forcing the prime minister into holding the referendum. But bullied into the vote, Cameron hastily had to come up with policy on the hoof, sources said. Portes, who as a civil servant helped negotiate Britain's opt-out from the Maastricht treaty which set up the euro currency, said Cameron's decision to focus on winning concessions over "in-work benefits" - social payments for low-paid workers - had underlined the lack of strategy. The focus on a specific, and otherwise little-known, element of Britain's welfare system maddened some EU officials, who saw it as a direct attack on the EU's fundamental principles and discriminatory. It almost derailed the negotiations. Pat McFadden, Labour's former Europe minister, says this was down to Cameron's poor understanding of the EU. "He doesn't always do his homework on a European level," McFadden told Reuters. Cameron aides say the prime minister has plenty of experience of EU affairs, visiting 20 member states for talks on the bloc since he was re-elected last year. Cameron was forced to focus on in-work benefits after concerns over immigration grew among voters over an influx of migrants from eastern European member states. His move was also partly meant to counter a growth in the popularity of UKIP. In 2014, he said he would "not take no for an answer and when it comes to free movement I will get what Britain needs". But EU officials swiftly made clear they would not allow this, saying it would undermine one of the EU's founding principles. Struggling to find a way to include immigration in the renegotiation, Cameron's eye fell on a report by the Open Europe think tank which suggested that curbing the benefits to EU workers would reduce migration and would avoid troublesome change to the bloc's founding treaties. "And they just lifted it, without testing it, without doing any serious analysis at all, either legal or economic," said Portes. Open Europe's co-director, Stephen Booth, said that his study was quickly taken up by the government and advisers did not ask legal questions. Cameron's officials say the prime minister has formed policy in response to public concerns over high immigration. Although agreement was reached on Friday, the decision to include gestures for Britain on welfare reform still rankles in EU capitals. One diplomat involved in the talks said Britain's EU partners were "rather irritated ... that here we are dealing with some rather obscure issues... while we have ... major issues we should really be on instead of this". STUMBLES For euroskeptics, the curbs on in-work benefits and restrictions to payments to EU migrants with an annual income below a certain level for their children who remain abroad do not go far enough and accuse Cameron of buckling under pressure from the EU. "Britain banged the table and aggressively demanded the status quo," Daniel Hannan, a Conservative member of the European Parliament, wrote on Twitter. "The EU, after some mandatory faux-agonizing, agreed." "He's tinkering because he knows he cannot question one of the founding principles of the EU which is freedom of movement," said Baron. Baron said the result of the referendum would be close and "lance the boil" in the party for good. But others disagree, seeing little chance of 'the Europe issue' ever going away - something that may come to hurt Cameron whichever way Britain votes. "The European issue has split it from top to bottom, ever since we went in," said Jeffrey Archer, a former conservative lawmaker and an author. "It's a divisive issue and if we do come out, it will be divisive. If we do stay in, it will be divisive." (This version of the story was refiled to fix typing error in paragraph 9, clarifies Maastricht) (additional reporting by Gabriela Baczynska, editing by Janet McBride) Retention & Student Success Report: 8 Ways to Shorten the Bridge Between Developmental Education and Graduation A new report shows that most community college students are not prepared for college-level work. The idea that a single placement test should determine a student's readiness for college courses is getting a makeover with the release of a new report from the Center for Community College Student Engagement at the University of Texas at Austin. So is the value placed on standard developmental or remedial coursework in student success. Researchers examined the responses to three surveys conducted by the center from some 70,000 community college students at more than 150 U.S. institutions and about 4,500 community college faculty respondents from 56 institutions. As the report, "Expectations Meet Reality: The Underprepared Student and Community Colleges," stated, while almost nine in 10 students (86 percent) believe that they're academically prepared for the college they're attending, nearly seven in 10 (68 percent) actually end up taking at least one developmental course. That includes a sizable portion of students (40 percent) who graduated from high school with an A-level grade point average. Across the spectrum of self-reported high school GPAs, most students were obligated to take placement tests before they could register for classes. More than 9 in 10 students with a GPA of C or lower faced this requirement, as did 87 percent of B students and 81 percent of A students. Yet, the researchers noted, "emerging evidence" has indicated that some of those students placed into developmental education classes could actually bypass that coursework and go straight to credit-bearing college-level work if they had the right kinds of supports. For example, while less than half (44 percent) of student respondents said an advisor had helped them set their academic goals, the report stated that when advisors help students develop academic plans, they're "more likely to succeed." The report offers eight "innovative" approaches beyond or combined with standard developmental classes that should be considered by community colleges as a way to shorten the "bridge" between developmental education and graduation. Running "corequisite" programs. In this scenario the student taking a developmental course also enrolls in a higher-level class on the same subject and frequently taught by the same instructor. As the report explained, "The paired courses create a cohort of developmental students who work with stronger students in the higher-level class and receive focused attention in the developmental class. The approach accelerates progression through developmental education, and data from Indiana, Tennessee, and West Virginia show dramatic gains from using it." Redesigning math. Rather than placing everybody into the same math courses, this approach puts STEM students into college-level algebra and students studying non-STEM fields into other kinds of classes, such as statistics or quantitative reasoning. Trying accelerated developmental courses. Schools redesign the developmental sequence to speed up the time it takes for a student to complete the developmental classes. Frequently, that redesign goes along with a change in instructional practices too. Using computer-assisted math. Alongside the development course, the student does self-paced study on the computer, receiving support from instructors, tutors and other faculty. Pairing developmental education with workplace training. This model helps the student to build up his or her academic skills while advancing toward a credential and developing job skills. Partnering with high schools. Under this arrangement colleges offer summer "bridge" or other transition programs to help students prepare for their upcoming college experiences. Providing placement test preparation. The researchers found that students with better high school grades are more likely to prepare for placement tests. Experiments at Passaic County Community College in New Jersey and Washington State Community College in Ohio, profiled in the report, suggested positive results for students headed into developmental courses. Assessing readiness through more than just one placement exam. A group of colleges in several states is experimenting with using a "hierarchy of measures" to put students into the right courses. Interestingly, the research found that while more than half of faculty members use some form of early assessment to determine their students' preparedness, when they find somebody under-prepared, only 6 percent of faculty recommend a change whether it be a different course or dropping out altogether. Forty-nine percent of faculty said they recommend that the student use tutoring or other support services; 34 percent said they adjust their course pedagogy or approach. The report's authors encouraged colleges to use their own data to update their processes and to continue evaluating success over time in order to redesign the educational pathways they provide for students. "There is no silver bullet," they acknowledged. "Therefore, there is much work to be done as the field creates and refines new models of assessment, placement, and delivery of developmental education." The report and supporting materials are available for download on the website of the Center for Community College Student Engagement here. COPENHAGEN (Reuters) - Denmark's Prime Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen said on Wednesday he has invited coalitions partners to new talks in a move he hopes will solve a crisis that is threatening the minority government after only eight months in office. After a meeting with coalition partners he said he will spend a couple of days with leaders of the three supporting parties to discuss additional agreements to planned agricultural reforms that have triggered the political crisis. Rasmussen's centre-right Liberals hold only 34 seats in the 179-seat parliament, but they are supported by the Conservatives Party with six seats, the Danish People's Party with 37 and the Liberal Alliance with 13 -- giving them a majority of one. Rasmussen's environment and agriculture minister has been accused of misleading parliament over the environmental impact of the agricultural reforms. The accusations have been led by the Conservatives, who have already been at loggerheads with the government over future tax plans. "We have decided to spend the couple of days after parliament on Thursday has approved the agricultural legislation package to agree about a additional agreement," Rasmussen said after the meeting. Despite being in government, the Liberals are the third largest party in parliament after the former-ruling Social Democrats and the anti-immigrant eurosceptic Danish People's Party, known as DF. It was thought DF would cause the most problems for Rasmussen's tenure but despite its right-wing leaning, its economic policies promoting more spending and support for the elderly are at loggerheads with the Conservatives' fiscally-tight ideals and the dispute between these two coalition partners is now what is causing headaches for the government. After additional meetings Rasmussen could announce the conflict resolved, seek the resignation of the environment minister or call for a new election if he feels he will no longer retain the Conservatives' support. (Reporting by Annabella Nielsen and Nikolaj Skydsgaard, writing by Sabina Zawadzki, editing by Angus MacSwan and Dominic Evans) DETROIT (Reuters) - Detroit may sue some of the consultants who worked on its historic municipal bankruptcy over a $490 million pension funding shortfall that will result in bigger-than-expected city payments starting in 2024, according to Mayor Mike Duggan. In his state of the city address on Tuesday night, Duggan said he is seeking advice from the city's legal department to review any possible claims against consultants. The mayor blamed the projected deficit on outdated mortality tables used by the consultants that assume retirees will not live as long. The consultants were hired under the city's former emergency manager, Kevyn Orr. Orr, an attorney at law firm Jones Day, who was tapped by Michigan Governor Rick Snyder in 2013 to run Detroit, declined to comment. A representative of Milliman, the city's actuarial consultant, could not be reached for comment. Detroit exited the biggest-ever U.S. municipal bankruptcy in December 2014, shedding about $7 billion of its $18 billion of debt and obligations. The city paid $177 million in legal and consultant fees to dozens of firms. The city's court-approved debt adjustment plan contained money to pay for pensions over the first 10 post-bankruptcy years, according to John Naglick, Detroit finance director. The plan also projected contributions by the city starting in 2024 needed to amortize the unfunded pension liability which was understated by $490 million, he added. Detroit's contribution to its two retirement systems is expected to total $194.4 million in 2024, which is $84.4 million more than anticipated in the debt adjustment plan, according to a Nov. 24 report by Detroit's financial review commission. To start addressing the shortfall, Duggan said $10 million in surplus money will be tapped for pensions for this year and next. (Reporting by Serena Maria Daniels in Detroit; Additional reporting by Karen Pierog in Chicago; Editing by Matthew Lewis) Employees of French auto maker PSA Peugeot Citroen factory work at the painting workshop of the plant, in Mulhouse (AFP Photo/Sebastien Bozon) Paris (AFP) - France's biggest automobile maker PSA Peugeot Citroen said Wednesday it moved back into the black in 2015 with a net profit of 1.2 billion euros ($1.4 billion) after a successful restructuring and on higher demand, two years after it almost went to the wall. Europe's second biggest carmaker revealed a 5.7-percent rise in sales to 56.3 billion euros as it said it would unveil its new "strategic sustainable growth plan" on April 5. The results are a turnaround for a group which posted a 555-million-euro loss in 2014. Ratings agency Standard and Poor's raised its longterm credit rating for PSA by one notch in response to the results, taking it to "BB" with a positive outlook. "Peugeot posted a substantially better operating performance in 2015 which demonstrates a significant improvement of its business in our view," S and P said in a statement, published only hours after the company's earnings report. The news also helped to bolster the firm's stock, which was up 1.1 percent in Paris at 13.81 euros in mid-afternoon, off an early high of 14.67 but still vastly outperforming a falling CAC-40 index. Buoyant European demand led the way although 2014 saw China become the group's biggest car market, outstripping France. PSA said on Wednesday that it had exceeded several targets, operating margin notably hitting five percent, exceeding a projected two which had been forecast for 2018. Also exceeded was free cash flow of 3.8 billion euros last year, beating a target of 2.0 billion euros for 2015-2017. - 'Back in race' - PSA, which makes the Peugeot, Citroen and DS brands, is the number one French carmaker with 2.97 million units produced last year as the group came out of the 2008-2013 crisis in the European car industry which led the group in 2014 to require a bailout from the French state and Chinas Dongfeng Motor Corp, who both took a 14-percent stake. A restructuring plan dubbed "Back in the Race" was designed to return the carmaker to the forefront of the industry in Europe. Story continues It said last month it would return to Iran in a partnership deal with a local manufacturer worth 400 million euros ($436 million) with first units produced from 2017. That deal followed Iranian President Hassan Rouhani's visit to France and made Peugeot the first Western carmaker to announce a return to Iran since sanctions were lifted against the country after it signed a deal to limit its nuclear programme. Peugeot and its French partner Citroen will work with Iran Khodro to produce 200,000 vehicles a year using parts manufactured in Iran. Financial director Jean-Baptiste de Chatillon said, in noting the group had surpassed a range of targets, that "we are largely ahead on our initial market plan", although he conceded that operating margin had been achieved at least in part due to "favourable winds," not least on raw material prices. Without such factors the margin would have been nearer 3.3 percent, he added, indicating that Peugeot "will continue to improve productivity significantly in 2016." The company added it would be paying out an average 2,000-euro bonus to French-based employees as a reward for the strong results. Admiral Yuan Yubai Since the establishment of modern China following World War II, both China and Taiwan have claimed nearly the entirety of the South China Sea as their own. The countries established such a claim with a Nine Dash Line throughout the region that, Beijing and Taipei assert, show how the entirety of the South China Sea belongs to them. Whether the Nine Dash Line has any basis in international law or not, it is far from the most ridiculous basis for a claim that China has over the sea. Instead, Chinese Vice Admiral Yuan Yubai was responsible for the most ridiculous claim for why all of the South China Sea belongs to Beijing. Speaking at a defense conference in London on September 14, 2015, Yuan said that the South China Sea, as the name indicates, is a sea area that belongs to China." "And the sea from the Han dynasty a long time ago where the Chinese people have been working and producing from the sea," Yuan continued. Yuan's remarks came following a comment at the conference by Japanese Vice Admiral Umio Otsuka, who said that deterrence was becoming increasingly important throughout East and South Asia. To back up his views, Otsuka pointed at China's expansionism throughout both regions. After Yuan responded to Otsuka that the region belonged to China due to the sea bearing China's name, Yuan took a slightly more conciliatory measure by saying that the real situation in the South China Sea at present is safety and freedom of navigation. Currently, the various islands and atolls in the South China Sea are claimed and disputed in a various mix principally by Taiwan, Vietnam, China, the Philippines. South China Sea Map_05 NOW WATCH: The US Navy's last line of defense is this ultimate gun More From Business Insider MEMPHIS, Tenn., Feb. 24, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Demonstrating its ongoing commitment to creating stronger communities, First Tennessee wrapped up 2015 with hundreds of employees volunteering thousands of service hours to area nonprofit organizations. And the First Tennessee Foundation donated almost $6 million to nonprofits in the banks communities. In 2015, nearly 650 First Tennessee employees recorded 17,997 volunteer service hours at 3,142 events. Volunteer hours translated into a community impact value of $415,190. Employee efforts are supported through leadership grants and matching gifts programs, which honor and encourage employees who share their expertise and their own financial support to make their communities stronger. Serving our communities has been part of the First Tennessee way of doing business since we were founded more than 150 years ago, said Bryan Jordan, chairman and CEO of First Tennessees parent company, First Horizon National Corp. (NYSE:FHN). Our employees are volunteer champions who go above and beyond for the communities we serve. Our company is proud to celebrate their commitment and generosity. The First Tennessee Foundation supports nonprofits in communities the bank serves. In 2015, total foundation giving reached nearly $6 million through grants to 525 nonprofit organizations. More than 100 nonprofits received leadership grants totaling $80,000, while more than $450,000 in matching grants was distributed to 340 nonprofits. Since its inception in 1993, the First Tennessee Foundation has donated more than $65 million to strengthen communities. For more information, visit www.FirstTennesseeFoundation.com. About First Tennessee First Tennessee Bank is the largest bank headquartered in Tennessee, with the number one deposit market share in Chattanooga, Knoxville, Memphis and the Tri-Cities and a top-five deposit market share in Nashville. First Tennessee was founded during the Civil War in 1864 and has the 14th oldest national bank charter in the country and one of the highest customer retention rates of any bank in the country. First Tennessee and FTN Financial are part of First Horizon National Corp. (NYSE:FHN), which has 4,300 employees. First Horizon has been recognized as one of the nation's best employers by Forbes, Working Mother and American Banker magazines. More information is available at www.FirstTennessee.com. About the First Tennessee Foundation The First Tennessee Foundation is a Tennessee nonprofit corporation that was formed in 1993 by First Tennessee Banks parent company, First Horizon National Corp. (NYSE:FHN). Since its founding the First Tennessee Foundation has granted more than $65 million to strengthen nonprofits in communities the bank serves. FHN-G ANNANDALE, Va., Feb. 24, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Perrywinkle's Fine Jewelry is once again teaming up with the Purple Heart Foundation to help veterans in need with an exclusive limited edition watch designed by the Vermont-based jeweler. The stainless steel watch is designed for casual or formal wear and includes a Purple Heart Foundation logo engraved on the back. It is priced at $178.20 to represent the date in 1782 when General George Washington created the Badge of Military Merit, which later became the Purple Heart medal. The Purple Heart is awarded to members of the U.S. armed forces who are wounded in combat at the hands of the enemy. A percentage of the proceeds from the watch sales will go directly to the Purple Heart Foundation to further the foundation's mission of honoring the sacrifice military veterans make for our country by helping them make a smooth transition from the battlefield to the home front. The foundation funds programs that assist veterans who are dealing with combat wounds, post traumatic stress and traumatic brain injuries, and offers free services to help veterans access VA benefits for which they are entitled. Perrywinkle's is the exclusive licensed jeweler of the Purple Heart Foundation. The company has been designing fine jewelry in Vermont and New York for 35 years. "Support from companies like Perrywinkles is vital to our efforts to provide services, rehabilitation, and educational programs for not only combat wounded, but all veterans and their families," said Stephen Ruckman, CEO of the Purple Heart Foundation. About Perrywinkle's Perrywinkle's creates unforgettable jewelry made with diamonds, colored gems, and precious metals. Every Perrywinkle's piece is unlike any other. The company combines old-world artistry with some of the most modern technical manufacturing equipment and methods to create pieces that rival the finest jewelers in the world. Perrywinkle's company seeks to educate customers about gemstones and jewelry while providing handcrafted custom and unique jewelry designs at all price points: www.perrywinkles.com About the Military Order of the Purple Heart Service Foundation (MOPHSF) The Military Order of the Purple Heart Service Foundation provides emotional, physical, educational and financial support for wounded and disabled veterans, to help improve their lives. Programs include suicide prevention, support for veterans with brain injuries, counseling for Post-Traumatic Stress (PTS) and assistance for women's health issues all common challenges for veterans. The Purple Heart Service Foundation provides scholarships, family assistance, claims assistance and employment training. Family members also get support, learning how to help disabled veterans to cope with their physical, emotional and behavioral challenges. For more information, visit www.PurpleHeartFoundation.org. Hundreds of mourners flocked to Milan's Sforza Castle Tuesday to pay their respects to Italian literary giant Umberto Eco, the intellectual phenomenon behind the best-selling "The Name of the Rose". Fans gathered outside the writer's home in the north Italian city applauded as Eco's coffin, laden with white roses, was carried to the imposing 15th century citadel and laid in state in a courtyard, under a presidential guard. Musicians played Arcangelo Corelli's Baroque sonata "La Follia", a favourite which Eco used to play on the clarinet, before dignitaries including the cultural and education ministers paid homage to one of Italy's most loved sons. "It was a piece that accompanied us always, my husband loved it very much," Eco's widow Renate Ramge said. Eco, who had been suffering from cancer, passed away at home late on Friday at the age of 84. The philosopher and semiotics lecturer who once famously described writing best-selling, heavyweight novels as "something I do at the weekends" lived within a maze of bookshelves, more vast library than house -- and one he knew inside-out. "You could see in his silences that he was consulting the unending library he carried within. Thank you Maestro for having spent your life looking out of the window for us," said Cultural Minister Dario Franceschini. Friends remembered a gentle man who enjoyed whisky and wordplay in equal measure and had a nice line in self-deprecating humour, with one of his grandsons standing up to say how proud of his grandpa he was. - 'Lost a master' - Some speakers choked back tears as they addressed the crowd in front of large heraldic flags sent by cities across Italy in a gesture of respect. Others told jokes they had shared with the intellectual. "We have yet to fully understand his greatness. He was a friend and I thank him for having cared so much," said Elisabetta Sgarbi, head of the publishing house which will release Eco's last book on Friday. Story continues La Nave di Teseo, which announced the release date on its Facebook page, is a new publishing house that emerged after notable writers, including Eco, moved to protect their independence and editorial diversity. "Eco is the symbol of that innovative classicism which is so essential and which our country brings to the world. We have lost a master but we have not lost his teachings," Education Minister Stefania Gannini said. Eco was revered around the world, largely thanks to "The Name of the Rose", the blockbuster novel that became a hit film starring Sean Connery in the role of a medieval monk with the detective brilliance of Sherlock Holmes. "The Name of the Rose", which has been translated into 43 languages, has sold more than 10 million copies. A Gothic murder mystery set in an Italian medieval monastery, it combines semiotics, biblical analysis, medieval studies and literary theory. Eco leaves his wife, a German art teacher whom he married in 1962, and a son, a daughter and grandchildren. As of August 26th, 2021 Yahoo India will no longer be publishing content. Your Yahoo Account Mail and Search experiences will not be affected in any way and will operate as usual. We thank you for your support and readership. For more information on Yahoo India, please visit the FAQ Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong (R) receives World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim (Source: VNA) During his reception for the visiting World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim in Hanoi on February 23rd, the Party chief spoke highly of the valuable support provided by the WB as well as personally by its president for Vietnam in recent times, saying that they helped Vietnam reach remarkable achievements during the countrys Renewal (Doi Moi) process, especially in socio-economic development and international integration. He called for the WBs further assistance to Vietnam in dealing with challenges in the countrys development process, including those related to international integration and global climate change. According to the Party leader, Vietnam strives to become an industrial modernity-driven nation in the future , with a focus on improving the quality of labour productivity and competitiveness of its economy, renovating its growth model, promoting restructuring of State-owned enterprises, resolving bad debts, and ensuring safety of public debt. While congratulating Vietnam on the success of the 12 th National Party Congress, the WB Group President valued Vietnams efforts in stablising its macro-economy, affirming that the countrys orientation to build a socialism-oriented economy is a judicious and suitable strategy. Vietnam should take drastic measures to ensure effective implementation of its set goals, especially in reforming institutions and building its legal system, he suggested. The guest affirmed that the WB will continue providing support for Vietnam, including its efforts to persuade international financial institutions to furnish Vietnam with preferential financial sources, thus helping Vietnam strengthen economic reform, stabilise its macro-economy, and effectively adapt to climate change. In his meeting with Jim Yong Kim on the same day , President Truong Tan Sang shared that Vietnam is in increasing need of capital for infrastructure development, expressing his hope that the WB will support the country in accessing new sources of financial assistance. Appreciating the WBs proposal to assist Vietnam in developing renewable energy, the President stressed that this will help Vietnam improve the environment in accordance with the outcomes of the 21st Conference of the Parties (COP 21) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Paris last year. For his part, Jim asserted the WBs commitment to supporting Vietnam in hunting for preferential capital sources, towards realising its socio-economic development objectives. The same day, Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc also hosted a reception for Jim Yong Kim./. 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 Tripoli (AFP) - Lawmakers from Libya's internationally recognised parliament said Wednesday they support a UN-backed unity government but were "forcibly prevented" from putting it to a vote of confidence. The parliament, located in the remote eastern town of Tobruk, was unable to hold a confidence vote on the line-up of a new unity administration on Tuesday because it lacked a quorum. In a petition seen by AFP, 100 of the parliament's 196 members said they supported a unity government but were "forcibly prevented" from voting on Tuesday after receiving threats. "We, 100 members of the House of Representatives, confirm... our agreement on the proposed cabinet line-up," the lawmakers said. "We need to decide on an appropriate place for a new parliament session as it has become impossible to hold one" in Tobruk. The aborted confidence vote came as forces loyal to the recognised government seized a key jihadist bolthole from Islamist militias including the Islamic State (IS) group in the centre of second city Benghazi. Oil-rich Libya has had two rival administrations since mid-2014 when the recognised government was forced from Tripoli after a militia alliance including Islamists overran the capital. The United Nations has been pushing both sides to back a unity government. The UN's Libya envoy Martin Kobler said it was "unacceptable" that lawmakers had been threatened. "Parliamentarians have to decide freely," he said in a statement, demanding that "the parliamentary process is unhindered and conducted in an environment free from threats or intimidation." A Presidential Council, born of a UN-brokered agreement in December between representatives of the rival parliaments, last week put forward a unity government of 18 members. A previous cabinet line-up of 32 ministers proposed by premier-designate Fayez al-Sarraj was rejected by the Tobruk parliament as being too large. Story continues - 'Security vacuum' - According to the parliament's website, 99 lawmakers would need to vote in favour of the new unity government for it to receive the legislature's approval. Libya descended into chaos after the 2011 ouster of longtime dictator Moamer Kadhafi, allowing extremist organisations including IS to gain significant ground. IS fighters briefly occupied the heart of a city near Tripoli on Wednesday but were ousted by fighters loyal to the government in control of the capital. The clashes in Sabratha left 18 people dead, officials said in a revised toll, after the jihadists overran the city's security headquarters and other buildings overnight. The city was the scene of a US air strike last week on a suspected IS training camp that killed more than 40 people including two Serbian diplomats being held hostage. Sabratha's municipal council said jihadists had exploited the "security vacuum" as security forces conducted raids looking for IS operatives in the suburbs, but said it had since gained "complete control" of the city. On Tuesday, special forces loyal to the Tobruk government retook the jihadist stronghold of Lithi in central Benghazi after seizing a port area and several army headquarters since launching an offensive at the weekend. French daily Le Monde said Wednesday that French special forces had been deployed in Libya for "clandestine operations" against IS jihadists. In response to the report, officials in Paris said a probe had been launched into a possible leak of classified information. Libya's Tripoli-based parliament, the General National Congress, in a statement, "strongly condemned" the loyalist offensive in Benghazi and also said French commandos were taking part. France and other Western countries have agreed that military action is needed to dislodge IS in Libya, but world powers want a national unity government installed to request help before formally intervening. Representatives from neighbouring countries are to meet on March 21-22 in Tunisia "to continue to study ways of finding solutions" to Libya's unrest. By Stephen Eisenhammer RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) - Brazilian police in the state of Minas Gerais on Tuesday accused six Samarco executives and one contractor of murder in connection with the deaths of 19 people caused by a burst tailings dam at a mine in November. The Samarco chief executive at the time of the incident, Ricardo Vescovi, was among those accused. In Brazil only prosecutors, and not police, can formally bring criminal charges but public accusations often anticipate charges being filed. The police, in a statement, accused the mine executives of "qualified homicide," the murder charge that carries the heaviest sentence in Brazil of 12 to 30 years in prison. They said the rupture had been caused by over filling the dam, combined with a lack of monitoring and faulty equipment. Samarco, a joint venture of Vale SA and BHP Billiton, said in a statement it considers the accusations "misguided" and will wait for a court decision before taking appropriate action. The company is still investigating what caused the breach. The deadly dam burst is considered Brazil's worst environmental disaster, polluting a major river with thick red sludge which reached the Atlantic Ocean. It also destroyed the village of Bento Rodrigues, forcing hundreds to flee their homes and killing 17 people. Two people are still missing but the police said they are now considered fatalities. (Reporting by Stephen Eisenhammer; Editing by W Simon and Sandra Maler) Vienna (AFP) - Austria warned that the European Union's survival was at stake as it pressed Balkan states to reduce the influx of migrants while Greece threatened not to cooperate with future agreements on the crisis if the burden was not fairly shared among member states. Further undermining the bloc's hopes to get a grip on the situation, Hungary meanwhile announced a referendum on Brussels' troubled scheme to share out migrants among the 28-nation group via mandatory quotas. "We have to reduce the influx now. This is a question of survival for the EU," Austrian Interior Minister Johanna Mikl-Leitner said after talks in Vienna with countries on the well-trodden west Balkans route north from Greece. Greece, a main entry point for migrants and where thousands of Afghans have been held up at the border with Macedonia, angrily protested at being excluded from the ministerial meeting, underscoring the deep rifts within the EU. "Greece will no longer agree to any deal if the burdens and responsibilities are not shared proportionally," Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras told the Greek parliament, vowing "We will not allow our country to turn into a warehouse of souls." A joint statement from the Vienna talks said that after hundreds of thousands of people trekked through the Balkans last year, many ending up in Germany, Sweden and also Austria, the inflow must be "massively reduced". The talks come after figures showed more than 110,000 people arriving in Greece and Italy so far this year alone -- 413 perishing in the attempt -- following more than one million arrivals in 2015. Amnesty International hit out at Europe's "shameful" response, saying most EU countries had "simply decided that the protection of their borders is more important than the protection of the rights of refugees". Vienna has come under fire for organising Wednesday's talks and for imposing daily limits on the number of migrants who can apply for asylum in Austria or transit to other countries. Story continues But despite sharp criticism, Vienna says that it has no choice, arguing that the EU has failed to get any effective common strategy off the ground. So far, joint EU efforts to halt the influx, including a deal with Turkey, have failed to bear fruit. An EU scheme that agreed in September to relocate 160,000 people among EU nations under mandatory quotas, has seen just 598 relocated so far, with former communist members of the bloc opposing the plan and filing legal challenges. Hungarian Premier Viktor Orban, announcing on Wednesday plans for the so-far undated referendum, said that Brussels had no right to "redraw Europe's cultural and religious identity." - Unilateral - Countries throughout the western Balkans have begun to impose restrictions, sparked by Austria's much-criticised daily migrant limits. Macedonia has closed its frontier to Afghans and introduced more stringent document checks for Syrians and Iraqis seeking to travel to northern and western Europe. "We did not take a unilateral decision," Macedonia's Foreign Minister Nikola Poposki told Germany's Bild daily. "We reacted because of the actions of other countries." As a result, around 3,000 people were waiting at the Idomeni crossing point between Greece and Macedonia on Wednesday, police said, with the Macedonians allowing 860 people through overnight. Greek authorities were attempting to take hundreds by bus back to Athens, but were being hindered by a blockade of motorways by a farmers protest. Yiannis Mouzalas, Greece's minister responsible for migration, said that there were currently some 12,000 migrants stuck in the country, with hundreds more arriving every day. - 'Response is not closures' - EU migration commissioner Dimitris Avramopoulos and Dutch Migration Minister Klaas Dijkhoff warned Tuesday of a "humanitarian crisis that might unfold". Their fears were echoed on Wednesday by Filippo Grandi, the new head of the UN refugee agency UNHCR. "By closing the borders to people that are asking for help and protection, first of all we do not fulfil our obligations," Grandi said in Athens. "The response is not closures, it is cooperation... Everybody has to take a share of this burden," he added. Austrian officials said the conclusions of the talks would be presented to a meeting of EU interior and justice ministers on Thursday in Brussels. Dublin (AFP) - If all goes to plan for the Healy Rae family of County Kerry, they will hold more seats in parliament than some small political parties after Ireland's parliamentary elections on Friday. Colourful campaigners once memorably pictured leading a procession of burning pitchforks, the Healy Raes are independent politicians not attached to a party but elected with strong local support -- a quirk facilitated by Ireland's electoral system. Brothers Michael and Danny Healy Rae are campaigning to win two of the five seats available in their rural constituency, following in the footsteps of their late father Jackie Healy Rae. They illustrate two unusual features in Irish politics: a tendency for parliamentary seats to pass down the generations, and a force of non-party affiliated politicians expected to be one of the biggest groups in parliament following the Friday election. Frequently kingmakers in Irish coalitions, independents are often accused of clientelism -- prioritising roads and hospitals for their constituency in return for supporting the government. But Danny Healy Rae, who entered the election campaign at the last minute declaring that the family's "political service" was expanding, is unapologetic about seeking the best for Kerry. "My father was castigated for being local about his requests or his interests," he told AFP. "If we're representing the people close to us I don't see anything wrong in that," he said. Coming from a family of pub owners, the Healy Raes are known for pushing for drink driving rules to be relaxed in rural areas to allow people to visit pubs more easily and combat social isolation. Michael Healy Rae, who was first elected to parliament in 2011, kicked off his campaign with a toe-tapping election song video showing him brandishing a rifle and calling him a "rural man for national problems". The "Rae" in their surname refers to the townland their father Jackie was originally from, a way of distinguishing them from other local Healys. Story continues It is a family operation, with Danny's daughters manning his phones and his son Johnny already following in his steps as a member of Kerry County Council. - 'Not for faint hearted' - The list of political dynasties to pass through Ireland's parliament is long. Prime Minister Enda Kenny took over his father's seat at the age of 24, and the Healy Raes are not even the only family politicians in Kerry. Also running for a seat in the constituency is Labour politician Arthur Spring, grandson of Dan Spring and nephew of one-time party leader Dick Spring. Gail McElroy, a professor of political science at Trinity College Dublin, described family dynasties as a "startling element of Irish politics". "The electoral system facilitates it. You don't need a huge number of votes to get elected in Ireland," McElroy said, adding that being "socialised" into the political system from a young age helps candidates. Dara Calleary, the third in his line to represent Mayo for centre-right party Fianna Fail, stressed that even if politics is the family trade, hard work was still required. "Certainly there is respect for the family name no doubt, but it's a respect based on delivery and based on we try to get things done," Calleary told AFP. Support for independents is at historically high levels in polls -- something that is a reflection of popular disillusionment, according to politics lecturer Maura Adshead of the University of Limerick. "When Irish people are disgruntled or fed up with the main political parties, it's often quite normal that they would vote for somebody who stands as an independent," Adshead said. With the outgoing administration led by Kenny likely to struggle to win enough seats for a second term, independents may play a stronger role than ever. The Healy Raes of Kerry say they are well prepared for the elections to the Dail Eireann, the lower house of parliament. "We're a formidable outfit and with Michael in the Dail already and my son Johnny in the council we're in tune with what's needed," Danny Healy Rae said. Moscow (AFP) - Moscow said Wednesday it had started ceasefire negotiations with armed groups in several Syrian provinces following a Moscow-Washington deal on a cessation of hostilities in the war-torn country. The Russian defence ministry said it had opened a coordination centre at its air base in Syria that is "already carrying out work with representatives of the groups in various settlements in the provinces of Hama, Homs, Latakia, Damascus and Deraa." Some local ceasefires have already been agreed, its statement said. Moscow said it had already secured "practical results in the north of Latakia province", adding that "military action has halted" in settlements including Ghnaymeh and Borj Islam in the mountainous area. Still, over the past two days Russian warplanes have carried out 62 sorties over 187 targets in the provinces of Hama, Raqqa, Aleppo, Homs and Deir Ezzor. Talks on ceasefires in other settlements in Latakia and Homs were under way, Russia said. "This work is not simple as it requires not only phone talks but also trips to sites to implement the ceasefire agreements and the delivery of humanitarian aid to the people," the ministry said. Russia said it has also reduced the number of airstrikes over the past two days, primarily in the areas from where ceasefire requests were received. A ceasefire agreement brokered by Russia and the United States does not apply to jihadists like the Islamic State group and Al-Nusra Front and calls for a "cessation of hostilities" between regime forces and opposition groups from 2200 GMT on Friday. But some US officials have expressed doubt over whether Russia will respect the ceasefire, with Secretary of State John Kerry warning that Washington was considering a "Plan B" if Moscow and Damascus do not keep their side of the bargain. The Russian defence ministry in turn urged the US to take practical steps towards the ceasefire. Story continues "We are preparing for -- and moreover -- have begun concrete and difficult practical work towards reconciliation in the Syrian Arab Republic," it said. "We are expecting our American partners to shift to concrete deeds as soon as possible instead of letters and words," it said in an apparent dig at Kerry's Plan B comment. Moscow said that Russians had on Tuesday informed the US military about the work of the coordination centre. "So far there have not been any reciprocal steps from our partners," the ministry said. The defence ministry complained that the peace deal "does not suit everyone", adding that Turkey was continuing to use large-calibre artillery to shell Syrian settlements. Russia said separately that Kerry had phoned his counterpart Sergei Lavrov to discuss the "modalities" of the Syrian settlement. They discussed a resumption of political talks "as soon as possible", the foreign ministry said. Russian warplanes, which have been carrying out a bombing campaign in Syria since late September, are continuing to target jihadists from the Islamic State and other "terrorist" groups, Moscow said. By Gary Robertson RICHMOND, Va. (Reuters) - Violent thunderstorms and damaging winds lashed the U.S. Southeast and mid-Atlantic region on Wednesday, killing at least three people in Virginia a day after tornadoes claimed three lives along the Gulf Coast, authorities said. The National Weather Service (NWS) warned of potential tornadoes along a line of storms stretching from Raleigh, North Carolina, north to parts of Virginia, Maryland and the Washington, D.C. area. Three people were confirmed dead in Waverly, Virginia, a town of some 2,300 residents about 45 miles southeast of Richmond, where at least three structures sustained heavy damage in a mid-afternoon storm, state police spokeswoman Corinne Geller said. Geller said she had no details about the circumstances of the deaths. A funnel cloud was reported in the vicinity at the time of the storm, but there was no immediate official confirmation of a twister, she said. Two highways leading into the town, U.S. Route 460 and State Route 40, were left impassable by heavy debris from the storm, state police said. Authorities also were responding to widespread reports of local flooding. The casualties and damage in Virginia came a day after twisters killed at least three people and left a path of destruction in Louisiana and Mississippi. A storm earlier on Wednesday destroyed a mobile home in Wayne County in central North Carolina, while wind gusts of up to 53 miles per hour were reported at the Columbia Metropolitan Airport in South Carolina, the NWS said. Schools in North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Florida canceled classes or shifted hours ahead of severe weather forecasts. In Louisiana, rescue crews combed through debris for anyone who might have been trapped after at least seven tornadoes pummeled the state and Mississippi on Tuesday. Among the hardest hit was the Mississippi River hamlet of Convent, in St. James Parish, Louisiana, where state officials said two people died and dozens were injured at one trailer park. Most of the estimated 160 mobile homes were destroyed at the park, located about 60 miles west of New Orleans. Story continues Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards said it was "a minor miracle" the casualty toll was not higher as most of the trailers were occupied when the storm hit. In Assumption Parish, which borders St. James Parish, more than 100 homes and businesses were damaged and several were destroyed, said sheriff's office spokesman Robert Martin. The National Weather Service confirmed one fatality near the Mississippi town of Purvis, where a mobile home was destroyed. Florida Governor Rick Scott declared a state of emergency for two counties lashed by a tornado on Tuesday night. Several people were injured and about 70 homes damaged when a tornado ripped through Pensacola, Florida, local media reported. (Reporting by Colleen Jenkins in Winston-Salem, N.C.; additional reporting by Harriet McLeod in Charleston, S.C. and Letitia Stein in Atlanta; Writing by Steve Gorman; Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe and Tom Brown) Bill Would Make British Columbia's Fire Code Compliance Monitoring Risk-Based "The Fire Chiefs' Association of BC applauds the adoption of the new Fire Safety Act. This legislation provides local governments with new and better tools with which they can provide for fire safety within their communities," said Timothy Pley, president of the Fire Chiefs' Association of British Columbia. A newly filed Fire Safety Act in British Columbia will replace the Fire Services Act, legislation that has not had a substantial update since 1979, and the provincial government's fire authorities say the bill will: improve fire code compliance monitoring by making it risk-based enable local authorities to appoint fire safety personnel to carry out fire inspections, investigations, and evacuations establish an administrative enforcement model to address non-compliance issues in a more timely and effective way shift to a risk-based approach for compliance monitoring in municipalities "The Fire Chiefs' Association of BC applauds the adoption of the new Fire Safety Act. This legislation provides local governments with new and better tools with which they can provide for fire safety within their communities," said Timothy Pley, president of the Fire Chiefs' Association of British Columbia. "The adoption of a risk-based model of fire code compliance monitoring will help local governments apply their fire prevention and inspection efforts where the need exists, preventing fires and providing for life safety where the fire risk is highest. Local governments are now empowered to exercise local government authority in mitigating imminent fire risk, rather than the older system of referring those concerns to the provincial government for action. Local governments will now be able to take immediate mitigation actions when imminent life safety risks are found. This means safer communities for citizens and for the firefighters serving within those communities." The Fire Safety Act takes into account feedback received during what the authorities describe as an extensive consultation process. The most recent consultation group included representation from the Union of British Columbia Municipalities, Local Government Management Association, the Fire Chiefs' Association, Fire Training Officers Association, Fire Prevention Officers Association of BC, Volunteer Fire Fighters' Association of BC, and the BC Professional Fire Fighters' Association. "The new act will result in a manageable and streamlined out-of-court enforcement system with administrative penalties aimed at improving compliance. And it will provide local authorities with the power to evacuate or close a building where there is immediate danger to life and/or property. It also streamlines the fire inspection and investigation process. Simply, this new legislation will improve fire safety in B.C," said Naomi Yamamoto, minister of State for Emergency Preparedness. "The goal of the Fire Safety Act is to modernize the legislation and to make improvements to help ensure the safety of British Columbians," agreed Todd Stone, minister of Transportation and Infrastructure. " What is under consideration takes into account the collective work of a number of previous efforts to update this legislation the Fire Services Act was last updated 20 years ago, and these would be the first significant amendments proposed in over three and a half decades." Austria warned that the European Union's survival was at stake as it pressed Balkan states to reduce the influx of migrants while Greece threatened not to cooperate with future agreements on the crisis if the burden was not fairly shared among member states. Further undermining the bloc's hopes to get a grip on the situation, Hungary meanwhile announced a referendum on Brussels' troubled scheme to share out migrants among the 28-nation group via mandatory quotas. "We have to reduce the influx now. This is a question of survival for the EU," Austrian Interior Minister Johanna Mikl-Leitner said after talks in Vienna with countries on the well-trodden west Balkans route north from Greece. Greece, a main entry point for migrants and where thousands of Afghans have been held up at the border with Macedonia, angrily protested at being excluded from the ministerial meeting, underscoring the deep rifts within the EU. "Greece will no longer agree to any deal if the burdens and responsibilities are not shared proportionally," Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras told the Greek parliament, vowing "We will not allow our country to turn into a warehouse of souls." A joint statement from the Vienna talks said that after hundreds of thousands of people trekked through the Balkans last year, many ending up in Germany, Sweden and also Austria, the inflow must be "massively reduced". The talks come after figures showed more than 110,000 people arriving in Greece and Italy so far this year alone -- 413 perishing in the attempt -- following more than one million arrivals in 2015. Amnesty International hit out at Europe's "shameful" response, saying most EU countries had "simply decided that the protection of their borders is more important than the protection of the rights of refugees". Vienna has come under fire for organising Wednesday's talks and for imposing daily limits on the number of migrants who can apply for asylum in Austria or transit to other countries. But despite sharp criticism, Vienna says that it has no choice, arguing that the EU has failed to get any effective common strategy off the ground. So far, joint EU efforts to halt the influx, including a deal with Turkey, have failed to bear fruit. An EU scheme that agreed in September to relocate 160,000 people among EU nations under mandatory quotas, has seen just 598 relocated so far, with former communist members of the bloc opposing the plan and filing legal challenges. Hungarian Premier Viktor Orban, announcing on Wednesday plans for the so-far undated referendum, said that Brussels had no right to "redraw Europe's cultural and religious identity." - Unilateral - Countries throughout the western Balkans have begun to impose restrictions, sparked by Austria's much-criticised daily migrant limits. Macedonia has closed its frontier to Afghans and introduced more stringent document checks for Syrians and Iraqis seeking to travel to northern and western Europe. "We did not take a unilateral decision," Macedonia's Foreign Minister Nikola Poposki told Germany's Bild daily. "We reacted because of the actions of other countries." As a result, around 3,000 people were waiting at the Idomeni crossing point between Greece and Macedonia on Wednesday, police said, with the Macedonians allowing 860 people through overnight. Greek authorities were attempting to take hundreds by bus back to Athens, but were being hindered by a blockade of motorways by a farmers protest. Yiannis Mouzalas, Greece's minister responsible for migration, said that there were currently some 12,000 migrants stuck in the country, with hundreds more arriving every day. - 'Response is not closures' - EU migration commissioner Dimitris Avramopoulos and Dutch Migration Minister Klaas Dijkhoff warned Tuesday of a "humanitarian crisis that might unfold". Their fears were echoed on Wednesday by Filippo Grandi, the new head of the UN refugee agency UNHCR. "By closing the borders to people that are asking for help and protection, first of all we do not fulfil our obligations," Grandi said in Athens. "The response is not closures, it is cooperation... Everybody has to take a share of this burden," he added. Austrian officials said the conclusions of the talks would be presented to a meeting of EU interior and justice ministers on Thursday in Brussels. Malaysia's Sime Darby Bhd, the world's biggest listed palm oil producer, Wednesday announced a 38 percent plunge in second-quarter profit due to weak commodity prices and China's slowdown. The firm said net profit for the three months ended December 31 was 273.3 million ringgit ($64.6 million), compared to 437.4 million ringgit in the same quarter last year. But Sime Darby, which is also involved in property and the industrial and hospital sectors, also said quarterly revenue rose 10.3 percent year-on-year to 11.83 billion ringgit. Earnings in the plantation division suffered from lower palmoil prices and declining fresh fruit production, "coupled with a significantly more challenging business environment", Mohamad Bakke Salleh, president and group chief executive, said in a statement. Sime Darby's shares dipped 4.02 percent to 7.64 ringgit. Plunging prices of oil and other commodities have hurt Malaysia's growth prospects and government revenues. The economy grew a slower than expected 4.5 percent year-on-year in the three months through December,after climbing 4.7 percent in the previous quarter. The government now expects economic growth of 4-4.5 percent this year, down from an earlier projection of five percent. For the first half of the financial year Sime Darby recorded a 601.7 million ringgit net profit, down 36 percent from the previous six months. The multinational said it expects to face major challenges on the back of an economic slowdown, particularly in China. "The mining sector downturn and slowing growth in China continue to significantly impact the industrial division while consumer-driven businesses remain tested by bearish sentiment," Mohamad Bakke said. Malaysia and neighbouring Indonesia together account for 85 percent of global palm oil production. jsm/sm A Mexican judge has ruled that the charges of terrorism, rebellion and sedition against Zapatista rebel leader Subcomandante Marcos reached their statute of limitations after 21 years, authorities said Tuesday. The court in the southern state of Chiapas said 12 other rebels were also no longer facing those and other charges, which were lodged in 1995. Marcos would have faced 40 years in prison if convicted of the terrorism charges, but the statute of limitations expired earlier this month. The masked, pipe-smoking rebel became the standard-bearer of the Zapatista National Liberation Army (EZLN) when it emerged in the impoverished state of Chiapas on January 1, 1994, to fight for more rights for the majority indigenous population. He was last seen in public in May 2015, even though he had suggested the previous year that he was quitting his role as the movement's spokesman and changing his pseudonym to Subcomandante Insurgente Galeano, in honor of a fallen comrade. Authorities have identified Marcos as Rafael Sebastian Guillen, a former philosophy professor who was born in the northern state of Tamaulipas and taught at the National Autonomous University of Mexico in the capital. The 12-day rebellion of 1994 left dozens of people dead. A peace pact was signed in 1996, but the Zapatistas' demands were never met. The rebels created their own autonomous justice, health and education systems in around 30 communities in Chiapas. By Samia Nakhoul TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iran's top leader warned voters on Wednesday the West was plotting to influence elections pitting centrists close to President Hassan Rouhani against conservative hardliners in a contest that could shape the Islamic Republic for years to come. In remarks reflecting an abiding mistrust of Rouhani's rapprochement with the West, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said he was confident Iranians would vote in favour of keeping Iran's anti-Western stance on Friday in the first elections since last year's nuclear accord with world powers. Rouhani's allies, who hope the deal will hasten Iran's opening up to the world after years of sanctions, have come under increasing pressure in the election campaign from hardliners who accuse them of links to Western powers including the United States and Britain. Those accusations seek to tap into Iranians' wariness of Western motives and memories of a 1953 coup against nationalist prime minister Mohammad Mossadegh that was orchestrated by the United States and Britain and strengthened the Shah's rule. Rouhani on Wednesday denied accusations from hardliners that the candidates close to him were affiliated with Western powers, calling it an insult to the intelligence of Iranians. In remarks on his official website, Khamenei was quoted as saying he was certain the United States had concocted a plot after the nuclear deal to "infiltrate" the Islamic Republic. "When I talked about a U.S. infiltration plot, it made some people in the country frustrated," said the Shi'ite clerical leader, who has final say on all major state policy in Iran. "INFILTRATION" "They complain (about) why we talk about infiltration all the time ... But this is a real plot. Sometimes even the infiltrators don't know they are a part of it," he said. "One of the enemy's ruses is to portray a false dichotomy between a pro-government and anti-government parliament," Khamenei was quoted as saying by state news agency IRNA. "The nation does not want a pro- or anti-government parliament, but rather a strong and faithful parliament that is aware of its duties and is not intimidated by the United States," he said. Supporters of Rouhani, buoyed by Iran's nuclear deal, aim to gain influence in the elections for the 290-seat parliament and the 88-member Assembly of Experts, which will choose the country's next supreme leader. But potential detente with the West has alarmed hardliners, who have seen a flood of European trade and investment delegations arrive in Tehran to discuss possible deals in the wake of the nuclear agreement. Since then, hardline security officials have arrested dozens of artists, journalists and businessmen, including Iranians holding joint U.S. or British citizenship, as part of a crackdown on "Western infiltration". Rouhani had criticised the arrests before, saying some "play with the infiltration word" to pursue their own political goals. Moves by hardliners to block moderate candidates and portray them as stooges of the West have soured the mood in the final days of campaigning, and Rouhani complained on Wednesday of a public discourse rife with "abuse, accusations and insults". Addressing political activists, former president Hashemi Rafsanjani, one of Rouhani's most powerful allies, said Rouhani's election in 2013 "was Iranians first step to bring the country back to a path of moderation". "I hope people take the second step in Fridays elections," he said. In an apparent reference to hardliners' accusations that moderates were under Western influence, Rafsanjani said in a statement published on ISNA news agency: "Labelling rivals, in order to turn peoples hopes into despair, has no results." "The Iranians ... will prove that they are seeking Irans political independence and will say no to colonialism, extremism and tyranny." Opposition figure Mehdi Karoubi, under house arrest since 2009, will cast his vote in elections on Friday, his son Taghi said in a Facebook posting, a move that may provide a boost to reformist candidates close to Rouhani. It would be the first time Karoubi has voted in an election since his arrest. His son said a mobile ballot box may be taken to his father's house. Karoubi and fellow reformist Mirhossein Mousavi, both in their 70s, ran for election in June 2009 and became figureheads for Iranians, many of whom protested against a contest they believed was rigged to bring back President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. The government denied wrongdoing and said foreign enemies had plotted to overthrow Iran's leaders by stirring up the biggest opposition demonstrations since the 1979 revolution. Hardliners have asked the judiciary to execute the two opposition leaders, calling them seditionists who aimed to topple the clerical establishment. But authorities have chosen so far to isolate rather than prosecute them. In his 2013 election campaign, Rouhani promised to end their house arrest: Critics say his failure to make good on that pledge shows human rights is less of a priority for him than improving the economy. Karoubi is a cleric and ex-speaker of parliament. Mousavi is a former prime minister. (Additional reporting by Bozorgmehr Sharafedin and Sam Wilkin; Editing by William Maclean and Dominic Evans) By Francois Murphy and Maja Zuvela VIENNA (Reuters) - Austria, defying criticism from Greek and U.N. refugee officials, took further steps on Wednesday to coordinate a slew of border restrictions spanning the Balkans that have caused a worsening logjam of migrants in Greece. As Vienna pursued measures to stem a continuing migrant influx, neighbouring Hungary's anti-immigrant government announced it would hold a referendum on European Union plans for mandatory migrant quotas that it has already rejected. The moves appeared to deal further blows to a German-led quest for an EU-wide solution to a crisis threatening the bloc's cohesion, though Austria has argued that what it is doing will spur others to eventually agree a common European strategy. As migrants cradling young children blocked a motorway in central Greece demanding onward passage to Macedonia, Greece's migration minister said the border crackdown was causing a "mini humanitarian crisis" on its soil. Hosting a meeting with Balkan states straddling the main migrant route into the heart of Europe, to which Greece was not invited, Austria said national controls were necessary in the absence of measures embraced by all 28 EU members to stem the tide of people into Europe from the Middle East and Africa. A joint statement issued on Wednesday by the 10 countries in attendance in Vienna said participants had agreed to improve cooperation and turn away "migrants not in need of international protection", though that term was not defined. "The migration flow along the Western Balkans route needs to be substantially reduced," said the statement by Austria and countries along the migrant corridor between it and Greece, such as Serbia and Macedonia. Austria, last stop en route to Germany for hundreds of thousands of migrants who have fled war and deprivation in the last year, has set off what it calls a "domino effect" of national border controls limiting the flow of people northwards. The small Alpine republic says it is overwhelmed by the influx, but the United Nations refugee agency said the barriers to movement imposed by Western Balkan states fly in the face of basic refugee protection rights. "(These) restrictions probably go against even European rules and regulations and certainly against basic refugee protection laws," Filippo Grandi, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, told reporters in Athens. Austria was unrepentant, despite rebukes from Germany which is pushing for a much-delayed European response to the crisis, including processing of migrants as they reach Greece and an agreement with Turkey to slow the exodus of people from there. "There is still no European solution in sight," Austrian Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz told reporters in Vienna. "For that reason, it is necessary for us to take national measures." EU leaders will hold a special migration summit with Turkey on March 7, European Council President Donald Tusk and European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said on Wednesday. HUNGARY SETS REFERENDUM In Budapest, Prime Minister Viktor Orban said Hungary would hold a referendum on European Commission plans for mandatory migrant quotas applied to each member state, an initiative his government has rebuffed. He gave no date for the vote. Orban has engaged in harsh anti-migrant rhetoric since the migrant crisis escalated last year and gained notoriety for erecting a steel fence along Hungary's southern border to keep out migrants streaming in from Balkan neighbours to the south. Orban has said migrant quotas would redraw the ethnic, cultural and religious map of Hungary and Europe. "(We are) responding to public sentiment now: we Hungarians think introducing resettlement quotas for migrants without the backing of the people equals an abuse of power," he said on Wednesday. Greece filed a rare diplomatic protest with Austria for excluding it from Wednesday's meeting of foreign and interior ministers in Vienna, held a day before an EU interior ministers' gathering in Brussels. An air of mutual recrimination has come to dog EU debate on how to end the crisis and Austria added to it on Wednesday, accusing Germany of sending mixed messages on immigration. It said Berlin should decide between backing Greece in letting migrants continue their journeys into Europe and telling other countries not to let too many people through. Austria has mainly served as a conduit into Germany for migrants but has absorbed a similar number of asylum seekers relative to its much smaller population. Public anxiety about the influx has contributed to a rise in support for the far-right opposition, and Vienna's coalition government has taken an increasingly hard line on immigration despite initially throwing open the country's borders. Austria said last week that it would limit the number of asylum claims at its southern border, on the main migrant route, to 3,200 and introduce a daily cap on asylum claims there of 80, prompting criticism from the European Commission. Kurz complained that Greece had failed to stop migrants from travelling on towards Austria and Germany and said a lack of political will within the EU had prevented the introduction of coordinated bloc-wide measures to deter migrants from coming. "There is no readiness (in Greece) to reduce the flow," Kurz said, describing a recent meeting of EU foreign ministers. "The interest on the Greek side is only in transporting refugees as quickly as possible towards central Europe." "We all believe in a European solution. We are also all working towards a European solution," Austrian Interior Minister Johanna Mikl-Leitner told reporters. "There is just one question: when will this European solution come?" (Additional reporting by Michele Kambas in Athens, Yannis Behrakis and Lefteris Karagiannopoulos in Idomeni, Greece, Alastair Macdonald in Brussels, Marton Dunai and Krisztina Than in Budapest; Editing by Mark Heinrich) By Ayman al-Warfalli BENGHAZI, Libya (Reuters) - (In February 23 story, corrects location in last paragraph to Sabratha, not Benghazi) Military forces loyal to Libya's eastern government said on Tuesday they had taken control of two key neighbourhoods in Benghazi, building on gains made against Islamist fighters over the previous three days. The military said it had full control of the districts of Boatni and Laithi and claimed advances in several other areas. A hospital source said 20 people had been killed and 45 wounded in the latest clashes. The eastern city of Benghazi has seen some of the worst violence in the conflict that has plagued Libya since Muammar Gaddafi was toppled in an uprising five years ago. The violence escalated when military commander Khalifa Haftar launched a campaign in 2014 against Islamists and other armed groups, with the factions taking up entrenched positions in Benghazi's streets. On Tuesday residents celebrated the army's advances by sounding car horns and setting off fireworks. Some returned to their homes for the first time in months to check for damage. Haftar's Libyan National Army is loyal to Libya's eastern government, which has received international recognition but is opposed by a rival government based in Tripoli. A unity government nominated under a United Nations-backed plan is trying to win support within Libya, but its progress has been hindered by political arguments including what role Haftar could have in a future national army. Libya's eastern parliament rejected an initial unity government line-up last month and has repeatedly delayed voting on a revised proposal, pushing back a vote once again on Tuesday. Islamist fighters have exploited a security vacuum to expand their presence in Libya, with militants loyal to Islamic State establishing control in the coastal city of Sirte and a presence in several other cities, including Benghazi. In a separate development on Tuesday, the mayor of the western city of Sabratha said military brigades there had attacked several buildings housing suspected Islamic State militants. Hussein al-Thwadi said militants at one of the sites had fought back, and that four brigade members had been killed and five injured. On Friday a U.S. air strike against a suspected Islamic State training camp in Sabratha killed nearly 50 people. Serbia's government said two of its diplomats who were kidnapped in Sabratha in November also died in the strike. (Writing by Aidan Lewis; Editing by James Dalgleish) LIMA (Reuters) - A special electoral board in Peru on Wednesday opted not to bar "outsider" Julio Guzman from April elections for president, setting the stage for a likely tight battle between him and longtime front-runner Keiko Fujimori. The country's National Jury of Elections had blocked Guzman's centrist party from this year's elections because it broke a series of technical rules, which threatened to disqualify him. But the Special Jury of Elections, tasked with approving candidates, said Guzman's party amended the errors and was now enrolled. It also cited Guzman's constitutional right to participate in elections. Guzman, a 45-year-old economist who climbed rapidly to second place on pledges to take the country back from a corrupt political elite, celebrated the decision from the highland region of Cusco where he campaigned for the coveted rural vote. "It's amazing I got the news in Anta, where my grandmother was born," Guzman said amid cheering supporters dressed in his party's signature purple. "It's beautiful, very exciting." Guzman, unknown to most voters months ago, has tapped a well of support from Peruvians looking for someone new in a race dominated by well-known but unpopular politicians. He was the only candidate seen as virtually tying Fujimori in a likely June runoff, an Ipsos poll showed Sunday. Fujimori's backing in a first-round vote slipped three points. Fujimori, the rightwing daughter of jailed ex-President Alberto Fujimori, enjoys a double-digit lead over Guzman but is not expected to garner enough votes to win outright April 10. The legal dispute over Guzman's candidacy, which dragged on for nearly a month, likely boosted his bid. He used the ample media coverage to rail against the "status quo" that he said was pulling strings to keep him from office. However, his critics will likely cite the electoral board's qualms with his party to argue Guzman was given unfair advantage. The board had said his party changed its statutes in an assembly without enough advance notice and necessary party members. Guzman had said he would summon mass protests if needed to ensure a place in elections. Guzman worked for the Inter-American Development Bank in Washington for a decade and was briefly an official in President Ollanta Humala's government. Humala cannot run for a second straight term and his candidate is trailing in polls. Guzman has proposed ramping up infrastructure spending and changing the mandate of the central bank to make jobs a priority. (Reporting by Mitra Taj and Marco Aquino; Editing by Lisa Shumaker) STEM STEM Teacher Prep Gets New Commitments The White House goal of training or retraining 100,000 teachers in STEM subjects by 2021 is gaining momentum. 100Kin10, an organization dedicated to achieving this end, just announced 49 new partners, including Texas A&M University and Washington University in St. Louis, among other businesses, non-profits, foundations and academic institutions working on the mission. The 100Kin10 coalition formed in 2011 following a State of the Union address in which President Obama called for the preparation of "100,000 new teachers in the fields of science and technology and engineering and math." The organization's participants, which now number at least 280, gain access to research, funding opportunities and other resources to help them deliver their STEM teacher training. To join the organization, partner candidates undergo a review process by a team of partner reviewers and a panel of experts in education and STEM. Applicants must show organizational strength and STEM and teaching expertise and a strong commitment toward the 100,000 STEM teacher goal. So far, five years into the 10-year program, partners have been responsible for training "over 28,000 STEM educators," according to 100Kin10. "STEM is at the core of the most pressing challenges of the 21st century. To solve them, we need to activate all the brainpower and diverse experiences of our nation's most precious natural resource: its people. Without excellent STEM teachers inspiring all of our nation's youth, this challenge will continue to elude us," said co-founder and Executive Director Talia Milgrom-Elcott in a prepared statement. "100Kin10 partners are bringing their individual passion, strengths, ideas and resources to create solutions and together forge a path forward to reach the goal of 100,000 excellent STEM teachers." Among the new partners is Texas A&M, which has pledged to increase the supply of STEM teachers by 950 by 2021. That total will include 165 secondary math and science teachers trained specifically in serving the needs of Texas K-12 students. Under the university's proposal, three Texas A&M colleges the College of Science, the College of Education and Human Development and the Dwight Look College of Engineering will work together on several initiatives. One of those is a possible teacher preparation program being introduced in a new multidisciplinary engineering major in the teacher certification areas of biology, chemistry, engineering, physics and mathematics as part of engineering's 25 by 25 initiative. Other potential collaborations could include hands-on STEM tools for early childhood and middle grade teachers to embed engineering concepts into math and science lessons. University administrators also predict a major role for an extension campus with a focus on STEM that will open in the Rio Grande Valley, a historically underserved area. "Because very few high school teachers hold engineering degrees, it is difficult to prepare and excite their students about this field through their own personal experience," said M. Katherine Banks, vice chancellor and dean of the university's College of Engineering. "This innovative partnership will help graduates earn an engineering degree while they earn a secondary science or math teacher licensure. By better preparing the teachers, they can better prepare their students." Washington University in St. Louis' Institute for School Partnership committed to doubling the number of K-12 teachers and educators involved in STEM professional development programs between 2016 and 2020. The institute said it would accomplish this by expanding its current programs locally and designing two new national initiatives for K-8 teachers. Each initiative will be assessed based on increased teacher competence and confidence and on student achievement growth. "After over 20 years of supporting teachers, we are excited to join this national movement to give teachers the resources they need to help their students to excel in STEM," said Victoria May, the executive director at the institute, in a press release. By Ben Blanchard and David Brunnstrom BEIJING/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - China's South China Sea military deployments are no different from U.S. deployments on Hawaii, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said on Monday, striking a combative tone ahead of a visit by Foreign Minister Wang Yi to the United States this week. The United States last week accused China of raising tensions in the South China Sea by its apparent deployment of surface-to-air missiles on a disputed island, a move China has neither confirmed nor denied. Asked whether the South China Sea, and the missiles, would come up when Wang is in the United States to meet Secretary of State John Kerry, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said Washington should not use the issue of military facilities on the islands as a "pretext to make a fuss". "The U.S. is not involved in the South China Sea dispute, and this is not and should not become a problem between China and the United States," Hua told a daily news briefing. U.S. State Department spokesman Mark Toner said the United States would "press China to deescalate and stop its militarization" in the South China Sea. Toner said China's "militarization activity" only escalated tensions, and added: "There needs to be a diplomatic mechanism in place that allows these territorial claims to be settled in a peaceful way." Wang is due to meet Kerry on Tuesday. Their talks will also include the international response to North Korea's recent nuclear test and rocket launch, cyber security and climate change, Toner told a regular news briefing. China hopes the U.S. abides by its promises not to take sides in the dispute and stop "hyping up" the issue and tensions, especially over China's "limited" military positions there, she said. "China's deploying necessary, limited defensive facilities on its own territory is not substantively different from the United States defending Hawaii," Hua added. U.S. ships and aircraft carrying out frequent, close-in patrols and surveillance in recent years is what has increased regional tensions, she said. "It's this that is the biggest cause of the militarization of the South China Sea. We hope that the United States does not confuse right and wrong on this issue or practise double standards." AUSTRALIA OPERATIONS URGED On Monday, a senior U.S. naval officer was reported as saying Australia and other countries should follow the U.S. lead and conduct "freedom-of-navigation" naval operations within 12 nautical miles (18 km) of contested islands in the South China Sea. China claims most of the South China Sea, through which more than $5 trillion in global trade passes every year. Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, the Philippines and Taiwan have rival claims. Beijing has rattled nerves with construction and reclamation activities on the islands it occupies, though it says these moves are mostly for civilian purposes. The state-owned China Southern Power Grid Company will set up a power grid management station in what China calls Sansha City, located on Woody Island in the Paracels, which will be able to access microgrids in 16 other islands, according to China's top regulator of state-owned assets. In the long term, the station will be able to remotely manage power for many islands there, the statement added, without specifying which islands it was referring to. Wang is scheduled to be in the United States from Tuesday until Thursday. Hua said the minister is also expected to discuss North Korea, and she repeated China's opposition to the possible U.S. deployment of an advanced U.S. missile defence system following North Korea's recent rocket launch. (Reporting Ben Blanchard and Megha Rajagopalan in Beijing and David Brunnstrom in Washington; Editing by Richard Borsuk) What Were Following: President Obamas Prison Proposal The president sent Congress a plan outlining the closure of the Guantanamo Bay prison in Cuba, built to house suspected foreign terrorists detained in the war on terrorism. The plan calls for transferring some detainees to facilities on American soil, which is currently prohibited by law and strongly opposed by the Republican-controlled Congress. Last month, the Guantanamos prisoner population dipped below 100 for the first time, to 91, since the facility opened in 2002. The Scuffle Over SCOTUS: In the hours after Antonin Scalias death, Senate Republicans signaled that his Supreme Court seat should be filled by the next president, and not Obama. Theyve now made it official: GOP members of the Senate Judiciary Committeethe panel responsible for vetting court picksdeclared they would not grant an Obama nominee a hearing, much less a vote, before the presidential election. Recommended: Will Conservatives Mount a Third-Party Challenge If Trump Is the Nominee? The Nominating Contest in Nevada: All bets are off as Republicans caucus in the Silver State tonight. Donald Trump is the favorite, but because of Nevadas caucus process and its relatively recent entry into the early voting rotation, polling is very limited. While Trump has led Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz comfortably, a victory for the front-runner is far less assured than it was in New Hampshire or South Carolina. Follow along as we liveblog the event here. Snapshot This photo by Martin Seraphin, taken in April 2015 under a bridge in Belgium, is titled Stairways from Heaven. See more from the shortlist of the 2016 Sony World Photography Awards here. Quoted If a predator came along, theyd be screwed. They seem completely fearless. Liana Zanette, who studies wildlife populations Conditional apologies do not work well. They are the Jiu-Jitsu of apologies: Im sorry if you were offended, whats wrong with you?Edwin Battistella, a linguist who studies apologies This is an area when I can get agreement from Bernie Sanders and Mitch McConnell. That doesnt happen that often. President Obama on the nations growing opioid epidemic Story continues Evening Read Julie Beck on coincidences and the meaning of life: Bernard Beitman in his research has found that certain personality traits are linked to experiencing more coincidencespeople who describe themselves as religious or spiritual, people who are self-referential (or likely to relate information from the external world back to themselves), and people who are high in meaning-seeking are all coincidence-prone. People are also likely to see coincidences when they are extremely sad, angry, or anxious. Coincidences never happen to me at all, because I never notice anything, [statistician David] Spiegelhalter says. I never talk to anybody on trains. If Im with a stranger, I dont try to find a connection with them, because Im English. Beitman, on the other hand, says, My life is littered with coincidences. He tells me a story of how he lost his dog when he was 8 or 9 years old. He went to the police station to ask if they had seen it; they hadnt. Then, I was crying a lot and took the wrong way home, and there was the dog I got into [studying coincidences] just because, hey, look Bernie, whats going on here? For Beitman, probability is not enough when it comes to studying coincidences. Because statistics can describe what happens, but cant explain it any further than chance. I know theres something more going on than we pay attention to, he says. Random is not enough of an explanation for me. News Quiz 1. Court documents reveal the FBI is seeking access to at least 12 __________. Recommended: Ben Carson Suspects His Campaign Was a Scam (See answer or scroll to the bottom.) 2. Facebook is using artificial-intelligence technology to create a __________. (See answer or scroll to the bottom.) 3. If she wins election this fall, Dolly Elizondo would the first __________ in Congress. (See answer or scroll to the bottom.) Reader Response Jeff Carter writes, I remember the moment of my adulthood quite vividly: I was 23. It was April 19, 1991, and I was standing in a hospital corridor. My wife at the time had to have general anesthesia for the Caesarian, in a room from which Id been excluded. Nobody was around, and the silence was broken by the cries of a newborn. *My* newborn. My blood ran cold, and afterwards I never just did anything randomly again. My daughter and her sister figured into every decision I made and still do, even though they are both well into their 20s. Carly Callison didnt truly feel like an adult until she had her second child, Wilson: Im sitting in the NICU with my mom rocking my baby boy. The neonatologist came over to me and started explaining how Wilson was doing and what tests they were ordering, including an echocardiogram. After he finished speaking I looked at my mom and said Was he talking to me or you? She replied, He was talking to you. At that moment everything changed. Decisions I never imagined considering were part of our lives now. Six and a half years later, Wilson is a thriving, healthy little boy who does have Down Syndrome. I wouldnt change a thing, and its a happy memory realizing that he is responsible for me growing up. Read many more parents stories here. Verbs Defunct British power plant collapsed, in-hospital Zika tests introduced, -splaining splained, celebrities rallied, raccoons worst fears realized, lovesick meerkat expert cleared. Answers: apple devices, map, latina from texas Read more from The Atlantic: This article was originally published on The Atlantic. ROME (Reuters) - Europe's top human rights court condemned Italy on Tuesday for its role in the 2003 kidnap by the CIA of an Egyptian Muslim cleric under the U.S. "extraordinary rendition" programme. Hassan Mustafa Osama Nasr, also known as Abu Omar, was snatched off a street in Milan in 2003 and flown to Egypt, where he said he was tortured during seven months as a captive. The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) said in a statement that Italy, which had granted refugee status to the imam, was aware that he had suffered extraordinary rendition. "Italian authorities had a duty to take the appropriate measures to ensure that the persons within their jurisdiction were not subjected to torture or to inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment," it said. Italy's foreign ministry declined to comment on the ruling. The ECHR ordered Italy to pay 70,000 euros ($77,000) to Nasr, saying national authorities had "knowingly exposed him to a real risk" of treatment contrary to anti-torture laws. It ordered a further 15,000 euros be paid to Nasr's wife, who it said suffered a lengthy period of "severe mental suffering and distress" when her husband disappeared, and a further 30,000 euros to the pair to cover their costs. The couple have still not received combined payments of 1.5 million euros provisionally awarded to them by a Milan court, the ECHR said. In 2009 Italy convicted 22 CIA officials and an army officer for Nasr's kidnapping in a case that led to diplomatic tension between Rome and Washington, although none of the 23 was ever detained in Italy. The trial was the first of its kind against "renditions" practiced by former U.S. President George W. Bush's administration in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks in Washington and New York. Former CIA Milan station chief Robert Seldon Lady received a partial pardon from Italy's president in December, and the sentence handed to a more junior official was effectively cancelled. ($1 = 0.9092 euros) (Reporting by Isla Binnie; Editing by Hugh Lawson) BRUSSELS (Reuters) - All European Union nations except for France and Italy have replied to the European Commission's request for information from member states in connection with Volkswagen's emissions scandal, an EU source said on Tuesday. The European Commission, the EU executive, has asked all 28 EU countries to investigate breaches of vehicle emissions rules after Volkswagen admitted last year it had used banned software to mask nitrogen oxide emissions and had also in Europe understated carbon dioxide levels. At the same time, it sent a letter to Volkswagen asking for information, which European Environment and Energy Commissioner Miguel Arias Canete said on Tuesday was so far unanswered. Meanwhile, he said 26 of the 28 EU member states had replied to a letter particularly related to the irregularities on CO2 emissions he sent together with Industry Commissioner Elzbieta Bienkowska, but "two big countries" had not. He did not name the countries, but an EU official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said they were Italy and France. Contacted by Reuters, French and Italian government officials had no immediate comment. As vehicle testing to approve cars in the EU is overseen by national authorities, the Commission is reliant on each country to enforce rules. In January, it proposed a tougher regime that would give the Commission more power and diminish the role of national authorities. However, the draft law needs to be approved by member states. The Commission can impose fines on manufacturers for breaking EU emissions laws, but says its first priority is to establish the facts. (Reporting by Barbara Lewis; Additional reporting by Agnieszka Flak in Milan and Gilles Guillaume in Paris; Editing by Tom Pfeiffer and Mark Potter) Lawyers for the gun companies that made and sold the firearm used in the 2012 Sandy Hook massacre have asked a state judge to dismiss a lawsuit. Within two months, a judge in Connecticut is expected to decide whether a lawsuit against the companies that made and sold the rifle used in the December 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre will proceed. A survivor and nine families affected by the fatal shooting are suing the maker, distributor and seller of the Bushmaster AR-15, which authorities said the gunman used to kill 26 educators and childrenincluding 20 first-gradersin less than five minutes on December 14, 2012, at the school in Newtown, Connecticut. The case names Remington Arms Co., the manufacturer of the weapon, as well as Camfour Inc., a distributor of firearms, and Riverview Gun Sales, the now-defunct dealer in East Windsor, Connecticut, that sold the rifle to the shooters mother in 2010. In a crucial hearing Monday, the lawyers representing the companies asked Fairfield District Superior Court Judge Barbara Bellis to dismiss the lawsuit, saying their clients are shielded by a 2005 federal law that provides gun businesses immunity from civil lawsuits. The legislation at the center of the case is the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA), which prevents gun violence victims from taking legal action against firearms distributors whose weapons are used in crimes and fatal shootings. Congress has expressed its clear intention that these kinds of cases against firearms manufacturers shall not be brought and shall not proceed, James Vogts, a lawyer representing Remington, said in court. The 20-year-old gunman, Adam Lanza, obtained the rifle from the Newtown home he shared with his mother, Nancy Lanza. He first killed her, then drove to Sandy Hook Elementary during the morning of the rampage. He shot his way into the locked building, then proceeded to kill 26 people as well as himself. Lawyers representing the families argue the rifle shouldnt have been entrusted to the general public because it is a military-style assault weapon that is unsuited for civilian use. They say the companies knewor should have knownabout the high risks posed by the rifle, including the ability for a shooter to use it to inflict maximum casualties and serious injury. Story continues It was Remington that did the marketing, it was Remington that pushed the weapon, said the plaintiffs lead attorney, Josh Koskoff. It was Remington that took a military weapon and tried to profit from its sale. He cited some of the companys marketing campaigns, including consider your man-card reissued. The plaintiffs believe they have a case because the PLCAA includes six exemptions, including a negligent entrustment clause. Koskoff said that Remington manufactured a firearm designed to kill and designed for mass murder and made it available to the general public. We are saying that its their job, their responsibility to decide which weapons to sell to which people, he said. We fully believe that we have a just casethe utmost confidence that the justice system will work here to the fairness of the families. In a press conference before the hearing, Koskoff said, Children and the victims in Sandy Hook stared down the barrel of an assault rifle designed for Vietnam and in war. These arent weapons designed for home defense. These arent weapons designed to hunt. Theyre designed to kill. The victims relatives initially filed the legal action two years after the massacre, in December 2014. The case was delayed because the defendants tried to transfer it to federal court, where it was less likely to move forward than at the state level. In October 2015, it was returned from federal court to the state. Having the case in a Connecticut courtroom is viewed by some as an advantage for the plaintiffs because of its proximity to the shooting. The court, located in Bridgeport, Connecticut, is about 20 miles from where the massacre occurred. The two-hour hearing Monday stemmed from the defendants motion to dismiss the case. Were simply asking the court to do what courts do all the time, and that is read statutes and apply plain languageand keep those words in mind and the purpose of the statute in mind when deciding what the legislative intent was, Vogts said. The attorney representing Camfour, the distributor, argued that his client can be held liable only when the individual whom the company directly entrusted with the firearm uses it in a crime. Peter Berry, the attorney for the seller Riverview, argued that the firearm wasnt used to injure others by the individual who purchased it legally, namely Nancy Lanza. I think the chain is broken when Adam Lanza kills his mother and steals a firearm. I think that he on that point is on his own and he is the person who the defendant should be, not necessarily the seller or distributor of the firearm, Berry said. Koskoff argued the case is more serious, more heartfelt, more thought through than any other case a lawyer will ever see. What happened at Sandy Hook connected the lives of not only the people who died but their families to these defendants in the worst possible way, he said. Relatives of the victims were present in the courtroom, as well as members of the media. Before the hearing, some of the families represented in the lawsuit addressed the media near the court at the offices of Koskoff, Koskoff & Bieder. This is an instrument of war, designed for the battlefield, that is sold and marketed to the general public, said Mark Barden, whose 7-year-old son, Daniel, died at the school. We feel that we deserve our day in court, and thats what were asking for. Nicole Hockley, whose son Dylan was 6 when he was shot and killed, said the ultimate goal of the lawsuit is to prevent other individuals and communities from going through what the families have endured in the wake of the tragedy. There were a lot of guns that the shooter couldve chosen from his arsenal and his mothers arsenal to attack the people at Sandy Hook School, she said. He chose the AR-15 because he was aware of how many shots it could get out, how lethal it was the way it was designedthat it would serve his objective of killing as many people as possible in the shortest time possible. Bill Sherlach, whose wife, Mary, was killed at Sandy Hook, said businesses outside of the gun industry, such as car manufacturers, risk being held liable for making dangerous products or not providing adequate instructions. The PLCAA has become an issue in the presidential campaign. Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has gone after her Democratic challenger, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, from the left for his gun record, which includes voting for the PLCAA earlier in his career. She has accused him of being out of step with progressives on guns. He defends his record, saying that he is from rural Vermont and that he wanted to protect mom-and-pop gun shops from legal responsibility. In 2005, Clinton was a senator who voted against the measure. She acknowledged the hearing in two Twitter posts on Monday: Gun manufacturers should be held accountable when they endanger Americans. Add your name if you agree: https://t.co/T9nZ3kFPEm Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) February 22, 2016 How one law gives gun makers immunity from accountability and could derail justice for Sandy Hook families. https://t.co/qNgOGW2q41 Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) February 22, 2016 When then-President George W. Bush signed the PLCAA into law, the National Rifle Association called it the most significant piece of pro-gun legislation in 20 years. A month ago, congressional Democrats and the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence introduced a bill that seeks to repeal the PLCAA by allowing victims to sue firearms manufacturers and sellers. Sanders has vowed to co-sponsor the measure, taking on a leadership role in the gun debate during a critical time in the primary season. Judge Bellis didnt issue a ruling on Monday. The two sides in the lawsuit are scheduled to meet again for a status hearing on April 19. Bellis could rule before then, which likely would turn the date into the discovery phase before the trial. Related Articles By Colin Packham and Jarni Blakkarly SYDNEY (Reuters) - The significant sympathy generated by the detention and likely deportation of a baby girl born in Australia to Nepalese parents could be a watershed in public opinion about the country's harsh asylum seeker policies. The infant, known only by the pseudonym Asha, Nepalese for "hope", has humanised hundreds of anonymous asylum seekers who are faced with deportation from Australia to a detention camp on the South Pacific island of Nauru. The outpouring of public support, including an overnight blockade at a Brisbane hospital where she was treated for severe burns, has been likened by some to the shocking images last year of a young Syrian asylum seeker dead on a Greek beach. Supporters credited the week-long protest at the hospital with forcing the hand of Immigration Minister Peter Dutton, who on Monday had Baby Asha and her family moved to a local community detention facility, which allows some freedom of movement. "What is resonating is that a lot of people are looking at that baby and thinking that could be my baby," said Kon Karapanagiotidis, chief executive officer of the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre. People at the blockade carried posters with the pixellated face of the baby girl and the hashtag #BabyAsha was Twitter's fourth highest trending topic worldwide over the weekend when the hospital stand-off reached its climax. The number of asylum seekers trying to reach Australia is small compared with those arriving in Europe, but border security has long been a hot-button political issue. The coalition government led by the conservative Liberal Party came to power in 2013 on a campaign to "Stop the Boats", adopting tough measures as a deterrent. Everyone who arrives by boat is detained and sent to Nauru or Papua New Guinea's Manus Island. The government also conducts tow-backs, or turning a boat back to its origin. The policies have been widely criticised by international human rights groups and the United Nations. Medical groups have been particularly critical of detaining children in the offshore camps, where abuse has been frequently reported. Doctors at the Brisbane hospital had refused to release Asha. LEGAL CHALLENGE REJECTED Still, Australia's High Court this month rejected a legal challenge to the country's right to deport 267 refugee children and their families brought to Australia from Nauru for medical treatment. Asha, the first baby born in immigration detention in Australia to be transferred to Nauru, was flown back to Australia last month for medical treatment after she scalded herself with boiling water while learning to walk in a tent at the detention centre. "In terms of a dramatic shift in community attitudes, there is no going back from this one," Ian Rintoul, coordinator of the Refugee Action Coalition, said of the public support for Asha. "I think for a large number of people this has been a turning point." However, others said any public shift in attitude was unlikely to impact government policy. Immigration Minister Peter Dutton strongly hinted at that when he said on Monday that Asha and her family would be returned to Nauru at a later date. "We are not going to allow people smugglers to get out a message that if you seek assistance in an Australian hospital, that somehow that is your formula to becoming an Australian citizen," Dutton told the Australian Broadcasting Corp. "I couldn't be any clearer - once the medical assistance has been provided and the legal issues resolved, people will go back to Nauru." (Writing by Jane Wardell; Editing by Richard Borsuk) RIYADH (Reuters) - Kuwait and Qatar on Wednesday followed the example of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain in urging their citizens to avoid travel to Lebanon for safety reasons, their state news agencies reported. Riyadh, Abu Dhabi and Manama issued statements on Tuesday calling on their citizens not to travel to Lebanon, long a favourite holiday destination for Gulf Arabs. The moves by the Gulf Arab allies came after Saudi Arabia last week suspended aid worth $3 billion to the Lebanese army over the Beirut government's failure to sign up to statements condemning attacks on Saudi diplomatic missions in Iran. In Lebanon's tangled political scene, Saudi Arabia and its Gulf allies are staunchly opposed to Hezbollah, a political party in the governing coalition that also has a powerful militia backed by Iran, Riyadh's arch regional rival. Hezbollah fighters are playing a crucial role fighting alongside President Bashar al-Assad's forces in the Syrian civil war. Saudi Arabia and the other Sunni Gulf Arab states are opposed to Assad. All five of those countries advising against Lebanon travel are members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and usually back Riyadh's diplomatic stance. The sixth GCC member, Oman, has a policy of balancing good relations with its Gulf neighbours and Iran. (Reporting By Ali Abdellati and Angus McDowall; Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky) By Aziz El Yaakoubi CASABLANCA, Morocco (Reuters) - Morocco's main trade unions, whose members control a sixth of the seats in parliament's upper house, held a one-day strike on Wednesday, before saying they would seek to block a government draft bill to reform pensions. Public and private sector workers in Morocco's four largest labour unions went on strike for 24 hours in protest at government efforts to overhaul spending on pensions and subsidies. Morocco has ended fuel subsidies and frozen public-sector hiring, winning praise from international lenders who say it has made better progress in controlling public spending than some other countries in the region. Last month the government adopted a bill to reform the pension system. But protests such as Wednesday's general strike, called by the Moroccan Labour Union (UMT) and three other union movements, have started to weigh on the Islamist-led government's plans to curb deficits and revive public finances. "We have been facing a stubborn government which does not believe in dialogue, but ... in destroying people's purchasing power," UMT leader Miloudi Moukharik told Reuters, forecasting parliament would reject the pension bill. "We have already delayed it three times inside the parliament and I can tell you that it will not pass." Dozens of workers gathered in the headquarters of UMT and CDT, chanting slogans against government and foreign lenders such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. The strike disrupted the port of Casablanca, Morocco's biggest city, as well as transport and other sectors, a Reuters witness said. However, small shops, bars and cafes and some taxi drivers were working. "We have always been in talks with the union and we will keep talking on the pension reform," Communication Minister and government spokesman Mustapha Khalfi told Reuters. He said called the strike unjustified and said without reform, the pensions of 400,000 workers would be at risk because the government would not be able to finance them. The pension bill reached the second house of Morocco's parliament last month but the government has so far failed to get it discussed. Unions control 20 of the 120 seats in the upper house and experts say other opposition parties would join them in rejecting the reform. Moukharik declined to give details on the unions' next move, saying they will meet to decide on action. The proposed changes to state pension funds include raising the retirement age to 63 by 2019, and raising contributions, according to a government statement. Workers will have to pay 14 percent of their salaries by 2019 and government contributions will rise in tandem, from 10 percent before the reform, adding 1 percentage point each year to meet the new plan. (The story was refiled to correct the first paragraph to show a group of unions, not just the largest union, controls a block of seats in parliament) (Reporting by Aziz El Yaakoubi; Editing by Patrick Markey/Ruth Pitchford) By Idrees Ali WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The commander of U.S. troops in South Korea told a Senate committee on Tuesday that he was concerned about North Korea's steps to "aggressively develop nuclear weapons" and it could lead to a miscalculation in the region. "My top concern remains the potential for a North Korean provocation to start a cycle of action and counteraction which could quickly escalate," General Curtis Scaparrotti told a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing. Scaparrotti's comments come after North Korea this month launched what it said was an Earth observation satellite but what the country's neighbors and the United States called a missile test. North Korea conducted its fourth nuclear test in January, although experts doubt Pyongyang's claim that it exploded a hydrogen bomb. The commander of the 28,500 U.S. troops in South Korea added that in addition to Pyongyang's nuclear capability, he was also concerned about its cyber and air defense capabilities. "All of those things, in about five or six years, are going to be a more formidable problem," Scaparrotti added. North Korea warned on Tuesday of harsh retaliation against South Korea and ally United States, which are preparing for annual joint military exercises next month amid heightened tensions following the North's nuclear test and rocket launch. The head of the U.S. Pacific Command, Admiral Harry Harris, said North Korea posed a threat to Hawaii and other parts of the United States and it would "soon" be a threat to the entire United States. Harris said it was "preposterous" for China to try to "wedge" itself between the United States and South Korea because those two countries are expected to begin talks on a missile defense system. U.S. military officials have said the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) missile system is needed in South Korea, but Seoul had been reluctant to openly discuss its deployment given the risk of damaging ties with China, its biggest trade partner. (Reporting by Idrees Ali; Editing by Jonathan Oatis) KIEV (Reuters) - Ukraine will accept a Russian proposal to lift reciprocal transit bans on road cargo, Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseny Yatseniuk said on Wednesday. Earlier this month Ukraine banned Russian trucks from crossing its territory, in response to a similar move by Moscow. Diplomatic and trade ties between the two have suffered since Russia's annexation of the Crimean Peninsula and a pro-Russian separatist conflict. Infrastructure minister Andriy Pyvovarsky told a government meeting that Russia had proposed lifting all limits on road cargo. "They're allowing (transit), we will too under terms of reciprocity," Yatseniuk responded. In mid-February, the Russian transport ministry barred Ukrainian trucks because Ukrainian activists had been blocking some Russian trucks from entering Ukraine. (Reporting by Natalia Zinets, writing by Pavel Polityuk; Editing by Alexander Smith) KKR has agreed to buy into seeds provider Advanta Enterprises in a deal which values the business at about $2.25bn. Modified On Feb 24, 2016 07:29 PM By Akshit The first week of every even years February is undoubtedly the buzziest time for any Automotive Journalist in India. And this year was no different. Team CarDekho was on ground zero to report the fastest updates from the largest automotive extravaganza the Auto Expo 2016, held at India Expo Mart in Greater Noida. As Im the only one based out of Delhi, rest of the team flew either from the companys headquarter in Jaipur or Mumbai. So, to avoid more chaos in our already chaotic lives we needed a trustworthy car. When one speaks of trust and reliability whats better than a Toyota. Just a call and the manufacturer was kind enough to lend us its compact and frugal Etios Cross. Etios Cross is nothing, but a regular Etios Liva hatch thats beefed up with a macho-looking body kit. The slapped body cladding lends it an aggressive look, and ensures that the Cross stands out in the crowd something its plain-jane sibling Liva always missed. The large grille wearing a bull bar in the silver shade up front and matte black plastic cladding all-around, adds muscular chunks to the car. Roof rails, rear spoiler, pseudo skid plates with a dull silver finish and diamond-finish 15-inch alloy wheels are some other elements that will definitely catch your eye. The piano black interiors look way better than the sober and rather plain interiors offered in the Liva. The 2-DIN audio system with aux, Bluetooth and USB compatibility works decently well, but seems too outdated in the world of touchscreens. Most of the other bits are also satisfactory, except the lack of electrically adjustable outside mirrors (even on the top-spec variant.) Toyota offers three engine options with the Cross two petrol and a diesel. The smaller 1.2-litre petrol unit is what you get with the Liva, while the 1.5-litre petrol and diesel mills are borrowed from the Etios sedan. We had the Cross diesel which develops a rather modest 67bhp and 170Nm of torque. The numbers might not appear convincing on paper, but in the real world, the car does feel rather peppy to drive around the town. Power delivery is linear and turbo-lag isnt much of a bother. However, you do feel the lack of punch once you want to go fast. The 5-speed gearbox feels precise and throws are both accurate and confident. The entire Etios range offers a brilliant ride quality and the Cross lives up to that standard. Its supple and pretty absorbent. The suspension setup does a great job of shielding the cabin occupants from the worst of our roads. Handling is quite decent and the flat-bottomed steering wheel is reasonably weighed but lacks feedback. Having a reliable powerplant, a sorted chassis and decent road manners, the Etios Cross is a nice option to be considered if you are looking for a hatch with an air of flamboyance. Modified On Feb 24, 2016 06:43 PM By Raunak for Skoda Superb 2016-2020 The 3rd gen Superb in India gets the famed Laurin and Klement trim and it oozes luxury! Skoda launched the 3rd generation Superb in the country, on Tuesday, with an aggressive price. Superb finally received a Laurin and Klement treatment. We were getting Laurin and Klement variants of Octavias and Lauras within the country, but Superb had missed out on L&K trim in India. Like always with Skodas, L&K trim will on top of all and one thing it assured - that it will pamper you! The Laurin and Klement trim comes with both 1.8-litre petrol and 2.0-litre diesel with a 7-Speed and a 6-Speed DSG automatic gearbox, respectively. However, in this variant, you also get driving modes. It differentiates itself with the base Style trim in terms of features in order to justify the price gap. To begin with, you get plenty of Laurin and Klement motifs inside - out on this saloon! It is on the front fenders, embossed on the L&K specific leather upholstery, door sills, on the gearshift knob and dashboard. It also rides on a different set of 17-inch alloys and even features tyre pressure monitoring system. Coming to the extra add-ons - the Boss Button, it lets you adjust the front passenger's seat from the rear. Similar to the one you get in other cars in the segment and others, but calling it a Boss Button sounds so daunting! Also, the front passengers seat is 12-way adjustable and features electronic lumbar support. The standard 6.5-inch touchscreen infotainment in L&K is powered by 12-speaker 610 W Canton sound system. The instrument cluster also gets a colour display in the L&K. Moreover, colour changeable ambient lighting is present. The Laurin and Klement comes with 3-Zone climate control and the front seats are ventilated. Besides the Boss Button, theres this another unique feature in L&K - virtual boot pedal. All you need to do is swipe your foot underneath and it pops open electronically. Recommended: New Skoda Superb Launched at Rs. 22.68 lac Read More on : Skoda Superb Modified On Feb 21, 2017 06:21 PM By Sumit for Tata Hexa 2016-2020 Tata Hexa has been spied on for the first time, fully uncovered. The car was spotted travelling on roads of Mumbai. Though, the automobile recently surfaced at the Indian Auto expo 2016 where it managed to garner a lot of attention, the four-wheeler was yet to be seen on roads, until recently. The car gets upgraded features like Terrain Management System and Projector headlamps with auto function. Apart from this, the car showcases attributes like large alloy wheels, new design for the leather seat upholstery, improved dashboard, window shades, mood lighting, central AC vents, refreshed steering wheel and six-seat configuration with captain seats. To complement such features, the MPV comes with 6 airbags and Electronic Stability Program (ESP) to keep the occupants safe. Unique feature about the four-wheeler is its ability to adjust the suspension. The driver can switch between three modes viz. Automatic, Dynamic or Comfort, depending on the condition of road. Mechanical duties are carried out by a 2.2 litre diesel mill, recently employed in the Safari Stormes more powerful version. The powerhouse churns out 153 bhp of power with a peak torque of 400 Nm. While a 6-speed manual gearbox comes as standard, automatic transmission is available as an optional feature. Hexas 4WD variant can prove to be a great companion, especially for those who like to explore uncharted terrains. Hexa is to be launched sometime this year. It will clash with Toyotas Innova, which itself is ready to introduce the new-generation of its MPV. Even the Japanese carmaker brought its offering to the Auto Expo 2016. Watch Showcase Video of Tata Hexa Recommended Read Tata Hexa To Launch in January Upcoming Tata Hexa To Feature Super Drive Modes Images Source: Mynewcar.in BEIJING, Feb. 23 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping on Tuesday ordered officials at all levels to implement reform measures and address lingering problems to ensure the reform drive is successful. He made the remarks while presiding over the 21st meeting of the Central Leading Group for Overall Reform. Xi, head of the group, said reform concerns all regions and departments. Officials must play their part as "promoters and people of action," he said, urging them to focus on key problems and take precise measures to solve them. The meeting was also attended by Li Keqiang, Liu Yunshan and Zhang Gaoli, members of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and deputy heads of the group. Since 2013, China has rolled out reform measures of unprecedented amount and strength. Now it is a pressing job to implement these reforms, according to a statement released after the meeting. "Overall, the implementation of the reforms is good," it said, adding that some reforms have yielded results and some pilot operations have lead to successful experience that can be spread to other parts of the country. All departments should fully understand and fulfill their responsibilities, while keeping track of the entire process, it said. Reform that affects multiple fields or departments calls for diligence, therefore, multiple governmental organs should uphold the principles of "good timing and rhythm," the meeting was told. "Those that fail to do so will be held accountable," it said. Highlighting supervision and evaluation, the statement stressed that all departments should ensure plans are well documented, and any mistakes or deadline breaches are dealt with accordingly. It noted that only truly effective reform will boost social and economic development, and give the people real benefits. Good experience and examples should be summarized, so that they can inform other work, according to the statement. Officials were also urged to lead by example by arranging and supervising tasks in accordance with the requirements of the central authorities. Meanwhile, organs at city and county levels were urged to go deep into communities to seek public opinion, so the results of reform measures are in line with the people's expectations. "Party committees at all levels should [...] encourage forward thinking, praise outstanding work, but also tolerate mistakes and failures so all officials actively, voluntarily and creatively participate," it added. Attendees of the meeting heard reports on the implementation of reforms on ecological improvement, judicial system, the CPC's discipline inspection system, legislation to adapt to reforms, science and technology system, public security as well as reforms in Shanghai Municipality, Hubei Province, Sanming City in Fujian Province and Kaihua County in Zhejiang Province. [ Editor: Zhang Zhou ] This satellite image shows the Yongshu Jiao of China's Nansha Islands. [Photo/Xinhua] China said on Tuesday that the US is the root of militarization in the South China Sea, urging it to stop sowing dissension among countries in the region. The actions of the US are the root of the so-called militarization in the South China Sea, the Defense Ministry said in a written response to China Daily, citing increased US military deployment in the region, provocative US reconnaissance of Chinese islands and joint military exercises with allies targeted at China. Relevant sides have turned a blind eye to it and repeatedly criticized Chinas legitimate construction on islands, intentionally fabricating issues and fueling tensions. It is hyping with hidden intentions. The ministry was responding to a US think tank report that, citing satellite imagery, said Beijing is installing radar facilities on Huayang Reef of the Nansha Islands in the South China Sea. The report by the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies came after US officials said China had deployed a surface-to-air missile system on Yongxing Island of the Xisha Islands. Washington has voiced concern over what it called Chinas militarization in the South China Sea, but the Foreign Ministry has said its military deployments there were no different from US defense deployments on Hawaii. On Tuesday, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chun-ying, in response to a senior US naval officers call for more naval operations in the region, urged the US to stop sowing dissension among South China Sea countries. I must point out that the freedom of navigation in the South China Sea entitled under international law does not mean US naval vessels or airplanes freedom to flex their muscle, Hua said. Vice-Admiral Joseph Aucoin, commander of the US Navys 7th Fleet, said on Monday that Australia and other countries should follow the US lead and conduct freedom of navigation naval operations within 12 nautical miles of contested islands in the South China Sea, the Australian Broadcasting Corp reported. Asked to comment on some US media saying that China is creating a great wall of sand in the South China Sea, Hua said Chinas sovereignty and claims are grounded in history and upheld by successive Chinese governments. If the words great wall must be used, we suggest those media pay more attention to Chinese peoples great wall of will to firmly safeguard territorial sovereignty and legal rights, she said. Xinhua contributed to this story. [ Editor: Fanhua ] This week at CUNAs Governmental Affairs Conference, Ted Koppel was a keynote speaker, discussing his latest book Lights Out: A Cyberattack, A Nation Unprepared, Surviving the Aftermath. It was a fitting discussion for credit union executives given not only the importance of disaster preparedness within our industry, but the major importance of banking and finance to our countrys survival. Imagine a blackout lasting not days, but weeks or months. Tens of millions of people over several states are affected. For those without access to a generator, there is no running water, no sewage, no refrigeration or light. Food and medical supplies are dwindling. Devices we rely on have gone dark. Banks no longer function, looting is widespread, and law and order are being tested as never before. It isnt just a scenario. A well-designed attack on just one of the nations three electric power grids could cripple much of our infrastructureand in the age of cyberwarfare, a laptop has become the only necessary weaponAnd yet, as Koppel makes clear, the federal government, while well prepared for natural disasters, has no plan for the aftermath of an attack on the power grid. The current Secretary of Homeland Security suggests keeping a battery-powered radio. Can you imagine a discussion with your examiner about your disaster recovery plan where you point out that you are prepared while holding up your transistor radio? The third day of the CUNA Governmental Affairs Conference was full of big names and big moments in Washington D.C. on Tuesday. The day included speeches by Ted Koppel, Richard Corday, Rick Metsger, a surprise celebrity thank you, and a passing of the torch. Ted Koppel has a career spanning more than 50 years and in that time has taken home 42 Emmy Awards, 11 duPont-Columbia Awards and 8 George Peabody Awards. His new book, the New York Times best-seller, Lights Out: A Cyberattack, A National Unprepared, Surviving the Aftermath, looks at the possibility of a cyberattack on Americas power grid and the potential devastating consequences. As the Keynote Speaker on Tuesday, Koppel revealed the results he received when he asked a simple question to Homeland Security, the Red Cross and other groups on the subject. The question was: Whats Americas plan in the event of a successful attack on our electrical grid? The answer? There is no plan. Take a minute and let that sink in. According to Koppel, weve become so dependent on the internet that we fail to see the potential dangers, adding the internet has become a weapon of mass destruction. We live in a world where weve always just assumed that an attack on our country would be a nuclear attack. NORAD could warn the U.S. of a missile attack in a minute or two. Not the case with a cyberattack. Koppel closed by saying, Its not a matter of if a cyberattack will happen, its a matter of when. After his speech, Koppel invited Master of Ceremonies Paul Berry out to moderate a Q&A session with the GAC crowd. Berry, without missing a beat, said to his longtime friend, Well now that youve scared the bejeezus out of us NCUA Vice Chairman Rick Metsger believes in credit unions, big and small. Members believe in the services you provide because you keep your promises. These days too many small credit unions are being forced to either merge (and lose their identity) or close. Metsger believes in the Network Credit Union concept, a business model from Filene in which: The merged (non-surviving) credit union would become part of and subsumed by the continuing (surviving) credit union, but the merged credit union would continue to operate and serve its former members under the name: [Merged Credit Union], a division of Continuing Credit Union Metsger added, The death of the small credit union doesnt have to be a fore-ordained conclusion. CFPB Director Richard Cordray praised credit unions for making consumer protection their top priority. At the Bureau, we aim to support and protect consumers. For credit unions, these same people are more than your customers; they are your members. Through the shared values of putting people first, the Consumer Bureau and the credit unions are working to do right by people and make further strides for those we serve. Credit unions provide enormous value to millions of people around the country and are consistent stewards of consumer interests, Cordray said. The bureau applauds your efforts to advance financial education, a mission we share, through programs such as the Reality Fairs for young people you have held around the country. In his closing comments, Cordray said, I think every state should include a stand-alone personal financial management course as a graduation requirement for high school students, just like American history, math and civics. Credit unions can help make this happen. A nice surprise in the afternoon session was a video prepared by John Schneider, actor and co-founder of the Childrens Miracle Network. Schneider wanted to thank credit unions for all they do each year for the Childrens Miracle Network Hospitals. After the video, CUNA CEO Jim Nussle revealed that in the last 20 years, credit unions have raised over $150 million for CMN Hospitals. In a passing of the torch moment, outgoing CUNA Board Chairwoman, Susan Streifel symbolically passed the gavel to new Chair Elect Rod Staatz. In an emotional moment, Staatz thanked Streifel, not only for her service as Board Chairwoman, but for her great friendship. Staatz went on to say that it takes all of us to make a difference, and challenged the GAC crowd to make sure everyone knows how good we are for our members and make sure they never forget it. During #CUNAGAC, in addition to Twitter, Instagram and Facebook, CUNA communications will be using Periscope, a live-streaming app to broadcast behind-the-scenes updates. Look for: The #CUNAGAC and #CUdifference hashtag on all social media platforms; @CUInsight, @AmandaCUInsight, @John_CUInsight on Twitter; @cuinsight on Instagram; CUInsight.com on Facebook; and @CUNA on Periscope. Check back for updates on the latest from the 2016 #CUNAGAC! CU Magazine: People helping people. It is the credit union creed that propels us to better serve membersno matter who, nor where, they are. We must acknowledge that credit unions would not exist, nor survive, without its employees persistent passion to help others. Where does this passion come from? It begins with industry leaders, many of whom achieved success because they embraced improving lives through credit unions as more than a career, but a way of life. This is true for two female CEOs, Dolores Rivera Ramirez and Anne Cochran, whose careers stemmed from a natural desire to help. Dolores Rivera Ramirez General Manager, Caja Zongolica; Chair, ENTURA Mexico Veracruz, Mexico In 1994, Dolores Rivera Ramirez started the first credit union in Zongolica, Mexico, to meet the needs of poor residents in her rural community. Under her leadership, Caja Zongolica has grown to 67,000 members. Zongolica is an indigenous regionone of Mexicos poorest and most marginalizedthat is best known for coffee production and its remote mountainous terrain. The credit union built its success by establishing members trust. With 13 branches located within the region, Dolores only hires locals that can speak the indigenous language of the communities they serve, Nahuatl. If Mohammed will not go to the mountain, the mountain will come to Mohammed, Dolores said about the credit unions philosophy to bring financial services wherever people need them. Since 2003, Caja Zongolica has participated in World Councils Rural Microfinance Technical Assistance Program (PATMIR), which links rural residents to credit unions using an innovative rural finance methodology, coined Semilla Cooperativa [cooperative seed]. Dolores was among the first to pilot handheld transaction technology to deliver financial education, services and products to remote community groups. This outreach model has since expanded throughout Mexico and into other countries. Through PATMIR, Caja Zongolica belongs to a strategic alliance network with World Council, the Mexican governments development bank and other development organizations to facilitate broader rural development across Mexico, including agriculture and education. Financial education and savings mobilization are major objectives at Caja Zongolica. For many locals, this credit union is the first financial institution to ever serve them. In addition to events and workshops throughout the area, the headquarters features an education center that teaches financial skills, particularly for youth. Staff also lead craft making workshops to provide members with a source of livelihood and encourage early habits of money management and savings at the credit union. As Dolores experience, connections and success keep reaching new heights, she has been able to extend her leadership beyond the community. She is now chair of ENTURA Mexico, a financial services company that is leading national efforts to expand credit union payments services. The president of Mexico, government bodies and state banks all seek advice from Dolores and offer their support on efforts to advance financial inclusion and digital payments. Anne Cochran President & CEO, Louisiana Credit Union League; Chair, World Council of Credit Unions Louisiana, USA Anne Cochrana native of Irelandhas dedicated her past 15 years to credit unions, not only at home in Louisiana, but across the nation and globe. My passion for the entire credit union movement knows no bounds, said Anne during her inauguration as World Council of Credit Unions first ever female chair last July. I pledge to you to continue to grow that passion in my new role. Anne has continuously put credit unions first, at work and in her free time. She led the Louisiana Credit Union League to attain a record high affiliation ratio, while uniting 26 credit unions to create a shared-branching network that became one of the states most successful cooperatives. Following Hurricane Katrina, Anne also developed the Louisiana Credit Union Foundation to provide financial assistance for statewide disaster relief efforts, and provide educational opportunities for credit union employees and volunteers. At the same time, Anne has tirelessly volunteered to help credit unions and associations worldwide grow and prosper. From serving on several boards and committees, to hosting developing credit unions from Africa and Russia, to traveling internationally to speak at events and trainings, she finds happiness in spreading financial inclusion through credit unions. Annes most recent trip was to Mexico, where she met with Dolores Rivera Ramirez at Caja Zongolica. Together they met with remote community groups to watch and learn how the credit union processes financial transactions via tablets and mobile printers, and teaches financial education. They visited with credit union staff and members of all ages to better understand Caja Zongolicas extensive impact on the region. Throughout the visit, Anne expressed her support and gained insights she can share with the global movement. Anne admits that balancing work, volunteering and home life has been a challenge over the years, but she makes it work. Her experiences have contributed to her wide understanding and sensitivity to the diverse needs of credit unions to help more people. Anne Cochran presents Dolores Rivera Ramirez with a gift to recognize Caja Zongolicas success in Mexicos financial sector. As two strong female leaders from different worlds, Dolores and Anne share a compassion for others and an eagerness to constantly seek new ways to better serve members. As long-time participants in World Councils development activities, World Credit Union Conference and Global Womens Leadership Network, they take advantage of opportunities to learn and share best practices with credit unions throughout Mexico and worldwide. Both women help improve our global credit union community. Proposed Amendment Would Create the Right to Sleep in Santa Cruz For several weeks, a group of concerned citizens has been meeting to strategize ways to move forward in support of the right to sleep in Santa Cruz. The group includes members of the faith community, civic leaders, advocates for people experiencing homelessness, nonprofit executives and Santa Cruz City Council Members Micah Posner and Don Lane. Lane, a former Mayor, describes the citys existing camping/sleeping ban like this: I do wonder what the harm is from the act of sleeping or wrapping oneself in a blanket on a cold night. And, more importantly, I wonder what the harm is when a government penalizes people for behavior they cannot and should not avoid.The group plans to introduce an Amendment to Section 6.36 of the Municipal Code (Camping) to remove reference to the act of sleeping and use of blankets. Among the talking points developed by the group for the campaign to generate broad community support for the proposed amendment are (1) Santa Cruz does not need a sleeping prohibition in its camping ordinance to effectively manage our public and private spaces; (2) All the activities that trouble so many community members: dirty campsites, long-term occupation of locations within parks and greenbelts, human waste depositing, etc. are fully addressed in other provisions in the Camping Ordinance, along with ordinances on littering, public urination/defecation, trespassing and hours of use in parks; and (3) Santa Cruzs ban on sleeping outside has not been an effective tool in reducing the number of homeless individuals in the city, even with one of the most restrictive sleeping ordinances in California.This new initiative comes at a time when federal agencies are closely scrutinizing cities and towns than continue to enforce camping/sleeping bans in the absence of adequate and available shelter. When the winter shelter program ends in mid-March, the city of Santa Cruz will literally have only a handful of beds available for the hundreds of individuals in the community without shelter. In other words, adequate shelter space does not exist. The existing ordinance would, in the opinion of the United States Department of Justice, be criminalizing some people simply because they are homeless. Additionally, the Department of Housing and Urban Development is now telling local communities that their applications for federal funding will be scored lower if criminalization of involuntary acts such as sleeping outside is part of local policy. Says Santa Cruz Housing NOW founder Linda Lemaster. As a housing advocate, I fear that the current policies in our community prohibiting sleep may jeopardize the more than $2 million Santa Cruz receives annually from the HUD. It is also notable that bans on sleeping are now being roundly criticized from a purely economic perspective. Scott Keyes, Senior Reporter for ThinkProgress.org writes, Criminalization policies are problematic not only from a human rights perspective, but also because theyre costly and counterproductive. Criminalizing homelessness also hurts taxpayers. When accounting for law enforcement and emergency health care costs, numerous studies have found that leaving homeless people on the streets winds up costing taxpayers more than three times as much as simply giving them housing and supportive services.The group talking points also reference The United Nations Human Rights Committee statement in reference to the criminalization of homelessness in the United States: While appreciating the steps taken by federal and some state and local authorities to address homelessness, the Committee is concerned about reports of criminalization of people living on the street for everyday activities such as eating, sleeping, sitting in particular areas etc. This statement echoes the concerns of Santa Cruz attorney and long time homeless activist Ed Frey who says, Sleeping is and has always been a human right that should be protected and defended by international convention. The time is right for a full throated advocacy of that right at the highest levels.The proposed amendment is agendized for council consideration on March 8 although it is uncertain at this time whether it will be considered at an afternoon or evening session. Until then, efforts will continue to actively lobby business and community groups in support of the proposal as sound economic and public policy as well as a call to conscience for the entire community. The working group asks everyone who supports the Right to Sleep in Santa Cruz to email the Santa Cruz City Council at citycouncil [at] cityofsantacruz.com and to come to the council session on March 8 and speak in favor of the proposed amendment. There is also a change.org petition supporters are urged to sign. Algernon was Olof Palma's Foreign Minister w/ Sweden's military concealing from its own government the staging of US and UK subs disguised as Soviet warships leading up to their assassinations ending the investigation into the arming of both sides in the war on Iraq and Iran.. Magal and Meshad were assassinated in Paris by the Mossad,...Judge Jose de la Mata ordered police to notify them if any of the seven murder bosses from the Mavi Marmara massacre enter Spain......MSM undies in knot after Steven Kinzer's Boston Globe piece questioning their AQ love affair in Syria... Warrants for Bibi, Flowers for Algernon, Palma, Yahia and Maria...Karl Friedrich Algernon was Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palma's Foreign Minister investigating the arming of both side's in the West's proxy war on Iran...w/ Sweden's military concealing from its government the staging of US and UK subs disguised as Soviet warships within it's territorial waters ...to push the people into war against the socialist republics ...Yahia and Maria being the targets of the apartheid murder puppts featured in 'By Way of Deception' by Victor Ostrovsky and Claire Hoy...' Maria telling French polce about the Israeli death threat against an Iraqi scientist in Paris...site of much recent false flag terror...and where "Yehuda Gil, an Arabic-speaking katsa, was sent to Yahia Meshad's door shortly before Magal arrived. Opening the door just enough to peek out, but leaving it chained, Meshad snapped, "Who are you? What do you want?" "I'm from a power that will pay a lot of money for answers," Gil said. "Get lost, you dog, or I'll call the police," Meshad replied. So Gil left. In fact, he flew back to Israel immediately, so that he could never be connected to Meshad's destiny. As for Meshad, he met a different fate...As Meshad slept, two men slipped quietly into the suite with a passkey and slit his throat." (from page 20 http://vho.org/aaargh/fran/livres11/OSTROVbywayofdecep.pdf )...Warrants?... for Bibi Netanyahu?!..."Judge Jose de la Mata, who drew up the warrants, ordered the police and civil guard to notify them if any of the seven enter Spain...Israeli Defence forces carried out a deadly attack on the Freedom Flotilla aid ship Mavi Marmara, which was attempting to bring supplies to Gaza, in contravention of an Israeli-imposed blockade...The other Israelis who have been issued warrants are ex-foreign minister Avigdor Lieberman, ex-defense minister Ehud Barak, ex-deputy prime ministers Moshe Ya'alon and Eli Yishai, former state minister Benny Begin, and Israeli Navy commander Eliezer Marom."(from RT)...While both Magal and Meshad were assassinated by the Mossad, of course the internal machinations leading up to their deaths were dramatically different. First, Magal. Concerns about her would have become acute on the desk in Tel Aviv headquarters as the various reports from the field were received, decoded, and analyzed, and it became clear that she had gone to the police and could create serious difficulties.The decision to execute Meshad, however, emanated from an ultra-secret internal system involving a formal "execution list," and requiring the personal approval of the prime minister of Israel. The number of names on that list varies considerably,(the Letelier assassination) ...certainly used Mossad know-how, taught to them as part of the deal Contreras made to supply the missile. In August 1978, a U.S. federal grand jury indicted Contreras, along with DINA operations director, Pedro Espinoza Bravo; DINA agent, Armando Fernandez Larios; and four Cuban exiles who were members of a fanatical anti-Castro organization in the United States. All seven were charged with murder. The key evidence for the 15-page indictment came from U.S.-born Michael Vernon Townley, who had moved to Chile with his parents at age 15, stayed on as an auto mechanic, and been recruited by DINA. He was named an unindicted co-conspirator and cooperated with the prosecution in return for a light sentence of three years and four months. The Pinochet regime turned over the Chileans to U.S. prosecutors -- the Cuban exiles escaped, although one was arrested April 11, 1990, while living in St. Petersburg, Florida but Chile steadfastly refused to give them Contreras, the man who had orchestrated the assassination of Letelier. ...and...in our last Mouse Report we learned that although the US told Russia last fall that Damascus would soon fall to it's proxy takfiri death squads as in Benghazi and Tripoli...US strategy appears to have backfired...the country that helped free the slaves of turtle island did not play dumb this time w/ Syria as it had w/ NATO's murder of Libya... All Day All Week: An Occupy Wall Street Story Date: Saturday, February 27, 2016 Time: 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM Event Type: Screening Organizer/Author: ata Location Details: Artists Television Access 992 Valencia Street (at 21st) San Francisco, CA 94110 A documentary about the Occupy movement in New York city. Saturday, February 27, 2016, 3:00 pm, $5 All Day All Week: An Occupy Wall Street Story A documentary by Marisa Holmes. It is 2011. Three years into the global financial crisis, there is a growing sense that political and economic elites sold out the people. In response, a wave of revolutions spreads from North Africa to Europe, and even the United States. In New York City a small group of activists meet in the NYC General Assembly to discuss the possibility of #OccupyWallStreet. On September 17th they go to the financial district and occupy Zuccotti Park. They rename it Liberty Square. The square is a liberated space. Assemblies are held to make collective decisions, working groups are formed to meet basic needs such as food and shelter. A new world is being built and anything seems possible. In a matter of weeks there are over one thousand occupations formed across the globe. The activists soon find themselves in the center of a growing movement. They face many external challenges including the media, the unions, political parties, and police violence. However, it is the internal challenges that they cannot overcome. The non-fiction feature film, All Day All Week: An Occupy Wall Street Story, tells the story of OWS from the perspective of those who lived it. Filmed by and in conversation with participants, the film offers a glimpse inside the daily life of occupation as well as reflections on the experience. Marisa Holmes (in person) is a documentary filmmaker and writer based in Brooklyn, NY. Since a young age she has used media for social justice. She holds a BFA in Film, Video and New Media from The School of the Art Institute of Chicago, where she received a 100 Projects for Peace grant from the Kathryn Wasserman Davis foundation. She also has a MFA in Integrated Media from Hunter College. Holmes has covered social movements in the US and internationally with particular interest in the aftermath of the 2011 uprisings. Her work has appeared in such outlets as the International Times, Truthout.org, Waging Nonviolence, Al Jazeera, and PBS, as well as the AK Press compilation We are Many: Reflections on Movement Strategy from Occupation to Liberation. As a participant and media maker Holmes believes strongly that people must tell their own stories. Thus, she decided to make a film about her own experience in Occupy Wall Street. All Da y All Week: An Occupy Wall Street Story is her first feature film. Your civil rights and personal freedoms are being violated by spies at Joint Base Lewis-McChord. Now is the time to demand an end to this criminal activity and the invasion of your personal privacy by the Joint Base Lewis-McChord Force Protection Division at JBLM, Washington. Something is horribly wrong at Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington State, and if youre paying any attention at all you know that its getting worse. The privacy and freedoms that you once took for granted have been taken from you, without your permission. In return youve been given the false promise of safety. But safety from what and from whom. The only real threat is coming from those people in power who pretend that they are protecting you, when in truth they are violating your rights and freedoms with impunity. The Joint Base Lewis-McChord Force Protection Division, with a total disregard for law and regulation, is gathering information about your private life, about your political and religious beliefs, about your comments to friends and family posted to social media, about your personal associations and your private friendships. More and more frequently peaceful citizens are being beaten, tazered, and arrested for the most trivial of offenses, based upon information collected by the Joint Base Lewis-McChord Force Protection Division. The Joint Base Lewis-McChord Force Protection Division is conducting an intensive and invasive intelligence-gathering operation against you.According to the lawsuit [Panagacos v. Towery - https://aclu-wa.org/cases/panagacos-v-towery ] Thomas Rudd, head of the Joint Base Lewis-McChord Force Protection Division, directed Towery to identify Washington and Oregon residents opposed to military activities in order to facilitate the arrest of these people without probable cause. Thomas Rudd instructed Towery to report on meetings, demonstrations, and private personal events and relationships so that civilian law enforcement agencies would be able to arrest, follow, cite, detain, harass, and compile and transmit dossiers that would facilitate disruption of the local protests and demonstrations - even though those events were protected by the First Amendment. On January 27, 2016 the National Lawyers Guild submitted a brief ( http://www.peoplevtowery.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/Panagacos_Amicus_Brief.pdf ) in support of the lawsuit against Thomas Rudd.Thomas Rudd is the same man accused of violating the civil rights of hundreds of Americans by illegally collecting information about them from 2007 - 2010. "The Army admits in their report that... Rudd... broke regulations and committed major violations of Posse Comitatus. Rudd and those under his command in the Joint Base Lewis-McChord Force Protection Division treated local political activists as enemy combatants and conducted intensive and invasive intelligence-gathering about them... they used everything in their arsenal, including reporting on their personal lives, political and religious beliefs, and even getting a few labeled as domestic terrorists.Every morning in their daily bulletin the Joint Base Lewis-McChord Force Protection Division instructs the military and civilian personnel living and working on the base to report suspicious activity directly to them. And just what is this suspicious activity these evil men want reported to them? Well, in their own words "nothing is too trivial to report". Take a photograph, ask an innocent question, or even express an opinion on social media that the government does not approve of, and you will find your life being scrutinized by Thomas Rudd and Daniel Vessels at the Joint Base Lewis-McChord Force Protection Division. Your name and personal details will be entered into military antiterrorism databases, to be shared with law enforcement and security agencies nationwide ( http://www.nwguardian.com/2011/08/04/v-print/10767_theres-no-such-thing-as-too-vigilant.html ).And so it happens again and again until it becomes natural for you to fear taking a photograph, or expressing your opinion on social media, for fear of being reported to the Joint Base Lewis-McChord Force Protection Division and thereafter being brutalized by the military and civilian police that work on the base. Like the schoolyard bully who is allowed to terrorize and assault the other children, if that behavior is not addressed and immediately corrected it will continue.Where is the Joint Base Base Commander? Where is the Provost Marshall, LTC Ted Solonar? Why dont these men put an end to this criminal activity? It is certainly within their power to do so. But it just may be that they are a part of it as well. If they were honest and honorable men they would have put an end to these crimes long ago. Maybe they benefit from the people who live and work on the base being repeatedly brutalized until they fear the sight of an MP walking through the housing area? As long as antiterrorism officers are allowed to collect information about the residents of Joint Base Lewis-McChord; as long as the Joint Base Lewis-McChord Force Protection Division is collecting "suspicious activity reports" about us we cannot trust any MP or civilian police officer on the base.Remember the words of Daniel Vessels, the Joint Base Lewis-McChord Force Protection Divisions Deputy Chief, "nothing is too trivial to report".The names contained in this "Force Protection Database" are not those of criminals or of men and women who pose a danger to the community, rather these names are those of people who expressed political opposition to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. This database contains the names of individuals who expressed disagreements with government policy and challenged the government abuse of their rights ( http://seattleglobalist.com/2014/07/25/how-to-prove-the-government-is-spying-on-you/27863 ).Dont be lulled in to believing that your name is not also contained in the databases of the Joint Base Lewis-McChord Force Protection Division, just because you don't live on the base. Illegally collecting information about those who the government finds "questionable" did not end with the return of the troops from foreign wars. Right now the Joint Base Lewis-McChord Force Protection Division is illegally collecting information about those who protest gentrification in Seattle, oppose the movement of ships from Portland for oil drilling in the Arctic, those who protest police brutality and say Black Lives Matter, and those who oppose Bureau of Land Management abuses in Burns, Oregon! Anyone who questions government activities or opposes government policies is a potential terrorist in the eyes of Joint Base Lewis-McChord.Through public records requests we have obtained copies of Joint Base Lewis-McChord Force Protection Division daily bulletins wherein each day Thomas Rudd and Daniel Vessels instruct the military and civilian personnel living and working on the base to send "suspicious activity reports" directly to their personal e-mail addresses, or call them on their personal cellphones, 24/7. And though you have committed no crimes, having your name listed in these terrorism databases can affect your credit, your ability to travel, your ability to earn a living, and cause you to be seen as a violent threat toward law enforcement and your community for doing nothing more than expressing a political opinion or questioning government activity.But you cry, I am no terrorist! I have done nothing wrong! I have committed no crimes! I am not a Soldier, Sailor, Airman, or Marine. What right does the military at Joint Base Lewis-McChord have to gather information about me?The answer, of course, is that they have no right to invade our privacy, infringe on our personal liberty, or deny us our civil rights. They have no right to do these things, and they admit that such conduct violates the law and their own regulations, but they continue to do as the please because we have not stood up and cried with a loud and firm voice STOP, ENOUGH, WE WILL NO LONGER TOLERATE YOUR ABUSES AND YOUR CRIMES!Make your voice heard and demand the immediate closure of the Joint Base Lewis-McChord Force Protection Division. Demand the criminal prosecution of Thomas Rudd and Daniel Vessels for violating your civil rights.Use the Joint Base Lewis-McChord online comment system and send your demands to Col. Daniel Morgan, the Joint Base Commander at ( https://ice.disa.mil/index.cfm?fa=card&s=957&sp=121425&dep =*DoD) or directly to Thomas Rudd's supervisor Col. Matthew Toth at ( https://ice.disa.mil/index.cfm?fa=card&sp=109607&s=957&dep =*DoD&sc=29) You do not need to leave your name, but you may provide a telephone number or e-mail address for a reply if you choose. Angela Davis was never a member of the Black Panther Party, a black nationalist organization. She belonged to the Communist Party, a labor oriented group, viewing the workingclass as international, from her 20s (the late 1960s) to 1991, and most of that time, she was a member of the CP's Central Committee. She was never convicted of anything as she successfully defended her innocence in the superior court, She spent around 14 months in jail until she made bail. She was charged with "aggravated kidnapping and first degree murder in the death of Judge Harold Haley" in the Marin County Courthouse shooting incident of August 7, 1970. For more, either ask her or see:For a good description of the Los Angeles police setup in the 1970 Marin County Courthouse shooting incident, see"Hugo Pinell, last of the San Quentin Six, murdered in prison" by Evan Blake and Patrick Martin, 8/18/15 atAngela Davis has recently come out in support of millionaire, fascist war criminal Barack Obama. SeeAngela Davis Has Lost Her Mind Over Obama by Glen Ford, 3/27/12 atThe author, Glen Ford, states:Angela Davis says that Barack Obama is a man who identifies with the Black radical tradition.Barack Obama comes from a CIA family. His parents met in a Russian language class at the University of Hawaii around 1960. Unless one was of Russian descent or planning to be an opera singer of Russian opera or something similar, you did not take Russian in 1960 for fear of being labeled a dirty Red which would cause you to lose your job and everything else. After his parents' divorce, his mother took him (as a small child) to Indonesia, where the CIA carried out a coup that resulted in a million deaths of alleged communists in 1965-1966. There is not now nor has there been anything every radical about Barack Obama. As Michael Moore, the movie maker and proud Democrat states, he is very disappointed in Barack Obama because his only legacy is that he is the first black president.For more on the reactionary record of Barack Obama, see:The Obama Craze, by Matt Gonzalez, 2/29/08, Counterpunch atThe Black Panther Party existed from 1966 to 1974 and in that 8 years achieved a status as a charity organization, helping poor blacks, a worthy cause, but not revolutionary. It did not transform society in any way, as only a labor organization or a socialist organization, which is based on labor, can. Angela Davis, age 71, is best known as a prison reform advocate, calling for the abolition of the prison industrial complex, that is the prison punishment system. This is a worthy reform movement but cannot be the focus of a anyone trying to achieve major change.Those of us who are of the same generation as Angela Davis but look to labor and socialist organizations as a means of fundamental change are horrified at how this society has regressed since 1980 when the homeless crisis started under Democrat Pres. Carter and understand that the decline is due to the fact that labor is only 10% organized. We know that the end of legal segregation, the abolition of the universal draft and the renewal of the womens liberation and gay liberation movements that were the outgrowth of the 1950s-1960s civil rights movements came as a result of the comparative prosperity of the 1960s and 1970s made possible by the labor movements of the 1930s and 1940s. Those achievements pale in comparison to labors achievements because labor feeds the hungry and houses the homeless, and until that is done today, all of the civil rights movements have very little meaning.From the labor movement, we won the 8 hour day, the 40 hour workweek, the weekend, paid sick leave, paid holidays, state disability coverage and workers compensation insurance. From the 1934 general strikes in San Francisco, Minneapolis and Toledo we won, in 1935, Social Security for old age and disability, unemployment insurance and the right to organize labor unions. In 1965, labor won Medicare, which is a weak form of socialized medicine for old people. From the labor movement we have today public school education, public libraries, a public healthcare system, public housing (cut since 1980 as labor became weaker as it sang the Democrat-Republican capitalist tune) and labor contracts that forbid discrimination on the job due to color, gender or sexual orientation. Only a strong labor movement can end police killings, police brutality, the death penalty and the prison-punishment system because the entire police state exists to terrorize and divide the workingclass to prevent labor organizing as labor organizing threatens the profits of the capitalist class, maximization of profits being the primary goal of the bankrupt social order in which we live, capitalism.If you want to end racism, police killings, the prison system and all the other ills that adversely affect the entire workingclass, you have to do or support labor organizing. When Barack Obama took over bankrupt General Motors, he cut the workers wages in half, further impoverishing the black and the rest of the workingclass. Barack Obama is part of the capitalist reactionary tradition, contrary to Angela Davis, who should know better. At the very least, read labor history, and always read the history of the people whom you are honoring before you do so. The Bureau of Reclamation (BOR) Fish Passage Pilot Implementation Plan is fatally flawed for two critical reasons. First, the BOR is only considering a trap and truck option, and has rejected a proposals for a volitional swim-way. Second, the BOR only proposes using the Livingston Stone Fish Hatchery Chinook. Photo of Caleen Sisk, Chief and Spiritual Leader of the Winnemem Wintu Tribe. Support the Winnemum Wintu Tribes McCloud River Salmon Restoration Plan!by Dan BacherBelow is the comment letter I submitted this morning in support of the Winnemem Wintus McCloud River Salmon Restoration Plan. I urge anybody who supports the restoration of native winter run Chinook salmon to the McCloud above Shasta Dam to submit the same or a similar letter with their name and organization included.Written comments are due by close of business TODAY, Wednesday, February 24, 2016, and can be sent to John Hannon, Bureau of Reclamation, 801 I Street, Suite 140, Sacramento, CA 95814, or emailed to jhannon [at] usbr.gov.If you encounter problems accessing the document, please call 916-978-5100 or email mppublicaffairs [at] usbr.gov. For contacts and additional information on the Shasta Dam Fish Passage Evaluation visit Reclamations website at http://www.usbr.gov/./BayDeltaOff./shasta-dam-fish-pass.html February 24, 2016John Hannon, Bureau of Reclamation,801 I Street, Suite140, Sacramento, CA 95814,Re. Draft Pilot Implementation Plan for the Shasta Dam Fish Passage EvaluationDear Mr. Hannon:This letter is sent on behalf of (your name and organization) to express our comments and concerns regarding the Bureau of Reclamation (BOR) Fish Passage Pilot Implementation Plan.The plan is fatally flawed for two critical reasons; 1) the BOR is only considering a trap and truck option, and has rejected a proposals for a volitional swim-way, and 2) the BOR only proposes using the Livingston Stone Fish Hatchery Chinook. The hatchery fish are not the appropriate fish to be utilized for the pilot plan as the DNA of the Livingstone Stone Salmon are inbred and diluted as a result of hatchery manipulation and blockage from historical spawning grounds. These fish are not suitable for placement in the McCloud River and Upper Sacramento.The Winnemem Wintu Tribe has submitted a McCloud River Salmon Restoration plan which should be included as the preferred alternative for any pilot fish passage project. The Tribe has proposed a volitional fish passage alternative and that native McCloud watershed salmon that are in New Zealand be utilized for the project. In order to ensure survival of the winter-run Chinook Salmon this proposal needs to be taken seriously and the federal agencies with decision making power should fully assess alternatives that have a potential for true success, instead of short term non-effective proposals that over time will prove to be a death knell to winter-run Chinook Salmon.Salmon are central to the Winnemem Wintu tribal identity and lifestyle. The Winnemem plan to restore Salmon with the original stock is a key component in restoring watershed health.Watershed Health and natural Salmon life cycles go together.In order for this plan to be fully implemented the Winnemem must also have a seat on the steering committee that makes decisions as to the implementation of the plan. =No one has a better understanding of the McCloud watershed then the Winnemem Wintu Tribe, without direct participation and input from the Tribe any decisions made regarding implementation of the pilot plan will be incomplete and has the potential to cause further devastation on top of that caused by the building of the Shasta Dam.The Winnemem insistence that project design contributes to robust natural migratory behavior is very important. Salmon survival requires resilience resulting from a fish population that winnows out the weak and allows the strongest adaptation to conditions.The project therefore must include a swim way passage for the adult to fry salmon to have a volitional route to move up and down the river. BOR must include a study that reveals the actual cost of building a passage way before it decides it is too expensive to consider.We have serious technical concerns regarding the plan issued by BOR which are set forth below.1. The Draft Shasta Fish Passage Pilot Plan DSFPPP proposes to use the remaining winter-run Chinook salmon utilizing habitat downstream of Shasta Dam as captive brood stock for supplying eggs and juvenile Chinook salmon for fish planting in the McCloud River. We disagree and are opposed to using these captive brood stock because they will have limited genetic fitness and low survival ability. They have been forced to adapt to an environment completely different from the McCloud River.We agree with the Winnemem Tribe that wild winter-run salmon inhabiting the headwaters of New Zealand watersheds (South Island; similar conditions to the McCloud River) and which are descendants of McCloud River winter-run salmon have the best genetic fitness and the best chance of survival in the McCloud River. We recommend that winter-run New Zealand Chinook salmon be used as the source of eggs and juvenile Chinook salmon during the SFPPP and in the long term to re-establish winter-run Chinook salmon in the rivers above Shasta dam.We base our recommendation on consideration of 1) the likely genetic fitness of wild New Zealand populations, 2) the lack of thorough genetic analysis of all of the runs of salmon in New Zealand and 3) because the Winnemem have a spiritual connection to the descendants of the original McCloud River fish introduced to New Zealand. We also recommend that spring-run New Zealand Chinook salmon be the genetic source for re-introducing spring-run Chinook salmon above Shasta dam in the long-term.2. We recommend that thorough genetic analysis of New Zealand populations of Chinook salmon (winter-run, spring-run and fall-run) be completed as soon as possible to assess their genetic similarity to winter-run, spring-run and fall-run chinook salmon remaining in the Sacramento River drainage.3. The (DSFPPP) is tailored for a trap and truck solution, and is, therefore, incomplete and inadequate. Any trap and truck operation designed during the DSFPPP is only a temporary measure for fish passage around Shasta dam and a permanent fish passage solution, a volitional fish passage for adult and juvenile chinook salmon is necessary to provide a permanent long-term mechanism that allows for species survival. The design and cost analysis for this permanent fish passage must be included in the pilot plan and be implemented during the Shasta Fish Passage Pilot Project (SFPPP) stage of the project.4. Although the DSFPPP includes a long-term volitional (voluntary) upstream passage alternative for adult salmon, using downstream tributaries (Little Cow, Stillwater and Churn Creeks), there is little detail provided in this draft. We recommend that this volitional alternative be thoroughly explored (designs and cost analysis) during the pilot project. More detail should be provided in the DSFPPP to indicate serious consideration of this voluntary adult fish alternative.5. We recommend that the DSFPPP include design and cost analysis for a volitional downstream fish way for juvenile Chinook salmon from the McCloud and Upper Sacramento rivers past Shasta Dam.6. BOR must consult with and determine accessible and acceptable locations for adult fish passage facilities at the headwaters of the three potential sub-watersheds (Cow, Stillwater and Churn) and an off-channel juvenile collection facility on the McCloud River and the Upper Sacramento River with landowners, the Winnemem Wintu Tribe (and other relevant tribes on the upper Sacramento River), and discuss the state and federal approvals that would be required to implement the passage facilities needed. All of this information should be included in the pilot plan for the public to review and provide comment on before any final decisions are made by BOR.7. Carry out an adult and down-migrant juvenile fish passage study on each of the 3 proposed sub-watersheds contained in their plan (Cow, Stillwater and Churn creeks). The results will indicate the potential level of McCloud River flow augmentation and size of pipe required to provide adult fish passage to a fish passage facility at the headwaters of each of the 3 sub-watersheds and to provide juvenile fish passage to the Sacramento River below Shasta dam. This study should be provided to the public and the results included the proposed pilot plan and circulated for public review and comment.8. After the fish passage studies are completed, design and determine the cost of gravity-fed water pipelines from the McCloud River and the Upper Sacramento River to the Cow, Stillwater and Churn sub-watersheds.9. Using the conceptual design provided in the Winnemem Plan, further engineer and determine the cost of a fish passage facility at the headwaters of each of the 3 sub-watersheds (Cow, Stillwater and Churn). This facility will be supplied by McCloud River water.10. Using the conceptual description proposed in the Winnemem Plan, further engineer and determine the cost of an off-channel juvenile collection facility at the locations established from carrying out recommendation #6. This facility must direct down-migrant juvenile chinook salmon to the entrance of fish passage transfer pipes that would eventually lead to one of the 3 sub-watersheds (Cow, Stillwater and Churn), past Shasta dam.We strongly encourage BOR to fully incorporate and assess the 10 issues identified above. This project is too important to take short cuts. Salmon are a key indicator species that have value to ecosystems and humans alike. In order to provide protection of this critical species the BOR must prioritize key components of the project needed for the survival of wild salmon. These key components are: 1) volitional fish passage; and 2) a strong genetic fish stock that comes from wild salmon currently located in New Zealand.Sincerely,your name and organization Titans' Story Time Initiative Takes Local Children Around the Globe From left, Lizzy Mavrogenes '17, Assistant Professor of Educational Studies Pennie Gray, Ruth Tadesse '19 and Amy Sanchez '17 examine Ruth's dress. Feb. 24, 2016 BLOOMINGTON, Ill. A group of preschoolers who gathered around Ruth Tadesse stroked the intricate embroidery on her dress and peppered her with questions about the handwoven garment called a habesha kemis. We wear these dresses anytime we want to be a little dressed up, said the native of Ethiopia, a first-year student at Illinois Wesleyan University. We want to represent our culture at weddings, graduations, or any event where we want to be festive. Tadesse was wearing the habesha kemis and introducing local children to her Ethiopian culture during Global Story Time at the Bloomington Public Library. The initiative brings together an IWU international student with Titan classmates majoring in elementary education and in International Studies. Students present stories, songs, dances and crafts from various countries on Saturday mornings at the library. Director of International Studies Scott Sheridan, who initiated the project, said the cooperative effort takes advantage of the wealth of cultural resources and experiences of international students, international studies majors who want to share their experiences studying abroad, and elementary education majors who seek additional experiences in teaching children. Global Story Time not only highlights the dynamic programs of Illinois Wesleyan, but it allows local children to be exposed to and appreciate the diversity of our worlds cultures, languages and rich oral traditions, said Sheridan, who is also associate professor of French and Italian. Tadesse introduced crafts and stories relating to Ethiopia along with fellow Titans Lizzy Mavrogenes 17, an International Studies major from River Forest, Ill. and Amy Sanchez 17, an elementary education major from Waukegan, Ill. Tadesse described the long journey that takes 24 hours of travel by plane to get from her home in Addis Ababa to Bloomington. She told the children that more than 80 different languages are spoken in Ethiopia, and also referenced a ubiquitous coffee chain to talk about her countrys most important export product. You know Starbucks where your parents get their coffee? Tadesse asked the youngsters. Its likely the coffee beans came from Ethiopia. Amy Sanchez '17, elementary education major, reads to children as part of Global Story Time at the Bloomington Public Library. Coffee beans were also used in a craft project designed by the IWU students. Children colored a paper turtle and glued coffee beans to the paper to represent the turtles shell. Tadesse then wrote each childs name in Amharic, the official working language of the country. In a truly international moment, Sanchez spoke about Ethiopian coffee beans to a Spanish-speaking toddler and his mother living in central Illinois. Assistant Professor and Coordinator of Elementary Education Pennie Gray has organized the student presentations, which have already covered Bulgaria, Japan, China, Nigeria and Vietnam. Scotts idea was such a nice way to bring students together from different academic departments, said Gray, noting even she has learned fun facts about each country on Global Story Time mornings. These students might not otherwise have an opportunity to work together. Mavrogenes agreed. I have been able to travel a lot with my family, so I wanted to share the experiences Ive had and help teach kids about the world, she said. Thats a big thing for me, so I was really honored when Professor Sheridan asked me to be a part of this. Sanchez said she was interested in leading a Global Story Time in order to learn as much from the experience as she hoped the children would. Its important to expand my horizons so I can take that into my classroom and teach my students to be more inclusive about different cultures, said Sanchez. It also ties back to the IWU mission of commitment to social justice. This is just one way to portray that. Washington, DC The headlines have been screaming of late, and not just from the United States, but around the world in Europe and Canada: The headlines have been screaming of late, and not just from the United States, but around the world in Europe and Canada: Invokana Linked with Cardiovascular Injuries and Kidney Failure . Just this month a new lawsuit was filed in the United States, and the European Medicines Agency issued two safety warnings to Invokana patients and the entire European medical community. And in Canada, late last summer, an Ontario resident filed a class-action Invokana lawsuit alleging that Invokana manufacturer Janssen Pharmaceuticals, a division of Johnson & Johnson, knew about the potential for Invokana adverse events but failed to properly warn consumers and the medical community, and that labels were inadequate - or so it is alleged.In the United States, the most recent Invokana lawsuit alleging Invokana side effects was filed by Charles Maddox, who filed his lawsuit in Louisiana on February 10 (case No. 2:2016-cv-01189 at US District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana).Maddox, according to court records, began his brief journey with Invokana in July 2014 for treatment of type 2 diabetes. The plaintiff continued using Invokana until February of last year. Not long after stopping Invokana, Maddox began to suffer diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) - a serious and potentially life-threatening condition associated with the buildup of acid within the blood - and severe kidney damage.A similar story is told by Rosalba Joudry, a Canadian plaintiff who - like Maddox - started with Invokana soon after it was approved in Canada (Canadian approval followed on the heels of approval by the US Food and Drug Administration, or FDA, in the United States). A type 2 diabetic, Joudry was prescribed Invokana to manage her blood glucose levels.However, she alleges in her Invokana class-action lawsuit that she got much more than she bargained for.Joudry had been taking Invokana for about eight months when, in June 2015, she caught a news report about the risk for kidney failure and DKA associated with the use of Invokana. Joudry immediately consulted her doctor, who ordered tests and confirmed that Joudry was in the early stages of kidney failure after only eight months on the medication.Needless to say, Joudry was blindsided by the revelation. The plaintiff states in her Invokana lawsuit that she was never alerted as to the risks associated with Invokana by her prescribing physician. She also alleges in her class action that warnings on the Canadian label for Invokana were inadequate and downplayed the medications potential Invokana side effects.Joudry states emphatically that she never would have taken Invokana had she known about the potential for Invokana adverse events involving DKA and the kidney.Within its first year on the US market, Invokana was associated with no fewer than 457 reports of adverse events - this, according to the Institute for Safe Medications Practices.The FDA issued a safety warning with regard to Invokana and DKA in May of last year.Joudry is seeking combined damages of C$1 billion on behalf of herself and those similarly situtated in her Invokana class-action lawsuit. Amakama Wooden Cave: Famous, gigantic tree in southeast Nigeria whose hollow can comfortably house 20 adults One of the oldest and biggest trees in Nigeria, Amakama Wooden Cave, located in Abia state, has a hollow that can comfortably take in up to 20 adults at a time. - The Peoples Progressives Party (PPP) calls on the federal government and the National Assembly to organise a free and fair referendum on the issue of Biafra - PPP says the step would avert the tide of the ongoing killings in Nigeria The Peoples Progressives Party (PPP) has called on the federal government and the National Assembly to immediately start the process to organise a free and fair referendum on the issue of Biafra. According to Todayng, the political party said such step would avert the tide of ongoing killings and bleedings in the country. In a statement issued on Monday, February 22, in Abuja by Dr. Damian Uzoma Ogbonna, the national chairman of the party, said Nigeria must abide by its obligation under the UN Charter and international law to approve an orderly referendum to address the Biafra question, adding that such is the only way to a fair, lasting and enduring solution. READ ALSO: IPOB accuses APC of making life difficult for Kanu Thee statement reads in parts: "We acknowledge that this universal principle does not state how the decision is to be made, or what the outcome should be; whether it be independence, federation, confederation, protection, some form of autonomy or full assimilation; which allows every signatory to the Charter, such as Nigeria, the obligation to address the needs of the Charter on the basis of its own peculiar circumstance. PPP, therefore, calls on the Nigerian Government and the National Assembly to, as a matter of national urgency, immediately commence the process to organise a free and fair referendum on the issue of Biafra. This has become necessary in order to stem the tide of ongoing killings and bleedings in our country." Meanwhile, the brewing rivalry between the Uchenna Madu led faction of the Movement for the Actualization for the Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB) and that of Chief Ralph Uwazuruike resurfaced on Monday, February 22, when Uchenna Madu called on Chief Ralph Uwazuruike to stop parading themselves as members of MASSOB. Madu in a release on Monday accused Uwazuruike and his group of deceiving Ndigbo with false claims of leading and speaking for the group. Source: Legit.ng - Amnesty International has slammed the Nigerian security forces for killing pro-Biafra protesters. - The NGO has called on the government to avoid using violence against activists and to respect the rule of law. - The federal government responded that it does not consider pro-Biafrans to be a serious threat. Nigerian security forces have used excessive force against pro-Biafran protesters in south-eastern Nigeria, Amnesty International has claimed. Lucy Freeman, senior research adviser at Amnesty, told IBTimes UK the NGO has documented instances of excessive force used against protesters connected to the pro-Biafran movement. Pro-Biafrans hold regular marches across south-eastern Nigeria calling for independence and the the release of her Nnamdi Kanu. The protesters are demanding the creation of an independent Biafra It is believed that during one of the latest demonstrations held in Aba state on 9 February, at least ten people were killed by the army and police, with footage purportedly showing security forces attacking pro-Biafrans being widely circulated on social media. "What is happening in south-eastern Nigeria is not a conflict situation and the law enforcement model that has been used is not appropriate," Freeman said. "It is not appropriate to use lethal force on protesters, even in case of a violent protest. READ ALSO: BBC reports on Buhari's budget woes "There are consistent reports of excessive use of force, deaths and injuries of people connected to the Biafran movement." The Nigerian government is obligated to carry out investigations that have to be independent, impartial and effective, she said. It is not enough to deny allegations and people need to be prosecuted and brought to justice." READ ALSO: Biara - PPP calls for referendum Freeman confirmed that an Amnesty team is on the ground to investigate the allegations of violence during recent pro-Biafran protests. "It is a difficult context because you have so much cover-up by the military. In an ideal situation if someone dies by the use of force, there should be an autopsy, some records of the death, of arrests. What we have seen across the country is that these kind of basic documentation and investigations are not done." Nnamdi Kanu remains on trial Speaking about recent court cases involving Nnamdi Kanu, the leading pro-Biafra activist who is currently on trial, Freeman condemned the Nigerian government for deliberately prolonging cases by using legal tricks. "We have seen in several cases the practice of the DSS of arresting someone, holding them unlawfully, and when that person challenges their detention with bail, they are immediately charged with something else to prolong their detention. That's unlawful detention," Freeman said. "There are a number of people who have been detained in connection to Boko Haram who had a similar thing happened. The question is: To what extent is the rule of law respected? READ ALSO: 'Osama Bin Laden' drags federal government to court However, spokesperson for the Nigerian security forces, Rabe Abubakar, told IBTimes UK that the Nigerian police and army do not kill demonstrators. He added the security forces had to intervene as some pro-Biafrans were allegedly carrying weapons. The Nigerian government has always maintained that Nigeria's unity is a priority for the country, and although peaceful pro-Biafran protests are welcome, demanding the breakaway of the Biafran territories is against the constitution. The government also told IBTimes UK that it does not consider the separatist movement a threat to the current leadership, and described pro-Biafrans as an insignificant threat. Source: Legit.ng ATHENS, Feb. 23, 2016 (Xinhua) -- Officials and representatives of universities from Greece and China attend the symposium on higher education and research cooperation between the two countries in Athens, Greece, on Feb. 23, 2016.Officials and representatives of universities from Greece and China on Tuesday signed a series of bilateral cooperation protocols among educational institutes. (Xinhua/Marios Lolos) ATHENS, Feb. 23 (Xinhua) -- Officials and representatives of universities from Greece and China on Tuesday signed a series of bilateral cooperation protocols among educational institutes. In the largest such event held in the Greek capital since the establishment of diplomatic ties between Greece and China four decades ago, 66 representatives of 30 Chinese universities participated in a symposium on higher education and research cooperation between the two countries at the premises of the Athens Technological Educational Institute (TEI). Athens TEI President Michalis Bratakos expressed hope that the agreements will become the pillars of a strong future cooperation between the academic communities of Greece and China. Under the agreements, Greek and Chinese universities will focus on people-to-people exchanges and joint research and development programs. "The message we wish to convey to our Chinese colleagues is let's have exchanges of teachers and students and create joint educational programs, such as distance learning courses. Let's deepen cooperation in post graduate studies and in research which will generate revenues for the universities," Bratakos said. "The most significant element today is to give hope," Yannis Pantis, General Secretary of the Education Ministry, said. Building communication bridges between universities and youth is the way forward to give hope of a better future to societies, he added. "Investment in higher education is investment in the future," Chinese Ambassador to Greece Zou Xiaoli underlined during his speech, voicing confidence that bilateral collaboration in this field and all levels will further flourish. The new signed agreements will help promote cooperation in a more systematic manner to the benefit of Greece, China and the world, according to officials. 4 1 [ Editor: Zhang Zhou ] Legit.ng is #1 online trusted source of the latest news in Nigeria. We are covering Nigeria news, Niger delta, world updates, and Nigerian newspaper reviews. We guide our readers to the world of politics, business, energy, sports, entertainment, fashion, lifestyle and human interest stories. Fresh-water gas exhaust scrubbers produce so little effluent that, in the future, it will be possible to build ships with zero effluent discharge into the sea, reveals a new study from the University of Vaasa, Finland. The doctoral thesis of Jari Lahtinen, Lic. Sc. (Tech) examines fresh-water closed-loop gas exhaust scrubbers, which are used on merchant ships. According to Lahtinen, all regulations concerning effluent water will become irrelevant on these environmentally-friendly ships. In the future, there will be no need for washwater treatment equipment onboard. "The results showed that the fresh water scrubber was excellent at removing sulphur from exhaust gas," says Lahtinen. From an environmental perspective, a scrubber ship is a better option than a gas oil ship, at least when carbon dioxide, sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxides are considered. This is true if heavy fuel oil is assumed to be a low-value product -- essentially a waste product -- and refinery emissions are also allocated to the environmental loads of gas oil ships. "Cheap oil and scrubber investments" In the last few years, scrubbers have made the headlines several times. Shipping companies have prepared themselves for the EU's Sulphur Directive. The directive entered into force at the beginning of 2015 inside sulphur-emission control areas. Global regulations restricting the sulphur content of exhaust gas will come into force in 2020 or in 2025. advertisement Shipping companies have been concerned about the high investment costs of scrubbers. The investment cost of a sulphur scrubber, including installation, is typically millions of euros. The cost varies according to the size of the vessel. An alternative way for ship owners to meet regulations is to change the fuel. Low-sulphur, high-quality fuels are more expensive than high-sulphur heavy fuels. For example, the price of heavy bunker oil dropped to USD 0,12 per kilogram in January 2016; at the same time, low-sulphur fuel cost more than twice the same price. "The relative difference in fuel price is significant and, therefore, shipping companies remain interested in using heavy fuel oil. However, low oil prices make scrubbers and other fuel-cost-saving technologies less attractive," Lahtinen comments. Based on Lahtinen's study, scrubber installation is profitable for large and medium-sized vessels with high fuel consumption, at long-term average oil prices. For the study, measurements were taken on the tank ship Suula and on the container vessel Containerships VII. The Suula scrubber was the first certified unit in the world. These data were used to estimate the scrubber's technical applicability for merchant ships. In addition, Lahtinen analysed the cost-effectiveness and environmental load of the scrubber. advertisement The exhaust gas scrubber efficiently removes sulphur dioxide from exhaust gas. The scrubber unit is typically located in the ship's funnel and in principle it looks like a cylindrical car exhaust silencer but on a larger scale. The diameter can be several metres. Water is sprayed inside the scrubber and sulphur is captured in the washwater from the exhaust gas. "By using a fresh-water scrubber, it is possible to limit the production of effluent to less than the level where the balance with the ship's fuel consumption can be reached continuously. The required effluent holding tank volume does not limit the ship's cargo transport capacity," says Lahtinen. There will be no need to treat washwater on board and pump it overboard; instead, effluent can be transported to the port and onwards in pipelines to the wastewater treatment plant. The public defence of Jari Lahtinen's doctoral dissertation will be held on Saturday 27 February 2016. Professor Kaj Riska (Norwegian University of Science and Technology) and D.Sc. (Tech) Jorma Kamarainen (Finnish Transport Safety Agency) will act as opponents and Professor Seppo Niemi (University of Vaasa) as custos. White rhinoceroses are among the largest rhinoceroses in the world. Their natural habitat is southern Africa. Due to the great demand for their horn, the animals are poached intensely and threatened with extinction. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) therefore placed the southern white rhinoceros (Ceratotherium s. simum) on the red list of endangered animals. In zoos, southern white rhinoceroses are considered easy to keep. The reproductive success of captive animals has not been so good, however. The wild animal experts Annika Posautz, Felix Knauer and Chris Walzer from the Research Institute of Wildlife Ecology at Vetmeduni Vienna investigated, among other things, how the housing conditions of southern white rhinoceroses differed in zoos across Europe and which health problems were most common. We wanted to find out what sorts of problems exist in European zoos and what could be improved. With the exception of the reproductive tract, little is known in the scientific literature about the health of captive rhinos. The animal management also differs from zoo to zoo, explains Posautz, the studys first author. Of 70 zoos contacted, 45 responded to the online survey. One zoo from Israel also took part in the study. The collected data reflect a total of 159 rhinoceroses. Most common health problems with skin, digestive tract and reproductive organs The survey showed that dermatological, gastrointestinal and reproductive cases accounted for most of the health problems among the animals. The dermal cases often involved wounds resulting from aggressive interactions with other animals. Colic and enteritis were among the most common gastrointestinal problems reported for white rhinoceroses. In many cases, health checks are conducted only superficially. The actual cause of a health problem can therefore rarely be found, Posautz believes. That also has to do with the fact that, unfortunately, zoo veterinarians are still reluctant to sedate the rhinos for an in-depth check-up and therapy. Many veterinarians believe that anaesthetizing wild animals involves enormous effort and high risk. Prophylactic treatment with antibiotics hides actual disease What surprised and worried the researchers the most was the regular, long-term use of antibiotics and anti-inflammatory drugs without an exact diagnosis. Such drugs are good for short-term therapies. We believe that their long-term use without a specific diagnosis represents a danger to the animals, Posautz says. The actual health issues affecting the animals remain hidden. The wild animal expert and veterinarian Posautz recommends: Regular check-ups, such as parasitological screening and blood tests, could prevent many health problems before they arise. Consideration must also be given to medical training programmes and the use of sedatives for early, in-depth health checks and therapies. FULL STORY Inland freshwaters with a greater variety of fish species (biodiversity) have higher-yielding and less variable fisheries according to a new study from the University of Southampton and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). At least two billion people depend directly on inland freshwaters, such as lakes, rivers and wetlands, for the provision of food. However, despite thousands of freshwater species contributing to food security, the relationship between biodiversity and yield remains poorly understood. Using datasets from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and IUCN covering 100 countries in Africa, Europe and parts of Asia, researchers from the University of Southampton have conducted the first large-scale test of the impact of freshwater biodiversity on fishery yields and the variability of yield over time. After taking into account other factors that would be expected to have an effect on yield, such as fishing effort, the size of lakes, and temperature and precipitation, they found that those fisheries with a higher number of species are also producing higher yields. In addition, they showed that in parts of the world where there was a higher number of fish species there was also more stability in the yield year on year. Countries with the strongest relationship included Tanzania, Democratic Republic of Congo, Vietnam and Thailand. Emma Brooks, Postgraduate Research Student in the University's Centre for Biological Sciences and lead author of the study, said: "The results suggest that fish biodiversity may deliver benefits for human wellbeing. As such, these results provide a powerful argument for placing biodiversity conservation centrally within fisheries management, particularly in countries with the highest yielding inland fisheries as these also tend to have high freshwater biodiversity." Dr Felix Eigenbrod, Associate Professor (Spatial Ecology) in the Centre for Biological Sciences and senior author of the study, said: "Our study demonstrates that maintaining healthy freshwater systems that support a wide variety of fish (not just those targeted for fishing) is good not only for freshwater species conservation, but is also critical for food security and livelihoods. This is especially true in developing countries where fisheries provide a major source of protein and micronutrients, are a source of income, and where they are used as a safety net in times of hardship such as when crops fail." Beyond food security, the researchers say that understanding the degree to which biodiversity underpins freshwater fisheries has particular policy relevance because freshwater systems are of major importance for the conservation of biodiversity. Freshwater habitats are disproportionately species rich given that they cover only 0.8 per cent of the Earth's surface but contain 10 per cent of species described to date and as many as a third of all vertebrates. Dr Will Darwall, Head of the IUCN's Freshwater Biodiversity Unit and co-author of the study, says: "Inland waters are the most threatened systems globally, with dams, water extraction, pollution and invasive species as well as overharvesting of the fisheries themselves recognised as some of the biggest threats. It is imperative that the relationships we explored should be considered within freshwater and fisheries management; the protection and conservation of species diversity in freshwater systems is a win-win outcome for human food security and conservation efforts to preserve freshwater ecosystems." The findings also highlight the urgent need for more data to fully understand and monitor the contribution of biodiversity to inland fisheries globally. Emma Brooks adds: "There is a lack of data for freshwaters, including a thorough understanding of species compositions and distributions worldwide. Equally, a concentrated effort is required to increase reporting not only of inland fishery yields, but also of fishing efforts. Only by doing this will we be able to fully understand the extent of the role that biodiversity plays in underpinning inland fisheries." advertisement make a difference: sponsored opportunity Story Source: Materials provided by University of Southampton. Note: Content may be edited for style and length. A team of scientists led by Carnegie's Rebecca Albright and Ken Caldeira performed the first-ever experiment that manipulated seawater chemistry in a natural coral reef community in order to determine the effect that excess carbon dioxide released by human activity is having on coral reefs. Their results provide evidence that ocean acidification is already slowing coral reef growth. Their work is published in Nature. When we burn coal, oil, or gas, the resulting carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere where it acts as a greenhouse gas. Greenhouse gases emitted by human activity don't just affect the atmosphere; they also have a negative impact on the world's oceans. This is partially due to overall warming caused by climate change. But also, over time, most of the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is absorbed by the ocean, where it reacts with seawater to form an acid that is corrosive to coral reefs, shellfish, and other marine life. This process is known as 'ocean acidification'. Coral reefs are particularly vulnerable to the ocean acidification process, because reef architecture is built by the accretion of calcium carbonate, called calcification, which becomes increasingly difficult as acid concentrations increase and the surrounding water's pH decreases. Scientists predict that reefs could switch from carbonate accretion to dissolution within the century due to this acidification process. Previous studies have demonstrated large-scale declines in coral reefs over recent decades. Work from another team led by Caldeira found that rates of reef calcification were 40 percent lower in 2008 and 2009 than they were during the same season in 1975 and 1976. But it has been hard to pinpoint exactly how much of the decline is due to acidification and how much is caused by warming, pollution, and over-fishing. The team manipulated the alkalinity of seawater flowing over a reef flat off Australia's One Tree Island in the southern Great Barrier Reef. They brought the reef's pH closer to what it would have been in the pre-industrial period based on estimates of atmospheric carbon dioxide from the era. They then measured the reef's calcification in response to this pH increase. They found that calcification rates under these manipulated pre-industrial conditions were higher than they are today. "Our work provides the first strong evidence from experiments on a natural ecosystem that ocean acidification is already slowing coral reef growth," Albright said. "Ocean acidification is already taking its toll on coral reef communities. This is no longer a fear for the future; it is the reality of today." Increasing the alkalinity of ocean water around coral reefs has been proposed as a geoengineering measure to save shallow marine ecosystems. These results show that this idea could be effective. However, the practicality of implementing such measures would be almost impossible at all but the smallest scales. "The only real, lasting way to protect coral reefs is to make deep cuts in our carbon dioxide emissions," Caldeira said. "If we don't take action on this issue very rapidly, coral reefs--and everything that depends on them, including both wildlife and local communities--will not survive into the next century." Albright will be presenting this research Monday Feb. 22 at the 2016 Ocean Sciences Meeting co-sponsored by the Association for the Sciences of Limnology and Oceanography, The Oceanography Society and the American Geophysical Union. Other members of the team include: Carnegie's Lilian Caldeira, Lester Kwiatkowski, Jana Maclaren (also of Stanford University), Yana Nebuchina, Julia Pongratz (now at Max Planck Institute for Meteorology), Katharine Ricke, Kenny Schneider (now at The Hebrew University of Jerusalem), Marine Sesboue, and Kai Zhu (now at RiceUniversity); as well as Jessica Hosfelt and Aaron Ninokawa of University of California Davis, Benjamin Mason of Stanford University, Tanya Rivlin of The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Kathryn Shamberger of Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and Texas A&M University, and Kennedy Wolfe of The University Sydney. This work was supported by the Carnegie Institution for Science and the Fund for Innovative Climate and Energy Research. He's endured way more than any dog or human should ever have to face. This past weekend in Rock Hill, South Carolina, a 6-week-old puppy was shot at least 18 times with a BB gun, local news outlet The Herald reported. A maintenance worker at an apartment complex first saw the puppy surrounded by a group of young teens on Sunday evening while doing his rounds. When he returned a short time later, the lab mix was bleeding, Captain Mark Bollinger of the Rock Hill Police Department told The Dodo. The maintenance worker immediately called the police and officers arrived to discover the dog had multiple wounds. Dodo Shows Comeback Kids Family Stops At Nothing To Help Their Great Dane Run The puppy was rushed to Ebenezer Animal Hospital, where he was named Brody by the staff. Shocking X-rays shared by the hospital on Facebook show 18 bullets trapped inside of the young dog. "The bullets have not appeared to pierce any vital organs or damaged any joints or bones, which is astounding, but he is a lucky boy," said Dr. Jay Hreiz, medical director at Ebenezer, told The Dodo. "Because of this coupled with his young age of 6 weeks, we will not perform surgery unless necessary and when he's a little older and can handle anesthesia appropriately," he added. "For now, we will simply watch him [for another week] and continue supportive care as he gets better." Brody currently remains at Ebenezer under the care of medical staff. Once he's fully healed, he'll but put up for adoption through Project Safe Pet. Bollinger said detectives are currently working on pinning down the suspect or suspects responsible for harming Brody. Officials have been unable to locate Brody's owner, and the teens who had been seen playing with him are under investigation but have not admitted to any wrongdoing. A recent Facebook post shows Brody doing very well - and getting plenty of rest alongside his cozy stuffed animal.

Facebook/Mark The Dog Guy

Shelter dogs often get a bad rap: They're somehow seen as "damaged" or less worthy than other dogs. But one man is determined to prove that's untrue ... Elmo beforeFacebook/Mark The Dog Guy ... haircut by haircut. Elmo afterFacebook/Mark The Dog Guy "I have seen such transformations in almost all the dogs and it is so uplifting and I KNOW they will pay that love forward to their future forever homes," Mark Imhof, who gives the dogs at Animal Care Centers of NYC (ACC) free baths and haircuts, tells The Dodo. Spartacus before and afterFacebook/Mark The Dog Guy Dodo Shows Cat Crazy Fluffy Cat Wants To Sit On His Dad At All Times But he wasn't always into grooming. Imhof, who has an MBA from New York University, was finishing up a consulting job when his fiancee suggested he make a change. "She didn't want to see me go for another soulless job, and she saw the joy I had when I interacted with our animals," says Imhof. He was also inspired by Erin O'Sullivan of Susie's Senior Dogs - he and his fiancee had previously adopted two dogs from the rescue group. Sugarplum beforeFacebook/Mark The Dog Guy And so he enrolled in the American Academy of Pet Grooming. Of course, he needed practice. Sugarplum afterFacebook/Mark The Dog Guy He and his fiancee remembered how dirty their shelter dogs had been when they first adopted them, and so an idea was born. He would groom the dogs at the ACC for free, with the hope that the additional TLC would help them not only look better but also feel better. Callie before and afterFacebook/Mark The Dog Guy "Sean was my first shelter dog, and when they brought him to me, he was on the unadoptable list because of behavior issues," Imhof says. "Of course, I explain to people, if we were to mat your hair, and then ask you to go do a job, you would probably have behavior issues too. "So I worked through and he became the most adorable guy." Sean before and afterFacebook/Mark The Dog Guy Imhof now has his own dog-walking, pet-sitting and grooming business. But even though he's become a pro, he continues to help the dogs at ACC - and then comes home to his own dog family of four, including two rescued pit bulls. "The pit bulls give me thank yous each day when I return from grooming or bathing the dogs," he says. "They seem to know I'm helping their former friends." One of those recent clients was Hershey. Hershey beforeFacebook/Mark The Dog Guy "Hershey was a product of an animal rescue where the ACC had to go physically remove him from a neglect and abuse situation," Imhof says. "He was traumatized and difficult to groom at times but I had help from the ACC to complete his grooming and he became totally adorable." Hershey afterFacebook/Mark The Dog Guy All of Imhof's transformations are proof that most dogs - even those who may seem shy or scared at first - just need to feel love. Kitschy beforeFacebook/Mark The Dog Guy And then they're a whole new dog. Kitschy afterFacebook/Mark The Dog Guy Thanks to police in Indre-et-Loire, France, 13 hedgehogs are now roaming free after almost suffering a shocking fate. Commander Denis Tardieu says officers were investigating an unrelated crime when they stumbled upon a cage full of hedgehogs. According to police, the helpless animals were being kept to be eaten as their captors' "future lunch." Facebook/Gendarmerie Indre et Loire In some communities, hedgehogs are eaten as "a traditional custom," news station France Bleu reports. In France, however, the European hedgehog is a protected species, whose capture can be punished by up to a year in prison and an almost $17,000 fine. After finding the cage, police say they immediately returned the hedgehogs to their natural environment. Facebook/Gendarmerie Indre et Loire The case has now been forwarded to judicial authorities, but so far no arrests have been announced in connection with the incident. "The future of these little creatures seemed bleak," wrote Indre-et-Loire Police on Facebook. "Long live freedom." From the land, the ocean may seem mostly lifeless, but look under the surface and you'll find up to 80 percent of life on Earth. Now, thanks to a recent photography contest, you can catch a stunning glimpse of this hidden world. This month, the U.K.-based Underwater Photographer of the Year Contest announced its 2016 winners, representing shutterbugs from over 50 different countries. Three Pillars - Practice, Patience & Luck!Pier Mane/UPY 2016 You've probably seen it on your Facebook feed: a video with a cute little white rabbit tucked into a wheelchair, and a family promising to love him forever. It's gone viral on social media sites, and gotten quite a bit of coveragefrom national and international outlets. But the truth behind the video is hardly heartwarming. The video, featuring a days-old white rabbit named Wheelz, was first posted to Facebook last week by Overlook Acres, a small New York farm. The video features the young rabbit scooting around in a handmade wheelchair, with a touching note about how the owners of the farm saved the little rabbit when he was found out in the cold with an injured leg. Overlook Acres is a rabbit meat farm, and writes on Facebook that it leaves its rabbits out in the cold because it's more natural - despite the fact that today's domesticated rabbits have had much of the "wild" bred out of them. Wheelz was one of a handful of recent babies who didn't freeze to death. "Over the past few weeks we have had about 6 litters of bunnies born," the farm wrote. "We lost many to the frigid temperatures of upstate New York." Wheelz was found "stiff and half frozen" at just a few days old, the farm explained, then brought inside so they could attempt to revive him. When he came to, they noticed that he had trouble moving around, a sign of a possible spinal injury after being attacked by an older rabbit. While they were originally planning to put him down, they decided to give him another chance and rigged up a toy skateboard to act as a wheelchair. Dodo Shows Dodo Heroes Woman Devotes Her Life To The Stray Dogs Of Bali While the farm assured its followers that Wheelz would not be eaten, many commenters took umbrage with the fact that the story was less heartwarming that it seemed. Many questioned whether a responsible and humane farm would leave its animals - particularly newborns - to freeze to death and be injured in harsh winter temperatures. "Poor rabbits," one commenter wrote. "I just don't understand how people can do this. Here's me thinking you were compassionate." Recent posts have also shown a startling lack of knowledge about rabbit care, including a photo of Wheelz in a tub of soapy water (baths can be fatal for rabbits). In response to the criticism, Overlook Acres complained that someone must have shared the video with "farm animal rescue sites." "Don't attack me because you people don't like the fact that you are a massive minority among a majority of rational thinking individuals," the farm wrote. But Overlook Acres has already profited off the attention it's received from its supposedly cute video - in large part from animal lovers who don't realize they're supporting less-than-ideal welfare standards by following them. The farm's Facebook page has skyrocketed to over 50,000 likes, and they've opened a Twitter and Instagram account. They also have a Kickstarter asking for people to help fund a children's book about Wheelz, and a GoFundMe asking for donations to raise and "harvest" Wheelz' surviving brothers and sisters. The viral response has prompted many rabbit welfare groups to issue warnings to their followers about sharing the video. Whenever I read author interviews I always wait eagerly for one particular question: What are your favorite books? All too often, though, the replies prove disappointing: War and Peace, Ulysses, the works of Shakespeare, the novels of Jane Austen. All these are, indisputably, monuments of world literature, but as answers they fizzle. If youre like me, you want the esteemed writer to show a little originality, a smidgen of daring, by naming, say, Arthur Machens The Hill of Dreams or Leopold von Sacher-Masochs Venus in Furs or Anita Looss Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. Better still would be rapturous enthusiasm for a work few people have even heard of, such as Dennis Parrys Sea of Glass. As it happens, this was one of Edward Goreys favorite neglected books. While that artists eclectic taste encompassed both Murasaki Shikibus glorious Tale of Genji and the mysteries of Agatha Christie, he regularly gravitated toward works rich with something of his own macabre whimsy. Sea of Glass fits that categorization, faintly calling to mind Sakis ironic short stories, Ivy Compton-Burnetts campy tragi-comedies and the early satirical fiction of Evelyn Waugh. According to Simon Stern, who introduces this first American edition, Parry wrote 10 novels including The Survivor, also available from Valancourt before he died at age 42 after a car accident in 1955. Sea of Glass, his masterpiece, had been published just two months earlier. [Michael Dirda takes a new look at a little-known Jules Verne novel] The novel takes the form of a reminiscence, in which a now middle-aged David Lindley recalls some holiday adventures in 1928 when he was a young Cambridge law student. Through the good graces of an aunt and uncle, he was invited to spend his vacation in the London home of the rich and sickly Mrs. Ellison. On his first night, he visited some friends and returned to Aynho Terrace at 11 p.m.: Turpin, the butler, again opened the door, grinning amiably in spite of the late hour. Good night, I said. And the same to you, sir! he replied heartily. God wot! Young and innocent though I was, it struck me as an unusual response from a butler. I wondered if he had been drinking. (Not to keep anybody in suspense, the answer was yes, of course). It turns out that Turpin is nearly always endearingly drunk and regularly given to quoting fragments of old poetry. In fact, except for our usually sensible narrator, all the characters of Sea of Glass are comically over the top, even slightly larger than life, especially the novels heroine, the irrepressible Varvara Ellison, only recently arrived in England from Chinese Turkestan. Her father, the scapegrace son of old Mrs. Ellison, was a gunrunner killed by bandits and her mother a volatile Russian beauty, pathetically bitten to death by venomous barking spiders. Reared in Doljuk, which means sea of glass, Varvara speaks a Russian-inflected English, resembles a Valkyrie and looks at British life with suspicion. David first encounters this force of nature when he grows confused on a dark stairwell and blunders toward the wrong bedroom door. The lights suddenly go on: In the gap stood a large girl with tawny hair and fierce blue eyes which . . . were fixed on me with unblinking hostility. In her right hand, raised shoulder-high, she held a long knife with a curved tip. It was pointed towards myself, and it may have been this which prevented me from obtaining full value from another of her circumstances. Never thereafter could I remember how she looked without a stitch of clothing. The orphaned Varvara, naturally enough, hopes to be provided for in her grandmothers will. She soon recognizes, however, that her greedy Uncle Cedric wants all the family money for himself. This fat, vulgar businessman quickly determines to cast doubt on his nieces legitimacy. Are there any actual documents that prove her parents were married? Meanwhile, Varvara afraid of being poisoned insists on drinking only from a rhinoceross horn, which she believes neutralizes all toxins. Not surprisingly, mealtimes at Aynho Terrace frequently occur in an atmosphere of clotted melodrama. Before long, David starts to introduce Varvara into London life. For their first promenade together she dons a shapeless garment that, we are told, was not intrinsically daring, but a piquant effect could be obtained by leaving the buttons which ran down the front open as far as the waist. That afternoon the strolling couple encounter Davids college friend, Andrew, a sophisticated gadabout and ladies man who is immediately smitten with the human tidal wave from Turkestan. Throughout Sea of Glass, sex is regularly alluded to with jolly, good-natured urbanity. In Mrs. Ellisons house David notices a chairs back panel adorned by an inset plaque of two pre-Raphaelite maidens looking into each others eyes with an expression which would cause comment nowadays. Old Turpin remembers once being caught in the cellar doing the under-ousemaid a bit of good. Andrew arranges for Varvara to acquire some new clothes, in part so that he can ogle her in the fitting room. At one moment of crisis, our beautiful heroine actually tells another character, Tonight, I shall grant you my supreme favours. He replies: Good God, where do you pick up language like that? No matter what the situation, Varvara acts with a self-dramatizing, operatic intensity. Back in Doljuk, she grew up against a backdrop of insurrections, torture, daily prayers and sudden death. Her nurse taught her the mysteries of heal-alls and more sinister potions. Although she now aspires to become a proper English miss, Varvara remains, in her innately theatrical way, a born survivor. At one point she grows convinced that her grandmother will die and leave her penniless. David says its just nonsense to think she will starve, to which Varvara replies: Perhaps but only because I shall go on the streets first. She repeated the phrase with relish, adding: In my good new clothes. My grandmothers ghost will come up behind me, grieving and repenting in the cold. At this point, David interjects, And interfering considerably with business, I should think. Halfway through the book, a death occurs, and Varvara is sure the authorities will arrest her for murder. Nonetheless, she declares, before the police hang me, I shall save my breath to utter a great cry of innocence. Later, she decides to run away instead, hoping David will come with her. She reassures him: If I am caught, I shall poison myself before they can torture me. But I shall leave a letter between my breasts swearing by God that you are innocent. Sea of Glass is half comedy of manners, half murder mystery, and terrifically enjoyable throughout. Figuratively as well as literally, Varvara dwarfs everyone around her and it is only appropriate that she should eventually pass into myth. Might she have become the sexually liberated queen of a small island off the coast of Guinea? Was she the sharpshooting defender of a small English estate during the Second World War? Did she immigrate to California, where she was revered as the high priestess of a crackpot religion? Anything is possible for the wondrous, irresistible Varvara. Edward Gorey loved Sea of Glass, and so will you. Michael Dirda reviews each Thursday in Style and is the author, most recently, of Browsings: A Year of Reading, Collecting, and Living With Books. Road Show has logged a lot of miles on a long, bumpy journey to Shirlington and the cozy confines of Signature Theatre. Who knew that to smooth out the ride, weve been waiting all this time for Gary Griffin to hop on board? Griffin, the Chicago director who guided A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum at Signature in 2003 and Honeymoon in Vegas last season on Broadway, has come up with a fluid staging of this flinty Stephen Sondheim-John Weidman musical that both underlines its strengths and eliminates some of the bitter aftertastes of previous versions. Chiefly in the plus column is the unfettered opportunity Griffin allows us to experience the restless melodic energy of Sondheims score, as channeled by its two main characters, the equally restless Mizner brothers, played splendidly on this occasion by Josh Lamon and Noah Racey. Together, theyre emblems of a new aggressively acquisitive 20th century in America or, as Sondheim puts it, the century of get-rich-quick. And yet, although the story of the Mizners is chockablock with the brothers colorful schemes, culminating in their grandest gambit, building and marketing the tropical idyll of Boca Raton, Fla., the musical remains overly expository, and, well, just not a whole lot of fun. Unlike Pacific Overtures (1976) and Assassins (1990), the other history musicals on which Sondheim and Weidman collaborated, Road Show makes no vitally imaginative claim on the musical form. Its lacking in the kind of thrilling satire that animates songs such as Overtures captivating Please, Hello or Assassins Unworthy of Your Love. The musical-comedy treatments of the substantial subjects of those earlier shows (the Wests exploitation of Japan; the men and women who tried to kill or succeeded in killing U.S. presidents) felt revolutionary; Road Show, by comparison, feels fairly weightless. Or perhaps, in the context of this composer-lyricists nonpareil body of work, what strikes a lifelong admirer as rather inconsequential. Griffin, who mounted the show at Chicago Shakespeare Theater in 2014, evinces a far more secure command of this material than previous directors, such as Harold Prince or John Doyle. If one of the ambitions through all the myriad iterations of Road Show has been to reveal incisively the relationship of these striving brothers as they dream, scrape, dig, claw and con their way to fame, fortune and ruin, this production comes closer than ever before. And there is a serious amount of before. Sondheim has been fascinated by the Mizners since he read about Addison, an architect, and his flimflamming brother Wilson in the New Yorker back in the 1950s. The show, set in the early part of last century, took shape in the 1990s as Wise Guys and then was rechristened Gold! It made its official debut in 2003, first in Chicago and then at the Kennedy Center, as Bounce. After a poor critical reception, the musical was reworked by Sondheim and book writer Weidman once again, this time in a one-act version called Road Show that premiered at New Yorks Public Theater in 2008. As a result of a directorial approach that might be called Thoreauvian the phrase Simplify, simplify comes to mind Griffin reduces Road Show to chamber-musical scale. Which makes a lot of sense. The orchestra, for example, consists merely of a piano player, the excellent Jacob Kidder, and a roving assortment of actor-instrumentalists who occasionally accompany a song on guitar, violin, brass or percussion. Scott Daviss set on a thrust stage, beautifully lighted by Joel Shier, is a spare wooden structure, a modest counterpart to the brothers grandiose plans. Griffins pared-back handling magnifies the contributions of his biggest assets, Lamons Addison and Raceys Wilson; what emerges is a more powerful evocation of their complicated relationship and, in particular, of Addisons intensely conflicted love for Wilson. Road Show is a story of folly; the faulty all-American goal that Addison and Wilson set for themselves, of making a killing, leaves them empty (and empty-handed) in every way. In Addisons Trip, a list song in the truest sense, Sondheim catalogues the gaudy souvenirs that Addison collects on a world tour, a bounty that will inform the eclectic blueprints he draws up for the mightily impressed Florida swells. As with other aspects of this pristine production, its the best executed version of this number to date. But the question asserting itself as Addisons possessions multiply what is it all for? is one that still feels as if it applies to Road Show itself. Road Show Music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, book by John Weidman. Directed by Gary Griffin. Music direction, Jon Kalbfleisch; set, Scott Davis; costumes, Ivania Stack; lighting, Joel Shier; sound, Lane Elms; wigs, Anne Nesmith. With Matthew Schleigh, Sherri L. Edelen, Erin Driscoll, Bobby Smith, Dan Manning, Angela Miller, Stefan Alexander Kempski. About 1 hour 45 minutes. Tickets, $40-$101. Through March 13 at Signature Theatre, 4200 Campbell Ave., Arlington. Visit sigtheatre.org or call 703-820-9771. (Illustration by Tom Cocotos for The Washington Post) Theres a point where nostalgia becomes more like necrophilia, and Fuller House immediately crosses that line. Exhumed on the pretense of millennial desire (you loved the show as kids; youll love it even more as stunted, binge-watching adults), Netflixs 13-episode revival of the old ABC sitcom Full House is less an update than an irony-free pantomime of the past. It represents a new low in the current cultures inability to leave behind the blankies, binkies and wubbies of ones youth. It squeezes itself in with all the other retrograde fare (The X-Files; the forthcoming reiterations of Gilmore Girls and Twin Peaks) that is constantly being served in response to millions of fists pounding a table. Even that new Star Wars movie we all loved so much exists, to some degree, because of mass petulance. But now that the stone has been rolled from the Tanner family tomb, all we really see is another one of TVs underwhelming acts of resurrection. Lured by the empty promise of more Full House (which ran for 192 episodes from 1987 to 1995), we are instead subjected to the only logical spinoff, Fuller House, in which the shows original child actors (Candace Cameron Bure; Jodie Sweetin; Andrea Barber) now play grown-up, single, working women tasked with raising a set of new child actors whose precocity and artificial sweetness reflect three decades of synthetic refinement. The first episode does indeed reunite (almost) all of the extended clan, with its attendant Katsopolises, Gibblers, basement dwellers and lovestruck fridge-raiders. Also back are the catchphrases, overcheered by a studio audience of devoted dimwits. The only person missing, of course, is baby sister Michelle Tanner, played from infancy through first grade by the saucer-eyed twins Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen. Its a devastating absence that throws volumes of deserved shade at the whole endeavor and the show meets it early on with an ineffectual response from the gathered ensemble, who glare at the cameras fourth wall at the lone mention of Michelles name and her fashion empire. (Netflix only let critics see Fuller Houses first six episodes; if an Olsen twin eventually appears in the back half of Fuller House, my heart will sink like a stone, for there will be no integrity left anywhere on the planet.) The gangs all back with one notable exception. Or is that two? (Michael Yarish/Netflix) The gang is brought back together by momentous news: Patriarch Danny Tanner (Bob Saget) is moving from San Francisco to Los Angeles to co-host a syndicated morning show with his longtime colleague Becky Katsopolis (Lori Loughlin), which means her husband (and Dannys brother-in-law), Uncle Jesse Katsopolis (John Stamos), is going, too. (Jesse and Beckys twin sons, born late in Full Houses run, are now college bums who aspire to operate a taco truck near the beach.) Dannys lifelong pal Joey Gladstone (Dave Coulier) is now performing 10 comedy shows a week in Las Vegas; he drops by to spend a final night in his former basement dwelling and salvage some of his favorite late-80s belongings. Eldest daughter D.J. (Cameron Bure) is, like so many sitcom characters before her, grieving the death of her husband (grieving is too strong a word here; she is a little bit sad) and focusing on her career as a veterinarian and raising her three sons: Jackson (Michael Campion), Max (Elias Harger) and baby Tommy (played by twins Dashiell and Fox Messitt, who are so cute you could eat one up and still have another to eat up later). Danny magnanimously hands the keys to his vintage Laurel Heights home over to D.J., and nothing has changed in two decades not a stick of furniture, nor the terrible jokes. D.J.s kid sister Stephanie (Sweetin) decides to give up her fledgling music career in London and move home to help care for the kids. They are joined by D.J.s lifelong friend and perpetual irritant, Kimmy Gibbler (Barber), who is recently divorced and moves in with her tweenage daughter Ramona (Soni Nicole Bringas). Once Saget, Stamos and the other older alums head off to cash their checks, Fuller House gets down to the real business of utter vacuity, in which the women and their adorable children (that baby! Seriously! Nom-nom-nom-nyaaaarrrghmppf) experience moments of carefully plotted hubris, light humiliation, personal reckoning and group hugs. Only Barber seems to truly intuit Fuller House as both pleasure and pain just as she did in her adolescence. Its something about her Kimmy Gibbler grin and the knowing, the utter and complete knowing, that the tone of Fuller House is so insipidly wrong that it becomes, for certain viewers, perversely right. Barber is on some other psychic plane with it, washed in the divine meta-awareness that this is all a dream. A sick and recurring dream. Cameron Bure and Sweetin, on the other hand, still grapple with the unfortunate air of earnest intentions. The children, too, give off that counterfeit Disney Channel sass of showbiz especially when one of the boys tries to land a punch line about Donald Trump. Just dreadful. Andrea Barber, Jodie Sweetin and Candace Cameron Bure in "Fuller House. (Michael Yarish/Netflix via AP) (Michael Yarish/Netflix) I could stop here and go home, having dutifully shot the fish in Fuller Houses barrel. But we havent done the part where you accuse me of telling the kids to get off my lawn. I feel we must. This show has uncorked in me some deeper fear and loathing about the fate of our culture, just as it did in the late 80s, when my crowd used to watch and make fun of Full House as stoned and drunk college students. The Fuller House retread reminds me of similar attempts with The Brady Bunch, which was Generation Xs Full House: Years after its cancellation in 1974, there was a Brady variety show and then there were Brady brides and then A Very Brady Christmas reunion, the relative success of which necessitated a wan attempt at a one-hour family drama in 1990 that was called The Bradys. It all failed because the producers didnt understand the emerging dynamics of modern irony. There was no true Brady Bunch revival until comedy troupes started reenacting the original episodes with a naughty wink, followed by a Saturday Night Live cast member who delivered commentary as Jan Brady on Weekend Update. In short order, those satirical big-budget movie versions came out, meticulously cast with Brady lookalikes, all for the purpose of making the fullest possible Greg/Marcia step-sibling incest jokes. There you have a textbook lesson in how to make something new out of something old. It was laborious, creative, demanding work but it didnt succeed until it was sacrilegious. And thats why Fuller House is such a letdown theres no twisted undertow. Saget, who reinvigorated his stand-up career a decade ago with the filthiest material he could come up with (which in turn delighted the Full House generation), is needlessly restrained here in his brief, compulsory appearances. Fuller House clings to its stale insouciance, brought to us by the same producers (Bob Boyett and Jeff Franklin), who apparently believe their show is some golden treasure of family-friendly programming. Its not. Fuller House is full of group hugs. (Michael Yarish/Netflix) Fuller House also shows that multi-cam/studio-audience sitcoms are just too old-fashioned for commercial-free, vanguard Netflix. Too dopey, too boring, not worth the price. This show begs for a single-camera, Tina Fey-style treatment (like in Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt). It should come to us bluntly and filled with tawdry, grown-up situations and children who need their mouths washed out with soap. Set in San Francisco, it could satirize so much about the 21st century as seen from the perspective of 80s ladies of a certain age. And if the Olsen twins both pass up the opportunity, then you must must recast the part with a new actress who plays Michelle as a malevolent skank. Go big or go home, in other words, but mostly, stop going back. Fuller House confirms once again what weve known for some time: that we are trapped in an endless loop of pop-culture self-regard. Its a cycle we have to break, and now is as good a time as any to break it. I am therefore forbidding you yes, I forbid you to watch Fuller House. I forbid you all, with this exception: Are you watching it from a place of sadness? Are you looking at Fuller House across a chasm of broken hopes? Are you so worried about the future that youre not even sure you want to live in it? Is the world irreparably screwed? Is your brain that fried? Are you that afraid of growing old? Are you that hard up for a hug? All right, you can watch. But keep it down. Fuller House (13 episodes) begins streaming Friday on Netflix. Judges George Davis, center, and Bill Curtis, at right, taste a flight of red wine during final round of the 2016 Virginia Governors Cup wine competition in Richmond on Feb. 1 at the Jefferson Hotel. (Dayna Smith) Keswick Vineyards took best of show and the Virginia Governors Cup in the Old Dominions premier statewide wine competition. The results were announced Monday in Richmond. Keswicks winning wine was the 2014 Cabernet Franc Estate Reserve. It achieved the highest score out of 432 wines submitted by 99 of Virginias 252 wineries. The wines were evaluated by several panels of judges, and the 130 top-scoring wines from preliminary rounds were re-tasted and ranked earlier this month by a panel of 15 sommeliers, writers, retailers and chefs in other words, people who taste and evaluate wines for a living. [This one annual contest is a high-stakes event for Virginia wineries] This was Keswicks second win in the Governors Cup competition, first held in 1992. The competition is sponsored by the Virginia Wineries Association, the Virginia Vineyards Association and the Virginia Wine Board. The ceremony in Richmond also unveiled the Governors Case, the 12 top wines from the competition meant to showcase the breadth of Virginias wine industry. The case, including the Cup winner, has been an effective marketing tool for Virginia wine since the current competition format was inaugurated in 2011. The Governors Case wines for 2016, in alphabetical order, are: Barboursville Vineyards 2014 Vermentino (Barboursville) Bluestone Vineyard 2014 Chardonnay (Bridgewater) Cardinal Point 2014 Clay Hill Cabernet Franc (Afton) Fabbioli Cellars 2012 Cabernet Franc (Leesburg) Glen Manor Vineyards 2013 Hodder Hill (Front Royal) Granite Heights Winery 2010 Evening Serenade (Warrenton) Horton Vineyards 2014 Petit Manseng (Gordonsville) Keswick Vineyards 2014 Cabernet Franc Estate Reserve (Keswick), Cup winner Michael Shaps Wineworks 2014 Petit Manseng (Charlottesville) Naked Mountain Winery 2012 Petit Verdot (Markham) North Gate Vineyard 2013 Meritage (Purcellville) Stone Tower Winery 2013 Hogback Mountain (Leesburg) The results hint at some interesting developments in Virginias wine world. In previous years, white wines were underrepresented in the Governors Case. This year, the rules were changed to reserve three spots for whites. That four made it into the case demonstrates the strength of white wines this year. Two of them are petit manseng, which is making a strong bid to eclipse viognier as Virginias most distinctive white wine. And its notable that both the Horton and Michael Shaps are dry expressions of this wine, which is more often made in a fruity or even sweet style. The inclusion of Barboursvilles vermentino is another hint that Virginia has the potential to excite with alternative white wines. We also see consistency: North Gates Meritage (a Bordeaux-style red blend) makes the Governors Case for the third consecutive vintage. Glen Manors Hodder Hill (another Bordeaux blend) won the Cup in 2011 for its 2009 and reappears here. And Michael Shaps is a familiar name among Virginias elite winemakers. Shaps garnered five gold medals, more than any other producer, including one for his stunningly delicious petit manseng, which is in the Governors Case. And we see new wineries emerging. Granite Heights, in Opal, won three gold medals for its red blends, including the 2010 Evening Serenade, which made the top 12. This is a tiny winery worth a detour off U.S. Route 29 as you drive to Charlottesville. And Loudoun Countys Stone Tower Winery, already a popular site for weekend wine tourists, earns a spot in the Governors Case with one of its first releases, the Hogback Mountain red blend. As always, there is much to explore in Virginia wine. McIntyre writes the weekly Wine column for The Post. He also blogs at dmwineline.com. Dear Amy: Almost five years ago, a very dear friend of mine began what would become a very tumultuous relationship. Several months after it began she became pregnant. At the time, she and the babys father were not together, and due to the very clear issues between the two of them she chose to terminate the pregnancy. It was an incredibly difficult decision for her to make, and she continues to struggle with it today. Since then, she and the babys father continue to be off and on, but mostly off. He has controlled the terms of the relationship the entire time, and he will disappear for long periods before sauntering back into her life and sleeping with her. It has become a never-ending and devastating cycle. Over the years I have tried to persuade her to seek therapy and move on, especially in light of the fact that he now lives out of the state with no intent to return. She continues to hold out hope for him, despite the relationship being dwindled down to text-message exchanges. I know that she is going through some post-traumatic stress and depression from the abortion, but after almost five years of this I am having an increasingly difficult time watching her struggle. It infuriates me to see him pop back into her life. For the past several months I have considered contacting him myself and expressing my very serious concerns about his behavior, but I do not want to jeopardize my friendship with her. The problems he has created are not only causing her heartbreak and stress, they are infringing on our friendship. Is there a right way to go about this, or am I overstepping my bounds? Exasperated Friend Exasperated Friend: Lets play this out: You contact this manipulative jerk and tell him you dont like the way he treats your friend. He either doesnt respond, or he shoots back a salty version of mind your own business. Then you two can play text-tag for a while, after which he complains to your friend, and she in turn feels betrayed. Your friends choices are hers not yours. Watching someone you care about engage in a destructive relationship is extremely challenging even heartbreaking but your role is to support her healing and encourage her toward strength, not try to force this guy to stay away from her. It would be very kind of you to research a local support group and/or therapist and offer to take her to an appointment. Be in her corner, but remember that she owns all of her own choices even the ones you dont like. Dear Amy: I need a womans advice. I had a girlfriend many years ago that I loved deeply but did not treat well. I was an immature jerk. I learned recently that my time in this world is short. I always thought we might meet by chance and I could beg forgiveness. That seems unlikely now. My only living relative, my nephew, told me he would honor my last wishes whatever they may be. Should I write her a letter now and have him mail it after my passing? Should I call her myself? Should he visit her in person after the fact? I dont wish to upset her. I just feel a compulsion to make amends while I still can. Would it just be too weird to get an apology second-hand after 25 years? Want To Do Right Want To Do Right: Im so sorry this is happening to you, and I applaud your desire to apologize and make amends to someone you cared about and hurt a long time ago. Your idea for your nephew to handle this after your death might make a plot line for a Nicholas Sparks novel, but it is very complicated and unnecessary. Please follow your heart now. Pick up the phone or write a letter. Be completely transparent and honest. I assure you -- you will feel better and she will feel touched. I hope she takes the opportunity to forgive you so that you can both close the loop and have a peaceful resolution to this relationship. Dear Amy: You printed a question from Concerned Homeowner, who had evidence that someone had used the familys vacation cabin for a sexual liaison. Homeowners wife wanted to leave this issue alone perhaps she is the one having dalliances at the cabin? I think that when this husband is looking for a culprit, he should look closer to home. A Reader Reader: Several readers suggested this scenario. The plot thickens! Amys column appears seven days a week at washingtonpost.com/advice. Write to Amy Dickinson at askamy@tribpub.com or Ask Amy, Chicago Tribune, TT500, 435 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago, Ill. 60611. In this Feb. 25, 2004 file photo, Carla Hayden speaks in Seattle. President Barack Obama has nominated Hayden, the longtime head of Baltimores library system as the next Librarian of Congress. (Ted S. Warren, File/Associated Press) President Obamas historic choice to be the 14th librarian of Congress, Carla D. Hayden, is regarded as a smart, politically savvy leader and strong advocate for community engagement and access for all. Hayden is the chief executive of the Enoch Pratt Free Library in Baltimore, a job she has had for 22 years. She drew praise and criticism for her decision to keep the library open during last years protests over the death of Freddie Gray while in police custody. As the head of the American Library Association in 2003-2004, Hayden took on U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft over measures in the Patriot Act that she considered an invasion of privacy. And she is credited with updating Pratts technology and launching programs to meet the communitys needs. If confirmed by the Senate, Hayden, 63, will be the first woman and the first African American in the position. She would succeed James H. Billington, who retired last year after 28 years as head of the massive federal agency. Hayden declined to be interviewed, citing the confirmation process. Haydens confirmation faces several challenges. The recent opening on the U.S. Supreme Court could delay her hearing, as Republicans may follow the logic that the next president deserves to make similar appointments. Last year, Congress passed a law making the librarian of Congress a 10-year appointment (with an option to renew), a change that may help to depoliticize the process. Hayden would be only the second librarian to head the federal agency. The two previous librarians were scholars and authors. Reaction from Capitol Hill was muted yesterday. In a joint statement, Reps. Candice S. Miller (R-Mich.), chairman of the Committee on House Administration, and Gregg Harper (R-Miss.), vice chairman of the Joint Committee on the Library, said: The next Librarian must be committed to building upon the institutions tradition of the advancement of knowledge throughout the world. We look forward to hearing more from Dr. Carla D. Hayden as she makes her way through the Senate confirmation process. Carla Hayden has been the chief executive of the Enoch Pratt Free Library in Baltimore since Since 1993. (Lloyd Fox/Baltimore Sun) [Americas national library is lacking in leadership, yet another report says] Colleagues describe Hayden as tough, straightforward and dynamic. She is loved by the people of Baltimore for building new buildings, renovating old ones, making them the center of life in Baltimore, said Winston Tabb, the dean of university libraries and museums at Johns Hopkins University. Tabb said her decision to keep the library open last year during the sometimes violent protests over Grays death was critical because it provided citizens with a place of refuge. Shes also just a nice person. Shes very funny. Shes not full of herself in any way, he said. Hayden earned a masters degree and doctorate from the University of Chicago. She began her career as a childrens librarian in the Chicago public library system, and in 1991, she was named its deputy commissioner and chief librarian. She held that job for two years before moving to Baltimore. Michelle and I have known Dr. Carla Hayden for a long time, since her days working at the Chicago Public Library, and I am proud to nominate her to lead our nations oldest federal institution as our 14th Librarian of Congress, Obama said in a statement. Dr. Hayden has devoted her career to modernizing libraries so that everyone can participate in todays digital culture. Hayden has served on the National Museum and Library Services Board since 2010 (a position that required Senate confirmation). American Library Association President Sari Feldman described Hayden as a talent to be reckoned with. She has been known so much for the way she has looked outward, the way she has recognized the needs of our community and the integration of the changing library and technology environment, Feldman said. The way the Pratt Library handled itself under pressure during the Baltimore riots . . . the library recognized it was a place of information, it was a place of safety, and a place where the community could come together to discuss the issues of the city and the issues of the time. Enoch Pratt has 22 locations, 500 employees and an annual budget of $40 million. Although Enoch Pratt is one of the oldest libraries in the nation, it is not among the largest. It is not included on the American Library Associations list of top 25 public libraries in the United States when measured by population served, size of collection, circulation or frequency of visits. Hayden is credited with updating the librarys technology and improving its community outreach. She led the effort to open the first new branch in 35 years as well as a $112 million renovation of the central library thats underway. She has instituted numerous programs, including college and career counseling and the digitization of the librarys special collections. In a statement issued by Enoch Pratt, Hayden said the nomination is a great honor. It is my privilege to serve the Enoch Pratt Free Library and the citizens of Baltimore for more than 20 years, during which time we restored its world-renowned reputation, she said. Billington, a scholar and author, was nominated by Ronald Reagan in 1987. He retired in the fall after a blistering government report blamed him for years of technological failures that wasted millions of taxpayer dollars. Founded in 1800, the Library of Congress has a $630 million annual budget and 3,200 employees. It serves as the research arm of Congress, provides Congress with legal advice and runs the Copyright Office, a major player in the worlds digital economy. Tabb said Haydens experience and training as a librarian is key. There is so much that needs to be done in the development of the digital library, he said. Theres a need for leadership that has the instinct for where the concerns are, and how to make the Library of Congress not just the congressional library, but truly a national library. Philip Kennicott and Mark Guarino contributed to this report. Watergate East, left, and Watergate South, right, are seen from the new offices of Sage Publications on the sixth floor of 2600 Virginia Ave. NW, where the Democratic National Committee was headquartered and burglarized in 1972. (J. Lawler Duggan/For The Washington Post) Its a rare workplace that boasts as a point of pride that its office was once a crime scene. But when you work at the Watergate office building the site for the most infamous third-rate burglary in American history you get to brag. It was on the sixth floor, in the wee hours of June 17, 1972, that a security guard caught five men breaking into the offices of the Democratic National Committee. The break-in set in motion the events that would make Richard Nixon the only U.S. president to resign the office and would forever shake the American publics trust in its government. Thats a lot of history for a ho-hum Foggy Bottom office space. [Five arrested in plot to bug the Watergate: The Post story from 1972] Nowadays, the sixth floor is home to Sage Publications, an academic publishing company that moved its D.C. branch into the Watergate complex about a year ago. Last week the company opened an exhibit to commemorate the events that transpired in the spot it now occupies. A new historical timeline installation recognizes the scandalous history of Sage Publications new offices. (J. Lawler Duggan/For The Washington Post) Rhodes Cook, who began working at the DNC shortly after the break-in and became a political analyst covering every presidential election since Nixon, returned to his former workplace to discuss the break-in with current Watergate employees. This is where it all started: the unraveling of a presidency and, really, the beginning of a change in American history, Cook said. He recalled that the office of DNC Chairman Lawrence F. OBrien Jr., where the burglars were caught, was on the eastern wall of the building. In the northeast corner of the office where windows look out on the building that was the Howard Johnson hotel, where the burglars set up camp Sage Publications installed a wall-length timeline of the Watergate scandal, a commemorative plaque and a copy of The Washington Post front page bearing the headline Nixon Resigns. [Nixon Resigns: The Posts front-page article from Aug. 9, 1974] The sixth floor has been extensively renovated, and Cook said it bears little resemblance to the DNC office that Nixons Committee to Re-Elect the President secretly paid burglars to bug while Nixon was campaigning against Democratic nominee George McGovern. But one key feature seems untouched: the stairwell. The door used to enter Suite 600 of the Watergate Hotel and office building in 1972 is seen from the stairwell. (J. Lawler Duggan/For The Washington Post) It was there that security guard Frank Wills saw that the doors had been taped, leading him to call police, who found the burglars. Its just a door to a staircase. On any given day, most employees choose the elevator. But when attendees at Fridays event realized that it was the door to that staircase, a few drifted over to reverently open and close the door a few times. Unfortunately for history buffs and tourists, the new exhibit is not open to visitors. The Watergate building, part of a five-building complex that includes apartments and shops, is a private office tower with no display about its role in presidential history. Ask the security guard at the front desk for information about Watergate no, not the building; Waaatergate and hell tell you to go to the Smithsonian. Guests and employees of Sage Publications look over a new historical Watergate timeline. (J. Lawler Duggan/For The Washington Post) The former Howard Johnson motel, which then became a George Washington University dormitory, is seen across the street through a historical timeline. (J. Lawler Duggan/For The Washington Post) On the sixth floor, Charisse Kiino, a Sage executive, said the receptionist frequently shoos away curious people who manage to make it up the elevator. Were talking about locking it down more, she said. Todd Baldwin, another Sage executive, said he thinks a publishing company is an appropriate tenant for the historic space. Information, the press, the information machinery that covered Watergate created a transformation in our society, he said, referring to Washington Post reporters Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein, who broke open the Watergate scandal through their reporting. Robert Redford and Dustin Hoffman left an indelible image of the Watergate era in Americas mind, as they portrayed Woodward and Bernstein on an All the Presidents Men set meticulously designed to look like the real Washington Post building. Reporters Bob Woodward, right, and Carl Bernstein, sit in The Post newsroom in this May 7, 1973, file photo. (AP) Peter Lee, with Gelberg Signs, removes The Washington Post signage from its former building in October 2015. (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post) This month, that former Washington Post building is crumbling to the ground, under demolition after The Post moved its office a few blocks away in December. And in 2014, the Arlington County Board approved a plan to tear down the garage where Woodward met FBI official Mark Felt, better known to history as Deep Throat, for covert conversations. But not all Watergate history will be lost to the wrecking ball. At least one quiet Watergate icon that momentous once-taped door still stands. Members of the U.S. Army 3rd Infantry Regiment (The Old Guard) line up in formation during an exhibition for visitors at Mount Vernon on Feb. 17. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images) During a recent visit to George Washingtons Mount Vernon estate, I was surprised to see that recognizing the first presidents enslaved black laborers had taken on a life of its own. The slave quarters had been restored, a model of a slave cabin was built and an archaeological dig was underway at a burial site. It was Monday, which would have been Washingtons 284th birthday. And yet, there were as many people at a special wreath-laying ceremony at the Slave Memorial Circle as at one of the tributes for Washington being held at his tomb. Without slaves, there would be no Mount Vernon and no George Washington as we have come to know him, said Dorothy Wee, a tour guide who presided over the wreath-laying. Slaves were vital to his success. Give credit to the Mount Vernon Ladies Association, which owns and operates the estate, for a willingness to allow such bold acknowledgment of the role of slavery. The association has formed a fruitful partnership in this effort with Black Women United for Action, a Washington-area group whose mission includes promoting little-known African American history. [For descendants of slaves, a powerful connection] But it was a former colleague of mine, Washington Post columnist Dorothy Gilliam, who first put the spotlight on the need to better understand slave history at Mount Vernon. In 1982, Gilliam was walking on a little-used path when she came upon a flat, white stone marker barely visible beneath overgrown vegetation. Upon closer inspection, she saw it was dated 1929 and that it read: In memory of the many faithful colored servants of the Washington family buried at Mount Vernon from 1760 to 1860. Their unidentified graves surround this spot. In one of her columns, Gilliam wrote: An eerie sense of isolation surrounds the place where an unknown number of Washingtons 317 slaves were buried, and the long walk from the stately tomb of George Washington to this abandoned memorial seemed drenched with the tears of the slaves. [Finding the lost marker] It was a poignant, conscience-pricking reflection. And, as Sarah Johnson notes in her book, Mount Vernon: The Forgotten History of An American Shrine, the impact was profound. After Gilliams column was published, The MVLA [Mount Vernon Ladies Association] quickly cleared the overgrowth, installed two park benches, laid a path and reopened the site. A new memorial was planned. The MVLA, the Fairfax County chapter of the NAACP and Howard Universitys architecture school sponsored a design contest, and a memorial was dedicated in 1983. Today, a gravel path leads beneath a brick archway to a sunken, brick-paved circle, with a broken granite column in the center that reads, In Memory of the Afro Americans Who Served As Slaves At Mount Vernon. In 2014, archeologists began carefully exploring the burial site. They want to find out how many people are buried there estimates range from 50 to 150 and who they were. [African American cemeteries winning new recognition in Virginia] Much work remains. But discoveries made since Gilliams column have resulted in a more-accurate portrayal of slave life at Mount Vernon, the most popular historic home in the country with roughly 1 million visitors a year. Slaves are now starting to come to life as human beings who were gravely wronged and not as well-cared-for chattel, as they have sometimes been portrayed. Of course, the more we learn about the reality of their lives, the more difficult it will be to continue seeing Washington as a man of unqualified courage and principle. The Enslaved People of Mount Vernon tour is easily the most difficult to conduct, and it will only get harder. After fighting in the Revolutionary War, where towards the end, 1 in 20 fighting men were either slaves or freed black men, Washington comes back to Mount Vernon and makes a decision never to purchase or sell slaves again, Wee told our tour group. The word conveyed a certain dignity. But then a woman on the tour asked, How about children that were born to slaves were the children slaves, too? Wee said yes. Someone else chimed in that Washington had been born into a world where slavery was the norm that he was a man of his time and shouldnt be judged by todays standards. But the woman who had asked the question still reached the right conclusion. So even though he didnt purchase more slaves, if one of the female slaves had a child, he still got more slaves through birth, she said. A hard truth about the father of our country on his birthday. To read previous columns, go to washingtonpost.com/milloy. These cases were handled by the Washington Humane Society, which operates its shelter at 7319 Georgia Ave. NW, and the Districts, at 1201 New York Ave. NE. For information or assistance, call 202-723-5730 or go to washhumane.org. Opossums freedom frozen: G St. SE, 1000 block, Feb. 15. Officers are investigating the case of an opossum that was left in a trap for a long period during extreme weather. Vital information shared: T St. NW, 200 block. Responding to an allegation about pet doves living in unsanitary conditions, officers spoke to an owner about proper care. Hopped and dropped: Garrison St. NW, 3900 block, Feb. 7. An officer removed a wild rabbit that had fallen into a window well and released it. Vulture treated: Savannah St. SE, 1800 block, Feb. 8. An officer took an injured red-headed vulture to City Wildlife for rehabilitation. Elusive dog caught: E. Capitol St., 2400 block, Feb. 10. A woman reported being chased by a stray dog near a stadium. Responding officers found the dog in the parking lot and chased it for over an hour until it jumped into the Potomac River, where it was captured. The animal was taken to the shelter and will be made available for adoption. Adoptable pet: New York Ave. NE, 1200 block, Jan. 14. An owner surrendered a 1-year-old dog to the shelter because the landlord did not allow dogs of its size in the apartment. These cases were handled by the Washington Animal Rescue League, 71 Oglethorpe St. NW. For information, call 202-726-2556 or go to warl.org. Cat bitten: Takoma Park, Park Ave., 200 block, Feb. 11. A man took a 3-year-old domestic longhair to the leagues medical center because it was limping after spending time outdoors. It was discovered that the cat had multiple bite wounds from another cat. The cat was vaccinated. The acting chair of the Districts troubled Board of Elections told the D.C. Council that she had no idea her agency had federal funds to spend on new voting equipment even as it sought city money for that purpose because board members are only volunteers. In fact, the federal government gave the District $18 million to upgrade its election process, and the board spent nearly $15 million of it, according to expenditure reports filed with the U.S. Election Assistance Commission. But acting chair Deborah Nichols told the D.C. Councils Judiciary Committee that board members asked for city funds for voting machines at the same time her agency spent millions of federal dollars on other election-related needs because they were in the dark about finances. She said board members are not even considered part-time and rely on the agencys executive director for information. The testimony at a council oversight hearing Tuesday came less than four months before the citys June primary election, and Council Judiciary Chairman Kenyan R. McDuffie (D-Ward 5) said that he has been concerned by recent revelations about the agencys weak financial controls and the boards ability to administer the next election. D.C. Council Member Kenyan R. McDuffie (D-Ward 5) is concerned about whether the board of elections can handle the June primary and November general election. (Bill O'Leary/The Washington Post) McDuffie asked for assurances that the board can safeguard tax dollars. It was the second time in less than three months that he questioned the board about election preparedness and internal bureaucracy. McDuffie and voting rights advocates say they are concerned by recent elections marred by faulty machines, delayed vote counting, inaccessible polling stations and other mishaps. Board officials, including acting director Terry Stroud, testified that the agency is in the final stages of renting new, superior voting machines for the June primary and general election in November. They also said they are giving training materials to poll workers. But they were unable to explain why board members and other officials who testified before the council were not aware of or never mentioned the federal dollars they had to purchase equipment while they lobbied the council for local funds. We were just not focused on that, Nichols told McDuffie, in response to repeated questions about the money. I cant tell you any more than that. The elections board has been without a permanent director since late last year, when then-Director Clifford Tatum left to become the general counsel to the U.S. Elections Assistance Commission. Board officials said Tuesday that Tatum knew how the federal dollars were spent but that they did not until recently. The disarray at the board follows a ruling last month in D.C. Superior Court that noted that two out of three of the agencys board members have served well past their appointed terms reason enough, a judge said, to invalidate the boards administration of a proposed ballot initiative concerning a minimum-wage increase. The city is appealing the ruling. This month, D.C. Mayor Muriel E. Bowser (D) nominated David Michael Bennett, a corporate lawyer, to become the election boards new chairman. Bennetts appointment will be subject to the councils approval. On Tuesday, board members were unable to say how much the new voting equipment would cost, a question that McDuffie had posed during a hearing in December. They were unable to explain why the agency had not used the federal funds at its disposal to buy the machines. Two voting rights advocates testified that they are deeply concerned about whether the board can manage the June election and maintain polling stations that are accessible to disabled voters. Dorothy Brizill, a longtime election monitor and local activist, said she is more concerned about the upcoming election than she has been. We are scheduled to have another embarrassing election night, she testified Tuesday. Nichols told lawmakers the board has learned from its mistakes. Weve got our laundry list of everything that has gone on in the past, she said, adding that the board was trying to anticipate what might happen in June. Carrie Underwood will bring her Storyteller Tour to the Verizon Center on Thursday. (Robb D. Cohen/Invision/AP) THU 25 Carrie Underwood The seven-time Grammy Award-winning country star performs in the round on her Storyteller Tour. 7 p.m. Verizon Center, 601 F St. NW. 202-628-3200. www.verizoncenter.com. $46-$79.50. Intersections Festival Atlass annual celebration of D.C. arts offers a wide array of performances, exhibitions and other events in theater, dance, music, visual arts, film, writing, circus and spoken word. Reservations are requested for the free festival launch party Thursday from 7-9 p.m. featuring jazz by Brad Linde, Cuban folk songs by Mari Paz and Diana Saez and spoken word by Goldie Patrick. Festival continues through March 6. Atlas Performing Arts Center, 1333 H St. NE. 202-399-7993. www.atlasarts.org/intersections. Prices vary. Naughty by Nature The Grammy Award-winning hip-hop group celebrates its 25th anniversary. 8 p.m. The Howard Theatre, 620 T St. NW. 202-803-2899. www.thehowardtheatre.com. $30. Tedeschi Trucks Band The Jacksonville, Fla., blues rock band anchored by husband-and-wife team Derek Trucks and Susan Tedeschi performs. With Jorma Kaukonen. 8 p.m. Warner Theatre, 13th and E streets NW. 202-783-4000. www.warnertheatredc.com. $54.50. FRI 26 Swimming in Dark Waters: Other Voices of the American Experience Rhiannon Giddens of the Carolina Chocolate Drops, Leyla McCalla and Bhi Bhiman perform songs of resistance, protest and outsider-looking-in observations. 8 p.m. George Washington University, Lisner Auditorium, 730 21st St. NW. 202-994-6800. lisner.gwu.edu. $35. The Lion Benjamin Scheuer tells a coming-of-age story through music. Opens Friday at 8 p.m., continues Saturday at 2 and 8 p.m., Sunday at 2 and 7:30 p.m., Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. Through April 10. Arena Stage, 1101 Sixth St. SW. 202-488-3300. www.arenastage.org. $40-$70. Journopalooza Six bands featuring journalists from The Washington Post, the New York Times, Reuters, Vox, the National Journal, NBC and other outlets battle for Best Media Band. Proceeds will benefit journalists in Syria and other conflict zones. 8 p.m. Hard Rock Cafe, 999 E St. NW. 202-737-7625. www.journopalooza.com. $20 in advance, $30 day of concert. The Black Lillies The Americana band performs in support of its fourth album, Hard to Please. With Sam Quinn. 8:30 p.m. The Hamilton, 600 14th St. NW. 202-787-1000. www.thehamiltondc.com. $20-$25. No Mountains in the Way This 1974 photographic survey of Kansas features work by Jim Enyeart, who concentrated on buildings; Terry Evans, who focused on people; and Larry Schwarm, who snapped landscapes. Opens Friday. Through July 31. Smithsonian American Art Museum, Eighth and F streets NW. 202-633-1000. americanart.si.edu. Free. SAT 27 Discover Engineering Family Day Twenty activities, such as launching rockets and constructing newspaper skyscrapers, aim to teach children ages 6-12 about engineering. 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m. National Building Museum, 401 F St. NW. 202-272-2448. nbm.org. Free. LVL UP The Brooklyn indie-pop band returns. With Bad Moves and Princess Reason. 10 p.m. Comet Ping Pong, 5037 Connecticut Ave. NW. 202-364-0404. www.cometpingpong.com. $12. SUN 28 Mariinsky Ballet: Petipas Raymonda The Russian ballet company performs the 19th-century ballet about a medieval countess betrothed to a crusading knight but intrigued by the arrival of a handsome warrior. Continues Thursday-Friday at 7 p.m., Saturday at 1 and 7 p.m., closes Sunday at 1 p.m. Kennedy Center, Opera House, 2700 F St. NW. 202-467-4600. www.kennedy-center.org. $49-$225. Guards at the Taj Rajiv Josephs tragicomic fable set in 1648 India follows two guards asked to perform a gruesome task. Continues Thursday-Friday at 8 p.m., Saturday at 3 and 8 p.m., Sunday at 2 and 7 p.m. Closes Sunday. Woolly Mammoth Theatre, 641 D St. NW. 202-393-3939. www.woollymammoth.net. $43-$73, 30 and younger $20. Senorita y Madame: The Secret War of Elizabeth Arden and Helena Rubinstein Gustavo Otts comedy explores the rivalry of two beauty icons. In Spanish with English surtitles. Continues Thursday-Saturday at 8 p.m., closes Sunday at 2 p.m. Gala Hispanic Theatre, 3333 14th St. NW. 202-234-7174. www.galatheatre.org. $38-$42, seniors $26, military and students $20. ABCs of American Art Song The In Series presents soprano Debra Lawrence, mezzo Elizabeth Mondragon and pianists Frank Conlon and Carla Hubner in a salon-style program of Dominick Argentos From the Diary of Virginia Woolf, Samuel Barbers Knoxville: Summer of 1915 and Aaron Coplands Twelve Poems of Emily Dickinson, with commentary by Rick Davis. 7 p.m. Program repeats March 5 at 2:30 p.m. Source Theatre, 1835 14th St. NW. 202-204-7763. www.inseries.org. $36, seniors $33, age 35 and younger $25, students $18. PLAYdate Happenstance Theater and friends perform a play that they created in 24 hours. For age 13 and older. 7 p.m. Capital Fringe Trinidad Theatre, 1358 Florida Ave. NE. 202-737-7230. www.capitalfringe.org. $10. MON 29 Johnnyswim The married singer-songwriter duo of Amanda Sudano and Abner Ramirez performs. With Sunbears. 7 p.m. 9:30 Club, 815 V St. NW. 202-265-0930. www.930.com. $25. TUE 01 Compared to What? The Improbable Journey of Barney Frank Screenings of this documentary about former Massachusetts representative Barney Frank, one of the first openly gay members of Congress, are shown at Spotlight Evenings of the Washington Jewish Film Festival, which continues through March 6 at multiple venues. Tuesday at 6:15 p.m. at the Avalon Theatre (5612 Connecticut Ave. NW) and Wednesday at 6:15 p.m. at the Washington DC Jewish Community Center (1529 16th St. NW). Both screenings will be followed by a discussion with Frank; his husband, Jim Ready; and filmmakers Sheila Canavan and Michael Chandler. www.wjff.org. $28.75. Out of the Shadows The Fridge hosts a one-night pop-up gallery of new photographic works by the D.C.-based collaboration Street Light Circus, focusing on the human body and urban spaces. 7-11 p.m. The Fridge DC, 516 Eighth St. SE. 202-664-4151. www.streetlightcircus.info. Free. WED 02 Coheed and Cambria The progressive rock band with a penchant for concept albums performs. With Glassjaw and Silver Snakes. 7 p.m. Echostage, 2135 Queens Chapel Rd. NE. 202-503-2330. www.echostage.com. $45.50. Diane Rehm The WAMU radio host discusses her new memoir, On My Own, about saying goodbye to her spouse and about her support of the Right to Die movement, in conversation with The Posts Mike Rosenwald. 7 p.m. Sixth and I Historic Synagogue, 600 I St. NW. 202-408-3100. www.sixthandi.org. $20, ticket with book $35, two tickets and one book $50. Compiled by Carrie Donovan from staff reports Officials have searched Jason Brian Daltons home, shown, in Cooper Township, Mich., where he lived with his wife and two children. Officials have searched Jason Brian Daltons home, shown, in Cooper Township, Mich., where he lived with his wife and two children. Andraya Croft/Detroit Free Press via AP Details are emerging about the Uber driver who has been charged with six counts of murder. Details are emerging about the Uber driver who has been charged with six counts of murder. Details are emerging about the Uber driver who has been charged with six counts of murder. Investigators say they are baffled. Neighbors are totally bewildered. All around this traumatized city, residents wonder whether they will ever learn why Jason Brian Dalton allegedly gunned down random strangers while picking up fares for Uber. This week, as police continued looking for clues into Saturdays shootings, so did people close to him. One neighbor was puzzled to learn Dalton, 45, was driving for Uber and not working for Progressive Insurance anymore. He left every morning at 8 a.m. like he was going to work, the neighbor said. [Kalamazoo police: Uber drivers alleged rampage is baffling] Where he was going, what he was enduring, what he was thinking mass-shooting experts say all these fragments will eventually coalesce into a motive that probably made perfect sense to the killer, even its incomprehensible to everyone else. Crosses with the names of victims of a shooting spree rest by the side of a tree outside a Cracker Barrel in Kalamazoo this week. (Chelsea Purgahn/Kalamazoo Gazette-MLive via AP) In these cases, people typically dont just snap and go berserk, said James Alan Fox, a Northeastern University criminologist and author of several books on mass murders. It may seem senseless, but theres always a reason. For investigators, sorting that out takes time. For everyone else, the waiting is agonizing, a cruel ritual in the age of mass shootings. So far, all investigators have been able to offer is Daltons statement that he took peoples lives. This first thing I thought of was, why? said Kalamazoo resident Lisa Stavish, 33. Everyone I know is talking about it, but no one really knows anything. In some mass shootings, the reason is almost immediately apparent. A married couple in San Bernardino, Calif., stockpiled bombs and ammunition for a shooting motivated by radical Islamist beliefs. In Colorado, a religious drifter with bitter beliefs about abortion is charged with killing three people at a Planned Parenthood clinic. Dylann Roof, who had expressed his hatred of African Americans, stands accused of killing nine of them in a Charleston, S.C., church. [The haunting link between two mass shootings decades and miles apart] But most mass shootings arent that simple to unravel. Experts say they typically combine precipitating events that might seem like everyday problems work, money, love with undiagnosed or untreated mental health issues. Sometimes the idea for a mass shooting unfolds over months. Other times, its days. 1 of 14 Full Screen Autoplay Close Skip Ad What the sites of deadly shootings in Kalamazoo area look like View Photos The alleged killer, Jason Brian Dalton, killed six and injured two at a Cracker Barrel restaurant, a car dealership and an apartment complex in the Kalamazoo area in Michigan on Saturday. Dalton surrendered without struggle shortly after midnight. Caption The alleged killer, Jason Brian Dalton, killed six and injured two at a Cracker Barrel restaurant, a car dealership and an apartment complex in the Kalamazoo area in Michigan on Saturday. Dalton surrendered without struggle shortly after midnight. Feb. 22, 2016 Flowers decorate a makeshift memorial outside Seelye Kia, one of the sites where a series of seemingly random shootings occurred over the weekend in Kalamazoo, Mich. Six people were killed. Mark Kauzlarich/Reuters Wait 1 second to continue. Its not something he did spontaneously, Fox said. In many ways, Dalton fits the typical profile of a mass shooter a white male with no criminal record, no psychological impairment known to those around him, and the ability to legally purchase firearms. What makes him different, Fox said, is that he killed people in the wrong place at the wrong time. Meaning he targeted total strangers without a specific setting. Most mass killers, even if they target strangers, single out specific places for attacks. Students pick schools. Disgruntled workers pick their workplaces. Those making political statements choose symbolically important places. Daltons setting was the entire city of Kalamazoo, making his motive more difficult to piece together. J. Reid Meloy, a psychiatry professor at the University of California at San Diego who studies mass murderers, said investigators typically find a mental state that is coming apart and recent stressors causing difficultly in life. [The hero Kalamazoo mom who saved playing children from shooter] We think theres an event that starts the clock, he said. But the predisposition to commit a mass murder has often been there for quite some time. What may have been Daltons event? Working for Uber, as Dalton had been since late last month, is a clue that might indicate he needed extra money or that he couldnt find a regular job. If he had a grudge against Uber, killing strangers while picking up fares could make total sense to him. But theres also a danger in being too reductive. Meloy said mass killers are often in a depressed and paranoid state, though theres usually a kernel of truth that they feed on. While stressing that he was not talking specifically about Dalton, Meloy said that in cases appearing to take place randomly, the individual has placed victims into a pseudo community. Uber was something he apparently kept from those around him, including the neighbor, James Bloch. They often talked about politics, guns and other current events through their backyard fence. As far as he knew, Dalton was still working for Progressive, including driving a company van. Probably around seven months ago he stopped driving it, Bloch said. And I asked him what was up with it they said they were downsizing and they werent using the company vehicle anymore, that he had to use his own vehicle. In recent weeks, Bloch noticed that Dalton would return home at odd times: 11 a.m., 3 p.m. He never came home at the same time, Bloch said. It was always different. Was he depressed? Bloch said no. Did he seem mad about something? Bloch said no. One of the riders Dalton picked up said he began driving erratically after getting a phone call. But it is not known whom the call was from and whether it somehow set him off. [Man asked his Uber driver: Youre not the shooter, are you?] Even if a motive is not readily apparent yet, Fox said, clearly something was going on making him miserable and unhappy. And if hes miserable and unhappy, then other people need to suffer, too. To Fox and other experts, it seems clear Dalton was quietly planning something. A local gun-store owner said Dalton came in Saturday, the day of the killings, to buy a vest for concealing handguns. And then theres his alleged steely demeanor during the attacks, still picking up customers and reportedly switching vehicles. That reflects the calmness that is typical in mass killers, Fox said, noting that many mass killers are seen smiling while shooting. Because they plan their crime, if only in their head, its something comfortable to them. So they are calm and cool and the rest of us are totally caught by surprise. One characteristic Dalton does not share with other mass killers: Hes still alive. Most mass shooters kill themselves or are killed by police. That leaves open the possibility that Dalton will eventually explain his actions to authorities or a court-appointed psychiatrist. So far, hes mum on that topic. From what detectives told me, he is unaffected, kind of monotone, said Kalamazoo Police Chief Jeff Hadley. Showed no emotion relative to the offense. Its really just baffling. Rosenwald reported from Washington. Last summer, history teachers Patrick Cronin and Tom Neville organized an unusual summer camp for District high school students: three weeks researching the riots that engulfed Washington after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. The highlight, the teachers promised, would be a visit to the District police departments archive to look at documents from April 1968. The day before the students were scheduled to go, the police withdrew the invitation. Patrick broke the news to the students. I felt like I was telling my children that Santa wasnt going to come this year, Patrick said. It was crushing. As it turned out, even without that particular field trip, the summer camp was full of interesting discoveries, perhaps the most important one being: You dont have to be in grad school to fall in love with original source documents. Patrick and Tom met when they both taught at the Flint Hill School in Oakton, Va. They bonded over a shared belief that students learn best when they can immerse themselves in material. Textbooks can do only so much. Better to enter an archive, sift through documents and photographs, fire up a microfilm reader. Riots engulfed Washington in 1968 after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. (Matthew Lewis/TWP) The idea of putting together a summer program appealed to them, but on what topic? Ferguson was all over the newspapers, Patrick said, referring to the demonstrations in the wake of the police shooting of Michael Brown. It struck them that Washington in 1968 might be an echo of Missouri in 2015. Its so timely, said Tom. The stuff was still unfolding as these kids were studying Washington from the 60s. They advertised the free program at District libraries. They called it THAT Summer. It stood for The Humanities And Technology. We were hoping for 12 students, maybe even 16, Patrick said. They had overestimated the number of teenagers interested in spending three weeks inside a library in July. We wound up with five very strong students, Patrick said. The first thing the students did after assembling in the Martin Luther King Jr. Library downtown was bulk up the Wikipedia entry on the riots, raising it from four references to 27. The students did most of their work in the Washingtoniana division, but they also visited the National Archives and the D.C. Fire and EMS Museum, where they examined original call logs from the riot and learned how firefighters responded to emergencies. One of the students was Brian Davis, 14, a rising ninth-grader from the Washington International School. He helped create a digital map that pinpointed buildings damaged by rioting along the Seventh Street corridor. I didnt really know much about it, Brian said of the 1968 rioting, in which 10 people died. It did surprise me in terms of how big it was. Brian was also surprised at how much he enjoyed THAT Summer. It wasnt fun fun, he said, but I wanted to keep researching and I wanted to keep going. It was interesting and I wanted to keep pursuing what I was doing. After it was over, looking back, I wished wed had more time. High praise, indeed. Besides improving the Wikipedia page, the five students created a website that includes color photos of the riots aftermath that they digitized. They shared their thoughts on the riots causes not just Kings assassination but also longstanding racial inequality and ghetto living conditions. Last November, they presented their research at the annual D.C. Historical Studies Conference. Tom now lives in Paris and teaches at the American school there. Patrick is pretty much a stay-at-home dad. But they will join forces again this summer. Their 2016 project is alluringly titled Downtime and Debauchery in Civil War Washington and will explore the unpublished, untaught and taboo aspects of that conflict in the District. Once again, the program is free to participants, thanks in part to a grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services. (If you know a teen whos interested in, go to thatclass.org.) When it became clear last summer that the students wouldnt be able to visit the police archives, they helped Patrick and Tom file a Freedom of Information Act request seeking pertinent materials. Six weeks later, the teachers received a set of documents. Among them was one titled List of Deaths Positively Established in Connection With Civil Disturbances in Washington, D.C., April 5-7, 1968. They added it to their website. The first person to die was Thomas Williams. Police said he was among looters at a mens store on Minnesota Avenue NE. As a police officer held a suspected looter at gunpoint, Williams, the report reads, raced past in front of him, striking his out-stretched hand, which was holding his service revolver. The pistol discharged striking the decedent. He was 15 years old. Twitter: @johnkelly For previous columns, visit washingtonpost.com/johnkelly. THE DISTRICT Arrest is made in fatal hit-and-run D.C. police on Tuesday arrested a woman in a hit-and-run crash that occurred in Southeast Washington on New Years Day, killing a father of four who was in a crosswalk, authorities said. Sophia R. Palmer, 31, of Southeast, was charged with involuntary manslaughter. A D.C. Superior Court judge ordered her released pending a preliminary hearing March 16. She was put into a high-intensity supervision program. According to the police arrest affidavit, at the time of the crash Palmer worked as an armed special police officer providing security at the D.C. Water treatment facility in Southwest. Police said it was there that they found her damaged personal vehicle parked. The crash occurred Jan. 1 between midnight and 4 a.m. in the 3500 block of Minnesota Avenue SE. D.C. police said the victim, Ian Jerome Butts, 36, was crossing the street in a crosswalk when he was struck. Buttss wife, Tjamanquie Moody, 32, told The Washington Post in January that her husband had been celebrating New Years Eve with his brother and friends. She believes he was walking to his fathers home when he was struck. Peter Hermann MARYLAND Court: Leggett did not violate election law Marylands highest court ruled Tuesday that Montgomery County officials had the authority to use taxpayer money and employees on county time to campaign for passage of a 2012 ballot proposition that limited certain collective-bargaining rights for police. The decision by the Maryland Court of Appeals upholds a 2015 ruling by the Court of Special Appeals that County Executive Isiah Leggett (D) and public information director Patrick Lacefield did not violate Maryland election law by waging a campaign in favor of the proposition, known as Question B. In a 39-page decision, the Court of Appeals said the campaign activities were an authorized and proper manifestation of legitimate government speech. Bill Turque VIRGINIA Three teens charged in Manassas slaying Prince William County police have identified the homicide victim whose bones were found in Manassas in January and have charged three alleged gang members with killing him. Oscar Rene Andrade, 29, went missing from his home in Manassas in mid-September, police said. They announced Tuesday that they had confirmed that Andrade was the man whose remains were discovered in a wooded area on Barrett Drive on Jan. 13. Three days after Andrades family last saw him, D.C. police stopped a driver, David Jonathan Pineda Argueta, in an investigation unrelated to Andrades disappearance. But they discovered that Argueta, 18, was driving Andrades car. Prince William police eventually found evidence linking Argueta to Andrades death, they said Tuesday. Police charged Argueta and two 17-year-old co-conspirators, whom they said are Manassas residents and members of the gang MS-13. Andrade was not linked to MS-13, and police said that they do not know why the gang members targeted him. Argueta was charged with murder, robbery, gang participation and gang recruitment. One of the juveniles was charged with murder and the same two gang crimes, and the other was charged with serving as an accessory after the fact to murder. Julie Zauzmer Proffer-limits bill advances in Richmond Legislation that would restrict what local governments in Virginia could ask of home builders moved a step closer to becoming law Tuesday, despite heated opposition from officials in Fairfax, Prince William and Loudoun counties. In a 72-to-26 vote, the House of Delegates approved a version of the reforms to the states proffer system that had already passed the Senate. A companion bill that had been approved in the House is making its way toward a full vote in the Senate, leaving the General Assembly a step away from sending the legislation to Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D) to be signed into law. Antonio Olivo These incidents were reported by the Loudoun County Sheriffs Office and the Leesburg, Middleburg and Purcellville police departments. For information, contact your police or sheriffs department. ALDIE AREA THEFTS/BREAK-INS Aububon Trail Dr., 24000 block, noon, Feb. 15 to noon, Feb. 16. An appliance was stolen from a house under construction. ASHBURN AREA MOTOR VEHICLE THEFTS Kingston Station Terr., 43800 block, 5:35 to 5:44 a.m. Feb. 18. A 2005 Nissan Pathfinder, left unattended with the engine running, was stolen. Tippecanoe Terr., 44100 block, 4:55 a.m. Feb. 18. A 2013 Toyota Prius was stolen. The owner had left the cars engine running while walking a dog. DULLES AREA THEFTS/BREAK-INS Overland Dr., 23600 block, 4:10 p.m. Feb. 16. Power tools were stolen from a construction site. LEESBURG AREA ASSAULTS Doyle Terr., 500 block, 10:57 a.m. Feb. 14. A domestic assault was reported. Fort Evans Rd., 100 block, 10:34 p.m. Feb. 11. A domestic assault was reported. Fort Evans Rd., unit block, 12:43 a.m. Feb. 13. A domestic assault was reported. Fort Evans Rd., 200 block, 2:14 p.m. Feb. 15. Assault threats were reported. Fort Evans Rd., unit block, 9:10 p.m. Feb. 16. A domestic assault was reported. Fortress Cir., 500 block, 7:15 p.m. Feb. 11. Assault threats were reported. Fortress Cir., 500 block, 1:09 a.m. Feb. 14. A domestic assault was reported. Heritage Way, 100 block, 12:34 p.m. Feb. 17. A domestic assault was reported. Ida Lee Dr., unit block, 4:37 p.m. Feb. 12. A domestic assault was reported. Ida Lee Dr., unit block, 8:50 p.m. Feb. 18. An assault was reported. King St. N., 800 block, 3:16 p.m. Feb. 12. Assault threats were reported. King St. N., 800 block, 3:17 p.m. Feb. 12. An assault was reported. Market St. E., 500 block, 2:19 a.m. Feb. 13. Assault threats were reported. Market St. E., 300 block, 1 p.m. Feb. 17. An assault was reported. Mayfair Dr., 100 block, 12:16 p.m. Feb. 12. A domestic assault was reported. Menlow Dr., 1000 block, 7:55 p.m. Feb. 11. A domestic assault was reported. Old Waterford Rd., 200 block, 2:47 p.m. Feb. 16. A domestic assault was reported. Plaza St., unit block, 6:43 p.m. Feb. 16. Assault threats were reported. Potomac Station Dr., 700 block, 12:37 p.m. Feb. 12. An assault was reported. Potomac Station Dr., 700 block, 1:11 p.m. Feb. 18. An assault was reported. Stone Ct., 100 block, 5:26 p.m. Feb. 11. A domestic assault was reported. Stratford Pl., 100 block, 7:59 p.m. Feb. 15. A domestic assault was reported. Whitney Pl., 200 block, 5:26 p.m. Feb. 18. Assault threats of an assault were reported. PEEPING TOM INCIDENTS Sunset View Terr., 500 block, 9:29 p.m. Feb. 18. A peeping Tom incident was reported. THEFTS/BREAK-INS Balls Bluff Rd., 700 block, 5:49 p.m. Feb. 18. Fraud was reported. Clubhouse Dr., 100 block, 9:28 a.m. Feb. 14. Fraud was reported. Coltsridge Terr., 300 block, 5:06 p.m. Feb. 12. Fraud was reported. Edwards Ferry Rd., 900 block, 9:34 p.m. Feb. 12. Shoplifting was reported. Edwards Ferry Rd., 900 block, 4:36 p.m. Feb. 13. A theft was reported. Edwards Ferry Rd., 800 block, 2:07 p.m. Feb. 14. Fraud was reported. Edwards Ferry Rd., 1000 block, 3:21 p.m. Feb. 15. Shoplifting was reported. Gateway Dr., 700 block, 11:47 a.m. Feb. 15. Fraud was reported. Hampstead Ct., 100 block, 9:32 p.m. Feb. 16. A theft was reported. Market St. W., 200 block, 3:45 p.m. Feb. 14. A theft was reported. Monroe St., unit block, 2:54 p.m. Feb. 15. A theft was reported. Prince St., 200 block, 3:40 p.m. Feb. 16. Fraud was reported. Riding Trail Ct., 300 block, 2:03 p.m. Feb. 17. Fraud was reported. LOVETTSVILLE AREA THEFTS/BREAK-INS George Farm Lane, 12000 block, Jan. 29 to Feb. 11. A laptop computer was stolen from a vehicle. STERLING AREA THEFTS/BREAK-INS Brasswood Pl., 47100 block, 5 p.m. Feb. 12 to 7 p.m. Feb. 17. A wallet was stolen from a vehicle. Earhart Pl., 20400 block, 11:45 a.m. to 1:10 p.m. Feb. 18. Jewelry was stolen from a residence. Ferguson Ct., unit block, 11 p.m. Feb. 13 to 8:30 a.m. Feb. 14. Four tires and rims were taken from a vehicle. Silverleaf Dr., 100 block, 11:10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Feb. 9. A delivered package was stolen from a home. Towncenter Plaza, 21800 block, 4:45 6:45 p.m. Feb. 15. Wallets and credit cards were stolen from four gym lockers. VANDALISM Algonkian Pkwy. and Middlefield Dr., Feb. 17 to Feb. 18. A pedestrian tunnel was spray-painted with graffiti. Compiled by Sandy Mauck Its been a core message for Kathleen Matthews in her Maryland congressional campaign: the importance of sending more women to Congress. We can get things done when more women have a place at the table, she said in a recent radio ad for the 8th District Democratic congressional nomination one of numerous gender-based appeals she has made to voters. But on Monday, Matthews passed over Rep. Donna Edwards (D-Md.), the woman running for Marylands open Senate seat, to endorse her opponent, Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), the seven-term 8th District incumbent. [In 8th Congressional District race, support from female voters will be key ] Asked why she endorsed him on Wednesday morning, Matthews said in an e-mail: I live in the 8th, Im loyal to the 8th. As a former Democratic House Speaker said, all politics is local, she said, a reference to the late Tip ONeill, who once employed her husband, MSNBCs Hardball host Chris Matthews, as an aide. Matthews said that first and foremost, Van Hollen has been a great congressman. As a progressive Democrat and advocate for women and working families, Chris has represented my views on many important issues, she said. From a pragmatic political standpoint, it would be foolish not to line up with Van Hollen, a hugely popular incumbent with a reputation for sterling constituent service. Hell also be working to wring every last vote out of the 8th District in the April primary, so claiming a spot on his coattails is important. State Sen. Jamie B. Raskin, Del. Kumar P. Barve and Del. Ana Sol-Gutierrez all of whom are Democrats representing Montgomery County and wine retailer David Trone, a Democrat also running for the 8th District seat, back Van Hollen. Edwards and Matthews are supported by Emilys List, the political group that backs Democratic women who are abortion rights advocates. Rachel Thomas, spokeswoman for the group, said that the Van Hollen endorsement was not an issue and that all candidates have to pursue their own path to victory. In April, the ballot in Maryland will have strong Democratic women on it, from top-to-bottom, Thomas said in a statement. From Joseline [Pena-Melnyk, a candidate for Edwardss 4th District seat] to Donna to Kathleen, voters have a clear pick for the strongest candidates with perspective thats desperately needed in a Congress thats still just 20 percent women. Former states attorney Glenn Ivey, center, speaking at the 4th Congressional District candidates forum at Bowie State University on Tuesday night. Seated to Ivey's left is former Maryland lieutenant governor Anthony Brown (D). To Iveys right is Republican Robert Broadus. (Mark Gail/For The Washington Post) The Democratic candidates for Marylands 4th Congressional District race are almost indistinguishable in the policies they support and the issues they champion. Expanding the Affordable Care Act is crucial. Students need more career options beyond attending a four-year institution. Voters are tired of Washington gridlock. And struggling middle-class families need more help from their representatives on Capitol Hill. At a candidate forum Tuesday night at Bowie State University, voters got a glimpse of how the field of seasoned veterans and political newcomers will try to differentiate themselves in the battle to succeed Rep. Donna F. Edwards (D), who is running for the U.S. Senate. From the unemployed statistician to Marylands former lieutenant governor, each congressional hopeful sprinkled his or her platform with passionate personal narratives in an effort to draw in some of the approximately 75 attendees. In 2014, I lost when I ran for governor, said former lieutenant governor and state delegate Anthony G. Brown (D), 54, who is billed as the primary front-runner in some candidate polls. Del. Joseline Pena-Melnyk (D), right, and former Maryland lieutenant governor Anthony Brown, center, talked with voters after the 4th Congressional District candidates forum held at Bowie State University on Tuesday night. (Mark Gail/For The Washington Post) People said, Why are you running for Congress? And I thought about the lesson my father taught me. . . . Sometimes youre going to get knocked down, but if you believe in what you do, you pick yourself up, you dust yourself off, and you stay in it. [Congressional candidates split support among Pr. Georges officials] Brown brought the polish of a practiced campaigner who spent more than a year at the head of a statewide campaign, responding to voter questions with crisp answers. If elected, he said, he would build on the achievements of President Obama, and he asserted that he is the candidate who is most qualified for the position. However, he did not go into great detail about his record. Although most of the candidates have been in the military, worked in the legislature, have had executive-branch experience in government or worked in the private sector, Brown said, I believe I am the only one who has done all four of those. Glenn F. Ivey (D) the current fundraising leader harked back to his time as states attorney in Prince Georges County, when he oversaw reductions in crime, championed reform measures that put cameras in police interrogation rooms and prosecuted officers accused of excessive force. He, too, aligned his politics with those of Obama, who is wildly popular among the districts majority black voters, and he reminded the crowd of how congressional Republicans consistently sought to undermine the presidents authority. Ill fight against that, said Ivey, who turns 55 on Saturday. Democrat Matthew Fogg, right, speaks at the 4th Congressional District candidates forum held at Bowie State University on Tuesday night. (Mark Gail/For The Washington Post) [Ivey finishes 2015 with strong fundraising lead in primary race] Del. Joseline A. Pena-Melnyk (D-Prince Georges), 49, who is relatively unknown outside the portion of the congressional district that includes her state legislative district, said her experience as an immigrant who struggled through poverty uniquely qualifies her to advocate for working families. I bring a perspective that no one up here brings, she said. I am a woman. I am a mother. I am a wife, a sister, a daughter, an Afro-Latina that represents this community. Drawing parallels to Edwards, Pena-Melnyk said she is independent and unafraid to oppose party leaders. She was one of a handful of lawmakers in Annapolis who voted in 2012 against expanding gaming into Prince Georges. You want someone who is going to rock the boat but knows when not to flip it. That is me, Pena-Melnyk said. I dont compromise if its going to harm you. Military veterans Warren Christopher, 48, and Terence Strait, 34, both Democrats, cast themselves as anti-establishment candidates who bring fresh vision in a field of career politicians. Christopher, a retired Army lieutenant colonel, touted his leadership abilities and military experience. This is about making sure that we have a proven and tested leader, Christopher said, raising his voice. I have taken troops into combat more than seven different times, and under my leadership, I brought every troop home alive. In some of the most pointed remarks of the night, Christopher asked the crowd whether life had improved as a result of the elected service of some of the current and former officials sitting alongside him: Are you better off? There are a lot of folks on this dais that have had opportunities to deliver. Look at the results. Strait, a statistician, said he has a vision, even if there is not much on his resume to offer voters. The youngest candidate of the group and a supporter of Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders, he said he would fight for a $15 minimum wage, for a single-payer health-care system and for investments in infrastructure to stimulate job growth. Democrat Matthew Fogg, 64, a latecomer to the primary race, is a retired U.S. marshal and community activist who ran for a state delegate seat in 2014 and, after losing, became a write-in candidate for state Senate. Two Republican candidates, Robert Broadus, 43, and George McDermott, 70, also joined the forum. Broadus, a Navy veteran, urged black voters like him to vote for a party that fights against violations of the Constitution. McDermott, a native Prince Georges resident, bemoaned the change in societys values from those of his childhood and denounced voter apathy that led to the Democrats state monopoly. The monopoly will take advantage of you, he said. Both parties will nominate candidates during the states April 26 primary. In the heavily Democratic 4th District, the Democratic winner will be overwhelmingly favored to triumph in Novembers general election. The next forum will be held at noon Saturday at Harmony Hall Regional Center in Fort Washington. Gov. Larry Hogan, pictured here giving his 2016 State of the State Address, wants live streaming of all General Assembly sessions. (Marvin Joseph/The Washington Post) Gov. Larry Hogan went out of his way Wednesday to endorse a little-known legislative proposal that would require live video streaming and archived video recordings of floor sessions of the Maryland General Assembly. Hogan (R), who has been trading increasingly sharp barbs with Democratic lawmakers in recent weeks, said Maryland is one of only seven states that do not offer video streaming and recording of any floor proceedings. The other states are Delaware, Kansas, Missouri, North Carolina, Vermont and Wyoming, according to a 2015 report from the National Conference of State Legislatures. Marylands citizens, the governor said in a statement, deserve accountability and transparency from their elected leaders. [Hogan dancing deftly around the states Democrats] The public can watch General Assembly floor sessions only in person. Audio streaming and archives are available, but listeners generally cannot discern who is speaking, because lawmakers are prohibited from using each others names during discussion without permission from the presiding officers of their respective chambers. Common Cause Maryland, a nonpartisan advocacy group that promotes government openness and accountability, has also backed the bill, which is sponsored by House Minority Whip Kathy Szeliga (R-Baltimore County) and Del. David Moon (D-Montgomery). Legislative analysts said it would cost $1.2 million to outfit the House and Senate chambers with equipment and $400,000 a year to operate the system. Hogan, however, suggested the cost would be lower. He pointed out that the Board of Public Works, of which he is a member, live-streams and archives its weekly meetings at an annual cost of between $3,000 and $3,500. House and Senate committees live-stream and archive their hearings, but those recordings sometimes exclude debates and voting sessions. The Senate did not allow live-streaming of any committee voting sessions until 2013, when the chairman of a panel decided to broadcast the debate of controversial gun-control legislation. The offices of House Speaker Michael E. Busch (D-Anne Arundel) and Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller Jr. (D-Calvert) did not respond to requests for comment on the live-streaming legislation. The two legislative leaders and others in the Democratic caucus have sparred frequently with Hogan during this years General Assembly. Last week, black lawmakers accused Hogan of racial bias, and the governor compared members of the General Assembly to rowdy college students on spring break. They come here for a few weeks, they start breaking up the furniture and throwing beer bottles off the balcony, Hogan said. A new Goucher College poll shows Reps. Donna F. Edwards and Chris Van Hollen are neck and neck among likely Democratic voters in Marylands U.S. Senate primary. ( /THE WASHINGTON POST) The two Democrats vying to succeed retiring U.S. Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.) are neck and neck with less than two months before the primary, and a large chunk of likely Democratic voters remain undecided, according to a new poll from Goucher College. Rep. Chris Van Hollen has stockpiled 10 times as much money as Rep. Donna F. Edwards and is strongly positioned to continue the barrage of television advertising he has launched in Baltimore in recent months. But Edwards has the support of the fundraising juggernaut Emilys List and scored two percentage points higher than Van Hollen in the poll well within the margin of error. Thirty-nine percent of respondents said they would back Edwards in the April 26 primary, while 37 percent supported Van Hollen. About 23 percent said they were undecided. In the Democratic presidential race, poll respondents in Maryland continue to favor former secretary of state Hillary Clinton by a wide margin over Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont. The Senate race is a standard head-to-head, said Mileah Kromer, director of the Sarah T. Hughes Field Politics Center at Goucher in suburban Baltimore. What will be interesting is if Edwards can keep the race tight and translate that support into fundraising. [Edwards struggling for money in quest for Senate seat] Todd Eberly, a political science professor at St. Marys College in Southern Maryland, said, So far, Edwards has done quite well with very little. We have reached a point in politics when television advertising doesnt have the effect it used to, he said. We live in an era of Hulu, Netflix and DVR where people dont have to watch TV. Melissa Deckman, a political science professor at Washington College on the Eastern Shore, said the Maryland race in some ways mirrors the primary contest between Clinton, the establishment favorite, and Sanders, who is attracting considerable support from younger and disaffected Democrats. Edwards is seen as more progressive while Van Hollen embodies the party establishment, she said. When it comes to most issues, they agree, but its a matter of what voters want their next senator to look like. Van Hollen is a proven party fundraiser who locked up endorsements from top Democrats including Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (Nev.) early in the race and presented himself to voters as an effective lawmaker with progressive but pragmatic values. [Van Hollen builds sizable war chest but no breakaway lead in polls] Edwards, who has been elected to four full terms, won her seat in a special election after the resignation of Rep. Albert R. Wynn, the establishment incumbent she defeated in the 2008 primary. She speaks from her personal narrative when talking about issues such as income inequality. To sustain her success, Eberly said, Edwards like Sanders has to make the case for why the establishment isnt the way to go. Edwards makes no secret of the historic fact that if elected she would be Marylands first black senator. African Americans are a huge chunk of the states party base and have been repeatedly denied on the Democratic side of things of a nominee for statewide office, Eberly said. In one notable case, former congressman and NAACP president Kweisi Mfume lost the 2006 primary for an open U.S. Senate seat to Benjamin L. Cardin. I think there is a sense that given the diversity of the state rapidly moving to majority minority, the idea of electing another white establishment Democrat is not inspiring, Eberly said. Turnout for the primary is expected to be relatively high even though the Democratic presidential contest so far does not appear very competitive in Maryland. The Goucher poll showed that 58 percent of likely Democratic voters said they would choose Clinton vs. 28 percent for Sanders an increase of about 10 percentage points for Sanders since October. About 12 percent said they were undecided. In setting an April 12 deadline, U.S. District Judge Emmet G. Sullivan created the prospect that key Hillary Clinton aides would face questions just as she tries to secure the Democratic nomination. (Melina Mara/The Washington Post) A federal judge ruled Tuesday that top aides to Democratic presidential front-runner Hillary Clinton should be questioned under oath about her use of a private email server as secretary of state, raising new political and legal complications for Clinton as she tries to maintain momentum for her campaign. The ruling granted a request from the conservative group Judicial Watch, which sought testimony from State Department officials and members of Clintons inner circle to determine whether Clintons email arrangement thwarted federal open-records laws. In setting an April 12 deadline for Judicial Watch and the governments lawyers to lay out a plan to proceed, U.S. District Judge Emmet G. Sullivan created the prospect that key Clinton aides would face questions just as she tries to secure the Democratic nomination and pivot to a hotly contested November general election. The judge said that months of piecemeal revelations to date about Clinton and the State Departments handling of the email controversy created at least a reasonable suspicion that public access to official government records under the federal Freedom of Information Act was undermined. There has been a constant drip, drip, drip of declarations. When does it stop? said Sullivan, a 1994 Bill Clinton appointee who has overseen several politically sensitive FOIA cases. This case is about the publics right to know, he said. There are at least three ongoing investigations into Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton's time as Secretary of State. Here's an explanation of who is investigating, and why. (Gillian Brockell/The Washington Post) [Clinton receives key endorsement, but faces new questions] Clinton has struggled on the campaign trail to move past the issue of her email use. Republicans have made clear that they will make the subject a centerpiece of attacks against her should she win the nomination, with Marco Rubio saying her use of a private server disqualified her to be president and Donald Trump telling Fox News this week that she seems to be guilty of a crime before amending that to say it would be something he would look into if elected. Clinton also confronts an FBI investigation and a State Department inspectors general probe into whether classified information was mishandled or other federal laws were violated. [Clinton Foundation received subpoena from State Department investigators] This is one of several lawsuits filed by the same right-wing group, which will stop at nothing in pursuing the Clintons, just as they have done since the 1990s, said Clinton campaign spokesman Nick Merrill. The Judicial Watch lawsuit came over a May 2013 request for information about the employment arrangement of Huma Abedin, a longtime confidante who served as Clintons deputy chief of staff. For six months in 2012, Abedin was employed simultaneously by the State Department, the Clinton Foundation, Clintons personal office and a private consulting firm connected to the Clintons. Judicial Watch has indicated that it intends to seek sworn testimony from Abedin as well as Cheryl D. Mills, who was Clintons chief of staff at State. Both aides are especially close to Clinton and would likely play roles in her White House if she won the presidency. On Tuesday, Sullivan said he might also at some point direct the State Department to subpoena Clinton, Abedin or others to return all of the emails sent and received from Clintons personal email system, not merely those they or their attorneys have deemed work-related and submitted to the State Department. The suggestion was an ominous sign for Clinton that 31,000 emails she has said were purely personal and deleted could make their way into the public realm. Officials with the State and Justice departments declined to comment, citing ongoing litigation. Discovery orders are not readily appealable. An attorney for Abedin declined to comment. [How Huma Abedin operated at the center of the Clinton universe] In a statement, Judicial Watch President Thomas J. Fitton called the ruling a major victory for the public and did not rule out that Clinton could become one of several current and former department officials to be questioned. While Mrs. Clintons testimony may not be required initially, it may happen that her testimony is necessary for the Court to resolve the legal issues about her unprecedented email practices, Fitton said. Fittons group in court filings did not ask to depose Clinton by name, but it targeted its requests at individuals who handled her transition, arrival and departure from the department and who oversaw Abedin, a direct subordinate. The group singled out Undersecretary for Management Patrick F. Kennedy; John F. Hackett, director of information services; Executive Secretary Joseph E. Macmanus; Mills; Abedin; Clinton lawyer David E. Kendall; and Bryan Pagliano, a Clinton staff member during her 2008 presidential campaign who helped set up the private server. Judicial Watch also named Clinton technology contractors Platte River Networks and Datto Inc. and asked to subpoena archived copies of sent or received emails on the private server. Sullivan noted that there was no dispute that senior State Department officials were aware of the email setup from when Clinton took office, citing a January 2009 email exchange including Kennedy, Mills and Abedin about establishing a stand-alone network email system. Sullivan also said the State Departments inspector general last month faulted the department and Clintons office for overseeing processes that repeatedly allowed inaccurate and incomplete FOIA responses, including a May 2013 reply to one that found no records concerning email accounts that Clinton used, even though dozens of senior officials had corresponded with her private account. Sullivan called the situation unprecedented, very, very troubling, an enormous waste of resources. Is this where we are now? The government has to ask an employee to return documents? It cant demand documents? Sullivan said. Im not sure how much comfort that would give the public. . . . It boggles the mind. [State Department misses court-ordered goal on Clinton email release] Justice Department lawyers argued in a two-hour hearing that the State Department is poised to finish publicly releasing all 54,000 pages of emails that Clintons attorneys determined to be work-related and that were returned to the State Department at its request for review. The State Department has been releasing Clintons newly recovered correspondence in batches since last summer, with a final set due Monday. Meanwhile, former Clinton department aides Mills, Abedin, Jacob Sullivan and Philippe Reines have returned tens of thousands of pages of documents to the department for FOIA review, with releases projected to continue into at least 2017. The State Department also has asked the FBI to notify it of any of an estimated 31,000 deleted emails deemed personal by Clintons attorneys that the FBI is able to recover in its investigation of the security of the private email server, and to preserve them. State has reached out to the individuals. State has reached out to the FBI. State has really done everything that it can to get these records, said Justice Department attorney Steven A. Myers. Myers argued that FOIA requires the agency to release records only under its control not under the control of its current or former officials and that federal employees routinely manage their email and self-select their work-related messages when they delete personal emails from government email accounts. The case before Sullivan is one of more than 50 active FOIA lawsuits by legal groups, news media organizations and others seeking information included in emails sent to or by Clinton and her aides on the private server she used as secretary from 2009 to 2013. Public defenders and civil liberties groups are challenging the constitutionality of the first-known use by local police in the nations capital of covert cellphone-tracking technology without a court warrant. The challenge before the D.C. Court of Appeals comes in the case of Prince Jones, who was convicted in November 2014 of rape and robbery. The groups said they hoped the case would yield one of the countrys first appellate court decisions to review whether the proliferating use of such technology by law enforcement amounts to an illegal search of targets and innocent Americans whose phone data is swept up. In a motion filed Feb. 16 by the D.C. Public Defender Service and a friend-of-the-court brief filed Tuesday by the American Civil Liberties Union Foundation, the ACLUs Washington affiliate and the Electronic Frontier Foundation, advocates say that in using StingRay technology that mimics cellular signals used by phone companies to elicit responses and track targeted phones, D.C. police also collected data about an unknown number of bystanders phones. In light of the extreme secrecy surrounding law enforcement use of cell site simulator surveillance, the civil liberties groups wrote, it is crucial that the Court provide guidance to police, prosecutors, and the public about the Fourth Amendments application. Public defenders argued that tracking the location of Joness phone without a warrant using the technology violated his rights because it disabled his phone while converting it into a government tracking device and because it violated his privacy. Spokesmen for the D.C. police and the U.S. Attorneys Office of the District of Columbia declined to comment Tuesday ahead of official response to the court. The lawsuit comes after mounting scrutiny since 2011 of cell-site simulators and secrecy involving such technology. The Justice Department in September announced changes in its agencies use of such devices, directing investigators to follow the FBIs lead and delete bystanders data when a target is caught, barring collection of the contents of calls, texts or photos and requiring warrants before use except in emergency or exceptional situations. The changes do not apply to local and state police departments, but several jurisdictions have followed suit. U.S. Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates said at the time that such technology has been instrumental in aiding law enforcement in a broad array of investigations, including kidnappings and drug cases, but added, We realized we had some inconsistent practices across the country. Tracking technology was developed as an intelligence tool shared with federal law enforcement agencies and local police. Local agencies often were required to sign secrecy pacts with manufacturers or the FBI, which long maintained that disclosures would allow criminals or terrorists to thwart the devices. In the District, the ACLU and EFF wrote in court papers, procurement and police records show that the city spent more than $200,000 in 2002 and 2003 to purchase Triggerfish and StingRay cell-site simulators from the Harris Corp., although grants to train officers were not approved until 2009, as first reported in late 2014 by Vice News journalist Jason Leopold. In 2012, D.C. police entered into an agreement with the FBI to not disclose any information concerning the wireless collection equipment/technology . . . to the public, nor to courts nor defense counsel without written approval, documents showed. Public records requests by the civil liberties groups have found similar agreements by departments around the country. Police in cities including Charlotte, Milwaukee, Tacoma, Wash., and Tallahassee reported using cell-site simulators in hundreds of cases in recent years. New York City recently disclosed using the technology more than 1,000 times over seven years, and Baltimore City and county police about 5,000 times over five years. Similarly, in many instances, police said that they used cell-site simulators after obtaining court orders for pen registers from service providers. Such orders were traditionally used to record incoming and outgoing numbers dialed to or from a particular phone, and are granted by judges using a lower standard of proof than required for search warrants. Such secrecy surrounding cell-site simulator use has prevented appellate courts from addressing constitutional issues at stake, lawyers for the D.C. Public Defender Service, ACLU, ACLU of D.C., and EFF said. The investigation of Jones, who was convicted of robbing three women and raping two of them in early October 2013, is the first D.C. case in which police acknowledged use of such surveillance. Civil liberties lawyers said it defies logic that it is the only time a cell-site simulator was used by D.C. police, judging from the frequency of use by other departments. In the attacks for which Jones was convicted, cellphones were stolen from each victim and police identified the perpetrators probable phone number. Thinking that exigent circumstances justified not getting a court order to track the phones, police sent an emergency request to AT&T and Sprint to track the perpetrators phone and one of the victims phones. Police operated the cell-site simulator from a vehicle for 30 to 45 minutes driving toward Capitol Heights before tracking the perpetrators phone to a car parked near the Minnesota Avenue Metro station, in which they found Jones and arrested him. D.C. Superior Court Associate Judge Jennifer Anderson ruled that exigent circumstances did not exist to allow police to proceed without a warrant, but denied a defense motion to suppress, saying the evidence would have been found as police investigated the victims phone. Civil liberties groups said any functioning cellphone within range and on the impersonated network would have been tricked into broadcasting identifying data to police, pinpointing the location of unknown numbers of occupants of a strip mall, apartment building, D.C. employment office, public charter school and Metro station. D.C. police on Wednesday announced a third arrest in the August killing of a 24-year-old American University graduate who was caught in the cross fire of a shooting outside the Shaw Metro station in Northwest Washington. Christopher Proctor, 26, of Northwest, was charged with second-degree murder in the summers shooting of Matthew Shlonsky, which came amid a spate of killings that left 2016 ending with a 54 percent increase in homicides compared with the preceding year. Police have been looking for several people in connection with the Aug. 15 shooting, which occurred shortly before 5 p.m., moments after police said the victim stepped out of a cab and into a gun battle. Police described Shlonsky as a bystander. A prosecutor later called the shooting an urban-warfare shootout. Our detectives continue to work diligently in our investigative efforts, and it was through a variety of different detective work that our members were able to identify, locate, and make the third arrest, D.C. Police Chief Cathy L. Lanier said in a statement. We hope it brings closure and a peace of mind to all who were invested in this case as we continue a successful investigation. [Police arrest suspect in fatal shooting of bystander at Shaw Metro] Authorities initially charged Marcus King, 19, who lives in the Heritage Shaw Station apartments, one block from the Metro, with second-degree murder. Police later charged an additional suspect Andre Dudley, 19, of Northeast, also with second-degree murder. Police have given several theories to the shooting, including an argument over a dice game, a gang feud in Shaw stemming from many years ago or a dispute over a woman involved with King. Police said King had been shot and wounded in a series of shootings between rival street crews in the weeks leading to the gun battle at the Metro station. [Violence cuts into glittering revival of Shaw neighborhood] Outside the station, police said two men standing at opposite corners shot repeatedly at the occupants of a car from which a passenger was waving a gun through a sunroof. That gun turned out to be an air pistol. Police did not detail the role of the latest suspect in the shootout. King and Dudley have hearings in D.C. Superior Court scheduled for Friday. THE DISTRICT Third man arrested in AU graduates slaying D.C. police announced a third arrest Wednesday in the killing of a 24-year-old American University graduate who was caught in the crossfire of a shooting outside the Shaw Metro station in Northwest Washington in August. Christopher Proctor, 26, of Northwest was charged with second-degree murder in the Aug. 15 shooting of Matthew Shlonsky, which came amid a spate of killings that left 2015 ending with a 54 percent increase in homicides compared with the preceding year. Police have been looking for several people in connection with the shooting, which occurred moments after police said the victim stepped out of a cab . Police described Shlonsky as a bystander. Police did not detail the role of the latest suspect in the shootout. Authorities have offered several theories behind the shooting, including an argument over a dice game, a gang feud in Shaw stemming from many years ago or a dispute over a woman involved with another suspect. Peter Hermann VIRGINIA Police: Slaying of man in Fairfax not random Police have identified a man found shot to death in an apartment in the Falls Church area Tuesday as 35-year-old Babtunde Fadahunsi. Fairfax County police said detectives do not believe that Fadahunsi's killing was random but added Tuesday night that they had no suspects. An employee of Skyline Towers in the 5500 block of Seminary Road found Fadahunsi unresponsive in an apartment about 2:30 p.m. and alerted authorities, police said. Fadahunsi suffered a gunshot wound to the upper body, police said, and was pronounced dead at the scene. Police have not provided a motive in the killing. Justin Jouvenal MARYLAND Man, 22, is fatally struck in Laurel Police said a 22-year-old man was fatally struck by a vehicle early Wednesday morning on Route 1 in Laurel. The incident happened about 6:24 a.m. in the 9700 block of Washington Boulevard. Howard County police said a Toyota Camry was headed north on Washington Boulevard near Country Meadows Lane when it hit the pedestrian in the road. The man was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead. His identity has not been released, pending the notification of his family. The driver of the Camry was not injured, police said. Dana Hedgpeth Sheera Lowe gave birth to Trinity Christina Stokes, an 8-pound, 5-ounce girl, on an Amtrak train Saturday. (Courtesy of Aberdeen Police Department) Sweaty, cramping and out of breath, Sheera Lowe shuffled slowly into the cafe car of an Amtrak train Saturday afternoon heading to New York. There the 8 1/ 2 -months-pregnant woman found her fellow passengers ear buds in, heads down staring into electronic devices. Then Lowe noticed one woman, unplugged and reading a book. Lowe looked at her and said, I think Im in labor. Can you please help me? About 18 minutes later, the train made an unexpected stop at the Aberdeen, Md., station and Trinity Christina Stokes was born: at 8 pounds, 5 ounces. Lowe was resting on a bench in the trains rail car. And Trinity, wrapped in paper towels and sheets of aluminum foil normally meant for hot dogs, was given the good Samaritans name for her middle name. Lowe and emergency responders later said they did not know the passengers identity only that she lives in New York. She wouldnt leave my side in the whole thing, Lowe recalled Tuesday from her Philadelphia home. Im so happy and so grateful she stayed. [Roadway delivery: Breech baby born along interstate] Lowes due date was March 4. She said she had experienced a healthy and easy pregnancy, so she left her home Feb. 15 with 4-year-old daughter Aaliyah to visit her husband, Michael Stokes, who had started a job as a freight supervisor for FedEx in Kannapolis, N.C. She had felt fine during her visit and returned home alone Saturday on a New York-bound train. Aaliyah had stayed with Stokes in North Carolina. At 5:43 p.m., Lowe began to feel contractions and thought that maybe her water had broken. As the train chugged along, Lowe said she started to feel hot and felt more contractions. That was when she tried to walk to the cafe car. Once there, few passengers seemed to notice she was in labor. As Lowe rested in the cafe car, an Amtrak employee eventually cleared other passengers from the area, except for Christina and a few employees. Lowe said the conductor at one point came into the cafe car and told her he had requested that medical personnel meet the train at Aberdeen. He told me we were 10 minutes away from Aberdeen, could I make it, Lowe said. No, Lowe said she told him. You dont understand. This baby is coming. Just as the train pulled into Aberdeen, two police officers and an EMT jumped on. One of them said Lowe needed a stretcher, but she replied that she could not move because the pain was too great. The EMT then yelled, Shes crowning, Lowe said. I started screaming and pushing, she said. Just three pushes, and Trinity was out. At 6:01 p.m., Trinity was born. Those around started chanting, Its a girl. Its a girl. [Baby born inside a Metro station] Retelling the story Tuesday, Lowe laughed at the experience as her baby cried in the background. She said her sister had joked that she should hurry back to Philadelphia so that the baby would not be born on a train. I guess she was right, Lowe said. An Amtrak employee called Lowes sister and husband to let them know she and Trinity were doing fine. They were taken to a Baltimore-area hospital, where a police officer who had gotten on the train earlier had come to visit. Lowe said Trinitys birth even if it was early and unexpectedly on a train was a blessing. She said she was grateful that she had left Aaliyah in North Carolina with her dad so that she was not on the train. Usually she doesnt leave my side, but she had stayed with her dad this time, Lowe said. She said Aaliyah had been asking when her little sister would arrive, Lowe chuckled. Lowe said she was worried about the reaction of other passengers after the unscheduled stop, but when she left the train at Aberdeen, they were standing outside smiling, clapping and congratulating her. Everybody was so supportive, she said. They were really sweet to me. It really brought a lot of happiness to my family. Dear Dr. Gridlock: I read your response to the writer who said Metro should not have shut down during the recent snowstorm. I think it was absolutely the correct thing to do, in light of safety concerns. Also, by shutting down, Metro was actually doing a service to the community. [Did Metro make the right call in shutting down?] Had commuters taken Metro to their stops, where were they going to go after that? Sidewalks werent cleared, so they would have taken to the streets. This would have severely slowed down the snowplows and created additional risks for pedestrians and more complaints, no doubt. In the big picture, closing down Metro was a service to the community. Bob Reed, the District DG: The original letter-writer and I, in my response, approached the issue from the point of view of transit operations and transit safety. Reed expands the field to include the safety of the streets and sidewalks. I was thinking about his letter while listening to people testify at a hearing convened by D.C. Council member Mary Cheh (D-Ward 3) last week. The big theme in this post-blizzard assessment: We need to elevate the importance of pedestrian safety so that its on an equal level with driver safety. Now, before proceeding with this theme, let me agree with the pedestrian safety advocates who testified and with the council members who attended: That was a lot of snow. It was one of the rare weather events of its kind in the history of the nations capital, and we owe our thanks to the bleary-eyed road crews who worked for days to dig us out of that mess. Because an event like that is so rare, we dont invest in the equipment and the workforce that can get us back to normal in a day or two, so when we do have a blizzard we push the existing resources to the limit, and then ask for more out of them. But because the event was so extreme, it made it easier to spot the areas where we might need to adjust our thinking, and thats where this council hearing proved most valuable for the District and the entire region. The key point was expressed by Joe Reiner of All Walks DC, a pedestrian safety group: Shoes and sidewalks are not yet considered part of the transportation system in D.C. People had plenty of examples of sidewalks and intersections where snow and ice were piled up, making foot travel not just difficult but downright dangerous. One of the examples that stood out, because it was illustrated with a photo, was a Florida Avenue NE underpass where snow covered the sidewalk. It didnt snow beneath the underpass. The snow was pushed there during the cleanup. A pedestrian on Florida Avenue has to go pretty far to reach an alternative route, which meant that some people made the risky move of walking in the Florida Avenue vehicle lanes to get under the bridge. The District and the regions other local governments generally dont clear snow from sidewalks. They make it the responsibility of residents and businesses to clear them. Should government take over that responsibility? When I was growing up in Montreal, it was routine to see a tiny municipal snow plow clearing our residential sidewalk before we left for school in the morning. But the municipal budget was based on the expectation of a very snowy winter. In the Mid-Atlantic, making sidewalk-clearing a government task may be more of a financial burden than taxpayers are prepared to handle. Something short of that? Many who testified at the hearing praised the volunteer actions of neighbors with shovels and of the civic-minded people who are part of the citys business improvement districts. Perhaps the District and other local governments could provide some support, organization and inspiration for such efforts to keep sidewalks clear in winter, the way they do for private efforts to remove litter from our highways. Lost, and found Its rare that I get to leave you with a happy ending, but I have one here. Dear Dr. Gridlock: Can you imagine what its like to get off a Metro train and arrive at your car in the parking lot, only to discover that you no longer have your keys? This happened to me on a Friday afternoon. I did dash back in and asked at the kiosk whether anyone had turned in some keys. No one had. I was back outside to start calling friends for help when suddenly the Metro employee I had spoken to came out with a big smile and asked me to describe the large and heavy ring that had fallen off my carabiner for the first time in 45 years of using one hooked to my purse. He had just received a call from a Metro staff member at Shady Grove Metro, to whom a young woman had turned in my keys, saying that she thought a woman had dropped them when getting off at Rockville. Two Metro staffers received big hugs from me that day. I can send only a virtual hug to that unknown woman, too. Linda Silversmith, Rockville Alexandria City Manager Mark Jinks on Tuesday proposed a small tax-rate increase that would send more money to schools, increase pay for city employees and boost parking and traffic enforcement while contributing to a $171-a-year increase in the average residential tax bill. Jinks said that a 1-cent increase in the current tax rate of $1.043 per $100 of assessed value is necessary to address growing enrollment in the public schools and keep firefighters and other city employees from moving to other cities and counties in the region. I think residents in Alexandria are supportive of quality service and responsive government, he said at an afternoon briefing for reporters. This budget is consistent with that. The average valuation of an Alexandria residence is $521,227 this year, an $11,374 increase that would have produced a $119 increase in the average tax bill without the rate changing. A penny increase in the tax rate would mean the average residential tax bill would go up by an additional $52, to $5,489 a year. Jinks said his budget proposal funds only basic city services. He asked the City Council to consider adding another penny to the rate, which would allow the city to fully fund the schools budget requests, add a fire academy at T.C. Williams High School, and increase the health and human services budgets. Separate from property taxes, Jinks proposed raising residential refuse collection fees by $17 a year, to $353, and boosting the sanitary sewer maintenance fee by $8.15 for a typical household. The proposed budget would be a 3.5 percent increase over the current fiscal years and will be discussed and adjusted by the City Council over the next two months. Officials in Fairfax County have proposed a 4-cent increase in the tax rate, while Arlington County officials are weighing a half-cent cut in the tax rate to help offset the impact of rising home assessments. In Alexandria, Jinks proposed $5 million for pay increases in addition to $900,000 for a 2.5 percent raise for all firefighters. Fire department officers would get an additional raise of about 5 percent. Those pay hikes would place Alexandrias compensation about in the middle of the five nearby departments with which it compares itself, Jinks said. Schools, expected to grow by 541 students in the fall, would receive a total of $206.6 million for their operating costs, a $7.75 million increase. That includes money to lease space for a potential new elementary school and a separate pre-kindergarten. The budget also seeks $2.2 million for debt service on school-construction projects. Residents were clear that they want more parking and traffic enforcement, Jinks said, so his base budget would include an additional traffic engineer, a second parking planner and three storm-water workers. More money also would go to the police department for speed and parking enforcement. Scattered in the operating and capital-improvement budgets are millions proposed to address crumbling buildings, including City Hall, the health department building, Gadsbys Tavern and the Apothecary Museum. Jinks also included small increases in money spent for affordable housing. COLORADO Woman guilty of cutting away fetus A Colorado woman who prosecutors said was obsessed with having a baby and concocted elaborate lies to convince those close to her that she was pregnant was convicted Tuesday of cutting a nearly 8-month-old fetus from a strangers womb. The case against Dynel Lane, 36, who lured Michelle Wilkins to her home with a Craigslist ad for maternity clothes, attracted international attention and reignited a national debate over the legal rights of fetuses. Jurors convicted Lane of attempted first-degree murder, assault and unlawful termination of a pregnancy in the March 2015 attack on Wilkins. Prosecutors say they were not able to charge her with murder in the death of the unborn girl because a coroner found no evidence the fetus lived outside the womb. Judge Maria Berkenkotter ordered Lane held until sentencing, set for April 29. She could face a prison sentence between 16 and 120 years, District Attorney Stan Garnett said after the verdict. He said he had not yet decided what sentence to seek. Associated Press OKLAHOMA Court affirms law that limits abortion drugs The Oklahoma Supreme Court on Tuesday upheld a law aimed at limiting the use of abortion-inducing drugs, overturning a lower-court decision that said the measure was unconstitutional because it did not apply to other medication. Tuesdays decision said the measure did not violate state constitutional provisions aimed at keeping laws uniform across the state but could compromise public health. We also must recognize that, by the States own evidentiary materials, more restrictions on abortions result in higher complication rates and in decreased womens safety, the court wrote. The law requires that the drugs, including one known by the brand name Mifeprex, be administered under U.S. Food and Drug Administration protocols that critics say are outdated and pose dangers to women. The states Republican leaders who supported the law said the restrictions protected the health and safety of women. The lawsuit, filed on behalf of Reproductive Services, a nonprofit health-care provider with a center in Tulsa, and the Oklahoma Coalition for Reproductive Justice, said the law prohibited off-label use of abortion-inducing drugs purposefully and unconstitutionally, which limited non-surgical abortion options in the state. Reuters UTAH Sect leaders charged with fraud, laundering Several top leaders from Warren Jeffss polygamous sect were arrested Tuesday on federal accusations of food stamp fraud and money laundering marking one of the biggest crackdowns on the group in years. The charges are the governments latest move targeting the sect based on the Utah-Arizona border, coinciding with legal battles in two states over child labor and discrimination against nonbelievers. Prosecutors say church leaders diverted funds from Utahs nutrition-assistance program for inappropriate use, including forcing members to put food into a communal storehouse so leaders could divvy it up. The group, which believes polygamy brings exaltation in heaven, also used the funds to pay thousands for a tractor and a truck, according to indictments from the U.S. attorneys office in Utah. Eleven people were charged in the scheme, including Lyle Jeffs and Seth Jeffs, top-ranking leaders of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and brothers of imprisoned sect leader Warren Jeffs. Lyle Jeffs runs the day-to-day operations in the polygamous community of Hildale, while Seth Jeffs leads a branch of the group in South Dakota. Their brother is serving a life sentence in Texas for sexually assaulting his 12- and 15-year-old brides at a secretive church compound in that state. Associated Press WEATHER Severe storms lash Louisiana, Mississippi A suspected tornado caused some damage but no injuries near New Orleans main airport Tuesday as severe weather spawned possible twisters and high winds in parts of the Deep South, authorities said. Emergency officials and the National Weather Service said the reported tornado was spotted near Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport in the suburban city of Kenner. It was believed to have touched down in a nearby field. In neighboring Mississippi, Gov. Phil Bryant (R) declared a state of emergency, in anticipation of severe weather. High winds ripped off roofs and downed trees around the greater New Orleans area. Other suspected tornadoes were reported north of Lake Pontchartrain and west of the city in St. Charles and Ascension parishes. In Kenner, cars were reported damaged at a parking lot near the airport. High winds sheared the brick and mortar from the rear wall of a church. Associated Press Hospital pays Garners family in chokehold-death case: The hospital center that dispatched paramedics and treated Eric Garner, who died after being placed into a chokehold by police, has agreed to pay $1 million to the family, according to court records obtained Tuesday by the Associated Press. The settlement with Richmond University Medical Center is confidential and wasnt part of the $5.9 million agreement announced by the city in July. Garner, a 43-year-old black father of six, died during an encounter with police in July 2014. He left no will. Associated Press Brett Smith sat down. He wiped his eyes. An odd feeling was rushing over him, some mixture of exhilaration, relief and bewilderment at what had just happened. He had driven 70 miles to see Ohio Gov. John Kasich speak at a campaign event. He had raised his hand to ask a question. But when the audience turned toward him, the TV cameras aimed at him, and Kasich moved in closer to listen, Smith had found himself saying, I dont want to get emotional, but and then he had gotten emotional. He had explained how a family friend had committed suicide, his parents had divorced and his dad had lost his job, and then he had kept on going, his voice trembling into the microphone. I was in a pretty dark place for a long time, he had said. I was pretty depressed, but I found hope in my friends, in the Lord, and now in my presidential candidate. And then the 21-year-old had found himself asking the governor of Ohio for one of those hugs youve been talking about, and Kasich had obliged, hugging him tight as the cameras zoomed in closer and the audience began applauding a moment that would soon be replayed, shared and commented upon tens of thousands of times. But now Smith was back in his seat, his mind racing as Kasich finished. What had he just done? And why had he done it at a political rally? Had he just made a huge mistake? Excuse me, could I get your name? asked the first reporter as the event ended. Brett Smith . . . he said, his voice still shaky. Where are you from? Newnan, Georgia, he said. New man? Newnan, Smith said. N-e-w . . . He was never really a big talker, a sharer of inner thoughts. He was especially not a person who would reveal himself in front of hundreds of strangers and live cameras at a presidential campaign rally. But in the midst of an election season distinguished by raw voter anger and disgust, Brett Smith was now the face of more gentle emotions, an unvarnished need for empathy. Until now, he had never asked for it. It wasnt his way. He had been the prom king, class president and Mr. Heard High in a conservative, one-stoplight county in rural Georgia, where life had been humming along until two summers ago. As he struggled to pull out of a deep depression, he found a welcome distraction in the presidential election playing out on the cable TV news shows. He watched them all the time, absorbed by the images of cornfields in Iowa and snow in New Hampshire and the red, white and blue glare of the TV sets. He never missed debate nights, which was when an answer Kasich had given struck him that opposing gay marriage did not mean you couldnt love gay people. Smith began paying closer attention to the candidate who often spoke of the need for Americans to slow down and show compassion. He tried to get a job with the campaign, which never responded. He tried to get a job with Kasichs super PAC, which didnt work out, either. So when he found out Kasich was going to be speaking an hour away, he went. He took his seat in the fourth row and rehearsed a question on how the governor could keep running an optimistic campaign. Then he raised his hand, and now he was the Brett Smith who had revealed himself, who was surrounded by a crowd of people and microphones and hands patting his shoulder and others wiping away their own tears. I just want to say I was proud to see you stand up it takes a lot of courage, a young man said to him, and Smith nodded. If you ever need anyone to talk, you call me anytime, said a white-haired man who slipped Smith a scrap of paper. This will be live on C-SPAN, said a reporter asking Smith for an interview, ushering him over to a TV camera. Smith shoved his shaking hands in his pockets. He looked down, to the side and toward the back of the auditorium, and when the light came on, he began. In his first debate, he gave the gay marriage comment, where he said you dont have to agree with it, but doesnt mean I cant love them, he said, avoiding the camera lens. Another microphone. I dont know if that was a good thing or a bad thing, he said about getting emotional. We had just gotten back from vacation, he said into yet another microphone, and he explained how his best friends dad had killed himself right after the two families had spent a week together in Pensacola, Fla. How the man he called Mr. Tim had been like a second dad to him. He was just real uplifting to people, you know? Smith said, his voice shaking again and now he stopped himself. He took off his glasses and wiped his eyes. It was pretty tough, he said into the microphone still hovering under his chin, and then he went back to talking about Kasich, whose aide now approached Smith for his phone number. Do me a favor and put down Clemson so we remember that? he said, and Smith wrote Clemson next to his phone number, and soon he walked outside into the bright afternoon. He checked his cellphone. Look at that, he said with surprise, seeing that someone had already posted the video of the hug on Facebook. Its got 10 likes. He watched himself getting teary on the tiny screen and got teary again. Neat, he said, sensing something about to happen. As far as I know, its going to be neat. He drove to Chick-fil-A, settled into a booth and checked his phone again: 45,000 views. He clicked on the video again. Id really appreciate one of those hugs youve been talking about, he mouthed as it played. How cool is that? he said, still watching. Lets renew our spirit . . . lets not be disconnected, Kasich said on the tiny screen. Smith ate a waffle fry. Im going to quote that, Im going to tweet that, he said, and he typed Wow, thats me. Sorry for crying. #Kasichforus #Kasichforme, and off it went into the maw. He sent the video to his mom. He sent it to his friends. He clicked on another link. Kasich knows how to listen, how to lead and how to give a hug, he said out loud, reading the post with it, and watched again as Kasich walked over and hugged him. He wondered if maybe he had helped the governors campaign. Id like it if Im helping, he said. He wondered what his best friend would think of it all. Its kind of embarrassing, Smith said, feeling slightly uneasy thinking about that. He checked his phone again. The video was going viral. Im proud of you, his uncle wrote to him. You made me cry, a friend wrote. This is a beautiful uplifting moment in American democracy, Smith said, reading what a prominent talk show host wrote to his 359,000 followers. His mom called to say the video was on CNN and Fox News, and now Smith had several new messages from networks asking if he would go on TV. I feel like I dont have anything else to say, Smith said, and as he was trying to decide how to respond, a diner came up to him to say he had seen him at the rally. Nice to meet you, the man said. You too, said Smith. Nice to meet you, too. The man asked if he could take Smiths tray to the garbage for him. Sure, Smith said. Thank you. Huh, he said after the man walked away. Thats a first. Wow. What was this moment becoming? I dont want to ruin it, Smith said, deciding he would decline the interviews. Its pure as it is. I dont want to take anything away from it. I just want to leave it as it is. He drove back to Athens, where he is a senior at the University of Georgia, and the next morning, Smith began checking his phone again as he walked to class. A psychiatrist had emailed him to say that if he ever needed to talk, he could call him. A man from California had written that he had struggled with depression, and its a daily battle, and what you did took courage. Someone from Rochester was wishing him happiness and fulfillment. MSNBC called and asked again if he would appear. He thought about it and said okay. They said the hit time would be 2:15, he said, and soon he was ironing his only other button-down shirt, and off he went in a chauffeured Cadillac to a local Atlanta station, into the green room where previous guests including the reality star Honey Boo Boo had signed the wall, and now he did too. Brett Smith, he wrote. Kasich hug. He went into the studio, where he waited for a half hour in front of a camera, a photograph of the Atlanta skyline behind him. A producer asked him to count to five to check his voice level. One, two, three . . . Smith said. He tried to keep a vague smile on his face as he waited for a cue in his earpiece, which was familiar when it came. I dont want to get too emotional, but Smith heard himself say as the video replayed again, and then the reporter began. Brett, thanks . . . a lot of people felt connected to you, and the words you spoke to Gov. Kasich, he said. Well, I didnt plan on sharing that story at first, Smith began, and soon, it was over, and he was back in the car being chauffeured back to campus, which was fine with him. Twenty-four hours had passed since a fragile young man who had a close friend who killed himself, whose parents had divorced, whose dad had lost his job, and who had fallen into a dark place, had said all those things out loud. Now he sat on a friends front porch in the late afternoon. Sometimes you dont tell things to people close to you, he said. You tell a stranger. I guess because you dont have to see them again. He thought about how he felt now, even as the video continued to take on a life of its own out in the world, where it would soon be featured in a political ad for Kasich, titled Quiet. Its just weird, he said. Its good that other people thought it was helpful. But it was yours. And now in a way, its everybodys. George F. Will was right to apply Newtons Third Law of Motion to the current political scene [Resisting executive overreach, op-ed, Feb. 21]. From a psychological perspective, sooner or later, the targets of President Obamas tyrannical oppression men will turn to outrage. The most important feature of outrage as a political instrument on all sides is that in outrage there is no room for reason. So far, the outrageously discriminatory behavior of Mr. Obamas Office for Civil Rights in his Education Department has been met only with lawsuits filed by aggrieved men, and they are winning with increasing frequency and for increasingly large amounts of money. More broadly, however, the astonishing rise of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump and Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) suggests that seething outrage is far more widespread among the aggrieved than had been originally thought. To the barricades and for good reason? Gordon E. Finley, Miami CHINESE PRESIDENT Xi Jinping hit a trifecta of sorts on Friday with rare, high-profile visits to the newsrooms of China Central Television, the Xinhua news service and the Peoples Daily newspaper, three organizations at the commanding heights of Chinas Communist Party and state media. Mr. Xis message: They must serve the party with absolute loyalty and must have the party as their family name. Workers at the central television headquarters greeted Mr. Xi with a banner that said, The central televisions family name is the party. Censorship and party pressure on journalists have long been the norm in China, but Mr. Xis appearances and the fawning reaction of some news media workers suggest a renewed attempt to tighten the reins and build a cult of personality around the Chinese leader. With a flourish, Mr. Xi posed at an anchors desk at the state television network. He instructed the media not only to hew to the party line but also to love it. All work of the partys news and public opinion media, Mr. Xi said, must reflect the will of the party, mirror the views of the party, preserve the authority of the party, preserve the unity of the party, and achieve love of the party, protection of the party and acting for the party. And, he insisted, they must maintain a high level of uniformity with the party in ideology, politics and action. The consequences of these attempts at thought control are already well entrenched in China: an authoritarian, paternalistic system that attempts to corral information and determine what the public can be told. It doesnt always work in the digital age, but Chinese authorities havent quit trying. Mr. Xis declarations serve an important purpose, highlighting how Chinas leadership views the news media as party handmaidens and loyal mouthpieces. In this view, there is no room for independent inquiry or questioning journalism. At the same time, the Chinese government published new regulations that will ban foreign companies from publishing online media, games and other content within Chinas borders. This is yet one more attempt to keep out any unwanted overseas influences. Mr. Xi seems determined to impose maximum control. There was a time when many in the West hoped that open doors to China would let in fresh breezes of freedom. It was believed that greater trade and flows of intellectual property would bring ancillary benefits, improving conditions in human rights and democracy. It was thought that allowing Chinas state news media an expanding foothold in the United States might also advance democratic values. It is past time to rethink such assumptions. PRESIDENT OBAMA vowed as he took office seven years ago to close the Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, prison, whose use for the holding of terrorism suspects arrested abroad long ago proved counterproductive. Thanks to congressional opposition, he has not fulfilled the pledge. On Tuesday, the president offered one more plan for doing so, only to be swiftly rebuffed by Republicans. Though the proposal was flawed, he deserves more of a hearing. As Mr. Obama rightly argued, this festering legacy of the George W. Bush administrations response to the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, should not be passed on to the next president. This administration bears some responsibility for Guantanamos continuing role as a warehouse for prisoners who were captured in the early 2000s, mostly in Afghanistan and Pakistan, and held ever since. Since 2009, the Pentagon has moved only in fits and starts to review the cases of those held and to arrange the transfer of those freed for release. Mr. Obama has nevertheless managed to reduce the population from 238 to 91, of whom 10 are on trial in military commissions and 35 have been cleared for release to other countries. The Pentagon plan submitted to Congress calls for the transfer of those who cannot be safely released to other countries about 60 prisoners to a location, most likely a federal prison, in the United States. The military commission trials, including of several of the prime authors of the 9/11 attacks, would continue. But as Mr. Obama pointed out, the proceedings have resulted in years of litigation without a resolution. He said the administration would soon propose reforms to the commissions requiring congressional action. Part of the resistance to closing Guantanamo comes from Republicans who insist that it would be too dangerous to hold al-Qaeda militants anywhere in the United States. This is unserious: Federal supermax prisons already securely house a number of dangerous terrorists, both foreign and domestic. The Obama administration has made a practice of transferring al-Qaeda suspects to the federal court system for prosecution, with good results. A legal study attached to the Pentagon report largely dismisses concerns that militants could eventually be released inside the United States. A more serious objection comes from Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), the Armed Services Committee chairman, who has favored closing Guantanamo. He says the Pentagon plan punts on crucial specifics about how present and future terrorist detainees would be held. Though it studied more than a dozen potential domestic facilities, the administration did not settle on a recommended site; nor did its report which was mandated by Congress specify what would be required to modify a domestic prison to hold war prisoners. What would happen to the major al-Qaeda figures now on trial was not spelled out. And the plan does not provide for terrorist operatives who might be captured in the future and held under the laws of war. Mr. McCain said his committee will closely scrutinize and hold hearings on Mr. Obamas proposal. That provides an opening for the administration to work with those in Congress who favor closing Guantanamo to develop a more detailed plan. Its not enough for the president to give speeches about shutting down the prison; he must offer specifics, and follow through on Capitol Hill. THE UNTHINKABLE is starting to look like the inevitable: Absent an extraordinary effort from people who understand the menace he represents, Donald Trump is likely to be the presidential nominee of the Republican Party. At this stage, even an extraordinary effort might fall short. But history will not look kindly on GOP leaders who fail to do everything in their power to prevent a bullying demagogue from becoming their standard-bearer. A few days ago we criticized Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus for his assertion that a Trump victory in November would silence the doubters. Winning is the antidote to a lot of things, Mr. Priebus had said. We argued that winning would not erase the bigotry and ugliness of Mr. Trumps campaign, nor remove the dangers of a Trump presidency. On Wednesday, the GOP chairman, perhaps wanting to show that he can match Mr. Trump in eloquence, responded: That is the stupidest editorial that I have ever seen. So it falls to other leaders to decide if their party will stand for anything other than winning. A political party, after all, isnt meant to be merely a collection of consultants, lobbyists and functionaries angling for jobs. It is supposed to have principles: in the Republican case, at least as we have always understood it, to include a commitment to efficient government, free markets and open debate. [Danielle Allen: The moment of truth: We must stop Trump] Now it is faced with a front-runner who, in the interval between the two Priebus comments cited above, said of a protester, Id like to punch him in the face. This is a front-runner with no credible agenda and no suitable experience. He wants the United States to commit war crimes, including torture and the murder of innocent relatives of suspected terrorists. He admires Russian dictator Vladimir Putin and sees no difference between Mr. Putins victims and people killed in the defense of the United States. He would round up and deport 11 million people, a forced movement on a scale not attempted since Stalin or perhaps Pol Pot. He has, during the course of his campaign, denigrated women, Jews, Muslims, Mexicans, people with disabilities and many more. He routinely trades in wild falsehoods and doubles down when his lies are exposed. Certainly there are Republican leaders who understand all this: people such as House Speaker Paul D. Ryan (Wis.); former president George W. Bush and former presidential nominees Bob Dole, John McCain and Mitt Romney; and governors, senators and community leaders across the country. Some have spoken up over the course of Mr. Trumps campaign, and then stepped back; others have been silent. The silence may reflect an absence of courage and also an element of calculation: There was an assumption that Mr. Trump would fade, and that confronting him would only make him stronger. The calculations have proved wrong. If Mr. Trump is to be stopped, now is the time for leaders of conscience to say they will not and cannot support him and to do what they can to stop him. We understand that Mr. Trump would seek to use this to his benefit, and that he might succeed. But what is the choice? Is the Republican Party truly not going to resist its own debasement? My favorite article about the death of Justice Antonin Scalia was the one written by his son, Christopher J. Scalia, My father, Antonin Scalia [op-ed, Feb. 21]. My deepest condolences to Justice Scalias family and all who loved him; I hope they find comfort in memories of him. While I deeply disagree with many of the views Justice Scalia held, from all Ive heard since he died, he was a good man who had respect for those he did not agree with. That is an important quality that far too many people have completely walked away from. In conversations about his replacement, an important point is being disregarded by Republicans who oppose President Obama putting forth a nomination: The Supreme Court seat that Justice Scalia held was not a personal possession of his, and it is not reserved only for those who have a conservative philosophy identical to the late justices. No judicial seat belongs to any person or group, period. The Senate has almost a full year to do its constitutional duty and, as our fairly elected president has said, give a fair hearing to and vote on his nominee. It would be wrong to do otherwise. Carol Kelso, Birmingham, Ala. Much is being said about the legacy of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, generally with regard to his record as a conservative icon [Scalia mourned as one of a kind, front page, Feb. 21]. His most important legacy is one that should be appreciated by those at all points on the political spectrum: his remarkable friendship with Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, his ideological polar opposite on the bench. The lesson for everyone in Washington and across the nation is that politics should not be allowed to divide us as a people. Even those completely at odds with one another politically can be best buddies in their personal relationships. Wouldnt it be wonderful if, in tribute to Justice Scalia, politicians on the Hill could recapture the spirit so well demonstrated by then-House Speaker Thomas P. Tip ONeill Jr. (D) and Republican President Ronald Reagan and work together to solve our many seemingly intractable problems? Alan B. Salisbury, McLean Regarding the Feb. 20 Metro article At GU Law, whether to mourn Scalia sparks own arguments: Why such a vituperative response by a professor at a Catholic law school over the death of a notable alumnus? The desire by some at the Georgetown University Law Center to castigate a dead man at a time of mourning and to challenge an institutions efforts to show respect makes me wonder what sort of court decorum and propriety is taught by some of these supposed officers of the court. Who would want to pay these professors salaries through alumni contributions or even send their children to be taught by someone embracing such a deplorable demeanor? Is this the law today, denigrating the dead? There must be other places to learn civil practices. Carl Briggs, Charlottesville MARYLAND GOV. Larry Hogan, a Republican in a heavily Democratic state, won election as a pro-business moderate, took office with a limited agenda and has governed from the center. For this, plus the sunny disposition he projected through a bout with cancer, Mr. Hogan has been rewarded with sky-high public approval ratings, which appear to have unhinged Democrats. The latest eruption of the Democrats Hogan Derangement Syndrome occurred last week, when African American legislators accused him of racially motivated assaults on black communities. The so-called evidence included the governors decisions, last year, to kill a light-rail line, trim extra education funding and fund a new jail in Baltimore, while initially withholding funds for a new hospital in Prince Georges County. Both Baltimore City and Prince Georges are majority-black. We didnt support Mr. Hogan in his 2014 campaign. Nonetheless, what has been striking since he took office is neither his ideology (faint), nor his agenda (small-ball), nor his governing style (laid-back), nor his partisanship (run-of-the-mill) but the disproportionate attacks by Democrats on a governor whose record so far qualifies him as a moderate. Last year they pilloried him for trying to divert money for the states underfunded pension system, a cause Democrats themselves embraced just four years earlier, before legislative amnesia set in. This year they derided his anodyne State of the State address, heavy on pledges to work collaboratively with Democrats, with initiatives some targeted tax cuts and fee reductions; nonpartisan redistricting; efforts to combat heroin addiction that could easily have been issued by a reform-minded Democrat. Democrats responded with bills that would tilt the balance of power away from the governor and toward the Democrat-controlled legislature. Some of those measures, such as subjecting the states school superintendent to legislative approval, looked gratuitously political; amid criticism, it was essentially withdrawn Tuesday. Despite the occasionally venomous rhetoric in Annapolis, neither Mr. Hogan nor the Democrats are playing for monumental stakes. Mr. Hogans Democratic predecessor, Martin OMalley, managed to enact practically every big-ticket liberal policy Democrats could think of: same-sex marriage, gun control, tuition subsidies for illegal immigrants, ending the death penalty, and new taxes to finance higher spending on infrastructure and health care. Mr. Hogan has made no effort to roll those back, leaving Democrats to snipe at his small-bore attempts to trim spending. When they have attacked him head-on, Mr. Hogan has sometimes simply yielded, as he did by restoring funds for the Prince Georges hospital and cutting them for a (badly needed) new jail in Baltimore. And while he rejected the light-rail Red Line in Baltimore, a project whose $2.9 billion price tag outstripped its likely benefits, he quickly proposed a less expensive program to improve the citys bus service, which got high marks. Before Mr. Hogan took office, Maryland was a virtual one-party state, led by a Republican governor for just four of the preceding 45 years. Now Democrats, encumbered by a sense of entitlement and baffled by a middle-of-the-road GOP governor, seem bereft of a strategy and grasping for an agenda. They would need both to wrest power from Mr. Hogan if, as expected, he seeks reelection in 2018. The Feb. 21 editorial Virginia police, behind masks was on target, but it did not note one particularly perverse consequence of the proposed legislation to hide the identities of Virginia law enforcement officers. Aggrieved people seeking redress from police abuse must file suit within a statutory period of limitations; in Virginia, that limit is two years. As a civil rights lawyer, I have had numerous victims come to me at the last moment, having been unable to identify counsel willing to take their cases, subject as they are to potent legal defenses available to public officials only. If they lack the offending officers name and time does not suffice to obtain it, they may end up without a remedy. A lawsuit filed against John Doe or Jane Doe may be insufficient to protect a claim against the subsequent expiration of the period of limitations. If the offending officers or officers names are unascertainable, the result is either the failure of righteous claims that would have vindicated public as well as private interests, or the unnecessary and costly involvement of the employing county or city in preliminary litigation aimed principally at getting the alleged offenders names. Victor M. Glasberg, Alexandria Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz speaks to supporters during a rally at the Durango Hills Community Center on Monday in Las Vegas. (Ricky Carioti/The Washington Post) Ted Cruzs presidential bid is in turmoil after repeated allegations of unsavory campaign tactics by his Republican rivals, leading some key supporters to call for a shake-up in the candidates message and strategy a week ahead of the crucial Super Tuesday primaries. Aides and allies of the insurgent senator from Texas acknowledged in interviews this week that the campaign has been damaged by attacks on Cruzs integrity from Donald Trump and Marco Rubio. They have pointed to a series of questionable tactics by the Cruz camp, including calls to voters suggesting that candidate Ben Carson was dropping out and the sharing of an inaccurate video suggesting Rubio had disparaged the Bible. The video flap prompted Cruz to abruptly fire his chief spokesman, Rick Tyler, who posted the clip on social media, on Monday in an attempt to put his candidacy back on course. But the troubles continued Tuesday, when the campaign halted the sale of merchandise by a street artist whose social-media accounts include controversial and sometimes racist messages. Cruz also weathered another wave of attacks from Trump on the eve of the Nevada caucuses. Trump told a rally in Sparks, Nev., that Cruz is like a little baby soft, weak little baby. . . . But for lying, hes the best Ive ever seen. Cruz and his aides say the accusations of deception are simply false. But with the issue dominating media coverage for more than a week, aides and supporters now acknowledge that the attacks have started taking a toll. [Hoping to turn the page on dirty tricks charges, Cruz fires spokesman] Louie Hunter, Cruzs Georgia co-chair, said the allegations of untruths being pushed by Trump and Rubio have made their way to voters. I think both the Trump and the Rubio campaigns have seized on the narrative that if they say liar enough, enough people are going to believe it, Hunter said. I think that has manifested itself into some people questioning, albeit incorrectly, the real moral character of Senator Cruz and of this campaign. The tumult comes at a crucial time for Cruz, who won the Iowa caucuses at the start of the month but finished third in both New Hampshire and, more disappointingly, South Carolina a state filled with the evangelical Christians and tea party conservatives who make up his political base. After Tuesday nights Nevada caucuses which Trump won Cruz is looking ahead to March 1, known as Super Tuesday, which features 11 state contests mostly in the South, including Cruzs home state of Texas. Cruzs campaign has been focused on Super Tuesday since its inception, with the candidate calling the South a firewall that could help him gobble up delegates and secure the nomination. The campaign has poured time and resources into the delegate-rich region, believing its high percentage of religious and conservative voters would be natural Cruz supporters. [Southern states set to play a major role in GOP race] But with the Republican campaign in a new national phase, a Cruz aide acknowledged that the shouts of liar could have far-reaching implications for a candidate who touts his slogan TrusTed. 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. For some supporters, some of the alleged dirty tricks including a photo on a website created by the Cruz campaign that digitally added Rubios head onto the body of a man shaking hands with President Obama were too much. I think when it looks like theres a pattern of a Photoshopped picture or now a false tweet, thats not good. Its going too far, its crossing the line, said Mica Mosbacher, a Cruz donor from Houston. It was becoming a pattern. . . . When you see one Photoshop and now a false tweet, that was a pattern that needed to be stopped in its tracks. [Liar, liar: a charged word is now common in the GOP race] Cruzs campaign did not respond to requests for public comment. Some are questioning whether Cruzs overall strategy of focusing on evangelical, conservative and, to a lesser extent, libertarian-leaning voters is too narrow. The campaign needs to reach beyond its base of evangelical support, said Mike Gonzalez, a South Carolina pastor who was a co-chair for Cruzs South Carolina evangelical efforts. Reach libertarians, you know, moderates as well, and even the establishment people. Gonzalez and others think Cruz needs to focus more on his story and issues such as the Supreme Court. And, they say, focus less on Rubio and more on Trump. Cruz has repeatedly hit Rubio on immigration and foreign policy. In my opinion its a two-person race between Cruz and Trump, said Bob Vander Plaats, an influential Iowa evangelical leader and a national co-chair for Cruz. I would stay focused on your main competitor. I wouldnt wage a two-front battle. [For Cruz and Rubio, the moment has arrived: a three-man race with Trump] Some advice to Cruz from top surrogates has been very public and unsolicited. David Limbaugh, a conservative commentator and Cruz supporter, wrote that Cruz needs to adjust his campaign by not focusing so much on religion, to quit parsing his opponents positions like a lawyer and to stop getting bogged down in arguments over the 2013 push for comprehensive immigration reform. Steve Deace, a high-profile conservative Christian Iowa radio host in Iowa, penned a piece in Conservative Review urging Cruz to reboot his campaign. Stop telling us how much you like Trump personally. Stop saying things like everyone on this debate stage would be better than Hillary, Deace wrote, referring to some of Cruzs earlier overtures to the real-estate mogul. Trump is playing for first place or go home. Now go and do likewise. Jason Schultz, an Iowa state senator who supported Cruz in the caucuses there, said the campaign has faced a difficult balancing act: If Cruz doesnt respond to the allegations, he looks as though he is conceding that they are true; if he does, he takes away from his message. I get the sense that he left his message because he did try to respond and maybe spent too much time responding instead of talking about what Senator Cruz brings to the campaign, Schultz said. I dont know if its ever helpful to get down into the gutter with the gutter fighters. [The guy who turned Ted Cruz into a ripped, tattooed smoker ] Regardless, the attacks have stuck with voters. Lauriel Bradley, a 29-year-old Republican from Clifton, Va., said shes consistently been hearing two things about Cruz lately: That hes a liar and dirty. Where has she been hearing this? People, the news, Facebook, she said, sipping a latte in a coffee shop in Clifton. Bradley doesnt plan to vote for Cruz on Super Tuesday, but she declined to say which candidate she plans to support. Andrea Vaden, a Rubio supporter from Las Vegas who attended a Rubio rally there on Tuesday morning, said she learned about Tyler parting ways with the Cruz campaign on the news. Of Cruz, Vaden said, I dont entirely trust him. In Sparks, where Trump held a final pre-caucus rally Tuesday at the Nugget casino, some attendees visibly recoiled at the mention of Cruzs name. It seems like every time that man opens his mouth, he lies, said Linda Rengifo, 74, a retiree from Reno. He fired that man for lying, but Id be surprised if he didnt put him up to it. If he was the nominee, I couldnt vote for him. Sean Sullivan in Las Vegas and David Weigel in Sparks, Nev., contributed to this report. Former New York mayor Michael Bloomberg, in January. A majority of Americans of both parties say they have no interest in voting Bloomberg into the White House. (Bebeto Matthews/AP) In a wildly chaotic presidential election starring a tycoon-turned-reality-television-star from New York and a socialist from Vermont, is there room for another billionaire from Manhattans East Side? That is a central riddle facing former New York mayor Michael Bloomberg as he contemplates a third-party bid for the White House. Donald Trumps resounding victories in South Carolina on Saturday and in Nevadas caucuses Tuesday have solidified his status as the Republicans front-runner. On the Democratic side, Sen. Bernie Sanderss unexpected surge and landslide win in New Hampshire have kept him in the race even as Hillary Clinton has regained some momentum following her narrow victory in Nevada last weekend. What remains unknown is whether Bloomberg, 74, is willing to insert himself into a contest that remains unpredictable even as the field of candidates winnows. [In Nevada caucuses, Trump scores a third straight victory] Bloomberg went out of his way last week to bemoan a campaign he described as a race to the extremes, with candidates exploiting Americans loss of faith in a political system that is corrupt, gridlocked and broken. Thats why you see the current candidates out there doing well, and not the conventional ones, Bloomberg told a gathering at a Manhattan book party, an apparent reference to Trump and Sanders. Looming over the deliberations is the question of which party a Bloomberg candidacy would hurt more. With polls suggesting that Bloomberg would draw more Democratic than Republican voters, it makes little sense that Trumps surge would prompt the former mayor to run. That said, Bloombergs viability may be strengthened if Clinton is damaged by a drawn-out nomination process. Bloomberg proved his capacity for defying naysayers 15 years ago, when he captured New Yorks City Hall. But New York is not the United States, and its far from certain that swing-state voters would embrace a former Republican known for opposing guns, smoking and Big Gulp sodas. Nor is it clear that a measured, sober-toned business executive could command an electorate that so far has rewarded unceasing bombast over pragmatism. You dont solve problems by pointing fingers or making pie-in-the-sky promises, Bloomberg told the gathering last week. You solve them by bringing people together around common goals, promoting innovation, demonstrating independence and recognizing that compromise is not a bad word. Bloombergs potential as a candidate is rooted in what the Gallup organization has identified as an ever-broadening swath of American voters who define themselves as independent and express dissatisfaction with both major political parties. For those voters, familiar names such as Clinton and Jeb Bush may seem like more of the same; meanwhile, Sanders, Trump and Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Tex.) may be too extreme, creating opportunity for Bloomberg, a former Democrat who turned Republican before declaring himself unaffiliated in 2007. There is a broad constituency, and there will be a broader one still, given the polarization of this election, said Douglas Schoen, Bloombergs pollster, who recently wrote a Wall Street Journal op-ed article headlined, Why Mike Bloomberg Can Win. Hed be the only one talking about bipartisan consensus and bipartisan decision-making and results-oriented policies, Schoen said. In a particularly unstable political situation like the one were in now, where theres so much anger, its impossible to write off any credible candidate. Bloomberg would face daunting challenges, not the least of which would be prevailing in enough states to reach the 270 electoral college votes needed to win the presidency. American voters have never elected a third-party candidate to the presidency. In 1992, when he faced President George H.W. Bush and then-Gov. Bill Clinton, Ross Perot managed to draw 19 percent of the popular vote. But he did not win a single state. On a logistical level, Bloombergs campaign would need to quickly assemble an army to gather more than 900,000 signatures needed to qualify for the ballots in all 50 states, with a parade of rolling deadlines beginning this spring. Every state has a different process for getting on the ballot, and its implicitly designed to make it very difficult, said Reed Galen, a Republican strategist who advised Sen. John McCains 2008 presidential campaign. Is it plausible for him to get on the ballot? Yes. Easy? No. Perhaps more crucially, Bloomberg would need to sell himself to a public that is largely unaware of him. A Quinnipiac poll earlier this month found that 56 percent of American voters had not heard of Bloomberg, the owner of the media company that bears his name. And a new poll this week from the Associated Press showed even more dire numbers that a majority of voters of both parties would not even consider voting for him. Ed Rollins, the Republican strategist who advised Perot in 1992, recalled that the Texas billionaires appearances on Larry Kings CNN talk show galvanized a massive effort to get him on ballots across the country. Unlike the enthusiastic hordes propelling Trump and Sanders, the strategist said, Bloomberg has none of that. He has a billion dollars, but theres not a movement for him. My sense is that people telling Bloomberg to run are his New York dinner companions who are not happy with their choices, Rollins said. Thats not a constituency or a movement. Arguably, he was a good manager of New York, Rollins said. But the vast majority of Americans dont care about New York. New Yorks political establishment ridiculed Bloomberg when he ran for mayor in 2001. No matter his wealth, the argument went, a political novice running as a Republican could never win in a city awash in Democratic voters. He was seen as another one of these rich guys who had nothing better to do, said Bill Cunningham, a former Bloomberg adviser who recalled that his own friends said he was crazy for signing on with the moguls campaign. While the Democratic nominee, Mark Green, was weakened by a savage primary battle that year, he still held a formidable lead over Bloomberg as the general-election campaign began. Bloombergs willingness to spend $50 million of his own fortune on the campaign allowed him to inundate New Yorkers with television ads and mailings. His proven financial acumen became ever more attractive after the 9/11 terrorist attacks decimated New Yorks economy. And an 11th-hour endorsement from then-Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani exalted at that point for his handling of the 9/11 aftermath was tantamount to a blessing. But Bloomberg also closed the gap by identifying and, over the course of many months, methodically appealing to 800,000 New Yorkers who were unaffiliated with either the Democratic or the Republican parties. It was an effort that his advisers tout as key to his narrow victory. For all that, said Kenneth Sherrill, a Hunter College political science professor: Everyone was flabbergasted when he went over the top. No one expected it. Still, Bloombergs success in New York may have little bearing on how he would fare in a presidential race, the outcome of which is determined not by the popular vote but by the electoral college. What works in New York doesnt necessarily work in the rest of the country, said Stuart Rothenberg, the editor of a nonpartisan newsletter covering state and federal campaigns. Hes the guy whos known for being against guns and soft drinks. Is that going to play in Fairbanks, Alaska, or the suburbs of Indianapolis? Competing in a three-way race, Bloombergs progressive stances may not be problematic if he needs to win only a plurality against opponents such as Trump and Sanders. But his success would depend on independents remaining estranged from the two major parties by November and on their willingness to expend their vote on a candidate whose viability is uncertain. Despite claims of political independence, voters partisanship runs pretty deep, Rothenberg said. There are people who say theyre independent who arent really independent. They dont want to throw their vote away. Then theres the question of which party a Bloomberg candidacy would damage more. A recent USA Today-Suffolk University poll showed Sanders in a close two-way contest against Trump but losing to the reality-television star if Bloomberg were on the ballot (Bloomberg placed third). Ultimately, Bloombergs challenge would be to identify those states in which he could win a plurality and put together the necessary electoral votes, an analysis Rothenberg undertook this month in a column in Roll Call. What Rothenberg concluded is that Bloomberg would have little chance in what Gallup and he have identified as the countrys 20 most conservative states, including Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana, Oklahoma and South Carolina. Bloomberg would also face imposing challenges in the countrys most left-leaning states, such as Oregon, Vermont, Massachusetts, Michigan and Maryland. Theres little question, though, that Bloombergs candidacy would upend the current list of key swing states in the general election states including Ohio, Iowa, New Hampshire, Florida, Colorado and Virginia. Where Bloomberg could find success, Rothenberg said, is in states such as California, New York, Connecticut and New Jersey all states that typically vote Democratic. Ohio is the only swing state on that list. And with so many states probably out of reach, Bloomberg would have to run the table in those and other states. That wont be easy. My bottom line is I dont see it. Trumps and Sanderss success may have made the art of political predictions risky, Rothenberg said, but the math isnt adding up, even for Michael Bloomberg with all his money. When you look at the puzzle, he said, its, at the least, very, very difficult. Scott Clement contributed to this report. For two days police stood at the gates of a distinguished university in Indias capital without being invited in. Inside, five students wanted on sedition charges were holed up, protected by private security guards. Just before midnight Tuesday, two of the students turned themselves in and were arrested, joining the student union president, who remains in custody. People outside have to carry on the struggle. We will fight from inside, Umar Khalid, one of the students, said as he was led away in the dark. For decades, Indias Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) which sprawls across 1,000 leafy acres in Delhi frequented by roving antelope has been an oasis of thought in the chaotic capital. It has long attracted many of the countrys brightest minds, who, under the sheltering canopy of trees, felt free to talk, sing, drink tea and debate the issues of the day however radical their views might be. But since students chanted anti-India slogans at an event to honor a man executed by the government as a terrorist, JNU has become a flash point over freedom of expression in India. [Protests spread across India against students arrest for alleged sedition] The fallout sparked protests at other campuses nationwide, raised fears of a separatist uprising and prompted a debate about what it means to be a citizen of the worlds largest democracy. JNU has been known for its vibrant culture, where all kinds of discussion and debates from the extreme right to the extreme left enjoyed space on campus, said Nitheesh Narayanan, a leader of the Students Federation of India and a former JNU student. Now there is an attempt to stop it. Officials from the governing Bharatiya Janata Party said in Parliament on Wednesday that they had no intention of impeding free speech at the school. This is not about expressing your point of view, Smriti Irani, the minister of human resource development, said in an interview. Free speech thrives at JNU. This is a law-and-order situation that needed to be dealt with. The drama comes at a time when the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been accused of undermining the autonomy of universities by trying to impose new subjects in the curriculum, appointing partisan leaders and working to curb activism. Since assuming power in 2014, critics say, the government pressured a university in Chennai to discipline a student group alleged to be spreading hatred of Modi. Another school suspended a group of students critical of the government one of whom then hanged himself. Students at the countrys premier film academy are still complaining that their new head is a political crony and a B-grade movie actor not qualified for the job. Rakesh Batabyal, a professor of media studies at JNU, said a larger ideological battle is at play between liberals on campus and Modis government, backed by the Hindu nationalist group Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). Modi has been closely associated with the RSS since he was a young child, and its student wing, the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), is active on many campuses. Now when the RSS has state power behind them, changing education to the Hindu nationalist line is their prime agenda, Batabyal said. The student group is trying to help the government counter any voice of dissent. Irani, whose ministry oversees education, dismissed the charge. I completely condemn that. Give me one ounce of evidence, she said, noting that out of 40 universities, 20 chancellors were appointed by the previous government. If there was an agenda, would I still work with academicians not appointed by my government? Would these academicians still lead these institutions? Students from the ABVP complained to the administration about the Feb. 9 gathering at JNU, billed as a cultural evening of protest over the 2013 hanging of a Kashmiri man convicted of an attack on Parliament more than a decade ago. For me, JNU stands for freedom and freedom of expression. It is a very good campus to study; it is an open, free atmosphere. We can question everything. Two years ago, we even burnt the effigy of [politician] Rajnath Singh, said Ravi Ranjan, 26, a PhD student and the joint secretary of the local ABVP. But do not take advantage of this freedom and work against the country. [Campus activism gets out of hand and Indian university becomes hotbed of a raging debate] Gathering near a small food shop, the students had shouted The war will continue until Indias ruin! and India, you will be broken to pieces, if Allah wills. A grainy video eventually emerged that went viral and was disturbing to many. Singh, now the home minister, vowed that anyone chanting anti-Indian slogans would not be spared. Universities nationwide agreed to fly Indian flags. The school administration then contacted police, who descended on the dormitories and classrooms of the university prompting protests by students and teachers. They eventually arrested student union leader Kanhaiya Kumar, who remains in jail. In the firestorm that followed, Kumar was kicked and punched by a group of rogue lawyers on his way to court for a hearing. When police returned Sunday to arrest the rest of the students, they were not invited back in. Nor did they make a formal request to enter the campus, JNU authorities said. The pursuit of academia has been largely stalled on campus, with hundreds gathering to hear fiery speeches on the steps of the administration building each evening. Most classes resumed Monday after several days off. Students from other universities also streamed into town this week to march and show solidarity with JNU, including Jebin Thomas, 24. Thomas, studying for his masters degree in political science at the University of Hyderabad, is a friend of the young student who committed suicide in January. This is a movement, not just a protest, he said. It will continue. Read more: A spate of suicides highlight the pressures on students in India Caste protests outside Delhi leave millions of people without water India welcomes foreign companies, but is the nation ready for them? Today's coverage from Post correspondents around the world Saudi soldiers fire artillery toward armed vehicles approaching the border with Yemen in Jizan, Saudi Arabia, in April 2015. The kingdom has been struggling to stop attacks by Yemeni rebels. (Hasan Jamali/AP) Thousands of Saudi troops have been deployed along these desiccated hills, struggling to halt cross-border attacks by Yemeni rebels who fire rockets and carry out lethal ground incursions. The Yemeni fighters have killed and captured hundreds of Saudi soldiers in a conflict that presents Saudi Arabia with the biggest challenge to its territory in years. Thousands of mortar shells and crude rockets have slammed into schools, mosques and homes in Najran, a city of several hundred thousand people only a few miles from the mountains of northern Yemen. The border assaults have come in response to a devastating air and ground war that a Saudi-led military coalition launched in Yemen last year. That conflict has in turn spilled across the border with devastating consequences, said Maj. Gen. Saad Olyan, who commands more than 20,000 Saudi forces along the 1,100-mile southern border. [Yemen is turning into Saudi Arabias Vietnam] Just last week, 10 of my men were killed by these militiamen on the border, he said. His forces are battling increasingly sophisticated ambushes by the Yemeni rebels, known as Houthis, and units from Yemens splintered military. Some of them were killed in an ambush, shot in cold blood by the rebels, Olyan said during an interview at his Najran headquarters, which has been struck by rocket fire. Najran residents try to go about life normally, but the scars left by the Yemeni attacks reflect how brutal the fighting has become. Dents in the streets that appear to be potholes were actually made by exploded mortar shells. Many schools some of which have been hit by Katyusha and Grad rockets have been closed. Thousands of residents living in border communities have been moved to safer ground, and Najrans airport has been closed to civilian air traffic because of the fighting. The attacks come suddenly, and you cant do anything about them, said Abdullah al-Nasser, 41, an administrator at a nursery school in Najran that was hit by a rocket several months ago. Fortunately, he said as he walked through the schools destroyed auditorium, there were no casualties. Thousands of civilians have been killed since the Saudi-led military coalition which includes mostly fellow Sunni Muslim nations intervened in Yemen, exacerbating a humanitarian crisis in the desperately poor country. Saudi Arabia intervened to stop assaults by the Houthis, followers of the Zaydi sect of Shiite Islam who toppled Yemens Saudi-backed government last year. Saudi officials accuse the Houthis of acting as proxies of Iran, a Shiite-led powerhouse and the kingdoms foremost regional competitor. [Who are the Houthis?] In turn, the rebels and allied military units loyal to former Yemeni president Ali Abdullah Saleh have sought to inflict pain on Saudi Arabia by launching intense cross-border attacks. Houthi-affiliated media outlets regularly report that the rebels have stormed deep inside southern parts of the kingdom, including near Najran. The city sprawls with drab, low-slung apartment buildings and lacks the hustle and bustle of Riyadh, the capital, about 500 miles to the north. The old downtown, which dates back hundreds of years, features quaint shops that sell ornamental knives, traditional desert clothing and spices. The place would feel like a sleepy village were it not for the raging conflict. The fighting comes amid a wave of attacks in the kingdom claimed by the Islamic State, including a suicide bombing in October that killed one worshiper at a mosque in Najran. Saudi officials, moreover, have been forced to mobilize a massive number of troops along the Yemen border at a time of financial hardship from slumping oil prices and expensive outlays that include propping up Egypts increasingly authoritarian leadership and backing rebels in Syrias civil war. The Houthi-Saleh threat to southern Saudi is off the charts, said Theodore Karasik, a Dubai-based analyst who specializes in Persian Gulf security issues. Although part of Saudi territory, areas in the south historically have been claimed by Yemen. Residents of Najran and surrounding territory have strong family and cultural connections to communities in Yemen. Furthermore, the majority of residents in Najran are Ismailis, an offshoot of Shiite Islam. They have long complained of discrimination by Saudi authorities, who officially practice a particularly conservative form of Sunni Islam whose followers regularly condemn Shiites as apostates. The Ismailis are seen as heretics by the conservative Saudi elite, said Karasik, who noted that the Yemeni rebels appear to be attacking the area to test the loyalties of Ismailis. But some Ismaili residents of Najran say that the Yemen war actually has improved relations with Saudi authorities. Abdullah Sedran said that the military and government officials have attempted to reach out to the local Ismaili population during the crisis. There is a sense that the discrimination has decreased, and you feel that the government has done a lot to restrict the extremists who call us infidels, said Sedran, 52, an Ismaili who lives in Najran. Fahad Nazer, a former political analyst at Saudi Arabias embassy in Washington, said local tribesman have rallied around the Saudi cause. A number of videos have circulated on social media showing tribal leaders in Najran and Jizan reciting poetry and expressing gratitude to the troops stationed there, he said, referring to another Saudi area attacked by Yemeni rebels. Col. Yaser al-Qahtani said he has noticed a sense of solidarity during the conflict. He heads the air defenses around Najran, including Patriot missile batteries that defend the area from Yemeni-fired Scud missiles, longer-range projectiles capable delivering a large payload. On a recent day, he displayed the U.S.-made missile defense system to a visiting journalist as he spoke about the suffering experienced by civilians and soldiers. I was at work when a missile destroyed my home here, said Qahtani, 43, a Najran resident and father of four. Luckily, my family wasnt there, or they all would have been killed. He added, We are all together in this war. Sheikha Aldosary contributed to this report. Read more: Todays coverage from Post correspondents around the world An elderly U.S. citizen whose son was arrested in Iran last fall has also been detained in Tehran, his family said Wednesday. Baquer Namazi, 80, was arrested Monday evening and apparently taken to Tehrans Evin prison, according to a Facebook posting by his wife, Effie. Their son, Siamak, an Iranian American businessman based in Dubai, has been held by Iranian security authorities since October. It is not clear what crime he is accused of committing, and no charges in his case have been announced. [Iranian American businessman arrested in Tehran] In an open Facebook message to friends and relatives, Effie Namazi wrote that neither she nor a family lawyer has been able to get more information about the circumstances behind her husbands arrest. Iranian American Siamak Namazi is pictured in Germany in 2015. His 80-year-old father was arrested in Tehran on Feb. 22, 2016. (Reuters) Now both my innocent son Siamak and my Baquer are in prison for no reason, she wrote. This is a nightmare I cant describe. Bijan Khajehpour, who is married to Baquer Namazis niece, said the family would make no further statement. The Iranian lawyer, Mahmoud Alizadeh Tabatabei, told the Associated Press on Thursday that he does not believe the elder Namazi will face political charges, and is being held for some investigation only. It is unlikely that he will be charged, the lawyer told AP. Baquer Namazi has a heart ailment and other conditions requiring medication, his wife wrote. She described herself as extremely concerned and worried sick about his health. Her husband was a prominent official during the rule of the shah, who was toppled in the Islamic revolution of 1979. Namazi, a former governor of the oil-rich province of Khuzestan, was allowed to leave Iran with his family in 1983 and immigrate to the United States. He subsequently moved permanently back to Iran. Most recently, Namazi was the head of Hamyaran, a group of Iranian nongovernmental organizations. His son worked for Crescent Petroleum in the United Arab Emirates. Mark Toner, the State Departments deputy spokesman, said he was aware of reports that another U.S. citizen had been detained in Iran but cited privacy considerations in declining to say more. The U.S. Department of State has no higher priority than the protection of U.S. citizens overseas, he said. We take our obligation to assist U.S. citizens abroad seriously. The arrest of the family patriarch comes days before Iranians go to the polls to elect a national parliament and the Assembly of Experts, a group of mostly elderly clerics tasked with picking a new supreme leader when the ailing Ayatollah Ali Khamenei dies. Last month, Iran released five U.S. citizens, including Washington Post reporter Jason Rezaian. Most were part of a prisoner deal arranged over months of negotiations, but Siamak Namazi was not in the group. I pray to God that my Siamak and Baquer return home to me and that they are released, Effie Namazi wrote. Please keep them in your prayers. U.S. Secretary of State John F. Kerry and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi participate in a joint news conference at the State Department on Tuesday. (Alex Wong/Getty Images) The two sides of U.S.-China relations were on full display Tuesday, as the top U.S. military officer in the Pacific told Congress that China is clearly militarizing the South China Sea, while Secretary of State John F. Kerry, after meeting with his Chinese counterpart, said there is only one U.S. foreign policy in the region and that is to seek a negotiated resolution of the issue. Adm. Harry B. Harris Jr. said that you have to believe in a flat Earth to think Chinas goal is not to militarize the area and achieve hegemony in East Asia. Harris told the Senate Armed Services Committee that he had asked the Pentagon for more overhead surveillance in the disputed South China Sea area. Kerry, in a news conference with visiting Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, said that the State and Defense departments were on the same page but that the Pentagons job was to address what happens if . . . [diplomacy] fails. They have to be prepared for any eventuality, Kerry said. The exchanges followed a report this week, based on satellite imagery, that China has installed a series of radar facilities on artificial islands it has built from dredged material on atolls in areas that other countries in the region either claim or say are international waters. Last week, the administration said that China appeared to have deployed surface-to-air missiles on another artificial island in the disputed sea. A U.S. official on Tuesday night confirmed a report from Fox News that China has deployed fighter jets to the same island. [Satellite images show China may be building powerful radar on disputed islands] Harris said that surface-to-surface, surface-to-air missiles on one island and the new radars on the Cuarteron Reef . . . are actions that are changing in my opinion the operation of the landscape in the South China Sea. The weaponry could pose a threat to U.S. aircraft carriers in the region, he said. Wang, speaking beside Kerry later in the day, said that China sees the islands historically as Chinas territory and has a right to uphold its territorial integrity and lawful and legitimate maritime rights and interests. At the same time, he said, we are committed to resolving the disputes through dialogue and negotiations in a peaceful way. The United States has called for international arbitration of the regional dispute and sent warships and aircraft to patrol what it says are international waters. Wang said that the South China Sea issue is not and should not become an issue between China and the United States and that it should be resolved directly between the regional parties. There have not been any problems with regard to freedom of navigation, he said, and no commercial vessel has encountered any problems. China and the countries of the region, he said, have the capability to maintain peace and stability in the South China Sea, which we see in our own interests. And we dont hope to see any more close-up military reconnaissance or the dispatch of missile destroyers or strategic bombers to the area. [U.S. missile destroyer sailed close to island claimed by China] For much of their news conference, both Kerry and Wang hailed what they described as growing U.S.-China cooperation on issues including the Iran nuclear deal, climate change, counterterrorism and ending the civil war in Syria. The reason that weve been able to cooperate in areas where our interests and our values are aligned, despite the fact that we have clear differences on some other issues, is that both the United States and China are deeply committed to an open and frank dialogue, Kerry said. We are two powerful nations, the two largest economies today, and we have an ability therefore to be able to make good things happen when we decide to. Both said that the United Nations was close to agreeing on a new resolution against North Korea for its recent nuclear and ballistic missile tests that violated U.N. mandates. Both also called for denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and a resumption of diplomatic talks with the North. In addition, Wang pointed out that China is now the largest U.S. trading partner, with bilateral trade last year of $558.4 billion. Although that still puts China slightly behind Canada for the whole of 2015, the Chinese overtook Canada for the last several months of the year. Simon Denyer in Beijing and David Nakamura in Washington contributed to this report. Syrian government forces at Aleppo's thermal power plant on Sunday after retaking the area as part of an offensive before a possible cease-fire takes effect. (George Ourfalian/AFP/Getty Images) Russian President Vladimir Putin worked Wednesday to place himself in the center of efforts to secure a Syrian cease-fire, speaking by phone to the leaders of Syria, Saudi Arabia and Iran and drawing promises of cooperation, according to the Kremlin. In a rapid-fire series of conversations, Putin bridged both sides of the conflict Iran and Russia back Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and Saudi Arabia sides with rebel factions and portrayed himself as bolstering the chances of a cessation of hostilities agreed to by Washington and Moscow earlier this week. Assad called the proposals in the deal an important step toward political settlement, the Kremlin said in a statement. He also confirmed the Syrian governments readiness to facilitate the cease-fires implementation. But significant doubts remained about the viability of the plan, scheduled to take effect at midnight Friday. [Amid bids to quiet Syrian conflict, an overriding question: Can it stick?] Leading Syrian opposition groups have not yet committed to the deal. And both Russia and the United States say they will continue independent efforts to fight the Islamic State and an al-Qaeda-linked faction, Jabhat al-Nusra. For months, Moscow has said it was battling the Islamic State, but Russian airstrikes also have targeted rebel groups, including some backed by the United States. Both Russia and Assad have labeled a broad swath of opponents of the Syrian government as terrorists. Putin has seized on the cease-fire deal as a diplomatic victory for Russia and one that places Russia on the same superpower bargaining level as the United States, long a Kremlin goal. Wednesdays phone calls appeared to be a continuation of that effort. The joint discussions between the United States and Russia on Syria are leading to a higher level of mutual confidence, Putin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Wednesday, the Interfax new agency reported. At the same time, I'll repeat, once again, that the main goal in this case is to stop bloodshed in Syria, and so lay the groundwork for approaching a political settlement. The state-run Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) reported that the Kremlin initiated the call with Assad. Putin also spoke to Saudi Arabias King Salman, giving a detailed explanation of the proposals of the U.S.-Russian plan. On Wednesday, at least according to the Kremlin, Russia and Saudi Arabia put aside their differences over Syria and were in accord on the cease-fire plan. The king of Saudi Arabia welcomed the agreement and expressed his readiness to work together with Russia to implement the plan, the Kremlin said. [Battered Aleppo becomes stage for Syrias wider proxy showdown] Putin also spoke to Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, the Kremlin said. Despite the Kremlins assurances that U.S. and Russian relations are improving as a result of the discussions, there have been mixed feelings in Washington about the accord. Syrian forces backed by Russian airstrikes have pressed forward in a major offensive in the key northern city of Aleppo and elsewhere in the country, according to groups that monitor the fighting. Russia and Syrian government forces, meanwhile, carried out heavy attacks against Islamic State positions near Aleppo on Wednesday amid a wave of bombings by the militant group, according to the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. The monitoring group reported heavy fighting in a strategic village southeast of Aleppo that Islamic State militants seized Tuesday from forces loyal to Assad. The capture of Khanaser and the road leading to it has cut the governments sole route linking the areas of Aleppo and other parts of the country under Assads control, according to the Observatory. [A mini world war rages in the fields of Aleppo] The fall of that road, if confirmed, would be a setback to Assad's Russian-backed offensive in Aleppo that has made startling gains against rebel groups. A Russian Defense Ministry spokesman told journalists Wednesday that Russian jets in Syria had carried out 62 battle sorties in the past two days, including against targets near Aleppo, as well as in the provinces of Homs, Hama and the Islamic State stronghold of Raqqa. The spokesman, Igor Konashenkov, claimed that the intensity of Russian airstrikes has fallen especially in areas where local authorities and armed groups have agreed to cease hostilities and start negotiations. While that data could not be independently verified, the ministry for several weeks earlier this month tallied an average of more than 60 strikes in Syria a day. Those who are skeptical of Moscows efforts are pushing for war, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Wednesday. Literally on the day when Russia and the United States approved the initiative on the cease-fire in Syria, voices could be heard from the capitals of the U.S. allies and from Washington which questioned the viability of this agreement," Lavrov said, according to the TASS news agency. "We want to say frankly that these voices are a call for war rather than for peace." But even as support is drummed up for the cease-fire plan, it faced possible complications from neighboring Turkey, a NATO member which strongly backs anti-Assad forces. In Ankara, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan urged that a Syrian Kurdish faction be excluded from the accord a move that would allow Turkeys military to continue cross-border shelling against the group. Turkey has been urging the United States to sever ties with the Syrian Kurdish fighters, whose military wing is known at the Peoples Protection Units, or YPG, on the grounds it has ties to a Turkish Kurdish faction that has waged a three-decade fight for greater autonomy. The Turkish Kurdish group, known as the Kurdistan Workers Party, is designated a terrorist organization by the United States and Turkey. Erdogan questioned U.S. assertions that the YPGs role in fighting the Islamic State makes it an indispensable ally, pointing out that the al-Qaeda-linked group Jabhat al-Nusra also battles the Islamic State. Naylor reported from Beirut. Liz Sly in Istanbul contributed to this report. The current chaos in Syria may help the Islamic State United States and Russia agree to a partial cease-fire in Syria Kremlin: Obama called Putin to talk about Syrian cease-fire Haunting images from Aleppo: Syrian children are at the heart of this catastrophe ITALY Court: State secrecy abused in clerics case The Italian government abused state secrecy to provide impunity in the abduction of an Egyptian cleric who was spirited out of Italy in 2003 for interrogation and torture in his homeland under the CIAs extraordinary rendition program, the European Court of Human Rights ruled Tuesday. The court ordered Italy to pay $78,000 in compensation to Hassan Mustafa Osama Nasr, also known as Abu Omar, and $16,500 to his wife. The court concluded that Italian authorities were aware that Abu Omar was a victim of the extraordinary rendition operation involving his 2003 kidnapping on a Milan street. The court, based in Strasbourg, France, also said Italy violated the clerics rights not to be mistreated and tortured. The ruling noted that Italys Justice Ministry never pursued the extradition of 26 Americans convicted in absentia in the case. And it cited the quashing, by Italys top criminal court, of the convictions of five Italian military intelligence agents on grounds of state secrecy. The ruling said that the legitimate principle of state secrecy had clearly been applied in order to ensure that those responsible did not have to answer for their actions. Nasr was first taken to U.S. air bases in Italy and Germany. Then he was flown to Egypt, where he underwent interrogation sessions during which he was ill-treated and tortured by Egyptian intelligence services, the court said. He was released in 2007. The CIA program, part of U.S. anti-terrorism strategy after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, was ended by President Obama. Associated Press U.S. envoy summoned over alleged NSA taps Italys Foreign Ministry on Tuesday summoned the U.S. ambassador after media reports that American intelligence services tapped the telephones of then-Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi and his aides in 2011. The newspaper La Repubblica reported that the U.S. National Security Agency spied on the four-time prime minister five years ago when his government was under pressure at the height of the euro-zone debt crisis. La Repubblica said the website Wikileaks revealed that the 79-year-old media tycoon and head of Italys main center-right party had been in the NSAs crosshairs between 2008 and 2011. Ambassador John Phillips met with the director general of the Foreign Ministry, Michele Valensise, in the afternoon. Afterward, the ministry issued a statement saying Italy had called for specific clarifications about what emerged in relation to the events of 2011. Phillips assured us that he will immediately refer the question to his superiors, the ministry said. Phillips also pointed out that President Obama banned such eavesdropping in 2014, the statement said. Obama made that decision in part to smooth over frayed ties with Germany after reports in 2013 that the NSA had monitored the cellphone of German Chancellor Angela Merkel. Reuters Syrian government accepts cease-fire, with conditions: Syrias government accepted a proposed U.S.-Russian cease-fire that is to go into effect Friday, but reserved the right to respond to any violations of the truce. The main opposition and rebel umbrella group approved the deal but set its own conditions. The Syrian Foreign Ministry said its operations will continue against the Islamic State, the al-Qaeda branch known as Jabhat al-Nusra and other terrorist groups. It also stressed the right of its armed forces to retaliate against any violation carried out by these groups. But exactly where along Syrias complicated front lines the fighting would stop and where counterterrorism operations could continue under the truce is still to be addressed. Italys navy rescues hundreds of migrants in Mediterranean: More than 700 migrants were rescued from six leaky boats in the sea between Tunisia and Sicily on Tuesday and four were found dead, the Italian navy said. The navy did not say what nationality the migrants were, nor did it give any other information about their identities. More than 400 migrants have died in the Mediterranean this year trying to cross to Europe. Scotland, U.K. reach deal on financial powers: The Scottish and British governments say they have reached a deal that will give more financial powers to the Scottish parliament. Negotiations over the deal, which enables powers to be devolved from the central government in London, had dragged on for about a year. Britains government promised the changes after Scots voted in 2014 55 percent to 45 percent to stay within the United Kingdom. Niger opposition rejects presidential election results: Opposition parties in Niger rejected initial results from Sundays presidential election that showed incumbent Mahamadou Issoufou in the lead, calling them fraudulent. Provisional results from 20 of the West African countrys 308 municipalities gave Issoufou 40.18 percent of the vote, more than 10 percentage points ahead of his closest rival. Political operative surrenders to Brazilian authorities: Joao Santana, the architect of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseffs 2010 and 2014 campaigns for office, returned to Brazil from the Dominican Republic and was taken by police to the city of Curitiba, the epicenter of a massive corruption probe, his spokesman said. Police on Monday said they had a warrant for Santanas arrest after evidence showed that engineering conglomerate Odebrecht had paid him funds siphoned from state-run oil firm Petrobas in offshore accounts. From news services Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, who is in Washington for three days of talks, met yesterday with US Secretary of State John Kerry amid sharpening tensions over the South China Sea and the Korean Peninsula. While playing up the need for dialogue and negotiation, their joint press conference only highlighted the extent of the differences that were undoubtedly expressed far more heatedly behind closed doors. The stage was set for the visit through a series of articles in the American media implicitly accusing China of militarising the South China Sea and bullying its neighbours, thereby putting Foreign Minister Wang on the back foot. All the reports had the character of stories planted by the US military and foreign policy establishment, or sections of it. Last week, Murdochs Fox News claimed, on the basis of satellite photographs obtained from a commercial Israeli-based provider, that the Chinese military had placed surface-to-air batteries on Woody Island in the Paracel Island group. China has occupied Woody Island for 60 years, uses it as its administrative centre in the South China Sea, and has previously based military hardware on it, including fighter aircraft. The inflated accounts of the missile threat posed by China were followed by a report on Monday by the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) that Beijing was installing what appeared to be a high-frequency radar system in the Spratly Islands that would significantly bolster Chinas ability to monitor surface and air traffic in the South China Sea. The CSIS is the Washington think tank most closely involved in the US military build-up in the region as part of the Obama administrations so-called pivot to Asia. Yesterday, as the talks between Wang and Kerry were about to begin, Fox News featured another exclusive. It cited two unnamed US officials claiming that the Chinese military had deployed Shenyang J-11 and Xian JH-7 fighter jets to Woody Island. This dramatic escalation, the article breathlessly declared, came just minutes before Kerry was due to meet Wang. An earlier meeting with US Defence Secretary Ashton Carter at the Pentagon was apparently cancelled without explanation. While diplomatically phrased, the exchange between Wang and Kerry on the South China Sea clearly pointed to the sharpening tensions. Asked about the Chinese radar systems, Kerry declared the US had always been very clear that it was opposed to unilateral steps in reclamation and militarisation in the South China Sea. While nominally directed at all claimants, Kerry named China in particular as responsible for taking steps that were producing an escalatory cycle. Regrettably, he declared, missiles, fighter aircraft, guns, artillery and other equipment had been placed in the South China Sea. Wang insisted that non-militarisation was not the responsibility of one party alone. He criticised the Philippines, an aggressive promoter of the US pivot, for giving up on direct negotiations with China by taking their maritime dispute to the International Arbitral Tribunal. Wang pointed out that China was not the only country introducing missiles and bombers into the South China Sea and called for an end to close-up reconnaissance operations. The last reference is to the Pentagons provocative freedom of navigation operations that directly challenge Chinese territorial claims. Most recently, the destroyer, the USS Curtis Wilbur, intruded last month into the 12-nautical-mile territorial zone surrounding Chinese-controlled Triton Island in the Paracels, leading to angry condemnations from Beijing. In the lead-up to yesterdays talks, Washington and Beijing both signalled there would be no compromise. On Monday, Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said the US should keep to its promise of not taking sides in the maritime disputes and stop hyping up tensions, especially over Chinas limited military presence. Chinas deploying necessary, limited defensive facilities on its own territory is not substantially different from the United States defending Hawaii, Hua said. Frequent US military patrols is the biggest cause of militarisation of the South China Sea, she added. We hope the United States does not confuse right and wrong on this issue or practice double standards. US State Department spokeswoman Anna Richey-Allen was just as blunt. She foreshadowed that Kerry will have a very frank conversation with his Chinese counterpart on this issue of deploying advanced air defence missiles in the South China Sea. Speaking at the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on the same day, Kerry declared that the militarisation of facilities was not encouraging the resolution of territorial disputes. Admiral Harry Harris, commander of the US Pacific Command, was far more strident in his condemnation of Chinas actions. He told the Senate Armed Services Committee on Tuesday that China was boosting its military to achieve its dream of regional dominance, with growing aspirations of global reach and influence. He added: China views the South China Sea as a strategic frontline in their quest to dominate East Asia out to the Second Island Chain. I view their thinking as approaching a new Great Game. In reality, the US pivot to Asia involves a huge American military build-up throughout every part of the region, as Harriss testimony outlined in detail. Unfettered access to the South China Sea is viewed by the Pentagon as an essential frontline in its preparations for war with China. These plans envisage an air and missile blitzkrieg, destroying Chinas mainland military bases, communication and infrastructure. During their press conference, Kerry and Wang also commented on another dangerous flashpoint in the Asia Pacificthe Korean Peninsula. Both condemned North Koreas latest nuclear test in January and rocket launch this month and indicated that agreement had been reached on a UN resolution to impose tough new sanctions on Pyongyang. The apparent consensus, however, was preceded by weeks of disagreement as Washington sought to pressure Beijing to cut its economic lifelines to Pyongyang. While acutely concerned that North Korea could trigger a nuclear arms race in Asia, Chinese leaders are equally worried about a precipitous collapse of the unstable regime on Chinas northern borders. Beijing has objected in particular to talks between the US and South Korea over the basing of a Terminal High-Altitude Area Defence (THAAD) anti-ballistic missile system on the Korean Peninsula. At the press conference, Kerry acknowledged Chinas concern but absurdly declared that the THAAD system was only under discussion because of North Koreas provocative actions. He added: If we can get to denuclearisation [of North Korea], theres no need to deploy THAAD. The US is literally holding a gun to Chinas head to force Beijing to take tough measures against its ally North Korea. The THAAD system is not defensive, as Kerry claimed, but is part of the anti-ballistic missile armoury being stationed in Asia as part of the Pentagons plans for war against China. THAAD systems are already in place in Guam and Japan. Washington is now threatening to install another on the Korean Peninsula, close to the Chinese mainland, unless Beijing bows to US demands on North Korea. Yesterdays meeting was the third between Kerry and Wang in less than a month. Far from lessening tensions between the two countries, the flurry of diplomatic activity indicates Washingtons heightened focus on pressuring Beijing to bow to US demands, even as the Pentagons expansion in Asia continues apace. Martin Freeman's mysterious Captain America: Civil War character has been revealed, and while the name might not be one that will mean anything to the majority of the Marvel Studios audience, comic book fans are overjoyed. So who is Everett Ross, and why should anyone care about him? Perhaps the most important thing to note about the character is that he's not, specifically, a Captain America character. Instead, he's more closely connected to another character making his Marvel Cinematic Universe debut in May's Civil War: T'Challa, the Black Panther. Although Ross started his fictional life in 1998's Ka-Zar Vol. 4 No. 17 as an essentially faceless government official tasked with dealing with a jungle hero best described as a Tarzan wannabe, he came to prominence as one of the two leads of the critically acclaimed third volume of the Black Panther solo series launched later that year. Ross' placement in the series as an audience surrogate and often the butt of writer Christopher Priest's snarky sense of humor was both cynical and inspired. "Comics are traditionally created by white males for white males," Priest once said, talking about the reason for Ross' presence. "I figured, and I believe rightly, that for Black Panther to succeed, it needed a white male at the center, and that white male had to give voice to the audiences misgivings or apprehensions or assumptions about this character and this book." The character offered more than simply a white lens on the African king. He was a necessary counterpoint to Priest's take on the Panther as a protagonist. As Priest returned the Black Panther to his roots as a political figure as much as a superhero, he became a hugely capable character able to out-think Iron Man, out-fight Captain America and out-threaten Wolverine. Meanwhile, Ross assumed a more ridiculous and comedic role, accidentally making a deal with the devil in exchange for pants and being every bit as clueless as the Panther was masterfully strategic. Story continues (Not for nothing did the character become known as "Emperor of Useless White Boys," a nickname he gave himself but one that flipped the racial politics of the two leads from what readers might have expected from a superhero comic book.) Outside of Priest's Black Panther series, Ross has made few appearances. He showed up in an issue of Uncanny X-Men and in later Black Panther comics, but each time in connection with T'Challa or the Black Panther mythology. While many of Marvel's other comic book bureaucrats have ended up frustrating multiple superheroes Henry Peter Gyrich debuted in an issue of Avengers but has terrorized everyone from Spider-Man to the X-Men since; Valerie Cooper similarly debuted in X-Men before showing up in issues of Captain America, Iron Man, Avengers and Thunderbolts, among others Ross remains resolutely a character connected almost exclusively with Black Panther as a property. With that in mind, while it's yet to be revealed exactly what Freeman's Ross will be up to in Captain America: Civil War, it seems more than likely that his true purpose in the movie will be to set up an appearance in the Black Panther movie. That feature is scheduled for a February 2018 release, with Creed's Ryan Coogler directing. Civil War, meanwhile, will be released on May 6. Read More: How 'Captain America: Civil War' May Improve on the Original Marvel Comic Book Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Corker, R-Tenn., speaks with reporters at the Capitol. (Photo: J. Scott Applewhite/AP) Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Corker said Wednesday that there is political momentum in Congress for lifting the U.S. embargo on Cuba but that any action would not come while President Barack Obama was still in office. Its not going to happen this year, the Tennessee Republican told reporters at a breakfast organized by the Christian Science Monitor. Its something that could happen as we move into a new president. Corker underlined that there are still tremendous human rights abuses that take place in Cuba and that these make it impossible for many lawmakers to move forward with lifting the embargo. Still, he said, If Cuba were to evolve its behavior on that front, then its possible Congress could act. Obama and Cuban President Raul Castro shocked the world in December 2014 by disclosing that they had held secret negotiations and were prepared to usher in a new era of U.S.-Cuba relations, starting with the resumption of full diplomatic ties. Embassies reopened in Havana and Washington, the United States removed Cuba from its list of state sponsors of terrorism, and the two sides have taken steps to increase travel and business opportunities. Obama has brought about many changes using his executive powers, but he needs Congress to roll back the centerpiece of Americas Cold War-era pressure on Cuba the punishing trade embargo in place since 1960. White House officials say they think it would be possible to cobble together a coalition of Democrats and Republicans who either lean libertarian or face pressure from business leaders in their districts or home states to ease access to Cubas markets. Republican congressional aides have all but ruled out taking legislative action on the proposal in 2016. Obama, who clearly sees improved relations as a legacy-defining issue, recently announced that he would travel to Cuba in late March, becoming the first sitting U.S. president to go there in roughly 80 years. At the same time, its not clear how much political capital the president is prepared to spend on pressuring Congress to lift the embargo, especially as he gets set to face substantial opposition in the Senate to confirming a new Supreme Court justice. Corker, who disclosed that he recently had dinner with a Republican senator who favors lifting the embargo and an investor eyeing expanded business opportunities in Cuba, said he sees U.S.-Cuba relations gradually moving along this year. It seems to me that this year is going to be a year when those things take hold, he said, referring to expanded air travel and other Obama-championed steps. LAS VEGAS In the months leading up to Tuesdays caucuses here, both Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio ran the kind of campaign youre supposed to run if you want to win Nevada. They came. They saw. They organized. They even pandered (a little). But they did not conquer. As soon as caucus sites closed Tuesday night, the networks called the Silver State for tinsel-haired mogul Donald Trump. Trump went on to crush the competition with 45.9 percent of the vote to Rubios 23.1 percent and Cruzs 21.4 percent even though he never bothered to build much of a Nevada campaign at all. If you listen to the pundits, we werent expected to win too much; now were winning, winning, winning! Trump said in his victory speech. He then listed the upcoming contests that he expected to win as well among them Cruz and Rubios home states of Texas and Florida. Its going to be an amazing two months. We might not even need two months, folks, to be honest. Asked about Trumps local get-out-the-vote operation, aides pointed to the Trump International Hotel, a 64-story tower wrapped in 24-karat-gold glass that looms over the Las Vegas Strip. Pressed for details about Trumps voters, they noted that a lot of people work there. Mr. Trump has a giant building with his name on the top, campaign manager Corey Lewandowski told Yahoo News. Maybe thats a good thing. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump greets the applause at his caucus night rally in Las Vegas. (Photo: Jae C. Hong/AP) Yet despite his lack of infrastructure, Trump triumphed for the third time in a row. At the Treasure Island Hotel & Casino, supporters cheered the news of the billionaires big win. One tried to sneak a bucket of Bud Light bottles into the ballroom. Secret Service agents openly worried about people getting drunk and rowdy. By confirming, yet again, that the star of The Apprentice doesnt have to play by the same rules as his rivals, Nevada, the first three-man contest to date, has created a dynamic that may come to define the rest of the rapid-fire Republican primary season: Trump leads; Rubio picks up steam; Cruz holds on, keeping his opponents from clinching the nomination. (Ohio Gov. John Kasich and retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson remain in the race, but neither was competitive in Nevada.) Story continues Or Trump could continue to clobber everyone. Slideshow: The GOP battle for votes in Nevada >>> Tuesday wasnt the first time, of course, that Trump has defied the traditional laws of politics. But Nevada was supposed to be different. Almost no one participates in the caucuses, experts said. The polling is notoriously unreliable. The process is particularly chaotic. The ground game could have a bigger effect here than anywhere else. To be sure, Trump led in every Nevada survey released this cycle. But the polls had also given him a substantial lead in the other early caucus state, Iowa, and he still stumbled there on the big day. Cruz out-organized Trump and finished first; Rubio out-messaged him and nearly finished second. If any contest seemed to offer up an even clearer opportunity to upset the short-fingered frontrunner, Nevada was it. But no: Trump ran the table. Amid reports of a record turnout, Nevada entrance polls showed that the billionaire had defeated Cruz among evangelicals, who were supposed to be the Texans core supporters. He dominated in the urban south and the rural north. Late deciders broke for Rubio, but it wasnt enough. Trump won very conservative voters, somewhat conservative voters and moderates. Six in 10 caucus-goers said they were looking for a non-establishment candidate, compared to half in previous contests. Most of them voted for Trump. His name recognition stood at a staggering 100 percent. Rubio and Cruz didnt come up short for lack of trying. The Floridian first started organizing in Nevada a year ago. He hired the team that steered Gov. Brian Sandoval and Sen. Dean Heller to victory. He courted the crucial Mormon vote, choosing as his campaign chairman Lt. Gov. Mark Hutchison, the most prominent Mormon politician in the state, and rolling out a steady stream of endorsements from other Church of Latter-day Saints bigwigs. (As a kid, Rubio was briefly a member of the Mormon Church.) GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump, flanked by his sons Donald Jr., left, and Eric, right, greets supporters at his caucus night rally in Las Vegas after TV networks declared him the winner of Nevadas Republican caucuses. (Photo: Jim Young/Reuters) At every campaign stop, Rubio made sure to remind voters that his parents had moved to Las Vegas in 1979 and stayed until Rubio, now 44, was in the eighth grade. He never failed to note that his dad once tended bar at an off-Strip casino called Sams Club, while his mother, a maid, cleaned the Imperial Palace. And his staffers and volunteers worked tirelessly in all 17 of Nevadas counties to identify supporters, educate them about the process, direct them to their caucus sites and persuade them to participate on Tuesday. Rubio himself was in top form from the moment he arrived Sunday for his final pre-caucus push. His chief mainstream rival, Jeb Bush, had just dropped out after a dismal showing in South Carolina. Former Bush donors were beginning to write big checks. Endorsements were flooding in: Sens. Dean Heller, Orrin Hatch and Jeff Flake; former GOP presidential nominee Bob Dole; even longtime Democrat Donnie Wahlberg of the boy band New Kids on the Block. Calculating that the sharper partisan rhetoric of New Hampshire and South Carolina wouldnt play as well in Nevada a diverse, laissez-faire state with a Latino governor who voted twice for Barack Obama Rubio pivoted in his first appearance to a broader general-election message about uniting the GOP and grow[ing] this movement, and he continued to hammer away at it for 48 hours at a series of stops in Elko, Reno and Minden. We are going to take our principles, our message, to people who havent voted for us in a long time, Rubio told a crowd of 1,500 at the Texas Station casino in North Las Vegas. People who have come to believe that conservatives and Republicans dont care about people like them. People who are struggling. People who are living paycheck to paycheck. We care deeply. I care deeply because I grew up paycheck to paycheck. Rubio paused. Someone asked me the other day: Define paycheck to paycheck, he said. Well, thats when you write a check on Wednesday, but know youre not getting paid til Friday, so you date it Saturday. The audience roared. Were going to explain why those of us who have grown up that way are conservatives, Rubio added. Because we understand that the only way to help people is to embrace free enterprise. Cruz had a tougher time. After Iowa, where his staffers misled voters into thinking that Ben Carson was about to exit the race, and South Carolina, where he also lost evangelicals to Trump and wound up finishing third, Nevada was supposed to help Cruz put the emerging narrative about deceitful tactics behind him. Rubios team had been claiming that Cruz was willing to do or say anything to get elected; Trump was calling him sick and a liar at nearly every campaign stop. Then another micro-scandal erupted as soon as Cruz landed in the Silver State. During a press conference right before his rally Monday at a Las Vegas YMCA, Cruz announced that he had fired his longtime campaign spokesman Rick Tyler for posting on his personal Facebook page a false news story that purported to show Rubio making a disparaging remark about the Bible. Ive spent this morning investigating what happened, and this morning I asked for Rick Tylers resignation, Cruz said. We are not a campaign that is going to question the faith of another candidate. Even if [the story] was true, our campaign should not have sent it. Republican presidential candidate Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida addresses a campaign rally on Tuesday in Minneapolis. (Photo: Jim Mone/AP) And yet Cruz and his team performed ably in the final sprint here. As in Iowa, Cruzs field operation was sophisticated and robust; he imported ground staff from the Hawkeye State and hosted multiple caucus-organizing sessions every day in Las Vegas that attracted as many as 50 volunteers, many of whom were first-time voters. A Cruz aide told Yahoo News that phone banks across the state had made hundreds of thousands of phone calls in recent weeks as part of the campaigns get-out-the-vote effort. Supporter Glenn Beck, a Mormon, recorded a robocall and rallied with Cruz in the waning hours of the contest, and Attorney General Adam Laxalt, the grandson of Paul Laxalt, a former Nevada governor and senator, helped Cruz connect with rural voters, who tend to be heavily conservative and more committed to caucusing. With by far the busiest schedule of any candidate, Cruz held nine rallies this week, including four on Tuesday alone. In Elko, Reno, Fernley, Minden, Carson City, Sparks and elsewhere, he shifted from the evangelical emphasis of his South Carolina campaign and played to Nevadas libertarian leanings instead, criticizing the Obama administration for eavesdropping on American citizens and promising to transfer the 85 percent of Nevada land owned by the federal government back to the state and back to the people. In Texas, the federal government owns 2 percent of the land and we think thats 2 percent too much, Cruz told a cheering crowd in Las Vegas. Mr. Trump has publicly said he thinks the federal government should continue to control, to own that land. I trust the people of Nevada more than the bureaucrats in Washington. Meanwhile, Trump held only two rallies this week. They were his first events in Nevada since January. At the South Point Casino on Monday night, the Donald didnt bother to educate his supporters about the states confusing caucus process, choosing to mock it instead. What the hell is caucus? Trump said to laughter. Nobody even knows what it is. Just vote. GOP presidential candidate Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, left, chats with voter Abram Woodward while visiting a caucus location on Tuesday in Reno, Nev. (Photo: Marcio Jose Sanchez/AP) Trump didnt mention any issues of local importance in his rambling, red-meat address. But he did find time to call waterboarding great and to claim that we dont go far enough in interrogating terrorist suspects. He urged his supporters to jeer at the media bad people, in his estimation. And when security escorted a protester from the arena, Trump expressed nostalgia for the old days when the man would have been carried out on a stretcher. Id like to punch him in the face, Ill tell you that, Trump said to raucous cheers. What happened Tuesday in Nevada may become the new normal in the weeks ahead and maybe even beyond: a wounded yet well-funded Cruz fending off questions about his integrity but still clinging to some conservative supporters; a stronger Rubio gathering mainstream momentum but still splitting the anti-Trump vote with Cruz; and an irreverent Trump capitalizing on his celebrity to win a clear plurality of the GOP vote but still falling short of the majority he would need to claim the nomination outright. Given the rest of the crowded primary calendar, which will force the candidates to compete in frequent back-to-back contests often in multiple far-flung states on a single day its unclear whether the current pattern will change anytime soon, especially if Kasich and Carson refuse to quit. Only two possibilities seem to make sense going forward. The first is a Trump nomination. The second is a three-way stalemate that wont be broken until July, when the GOP descends on Cleveland for its convention, and it may be this that Cruz and Rubio are now hoping for. Referring to a brokered convention, Nathan Emens, Nevada coordinator for the pro-Cruz super-PAC Keep the Promise, told Yahoo News youd be foolish not to want one [at this point]. Anybody whos not preparing for it is foolish, Emens added. This is the most Ive ever heard a campaign or organization talk about the possibility of it. It would be a delegate battle even more epic than Barack Obama and Hillary Clintons clash in 2008 only this time, the outcome would be uncertain. The math is fairly straightforward. To win the nomination, a Republican needs to win a majority of delegates; the magic number in 2016 is 1,237. Before Nevada, Trump had 68, including 50 from South Carolina, where he won them all. Cruz had 11. Rubio had nine. Nevada will eventually award another 30. At that point, no one will be more than 8 percent of the way toward the finish line. Each candidate has a strategy to get there. Cruz has been eyeing March 1 a 12-state bonanza otherwise known as Super Tuesday as an early opportunity to secure delegates all across the South, where he has been stumping and organizing for months; before Nevada, he was favored to win his home state of Texas, the nights biggest prize, and his campaign has touted Oklahoma, Alabama, Tennessee and Georgia as well. A poster for Republican presidential candidate Sen. Ted Cruz lies on the floor of his Nevada caucus night rally site as his supporters wait for him to appear in Las Vegas on Tuesday. (Photo: David Becker/Reuters) One week from today will be the most important night of this campaign, Cruz said in his concession speech, implying that it will be a make-or-break moment for his candidacy. Tonight I will sleep in my bed for the first time in a month. And then it will be back to the campaign trail in Texas and all across Super Tuesday. But even if Cruz were to win every one of the 595 delegates at stake that day and he wont come close he would only be halfway home. And if a surging Trump were to upset Cruz in the Lone Star State, his campaign could not recover. Rubio has a plan as well: He is focusing on Minnesota, Tennessee and Virginia on March 1; Michigan on March 8; and the whole of March 15, when the big, winner-take-all contests begin: Florida, Missouri, North Carolina, Illinois, Ohio. (All of the delegates up for grabs before March 15 will be awarded proportionally.) But so far, Rubio isnt leading in the polls anywhere; in fact, Trump is still the favorite in Florida, the senators home state. Kasich has a lot of support in Ohio. And the rules governing the national convention require a candidate to have won a majority of delegates in eight states or territories to be eligible for the nomination so at some point, Rubio has to start finishing in first place. And then theres Trump. His people point to his strength in the early polling and insist that he will clean up on Super Tuesday and in the winner-take-all states, which will propel him to the nomination. But the way the state contests are structured means that a single candidate will have to win more than 45 percent of the popular vote in order to get to 1,237 delegates by the beginning of June. Despite his victories, Trump has only cleared that hurdle in one state: Nevada. If Cruz and Rubio keep siphoning off 20 to 30 percent and if they begin to pick off states here and there, especially after March 15 Trump may not be able to clinch the nomination. But thats a big if. More than anything else, Nevada showed how challenging it will be for Rubio and Cruz to catch up with Trump let alone surpass him. On Sunday, Ron Vance drove to a parking lot in Pahrump, Nev., a libertarian outpost in the middle of one of the largest and emptiest counties in the United States, to see Cruz speak from the bed of a black pickup truck. Vance was wearing a black-and-orange rugby shirt with the seal of Cruzs undergraduate alma mater, Princeton, emblazoned on the breast. But Vance wasnt a Cruz supporter, at least not yet. His favorite candidate, he said, was Trump. Why not Cruz? Vance was asked. Supporters of GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump celebrate at his caucus rally in Las Vegas, as TV networks declare him the winner of Nevadas Republican caucuses on Tuesday. (Photo: Jim Young/Reuters) The whole abortion thing, said the 59-year-old insurance agent. A woman gets raped or something, she should be able to get an abortion. The anti-gay thing. I dont care. If two guys want to get married, two girls, I dont care. Cruz is against that. Legalizing marijuana, Cruz is against that too. Right now, theyre building seven grow houses around here. I dont smoke pot. I couldnt care less. But to me, with ISIS out there, with Syria, North Korea, the economy and jobs smoking pot is not big on my agenda. Are you concerned that Trump is too extreme to be president? No way, Vance said. All hes doing is throwing fireballs out there to get media attention and to blow up his name. In my heart of hearts, half of that stuff I dont think he believes in. In his heart of hearts, I think he knows you cant get 12 million people and round them up. He knows this stuff wont pass Congress. He just says that. He doesnt really care. He went to Wharton. Hes very, very smart. Hes a good businessman. He can negotiate. And hes saying what all of us are thinking. Are you open to being convinced by Cruz today? Yeah, Vance said. Of course. Vance wasnt angry. He wasnt crazy. He wasnt a bigot. He didnt hate Muslims or Mexicans. All of the medias stereotypes about Trump voters? None of that stuff really applied to him. He was just an outspoken guy with a thick Pittsburgh accent whod never felt at home in either party; hed voted for Carter, then Reagan, then Bush, then Clinton, then Gore, then Kerry, then McCain, then Romney. His views didnt fit neatly into either partisan box, so it was hard for him to pick a president on policy alone. To him, personality had come to matter more. For about 30 minutes, Vance listened carefully to what Cruz had to say. But it didnt make a difference. I cant fault Cruz on anything in particular, Vance said as the crowd cleared out. But I like Trump. I just like him. With reporting by Holly Bailey, Liz Goodwin and Daniel Klaidman. U.S. Rep. Jim Clyburn addresses a press conference at Allen University in Columbia, S.C., on February 19, 2016, at which he endorsed Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. (Photo: Chris Keane/Reuters) COLUMBIA, S.C. Rep. Jim Clyburn, D-S.C., gave a major boost to Hillary Clinton in his home state when he endorsed her presidential bid, going back on his original plans to stay neutral in the race until after his state holds its primary on Saturday. On Tuesday, Clyburn explained the reasons for his change of heart. Clyburn, a former chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, and the third-ranking Democrat in the House of Representatives, endorsed Clinton on Feb. 19. Clyburn is a popular figure in South Carolinas sizable African-American community. The Clinton campaign described Clyburns support as a momentous coup on the day he announced his decision. But according to Clyburn, her rival, Sen. Bernie Sanders, D-Vt., never tried to win his support. I spoke with Bernie before he announced. He and I sat down in Washington, and he told me he was going to run, and I wished him well. Ive talked to him several times since then but he never asked me for an endorsement, and so I never considered giving one, Clyburn said in a press conference call with reporters on Tuesday. Clyburn went on to say that he does not believe Sanders is as prepared to be the next president as Hillary Clinton. He also suggested he has some policy differences with Sanders. Specifically, he cited the 10-20-30 initiative, a plan he has pushed that would direct at least 10 percent of funds in three rural development accounts to rural counties that have had poverty rates of at least 20 percent for 30 years. Hillary Clinton has studied that proposal, and she has bought into it, and the Department of Agriculture now has picked up on that proposal and is using it throughout the country. I have not been able to get buy-in on that from the Sanders campaign, and I dont know quite why, Clyburn said. I just believe that we are never going to close any poverty gap that we all talk about, if we do not direct these resources to where theyre needed. Story continues Sanders has made income inequality a focus of his presidential campaign. He has also called for free tuition at public colleges. Clyburn said he also has concerns about this plan, which he says could hurt attendance at historically black colleges and universities. I have not been able to get the Sanders camp to modify his approach to this and to do it in such a way that will protect historically black colleges and universities, he said. The Sanders campaign did not respond to a request for comment from Yahoo News about Clyburns policy concerns, or as to whether Sanders had sought the congressmans endorsement. In November, Clyburn indicated he would not make an endorsement ahead of South Carolinas Democratic presidential primary, which is scheduled for Saturday. He said he would stand by the position of neutrality he has held since the 2008 cycle, when he said he wanted to avoid tipping the balance for one candidate as South Carolina moved its primary up to an earlier position in the calendar. On Tuesday, Clyburn suggested that it was his wife who had influenced him to change his plans. Well, Ive been married for 54 years and when your wife of 54 years says: Im getting phone calls, people are talking to me in the beauty shop, people are stopping me at the grocery store, and then she looks at me and [says] I want to hear from you as well, Clyburn said. So, I decided that I would wait until as late as I possibly could and endorse because my wife told me that she wanted to hear from me, and Ive been getting a lot of phone calls from a lot of people. Clyburn also suggested to anyone concerned about his endorsement ahead of the South Carolina primary that they should not worry about it happening again. Im 75 years old, so I doubt very seriously If anybody would worry about me doing this again in the future, it would be somebody else, Clyburn said. President Obama wants the next Supreme Court justice to have impeccable credentials, an independent mind and a keen understanding of how the world really works. Obama outlined the sort of nominee hell choose in a guest post published on the SCOTUS blog Wednesday and said he intends to fulfill his constitutional duty of appointing a new judge to fill the bench vacancy left by Justice Antonin Scalias death on Feb. 13. Needless to say, this isnt something I take lightly. Its a decision to which I devote considerable time, deep reflection, careful deliberation, and serious consultation with legal experts, members of both political parties, and people across the political spectrum, he wrote. Whether Obama should fill the vacancy has predictably become a contentious issue, with many Republicans calling for the appointment to be postponed until his successor enters the Oval Office. On Tuesday, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., announced that his party would categorically reject any appointment from Obama even refusing to meet with the would-be justice for a courtesy meeting. I dont know how many times we need to keep saying this. The Judiciary Committee has unanimously recommended to me that there be no hearings, McConnell told reporters on Capitol Hill. Ive said repeatedly and Im now confident that my conference agrees that this decision ought to be made by the next president, whoever is elected. I dont know the purpose of such a visit I would not be inclined to take it myself. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., center, smiles as he is joined by, from right to left, Majority Whip John Cornyn, R-Texas, Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., and Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., on Capitol Hill in Washington on Feb. 23, 2016. (Photo: J. Scott Applewhite/AP) Acknowledging that SCOTUS appointments are among the most important decisions a president makes, Obama outlined the three major qualities he prioritizes in his search. Story continues First and foremost, the person I appoint will be eminently qualified. He or she will have an independent mind, rigorous intellect, impeccable credentials and a record of excellence and integrity, he said. A mastery of the law would allow the future justice to hone in on key issues and provide clear answers to complex legal questions, according to Obama. Second, the person I appoint will be someone who recognizes the limits of the judiciarys role; who understands that a judges job is to interpret the law, not make the law, he continued. Related slideshow: Services for Justice Scalia >>> The commander-in-chief said he seeks a judge who approaches the law with a dedication to impartial justice and a respect for precedent rather than a particular ideology or agenda. Still, he noted that a judges analysis informed by his or her perspective, ethics and judgment is sometimes necessary when the law is not entirely clear. Therefore, Obama said, the next judge should understand that the justice is not about abstract intellectual exercise or a footnote in some casebook. Its the kind of life experience earned outside the classroom and the courtroom, he wrote, experience that suggests he or she views the law not only as an intellectual exercise, but also grasps the way it affects the daily reality of peoples lives in a big, complicated democracy, and in rapidly changing times. That, I believe, is an essential element for arriving at just decisions and fair outcomes. He expressed hope that senators will debate and confirm his nominee quickly so that SCOTUS can continue to serve the people of the United States at full strength. Scalias funeral was held Saturday at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, in Washington, D.C. The late jurist, who was nominated by then-President Ronald Reagan, had served for the nations highest court for 30 years. He died at 79 in his sleep while on a hunting trip in West Texas. Related video: A branch of Alfa-Bank (Kyiv) located in Khreschatyk Street that was attacked by a group of unknown persons on February 20, resumed its operation on Tuesday, the bank has written on its Facebook page. According to the report, at present, the branch is providing a full range of services. Alfa-Bank (prior to January 2001 Kyiv Investment Bank) was founded in 1993. It is part of Alfa-Bank Group, a private international group of banks based in Ukraine, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Russia and the Netherlands. The sole shareholder of the bank as of October 1, 2015 was ABH Ukraine Limited (Cyprus). The bank ranked 8th among 123 operating banks as of October 1, 2015, in terms of total assets worth UAH 41.904 billion, according to the National Bank of Ukraine. Ukraine has a large potential to bolster agricultural production and its share on the global market, U.S. Ambassador to Kyiv Geoffrey Pyatt said at a ceremony for the signing of an agreement on Cargill's $100-million investment in a grain terminal of the Yuzhny port. "Ukraine is already one of the worlds great agricultural producers, but it should be an agricultural superpower," the ambassador said. About a quarter of the world's black earth lands are situated in Ukraine, and agricultural exports reached $14.5 billion in 2015, he said. U.S. company Cargill and M.V. Cargo, operating in the Yuzhny seaport in the Odesa region, signed an investment agreement, on the construction of a grain terminal with the capacity of approximately 5 million tonnes, at the Ukrainian government's building on Wednesday. The Ukrainian Agrarian Policy Ministry forecasts a growth of grain exports from 34.6 million tonnes in the previous marketing year to 37 million. Ukraine would not be able to attract foreign investor to GTS without separating underground storage facilities Ukraine would not be able to attract a foreign investor to the management of the gas transport system (GTS) without its separation from underground storage facilities, Naftogaz Ukrainy has said. "Western companies are interested in gas transportation business, and not in the development of the gas storage segment which is loss-making both in Ukraine and Europe [due to extra gas supply, the narrowing of the spread between the prices of gas in winter and summer]," the company said in a presentation devoted to the reformation of the company. Naftogaz said that the gas storage segment in 2014 brought loss of UAH 3 billion (compared to UAH 700 million a year ago) under international financial reporting standards. "The cost of our underground storage services [the largest in Europe] is very high, while investors are not interested in investing much in the segment, as business is loss-making, there is no a development strategy, and Gazprom is blocking interconnectors," the company said. Naftogaz said that the attraction of an investor to the management of the GTS is vitally important, as this would allow loading the system, improving it and bringing its operation to transparent standards. The company proposed that public joint-stock company Trunk Gas Pipelines of Ukraine is selected the operator of the GTS that will operate in the structure of the State Property Fund and use the infrastructure under operational control. The underground storage facilities should be left at Ukrtransgaz which will belong to Naftogaz Ukrainy. The signing of an agreement on U.S. Cargill's investing $100 million in the construction of a grain terminal at the Yuzhny seaport confirms investors' confidence in the Ukrainian government, U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Geoffrey Pyatt has said. "Today's agreement is a vote of confidence in the Ukrainian government, and in particular in those who have led the charge for reform in this cabinet," he said at the ceremony of signing this agreement in Kyiv on Wednesday. "They [U.S. companies] are looking for a Ukrainian government that demonstrates a clear and unambiguous commitment to the path of reform. They are looking for a Rada who demonstrates a clear willingness to uphold Ukraine's commitments to the IMF. And they are looking for a government and a presidency that demonstrate a clear commitment to continued progress on the rule of law, to include the critical issue of anticorruption reform," he said. According to the ambassador, this Ukrainian government has already demonstrated real progress on some of these critical requirements, to include clear and transparent regulatory systems, and a transparent, fair and equally applied system of VAT refunds. "So let me just conclude by saying that I am confident that continued reform and the demonstrated commitment of people like the ministers who are here today will ensure that todays success story is repeated, and that this goal of developing Ukraine as an agricultural superpower is more within reach today than it ever has been before," Pyatt said. Ukraine's Cabinet of Ministers has supported the initiative of the Ministry of Agricultural Policy and Food on the deregulation of the sugar industry, providing for the abolition of the law of Ukraine on state regulation of sugar production and sales. "It is proposed to adopt the bill on the deregulation of the beet sugar industry by abolishing the law of Ukraine on the state regulation of sugar production and sale as the one that in today's environment is not conducive to the sustainable functioning of the industry based on market principles and does not provide for further development and investment," Minister of Agricultural Policy and Food Oleksiy Pavlenko said. As reported, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine increased minimum prices for beet sugar for the 2016/2017 marketing year (MY, September-August) by 40.7% compared to the current MY, to UAH 9,078.87 per tonne (excluding VAT). Minimum prices for sugar beets will rise by 38.4% in the next season, to UAH 616.99 per tonne (excluding VAT). Militants have delivered 84 attacks on Ukrainian army positions in the past 24 hours, including 69 attacks delivered in Donetsk sector, the press center of the anti-terrorist operation (ATO) staff in eastern Ukraine has said. Tensions were the highest in the Donetsk area, where militants attacked Ukrainian army positions 69 times by use of mortars, grenade launchers, large-caliber machineguns and small arms, the press center wrote on Facebook on Wednesday morning. Ukrainian army fortifications came under attack of 82mm and 120mm mortars near Avdiyivka, Pisky, Opytne, Zaitseve, Mayorsk and Pervomaisk, as well as the Butivka mine and the Zenit position. Militants fired an air defense launcher on Ukrainian army positions in Opytne, and infantry combat vehicle weapons were used against the Ukrainians in Krasnohorivka. Mortars shelled Ukrainian army positions near Talakivka, Chermalyk and Vodiane in Mariupol area. The intensity of militants attacks declined at midnight, the report said. Sporadic attacks by use of grenade launchers and small arms were observed near Opytne. On Wednesday, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin will pay a working visit to Hungary, where he will meet with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry's press service reported. "During the visit, the program of educational exchange between the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine and the Ministry of Human Resources of Hungary for 2016-2018 is planned to be sign," reads a statement released by the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry's press service on Tuesday evening. According to the report, Klimkin also plans to meet with representatives of Hungarian non-governmental delegations and give interviews to leading Hungarian media. People in Ukraine to be able to voluntarily surrender weapons in March Ukraine has declared the upcoming month of March as a month when people who are illegally possessing weapons will be able to voluntarily surrender them to avoid prosecution, the Ukrainian national police press service reports. "With the aim of excluding weapons, ammunition, explosives, and special means from illegal turnover, the Ukrainian national police will observe a month of voluntary surrender from March 1 through March 31, 2016," it said. Those who voluntarily contact police within the aforementioned period to surrender weapons, ammunition, explosives, and special means they possess illegally, will be exempted from criminal liability in keeping with Ukrainian Criminal Code Article 263, it said. In addition, if someone voluntarily surrenders unregistered hunting firearms, cold weapons, or gas pistols to the national police within the aforementioned period of time, they would be able, following the observance of certain formal procedures, to register and legally possess them. Ukrainian-made devices using non-lethal rubber bullets "shall be registered subject to applicable Ukrainian law," it said. First Deputy Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Andriy Parubiy and the leadership of the Defense Ministry of Canada have discussed the issues related to the provision of lethal and non-lethal weapons to Ukraine. "We have raised the issue of lethal weapons and conducted more detailed consultations on non-lethal equipment, which Ukraine needs," the Verkhovna Rada website quoted Parubiy, who is on a visit to Canada. According to the first deputy speaker, they were talking about secure communication systems, counter-battery and electronic warfare equipment, as well as anti-tank weapons and armored vehicles. Canada's defense department officials also agreed to retain the same number of military trainers in Ukraine. "Now there is a regular rotation of military units, although their number remains unchanged. It is important for us not to have the already existing programs phased out," Parubiy stressed. Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatseniuk has called on law enforcement agencies to complete the investigation into cases regarding confiscation of funds on the arrested accounts of former Ukrainian high-ranking officials. "I have the impression that the procedure of confiscation of the assets is being deliberately delayed... My position as a prime minister is clear: I once again appeal to the law enforcement system with the request to complete the judicial investigation and carry out the procedure of a special confiscation of $1.5 billion," Yatseniuk said at a cabinet meeting. He added that part of the funds is provided for the financing of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, as well as special programs of aid to Ukrainian citizens. "Tell us if this requires the adoption of certain laws. The People's Front faction, as always, will give all the votes to pass the laws," he said. The prime minister noted that the State Financial Monitoring Service of Ukraine in the previous year seized $1.5 billion placed on accounts Oschadbank. Contact Group on Ukraine to hold next meeting in Minsk on March 2 The Trilateral Contact Group on Ukraine is to hold its next meeting in Minsk on March 2, said Darka Olifer, press secretary for the Group's Ukrainian representative Leonid Kuchma. "The next meeting of the Trilateral Contact Group will be held in Minsk on March 2, on the eve of a meeting of the Normandy Quartet foreign ministers in Paris scheduled for March 3," she wrote on her Facebook page on Wednesday. It is the Paris meeting that should consider key solutions to the political, security and humanitarian issues, she said. Ukraine's Culture and Foreign Ministries will appeal to the international organizations over the destruction in the Russian city of Orenburg of an architectural monument, the house where prominent Ukrainian poet Taras Shevchenko lived in exile, Deputy Premier and Culture Minister Viacheslav Kyrylenko said. "Today the culture ministry will issue an official statement, besides, together with the foreign ministry we will appeal to the relevant international organizations and UNESCO in order to give the international assessment for the actions of the Russian Federation," Kyrylenko said at a Cabinet's meeting on Wednesday. The minister recalled that Shevchenko lived in the ruined house while in exile that the Russian tsar sentenced him to. "Despite the house in Orenburg is the architectural monument of the national importance and has an appropriate protected registration number, it was completely destroyed and an infrastructure facility was built on its site, namely parking place for a private bank. This is a violation of not only the Russian domestic law, but of all international norms," the minister stressed. On Thursday, February 25, at 12.00, the press centre of the Interfax-Ukraine News Agency will host a press conference entitled "February 26 Case: How Russia Persecutes Defenders of Ukraine's Territorial Integrity" on the eve of the second anniversary of the events of February 26 in Crimea. The press conference is organized by the Ukrainian Helsinki Human Rights Union and the Information Centre for Human Rights. The participants will include Ukrainian MP Georhiy Lohvynsky; human rights activist and expert on international standards on freedom of peaceful assembly, Volodymyr Yavorivsky; representative of the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar people and the Committee on the Protection of Rights of the Crimean Tatar People Eskander Bariyev; lawyer of the Ukrainian Helsinki Human Rights Union Darya Svyrydova; and Russian lawyer Nikolai Polozov (via skype) (8/5-A Reitarska Street). Registration requires press accreditation. More information by phone: (067) 445 9543 or e-mail: tp@humanrights.org.ua Chinese tourits buy condoms in Japan. (File photo) A condom maker in South China's Guangdong province has won a lawsuit against a Japanese company over its competing claim to be manufacturer of the world's thinnest prophylactic. The Guangzhou Yuexiu District People's Court pronounced on Monday that Tokyo-based condom brand Okamoto used unfair practices to compete against Guangzhou Daming United Rubber Products. Guinness World Records verified the Chinese company's Aoni condom, which has an average thickness of 0.036 mm, as the world's thinnest in December 2013 breaking the previous record of 0.038 mm set by Okamoto in 2012. But Guangzhou Daming United Rubber Products said it found Okamoto's condoms still on sale bearing phrases such as "world's thinnest" and "Guinness World Record" in May 2014. A lawsuit was filed in September 2014 by the Chinese company against its Japanese counterpart, citing false advertising and seeking 1 yuan ($0.15) as compensation for economic loss. The court held that Okamoto knew about the verified world record and ordered it to stop selling condoms bearing false advertising and pay the compensation. The small amount of compensation claimed has led to speculation that the Guangzhou-based condom maker sued the famous Japanese brand as a publicity stunt. Some netizens on Sina Weibo even claimed that they had only heard about the Chinese condom brand because of the lawsuit. Yoshiyuki Okamoto, president of the Japanese condom company, also viewed the legal challenge as self-promotional and described the legal battle as primitive, according to a report in the Financial Times. Guangzhou Daming United Rubber Products has denied the claims. "We sued Okamoto intending to stop their act of infringement. We decided to demand compensation of only 1 yuan, a nominal amount, because we didn't want the proceedings to get stuck on the matter of economic losses," Victor Chan, general manager of the Chinese condom company, told China Daily on Tuesday. Calling Okamoto "a shameless competitor", Chan said the Japanese company continued to claim it was the manufacturer of the world's thinnest condom to "take advantage of their popularity in China and of Chinese consumers' trust in their brand". San Francisco, Feb. 22Lantern Festival officially ends Chinese New Year, while the celebration continues with red lanterns aglow at the market street in San Francisco. Driving on the strip street in Las Vegas, people may see a big screen with the zodiac of monkey and red Chinese characters Good luck and Happy New Year shinning high on the Bellagio hotel. T-shirts printed with the sign of the monkey are sold in U.S. iconic retailer Macys in San Francisco. On its website, the retail store also celebrates the holiday in Chinese and English against the red background that The fireworks may be over, but a promising year is just beginning. Outlets, the great shopping center in the United States, not only accept China UnionPay but also offer a free discount booklet for those who show the Chinese bank card. At this time of year, many US malls feature Chinese Lunar New Year celebrations to attract a rapidly-growing base of wealthy Chinese tourists spending serious retail money abroad. Ying Wang, a Chinese student in Southern California, said that it is the second year his parents traveling to the United States to spend Chinese New Year with him. We visited different cities in America. They always fill their suitcases with souvenirs and products, mainly clothes and cosmetics, he said. His mother joked We come here with assignments, which means they have shopping lists from their relatives and friends in China. Someone want a specific brands handbag, someone wants some GNC supplements, while others want branded clothes. I think Chinese Lunar New Year is like Thanksgiving for America. Everyone goes home where they grew up. I saw crazy pictures of train stations that China has a huge migration during the holiday, Riley told the reporter. Whats more impressive and realistic to the salesperson is that The holiday is an astounding display of consumption by Chinese traveling to the United States. Data provided by the Los Angeles Tourism board shows a 40% increase in air bookings from Chinese visitors to L.A. during the three-week Spring Festival travel window. Six million Chinese tourists traveled abroad during this years weeklong holiday, spending a record-setting 90 billion yuan overseas, followed by Americans and Britons, according to statistics by the China Tourism Academy and travel booking site Ctrip. Although domestic luxury consumption in China fell 2% due to the economic slowdown, luxury purchases abroad jumped 10%, according to the consulting firm Bain & Company. Shopping tourism from China increased 32% in 2015 from the previous year. A young Chinese couple in Las Vegas told the reporter that easier visa applications, frequent flight to destinations, growing purchasing power, as well as domestic chaotic mass immigration and empty metropolitans have pushed them to travel abroad during the new year holiday. TAIYUAN, Feb. 23 -- Corpse theft is on the rise in rural Shanxi as the old custom of "ghost marriage" has resurfaced in the northern Chinese province. Southern Shanxi's Hongtong County has reported at least three dozen thefts of female corpses in the last three years, said Lin Xu, deputy director of the county police department, adding that several thefts were reported last February and March. In ghost marriage rituals, female skeletons are reinforced with steel wires and clothed before they are buried alongside dead bachelors as "ghost brides." Failure to find a burial partner for unmarried male relatives is thought to bring bad luck, according to rural folk belief. Ghost marriage rituals were practiced throughout China's feudal dynasties and were especially popular in the 10th century during the Song Dynasty. The government ordered people to cease the practice after the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949. However, rural Chinese people, who tend to uphold old customs and rituals, have continued the practice using pictures or dummies made of paper or dough. As wealth has increased, the practice of using real corpses has returned to some rural areas of Shanxi Province, northern Henan Province and Shaanxi Province. Chang Sixin, deputy director of the China Folk Literature and Art Association, said there are even matchmaking agents and companies to pair dead bachelors with the corpses of women. In Quting Village, Jing Gouzi bought a corpse to accompany his older brother, who had remained single until death, in burial. "I thought of using a woman made of dough, but the old men in our village insisted only real bodies could prevent misfortune," said the villager. According to Chinese criminal law, those who steal or defile a corpse are subject to up to three years in prison. The light punishment has failed to deter corpse traffickers seeking profit, Lin said. A fresh female corpse can fetch up to 100,000 yuan (about 15,600 U.S. dollars), and even a body that has been buried for decades can be sold for around 5,000 yuan. Corpse theft is difficult to investigate as it is hard to find evidence, Lin said. Repeated corpse thefts have caused panic in nearby villages. In Shengou Village, families have started to build tombs near their homes, rather than at distant mountain sites. Some affluent families have hired people to watch their family tombs, reinforced the tombs with steel and installed cameras over graves. Jiang Guolong, who lives in Dongbao Village in the county, discovered his grandmother's body was missing last February. "I was close with my grandmother all my life, and now I cannot find her remains," he said in tears. Another Hongtong County resident, Guo Qiwen, is looking for his mother's body, which was stolen last March. "I have spent more than 50,000 yuan looking for her remains. It kills my heart not having her back," he said. BEIJING, Feb. 23 -- Chinese leaders have called for more to be done to facilitate "new-type urbanization," saying fresh achievements must be made in the area in 2016. In an instruction on the issue, President Xi Jinping asked authorities to uphold the concepts of innovation, coordination, greenness, openness and sharing in the urbanization process. Efforts should focus on raising the urbanization rate based on the number of registered urban residents, providing equal public services for rural and urban dwellers, and making cities more people-friendly, Xi said. Although 56.1 percent of the population live in cities, only around 40 percent are actually registered urban residents, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). Most migrant workers, although working and living there, have no urban household registration, thus, they cannot access many public services. By 2015, there were 277.47 million migrant workers, accounting for 20 percent of the country's population, NBS figures show. A top-level urban work conference held at the end of 2015 agreed that the urbanization drive will focus on integrating migrant workers into cities. The government plans to issue 100 million rural migrants with urban household registration by 2020. Another instruction by Premier Li Keqiang said urbanization is China's only path to modernization and will provide China with the biggest domestic demand potential and growth momentum. Stressing the role of reform and innovation to economic growth, Li called for further efforts to integrate rural residents into cities. In a State Council teleconference on urbanization on Tuesday, Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli said China will fully implement the urban residence permit system so all city residents will have access to basic public services. Chinese President Xi Jinping presides over a symposium after touring China's three leading news providers in Beijing, capital of China, on Feb. 19, 2016. Xi on Friday ordered news media run by the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the Chinese government to strictly follow the Party's leadership. (Xinhua/Ju Peng) BEIJING, Feb. 23 -- If China is to take its rightful place on the global stage, then its voice must be louder and more clear, media observers agreed on Tuesday. Newsrooms across the country have been abuzz since Friday's speech by President Xi Jinping on news reporting and public opinion in which he said that media work by Communist Party of China (CPC) should connect with the outside world and help the nation's message be heard overseas. The task is pressing, as the gap between the real China and how the country is perceived by the world is huge. TOO MUCH NEGATIVITY "We are living in a time when misunderstandings about China show no sign of abating," said Sameh El-Shahat, president of China-i, a Beijing brand strategist. "China is the subject of too much negativity," he said. Foreign media's China coverage is on a spectrum somewhere between negative and doom and gloom, he said in an interview with Xinhua. "Sadly, we find a lot of judgment, rather than dialogue." Foreign media, he suggests, not only ignore the improvements in China's human rights record, but forget where and when China started on its path. China has taken more than 300 million people out of poverty in 30 years, a feat unprecedented in human history, and it is fair to say that the West neither understands nor credits China's human rights development, he said. "China needs to bridge that gap. That's why President Xi's comments about media are so timely," he said. The People's Daily confronted this hard truth in a commentary, stating there is a "deficit" between the inflow and outflow of information. More should be done to improve international communication. In short, China stories should feature better reasoning, in addition to being good stories, the commentary proposed. On the other hand, the world is increasingly interested in listening to China's voice and learning. China has never been so close to the center of global stage and it is the time for the nation to speak out, saying what it wants to share clearly and cogently. NEW METHODS President Xi is right: Chinese media should own "The China Story" by telling true stories and reporting accurately. This is badly needed, said El-Shahat. This view is supported by Chen Xinling, dean of School of Journalism and Communication of Nanchang University. He wants to see a "new discourse system" with a more lively and effective style, consistent with international norms. Xia Yongmin, director of China Radio International's West Asian and African service, said that news for foreign audiences should feature issues of common concern and be published in local languages. In his speech, Xi said media groups should make use of the nuances of digital media to tell their stories and establish a strong global profile. With news available across multiple platforms tailored to different demographics, his remarks are a shift in the way China stories would be disseminated. Chinese news providers must use the right medium at the right time to make content more accessible, he said. "He recommends Chinese media reach out to ordinary people overseas, and I totally agree with his ideas," El-Shahat said. Zhang Jinsheng, deputy head of Jinan University's journalism and communication school, said Chinese news outlets should use whatever international influence they may have to establish a respected voice on important issues. News providers should actively participate in global dialog to make Chinese political discourse more influential, Zhang said. "Only through dialogue can we make ourselves heard by mainstream society and by ordinary people abroad." The photo shows the missing eye-seeing dog Qiaoqiao reunites with its owner on February 23, 2016 in Beijing. [Photo: Weibo.com] The missing seeing-eye dog Qiaoqiao, which was abducted on Monday afternoon, has finally been returned to its owner. The dog ran back to its home on 6.50 p.m. today with a plastic bag on its neck. Suspects who abducted Qiaoqiao put a letter in the plastic bag, saying "We were wrong, and we really beg your pardon". Seven years old Qiaoqiao has lived with a blind masseur surnamed Tian for five years and has become part of the family. Tian told reporters the black labrador was taken from in front of his massage parlour. Several people jumped out of a minibus and forced the dog into the vehicle and then drove away. Employees of the massage business tried to stop the abduction but failed. Qiaoqiao graduated from the China Guide Dog Training Center in Dalian, northeast China's Liaoning Province. The center, founded in 2005, is the first non-profit seeing-eye dog training institution in China. Statistics show that at least 12 million people in China are visually impaired. However, it is estimated that only 70 seeing-eye dogs are currently working with blind people in the country. Two little girls hold Chinese national flag and Chinese knots at the "Happy Chinese New Year" event in Brussels, Belgium, Feb 6, 2016. "Happy Chinese New Year" is a worldwide activity celebrating the traditional Chinese Spring Festival. In 2016, over 2,100 cultural activities have been held in over 400 cities across more than 140 countries and regions worldwide. People around the world have a chance to encounter traditional Chinese culture through the event. And young children always enjoy the festivities the best. Joy blooms on their little faces as they greet the new year. (Photo Source: Chinadaily.com.cn) Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi attends a press conference after meeting with U.S. Secretary of States John Kerry (not in the picture) in Washington D.C., the United States, Feb. 23, 2016. Significant progress has been made in talks on a UN resolution on the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) and it is expected to be adopted within days, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said here Tuesday. (Xinhua/Yin Bogu) WASHINGTON, Feb. 23 -- Important progress has been made in talks on a UN resolution on the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) and it is expected to be adopted in the coming days, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said here Tuesday. Once the resolution is implemented, it will effectively curb DPRK's nuclear program, Wang said at a joint press conference with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry. "We do not accept the DPRK's nuclear missile program and we do not recognize the DPRK as a nuclear weapons state," Wang said. The top Chinese diplomat also emphasized that the resolution itself can not fundamentally solve the nuclear issue on the Korean Peninsula. "To solve the peninsular nuclear issue, we need to return to dialogues and negotiations," he said. >>>Related: Freedom of navigation in South China Sea not a problem: Chinese FM reedom of navigation in the South China Sea has not been a problem and demilitarization in the region needs efforts of all parties related, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said here on Tuesday. BEIJING, Feb. 23 -- China on Tuesday reaffirmed its right to self-defense and refuted U.S. accusation as "hyping with ulterior motives" after a U.S. think tank report said China might be installing radar on islands of the South China Sea. The deployment of defense facilities is the result of China's right to self-defense granted by international law, which is fully legitimate, said a press release from the Ministry of National Defense. The ministry's remarks came after a report from the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies on Monday saying satellite images showed China might be installing a radar system on the Nansha Islands. The radar system would significantly bolster China's ability to monitor surface and air traffic across the southern portion of the South China Sea, the report said. The ministry said the facilities including navigation and meteorological equipment are mainly for civil usage to provide public good for the international community. The ministry accused the United States, which strengthened military deployment in the South China Sea, sent military vessels or planes to waters in the sea, and gathered allies to conduct joint drills or joint cruise with strong pertinence, of "being the root" of militarization on the South China Sea. "Someone turned a blind eye to the U.S. behavior, but criticized China's legitimate islands construction over and over again. It is deliberately stirring up trouble with ulterior motives and exaggerating the tension," the press release said. U.S. Secretary of States John Kerry (R) meets with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Washington D.C., the United States, Feb. 23, 2016. Freedom of navigation in the South China Sea has not been a problem and demilitarization in the region needs efforts of all parties related, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said here on Tuesday. (Xinhua/Yin Bogu) WASHINGTON, Feb. 23 -- Freedom of navigation in the South China Sea has not been a problem and demilitarization in the region needs efforts of all parties related, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said here on Tuesday. "The islands in the South China Sea have been China's territory since ancient times, and China has the right to safeguard its territorial sovereignty," Wang said at a joint press conference with his U.S. counterpart John Kerry after a hours-long bilateral talk. "At the same time, we insist that the issue should be solved peacefully through dialogue and consultations," Wang said. Turning a deaf ear to China's calls for honoring its promise not to take sides on the maritime disputes, the U.S. has since last October sent warships and military jets to deliberately violate China's territorial waters in the South China Sea. At the press conference, Kerry said that the United States has the so-called "freedom-of-navigation" right in the South China Sea. "In fact, there has never been such a problem with freedom of navigation in the South China Sea," Wang stressed. "The situation in the South China Sea is overall stable." As for militarization in the South China Sea, Wang said that people always focused on China's moves, but turned a blind eye to the advanced military equipments deployed by some other country in the South China Sea, including missel destroyers and strategic bombers. During the past decades, some countries illegally occupied China's islands and militarized them heavily, not only with radars, but also with all kinds of artillery, he said. "The demilitarization needs efforts of all parties, not only China, but also the United States and ASEAN countries," Wang said. China would like to have dialogue with the United States on the South China Sea to avoid misjudgement, he said. BEIJING, Feb. 24 -- China hopes Russia and Japan can properly resolve their territory dispute through dialog, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said on Wednesday. "The outcome of World War II should be respected and protected," Hua said at a regular news briefing. Earlier, Toshihiro Aiki, a Japanese official, said that "not all the results of WWII have been summed up," and that the territorial issue between the two countries needs to be addressed. The Russian Foreign Ministry expressed "sincere regret" later in a statement, saying the Japanese side had "distorted historical facts." Russia and Japan have long been at odds over four disputed Pacific islands, known as the Northern Territories in Japan and the Southern Kurils in Russia, which has hindered a peace treaty between the two countries since the end of WWII. Uber is burning through more than a billion dollars a year in Chinese market as it wages a fierce price war against local rival Didi Kuaidi, according to its chief executive Travis Kalanick. Last month, Uber's Chinese business boosted its valuation to more than $8 billion following a latest round of fund raising. However, it has not achieved profitability in China due to fierce competition. "We're profitable in the USA, but we're losing over $1 billion a year in China," Uber CEO Travis Kalanick told Canadian technology platform Betakit. "We have a fierce competitor that's unprofitable in every city they exist in, but they're buying up market share. I wish the world wasn't that way," he added. Uber China said in an emailed statement that Didi Kuaidi had to spend "many multiples" more than the U.S. company to increase its share of the market, adding that Uber's China business was backed up by profitable operations outside the region. While a spokesman for Didi Kuaidi, which has the biggest market share of China's car-hailing app market, told Reuters that Uber's claims about its spending were untrue and that it is benefiting from its larger size. He added that the Chinese company now operates in 400 cities and had passed break-even point in half of those cities. Uber currently operates in more than 40 Chinese cities and plans to be in 100 by the end of the year. Thousands of Chinese and other Asian Americans recently staged rallies across the U.S. to protest the conviction of Peter Liang, a Chinese-American former police officer, for accidently killing an African American man while on duty. Liang was convicted last week of second degree manslaughter and official misconduct in the shooting death of an unarmed man in a darkened stairwell of a public housing complex. Setting aside the technicalities, the reason why this case has aroused such a strong response is deeply rooted in U.S. racial conflicts. Liangs supporters noted the strained relationship between police and African Americans across the country after a string of incidents in which unarmed black men were killed by white officers, many of whom were never charged. Many believe that Liang has been made a scapegoat for those white officers who evaded indictment, and has been treated unfairly because he is Asian. It has pulled at a thread long woven through the citys Asian population, which sees what happened as yet another example of the mistreatment of a marginalized community, ill-equipped to fight back, the New York Times commented on the event. The White House also acknowledged that in many parts of the U.S., there is a deep distrust between communities of color and the law enforcement that is obligated to serve and protect them. Issues of race have haunted America for centuries. Liangs case is just another manifestation of this chronic societal ill. Minority groups, whether African or Asian American, are economically and politically vulnerable in the country. They face wide social class gaps that have fundamentally contributed to the sensitivity of the issue. Recent years have yielded a series of race-related controversies. Those incidents, including the shooting death of 18-year-old Michael Brown by police in Ferguson, Missouri and the Baltimore riots, put a strain on American society and attract global attention. As former Virginia governor Tim Kaine has pointed out, todays U.S. society may not be as divided as it was during the Civil War, but anyone who watches the daily news can tell that there is deep social disintegration. Outsiders observing U.S. politics should note that mainstream policies cannot effectively tackle the challenges brought on by racial discrimination. Although the U.S. government loves to play the human rights card in the global arena, its inaction when it comes to this domestic issue surely calls that supposed superiority into question. In todays U.S. society, one feels anxious about the changes in class division, while at the same pressed to address the split between liberals and conservatives. Due to the political divide, the U.S. political system is incapable of resolving the racial conflicts through political means. According to reports from Liangs case, poor lighting in public housing is directly associated with the tragedy. Details like this deserve more attention. In the eyes of former New York mayor Michael Bloomberg, social upheaval caused by racial conflicts reflect the publics disappointment with long-term poverty and a lack of economic mobility. The stability of any society depends not only on an inclusive culture, but also on an effective guarantee of social equality. When such goals are realized, the idea of all people being born equal will no longer be just words on a paper, and discrimination against minorities will be eradicated. SYDNEY, Feb. 24(People's Daily Online) -- Anna bay, located in the northern coastline of New South Wales, Australia, was originally named as Hannah Bay. It is in honor of the vessel which is alleged to have wrecked at One Mile Beaach of Port Stephens. Anna bay is the gateway to Birubi Point where surfing lovers enjoy greatly, while towards the west, there is a large desert inside where camels come and go. Driving towards west around 100 kilometers, the fragrance of wine flows into the air. Each year, a great number of people will visit the place, Hunter valley, Australia's oldest wine growing region. In Hunter Valley, visitors can have a taste a broad selection of wines at one of more than 150 cellar doors. Apart from wine, the Festival of the Flowers in September together with the Sculpture in the vineyards in November adds the beauty to Hunter Valley. Chinese President Xi Jinping presides over a symposium after touring China's three leading news providers in Beijing on Feb. 19, 2016. Chinese President Xi Jinping recently made an inspection tour of People's Daily, Xinhua News Agency and CCTV, during which time he presided over a symposium on Chinese media. The symposium, which took place shortly after the lunar Chinese New Year, attracted wide-ranging attention. During the symposium, Xi ordered news media run by the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the Chinese government to strictly follow the Party's leadership, saying that it should serve the country's overall interests. Newsrooms across the world have been abuzz since Xis remarks. Voice of America (VOA), for example, interpreted the statements as the latest sign of the Party's increasingly tighter control over all media. As a matter of fact, China has been placing importance on the guiding role of media since the founding of the Communist Party of China. It was Mao Zedong, one of the founding fathers of the Party, who once said that media and military power have equal importance. Mao was also the first to coin the term statesman-run newspapers, meaning that the Party should guide public opinion through media. After the founding of New China, plenty of Maos articles on state and party management were published by People's Daily and other state media. It now is a tradition for Chinese leaders. In addition, state-run media speaking for its country is not a new practice. This also occurs in the West. It's hard to imagine companies affiliated with the conglomerate of media giant Rupert Murdoch denouncing him publicly, since media founded by a financial group will almost always speak for it. VOA, as a mouthpiece of the U.S., will also defend its government. From this point of view, each country does the same, but some may be better skilled at covering their true intentions. Those who try to deny this fact are simply naive about politics. However, those saying that Xis statements indicate a restriction on freedom of speech are making groundless accusations. First of all, the domestic media industry is undergoing an unprecedented transformation. At present, traditional media is facing double pressure from both audiences and digital media. Against such a backdrop, traditional mainstream media, losing ground to commercial portals, has to reform its original approach and break with the bureaucratized system. When it comes to the international arena, China, with its rising standing, is always the subject of worldwide speculation. Its every move is watched by global media. However, China still has a relatively weak voice in the international community. Given that there are barely any Chinese media outlets with strong international influence that can tell the Chinese story, Chinas voice can barely be heard on the international stage. Thus, the Party is encouraging state-run media to guide public opinion by focusing more on innovative approaches in line with new trends in the media industry--not imposing more restraints. China's ongoing reform calls for an urgent change in public opinion, ideology and intellectual support. All media should make efforts to implement the principle and direction set forth by the central government. In the next few years, Chinese media will enter a promising future. (This article is edited and translated from Source: www.haiwainet.cn) Russia wants to fly planes equipped with high-powered cameras over US under Open Skies treaty Russia is seeking permission to fly planes equipped with high-powered digital cameras over the United States. Russia will ask for permission from the Open Skies Consultative Commission, headquartered in Vienna, to fly planes equipped with high-resolution digital cameras over the United States, according to a U.S. congress staffer. Russia and the United States are both signatories to the Open Skies Treaty, which was signed in 1992. The treaty allows unarmed aerial surveillance flights over the entire territory of all participants in order to promote transparency about military forces and activities, help monitor the implementation of international arms control agreements and avoid tensions created by suspicion. However, senior intelligence and military officials worry that Russia is taking advantage of the surveillance flights to collect intelligence on the United States. Chinese President Xi Jinping underscored the importance of connecting China to the larger world when he presided over a symposium on Chinese media. Xis remarks, coming at just the right time, carry great significance. By connecting China with the world, other countries can understand more about China, which is conducive to a peaceful environment for Chinas ongoing development. By communicating with the world, China will integrate itself into the global arena, which will accelerate the progress of building a community of shared destiny of mankind. The key to this connection and communication lies in finding the right connection points and appropriate channels. I believe a personal experience of mine can demonstrate the importance of identifying these points. Several years ago, I was invited to visit Los Angeles by a U.S. religious community. As I was passing through customs, a U.S. official stopped me. After examining my passport, he asked about my occupation. When I revealed my identity as Head of State Administration for Religious Affairs of China, he showed doubts, saying that there is no such organization in the U.S., a country with plenty of religious people. That was when I realized I needed to find a connection to help him understand. I said to him: In America, there are only murals on the walls of churches. But in a Buddhist temple in China, there are many statues of Bodhisattvas. One of them is Skanda [a devoted guardian of Buddhist monasteries who guards the Buddhist teachings], who is kind of like the head of the administration in ancient times. There is no Skanda statue in Christian churches, but in Buddhist temples there are. Religion in China can have elements that religion in the U.S. does not have, I further explained. Then the officer asked whether I am a Bodhisattva or believe in Buddhism. When I told him that as a member of the CPC, I dont have religious beliefs, he asked, How can you be in charge of religious affairs if you dont have religious beliefs? Just like people who dont smoke can still be head of the tobacco administration, you dont need to be religious to manage religious affairs. Moreover, my non-religious background ensures I can serve each religion in China fairly, I replied. He finally got the idea. Connecting China with the world, as President Xi Jinping emphasized at a symposium on news reporting and public opinion on Friday, is applicable not just to news reporting, but also to many other types of work. Only by identifying these connection points can China find its best place in the world. (The author is former Head of State Administration for Religious Affairs of China, a special commentator for Peoples Daily and Vice-President of the Chinese Association for International Understanding.) (Source: news.shandongwang.cn) A young man from Chinas southwestern Sichuan province was recently detained for fabricating and deliberately spreading a false terrorism threat, Chengdu Business Daily reported on Tuesday. The man, who is single, said he made such claims because he felt lonely during the Spring Festival. On Feb. 15, the young man felt sad that he had no one with whom to spend the Spring Festival, so he wrote a post online saying that he would launch terrorist attacks on the hotels in Chengdu, Sichuan province. Later, he was arrested by police. The police said that such behavior must be punished since it can cause social panic, disrupt the social order and endanger public safety. Qiaoqiao, a 7-year-old black Labrador, has come home two days after she was abducted in Shunyi District in Beijing on Feb. 22. Her owner, Tian Fengbo, found an apology note inside a plastic bag hanging on Qiaoqiao's neck, saying: "We are sorry." Two days before, a lost pet notice for Qiaoqiao, who is a guide dog for her blind owner, went viral online. The notice said that Qiaoqiao was forcibly taken away in a van in Mapo in Shunyi District. For his master, blind masseur Tian Fengbo, Qiaoqiao is his "eyes." During the two days Qiaoqiao was missing, Tian's family, friends and a lot of caring netizens searched for Qiaoqiao everywhere. Qiaoqiao returned at about 7:00 p.m. yesterday, just as Tian's family was about to leave to go search for her again, said Tian. Qiaoqiao was excited to reunite with the family. She rushed up to her masters legs and kept barking at him. Tians family cried with joy. They found a white plastic bag hanging on Qiaoqiao's neck. In it was an apology note, saying: "We are sorry. We send the dog back and beg your pardon. We have also been under great pressure these two days..." According to Xie, Tian's friend, Qiaoqiao seemed listless after she came back. "We immediately gave her water and food. She ate more than usual. Qiaoqiao has stuck to her master like glue since shes been back." When Tian was asked if he would go after the perpetrators, he said: "Honestly, they were kind to send the dog back. I care more about the welfare of animals, especially guide dogs, than about finding the perpetrators." Qiaoqiao and her owner. (Photo/Beijing Youth Daily) Yan Zhanhong is a migrant worker who earns 3,000 yuan a month. With such a low pay for each month, he not only pays tuition fees for his daughter, but also has helped more than 60 children deprived of education go back to school. Yan set up the Zhanhong Benevolent Fund and is honored with the China Poverty Eradication Award, the highest award in the field of poverty eradication in China. In 1992, Yan and his families left his home in Zhouxi township in Yangzhou and went to the urban area of Yangzhou, east China's Jiangsu province. Back to those days, the priority of their life was to send their daughter to a primary school in the city. They tried every means to collect money for enrollment, but still needed 500 yuan. Without a better choice, Yan knocked on the door of the office of the headmaster. After learning what had happened to Yan, the headmaster said that Yan's daughter could receive education without paying enrollment fees. "I have been grateful to this headmaster for admitting my kid to school. At that time, I made up my mind to repay his kindness by assisting other students who need help, " Yan recalls. Yan is a temporary plumber and electrician at a credit cooperatives branch in Jiangdu district of Yangzhou. His monthly salary was only four or five hundred yuan at the beginning. In order to help more kids with the tuition fees, Yan has done three jobs a day for 14 years. From 6 a.m. to 8 a.m., he rides a tricycle to collect empty gas canisters; from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., he works for at the credit cooperatives branch; from 5:30 p.m. to 9 p.m., he sends the gas canisters to homes; after that, he works as a gatekeeper for a securities company. In the 14 years, Yan has supported more than 60 poverty-stricken kids. Every year, he spends more than 6,000 yuan to help the kids. Two young Chinese men recently took on a seven-day challenge to survive in the wild without any food, water or supplies, reported Chongqing Morning Post on Wednesday. They also broadcast the whole process online. Both of the men, age 20, are fans of Edward Michael "Bear" Grylls, widely known for his survival television series Man vs. Wild. Inspired by the show, the two young men, Huang Zuhong and Fu Hailong, started their seven-day challenge on Feb. 16 on Huanggua Mountain, southwest Chongqing municipality, with only knives, a hoe, flint, a fire extinguisher and a bucket of iron wires. Their first day began with far more difficulties than they had imagined. It took them about five hours to build their camp, which was made out of bamboo and hay. To keep up their energy, they had to eat everything they found as long as it was nontoxic, such as crawfish from the creek, worms and termites in rotten wood, as well as herbs and fruit. Huang even ate an earthworm and a spider. At night, they had to take shifts to watch the fire, which they used for both light and boiling water. According to Huang, they could only sleep about three hours per day at most. The fourth and fifth days were the hardest, as their bodies finally felt the effects of insufficient food, and their shelter also leaked when it rained. Luckily, they found some eels and snails in the rice field on the sixth day, which helped them to power through the toughest period. Online viewers expressed great support for us as we neared our mental and physical limits, Huang recalled. The last day of the challenge coincided with the traditional Chinese Lantern Festival. It was also an unforgettable day for Huang and Fu, as they caught a rabbit and a vole. Both agreed that it was the best thing they ever ate. "We are fine, just a little tired," Fu said after the challenge was done. When asked about what they learned from the challenge, both men said that this experience will encourage them to get through any difficulties they encounter in the future. Even though some say it is too dangerous, I know what I am doing and what I want, Fu said. Hu Yongqiang, a gastroenterologist at a local hospital, recommended a physical checkup for Huang and Fu since consumption of uncooked food could lead to parasite infections and gastrointestinal bleeding. Hu also advised other people without survival skills not to follow suit. British scuba diver Gavin Parsons captured the breathtaking view of sunray beaming into the water-filled cenotes in Mexico. These limestone cenotes are found within the jungle of Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula. Many of them are formed after a meteor hit the area around 66 million years ago. Parsons, 47, travelled to Mexico from southern England to capture the stunning light show. As the midday sun reflected by the leaves of the mangroves growing at the waters edge, shafts of glittering lights are created inside the cave. Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 24 By Maksim Tsurkov - Trend: SOCAR Trading, a trading arm of SOCAR (State Oil Company of the Republic of Azerbaijan), plans to open an office in the US city of Houston, Arzu Azimov, SOCAR Trading chief executive officer, said in an interview with Reuters. The office will be opened to trade and arbitrage oil and products in and out of the US, he said. It already has a business unit in Canada's city of Calgary, where it is actively exploring trading opportunities between the US and Canada, according to Azimov. SOCAR Trading, with headquarters in Geneva, was created in late 2007 by the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan (SOCAR). SOCAR Trading sells the main part of crude export volumes from the Ceyhan port (the Mediterranean Sea, Turkey), carries out trading of oil and oil products of other countries, and also renders assistance to the parent company with the international investments. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @MaksimTsurkov Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 24 By Seba Aghayeva - Trend: The special issue of the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry's "World of Diplomacy" journal has been dedicated to the 24th anniversary of the Khojaly genocide. The journal's special issue included information about this tragedy and its detailed analysis, as well as international legal evidence of the genocide committed by Armenian army against civilians in the Azerbaijani town of Khojaly. The "World of Diplomacy" also publishes official documents on the recognition of the Khojaly tragedy by a number of countries as an act of genocide. On Feb. 25-26, 1992, the Armenian military, together with the 366th infantry regiment of Soviet troops stationed in Khankendi, committed genocide against the population of the Azerbaijani town of Khojaly. Among those 613 killed in the massacre, there were 63 children, 106 women and 70 old people. Eight families were totally exterminated, 130 children lost one parent and 25 children lost both. A total of 487 civilians became disabled as a result of the onslaught. Some 1,275 innocent residents were taken hostage, while the fate of 150 people still remains unknown. The event became the largest massacre in the course of Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 24 Trend: Humanity was killed in Khojaly 24 years ago, says Necdet Unuvar, chairman of the Turkey-Azerbaijan Interparliamentary Friendship Group at Turkey's Grand National Assembly. Khojaly is a pain and sorrow of Turkic people, he said, Turkish newspaper Yeni Safak reported Feb. 24. Unuvar also said he will make every effort to inform the world about the Khojaly realities. On Feb. 25-26, 1992, the Armenian military, together with the 366th infantry regiment of Soviet troops stationed in Khankendi, committed genocide against the population of the Azerbaijani town of Khojaly. Among those 613 killed in the massacre, there were 63 children, 106 women and 70 old people. Eight families were totally exterminated, 130 children lost one parent and 25 children lost both. A total of 487 civilians became disabled as a result of the onslaught. Some 1,275 innocent residents were taken hostage, while the fate of 150 people still remains unknown. The event became the largest massacre in the course of Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. 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. Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 24 By Elmira Tariverdiyeva - Trend: Following the visit of Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev to Iran on Feb. 23, it became clear that Baku is turning into one of the main political players in the region thanks to its balanced policy. This fruitful visit of Azerbaijan's president to Iran, during which the sides signed 11 documents, is the result of Baku's thought-out policy pursued all the time when Iran was under international sanctions. The fact that Baku didn't support Tehran's international isolation became the most important element in developing the relations between the two countries in the post-sanctions era. Now, while western countries seek to create relations with Iran, the country's President Hassan Rouhani invited namely Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev to the country and made it clear that Azerbaijan has become one of the priorities of Iran's foreign policy. It is clear that the two neighboring countries have a solid foundation of relations based on history, culture and religion. As a result of the policy pursued by Azerbaijan, the relations between the two countries have grown into strategic cooperation. Azerbaijan has always opposed the sanctions against Iran and supported this country in the international organizations where they cooperate. All these factors played an important role in Iran's desire to strengthen relations with the country which it has trusted over the years. Undoubtedly, the economic relations between Azerbaijan and Iran and mutually beneficial cooperation also played a role in strengthening the relations in another sphere. The framework agreement on linking the two countries' railways, as well as the document for a border railway bridge between Iranian Astara and Azerbaijani Astara are among the most important results of the visit. Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said that the railways of the two countries will be linked by late 2016. It means that the two countries will become the most important link between East and West by late 2016. This will pave way for trade turnover between Northern Europe and South-East Asia. Undoubtedly, this project will be beneficial for both countries. Given that this road will play a role of a railway bridge between Europe and Asia, investors will be able to benefit from these transit opportunities to export their products on reasonable terms which will bring considerable dividends to both sides. Moreover, the memorandum of understanding signed between the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan (SOCAR) and National Iranian Oil Company became another important result of the visit. This document has great prospects in the oil and gas sector. Iran participates in developing Azerbaijan's largest Shah Deniz field and has even expressed intention to increase its share in the project, which means additional investments. Additionally, the two countries have gas swap infrastructure via which Azerbaijan supplies its fuel to Iran's northern provinces. Iran, for its part, ensures the gas demand of Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic. Currently, the sides discuss the possibility of transporting Iranian gas through Azerbaijan to Europe via the Southern Gas Corridor. Moreover, Iran has already started to make investments in Azerbaijan's oil and gas fields. During the visit of Azerbaijani president, the sides discussed the joint development of oil and gas fields in the Caspian Sea which can bring huge benefits to both sides. During the visit, they also discussed the issues related mutual investing which creates great opportunities for the two countries. Baku can propose Tehran investment projects in various spheres to attract Iranian companies and businessmen to working in Azerbaijan. Taking into account the economic reforms carried out in Azerbaijan, the investment promotion measures, including tax and privileges and in general, the improvement of the business environment, Iranian investors will be very interested in making investments in Azerbaijan's economy. During the visit of President Aliyev to Iran, the sides discussed bilateral cooperation in financial, banking spheres, insurance, tourism and pharmaceutics. Azerbaijani businessmen were also invited to participate in joint activities in Aras, Anzali and Maku free trade and economic zones. Following his high-level meeting, the two countries can also take relevant measures which will allow to increase the mutual passenger flow in maritime transport. Aside from bilateral relations, the two countries also discussed cooperation in trilateral format (Iran-Turkmenistan-Azerbaijan, Iran-Azerbaijan-Russia, Iran-Azerbaijan-Georgia and Iran-Azerbaijan-Turkey). Alongside with joint projects in the sphere of economy, fighting terrorism and ensuring security is the most important issue of cooperation between Iran and Azerbaijan. Saying the positions of Azerbaijan and Iran coincide on many issues, President Aliyev stressed that Azerbaijan and Iran are a model of stability, despite the tensions in the region. Today, Iran and Azerbaijan play a stabilizing role in the region and namely the fruitful cooperation between the two countries will make it possible to ensure security in the region. The unity of Iranian and Azerbaijani positions on the conflict in Syria, territorial integrity and many other issues of the international agenda are the guarantor of success and development of these relations which are important for the region. Edited by SI Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 24 By Seba Aghayeva - Trend: The EU High Representative Federica Mogherini will visit Azerbaijan Feb. 29 - March 1, said Hikmat Hajiyev, spokesman of Azerbaijan's Foreign Ministry. "Mogherini will discuss issues on the cooperation between Azerbaijan and the EU," said Hajiyev. The visit's program includes the High Representative's meetings with the Azerbaijani officials, including the Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov, he added. Azerbaijan expects to receive the EU Council's mandate to negotiate on a new agreement on strategic modernization partnership, which will determine the format of the future cooperation with the EU. The Azerbaijani government submitted a draft agreement to the EU in May 2015 as part of the Eastern Partnership summit in Riga, Azerbaijani Deputy Foreign Minister Mahmud Mammadguliyev said earlier adding that we are expecting now to obtain a mandate from the highest political body of the EU to start the negotiation process. Currently, the bilateral relations between the EU and Azerbaijan are regulated on the basis of agreement on partnership and cooperation, which was signed in 1996. A new agreement envisages the adjustment of Azerbaijan's legislation and procedures to the EU's most important international and trade norms and standards, which should lead to an improvement in the access of Azerbaijani goods to the EU markets. Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 24 Trend: Bulgaria's President Rosen Plevneliev will arrive in Azerbaijan to participate at the IV Global Baku Forum to be held March 10-11, Azerbaijan's State Committee on Work with Diaspora told Trend Feb. 24. Plevneliev participated in the III Global Baku Forum held in 2015. He is a member of the Nizami Ganjavi International Center. The forum will be organized by the Nizami Ganjavi International Center with the support of the Azerbaijan's State Committee on Work with Diaspora. The forum will be titled "Towards a Multipolar World". A number of issues of global concern, as well as the role of interreligious dialogue in conflict prevention, issues of migration, multiculturalism and integration, prospects for energy and global governance and other important issues will be discussed at the forum, and an exchange of views on finding solutions to these problems will be held. Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 24 Trend: Azerbaijani Defense Minister Colonel-General Zakir Hasanov met Feb. 24 with Serbia's ambassador to Azerbaijan, Nebojsa Rodic, the Defense Ministry told Trend. "Armenia's aggressor policy continues today," said Hasanov addressing the meeting where he spoke about the military and political situation in the region. "Armenia delays negotiations and peace process, which in turn, negatively affects the situation in the entire region," he added. Mutual interest in developing cooperation between Azerbaijan and Serbia in different areas was expressed and the prospects for development of relations between the two countries were discussed during the meeting. Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 24 Trend: An opening of the catacombs of Saints Marcellinus and Peter restored with the initiative of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation has been held in Vatican. Azerbaijan's first lady, President of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation Mehriban Aliyeva attended the event. Prior Azerbaijan's First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva attended the presentation on restoring the catacombs of Saints Marcellinus and Peter. Director of the museum Rita Paris welcomed Azerbaijan's First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva. Professor Fabrizio Bisconti thanked Mehriban Aliyeva for her attention to restoration of catacombs of Rome. The professor highlighted the history of the catacombs, as well as its importance for Christian world. "We could protect this historical place with the support of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation," he added. A movie on restoring the catacombs has been demonstrated. The movie highlights ongoing process of restoring the catacombs, its technical-creative aspects. The movie also thanks the Heydar Aliyev Foundation for services in preserving the world cultural heritage. President of the Pontifical Council for Culture, cardinal of the Catholic Church Gianfranco Ravasi stressed the value of the catacombs of Saints Marcellinus and Peter for world cultural heritage and Christians. "Heydar Aliyev Foundation gave great support for preserving this value," he added. Azerbaijan's First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva addressed the event. The president of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation thanked for kind words. The first lady highlighted the activity of the Foundation in protecting the world cultural heritage and said Azerbaijan is at crossroads of religions and cultures. "Representatives of various religions live in Azerbaijan in peace," the first lady added. Following the ceremony, Mehriban Aliyeva viewed the Palazzo Massimo. This nineteenth-century palace in Neo-Renaissance style houses one of the world's most important collections of Classical art. On the four floors of the museum, sculptures, frescoes and mosaics, coins and jewels document the evolution of the Roman artistic culture from the late Republican age through Late Antiquity (2nd c. BCE - 5th c. CE. In the rooms of the ground floor are exhibited splendid Greek originals discovered in Rome such as the Boxer at Rest, the Hellenistic Prince and the Dying Niobid from the Horti Sallustiani as well as portraiture of the Republican and Imperial ages, culminating in the statue of Augustus Pontifex Maximus. The Museum demonstrates frescoed walls and pavement mosaics document the domestic decor of prestigious Roman dwellings. The basement houses the sizeable numismatic collection, besides grave ornaments, jewels and the Grottarossa Mummy. Then the opening of the catacombs of Saints Marcellinus and Peter was held. Azerbaijan's First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva and cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi cut the ribbon symbolizing the opening of the catacombs. The Catacombs of Marcellinus and Peter are ancient catacombs. In 2006, over a thousand skeletons were discovered in these catacombs; the skeletons were stacked one on top of each other and still bore the togas they were buried with. The Catacombs of Rome are underground burial places under Rome, Italy, of which there are at least forty, some discovered only in recent decades. Though most famous for Christian burials, either in separate catacombs or mixed together, people of all the Roman religions are buried in them, beginning in the 2nd century AD, mainly as a response to overcrowding and shortage of land. The Etruscans, like many other European peoples, used to bury their dead in underground chambers. A bilateral agreement was signed between the Heydar Aliyev Foundation and Vatican on restoration of Roman catacombs in 2012. The Italian media and society appreciate the Foundation's step as one of the important contributions to development of inter-religious and intercultural dialogue. Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, Feb. 24 By Huseyn Hasanov- Trend: Active work in the industrial sector, assistance in export development with emphasis on sectoral diversification and modernization can support the growth of the national economy of Turkmenistan and reduce the risks associated with volatility of global commodity prices, according to the article of the Strategic Planning and Economic Development Institute of Turkmenistan. "Taken together, the reforms aimed at strengthening market mechanisms in the Turkmen economy, contribute to enhancing its flexibility and competitiveness in conditions of an integrated and changing world," said the article. State programs for manufacturing import-substituting products and increasing the export volumes of products manufactured in the country were approved in Turkmenistan. These measures are aimed at developing chemical industry, light and food industries, machine building, agriculture, domestic pharmaceutical industry. Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 24 By Maksim Tsurkov - Trend: Azerbaijan will build patrol boats for the Border Service of Kazakhstan, the website of Cabinet of Ministers of Azerbaijan reported. Prime Minister of Azerbaijan Artur Rasizade has met deputy chairman of the National Security Committee of Kazakhstan director of the Border Guard Service Darkhan Dilmanov in Baku. During the meeting the parties focused on the strengthening of bilateral cooperation, including in the field of border protection. Also, the issues of combating illegal migration and smuggling across the Caspian Sea were raised. At the same time Azerbaijan is ready to ensure the construction of patrol boats for the Border Service of Kazakhstan, repairs of its helicopters and ships. Greece is in preliminary talks with Iran to secure natural gas for local needs and provide a gateway for the Persian Gulf nation to supply fuel to other parts of Europe, Greek Energy Minister Panos Skourletis said on Feb.24. Greece produces little oil and almost no gas, while Iran is a member of OPEC and holds gas reserves that BP Plc ranks as the world's largest. According to Bloomberg, the countries agreed in January for Iran to supply crude to Hellenic Petroleum SA and buy oil products from the refiner. That deal, possibly Iran's first such agreement with a European company since the lifting of sanctions, opens the road to cooperation in the gas market too, Skourletis said in an interview in Athens. "What's sure is that Iran wants to start selling its natural gas in liquefied form using ships and is interested in Greece," he said. The Revythousa re-gasification terminal near Athens is one potential entry point for Iranian gas, and a planned facility at Alexandroupolis in the north of the country is another. Iran is interested in both sites "for exporting to Europe," Skourletis said. Iranian Oil Ministry media officials in Tehran couldn't be reached for immediate comment. Diversifying Supply Greece is hoping that the removal last month of international sanctions against Iran will help it diversify its sources of energy and enhance the European country's role as a regional energy-distribution hub. Greece was forced to import more liquefied natural gas and switch at least one power plant to using oil for fuel in 2009, when a dispute between Russia and Ukraine disrupted gas supplies. Iran's Deputy Oil Minister Amir Hossein Zamaninia discussed potential energy cooperation with Skourletis on Jan. 22 in Athens. Iran, which currently lacks facilities to export LNG, wants to use idle capacity at a facility in neighboring Oman to process raw gas into a liquefied form for sale, the Iranian Oil Ministry's news service Shana reported on Feb. 21, citing Alireza Kameli, managing director of National Iranian Gas Export Co. Iran and Oman are negotiating to build a pipeline to send gas across the Persian Gulf to the Omani facility, Shana reported. By liquefying gas, producers can ship it by tanker to distant markets not linked by pipelines. Regional Pipelines Iranian companies have expressed interest in participating with Depa, Greece's state-run gas supplier, in a company that will build and run the planned floating LNG storage and re-gasification facility at Alexandroupolis, Skourletis said. Expansion of the Revythousa gas-importing terminal will be completed in 2017, and with adequate investment, the plant could also send gas northward to other areas in Europe, he said. Both facilities will be connected to two international pipeline systems, the planned Trans Adriatic Pipeline and Gas Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria links, Skourletis said. The market test for the Interconnector pipeline, which will link the Greek and Bulgarian gas systems, is due to be finished this month. "If that shows that the project is viable, it will open the road for the Alexandroupolis facility," Skourletis said. Iran is also interested in Greece's refineries, he said. The Greek government has no plans to reduce its 35 percent share in Hellenic Petroleum, the country's biggest refiner, so any purchase of a stake could only happen via a private investor in the company, Skourletis said. Paneuropean Oil & Industrial Holdings, owned by the Latsis Group, owns 43 percent of Hellenic Petroleum, according to the refiner's website. Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 24 By Maksim Tsurkov - Trend: Azerbaijan has not so far received an invitation to participate in a possible meeting between OPEC and non-OPEC producers, the country's Energy Ministry told Trend Feb. 24. Earlier, Venezuelan Oil Minister Eulogio Del Pino said that a meeting of the OPEC member states and other oil producing countries on oil output freezing may take place in mid-March. "If such an invitation comes, we'll be ready to consider it," said the ministry. Russia, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Venezuela held talks Feb. 16 on the current oil market situation in Qatar's capital, Doha, and agreed to freeze their output if other countries follow the suit. The proposal was later backed by Ecuador, Algeria, Nigeria and Oman. Meanwhile, according to Azerbaijan's Deputy Energy Minister Natig Abbasov, the country doesn't plan to freeze its oil output. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @MaksimTsurkov Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 24 By Elena Kosolapova - Trend: Kazakhstan will resume air travel to the Arab Republic of Egypt next month, the Kazakh Ministry for Investment and Development reported Feb. 24. Kazakhstan-based SCAT company will operate direct flights from Almaty to Sharm el-Sheikh starting from March 2016. Additionally, Fly Egypt will launch a regular biweekly flight to Kazakhstan when its application is approved by the Civil Aviation Committee of the Republic of Kazakhstan. The Civil Aviation Committee, the Kazakhstan Tourist Association and the Egyptian aviation security agency have recently given green light to resumption of air travel between Kazakhstan and Egypt after detailed inspection. Kazakhstan suspended air service with Egypt after the A321 plane of Russia's Kogalymavia crashed over the Sinai Peninsula in late October 2015. The disaster, in which 217 passengers and seven crew members lost their lives, is believed to be the deadliest aviation disaster in the history of Russia and the Soviet Union. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @E_Kosolapova Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, Feb. 24 By Huseyn Hasanov- Trend: Turkmenistan and Iran will hold talks during the exhibition of Iranian goods in Ashgabat on Feb.23-25, said the message from Turkmen government. Over 90 Iranian companies, engaged in mechanical engineering, chemical and electronics industry, food and light industry, agriculture and water industry, construction and trade, are participating in the exhibition. On the sidelines of the exhibition, the businessmen from the two countries will hold talks to expand cooperation, said Turkmenistan's President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov in his message to the participants. They will also hold discussions on defining new important aspects of the interstate dialogue, according to the president. Berdimuhamedov added that this exhibition will create great prospects for the future trade and economic partnership between Turkmenistan and Iran. During the visit of Iran's President Hassan Rouhani to Turkmenistan in March 2015, the sides reached an agreement to increase the volume of bilateral trade turnover to $60 billion in the next ten years. Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Feb. 24 By Demir Azizov- Trend: The Uzbek-Azerbaijani intergovernmental agreement on cooperation in the area of prevention and elimination of emergency situations came into effect, Uzbek Foreign Ministry said Feb. 24. In accordance with the agreement's provisions, the parties cooperate in the spheres of prevention and elimination of natural, technological and environmental emergencies by providing mutual assistance, monitoring and coordination of interaction of interested state structures, exchange of information and training of specialists. The document was signed in May 2015 by Uzbek Minister of Emergency Situations Tursinhan Khudaybergenov and Azerbaijani Minister of Emergency Situations Kamaladdin Heydarov during the visit of the Azerbaijani delegation to Tashkent. Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 24 By Fatih Karimov- Trend: Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned that the US runs plots against the Islamic Republic. He made the remarks during a meeting with thousands of people from the central city of Najafabad on Feb. 24, said the message on the official website of the supreme leader. The US has plans for the region following the nuclear deal, including plots for infiltration in Iran, Khamenei said. He once again accused the US of plotting against Iran's upcoming election for parliament, as well as the Assembly of Experts to be held in Feb. 26. The next elections for the 10th term of the Iranian Parliament and the 5th term of the Assembly of Experts will take place simultaneously on February 26. One of enemy's artifices in election is creation of bipolarity like 'governmental' and 'anti-governmental' parliaments, Khamenei said, adding that Iranians want neither a governmental, nor an anti-governmental parliament, but a brave, faithful parliament aware of its duties and not bullied by US. He further said that the Islamic Republic enemy has failed to prevent people's allegiance to the Islamic establishment. "When after 37 years and with all pressures, cruel sanctions and promotions enemy couldn't prevent people's allegiance to the system, greatness of the Islamic Revolution awes it," Khamenei said. He called the election a "national rising" in Iran, saying with voting in elections, the Iranian nation stands firm against and defies the enemy. He also criticized using such words as "extremist" and "moderate" for defining political factions in Iran, saying enemies have been using to use these phrases from the first day of the Islamic Revolution. Khamenei went on to say that the founder of the Islamic Republic Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini was seen by enemies as the most extremist person, adding that today he himself is known as the most extremist person in Iran. Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 24 By Farhad Daneshvar - Trend: Iran's Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh has called on Iranians to show high turnout in the upcoming elections for parliament and the Assembly of Experts to be held on Feb. 26. "I request all eligible voters to participate in the election," Zanganeh said in a video message, published on Iran's video sharing website Aparat. Saying that casting ballots will contribute to fulfill the goals aimed at developing the country in the post-sanctions era, he described the elections as an essential step towards creating job opportunities and economic growth. "Elections are of high importance for our country. We decide about our fate through elections. If people want development in the country they should go to the polling stations," he added. I am really hopeful that the high turnout at the elections will open a new chapter in the economic development of Iran, he concluded. Iranians will elect both law makers for parliament and clerics for the Assembly of Experts on February 26. The Assembly of Experts is comprised of 86 Islamic scholars (Mujtahids) who are elected by the public to eight-year terms. The Assembly of Experts is an influential body in charge of supervising the supreme leader and organizations under his direct control as well as electing a successor for him. Election campaigns are heating up in the Islamic Republic as the two main rival political groups of conservatives and reformists are making efforts to secure more seats in the both parliament and the Assembly of Experts. Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 24 By Farhad Daneshvar - Trend: The UK consular service in Tehran has resumed its regular activities and issuing visa for Iranians, ISNA news agency reported. British embassy was shut down in 2011 after it was stormed by protesters during a demonstration against nuclear sanctions. The embassy was reopened, nearly four years after it was closed during Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond's visit to Tehran in August 2015. The reopening came weeks after Iran and the world powers reached a nuclear agreement aimed at curbing its nuclear program. However, the embassy did not issue visa after reopening and the decision to issue visa comes following agreements between Tehran and London during Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif's visit to the UK over the past month. Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 24 By Khalid Kazimov - Trend: Iranians will cast ballots on Feb. 26 to elect new parliamentarians and theologians for the country's top clerical body that appoints the country's most influential person, the Supreme Leader. The key elections are taking place six weeks after the removal of international sanctions against the Islamic Republic. While the moderate President Hassan Rouhani wants the majority of the seats in the currently conservative-populated parliament and the Assembly of Experts to be occupied by his supporters, the rival conservatives are making all-out efforts to protect the seats. Moderates set to win This morning the pragmatic Rouhani sent mass text messages to Iranians' cell phones urging them to head to the polls on Friday. "Today the country needs you," the message read. A strong vote in favor of moderates would help Rouhani to materialize his 2013 electoral promises and reinforce his chance to re-assume office ahead of the next year's presidential elections. After removal of the sanctions, the next step for the moderate president to fulfill his electoral promises regarding economic situation and welfare in the country will be luring foreign investments. Rouhani needs his allies in the parliament to give support for the administration's economic plans. After Rouhani's breakthrough in foreign policy, which led to the removal of sanctions, the rivals slowed down moderate president's attempts to go further with his economic and social reform promises. Indeed, Rouhani needs the legislator's "go on" for attracting foreign investment and inking new oil deals to renew the country's aging industry and create new job opportunities. For this purpose, through separate video appeals Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh and Ali Rabiee, Iran's minister of labor, requested Iranians to show high turnout in the upcoming elections. "Elections are of high importance for our country. We decide about our fate through elections. If people want development in the country they should go to the polling stations," Zanganeh said. Meanwhile a number of Iranian movie celebrities have backed the moderates through video messages posted online. Conservatives backlash Conservatives surprised Iranians prior to the first ballots after the removal of sanctions with a very rare move. The surprising move came when the conservatives, who see their seats at the stake, decided to involve hoodlums (Louti in Persian) in the electoral campaign. Just a couple of days ago a group of Louties appeared at a conservative electoral meeting in Tehran. The participation of Louties, who look like movie characters, was surprising as they have never been widely involved in such gatherings. On the contrary, the country's conservative dominated and state-run TV has depicted such characters as pro-king villains in historical dramas about the overthrown Pahlavi dynasty. In the Iranian street culture, Louties represent the small gangs involved in minor crimes and sometimes grave ones. They are famous for street fights involving the use of knives. Trying to attract different groups of voters during electoral campaigns is not such a surprise. However, it seems very surprising that Iranian conservatives, who traditionally are after protecting Islamic values and principles, have decided to get help from Louties. In a similar move a conservative candidate appeared in footage with people looking like hooligans, who are shown to vow support for conservatives at the upcoming elections. Iranian Nobel laureate and lawyer, Shirin Ebadi, commenting on the issue has told Trend that the Iranian "hardliners", using such people, are aiming at securing more ballots in their own favor to stay in power and avoid losing privileges. Meanwhile, she believes that Iranian authorities are planning to prove the system's legitimacy through elections. "The Islamic Republic of Iran aims to attract a large number of voters to polling stations in order to show its legitimacy." Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 23 By Umid Niayesh - Trend: Iran's FM Spokesperson Jaberi Ansari in a Feb. 22 presser announced that Iran and Russia are negotiating on next-generation of S300 air defense missile system, adding the details will be announced to the public in due time. Iranian military expert Hossein Aryan believes that the mentioned system is the S-300 VM, which is called Antey-2500 in the media. Aryan told Trend that Iran was to receive five units of the S-300PMU2, which Russia has stopped to manufacture, however, the country offered Iran Antey-2500 - the different and upgraded type of the S-300 system. Last week Russia rejected reports about starting shipment of the missiles to Iran, saying Tehran has yet to pay for the missiles. The $800-million contract to deliver S-300 to Iran was cancelled in 2010 by then Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, falling in line with the UN sanctions imposed on Iran due to its disputed nuclear program. In turn, Tehran filed a currently pending $4 billion lawsuit against Russia in Geneva's arbitration court. However, Russia President Vladimir Putin signed a decree to lift the ban over delivering the long-overdue missile system to Iran in April 2015. Aryan said that Iran's air defense system is aged, however it bought 29 units Tor-M1 surface-to-air missile system from Russia in 2007 to meet its air defense demands. Iran plans to give a better cover to its air zone combining Tor-M1 with the long awaited S-300 air defense missile system which enjoys a range up to 200 km, he added. The S-300 is used mainly for defensive purposes, however, it can also be used for offensive purposes, Aryan said, adding that Iran could use the system in a possible confrontation against the US aircrafts in the Persian Gulf or the Arab countries. Aryan further commented about the capabilities of Bavar 373 long-range air defense system or as Iranian military officials claim the domestic version of the S-300. If they are capable of manufacturing a home-made version of S-300 then buying Russian system makes no sense, he said, adding that statements regarding the capabilities of Bavar 373 are exaggerated and are not reflecting the reality. Iran raised the issue of Bavar 373 during its disputes with Russia, according to the expert. The Bavar 373 system would be tested by March 2016. Iranian security officials claim that, Bavar 373 is better than the Russian S-300, as it is able to track over 100 targets, just like the Russian system but with a higher targeting capability. While responding to a question about buying Sukhoi Su-30SM multi-role fighter jets from Russia, Aryan said Tehran plans to renew its aged air force by Russian help. Iran wants to renew its air force following the removal of international sanctions, Aryan said, adding that Sukhoi Su-30SM can improve Iran's air force's capabilities. Last week Russian media outlets quoted a senior official at Russia's arms export agency as saying that Moscow will sign a contract this year with Iran to supply a batch of its Sukhoi Su-30SM fighters to the Islamic Republic. The US believes that the Russian sale of fighter jets to Iran would violate a UN arms embargo on Tehran. According to Aryan if the case is taken to the UN Security Council it will have chance to pass, giving the new positive atmosphere following the nuclear deal. "I believe that the France, UK and US will get along with the Russia on the issue," he said, adding that otherwise they will have no choice but to impose individual sanctions on Tehran. Follow the author on Twitter: @UmidNiayesh Tehran, Iran, Feb. 24 By Mehdi Sepahvand - Trend: Iran has prevented one woman and three men from being trafficked into the country from Turkmenistan via Lotfabad checkpoint. The four have stated they were trying to go to Turkey and from there to Germany, ISNA news agency reported Feb. 24. The four people were Afghan nationals hidden in a cargo of cotton, Bazargan border customhouse director, Tohid Azarbod said. He added that a few days earlier the customhouse security arrested a bus that was carrying 41 kilograms of gold from Turkey into Iran. Iranian security forces seized some 536 tons of various drugs in a 10-month period, Parviz Afshar, spokesman with Iran Drug Control Headquarters, said earlier. At least 68 armed smugglers and two policemen were killed during the period, Afshar added. Over 412 tons of opium was sized in the 10-month period, Afshar said, adding that Iranian security forces also seized some 15 tons of heroin and crack, as well as 80 tons of hashish, 1.5 tons of methamphetamine and 6.7 tons of morphine from drug traffickers in the mentioned period. Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 24 By Elena Kosolapova - Trend: The sides of the Syrian conflict will agree to a ceasefire, approved Feb. 22 by the presidents of Russia and the US, says Yevgeny Satanovsky, president of the Moscow-based Institute for Middle Eastern Studies. "There will be provocations, but there is a high probability that the agreement will be implemented," Satanovsky told Trend Feb. 24. Syria has been suffering from an armed conflict since March 2011, which, according to the UN, has so far claimed the lives of more than 220,000 people. Militants from various armed groups are confronting the Syrian government troops. The "Islamic State" (aka IS, ISIS, ISIL, or Daesh) and Jabhat al-Nusra terrorist groups are the most active ones in Syria. Earlier on Feb. 22, the presidents of Russia and the US approved the ceasefire, which is to start Feb. 27 at midnight. Terrorist groups, such as IS and Jabhat al-Nusra, are not part of the ceasefire truce. Satanovsky further said Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and the part of the opposition, which is not included in Jabhat al-Nusra and the IS, as well as other groups listed by the UN as terrorist, will agree with this agreement. Meanwhile, he believes that not all the countries involved in the conflict in Syria are ready for the ceasefire agreement. So, in his opinion, Turkey is not ready for such a step, "while Saudi Arabia and Qatar will act indirectly using terrorists controlled by them." --- Follow the author on Twitter: @E_Kosolapova Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 24 By Aygun Badalova - Trend: US-Russia deal on a partial truce in Syria will not be effective and long lasting, Michael Rubin, the former Pentagon advisor on Middle East, and scholar at the American Enterprise Institute (AEI) believes. "The basic problem is that neither the Russians nor the Americans have such control over their respective proxies as to get them to obey," Rubin told Trend. The US and Russia announced plans for a 'cessation of hostilities' in Syria that would take effect on Saturday but exclude groups such as the IS (ISIS, ISIL or Daesh) and al Qaeda's Nusra Front, a flaw immediately highlighted by Syrian rebels. Rubin believes the deal rather reflects wishful thinking. "I'd be surprised if any pause in the fighting lasts more than a day or two and, rather than seek peace, the multiple sides will just dig in and resupply," he said. Rubin doesn't believe that the Syrian government and Syria's armed opposition will agree to a cessation of hostilities. "There is a greater chance that the Pope will convert to Judaism or that Jamaica will win the most medals at the next Winter Olympics," he said. He also doesn't believe the deal can help to bring peace to Syria. "Secretary of State John Kerry is agreeing to anything to be able to say he has a deal. But, the Syrian opposition aren't basing their tactical decisions on Kerry's inflated ego," Rubin said. So far, the talks between Syrian government and opposition groups have not yielded any positive results, with both sides blaming each other for the collapse of the talks. Over 250,000 people have died and at least 11 million have been displaced in Syria, since the crisis broke out in 2011. At least 13 people have been killed in airstrikes carried out by Saudi jets in Yemen's northern Jawf Province, Press TV reported. The Yemeni al-Masirah television said on Wednesday that the airstrikes, which targeted trucks carrying foodstuff eight times, took place in Jawf's town of al-Matammah. Different areas in Jawf were also attacked by Saudi airstrikes. The news source also reported an airstrike against the town of Sirwah in the eastern Ma'rib Province. Two residential areas and a medical center also came under attack in Sirwah. Meanwhile, Saba Net news agency, citing a Yemeni military source, said army forces backed by Popular Committees had managed to seize a warship belonging to mercenaries fighting for Saudi Arabia. The warship was reportedly seeking to enter the al-Fazeh port area off the coast of Khokha, near Hudaydah. The region of Abas in northwestern Hajjah province also came under Saudi attack. Yemen has been under military attacks by Saudi Arabia since late March last year. The Saudi military strikes were launched to bring the fugitive former president, Abd Rabbu Mansur Hadi, back to power. At least 8,300 people, among them 2,236 children, have been killed and 16,015 others injured since March 2015. The strikes have also taken a heavy toll on the impoverished country's facilities and infrastructure, destroying many hospitals, schools, and factories. A meeting of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries member states and other oil producing countries on the issue of the freeze of oil output may take place mid-March, the Venezuelan oil minister said. "An expanded meeting of OPEC and non-OPEC producing countries that support production freeze will be held in mid-March," Eulogio Del Pino said on his Twitter account on Tuesday. The minister added that consultations with all major oil producers would take place to agree on date and place of the meetings would also take place. On February 16, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Venezuela held talks on the current oil market situation in the Qatari capital of Doha and agreed to proceed with the output freezing initiative if other countries followed suit. The proposal was later backed by Ecuador, Algeria, Nigeria and Oman. The oversupply of oil on the world market and declining economic growth among leading consumers has resulted in oil prices reaching their lowest levels since 2004. Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 24 By Anakhanum Khidayatova - Trend: Syria's ceasefire agreement offered by Russia and the US smells of a "Minsk" type agreement, Michael Jabara Carley, professor at the University of Montreal, said. He said that the agreement will hardly to bring any significant results. The expert added that the agreement is intended to split off some of the people fighting Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's government. "I do not know why the Russian government agreed to this agreement, except as some kind of con job to finesse the US into changing its policies toward the Syrian government," he said. "The US has not changed its policy and still backs so called moderate Jihadists," the expert said. The US Department of State issued a joint statement made by the US, Russia and other countries of the International Syria Support Group Feb. 22. According to the statement, a truce between the forces of the Syrian government and the armed opposition groups must be reached from February 27. But it will not be applied to the IS, Jabhat al-Nusra and other groups recognized by the UN as terrorist groups. The professor also expressed doubts that the Russian policy can somehow change the situation in Syria. He said that this puts Turkey and Saudi Arabia temporarily in an awkward position, but they will continue fighting against President Assad. The professor said that the Syrian war is a long way from over. Commenting on the upcoming parliamentary election in Syria, the professor assumed that if President Assad said there will be elections, there will be elections. "But for now the only issue that really counts is the war and who wins it," he said. "The rest is purely decorative." Syria has been suffering from an armed conflict since March 2011, which, according to the UN, has so far claimed the lives of over 220,000 people. Militants from various armed groups are confronting the Syrian government troops. The "Islamic State" and Jabhat al-Nusra are the most active terrorist groups in Syria. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has set the parliamentary election in the country for April 13. The US Congress should postpone an immediate vote to reauthorize the 2006 Iran Sanctions Act until further along in the implementation of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), Secretary of State John Kerry told the Senate Appropriations Committee on Wednesday, Sputnik reported. "I don't think there is a need to rush here. I would like to see how the [JCPOA] implementation goes," Kerry said when asked if he supports the immediate congressional reauthorization of the Iran Sanctions Act. The 2006 sanctions against Iran are set to expire at the end of 2016. US lawmakers have argued to reauthorize the act in the event Iran fails to comply with the terms of the internationally negotiated nuclear agreement reached last July. Kerry encouraged lawmakers to "not immediately" consider the Iran sanctions reauthorization, saying, "we are just beginning now to see the full implementation" of the JCPOA. Under the JCPOA, Iran was given relief from all nuclear-related sanctions in exchange for maintaining a peaceful nature of its nuclear program. Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 24 By Rufiz Hafizoglu - Trend: There are no guarantees of support from Arab countries if Turkey starts ground-based operations in Syria, said Prime Minister of Turkey Ahmet Davutoglu, the Turkish newspaper Hurriyet reported Feb. 24. Davutoglu said that none of the Arab countries supported the Syrian opposition the way Turkey did. "If today, Assad's army has no full control over Syria, it is only thanks to the support of Turkey," said Davutoglu. He went on to add that now for Turkey the security of its borders is most important, and every effort will be made to ensure it. Earlier, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said that Turkey and Saudi Arabia are not planning to launch joint military operations in Syria. Moreover, previously, Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir stated that ground-based military operations planned by Saudi Arabia in Syria are not against the country's President Bashar al-Assad, but the IS. He added that Saudi Arabia's intention to participate in the ground-based operations in Syria shows that the country is not indifferent to the growth of terrorism threat in the region. Syria has been suffering from an armed conflict since March 2011, which, according to the UN, has so far claimed the lives of over 220,000 people. Militants from various armed groups are confronting the Syrian government troops. The "Islamic State" and Jabhat al-Nusra are the most active terrorist groups in Syria. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @rhafizoglu Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 24 By Rufiz Hafizoglu - Trend: Head of Turkey's oppositional Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) Devlet Bahceli has called on the armed forces to completely destroy the positions of People's Protection Units (YPG) in Syria and Iraq, Turkish YeniSafak newspaper reported Feb. 24. Bahceli noted that currently, Turkey faces a serious threat and the country's army should shell the positions of the militants. Turkey has been periodically shelling the positions of terrorists throughout two weeks in response to the shelling of its territories by PKK's Syrian wing - Democratic Union Party (PYD). Turkey launched a missile attack on PYD positions for the first time on Feb.19. Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the National Defense Minister Ismet Yilmaz have said that the country will continue shelling the PYD positions. The Democratic Union Party was listed as a terrorist organization in Turkey. Edited by SI --- Follow the author on Twitter: @rhafizoglu Huawei says that its new air interface technology will help the development of 5G technology around the globe. (Photo : Getty Images) Leading Chinese electronics powerhouse Huawei has recently unveiled its first personal computer for businesses marking its foray into the premium business market currently dominated by Apple and Microsoft, Agence France-Presse reported. Advertisement Huawei launched the device on the eve of the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain. The event is regarded as the top global annual trade show for wireless devices. The MateBook, a convertible tablet, weighs 640 grams without the keyboard and has a 12-inch display. The gadget also features a battery life that lasts 10 hours under standard use. For Richard Yu, Huawei's consumer devices chief, the gadget will be helpful for the individuals in the said market as "business people need a long-lasting battery." The MateBook also has a fingerprint reader and can be fastened to its keyboard case using magnets, the report added. The gadget's entry-level model, which has 128 GB, is available for $890, while the top model is priced at $1,986. "Huawei MateBook is a new style of design, mobility, and productivity and usability to bring you a new style of business," Yu said. Earlier this year, Yu revealed Huawei's plan to overtake rivals Apple and Samsung to be the world's number one maker of smartphones. The Chinese giant eyes to realize this plan in three or four years. As part of the firm's strategy, Huawei wants to shift its budget supplier image "to target higher-margin premium models." Last year, Huawei broke records as it became the first Chinese smartphone seller to post a sales of over 100 million units in a year. Despite local market slowdown, the firm gained strong domestic and Western Europe sales. Founded by former Chinese army engineer Ren Zhengfei, Huawei has transformed from being a local brand to a global powerhouse. The firm earned a 7.7-percent share in last year's third quarter, according to research group Gartner, coming behind U.S.'s Apple and Korea's Samsung. Huawei first launched its Android device in 2009 to serve as a complement to its prime business of making networking facilities and equipment. Actor Charlie Sheen revealed on TV in 2015 that he was HIV positive. (Photo : YouTube/Doctor Oz) Google searches for HIV-related information hit a record high in the United States after actor Charlie Sheen's public disclosure of being HIV positive. Recent research in a medical journal is calling the revelation the "Sheen Effect." Those who conducted the study discovered that Google searches for HIV-related information had increased by more than two million inquiries. Investigators matched statistic soon after the star of "Two And A Half Men" made the announcement on U.S. TV in 2015, BBC reported. Advertisement Researchers who are calling this the "Sheen Effect" say HIV activists could further capitalize on the star's revelation to raise more awareness of the condition. The findings were published in the Journal of the American Medical Association Of Internal Medicine. Prof. John Ayers, from San Diego State University, told the journal that Sheen's disclosure could benefit public health. Ayers said Sheen's celebrity status has the potential to encourage others to learn more about HIV and HIV prevention, although any diagnosis is tragic. In relative terms, the HIV-related searches were more than 400 percent higher on the day of Sheen's disclosure, the Journal revealed. This includes searches for information on HIV. Condom searches, including those such as "buy condoms," increased by 75 percent. Searches on HIV symptoms, such as "HIV signs" and "HIV testing" increased in searches by more than 500 percent and 200 percent respectively. The journal recorded these figures on the day of Sheen's disclosure. According to media reports, Sheen told TV host Matt Lauer in 2015 that he had paid millions to keep people who discovered his condition from going public with it. At the time, Sheen said he was compelled to go public with the disclosure in a bid to stop the onslaught and a barrage of attacks. Meanwhile, Sheen is not the only Hollywood celebrity to draw attention to health issues. Issues of breast cancer and breast removal increased after "Maleficent" star Angelina Jolie underwent similar surgeries. The death of TV star Jade Goody drew increased attention to cervical cancer. Goody's death increased awareness on the importance of early screening for cervical cancer. Watch the clip below as Sheen discusses his condition with Doctor Oz: State-backed Tsinghua Unigroup may face scrutiny by the new Taiwan government on its offer to buy stakes in three Taiwanese chip firms. (Photo : REUTERS) China's Tsinghua Unigroup is apprehensive that its $2.6 billion offer for stakes in three Taiwanese chip firms will face unprecedented scrutiny by the new government and complicate the chance of success, Reuters reported. Advertisement As a step toward building China's own semiconductor industry, the state-backed conglomerate intends to buy into the island's technology sector. However, its offers have become a target of political attack as cross-straits economic ties were a much-debated issue during the Taiwan election. According to the report, Taiwan's fears that China may influence its foremost industries have prompted the government to review Tsinghua's offers. Taiwanese regulators and executives at the targeted firms said that China's offer will be subject for review by the newly elected parliament, national security advisors and financial regulators, and requested its management team make its case personally to a government panel. "We said from the start that it will not entirely be approved," said Emile Chang, executive secretary of Taiwan's Investment Commission, the agency under the Ministry of Economic Affairs in charge of reviewing inbound and outbound investment. "Whether one or two of the cases can pass, we need to see the review process," Chang told Reuters. Tsinghua, however, is aware that all three deals may not receive approval due to the change in government, and said that it will continue with overseas acquisitions on Taiwan and the United States, a source familiar with Tsinghua told Reuters. The report said that Tsinghua is yet to submit investment plans to Taiwan regulators and declined to comment. Last year, Tsinghua made offers for a quarter each of chip testing and packaging companies Powertech Technology Inc., ChipMOS Technologies Inc. and Siliconware Precision Industries Co. Ltd. According to the report, Tsinghua will inject a total of $2.6 billion into the three in exchange for stakes and one board seat with no management control. The offers came after Tsinghua's informal $23 billion takeover bid on Micron Technology Inc. was rejected by the U.S. over national security concerns. "Security and business concerns over relying on Chinese suppliers include intellectual property and trade secrets protection, competitiveness, and innovation," said Rupert Hammond-Chambers, president of the U.S.-Taiwan Business Council, in a commentary labeling Tsinghua's moves "hostile." Rupert noted that Taiwan's new government will need policies to keep businesses free of Chinese control and ensure Taiwan's role as a major player in the global technology supply chain. During his campaign, President-elect Tsai Ing-wen of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said that the offers were tricky and could lead to Taiwan surrendering control of its tech industry. "From the country's point of view, this is not just a business deal," said Wu Tsong-tseng, a DPP adviser on technology issues during the election. Meanwhile, in January, shareholders of Powertech and ChipMOS have approved the plans as they seek capital to expand and survive in a global chip sector undergoing record merger-and-acquisition activities. Siliconware, which scheduled a shareholder vote for Jan. 28, postponed the voting due to the political timing, spokesman Byron Chiang said. Powertech Chairman D.K. Tsai said that the other deals were unexpected as he was committed to seeing through Powertech's application and that he would "respect any (government) decision." "I am regretful that this matter became emotional for society and a political factor," Tsai told reporters after shareholders accepted the offer. Foreign Minister Wang Yi is in a U.S. visit to discuss sensitive issues such as the South China dispute and North Korea's rocket launches. (Photo : REUTERS) Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi is scheduled to visit the United States this week, a move which is seen to boost "pragmatic cooperation," according to China Daily. Ahead of the foreign minister's visit, however, China hit back at U.S. criticism that the country is promoting militarization with its presence on the South China Sea, hinting about the U.S.'s own defense deployment in Hawaii. Advertisement "China's deploying necessary, limited defensive facilities on its own territory is not substantively different from the U.S. defending Hawaii," Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said on Monday, Feb. 21. During the daily news conference in Beijing, Hua confirmed that Wang will visit the U.S. from Tuesday, Feb. 22, to Thursday, Feb. 25. The visit is expected "to deepen pragmatic cooperation and to constructively tackle sensitive issues," the spokeswoman said. The report said the visit will likely result in a third meeting within the month, between Wang and his counterpart, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry. Hua said that "China and the U.S. are expected to exchange views on the Korean Peninsula nuclear issue during Wang's visit," in response to the impending U.N. sanctions against the Democratic People's Republic of Korea on its rocket launches. Hua added that the parties are urged to bring the nuclear issue back to dialogue, to discuss a dual mechanism for the denuclearization of the peninsula and a shift from truce to peace. Diplomatic contacts between Beijing and Washington stepped up after a U.S. Navy warship's incursion into China's territorial waters in the South China Sea and Pyongyang's nuclear test. On Jan. 27, Kerry visited China and talked with Wang in Beijing. The two met again in Munich, Germany, on Feb. 12. When asked what message Beijing will send to Washington on the South China Sea, Hua said that China expects the U.S. to be "fully committed to its promise of not taking positions on the relevant disputes." Hua added that the U.S. should "stop hyping the South China Sea issue and the tense atmosphere there" and should play a "constructive" role in the region rather than "making an issue." Teng Jianqun, a senior research fellow on U.S. studies at the China Institute of International Studies, said that Wang's visit is "needed and helpful" for more dialogue to tackle the issues, adding that the U.S. forces "possibly will remain tough and will continue challenging China militarily as they have done recently." Aside from addressing the hot spots, the meeting will also set the senior diplomats for annual bilateral events, such as the Strategic and Economic Dialogue, and discuss expected contacts between leaders on international occasions, Teng added. The Center for Strategic and International Studies said on its website that Wang is set to address the think tank's "Statesmen's Forum" on Thursday morning local time. Wang will join a discussion on Chinese foreign policy and U.S.-China relations, the center said. Jin Canrong, a professor of international relations at Renmin University of China, said that competition and cooperation co-exist in China-U.S. ties, and the reinforced competition in the South China Sea brings no change to such a big picture. "The situation in the South China Sea is controllable, and so will it be in the future," Jin said, as the U.S. allies in the region, unlike the U.S., are not likely to resort to military action. Windows 10 Mobile OTA update for Lumia 930, 830, 735, 640, 640 XL, 634, 540, 535, 532, 435 and 430 will roll out on Feb. 29 (Photo : YouTube/ How To Do That) Microsoft is prospected to launch the Windows 10 Mobile OTA update at the end of February, and a set of Lumia flagship smartphones are going to get upgraded to Windows 10 Mobile. Currently, the fresh Lumia 650, Lumia 550, Lumia 950 and Lumia 950 XL are the only phones that come preloaded with Windows 10 Mobile. Other Lumia devices either run on Windows 8.1 for phones or a preview version of the Windows 10 Mobile. Advertisement According to MS Power User, the Redmond giant will start rolling out the Windows 10 Mobile upgrade on Feb. 29. All smartphones currently running on Lumia Denim and Windows Phone 8.1 are eligible for the upgrade, except for some unsupported Lumia devices. Although Microsoft is going to release the update on a specific date, all the devices will not be capable of receiving the upgrade at the same time. The first set of devices that will be receiving the update include Lumia 430, Lumia 435, Lumia 532, Lumia 535, Lumia 540, Lumia 634, Lumia 640, Lumia 735, Lumia 830 and Lumia 930, Mobi Picker reported. While there are rumors of other upcoming partners like Xiaomi and OnePlus, Microsoft has not yet confirmed any other hardware partners for the Windows 10 Mobile OS. However, in the near future, there is a possibility of them surfacing. The Redmond giant had communicated in mid-2015 that it would be releasing the Windows 10 Mobile upgrade for the eligible devices by December the same year. Nevertheless, the company did not manage to keep its promise and the process got rescheduled to the eve of this year. Since then, an employee from Microsoft Mexico has disclosed that the software update will be available by Feb. 29 although there has not been any official confirmation on the issue from Microsoft. The source, however, is deemed to be reliable since they had revealed information concerning Lumia 950 and 950 XL two weeks before their unveiling. Following the fact that Windows Phone did not see the success that Microsoft had hoped, there has been much unease about the Windows 10 Mobile as well. This time, Microsoft may as well push its way through the limits to partner with more hardware companies in order to see the success of Windows 10 Mobile. Watch a video clip of the windows 10 Mobile features here; Two months after the New Years Eve sexual assault incidents in Cologne and other European cities, the question of integration of Muslim migrants and refugees in Europe has become more pressing with protests supporting and opposing the far right anti-Islamic movement Pegida in a string of European cities. Rallies for and against the mass migration and the so-called "Islamization of Europe" gathered momentum in early February in Dresden, Prague, Dublin, Amsterdam, Warsaw, Bratislava, Birmingham, and the French cities of Montpellier, Calais, and Austrias Graz. "The society here has been worrying about the refugee issue for quite a while. There was a big split within German society. After Cologne's incident the worries have doubled," Sherif El-Sabbahy, an Egyptian student residing in Mannheim, Germany working in a refugee camp told Ahram Online in a web interview. A string of mob sexual assaults took place in Germanys Cologne as well as other European cities such as Zurich on New Year's Eve, with reports claiming that the perpetrators were of North African origin. The number of victims reached 730, according to the latest figures. This comes at a time when Europe has been facing a growing migrant crisis, with the influx of thousands of refugees from the atrocious Syrian conflict--which has forced more than four million to flee the country--in addition to the influx of migrants from the MENA region in general. After the attack, Pegida movement protested in Cologne, claiming that there is a direct connection between the assault incident and the government's "open door" policy towards refugees. Pegida, which stands for Patriotic Europeans Against the Islamisation of the West, is a far-right anti-Islamic movement founded in Dresden, Germany in 2014 before spreading across Europe. On the rise of anti-Islamization movements in Europe, Anthony Messina, Professor of Political Science at Trinity College, said that there is definitely a surge of these movements and popular support for them across Europe. However, Messina explained that this surge is uneven in the major countries of Muslim immigrant settlement. Some countries have demonstrated a less hospitable environment for these movements than several of the newer countries of immigration in Central and Eastern Europe, such as Hungary. Eslam Sabee, a 26-year-old Egyptian working in Berlin, said that he was treated with hostility by an airport official who explicitly and bluntly told him that it was because he is not an EU citizen. Sabee, who has been living in Germany for almost three years, said that this kind of behaviour was unprecedented. Falling into Xenophobia: Us vs. Them "Xenophobia has been on the rise in Europe for several years now. At the same time, we are witnessing a rise in extreme right political parties and populist tendencies in many mainstream parties too," said Marc Pierini, a visiting scholar at Carnegie Europe in an online interview. According to European Union reports in early 2015, there has been an increase in fear and insecurity among the Muslim communities in the EU, especially in the past two years, as reports provide growing evidence in many European countries of very high rates of anti-Muslim actions, including instances of verbal and physical violence. "There is a distinct risk of xenophobia rising more, as some actors on the political spectrum will no doubt use incidents such as those in Cologne and the wave of refugees to make political benefits," he went on. European states have begun to adopt more restrictive and even discriminatory practices against migrants and refugees, as several eastern European countries have sealed their borders. Danish authorities actually ratified new law allowing the seizure of refugees cash and valuables. Germany, which once had the warmest welcome for refugees and received around 1.1 million asylum-seekers and irregular migrants in 2015, witnessed rising support for the right-wing Alternative for Germany (AfD). An AfD leader said in an interview published on January 30th that border guards should shoot at refugees to prevent them from illegally entering the country, Reuters reported. Building on Pierini, Messina, who is an expert on politics of migration to Europe, attributes the rise of these movements to a confluence of objective negative events such as the recent acts of terror in France coupled with the political exploitation of these events by illiberal, far right political entrepreneurs." In November 2015, a series of attacks left at least 140 people dead and 352 injured in Paris as seven IS militants launched gun attacks at cafes, detonated suicide bombs near France's national stadium and killed hostages inside a concert venue. These acts give more credit to the extreme right wing anti refugee groups, ultimately causing a steep rise in the number of people opposing refugees, El-Sabbahy said. Such assaults will have an impact on [society's] view of Arabs and refugees' and will eventually affect their acceptance and integration into society. On the anniversary of the Charlie Hebdo massacre of 7 January, when 12 people were killed by militant gunmen, the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo depicted drowned Syrian toddler Aylan Kurdi as a grown-up sexually harassing women in Germany, which triggered strong criticism on social networks. The cartoon shows a pervert chasing a woman, with the caption asking: "What would have become of small Aylan if he grew up?" "Someone who gropes asses in Germany," referring to New Year's sexual assaults. In France, there has been a 53% increase of individual attacks against Muslims from 2012 to 2014 and at least 153 Islamophobic incidents against individuals and places of worship have been documented in 2015. Hate crimes against Muslims increase with terrorist acts linked to Islamist extremist militant groups such as the Paris attacks claimed by ISIS. At the beginning of January 2016, the European Union hired an anti-Islamophobia coordinator as part of the protocol adopted in October 2015. The EU appointment is a move in the right direction but the task is immense because it touches many different aspects of life and politics: politics, security, education, human rights, civic dialogue, and mediation. The job of a coordinator might help in integrating these different aspects into a consistent framework, Pierini remarked. The Colloquium called for joining forces to encourage a culture of inclusive tolerance and respect in the European Union. Nonetheless, Messina contends that the coordinator and the EU are too far detached from local and national events and conditions that are feeding anti-Muslim hatred. Even if they were not [detached], it is far from clear that governments can effectively combat such hatred, he explains. That said, through their policies and speech, mainstream political actors can influence the social environment within which such hatred finds political exposure and, in this sense, they can undercut popular anti-Muslim sentiment. Future of Muslims in Europe The future of Muslim migrants and refugees in Europe remains unclear with anti-Muslim tendencies on the rise. "Refugees are worried that the incidents could create a stereotype about them all being harassers or rapists, which would slow down their acceptance in the society," says El-Sabbahy. "The refugee camp I work in started having lots of more security checks on all the gates and usually they'd search all the bags and keep records of who's going in and out. It wasn't that strict before," the 23-year-old said. Pierini agrees, asserting that "there is indeed a distinct danger of generalisation of negative and hostile feelings against refugees and of an exploitation of the outrage caused by these attacks by some political forces in Germany and in Europe more generally," Czech President Milos Zeman, known for his fiery anti-migrant comments, said mid-January that it was almost impossible to integrate the Muslim community into European society. Zeman has previously stated that the Czech Republic is willing to take only Christian refugees fleeing the Islamic State (IS) group in Iraq and Syria. However, El-Sabbahy, who is working in a refugee camp in Germany, is optimistic. Many of the refugees I deal with are very friendly and willing to adapt to their new society. Many, including the children, are taking big steps to understand the culture and learn the language, which makes communication a lot easier and so there are fewer misunderstandings, he highlighted. "They have already been transferred to their permanent residences and started merging into normal everyday life. So, as much as the tension increases, time will loosen it up and they will understand each other more to get along better," concluded El-Sabbahy. Search Keywords: Short link: Saudi Arabia on Tuesday urged its citizens in Lebanon to leave, after Riyadh halted a $3 billion programme funding military supplies to Beirut in response to "hostile" positions linked to Hezbollah. Saudi ally and fellow Gulf Cooperation Council member the United Arab Emirates followed suit but went even further, banning its nationals from going to Lebanon and reducing its diplomatic representation there. In Riyadh, the foreign ministry issued a statement calling on "all citizens not to travel to Lebanon, for their safety, and asking citizens residing in Lebanon or visiting not to stay unless extremely necessary," the official SPA news agency reported. Announcing the Saudi aid halt on Friday, an official said the kingdom had noticed "hostile Lebanese positions resulting from the stranglehold of Hezbollah on the state". Riyadh was making "a comprehensive review of its relations with the Lebanese republic", the unnamed official said, cited by SPA. Alleged leaders of the Lebanon-based Hezbollah are under sanction by Saudi Arabia. The Shia militant group is fighting in support of Syria's regime and is backed by Saudi Arabia's regional rival Iran, with whom relations have worsened this year. Riyadh cut diplomatic ties with Tehran last month after demonstrators stormed its embassy and a consulate following the Saudi execution of a prominent Shia cleric. Syria's war has exacerbated political rivalries within Lebanon, which has been without a president for almost two years because of fierce disagreements between Hezbollah and its rivals. The Saudi official quoted on Friday said Lebanon had not joined condemnation of the attacks on its diplomatic missions in Iran, either at the Arab League or the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation. The official also denounced "political and media campaigns inspired by Hezbollah against Saudi Arabia", as well as the group's "terrorist acts against Arab and Muslim nations". Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah last week accused Turkey and Saudi Arabia of dragging the region into war and said "victory" was imminent for his group and its Syrian regime allies. Saudi Arabia supports rebels opposed to Syria's government, and says it is ready to send special forces under a US-led coalition to fight the Islamic State group. In a statement, Hezbollah said Saudi Arabia stopped the military aid because of economic pressures from the war in Yemen, where it leads an Arab military coalition fighting Iran-backed rebels, and lower oil revenues. On Friday Saudi Arabia also stopped the remainder of a $1 billion financing package for Lebanese internal security forces, in a separate decision. The $3 billion deal funded military equipment provided by France and was to ship vehicles, helicopters, drones, artillery and other equipment to Lebanon. Search Keywords: Short link: Court orders the release of Mohamed El-Zawahri on parole, the brother of current Al-Qaeda leader A Cairo criminal court ordered on Tuesday the release of prominent jihadist Mohamed El-Zawahri on parole pending trial. According to El-Zawahri's lawyer Adel Moawad, his client should be released soon as he is not detained in any other case. The prosecution has the right to appeal the court decision. A judicial source told Ahram Arabic website that the decision to release El-Zawahri pending trial was due to his poor health condition. According to Judge Hussein Farid, the head of the Cairo Criminal Court that released El-Zawahri, the defendant must show up to court every 45 days and be under police surveillance. El-Zawahri is officially accused of joining a terrorist organisation Al-Qaeda as well as other charges including attempting to overthrow the regime and promoting radicalism. El-Zawahri, the brother of current Al-Qaeda leader Ayman El-Zawahri, was arrested in August 2013 on charges of membership of a terrorist organisation. In October 2015, El-Zawahri was acquitted of operating a terrorist organisation in what was dubbed the "Al-Zawahri cell" trial, which involved 17 other defendants, 10 of whom were sentenced to death for running a terrorist organisation connected to Al-Qaeda. In 1999, Mohamed El-Zawahri was sentenced to death in absentia for a handful of terrorist attacks in Egypt. In June 2011, a military court accepted El-Zawahri's appeal against the death verdict. The case was closed and the 63-year-old jihadist was released. Search Keywords: Short link: In November, the human rights activist and Mada Masr contributor was detained for four days on charges of 'publishing false news aimed at harming national security' Egyptian investigative journalist Hossam Bahgat was banned on Tuesday from travelling by an order from the country's top prosecutor, according to a post on Bahgat's Facebook account. "I was just told that my name was included among those banned from travelling outside of the country by an order from Egypt's top prosecutor without providing me with more details or a court case record," Bahgat's post read. Bahgat was supposed to travel "to Jordan to participate in the United Nations meeting on justice in the Arab world." Prominent Egyptian activist and lawyer Gamal Eid who is in contact with Bahgat told Ahram Online that Bahgat is still at the airport. Last November, the human rights activist and Mada Masr contributor was detained for four days by military prosecutors on charges of "publishing false news aimed at harming national security." However, Bahgat explained in his online post that since his release he was able to travel twice without any problems. Search Keywords: Short link: El-Zawahris release on parole comes pending trial on a number of terror-related charges. A judicial source told Ahram Arabic website that the decision to release him was due to his poor health Egypts prosecution challenged a Cairo criminal courts Tuesday decision to release on parole jihadist Mohamed El-Zawahri. The long-time jihadist has not yet been released and his fate remains uncertain as the prosecution challenges his parole. Another criminal court division will confirm the decision. El-Zawahris release comes pending trial on a number of terror-related charges. A judicial source told Ahram Arabic website that the decision to release him on parole was due to his poor health. According to Judge Hussein Farid, the head of the Cairo Criminal court that released El-Zawahri, the defendant must show up to court every 45 days and remain under police surveillance. El-Zawahri, who is the brother of Al-Qaedas current leader Ayman El-Zawahri, is officially accused of joining a terrorist organisation Al-Qaeda as well as other charges including attempting to overthrow the regime and promoting radicalism. He was arrested in August 2013 on charges of belonging to a terrorist organisation. In October 2015, El-Zawahri was acquitted of operating a terrorist cell in what was dubbed the "El-Zawahri cell" trial, which included 17 other defendants, 10 of whom were sentenced to death for running a terrorist organisation connected to Al-Qaeda. In 1999, Mohamed El-Zawahri was sentenced to death in absentia for a handful of terrorist attacks in Egypt. In June 2011, a military court accepted El-Zawahri's appeal against the death sentence. The case was closed and the 63-year-old jihadist was released. Search Keywords: Short link: The authors stress article 67 of the constitution stipulates that freedom of artistic and literary creation is guaranteed and that the state shall promote art and literature Seven members of the outgoing 50-member committee that composed Egypts 2014 constitution issued a statement on Monday condemning author Ahmed Najis jail sentence, describing it as "unconstitutional." "Article 67 of the constitution stipulates that freedom of artistic and literary creation is guaranteed and the state shall promote art and literature, sponsor creators and protect their creations, and provide the necessary means of encouragement to achieve this end," the statement read. On Saturday, a Cairo misdemeanour appeal court sentenced Naji to two years in prison for publishing a sexually flagrant article in the state-owned cultural journal Akhbar Al-Adab last year. The court also fined Tareq El-Taher, the editor-in-chief of the journal , EGP 10,000. The statement was signed by poet Sayed Hegab, artist Mohamed Abla, writers Mohamed Salmawi, Moasad Abu El-Fagr, Hoda El-Sada, Hagag Adol, and Former Head of the Social Democratic Party Mohamed Abu El-Ghar. "No lawsuits may be initiated or filed to suspend or confiscate any artistic, literary, or intellectual work, or against their creators except through the public prosecution," the statement demanded. No punishments of custodial sanction may be imposed for crimes committed because of the public nature of the artistic, literary, or intellectual product," the statement added. The verdict against Naji and Taher comes after the prosecution appealed a previous lower court decision cleared on 2 January the two defendants of all charges. The two journalists were originally referred to court on the prosecution's charges last year and stood trial on 14 November 2015. The prosecutor accused Naji of publishing a "flagrant erotic article in which the charged writer published a text that spewed sexual lust and transient pleasures, using his mind and pen to violate public decency and good morals, inciting promiscuity." The seven authors of the constitution called on the prosecutor general to intervene to stop these "unconstitutional" verdicts. They also called on the parliament to review all the restrictive laws against freedom of expression. The court decision provoked wide criticism among writers and artists. On Tuesday, a group of 150 writers, intellectuals, and artists signed a statement condemning the ruling against Naji, saying it violates "general and private freedoms. Several human rights organisations have also expressed solidarity with the author, demanding the sentence be suspended. Meanwhile, Egypt's Journalists Syndicate announced on Tuesday it was organising a press conference on Thursday to show solidarity with Naji and journalists. Search Keywords: Short link: The statement said that the investigative team has identified some of Regeni's contacts, summoning Egyptians and foreigners from his circles and questioning them about their relationship with the student The culprits behind Italian student Giulio Regeni's murder in Cairo have not yet been identified, Egypt's interior ministry said in an official statement on Wednesday. The ministry said in the statement that, some insist on rushing to an outcome of the security investigations and spreading rumors that were published in the foreign press without real evidence False information [is spread] in a way that misleads public opinion, and therefore affects the investigations. The ministry said that the Egyptian security apparatus has formed an investigation team to review the incident and its circumstances through a comprehensive plan with a main focus on Regeni and his relationships. The ministry elaborated that the efforts made by the investigations revealed that Regeni's contacts and circles were wide and his relationships many, even though his stay in the country did not exceed six months. The statement added that the investigative team has identified some of Regeni's contacts, summoning Egyptians and foreigners from those circles and questioning them about their relationship with Regeni. The ministry pointed out that, although the team has not identified the culprits or determined the motive of the crime, the available information raises all possibilities. This includes a suspicion of criminal activity or revenge for personal causes, especially seeing as though Regeni had various relationships in the course of his residency and study. The ministry said it will not hesitate to inform the Egyptian and Italian public on the latest developments. It affirmed that it is cooperating closely with the Italian investigation team currently in Egypt to follow up with the investigations being carried out. Last week, a media official from the interior minister dismissed reports in Western media that Giulio Regeni was arrested by Egyptian security before his death. The body of Regeni, a PhD student who had been conducting research on independent trade union movements in Egypt, was found with signs of torture along a road on the outskirts of Cairo earlier in February. The discovery of Regini's body came nine days after he disappeared on 25 January, the five-year anniversary of the 2011 revolution. Egypt's Forensic Authority sent its own autopsy report to the general prosecution on Saturday. The findings of the report have not been made public yet. Search Keywords: Short link: Egypt's President El-Sisi talked about cabinet performance, the fight against terrorism, and maintaining a balance between rights and state stability Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi said Wednesday that Egypt's main challenge is preserving the integrity of the Egyptian state. "When I talk about protecting the state, I mean keeping the structure of the Egyptian state in order to continue the economic development of [the country]," El-Sisi said in an extensive speech in which he reviewed a number of challenges facing Egypt. The speech came during a conference where Egypts prime minister and cabinet ministers presented the country's 2030 economic and sustainable development vision. The vision aims to secure Egypt's place as one of the best 30 countries in the world in economic and social development terms, as well in anti-corruption measures and the quality of life index, the president said. The government aims to increase economic growth rates to 10 percent in light of current political, social and environmental conditions; respect human rights and the rule of law. The cabinet "I meet with ministers every day and I can tell you whether they are efficient or not," El-Sisi said. "Changing the cabinet at this time will harm state stabilisation," he added. The cabinet was expected to present its programme before parliament last week, but MPs decided to postpone the special session until it finalises its internal bylaws. Parliament "Look at what we achieved in terms of building our state," El-Sisi said. "Now we have a parliament that represents all Egyptians and no one intervened in the results or the electoral process. Some 50 percent of the MPs are undertaking their first parliamentary experience and one third of the seats are held by youth, with unprecedented representation for women," he added. "I am calling on you to consider all these facts before criticising," he said. El-Sisi went on saying that many international delegations paid visits to the parliament, which means that the world recognises its vitality. Terrorism and Russian plane crash The president discussed the fight against terrorism and the crash of the Russian airliner over Sinai in November 2015. "The fight against terrorism is not over yet," he said. Alhough the Egyptian investigating committee has not yet announced its final report on the causes of the crash that left all 224 passengers and crew members killed, El-Sisi acknowledged for the first time that a terrorist attack could have caused the crash. "The goal of those who downed the plane was not only to sabotage our tourism, they wanted to harm our relationships with Russia, if they could with Italy, and others," the president said. "We didn't want to build the state's strategy on confronting terrorism only. We were keen to counter terrorism and build the state at the same time," El-Sisi said. "So let me assure you that I know everything about the terrorists numbers and weaponry from the time I served as the head of military intelligence," El-Sisi added. "But the real face-off took place following 30 June (2013)," he said, referring to the rise of terror attacks against security personnel following the ouster of former president Mohamed Morsi. "They (the terrorists) ... started the violence," El-Sisi said. Ethiopia's Renaissance Dam On Ethiopia and its controversial Grand Renaissance Dam, El-Sisi said that Egypt has been negotiating with Addis Ababa for a number of years on the issue of filling the dam, as well as reconsidering other water alternatives, such as water desalination. Egypt fears that the dam might negatively affect its current share of Nile water, as Ethiopia's "long-awaited national project," which is scheduled to be completed in 2017, will be Africa's largest hydroelectric power plant with a storage capacity of 74 billion cubic metres. El-Sisi pointed out that water treatment stations were being built to compensate for any lack of potable water during the first filling of the Renaissance Dam. 'Rights violations' El-Sisi said the state is facing a challenge between confronting human rights violations and maintaining state stability. "This is the hard formula we're trying to deal with. I know that there are violations, which I oppose," El-Sisi said. His remarks come following a series of incidents of rights abuses committed by security personnel against doctors and ordinary citizens. The last major incident of police abuse took place last week in Cairo's working class district of Darb El-Ahmar when a low ranking police officer killed a driver over a money dispute. Egypt's prosecution referred the officer to criminal court. El-Sisi called on all Egyptians to remain "one hand" and to work hard, adding that the state is currently undertaking major infrastructure projects that will take years to be completed. "We need to sustain social justice ... And I swear to God that I will sacrifice myself to maintain it," the president said. 'Improving infrastructure' "Currently a 5,000-kilometre national roadway is being constructed at a cost of EGP 50 billion, in addition to building 133 bridges within 20 months only," El-Sisi announced. He added that the government managed to overcome problems in providing gas to factories, as well as reducing power outages, within only one year. El-Sisi also announced that three ports were currently being constructed and were going to be ready for inauguration within two years. He also revealed that three airports with a capacity each of 1.7 million passengers are in the planning. Search Keywords: Short link: Italy on Wednesday said Egyptian investigators should hand over the evidence they had uncovered in the death of an Italian graduate student who was tortured and killed in Cairo. Giulio Regeni, 28, disappeared in January and his battered body was found in a ditch at the beginning of this month. Egypt invited Italian investigators to take part in the probe, but judicial sources in Rome say the collaboration has been limited. "Cooperation with our investigative team can be and must be more effective. It cannot be only formal," Italian Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni said during parliament's question time. Regeni had been researching independent trade unions in Egypt and written articles critical of President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi's government, prompting speculation that he was killed in the hands of Egyptian security forces. Earlier on Wednesday, Egypt's Interior Ministry said there were still several possible scenarios for the murder, but it did not mention the involvement of security forces as a hypothesis. Gentiloni said Italy wanted access to specific evidence. "Italian investigators must have access to audio and video documentation, medical test results and the legal documents from the Giza prosecutor's office," he said. Some Egyptian, Italian and international media have speculated that Regeni was killed by the police or secret services. Egypt's interior ministry said possible motives included criminal activity or the desire for revenge "due to personal reasons." Regeni had "many relationships with people near where he lives and where he studied," it said in a statement carried by state news agency MENA. In the Italian parliament, Gentiloni referred to the investigative developments "evoked this morning" as "improbable" -- a sign of increasing strain between the two countries over the mysterious death. Italy has significant economic interests in Egypt, including the development of the giant Zohr gas field off the North African coast being developed by Italy's state oil producer Eni . Egypt's interior and foreign ministers have dismissed the notion that security forces were behind Regeni's murder. Human rights groups accuse Egypt's Interior Ministry of widespread abuses, allegations it denies. A senior source at Egypt's forensics authority told Reuters that Regeni, a graduate student at Britain's Cambridge University, had suffered seven broken ribs, with signs of traumatic injuries all over his body. A second autopsy in Italy "confronted us with something inhuman, something animal", Italian Interior Minister Angelino Alfano said. Search Keywords: Short link: The White House says President Barack Obama and Jordan's King Abdullah II will focus their talks on resolving the conflict in Syrian and meeting the needs of war-stricken refugees. The two leaders are meeting at the White House during an important moment in the 5-year-old civil war in Syria as Washington and Moscow will work to put in a place a fragile cease-fire designed to help end the conflict. The truce does not cover the Islamic State group. Jordan shares a border with Syria and Iraq, and Abdullah's visit to the White House takes place as his country struggles to accommodate more than 630,000 Syrian refugees. The White House also says Obama and the king will discuss how best to advance prospects for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Search Keywords: Short link: Iranians are voting Friday to elect 290 members of parliament and 88 members of the Assembly of Experts, a panel of clerics responsible for appointing and monitoring Iran's supreme leader. Key figures and voting procedures of this twin vote: - Number of voters: 54,915,024 are eligible to cast ballots, 8,475,077 of them in Tehran province, according to the interior ministry. Iran's population is around 79 million. A total of one million people will be mobilised to organise and run the elections, and around 250,000 policemen will be on duty. In each polling station, apart from representatives of the interior ministry and the Guardian Council, a constitutional watchdog, officials of other state bodies, including the police, will also be present. Candidates may have observers in polling stations. - The interior ministry is responsible for organising the elections, while the Guardian Council (made up of six clerics appointed by the supreme leader and six jurists recommended by the judiciary) is responsible for supervising the polls. - Number of parliamentary candidates: 6,229, including 586 women, were approved by the Guardian Council -- 51 percent of the approximately 12,000 who initially registered to run. - For the Assembly of Experts, the Guardian Council approved 161 candidates to contest the 88 seats of the chamber, out of 800 who applied. Members are elected by single majority vote. - Two-round legislative vote: Successful candidates are elected in the first round if they obtain over 25 percent of votes cast. For each seat left empty, two runner-ups will compete in a second round, likely within two or three weeks. - In Tehran, voters elect 30 parliamentarians. In other cities, the number of MPs varies according to the population. Electors must write the full names of candidates they support on the ballot paper. In the capital, this means voters should write the names of 30 candidates on the ballot for parliament and 16 candidates for the Assembly of Experts, though many do not use their full allowance. The painstaking procedure makes the voting process complex and the counting protracted. - The list of candidates in polling stations is displayed in alphabetical order. The location is often a school, mosque or state building where men and women vote separately. Voters are not registered and they can vote in any constituency. The only restriction is that the voter cannot change constituency between the two rounds of voting. Voters must present two identity documents, the national ID card and an Iranian document resembling a passport called Shenasnameh, which is stamped in each election, making it impossible to vote multiple times. - The results of small constituencies will be announced on Friday night, and those in provincial cities are likely on Saturday. But results will take three days in Tehran. Official final results will be announced by the interior ministry, and must be approved by the Guardian Council who can annul the vote in some constituencies. Search Keywords: Short link: Yemen's Gulf-backed government on Wednesday accused the Lebanese Shia Muslim militia Hezbollah of training the Houthi rebels and fighting alongside them in attacks on Saudi Arabia's border, it said in a statement carried by official media. Yemen's government and its Gulf partners have long accused Hezbollah's ally Iran of backing the Houthis and seeking to transform the group into a replica of the Lebanese militia to use as a proxy against its main regional rival, Saudi Arabia. Its latest assertion is based on "many documents and physical evidence" which Hezbollah would not be able to deny, it said, but that it did not immediately produce. Saudi Arabia is leading an Arab coalition against the Houthis and forces loyal to former president Ali Abdullah Saleh in a bid to restore the internationally recognised government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi. Although both Iran and Hezbollah have given vocal support to the Houthis, dismissed Hadi's government as illegitimate and condemned Saudi involvement in the civil war, they deny giving the group military aid. Search Keywords: Short link: The United Nations on Wednesday carried out its first humanitarian airdrop in Syria to reach thousands of people facing severe food shortages in a city besieged by Islamic State group. "Earlier this morning, a WFP plane dropped the first cargo of 21 tonnes of items into Deir Ezzor," in eastern Syria, UN aid chief Stephen O'Brien said. Reports from aid teams on the ground confirm that "pallets have landed in the target area as planned", he told a UN Security Council called to discuss the humanitarian crisis. UN agencies are working to scale up aid deliveries to Syria before a cessation of hostilities enters into force at midnight Friday to shore up peace efforts. Last month, Russia said it had dropped aid into Deir Ezzor, where some 200,000 people are in dire need of food and medicine since IS fighters surrounded the city about a year ago. The air drops carried out by the World Food Programme are considered less efficient than land deliveries, but O'Brien argued that there were "benefits to this approach as a last resort." The UN aid chief said some 110,000 people living in besieged towns had received aid and that deliveries to a further 230,000 people in cut-off areas including through air drops had been approved. "We are still waiting for approval for an additional 170,000 people. We expect those approvals to happen immediately," he said. Syrian Ambassador Bashar Jaafari accused the United Nations of using the humanitarian crisis as a political tool and argued that no such attention was directed to Yemen, which he argued was in a much worse state. "It is clear that our government is doing its best to deliver assistance," he told the council. The ambassador blamed armed groups for civilian suffering and said delays in approving aid deliveries were due to concerns for the safety of humanitarian workers. "We have not witnessed any humanitarian crisis other than in the areas where these terrorist groups entered," he said. The United Nations is calling on all sides to lift starvation sieges across Syria, where it estimates that 487,000 people live, although some non-governmental organizations say the figure is much higher. The council has approved several resolutions demanding full access for humanitarian workers, but these have been largely ignored. O'Brien stressed that the ceasefire deal agreed by the United States and Russia must produce an "immediate end" to attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure such as hospitals, schools and markets. "Enough is enough. This brutality must be brought to an end," he said. More than 260,000 people have died in Syria's conflict, which began in March 2011 with anti-government protests but has since imploded into a multi-sided proxy war. Search Keywords: Short link: Donors pledged more than $220 million of aid for war-torn Yemen at a three-day conference on the worsening humanitarian situation that ended Wednesday in Doha. Among those pledging assistance were the Qatar Charity and the Kuwait-based International Islamic Charitable Organisation. Each organisation pledged to provide a grant of $100 million, payable over three years, according to a statement from conference organisers. The Qatari Red Crescent pledged $10 million, officials said. Yemeni government spokesman Rajeh Badi told AFP that the situation inside the country was "disastrous". "The whole of Yemen suffers and sectors of education, health and food are the most urgent," he said. The United Nations warned this month of a "human catastrophe unfolding in Yemen". It said more than 6,100 people had been killed in the fighting since last March, when a Saudi-led coalition, including Qatari forces, launched a military intervention in Yemen against Iran-supported Shia Houthi rebels. The UN said another 3,000 people had been wounded and 2.5 million people forced to flee their homes. Organisers of the Doha conference said they may have to rely on the UN to deliver aid in areas controlled by rebels. Search Keywords: Short link: Qatar, and earlier on Wednesday Kuwait, followed the example of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain in urging their citizens to avoid travel to Lebanon for safety reasons, their state news agencies reported. Riyadh, Abu Dhabi and Manama issued statements on Tuesday calling on their citizens not to travel to Lebanon, long a favourite holiday destination for Gulf Arabs. The moves by the Gulf Arab allies came after Saudi Arabia last week suspended aid worth $3 billion to the Lebanese army over the Beirut government's failure to sign up to statements condemning attacks on Saudi diplomatic missions in Iran. In Lebanon's tangled political scene, Saudi Arabia and its Gulf allies are staunchly opposed to Hezbollah, a political party in the governing coalition that also has a powerful militia backed by Iran, Riyadh's arch regional rival. Hezbollah fighters are playing a crucial role fighting alongside President Bashar al-Assad's forces in the Syrian civil war. Saudi Arabia and the other Sunni Gulf Arab states are opposed to Assad. All five of those countries advising against Lebanon travel are members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and usually back Riyadh's diplomatic stance. The sixth GCC member, Oman, has a policy of balancing good relations with its Gulf neighbours and Iran. Search Keywords: Short link: Republican Donald Trump and Democrat Hillary Clinton are cementing their status as presidential front-runners with strong performances among demographic groups at the core of their two parties, developments that put tremendous pressure on their top rivals as the nominating contests head into March. Trump built a varied coalition in his South Carolina primary victory Saturday, according to exit polls conducted for the Associated Press and television networks. But it was the bombastic billionaire's surprisingly strong performance among self-described evangelicals in South Carolina that helped him notch another double-digit victory and sweep all 50 delegates at stake. It was a grave blow to Ted Cruz, who invested heavily in his pursuit of religious conservatives here only to apparently finish a narrow third behind Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, and it raises questions about whether Cruz can catch Trump in the March 1 glut of primaries in southern states that the Texas senator has for months identified as his best path to the nomination. For Democrats, Clinton's Nevada caucus victory over Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders affirmed her strength among black voters. Like white evangelicals for Republicans, minority voters will play key roles in upcoming Democratic primaries, starting with the South Carolina primary on Feb. 27. Among South Carolina Republicans who voted on Saturday, more than 7 out 10 described themselves as born-again Christians, and those voters were slightly more likely to say they voted for Trump (33 percent) than Cruz (27 percent). Cruz spent weeks hammering Trump for his past support for same-sex marriage and abortion rights. He chided Trump for his history of public vulgarity, casting it as unworthy of the White House. After Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia died on Feb. 20, Cruz warned voters not to trust Trump to nominate jurists who represented their values. Cruz counted hundreds of South Carolina pastors among his endorsements, and he campaigned with cable television's "Duck Dynasty" patriarch Phil Robertson, a cult hero to conservative Christians for his unvarnished critiques of modern, secular society. The candidate also has taken to comparing his campaign to a spiritual "revival" and asking his supporters to pray that God "awaken the body of Christ" in America. Trump's ability to withstand that approach may be found in what else drives white evangelicals. Four out of 10 were angry at government, and nearly half of that group opted for Trump. Cruz also lagged well behind Trump among evangelicals who cared most about the economy. Those outcomes reflect Trump's overall strength through the first three nominating contests: He draws significant support from nearly every demographic and ideological slice of the Republican Party. Trump led among those with household incomes up to $100,000 and nearly tied with Rubio among voters who earn more. Trump led among voters who live in rural areas, small towns and suburbs. Rubio was tops among residents of South Carolina's largest cities, but that was just 23 percent of the electorate. Voters with less than a college education sided with Trump, and he managed a near draw with Rubio among those who have degrees. Only among voters with postgraduate education just a fifth of the electorate did Rubio register a lead. Trump's support among self-described conservatives and moderates was nearly identical: 32 percent and 34 percent. He got the votes of almost half of those who support deporting residents in the U.S. illegally and managed to attract about a fifth of those who say immigrants should get a path to legal status. Slightly more than half of the electorate said they feel "betrayed" by Republican politicians. Slightly less than half said they don't. Trump claimed a third of each group. Rubio crushed Trump 47 percent to 21 percent among voters whose top priority is having a nominee who "can win in November." Worrisome for the Florida senator, though: That group was just 15 percent of the electorate. Perhaps most encouraging for Rubio and Cruz is that among the latest-deciding voters about 4 out of 10 said they decided within days of the primary less than a fifth opted for Trump. Among Nevada Democrats, meanwhile, Clinton ratcheted up the pressure on Sanders by claiming 56 percent support from nonwhite caucus-goers. Among African-Americans, her support was about 76 percent. Black voters made up just 13 percent of caucus attendees, but they are likely to be a majority of the South Carolina primary electorate on Saturday. A similar distribution in South Carolina would almost certainly give her a commanding win heading into March 1 primaries with similar Democratic electorates in southern states. Sanders drew a majority among voters who cared most about income inequality the theme of his campaign but Clinton appeared to dent Sanders' core message by winning majorities among voters who care most about health care and the economy; she also led Sanders 54 percent to 43 percent among Nevada Democrats from union households. Search Keywords: Short link: Gunmen attacked a checkpoint southwest of the Malian town of Timbuktu overnight killing three soldiers and wounding two others, a soldier in the town said on Wednesday. There were few further details of the attack, which the soldier, who declined to be identified, said took place at Lere, a town near the border with Mauritania. A Defence Ministry spokesman confirmed the toll but gave no further details about where or how the attack occurred. Mali is facing a growing threat from Islamist militant groups including al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb that have staged a series of high profile raids in recent months as numerous attacks on army and United Nations personnel. Search Keywords: Short link: Hungary will hold a referendum on European Union plans for a system of mandatory quotas, an initiative that Hungary's government has rejected, Prime Minister Viktor Orban said on Wednesday. Orban has used harsh anti-migrant rhetoric since the migrant crisis escalated last year and gained notoriety for erecting a steel fence along Hungary's southern border to keep out migrants - a policy now adopted by other Balkan countries. He said the plebiscite, the first of its kind in Europe, would be a major test of European democracy. Orban has said the migrant quotas would redraw the ethnic, cultural and religious map of Hungary and Europe. "Nobody has asked the European people so far whether they support, accept, or reject the mandatory migrant quotas," he said at a news conference. "The government is responding to public sentiment now: we Hungarians think introducing resettlement quotas for migrants without the backing of the people equals an abuse of power." Orban did not say when the referendum would be held. He said he was aware of potential wider ramifications of such a referendum, especially if Hungarians say "No" to quotas. "We had to think about the potential impact on European politics of such a proposal, but that was a secondary consideration," he said. "To us this is a fundamental, unavoidable, essential question of Hungarian politics: can anyone else decide for Hungarians who we Hungarians should or should not live with?" Political Capital Institute analyst, Peter Kreko, said: "All in all, we can see that Orban is in a winning position as long as he speaks about the migration issues, as it allows him to play the role of the defender of the nation." "It is his interest to keep this issue on the agenda even until (elections in) 2018," Kreko said, noting that the referendum would eclipse problem issues such as in education and healthcare and pre-empt a potential political defeat for Orban if the European court rejects Hungary's suit against the quotas. The European Union's executive had no immediate comment on Orban's announcement. Search Keywords: Short link: Still the Water opens the festival at Falaki Theatre Opening on 27 February and running for six days, the 9th Cairo International Women's Film Festival brings a vibrant selection of 60 films by female filmmakers from 40 countries. The festival will open with Futatsume no Mado (Still The Water, 2014) a Japanese film directed by Naomi Kawase. The story is set on the subtropical Japanese island of Amami-Oshima, where traditions surrounding nature remain eternal. When teenager Kaito discovers a dead body floating in the sea on the night of a full moon ritual dancing, he and his girlfriend Kyoko try to understand the mystery around it. Screening with free admission at downtowns Falaki Theatre, the film will be subtitled in Arabic and English. This year, the festival will pay tribute to Egyptian-Lebanese documentary filmmaker Nabeeha Lofty, who passed away in June 2015, by hosting the Egyptian premiere of her film Liann al-guzur lan tamut (Because Roots Do Not Die-1977). Another of the festival programmes highlights is a dedication to distinguished Finnish filmmaker Pirjo Honkasalo, who will attend the festival, screening a selection of her outstanding works. Denmark is to be this years Country in Focus, with a screening of films from the Dogme 95 movement, which appeared in Denmark in the 1990s. This years guest festival is the Dortmund/Cologne International Womens Film Festival, which will be screening two films from the festivals past edition. Furthermore, the festival will have two special sections- Dance and Cinema and Spanish Short films. Launched in 2008, Cairo International Women's Film Festival aims to introduce the best films created by women both from Egypt and around the world, and also acts as a meeting point for the audience and women filmmakers, both international and from the Arab world, as stated on its website. Check the festival's full programme below. Programme: Still the Water screens on Saturday 27 February at 7pm. Falaki Theatre, American University in Cairo, Tahrir Square, Downtown, Cairo The festival runs from 27 February to 3 March, with screenings at Falaki Theatre, Artistic Creativity Centre and Goethe Institute. For more arts and culture news and updates, follow Ahram Online Arts and Culture on Twitter at @AhramOnlineArts and on Facebook at Ahram Online: Arts & Culture Search Keywords: Short link: After winning Berlinales Caligari independent prize, the film will screen at the prestigious New Directors/New Films festival in March Directed by Tamer El-Said and starring Khalid Abdalla, the film 'In the Last Days of the City' will be screened at New Yorks New Directors/New Films festival. The Film Society of Lincoln Center and The Museum of Modern Art collaborate to create the New Directors/New Films festival, which celebrates and introduces new cinematic talents to the public. The festival runs between 16 and 27 March, during which the film will be screened twice, on 26 March at the Walter Reade Theater and on 27 March at MoMA Titus 2. The Film Society is also behind the New York Film Festival. Across the past four decades, the Film Society takes credit for introducing many of the now-established big names to American audiences, including Martin Scorsese, Rainer Werner Fassbinder, Pedro Almodovar, Spike Lee and Wes Anderson. In the Last Days of the City recently had its world premiere at the 46th Berlinale, where it won the Caligari Film Prize. The film was chosen as the only entry by an Egyptian director to take part in Berlinales Forum section. The shooting of the film began in 2008, taking the filmmakers to Cairo, Alexandria, Beirut, Baghdad and Berlin, bringing together many talents from the Arab world, to tell the story of a Cairo-based film-maker struggling to make a film about the city, which is in a state of uproar. Co-produced by Zero Production, the film was written by El-Said and Rasha Salti. The film's art director is the late renowned artist Salah Marei. A graduate in film direction from the High Institute of Cinema in 2008, El-Said is an Egyptian filmmaker, writer and producer who lives and works in Cairo. For more arts and culture news and updates, follow Ahram Online Arts and Culture on Twitter at @AhramOnlineArts and on Facebook at Ahram Online: Arts & Culture Search Keywords: Short link: The European Court of Human Rights on Tuesday condemned Turkey for refusing a blind girl admission to Istanbul's National Music Academy, ordering Ankara to pay her 10,000 euros ($11,000) in damages. The girl, who was born in 1989, applied to the school in 2004 and although she was "completely qualified for admission", it refused to enrol her "based solely on the fact that she was blind". The teenager, who plays the "baglama" which is a type of lute, had passed all of the entrance exams, but the school denied her entry in a clear case of "discrimination on the grounds of disability". Although she had presented a medical certificate from a hospital concluding that she could attend lessons in the sections of the music academy where eyesight was not required, it was rejected by the academy, the court said. "By refusing to enrol (her) without considering the possibility of accommodating her disability, the national authorities had prevented her, without any objective and reasonable justification, from benefiting from a musical education," in breach of the European Convention on Human Rights, the ruling said. Turkey has three months to ask for a review of the case, but the European court is not obliged to grant it. For more arts and culture news and updates, follow Ahram Online Arts and Culture on Twitter at @AhramOnlineArts and on Facebook at Ahram Online: Arts & Culture Search Keywords: Short link: Some 150 writers and artists signed a statement condemning a recent jail sentence against an Egyptian novelist over an "sexually explicit" text Dozens of authors and intellectuals have signed a statement condemning the jailing of an Egyptian author over what authorities deem a "sexually explicit" novel. Ahmed Nagy was sentenced to two years in prison earlier this week over charges of violating "public decency" after excerpts of his novel "The Use of Life" was published in a literary magazine in 2014. A case was brought against him last year by an individual who claimed to have experienced health issues after reading the excerpt. Nagy was acquitted in January but the prosecution appealed the verdict and he was sentenced in a retrial on Saturday. A group of 150 writers, intellectuals and artists signed a statement condemning the ruling against Nagy, saying it violates "general and private freedoms." The signatories, who include writer Alaa El-Aswany, poet Sayed Hegab and director Ali Badrakhan, say the sentence "completely disregards the country's constitution," which prohibits jail sentences over publishing issues. They expressed concern over what they say is "frivolity and disregard in dealing with freedoms" and the use of "repressive discourse that pays lip service to words like 'ethics'." The excerpt of Nagy's novel contains explicit descriptions of sexual acts and the use of hashish by the characters. "Our defence for Nagy... is not just advocating the right of opinion makers and artists to express their views... without being harassed... but is a warning bell against a terrifying path the regime is taking," the statement read. They say the sentence, which can still be appealed, is part of a multi-dimension assault on a number of writers and journalists over their beliefs. Several human rights organisations have expressed solidarity with Nagy, demanding the sentence be dropped. Egypt's Journalists Syndicate announced on Tuesday it was organising a press conference on Thursday to show solidarity with Nagy and journalists. Search Keywords: Short link: According to an interior ministry statement, the lower-ranking policemen accidentally shot the taxi driver following a financial dispute while attempting to disperse an angry crowd The trial of a lower ranking policeman on charges of the deliberate murder of a civilian in Cairos working-class neighborhood of Darb Al-Ahmar is set to begin on 5 March, a Cairo court said in an official statement. On Sunday, the prosecution referred the lower-ranking policeman, Mostafa Mahmoud Adel Hassib, to criminal court only days following his arrest. A judicial source within the general-prosecution told Ahram Online that both the police interrogations and the forensic authoritys report indicate that Hassib killed taxi driver Mohamed Sayed Ali Ismail. Hassib confessed to the prosecution that he fired his gun following a financial dispute with the driver. Following the incident, hundreds of residents converged outside Cairo Security Directorate to protest the killing. On Monday, Egypt's Interior Minister Magdy Abdel Ghaffar said currently underway legal amendments would not only be relevant to lower ranking policemen, but to the whole police force. "The aim of the amendments is to regulate the relationship between the policeman and citizens, which would ensure the citizen the protection of his rights," Abdel-Ghaffar said. The amendments come following an order from Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi on Friday that legislative changes, aimed at ensuring the regulation of security services' performance and guarantees that those who unjustly violate citizen rights be punished, are presented to the parliament for discussion within 15 days. Search Keywords: Short link: During a one-day conference organised by the Egyptian tourism ministry, British ambassador John Casson said UK will not leave Egypt to stand alone in fighting terrorism and strengthening tourism British ambassador to Egypt John Casson has pledged his countrys support for Egypt and called on the international community to stand by the country in its fight against terrorism and economic problems. "The world cant leave Egypt to deal with these problems alone to beat terrorism we have to keep Egypts economy strong," statement by the British embassy read on Tuesday. During a one-day conference hosted by Egypts Ministry of Tourism called Planning for Growth Egypts Tourism 2016, Casson, along with top aviation and tourism officials, discussed the government's ongoing security enhancement initiatives with a focus on airport security. The conference was also attended by Russian ambassador to Egypt Sergey Kirpichenko. There remains great interest in Egypt and in Britain in the work to restart flights to Sharm El-Sheikh. I know how important this is to Egypts tourist industry and indeed the whole economy," said Casson, referring to the UKs suspension of flights to Sharm El-Sheikh following the crash of a Russian plane in Sinai late last year. The British official praised the commitment and professionalism of the Egyptian government in cooperating with the UK and in understanding that the number one priority of any government is to protect its citizens. "As a result we have together made great progress along this road to solving the problem, and contacts are continuing at the highest level every day to finish the journey and restart flights as soon as possible, says Casson. Britain, Germany, Russia and other countries are taking concrete steps with the Egyptian government at the highest level to make Sharm El-Sheikh Airport a model for airport and aviation security, according to Casson. The tourism sector suffered a number of setbacks in 2015, including several terrorist attacks by Sinai-based militants affiliated with the IS group, which claimed responsibility for the downing of a Russian airliner travelling from Sharm El-Sheikh in October, which claimed 224 lives. The incident prompted the UK, Russia and other countries to suspend flights to Egypt, leading to losses of LE2.2 billion ($283 million) a month, with tourists and tourism revenues halved in November and December, according to a tourism ministry statement. Search Keywords: Short link: Egypt's booming relations with Italy will be harmed as a result of the murder of Giulio Regeni Italian researcher Giulio Regeni was killed in a tragic, horrific and shocking way to any human conscience. The Italian people deserve from Egypt and its hospitable people the warmest condolences for the painful and saddening death. This incident came at a time when Egyptian-Italian relations are flourishing, especially in light of similar, or identical, stances on several regional and international issues, as well as mutual cooperation between the two countries. On the level of the public, this incident aroused real pain and sweeping sympathy in Italy and Egypt for this betrayed youth. The deceased was a youthful Cambridge PhD student conducting research on the economic situation and independent trade unions in Egypt. These unions were one of the developments accomplished in the last years of Mubaraks era and were consolidated after the revolution before being involved in much controversy recently. Two days before the deceased youths corpse was found, Italian officials were visiting Egypt. Al-Ahram Establishment hosted two of these visits: the first was of a joint delegation from two Italian universities and the Italian Labour Union, seeking ways of cooperation with the Al-Ahram Establishment and its economic, educational and touristic subsidiaries. The second was by great Italian novelist Roberto Pazzi, who was the guest of Al-Ahram Civilisations Portal during a symposium. This was a fantastic expression of the cultural interactivity between the two countries in discussing his works. One of his recently translated novels was titled Searching for the Emperor, and another one awaiting translation titled The Water Room, which tells the story of the escape of Caesarion, Cleopatras and Julius Caesars son. Pazzis message: A mixture of pain and profound relations After the painful incident, I received a message from the great Italian novelist imbued with a magical level of humanity and pain, and at the same time keenness that good relations between Egypt and his country continue after the culprits are found and held accountable. The message really calls for meditation; for it expressed the pain of the Italian people for losing one of their sons tragically in a friendly country. On top of this, the deceased was an academic researcher and this provides any person with a kind of immunity emanating from the value of science, or so those in the scientific field think and expect such esteem and immunity from the state and society regarding their lives, freedom and scientific research. But at the same time, the message reflects a state of transcendence over pain in order to uncover the culprits and hold them accountable and the continuance of the close relations between Cairo and Rome. Towards this nobleness in viewing the incident from one of the icons on the Italian side, Egypt has to complete its investigations with the utmost degree of professionalism, impartiality, transparency and respect regarding human life and worth. Egypt and Italy have had a long history of strong relations. When the Roman state emerged, Egypt was already ancient, preceding Rome as a state by about 2,000 years and as a civilisation by 5,000 years. This granted Egypt the ability to set the example and influence everything on the other side of the Mediterranean. There were the religious legends, novels and literary works in general and the Ancient Egyptian medical and scientific achievements which profoundly affected the makeup and development of the civilisations to the north of the Mediterranean. Funnily enough, the Ancient Egyptian female deity "Iset," whom we call Isis, was worshipped in Italy for five centuries after the birth of Christianity, even though its worship had ended in Egypt hundreds of years before when Egyptians converted to Orthodox Christianity. Egypt was also influenced by the other side of the Mediterranean in an extended civilisation, cultural and political interaction. As for modern times, relations have been characterised by profundity, vitality and popular communication that surpasses formal relations and sometimes moves in an opposite direction. Perhaps the immigration of hundreds of thousands of Italians to Egypt fleeing Mussolinis measures and the ravages of WWII is one of the events that proves the level of popular relations, especially since the immigration occurred at a time when the Egyptian state was with the Allies, and thus in confrontation with the Italian state, which constituted the second pole in the Axis powers after Nazi Germany. Currently, there is a high degree of consensus concerning regional and international issues, as well as profound mutual relations in the fields of politics and economy, which are matters that deserve follow-up. Although what is essential in the Regeni tragedy is the human and security dimension, which are above everything else. The two countries stances on Libya also see a high degree of consensus, as both countries are affected by what is happening in Libya and work together on supporting the efforts of building the Libyan state and preventing its fall into the hands of terrorists. Egypt has a direct interest in the stability and unity of the Libyan state, both to safeguard the brother Libyan people and ensure the safety of its western borders. Italy is also keen on seeing a stable Libyan state in order to stem the flow of illegal immigration. However, these aims of seeing a stable Libya requires exerting more efforts towards facilitating the arming of the Libyan army and abolishing the international resolution preventing this. This should be done in order to enable this army to confront the armed to the teeth terrorist groups as a mechanism to regain the unity of the states provinces and prevent its transformation into a launch base threatening the south and north Mediterranean countries. Egyptian-Italian economic relations Official statements point out that Italy is the most important market for Egyptian exports. Egyptian exports to Italy valued around 2675 million dollars in 2013, which is equivalent to 9.3 percent of the total value of Egyptian commodity exports in that year. Egyptian imports from Italy amounted to 3481 million dollars, constituting about 5.4 percent of the total Egyptian commodity imports in the aforementioned year. Italy is considered the fourth important supplier of commodities to Egypt after China, Germany and the USA. The geographical proximity between the two countries and the low transport fees and insurance are significant factors that facilitate commodity trade between Egypt and Italy. Given that consuming imported commodities coming from any country is the peoples choice, the external trade interests network in any country requires a good image of that country among other states and peoples. It is right that quality and price considerations are the main factors in the external promotion for any commodity. However, the overall image regarding the state forms either an assisting or hindering factor in this respect. As for direct investments in Egypt, Italy is among the medium countries in this regard. According to the Egyptian Central Bank statements in its monthly statistical bulletin, Italian direct investment flow in Egypt was 246.5, 193.3, 75.1, 16.8 and 37.1 million dollars in the fiscal years 2010/2011, 2011/2012, 2012/2013, 2013/2014, 2014/2015 respectively. The value of Italian direct investments in Egypt will be much higher if the years that witnessed Italian companies buying Egyptian companies, which were to be privatised, were added. The whole matter was construed as Italian direct investments despite the fact that there was no new investment asset created, just monetary flows due to selling an already existing asset. The most prominent example in this respect was in the year 2006/2007, where the value of Italian direct investments to Egypt were $1631.4 million when an Italian company bought one of the Egyptian cement companies. During the Sharm El-Sheikh Economic Conference in March last year, the Italian Eni company signed a preliminary contract for investing $5 billion for natural gas exploration in Egyptian waters in the Mediterranean Sea and in the Western Desert, Delta and Sinai. The biggest Egyptian natural gas field was discovered in the Mediterranean Sea through this company, which is working seriously in the concession areas. It is certain that the investments linked to this discovery will raise the volume of Italian direct investments in Egypt. On another scale, there is a significant part of the Italian trade with non-European countries, especially with Asia, Arab Asian countries, Iran, Eastern and Southern Africa, that pass through the Suez Canal and is considered among Egyptian service exports (transport services) to Italy. As for the other important relations between Egypt and Italy, they are concerned with tourism. Italian tourists were at the top of the list of nationalities visiting Egypt with the aim of tourism before the Russian tourists took the lead several years ago. However, Italian tourists remain in the second position and rarely are they relegated to the third. This kind of economic relation, or Egyptian touristic services exports to Italy, is largely affected with the general image in that Mediterranean country. Despite the fact that geographical proximity and that the low travel expenses between the two countries help low-expense tourism, impressions are still influential, especially when it concerns the safety of Italians visiting Egypt will be harmed by the murder of Giulio Regeni on all levels. The best that Egypt can do regarding this tragic crime is hold the culprits accountable and conduct a fair retribution. Even if this impartial investigation and cooperation with the Italian side does not change the friendly Italian peoples pain over a brutally-executed crime, it will help in building confidence in showing that the Egyptian state is really concerned with its visitors security and safety. The writer is Chairman of the Board of Al-Ahram Establishment. Search Keywords: Short link: Skyscrapers seen from the window of an abandoned home in Guangzhou's Xian Village (Guangzhou) In the shadow of high-rise offices and luxurious residential skyscrapers in downtown Guangzhou's central business district is a neighborhood of shabby apartment buildings and narrow alleys that predates China's roaring urbanization drive. The neighborhood is what's left of an old village called Xian, pop. 4,000. Ringed by skyscrapers, its dilapidated buildings cover about 200,000 square meters in the heart of the busy southern metropolis. Local officials have frequently tried to tear down what remains of Xian, which many see as the last "urban village" in Guangzhou. Most buildings in what used to be a community of peasants have already been razed and replaced by newer, taller buildings. But a group of defiant villagers has stood in the way of a final demolition project, not out of love for run-down buildings but out of contempt for the officials and property developers they say have been cutting dirty deals and unfairly taking their land. Since 2008 Xian villagers have worked hard to hold back demolition crews while at the same time petitioning for justice. That justice eventually came in the form of arrests and convictions of about a dozen officials on corruption charges. Villagers also got what they wanted most: a fair deal for their land. Communist Party officials started responding to the villagers' pleas in July 2013. Initially, seven village officials were probed for wrongdoing. The following December, central government investigators targeted Cao Jianliao, who was then serving as deputy mayor of Guangzhou, for his role in Xian property deals. The party expelled Cao in mid-2014. Cao's case moved slowly through the justice system until last January, when he was charged in a Shenzhen court with accepting bribes from developers worth more than 76 million yuan in exchange for favors linked to land deals. Cao's trial came 18 months after courts started processing cases against several lower-level officials. After being convicted on corruption charges, the seven Xian officials were sentenced to between 17 months and four years in prison. And He Jixiong, general manager of the local government's Shahe (County) Economic Development Co. who worked under Cao, faces up to 15 years in prison for accepting 27 million yuan in bribes. In recent years, He was one of Cao's close associates and a subordinate. Their relationship dates back several decades, as He succeeded Cao in the post of Shahe County's head in 1996. Since the arrests and convictions of officials began, Xian's remaining residents have agreed to let demolition crews level what remains of their village to make way for more skyscrapers. In March 2015, China Poly Group started building new apartments just for villagers on half of the land. The other half will be used for a luxury hotel and office building that are likely to generate from rents some 55 million yuan a year to be divided among villagers. Land Deals Developers started chipping away at Xian in the 1990s, after Guangzhou's government approved the construction of new office buildings in what became known as the Pearl River New District business area. Eventually, some 6.6 square kilometers of farms, homes and small factories were expropriated in Shahe County, which includes Xian. Cao found himself at ground zero for property development. He had been working for the Shahe County government since the late 1970s and was named its governor in 1985. In the 1980s, he pushed for industrial development in the county and initiated a 240 million yuan plan to build factories. By 1990, the county was home to more than 200 companies, including 17 owned by the county government. That made it one of the wealthiest counties in China. Things changed in 1992 when the Guangzhou government released its plan to seize land in the county, including in Xian, for the Pearl River New District project. In 1994, Cao was appointed to the party's standing committee for Guangzhou's Tianhe District, an area that encompasses Shahe and Xian. Cao was assigned to oversee the projects in the Pearl River New District. And in 1996, he was promoted to the position of Tianhe deputy governor. Through the expropriation process, the Shahe government got permission to develop about 18 percent of the land targeted for the business district. The county's share had been collectively owned by local villagers before it was put under the control of Shahe (County) Economic Development. Public complaints started popping up shortly after the development project got underway. Many people said they smelled corruption. Some villagers accused their leaders of lying about demographics in order to qualify for expropriation compensation from the Guangzhou government. They said that during a round of land seizures that ended in 1994, the heads of Xian and neighboring Liede Village exaggerated the size of the population to get a bonus of more than 10 million yuan from the Guangzhou government. Villagers said they never shared any of that money with anyone else. The whistleblowers said it seemed that at least some of the bonus cash was spent on overseas vacations for Cao and other officials. Prosecutors say Cao's first dirty deal was completed in 1992, the year he helped a Hong Kong businessman named Fan Jishun obtain land development rights in exchange for 2 million yuan. Some 14 years after officials fudged population figures, Xian villagers turned up the heat by petitioning authorities to investigate local officials for allegedly cutting illegal deals with property developers. They also started fighting demolition plans. Run If You Can Public attention of the issue rose a notch in late 2012 when Li Rongfang, the party head in Liede Village, reportedly fled to Canada. The next year, Guangdong's graft fighter started investigating land deals in Xian and Liede. That led to detentions for the seven Xian officials, although Xian's party head, Lu Huigeng, slipped away by fleeing overseas, state media reported. Perhaps not coincidentally, around that time Cao started encouraging his relatives and business partners to emigrate from China, according to a person with knowledge of the matter who asked not to be named. These included Sun Meng, chairman of GT Land, and KWG Property Holdings Chairman Kong Jianmin. KWG, a privately owned developer, benefited from 2011 land deals in a Guangzhou borough named Zengcheng where Cao served as party secretary, Guangzhou media reported. The media has also reported that Cao's son, Cao Jianrong, once held more than 10 million yuan worth of shares in Hong Kong-listed KWG. Cao also made millions of yuan through land deals with a company controlled by the family of Tan Liqun, a former official in Guangzhou's land resources administration. Cao recently told prosecutors he offered the land to a company Tan's family owned to reward her for helping relocate and compensate villagers displaced by land expropriation. Tan told a court that in 1996 Cao offered her development rights to one of nine plots that were then available. A year later, the Tan family's Julian Property Development Co. bought the rights to 6,238 square meters from the Shahe Economic Development Co. for 300,000 yuan. Prosecutors say Cao pocketed 9 million yuan and Tan earned 4 million yuan in 2004 after Cao helped Julian Property sell the plot to KWG for 35 million yuan. KWG says it owned 600,000 square meters of property in the Pearl River New District in 2006. Investigators detained Tan on graft charges in April 2014, and her case went to trial in June last year. A verdict is pending. GT's Su, a former wholesale market operator, is also close to Cao. The two men first met in 1985, people familiar with the pair said, and with Cao's guidance Su cooperated with Tianhe-area village officials for land development deals. GT profited by selling the plots after property prices surged in 2003. People with knowledge of the matter said that Su left China after investigators moved in on Cao, and that he is living overseas. In 2010, Forbes magazine ranked Su No. 52 on its list of China's wealthiest individuals with 17.8 billion yuan in personal assets. Guangzhou media has reported that Su paid Cao tens of millions of yuan. According to property transaction documents viewed by Caixin, developers who dealt with Cao, including GT and KWG, followed similar routines that allowed them to cooperate with village authorities in charge of land development. For example, under a typical policy adopted by villages, a village government must own 30 percent of any development built on collectively owned land that were used for commercial development for the Pearl River New District. To follow that policy but keep full control of a development, a developer may build a new retail area in a nearby neighborhood and give it to the village in exchange for the 30 percent stake. The village can then make money by renting out retail space to developers. Nevertheless, rent revenues are usually set at below market levels. For instance, at one site GT agreed in 2011 to pay Liede Village 30 yuan per square meter per month for 20 years. But GT sublet shops for up to 180 yuan per square meter. Xian villagers said that developers cheated them as well. Developers are paying as little as 11 yuan per square meter per month for a 350,000 square meter retail area. Officials in Guangzhou have asked developers and villagers to renegotiate these contracts. (Rewritten by Han Wei) A new set of guiding principles for the agricultural sector, set forth by the State Council and the Central Committee of the ruling Communist Party in their first policy document released this year, underscores policymakers' determination to embrace reform. Previous efforts to make the sector play by market rules have suffered setbacks, mostly because the government fears changes may undermine the security of grain supplies that are considered of strategic importance to the country. The consequences are grave. Government intervention featuring direct purchases and heavy subsidies has all but eliminated the guiding function of price, reduced the diversity of market players, and plunged the industry into a peculiar plight where crops output, imports and stockpiles were all increasing at the same time. The new policy shows the central government will start reform again, with special emphasis on rice, wheat and corn in a bid to solve the plight. This is landmark progress in market reform, considering the extra caution the central government has always maintained regarding changes in the agricultural sector for fear of hurting food security and farmers. Since 2004, staple foods and important economic crops such as cotton have been covered by a price-supporting mechanism in which the government set a price floor and purchases directly from farmers when the market price falls below that level. The system's costs far outweigh its benefit. In 2014, a new approach was tested with soybeans and cotton in some areas, where the government pays farmers to cover the shortfall between the market price and a recommended price. Under the new policy, the supporting mechanism for corn, a staple food, will be improved as well. This sends out a powerful message about policymakers' intention to push reform for other food crops and will facilitate changes in how rice and wheat farmers are subsidized, if at all. China's food problems are essentially caused by the current subsidy program, which stopped pricing from serving its role of regulating supply and demand. This has led to a severe mismatch between consumer demand and products at home, and allowed the price gap between domestic and foreign markets continue to widen. The problem must be solved via market reform. This change will allow pricing to play a decisive role in allocating resources, improve the efficiency and quality of agricultural production, and allow the farming industry to form a competitive edge globally in a way that best fits its resources. The reform will undoubtedly face obstacles, not least because it is very difficult to gather information on an extremely fragmented market and regulate peasants who work for themselves and make up the majority of the country's farming population. But progress must be made. Several issues need to be cleared up first. One regards the security of food supplies. This has been the starting point of China's grain policy for decades, but it is worth noting that some fundamental changes have occurred. As more people move into cities seeking a better life, society's eating habits will diversify away from grains and include more meat, fruit and dairy products. Also, as the country's labor and land costs rise, we're losing comparative advantages in crops that require these factors most. That means foreign competition for domestic food producers will only grow fiercer. Adhering to absolute self-supply under this circumstance is neither wise nor possible. In response, the government has called for better utilization of foreign markets to supplement domestic supplies. Meanwhile, it has kept its bottom line of keeping the "demand for grains basically met by domestic supply" and the overall food situation "absolutely secure." How to interpret this bottom line decides how far the reform could go next. Another crucial matter that needs more clarification is whether the pricing of staple grains will be completely left to the market. Critics have said that the improved subsidy program for soybeans and cotton still costs too much and cannot be applied to staple foods. They also argue that setting a recommended price still distorts the market. This raises from questions. How far is the government prepared to go in letting the market set prices of staple foods? What methods does it have in a free market to achieve policy goals? It is also important to protect farmers and improve their incomes while making these changes. History has shown that subsidizing farmers won't make them rich. The way for them to a better life lies in moving to cities. Most farmers in China will eventually leave the sector, and those who stay will need to adapt with modern technologies. This is not to say the government can sit back and do nothing. On the contrary, it has an obligation and a tremendous amount of work to do in areas including the hukou system, rural property rights, education and infrastructure. It should also make the market more transparent for farmers, and participate more in setting global trade rules. Every year around Spring Festival, people would lament the poor conditions of rural life showed in photos and stories. But empathy is not enough. Action is more important. Hu Shuli is the editor-in-chief of Caixin Media The Seoul Metropolitan Government on Tuesday said it will begin operating an elevator up the slope from the entrance of Mt. Nam Tunnel 3 to the cable car station in May. Passengers have so far had to walk up the 63 m slope and stairs to reach the station. The new elevator will run at the speed of two minutes and 30 seconds up the slope from the monument tower for the dedication of the tunnel. It is 1.90 m wide and 2.20 m long and can accommodate about 20 passengers. The outside can be seen through the tempered glass of the four walls and the ceiling. The guide rails on the 25-degree slope will run about 1.2 m above the ground. Passengers will still have to walk to the entrance of the tunnel from Myeong-dong and Hoehyeon subway stations. A city official said it will help senior citizens and the disabled visit Namsan more easily. Carney acknowledged that uncertainty about the outcome was fueling instability for the pound, as the opposing sides in the EU debate traded allegations about the economic impact of leaving, a prospect known as Brexit. The heads of almost 200 firms warned in a letter to The Times newspaper that a British vote to leave the EU in a June 23 referendum would "deter investment, threaten jobs and put the economy at risk." The Bank of England is preparing a contingency plan for the aftermath of Britain's referendum on European Union membership, Governor Mark Carney said Tuesday. But he said the central bank will not predict the likely outcome or economic consequences of a vote to leave. Signatories included CEOs at over a third of the FSTE 100 firms, among them Bob Dudley of BP, Royal Dutch Shell's CEO Ben van Beurden and Burberry CEO Christopher Bailey.The chiefs of Heathrow and Gatwick airports also signed, but there were some notable absentees, including the bosses of retailer Tesco and Barclays bank. The letter was organized with the support of Prime Minister David Cameron's office.Cameron said Tuesday that a vote for Brexit would cause "big uncertainty for businesses." "If you leave, you spend two years discussing the arrangements for leaving," throwing Britain's trade agreements into limbo. London Mayor Boris Johnson, one of the most prominent backers of a "leave'' vote, said many business leaders had also warned in the past of dire consequences if Britain did not join the euro single currency. Britain kept the pound, and avoided much of the turmoil in the eurozone in recent years. Carney told Parliament's Treasury Committee that central bank policymakers were "not making a judgment about the potential outcome of the referendum... or an assessment of the potential consequences of a leave vote." He said he would give details of the bank's contingency planning at a committee hearing on March 8. The looming June 23 vote has caused jitters for Britain's pound, which hit a seven-year low of $1.4058 Monday before rallying to just above $1.41. Carney noted there had been an increase in demand for protection against falls in the pound. He said the currency's volatility has "spiked to levels consistent with around the height of the Scottish referendum" on independence in 2014. Nevada is an unusual contest for a number of reasons. State caucus-goers are historically difficult to poll, since many voters live in rural areas outside the three main cities of Reno, Las Vegas and Henderson. This is also only the third time Republicans have held a caucus in the state and the unfamiliar format may have an impact on turnout. Only 1.9 percent of registered Republican voters turned up in 2012, the last presidential election year. Billionaire Donald Trump heads into the caucus with a lead in the latest polls following primary wins in New Hampshire and South Carolina. Trump has about 40 percent support, while his opponents, Senators Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz, are fighting for second place with about 20 percent. Ohio Governor John Kasich and retired surgeon Ben Carson are polling in the single digits and are not considered major challengers in this caucus. A small number of Nevada voters will have a big impact on the presidential race Tuesday when they head to caucus sites statewide to decide on a narrowing field of Republican candidates. "People aren't used to them like they are in Iowa, where its a long-running tradition," said Kevin Banda, assistant professor of political science at the University of Nevada, Reno. He said campaigns have to expend effort educating voters on a potentially time-consuming and confusing process. Donald Trump has chosen not to invest in a significant ground presence in the state -- a decision that Banda said is likely to hurt more in a caucus state than in a standard primary. All three lead contenders in the Republican field, however, have personal attributes that make them attractive to Nevada voters, said Matt Dallek, an assistant professor at The George Washington University's Graduate School of Political Management. "The rural areas have large swaths of evangelical voters which could favor Ted Cruz. Marco Rubio spent some time living in Nevada in his youth, so he has some ties to the state. Trump obviously has some ties to Las Vegas and the world of casinos," Dallek said. One-time favorite Jeb Bush dropped out of the race following a poor showing in the South Carolina primary, while Kasich and Carson have continued on. The diminished field of candidates potentially benefits Rubio, who has received a number of party endorsements in the days leading up to the caucus, including the backing of former Republican presidential candidate Bob Dole. Nevada will be a significant test of Rubio's ability to increase his poll numbers to rival Trump. A gain of six to eight percent "puts him within striking range of Trump's 30, 33 percent of the vote that he's been receiving," Dallek said. For Cruz, Nevada presents a way to reset the conversation after a difficult week in which he lost the evangelical vote to Trump in South Carolina and faced accusations that his campaign plays dirty tricks on his opponents. Cruz had to fire the public face of his campaign, communications manager Rick Tyler, for social media posts falsely alleging Rubio mocked the Bible. Cruz doubled down on his approach to illegal immigration Monday when he said he would send federal agents to arrest undocumented immigrants. "It's an attempt to show that he is tougher than Trump and more willing to crack down," Dallek said. Nevada is a multi-ethnic state, but the historically low turnout of caucus goers tends to skew heavily for white voters. Despite the predicted low turnout, Dallek says Tuesday's results will have far-reaching implications if Trump ends up as the winner. "The question becomes, where can he be stopped? Where is he deprived of a victory -- or multiple victories -- and who will do the stopping?" The next Republican presidential contest is the crucial "Super Tuesday" vote on March 1, when more than a dozen states hold primaries awarding the bulk of delegates needed for the nomination. Democratic Republic of Congo will allow some 150 children adopted by foreign parents, mostly Americans, to leave the country after spending more than two years in legal limbo, the interior ministry said on Monday. In 2013, Congo imposed a moratorium on exit visas to children adopted by foreign parents, citing fears that the children could be abused or trafficked. The government has also voiced concerns about adoptions by gay couples. Congo became a favored international adoption destination in recent years because it has more than 4 million orphaned children, according to the U.N. children's agency UNICEF, as well as lax regulation. The central African nation is mineral-rich but deeply impoverished. It has suffered through two civil wars and armed groups continue to plague its eastern region. Between 2010 and 2013, U.S. adoptions from Congo rose 645 percent, the U.S. Department of State said. Interior ministry spokesman Claude Pero Luwara said an inter-ministerial commission had approved the exit visas. In November, the commission signed off on exit visas for about 70 children adopted by European, Canadian and American families. Congo's government has come under intense pressure from those countries' governments to lift the suspension. "The dossiers that were released... it was mostly American children," Luwara said, adding that the commission will consider about 900 more foreign adoption cases and plans to complete its work next month. Parliament is expected to take up a bill this year to lift the moratorium and regulate foreign adoptions. The U.S. Embassy in the capital Kinshasa could not immediately confirm the interior ministry's statement. A Thomson Reuters Foundation investigation in October found that the ban had spurred a black market in child smuggling, with more than 80 adopted Congolese children illegally transported out of the country and to the United States. North Korea's army politburo chief Hwang Pyong-so has been absent from recent military events attended by leader Kim Jong-un. "We're trying to find out what's happened," a government source here said. Hwang's name was not mentioned when the official Rodong Sinmun listed the names of senior officials who accompanied Kim when he watched a concert by the North Korean Army band on its 70th anniversary on Tuesday. He was also missing when Kim watched a military drill and an aerial exercise last Saturday. Hwang was last seen at a banquet celebrating the North's recent rocket launch in Pyongyang on Feb. 13. Pundits say he was likely taken ill. But he could also have fallen victim to ongoing purges that most recently put former Army chief Ri Yong-gil out of action last month. The Seoul Metropolitan Government plans to spend W460.5 billion over the next five years to digitize the city, including providing free Wi-Fi at all public places by 2017 (US$1=W1,234). Free internet connections will be available on all public transportation and in marketplaces, major streets, parks and tourist hot spots. The city is also working on a new app to provide real-time information on the availability of parking spaces. Drivers will be able to search and locate nearby parking lots. Aside from making the city more competitive in the digital era, city officials also plan to put effort into helping more vulnerable citizens. Children or elderly people with dementia will be provided smart wristbands that will transmit their location to smartphones of their family and guardians. Should the wearer venture outside a preset zone, an alert will sound. Those from low-income households will be able to receive the devices at no cost. The U.S. and Korea have postponed negotiations on the stationing of Terminal High Altitude Area Defense batteries here. The likely reason is that they need to get China on board for a UN resolution against North Korea, and Beijing is nervous about the anti-missile batteries, especially the attached long-range radar. The Defense Ministry had scheduled a press conference at 11 a.m. Tuesday to announce the launch of formal talks but canceled it with about an hour to go saying the final details must be ironed out. Lt. Gen. Thomas Vandal, commander of the U.S. Eighth Army, visited the Defense Ministry at around 5 p.m. and said talks between the U.S. Force Korea and Washington have not been completed yet and that the launch of negotiations with Seoul could be delayed by more than a day. The U.S. may have decided that it could be a bad move to alienate Beijing just as Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi was meeting U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry in Washington. Critics say the delay dents Seoul's claim that the deployment of the missile batteries is designed solely to defend South Korea against a North Korean attack. After formally announcing the start of THAAD talks on Feb. 7, when the North launched its space rocket, the Defense Ministry said Seoul will not be swayed by neighboring countries. Park Won-gon at Handong Global University said, "The postponement of the negotiations may have been designed to allow Beijing to save face, but this could lead to criticism that the weapons system is targeting China." Overseas credit card spending by Koreans last year was record-high W15 trillion, up 8.7 percent from the year before (US$1=W1,234). Domestic consumption, by contrast, rose by only about four percent last year, showing that people are spending more abroad and less at home. According to the Bank of Korea on Tuesday, Koreans spent US$13.26 billion on credit cards abroad last year, up from US$12.21 billion in 2014. Jung Sun-young at Bank of Korea said, "The main reason is that the number of people traveling abroad increased sharply thanks to more flights on budget airlines and the weak Japanese yen." Chinese Ambassador Qiu Guohong on Tuesday met with Kim Chong-in, the interim chairman of the main opposition Minjoo Party, and warned that Seoul-Beijing relations could be "destroyed" if the U.S. pushes ahead with the deployment of Terminal High Altitude Area Defense batteries here. Qiu said destroyed bilateral relations "could take a long time to recover." Qiu added, "Without the THAAD issue, a new UN resolution would have been adopted already." An ambassador representing a foreign nation is of course entitled to voicing his government's position on a security issue. But Qiu's comments went beyond that to naked blackmail. The THAAD is entirely a matter of South Korea's sovereign right to defend itself against an ever-increasing missile threat from North Korea. But somehow the Chinese envoy made out that all the blame lies with Seoul and warned of diplomatic and economic repercussions unless it obeys China's demands. This is an unacceptable breach of diplomatic protocol. Qiu claims that the deployment of THAAD batteries here would threaten China's security and interests, but blithely ignored what makes it necessary in the first place, namely that China's close ally North Korea is totally out of control. If China had taken part in international sanctions against North Korea from the onset, there would be no need to station THAAD batteries here. Instead China points the finger at Seoul. This suggests Beijing has no regard whatsoever for the interests of its neighbors. To make matters worse, Qiu shot his mouth off at a meeting with the head of the opposition, although he is the accredited envoy to the South Korean government. That suggests his real aim was to foment strife within South Korea. Or perhaps he merely seized the opportunity of a pre-scheduled meeting to fire a shot across Washington's bow just before Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and U.S. State Secretary John Kerry met on Wednesday to hammer out a deal on North Korea sanctions. The U.S. and South Korea caved in at the last minute and delayed the start of formal THAAD talks. But using South Korea as a messenger boy in negotiations with the U.S. is completely out of order. China should say whether it is willing to implement sanctions against North Korea or not. Their success or failure depend on China, which is the North's sole sponsor in the world. If it has for some reason no interest in pressuring the North to abandon its nuclear weapons, it should equally refrain from leaning on South Korea and shut up. Read this article in Korean Pro-Apple protest against FBI held in New York 2016-02-24 16:41 NEW YORK, Feb. 24, 2016 (Xinhua) -- An iPhone user attends a rally at the Apple flagship store in Manhattan to support the company's refusal to help the FBI access the cell phone in New York, the United States, Feb. 23, 2016. Apple, a technology company in Silicon Valley, last Wednesday opposed a judge's order to help the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) access the phone of a terrorist killer. (Xinhua/Wang Lei) NEW YORK, Feb. 24 (Xinhua) -- A group of activists gathered here Tuesday night outside Apple's flagship store to protest against the Federal Bureau of Investigation's (FBI's) attempt to install software with backdoors in all of Apple's iPhones. With posters saying "Don't break our phones" and displaying cell phone images saying "No entry" in hands, the high-spirited protesters braved drizzling rain and bitter wind outside the Fifth Avenue Apple Store. "We are standing in solidarity with Apple and their decision to oppose the FBI's scheme to put backdoors to the iPhones," said Jeff Lyon, chief technical officer of the activist group Fight for the Future. The protest occurred against the background of a major feud between the country's law enforcement agencies and Apple over its security measures on iPhones. The Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a motion last Friday to compel Apple to comply with a court order to help the FBI access data on an iPhone owned by the terrorist shooter of San Bernadino, California. The FBI has in its possession of the iPhone 5C used by Syed Farook and his wife Tashfeen Malik, but couldn't access the data on the phone without a passcode. The couple shot dead 14 people in December 2015 in San Bernadino and were later killed by police. In response to FBI's request, a federal judge ordered Apple to create a software that bypasses a security feature that erases data in the iPhone after 10 unsuccessful unlocking attempts. "This case sets a dangerous precedent for the FBI to get a court to order Apple to push new software on all their phones that creates a government backdoor," said protester David Moore. In a statement released last week, Apple CEO Tim Cook refused to comply with the court order, saying that "in the wrong hands, this software - which does not exist today - would have the potential to unlock any iPhone in someone's physical possession," which would in turn compromise the data security of all Apple's customers. "Once you break one phone, you break all the phones. All our phones are breakable using the same technology," said protester Theo Chino. "A lot of people are framing the issue as a conflict between national security and privacy, but really this is a matter about national security versus national security," said Lyon. "Because when the FBI has this software created, that software would become a target for foreign adversaries, hackers, and all sorts of individuals who are going to attempt to access these backdoors," Lyon said. "That's a Pandora's box." Many major technology companies have rallied in support of Apple. Google Chief Executive Sundar Pichai and Facebook Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg have all come to Apple's defense. Other major cities, including Washington D.C., Boston, Los Angeles and Palo Alto, California where Apple's headquarters is located, have also seen similar protests. Procuratorates urged to police poverty relief corruption 2016-02-24 15:29 LANZHOU, Feb. 24 (Xinhua) -- Local procuratorates should have a particular focus on corruption involving funds intended for poverty relief, the head of the Supreme People's Procuratorate said on Wednesday. Speaking at a poverty alleviation conference in Lanzhou, capital of northwest China's Gansu Province, Procurator-General Cao Jianming said procuratorates should watch out for any infringement of the rights of small enterprises and entrepreneurs. Relocation of poor people, compensation for pollution, and subsidized education are other areas of poverty relief prone to corruption, Cao warned. Feature: First overseas campus of top Chinese university to enhance ties with Malaysia 2016-02-24 09:42 by Lin Hao, Zhao Bochao KUALA LUMPUR, Feb. 22 (Xinhua) -- More than 180 students began their college lives on Monday at Xiamen University's newly-opened Malaysian campus, which will boost exchanges and ties among students and academics between China and Malaysia. An opening ceremony was held to welcome Xiamen University Malaysia's (XMUM) first batch of students, marking the official opening of the first overseas campus set up by a renowned Chinese university. Professor Wang Ruifang, president of XMUM, said the enrollment had exceeded their expectations, a sign that the new university was hailed by high school graduates and their parents in Malaysia. "We thought we would only enroll less than 100 students," he told Xinhua. Law Ying Ping, a local Malaysian Chinese student pursing a degree in international trade, said studying at XMUM would provide her with a deeper understanding of China. "I have often heard about Xiamen University's beautiful campus and high academic level in various majors including International Trade and Finance," she said. Xiamen University, based in China's southeastern city of Xiamen, was founded by respected Malaysian-Chinese leader Tan Kah Kee in 1921, making it the first Chinese university founded by an overseas Chinese national. It is now among the top universities in China, ranking 37th in Asia and 275th globally in the "2016 Best Global Universities Ranking" published by U.S. News. Xiamen University's Malaysian campus officially opened less than two years after a ground-breaking ceremony attended by Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak in July 2014. Its origin had helped it garner support from the Malaysian-Chinese community. Among them were Robert Kuok, Chairman of the Kerry Group and owner of luxury hotel chain Shangri-La, who was widely known as the "Sugar King of Asia." The campus covers an area of 150 acres near the Kuala Lumpur International Airport and follows the unique "Tan Kah Kee architectural style" in line with the three campuses of Xiamen University in China. The 180 freshmen will choose from seven programs on offer, including New Energy Science and Engineering, Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chinese Studies, Journalism, Accounting, Finance, and International Business. They are expected to be joined by a second batch of students in April, followed by another intake for bachelor's degree programs in September, according to XMUM. The estimated number of student enrollment for 2016 will be more than 700 students. Zhu Chongshi, President of Xiamen University, said XMUM aims to be one of the top universities in Malaysia and in the region, attracting students from Malaysia, Southeast Asia, China and beyond. "We have two priorities," said Professor Wang, head of XMUM. "One is to emphasize both teaching and research, with an inalienable commitment to talent development." "The second is to build a multi-cultural campus, so that the students - no matter whether they are local, from neighboring countries, or from China - can learn from each other," he added. Ong Ka Ting, the Malaysian Prime Minister's Special Envoy to China, praised XMUM as being another representation of cordial bilateral relations between Malaysia and China in recent years. Prime Minister Najib has asked him to convey his blessing to the new university on his behalf, Ong said. He expected XMUM and its future graduates to play prominent roles in furthering bilateral exchanges and cooperation, especially on the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road as part of the "Belt and Road" initiatives. "XMUM will provide the students with a better platform and channel to grasp the development of politics, economics, as well as culture and technology in China," he said. "Its graduates, be they Malaysian or Chinese or of other nationalities, will become pioneers in building the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road." Pinarayi Vijayan has accused the BJP-led Centre of trying to divide society with its insistence of Hindi. Credit: Kat MorganBrandy is getting ready to head overseas later this summer. Concert organizers announced via Twitter that Brandy will play four dates in England on what's being dubbed The Slayana Tour. The tour will kick off in Manchester on June 24 and travel to Birmingham and Bristol before wrapping up in London on June 28. It's been three years since her last U.K. show. The mini-trek will likely see Brandy performing her single "Beggin & Pleadin," which she released for free last month. Tickets will be available on Friday, February 26. Here are the official tour dates: 6/24 -- Manchester, England, Apollo 6/25 -- Birmingham, England, O2 Academy 6/27 -- Bristol, England, O2 Academy 6/28 -- London, England, indigO2 Copyright 2016, ABC Radio. All rights reserved. #Navy plans Navy eyes creation of unmanned command in 2040s South Korea's Navy is seeking to create a new command running unmanned ships, submarines and aircraft in the 2040s, the armed service said Friday, in an effort to address a potenti... #SK data center fire SK C&C's data center raided over massive server outage Police on Friday raided regional offices of SK C&C, the host of the data center for Kakao Corp., in an investigation into a data center fire last week that caused massive servi... Courtesy of Record Store DayMetallica has been named the official ambassador for Record Store Day 2016, which will be held Saturday, April 16. "Independent record stores are part of Metallica's DNA," says drummer Lars Ulrich in a statement. "They have been pivotal in shaping each one of us into the music fanatics we've all become. We could not be any prouder to be Record Store Day Ambassadors for 2016 and are looking forward to screaming from every rooftop the next few months about everything independent record store and beyond." For this year's Record Store Day, Metallica will be releasing remastered versions of their first two albums, 1983's Kill 'Em All and 1984's Ride the Lightning. The band also will be releasing a live CD called Liberte, Egalite, Fraternite, Metallica! - Live at Le Bataclan. Paris, France - June 11th, 2003, which was recorded at the same venue that terrorists attacked this past November. Metallica, Record Store Day and independent record stores will be donating the proceeds from the sales of the Live at Le Bataclan album to the Give for France charity. You can check out a video of Metallica members Ulrich, James Hetfield, Kirk Hammett and Robert Trujillo talking about the campaign and sharing memories of the record shops they visited when they were young at RecordStoreDay.com. Last year's official Record Store Day ambassador was Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl. Past ambassadors have included Queens of the Stone Age's Josh Homme, Iggy Pop, Ozzy Osbourne and Jack White. Copyright 2016, ABC Radio. All rights reserved. My thoughts and views on things happening around us Back in the mid-2000's, everyone went bananas for J-horror and K-horror. You had The Ring, The Grudge, A Tale Of Two Sisters, To Sir With Love and a load more jump the cultural gap between Western audiences and Eastern audiences and, of course, came the remakes. Gore Verbinski's remake of The Ring was actually pretty decent, as was the US version of The Grudge. Of course, that was helped by the fact that the original director was involved with the US remake. So, why are we talking about a brief fad in horror movies from nearly ten years ago? Because they're back, people. A mysterious trailer surfaced online earlier today that suggests a mash-up is on the way of The Ring and The Grudge for Asian audiences. Sadako Vs. Kayako will see the weird, creepy girl from The Ring and the weird, creepy... boy?.. let's say boy... face off against one another to see who can keep the most people awake and for how long. Horror face-offs aren't anything new, of course. We've had Jason Vs. Freddy AND Chucky Vs. Leprechaun, so it's sorta been done in US horrors. The Ring Vs. The Grudge, however, will be the first time - as far as we know - it's been attempted in Asian horror. Get a load of the trailer. There's no word yet on an Irish release, most likely it'll be screened as part of IFI's Horrorthon in October. Via YouTube You are probably wondering what this story is doing back in the news again, almost a year after this 'fracas' initially occurred. It's because a law suit was just settled this morning between the BBC, Jeremy Clarkson and the Irish Top Gear producer Oisin Tymon who was involved in the infamous incident which saw the presenter fired. Tymon settled the racial discrimination and injury claim for a reported 100,000, an amount to which both Clarkson and the BBC contributed. Following the settlement, Jeremy Clarkson released a statement apologising to Tymon; "I would like to say sorry, once again, to Oisin Tymon for the incident and its regrettable aftermath. I want to reiterate that none of this was in any way his fault. "I would also like to make it clear that the abuse he has suffered since the incident is unwarranted and I am sorry too that he has had to go through that. "I am pleased that this matter is now resolved. Oisin was always a creatively exciting part of Top Gear and I wish him every success with his future projects." The incident took place at a UK hotel where Jeremy Clarkson arrived back after a day's filming to discover there was no hot food, and well, things got nasty. He launched an "unprovoked physical and verbal attack" on Tymon, calling the producer "lazy" and "Irish" and plenty of more expletives according to an internal BBC inquiry. Although Tymon never pressed charges, he was subject to a tirade of online abuse in the aftermath. Mr Tymon's lawyer, Paul Daniels said; "The action involving Mr Tymon has been concluded. Oisin is keen to put the matter behind him now that it has been brought to a close. Oisin greatly appreciates all of the support he has received, including from the BBC." While the BBC also released a statement saying; "We are pleased that matters have now been resolved. Oisin is a valued member of the BBC who behaved with huge integrity in dealing with the very difficult circumstances last year - a situation in which, as Tony Hall has stated, he was completely blameless. "Oisin has made an important contribution to the BBC in his 12 years with us, and we hope to see him continue to realise his potential in his role as a development executive. "We believe Oisin has a very exciting future at the BBC." All's well that ends well so - Jeremy Clarkson, James May and Richard Hammond will shortly be seen on a brand new motoring show on Amazon Prime, while Chris Evans, Matt LeBlanc and Eddie Jordan will kick off the new series of Top Gear in the summer. Sarah Wohlfeld (Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Auswartige Politik) The Serbian foreign policy is traditionally pro-Russian oriented. The roots of this trend date back to the 19th century when the Slavic solidarity was being strengthened between nations with similar cultural and religious character (Cyrillic and Orthodoxy) in the context of the erosion of the Ottoman Empire. Serbia sees Russia as a traditional ally with whom it has a special relationship. This status of Russia in Serbia was further strengthened during the disputes over Kosovo, under which Russia has unequivocally stood behind Belgrade and has effectively blocked Kosovos membership in the UN to this date. In this context, we can then understand why Russian President Vladimir Putin took part in the military parade in Belgrade on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the defeat of the Nazi occupation forces in October 2014. There, Putin stood side by side with Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic, who is strongly pro-Russian. However, the second direction of Belgrades foreign policy orientation is clearly pro-European. This line is based on the economic cooperation. The Serbian public has associated the prospect of EU membership with growing living standards and freedom of movement, with 55 percent of Serbs being in favor of Serbia joining the EU, according to a study commissioned by the European Commission. In Brussels, however, there are well-founded concerns about accepting Serbia in the EU. Serbia has been an official candidate for the EU membership since 2011 but the first official accession talks were opened only in December 2015. This is given by the fact that the current Serbian government has only now begun to actively cooperate with Brussels in the integration process. Serbian Prime Minister, Aleksandar Vu?i?, who is an ardent pro-European and moderate right-of-center leader, is spearheading the process of moving his country closer to the EU. These two directions pursued by Belgrade pro-European and pro-Russian are at first glance only a continuation of Titos strategy from the times of former Yugoslavia. During the Cold War, he turned Yugoslavia into a kind of facilitator of the dialogue between East and West, thereby gaining benefits for his country. Current Serbian political leaders would like follow in Titos footsteps, to draw on his policy. In the official dialogue, they seek to profile the country as a neutral state standing between the Union and Russia. On the one hand, they oppose EU sanctions against Russia and do military exercises with the Russian military on its territory. On the other hand, they all of the sudden focus on the EU accession talks. Russia is neither blocking these talks and nor is it acting publically against them. However, Moscow is simultaneously increasing the intensity of pro-Kremlin propaganda on the Serbian territory. Brussels should therefore be extremely careful when courting Belgrade because the Balkans has historically been an explosive territory. Thus, the question is whether Serbia is not a Russian Trojan horse that would decompose the EU from within and cause more problems than benefits. (The study can be downloaded here: https://dgap.org/en/think-tank/publications/dgapanalyse-compact/headed-brussels-without-compass) The European Union and the United States yesterday (22 February) opened the 12th round of negotiations on the controversial Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), aiming to finally find a common ground on the deals most disputable aspects. TTIP has been under negotiations since mid-2013 and when finalized, it will create the worlds biggest free trade area removing tariffs and harmonizing regulation between both sides. This new round of talks should, for the first time, touch upon the issue of an investment protection system that would enable companies to sue governments when they feel their interests are jeopardized. Both sides will discuss in detail a divisive proposal to create the protection system that has triggered a lot of criticism in Europe, mainly in Germany, where hundreds of thousands people demonstrated in October against the giant free trade deal. The European Commission is in charge of the talks for the EUs 28 Member sStates and it is about to offer Washington an alternative proposal that would include establishing a special court to deal with the investment protection system. TTIPs opponents, however, say that the deal is undemocratic and would recklessly deregulate the European economy at the expense of ordinary citizens. Washington and EU are planning to conclude talks by the end of this year, before the end of the Obama administration. US President Barack Obama will visit Germany in April to personally discuss the deal with Chancellor Angela Merkel. Both sides are believed to be close to an agreement that would eliminate tariffs and barriers on about 97 percent of the mutual trade. Despite the progress in the negotiations, a number of problematic issues still remain on the agenda. On top of the investment protection system, Europeans still cannot accept the possibility of US genetically modified crops inundating its market in addition to the fears about limits on data sharing by international Internet companies. China to launch new anti-graft inspection in 2016 Updated: 2016-02-24 15:31 (Xinhua) Wang Qishan (C), a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and secretary of the CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, attends a meeting on anti-graft inspection in Beijing, capital of China, Feb 23, 2016. [Xinhua/Li Tao] BEIJING -- China's central authority will conduct a fresh round of anti-corruption inspections, the first of 2016, into 32 entities and four provinces. Inspection teams will be dispatched to Party and state organs, including the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee, the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council, the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) said in a statement on Tuesday. At a Tuesday meeting on new inspections, Wang Qishan, head of the CCDI, highlighted CPC leadership in the inspection. Noting that the Party's leadership is a political leadership, Wang said the inspection should reinforce the political fundamentals of CPC rule. He called on inspectors to study and understand speeches by Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee and keep a "high degree of conformity" with the CPC Central Committee in their minds and in practice. He told the inspectors to be politically sober, loyal to the Party and be strict to themselves in observing the Party code of conduct and frugality requirements. The inspection will also cover the General Administration of Customs, the State Administration for Industry and Commerce, the State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television and the China Food and Drug Administration, the statement said. Organizations, such as the All-China Federation of Trade Unions, the All-China Women's Federation as well as Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, will also be put under scrutiny. The new round of inspection will include a reexamination of four provinces -- Liaoning, Anhui, Shandong and Hunan, which have been inspected in previous rounds of checks, to ensure the effect of inspection lasts. Flying high in a changing world: Airbus China COO Updated: 2016-02-24 15:58 (Xinhua) BEIJING - Ships and planes - the two main forms of global travel, and one man's viewing platforms for global development. Rafael Gonzalez-Ripoll's 40-year career launched with the Spanish navy and then 30-year in the Airbus has taken him to the heights of China's burgeoning aviation industry. "Destiny drove me from shipbuilding to plane manufacturing," says the 63-year-old chief operating officer of Airbus China. "Luckily, I enjoy changes and destiny has given me opportunities," Gonzalez-Ripoll said in an exclusive interview with Xinhua. "Aviation is the most amazing and fascinating thing. Why? Flying makes a difference." After the navy, he moved into shipbuilding, and in 1986, he joined Spanish aircraft-maker CASA, which later became the Spanish branch of EADS, the pan-European aviation giant that was to change its name to Airbus. Beginning as a safety and environmental affairs officer, Gonzalez-Ripoll now leads its operations in China as the country embarks on building its own competing aircraft industry. Changing positions He articulated his sense of achievement in explaining his job to his grandson as "making people fly". The multicultural company has seen it adapt well to China, he said, citing the example of the successful A350, the wide-body Airbus passenger aircraft that had its wings made in Spain and Germany to be assembled in Britain. "Staff here have a sense of ownership and belonging, being the owner of the group," he said. "We open doors to people around the world to join Airbus, making them see and work in a harmonious way, and not judging according to their own culture. It is challenging, but undoubtedly beneficial." The approach has helped Airbus develop rapidly as a latecomer in a highly competitive field "To bridge differences, we just need to change positions," said Gonzalez-Ripoll. "We create an atmosphere that encourages all staff to sit at one table and to speak frankly." From his office facing the Beijing International Airport, Gonzalez-Ripoll sees a constant stream of aircraft taking off and landing, reminding him that the aviation industry requires total devotion. "I have two passions in life: my 30 years in aviation and 40 years with my wife," he said. Putting the legal ball in a new court Updated: 2016-02-24 08:04 By Cao Yin(China Daily) Since they were established a little more than a year ago, China's first circuit courts have changed the country's legislative landscape. Cao Yin reports from Shenzhen, Guangdong province. Looking back at the first year of the First Circuit Court in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, Gao Xiaoli, who has worked as a chief judge at China's top court since 1994, said she has had no time to feel homesick, even though she only returns to Beijing once a month. The new circuit courts, which act as branches of the Supreme People's Court, the nation's top legal tribunal, are part of a two-year pilot program related to ongoing reform of the judiciary. Before their foundation, all cases referred to the Supreme People's Court had to be heard in Beijing. A man applies to file a case with a clerk at the First Circuit Court of the Supreme People's Court in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, on Feb 2, 2015. Mao Siqian / Xinhua Last month, President Xi Jinping said the reforms must be deepened to boost to the country's judicial credibility and the public's sense of security. Meanwhile, experts said the country's top court regards the establishment of circuit courts as one of the first steps in the reform process. In January last year, the Supreme People's Court established China's first circuit courts. The first is in Shenzhen, a services center in the Pearl River Delta, and rules on disputes in the provinces of Guangdong and Hainan and in the Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, while the second is in Shenyang, the capital of Liaoning province, and hears cases from Northeast China's traditional industrial provinces - Liaoning, Jilin and Heilongjiang. Circuit courts not only narrow the physical distance between the top court and litigants, but they also underscore the authorities' determination to reform the judicial system, experts said. Change of focus For many years, the country's most-senior judges performed tasks more suited to civil servants. They were given administrative titles, such as chief judge or president, in accordance with seniority, but once that title had been awarded, the focus of their work shifted from hearing cases to managing the court. Although administrative matters occupied most of their time, many were also reluctant to preside over trials, because it meant accepting a heavier burden of responsibility and a greater workload. As a result, many judges rarely heard cases, rendering their legal and procedural experience almost useless when it came to resolving the ever-rising number of court cases. Statistics released by the Supreme People's Court show that nearly 13 million cases were resolved in 2013, a rise from the 8.56 million recorded in 2006. However, the number of judges nationwide failed to rise in tandem with the number of cases. In 2013, there were 196,000 judges, just 6,000 more than in 2006. The Supreme People's Court decided the problem needed to be rectified, and in 2013, the central leadership proposed judicial reform, emphasizing that judges should not be used as administrators and their work should revolve around hearing cases. Leading judges were ordered to "pick the gavel up again" and to spend more time on legal matters. As a result, the Supreme People's Court transferred 88 legal officials from its head office in Beijing to the two new circuit courts. Going to the grassroots From her position as a chief judge, Gao has enjoyed a bird's-eye view of the changes. At the Supreme People's Court, judges often rule on appeals of verdicts handed down by provincial high people's courts. But most of their work revolves around deciding whether there are legal grounds for retrials of cases that have already been reviewed twice in the lower courts. Gao said that before the establishment of the circuit courts, she and her peers often worked on verdicts or retrial decisions in their offices in Beijing. They based their judgments on materials and case documents submitted by the lower courts. The result was that they had little or no contact with the litigants themselves, so they knew almost nothing about their personal circumstances. Now, through her work with the First Circuit Court, Gao visits litigants in their homes, workplaces or other locations and conducts face-to-face talks to resolve conflicts or petitions in person. "Last year, I went to Hechi and Baise in the Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region to resolve disputes at litigants' homes," she said. "In the past, most judgments I made were based on materials provided by lower courts, so I never actually met the people involved." In Hechi, which is rich in nonferrous metals, she helped resolve a contractual dispute between two partners in a mining company. "If I hadn't gone there, I would never have really understood the nature of the dispute, because I had no idea about the technical terms and how local enterprises operate. However, when I visited the city and spoke with the people involved, I quickly understood the situation," she said. Last year, Gao's colleague, Gong Bangyou, traveled to Wuzhi Mountain, Hainan province, and resolved a 20-year-long dispute over home ownership. The local court had pronounced a verdict many years before, but the plaintiff claimed the decision was flawed. His repeated pleas fell on deaf ears, so when the First Circuit Court was established he lost no time in making contact. "I received a petition from a villager in Hainan, who pointed out mistakes in the original verdict. My visit allowed me to confirm that he was right," Gong said. "The local lower court had refused to retry the case and repeatedly ignored the petitioner, which was why the dispute lasted so long. I was shocked by the man's shabby home in the mountains, and realized that the case needed to be concluded as quickly as possible. I arranged a meeting with the 15 people involved in the dispute, and after four hours of mediation we came to a solution. "If I had been in Beijing, I wouldn't have known how serious the villager's problem was. Helping people is one of the best things about the job, and I got a sense of achievement from working on the case," he said. Qi Su, a judge at the Second Circuit Court in Shenyang, said the court improved efficiency by arranging hearings at the homes of 195 litigants last year, and also ruled on a large number of petitions. Official statistics show that last year the two circuit courts dealt with 1,774 cases, and ruled on more than 40,000 petitions that would have previously been submitted to the Supreme People's Court in Beijing. The court in Shenzhen dealt with 10,769 petitioners, while its counterpart in Shenyang handled more than 33,000. "The court gates were flooded by more than 1,000 petitioners on our first day in operation, but the number had fallen to about 100 per day by December," Qi said, adding that the courts help petitioners avoid the need to travel to Beijing repeatedly to lodge appeals. Greater convenience According to Yu Zhengping, vice-president of the Second Circuit Court, the pilot program aims to reduce official interference in hearings, and the verdicts delivered by the judges are used as guidelines by grassroots courts. Moreover, using the circuit courts saves time and money. Huang Sizhou, a lawyer in Shenzhen, was relieved that he doesn't have to travel to Beijing with clients who have lodged appeals. "I am no longer worried about failing to book a hotel near the top court, and relieved that I don't have to squeeze on the crowded subway during the capital's rush hours," he said. He added that he has received many calls from litigants looking to lodge appeals with the First Circuit Court, including some residents from Jiangxi province, which was originally under the jurisdiction of the Supreme People Court in the capital. "The distance from Jiangxi to Shenzhen is less than 1,000 kilometers, far shorter than to Beijing, so it makes sense," he said. Zhao Xudong, a professor of law at the China University of Political Science and Law in Beijing, said the pilot program is implementing the rule of law the leadership highlighted in 2014, and the move has reassured many people that their cases will be heard fairly and justly. Wang Weiguo, Zhao's colleague in the university's law department, also gave the reform the thumbs-up, saying the circuit courts have bolstered judicial credibility. He recommended the establishment of more circuit courts nationwide, but acknowledged that it will be hard to persuade many judges to work outside Beijing, and training more senior judges will not be an easy task. "It's just been the first year. Many judges were excited to experience a new way of handling disputes, but inevitably it will be difficult for them to maintain their enthusiasm for hearing cases at litigants' homes once it becomes commonplace," he said. "Also, training and cultivating senior judges is a time-consuming job, so great attention must be paid to ensuring that the judges dispatched to circuit courts are as highly qualified as possible," he said, adding that encouraging top judges to join the pilot program is a challenge the top court will have to overcome if the reforms are to be successful. Contact the writer at caoyin@chinadaily.com.cn Building bridges The First Circuit Court in Shenzhen, the site of China's first Special Economic Zone and a pioneer of reform in Guangdong province, has contributed to improved judicial communication and cooperation between the Chinese mainland, Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, according to an official at the Supreme People's Court. The establishment of the court in Shenzhen was partly motivated by the need to deal with the rapidly rising number of cases and also with new types of disputes - such as those involving new technologies for which few laws have yet been formulated - in Guangdong and the neighboring regions. In addition, the new court has made it more convenient for residents of Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan to lodge lawsuits in the mainland, Liu Guixiang, the circuit court's president, said. "Since it was established last year, the circuit court has played a major role in handling cases involving Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, and has also helped to implement verdicts in line with legal aid contracts," Liu said. Last year alone, cases related to Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan accounted for 30 percent of the hearings held at the court, which also issued guidelines covering the delivery of legal materials and the collection of evidence between Taiwan and the mainland, he said. Gao Xiaoli, a judge who specializes in civil and commercial cases outside the mainland, said the new branch of the Supreme People's Court is a "window" that allows Hong Kong to understand the work of the mainland judiciary. Statistics released by the top court show that last year the Shenzhen circuit court was visited by more than 70 legal professionals from Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, who observed proceedings to gain greater insight into the mainland's judicial reforms and legal procedures. Seven judges from the circuit court also traveled to Hong Kong to further explain matters. "This legal interaction has become more frequent since the circuit court was set up last year. The top court has encouraged us to improve communications with legal professionals in the three areas to alleviate misunderstandings resulting from the use of different judicial systems," she said. "The rising number of economic exchanges with these areas means greater judicial understanding is crucial. We need each other and will make great efforts to learn more about each other's working practices and systems," she added. (China Daily 02/24/2016 page6) Beijing not being led astray by TPP intentions Updated: 2016-02-24 07:14 (China Daily) Trade ministers of the United States and 11 other Pacific Rim countries attend a press conference after negotiating the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade agreement in Atlanta, the United States, on Oct. 5, 2015. [Photo/Xinhua] From Washington to Beijing, signs of ambivalence abound in the discourse about the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement. In private at least, we have heard plenty about the TPP being part of a larger plot by the United States to contain China. With US President Barack Obama's vow that his country will not allow countries such as China to write the rules of international trade lingering in the background, it is only natural for people to consider the US-led TPP as a counter to what China is up to: such as the open and inclusive China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative, the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, as well as the Association of Southeast Asian Nations-led free trade area, of which China is only one of more than a dozen potential members. It is difficult to exclude geopolitical calculations from the TPP as some of its facilitators would surely be more than glad to kill two or more birds with one stone. But for its members, economy and trade always come first. That is equally true for present-day China, which highly values the global market and seeks to broaden its economic and trade partnerships. That is why we found Chinese Commerce Minister Gao Hucheng's remarks on Tuesday encouraging. "We do not see the TPP as directed against China, nor do we think it is antagonistic to the RCEP," he stated at a State Council Information Office news conference. That may not be a direct answer to the very frequently asked, and very natural, legitimate question: How will Beijing react to the TPP? But no further elaboration is necessary here. The reason and open-mindedness Gao displayed were a reassuring sign the authorities have not been led astray by conspiracy theories. And that will prove conducive to the region's long-term interests. Even if some members of the TPP have extra-economic motives in creating and joining the club, the TPP is first of all a trade agreement. No matter what standards it eventually comes up with, the TPP cannot seal its members off from the rest of the world. At the end of the day, its members, many of whom are Beijing's important trading partners, cannot afford to ignore China and the rest of the global market. Beijing, therefore, has no reason to not engage with the new trading bloc. Instead, through expanding economic and trade ties with its members, Beijing can become an indispensable partner for the TPP. DPRK warns to use strategic weapons against US-ROK forces Updated: 2016-02-24 10:17 (Xinhua) PYONGYANG - The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) said Tuesday that its strategic and tactical weapons are ready to be used for preemptive strikes on the Republic of Korea and the United States even if any "small movements" were found among US-ROK special forces, the official KCNA news agency said Tuesday. The first target of the attacks would be Chongwadae, the ROK's presidential office, as well as the ROK's authorities, said the KCNA, citing a statement issued by the supreme command of the Korean People's Army (KPA). If the US-ROK armed forces continued to make military provocations despite warnings from the DPRK, the KPA would enter the phase of its second round of attacks, which would target US bases in the Asia-Pacific and even US territories, the statement warned. The DPRK is accusing the United States and the ROK of attempting to bring about a "collapse of the DPRK social system", read the statement. The US-ROK OPLAN 5015 war plan reportedly includes preemptive strikes on the DPRK and plans to remove the DPRK's weapons of mass destruction. Washington does not want South China Sea to be US-China issue, Kerry says Updated: 2016-02-24 11:46 By Li Xiaokun(chinadaily.com.cn) Washington does not want to see the South China Sea become an issue between China and the United States, US Secretary of State John Kerry said on Tuesday. US Secretary of State John Kerry (R) and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi shake hands at a joint news conference after their meeting at the State Department in Washington, February 23, 2016. [Photo/Agencies] He made the remarks when meeting Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Washington, according to a press release issued by the Foreign Ministry. Kerry said the US is willing to carry out smooth interaction with China and does not want the South China Sea to become an issue between the two countries. Wang said he has met Kerry three times in one month, which reflects the great importance both countries attach to the relationship. "International media often focus on some problems between China and the US. But in fact, joint interests of the two countries far outweigh our divisions, and the depth and scope of bilateral cooperation far exceed regional friction," Wang said according to the press release. Bilateral talks, he said, should cover both cooperation and ways to control division. Wang expected the two countries to speed up negotiations on the Bilateral Investment Treaty and deepen anti-corruption efforts this year. China supports the US in holding the fourth Nuclear Security Summit in Washington in late March and early April, and welcomes US President Barack Obama's visit to China in September to attend the G20 summit in Hangzhou, he said. He also made clear China's stance on the Taiwan and the South China Sea issues, and Beijing's opposition to US intentions of deploying the Terminal High Altitude Area Defence system, one of the world's most advanced missile defense systems, in the Republic of Korea. The two top diplomats also discussed the Korean Peninsula nuclear and Iran nuclear issues and the situation in Syria. Wang is visiting the US from Feb 23 to 25. Testosterone Oxytocin Cortisol Leptin Thyroid Hormone Every person in the world has one thing in common is the need for fat loss. Unfortunately, this is a common scenario for many people. Thats why its important to know what hormones or steroids are available that can help you reach your goal sooner and more efficiently. If you are interested in buying weight loss steroids, then a Great place to buy weight loss steroids at LAWeekly . Five essential hormones can help increase your metabolism and burn calories at a faster rate. They are all easy to use, just like any other hormone supplement would be.Testosterone is a natural hormone that is mainly produced in males. It is the best testosterone booster you can get when burning fat even if you have a low testosterone level. 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You need to do it faster and easier if you want to see results in a short time. The five hormones listed above can help you burn calories faster than ever without any effort at all. Archive photo And he vowed to reverse Environmental Protection Agency regulations on greenhouse gas emissions and hydraulic fracturing, known as fracking, to allow the extraction of gas buried deep in the ground near places like Salem. Taking issue with what he described as a Democratic fear campaign against fracking, he said that the hundreds of billions of dollars worth of natural gas and oil underneath the ground are doing the people of Ohio no good pent-up in shale rock. Republican hard liner Anitere Flores seen with her former colleague, in the Republican controlled Florida House of Representatives, Marco Rubio. She is now a State Senator in the Republican controlled State Senate.I guess because her district will be more to the left, she has toned down her rhetoric on the environment, and has become green-washed. Good if it stops Fracking.Marco Rubio on Fracking:Don't forget all the Earthquakes fracking is causing Marco. Studies tie 77 Ohio Earthquakes to two fracking wells. And, even worse:Fracking Pioneer: "The co-founder and former chief executive officer of Devon Energy Corp. has signed on to shape energy policy for Florida Senator Marco Rubio." - Feb. 22, 2016 Anitere Flores against Fracking because: Photo by Johnny Nunez/WireImageCongratulations are in order for Bobby Brown, who is expecting another child with wife Alicia Etheredge. According to US Magazine, this will be the third child for the couple, who welcomed their second baby just seven months ago. The bundle of joy will also mark the seventh child total for the crooner, who is also father to six-year-old Cassius, 25-year-old LaPrincia, 23-year-old Bobby Jr., and 29-year-old Landon. The news comes less than a year after Brown lost his daughter with the late Whitney Houston, Bobbi Kristina, last July at the age of 22. Copyright 2016, ABC Radio. All rights reserved. News Story not available This story has been published on: 2022-10-21. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. This story is no longer available on our site. ABC/Ida Mae Astute(COLUMBIA, S.C.) -- In a muggy, cramped Baptist church in South Carolina Tuesday night, five grieving mothers -- all of whom have lost a child to gun violence or allegations of police brutality -- sat on stage beside Hillary Clinton, Gabby Giffords and Mark Kelly for a roundtable where they shared their stories, made a plea for gun control and offered their heart-felt endorsements of the Democratic presidential candidate. "Nobody reached out to us. Nobody listened to us. Nobody said black lives matter until this brave and powerful woman stood up for us, Sybrina Fulton, the mother of Trayvon Martin, the unarmed teenager who was killed by George Zimmerman in 2012, said about Clinton at the Central Baptist Church in Columbia, South Carolina. Fulton is one of the five women who call themselves the Mothers of the Movement, referring to a growing, national effort to end racial violence and to reform the criminal justice system. The group also includes the mothers of Eric Garner, Dontre Hamilton, Jordan Davis and Sandra Bland. The mothers had a private meeting with Clinton in Chicago last November, and they are now traveling South Carolina to campaign for her ahead of the state's primary on Saturday. "I think about my son day in and day out, I live with this day in and day out, these mothers live with this day in and day out, and we have an opportunity to have someone who is gonna stand up for us as African-Americans, for us as women, I say my vote goes to Hillary Clinton, Fulton explained. I endorse her, because she endorsed us first, Gwen Carr, the mother of Eric Garner, whose daughter has endorsed Bernie Sanders, added. WATCH: Eric Garner's mother Gwen Carr on @HillaryClinton: "I endorse her because she endorsed us first." https://t.co/xlpvIbU5V2 ABC News Politics (@ABCPolitics) February 24, 2016 Both Clinton and Sanders have recently made a blatant pitch to African-Americans -- a demographic that is expected to make up nearly half of the Democratic voters in South Carolina, where Clinton is leading by double digits. Her campaign event on Tuesday came just hours after a federal judge said some of Clintons top aides should testify over the use of her private email server while secretary of state. While Clinton did not address her emails during the roundtable with the mothers, she later brushed off the new development when asked about it during a CNN town hall that evening. It is just not something that, you know, is going to have any lasting effect, Clinton said, "And I am not at all worried about it. Copyright 2016, ABC Radio. All rights reserved. ABC News(NEW YORK) -- Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump celebrated his resounding victory in Tuesdays Nevada caucuses, but almost as soon as he declared we're winning, winning, he was already thinking bigger. It's going to be an amazing two months, he said. We might not even need the two months folks, to be honest, right? The GOP front-runners confidence makes sense: With three straight wins, he looks increasingly likely to be on a glide path to land the Republican nomination. But theres still hope for some of his rivals, and heres a look at what they would need to do to catch up to Trump: Rubio: The Candidate Who Needs to Clear the Field Sen. Marco Rubio needs to start winning. With the first four nominating contests in the rear-view mirror and no victories to show for it, a Rubio nomination would defy existing precedent that every eventual nominee has won at least one of the early states. "If we don't come together, we're never going to be able to provide a clear alternative to the direction that Donald Trump wants to take the Republican Party and the country, Rubio said Wednesday morning. Without a clear state to win on Super Tuesday (March 1), Rubio now has all his chips on his home state of Florida, an absolute must-win that doesnt come until March 15. "We have a dynamic where as long as there are four people running, dividing up the non-Trump vote, you'll get results like last night, he said in an interview with NBC News. The sooner we can narrow the race down, the easier it'll be to stop Donald Trump. Cruz: Dont Mess With Texas In his speech Tuesday night, which was less a celebration and more an acknowledgement of his third-place finish, Sen. Ted Cruz seemed almost relieved to put the caucuses behind him. I want to thank the great people of Nevada, the Texas senator said, and I want to say I cannot wait to get home to the great state of Texas. The Lone Star State is Cruzs life support for a campaign thats struggling to remain an alternative to the Donald. And hes getting a shot in the arm Wednesday from Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, who will endorse him. At stake when Texans head to the polls on Super Tuesday are a whopping 251 delegates up for the taking. Its a must-win for the home-state senator. Kasich: A Miracle in Michigan After a surprising second-place finish in New Hampshire, Ohio Gov. John Kasich has struggled in more conservative states like South Carolina and Nevada, better suited for candidates like Cruz. Kasich placed an ad buy in Vermont Wednesday, one of the other Super Tuesday states in which the former Ohio governor is likely to be a threat. Midwestern states more friendly to Kasich come later in the cycle, after Trump has likely won several Super Tuesday states: Michigan votes March 8, and then Kasichs home state of Ohio votes March 15. But even Trump taunted him in his speech Tuesday night. We're going to do very well in Ohio. We're beating the governor, he said. That's good. It's always nice to be beating the governor. Still, Ohio is a large winner-takes-all prize, which would help boost Kasichs dwindling delegate count. Carson: The Undaunted Doctor Ben Carsons remarks to supporters Tuesday night, echoed in a news release distributed by his campaign Wednesday morning, might leave all but his most die-hard supporters scratching their heads. We remain undaunted, the retired neurosurgeon said in a statement. Weve barely finished the first inning, and theres a lot of game left. This coming from the candidate who finished a distant fourth in the Silver State, sixth in South Carolina, eighth in New Hampshire and fourth in Iowa. Carson has already become something of an afterthought on the campaign trail and in the debates and while he can keep at it, at this point, he seems to be running for a better speaking slot at this summers Republican National Convention rather than making a serious case for his claim to the nomination. Copyright 2016, ABC Radio. All rights reserved. Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. APD and Unipetrol RPA (part of Czech Republic-based leading petrochemical and refining group Unipetrol) have signed a new long-term contract expanding their successful association. Per the contract, Air Products will continue to supply industrial gases from its existing air separation unit (ASU) to meet Unipetrol's needs. Air Products ASU, which is located on Unipetrol's manufacturing site, will provide additional liquid capacity produced to meet the industrial gas requirements of customers across the Czech Republic and Central Europe. Air Products makes main raw materials that meet the requirements in the area of Chempark Zaluzi. Both Air Products and Unipetrol have partnered for over two decades and this is advantageous to both the companies. Air Products is also a reliable supplier for Unipetrol and allows the latter to focus on key production activities in the areas of refinery and petrochemicals. The contract will run until 2027 and the extension underscores the strategic and commercial value that investments in reliable, mutually beneficial business relationships can bring. Air Products shares fell around 1% to close at $131.17 on Feb 18. Air Products released its first quarter fiscal 2016 (ended Dec 31, 2015) results last month. The company surpassed earnings expectations and saw higher profits, helped by its cost-management initiatives and improved pricing. However, its sales fell year over year and lagged expectations. The company recorded first-quarter adjusted earnings of $1.78 per share, up 15% from $1.55 recorded in the year-ago quarter. Adjusted earnings exclude charges associated with business separation and project suspension costs. Air Products currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Some better-ranked companies in the chemical space are Koninklijke DSM N.V. RDSMY, Asahi Kasei Corp. AHKSY and Mitsubishi Chemical Holdings Corp. MTLHY. While Koninklijke DSM and Asahi Kasei sport a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), Mitsubishi Chemical carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report >> Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report AIR PRODS & CHE (APD): Free Stock Analysis Report ASAHI KASEI CP (AHKSY): Free Stock Analysis Report KONINKLIJKE DSM (RDSMY): Free Stock Analysis Report MITSUBISHI CHEM (MTLHY): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research How Investors Reacted to AMAT's Strong Guidance for Fiscal 2Q16 (Continued from Prior Part) Macroeconomic impact In the previous part of this series, we saw that Applied Materials (AMAT) revenue fell as growth in the Service segment was offset by a decline in the Silicon Systems segment. However, strong orders in NAND and Display would boost the companys sales in fiscal 2016. Apart from the business segment, another factor driving sales is the macroeconomic conditions in key geographies China (MCHI) and Taiwan. Applied Materials earned 50% of its fiscal 1Q16 revenue from the Taiwan and China, which house the most semiconductor fabrication (or fab), testing, and packaging facilities in the world. China In fiscal 1Q16, AMATs revenue from China rose 21% YoY (year-over-year) while new orders rose 56% YoY despite a weaker economic environment. This is because of the Chinese governments efforts to boost domestic semiconductor manufacturing. The company secured orders from both Chinese manufacturers and multinational companies building plants in the nation. Intel (INTC) and Samsung (SSNLF) are building flash memory plants in China in 2016. TSMC (TSM) is building a 12-inch wafer fab and a design center in China. SEMI (Semiconductor Equipment and Materials International) expects SME (semiconductor manufacturing equipment) sales in China to rise by 9.1% YoY in 2016. Southeast Asia In fiscal 1Q16, the companys revenue from Southeast Asia fell 2.2% YoY while new orders rose by 173% YoY. Micron Technology is building a NAND (negative AND) flash fab in Singapore, which is encouraging semiconductor companies to build plants in the nation. Europe Meanwhile, a marked change was noted in Europe, which has been posting declining sales due to the economic crisis. In fiscal 1Q16, AMATs revenue from Europe fell by 9.8% YoY while new orders rose by 5.4% YoY. SEMI assumes that that SME sales in Europe will grow by 63.1% YoY in 2016, driven by investments from Global Foundries, Infineon, Intel (INTC), and STMicroelectronics (STM). Story continues Other countries Applied Materials (AMAT) revenue from Taiwan rose by 14.6% YoY while new orders rose by 5.3% YoY in fiscal 1Q16. On a YoY basis, new orders from the US, Korea, and Japan fell by 10%, 32%, and 55%, respectively, in fiscal 1Q16. While sales from the US and Korea fell by 21% and 50%, respectively, Japans sales rose by 37.4% in fiscal 1Q16. In the next part of this series, we will look at the Applied Materials financial ability to withstand headwinds and its guidance for fiscal 2Q16. Continue to Next Part Browse this series on Market Realist: A worker walks past a bucket-wheel reclaimer at the Fortescue loading dock located at Port Hedland in the Pilbara region of Western Australia December 3, 2013. REUTERS/David Gray By Jim Regan (Australia) and Clara Denina SYDNEY/LONDON (Reuters) - The world's largest miner BHP Billiton is sitting on an $11 billion cash pile and what CEO Andrew Mackenzie does with the money will be a critical test of his ability to invest during the industry's worst downturn in decades. Announcing plans this week to slash its dividend and shore up its balance sheet, the mining giant said repeatedly that it would consider "opportunities" - cranking up the rhetoric, even as it warned of prolonged price pain. One of a generation of conservative mining bosses brought in after years of breakneck growth, former BP executive Mackenzie is not an empire builder by nature. He has not done a single major acquisition since he took the reins at BHP in 2013. But with indebted miners Anglo American and Freeport-McMoRan under unprecedented strain, bankers say some of the world's most coveted copper mines could become available - testing Mackenzie's deal-making mettle. "It's not quite a war chest, but who knows what might come under distress in this sort of environment," the BHP boss told investors and analysts, when asked about the $11 billion. Only a few deals and only one metal - copper - can expect to meet BHP's tough requirements for an adequate return. Copper is the most sought-after industrial metal, as existing mines age and new ones are found in increasingly difficult locations. But the buy-or-wait debate, say investors, bankers and analysts, is gathering steam inside some of the industry's largest players, who are already facing calls from some quarters to make the best of a terrible market. "This is exactly what BHP should be doing. Using their strength of balance sheet to make bottom of cycle acquisitions and during boom times pay out most of their earnings - rather than buy and or invest at top of cycle," said Paul Xiradis, chief investment officer of Australia-based Ausbil Investment Management, which owns BHP stock. The world's mining giants were heavily criticized in the years after the 2008 financial crisis, accused of making ruinous acquisitions and - worse - pursuing costly mine projects at the top of the market, fuelling over-supply when the market could least afford it. Story continues But as the cycle hits bottom, steep spending cuts have left BHP, a mining behemoth, pumping in enough cash to stay in business but, some analysts argue, not enough to grow. That puts the question of whether to wait or to buy firmly on the table: is the time now, or is it a decade too soon? "(BHP) have a strategic dilemma," one industry banker said. FOR SALE Anglo, Freeport and Glencore have all put assets on the block as part of efforts to cut debt. For now, advisers say none of those meets BHP or indeed chief rival Rio Tinto's requirements - some are not copper, others are too small or in risky jurisdictions once seen as pioneering and now frowned upon. But if Anglo and Freeport fail to find buyers for what they have got for sale now, bankers say better mines could come up. More likely, according to industry advisers, the companies will be reluctant to sell crown jewels and would put themselves in play, alongside copper-heavy players like Lundin Mining, or First Quantum, already under the scanner. All of this could be good news for BHP and even more so Rio, which has its own $9 billion of cash and is facing calls to grow in copper to diversify a portfolio dominated by iron ore. Anglo and Freeport both have prize assets in Latin America - for Anglo, Chile's Los Bronces, and for Freeport, Cerro Verde in Peru and a majority stake in the El Abra mine in Chile. For now, analysts say Mackenzie's comments could be aimed at putting the acquisitions issue up for debate, well ahead of any deal - real or potential. It is certainly a fair distance to any actual deal, given the high price tags of recent acquisitions. The last three significant deals - most recently, the acquisition of an extra stake in Freeport's Morenci mine by Japan's Sumitomo - were done at an implied copper price of well over $7,000 a tonne, bankers and analysts estimate, compared to current prices of closer to $4,600. That could make any deal a stretch for BHP, which needs to keep cagier investors on board and is also trying to assuage rating agencies to keep its single A credit rating. "I think frankly that BHP and Rio are still trigger shy. But we are seeing them on the edges - they are starting to explore whether this makes sense," a second industry banker said. (Reporting and writing by Clara Ferreira Marques in MUMBAI; Additional reporting by Eric Onstad and Simon Jessop in LONDON; Editing by Raju Gopalakrishnan) SAO PAULO, Feb 24 (Reuters) - Brazil's Supreme Court on Wednesday authorized formal investigations into President Dilma Rousseff's former chief of staff, as well as the mayor of the country's largest city and an opposition senator, for potential corruption. Supreme Court Justice Celso de Mello said federal prosecutors could investigate Rousseff's former chief of staff, Aloizio Mercadante, who now serves as education minister, Sao Paulo Mayor Fernando Haddad and Senator Aloysio Nunes of the opposition PSDB party. Prosecutors said all three were named in plea bargain deals with states' witnesses in a corruption and political kickback scheme at state-run oil firm Petroleo Brasileiro SA, but that the possible crimes raised by the witnesses were not necessarily related to the Petrobras investigation. Representatives for Haddad, Mercadante and Nunes did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Around 50 politicians, mostly from Rousseff's coalition, are under investigation for possibly taking bribes in Brazil's largest-ever corruption investigation. Some politicians have been cleared of wrongdoing after they were named in plea bargain testimony. Dozens of engineering executives are on trial for allegedly forming a cartel to fix prices on contracts with Petrobras, as the oil firm is known, and using the excess funds to bribe politicians and Petrobras executives. (Reporting by Eduardo Simoes; Writing by Caroline Stauffer; Editing by Leslie Adler) RIO DE JANEIRO, Feb 24 (Reuters) - Workers in Brazil at Vale's Timbopeba iron ore mine in Minas Gerais state went on strike early on Wednesday in protest over the payment of a profit sharing bonus, the local union said. Vale SA's decided not to pay the bonus in 2015 for the first time in recent history, as the recent plunge in metals prices hits its earnings. "We think that this could influence other mines and other union representatives (to strike). Only a national strike will likely influence the decision of Vale," the director of the local miners union, Valerio Vieira, said. (Reporting by Marta Nogueira; Writing by Reese Ewing) Donald Trump Nevada The Nevada Republican party pushed back Tuesday after widespread reports of chaos at caucus sites. Reports from the ground point to a lot of confusion, but the party says they haven't gotten any official reports of irregularities. Those on the ground say candidates who have dropped out of the race for their party's presidential nomination are still listed on some ballots, some sites are running out of ballots, and some people are being kept waiting in long lines. Real-estate mogul Donald Trump, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson, and Ohio Gov. John Kasich are all competing in Nevada. Turnout seems to be higher than expected, and some caucus sites appear unprepared. There have also been reports of double-voting, which Republican officials are said to be looking into. Evidence of this have so far been anecdotal. The Nevada Republican party said on Twitter that there have been "no official reports of voting irregularities or violations." Jeremy Hughes, a Nevada strategist for Rubio, told CNN that "trying to to catch all the fraud that's going on" at caucus sites in the state "would like trying to plug all the holes in the Titanic." "You fix one and another one bursts," he said. This outcome was somewhat anticipated. Past Republican caucuses in Nevada have run into problems, and state party officials have been holding training sessions for months to ensure that everything goes smoothly, Politico reports. An unnamed Republican operative in Nevada told Politico: "I think all campaigns have some concerns. The caucus process is messy, and there will inevitably be problems." And since Nevada has only been using the caucus system for the past two election cycles, voters and staffers alike are unaccustomed to it. Here are some of the reports from the ground in Nevada: Ballots are being collected at a rapid pace. Jeb Bush is still on it. #nvgopcaucus pic.twitter.com/m3QdQmOgJG Anjeanette Damon (@AnjeanetteDamon) February 24, 2016 GOP volunteer working Sun Valley location said he was expecting maybe 100 people. Turnout has far exceeded that here. Anjeanette Damon (@AnjeanetteDamon) February 24, 2016 Even though things moving very smoothly here, voters muttering under their breath: What a mess; This is the stupidest thing I've ever seen. Anjeanette Damon (@AnjeanetteDamon) February 24, 2016 Only in NV would they have Santorum, Carly, Bush, Christie, Huck and Paul on there. What buffoons. Did they not want to refund their fees? Jon Ralston (@RalstonReports) February 24, 2016 I don't know of any org less prepared to deal with unusually high turnout than NV GOP. Also, no org less equipped to deal w/low turnout. Jon Ralston (@RalstonReports) February 24, 2016 Report from Wooster HS: "It's about to get ugly here." How so? "Yelling, swearing, disorganized. People are pissed." Jon Ralston (@RalstonReports) February 24, 2016 It is chaos here at Palo Verde HS. No one knows where their precinct is, tons of people streaming in. #Nevadacaucus Emily Cahn (@CahnEmily) February 24, 2016 Man here says "it's a disaster." No one is checking in or checking IDs. They're handing out ballots willy nilly. Some guy voted trump twice Emily Cahn (@CahnEmily) February 24, 2016 Second woman says no one checked her ID. She was just handed a ballot. She says it's very scary. #Nevadacaucus pic.twitter.com/VqxrOianFj Emily Cahn (@CahnEmily) February 24, 2016 NOW WATCH: This 45-second animation shows how the states have voted in every presidential election More From Business Insider Chinas exports of major arms soared 88 percent between 2006 and 2015, and the country is now behind only the U.S. and Russia when it comes to exporting weapons around the globe, according to a new report from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). Related: Chinese Missiles Ratchet Up a Dangerous Game in the South China Sea China isnt the only nation that has seen a boost in arms sales. Weapons exports also increased for the U.S., Russia and Britain, the report states. The study comes at a time when Beijing is trying to reduce its historical reliance on military hardware from other countries, most notably Russia, and move toward producing its own weapons systems. "China is increasingly capable of producing its own advanced weapons and has become less dependent on arms imports," said SIPRI. China sees domestic arms production as a top priority, and has been willing to cut corners to make rapid advances. For example, Chinese hackers are suspected of stealing the blueprints to Lockheed Martins F-35 Joint Strike Fighter in 2009 to create the foundation for its next-generation stealth fighter jet, the J-20, which recently entered into production. The new study found that China's biggest customers for its weapons between 2011 and 2015 are in the Asia-Pacific region: Pakistan spent $2.9 billion on Chinese arms, Bangladesh spent $1.6 billion and Myanmar come in third with $1.3 billion. "All three states are neighbors of India, the leading importer of arms in the region," the report noted. Related: Stealth Wars: China Rolls Out a New J-20, Another Knockoff Fighter Chinas expanding military capacities are creating tensions in the Asia-Pacific region, especially in the South China Sea, where Beijing is embroiled in a number of territorial disputes. China has begun deploying some of its most advanced weaponry in the region, including sending batteries of its HQ-9 surface-to-air missile system to Woody Island in the disputed Paracel Islands chain earlier this month, and now it appears the countrys J-11 warplanes have arrived in the archipelago as well. Story continues Analysts expect China to continue to expand its share of the global arms market for years to come. Top Reads from The Fiscal Times: US Secretary of State John Kerry shakes hands with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi during a press conference at the State Department in Washington, DC on February 23, 2016 (AFP Photo/Saul Loeb) The United States and China made progress Tuesday toward a draft UN sanctions resolution to punish North Korea for its recent nuclear tests and push it to the negotiating table. After talks in Washington, China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi and US Secretary of State John Kerry said the draft was still being "evaluated" by officials before being submitted to the UN Security Council. But both powers vowed that they would not accept a nuclear-armed North Korea and expressed confidence the resolution would be strong enough to force Kim Jong-Un's isolated regime to reconsider its strategy. China wants its neighbor to halt its weapons program -- most recently shown by the January 6 test of an atomic bomb Pyongyang claims was a new thermonuclear device -- and return to six-party international talks. But Beijing has been more cautious than Washington in its approach, fearing that too severe a response could trigger the collapse of the pariah regime and a political and humanitarian crisis on its border. Nevertheless, Wang said his talks with Kerry had made progress in agreeing on a draft sanctions resolution to be presented to the full UN Security Council. "We do not accept the DPRK's nuclear missile program and we do not recognize the DPRK as a nuclear weapons state," he said, using the abbreviation for North Korea's official name. "Important progress has been made in the consultations and we are looking at the possibility of reaching agreement on a draft resolution and passing it in the near future." Both men said the goal of the resolution is not to worsen the standoff with Kim Jong-un's isolated regime, but to persuade it to resume talks on ending his nuclear program. "We have made significant progress, it has been very constructive in the last days," Kerry said. "And there is no question that if the resolution is approved, it will go beyond anything that we have previously passed," he added. Story continues "I believe that what we are considering is significant but, as I say, it is in the appropriate evaluative stages and we both hope that this can move forward very soon." - Peace treaty explored - Pyongyang has done nothing to moderate its tone since January's test caused international outrage, and on Tuesday promised a "strategic" response if it felt threatened by an upcoming joint US-South Korean military exercise. Kerry said a denuclearized North Korea could one day enter talks with Washington to negotiate a formal peace deal to officially end the hostilities that began with the outbreak of the Korean War in 1950. On Sunday, the State Department had confirmed that Pyongyang had reached out to the United States in a tentative bid to discuss a peace treaty, but added that the January test had derailed the initiative. "We carefully considered their proposal, and made clear that denuclearization had to be part of any such discussion. The North rejected our response," spokesman John Kirby told reporters. Kerry also said that there would be no need for the United States to deploy its THAAD missile defense system in its ally South Korea, as planned, if the North's weapons were not threatening the region. China has expressed concern that sending he system to South Korea could upset regional power balances and strain its ties with Seoul, despite US insistence it would be aimed at countering Pyongyang. College of DuPage student Lance Williams has been accepted into the Posse Foundation's Veterans Program and will receive a full-ride scholarship to Wesleyan University in Connecticut.Click here for high-resolution version GLEN ELLYN, IL--(Marketwired - February 24, 2016) - College of DuPage student Lance Williams has been accepted into the Posse Foundation's Veterans Program and will receive a full-ride scholarship to Wesleyan University in Connecticut. Founded in 1989, the nonprofit Posse Foundation Inc. provides full-tuition scholarships to public high school students with academic and leadership potential who may be overlooked by traditional college selection processes. The Posse Foundation also created three additional initiatives, including the Posse Veterans Program, which identifies veterans interested in pursuing bachelor's degrees at top colleges and universities. "I'm still at a loss for words," the Warrenville resident said. "I never thought I would end up at a school like Wesleyan." Williams will transfer in the fall as part of a cohort consisting of nine other veterans receiving ongoing support, including weekly meetings with a faculty advisor through graduation. Jose Alferez, Manager of Veterans Services at College of DuPage, encouraged Williams to apply for the scholarship based upon his performance at COD. "It's an incredibly competitive program, so we are all very proud of what Lance has accomplished," Alferez said. "He is a shining example for other veterans, and I hope they are inspired to find and pursue opportunities in order to achieve and surpass their goals." Williams was always interested in the military. In fact, as a kid, he watched videos of Army Rangers and Navy Seals on the Internet. "My father was in the first infantry division (aka The Big Red One) during the Gulf War, Operation Desert Storm," he said. "I remember growing up with a sense of pride that my father served in the military, and I knew at a very young age that serving in the military was something I was going to do." Williams said he was near the bottom of his high school class academically. So it was no surprise when he enlisted upon turning 17. "I knew that I wanted to be in special operations and become the best of the best. I wanted to do the things that everybody talks about but nobody knows about," he said. "I joined the 75th Ranger Regiment, and the selection process was extremely difficult. By the end of the course, I had a severe hairline fracture in the neck of my femur from the stress of the course." Story continues Only 40 percent of the original 175 men completed the course, and Williams was one of them. He served in the 3rd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment for four years with multiple deployments to Afghanistan. "The 75th is not for the faint of heart. It was full of the highest of highs and some lows, but overall my experiences have made me stronger than I ever could have imagined and wiser well beyond my years." After completing his military service, Williams began thinking about the next phase of his life and turned to College of DuPage. His initial goal was eventually to earn a bachelor's degree in economics and entrepreneurship, inspired by two brothers who graduated from the University of Chicago -- one in economics and the other in political science. But having received the Posse Foundation scholarship, Williams feels pulled toward a greater purpose, such as working for the government, perhaps in the FBI, CIA or politics. While he considers which career path to pursue, Williams said the possibilities for his future have expanded since starting at College of DuPage. "At COD, I have really tested myself," he said. "I'm good at managing expectations, but I never could have imagined myself performing as well as I have. I owe much of my success to the great faculty members on campus who got me to put forth the best work I've ever done. I've learned how to think critically and I've really improved all of my skills, especially in writing and speaking. "I just want to thank College of DuPage and all of the great support systems, especially the Veterans Services office. All students need to seek out help and opportunities, because they can be under your nose without your knowing about it but they can change your life." For more information about the Veterans Services program at College of DuPage, visit www.cod.edu/admission/veterans. Image Available: http://www.marketwire.com/library/MwGo/2016/2/24/11G084382/Images/lancewilliamslg-e2fa2cac5185bb628eb8a1ea7cde47d7.jpg Planes of former national carrier Cyprus Airways sit on the tarmac at Larnaca airport on January 10, 2015 after the company halted flights (AFP Photo/Hasan Mroue) (AFP) Nicosia (AFP) - A Cyprus-based budget airline said Monday it has secured investment from a wealthy Hong Kong group that brings it closer to launching flights and replacing the island's shuttered national carrier. "This broadens our investor base to include both Cypriot and Chinese capital and is a major boost to our plan to launch operations this year as Cyprus' new flag carrier," said Gregory Diacou, chairman of the carrier Cobalt. Diacou said it was the first major foreign investment in Cyprus since the island secured a 10-billion-euro (at the time $13 billion) bailout to save its economy and failing banks in March 2013. The amount was not disclosed and neither was the name of the Hong Kong company, which it said was on the Fortune 500 list of the world's top firms. The government confirmed last month that Cobalt was one of three Cypriot firms that had applied for an air operators certificate (AOC) from civil aviation authorities. Cobalt's chief executive Andrew Pyne said the January 2015 closure of bankrupt national carrier Cyprus Airways had created "a vacuum in terms of an airline that puts Cyprus first and promotes the island as its home". He said the airline would establish Cyprus as a major aviation hub, capitalising on its geographical location, and aimed to create 500 local jobs over the next five years. Cobalt plans to launch with links between Larnaca and destinations across Western Europe, Russia, the Middle East and Africa. It later aims to add long-haul flights to China, South Africa and the United States. The Mediterranean holiday island's top tourist markets are the UK followed by Russia. Around 70 airlines fly to Cyprus, where tourism revenues account for around 12 percent of GDP. Tourist arrivals hit a 14-year high in 2015, reaching 2.65 million. And heres the deal on Singapores property market. Singapores economy grew more than initially estimated last quarter as a gain in services outweighed weaker manufacturing and exports. Gross domestic product rose an annualized 6.2 percent in the three months through December from the previous quarter, when it expanded a revised 2.3 percent, the trade ministry said in a statement Wednesday. Read more here. Noble Group Ltd. blamed the tumble in coal prices for an additional $1.2 billion in charges that will force the embattled commodities trader to post its first full-year loss in almost two decades. The company said most of the impairments are due to coal, warning that prices may remain at lower levels for an extended period of time, according to a statement Tuesday. Coal is a pillar of the Hong Kong-based traders energy unit, which accounted for 85 percent of revenue in 2014. Find out more here. In the past couple of weeks, there had been a few articles talking about the bad state of the residential property market in Singapore. DTZ reported that there were a total of 87 units put up for auction by banks last year due to the inability of their owners to service the home loan. This represents an increase of 40 units from 2014, where 47 units were put up for auction in similar circumstances. Read more here. More From Singapore Business Review For Immediate Release Chicago, IL February 24, 2016 Zacks Equity Research highlightsFabrinet (FN) as the Bull of the Day and HSBC Holdings (HSBC) as the Bear of the Day. In addition, Zacks Equity Research provides analysis on Apple (AAPL), Facebook (FB) and Microsoft (MSFT). Here is a synopsis of all five stocks: Bull of the Day: Too often I hear people that call stock market investing like going to a big casino. As if none of this analysis matters and its all just a big crap shoot. To be perfectly honest with you, hearing things like that really upsets me. Maybe Im too sensitive, but throwing that blanket excuse on everything cheapens what I do for a living and shows just how ignorant people can be. There sure are parallels to the casino and gambling though. One famous saying I like to use is that You bet the jockey, not the horse. I havent made much money betting on ponies but Ive done alright in the stock market. If you can apply this horse racing gem to the market, youll see that this is much more than some giant casino for rich people. Applied to the stock market, betting the jockey means betting on the person running a company. Its why stocks like Solar City do well since people love to bet the jockey, putting their money on Elon Musk. Todays Bull of the Day Fabrinet (FN) has another famous jockey you should be betting on, Tom Wheeler. Wheeler was a cofounder of Seagate Technologies and founded Fabrinet in 2000. The company acquired manufacturing assets in Thailand from Seagate and began providing manufacturing services to the optical component industry. Last quarter, the company reported revenue of $233 million, above the $218 million to $222 million guidance range. EPS came in at 50 cents, well ahead of consensus calling for 46 cents. The company also guided next quarter EPS to 53 cents. Analysts have increased their bullish bets following up on earnings. Three analysts have jacked up their estimates for the current quarter, next quarter and current year. The bullish revisions for the current quarter have our Zacks Consensus Estimate rising from 40 cents to 54 cents. The current year numbers have jumped from $1.65 to $1.85. These numbers are big reason for the Zacks Rank # 1 (Strong Buy). Story continues Bear of the Day : Its tough to be a fan of foreign banks right now. And being bearish right now you run the risk of being the last guy in the door. The truth is, if you were bearish on foreign banks six months ago, very little has changed in the fundamentals to change that view. If youre talking about banks with European or Chinese exposure, Id argue that the fundamentals have gotten worse, not better. Deteriorating credit conditions and the prevalence of bad loans on the books to go along with negative rates in places like Europe arent exactly perfect conditions for the banking business. Thats why Im still looking for further downside on todays Bear of the Day HSBC Holdings (HSBC). HSBC Holdings plc provides banking and financial products and services. It operates through four businesses Retail Banking and Wealth Management, Commercial Banking, Global Banking and Markets, and Global Private Banking. The company operates through approximately 6,100 offices in Europe, Asia, the Middle East, North Africa, North America, and Latin America. Analysts have dropped their current year earnings estimates over the last 30 days. The bearish sentiment has seen our Zacks Consensus Estimate drop from $4.15 to $3.87. A big reason for the concern is HSBCs exposure to Asia. About 40% of HSBCs loan portfolio is derived from Asia. Asias general link to commodity prices are worrying an investor base here as the currency headwind has gone from strong to stronger over the last several weeks. HSBC is also headquartered in London and does a ton of business in Europe. Any concern over a Brexit or continuing troubles in the Euro area could negatively impact the stock. I want to make something perfectly clear here. I understand Im giving a bearish outlook on HSBC stock here but I am not implying anything negative about their solvency or the strength of their balance sheet. All indications point to HSBC being in a strong financial position with capital ratios that are inline to meet future and current regulatory levels. Their full-year EPS was just reported below expectations on lower revenue and higher loan losses. This trend should be disturbing to shareholders, although HSBC did a good job of smoothing this out by upping their special once a year dividend to $1.05 from last years $1.00. Additional content: Will Apple Stock Suffer from PR War with FBI? The lengthy slump continued for Apple (AAPL) on Tuesday, as share prices dropped over 1.5% in morning trading. For months, questions about the companys sales have lingered, but now it looks like Apple could be losing a public relations battle. Apples opponent in the latest PR war is none other than the F.B.I. Yes, thats right. One of the worlds most recognizable brands is squaring off against the investigative arm of the United States government. If you havent heard by now, the F.B.I. has been pressing Apple to provide assistance in unlocking an iPhone used by one of the attackers in the San Bernardino shooting that killed 14 people in December. Last week, a California judge ordered the company to help unlock the phone. (Also Read: 7 Key Facts about the Apple & F.B.I. Dilemma ) Apples CEO Tim Cook fired back with an open letter that criticized the ruling. The United States government has demanded that Apple take an unprecedented step which threatens the security of our customers, Cook begins. We oppose this order, which has implications far beyond the legal case at hand. To clarify, the court is only ordering Apple to disable a feature that automatically wipes an iPhone clean of its data after a certain amount of failed password attempts. The F.B.I. wants Apple to go several steps further by creating and installing a new type of iOS on the phone that would grant backdoor access. To make matters even more interesting, this debate is taking place in the headlines, with both sides speaking publicly and third-parties chiming in. Recently, Facebooks (FB) Mark Zuckerberg defended Cook and Apple. Microsoft (MSFT) founder Bill Gates' comments grabbed headlines for siding with the FBI, but he later claimed that reports went "too far" and the issue wasn't "black and white." While others in the technology world may not be sold on the F.B.I.s argument, the American public is slightly more convinced. According to a new poll by the Pew Research Center , 51% of respondents say that Apple should unlock the iPhone, while just 38% say that Apple should not. This data leads to an important question: is Apple losing the PR battle, and will it have an effect on the companys stock performance? Its difficult to link this news with todays downward activity, as Apple stock hasnt been going anywhere but down for several months now. However, it is certainly true that many investors are motivated by their political or cultural beliefs. Of course, more importantly are the shoppers who are motivated by their beliefs. With the majority of Americans seemingly opposing Apples moves here, it could spell bad news for the companys top line. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report >> About the Bull and Bear of the Day Every day, the analysts at Zacks Equity Research select two stocks that are likely to outperform (Bull) or underperform (Bear) the markets over the next 3-6 months. About the Analyst Blog Updated throughout every trading day, the Analyst Blog provides analysis from Zacks Equity Research about the latest news and events impacting stocks and the financial markets. About Zacks Equity Research Zacks Equity Research provides the best of quantitative and qualitative analysis to help investors know what stocks to buy and which to sell for the long-term. Continuous analyst coverage is provided for a universe of 1,150 publicly traded stocks. Our analysts are organized by industry which gives them keen insights to developments that affect company profits and stock performance. Recommendations and target prices are six-month time horizons. Zacks "Profit from the Pros" e-mail newsletter provides highlights of the latest analysis from Zacks Equity Research. Subscribe to this free newsletter today. Find out What is happening in the stock market today on zacks.com. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report FABRINET (FN): Free Stock Analysis Report HSBC HOLDINGS (HSBC): Free Stock Analysis Report APPLE INC (AAPL): Free Stock Analysis Report FACEBOOK INC-A (FB): Free Stock Analysis Report MICROSOFT CORP (MSFT): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research * Volkswagen also has yet to answer Commission request * European Commission's priority is to establish the facts BRUSSELS, Feb 23 (Reuters) - All European Union nations except for France and Italy have replied to the European Commission's request for information from member states in connection with Volkswagen's emissions scandal, an EU source said on Tuesday. The European Commission, the EU executive, has asked all 28 EU countries to investigate breaches of vehicle emissions rules after Volkswagen admitted last year it had used banned software to mask nitrogen oxide emissions and had also in Europe understated carbon dioxide levels. At the same time, it sent a letter to Volkswagen asking for information, which European Environment and Energy Commissioner Miguel Arias Canete said on Tuesday was so far unanswered. Meanwhile, he said 26 of the 28 EU member states had replied to a letter particularly related to the irregularities on CO2 emissions he sent together with Industry Commissioner Elzbieta Bienkowska, but "two big countries" had not. He did not name the countries, but an EU official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said they were Italy and France. Contacted by Reuters, French and Italian government officials had no immediate comment. As vehicle testing to approve cars in the EU is overseen by national authorities, the Commission is reliant on each country to enforce rules. In January, it proposed a tougher regime that would give the Commission more power and diminish the role of national authorities. However, the draft law needs to be approved by member states. The Commission can impose fines on manufacturers for breaking EU emissions laws, but says its first priority is to establish the facts. (Reporting by Barbara Lewis; Additional reporting by Agnieszka Flak in Milan and Gilles Guillaume in Paris; Editing by Tom Pfeiffer and Mark Potter) A Goldman Sachs sign is seen above the floor of the New York Stock Exchange shortly after the opening bell in the Manhattan borough of New York January 24, 2014. REUTERS/Lucas Jackson SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Goldman Sachs' (GS.N) senior investment banker and chairman of its Southeast Asia business Tim Leissner has left the bank, a spokesman said. Leissner helped arrange the sale of U.S. dollar bonds for Malaysian state investor 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB), sources told Reuters. The bank drew criticism from Malaysian politicians over the hefty amount it earned from these transactions. Leissner left the bank earlier this month, the bank spokesman added, without giving further details. Leissner is the second Goldman banker linked to 1MDB deals to leave the bank. Roger Ng, then managing director and head of Southeast Asia sales for fixed income, currencies and commodities, also left two years ago, sources had told Reuters at the time. (http://reut.rs/1TEWbgU) Leissner did not respond to several attempts by Reuters to contact him. Leissner was named chairman of Southeast Asia in mid-2014 and was supposed to relocate to Singapore from Hong Kong, but instead spent time between Hong Kong and Los Angeles, where his wife lives, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters. The sources declined to be named because the information remained confidential. (Reporting by Saeed Azhar; Editing by Miral Fahmy) The Google internet homepage is displayed on a product at a store in London, Britain January 23, 2016. REUTERS/Neil Hall By Tom Bergin LONDON (Reuters) - A panel of British lawmakers criticized a back-tax deal between Google and UK tax authorities on Wednesday, calling it "disproportionately small" and branding the company's explanation of its tax planning as disingenuous. The Public Accounts Committee, which scrutinizes public spending, also criticized the tax authority, saying it appeared "to have settled for less corporation tax from Google than other countries are willing to accept". It was "not possible to judge whether a 130 million-pound ($180 million) tax settlement agreed between Google and HMRC is fair to taxpayers," the Committee said in its report, adding that more transparency was needed in corporate tax affairs. Google, now a unit of holding group Alphabet Inc, said it followed all tax rules. "After a six-year audit by the tax authority we are paying the amount of tax that HMRC agrees we should pay," a spokesman said. The tax authority, Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs (HMRC) said it "does not settle for a penny less than is due under the law from multinationals". The internet search giant prompted a political storm last month when it announced the settlement, which was hailed by British finance minister George Osborne as a "great success". The opposition Labour Party described it as derisory and said it showed the government's failure to act against corporate tax avoidance, a hot topic for austerity-weary Britons. The committee questioned Google's argument that it merely followed tax laws passed by politicians. "This is disingenuous. There is nothing in the rules that says you must set up two companies in Ireland and send large royalty payments, via the Netherlands, to a company that is tax resident in Bermuda," the report said. BOOMING UK BUSINESS, FEW PROFITS Google generated around 24 billion pounds of revenue in Britain between 2005 and 2015 -- the period covered by the settlement. But the back tax deal brought its total tax bill for the period to less than 180 million pounds. Story continues "The sum paid by Google seems disproportionately small when compared with the size of Google's business in the UK," the committee said. The Committee said reports that tax authorities in France and Italy were seeking much larger sums from Google, raised questions about whether HMRC was being too soft on big companies like Google. Google enjoyed profit margins of around 30 percent over the past decade, suggesting its UK sales generated profits of around 7 billion pounds between 2005 and 2015. However, Googles tax bill for the period implies that it was deemed to have taxable UK profits of just 600 million pounds, according to Reuters calculations based on prevailing tax rates. Google says it reports relatively little profit in the UK because most of its earnings are derived from intellectual property like computer codes developed overseas, rather than the sales staff, administrators and programmers based in the UK. HMRC told the committee earlier this month that the tax bill reflected "the full value of the economic activities carried on by Google in the UK and that the fact most of the profits from Google's UK sales ended up in Bermuda didn't influence its calculations. Other tax authorities can take a tougher approach. A decade ago, the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) demanded billions of dollars in back taxes from British drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline (GSK). The IRS rejected GSK's argument that almost all the profits derived from selling a drug in the United States related to the drug formula, which was owned in the UK. Rather, the IRS argued, over half the profits should be attributed to the marketing efforts of the U.S. operation, which made the drug a commercial success. By comparison, the HMRC settlement means Google has reported around 8.5 percent of the profits derived from UK sales, in Britain, according to Reuters calculations. ($1 = 0.7193 pounds) (Additional reporting by Noor Zainab Hussain in Bengaluru; Editing by Alexander Smith and Keith Weir) (Adds PM quotes, background) By George Georgiopoulos ATHENS, Feb 24 (Reuters) - Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras urged European Union countries to honour the bloc's decisions on sharing the burden of the migrant crisis, saying that if they did not, Athens would block future agreements. Austria, defying criticism from Greek and U.N. refugee officials, took further steps on Wednesday to coordinate border restrictions spanning the Balkans that are intensifying a logjam of migrants in Greece. "We will not accept turning the country into a permanent warehouse of souls with Europe continuing to function as if nothing is happening," Tsipras told parliament on Wednesday. "Greece will not agree to deals (in the EU) if a mandatory allocation of burdens and responsibilities among member countries is not secured," he said. Athens has protested against restrictions imposed by countries further north along the main land corridor into Europe, including along Austria's frontier with Slovenia and Macedonia's border with Greece. Defying criticism from Greek and U.N. refugee officials, Austria on Wednesday took further steps to coordinate a slew of border restrictions spanning the Balkans that have caused a worsening logjam of migrants in Greece. "We will not tolerate that a number of countries will be building fences and walls at the borders without accepting even a single refugee," Tsipras said. "Greece will demand the mandatory participation of EU countries in the relocation of refugees." He said it was unacceptable for EU partners to dump the burden of the crisis on Greece, forcing it to shoulder a weight way disproportionate to its size. "We did and will continue to do everything we can to provide warmth, essential help and security to uprooted, hounded people," he said. "We will either be in a union of common rules for all or everyone will do they please: we will not accept the latter." Addressing worries that flow restrictions at the northern border could swell the number of migrants stranded in Greece, Tsipras said he would meet political party leaders to form a common stance before an early March summit of EU leaders on the migration crisis. Story continues Earlier on Wednesday, he told German Chancellor Angela Merkel he was deeply displeased about the failure of some EU leaders to stick to bloc decisions on tackling the refugee crisis. The two leaders agreed to intensify efforts to implement EU decisions and start NATO operations in the Aegean Sea immediately to counter smuggling networks to reduce migrant inflows. (Reporting by George Georgiopoulos; Editing by Ruth Pitchford) A photo taken from the Macedonian side of the border shows a man holding a baby as migrants from Afghanistan gather behind a fence and barbed wire at the Greek-Macedonian border, near Gevgelija, on February 22, 2016 (AFP Photo/Robert Atanasovski) Thousands of migrants were left stranded in Greece on Monday after Macedonia abruptly closed its border to Afghans, creating a fresh bottleneck as European countries scrambled to respond to the continent's refugee crisis. About 8,000 people were trapped on Greece's northern frontier and at the port of Piraeus after Macedonia introduced the measure on Sunday, following decisions by countries further up the migrant route to turn back groups of Afghans. On Monday afternoon, Macedonia suspended all migrant crossings as tensions rose at the border, where hundreds of Afghans staged a sit-down protest in an area of no-man's land and occupied the railway line connecting the two countries. Desperate to get through, they held signs that read: "We can't go back" and "Why racism?", while dozens of Afghan children also carried signs with the words: "Help us cross border". A statement from Macedonia's police said they were restricting Afghans "because Serbia, Croatia and Slovenia decided to reduce their number". More than 600 Afghan refugees have been sent back to Macedonia in recent days, the statement said. "We can't allow Macedonia to become a buffer zone and refugee camp," said a foreign ministry official, declining to be named. Greece, which lies on the frontline of Europe's worst refugee crisis since World War II, said it would provide emergency shelter for the blocked migrants while working to find a solution with non-European Union member Macedonia. - 'Die or go on' - Since November, countries on the Balkan route have allowed only Syrians, Iraqis and Afghans to continue their journey up towards Germany, Sweden and other European nations where they plan to apply for asylum. Macedonia's decision to stop letting Afghans through came just two days after Austria controversially introduced a daily limit on asylum applications. "We cannot go back. We will either die here or go on," said 20-year-old Afghan Mohamed Asif on the Greek side of the border. Story continues In Croatia, a police spokeswoman said they were still allowing some Afghans entry but that "most migrants who do not meet the criteria to continue their journey" were from Afghanistan -- including some who had been sent back from Slovenia to Croatia. Greece's junior interior minister for migration Yiannis Mouzalas said Athens was racing to negotiate an end the deadlock, telling Vima radio that Athens was trying to exert pressure at the "European and bilateral level". However, another Greek government source said they did not expect a solution on Monday. "We will accommodate the Afghans whilst trying to prevent overcrowding at any of the facilities available," the source told AFP on condition of anonymity. The arrival last year of more than one million refugees and migrants on Europe's shores, many fleeing war, poverty and persecution, has caused a chain reaction of border clampdowns, in a blow to the EU's border-free Schengen zone. As the main gateway into the bloc, Greece has been struggling to cope with the inflow and fears new restrictions by other members will leave tens of thousands stranded on its territory. - Austrian move 'unacceptable' - German Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere on Sunday hit out at the asylum cap imposed by neighbouring Austria, which is now planning its own mini-summit with Western Balkan leaders on Wednesday. De Maiziere told ARD public television that Vienna's move to accept only 80 asylum seekers a day while waving through another 3,200 migrants, many of whom were headed for Germany, was "unacceptable". EU leaders meeting in Brussels on Friday unanimously opposed "unilateral actions" by member states after Austria announced its limit. The EU and Turkey are due to hold a special summit in early March to push forward a deal to stem the migration crisis. VANCOUVER, BC--(Marketwired - February 23, 2016) - INCA ONE GOLD CORP. (TSX VENTURE: IO) ("Inca One" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that SUNAT, the Peruvian tax and customs authority, has issued to Inca One's wholly owned subsidiary, Chala One SAC ("Chala One"), its first IGV/VAT (Impuesto General a las Ventas/Value Added Tax) refund cheque in the amount of S/1.1 million (the equivalent of approximately US$310,000 at current exchange rates) representing a three-month filing period from 2015. The Company views this first refund payment as another validation of our administrative and compliance processes and a major indication the formalization process in Peru is progressing successfully. All other IGV refunds are in the process of review and completion. Chala One was also notified by SUNAT that the Company had been moved up from the small company tax group into the large company tax group, consistent with the scale of our operations. This move should streamline the monthly IGV filing and refund process ideally enacting faster and more reliable refunds. A SUNAT IGV audit process was required to attain the refund relating to mineral purchases (and the respective exported gold sales) where 18% IGV was charged by our suppliers. As of February 2016, SUNAT was withholding the equivalent of US$2.2 million in IGV owed to Chala One. The Company expects to receive the remaining refunds within the first half of this year. The above noted and subsequent refunds will provide additional working capital for continued mineral purchases. "We are thrilled that almost a year to the day after commencing commercial production we have received our first IGV tax refund, following a thorough and careful audit of our purchasing process by SUNAT. We can testify that the government of Peru is serious about its formalization process," commented President and CEO Edward Kelly. "We congratulate our administrative staff for this achievement, notwithstanding the significant impact this has had on our business and the amount of capital tied up in this process. We further would like to thank our shareholders and lenders for their understanding and belief in our in-country Peruvian team to make this refund possible." About Inca One Inca One is a Canadian-based mineral processing company with a gold milling facility in Peru, servicing government-permitted, small-scale miners. As part of the terms of the original purchase agreement for the Chala, Peru processing facility, Inca One has an agreement between its wholly owned subsidiary, Chala One SAC, and the seller and initial permit applicant, to operate under the umbrella of formalization until the successful completion of all the environmental and operating permits. Peru, a highly mineral-rich country, is one of the world's top producers of gold, silver, copper and zinc, with substantial production coming from small scale miners who need government permitted milling facilities to process their mineral (such as the Company's Chala Plant). On behalf of the Board, Edward Kelly, President and CEO INCA ONE GOLD CORP. 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 NEWS RELEASE. Statements regarding the Company which are not historical facts are "forward-looking statements" that involve risks and uncertainties. Such information can generally be identified by the use of forwarding-looking wording such as "may", "expect", "estimate", "anticipate", "intend", "believe" and "continue" or the negative thereof or similar variations. Since forward-looking statements address future events and conditions, by their very nature, they involve inherent risks and uncertainties. Actual results in each case could differ materially from those currently anticipated in such statements due to factors such as: (i) fluctuation of mineral prices; (ii) a change in market conditions; and (iii) the fact that the Company has limited operating experience with its Chala plant and future operational results may not be accurately predicted based on this limited information to date. Except as required by law, the Company does not intend to update any changes to such statements. Inca One believes the expectations reflected in those forward-looking statements are reasonable but no assurance can be given that these expectations will prove to be correct and such forward-looking statements included herein should not be unduly relied upon. This news release deals only with the Company's Chala plant, which is an industrial project. This presentation does not deal at all with the Company's sole mineral exploration property, the Corizona property. Investors should note that no resource has been established on the Corizona property and all of the material currently being processed at the Chala plant is received from local small-scale mining operations. 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 these securities in any state in which such offer, solicitation, or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state. TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwired - Feb 23, 2016) - Integrated Asset Management Corp. ("IAM") (IAM.TO) today announced that it has become a signatory to the United Nations supported Principles for Responsible Investment (UN PRI). The United Nations-supported Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) Initiative is an international network of investors working together to put the six Principles for Responsible Investment into practice. Its goal is to understand the implications of sustainability for investors and support signatories to incorporate these issues into their investment decision making and ownership practices. Since its launch in 2006, the PRI has been instrumental in raising awareness about responsible investment among the global investment community, increasing the level of transparency around the activities and capabilities of its signatories and fostering collaboration between them, and supporting their engagements with companies and policymakers on ESG issues. Assets under management by PRI signatories now stands at more than US$59 trillion, up from US$4 trillion at the PRI's launch in 2006. David Mather, Executive Vice President and Chair of IAM's ESG Committee said, "Strong risk management has long been an integral part of the investment management process for our real estate and private debt groups. We believe ESG factors contribute to the risk in an investment and that effective management of ESG considerations is critical. As an institutional investment manager, IAM takes a long-term perspective in our duty to act in the best interests of our clients. In this fiduciary capacity, we believe that ESG factors must be considered and integrated in the investment decision making process. Our goal remains to seek superior risk-adjusted returns for our clients in a manner that respects our fiduciary obligations and the evolving objectives of our clients. We believe that consideration of ESG factors is an important element in determining whether a potential investment, be it a loan, a property or an equity stake in a business, is attractive or not. It is our conviction that businesses that manage ESG factors effectively will create more value over the long term. Investing in businesses that work actively to reduce or mitigate environmental, social and governance risks, or encouraging businesses in which we invest to do more in terms of ESG, may help reduce the risk of negative surprises and increase the long-term quality of our debt and real estate portfolios." IAM is one of Canada's leading alternative asset management companies with approximately $2.4 billion in assets and committed capital under management in real estate, private debt and managed futures as of February 4, 2016. SEOUL, Feb 24 (Reuters) - South Korea's anti-trust regulator fined Japan's Denso and Mitsubishi Electric a combined 1.14 billion won ($924,229.40) on Wednesday on charges of colluding to fix the prices of engine starter motors supplied to General Motors. This is the seventh price-fixing case involving global auto component makers probed by South Korea and comes amid a worldwide crackdown on car part cartels. In 2008, Denso and Mitsubishi Electric colluded on bid prices for the engine starter motors used in GM's Spark, Cruze and Orlando vehicles made in South Korea, the Fair Trade Commission said in a statement. Denso was fined 510 million won and Mitsubishi Electric 630 million won. Denso said it won't have to pay the fine because it has applied for a leniency program which enables a company to escape sanctions if on its own it reports the illegal conduct. An official at Mitsubishi Electric was not immediately available for comment. ($1 = 1,233.4600 won) (Reporting by Hyunjoo Jin; Additional reporting by Hooyeon Kim; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman) Moldovan Prime Minister Pavel Filip speaks during a press conference at Victoria Palace in Bucharest on January 26, 2016 (AFP Photo/Daniel Mihailescu) Bucharest (AFP) - Moldova's new Prime Minister Pavel Filip said Tuesday that his government faces a "last chance" to regain public trust as the country a battles deep political crisis, calling for calm from protesters demanding his resignation. "The political class now has its last chance to restore Moldovans' and our international partners' trust," Filip said in an interview with BBC television. On a visit to neighbouring Romania, Filip said the elite was responsible for a political crisis that has seen Moldova rocked by mass protests in recent weeks. Some 40,000 people took to the streets last weekend to demand early elections just days after a new government was sworn in -- the third such administration to take office within a year. Filip said he had no intention of resigning, telling the BBC that Moldova desperately needs stable government to avoid a "deep economic and social crisis". He added that action would be taken against protesters who "cross a red line and become violent". Moldova has been mired in crisis since April when the exposure of a $1-billion (910-million-euro) corruption scandal triggered huge protests and the arrest of former premier Vlad Filat. The previous pro-EU government lost a vote of confidence in October and was dismissed, but since then, the parliament has been deadlocked over its replacement. The country is torn between those who want it to join neighbouring Romania in the European Union and those who want closer relations with Moscow, its Soviet-era master. The nomination on January 20 of a new government did little to calm the protests, with demonstrators trying to storm the parliament as the new administration was sworn in, prompting calls for calm from the EU. Romanian Prime Minister Dacian Ciolos said during Filip's visit Tuesday that Bucharest would loan its neighbour 150 million euros ($163 million) on the condition that the government pushes through "real reforms". Story continues "Romania is ready to support Moldova on its European track provided it makes a clear commitment to carry out real reform, and not just on paper," Ciolos said. Bucharest had pledged the loan in October, but froze it in the midst of the political crisis. Wedged between Ukraine and Romania and with a population of just 3.5 million, Moldova is one of Europe's poorest countries. Although Romania expects to release a first 60-million-euro tranche of the loan, this will depend on the outcome of an upcoming visit by IMF officials, Ciolos said. Filip pledged to push through the reforms aimed at stabilising Moldova's economy and fighting corruption. "We will show by our actions that we are determined to implement the promised reforms," he said. TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwired - Feb 22, 2016) - Latin American Minerals Inc. (TSX VENTURE:LAT) (the "Company" or "LAT") is pleased to provide an update of events pertaining to mining and exploration on its Paso Yobai gold mining operation in Paraguay. In order to determine the most efficient and cost effective methods for producing gold from the Company's operation, the services of the John T. Boyd Company, Professional Mining Consultants (BOYD) based in Pittsburg, PA (http://www.jtboyd.com), were engaged in December 2015. Their review included assessment of the Paso Yobai process plant as well as near term plant feed alternatives and includes specific recommendations to maximize near-term cash flow generating potential under the scope of Phase I; the reprocessing of tailings and stockpiles. This analysis and report have now been received. In its Phase I Report, BOYD has recommended several important changes to improve recoveries, improve operating efficiency and reduce operating costs. These changes are projected to be fully implemented with full production reached by July 2016, including approximately two months of commissioning and ramp-up time. BOYD has estimated that monthly production should rise to roughly 300 ounces of gold per month for the balance of 2016. "The BOYD report has provided a great deal of insight as to what is required from a processing and metallurgical standpoint which will enable the Company to achieve a higher recovery rate, greater throughput and significantly lower production cost per ounce of gold produced. "Phase 2 envisages further extraction of soft saprolite from the existing Independencia Mine pit and Phase 3 will focus on the mining of hard rock from the Independencia pit. The timing of these phases will be dependent on gold price and financing, however only the front end of the operating process will require minor changes to handle the different material," said Basil Botha, Chairman. Story continues In addition, the Company will be appointing a qualified mining engineer to be stationed at the mine site full time to manage day-to-day mining and processing operations, with on-going oversight by BOYD's engineers and metallurgists. The Company is currently seeking investment partners to fund the required upgrades to the gold processing plant, either through a debt facility or via a gold streaming arrangement. Miles Rideout has been appointed VP Exploration to initially focus on the evaluation of the drill-ready targets on the Paso Yobai project. Through previously completed geophysical surveys, soil and auger samples, and trenching, the Company has identified six high quality target areas and is actively seeking potential joint venture partners to advance the project. A new community relations program has been launched in co-operation with the Mayor and Municipality of Paso Yobai. Included in this program are road repairs and a program to assist local schools. The Company's community relations team is preparing a plan and budget for a more extensive program, once gold production is restarted. Following an oversubscribed private placement of $1,566,962 on November 2015, a 10:1 consolidation of the shares of LAT was undertaken on 30th December 2015. The current capital structure is 28,503,137 shares outstanding, plus 19,610,156 warrants, which are net of 500,000 warrants that expired on February 4, 2016. Insiders now hold 6.09% of the company and total options issued stand at 2,546,500. About BOYD The John T. Boyd Company is highly respected as an international mining consultant for its mining acumen and ethical conduct. As premier mining consultants, BOYD's technical reports are highly regarded by major financial institutions and government agencies. BOYD has successfully balanced the objective of meeting the Company's requirements with realistic and independent reporting. About the Company Latin American Minerals Inc. is a mineral exploration and gold mining company with its core gold and diamond projects in Paraguay. The Company is currently expanding its Independencia Mine gold processing plant to encompass vat-leach gold recovery from mineralization extracted in open pit mining activities at its fully permitted mining concession. Management has identified six gold zones for drill testing on the Company's adjacent exploration claims, which are part of the Company's 15,020 hectare Paso Yobai gold project. Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 24 (Reuters) - Malaysia's Sime Darby Bhd , the world's largest palm oil planter by land size, said on Wednesday it was looking to sell its real-estate assets in Australia and Singapore, in what is seen as a move to cut down on debt. Chief Executive Mohd Bakke Salleh said the company hoped to raise up to 1.8 billion ringgit ($426.54 million) from the sale. "We expect to wrap it up by March," he said at a news conference on Wednesday. Sime Darby owns 13 properties in Australia and three in Singapore. The conglomerate reported a 22 percent drop in second quarter profit earlier in the day, as it struggled with weak commodity prices and consumer demand. Bakke also said palm oil prices were likely to trade at between 2,500 ringgit per tonne and 2,700 ringgit per tonne until end-March. ($1 = 4.2200 ringgit) (Reporting by Emily Chow, Writing by Joseph Sipalan; Editing by) (Adds details, CEO quotes) KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 24 (Reuters) - Malaysia's Sime Darby Bhd , the world's largest palm oil planter by land size, said on Wednesday it was looking to sell its real estate assets in Australia and Singapore, in what is seen as a move to cut down on debt. Chief Executive Mohd Bakke Salleh said the company hoped to raise up to 1.8 billion ringgit ($426.54 million) from the sale. "We expect to wrap it up by March," he said at a news conference on Wednesday. Sime Darby owns 13 properties in Australia and three in Singapore. "Right now we are trying to get more out of our assets. So no thoughts on new assets are to be injected into our group for now," Bakke added. The conglomerate reported a 22 percent drop in second quarter profit earlier in the day, as it struggled with weak commodity prices and consumer demand. Sime Darby is the world's largest palm oil planter by land size, and also has significant investments in the real estate and automotive industries. Bakke said palm oil prices were likely to trade at between 2,500 ringgit per tonne and 2,700 ringgit per tonne until end-March. Bakke said the forecast is based on lower yield due to the El Nino weather phenomenon and the low price of crude oil, which has a direct effect on biodiesel sales. Palm oil is used for blending into fuel for the production of biodiesel, which is a substitute for crude oil. Sime Darby's slide in net profits in the second quarter follows the trend of diminishing profits over the past three quarters. Profits in the previous quarter dipped 34 percent year-on-year on the back of difficult market conditions "across market divisions", Bakke stated last November. ($1 = 4.2200 ringgit) (Reporting by Emily Chow, Writing by Joseph Sipalan; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips) Melania Trump sat down with MSNBC host Mika Brzezinski for a one-on-one interview that aired Wednesday on Morning Joe. Trump has mostly stayed away from the campaign trail. But as Donald Trump was on his way to another decisive presidential-primary win this week in Nevadas GOP caucuses, she told Brzezinski that she stood by her billionaire husband 100%. Brzezinski pressed Trump on a host of topics, including her husbands claim that the Mexican government was sending rapists and murderers across the US border. I dont feel that he insulted the Mexicans, Trump said. He said the illegal immigrants. He didnt talk about everybody. He talked about 'illegal immigrants. And after [a] few weeks, like after two weeks, giving him a hard time and bashing him in the media, they turned around, she added. They said, 'You know what? Hes right. Hes right what hes talking about. And he opened conversation that nobody did. Brzezinski, whose show has been accused of having too cozy a relationship with the Republican frontrunner, pointed out that Trump was herself an immigrant from Slovenia. But you are an immigrant. Do you ever think hes gone too far? Brzezinski asked. I follow the law, Trump said. I follow the law the way its supposed to be. I never thought to stay here without papers. Brzezinski also asked Trump about her husbands use of vulgar terms and profanity on the campaign trail. Do I agree all the time with him? No, I dont, Trump replied. And I tell him that. I tell him my opinions. I tell him what I think. Sometimes he listens. Sometimes he dont. Watch the full interview below: NOW WATCH: Number one with Hispanics! Trump obliterated Republicans in Nevada More From Business Insider Sinking oil prices have only made Mexico's goal of rebuilding its energy industry with foreign investment and revamping Pemex its beleaguered national energy company more challenging. "We're submitting [cuts] to the board later this week, as every oil company in the world is doing, so we adjust to the new price of oil," said Pemex CEO Jose Antonio Gonzalez Anaya at this week's annual IHS CERAWeek energy conference. The plan assumes oil prices for Mexican crude of $25 per barrel, down from $50 last year, Gonzalez Anaya said. Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto recently replaced the head of Pemex with Gonzalez Anaya, who had headed the government's Social Security Institute before taking the helm of the national oil and gas company. Nieto announced at IHS CERAWeek an expedited schedule of December for a fourth round of investor bids on deep-water deposits in the Gulf of Mexico. Mexico Energy Secretary Pedro Joaquin Coldwell said the energy reform pushed by Nieto was long needed and is critical because of the decline in the energy sector. "It changes the hydrocarbon paradigm, and it changes the electrical sector paradigm as well," he said. Coldwell said Mexico's electric rates had been 75 percent more than those in the U.S., but it is bringing them down with cheaper natural gas from the U.S. It is also working to add new pipleline capacity to bring in additional natural gas. "We had lost 1 million barrels of daily production over 10 years," he said. According to the International Energy Agency, Mexico produces about 2.6 million barrels a day, and the future of its production will depend on whether it gets needed investment. "If they don't, we're going to anticipate a continued decline," said Neil Atkinson, head of the IEA's oil market division. "We're working with Pemex as fast as we can to present 'farm-outs.' This is part of the strategy to strengthen Pemex," said Lourdes Melgar, Deputy Secretary of Energy for Hydrocarbons, Mexico Ministry of Energy, at this week's IHS CERAWeek energy conference. Story continues Pemex is expected to remain focused on shallow water, where it is strongest. Production at Pemex's giant shallow-water Cantarell field, the second-largest in the world, has been falling since its peak in 2014. Gonzalez Anaya described the decline as occurring "fairly rapidly more rapidly than we would like." Pemex, which in recent years has funded as much as one-third of the Mexican national budget, is being hit by roughly $5 billion in cost cuts, and it is expected to submit assets that can become part of ventures with outside companies or sold. In recent ratings actions, Moody's Investor Service has forecast that Pemex will provide most of its operating cash to fund "well above" 20 percent of Mexico's annual budget for the next four to five years. Melgar said the government will be offering 10 deep-water blocks four in the Perdido area, south of Texas; and six in the frontier area of the Salina del Istmo basin. One Salina block is expected to be natural gas, she said. There are currently 30 contracts to private bidders from three other bidding rounds for shallow-water exploration and extraction and onshore mature fields. Bidders also can include Mexican companies. Ali Moshiri, president of Chevron Africa and Latin America Exploration and Production, also spoke at CERAWeek. He called the Mexican reform "tremendous for the industry" and a necessary step toward energy integration in North America. "Geology doesn't know the border," he said. Nieto also said as of April, companies other than Pemex will be able to import fuel. "Mexico imports 53 percent of its gasoline, so this is a huge opportunity," Melgar said. She said outside companies will be able to use Pemex pipelines and other equipment for gasoline or diesel imports if they pay a tariff to Pemex. Pemex could also sell the fuel infrastructure, in addition to collecting tariffs. More From CNBC (Corrects lead to reflect FDI investment was $28.382 billion in U.S. dollars, not pesos) MEXICO CITY, Feb 21 (Reuters) - Foreign direct investment (FDI) in Mexico rose by a fourth last year to reach $28.382 billion, the country's economy ministry said in a statement on Sunday. Mexico's FDI in 2014 totaled about $22.57 billion . The ministry said the stronger 2015 FDI was due to U.S. telecoms company AT&T Inc paying more than $2 billion to acquire Mexican wireless operators Iusacell and Unefon, as well as the purchase of Vitro's glass container business by U.S.-based Owens-Illinois Inc for about $2.15 billion. The United States accounted for about 53 percent of total FDI last year, followed by Spain, Japan and the Germany. (Reporting by David Alire Garcia; Editing by Jonathan Oatis) (Updates with condition of teen victim paragraph 10) By Mark Kauzlarich KALAMAZOO, Mich., Feb 22 (Reuters) - A man working as an Uber driver admitted to the fatal weekend shootings of six people in Kalamazoo, Michigan, a police detective testified on Monday in a case raising questions about how the car service vets its drivers. Jason Dalton, 45, was denied bail as he made his first court appearance on 16 charges including six of murder that can bring life in prison. Dalton told detectives "he took people's lives", Kalamazoo Public Safety Detective Cory Ghiringhelli testified in a county district court ahead of the suspect's arraignment. Dalton appeared via a video link and was seen on a monitor at the Kalamazoo County court wearing glasses and dressed in an orange prison jumpsuit. When asked if he had anything to say, Dalton, who appeared emotionless through the proceedings, said he preferred to "remain silent". The judge denied bail and set March 3 for the next hearing. After the hearing Kalamazoo County Prosecuting Attorney Jeffrey Getting told reporters Dalton had been cooperative with authorities but possible motives for the shootings were still unclear. "No one understands why it happened, and that adds to the fear and the sorrow," Getting said. Prosecutors alleged Dalton randomly shot multiple times at people during a five-hour period on Saturday at an apartment complex, a car dealership and a Cracker Barrel restaurant in Kalamazoo, about 150 miles (240 km) west of Detroit. Police were investigating reports Dalton drove customers of the Uber car-hailing service the night of the rampage. Two people were wounded in the shootings, including a teenage girl who was initially thought to have died but was showing signs of improvement on Monday, state police said. Initial checks with a key federal agency indicate Dalton was unknown to both law enforcement and counterterrorism agencies for having any known connection to extremist groups. Story continues President Barack Obama said on Monday he had spoken to the mayor and top law enforcement in Kalamazoo about the shootings and pledged whatever federal support they need. "Earlier this year, I took some steps that will make it harder for dangerous people like this individual to buy a gun. But clearly, we're going to need to do more if we're going to keep innocent Americans safe," Obama said in remarks before the National Governors Association at the White House. Uber said on Monday it would not be changing the way it screened its drivers following the weekend shooting spree. It also said Dalton had received "very favorable" feedback from riders. "There were no red flags, if you will, that we could anticipate something like this," said Uber's chief security officer, Joe Sullivan. Uber drivers use their personal vehicles to ferry customers at prices generally below those of established taxi companies. Critics contend vetting is inadequate and the company never meets potential drivers in person. "A background check is just that - a background check. It does not foresee the future," Ed Davis, of the Uber Safety Advisory Board, told a teleconference with reporters. The Dalton family said in a statement: "There are no words which can express our shock and disbelief, and we are devastated and saddened for the victims and the families of the victims," Michigan State Police said the shooting began at about 5:30 p.m. (2230 GMT) on Saturday with a woman wounded outside an apartment building. At about 10 p.m., Richard Smith and his son Tyler were killed at the car dealership. About 15 minutes later four women identified as Mary Lou Nye, 62, of Baroda, Michigan; and Dorothy Brown, 74; Barbara Hawthorne, 68; and Mary Jo Nye, 60, were fatally shot outside the restaurant. (Reporting by Brendan O'Brien in Milwaukee, Mark Hosenball and Ayesha Rascoe in Washington, D.C. Curtis Skinner in San Francisco, Barbara Goldberg in New York, Mary Wisniewski in Chicago and Jon Herskovitz in Austin, Texas; Writing by Jon Herskovitz; Editing by Bill Trott and Tom Brown) By Mark Kauzlarich KALAMAZOO, Mich. (Reuters) - The Michigan Uber driver charged with murdering six people switched vehicles after sideswiping a car at the start of the shooting spree, authorities said on Tuesday, adding they hoped his phone would help establish a motive for the killings. It was also disclosed that the suspect, Jason Dalton, who was reported to have obtained a community college degree in law enforcement two decades ago, visited a gun shop shortly before the shootings and bought a heavy-duty jacket that could conceal a small pistol. Dalton, 45, was denied bail on Monday after a court hearing in which a detective testified that he admitted to the five-hour shooting rampage over the weekend in Kalamazoo, Michigan, about 150 miles (240 km) west of Detroit. Hours before the first shooting occurred on Saturday evening, Dalton and a friend visited Southwick's, a gun shop he frequented in nearby Plainwell, a shop employee told Reuters. Dalton was a regular customer who usually spent time chatting with the staff, but he bought the jacket and left the store within 10 minutes, said the employee, who asked not to be identified. "Hes in here enough for me to know he talks to the guys about guns and different stuff, she said. Searching for a motive behind the violence, investigators focused on a 9mm semi-automatic handgun and a cellphone seized from Dalton, as well as the fact that he picked up fares for the Uber car-hailing service between or after the shooting episodes, authorities said. At least one passenger who rode in Dalton's car that night, apparently after the rampage had begun, recounted that the Uber driver seemed oddly calm and even appeared to be fatigued to the point of almost falling asleep at the wheel. "He didn't say much and he didn't act abnormal. He was rather quiet," Marc Dunton, 39, told Reuters of the ride he shared with two friends, taking the front-passenger seat beside Dalton. Prosecutors say Dalton randomly shot at people at an apartment complex, a car dealership and a restaurant, killing six and badly wounding two others, including a 14-year-old girl left in critical condition. "Right after the first shooting at the apartments, he left the scene and sideswiped a car," said Paul Matyas of the Kalamazoo County Sheriff's Department. The accident prompted him to switch cars, from a silver Chevrolet Equinox to a Chevy HHR, both vehicles belonging to his family, Matyas said. Dunton said he was picked up in an HHR. Another Uber passenger, Matthew Mellen, told CNN he rode in Dalton's Equinox and that Dalton seemed normal until he received a call on his cellphone, at which point he began driving erratically, running stoplights and a stop sign and sideswiping another vehicle. Matyas said investigators were examining Dalton's Uber contacts and working to "track his phone calls, track his whereabouts" in the hours before his arrest early on Sunday. Detroit-based NBC affiliate WDIV-TV reported that Dalton graduated from Kalamazoo Valley Community College in 1992 with an associate's degree in law enforcement and criminal justice but did not enroll at the school's police academy. He had no criminal record, authorities said. (Additional reporting by Barbara Goldberg in New York and Jon Herskovitz in Austin, Texas; Editing by Tom Brown and Peter Cooney) By Alexandra Ulmer CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuela's state oil company PDVSA is about to clinch a deal for India's Oil and Natural Gas Corp to invest some $500 million in their San Cristobal joint venture, the South American company's president said on Tuesday. "We're about to firm up ONGC's financing to the joint venture we have in the San Cristobal field," Eulogio Del Pino, who is also Venezuela's Oil Minister, told Reuters. He said the deal, which has been under negotiation for months, would be signed "soon." The funds would go towards shoring up production at San Cristobal, which has fallen from a peak of over 40,000 barrels per day to around 28,000 bpd. The deal is expected to ensure state-owned ONGC gradually receives around $530 million of unpaid dividends, though it could take years for the entire amount to be repaid. The investment is also likely to involve the creation of an offshore account, probably in Asia, to receive the export income. It was not immediately possible to get a comment from ONGC, India's largest oil and gas explorer. The deal would come on the heels of last week's announcement that Russia's top oil producer, Rosneft, will invest $500 million as it raises its stake in the Petromonagas joint venture in Venezuela's Orinoco Belt region to 40 percent. Fresh investment could help Venezuela, home of the world's largest crude reserves, shore up oil output. ONGC Videsh, ONGC's overseas investment arm, has a 40 percent stake in the San Cristobal oilfield. PDVSA subsidiary CVP has the rest. (Reporting by Alexandra Ulmer; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne and Alan Crosby) PANAMA CITY, Feb 23 (Reuters) - The Panamanian government said on Tuesday it had agreed the cancellation of a $125 million radar contract with a subsidiary of Italy's Finmeccanica SpA that had become mired in a dispute over alleged corruption. After flagging suspected bribery and saying the radar equipment did not meet requirements, the government last year sought the approval of Panama's Supreme Court to cancel the contract with Finmeccanica unit Selex. The deal was signed in 2010 under former President Ricardo Martinelli. President Juan Carlos Varela, who has been locked in a bitter feud with Martinelli since succeeding him in 2014, told a news conference the contract was cancelled by mutual consent and that all legal actions over the case had been halted. "This agreement represents savings of more than $100 million for the Panamanian state and also resolves other problems caused by the previous administration," said Varela, who fell out with Martinelli after being elected alongside him as vice-president. Selex could not immediately be reached for comment. Martinelli, a multimillionaire supermarket tycoon who has been out of Panama since January 2015, has cases pending against him in the isthmus nation for alleged embezzlement, wiretapping and illegal pardons during his 2009-2014 tenure. He has rejected the allegations. Panama's Supreme Court in December issued a warrant for the arrest of Martinelli. (Reporting by Elida Moreno; Editing by Kenneth Maxwell) CARACAS, Feb 23 (Reuters) - A recently-announced Venezuelan military company will provide services to state oil company PDVSA, especially in terms of security in the crime-ridden OPEC country, the company's president said on Tuesday. Some industry observers and opposition leaders had speculated the company, Camimpeg, was a potential mechanism to shield assets from being seized in the event of a debt default. But PDVSA president and Oil Minister Eulogio Del Pino said the company is designed to provide services and support in the country with the world's largest oil reserves. "It will help PDVSA in all the necessary areas. For instance in border areas, we're going to increase our security, in operational issues where our soldiers are perfectly prepared," Del Pino told reporters on Tuesday as he exited the National Assembly. Venezuela's national crime pandemic - the United Nations says the country has one of the world's highest murder rates - is a growing headache for the oil industry, a recent Reuters investigation found. Foreign oil companies operating in Venezuela have been clamoring for more protection, especially in the vast and isolated oil fields of the heavy crude Orinoco Belt. Further details on the new company were not immediately available. A PDVSA branch known as PDVSA Servicios used to provide many key services to oil fields but appears to have faded away in the last year. Government critics say the announcement of the new army-led firm lacks transparency and shows Venezuela's already prominent military is gaining more power. (Reporting by Eyanir Chinea; Writing by Alexandra Ulmer; Editing by Nick Zieminski) Peru selects the technological solutions of the Imprimerie Nationale Group and Gemalto for end-to-end ePassport program Paris and Amsterdam, February 24, 2016 - The Imprimerie Nationale Group, the world expert in secure identity solutions, and Gemalto (Euronext NL0000400653 GTO), the world leader in digital security, announce they have started issuing the first personalized Peruvian electronic passports. The companies have jointly been awarded a multi-year contract at the end of 2015 to deliver a complete end-to-end ePassport solution for Peru, with the supply of highly secure electronic documents. The Imprimerie Nationale / Gemalto consortium was selected further to an international tender launched last August by the Superintendencia Nacional de Migraciones de Peru, under a strict bidding process controlled by the ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organization) International Organization. The Imprimerie Nationale leads the consortium and performs the design and manufacturing of the electronic passports. The brand new ePassport offers the highest security levels including exclusive watermark, micro lettering, inlay, UV and rainbow printing, and secure inks. For Peru`s 30 million citizens, the new ePassports will help combat identity fraud and greatly speed border crossing. Gemalto ensures the implementation of the complete credentials system, with the creation of 20 enrollment sites and personalization throughout the Peruvian territory, based on its Sealys eTravel secure embedded software for identity authentication, and its Coesys Instant Issuance for on the spot document personalization and delivery. Gemalto will secure data enrollment including automated fingerprint identification system (AFIS), public key infrastructure (PKI) services, ePassport personalization, a contingency data center plus quality and access control across the entire ePassport ecosystem. "Two weeks after the launch of the program, the first ePassport specimens were delivered to the Ministry of the Interior of Peru. And today, only two months later, the first 5,000 ePassports are delivered on time and the first enrollment and personalization site is fully operational. This is an industry first in terms of timeline," said Didier Trutt, CEO of the Imprimerie Nationale Group. Story continues "With this new electronic passport, the citizens of Peru will receive unprecedented levels of security, privacy and convenience as they travel across the world," added Frederic Trojani, Executive Vice President of Government Programs at Gemalto. "The ePassport program for Peru leverages Gemalto`s proven expertise in global eGovernment implementations with more than 30 ePassport roll-outs worldwide. The Gemalto solution encompasses end-to-end program management in addition to the delivery, personalization and instant issuance of these highly secure digital passports." Groupe Imprimerie Nationale Groupe Imprimerie Nationale Pictures and movie available for the Media: http://www.imprimerienationale.fr/en/media/news/2016-02-22/press-releases-and-events.html About The Imprimerie Nationale Group The Imprimerie Nationale Group is a global leader in secure identity solutions. In a mobile and digital world where data security has become the major issue, the Imprimerie Nationale Group offers States, governments and businesses trusted solutions including added value electronic components for banking, identity solutions including electronic components, cutting-edge secure credentials and safe and reliable interoperable systems, but also innovative and efficient digital services, and secure solutions for complex printings and workflows. Real engineering company, the Imprimerie Nationale Group is specialized in the integration of electronic and biometrics in identity documents and in polycarbonate cards. Thanks to its innovative new products and its strengthened security, the Imprimerie Nationale Group has become a worldwide leader with major customers in over 68 countries. Based in Paris, the Imprimerie Nationale Group has two production centers and employs more than 800 employees, of which over a third is dedicated to technology development. For more information, visit www.imprimerienationale.com ; Google+ or Facebook About Gemalto Gemalto (Euronext NL0000400653 GTO) is the world leader in digital security, with 2014 annual revenues of 2.5 billion and blue-chip customers in over 180 countries. Gemalto helps people trust one another in an increasingly connected digital world. Billions of people want better lifestyles, smarter living environments, and the freedom to communicate, shop, travel, bank, entertain and work - anytime, everywhere - in ways that are enjoyable and safe. In this fast moving mobile and digital environment, we enable companies and administrations to offer a wide range of trusted and convenient services by securing financial transactions, mobile services, public and private clouds, eHealthcare systems, access to eGovernment services, the Internet and internet-of-things and transport ticketing systems. Gemalto`s unique technology portfolio - from advanced cryptographic software embedded in a variety of familiar objects, to highly robust and scalable back-office platforms for authentication, encryption and digital credential management - is delivered by our world-class service teams. Our 14,000 employees operate out of 99 offices, 34 personalization and data centers, and 24 research and software development centers located in 46 countries. For more information visit www.gemalto.com , www.justaskgemalto.com, blog.gemalto.com, or follow@gemalto on Twitter. *** Media Contact IN-Gemalto Consortium Media Contact in Peru Corpro | Bernardo Furman Wolf | ( 0015) 51 997578420 | bfurman@corpro.pe Imprimerie Nationale Group Media Contact Agnes Martin | +33 1 40 58 30 00 | agnes.martin@imprimerienationale.fr Gemalto Media Contact North America Philippe Benitez +1 512 257 3869 philippe.benitez@gemalto.com Latin America Ernesto Haikewitsch +55 11 5105 9220 ernesto.haikewitsch@gemalto.com Europe & CIS Peggy Edoire +33 4 42 36 45 40 peggy.edoire@gemalto.com M.East & Africa Kristel Teyras +33 1 55 01 57 89 kristel.teyras@gemalto.com Greater China Vivian Liang +86 1059373046 vivian.liang@gemalto.com Asia Pacific Shintaro Suzuki +65 6317 8266 shintaro.suzuki@gemalto.com Press release (PDF) Credit: Imprimerie Nationale Group 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: Gemalto via GlobeNewswire HUG#1988578 LONDON, Feb 24 (Reuters) - Portugal's borrowing costs fell on Wednesday after the parliament approved in the first reading the minority Socialist government's 2016 budget and the country prepared to buy back bonds from investors. Portuguese 10-year bond yields fell 19 basis points in early trading to 3.20 percent, while two- and five-year yields were down around 40 bps at 0.44 and 1.93 percent, respectively. "When you have got a minority government there is always going to be a bit of concern about getting anything through (parliament) so there is a bit of relief in the market, and the buyback is also a driver," Mizuho strategist Peter Chatwell said. Portugal will buy back bonds maturing in 2017, 2018 and 2019 at a reverse auction on Thursday. (Reporting by John Geddie, editing by Nigel Stephenson) SAN FRANCISCO, CA--(Marketwired - Feb 24, 2016) - Coinciding with the consolidations and changes in the storage industry, the SCSI Trade Association (STA) (http://www.scsita.org/), a member-run industry association established to support and promote SCSI technology, today announced a new President and a new officer along with three new members to its Board of Directors for 2016. "The board would like to thank former President Marty Czekalski for his decades of service, technical expertise and dedication," said Kutcipal. "We also extend a warm welcome to our new board members and look forward to working with them to vigorously promote SAS as the proven platform of innovation for storage professionals seeking fast, flexible and reliable data access." The STA's executive officers and board of directors serve in a governance and fiduciary role by representing the interests of the organization's strategic planning and on-going operations. This translates into topnotch ideas and wisdom that turn into executable programs that benefit all STA members and the storage industry at-large. The Board elected: Rick Kutcipal, Product Planning, Data Center Storage Group, Broadcom, STA President Mike James, Director, Engineering, Enterprise Storage Solutions, SanDisk, STA Secretary Newly elected Board Members-at-Large include: Mike Miller, Executive Director, Advanced Development, Seagate Technology Jeremiah Tussey, Sr. Product Marketing Manager (Alliances), Scalable Storage Business Unit, Microsemi Corporation Paul Wassenberg, Director, Storage Marketing, Marvell Semiconductor The following were re-elected to the Board: Vice President: Greg McSorley, Technical Business Development Manager, Amphenol Treasurer: Chet Mercado, Technical Marketing Engineer/Third Party Alliance, HGST, a Western Digital Company Board Member-at-Large: Cameron Brett, Director of SSD Product Marketing, Toshiba America Electronic Components Board Member-at-Large: Gary McCulley, Product Line Manager, Storage Group, Intel Corporation Board Member-at-Large: Jay Neer, Industry Standards Manager, Molex Story continues "In 2015, the industry witnessed dramatic changes and consolidation in the enterprise storage market," said Michael T. LoBue, executive director, STA. "With change and disruption come fresh perspectives, which is reflected in the 2016 STA board of directors. STA's leadership will continue to evolve its strategies to ensure that SAS remains the data storage interface of choice as it has for three generations." 2015 was notable for new 12Gb/s SAS innovations and the continued growth of 12Gb/s SAS products in the marketplace. In addition, planning for the next generation 24Gb/s SAS moved forward with the expectation of commercial devices becoming available in 2018. "Proven over three generations, SAS provides robust error handling and mechanisms in place within the protocol to protect data from corruption," said Dennis Martin, Founder and President, Demartek, a computer industry analyst organization. "The capability of SAS to scale to thousands of devices is another one of its many features that makes it attractive as an enterprise-class storage solution." The current STA Membership roster: Amphenol BizLink Technology Broadcom ConnPro Industries Dell FCI Electronics Foxconn Interconnect Technology Fujikura Ltd./DDK HPE Intel Corporation Marvell Semiconductor Microsemi Corporation Molex Samsung Semiconductor SanDisk Seagate Technology SerialTek TE Connectivity Teledyne LeCroy Toshiba America Electronic Components UNH (Honorary) Western Digital Wieson Technologies About STA The SCSI Trade Association (STA) was established in 1996 to provide a focal point for members to communicate the benefits of SCSI to the industry. STA promotes the understanding and use of Serial Attached SCSI (SAS) technology and influences the evolution of SCSI standards to meet future industry needs. The Association has a ten-member Board of Directors, which oversees the Marketing Communications and Technology Committees and all STA activities. For more information, please visit the STA web site at http://www.scsita.org, send an email to info@scsita.org or call the STA office at (415) 561-6273. Mobile World Congress, Barcelona, Spain - February 24, 2016 - Gemalto (Euronext NL0000400653 GTO), the world leader in digital security and PROSA, one of the largest payment processors in Latin America, announce a partnership to bring mobile payments to Mexico. PROSA has operations in eight Latin American countries and will provide mobile payment services to all customers, which include 95% of credit, debit and prepaid card issuers in Mexico. Gemalto`s Allynis Trusted Service Hub (TSH) enables easy new customer onboarding, which allows banks to swiftly launch their own NFC mobile payment wallets utilizing host card emulation (HCE). Another important feature of Gemalto`s TSH is its ability to provision payment wallets from device manufacturers and mobile network operators as they launch in Mexico. In Mexico, 100% of domestic debit, credit and prepaid transactions are processed locally, with PROSA handling more than 50 percent of the transaction volume. Smartphone usage in the country is growing rapidly, up 40 percent in the second half of 2015 bringing the smartphone user base to more than 62 million[1] devices. This solution, one of the first payment solutions of its kind in Mexico, will help banks get in front of the mobile wallet trend by delivering integrated mobile payments to their cardholders. PROSA will provide services for mobile wallet development, cardholder identification and verification, card digitization and secure delivery to the mobile device based on the TSH. In addition, PROSA will operate Gemalto`s Tokenization Platform from its premises in Mexico, providing increased security in digital payments to reduce cross-channel fraud. "Smartphones account for nearly 60 percent of mobile connections in Mexico and the country is experiencing major growth in the number of NFC-enabled POS terminals deployed at retail outlets and banks," said Jose Molina, PROSA`s General Manager. "Gemalto`s TSH provided us with a full turnkey solution that allows our banking partners to plug into the NFC infrastructure and roll out easy, secure mobile payment services to their customers, while benefiting from the cost efficiency and scale a world class processor like PROSA can provide." Story continues "Gemalto is committed to supporting PROSA, a key financial service provider, in effectively equipping a major portion of the Mexican market with mobile payment services," said Rodrigo Serna, President for Latin America at Gemalto. "Our Trusted Services Hub was designed to empower processors to continue to play a central role in digital transactions and accelerate mobile wallet deployments for their issuers." About PROSA PROSA was founded in 1968 with almost 50 years of experience in the payment industry. Our services are used by 70 million cardholders around the world operating over 3,300 million transactions annually. We serve more than 140 financial and non-financial institutions in 8 Latin American countries. We are recognized as a world-class company, offering the most comprehensive portfolio of products and services in the market, competitive prices, adaptable and flexible solutions to fit the needs of our customers, backed-up by numerous certifications and awards supporting our experience as leaders in the payment industry. About Gemalto Gemalto (Euronext NL0000400653 GTO) is the world leader in digital security, with 2014 annual revenues of 2.5 billion and blue-chip customers in over 180 countries. Gemalto helps people trust one another in an increasingly connected digital world. Billions of people want better lifestyles, smarter living environments, and the freedom to communicate, shop, travel, bank, entertain and work - anytime, everywhere - in ways that are enjoyable and safe. In this fast moving mobile and digital environment, we enable companies and administrations to offer a wide range of trusted and convenient services by securing financial transactions, mobile services, public and private clouds, eHealthcare systems, access to eGovernment services, the Internet and internet-of-things and transport ticketing systems. Gemalto`s unique technology portfolio - from advanced cryptographic software embedded in a variety of familiar objects, to highly robust and scalable back-office platforms for authentication, encryption and digital credential management - is delivered by our world-class service teams. Our 14,000 employees operate out of 99 offices, 34 personalization and data centers, and 24 research and software development centers located in 46 countries. For more information visit www.gemalto.com, www.justaskgemalto.com, blog.gemalto.com, or follow@gemalto on Twitter. Gemalto media contacts: Philippe Benitez North America +1 512 257 3869 philippe.benitez@gemalto.com Peggy Edoire Europe & CIS +33 4 42 36 45 40 peggy.edoire@gemalto.com Vivian Liang Greater China +86 1059373046 vivian.liang@gemalto.com Ernesto Haikewitsch Latin America +55 11 5105 9220 ernesto.haikewitsch@gemalto.com Kristel Teyras Middle East & Africa +33 1 55 01 57 89 kristel.teyras@gemalto.com Shintaro Suzuki Asia Pacific +65 6317 8266 shintaro.suzuki@gemalto.com [1] http://www.emarketer.com/Article/Mexicos-Smartphone-User-Base-Reaches-625-Million/1013113 Press release (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: Gemalto via GlobeNewswire HUG#1988766 mitt romney Mitt Romney, the 2012 GOP presidential nominee, empathized with supporters of Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders as he gave remarks about the 2016 race. "We're just mad as hell and won't take it anymore," he said of the electorate on Tuesday, per The Washington Post. "The failure of current political leaders to actually tackle major challenges, or to try at least, or to go out with proposals," he added, speaking at Babson College in Wellesley, Massachusetts. Romney said he shared feelings with many Americans who feel betrayed by their government. The former presidential candidate discussed poverty, climate change, income inequality, and education as some of the biggest problems facing the nation. "Think for a moment about the major challenges you believe this country faces and tick them off in your mind and ask, Are we making any real progress on any of them?'" Romney said. He later added: "Certainly part of what is behind the energy and the passion for Donald Trump on the Republican side and Bernie Sanders on the Democratic side is the frustration and anger people feel in this country." Trump, the GOP frontrunner, won his third consecutive state on Tuesday with his victory in the Nevada caucuses. Sanders, a Vermont senator, has beaten Democratic frontrunner and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in New Hampshire and finished closely behind her in Iowa and Nevada. Romney said their success was a "projection on them by the American public that they're at least going to do something they're going to make something happen." Romney argued that lack of progress on reining in the national debt and entitlement programs had Republican voters fuming. He also said a lack of progress on climate change and poverty had Democrats up in arms. The former Massachusetts governor has yet to endorse a candidate in the 2016 race. It was reported that after former Gov. Jeb Bush of Florida dropped out on Saturday, Romney would endorse Marco Rubio, a Florida senator. But Rubio's campaign called the reports unfounded. Story continues At his Tuesday event, Romney also said that if both Sanders and Trump won party nominations, he expected to see former Mayor Michael Bloomberg of New York enter the race as a centrist alternative. "He'd probably be getting in," Romney said of the scenario. "I think he would recognize that there is a chance for a centrist candidate." In September, Romney said he didn't think Trump would be his party's nominee. "I will support the Republican nominee," he said. "I don't think that's going to be Donald Trump." Trump has repeatedly criticized Romney for losing the 2012 election to President Barack Obama despite the incumbent's record. Trump has even suggested that he would have won the White House that year had he been the nominee instead of Romney. NOW WATCH: Meet the three women who married Donald Trump More From Business Insider Getty Images. Leading libertarian and three-time candidate for president Ron Paul tells CNBC he does not like any of the remaining GOP candidates in the 2016 race. Three-time candidate for president Ron Paul said Wednesday he does not like any of the remaining GOP candidates in the 2016 race, and would not support Donald Trump if he were to win the Republican nomination. Trump has been able to tap into the anger and fear of a large "minority" of voters, Paul told CNBC's " Squawk Box ." He said the billionaire businessman acts like he has all the answers but "zero" realistic solutions to the problems facing the nation. "I hear the ability of politicians to capitalize on the worries," the libertarian Republican continued. "They're able to use the blame game." Paul served 12 terms as a U.S. congressman from Texas. Read More Ron Paul: I wouldn't support Trump as GOP nominee Trump was the projected winner of Tuesday's Nevada caucuses by a wide-margin, his third-straight victory with the Super Tuesday contests less than a week away. Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida was seen edging out Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas for second place in Nevada. Paul admitted that Trump has the momentum in the early contests, but said there's a long road of primaries and caucuses before the GOP's nominating convention in July. The race for the White House has become "Trump-ism versus Sander-ism," said Paul, referring to Democratic candidate Bernie Sanders . He said both approaches are "not a whole lot different" in their wrongheadedness. Sanders wants to make the government bigger and Trump wants to be the government, said Paul, who unsuccessfully sought the GOP presidential nomination in 2008 and 2012. He also ran in a failed bid for the White House in 1988 as the nominee of the Libertarian Party. Paul's son Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, who had sought to take up his father's mantle dropped his presidential bid earlier this month after a poor showing in the Iowa caucuses, the first-in-the-nation nominating contest. Read More House Speaker Ryan: Trump tapping into voter anger Cruz who beat Trump in Iowa and then racked up three third-places finishes in New Hampshire, South Carolina, and Nevada is making the case that he's the most electable anti-establishment candidate. Story continues In the establishment lane with Rubio, who was third in Iowa, fifth in New Hampshire, and second in both South Carolina and Nevada, is Ohio Gov. John Kasich . Kasich got a boost from grabbing the No. 2 spot in New Hampshire after getting off to a slow start in Iowa. "We're going to do very well on Super Tuesday," said Tom Ridge, the national co-chairman of Kasich campaign. "We are going to do quite well in the weeks ahead." Ridge, a former governor of Pennsylvania and ex-director of the Homeland Security Department, played down Kasich's fifth-place finishes in South Carolina, and Nevada. "We're going to win Ohio [on March 15]," Ridge said, despite the latest poll showing Kasich slightly behind in his home state to Trump. "And [in] some of those 'purple states' we're going to see the value of having a proven leader with a consistent conservative record." Ridge insisted that Kasich has the best chance to beat Trump and capture the GOP nomination, Ridge said. He touted the candidate's service to Ohio, currently as a second-term governor and as a longtime U.S. congressman who was chairman of the Budget Committee from 1995 to 2001. "When people start focusing, I think they're going to pay a lot more attention to records rather than rhetoric," said Ridge, who had been a supporter of Jeb Bush before the former Florida governor dropped out of the race. More From CNBC DailyFX.com - Talking Points: Saudi Arabia Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi played down the idea of a crude oil production cut Potential production freeze rests on the condition of other countries participation, notably Iran Irans participation in production freeze is unlikely due to the recent lifting of economic sanctions Are you losing money in forex trading? The Traits of Successful Traders may explain why. Speculation of a potential oil production cut was curbed by commentary from Saudi Arabia Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi. He stated that a reduction in drilling will not occur but that a freeze in output growth may be possible if other crude exporting nations coordinate. If such a cap in production is agreed to, it is expected to be near Januarys figures. The politician noted that this oil glut will not be the same as in 1986. Naimis comments come a week after a provisional freeze suggestion was mentioned between oil exporters Saudi Arabia, Russia, Qatar and Venezuela. The deal was cited on the condition that other nations will join, notably Iran. This country was recently released from economic sanctions barring them from the oil trade. Irans reemergence in the global crude market has created speculation that the country will not participate in the joint deal. Indeed, Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Zanganeh said the idea of a freeze was laughable. Talks of a joint production hold is due to the drop in price the commodity has undertaken since 2014, losing nearly 70 percent of value. Fundamental contributions to this historic supply-demand imbalance include record Saudi Arabia, United States and Russia production as well as the economic slowdown in China the second largest consumer of crude oil. The American Petroleum Institute (API) reported that crude inventories increased by 7.1 million barrels in the week to February 19th to 506.2 million - greater than the forecast of 3.4 million barrels. Below is a chart of crude oil production using statistics from the US Department of Energy. Story continues Saudi Arabia Curbs Speculation of a Crude Oil Production Cut Find more technical fundamental analysis on Oil from Tyler Yells recent article. original source DailyFX provides forex news and technical analysis on the trends that influence the global currency markets. Learn forex trading with a free practice account and trading charts from FXCM. Your digital subscription includes access to all content on our agricultural websites across the nation. Access unlimited content and the digital versions of our print editions - This Week's Paper. Saudi Arabia OPEC Ali al-Naimi Saudi oil minister Ali al-Naimi said on Tuesday that a cut in the kingdom's oil production "is not going to happen," according to the Financial Times. The FT added that Naimi speaking at the CERAWeek energy conference in Houston said that Saudi Arabia will pursue a production freeze rather than a decline, citing a lack of trust among the world's major oil producers. "There is less trust than normal," Naimi said. "Not many countries are going to deliver. Even if they say they will cut production, they will not deliver." Last week, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Venezuela all members of the 13-member OPEC oil cartel along with Russia announced a coordinated oil-production freeze in an effort to bring some balance to the oil market. Oil prices have crashed about 70% over the last 18 months, with much of this decline attributed to a glut of supply spearheaded by increased production from US shale producers. fredgraph (2) Analysts quickly viewed OPEC's announcement with skepticism, arguing that increasing production from OPEC members Iraq and Iran, as well as the stubborn production coming out of US shale-oil companies, would keep the market oversupplied. Following this announcement, analysts at Barclays wrote that: Overall, any positive oil price impact from this move, beyond a kneejerk covering of short positions, is highly contingent on other key oil producers joining in ... And although the announced plan is the first concrete attempt at limiting output that Saudi Arabia has publicly supported, a lot of hard negotiations lie ahead if it is to prove successful. Even then the key beneficiaries could turn out to be US tight oil producers. In a report earlier this week, the International Energy Agency said that while it is "dangerous" to call for a new regular low price for oil, market conditions suggest that prices are likely to remain down for longer. The IEA wrote: It is very tempting, but also very dangerous, to declare that we are in a new era of lower oil prices. But at the risk of tempting fate, we must say that today's oil market conditions do not suggest that prices can recover sharply in the immediate future unless, of course, there is a major geopolitical event. Story continues On Tuesday, oil prices fell more than 5% after giving back most of Monday's advance, with a late-afternoon decline in prices coming after data from the American Petroleum Institute showed an increase in inventory levels. Near 8:30 p.m. EST, the price of West Intermediate crude oil the US benchmark was trading near $31.40 while Brent crude, the international measure, was trading at around $33. Read the full report at FT.com here NOW WATCH: Leonardo DiCaprio blasted the 'corporate greed' of the oil industry More From Business Insider obama saudi Saudi Arabia warned its citizens against traveling to Lebanon on Tuesday after one of its biggest allies, the United Arab Emirates, banned travel to Lebanon altogether. The move, which followed the Kingdom's decision last week to halt $4 billion in funding for Lebanese security forces, shows that the Saudis "appear to have had enough," said Tony Badran, a researcher at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies specializing in the military and political affairs of the Levant. "Saudi Arabia is signaling that they're not going to bankroll an effective Iranian satrapy that's actively aligned against them," Badran told Business Insider on Tuesday. That satrapy is Hezbollah, a Lebanese militant organization sending fighters to Syria to support Iran-backed Shi'ite militias battling Saudi-backed Sunni rebel groups that oppose Syrian President Bashar Assad. One of Hezbollah's staunchest allies is the right-wing Christian Free Patriotic Movement, headed by Lebanon Foreign Minister Gibran Bassil. Saudi Foreign Minister Adel Al-Jubeir Saudi Arabia cut diplomatic ties with Iran earlier this year, after the Saudi embassy in Tehran was attacked by protestors decrying Riyadh's decision to execute a prominent Shi'ite cleric. Lebanon has long had a strong relationship with Saudi Arabia, but Bassil apparently took Iran's side in the most recent spat between Tehran and Riyadh. Elie Fawaz, writing for the Lebanese news outlet NOW, notes that the Saudis have withdrawn aid because of how state institutions are, "one way or another, support[ing] Hezbollah's military effort in Syria." Story continues The Saudis, then, are now "showing their seriousness about confronting Iran" and warning Lebanon that they won't underwrite an Iranian vassal, Badran said. "The talk is that the GCC [Gulf Cooperation Council] might take tough action against Hezbollah's allies, especially the Christian ones, who support Hezbollah's domination of Lebanon," Badran said. "And some believe that these allies are the weakest link." 'Obama is a big hurdle' The Saudis' determination to take on Iran and its proxies is clearly growing. Earlier this month, the spokesman of the Saudi-led coalition force in Yemen told reporters that the Kingdom had made a "final" decision to send ground troops into Syria. And last week, Saudi foreign minister Adel al-Jubeir called for sending surface-to-air missiles to rebel groups in Syria "to change the balance of power on the ground." The Saudis have since walked back somewhat on both announcements. But they clearly have remained eager to counter Iran's expanding influence in the region. "The question now for the Saudis is about how to align that determination with means and actual steps," Badran said. "Obama is a big hurdle." obama kerry The Saudis have shown no signs of abandoning their proxy war with Iran in Syria, especially since doing so would effectively guarantee Assad's indefinite hold on power and, by extension, a bridge to Hezbollah for Iran. Though it has softened its position on Assad's ouster, the White House has reiterated that it believes the war cannot end as long as Assad in power. But the Kingdom is still waiting for reciprocity and readiness from the Obama administration to more aggressively support anti-Assad rebels, who are rapidly losing ground to pro-regime forces as Russian airstrikes clear the way for them to advance in the north. Indeed, as the Saudis continue to balk at the US' decision to lift nuclear-related sanctions on Iran, Washington has shown few, if any, signs that it intends to prevent Syria from becoming a Russian-Iranian sphere of influence. And that may be intentional. "The Iranians hold the Obama legacy in their hands,"Aaron David Miller, a former Middle East negotiator and now the vice president at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, said in a January interview with Bloomberg View."We are constrained and we are acquiescing to a certain degree to ensure we maintain a functional relationship with the Iranians." Badran largely agreed. "The Saudis are pressed for time given the situation in northern Syria," Badran said, referring to rebels' recent defeats around Syria's largest city, Aleppo. "But, as long as Obama is in office, I don't think the odds are good" that they'll significantly escalate the stakes there, he added. "For now," he added, "the Saudis are drawing lines in the sand." NOW WATCH: What an expert on con artists thinks of Donald Trump More From Business Insider Oil prices are likely to remain under pressure this year as Saudi Arabia and Iran compete for market share in weak or slowing Asian economies, the editor of The Schork Report said Wednesday. Stephen Schork said he does not necessarily agree with forecasts that oil will rebound into the $40s in the next 12 months, citing Saudi oil minister Ali Al-Naimi's comments on Tuesday that OPEC and non-OPEC members will not cut production. "If you are long oil, get it through your head. Saudi Arabia is not going to throw you a life preserver," he told CNBC's "Squawk Box." Al-Naimi's remarks at IHS CERAWeek in Houston sent oil prices spiraling on Tuesday after futures had risen in previous sessions, bolstered by a plan put forward by Saudi Arabia and Russia to cap output at January levels. That plan would be contingent on participation from OPEC and non-OPEC members. Saudi Arabia in November 2014 led OPEC's policy of letting the market determine the oil price, rather than cutting production to boost prices. Schork said it is simply unlikely that Saudi Arabia, the Middle East's dominant Sunni Muslim power, would take measures that would bolster its Shiite rival, Iran. Iran recently ramped up crude exports after sanctions related to its nuclear program were lifted. The two countries also support opposing combatants in conflicts in Yemen and Syria. "We are looking at the largest chasm between the Sunnis and the Shias within OPEC ever. Why would Saudi Arabia throw Iran a lifeline at this point?" he said. Schork said he arrived at his conclusion by juxtaposing geopolitics with economics. Saudi Arabia and Iran are competing for available market share in Asia at a time when China is exporting deflation and Japan appears to be on the cusp of recession, he said. In the more immediate term, Schork said he believes oil will test the $25 threshold once again as refineries enter their maintenance season and demand for crude falls. Saudi Arabia can sustain the current policy for a long time because its break-even cost of producing the majority of its oil is likely below $10 a barrel, said Nansen Saleri, Quantum Reservoir Impact president and CEO. Story continues However, he acknowledged that the Saudi economy, which is dependent on oil revenues, is suffering and the country has fallen into budgetary deficit. "The pain threshold depends not only on the lifting cost but the total cost to the economy," he told "Squawk Box" on Wednesday. Ultimately, the current low-price environment could last anywhere from six to 18 months, Saleri said. At some point, OPEC and non-OPEC producers must find a way to achieve a reasonable oil price. More From CNBC CAPE TOWN, Feb 24 (Reuters) - South Africa will explore merging two of its state-owned airlines, South African Airways (SAA) and SA Express, and seek a minority equity partner for the company, Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan said on Wednesday. Many of South Africa's 300-odd state entities are a drain on the government's purse and a team commissioned by President Jacob Zuma to review the companies recommended that some companies should be sold. Treasury said in its 2016 budget review the government was implementing recommendations of the committee and would examine private sector participation in the state-owned companies. "We do not need to be invested in four airline businesses," Gordhan said in his budget speech. "(Public Enterprises Minister) and I have agreed to explore the possible merger of SAA and SA Express, under a strengthened board, with a view to engaging with a potential minority equity partner, and to create a bigger and more operationally efficient airline." Treasury said the financial position of SAA has deteriorated and in the event of a default, the government would likely be called to pay a portion of its guarantee to the airline, which stands at about 14.4 billion rand ($939.3 million). "Government will seek opportunities to enter into strategic partnerships that allow SAA to draw on private-sector capital and technical expertise to improve its performance and expand its network," Treasury said. South Africa's state-owned firms range from SAA to power utility Eskom and logistics group Transnet, among others. Eskom was expected to receive a 23 billion rand cash injection from the government, but Gordhan said Treasury had delayed giving the power utility the remainder of 2 billion rand until it complies with equity allocation conditions, such as cost cuts and improving maintenance. Treasury allocated 4.5 billion rand over the next three years for the implementation of the National Health Insurance, which is still in the pilot phase, as the government seeks to make healthcare services affordable for all South Africans, irrespective of whether they are rich or poor. Gordhan said further details on financing of the scheme, expected to be rolled out in three phases over a 14-year period, will be released soon. ($1 = 15.3307 rand) (Reporting by Olivia Kumwenda-Mtambo; Editing by James Macharia) Beirut (AFP) - The UN's Syria envoy said the war-battered country is facing a "crucial day" ahead of a deadline of midnight Friday for a partial truce brokered by Moscow and Washington. President Bashar al-Assad's regime and Syria's top opposition grouping have said they will abide by the ceasefire plan, but it has been plagued by doubts after the failure of previous peace efforts. The deal -- which excludes the Islamic State jihadist group and other extremists -- marks the biggest diplomatic push yet to help end Syria's violence. "Tomorrow is going to be a very important, I will say a crucial day," UN envoy Staffan de Mistura told reporters at the UN's European headquarters in Geneva. Members of the 17-nation group backing Syria's peace process are to meet in Geneva Friday to work out further details of the agreement, which is then expected to be endorsed by the UN Security Council. There are a hopes a successful ceasefire will lead to the resumption of peace talks that collapsed in Geneva earlier this month. De Mistura said he will meet journalists around the time the ceasefire is due to take affect "to assess where we are and indicate also the information regarding the resumption of Geneva talks." The agreement allows military action to continue against IS, which seized control of large parts of Syria and Iraq in 2014, as well as against Al-Qaeda affiliated Al-Nusra Front and other jihadist groups. The complexities of Syria's battlefields -- where moderate rebels often fight alongside jihadist groups like Al-Nusra -- have cast serious doubt on whether the ceasefire effort will succeed. Turkey's position towards Syrian Kurdish forces is another potential spoiler, and Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said Thursday that Ankara would not be bound by the ceasefire if its national security is threatened. "It must be known that the ceasefire is valid in Syria," Davutoglu said in televised remarks. "When it is a question of Turkey's security, then the ceasefire is not binding for us." Story continues - Obama 'very cautious' - Turkey has shelled Kurdish forces in northern Syria, saying the army was responding to incoming fire. Ankara regards the main Kurdish militia in Syria, the People's Protection Units (YPG), as an offshoot of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which has waged a decades-long insurgency against the Turkish state. A YPG spokesman said Thursday that Kurdish forces would respect the ceasefire but would fight back if attacked. "We, the People's Protection Units (YPG), give great importance to the process of cessation of hostilities announced by the United States and Russia and we will respect it, while retaining the right to retaliate... if we are attacked," YPG spokesman Redur Xelil said on his Facebook page. Moscow and Washington announced the new date for a ceasefire this week after a previous deadline passed without any changes on the ground. Russia and the United States are on opposing sides of the conflict, with Moscow backing Assad and Washington supporting the opposition, but the two powers have been making a concerted push for the ceasefire to be respected. Russian President Vladimir Putin has promised to do "whatever is necessary" to ensure the ceasefire is respected, although US President Barack Obama on Wednesday sounded a note of caution. "We are very cautious about raising expectations on this," Obama said. "If, over the next several weeks we can see some lessening of the violence... then that provides a basis for a longer-term ceasefire... and allows us to move forward to a political transition that ultimately is going to be necessary to bring an end to the civil war," Obama said. - 'High hopes' for aid - The United Nations has managed to boost aid ahead of the ceasefire deadline and expressed optimism on Thursday of more deliveries. Jan Egeland, a special advisor to De Mistura, said Thursday that more than 180 trucks filled with aid had reached six areas under siege from different sides in the past two weeks. They have brought assistance to just under a quarter of the 480,000 people estimated to be living in 17 besieged places across Syria. Egeland said permission had been requested to bring aid to besieged parts of Aleppo, Homs and Eastern Ghouta, all hotspots in the country's conflict. "We have high hopes that we will be able to get through to these places," he said. On Wednesday, the UN World Food Programme (WFP) carried out its first humanitarian airdrop in Syria to try to help civilians stuck in the city of Deir Ezzor, but Egeland acknowledged the attempt had run into "problems". The WFP said that of 21 food pallets dropped, 10 remained unaccounted for, four were destroyed and the remaining seven landed in areas where they could not be accessed. CONTENT MARKETING IN LATAM AND U.S. HISPANIC MARKETS, MARCH 17, MIAMI Taboola, the leading discovery platform serving over 300 billion recommendations monthly, has joined together with Portada to host a morning filled with exclusive information on content marketing in LATAM and US Hispanic markets.Click here for high-resolution version NEW YORK, NY--(Marketwired - February 24, 2016) - Taboola, the leading discovery platform serving over 300 billion recommendations to 750 million unique users every month, has joined together with Portada to host a morning filled with exclusive information on content marketing in Latin America and the U.S. Hispanic market in Miami's Viceroy Hotel on March 17. Brand marketers and agency executives who are interested in attending the event can e-mail events@portada-online.com to ask for a free registration code and then register at www.portada-online.com/events/taboola. Please provide name, company and position. "Content Marketing: Latin America & the U.S. Hispanic Market," presented in partnership with Portada, will feature major brands and agencies providing key insights about U.S. Hispanic and Latin American content marketing. Already confirmed speakers include: John Santiago, CEO & Founder, M8 Hallie Davison, Managing Director, Latin America, Colloquial Zev Gollender, VP Media Sales, Taboola The event programming will discuss the value of investing in content marketing and its unique abilities to engage a multi-cultural audience. Presentations will also feature companies that are leading the way in this exciting new space, including the rise of content discovery platforms that have pioneered a new way to promote ROI-driven storytelling. Milestone in the Road to #PortadaLat (June 8-9, 2016) Taboola's "Content Marketing: Latin America & the U.S. Hispanic Market," presented in partnership with Portada, is the first milestone in the road to the eighth annual edition of #PortadaLat, the premier conference in the Latin American and U.S. Hispanic marketing, media and digital innovation space, taking place on June 8-9, 2016 in Miami's Hyatt Regency Hotel. This year, #PortadaLat is adding special "Data Marketing" and "Travel Marketing" tracks. For more information, visit: https://www.portada-online.com/events/portadalat Additional #PortadaLat Milestones MARCH 7 - APRIL 1: AWARD NOMINATION PERIOD Nominations in 11 different categories for Latin American and U.S. Hispanic Advertising and Media Awards are open for submission until April 10. Story continues APRIL 11 - 29: AWARD VOTING PERIOD Portada's audience throughout the Americas votes for the different candidates. MAY 9: FINALISTS ARE ANNOUNCED Finalists will consist of the top three most-voted nominees per category. Portada's Award Jury will cast the final votes, and winners will be announced at #Portadalat's Award Ceremony on June 9, 2016. The Award Winner with most votes of the 11 categories is the 2016 Grand Winner. Portada's Editorial Board Members (Award Jury) will choose among the three finalists in each category. Jury members include: Carlos Espindola, Gerente eHub Latinoamerica, 3M Jose Ruiz, Director, LAD Advertising & Online, Oracle Giselle Fiumara, Global Marketing Communications Manager, Volkswagen Raquel Solorzano, Directora de MediosRegionales, Diageo JUNE 9: AWARD CEREMONY AT #PORTADALAT ON JUNE 9 Major Additions to #PortadaLat's 2015 Summit As a result of feedback from attendees of prior editions of #PortadaLat, organizers are substantially expanding key content and networking offerings including: Data Marketing Forum: Using Data Driven Marketing to Reach Latino Consumers #PortadaLat will provide a unique setting for marketers targeting Latin consumers in the U.S. and Latin America to delve into how Big Data can revolutionize marketing efficiency. Travel and Luxury Marketing Track Latin America and the U.S. Hispanic market are key inbound and outbound destinations for global travel and luxury marketing companies. Hear how major brands are approaching the region and learn more about their innovations in digital marketing. More Sessions Exploring the Marketing Technology Revolution From "Content Marketing Technologies and Practices" to "Digital Targeting" to "Crowdsourcing," leading experts will discuss the latest innovations in the space and provide actionable insights that marketers can incorporate into their 2016 strategies. Expanded Speaker Roster of Brand Marketing and Media Stars More Special Tracks and Exclusive Sessions to be announced soon! Back By Popular Demand! Online Video Forum : A unique hub for excitement and idea sharing on the OTT Revolution throughout the Latin world. Topics covered include: monetization, viewability, YouTube, Facebook and more. Speed Networking : Profit from small group sessions with dozens of key brand, agency and media executives, and come away with hands-on insights and key contacts! In preparation for the bigger-than-ever 2016 summit, attendees can check out our highlight video from last year's #PortadaLat at Portada-Online's YouTube channel. About Taboola: Taboola is the leading discovery platform, serving over 300 billion recommendations to over 750 million unique visitors every month on some of the Web's most innovative publisher sites, including USA TODAY, Business Insider, Chicago Tribune, and The Weather Channel. Headquartered in New York City, Taboola also has offices in Los Angeles, London, Tel Aviv, New Delhi, and Bangkok. Publishers, marketers, and agencies leverage Taboola to retain users on their sites, monetize their traffic, and distribute their content to drive high-quality audiences. Learn more at www.taboola.com and follow @taboola on Twitter. About Portada Portada, www.portada-online.com, is the leading source of news and analysis on the Latin Marketing and Media space. With offices in New York, Miami, Mexico City and Buenos Aires, Portada offers world-class news and intelligence through audited online, print and event vehicles to highly targeted audiences. Portada's mission is to help professionals in Business and Media understand and reach Hispanic consumers in the U.S and Latin America. Credibility is our biggest asset: The Portada team is very passionate about producing high-quality independent content that helps drive forward the Latin Marketing and Media space. Image Available: http://www.marketwire.com/library/MwGo/2016/2/24/11G084286/Images/Taboola-Portada-4bb13ff078d5945b9101455408b631b1.jpg Image Available: http://www.marketwire.com/library/MwGo/2016/2/24/11G084286/Images/PORTADALAT-2016-651fe3bd1a8fb9719e4dfeaa0e2d7404.jpg REUTERS - Tata Steel Ltd said on Wednesday its Europe unit's chief executive, Karl Koehler, is stepping down to take up a senior leadership position with a large, privately owned industrial company in Germany. Koehler would be replaced by Hans Fischer, chief technical officer at Tata Steel Europe, effective March 1, the company said in a statement. Koehler, who will also resign from the Tata Steel board, will remain available to Tata Steel for a short period in an advisory capacity, the steelmaker said. Koushik Chatterjee, group executive director and a board member, will become Tata Steel's executive director for Europe in addition to his current responsibilities, the company said. The change in the top ranks of Britain's largest steelmaker comes at a time when the steel industry has been reeling from falling prices and cheap imports. The European Commission is scheduled to propose later this year whether to grant China market economy status, a move that critics say would give the country a license to dump unfairly cheap products in Europe and cost jobs. Tata Steel announced last month that it would axe 1,050 jobs in the United Kingdom soon after European Union steel prices touched their lowest since 2004. That was the second round of job cuts for the company in six months. (Reporting by Devidutta Tripathy in Mumbai and Vidya L Nathan in Bengaluru; Editing by Jason Neely and Savio D'Souza) Private software giant Infor is not as much a household name as competitors like SAP and Oracle, but the third-largest supplier of enterprise solutions had $2.9 billion in revenue in the last 12 months, employs 14,000 people, and operates in 200 countries and territories around the world. CEO Charles Phillips stopped by Yahoo Finance to discuss a host of issues in and around his business. Into the cloud Phillips says his company takes care of a lot of the behind-the-scene processes that the end user never really thinks aboutperhaps automating a manufacturing company or a hospital or even some governments. "More and more of our customers are asking us to run the software for them as opposed to give it to them to run, Phillips notes. And so now we have about 45 million customers in the cloud running on Amazon [Web Services]. Apple vs. the FBI Technology and the software behind it have been in the news of late as Apple, the federal government, and the public have begun a debate over the line between privacy and security. The government is right on this one, Phillips says, noting that his past as a Marine captain causes him to think differently of the topic. We certainly seem to be sanctioning that its OK to waterboard people, but its not OK to open their iPhones? This is a very narrow case where hes asking for one phone, no new technology to be developed. A federal judge gave a subpoena I think the government is on the right foot here. He believes most of the public is on his side as well, and a new Pew Research poll backs up that opinion, reporting that 51% of Americans think Apple should unlock the phone for the FBI. Diversity in tech The people employed by tech companies have long fallen into some specific categories, and while Infor is based in New York and not California, Phillips is trying to change the makeup of his companys workforce, and hes starting early. Rather than hoping colleges and universities spit out a more diverse group of tech-minded graduates, Infor is going to the schools themselves. Story continues Were providing our software to about 24 universities right now and training their professors to give classes around our technology, Phillips says. If you graduate and get certified in that course, we will guarantee you a job at Infor. But were going to non-traditional universities: Hampton University, CUNY, Pace. And so were going to some places where people normally dont get access to these technologies and training them ourselves. Consumer technology Being the CEO of a tech company, its no surprise that Phillips is a fan of consumer tech. We asked him what his favorite gadgets were, and he quickly backed the Samsung ecosystem, noting that the company is "innovating a lot faster than most other phone companies right now. Phillips is also excited about the rise of virtual reality, but not just because of the implications for the consumer. I think theres a lot of applicability in business, he adds. I could see us demo-ing our software in virtual reality. So if were automating things like asset management, where you go out and fix something in the field or fix a pipe, Id love a customer to walk through that in real time to show how our asset management systems work. IPO on the horizon? When youre the CEO of a large and successful private company like Infor, its only natural to talk IPO. Phillips sees the merits of a move, but is in no hurry to file with the SEC anytime soon. We make hundreds of millions of dollars a year and raise money privately, probably at better valuations than in the public market right now, he says. But we want the option to be there, because its a branding event and theres other advantages. But were not pressed to do it right away. Ted Cruz After a presumed loss in the Nevada caucuses, Sen. Ted Cruz is looking ahead to Super Tuesday and sending the message that he's still very much in the race for the Republican presidential nomination. During a speech to supporters late Tuesday, Cruz stressed that "the most delegates that are awarded on a single day" will be awarded next week on Super Tuesday. "One week from today will be the most important night of this campaign," he said. "The role of the first four states is to narrow the field and give Super Tuesday a clear choice. And now the voters can decide," he continued. Cruz's campaign has been hurting in recent days as real-estate mogul Donald Trump has continued to build momentum. Trump is the presumed winner of the Nevada caucuses and has been launching frequent attacks against Cruz, whom he calls a "liar" and accuses of "dirty tricks." In his speech, Cruz congratulated Trump on his "strong evening" and then cast himself as the only candidate who could beat him. "At this point, we've had four primaries," Cruz said. "History teaches us that nobody has ever won the nomination without winning one of the first three primaries. And there are only two people who have won one of the first three primaries. Donald Trump and us." He continued: "The undeniable reality that the first four states have shown is that the only campaign that has beaten Donald Trump and the only campaign that can beat Donald Trump is this campaign." Cruz won the Iowa caucuses, but came in third in New Hampshire and in South Carolina. The odds are seemingly stacked against Cruz going forward. No Republican has previously won both New Hampshire and South Carolina and not gone on to become the eventual nominee. And Trump is leading polls in almost all of the Super Tuesday states. NOW WATCH: Ted Cruz's new Donald Trump action-figure ad looks like something out of 'Saturday Night Live' More From Business Insider Damage to Muamua on Vanua Balavu Island after the most powerful cyclone in Fiji's history battered the Pacific island nation (AFP Photo/STR) Suva (Fiji) (AFP) - Tourists began fleeing cyclone-ravaged Fiji Monday and aid efforts intensified as the death toll climbed to 20, with officials warning it could rise further as reports trickle in from devastated remote communities. Aerial photographs revealed entire villages were flattened when severe tropical cyclone Winston struck overnight Saturday, lashing the Pacific island nation with gusts of 325 kilometres (202 miles) per hour. "The images emerging from early aerial assessments of affected areas are truly heartbreaking, leaving little doubt about the ferocity of this cyclone," said the UN's Fiji coordinator Osnat Lubrani. "It is clear from these catastrophic impacts that Fiji is facing a long road to recovery." Winston, the strongest cyclone ever recorded in the Southern Hemisphere, razed scores of homes, crippled infrastructure and forced terrified residents to shelter in evacuation centres. Photographs taken from a Royal New Zealand Air Force plane showed the devastation in remote villages that bore the brunt. Many homes were reduced to piles of kindling, with roofing and furniture strewn about by winds that were strong enough to strip leaves and branches from trees. In one image a lone man stands on the tin roof of his ruined home, apparently waving both arms at the military plane as it passes overhead. The official body count went from six to 20 as communications were slowly restored to affected communities. "(It) may rise further as police are still trying to get confirmation on some missing persons reports," said National Disaster Management Office director Akapusi Tuifagalele. Oxfam's Pacific regional director Raijeli Nicole said Fijians were braced for more bad news. "Given the intensity of the storm and the images we have seen so far, there are strong concerns that the death toll won't stop climbing today and that hundreds of people will have seen their homes and livelihoods completely destroyed," she said. Story continues - 'Harrowing whine' - International tourists caught up in the disaster began to leave as flights resumed at Nadi airport after a two-day suspension. Fiji's economy relies on tourism, particularly Australians and New Zealanders, and Tourism Minister Faiyaz Siddiq Koya gave assurances that "all visitors are safe and comfortable". Melbourne man Jeremy Bree told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation that he heard trees being ripped from the ground as he sat out the storm in a hotel on the main island Viti Levu. "It was pretty amazing... the noise around was something I've never heard before, it was a real harrowing whine that came through," he said. The airport's opening allowed aid efforts to be ramped up, with Australia announcing a Aus$5.0 million (US$3.6 million) package including basics such as food and drinking water. Foreign Minister Julie Bishop said Canberra had also offered the use of a P-3 Orion aircraft and MRH-90 helicopters to reach outlying islands. New Zealand also raised its aid contribution to NZ$2.2 million (US$1.5 million) and sent a C-130 Hercules carrying relief supplies. Care Australia disaster response coordinator Sarah Boxall said up to 6,000 people were still in evacuation centres and would need basics such as food, water and medical supplies. "The next phase is the prevention of disease because once you get a lot of stagnant water around you get dengue (fever), which has been a problem in Fiji," she said. The nation has declared a month-long state of natural disaster after a storm that Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama described as an "assault on Fiji". Bainimarama, who has mobilised police and the military to help relief efforts, said he was determined to get Fiji back on its feet. "There are Fijians out there who are without water, without a roof over their heads, without food and without essential services," he said. "It is our duty to determine their needs and provide them with the support they need as soon as possible." Lubrani said Fiji formally requested international assistance Monday and the UN was helping coordinate the response. "Help is already on its way to the Lomaiviti (island) group, which was in the eye of the cyclone and suffered catastrophic impacts," she said. "In one village on the island of Koro, every single house and community building has been destroyed." A Red Crescent convoy carrying humanitarian aid arrives in Kafr Batna, on the outskirts of Damascus, on February 23, 2016 (AFP Photo/Amer Almohibany) (AFP/File) United Nations (United States) (AFP) - UN aid convoys headed to two Syrian towns besieged by government forces on Tuesday to deliver life-saving food and medicine to some 30,000 people, a UN spokesman said. The deliveries to the towns of Moadamiyeh and Kafr Batna, near Damascus, came after aid reached five besieged towns last week, part of a major push to reach civilians facing starvation. "These are the first of what we hope to be a series of deliveries to meet the needs of people that humanitarian workers have not been able to reach for a long time," said UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric. The convoys carried enough food and medical supplies to help some 20,000 people in Moadamiyeh and 10,000 in Kafr Batna, he said. The humanitarian aid came a day after the United States and Russia agreed on a cessation of hostilities as of Saturday that could pave the way to more deliveries. The United Nations is calling on all sides to lift starvation sieges across Syria, where it estimates that 487,000 people live, although some non-governmental organizations say the figure is much higher. Last week, 114 trucks loaded with food and other basic goods reached 80,000 people in five besieged areas. The United Nations is calling for "unconditional, unimpeded and sustained access" to all hard-to-reach areas, said Dujarric. More than 260,000 people have died in Syria's conflict, which began in March 2011 with anti-government protests but has since imploded into a multi-sided proxy war. CARACAS, Feb 24 (Reuters) - Venezuela has enough resources to pay fully on Friday a $1.5 billion repayment due on its global 2016 bond, three sources close to the government said, though further debt maturities later in the year may be harder to meet. "The problem is not February," said one of the sources, who is familiar with the government's economic strategy but asked not to be named. "It's October and November that are worrying." (Reporting by Corina Pons and Eyanir Chinea; Writing by Andrew Cawthorne; Editing by Chris Reese) The Earnings Report We've Been Waiting For: Walmart in Fiscal 2016 (Continued from Prior Part) Weighing the benefits of scale versus near-term financial impact In the near-to-medium term, the challenges that Wal-Mart Stores (WMT), or Walmart, faces in the UK, China, and Brazil are likely to persist. But Walmarts international (IXUS) operations could still be a vital future growth driver for the company. Walmarts international sales have grown faster than US sales, prior to fiscal 2016 when forex (foreign exchange) headwinds impacted overseas sales. Thats partly due to their smaller base, and partly due to the expansion in store footprint. Among the positives, an international presence gives the retailer diversification benefits and scale in some of the most promising markets around the globe. Walmart is also focused on boosting international (VT) profitability. The retailers gross margin rate in its international ops actually increased by 23 basis points in reported terms in fiscal 2016. In fact, rival Costco Wholesale Corporation (COST) is actually more profitable overseas that it is in the US. That said, Walmart will not likely achieve higher profitability from international ops in the near-term. Its operating margins are likely to continue trailing those in its US ops for several reasons, including the impact higher investments in new store openings, costs incurred for store closures, and forex headwinds. Portfolio trimming Walmart has also looked to rationalize its store portfolio and businesses. Last month, the retailer announced 115 store closures in Brazil and Latin America, while planning to open 200-240 stores in other locations in fiscal 2017. Thats similar to the reset strategy employed in China, where the company closed several stores in underperforming locations while opening others in new ones. Peers whove looked closely at portfolio decisions lately include Target (TGT) which exited Canada last year. However, other big-box retailers including Home Depot (HD), and Lowes (LOW) are also bullish on prospects for both Canada and Mexico, akin to Walmart. Story continues Suburbia, Mexico Walmart is also exploring the sale of Suburbia, its apparel brand in Mexico, and its shopping centers business in Chile, as these arent core businesses for the retailer. While these initiatives are likely to give Walmart scale and a global presence, this may disadvantage results in the near-term, especially in comparison to its peers in the US who dont have international ops and arent planning to venture outside the USnamely, The Kroger Company (KR) and Target (TGT). Besides, the higher initial investments, currency, and other macro issues in key markets are expected to continue being a headwind. Continue to Next Part Browse this series on Market Realist: Why Did Changes in the Weather Impact Grain Prices? (Continued from Prior Part) Soybean prices rose Soybean futures contracts trading on the CBOT (Chicago Board of Trade), for March delivery, rose by 0.31% and settled at $8.81 per bushel on February 22, 2016. Soybean futures prices received support from the weaker weather forecast for South America. This could support US soybean exports in the near term. Following the prices on the CBOT, the Teucrium Soybean Fund (SOYB) rose by 0.34% on February 22, 2016. South American weather conditions arent favorable for the week ending on February 27, 2016. After the floods in central Argentina, dry weather conditions could hurt the development of the soybean crop in the near term. Excessively wet Brazilian regions are facing another week of rainy weather. The speculation of lower-than-anticipated output due to unfavorable weather could support soybean prices in the near term. The Weekly Export Sales report for the week ending on February 11, 2016, released by the U.S. Department of Agriculture on February 19, 2016. Net weekly soybean export sales were 567,030 tons for the week of February 511, 2016. It was 15% lower than the exports the previous week. It was 4% higher than the prior four-week average. Primary destinations with an increase in soybean exports were China, Mexico, the Netherlands, Germany, Taiwan, Vietnam, and Iran. Reductions were reported from unknown destinations. It was the fourth-lowest week for marketing 20152016 for soybeans. Although export sales were in the range of analysts estimates of 400,000700,000 tons, it had a negative impact on soybean prices on February 22, 2016. According to the report from AgRural, the Brazilian soybean harvest reached 23% during the week ending on February 21, 2016. The quality of the output is strong against the weaker expectations. The speculation of stronger Brazilian soybean production dragged soybean prices down on February 22, 2016. Story continues Concerned fertilizer business Fertilizer companies would benefit from the rise in soybean prices. On February 22, 2016, with the increase in soybean prices, the shares of Martin Midstream Partners (MMLP), CF Industries Holdings (CF), CVR Partners (UAN), and Chemical & Mining Co. of Chile (SQM) rose by 5%, 1.6%, 13.1%, and 3.4%. The Material Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLB) rose by 1.9% with the increase in the soybean prices on February 22, 2016. Continue to Next Part Browse this series on Market Realist: Performance of All Base Metals except Tin Slid on February 23 Weak sentiment from China Copper reached a two-week high on Monday, February 22, 2016, after receiving a boost from global equities gains and the oil. However, it was unable to carry the same positive momentum to Tuesday. On Tuesday, February 23, LME 3M copper declined by 1.04% and 0.47%, respectively, in the London Metal Exchange (or LME) and COMEX. On February 23, the decline of Chinese equities, along with the central bank fixing a softer midpoint, raised concerns about the Chinese economy and demand growth of metals. The Peoples Bank of China set the midpoint rate of the yuan at 6.5273 per dollar prior to the Markets open. This is 0.17% below the previous fix. This weakening of the yuan by the central bank resulted in a weakened sentiment. China accounts for more than 45% of the global copper demand, and the economic releases from China should have a noticeable impact on copper prices. Oil dip and BHPs statement on copper balance In addition to the weak sentiment from China, the dip in oil prices also affected the metals sentiment. On Tuesday, the gain in oil prices disappeared after Saudi Arabias oil minister, Ali Ibrahim Al-Naimi, ruled out the possibility of production cuts in the near future. Copper prices were also pulled down by the statement from BHP Billitons (BHP) chief financial officer, Peter Beaven. Beaven noted that the copper market is expected to remain in a surplus until 2019 because of the surge in investments that could boost the supply. This statement from one of the top copper miners underpinned copper prices on Tuesday, as the supply glut is one of the main reasons behind coppers downfall. Along with base metals, the major base metal miners also declined on Tuesday. Freeport-McMoRan (FCX), Glencore (GLNCY), and Alcoa (AA) fell by 8.7%, 2.19%, and 4.26%, respectively. The PowerShares DB Base Metals ETF (DBB) declined by 1.86% on February 23. Story continues The following articles in this series will cover the price action of base metals and major base metal miners on Tuesday, along with an update on inventory levels of base metals in the LME. Continue to Next Part Browse this series on Market Realist: Performance of All Base Metals except Tin Slid on February 23 (Continued from Prior Part) Copper down from 2-week high After gaining for two consecutive trading days and closing at the two-week high price level, LME 3M copper declined on February 23. On Tuesday, LME 3M copper declined by 1.04% and closed the day at $4,645 per metric ton. The decline in copper prices is due to the weak sentiment from China, a dip in oil prices, and the statement from BHP Billiton (BHP). We discuss these factors in Part 1 of this series. In COMEX, copper declined 0.47% on Tuesday. Copper drifted to a multiyear low of $4,331 per metric ton on January 15 and is currently trading at 7.25% above that level. Aluminum closed below $1,550 As with copper, aluminum also broke its winning streak and declined on Tuesday. On February 23, LME 3M aluminum declined by 1.65% to $1,548 per metric ton. On Monday, aluminum surged to a four-month high of $1,574 per metric ton, above the important resistance level of $1,550 per metric ton. However, it was unable to sustain its position above that level on Tuesday. Since mid-October 2015, aluminum in LME has been consolidating between the price levels of $1,450$1,550 per metric ton. Nickel and zinc drifted lower LME 3M nickel declined 1.82% on Tuesday to $8,610 per metric ton. The weak sentiment from China pulled down the price of nickel on Tuesday. Sudirman Said, the energy minister of Indonesia, recently stated that Indonesia could ease its ban on exports of nickel ores. The lifting of the ban on nickel exports could weaken the sentiment around nickel and bring the prices much lower. Nickel slid to its 13-year low of $7,595 per metric ton on February 11 and is currently trading at 13.36% above that level. LME 3M zinc declined 2.47% to $1,737 per metric ton, the biggest fall out of the base metals on Tuesday. Tin smelter closed operations, price surged The Indonesian tin smelter PT Refined Bangka Tin halted its refining operations due to environmental reasons. This news supported Tuesdays tin prices as a decrease in supply could support tin prices. On Tuesday, tin in LME rose by 1.88% to $16,025 per metric ton. Story continues The price action of base metal miners like Freeport-McMoRan (FCX), Glencore (GLNCY), and Alcoa (AA) is explored in the following article. The PowerShares DB Base Metals ETF (DBB) and the SPDR S&P Metals & Mining ETF (XME) declined 1.86% and 2.97%, respectively, on Tuesday. Continue to Next Part Browse this series on Market Realist: Genesee & Wyoming's 4Q15 Earnings: On Track or Derailed? (Continued from Prior Part) Genesee & Wyoming: A distinct railroad Genesee & Wyomings (GWR) top priorities include the acquisition of new rail lines. It has been a serial acquirer of short line rail for 30 years. This has resulted in GWR being the largest short line rail operator in North America. Analyst recommendations Following GWRs announcement of its 4Q15 results, there has been no change in analysts opinions. Of the 15 analysts covering the company, 11 analysts, or 73.3%, recommended a buy. Three analysts, or 20%, maintained a hold recommendation, and only one analyst gave the stock a sell recommendation. Analysts give GWR a thumbs up Analysts have forecast GWRs long-term EPS (earnings per share) growth at 8.0%. In five out of eight quarters, GWR was able to beat the consensus GAAP (generally accepted accounting principles) estimates. The 12-month consensus mean target price of GWRs share is $64.90. This represents an 18.3% premium over the last closing price of $54.86. The companys last 12-month return was -40.1%. Analysts predict flat EPS growth for GWR in 1Q16 from the same period last year. However, they predict positive EPS growth from the second quarter onward due to GWRs cost-cutting measures and synergies from the Freightliner acquisition. Analysts expect a full-year EPS of $3.94, while management has restricted its guidance to 1Q16. For the first quarter of 2016, management expects an EPS of $0.70 to $0.75, largely due to the one-time restructuring costs in the United Kingdom followed by Australia. Investors should note that excluding the Freightliner revenue contribution in 2016, the same railroad revenues would actually fall. But a look at 2016 revenues and earnings estimates of GWRs peers reveals that they are in the same boat. Its peers include Kansas City Southern (KSU), Union Pacific (UNP), Norfolk Southern (NSC), and CSX (CSX). The above-mentioned companies, excluding GWR, form part of the portfolio holding of the Industrial Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLI). This ETF holds 7.3% in Class I railroads. Story continues In the concluding part of this series, well look at how GWR is valued against its peers. Continue to Next Part Browse this series on Market Realist: For Immediate Release Chicago, IL February 24, 2016 Zacks.com announces the list of stocks featured in the Analyst Blog. Every day the Zacks Equity Research analysts discuss the latest news and events impacting stocks and the financial markets. Stocks recently featured in the blog include Horizon Pharma plc (HZNP), ING Groep N.V. (ING), AstraZeneca PLC (AZN) and Mallinckrodt Public Limited Co. (MNK). Today, Zacks is promoting its ''Buy'' stock recommendations. Get #1Stock of the Day pick for free. Here are highlights from Tuesdays Analyst Blog: 4 Stocks to Help Combat Brexit Fears On Monday, Londons Mayor Boris Johnson decided to throw his weight behind the campaign for Britain to exit the European Union. This sent the British pound to its lowest level in seven years and led to fresh fears that a Brexit was imminent. Coming on the heels of fresh concessions negotiated by prime minister David Cameron, it was a major setback for the ruling partys efforts to remain within the EU. The British industry is apprehensive of the economic consequences that such a move could have on the countrys economy. Some market watchers even believe that it could threaten the very existence of the Eurozone. However, several factors suggest otherwise and there are still some great picks from the Eurozone which you should consider adding to your portfolio. Cameron Negotiates New Concessions Last week, Britains prime minister secured a new deal with EU officials which would award his country a special status among the economic bloc. This covers a range of issues which include further protection for the British pound, exemptions for the countrys financial sector and new rules which allow individual governments to turn down EU regulations. However, the most significant of these was related to cuts on what has been termed as in-work benefits for foreign migrants. This was one of the most significant promises made by the Conservative party in its 2015 manifesto. But it seems that those in favor of a Brexit are unimpressed and are still persisting with their demands of a complete withdrawal from the EU. Story continues Why a Brexit Is Unlikely The EU has in recent times been bogged down by several pressing issues, the most recent of which is the huge influx of refugees. The primary reasons why support for a Brexit has been building up are the troubles faced by the euro and the migrant worker problem. However, there are several other reasons why a Brexit is unlikely. First, most polls measuring the possibilities of such a situation have come up in favor of the in camp, those favoring to remain within the Eurozone. This has continued since last September. Last weeks Ipsos MORI poll revealed that 51% are still in favor of remaining within the EU while only 36% are calling for an exit. Second, even if Britain does exit the EU, it would have to negotiate new terms of trade. This could deprive the countrys large services sector from access to the EU. Several banks and financial institutions may have to shift their headquarters out of the country. It is likely that voters will take such factors into account before the final vote in June takes place. Europe Could Still Buck the Trend A Brexit could certainly be disastrous to the entire EU project, if it at all happens. Meanwhile, the Eurozones economy continues to face a large number of challenges. This includes the slump in China and other emerging market economies, which threaten the recovery of a mostly export oriented economic bloc. A recent downslide in banking stocks is another weak spot and a potential threat. However, the European Central Bank (ECB) has held out the promise of additional economic stimulus when needed. It is widely expected that stimulus will be stepped up when the ECBs governing council convenes in March. Speaking during an interview on Monday, ECB council member Erkki Liikanen said that the central bank is willing to provide additional monetary stimulus if required. The refugee crisis could however lead to one positive outcome, particularly in Germany. This is because additional spending on this count could provide a decent measure of fiscal stimulus. Our Choices Despite the scare created by those in favor of Britain exiting the EU, such an outcome seems unlikely at the moment. Voters are likely to weigh the economic outcome of such a decision before taking such a call. This is why a Brexit is unlikely to add to the slew of Europes woes. In fact, additional economic stimulus from the ECB and increased spending on the refugee crisis may be beneficial for the region. Adding select stocks from the region to your portfolio remains a prudent move. We have narrowed down our search to the following stocks based on a good Zacks Rank and other relevant metrics. Horizon Pharma plc (HZNP) is a biopharmaceutical company based in Dublin, Ireland focused on identifying, developing, acquiring and commercializing products to address unmet therapeutic needs. Horizon has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) and expected earnings growth of 48.4% for the current year. It has a P/E (F1) of 7.89. ING Groep N.V. (ING) is a financial company based in Amsterdam, Netherlands which offers banking, insurance and asset management services on a global basis. ING Groep has a Zacks Rank #1 and expected earnings growth of 17.50% for the current year. Its earnings estimate for the current year has improved 2.9% over the last 30 days. AstraZeneca PLC (AZN), headquartered in London, UK, is one of the largest biopharmaceutical companies in the world. AstraZeneca has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) and forward price-to-earnings ratio (P/E) for the current financial year (F1) is 13.73, lower than the industry average of 64.20. Its earnings estimate for the current year has improved 5.9% over the last 30 days. Mallinckrodt Public Limited Co. (MNK) is a specialty biopharmaceutical company based in Dublin, Ireland with a worldwide presence. Mallinckrodt has a Zacks Rank #2 and expected earnings growth of 9.6% for the current year. Its earnings estimate for the current year has improved 2.8% over the last 30 days. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report >> About Zacks Equity Research Zacks Equity Research provides the best of quantitative and qualitative analysis to help investors know what stocks to buy and which to sell for the long-term. Continuous coverage is provided for a universe of 1,150 publicly traded stocks. Our analysts are organized by industry which gives them keen insights to developments that affect company profits and stock performance. Recommendations and target prices are six-month time horizons. Zacks "Profit from the Pros" e-mail newsletter provides highlights of the latest analysis from Zacks Equity Research. Subscribe to this free newsletter today. Find out What is happening in the stock market today on zacks.com. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report HORIZON PHARMA (HZNP): Free Stock Analysis Report ING GROEP-ADR (ING): Free Stock Analysis Report ASTRAZENECA PLC (AZN): Free Stock Analysis Report MALLINCKRODT PL (MNK): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. 2000 - 2022 24 .- . focus-news.net, () . 24 . 24 . . 24 . We value your privacy. Focus Taiwan (CNA) uses tracking technologies to provide better reading experiences, but it also respects readers' privacy. Click here to find out more about Focus Taiwan's privacy policy. When you close this window, it means you agree with this policy. Taipei, Feb. 24 (CNA) An academic conference on political, economic and social developments in Taiwan and Hungary, as well as the bilateral trade between the two nations, was held Monday in Budapest, with the participation of 25 scholars from the two countries, according to a statement released by Taiwan's representative office in Hungary. To activate the text-to-speech service, please first agree to the privacy policy below. Taipei, Feb. 24 (CNA) The Executive Yuan decided Wednesday to expand safety checks on old houses to cover those built before 1999, and it is initially estimated that the number of such structures to be checked will increase from the original estimate of 520,000 to 600,000. Come and enjoy Read more [...] By Kristy Kirkup, The Canadian Press Posted: Feb 23, 2016 3:53 PM ET Last Updated: Feb 23, 2016 3:53 PM ETThe Congress of Aboriginal Peoples and the Native Women's Association of Canada have written to the premiers to complain about being left out of discussions prior to next week's first ministers meeting.The letter, obtained by The Canadian Press, expresses surprise and "great disappointment" at the lack of an invitation from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.It also calls on the premiers to hold Trudeau accountable to his promise of inclusion."At a meeting held on Dec. 16, 2015, the prime minister reiterated the federal government's commitment to include all five [national aboriginal organizations] in high-level discussions pertaining to indigenous issues," it reads."It is extremely important that all indigenous voices are heard and not just a select few."Dwight Dorey, the national chief of the Congress of Aboriginal Peoples, which represents about 1.1 million indigenous people living off-reserve, said the government's decision does not make sense to him."In talking to some of the premiers, they're ... shocked at it," Dorey said in an interview. "It is clearly discrimination. It goes totally against the commitment that the prime minister made."Dorey said he's seeking the support of the premiers in the hope it will convince Trudeau to invite both the congress and NWAC.In a statement, the Prime Minister's Office said Trudeau would meet the premiers, the Assembly of First Nations, the Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami and the Metis National Council ahead of the first ministers meeting "in the context of a renewed nation-to-nation relationship."The meetings do not in any way preclude ongoing discussions with all five national aboriginal organizations, as committed to by the prime minister late last year, the statement said."The government of Canada has committed to working and meeting regularly with the national aboriginal organizations, and will continue to engage in robust bilateral discussions with all five ... on issues of importance to their members," said spokesperson Andree-Lyne Halle.Halle did not provide a specific explanation on why The Congress of Aboriginal Peoples and the Native Women's Association were not invited.NDP indigenous affairs critic Charlie Angus said he is still trying to figure out what the government is trying to accomplish by leaving out the two groups."Mr. Trudeau said he was going to end Stephen Harper's standard operating practice of picking winners and losers and creating confrontation by excluding people he didn't want to hear from," Angus said."The message they're sending is, 'There are going to be winners and losers with this new government."' Is Earth getting warmer mostly because of human activities? 56% say NO. Earth is getting warmer partly or mostly because of human activities. 39% say NO. Climate change: Majority of Canadians dont believe humans control it natural forces control main And you thought Goebbels and Pravda had a corner on propaganda and misinformationOops! CBC (the Canadian version of the BBC and ABC) have been caught out editing a story to make it more politically correct. CBCs political bias is accidentally on display. The original message revealed a sacred truth that must not be spoken. How would most Canadians feel about being forced to pay money to change the weather if they knew most other Canadians also thought it was a waste of billions? As far as I can tell, the updated version was a complete rewrite of the first half of the article. There appear to be a lot of changes.The unsurprising news is that 56% of Canadians are skeptics which is very similar to all other surveys which show that 62% of Brits are 62% skeptical . As are 54% of Australians. Fully third of the US are so skeptical they think its a total hoax The survey:Amazingly 39% of Canadians said the next question that they dont think humans are evenresponsible.So CBC initially wrote a headline which said this: But thou mayst never admit that skeptics are the majority lest the masses awaken. Groupthink is so influential! So the headline was rapidly changed to an ambiguous muddy wording:Those results: Click to enlarge.Everything hinges on the word mostly is the climatehuman driven and so we have to take action, or is the climate drivenby something else, and our action ispointless? This is key to the billion dollar policy debate. What matters here is not the binary belief or disbelief in the entire spectrum known as climate change. Thats a strawman. But the BBC, CBC and ABC appear to want to keep the debate at this pointless level. As far as national action goes we need to talk abouthumans affect the climate, and whether cutting emissions is worth the pain.It didnt need any change to maintain normal headline standards, but it could be improved. The headline could have been changed to make it more accurate without hiding that most Canadians dont agree with the 97% consensus of climate scientists*. Here are three minor changes that the CBC didnt choose but would have solved any ambiguity:more:This is so far beyond common sense and science any more, it's outright obvious manipulation from a state broadcaster eagerly suckling our teat. kill this fukker once and for all. London's Crossrail to be called the Elizabeth Line Meet the real life Elizabeth Line - not the renamed Crossrail project in London BBC News23 February 2016Crossrail, the new railway which will run beneath London, is to be named the Elizabeth Line in honour of the Queen, Boris Johnson has announced.London's mayor revealed the line's name and purple logo as he visited Bond Street station with the monarch.Trains on the railway will travel under the centre of the city, linking parts of Berkshire and Buckinghamshire to Essex when it opens in December 2018.Mr Johnson said it was "wonderful" the line had "such a significant name"."The Elizabeth Line will provide a lasting tribute to our longest-serving monarch", the mayor said.The Queen visited a station construction site 92ft below ground where she viewed part of the tunnel and met construction apprentices.Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin, who was also at the event, said the name was "very fitting" given the Queen's long association with UK transport. About 24 trains an hour will travel both ways on the new Elizabeth Line when it opens.BBC News24 February 2016"I got a text from a girlfriend... I was like, 'Oh no, what have I done? Am I going to embarrass my family and my friends?'"Turns out she wasn't in the middle of a full-on bout of Twitter shaming and her reputation was still intact.What had actually happened was Transport for London in the UK had announced they were going to name the new Crossrail line under London after the Queen - calling it the Elizabeth line.Once she realised what was going on, Elizabeth decided to go with it and get herself in on the story.Speaking to the BBC 5 live, she said: "For me this was a perfect opportunity to test a joke or two. People seemed to like it."She has now started to receive messages from people living in the UK."Many are sympathetic that I will be bombarded with tweets and comments that are supposed to be for TfL about service interruptions in the years to come."She says she's hoping that won't happen but, just in case, she's reached out to a man called John Lewis.He's the American dad of four who personally replies to all those people who wrongly tweet him thinking it is the account of British high street store John Lewis. This blog was originally created to document the 11,000 mile motor home trip in the summer of 2008 by Frank and Durelle Cloutier. We have decided to keep it going to document our further travels (and even some non-travels) Nebraska LEAD Program Fellow Melissa Wheeler of Alvo returned home after participating in a ten-day National Study/Travel Seminar conducted by the Nebraska LEAD Program Feb. 3-12. Nebraska LEAD Program Dr. Terry Hejny served as group leader for the study/travel seminar to Kansas City, Washington, D.C. and Chicago. During the seminar Nebraska LEAD Fellows met with business, industry and government leaders. Several highlights included visits to Kansas City Federal Reserve Bank, Environmental Protection Agency Region 7 in Kansas City, American Farm Bureau Federation, the Embassy of Chile, Nebraska Congressional Breakfast in Washington, D.C., NuFarm, Chicago High School for Agricultural Sciences, and EPA Region 5 in Chicago. Also included in this years experience was a briefing and factory tour of the John Deere operations in Moline, Ill. A major objective of the study/travel seminar is to provide participants with the opportunity to meet leaders who help shape local, state, and national policy in agriculture and related areas and to create first-hand exposure to varied social and economic conditions/issues that exist in the United States. The mission of the Nebraska LEAD program is to prepare and motivate men and women in agriculture for more effective leadership and is designed to speed up the leadership process. Nebraska LEAD Program includes men and women currently active in production agriculture and agribusiness. The Nebraska LEAD Program is a two-year leadership development program under the direction of the Nebraska Agricultural Leadership Council and in cooperation with the University of Nebraskas Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources. Program content essential to leadership focuses on economics, government, human relations, communications, international trade, sociology, education, the arts, social-cultural understandings and agriculture. For more information, or to request an application for Nebraska LEAD 36, contact the Nebraska LEAD Program, 104 AgCom Bldg, PO Box 830940, Lincoln, NE 68583-0940 or telephone 402-472-6810. For more information about the selection process or to request an application, visit their website at www.lead.unl.edu. Application deadline is June 15, 2016. The shift of jobs from rural to metro sites, increase of educational requirements and the aging of longtime volunteers are just a few factors taking their toll on recruiting and maintaining emergency responders in small communities. To address the issues in Cass County, a Recruitment and Retention Committee was formed after the last Cass County Mutual Aid meeting. The committee is comprised of volunteer firefighters and rescue squad members from throughout the county. With volunteers becoming harder to find and before we are totally behind the 8 ball, we felt that we needed to start now on relieving the problem, said Jacob Blunt, Elmwood and Cass County EMS responder. The committee held its first meeting Feb. 18 at the Cass County Emergency Management Agency office in Weeping Water. Committee members attending included Bobby Lawrence of Weeping Water, Allen Brockhoff of Murdock, Mike Vanarsdall of Eagle, Ben Glantz of Eagle, Mike McKibben of Eagle, Jason McClun of Louisville, Martin Brammier of Avoca, Jess Debaere of Weeping Water and Blunt. Blunt asked the group how they recruit volunteers. We put flyers up in the most trafficked areas, Glantz said. Those are mostly useless. Seventy-five percent of recruits come from word of mouth neighbors and friends. A lot want to come out and help with the race track. We also have been working with Southeast Community College (SCC) as our designated trainer. As for keeping them, we could talk all night. We have 29 members and are happy to have 10 show up on a regular basis. McKibben said Eagle Fire and Rescue maintains a Facebook page as another recruitment tool. Debaere volunteered to set up a Facebook page for the recruitment committee. Mostly, its a buddy of a buddy, McClun, Louisville Fire Chief, said. Sometimes you have a bunch on and then in six months theyre gone. McKibben said another problem they face is paying for training for people who dont pass or who pass and then join departments in the nearby cities. Brammier said volunteers are few in the Avoca Fire District. The young kids come in and find out this is more work than they thought. All they want to do is drive the fire truck. Theyre surprised to learn there is probation for a year before you drive that fire truck, he said. Many Weeping Water residents also work night shifts when required training sessions are scheduled. It would be nice to see classes in the daytime. They can come to our station anytime, McClun said. Lawrence said the State Fire Marshals Association is considering offering a Firefighter I course online. Conestoga offers some medical-related classes, Blunt said. It may be beneficial to talk to the schools and see what avenue they would take, Blunt said. Elmwood-Murdock FBLA members held a community service soup supper fund-raiser. They had 22 booths showcasing any entity that did community service, he explained. People attending paid $10 for the soup and chose which community service organization they wanted it donated to. They served 150 people. We could do the same thing out at the fairgrounds, he said. Blunt said Elmwood volunteers received permission from school officials to meet with members of the senior class about volunteering. The problem is the kids go away to college, so they dont stay in town, he said. Brammier suggested filming a video of all the fire and rescue departments in the county. It could highlight each department, even if it takes one-half hours. The departments could talk about their needs. He suggested the committee have a booth at the county fair and show the video that even youngsters would watch. It might plant a seed in their minds for the future, he said. Brammier volunteered to work on setting up a booth at the fair. Blunt has also been researching recruitment ideas from across the nation. He said Charlottesville, Va., created a recruitment packet. It has an application in it and they go around and talk to people hanging out at the department, he said. Blunt added that Nebraska State Volunteer Firefighters Association is hosting a recruitment workshop June 11-12 in Lincoln. The workshop is entirely funded through a grant. Its a pretty big topic for everybody, Glantz said. Blunt said the issue needs to be brought to the attention of all media sources newspaper, television and radio stations. Papio-Missouri River Natural Resources District General ManagerJohn Winkler has been selected by the Secretary of the Air Force, Honorable Deborah Lee James, to attend the 63rd Annual National Security Forum May 4, 2016 at the U.S. Air Forces Air War College at Maxwell Air Force Base in Montgomery, Ala. Winkler, who was nominated by Bellevue Mayor Rita Sanders, is one of 150 distinguished civilian government leaders from around the country that will attend this years Air War College. The National Security Forum was formed in 1954 and has provided hand selected candidates throughout the country and the world a unique opportunity to engage senior military and civilian leaders on national and international security topics. I am honored to be selected to attend this years National Security Forum and to represent the Natural Resources District and the State of Nebraska, said Winkler. Working collaboratively with the Air Force, Department of Defense and Offutt Air Force Base over the last few years on issues involving upgrades to Missouri River Levees has given me the opportunity to forge some great working relationships with the military, he said. The nations evolving and dynamic security issues will be explored during the forum, giving participants a better understanding of perspectives and concerns of the defense community, strategic leadership, strategy, national security, decision making, war fighting and global security. In addition, to military leaders from Americas Armed Forces there will also be in attendance a diverse group of selected military officers from 45 other countries. One of the best lessons we have learned is we need to form stronger personal relationships and create more open lines of communication with not only Offutt Air Force Base but with personnel and leadership in the Pentagon and throughout the armed forces, added Winkler. The Air War College is the perfect forum to begin forging those relationships. Many area residents know Murray is a fun place to be on the Fourth of July. And even though there is still a chill in the air, Murray Freedom Festival (MFF) Board of Trustees members are already planning this years July 4 activities. To help raise funds for the celebration, Wes Reddin, the Pancake King from Weeping Water will be cooking flapjacks from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. for freewill donation for the festival at Conestoga Elementary School Sunday, Feb. 28. He volunteers his time, said MFF Board Secretary Patricia Zeigler. He just likes doing it. Donations in any amount are more than welcome to help fund activities. Wed like to raise enough to pay for the fireworks, said MFF Board of Trustees President John Hensch. MFF is a 501(c)3 organization. One-hundred percent of the donations go to the celebration, said MFF Board Co-Vice President Matthew Lewis. Last year, the fireworks show lasted 21 minutes. We had a lot of people who were really impressed by it. This year wed like to do an even bigger show, Lewis said. With the festival almost dying two years ago due to a lack of volunteers, the plan is to bring the celebration back to the level of attendance in past years. We want to get the county involved and not just people from Cass County but other counties as well, Hensch said. The planners already know the one thing theyll need is plenty of volunteers to help keep the activities, including the beloved Oozeball Tournament, bingo games, parade, fireworks, concessions and childrens games, running smoothly. The biggest problem is getting volunteers, Zeigler said. Its always been everyone pitching in and helping out. This year a 5K Run has been added to the lineup. You can register online on the Murray Freedom Festival website, Zeigler said. Chad and April Schmeckpeper are organizing the 5K Run. Teams can also register for the Oozeball Tournament and make donations to the celebration on the website. Lewis said the board is researching ideas for this years celebration. Last year we had a Smash-A-Car and we will have that this year, he said. New ideas are welcome. One idea were working on is a car show, Hensch said. There are a lot of different ideas were tossing around. Board members hope people will attend board meetings and share ideas. The board meets at 7 p.m. every first Tuesday of the month at Murray City Hall. The best thing they can do if they want to help is show up at the meeting, Zeigler said. Currently, about 10 people regularly attend the meetings. Church and business representatives are encouraged to attend. Its not just a Murray event. Its a Cass County event. Anybody is welcome, Lewis said. Board members also noted that donations for the Murray Fire and Rescue Departments annual Fourth of July Pancake Feed at the station are strictly for the fire and rescue squad. Anyone wishing to donate to or volunteer for the MFF is asked to contact Hensch at 402.616.1367 or visit the website: murrayfreedomfestivalne.com. Walking into the Fremont City Council Chamber Wednesday afternoon, all eight council seats were filled, but by much younger faces than somebody who regularly attends meetings would be accustom to seeing. This is because the seats were being manned by eight high school junior students from Fremont High School and Archbishop Bergan as part of the annual Youth Leadership Academy Mock City Council meeting hosted by the Fremont Area Chamber of Commerce, First State Bank & Trust and Fremont Tribune. Twenty-four juniors were selected in September to participate in the Academy, said Mayor Scott Getzschman, and for nearly the past seven months, students had one-hour monthly meetings with the mayor learning the basic principles of local government. If we can get students learning about government at a young age, as they get older they will take a more active role in government in whatever community they end up in, Getzschman said. This experience alone will help make them better citizens, and the youth of tomorrow is the foundation of the future, and we truly do need these kids to come back and be our future leaders. Wednesday afternoon marked an end to this years Youth Leadership Academy as students conducted an hour-long council meeting the same way a real council meeting would operate. Throughout the past seven months, students worked in small groups gathering research about seven relevant topics in the Fremont Community. Resolutions for these ideas were then presented before the council, and the legislative process was carried out. Students learned what ordinances are, what resolutions are, what the makeup of city council is and an abundance of other important information. Topics discussed included: bringing jobs to the community, construction, branding, the city auditorium, Fremont trails system and improving the Historic Fremont Downtown Area. All of these ideas are things that council is dealing with today, Getzschman said. They are all relevant ideas and topics. Giannah Vakiner, a junior at FHS, said that she was glad she had the opportunity to participate in the Youth Leadership Academy, noting that many of the things she learned during the sessions she can apply to areas of her life. This particular academy looks great on a resume for college, she said. I believe its important to get involved in the community and know whats going on I even take some of the stuff we have learned from Mr. Getzschman and take it home and talk to my mom about it. Getzschman, who has led the Mock Council meeting for the past four years, said that the group of students participating in this years academy went above and beyond his expectations. They did a great job of sharing and discussing their ideas, he said. It can be difficult sometimes to get students to come up and talk, but this group did a great job of participating and giving feedback back and forth. They really knew the issues they were talking about, and that was great to see. One day you wash up on the beach, wet and naked. Another day you wash back out. In between, the scenery changes constantly. This S ite 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, Social Justice Issues, Teaching, and Research. 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. Visit the following link for more information: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode The Westin Hotels & Resorts is set to debut in Milwaukee, Wisconsin in Summer 2017. Owned by Jackson Street Holdings and managed by White Lodging, The Westin Milwaukee will open on the US Bank campus at the heart of downtown with financing from BMO Harris and Anchor Bank. The newly constructed Westin will feature 220 guestrooms and suites, with stunning views overlooking Lake Michigan and the downtown skyline, designed to inspire a sense of well-being. The hotel will also feature 9,000 square feet of well-appointed meeting facilities, a unique fine dining restaurant and lobby bar, featuring the Westin brands signature nutrient-rich SuperFoodsRX menu, the WestinWORKOUT gym and Westins innovative programs and instinctive service that aim to transform every aspect of a guests stay into a revitalizing experience. The Westin Milwaukee will be connected indoors to over 3,000 people working in downtown and will be the closest hotel to Lake Michigan, offering business and leisure travelers a unique well-being proposition, as only Westin can, said Chris Anderson, Senior Vice President and Chief Revenue Officer with White Lodging. Were thrilled to continue our great relationship with Jackson Street, especially playing a role in a beautiful addition to the Milwaukee skyline and the introduction of an elevated wellness brand to the market. The Westin Milwaukee will mark an important debut for Westin, paving the way for the further development of Starwoods lifestyle brands in this key mid-western market, said Allison Reid, Senior Vice President of Development, North America, Starwood Hotels & Resorts. Having recently surpassed 200 hotels globally, the Westin brand continues to gain momentum in North America and around the world, propelled by the success of its distinctive well-being positioning and the enthusiasm of owners and developers who are eager to bring the brand to new markets. Just minutes from the shores of Lake Michigan, The Westin Milwaukee will connect directly to the US Bank Complexs Galleria level and is close to the corporate headquarters of Northwestern Mutual, Johnson Controls are the Wisconsin Center, the BMO Harris Bradley Center and Milwaukee Art Museum. The hotel is also walking distance to East Town Market, the historic Third Ward District and the shops and restaurants on the Milwaukee River Walk. Best Western Hotels & Resorts has revealed exciting plans to launch its new urban boutique brand, Vib, in Bangkok, Thailand. Olivier Berrivin, Best Western Hotels & Resort's Managing Director of International Operations - Asia, signed an agreement with Narin Thitipoonya, owner of Matasiri Company, for the first ever Vib Hotel in Bangkok. Located within walking distance from Sanam Pao BTS skytrain station, the newly built Vib Bangkok will offer 89 rooms with cutting-edge amenities when it opens in Q1 2018. Construction will get underway in June 2016. Best Westerns new chic, hip boutique concept, Vib is designed to combine value and style. Blending social engagement with the latest technology and smart, ergonomic design, Vib will appeal to Southeast Asia's savvy travelers. Dubai Business Events (DBE), Dubais official convention bureau, hosted 85 guests from Western Europe as part of a Discover Dubai Study Mission 2016. 70 hosted buyers and a further 15 of Europes leading media experts from the business events industry. Ozgur Tore representing ftnNEWS was among the media group. Dubai Business Events showcased the Emirates world class meetings, incentives, conferences and event capabilities. A tailored itinerary that covered incentive, meeting and conferences was developed for the three day study tour. The media group is comfortably stayed at Fairmont Dubai, located just opposite to the Dubai World Trade Center, the regions largest purpose-built complex for events and exhibitions. Fairmont Dubai is also 10 minutes away from the Dubai Mall, the worlds largest shopping center. Western Europe is a vital market for Dubai, and in 2015 it remained the second highest regional contributor to the emirates visitor volumes, bringing in nearly 3 million overnight visitors, reflecting a solid 6.1% growth in numbers. A tailored itinerary that covered incentive, meeting and conferences was developed for the three day study tour. It included a number of the citys leading attractions, such as a desert safari at Platinum Heritage, a cultural tour of Sheikh Mohammed Center for Cultural Understanding and a series of hotels and venues such as Taj Dubai, Palace Downtown Dubai, St. Regis Dubai, Mina Al Salam Hotel, and Al Qasr Hotel. Delegates also had the opportunity to experience the added extras that DBE can offer to make events truly memorable. This involved a bespoke team-building exercise which required an interactive iPad app to offer a series of challenges for the delegates, ensuring they learnt about the culture that underpins the city, while helping them to build lasting relationships with their fellow attendees. We also attended an industry round-table which included presentations from a number of DBEs key partners; Emirates Airline, Dubai Airports, Dubai Parks and Resorts and Zayed University. These emphasize that Dubai is one of the most well connected economies in the world and the business and knowledge hub of the Middle East. Please see photos from the media roundtable below. Steen Jakobsen, Director, Dubai Business Events said: Dubai has continued to build momentum in the business, conferences and events industry. Inviting European buyer and media stakeholders to experience the plethora of incentives and first class facilities the city has to offer, as well as providing unique networking opportunities with a number of key suppliers, enables DBE to demonstrate why Dubai is continuing to grow in popularity across the sector. Commenting on the experience, attendee Sonia Graupera, said, I loved my visit to Dubai. A fantastic three days, with an exciting and varied agenda. I really enjoyed the opportunity to gain insight into Dubais culture as well as experience some of the citys best quality hotels and incentives, and learn more about its developing knowledge hub and innovation credentials. I thought the idea of introducing a team building challenge really helped drive engagement among the attendees as well. A brilliant all-round experience and I very much look forward to returning. Kuba Piotrowski, from Oriflame, one of the hosted buyers said: Dubai is an amazing city and we have had a brilliant three days. From a night in the desert, to a seaplane tour to camel polo, we were able to experience the range of incentives and world class facilities that the city has to offer. Being able to meet with DBEs partners was a great touch and a very valuable opportunity to grow and develop future relationships that will enable us to provide a better service to our customers. The European study tour is the first in a series of events that will see DBE host over 800 buyers and media delegates from its leading markets in 2016, as it continues to build towards Dubais ambitious target of welcoming 20 million visitors per year to the city by 2020. #DiscoverDubai16 is the hashtag for the Dubai Study Mission 2016 delegates used during their discovery of Dubai. Search and see more photos in Instagram, Tweeter and Facebook. Rail technology leader Bombardier Transportation and Turkish based transportation manufacturer Bozankaya Ltd. signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) aimed at strengthening their strategic partnership in the development of high speed trains for the Turkish rail market. The agreement was signed in Ankara, Turkey, by Mr Murat Bozankaya, CEO of Bozankaya and Furio Rossi, Managing Director Turkey, Bombardier Transportation, in the presence of the Canadian Ambassador to Turkey, Azerbaidjan, Georgia and Turkmenistan, the Honourable John Holmes. According to the agreement, both parties agree to work together in the context of an expected invitation to tender from the Turkish State Railways (TCDD) to develop and produce high speed trains. Turkey is eager to acquire quality high speed trains to operate on their newly developed tracks connecting Istanbul to the capital of Ankara, as well as for the entire Turkish high speed rail network. Furio Rossi, Managing Director Turkey for Bombardier Transportation said, Turkey has a clear vision of the critical role rail plays in sustainable economic development and is making strategic investments necessary to ensure that vision is realized. Turkey has stated it will invest over 45 billion USD for rail products and infrastructure. We at Bombardier see great potential in these plans and are pleased to have found a strategic partner in Bozankaya. We are looking forward to working together in providing innovative solutions to Turkey. With Bombardiers know-how of engineering and transfer of technology, and Bozankayas expertise in manufacturing vehicles both locally and internationally, we will succeed in providing the best possible vehicles for Turkey, made in Turkey. Mr Bozankaya continued by stating, In Bombardier, we have found a very complementary partner and together we can enable the Turkish people to get to their destinations in a quick and comfortable, reliable and modern mode of transit. Bombardier Transportations high speed and very high speed competency is known world-wide. The company has accumulated over 20-years experience in the high speed sector and has participated in the delivery of over 850 trains and vehicles for high speed and very high speed applications. This blog will deal with large things and little things: spiritual truths, politics and economy, news, comment, food and the State of Texas. Oh, and my poetry and pictures. Enjoy. Are you interested in getting your company, event, or institution noticed? Advertise with the GRC on Global Geothermal News - Contact at dgroves@geothermal.org Were pleased to see a strong community partner honored for its accomplishments pleased but not surprised. Because for years weve written in our news pages and on this page about the good things North Iowa Area Community College does. Its achievements were validated once again when the Washington, D.C.-based Aspen Institute selected the Mason City school as one of the top 150 community colleges in the country. According to a story by Globe Gazette reporter Meredith Colias, every two years the organization announces its list for excellence based on factors such as degree and certificate completion, employment rates and earnings, and equity and diversity. NIACC also was selected for the honor in 2012 and 2014. This recognition is important in two major ways. It gives the school the opportunity to compete for $1 million in prize money and up to 50 technology scholarships to be awarded nationwide, and it validates the schools course of student education and community involvement. The college excels in tailoring program offerings to student and community needs. It offers students the basics they will need to transfer on to four-year (or more) programs, and offers programs sometimes in response to local business and industry needs tailored to allow graduates to enter the work force immediately. It has a high placement rate in career programs and most of those graduates choose to stay in the nine-county North Iowa area, where many jobs are calling for qualified applicants. Those graduates make an immediate impact on the economy by joining the work force, and help grow and strengthen their communities in the long term. As for community involvement, the college is a strong partner with other North Iowa organizations dedicated to growth and development, and takes a lead role in quality-of-life offerings with programs such as the NIACC Performing Arts & Leadership Series, bringing world-class entertainment and other programs to the North Iowa Community Auditorium. As a package, its easy to see why the college garners praise locally and, once again, recognition nationally as one of the top 150 community colleges among the 1,655 such schools in the United States While theyre pleased, NIACC officials arent surprised about the honor. And theyre certainly not going to rest on their laurels. By looking at what we are doing right, what can be tweaked, I think we do improve our quality of education, said Terri Ewers, vice president of student services at NIACC. As for targeted areas of improvement, one is in retention rates estimated at 60 percent and graduation rates of between 41 and 43 percent in 2015. They also arent worried about competitors for the prize money. Rather, says Ewers, I think we are viewing it that we are doing something right. Something right, indeed, and with a commitment to do even more even better. NIACC may not win the big prize money, but for our money, NIACC is a winner and we congratulate staff and students who have led it to this major national recognition. ST. ANSGAR Sam Riley, of St. Ansgar, is headed to Washington, D.C., following his win in the Iowa Voice of Democracy speech contest. Riley, a St. Ansgar High School senior, participated in the V.F.W. Conference held in Osceola, where he was named first-place winner from a field of nine finalists. He was presented with a $1,000 check, certificate and all-expenses-paid trip to Washington, D.C., Feb. 27-28. During the trip, the national winners will be announced. He will also be invited to attend a youth leadership conference in Pennsylvania this spring. Excerpts from Rileys speech: My Vision for America It is a fact that many young Americans today are not as openly patriotic as they used to be. My vision for America is not some sort of idyllic utopia. My vision for America is a place where all people are viewed as equals, the government exists to serve the people, and the citizens show empathy toward one another. One would be hard pressed to say honestly that they see no inequality in American society today; one perpetually sees examples of income, gender and racial inequalities in the workforce. It seems ludicrous to me that the top tenth of the top one percent of Americans own nearly as much wealth as the bottom ninety percent. Slice it any way you want, that is not right. Meanwhile, for every dollar a man makes, on average, a woman makes just seventy-nine cents, according to the Institute for Womens Policy Research. For every dollar a white male makes, a black male makes around seventy-five cents and a Latino male makes only sixty-seven. How do we as a country fix this? That, I cannot say for sure. All I can say is that in the America I envision, these problems do not exist. Secondly, I see in my vision for America a government that aims to serve the people. Many U.S. citizens today complain about certain government officials tending to favor only the rich and dont do enough for the poor and the working and middle classes. In my vision of America, I see a place where the word of a part-time janitor making minimum wage is just as valid and heard as the voice of a billionaire. Finally, my main hope for America, the thing I would like to see happen above all else, is an increase in empathy. So, in closing, I realize that America is far from perfect and I do not desire it to be. I just want there to be less inequality among citizens, more citizen service from the government, and a rise in empathy among all Americans. I think if we work to improve these three core things, we will see a dramatic improvement in the overall quality of life in our country. Thank you. Finnish English TECHNOPOLIS PLC STOCK EXCHANGE RELEASE February 24, 2016 at 4.00 p.m. Technopolis Plcs Notice to the General Meeting Notice is given to the shareholders of Technopolis Plc of the Annual General Meeting to be held on Wednesday, March 30, 2016 at 1 p.m. at the address Tekniikantie 12 (Innopoli I), Espoo, Finland. The reception of persons who have registered for the meeting will begin at 12:30 p.m. A. Matters on the agenda of the General Meeting 1. Opening of the meeting 2. Calling the meeting to order 3. Election of persons to scrutinize the minutes and to supervise the counting of votes 4. Recording the legitimacy of the meeting 5. Recording the attendance at the meeting and adoption of the list of votes 6. Review by the Chairman of the Board 7. Presentation of the annual accounts, the report of the Board of Directors and the auditors report for the year 2015 as well as review by the Chief Executive Officer 8. Adoption of the annual financial statements 9. Resolution on the use of the profit shown on the balance sheet and the payment of dividend The Board of Directors proposes to the General Meeting that a dividend of EUR 0.17 per share be paid from the distributable profits of the parent company. The dividend shall be paid to shareholders who are recorded in the shareholders register of the company held by Euroclear Finland Ltd. on the dividend record date of April 1, 2016. The dividend shall be paid on April 8, 2016. 10. Resolution on the discharge of the members of the companys Board of Directors and the CEO from liability 11. Resolution on the remuneration of the members of the Board of Directors The Shareholders Nomination Board proposes to the General Meeting that duly elected members of the Board of Directors be paid the following annual remuneration for the term of office expiring at the end of the next Annual General Meeting: to the Chairman of the Board of Directors: EUR 55,000 to the Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors: EUR 31,500 to the other members of the Board of Directors: EUR 26,250 each. The Nomination Board proposes that 40% of the annual remuneration be paid in Technopolis Plc shares acquired on the market at a price determined in public trading. The shares will be acquired based on an acquisition program prepared by the company. If the remuneration cannot be paid in shares due to insider regulations, termination of the Board member's term of office, or other reasons relating to the company or the member of the Board, the annual remuneration shall be paid fully in cash. Board members are not allowed to transfer any shares obtained as annual remuneration before their membership of the Board has ended. The Board members having long-term, increasing shareholdings is in the interests of all shareholders. The Nomination Board proposes that each member of the Board shall, in addition to the annual remuneration, be paid a fee of EUR 600 and the Chairman of the Board of Directors a fee of EUR 1,200 for each Board meeting, as well as that each member of a committee will be paid a fee of EUR 600 and the chairmen of the committees a fee of EUR 800 for each committee meeting. The Nomination Board proposes that each member of the Board of Directors whose place of residence is outside of Finland shall, however, be paid a fee of EUR 900 and the Chairman of the Board of Directors a fee of EUR 1,800 for each Board meeting, and each member of a committee a fee of EUR 900 and the chairmen of the committees a fee of EUR 1,200 for each committee meeting, provided that the member of the Board of Directors is physically present at the meeting venue. The Nomination Board proposes that the travel expenses of the members of the Board of Directors and the members of the committees shall be compensated for in accordance with the companys travel policy. 12. Resolution on the number of members of the Board of Directors The Shareholders Nomination Board proposes to the General Meeting that the Board of Directors shall comprise six (6) members. 13. Election of the Chairman, Vice Chairman and members of the Board of Directors The Nomination Board proposes to the General Meeting that the following individuals be re-elected as members of the Board of Directors for a term of office ending at the end of the next Annual General Meeting: Mr. Carl-Johan Granvik, Mr. Jorma Haapamaki, Mr. Pekka Ojanpaa, Mr. Reima Rytsola and Ms. Annica Anas. Current member of the Board of Directors, Mr. Pekka Korhonen, has informed that he is no longer available for re-election. In addition, the Nomination Board proposes that Mr. Juha Laaksonen is elected as a new member of the Board of Directors for the same term of office. Mr. Juha Laaksonen, B.Sc. (Econ.), born in 1952, has last served Fortum Corporation as the Executive Vice President and CFO in 20002012. Juha Laaksonen is the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Caruna Networks Oy and a member of the Board of Directors of Kemira Oyj, Sponda Plc and Taaleritehdas Plc. In addition, he holds positions of trust as the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Alfred Korelin Foundation, The Fortum Art Foundation and The Association of Finnish Fine Arts Foundations. According to the stock exchange release of Sponda Plc from January 25, 2016, Juha Laaksonen has informed the Shareholders' Nomination Board of Sponda Plc that he is no longer available as a member to the Board of Directors. Furthermore, the Nomination Board proposes that Mr. Carl-Johan Granvik be elected as the Chairman of the Board of Directors and Mr. Jorma Haapamaki as the Vice Chairman for the same term of office. All the nominees are considered independent of the company and of the significant shareholders of the company, except for Mr. Reima Rytsola who is not considered independent of significant shareholders as he serves Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Company, the largest shareholder of the Company, as the Executive Vice-President responsible for investments. The information essential to the Board work of all the proposed individuals and the evaluation of their independence is presented on the companys website www.technopolis.fi. 14. Resolution on the remuneration of the auditor Based on the proposal of the Audit Committee, the Board of Directors proposes to the General Meeting that remuneration of the auditor to be elected be paid against the auditors reasonable invoice. 15. Election of the auditor Based on the proposal of the Audit Committee, the Board of Directors proposes to the General Meeting that KPMG Oy Ab, authorized public accountants, be re-elected auditor of the company for a term of office ending at the end of the next Annual General Meeting. KPMG Oy Ab has given notice that Mr. Ari Eskelinen, APA, would act as the auditor in charge. 16. Authorizing the Board of Directors to decide on the repurchase and/or on the acceptance as pledge of own shares The Board of Directors proposes to the General Meeting that the Board of Directors be authorized to decide on the repurchase and/or on the acceptance as pledge of the companys own shares as follows: The amount of own shares to be repurchased and/or accepted as pledge shall not exceed 10,650,000 shares, which corresponds to approximately 10% of all the shares in the company. Only the unrestricted equity of the company can be used to repurchase own shares on the basis of the authorization. The companys own shares can be repurchased at the price prevailing in public trading on the date of the repurchase or otherwise at the price prevailing on the market. The Board of Directors decides how the companys own shares will be repurchased and/or accepted as pledge. They can be repurchased using, inter alia, derivatives. They can also be repurchased otherwise than in proportion to the shareholdings of the shareholders (directed repurchase). The authorization is effective until the end of the next Annual General Meeting; however, no later than June 30, 2017. 17. Authorizing the Board of Directors to decide on the issuance of shares as well as the issuance of special rights entitling the holder to shares The Board of Directors proposes to the General Meeting that the Board of Directors be authorized to decide on the issuance of shares as well as the issuance of other special rights entitling the holder to shares referred to in Chapter 10, Section 1 of the Limited Liability Companies Act as follows: The amount of shares to be issued shall not exceed 10,650,000 shares, which corresponds to approximately 10% of all the shares in the company. The Board of Directors decides on all the conditions of the issuance of shares and of special rights entitling the holder to shares. The issuance of shares and of special rights entitling the holder to shares may be carried out in deviation from the shareholders pre-emptive rights (directed issue). The authorization is effective until the end of the next Annual General Meeting; however, no later than June 30, 2017. 18. Closing of the meeting B. Documents of the General Meeting The above-mentioned proposals for the decisions on the matters on the agenda of the General Meeting as well as this notice are available on Technopolis Plcs website at www.technopolis.fi. The annual financial statements, the report of the Board of Directors and the auditors report of Technopolis Plc are available on the website no later than February 26, 2016. The proposals for decisions and other documents mentioned above are also available at the General Meeting and copies of these documents and of this notice will be sent to shareholders on request. The minutes of the General Meeting will be available on the companys website as of April 13, 2016 at the latest. C. Instructions for the participants in the General Meeting 1. Shareholders registered in the shareholders register Each shareholder who is registered on Wednesday, March 16, 2016 in the shareholders register of the company held by Euroclear Finland Ltd. has the right to participate in the General Meeting. Shareholders whose shares are registered in their personal Finnish book-entry account are registered in the shareholders register of the company. Shareholders who are registered in the shareholders register of the company and want to participate in the General Meeting shall register for the meeting no later than on Wednesday, March 23, 2016 by 10.00 a.m. by giving a prior notice of participation, which has to be received by the company no later than the above-mentioned time. Such notice can be given: a) on the companys website at www.technopolis.fi/registration; b) by e-mail legal@technopolis.fi; c) by telephone to the number +358 46 712 0000 from Monday to Friday between 9.00 a.m. and 4.00 p.m.; d) by regular mail to the address Technopolis Plc/AGM, Energiakuja 3, FI-00180 Helsinki, Finland. In connection with the registration, shareholders shall provide their name, personal identification number or business identity code, address, telephone number and the name of any assistant or proxy representative and the personal identification number of any proxy representative. The personal data given to Technopolis Plc is used only in connection with the General Meeting and with the processing of related registrations. Shareholders, their authorized representatives or proxy representatives shall, where necessary, be able to prove their identity and/or right of representation at the General Meeting. 2. Holders of nominee-registered shares Holders of nominee-registered shares have the right to participate in the General Meeting by virtue of holding shares which would entitle them to be registered on Wednesday, March 16, 2016 in the shareholders register of the company held by Euroclear Finland Ltd. The right to participate in the General Meeting requires, in addition, that shareholders on the basis of such shares have been registered on Wednesday, March 23, 2016 by 10 a.m. at the latest in the temporary shareholders register held by Euroclear Finland Ltd. As regards nominee-registered shares, this constitutes due registration for the General Meeting. Holders of nominee-registered shares are advised to request without delay the necessary instructions regarding registration in the temporary shareholders register, the issuing of proxy documents and registration for the General Meeting from their custodian bank. The account management organization of the custodian bank must register holders of nominee-registered shares who want to participate in the Annual General Meeting in the temporary shareholders register of the company by the time stated above at the latest. Further information on the General Meeting and participation in the General Meeting is available on the companys website at www.technopolis.fi/AGM2016. 3. Proxy representatives and power of attorney Shareholders may participate in the General Meeting and exercise their rights at the meeting by way of proxy representation. Proxy representatives shall produce a dated proxy document or otherwise in a reliable manner demonstrate their right to represent the shareholder. If a shareholder participates in the General Meeting by means of several proxy representatives representing the shareholder with shares in different securities accounts, the shares by which each proxy representative represents the shareholder shall be identified in connection with the registration for the General Meeting. The original versions of any proxy documents should be delivered to the address Technopolis Plc/AGM, Energiakuja 3, FI-00180 Helsinki, Finland, before the end of the registration period. 4. Other information Pursuant to Chapter 5, Section 25 of the Limited Liability Companies Act, shareholders who are present at the General Meeting have the right to request information with respect to the matters to be considered at the meeting. On the date of this notice to the General Meeting, February 24, 2016, the total number of shares in Technopolis Plc is 106,511,632, and the total number of votes they represent is 106,511,632. On the date of this notice to the General Meeting the Company holds in aggregate 2,052,561 own shares. Helsinki, February 24, 2016 TECHNOPOLIS PLC BOARD OF DIRECTORS Further information: Keith Silverang, CEO, tel. +358 40 566 7785 Carl-Johan Granvik, Chairman of the Board, tel. +358 50 1698 ORLANDO, FLA., Feb. 24, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Hundreds of procurement professionals participated in the 2016 Topco Indirect Spend Summitthe largest not-for-resale event in the retail and grocery industryheld recently at the Gaylord Palms Resort in Orlando, Florida. Topco Indirect Spend Solutions, a division of Topco Associates LLC and a leading sourcing company for retailers and wholesalers, provided a forum for its members, customers and preferred suppliers to build collaborative business relationships and enhance their business results. Over 650 professionals, representing more than 50 companies and over 150 suppliers, attended the fifth biennial Summit. Attendees represented grocery retailers and wholesalers, other retailers, restaurant cooperatives and more. The robust agenda included strategic business and industry-specific meetings in the areas of construction, equipment, financial services, store operations, HR benefits, IT/telecommunications, marketing, logistics and distribution, packaging, office supplies and waste management. Each business area offered a specific track tailored to the attendee. The program also included a presentation and demonstration of Topco's e-Sourcing capabilities. In addition to the business meetings, the conference featured a trade show with pre-scheduled, face-to-face meetings between suppliers and decision makers. The 80,000-square-foot expo featured a myriad of booth displays, including the hottest trends in shelf lighting, a growler filling station and a balloon display using helium tanks from Airgas, the event's gold sponsor. Attendees gave the 2016 Summit high marks, noting the strong networking opportunities, effective roundtable discussions, quality face-to-face meetings and good trade show layout. Ron Ferri, Executive Vice President of Operations, Tops Markets, LLC stated, "The summit was definitely value added. I have had several follow up emails already and will continue to explore some opportunities. The event was top notch and an outstanding job by the Topco Indirect team." A first-time attending supplier had positive words to say about the two-and-a-half-day conference. "In my 40 years at my craft I have attended many, many conventions. Nothing has compared to this one. I can't wait to provide our Senior Management with the report out and the cost/benefits. The Topco team was customer focused and service driven," stated Charlie C. Williams, Manager, North East Regional Preferred Accounts from Johns Manville, A Berkshire Hathaway Company that provides commercial and industrial roofing products to supermarket, food retail and manufacturing building owners. Topco members and customers had the opportunity to talk one-on-one with suppliers in pre-scheduled 20-minute meetings, a highlight of the Summit event. According to Jay Mitchell, Vice President of Retail Operations at Mitchell Grocery and longtime attendee of Topco's Summit events, "The Summit gives us a really good chance to meet with vendors we don't normally see and to meet a large number of vendors in a short amount of time. These private meetings are very productive for our team to sit down with national account reps and work out our programs for the coming year". Topco's Indirect Spend will be hosting a 2018 Summit but location and exact dates have not been finalized. For more information about the 2016 Indirect Spend Summit, please contact Carol Mather, Sr. Communications Manager, CMP 781-926-6053 or cmather@topco.com. About Topco Associates LLC Topco Associates LLC is a $15 billion, privately held company that provides aggregation, innovation and knowledge management solutions for its leading food industry member-owners and customers, including grocery retailers, wholesalers and food service suppliers. Topco leverages the collective volume, knowledge and commitment of these companies to create a competitive advantage in the marketplace by reducing costs and offering winning business-building capabilities. For more information, please visit www.topco.com. The Gorilla Radio archive can be found at: www.Gorilla-Radio.com. G-Radio is dedicated to social justice, the environment, community, and providing a forum for people and issues not covered in State and Corporate media. Gorilla Radio airs live Thursdays between 11-12 noon Pacific Time. Airing in Victoria at 101.9FM, and featured on the internet at: http://cfuv.ca and www.pacificfreepress.com. And check out Pacific Free Press on Twitter @Paciffreepress Nearly one thousand New Yorkers gathered near City Hall on Tuesday morning to protest Mayor de Blasio's controversial affordable housing plan. Low-income tenants from across the city spoke out against the plan's legal cornerstones, Mandatory Inclusionary Housing (MIH) and Zoning for Quality and Affordability (ZQA), which would require developers building in certain areas to set aside at least a quarter of new apartments at below-market rates, and allow developers to build taller if they include senior housing, among other things. The housing that gets built as a result, activists argued, would be out of reach for the lowest-income New Yorkers, and they say the plan as written is a giveaway for developers. The protest, which drew a crowd despite cold rain, was organized by Real Affordability For All, a coalition of tenant organizations, unions, and other advocacy groups. Lourdes De la Cruz, a South Bronx resident, summed up the situation by saying, "It's not an inclusive plan. At CASA we say it's a mandatory exclusionary plan." Currently, the MIH piece of de Blasio's plan calls for at least one of the following requirements to be met in designated areas: 25 percent of apartments set aside for residents with incomes averaging 60 percent area median income ($46,620 per year for a family of three), or 30 percent for those making 80 percent of area median income ($62,150). A third option would allow 30 percent of the units to be reserved for those making 120 percent of the area median income, or $93,225, but would only be available outside central parts of Manhattan. New York's area median income is $77,688 for a family of three, a figure far above the city's median income of $58,000 because federal housing standards require factoring in incomes from the surrounding suburbs. One hotly contested area proposed for up-zoning is East New York, where the median income is $32,000. Maria Cortez, a longtime resident of nearby Bushwick, said, "$46,000 annually is not low-income for poor people." ZQA would give developers in areas served by public transit the option of leaving out parking space if they include below-market units and senior housing, and to build up to 40 feet higher for senior housing or affordable housing that meets certain thresholds. One tenant organizer said that for any plan to proceed, it has to do a lot more for poor people. "We believe there should be an appropriate number of units for all of the different levels of income," Crown Heights Tenant Union organizer Esteban Giron said. Giron added that the group is "not quite saying no to De Blasio's plan, period, but no until you fix it, and until then, no rezoning." Unions, for their part, want the city to include local hiring and prevailing wage requirements in any housing plan, delivering jobs to their members. "This plan is going to develop into a situation where the only real winners will be the affordable housing developers." said Gary LaBarbera, president of the Building and Construction Trades Council. "It won't be hardworking men and women, it won't be people in need of real affordable housing. It'll be rich developers getting richer." Attendees said they're willing to get arrested if the Council doesn't stop the plan as it's currently written and come up with something geared toward actual low-income New Yorkers. "I cannot afford to be pushed out again," said Rachel Rivera, a single mother of six children and member of New York Communities for Change. "The homeless system is overcrowded. I will be split up from my six kids, and it's not fair. If the mayor does not change his plan to make it really affordable, I will be doing civil disobedience with my kids. We will be getting arrested, all of us." The plan has also met opposition from 50 of 59 community boards, four of the five borough presidents, and many other prominent civic groups. Addressing the boards' overwhelming rejection, de Blasio has said he takes their opinions into account, but that they "don't have a perfect vantage point on their communities." Speaking to a letter from clergy members opposing the plan, he said, "People are going to have their viewpoints." The Council is expected to vote on the plan's provisions in March. A 33-year-old man was stabbed multiple times in the neck and hand on an M train in Brooklyn last night. The NYPD says the victim was attacked by a homeless man around 11 p.m., reportedly after an argument over 50 cents. ABC 7 reports that despite his multiple neck wounds, the victim got off the train at the Myrtle Avenue-Broadway station and walked to nearby Woodhull Hospital, where he checked himself in and was found to be in stable condition. Police officers arrested the suspect, identified as homeless man Miguel Collado, at 2 a.m. Wednesday morning. He was apprehended at the same Myrtle-Broadway station. According to NBC, Collado had stabbed his victim with a pocket knife, and had blood on his hands when he was apprehended by the NYPD. A police spokesperson confirmed that Collado has been charged with assault. In another, unrelated stabbing attack Tuesday night, two people reportedly cornered an 18-year-old man in the 300 block of Autumn Avenue in East New York at 10:30 p.m. One of the attackers reportedly distracted the young man, while another slashed him in the face from behind. The victim was taken to Jamaica Hospital in stable condition. Town hall meetings aren't just a chance for people to vent their frustrations over sandwich condiments and the lack of arson in the communitythey are also the perfect opportunity to shout at your local official for sleeping with your wife! That's what happened at a Spring Valley meeting Tuesday night, when maintenance worker Reginald Alfred accused Mayor Demeza Delhomme of breaking up his marriage. "Mr. Delhomme is trying to use his power to get into my house," Alfred said just a few minutes into the meeting. "He destroyed my house. He destroyed my family. I have two daughters." After he spoke for a few minutes, Delhomme shouted back at him, "I don't know this man. I've never met this man." The Journal News captured video of the confrontation, which you can see below. Despite denying the accusations and the fact that Alfred brought no proof with him, at least one Trustee, Vilair Fonvil, didn't believe Delhomme, shouting back at him, "You screwed his wife and you say you don't know him?" before the whole meeting erupted in chaos and finger-pointing. As The Journal News pointed out in a separate article, Delhomme hasn't exactly been an ideal mayor up to this point: since becoming the mayor of the Rockland County town, he's served jail time for refusing a judge's orders, illegally had a generator installed at his girlfriend's house, refused to work with Jewish developers, and declared himself "king of the village." On the other hand, if Delhomme is purposefully trying to add a little zazz to his life story in order to inspire a Hollywood biopic-comedy about a rule-breaking, badass local mayor, he's doing a great job! Don't try to tell us Billy Bob Thornton isn't reading this article right now and dreaming of Bad Mayor and Bad Mayor 2: Bad To The Boner. Uber, Lyft and other ride-sharing apps have been banned from Newark Airport, following a decision this week by the city of Newark. The ban has apparently been in the works since early February, and draws on a city ordinance that requires commercial drivers to obtain a license in order to operate at city airports or train stations. The decision came as a pleasant surprise to New Jersey taxi drivers on Monday, since Newark's public safety director Anthony Ambrose had stated as recently as this past Friday that the proposed ban had been scrapped, and that "we will not single out Uber for violations only." Taxi drivers in New Jersey, like their NYC counterparts, have long argued that Uber is unfairly encroaching on their business. As of this Tuesday, Uber or Lyft drivers caught at the airport will be subject to towing and ticketing. But while the ban is powerful in its language, there's a chance it might sputter in practice. NJ Advance reports that while Newark police don't patrol the airport, the city does perform license checks on taxis and limos there (300 tickets have been issued to noncompliant vehicles this year to date). However, both the Port Authority and NJ Transit have stated that they will not seek to penalize un-licensed rideshare drivers at either Newark Airport or Newark Penn Station, which is also impacted by the city's ban. According to NJ Transit, "The New Jersey Transit Police Department will not ticket rideshare drivers when picking up customers at NJ Transit hubs, including Newark Penn Station." The Port Authority issued its own statement on Friday, saying that Port Authority police "will not take steps to prevent access" to rideshare services. Uber stated on Tuesday that it plans to reimburse drivers for any tickets issued. Spokesman Matt Wing stated additionally that, "We do not know why City of Newark has flip flopped and decided to once again target Uber despite the fact that more than two thousand of the city's residents depend on the app to make ends meet." The City of Newark did not immediately respond to a request for comment about how the ban will be enforced without NJ Transit or Port Authority assistance. UPDATE: Newark Director of Public Safety Anthony Ambrose stated on Wednesday that, "We always and will continue to enforce the laws and city ordinances that govern the operation of taxis and limos in the city including Newark airport and the Penn Station area." In an accompanying statement, Newark Mayor Ras Baraka said, "We want to see a level playing field in which uniform regulations apply to Uber as well as taxis." News Woman claims losing Dhs542000 due to relationship in Abu Dhabi The woman said she knew the appellee for a long time and trusted in him, so she lent him Dhs542,000, which he asked to pay off his financial obligatio... -- 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 This was passed along from Bob B. and also credit to Kevin Sorbo. For me When the State tells you its safe to go to Home Depot to buy a ... BILLINGS -- American Indian hunters near Gardiner are shooting elk as the animals leave Yellowstone National Park and local residents are furious. Were pretty upset with the Native Americans shooting elk right now, said Pat Hoppe, a Gardiner retiree. The Nez Perce just opened up on the elk. I dont know what they got. The numbers range from 20 to 50 elk. Most of the hunting is taking place near Jardine Road and Little Creek Road. Hoppe said. Four different tribes have treaty rights established in 1855 that allow them to hunt just north of Yellowstone National Park near Gardiner. Bison are whats mostly hunted by the tribes and others. This year, bison killed by tribal and nontribal hunters number at least 360. The tribes with hunting rights include the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes of Montana, the Nez Perce and Shoshone-Bannock tribes of Idaho, and the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation in Oregon. Contacted by the Billings Gazette on Monday, the Nez Perce would not speak on the record about their treaty rights. This years tribal hunting season has been contentious, said state Rep. Alan Redfield, R-Livingston, who was driving to Gardiner on Monday for a town hall meeting at Gardiner School. The Monday meeting was Redfields second in four days concerning the tribal hunt. Representatives from the tribes met Friday with federal and state officials for a meeting Redfield said mostly dealt with safety concerns about the hunt. Hunters have shot across the highway, toward buildings and people. At one point a game warden had to jump behind a truck to avoid being shot, Redfield said. When the subject of the elk came up, the tribes are adamant they had the right to hunt the animals, Redfield said. The Salish-Kootenai had eight of 10 tribal council members there, Redfield said. They pretty much said, Hey, its our treaty rights and were going to keep them.' Sam Sheppard, a regional supervisor for Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks, said there have been 50 or more elk killed by tribal hunters this season with 10 killed over the weekend. Sheppard referred all questions to Mike Volesky, Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks' chief of staff. Volesky did not respond to phone calls. Redfield said he has suggested officials expand the area where the tribal hunt takes place, which would take some of the pressure off the animals. The health of the elk population has been an issue this year, with FWP officials cutting back the weeks and the number of licenses available to nontribal hunters. Those cutbacks were made out of concern that the number of bulls available to populate the elk herd has fallen too low. Hoppe said the tribal hunters should have to follow similar rules to protect the elk population. Two of Joseph Campbell's neighbors testified Tuesday they feared he would fire upon them as they left after confrontations about land access near Augusta. Josslyn Aberle said she was riding horses with her father in 2009 when Campbell, who is on trial for deliberate homicide in the shooting death of his neighbor, pointed a shotgun at them. "It was so tense," said Aberle, an Army colonel, who added she thought Campbell might fire either intentionally or inadvertently. "I don't trust this guy to not shoot us in the back if we continue riding," Aberle recalled thinking after the confrontation. Prosecutors say that four years after that incident, Campbell shot Timothy "Tim" Newman in the back. After Campbell's wife called 911, a sheriff's deputy found Newman's corpse with bolt cutters at his feet in the woods nearly 20 miles southwest of Augusta on Oct. 18, 2013. Campbell says he thought Newman, who was armed, would kill him, and he fired in self-defense. Campbell was trying to limit access to his 300 acres outside of Augusta. Newman defied Campbell's efforts and cut locks on his fences. John Clark, owner of Diamond Bar X Ranch, which is down the road from Campbell's property, testified that he had a run-in with Campbell over access in 2009 as well. "Mr. Campbell was a very angry little man that day. Very angry -- beyond reason," Clark told jurors. "I was thinking there's a chance he's going to shoot us in the back," he added. Campbell was not armed but had a gun on the tailgate of his truck, Clark said. Clark said Campbell had intimidated neighbors and "scared half of them to death." Prosecutors with the Montana Attorney General's Office say Campbell was growing more aggressive with his neighbors, mainly Newman. He was known to confront residents at his fences while armed. In charging documents, it is noted that authorities received more than 25 calls involving Campbell between 2000 and 2013, including allegations that he threatened people with a gun. A group of neighbors wrote to the Lewis and Clark County Attorney's Office in September 2009 to express their concern about Campbell's escalating behavior, including pointing guns at people. Campbell told investigators that Newman had followed him to his property and was pointing a gun at him when he fired the first shot in self-defense. A forensic pathologist and a forensic expert have both testified they feel Newman was trying to walk or run away from Campbell when he was shot in the back. The tie-downs holding the Cessna 182 strained against winds whipping across the Helena Valley. With each gust the airplane rocked, as did a collection of other single-engine planes at the Helena Regional Airport Saturday. A crowd of camouflage-clad kids and adults from the Lewis and Clark Composite Squadron of Montana Civil Air Patrol approached the newest addition to their squadron, but after a few minutes of discussion, it was decided that cadets orientation flights would have to stay grounded for the day. If its going to be their first flight, we want it to be a positive experience, pilot Jay Bonde said of a potentially nasty ride in the gusty skies. Montana Civil Air Patrol is wing of a nationwide network of Civil Air Patrol, an auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force. Individual squadrons have three missions: aerospace education, cadet programs focused on leadership and aiding emergency services or law enforcement during natural disasters and search and rescue. Squadrons include both cadet and senior members. The Cessna arrived in Helena recently from Colorado -- assigned to the Lewis and Clark Composite Squadron by the Air Force. Having its own airplane is a big deal for the squadron and its missions, shaving time to get airborne for a search and giving cadets a plane to work with as they learn, Bonde said. Its big here locally for the cadet program to let them practice, but its also a big deal as a (statewide) volunteer organization because now it means we have another crew available to respond if we need to, he said. Before the squadron got the Cessna, participating in a search and rescue meant a plane from another squadron while Lewis and Clark operated on the ground with important tasks such as communications. Squadrons train about once a month for searches with pilots and spotters. Other than some special equipment for tracking emergency locators set off during an airplane crash, the Civil Air Patrols Cessnas are pretty standard, Bonde said. A private pilot interested in flying for Civil Air Patrol does not require a great deal of flight time, he said; 200 to 300 hours is typically the minimum threshold. For pilots in training, the Cessna can be rented for lessons by members at a discounted rate, he added. Civil Air Patrol needs volunteers with a variety of skills, with crisis management, medical training and communications important for emergencies, but anyone can join and contribute as little or as much as he or she wants, Trena Bonde said. With a volunteer-run organization we all bring different skills, and it doesnt mean you ever have to get in a plane. You can be as involved as you want to be and youre only limited by motivation, she said. Maj. Spencer Gilchrist runs the local cadet program aimed at youth ages 12 to 18 and teaching them leadership, integrity, excellence, service and respect, he said. The current squadron is rebuilding from low numbers recently, growing to 18 cadets, but eager to add more. We follow a military model, and teaching cadets is part of teaching our future leaders, he said. My goal is to help develop our future leaders because there are not many people out there anymore that can take it from start to finish, and I love this program. Gilchrist emphasized that although many cadets do go on to enlist in the military, there is no pressure to do so and the organization does not have a combat role. Cadets do have the opportunity to participate in search and rescue and disaster relief, he said. Cadets advance through phases of the program, first following and then working their way to leading teams and developing goals and objectives for flights. For those cadets that do decide on a military career, advancement in the program allows them to enlist at a higher grade. The U.S. Air Force Academy also holds a number of its coveted slots for Civil Air Patrol cadets, Trena Bonde said. Cadet Christopher J. Meier said he is interested in joining the Air Force as a pilot. He described the weekly cadet meetings with topics such as character, physical training and fun as an important asset to help get him there. Both cadets and senior members can benefit professionally from Civil Air Patrol, Gilchrist said. He earned his first job out of high school with his cadet training while many adult members use the program in their professional development. For people who are interested, Id say come and check out a couple of meetings, he said. I was happy to read in the IR about airlines' plans to add flights to the Helena Regional Airport after having cut flights last year. As a frequent flier for my work, I depend on the ability to efficiently travel from my home in Helena. It isn't easy. Helena is often the most expensive airport to fly in and out of, when compared to other airports within two hours' driving distance. With the cut in flights, however, the challenge has grown to include difficulty getting in and out on a reasonable schedule. Last week I had to drive to Great Falls to fly to Minneapolis because there was no way to get home without an overnight (or even two!) either in Seattle or Denver or Salt Lake. That was the case three weeks ahead of my trip! This week I'm headed to Toronto. This time I had a flight available stopping in Minneapolis and Detroit. Out of curiosity I priced flights on the same schedule to just Minneapolis, and just Detroit. The Detroit ticket was only $350 round trip. However, the same seats on the same planes only traveling as far as Minneapolis were over $900! The airline knows that for folks traveling to Minneapolis from Helena they can charge a premium because there are no good options. I recently saw a fare of $1,600 round-trip from Helena to Minneapolis, including more than two weeks' advance purchase. The airlines are gouging travelers in our town because they know they can. I sometimes ask myself why I don't live closer to a more friendly airport. I love this town, but I have to say that if I was looking for a place to base my work, the performance of the local airport would give me pause. For workers like me who bring dollars into the local economy from out of town, it makes it a lot harder to justify being here, and that is clearly detrimental to local economic development. I would love to see the Airport Commission and local businesses continue to collaborate on ways to get better air service in Helena for the good of our economy here to attract and retain businesses and workers that rely on the ability to travel efficiently. Scott Graber Helena The satirical fake online news outlet The Onion recently ran a hilarious headline that reads: Health Experts Recommend Standing Up At Desk, Leaving Office, Never Coming Back. The reason its funny is it includes a dark strain of truth. Nearly 60 percent of workers consider themselves disengaged from their jobs. In fact, I bet many of you might be reading this at a desk where you wish you were doing something else. Even so, we as Americans, cant break away from our desks. In fact, Americans wont even break the chains of work when were SUPPOSED to. A recent report by the BBC showed that 40 percent of U.S. workers choose not to take all of the vacation days to which theyre entitled. I believe that it is a worthy cause to create a work environment that adds to the teams health and happiness. Time away from work is a key ingredient be it an extended lunch on local trails, a long weekend backyard adventure or an epic, multi-week vision quest. It goes beyond simply posting the trendy unlimited vacation policy and expecting it to be a magic engagement bullet. Youve got to get your hands dirty. Its hard work creating, maintaining and celebrating a porous work schedule while ALSO staying focused on growing a successful business. Its about building a culture around a work schedule that includes vacation options that make sense for each individual. Turns out, we are lucky to have a secret weapon in this endeavor: Montana. At Wisetail, celebrating the power of place and adventuring often are two of our core values. We are striving to build a culture where the concept of vacation isnt bottled up into two set weeks a year -- but built in to the fabric of our days, weeks and months. We couldnt do it without Montanas unique landscape of rivers, mountains, highways, byways and amazing mix of cultural centers and wide-open rural communities. Here are the top five reasons Montana is perhaps the best place on earth for a technology firm to operate: World-class stream access. We have some of the most affordable, accessible, and best fly fishing rivers, lakes and streams in the world. From the Bighorn to the Bitterroot with hundreds of spring creeks, ponds and reservoirs in between there are more than 300 fishing access sites managed for the benefit of the public by Montana FWP. I would venture to guess that we have the most and best stream access per capita than nearly anywhere else on earth. That means, that regardless of where you own a business in the state, chances are your people can go fishing, rafting or exploring at an excellent waterway nearby. Mountains. Montana is home to some of the longest trails, the biggest mountains and some of the emptiest ski hills ready, accessible and affordable for adventure. I say emptiest ski hills not because they arent some of the best, but because our population is so relatively low. You can enjoy short or nonexistent lift lines. Big, wide-open spaces are truly the backyard playground for nearly any business that wants to open shop in Big Sky Country. National parks. Within our borders, your team can experience two of our national crown jewels -- Glacier National Park and Yellowstone National Park. The two parks are home to vast ecosystems teeming with wildlife, wilderness, solitude and hundreds of miles of trails. Cultural Centers. Easy access to diverse cultural centers is a critical ingredient for being a great place to work and live -- especially in the tech industry. You might think Montana is considered off the beaten trail for the arts, but it is our unique landscapes that inspires creativity, arts, entertainment and cultural connections. Charlie Russells legacy lives on in the arts. Montana is home to some of the best and most vibrant music festivals in the region including the River City Roots Festival in Missoula, to Bozemans Sweet Pea Festival, the Red Ants Pants Music Festival in White Sulphur to the Magic City Blues Fest in Billings. Plus, we were recently named the most beer-friendly states in the union while ranking near the top when it comes to craft breweries per capita. The Last Best Place to Work Hard and Play Hard: A Strong Tradition. Generations of precedent continues to define Montanans as people who work hard and play hard. Montana copper fueled the industrial revolution, our railroads connect the heartland to the world, our farmers and ranchers put food on tables around the globe, and our technology is helping to solve some of the most pressing challenges of our time. Because of Montanas accessible and affordable outdoor spaces, generations of working class folks could afford to build in vacations in their backyards and beyond. That strong tradition of working hard while finding time to play is one of the reasons we call Montana The Last Best Place. Looking back on that Onion article, we actually encourage people to stand up and walk out the door. So far, after a few laps at Peets Hill, an hour or two at the Bridgers or tying flies along the Madison, they always come back. And when they do, theyre in a creative, good space that allows us to give more to the people we serve. Missoula native Justin Bigart is the CEO and founder of Bozeman-based Wisetail, an independent, self-funded learning management software company. DECATUR The wind and falling snow is creating low visibility conditions, across Central Illinois, making driving hazardous. The roads are slick in many areas and secondary roads are in worse condition at this point of the morning. The National Weather Service in Lincoln said a band of moderate to heavy snow has set up from St Louis, between Springfield and Decatur, and across Interstate 57, just south of Kankakee. This band should not move much until close to noon Wednesday. The service said snowfall rates up to an inch per hour are possible beneath this band. Meanwhile, an area of moderate to heavy rainfall, with some snow mixed in, lies along/south of I-70 in southeast Illinois. This area of precipitation is moving slowly to the northwest and is expected to change over to all snow by later Wednesday morning. A winter storm warning is in effect for much of the area, including Macon County, until 9 p.m. Wednesday. The service said 4 to 8 inches of snow is expected. Snow is supposed to end around 9 p.m. Wednesday. Ameren is reporting scattered outages due mainly to high winds. The Illinois State Police are dealing with multiple problems on Interstates 72, 74 and 57 as several cars have slid into ditches, causing traffic to slow and in some cases, stop completely. Traffic is being rerouted on I-57 near Mattoon because of downed powerlines. State police said the closure could last for several hours. Troopers are on the scene of multiple jack-knifed semis on I-72 and I-74 that are blocking eastbound and westbound traffic in multiple areas. Traffic is stopped on the interstate in several locations. Emergency travel only is recommended. Road conditions and weather are making travel extremely dangerous. Interim Decatur Police Chief Jim Getz said the department is recommending people limit their driving during this inclement weather cycle. If you do have to drive please slow down and allow yourself enough time to brake. Also, we suggest leaving earlier for your destination so you do not have to get in a hurry. Have a proper supply of fuel in your car and warm weather gear in the chance you get stuck in the cold, Getz said. For emergencies call 911, and for nonemergencies, call 424-2711. The weather is also posing challenges for Ameren Illinois, as a company spokesman said the company is assessing pockets of outages across Southern and Central Illinois. Ron Pate, senior vice president of operations and technical services, said the company has been monitoring the weather system for several days and placed employees and electric utility contractors on alert status at 10 a.m. Tuesday and activated the Emergency Operations Center at 6 a.m. Today (Feb. 24). We are assessing the damage and deploying the personnel and supplies necessary to begin the job of service restoration, Pate said. Our first priority will be to correct potentially life-threatening situations. We will work closely with hospitals, police and fire departments, and local emergency officials to update lists of critical facilities that are without power. We then implement power restoration plans focused on restoring power for the greatest number of customers in the shortest length of time. Safety is our first and foremost concern when severe weather strikes, said Ameren Illinois President Richard Mark. The most important safety rule is to stay clear of downed power lines and always call Ameren Illinois at 1-800-755-5000, if you see downed lines. Ameren also issued the following list of tips to preparing for severe weather: Stay away from downed power lines because these lines may still be energized. During an outage, individuals are asked to stay indoors after sunset because downed lines may not be visible. Stay away from brush, shrubs and fallen trees that may be hiding these lines. If your electric service is interrupted, unplug or protect sensitive computer and electronic equipment with a high-quality surge protector. Make certain your cellphone is fully charged. Also, remember that cordless land line telephones will not function in the event of a power outage. This story will be updated. Update, 8:43 a.m. DECATUR The wind and falling snow is creating low visibility conditions, across Central Illinois, making driving hazardous. The roads are slick in many areas and secondary roads are in worse condition at this point of the morning. The Illinois State Police are dealing with multiple problems on Interstates 72, 74 and 57 as several cars have slid into ditches, causing traffic to slow and in some cases, stop completely. Traffic is being rerouted on I-57 near Mattoon because of downed powerlines. Interim Decatur Police Chief Jim Getz said the department is recommending people limit their driving during this inclement weather cycle. If you do have to drive please slow down and allow yourself enough time to brake. Also, we suggest leaving earlier for your destination so you do not have to get in a hurry. Have a proper supply of fuel in your car and warm weather gear in the chance you get stuck in the cold, Getz said. For emergencies call 911, and for nonemergencies, call 424-2711. The weather is also posing challenges for Ameren Illinois, as a company spokesman said the company is assessing pockets of outages across Southern and Central Illinois. Ron Pate, senior vice president of operations and technical services, said the company has been monitoring the weather system for several days and placed employees and electric utility contractors on alert status at 10 a.m. Tuesday and activated the Emergency Operations Center at 6 a.m. Today (Feb. 24). We are assessing the damage and deploying the personnel and supplies necessary to begin the job of service restoration, Pate said. Our first priority will be to correct potentially life-threatening situations. We will work closely with hospitals, police and fire departments, and local emergency officials to update lists of critical facilities that are without power. We then implement power restoration plans focused on restoring power for the greatest number of customers in the shortest length of time. Safety is our first and foremost concern when severe weather strikes, said Ameren Illinois President Richard Mark. The most important safety rule is to stay clear of downed power lines and always call Ameren Illinois at 1-800-755-5000, if you see downed lines. Ameren also issued the following list of tips to preparing for severe weather: Stay away from downed power lines because these lines may still be energized. During an outage, individuals are asked to stay indoors after sunset because downed lines may not be visible. Stay away from brush, shrubs and fallen trees that may be hiding these lines. If your electric service is interrupted, unplug or protect sensitive computer and electronic equipment with a high-quality surge protector. Make certain your cellphone is fully charged. Also, remember that cordless land line telephones will not function in the event of a power outage. This story will be updated. Original story, 7:21 a.m. Most schools in Central Illinois closed Wednesday due to a winter storm. Rain, snow and wind have combined to make travel dangerous and drivers are warned to take their time and slow down. Some Herald & Review routes may be delayed this morning due to the weather. The storm is expected to end this evening after leaving 4 to 6 inches of snow. The snow won't last long. Temperatures are expected in the 50's over the weekend. This story will be updated. Davit Setrakyan, deputy chairman of Armenias Real Estate Cadastre and son of MP Mher Setrakyan, is one of the two owners of a company called Nariprof. The company seems poised to continue searching for gold and copper at the Nrnadzor mining site in Armenias Syunik Province. Nariprof, which received a 2013-2015 exploratory license for the site, is organizing public environmental impact debates so that it can petition the government to extend its exploratory license from 2016 until 2018. Davit Setrakyan also owned 50% in a company called DA Mining which was sold in 2013 to AD-Metals. Hamlet Hovsepyan, an advisor to Armenians prime minister, is one of the owners of AD-Metals. Hovsepyan and his Russian partners are gearing up to operate the Meghrasar gold and copper mine. Davit Setrakyan was appointed deputy president of the Cadastre in 2014. Hes declared millions of AMD and numerous properties in his financial disclosures. Public hearings are scheduled for March 4 in Nrnadzor. Mkrtich Mkrtichyan, the local mayor, says that village residents havent voiced any opposition to the proposed mine, adding however that a gold, aluminum or zinc mine would be poisonous for the community. According to the plan, exploratory work will be conducted in the communitys pasture lands. Furthermore, a lower section of the site falls within the Arevik National Park. Mayor Mkrtichyan told Hetq that 30% of the park might be affected, adding that there are no specific borders separating the community. Photo: Mher Setrakyan, Davit Setrakyan A former European Parliament lawmaker has been sentenced to prison for bribery by the Romanian High Court of Cassation and Justice, reported Romanian Insider. Adrian Severin is to serve three years and three months without parole for bribery and influence peddling. The decision is not final; Severin denied wrongdoing and said he would appeal, according to the Associated Press (AP). Severin was Romanias foreign minister between 1996 and 1997. Romanias anti-corruption prosecutors launched an investigation into Severins activities in July 2012, according to a news release on the National Anti-Corruption Directorate (DNA) website. The investigation was kicked off after Severin allegedly agreed to take money from British journalists posing as lobbyists, the AP reported. In what became known as the 2011 cash for influence scandal, British newspaper The Sunday Times caught Severin and two other MEPs in a sting, said Romanian Insider. They allegedly agreed to introduce amendments to draft laws in the European Parliament in exchange for bribes. Severin emailed the journalists and said, "Just to let you know that the amendment desired by you has been tabled in due time," before sending them a 12,000 (US$ 13,200) invoice for "consulting services," according to The Sunday Times. The DNA found that between 2007 and 2010, Severin laundered bribe payments through fictitious consulting contracts, according to a later news release. The Party of European Socialists suspended Severin in 2011 after the corruption allegations became public, reported the AP. Prosecutors indicted Severin in Romania in September 2013, Romanian news agency AGERPRESS reported. As of 2014, he is no longer a Member of European Parliament. occrp.org Around Christmas time in Sweden, one of the biggest celebrations is St. Lucias Day (or St. Lucys Day) on December 13th. The celebration comes from stories that were told by Monks who first brought Christianity to Sweden. St Lucia was a young Christian girl who was martyred, killed for her faith, in 304. Traditionally, the eldest daughter plays St. Lucia, donning a white robe, red ribbons, and a crown of candles and lingonberry greens, meant to symbolize new life in the darkest days of winter. She carries Lussekatter, sweet buns flavored with saffron and studded with raisins, to her family. Ingredients: 1/4 c whole milk 1/2 c sugar 2 tsp salt 1/2 c butter 1/2 c warm water (105 to 115) 2 packages of yeast (1/2 oz or 4 1/2 tsp) 1 egg 4 c flour raisins, red and green candied cherries 1 egg yolk 2 Tab milk pinch of saffron Directions: Scald milk. (Heat just until bubbles form around the edge. You can substitute canned evaporated milk and not have to scald but heat enough to melt butter.) Stir in sugar, salt, butter. Cool to lukewarm. Measure warm water into a large bowl that has been rinsed with warm water to heat it. Sprinkle in yeast. Stir to dissolve. Stir in egg/milk mixture and half of the flour. Beat until smooth. Stir in the remaining flour and saffron. Cover tightly with foil/plastic wrap. Refrigerate dough at least 2 hours. (Dough will keep up to 3 days!) To use punch down the dough. Roll into 1/2 inch ropes. (or shape into rolls) Cut into 6 inch length. Coil and use to shape a Christmas tree, star, etc on greased cookie sheet. Top each coil with a raisin or candied cherry. Cover. Let rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour. Brush with egg yolk/milk mixture. Bake 400 for about 12 minutes until golden brown. Devour or freeze for Christmas morning. Serves: Makes 5 small trees Source: Fleischmanns Yeast Cookbook Churches pair up to make 'an investment in solutions' to racial inequality Chefs Dave Heide, Joseph Gaglio and Shinji Muramoto will compete in an event called Kosher Chopped on March 7 at Adamah Neighborhood Table. Jenni Dye, research director at One Wisconsin Now, (l-r) Michelle Litjens, former Republican representative for the 56th Assembly District in Neenah and Brian Fraley, conservative strategist and president of Edge Messaging, during a panel discussion on "Will Wisconsin stay blue or go red in 2016?" at the High Noon Saloon on Tuesday night. 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. Brian Evans: GOP should flush bathroom bill once and for all A Racine teen dropped his head down, fighting back tears, as a judge on Tuesday sentenced him to 10 years behind bars for shooting a 17-year-old boy in the chest last winter at the Corinne Reid Owens Transit Center in Racine Lamont C. Koker, 18, is one of two Racine teens accused in the shooting of the rival gang member, who reportedly has made a full recovery. Koker also was sentenced to 10 years on extended supervision in the Jan. 21, 2015, shooting that injured the then-17-year-old boy. Like pocket change you had a gun in your pocket; drugs in your pocket. In your young life you said youve been shot at at least 20 times in Racine and Chicago. You and (the victim) had exchanged gunfire in the past, Racine County Circuit Judge John Jude said. The cycle of violence must end. No one needs to die. Koker, who was charged as an adult, pleaded no contest on Dec. 14 to attempted first-degree intentional homicide. The charge is punishable by a maximum of 40 years in prison plus no more than 20 years on extended supervision. Assistant District Attorney Dirk Jensen recommended 15 to 18 years in prison plus 10 years on extended supervision for Koker, saying society must be protected from him. At 17 years old, hes lucky he didnt kill (the teen), Jensen said. He shot him in the chest. Defense attorney Patrick Cafferty called for four years in prison and six years on extended supervision, saying Koker doesnt fully understand his actions because of his youth. I think they, Mr. Koker and his friend thought this was a decent idea to go confront (the victim) ... and the harassment was going to stop. Koker had no prior criminal record, Jude said. He will receive credit for about 13 months already spent in jail, during which time he became a father. A second chance During the hearing, Koker said he was hoping for a second chance, and knows he was destined to do better. Im sorry for my actions and the hurt that I brought. I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me, he told the victims family. The teen didnt attend the sentencing and is in jail. But during the hearing, Kokers father, Jeremy Koker, of Chicago, also apologized to that teens relatives for his sons behavior, adding that his son doesnt deserve to be a throwaway case in society. Naceir M. Mayes, 16, also of Racine, is charged with attempted first-degree intentional homicide, possession with the intent to deliver marijuana and possession of a firearm by a felon in relation to the incident. He also is charged as an adult. While Koker and Mayes both are charged in the Case High School students shooting, Kokers bullet reportedly struck the youth, who is now 18. They reportedly fired at the teen at about noon on Jan. 21, 2015, in the area of bus terminal 3M at the Transit Center, 1409 State St., according to their criminal complaints. The teen was shot in the left lung area and received a graze mark on his sleeve. Mayes allegedly admitted that he and Koker are gang members and had conflicts with another gang to which the 17-year-old boy belongs, the complaints state. Koker and Mayes reportedly went to the bus terminal to confront the teen, knowing Case students rode that bus, the complaints state. Mayes is due back in court on March 11 for a bail bond hearing before his April 5 trial. When state Rep. Kathy Bernier walked out of a regular meeting Monday with the Chippewa Falls, Altoona and Eau Claire school districts, she may have thought she was closing the door on the matter. But by the next day her actions had spread across the state, drawing plenty of reaction and some criticism. Bernier (R-Lake Hallie) said she would not change her decision to leave the Breakfast with Our Legislators after an Eau Claire School Board member, Wendy Sue Johnson, began comparing the economies of Minnesota and Wisconsin. Bernier objected to that topic and a prior one, comparing the two states spending on prisons, because they were not on the agenda. She did look at our direction and said, This isnt about education. Im going to leave, said Chad Trowbridge, business manager for the Chippewa Falls School District. He thought the conversation was healthy and not directed at her. To have a reaction like that doesnt feel very positive, Trowbridge said. Bernier said she was taking exception to what she felt were partisan comments. Its worse than going to a dentist, going to these meetings, she said of the sessions with the three school boards. Bernier admitted that leaving the meeting might have been unusual and politically incorrect, but her actions have gotten peoples attention and she believes that the next meetings between legislators and educators will stay on topic. Others react Several people attending the meeting had varying reactions to Bernier walking out. I felt it was very unfortunate that she felt that she had to (leave). It didnt serve anyone well, said Kathy Strecker, the lone Chippewa Falls School Board member to attend the meeting at the Avalon Hotel and Conference Center in Chippewa Falls. Altoona Superintendent Dr. Connie Biedron said, I thought it was inappropriate. I was kind of shocked that she was leaving. She added that Johnsons statements were not vile, the word Bernier used to describe the discussion. Biedron said was it good to talk with the Republican and Democratic legislators about school funding and other issues districts are facing. She said its easy from a political standpoint to say Republican Gov. Scott Walker doesnt want to raise taxes. But she said Walker is making cuts and forcing local districts to increase taxes. Hes trying not to take the blame for it, Biedron said. Democratic State Rep. Dana Wachs of Eau Claire, who was part of the legislative contigent at the meeting, was very surprised Bernier walked out, and said hes never seen anything quite like it. If we cant talk about these issues, how does policy get made? he asked. Another Democratic state representative, Sondy Pope of Cross Plains, did not attend Mondays meeting but issued a press release criticizing Bernier: Saying Minnesota is funding their schools better than Wisconsin isnt a sweeping partisan statement its a fact. Rep. Bernier can run away from facts all she wants, but that doesnt make them any less true. State Sen. Terry Moulton (R-Chippewa Falls) said hes taken away some good suggestions during meetings with local school districts. In fact this meeting here, one of the school board members brought up an invitation to visit the kindergarten collaboration theyre doing with one of the private schools. Moulton said Berniers actions will not have any affect on him. I will continue to go to the meetings. Its something we need to do in our jobs, listen to constituents, he said. The only way that we as legislators can learn about some of the problems in education is by working with people on the ground, so (these sessions) can be a valuable thin. But if its all about education and the kids, lets just make it about that and leave the politics out of it. We need to stop some of the rhetoric and work together. State compares well Bernier said she wanted to bring some positives to the meeting, including praising the work of Locust Lane School in the Eau Claire School District. Dont be so cynical about the state of Wisconsin and how were doing, because were doing great, she said. Wisconsin spends nearly as much per pupil, $11,071, as does Minnesota $11,089, according to figures released by Berniers office Tuesday. Wisconsins graduation rate far exceeds that of Minnesota, 88 percent to 79.8 percent, she said. In 2013, Wisconsin had the third highest graduation rate in the nation while Minnesota ranked 27th. We are doing well. And I am so tired of hearing how bad we are, she said. Bernier said one reason Minnesota is running a surplus is that a Republican majority was elected in the state House and put the brakes on planned programs. Berniers actions were noticed by others in Wisconsin, including Doug Mering, vice president of the Baraboo School Board. I want Wisconsin schools to be world class, Mering wrote in an email to Bernier Tuesday. That can be done only if we have conversations on how we can make things work better financially for all of our public schools. This should start with conversations on school funding reforms. Bernier replied: You are correct. We should be addressing the problems facing our local schools. Persistent partisan assaults are out of place in a meeting with legislators and nonpartisan board members. Bernier said ever since she became a member of the Assembly in 2011 the three districts have tried to embroil legislators in partisan battles. However she intends to attend the next meeting with the area school districts. I guess the next meeting with these districts will be far more productive, she said. Kwik Trip is moving forward with its plans to build a store on the East Side, but it remains to be seen if it will be allowed to sell beer. The La Crosse-based company has submitted an application to the city of Madison for a conditional-use permit to remove the former Sentry grocery store at 4602 Cottage Grove Road and replace it with a 7,200-square-foot convenience store with fuel pumps. The $3 million project will be similar to the company's convenience store that recently opened in the American Center but will not include a car wash, according to the application. Company officials say they would like to sell beer at the Cottage Grove Road store, just like it does at virtually every other store it owns in the state, but some in the neighborhood are against more beer sales. A letter of intent to the city makes no mention of beer sales and no application has been submitted to the city's Alcohol License Review Committee. However, a site plan that includes the design of the building includes a beer cave, something common in many Kwik Trips. If beer sales are not approved, the refrigerated cave would be used for other beverages, said Hans Zietlow, Kwik Trip's director of real estate. "Ideally, we'd like to sell beer," Zietlow said. "We want to do (on Cottage Grove Road) what the typical Kwik Trip does. We're hopeful the city will work with us." Zietlow said the store could open without beer sales but whatever is approved by the city would need to be "economically viable" for Kwik Trip. Both Walgreen's stores in the neighborhood do not sell alcohol, but a convenience store across the street sells beer. The neighborhood is also home to two Harley's Liquor stores, one of which is kitty corner from the proposed Kwik Trip site. The former Sentry store, located on the 1.9-acre lot, closed in July 2014 shortly after the opening of the Roundy's-owned Metro Market to the east. The Sentry store had a liquor license. Zietlow said dozens of convenience and grocery stores around the city sell beer, and he's hopeful that the Kwik Trip proposal is treated equally. According to the development plan, Kwik Trip would like to break ground in July and open the business in November. "Certainly, its been an extremely lengthy process, but well continue to work on it," Zietlow said. "I think the vast majority of people would like to see Kwik Trip come to Madison. Its not that were not trying to get in." Kwik Trip, with more than 450 locations throughout the Midwest, has 19 stores in Dane County but only two in the city of Madison. Besides the American Center store that opened in December, the company has a convenience store without gas pumps that opened in 2014 on the ground level of Varsity Quarters, a six-story, 129-bed apartment building at 1423 Monroe St. near Camp Randall. Both stores sell beer. According to documents filed with the city, the store proposed for Cottage Grove Road would be open 24 hours, sell groceries, bakery and dairy items, hot and cold food and beverages and have 25 to 30 full- and part-time employees. The design calls for 29 parking spaces and an additional eight spots for bicycle parking. The store would be situated on the southwest corner of the property with the back of the building facing Acewood Boulevard and the main entrance facing east. Ald. Amanda Hall said if Kwik Trip chooses not to sell beer it would be doing itself "a tremendous favor by removing that hurdle." A second neighborhood meeting will likely be held in March to further discuss the plans submitted by Kwik Trip, she said. Hall estimates that about one third of those in the neighborhood who favor the Kwik Trip are "hesitant" about beer sales and believes if Kwik Trip is denied a license to sell beer it would still move forward with the project. In Janesville, for example, city ordinance prevents convenience stores from selling beer unless it is sold in an area permanently separated from the main store and has its own entrance. Neither of Kwik Trip's two Janesville stores sell beer. "Folks are really excited to see something happen with this spot and I think the ball is absolutely in the court of Kwik Trip," Hall said. "If they can really show us that they want to really bring something to the community than just some gas pumps this is a proposal with a lot of promise." The project is scheduled to go before the city's Urban Design Commission on April 6 and the Plan Commission on April 18. U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Oshkosh, is defending the Senate Republican stance that no hearings or votes will be held on President Barack Obamas nominee for the U.S. Supreme Court, saying the rejection of Obamas pick by the GOP Senate is a foregone conclusion. Johnsons remarks came at an event in Madison on Wednesday. They represent Johnsons most complete explanation to date of his opposition to letting Obama fill the vacancy left by the recent death of Justice Antonin Scalia. The issue is coming to the fore in the first-term Republican senators campaign with Democrat Russ Feingold, who said the Senate should work with Obama to fill the Scalia vacancy. The U.S. Constitution says the president names justices to fill Supreme Court vacancies with the advice and consent of the Senate. This week, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and GOP members of the Senate Judiciary Committee vowed not to hold a vote or hearings on Obamas Supreme Court nominee. Obama has yet to nominate a justice but said he will do so soon. Democrats have sharply criticized Johnson and fellow Republicans for pledging inaction. Such a move would leave the court short a member for nearly a year or more, until after the next president takes office next January. It also could lead to deadlock by creating the potential for 4-4 Supreme Court votes. But Johnson citing Obamas past nominees to the high court, Justices Elena Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor said theres no reason to believe he and his Senate GOP colleagues could approve the next one. Hes got a track record. We know the type of justice he would appoint. We wouldnt confirm that individual, Johnson said. Not acting is also withholding our consent, and thats within our right. Johnson underscored the stakes of the 2016 election, which will determine both the next president and whether the Supreme Court has a liberal or conservative majority. The death of the conservative Scalia leaves the court evenly split between justices who typically vote with its liberal and conservative factions. Johnson cast the selection of the next Supreme Court justice as a choice between judges who interpret and uphold the law versus super-legislators who attempt to rewrite it. Its pretty obvious the type of judge or justice that President Obama would nominate would be a super-legislator, Johnson said. It would tip the balance of the court, and it would put at risk our Second Amendment gun rights, I think our First Amendment freedom of speech rights. What were saying is, let the American people decide. Feingolds campaign has criticized Johnson, accusing him of taking cues from McConnell and Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump, who has urged Senate Republicans to delay, delay, delay the Supreme Court appointment. A liberal group circulated a poll Wednesday suggesting Johnsons stance is unpopular in his home state. The poll, conducted by the Democratic firm Public Policy Polling and commissioned by the group Americans United for Change, found a broad majority of Wisconsinites want Scalias vacancy to be filled this year. An even larger majority, 76 percent, said senators should at least wait to see who Obama nominates before deciding whether to confirm him or her. Johnsons campaign has noted Feingold, during his most recent term as a U.S. senator in 2005 and 2006, left open the possibility of blocking former President George W. Bushs nomination of Justice Samuel Alito. Feingold said he wouldnt rule out a Senate filibuster of Alitos nomination, though Alito went on to be confirmed with bipartisan support. Self-insuring state employees might not affect workers benefits and premiums, and it wouldnt pose much financial risk to the state, a UW-Madison business professor said Tuesday. But the move could disrupt the health care system especially in Dane County, where several provider-owned HMOs compete for state workers, Justin Sydnor said during a UW-Madison faculty forum. There is a risk that a move like that could destabilize and change our provider network and our general health care system, Sydnor said. If some providers fail and are taken over by others, that concentration has been shown, in many places in a lot of good research, to lead to rising health care costs, he said. Sydnor said, however, that its unclear how self-insurance might work for state workers how many companies might administer the program, and whether any might be from out of state until bids come in later this year. The devil in the details here is what a third-party administrator system might look like, Sydnor said. How we roll it out, if we roll it out, would matter a lot. Sydnor joined a state administrator and a community advocate in discussing a state proposal for self-insuring state workers at the forum, sponsored by the Public Representation Organization of the Faculty Senate, or PROFS. UW-Madison employees make up a large portion of the nearly 250,000 state and local government workers, retirees and their family members who would be affected by the change. About 100,000 members of that group are in Dane County. Under self insurance, the state would pay benefits directly and assume the risk for large claims instead of buying insurance from 17 HMOs. Most states self-insure some or all state workers. The Group Insurance Board, which oversees the $1.4 billion benefits program, last week authorized a request for self-insurance bids, which are expected by September. The boards decision on whether to make the switch, in 2018, could come in November. The state Legislatures budget committee could overturn it. Consultants have said the move might save $42 million a year or cost $100 million a year more. Lisa Ellinger, director of the Office of Strategic Health Policy for the state Department of Employee Trust Funds, which administers state worker benefits, said evaluating self-insurance is separate from how many health plans and which providers are involved, and whether benefits change. Were really talking about the financial construct, Ellinger said. A separate proposal before the Group Insurance Board, however, would offer no more than two health plans in each of three regions, plus a statewide plan. That could save $45 million to $70 million a year, according to Segal Consulting. While the state would be on the hook for unexpected large medical claims under self-insurance, instead of the 17 HMOs, the state worker group is large enough that it wouldnt be much of a financial risk, Sydnor said. But Mike Bare, research and program coordinator for the Community Advocates Public Policy Institute in Milwaukee, said money for state worker benefits might have to compete more with other state interests. In bad budget years, workers might have to pay the full cost of medical care up front, he said. Do we want government employees health premiums competing with roads and tax cuts and schools and everything else? Bare asked. Sydnor said any disruption from self-insurance might be greatest in Dane County, where Dean Health Plan, Group Health Cooperative of South Central Wisconsin, Physicians Plus, Unity Health Insurance and WEA Trust compete for the state worker business. He said there might be changes in benefits and premiums under self-insurance, but those things are all on the table in the current system as well. Whatever system the state uses, pressures to drive down health care costs likely wont be going away soon, Sydnor said. There really arent a lot of free lunches or easy wins in health care, he said. Nobody has magic formulas for how to make health care way cheaper. Londons outspoken Mayor Boris Johnson rattled his Conservative Party leadership on Sunday by urging that voters in a June referendum pull the United Kingdom out of the European Union. But they would be better off following the advice of Johnsons fellow Tory, Prime Minister David Cameron, who argues that the costs of splitting from the EU would greatly outweigh any benefits. Though far from the United States of Europe envisioned by some, the 28-member EU has successfully knitted formerly hostile countries into union that has improved the lives of ordinary Europeans, including Britons who live in, travel to and do business with other European countries. Membership also has helped to turn London into Europes financial center. Paradoxically, it also eases tensions within the United Kingdom. Nicola Sturgeon, Scotlands first minister, has warned that if the UK withdraws from the EU, Scots might decide that the only way to guarantee our EU membership is to be independent. In Northern Ireland, Catholics who long for a united Ireland can comfort themselves with the fact that both the UK and the Irish Republic are joined together in the EU. The risk to the EU, meanwhile, is that the UKs withdrawal might tempt other healthy economies to follow suit. That could be a crippling blow to a union already struggling with a metastasizing refugee crisis, debt-laden economies and slowing global growth. The UK joined what was then known as the European Economic Community in 1973, and two years later voters ratified that decision in a referendum. But Euroskepticism rooted in geography and cultural prejudice has been exacerbated in recent years by exaggerated complaints about meddlesome directives from Eurocrats in the EUs offices in Brussels and an influx of immigrants and workers from Eastern Europe. Last week Cameron secured changes in Britains relationship with the EU, including the right to limit some government benefits for migrants from other EU countries and a recognition that the UK isnt covered by language in the Treaty of Rome that contemplates an ever closer union among the peoples of Europe. The changes are mostly symbolic and ratify what was already a distinct status for the UK. For example, the UK has not followed France, Germany and other major nations in adopting the Euro as its currency. Yet the modifications could disarm opposition to continued membership. Some pro-withdrawal Britons emphasize the kingdoms other connections, such as the NATO alliance and the special relationship with the United States. They should consider the words of President Obama, who last year said that having the UK in the EU gives us much greater confidence about the strength of the transatlantic union. WASHINGTON Ted Cruz fired his communications director, Rick Tyler, for smearing rival Marco Rubio with the false allegation that Rubio had disparaged the Bible. And Tylers transgression is indeed inexcusable: He forgot that his boss prefers to do the smearing himself. There is something amusing in watching Rubio and Donald Trump come to the shocking discovery that Cruz is a scoundrel. Biggest liar in politics! Trump tweeted Monday. Accusing Cruz of fraud and dirty tricks, Trump offered a diagnosis: This guy is sick. Rubio, too, detected a very disturbing pattern of deceptive campaigns and flat-out just lying to voters. Where have these guys been? Just a few months ago, Trump was calling Cruz a friend of mine and a good guy. But Cruz has been smearing and fabricating since he arrived in Washington three years ago. As early as April 2013, I observed a perplexing tendency at the Capitol: Republicans are willing to look the other way when Cruz assaults the facts. One of his first acts as a senator was to spread the slander that Chuck Hagel, the incoming defense secretary, may have been on the payroll of the North Koreans. Now that Cruz is concentrating more of his neo-McCarthyism on Republicans, his fellow conservatives have suddenly awakened to the notion that Trusted Ted, as his campaign logo would have it, is actually Tricky Ted. And they are at long last calling him what he is. They just scream, liar, liar, liar, Cruz complained Monday night to Fox News Bill OReilly, saying this is because Trump and Rubio will not defend their record. Or maybe its because Cruz is lying. There are signs that the charge is starting to stick. A few weeks ago, when Ben Carson demanded that Cruz fire somebody for spreading the false rumor that he was quitting the race, Cruz declared that he doesnt make a habit of doing such things. But this time he did. Dont cry for Cruz, though. Even before the latest flap, the primary map made it almost impossible for him to win the nomination. But he still has the ability to cause havoc in the two-man race between Trump and Rubio. He is, in other words, exactly where he likes to be. My Washington Post colleagues David A. Fahrenthold and Katie Zezima, writing last week about the 2013 government shutdown that Cruz orchestrated, reported that many Republicans suspect Cruz always knew his plan would fail but went ahead with it anyway expecting that he would personally benefit from the exposure, even if his party lost a damaging fight. His current bid for the nomination is much the same: doomed but damaging. Republicans could have seen Tricky Ted coming, if they had observed the early signs. In early 2013, he helped torpedo a compromise on background checks for gun owners negotiated by Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Pennsylvania not on the merits but with the false allegation that it would lead to a national gun registry. During his campaign for the Republican nomination, his stump speech has become a long string of untruths. In a single speech in New Hampshire this month, he misrepresented numerous things said by Trump, Rubio and Obama, but also half a dozen other public figures. When I found nothing to substantiate Cruzs claims, I asked Tyler, the now-fired staffer, for supporting material. Is it incumbent upon our campaign to do your basic research? he replied. Then, in South Carolina, Cruzs campaign was caught using a (badly) doctored image showing Rubio in a jubilant handshake with Obama and the words The Rubio-Obama Trade Pact. Coming at a time when pro-Cruz groups were doing shady robocalls against Trump and Rubio, and following the Iowa campaign in which Cruz sent out bogus voting violation letters, Cruz was not in good shape to weather the Tyler episode. The staffer posted a link to a college newspapers false account of Rubio saying the Bible doesnt have many answers. Back in the 1950s, Joe McCarthy of Wisconsin rose during the Truman years with his smears about communists in the government. But when he began to go after fellow Republicans in the Eisenhower administration in 1953, he quickly lost support and within two years was censured by the Senate. Now that Republicans are suffering from Tricky Teds smears, perhaps they will come to a similar conclusion about the damage he does. Athens Macedonian News Agency: News in English, 16-02-24 Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article From: The Athens News Agency at CONTENTS [01] Greek PM phones Merkel; cites EU failure to meet agreements on refugee crisis [02] German defence ministry: NATO mission in Aegean may begin on Friday [01] Greek PM phones Merkel; cites EU failure to meet agreements on refugee crisis Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras on Wednesday expressed his intense displeasure at what he called the failure to meet agreements made on the handling of the refugee crisis, speaking by phoone with German Chancellor Angela Merkel. They agreed, in response to Tsipras' request, on the need for support to Greece and to intensify efforts to implement all agreements, as well as the immediate start of a NATO mission aimed to dismantle the human trafficking rings and to reduce refugee flows. [02] German defence ministry: NATO mission in Aegean may begin on Friday BERLIN (ANA-MPA / F. Karaviti) -- The NATO mission to control migrant traffickers in the eastern Aegean could begin on Friday after planning now underway at the alliance headquarters is complete, German defence ministry spokesman Michael Henjes said Wednesday. "The NATO mission is already in the Aegean but NATO's action with respect to this unit has not yet begun because planning is still underway..." Henjes explained. He clarified that it would be a reconnaissance and surveillance mission monitoring international waters in the area "in the sense that no executive measures are foreseen." "I believe that the results of this planning may possibly be presented to the NATO council tonight...," the spokesman added. He said the unit will operate under a German command and that the flagship "Bonn" was now at Souda Bay in Crete. On the return of intercepted third country nationals to Turkey, Henjes noted that the use of this action unit in the Aegean was an "initiative of Germany, Turkey and Greece", in the framework of which Turkey had expressed a willingness to take back people. Refugees fleeing Middle East war zones and other would-be migrants have disembarked by the hundreds of thousands from Turkish territory over the past few months with a purpose of landing on Greek territory in order to continue to other European destinations. "NATO is now working out all the legal details but it is important to repeat that this is a mission for reconnaissance and to send information to the appropriate organisations of Greece and Turkey; simply to give information. If there is any kind of reception (of refugees) then that could only - and this is entirely hypothetical - occur in the framework of an emergency rescue at sea," he said. Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article Athens Macedonian News Agency: News in English, 16-02-24 Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article From: The Athens News Agency at CONTENTS [01] 'Vienna meeting' ends with declaration for 'close alliance' to restrict refugee flows along 'Balkan Route' [02] Gazprom, Edison, DEPA sign memorandum for ITGI project [01] 'Vienna meeting' ends with declaration for 'close alliance' to restrict refugee flows along 'Balkan Route' VIENNA (ANA-MPA/ D. Dimitrakoudis) -- The foreign and interior ministers of nine countries along the so-called "Balkan Route" - excluding Greece - have agreed to forge a "close alliance" to drastically reduce refugee flows, Austrian Interior Minister Johanna Mikl-Leitner said here on Wednesday. The Greek government has sharply criticised the holding of such a conference without its participation and the prospect of unilateral decisions being taken, especially given that Greece is the first "target" of migrant smugglers operating from the western Turkish coast. Speaking during a joint press conference after the conference on migration, Mikl-Leitner referred to "stopping" migration flows. She said the countries at the meeting had agreed to coordinate their actions on refugee policy and adopt a common stance from here on, including fully supporting the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and joining to exert pressure for a European solution at the EU interior ministers' council on Thursday. The meeting, which has drawn criticism from the European Commission and Germany, as well as Athens, was called by Mikl-Leitner and Austria's Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz. The meeting ended with a 19-point declaration stating that "the migration flow along the Western Balkans route needs to be substantially reduced," and an agreement that all nations at the conference will refuse entry to all "without travel documents, with forged or falsified documents or migrants making wrongful statements about their nationality or identity. [02] Gazprom, Edison, DEPA sign memorandum for ITGI project Gazprom, Edison and DEPA on Wednesday signed a memorandum of understanding in Rome for the development of a natural gas pipeline project linking Greece and Italy, which will bring closer to completion a south corridor for the supply of Russian natural gas to Europe. The memorandum was signed by Gazprom's chief executive Alexei Miller, Edison chief executive Marc Benayoun and DEPA chief executive Theodore Kitsakos. The agreement reflects the interest of all three parties to transport natural gas from Russia through the Black Sea and third countries - to Greece and to Italy. DEPA and Edison have formed a joint company, Poseidon, with the aim to build an underwater pipeline linking Greece and Italy. With the agreement signed on Wednesdsay, the two companies declared they intended to take advantage and to exploit the project already been made by DEPA and Edison in the framework of the ITGI Poseidon project. Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article But someone at the Illinois Republican Party made the decision to spend $1,075,992 since January on two State House races - both protecting newly-appointed Republicans against intra-party challenges. "The only thing I will say is that we don't publicly discuss campaign strategy. Our sole focus is to win back seats from the Democrats, and we don't want to inadvertently open up our playbook to them by discussing strategy publicly," he said. When asked if members of the State Central Committee or IL GOP county chairmen advised on how the funds were spent, Klitzing dodged again, but emphasized the party's goal is to win seats from the Democrats, which hold super-majorities in both state legislature chambers. "The ILGOP does not publicly discuss campaign strategy," IL GOP's Executive Director Nick Klitzing told Illinois Review this week when we asked how the IL GOP picked which candidates they support in primary races. That's what the Illinois Republican Party has spent thus far since the first of the year on legislative campaigns to protect two - and only two - GOP House members in the primary, both which were appointed to complete their predecessor's two-year terms. SPRINGFIELD - $991,790 on one candidate and $184,202 on the other. $184,202 thus far for the First Lady's former chief of staff The ILGOP's latest check was written Tuesday for $2448 worth of live calls to elect State Rep. Sara Wojcicki Jimenez, 36, of Leland Grove, whose district is centered at the Capitol. Since the first of the year, the Illinois Republican Party has spent $184,202 on television and radio ads, polling and live calls for Jimenez. Jimenez's appointment late in November to fill former State Rep. Raymond Poe's vacancy stirred controversy among Republicans outside Sangamon County. Before serving as former Democrat State Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias' spokesperson, Jimenez anchored at the WUIS Springfield news station. Then, after working for the late State Comptroller Judy Baar Topinka and for former GOP House Minority Leader Tom Cross, she served as First Lady Diana Rauner's chief of staff, with a $100,000 per year salary. And even though Jimenez pulled a Democrat primary ballot to vote for either Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton in 2008, she's now a state House member, appointed by local GOP committeemen and jealously guarded by Governor Rauner. Her early votes indicate that on public sector union votes, she'll line up with Governor Rauner's Turnaround Agenda much easier than former State Rep. Raymond Poe did. Jimenez is being challenged in the primary by longtime Republican Kent Gray, a Springfield attorney. Gray, who endorsed Bruce Rauner in the 2014 GOP primary and raised funds for his gubernatorial campaign, said he's disappointed the party is intervening in the race. "I've been a Republican since college, and even before that," Gray said. Gray confirmed that it has been tough to raise funds for the race, especially since the governor himself has donated through the IL GOP much of what is being spent to protect Jimenez. $991,790 to protect 23-year old law student, one-year lawmaker State Rep. Avery Bourne of Raymond was sworn into office in February 2015, just after Governor Rauner offered her predecessor, State Rep Wayne Rosenthal, a job directing the Department of Natural Resources. Bourne is said to be the youngest member sworn into the Illinois House at age 22. Before being tapped for office, she studied law at St. Louis' Washington University. She had volunteered for Rosenthal's, Congressman Rodney Davis' and Governor Bruce Rauner's campaigns prior to her appointment. Thus far, the Illinois GOP has reporting writing 19 checks for Bourne's campaign - from $62,300 for television ads in the expensive Metro East market to this week's $2448 for live calls. In the March 15th GOP primary she is being challenged by two Republicans from her 95th district, who are criticizing Bourne's youth and lack of experience as weaknesses: Christopher Hicks of Sawyerville and Dennis Scobbie of Litchfield. The seat could be threatened by Democrats in the General Election. Rep. Rosenthal had supported public sector unions over the years, and Bourne has shown no ties to the unions, despite representing a district with a sizable number of state workers. Bourne has voted as Governor Rauner advised and backed his Turnaround Agenda during her first year as state legislator. Over $1 Million from Citizens for Rauner And while it the IL GOP is not willing to describe how they decide where and how much to spend the IL GOP's funds, the $1 million plus Governor Rauner has transferred into the state party leaves little question who is calling the shots. While Ameren, Exelon, Comcast and other companies have written checks up to $10,000 to the party in 2016, few individuals have donated enough in the past quarter to demand A-1 filings, which require a minimum of $1000 donated. Except for the governor. This week he wrote a check for $150,000 to add to the $900,000 he put into the state party account thus far in 2016. Observers tell Illinois Review there's little doubt who is directing the IL GOP's expenditures this primary season - it's the governor himself and his staff. Apparently, Republican rank and file have little influence in the IL GOP's direction this primary campaign season. CHICAGO - House Speaker Mike Madigan heard President Obama's appeal two weeks ageo in Springfield to reform the way legislative district maps are drawn, but he's not interested. The Speaker, who is also the chairman of Illinois Democrat Party, says an independent commission would not take into consideration court rulings to protect minority interests in map drawing. After the President's visit, the speaker hinted to reporters he'll block the Fair Maps effort: Late Tuesday afternoon, the Rubio campaign told Breitbart.com their March calendar is still undecided. ACU released a scathing public statement Tuesday in response to what they are interpreting as a Rubio snub. Although Marco Rubio has built a conservative record and has a high ACU rating, he and his campaign have made a rookie mistake. Today the Rubio campaign informed ACUs chairman that their candidate is unwilling to make time to meet with activists and answer their questions at CPAC 2016. Sen. Rubio cannot have it both ways: he cannot hope to be the inspirational leader of conservatives and at the same time hide at the very moments when activists who compose the heart and soul of the movement assemble and organize. For 43 years CPAC has been that critical moment, and in this years conference will be the biggest yet. Ronald Reagan came to CPAC 13 times; he launched his national political career from CPAC and our theme this year comes from President Reagans first public address after his 1980 election. That theme is Our Time is Now. Reagans words ring even truer today than when Reagan first said them. If we do not carry the country in 2016 America will be a different nation. But if conservatives are not central to the effort we will fail before we even begin. th year since we started bombing North Vietnam, a strange anniversary, to be sure. However, as part of this commemoration, some organizations have taken it upon themselves to try to make amends for the way Vietnam era vets were treated in the 60s and 70s. When the debate about the invasion of Iraq started, some of those who objected argued that, since it had no real objective other than to take down Saddam Hussein, it would end up just like Vietnam. The Vietnam War has become the means by which we measure war. This [fill in the name of a war or conflict] will be just like Vietnam has been the opposing argument for all conflicts. However, during those arguments about Iraq, people were quick to point out that they were opposed to the war but NOT the military. Even those who supported the war expressed concern that an unpopular war might result in the abuse of military personnel. No one wants to treat the soldier, sailor, airman, pilot, Marine the same way they were treated in the 60s and 70s. This year marks the 50year since we started bombing North Vietnam, a strange anniversary, to be sure. However, as part of this commemoration, some organizations have taken it upon themselves to try to make amends for the way Vietnam era vets were treated in the 60s and 70s. When the debate about the invasion of Iraq started, some of those who objected argued that, since it had no real objective other than to take down Saddam Hussein, it would end up just like Vietnam. The Vietnam War has become the means by which we measure war. This [fill in the name of a war or conflict] will be just like Vietnam has been the opposing argument for all conflicts. However, during those arguments about Iraq, people were quick to point out that they were opposed to the war but NOT the military. Even those who supported the war expressed concern that an unpopular war might result in the abuse of military personnel. No one wants to treat the soldier, sailor, airman, pilot, Marine the same way they were treated in the 60s and 70s. th anniversary commemoration, events are being held all over the U.S. to which Vietnam vets are invited. They are lauded during these events and offered a considerably belated welcome home by the attendees. I attended one of these events recently, but it didnt sit well with me. Granted, I attended under protest because my husband asked me to go with him. We are both Vietnam era vets, but he served in-country while I did not. We dont talk much about how we were treated during the war, but it is an unspoken agreement that we were sometimes treated badly. So we attended this event, held in a local church, sponsored and organized by the Daughters of the American Revolutionwomen who not only celebrate the military service of ancestors who lived more than 200 years ago but sometimes act as if this makes them better than other people. They also invited a state senator and a state representative, as well as an Air Force veteran who had been a Vietnamese prisoner of war. They invited a local musician who played The Green Berets (which I hate) and Toby Keiths American Soldier. Most remarks, as well as much of the music, assumed the veterans gathered were male. And Ill admit that besides me, there was only one other woman, also a Navy veteran. As part of this 50anniversary commemoration, events are being held all over the U.S. to which Vietnam vets are invited. They are lauded during these events and offered a considerably belated welcome home by the attendees. I attended one of these events recently, but it didnt sit well with me. Granted, I attended under protest because my husband asked me to go with him. We are both Vietnam era vets, but he served in-country while I did not. We dont talk much about how we were treated during the war, but it is an unspoken agreement that we were sometimes treated badly. So we attended this event, held in a local church, sponsored and organized by the Daughters of the American Revolutionwomen who not only celebrate the military service of ancestors who lived more than 200 years ago but sometimes act as if this makes them better than other people. They also invited a state senator and a state representative, as well as an Air Force veteran who had been a Vietnamese prisoner of war. They invited a local musician who played The Green Berets (which I hate) and Toby Keiths American Soldier. Most remarks, as well as much of the music, assumed the veterans gathered were male. And Ill admit that besides me, there was only one other woman, also a Navy veteran. The state senator, while conservative and supportive of many things I do not support, had a sense of humor, was himself a veteran and had also been critically burned during the attack on the Pentagon, September 11, 2001. His remarks on the whole were heartfelt and sincere. However, the state representative, whose father was a Vietnam veteran, has spent his whole life in agriculture and politics. He did not serve. He was born in 1972, so perhaps he was a bit long in the tooth to serve in Afghanistan or Iraq. Yet, while not having lived through the Vietnam era, he still had the nerve to divide those who were adults then into two groups those who were selfless and served in the military and those who were self-serving (his words) and protested the war. There are several problems with this claim, the first being that if the men and women who served during the Vietnam era were arguably protecting our freedoms, then they were serving (and some were fighting and dying and putting themselves in harms way) to protect that very right to protest. Sure some of the protestors went to extremes; some treated those very men and women who were protecting in a negative way. But thats the price of free speech. Either everyone gets to protest within just law or no one does. You cant make a million exceptions. (And, yes, some broke the law.) But Id like to clear up a misconception that many civilians (by civilian I mean those who never served) hold. That is the misconception that all members of the military are flag-waving, dyed in the wool, radical patriots. Thats just not true; and its probably less true today with the all-volunteer military than it was during the Vietnam era. You cant argue that a draftee is a patriot. You cant argue that someone living at the poverty level who joins the military to earn an income is a patriot. I wonder what the results would be of a survey that asked all officers and enlisted persons if they even considered they might have to go to war when they signed that contract with the government. Most of these people are in their early 20s. If one is to believe current neuroscience, the part of the brain that evaluates consequences of ones actions isnt fully formed until one is about 25. You join, you train, then you find yourself in a jungle, surrounded by the enemy, or triaging wounded in a field hospital, or sending patrols of 18- and 19-year olds out to look for the enemy, or acting as public relations liaison for the executive officer in a Force 1 hurricane, or a military journalist cataloguing stories of veterans who have seen multiple tours in a war zone. But you do your job because thats your training. Dont get me wrong. I was proud to have served. Having been in the U.S. Navy opened doors for me, molded my character and personality, and had a positive effect on my entire life. I can imagine what its like to be a civilian because I was one before I joined, and Im a civilian once again. However, you cannot know what it is like to serve unless you have served as well. So dont presume to know what I think about war or politics or life in this country. Dont presume you know why I served, because you dont. And dont think that a prayer, no matter how passionate or sincere, can heal old wounds or five decades of neglect. As the two-hour ceremony ended, veterans were asked to depart down the center aisle of the church and other attendees were encouraged to move to the end of the pews near the aisle and wave their little American flags and welcome us home. It was nice, if a bit embarrassing. But these people were not the ones who treated us badly. These people are not the ones who need to apologize. The only apology needed is really from the government back then, Johnson, Nixon, and their aides, and the Pentagon officials who sent us all out to fight and support a war that ended so many lives and wounded so many more. If you truly are grateful for a veterans service, if you truly regret his or her being in harms way for you (so you could build a career and stay safe at home, going out for dinner and spending time with family) then find a way to keep anyone else from having to do that. Stop sending men and women off to die. And if that cant be done, then you go. See what its like. ...If in some smothering dreams, you too could pace Behind the wagon that we flung him in, And watch the white eyes writhing in his face, His hanging face, like a devils sick of sin; If you could hear, at every jolt, the blood Come gargling from the froth-corrupted lungs, Obscene as cancer, bitter as the cud Of vile, incurable sores on innocent tongues, My friend, you would not tell with such high zest To children ardent for some desperate glory, The old Lie: Dulce et decorum est Pro patria mori. (Wilfred Owen) Comment Policy Advance Indiana allows you to post comments via this blog subject to the guidelines set forth herein. You understand that any comments you post are your own and are not those of Advance Indiana. You further understand that Advance Indiana is not responsible for the content of any external sites referenced in your comments. Unlawful, harassing, defamatory, abusive, threatening, harmful, obscene, profane, sexually oriented, racially offensive, or otherwise objectionable comments are not acceptable. If you think any content posted or otherwise included in Advance Indiana violates the guidelines set forth herein, then please alert Advance Indiana. Advance Indiana reserves the right to pre-screen, edit, and remove any post as it deems appropriate. You specifically acknowledge that Advance Indiana has no obligation to display any post submitted or otherwise provided via Advance Indiana. Honda Motor Co Ltd. wants petrol-battery hybrid, plug-in hybrid, battery electric and fuel cell vehicles (FCV) to collectively outnumber its petrol-only offerings in less than 15 years' time. Plug-in hybrids - which can also be recharged via household wall sockets - will be "at the core of electrification in the future" for Honda. By Reuters: Honda Motor Co Ltd on Wednesday said it aimed for new-energy vehicles to account for two-thirds of its line-up by 2030 from around 5 per cent now, as increasingly stringent global emissions regulations prompt automakers to make greener cars. Japan's third-biggest automaker by sales said in its latest strategy update that its petrol-battery hybrid, plug-in hybrid, battery electric and fuel cell vehicles (FCV) would collectively outnumber its petrol-only offerings in less than 15 years' time. advertisement ALSO READ: Honda Cars India to launch new generation Amaze on March 3 Plug-in hybrids - which can also be recharged via household wall sockets - will be "at the core of electrification in the future" for Honda, said Chief Executive Takahiro Hachigo. Honda will release a plug-in hybrid in North America by 2018 that shares the same production platform as its Clarity FCV announced in October, Hachigo said. It will then make plug-in versions of its major models and raise model numbers, he said. The announcement makes Honda the latest automaker to set dramatic long-term emissions-related targets. In October, Toyota Motor Corp said it aimed to cut new vehicles' average carbon dioxide emissions by 90 per cent from 2010 levels by 2050. Behind the push are governments globally rapidly raising emissions standards. But limited infrastructure such as charging stations make some green cars a hard sell, while low oil prices have sparked demand for sport utility vehicles and other petrol-guzzlers. ALSO READ: Honda inaugurates its 4th two-wheeler plant in India R&D FOCUS Honda's new-energy target featured in the automaker's strategy update, the first under Hachigo. The CEO, who assumed the job almost a year ago, has restructured personnel and operations to revitalize research and development (R&D). On Tuesday, Honda said managing officer Yoshiyuki Matsumoto would direct R&D, moving on from leading automotive operations. "Our appointment of a new head of the R&D centre is intended to position R&D at the centre of all product development, and make it responsible for the design and performance of each and every vehicle," Hachigo said on Wednesday. The strategy update also included a shift to standardized vehicle platforms to increase production flexibility - in line with an industry trend - and a focus on global models such as the Fit compact, Civic and Accord sedans. ALSO READ: Honda to recall 57,676 units of City, Jazz, Civic in India "The key to improving sales is our global models ... which are so central to the company's brand. If we develop these models to raise their appeal, it will translate into higher sales," Hachigo said. Separately, Honda repeated at the strategy update that it did not plan to offer further financial support to long-time supplier Takata Corp, whose airbag inflators are at the centre of a deepening global recall. --- ENDS --- advertisement Fadnavis's intervention came after a video of incident in which an ASI Shaikh Yunus, who was paraded by around 200 men, went viral. In the video, the cop is being asked to hold a saffron flag. By India Today Web Desk: Five days after a Muslim policeman was beaten up badly and paraded in the streets by a vigilante mob in Pangaon town of Latur District, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has asked the DGP and the MoS (Home) to visit the area. The Maharashtra CM tweeted, "Govt feels that it is not an attack on individual but on force, won't tolerate such act." advertisement 16 people have been arrested so far on the charge of attacking two cops who tried to prevent the mob from hoisting the saffron flag in a sensitive area. Fadnavis's intervention came after a video of incident in which a ASI Yusuf Sheikh, who was paraded by around 200 men, went viral. In the video, the cop is being asked to hold a saffron flag. Commenting on the incident, Yusuf Sheikh said, "the goons vandalised the police chowki first, then started beating me. I should get justice." Photo: ANI "Arrested 15 culprits, its a serious matter and investigation is underway," said Ram Shinde, MoS Home, Maharashtra. Police ASI Yusuf Sheikh (Photo: ANI) Police ASI Yusuf Sheikh (Photo: ANI) The incident occurred on Friday when Maharashtra celebrated Shivaji's birth anniversary. Ram Shinde, MoS Home, Maharashtra. (Photo: ANI) On the night of February 19, Shaikh and another cop Awaskar stopped a group of local youths from erecting the flag in the "sensitive" area. The group included Marathas and other Hindus celebrating Shivaji Jayanti, police said. The mob then began to attack the duo with fists and lathis. The ASI and his colleague suffered head injuries, but Shaikh was hit worse and was hospitalised. Latur SP Dyaneshwar Chavan said reinforcements had reached Pangaon at 9.50 am that day after two calls were received from Sheikh at 8.30 am and 8.45 am. Pangaon consists of Marathas, Dalits, Reddys and Muslims among others. --- ENDS --- Holland's Saskia Rao-de Haas found it uncomfortable to see her guru--Hari Prasad Chaurasia--sitting on the floor while she sat on the chair. This is when she decided to create an Indian version of the cello. By Adila Matra: When Saskia Rao-de Haas came to India to train music under Hari Prasad Chaurasia, a decade or so ago, she had no clue that she had taken one of the crucial turns of life - that she would fall in love and make the country her home. A cello student in Holland, De Haas came to India in search of more rhythms for her cello, but she found it uncomfortable that while her guru sat on the floor, she had to be propped up on a chair with her huge cello. "That is when I decided to create an Indian version of the cello. I got in touch with a friend who is an instrument builder in Holland and we discussed the design," says DeHaas. advertisement Also read: These Bengaluru-based actresses are turning entrepreneurs at the peak of their careers The cello that she designed is smaller in size and has five playing strings and 10 resonating strings, as opposed to the normal four playing strings in a standard cello. "I started experimenting and the resonating strings were added to make it Indian. We created an acoustic version and an electro-acoustic version," she says. De Haas's friend made three India cellos. Two of them are with her and her students and a Dutch musician plays the third one. Amid all these, De Haas met the love of her life, sitar exponent Shubhendra Rao, at a concert. They got married and have been living in India since 2000. The couple, apart from creating magic on stage, also teaches music to young students. "The idea is to take music across the youth of the country, irrespective of what section of society they belong to," says De Haas. Also read: I was stalked on my way home from college; it was like living my worst nightmare She trains children in vocals, flute, xylophone and simple percussion, with the help of volunteers. "The first year of the training is all about basics. Vocals are the easiest to train in. After two years, we let children specialise in any music instrument too," she says. De Haas, along with her husband, has also started the Indian Music Foundation (IMF) under which all these training projects take place. IMF also creates music curriculum for schools. "The schools which have implemented the curriculum love it. Shiv Nadar and Mother's International are examples," she says. Clad in a silk sari, Saskia Rao de-Haas takes the stage and plays her Indian cello with grace and elegance. It makes one believe that when East meets the West, something extraordinary happens. --- ENDS --- Talking to India Today, Dr Pritinder Singh, Senior Superintendent of Police, Agra, said that the police team had stopped a truck from Karnataka for routine checking when they found that the truck was brimming with livestock crates stacked upon each other. By Siraj Qureshi: When the police stopped a truck from Karnataka for routine checking in Agra, little did they know that they will unravel a huge racket involving the smuggling of ducks for exotic consumption. Now the police is working along with People For Animals (PFA) to catch the kingpin of this racket who is said to be living in Chandigarh. advertisement Talking to India Today, Dr Pritinder Singh, Senior Superintendent of Police, Agra, said that the police team had stopped a truck from Karnataka for routine checking when they found that the truck was brimming with livestock crates stacked upon each other. Clearly the crates were too small to house a duck as they appeared to be chicken crates so prima facie it appeared a case of duck smuggling. He said that the truck was confiscated and a team of PFA members was called at the location who filed a complaint under Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, as the ducks were being transported in inhumane conditions and several of the 2100 ducks being transported, had succumbed to the stress of the inhospitable environment. Remaining ducks were transported to the Keetham Bird Sanctuary and released around the lake. SSP said that the truck driver and four other people who were traveling along have revealed to the police that the ducks were meant for a farm in Rudrapur, UK. Although when the forests and wildlife department was contacted, they said that these ducks do not come under conserved species and both the ducks and their eggs were consumed as food. PFA's Deepti Upadhyay has informed environmentalist and Union Minister Maneka Gandhi about the incident. She alleged that these ducks were being taken from Rudrapur to Chandigarh where a smuggler deals in meat of wild animals and already has several criminal cases pending against him. These ducks would have been butchered in Chandigarh, she said. Social activist Deep Sharma said that the smuggling of ducks was just a tip of the iceberg as a number of wildlife officials are actively colluding with the poachers and smugglers for wildlife meat. The turtles in Yamuna and Chambal rivers are the most exploited marine wildlife species by poachers in this region and turtle smuggling cases come up every few months, but no vigilance is observed to prevent this poaching at its source. --- ENDS --- The phone will launch in Turkey in March and after that it will make its way to 15 more countries said the company at its Mobile World Congress launch. By Sahil Mohan Gupta : Google's Android One programme is officially growing up. With new relaxed hardware specifications, a new $300 Android One smartphone called the GM5 has been unveiled by General Mobile, a smartphone brand based out of the United States. The phone will launch in Turkey in March and after that it will make its way to 15 more countries said the company at its Mobile World Congress launch. advertisement The big change is not only in terms of hardware specifications but also the materials out of which the phone has been built. The phone has a metal frame which surrounds the side railings of the device and on the back it has a textured design. The phone is also using the new Qualcomm Snapdragon 617 octa-core processor, which is coupled with 3GB RAM. The phone also has 32GB of onboard storage, which can be further expanded with a microSD card. Other appointments include, support for Qualcomm's Quick Charge 3.0 technology, the new USB-Type C reversible connector, and support for category 7 LTE. The device is a phablet with a 5.5-inch full-HD display which is further covered with Corning's Gorilla Glass 4. General Mobile claims that the phone has a very impressive 79 screen to body ratio, which means that the phone doesn't have huge borders that waste a lot of space and make the device bigger than needed. Impressively, the phone has 13-megapixel cameras on both the front and the back. Additionally, these cameras have also been tuned by DxO, who are known to benchmark the best professional cameras in the business. The camera on the back also has a dual-LED flash. There's also a 3,100mAh battery on the back. As is the case with all Android One smartphones, the device is running on Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow, which has new features like Now on tap and Doze. Android One smartphones get their updates directly from Google and run a stock interface, which usually is known to be very responsive. Earlier too, General Mobile had launched a 4G enabled Android One smartphone in Turkey. Android One which was launched in 2014 in India has flattered to deceive as most phones haven't been raging success stories. That being true, Google has mustered on with the programme and has retooled it. Google has even relaxed some of the strict hardware requirements. Last year, the Lava Pixel V1 became the first Android One smartphone with a big screen, and it was also one of the first devices that boasted of an original design. --- ENDS --- A clash between two groups of youngsters on February 14 at JJ Nagar in Bengaluru led to the murder of Amjad Khan. The brutal incident was caught on CCTV camera. By India Today Web Desk: The police have arrested 9 persons in connection with the murder of a 27-year-old man in Bengaluru. A clash between two groups of youngsters on February 14 at JJ Nagar in Bengaluru led to the murder of Amjad Khan. The brutal incident was caught on CCTV camera. As per the initial report, the clash was triggered due to an issue over money. However, the police is still investigating the reason behind the fight. advertisement Amjad Khan was rushed to the hospital where he was declared brought dead. "We have registered a case of murder and are investigating what triggered the clash," said Labhu Ram, DCP West (Bengaluru). --- ENDS --- The Bengaluru police arrested 7 African (citizens of Tanzania and Burundi) students after they attacked each other with beer bottles and wooden logs and assaulted the police on Sunday in Yelahanka. By Mail Today: The Bengaluru police arrested 7 African students after they allegedly clashed among themselves and also assaulted the police on Sunday in Yelahanka. According to the police, the students, who were staying in a rented accommodation, allegedly started a public brawl around 5 am. Residents of neighbourhood saw the African students attacking each other with beer bottles and wooden logs. When the local residents tried to intervene, the African students allegedly told them to mind their own business. advertisement Subsequently, they informed the police, who were initially reluctant to arrest them in the wake of the recent incidences involving the Africans in the city. When the police eventually tried to intervene, the African students allegedly roughed them up, but they were immediately overpowered. All the 7 Africans have been sent to judicial custody. They have been identified as citizens of Tanzania and Burundi. Also read: Racism on rise in Bengaluru: Six attacks on Africans in a year --- ENDS --- A technician with a DTH firm, noticed that one of his customers was staying alone at home when he went to repair the set-top box. He visited her again last week under the pretext of updating the set-top box and sexually molested her. By Mail Today: An employee of a Direct-to-Home (DTH) service company has been arrested by the Bengaluru police for allegedly sexually molesting a woman at her home in the city last week. According to the police, Muni Reddy, a technician with a DTH firm, noticed that one of his customers was staying alone at home when he went to repair the set-top box. He decided to take advantage of the situation and visited her again last week under the pretext of updating the set-top box. advertisement As there was no one at home, he sexually molested her. When the victim raised an alarm, Muni Reddy fled from the scene. Later, she informed her relatives about the incident and they in turn lodged a complaint with the police. Muni Reddy was arrested from his villager near Bengaluru. Also read: Bihar cops yet to arrest rape accused Raj Ballabh Yadav 7 get death for gangrape and murder of woman in Rohtak --- ENDS --- All the doctors in Saharsa went on indefinite strike from Monday night in protest against the delay on part of the district administration in issuing arms licence to them as well as the police inaction in arresting the extortionists who had sought huge amounts of ransom money from them recently. By Giridhar Jha: It is deja vu time for doctors in Bihar. Many medical practitioners are at the receiving end of threat calls and extortion demands from gangsters in the state these days. They now want to protect themselves by obtaining arms licences but the administration is allegedly sleeping over their applications. All the doctors in Saharsa went on indefinite strike from Monday night in protest against the delay on part of the district administration in issuing arms licence to them as well as the police inaction in arresting the extortionists who had sought huge amounts of ransom money from them recently. advertisement Dr Sachchidanand Kumar, president of the Bihar chapter of Indian Medical Association (IMA) said that doctors had gone on strike in Saharsa because the administration had not issued arms licences despite repeated threats from extortionists. Kumar said that although doctors were being threatened in different parts of Bihar, the situation in Saharsa-Madhepura was alarming. He said that an IMA delegation had met the Bihar DGP recently but the situation had not improved so far. Also Read: Tejashwi blames Prakash Jha for portraying Bihar in bad light --- ENDS --- The Delhi High Court adjourned JNUSU leader Kanhaiya Kumar's bail plea till the February 29 after Delhi Police asked for more time for interrogation in light of the arrest of two other accused students Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya in the sedition case. By India Today Web Desk: The Delhi High Court adjourned JNUSU leader Kanhaiya Kumar's bail plea till the February 29 after Delhi Police asked for more time for interrogation in light of the arrest of two other accused students Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya in the sedition case. As soon as the hearing on Kanhaiya's bail plea commenced before Justice Pratibha Rani, Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Tushar Mehta told the court that police have a statutory right to take police custody of an accused for 15 days and due to new developments Kanhaiya's custodial remand is necessary. advertisement "After yesterday's development, two of the accused have surrendered and are in safe custody. Their remand is yet to be taken. In the backdrop of the new development and as per our statutory right of 15 days police custody of an accused, we will be seeking remand of Kanhaiya Kumar to confront him with Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya," Mehta submitted. The ASG said, "Our right cannot be curtailed and the present bail petition be deferred." However, during the hearing, when the court was informed about violence at Patiala House court complex during Kanhaiya's remand proceedings, the bench observed, "We have to ensure that no one suffers even a scratch this time. The Registrar of the Delhi High Court and the police should ensure that no ruckus, as happened in the past, should take place while the accused are being produced." Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for Kanhaiya, contended that as per the status report filed by Delhi Police, in pursuance to the court's direction yesterday, there was no evidence of any anti-India slogans being raised by his client. "I would like to tell the court that in the light of the status report filed by the police, there is no evidence of anti-India slogans raised by Kanhaiya. So he should be granted bail," Sibal said. Mehta, however, said that as per the new circumstances and evidence which have emerged, Kanhaiya is required to be confronted with the two arrested accused. Kanhaiya, who was arrested on February 12, was in police custody till February 17 when he was remanded in judicial custody till March 2 amidst violence at the court premises during the remand proceedings. Also read: JNU row: AAP, Delhi Police lawyers lock horns over representation of cops BJP plans aggressive debate in Parliament on JNU row Midnight Surrender: A timeline of Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya's surrender --- ENDS --- Advocate Vikram Chauhan who was accused of attacking JNUSU president Kanhaiya Kumar in Patiala House court premises, got bail from Tilak Marg police station just moments after being arrested. By India Today Web Desk: Advocate Vikram Chauhan who was accused of attacking JNUSU president Kanhaiya Kumar in Patiala House court premises, got bail from Tilak Marg police station just moments after being arrested. Earlier, Yashpal Singh who was also one of the accused, shown in the video claiming the attack on Kanhaiya Kumar was arrested and interrogated at the Tilak Marg police station. Read: Kanhaiya wet his pants while we beat him up: Lawyers behind Patiala House assault advertisement In the sting operation recorded by India Today cameras, lawyers in Delhi's Patiala House court had owned up to the brazen assault. In the video, they admitted gleefully that Kanhaiya was beaten up even when he was in police custody. The three lawyers mentioned in the sting operation are Vikram Singh Chauhan, Yashpal Singh and Om Sharma. The three led the attack on journalists and Kanhaiya supporters at the Patiala House court on February 15. The video indicates that the attack inside the court premises was not a spontaneous one, but a well-planned conspiracy to teach 'anti-national' elements a lesson. To uncover the truth about the Patiala House conspiracy, India Today's special investigation team first went to meet Vikram Singh Chauhan, the 38-year-old Patiala House lawyer from Rewari in Haryana. Chauhan has emerged as the face of the attack on journalists and JNU students. Far from being afraid about getting locked up in prison for leading the brutal attack, he seems to be enjoying his new found infamy in this conversation. Watch full video here: Also Read: JNU row: Delhi High Court to hear Kanhaiya Kumar's bail plea tomorrow In JNU, students dance naked, use 3,000 condoms and eat meat, says BJP MLA Maharashtra Police reveals JNU, DU's dark Maoist secre --- ENDS --- By Rahul Kanwal: Following the India Today special investigation Operation Patiala House , a group of 200 lawyers from the Supreme Court, High Court and trial court took out a march this afternoon protesting against the 'hooliganism' of the lawyers who staged the attack at the Patiala House Courts. These lawyers have made a representation to the Chairman of the Bar Council of India Manan Kumar Mishra. The representation demands, 'Prompt, effective and time bound action against advocates involved in criminal conspiracy to commit violence and hooliganism in Patiala house court on 15 Feb & 17 Feb. Along with advocates who have actually committed such violence amounting to misconduct in exercise of powers under Section 36 of the Advocates Act of India and laying down guidelines and mechanism to prevent such occurrences in future.' advertisement The lawyers say that the misconduct has brought a bad name to the community of lawyers. The India Today investigation has been quoted extensively by the lawyers in their representation. Members of the India Today Special Investigation Team have been named in the representation. The conversations recorded by India Today reporters have been quoted in detail in the representation made by the lawyers. Central Government Act Section 36 in THE ADVOCATES ACT, 1961 36. Disciplinary powers of Bar Council of India.- (1) Where on receipt of a complaint or otherwise the Bar Council of India has reason to believe that any advocate 1[***] whose name is not entered on any State roll has been guilty of professional or other misconduct, it shall refer the case for disposal to its disciplinary committee. (2) Notwithstanding anything contained in this Chapter, the disciplinary committee of the Bar Council of India may, 2[either of its own motion or on a report by a State Bar Council or on an application made to it by any person interested], withdraw for inquiry before itself any proceedings for disciplinary action against any advocate pending before the disciplinary committee of any State Bar Council and dispose of the same. (3) The disciplinary committee of the Bar Council of India, in disposing of any case under this section, shall observe, so far as may be, the procedure laid down in section 35, the references to the Advocate-General in that section being construed as references to the Attorney-General of India. (4) In disposing of any proceedings under this section the disciplinary committee of the Bar Council of India may make any order which the disciplinary committee of a State Bar Council can make under sub-section (3) of section 35, and where any proceedings have been withdrawn for inquiry 3[before the disciplinary committee of the Bar Council of India] the State Bar Council concerned shall give effect to any such order. --- ENDS --- This video of a super excited Indian tourist's hilarious commentary on the Niagara falls will make your day! By India Today Web Desk: Now we know that the West is not just hiring Indians for IT jobs, but as tourist guides too! This video is enough to prove this fact. An Indian tourist from Indore goes on an epic rant about the Niagara falls and he clearly cannot contain his excitement. We think it's a great thing! What stands out is his confidence and passion while delivering his commentary. In his impeccable Hindi with a hint of an 'Indori' accent, he explains why the Horseshoe falls of Niagara (which lies in Canada) is the most amazing place to visit. advertisement He nails the 'Desi' aspect when he whips out a towel to wipe his sweat and takes out a zip-lock pouch from his bag with homemade 'namkeen' to munch. Indians need to feel at home wherever they go, you see! This video will make you ROFL! Excitement Of An Indian Tourist is Very Epic! He Killed It By His Amazing Commentary of Niagara Falls!#MustWatch #NiagaraFalls #Canada #ViralGooglyPosted by Viral Googly on Sunday, 14 February 2016 --- ENDS --- The set is a replica of a tunnel in Malaysia, where a portion of the film was shot. Directed by Anand Shankar, Iru Mugam also stars Nayanthara and Nithya Menen in pivotal roles. Harris Jayaraj is composing the music for the film, while RD Rajeshekar is handling the camera. The actioner is expected to hit the screen on July 7. By India Today Web Desk: Versatile actor Vikram is currently shooting for his upcoming film Iru Mugam. A set worth Rs 4 crore is erected in Chennai for the film, according to a report published in DNA. ALSO READ: Dhanush's Amma Kannaku wrapped up in 50 days The report further stated that the set is a replica of a tunnel in Malaysia, where a portion of the film was shot. advertisement Nayanthara, who was last seen in Naanum Rowdy Dhaan, is playing the female lead in the film. She has finished the first shooting schedule in Malaysia. According to the report, the crew will next head to Bangkok. Directed by Anand Shankar, Iru Mugam also stars Nithya Menen in a pivotal role. Harris Jayaraj is composing the music for the film while RD Rajeshekar is handling the camera. The film is expected to hit the screen on July 7. Vikram was last seen in Vijay Milton's 10 Enrathukulla. The actioner turned out to be a damp squib at the box office and received mixed reviews from the critics. --- ENDS --- The Delhi High Court today adjourned the bail plea of JNU student union president Kanhaiya Kumar, who has been arrested on sedition charge, till February 29. By India Today Web Desk: The Delhi High Court today adjourned the bail plea of JNU student union president Kanhaiya Kumar, who has been arrested on sedition charge, till February 29. In a late night development, two JNU students Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya, who are facing sedition charges, surrendered before the police, after day-long parleys and Delhi High Court's stern message that those accused of sedition cannot dictate terms of surrender. advertisement Sources have told India Today that the arrested duo, Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya are co-operating with the police. They have reportedly told the police about the places where they stayed during the days they were missing. Umar Khalid has even accepted that he spoke in support of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru. Here are the updates: Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya are likely to be produced before a magistrate today morning. According to sources, the questioning of Khalid and Bhattacharya went on for 5 hours. The two students reached Vasant Kunj police station in a private security van of G4S, escorted by JNU security. They were then taken to South Campus police station. Later, cops took them for medical examination to AIIMS. Earlier, the students had sought a secret surrender, a move opposed by the Delhi Police. JNU students also made a human chain to stop the media from following the two students. Khalid and Bhattacharya along with JNUSU President Kanhaiya Kumar, had allegedly shouted anti-national slogans at an event organised in the university campus to mark the death anniversary of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru on Feb 9. Besides Kanhaiya Kumar, Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya, the other students are Rama Naga, Ashutosh Kumar and Anant Prakash. Delhi HC adjourned hearing on Kanhaiya's bail plea till February 29. ALSO READ | JNU row: Delhi HC rejects Umar Khalid's plea, says it can't go by student's "whims and fancies" JNU row: Police likely to book teachers who harboured absconders --- ENDS --- The JNU students were supported by those from other Indian varsities including Hyderabad University, as well as the Congress, AAP and other Left parties. Vemula's mother was also present at the protest. By Astha Saxena: The protest march at Jantar Mantar by Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) students, supported by the political class saw the youth marching for a different reason on Tuesday. The issue had shifted from JNUSU student Kanhaiya Kumar, Umar Khalid and others to the death of Hyderabad University student Rohith Vemula. The JNU students were supported by those from other Indian varsities including Hyderabad University, as well as the Congress, AAP and other Left parties. Vemula's mother was also present at the protest. advertisement Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi and prominent Left leaders addressed the students. This was the second protest organised by students in less than a week. Sources said the change in strategy was consequent to resurfacing of Umar Khalid and four others who have been evading arrest in the JNU sedition case. The five JNU students resurfaced on campus after being underground for over 10 days said that they have nothing to hide and are open to any questioning by the police. The students also maintained that they will not appear before the university probe panel as they have lost faith in the varsity administration. "We have nothing to hide. We disappeared only because of security reasons as we were concerned about what happened to Kanhaiya could have happened to us as well. When we saw normalcy returning on campus, we came back. We have nothing to hide. If police wants to question us they can, we are open to it but since we have not been issued summons there is no point of surrendering," JNUSU General Secretary Rama Naga said. "This is quite surprising how these students have suddenly diverted the attention back to the case of Rohith Vemula. Till now, they were only fighting for the release of Kanhaiya Kumar," one of the sources from JNU told Mail Today. As politicians assembled at the protest venue, they joined in the chorus to slam the Narendra Modi government calling it 'anti-youth'. "The central government is running an ideology against the students. Our prime minister should mend his ways else students of the country will teach him a lesson. I have always said and requested the government to not to mess with the students," Kejriwal said. "The youth who had supported Modi have risen against him today. Now they have started distributing certificates of patriotism. They are distributing certificates as to who is a patriot and who is a traitor. They will beat anyone up, or rape anyone and justify it by saying that they were raising slogans against India. This goondaism won't be tolerated," Kejriwal said. Attacking the government, Rahul Gandhi accused the Modi dispensation and RSS of stifling voices of dissent of college and university students across the country. "We need a law to ensure that students in colleges and universities do not face discrimination and their voice is not stifled," Rahul said. advertisement The Congress vice-president also slammed the Modi government for not including issues like Rohith's death and the difficulties faced by students in universities in the President's address to the Parliament on Tuesday. Also Read: JNU row: Umar Khalid, Anirban Bhattacharya surrender to police JNU row: Umar Khalid, Anirban Bhattacharya, accused of sedition, surrender --- ENDS --- Kapil Sharma talks about his brand new show on Sony TV and the stylish promo he and his team have just shot for it. By India Today Web Desk: For the past few months Kapil Sharma and his show have been in the news for one reason or another. However, even when Colors decided to replace the show with Comedy Nights Live, and Krushna Abhishek and Colors CEO Raj Nayak spoke about it to the media, Kapil refrained from making any comments or saying anything on social media. advertisement On the live Twitter chat he had with fans just recently, he skirted the issue when asked if the new show would be called Comedy Style. But now the comedian has finally broken his silence. In an exclusive video by ABP Live, Kapil Sharma is seen talking about his new show and the promo that features him and his team members, all dressed in black. Also read: Kapil Sharma's new show to air on Sony TV, confirms the channel's CEO "Ganpati baba ki mehar rahegi hamare oopar bhi. Bahut hi achcha show lekar aa rahe hain aur ummeed hai ki logon ko pasand aayega," Kapil told ABP Live. In the video, Kapil is seen alighting from a helicopter and then walking with his team members--Kiku Sharda, Ali Asgar, Sunil Grover, Chandan Prabhakar, and Sumona Chakravarty--in style. Navjot Singh Sidhu comes as a surprise factor in the video. So, yes, it is finally confirmed that all of these celebs will be part of Kapil's new show. Also read: Is this a sneak peek into Kapil Sharma & Team's brand new avatar? Kapil also adds that the promo might look stylish, but he and his team will still play down-to-earth characters. "Maine decide kiya tha kuch aisa promo shoot karte hai jisme stylish lagen. 15 seconds ke baad hum apni aukad mein aa jaayenge," Kapil says in his trademark style. "Mazaak mazaak mein Sony TV ne bahot kharcha kar diya hai. Ab hamein bahut tension ho rahi hai," says Kapil about the grand shoot for the promo of his new show. Also read: After SRK, Arjun-Kareena might appear on Kapil Sharma's new show Yesterday, Sony TV's India CEO NP Singh confirmed that the ace comedian will make a comeback in a few months' time on their channel. "You will see Kapil soon on Sony TV in a few months' time," Singh had told Indiantelevision.com. There are also reports that SRK will be the first guest on this brand new show. Arjun-Kareena, Virat Kohli, Saina Nehwal have also been reportedly finalized and will shoot 'welcome back' promos. Also read: Kapil Sharma coming up with new comedy show: Kiku Sharda --- ENDS --- Maharashtra dance bar owners have objected to government's condition regarding granting licenses to dance bars. The bar owners are particularly against the condition of giving CCTV footage of their bars to police stations. By India Today Web Desk: Maharashtra dance bar owners have objected to government's condition regarding granting licenses to dance bars. The bar owners are particularly against the condition of giving CCTV footage of their bars to police stations. The Supreme Court has made it clear that decision regarding opening of dance bars will not be changed. However SC has asked the licensing authority to respond to the objection raised and said there is also the issue of privacy of clients visiting the dance bars. advertisement The next hearing in the matter will be on March 1. In 2015, the Supreme Court asked the Maharashtra government to issue licenses to dance bar owners. The court also raised questions over the state government laws banning dance bars and said as to "how individual morality, perceptive morality and selective morality can merge into collective and legal morality." Also Read: Dance bars: Supreme Court, Maharashtra govt at loggerheads --- ENDS --- Two JNU students Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya, who are facing sedition charges, surrendered before the police late on Tuesday night, after day-long parleys After ten days of being absconding, Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya surfaced on the JNU campus on Monday evening, and surrendered on Tuesday night By India Today Web Desk: After ten days of being absconding, Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya surfaced on the JNU campus on Sunday evening. Ever since their appearance they had been facing pressure to surrender before the Delhi Police. They even tried to appeal to the High Court to stay their arrest, but failed. Khalid and Bhattacharya surrendered to the Delhi Police 48 hours later. advertisement Here is what happened on the JNU campus late last night: 11.30pm: Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya leave the admin block of JNU, and sat in the university security car that was waiting outside. 11.40pm: University security car dropped Khalid and Bhattacharya at Gate 4 of the campus and handed them over to the Delhi Police officials who were waiting outside the campus gate. 11.45pm: The Delhi Police placed the two students under arrest. 12.05am: They were then taken to the Vasant Kunj police station, where a case has been registered, in a private security van of G4S. 1am, Wednesday: Khalid and Bhattacharya were later taken to RK Puram police station for security reasons. Measures were taken to ensure their safety; barricades were put up and nobody was allowed to come in a kilometer's radius of the police station. 5.30am: Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya underwent medical examination at the RK Puram police station. The two will be produced in the Patiala House court later in the day today. Also Read Umar Khalid accepts speaking in support of Afzal Guru: Latest updates JNU row: Police likely to book teachers who harboured absconders --- ENDS --- By India Today Web Desk: It's not happy tidings for those who travel the world for the love of heritage. Bagan, an ancient city located in the Mandalay region of Myanmar, has been attracting tourists from all parts of the world because of its beautiful monuments. But, that might not be the case anymore. According to a shocking revelation made by the country's Ministry of Culture, the Myanmar authorities have banned tourist entry to the ancient pagodas in Bagan. advertisement Starting March 1, visitors won't be allowed anywhere in the vicinity of Bagan's ancient pagodas and stupas , Xinhua cited the announcement as saying, adding that the restriction was part of the efforts to conserve Myanmar's cultural heritage. Also see: A travel photographer's solo trip to Myanmar What comes as a major blow for tourists who have planned their trips to this place, the initiative is actually said to have been announced for the rightful preservation of these monuments. Bagan is home to more than 3,000 monuments and ruins dating back to the ancient times. But, these monuments have been facing risks related to structural damages and durability of the edifices, thanks to some unruly visitors who are often found dancing and sleeping in the temples, ignoring the restriction on such behaviour. Also read: 3 countries, 34,000 km, 4,900 pictures: One man's fascinating journey But these restrictions might not be there for too long as the Myanmar Ministry of Hotels and Tourism, in cooperation with Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), is drafting a plan for sustainable development of the ancient city of Bagan. After all, the number of tourists visiting the archaeological sites has been on rise with the recent tourist boom. (With inputs from IANS) --- ENDS --- "The Accession of Jammu and Kashmir to India has taken place under certain conditions and you cannot compare Jammu and Kashmir with Maharashtra, Bihar and West Bengal as when they joined India they joined without any conditions," Omar Abdullah said. By Naseer Ganai: National Conference President Farooq Abdullah and the party's working President Omar Abdullah today raised an issue of "conditional accession of Jammu and Kashmir with India" and asked government of India to fulfill its responsibility by adhering to the conditions laid down in the Instrument of the Accession and restore autonomy to the state. "The Accession of Jammu and Kashmir to India has taken place under certain conditions and you cannot compare Jammu and Kashmir with Maharashtra, Bihar and West Bengal as when they joined India they joined without any conditions," former Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said. advertisement "We had put conditions that Finance, Defence and Foreign Affairs will remain with you and the rest will remain with us. What kind of justice is this that we honored our commitments and you (New Delhi) have not adhered to your promises," Omar said amid thundering applause from people. He said it was strange that New Delhi would always talk about Kashmir being integral part of India and the accession being final but would always forget the conditions on which the accession was signed. Omar said New Delhi has failed in its responsibility which has led to present situation in Jammu and Kashmir. Omar insisted that Jammu and Kashmir is not an issue of financial packages and no financial package would solve it. He was addressing his party workers at NC headquarters to commemorate first death anniversary of former National Conference General Secretary Sheikh Nazir Ahmad. Sheikh Nazir was Omar's uncle. He had never traveled on Indian Airlines plane and he didn't acquire Indian passport in his lifetime as he believed that New Delhi betrayed Sheikh Muhammad Abdullah by arresting him on August 9, 1953 on charges of being Pakistani agent when the latter was prime minister of Jammu and Kashmir. Omar described Sheikh Nazir as man of principles and said unlike separatists of Kashmir, he adhered to his principles. Omar said Sheikh Nazir didn't participate in the elections and never acquired passport. "Here top separatist leaders not only fought elections but also acquired Indian passport. There is not a single separatist leader who has not acquired a passport," Omar said. Omar cited example of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), which fought elections against the Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) and later entered into alliance with it. He described the alliance unprincipled and political opportunism. He said the PDP was the party, which would put the Prime Minister Narendra Modi in dock during election campaign but after the alliance they see all virtues in him. A year ago, Omar said, everyone was yearning for an elected government and now no one was concerned with the elected government. "This is what PDP-BJP alliance has reduced the elected government to. Situation is such that a militant's body is not given to people as police apprehends law and order problem," Omar said. He said if PDP-BJP has an alliance and they have got the numbers why both the parties were not forming the government. Omar described the State flag of Jammu and Kashmir, which was disregarded by the BJP leaders and ministers during PDP-BJP coalition government, as an inheritance of the state. "You cannot take this flag from us. This flag is our identity," Abdullah said in his fiery speech. advertisement Speaking after Omar, Dr Farooq Abdullah also maintained the same tune. He called for dialogue with Pakistan and described it as necessity. Dr Abdullah condemned police firing on Gujjars in Jammu and described it as communal act. The firing killed one person. Dr Abdullah said he met former Pakistani Prime Minister in Dubai. But Dr Abdullah didn't mention name of the Prime Minister. He said the Pakistani dignitary told him India had agreed for Ireland type solution for Jammu and Kashmir. "If India has accepted Ireland formula for Kashmir why is not being implemented," he asked. He said his party was for talks and friendly relations between India and Pakistan. He, however, said there was section in India and Pakistan, who want to keep pot boiling. He said if we want that Pathankot and 26/11 shouldn't happen we should engage Pakistan in serious dialogue. Abdullah reiterated that areas of Jammu and Kashmir under Pakistan control like Gilgit, Baltistan, Hunza, Nagar, and Azad Kashmir, will remain under its control and Jammu and Kashmir would remain with India. "And that is the solution," he added. advertisement He said Muslims have immensely contributed to the development of India. He said Muslim is not India's enemy. He warned that India cannot keep Kashmir if communal tension continues between Hindus and Muslims. --- ENDS --- Nawaz Sharif while talking to the Indian High Commissioner to Pakistan, Gautam Bambawale, said that his nation is pursuing policy of good relations with India and other neighbouring countries. Nawaz Sharif who extended a very warm welcome to the Indian High Commissioner in Islamabad on February 24 expressed the confidence that Gautam Bambawale will work to bring the two countries closer. By India Today Web Desk: Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif said that Pakistan is pursuing policy of good relations with neighbouring countries. Nawaz Sharif while talking to the Indian High Commissioner to Pakistan, Gautam Bambawale, today said that his nation is pursuing policy of good relations with India and other neighbouring countries. "Mutual cooperation between Pakistan and India can lead to socio-economic uplift of both the countries," Nawaz Sharif said. advertisement Nawaz Sharif who extended a very warm welcome to the Indian High Commissioner in Islamabad on February 24 expressed the confidence that Gautam Bambawale will work to bring the two countries closer. The visiting Indian High Commissioner also expressed his gratitude towards the Pakistan Prime Minister and expressed hope that his role will be beneficial in strengthening bilateral relations between the two countries. Also read: PM Narendra Modi likely to meet Nawaz Sharif in Washington next month Meet PM Modi's competitor: Pakistan PM Nawaz Sharif spent Rs 638 million on his foreign trips --- ENDS --- Bollywood actor Sanjay Dutt is all set to be released from the Yerawada Central Jail in Maharashtra on Thursday morning, an official source said on Monday. By India Today Web Desk: A petition citing inequality has been filed in the Bombay High Court against the release of Bollywood actor Sanjay Dutt who is all set to walk free tomorrow. Sanjay Dutt will be released from the Yerawada Central Jail in Maharashtra on Thursday morning, an official source said on Monday. The celebrity prisoner will be released after serving the remainder of his five-year sentence for possession of illegal arms in the March 12, 1993 Mumbai serial bomb blasts case. advertisement The petition has been filed by Pradeep Bhalekar who will only come up for hearing tomorrow. Bhalekar is hopeful and has said that it is in public interest to cancel the release orders of Sanjay Dutt. Bhalekar had earlier written a letter asking Bombay HC to stop Dutt's release. The letter was disposed off by court. Dutt is scheduled to step out of the jail around 9 am on February 25 and will be received by his wife Manyata, children and other family members. The jail authorities have rejected a request for a small 'welcome ceremony' planned by the family on security grounds, in view of a large number of the actor's fans and media contingent expected there, said the official requesting anonymity. Dutt, 56, has served more than 50 months out of the five-year sentence pronounced by the court. A regular remission was granted to Dutt by the authorities on account of his good behaviour. Dutt was given a clean chit by the Maharashtra government. Dutt served his sentence in two halfs. He had already spent 18 months in jail before the Supreme Court pronounced the five-year sentence. Also Read: Good boy Sanjay Dutt set to walk free on Thursday --- ENDS --- Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula's mother today met Delhi Chief Minister and asked for a government job for her younger son. Vemula's mother, relatives along with the students of JNU on Tuesday held a protest march in Delhi to seek justice for him. By India Today Web Desk: Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula's mother today again met Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal after they held a protest march yesterday in Delhi to seek justice for him. Vemula's mother, Radhika, has asked for a government job for her younger son. Vemula committed suicide inside University of Hyderabad hostel room on January 17 after being reportedly targeted by right wing organisations. BJP's student unit - the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad - was blamed for Rohith's suicide. advertisement Hundreds of students, including those from the Jawaharlal Nehru University joined the protest march organised under the banner of Joint Action Committee for Social Justice of University of Hyderabad from Ambedkar Bhawan to Jantar Mantar. Kejriwal, who also joined the protest later, accused Central ministers of driving Rohith Vemula to suicide. Kejriwal had strongly condemned the caste spin given to the entire issue and had said that the country cannot be held back on the basis on castesim and backwardness. Rohith Vemula's mother, Radhika, has asked for a government job for her younger son. Rohith Vemula's mother, Radhika, has asked for a government job for her younger son. Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal along with Ashish Khetan and Ashish Talwar visited the University of Hyderabad on January 21 and met the students and family members of Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula who committed suicide. Kejriwal had earlier 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. Rohith, a PhD scholar, who committed suicide last month, was among the five research scholars who were suspended by the University in August last year over an alleged assault case. The issue took a political turn with allegations that the extreme step taken by Rohith was a result of discrimination against dalit students at the behest of Dattatreya, following his letter to Irani, seeking action against their "anti-national acts". Also Read: Rahul, Kejriwal join students protest over Rohith Vemula, JNU issues Also Read: Rahul, Kejriwal join students protest over Rohith Vemula, JNU issues --- ENDS --- More than 400 students of Smt Durgabai Deshmukh Women's Technical Training Institute in Ameerpet, Hyderabad, are forced to urinate in the open due to the lack of 'functional' toilets in the campus. By India Today Web Desk: We have students making headlines lately for their slogans, dissent and all that they have to say about the nation going down the drains. Meanwhile, for 476 female students in a college in Hyderabad, their biggest worry is finding a place to pee. That is the sad state of Smt Durgabai Deshmukh Women's Technical Training Institute in Ameerpet, where there are no 'functional' toilets on campus. advertisement What do these young girls studying in this 40-year-old state-run institute do when they have to relieve themselves? They are forced to use the college grounds, the terrace or an 'abandoned' classroom, while friends hold a makeshift cover with a 'dupatta'. Tired of filing complaints umpteen number of times to the principal about the 'unhygienic toilets' in the campus, which neither have proper facilities nor are cleaned regularly, the students seem to have given in to what the college has to offer. "We are adjusting by peeing wherever we can," confessed one of the student to The Times of India . When TOI contacted the college principal, Mr Suresh Janga, he said the toilets of the institute cannot be repaired because a 'new building for the college is under construction'. "We are forced to live here. The present building is just a temporary arrangement. The toilets that we have are abandoned. Since the building will be dismantled, we cannot repair it," he said. As for the new building, its completion is uncertain due to "lack of government funds". The institute's former head of the department of Architecture, Professor M Nagaraj, wrote a letter to Telangana CM K Chandrasekhar Rao and the state Women and Child Welfare department regarding the condition of the toilets last year in November. He is yet to hear back from either of the offices. The miseries of the students at Smt Durgabai Deshmukh Women's Technical Training Institute do not end with the forsaken state of the campus toilets. The college is said to be standing amid 'heaps of garbage lying unattended at multiple corners'. And that, of course, comes along with the stench of urine filling the air. For an institute that offers diploma courses in architecture assistantship, civil engineering, computer engineering and electronics and communications engineering, it also is said to be suffering with the lack of labs and equipment. "All the lab equipment purchased are misused because there are no proper entries made in the stock register," Professor Nagaraj stated in his letter to the chief minister. advertisement "The computers in the institution are not fully equipped. Some of the parts are damaged. They are neither repaired nor replaced," he wrote. Now, we hope all the issues of this ailing college are attended to ASAP. However, not to sound judgmental, but we do think a batch of aspiring engineers can come up with a better way than to urinate/defecate in the open. And, pray, we are not suggesting by taking out rallies or getting arrested. Peace, ho! --- ENDS --- As per the proposal of the Central Ground Water Board, water can be extracted from surplus pockets like Sukhdev Vihar, Siddhartha Nagar, Okhla Phase III, New Friends Colony and Mehrauli before being supplied to the rest of the city. By Baishali Adak: The Central Ground Water Board (CGWB) has got a unique solution to Delhi's water dependency on neighbouring Haryana. As per the proposed remedy, water can be extracted from surplus pockets like Sukhdev Vihar, Siddhartha Nagar, Okhla Phase III, New Friends Colony and Mehrauli before being supplied to the rest of the city. Of the Delhi Jal Board's (DJB) assured supply of 850 million gallons per day, 130 MGD or about 15 per cent comes through groundwater extraction. CGWB scientists say that this can go up to 20 per cent if borewells are set up in these spots along the Yamuna river in southeast Delhi. advertisement Residences, hotels, malls and other such establishments in Okhla and adjoining areas have been reporting flooded basements for a year now. In fact, a resident, Mohan Lal Ahuja, filed a PIL in Delhi High Court in 2015 after noticing "extensive seepage in the foundation of his building". A scientific report submitted to the court then revealed that 63,000 cubic meter of dewatering can be done in Siddhartha Nagar alone in just over 60 days, and this will be enough to deal with the water needs of 2.5 lakh Delhiites for the same period. A scientist at CGWB told Mail Today, "This can be a good alternative on days when Delhi faces water crunch. Not just a political disruption in Haryana, it could be days when there is excess ammonia in the water coming from Munak Canal. It could be an engineering problem in our water treatment plants or, say, a terrorist attack in Delhi." "The government could either pull out water from these spots before storing it in reservoirs for future use; or, borewells can be installed on emergencies and transferred through tankers to water-scarce areas," the scientist added. Ironically, Delhi's parched areas are not too far away either. These include areas like Tughlakabad, Pushp Vihar, Aya Nagar and Sangam Vihar. The Delhi Jal Board (DJB) had earlier refused to utilise surplus water in these areas citing the presence of E. Coli bacteria. However, CGWB scientists said it could be easily treated with chlorine. Another option, a scientist said, could be the "exploitation of the Yamuna floodplain." "It definitely holds potential. The river replenishes itself through the flow from Haryana. And pollutants in the river can also be remedied in treatment plants," he said. Geology professor at Delhi University, Shashank Shekhar, explained the mystery behind overflowing groundwater in Okhla and Sukhdev Vihar. "Earlier, these were slum areas which ruthlessly abused groundwater. But after the Sonia Vihar Treatment Plant was commissioned in 2006, dependency on borewells reduced. Eventually, the water table came up. Now, thanks to its proximity to Yamuna, it is above normal," said Shekhar. Sushmita Sengupta, senior researcher at Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), said, "These suggestions are workable. But just as you need to maintain a bank account by depositing plenty and withdrawing money carefully, continuous recharge of groundwater is also necessary." advertisement Also Read: Delhi's water woes far from over, may continue for next few days --- ENDS --- Several tornadoes lashed southern Louisiana and Mississippi on Tuesday, killing at least three people and injuring more than 30 as the storms destroyed dozens of homes and businesses and toppled a water tower, weather and emergency officials said. Several tornadoes cut a swath of damage across southeast Louisiana and Mississippi on Tuesday, injuring at least a dozen people, knocking down a water tower and destroying homes and businesses, according to forecasters and emergency officials. (Photo: Reu By Reuters: Several tornadoes lashed southern Louisiana and Mississippi on Tuesday, killing at least three people and injuring more than 30 as the storms destroyed dozens of homes and businesses and toppled a water tower, weather and emergency officials said. Hardest hit in Louisiana was the Mississippi River hamlet of Convent, where 90 percent of the estimated 160 mobile homes at the Sugar Hill trailer park were demolished, state police superintendent Colonel Mike Edmonson told a news conference. advertisement "This is some of the worst damage that I've seen in my 36 years with the state police," Edmonson said. Governor John Bel Edwards said two people were known to have died at the trailer park and two or three others were reported unaccounted for. Rescue crews with dogs combed through debris searching for anyone who might have been trapped. Authorities said they hoped the missing might turn up later in area hospitals or elsewhere among the survivors in Convent, located about 60 miles (100 km) west of New Orleans. "These travel trailers were picked up, thrown a considerable distance and just mangled," Edwards said after surveying the damage. He said it was "a minor miracle" the casualty toll was not higher because most of the trailers were occupied when the storm hit. The National Weather Service confirmed one other fatality near the southern Mississippi town of Purvis, where a mobile home was destroyed. Acadian ambulance services in Louisiana said it had transported 31 people to area hospitals in St. James Parish, most of them from the trailer park, and five others from neighboring parishes, according to the agency's Twitter feed. There were additional reports of survivors being taken to hospitals in private cars, and other ambulance operators were responding to the emergency, indicating the tally of injuries would likely climb higher. The governor declared a state of emergency in seven parishes that bore the brunt of the storms. The storm system posed a continuing tornado threat as it swept east through the night across Mississippi and into Alabama, said Mike Efferson, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service in New Orleans. The Weather Service said Alabama could see tornadoes and hail early Wednesday. Storms were expected to hit southwestern Georgia by midnight and could reach Atlanta and central Georgia before the morning rush hour on Wednesday, meteorologist Adam Baker said. Tens of thousands of customers were without power in Louisiana at the height of the storms, according to Entergy Louisiana, the main electricity supplier in the area. advertisement In Louisiana's Assumption Parish, a tornado knocked down a water tower and damaged homes, said Deputy Robert Martin of the sheriff's office. Up to 20 homes were reported destroyed, and firefighters rescued residents with minor injuries from four homes, said John Boudreaux, director of Homeland Security a --- ENDS --- By Sahil Mohan Gupta : Chinese smartphone sensation Xiaomi on Wednesday unveiled its latest flagship smartphone called the Mi5 at MWC in Barcelona. The phone which has been rumoured and leaked multiple times in the lead up to the launch event has an all new design, which Xiaomi calls a 3D design. Unlike previous rumours, the phone has a 5.1-inch display with full HD resolution but uniquely it has a very bright screen that can go up to 600 nits. Its design has a combination of metal and glass and it has a home-button which also doubles as a fingerprint scanner. The phone is also quite slim at 7.25mm and weighs 129 grams. On expected lines, the phone is powered by the new Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor, which has been also seen on phones like the Galaxy S7, the LG G5 and even the Sony Xperia X Performance. advertisement However, the phone is offered in three different variants. The top of the line model has 128GB of storage and 4GB RAM. The 64GB and 32GB models comes with 3GB RAM. Xiaomi claims that the phone has 100 per cent faster RAM than on the Mi 4. Mi 5 is the first Xiaomi product to use UFS storage which is eMMC storage. The company claims it is 87 per cent faster than eMMC technology that it previously used. The phone has a 16-megapixel camera with a PDAF auto-focus with a 4 axis optical image stabiliser which the company claims is better than the one on the iPhone 6S Plus. The company also claims that it has added DTI isolation technology for improved picture quality. It also has a 6 element lens system. The phone also has a 4-megapixel camera on the front which has a 2-micron pixels. This is similar to the selfie camera on the Mi Note and sounds a lot like the HTC camera. Other features of the phone include a 3,000mAh battery with support for quick charge 3.0 technology, which is faster than quick charge 2.0 found on the recently released Mi 4s. The phone also has dual-SIM support, NFC and VoLTE technology. The phone supports category 12 LTE and supports 3x carrier aggregation. Xiaomi talks about a new 'loss prevention' feature which will allow users to lock the phone remotely in case it is lost of has been stolen. The phone will be available for 2,699 Yuan (Rs 28,300) for the 128GB model, 2,299 Yuan (Rs 24,000 approx) for the 64GB version and 1,999 Yuan (Rs 21,000 approx) for the 32GB version. As of now, there is no word when it will be available in the China market, leave alone India. It will be available in three colours - gold, black and white. Xiaomi is also calling the 128GB model the Mi 5 Pro. The Mi 5 will be the first Snapdragon 820 processor that will be available in the market even before the LeEco Le Max Pro. It will be available in China, March 1 onwards. There are no details about an international launch, including India. --- ENDS --- advertisement Microsoft's benchmark setting productivity tablet that has since sparked a wide range of convertibles in the market from Apple, HP, Samsung and recently from Huawei and Alcatel has been in the thick of things for failing to live up to its tall battery claims. By Saurabh Singh: Redmond giant Microsoft may launch the next-generation Surface Pro 2-in-1 convertible tablet as early as October this year, suggests a new report . The purported Surface Pro 5 may carry a price tag of $899 (roughly Rs 61,658) for the base variant, going all the way up to $1,599 (roughly Rs 1,09,668) for the top-end variant. The Surface Pro 4 was launched only recently in India. Microsoft's benchmark setting productivity tablet that has since sparked a wide range of convertibles in the market from Apple, HP, Samsung and recently from Huawei and Alcatel has been in the thick of things for failing to live up to its tall battery claims. Users have taken to forums like Reddit to express their discontentment over the Surface Pro 4's dismal battery life. Some say, it lasts for as little as three hours. The Surface Pro 4 as per Microsoft should offer as much as 9 hours of video playback on a single charge. Apparently, that's not how things are in reality. advertisement Moreover, the tablet is said to lose charge even when it's in resting (sleep) mode which kind of kills the overall purpose of the whole thing. Microsoft has since rolled-out updates to fix this issue, and it has been able to curb it to some extent. The next Surface Pro is therefore being said to solve the battery draining issue by supposedly cramming in a bigger battery inside. Other details about the Surface Pro 5 are scarce as of the moment. The Surface Pro 4 starts at Rs 89,990 for the base model (Surface Pro 4 Intel i5, 4GB RAM and 128GB memory) and goes all the way up to Rs 1,44,990 for the high-end variant (Surface Pro 4 Intel i7, 16GB RAM and 512GB memory). It runs the full version of Windows 10 therefore it is capable of running all your Windows 10 apps the way you would on a laptop/PC. The tablet comes with a 12.3-inch (2736 x 1824 pixels) PixelTouch display with an aspect ratio of 3:2 and pixel density of 267ppi. It is protected by Corning's Gorilla Glass 4 covering. --- ENDS --- Investigative reporting from the inner city to Wall Street to the United Nations This is the blogspot version InnerCityPress.com The Kansas Republican Party is filled with characters on the inside. I'm looking through the window and holding up a mirror. APA petitions are one more tool we use to protect public lands or threatened wildlife by engaging federal agencies and pushing them to do better for the ... U.S. investors are counting on the implementation by Ukraine of the program of cooperation with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the joint fight of all branches of power against corruption, as well as the restoration of the rule of law, U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Geoffrey Pyatt said at a ceremony of signing an agreement on the investment by Cargill company of $100 million into the grain terminal of the Yuzhny port. The U.S. agricultural companies have expressed their hope that the Ukrainian government will strongly and consistently demonstrate their resolution to hold the reforms, the Verkhovna Rada will demonstrate the fulfillment of its obligations to the IMF, the president and the government will cooperate closely and decisively demonstrate their resolution to restore the rule of law and their readiness to fight corruption, the ambassador said. According to him, the Ukrainian government has demonstrated progress towards the establishment of a clear and transparent regulatory system, as well as the fair value added tax (VAT) refund. When addressing the infrastructure, finance and agricultural policy ministers, Pyatt expressed confidence that the reforms would be continued. Time to reveal my first investment in a truly Japanese company (that is bought with Yen and only listed in Japan). What really triggered me to pull the gun... That is to say, Moodys international credit rating agency has determined that even if NIOCs claims are accurate, the Islamic Republic will have a hard time making any further meaningful gains over the initial 500,000 barrel boost. According to IFA Magazine, these prospects are made dim in part by the fact that Iran needs as much as 200 billion dollars in capital investment to modernize its oil industry, and many international oil companies will have a hard time making investments in light of historically low oil prices. Those prices are also expected to remain depressed as Iran strives to increase its output to regain market share, thus potentially defying an international agreement between the other OPEC countries and Russia, aimed at freezing global output at Januarys levels. Some international media outlets have emphasized Irans ostensibly blessing of that agreement, but others have focused on the fact that Iran has specifically avoided making any commitment to constraining its own output. Indeed, IFA Magazine notes that as recently as Saturday, an Iranian deputy oil minister made clear the countrys plans to raise output by 700,000 barrels per day in the near future. While the regimes confidence in such plans may very well be overblown, it is also buttressed by the strength of foreign interest in investing in the country. This interest is not at all limited to the Iranian oil industry but also includes transportation and industrial development, two areas that could be affected by the Germany company Siemens, which has formally stepped up efforts to explore business opportunities in Iran, according to Reuters. Siemens is only one of a number of Western companies to make similar announcements, although others have made it clear that they are holding back investment until it is more certain that Iran will not cheat on the July 14 nuclear agreement or otherwise become subject to new or renewed economic sanctions by the United States or the United Nations. This wariness may limit Irans economic prospects, and the economic policies of regional rivals may challenge those prospects directly. Although Saudi Arabia is leading OPEC in attempting to formulate an oil-output deal that includes both Russia and Iran, there have also been various suggestions of economic warfare emerging between Iran and its main rival in the Middle East. And as was made clear by the Jakarta Post on Monday, this potential economic conflict reaches well beyond the immediate geographic area. The Shiite Islamic Republic of Iran and the Sunni Kingdom of Saudi Arabia are reportedly competing against each other for a stake in the economy of Indonesia, the worlds most populous Sunni Muslim country. This competition includes but may not be limited to Indonesia oil refinery and crude supply businesses, and a victory for Saudi Arabia could further constrain Irans ambitions for increased output and reclaimed market share. As of now, the Indonesian government says it is placing no restrictions on its relationship with Iran. But this could change if the global political situation changes to reflect less trust in Irans future behavior. Depending on the level of Iranian cooperation over OPEC oil output, Saudi Arabia may or may not push its Western allies for a more aggressive Iran policy. That is, the Saudi-Russia deal suggests a relative cooling of relations within the Middle East, but other factors highlight the persistent tensions between the Saudis and Tehran. The two countries severed diplomatic relations after Iranian mobs stormed and set fire to the Saudi embassy following Riyadhs execution of a well-known Shiite dissident cleric. The Saudis potentially recalled attention to this situation on Monday when the Associated Press reported that 32 individuals were being put on trial in Saudi Arabia for allegedly spying on behalf of Iran. If political and diplomatic relations between the two Middle Eastern powers deteriorate even further on the back of this incident, it is likely that they will intensify their economic cooperation, and perhaps also their proxy wars in Yemen and Syria, and their mutual efforts to discredit each others actions in those areas. Rouhani ascended to office on promises of a new opening with the West, as well as the encouragement of trends toward a freer and more open Iranian society. Nearly three years later, his administration has followed through on securing an agreement with the West that trades modest concessions on the Iranian nuclear program for the end to nuclear-related economic sanctions. But during that same period, Rouhani has been criticized by human rights groups and progressive Iranian activists for his apparent failure to make any progress on issues unrelated to the nuclear deal. While the former fact may seem to justify the Western policy of rapprochement, the latter lends credence to the recent outpouring of criticism. Two such pieces of criticism appeared on Monday in the National Interest and the American Thinker. Both explicitly rejected the notion of moderation within the regime. The first, by Iran policy scholar Saeid Golkar, emphasized that the Rouhani administrations outreach to the West serves to improve the countrys global image in absence of any serious compromise on the regimes hardline domestic and international policies. The other, by Professor Mansour Kashfi, lamented that the Western powers have been unwilling to give meaningful support to Iranian opposition movements that do not believe a democratic future is accessible through any faction of the existing regime. Naturally, there has been some disagreement about this in Western media during the run-up to the elections for the Iranian parliament and Assembly of Experts. The New York Times gave some voice to both sides of the issue on Monday when it reported that certain so called reformist figures, chief among them Mohammad Reza Aref, have formed a coalition with the Rouhani faction and have thrown their weight behind some supposedly pragmatist-conservative candidates in hopes of minimizing the power of hardliners and gradually becoming part of the establishment so as to change it from within. The Times article notes that other reformists have rebelled against this emerging campaign strategy on the grounds that it involves almost complete abdication of actual reformist goals and principles. After all, this is essentially the only way that a candidate can pass the vetting process of the hardline Guardian Council and actually stand for election. So while the Times suggests that optimistic reformists are setting careful goals for the coming vote, the surrounding context still highlights the lack of real alternatives in Iranian elections. According to previous reports, it is for this reason that a number of young, progressive Iranians have expressed an interest in sitting out the election, even as figures like Aref and Rouhani urge a high turnout. Groups like the National Council of Resistance of Iran, which are opposed to the ruling system altogether, regard efforts to drive up voter participation as a tactic to give the illusion of legitimacy for the hardline regime. I WRITE NEWS ABOUT AND PUT NEWS ARTICLES ABOUT ISRAEL AND JERUSALEM PERTAINING TO BIBLE PROPHESY HAPPENINGS.JOEL 3:20 But Judah (ISRAEL) shall dwell for ever, and Jerusalem from generation to generation.(THATS ISRAEL-JERUSALEM WILL NEVER BE DESTROYED AGAIN)-WE CHRISTIANS ARE ALL WAITING PATIENTLY FOR THE PRE-TRIBULATION RAPTURE TO OCCUR.SO WE CAN GO TO JESUS AND GET OUR NEVER DYING BODIES.SO WE CAN RULE OVER CITIES OURSELVES.WHILE JESUS RULES FROM DAVIDS THRONE FOREVER IN JERUSALEM. [February 23, 2016] Hospitals Vulnerable to Attack; Focused on Wrong Assets BALTIMORE, Feb. 23, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Independent Security Evaluators (ISE), the security consulting and research firm, has published a groundbreaking study that demonstrates security flaws to be pervasive within the healthcare industry. The research found that adversaries could deploy cyber attacks that result in physical harm to patients. 100% of the hospitals investigated all had very serious security issues, suggesting broader implications across the entire industry. "The industry today is focused almost exclusively on protecting patient records," notes ISE founder Steve Bono. "We set out on this research to determine what are the threats to patients lives, and how realistic are those threats." Bono explains the research impact, stating, "We found those threats to be very real, and worse still, the industry is ill-prepared to effectively deal with them." Over the course of 24 months, the researchers investigated 12 healthcare facilities, 2 healthcare data facilities, 2 healthcare technology platforms, 2 active medical devices, and a host of other devices and applications. The research proved that remote adversaries can deploy attacks that target and compromise patient health. "Security vulnerabilities in healthcare are a result of systemic business failures," says Ted Harrington, Executive Partner at ISE and one of the leaders of the study. "We found egregious business shortcomings in every hospital, including insufficient funding, insufficient staffing, insufficient training, lack of policy, lack of network awareness, and many more." Along with the vulnerability findings, ISE also published a blueprint to help guide healthcare organizations towards a stronger security posture. "We recognize the immense political, regulatory, and business challenges that hospitals face in the pursuit of their security mission," observes Geoff Gentry, Director of Healthcare for ISE and the lead driver of the study, "so we designed the blueprint to help healthcare organizations navigate that complexity. We are all patients, this affects us all; by publishing the solution and giving it away, we can drive change in this industry." ISE's first presentation of the research will happen at RSA Conference USA in San Francisco, CA on March 1, 2016 and at HIMSS Annual Conference in Las Vegas, NV on March 2, 2016. The complete source study can be found here: https://www.securityevaluators.com/hospitalhack About ISE Founded in 2005 out of the PhD program at the Johns Hopkins' Information Security Institute, ISE is a security consulting firm comprised of hackers, computer scientists, reverse engineers, and cryptographers who help companies defend against sophisticated adversaries through manual, white box security assessments. ISE is widely recognized as being the first company to hack the iPhone, and more recently for the discovery of the vulnerability epidemic in wireless routers. ISE organizes popular hacking concept IoT Village. Contact: Ted Harrington Independent Security Evaluators +1-443-270-2296 4901 Springarden Drive, #200 [email protected] Baltimore, MD 21217 USA To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/hospitals-vulnerable-to-attack-focused-on-wrong-assets-300224801.html SOURCE Independent Security Evaluators [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [February 23, 2016] Vricon Joins Esri Partner Network to Expand Use of High-Resolution 3D Geodata Vricon, a leading provider of photo-realistic 3D mapping products and digital elevation models for the defense and security industries, is now a member of the Esri Partner Network. Vricon's partnership with Esri, the market leader in geographic information system (GIS) software, will help drive the growth and adoption of new technologies for distributing and using 3D geodata. "As we continue to roll out The Globe in 3D, we are excited by the Esri community's growing interest in next-generation 3D geodata and Esri's commitment to making 3D content distributable in open formats. We feel that this partnership is a key enabler for users who depend on access to our data for critical operations," said Magnus Brege, Vricon CEO. "As a new Esri business partner, we look forward to being part of an exceptional group of GIS innovators that are driving new markets as 3D becomes more broadly adopted across a wide range of industries." Through this partnership, Vricon's 3D products and digital elevation models will be accessible to the large community of GIS users that have adopted the ArcGIS platform. The partnership will also influence the development and direction of new products and technologies, such as ArcGIS Earth and the I3S ormat for streaming 3D content that Esri released under Creative Commons licensing last year. "Working with Vricon will allow us to provide consistent, high-value terrain data and imagery of large areas to support critical defense and intelligence operations," said Jack Dangermond, Esri president. "Through Esri's open GIS platform, the same Vricon imagery can be accessed by mobile, desktop, and web 3D clients, empowering users throughout large enterprises with high-resolution 3D content." Vricon and Esri will demonstrate the benefits of this collaboration to strategic customers in the next few months and plan to showcase their combined capabilities more broadly at the Esri User Conference in San Diego, California, in June 2016. For more information about the Esri Partner Network, visit esri.com/partners. About Esri Since 1969, Esri has been giving customers around the world the power to think and plan geographically. The market leader in GIS technology, Esri software is used in more than 350,000 organizations worldwide including each of the 200 largest cities in the United States, most national governments, more than two-thirds of Fortune 500 companies, and more than 7,000 colleges and universities. Esri applications, running on more than one million desktops and thousands of web and enterprise servers, provide the backbone for the world's mapping and spatial analysis. Esri is the only vendor that provides complete technical solutions for desktop, mobile, server, and Internet platforms. Visit us at esri.com/news. About Vricon Vricon serves the global professional geospatial market with world-leading 3D geodata and 3D visualization solutions. Vricon is headquartered in McLean, Virginia. For further information, visit www.vricon.com. Copyright 2016 Esri. All rights reserved. Esri, the Esri globe logo, GIS by Esri, ArcGIS, esri.com, and @esri.com are trademarks, service marks, or registered marks of Esri in the United States, the European Community, or certain other jurisdictions. Other companies and products or services mentioned herein may be trademarks, service marks, or registered marks of their respective mark owners. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160223007074/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [February 23, 2016] Fitch Rates Orange County School Board, FL's COPs 'AA'; Outlook Stable Fitch Ratings has assigned a rating of 'AA' on the following certificates of participation (COPs) to be issued by the Orange (News - Alert) County School Board Leasing Corporation: --$37,200,000 COPs, series 2016B; --$182,320,000 COPs, series 2016C. The bonds are expected to price via negotiation on or about March 1. The COPs, series 2016B and 2016C, are being issued to refund, on an advanced basis, a portion of the outstanding COPs, series 2008D and 2009A, respectively. Preliminary combined net present value savings of $21.2 million or 9.4% of refunded par are estimated. Fitch also affirms the 'AA' rating on $1.2 billion of outstanding (pre refunding) COPs and the 'AA+' implied unlimited tax general obligation (ULTGO) rating on the Orange County School District. The Rating Outlook is Stable. SECURITY The COPs are payable by lease payments equal to debt service on the COPs to be made by the Orange County School Board, subject to annual appropriation, to the Orange County School Board Leasing Corporation under a master lease purchase agreement. In the event of non-appropriation the trustee may force the school board to surrender possession of all leased facilities under the master lease for disposition by sale or re-letting of its interest in such facilities. KEY RATING DRIVERS STRONG FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT: Conservative budgeting practices and policies have contributed to historically sound operations, strong unrestricted reserves and exceptional government-wide liquidity. VOTER APPROVED SALES TAX: At the close of fiscal 2015, the district had accumulated a cash balance of more than $1.02 billion from the receipts of a voter approved sales tax and impact fees that afford it the flexibility to make capital investments on a pay-go basis. Key debt metrics are low as a result (2.2% of market value and $2,262 per capita) and no additional debt is anticipated at this time despite a significant capital plan designed to keep pace with a rapidly expanding student population. RETIREE BENEFITS AFFORDABLE: Carrying charges for debt, pension, and retiree health benefits consume less than 10% of governmental spending, enhancing overall budget flexibility. Pension benefits are offered through a state plan that is adequately funded and the district's other post-employment benefit (OPEB) liability was recently reduced to a very manageable sum following certain plan changes. GROWING ECONOMY: The growing health and education sector, underpinned by high-wage medical research and biotechnology, has broadened an economy that was traditionally based in tourism. The central Florida region is currently among the fastest growing metro areas in the U.S. and the rate of district enrollment growth has been strong. COPS SUBJECT TO APPROPRIATION: The COPs rating is linked to the district's general credit quality. The COPs rating is one notch from the implied ULTGO rating reflecting risk to the annual appropriation of lease payments from which debt service is paid and the essentiality of the leased assets within the master lease program. RATING SENSITIVITIES RESERVE STRENGTH: The district's high reserves are a principal consideration in the 'AA+' implied ULTGO rating, as they establish a sound level of financial flexibility and independence from state school funding changes. Diminishment of reserves could therefore pressure the rating. OPERATING STABILITY: The district's operating performance is sensitive to negative shifts in enrollment or in the state funding formula for education, neither of which is anticipated in the foreseeable future. CREDIT PROFILE The Orange County School District's geographic boundaries are coterminous with central Florida's Orange County. The district operates 186 schools with a pre-K through 12 enrollment of 187,338 in fiscal 2016. HISTORICALLY STRONG OPERATING AND FINANCIAL PROFILE The district has achieved surplus general fund operating results consistently over the prior decade, steadily increasing its already healthy reserve position. At the conclusion of fiscal 2015 the general fund unrestricted fund balance totaled $329.9 million or a high 21.9% of spending. The district maintains a 3% financial contingency reserve policy, consistent with state norms. The general fund reserve position remained strong entering fiscal 2016 despite the incurrence of a large operating deficit (after transfers) in fiscal 2015 totaling $40.8 million or 2.7% of spending. The deficit was largely driven by the payment of non-recurring employee bonuses and the upfront payment of the two-year salary increase negotiated for fiscal 2015-2016. The adopted fiscal 2016 budget includes $62.2 million in capital investment and other non-recurring appropriations. The budget forecasted the use of $41.2 million in reserves but district officials now expect the fund balance will remain relatively stable at year end as certain technology and software projects have been cancelled or delayed. The district will begin the process of formulating its fiscal 2017 budget in the coming months. The state per pupil funding formula is expected to increase roughly 2% on the year supported by continued improvement in the state's revenue performance, and district officials anticipate enrollment to expand by 4,000-5,000 students in the near term. No material challenges have been identified by officials from a funding perspective. The district's economy and tax base continue to perform well, supporting grwth of discretionary operating and capital property tax dollars. The fixed-cost component of the budget is affordable with debt service, pension payments, and pay-go contributions for OPEB consuming less than 10% of governmental spending. The legislature is expected to consider a bill that would divert capital outlay revenue to charters but the impact is not expected to be material to the rating. VOTER SUPPORT FOR CAPITAL AND OPERATING INITIATIVES Fitch views voter support for district operating and capital initiatives as a positive credit consideration. In November 2014, voters re-authorized an additional one-mill for operations through fiscal 2019, estimated to generate approximately $108 million annually based on a 96% collection rate in the current fiscal year. Overall tax rates for fiscal 2016 remain moderate at 7.218 mills (excluding the voted millage) and comfortably within the statutory 10-mill cap. In August 2014, district voters approved a ten-year extension of a half-cent capital outlay sales tax through Dec. 31, 2025. The sales tax, which was originally authorized in 2002, generated $209.2 million in revenue for the district in fiscal 2015 and $191.8 million in fiscal 2014. The sales tax and receipts from a school impact fee ($56.5 million in fiscal 2015) are deposited into the district's capital project fund which reported $1.02 billion in cash and investments in fiscal 2015. The availability of these revenues has helped the district manage the growth of its student base and keep up with necessary improvements, expansions and maintenance without taking on a burdensome level of debt. Sales tax revenues are also available to service COP debt, if necessary. ADEQUATE CAPITAL OUTLAY RESOURCES TO PAY COPS The district's annual debt service budget is primarily driven by its $1.2 billion in outstanding COPs. While any legally available revenue can be used for COP debt service, the district has historically made payments from the 1.5 mill capital outlay tax. With the district's taxable assessed value (TAV) for fiscal 2016 $112.4 billion, a 0.93 mill rate generates sufficient revenues, assuming a 96% tax collection rate, to cover maximum annual COP debt service of $99.9 million (fiscal year 2023). Fitch believes there is strong incentive to appropriate for COPs debt service, as an event of non-appropriation would risk forfeiture by the district of all facilities under the master lease - a total of 61 schools and 10 school additions. FAVORABLE DEBT POSITION Overall debt ratios are low at 2.2% of market value and $2,262 per capita inclusive of overlapping debt obligations of the county and several special districts and local municipalities. The district has no current plans for additional debt. Capital improvements are scheduled to be funded from a combination of existing reserves in the district's capital projects fund and annual revenue from the voter-approved capital outlay sales tax and impact fees. Fitch considers the district's variable rate position ($193.7 million) manageable given its very strong liquidity and history of market access. The district's variable rate positions are hedged and while the aggregate market valuation of the swaps is $56.6 million in favor of the counterparties, the district is not exposed to risk of collateral posting. LOW RETIREE LIABILITIES Pension benefits are provided through the Florida Retirement System and Health Insurance Subsidy (HIS) Pension Plan, each a state-administered cost-sharing multiple-employer pension defined benefit pension plan. At June 30, 2015 the district reported a net pension liability totaling $429.1 million or 0.3% of market value related to its participation in FRS and HIS. The district's OPEB liability was significantly reduced to $47.3 million in fiscal 2015 from $240.2 million as a result of plan changes to exclude any subsidy of retirees once they reach the age of 65. Additional information is available at 'www.fitchratings.com'. Fitch recently published exposure drafts of state and local government tax-supported criteria (Exposure Draft: U.S. Tax-Supported Rating Criteria, dated Sept. 10, 2015 and Exposure Draft: Incorporating Enhanced Recovery Prospects into U.S. Local Tax-Supported Ratings, dated February 2, 2016). The drafts include 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 in 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 Fitch's Tax-Supported Rating Criteria, this action was additionally informed by information from Lumesis and IHS (News - Alert) Global Insight. Applicable Criteria Exposure Draft: Incorporating Enhanced Recovery Prospects into US Local Tax-Supported Ratings (pub. 02 Feb 2016) https://www.fitchratings.com/creditdesk/reports/report_frame.cfm?rpt_id=875108 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=999893 Solicitation Status https://www.fitchratings.com/gws/en/disclosure/solicitation?pr_id=999893 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/20160223007078/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [February 24, 2016] Yahoo! JAPAN Signs Contract with IndoorAtlas for Indoor Positioning Services MOBILE WORLD CONGRESS--IndoorAtlas Ltd, the global Platform-as-a-Service leader in geomagnetic indoor positioning technology, today announced an agreement with Yahoo! JAPAN to deliver indoor positioning services within venues across Japan. This will lay the foundation for enriching Yahoo! JAPAN's map solutions such as way-finding and search within buildings, and will enable the development of advertising services in the future*. Yahoo! JAPAN is the leading internet portal in Japan and generates 63 billion page views per month. Japan ranks number four in smartphone penetration worldwide, making it a hot market for the deployment of indoor location-based services. IndoorAtlas' technology has the potential to reach a high percentage of the 38 million inhabitants in the greater Tokyo metropolitan area alone. "We are thrilled to be selected by Yahoo! JAPAN for this major deployment of our indoor positioning platform in such an important market for us," said Dr. Janne Haverinen, CEO of IndoorAtlas. "The agreement extends IndoorAtlas' global leadership in indoor positioning and reflects the demand we are seeing for location-based services." Modern buildings all have a unique magnetic landscape produced by the Earth's magnetic field that interacts with steel and other materials found in structures of buildings. By utilizing the magnetic sensor within a smartphone, IndoorAtlas' software is able to detect anomalies in the Earth's magnetic field to accurately pinpoint and track a person's location indoors, producing a "blue dot" on a map - just like GPS. IndoorAtlas' cloud-based platform is the interface for application developers to create venues, manage data and build their location-based services within a mobile application that can include advertising, point-of-interest (search), way-finding and other services. "With IndoorAtlas, we were excited to discover an infrastructure-free solution that does not rely heavily n beacons," said Gen Miyazawa, President of Media Company at Yahoo! JAPAN. "By leveraging IndoorAtlas' platform, we can build a range of location-based services with ease and its cloud-based platform will enable us to scale cost effectively unlike other technologies available on the market today." Scalability The software-only technology removes the need to purchase, install and maintain large amounts of infrastructure that are often associated with WiFi (News - Alert) or beacon solutions. Geomagnetic positioning not only lowers Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) but also enables indoor navigation through spaces not accessible for hardware installations, such as stores within a shopping mall or businesses inside a train station. Accuracy Geomagnetic indoor positioning technology is more accurate than WiFi, beacon and other technologies, pinpointing users' locations within one to two meters. This accuracy is needed to achieve search and way-finding location services. User satisfaction and engagement increase with system accuracy. Platform capabilities IndoorAtlas' cloud-based platform was created with the application developer in mind. Its simple workflow and SDK enable developers to build location-based services within mobile applications for a wide range of use cases: an airline helping travelers navigate through complex airports for connecting flights, a museum providing real-time guide information during tours, and a retailer getting shoppers to the right aisle or product in a supermarket. Pricing IndoorAtlas offers a freemium pricing model and customers pay as they grow - paying only for monthly active users. Developers can sign-up and start using the service for free at www.indooratlas.com. *Specifications of advertising services are to be determined based on deliberate consideration. About IndoorAtlas Founded in 2012, IndoorAtlas is a global Platform-as-a-Service leader in geomagnetic indoor positioning. Its patented technology utilizes the compass sensor in smartphones to detect anomalies in the Earth's magnetic field to pinpoint a location indoors. It provides approximately 25,000 developers with a scalable cloud platform to build location-based services without the need to purchase, install and maintain large amounts of costly infrastructures that are often associated with WiFi or beacon solutions. With sub-two meters positioning accuracy and a platform that supports both Android (News - Alert) and iOS, customers can create venues, collect data and build indoor location-based services, such as proximity advertising, search and way-finding, within their application. Visit www.indooratlas.com. About Yahoo! JAPAN Yahoo Japan Corporation was founded in 1996 and operates Yahoo! JAPAN, one of the largest portal sites, in Japan. Offering more than 100 services including search, news and e-commerce via PC and smart devices, Yahoo! JAPAN serves more than 80 million daily unique browsers, and 60 billion monthly page views on average. The total number of downloads for iOS and Android applications released by Yahoo Japan Corporation exceeds 270 million. For more information, please visit http://ir.yahoo.co.jp/en/ View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160223007119/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [February 24, 2016] Hurricane Electric Internet Services Opens First Point of Presence in Latvia Hurricane Electric, the world's largest IPv6-native Internet backbone, has expanded its global network with a new Point of Presence (PoP) at Latvia State Radio and Television Center (LVRTC), located at Zakusalas krastmala 1, Riga, LV-1050 Latvia. Latvia State Radio and Television Center is one of the country's leading providers of electronic communication services, ensuring secure high-quality telecommunications solutions to all major mobile communications, internet and telecommunications operators in Latvia. Additionally, the LVRTC is Latvia's main operator of terrestrial radio and television broadcasting networks, with clients including television companies, radio stations and the country's leading electronic communications operators. The LVRTC Data Center i located in the Riga Television Tower, a secure and protected facility considered the main telecommunication hub of Latvia. The facility is built according to TIER III data center requirements and maintains direct transit routes to several countries, including Lithuania, Estonia, Sweden, Russia and Belarus. The Riga Television Tower provides remote access to its servers and virtual resources arranged through direct connection to the services of all major local and international telecommunication and Internet Service providers. Hurricane Electric's (News - Alert) newest Point of Presence will provide customers of Latvia State Radio and Television Center with access to Hurricane Electric's robust IPv4 and IPv6 network as well as increased network capacity through 100GE (100 Gigabit Ethernet), 10GE (10 Gigabit Ethernet) and GigE (1 Gigabit Ethernet) ports. They also now have the opportunity to exchange IP traffic, or "peer," with Hurricane Electric's expansive global network, which is Jumbo Frame (9000 byte MTU) compatible. "Based on the impressive growth of the telecommunications industry in the Baltics, Hurricane Electric is delighted to open our first Point of Presence in Latvia," said Mike Leber, President of Hurricane Electric. "This connection is our second in the region and will enable customers of LVRTC to access Hurricane Electric's rich global network through a variety of robust connectivity options. We look forward to further expanding in this important region in the coming months." About Hurricane Electric Fremont, California-based Hurricane Electric operates its own global IPv4 and IPv6 network and is considered the largest IPv6 backbone in the world as measured by number of networks connected. Within its global network, Hurricane Electric is connected to over 120 major exchange points and exchanges traffic directly with more than 4,300 different networks. Employing a resilient fiber-optic topology, Hurricane Electric has no less than four redundant paths crossing North America, two separate paths between the U.S. and Europe, and rings in Europe and Asia. In addition to its vast global network, Hurricane Electric owns and operates two data centers in Fremont, California, including Fremont 2, its newest 208,000 square foot facility. Hurricane Electric offers IPv4 and IPv6 transit solutions over the same connection at speeds including 10 Gbps and 100 Gbps Ethernet. For more information on Hurricane Electric, please visit http://he.net View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160223007185/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [February 24, 2016] Vision Critical Spins off Research Consulting Division to Focus Exclusively on Delivering Innovative Customer Intelligence SaaS Solutions Vision Critical, a pioneer in customer intelligence software and support, today announced it has reached an agreement to spin off its North American Research Consulting division with a sale to MARU Group. The new business will operate as a standalone entity within MARU Group as MARU/VCR&C, under the leadership of the current Vision Critical research consulting executive team. The transaction enables Vision Critical to focus exclusively on driving innovation in the fast-growing ecosystem of customer intelligence technology, expanding how companies listen, learn, and distribute customer insight throughout the enterprise. Vision Critical combines a proprietary, cloud-based software platform with a support team that leads the industry in delivering insight from large, highly engaged communities. The integrated offer empowers companies with the ongoing intelligence they need to drive more confident business decisions. Following the transaction, Vision Critical will work in close collaboration with MARU/VCR&C via a value-added reseller and strategic partner agreement. As independent companies, each will be positioned to excel with their unique yet complementary mandates, united by a shared objective of continuing to deliver world-class customer intelligence to the world's leading brands. More than 700 high-performing global enterprises, including Adobe (News - Alert), DEWALT and Univision Communications Inc., use Vision Critical's customer intelligence software solutions to engage their customers for trusted insight to help them build better products, launch more effective marketing campaigns, improve customer experience and enhance customer satisfaction and loyalty. Comments on the News Scott Miller (News - Alert), CEO at Vision Critical said: "We are embarking on the logical next step in Vision Critical's evolution, from our pioneering creation of Insight Communities to defining the future of customer intelligence inside the enterprise. "More and more, our customers are pushing to expand the scale of their communities from tens of thousands of people to much larger groups of their customers. Because of this rapid growth in demand, focusing our efforts across three dimensions is imperative: continuing innovation in our software platform; helping our customers drive engagement and insight through best-in-class community intelligence services; and expanding our partner ecosystem around the world. "This transaction enables Vision Critical to deliver a more comprehensive, integrated customer intelligence platform for our customers and upon which strategic partners like MARU/VCR&C will deliver a complete, world-class research consulting experience." The next step in Vision Critical's evolution Since pioneering Insight Communities over a decade ago, Vision Critical has helped hundreds of global companies build closer and more valuable customer relationships through innovations in cloud-based delivery of customer intelligence software-as-a-service. According to Forrester Research (News - Alert), we are living in the "Age of the Customer." Advances in technology have provided customers with access to more information, more choices, and more opportunities to broadcast their opinions, widely and loudly, than ever before. Customer intelligence software solutions now form a key component of modern marketing, product development, and customer experience programs, with their increasing reliance on marketing technology tools. The American advisory firm IDC (News - Alert) estimates that by 2018, spending on marketing technology will reach $32.3 billion. Vision Critical's proprietary, cloud-based software platform, Sparq empowers companies to engage their customers through secure, online communities they employ continuously, across the enterprise, for ongoing feedback and insight. In October 2015, Vision Critical unveiled the next generation of the Sparq platform, including an updated user interface and an array of new capabilities that allow companies to better understand customer motivations, preferences, and needs over time. At the same time, Vision Critical also announced its first mobile application, Engage, which makes it simple and convenient for companies to gather in-the-moment intelligence from their customers. Proceeds from the sale of the North American Research Consulting division to the MARU Group will allow Vision Critical to invest in the continued enhancement of its platform, people and accelerating its track record of growth. Creating two strong, complementary businesses Going forward, MARU Group becomes a value-added strategic partner and will work towards a shared objective of continued growth and expansion. Through the collaboration, Vision Critical will continue to benefit from the capability and expertise of its former Research Consulting team in managing full service end-to-end research projects powered by Insight Communities. MARU/VCR&C will continue to fully leverage the Sparq customer intelligence platform. All current Vision Critical Research & Consulting employees (approximately 160 people distributed in offices across North America) will retain their roles in the new independent company and continue to serve the same customers. The transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of 2016, subject to certain closing conditions. About MARU Group MARU Group is a customer intelligence information and insight services firm. Operating in multiple countries, MARU Group provides research, insight and advisory services to large enterprises across a broad spectrum of industries and markets. Founded in 2016, MARU Group's core area of expertise is providing fast and strategic customer feedback to corporations through a variety of technology platforms. Led by market intelligence industry veteran Ged Parton, MARU Group is backed by Primary Capital Partners LLP, a provider of private equity finance for high potential and growth companies. Learn more at www.maruvcrc.com. Follow MARU on Twitter (News - Alert) at http://twitter.com/maru_vcrc. About Vision Critical Vision Critical provides a cloud-based customer intelligence platform that allows companies to build engaged, secure communities of customers they can use continuously, across the enterprise, for ongoing, real-time feedback and insight. Designed for today's always-on, social and mobile savvy customer, Vision Critical's technology helps large, customer-centric enterprises discover what their customers want so they can deliver what they need. Unlike traditional customer research, which is slow, expensive and gathers dust on a shelf, Vision Critical's customer intelligence platform replaces static data and cumbersome reports with real-time actionable customer intelligence that companies need to build better products, deliver better services and achieve better business outcomes. Hundreds of high-performance organizations use Vision Critical's technology. Follow Vision Critical on Twitter at https://twitter.com/visioncritical. "Vision Critical" and "Sparq" are trademarks of Vision Critical Communications Inc. Other product or service names mentioned herein may be trademarks of their respective owners. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160224005439/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] Itongadol.- Defense Minister Moshe Ya\alon paid a working visit to neighboring Cyprus on Wednesday as the guest of Cypriot Defense Minister Christoforos Fokaides. During the visit, Ya\alon issued a stark warning about Iran\s regional aggression, adding that Tehran is constantly seeking to arm Hezbollah, and that Cypriot security forces have in the past year foiled an Iranian-Hezbollah attempt to set up terror cells on the island. He also described the chaos in Syria and the region as a kind of a third world war in which cultures and powers are clashing. The two defense ministers signed a Status of Force Agreement to deepen cooperation between the IDF and the Cypriot military, and discussed bilateral defense cooperation. "The State of Israel views Cyprus as a true friend. Relations between the defense establishments, militaries, and intelligence communities go back years, are deep, and important. My arrival here symbolizes that," Ya\alon said. The SOFA agreement with Cyprus, alongside close ties "with our good friend, Greece," is vital for all states, he added. Both Israel and Cyprus face many challenges in the Middle East, and both look east and west, "at the difficult sights in Syria, Iraq, and other states in the Arab world," Ya\alon stated. "We are in the midst of a war between cultures. In a certain sense, this is a third world war, in a different manner from what we have known," he added. Any state in the Middle East prepared to help in stabilizing the situation will find "a partner in us, including states we have no relations with," Ya\alon said. "The Iranian regime, through the proxies it trains, funds, and arms, is trying to undermine stability in the Middle East and beyond. It attempts to spread the revolution, and stops at nothing, including ambitions to build a dangerous axis, which starts in Tehran, moves through Baghdad, Damascus, Beirut, Sana\a, and other regional states," Ya\alon said. Sanctions relief from the nuclear deal means the Iranian regime will develop and purchase more weapons, including fighter jets, missiles of various types, and weapons that will endanger the whole of the area, including Israel, he cautioned. "Thus, the Iranian appetite to arm terror organizations that obey them, including Hamas and Hezbollah, will grow. The Iranians are trying to arm Hezbollah all of the time, including attempts that have occurred recently," he said. "The Western world must act with determination against the threat, since this common threat, whose values and ways are the opposite of ours, strives to disrupt our lives and create a reality we must not agree to." In the past year, Cypriot security forces have, with great professionalism, foiled a Hezbollah and Iranian terror cell in their country, Ya\alon said. He said the cell was aimed at sending terror cells throughout Europe. ATALAYA is new work by bassist Dezron Douglas, and it is alive. That is, alive in all the ways that jazz is at its best as a pure and pe... JIW includes excerpts from many sources using their copyright material for the purpose of education and discussion only, and not for profit. We a cknowledge and link to our sources. We reserve all rights to our own original material, including the excerpted and edited version of the source material. However you are welcome to use JIW material freely for the purpose of education and discussion only, and not for profit, and provided proper acknowledgement is included. John Snow, Inc. (JSI), a leading international public health consulting organization, is seeking two (2) Consultant Health Commodity Logistics Advisor. This full-time positions, initially for a six month period but with the possibility of being extended and eventually permanent employment) is based in Semera (Afar) and Jijiga (Somali) Regions. The USAID | DELIVER PROJECT, managed by John Snow, Inc. (JSI) and funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development, provides technical assistance in healthcare supply chain management to the Federal Ministry of Health (FMOH), the Pharmaceuticals Fund and Supply Agency (PFSA), Regional/City Health Bureaus, zones, woredas, and health facilities. Key interventions include support for the Integrated Pharmaceutical Logistics System (IPLS), including information systems, inventory management, stores management, and product availability, and with a particular focus on family planning, maternal and child health and malaria commodities. Primary objectives include improved commodity availability, system performance and sustainability. Overview: Reporting to DELIVER Regional Manager, the primary role of the consultant is to help ensure health commodity security with special focus on facilities in drought impacted woredas in Afar and Somali Regions through technical support for implementation of the IPLS. The consultant will collaborate with and support the newly opened PFSA hubs in Semera and Jijiga, RHBs, and partners, to strengthen inventory management, information systems (including the automated HMCIS), and commodity availability at health facilities. The consultant will also be involved in providing technical assistance, supportive supervision, and monitoring and evaluation in the regions for selected logistics and commodity security indicators including availability of health commodities vital for drought response. Responsibilities: The HCLA will be responsible for, but shall not be limited to: Wednesday, February 24, 2016 Report: New Mexico On Edge of Plunging Into Another Recession, Plus: Debating Berry's Bus Plan And Martinez Approval Mystery (Cont.) That will come as no shock around here. We've reported the stunning news this week that 10,000 applicants filed for 290 jobs at the ABQ Cheesecake Factory that opens today, the devastating impact the oil and natural gas crash has had on the state economy and the plunge in tax collections. From Four states--Alaska, North Dakota, West Virginia and Wyoming--are in a recession, and three others are at risk of prolonged declines, according to indexes of state economic performance tracked by Moodys Analytics. The regions suffering the most are in the flop stage of the energy industrys boom-to-bust cycle. . . Job gains and losses are key factors that the National Bureau of Economic Research uses to chart U.S. expansions and recessions. Even as U.S. employers added 2.7 million workers in 2015, job cuts last year totaled 18,800 in North Dakota, 11,800 in West Virginia and 6,400 in Wyoming, according to the U.S. Labor Department. The common thread? They all have concentrations of energy companies. . . Louisiana, New Mexico and Oklahoma are all at risk of recession, according to Moodys. We saw the front fangs of a recession when the Legislature this month approved a budget for the next fiscal year that is actually $7 million less than the current one. If recession takes hold it would have to be cut even more because of falling revenues or lawmakers and the Governor would have to entertain a tax increase or other revenue enhancements. The "R" word is no stranger in Las Cruces. It went The state will know at the end of this quarter if it has officially gone into recession by suffering two quarters of negative activity. BERRY'S BUSES Joe, Some the things that should standout: 1. The level of service is important because it rates traffic movement from A to F. I see the restriction from two traffic lanes to one as a big red flag for traffic flow. If the level starts out at C or D F is standstill traffic) no one will want to get close to Nob Hill. 2. The second big question is loading and unloading transit passengers. These pedestrians will be loading and unloading in the median. That means they have to cross the street with strollers and wheelchairs and packages, slowing the one lane traffic movement to a stand still. 3. My last point is the type of passengers using the transit system will not frequent these businesses in the first place. Many are the poor and homeless. It will not work, bad idea. Reader Kevin Wenderoth comes with the counterpoint: Millennials and the population at large are fleeing Albuquerque for cities all over the country. They are going to places that offer viable, dependable alternatives to the private automobile. They're going to New York , San Francisco, Denver, LA and Austin. All of these places have strong public transit and are continuing to invest in projects like BRT and/or light rail. Why do you think Central and Nob Hill in particular is a fun place to hang out? It's not because it's easy to drive through. It's because it's the most pedestrian-friendly place in the city. For this same reason, there are no comparable retail scenes along Coors, Paseo del Norte, or Tramway. ART will only improve and enhance the pedestrian safety and atmosphere of Nob Hill, and retail in the area, despite some inevitable troubles during construction, will be all the better for it. Thanks, Jerry and Kevin. We''ll continue to carry comment--pro and con--on the controversial proposal. Berry says he hopes to break ground on the plan by June. POLL TALK A Gov. Martinez operative asserts we were wrong when we said there was no polling of the governor's approval rating since her disastrous December holiday pizza party. They produced a poll that they say was taken by Democrats and asked about Martinez's job performance. However, we never said there was "no polling" of Martinez. The operative is wrong. We said we want to see the ABQ Journal--which recently polled voters' presidential preferences here--to do a poll of Martinez. That would be an independent, nonpartisan objective survey. And to our knowledge there have been none of those since the pizza party. The Dem poll cited by the Gov's machine and taken in January had Martinez over 50% approval. However, another partisan poll we saw taken of parts of western NM showed her below that level. Until we get a nonpartisan, objective poll--not from candidates or political parties--we do not know the governor's current approval rating. And that's the way it is. . . This is the home of New Mexico politics. Interested in reaching New Mexico's most informed audience? Advertise here. ( c)NM POLITICS WITH JOE MONAHAN 2016 E-mail your news and comments. (jmonahan@ix.netcom.com) Welcome back. Let's get right to more of our real deal biz coverage, the stuff you won't get anywhere else. And that stuff today is recession. It appears the state is on the edge of plunging into an official recession, defined as two quarters of negative economic growth.That will come as no shock around here. We've reported the stunning news this week that 10,000 applicants filed for 290 jobs at the ABQ Cheesecake Factory that opens today, the devastating impact the oil and natural gas crash has had on the state economy and the plunge in tax collections. From Bloomberg We saw the front fangs of a recession when the Legislature this month approved a budget for the next fiscal year that is actually $7 million less than the current one. If recession takes hold it would have to be cut even more because of falling revenues or lawmakers and the Governor would have to entertain a tax increase or other revenue enhancements.The "R" word is no stranger in Las Cruces. It went into recession last year and remains there, according to NMSU economist Dr. Chris Erickson. The question now is how far and wide does it spread. ABQ's less energy dependent economy could spare it from the worst effects, but the city's economy is anemic at best. UNM and CNM have announced personnel cutbacks, Nob Hill continues to get slammed with vacancies and then there is that terrible employment situation. New Mexico has the highest unemployment rate in the USA.The state will know at the end of this quarter if it has officially gone into recession by suffering two quarters of negative activity.Mayor Berry's rapid transit plan for a stretch of Central Avenue has a price tag now of $119 million, up from $100 million. You could argue the project, the lion's share of which would be financed from a federal grant, could serve to stimulate the economy, but reader Jerry, a transportation engineer, says it would inflict more economic pain by slowing business:Reader Kevin Wenderoth comes with the counterpoint:Thanks, Jerry and Kevin. We''ll continue to carry comment--pro and con--on the controversial proposal. Berry says he hopes to break ground on the plan by June.A Gov. Martinez operative asserts we were wrong when we said there was no polling of the governor's approval rating since her disastrous December holiday pizza party. They produced a poll that they say was taken by Democrats and asked about Martinez's job performance. However, we never said there was "no polling" of Martinez. The operative is wrong.We said we want to see the ABQ Journal--which recently polled voters' presidential preferences here--to do a poll of Martinez. That would be an independent, nonpartisan objective survey. And to our knowledge there have been none of those since the pizza party. The Dem poll cited by the Gov's machine and taken in January had Martinez over 50% approval. However, another partisan poll we saw taken of parts of western NM showed her below that level.Until we get a nonpartisan, objective poll--not from candidates or political parties--we do not know the governor's current approval rating. And that's the way it is. . .This is the home of New Mexico politics. Links HOME E-MAIL ME About Joe Google News Real Clear Politics Huffington Post Drudge Report The Politico New Mexico newspapers NM TV stations Gov. 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There also are 20 new victims of identity theft. But you don't have to tell retired Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn that. Flynn, the former director of the Defense Intelligence Agency, told the more than 700 attendees at the Lincoln Chamber of Commerce's annual luncheon Wednesday that just a few days ago more than $1,600 was fraudulently charged to one of his credit cards. Flynn said cyber attacks are so frequent and ubiquitous, "all of you in this room have been attacked," even if it was never noticed. Last year, cyber theft amounted to $3 trillion in losses, and the nation's five largest banks lost $6.5 billion to cyber money laundering, he said. "The costs are just extraordinary," Flynn said. When he ran the Defense Intelligence Agency, the U.S.'s main foreign espionage organization, Flynn said he and his staff had to fend off anywhere from 40,000 to 400,000 cyber attacks a month. Flynn is now retired after 33 years in the Army and works as an expert and consultant on national security and cyber security. Despite all of his sobering statistics about cyber crime, Flynn does see a lot of opportunity in the cyber world. He cited a study that said there will be 700,000 cyber security jobs created in the private sector in the next decade, with another 10,000-20,000 created in the public sector. A more recent report in Forbes magazine said that by 2019 there could be 1.5 million more job openings in cyber security worldwide than there are qualified workers. Those numbers are largely due to the nature of technology and how often it advances and evolves. "The rapid change that's going to occur over the next five to 10 years is amazing," Flynn said. To emphasize how quickly technology changes, he pointed out that 10 years ago, Facebook was a year old and most of the in-vogue social media and other sites didn't even exist. "Twitter was a sound," Flynn joked. The 5-year-old demanded perfection. The production of The Wizard of Oz in his Lincoln backyard had just reached a transition -- from a Kansas farm to the Emerald City -- and things werent going as smoothly as little Michael Duling DAngora wanted them to. As producer, director and actor -- he played the Tin Man -- he felt a responsibility to his audience. My mom was putting silver paint on my face, and I remember thinking, We have to hurry. This is taking too long. The audience is getting restless, DAngora said. I was very concerned about the flow of the evening. My brain has always very much thought in terms of directing and producing always. Like this past Valentines Day, when younger sister Kally Duling Noth made her Broadway debut in the Tony Award-winning musical, Fun Home, filling in for a week for a vacationing cast member at the Circle in the Square Theatre in New York City. She had come a long way from the 3-year-old playing Glinda the Good Witch in her brothers backyard production. In Fun Home, Noth played Joan -- the lesbian love interest of Alison Bechdel, whose 2006 graphic memoir is the basis for the musical. The story concerns Bechdels relationship with her gay father and her attempts to unlock the mysteries surrounding his life. It won five 2015 Tonys, including best musical. One of scenes featured Noths character sleeping for five minutes while things happened around her. DAngora, now a successful New York City producer and director, said he saw his sisters closed eyes twitch as she pretended to sleep. She attributed the twitching to stage lights and nerves. I was just so excited, she said. I was lying there telling myself: Dont smile. Dont smile. Dont smile. Her brother gave her a pass on the fluttering eyes. He couldnt have been more proud. She looked amazing up there, he said. She looked like she belonged in the company. It wasnt like seeing an understudy making her Broadway debut. She held her own with Tony Award-winning actors. It was pretty thrilling. And when it was over, he and Noth's husband, Kenny, were both crying in the audience. That definitely was a pretty cool moment just to be able to share with them and have them witness my performance, she said. After youve been (in N.Y.) for awhile, you start thinking that its not going to happen. That youre actually not going to be on Broadway. And then to be on Broadway Tears were appropriate. And so were autographs. DAngora made sure to photograph his sister signing Playbills outside the theater afterward. He called it fun; she called it surreal. Noths Broadway debut came nine years after arriving in New York from Lincoln, where she graduated from Nebraska Wesleyan University and Lincoln East High School. Shes kept busy over the years -- paying her dues, as they say -- performing in regional theater productions and tutoring child actors. DAngora left Lincoln for New York in 2000 after his own graduation from East to study directing and arts management at Marymount Manhattan College. He and his husband, Tom DAngora, produced a one-man show starring Tom in 2003. That led to producing an album for Ellen Greene, who played Audrey in the stage and screen productions of Little Shop of Horrors, and producing the off-Broadway hit A Broadway Diva Christmas in 2005 when Michael DAngora was 23, making him at the time, he said, the youngest producer in New York City with a major commercial production. Other producing credits include off-Broadway hits Naked Boys Singing! and Rick Croms NEWSical the Musical, which debuted in 2002 and has become off-Broadways 16th-longest-running show, DAngora said. The musical lampoons todays newsmakers, such as Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton and the Kardashians. Im not sure weve caught lightning in a bottle, but weve tried to make lightning, DAngora said about NEWSical. Theres a lot of luck that goes into it, and a lot of hard work. The siblings began their theater careers with backyard and basement productions at home in Lincoln. Their dad, Kevin Duling, said his children were always creative and imaginative. They once filled the basement with leaves for a production of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, causing their dad to evacuate the house and shut off pilot lights until the leaves were removed. Seeing their talent and passion, he and his then-wife, Roseann Perry, sent the kids to the Lincoln Community Playhouse. The Playhouse was the smartest thing we did as parents, he said. It was there DAngora and Noth worked with education director Rhonda Lake and artistic director Rob McKercher. DAngora and Noth performed onstage and worked behind it. Noth remembers Lake teaching her how to project and feeling so confident when she finally learned to do so. They had to teach you how to project? DAngora chided his sister during the conference call. Yeah, I didnt really talk that much. I had you do that for me, she shot back. Thats funny because when we used microphones, they told me not to talk so loudly and sing so loudly, DAngora said. They both laughed. McKercher, now a Doane College theater professor, said he isnt surprised by DAngora and Noths success. Both of them had the passion, he said. They not only had the tools, but the spark, too. Theres something inside them. A furnace inside that burns. Which helps explain Noths persistence at achieving her Broadway goal. Her debut culminates a whirlwind year that included her wedding and a spot on the CBS television show The Good Wife that aired over Thanksgiving weekend. Meanwhile, DAngora and his husband are bringing back the off-Broadway hit The Marvelous Wonderettes after six years. It has been an OK year, Noth deadpanned. It looks like Im going to have to up my game a little bit, DAngora said. A group of Nebraskans who want voters to uphold the Legislature's repeal of the death penalty kicked off a statewide education campaign Wednesday. The group scheduled a news conference at the Capitol to launch the campaign and unveil its new name: Retain a Just Nebraska. The name change from Nebraskans for Public Safety reflects the action needed to support the death penalty repeal (LB268) passed last session, said spokesman Dan Parsons. Support for abolishing the death penalty is diverse, he said, and includes fiscal conservatives, law enforcement officials, faith leaders and murder victims' families. Senators won a hard-fought battle in passing a repeal bill introduced by Omaha Sen. Ernie Chambers, one he had introduced 37 times during his tenure in the Legislature. The bill advanced through three rounds of debate, was vetoed by Gov. Pete Ricketts, and then senators voted to override the veto. Before the repeal could go into effect, Nebraskans for the Death Penalty launched a petition drive to stop the repeal until Nebraska voters could weigh in in November on whether or not the state should continue to have capital punishment. Now those who supported the repeal want voters to endorse it. After eight years of listening to the arguments in the Legislature, both for and against the death penalty, Lincoln Sen. Colby Coash worked last session to persuade senators repeal was the best choice. He wants Nebraska voters to get the same information that helped him reach his conclusions, he said. When he arrived to the Legislature in 2009, he said, senators voted to change the method of execution to lethal injection, and promises were made that the last barrier to beginning executions was gone. Each year that went by, however, those promises were buried deeper and deeper with continuing, expensive appeals and increasing difficulty in obtaining lethal injection drugs, he said. Nebraska hasn't executed a condemned inmate since 1997. Ten men are currently sentenced to death in Nebraska. No matter how the November vote turns out, Coash said, executions still will not happen. He is featured in the group's first online advertisement that was to premier Wednesday on YouTube. Lincoln Sen. Adam Morfeld also is part of the anti-death penalty campaign. "The state should lead by example," he said. "If we're going to condemn killing people, we also should not kill people." Locking away a person for life for the crime of murder both serves justice and safeguards the community, he said. Miriam Kelle, whose brother James Thimm was tortured and killed by Michael Ryan, believes the death penalty causes additional harm to victims' families, she said. Ryan never was executed, but rather spent three decades on Nebraska's death row before dying of cancer in May. "With the death penalty, there is no finality for victims' families," Kelle said. "We are promised a punishment, and then made to wait for it. For years and years, the scabs are ripped off over and over." Parsons said the message for voters about how Nebraska's capital punishment system fails to work will be carried by people directly affected by it. The campaign has a new website that can be found at retainajustnebraska.com. Sen. Ken Haar of Malcolm on Tuesday urged a legislative committee to consider turning his bill proposing Public Service Commission oversight over public power electric rates into an interim study. The bill (LB1068) was opposed by a parade of public power representatives who argued that such regulation does not fit the nonprofit public power model. "It's an unnecessary erosion of local control," Shelley Sahling-Zart, vice president of the Lincoln Electric System, told the Transportation and Telecommunications Committee. Sahling-Zart said LES rates are subject to public hearings and extensive review and submitted for city council consideration. "It's a really difficult balancing act," she said, and LES budgets some money for an energy assistance fund to help customers who are financially challenged. Other opponents of the bill suggested that rate-setting is a task for technical experts and engineers rather than a regulatory commission. Haar told the committee that electric rates in Nebraska have been increasing at an accelerated rate, and rising fixed charges that apply to all customers disproportionately impact low-income consumers along with those who have invested in measures to improve power use efficiency. State oversight through an electric rate review process would be valuable, Haar said, with the Public Service Commission essentially acting as a public advocate. An interim legislative study could lead to agreement on "a review process that can make public power stronger and more viable for the future," Haar said. Supporters of the bill particularly zeroed in on a sharp increase in fixed charges recently imposed on ratepayers by Omaha Public Power District. The committee also heard testimony on Sen. Dave Bloomfield's bill (LB688) to require that driver's license exams be administered in English. That proposal attracted opposition from Latino advocates who said it would create an unnecessary burden for some Nebraskans who may not yet be fluent in English. "It's an unnecessary barrier," Adrian Sanchez of Lincoln, chairman of the state's Latino American Commission, told the committee. Nebraska Appleseed and Heartland Workers Center in South Omaha also lined up in opposition to the proposal, which they said could make it difficult for some Latinos and other residents of Nebraska to be able to go to work and school. Bloomfield, a truck driver before he came to the Legislature, said his sole purpose is to improve safety. "If you can't read English, you are a hazard," the Hoskins senator said. "How do you read the signs and warnings?" Bloomfield, who acknowledged that some opponents of the bill have accused him of being a racist for proposing such legislation, rebutted that criticism by handing out photos of his Latino daughter-in-law and grandson to the committee. A "right to farm" constitutional amendment would shield Nebraska's top industry from environmentalists, animal rights groups and other outside threats, the measure's sponsor says. "Agriculture is the undisputed foundation of Nebraska," said state Sen. John Kuehn of Heartwell. That economic engine accounts for one-fourth of the state's jobs and produces more than $25 billion each year. But the extensive investment required to produce "food, fiber and fuel" on the state's farms and ranches needs protecting, said Kuehn, himself a fourth-generation livestock owner and veterinarian. His proposed constitutional amendment which would require a vote of the people to enact if approved by the Legislature is backed by about a dozen ag industry groups and the Nebraska Department of Agriculture. Yet two of the state's leading farm advocacy groups threw cold water on the measure Tuesday during a public hearing before the Legislature's Agriculture Committee. Representatives of the Nebraska Farm Bureau and the Nebraska Farmers Union urged caution and said they opposed using a constitutional amendment to accomplish Kuehn's goals. "This far-reaching proposal should not be put into our state Constitution," said Farmers Union President John Hansen, calling it enormously radical. The measure would prohibit lawmakers from further restricting farming and ranching practices in Nebraska unless they could prove a "compelling state interest." That limitation and other language in the proposal could tie the hands of state legislators in unexpected ways going forward, warned Omaha Sen. Ernie Chambers. Chambers and Omaha Sen. Burke Harr, the Agriculture Committee's two members with law degrees, cited a litany of concerns about Kuehn's proposed amendment, including wording that might be too vague and could result in unintended consequences. For example, the measure as written would protect "livestock production and ranching practices" but contains no definitions for those terms, Chambers said, leaving it open to court interpretations or existing state laws that are subject to change. The Nebraska language closely mirrors a proposed amendment Oklahoma voters will consider in November. Two other states, North Dakota and Missouri, have adopted their own right to farm amendments in recent years. The conservative American Legislative Exchange Council has long backed such proposals, but Kuehn has said he pursued the amendment on his own following controversy surrounding the 33,000-acre U.S. Meat Animal Research Center in Clay County, which is in his legislative district. A New York Times story published last January alleged decades of abuse and neglect at the center, resulting in calls for stricter oversight and a temporary halt to new research projects there. A leading critic of the center has been the Humane Society of the United States. On Tuesday, Kuehn accused the Humane Society and other groups of fueling "misconceptions about modern agriculture," particularly online through social media. The Humane Society opposes Kuehn's measure, and animal rights groups have questioned whether it could eventually be used to protect "puppy mills" or other forms of animal abuse. Kuehn whose home features a "menagerie of geriatric rescue animals," including a 24-year-old free-range miniature donkey said he would never seek to abuse or neglect pets or livestock. Robert Bernt, a farmer and rancher from north-central Nebraska, warned lawmakers not to trust other farmers who claim to care about the environment but oppose regulations intended to protect it. "These people speak out of one side of their mouth and do the opposite," Bernt said. Chambers suggested that Kuehn's supporters are reacting more to criticism from outside groups than to any actual legislation that has damaged farming in Nebraska. "You cant change anything thats on Facebook," Chambers said during an exchange with Dave McCracken of the Nebraska Cattlemen, which supported the measure. "We can stop the misinformation from making bad laws," McCracken countered. Kuehn said protecting farming and ranching is especially important as Nebraska becomes more urbanized and fewer people have regular interactions with agriculture in the state. And state lawmakers should face a greater burden if they want to pass laws that restrict people's business practices, he said. "Were just looking for protections to do legal things," said Al Juhnke of the Nebraska Pork Producers Association, another supporter. "Too often, public policy weve seen is driven by emotion. Sponsors of legislation to expand health care coverage to the working poor and other needy Nebraskans said Wednesday they will cover $53 million in anticipated state costs over a three-year federal waiver period without dipping into the state tax-supported general fund. Estimates of the costs associated with the proposal (LB1032) came into sharp focus earlier in the day with completion of a legislative fiscal analysis that will guide senators in considering the bill. The proposed legislation to access additional federal Medicaid dollars available to Nebraska under the Affordable Care Act would cost the state an estimated $58 million by fiscal 2020-21 while bringing nearly $1 billion in federal funding to the state. But it is the first three years of the project that will occupy immediate legislative attention because the new program would be authorized under a three-year federal waiver of Obamacare's original Medicaid expansion plan. One source of funding for the $53 million in state costs already has been identified as the state health care cash fund, which includes tobacco settlement dollars allocated to the states for tobacco-related health care costs. Sens. Heath Mello of Omaha and Kathy Campbell of Lincoln said they are reviewing additional funding sources that would be general fund-neutral. "A number of options are being considered," said Mello, chairman of the Appropriations Committee. Mello and Campbell are co-signers of the legislation introduced by Sen. John McCollister of Omaha. One of the realities dramatized by the fiscal analysis is that Nebraska has missed the opportunity for 100 percent federal funding of the health care coverage expansion contained in Obamacare. The health care reform legislation provided 100 percent federal funding for the first three years of the Affordable Care Act, but the Legislature has rejected annual efforts to enroll Nebraska in the plan. Now, the state will not be in position to implement the program until the federal funding match has dropped to 94 percent. Under ACA, it would gradually dip to a permanent floor of 90 percent. "We now clearly see what losing 100 percent would mean," said Campbell, chairwoman of the Health and Human Services Committee. "It's higher than initially thought," she said, "but I think it's workable." A factor that needs to be considered is the potential infusion of more than $2 billion in federal money into the state's economy over a five-year period and its impact on jobs as well as improved health care, Campbell said. The fiscal analysis suggested that over a five-year period, the legislation would generate $2.8 billion in federal funding support compared to $111 million in projected state costs. The legislative fiscal analysis of LB1032 differed markedly from an earlier analysis provided to the state's Department of Health and Human Services by Optumas, a health care strategy firm that acts as the agency's contracted actuary. Mello said the HHS study pegged state costs at roughly double the amount projected by the new study. Major differences resulted, in part, from differences in methodology, Mello said, but also because the legislative study uncovered new information. The focus remains to "help improve health care for Nebraskans," Mello said. More than 100,000 Nebraskans would be assisted by the proposal with coverage in health care exchanges, insurance premium assistance and coverage of the medically frail through Medicaid managed care. The largest numbers of people fit the definition of the working poor, Nebraskans who fell through the cracks in Obamacare opened by a U.S. Supreme Court decision that gave states the right to opt out of the expanded Medicaid program contained in the Affordable Care Act. Those workers are too poor to afford private health care insurance and yet make too much money to qualify for subsidies under Obamacare. Gov. Pete Ricketts opposes the bill, arguing that Nebraska cannot afford it and that it will distract from other priorities. Campbell said she will schedule a fiscal analysis briefing for members of her committee next week before it considers acting on the proposal. Each week, the Lincoln Journal Star will bring you a list of the upcoming holidays dedicated to the foods we eat -- or need to try. Here's the holiday fare for Feb. 24-March 1. Feb. 24: Tortilla Chip Day. The tortilla chip was invented by Rebecca Webb Carranza in the 1940s as a way to reuse misshapen tortillas coming out of her familys El Zarape Tortilla Factory in Los Angeles. Feb. 25: National Chili Day. While many food historians agree that chili con carne is an American dish with Mexican roots, Mexicans are said to indignantly deny any association with the dish. Chili is the official state food of Texas. For more chili fodder, go to nationalchiliday.com. Feb. 26: Pistachio Day. Called the happy nut in China and the smiling nut in Iran, pistachios are native to the Middle East and Central Asia. Food historians believe the pistachio tree reached Greece along with Alexander the Great's army. Traders introduced the nut to the rest of the European continent, and it came to the U.S. in the late 19th century with Middle Eastern immigrants, according to foodimentary.com. Feb. 27: National Kahlua Day. Kahlua is a rich, creamy alcoholic liqueur from Mexico. Kahlua means house of the Acolhua people in the Nahuatl language. A company named Domecq has produced the drink since 1936 and named it for the native people of Veracruz. Kahlua is made with rum, Mexican coffee, sugar and vanilla, according to punchbowl.com. Feb. 28: National Chocolate Souffle Day. The word souffle comes from the French verb souffler, which means to blow up, or more loosely, puff up, aptly describing the souffle. The lift is provided by beaten egg whites, according to nationaldaycalendar.com. Feb. 29: Surf and Turf Day. Surf and turf was coined in the 1960s, when an Atlantic coast restaurant offered its customers a steak and seafood entree -- typically with the most expensive menu items on a single plate. Maybe thats why Surf and Turf Day only comes around every four years. March 1: National Peanut Butter Lovers Day. This is one of a handful of peanut butter holidays in the U.S. Peanut butter is consumed in 90 percent of U.S. households and is an $800 million industry, according to peanutbutterloversday.com. While no one knows who invented peanut butter, Skippy gets all the credit for creating crunchy-style. Federal investigators believe a California couple arrested in Lancaster County's largest suspected drug money seizure have carried drugs and money across the country before. Michael Melchior, 65, and Peggy Brennan, 63, were charged Monday with conspiring to distribute marijuana between Nov. 24 and Feb. 18, when they were arrested outside of Lincoln. A federal arrest warrant affidavit unsealed Tuesday offers more details from the federal investigation that began when a Lancaster County deputy sheriff found more than $2.4 million in the couple's RV during the traffic stop just outside of Lincoln. The deputy stopped the 2006 Freightliner on suspicion of following too closely and asked to search it after becoming suspicious because Melchior and Brennan's travel stories didn't match, the affidavit said. They declined the search so another deputy had a drug dog sniff around the RV, and the dog alerted them to suspected drugs inside, it said. Deputies found the cash in heat-sealed bags inside luggage in the back of the RV, Homeland Security Special Agent Andrew Vincik wrote in the affidavit. The deputies said they smelled the "overwhelming odor of raw marijuana" when they opened the bags, according to the affidavit. One of the suitcases held what investigators believe was a drug ledger, detailing the price per pound of OG marijuana ($2,300) and instructing the supplier not to send them more Sour marijuana because sales of it were slow, the affidavit said. Also in the RV, investigators found two documents that led them to property believed to be connected to the alleged trafficking operation, Vincik wrote in the affidavit. A rental agreement for a storage unit in Muscatine, Iowa, led state drug investigators there to find a Mercedes Benz Sprinter van registered to Brennan that had dryer sheets placed around it and on its floorboards, Vincik wrote. Investigators say couriers use the sheets to try to conceal drug odors. An invoice for mechanical work done on the RV listed Melchior's address in Chicago, the affidavit said. Federal agents got a search warrant for the home and seized $600,000, 10 pounds of marijuana, a vacuum sealer, heat sealer bags, 11 Rolex watches and two cars, along with other items, the affidavit said. All of the money seized by agents in the case translates to the sale of about 1,300 pounds of marijuana sold, Vincik wrote. "Furthermore, based on the large quantities involved, I believe that Melchior and Brennan have carried out this pattern many times before," the agent wrote. Brennan and Melchior remained at the Lancaster County jail Tuesday pending a federal court appearance set for Wednesday afternoon. More than 50 people in central and western Nebraska and northeast Colorado were arrested on Tuesday in connection with a yearlong methamphetamine investigation, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. Sixty-three people were federally indicted for distribution of controlled substance, possession of controlled substance with intent to distribute and conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance, according to a news release. The suspects were arrested on a variety of local, state and federal drug charges in cities including Grand Island and North Platte, said Joe Jeannette of the U.S. Attorney's Office. The identities of those arrested and the charges against them will be released at a news conference in North Platte on Friday, Jeannette said. Some information isn't yet available because the cases against many of the suspects remain under a judge's seal, he said. Led by the FBI, the investigation involved nearly 30 local, state and federal agencies, with most of the probe focused on people in Nebraska, he said. U.S. Attorney for the District of Nebraska Deborah Gilg praised the coordinated efforts of investigators who worked this case. Two years ago we were gathered in North Platte to honor many of these same law enforcement officers who were being recognized with an award from the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA)," Gilg said in a news release. "That HIDTA award, from a case which began in 2012, ironically spun off into this drug conspiracy. The Lincoln Board of Education Tuesday voted to pay $300,000 over the next three years to a Virginia company to manage and document questions and concerns from parents, community members and students. The purchase will require $100,000 a year from the general fund, an amount already earmarked in the budget to be used toward the districts strategic goal of improving communication with the public. It will extend a six-month pilot program called Lets Talk from developer K12 Insight. Two high schools, two middle schools, two elementary schools and 58 district office employees participated in the pilot. The service provides a system to allow people to submit their questions electronically, picking a subject area listed on a link on the LPS website or the website of individual schools. District and school administrators are assigned to monitor the subject areas and answer questions. About three years ago the LPS board rejected a proposal by K12 Insight to conduct public surveys to help the district evaluate how well it communicates. The board did approve the latest K12 Insight proposal on a 6 to 1 vote but not without some discussion. Board member Matt Schulte, who voted against the contract, expressed concerns about infringing on teacher's time. Superinendent Steve Joel said it will not be used by teachers, but by administrators. Board member Barb Baier said she was concerned about the ongoing cost, and noted that the city created a similar program itself for much less money. She also said she hoped those monitoring the system -- and answering questions from the public -- would get training. Board member Don Mayhew said the time involved in creating a system from scratch was prohibitive, and that it would be better to tweak an existing system such as "Let's Talk." Kathy Danek said she liked the idea of tracking responses because a majority of complaints she gets from the public are about not getting issues resolved. Joel some issues require person-to-person discussion, and the district isn't trying to avoid those cases. If a parent has a question about a particular class, the teacher would still address it. But the system's ability to track responses and feedback that run through the online system is helpful. "We think this has made a difference in just the little time weve used it," he said. The Lets Talk service keeps a record of how many times a person calls, how quickly questions are answered and it documents the answer given, providing a database of responses to often-asked questions. District officials also said the service would not be used as an evaluation tool, although it creates a dashboard that summarizes how many questions a department or employee receives, how quickly they respond and the quality of that response. Lets Talk also monitors social media and can be used to respond to those sites. Feedback from employees who participated in the pilot was mixed but district officials said they've tried to tailor the system to address concerns such as the extra time and effort required. When shes not overseeing academic programs and strategic planning at Kansas State University, April Mason likes to run, cook and ride her Honda CTX700. My husband said he was going to buy a motorcycle, and my initial response was 'No, she told those who gathered Wednesday to hear the second of four finalists seeking to be chancellor at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She only said OK after her husband agreed to take a motorcycle safety class and wear protective clothing. When he got ready to take the class, I said well, what the heck, Ill take it with you, Mason said. Riding motorcycles was just one in a wide range of interests Mason described in a series of forums with faculty, students and staff. Shes a trained nutritionist and botanist, who previously worked at Purdue University and Colorado State University. Since 2010, she has been the chief academic officer at Kansas State responsible for the undergraduate and graduate programs on three campuses and with oversight of the college deans. As provost, Mason, 59, also serves on the K-State Athletics Board, where she learned to manage personalities and understand the massive compliance requirements athletics departments face. When Chancellor Harvey Perlman announced his retirement last year, Mason said she took interest in UNL and applying everything she has learned at the next administrative level. I am looking for a new leadership challenge, Mason said. That challenge would provide more than a changing landscape. During a student forum, Mason described the budget difficulties faced by public universities in Kansas, which has implemented rolling tax cuts in recent years. At the same time, she said, tax revenues have routinely fallen short of projections. "The governor has said he is not going to rob from higher education," Mason said. "But he's not going to make any additional investments into higher education either." Balancing a flat higher education budget against rising costs is enough to keep Mason awake at night. "If we starve the state for too long in educational resources, I'm not sure you can come back from that," she said. The University of Nebraska, on the other hand, received 3.5 percent more state tax dollars last year and this year. That followed an annual 4 percent increase in state appropriations to NU in the previous biennium. A program to evaluate tenured faculty at Kansas State also highlighted a difference between the university in Manhattan, Kansas, and UNL. At a forum for faculty, Julia Schleck, an associate professor of English at UNL, said a "chronic low achievement" program outlined in the Kansas State handbook was "an unusual clause and one that more or less throws out tenure protection." Schleck said after the forum that the program, brought to her attention by a faculty member at K-State, has been panned by the American Association of University Professors and other groups. Schleck said if faculty have to worry about low evaluations for a particular class, they might be less likely to challenge students, and added that women and minority professors often receive lower evaluation scores from students than men. "From the perspective of the faculty, basing the dismissal primarily on the student evaluations is really problematic and challenges the idea of academic freedom," Schleck said. In an interview after the forum, Mason said the "chronic low achievement" program was not used to punish faculty but to help them by outlining steps to improve their classroom performance. The program was "a very conservative approach" to addressing poor faculty reviews, Mason added, and has been used only as a last resort. Friendly faces, too, greeted Mason on Wednesday. Ryan Patterson, a second-year graduate student at UNL from Lyndon, Kansas, worked with Mason while a member of Kansas State's student government. "She was very supportive of students in general and always willing to listen to what students thought," Patterson said. "I was very impressed with what she said here and think she would do a great job." While stressing she is very happy at Kansas State, Mason said there are aspects of being a chancellor that the chief academic officer of a campus doesnt get to experience. She said she looks forward to becoming more active in capital campaigns and working with state and federal lawmakers. Im very aware of the responsibilities of a chancellor position and look forward to making progress in a new area and a new challenge, she said. RACINE The developer of Machinery Row is seeking a rezoning that would help clear the way for a massive mixed-use riverfront project. Developer Rodney Blackwell, managing owner of Davenport, Iowa-based Financial District Properties, said Tuesday that the first physical work, a partial building demolition, could start within two weeks. Machinery Row is a redevelopment plan for 20 riverfront acres east of Marquette Street and north of Water Street. The area includes two former J.I. Case Co. buildings erected in the early 1900s and the former Azarian Marina. Blackwell has been spearheading the Machinery Row plan, while working with City of Racine officials, since it was announced in June 2014. At that time, the project was estimated at $65 million just to redevelop the larger building at 900 Water St. That three-story structure, built with massive old-growth timbers, has approximately 500,000 square feet of floor space. The plan also includes redeveloping the other former Case building, which is half the size of the one mentioned above, and redoing the waterfront for public use. FDP goes before the Racine Plan Commission today, seeking the rezoning of four riverfront parcels that comprise Machinery Row. Blackwell seeks to have them rezoned from general industrial to central business district, as well as obtain a conditional-use permit for mixed-use development containing residential, commercial, recreational and other compatible uses. On Tuesday, Blackwell said FDP has all the necessary permits to start demolition of the northernmost section of the larger of the two former Case buildings. He has a signed contract with Midwest Rail & Dismantling, or The MRD Group of Milwaukee, for the demolition. That building section is to be removed because it is in poor shape, the overall structure is larger than needed, and the demolition will create more space for a public thoroughfare along that section of riverfront. Blackwell said Tuesday that redevelopment plans for the building are starting to solidify: The latest plan is to build 100 market-rate, loft apartments inside the building, with a central courtyard and indoor parking for about 60 to 70 vehicles. The building will also contain commercial tenant space in the front, high-bay portion closest to Water Street. Future steps A situation with FDPs tenant, Miracle Products, located inside 900 Water St., has long postponed the start of construction activities and is still not completely resolved, Blackwell said. The tenant, which came with the building when FDP bought it, had bought an enormous quantity according to one estimate, 200 semitrailers worth of unsold, assorted merchandise out of a bankruptcy and has been storing it there. Although Miracle Products has technically vacated the premises, it abandoned what merchandise is left there. But Blackwell said the northern section of the building is empty and awaiting demolition. He said he hopes that can start in the next 10 days and I hope within the next four to five days. Now theyre doing all the things you do before you demo(lish), he said. Blackwell said the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources gave approval to collapse that building section. He thought the bulk of that could be done in about three weeks. Predesign takes about six months but it well under way, he said. The apartments will take about four months to build, he said. The current plan is to remove the buildings asbestos-containing exterior panels, Blackwell said, so they can be replaced by something truer to the original buildings look. But he said another option is to cover them with the final exterior materials. FDP is financing the project in part with $9 million in state historic tax credits, which are good until June 25, 2017. A U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development program is expected to provide $25 million to $30 million or more without the requirement of other HUD programs to build subsidized housing. Other funding sources will include investor and FDP money, environmental cleanup grant money, bank financing and the tax increment financing district the city created to help pay for basic infrastructure work. RACINE COUNTY A Franklin man arrested in a probe of theft from cars in Illinois has been charged with thefts in the Town of Norway and Caledonia and is suspected in similar crimes in five other counties, court records indicate. Travis Mcdade, 25, of the 2900 block of W. Southwood Drive, was charged on Monday with two counts of misdemeanor theft relating to two incidents from January in the Town of Norway. He was also charged on Friday with two counts of concealing stolen property stemming from a similar car break-in from December in Caledonia. According to the criminal complaint, Mcdade was arrested recently by the Lindenhurst, Ill., Police Department after allegedly committing thefts from vehicles in the area for about a month. Police said that based on the number of items obtained from Mcdade when he was arrested, he is suspected of thefts in Franksville, Waterford, Franklin, Oak Creek, Milwaukee and Brookfield, as well incidents in Kenosha County and Lake and McHenry counties in Illinois. Mcdade made his initial appearance Monday in Racine County Circuit Court regarding the Town of Norway thefts and had a $500 signature bond set, according to court records. He also had a $400 signature bond set when he made his initial appearance on Friday regarding the Caledonia incident. According to the criminal complaint, Mcdade allegedly broke into two cars in the Town of Norway in the early morning hours of Jan. 12. Police said he stole a wallet with a number of credit cards in it from one vehicle and used one to purchase $411.90 in gift cards at a Milwaukee Speedway gas station. He allegedly stole a GPS system and some cash from the second vehicle, according to the criminal complaint. In the Caledonia theft, Mcdade allegedly broke into a vehicle on Dec. 21, stealing a briefcase, a GPS system and USB cables, among other valuables, according to the criminal complaint. Police said Mcdade pawned the GPS system from this theft on Dec. 30. Each of the four charges filed so far against Mcdade are misdemeanors, carrying a maximum sentence of nine months in prison and fines up to $10,000. RACINE A Racine teen dropped his head down, fighting back tears, as a judge on Tuesday sentenced him to 10 years behind bars for shooting a 17-year-old boy in the chest last winter at the Corinne Reid Owens Transit Center in Racine Lamont C. Koker, 18, is one of two Racine teens accused in the shooting of the rival gang member, who reportedly has made a full recovery. Koker also was sentenced to 10 years on extended supervision in the Jan. 21, 2015, shooting that injured the then-17-year-old boy. Like pocket change you had a gun in your pocket; drugs in your pocket. In your young life you said youve been shot at at least 20 times in Racine and Chicago. You and (the victim) had exchanged gunfire in the past, Racine County Circuit Judge John Jude said. The cycle of violence must end. No one needs to die. Koker, who was charged as an adult, pleaded no contest on Dec. 14 to attempted first-degree intentional homicide. The charge is punishable by a maximum of 40 years in prison plus no more than 20 years on extended supervision. Assistant District Attorney Dirk Jensen recommended 15 to 18 years in prison plus 10 years on extended supervision for Koker, saying society must be protected from him. At 17 years old, hes lucky he didnt kill (the teen), Jensen said. He shot him in the chest. Defense attorney Patrick Cafferty called for four years in prison and six years on extended supervision, saying Koker doesnt fully understand his actions because of his youth. I think they, Mr. Koker and his friend thought this was a decent idea to go confront (the victim) ... and the harassment was going to stop. Koker had no prior criminal record, Jude said. He will receive credit for about 13 months already spent in jail, during which time he became a father. A second chance During the hearing, Koker said he was hoping for a second chance, and knows he was destined to do better. Im sorry for my actions and the hurt that I brought. I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me, he told the victims family. The teen didnt attend the sentencing and is in jail. But during the hearing, Kokers father, Jeremy Koker, of Chicago, also apologized to that teens relatives for his sons behavior, adding that his son doesnt deserve to be a throwaway case in society. Naceir M. Mayes, 16, also of Racine, is charged with attempted first-degree intentional homicide, possession with the intent to deliver marijuana and possession of a firearm by a felon in relation to the incident. He also is charged as an adult. While Koker and Mayes both are charged in the Case High School students shooting, Kokers bullet reportedly struck the youth, who is now 18. They reportedly fired at the teen at about noon on Jan. 21, 2015, in the area of bus terminal 3M at the Transit Center, 1409 State St., according to their criminal complaints. The teen was shot in the left lung area and received a graze mark on his sleeve. Mayes allegedly admitted that he and Koker are gang members and had conflicts with another gang to which the 17-year-old boy belongs, the complaints state. Koker and Mayes reportedly went to the bus terminal to confront the teen, knowing Case students rode that bus, the complaints state. Mayes is due back in court on March 11 for a bail bond hearing before his April 5 trial. RACINE An attempted homicide took place in the 1800 block of Franklin Street late Monday night, according to a Racine Police Department news release sent out Tuesday afternoon. Officers responded to a report of shots fired at about 11:42 p.m. Monday in the 1800 block of Franklin Street and found that a home had been struck multiple times by gunfire, police said. While they were processing the scene, officers learned that a victim, 19, had arrived at Wheaton Franciscan-All Saints hospital with a nonlife-threatening gunshot wound, according to the release. Police said the victim was stabilized at All Saints before being transported to Froedtert Hospital in Wauwatosa. According to the release, the occupants of the home reported no injuries when police arrived on scene. Police said they located several shell casings in the block. The release did not indicate possible suspects in the shooting or the gender of the victim. Investigators conducted a neighborhood canvas for evidence and witnesses, police said. Racine Police investigators are interested in any additional information that anyone may have about this crime. Any witnesses, or citizens with information are encouraged to call the Racine Police Department Investigations Unit at 262-635-7756. Those who wish to remain anonymous may contact Crime Stoppers at 262-636-9330, or text 274637 (CRIMES). Text message should begin with RACS. RACINE COUNTY With Ridgewood Care Center at a financial crossroads, a county task force will recommend to the Racine County Board the nursing home be sold. The facility, 3205 Wood Road, has seen rising costs and flat Medicaid reimbursements, which officials at a meeting Wednesday said essentially leads to two choices: sell or expand. The task force, comprised of more than a dozen Racine County officials, supervisors and residents, unanimously agreed to present a recommendation to county supervisors that the county hire a broker to facilitate a transfer to a new operator. County Board passage, however, is not assured. Supervisor Bob Miller, a member of the task force, said the board needs more information, including a look at business models of county-run nursing homes elsewhere in the state. Ridgewood is definitely a public asset, he said. Its got a great mission I can endorse ... I think theres more information that has to be garnered in this process. Cant punt Ridgewood Care Center, which opened in 1986, provides nursing care and rehabilitation services to about 177 residents. It has roughly 300 employees, about 200 of whom are county workers. Ridgewood does not take any tax dollars, though officials have warned that wont continue unless changes are made. The average daily cost per resident has gone up $60 over the last five years, yet Medicaid reimbursements have stayed the same, they said. The county has eliminated several positions through attrition and tapped into the centers reserves, which have dwindled to less than $500,000, to make up the difference. We cant punt anymore. That just cant be an option, said Racine County Executive Jonathan Delagrave, a former administrator at Ridgewood. We have heavy lifting to do. Id rather be criticized by people for something that we did, rather than be criticized by people for something that we never made a decision on. Task force members said now is an opportune time to sell the facility, while expanding could be costly. New construction could mean some $15 million in borrowing, Delagrave said. A central question is whether the county should be in the business of nursing homes, said Jean Jacobson, former Racine County executive and task force chairwoman. Ridgewood will continue no matter what the County Board decides, she added. Its not as if Ridgewood is going to go away, she said. Its going to stay there and its going to be a top-notch facility. Its just who is going to operate it. The task force will present its recommendation Monday to the Executive and Health & Human Development committees. The meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. at the Ives Grove Office Complex, 14200 Washington Ave. Withering on the Vine The Demographic Time Bomb is Most Marked in Japan The demographic time bomb whereby the elderly population assumes a greater and ... Government Sexual Libertinism Coming to a Government School Near You Further to our piece yesterday on the promotion of sexual libertinism in government schools, we rep... Some Random Observations The Aftermath of Mass Pre-Mediated Murder A few observations on the murder of 14 people in San Bernadino and the wounding of many more see... Letter From the UK (About State Tyranny) Ta-ta UK freedoms! Miranda matter outs vindictiveness of wounded police state Annie Machon is a former intelligence of... The Big One The Panoptican State Is Actually Operational Yesterday the "big one" dropped. The Guardian reported that the US and UK spy age... Fraud Central German Professor: NASA Has Fiddled Climate Data On Unbelievable Scale by James Delingpole BreitbartLondon A German professor ha... Statist Groupthink More and More Fashionable The Rise of Liberal Intolerance in America Edward Luce Financial Times I t ought to be a triumphal moment for American liberalism .... Vacuous Greenism Anti-Fracking Luddiocy Think of any technology that involves carbon based energy and its utilisation, and the lunatic fringe can be found ... "It is Finished": the Sixth Word from the Cross It is Finished: our Lords Sixth Word from the Cross What is history? That simple question covers a multitude of complexity, profundity... [JURIST] Amnesty International (AI) [advocacy website] on Wednesday released its Annual Report 2015/16 [text], a summary of an international survey of human rights concluding that short-term national self-interest and draconian security crackdowns have led to a wholesale assault on basic freedoms and rights. AI attributes much of this failure to a lack of accountability in the international system, as the UN and other intergovernmental bodies are largely unable to enforce human rights without the consent of the nations involved. In reviewing the status of human rights in 160 nations in 2015, AI stated that torture and violations of the laws of war continue to be prevalent and that governmental crackdowns on activists have increased. Millions of people are suffering enormously at the hands of states and armed groups, while governments are shamelessly painting the protection of human rights as a threat to security, law and order or national values, said Salil Shetty, Secretary General of Amnesty International. In sum, AI is calling on intergovernmental bodies to crackdown on international human rights violations, and on specific governments to respect the rights of their people. Last month, Human Rights Watch released a report [JURIST report] discussing human rights issues in more than 90 countries throughout 2015. World Report 2016, the rights groups twenty-sixth edition of the report, which spans 659 pages, includes short summaries of important rights topics before breaking down rights concerns by country. One major theme of this report is the treatment of refugees worldwide, especially those driven out of Syria by the Islamic State, calling Europes approach to refugees counter productive. The rights of migrant populations has emerged as one of the most significant humanitarian issue around the world, as millions seek asylum from conflict nations. In November UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon addressed [JURIST report] the UN General Assembly and cautioned the international community to avoid discrimination against Muslims, especially refugees and migrants entering Europe, as a result of the recent terrorist attacks in Paris a week earlier. Also that month Amnesty International analyzed [JURIST report] the EUs approach to the refugee crisis and recommends changes to ensure international law is followed and human rights are appropriately valued The Canadian Federal Court of Appeals has overturned [text] a lower court decision [text, PDF], holding that accused Nazi war criminal Helmut Oberlander cannot be stripped of his Canadian citizenship at this time. Oberlander was an interpreter for Einsatzkommando 10a [backgrounder], a Nazi death squad responsible for killing two million people, but it is unknown if Oberlander was acting under duress, and such a question must be resolved prior to his citizenship being stripped. The question of Oberlanders citizenship [The Star report] has been an ongoing issue for the Canadian government. Starting in 1995, Oberlanders citizenship has been revoked in a series of court decisions but a final decision resulting in deportation has never been resolved. The continued prosecution of Nazi party members has been an ongoing international problem. The US has designated that the Department of Justice Office of Special Investigations (OSI) [official websites] will handle cases aimed at denaturalizing or deporting former Nazis who participated in wartime persecutions. Over the past several years the US has questioned the citizenship of multiple suspected Nazi members and has begun criminal proceedings against many of them. John Hansl of Des Moines Iowa, Peter Egner of Washington, Anton Geiser of Pennsylania, John Demjanjuk of Ohio, and Johann Leprich [JURIST reports] have all had their citizenship placed under investigation and most are in the midst of criminal investigation. The 2011 conviction [JURIST report] of Demjanjuk in Germany may have emboldened German prosecutors to pursue cases against all those who materially helped Nazi Germany function. Israeli human rights groups HaMoked and BTselem [advocacy websites] released [press release] a report Wednesday detailing alleged mistreatment of detained Palestinians. The report, entitled Backed by the System [text, PDF], gives first hand accounts of abuse reportedly suffered by more than 100 detainees in at the Shikma Prison. The report found that many individuals were arrested at their homes after midnight, subjected to violence during transport, and often blindfolded until they reached the prison: Sleep deprivation, sometimes for days at a time; being bound hand and foot to a chair, with movement restricted for hours on end; being subjected to shouting, swearing, threats, spitting, and indignities; exposure to extreme cold and heat; little and substandard food; being denied the possibility to shower or change clothes for days and even weeks; incarceration in a small, foul-smelling cell, usually in solitary confinement, for many days. The above are some of the standard features of interrogation at the interrogation facility run by the Israel Security Agency (ISA) [official website] at Shikma Prison in Ashkelon, southern Israel. The groups further allege that the Israeli government and judiciary are not only aware of the conditions and practices of the facility but that they also support them. The report calls on Israel and its supporters to prevent further abuse of detainees and adhere to previous bans on torture as an interrogation tactic. Recent conflicts between Israel and Palestine [HRW backgrounder] over settlements in the occupied West Bank have raised concerns over possible human rights violations. UN Special Rapporteur for Palestinian Territories Makarim Wibisono [official profile] urged [JURIST report] Israel in February to address its use of excessive force against Palestinians and to charge or release all administrative detainees. Last month Human Rights Watch (HRW) [advocacy website] urged [JURIST report] businesses to cease operations in Israel settlements. In August UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon urged both sides of the conflict [JURIST report] to reconcile and move towards peace after an attack occurred in the West Bank village of Duma, where Jewish extremists allegedly set fire to a Palestinian home while the family slept. Last January Germanys top human rights official urged Israel to cooperate with the International Criminal Court (ICC) [official website] probe into possible war crimes in Palestinian territories. After a prosecutor for the ICC announced the investigation [JURIST report], Israels government said that it would not work with the ICC and called for its funding to be cut. [JURIST] The Oklahoma Supreme Court [official website] reversed [opinion] a lower court decision Tuesday, upholding a law that restricts use of medication abortion drugs. The Oklahoma statute [materials] restricted the use of Mifeprex and misoprostol, abortion-medication drugs that are generally taken in conjunction with one another, to only those uses in line with the FDA-approved final Mifeprex label (Mifeprex and misoprostol were limited to use up to 49 days and 63 days from the last menstrual period, respectively) and prohibited the use of another drug, methotrexate, except in cases of terminating an ectopic pregnancy. The plaintiffs had claimed [JURIST report] that the statute was in violation of the Oklahoma Constitutions [materials] non-delegation doctrine in giving credence to the FDA regulation on the drugs and the Article V, Section 59 [materials] presumption against creating special laws where general laws were applicable. The plaintiffs contended that upholding this law would prevent women from receiving the most current scientific evidence and advances in medicine. The court rejected the arguments, finding that the restrictions are reasonably and substantially connected to protecting women. This ruling highlights the contentious nature of the abortion issue in the US. Earlier this week Ohios governor signed a bill [JURIST report] that would purportedly cut state-funds to Planned Parenthood by $1.3 million. Earlier this month a federal judge in Louisiana ruled [JURIST report] that the state could not enforce a law granting admitting privileges to doctors performing abortions while the state is appealing a pretrial order against it. In November of last year the US Supreme Court [official website] granted certiorari [JURIST report] to decide whether a Texas law, which requires that clinics have similar facilities to surgical center, posed an undue burden on the availability of abortion on the state. The UN Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic reported [report, PDF] that the Syrian conflict has had an unyielding effect on civilians as it enters in its sixth year. A concerted and sustained international action [UN News Centre report] to find a political solution is needed [press release] to end the violence and grave violations of human rights, the report emphasized. The report states that Syrian men, women and children have remained as the primary victims and are often the object of deliberate attacks by the warring parties. The report maintains that Syrian society has been torn apart by the separation of communities through geographic divisions and violence. When locations have been placed under attack, the communities present in those locations have been separated from one another by checkpoints, front lines or ongoing clashes. Another example of the civilian toll of the conflict is the continued sieges of Rif Damascus, Idlib, and Dayr az-Zawr in which there are approximately 400,000 civilians trapped inside densely populated districts where food, water, medicine and electricity are scarce. With no procedures in place for safe medical evacuation, there are approximately five million civilians enduring an unremitting deterioration of basic living conditions. In the town of Madaya, Rif Damascus, government forces have used starvation as a weapon of war. Civilians and children have taken a huge toll in worldwide conflicts this past year. Earlier this month, Leila Zerrougui, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict released [JURIST report] her annual report on the situation of children in conflict zones from December 2014 to 2015. As at-risk groups, children have been direct or indirect targets of conflict. Earlier this month, Human Rights Watch said [JURIST report] that hostiles in eastern Ukraine had damaged or destroyed hundreds of school, many of which were being used for military purposes. Also this month, UN human rights experts in Nigeria urged [JURIST report] the government to guarantee the safety of areas liberated from Boko Haram. A recent raid resulted in more than 90 individuals, primarily women and children. Also earlier this month, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Raad Al Hussein, expressed [JURIST report] utmost alarm at the worsening situation in Syria and said that parties were constantly sinking to new depths attacking women, children, the sick and the elderly. In Flint, Michigan, children were poisoned [JURIST commentary] by drinking lead-laden tap water causing brain damage. In August, the UN reported [JURIST report] that the number of women and children being hurt or killed in Afghanistans war against the Taliban have risen by 23 and 13 percent, respectively. More than 200 members of Congress filed an amici curiae brief [text, PDF] in the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit [official website] Tuesday, challenging the authority of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) [official website] over regulations on carbon dioxide emissions. The Clean Power Plan (CPP) [materials] proposes an incremental decrease of power plant emissions by nearly a third as soon as 2030. The mostly Republican group of lawmakers argue that the agency is seeking to usurp the role of Congress to establish climate and energy policy for the nation. In addition, they allege that the EPA has failed to follow guidance by Congress, and has overreached its authority by promulgating a final rule for the nation energy sector. Earlier this month the US Supreme Court [official website] ordered that the Obama administration delay enforcement [JURIST report] of the CPP pending a resolution to legal challenges. The request to block the implementation of the CPP was made in late January, with states insisting [JURIST report] that the plans implementation would create a burden on states. In June the Supreme Court, in a 5-4 split, ruled [JURIST report] that the EPA could not make regulations regarding the toxic emissions of power plants without considering costs. 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 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! Yes, you can transfer your domain to any registrar or hosting company once you have purchased it. Since domain transfers are a manual process, it can take up to 5 days to transfer the domain. Domains purchased with payment plans are not eligible to transfer until all payments have been made. Please remember that our 30-day money back guarantee is void once a domain has been transferred. For transfer instructions to GoDaddy, please click here. Missing Tara Air plane with 23 onboard could have crashed in Myagdi's Rupse Missing Tara Air Viking 9N-AHH Twin Otter carrying 20 passengers and three crew members en route to Jomsom from Pokhara could have crashed in Myagdi's Rupse. Ankara blast: DNA tests suggest bomber born in Turkey The bomber behind a deadly blast in the Turkish capital Ankara was Turkish-born, security officials say, not from Syria as the government initially said. Bonded warehouse to be set up for aircraft spares The supplier of the problem-plagued Chinese aircraft in Nepal Airlines Corporations fleet (NAC) has agreed to set up a bonded warehouse to make spare parts easily available in Nepal, according to a government fact-finding committee report. Health facilities in Banke, Baridya face drugs shortage Health posts in Banke and Bardiya districts are reeling under acute shortage of essential medicines. Mormon polygamy sect leaders arrested over fraud allegations Eleven members of a polygamist Mormon sect have been arrested in the US on suspicion of food stamp fraud and money laundering. Mosquitoes to be sterilised with gamma rays Brazil is planning to fight the Zika virus by zapping millions of male mosquitoes with gamma rays to sterilize them and stop the spread of the virus linked to thousands of birth defects. So near, yet so far The question of Madhes lies at the heart of PM Olis visit to India Chances of finding Tara Air passengers alive slim: Nepal Army Nepal Army has said that the chances of finding the passengers on board the crashed Tara Air alive are very slim. US election 2016: Donald Trump wins big in Nevada Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has easily won the US state of Nevada, cementing his lead in the race for party nomination. 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 View Results Mike Dunleavy the governor of the US state of Alaska is intending to introduce legislation that will repeal the two state boards which regu... Another presiding officer has been kidnapped in Bukomansimbi putting the voting exercise to a standstill for almost an hour. The incident occurred at Kirinda polling station, in Kitanda Sub County, Bukomansimbi district when the presiding officer who is yet to be identified tried to block one of the NRM supporters from ballot stuffing. Trouble started when a group of NRM supporters led by Ibrahim Matovu attacked Kilinda Polling station with pre-ticketed ballot papers trying to stuff them into the ballot boxes. The attackers took the advantage of polling officers being alone at the polling stations since the voter turn up was very low. The incident came just after hours after another presiding officer at Mbale Kasansula Playground had also been kidnapped. It is alleged that Matovu and his team has also confiscated three ballot boxes from Lukaawa polling station and 3 more others from Kilinda polling station. This has prompted voters to become rowdy which has forced police to heavily deployed anti-riot police officers in Bukomansimbi. The Southern Region Police Spokesperson Ibin Ssenkumbi says that the situation has been contained adding that polling has resumed at the affected polling stations where it had stopped following the standoffs. Hajji Muhammad Kateregga one of the candidates told journalist shortly after the first incident that he is going to petition the electoral commission authorities to call off voting in all polling stations that have had such problems Bukomansimbi district returning officer Rashida Najuka says that polling has been extended up to 5pm to enable all people exercise their rights of voting their leaders. Ugandans today continue with yet another set of elections, this time to choose a Lord Mayor for Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA), District Chairpersons, Directly Elected Councilors and Women Councilors. Key among the elections to watch out for will be the Kampala mayoral race that will see Lord Mayor Erias Lukwago battling to retain his position. He is up against the NRMs Ragga Dee alias Daniel Kazibwe as his main challenger as well as Democratic Partys Issa Kikungwe. Lukwago will cast his vote at Wakaliga, Mbalwa polling station at 11am, while Ragga Dee is expected to vote at 9am from LC1 meeting place polling centre located at Kizungu zone Makindye division. In Wakiso district the main candidates aspiring for the L5 seat include DPs Matia Lwanga Bwanika the incumbent, Jonah Nsubuga and the FDCs Haruna Kyeyune. The incumbent Matia Lwanga Bwanika is expected to cast his vote at St. Jude Catholic Church Namulanda at 10am. Voting starts at 7:00am and closes at 4pm. However, the exercise is yet to kick off at many polling stations. In Kampalas Kawempe and Makindye divisions, polling stations are yet to open and polling materials were by 7:00am still being packed for distribution at the division headquarters. In Jinja polling materials have been delivered at Kakindu polling center and polling officials are all present but the exercise had not started by 7:30am because there were no voters yet. And in the city center, polling materials have been delivered at many polling centers like Nakivubo Blue and Railway Grounds but there are no voters yet. Story By Ruth Anderah & Benjamin Jumbe 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. The U.S. Army is touting a new and improved lubricant for small arms ranging from the standard M4 carbine to the M240 machine gun, officials said. Unlike the conventional "wet lubricant" known as CLP (for cleaner, lubricant and preservative), the new product uses a dry surface treatment known as durable solid lubricant, or DSL, according to a press release on Tuesday from officials at Picatinny Arsenal in New Jersey. The push to develop the new technology dates to 2003, when engineers realized soldiers were experiencing problems with weapon stoppages in sand and dust environments, including in war zones in Iraq and Afghanistan, if cleaning procedures weren't followed, the release states. The new durable solid lubricant developed by engineers at the U.S. Armament Research, Development and Engineering Center, or Ardec, uses a dry surface treatment that's applied during the manufacturing process and has the potential to improve performance on any number of small arms while decreasing maintenance, according to the release. Adam Foltz, an experimental engineer at the center, explained the differences in the technology. "With typical wet lubricants, soldiers need to reapply in order for the weapon system to function properly. Soldiers also have to regularly clean off carbon residue that builds up from firing and it can be tough to clean," he said in the release. "Our DSL has a high wear resistance and a low friction coefficient, so it's easy to clean off anything that builds up. You can use a steel brush to knock off any residue, and you don't even have to worry about reapplying anything." Doug Witkowski, a project officer at the Weapon Software and Engineering Center, said soldiers will appreciate the improvement. "I know that it [weapon maintenance] is not a glamorous topic and when you're briefing, there are higher profile technologies being briefed," he said. "But this is a high-tech innovation and they [the warfighters] will love it, when they get it." After 15,000 rounds of live fire testing, Picatinny engineers studied bolt and bolt carriers to understand the wear difference between using a standard liquid lubricant (right) and a durable solid lubricant. The standard lubricant showed a complete loss of phosphate on approximately 75 percent of the bolt carrier and 90 percent of the bolt. However, the durable solid lubricant showed less than 5 percent wear on the bolt and bolt carrier. (U.S. Army photo) What Readers Are Saying In searching for informative blogs on Korea, I came across Korea Report ... and found your writing to be informative and provided good analysis. - Jeff Dexter, Foreign Policy Association's US Diplomacy blog This is a great resource. - Victor Hsu, World Vision International I like the articles in Korea Report very much. I think these messages and articles are missing in the mainstream media. - Kuhn Seo, National Association of Korean Americans Congratulations! Korea Report is performing a very valuable service for all who love Korea and want to stay in touch. - Pharis Harvey, former director of the North American Coalition for Human Rights in Korea Korea Report is not only my best source of Korea news and thoughtful commentary, through its links it provides easy access to other resources, organizations and projects. Everyone interested in Korea should know about this blog, especially our policymakers. -Dorothy Ogle, National Committee for Peace in Korea My congratulations for the opening of this fantastic blog. Very nice! Perhaps this blog will come out best among blogs concerned with Korea. - Anonymous Iran's Mellat Bank plans to normalize operations of its branch in Seoul as early as next month following the lifting of sanctions on the Middle East country, a bank official said Wednesday. Last month, the U.S. and the European Union removed decades-long economic curbs on Tehran on the heels of its landmark deal on nuclear armaments with Washington. Since the opening of the branch in the South Korean capital in June 2001, Mellat Bank had supported bilateral trade and foreign exchange transactions, as well as the transfer of wages for Iranians working in South Korea. Its operations, however, were restricted in 2010 upon the international economic and financial sanctions against Tehran over its nuclear pursuit, with the bank carrying out limited won-based transactions. "We've been working to rebuild the necessary infrastructure to resume normal operations," said Kim Tae-gil, the head of the Seoul branch. The restoration of the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication system, a key platform for international transactions, will be completed within next week, which means it will be allowed to issue letters of credit and engage in the trade business, according to the official. "Discussions are also under way with the U.S. to establish the substitute settlement system using euro, as we cannot take U.S. dollars when trading with Iran due to separate sanctions by Washington, and we expect to reach positive conclusions within next month," Kim said. Following the lifting of sanctions, Iran's Persia International Bank has also been pushing to set up a branch in Seoul amid hopes for brisk bilateral exchanges. If given the nod, the Persia Bank, known as one of four major banks in Iran, would be the second Iranian bank operating in South Korea. (Yonhap) South Korea's ruling party on Wednesday strongly condemned a Chinese envoy's warning that the planned deployment of an advanced U.S. anti-ballistic missile defense system in South Korea could hurt Seoul-Beijing ties. Qiu Guohong, China's ambassador to Seoul, said Tuesday that the deployment of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system "could destroy bilateral relations in an instant." The remarks were made during his meeting with an interim chairman of South Korea's main opposition Minjoo Party of Korea. "The issue of THAAD deployment should be solely decided by the Republic of Korea (South Korea) from the perspective of national interests and the safety of our people," Won Yoo-cheol, floor leader of the ruling Saenuri Party, said during a meeting of senior party members. Qiu's public warning is in line with China's opposition to the system that Seoul and Washington says is purely defensive designed only to counter ballistic missile threats from North Korea. Still, China is concerned that the radar of the U.S. missile defense system could monitor military facilities within its borders. "(The envoy's) remarks were rude and unreasonable as they completely disregarded the sovereignty and the security of the Republic of Korea," Won said. Qiu said the THAAD deployment could undo progress made between South Korea and China, claiming that the THAAD deployment greatly influences China's national interests. The Saenuri floor leader further urged China to change its stance, saying that other countries besides China also have the right to their national security. "China operates missile technology that can even reach (the U.S. state of) Alaska," Won said. South Korea and the United States have delayed the launch of formal talks on the THAAD deployment. Some sources said the postponement was made at the request of the U.S. side, though no clear reason was given. (Yonhap) South Korea's ICT ministry said Wednesday it has decided to put off a project to launch another mobile carrier in the country, after its previous attempts made no headway due to lack of financially qualified bidders. Since October 2010, the Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Panning has opened bidding seven times with the aim of setting up a new mobile carrier. At present, the market is dominated by three players: SK Telecom Co., KT Corp. and LG Uplus Corp. The government's attempt is in line with its efforts to add more competition and bring down network subscription fees, which can benefit consumers. "For now, we will not receive further applications for a fourth mobile carrier, as we are not likely to promote the project," a government official said. "But this decision is not permanent." In January, the ministry announced the result of the seventh bid for the program, where three firms filed applications. There were no winners, as the ministry said all candidates "lacked credibility and viability for their fund-raising plans." Industry watchers also pointed out the government no longer needs to allow another mobile carrier, as the rise of mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs) already provide users with budget subscription plans. MVNOs refer to mobile service providers that rent networks from the country's three carriers. As this can reduce the cost of managing networks, the firms usually sell budget subscription plans through low-end smartphones. SK Telecom currently dominates South Korea's mobile network market, holding around 50 percent, followed by KT with around 30 percent and LG Uplus with 20 percent. (Yonhap) No Yes, a light case Yes, two or more light cases One serious case Two or more serious bouts Vote View Results Ken and Kathy Smith have opened Smith Family Furniture at 47 Copeland Ave., across from the Candlewood Suites hotel in La Crosse. Ken Smith, who has been involved in retail furniture businesses in the greater La Crosse area since 1980, said the new store opened last month. Its grand opening is under way. The store sells furniture for the entire house, such as living room and dining room furniture and beds. Free delivery is available within 100 miles, and the store also offers 12-months interest-free financing with approved credit. Hours are 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday. Smith Family Furnitures telephone number is 608-782-6288 and its website is www.smithfamilyfurniture.com. Classes begin March 7 at the new just drive drivers education school in Suite 180 at 1052 Oak Forest Drive in Onalaska. The business is owned by Dan Balfanz, who said it serves Onalaska and surrounding communities. He bought a franchise from just drive, a drivers education school that was founded in 2005 in Port Washington, Wis., and now has many locations in Wisconsin. Each is locally owned and operated. Balfanz lives in Onalaska and said he has many years of experience in the transportation field, which began when he was a school bus driver for 10 years. Most recently, he worked for the Wisconsin Division of Motor Vehicles as a driver license examiner. For more information, call just drive in Onalaska at 608-352-8585 or visit www.justdrivewi.com. Feb. 12 was the last day for the Wehrs Oasis cafe just south of Bangor. It had been slow (at the cafe) for the last few years, owner Larry Wehrs said last week. The cafe had been open from 6 a.m. to 1 p.m. While it did a fair amount of business from about 8 to 10:30 a.m., the number of diners during the noon hour had declined, Wehrs said. The cafe was inside his Wehrs Truck & Auto dealership, which sells used cars and trucks and services and repairs automobiles. The cafe began in 1978, when the Wehrs dealership moved to its current location from downtown Bangor. The Mega Co-op grocery store in Whitehall closed Feb. 20 and reopened last week as a Gordys Market. The Whitehall store had been operated by the Clipper family as Clippers Foodliner since 1964, until it was purchased by Eau Claire-based Mega Co-op last fall. In January, Chippewa Falls-based Gordys Market and Mega Co-op announced a deal by which Mega grocery stores would become Gordys Markets and Gordys Express convenience stores and fuel centers would become Mega Holiday stations. As for the Whitehall grocery store, Gordys spokesman Matt Selvig said, The only real big difference people will see are the Gordys items like our smokehouse meats such as bratwurst, snack sticks and hot dogs. The chains well-known Donna Mae line of pot pies also are available in the stores deli, Selvig said. For more information, visit www.gordys.com. Monday was the last day for the Happy Hollow restaurant and bar between Melrose and Ettrick. The business closed because of continued harassment by a few people, Traci Malin said Tuesday. She and her husband, Roy, bought Happy Hollow about 1 years ago. Happy Hollow is for sale, Traci Malin said. Weve had great customers apart from those who caused problems, she said. For more information, visit Happy Hollows Facebook page. TREMPEALEAU After 20 years teaching in the Arcadia and La Crosse school districts, Lyn Rolbiecki has completed the first year of her new career as owner of Wildwood Specialty Foods, a maker of soup and dip mixes and signature spice products in Trempealeau. Wildwood products are sold in several hundred specialty stores around the nation. While most of its sales are wholesale, consumers also can buy Wildwood products through the firms website and through telephone orders. Rolbiecki said she knew that owning a business would be a lot of work. I grew up on a dairy farm (near Richland Center), so I learned the importance of having a good work ethic, she recalled. And I was super busy as a teacher. This is a new challenge, Rolbiecki said of owning Wildwood. Its something new. My food background helps. I love cooking and baking. Rolbiecki received her bachelors degree in family and consumer science (known in earlier years as home economics) in 1995 from the University of Wisconsin-Stout. She also received a masters degree in educational technology in 2009 from Marian University in Fond du Lac. She taught family and consumer education in Arcadias middle school and high school before teaching the same subject from 2000 to 2014 at Central High School in La Crosse. Since 1996 Rolbiecki has lived in Trempealeau, where her husband, Troy, owns and operates Troy Rolbiecki Construction. She and the couples daughters, Brooke and Claire, are active in Trempealeau County 4-H. In Trempealeau, Rolbiecki came to know Cynthia Dunn, who had started Wildwood Specialty Foods in 1982. I decided to shift careers when Dunn agreed to sell the business to her, Rolbiecki said. She began working at Wildwood Specialty Foods in September 2014, to learn how to own and operate the business. She became the owner of Wildwood and the two connecting buildings it occupies in January 2015. I love the feel of the two buildings, Rolbiecki said. It feels very peaceful in here. And how can you beat the view of the river from here? Lock and Dam No. 6 is fabulous. Theyre a great team, Rolbiecki said of her five part-time employees. Theyre hard workers, fun and funny, and always help each other. It makes for a wonderful environment. Rolbiecki said she plans no major changes in the business and continues to sell the products that Dunn had developed. She does plan to begin developing some of her own products in Wildwoods kitchen, adding, I have lots of ideas. Wildwood offers several kinds of signature spice products. Some of the most popular are mulling spices that customers add to fresh cider, apple juice or wine; apple pie spice that buyers use to make such things as pies and muffins; and apple crisp mix. The two biggest-selling dip mixes are bacon, lettuce and tomato; and artichoke spinach, Rolbiecki said. Beer cheese is Wildwoods most popular soup mix variety, she said. Some of the other especially popular varieties are corn chowder, beef barley and tortilla. The summer and fall months are the peak production time at Wildwood, probably because consumption of its products peaks in the fall and winter months, Rolbiecki said. State Rep. Kathy Bernier (R-Lake Hallie) walked out of a Monday meeting with representatives of three local school districts, upset when an Eau Claire School Board member stated that Wisconsins economy compared unfavorably with Minnesotas. Fundamentally, Minnesota is beating us, said Wendy Sue Johnson, citing a Jan. 20 article written by state Sen. Kathleen Vinehout (D-Alma), who also attended the meeting. Our (school) funding formula is broken, Johnson added. Bernier then got up to leave the Breakfast with Our Legislators session involving the Chippewa Falls, Altoona and Eau Claire School Districts at the Avalon Hotel and Conference Center in Chippewa Falls. It is not helpful to compare Minnesota and Wisconsin, Bernier said, remarking that this is what she experiences with Altoona, Eau Claire and Chippewa Falls each time she attends the districts breakfast. Bernier later said she hears the same theme when she meets with representatives of the three districts: We want more money, we want more money and we dont like this or that. She compared that with her meetings with rural superintendents in her Assembly district, where she said she receives helpful suggestions. This vile political speech is not helpful, Bernier said before leaving. Johnson said she checked with other school board members to see if she had made an offensive comment by making the comparison. They didnt feel that I had, Johnson said. Its clearly disappointing when our representatives are not willing to engage in conversations about the issues. She thanked the two other Republican legislators, state Sen. Terry Moulton (R-Chippewa Falls) and state Rep. Warren Petryk (R-Eleva), for staying another 35 minutes to the end of the meeting and discussing issues. Sweeping partisan statements coming out of a non-partisan member just ticked me off, Bernier said. She was upset when Williams stated thar Minnesotas prison system was faring better than Wisconsin, because that wasnt on the agenda. This is not productive, Bernier said. I want to have a conversation on how we can work together to make a difference. She said she favors school choice, and hopes at some point the three local districts will accept that it is part of state law and work to make it better. Comparisons Petryk said some comparisons are worthwhile and some are not. He pointed out that Wisconsin has Milwaukee while Minnesota has two major metropolitan areas, St. Paul and Minneapolis. He said he was told by school officials in 1994 that the state school district funding formula was broken. Scrapping it might be an option, but I dont think so, Petryk said. Democratic state Rep. Dana Wachs of Eau Claire said: The bottom line is that we have a state thats being run on a theory (of tax cuts expanding the economy) and the theory doesnt work. Minnesota has a surplus, Wachs said. When you build a tax policy where you are not afraid of taxing the wealthy, thats what you can do, he said. The area school district representatives briefly talked about a bill that did not pass that would have prohibited districts from holding a referendum for two years after having a failed referendum. Petryk said he was against that bill. It will probably rear its ugly head in future terms, he predicted. Moulton, however, did not believe the bill was going to go anywhere. New tests Some school district representatives complained about having to give out three state standardized tests in three years. Having new tests makes it hard to compare results from year to year. Why are we doing this when we arent getting valid results anyway? Moulton asked. Eau Claire Superintendent Dr. Mary Ann Hardebeck said that every time the test changes, there is an additional cost to school districts. There doesnt seem to be financial support for supporting these changes, she said. Shortly after Monday mornings meeting started, Bernier noted that state Rep. Tom Larson (R-Colfax) was absent. Larson is recovering from chemotherapy he received Friday for lung cancer. Chippewa Falls Superintendent Dr. Heidi Eliopoulos also did not attend the session. She instead was part of an effort to console students at Chippewa Falls Senior High School after senior Joshua Pampuch was killed in a snowmobile crash Saturday. It is not helpful to compare Minnesota and Wisconsin. Rep. Kathy Bernier, 68th Assembly District A host of activities are planned to raise awareness about the role the National FFA Organization plays in the development of agricultures future leaders and the importance of agricultural education during National FFA Week. This years week runs from Feb. 22-27. The weeklong tradition, which began in 1948, was designated by the National FFA Board of Directors in recognition of George Washingtons legacy as an agriculturalist and farmer. FFA was founded by a group of young farmers in 1928. Its mission is to prepare future generations for the challenges of feeding a growing population. Founding members of the organization taught generations that agriculture is more than planting and harvesting that it also involves science, business and other areas. Today, FFA continues to help the next generation meet new agricultural challenges by helping members develop their own talents and explore their interests in a broad range of career pathways. Members progress to enjoy careers as biologists, chemists, veterinarians, engineers and entrepreneurs. FFA chapters use this week to help share the message of agriculture with their fellow students as well as with their communities. Its an opportunity to give back to their community through service projects and is also a time for members to recruit students to become new FFA members. During the week, the six national officers will visit chapters across the country. Western region vice president Sarah Draper will visit Maine, eastern region vice president Sydney Snyder will visit Montana, central region vice president Abrah Meyer will visit Kentucky, southern region vice president Abbey Gretsch will visit Rhode Island, secretary Nick Baker will visit Louisiana and national FFA president Taylor McNeel will visit Wisconsin. FFA Week also is a time for alumni and sponsors to advocate for agricultural education and FFA. Last Tuesday, the National FFA Foundation planned to celebrate Give FFA Day, a daylong campaign encouraging the public to support the various needs impacting FFA members. About National FFA Organization The National FFA Organization is a national youth organization of 629,367 student members as part of 7,757 local FFA chapters in all 50 states, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. The FFA mission is to make a positive difference in the lives of students by developing their potential for premier leadership, personal growth and career success through agricultural education. The National FFA Organization operates under a federal charter granted by the 81st United States Congress and is an integral part of public instruction in agriculture. The U.S. Department of Education provides leadership and helps set direction for FFA as a service to state and local agricultural education programs. For more, visit the National FFA Organization online at FFA.org, on Facebook, Twitter and the official National FFA Organization blog. About National FFA Foundation The National FFA Foundation builds partnerships with industry, education, government, other foundations and individuals to secure financial resources that recognize FFA member achievements, develop student leaders and support the future of agricultural education. Governed by a 19-member board of trustees comprised of educators, business leaders, individual donors and FFA alumni, the foundation is a separately-registered nonprofit organization. About 82 percent of every dollar received by the foundation supports FFA members and agricultural education opportunities. For more information, visit ffa.org/give. Jackson County went against the state trend in last weeks state Supreme Court race and backed challenger JoAnne Kloppenburg. Incumbent Justice Rebecca Bradley and Kloppenburg, a state appeals court judge, will move on to the spring ballot after the Feb. 16 election trimmed the three-way race. Bradley garnered 45 percent of the vote statewide while Kloppenburg received 43 percent. The other candidate, Milwaukee Circuit Court Judge Joe Donald, got 12 percent. Jackson County, though, supported Kloppenburg with 56 percent of the 1,642 votes cast in the race. Bradley received 37 percent, and Donald had 6 percent. The county did have six towns that voted in favor of Bradley and another where Bradley and Kloppenburg tied. Bradley, a former appeals court judge herself, was appointed to the Supreme Court by Gov. Scott Walker last October and has been backed by conservatives while Kloppenburg is being supported by liberals. The Spring Election on April 5 will coincide with Wisconsins presidential primary. The county saw a 10.2 percent voter turnout of estimated eligible voters, which isnt bad considering the judicial race was the only item most voters saw, according to Jackson County Clerk Kyle Deno. A few voters on the countys western side also weighed in on a primary for a Blair-Taylor School Board seat. I think we had a pretty good turnout for a spring primary with only the Supreme Court race and the Blair-Taylor school race, Deno said. The primary marked the first time Wisconsins voter ID requirement took effect in a statewide election. Deno said locally it went smooth, and her office may continue a campaign to inform voters that identification is needed to vote in future elections. (We had) no problems with photo ID we did not have any provisional ballots due to someone not having an ID, she said. Depending on timing I will see about getting more info out there. Jackson County UW-Extension will be part of a four-county service area under changes being made to the state organizations structure because of state budget cuts. UW-Extension and UW Colleges Chancellor Cathy Sandeen recently announced the current plan, which comes as a result of $3.6 million in state funding and was formed after feedback from Extension officials and the public. This process has made it clear that the state of Wisconsin depends on Cooperative Extension, and that the people of Wisconsin see tremendous value in our work, she said in a statement. We considered every single piece of input, and the directions were announcing reflect many of the ideas we heard. The plan will change Extension structure to multi-county areas staffed by local and regional positions while keeping an office in each county. Jackson County had been in a five-county area including Buffalo, La Crosse, Pepin and Trempealeau counties under the previous proposal. However, Jackson now will join with Buffalo, Pepin and Trempealeau to form one of the states 20 multi-county areas. Areas are anticipated to be staffed by an area leader, who will serve as an administrator for all the counties, and area educators who will work in all five counties and serve in multiple program areas across county lines. Two positions also are anticipated to work only in Jackson County, although exact details of their duties are not yet clear. The map is the map now, said Luane Meyer, Jackson Countys family living agent and local Extension department head. Staffing decisions will respond to the local needs that are in those four counties. Theres an emphasis on one size doesnt fit all, so what our four-county plan looks like will be different from neighboring multi-county groups because needs change and are different and population is different. Meyer noted the counties in Jackson Countys area have shared programming in the past, and that should assist moving forward, she said. I think our four counties have had a lot of cross-programming in the past, she said. So we have some really positive experiences of having programs with those other three counties. I think thats a plus. Agents likely still will have programs areas they have more expertise in, but they may need to broaden across program lines under the new model. Jackson County currently is staffed by family living, agriculture and 4-H youth development agents and a state nutrition educator, although the nutrition, support staff and other service program positions wont be affected by changes. It isnt currently known how Jackson County will be staffed when the reorganization takes full effect. Discussions about how to handle multi-county programming now can begin, Meyer said. Hopefully what were feeling comfortable with is we will be kept updated on the steps now that are being taken so we can share that information locally because more people are asking questions, she said. The current staff also are looking at how we will work within our multi-county areas and begin to have those discussions now that we know who our multi-county group is. Black River Falls Public Library is experiencing a strong increase in electronic material downloads as it mirrors regional and national trends. The BRF facility saw a nearly 55 percent increase in electronic book downloads from 2014 to 2015, which is more than four times the increase the regional Winding Rivers Library System experienced over the same period. BRF Library Director Tammy Peasley noted the purchase and sales of electronic books has leveled out across the nation as people may be looking for an option to find the materials that dont require a cost. We are serving many, many patrons with our print books, but to have that significant of an increase in electronic books I think is worth noting, she said. I think whats happening is those e-book users are now looking for and exploring more options for accessing those books and are coming to libraries to access them. I do see thats one of the needs that we have. The trend in electronic checkouts comes as the Black River Falls Public Library experienced a slight decrease in print circulation from 2014 to 2015, dropping from 98,869 to 97,379. Circulation among city of Black River Falls residents also saw a slight drop from 37,715 to 36,555, while county resident circulation saw a slight jump from 52,359 to 52,869. Peasley notes print circulation is the number used to calculate Jackson Countys contribution to the facilitys funding, the part of which also comes from the city of Black River Falls. Last years figures are used to determine next years budget allocations, and Peasley is expecting a slight drop in county contribution based on the formula for allocating funds. Even slight decreases in funding can have an impact on materials and programming, she said. I think what it does is it poses another challenge for libraries that we are fortunate to have additional county support, but fluctuating (funding) poses another challenge to provide consistent service, Peasley said. The Winding Rivers Library System includes libraries in Jackson, Monroe, La Crosse, Vernon, Buffalo, Trempealeau and Juneau counties and as a regional unit has seen slow and steady increases in electronic downloads and circulation. The system jumped from 122,211 in electronic print circulation in 2014 to 137,655 in 2015. Print circulation for 2015 hasnt yet been finalized, but checkouts of physical materials reached more than 2.68 million in 2014. Libraries are always going to provide information in the way people need it most, so libraries are certainly not tied to print on paper if we were, we would be long gone by now, said Kristen Anderson, Winding Rivers director. Libraries constantly change and provide information on tape, on CD, in print, in magazines, in newspaper forms. Libraries are in the business of providing information, and it really doesnt matter to us how its provided However people need information thats our business. The Black River Falls Public Library also has seen a consistent increase in visits since 2013, which means staff is regularly busy with assisting patrons in a variety of ways. As of late that has included some advice on using electronic devices where they can download electronic materials. The facility recently held a first-ever workshop on how to use electronic devices, including smartphones, where they can download the application to utilize the librarys electronic materials. Its likely one of many programs that will be planned to address technology needs, Peasley said. Were just going to do baby steps and start with (cell phone workshops), she said. Vicki Fisher, BRFs library services coordinator, said she believes print circulation will rebound, especially as the library continues its work to provide programming that responds to the interests and needs of the surrounding communities. More people visiting for programs will, in turn, mean more patrons checking out materials, she said. I just feel like its going to rebound, Fisher said. Im really excited about doing more programming and trying to find out what peoples interests are and needs and bringing more people to the library. I think the increase in circulation will follow thats my hope. Rep. Ron Kind is facing a challenge from his own party for the first time in a decade. Myron Buchholz, a retired high school teacher from Eau Claire, announced Monday that he is running against the 10-term incumbent in the Aug. 9 Democratic primary for Wisconsins Third Congressional District. A self-described peace activist and advocate for living wages, Buchholz said his decision to run was based largely on Kinds support for giving the president fast-track authority to negotiate the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a trade agreement opposed by organized labor groups. That is the issue that really pushed me into the campaign, Buchholz said. His support of the Trans-Pacific Partnership is an issue, and I think its going to be the major issue of the campaign. Buchholz, 58, said trade agreements such as NAFTA have not resulted in prosperity for the average American. Instead, wages have stagnated and more than 36 percent of Wisconsin schoolchildren now qualify for free and reduced-price meals. When our public school population cant pay full price for an already subsidized meal, something is seriously wrong, he said. Instead of more trade agreements, Buchholz said, he would favor moderate tariffs on imported goods. The American worker does not need a lot, he said. They just need a little bit of help. Kind has said trade agreements are key to accessing foreign markets and ensuring the U.S. has a say in making the rules. His campaign spokesman did not respond to messages left Monday morning. Buchholz, who said Sen. Bernie Sanders presidential campaign has energized the left wing of the Democratic party, also supports a $15 minimum wage and single-payer health care. Tim Dale, an assistant professor of political science at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, said Sanders success on the national level, combined with party disillusionment, may have inspired candidates who identify as Democrats to challenge incumbents from the left, much in the way the Tea Party movement. While Kind votes with his party 92 percent of the time, according to OpenCongress.org, UW-L political scientist Joe Heim said he has voted with Republicans on enough issues to make liberal groups unhappy. In November, Kind was one of 47 House Democrats to vote for a bill making it harder for Syrian refugees to enter the country. No Republicans have yet registered to run for the Third Congressional District seat in the November general election. Third District GOP chairman Brian Westrate said hes unaware of anyone planning to run for the seat in 2016. It will be Kinds first primary challenge since 2006, when he fended off Chip DeNure, a retired probation agent from La Crosse who advocated withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq. Kind received 82 percent of the votes in that race. Kinds campaign committee had more than $2 million in the bank as of the first of the year, according to Federal Election Commission records. Buchholz, who has yet to file a campaign finance report, said he will run a cheap and efficient grassroots campaign. Officials have completed the second and final round of elk trapping that will help add to Jackson Countys existing herd. Officials from Wisconsin and Kentucky trapped 40 animals that now will undergo a quarantine period before being transported back to the area of the Black River State Forest in Jackson County. The trapping comes as officials announced the local herd experienced two more deaths by wolves, dropping the current total in Jackson County to 15. The mortalities are certainly disappointing its something we always knew was a possibility, but we were hoping we wouldnt see it for a while, said Scott Roepke, a Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources wildlife biologist, who serves Jackson and Clark counties. The project certainly is not over. Were moving forward as best we can. Weve got a great group of elk currently in our quarantine pen in Kentucky, and we certainly think that is going to be a great benefit to the reintroduction. The elk in Kentucky will receive daily care and monitoring and the quarantine and health testing period before being taken to Jackson County in late March. The animals also will spend time in an acclimation pen in the state forest area where they will undergo similar monitoring before being released sometime in early summer. Officials from both states trapped 28 elk in Kentucky last year and brought 26 back to Jackson County where some died and others were born to bring the current number to 15. Elk were last seen in Wisconsin in the mid-20th century and werent again present in the state until a project reintroduced animals into Clam Lake more than 20 years ago. Wisconsin and Kentucky have a three-year trapping agreement, and animals captured next year will go to the Clam Lake herd. With two elk herds now on the landscape, the (DNR) and our partners will continue efforts to bring more elk to Wisconsin and, in the process, give the people of Wisconsin yet another reason to head into the outdoors and explore everything Wisconsin has to offer, DNR secretary Cathy Stepp said in a statement. This years trapping in Kentucky garnered 14 more animals than last years effort, thanks likely in part due to an earlier start, access to land with good elk population and good weather conditions. There are a lot of variables at play trying to capture wild animals things such as weather and access to private property play a role in it, Roepke said. We put forth a similar effort the last year using the same number of traps and working the same areas. Its just partly a matter of a little bit of luck and putting forth as much effort as possible. The recently trapped animals include a majority of females that officials hope are carrying calves to help bolster the herd even further. We are very happy with how things went in the second year of this project, DNR bureau of wildlife management director Tom Hauge said in a statement. The majority of this years class are females, including many adult cows that are likely carrying calves. This should bode well for herd growth during the early years of the project. Both Wisconsin and Kentuckys wildlife professionals worked extremely hard with the safety of the elk and staff as the top priority during the trapping effort. Roepke said the project, funded through private dollars, continues to receive strong support from its private partner organizations that provide assistance and donations. This project would not be possible without all of our partner support, he said. We would like to take the opportunity to tank them and show our appreciation for them to see this project through. The death of Justice Scalia places Supreme Court nominations as a prime election issue, as it should be. SCOTUS appointments are among the most enduring decisions of a president. Reagan appointed Scalia 30 years ago, and Scalia's decisions raise questions about the type of judge who replaces him. Dead or living? Scalia believed that the Constitution is a dead document, that it should be interpreted literally as it was written for its time. Should it instead be interpreted as a living document according to issues of our time? Courts or voters? Scalia voted to stop the Florida vote recount and selected George W. Bush as president. Should voters or the court select elected officials? Are corporations people? Scalia voted to permit corporations to spend unlimited funds on elections. This has enabled wealthy interests to flood the media with attack ads. Foreign-owned corporations can even spend money on elections. This is a curious decision because at the time the Constitution was written information for elections came from local sources. Are corporations equal to people? Or should citizens decide how to fund election of their representatives? Organizations or individuals? Scalia's decisions made it more difficult for individuals to bring cases to the Supreme Court. Should individuals have greater access to court consideration of their grievances? Should the president fulfill his constitutional responsibility and appoint a successor to Scalia, or should the opposition block the nomination? All of these questions and more are important issues for this presidential election. ST. LOUIS (AP) A Missouri jury has awarded $72 million to the family of an Alabama woman who died from ovarian cancer, which she said was caused by using Johnson & Johnsons well-known baby powder and other products containing talcum. The civil suit by Jackie Fox of Birmingham was part of a broader claim in the city of St. Louis Circuit Court involving nearly 60 people. Her son took over as plaintiff following his mothers October 2015 death at 62, more than two years after her diagnosis. Marvin Salter of Jacksonville, Florida, said his late mother, who was a foster parent, used the iconic talcum powder as a bathroom staple for decades. It just became second nature, like brushing your teeth, he said. Its a household name. A Fox attorney said the jury verdict Monday night, which came after nearly five hours of deliberations at the conclusion of a three-week trial, was the first such case among more than 1,000 nationally to result in a jurys monetary award. The jury said that Fox was entitled to $10 million in actual damages and $62 million in punitive damages. Attorney James Onder said he absolutely expects Johnson & Johnson the worlds biggest maker of health care products to appeal the verdict. The New Jersey-based company previously has been targeted by health and consumer groups over possibly harmful ingredients in items including its iconic Johnsons No More Tears baby shampoo. In May 2009, a coalition of groups called the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics began pushing Johnson & Johnson to eliminate questionable ingredients from its baby and adult personal care products. After three years of petitions, negative publicity and a boycott threat, the company agreed in 2012 to eliminate the ingredients 1,4-dioxane and formaldehyde, both considered probable human carcinogens, from all products by 2015. Spokeswoman Carol Goodrich said Tuesday that the New Jersey-based company was considering its next legal move. In a written statement, she said the verdict goes against decades of sound science proving the safety of talc as a cosmetic ingredient in multiple products, citing supportive research by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and National Cancer Institute. At trial, Foxs attorneys introduced into evidence a September 1997 internal memo from a Johnson & Johnson medical consultant suggesting that anybody who denies (the) risks between hygenic talc use and ovarian cancer will be publicly perceived in the same light as those who denied a link between smoking cigarettes and cancer: denying the obvious in the face of all evidence to the contrary. Talc is naturally occurring, mined from the soil and composed of magnesium, silicon, oxygen, and hydrogen. Its widely used in cosmetics and personal care products, such as talcum powder, to absorb moisture, prevent caking and improve the products feel. Nora Freeman Engstrom, a Stanford University law professor not involved in the Missouri case, said its unlikely the $72 million award will survive, noting that the U.S. Supreme Court, in a recent series of rulings, has maintained that appellate courts clamp down on punitive damages. Big jury verdicts do tend to be reined in during the course of the appellate process, and I expect that to be the case here, she told The Associated Press. The verdict Monday doesnt bode well for Johnson & Johnson as it faces at least 1,200 still-pending lawsuits and possibly thousands more, she said. This case clearly was a bellwether, and clearly the jury has seen the evidence and found it compelling, she said, concluding the jury was distressed by the companys conduct. CHIPPEWA FALLS, Wis. When state Rep. Kathy Bernier walked out of a regular meeting Monday with the Chippewa Falls, Altoona and Eau Claire school districts, she may have thought she was closing the door on the matter. But by the next day her actions had spread across the state, drawing plenty of reaction and some criticism. Bernier, R-Lake Hallie, said she would not change her decision to leave the Breakfast with Our Legislators event after an Eau Claire School Board member, Wendy Sue Johnson, began comparing the economies of Minnesota and Wisconsin. Bernier objected to that topic and a prior one, comparing the two states spending on prisons, because they were not on the agenda. She did look at our direction and said, This isnt about education. Im going to leave, said Chad Trowbridge, business manager for the Chippewa Falls School District. He thought the conversation was healthy and not directed at her. To have a reaction like that doesnt feel very positive, Trowbridge said. Bernier said she was taking exception to what she believed were partisan comments. Its worse than going to a dentist, going to these meetings, she said of the sessions with the three school boards. Bernier admitted that leaving the meeting might have been unusual and politically incorrect, but her actions have gotten peoples attention, and she believes that the next meetings between legislators and educators will stay on topic. Other people at the meeting had varying reactions to Bernier walking out. I felt it was very unfortunate that she felt that she had to (leave). It didnt serve anyone well, said Kathy Strecker, the lone Chippewa Falls School Board member to attend the meeting at the Avalon Hotel and Conference Center in Chippewa Falls. Altoona Superintendent Dr. Connie Biedron said, I thought it was inappropriate. I was kind of shocked that she was leaving. She added that Johnsons statements were not vile, the word Bernier used to describe the discussion. Biedron said was it good to talk with the Republican and Democratic legislators about school funding and other issues districts are facing. She said its easy from a political standpoint to say Republican Gov. Scott Walker doesnt want to raise taxes. But she said Walker is making cuts and forcing local districts to increase taxes. Hes trying not to take the blame for it, Biedron said. Democratic State Rep. Dana Wachs of Eau Claire, who was part of the legislative contigent at the meeting, was very surprised Bernier walked out, and said hes never seen anything quite like it. If we cant talk about these issues, how does policy get made? he asked. State Sen. Terry Moulton, R-Chippewa Falls, said he has taken away some good suggestions during meetings with local school districts. Bernier said she wanted to bring some positives to the meeting, including praising the work of Locust Lane School in the Eau Claire School District. Dont be so cynical about the state of Wisconsin and how were doing, because were doing great, she said. Wisconsin spends nearly as much per pupil, $11,071, as does Minnesota $11,089, according to figures released by Berniers office Tuesday. Wisconsins graduation rate far exceeds that of Minnesota, 88 percent to 79.8 percent, she said. In 2013, Wisconsin had the third-highest graduation rate in the nation while Minnesota ranked 27th. We are doing well. And I am so tired of hearing how bad we are, she said. From 3 p.m. Monday to 3 p.m. Tuesday: Police calls LA CROSSE 3:04 p.m., entry to dwelling, 900 block of Main St. 3:08 p.m., theft, first block of Copeland Ave. 5:31 p.m., fraud, 4600 block of Mormon Coulee Road 5:48 p.m., theft, 900 block of West Ave. S. 6:38 p.m., hit-and-run, Hwys. 157 and SS 9:06 a.m., damage to property, 400 block of Jay St. 9:49 a.m., 600 block of Fourth St. S. 12:03 p.m., entry to dwelling, 1500 block of St. Andrew St. 12:48 p.m., domestic disturbance, 700 block of George St. 1:44 p.m., domestic disturbance, 1600 block of Rose St. 1:46 p.m., fraud, 4500 block of Swamp Road 2:01 p.m., fraud, 400 block of Mississippi St. 2:35 p.m., damage to property, 1000 block of Fifth Ave. S. 2:46 p.m., fraud, 4100 block of Mormon Coulee Court ONALASKA 3:35 p.m., fraud, 1800 block of Main St. E. 4:41 p.m., theft, 6000 block of Prairie Drive 5:36 p.m., theft, 1100 block of 10th Ave. N. 9:45 a.m., theft, 400 block of Schnick Road 12:31 p.m., theft, 400 block of Sand Lake Road 2:09 p.m., fraud, 100 block of Sand Lake Road 2:43 p.m., fraud, 800 block of Second Ave. S. WEST SALEM 12:21 p.m., damage to property, 100 block of Rhyme St. Fire Calls LA CROSSE 4:47 p.m., first responders, 100 block of Church Drive 6:43 p.m., first responders, 500 block of Cass St. 6:55 p.m., fuel spill/leak, 5500 block of Old Town Hall Road 7:14 p.m., carbon monoxide report, 2100 block of Park Ave. 7:38 p.m., natural gas odor, 1100 block of 22nd Drive S. 8:21 p.m., first responders, 1000 block of Liberty St. 9:15 p.m., carbon monoxide report, 1700 block of Nakomis Ave. 11:49 p.m., first responders, 1200 block of Badger St. 2:40 a.m., first responders, 1200 block of Badger St. 4:14 a.m., vehicle crash with injuries, 1900 block of Madison St. 8:53 a.m., first responders, 1200 block of West Ave. S. 9:53 a.m., first responders, 600 block of Monitor St. 10:12 a.m., first responders, 2000 block of Ward Ave. 12:09 p.m., natural gas odor, 1200 block of La Crosse St. 1:01 p.m., first responders, 1200 block of Liberty St. 1:21 p.m., vehicle crash with injuries, State Road and Losey Blvd. S. 1:42 p.m., first responders, 1300 block of 30th St. S. 1:49 p.m., first responders, 2300 block of Prospect St. ONALASKA 4:15 p.m., first responders, 200 block of Ninth Ave. S. 5:03 p.m., vehicle crash with injuries, 1200 block of Crossing Meadows Drive 6:57 p.m., first responders, 600 block of Well St. HOLMEN 10:29 p.m., first responders, 1500 block of Flat Road 7:23 a.m., first responders, 300 block of Roberts St. E. 12:25 p.m., vehicle crash with injuries, 8300 Ducke Drive 2:28 p.m., first responders, 2200 block of Staphorst Lane WEST SALEM 1:12 p.m., first responders, 200 block of Garland St. W. BANGOR 11:31 p.m., first responders, 1400 block of Hwy. B TOWN OF SHELBY 7:25 a.m., power line down, Chipmunk and W Werner roads 7:42 a.m., structure fire or alarm, 4300 block of Hwys. 14/61 MADISON The Senate sponsor of a bill barring cities from enacting so-called sanctuary city policies says his Republican colleagues would pass the measure if Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald lets it come to a vote. Sen. Steve Nass urged Fitzgerald, R-Juneau, to do so in a Monday statement. Fitzgeralds office said Friday that the bill is not a priority for passage in the waning weeks of the 2015-16 legislative session. Nass, in his statement, noted Assembly Bill 450 has broad support from Wisconsin law enforcement. State associations for police chiefs and sheriffs have registered to lobby in favor of the bill. It would be a terrible mistake for the Senate to avoid addressing this public safety issue, said Nass, R-Whitewater. AB 450 is strongly supported by Wisconsins law enforcement community. Nass spokesman Mike Mikalsen, said Monday that Nass has not counted enough votes to be sure the bill would pass. But Mikalsen said Nass is confident of the bills Senate prospects based on conversations with some senators as well as the bills showing last week in the Assembly, where it passed 62-35. Sen. Duey Stroebel, R-Saukville, echoed that call with his own statement Monday. Stroebel said the bill should be on the agenda when the Senate convenes for whats likely to be its final session date in March. The safety of Wisconsinites should be our top priority on our last floor date, Stroebel said. Senate passage is all thats keeping the bill from landing on Gov. Scott Walkers desk. A crowd estimated at 20,000 gathered in and around the state Capitol on Thursday to protest AB 450 and one other bill as part of the A Day Without Latinos and Immigrants in Wisconsin rally. Supporters of the bill say it would bar a few local law enforcement agencies they have singled out Madison, Racine and Milwaukee County from declining to cooperate with federal immigration officials. The bill prohibits municipalities from adopting or enforcing policies, resolutions or ordinances that bar police from asking a person about or that bar them from exchanging information with federal officials about the immigration status of someone charged with a serious crime. Cities that fail to comply with the law would see their state aid reduced for each day theyre not in compliance. Opponents of the bill say it infringes on local control and could lead to racial profiling and less safe communities. Madison officials, including Police Chief Mike Koval, dispute the sanctuary label being applied to Madison. Koval has said Madison police will cooperate with federal immigration officials in cases where people are arrested for serious crimes. ROCHESTER, Minn. The Rochester Police Department has put an officer on leave while it investigates allegations he posted an image on his Facebook page of a car running over protesters and another that talked about shooting Muslims in the face. Rochester Police Chief Roger Peterson said officer Ben Schlag was put on paid administrative leave Friday after the police department was contacted about the posts. Schlag is in the departments investigative unit. He has been with Rochester police for five years. Reached by phone, Schlag referred all questions to the police department. The letter alerting the Rochester Police Department and Mayor Ardell Brede came from a group called Me to We Racial Healing. Nobody would look at that and say Gee, this officer is clearly going to respect me if he pulls me over, said Andrea Morisette Grazzini, the groups founder and CEO. Grazzinis Minnesota-based group began by explaining the history behind civil disobedience and street activism in online discussions about race. This is been a group that came out of us seeing a lot of racism online and some really brutal, ugly stuff, and trying to de-escalate, she said. But when Jamar Clark was fatally shot by Minneapolis police last November, and watching the protests that followed, Grazzini said her group decided to take a different approach. When this was all happening, we just looked at ourselves and said, Were not getting anywhere. There is violence happening and its flooding from online into real life, human environments, into the occupation or into activist protests and so forth, she said. Were failing in our efforts to talk people down. Grazzini said that when members of the group find online comments that are racist, she reports them to employers both public and private. Shes sent over 70 letters so far to employers nationwide including Best Buy and Target. Two police departments in Minnesota and the Department of Corrections are among employers who received complaints. Grazzini said its hard to strike a balance between a mission to de-escalate versus actually creating more tension by bringing those online posts to light. She said she copied Gov. Mark Dayton on the letter about Schlag, because the post appeared at time when the governor is talking about closing racial disparity gaps. The group doesnt typically ask employers to fire people. But they did in the case of St. Paul police officer Jeffrey Rothecker when they saw a historical pattern showing discrimination. Rothecker allegedly urged drivers to run over protesters during a Martin Luther King Day march. Rothecker has apologized for the posts and resigned last week. Viterbo University President Rick Artman has decided he is ready to step down from leading the institution. He announced Tuesday he plans to retire in June 2017. The search for choosing his successor is in its beginning phases. Artman has more than 22 years of experience running private colleges and universities, nearly 10 of them at Viterbo. Im still in good health, said Artman, who will turn 68 in a few months. My wife (Joan) and I want to spend more time with our children and grandchildren. Artman came to Viterbo in 2006 from Sienna Heights University in Michigan, succeeding Bill Medland, the universitys longest-serving president, under whom enrollment and the schools endowment increased, and the campus saw significant capital projects. Artman followed suit with the completion of a $42.5 million capital campaign. He oversaw the construction of the universitys school of nursing center and Clare Apartments, and he collaborated with the La Crosse Community Theatre on the Weber Center for the Performing Arts. He also grew the universitys endowment from $24 million to $44.5 million and implemented new programs, such as mission seminars to reinforce the Franciscan identity of the university. No president does these things by him- or herself, Artman said. It takes a lot of outstanding people to make it work and make it gel. It has been really a team effort. Artmans focus on collaboration included relationship with his colleagues at La Crosses two other higher ed institutions. Western Technical College President Lee Rasch said his school has always had a good relationship with Viterbo, but under Artmans tenure, it went up a notch. Artman was passionate about making sure Western students could transfer credits to Viterbo, Rasch said, and collaborating on tri-campus projects with Rasch and his counterpart at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, Joe Gow. Artman also was a proponent of neighborhood revitalization in La Crosse. Viterbo has been a big influence on our community, Rasch said. A lot of that credit goes to Rick Artman and his leadership. UW-Ls chancellor knew Artman before Gow came to La Crosse in 2007 both spent time in leadership roles at Nebraska Wesleyan University and the Viterbo leader was the first to reach out and congratulate Gow soon after he was selected as chancellor. President Rasch was the second. That was the beginning of a great relationship with the three of us, Gow said. I always joke we are the three amigos. Artman has acted as a mentor, Gow said, giving him advice on leading a university as well as time management and setting priorities. Viterbo has done very well under Artman, Gow said, complimenting Artmans efforts to grow the endowment, build the new nursing center and collaborate on the Weber Center. Sister May Ann Gschwind of the Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration was chairwoman of Viterbos board of trustees from 2004 to 2012 and led the search committee that hired Artman. She said his experience in leadership roles and his enthusiasm were two of the things that impressed her. She said Artman exemplified the ideals of servant leadership and is tuned in to people. He can name everyone on campus, she said, and on a trip from his office Tuesday morning he greeted many students and staff by name on his way to the nursing center. Tangible things are easy to point out, Artman said. But it is the intangibles that make all the difference. When a nurse graduates from here and saves a life or helps a grieving family, that has an indescribable impact. If a teacher graduates from here and inspires a child, that makes a difference. It is our graduates who make a difference in the world. I feel blessed to be a part of that, and it is more important than the buildings built and the funding raised. MADISON In the wake of the shooting death of a Madison woman whose alleged killer says he bought his handgun only a day before he used it, some Republican leaders contend there isnt enough time this legislative session to consider a Democratic bill to reimpose a 48-hour waiting period for handgun purchases. Fewer than seven weeks remain before the Legislatures final general business floor period ends, according to the official 2015-16 legislative schedule. Assembly Speaker Robin Vos has said he was hoping to cut the cord in his chamber by the end of this month. Time constraints are by far the best excuse Republicans could have come up with for dodging the 48-hour waiting period bullet even if they wouldnt necessarily admit to why. It doesnt take long to suspect the sessions impending end isnt the real reason time is on the side of the party that controls state government. It was only 14 days from introduction to enactment for Wisconsins right-to-work law last year, after all. It took a little more than two months to enact a law to dismantle the states nonpartisan elections and ethics agency, the Government Accountability Board. A bill that would bar county executives from simultaneously holding legislative seats has already been approved by the Legislature, only 13 days after introduction. The wrap-up 2015-17 budget bill amendment, known as a 999 motion, was revealed just a few hours before the Legislatures budget committee voted to pass it, and 10 days before Gov. Scott Walker signed off on the 2015-17 budget. It included a panoply of non-budget-related items, including an ultimately failed attempt to rewrite the states open records law to severely curtail public access to government records. When a state is controlled by one political party, state government can make big, controversial changes at lightning speed if it has a mind to. Besides, its not like the Legislature would need to start from scratch or do a lot of research on any bill to impose the waiting period. Before Republicans killed it last year, just such a waiting period was on the books for 39 years. All lawmakers need to do is pull it out of the trash and clean it up a bit. No, the real reason time is on Republicans side is that time heals most wounds or at least makes people forget them. Take the immediate aftermath of the Sandy Hook shootings, for example. After 20 first-graders and six adults were gunned down in December 2012, polls showed more people favoring gun control. It took only a few months for that support to erode. Id be surprised if state Republicans arent aware of this dynamic. Wisconsinites who generally dont pay attention much to gun laws or dont have really strong feelings about them are going to be more sympathetic to reinstating the waiting period now, not next year. People forget, emotions level out, NRA lobbyists are deployed and life goes on. Nevertheless, I thought two lawmakers in particular might be amenable to taking up the banner of reinstating Wisconsins waiting period after 24-year-old Caroline Nosal was shot and killed Feb. 2 in the parking lot of a Madison grocery store. Sen. Kathleen Vinehout was the only Democrat on record to consistently vote with Republicans to advance the bill that repealed the waiting period last year. The bill itself was passed on a voice vote, with no official tallies of ayes and nays. Rep. Mary Czaja, a Republican who supported last years repeal, made a point of saying the repeal would allow women to more easily get the weapons they need to protect themselves against stalkers or domestic abusers. It appears in the Nosal tragedy that something like the exact opposite happened. Who better to champion a waiting period than a bipartisan duo of female lawmakers who worked against the policy but might have since seen the light after coming face-to-face with the reality of a murdered young woman? Alas, neither Vinehout nor Czaja responded to my requests for comment. I wish GOP lawmakers would just dispense with the diplomatic excuses and be honest. Theres no guarantee Nosal would still be alive if the waiting period hadnt been repealed, they could say, and in the absence of such certainty, the theoretical possibility of a life saved is not a good enough reason to make people wait 48 hours for a gun. For now, I almost feel sorry for them. A telegenic young womans murder can plausibly be tied to a law they passed as their political opponents and, worse, the victims parents are only too ready to point out. Its a public relations nightmare. Of course, I dont feel nearly as bad for Republicans as I do for Caroline Nosals family and other loved ones, who will be feeling her loss for a lot longer than the next legislative session. Some of the UW-Madison students who serve food in dining halls, staff the desks at campus libraries, work in research labs or lead class discussion sections will soon see bigger paychecks, campus officials announced Tuesday. Starting next fall, the minimum wage for student employees will increase from $7.25 to $9 per hour, the university said, while graduate assistants, whose work includes teaching and research, will see a 2 percent pay raise starting in July. Its unclear how many of the more than 10,000 student employees at UW-Madison will benefit from the change spokesman Greg Bump said 44 students made $7.25 per hour as of October 2015, and 2,571 were paid less than $9 an hour. Bump said increasing the minimum wage is expected to cost $550,000 each year. He added most students work for the campus auxiliary units, such as UW Housing or the Wisconsin Union, which use their own revenue not state funding from tax dollars to pay employees. Raising the minimum hourly student wage to $9 will hopefully provide an extra financial cushion, help them pay for their own education and reduce their reliance on loans, Chancellor Rebecca Blank said. The pay increase for graduate assistants a category of employees that includes teaching, research and project assistants shows UW-Madison is committed to paying competitive wages to those workers, campus officials said in a statement announcing the raises. But Sergio Gonzalez, co-president of the Teaching Assistants Association, said that even after the raise, pay for graduate assistants at UW-Madison will still lag the compensation for those at competing universities such as Minnesota, Michigan, Illinois and California-Berkeley. Because of increases in the cost of living, health care and student fees, the TAA estimated UW-Madison would have had to raise pay by nearly 14 percent in order to give graduate assistants a stipend with the same buying power as the one they had in 2002, Gonzalez said. While a 2 percent raise is better than nothing the wages that were at right now are nowhere near competitive with other universities, Gonzalez said. Pay for graduate assistants varies by position, but once the raises are in effect will be based on a full-time rate that ranges from $31,297 per year for a standard teaching assistant or program assistant, to $44,162 annually for a research assistant working year-round. Gonzalez pointed out assistants only make a certain percentage of that income, however, based on their appointment at the university. UW-Madison currently limits graduate assistants to 75 percent of full-time, meaning the most they can make in a year ranges from $23,473 to $33,121. UW-Madison is also working on several major changes to how it pays graduate assistants, one of which would reduce the maximum appointment to 50 percent of full time. The new policy, which is set to go into effect in May 2017, would also allow schools and departments that have the money to give graduate assistants bigger stipends. Administrators say the policy will allow for more competitive pay for in-demand graduate assistants, but the TAA says it could lead to unequal pay across different fields of study. We want to thank the excellent family physicians and their colleagues in La Crescent who have graciously and effectively served as teachers for medical students from the University of Minnesota Medical School, Duluth campus, over the past year. Dr. Peter Franta has been the primary mentor for Kathryn Loppnow over the past two years. The Rural Medical Scholars Program (RMSP) began in 2010 at the University of Minnesota Medical School, Duluth campus, and has had more than 350 students participate in the past six years. During this time, Dr. Franta has hosted our student for five separate weeklong visits. Each visit has been vital to our students education, giving them hands-on experience and exposing them to the joys and challenges of working in rural medicine. We want to send a special thank you to all of the patients who met with our students. You have helped to educate our students. In order to best train the next generation of young physicians for La Crescent and the surrounding countryside, a partnership with you is crucial. These partnerships show our young professionals that your community has exceptional care and is an excellent place to live and work. Thank you from all of us at the Duluth campus of the University of Minnesota Medical School. Our students are your students and our successes will be yours, as well. We look forward to our continued partnership and having many of our students practice in La Crescent in the future. Police arrest man on suspected 12th OWI GREEN BAY Green Bay police have arrested a man on his suspected 12th OWI offense. Police say they found 59-year-old Patrick Moore of Denmark, Wisconsin, in his vehicle about 1:30 a.m. Tuesday. While investigating, police found Moore had 11 previous operating while intoxicated convictions. WISN-TV reports police also learned Moore was the registered owner of the car. Moore was charged Tuesday in Brown County Circuit Court with a felony OWI of 10 or more. He also was charged with driving with a revoked license, a misdemeanor. Online court records do not list a defense attorney who could comment for Moore. Donald endorses Kloppenburg for Supreme Court MILWAUKEE The candidate knocked out of the race for a seat on the Wisconsin Supreme Court is endorsing Court of Appeals Judge JoAnne Kloppenburg. Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge Joe Donald announced the endorsement Tuesday. Donald says Kloppenburg shares his commitment to equal justice under the law, to an independent judiciary and to ensuring the Supreme Court is the peoples court. Kloppenburg says Donald raised some critically important issues during the primary and will work with him on criminal justice reform and racial disparities. Incumbent Rebecca Bradley finished the primary with 45 percent of the vote, compared to Kloppenburgs 43 percent. Donald had 12 percent of the vote. Voters will choose a Supreme Court justice on April 5. DNR investigating Grant County fish kill MADISON A newspaper is reporting that a manure spill at a factory farm has led to a fish kill in Grant County. Mark Cain, a Department of Natural Resources wastewater engineer, told the Wisconsin State Journal that a pump at Misty Morning Dairy near Fennimore failed Wednesday night and pumped manure from a storage pit onto the ground and into Castle Rock Creek, a Class II trout stream, two miles away. Nearly 50 dead trout have been found in the stream since the pump malfunctioned. DNR officials plan to conduct population surveys in a few weeks to determine the full size of the kill. Cain says the DNR is investigating whether the farm violated its operating permit. Police looking for driver who killed pedestrian MILWAUKEE Milwaukee police are looking for a driver who struck and killed a pedestrian on the citys south side. Authorities say a 35-year-old man was crossing a street against a Dont Walk signal when a truck sped up to beat the light and struck the man. Police are looking for the driver of a newer-model, white pickup with a black cargo rack that was carrying ladders. Trial begins for man accused of killing wife in 1984 STEVENS POINT The trial of a man accused of killing his wife in central Wisconsin in 1984 has opened. Stevens Point Journal Media reports 56-year-old Joseph Reinwands trial began Monday. Hes serving life in prison for the 2008 shooting death of his daughters ex-boyfriend, Dale Meister of Wisconsin Rapids. Reinwand is accused of shooting his 19-year-old wife, Pamela Reinwand, at their home in Plover in May 1984. His wifes case was originally ruled a suicide and was reopened after police discovered new evidence while investigating Meisters death. 2 people killed while racing cars MILWAUKEE Police say two young people have died in a street race in Milwaukee. Authorities say a 17-year-old girl and a 23-year-old man were killed when their car left a northwest side street and collided with a tree about 10:30 p.m. Monday. Investigators say the man was driving and was racing another car before he lost control. Both victims were pronounced dead at the scene. Lawmakers push bill easing path for short-term rentals MADISON (AP) The Wisconsin Senate could soon vote on a bill that would curb local regulation of rental sites such as Airbnb, limiting local governments ability to cap the duration or frequency of rentals that last seven days or longer. Airbnb, HomeAway, FlipKey and other websites allow people to rent out rooms, apartments or houses worldwide for short-term stays. Local Wisconsin governments such as Madison, Bayfield and Walworth County have taken steps to regulate or limit such rentals due to concerns over security and the housing market. In Madison, they are designated as tourist rooming houses and must be the primary residence of the operator. The ordinance limits the number of rental days when the operator isnt there to 30 per year. Under the bill from Rep. Scott Allen, R-Waukesha, municipalities couldnt limit the duration or frequency of stays lasting 28 days or longer. For stays lasting seven to 27 days, local governments could cap the total number of days at no less than 180 in a year. You can regulate short-term rentals, but you cant just say no, bill author Rep. Scott Allen, R-Waukesha, said of the intent of the bill. Student arrested after students stabbed at Canadian school PICKERING, Ontario A 14-year-old female high school student is in custody after eight people were stabbed at a high school east of Toronto, police said Tuesday. All the injuries are minor. Durham Regional Police Sgt. Bill Calder said officers were called to Dunbarton High School in Pickering, Ontario, Tuesday morning after a report about a female waving a knife around. He said six students and two staff members sustained minor injuries. Calder said four people were taken to a hospital with minor injuries. Students described running from a girl brandishing two kitchen knives careening down the hallways of the school. Kristina Petrovska, 14, said she came face-to-face with the suspect, who slashed the knives at her. I just ran for my life, the girl said. I just cant believe it happened. She almost got me. Ramon Castro, Cuban leaders older brother, dies at age 91 HAVANA Ramon Castro, a lifelong rancher and farmer who bore a strong physical resemblance to younger brother Fidel Castro, has died, Cuban state media announced Tuesday. He was 91. Widely known by his nickname Mongo, the white-bearded Ramon Castro preferred tending crops and livestock to the revolutionary political life embraced by his younger siblings Fidel and Raul, who replaced Fidel as Cubas president in February 2008. Two years older than Fidel, Ramon was long used to getting double-takes from people who insisted he looked just like his famous brother. At times, Ramon was said to reply that because he was older, Fidel actually looked like him. Ramon, Fidel and Raul were the second, third and fourth children of Angel Castro, a Spanish-born rancher, and his second wife, Lina Ruz. Angel Castro also had two other children from a previous marriage. US citizen found dead in northern Dominican Republic SOSUA, Dominican Republic A U.S. citizen who worked for more than a decade as a reporter for The New York Times was found dead at her home in a northern beach town of the Dominican Republic, officials said Tuesday. The body of Sarah Kershaw was found Monday at her apartment in Sosua, where she moved with her husband, William Norton, in 2014. Norton was being questioned about her death, said Osvaldo Bonilla, a prosecutor for the province of Puerto Plata. An initial police statement said Kershaw appeared to have died from asphyxiation, but Bonilla said a cause of death had not been established. He said an autopsy was expected to take several days and authorities had not ruled out suicide or homicide. We are waiting for the final forensic report to determine the real cause of the death, Bonilla said. Western Technical College and the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay signed an online transfer agreement Feb. 18, giving Western students expanded educational and career opportunities. The agreement provides a seamless opportunity for students to earn either a 36-credit certification or 61-credit advanced certification online at Western and transfer directly, with sophomore or junior status, into an online bachelors degree program in Integrative Leadership Studies at UW-Green Bay. According to Western Technical College President Lee Rasch, the online program caters to working adults, allowing them to stay regionally and earn a bachelors degree from a reputable four-year university. This is another opportunity for Western to help with the projected skilled worker shortage by providing an additional pathway to higher education, Rasch said. Its a chance for adults to build the confidence to go back to school and ultimately change their lives. This agreement has been in the works for over a year, said Doug Strauss, dean of General Studies at Western. We put a lot of thought and consideration into finding ways to better serve our non-traditional students. Christina Trombley, interim dean of outreach at UW-Green Bay emphasizes the uniqueness of the agreement. It recognizes the value of the education and experience that technical college students bring with them. We are a proud partner with the Wisconsin Technical College System and believe transfer agreements create alumni that both institutions can be proud of. For more information about this transfer opportunity, contact Western Technical College at 608-785-9553, or visit the website at www.westerntc.edu. For more information about online programs and services at UW-Green Bay, call 920-465-2423, email adultdegrees@uwgb.edu or visit the website at www.uwgb.edu/adults. Every once in a while, someone posts a picture of a barricade engagement on an angle-deck carrier and refers to it as the barrier. Sometimes I comment th... 1 week ago You have the power to keep local news strong for the coming months. Your financial support today keeps our reporters ready to meet the needs of our city. Thank you for investing in your community. Start your day with LAist Sign up for How To LA, delivered weekday mornings. Subscribe "Useless Sea" is a short video from filmmaker Frank Tabouring featuring a series of gorgeous and haunting shots of the Salton Sea and the ruin that surrounds it. Tabouring attempts to find the beauty of the area despite the decay, and also touches on the Salton Sea's fragile ecosystem, and how it's "a peculiar place in desperate need of relief" to ensure it survives. The Salton Sea, located about 180 mile east of Los Angeles, was accidentally formed in 1905 when engineers at the California Development Company dug irrigation canals from the Colorado River not the Valley. They cut into the bank of the river to avoid silt buildup, but the water breached the canal and turned a formerly dry lake bed into what we now know as the Salton Sea. The Salton Sea enjoyed resort tourism in the 60s and 70s, but failed to fully develop. What's left of the lake is extremely salty and doesn't always smell particularly pleasant, plus there are masses of dead, rotting fish that were unable to survive the salinity of the lake. However, if the lake disappears completely, we could be facing a major dust problem. L.A. adventurer Tom Carroll also explored this issue further in a video he released via his YouTube series, Tom Explores Los Angeles, last year. The Beat is New Mexico!---Do we have to be stuck at the bottom of the barrel?--- Perspectives from Southern NM and the border region Wednesday, February 24, 2016 The University of Hawaii William S. Richardson School of Law recently celebrated the 25th anniversary of its Elder Law program with a half-day educational program for the public on veterans rights. The program included a question and answer session with the Honorable Coral Pietsch, a judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (CAVC). Judge Pietsch offered an overview of CAVC and covered unique aspects of practice before this court. Judge Pietsch is the spouse of University of Hawaii Law Professor James Pietsch, who launched the Elder Law and Veterans Clinics at the law school. Together, they reflected on their service as military lawyers on active duty, in the Army Reserve and as civilian Rule of Law Advisors in Iraq. For more on Professor Pietsch's interesting career see our earlier Elder Law Prof Blog profile. https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/elder_law/2016/02/university-of-hawaii-elder-law-program-celebrates-25th-year.html This new Washington Post article, headlined "Trump softens position on marijuana legalization," provides the latest evidence that The Donald is inclined to follow which way the political wind is blowing when it comes to marijuana policies and reform efforts. here are the details: Donald Trump softened his tone on marijuana legalization on Thursday, saying at a political rally that states should be allowed to legalize marijuana if they chose to do so. Trump reaffirmed that he supports making medical marijuana available to patients who are very sick. "In terms of marijuana and legalization, I think that should be a state issue, state-by-state," Trump said while taking a handful of questions during a political rally at a casino outside Reno on Thursday afternoon. His comments came hours after the third Republican debate was held in Colorado, which legalized marijuana for recreational use in 2012. That same day, Democratic presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders said he wants to remove marijuana from the federal government's list of most dangerous outlawed drugs, which would make it easier for states to legalize it. Trump -- who says he doesn't drink or smoke tobacco, let alone experiment with drugs -- has taken a variety of stances on drug control. In April 1990, Trump said at a luncheon in Florida that the United States should legalize drugs and use the money collected to educate the public on the dangers of drug use. "We're losing badly the war on drugs," Trump said at the time, according to an article in the Sarasota Herald-Tribune. "You have to legalize drugs to win that war. You have to take the profit away from these drug czars." More recently, Trump has supported allowing medical marijuana but firmly opposed legalization. During the CPAC conference in June, Trump was asked about Colorado's legalization and responded: "I say it's bad. Medical marijuana is another thing, but I think it's bad, and I feel strongly about it." Sean Hannity, who was moderating the forum, then asked Trump if legalization is a states' rights issue or not. "If they vote for it, they vote for it," Trump said. "But, you know, they have got a lot of problems going on right now in Colorado. Some big problems." When the question of legalization came up during a rally in Nevada on Thursday, Trump was less dismissive of the idea. Nevada recently legalized medical marijuana. "Marijuana is such a big thing," Trump said. "I think medical should happen -- right? Don't we agree? I think so. And then I really believe we should leave it up to the states." Trump waited for the applause to die down in the crowd, which skewed older, and then addressed the state he had just visited. "And of course you have Colorado," Trump said. "And I love Colorado and the people are great, but there's a question as to how it's all working out there, you know? That's not going exactly trouble-free. So I really think that we should study Colorado, see what's happening." I had noticed earlier this week that GOP Prez candidate (and seeming front-runner) Donald Trump had a few notable comments about marijuana policy during an interview with Bill O'Reilly. Helpfully, this new High Times piece by Jon Gettman, headlined "Pot Matters: Trump on Marijuana," not only details what Trump recently had to say on this topic, but also explains why his latest comments suggest The Donald is generally supportive of at least some marijuana reform. I recommend the piece in full, and here are excerpts: Republican Presidential candidate Donald Trump is hedging his position on marijuana legalization, but is a hundred percent in favor of medical marijuana. Nonetheless, Trumps stated position on legalization is evolving, because he has acknowledged that in some ways legalization is good. Trump, speaking to Bill OReilly on Fox News this week, was asked about his position on marijuana legalization in Colorado. After expressing some concern over the health effects of marijuana, he was pressed by OReilly about what he would do to stop it. Trump then confessed that I would, I would really want to think about that one Bill because in some ways, I think its good and in other ways, its bad. But then Trump hastened to point out his unequivocal support for medical marijuana, explaining that I know people that have serious problems... and... it really, really does help them. Trumps cautious approach to legalization is based on uncertainty, as he sees it, about the impact of legal marijuana use on peoples health. He ignored OReillys opening claim about dealers, all the pushers... going to Colorado loading up... on pot... and then zooming around the country selling it. When asked if that concerned him, Trump responded that its a real problem. But then Trump changed the subject, explaining that theres another problem... the book isnt written on it yet, but theres a lot of difficulty in terms of illness and whats going on with the brain and the mind, and what its doing... its coming out, probably, over the next year or so. Asked then if he would stop it, Trump paused, hesitant to commit himself as a presidential candidate to push back against Colorados program. I do want to see what the medical effects are, he said. After repeating this twice, Trump then volunteered his complete support for medical marijuana, continuing with his pro medical marijuana commentsin spite of OReillys claim that medical marijuana is a ruse. Faced with Trumps support for medical marijuana and his personal familiarity with medical cannabis patients, OReilly conceded that I know, and theyre taken care of. Aside from his support for medical marijuana, the most interesting comment that Trump made about his position was that in some ways, I think [legalization] s good. It will be interesting, over the course of the campaign, to hear Trump elaborate on this comment. In this interview, he laid out why in other ways its bad, but apparently its not bad enough to justify a definitive statement opposing legalization. Why not?... Trump was originally for legalization in 1990 as the only way to win the War on Drugs but has expressed his reservations about legalization during this campaign. His rivals in the nomination contest have all expressed reluctance to interfere with state-level legalization policies because they believe states have the right to set their own policies. Trumps comment to OReilly that legalization is good in some ways moves beyond tolerating legalization as a states right by recognizing the potential public policy benefits of Colorados approach. Wednesday, February 24, 2016 The House Corporations, Elections and Political Subdivisions Committee in the State of Wyoming has recently voted to recommend approving two State Senate bills that deal with data privacy and fiduciary access issues. Senate File 34 seeks to provide guidance to fiduciaries regarding how they can gain access to a persons email accounts and online profiles after the person has died. There is a growing nationwide push to give people the ability to appoint who can manage their online accounts after they pass away. Lawmakers who are drafting the bill are collaborating with different online companies like Facebook. They are trying to balance the desire to give people more control with concerns about privacy. As more state governments take on this issue there will likely be calls in the future for federal action. See James Chilton, House committee approves data privacy, fiduciary access bills, Casper Star Tribune, February 24, 2016. Special thanks to Brian Cohan (Attorney at Law, Law Offices of Brian J. Cohan, P.C.) for bringing this article to my attention. https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/trusts_estates_prof/2016/02/wyoming-considers-data-privacy-and-fiduciary-access-legislation.html Health officials are investigating 14 new reports of Zika virus infections in the United States. The cases are suspected to have been sexually transmitted. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) made the announcement Tuesday. It said all of the 14 cases are women. Their only known risk was sexual contact with a male partner who had recently returned from an area where Zika is found. Some of the cases involve pregnant women. Scientists have found evidence of a link between the Zika virus and microcephaly. Babies with microcephaly are born with unusually small heads and can suffer developmental delays. But scientists have not proven a certain cause and effect. The CDC researchers said the new cases suggest that sexual transmission of Zika may be more common than they had thought. The first case of Zika virus transmission in the United States was reported in Texas in early February. Health officials confirmed that it was contracted through sex and not a mosquito bite. Although sexual transmission of Zika is possible, health officials said that the main cause of Zika is still from mosquito bites. They urged people to prevent mosquito bites by using mosquito repellent, wearing long-sleeved shirts, and using window screens. CDC had an advisement for men who have recently traveled to areas with Zika. They advised using condoms or avoiding sexual contact with pregnant women or women who could become pregnant. At least 29 countries in the Americas have experienced Zika outbreaks. The World Health Organization has declared the spread of Zika a global health emergency. On Tuesday, the CDC added two more countries, Trinidad and Tobago and the Marshall Islands, to its Zika virus travel advisory. Im Ashley Thompson. ________________________________________________________________ Words in This Story transmission n. the act or process by which something is spread or passed from one person or thing to another mosquito n. a small flying insect that bites the skin of people and animals and sucks their blood repellent n. a substance that is used to keep something out or away condom n. a thin rubber covering that a man wears on his penis during sex in order to prevent a woman from becoming pregnant or to prevent the spread of diseases Dawson County Law enforcement agencies were among nearly 30 entities involved in a massive drug conspirator round-up that stretched from central Nebraska into northeastern Colorado. The Cozad and Lexington Police Departments and the Dawson County Sheriffs Office participated in the effort, according to the United States Attorneys Office out of Omaha. The U.S. Attorneys Office announced a press conference to be held Friday in North Platte to discuss the case, which has been identified as a methamphetamine conspiracy investigation. The joint operation, led by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, included investigators from the Cooperative Operation for Drug Enforcement (CODE) Drug Task Force, Western Nebraska Intelligence & Narcotics Group (WING), and the Central Nebraska Drug and Safe Streets Task Force (CNDSSTF), and Colorado law enforcement authorities. This year-long operation resulted in the federal indictment of sixty-three individuals for Distribution of Controlled Substance, Possession of Controlled Substance with Intent to Distribute and Conspiracy to Distribute a Controlled Substance. This is an incredible effort involving nearly thirty law enforcement agencies, said U.S. Attorney Deborah Gilg, The coordination and cooperation in this investigation is a tremendous tribute to the selfless dedication we see time and time again with our law enforcement agencies. Two years ago we were gathered in North Platte to honor many of these same law enforcement officers who were being recognized with an award from the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA). That HIDTA award, from a case which began in 2012, ironically spun off into this drug conspiracy involving this operation. The information on the indictments and the defendants will be available at the press conference on February 26th. Nebraska Law Enforcement Agencies involved in the operation/investigation Alliance Police Department Buffalo County Sheriffs Office Central City Police Department Cheyenne County Sheriffs Office Cozad Police Department Dawson County Sheriffs Office Deuel County Sheriffs Office Federal Bureau of Investigation Gering Police Department Grand Island Police Department Hall County Sheriffs Office Homeland Security Investigations Kearney Police Department Lexington Police Department Lincoln County Sheriffs Office NebraskaState Patrol North Platte Police Department Ogallala Police Department Perkins County Sheriffs Office Red Willow County Sheriffs Office Scottsbluff Police Department Scotts Bluff County Sheriffs Office Sidney Police Department United States Marshals Service Webster County Sheriffs Office Colorado Law Enforcement Agencies involved in the operation/investigation Federal Bureau of Investigation (Denver Office) Holyoke, Colorado Police Department Sedgwick County, Colorado Sheriffs Office United States Attorneys Office District of Colorado One of the 700,000 little geniuses in Winnipeg, MB Love the article on Gaddaf i Samosa Iyoha Hello from Johannesburg I was amazed to find a website for Africans in Hungary . Looks like you have quite a community there. Here in SA we have some three million Zimbabweans living in exile and not much sign of going home ... but in Hungary??? Hope to meet you on one of my trips to Europe; was in Steirmark Austria near the Hungarian border earlier this month. Every good wish for 2011. Geoff in Jo'burg I'm impressed by ANH work but... Interesting interview... My comment to the interview with his excellency Mr. Adedotun Adenrele Adepoju CDA a.i-- B.Ayo Adams click to read editor's mail We must rise above tribalism & divide & rule of the colonialist who stole & looted our treasure & planted their puppets to lord it over us..they alone can decide on whosoever is performing & the one that is corrupt..but the most corrupt nations are the western countries that plunder the resources of other nations & make them poorer & aid the rulers to steal & keep such ill gotten wealth in their country..yemen,syria etc have killed more than gadhafi but its not A good investment for the west(this is laughable)because oil is not in these countries..when obasanjo annihilated the odi people in rivers state, they looked away because its in their favour & interest..one day!I think from what have been said, the Nigerian embassy here seem to be more concern about its nationals than we are for ourselves. Our complete disregard for the laws of Hungary isn't going to help Nigeria's image or going to promote what the Embassy is trying to showcase. So if the journalists could zoom-in more focus on Nigerians living, working and studying here in Hungary than scrutinizing the embassy and its every move, i think it would be of tremendous help to the embassy serving its nationals better and create more awareness about where we live . Taking the issues of illicit drugs and forged documents as typical examples.. there are so many cases of Nigerians been involved. But i am yet to read of it in e.news. So i think if only you and your journalists could write more about it and follow up on the stories i think it will make our nationals more aware of what to expect. I wouldn't say i am not impressed with your work but you need to be more of a two way street rather than a one way street . Keep up the good work... SylviaHe is an intelligent man. He spoke well on the issues! Thanks to Mr Hakeem Babalola for the interview it contains some expedient information.. 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Rickman, who carved out a niche for himself with his distinctive screen presence and voice, was best known for playing Professor Severus Snape in the Harry Potter film series and terrorist Hans Gruber in Die Hard. He died on 14th January, earlier this year at the age of 69. Directed by Gavin Hood, the film also stars Helen Mirren, Aaron Paul, Barkhad Abdi among others, read a statement. Eye in The Sky follows a secret drone mission headed by Katherine Powell (Helen Mirren) who plays a Britain-based military officer set out to stop terrorists in Kenya from conducting further suicide bombing missions. However, things go haywire when a 9-year-old girl enters the kill zone and the officer and her team have to make a tough choice to tackle this sensitive situation. The film will be released in India by Pictureworks. IANS Mumbai: Aligarh actors Manoj Bajpayee and Rajkummar Rao are "delighted" that actor Sanjay Dutt will return from his incarceration on Thursday. "I know Sanju (Sanjay) on a personal level, and I'm delighted that he will finally return home to his family and friends in one-two days. We've been waiting eagerly for the day, and we have always been praying for his safety," Manoj said at a promotional event for Aligarh here. Manoj and Sanjay have worked together in films like as Daud, LOC Kargil and Dus Kahaniyaan. Sanjay will be out of Yerwada Central Jail in Pune on Thursday after serving his term for illegal possession of arms during the Mumbai serial blasts in 1993. However, he was out multiple times on parole and furlough leaves during the period, which had raised a few questions. "It's great news, very happy that he's returning. I'm a big fan of him, having grown up watching his films. He has respectfully completed his term; the mental pressure is also over now. He'll be an amazing guy, he'll be back all over again," Rajkummar said. IANS By Protiva Kundu Providing free and compulsory education to all children is enshrined in the Indian Constitution as a Fundamental Right. Adoption of the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009 gave further impetus to the national efforts for ensuring quality education for all in a time-bound manner. In spite of governments intention and efforts, the gaps in quality of school education, have been a major concern for some years now, especially in the policy discourse on government financing of education. Learning outcomes are often used as a proxy for the quality of education. The most cited source in this regard is the PISA[1] Survey by OECD, which shows two of the educationally most advanced states, Himachal Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, ranked lowest (72nd and 73rd respectively) in both reading and mathematical ability among 74 countries that participated in the assessment process. ASER[2] (2014) report has also highlighted that learning levels in Government schools are not improving. Quality is a relative concept and it depends on multiple factors. It is important, in this context, to ask whether budgetary resources matter at all to determine quality of education in government schools. It can be argued that budgetary priorities for school education overall and for various components within school education do matter in enhancing quality of leaning. For instance, basic infrastructure is the primary need for a school. It includes not only availability of facilities but also the extent to which they are utilized. In spite of significant expansion in school infrastructure, a number of schools still do not have buildings, adequate number of classrooms, drinking water, toilets, ramps, electricity etc. In some cases, the infrastructure is in place but is not functional. Until recently, only, 8 percent schools comply with all the infrastructure norms mentioned under RTE Act (MHRD, 2014). Studies have also shown that lack of upper primary and secondary schools and unavailability of girls toilets are the two major reasons for school drop outs. Teachers are the core of any school and thus their role in quality improvement is paramount. However, the teacher training and recruitment of additional teachers have not kept pace with the rapidly growing enrolments. Even after five years of commencement of the RTE Act, there is a shortage of 9.4 lakh teachers in government schools. Around 8.3 percent of primary schools are single teacher school. Among the existing teachers in government schools, about 20 percent are untrained and the proportion of trained qualified teachers has been almost stagnant since last five years (MHRD, 2014). The policy of appointing contractual teachers instead of the regular cadre has raised questions about the impact on quality of education. During the last 15 years, there has been an enormous expansion of contractual teachers in several states. In 2013-14, total number of contractual teachers at the elementary level stood at 5.08 lakh, accounting for 6.5 percent of total teacher strength. Among them, only 60 percent had professional teacher training (DISE, 2014-15). Teacher absenteeism is considered to be another critical factor behind poor quality of education. According to a World Bank study (2005), on any given day in India, one in four government primary school teachers were absent and only one in two is actually teaching[3].. While these reflect low accountability, it probably depicts only one side of the story. Due to acute shortage of human resources, the teachers often double up as a dispatch clerk, accountant, record keeper or supervisor of mid day meals etc. Quality of education, therefore, needs to be assessed through a range of factors. Some of these factors are directly related to the quantum of investment in education. There is an urgent need therefore, to boost public investment in physical infrastructure, teacher recruitment, teacher training and community engagement[4] for better regulation and monitoring. Given that education is in the Concurrent List, both Union and State Governments share the responsibility towards this sector. In the Union Budget 2015-16, there was a reduction in the allocation for school education on account of more untied funds being given to States following the 14th Finance Commission recommendation. However, some of the states with poorer fiscal health might not be able to ensure adequate budgetary resources for school education. This is because of overall inadequacy of resources as compared to the needs as well as intense competition for resources among different sectors. Hence, it is imperative both for the Union Government and States to step up public investment in education, paying adequate attention to all those factors that impact quality of learning. The author is with the Centre for Budget and Governance Accountability (CBGA), New Delhi. Her views are personal New Delhi: A close watch is being kept on terror group Islamic State by security agencies which have been also directed to identify potential recruits and keep them under surveillance, Rajya Sabha was told on Wednesday. Minister of State for Home Haribhai Parthibhai Chaudhary said the Islamic State uses both positive and negative imagery to attract recruits around the world. "However, it has influenced/attracted very few youths from India," he said in his reply to a written question. The National Investigation Agency and police in a few states have registered cases and arrested some active members, he said, adding that the government is closely monitoring the situation. "Intelligence and security agencies are directed to identify potential recruits and keep them under surveillance, if necessary. The cyber space is being closely monitored," he said. Central agencies and state governments are assessing the threat posed by Islamic State and devising strategies to deal with it, he said. PTI New Delhi: Four Indians were arrested in Syria recently not because they had gone there to join and fight alongside the Islamic State but for entering the country without valid visa, the government clarified on Wednesday. Syrian Deputy Prime Minister Walid Al Maoulem, during his visit to India in January, had said the four Indians had "crossed over from Jordan to Syria to join the Islamic State" and that they were under custody in Damascus. Answering the question in Lok Sabha, Minister of State for External Affairs VK Singh, said that the Indians had entered Syria illegally from Jordan and were on their way to Lebanon for employment. "Arun Kumar Saini, Sarvjeet Singh, Kuldeep Singh and Joga/Jagga Singh entered into Syria from Jordan on their way to Lebanon for employment without valid visa. They were caught by the Syrian authorities as illegal immigrants," he said. He said that the Syrian authorities conveyed to New Delhi that they can be brought back to India, after making "necessary inquiries". The Minister said officials from Indian Embassy in Damascus have met the four persons and modalities are being worked out to bring them back. PTI Auto refresh feeds Kanhaiya's bail plea to be heard on 24 February by the Delhi HC. Delhi Police oppose bail; HC asks for a status report. Delhi Police submits report against Kanhaiya Kumar to High Court. The report claims that Kanhaiya was seen in the footage shouting anti-national slogans; a law and order situation was created on JNU campus. High Court has also agreed to hear Delhi Police's plea seeking permission to enter Jawaharlal Nehru University. A number of students from across Mumbai universities and colleges have started a petition seeking the immediate release of Kanhaiya Kumar. The march is being led primarily by students from Hyderabad Central University, but students from all over the country have joined in. The march has become more significant in the wake of Kanhaiya Kumar's arrest and the JNU row. Rahul Gandhi, Arvind Kejriwal and a few other leaders from Aam Aadmi Party present. The Rohith Vemula issue has assumed bigger proportions, it would appear. Arvind Kejriwal said, "If someone try to go against the nation, he won't be spared. Similarly if innocents will be harassed like centre is doing it won't be tolerated. Modiji ab bhi samay hai sudhar jaiye, warna janta AAP ko ukhaad phekegi." (People will throw you out Modiji if you don't mend your ways of dealing). Knowing it full well that the attack would come against the government from all quarters, the BJP fielded HRD minister Smriti Irani who showed uncharacteristic aggression in defending herself. She, along with minister of labour Bandaru Dattatreya, has been accused of goading the Hyderabad Central University (HCU) administration to take action against Vemula. In the ensuing din, the House was adjourned second time. The crux of the issue was that parties are engaged in a fierce competitive politics to claim their pro-dalit credentials. And Rohith Vemulas suicide is learnt to have evoked strong emotion among Dalits of UP and turned them against the BJP. This is the precise reason why the BSP disrupted the functioning to pre-empt any attempt to appropriate sympathies of Dalits. Taken aback by the BSPs tactical brilliance, the Congress and other parties also joined in and vociferously supported Mayawatis demand to reveal the facts of the inquiry constituted to probe Rohiths suicide and circumstances. As the Raja Sabha met after 10 minute of adjournment, the scene was characterised by deja vu. Not without reason, BSP chief Mayawati raised the issue of Rohith Vemulas suicide vehemently in the question to take the wind out of the parties sails. In view of the UP election, Mayawati cannot afford to let the ruling party and principal opposition, the Congress, monopolise the debate on Dalits. She was quite conscious of nearly 25 percent of the Dalit votes that form her strong support base in the countrys largest state. Kumar is being deprived of his liberties primarily because of the incompetence of the Delhi Police conducting a thorough investigation. Kanhaiya Kumar's position as JNUSU president could mean that he could potentially influence witnesses who were present at that demonstration. The remaining accused are 'absconding' (technically not arrested). Kanhaiya Kumar's release means they could all go underground or off the radar. Police is opposing bail at this point. If witness statements had been recorded initially instead of relying on a video clip which is still pending verification, the police would have had their case in order. Initially, Bassi did not oppose bail because he had video clips and that meant he did not need witnesses. Now, the video clips are turning out to be doctored, which means Bassi needs witness testimonies to make his case, a Bombay High Court lawyer told Firstpost. India seems to be in the grip of an epidemic of feeling of victimisation. A few days ago, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had talked about a conspiracy to tarnish his image. A few hours ago, Rahul Gandhi told media that there may be a conspiracy to not allow him to speak in Parliament. And now lawyer Chauhan claims people are out to get him. If only he had taken the precaution, not the one prescribed by Gyan Dev Ahuja, before opening his mouth in front of a hidden camera. "But are we going to give respectability to those whose primary ideology is that they're going to break this country?" he said. "Some amount of radical romancing can also take place in institutions," he said. "Youngsters do many things and when they grow up, they realise they shouldn't have done many of those things," said the Finance Minister. "If some student belonging to a weaker section of society suffers mental distress, that issue has to be discussed," said Jaitley. "The core issue does not relate to the amount of academic license that exists," he said. 'Are we going to give respectability to those whose primary ideology is that they're going to break this country?' "The question is: Does the Indian constitutional order allow this? To say that this kind of act must be ignored by the state is wrong. It is an issue over the geography and territory of India which is under attack today," he said. "Vandalism is condemnable. But here's what the leftist philosophy is in this case: 'Let us concentrate on vandalism, which is condemnable. But at the same time, sedition must become a part of free speech.' Can hate speech become free speech?" he said. "Of course, what happened in Patiala House is condemnable. But vandalism is condemnable. And sedition is free speech?" said Jaitley. "I publicly pay homage to him. What I never publicly disclose that I also spoke to his mother," said Irani. "There are many who can be accused of identifying him as a vote bank," she said. "I have been told not to get agitated," said Smriti Irani as she began her speech by quoting lines from Macbeth. Many can be accused of identifying Rohith as a vote bank: Smriti Irani "What is happening here? It is highly objectionable!" thundered Anand Sharma. "Tomorrow, if any of the ministers bring in any derogatory reference, what are we reducing this House to?" As soon as Irani finished reading this out, a huge uproar erupted in the Parliament. She also said that document described Durga as a "sex worker called Durga who enticed Mahishasur into marriage. Every year, thousand of Durga puja pandals are erected showing her in a bad light, in a sexual position." "The document said that Durga Puja is a controversial, racist festival where a fair-skinned goddess is depicted killing a dark demon," Irani said. "What is Mahishasura martyrdom day?" Irani said. She then again quoted the document. Irani then said that some minority students who were protesting against this festival were beaten up by Left-leaning JNU students. "And it (the JNU document) also speaks about a public meeting that they have the right to hold a festival called Mahishasura martyrdom day," she said. Irani then quoted a JNU document which, according to Irani's speech, said that "the execution of Afzal Guru was a nervous attempt by Congress." "There is an accusation that Mehmood ki topi Ahmed par hai. Pata nahi kiski topi kiske sar pe hai...main bina topi ke hoon," she said. "We cannot tolerate such activities in our universities. We cannot allow the students to be influenced by fringe elements," said Venkaiah Naidu in Lok Sabha. "We are only requesting you not to express solidarity with divisive forces," said Naidu. "The Prime Minister is very clear. The country has to go forward. We are undeterred by these attempts," Naidu said, as he targeted the Opposition over its criticism of the government. "Instead of running for photo opportunities, the political leadership should ponder over why incidents like the Rohith Vemula suicide happened. The entire country should think seriously. This is not the first case," Venkaiah Naidu said. "I publicly pay homage to him. What I never publicly disclose that I also spoke to his mother," said Irani. "There are many who can be accused of identifying him as a vote bank," she said. "I have been told not to get agitated," said Smriti Irani as she began her speech by quoting lines from Macbeth. Many can be accused of identifying Rohith as a vote bank: Smriti Irani Sitharam Yechury lashed out in the House and asked Smriti Irani to focus on the point at hand. "Do we say to them that if you are a Dalit child belonging to an ideology not favourable to us, you can die for all we care?" she said. "What are we as a united House telling this generation of ours?" Irani said. Opposition members began shouting as Smriti Irani tried responding to the allegations made against her. "I am grateful for the anomalies which Azad sahab corrected in his speech today," Irani said. "There are many who have said that history is being distorted and all Sanghis are being put in ICHR," said Smriti Irani. She then pointed out that there was a member of ICHR who was not, in fact, a Sanghi. "If there was an intention to saffronise education, why would I pick a scholar who is not aligned to my organisation?" she said. "What is happening here? It is highly objectionable!" thundered Anand Sharma. "Tomorrow, if any of the ministers bring in any derogatory reference, what are we reducing this House to?" As soon as Irani finished reading this out, a huge uproar erupted in the Parliament. She also said that document described Durga as a "sex worker called Durga who enticed Mahishasur into marriage. Every year, thousand of Durga puja pandals are erected showing her in a bad light, in a sexual position." "The document said that Durga Puja is a controversial, racist festival where a fair-skinned goddess is depicted killing a dark demon," Irani said. "What is Mahishasura martyrdom day?" Irani said. She then again quoted the document. Irani then said that some minority students who were protesting against this festival were beaten up by Left-leaning JNU students. "And it (the JNU document) also speaks about a public meeting that they have the right to hold a festival called Mahishasura martyrdom day," she said. Irani then quoted a JNU document which, according to Irani's speech, said that "the execution of Afzal Guru was a nervous attempt by Congress." "There is an accusation that Mehmood ki topi Ahmed par hai. Pata nahi kiski topi kiske sar pe hai...main bina topi ke hoon," she said. As the Mahishasura martyrdom day issue rocked the House, the Rajya Sabha was adjourned for the day. JNU Student Union president, Kanhaiya Kumar's bail plea will be heard on Wednesday by the Delhi High Court after the Supreme Court dismissed the petition on 19 February after which he was remanded to Tihar Jail. One of the key focus of the plea is likely to be around the allegedly doctored video clip used by the Delhi police to arrest him on the charges of sedition. Zee News' Vishwa Deepak had resigned last week citing that the channel had intentionally misinterpreted the video clip to brand some students as anti-national. Kanhaiya's lawyer had directly moved the the Supreme Court for bail, but the apex court asked his advocate to move the high court for bail, noting that bypassing the high court would set a wrong precedent. The student leader had directly moved his bail plea before the Supreme Court invoking its jurisdiction under article 32, under which a citizen can move the apex court for enforcing his fundamental rights. Besides bail, Kanhaiya Kumar had sought direction for his safety and security from the apex court. Invoking Article 21 guaranteeing right to life and personal liberty and pointing to the atmosphere of violence that prevailed in Patiala House Court complex on 15 and 17 February, he, in his petition in apex court, had said that the manner in which his physical harassment was allowed to take place was a clear pointer to the violation of his right to access justice delivery system. Kanhaiya Kumar was arrested in a sedition case on February 12 after an event held on the university campus against hanging of parliament attack convict Afzal Guru. Security will be beefed up in the high court to avoid any untoward incident, in view of the violence seen in the Patiala House courts when Kanhaiya Kumar was produced for hearing. Apart from Kanhaiya, two other JNU students Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya, facing the charge of sedition, surrendered before the police late on Tuesday, hours after the Delhi High Court refused to grant them protection from arrest. The duo, who returned to the JNU campus last Sunday after having gone missing since 12 February, drove from the administrative bloc to the main gate of the university, got into a Delhi Police vehicle and were taken to an undisclosed destination. Police sources said Khalid and Bhattacharya surrendered at around midnight. The two have been placed under police custody at South Campus police station. They will be produced before a magistrate on Wenesday morning, the sources said. Besides Kumar, Khalid and Bhattacharya, the other students are Rama Naga, Ashutosh Kumar and Anant Prakash. Delhi Police had issued a look-out notice on 20 February against Khalid, Bhattacharya, Naga, Ashutosh and Prakash. Earlier, Khalid and Bhattacharya left the JNU campus at around 11.50 pm on Tuesday night for the surrender. The university students formed a human chain to prevent the media from following Khalid and Bhattacharya when they were leaving the campus on Tuesday evening. The National Capital Region is also being shaken up by 10,000 students who will be protesting at Jantar Mantar and India Gate on 23-24 February in solidarity with the students of Jawaharlal Nehru University and dalit scholar Rohith Vemula who committed suicide in University of Hyderabad. The JNU row and Rohith Vemula's suicide have both sparked great debate in the country about the freedom of speech, the right to dissent, police brutality and overreach. According to The Indian Express, the slogan of the protests is "humein chahiye azaadi, hum chheen ke lenge" (We want freedom and we will snatch it). The protest is being organised by Joint Action Committe (JAC) for Social Justice and Hyderabad Central University (HCU). The report also points out that students from TISS, TIFR, Mumbai University will join the protests. According to Mid-Day, a number of students from across Mumbai universities and colleges have started a petition seeking the immediate release of Kanhaiya Kumar. Others accused of sedition and branded as "absconding" by the Delhi police, Umar Khalid and others will also be moving the High Court seeking security to surrender. With inputs from agencies Mumbai: The Maharashtra Anti-Corruption Bureau, probing the Maharashtra Sadan scam, on Wednesday filed its charge sheet against senior NCP leader Chhagan Bhujbal in a court in Mumbai. Other than Bhujbal, who was Public Works Department minister in the previous Congress-NCP government in Maharashtra, his son Pankaj and nephew Sameer as well as 14 others have also been chargesheeted in the case. The voluminous chargesheet, which runs into 20,000 pages contains statements of 60 witnesses. According to ACB sources, the case is entirely based on documentary evidence such as fund transfer and bank transactions. Sources also claimed that in construction of Maharashtra Sadan, contractors have earned 80 percent profits while as per the government circular such contractors are entitled to only 20 percent gains. "However, books of accounts have been fudged to show that the profit earned is only one percent," they added. The ACB had in June last year registered two FIRs against Bhujbal. The first one was related to alleged irregularities in allotment of a prime plot at Kalina in Mumbai to a developer. The second case was for alleged rampant corruption and large-scale irregularities in the construction of the new Maharashtra Sadan, the state government's guest house in New Delhi. The Public Works Department under Bhujbal had then allegedly awarded sub-contracts to firms, in blatant violation of rules, in the Maharashtra Sadan case. The FIR named the Bhujbal trio and 14 others. The other accused who were named in the FIR were: Arun Deodhar, Devdutt Marathe, Bipin Sankhe, Krishna Chamankar, Pranita Chamankar, Tanvir Sheikh, Sanjay Joshi, Manik Shaha, Deepak Deshpande, Anil Kumar Gaikwad, Pravina Chamankar, Prasanna Chamankar, Iram Tanvir Sheikh and Geeta Joshi. The state ACB had initiated a probe against Bhujbal and his family following a complaint lodged by Aam Aadmi Party leader Anjali Damania, who had alleged that there had been rampant corruption and large-scale irregularities in the construction of the new Maharashtra Sadan. According to Damania, the Public Works Department, under Bhujbal, had awarded sub-contracts to firms in blatant violation of rules. All these firms were floated or controlled by the members of the Bhujbal family. The new Maharashtra Sadan was built at the cost of Rs 100 crore when Congress-NCP coalition was in power in Maharashtra. PTI It has been proven yet again that less than a dozen members can hold Parliament to ransom. Their personal whims or their party leader's whim on that particular day can hold sway over the chair's repeated rulings and collective wisdom of the House. Rules laid down and decisions arrived at by the business advisory committees are conveniently stated, as and when it suits their political agenda. Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati, with only 10 members in Rajya Sabha and zero members in Lok Sabha, did exactly that today. She forced repeated adjournments not because her voice was not being heard but because she had decided beforehand that she had to make a political point to her social constituency and try to regain her erstwhile position as the most powerful Dalit leader in north India. Before arriving at the Parliament today, she had not cared to inform the Chairman of the Upper House that she wishes to raise Rohith Vemulas suicide issue. Neither her name nor any of her party members names figured among the 31 listed members from across the political spectrum in the House, informing about her decision to raise a discussion on the situation arising in the Central Institutions of higher education with specific reference to Jawaharlal Nehru University and University of Hyderabad". The government and the Chair kept on urging her to allow a discussion on same subject but her nine slogan-shouting-members in the well (while she was firmly seated on her chair) ensured that the Rajya Sabha was adjourned. Since the words "Dalit" and Rohith Vemula was repeatedly used by her, the Left and the Congress extended their tacit, and on some occasions, even active support to her. One among Mayawatis charter of demands was that the government first answer her question before any further discussion. The reply to the questions raised by her would in any case have come when HRD Minister Smriti Irani would have responded. Mayawati also had the liberty to ask for "clarifications" or stage a walkout, as prescribed in the books, if she was not satisfied. Instead, she chose to not abide by any established parliamentary practices. She has been elected the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh four times and has been a member of both the Houses of Parliament; she knows the rules and parliamentary practices. Her actions as well as the voices of those supporting her actions (the Congress and the Left) have yet again given credence to the growing feeling among people at large the irrelevance of Rajya Sabha. For the last few sessions the Upper House has been making news for its nuisance and disruptive potential rather than for constructive debates, for being the guiding light in shaping public policy and for its willingness to go to mat for the government with genuine scrutiny. Since the time the Modi government has come to power, the Rajya Sabha (where ruling BJP is in minority) has broadly assumed a veto power to reject or stall critical bills passed by the Lok Sabha or not let it function at all. The remark made by Deputy Chairman PJ Kurien when he finally adjourned the House for the day at 4 pm is significant. He sounded concerned and hurt - "Already the message going from the House is not good. The other House is functioning today (Lok Sabha proceeded with normal listed business and even had an extensive though unscheduled discussion over JNU and Rohith Vemula issue). Our House is not functioning. Hope and pray it functions tomorrow." Tomorrow, Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu will present the rail budget in Lok Sabha. The Lok Sabha has discussed JNU, Rohith Vemula and other such related issue even as it was not listed in the business and despite the business advisory committee,comprising of leaders of all parties and the Speaker, had earlier decided to hold it later in the week. However, Speaker Sumitra Mahajan, in consultation with the Government, ruled that the House should debate on this subject. By doing so, the Speaker sent a message that she was open to considering adjournment motions and other notices moved by the Opposition parties members. The ruling BJP members and Congress verbally clashed with each other during the debate but then it was all within acceptable limits. So when the Rajya Sabha begins to debate, if at all it is allowed to take place, the nation at large would be hooked to the contents of the Rail Budget and a debate on JNU and Rohit Vemula's suicide would hardly attract any attention. Rail Minister Suresh Prabhu has to pay a brief customary visit to the Upper House just to lay the rail budget on table before that House. As per today's listed business the Rajya Sabha was to take up four bills for consideration and passage National Waterways Bill, 2015, Carriage by Air (Amendment) Bill, 2015, Bureau of Indian Standards Bill, 2015 and the High Court and the Supreme Court Judges (Salaries and Conditions of Service) Amendment Bill, 2015. None of it came for a mention today. HRD Minister Smriti Irani may have a point when she shouted back "a childs suicide is being used by politicians for political gains" and even vowed to expose the suicide (Rohit Vemula) being used as a political tool, in response to Mayawatis accusation, or when she countered BSP chief's demand for inclusion of a Dalit in judicial commission, "are we saying that a judge's capabilities to give justice will depend on his caste but her aggressive demeanour and the shrillness of her voice didn't help the government. But then nobody in the opposition in Rajya Sabha really cared for what she was saying. The Government of India will soon set up a special media cell to keep an eye on negative narratives against the government online a positive counter would be initiated through press releases, briefings and/or press conferences, reports The Indian Express. The National Security Council Secretariat (NSCS) proposed last month that a National Media Analytics Centre (NMAC) should be created to monitor and analyse round-the-clock blogs, web portals of TV channels, newspapers and social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube. According to an older report in The Indian Express, the Electronic Media Monitoring Centre (EMMC) under the Information and Broadcast ministry is equipped to track 600 news channels with the held of 200 content auditors. The EMMC updates senior government officials about what is trending on television news across the country on an hourly basis. Maybe this rests in the whiter portion of the grey area it treads, but, it really is an Orwellian nightmare coming true, when you realise that the NMAC will be the governments third such observatory body. The software would also help recall the past pattern of the writer to check the number of times he took a negative or positive stand, his background, and preferences of websites and areas of interest to judge whether they were aimed at fomenting trouble or radicalisation, reports Indian Express. Perhaps this is be a good time to recall the Panopticon. Don't worry and unfurrow that brow; an explanation follows: Michel Foucault, social theorist and French philosopher, in Discipline and Punish, extends Jeremy Benthams architectural design of the Panopticon to the social milieu how progressive, modern and democratic states regulate their citizens. He uses the metaphor of the panopticon (a cylindrical building where inmates are visible to one another, and also to the guards placed at the centre of the building) to describe how constant surveillance ultimately achieves self-surveillance/censorship. Foucault, chillingly describes how control is achieved through constant, unnoticeable and internalised surveillance where individuals self-surveil, curb and curtail their own actions so as to not break the rules. This is also a good time to remember the likes of Shaheen Dhada and Renu Srinivasan who were arrested because they asked on Facebook as to why Mumbai was shut down for Shiv Sena leader Bal Thackerays funeral. Mayank Mohan Sharma and KVJ Rao, Air Indias cabin crew were arrested for posting indecent jokes about the prime minister and other politicians. Devu Chodankar, a ship-building professional was arrested for posting a comment against Narendra Modi on Facebook. There are numerous other cases like this, but many of them were quashed by the courts but these arbitrary arrests (though the case may be that they dont lead to indictments) create a fear and therefore lead people to self-censor themselves. "I'm not scared to express myself but I won't write anything about politicians, I'll be like, 'I had a coffee today, I'm going to sleep, good morning, good afternoon'. That's all, said Renu in an interview with BBC after her arrest. Embroiled in the world-wide obsession with a war on terror, India is increasingly becoming a surveillance state, the common, easily palatable yet unfortunate argument is that the surveillance is for our benefit. New techniques of surveillance on the citizens are mutating the reach of the State to say it in the words of Shiv Shankar Menon, Indias National Security Advisor (2012) quoted in Surveillance, Counter-Terrorism and Comparative Constitutionalism, the government is putting in place what supposedly helps it deal with, an anarchic new world of constant and undeclared cyber threat. It is not just about surveillance, but the governmentality at play the various ways in which the State is exercising control over its citizens. Take the on-going debate on nationalism and anti-nationalism, what is palpable is that the government is threatened by something the voices on the fringe: Dalits, minorities, or those who envision a different idea of India. The State and its actors (politicians in power) are dictating what ought to be the right definition of nationalism hoisting National Flags, standing up when the National Anthem is played, among a host of others. All that and all those that do not align with this frame of thought then become the enemies of the State Kanhaiya, Soni Sori, Umar Khalid and thousands of nameless others who have refused to self-censor. Orwell writes, We are not interested in those stupid crimes that you have committed. The Party is not interested in the overt act: The thought is all we care about. and its hard to not think about Umar Khalids cutting words, Woh dartein hain hamare sangharshon se, woh darte hain kyunki hum sochtein hain (They fear our struggles, they fear because we think). The Partys slogan in 1984 by Orwell, He who controls the past controls the future. He who controls the present controls the past is about how the Party exercises control over its subjects by using false history. Here, we have the Sangh that is hoping to rewrite history through the Puranas, ancient texts are being included in schools as mandatory reading, Dinanath Batra has written mandatory reading moral science textbooks for children including his poems that read, Maine swapna liya hai, vidyalay key nirmaan ka Hindutva ki neev par, desh bhakti ke aadhaar par (I have a dream, of building a school on the foundations of Hindutva and patriotism) The Partys slogan served a primary purpose in the book to breakdown the independence of its subjects and subjugating them to non-thinking. New Delhi: Amnesty International has joined a growing international chorus accusing India of supporting a climate of intolerance by cracking down on dissent through arbitrary arrests, caste-based discrimination, extrajudicial killings and attacks on freedom of expression. The rights group said in its annual international report, published Wednesday, that India's Hindu nationalist government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi had failed to prevent hundreds of incidents of communal violence, usually involving members of the Hindu majority pitted against Muslims or other minorities. Instead, ruling party lawmakers and politicians were fueling religious tensions with provocative speeches and justifications for the violence, it said. Amnesty's report also highlights the government's continued harassment of civil society groups critical of official policies over the past year, as well as government legal action aimed at controlling foreign funds for nongovernmental organizations. "Over 3,200 people were being held in January under administrative detention on executive orders without charge or trial," the report said, adding that state authorities used "anti-terror" laws to illegally hold activists and protesters in custody. The report is the latest criticism to be leveled at Modi's government after a year fraught with communal tension as members of India's governing Bharatiya Janata Party try to impose their brand of hyper-nationalism. Dozens of Indian authors, scientists, historians and film industry workers have returned national awards to protest the trend, which has seen arrests of student protesters, the murder of three atheist scholars and mob killings over rumors of cow slaughter. Among India's majority Hindu population, cows are considered sacred. On Monday, both the New York Times and Le Monde newspapers ran editorials lambasting Modi's government. The Times editorial board said the ongoing confrontation between Hindu nationalists and free-speech advocates "raises serious concerns about Modi's governance and may further stall any progress in Parliament on economic reforms." Last week, a group of 133 university professors from around the world including linguist Noam Chomsky, Nobel-winning novelist Orhan Pamuk and economist James Galbraith said the recent arrest of a student leader on sedition charges "is further evidence of the present government's deeply authoritarian nature, intolerant of any dissent, setting aside India's longstanding commitment to toleration and plurality of opinion." Modi and his government have remained largely unmoved by the criticism, saying little in response other than to denounce it as anti-government propaganda designed to distract from the government's agenda. Meanwhile, Modi has insisted he is prime minister for all of India, and not just Hindus, and urged the nation to instead focus on growing the economy. The Amnesty report also said that prisoner safety remained a serious concern, and that "over 282,000 prisoners 68 percent of the total prison population were pretrial detainees." Most prisons are badly overcrowded, while torture and abuse in police or judicial custody led the country's Supreme Court last year to demand that state governments install closed-circuit television cameras within the next two years. It questioned the Indian Parliament's defeat of legislation to decriminalize same-sex relations, noting that the country was still adhering to a colonial-era law that makes homosexuality a crime punishable by up to a decade in prison. AP Madurai: The Madras High Court on Wednesday ruled that money demanded by a man from his in-laws for doing business does not come under the category of 'dowry'. Disposing off a petition filed by the man's family against a complaint of dowry harassment, Justice C T Selvam of the Madurai bench said money demanded by a person from his wife and in-laws for investing in business cannot be construed as dowry demand and tried under Section 4 of Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961. He said it was necessary for a complainant to prove that money was demanded only as dowry. The petitioner's submission that money had been demanded for conduct of business, but that the same was not demanded as dowry was accepted by the Judge. He said, such a demand for money to conduct business would attract IPC Section 498A (husband or relative of husband of a woman subjecting her to cruelty). The petitioners were then ordered to be prosecuted under this provision, apart from IPC Sec. 506(I) (criminal intimidation). The Judge exonerated the complainant's father-in-law, saying he was in no way connected with the case. He directed the Judicial Magistrate in Tiruchirapalli, where the case was filed in December last year, to prosecute the victim's husband, mother-in-law and two sisters-in-law alone. PTI New Delhi: Delhi saw the highest number of crimes against foreign nationals in India in 2014 with a total of 384 such cases registered across the country during that year by overseas visitors, Parliament was told on Wednesday. In his reply to a written question in the Rajya Sabha, Tourism Minister Mahesh Sharma said that as many as 135 cases of crime against foreign travellers were reported in Delhi followed by 66 in Goa, 64 in Uttar Pradesh, 31 in Rajasthan and 25 in Maharashtra. He said that 13 incidents were reported in Bihar and 11 in Karnataka. Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Kerala, Chandigarh and Madhya Pradesh were among the states and UTs which saw less than 10 cases being registered by foreign visitors. There was no cases reported by foreign tourists in Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Jharkhand, Manipur, Meghalaya, Odisha, Tripura, Lakshadweep, Uttarakhand and the rest of the states and Union Territories. Sharma said the tourism ministry does not compile the data regarding crimes against foreign or domestic tourists and the National Crime Records Bureau has been collecting this data since 2014. PTI Vikram Singh Chauhan, the lawyer who allegedly led an attack on journalists and Jawaharlal Nehru University students at the Patiala House court complex, was finally arrested by the Delhi police, after widespread outrage over inaction on the incident. Chauhan was filmed on camera in two incidents of violence linked to protests at JNU recently, as reported by Zee News. In one of the incidents, he was seen beating up journalists and later boasting about hitting JNU students' union president Kanhaiya Kumar. Among the lawyers present, Vikram Chauhan, Yashpal Singh and Om Sharma were the dominant faces of the attack on scribes and students at Patiala House on 15 February. A NDTV report states that Chauhan appeared before the police on Wednesday, six days after he was summoned. On the previous Friday, 19 February, he had ignored the summons and organised a march against what he termed as a campaign by the media against lawyers. Shortly after the assault on mediapersons, photos of Chauhan with several senior BJP leaders went viral on social media, leading to allegations that he had a close relationship with the government. Editors note: Last year, Yasmin M Khan, a Paris-based researcher whose area of interest is Muslim education, visited a collection of small and large madrassas in Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Bihar. She spent three months interviewing administrators, students, former students, and local Muslim leaders. Her inquiries ended in September, by which time she had gathered a large quantity of information and opinions on the relevance of madrassas, their role in Muslim radicalisation and the impact the government's madrassa modernisation programme has had on these institutions. Khan found Muslim opinion divided. Many thought madrassas were being unfairly targeted because of anti-Muslim prejudice and that the debate ignored the role they played in providing Islamic learning and providing free education to poor Muslim children. Others argued that these institutions were an anachronism and called for greater regulation around their sources of funding and their curriculum. There was near unanimity on one issue: it was all very well to modernise madrassas by introducing computers, but not at the expense of mainstream secular schooling. Parents in rural areas told Khan they were forced to send their children to madrassas owing to the lack of proper schools in villages. Firstpost invited Khan to write a series of four articles drawing from her travels. We commissioned pencil drawings by Maitri Dore, a Bengaluru-based architect, to serve as visual elements accompanying Khans pieces; she was not allowed to photograph her subjects. By Yasmin M Khan In the debate over the modernisation of madrassas, a question that refuses to go away is whether these institutions are relevant at all in the 21st century. Can madrassas be reformed by tinkering with a few courses or installing a few computers? Do they have the materials and intellectual resources and, most important, cultural temperament to prepare their students for the demands of a highly competitive modern world? The answer is complicated, according to Muslim scholars and observers of madrassas; they dismiss attempts at such a binary approach to addressing the question. Moin Qazi, an academic and noted writer on Islam, believes that madrassas are unfairly portrayed. The majority of these institutions, according to him, actually present an opportunity, not a threat. For a poor Muslim child in a village, it may be his only path to literacy. For many orphans and the rural poor, madrassas provide essential social services: education and lodging for children who otherwise could well find themselves the victims of forced labour, sex trafficking, or other abuse For parents mired in poverty and forced to work long hours, madrassas serve a vital role in ensuring their children are supervised, fed, and taught to read and write, he wrote in a widely published article. Illustration by Maitri Dore Even critics of madrassas caution against taking extreme positions and favour a more nuanced approach. Sunil Raman, a former BBC correspondent, and a frequent contributor to this website, who has studied the issue in some depth, is no fan of madrassas. But he is even more critical about the successive governments' confused response to how to drag them into the modern world. And he is right. The process of modernisation, as he reminds us, started not under Manmohan Singh but way back in 1992 under PV Narasimha Rao as a gesture towards the Muslims to placate them after the demolition of Babri Masjid. Over two decades later and crores of rupees being spent, the government appears to be tackling more or less same issues that existed in the 1990s, he wrote recently. He is not the only one who is extremely sceptical about the modernisation process. Critics don't have a quarrel with introducing modern subjects and computerisation but with the idea that this is an answer to the problem of Muslim education. Primarily, madrassas are seminaries meant to impart religious education and that's what they are best at doing. Their primary function is to produce Islamic scholars and imams, not doctors and engineers. The focus should be on reforming their religious curriculum and helping madrassas with extra resources so that they can hire better teachers and improve their infrastructure. That will be a better way of increasing their relevance, said Sami Ullah, who studied at a madrassa and is now enrolled in an Islamic Studies course at Jamia Millia Islamia, Delhi. Ultimately, he said, he wants to go abroad for higher Islamic studies. My dream is to be able to study at Al Azhar university [in Cairo] but let's see, he said. About his madrassa experience, Ullah was clear as to the purpose it served: clarify the tenets of sharia. "For me it was okay because my need was very basic but their curriculum for advanced courses is extremely limited and offers very few career opportunities. So, theres a problem there, he said. He was, however, of the opinion that madrassas arent an oddity. We certainly need madrassas, otherwise where will people like me go? Around the world, there are some great madrassas and there is no reason why we cant have world-class madrassas, he said. But the question remains: what does madrassa education offers to its graduates in terms of job prospects? What do they do for a living after they pass out of a madrassa? Gagandeep Kaur, a Delhi-based journalist and researcher, has found that their curriculum is so limited that most universities dont recognise madrassa education, which means that entry into higher education is barred for students of these institutions in Uttar Pradesh, they are required to pass a special examination conducted by the state to qualify for a place in a regular college or university. She has written about this at length on Contributoria. As for job opportunities, a madrassa graduate can aspire to be either a maulana (a teacher) or an imam at a mosque. Neither job pays enough for a decent living. Most of the madrassas are not equipped to teach students how to live in modern society, Ghulam Rasool Dehlvi, Islamic scholar and adviser with Jamia Hazrat Nizamuddin Aulia Madrassa, has told Kaur. This is a view echoed by S Irfan Habib, historian and Islamic scholar. In his interview to Kaur, Habib has said: When you talk of madrassas...the way they are run is not relevant for the mainstream employment opportunities as the scope and curriculum is very limited. Kaur reports that there are some progressive madrassas. Madrassa Taleem-ul-Quran, run by an independent Islamic educational charity, the Haji Langa Trust in RK Puram, south Delhi, is one such. It has attempted to make its curriculum more relevant by combining traditional teaching with market-friendly courses. Rather than having stand-alone courses in modern education, these madrassas have integrated them with the existing syllabus, which means students who already learn Arabic and Urdu are now required to learn English as well. This, it is claimed, has improved students chances of landing a job in the Middle East or in Indian companies that do business with Arab countries which need people who can communicate with their Arabic-speaking clients or business partners. I met Mushtaq Ansari who has become a freelance Arabic-English interpreter. He works for several companies and earns more money in a month than the average university graduate. He has had no formal schooling and learned both Arabic and English at a madrassa on the strength of which he obtained a modest job in an Arab mission. That, he said, gave him an opportunity to improve his Arabic and learned to speak it. A colleague recommended me to a company which was looking for a part-time interpreter. While working for them I found other part-time assignments, and I am happy doing what I am doing, he said. Ansaris case is relevant to the debate on the usefulness and relevance of madrassas. But success stories like these are few and far between. For the overwhelming majority, madrassa education remains a dead-end and irrelevant. In Part 1: Misogyny, and the beginning of reform in north Indias madrassas In Part 2: How Deoband became shorthand for extremism and violent intolerance entered its ideology New Delhi: Arrested Jawaharlal Nehru University student Umar Khalid's sister says her brother has wrongly been branded an Islamist terrorist because the self-proclaimed Marxist has a habit of questioning everything, including the existence of God. Khalid, facing the charge of sedition, surrendered before Delhi Police shortly after midnight and was taken into custody after five hours of questioning early Tuesday. His family is less worried about their son now after he made a dramatic appearance at the JNU campus on Sunday night, days after he went into hiding following a police crackdown. His sister, Kulsum Fatima, 25, a post-graduate in history from Ambedkar University, praised her 'bhai' as she fondly calls Khalid as a good human being who has done nothing wrong. He has always been a Marxist. He never believed in the Allah. Despite our family being very religious, he chose to be a non-believer, because he also questioned God," Fatima told IANS in an interview at her south Delhi house in a dingy neighbourhood of Zakir Nagar. She said the government was scared of people who question. My brother and hundreds like him are questioning the state about the injustice being done, and the atrocities against Dalits and Muslims (in India). What is wrong with that, she asked. Recalling her childhood with her brother, Fatima said he used to have sleepless nights worrying about Dalits in the country. I wish I was as good as my brother," said Fatima, alleging that she was threatened on social media soon after Khalid's name surfaced on the television branding him a "terrorist" after a controversial 9 February event on Kashmir at JNU campus where Khalid is pursuing his PhD on life of tribals in Jharkhand one of the impoverished tribal states of India. Khalid and five other accused JNU students Kanhaiya Kumar, Anant Prakash Narayan, Ashutosh Kumar, Rama Naga, Anirban Bhattacharya have been alleged to have raised anti-national slogans at the meeting. While Kanhaiya Kumar, the president of JNU Students Union, was arrested on 12 February, three others are yet to surrender. They are believed to be inside the JNU campus and police have been barred from entering there. Khalid's father Illyaas, a former chief of banned Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI), hesitates to speak too much about his son, who appeared on TV channels along with his colleagues as a new found hero of student protests in the country. The father, however, said that his son was being punished in media studios for having a Muslim name. Khalid shares his name with one of Islam's early time warriors, Khalid Bin Walid a companion of Prophet Muhammad still remembered in Islamic history for his military tactics and prowess. But the similarity ends with the name only. Khalid is neither Islamic nor does he vouch for jihad. His sister said that Khalid is her role model. I wish I were as good and as sensitive towards real issues like him. She said that her brother has been branded a traitor because his name is Umar Khalid and his ideology is extreme Left. Both things fit the profile. She said that the family was worried a lot when Khalid was absconding and is feels thankful that despite being branded as a terrorist he did not "go the Rohith Vemula way". She referred to the research scholar at the University of Hyderabad who committed suicide after being suspended from the varsity following a clash with a leader of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP). "We were scared when bhai was absconding. We weren't scared of his arrest but we were scared of the allegations that has been put on him," Fatima said. We feel safer now. At least we know he is alive." IANS Arguably the city with the most diversity in India, Mumbai also has enormous diversity in terms of pejorative terms used to stereotype communities. While some lend themselves to a good-humoured repartee, some lead to a rap on the knuckles from the High Court. A division bench of the Bombay High Court on Tuesday chided a man for having used the term 'ghati' during an alleged drunken brawl with police officers. While lamenting that the police appear to be soft targets, one of the judges hearing the case pointed out that the word 'ghati' is taken as an abuse in Mumbai, as reported by The Indian Express. In Mumbai, 'ghati' literally meaning people from hilly regions has a less benign connotation. Journalist S Hussain Zaidi, in his book Byculla to Bangkok, points out that north Indians in Mumbai sometimes refer to Marathi-speaking people as 'ghatis'. The term is part of a protracted conflict between different social groups in Mumbai spanning several decades, and can be used to map the history of tensions between diverse communities. The aggressive nativist party Shiv Sena, in its early days, had primarily targeted people from South India. The party patriarch Bal Thackeray, in his speeches, referred to people from South India as 'yandu gundu' making fun of languages from the region and chided them with slogans of 'uthao lungi aur bajao pungi.' Not surprisingly, the name-calling was not restricted to regional communities, but has also entered popular discourse as a way of referring to religious groups. For instance, Christians are referred to as 'paav wala,' while Parsis are called 'bawa'. While the former refers to a preference for food items of foreign origin (e.g. bread), the latter is a stereotype of the typical Parsi as a bespectacled, bumbling, grumpy old man. As the focus of the Shiv Sena's rage shifted to the north of the Godavari, the preferred term of vilification became 'bhaiyya'. This refers to people from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, and depending on convenience, is used for any Hindi-speaking people, including those from Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh or Rajasthan. Just as there are competing terms for different communities, there are competing terms for the city itself with Mumbai, Bombay and Bambai all referring to competing claims over Mumbai's identity. The media, too, reflects this debate the most recent example being The Independent, which took a decision to refer to the city as Bombay, rather than its official name, saying that it wanted to stand up to 'Hindu nationalism'. However, while the city was officially renamed in 1995, it had always been called Mumbai by the Marathi-speaking people, including the fishing community, the earliest inhabitants of the island. On the other end of the spectrum is the Shiv Sena mouthpiece Saamana, which refuses to refer to Aurangabad by that name, choosing to call it 'Sambhajinagar', after the eldest son of Maratha warrior king Shivaji. At times, the Bombay/Mumbai debate ceases to be an issue of semantics, and takes a violent turn. Some years ago, the film Wake up Sid faced violent protests from the Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS), after the city was referred to in the film as 'Bombay.' Clearly, much political anger in Mumbai revolves around names, and it is little surprise that this reflects in everyday conversations as well. In a context of competitive identity politics in an overcrowded city, political correctness over nomenclature appears to be the last priority. Surat: The violent Jat stir seems to have set the alarm bells ringing in Gujarat government. On Tuesday they sent an emissary to meet the jailed Patel quota agitation leader Hardik Patel to explore a compromise on the vexed issue. Prominent Patel leader and BJP MP Vitthal Radadia, who met Hardik in Lajpore jail, claimed that if a deal is struck, the government may consider withdrawal of cases registered against Patel leaders, including that of sedition against Hardik and the others. The cases were registered in the wake of large scale violence last year during the Patel quota agitation in the state. "Vitthalbhai Radadia is the respected leader of our community. I had a detailed discussion with him on the (Patel quota) issue. I will accept the compromise formula if it is for the benefit of my community," said Hardik, who was taken out of the jail for production in a court in Visnagar. Radadia and Hardik held a detailed discussion related to issues raised by the 'Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti' (PAAS) which is leading the agitation for reservation for Patels under OBC category. "Anandiben Patel (Gujarat chief minister) had asked me to meet Hardik on behalf of the state government to find out a possible solution to the ongoing Patel quota agitation," Radadia said. He met Hardik inside the jail for over an hour. "I had a very detailed discussion with Hardik on all the issues raised by his Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti. I will carry his message to the chief minister and I hope a solution to the problem will be soon arrived at," Radadia said. He added that his community is hopeful that the government will find out some way to provide the reservation benefits to Patels. "If Haryana Government can fulfill the demands of Jat community for reservation after five days of agitation, Central government and state (Gujarat) governments should also do something for the Patel community," he said. PTI For the Left, which had all but disappeared from public memory after being rendered insignificant in mainstream politics, the JNU controversy offers a chance to get back into reckoning. As was evident at the rally at Jantar Mantar yesterday, it wont allow it to go waste. CPM general secretary Sitaram Yechury hinted at a bigger social alignment when he raised the slogans Lal Salam, Inquilab Zindabad and Jai Bhim. He also made it clear that the Left wanted to reach out to all those opposing the policies of the Narendra Modi government at the Centre. It also wants to make the students agitation bigger. The Left parties and the student unions affiliated to them are planning to mobilise support for the JNU students agitation and on the Rohith Vemula suicide issue across the country. Along with political independence, theres a need for economic independence as well. We need azaadi (freedom), but from hunger, poverty, capitalistic exploitation and the RSS agenda. Well fight against all these and were with the students who have raised red flag against institutional suppression of dissent. This government by using the term nationalism wants to whip up nationalistic jingoism. Its dangerous. It has been trying to convert our secular democratic republic into a Hindu fascist nation by imposing the RSS agenda in our educational institutions. Were mobilizing against all these issues and our student union SFI will connect with the masses and students in universities, Yechury told Firstpost. Rohith Vemulas suicide is nothing but institutional killing. The HRD ministry wants to convert universities into RSS shakhas and the government has been attempting to suppress students voice by using lathis and police. They wont be successful. Were with the students and will fight it out, added CPM Politburo member Brinda Karat. The Left has given a nationwide call for a campaign from 23 to 25 February to combat the attack on intellectual freedom and democratic rights by organising rallies, human chain, discussion and discourse, and demonstrations. Beginning with it, the Madhya Pradesh unit of CPM on Tuesday organised a rally and human chain in Bhopal along with CPI, Left-affiliated organisations and non-Left progressive groups, with a resolution to fight Talibanisation of academic institutions and attack on democratic rights. The BJP-led government and the RSS want Talibanisation of our education system so students stop asking questions, lose their scientific temperament and freedom to express their views. They want finish off Indias 3500 year old culture of wisdom that was developed through discourse and respecting democratic views. If you challenge the Modi-government, they will brand you a Leftist. Had there been so many leftists in our country as the government claims today, the Left would have formed government at the centre with majority, said CPI (M) central committee member Badal Saroj. Are all those Dalit students who gathered at Jantar Mantar leftists? Modi-government wants to tow the line of fascists. The student agitation across the country including the one at JNU is not about Rohith Vemula, Dalits or Kanhaiya Kumar; its a well-organised attack on intellectualism, institutions and democratic rights. The Left has initiated a nationwide campaign to combat it and Bhopal was a part of it today, added Saroj, also MP state secretary, CPM. The present situation whether in JNU, Hyderabad Central University or elsewhere has emerged due to highhandedness and dictatorial attitude of BJP-led NDA government and the RSS. They have adopted fascist way of spreading lies to counter the growing dissent amongst students. The Left will mobilise its cadre and fight it firmly, CPI leader D Raja told Firstpost. On students front, all the Left-affiliated unions Students Federation of India (SFI) of CPM, All India Students Federation (AISF) of CPI, All India Students Association (AISA) of CPI-ML, etc - have joined hands to mobilise their cadre in colleges and universities in every state and develop it into a mass-based movement through a multi-level strategy. Viswajeet, national vice president, AISF said, All Left and progressive students organisations have given a nationwide call to mobilise students on campuses. Well hold rallies, demonstrations, dharnas and court arrests (Jail Bharo) at district-level in all the states to create a powerful resistance. If needed, well go for Parliament gherao in Delhi. Added Sucheta De, national president, AISA, Our demand is that the conspiracy of BJP-RSS should be exposed and the way students have been branded anti-national and sent to jail. The worldview of the RSS is to marginalise the Muslims, Dalits, farmers, labourers and the poor by branding them as anti-democratic section. The attack on JNU and the Left student bodies has been due to our Occupy UGC movement and it got extended to Rohith Vemula and FTII. Weve adopted a coordinated movement for changing the regime and democratic transformation, and all the students organisations believing in it, will fight it out united. Kathmandu: A small plane with 23 people, including two foreigners, on board on Wednesday went missing while flying in a mountainous area in Nepal. The aircraft of Tara Air was on a 20-minute flight from Pokhara, a tourist hub located 200 km west of the capital Kathmandu, to Jomsom but lost contact after takeoff. Mustang Police Chief DSP Harihar Yogi confirmed that the Twin Otter is missing. The aircraft was carrying 20 passengers, including two foreigners and two children. There were three crew members in the aircraft. The search operation for Tara Viking 9H-AHH Twin Otter aircraft, flying to Jomsom town from Pokhara city, has begun, Xinhua reported. Tara Air said it has received reports of a missing plane. Two helicopters have been sent to find the missing plane, said Chief District Officer of Kaski district, Hari Prasad Mainali. "An army helicopter and a helicopter of Dynasty Air have already been sent for the search operation," said Bhim Raj Rai, Media Officer at Tara Airlines. The aircraft might have crashed in Dana village which lies between Mustang and Myagdi district in northern Nepal, a police officer from Pokhara Zonal Police office quoted local residents as saying. The cause of the incident could not be immediately known. However,Dana Village Development Committee and adjoining areas were enshrouded in cloud of dust yesterday following dry landslides in Mount Annapurna. Local residents said they have heard a huge sound of explosion and fire in the remote mountainous area. "Weather of both Pokhara and Jomsom is fine today (Wednesday). So we have no clue about what went wrong," Rai said. Since 1949 - the year the first aircraft landed in Nepal - there have been more than 70 different crashes involving planes and helicopters, in which more than 700 people have been killed. In 2013, the European Union banned all Nepalese airlines from flying there. In 2014, a Nepal Airlines plane crashed into the side of a snow-clad mountain in the country's west, killing 18 people. The aircraft was added to the fleet last September. With inputs from agencies OSLO Corals under threat from acid seas can only be saved by deep cuts in carbon dioxide emissions, scientists said on Wednesday, and engineering the chemistry of sea water around coral reefs was only possible on a very small scale. In a U.S.-led study, scientists mixed chemicals into a lagoon, cut off from the sea at low tide, at Australia's One Tree Island to locally reverse the global trend of acidification that makes it harder for corals to build their stony skeletons. They showed that the coral, part of Australia's Great Barrier reef, grew better when bathed in seawater mimicking conditions before the Industrial Revolution, which ushered in widespread burning of fossil fuels that release carbon dioxide. Their study, the first to isolate the impact of acidification from other damaging factors such as rising temperatures and pollution, warned that "technical challenges ... would probably make it infeasible at anything but highly localized scales (for example, protected bays, lagoons)." "The only real, lasting way to protect coral reefs is to make deep cuts in our carbon dioxide emissions," the study's co-author, Ken Caldeira, from the Carnegie Institution for Science in Stanford, California, said. Carbon dioxide forms a weak acid when mixed with water, undermining the ability of creatures such as corals, crabs, lobsters or oysters to build protective shells. "Ocean acidification is already taking its toll on coral reef communities. This is no longer a fear for the future; it is the reality of today," lead author, Rebecca Albright, also from the Carnegie Institution, said in a statement of the findings in the journal Nature. An international report in 2013 said today's pace of ocean acidification is the fastest in 55 million years. Corals alone contribute almost $30 billion a year to world economies - as nurseries for fish, tourist attractions or protective barriers from storms - according to the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Reefs are also under threat from record ocean temperatures, compounded by an El Nino weather event in the Pacific. Governments agreed a deal in Paris in December to cut greenhouse gas emissions. (Editing by Louise Ireland) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. ATHENS Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras urged European Union countries to honour the bloc's decisions on sharing the burden of the migrant crisis, saying that if they did not, Athens would block future agreements. Austria, defying criticism from Greek and U.N. refugee officials, took further steps on Wednesday to coordinate border restrictions spanning the Balkans that are intensifying a logjam of migrants in Greece. "We will not accept turning the country into a permanent warehouse of souls with Europe continuing to function as if nothing is happening," Tsipras told parliament on Wednesday. "Greece will not agree to deals (in the EU) if a mandatory allocation of burdens and responsibilities among member countries is not secured," he said. Athens has protested against restrictions imposed by countries further north along the main land corridor into Europe, including along Austria's frontier with Slovenia and Macedonia's border with Greece. Defying criticism from Greek and U.N. refugee officials, Austria on Wednesday took further steps to coordinate a slew of border restrictions spanning the Balkans that have caused a worsening logjam of migrants in Greece. "We will not tolerate that a number of countries will be building fences and walls at the borders without accepting even a single refugee," Tsipras said. "Greece will demand the mandatory participation of EU countries in the relocation of refugees." He said it was unacceptable for EU partners to dump the burden of the crisis on Greece, forcing it to shoulder a weight way disproportionate to its size. "We did and will continue to do everything we can to provide warmth, essential help and security to uprooted, hounded people," he said. "We will either be in a union of common rules for all or everyone will do they please: we will not accept the latter." Addressing worries that flow restrictions at the northern border could swell the number of migrants stranded in Greece, Tsipras said he would meet political party leaders to form a common stance before an early March summit of EU leaders on the migration crisis. Earlier on Wednesday, he told German Chancellor Angela Merkel he was deeply displeased about the failure of some EU leaders to stick to bloc decisions on tackling the refugee crisis. The two leaders agreed to intensify efforts to implement EU decisions and start NATO operations in the Aegean Sea immediately to counter smuggling networks to reduce migrant inflows. (Reporting by George Georgiopoulos; Editing by Ruth Pitchford) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. Seoul: North Korea's description of South Korea's president as an "old, insane b*tch" destined for violent death may take the rivals' hateful propaganda battle to a new level of hostility, which is saying something for neighbors with such a long, bloody history of hating each other's guts. The North called President Park Geun-hye's predecessors traitors and even rat-like, but the invectives it throws at the South's first female president tend to be uglier, often casting her relationship with her American allies in crude sexual terms. Carved in two by the Soviets and Americans at the end of the Second World War, the halves of the Korean Peninsula fought a vicious war in the early 1950s, and have spent much of the years since then promising, and sometimes trying very hard to engineer, each other's destruction. North Korea, even as it builds a nuclear arsenal, has in recent decades been outgunned diplomatically, economically and militarily by the richer South; it has therefore relied more on words as a weapon. It has been especially likely to do so under conservative South Korean leaders such as Park and her immediate predecessor, Lee Myung-bak; before Lee took office in 2008, nearly a decade of liberal leaders pushed for cooperation with Pyongyang and sent huge shipments of aid northwards. The North's attacks may be meant to "reduce hopes for unification, which the North Korean elite really doesn't want, because there's no way they'd keep their privileges on the other side," says Robert Kelly, a political scientist at Pusan National University in the South. North Korea's overwhelmingly male-dominated culture may have something to do with it as well. Kelly says Pyongyang may not understand that sexist language disgusts many. Brian Myers, an expert on North Korean propaganda at South Korea's Dongseo University, suggests that young North Korean leader Kim Jong Un may either not remember or not care that his country once carefully tailored its propaganda to influence millions of potential leftist sympathisers in the South. Myers says that could be bad news for the near future. If it becomes impossible for a South Korean party devoted to accommodation to come to power in Seoul, he says, "I'm afraid we could see the North shift more and more toward outright bullying and intimidation." Here's a look at North Korea's long history of insults: "Murderous demon" In perhaps its lengthiest and harshest verbal attack on Park since she took office in 2013, the North's official Korean Central News Agency on Saturday called her a "tailless, old, insane bitch," a "senile old woman" and a "murderous demon" destined to meet "a sudden and violent death." This was likely a response to her reaction to the North's recent nuclear test and rocket launch. She closed a jointly run factory park, started missile defense talks with Washington and mentioned the potential for a "regime collapse" in Pyongyang, something North Korea's dictator is extremely sensitive about. KCNA wrote that Park complains about North Korean nukes, but "takes much pleasure and even throws out her underwear in welcoming the murderous nuclear war devices brought in by the American Yankees." North Korea previously called Park a "prostitute" and said she lives on the "groin of her American boss." It has frequently questioned her womanhood because she has no children, which the North labels as an "obligation" for women. North Korea also frequently refers to the "swish of her skirts," a Korean phrase used to describe women seen as overly aggressive. "The swishes of Park Geun-hye's skirt, created by her American boss, are so unpredictable they're dumbfounding," an unnamed spokesman of the North's Joint National Organisation of Working People said in a statement last year published by the KCNA. "This is all because the United States' black, hairy hands reach deep into Park Geun-hye's skirt." "Rat-like" The North's propaganda writers spent years attacking Lee, Park's predecessor, by saying he looked like a rat. In a statement against Lee during his final days as president in January 2013, the North's Committee for Peaceful Reunification of Korea compared Lee and his "treacherous group" to rats five different times, saying that they should be "beaten (to death) in time" and "completely exterminated." In July 2012, KCNA said the "death-bed frenzy" of Lee's "group of traitors reminds one of the rat-like hoodlums being dragged to gallows." Lee drew Pyongyang's anger by departing from the rapprochement policies of his two liberal predecessors and slapping the North with broad trade sanctions in 2010 following the sinking of a South Korean warship that killed 46 sailors and which Seoul blamed on a North Korean torpedo attack. "Fascist dictator" North Korea has described Park Geun-hye as a worse "traitor" than her dictator father, Park Chung-hee, who ruled South Korea for 18 years until his assassination by his spy chief in 1979. The North attempted to assassinate the elder Park by sending a team of 31 commandos across the border in 1968, but they were stopped near Park's presidential mansion in Seoul. Shortly after his death, the North's official Rodong Sinmun newspaper called Park a "a truculent fascist dictator" who "plunged South Korea into a sea of blood, arresting, imprisoning and brutally murdering (those) ... who called for the democratization of society and the reunification of the country." Slaps against US North Korea often extends its insults to the presidents and other key officials of the United States, which Pyongyang labels as an imperialist aggressor and puppet master of the Seoul government. The North hurled racist insults at US President Barack Obama more than once, with Pyongyang's powerful National Defense Commission calling him a "monkey in a tropical forest" in December 2014 over the hacking row involving the movie The Interview, a comedy that depicts Kim's assassination. The North's state media has called U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry a wolf with a "hideous" lantern jaw, and his predecessor, Hillary Clinton, as a "funny lady" who sometimes "looks like a primary schoolgirl and sometimes a pensioner going shopping." Former US President George W Bush, who in 2002 bracketed North Korea with Iran and pre-war Iraq as part of an "axis of evil," was labelled as a "world dictator," and a "hooligan bereft of any personality as a human being." His vice president, Dick Cheney, was described by the North in 2005 as "the most cruel monster and bloodthirsty beast as he has drenched various parts of the world in blood." AP The Twin Otter plane belonging to Tara Air that was reported missing in a mountainous region of Nepal earlier on Wednesday morning is confirmed to have crashed, killing all 23 aboard. The latest development comes after four hours of intense rescue operations, which involved the use of three helicopters, was confirmed to have crashed in the treacherous terrain of Soli Ghoptebhir in Myagdi district, with all 20 passengers and three crew members confirmed to have died in the disaster. "The plane was on fire and it is still burning," Police constable Phool Kumar Thapa Magar was quoted in a report on The Kathmandu Post. More police squads are said to be on their way towards the site. Among the deceased were a Kuwaiti and a Chinese national, as well as two infants. The aircraft was piloted by Roshan Manandhar. The plane, which was travelling between the tourist hub of Pokhara and Jomson in a 20-minute flight, had lost contact with the Pokhara Air Traffic Control (ATC) 10 minutes after takeoff at 7:50 am. "See you back, Ghorepani normal, good day," were reportedly the last words from pilot Manandhar, not voicing any concern whatsoever during his final conversation with the Pokhara ATC. The reason for the crash is yet to be fully ascertained, with the weather at the origin and destination airports said to be favourable. The areas adjoining the crash site were said to be covered in a cloud of dust following dry landslides in Mt Annapurna's south base. It is also known that weather at both origin and destination airports was favourable and the airport was cleared for departure by the control tower at Pokhara," read the statement released by Tara Air following the incident according to a report on The Himalayan Times. The Viking 9H-AHH Twin Otter aircraft boasted of cutting edge avionics technology with an integrated full glass cockpit, with features such as an enhanced ground proximity warning system. Aviation in Nepal has had a turbulent history, with more than 70 different crashes involving planes and helicopters being reported since the first aircraft landed in Nepal in 1949. More than 700 people were reported to have been killed in those crashes. The state's health watchdog is investigating the doctor accused of administering incorrect doses of a chemotherapy drug to 70 cancer patients at St Vincent's Hospital for up to three years. The Health Care Complaints Commission (HCCC) confirmed it was probing the actions of oncologist Associate Professor John Grygiel, whose head and neck cancer patients received as little as half the recommended dose of the drug carboplatin recommended by clinical guidelines while they were being treated at the inner Sydney hospital. But Dr Grygiel claimed he was a scapegoat and his treatment decisions were signed off by his superiors. As the burden of Europe's record influx of asylum seekers and migrants continues to fall unevenly across EU member states, German Chancellor Angela Merkel has been one of the few national leaders supporting EU calls for increased collaboration across all member states to resolve the crisis. But convincing individual member states to assume their fair share of the burden has largely fallen on deaf ears, as the threat of divisive right-wing nationalism continues to cloud popular debate. Following an interview with top EU officials about the current state of the crisis, we asked Dr. Hein de Haas, professor of Migration Sociology at the University of Amsterdam, about some of the popular assumptions that have crept into the debate. A fellow and former director of the International Migration Institute at the University of Oxford, de Haas has repeatedly written that some EU border security policies only perpetuate the smuggling industry. The following was conducted in concert with VOA's Adrift: The Invisible African Diaspora. VOA: You've consistently argued there isn't any genuine interest in decreasing migration to the European Union, and that restrictive border policies further incentivize smuggling. Are there specific EU migration and asylum polices that are the cause and should be eradicated? de Haas: Well, it's mainly been a political crisis I mean, look at numbers. Migration is a pretty stable phenomenon to Europe, just like it is to the U.S. Together with the U.S., Europe is one of the main global destinations of legal migration and still I would like to emphasize that, by and large, most migrants in Europe have come in legally. Of course, what we've seen in the last year is a particular phenomenon linked to war in Syria and quite an unprecedented increase in people seeking refuge in Europe, although the vast majority of refugees stay in neighboring Turkey, Lebanon or Jordan. Less than 10 percent come to Europe. When you consider the sheer size of the EU population, it's not a number that couldn't be accommodated. I think the real issue is that European nations have been masterful at shifting responsibilities to neighboring countries rather than sharing responsibilities, and that's sort of been the approach and its a problematic one. If all European countries would really take in their share of refugees, it would be rather easy to deal with despite the big numbers. The European Union has about 560 million inhabitants, and we talk about an estimated 1 million people nobody knows exactly who've arrived in 2015, but only a share of those would have applied for asylum. So that, of course, is a manageable problem if the responsibility was shared. VOA: But is it incumbent upon EU officials or is incumbent upon EU member states to see that each country would take on their fair share? de Haas: I think the European Commission had a clear vision, which I share, that there should be shared responsibility; the real problem is that individual states are not willing to take responsibility, because they behave very nationalistically and think they have to respond to xenophobic tendencies within their own countries, and I think that's a real problem. VOA: You've discussed the incompatibility of prevailing EU economic and immigration policies, particularly in terms of border security. Is it possible or likely that the EU could sync economic and migration policy planning in a useful way? de Haas: Well, it's the same for the U.S., right? We've seen three decades of economic policies since Reaganomics and Thatchers reforms kick-started the liberalization project of Western economies. Whether or not you support these reforms is irrelevant for understanding how these policies have fueled a demand for migrant workers. It has created an expanded market for all sorts of informal labor that natives shun and migrants are likely to take up. In other words, you have supply and demand. If you block the border, you block the supply, so the supply is going to find another way to meet demand, which is to say find its way across that border to seek employment. That's not rocket science. So, as an economic or political community either the U.S. or Europe if you are serious about doing something about it, you ought to change something about your labor regulations and their enforcement, or punish the employers who hire migrants. But there doesn't seem to be a real willingness to do so. That's the incompatibility. Thats why, in practice, governments often turn a blind eye to these employers that hire undocumented workers. VOA: And what might a compatible economic/migration policy package look like? An expanded work visa program, or is there more to it than that? de Haas: I can't really answer the question in terms of an ideal policy, because I think the real question is in what kind of society do you want to live. It depends on your economic objectives. Look at a country like Japan, which has a much more protective economy in many ways. It has lower immigration. So these are the trade-offs. But if you have an open-market economy with high levels of economic exchange with other areas of the world: to think you can combine that with low immigration is to create an illusion. As long as we live in open, wealthy countries that share land or sea borders with poorer countries, and as long as you are part of economic blocks such as the EU, the idea that you can really curb immigration significantly is an illusion. VOA: A primary subject of our coverage is a young Somali mother of two who attempted suicide after being denied asylee status after arriving in Austria. She exhausted her life savings to get to northern Europe. She can't acquire any kind of status in the EU, and she refuses to return to Somalia. What advice if any might you be compelled to share with people in a similar situation? de Haas: I would try to stay. Hers isn't a new story. It's been decades of this sort of denial policy, where we half-heartedly tolerate the presence of refugees whom we know cannot be returned, often because their home-country is unsafe. It's a paradox. We don't grant them asylum, or it takes many years, but at the same time their home country is unsafe, so we know we can't send them back. I think in that case you've got to be pragmatic and give them full status, which means they can also work. One of the misgivings in the whole European asylum system is that so many irregular arrivals are made passive, which often means they will depend on welfare. One of the main reasons theyre passive is because they're not allowed to work for years. So many refugees are quite eager to get on with life especially if they've been traumatized. But if you lock people up in asylum-seeker centers sometimes for years it's a recipe to make these people unfit for the labor market. And I think that's the real tragedy, this reluctance to make clear choices. If you're going to reject somebody, then reject them. But we also know you simply can't send back big numbers of migrants or refugees to countries that aren't safe. Look, we know there are no easy solutions to these issues, but we also know people won't go back if they think it's unsafe. So, my advice to this particular refugee? Stay put. In the end, the likelihood of getting some kind of status is there, so long as you can't be sent back. It's not like in the U.S. where we're talking about Mexican nationals crossing the border; we're talking about people arriving from really incredibly dangerous places. VOA: And what to make of U.S. immigration rules? Lots of Americans would say theyre opposed to illegal immigration, and yet once irregular arrivals land on U.S. soil, theres very often gainful employment awaiting them. de Haas: Yes, and look at all these Moroccans who arrived in Spain since the 1990s and, in the end, gained full status. They came there to work and there was no way around that, so there were these big amnesties in Spain several times. So, there is this reward, whether in the form of a paycheck and/or documented status, and that's just the reality on the ground. Theres absolutely a reward. Now, theoretically speaking, states are able to control migration pretty well, but it requires a state to be authoritarian and violate human rights to control migration entirely. Look at Central and Eastern Europe during the communist era: those countries were pretty effective at controlling borders, but we know what types of societies they were. You need an authoritarian or police state to seal off your borders effectively. And that is the real issue. I mean, if Donald Trump says "go and deport all illegals," that's obviously a huge issue; besides the fact that its unfeasible, it means you would separate people from their kids and all of the social consequences that come with that, which would make the U.S. a shame case in terms of international human rights. So the question isn't only whether countries would go that far but, in terms of U.S. immigration, whether doing so would violate your own constitution. VOA: So, let's play King for a Day. If you could magically formulate a set of policies to "resolve the EU immigration crisis" whatever that means what would it look like? Mass asylum granted? de Haas: No, I think it's a combination of measures, including genuine support for regional solutions. We know that the large majority of refugees stay in their region of origin, and that many refugees don't want to come to Europe. Not only because these people lack the financial resources to reach Europe, but also because they don't want to travel so far away. It is known that many Syrian refugees would prefer to go to Lebanon because they have family there or because it's a very familiar culture. Now, in terms of development and regionally targeted job creation, I am not saying that if we give enough support to Turkey or Lebanon or Jordan, nobody will come to Europe, but I think there's still a good case to be made for those who would like to stay close to home. To give them some support. And the real burden, of course, is taken by those countries in the region. A large majority of Syrians go to neighboring countries at least 90 percent. So it's not Europe that's the main target. And as far as the migrants that come to Europe, you set up a reasonable system of distribution across Europe. What now happens, you know, you hear people saying "Angel Merkel is naive," but what she's been arguing is, indeed, is that there is no easy solution, and that we can't think this away and we must do something about it, and if we do it together, we can do it. So, if Europe does it together, it could do this. I mean, the biggest wealthy bloc of countries in the world could handle it. But the burden is always put on the shoulders of only a few countries. I think that's the real issue. VOA: And is that because of geographic proximity to various regional crises, or because the displaced masses know some European countries Sweden and Germany, for example are just more receptive to outsiders? de Haas: Sure, of course. There will always be some countries that are more receptive than others, and people will often go to those countries first. And that's a problem you can't ever solve, because if Germany makes it more difficult, people will simple move to other European countries. So that's why I said European countries have been very good at shifting responsibilities to neighboring countries without anyone actually proposing any real joint solutions. And so I think Angela Merkel and the European Commission are right that European nations need to give credible support to the process, and that everybody take their share. And I think if that were put in place, we'd be in a much better place. Look at it on the global scale: there are about 19 million refugees in the world, which is about .03 percent of the global population. And we know 80 to 90 percent of all refugees in the world are already in poor countries themselves, so it's a tiny fraction of those people actually coming to wealthy counties. And to suggest those wealthy countries couldn't afford to host those refugees, I think it's just an outrageous statement. VOA: You've published a paper about this so-called swinging pendulum of migration policy, which constantly oscillates between extremely optimistic and pessimistic outlooks. From a policy perspective, what does the middle ground between these two extremes look like? de Haas: We really need to steer away from this ultra-polarized debate, where you see these pro- and anti-immigration standpoints, which are both caricatures of themselves. I've already explained why a closed-border society is a no-brainer in many ways, because it would create a type of society that no one would want to live in. And a completely open border is also naive, because of course nation-states have a right to determine who's a member and who's not a member. But we have to steer away from these positions that are just far too simplistic and stop discussing migration as something that either brings our nations down or acts as a kind of silver-bullet solution for much more structural problems, such as aging or economic stagnation. It's neither this big threat nor a silver bullet that adversaries and proponents tend to portray. The biggest problem is polarization itself. Migration is an important phenomenon, but it's not a game changer, so I think reducing the polemical dialogue would help to cool things down. And cooling down is essential in order to develop sensible policies to deal with migration. VOA: But following the Greek bailout, terrorist attacks in Paris, debating Schengen: Is that possible in such a rhetorically charged climate? It seems like there's just so much fear and xenophobia in the equation to have a calm, tempered discourse. de Haas: Well, if you look at the public opinion polls, views of migration are pretty stable, and in quite a few European countries, even more people now support housing refugees more so than 10 or twenty years ago. The real problem lies in the politics; the real problem is that politicians don't show responsibility and leadership on the issue. Certainly in Europe there seems to be a common fear of the far-right taking away votes and leading all parties to shift to those same or similar positions. And that, I think, is the real danger: the lack of support for reasonable discussion and acknowledgement that there is no easy solution. That, whether you like it or not and this is what German Chancellor Angela Merkel has been arguing this is not something we can just think away. So, I'm not saying migration is all fantastic although migration writ large does play a beneficial economic role it would be foolish to deny there can be also disadvantages. And of course some people feel the negative consequences of migration much more acutely than others. It's often people that are left out of Western societies anyway who live in neighborhoods where many migrants settle, which makes it easy for right-wing politicians to make a connection between the economic misgivings of a people and presence of migrants, although both are not necessarily connected. You know, I often say that migrants are the most concrete manifestations of very abstract processes, such as economic liberalization and globalization; they're not the cause of it, but they're the manifestation of it. It's the same phenomenon that has made labor much more precarious for lots of native workers, and they feel they're worse off. It's just sort of underlying discontent in society that the Donald Trumps of the world have really understood well. You know, you can't blame the Mexicans or the Syrians or the Moroccans or the Turks in Europe for structural economic issues such as lack of job security and increased economic inequality, which is all the result of economic reforms pursued over the last 30 years. But of course it's an easy connection to make in the minds of some voters. So there's no easy answer to your question, but I think what we need is a more sensible debate, which means steering away from those hyperventilating pro- and anti-immigration arguments, which is just a ridiculous way of discussing open versus closed borders, neither of which are credible propositions anyway. VOA: What continues to be missing from the coverage? de Haas: Well, you would hope for much more investigative journalism that takes a critical look at what the migration industry is really about. I mean, politicians tend to take this moral high ground and blame the smugglers as "these mean people that are the cause of the crisis," which is outrageous to suggest. I would hope journalists ask more pertinent questions of the politicians, such as "Do you really believe the smugglers are the cause of this phenomenon, because don't people have real reasons to cross those borders? And why would they not use the smugglers?" That's what I find a total hypocrisy: Whatever you think of the issue, you can't deny that smugglers have a field day when you close borders. So there's no point in blaming the smugglers, when in fact the border restrictions have created this phenomenon in the first place. So, if there's a cause of migration, like a political crisis or war in Syria, people will keep on coming. If they can't cross the border in regular fashion, they'll use smugglers, who are basically service providers. A second issue, which I really think is way, way under-covered is the huge interest that defense contractors and corporations have in the whole border-control industry. VOA: There is certainly loads of technology there. A massive infrastructure... de Haas: Oh yes, yes. There is a website called themigrantsfiles.com, a journalism consortium that does research on how much money is actually spent on this and who gets all of the fat contracts. And there's a lot of money to be earned in this whole border-control industry. So, I think we should be more skeptical of politicians who say, "Oh, we need to control the borders, we need to fight those smugglers," when it's actually their own policies increasing the market for smuggling. And [look at] what interests are really driving those discourses. For example, is it really coincidental that since the end of the Cold War that migration has suddenly been staged as a main issue, particularly in Europe? You know, the so-called first asylum crisis followed the fall of the Berlin Wall. Until the fall of the Berlin Wall, the enemy was clear, right? The communist enemy. And of course it's attractive to find an external enemy to blame for your problems. The migration issue has become politicized. Before the fall of the Berlin Wall, immigration wasn't a real issue of public concern; it only came up after the wall came down. And of course that's not a causal connection to the wall coming down, but there is a relation between the collapse of the communist enemy and the need to invent an external enemy. Unwanted migration has become that external enemy. VOA: Instead of Huntingtons proverbial Clash of Civilizations, just a pervading vilification of outsiders in general? de Haas: Exactly. VOA: What are you looking for from Brussels in 2016? de Haas: I hope the Commission and governments in powerful European countries will continue to push countries that have been very reluctant to take their share of responsibility. I'm just really hoping for a kind of mood change in Europe, and it requires real political leadership, but I think it is possible, even if only a few political leaders are willing to do this. I mean, the EU's current presiding nation is now my country, The Netherlands, and the only thing they can say is, "we have to drastically reduce the in-flow," which is not the right focus. The right focus is that we need to share responsibilities. So, depending on what happens, 2016 could be the year when it finally dawns on the European Union that the only way forward is collaboration. You know, it always takes a crisis to come to a point of intensified collaboration across European countries. And while sometimes the [EU] solution may seem to be just around the corner, the real solution is the end to conflict in Syria and other origin countries. Let's not forget that. That's in the interest of everybody. It's not that migrants or refugees aren't welcome, but we know that many people would love to go back. But that won't happen if you don't resolve this conflict within 1 or 2 years. VOA: You've researched and published a lot about migration issues throughout the Mediterranean basin. Will that continue to be a focus for you and, if so, what do you make of the Libya factor? That we now have a failed state where once Gadhafi provided jobs, and now the floodgates of illegal migration are open. de Haas: Well, as far as I know the Libyan economy still demands migrant labor and people still travel to Libya to work and to trade. And have you really seen the floodgates open? I don't think we've really seen that over the last year. Most people have arrived via other routes. And Libya is not a safe country, and so maybe migrants would shun Libya right now. So, no, it wouldn't say it's a flood. VOA: And yet you hear it discussed in exactly those terms. And of course it was the late Moammar Gadhafi and Saif, his son and heir apparent, who routinely played on Europe's xenophobic fears that, should their regime collapse, the Mediterranean would "become a sea of chaos," and that the "dark-skinned Africans" would come. de Haas: [Laughter...] Yes, exactly. They always played on those racist and xenophobic fears. And the same has been done by [former Italian Foreign Minister Franco] Frattini and it just has not happened. I've written this on my blog. It won't happen; it hasn't happened and we haven't even begun to see it happen. So just this is the idea that there are 3 million people eager to jump on a boat to leave Africa or Libya is just sheer nonsense. The proof of the pudding is in the eating, right? And now we've seen the collapse of Gadhafi regime, and so where is the flood? VOA: Yes, UNHCR data shows pretty consistent numbers arriving from Libya for years. The surge is largely Syrians arriving via Balkan routes. de Haas: Yeah, and we know why people move out of Syria now. What really triggered the recent surge were intensified warfare such as the bombings of Aleppo. Thats pretty clear. People cross the Turkish border and get into Europe. Actually, African immigration is pretty stable, as you've said. And, again, most African migrants come to Europe perfectly legally, so what you see in the Mediterranean is a small part of the total picture. Democratic presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders voice their support Tuesday for President Obama's push to close the military detention center in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. At a CNN town hall forum in the southeastern state of South Carolina, former Secretary of State Clinton said there is no reason for the United States to still use the facility, calling it a continuing recruitment ad for terrorists. She said the decision on where to transfer the remaining detainees "should be a matter of negotiation." Sanders, a senator from Vermont, said locking up people in Guantanamo has had repercussions around the world for the U.S., making the country "look like hypocrites and fools." Democrats vote Saturday in South Carolina's presidential primary with Clinton leading by more than 20 points in a number of polls in the state. The contest is the last before next Tuesday's so-called Super Tuesday when about a dozen states will vote at the same time. Sanders also weighed in on the situation with the U.S. Supreme Court, which has a vacancy due to the death of Justice Antonin Scalia. Republicans say President Barack Obama should not be allowed to appoint a new justice in his final year in office, while Democrats insist it is the president's duty to do so. Sanders called the Republican position an example of the "continuous and unprecedented obstructionism" that Obama has faced during his term. He mentioned questions about Obama's heritage, saying that despite having a Polish father nobody has ever asked to see his own birth certificate. Clinton responded to criticism of her paid speeches to companies, particularly those on Wall Street, by saying she is open to releasing transcripts of those remarks, but only if all the other candidates do so. Hundred of Kosovars put up tents in Pristina's main square on Tuesday demanding snap elections and the suspension of a parliamentary vote that will bring in a president who helped broker a deal giving more powers to the ethnic Serb minority. Opposition parties accuse presidential candidate, Hashim Thaci, deputy prime minister and the head parliament's biggest party, the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK), of nepotism and corruption. The former prime minister denies the accusations. They have been protesting since October last year against the EU-brokered agreement with Serbia and have organized street protests, clashed with the police several times and last month set the government building on fire. They have also frequently released tear gas in parliament over the last few months. "We will stay here until the government goes home," the president of the biggest opposition party Vetevendosje, Visar Ymeri, said as supporters around him set up red and green tents in front of the main government building. "Kosovo cannot be governed by politicians who have endangered the country's sovereignty," he said. Last Friday, the opposition released tear gas in parliament to protest against the deal with Serbia and to demand the cancellation of a border deal with Montenegro. The government says opposition party leaders are provoking violence and trying to drag Kosovo into "crime and anarchy." Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008, almost a decade after NATO airstrikes drove out Serbian security forces accused of killing and expelling ethnic Albanian civilians during a counter-insurgency war. Many Kosovo Albanians believe last year's accord with Serbia represents a threat to that hard-won sovereignty, though its status is unclear after the constitutional court ruled in December that parts of it breach the country's laws. U.S. President Barack Obama outlined his administration's plan for closing the military detention center at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, saying the facility "does not advance our national security, it undermines it." "If, as a nation, we don't deal with this now, when will we deal with it?" Obama asked at the White House, after the U.S. Defense Department delivered the plan Tuesday to Congress. He appealed to Congress to be "on the right side of history" and asked that the nation act on the "lessons" learned over the past 15 years. Republicans already have criticized the Pentagon's proposal. "Congress has left no room for confusion. It is against the lawand it will stay against the lawto transfer terrorist detainees to American soil," Speaker of the House Paul Ryan said. "We will not jeopardize our national security over a campaign promise." We are at war, yet incredibly the president is more focused on relocating and releasing enemy combatants than on detaining new ones, House Homeland Security Chairman Michael McCaul added. WATCH: President Obama's plan faces an uphill battle However, a senior administration official said closing the prison is a national security priority, adding that the facility has inspired jihadists and served as a recruiting tool for terrorists. The President stressed the importance of closing the facility when he took office in 2009, but with less than a year left in his presidency, some 91 detainees remain. Obama said that when he took office there had been bipartisan support for closing the prison, but that over time lawmakers had become "worried about the politics" of it. WATCH: Video of Sen. Mitch McConnell reacting to plan Its purely politically driven, Gary Solis, a law of war professor at Georgetown University, told VOA. There are individuals who are so opposed to the Obama Administration, and I believe Obama personally, that they are simply unwilling to participate in any activity that might further his goals. The Pentagon plan to close the facility includes discussion of 13 potential sites within the United States where the military could transfer a group of about 30 to 60 detainees. However, it does not recommend which U.S. site should be chosen. Potential sites include federal prisons in Kansas, Colorado and South Carolina, as well as military facilities. US Plan to Close Guantanamo Bay Detention Center U.S. Plan to Close Guantanamo Bay Detention Center The Obama administration's efforts to close the Guantanamo Bay detention facility include: Identifying transfer opportunities for eligible detainees. Reviewing by fall 2016 the threat posed by detainees currently not eligible for transfer and those who are not facing military commission charges. Continuing military commission prosecutions for those currently charged. Even with these efforts, the administration expects that there will be a limited number of detainees who are deemed to dangerous to release. The administration said it will work with Congress to relocate those detainees who are not eligible for transfer or who are not candidates for prosecution to a secure detention facility in the continental United States while continuing to find other appropriate and lawful non-U.S. dispositions. A senior administration official said moving the prisoners from Cuba to the U.S. will save the Pentagon between $65 million and $85 million per year, and would offset the initial cost needed to move the prisoners within three-five years. As the detainee population goes down, the per-person/per-man cost goes up dramatically, of course. So, its well over a million dollars a year per person at Guantanamo now, Solis told VOA. Obama added Tuesday that the overall savings from the move would amount to $1.7 billion over the next 20 years. The proposal does not include an exact cost or location for the replacement facility, which Republicans, including Speaker of the House Ryan, used to slam the plan. Senior administration officials, however, pointed to the restrictions made by Congress as to why they were unable to provide more specific costs and locations. Of the 91 detainees, a U.S. official told VOA that 35 have been approved for transfer, and they are expected to be transferred to other countries by this summer. Another 10 are somewhere within the military commissions process, the official said. Current U.S. law bans the transfer of Guantanamo Bay detainees to locations within the United States. Some say those transfers could bring security concerns. The White House has left open the possibility Obama could use an executive order to close Guantanamo. Detention center The Guantanamo facility opened in 2002 under the administration of former President George W. Bush following the September 11 terror attacks in New York and Washington. Nearly 800 detainees have been held there at some point since then, many for long periods without being charged or put on trial. Most of the detainees have been transferred back to their respective home countries or other nations willing to take them in. Mary Alice Salinas contributed to this report from the White House. Confectionery maker Mars has issued a recall of its candy bars across Europe over fears that plastic pieces could be found inside. The recall covers 55 countries and comes after a German man reported finding a small piece of red plastic inside a Snickers bar in January. The company traced the plastic to a piece of machinery found in its factory in the town of Veghel, in the Netherlands. A spokesman said the recall only involves candy products that were manufactured at the Dutch plant. They include Mars, Milky Way, Snickers, Celebrations and Miniatures with 'best before' dates ranging from June 19, 2016 to Jan. 8, 2017. Mars says the recall was an "isolated incident". It was unable to give the number of products expected to be removed from shelves. The U.S.-based Mars is one of the world's biggest food companies, with 29 chocolate brands including M&M's, Galaxy, Twix, Bounty and Maltesers. The company also owns Wrigley gum, Uncle Ben's Rice, Dolmio pasta sauce and Pedigree pet food. 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Kamal bin Abdullah I am Mohd. Kamal bin Abdullah, who resides in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah. I hold a post-graduate law degree from the United Kingdom. I blog to tell MALAYSIANS THE TRUTH. View my complete profile Blog Archive About Maria Gillan Maria Mazziotti Gillan is a recipient of the 2014 George Garrett Award for Outstanding Community Service in Literature from AWP (Association of Writers & Writing Programs), the 2011 Barnes & Noble Writers for Writers Award from Poets & Writers, and the 2008 American Book Award for her book, All That Lies Between Us (Guernica Editions). She is the founder and executive director of the Poetry Center at Passaic County Community College in Paterson, NJ, and editor of the Paterson Literary Review. She is also director of the Binghamton Center for Writers and the creative writing program, and professor of poetry at Binghamton University-SUNY. Maria has published 22 books of and about poetry, and 4 anthologies. Her most recent books are the poetry and photography collaboration with Mark Hillringhouse, Paterson Light and Shadow (Serving House Books, 2017) and the poetry collection, What Blooms in Winter (NYQ, 2016). Her collection of poems along with some of her paintings is The Girls in the Chartreuse Jackets (Redux Consortium). Other recent publications are Ancestors' Song (Bordighera Press) and Writing Poetry to Save Your Life: How to Find the Courage to Tell Your Stories (MiroLand, Guernica). With her daughter Jennifer, she is co-editor of four anthologies. Over the last 12 months, some Oregon political leaders and public officials have found themselves in hot water. In February of 2015, Governor John Kitzhaber resigns amid allegations of influence peddling. 3 months later, Oregons top federal prosecutor steps down following claims of an inappropriate relationship between her and a subordinate. In October, Jackson County files an ethics complaint against Commissioner Doug Breidenthal, asking the Oregon Government Ethics Commission to look into possible ethics law violations and misuse of public funds. An investigation that is still ongoing. In December, Josephine County Commissioner Simon Hare is arrested for DUII and pleads no contest. Now he tells NBC5 news he wont seek re-election. Just weeks later, Jackson County Community Justice Director Shane Hagey is arrested for possession of meth and resisting arrest, charges he has pleaded not guilty to. And that's just the tip of it; like Retread himself, his former First Squeeze remains under federal investigation, as are several of his former top aides. Investigations into the state Energy Department's dealings with the former Squeeze also continue, and several department heads at various state agencies are no longer collecting state government paychecks. While it's certainly true that corruption and kickback schemes are common all around the globe, Oregon seems to be doing its level best to stand out from the crowd in that regard. Saudi Deputy Oil Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman and Nigerian Oil Minister Emmanuel Ibe Kachiwkuto met in Riyadh to discuss the oil market with both parties agreeing that consultations and cooperation between all oil producers are the best way to keep global prices stable. Both countries are OPEC members but want non-OPEC members to play a role to end the fall of oil prices, as the market is oversupplied with between 1million and 2million bpd. Not much details were disclosed about the Saudi-Nigerian meeting but Riyadh seems to strongly maintain its position that the market will stabilize. Saudi oil minister Ali al-Naimi told a conference in Houston, Texas, that the producers of these high-cost barrels must find a way to lower their costs, borrow cash or liquidate. While admitting that his statement sounds harsh, he argued that it is unfortunately the more efficient way to rebalance markets. If oil producers agree to reduce global supply, prices will hike but Riyadh believes that such a decision will subsidize high cost producers like US shale oil drillers. Countries are also reluctant to cut production without a consensus of all oil producers due to fears that they will lose their market share. Last weeks oil freeze accord reached by Qatar, Russia, Venezuela and Saudi Arabia was termed politically unworkable by some sides while Iran says it is a laughable proposal. We have not declared war on shale or on production from any given country or company, Naimi said, but production cuts will delay an inevitable reckoning and not many countries are going to deliver in a coordinated production cut. The deal to fix production at January levels is the beginning of a process that could require other steps to stabilize and improve the market, the Saudi Oil Minister had said in Doha last week after talks with Russian Energy Minster Alexander Novak. Israel has urged Palestinians to become stool pigeons and turn in assailants to Israeli security services if they want to spare their homes from destruction. This seems to be the new policy adopted by Israel to combat attacks against its citizens within Israel-controlled areas as recommended by new Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit. So far Israeli authorities demolish the homes of Palestinians found guilty of attacking or killing a settler and even Palestinians with such intentions. Under the new policy, families who turn in assailants to the security services will have their homes spared from destruction. Although the policy is deemed by human rights advocates shameful, unacceptable and intolerable, the family of Shadi Ahmad Matua in Hebron complied with it. Shadi who was accused of a shooting spree in November that killed a Rabbi and his son was handed over to Shin Bet by his own father and brother, who were fearing to lose their home. Many Israeli officials have reportedly supported the new policy as a deterrent much more than a punishment. Twelve homes have been demolished since tensions began in October and the latest took place on Tuesday in Hebron where Raed Masalmeh and Mohammed Abdel Basset al-Kharoub, held responsible for the deaths of five people in two attacks, had their homes destroyed. During the appeal ruling of their cases, the Supreme Court ruled that the ability to prevent future bloodshed required us to harden our hearts and spare potential victims, more so than pitying the house of occupants. Critics say demolishing homes is a collective punishment which could incite other family members to carry out attacks. US Secretary of State John Kerry told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee that the White House has a plan B if the ceasefire expected to begin on Saturday in Syria fails. An agreement was reached between the US and Russia for a cessation of hostilities between pro-Assad forces and rebel opposition groups but pessimism continues as some rebel groups on the ground already sidelined it. Kerry applauded Russias cooperation to broker the deal and said he relied on it for its implementation stating that were going to know in a month or two whether or not this transition process is really serious as the ceasefire is the test ahead of the elections. He revealed that there are certainly Plan B options being considered by the White House. The Islamic State, al-Qaeda affiliated al-Nusra Front and other terrorist groups designated by the UN Security Council are not part of the agreement. Assads government stated that it would combat the extremist and terrorist groups in accordance with the Russian-American announcement while the opposition High Negotiations Committee conditioned that the acceptance of the agreement depends on lifting sieges, releasing prisoners, halting bombardments and allowing access to aid. Turkey said shelling of Kurdish groups in Syria will continue if necessary and president Hollande of France stressed that the sooner the agreement is respected, the better for Syria while calling for pressure on Damascus and Russia for the bombings to stop. Commander Abu Ibrahim of the 10th Brigade opposition force in northwestern Lataika province said numerous rebel groups would reject the agreement because it was reached without consulting any factions on the ground. He concluded that its a waste of time and its difficult to implement on the ground. Faustin-Archange Touadera, Central African Republics newly elected president will dedicate his term to uphold peace and disarm armed rebel groups in the country, campaign director told reporters on Monday. Former Prime Minister Touadera, 58, won 62.71 percent of the vote on February 14, defeating another ex-premier, Anicet Georges Dologuele, who polled 37.29 percent, according to initial results announced by the National Elections Authority (ANE). The pair faced off after neither won an absolute majority in the first round of polling held in December 2015. Decembers vote was seen as a landmark for CAR, which has been beset by sectarian violence since March 2013, when former President Francois Bozize was overthrown by a mainly Muslim rebel alliance known as the Seleka. The priority will be peace, social cohesion and security, Touaderas campaign director Simplice Sarandji told reporters. The emphasis will be put on the DDRR program (disarmament, demobilization, reintegration and repatriation) then on the restructuring of the armed forces. According to Sarandji, the president will also focus on disarming the Seleka and anti-Balaka fighters with help from the international community. If deemed suitable, some rebels will be able to join the army, Sarandji said. Those who wish to engage in other activities can do so with government support, of course, he said. CAR is the worlds third-poorest country by GDP and was ranked 187th out of 188 countries in the UN 2015 Human Development Index, ahead only of Niger in terms of living standards. Burundian president Pierre Nkurunziza on Tuesday said he is open to dialogue with the opposition. He made the statement following a meeting with UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon in the capital Bujumbura. According to the UN Chief, the East African nations leader has agree to bolster talks with opponents, to resolve the 10-month political crisis. I was very encouraged that the political leaders whether they are in government or the ruling party or opposition, they promised that they will engage in inclusive dialogue. This is what President Nkurunziza also confirmed, Ban Ki-moon told reporters. Burundi was thrown into crisis last April when President Nkurunziza decided to run for a controversial third term that he went on to win in July. To date, it has been reported that more than 400 people have been killed, more than 240,000 have fled the nation, and thousands more have been arrested and possibly subjected to human rights violations. The United Nations is under growing pressure to show it can halt the violence, two decades after the 1994 genocide of ethnic Tutsis and moderate Hutus by the Hutu majority in neighboring Rwanda, which has a similar ethnic make-up to Burundi. This blog has been created by our librarians who are dedicated to providing quality information on reading, the arts and entertainment. Our resources are selected by Merrick Library Staff to help serve you better. Sakura 2016: Japanese female wine experts award nine Georgian wines An international wine competition judged exclusively by Japanese female wine specialists awarded nine Georgian wines with Double Gold, Gold and Silver medals.Nine Georgian wines were selected among 3,543 varieties from 35 countries at the Sakura Japan Women's Wine Awards after five days of tasting in Japan.In total 1,498 wines gained recognition at the Sakura Japan Women's Wine Awards, of which 179 wines won Double Gold, 704 wines received Gold and 615 wines were awarded Silver medals.The Diamond Trophy, the most honourable award, will be selected from the Double Gold wine winners and the result will be announced at Japans FOODEX2016 on March 8.Out of the nine Georgian wines awarded, one received a Double Gold medal, four were awarded Gold medals and four earned Silver medals.The following were the winning Georgian wines: Double Gold Saperavi Reserve. 2005. Kakhuri wine comany. Gold - Saperavi. 2008. Kakhuri wine comany. Gold Saperavi Family Reserve. 2013. Lukasi Winery. Gold Marani, Kondoli Vineyards. Sami. 2013. Telavi Wine Cellar. Gold Marani. Reserve. 2007. Telavi Wine Cellar. Silver Mukuzani Iberiuli. 2013. Shumi wine comany. Silver Napareuli. 2013. Shumi wine comany. Silver Satrapezo Saperavi. 2012. Telavi Wine Cellar. Silver Saperavi Qvevri. 2011. Kindzmarauli wine comany. Georgias National Wine Agency said it would continue promoting Georgian wine abroad. The Agency believed it was important for Georgia to be involved in top trade fairs as it raised awareness of Georgian wine among international customers. Japan in particular was a growing export market for Georgian wine where in 2015 Georgia exported 138, 290 bottles of wine to Japan a five percent increase year-on-year. Iran, Russia find win-win strategy to get their oil to Europe Iran and Russia are entering into a new strategic oil partnership, said Mehrdad Emadi, consultant at the U.K.-based Betamatrix International Consultancy, commenting on Lukoil's purchase of Iran's oil.Recently, Lukoil has purchased crude oil from Iran to supply its refinery in Romania. On Feb. 14 - three oil tankers including one from Lukoil - sailed from Iran's Kharg Island to Europe.As Emadi told Trend, considering the latest restrictions imposed on Russia by the EU, Moscow has to face new challenges in selling energy derivatives."Furthermore, because of the ongoing sanctions, refineries which have been sourcing their crude from Lukoil or Rosnef, are facing legal issues when they try to supply the refined output to EU member countries," Emadi said.Now that the sanctions on Iran have been lifted, with the approval of Russian oil companies, these European refineries find Iranians both willing and able to fill the gap left by the reduced supply from Russia, Emadi explained.In a larger context, this is a win-win situation for Iran and Russia, given the tightening of the restrictions on Russia, according to the expert.Russian oil companies can continue business arrangements with European refineries and hence avoid being displaced by the competitors from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Iraq," said Emadi. "And as for the Iranian side, it is very keen to increase its presence in Europe and this allows it to achieve this objective with a smaller cost.He further said that in the longer term, it seems that Iran is aligning its oil and gas strategy more closely with Russian energy companies.According to Emadi, the deepening split in OPEC between Saudi Arabia and its tactical allies - who are flooding the market and have inflicted immeasurable harm on the interest of oil exporting countries - and Russia and Iran, who perceive oil as a commodity with strategic values beyond its pricing significance, has resulted in new forms of cooperation between Russia and Iran.This is one of the many indications of what we will see in the next 18 months, he underlined. Draft on insulting religious feelings withdrawn By Messenger Staff Majority Member of Parliament (MP) Soso Jachvliani, has withdrawn his bill on the insult of religious feelings.This information has been spread by Georgias Parliamentary Speaker Davit Usupashvili.The project was still being discussed by committees. Therefore the author had the right to withdraw it. We have been informed Mr. Jachvliani has withdrawn the bill. Therefore, Parliament has stopped discussing the issue, Usupashvili said.The bill initiated by MP Jachvliani was presented to Parliament several months ago. It envisaged imposing fines for insults to religious sanctities, religious organizations, priests and religious figures.As the MP stated, his bill concerned all religions active in the country.However, the bill has caused large-scale criticism especially in the civil sector, who stated that such a law would have restricted freedom of expression.They also stated that such an innovation might be misused by law-enforcement bodies, as the concept of religious feeling was deemed very subjective.The fact that the MP withdrew the bill means either the draft was obscure and required amendment, or it failed to resist its criticism.Georgian residents still need to raise awareness over religious issues and there are risks that such laws might be misinterpreted.Some members of the public claim that since they are educated, they have the right to express their views openly, religious issues included, though in many cases they insult religious people.On the other hand, there are people who claim to be religious and respond to such criticism with verbal abuse and physical violence.There is only a small group of people who perceive that freedom ends, where others freedom begins.Georgia needs a more efficient, accurate and impartial media for the public to react appropriately to criticism.On the other hand, those who are not religious should also try to respect the values of those who believe in God and trust in their religious leaders. The News in Brief The peak of flu virus is overcome Amiran Gamkrelidze A total of 16 people have died from the flu virus in Georgia, Amiran Gamkrelidze, the head of the National Disease Control center, has told reporters. According to him, the flu virus is becoming less prevalent. The peak spread of the flu virus was the fourth week of the year, when 357 cases were medically confirmed per 100 000 residents. The number decreased in the fifth week, when we saw 310 cases per 100 000 residents. As for the sixth week, we had 284 cases. Fewer people have checked into medical institutions but it does not mean we should be complacent. Flu cases are still expected throughout February, Gamkrelidze said. (IPN) Georgian Energy Minister Visits Iran Energy Minister Kakha Kaladze travelled to Iran on Monday to discuss potential gas imports and cooperation in other areas of energy sector, the Georgian Energy Ministry said. The Georgian and Iranian governments are at this stage studying the possibilities of importing Iranian gas to Georgia. The chance to implement various other investment projects in the energy sector will also be discussed, the Georgian Energy Ministry said in a brief statement on Monday. At a public discussion on Georgias energy policy hosted on February 10 by the Tbilisi office of the Heinrich Boll Foundation, Georgias Deputy Energy Minister Mariam Valishvili said that buying Iranian gas at this stage is not commercially viable for Georgia as it is about 25% more expensive than other sources. She said that some type of energy swap arrangements are not being ruled out, but it is a long-term perspective and she does not foresee anything tangible for a short-term period. But we want to be in the forefront of negotiations with Iran, because the latter is interested in our region and we are interested in their resources [Iran] so there is a convergence of interests, but now its difficult for me to say what kind of shape our relations may take, Valishvili said. Foreign Minister Mikheil Janelidze met his Iranian counterpart, Mohammad Javad Zarif, on the sidelines of the security conference in Munich on February 12. In addition, Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili spoke on the phone with Irans President Hassan Rouhani on February 8. Georgia reinstated 45-day visa-free rules for Iranian citizens, which were scrapped by Tbilisi in 2013; the new regulations came into effect on February 15. (Civil.ge) Putin critic to play a gig in Tbilisi Andrey Makarevich, the leader of Russian cult rock band Mashina Vremeni and a vocal critic of the Kremlin, will play a concert in the Tbilisi Concert Hall on March 9. Mashina Vremeni was founded in 1969 and is the oldest among the active Russian rock bands. During the war in Donbas in August 2014, Makarevich performed for internally displaced people in the Ukrainian town of Svyatohirsk in Donetsk Oblast, which caused a backlash in mainstream Russian media. The controversy led to a call for stripping him of Russian state honours made by Russian MP Yevgeniy Fyodorov, who described his performance as partnering with fascists and siding with the Russian Federations enemies. Andrey Makarevich was described as a traitor in some Russian pro-government media outlets and was banned from entering Crimea by the de facto local authorities following his criticism of Russias annexation of the peninsula. In June 2015, Makarevich openly criticised Russian policy towards Ukraine and said that Vladimir Putin wasnt worthy of being Russias leader. A couple of days ago, Makarevich accused President Putins plenipotentiary to Ural Federal District Igor Kholmanskikh of being involved in cancelling his concerts in the region. (DF watch) Georgian citizens to be refused asylum in Austria The Austrian government has decided to place Georgia on the so-called safe countries list, which means that all Georgian citizens arriving Austria will be refused asylum. According to the Associated Press agency, an official statement on this was released by Austrias Interior Ministry. According to the statement, cases of Georgian asylum-seekers will be discussed within 10 days, while the process lasts for about a month for Syrian citizens. According to the decision of the Austrian government, Algeria, Ghana, Morocco, Mongolia and Tunisia are also on the list of newly safe countries. (IPN) 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 @ByKristenMClark Some of the most controversial education measures being discussed during the 2016 legislative session could have a new vehicle for passage in the Florida Senate, indicating a possible deal between House and Senate leaders to get these proposals through before session ends in two weeks. Senate education budget committee Chairman Don Gaetz, a Republican senator from Niceville, is offering a sweeping amendment to SB 524 -- which the full Senate Appropriations Committee is due to consider on Thursday. If the committee accepts the amendment and passes Gaetz's bill, it goes straight to the Senate floor from there. Gaetz was in committee this morning and not immediately available for comment. The 3-page bill, as-is, deals narrowly with state university performance funding. But Gaetz has filed a strike-all amendment replacing the bill with a 59-page proposal that also deals with topics such as: -- extending the controversial "Best and Brightest" bonus program for K-12 teachers; -- reforming the funding formula for how charter schools receive capital dollars for maintenance and construction projects and how much school districts can spend on such projects; -- enacting a "Principal Autonomy Pilot Program" in Broward, Duval, Escambia, Jefferson, Madison, Palm Beach, Pinellas, and Seminole counties to give principals more say in the governance of their public schools; -- enacting a "competency-based education" pilot program for public schools in Lake, Palm Beach, Pinellas, and Seminole counties, among others that would qualify; -- enacting performance funding for Florida's state college system and a program to recognize high-performing colleges. -- and, revising and expanding the "preeminence" program for state research universities. Several of these measures exist in other bills -- some of which, on their own, are having a hard time passing the Senate. The Florida Senate keeps finding new ways to express its dissatisfaction with Gov. Rick Scott's administration. A bipartisan Senate Rules Committee voted 11-0 Wednesday for a proposed constitutional amendment that would make the office of Secretary of State an elected position and a Cabinet post, not an appointee of the governor. The bill (SB 1424) now heads to the Senate floor, but its House companion is stalled. Both houses would have to pass it by three-fifths margins and 60 percent of voters would have to approve it on the November ballot. The Senate sponsor, Sen. Aaron Bean, R-Fernandina Beach, knows it's dead for this session: "It's not going to happen," he said. Bean said the state's chief elections official "should be accountable directly to the people." Bean said the Cabinet -- technically the governor and Cabinet -- should be made up of an odd number of officials in case of tie votes. Sen. Don Gaetz, R-Niceville, said the chief state elections official should be independent. "We've had fits and starts" over bills to improve the elections process, he noted. Sen. Darren Soto, D-Orlando, criticized Scott's appointee, Ken Detzner, for trying to purge suspected noncitizens from the voter roll and for his "hostility" to online voter registration in the 2015 session. The office was a partisan elected position for more than a century until voters approved a proposal to shrink the Cabinet in 1998. The last elected Secretary of State was Katherine Harris, a Republican who will remain a memorable figure for her role in the 2000 presidential recount in Tallahassee. Area lawmakers who voted for the bill Wednesday were Sens. Miguel Diaz de la Portilla, R-Miami; Arthenia Joyner, D-Tampa; and Jack Latvala, R-Clearwater. via @adamsmithtimes Rick Wilson, the Tallahassee-based Republican consultant, cable news pundit, and social media provocateur, is a Marco Rubio supporter and helping elect fellow Rubio supporter Lt. Gov. Carlos Lopez-Cantera to the U.S.. Senate. A few months ago, Wilson shifted from the CLC senate campaign to the super PAC helping Lopez-Cantera, Reform Washington. Wilson is also not so crazy about Presidential frontrunner Donald Trump. He has called Trump and his supporters all kinds of names, and today posted a column titled, "With God As My Witness, I Will Not Vote for Donald Trump." ....I will not bend. I will not cease this fight. I will never embrace this thuggish, venal, gibbering psychotic, and I will not countenance those who do..... So we asked if Lt. Gov. Lopez-Cantera shared Wilson's view of the man whom Gov. Rick Scott (CLC's boss) seems to prefer. No, said a spokeswoman for Lopez-Cantera's campaign. "In the Democratic primary there are two candidates running: a declared Socialist and someone who should be in jail. The Republican Party will put up a superior nominee and Carlos Lopez-Cantera will support the Republican nominee for President," said Courtney Alexander. Among the other Republican Senate candidates, David Jolly is a former Bush supporter who is for now undecided, Ron DeSantis is neutral (though some of his advisers have ties to the Ted Cruz campaign), and Todd Wilcox did not respond our question about the race. --ADAM C. SMITH, Tampa Bay Times @ByKristenMClark Florida senators are poised to vote on a bill Wednesday afternoon that will allow high school students to count computer-coding courses as foreign language credits, despite opposition from critics who argue the two shouldn't be considered one and the same. Amendments added to Sen. Jeremy Ring's bill (SB 468) on Tuesday aimed to sync up the Senate version with a similar-but-broader proposal (HB 887) that's also ready for floor action in the House. The changes remove the requirement that public schools "must provide" computer coding and, instead, steers that responsibility to Florida Virtual School. "If a school district does not offer (the computer coding course), it may provide students access to the course through the Florida Virtual School or through other means," reads the second of two approved amendments that were sponsored by Sen. Bill Galvano, R-Bradenton. Sen. Jeff Clemens, D-Lake Worth, originally sought but then withdrew an amendment that would have made related industry certifications in computer coding count toward math -- not foreign language -- requirements. Clemens said he appreciated the intent of Ring's proposal but disagrees that computer coding is -- as Ring argues -- a language, rather than a computer science. Clemens challenged Ring by asking whether someone who learns computer coding is bilingual. "In my mind, I think yeah," said Ring, a Democrat from Margate and a former Yahoo executive. "I do believe there's a bilingual aspect to that." Ring said computer coding is more aligned with the liberal arts rather than computer science. He argues computer coding is a universal language that helps prepare students for careers in high-demand STEM careers. "Whatever profession we choose ... if you don't have certain technology skills, you will be left behind. It's a basic skill," Ring said. Floridas 1.4 million concealed weapons permit holders will be able to use their identification cards to vote under a bill that passed the Florida Legislature and is heading to Gov. Rick Scott for his approval. The Florida House voted 110-0 today to allow concealed weapons permit cards and veteran health cards as part of a list of acceptable forms of ID to be able to vote. Besides a state-issued drivers licenses, voters currently can show a list of other photo IDs including U.S. passports, military ID cards, neighborhood association cards, retirement center IDs and public assistance ID cards. A pair of Pasco County legislators, Sen. John Legg, R-Trinity, and Rep. Danny Burgess Jr., R-San Antonio, sponosored the legislation. The same bill passed the Senate with no opposition earlier this month and now heads to the governor for his approval. If Scott signs the bill before the March 15 presidential primary election in Florida, it would allow concealed weapons permits as acceptable forms of ID as soon as that vote. Florida Department of Corrections' decision to award a two-year $268 million contract to a health care company with deep political connections has drawn a lawsuit from another politically-connected company, and faced some questions from the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Civil and Criminal Justice today. The contract between the prison agency and Centurion of Florida was signed Feb. 1 after Corizon Health told FDC Secretary Julie Jones in December that it planned to abandon its five-year, $1.2 billion contract three years early. The company had complained that it had been losing $1 million a month on its contract to provide mental health, dental and health care for 82,000 of the state's inmates and was under fire from the agency to improve its performance Jones determined that the emergency situation did not require the state to seek competitive bids and, rather than a formal bid-seeking process, she asked other health care companies to offer proposals to fill the gap in prison health care until the agency negotiates a new bid with new companies in 2018. Three companies submitted proposals -- Wexford, the company that is paid $48 million a year to serve 18,000 inmates in the South Florida region, as well as Centurion, and Armor. The department awarded the contract to Centurion, a partnership between MHM Services, a provider of mental health care services and Centene, the company that is holds a lucrative Medicaid managed-care contract with the state. The company has contributed $298,000 to legislative campaigns and political committees in 2015 alone and its chief lobbyist is former House Speaker Dean Cannon. Wexford sued last week, arguing that state law required the agency to use the competitive procurement process and, because the contract gives Centurion the bulk of the money in the state's 2015-16 budget allocated for inmate health care "would leave less than $20 million to pay Wexford for its services annually." Centurion responded in a press statement that it was not a "no-bid" contract in the true sense but a "robust competitive selection process among multiple potential providers" because the companies "engaged in follow-up conversations and requests for clarifying information from FDC and then submitted refinements to their proposals." On March 2, Wexford issues a statement countering Centurion's counterpoint. It is included below. Wexler's lawsuit argues that the fact that the company is paid on a "cost plus" basis means "the more Centurion expends in performing its services to provide prison healthcare, the more the Department of Corrections must pay for it." It also argues that there is no incentive "for Centurion to perform in a manner that prevents the available funds from being exhausted before the end of the fiscal year,'' noting that the 60-day requirement can drain the money and then leave. "Under this contract, Centurion is in a position where it can bankrupt the Department of Corrections of all the funds it has available to provide prison health services long before the fiscal year in question has expired,'' Wexford claims, noting this would draw federal control of Florida's prison system. Centurion disputes the claim that it will make a profit of $31 million because that amount must cover the corporate costs, such as information technology, infrastructure and human resources. The company says that "the contribution from this contract to Centurion corporate overhead is a much lower single digit" and the potential cost of penalties is higher than the contract the state had with Corizon. Although Corizon was given 180-days notice to cancel it's contract, Centurion's original contract was given only 60 days. The company argued in its media statement that this "is more in the state's best interest than Centurions" because the state could edge the company out in 60 days as well. "It is also important to note that Centurion has never walked away or cancelled a contract, and in fact has come in to take over contracts when other vendors have left." FDC spokesman McKinley Lewis said the agency amended the contract with Centurion on Tuesday to extend the notice to 180 days. Here's the lawsuit filed by Wexford: Download Wexford Petition V. DOC without exhibits Here's Centurion's Feb. 17 memo to the media and below it the March 2 statement by Wexford: In recent weeks, there have been numerous news stories detailing the timeline and ultimate award of the prison health care services contract from the Florida Department of Corrections (FDC) to Centurion of Florida, LLC (Centurion). We would like to take a moment to correct the record and clarify some misinformation. Centurion was contacted along with many other companies across the country who offer the management of these services when the state found itself in an emergency situation. The bid from Centurion was also the best-priced proposal by more than $20 million, while still being able to maintain the highest quality of care in prison health services. Claim: This was a no-bid contract. Fact: While the competitive selection process to choose a health care services provider was not a formal RFP or technical bid process (because of the urgent need to have prison health care services in place after the current vendor gave early termination notice with a fixed end date) the FDC engaged in a robust competitive selection process among multiple potential providers. Four companies were contacted and asked to submit proposals with extensive information on proposed infrastructure, health care delivery methods, and cost. Further, it is our understanding that of the four companies asked to submit proposals, three engaged in follow-up conversations and requests for clarifying information from FDC and then submitted refinements to their proposals. The very fact that multiple companies submitted competitive proposals and engaged in detailed discussions about their submissions with FDC demonstrates that claims of a no-bid contract are false and misleading. Claim: Centurion stands to make $31 million in administrative fees and profits. Fact: Under the cost-plus contract with Centurion, the state will pay for the care that is actually provided within the prison health care system no more, no less. The contract is capped at $267 million. The 13.5 percent administrative fee accounts for real costs that Centurion will be responsible for under the contract, including information technology infrastructure, human resources, state contract monitors and many more. In reality, the contribution from this contract to Centurion corporate overhead is a much lower single digit. This, along with the fact that this contract carries much more significant potential cost of penalties than the previous contract, ensures that the state is not overpaying for the important delivery of health care to a difficult population. Claim: A cost-plus contract allows the vendor to continually spend state money. Fact: This is absolutely false. The contract provides for monthly billing statements to be submitted to DOC, allowing for intense and real-time scrutiny of all charges. The other submissions were based on set fees per inmate, paying those companies a set amount regardless of actual expenses of money spent. The cost-plus system that Centurion will be providing to the state transfers the upfront financial risk to Centurion, while providing the agency time to review and scrutinize all costs associated with the contract. The contract has a not to exceed amount. Claim: Centurion only has to give the state 60-days notice if it intends to leave the state. Fact: News reports are casting the 60-day notice clause in a negative light. When in fact, this term (shortened from the 180-day notice the previous vendor was contractually obligated to provide) is more in the states best interest than Centurions. For example, if FDC decided to move to a permanent provider, it could do so quickly with the shortened cancellation period. It is also important to note that Centurion has never walked away or cancelled a contract, and in fact has come in to take over contracts when other vendors have left. Here is Wexford's counterpoint to that issued on March 2: Claim vs. Fact At the end of January, the Florida Department of Corrections (DOC) signed a contract with Centurion of Florida for medical services for inmates incarcerated in DOC Regions I, II, and III. Inmate health care services in Region IV will continue to be provided by the existing contractor, Wexford Health Sources. On February 17, in response to news articles that raised significant questions about both the contracts financial provisions and the manner in which it was awarded, Centurion sent a memo to the media that contained misleading information about the contract. On February 24, DOC staff also gave a presentation on the contract to the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Criminal and Civil Justice. We would like to correct certain misrepresentations in these documents. Claim #1: The DOCs $268 million contract with Centurion to provide inmate health care services is a no-bid contract. Fact: TRUE. The Department itself categorizes the contract as a no-bid contract. According to Florida DOC Order Dismissing Petition (FDC Case No: DC 16-36, Wexford Health Sources, petitioner, vs. Florida Department of Corrections, respondent) dated Feb. 10, 2016: There was no competitive bid process applicable to this contract. The DOC did not issue a formal solicitation (e.g., a Request for Proposals, Invitation to Negotiate, etc.) as outlined in Chapter 287, Florida Statutes. Instead, the Department chose to utilize an informal process with no rules, and requested price information from four vendors. Three of the four vendors provided pricing to the DOC. With this information in hand, the Department never attempted to negotiate the lowest possible price; and never established bid standards to enable it to obtain comparable (apples-to-apples) prices. Without a formal bid process, the DOC chose a single vendor (Centurion) for all three regions and gave it a cost-plus contract. This agreement will pay Centurion exorbitantly in comparison to industry-standard administrative fees and profit. Claim #2: Centurion stands to make $31 million in administrative fees and profits. Fact: TRUE. Under its $268 million cost-plus no-bid contract with Centurion, the DOC is obligated to pay 13.5% in administrative fees and profits on each invoice Centurion submits for providing inmates with health care services. Many items typically considered to be overhead (and therefore covered under the administrative fee in a standard cost-plus contract) are already included in Centurions reimbursable health care services costs, e.g., salaries for Centurion employees at the companys headquarters who oversee the Florida contract, insurance, etc. Most of the $31 million in administrative fees will go right to Centurion as profit. Other government managed-care contracts of this size (such as Medicaid and Medicare services) typically have a 3% to 5% profit marginnot 13.5%. Claim #3: The cost-plus contract gives Centurion an incentive to spend more money, not less, since it can get up to $31 million dollars in fees and profits by spending the entire amount. Fact: TRUE. In government health care, contract models where the vendor holds all of the financial risk (known as at-risk, per-diem, or per-member-per-month contracts) have traditionally been preferred over cost-plus models like Centurions. Because it is at financial risk in an at-risk contract, the vendor has an incentive to effectively manage the cost of the services it provides, through case management, utilization management, claims review, and the efficient use of commodities and supplies. Proactively analyzing health services in this way helps the client to avoid costly unnecessary and preventable care such as extended inpatient hospital days; or expensive diagnostic procedures with equivalentbut less costlyalternatives. An at-risk model also provides the State with a firm annual contract cost. The DOCs contracts with Wexford Health (and formerly with Corizon) are fixed-price, at-risk contracts, in which the vendor pays all inmate health care bills without the opportunity for receiving additional reimbursement if those bills exceed the agreed-upon amount of the contract. If DOC inmates require more (or more expensive) care than originally projected under the terms of the contract, Wexford Health provides the care at our own expense, without being reimbursed by the DOC. This is the financial risk inherent in the contractthe same risk that drives any responsible correctional or free world health care company to closely monitor the services it provides to its patients. The goal is to contain costs while providing an appropriate level of care, i.e., a level of care that keeps patients healthy and avoids unnecessary, serious cases. Conversely, a cost-plus contract requires the client to review and reimburse all legitimate health care bills, regardless of cost. This provides the vendor with no incentive to compare prices, control costs, or investigate alternate products and services. The cost-plus model encourages the vendor to spend dollars (and collect administrative fees) until the contracts cap is reachedat which point the vendor no longer has any incentive to continue providing services. By the DOCs own admission, its no-bid cost-plus contract with Centurion will cost the State $34 million more next year than Corizons at-risk, per-diem agreement would have. Interestingly, the DOCs current Invitations to Negotiate (for contracts starting January 2018) ask potential vendors for pricing based on the per-diem/fixed pricing model, not the cost-plus model. Claim #4: The bid from Centurion was also the best priced proposal by more than $20 million. . . . Fact: FALSE. The DOC cannot know this, as it did not request cost-plus contract pricing from all vendors. In seeking prices for its interim health care contract, the DOC did not issue bid specifications; require vendors to base their pricing on actual historic cost and utilization data; or seek quotes on a single, consistent contract model. As a consequence, the Department received some quotes that included dollars for financial risk (the at-risk or per diem quotes); and others that did not include such dollars (the cost-plus quotes). Since vendors did not all price the same thing, the prices were wildly different and cannot be compared to each other. If the DOC had asked, Wexford Health could have provided a responsible cost-plus price at an administrative fee significantly lower than the one the Department settled for with Centurion. Claim #5: The very fact that multiple companies submitted competitive proposals and engaged in detailed discussions about their submissions with FDC demonstrates that claims of a no bid contract are false and misleading. Fact: FALSE. As mentioned before, the DOC chose to utilize an informal process, stating it did not need to follow typical procurement rules. While the Department did talk to multiple companies, it did not (as described in the preceding point) talk about the same contract model with each company. This resulted in the DOC receiving contract models and prices that ranged from the vendor holding all risk; to the vendor holding no risk. With dissimilar proposals in hand, the Department never attempted to normalize the contract models; or to establish a consistent standard model in order to obtain equivalent prices from all vendors. In fact, even after the DOC determined it wanted to put a cost-plus contract in place, it did not go back and request pricing on that model from all vendors. Claim #6: This process allowed the Department to evaluate multiple cost options. With six months until Corizons exit, our objective was to secure a best value contract and allow ample ramp-up time for the selected provider to ensure a seamless transition of services. Fact: FALSE. See Facts #4 and #5. It is not financially valid to compare pricing across different contract models. Claim #7: The cost-plus system that Centurion will be providing to the state transfers the upfront financial risk to Centurion. Fact: FALSE. The upfront financial risk Centurion references is the risk that the DOC might penalize the company for not providing an appropriate level of staff or servicesnot much of a risk at all, since Centurion can spend as much money as it wants to source appropriate clinicians and health services, and still be reimbursed by the Department. In reality, Centurion bears no risk under its cost-plus contract: a model more vendor-favorable than any other kind. Every 15 days, the company will send the DOC an invoice for all money spent on inmate health care, plus an additional 13.5% administrative fee. The agreement requires the DOC Contract Manager to review the invoice to make sure the money was spent on inmate care; however, the agreement does not require the Department to verify that Centurion obtained the best price possible on MRIs, wheelchairs, nursing staff, cardiology consults, gauze, etc. And since Centurion gets 13.5 cents of every dollar it spends, the company has no incentive to shop around for the best values. As an example, if the cost of inmate health care stayed consistent over time, the $268 million contract would cost the State $22.3 million each month ($19.7 million for inmate care and $2.6 million for Centurions administrative fee). Unfortunately, given the States large inmate population, this is not the case. Monthly care costs can vary wildly. Theoretically, if inmate care costs in the first few months of the contract are highand just a few serious patient cases could easily cause thisthe DOC could use up the appropriated funds well before the end of the contract year. Centurion will perform the same analysis. If it projects that funding will be exhausted before the end of the contract term (leaving Centurion financially responsible for all inmate health care costs from that point forward), the company has only three options. Give the DOC the contract-required 180-day termination notice Insist that the DOC pay it money over and above the contract requirements to cover health care costs Pay for the State of Floridas inmate health care program out of its own pocket Claim #8: During the recent Senate panel hearing, it was presented that all bidders were instructed to give a not-to-exceed price. Fact: FALSE. The DOC never instructed Wexford Health to provide a not-to-exceed price. The only contract model discussed between Wexford Health and the Department was an at-risk pricing model that included options for several different staffing levels (to ensure minimal employee vacancies). Claim #9: The Department assured the Legislative Committee that it can call Centurions $27 million performance bond if Centurion terminates the contract early. Fact: FALSE. The DOC can only call a vendors performance bond if the vendor commits a breach of contract. A performance bond does not apply when a vendor lawfully terminates a contract, with sufficient notice, according to the terms of the contract. The bond is meant to provide a financial remedy for the State if a prime contractor defaults on its responsibilities under the contract. Under the terms of the contract, once Centurion determines anticipated annual inmate health care expenses will total more than the $268 million cap, it can give the DOC its termination notice and leave the contract six (6) months later. In other words, as soon as Centurion sees that inmate health care costs are trending higher than the contracts $22.3 million monthly average allotment ($19.7 million for inmate care and $2.6 million for Centurions administrative fee), it can give notice, to avoid being on the hook for unfunded inmate health care costs six (6) months down the road. Such a termination notice does not constitute a breach of contract. Therefore, the DOC would have no right to call Centurions performance bond. The Department, inmate patients, and Florida taxpayers would be left high and dry without a health care provider. Again. Claim #10: Wexford Health is banking on its strong political connections for its success. Fact: FALSE. Wexford Health has made no contributions to Florida legislative campaigns and political committees in recent years. In contrast, Centurions parent company, Centene, has made hundreds of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions in Florida and employs more than a dozen lobbyists, including two recent former Speakers of the House. (Centurion is a joint venture between Centene Corporation and MHM Services, Inc.) According to the Miami Herald, Centene contributed $298,000 to legislative campaigns and political committees in 2015. @MrMikeVasquez Less than four months after the sudden closure of Dade Medical College shook Miamis for-profit college industry, another nursing school Mattia College in West Kendall has canceled this weeks classes, stopped paying its teachers and is getting ready to close. The college, which also operates a second campus in Doral, has more than 700 students and more than 100 employees. Should the Mattia campuses shut down, it would be the latest blow to the industry in Florida, where nearly one in five students attends a for-profit school. The past few months have seen the arrest of Dade Medical owner Ernesto Perez, the conviction of another Miami school operator on federal theft and conspiracy charges, and a Federal Trade Commissionlawsuit against DeVry University a national chain with three Florida campuses that alleges deceptive recruiting practices. DeVry denies those allegations. via @learyreports Republican U.S. Senate candidates rushed to condemn President Obama's moves on Guantanamo Bay while Democrat Patrick Murphy said he supports the closure, illustrating the partisan divide on an issue is likely to surface in the general election. "For far too long the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay has been a stain on our American values that undermines our security around the world," Murphy said. "As a Member of the House Intelligence Committee, I will continue to support closing Guantanamo in a responsible way that protects the safety and security of the American people." Republicans were uniformly opposed. Todd Wilcox: "As President Obama begins packing for his Cuban vacation next month, hes sending a terrible message today to the American people that our safety and security is secondary to dictators he wishes to win over. GITMO was established after 9/11 as a detention center for the terrorists whove committed acts of war against the American people. It is unconscionable that this President, even as we face growing threats here at home and around the world, would ask the American people to accept any plan that includes housing these terrorists on our homeland. Carlos Lopez-Cantera: "Yet again, President Obama is putting his political agenda and legacy over the safety and security of American citizens. The plan he has offered to close Guantanamo is incomplete and unsustainable, doing nothing to assure Americans they are safe. By bringing terrorists to our shores, President Obama opens the potential for liberal groups to stand up claiming these terrorists now are entitled to the same rights as those they seek to kill. Furthermore, what is to stop the Castro regime from making a deal allowing one of our enemies to establish a presence in the very facility that our taxpayer money built. President Obama's entire policy toward Cuba is misguided and simply wrong. It is wrong for our military, it is wrong for our national security and it is wrong for freedom." Ron DeSantis: "Bringing hardened terrorists to the U.S. homeland harms our national security. The obsession of President Obama with closing the terror detention facility in Guantanamo Bay is based on his left-wing ideology, not on a clear-eyed assessment of America's national security interests. Congress should remain steadfast in blocking the President from bringing terrorists to our shores." David Jolly: "At a time when terrorism continues to spread throughout the world, we must remain resolved to defeat it. The president should focus on defeating terrorists, not accommodating them. The stakes are too high to jeopardize Americans' security for the sake of enhancing a personal legacy." --ALEX LEARY, Tampa Bay Times Former Gov. Jeb Bush will no longer give the keynote at the Broward GOP's fundraising dinner days before the March 15 primary. Bush announced he would suspend his campaign Saturday night after the South Carolina primary. Bush will not attend the Broward Republican Executive Committee's Lincoln Day dinner March 12, Broward chair Bob Sutton said. Some of the other presidential campaigns have expressed an interest in the event, but none are confirmed. Spokespersons for Marco Rubio's campaign said earlier this week that his schedule for March was not set yet. Broward has about 240,000 registered Republican voters -- the third largest contingent in the state behind Miami-Dade and Hillsborough counties. The Sun-Sentinel reported the news about Bush dropping out of the dinner earlier today. The Florida Legislature has exactly two weeks to agree on a state budget for the 2016 session to end on time, and Senate leaders said Tuesday they have not made much progress with the House on a key question: the size of a tax cut package. That stumbling block means legislative leaders cannot yet agree on the size of allocations for various programs. Until those amounts are set, the Senate and House cannot appoint budget conferees and schedule public negotiating sessions. Despite an obvious lack of progress, Senate President Andy Gardiner, R-Orlando, said the Legislature remains ahead of schedule and there's still plenty of time to reach an agreement. "We're not totally under the gun yet, but we are getting to the point where we need to start making some decisions," Gardiner told reporters after the Senate adjourned early Tuesday afternoon. "We want to make sure that it (the budget) is properly vetted and we're not rushing near the end." Last year, budget negotiations erupted in controversy when lawmakers added scores of hometown projects to the budget at a late night meeting. Senators and House members drew widespread media criticism for a lack of transparency and Gov. Rick Scott later vetoed many of those projects. One of dozens of areas where lawmakers need to find consensus is whether to use anticipated settlement money from the BP oil spill for economic development to help pay for Scott's $250 million fund to attract jobs. The Senate wants to allocate $100 million for that purpose and the House has not agreed to the idea. "There's no agreement on any of that stuff," Gardiner said. Under the Constitution, a final budget must be accessible to lawmakers for 72 hours before they can take a final vote on it. That means a final budget agreement must be reached by Tuesday, March 8. Disabled veterans will get free parking at all airports - this time for real - under legislation that passed the Florida Legislature and is now heading to Gov. Rick Scott for his approval. The bill (SB 222) was inspired by a Sarasota County veteran who was denied free parking at Tampa International Airport, despite a bill passed a year earlier that appeared to grant disabled veterans free parking at airports. Veterans were only being given free parking if they had cars that had specialized equipment, such as ramps, lifts or hand or foot controls. State Sen. Nancy Detert, R-Venice, said clearly the Legislature needed to clarify the law. Her bill requires airports to give free parking for all vehicles displaying a license plate for disabled veterans. Florida has about 41,000 veterans who have the special disable veteran license plate. Disabled veterans license plates can only be obtained by drivers if they can prove they have a 100 percent disability designation by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and can show they were honorably discharged. Detert said the legislation is due to Sarasota County veteran Lou Hockel, who was denied free parking at Tampa International. Tampa International is not waiting for the law to go into place. It has already changed its policies, and is allowing disabled veterans with the plates to park for free. Gov. Rick Scott and his jobs guru, Enterprise Florida CEO Bill Johnson, came out swinging Tuesday against Americans for Prosperity, the Koch Brothers-backed group that opposes Scott's call for a $250 million pool of money to lure private jobs to Florida. AFP is running a TV ad that calls the fund "corporate welfare," and Johnson accused the group of hypocrisy and called on AFP to suspend operations in Florida. In a release, Johnson cited recent news reports that Koch Industries has benefited from $196 million worth of incentive money from various governments, and the governor's office quickly recycled Johnson's message. "Koch Industries is willing to use taxpayer money to benefit their business, but opposing the Florida Enterprise Fund means they will not let small and growing businesses in Florida access incentive dollars," Johnson said. The source Johnson cited for his criticism of AFP is Good Jobs First, a website that tracks government subsidies to private companies, and which itself has highlighted the growing trend under Scott of awarding taxpayer incentive money to private companies. AFP issued this response: "AFP isn't Koch. We receive contributions from thousands of Americans across the country who have tasked us with ridding the political system of the crony spending sprees lawmakers have enjoyed for too long." Scott's call for a $250 million incentive fund has support in the Senate, but it has not been adopted by the House, and AFP will continue to urge House Republicans to oppose it. "If the Legislature has an extra $250 million to spend on cash handouts to private businesses, why isn't that money being given back to taxpayers?" AFP asks. "After all, Gov. Scott says that taxpayers know how to spend their money better than the government does." The Florida House passed legislation this morning to change how Gov. Rick Scott's job incentive program is structured, but it is still unclear how much the Legislature will give the Republican governor for what has been one of his top priorities. "This commits no money to economic incentives," State Rep. Jim Boyd, R-Bradenton, told House members just before the bill passed. Scott has run television commercials and used almost every public speech since October to push state legislators to give him $250 million for his job creation fund to hand out incentives to businesses to get them to move their corporate headquarters to Florida, or invest more in the state. The Senate has dedicated $250 million to the Enterprise Fund, but the House has refused to commit to a number until it passed a reform package that would require Scott to get the Legislature's approval on more of the deals he negotiates. Both Republicans and Democrats have questioned whether Scott's incentives have been successful enough and whether there has been enough oversight of the money that have been handed out to businesses. Last year, legislators gave Scott only about half of the $85 million he requested for the incentive program. A key reform under the bill that cleared the House would require projects over $2 million to be submitted to the Senate President and House Speaker before they could be awarded. Still, that was not enough to bring comfort to some Republicans who voted against the bill amid criticism from tea party groups that the program is a form of "corporate welfare." House Appropriations chairman Richard Corcoran, R-LandO'Lakes, and Rep. Blaise Ingoglia, a Hernando County Republican who is also chairman of the state Republican Party, were among those who joined with House Democratic Leader Mark Pafford, D-West Palm Beach. Even Republicans who voted for the bill, like Rep. John Wood, R-Winter Haven, publicly questioned whether giving the money out to private businesses was the proper role of government. Still, Wood said during the debate that he would vote for the bill because Florida needs to compete with other states to bring jobs. Democrats were also divided. While some Democrats backed the program with the hopes it will bring jobs to their communities, others, like state Rep. Evan Jenne, D-Dania Beach, said "corporate welfare is not the key to success" for Florida economy. The bill passed the House 79-39 and now goes to the Florida Senate for review. With a late-filed amendment before a Senate committee vote, Sen. Wilton Simpson, R-Trilby, agreed to amend his controversial lands bill to remove a provision that would have allowed land and water conservation money to be used for sewer lines and pumps for water supply projects. The Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on General Government approved SB 1290 after Simpson agreed to revise his original bill to reflect changes agreed to between the House and environmentalists. The bill is a top priority of the Florida Department of Environmental Protection to consolidate state laws relating to land management and give the agency more flexibility as it attempts to manage the more than 13 million acres of land in the states control. A similar provision, HB 1075, is set for a vote by the full House and was amended last week by its sponsor Rep. Matt Caldwell, R-Lehigh Acres, to remove the provision that allows the state to tap into conservation money to pay for water resource development projects that previously have been paid for with local water management district funds, including bonds. That provision was vigorously opposed by environmentalists, many of whom argue that DEP was attempting to misuse Amendment 1 land and water conservation funds to pay for infrastructure because Gov. Rick Scott pushed for reducing tax revenues to water management districts so deeply, the districts need to find other sources to pay for projects to keep water safe. Simpson initially filed an amendment that included the provision to use conservation funds for what is being called the "pumps and pipes" provision but filed a last-minute change that took the language out, thereby silencing the environmental critics. Caldwell told the Herald/Times that DEP wants the provision because it provides "more flexibility with the money that we have" because of the long list of conservation commitments and infrastructure needs already lining up. But, "at the end of the day, we took that out because we just couldn't see where that would make it to the end,'' he said. Environmental groups roundly praised Caldwell for working out an agreement with them and on Wednesday also commended Simpson for removing the provision the language sought by DEP. "This particular change is really integral to us being comfortable to the bill,'' said Janet Bowman of the Nature Conservancy, which is now neutral on the bill. Stephanie Kunkel of the Conservancy of Southwest Florida said thanked Simpson "for making such an incredible movement forward on some of the issues we brought to you initially." She and Dave Cullen of the Sierra Club said they continue to have problems with a provision that remains in the bill -- a priority of Caldwell's -- that allows private landowners to take ownership of public land that abuts at least 30 percent of the landowner's property. In exchange, the private owners would agree not to develop the land. Kunkel and Cullen said they fear that state parks could be swapped, limiting instead of expanding public access. For the last four years, DEP has tried to find ways to reduce the states inventory of conservation lands or find ways to commercialize the states holdings, but it backed down in the face of public protests. In 2011, for example, the agency unsuccessfully proposed constructing an RV park at Honeymoon Island State Park in Pinellas County and adding campsites to 55 other states parks as a way to add revenue for the state. In 2013, DEP tried and failed to launch a statewide program to surplus state conservation land and sell it to the highest bidder. And in 2015, the agency proposed leasing a portion of the Myakka River State Park for cattle grazing but withdrew the proposal after public opposition. Environmentalists view both Caldwells bill, and the companion measure by Simpson, as an extension of that effort by DEP. Penny Walker Bos of the League of Women Voters said they also continue to oppose the bill because it could open the door for state regulators to turn conservation land into logging and cattle grazing and convert state parks into golf courses and hunting. @PatriciaMazzei Now that Jeb Bush is out of the presidential race, Marco Rubio predicted Wednesday that he'll be victorious in their home state of Florida in the March 15 presidential primary. "We'll win in Florida," Rubio told CBS This Morning after coming second in Nevada's Republican caucuses. "Now that Gov. Bush is no longer in the race -- he and I split up a lot of the support in Florida." He didn't mention that polls have shown front-runner Donald Trump leading the GOP field. Those polls, though, came before Bush dropped out. Still, Rubio acknowledged he will need other rivals to leave the race before he can try to consolidate support against Trump. Trump won 46 percent of the Nevada vote, his biggest number yet. Rubio trailed by 20 percentage points. "It's important to take a deep breath here," Rubio said. He pointed to Florida and other states that will award their nominating delegates in winner-take-all fashion -- rather than proportionally -- beginning March 15. The implication is that a candidate who nabs a lot of those large states at once can make a big leap in the race. Rubio made no mention about how he might do in next Tuesday's Super Tuesday states. He confirmed he has spoken to Bush but has not yet asked for his support. "We haven't discussed an endorsement," he said. "We're friends, and I look forward to visiting with him soon." Another look at Putin's Russia, from Mark Galeotti. In Ukraine they managed to look powerful because they sent their elite troops and faced little or no opposition: in Syria they're bombing disorganised rebel forces who have no significant air defence. But in truth Russia's military is much weaker than Putin wants you to think: Today is Defenders of the Fatherland Day in Russia, a public holiday and a celebration of all things military: triumphalism about the latest weapons, about operations in Syria, about the seizure of Crimea. Meanwhile, from the West we hear bloodcurdling warnings about the threat posed by the Kremlins war machine. Perceptions matter, though: Arguably being thought to be dangerous is actually a more powerful geopolitical asset than actually being it. So long as the West believes Russia could surge into Ukraine, escalate in Syria, or even roll into the Baltic states, it inevitably feels a greater pressure to make concessions and invite Vladimir Putin to the table. No one seems willing to question just how formidable Putins new military really is and he seems to be counting on that.... [S]o far, we have seen the very best of the Russian military in the ideal conditions but not the rest of the force, or how they would cope facing a real threat... As a result, we mistake Russias still large but overstretched and only partly reformed armed forces for a terrifying threat to the West and to the global order as we know it and we (over)react accordingly, giving the Kremlin far more leverage than it actually deserves. So why is the West so worried? In part, this is the usual human habit of overcompensation. After Crimea and Syria showed unexpected Russian capabilities, assessments, once more measured, swung to the other extreme. There are also vested interests at work. Industries talking up the Russian challenge as a way to justify more defense spending and new weapons systems. Front-line nations wanting to assert their pivotal role, their need for support. Military establishments, whose job is to think of worst-case scenarios and prepare accordingly. This is all understandable. From Tallinn in Estonia, for example, it is hard to be sanguine about Moscows capabilities and intent, when Russian commandos have kidnapped one of your security officers across the border, when Russian bombers buzz your airspace, and when Russia stages snap exercises clearly wargaming a potential invasion on your border. But the problem is that this also plays into Putins hands. His calculation appears to be that the scarier he seems, the more political traction he has. After all, on most objective grounds, Russia is hardly a great power. It has nuclear weapons, but ultimately these are of little practical value. Continued rearmament depends on money, and Russias economy is dependent on oil that is now selling for bargain-basement prices. Russias economy is the 13th largest in the world, just between Australia and Spain, about half the size of Frances, about a fourteenth of the USAs. Even before the value of the ruble collapsed, Russian military spending was around one-seventh of Americas. What the Kremlin does have is the will to take risks, ignore the rules, and hope that the other side is more sensible, more cautious, more willing to make concessions than it is to call Russia's bluff. In the main, this has worked so far. But Putins bad-boy geopolitics and military postures are wasting assets already beginning to prove to be liabilities. The Russian defense budget as it stands is unsustainable. Already this year it has been cut by 5 percent, and a range of future projects are being quietly scaled down or pushed back. Even with the cut, the defense budget is bleeding the Kremlin of resources needed for economic diversification and the public services needed to pacify an increasingly disgruntled population. Russia has squandered its "soft power," its moral authority in the world, by which it once might have claimed to be an alternative to the Western-led order. It is now more unpopular than ever; only in Vietnam, Ghana, and China is it seen positively. Precisely because Putin has been so successful at talking up his unpredictability and aggressive capabilities, NATO is now more united than it has been for a long time; defense and security spending in Europe, long neglected, is now beginning to be addressed, due to rise on average by more than 8 percent this year. Of course, NATO needs to take the Russian challenge seriously. But that also means not giving Putin more credibility and authority than he deserves. 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Type Burger King into an online box, and Google will cough up a dozen nearby options, each keyed to a precise latitude and longitude. But throughout much of the world, local knowledge stays local. While countries might conduct censuses, the data doesnt go much deeper than the county or province level. Take population data, for instance: More than 7.4 billion humans sprawl across this planet of ours. They live in dense urban centers, in small towns linked by farms, and alone on the outskirts of jungles. But no ones sure where, exactly, many of them live. Now, Facebook says it has mapped almost 2 billion people better than any previous project. The companys Connectivity Labs announced this week that it created new, high-resolution population-distribution maps of 20 countries, most of which are developing. It wont release most of the maps until later this year, but if theyre accurate, they will be the best-quality population maps ever made for most of those places. They made a fairly basic assumption that when they see a building, there must be people who live there, said If this technique sounds methodologically simple, its because it is. It just requires access to neural-learning software and a small oil seams worth of computing power. Facebook estimates that it analyzed 21.6 million square kilometers of the 20 countries. For this we processed 14.6 billion images with our neural network; this is more than ten times as much as all the images analyzed by Facebook on a daily basis, Chen cautioned that Facebooks data couldnt be used to compute how urban density (or a similar marker) relates to local population, because then the research would eat its own methodological tail. But you can see how that can be valuable in a lot of different contexts, he said. Facebook has not released final versions of the maps yet. It says final versions are coming this summer. Before that release, Chens team will adjudicate its accuracy. While Facebooks early results are promising, he said its still not known how generally precise or widely applicable its technique will be. Weve only seen pieces of it, he said. But if the technique seems to hold, Chen said Facebook would then add six more countries. And if the data proves useful, Connectivity Labss success will signal a victory on something that has long stymied developers working with satellite data: the algorithmic interpretation of imagery. In the next half decade, This new data wont be valuable unless companiesespecially financial companiesget good at deciphering it without human labor. Already, startups like Skybox (owned by Alphabet) and Most DigitalGlobe imagery is submetric; that is, instead of a grid square being hundreds of kilometers to a side, its 50 centimeters . Facebook developers taught their neural-net algorithms to recognize what a building looked like from above in this data. Then, they turned the programs loose. The software estimated urban density by the number of buildings it could see, and extrapolated the best-available population data onto the settlements.They made a fairly basic assumption that when they see a building, there must be people who live there, said Robert Chen , an Earth scientist at Columbia University. Chen directs the team that made Gridded Population of the World, the base dataset used by Facebook.If this technique sounds methodologically simple, its because it is. It just requires access to neural-learning software and a small oil seams worth of computing power. Facebook estimates that it analyzed 21.6 million square kilometers of the 20 countries. For this we processed 14.6 billion images with our neural network; this is more than ten times as much as all the images analyzed by Facebook on a daily basis, it says Chen cautioned that Facebooks data couldnt be used to compute how urban density (or a similar marker) relates to local population, because then the research would eat its own methodological tail. But you can see how that can be valuable in a lot of different contexts, he said.Facebook has not released final versions of the maps yet. It says final versions are coming this summer. Before that release, Chens team will adjudicate its accuracy. While Facebooks early results are promising, he said its still not known how generally precise or widely applicable its technique will be. Weve only seen pieces of it, he said. But if the technique seems to hold, Chen said Facebook would then add six more countries.And if the data proves useful, Connectivity Labss success will signal a victory on something that has long stymied developers working with satellite data: the algorithmic interpretation of imagery.In the next half decade, a fleet of Silicon Valley-funded satellite companies will release many more terabytes of imagery to the public than was previously available to civilians. These photos will be cheaper than ever before, and theyll be more recent: Thanks to cheaper rockets and advances in small satellite-building, some companies are promising revisit rates of six or seven times per week.This new data wont be valuable unless companiesespecially financial companiesget good at deciphering it without human labor. Already, startups like Skybox (owned by Alphabet) and Descartes Labs say theyve made advances in pulling information out of pictures without a person sitting at the table. If Facebooks map works, itll be one more sign that such a goal is feasible. It's not often that a journalist is compared to "James Bond." Not even the spy-level tactics that the Edward Snowden story required of Glenn Greenwald and Laura Poitras earned them the comparison. But Ghanian investigative reporter Anas Aremeyaw Anas is called the 007 of his field in Ghana and Africa as a whole, where he's admired not just as a truth teller but a kind of crime fighter. However, few know what he looks like, and when he appears in public he wears a mask of beads. His undercover exposes require myriad disguises as he works to reveal abuses by the government and religious organizations, often against women and children. As the documentary "Chameleon" explains, he also employs gadgets more associated with a Bond film, such as glasses outfitted with hidden cameras. He once dressed up as a female executive to get an arrest. What makes his work a natural fit for a film documentary are the multimedia nature of his reports, which are part video expose, part theater and part tabloid, in a mixture that doesn't have many counterparts in American journalism. He's part New York Times and part "Inside Edition." Anas produces articles for the print edition of the Crusading Guide in addition to television documentaries, all of which must be timed and coordinated with police raids. Anas' need to remain anonymous poses some problems for the director. For one, how do you make a visually engaging film without revealing your subject's face or too much about his identity? Director Ryan Mullins generates a number of workarounds to avoid the stereotypical "blurred face" and altered voice. He films walk-and-talks from behind, as Anas wears one of his many hats. He crops out Anas' head above the mouth as the journalist explains his techniques, or leaves Anas in the background of a strategy session, in view but out of focus. (The film is primarily in English, with some use of subtitles.) The techniques complement Anas' work as he assembles his stories from outside strands, circling his target before going undercover and exposing them. Anas himself describes journalism as "a means to an end," and the film doesn't create a personal portrait, only a snapshot of his working methods and the reasons behind them. In order to avoid exposing him, it doesn't dwell much on his biography. Even a visit to a relative's grocery stand feels like a treacherous mission. The style hints at a central conundrum of any journalism, whether in print or documentary: whether you can ever fully know the subject. Whether Anas crosses lines in his collaborations with police comes up more than once. In the midst of planning one raid, filmmakers capture him discussing which charges should be filed. You soon realize he's on the phone with a law-enforcement official who reminds him that the attorney general decides on charges, not Anas. A fellow African journalist, Kwesi Pratt Jr., who's been jailed four times, wonders aloud about the use of subterfuge, but in the end says the American documentary crew comes with its own sense of ethics from its own country. What's more important here, he said, are facts and the truth. Whether viewers accept that answer is up to them, but "Chameleon" is an engaging portrait of the techniques in question. POTOMAC One of the worlds largest mining corporations wont resume test drilling for copper in the upper Potomac Valley in 2016. We know basically where the deposit sits and the next bit of work to do is come back and find the deposits, said Russ Franklin of Salt Lake City-based Kennecott Exploration, a wholly owned subsidiary of international mining giant Rio Tinto. But right now we have other priorities companywide, so that work is going to be deferred." We cant really say for sure when we will be back to drill, but theres probably a pretty good likelihood at some stage we will, added Franklin, Kennecotts exploration manager for copper and energy. Franklin was accompanied Monday evening by regional communities manager Matt Jeschke at what has become an annual public meeting in the Blackfoot Church of Potomac. Kennecott began discovery procedures 10 years ago at Copper Cliff, a historical mine in the upper regions of Union Creek in the Blackfoot River drainage. After test drilling in 2007 and 2008, the company suspended operations for five years. Franklin said four new holes were drilled in 2015, bringing the total at Copper Cliff to 20. Two tests drilled farther west in the Ashby Creek drainage in September and October proved barren of porphyry copper deposits. All the holes were reclaimed in October. What were trying to do is say, Hey, is it going to be big enough for us? Franklin said. "We wanted to step out in all directions to see what the extent of the system was or to see if there were more systems out there. Copper prices fell a whopping 25 percent last year and on Jan. 19 dropped to their lowest level since April 2009. Thats always part of the equation when company leaders decide at the end of each year which projects to pursue, Franklin said. But its more what our other priorities are. We divide our exploration dollars between a lot of projects and a lot of different commodities. Everything get reprioritized, oftentimes a couple times a year. Jeschke said copper mining is a process that can be 25 years from discovery date to development. When we are exploring, we arent thinking much about todays metals prices. We just have no way of knowing what metals prices will be in 25 years," he said. "What we try to do when were exploring is find deposits that will withstand the ups and downs of the cycles. So, sure, theres some pressure on the industry right now. That means we have to be careful how we spend our time and dollars and resources, but we dont chase the market. On average, were looking for some of the biggest and the best. Rio Tintos North American operations have projects in two provinces in Canada, in Utah and the Southwest U.S., as well as in Brazil, Chile and Peru. They include hunts for a variety of minerals besides copper, Franklin said iron ore, uranium, diamonds, nickel and platinum. Over the years the Copper Cliff project has employed a number of local workers, including three or four in 2015. Franklin said one was sent to Arizona to work on a crew when the Montana operation shut down for the winter. Plans are in the works for a massive new library in downtown Missoula, but everything depends on the will of Missoula County voters. The Missoula Public Library Board of Trustees has signed a land-swap agreement to exchange the librarys current property at 301 E. Main St. for full city block directly to the east, which is owned by Missoula businessman Terry Payne. The deal would give the library room to build a 121,000-square-foot facility to move into by November 2019 if voters approve a bond for up to $30 million this fall. Seven rental houses that are mainly occupied by college students sit on Payne's property. The property swap would take place after November and would be contingent on the library raising enough money for construction. The library board unveiled its vision for the proposed new headquarters Tuesday during an update with the Missoula County Board of Commissioners. The conceptual designs include a open-air terrace on the fourth floor with green space and expansive views to the south. A ground-floor cafe would face the street, and the new library would also house Missoula Community Access TV, the spectrUM Discovery Area and the Childrens Museum Missoula. The library board will vote at 6 p.m. Wednesday on whether to ask county commissioners to approve placing a bond for up to $30 million before voters in November. The exact language of the bond wouldn't be finalized until August if the commissioners give the green light. The Foundation for the Missoula Public Library has raised $800,000 so far and hopes to contribute $5 million or more toward the price of construction. Any private funding would decrease how much taxpayers need to chip in if a bond is approved. If a bond is passed by voters, the library would take ownership of Paynes property and would have to demolish the rental houses by early January 2017 for insurance reasons. The tenants of the properties have been notified that they may need to move. Payne would then take ownership of the librarys current building and lease it back to the library. Construction of the new building would begin in November 2017, and if all goes according to plan, the new Missoula Public Library would be completed by November 2019. Payne would then be in possession of what he acknowledges would be an empty, old building. Payne already had his property on the market when the library approached him about a swap. He said he doesnt have any specific plans for the library property if the deal goes through. The property will continue to be occupied until construction is completed, so you just wait and see what the situation is in three or four years, he said. You wait and see what is the best thing to do with the library. Whatever happens, there is going to be something that is in concert with the citys desire for that district down there and the wishes of the community. Payne said his motive for the swap had a lot to do with helping the library avoid shutting down for two years to construct a new building on its current site, something library leaders fervently hoped to avoid. The primary thing was to be able to help the library achieve what they want to accomplish, he said. *** Missoula Countys main library, built in 1974 and meant to last 30 years, averages more than 1,500 daily visitors. As the hub for more than 1 million checkouts every year, it is also the states busiest public library. We are anticipating filling the need for building a new modern library, said Rita Henkel, chair of the library board. Our current library no longer fulfills the needs of the public, and its heating and air conditioning systems waste taxpayer dollars every day we operate them. We are fortunate to have an agreement that will avoid moving to a temporary space, interrupting service or down-scaling our programs during construction. The library board has hired a partnership of A&E Architects of Missoula and MSR of Minneapolis to work on the project. After a year of analysis, community assessment and public input, they've created conceptual designs technically called a preliminary rendering for the library. The existing library is 42,000 square feet, and the new one would be 121,000 square feet and four stories tall. By comparison, the new $32 million Missoula College under construction on East Broadway will be 100,000 square feet and four stories. Each of the four floors will have twice the area of those at the Missoula College building, according to A&E principal Chris Martison, the lead designer on the project. Parking for 87 spots would be below the main floor of the building, which would be raised four or five feet for better vehicle clearance. The building would take up the entire block. Spaces inside would be available for local nonprofits to host meetings and the top floor would have a 300-seat community room. Plans call for large windows on every side of the building, and Henkel said the building will be environmentally friendly and LEED-certified to the highest standard possible within the budget. The south side of the building would face a city-owned trail system that connects to Kiwanis Park and the Riverfront Trail system. The north side would face the MCT Center for the Performing Arts. It will be a whole connector for that whole neighborhood and area, and it will be great, said Barbara Theroux, president of Friends of Missoula Public Library. The key part of this is collaboration with other cultural icons in Missoula. The bond initiative committee within Friends of MPL, chaired by local attorney Scott Stearns, has hired a marketing company to promote passage of the bond and has registered with the Montana commissioner of political practices as Yes to Missoula Libraries. The library has held several public meetings and open houses to take public input on the design, and the next one will be April 1 during First Friday art walk events at A&E's office, 222 N. Higgins Ave. *** Missoula County voters have approved several large bonds in the past two years. Last year, a $70 million high school bond and an $88 million elementary school bond were approved. In 2014, voters approved a $42 million County Parks and Trails bond. Honore Bray, director of the Missoula Public Library, said shes confident voters will approve the librarys request for funding. You have to be confident to go through all this, she said. Were excited about it. Sue Stone, director of the Seeley Lake branch of the library, told the commissioners that an expanded central library would benefit all the branches by increasing the offerings available and expanding access to things like best-selling books. With a new main building, there would be better benefits and a better collection at Missoula, she said. From their current offering of 200,000 items, that would expand to 600,000. That means branch patrons would have immediate access to new items. It would provide parenting resources countywide." Bray and Henkel said that in places like Seattle, the public library draws tourists and serves as a cultural attraction that boosts the downtown economy. They believe that could happen in Missoula. Bray said the library board hired an architecture firm six years ago to conduct a feasibility study on the existing building. They found out that all of the heating, cooling and lighting is outdated and needs to be replaced, she said. Were very cramped and have no extra room, so when we buy a new book we actually have to discard an old book. And we send books out to our branches, and were still very crowded." Bray also said thats when the library started looking at options, and the board has been working on this project for five years. Its not something they did without a lot of thought, she said. This week, the Missoulian published a story about four counties in Montana that will take the biggest economic hit due to a loss in coal production. Our Facebook readers shared their thoughts on everything from green energy to federal regulations to investment advice. Daniel Webster: What if I told you that we could make up for this economic loss with investment in alternative energy? They need people to build wind turbines, install solar energy plates, research cheaper and alternative energy sources, advertise for these things, teach about these things, etc. Jason Adams: You know the ironic thing is that in order to build the components for green energy projects, you have to have coal-fired metal works to combine and form the metals need to build the structures. Maybe one day a solar farm will be able to do this. CJ Karoly: Welcome to the boom and bust extraction economy. Don't put all your eggs in one basket. Paul Thornton: Thanks yet again, feds! Just like the logging industry was killed, they'll all be added as dependents to the welfare system Joe Knor: Stop coal production completely. It's dirty, pollutes air and water and is responsible for climate change. The coal industry is dead. Lets bury it. James Rodney: Should have read the writing on the wall. Coal is almost dead. The smart money is on renewables, pharmaceuticals and nanotechnology. Samuel Redfirn: Thank the governor. Montana has the potential for great wealth, but we are our own worst enemy on economic and job issues. JR Olson: This is why I left Montana. No work anymore. The only way a guy can make it is if you're independently wealthy. Sickening. Riley Pearson: That would be a fair statement if coal companies were losing in the free market, and not being driven out of business by their own government, to give the Chinese a larger market share. Matt Pelham: Deregulation worked so well for Flint, Michigan. I've always been really proud to be a Montanan. I love that we are a self-reliant and independent group of people. We look out for our neighbors and we take care of each other. I love that about us and I love Montana. I assumed that our communities would extend that same warmth to refugees from other communities. Rather than compassion, I've mostly seen fear, hate and resentment, and it saddens me deeply. There seems to be widespread fear that refugees are criminals and rapists and only intend to steal valuable public resources and destroy us. Few seem to remember that the same arguments were made when Irish immigrants arrived in America in the 1850s. And when freed slaves poured north in the 1870s. And when Japanese-Americans were persecuted in the 1940s out of fear they would rise up as domestic terrorists. Each of these groups eventually assimilated into American culture. The current wave of refugees is no different. Like these other groups, one day we'll look back and realize how ill informed we chose to be, and how poorly we treated people who only shared a desire to live in peace and better the lives of their children. I truly believe we're better than this. I believe we will judge our neighbors, refugees or not, by the content of their character and not by their color or religion. I believe that, deep down, we know that the best way to defeat ISIS is to welcome those whose lives have been destroyed by them. I believe we are smart enough to seek the truth about refugees rather than believe politicians who fan the flames of hatred and racism. I want to believe we are willing to help our neighbors, and not care if they're from Butte, Bozeman or Syria! Dan Cottrell, Missoula Those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it. Today there is a group of Republicans and conservative Christians who are demonizing an entire religion: Islam. Muslims wear funny clothes, commit acts of terrorism, eat weird food, their faith threatens our culture, and they worship in ways we refuse to understand. Muslims are harassed on the street, refused service, their places of worship are vandalized, and some claim that Muslims want to take over our country. It is even stated that Muslims refugees should not be allowed into the United States because they may be terrorists and pose a security threat. In the early part of the 20th century, another religion was demonized. Judaism. Jews wore funny clothes, worshiped in strange ways, killed Jesus, opposed Christianity and did not fit into our society. They were harassed on the street, discriminated against, their places of worship were vandalized and it was felt Jews would corrupt our society. In 1939-1940, while Germany was conquering much of Europe, the Nazi government was still allowing exit visas for Jews to emigrate. Eleanor Roosevelt wanted to bring a small number of Jewish refugees to America but her plan was stopped by the bigoted attitude of the times and the claim that Jewish refugee camps were infiltrated by German spies, terrorists and saboteurs. By 1941, there were no longer exit visas, only concentration camps. Jewish people died because or our bigoted fear and paranoia and now Muslims are dying because of our bigoted fear and paranoia. History is repeating itself. Loren Pinski, Missoula It's time to file our tax returns. Last year I discovered www.IRS.gov/freefile. It provides free online tax preparation and e-filing for people earning $62,000 or less a year. The IRS partners with 13 leading tax software companies to provide free access to the most innovative and secure tax software. Free state return options are also available. Using Free File, most taxpayers simply have to check a box to report health care coverage for the entire year so adjustments can be made to tax liability. More than 46 million returns have been filed through Free File since its inception in 2003. Seventy percent of U.S. taxpayers are eligible for for free tax assistance through Free File. Free File Alliance member companies have continually worked with the IRS to strengthen the Free File program. Taxpayers have consistently reported that it is user-friendly and efficient. Responding to a 2009 IRS survey, 96 percent of users said they found Free File easy to use and 98 percent said they would recommend the program to others. I very much appreciated this program last year. Give it a try this year and make filing your taxes a bit easier. If your tax situation is a bit more complicated, you aren't comfortable with computer programs, or you are eligible for special Montana programs like the Elderly Homeowner and Renter Credit, and your income is $50,000 or less, you can get assistance in Missoula. Visit the University of Montana School of Business Administration on a Saturday between 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. through March 5. Students in the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program provide personal assistance. Assistance is offered on a first come, first served basis. No appointments are available. This website tells you what information you will need to bring: www.business.umt.edu/stories/student-volunteers-offer-missoula-community-free-tax-assistance.php. Sen. Sue Malek, Senate District 46, Missoula BROWNING The town of Browning could be getting back an employee. During the Glacier County commissioners' meeting Tuesday at Brownings town hall, Alderman Kelly Edwards made a request for the county to pick up an employee so the town would have someone to perform basic functions like getting mail. Right now, nobodys even checking mail, Edwards told the commissioners, who all voted in favor of exploring the option. At the end of January, Brownings mayor told the towns seven employees they should look for work elsewhere. By Feb. 1, a sign on the door at town hall said Browning was closed for business until further notice. The town is broke, and has blamed its financial troubles on the Blackfeet Tribe and the tribes Two Medicine Water Co., two entities the town has clashed with for years over management of the water utility that serves residents. The tribe says the town must accept responsibility for its own poor fiscal management, dismissing the suggestion that the utility dispute caused Brownings problems. The tribe says the town owes it money, a share of water bill collections that Browning agreed to pay so the tribe could pay debts it incurred to build the system that brings water into town. Over the last two months, the towns aldermen have discussed everything from bankruptcy to disincorporation. A vote to start the process of dissolving the town failed at a meeting earlier this month, but without money Browning had to lay off its employees. *** The request from the town had come up at several council meetings, but never made its way onto Glacier Countys agenda until Tuesday. Alderman Alan Lukin also attended. Its come up a couple times before, so I asked them to make a formal presentation so its in the minutes at our meeting, said commission Chairman Mike DesRosier. The county had already planned to hire a full-time election clerk to work out of Brownings town hall, said Glenda Hall, Glacier Countys clerk and recorder. She suggested that person could also do work for the city. The position would be through November and be paid for from the countys elections budget. The employee would be supervised by Hall. They would have to work on elections to be justifiable out of the elections budget, Hall said. But theyd be here in your office being able to answer questions or help assist people that came in. Hall said she would work with the Montana Association of Counties to get legal guidance on the arrangement. The town might be able to pay for part of the position from its tax payment from the state, which is funneled through Glacier County. The county has been holding the citys tax payments as the city has no employees to deposit the money. Edwards said the towns aldermen can discuss that at their next meeting, scheduled for Wednesday at 5 p.m. Commissioner Tom McKay said a clerk is needed because people in Browning who live on fee land still want to support the town through tax payments. There are people on fee land that feel obligated to support the town, he said. He added that many, including himself, are waiting to find out which utility they should make water payments to. Im one of those guys, he said. It doesnt matter who I pay as long as I get a court decision so that I know Im doing the right thing. The tribe and the town have several lawsuits against each other, some over who owns the water system and should collect payments. *** Commissioner Ron Rides At The Door said having someone able to access the towns financial information can help speed up a contract the county is trying to put together with Brownings volunteer fire department to pay for its operations. If we dont do something, whether its a major house fire or with the way these winds have been, if we get a good grass fire out of town here ... that leaves too much of a big what if?" Others in the room brought up a recent house fire in town and asked what would happen if the department couldn't respond. A house burning down is not going to wait for us to get our contractual stuff straightened out, he said. Rides At The Door said the move is a step in the right direction. The town of Browning is down, but you guys are not out, he said. You get stuck in that mentality, that you guys are out, and yes, its going to be exactly that. Every little approach or angle we can take that will help get back off our knees and dust your knees off, we have to do that. HELENA (AP) A former Garfield County attorney, who battled the anti-government Freemen in the 1990s, has been named the new judge for Montana's 16th Judicial District, based in Forsyth. Gov. Steve Bullock announced Wednesday that Valley County Attorney Nick Murnion of Glasgow will take over for District Judge George W. Huss, who resigned on Jan. 1. Murnion received the Kennedy Profile in Courage Award in 1998 for his stand against the Freemen, who harassed and threatened public officials, filed frivolous claims in court and refused to abide by local laws or pay taxes. In September 2014, Huss reached a $744,000 settlement in a sexual harassment complaint filed by his former court reporter if she agreed to seek the money from the state. Another judge has ruled the state is not obligated to pay the settlement. BILLINGS Attorneys for a Wyoming teenager charged in a double slaying on Montana's Crow Indian Reservation are fighting attempts by federal prosecutors to have the suspect examined to see if he's competent to stand trial. Jesus Deniz Mendoza could face the death sentence if convicted in the shooting of a couple who stopped to help him along a roadway near Pryor. His attorneys say Mendoza, 18, has a significant mental illness. But there has been no indication he's incompetent to understand the charges against him and assist in his own defense. However, the attorneys did not rule out a future exam in a Monday court filing. Rather, they suggested to U.S. District Judge Susan Watters that it was their role to arrange and oversee such an evaluation, not the prosecution's. "Mr. Mendoza's defense team takes their role in the assessment of this issue very seriously and, when and if the time is ever ripe for raising this issue, will do so," defense attorneys David Merchant and Donald Knight wrote. Assistant U.S. Attorney Lori Harper Suek filed a sealed request on Feb. 8 seeking a court-ordered competency exam for Mendoza. The request was revealed in the court documents filed Monday. Mendoza is accused of fatally shooting Jason and Tana Shane and wounding their daughter on July 29 after the family stopped to help Mendoza. He has pleaded not guilty to 12 charges, including two counts of first-degree murder, carjacking, attempted murder and multiple assault and firearms charges. Prosecutors have until July 1 to say whether they intend to seek Mendoza's death if he's convicted. The case is in federal court because the U.S. Justice Department has jurisdiction over major crimes in Indian country. Watters set a tentative Sept. 6 trial date. That date would be cancelled and likely pushed back if the U.S. Attorney's Office pursues a death sentence. Mendoza faces a separate accusation of attempted second-degree murder in Washakie County, Wyoming, where authorities say he shot a man at a campground near the small town of Ten Sleep during a 2013 robbery attempt. KABUL, Afghanistan A Swedish aid group has demanded an independent investigation of a raid on a hospital in Afghanistan last week in which it said that three people, including a boy, were summarily executed by Afghan forces who were accompanied by NATO troops. Jorgen Holmstrom, country director of the charity, the Swedish Committee for Afghanistan, on Wednesday called for the United States-led NATO military command and the Afghan government to provide a detailed explanation of the incident. The raid began late on Feb. 17 at a hospital funded by the Swedish committee in troubled Wardak Province, southwest of Kabul. The raid, in which hospital staff members were arrested and beaten, Mr. Holmstrom said in a statement, was a gross violation of humanitarian principles and the Geneva Convention, which states that all parties to a conflict must respect medical facilities. The 10-bed hospital is in the Daimirdad district of Wardak, an area under Taliban control, and provides essentially all of the formal health care for the province. Just before midnight, Afghan police officers and foreign troops arrived by helicopter, according to Dr. Wahidullah, who is head of the facility and goes by only one name. The men began kicking in doors and searching the rooms, he said, and held handcuffed hospital workers at gunpoint. Copyright 2022 HT Digital Streams Ltd All Right Reserved Chester Upland School District: Board Meeting Superintendent Dr. Joyce Wells with the CUSD School Board The Board Meeting held last evening was very tame and civilized, at times plea... Martin Luther King Jr. Statue Vandalized Police are searching for the person or people who vandalized a statue of late civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. in Chester. (NB... Youth Interlock Salute to Community Heroes left to right, Tamika Friend, Sharona Brown, Desiree Potts, Wilson Kent Drake, Jr., Albert Francis, Jr., Bennie Wright, and Dr. Earl Pea... The following is part of a Teen of the Month series. Darren Barnes, a serene, unassuming junior at the Butte High alternative school, considers himself an in-betweener. Not a leader nor a follower, the curly red-haired student is popular among his peers, teachers and staff at the Butte High Career Center. He is the Standards Teen of the Month for January. In his quiet, boy-next-door way, he said hes honored to be selected. English teacher Krystin Mengon-Lee said she enjoys having Darren in class. He is always friendly, polite, and makes me laugh. In Mengon-Lees classroom, teeming with high-spirited students who thrive on the less-formal, supportive, individualized environment at the BHCC, Montana and Front, Barnes obviously is well-liked. Its quiet here and not so crowded, said Barnes, comparing the alternative school to Butte High, which has 1,200 students. Darren is a quiet, respectable kid who always does his work, said classmate Brandon Jenkin, sounding more like a future teacher than a student. A solid 3.18 grade point average and nearly perfect attendance makes Barnes stand out, said Mengon-Lee. He made the honor roll last year. Dean Melissa Johnson said Barnes likability factor zooms off the charts. Darren is a model student and very pleasant to be around, said Johnson. He is polite to staff and students by greeting others and hes willing to help others. Hes respectful to subs and treats all students with respect. He contends hes not into many extracurricular activities, except for the typical teen standby: video games. However, his love for animals is undeniable. Eventually, he wants to study to become a veterinarian. Molly, his cocker spaniel, and Vixen, a border collie, most likely approve of his career choice. But they declined to comment. Ive always loved animals, and Ive always gotten along with them, said Barnes. He lives with his mother, Shannon Niland, and brothers, Evan, 14, and Trevor, 9. In English, his class is reading an old classic: The Odyssey, by Homer. Perhaps Barnes own tranquil approach and vision will take him on his own personal odyssey of sorts. He is a genuine young man, added Johnson. WHITEFISH A reclusive millionaire known for having built a mansion on Flathead Lake's Cromwell Island was sentenced Wednesday for violently groping a female paramedic aboard his private jet. Robert M. Lee, 84, who lives full-time in Reno, Nev., assaulted a paramedic-respiratory specialist in September 2010 while traveling to Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., on his private airplane. He was charged with one count of misdemeanor assault last June and pleaded guilty to the offense in July. On Wednesday morning in federal court in Minneapolis, Minn., U.S. Chief Magistrate Judge Arthur J. Boylan sentenced Lee to 180 days of probation, including 30 days of home confinement. He also ordered Lee to perform 60 hours of community service at a Nevada humane society, pay a $5,000 fine, and provide the victim $431.25 in restitution along with a letter of apology. In imposing the sentence, Boylan called Lee's behavior "arrogant and offensive." The maximum penalty for a conviction on the assault charge is six months behind bars. The case was brought in federal court because the offense occurred while the aircraft was in flight. Lee gained local notoriety in the mid-1990s by building a $25 million mansion on Cromwell Island, which he also owns. A sportsman and outfitter, Lee made his initial fortune developing planned communities on properties owned by his family in Long Island, N.Y. He has historically eschewed public attention, conducting his affairs in private and granting exclusive access only to his island home. Lee has purchased several pieces of property in the Flathead Lake area, including Cromwell Island, which at 342 acres is the second-largest island on the lake. It is located on the west shore, near the town of Dayton. He also owns homes in New York, Reno, Nev., Ennis and Dayton. According to charging papers filed by Assistant U.S. Attorney Laura M. Provinzino, the assault occurred while Lee was being ferried on his private Gulfstream jet from Show Low, Ariz., to the hospital in Rochester, Minn. Two women accompanied Lee on the flight and are identified in court records only as a paramedic and respiratory therapist with the initials "M.L." and a registered nurse with the initials "M.D." Lee was under the care of the women following an emergency room visit, for which the precise reasons are unknown. At one point during the flight, while M.L. assisted Lee in returning from the bathroom to his seat, he "forcibly and violently grabbed and twisted the nipple of M.L.'s right breast, causing M.L. substantial pain," records state. The woman immediately pushed Lee's hand away and told him, "You do not get to touch me like that. Do not do that again!" the records state, to which Lee responded, "I can do whatever I want. This is my airplane." Undeterred, Lee then reached across the aisle of the airplane and gestured to M.D. with his thumb and forefinger in a pinching motion, stating, "That's what I am going to do to you." M.D. told Lee that he was not allowed to touch medical crew in that manner, and he responded with a similar sense of entitlement, telling the woman "on my airplane, I can do whatever I want." Lee then told M.D. that she should be wearing a V-neck shirt so that he could slide his hand in her shirt more easily. An attorney representing Lee in the case submitted 13 letters written by friends in support of Lee, and which state that the business leader's behavior was uncharacteristic. The authors of the letters include former Nevada Sen. William Raggio, who wrote that Lee "has been a trusted friend for all these years and this conduct is entirely out of character for him," and the Rev. William Watson, who officiated Robert and Anne Lee's marriage in December 2009 and asked Boylan to impose a lenient sentence. "I can't fathom Mr. Lee engaging in any intentional conduct detrimental to another. ... I have never observed any aggressive behavior by this stately, gentle man," Watson wrote. But in a sentencing memorandum filed this week, prosecutor Provinzino wrote that Lee "grossly understated his culpability" during a risk assessment interview in which he accused the women of "being mean" and shoving him. Provinzino wrote that the consequences of the assault were not minor, and the victim identified as M.D. subsequently left her position as a flight nurse. Victim M.L. experienced pain in her breast for days after the assault, and took umbrage with Lee's accusation that she was unprofessional. "Not only did Mr. Lee have the audacity to believe he had the right to do whatever he wanted to me on his aircraft, but now he has the audacity to insult my integrity. I am frankly disgusted in his lies and his wrongful behavior," M.L. wrote to the court. In a separate statement to the court, M.L. wrote: "I have transported patients all over the world and have never in my career had any patient treat me with such disrespect and disregard of my profession. Not only did Mr. Lee attack me while I was taking care of his medical needs, he believed that he had the right to do whatever he wanted to me since I was on his aircraft." Magistrate Boylan imposed the sentence precisely as it was recommended by Provinzino in a strongly-worded memorandum. "(Lee's) conduct was arrogant and abusive. He treated the victims as his property, to be used and abused however he saw fit," Provinzino wrote. Im Jerry Zieg, vice president of exploration for Tintina Resources and I take responsibility for the idea of building the Black Butte Copper Project. Located near White Sulphur Springs, this small, low-impact underground copper mine will operate truly in my "backyard." I am working on this project because I know we can develop this resource in a way that promotes living wage jobs in my hometown, creates economic development for our entire region, and fully protects the Smith River Valley environment. My family, property, business interests, lifelong friends and neighbors are right here in Meagher County. With our ranch on the banks of the Smith, I grew up fishing the Smith River and its tributaries, and hunting the Belt and Castle Mountains. Ive spent a good portion of my life understanding the land here. In fact, my masters thesis in geology at the University of Montana focused on the Black Butte area and my geologic work helped lead to discovery of the highest grade copper deposit presently under development in the world -- the Black Butte Copper Project. As a small underground mine completely on private property, Black Butte will demonstrate that we can have both economic stimulus in the natural resource sector and a pristine environment. Our project has the best minds in the industry creating a highly engineered plan designed specifically for our location with protecting water resources as our highest priority. Black Butte protects water quality by treating all groundwater encountered during mining in a reverse osmosis plant and returning it to its groundwater aquifer at a higher quality than originally pumped from underground. And our plans include water mitigation to maintain the current flow volume in Sheep Creek. In addition, there will be no tailings pond at Black Butte. The operation will add cement to all tailings and dispose of them both underground and in a double lined surface facility. After mining, the facility is sealed with another liner and capped with subsoil and topsoil returning the area to a cow pasture. In fact, the entire area disturbed during mine operations will return to cattle grazing. Copper is the most cost effective electrical conductor we have on this planet. Electrical wiring and electronic devices require vast amounts of copper. And now, copper is the "green" metal of the future as all renewable energy efforts require significant amounts of copper. Wind generators require four to five tons of copper apiece, hybrid cars use twice as much as traditional cars and solar panels with copper have the highest solar energy conversion efficiency. As developing countries work to get electricity to their citizens, they will use more copper. As responsible consumers of commodities like copper, we can develop our resources in an environmentally responsible manner to the benefit of all people, rather than adopt the outmoded "not in my backyard" philosophy. Importing copper and other raw materials from countries that often times do not have the sophisticated environmental protection utilized at Black Butte can and does cause unnecessary damage to the environment. We in Montana have learned those mining legacy lessons the hard way and this is why we now have robust laws and regulations enacted by our states citizens ensuring heavy scrutiny of project permitting actions to protect our future social, economic, and environmental welfare. Our mine plan surpasses these criteria, successfully protecting the entire watershed. Our plan also upgrades our communitys infrastructure through the Hard Rock Mining Impact Act (allowing community needs to be addressed upfront and paid for by the company in lieu of future taxes), and invigorates Montanas economy by providing two decades of 240-plus living wage jobs supporting families as well as tax payments made to the State. These are the reasons that I am proud to be involved in developing the Black Butte project in my backyard. Tintinas approach illustrates that mining in the 21st century is a process that includes thoughtful design and operating principles, listening and responding to stakeholders concerns, and attracting capital for responsible mine development. Were setting world class standards for developing our natural resources in a way we can all be proud of. Please visit us in White Sulphur Springs or online at http://www.blackbuttecopper.com to learn more. We conduct regular tours and welcome visitors. HELENA A crime lab in eastern Montana that officials had hoped to open by January still isnt up and running, but progress is being made. Contracts and construction costs are the cause of the delay, said Mike Milburn, deputy chief of staff to Attorney General Tim Fox. The state is placing the lab for testing and identifying drugs at Billings Clinic, which has to do some construction to accommodate the facility. Were trying to wrap up some of the loose ends, Milburn said Monday. Some of the work to make the lab secure, such as adding special doors and locks, as well as moving some entrances, will cost more than expected. Milburn added that because Billings Clinic is new to state leases, its taken more time to negotiate the contract than expected. The state does things different with leases, he said. Its a back-and-forth process that has been lengthy, not complicated, but it just takes time." If all goes as planned, the lab could open in a month and a half. Milburn said that the lab itself is ready to go only the renovations to address security need to be done. Its pretty minor construction time-wise, he said. Were hoping its not going to take very long. The lab has hired an analyst who is ready to start once the facility opens and has made a job offer to a second analyst who would start in mid-March. An evidence technician will be hired once the lab opens. Rep. Dale Mortensen, R-Billings, carried the bill for the new lab in the 2015 Legislature. A former law enforcement officer, Mortensen said at the time the lab was needed because of long distances between eastern Montana and the state lab in Missoula. The Legislature authorized, but didn't budget, the Department of Justice to spend up to $310,000 to secure a lease for two years and $476,000 to pay employees and run the lab. That means the money to start up the lab will come out of the existing DOJ budget and the agency will ask the 2017 Legislature for supplemental funding. Yellowstone County Attorney Scott Twito said earlier this year an eastern Montana crime lab was his top priority because of the backlog of cases at the lab in Missoula. Mayor Pro Tem Phil Fitzgerald called the City Council meeting for Thursday, February 11, 2016, to order at 7:00 p.m. Councilmembers present were Rehwaldt, Fitzgerald, Natvig, Saucedo, Bynum, Harvey, and Spread. The first item on the agenda was a resolution of support for the submission of a High Quality Jobs Creation program application to the Iowa Economic Development Authority. Resolution adopted. Gregg Jenkins of GMCCI stated he is here tonight seeking support of the HNI Corporation's application to the Iowa Economic Development Authority's High Quality Jobs Creation program. He stated that HNI continues investing in the City of Muscatine and that support of this application is a great opportunity to extend its commitment to our community. Gary Carlson of the HNI Corporation stated he looks forward to receiving the resolution of support from the City of Muscatine for HNI's latest project. He stated this project is a $28.6 million multi-location modification investment. He stated that $8 million of that amount is for research and development and the remainder is predominantly equipment. HNI's goal is to make the company more effective and efficient. Mr. Carlson stated HNI anticipates its business will grow. He explained what jobs would be eliminated through this project and then explained what jobs will then be created. Mr. Carlson then thanked the City and GMCCI for its help and support during this application process. He stated the IEDA Board will be reviewing this application next Friday and HNI feels they will look favorably on this project. Councilmember Natvig stated he was glad that the city is HNI's first preference. Mr. Carlson stated that HNI does have manufacturing operations elsewhere but the City of Muscatine is a wonderful city for HNI's corporate headquarters. He stated investing in Muscatine has been HNI's choice. The next item on the agenda was a resolution setting public hearings to enter into General Obligation loan agreements and to borrow money thereunder in a principal amount not to exceed $4,725,000. These public hearings will take place on March 3, 2016 at 7:00 p.m. Resolution adopted. The next item on the agenda was a Sister Cities update. John Dabeet, President of Muscatine Sister Cities, stated it was an honor to stand before City Council tonight and to provide information about the Sister Cities organization. He then introduced Board members Mr. and Mrs. Monte Clausen and their son, Dan Clark, and Marshall McDonald. He stated he looks forward to working with the new Mayor and members of City Council. Mr. Dabeet stated Muscatine Sister Cities began in 1986. He explained the activities that have taken place in the past and what will be taking place in the future. He stated the annual meeting event will be coming up soon and everyone will be receiving an invitation to the event. Mr. Dabeet then thanked the City of Muscatine for the Muscatine Friendship Park located at 8th and Cedar streets. He stated Muscatine Sister Cities will continue to build strong relationships and bridges of peace. He then presented City Council with Sister Cities pins. The next item on the agenda was a presentation on the proposed 2nd Street reconfiguration. City Engineer Jim Edgmond stated the reconfiguration will take place from Pine Street to Mulberry Avenue. He stated three meetings have been held to date and the following items have been brought up: * Concerns about snow removal * No skateboarding * Removal of meters * Concerns about loading/unloading zones Mr. Edgmond stated that before the city embarks on the reconfiguration this spring, there will be substantial notification through meetings and social media. Mr. Edgmond stated there really is no need for the one way on 2nd Street since 3rd Street is no longer a one way. He stated the reconfiguration is needed to allow for better traffic flow during the Mississippi Drive Corridor Project. He stated a two way will also create a better traffic situation should there be a parking garage constructed. He stated there will be no more double parking on 2nd Street which will be a real challenge. He stated the biggest change will be at the intersection of 2nd Street and Mulberry Avenue with the removal of the stop lights and the installation of a four-way stop during the corridor project. He stated the cost for the reconfiguration will be less than $10,000. Mr. Edgmond stated staff and most of the downtown businesses are in support of the reconfiguration. Councilmember Fitzgerald asked if there will be a specific date when the reconfiguration will take place, and Mr. Edgmond answered no. Councilmember Spread asked how many spots will be lost when adding loading zones, and Mr. Edgmond answered probably two per block. Councilmember Natvig asked what else the city would be gaining by this reconfiguration. Mr. Edgmond stated there will be more traffic and better access to the downtown area. He stated the downtown area will become more vibrant with the two-way reconfiguration. He used Galena, Illinois, as an example. He stated that once the Mississippi Drive Corridor Project is completed, he feels 2nd Street should remain as a two-way street. Councilmember Natvig asked how many merchants were in favor of the reconfiguration, and Mr. Edgmond stated approximately 80%. Mr. Edgmond ended by saying the reconfiguration is something that needs to be done. The next item on the agenda was a zoning update. City Planner Andrew Fangman stated tonight's presentation concerns the draft of the chapter of the zoning ordinance dealing with regulating wireless communication facilities or cell towers. He gave an overview of the most significant aspects of the proposed changes. He stated the four most significant areas of changes are as follows: * The need to comply with recent federal and state mandates. * The creation of a simpler and more consistent height limit across all zoning districts. * The methods by which the collocation of multiple carriers on a single tower is encouraged. * The addition of screening and landscaping standards. Mr. Fangman stated that in 2012 Congress adopted the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act and Section 6409(a), a measure relating to the siting of cell towers, was attached to it. He stated this section promotes wireless siting by further restricting a local government's ability to deny certain wireless applications that seek to modify existing wireless facilities. He stated that on January 8, 2015, the Federal Communications Commission issued final regulations that implement Section 6409(a). He stated this proposed draft language regulating wireless communication facilities would bring City Code into compliance with these regulations. Mr. Fangman stated that in June 2015, the Governor signed House File 655 into law which further regulates and restricts how local governments can regulate wireless communication facilities. He stated this action codified the FCC regulations relating to Section 6409(a) into state law and also contained additional restrictions and requirements. He then gave an overview of what those restrictions and requirements are. There were questions from City Council concerning the various restrictions that were answered by Mr. Fangman. Mr. Fangman stated he was looking for a consensus from City Council to bring this portion of the zoning ordinance for adoption by City Council. There was a consensus from City Council to do so. The final item on the agenda was a landfill update. Solid Waste Manager Laura Liegois introduced Tim Buelow from Barker Lemar Engineering Consultants. Mr. Buelow stated he would discussing the following items: * Consent Order Summary and Status * Summary of 2015 Consent Order Findings * Upcoming 2016 Consent Order Activities * Upcoming Larger Non-Consent Order Items Mr. Buelow stated the Muscatine County Solid Waste Management Agency and the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) entered into an Administrative Consent Order on February 11, 2015. He stated the requirements of the Consent Order are almost exclusively associated with compliance with regulations pertaining to groundwater. He further stated the culmination of the groundwater compliance requirements specified in the Consent Order is the selection of a groundwater remedy. Mr. Buelow then reviewed the Consent Order activities and summary status. He stated a lot of the cleanup at the landfill will be through natural attenuation (Mother Nature). He stated the leachate correction could take a few different forms and explained what those could be. Speaking in reference to the background sampling of new Point of Compliance wells, he stated two wells were moved from the waste boundary. Mr. Buelow then reviewed the site map. He pointed out the location of the compliance wells, the area of greatest impact which is the original part of the landfill that was made up of ravines, and the area of the landfill with the greatest amount of leachate. There was discussion concerning the possibility of installing a storage lagoon for the leachate, and Mr. Buelow described other options as well for dealing with leachate. City Council asked a variety of questions during the site map review that were answered by Mr. Buelow. Mr. Buelow stated the 2015 Consent Order findings are as follows: * Groundwater affected by the landfill is primarily in the shallower sand seams within the glacial till; however, some groundwater in bedrock has also been affected. * The primary source of groundwater impact is leachate. * The initial data indicates that nature (attenuation) is providing some groundwater treatment. * A small aware of waste extends off-site to the east. Mr. Buelow then listed the upcoming 2016 Consent Order activities as follows: * Continued groundwater sampling, analysis, and data evaluation to assess natural attenuation. * Limited additional groundwater sampling, analysis, and data evaluation to assess the source of groundwater impact. * Completion of background sampling for the new Point of Compliance monitoring wells. * Installation of additional monitoring wells for groundwater plume delineation, potentially required to the east and southwest. Mr. Buelow ended his presentation by listing the following upcoming larger non-consent order items: * Master Plan Development (2016): a. Design/permit additional disposal airspace. b. Increase remaining permitted capacity. c. Plan for documenting pre-89 closure areas. d. Plan for recertification of exposed liner. e. Evaluate leachate storage requirements. * Survey Control and Site Map Update (2016). * Phase 5 Cell Construction (2017). Mr. Buelow, speaking in reference to the plan for documenting pre-89 closure areas, stated a verification process is needed to ensure minimum cap requirements are met. Speaking in reference to the leachate, he stated that two 10,000 gallon storage tanks are required with a minimum of seven days of storage. City Administrator Mandsager stated the MPD does include the design for Cells 5 and 6. Councilmember Natvig stated that tonight's presentation showed that the city is on the right track. Mr. Buelow stated the city is in really good shape and that he feels the IDNR will be very pleased when they see the city's schedule. Councilmember Saucedo asked when another presentation would be made, and Mr. Buelow stated it will be much later this fall. Councilmember Saucedo then requested that a larger site map be made available to City Council. Under comments, Councilmember Saucedo thanked everyone for helping him through his first budget session and that he is looking forward to the next four years. City Administrator Mandsager reminded everyone of the budget meeting scheduled for 5:30 p.m. on February 16, 2016. He stated that at least four Councilmembers will need to be in attendance. Councilmember Rehwaldt moved to adjourn the meeting at 8 p.m. Gregg, Mandsager, City Administrator MUSCATINE, Iowa Le Chic Prom & Pageant Boutique moved to a new location at 331 E. Second St. last month. Stacy and Heather DeLong, life-long residents of Muscatine, opened the Boutique in 2012, though they have been a part of the pageant world for a long time. They began as Miss Muscatine Pageant board members, and their daughter, Stella, is Li'l Miss Iowa 2015. While they were on the board, Stacy and Heather decided to open a boutique because there were limited options in Muscatine for pageant dresses, and the girls often traveled as far as Chicago to find one. They have dressed several Miss America contestants and hosted Mallory Hagan, Miss America 2013, when she was in Muscatine for a speaking engagement for the Miss Muscatine pageant this January. The DeLongs are also sponsors for the Miss Iowa scholarship program. "We have loved this location for a long time," Heather DeLong said. "We love the visibility with all the windows, and we are about three times bigger than we were before." The store moved from two blocks away on Second Street. The store includes several large designers, sizes 0-18, although they can order other sizes or colors if what the customer wants is not available in the store. With prom season approaching, now is the time to explore their new location in downtown Muscatine. Le Chic is currently open 5-7 p.m. Monday, Tuesday and Thursday; 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday; and 10 a.m.-1 p.m. Sunday. After prom season, however, they will return to appointment only. For more information or to make an appointment, call 563-299-1312. MUSCATINE, Iowa Rates are going up for Muscatine Power and Water's cable television customers. A 7 percent rate increase was built into the 2016 operating budget. The Board of Water, Electric, and Communications Trustees on Tuesday evening formally approved the increase, effective April 1. Basic service will increase $2 per month to $28.99. Select service will jump from the current $68.99 to $73.99 monthly. "The obvious continuing driver continues to be programming costs," said General Manager Sal LoBianco. "At the end of the day, our programming costs will increase 10 percent in 2016." Officials said the rate hike was necessary. "We don't like cable rate increases, but all of the operators are experiencing this," added Erika Cox, Employee and Community Relations director. "Our rates remain competitive." MPW Digital TV customers also receive On Demand and Watch TV Everywhere services at no additional charge. While cable fees are going up, officials are holding the line on charges for Internet services, which last went up in 2012. LoBianco said Internet speed will increase with the implementation of Fiber to the Home in 2017. But before that, internet customers will be upgraded to at least double speeds as of April 1. "We do experience high levels of satisfaction with our Internet services," LoBianco told the board. Internet customers will also continue to receive a $5 monthly discount off their digital TV services. Pension Plan In spite of volatility on the international financial scene, Muscatine Power and Water's Employee Pension Plan, managed by The Principal Group of Des Moines, remains essentially unchanged at $60 million. "We lost some ground last year," reported Dan Sirdoreus, senior investment consultant for Principal Group, during a semi-annual review of the plan. Sirdoreus said the slowdown in the Chinese economy has affected commodities, forcing prices down. "If you're a commodities exporter, you're probably in trouble," he told the board. "If you're a commodities importer, you're probably OK." Sidoreus said he expects the feds to raise interest and oil prices to remain low. He said wage growth has already begun. "We're starting to see a little powder put back in the keg," he put it. Sidoreus did concede the portfolio has lost about 4 percent in 2016. "There's no surprises so far," he said. "Our concern is increased volatility." Although the portfolio is being carefully monitored, Sidoreus said a drastic change in investment strategy isn't warranted. "There is no recommendation to change at this time," he told the board. "There's still some homework to do." Financial report All three utilities at Muscatine Power and Water have begun the new year in the black. A profit of $535,466 was budgeted for the Electric Utility in January, but the actual profit was only $96,435. Finance and Administrative Services Director Jerry Gowey reported revenue was down 16.2 percent, but expenses were also down by 12 percent. Profit of $19,962 was budgeted for the Water Utility in January, but the actual profit was $38,547. The Communications Utility also outperformed January's budget. A profit of $93,864 was expected, but profit if $186,746 was realized. In other business, the board ratified payment of January expenditures and transactions totaling $8.54 million. MUSCATINE, Iowa Tuesday's Volunteer Expo in the student center at Muscatine Community College provided the opportunity for those with some time to give to find just the right opportunity. "We do this event once a year so that folks can come out and have that one-on-one personal contact with people and learn how they can volunteer and give back to our community," said Nichole Sorgenfrey, United Way of Muscatine program manager. "Otherwise, we have a website called volunteermuscatine.org. You can go on it any time and find volunteer opportunities and log in and set up your own profile and track your hours as well." The agencies had booths set up in the student center ready to meet with potential volunteers. "There is a volunteer opportunity for everybody. you need to find your niche. If you enjoy working with seniors and calling out bingo. If you enjoy working with a day care and helping paint pictures. There's lots of things that you can help with," Sorgenfrey said. "All of our agencies that we work with are nonprofit so any dollar that they can save by utilizing a volunteer helps them." This was the the third year for the Volunteer Expo. For more information, call 563-263-5963. WAPELLO, Iowa A continuing discussion on the former Louisa County Jail brought both calls of praise and calls for patience during Tuesdays Louisa County Board of Supervisors meeting. The praise came from Wapello native Kenneth Smith, a former Louisa County engineer now living in Davenport, who sent a letter to the board after learning the jail would be spared. I noted with approval the board has decided not to demolish the old jail building, Smith wrote, explaining he had watched the 80-year-old jail actually being constructed. The new jail replaced an old dilapidated brick structure at the same location. The new jail was heralded as the most modern jail in the area and suitable for the most hardened of criminals, Smith continued in his letter. He then urged the supervisors to hire an architect to design a renovation of the jail to meet the space needs of the county. He even suggested local residents would support a bond issue to cover the renovation costs, if it was properly presented. Supervisor Pro-Tem Randy Griffin, a former Louisa County Secondary Roads Department employee, initially was puzzled by Smiths identity, but after reading the letter, quickly recalled him. He hired me. That was probably over 40 years ago, Griffin exclaimed, explaining Smith had moved to Scott County in the early to mid-1970s to work for that countys engineering department. Later in the letter, Smith recalled his Scott County experience and cited it as part of the reason he knew renovating the former county jail would work for Louisa County. A similar need in Scott County arose some years past. It was solved with the purchase of a nearby vacant warehouse (that) was renovated into a modern annex to the courthouse, he wrote. Later in the supervisors meeting the board was urged to move slowly on identifying which offices would move into any renovated facility. Initially, the supervisors had discussed the possibility of moving county auditor Sandi Elliott into an adjoining addition of the former jail, although no formal decision was made. During its monthly meeting with department heads Tuesday, the board received more input into that idea. County recorder Leanne Black said moving the auditors office out of the courthouse would impact many other county offices. It really affects my office, she said, adding the county assessor and treasurer would also feel the effects. Wed like to be in on (the discussion), she urged the board. Griffin agreed no decision would be made until the board met with the other county officials. Well include everyone, he said. In other discussions during the department head meeting, most of the officials reported relatively normal activities for their offices. Louisa County Sheriff Brad Turner did report his office had been involved in serving multiple search warrants over the last few days. He declined to provide more specific information, explaining the investigation was continuing, but he expected it would eventually clear a number of cases in Louisa and Des Moines counties. The supervisors also discussed a pending ordinance that would allow ATV/SUV usage on the countys secondary road system. A final proposed ordinance is expected after county attorney Adam Parsons completes a review of several additions the board discussed earlier this month. Davenport Mayor Frank Klipsch is right to slow the screws until the city inks a formal deal with Viking River Cruises. Anything less could leave taxpayers all wet. Davenport would make a fine port of call for the well-known cruise company's riverboats, and a few dozen monied tourists disembarking on a regular basis would be a welcome addition downtown. But the city's change of tack since Klipsch succeeded Bill Gluba denotes a welcome new era of prudence at City Hall. Gluba was all about Viking. He campaigned on it. He talked as if, come 2017, boats would would be frequently stopping. Listen to Gluba, and you'd think it was a done deal. It isn't. A docking location hasn't been finalized. A few local engineers hope the city can buy a barge already parked at the soon-to-depart Rhythm City Casino, which might do the trick. No doubt, there's some permitting required. The casino's parking lot has yet to be transformed into a riverside park. And, of greatest significance, Viking hasn't made any legal promises. Or, as Klipsch said Wednesday, any evidence of Viking's intentions are "strictly anecdotal." The same can be said for La Crosse and Dubuque. Viking isn't locking itself in Hannibal and Fort Madison, either. And yet, in these towns, construction is under way. The cities assume the risk. A private, for-profit corporation hedges its bets. Gluba's willingness to go full-steam with the public portion, based solely on a few handshakes, is an unacceptable gamble with the taxpayers' dime. It's nothing new for taxpayers to dump piles of cash into would-be economic development. Corporate brass come to town. Local officials give the grand tour. Everyone laughs and shakes hands. A year later, local government has dumped millions into infrastructure solely for the private investment. But the company got a better deal a few states over. It's the competitive reality in a world of TIF financing and massive tax exemptions. Davenport's upsides are obvious. It's on the right river. It has a growing downtown. It has things to do. The city should be atop Viking's target list. But Gluba's willingness to go all ahead unacceptably shifted all risk to the city. The barge proposal, pitched by Davenport Levee Improvement Commission Bill Ashton and Alderman Bill Boom, has promise. Davenport would be wise to approach Rhythm City management about a possible purchase. A concurrent conference with the likes of the Army Corps of Engineers wouldn't be a bad idea either. Negotiating is one thing. Pulling the trigger is another. Davenport shouldn't spend a dime to develop the site until Viking commits to the city. A prudent Klipsch has doused the sails on a project with too many unanswered questions. It sure beats running aground. The Quad-City Times WALTERBORO, South Carolina In a recent interview with Donald Trump, Fox News' Greta van Susteren posed a simple question from a viewer: "Why don't you act more presidential?" "I will be changing very rapidly," answered Trump, fresh from his smashing victory in the New Hampshire primary. "I'm very capable of changing to anything I want to change to." In South Carolina, where he won another important primary contest, Trump drew remarkable crowds; when a group called Lowcountry Sportsmen for Trump held an event for him early Wednesday evening at a remote and sprawling hunting area known as Dove Field, about an hour outside Charleston, 2,500 people turned out to see him, many driving an hour or more to a place that looked a little like the middle of nowhere. Nearly everyone I talked to had decided to vote for Trump. Some had already voted. They were definitely on board. Still, after his sometimes flailing performance in last Saturday's contentious Republican debate in Greenville, many, like van Susteren's viewer, would like to see Trump act just a little more presidential. Take, for example, Larry and Sherri Hoover, two newly retired State Department officials who live in Ridgefield. When I asked why they chose Trump over the other candidates, Larry said, "I feel like he tells the truth. He just tells it like it is." Sherri agreed. I noted that some critics thought Trump went a little over the top at the debate. What did they think? "I agreed with the premises of what he said, but he probably didn't need to say everything he said, to be honest with you," Larry answered. "I thought that was a little bit much," Sherri added, mentioning Trump's comments about George W. Bush. "But he has no filter. He tells it like it is. That's what we like about him." "I'm looking for a leader, a fighter, and a winner," said Bernie Bell, a retired Chamber of Commerce official from Charleston. "Here's what I thought about the debate: Trump was getting shot at from everywhere. I didn't agree with him on the part about George W. Bush, but I can understand why Trump did that. I'd like for him to be more presidential, I'd like for him to talk more about the issues. But when you're getting shot at from everywhere, you've got to respond." "I wish he would be a little more southern in his genteel manner," Kathy Randall, a lawyer from Summerville who said she's likely to vote for Trump, said with a smile. "He needs some gentility, for sure a big dose," added Randall's friend Hugh Merriman, an oncologist, who also intends to vote for Trump. "What is there to gain from bashing the Bushes? Jeb's done, I think. I don't see the benefit in that." Even Trump's host and introducer, Ellie Thomas, a Mount Pleasant CPA who's with Lowcountry Sportsmen for Trump, took note of Trump's habit of taking things to the limit, and then a little beyond. "We say, 'You know, I don't know that I would have said that, but I'm sure glad he did,'" Thomas told the crowd. The Trump who took the stage it was decked out with camouflage cloth and bales of hay spoke as if he might have heard the advice. In a stump speech cut down to about half an hour because of a tight schedule, Trump said everything he normally says, but he appeared to have dialed back the intensity just a little. At the end, some people wished he had spoken longer, which rarely happens when Trump delivers his usual one-hour-plus performance. Here's a theory. Trump's supporters believe the United States is at such a precarious point in its history that they want to elect a leader who will take an entirely different approach to government, not just from Barack Obama but also from the Bushes who monopolized Republican presidential politics for more than a generation. They're willing to put up with some excess because Trump seems to be the only man who might truly be able to break out of the old mold. Yes, they would like to see him polish things up a little. But even in his roughest state, he's worth it, given what's at stake. On the other hand, Trump's manner has prevented him from taking advantage of the huge opportunity that South Carolina presents to expand his base of support. When a candidate does something like win the New Hampshire primary by 20 points, people who aren't his supporters take another look at him. That moment is a chance to draw in new voters. After New Hampshire, Trump had that chance big time and the best opportunity for him to bring in those new voters was the Greenville debate. He didn't do it. It was another missed opportunity, like the debate he skipped in Des Moines. One way to see that is not at Trump rallies, but at other candidates' events, where there are South Carolinians who have seriously considered supporting Trump but are now leaning elsewhere. "Trump says what's in my heart," said one voter at a Ted Cruz event in Columbia last Tuesday. But after the debate, the man said, "My head says no." Off the record, casual talks with other Republican voters around South Carolina suggest that he is not alone. They appreciate Trump and are glad someone is saying what he is saying about immigration and other issues but they just can't bring themselves to support him. Back at Dove Field, though, voters were willing to take the bad with the good in the hope that Trump will bring real change to American politics. "That's Trump," said Tim Fensch, of Walterboro. "He's like everybody I've ever met from New York City. They're all like that. They get in your face, they're blunt, if you come at them, they double down on you. I mean, that's him." "I want to make a statement," said Charles Perkins Dubee II, of Savannah, Georgia. "I like what he has to say." "I think we need a stick of dynamite in Washington," said Drake Donahue, of Goose Creek. "I think he's it." Byron York is chief political correspondent for The Washington Examiner. Important stuff you won't get from the liberal media! We do the surfing so you can be informed AND have a life! 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 [] For the second year in a row, the National Budget has provided few details on a project to connect municipalities to broadband technology. Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan delivered the 2016 National Budget Speech in Parliament on Wednesday in Cape Town. But, like former minister Nhlanhla Nene, Gordhans speech also had little to say on broadband expenditure as he only briefly addressed governments plan to connect eight municipalities to broadband. Over the mini budget period R1.6bn is allocated to the SA Connect broadband programme to support access in remote areas and of schools, healthcare facilities and government institutions, said Gordhan. In 2015, Nene said that R1.1bn is allocated for broadband connectivity in government institutions and schools. Analysts react The successive budget speeches have provided few details on SA Connect. Adrian Schofield, of the applied research unit at the Joburg Centre for Software Engineering, told Fin24 that its no surprise government has paid little attention to broadband. In spite of the consistent input from policy advisers that IT in all its forms is an essential ingredient of a successful economy, the ANC government has never paid more than lip service to implementing technology to improve efficiency and service delivery, said Schofield. Where the government does implement or inhibit the use of technology, it is usually as a control mechanism, rather than to facilitate growth and development. Such initiatives as have surfaced have generally done so in spite of policy rather than because of it, he said. Meanwhile, Mark Walker who is the associate vice-president for the International Data Corporation in sub-Saharan Africa told Fin24 that R1.6bn may sufficiently cover SA Connects cost requirements. The question that arises is the quantum of money that has been put aside to roll out broadband is very small, Walker told Fin24. Is government waiting for the private sector to take up these projects? Walker asked. Questions over SA Connect Earlier this month, the Department of Telecommunications and Postal Services told Fin24 that a lead agent for the SA Connect project had not yet been chosen. The department said this was despite President Jacob Zuma having said in his State of the Nation Address last year that Telkom would be the lead agent for this project. A Bloomberg report earlier this month also said that Telkom is close to winning the deal, prompting questions from critics about why an open tender process had not been launched. Telkom further declined to comment on the matter. At the State of the Nation Address for 2016, Zuma said that South Africa planned to spend R740m on the first phase of SA Connect. Government will fast track the implementation of the first phase of broadband roll-out to connect more than 5 000 government facilities in eight district municipalities over a three-year period, Zuma said. Fin24 More on broadband Gauteng premier promises 100% broadband connectivity by 2019 Dont give Telkom R744-million broadband contract without a tender: Vodacom, Cell C MTN is dropping its court case against the Nigerian government, and has paid, without prejudice, a good faith sum of R3.8 billion in the hope that it can reach a settlement over its R60-billion fine in the country. Further, in an effort to achieve an amicable settlement, MTN has agreed to withdraw the matter from the Federal High Court in Lagos, it said. Phuthuma Nhleko in his capacity as Executive Chairman of MTN Group and a director of MTN Nigeria is continuing to lead the team engaging the Nigerian authorities with a view to settle the matter, said MTN. The Nigerian Communication Commission fined MTN 1.04 trillion (around R71 billion at the time) in October 2015 for not disconnecting unregistered SIMs on its network. After negotiations with Nigerian authorities, the fine was reduced by 25% to 780 billion. The matter had a negative impact on the groups financials, leading to an expected 20% drop in headline earnings for its latest financial year. Nigeria makes up for nearly 40% of MTNs sales. The group warned shareholders to exercise caution in dealing with its shares while the matter continues. More on MTN MTN uncapped data what it really means MTN shares hammered As owner of this blog, I bear no responsibility to what other contributors/bloggers may post. I encourage all to speak freely without indulging in libel or defamatory content. Anyone who feels offended by any posting can email me and I will remove the offending article if appropriate. Contact me at redbeansg@yahoo.com redbean CAIRO An apparent case of mistaken identity has landed a 3-year-old child in prison for life. Ahmed Mansour Qorany Sharara was found guilty last week of killing three people and sabotaging public and private property in Egypt when he was only 16 months old, CNNreported. The child was originally supposed to be arrested in 2014, but when police realized that he was a toddler, they arrested the boys father, Mansour Qorany Sharara, instead. He was in custody for four months before a judge released him. Shortly after the arrests, the military announced that it wanted a 16-year-old who has the same name as the child, CNN reported. Attorneys have asked if it was a case of mistaken identity, why did the now-3-year-old get arrested, and police have yet to charge the teen who they said participated in protests in support of President Mohamed Morsy that turned violent in the area of Fayyoum, Egypt. More than 100 defendants were named within 24 hours of the protests and clashes. Ahmeds father was out of the country when the uprising happened, an attorney claimed. Despite the verdict against the child, an aide to the Interior Minister said that the boy and his father will not be jailed. But Ahmeds mother said that police did ask her the location of Ahmed and his father. Source AJC.com Alistair Patrick Llewelyn, the pilot who was caught on video physically assaulting a female police officer in Nyandarua has had his services terminated. Kwae Island Development Limited, the company that operates the chopper yesterday released a statement saying they had subcontracted his services on the material day, and they have since terminated the agreement. Kwae Island Development Limited (KIDL) operates the helicopter 5Y-DSN. KIDL had subcontracted the services of a pilot Mr. Alistair Patrick Llewelyn of Saker Resource Management Limited to pilot 5Y-DSN on 20/02/2016. reads the statement. KIDL respects all the service men and women of the Kenya police and abhors the actions of Alistair Llewelyn. KIDL has since terminated the agreement between itself and Alistair Llewelyn and Saker Resource Management Limited. it concludes. Inspector General Joseph Boinnet had ordered Mr. Alistair to surrender himself to the nearest police station, which he did at Kilimani Police Station, before being transferred to Nyandarua. SEOUL, South Korea North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has praised scientists involved in the country's recent rocket launch that he said struck a "telling blow" to enemies and ordered them to press ahead with more launches, state media reported Monday. Earlier this month, North Korea ignored repeated international warnings and launched what it said was an Earth observation satellite aboard a rocket. Washington, Seoul and other view the launch as a prohibited test of missile technology and are pushing hard to have Pyongyang slapped with strong sanctions. The North's official Korean Central News Agency said the ruling Workers' Party on Saturday gave a banquet in honor of scientists, officials and others who it said contributed to the Feb. 7 rocket launch. Kim and his top deputies were present. In a speech, Kim said the launch gave confidence and courage to his people and dealt a "telling blow to the enemies seeking to block the advance of our country," KCNA said, in an apparent reference to Seoul and Washington. Kim said the North's launch decision was made when "the hostile forces were getting evermore frantic to suffocate" North Korea, and called for launching more working satellites in the future. The launch, which followed the North's fourth nuclear test last month, aggravated already-strained ties between the rival Koreas. Last week, Pyongyang expelled all South Korean workers from a jointly run factory park in the North and put the area in charge of the military in retaliation for Seoul's decision to suspend operations there. Seoul on Sunday accused North Korea of having channeled about 70 percent of the money it received for workers at the Kaesong park into its weapons programs and to buy luxury goods for the impoverished nation's tiny elite. North Korea was able to divert the money because the workers in Kaesong were not paid directly. Instead, U.S. dollars were paid to the North Korean government, which siphoned off most of the money and paid only what it wanted to the employees in North Korean currency and store vouchers, according to a statement from Seoul's' Unification Ministry. The South Korean government estimate did not detail how it arrived at that percentage. North Korea has previously dismissed such views. The jointly run park, which was the Koreas' last major cooperation project, employed about 54,000 North Koreans who worked for more than 120 South Korean companies, most of them small and medium-size manufacturers. The project, which began during an era of relatively good relations between the Koreas, combined cheap North Korean labor with the capital and technology of wealthy South Korea. While the Kaesong closure will hurt North Korea, it is not critical to that nation's economy. North Korea gets the vast majority of its earnings from trade with China. WASHINGTON In 2011, eyebrows shot up when former vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin used a salty acronym WTF to mock the policies of President Barack Obama. How quaint. Five years later, Donald Trump has blown right past acronyms. He's in a profanity-laced campaign for the Republican nomination that has seen multiple candidates hurl insults and disparaging remarks at one another and their critics. In recent days, Trump has publicly lip-synced the F-bomb, blurted out the S-word more than once, hurled an offensive term for coward at rival Ted Cruz and fired a steady string of put-downs at other candidates whom he labels pathetic, liars, losers, nasty, evil and more. While Trump started it, other GOP candidates have jumped right into the rhetorical mosh pit, readily trading versions of "liar, liar" in Saturday night's venomous debate. Cruz has said Trump is "losing it," called out his "Trumpertantrums" and dismissed the billionaire's insults as "hysterical." Before exiting the race, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie predicted that he could beat Hillary Clinton in a debate, promising, "I'll beat her rear end on that stage," and tormented fellow Republican Marco Rubio as a fragile "boy in the bubble." Even Jeb Bush, whose 90-year-old mother recently complained that he was too polite, belatedly joined in. Bush, a favorite target of Trump's taunts, tweeted back: "You aren't just a loser, you are a liar and a whiner." This, after weeks of calling him a "jerk." It's not that politicians are typically paragons of proper speech and etiquette. They've just tended to keep their name-calling and coarseness off-mic. Now, it's on the podium and by design. "There's a general taboo-breaking that allows more and more of it to happen faster and faster," says Robert Lane Greene, author of "You Are What You Speak," a book about the politics of language. "The first time somebody does it, eyebrows go up and people get concerned, but then the next person doing it is less eye-opening." The Democratic nomination contest has been tame in comparison with the Republicans: Hillary Clinton complained of a "low blow" when Bernie Sanders said she was a progressive only on "some days." Sanders, in turn, rejected Clinton's accusation that his campaign had engaged in an "artful smear" by insinuating that she was beholden to Wall Street. As for the GOP campaign, Greene sees the coarseness of the GOP campaign as evidence that "the contest to become the alpha male in the room has become more obvious this time than in previous elections." That seems to be just fine with the voters who have put Trump at the top of the polls and handed him a victory in New Hampshire's first-in-the-nation primary. About a quarter of Republican voters in New Hampshire said "telling it like it is" was the most important quality to them in selecting a candidate, and two-thirds of those voters went for the potty-mouth guy who tells it like no one else. "He's real, right?" said Joanne Galvin, an independent voter from Pelham, New Hampshire, explaining her vote for Trump. She dismissed his use of a vulgarity about Cruz at a big rally by saying Trump was simply repeating what someone in the audience had shouted out. Trump has offered a similar defense and promised he'll tone things down if he gets closer to the presidency, saying, "when you're president, or if you're about to be president, you would act differently." Asked during Saturday's debate about his penchant for profanity, Trump pledged to knock it off, saying, "I will not do it again ... Not using profanity is very easy." But he also made clear he has no intention of reining in his personal attacks and insults. A super PAC supporting Bush is hoping Trump's language is a turnoff to South Carolina voters. It's running a radio ad in the state that strings together clips of Trump's expletive-deleted language and then asks, "Is this the type of man we want our children exposed to? The time is now for South Carolina to end the Trump charade." Trump frames his blunt language as a harmless rejoinder to political correctness run amok, telling one TV interviewer, "Every once in a while you can have a little fun, don't you think?" But Kathleen Hall Jamieson, director of the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania and an expert on political communication, said Trump has "hijacked" political correctness to justify his routine use of personal attacks. That's causing other candidates to mirror his tactics and creates a worrisome diversion from a needed discussion of ideas, she said. Harking back to 1988, she recalled when Republican presidential contender Bob Dole stepped over a line when he snapped at GOP primary rival George Bush to "stop lying about my record." Until then, she said, "candidates did not use the word 'lie' about each other." It's all part of a broader trend toward informality in politics that has been going on for more than a century, says Greene. Many Americans are drawn to Trump, Greene says, because he talks like "the guy next to them on the bar stool." "Some people find the guy next to you on the barstool obnoxious, but a lot of Americans ARE that guy." WASHINGTON The presidential election just got real. The unexpected death of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia and the immediate declaration from Republicans that the next president should nominate his replacement adds even more weight to the decision voters will make in Novembers general election. For months, the candidates have espoused theoretical, sometimes vague, policy proposals. Now, the prospect of President Barack Obamas successor nominating a Supreme Court justice immediately after taking office offers a more tangible way for voters to evaluate the contenders. Candidates in both parties moved quickly to reframe the election as a referendum on the high courts future. Texas Sen. Ted Cruz released a new television advertisement Monday warning voters that conservatives are just one Supreme Court justice away from losing on issues including life, marriage, religious liberty, the Second Amendment. The spot also suggests GOP front-runner Donald Trump would nominate more liberal justices and includes clips of the real estate mogul saying hes very pro-choice. Democrat Hillary Clinton painted a similarly stark scenario about whats at stake. If any of us needed a reminder of just how important it is to take back the United States Senate and hold onto the White House, just look at the Supreme Court, Clinton said. Clinton has said she would have a bunch of litmus tests for potential nominees, including a belief that the Citizens United ruling clearing the way for super political action committees and unlimited campaign contributions should be overturned. She also said the courts makeup is crucial to preserving abortion rights and the legality of gay marriage nationwide. Bernie Sanders, who is challenging Clinton for the Democratic nomination, has raised opposition to Citizens United as a requirement for any Supreme Court nominees. Scalia, a hero of conservatives during his nearly 30 years on the Supreme Court, was found dead Saturday at a resort ranch in Texas. The court now is divided between four liberal and four typically conservative justices, putting the ideological tilt up for grabs. Obama pledged to nominate a replacement in due time, even after Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said that responsibility should fall to the winner of the 2016 election. Obama could try to ram a nominee through the Senate this year, taking a high court vacancy off the next presidents immediate to-do list. Even if that were to happen, a confirmation vote probably would be months away, leaving the Supreme Court in the center of the campaign during the nomination process. Former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, who served in the Cabinet of President George W. Bush, said Monday that Obama has an obligation to select a replacement for Scalia, telling CNN that the president has to do his job. Gonzales said that the Senate, likewise, has a role and should weigh Obamas choice on its own calendar. With three other justices over the age of 75, the next president could have other vacancies during his or her tenure, even if Obama fills Scalias seat. Its unclear how the new focus on the Supreme Court might affect voters decisions in an election that has seen surprising and unconventional candidates such as Trump and Sanders challenge their parties establishments. Previous political thunderbolts that were supposed to push voters toward more traditional candidates, such as last falls terrorist attacks in Paris and California, passed without any negative impact on Trump and Sanders. In fact, Sanders has gotten stronger since then, with the economic-focused Vermont senator handily defeating Clinton in the New Hampshire primary and finishing a close second in the Iowa caucuses. Trying to counter Sanders momentum, Clinton has urged voters to consider which candidate is most electable in November. With the balance of the Supreme Court now potentially on the line, Clinton and her allies are certain to increase their warnings about the risk of sending a self-declared democratic socialist to face a Republican in the fall. For any Democrat thinking about casting a protest vote for Sen. Sanders, this should serve as a wake-up call for whats exactly at stake, said Jim Manley, a former aide to top Democratic senators. Among Republicans, Marco Rubio, Jeb Bush and John Kasich are casting themselves as candidates who could appeal to swing voters in the general election and put the GOP in position to guide the next court nominations. But that could open them up to questions from Republican primary voters about the ideological purity of their judicial choices. Cruz is using the potential vacancy to build on his long-standing argument that Republicans should select a nominee with the most conservative credentials. An uncompromising conservative since arriving in the Senate, Cruz vowed to put principled constitutionalists on the Supreme Court. Trump was alone among the candidates in naming specific justices he would consider nominating. He singled out Diane Sykes and William Pryor, federal judges appointed by former President George W. Bush. During Saturdays debate, Kasich bemoaned that Washington and presidential candidates had run so fast into politics following Scalias death. But if anything, the speed at which politics did take over portends a furious fight to come over which candidate gets to put his or her imprint on the court. Did you know that Napa is home to a world-class manufacturing company that sets the standard in its industry, and is not related to the wine or hospitality business? Know who it is? Here are a few hints: 1) This socially conscious/green, world-renowned Napa-based business serves as the innovative leader of its industry. 2) Its the largest manufacturer of the products it produces in the world, and operates out of a 54,000-square-foot factory warehouse in south Napa. 3) All products are made here in the U.S. 4) The company started in a Napa garage 47 years ago and recently surpassed $10 million in annual earnings. 5) It is employee-owned and operated with a female CEO leading the way. 6) It won Small Business Administration (SBA) Business of the Year for Northern California in 2006 and Napa Chamber Business of the Year in 2007. 7) It lists Wal-Mart and Petco among its many distribution partners. That last clue shouldve given you a pretty good idea that this local small business making a really big name for itself is the Lixit Corp. Its the worlds largest manufacturer of pet water bottle products, with a name derived from the first product the company ever produced a hose that attached to a water faucet and was used by animal lovers to quench the thirsts of their favorite pets licks it was the end result of what was then a very simple process. Started in 1968 in the garage of Dr. Frank Atchley, Lixit is now manufacturing and marketing pet products under 30 different labels. The company employs 115 people, including 60-plus disabled adults provided by partnerships with Napa Valley Support Services and Community Access Plus. I was recently invited by Lixit CEO Linda Parks to tour the facility, along with Rep. Mike Thompson, D-St. Helena, and Maria Contreras-Sweet, administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration, who made a special trip from Capitol Hill to take a firsthand look at the factory operation. Parks credits the SBA for working with her to expand the business she purchased in 1994. Its pretty amazing to see it up close and personal when you imagine the process required to meet the fulfillment needs of distributors/partners like Amazon.com, Wal-Mart and Petco. My highlight of the visit was meeting Ruben Goldberg, a disabled employee who has been with Lixit for more than 12 years. He told the very proud story of when he was chosen to accept the award for SBA Business of the Year on behalf of the company. I also met Lindas son Chris, who serves as chief financial officer, and Elizabeth Dennis, chief operating officer. It didnt take long to figure out whos responsible for turning the apparent organized chaos witnessed on the tour into a smooth operating, best-practice operation worthy of the worldwide recognition it is currently receiving. Congratulations to Linda Parks and staff for putting Napa on the world business map for something unrelated to food, wine and hospitality. Im proud to say that you are a very engaged member of the Napa Chamber of Commerce. Thank you. Young vintners in the Napa Valley have found a way to make sure the quality and reputation of wines created here continue well into the future. The not-for-profit NG: The Next Generation in Wine organization helps Napa Valleys next generation of family vintners navigate and thrive. NG was formed in 2007 by a group of friends that had been getting together to chat about their familys wine businesses, founding member Lisa Broman Augustine, director of sales and marketing at St. Helenas Broman Cellars, wrote in an email. Broman is one of NGs past presidents and is currently the chairwoman. The NG provides support, education and mentorship to our members. Working at a winery is an interesting job on its own, but working with and for family adds a whole new dynamic. First-generation vintners agree that groups like the NG are important. I think that NG is a wonderful initiative, wrote Ted Hall, founder of Long Meadow Ranch Winery and owner of the Farmstead restaurant. It builds commitment and an owners attitude among the next generation within our local wine families. Our wines and our Napa Valley identity are only real and authentic if connected to real people committed to the craft. Without the next generation our brands will just become vehicles for someone elses empty marketing and advertising slogans. Beyond providing a forum to share information and collaborative support, the group also holds tastings that showcase their wines, including both consumer and trade events such as one held last Thursday as part of Premiere Napa Valley. The event was held at the Farmstead restaurant and included 20 NG members who poured their wines with more than 300 wine-trade professionals in attendance. Weve been holding tastings at Premiere for years, said Garrett Busch, proprietor and CEO of Trinitas winery and the current president of NG. Holding this event provides our members the ability to interact with the wine trade. It also provides the trade an opportunity to get a peek into the new releases and to get a sense of what is happening around the valley. Those in attendance at the event also were hoping to gain insight into the new generation of Napa Valley winemakers. We like to come here and see what the younger generation has to offer, said Scott Litteral, co-owner of Il Forno Classico fine wine shop in Golden River, California. The wines included here are from some of the best wineries in the Napa Valley, so its exciting to see how the new generation is approaching wine and thinking about wine. For the NG members pouring wine at that nights event, the education was a two-way street. At events like this we are learning about the next generation of customers both trade and consumers which is a compelling and important aspect of our groups mission, said Chris Hall, son of Ted Hall. Chris is the executive vice president at his familys Long Meadow Ranch Wine Estates and founding member of NG: The Next Generation in Wine. For example, today we get access to over 300 influential trade people, each of whom considers the idea of the next generation of winemaking to be interesting. At that nights tasting event Hall poured a few of his familys estate wines, including their PNV auction lot the 2014 Long Meadow Ranch Estate Merlot from their Rutherford vineyard. To say the wine was delicious would be both an understatement and also unfair to the reader because only five cases of this exceptional wine were produced, solely for the PNV auction that brought in about $5 million, with the five cases of Long Meadow Ranch Merlot selling for $10,000. (Last Saturday afternoon, 226 lots were sold at the Culinary Institute of America at Greystone in the trade-only auction.) Ive been a part of the NG organization for the last six years, said Dalia Ceja, sales and marketing director at Ceja Vineyards and an NG board member. As members of the millennial generation, we want to see how we can further our brands with the use of technology, social media, innovation and the creation of really fun events like this one. Beyond building an organization that helps next-generation vintners thrive, first-generation vintners are hopeful that the NGs mission includes building a sustainable future, as Ted Hall wrote in an email. In addition to their current mission and goals, I hope NG will focus on the preservation and protection of our Ag lands through vigilant defense of the Ag Preserve and will encourage the placing of conservation easements on family lands through the Land Trust. At the end of the day, the key task is stewardship, first of the Ag lands and then of our authenticity. NG members understand that the future is in their hands. We named this organization so that it can continue on for generations to come and now we have over 30 members, wrote Broman. We hope to continue to help our members thrive and to help preserve the Napa Valley as well as the family aspect of many wineries. We also hope to bring more fun and a renewed interest in the valley as a whole. Napa Valley is not just for our parents and grandparents. SAN FRANCISCO -- A group of black and other minority students who walked out of San Francisco's Lowell High School Tuesday morning in response to a racist incident were greeted at City Hall today with a show of support from city and school district officials. The Black Student Union walkout was organized in response to a poster found hanging on the school library door on Feb. 5 that said "Happy Black History Month #Gang" and included images of black entertainers. The poster's allusion to gangs and disparagement of black history was just an example of the types of racist comments and uncomfortable climate many black students experience at Lowell, an academically competitive high school located in the Lakeshore neighborhood in the southwestern end of the city, the students said. A number of students said they had experienced incidents of being called "ghetto" or dirty, of having other students refuse to believe they could be taking Advanced Placement classes, and of being told by adults that they needed to change the way they looked to fit in. Several students said they did not feel like they belonged at Lowell. "We go to the same school, we passed the same test, so what makes us different?" one student said. "We are just as smart as everyone at the school, we worked just as hard to get there." After walking out of school at 9 a.m. Tuesday, the group of several dozen students traveled to San Francisco City Hall, where they were greeted by a representative from the mayor's office and by Supervisors Norman Yee and Malia Cohen, as well as by the Rev. Amos Brown, president of the local branch of the NAACP. Cohen, a Lowell graduate, expressed support for the students and urged them to "stay together, stay united and stay strong." San Francisco Unified School District board president Matt Haney also attended Tuesday's rally at City Hall and said the students were raising "important issues." Haney noted that the district passed a policy last year to support black student achievement, but needed to move faster. "This is much bigger than just one incident," Haney said. "It's a systemic issue with how we serve African-American students in San Francisco." Haney said he hoped to see school officials step up and work more closely with the Black Student Union. Principal Andrew Ishibashi sent a letter out to families earlier this month in response to the library poster. He said that school officials had spoken to the student responsible and "while the intent was not malicious, the student who put up the message has been made aware it was insensitive. The student is deeply remorseful." Ishibashi said in the letter that the school would be using restorative practices to address the incident and increased cultural sensitivity training for staff and students. The Napa school board will hold a special public meeting Thursday night so trustees can consider authorizing a $269 million bond measure for the June 7 election. The district is faced with how to pay for nearly half a billion dollars in new construction and other needs facing Napa and American Canyon schools. The full price tag for the Napa Valley Unified School Districts Facilities Master Plan is $475 million, with a bond measure the only way to pay for the bulk of it, district officials said. The district says it needs money for everything from rebuilding schools found to be sitting atop the West Napa Fault to building new schools because of areas of urban growth to paying for a host of other important safety or educational priorities. The funds are needed even though enrollment district-wide is expected to dip in coming years, officials said. Getting local support for a school bond, which requires 55 percent support from voters, is not a certainty. Thats why the district last year hired a political consulting firm, CliffordMoss out of Oakland, to gauge voter sympathy for the bond idea. Early polling and focus groups conducted in 2015 indicated voters might be willing to approve another local school bond. The last one in 2006, Measure G, was the highest school bond in NVUSD history ($183 million). To be sure, the district had CliffordMoss survey voters again this month to get a better of idea of how tough the 55-percent threshold might be for June. We have some polling results that are really positive, School Superintendent Patrick Sweeney said in an interview on Tuesday. Sweeney did not elaborate on what those polling numbers show. But they will be shared with the public Thursday night during the school board meeting. It is likely the survey results will take center stage during any discussion of putting a bond on the ballot before the March 11 filing deadline. The superintendent said the district will present a resolution to trustees asking them to authorize a $269 million bond measure for the June 7 election. If the board likes the idea, the trustees would vote on the plan at the next meeting, scheduled for March 3. The school board was briefed last week on ways of generating funds for the master plan, which lays out 10 years worth of building and repair needs for NVUSD. Where are we going to get $475 million? said Assistant Superintendent Wade Roach at the beginning of his presentation to the trustees. He proceeded to list various rocks we can turn over to find $475 million. Some of the rocks are in Sacramento, where the state provides a variety of educational funding sources for local school districts. But one of the biggest for new school construction has mostly dried up unless the state passes another school bond of its own. Roach said the state currently has $170 million left from the last statewide school bond for new construction. That might seem like a lot of money, but not when compared to the list of projects already in the queue in Sacramento from school districts seeking money. The total in requests adds up to $1.3 billion. That doesnt give us much hope unless the state passes a statewide facilities bond, Roach told trustees. School districts and developers have qualified a $9 billion statewide school bond for the November election. But that effort has run into opposition from Gov. Jerry Brown. Brown prefers a smaller bond to reduce the states long-term debt, and he wants the state to change its formula for how school bond dollars are allocated to local districts. Presently, they are awarded on a first-come first-served basis. Brown says this method favors larger, wealthier school districts, like the one in Los Angeles, because it has the staff to crank out applications faster than smaller, poorer districts. It remains to be seen if the state will pass another school bond, or how vociferously Brown will oppose it. That has left NVUSD to figure out its do-it-yourself funding options. It could issue general obligation bonds, the ones that require 55 percent voter approval. Roachs presentation last week to the board offered a range of school bond amounts for consideration, from $235 million to $322 million. It would seem the district decided to go with something in the middle of that range by choosing $269 million as its target for the bond. At that amount, district property owners would pay $39 per $100,000 of assessed property value annually to pay back the bonds, according to Sweeney. Other than a school bond, Roach offered the trustees a laundry list of smaller money sources for the master plan. Those add up to nearly $65 million in probable funding, he said. These include: $6.5 million the district has in the bank from savings on earlier construction projects. $10.8 million in fees from developers. $30 million from the Napa Pipe and Watson Ranch projects for two new elementary schools and a new middle school. $5 million from sale of NVUSDs properties, including the Vintage High School farm. $1 million-plus in fees from new business ventures in American Canyon. We have some enormous industrial growth in American Canyon from which will come one-time commercial fees of $1.3 million for the district, said Roach. He also said the district would pursue grants, donations and endowments from individuals and groups. NVUSD could also offer naming rights someday to those wishing to make large gifts. Sometimes folks want to put their name on a building, he told the board. So if folks want to give us a million dollars, the district would bring that idea to the board for approval. Thats something well have to talk about in the future, Roach added. Its something thats done around the state. Napa Sanitation District officials held an open house about proposed sewer district rate increases totaling 53 percent over five years and stood ready to answer the skeptics. About 10 people showed up Monday for the first event at the Boys and Girls Club of Napa Valley on Pueblo Avenue in Napa. A second open house was to follow Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. at Napa Valley College. Sewer rates for a single-family home in the city of Napa and Silverado area could rise from $482.50 annually to $554.88 in 2016-17, $638.11 in 2017-18, $676.39 in 2018-19, $710.21 in 2019-20 and $738.62 in 2020-21. Resident Joseph Vitelli showed up at the open house and talked with district General Manager Tim Healy and others. Hes concerned enough about the proposed increases that he studied the districts budget beforehand. I believe that some type of increase is probably necessary, he said as he prepared to leave. But I believe the way its structured right now, it seems to be a little excessive. I think there could be a Plan B thats a little more moderate. Jack Gray of the Napa County Taxpayers Association showed up. The groups signs opposing the rate increases have been posted at various locations in Napa. Did Gray change his mind about the proposed increases after hearing district officials explain the need to replace aging sewer pipes before they fail? Not yet, he said with a laugh. Gray noted that in 2006, the district approved three years of increases totaling more than 50 percent in part to replace and strengthen aging pipes. To him, history seems to be repeating itself. I understand theyve got a problem, he said. Theres still room to question whats been done, wheres the money gone and how well know it will be better the next time around. Prior to that 2006 series of increases, then-General Manager Michael Abramson said the district needed more money in part because having a program to rehabilitate 287 miles of pipes was the single biggest challenge we face. District Chief Financial Officer Jeff Tucker said Monday the sewer rehabilitation program passed a decade ago was appropriate for the time. Since then, more lines have entered the period where they are between 50 years and 60 years old and older. Spending more on sewer line rehabilitation now is a natural progression, Tucker said. The district spends about $1.2 million annually on sewer rehabilitation projects, a district report said. With the proposed increases, the district in four years would boost spending to about $3.1 million annually, enough to rehabilitate 2.7 miles to three miles of line. Amy Martenson, a Napa Valley College trustee, showed up at the open house. She expressed disappointment the session didnt include a presentation and group question-and-answer session. I want to ask questions, but I also want to hear other peoples questions and concerns, she said. Among other things, she wanted to know that proposed increases would go toward projects that directly benefit ratepayers, who she said are already feeling financially squeezed. Proposition 218 passed by voters in 1996 states that assessments such as sewer charges must be linked to benefits received by the affected properties. Napa Sanitation District had NBS consultants do a study that concluded the proposed rate increases meet this standard. Healy said the reason for improving the aging sewer system isnt to free up capacity to serve the Archer hotel and other developments, as some have speculated. Rather, leaks in the pipes that let groundwater innot sewage outleads to 10 times the usual amount of water going through the system during the height of the rainy season. District officials said the extra water could overwhelm the sewer system, raising the possibility of sewage getting into the Napa River and creeks and backing up into homes and businesses. Also, theyve said, all of this extra water in the system is treated at the sewage plant at additional cost. If Napa had no more developments, the district would still have to fix the sewer lines, Healy said. He added that Archer hotel paid the district a capacity charge of about $1.9 million. People can mail rate increase protests to the sewer district. Protest forms were mailed to property owners several weeks ago. If the district receives protests from a majority of parcel owners by March 16, it cannot go forward with the proposed hikes. The district would have to receive more than 12,000 protests to stop the rate increases. Derek Anderson came to the open house. The 2nd District county supervisor candidate said enough people oppose the proposed increases to have a successful protest if each opponent sends in a protest form. Anderson agreed this is a big if. The fact that more people didnt attend the Monday open house is a shame, he said. The district should have held the open houses at an earlier date. Anderson and others have expressed concern that some residents will think the Proposition 218 notice mailers are junk mail and throw them out. He said the district should have written on the notices in big, red letters, We are raising rates. The Napa Sanitation District will announce the results of the protest votes at the March 16 public meeting. If fewer than 50 percent of parcel owners file protests, the district Board of Directors can raise the rates. The Napa County Taxpayers Association is concerned about other possible assessments and tax increases. Gray said possible water and garbage rate increases and a ballot measure for wetland restoration are a sampling of what could be on the horizon. Those signs around town that read Protest the 53-percent sewer rate increase are only attachments to bigger Stop taxes in Napa County signs. The attachments can be removed and the signs reused for future anti-tax campaigns, if the association opposes other proposed increases. ST. HELENA The city is dipping into its affordable housing trust fund to help out an 8-unit sweat equity project on McCorkle Avenue. The council agreed on Tuesday to take between $32,000 and $65,000 out of the fund to cover various city fees for the project, which is being developed by the nonprofit Our Town St. Helena. The fund currently contains about $957,000. The city will essentially pay itself, with the money going from the affordable housing fund to the General Fund. The exact amount will depend on the details of the final plans, which Our Town hasnt submitted to the city yet. The project consists of eight townhouses in two buildings. The city already tapped its affordable housing fund to buy 684 McCorkle Ave. for $700,000 in 2013. Last year, it sold the half-acre lot to Our Town for a token sum of $1, contingent upon Our Town developing affordable housing. Our Town is financing the project with the help of $500,000 in pre-development loans from the countys housing fund and the nonprofit Rural Community Assistance Corp., plus a $550,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which is also offering the mortgages. To limit construction costs, the sweat equity project requires each participating family to provide 2,600 hours of labor to build the homes. That will account for about 65 percent of the construction labor. Forty-seven families applied for the eight units, with 28 from St. Helena, eight from Calistoga, 10 from Napa and one from Middletown. The families were required to have at least one family member working Upvalley. Most of those are farmworkers and hotel workers, Our Towns Mary Stephenson told the council. The applicants are being screened for credit history, income qualifications and legal residency. Between 15 and 18 families are expected to enter a lottery for the eight units in March. Construction is scheduled to start in September and end a year later. Our Towns USDA grant is reserved for project management and construction supervision for two projects, totaling 18 or 19 units. Our Town hasnt identified the second project site yet. Calistoga Affordable Housing will soon be asking the St. Helena council for a contribution from the affordable housing fund to help finance an 8-unit project on a Pope Street property donated by vintner Larry Turley. We are anticipating the majority of the trust fund will be needed to complete probably both (the McCorkle) project and the Turley project, said Planning Director Noah Housh. The council has already agreed to contribute $500,000 from the affordable housing fund to the Turley project. ST. HELENA Members of a construction union protested outside the Boys & Girls Clubs St. Helena clubhouse this week, but club representatives say the unions claims are based on misinformation. The protest involved a dispute between Carpenters Local 751 and Ledcor Construction Inc., which is in negotiations to build the new Boys & Girls Club facility in Calistoga. According to the fliers the protesters were handing out, the Boys & Girls Club had failed to require Ledcor and all its (sic) sub-contractors to pay the Carpenters Area Standard Wages and Benefits and to provide apprenticeship and training on all jobs all the time. However, Jay Templeton, executive director of the Boys & Girls Clubs of St. Helena and Calistoga, said that while the clubs construction project manager, Pound Management, is negotiating with Ledcor on a possible agreement, no contract has been signed. Any contract will have to require prevailing wage, since the project is on public land next to the Calistoga Community Pool, Templeton said. Ledcor didnt return a call requesting a comment. The three protesters referred the Stars questions to the union office in Santa Rosa, which also didnt return a call requesting a comment. Two of the protesters refused to provide their names, and the third did provide his name before asking that he not be identified. Templeton confronted the protesters on Monday morning, asking them why they were involving the Boys & Girls Club in a dispute between the union and Ledcor over previous dealings that didnt involve the club. Your entire premise for being here is wrong, Templeton told them, emphasizing that the club has not hired Ledcor and will require prevailing wage for the Calistoga clubhouse. Theyre using us to make a point, I guess with Ledcor, said Trent Yaconelli, the clubs associate executive director. Theres no reason for us to be dragged into the middle of this. The protesters arrived at about 9:30 a.m. and left at 2 p.m. After the police were called out in the morning, the demonstrators agreed to move their protest by a few feet so that it was off school district property, said Officer Fil Bianco of the St. Helena Police Department. Union members held a similar demonstration on Monday outside Pound Managements office in Oakland, Templeton said. Their fliers read Community breware and Shame on you. They accused the Boys & Girls Club of turning their back on the community by hiring Ledcor, and included Templetons contact information, some of it incorrect. Banners accused Ledcor and the Boys & Girls Club of hurting workers, families and the community. Templeton chided the protesters for misspelling beware and warned them that they were using the trademarked Boys & Girls Club logo without permission. He later issued a statement apologizing for any inconvenience the protesters caused children, parents and the community. The clubs 14,000-square-foot, $12.7 million Calistoga facility is scheduled to open in September 2017. RIO DE JANEIRO Police charge 7 with homicide over dam burst that killed 17 Brazilian police have charged the president of the Samarco mining company and six other people with aggravated homicide over the deaths of at least 17 people after a dam burst in November. In a news release Tuesday, police in the state of Minas Gerais said they have requested that Samarco President Ricardo Vescovi, five other company executives and one contractor be held in preventative detention while awaiting trial. The men are charged with homicide, causing a flood and polluting drinking water. A mammoth wave of debris from a Samarco iron-ore mine broke through the Fundao dam Nov. 5. The mud and water swept over nearby towns and polluted hundreds of miles of waterways in two states in southeastern Brazil. LONDON U.K. gorilla doing well after delivery by emergency cesarean A mother gorilla and her baby are doing fine in a British zoo after a very rare delivery by emergency cesarean surgery. The infant was born 11 days ago by surgical intervention after the mother showed signs of a potentially life-threatening illness. Bristol Zoo officials said Tuesday the as-yet unnamed female baby needed help breathing at first but is now doing well and being treated around-the-clock by experienced gorilla keepers. The babys mother, Kera, is also recovering. The baby was delivered by Prof. David Cahill, a gynecologist experienced at delivering human babies by cesarean. It was the first time he had used the procedure to deliver a gorilla. He said there were signs the baby was unwell in her mothers uterus and needed to be delivered as quickly as possible. MEXICO CITY Criminal charges expire against Mexican rebel leader A federal court has ruled that criminal charges filed against a leader of the Zapatista rebel uprising of 1994 are no longer valid. The rebel known as Subcomandante Marcos was charged 21 years ago with rebellion, terrorism and other crimes. Mexican law says charges expire when half of the potential prison term for the most serious crime has passed. For Marcos that would have been a 40-year sentence for terrorism, so the charges have expired, the court said in a decision announced Tuesday. Mexicos government has identified Marcos as Rafael Sebastian Guillen Vicente, but he has never confirmed it. In 2014, Marcos announced he was retiring that nom de guerre and would instead be called Galeano in honor of a killed rebel. LONDON 1 dead, 3 missing after U.K. power plant collapse An unused power station in southern England partially collapsed Tuesday, killing one person and injuring five others, British emergency services said. Describing the collapse as a major incident, Oxfordshire fire services said search operations at the Didcot plant 60 miles (100 kilometers) west of London were ongoing and three people were still reported missing. It was not immediately clear what caused the collapse or who the dead and injured were. Photographs of the plant showed that part of a building appeared to have collapsed. Witnesses told British media they heard a loud explosion. South Central Ambulance sent six ambulances, two air ambulances and a hazardous response team to the site Tuesday afternoon. The incident occurred at an old coal- and oil-fueled plant that has been closed since 2013 and is slated for demolition. The Didcot facility also houses an operating gas-powered plant. The fire services said although dust from the collapse covered a large area, there were no hazardous materials found within the building. TORONTO Trudeau to be 1st Canadian leader to march in gay pride parade Justin Trudeau will become the first Canadian prime minister to participate in Torontos annual gay pride march. Organizers on Tuesday said Trudeau will march in the parade on July 3. Trudeau tweeted: Very much look forward to being there again, this time as PM. Organizers also have said gay Syrian refugees will have a place at the events. Trudeau has made equality a big part of his government since being elected in October. Women make up half of the Cabinet. Asked last year why gender balance is important, Trudeau said: Because its 2015. LONDON Meerkat expert cleared of assault in zoo love triangle spat A former meerkat expert at London Zoo has been cleared of assaulting a monkey handler in a love spat over a llama-keeper. Two High Court judges said Tuesday that Caroline Westlake had not recklessly injured Kate Sanders. In October a lower court found 30-year-old Westlake guilty of assaulting Sanders, who suffered a cut cheek from a wineglass after the two women argued at a zoo Christmas party in 2014. Both had dated colleague Adam Davies. The High Court said Tuesday that magistrates had applied the wrong legal test for recklessness and quashed he conviction. Westlake was fired by the zoo after the incident. Her lawyer, Suzanne Kelly, said Tuesday that Ms. Westlakes life has been destroyed by something that was no more than an unfortunate accident. Most people in the national news media are talking about how Donald Trump is now the clear Republican front-runner and will be nearly impossible to stop. They are only partially right. Trump, who won South Carolina (and all of its delegates) with a little under one-third of the vote, certainly is the front-runner. He has won two of the first three contests and has a clear lead in delegates. He should do well on March 1, when many Southern states hold their primaries and more than 600 delegates are at stake. By definition, that makes him the front-runner. But the Palmetto State primary results, combined with recent national polls, suggest that Trump remains a tentative front-runner, not some kind of unstoppable favorite. Trump drew 32.5 percent in South Carolina, a little less than the 35.3 percent he attracted in New Hampshire and about eight percentage points more than the 24.3 percent he attracted in the Iowa caucuses. In other words, he did not do as well as the primary winners did in New Hampshire or South Carolina in 2008 or 2012. Thats understandable considering the size of this years field, but it raises questions about the eventual breadth of his appeal. Winning is good and losing is bad, but Trumps problem is that while he has a high floor of support (many of his supporters will continue to back him no matter what he says or does), he may also have a low ceiling. We will find out if that is true over the next month, now that the GOP field has winnowed further. Foxs Feb. 15-17 national survey found Trump at 36 percent on the ballot in the GOPs national race and almost with a 2-1 lead over Ted Cruz, who was in second place. But when respondents were asked for a second choice, Marco Rubio and Cruz showed strong second-choice appeal. Trump did not. That should not be surprising, given the controversy that Trump generates and his personal style. Its possible to win a primary with one-third of the vote, but its difficult to win a two-way or three-way race getting one in three voters. And that is a problem for Trump. His ceiling may prevent him from being the second choice of many Republicans. The folks at CNN kept repeating on primary night that if another candidate had performed like Trump has so far, everyone would be saying that he is unstoppable. Thats true, of course. But the point is that Trump definitely is not like any other candidate. His language is not like a politicians, and many of his positions are not classic Republican. That certainly enhances his appeal to some, but it disgusts and repels others, limiting his ability to attract significant additional support. Most candidates who win multiple early contests have demonstrated broad appeal. In contrast, Trump remains a deeply polarizing candidate whose message obviously touches a certain kind of voter one who is angry, wants a political revolution and is looking for a political strongman to mount a campaign against perceived enemies. That describes many, but not necessarily most, Republican voters. The South Carolina exit poll found Trump doing very well among those voters who want a candidate who tells it like it is and well among those who want a candidate who can bring needed change. But he does very poorly among those respondents who want a candidate who shares my values and runs a weak second to Rubio among those who want a candidate who can win in November. Even as he presses his argument that he is the only candidate who can stop Trump, Cruzs showing in South Carolina has to be disappointing for him and his supporters. More than seven out of 10 South Carolina GOP primary voters said that they were evangelicals, but Cruz carried only 26 percent of them. If Cruz cant do well among those voters, he is in trouble. Cruz did carry very conservative voters, another group at which he aims his message, but he must do better among evangelicals on Super Tuesday if he is going to remain a top tier hopeful for his partys nomination. Once the primary process moves north and west, Cruzs appeal wanes. Jeb Bushs exit from the race is a significant plus for Rubio, who after his South Carolina showing is now in a much better position to coalesce establishment support. That development is partially offset, of course, because John Kasich shows no sign of exiting the contest, limiting Rubios ability to unite pragmatists. As others have noted, the longer the establishment is divided, the more difficult it is to stop Trump from winning primaries and accumulating delegates. Those who believe Trump is unstoppable frequently note that no Republican who has won both New Hampshire and South Carolina has been denied the GOPs nomination. Thats true, but I believe that we have already established that the old rules do not apply. So I am not sure why anyone should regard two primary victories this year as an iron law of Republican politics. None of this means that Trump cant win the nomination now. But to do so, he will need to broaden his appeal something that he has shown no inclination or ability to do, at least to this point. But South Carolinas results didnt change Trumps prospects in the Republican race very much. The outcome was more of the same, not an indication of his growing support in the party. Until that happens and it could happen or never happen the GOP nomination is very much up for grabs. Ironically, Trumps victory in the Palmetto State wasnt the most significant development on Saturday. It wasnt as important as Cruzs disappointing showing or Bushs exit from the race. Those two developments could alter the dynamics of a very unpredictable race. We will see whether they do. Stuart Rothenberg is editor and publisher of the Rothenberg Political Report. He wrote this for Roll Call. The Minister of Public Health on February 22, 2016, opened an international conference on hand surgery in Douala. The hand is the main active part of the body. It is the key natural work tool that plays an important role in daily life, thus has to be taken proper care of. Hand deformation is common in Cameroon, resulting from accidents, infections or genetic malformation. However, Dr Hugues Tiemdjo, a Cameroonian who studied in the country, Mali, Senegal and France, specialised in hand surgery. He has returned home with a wealth of experience to restore flexibility in patients hands through surgery. It is for this reason that he invited professionals from Africa and Europe to share on the topic through the first ever International Hand Surgery Conference in Cameroon to sensitise the public on the possibility of rendering useless hands useful. The congress, presided by the Minister of Public Health, Andre Mama Fouda, brought together medics from Algeria, Burundi, Burkina Faso, Cote dIvoire, the Democratic Republic of Congo, France, Madagascar, Morocco and Senegal, to confirm that hand surgery is possible in Cameroon. Mama Fouda, who saluted the private initiative of Dr Hugues Tiemdjo, said it was his wish that Cameroon will soon becomes a medical destination for patients from other countries to fly in for treatment and that Cameroonians will no longer be evacuated abroad for the same cause. A Physiotherapist with the Buea Regional Hospital, Asongafac, attested that the international congress was necessary to convince Cameroonians and Africans of the reality of hand surgery. She advised that children born with hand malformations should be operated upon at a tender age to avoid further complications. On his part, Dr Hugues Tiemdjo reassured hand deformation victims and the public that hand surgery was a reality in Cameroon. He urged medical students to get interested in the speciality in order to restore flexibility in useless hands. Question -- What is the goal of this website? Why do we share different sources of information that sometimes conflicts or might even be considered disinformation? Answer -- The primary goal of Nesaranews is to help all people become better truth-seekers in a real-time boots-on-the-ground fashion. This is for the purpose of learning to think critically, discovering the truth from withinnot just believing things blindly because it came from an "authority" or credible source. Instead of telling you what the truth is, we share information from many sources so that you can discern it for yourself. We focus on teaching you the tools to become your own authority on the truth, gaining self-mastery, sovereignty, and freedom in the process. We want each of you to become your own leaders and masters of personal discernment, and as such, all information should be vetted, analyzed and discerned at a personal level. We also encourage you to discuss your thoughts in the comments section of this site to engage in a group discernment process. "It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it." Aristotle 11 Erdogan denies using chemical weapons against Kurds and threatens those who dare to talk about it Saudi Arabia and China will strengthen their ties in energy sector Governor of Gegharkunik province receives representatives of OSCE fact-finding mission Penny Mordaunt runs for Prime Minister of Great Britain Sweden expects ratification of NATO membership application by Hungary and Turkey to be completed soon European Union will allocate 1.5 billion euros per month to Kiev in 2023 An Israeli-built flight school opened in Greece Russian Railways is negotiating with Azerbaijan and Iran to launch the Rasht-Astara route Overchuk: Construction of road through Meghri, whose sovereignty is not in question, depends on Armenia's position Armenian Defense Minister's working visit to India is over Hungary will not agree to limit prices for imported gas Iranian Foreign Minister: Iran considers Armenia one of most important transit countries Naribekyan participates in meeting of secretaries general of PACE parliaments Delegation from United Arab Emirates visits Armenia at invitation of head of MONKS: Two agreements signed Dollar, euro drop in Armenia Iran consul general in Armenias Kapan: We do not accept any change of borders Baza: Mobile military registration and enlistment offices will be removed on Russian-Georgian border Iranian Consul: Countries of region do not need presence of foreign armed forces Armenia FM: Iran consulate general in Kapan will be important for regional security Iranian Consul General advises Kapan residents not to worry anymore: Iran is here for Armenian people FM reaffirms Armenia plan to open consulate general in Irans Tabriz Turkey to open consulate in occupied Armenian Shushi city of Artsakh Turkish Ministry of Finance: Ankara can buy Russian oil without Western funding Armenia Security Council chief briefs European Parliament rapporteur on recent Azerbaijan military aggression British bookmakers name favorite for post of prime minister Erdogan: Armenia-Azerbaijan relations progress will contribute to Armenia-Turkey relations normalization Iranian Consulate General opens in Kapan Erdogan: Turkey is looking for alternative to American F-16 fighters Iran consul general: We are here for Armenian people Turkey FM slams OSCE decision to send needs assessment mission to Armenia Peskov reacts to Erdogan's words about Putin's softening on Ukraine negotiations European Parliament rapporteur on Armenia visits Armenian Genocide Memorial in Yerevan European Parliament rapporteur on Armenia to legislature speaker: Attack was from Azerbaijan, naturally Armenia President to EEU PMs: We will manage to take another confident step by respecting mutual interests EUSR Toivo Klaars exclusive interview with NEWS.am on EU Monitoring mission,Nagorno Karabakh future and violence videos Explosions rock Ukraines Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia President meets with newly formed Artsakh Public Council members Armenia PM: We need understanding in price horizon, at least in medium term Lawyer: 20 of fallen solders parents detained from Yerevan military pantheon are recognized as injured party PM: Armenia trade with other EEU countries increased by 74% France region to provide 300,000 to Armenias Syunik Province affected by Azerbaijan military aggression Eurasian Intergovernmental Council extended meeting underway in Yerevan MOD: Armenia did not fire at Azerbaijan positions, vehicle MPs in Strasbourg, present threatening dangers: Armenia has powerful support in European Parliament Years first snow falls in Armenias Shirak Province World oil prices on the rise Newspaper: Russia dismisses Armenia PM's news on Karabakh Russia PM in Yerevan, to discuss with EEU colleagues single oil, natural gas markets formation Newspaper: Why is Iran in hurry to open consulate in Armenias Syunik Province? France, Spain, Portugal agree to build Barcelona-Marseille natural gas pipeline Admiral: U.S. should now prepare for Chinese 'invasion' of Taiwan Harutyunyan: I cannot imagine Artsakh's future without presence of Russia Harutyunyan: Without questioning path of our independence, we must meet with Baku Prime Minister of Finland does not think that Hungary and Turkey will block country's application for NATO membership Iranian FM: U.S. made hasty statements in connection with protests Former Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim involved in car accident in Karabakh Arayik Harutyunyan: Artsakh people's right to self-determination is non-negotiable Iranian MFA calls it important to form platform with Armenia and India on North-South corridor Details of EU monitoring mission in Armenia are known Foreign Ministry: It seems Ankara is more interested in opening corridor through Armenia than Azerbaijan Mirzoyan: Unexpected third countries support Azerbaijani interpretation of road to Nakhchivan Foreign Ministry: Armenia, Iran and Bulgaria initial agreement on creation of Persian Gulf-Black Sea corridor Israeli Defense Minister to visit Ankara Armenian Foreign Minister names main obstacle to solving problems with Azerbaijan Erdogan once again raises issue of so-called 'Zangezur corridor' Armenian and Iranian FMs to open Iranian Consulate General in Syunik province tomorrow Abdollahian: Aliyev assured that he does not want border changes, Iran will prevent implementation of such idea Iranian Foreign Minister in Yerevan supports '3+3' platform Iranian Foreign Minister recalls Tehran's 'red lines' in regional issues Mirzoyan: We highly appreciate Iran's principled position regarding territorial integrity of Armenia UK imposes sanctions against Iran for alleged delivery of drones to Russia Yerevan hosts meeting of Eurasian Intergovernmental Council in narrow composition Armenian and Iranian Foreign Ministers meet in Yerevan in extended format Charles Michel: EU energy deal possible, but difficult Erdogan says Baku should demand 'compensation' from Yerevan Pashinyan: EEU mechanisms are of great help, trade turnover between Armenia and Belarus has doubled Yair Lapid: Russia-Iran relations are serious problem for Ukraine, Europe, and whole world Amir-Abdollahian: Iran is against presence of foreigners in this region, both in Azerbaijan and Armenia Pashinyan at EAEU meeting: Fundamental principles of world economic system in question Iranian Foreign Minister's official visit to Yerevan begins Growing up the daughter of two Emory alumni and the granddaughter of a retired Emory professor, Emory College senior Savannah Miller knew the campus was in her future. She expected to find a clear-cut career path into journalism. Instead, she found a passion for environmental policy that has taken her from the Amazon River basin to the Paris climate talks and soon, a trip to Antarctica to see first-hand the effects of climate change. In the fall, she heads to New York for graduate school. I love stories, and I love people, Miller says. I had no idea that this would evolve into full-blown environmental advocacy. Miller got a taste of both while still in high school living in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, a formerly small, coastal town across the river from Charleston that has seen explosive growth in the past 20 years. As part of her graduating thesis, she self-published a non-fiction novella about Mount Pleasant residents that captured the voices of its long-term residents and their impressions of its recent rapid development. Seeing how environmental degradation affected the health and happiness of her community, Miller wanted to understand more about the science behind those stories. Thats how the granddaughter of J. Maxwell Miller 65G, Professor Emeritus of Old Testament and former director of Emorys Graduate Division of Religion, became a double major in environmental sciences and creative writing. Her attitude was shaped by the mantra her mother encouraged her to adopt: never say no to an opportunity. (Her parents, Charles Miller and Julianne King Miller, both attended Oxford College and graduated in 1990 from Emory College). Its something Ive been able to feed while at Emory, this insatiable curiosity, Miller says. Its been a crazy four years, but I take every opportunity I can. From the Amazon to Africa to Atlanta The first opportunity presented itself her sophomore year, in the Ecology of the Tropics course taught by Lawrence Wilson, adjunct professor in environmental sciences. The lecture course unlocked for her the mechanics of the Amazon regions ecology and biology, while the field work in the Peruvian Amazon River basin helped her understand the real-world effects of climate change. Miller wanted to take action. Shortly after returning from her first study abroad, funded by a Lester Grant in the Department of Environmental Sciences, Miller sought a new opportunity. She would intern in Emorys Office of Sustainability for the next year. To reach her goal of sustainable events on campus, Miller assisted in creating and implementing a zero-landfill waste certification program for campus events. She taught more than 200 faculty members, students and staff how to plan everything from freshmen orientation to homecoming by considering ways to avoid trash. One legacy from her tenure was a new nickname. I was known as 'Compost Girl,' but I never felt nervous about what I believe in, Miller says. Environmental stewardship is something that everyone can benefit from. That drive to help everyone prompted Miller to reach beyond Emorys campus. She met with environmental attorney and former state representative Stephanie Stuckey Benfield at Emorys Green Networking Night. Soon after came a new opportunity: interning for Benfield at GreenLaw, a nonprofit environmental action group in Atlanta. That opportunity grew even bigger when Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed tapped Benfield to be the citys sustainability director. When Benfield left for the city last spring, she asked Miller to come along. Im just so impressed with her, Benfield says. Shes super smart and energetic. She comes up with great ideas and then is the one doing the work to implement them. Miller started this fall, after another a trip to Namibia and Botswana this summer with Wilson, studying the ecology of the desert and how residents relate to the biomes there. She also launched a blog, Sustainable Directions, to draw together what she was learning about environmental studies and encourage conversations about the issues. I feel like if I just spell it out, show the simple science as I learned it, people can talk about making their own educated decision in their everyday lives and in the political sphere, Miller says. I want to aid in those discussions. To Antarctica and beyond Miller kept the conversation going, especially between Emory and Atlanta, at the recent United Nations climate conference. She was among 10 Emory undergraduates and two faculty members who observed the discussions and negotiations of the 21st session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. She organized student attendance at the summit that focused on what actions municipal leaders can take to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and reduce water consumption. Miller already has applied some of those lessons to her work in Atlanta, where she advocated against a state proposal to gut the citys 2015 energy policy for large commercial buildings to report their energy usage. She expects to broaden it further with a spring break trip in March in Antarctica. Led by Sir Robert Swan, the first person to walk both the North and South poles, the expedition focuses on climate science with morning lectures and afternoon hikes on the glacial sheets. Miller will be one of only two representatives from the Southeast on the expedition, but wont have much time to bask in the achievement. A week after she returns, she is assisting in coordinating Emorys Climate Week programming through the Emory Climate Organization. Three weeks after, she will lead Atlantas Earth Week celebration in her new role as a special events coordinator. I knew I wanted to learn and also have my handprints on the work I was doing from what Ive learned, Miller says. Neither will end with Millers graduation. She has been accepted into Columbia Universitys joint program within the School of International and Public Affairs and the Earth Institute for a masters of public administration in environmental sciences and policy. Twenty days after Emory Commencement May 9, she will launch into her year-long intensive curriculum. The program gives her access to an international network of policy experts and the chance to intern at the United Nations. Miller is open to using those opportunities for environmental policy work either in nonprofits or government, or even private firms. As long as I am moving, I am moving forward, Miller says. And I look forward to where saying yes takes me next. Emory University's official Twitter account (@EmoryUniversity) topped 30,000 followers on Monday. This is a significant milestone in Emorys social media presence, says Jerry Lewis, senior vice president for communications and public affairs. Twitter followers tend to build slowly. Having 30,000 members of our community connected so closely and so immediately creates wonderful synergy and a dynamic network. Emory joined Twitter in September 2008 to provide an additional means of interacting with the community, as well as utilizing a new platform for sharing news and information about the University. Emory has posted more than 7,000 Tweets and almost 1,500 photos and videos since establishing the account. Follow Emory on Twitter to stay up-to-date on research breakthroughs, innovative teaching, faculty and student achievements, University announcements, campus conversations, upcoming events, and more. Emory also uses a variety of other popular social media platforms to communicate with faculty, staff, students, alumni and other members of the community. You can follow Emory on Facebook, with almost 66,000 likes for the official university page; LinkedIn, with more than 81,000 followers on the university page and more than 30,000 on the company page; Instagram, with 15,500 followers; YouTube, with almost 20,000 subscribers; and Google+, with more than 3,000 followers. NEW YORK: A group of activists gathered here outside Apple's flagship store to protest against the FBI's attempt to install software with backdoors in all of Apple's iPhones. With posters saying "Don't break our phones" and displaying cell phone images saying "No entry" in hands, the high-spirited protesters braved drizzling rain and bitter wind outside the Fifth Avenue Apple Store, Xinhua news agency reported. "We are standing in solidarity with Apple and their decision to oppose the FBI's scheme to put backdoors to the iPhones," said Jeff Lyon, chief technical officer of the activist group Fight for the Future. The protest occurred against the background of a major feud between the country's law enforcement agencies and Apple over its security measures on iPhones. The Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a motion last Friday to compel Apple to comply with a court order to help the Federal Bureau of Investigation access data on an iPhone owned by the terrorist shooter of San Bernadino, California. The FBI has in its possession of the iPhone 5C used by Syed Farook and his wife Tashfeen Malik, but couldn't access the data on the phone without a passcode. The couple shot dead 14 people in December 2015 in San Bernadino and were later killed by police. In response to FBI's request, a federal judge ordered Apple to create a software that bypasses a security feature that erases data in the iPhone after 10 unsuccessful unlocking attempts. "This case sets a dangerous precedent for the FBI to get a court to order Apple to push new software on all their phones that creates a government backdoor," said protester David Moore. In a statement released last week, Apple CEO Tim Cook refused to comply with the court order, saying that "in the wrong hands, this software - which does not exist today - would have the potential to unlock any iPhone in someone's physical possession," which would in turn compromise the data security of all Apple's customers. "Once you break one phone, you break all the phones. All our phones are breakable using the same technology," said protester Theo Chino. Read Also: 7 Crucial Features of Smartwatches that will Change Naysayer's Concept 9 Best Data Sharing Apps for Sharing Files between Devices India has made the right move to allow the Pathankot terror attack probe team's visit, said a Pakistani daily on Wednesday. An editorial "Pathankot developments" in the Daily Times said that Adviser to Prime Minister (PM) on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz has elucidated on the progress of investigations into the Pathankot attack, which took place on the Indian airbase, on January 2, leaving seven dead and several injured. After a First Investigation Report (FIR) was registered on Friday by Punjab polices counter-terrorism department, Indian Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar had said that it was an insufficient step and that Pakistan should take legal action to Indias satisfaction. Aziz asserted that the FIR could not have been taken on the basis of inadequate evidence, especially considering it is a cross-border terrorist attack, which is why it had been delayed. He said that the FIR had enabled Pakistan to visit the Pathankot airbase. "Contrary to the unequivocal refusal by the Indian defence minister earlier to allow Pakistans Special Investigation Team (SIT) to visit the airbase, Indian authorities have now agreed to the visit. Aziz stated that the visit to the crime scene would only aid the expeditious investigation," said the daily. Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) group has been named by India as the principal instigator of the attack and its chief, Masood Azhar, the mastermind. Aziz confirmed that "Azhar and a few other JeM operatives were under 'protective custody' and the moment evidence became available action would be taken against them". He also revealed that one of the mobile numbers provided by India had been found to be associated to JeMs headquarters, which have been sealed by the authorities. The editorial noted that before the Pathankot attack, "there was a clear thawing of tensions between Pakistan and India, made possible by the growing amity of the premiers". "However, unfortunately, it appears from statements by officials that India may well be going back to relying on suspicions as it did after the Mumbai attacks, which resulted in an impasse. "While India has made the right move to allow the SITs visit, there is a need for mutual cognisance that to overcome the hurdles placed in the way to a diplomatic endeavour by the spoilers, there is a need for more definitive action," it added. The daily observed that the "onus is on Pakistan to ensure that investigations are taken to their logical end and not bogged down by political to and fro in order to maintain the possibility of dialogue". "Indian authorities too need to tread with caution, realising that, ultimately, a solution can only come from dialogue, which will not be effective if the political atmosphere is soured by the disobliging demeanour of any party." --Indo-Asian News Service rd/pr/ ( 469 Words) 2016-02-24-10:31:38 (IANS) Pakistan Army chief General Raheel Sharif on Wednesday expressed satisfaction over the gains and effects of the ongoing military Zarb-e-Azb operation, and acknowledged the army's resolve to fully eliminate terrorists from their sanctuary. General Raheel Sharif visited the country's mountainous northwest region to review progress of the ongoing military Zarb-e-Azb operation against terrorits. Gen Sharif was briefed by Zarb-e-Azb operation commander that the deeply forested ravines of the Shawal Valley and area ahead of Data Khel that have been frequent infiltration routes of terrorists between Pakistan and Afghanistan, was now the last bastion of terrorists left in North Waziristan, said an Inter-Service Public Relations statement. Gen Sharif directed the forces to commence forthwith the last phase of the operation in North Waziristan which aims at clearing the remnants of terrorists from their hideouts in deeply forested ravines, isolate them and indiscriminately sever their links with their abettors anywhere across the country. --Indo-Asian News Service ahm/vt ( 167 Words) 2016-02-24-17:27:34 (IANS) The figures from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) on Tuesday showed the long-term unemployment rate continued to fall, down from 5.8 percent to 4.7 percent now, Xinhua reported. There was an annual increase in employment of 2.3 percent or 44,100 in 2015, the CSO said. The CSO figures also showed the monthly unemployment rates have been revised up, with the January rate now put at 8.9 percent as against the previously reported 8.6 percent. Job creation remains top priority of the Irish government, which aims to return the country to full employment by 2018, the report said. Alan McQuaid, chief economist with the Dublin-headquartered Merrion Stockbrokers, said employment prospects look very good again in 2016 due to the strong economic recovery, with another net increase of 50,000 forecast. "As regards unemployment, we are now looking for an average jobless rate this year of 8.5 percent as against 9.4 percent in 2015," he said. --Indo-Asian News Service py/vt ( 195 Words) 2016-02-24-12:47:34 (IANS) A clinical trial involving more than 2,600 women in Africa finds that a vaginal ring containing an antiretroviral (ARV) drug called dapivirine is safe for women and can help to protect them against HIV on a large scale. The study found the dapivirine ring reduced the risk of HIV infection by 27 percent overall; there were 27 percent fewer women who acquired HIV in the group assigned to use the dapivirine ring than in the group assigned to use a placebo ring containing no active drug. The risk of HIV was reduced significantly more among the study's older participants, who also used the ring most consistently. Women in the dapivirine group who were 25 and older were 61 percent less likely to acquire HIV than women of the same age in the placebo group. Intrigued with this finding, the researchers conducted additional analyses. These drew a more precise line of demarcation, with lack of protection being confined to women between the age of 18 and 21, and women older than 21 seeing their risk of HIV cut by more than half (56 percent). ASPIRE, researchers who conducted the trial, enrolled HIV-negative women ages 18 to 45 at 15 clinical research sites in Malawi, South Africa, Uganda and Zimbabwe. In the second trial, called 'The Ring Study', HIV risk was reduced by 31 percent overall, and by 37 percent among participants older than 21. The International Partnership for Microbicides (IPM), which developed the monthly dapivirine ring, is conducting The Ring Study in South Africa and Uganda among 1,959 women. Although still ongoing, 'The Ring Study' is reporting results early, following a recommendation of its independent data and safety monitoring board that the study proceed to final analysis. Vaginal rings are flexible products that fit high up inside the vagina where they release a medication slowly over time. They are already used in the United States and Europe to deliver hormonal contraception. Women can insert and remove the ring themselves. The study has been published in New England Journal of Medicine. (ANI) The students, protesting against alleged discrepancies in the part 2 Arts results of the university, had announced a demonstration to submit a memorandum to the varsity vice-chancellor. University vice-chancellor Smriti Sarkar said, "A section of the procession suddenly broke barricades put up by the police near the vice-chancellor's office when the police acted." The opposition parties in the state criticised the vice-chancellor and the state administration for calling the police inside the university premises. Binod Ghosh, an SFI leader in Burdwan alleged that over 50 of his activists were injured in the police action that was unleashed without a provocation. (ANI) Lawyer Vikram Chauhan has not joined the probe yet. Earlier, Delhi Police Commissioner B.S. Bassi said that coercive action will be taken against two out of three lawyers. The police had earlier issued summons to lawyers Vikram Singh Chauhan, Yashpal Singh and Om Sharma to join the investigation, following which Om Sharma presented himself before them and was arrested. After the other two lawyers did not oblige, the Delhi Police took Yashpal Singh in custody. (ANI) The Prime MInister and the Nepalese team witnessed an audio-visual presentation of how Kutch was put together brick-by-brick from a near-impossible state to the spick and span picture it presents today. The presentation was by officials of the Gujarat State Disaster Management Authority (GSDMA) and the Bhuj Area Development Authority (BADA). "This is my first visit to Bhuj. People here are very open and friendly. We are here to learn about rehabilitation and development of the region in the times of earthquake, since both the regions were victims of the earthquake," Oli said. Oli's top priority was to know how the relief and rehabilitation of the people, who were left with absolutely no resources and eked out a living under tarpaulin sheets. The Nepalese Prime Minister was accompanied by his wife Radhika Sakya, Deputy Prime Minister Kamal Thapa, Finance Minister Vishnuprasad Paudel, Home Minister Shakti Bahadur Basnet and a host of top bureaucrats. Here the Prime Minister discussed about the ideal and modern village from the various people living in the village. As many as 19,000 people - 17,000 in Kutch alone - died, whose intensity was placed at 6.9 on the Richter scale by the Indian Meteorological Department and at 7.7 by the US Geological Survey. Some 1, 66,000 people were injured and property worth crores of rupees was destroyed in the quake, which had its epicenter at Chobari in Bhachau Taluka of Kutch district. (ANI) It certainly doesn't seem so, for recently, a senior government official was caught on camera, urinating at the confluence of three rivers - Ganga, Yamina and Saraswati - popularly known as Triveni Sangam. The video shows Allahabad Additional District Magistrate (ADM) O.P. Srivastava relieving himself, it has gone viral on the social media. The irony of the entire episode is that Srivastava is seen wearing a 'Clean Ganga' t-shirt while committing this shameful act. Apparently, the senior official was at the Triveni Sangam to discuss arrangements for the upcoming Triveni Mahotsav. Dubbing the act as an 'unpardonable offence', Uttar Pradesh BJP chief Laxmikanth Bajpai asked state Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav to suspend the official. "It is an unpardonable offence. On one hand, the entire country, government and PM are working towards cleaning mother ganga, and on the other hand this. I request Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister to suspend this official," he told ANI. The IED is suspected to have been planted by the Naxals to target the security forces. The ITBP personnel had earlier last week seized large amounts of explosives and ammunition during two separate operations in Chhattisgarh. The 18th battalion of the ITBP had found IEDs, splinters and double ignition systems during a raid in Madanwada area, while they recovered two grenades, batteries and crackers in a dump in another raid in Murarpani area of Sitagaon Kohka. (ANI) In a gesture befitting a socially conscious corporate, LeEco, the internet and technology conglomerate has joined hands with Akshaya Patra to support a mid-day meal for two children for every Le Superphone sold (Le 1s and Le Max) on LeEco Day on February 25, 2016. The initiative is part of a program that helps Akshaya Patra feed over a million children, who have the zeal to learn and the potential to contribute to India's social and economic development. LeEco, which recently entered the Indian market has become consumers' favourite brand in a short span of time. Having created a flurry of industry records with its Le Superphones, the corporate's LeEco Day with its bounty of benefits and offers worth Rs. 8 crores, is touted as one of the largest and most attractive shopping carnivals organised by a smartphone brand. In a highly laudable gesture, the corporate has chosen to return in some measure the love and appreciation LeEco has received from Indian consumers by supporting the well-known Akshaya Patra mid-day meal initiative. Commenting on this initiative, Atul Jain, COO smart electronics business, LeEco said: "LeEco's core values as a company includes associating ourselves with social causes that help sustainable development of the communities where we operate. We are proud to associate ourselves with Akshaya Patra Foundation that supports children and provides a basic necessity that helps them in their schooling. We are also pleased to add that employees of LeEco have volunteered to be part of this meal initiative. The mission of the Akshaya Patra foundation is to reach five million children by 2020 and we hope to continue our association to help them cross this goal." LeEco Day is marked by several unique initiatives. The senior management of the company plans to personally undertake the delivery of the Superphones to first few customers across the four cities of Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore and Hyderabad. This is being planned as part of LeEco's consumer-connect policy which has been integral to the unprecedented success the company has had in such a short period in the Indian market. Also noteworthy is the company's after-sales policies. LeEco has put in place 555 service centers in prime locations in the country, besides providing 24*7 toll free services, and other value-added services. LeEco, formerly known as Letv, is a global pioneering internet and technology company with multiple internet ecosystems across content, devices, applications and platforms. Founded in November 2004 by Jia Yueting and Liu Hong, LeEco employs nearly 10,000 people and is the world's first video company to go public with a market capitalisation of more than USD 12 billion. Headquartered in Beijing, China, it has regional headquarters in Hong Kong, Los Angeles and Silicon Valley. Akshaya Patra, an NGO that supports the 'Mid-day meal' program launched by Government of India feeds over 1.5 million children every day of the school year, in 24 locations, across 10 states in India. For these children, a full meal, even once a day, is a strong incentive to stay in school. This program enables hunger free education and it has led to a significant rise in enrolment and attendance. (ANI) The High Court will tomorrow continue the hearing on the plea of the two accused, seeking security before they surrender in the court. During the hearing, Umar Khalid's lawyer told the court that his client was willing to surrender at a time and location, but the Delhi Police objected to the place. The Delhi Police made strong objection against surrendering on undisclosed location and the time suggested by Umar's lawyer. Meanwhile, the High Court has also dismissed another plea filed by a lawyer seeking direction to the Delhi Police to enter the JNU campus and arrest the accused students. Earlier, two more students of the varsity - Rama Naga and Anant Prakash Narayan - filed anticipatory bail plea in the Delhi High Court. The five students Umar Khalid, Anant Prakash Narayan, Ashutosh Kumar, Rama Naga and Anirban Bhattacharya returned to the campus on Sunday night. (ANI) Over 200 delegates from across South and Central Asia will take part in the conference to discuss a wide variety of issues, including regional economic integration, climate change, and nuclear non-proliferation, reports The Himalayan Times. In addition, this university-level United Nations simulation will increase participating student delegates' leadership, conflict resolution, and public speaking skills, the Embassy said. The U.S. Embassy is proud to be part of this regional Model United Nations conference, which will bring together students from throughout South and Central Asia, US Ambassador Alaina B. Teplitz has been quoted as saying in the statement issued by the Embassy.(ANI) Gandhi, who participated in the solidarity march held at the Jantar Mantar here to demand justice for Hyderabad University PhD scholar Rohith Vemula, alleged that the RSS wants to suppress the voices of the youth whenever they talk about the future or the present state of affairs in the country. "Rohith talked about the future of India, but the RSS doesn't support the same. The universities are being encroached upon and the country needs a law that doesn't stifle the students' voice," said Gandhi. "Rohith's voice was muzzled. We need a law, which doesn't let students' voices in colleges and universities be stifled," he added. Carrying tricolor, blue and red flags, students, activists and intellectuals marched for about a kilometre to Jantar Mantar. Students of the Jawaharlal Nehru University, who are demanding the release of Kanhaiya Kumar, have also joined in. Rohith, 26, was found hanging on January 17, days after he was banned from the hostel and other areas on campus. (ANI) People of Tripura are waiting with great expectation, hoping the introduction of superfast trains from the capital Agartala and fund for Bangladesh project in upcoming Rail Budget. Most of people of landlocked Tripura, who either have to avail expensive air service or go though the lone hilly national highway 44 covering some 600 km in 24 hours to go to Guwahati to get rail service, expressed that in the upcoming Rail Budget 2016 they are very much hopeful that the Union Government will introduce various superfast train from capital Agartala. "There is no end to our expectation and are very hopeful, since already broad gauge rail has reached here, we will get direct rail connectivity with our national capital, at least two direct trains every week to Kolkata, and if the proposed rail connectivity through Bangladesh happens that it will be great help. We the people of Tripura are very much hopeful that the union government and the rail board will fulfill our expectations," said Uttam Chakraborty, a local. "As the passenger service (of broad gauge) starts we hope in the rail budget to get direct trains to every part of India. We are expecting that few super fast trains like Rajdhani are introduced from Agartala and runs twice or thrice a week. If the Union Government keeps this in the budget and that will help in the development of Tripura," said Pradip Debnath. Tripurites also hopes that there should be mention of fund allocation for the proposed Agartala-Akhaura rail link between India and Bangladesh. "Earlier it was metre gauge which has now been converted into broad gauge and so we are expecting that with this progress we shall be able to go everywhere in India directly from here. Be it for medical purpose or pleasure trip to visit any place we hope to have a rail connectivity... Moreover, there is also a proposal for rail connectivity through Bangladesh capital Dhaka," said Kamani Debbarma, a local. Similar is the expectation of the authorities of the Northeast Frontier Railways (NFR) and hope that there shall be not dearth of fund for the ongoing and proposed rail projects in Tripura and introduction of new superfast trains from here. CEO NFR S I Garur said, "Whatever our projects are going on adequate funds will be ensured and new projects will come up. New trains will be there definitely for Agartala will the commissioning of this project. New trains will be introduced from Agartala." At present the conversion work of metre gauge to broad gauge work has been completed upto Agartala from Badarpur in Assam and successful trial run has been completed. Ongoing railway work is on for connecting southern most city Subroom and Akhaura (in Bangladesh), both from Agartala. (ANI) The United States and Russia have announced that a planned cessation of hostilities in Syria which will come into effect at midnight on February 26. A joint statement issued on behalf of Presidents Barack Obama and Vladimir Putin after they had conversed over the phone said that the proposed cessation of hostilities would not include the so-called Islamic State and the al-Qaeda-linked Nusra Front. The civil war in Syria has so far claimed the lives of 250,000 people since March 2011. The Syrian Opposition High Negotiations Committee (HNC) the major opposition bloc involved in negotiations has been quoted, as saying that it would accept the terms of the deal but it did not believe that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regime and its allies would do the same. The joint statement made by Washington and Moscow as co-chairs of the International Syria Support Group (ISSG) said the group would work to "develop procedures" to ensure those abiding by the deal are not attacked by Russian armed forces or a US-led coalition both of which are carrying out air strikes in the country. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon welcomed the deal, saying he hoped the move would be the first step towards an enduring ceasefire. Meanwhile, Syria has announced that it will hold elections for its parliament on April 13. The last general elections were held in 2012. (ANI) "My government's philosophy is captured in the idea 'Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas'. Mahatma Gandhi said poverty is the worst form of violence. My government is striving hard to eradicate poverty. Well-being of our farmers is vital to nation's prosperity," said President Mukherjee while addressing the joint session of Parliament. "My Government in particular is focused on the welfare of poor, farmers and jobs for the youth. My government in particular is focussed on 'Garibon Ki Unnati', 'Kisano Ki Samridhi' and 'Yuvaon Ko Rozgar'. My Government is placed in making this goal possible through financial inclusion and social security," he added. The President also said that the government is committed to 'per drop, more crop' President Mukherjee further marked that the rural development is one of the 'top priorities'. "Removing poverty and destitution is our most sacred responsibility," he added. (ANI) This was disclosed by Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Vikas Swarup on Tuesday on twitter. Fiji has been struck by "Cyclone Winston" which brought with it wind gusts of 325 kilometres per hour and sea and ocean waves up to 12 metres high. The area's crops and several villages have been flattened completely by the natural calamity. So far, 29 people have reportedly died and many others have been shifted to evacuation centres. Considerable damage is being reported from the main Fijian islands of Viti Levu and Koro after they were hit by strong winds directly. As aid efforts intensified, communications were established with some of the worst-hit remote communities, revealing the scale of the disaster. Officials say the Pacific nation's recovery from the devastating storm could take months. Power is gradually being restored in the main centres and roads cleared of felled trees. The international airport at Nadi also reopened yesterday, allowing international tourists caught up in the disaster to return home. (ANI with inputs) The Shiv Sena on Tuesday slammed the Delhi Police for refraining from entering the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) campus to arrest the five students, who have been charged with sedition. Shiv Sena spokesperson Sanjay Raut said when the cops can enter the Chief Minister's office then what is stopping the men in uniform from entering the JNU and nab the anti-national elements. "Isn't JNU in India? Why is the Delhi Police Commissioner, who makes tall claims, is not able to enter the premises of the university and arrest the anti-national elements? You have arrested Kanhaiya, that is fine, what about the other five," Raut told ANI. "The police can enter the Golden Temple. They can enter the Chief Minister's office. But why are they scared now? We want to ask what is stopping you from arresting those who raised anti-national and pro-Afzal Guru slogans," he added. Meanwhile, JNU student Umar Khalid and four others against whom a lookout notice had been issued moved the Delhi High Court today, seeking ample security before they surrender so that no untoward incident happens. The five students Umar Khalid, Anant Prakash Narayan, Ashutosh Kumar, Rama Naga and Anirban Bhattacharya returned to the campus on Sunday night. Earlier on Monday, Delhi Police Commissioner Bhim Sain Bassi asked the JNU students to join the probe and present evidence of their innocence. When asked if the police would enter the JNU campus to arrest the students, the top cop said that his men are competent enough to deal with the situation. (ANI) With the Congress cornering the government over the recent controversies such as the JNU campus row and the suicide of Hyderabad University PhD scholar Rohith Vemula, Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu on Tuesday alleged that the BJP-led government has inherited some of these problems from the UPA regime. Naidu assured the Opposition that the government is willing to discuss every issue whether it is JNU, Hyderabad University, Pathankot attack and Jat reservation in the Budget Session of Parliament. "All these issues are not created by this government. We inherited some of these problems. Whose regime was there when the students were committing suicides in Hyderabad University? It was the Congress regime. They have to answer to the country," Naidu told ANI. "With regard to JNU, such things have been happening since many years," he added. Speaking on the JNU row, he said that there was no question of closing a 'very prestigious university'. "We will strengthen it further but anti-national comments will not be allowed. It can be used as a platform for pro-Pakistani elements. We are very clear about it," he said. The Congress Party, which is all geared up to corner the government in the Budget Session of Parliament earlier alleged that the NDA regime was trying to saffronise the educational institutions of the country. The government has, however, assured the Opposition that it is ready to discuss each and every issue in the Budget Session. Leader of the Congress Party in Lok Sabha, Mallikarjun Kharge, said that they are going to raise eight to nine important issues, including the controversies surrounding the JNU, Hyderabad University PhD scholar Rohith Vemula's suicide and the FTII. The Budget Session of Parliament will begin today with President Pranab Mukherjee's address to the joint sitting of the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha. During the session, the Rail Budget will be presented on February 25 and the General Budget on February 29. The first phase of the Budget Session will come to an end on March 16 while the second phase will start from April 25 and conclude on May 13. The government has prioritised 32 items for the session including 11 Bills pending in the Rajya Sabha and one in the Lok Sabha besides transacting financial business related to the budget. (ANI) Experts, domain specialists, policy makers and senior officials from civil and military fields are scheduled to participate in the deliberations. CLAWS has invited several foreign experts and officers from foreign militaries to participate in the event. Various issues related to the origin, spread and evolving nature of global terrorism and extremism will be discussed during four sessions over two days. An analysis of the Indian model of counter terrorism Strategy is intended as culmination of the seminar. The seminar will see some well known experts including Dr Christine Fair and Dr Jacob Zenn who have extensively researched and written on the subject. Policy recommendations as part of the report on proceedings of the seminar are likely to provide options for the policy makers across the regional and global spectrum, an army spokesman said in a release. (ANI) Kellton Tech won an award in the category of 'Best e-governance Implementation' in recognition of its contribution to Digital India, particularly its role in developing and deploying mSehat, a SIFPSA initiative to enable health workers in Uttar Pradesh to improve maternal-infant mortality rate outcomes. It exceeded the expected performance levels by facilitating a ten-fold increase in registrations, demonstrating the ease and effectiveness of its solution. The National Awards in IT excellence recognizes companies that demonstrate IT skills in transforming business, optimizing costs, developing synergies across businesses and enhancing customer satisfaction. Kellton Tech received this dual recognition alongside prominent players of Indian industry like Capgemini, SBI, HDFC Bank, Tech Mahindra, Titan, Reliance Capital among many others. "We are a leading company in enabling digital transformation of organisations and are glad to be recognized for our efforts in this area," said Niranjan Chintam, founder and chairman, Kellton Tech. Headquartered in Hyderabad, Kellton Tech Solutions limited is a public listed certified global IT services organization. (ANI-BusinessWire) The Delhi Police had written to the LG saying they have no confidence in the lawyers appointed by the state government and suggested four new names including Additional Solicitor General Tushar Mehta. Mehra was appointed as Kumar's counsel by the Delhi Government and this move is likely to spark another confrontation between the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)-led government and the LG. Meanwhile, amid beefed up security, the Delhi High Court is set to hear the bail plea of Kanhaiya Kumar, who was arrested on sedition charges. Justice Pratibha Rani will hear the bail plea at 10.30 a.m. Kanhaiya had moved the bail plea on Friday after a lower court sent him to judicial custody till March 2. Counsel Raju Ramachandra appearing for Kanhaiya had told the apex court earlier that the atmosphere of Patiala House Court is not safe for the accused and his lawyers. "The Defence lawyers are not able to perform their duty in such a hostile environment. That is why the bail application had been moved to the Supreme Court," he said. However, the apex court asked his advocate to move the high court for bail, noting that bypassing the high court would set a wrong precedent. (ANI) Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) student Umar Khalid and the four other students, against whom a lookout notice had been issued by the Delhi Police, moved the Delhi High Court on Tuesday seeking ample security before they surrender so that no untoward incident happens. All five students, Umar Khalid Anant Prakash Narayan, Ashutosh Kumar, Rama Naga and Anirban Bhattacharya, who have been accused of sedition, returned to the campus on Sunday night. Earlier, Delhi Police Commissioner Bhim Sain Bassi asked the JNU students, who returned to the university campus to join the join probe and present evidence of their innocence. "I would say if the police is looking for them then they should join the police investigation. And if they are innocent, they should present evidence of their innocence," Bassi told the media here. When asked if the police would enter the JNU campus to arrest the students, the top cop said that his men are competent enough to deal with the situation. Meanwhile, JNU has turned into a fortress as the five students are still at the administration block of the varsity while police keeps vigil outside the gates. (ANI) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) national spokesperson Meenakshi Lekhi on Tuesday gave a notice in the Lok Sabha on the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) row and the Ishran Jahan case. With the notice being submitted, these issues are most likely to be raised in the Parliament during the Budget Session which begins from today. Asserting that the government was ready to discuss the current state of unrest at the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), Union parliamentary affairs minister M. Venkaiah Naidu earlier said that there were different views on the issue which needs to be addressed and debated. "It's a big country and yes there are several issues. That's what the Parliament is there for, to discuss those issues. Government has no hesitation in discussing JNU or Hyderabad University or any other issues. There are different views on it which needs to be debated," Naidu told the media here after chairing an all-party meeting. Calling on the Opposition to adopt a positive approach for the upcoming Budget Session, he added that holding 'discussion' should be the protocol in the Parliament instead of 'disruption'. (ANI) ENRAF-NONIUS India, a subsidiary of ENRAF-NONIUS Netherlands, who are experts in design, build and fund models submitted a proposal for setting-up state of the art hospitals in Telangana. The state of the art hospital will be set up with funding of Netherland based Rabobank to a tune of Rs. 5,000 Crores on annuity pay-back basis. Companys Country Head Sunil Agarwal, Liaison Director Hilal Rather, Director of Construction Suresh Gupta and others called on the Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar at his camp office here last evening and conveyed their willingness to set up the hospitals. Finance Minister Etela Rajendra, Health Minister Laxmareddy, Chief Secretary Dr Rajiv Sharma, CMO Principal Secretary S Narsing Rao, Principal Secretary Health Rajeswara Tiwari, Finance Secretary Ramakrishna Rao, Information and Public Relations Department Commissioner Navin Mittal and others were present in the meeting. The Chief Minister told the representatives of ENRAF-NONIUS India that the Government is planning to set-up hospitals in Hyderabad, Warangal, Khammam and Karimnagar which together would be of 5000 + beds in all and would look forward for their participation in building them. Mr Rao had a discussion with them on the modalities of funding and the time that is likely to take to complete the project from the time an agreement is reached. Mr Sunil Agarwal informed the Chief Minister that they have done similar work in countries like Sri Lanka and extended an invitation to the Health Minister and his team to visit Sri Lanka. ENRAF-NONIUS is a market leader in the world and deliver products and services of the highest quality in tune with advanced techniques. The hospital that they have proposed will primarily be a multi-speciality hospital providing state of the art facilities in medicine, surgery, pediatrics, and also in the super speciality of cardiology and cardiothoracic surgery. It will have best of the diagnostic facilities of all types. The Chief Minister has asked a team of officers of Health Department led by health minister Dr C Laxma Reddy to visit Sri Lanka this week end and study the facilities in the hospital built by ENRAF-NONIUS.UNI VV CS 1035 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0415-605535.Xml Honda Motor Co Ltd on Wednesday said it aimed for new-energy vehicles to account for two-thirds of its line-up by 2030 from around 5 percent now, as increasingly stringent global emissions regulations prompt automakers to make greener cars.Japan's third-biggest automaker by sales said in its latest strategy update that its petrol-battery hybrid, plug-in hybrid, battery electric and fuel cell vehicles (FCV) would collectively outnumber its petrol-only offerings in less than 15 years' time.Plug-in hybrids - which can also be recharged via household wall sockets - will be "at the core of electrification in the future" for Honda, said Chief Executive Takahiro Hachigo.Honda will release a plug-in hybrid in North America by 2018 that shares the same production platform as its Clarity FCV announced in October, Hachigo said. It will then make plug-in versions of its major models and raise model numbers, he said.The announcement makes Honda the latest automaker to set dramatic long-term emissions-related targets. In October, Toyota Motor Corp said it aimed to cut new vehicles' average carbon dioxide emissions by 90 percent from 2010 levels by 2050.Behind the push are governments globally rapidly raising emissions standards. But limited infrastructure such as charging stations make some green cars a hard sell, while low oil prices have sparked demand for sport utility vehicles and other petrol-guzzlers.R&D FOCUSHonda's new-energy target featured in the automaker's strategy update, the first under Hachigo. The CEO, who assumed the job almost a year ago, has restructured personnel and operations to revitalise research and development (R&D).On Tuesday, Honda said managing officer Yoshiyuki Matsumoto would direct R&D, moving on from leading automotive operations."Our appointment of a new head of the R&D centre is intended to position R&D at the centre of all product development, and make it responsible for the design and performance of each and every vehicle," Hachigo said on Wednesday.The strategy update also included a shift to standardised vehicle platforms to increase production flexibility - in line with an industry trend - and a focus on global models such as the Fit compact, Civic and Accord sedans."The key to improving sales is our global models ... which are so central to the company's brand. If we develop these models to raise their appeal, it will translate into higher sales," Hachigo said.Separately, Honda repeated at the strategy update that it did not plan to offer further financial support to long-time supplier Takata Corp, whose airbag inflators are at the centre of a deepening global recall. REUTERS PS PR1409 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0421-605769.Xml The CPI (M) unit of Jammu and Kashmir has demanded withdrawal of sedition cases against the students of Jawahar Lal Nehru University.Hundreds of CPI (M) and CPI workers this morning assembled outside Press Club of Jammu protesting against mounting attacks against the JNU students by Delhi Police under the directions of BJP led GOI.The protesters were shouting slogans against the hate and slanderous campaign launched by Sangh Parivar targeting students and left parties. The BJP wants to capture universities and run them like RSS shakhas. What happened in Patiala court sufficiently demonstrates the designs of BJP and its affiliates, alleged the protestors. The protesters were demanding immediate release of all JNU students arrested, withdrawal of the cases of sedition against JNU students; to stop harassment of Kashmiri students studying in different universities particularly in JNU and putting a stop in encroachment of universities by police authorities.The CPI and CPI(M) leaders Abdul Rehman Takroo and Sham Prasad Kesar while addressing the protesters pledged to carry forward the message of brotherhood and tolerance in whole of the state.Mohammad Yousuf Tarigami, CPI(M) leader and MLA in his address underlined the necessity of broader mobilization against the offensive of RSS and its other affiliates against the voices of debate, discussion and dissent. Whatever the BJP led Govt of India is doing is fraught with serious consequences, he added and said that the campaign of RSS is deliberately designed to polarise the situation. It is time that left and democratic forces unitedly resist this onslaught of communalism.UNI VBH SV 1436 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0421-605781.Xml : A 33-year-old inmate was beaten to death by another inmate after a fierce brawl in the high security Madurai Central prison in the wee hours of today. Police said M.Senthil, hailing from Keerathurai locality in Madurai was arrested in connection with criminal cases and was lodged in Madurai Central prison. Similarly, S.Senthil Kumar (32) of Arasanpatti village in Madurai district was recently arrested and lodged in the prison for murdering his father. Both of them were said to be mentally ill and were lodged in the same cell. The inmates attacked each other after a heated quarrel. Senthil Kumar aggressively attacked Senthil till the later collapsed. The grievously injured Senthil was rescued and rushed to the Government Rajaji Hospital, where the doctors declared brought dead. Karimedu police have registered a case and are investigating. UNI GSM KVV ADB 1545 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0415-605920.Xml It was celeberation time for the ardentsupporters of AIADMK Supremo and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jaylalaithaa, who turned 68 today, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Governor Dr K Rosaiah, Union Minister M Venkaiah Naidu and her Andhra Pradesh Counterpart N Chandrababu Naidu and others greeting her on the occasion. The day began for the enthusiastic AIADMK supporterswith the cutting of a 68 kg cake at the Party Headquartersin the city to mark the occasion. Senior party leaders, including Presidium ChairmanE Madhusoodhanan were present on the occasion, during which sweets were distributed to the party cadres. Mr Narendra Modi, who enjoys a good rapport with theAIADMK Supremo, was the first to extend his greetings toMs Jayalalithaa. Mr Modi spoke to Ms Jayalalithaa and wished her overphone from New Delhi. Ms Jayalalithaa thanked the Prime Minister for hisgesture, an official release said. Later, in his twitter message, Mr Modi said ''Birthday wishes to Jayalalithaa ji. May Almighty bless her with along life, filled with good health''. It may be recalled that Mrt Modi, during his tenureas Gujarat Chief Minister, had attended Ms Jayalalithaa's swearing-in ceremony in 2011 and she reciprocatedthe gesture, by deputing her cabinet colleagues when Mr Modi was elected as Chief Minister again in 2012.MORE UNI GV VV ADB1545 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0415-606053.Xml Talking to newspersons here, NCP Kisan Sabha Kozhikode District Committee President, O D Thomas said the agitation was being organised to seek immediate intervention of the government to prevent falling prices of plantation produces, including rubber, coffee and coconut. Mr Thomas said the farmers, considered as backbone of the nation, were ignored by the government, despite declining prices of their produces, whereas subsidies were given to other sectors abundantly. Calling upon all sections of farming community to unite against the government policy, the NCP leader said, instead of committing suicide due to crop failure, they should fight unitedly to achieve their bonafide rights. Other demands included Rs 200 support price for rubber and stoppage of import, subsidy for coconut farmers, control prices of essential commodities and acceptance of tax for land occupied before 1977 and issuance of title deeds. NCP leader A K Saseendran, MLA will inaugurate the stir, Mr Thomas said, adding, state and district leaders of the party and kisan front would address the gathering.UNI PCH KVV ADB 1635 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0300-605897.Xml Advisor to Governor, Parvez Dewan assured full support of the Government to IIT Jammu Campus Operationalization Committee in the operationalization of the IIT Campus . Mr Dewan gave the assurance to expedite the work on ground and address bottlenecks in this regard during the meeting with committee headed by its Chairman ,Prof S N Singh today at the Civil Secretariat here.During the meeting, the members of the Committee discussed various issues pertaining to the operationalisation of the IIT Campus here.The Commissioner Secretary, Higher Education, Sarita Chauhan, members of the committee Deputy Director, Strategy & Planning, Prof S K Koul, Dean Infrastructure, Prof K N Rao, Incharge IIT Jammu, Prof Rajendar Bahl, and Engineer IIT Delhi, G K Taneja were also present in the meeting.Committee is presently on a visit to Jammu to inspect the site for starting the work on the campus at the earliest. The committee has been holding series of meetings with all the concerned departments and district administration.The land for establishment of IIT Jammu has already been handed over to the Higher Education Department. A MoU in this regard will also be signed with the Union HRD Ministry shortly. UNI NS SC CJ RJ 1920 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0400-606720.Xml Expedia, the online travel company, has appointed Jonathon Sinclair Neal as the Chief Executive Officer of AAE Travel, a joint venture between AirAsia and Expedia Inc.Jonathon will be based out of Singapore, company release said. In this new role, Jonathon will provide strategic direction to the Singapore-based online travel company that drives two key brands, Expedia and AirAsiaGo, across 12 countries including India, Southeast Asia, Hong Kong, Japan and Korea.Prior to assuming his current role, Jonathon was the Chief Financial Officer of AAE Travel where he was responsible for all aspects of finance as well as corporate strategy and business analytics.Commenting on his new assignment, Jonathon said, ''I am extremely excited to take up this new role at AAE, especially at a time when the whole world is turning to the APAC/SEA region as the harbinger of growth. We will continue to create an exceptional customer experience through cutting edge technology and data analytics in the region. The last 12 years have been an amazing experience and I am looking forward to elevating the brand to a new level during my tenure.''UNI JS NP1832 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0169-606621.Xml Talking to reporters here, he asked, ''What was the compulsion to give tax concessions for authorised constructions of big builders like Whimco and ITC?'' This issue was raised in the Bombay High Court, where the government had to take back the controversial order of the Chief Minister, he said. Mr Sawant also questioned the involvement of a private bank, where Mr Fadnavis wife is a high official, in collection of government dues. Without naming Ms Fadnavis, the Congress spokesperson said that allottees of the hutments redevelopment scheme are required to deposit their monthly rentals into the Axis Bank, where the wife of the Chief Minister works. This is an inappropriate decision on part of the Chief Minister, added Mr Sawant.UNI XR SS RJ AN1954 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0169-606776.Xml Terming that in the ensuing poll season many seasonal birds would visit the state, Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal today said it would hardly have any effect as the SAD-BJP alliance was all set to register its third consecutive win and form the government again in 2017. Interacting with the mediapersons after inaugurating the newly constructed Municipal Bhawan in sector 35 here, the Chief Minister, said in democracy every leader was free to visit any state, and said he welcomes Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on his upcoming visit to the state. However, Mr Badal said, it would hardly have any effect on states polity as the SAD-BJP alliance will again form government in 2017 he added. Replying to another query, the Chief Minister advocated the need of having a national debate on the ongoing agrarian crisis in the country. He said problems of the food growers of the country need to be given immediate attention, so as to bail them out from the crisis. Mr Badal said due to low income and high agricultural inputs coupled with decrease in land holdings agriculture was no longer a remunerative profession, so efforts must be made to make this profession financially viable and economically sustainable. UNI NC AJ RJ NS1935 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0293-606273.Xml Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh today said that as per amendment in the Land record Act, directions had been given to all Deputy Commissioners that the sub-caste may be added in certificates to be issued to beneficiaries of SC/ST/OBC wherever necessary on the basis of local inquiry or possible knowledge by the revenue officers/officials without any delay. Presiding over meeting of the Gorkha Kalyan Board here, he said the state government would consider starting Nepali syllabus in schools where percentage of the students of Gorkha community was more. He directed to complete all the formalities for getting forest clearance of the land in the vicinity of Gorkha Bhawan, Kakira in Chamba district and to expedite the work on Gorkha Community Centre at Dari in Dharamsala. On the issue raised by the members regarding delay in issuing the OBC certificates due to some reasons, Mr Singh asked the Deputy Commissioners to direct the revenue officials so that there was no unnecessary delay in issuing these certificates to the beneficiaries. The members of the community also demanded to forward the case for conferring Bharat Ratna award upon Capt. Ram Singh, who composed the tune of National Anthem and many other patriotic songs. Mr Singh assured the community that their grievances would be addressed on priority and directed the officers concerned to look into the local issues of the community. Social Justice and Empowerment Minister Dr (Col) Dhani Ram Shandil detailed about various welfare schemes being implemented for the community. Chief Secretary P Mitra and other senior officers of the state government were present in the meeting.UNI ML DB DJK RJ AN1849 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0293-606284.Xml The protestors demanded genuine legal action against the anti-national elements in the country who are raising slogans in favour of dividing India. BJYM Kangra district secretary Karnik Padha, who was heading the protest, said the march called as India First - Tricolour March was started at Chattri with hundreds of youths carrying the Tricolour in hand and concluded the march at Shahpur. He said that the protesting youths submitted a memorandum to Prime Minister Narender Modi through Tehsildar Shahpur. The BJYM workers participated in the march shouted anti-Pakistan and pro-India slogans and demanded quick action be taken against the anti-national elements in the country. They alleged that youths of the country were being mislead by some politicians with vested political interests and create an anti-national atmosphere. Mr Padha demanded that efforts should be made on all fronts to curb such elements. He said the kin of the Pathankot airbase martyrs Jagdesh Chand and Sanjeevan Kumar Rana were also part of todays BJYM protest march.UNI XC DB SHS RJ AN1948 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0293-606657.Xml More than 200 lawyers marched silently here on Wednesday to demand "strict action" against fellow lawyers who attacked journalists, lawyers and JNU teachers and students at the Patiala House Court here. The march from the Supreme Court to the Bar Council of India (BCI) office was held under the banner of Lawyers for Democracy and Justice. The lawyers demanded that the Bar Council should take proactive action to ensure that the democratic space, right to freedom of expression and right to access to justice was not curtailed in any manner. "There was a sense of deep anguish over the incidents of assault in the Patiala House and the failure of the courts and police to ensure the safety of litigants, journalists and lawyers," a statement said. The lawyers' body said the BCI should comprehensively investigate the matter, initiate disciplinary proceedings and impose strict punishment on the accused within two months. They also demanded setting up a broad-based committee to lay down guidelines and devise mechanisms to prevent recurrence of the violence witnessed in the court on February 15 and 17. The lawyers condemned the assault made in the name of "nationalism" and emphasised that any attempts to create divisions between different sections of society threatened the unity and integrity of the nation. "The joint secretary of the Bar Council received a representation from the advocates and gave an assurance that our demands shall be put up before the BCI chairman and the council and all possible action taken," the statement said. "He said the Bar Council had already initiated action and constituted a committee to look into the conduct of errant lawyers." --Indo-Asian News ServiceA akk/tsb/mr ( 288 Words) 2016-02-24-20:19:34 (IANS) Uttar Pradesh Parliamentary Affairs Minister Azam Khan today said that law and order was the top priority of the state government and the accused involved in cases of gangrapes and murders will be brought to justice and the government will not tolerate laxity of the law enforcing agency in such matters. Opposing the adjournment notice moved by Leader of the Opposition Swami Prasad Maurya in the state Assembly during the Zero Hour, Mr Khan said the government has taken strong action in the case of gangrape and murder in Lucknow and the named accused in similar case in Ballia will also be soon behind the bars. Raising the issue, Mr Maurya said the criminals rule the roost in UP and even the school and college going girls were not safe in the state. He alleged that law and order has collapsed in the state and the government seems to have lost control over the police force. The BSP leader also said that a girl was gangraped and later murdered in the state and her body was thrown in the high security zone near the official residence of Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav and the office of the Director General of Police.In a similar incident, a girl was gangraped and murdered. Police was protecting the named accused in the FIR and they have not been arrested, Mr Maurya alleged, adding that the accused were being sheltered by a politician of the ruling party and police could not muster the courage to name the accused in the FIR for gangrape and murder.Replying to the notice, Mr Khan said the Ballia incident was a serious matter and the accused would soon be arrested. He said the Lucknow incident was a heinous crime and there were so many things related to the case that cannot be shared with the members of the house. The Speaker, after the Ministers reply, rejected the notice. BJP leader Suresh Khanna through another adjournment notice, raised the issue of prevailing insanitary conditions of cities of the stare for the lack of adequate number of sanitation employees. He said the stategovernment in 2005 had banned the fresh recruitment of sanitation employees and garbage collection and city cleaning work has been given to outsource employees. Opposing the notice, Mr Khan, who is also the Urban Development Minister, said to counter the problem ofsanitation in urban centers of the state, the government would soon start the process of appointment of 35,000 sanitation employees in the urban local bodies. Meanwhile, Speaker Mata Prasad Pandey administered the oath of office to Kapil Dev Agarwal, the newly- elected BJP MLA from the Muzaffarnagar Assembly seat. Mr Agarwal had won this seat, where the by-election was held earlier this month. BJP had wrested this seat from the Samajwadi Party. The bypoll was held due to the death of the sitting SP member and former minister of state Chittranjan Swarup.UNI MB RJ 2100 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0329-606969.Xml The Joint Task Force of India and Bangladesh today resolved to jointly combat the smuggling of Fake Currency Notes (FCNs) during the third Indo-Bangladesh Joint Task force meeting to prevent smuggling and circulation of Fake Currency Notes, held at the Headquarters of the National Investigation Agency (NIA), here. The 10-member Bangladesh delegation was led by Deputy Inspector General of CID Saiful Alam. The Indian delegation was chaired by Inspector General NIA Sanjeev Kumar Singh. The Indian delegation comprised of representatives of the Police forces of States bordering Bangladesh as well as Central Law Enforcement Agencies.UNI PRA RJ 2106 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0384-607024.Xml Over 25 foreign trainers from ASEAN Plus nations have arrived to take part in the week-long largest multinational Field Training Exercise (FTX), called Exercise Force 18, organisedby the Indian Army, from March 2 to 8 here. The theme of the exercise is Humanitarian Mine Action (HMA) and Peacekeeping Operations (PKO). The essence of the exercise is to learn and share the best practices with the other Armies of the world and display Indian Army's commitment to peace and stability in the region. In the multinational exercise, conducted first-time ever by ground force on Indian soil, will see participation of 18 ASEAN Plus nations including China, USA, Russia, Japan and South Korea among others, a statement issued by the Ministry of Defence here today stated. As a testimony to the team spirit and achieving of global jointmanship, a week-long training programme for the foreign trainers of the ASEAN Plus countries commenced here from today, one week before the actual exercise. In this regard, over 25 foreign trainers arrived here yesterday. These trainers who have experience in the field of HMA and PKO would be trained by the Indian Army till March one. The training of trainers would facilitate bringing all foreign trainers on an optimum threshold level, conversion of training material into native language and understand the conduct of actual FTX. These trainers would be trained in meeting the challenges caused by language barriers and formulate common operating procedures for various activities to be conducted during the main FTX. Soon after their arrival, the foreign trainers were welcomed and briefed by Brigadier Alok Chandra, Commander of Shivneri Infantry Brigade. The trainers were later oriented to all the training and administrative infrastructure created for the mega exercise, the release added.UNI SP SS SH RJ AN2003 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0169-606751.Xml The name of EGIS India Consulting Engineers Pvt Ltd, which is based in France, was finalised for the Chhatrapati Shivaji memorial in a meeting of high-powered committee (HPC), chaired by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, at the Chief Minister's official bungalow 'Varsha'. The meeting was attended by state Finance Minister Sudhir Mungantiwar, Industries Minister Subhash Desai, Shivaji Memorial Project Committee president Vinayak Mete and additional chief secretary Dr P S Meena amongst other senior bureaucrats. During the 2014 Assembly election, the BJP had promised to perform the foundation laying ceremony within a year of coming to power. However, after 18 months, the government is unable to commence the work on the Shivaji memorial. Now, the government has said Prime Minister Narendra Modi would lay the foundation of the memorial between April 20 and May five.UNI XR SS SHS RJ AN2121 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0169-606903.Xml Haryana today denied the media reports that appeared in a section of the press stating that some persons behaved indecently with some women who were travelling in cars near village Kurad in district Sonepat. While stating this here today, an official spokesperson said Principal Secretary Devender Singh and Inspector General of Police Paramjit Ahlawat who visited the spot and interacted with the people including those whose names were mentioned in the media reports, said that no such incident had occurred. He said the former Sarpanch of Kurad, Bijender Singh has also refuted that any such incident had occurred. He clarified that when some youth broke window panes of a few cars, some women who were seated inside the vehicles were injured. Such families were given shelter by the villagers in their own homes and gave them first aid and food. The media reports to this effect are totally false, misleading and not based on facts. The spokesperson urged the media to exercise restraint and cooperate with the administration to restore normalcy in the State. He said nobody would be allowed to take law in his own hands. He made it clear that there was no shortage of force in the State as the personnel of the police and paramilitary force have been deputed along the national highway and the district. UNI NC SHS RJ NS2013 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0293-606876.Xml Haryana Health Minister, Anil Vij today said the manner in which some rowdy elements indulged in arson and other such activities during the Jat agitation is intolerable and would not be spared. The State government is also trying to identify such government officers and officials who not only helped directly or indirectly such elements but also their duties. Mr Vij said that three important decisions were taken in the Cabinet meeting held in view of Jat agitation in the state recently. The decisions included assessment of loss occurred to innocent people and payment of their compensation on time, strict action against guilty or rioters after their identification and restoration of damaged government property. "All these works would be done on priority basis so that peace and normalcy could be restored. While referring to Murthal incident, the state government is especially vigilant about it. If the incident involving some women is to be true, such people would not be spare", he said. The Health Minister said that "BJP does not believe in any caste. The state government does not identify its people as Jats or non-jats but looks at those harming others as rioters. He said that Congress always believed in divide and policy of the British and trying to end brotherhood." A proof to this could be found in the audio tape of Prof Virender Singh, political advisor to former Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, where he was trying to encourage violence in peaceful areas of the state. Apart from, others involved in this conspiracy would not be spared, he added. UNI NC DS RJ NS2102 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0293-606942.Xml On the eve of budget session of Bihar Legislature, the ruling RJD Legislature party today held its meeting to discuss strategy to be adopted in both Houses of the Legislature during the more than one month long session. The meeting held at the residence of former Chief Minister Rabri Devi, was attended, by Deputy Chief Minister Tejaswai Prasad Yadav, state president of the party Ramchandra Purvey, Finance Minister Abdul Bari Siddiqui, Ministers of RJD quota in the grand alliance government and party Legislators. Both Ms Rabri and Mr Tejaswi asked the Legislators to devote more time in the House during the budget session and set an example of better performance in discharging their duties to fulfill the aspiration of the masses. Mr Siddiqui gave tips to newly elected legislators on how to raise an important issue in the house. He also made aware the legislators on rules relating to asking question and supplementary questions in the house. State party president Mr Purvey asked the legislators to remain prepared with fact and figures to face the challenge of opposition to corner the government on several issues. All party legislators should do proper home work for the debate in the House, as per the scheduled business, he added.UNI KKS BM RJ AN2204 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0214-607019.Xml Chief of Revolutionary Peoples Front (RPF) Irengbam Chaoren today demanded that the existing Indo-Manipur relations must be modified and changed if Manipur must be freed. In a message given on the eve of the 37th foundation day of RPF Mr Chaoren said, Absence of political security and non-progressive socio-economic conditions which characterize contemporary Manipuri society are outcomes of the forceful and illegitimate annexation of Manipur by India. He demanded that the existing Indo-Manipur relations must be modified and changed if Manipur must be freed. The Union Government should create conducive atmosphere to resolve Indo-Manipur conflict, he said. He said the liberation movement was not an internal issue which can be resolved. 'It is a political conflict and Manipur never tolerated subjugation by foreign powers,' he stressed. He alleged that the government had been actively engaging in creating chaotic socio-political conditions among the masses apart from sowing seeds of discord and confrontation among different communities with the primary objective of suppressing the liberation movement. Any alliances forged by hill people of Manipur with neighbouring Nagas and Mizos would ignite ethnic conflagration of the worst nature in the history of Manipur, he cautioned. Even though Manipur is facing a situation of ethnic conflict and confrontation, it is imperative to protect integrity of Manipur and unity of her people. Integrity and unity of Manipur and her people are indispensable for the sovereignty. he added. He said by claiming that there are more than 70 revolutionary groups in the region, the government was trying to vindicate massive militarization and imposition of black laws like AFSPA . More than 1528 other people were killed in fake encounters in Manipur. The impact and miseries of black laws, fake encounters, absence of good transport infrastructure, lack of public health care facilities, absence of good governance and trustworthy electoral system are all common experiences of our oppressed people, he said. UNI NS PL SHS RJ AN2254 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0211-605967.Xml Aerial strikes were conducted in the Alwara Mandi, Khar-Tangi and Maizer areas ahead of Datta Khel near North Waziristan,Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said. Security sources said unidentified militants from across the Afghan border fired the shells which landed near a Frontier Corps (FC) security checkpost, reports Dawn. The region was claimed by the military to have been cleared of insurgents, however, militants still carry out sectarian attacks and also target security forces occasionally. Kurram is one of the most sensitive tribal areas as it borders three Afghan provinces and at one point was one of the key routes for militant movement across the border. The mortar attack on the border comes amid high tensions in the agencies as an indefinite curfew was imposed in parts of Mohmand Agency after various clashes between militants and security forces.(ANI) Rabbani said the nation believes in peace and that its Constitution does not stop anyone from joining the peace process. He said Afghanistan would welcome any group joining the process but that the Afghan Government has a strong message for those who reject peace, reports TOLO News. 'Security forces will act with full force against those who reject peace,' Rabbani added. He informed that a meeting will be held soon between the Afghan and Pakistan Ulema in order to establish their role in the peace process. QCG meeting, between representatives of Afghanistan, Pakistan, China and US, will hopefully finalize a date for direct negotiations between the Afghan Government and the Taliban.(ANI) Security sources said unidentified militants from across the Afghan border fired the shells which landed near a Frontier Corps(FC)security checkpost. Dawn reported that the attackers dispersed after security forces responded with retaliatory firing but no casualties or damage was reported. The region was claimed by the military to have been cleared of insurgents, however, militants still carry out sectarian attacks and also target security forces occasionally. Kurram is one of the most sensitive tribal areas as it borders three Afghan provinces and at one point was one of the key routes for militant movement across the border. The mortar attack on the border comes amid high tensions in the agencies as an indefinite curfew was imposed in parts of Mohmand Agency after various clashes between militants and security forces.(ANI) Muttahida Qaumi Movement's (MQM) former Karachi Tanzeemi Committee in-charge Hammad Siddiqui has been accused as the prime suspect behind the country's deadliest fire, reports Dawn. On 11 September 2012, Ali Enterprises caught fire which claimed the lives of 259 workers and injured around 50 labourers. The alleged terrorist act was carried out 'due to refusal to pay extortion of Rs twenty crores and partnership in factory profits by factory owners to office-bearers, namely Rehman Bhola and Hammad Siddiqi of MQM-A. The investigation team headed by Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Sultan Khawaja and DIG Munir Shaikh has also recorded the statements of the garment factory owners the Bhaila brothers Arshad and Shahid in Dubai, who have refused to return to Pakistan. The Bhaila brothers claimed that the fire was not accidental and an extortionist group was behind the incident. JIT members appeared to be highly critical of the role of police investigators of the Baldia fire case. The JIT team has submitted its final report to the Sindh Home Department and has claimed the deadly incident to be a 'planned act'.(ANI) The militants were killed during a joint raid by police and intelligence agencies on a suspected hideout in Pipri area of Bin Qasim in Malir district, reports the Dawn. The raid was based on information provided by a number of high profile terrorists belonging to Al Qaeda in Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) and Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) whose arrest had been disclosed by the military recently. SSP Anwar added that four suspects who had managed to escape during the raid were later killed in Gadap. He said the militants belonged to AQIS and LeJ.(ANI) The Pentagon's chief arms buyer said US sanctions against Russia do not at this time bar the use of Russian RD-180 engines to power the Atlas 5 rockets that carry U.S. military and intelligence satellites into space.Defense Undersecretary Frank Kendall yesterday said the Pentagon had reviewed the issue with the Treasury Department in response to questions raised by Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman John McCain after Russia revamped the way it manages its space businesses.Kendall told an event hosted by the Washington Space Business Roundtable the review was still being finalized, but it did not appear that the Russian reorganization would extend US sanctions to rocket engines built by NPO Energomash.McCain had asked the Pentagon to report back by Monday on the legality of doing business with Energomash after the reorganization put Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin and others facing US sanctions in charge of Energomash.Kendall told reporters the Treasury Department had reached a preliminary determination that the sanctions did not apply since they required more than 50 percent ownership and control over Energomash. He said he expected the government to finalize its decision "fairly soon."United Launch Alliance, a joint venture of Lockheed Martin Corp and Boeing Co, buys RD-180 engines for its Atlas 5 rockets from RD-AMROSS, which is a US-based joint venture of Energomash and Pratt & Whitney, a unit of United Technologies Corp.Pratt spokesman Bradley Akubuiro said the individuals in question were not members of the board of directors of either RD AMROSS or Energomash, and repeated reviews had shown they did not benefit financially from the sale of the engines.Dustin Walker, a spokesman for the Senate Armed Services Committee, said McCain believed it was time to end the purchases, regardless of the determination on sanctions."American taxpayers should not be subsidizing the corrupt Russian military industrial complex with continued purchases of Russian rocket engines," he said.US lawmakers banned future military use of the Russian engines after Russia annexed Ukraine's Crimea region in 2014.But Congress weakened the ban late last year, worried that it could drive ULA out of business, leaving only privately held SpaceX to lift satellites into space.Kendall reiterated the Defense Department's desire to end its reliance on the Russian engines as soon as possible.REUTERS KU PM0727 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0348-605469.Xml One of the rare economic success stories in eastern Germany, the state of Saxony is growing worried that a racist backlash against refugees could tarnish its image and deter investments that have turned it into a high-tech hub.The state capital Dresden is the birthplace of the anti-Islam PEGIDA movement, and the town of Heidenau became infamous last summer when anti-refugee riots broke out and Chancellor Angela Merkel was heckled by far-right activists as a "traitor" for her welcoming stance towards migrants.But a series of recent incidents have deepened concern among businesses, politicians and the tourism industry in Saxony that the state could soon pay an economic price for these eruptions of xenophobia."The headlines, which are raining down on us as citizens and entrepreneurs every day, make it clear that we have a problem," said Heinz Martin Esser, president of Silicon Saxony, a trade association that represents 300 high-tech companies in Europe."In our high-tech industry we have people from many countries, who play a huge part in our economic community."Last week a video posted online showed a group of about 100 chanting right-wing protesters in the Saxon town of Clausnitz blockading a bus full of refugee families to prevent them from entering a shelter. Children on the bus were seen crying in fear and policemen were seen manhandling the migrants as they pulled them off the bus.The incident, which was condemned by Merkel, was followed by an arson attack on a former hotel in the town of Bautzen that was to be used as a shelter for migrants. Locals applauded as it burned and some tried to obstruct firemen.The technology sector employs some 50,000 people in Saxony, many working for semiconductor firms Infineon and GlobalFoundries, which is owned by Abu Dhabi's Advanced Technology Investment Co (ATIC).BMW, Volkswagen and Porsche have plants in Saxony that employ many foreigners.At the entrance to BMW's plant in Leipzig, Saxony's largest city, a placard reads: "Respect! No place for racism."The presence of such business heavyweights has helped Saxony post growth of 1.9 per cent in 2014, the third-highest yearly rate among Germany's 16 states. It also has an unemployment rate of 8.2 per cent, compared with 9.6 per cent in the whole of the former east.'MORE FOREIGNERS THAN GERMANS'"For us, it is important that Saxony and the city of Dresden have a reputation as being open to the world and tolerant - a city where our foreign clients, partners and workers feel comfortable," said a spokesman for Infineon, whose global workforce has more foreigners than Germans.Marketing Dresden, which promotes tourism to the city famous for its imposing Cathedral by the Elbe River, said yesterday that the number of visitors last year fell by 3 per cent, the first drop since 2008.This was driven by a fall in domestic visitors, put off by anti-Islam rallies."The damage to the image of our city because of the xenophobic slogans at PEGIDA protests has had a negative impact on tourism," said the group's head Bettina Bunge.Marcel Fratzscher, the head of the Berlin-based DIW economic institute, told German daily Handelsblatt: "Saxony's economy will pay a high economic price for the xenophobia of some of its citizens."State premier Stanislaw Tillich, a member of Merkel's conservative party, has vowed to tackle right-wing extremism with more police and help from social groups.The German federal police told Reuters yesterday that 151 crimes against asylum shelters were committed in Germany this year, including 25 arson attacks. Last year, the total was 1,029. REUTERS PS SB1154 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0421-605595.Xml A small plane crashed in Nepal on Wednesday in bad weather, killing all 23 people on board, a police official said, the country's second air disaster in as many years.The Twin Otter aircraft, operated by private Tara Air, was on a flight from Pokhara, 125 km (80 miles) west of the capital, Kathmandu, to Jomsom when it lost contact with the control tower."It has broken into pieces," police officer Bishwaraj Khadka told Reuters from Myagdi, the town nearest the crash site. "There are no survivors." A Chinese national and a Kuwaiti citizen were among the dead.Officials said thick fog had enveloped the Mustang area where Jomsom is located.Mustang is a popular hiking area on the Mount Annapurna trekking circuit. A similar aircraft crashed in west Nepal in 2014, killing 18 people.Reuters CJ PR1453 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0400-605898.Xml Indian ambassador Pankaj Saran said today that India and Russia will soon sign a framework agreement on the construction of the 5th and 6th units of Kudankulam nuclear power plant in Tamil Nadu."We already have commissioned Unit 1 at Kudankulam and the second is likely to be commissioned soon. The General Framework agreement for the third and fourth units has been finalised. Discussions are underway to finalise the general framework agreement for the 5th and 6th units, and we would like to do it as soon as possible," the Indian Ambassador to Russia told RIA Novosti news agency in an interview.He said that a total of 12 nuclear power units would be built in India in 20 years based on Russian design, in accordance with December 2015 agreements between the two countries. The Nuclear Power Corporation of India and Russia's Rosatom launched a much-delayed joint project in 2012 to build the Kudankulam NPP. The first unit reached full capacity in July 2014, and is currently Indias most powerful reactor with a maximum operating capacity of 1,000 megawatt.UNI XC CJ RP1525 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0400-605868.Xml Iran's leader said that he was confident voters would return a parliament prepared to stand up to the United States at Friday's election and that the West was falsely trying to portray a split between candidates.Iranians will vote for representatives to parliament and to the body that will elect Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's successor, in the first election since last year's nuclear deal with world powers.The polls pit centrists close to President Hassan Rouhani against hardliners backed by the conservative establishment, which has drawn criticism from the president after barring many of his allies from the race."One of the enemy's ruses is to portray a false dichotomy between a pro-government and anti-government parliament," Khamenei was quoted as saying by state news agency IRNA."The nation does not want a pro- or anti-government parliament, but rather a strong and faithful parliament that is aware of its duties and is not intimidated by the United States," he said at a rally in the city of Najafabad.Khamenei last month said he wanted a large voter turnout in the elections, but also voiced his support for banning any candidates deemed not to "believe in the Islamic Republic". REUTERS DS VN1647 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0177-606222.Xml A chartered airplane carrying 125 Afghan refugees back from Germany landed in Kabul today, with officials on hand eager to assure the returnees that they have a future in Afghanistan.The refugees returned voluntarily, in what is expected to be the first of many such flights coordinated between the governments in Kabul and Berlin as well as the International Organization for Migration, according the German embassy in Kabul.Seeking to escape the violence and economic malaise that continue to grip their home country, Afghans make up a major portion of the hundreds of thousands of refugees who have been pouring into Europe, which has struggled to find ways to accommodate the arrivals.Officials in Kabul greeted the returning refugees with signs saying "Welcome back, Afghanistan needs you.""After a difficult way to Germany in the hands of people smugglers they realized their future is in Afghanistan and that they are needed in their home country," the German embassy said in a statement.Many Afghans made their way to Germany, but in recent months the German government has launched media campaigns to dissuade would-be refugees from making the trip, warning of dangerous human traffickers and limited opportunities in Europe.Afghans were 27 per cent of the more than 100,000 refugees who made the dangerous journey across the Mediterranean Sea in January, second only to the number fleeing war-torn Syria, according to data collected by the United Nations. REUTERS DS PR1708 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0177-606307.Xml Russian President Vladimir Putin today discussed a US-Russian ceasefire plan for Syria with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, agreeing to work jointly for a peaceful settlement of the Syria crisis, the Kremlin said.The two leaders agreed in a telephone conversation on the need to continue the decisive fight against Islamic State, the Nusra Front and other terrorist organisations included in the United Nations Security Council sanctions list, the Kremlin said.REUTERS DS PR1720 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0177-606330.Xml Egypt's Interior Ministry said today its investigation into the death of an Italian graduate student whose body turned up in a Cairo ditch showing signs of torture has yielded several possibilities including criminal or revenge motives.Giulio Regeni, 28, had been researching independent trade unions in Egypt and written articles critical of President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi's government - prompting speculation that he was killed in the hands of Egyptian security forces."The investigation leads to several possibilities including criminal activity or the desire for revenge due to personal reasons especially as the Italian had many relationships with people near where he lives and where he studied," the ministry said in a statement carried by state news agency MENA.The statement did not mention the involvement of security forces as a possibility, as many Egyptian, Italian and international media have speculated.Egypt's interior and foreign ministers have both dismissed the notion of security forces being behind Regeni's murder. Human rights groups accuse Egypt's Interior Ministry of widespread abuses, allegations it denies.A senior source at Egypt's forensics authority told Reuters that Regeni, a graduate student at Britain's Cambridge University, had seven broken ribs, signs of electrocution on his penis, traumatic injuries all over his body, and a brain hemorrhage.A second autopsy in Italy "confronted us with something inhuman, something animal", Italian Interior Minister Angelino Alfano told Sky News 24 television.REUTERS DS PR1720 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0177-606345.Xml A Kenyan judge reduced the life sentences given to two Iranians convicted of planning bomb attacks to 15 years today, the men's lawyer said, a case that raised concerns about possible Iranian plans to strike targets in the east African nation.The two were arrested in June 2012 and convicted a year later of planning attacks and possessing 15 kg of military-grade RDX explosives.But the sentence was reduced on appeal."My clients Ahmad Mohammad and Sayed Mansour Mousavi are happy with the reduction of the life sentence," Karaithe Wandugi, their lawyer, told Reuters by telephone."Judge Luka Kimaru ordered the two Iranian men to serve 15 years jail sentence."Kenya has suffered several deadly attacks from al Qaida-linked Somalia militants, but investigators later said it appeared that the men were not connected to those groups.Instead, they may have had links to the Quds Force, the elite extra-territorial special forces arm of Iran's Revolutionary Guards, investigators said.Last year, Kenyan authorities arrested two Kenyans with links to Iran on suspicion of plotting attacks on hotels frequented by Western diplomats and tourists.Kenya is a regional hub for tourism and diplomacy. Deadly terror attacks there have targeted both Kenyans and foreigners, including the bombing of the US. embassy, missiles that were fired at an Israeli airliner and deadly attacks by gunmen on a shopping mall and a university. REUTERS DS PR1747 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0177-606437.Xml Ireland risks becoming the third of Europe's bailed out states to face political stalemate after national elections on Friday that are expected to deliver no clear winner.Barring a late shift in voter intentions, the ballot will put its two biggest parties centre stage and offer them an uneasy choice between maintaining a near century-old rivalry and breaking with tradition in a potentially unstable alliance.Ireland's economy has outpaced the rest of the continent for the past two years and, going into campaigning at the start of February, Prime Minister Enda Kenny's conservative Fine Gael had a wide lead.But in an echo of political developments last autumn in Spain and Portugal, his re-election message to "keep the recovery going" has fallen flat among many voters who, yet to feel the benefits of an upturn driven in part by hefty doses of austerity, have defected to protest parties.Combined support for Fine Gael and current junior coalition partner Labour has dipped to between 33 and 37 per cent in polls.That compares with 41 per cent days before Kenny called the election on February 3, and with the near 45 per cent analysts say the two parties would need to secure a majority."I've seen governments on an overall majority at 41, 42 per cent. We're very close to that," Finance Minister Michael Noonan of Fine Gael said yesterday.Many do not share his optimism, and the gap may also turn out to be too wide for them to govern with small parties or independent candidates."You can't rule out a last-minute surge but ultimately all expectations are for a hung parliament or some kind of arrangement between Fianna Fail and Fine Gael," said David Farrell, Professor of Politics at University College Dublin.Such an alliance, between heirs to opposing sides in Ireland's 1922-23 civil war, would be unprecedented.REACTING TO EVENTSFactors including voter anger at austerity, perceptions of rising social inequality and mistrust of established political elites meant elections in Portugal in October and in Spain in December both failed to return clear majorities.In Spain, where the centre-right incumbent came up short of re-election and the country remains without a government, a strong economic recovery is still on track.Noonan predicted economic instability would follow any political instability in Ireland within six months.But analysts believe its economy could also handle a degree of uncertainty, having grown around 7 per cent last year and with the jobless rate having fallen below 9 per cent from over 15 per cent in 2012.The main risks to Ireland, at least initially, appear to come from its ability to react to external events. Unstable government could slow a response to a possible "Out" vote in an EU membership referendum in neighbour and major trade partner Britain on June 23.Uncertainty about the election and Britain's referendum pushed the gap between Irish and French bond yields to its widest in eight months yesterday, although Ireland is still able to borrow near record lows.Ireland's then 'Celtic Tiger' economy last enjoyed stellar growth rates in the run-up to the 2008 financial crisis, which burst a property bubble, saddling its banks with unsustainable bad debts and the government with a ballooning budget deficit.It entered a sovereign bailout programme in 2010, a year before Portugal and two years before Spain took a rescue package for its banks. In 2013, Ireland became the first euro zone country to exit a bailout."The Irish economy has done a remarkable job to get itself in the position it's in," Tony Smurfit, chief executive of one of Ireland's largest companies, packaging group Smurfit Kappa , told Reuters."It's very important a government has a clear mandate to develop the country in the years ahead because uncertainty is always bad in an economy. Confidence is everything."SECOND ELECTION?Fine Gael remains the favourite to come out on top when vote counting begins on Saturday, leading nearest rivals Fianna Fail by between four and 10 percent in final surveys.Combined, the two parties will almost certainly exceed 50 per cent. But while their policy differences are few, they have given no signals that they would consider ending their long and often bitter rivalry to team up this time.Coalition would be a major gamble for whichever party ended up being the minority partner and open up the opposition to left-wing protest party Sinn Fein, set to become the country's third largest for the first time.Fianna Fail might instead choose to support a Fine Gael-led minority administration on a vote-by-vote basis, according to Eoin O'Malley, politics lecturer at Dublin City University.But such an arrangement might not last much more than a year, O'Malley predicts."Fianna Fail ...might have little to fear from a second election, especially one at the time of its own choosing," he said. REUTERS DS PR1939 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0177-606816.Xml US Secretary of State John Kerry said today that South Sudan's president, Salva Kiir, and his rival Riek Machar, would face individual sanctions if they do not deliver on a peace deal."We're very serious about that," Kerry told a House of Representatives subcommittee hearing on the State Department's budget. "This is a critical moment for South Sudan's survival and it's important for people who hold themselves up to be leaders to actually lead," he said.Both sides in the South Sudanese conflict, under pressure from Washington, the United Nations and other powers, signed an initial peace deal in August and agreed to share out ministerial positions in January. But that deal has broken down repeatedly. REUTERS SHS NS2300 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0329-607137.Xml An hour's drive from the Libyan city of Sirte, a few dozen troops man outposts along a desert road. They are hoping the West will soon be giving them more help to fight a common enemy: Islamic State.Armed with little more than gun-mounted pick-up trucks, they are a last line of defence against the Sunni Islamist group which controls swathes of Syria and Iraq and which has now taken advantage of chaos in the north African state to seize territory there. Sirte is its stronghold."They're getting stronger because no one is fighting them," said Misrata forces commander Mahmoud Gazwan at the Wadi Bey checkpoint, a dusty outpost serving as a mobile base for his brigade of fighters.There are signs of a growing Western urgency to stop Islamic State (IS), and Libyan commanders say Western weapons and air strikes will make a vital difference in the coming battle against their better-armed enemy.But Western officials say just as important is the need for a united Libya government to request more aid and for the Libyan forces ranged against IS to bridge their own deep divisions.Five years after Muammar Gaddafi's overthrow and death, Libya is caught in a slow-burn civil war between two rival governments, one in Tripoli and one in the east. Each is backed by competing alliances of former rebel brigades whose loyalties are often more to tribe, region or local commander.Forces from the port city of Misrata - one of the most powerful military factions - have been on the front line of the battle against Islamic State since it took over Sirte a year ago and drew more foreign fighters to its ranks there.Islamic State militants are also fighting in Benghazi to the east, shelling the oil ports of Ras Lanuf and Es Sider. Yesterday they attacked further west in Sabratha city.US special forces have been holding meetings with potential Libyan allies. US and French drones and British RAF jets are flying reconnaissance missions in preparation for action to help the local forces fighting Islamic State.An air raid by US special forces on Sabratha killed more than 40 Islamic State fighters last week, but there are no international plans to send combat ground troops into Libya.Western governments are wary of large-scale military intervention but fear inaction may allow Islamic State to take deeper root.A US government source said the Obama Administration was pursuing a two-track policy. One is to try to knit competing factions into an effective government. The other track involves air strikes."When you see an ISIL training camp and we see them doing push-ups and calisthenics every day, they're not there to lose weight," Brett McGurk, the US envoy to the international coalition fighting Islamic State, also known as ISIL or Daesh, told White House reporters."They're there to train for something, and we're not going to let them do that."CONVERGENCE OF FORCES?US and European officials say infighting between the rival administrations is blocking UN efforts to cajole them into a national government capable of rebuilding Libya's army.Tripoli is held by a faction of Islamist-leaning brigades and Misrata fighters who took over the city in 2014 and drove out rivals. Misrata now backs the UN deal while some of the Tripoli political leadership is against it.Libya's eastern government is backed by an alliance including the Libyan National Army led by former Gaddafi ally-turned rebel Gen. Khalifa Haftar, and a brigade controlling oil ports. Its ranks are split, including federalists looking for more autonomy for their eastern region.The United Nations-backed presidential council is waiting for approval of its new government from the elected House of Representatives in the east.Frustration is growing in Western capitals after repeated failures of the House to vote or reach a quorum to hold a ballot on the new government."We have always made clear the intention of providing assistance in fighting Daesh. We need to take action where we can, that requires forces on the ground that we can help and train," said one Western diplomat."Patience is very short with the House of Representatives."Italy said on Monday it would let US armed drones take off from its soil to defend U.S.-led forces against Islamic State.French special forces and intelligence commandos are engaged in covert operations against IS in Libya in conjunction with the United States and Britain, the French newspaper Le Monde reported on Wednesday. The French defence ministry declined to comment.During the recent fighting in Sabratha, there were signs of cooperation among forces from Zintan and Sabratha brigades who back opposing sides in the wider national conflict.Mattia Toaldo, a Libya expert with the European Council on Foreign Relations, sees a convergence of forces who may agree on little but can work together against IS.Misratan forces backed the new UN-supported government and could potentially work with rivals from Haftar's Libyan National Army and the oil guards, who are both aligned with the eastern government, Toaldo said."We are confident here we can win," says Mohamed al-Oreifi, one of the outpost commanders near the Sirte front line. "But we need support and new weapons."REUTERS SHS NS2303 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0329-607139.Xml Thirteen bald eagles were found dead recently in Maryland, prompting officials to offer a reward of up to $10,000 for information about what happened to the federally protected birds of prey. The eagles were found in Federalsburg, Maryland, on Feb. 20, after a local resident reported seeing several of the dead birds in a field, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Maryland Natural Resources Police. Bald eagles were listed as an endangered species in the lower 48 states after the birds nearly went extinct in the 1960s. Though bald eagles are no longer listed under the Endangered Species Act, they are still federally protected by the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act, enacted in 1940, and the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918, according to the FWS. These federal laws carry maximum fines of $100,000 and $15,000, respectively, and violators could face up to one year in prison, agency officials said. The FWS is offering up to $2,500 for information about the dead bald eagles. The Humane Society of the United States and the Humane Society Wildlife Land Trust are also contributing up to $5,000. The Phoenix Wildlife Center, Inc., a wildlife rehabilitation center located in Phoenix, Maryland, is also offering $2,500 in exchange for information, according to the FWS. Anyone with information can contact John LaCorte, a special agent in the Office of Law Enforcement at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in Cambridge, Maryland, at 410-228-2476, or the Maryland Natural Resources Police hotline at 800-628-9944. Follow Denise Chow on Twitter @denisechow. Follow Live Science @livescience, Facebook & Google+. Original article on Live Science. Copyright 2016 LiveScience, a Purch company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Gamers tend to be leery of wireless mice and keyboards, but maybe they've had the right idea all along. A newly discovered vulnerability in many wireless peripherals, dubbed MouseJack by its discoverers, can be used to hijack a wide variety of devices with nothing more than a $15 radio transceiver and a minimum of engineering knowledge. The information comes from Bastille, an aptly named Internet of Things security company based in San Francisco. The company produced a page containing all the technical details on MouseJack, as well as a dedicated Mousejack website explaining the vulnerability's basic risks. Here's how it works: If a wireless mouse or keyboard doesn't use Bluetooth, it probably needs a dedicated USB dongle to plug into a laptop or desktop. These dongles contain radio transceivers that relay signals to and from the mice or keyboards to connected computers. Keyboard data transmissions are generally encrypted, but mouse data transmissions are not, which leaves the door open for an inventive hack. MORE: Best Antivirus Software and Apps After purchasing a cheap USB dongle and circuit board, a hacker can flash them with a clever Python script that Bastille made available on Github. Using this system, he or she can transmit a fake signal to a target computer's wireless-mouse USB dongle, then send unauthorized keystroke commands. Other vulnerabilities include taking advantage of unencrypted keyboard dongles, or forcing a dongle to pair with an attacker's keyboard or mouse. The downside of these attacks is that they can take place only within about 100 feet or so of the target, but the upside is that they can be both sneaky and highly efficient. Besides tracking keystrokes, an attacker could install malware on, or steal sensitive files from, the target machine. An alert user might notice these actions, but a nearby attacker might simply wait until the user is not actively using the target machine. Story continues Bastille listed more than 30 devices with the potential to be hijacked, including models from HP, Lenovo, Logitech and Microsoft. The good news is that if you have Logitech peripherals, that company has apparently already patched its firmware against the Mousejack vulnerability. Open up the Logitech software, then follow instructions to update the dongle. The bad news is that other developers' mice and keyboard dongles are generally not capable of updating their firmware. Bastille's recommendation is to disconnect them right away, and either push the developer to update the firmware, or simply buy from another vendor in the future. This vulnerability is probably not worth panicking about if you use a wireless mouse or keyboard for a PC at home, since being hacked from inside your own house is a bit of a stretch (unless you've made a very, very dire enemy). Those who travel frequently, though, may want to invest in some wired peripherals. Copyright 2016 Toms Guides , a Purch company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Presented by the Singapore Institute of Technology (SIT) Career coaches often say that money has little to do with work satisfaction. This might sound surprising, but anyone whos been stuck in the wrong job knows its true. What really matters is finding a sense of purpose in what we do greater meaning leads to increased happiness on the job and at home. In fact, youll enjoy a more successful career. Does a meaningful job even exist? If youre currently unmotivated and constantly counting down the hours until the end of the work day, a career in the healthcare industry might just be the change you need. Being a healthcare professional can be one of the most fulfilling careers around. While the job is tough and challenging, the satisfaction you get from helping people in need is extremely rewarding. With a projected increase in Singapores ageing population, more and more healthcare professionals will be required to address the nations need to serve the elderly. Healthcare is a growth industry and Singapore will need more dedicated professionals to take on vital roles in the allied health industry. SIT launches four new allied health degree programmes in 2016 Through four new degree programmes with Honours three SIT-conferred degree programmes and one joint-degree programme with Trinity College Dublin the Singapore Institute of Technology (SIT) will offer future graduates a chance to be a part of several exciting fields in healthcare. Bachelor of Science with Honours in Occupational Therapy Sudden injury or trauma can affect people physically and mentally; occupational therapists help put lives back together by helping these people reintegrate back into daily life. Regardless of the cognitive, mental or physical difficulties that affect daily living, our graduates from the SIT Occupational Therapy degree programme will be trained to help these individuals engage in everyday occupations to maximise independent performance of life roles, prevent disability and maintain health, said Assistant Professor May Lim, Programme Director, SIT. Story continues From teaching a child with autism pretend play, to helping an amputee return to performing day-to-day tasks, occupational therapists help individuals with special needs improve their overall quality of life. Bachelor of Science with Honours in Diagnostic Radiography Diagnostic radiography provides images that deliver important information about injuries. This enables medical professionals to have a closer look into a patients condition. Just like a good detective knows exactly where to look, and what to look for, diagnostic radiographers deliver precise information necessary to put the pieces of this clinical puzzle together. Students will learn to handle sophisticated equipment including state-of-the-art ultrasound, X-ray and MRI machines to take the detailed medical images of the human body that are crucial to making accurate diagnoses. Graduates from the SIT Diagnostic Radiography degree programme will be equipped with the knowledge and skills to deliver quality evidence-informed patient care and keep pace with the evolving healthcare landscape, said Assistant Professor Eric Chua, Programme Director, SIT. Bachelor of Science with Honours in Radiation Therapy Radiation therapy is one of the most common treatments for cancer, where high-energy radiation is used to shrink tumours and kill cancer cells. Radiation therapists operate sophisticated computerised equipment used to plan and deliver the prescribed radiation dose to patients. They are also involved in educating patients about the relevant procedures and the potential radiation side effects. Radiation therapists, working together with the other members of the oncology team, endeavour to deliver the best therapeutic result with minimum side effects to patients, whilst providing ongoing support and care. The SIT Radiation Therapy degree programme will equip students with the knowledge and skills to deliver quality evidence-informed patient care, as well as keep pace with the evolving healthcare landscape and changing technologies, said Assistant Professor Eric Chua, Programme Director, SIT. The SIT Radiation Therapy programme strives not just to provide a top-notch education, but also to cultivate interpersonal skills to prepare students for on-the-job clinical experiences. Honours Degree in Bachelor of Science in Physiotherapy The art of physiotherapy revolves around understanding the science behind rehabilitation, as well as working closely with the medical team, to help patients get back on their feet. A joint degree programme by SIT and Trinity College Dublin, the Bachelor of Science (Honours) in Physiotherapy is the only degree programme of its kind currently offered in Singapore. Students get a rare opportunity to learn from top experts in the field from Ireland and locally, as well as embark on a 30-week clinical journey through various healthcare settings around Singapore. Besides learning the basic theoretical knowledge and clinical skills required of a physiotherapist, students will be exposed to concepts of design thinking, healthcare innovation and change management to prepare them thoroughly for Singapores future healthcare needs, said Assistant Professor Benjamin Soon, Programme Director, SIT. Pursue your purpose A career in healthcare is not just a job, but a greater calling. SIT is the place for passionate individuals who want to make a difference. Whether youre fresh out of school, a lifelong learner or simply looking for a mid-career switch, you can begin a meaningful life-long career in healthcare. Learn more about the Allied Health degree programmes at SIT. R probably had no idea what she was getting herself into when she married Seretse Khama in 1948. The young woman was working as a clerk at an insurance market when she met Khama, an international student living in a nearby hostel who would quickly become the love of her life, according to the Guardian. Little did she know at the time that he would become the first president of an independent Botswana, a landlocked country in the heart of , and she Botswana's first lady. But the two would have to overcome death threats, including from their own family, and multiple obstacles meant to block their marriage before they could lead the country through massive progress and change, including the negotiation of Botswana's sovereignty, universal education and a multiracial democracy. Read more: Interracial Dating Is Fundamentally Changing America Botswana's first president and lady, Sir Seretse Khama and Lady Ruth Khama Interracial dating is becoming increasingly accepted in United States society, though it's still far from the norm. Pew Research Center reported a record high 12% of Americans wed someone of a different race in 2013. Almost all millennials accept interracial dating and marriage, representing a change in attitude among the younger generations. Khama and Williams broke boundaries and fought for tolerance in an intolerant world and ended up leading a country. Without couples like Mildred and Richard Loving, for example, interracial marriage would still be illegal in America. The newlyweds had gone to sleep on July 11, 1958, when three police officers stormed their Virginia home and arrested the two for their , according to Biography.com. The two were forced to wed in D.C. due to their Virginia's Racial Integrity Act Mildred and Richard Loving " as you live you will be known as a felon," the judge told Mildred Loving after the two were charged with defying the law, according to PBS. The couple moved to Washington, D.C., where they began working on Loving v. Virginia with the American Civil Liberties Union. In 1967 the United States Supreme Court determined any state law meant to block interracial marriages was unconstitutional. Story continues It took America until the turn of the century for the prohibition of interracial marriage to officially end, when Alabama repealed its discriminatory law in 2000, according to PBS. marrying Pearl Bailey after falling in love with the fellow musician likely complicated his career even further, and the two were forced to lie about her heritage throughout southern U.S. states, claiming Bailey was Haitian, according to AFK Insider. Pearl Bailey and Louie Bellson However, the two persisted in the music industry and were married for 38 years before Bellson's death in 2009, according to Listverse. Pearl Bailey embedded herself in the Republican party; Bailey served as the United Nations' Goodwill Ambassador for several Republican presidents. Bailey even remained a member of the party, where she found acceptance for her interracial marriage, during the civil rights movement throughout the 1960s. The fight for interracial marriage dates as far back as many other civil rights issues just look at the story of Frederick Douglass, a slave-turned-social-reformer, and his wife Helen Pitts, a suffragist and abolitionist. The two didn't only have to fight for the acceptance of their love, according to AFK Insider: They each took part in fighting against slavery and for women's rights. Frederick Douglass and Helen Pitts T relationship was shrouded in controversy from the very beginning, however. Here's an excerpt from when the Washington, Jan. 24. Frederick Douglass, the colored leader, was married in this city this evening to Miss Helen M. Pitts, a white woman, formerly of Avon, New York. The wedding, which took place at the house of Dr. Grimke, of the Presbyterian church, was private, only two witnesses being present. The first wife of Mr. Douglass, who was a colored woman, died about a year ago. The woman he married today is about 35 years of age, and was employed as a copyist in his office. Mr. Douglass himself is about 73 years of age and has daughters as old as his present wife. Both outspoken activists died after doing what they loved. Douglass died of a heart attack in 1895 on the same day he delivered a speech on women's suffrage, according to AFK Insider. Pitts died in 1903 after working on a women's rights publication called the Alpha, founding the Frederick Douglass Memorial and Historical Association and working to ensure Douglass' home would be preserved as a historical landmark, according to About.com. No matter what obstacles these couples faced, their challenges and triumphs paved the way for millions after them, from New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, the first American mayor married to a black wife to take office, to entertainers such as as well as millions of others marrying their love based on heart and character rather than their skin. A group of 135 Afghan migrants landed back in Kabul from Germany on Wednesday after volunteering to return home due to a lack of prospects in Europe, officials said. The International Organisation for Migration arranged the transport and reception of the group, which included 107 males and 18 females including ten children. It did not say how the Afghans reached Germany or how much time they had spent there. Applications for assisted voluntary returns from Germany to Afghanistan have significantly increased over the last week, officials say. The Afghan Embassy in Germany said there were as many as 1,000 Afghan migrants in Germany urgently wishing to return voluntarily to Afghanistan. "The main reasons invoked by the returnees to go back ... are the limitations they perceive in their long-term opportunities in Germany," said IOM chief in Germany Argentina Szabados. This included "the limited possibilities for family reunification," he added in a statement. The IOM has run the Assisted Voluntary Return and Reintegration (AVRR) programme in Afghanistan since 2003. The number of assisted returns from Germany rose from 92 in 2014 to 304 in 2015. The Afghan government welcomes any voluntary returns of its nationals .. from foreign countries," Said Hussain Alemi Balkhi, Afghan minister of refugees and repatriation. The 28-nation European Union has since last year been struggling to cope with a massive influx of migrants, the biggest wave of migration since World War II, fueled by the war in Syria and Iraq. By Sarah Young LONDON (Reuters) - Airbus Group expects the competitiveness of its British operations to fall if Britons vote to leave the European Union in a referendum, potentially threatening the scale of the planemaker's operations in the country. The support of France-headquartered Airbus, which employs 16,000 people in Britain, for those campaigning alongside Prime Minister David Cameron to stay in the EU comes a day after a group of company bosses warned that a vote to leave in a June 23 referendum would put the economy at risk. "If Britain leaves, I cannot imagine that this would have positive consequences for our competitiveness in Britain," Chief Executive Tom Enders told a news conference at the aerospace group's annual results on Wednesday. Airbus said that while a so-called Brexit would result in a review of its investment plans in Britain, it does not currently have a team of people working on contingency plans. "We don't have any specific contingency plans other than increasing our productivity, continuing to invest, continuing what we need to do to succeed," Paul Kahn president of Airbus UK said in an interview. The company, which builds wings for jetliners in Britain, will set up a response team if Britain does vote to leave the EU, but until then Kahn said there was not a clear picture of the alternative to membership of the bloc, making planning difficult. "You can make all sorts of assumptions positive or negative and we just don't know what 'Out' looks like, so it's very difficult to answer questions about," he said. As such, Airbus is not spending material sums on planning, he said. "There's no need to spend money now on hypothetical situations," Kahn added. The company's focus in Britain in the meantime is on ensuring its operations were as competitive as possible. "Wings are only going to be continued to be made here if we maintain our global competitiveness," Kahn said. "The EU genuinely helps us to be globally competitive." (Additional reporting by Tim Hepher, editing by Estelle Shirbon) The 11-month-long chaotic civil war in Yemen has reached a decisive moment. The Saudi-led coalition and Yemeni government forces are now about 30 miles from the capital, Sanaa. The city was captured in September 2014 by a coalition of Shiite Houthi rebels and elite military units loyal to the countrys former dictator, Ali Abdullah Saleh. The battle to retake Sanaa is expected to be as long and bloody as the 10-month ongoing battle to control the countrys third largest city in the southwest, Taiz. But the Saudi-led intervention in Yemen has resulted in a slippery slope that is now threatening the entire world. More than 6,100 people have been killed so far; half of them are civilians. About 2.5 million people have been displaced from their homes due to the fighting. Many millions more are in urgent need of food, water and medical supplies. Related: Wave of Aden Killings Tests Gulf Role in Yemen Yet, the most alarming consequence of the Yemeni war is the rise of al-Qaeda in the country and the emergence of ISIS, the splinter group responsible for directing the Paris attacks last November and inspiring the San Bernardino shooting the following month. Al-Qaedas branch in Yemen, which is called al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), is the most dangerous part of the global terror organization. Its record in attacking the West includes the Charlie Hebdo attack in Paris in January 2015, the Fort Hood shooting in November 2009, and the killing of the American photojournalist Luke Somers in December 2014. During the last few weeks, al-Qaeda in Yemen consolidated its grip in southern Yemen, capturing at least six towns on the Arabian Sea, securing about half of the Yemen coast and a quarter of the countrys land. Taking advantage of the turmoil, the terror group holds more lands than the Houthi rebels, stretching vertically in the center of the country for 270 miles from the Saudi border in the north to the Arabian Sea in the south, and 420 miles horizontally from north of Aden, Yemens second largest city in the southwestern corner of the country, to the village of Qusayir in the east. Story continues Last Saturday, al-Qaeda militants stormed the town of Ahwar that connects two of the terror groups controlled territories on the Arabian Sea. After killing a local leader of the town, they raised their black banners on the government buildings. Al-Qaeda hasnt been this strong since a decade ago, when it controlled much of the Sunni parts of Iraq before the U.S. surge of forces in 2007. Three Yemeni provincial capitals are now run by al-Qaeda. The port of al-Mukalla on the Arabian Sea, the countrys fifth largest city and the capital of Yemens largest province in size, was captured by the terror group in April 2015 after a two-week battle. The militants released 300 inmates from the citys prison, including top al-Qaedas commanders. They also captured several army camps with dozens of tanks, a military airfield, a presidential palace, an oil facility and the branch of Yemens central bank that held millions of U.S. dollars. Related: Top al-Qaeda Commander Killed in Yemen Drone Strikes The port of Zinjibar, also on the Arabian Sea, fell to al-Qaeda last December, five months after the Yemeni government forces retook the town from the Houthi rebels. A month later, the extremists fully controlled a third provincial capital, the southern town of al-Houta. Soon afterward, four more neighboring towns fell to al-Qaeda without much of a fight. The rise of al-Qaeda in Yemen is a direct result of the civil war. The terror group has used the preoccupation of the U.S, the West and the regions government with ISIS to resurge in Yemen. The U.S. has been involved in a war of drones against al-Qaeda for 15 years, killing many senior leaders of the group. However, this approach has no affect on the ground, as al-Qaeda continues to expand and replace its fallen commanders. Another factor contributing to the growth of al-Qaedas operations in Yemen is the blind-eye policy that the Saudi led coalition is taking toward the group. While the Saudis target al-Qaeda occasionally, the groups reign hasnt really been challenged by any reliable force on the ground. On the contrary, the Saudi-supported Yemeni government forces fought sometimes alongside al-Qaeda against the Houthi rebels as it was revealed in the case of the battle to control the southern city of Taiz. Related: Reclaiming the Title King of Jihad Means Al-Qaeda Will Target the West As the battle of Sanaa approaches and the country continues to unravel, al-Qaeda will capitalize on the fierce fighting that is expected to last for months to further expand its footprint across the war-torn country. With that, a safe haven will emerge for the worlds most dangerous terror group. Al-Qaeda will use its expanded base to further destabilize the region of the Horn of Africa, where its ally, the Somali terror group al-Shabab, is operating. That could lead to the resumption of piracy in the Arabian Sea. More broadly, plots to attack the U.S. and the West will multiply. Top Reads from The Fiscal Times: A version of this story first appeared in the March 4 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. To receive the magazine, click here to subscribe. After partnering with Sony Pictures Classics on eight movies, Woody Allen has opted for a younger distributor for the next. Amazon Studios, which was launched just six years ago and has been on a buying spree over the past six weeks, acquired North American rights sight unseen to the untitled movie with Steve Carell, Jesse Eisenberg, Blake Lively and Kristen Stewart. The deal, which sources peg at a huge $15 million upfront (more than $20 million with prints-and-advertising costs), sent shock waves through the indie film world. By comparison, SPC paid $5 million for Allen's last outing, Irrational Man ($1 million upfront and $4 million for P&A). Whether the move was irrational or savvy is being hotly debated within indie film circles. Read More: Amazon Studios Acquires Woody Allen's Next Movie "It's not crazy after the $10 million they paid for Manchester by the Sea," said a rival distributor, referring to Amazon's big buy at Sundance, one of its seven festival pickups. But for Allen, 80, it's something of a leap into the unknown. Since teaming with SPC's awards-season gurus Tom Bernard and Michael Barker, the writer-director has enjoyed a career bounce, with the eight films having earned 10 Oscar nominations and two wins one for Allens original screenplay for Midnight in Paris and the other a best actress win for Cate Blanchett in Blue Jasmine. "We have always been exceptionally pleased working with Michael Barker and Tom Bernard at SPC," says the film's producer Letty Aronson. "Amazon made us an offer we couldn't refuse, and we have a responsibility to our investors. Woody wishes SPC could be the subdistributor for this film, but apparently they would not. It's their policy to not do that. We certainly look forward to working with them again in the future." Story continues But a source says Allen himself was most exposed after the film went over budget (he put in his own money to finish it). Still, another source says he wanted a change. After all, Irrational Man was poorly received by audiences, earning just $4 million domestically. And as further enticement, Amazon, which already is working with Allen on his first TV series, committed to an aggressive theatrical release with a theatrical distributor to be determined. (Amazon is currently partnered with such companies as Bleecker Street and Roadside Attractions to release its films). Seasoned indie veteran Bob Berney, the former CEO of Picturehouse, will oversee all aspects of the films marketing and distribution. As for Bernard, there are no hard feelings: "We've got a great relationship with Woody, and we look forward to seeing his next film." Read More: Miley Cyrus to Star in Woody Allens Amazon Series Alongside Elaine May Apple needs an upgrade to its public relations strategy. The tech giants intensifying standoff with the FBI, over whether to unlock an iPhone used by the San Bernardino man who, along with his wife, is accused of killing 14 people last year, has an unmistakable element of theater. The government, which is investigating hundreds of crimes involving locked iPhones, apparently chose the San Bernardino case as its stalking horse against Apple (AAPL) because it believed the public would be sympathetic to its argument. Apple, normally secretive about its plans and strategies, posted a detailed response to the FBI online. Both sides will have their say in court on March 22. But public opinion matters too, and Apple may be heading for a setback before it ever gets to the courtroom. Some family members of the San Bernardino massacre victims, for example, are siding with the FBI in asking Apple to unlock the phone. A new poll by Pew Research shows 51% of Americans agree with the FBI on the matter, while just 38% back Apple. Prominent law-enforcement officials, such as New York police commissioner William Bratton, are mounting common-sense arguments for why Apple should give in. Even Donald Trump weighed in, calling for an Apple boycott until it assists the FBI. The complicated case puts Apple in a position its not accustomed to: playing defense. Heres why: The FBIs argument is simple and straightforward. Syed Rizwan Farook, who pledged loyalty to the Islamic State terrorist group, was part of a husband-wife team that murdered 14 people at an office party on Dec. 2. Farooks iPhone might contain information on how the team carried out the plot, and perhaps reveal other terrorists. The FBI needs Apples help to see whats on the phone. Without it, the data will either be deleted or permanently locked away. If it werent an encrypted smartphone, the governments request would be uncontroversial. As a society, weve basically accepted the governments right to access private information when its part of a criminal investigation, or necessary for national security. Law enforcement agents have been searching homes, pulling bank records and tapping phones for a long time. Objections arise when the government seems to exceed its authority, but not when its doing what its supposed to do. Apple has decided to tackle the unenviable job of convincing the public that protecting the privacy of terrorists and criminals is somehow in the public interest. Apple might very well be right; there are many instances in which we tolerate problems because the rules required to prevent them would exact a cost we deem too high. Thats basically the argument gun-rights advocates make when they say banning guns would impede Constitutionally guaranteed rights, even if it would lead to a reduction in violence. A less provocative example might be the requirement for a unanimous jury verdict in federal court cases, which lets some crooks off the hook but also safeguards civil liberties. The problem for Apple is that its relying on a nuanced technical argument in an era of blunt-force populism. In his public response explaining Apples choice to fight the court order instructing Apple to unlock the iPhone, CEO Tim Cook said, We have no sympathy for terrorists. Then he explained how encryption works and why its importantdrifting way over the heads of most iPhone users--followed by an enlightening passage on the All Writs Act of 1789. His basic conclusion: The feds are asking Apple to hack our own users. Lets say Cook is right (even though a lot of people feel hes not). Compare his argument with one made by Bratton in a New York Times op-ed, in which he referenced the case of a 29-year-old Baton Rouge woman who was murdered when she was eight months pregnant. Police think the identity of her killer might be contained on her iPhone, but Apple says it cant unlock the phone, citing the same reasons it gives in the San Bernardino case. Which story is more compelling? And how many more stories of crimes hidden on iPhones will surface as law enforcement gangs up on Apple, sensing now is the time to demand cooperation? Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance says his office has 175 locked iPhones seized as part of criminal investigations that it cant access. That count seems sure to rise as other prosecutors join the fray. It doesnt help Apple that all this is occurring as fears of terrorism are hitting the highest levels since 2001, the year of the 9-11 attacks that killed more than 3,000 Americans. With attacks in Paris and Islamic State beheadings online for everyone to see, its not a fortuitous time to stick up for the privacy rights of terrorists with iPhones. Apple has the money, the brand power and possibly the determination to see this case through to the end, if it fights the whole way. The case could end up at the Supreme Court, though that would probably take several years. If it got that far, that would be several years of Apple trying to convince people that the greater good principle applies to the cherished iPhone, that the benefit of airtight encryption for ordinary users outweighs the cost of a few missed criminal leads. Apple might win in the courts. Thing is, thats not where people buy iPhones. Rick Newmans latest book is Liberty for All: A Manifesto for Reclaiming Financial and Political Freedom. Follow him on Twitter: @rickjnewman. Apple has revealed that the U.S. governments attempts to access the iPhone of one of the San Bernardino killers is not an isolated case, as had previously been suggested. The Department of Justice has sought access to at least 12 iPhones since September 2015, according to the tech giant, contradicting a statement from a White House spokesman last week that the government is simply asking for something that would have an impact on this one device. The requests were listed in a court brief filed by Apple lawyer Marc Zwillinger in response to the order requesting Apple to provide the FBI with reasonable technical assistance in unlocking the iPhone 5C used by San Bernardino gunman Syed Rizwan Farook. The attached order directs Apple to perform even more burdensome and involved engineering than that sought in the case currently before this court, Zwillinger wrote to Magistrate Judge James Orenstein. Apple CEO Tim Cook rejected the order relating to the San Bernardino shooters phone, saying to do so would set a dangerous precedent for user privacy and security. Executives from Google and Facebook have publicly stood behind Cook; however, Microsoft founder Bill Gates has suggested Apple should help the FBI. Apple FBI requests iphone Marc Zwillinger ZwillGen Recent figures from Pew Research Center found that the majority of Americans side with Gates on the matter, with 51 percent of respondents saying Apple should unlock Farooks phone. FBI director James Comey claimed the San Bernardino litigation isnt about trying to set a precedent or send any kind of message, rather it is about justice for the victims of Farook. The December 2 attack by Farook and his partner Tashfeen Malik killed 14 people and injured 22 others. The particular legal issue is actually quite narrow, Comey wrote in a post to the legal blog Lawfare. The relief we seek is limited and its value increasingly obsolete because the technology continues to evolve. Related Articles New York (AFP) - Argentina and the two hedge funds it has branded "vultures" are close to a deal to settle the funds' bond claims, a lawyer said Wednesday. "We are this close to a deal," Matthew McGill, a lawyer for one of the two funds, NML Capital, said in the federal district court in Manhattan. "We have an agreement on economic terms," he said, without explanation. If true, an end to a decade-old battle over Argentina's bond repayment obligations 15 years after it defaulted on $100 billion in debt could be close. The other of the two hedge funds which led the fight in US courts against Buenos Aires's refusal to pay them, Aurelius Capital Management, had no comment on what McGill said. Argentine officials would also not comment. And the court-appointed mediator in the battle, Daniel Pollack, quickly issued a statement criticizing McGill for violating "the confidentiality of the discussions between the parties, which is an inviolable principle of all negotiations through me." Argentina has battled NML and Aurelius for years, arguing that by refusing to take part in the restructuring of its defaulted debt -- which 93 percent of creditors accepted -- they had given up their right to repayment on the bonds they held. It also labeled them vultures for having scooped up more than $1 billion worth of Argentine debt at very deep discounts at the time of the default with the aim of forcing the country in court to repay the full value. But the new government of reformist President Mauricio Macri, which took office in December, has pledged to resolve the $9 billion in claims of the two and other "holdout" creditors in order to clear the case, which has mostly blocked Argentina's access to global capital markets. The ability of Aurelius and NML to win support from New York Judge Thomas Griesa for their claims in 2012 shook the markets of sovereign debt. It signaled that, when a country defaults on its debts and needs to restructure them -- which often requires creditors to accept significant losses -- there is little to compel a creditor to go along with the restructuring deal. Governments and world bodies like the International Monetary Fund worry that would make restructuring a country's debts, to get it back on its financial feet, will be harder in the future because it will be more difficult to convince enough bondholders to go along with it after Griesa's ruling. By David Schwartz PHOENIX (Reuters) - A 26-year-old man shot his parents and two sisters to death at a house in Phoenix early on Tuesday before he was killed by police who entered the residence as it was on fire, law enforcement officials said. Alex Buckner was shot and killed after he raised a weapon at a special assignment unit officer in the split-level home, said Sergeant Trent Crump, a spokesman for the Phoenix Police Department. Shooting victims found at the home were identified as Buckner's parents Vic Buckner, 50, and Kimberly Buckner, 49, and his sisters, Kaitlin Buckner, 18, and Emma Buckner, 6. "We have no idea what the motive is, or what sparked this," said Crump, adding that neighbors heard an argument between the alleged suspect and his father about 30 minutes before the shootings. Crump said police were called to the scene at about 4:45 a.m. (0645 ET) after receiving a 911 call from a female inside the home about a shooting. Arriving officers saw heavy smoke and heard gunfire, he said. Officers donned fire gear and breathing apparatus as they entered the still-burning home believed to have been set ablaze by the alleged gunman, Crump said. They were able to remove the 18-year-old sister, who later died at the hospital. Officers then fatally shot Alex Buckner and removed the parents bodies before officers were forced to flee the house after it re-ignited, Crump said. The six-year-old girl was found after the blaze was extinguished and she was later pronounced dead at a local childrens hospital, he said. Crump said that three officers were treated for smoke inhalation. Images from the scene showed firefighters on the roof of the residence as thick gray smoke billowed out and then as a fireball erupted through an opening in the structure. Three firefighters were forced to flee from the flames. Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton lauded the heroic efforts of police and firefighters in responding to an unspeakable domestic violence tragedy as it unfolded on the citys northwest side. (Reporting by David Schwartz in Phoenix; Editing by Dan Whitcomb and Andrew Hay) Yerevan (AFP) - Armenian President Serzh Sarkisian on Wednesday invited a fiercely anti-Turkish party to join his government, in a controversial power-sharing deal highlighting a stalemate in efforts to normalise ties with arch-foe Ankara. The Armenian Revolutionary Federation, or Dashnaktsutyun, took three ministerial posts and appointed two regional governors, according to the memorandum it signed with Sarkisian's ruling Republican Party (HHK). "This agreement marks the beginning of a long-term political cooperation based on common values and joint goals and action plans," the HHK deputy chairman, Armen Ashotyan, told journalists. In a decree signed by Sarkisian, Dashnaktsutyun's Avik Minasyan was named economy minister. Davit Lokyan and Levon Mkrtchyan were appointed ministers of education and of the local administration respectively. Armenia and Turkey are at loggerheads largely because of a historical dispute over a World War I-era massacre of ethnic Armenians in the Ottoman Empire. Dashnaktsutyun, a socialist party which currently holds five seats in Armenia's 131-member parliament, also advocates territorial claims to Turkey. Highly popular among Armenia's influential diaspora abroad, Dashnaktsutyun went over to the opposition in 2009 after Armenia and Turkey signed an agreement to normalise relations. The so-called Zurich protocols, which would have led to the opening up of the border between the two neighbours, have since languished without ratification in both nations' parliaments. In February 2015, Sarkisian recalled the protocols -- brokered by the United States, France and Russia -- from parliament, citing the "absence of political will" on the Turkish side. The massacre of some 1.5 million Armenians by Ottoman forces between 1915 and 1917 is formally recognised as genocide by some two dozen countries, including France and Russia. Turkey rejects calls to recognise the killings as genocide, saying up to 500,000 Armenians died in fighting and of starvation after Armenians sided with invading Russian troops. It claims a comparable number of Turks were also killed. BEIRUT (Reuters) - Syrian President Bashar al-Assad told Russia's Vladimir Putin in a phone call on Wednesday his government was ready to help implement a cessation of hostilities in Syria. The two presidents stressed the need to continue fighting Islamic State and al Qaeda affiliate the Nusra Front as well as "other terrorist groups", the Syrian president's official Twitter account said. The United States and Russia on Monday announced plans for a "cessation of hostilities" in Syria that would take effect on Saturday but exclude groups such as Islamic State and Nusra Front. (Reporting by John Davison and Ali Abdelatti in Cairo; Editing by Alison Williams) Students at Newtown High School for the Performing Arts in New South Wales, Australia, are reshaping the concept of school uniforms. After students urged the administration to revise its uniform policy, the school enacted a more gender inclusive one last week. Previously, students wishing to wear "cross-gender" uniforms required written permission from their parents and a psychologist. Jo Dwyer, an 11th-grader who lobbied for the measure, told the Sydney Morning Herald the measure "wasn't really a possibility for some students whose parents aren't supportive of their gender identity." Students at Newtown High School for Performing Arts when 2012 Australian of the Year, Geoffrey Rush, visited. Twitter users rejoiced that the school was taking a step in the right direction: To demand boys wear shorts and girls wear skirts is archaic and arcane in my view. Well done Newtown. http://fb.me/2KFpQnNSQ So happy Newtown High School of the Performing Arts are the first Sydney school to dismiss the policy of uniforms #genderrules killnit YAS!! This is my school! So proud! ... The policy outraged some groups. Wendy Francis, spokeswoman for the Australian Christian Lobby, told the Herald, "To encourage a guy to wear a dress would just be setting him up for bullying." Francis re-emphasized the group's stance to Vice: "These gender theory ideas go way beyond anti-bullying to almost proselytizing." While Newtown is the first Australian school to adopt the gender-neutral stance on uniforms, according to the Herald, the Safe School Coalition in Australia is encouraging all schools to follow suit (or dress). "For students affirming an identity that is neither male nor female, provisions could be considered by the school for the student to wear elements of the uniform they feel most comfortable with," the coalition stated on its website. h/t Jezebel Dubai (AFP) - A Bahraini court on Wednesday sentenced a Sunni opposition leader to one year in jail for anti-regime incitement but dropped a charge of promoting political change by force, a judicial official said. Ibrahim Sharif, whose secular Waed movement took part in 2011 protests led by the Sunni-ruled Gulf state's Shiite majority, had strongly denied the latter charge which would have carried a far stiffer prison sentence. The prosecutor general, however, said it could file an appeal with the Court of Cassation over Wednesday's ruling by the High Criminal Court. Sharif already served four years of a five-year sentence over the 2011 protests before being released under a royal amnesty last June. But he was re-arrested the following month after he addressed a memorial service for one of those killed during the suppression of the Arab Spring-inspired demonstrations in February-March 2011. Amnesty International condemned Wednesday's ruling as "an outrageous attack on freedom of expression and the latest example of the Bahraini authorities insidious clampdown on government critics". "Sharifs conviction is a blatant attempt to punish him for speaking out, serving as a warning to all dissidents, and must be quashed immediately," said Amnesty's James Lynch. At least 89 people have been killed in intermittent clashes with security forces since 2011, while hundreds have been arrested and put on trial, according to human rights groups. Dozens of dissidents have been jailed or stripped of their citizenship. Sheikh Ali Salman, leader of the main Shiite opposition bloc Al-Wefaq, was handed a four-year jail sentence last June for inciting disobedience. Tiny but strategic Bahrain, connected to Saudi Arabia by a causeway, lies across the Gulf from Shiite Iran and is home base for the US Fifth Fleet. De Panne (Belgium) (AFP) - Belgian police carrying out car-by-car checks on the French border turned back 80 mainly Afghan migrants on Wednesday, a day after reinstating controls to stop people coming from the "Jungle" camp in Calais, police said. A huge operation involving around 300 police officers, a helicopter and mounted police was set up to monitor three border crossings and surrounding sand dunes in the De Panne region bordering France. "Currently over the past 24 hours we have prevented 80 people, mainly Afghans, from coming into Belgium," police spokesman Peter Dewaele told a press conference at De Panne. "A further 25 people -- Syrians, Iranians and Afghans -- have been intercepted on Belgian territory. After having been interrogated by the Foreigners' Office, they were immediately driven back to the French border." A French court on Tuesday postponed a ruling on the demolition of half the "Jungle" refugee camp in Calais, a northern French port city near the Channel Tunnel rail link which leads to Britain. But Belgian Interior Minister Jan Jambon announced on Tuesday that his country was reintroducing border controls with France, becoming the latest to do so in the EU's Schengen passport-free travel area. Jambon said most of the migrants currently in Calais, a port in northern France, eventually wanted to get to Britain and failing that, would use Belgium as a transit route via the port of Zeebrugge. "We want to avoid at all cost Calais-style tent camps in Belgium. It's a question of keeping order," said Jambon, adding that authorities wanted to avoid all economic impact on Zeebrugge and on the Belgian coast. - 'People with backpacks' - However a number of migrants have already gathered at Zeebrugge in recent weeks, and Belgian police stepped up patrols there on Wednesday. Nicholas Paelinck, head of the police in Belgian's western coastal region, said the migrants were trying to travel dozens of miles (kilometres) on "smugglers vehicles" -- or by simply taking bus, trains or trams. Story continues On the main road to the French town of Dunkirk, eight miles to the west, two Belgian police checkpoints were set up on each side of the carriageway early on Wednesday, AFP journalists said. Three police officers stopped each vehicle and inspected trunks and cargo areas before letting them enter Belgium. Less than a mile away on another road from France there was a similar checkpoint, while police on horseback patrolled the area in between. "It's more to reassure people than anything else. If migrants want to come, we won't stop them," said Dominique, a 55-year-old bathroom installer from France, who said he had come to eat and buy cigarettes in Belgium. Police said the operation would last as long as necessary, noting a huge increase in the number of migrants in the space of a year. In January 2015 133 people were detained for not having the right papers but one year on that figure was 950, a spokesman said. "We are seeing more and more people with backpacks. It's a sign that they are not planning to return to France," said Dewaele. Bernie Sanders at a campaign rally at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst, Mass., on Monday. (Photo: Brian Snyder/Reuters) CHARLESTON, S.C. A suggestion by Sen. Bernie Sanders that Hillary Clinton was pandering to black voters by trying to embrace President Obama drew a sharp rebuke on Tuesday from one of Clintons top local allies, Rep. Jim Clyburn, D-S.C. A professor who studies state politics called Sanders remark insulting, and said it could be a significant deciding factor in South Carolinas Democratic presidential primary on Saturday. Sanders made the comments in an interview with BETs Marc Lamont Hill. Excerpts of the conversation were published on Feb. 18, and it aired on BET on Feb. 21. Hillary Clinton now is trying to embrace the president as closely as she possibly can. Everything the president does is wonderful. She loves the president, he loves her and all that stuff, Sanders said, adding, And we know what thats about. Thats trying to win support from the African-American community, where the president is enormously popular. African-Americans make up more than 27 percent of South Carolinas population. They made up the majority of the electorate in the states Democratic primary in 2008, when President Obama defeated Clinton. Obama, the nations first African-American president, is enormously popular in South Carolina, where he enjoys a 97 percent approval rating among black voters. Clinton, who has a wide lead over Sanders in polls of South Carolinas African-American community, spent over four years as Obamas secretary of state. In the run-up to the primary, she has been emphasizing her connection to Obama, while calling attention to Sanders past criticisms of the president. Kendra Stewart is a professor at the College of Charleston who focuses on politics and state and local government. In a conversation with Yahoo News on Tuesday, she discussed the potential impact of Sanders remark. Story continues I think that could be a significant deciding factor here and, you know, because the community has been so supportive of the Obama administration and would like to see his legacy continue, Stewart said. I do think it is problematic when Sanders is framed as being anti-Obama, and the fact that he would call that pandering is insulting when, you know, truthfully, Clinton was part of the Obama administration. Its not really false advertising from that perspective. Clyburn, a former chair of the Congressional Black Caucus and the third- ranking Democrat in the House of Representatives, endorsed Clinton on Feb. 19. Before entering Congress, Clyburn was a civil rights activist in South Carolina, and he is one of the states leading African-American political voters. In a press conference call on Tuesday, Yahoo News asked Clyburn about Sanders comments. I guess youre always trying to find where the sweet spot on anything may be. If you dont reach out youre ignoring the African-American community. When you reach out, youre pandering. I just believe that people have to follow their heart, Clyburn said. Clyburn also suggested Sanders argument didnt hold water given Clintons early work for the Childrens Defense Fund in the South. I dont know how you can look at Mrs. Clintons history she was not running for president in the 1970s when she came to South Carolina to work with those African-American juvenile detainees or juvenile inmates trying to better their conditions, when she went to work with Marian Wright Edelman, a native of Bennettsville, South Carolina, to come down here working with her trying to better the lives of children. So, what was she doing? Who was she pandering to back then? Clyburn asked. Clyburn noted that Clintons early work certainly couldnt have been an attempt to curry favor with Obama, who was born in 1961. If youre talking about the 1970s, that she was down here, right around the time that Barack Obama was before he was a teenager, Clyburn said. When she was down here working on these things she certainly wasnt pandering to Barack Obama, or any other president for that matter. The Sanders campaign did not respond to a request for comment about Clyburns remarks. First her lawyers pushed back against Bill Cosbys latest legal maneuver to stop the criminal charges that could see him behind bars for up to 10-years and now sexual assault accuser Andrea Constand herself is seeking to end the actors bullying tactics in the courts. On the same day that Camille Cosby sat for the first of what could be several depositions in another case against her much accused husband, the alleged 2004 victim of a drugging and rape by Cosby filed a motion in federal court on Monday to force the unsealing of The Cosby Show creators new complaint. Constand also seeks undermine the efforts by Cosby against her, her mother, her lawyers and the owners of the National Enquirer by having the courts void the much discussed confidentiality agreement that was struck in 2006 between the parties in a civil case. Cosby has used the agreement as a means to intimidate witnesses, to conduct a media blitz in an attempt to sway public opinion while silencing those most knowledgeable about his claims, and to engage in conduct evidenced by the Motion before the Court, says the memorandum of law accompanying the February 22 motion from Constands attorneys Dolores Troiani and Bebe Kivitz (read it here). On February 1, just before a hearing on the whether the Pennsylvania criminal case would go forward or not, Cosby filed an under seal jury seeking complaint against Constand and others claiming that there had been numerous breaches of the 2006 Confidential Settlement Agreement. As a February 17 redacted version of Cosbys complaint revealed, those breaches included, in his lawyers opinion, Constand and others talking to the current Montgomery County, PA D.A.s office in their 2015 re-investigation of Andrea Constands allegations against Mr. Cosby. RelatedBill Cosby Sexual Assault Case Moving Forward In Pennsylvania; Dismissal Denied While no details of the nearly decade old settlement were made public in even last weeks redacted version of Cosbys latest complaint, the disgraced actors legal team claimed that he has suffered serious and irreparable harm that cannot be cured by money damages and also has suffered substantial monetary damages, in an amount to be proven at trial. Essentially, Cosby now wants back everything he paid out to Constand plus legal fees and more. Story continues Saying she was well within her rights to speak to the D.A.s office about the matter of her alleged 2004 assault by Cosby in his suburban Philadelphia mansion, Constand is blunt in calling out the actors motivations and seeking to turn the spotlight on what was actually agreed to back in 2006. Cosby seeks to create a shadow court system where he is free to make diametrically opposing assertions under the guise of confidentiality and motions to seal, the 10-page filing adds, noting Constands cooperation with the now ongoing criminal charges case instigated against Cosby late last year. Because he has money and power and celebrity status, Cosby is no less a citizen subject to the jurisdiction of the Courts. Neither Andrea Constand nor her mother, Gianna Constand possess any of those attributes. The only protection available to them is for the Court to shield them from the bullying tactics of Cosby. After failing to get the trio of criminal charges halted by claims that there was a binding no-prosecution agreement with the past and trying to move to a fast track appeal of the judges ruling in that matter, Cosby next has to appear in state court on March 8 in a preliminary hearing. The federal filing fits in with the offensive strategy Cobsys new lawyers have take in recent months against a variety of cases against him across the nation by some of the over 50 women who say they were drugged and assaulted by him over the years. It is patently obvious, that the suit was motivated by Cosbys desire to intimidate the witnesses against him, says Cosntands memo in this case. This misuse of the agreement cannot be condoned by the Court and the only recourse available to the Constand Defendants at this stage of the proceedings is a finding that Cosby has forfeited any confidentiality conferred upon him by the agreement. No word on when a hearing in U.S. District Judge Eduardo Robrenos courtroom on Constand or her lawyers motions could occur. Samuel Silver and John Timmer of Philly firm Schnader Harrison Segal & Lewis LLP are representing Cosby in this case. Cosbys main lawyer, Christopher Tayback of L.A.s Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP, officially was added to the case on February 12. Jeffrey McCarron of Swartz Campbell & Detweiler represents Troiani and Kivitz. Related stories Bill Cosby's Lawyers Lose Attempt To Have Camille Cosby's Monday Deposition Postponed - Update Bill Cosby Sues 2005 Sexual Assault Accuser For "Unjust Enrichment," Goes After Lawyers & National Enquirer Also Bill Cosby Attempt To Halt PA Sexual Assault Case Denied No more tough breaks. As "smart" electronics get smaller and softer, scientists are developing new medical devices that could be applied to or in some cases, implanted in our bodies. And these soft and stretchy devices shouldn't make your skin crawl, because they're designed to blend right in, experts say. We want to solve the mismatch between rigid wafer-based electronics and the soft, dynamic human body, said Nanshu Lu, an assistant professor of aerospace engineering and engineering mechanics at the University of Texas at Austin. Lu, who previously studied with John Rogers, a soft-materials and electronics expert at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, focuses her research on stretchable bioelectronics. Lu and her colleagues have invented a cheaper and faster method for manufacturing electronic skin patches called epidermal electronics, reducing what was a multiday process to 20 minutes. [Bionic Humans: Top 10 Technologies] Lu spoke with Live Science about emerging bioelectronics that are smart and flexible enough to essentially meld with the human body. From the latest advancements in smart tattoos to injectable brain monitoring to stretchable electronics for drug delivery, here are five fascinating technologies that could soon be on (or inside) your body. Smart temporary tattoos "When you integrate electronics on your skin, it feels like part of you," Lu said. "You don't feel it, but it is still working." That's the idea behind "smart" temporary tattoos that John Rogers and his colleagues are developing. Their tattoos, also known as biostamps, contain flexible circuitry that can be powered wirelessly and are stretchy enough to move with skin. These wireless smart tattoos could address clinically important but currently unmet needs, Rogers told Live Science. Although there are numerous potential applications, his team is focused now on how biostamps could be used to monitor patients in neonatal intensive care units and sleep labs. MC10, the Massachusetts-based company Rogers helped start, is conducting clinical trials and expects to launch its first regulated products later this year. Story continues Skin-mounted biochemical sensors Another new body-meld technology in development is a wearable biochemical sensor that can analyze sweat through skin-mounted devices and send information wirelessly to a smartphone. These futuristic sensors are being designed by Joseph Wang, a professor of nanoengineering at the University of California, San Diego, and director of the Center for Wearable Sensors. "We look at sweat, saliva and tears to provide information about performance, fitness and medical status," Wang told Live Science. Earlier this year, members of Wang's lab presented a proof-of-concept, flexible, temporary tattoo for diabetics that could continuously monitor glucose levels without using needle pricks. He also led a team that created a mouth-guard sensor that can check levels of health markers that usually require drawing blood, like uric acid, an early indicator for diabetes and gout. Wang said the Center for Wearable Sensors is pushing to commercialize these emerging sensor technologies with the help of local and international companies. Nanomaterial drug delivery Dae-Hyeong Kim, an associate professor of chemical and biological engineering at Seoul National University in South Korea, and his colleagues are pursuing nanotechnologies to enable next-generation biomedical systems. Kim's research could one day yield nanomaterial-enabled electronics for drug delivery and tissue engineering, according to Lu. "He has made stretchable memory, where you can store data on the tattoo, " she said. [10 Technologies That Will Transform Your Life] In 2014, Kim's research group made a stretchable, wearable electronic patch that contains data storage, diagnostic tools and medicine. "The multifunctional patch can monitor movement disorders of Parkinson's disease," Kim told Live Science. Collected data gets recorded in the gold nanoparticle devices memory. When the patch detects tremor patterns, heat and temperature sensors inside it release controlled amounts of drugs that are delivered through carefully designed nanoparticles, he explained. Injectable brain monitors Although implantable technology exists for monitoring patients with epilepsy or brain damage, Lu pointed out that these devices are still sharp and rigid, making long-term monitoring a challenge. She compared soft brain tissue to a bowl of tofu constantly in motion. "We want something that can measure the brain, that can stimulate the brain, that can interact with the brain without any mechanical strain or loading," she said. Enter Charles Lieber, a Harvard University chemistry professor whose research group focuses on nanoscale science and technology. His group's devices are so small that they can be injected into brain tissue through a needle. After injection, nanoscale electronic mesh opens up that can monitor brain activity, stimulate tissue and even interact with neurons. "That," said Lu, "is very cutting edge." Long-term implantable devices Stephanie Lacour and Gregoire Courtine, scientists at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne's School of Engineering, announced in early 2015 that they had developed a new implant for treating spinal cord injuries. The small e-Dura device is implanted directly on the spinal cord underneath its protective membrane, called the dura mater. From there, it can deliver electrical and chemical stimulation during rehabilitation. The device's elasticity and biocompatibility reduce the possibility of inflammation or tissue damage, meaning it could stay implanted for a long time. Paralyzed rats implanted with the device were able to walk after several weeks of training, the researchers reported in the journal Science. Lu called e-Dura one of the best-functioning, long-term implantable flexible stimulators. "It shows the possibilities of using implantable, flexible devices for rehabilitation and treatment," she said. Meanwhile, technologies that replicate human touch are growing increasingly sophisticated. Stanford University chemical engineering professor Zhenan Bao has spent years developing artificial skin that can sense pressure and temperature and heal itself. Her team's latest version contains a sensor array that can distinguish between pressure differences like a firm or limp handshake. Lu said she and her colleagues in this highly multidisciplinary field hope to make all wafer-based electronics more epidermallike. "All those electronic components that used to be rigid and brittle now have a chance to become soft and stretchable," she said. Follow us @livescience, Facebook & Google+. Original article on Live Science. Copyright 2016 LiveScience, a Purch company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Paris (AFP) - French conglomerate Bouygues said on Wednesday it would walk away from talks to sell its Bouygues Telecom unit to rival Orange unless it ends up with at least 10 percent of Orange's shares. "We are interested in a stake in Orange to benefit from the market's growth," chairman Martin Bouygues said at his company's annual results presentation. Bouygues has been in discussions since last month with Orange which wants to take over Bouygues Telecom, a move that would reduce the number of mobile operators in France's highly-competitive market to three from four. A 10 to 15-percent stake in Orange as part of such a deal would be "entirely acceptable", Bouygues said, but there was "no question" of accepting anything less than 10 percent. A company spokesman subsequently told AFP that Bouygues was actually targeting a 15-percent holding in Orange which it would acquire in two stages. The first 10 percent would come from an expected Orange capital increase to which Bouygues would subscribe. The remaining 5 percent it would acquire in the open market, he said. The two-stage approach would be made necessary by the refusal of the French government, which currently holds 23 percent in Orange, to see its holding diluted below 20 percent in the capital increase, sources close to the talks said. This meant that Bouygues would have to find the extra shares it wants elsewhere. Martin Bouygues said talks with Orange were likely to continue for a few weeks more, but "not beyond this quarter" ending on March 31. If talks fail, Bouygues Telecom will continue its current stand-alone strategy, Bouygues said. Also on Wednesday Bouygues reported a net profit of 403 million euros ($443 million) for 2015, ahead of analysts' expectations and said profit margins would improve further this year. It also announced a major cost-cutting drive for its Bouygues Telecom unit, which is to shave at least 400 million euros off overheads, it said. BRASILIA (Reuters) - Approval of President Dilma Rousseff's government has nudged higher amid recession and a massive corruption scandal, though a majority of Brazilians still want to see her impeached, a new poll showed on Wednesday. The CNT/MDA survey suggested that Rousseff's opponents might have more trouble than they reckoned rallying public support for their bid to impeach her despite a severe economic slump and a graft investigation that is getting closer to the president. The number of Brazilians who favor Rousseff's impeachment has slipped to 55.6 percent from 62.8 percent in July, while 40.3 percent now oppose impeaching her, compared with 32.1 percent in July, the poll said. Those considering her government "bad" or "terrible" dropped to 62.4 percent from 70 percent in October, while those who view it as "great" or "good" has risen slightly to 11.4 percent from 8.8 percent. The poll -- which surveyed 2,002 people and had a 2.2 percent margin of error -- was conducted between Feb. 18 and 21, before the arrest of Rousseff's top political advisor and campaign strategist Joao Santana brought the corruption scandal one step closer to her. Police arrested Santana on Tuesday for allegedly receiving off-shore payments from the proceeds of a graft and bribery scheme surrounding state-run oil company Petrobras. Opposition parties jumped on Santana's arrest to try to reignite support for Rousseff's impeachment in demonstrations that fizzled out last year. The lower house of Congress has yet to decide on a request to impeach the president. The investigation of Santana has increased the risk that Rousseff's re-election in 2014 could be invalidated by Brazil's top electoral court if evidence emerges that bribe money was used to fund her campaign. Dozens of politicians in Rousseff's governing coalition are being investigated for receiving kickbacks paid from overpriced Petrobras contracts fixed by Brazil's leading engineering firms. While Rousseff is not under investigation, her mentor and predecessor as president, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, is being probed for allegedly hiding ownership of a luxury coastal resort apartment that belonging to a construction firm implicated in the Petrobras scandal. The CNT/MDA poll found that more than two in every three Brazilians hold Lula, and to a lesser extent Rousseff, responsible for the corruption at Petrobras. On Tuesday evening, opponents of Rousseff's Workers' Party banged on pots and pans in several major cities to protest the broadcast of a political ad that defended Lula's record. (Reporting by Anthony Boadle Editing by W Simon) By Estelle Shirbon LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's deal on new terms for its membership in the European Union could be undone by the European Court of Justice despite support from all member states, according to Justice Secretary Michael Gove, a senior figure among those who want Britain to leave the bloc. Gove faced a barrage of contradictory opinion, with Prime Minister David Cameron's Downing Street office, Attorney General Jeremy Wright and European Council President Donald Tusk among those saying he was wrong. Considered a policy heavyweight in the British cabinet, Gove is a close friend and political ally of Cameron, but the men are on opposite sides of the debate before a June 23 referendum on whether Britain should stay quit the EU. Gove does not have the popular appeal of London Mayor Boris Johnson, the most prominent member of the ruling Conservative Party to come out in favor of a "Brexit", but as Justice Secretary Gove's views on the legal issues will carry weight. "The facts are that the European Court of Justice is not bound by this agreement until treaties are changed, and we don't know when that will be," Gove said in a BBC interview on Wednesday. "It's important that people also realize that the European Court of Justice stands above every nation state." Downing Street issued a statement to rebut Gove's argument. "It is not true that this deal is not legally binding. Britain's new settlement in the EU has legal force and is an irreversible International Law Decision that requires the European Court of Justice to take it into account," it said. Attorney General Jeremy Wright, the government's chief legal adviser, also weighed in. "It has legal effect from the point the UK says it intends to remain in the EU, and the European Court must take it into account," he said in a statement. That was not just his opinion but that of the government's lawyers, he said. DEBATE IN BRUSSELS According to a YouGov poll published on Wednesday in the Times newspaper, 29 percent of people would trust Cameron on EU issues, while 17 percent would trust Gove. The YouGov poll, conducted online, found that the "Leave" and "Remain" camps were neck and neck. A ComRes telephone poll published on Wednesday in the Daily Mail found the "In" camp was ahead by 12 points. Tusk, who negotiated the deal with Cameron, told the European Parliament it was "legally binding and irreversible", in line with EU treaties, and "cannot be annulled by the European Court of Justice" (ECJ). During a sometimes emotional two-hour debate in Brussels that pitted pro-EU members against eurosceptics from across the EU, that view was challenged by UK Independence Party leader Nigel Farage. He noted that the EU's supreme court would not be bound by inter-government accords that breached basic treaties. Jonathan Hill, a Cameron ally who holds Britain's seat on Jean-Claude Juncker's European Commission, said on Twitter: "The ECJ has never overturned a clearly expressed binding agreement of all 28 leaders and EU presidents." EU officials told Reuters that, while there was no formal advance discussion of new legislation with the ECJ, constitutional lawyers working for the EU executive and the judiciary had regular informal contacts. An ECJ spokesman declined comment on the British debate. (Additional reporting by Elizabeth Piper in London and Alastair Macdonald in Brussels, editing by Larry King) LONDON (Reuters) - A Scottish nurse, who recovered from Ebola but then suffered life-threatening complications from the virus persisting in her brain, has been admitted to hospital for a third time, officials said on Tuesday. Pauline Cafferkey contracted Ebola in December 2014 when she was working in a treatment facility in Sierra Leone at the height of an epidemic of the disease which swept through three countries in West Africa. Cafferkey was being transferred on Tuesday from the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow to the Royal Free Hospital in London, which has a unit that was specially set up to deal with any Ebola cases in Britain. "We can confirm that Pauline Cafferkey is being transferred to the Royal Free Hospital due to a late complication from her previous infection by the Ebola virus," the hospital said in a statement. "She will now be treated by the hospital's infectious diseases team under nationally agreed guidelines." After being transferred from Sierra Leone to Britain, Cafferkey initially recovered from the Ebola hemorrhagic fever and was sent home in January last year. But in October she fell ill again and doctors found the virus was persisting in tissues in her brain. They later said she had developed meningitis caused by the Ebola virus - the first known such case. She was treated with an experimental antiviral drug known as GS5734 being developed by U.S. drugmaker Gilead Sciences, although doctors did not disclose whether they thought the drug had improved her condition. She was last discharged from the Royal Free Hospital in November. The two-year Ebola epidemic in Sierra Leone, Guinea and Liberia killed more than 11,300 people, according to the World Health Organisation. (Reporting by Estelle Shirbon and Kate Holton; editing by Michael Holden and Katharine Houreld) ABIDJAN (Reuters) - Ivory Coast said on Wednesday it has granted citizenship to Burkina Faso's former president Blaise Compaore, potentially dashing hopes he could be extradited to his neighboring native country for his role in a high-profile murder case. Burkina Faso issued an arrest warrant against Compaore in December for the murder of former president and military leader Thomas Sankara, who was assassinated 30 years ago in a case that has famously gone unsolved. The body of Sankara, sometimes called "Africa's Che Guevera", was exhumed in 2015 and an autopsy found it to be riddled with bullets. The naturalization decree, published in the Ivory Coast's official journal for January, accorded Compaore and his son Paul Francois Ivoirian citizenship. "It is a sovereign naturalization decision that took place," said Affoussiata Bamba, the government spokeswoman. "It is not necessary to judge what will come next." Ivory Coast's constitution forbids extradition of its citizens, according to a high-level jurist. Former Ivoirian president Laurent Gbagbo is currently standing trial at The Hague for crimes against humanity under an agreement signed with the International Criminal Court but Ivory Coast has no such arrangement with its neighbor. Burkina Faso and Ivory Coast share historical and colonial ties. When popular protests ousted Compaore after 27 years in power in October 2014, he fled to Ivory Coast, of which his wife is also a citizen. Ivory Coast recently extradited three Burkinabe soldiers who had been sought in connection with a failed coup d'etat last September. (Reporting by Loucoumane Coulibaly; Writing by Makini Brice; Editing by Catherine Evans) By Jan Strupczewski and Elizabeth Piper BRUSSELS (Reuters) - David Cameron hailed a landmark deal on Friday he said gave Britain "special status" in the European Union and pledged to campaign heart and soul to stay in the EU at a deeply uncertain referendum expected in June. At a summit that ran into overtime, EU leaders agreed unanimously on a package of measures aimed at keeping Britain in the 28-nation bloc to avoid a potentially disastrous divorce. Their legally binding decision granted Britain an explicit exemption from the founding goal of "ever closer union", offered concessions on the welfare rights of migrant workers and safeguards for the City of London financial centre. The British prime minister said he had achieved all his main negotiating aims and would recommend the agreement to his cabinet on Saturday, firing the starting gun on a fierce referendum campaign on Britain's future membership of the bloc. "I believe we are stronger, safer and better off inside a reformed European Union," he told a news conference. "And that is why I will be campaigning with all my heart and soul to persuade the British people to remain in the reformed European union that we have secured today." The eurosceptic "Vote Leave" campaign was quick to dismiss what it called "Cameron's hollow deal" as bad for Britain. Cameron acknowledged that one of his closest political allies, Justice Secretary Michael Gove, would campaign to leave the EU, saying he was disappointed but not surprised. He suggested other Conservatives may also join the "out" camp. He would not officially confirm the expected polling date of June 23 but said he would make an announcement soon. After two days of intense wrangling in Brussels, EU leaders determined to try to keep Britain in the union resolved outstanding disputes over migrant workers' welfare rights and relations between London and the euro zone. "So now the deal is done and its up to the British people to decide," said European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker - the man Cameron tried furiously to block for the top EU executive job, but who played a key role in crafting the deal. German Chancellor Angela Merkel, one of Britain's strongest allies in Europe, said: "We believe that with this we have given David Cameron a package with which he can campaign in Britain for Britain to stay in the European Union." The agreement delivered victory to Cameron on several of the key demands on which he chose to fight for what he called "a new settlement" with Europe. He won a commitment to change the bloc's governing treaties in future to recognise that Britain was not bound to any political union and would have safeguards against financial regulation being imposed on the City of London by the euro zone. Facing an uphill political battle at home, Cameron was concerned to show Britons that he had won concessions that he believes can reduce an influx of EU migrant workers and keep Britain out of any future political integration. In hours of wrangling with central and east European countries that provide many of Britain's low-paid immigrant workers, he secured the right to curb in-work benefits for up to four years and scale back child benefit for workers whose children remain abroad. HIGH STAKES East European countries were only partially successful in restricting Cameron's welfare cuts to new arrivals rather than the more than 1 million European migrant workers already in the UK. In the end, both sides emerged with something to show for their negotiations. The Visegrad Group, comprising Poland, Hungary, Slovakia and the Czech Republic, said the deal reflected their key demands. A compromise largely favourable to Britain was found for French concerns about differential treatment for London banks outside the euro zone as well as to Belgian grumbles about Britain setting a precedent for states to snub EU integration. Belgium did also secure what EU officials called a "self-destruct" clause whereby that the entire deal would be null and void if Britain votes to leave the EU. That would to preclude any second renegotiation. Cameron was also at pains to dismiss arguments by some British eurosceptics that a "leave" vote would lead to a better deal. "The idea that a vote to leave the European Union would lead to a whole new renegotiation is for the birds," he said. The risks of Cameron's strategy were highlighted on Friday when an opinion poll showed the campaign to leave the bloc had a two-percent lead with 36 percent support. The TNS poll showed 34 percent of British voters wanted to stay in the bloc, 7 percent would not vote and 23 percent were undecided. But the 49-year-old British leader, a former PR executive, is a formidable campaigner who confounded pollsters and pundits by winning an outright general election victory last year. Perhaps the biggest threat to his campaign could come from charismatic London mayor Boris Johnson, a eurosceptic former Brussels journalist, who has yet to disclose which side he will take in a battle that could also involve Cameron's succession. SEMI-DETACHED Britain is already the EU's most semi-detached member, having opted out of joining the euro single currency, the Schengen zone of passport-free travel and many areas of police and judicial cooperation. Summit chairman Donald Tusk said Britain had long had a special status inside the bloc. Many leaders said they felt they were at a historic turning point for European integration. No country has ever voted to leave the Union. Britain is the EU's second-largest economy and one of its two permanent members on the UN Security Council. Its exit would end the vision of the EU as the natural home for European democracies and reverse the continent's post-World War Two march toward "ever closer union". The EU issue has divided Cameron's Conservative Party for decades, crippling his 1990s predecessor John Major and bringing down his hero Margaret Thatcher. Britain's largely eurosceptic press has depicted Cameron as begging or pleading, the Daily Mail describing him as "rattled". "Shambles as embattled PM's deal is watered down," a front-page headline read over a picture of an anxious-looking Cameron. (Additional reporting by Kylie MacLellan, Gabriela Baczynska, Alissa de Carbonnel, Francesco Guarascio, Paul Carrel, Andreas Rinke, Robert-Jan Bartunek, Philip Blenkinsop, Tom Koerkemeier, Alastair Macdonald and Robin Emmott; Writing by Paul Taylor; Editing by Alastair Macdonald) By Julie Gordon VANCOUVER (Reuters) - A federal court judge in Vancouver on Wednesday ruled that medical marijuana patients have the Constitutional right to grow their own cannabis, striking down a ban introduced by Canada's previous Conservative government. The court suspended its decision for six months to give Ottawa time to respond. A group of British Columbia residents took Canada to court in 2013, arguing a new law requiring medical marijuana patients to buy cannabis from licensed producers, instead of growing their own, was unconstitutional. They said marijuana grown under the government system was too expensive and did not allow them to control the strains and dosages of their treatment. The then Conservative government, which overhauled its medical marijuana program in 2013, argued that its mail order system was safer for both the patient and other Canadians, who could be hurt by unsafe home-grow operations. In his decision, Federal Court Judge Michael Phelan said restrictions imposed by the Marihuana for Medical Purposes law were arbitrary. "The access restrictions did not prove to reduce risk to health and safety or to improve access to marihuana the purported objectives of the regulation," he wrote. In the election last October, the Liberals defeated the Conservatives. In Ottawa, new federal Health Minister Jane Philpott told reporters she would study the ruling. Philpott stressed the matter had nothing to do with recreational marijuana, which the Liberals pledged during the election campaign to regulate and legalize. "We understand that of course Canadians who require medical marijuana for the purposes of addressing their illness need to have access to it," she said. The Liberals have not addressed their plans for medical marijuana at length. Last June, Vancouver city councillors voted to license marijuana dispensaries, which operate outside the current federal framework, becoming the first Canadian city to regulate retailers selling the drug. Shares of medical marijuana producers plunged on Wednesday after the ruling, with Canopy Growth Co falling 10.79 percent to C$2.81, OrganiGram Holdings dropping 9.88 percent to 73 Canadian cents and Aphria Inc down 12.4 percent to C$1.13. (Additional reporting by David Ljunggren in Ottawa; Editing by Alan Crosby and David Gregorio) By Alister Doyle OSLO (Reuters) - Corals under threat from acid seas can only be saved by deep cuts in carbon dioxide emissions, scientists said on Wednesday, and engineering the chemistry of sea water around coral reefs was only possible on a very small scale. In a U.S.-led study, scientists mixed chemicals into a lagoon, cut off from the sea at low tide, at Australia's One Tree Island to locally reverse the global trend of acidification that makes it harder for corals to build their stony skeletons. They showed that the coral, part of Australia's Great Barrier reef, grew better when bathed in seawater mimicking conditions before the Industrial Revolution, which ushered in widespread burning of fossil fuels that release carbon dioxide. Their study, the first to isolate the impact of acidification from other damaging factors such as rising temperatures and pollution, warned that "technical challenges ... would probably make it infeasible at anything but highly localized scales (for example, protected bays, lagoons)." "The only real, lasting way to protect coral reefs is to make deep cuts in our carbon dioxide emissions," the study's co-author, Ken Caldeira, from the Carnegie Institution for Science in Stanford, California, said. Carbon dioxide forms a weak acid when mixed with water, undermining the ability of creatures such as corals, crabs, lobsters or oysters to build protective shells. "Ocean acidification is already taking its toll on coral reef communities. This is no longer a fear for the future; it is the reality of today," lead author, Rebecca Albright, also from the Carnegie Institution, said in a statement of the findings in the journal Nature. An international report in 2013 said today's pace of ocean acidification is the fastest in 55 million years. Corals alone contribute almost $30 billion a year to world economies - as nurseries for fish, tourist attractions or protective barriers from storms - according to the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Reefs are also under threat from record ocean temperatures, compounded by an El Nino weather event in the Pacific. Governments agreed a deal in Paris in December to cut greenhouse gas emissions. (Editing by Louise Ireland) BEIJING (Reuters) - China will increase to more than half the ratio of purchases of new energy vehicles by some government departments, the State Council said on Wednesday, the latest move to boost green development in a country battling to rein in pollution. The government has been pushing electric vehicles as a way of reducing the smog that frequently blankets Chinese cities, helping sales to quadruple last year. "The annual purchase ratio of new energy vehicles for central government bureaus, city government departments with new energy vehicle promotions, and public institutions will be raised above 50 percent," the State Council, or cabinet, said in a statement on a meeting chaired by Premier Li Keqiang. But the statement on the meeting, posted on the government's website, gave no details of when the policy would take effect. Automakers' latest projections for rapid growth of China's green car market have added to concerns of worsening smog as the uptake of electric vehicles powered by coal-fired grids races ahead of a switch to cleaner energy. China plans to convert the grid to renewable fuel or clean-coal technology as part of efforts to cut carbon emissions by 60 percent by 2020. (Reporting by Michael Martina; Editing by Clarence Fernandez) Washington (AFP) - China has deployed fighter jets to the same contested island in the South China Sea to which it also has sent surface-to-air missiles, US officials said. Citing two unnamed US officials, Fox News said US intelligence services had spotted Chinese Shenyang J-11 and Xian JH-7 warplanes on Woody Island in the disputed Paracel Islands chain over the past few days. Navy Captain Darryn James, a spokesman for US Pacific Command, confirmed the report but noted that Chinese fighter jets have previously used the island. Woody Island, which is also claimed by Taiwan and Vietnam, has had an operational airfield since the 1990s but it was upgraded last year to accommodate the J-11. "We are still concerned that the Chinese continue to put advanced arms systems on this disputed territory," James said Tuesday. Asked about the jets at a regular briefing Wednesday, Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying neither confirmed nor denied their existence. Hua said only that China's activities in the Paracels all fell within the scope of its sovereign territory and were therefore "in accordance with the principles of heaven and earth, and beyond reproach". "While you're paying attention to China, have you also paid attention to all the other coastal countries that have occupied Chinas islands and reefs in the past decades and deployed radar and advanced weapons there?" she asked. The deployment was reported as US Secretary of State John Kerry hosted his Chinese counterpart, Foreign Minister Wang Yi, in Washington. Last week China confirmed it had placed "weapons" on Woody Island, defending what it said was its sovereign right to do so. A US official told AFP that Beijing has deployed surface-to-air missiles on the island, apparently HQ-9s which have a range of about 125 miles (200 kilometers.) Wang had been scheduled to visit the Pentagon earlier Tuesday but the visit was canceled due to a "scheduling conflict," officials said. On Monday the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies released satellite imagery showing what appeared to be a high-frequency radar installation under construction on an artificial island on Cuarteron Reef in the Spratlys, a group of islands south of the Paracels which is also the subject of territorial disputes. China's land reclamation and military buildup in the South China Sea have drawn international condemnation and the United States has said it will continue to sail through waters claimed by Beijing. By David Brunnstrom and Arshad Mohammed WASHINGTON (Reuters) - China is "changing the operational landscape" in the South China Sea by deploying missiles and radar as part of an effort to militarily dominate East Asia, a senior U.S. military official said on Tuesday. China is "clearly militarizing the South China (Sea)," said Admiral Harry Harris, head of the U.S. Pacific Command, adding: "You'd have to believe in a flat Earth to think otherwise." Harris said he believed China's deployment of surface-to-air missiles on Woody Island in the South China Sea's Paracel chain, new radars on Cuarteron Reef in the Spratlys and its building of airstrips were "actions that are changing in my opinion the operational landscape in the South China Sea." Soon after he spoke, U.S. government sources confirmed that China recently deployed fighter jets to Woody Island. It was not the first time Beijing sent jets there but it raised new questions about its intentions. "The question is whether they might stay this time," said Gregory Poling, director of the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. But U.S. and Chinese foreign ministers signaled that despite disagreements over the South China Sea, they were near agreement on a U.N. resolution against North Korea for its recent nuclear and missile tests and stressed their cooperation on economic and other issues. 'HEGEMONY IN EAST ASIA' Speaking before the meeting in Washington between Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, Harris said China was escalating the situation in the South China Sea with new deployments. Asked about its aims, he said: "I believe China seeks hegemony in East Asia." Responding to another question, Harris said Chinese DF-21 and DF-26 anti-ship missiles could pose a threat to U.S. aircraft carriers, but added the vessels were resilient and that the United States had "the capability to do what has to be done if it comes to that." Harris also said he supported regular U.S. air and naval patrols to assert freedom of navigation in the South China Sea, a vital waterway through which more than $5 trillion in global trade passes every year. At a news conference with Kerry, Wang said there had been no problems with freedom of navigation and China and countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations - several of which have competing claims with China - "have the capability to maintain stability in the South China Sea." He said militarization was not the responsibility of one party alone and added in apparent reference to U.S. patrols: "We dont hope to see any more close-up military reconnaissance, or the dispatch of missile destroyers or strategic bombers to the South China Sea." 'ESCALATORY CYCLE' Kerry said steps by China, Vietnam and others had created an "escalatory cycle." "What we are trying to do it break that cycle," he said. "Regrettably there are missiles and fighter aircraft and guns and other things that have been placed into the South China Sea and this if of great concern to everyone who transits and relies on the South China Sea for peaceful trade," he added. A U.S. think tank reported on Monday that China may be installing a high-frequency radar system on the Cuarteron Reef in the Spratly Islands that could significantly boost its ability to control the strategic sea. Last Thursday, the United States accused China of raising tensions by its apparent deployment of surface-to-air missiles on Woody Island. China's has also built military-length airstrips on artificial islands in the South China Sea. China's Foreign Ministry said ahead of Wang's visit that Beijing's military deployments in the South China Sea were no different from U.S. deployments on Hawaii. China's Ministry of Defense said on its microblog on Tuesday that China had established "necessary defensive facilities" that were "legal and appropriate." (Reporting by David Brunnstrom; Additional reporting by Phil Stewart, Andrea Shalal, Roberta Rampton and Mark Hosenball; Editing by Frances Kerry, Tom Brown and Peter Cooney) BEIJING (Reuters) - China on Wednesday complained the media were ignoring radars and weapons deployed by other claimants in the South China Sea, and unfairly targeting China, following reports of its deployment of fighter jets and radars in the disputed waterway. Over the past week or so China has been reported to have deployed advanced missiles, fighters and radar equipment on islands in the South China Sea, especially on Woody Island in the Paracels. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying reiterated that as far as China was concerned, there was no dispute over ownership of the Paracels, and so China could deploy what it wanted on its territory without reproach. "I suggest to the media that, in your reports, you not selectively pump up or ignore things," Hua told a daily news briefing on Wednesday. "Because when you pay attention to what China is deploying, do you also pay attention to other countries which have over the years, on Chinese islands they have occupied, deployed many radars and advanced weaponry? I hope friends in the media can objectively, justly, rationally and calmly make their reports." China claims most of the South China Sea, through which more than $5 trillion in global trade passes every year. Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, the Philippines and Taiwan have rival claims. The comments, which come as Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi visits the United States, follow remarks on Tuesday by Admiral Harry Harris, head of the U.S. Pacific Command, that China was "clearly militarizing" the South China Sea. Harris said he believed China's deployment of surface-to-air missiles on Woody Island, new radars on Cuarteron Reef in the Spratlys and its building of airstrips were "actions that are changing, in my opinion, the operational landscape in the South China Sea". Soon after he spoke, U.S. government sources confirmed that China recently deployed fighter jets to Woody Island. It was not the first time China sent jets there but the move raised new questions about its intentions. China's official Xinhua news agency, in an English language commentary, said the "hype" about China's "so-called militarization" failed to mention that China had for many years deployed defensive measures on Woody Island. "For the South China Sea waters to be calm, Washington should first stop its ugly practice of smearing China and avoid any move that stirs up tension in the region," it said. (Reporting by Ben Blanchard; Editing by Clarence Fernandez) By Ben Blanchard and David Brunnstrom BEIJING/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - China's South China Sea military deployments are no different from U.S. deployments on Hawaii, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said on Monday, striking a combative tone ahead of a visit by Foreign Minister Wang Yi to the United States this week. The United States last week accused China of raising tensions in the South China Sea by its apparent deployment of surface-to-air missiles on a disputed island, a move China has neither confirmed nor denied. Asked whether the South China Sea, and the missiles, would come up when Wang is in the United States to meet Secretary of State John Kerry, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said Washington should not use the issue of military facilities on the islands as a "pretext to make a fuss". "The U.S. is not involved in the South China Sea dispute, and this is not and should not become a problem between China and the United States," Hua told a daily news briefing. U.S. State Department spokesman Mark Toner said the United States would "press China to deescalate and stop its militarization" in the South China Sea. Toner said China's "militarization activity" only escalated tensions, and added: "There needs to be a diplomatic mechanism in place that allows these territorial claims to be settled in a peaceful way." Wang is due to meet Kerry on Tuesday. Their talks will also include the international response to North Korea's recent nuclear test and rocket launch, cyber security and climate change, Toner told a regular news briefing. China hopes the U.S. abides by its promises not to take sides in the dispute and stop "hyping up" the issue and tensions, especially over China's "limited" military positions there, she said. "China's deploying necessary, limited defensive facilities on its own territory is not substantively different from the United States defending Hawaii," Hua added. U.S. ships and aircraft carrying out frequent, close-in patrols and surveillance in recent years is what has increased regional tensions, she said. "It's this that is the biggest cause of the militarization of the South China Sea. We hope that the United States does not confuse right and wrong on this issue or practice double standards." AUSTRALIA OPERATIONS URGED On Monday, a senior U.S. naval officer was reported as saying Australia and other countries should follow the U.S. lead and conduct "freedom-of-navigation" naval operations within 12 nautical miles (18 km) of contested islands in the South China Sea. China claims most of the South China Sea, through which more than $5 trillion in global trade passes every year. Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, the Philippines and Taiwan have rival claims. Beijing has rattled nerves with construction and reclamation activities on the islands it occupies, though it says these moves are mostly for civilian purposes. The state-owned China Southern Power Grid Company will set up a power grid management station in what China calls Sansha City, located on Woody Island in the Paracels, which will be able to access microgrids in 16 other islands, according to China's top regulator of state-owned assets. In the long term, the station will be able to remotely manage power for many islands there, the statement added, without specifying which islands it was referring to. Wang is scheduled to be in the United States from Tuesday until Thursday. Hua said the minister is also expected to discuss North Korea, and she repeated China's opposition to the possible U.S. deployment of an advanced U.S. missile defense system following North Korea's recent rocket launch. (Reporting Ben Blanchard and Megha Rajagopalan in Beijing and David Brunnstrom in Washington; Editing by Richard Borsuk) SHANGHAI (Reuters) - Chinese officials at all levels need to implement reforms and address lingering problems, China's president Xi Jinping said Tuesday, according to state news agency Xinhua. Xi made the remarks to high level officials including premier Li Keqiang at a meeting of the Central Leading Group for Overall Reform, the agency reported. The Central Leading Group, meant to help the senior leadership directly spearhead reform efforts, was established in 2013. "Overall, the implementation of the reforms is good," a statement from the meeting cited by Xinhua said. Officials who fail to diligently implement reforms will be "held accountable," the statement further said. (Reporting by the Shanghai Newsroom; Editing by Michael Perry) Bogota (AFP) - Two leaders of Colombia's powerful Clan Usuga gang were extradited to the US where they face drug trafficking charges in Florida, Colombian authorities said Wednesday. Arley Usuga Torres, the nephew of gang leader Dairo "Otoniel" Usuga, and Hector Mario Urdinola Arbelaez, who ran the gang's operations in the western Colombia's Valle del Cauca, were turned over to US narcotics officers, Colombian National Police said in a statement. Authorities say Clan Usuga ships tons of cocaine from Colombia to Central America and the United States. The South American country is the leading producer of coca, the raw material from which cocaine is made. Usuga Torres was arrested in December 2013 in northwest Colombia's Chigorodo, along with eight other Clan Usuga members. He was accused of illegally seizing land in northwestern Colombia as well as managing drug trafficking routes, police said. Urdinola was arrested in January 2013 at a luxurious estate in central Colombia, where he allegedly tried to form an alliance with the Libertadores del Vichada gang. The extraditions were part of an operation launched last year against Clan Usuga, which emerged after the mass demobilization of right-wing paramilitaries a decade ago. According to Colombian police, 27 people have been extradited so far this year to countries such as the United States, Spain, Brazil, France and Ecuador. Colombian authorities have said the capture of "Otoniel" would effectively break up the gang and the US government has offered a $5 million reward for information leading to his arrest or conviction. BOGOTA (Reuters) - Colombian health officials reported on Wednesday a "probable" case of microcephaly possibly linked to Zika, as the country closely watches potential impacts of the mosquito-borne virus. The country's National Health Institute said Zika virus was identified in the amniotic fluid surrounding a severely deformed and aborted fetus. The abortion was performed on an 18-year-old mother when she was 28 weeks pregnant. Photographs were not taken of the fetus, but the doctor in Popayan, in the southwestern region of Cauca, had reported the fetus having an abnormally small head and considered it microcephaly, the institute, known as INS, said. Zika infection in pregnant women has not been proven to cause microcephaly in newborns. In Brazil, a huge spike in the birth defect followed the arrival of Zika last year, leading scientists to strongly suspect a link. Colombia has had its own Zika outbreak since October, and is monitoring pregnant women exposed to the virus, but has yet to cite a case of microcephaly. The Popayan case cannot be confirmed as microcephaly since the remains of the fetus were thrown away immediately after the abortion and tests could not be made, INS said. Traces of Zika were detected in the amniotic fluid, it said. "Unfortunately in this case, the breach of guidelines by those responsible for handling the case in Cauca prevented an accurate diagnosis being reached," Martha Lucia Ospina, director of the INS said in a statement. "They discarded the fetal remains that were indispensable to diagnose or rule out Zika and the link with microcephaly and other abnormalities." Brazil said it has confirmed more than 580 cases of microcephaly, and considers most of them to be related to Zika infections in the mothers. The country is investigating more than 4,100 additional suspected cases of microcephaly. Colombia - which has reported more than 37,000 cases of Zika including 6,356 in pregnant women - is seen as a key test case for the impacts of a Zika outbreak. The health minister last week said Colombia is reconsidering its own forecast of babies likely to be born with the rare birth defect linked to Zika. The government originally projected it could see some 500-600 cases of Zika-linked microcephaly. But it may take several more weeks, or months, for cases to emerge as signs of microcephaly may only be detected very late in pregnancy, experts say. There is no vaccine or treatment for Zika, which is a close cousin of dengue and chikungunya and causes mild fever, rash and red eyes. An estimated 80 percent of people infected have no symptoms. (Reporting by Helen Murphy and Luis Jaime Acosta; Editing by Bernard Orr) By Nelson Acosta HAVANA (Reuters) - The two countries sponsoring Colombian peace talks said negotiations were back on track on Wednesday after they were thrown into disarray last week when rebel negotiators appeared in public escorted by armed and uniformed guerrillas. "An agreement has been reached to overcome recent difficulties and normalize the conversations between the parties at the table in Havana," said the statement read by representatives of Cuba and Norway, the so-called guarantors of the Colombian talks. An accord was reached after the foreign ministers of Cuba and Norway intervened with Colombian government and rebel negotiators, the statement said. The government of Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos and leftist rebels of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, have been negotiating a peace deal for more than three years in Havana and have a self-imposed March 23 deadline to reach a comprehensive pact. Latin America's longest war has killed some 220,000 people and displaced millions of others since 1964. The two sides are attempting to reach a deal that would be placed before Colombian voters for approval, with a U.N. mission supervising rebel disarmament. Norway provides diplomatic support and Cuba serves as host for the negotiations. The United States, which has poured billions of dollars into Colombia to fight the illicit drugs trade, is also supporting the talks behind the scenes through a special envoy. Both the government and the rebels had indicated the March 23 deadline will likely be missed. More discord erupted following last week's display by the rebels, which the Colombian government saw as a provocation. Three members of the FARC negotiating team had been given permission to travel to northern La Guajira province to explain details of an accord to FARC members, but the government said they violated the terms under which they were allowed to return by participating in public events with armed fighters. Santos suspended any further visits and asked the International Committee of the Red Cross to help the FARC representatives return to Cuba immediately. (Reporting by Nelson Acosta; Editing by Daniel Trotta and Jeffrey Benkoe) By Andrew M. Seaman (Reuters Health) - Marijuana is sending visitors to Colorado to hospital emergency rooms at an increasing rate, according to a new study. The same isn't true of Colorado residents, however. The results suggest that marijuana dispensaries need to do a better job of educating people buying their product, said the study's lead author. "The thing wed like to emphasize is that the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment has done a good job of educating residents about the health effects of marijuana legalization and marijuana use," said Dr. Howard Kim, of the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago. "I think reaching visitors is a much harder task," said Kim, who worked on the study while at the University of Colorado School of Medicine in Aurora. Alaska, Colorado, Oregon, Washington and the District of Columbia have all legalized the recreational use of small amounts of marijuana, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Colorado legalized medical marijuana in 2000, the researchers note in the New England Journal of Medicine. The state then voted in 2012 to legalize recreational marijuana starting in 2014. "We noticed an increasing number of patients coming to the ER who seemed to be from out of town and we decided to look at the data to see if that was the case," said Kim. For the study, they compared data on visits to their ER for causes related to use of various drugs by Colorado residents and people from out of state. Symptoms involved in the visits included cardiac, respiratory and gastric problems as well as "altered mental status." They found that ER visits related to marijuana by people from out of state nearly doubled, from 85 per 100,000 visits in 2013 to 168 per 100,000 visits in 2014, which is the first year recreational marijuana was sold legally. Meanwhile, ER visits for marijuana use remained stable for Colorado residents between 2013 and 2014 at about 110 per 100,000 visits. Rates of marijuana-related ER visits were also consistent for the two groups between 2012 and 2013, which was before legalized recreational marijuana. To confirm their findings on a larger scale, the researchers then looked at the same data from more than 100 hospitals across Colorado and got similar results. For example, ER visits related to marijuana use by people from out of state increased about 46 percent between 2013 and 2014. That compared to about a 17 percent increase among Colorado residents. ER visits related to use of other drugs did not change as dramatically over the same time period. Statewide, for example, ER visits for opioids rose by about 10 per 10,000 among both visitors and residents. Kim said a number of reasons could explain the larger increase in cannabis-related ER visits among people from outside Colorado. For example, people on vacations tend to use more marijuana. Also, visitors may be trying marijuana edibles, which have delayed effects, for the first time. The researchers also caution that doctors might have become more aware of marijuana use after legalization. "I would say visitors to states with legal marijuana should be aware of side effects of legal marijuana use," said Kim. "If they decide to use, they should do it safely and in moderation." In states considering marijuana legalization, he said, policymakers should think of campaigns to educate the public and anticipate this as an issue. SOURCE: http://bit.ly/1P2XgLp New England Journal of Medicine, online February 24, 2016. KABUL (Reuters) - Afghanistan's Independent Election Commission publicly confirmed the official results of the disputed 2014 election on Wednesday, more than a year and a half after the vote that elevated former finance minister Ashraf Ghani to the presidency. The 2014 election, touted as the first peaceful democratic transfer of power in Afghanistan, descended to the brink of chaos as Ghani and his rival, Abdullah Abdullah, traded accusations of fraud. According to the official numbers, Ghani won a runoff election in June 2014 with 55.27 percent of the vote to Abdullah's 44.73 percent. It was at the request of both candidates, who now share power as part of a U.S.-brokered unity government, that the election commission delayed the release of the official numbers, said the commission's chief, Ahmad Yousuf Nuristani. "We had given election results on a CD to both candidates at that time," he told Reuters. "We did not announce the certified results at that time, as both candidates had agreed that based on our country's national interests, not to announce the results. We, based on our country's national interest, respected this suggestion. Now it is our duty to release them." In the end, roughly 800,000 votes of more than 7 million overall ballots separated the candidates, according to the commission, which faced heavy criticism over its handling of the vote. More than 850,000 ballots were invalidated after months of recounting under the supervision of the United Nations. Of those invalidated votes, more than 567,000 were cast for Ghani, while more than 284,000 were cast for Abdullah, who now serves in a custom-made role as chief executive. Efforts to broker a power-sharing agreement dragged on in 2014 over Abdullah's insistence that the results, which he regarded as fraudulent, not be released, according to officials at the time. On Wednesday Abdullah's office criticized the election commission for delaying the release of the certified numbers. "We do not trust the election commission," Abdullah's deputy spokesman, Javid Faisal, told Reuters. "If it was a trustworthy commission and if it was loyal to its work, then why did they not announce its results on time? From our point of view, their announcement does not mean anything." Ghani's office declined to comment on the commission's announcement. (Reporting by Mirwais Harooni; writing by Josh Smith) Lyle Denniston, the National Constitution Centers constitutional literacy adviser, looks at how Supreme Court nominee gridlock could lead to a very unlikely, but not unprecedented, option for the Chief Justice. THE STATEMENT AT ISSUE: Under the particular circumstances under which this vacancy arises, we wish to inform you of our intention to exercise our constitutional authority to withhold consent on any nominee to the Supreme Court submitted by the President to fill Justice Scalias vacancy. Because our decision is based on constitutional principle and born of a necessity to protect the will of the American people, this Committee will not hold hearings on any Supreme Court nominee until after our next President is sworn in on January 20, 2017. Excerpt from a letter by all 11 Republican members of the majority of the Senate Judiciary Committee to the Senate majority leader on February 23, outlining their decision to take no action even to consider a nominee by President Obama to replace the late Justice Antonin Scalia no hearings and no votes. WE CHECKED THE CONSTITUTION, AND The Supreme Court, under the Constitution, has no specific guarantee of protection against the actions of the other two branches of government that might make the Justices job a lot harder. And that means that, if the Senate does indeed get gridlocked over replacing one of its members who has died or retired, the courts work very likely will be seriously affected by the predictable problems of operating with one Justice short. There is no existing forum where the Justices could go to complain about the impact on their work. It is true that the court does talk to Congress about the work of the Justices and of the lower federal courts, and some of the Justices regularly go before legislative committees to explain how the courts will spend the money that they ask Congress to appropriate to fund their operations But the court is very reluctant to engage in anything like lobbying that would seem outside its purely judicial role. It well understands the constitutional idea of separation of powers. Story continues Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr., recently complained in a public speech about what he saw as a perception among some in the public that the court is a political institution, operating as the other two branches do. It is thus hard to imagine him having any role in trying to get the Senate to move along the nomination of a new Justice to replace the late Justice Antonin Scalia. But once in history, faced with what it considered to be a threat to its very existence, the court did get involved in a subtle gesture of lobbying, and it is one that historians have ever since debated as to its propriety. In 1937, President Franklin Roosevelt, frustrated by repeated decisions of the Supreme Court striking down key features of his New Deal program to help the country get through the Depression, sent to Congress what came to be known as the court-packing plan. For every Justice over the age of 70 who chose to remain on the court, the president would have been allowed to name a new Justice, potentially adding six new members to the court and, of course, assuring that the remainder of the New Deal initiatives would be upheld. The main argument the president and his aides made for the proposal was that the court was over-worked, and needed some new help. At a strategic point in the Senates consideration of the plan, Chief Justice Charles Evans Hughes, in a series of private meetings with senators, agreed to write a letter to the Judiciary Committee, explaining that the court was current in its work and needed no additional Justices. The letter landed in the committee like a bombshell. Historians, as would be expected, are divided over whether this was the decisive move that ultimately led to the demise of the Roosevelt plan, but it certainly had some impact, even if not the decisive one. In the courts present situation, following the death of Justice Scalia, the members of the court are likely to try to work out ways to cope with the vacancy and with it, the potential for a series of 4-to-4 decisions, that essentially decide nothing. But if the vacant seat remains unfilled for an extended period say, for a full year or more the court may find itself out of options to delay review of major cases, and may have to give in to issuing a series of 4-to-4 outcomes. Major issues, broadly affecting American life and culture, could go undecided in a final way. Assuming that prolonged delay in the Senate would begin to actually disrupt the courts operations, especially in dealing with major constitutional questions, would the court then feel compelled to tell the Senate that it genuinely needs a ninth Justice? If such a message were sent discreetly, perhaps in a letter quietly solicited by some senator, would Chief Justice Roberts be inclined to do it? He probably would not even consider doing it unless the institution he heads had begun to flounder in its constitutional task. It would be certain, though, that Roberts would not make the one crucial mistake that Chief Justice Hughes did in 1937, failing to consult with all the members of the court at that time before sending the letter. That omission undercut the strength of the Hughes letter, making it seem that the whole court was not behind it. It thus looked to be more politically calculating, and may even have harmed the courts reputation at least with some historians. Would there be a political calculation in it if Roberts did agree to take some action? In other words, would he rather not have an Obama nominee taking the Scalia seat because that might shift the court in a more decidedly liberal direction? It does seem improper even to suggest it, especially given Roberts current worry about how the public views the court in the midst of a deeply polarized Washington establishment. But there no doubt would be suspicions along those lines anyway, and that reality probably provides another reason to assume that the Chief Justice would stay out of the fray. All such considerations, however, might begin to lose their force if the eight Justices did, indeed, find themselves stymied in major ways by the continuing effect of one empty seat. Propriety might then have to give way to necessity. Recent Stories on Constitution Daily Constitution Check: Will America follow the Popes lead against the death penalty? If Abraham Lincoln had died 1861, who would have replaced him? 10 fascinating facts for George Washingtons real birthday By Daniel Trotta and Nelson Acosta HAVANA (Reuters) - The Cuban government has granted seven dissidents who are out of prison on parole one-time permission to travel outside the country in an apparent gesture to the United States ahead of a visit by President Barack Obama. Four others in the same category were not granted the permission for reasons not immediately clear, dissidents reported. U.S. critics of Obama's opening to Cuba have complained the president has received little in return for restoring diplomatic relations with the former Cold War enemy. To cement improving ties, Obama will visit Cuba on March 21-22. Around the time of detente in December 2014, Cuba's Communist government released 53 people whom Washington considered political prisoners, but since then has resumed detentions. On average more than 700 people were detained short-term each month in 2015, according to the Cuban Commission of Human Rights and National Reconciliation. Cuba considers the opponents a tiny minority that has lost legitimacy by accepting funding indirectly from the U.S. government. The seven were summoned to the Interior Ministry and told they would be granted one trip abroad, though upon their return they would resume serving sentences out of prison with a ban on foreign travel. "It appears to be some kind of gift they want to present to Obama, but in reality it is nothing concrete because when we come back we will return to legal limbo," said Martha Beatriz Roque, one of the 11. They were among 75 opponents rounded up in the 2003 Black Spring crackdown. With the intervention of the Roman Catholic Church and Spain, all 75 were released in 2010 and 2011 under the condition that they leave Cuba. However, the 11 holdouts refused and opted to remain in prison rather than abandon their homeland. Eventually they were allowed to continue serving their sentences, which range from 18 to 25 years, while out of prison. Among those denied travel permission was Jose Daniel Ferrer, leader of the Patriotic Union of Cuba, which claims 3,000 members, making it the largest dissident group in Cuba. "It's a little gift ahead of the Obama visit for those seven. The other four, we were not were not even offered this little present because, according to the regime, those seven behave well and the four of us behave poorly, something we reject," Ferrer said. U.S. officials were not immediately available for comment. Cuba declines to comment on criminal justice matters. (Reporting by Daniel Trotta; Editing by Alan Crosby) Female cuckoos are brilliant masters of disguise at least when it comes to laying their eggs. A new study finds that mothers invade other species' nests and lay eggs that look remarkably similar to those that actually belong there, in an effort to hide the foreign eggs in plain sight. For about a century, researchers have been investigating how different female cuckoos manage to lay eggs in such a wide variety of colors and patterns so that unsuspecting birds can't tell the difference between their own eggs and imposters. Now, scientists at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) have solved one piece of the egg puzzle: The gene that causes cuckoos to lay blue eggs is determined by the mother alone. [The 7 Weirdest Moms in the Animal Kingdom] "The enigma for scientists is the distinct colors and patterns of eggs mimicking different host species," said lead study author Frode Fossy, a research scientist in the Department of Biology at NTNU. "We do know that males and females from different host races mate with each other. If not, each host race would quickly become a separate species." If the genes that affect egg color were carried by both males and females, any mating could result in eggs that are a mixture of the two colors and patterns, which would thus not mimic the host bird's eggs at all. In other words, the male cuckoo's genes could mess up the disguise. Birds have Z and W chromosomes, which work similarly to X and Y chromosomes in mammals. Male birds have ZZ and females have ZW, and so the gene for blue eggs could be carried on the Z chromosome, the researchers said. Another explanation could be that it is passed on in mitochondrial DNA, which scientists think is only passed on by mothers, they added. The researchers homed in only on the genes for blue eggs, not any other colors, but they studied a wide variety of samples, including some eggs that are more than 100 years old. Story continues Blue eggs are thought to have originated from Asia, around 2.6 million years ago. In Europe, blue eggs are most commonly found in common redstart nests, but have also been found in pied flycatcher, winchat and wheatear nests, the researchers said. These are the species that cuckoos are likely to try to dupe by depositing their blue eggs in the other birds' nests. However, the cuckoo's plan isn't foolproof, and sometimes the wily birds are found out and their eggs are kicked out and destroyed by suspecting host birds. "There is a continuously ongoing arms race between cuckoos and their hosts," Fossy told Live Science. "As cuckoo eggs evolve to be more like the hosts' eggs, the hosts themselves become better and better at recognizing and ejecting cuckoo eggs from their nests." It is not known whether the cuckoos or the host birds are winning the arms race, but Fossy said many host species are declining in population throughout Europe, and cuckoos are also declining as a result. Fossy said he and his colleagues are interested in studying other egg colors in addition to blue ones. The blue eggs had a long documented history that made them ideal for this research, but more genetic data is needed to ask the same questions of other colored eggs, the researchers said. "We have recently sequenced the complete genomes of several cuckoos and this will be the focus of our work for the next couple of years," Fossy said. "Hopefully, we will be able to say something about the other egg colors during this work." The new study was published in the journal Nature Communications. Follow Live Science @livescience, Facebook & Google+. Original article on Live Science. Copyright 2016 LiveScience, a Purch company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Copenhagen (AFP) - Denmark's famed Noma restaurant may have been voted the world's best four times, but it is no longer top in its home country, according to foodie bible the Michelin Guide. The latest Nordic edition of the French-based guide, unveiled Wednesday, gave its prized three-star rating to another Copenhagen eatery, the Geranium -- the first in Denmark to receive top Michelin marks. Noma, which was named best restaurant in the world by Britain's Restaurant magazine in 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2014, was left with only two, still impressive but the same as last year. Geranium's top chef Rasmus Kofoed, who received one of international cooking's most coveted prizes, the Bocuse d'Or, in 2011, opened his bio-friendly restaurant in 2007, won his first Michelin star in 2012 and his second a year later. In Denmark, the latest Michelin rating did not surprise gastronomes, who spoke of Geranium's consistently superlative standards. "Noma makes food into a plaything, its dishes are too all over the place to get three stars. They serve entertaining cuisine, but there is a little too much banter and jokes for Michelin," the editor-in-chief of Gastro magazine Jesper Uhrup Jensen told DR public television. France's "La Liste," which collates the views of about 200 gastronomic guides and websites, puts Geranium at 173 in its global rankings, ahead of Noma at number 217. The only other Nordic restaurant to receive three Michelin stars is Oslo's Maaemo, which also got its top rating this year, joining the exclusive club of just 116 three-star eateries worldwide. Dermot Mulroney is checking in to CBS' Bunker Hill. The Shameless actor has been tapped to topline the network's Jason Katims medical drama, The Hollywood Reporter has learned. Bunker Hill follows a young Silicon Valley tech titan (Augustus Prew) who enlists a veteran surgeon with a controversial past in starting a hospital with a cutting-edge, "new school" approach to medicine. Read More: TV Pilots 2016: The Complete Guide Mulroney will portray Walter Wallace, a brilliant surgeon committed to saving lives who might care a little too much about his patients. He joins a cast that also includes Brenda Song as Angie, a programmer at the hospital. The casting marks Mulroney's latest broadcast gig following NBC's Crisis and recurring roles on Fox's New Girl and CBS' Extant. His cable and streamer roles include HBO's Enlightened and Amazon's Mozart in the Jungle. On the film side, his credits include My Best Friend's Wedding, August: Osage County and The Family Tree. Mulroney is repped by WME and Jackoway Tyerman. Friday Night Lights and Parenthood alum Katims penned the script for Bunker Hill and will executive produce alongside his Universal Television-based True Jack topper Michelle Lee. David Semel (Madam Secretary) also will exec produce and direct the pilot. The drama, redeveloped from last pilot season, is a co-production between Universal Television and CBS Television Studios. Keep up with all the latest pickups, castings and eventual series orders with THR's handy guide to pilot season. Cannes' Palme d'Or winning film "Dheepan" is heading towards release in the US and UK in the next few months, and an English-subtitled trailer lays out its potent story of fight and flight. Arriving in Europe after escaping service as one of Sri Lanka's Tamil Tigers, Dheepan and his makeshift family finally settle in a suburb of Paris. But Dheepan's new job as a tower block janitor hardly makes for peaceful living when he gets drawn into the rough estate's violence. French director Jacques Audiard received the Palme d'Or at the Cannes International Film Festival in May 2015, while the film is in the running for a total of nine accolades at the Cesar Awards on February 26, including Best Actor for its lead, Antonythasan Jesuthasan. "Dheepan" opens in the UK on April 8th and in the USA on May 13th. Dheepan - Official UK trailer: youtu.be/QpXHi7TGYpg By MacDonald Dzirutwe HARARE (Reuters) - Zimbabwe's Diamond Mining Company (DMC) plans to sue the government for breach of contract after the Southern African nation banned gem mining in the east of the country, a company official said on Wednesday. Zimbabwe's mines minister on Monday ordered nine companies operating in the Marange fields to stop all mining activities and leave immediately because their licences had expired. DMC general manager Ramzi Malik said that its joint venture contract stipulates that renewing licences was the responsibility of the government, through its state mining arm Zimbabwe Mining Development Corporation (ZMDC). He said the investment agreements were valid and indefinite and therefore Harare was in breach. Asked whether DMC would go to court if the government did not reconsider, Malik said: "I am sure we will." "If you are removing the concession it means you are in breach," Malik said. Any action by DMC could trigger similar moves by other mining firms, that could set them on a collision course with President Robert Mugabe's government, which has unnerved the industry with its policy to force foreign-owned mines to sell majority shares to locals. DMC is a 50-50 joint venture between United Arab Emirates-registered Pure Diamonds and ZMDC. Mines Minister Walter Chidhakwa could not be reached for immediate comment. He said on Monday that Harare's decision was not negotiable and police would be deployed to protect the mines. He added that the state was not nationalising the mines. Malik, however, said that unknown people had on Monday night broken into the mine and stolen solar panels, generating batteries and office equipment, while fuel from generators and earthmoving equipment was drained. "The value is in thousands of dollars. There is going to be a lot of loss, a lot," Malik said. DMC was producing between 35,000 and 45,000 carats of diamonds each month, said Malik, who added that there were no diamond stocks at the mine when it was shut. Officials from Mbada Diamonds and Chinese-run Anjin said on Wednesday that they were trying to persuade the government to reconsider. (Editing by James Macharia and Louise Heavens) In 1752, Londoners rioted over the Whig governments decision to switch from the Julian to the Gregorian calendar. Tory voters had been convinced that the one-time elimination of eleven days required by the reconciliation of the two calendars would shorten their life spans. Give us back our eleven days! became the rallying cry of the 1754 election. Not much has changed in the world of politics. Hoodwinking the uninformed has always loomed large in elections, and today is no exception. Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump have emerged as frontrunners in their respective parties, and both are enthusiastically supported by undereducated voters those without college degrees. Related: Why Marco Rubio Might Just Beat Hillary Clinton Many of those turning out for Trump have a high-school education and have never participated in politics before because no one had ever spoken to their concerns. For that, he should be celebrated. This makes this election unusual, since such voters typically vote for Democrats. This is why neither Ted Cruz nor Jeb Bush, who have attacked Trump most enthusiastically, have been able to dull Trumps momentum. Ted Cruz is forever reminding caucus and primary participants that Trump is not a real conservative. He imagines Trump followers sitting at home scoring the developers statements against an ideological true north. Ex-Im Bank? Check. TPP? Check. Abortion? Check twice. Meanwhile, Jeb Bush, a nice man but a dreadful candidate who has now thankfully left the race, was convinced that if only he could get more air-time to expound his intelligent views on income tax reform or trade policy, his ranks would swell. He actually thought people would rally to his moderate, achievable program, not recognizing that as seriously as the folks in Iowa take their first-in-the-country status and New Hampshirites pride themselves on their turnout, too many of those people are swept up this year in instinct and emotion. And, he faced too many rivals going after the same voters. Story continues Related: The NY Times Just Made Rubio the Hero of the Struggling Middle Class Neither Bush nor Cruz nor anyone else in the race has recognized that some defined portion of the electorate has rallied to Trump based entirely on their gut. The billionaire developer makes people feel good by vowing to Make America Great Again and to build a wall on the southern border. Most people probably realize that Trump has literally no chance of delivering on his promises; they dont care. Trumps one-liners are good enough. But, they are not good enough for the country. A Hillary Clinton win in November would make permanent many of the policies put in place by President Obama over the past seven years, weakening our country both domestically and overseas. It is hard to overestimate the potential cost, and it is hard to convince voters of just how damaging to our economy many of Obamas dictates will be. Many are visible and much discussed, such as his war on coal; others like the creative use of disparate impact to extort billions of dollars from lenders much less so. But, there are plenty of red flags to alarm voters. For the first time in 35 years, more companies are going under than are being formed. Or, the continued low level of workforce participation, and huge number of people on disability. Or, the stagnation of wages and declining competitiveness in key sectors. And, the miserable state of our public education, and the consequent decline in upward mobility. Related: Rubio, the Unlikely Establishment Candidate, Is Now Trumps Main Rival There are so many warning signs. Americans sense that something is wrong. Gallup surveys show that only 19 percent of Americans have confidence in government, one of the lowest readings in the past several decades. Polls say that nearly two-thirds of the country thinks the Unites States is heading in the wrong direction. Perhaps the biggest warning sign is the popularity of Donald Trump, a candidate who blusters, threatens, and breaks all the rules. As the field narrows and the race becomes more serious, voters must ask, is Donald Trump the right man to solve our nations problems? Will he dig in and work to bring about much-needed shifts in education or tax policy? Can he help shrink the size of government and restore common sense? Can he buttress US alliances overseas? Appoint outstanding Supreme Court justices; rework the Affordable Care Act, effect needed entitlement reform? Doubtful. Donald Trump has opinions, not policies. He wants to repeal Obamacare but likes the individual mandate, the bulwark of the unpopular law. He favors higher taxes and is okay with Planned Parenthood, but reverses course when challenged by right-wing voters. His vague wanderings through the issues of our day will eventually catch up with him maybe in the next few weeks. There are some signs his polling if weakening; given more time, the contradictions will begin to eat into his lead. Related: Rubio Now Emerges As the Man Who Top Donors Tag to Beat Trump Time, however, is running out. For those serious about defeating Hillary in November, the trick is to find and support a candidate capable of beating the Democratic front-runner, while keeping some of the Trump supporters engaged. Many think the best shot for the GOP is Marco Rubio. Ted Cruz is not liked and has cleaved too closely to Trumps vision, in hopes of scooping up his supporters when and if the developer fades. Rubio has perhaps ventured too far right for many moderate Republicans in order to succeed in the primaries, but his favorables still augur well for success in November. Rubio has been reluctant to challenge Trump mano-a-mano, an intelligent read of the New Yorkers ability to eviscerate his rivals. Now, however, is the time. Rubio does not have to attack Trumps unreasonable promise to deport 11 million undocumented people living in the US. He does not have to challenge the real estate magnates improbable plan to slap onerous tariffs on Chinese goods. Instead, as the field narrows, Rubio can appeal to Republicans who know better. Those who hope for sensible governing, who are keen for the intelligent educational reforms Rubio has promised, who see the popular young senator as the best hope of beating Hillary Clinton -- who are not blinded by Trumps bluster. For those undereducated voters streaming to Trump, Rubio can offer an agenda of opportunity that great and enduring promise of America. Hes good at that. Unlike Mr. Trump, Marco Rubio has walked in their shoes. And, look at him now. Top Reads from The Fiscal Times: Samsung has done a lot of crowing about its soon-to-be-released Galaxy S7 flagship phone this week and one of the features that Samsung has touted the most has been the devices camera. Phandroid this week posted some samples taken with the Galaxy S7 in low-light conditions and compared them to photos taken in the same conditions by the Galaxy S6 and the iPhone 6s. In short, it looks like the Galaxy S7s camera really lives up to the hype. FROM EARLIER: NASA is working on tech that could enable trips to Mars in just 3 days Heres the photo taken with the iPhone 6s, which lacks optical image stabilization technology and is thus not ideal for snapping pics in low-light conditions: Heres the photo taken with the Galaxy S6, which does come equipped with OIS. You can see its much brighter: And heres the photo snapped with the Galaxy S7. Youll notice the leap in quality pretty much immediately: With a new Sony IMX260 camera sensor that captures more light by using larger 1.4m pixels (at the cost of less megapixels), Samsung says the Galaxy S7 is capable of capturing 95% more light than the IMX240 sensor found in the Galaxy S6, Phandroid explains. The Galaxy S7 camera also uses all of the 12 million pixels to act as focus pixels, a feature you typically only find in full-sized DSLRs (phase detection auto focus). At any rate, it looks like Samsung has raised the bar for Apple this year when it releases the iPhone 7. Check out Phandroids full video comparing the three phones cameras below. Related stories T-Mobile tests waterproof Galaxy S7 claims with an underwater unboxing video Have Apple's rivals finally stopped copying the iPhone? Galaxy S7 vs. LG G5: Does innovation trump power and momentum? More from BGR: Video shows how the iPhone 7s dual-camera system might be a game-changer This article was originally published on BGR.com BRUSSELS (Reuters) - European Council President Donald Tusk told the European Parliament on Wednesday that a deal struck by EU leaders last week to help keep Britain in the bloc is "irreversible" and cannot be annulled by EU judges. Tusk, who chaired Friday's summit, said the decision by the 28 leaders was "legally binding and irreversible". He said it was "in conformity with the treaties and cannot be annulled by the European Court of Justice". The issue of a possible court reversal of the plan has been raised by British supporters of a vote to leave the European Union at a referendum on June 23. (Reporting by Alastair Macdonald; @macdonaldrtr; Editing by Alison Williams) By Rod Nickel WINNIPEG, Manitoba (Reuters) - China plans to toughen its standard for imported Canadian canola starting April 1, reducing the amount of foreign material it allows per shipment, an industry group warned Canada's exporters and processors on Tuesday. China's quarantine authority, AQSIQ, notified the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) on Tuesday that it will soon allow no more than 1 percent dockage, or the amount of foreign material per canola shipment, Canola Council of Canada President Patti Miller said in an email seen by Reuters. "We will be talking about next steps in escalating the issue politically as well as through government channels," Miller wrote. The current allowable dockage range is 2 percent to 2.5 percent, said a Canadian-based canola exporter, who did not have permission to speak publicly. Foreign material can include seeds of other plants or straw that gets inadvertently mixed with the shipment. CFIA had no immediate comment. Miller and officials at China's consulate in Vancouver could not immediately be reached for comment. The new standard will be difficult and costly for Canadian exporters to meet, said the canola exporter. Some traders may hesitate to ship canola to China for fear of having it rejected or discounted, the exporter added. China has expressed renewed concerns since December about the possible presence of the fungus blackleg in shipments, but exporters suspect China's motivation for slowing imports is linked to its ample domestic inventories, the exporter said. Traders and industry analysts in China have anticipated the dockage restriction since earlier this year and they attribute the decision to helping sell down China's large domestic rapeseed oil stockpiles, which deteriorate over time. China holds about 5.8 million tonnes of rapeseed oil following years of stockpiling. "The restriction is surely to help sales of state reserves. It could hurt rapeseed imports," said one trader with an international trading house. Canola, also known as rapeseed, is crushed mainly to produce vegetable oil. Chinese buyers have increased imports of Canadian canola for shipment from April to June as crushing margins have improved, said the trader, adding monthly imports may exceed 300,000 tonnes. China's quarantine bureau, the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine, or AQSIQ, had no immediate comment when contacted by Reuters. The Canola Council's Miller said in her letter that AQSIQ has previously said it would honor shipping contracts already in place. Rumors about China clamping down contributed to a 2 percent plunge on Tuesday in ICE March canola futures. China was the biggest importer of Canadian canola during the 2014/15 crop year, buying 4.1 million tonnes, according to Statistics Canada data. Canada is the world's biggest canola exporter. Shippers include Cargill Ltd [CARGIL.UL] [CARG.UL], Archer Daniels Midland Co, Viterra Inc [VILC.UL], Louis Dreyfus Corp [LOUDR.UL] and Richardson International. Chinese authorities notified the Canadian government as far back as 2009 that it would not accept canola with blackleg, but it later agreed to accept it at some of its domestic crushing plants. (Additional reporting by Niu Shuping and Beijing newsroom. Editing by Cynthia Osterman and Christian Schmollinger) By Ernest Scheyder HOUSTON (Reuters) - New York state's comptroller and four other Exxon Mobil shareholders asked the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission this week to force the oil producer to include a climate change resolution in its annual shareholder proxy, according to a filing seen by Reuters. The move, the first since the Paris climate accord, ratchets up the tension between the world's largest publicly traded oil company and a growing chorus of investors concerned that climate change or legislation designed to curb it will harm Exxon's ability to operate profitably. It also comes as Exxon is fighting an inquiry by New York state's attorney general into whether it misled the public and shareholders about the risks of climate change. New York City officials have also launched efforts to force greater climate disclosure by Exxon. Exxon told the SEC last month it intended to block a vote on the resolution at its annual meeting this May, claiming it was vague and asked for metrics that are hard to quantify. It is not uncommon for companies to attempt to block shareholder resolutions if executives feel such resolutions have little to do with core operations. New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli, who oversees the state's $178.3 billion pension fund, said in a filing with the SEC that the information is crucial to helping making an informed decision about whether or not to invest in the oil company. "As investors, we need to know how Exxon Mobil's bottom line will be impacted by the global effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and what the company plans to do about it," DiNapoli said in a statement to Reuters. Exxon and the SEC declined to comment. The SEC will likely issue a ruling before Exxon sends its proxy materials to shareholders later this spring. Exxon has said in the past that climate change poses little risk to its reserves and that it would start providing some information about how it arrived at this conclusion. Story continues The company has also said it has worked transparently for years on climate science and has properly disclosed business risks. That does not go far enough for New York State, the Church of England and other shareholders who own Exxon shares worth more than $1 billion. The group, led by DiNapoli, wants the company to include a shareholder proposal in its annual proxy that, if approved, would require Exxon to report annually how it could be affected by climate change regulations. PARIS Late last year, representatives of 195 countries in Paris committed to rein in rising emissions that have been blamed for global warming. Exxon rivals such as ConocoPhillips and Hess Corp acknowledged the reality of climate change and said they agree steps should be taken to curb its effects. The Paris deal aims to limit the rise in global temperatures to under 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial levels, a mark scientists believe could be a tipping point for the climate. It was that 2 degree target that DiNapoli's group used as a benchmark, asking, in effect, that Exxon study the effects of such a policy change. The United States has yet to ratify the Paris proposal, though Obama administration officials are confident it will occur. "We believe that our desire to see reporting on how Exxon Mobil's business would fare were warming to be restricted to 2 degrees Celsius is widely shared in the institutional investor community," Edward Mason, head of responsible investment for the Church of England's commissioners, said in a statement. In its rebuttal to the SEC last month, Exxon said the proposal was too vague and that it had already honored the spirit of the proposal's intention, in part by publishing a 2014 report on its website entitled, "Energy and Carbon Managing the Risks." DiNapoli and the church were joined in the SEC filing by the Vermont State Employees' Retirement System, the University of California Retirement Plan and the Brainerd Foundation. (Reporting by Ernest Scheyder; Editing by Terry Wade and Andrew Hay) The Galaxy S7 was just announced and its already impressing Android fans all over the world. The handset is one of the best, if not the best high-end device announced during Barcelonas mobile event this year, and thats abundantly clear from the moment you pick one up to try it for the first time. Rather than creating a new design, Samsung stuck with what worked for the Galaxy S6 and made several improvements under the hood that fans will immediately notice and appreciate. While the first Galaxy S7 reviews have yet to arrive, a display expert has already managed to get his hands on the phone and has analyzed it in order to determine whether or not Samsungs flagships still have the worlds best display. DONT MISS: Have Apples rivals finally stopped copying the iPhone? The news comes from DisplayMate screen expert Raymond Soneira, who has closely inspected every major smartphone released in recent years, including previous Android from Samsung. Until the Galaxy S7 rolled along, DisplayMate said the Super AMOLED screen on the Galaxy Note 5 was the best in the world even better than the Galaxy S6. That conclusion just changed because Samsung managed to create an AMOLED screen thats just as good as the Note 5s but with pixels that are packed even more densely, which is quite an accomplishment indeed. According to Soneira, the Galaxy S7s screen impresses because components had to be scaled down by 20% compared to the Galaxy Note 5 without losing performance. The new display is also 24% brighter than the Galaxy S6s screen at maximum brightness. Soneira also discovered that the Galaxy S7 brings over two important display enhancements, including the Always-On Display mode that delivers permanent notifications while barely affecting battery life. The second one is even more interesting, a Personalized Automatic Brightness Control mode that learns and remembers the users various settings in certain ambient lighting. The feature is useful not only because the phone switches brightness levels automatically based on what your current lighting conditions and preferences are, but also because is conserves energy in the process. Story continues When it comes to comparing it to the iPhone 6s, the expert says that Samsungs AMOLED beats Apples LCD panel in several key ways, highlighting one particular type of use where the Galaxy S7 is better than the iPhone 6s: Using polarized glasses. The Galaxy S7 and Galaxy Note 5 are neck-and-neck record holders for display performance, effectively tied or alternating between first and second place in almost all categories except screen size for the much larger Galaxy Note 5, and the much higher pixels per inch for the Galaxy S7, Soneira wrote. What is especially impressive is that the overall display specs and performance of the Galaxy S7 have been maintained or improved after being scaled down by 20 percent in area from the Galaxy Note 5. So as the result of its even higher PPI, the Galaxy S7 becomes the Best Performing Smartphone Display that we have ever tested. DisplayMates extremely detailed Galaxy S7 display analysis is available at this link. Related stories Early photos suggest Galaxy S7's camera lives up to the hype I found the first Android phone that has iPhone 6s-style 3D Touch T-Mobile tests waterproof Galaxy S7 claims with an underwater unboxing video More from BGR: Video shows how the iPhone 7s dual-camera system might be a game-changer This article was originally published on BGR.com Think selfies are a waste of time? Try telling me that when I'm using mine to pay for lunch. MasterCard is launching a "selfie pay" authentication method to let you use your face as a password that authorizes mobile shopping transactions. The feature is expected to roll out this year, starting with 14 countries, including the U.K.. All this is done via MasterCard's Identity Check app, which you'll install on your phone and set up by taking a selfie from within the app. When shopping online, after entering your credit card information when paying, you'll have to hold your phone up and frame your face with your camera to verify your identity. To make sure someone isn't just holding up a picture of you to game the system, MasterCard will require you to blink. MORE: Mobile Wallets: Apple Pay vs Samsung Pay vs Android Pay Using your face as an authentication method is a far from new idea. Many phone and software makers, such as Alcatel, Google, Microsoft and CyberLink have device unlock methods that identify you by face. But this is the first time a major credit card issuer is using such a technique, and face recognition authentication is thought to be harder to crack than PIN and passwords. MasterCard has already conducted trials in the U.S. and the Netherlands since it announced the Identity Check app last year, but it's not clear if these are part of the 14 countries that the Financial Times reported as getting the feature this year. According to The Verge, MasterCard could follow up this authorization method with another biometric option your heartbeat. But that could take a while to roll out to consumers, considering the lack of infrastructure. (There are far fewer heart rate sensors out there than cameras.) Other banks have also been stepping up their efforts in making authentication more convenient. HSBC recently said it would integrate fingerprint recognition into its system, using the iPhone's Touch ID scanner. So the next time you see someone holding their phone up in front of them, pause before you fly into a rage at their narcissism in taking a selfie. They could simply be verifying an online shopping spree. Copyright 2016 Toms Guides , a Purch company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. What, beer pong doesn't cut it anymore? On Saturday, a group of students at Fairfield University in Connecticut threw a "ghetto-themed" off-campus beach party where, according to Fox 5, partygoers came dressed in baggy clothes, gold chains and fake baby bumps. Fox reported that the Jesuit college's administration is investigating the incident, and that the university president Rev. Jeffrey von Arx condemned the event in an email, saying it "perpetuated racial stereotypes that have no place in our community and only serve to offend and devalue people." Fairfield students don't understand why throwing a "ghetto party" was a bad idea http://huff.to/1XKYwGm pic.twitter.com/4kR7nLCj9E https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Cb7fQqwWEAAXqxT.jpg:large Fairfield University investigating 'ghetto' themed party where students 'wore blackface... http://dlvr.it/KbD9bC pic.twitter.com/b1FEGW7eNS https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Cb6JcaIUkAMg8w0.jpg:large Though some accounts of the party mentioned students in blackface, CT News Junkie shared a statement from Fairfield spokesman Teddy DeRosa, which noted that the university hasn't received any confirmation of "brown makeup" or "blackface" at the party. According to the Connecticut Post, the party was documented on Instagram, Twitter and Snapchat. When word got around about the themed bash, many students expressed disheartenment that something so insensitive would happen on their campus. "It is truly disappointing to see my fellow students ... behave in such a manner that mocks [another] race," sophomore Anmol Tabassum told the Post. Still, others maintained it was no big deal. According to the Post, one student posted in the Fairfield University Class of 2017 Facebook group, mocking the outrage. "I wore a hotdog costume to this party and now feel that my actions have caused emotional harm to all of the hot dog community." The student then hashtagged his post, of all things, #HotDogsMatter. Few times in the recent past has an issue like this had such compelling arguments on both sides of the fence. It all started when the FBI recovered an iPhone that had belonged to one of two terrorists who carried out the horrific 2015 shooting in San Bernardino, California, which left 14 dead and another 24 injured. The death toll rose to 16 when the perpetrators were later killed in a gunfight with police. The FBI has a strong argument: if Apple helps it unlock the iPhone that was recovered, the information obtained could potentially help authorities prevent future attacks. Meanwhile, Apple is afraid that aiding in this case will set a dangerous precedent. But whichever side prevails, it looks like things are about to go horribly wrong for the FBI. MUST SEE: Have Apples rivals finally stopped copying the iPhone? Following the FBIs initial request, a court order was granted that demanded Apple help the government agency break into the PIN-protected iPhone that was recovered from one of the two San Bernardino attackers. Apple immediately refused, and a very public battle has commenced. Tech companies are siding with Apple; providing the FBI with the tools the agency has requested would completely negate the protections Apple has in place in iOS. Meanwhile, the public is divided on the issue, though it seems to be siding with the FBI in this case. After all, the mere mention of terrorism shifts the argument to an entirely different place. Further complicating matters is the fact that there are ways Apple could provide the FBI with access to the shooters phone without compromising iPhone security at all. A legendary iPhone hacker explained exclusively to BGR how this might work. But as Reuters reported on Wednesday, the FBI will likely be the loser in this war regardless of whether or not Apple is ultimately forced to comply. A success for the government in this case may further spur Apple and others to develop devices that the makers arent privileged to crack, Harvard Universitys Berkman Center for Internet & Society cofounder Jonathan Zittrain told the news agency. Reuters also spoke with other tech executives who stressed the security of their products and said they would now work to strengthen security even more. Story continues Our goal is to achieve a zero-knowledge state where our customers have total control over their data, Box security head Joel De la Garza said. Meanwhile, an anonymous Apple executive also confirmed to Reuters that the company may look to make its products even more secure moving forward. Related stories Study finds that Android accounts for 85% of all device failures Video shows how the iPhone 7's dual-camera system might be a game-changer FBI battle over locked iPhone could have been avoided with a $4 piece of software More from BGR: How have you used Netflix this long without knowing these 10 tips and tricks? This article was originally published on BGR.com DALLAS (Reuters) - Dallas Federal Reserve President Robert Kaplan said on Wednesday that his more downbeat assessment of the U.S. central bank's path of rate hikes will be reflected at the next policy meeting in March. "It wouldnt be surprising to see in my submission some slowing, or some change in the path. Youll see some change, he told reporters following an event in Dallas, referring to the Fed's economic projections that each policymaker anonymously submits every quarter. (Reporting by Ann Saphir) Suva (Fiji) (AFP) - The death toll from the Fiji super-cyclone hit 36 on Wednesday, with fears it will continue to climb as relief teams reach isolated communities, the Red Cross said. "Officially now it is 36 dead," the acting head of the Red Cross's Pacific office Ahmad Sami told AFP. "The numbers will continue to change as we have better access to information and establish communications." Severe tropical cyclone Winston lashed the Pacific nation overnight Saturday, packing wind gusts of 325 kilometres (202 miles) per hour and leaving a trail of destruction. While humanitarian aid is pouring into the main island Viti Levu, some of the worst-hit villages were on remote islands that relief workers have not yet been able to access. Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama on Tuesday acknowledged the problem and asked for patience from affected communities. "We realise the desperate position that you are in, how traumatic this is for you and your families... but as prime minister, I want you to know that we will not rest until we have reached you." Former prime minister Laisenia Qarase said he held grave fears for his home island Vanua Balavu, which had not yet been heard from. Suva-based Qarase said aerial photographs showed there were "probably a thousand houses destroyed" on the island. "I'm 75-years old and the damage I've seen, the extent of the damage, this must be the worst thing in living memory for Fiji," he told Radio New Zealand. Josephine Skriver is the latest model to be invited into the exclusive circle of Victoria's Secret Angels, joining fashion icons like Sara Sampaio, Adriana Lima, Alessandra Ambrosio and Candice Swanepoel. But who exactly is this 22-year-old Danish model, with her emerald eyes and long, lean frame? Here's a look back over the career (so far) of this model to watch out for over fashion's coming seasons. After three years of catwalk shows for the famous American lingerie brand, Josephine Skriver has now officially been awarded Angel status -- the ultimate reward of recognition in the fashion and lingerie worlds. Although she's not that well-known to the general public, Josephine Skriver has already notched up an array of ad campaigns and catwalk appearances for some of the biggest names in haute-couture and ready-to-wear fashion. Born to model Josephine Skriver was plunged into the world of modelling from a young age, starring in several ad campaigns when she could barely walk thanks to an aunt who worked in the industry. While most aspiring models dream of posing for big fashion labels, the young Skriver's first shoot was for Pampers diapers. But everyone's got to start somewhere. The Danish model's career really took off several years later -- in 2008, more precisely, when she signed with modelling agency Unique Denmark, before joining Marilyn Agency two years later. From then on, Josephine Skriver traveled the world's major fashion weeks, booked for catwalk shows by Calvin Klein, Rag & Bone, DKNY, Gucci, Chloe, Chanel, Givenchy and Yves Saint Laurent. She was even picked to close Prada's autumn/winter 2011 show. With her light brown hair and mesmerizing green eyes, Josephine Skriver is now one of the most in-demand models, both on the runway -- where she's become a familiar face and must-book name -- and for advertising campaigns. In four years, she has starred in ads for Gucci, Bulgari, Michael Kors, DKNY, MAC Cosmetics and Yves Saint Laurent Beauty. Story continues She began working with the Victoria's Secret lingerie brand in 2013, posing for shoots and starring in catwalk shows, before officially being named as one of the brand's Angels on Saturday, February 20. She shared the news with fans on social media: "It has happened! I'm literally living my dream right now! Can't believe I get to share with you today that I'm the newest Angel for Victoria's Secret." More than just a pretty face Josephine Skriver isn't only known for her dream body and stunning looks, since she's also a vocal supporter of LGBT families and their children, a cause that's particularly close to her heart. Having grown up with two sets of gay parents, the young model is quick to use media appearances to speak out in support of the LGTB community, condemning the criticism faced by unconventional families and reiterating her pride in her own upbringing. As if picture-perfect looks weren't enough, Josephine Skriver is a sharp, quick-witted character with bags of personality. And that's sure to help her make her name as one of fashion's new top models. (Reuters) - Former California Democratic state Senator Leland Yee received a five-year prison sentence on Wednesday for conspiracy in a corruption case that involved bribery, weapons trafficking and money laundering, federal prosecutors said. Lee, 67, pleaded guilty to the conspiracy charge after his arrest in 2014 in a sweep that included suspected leaders of organized crime in San Francisco, the city he represented in the state legislature. Prosecutors had sought an eight-year sentence for Yee, whose guilty plea in federal court in San Francisco last July marked the end of a long political career that included two terms on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, as well as election to the California Assembly and Senate. Yee was the third California state senator charged in 2014 in separate criminal cases. All three eventually left office, costing the Democrats a key two-thirds legislative majority. (Reporting by Sharon Bernstein in Sacramento, Calif.; Editing by Bill Trott and Peter Cooney) London (AFP) - Four people are feared dead following the collapse of a disused British power station, and another five are seriously injured, emergency services said Wednesday. One person was confirmed killed when the Didcot A coal and gas-fired power station, owned by a subsidiary of German giant RWE and scheduled for demolition, collapsed on Tuesday in a cloud of dust and rubble. Rescue workers are searching for three other people who are missing but regional fire and rescue service chief Dave Etheridge, said: "It is highly unlikely they are alive." Etheridge told reporters that the families had been informed that "we have not picked up any signs of life". "We have tried their construction site radios and have had no response. We see this as significant," he said. Prime Minister David Cameron paid tribute to the emergency services in comments in parliament and expressed his condolences to the confirmed victim's family. Etheridge said sniffer dogs were being used in the search for the missing, adding that the operation "may take several days, possibly several weeks". Scott Chilton, a senior police officer, described the five people taken to hospital as "seriously injured, but not critical". Emergency workers said there were no explosives in the 10-floor building at the time of the collapse despite initial reports that it had been preceded by a blast. About 50 people were treated for dust inhalation at the scene. Didcot A was opened in 1970 and ceased generation in 2013. Three of its enormous cooling towers were blown up in July 2014. Buenos Aires (AFP) - Argentina's President Mauricio Macri received fresh endorsement of his new-broom economic measures on Wednesday when French President Francois Hollande flew in to Buenos Aires with 30 business leaders to sniff out investment opportunities. The visit reflected a turnaround in Argentina's global profile since Macri took power two months ago and immediately set about mending diplomatic ties and his country's tattered credit profile. Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi dropped in last week, and US President Barack Obama is to follow up with his own visit next month. The procession of leaders is providing a fillip to Macri's goal of returning Argentina -- Latin America's third-biggest economy -- to the international fold. Hollande's arrival on the second leg of a South American tour suffered a minor hiccup, however, when his presidential jet, an Airbus A330, was grounded in Peru with mechanical problems. A French government Falcon jet was dispatched to fly him and his delegation to Buenos Aires. The French and Argentinian presidents repaired to Macri's Casa Rosa palace for discussions and to sign what aides said were around 20 cooperation agreements. Afterward, Hollande praised Macri's reforms. "You have sought to put Argentina in a new place: more open, more credible," he told a joint news conference. "France is ready to back you." Hollande also said France was supporting Macri's bid to settle with foreign creditors, some of which are holding out for full payment of sovereign debt Argentina defaulted on 15 years ago. Macri, in an interview with AFP on Monday, had emphasized the "enormous effort" his government was making on the issue. Argentina must end its conflicts, "come back to the world and gain access to financing," he said. The country has offered to pay $6.5 billion of the total $9 billion owed to clear up the debt dispute. Several investors have accepted the terms, but two major US hedge funds are pushing for full repayment. Story continues Macri's predecessor, Cristina Kirchner, had refused to pay the hedge funds, calling them "vultures." Kirchner had also alienated the United States by courting Iran and Venezuela, and kept ties with Britain combative over the Falkland Islands. Macri has brought in sweeping changes, getting rid of currency controls and barriers to foreign companies repatriating profits. On the diplomatic front, he has been working towards "mature, intelligent and mutually beneficial" relations. Hollande's visit was the first by a French president since 1997. None took place between 2003 and 2015, the years when Kirchner and her late husband, Nestor Kirchner, ruled. Around 250 French companies have operations in Argentina, including Total, Danone, Renault and Peugeot. France's trade surplus with the South American country runs to around one billion euros. Paris (AFP) - French authorities have demanded that US Internet giant Google pay 1.6 billion euros ($1.7 billion) in back taxes, a source close to the matter said Wednesday, as controversy mounts over the tax arrangements of multinational corporations. Google is one of several companies that have come under fire in Europe for paying extremely low taxes by shifting revenue across borders in an often complex web of financial arrangements. "In regards to France, a 1.6 billion euro adjustment has been imposed on the company," the source told AFP, speaking as Google's CEO was in Paris. Google declined to comment and the French finance ministry told AFP the amount the company would have to pay was subject to "fiscal confidentiality". The figure emerged as Google CEO Sundar Pichai was in Paris, where he was set to meet Wednesday night with France's economy minister, Emmanuel Macron. Speaking at the elite Sciences Po university in Paris before the tax demand hit the press, Pichai defended in general terms Google's tax practices. "We're a global company. We have to abide by tax laws everywhere, we do abide by local tax laws in every single country," he said. "We're advocating strongly for a simpler global tax system," he added. France has previously refused to negotiate the amount of back taxes it would request. However, a source inside France's tax authority said bargaining may still be possible. "This does not mean that Google will ultimately pay 1.6 billion," the source told AFP. "There will be appeals, and perhaps a negotiation in the end, in particular on penalties." A deal last month between British tax authorities and Google was meanwhile criticised by a panel of British lawmakers who described the settlement reached as "disproportionately small" given Google's size and earnings. Under the agreement, Google will pay 130 million ($185 million, 170 million euros) for a decade of Google business in Britain, where it makes 11 percent of its global sales. Story continues - Billions in fines - The company made profits of 106 million on revenues of 1.18 billion in Britain in the last 18 months alone and the Labour opposition party claimed the giant was paying only "three percent tax". French Finance Minister Michel Sapin earlier this month said Google would not get a deal of that type on his side of the Channel. "In France we would like to avoid an exceptional situation where there would be some type of flat-rate tax," he said. Italy is also demanding Google pay over 200 million euros in back taxes following an inquiry by the financial police. The European Commission has cracked down hard on companies, including US icons such as Apple, Starbucks and Amazon, who have worked out arrangements with countries allowing them to slash their tax bills. Swedish furniture giant Ikea has also been accused of underpaying taxes by one billion euros by using aggressive tax strategies in certain European countries. Fights over tax bills are not the only trouble Google is contending with in Europe. European competition officials have been investigating the US tech giant for years over alleged monopolistic practices involving its search engines, but any resolution has been elusive. Three successive proposals by Google for an amicable settlement have been rejected. If no agreement is reached and the group is found to have broken the EU's antitrust rules, it could face fines amounting to billions of dollars. Marseille (AFP) - A Jewish teacher in France who claimed he was attacked by Islamic State jihadists was taken into custody on Wednesday, accused of lying to police. Tzion Saadon invited the press to his house in Marseille in southern France the day after the supposed attack in November, saying he had been beaten by three men claiming to represent the jihadist group. But a police source confirmed on Wednesday that the man had been arrested for allegedly fabricating the story. He is not the only French teacher to be accused of lying about an IS attack. In January, a nursery school teacher was sent for psychiatric tests after admitting he lied about an attack in his classroom. The 45-year-old man in Aubervilliers, northeast of Paris, initially said a man had burst into his classroom and cut him with a box cutter and scissors. But he later admitted inventing the story and cutting himself on the neck and side. The cases came with France still on edge in the wake of the November attacks in Paris, claimed by IS, that killed 130 people. There is no doubt over another attack in Marseille in January, when a teacher wearing a kippa, a Jewish skullcap, was set upon by a self-radicalised teenager -- the latest in a series of anti-Semitic incidents in the port city. The city's top Jewish leader, Zvi Ammar, called on Jewish men and boys to stop wearing the kippa "until better days", saying: "Unfortunately for us, we are targeted. As soon as we are identified as Jewish we can be assaulted and even risk death." LONDON (Reuters) - Five people were convicted on Wednesday of multiple sex crimes against young girls in Rotherham, the northern English town which hit the headlines two years ago when it was revealed that as many as 1,400 children had been abused by gangs. The group, which included three British Asian brothers, their uncle and two white women, systematically carried out the sexual exploitation of 15 victims, aged between 11 and 21, over a period of 16 years from 1987, prosecutors said. They groomed vulnerable girls and women for abuse, often subjecting them to degrading and violent acts. "They were mocked and spat at. Some of the violence was extreme and protracted. The physical and psychological suffering these girls have endured is unthinkable," Peter Mann from Britain's Crown Prosecution Service said. "Their trauma is only matched in scale by the extraordinary courage they have displayed in coming forward to report their abuse and give evidence in this trial so that their abusers can at last be accorded the punishment they deserve." Brothers Basharat and Arshid Hussain, their uncle Qurban Ali and Karen MacGregor and Shelley Davis were found guilty of a variety of sex offences at Sheffield Crown Court. Bannaras Hussain, the third brother, had earlier pleaded guilty. Two other men were cleared. The guilty six will be sentenced on Friday. In 2014, an inquiry revealed huge numbers of children, mainly girls in social care homes, had been abducted, raped and beaten by gangs of predominantly Asian men in Rotherham. Police, social workers and council leaders were all severely criticized for failing to prevent the abuse and the inquiry said officials had not acted on evidence of abuse partly out of fear of being labeled racist. Mohammed Shafiq, Chief Executive of the Muslim campaigning organization the Ramadhan Foundation, said British Pakistanis had to accept there was a problem in their community. "This is not a white conspiracy dreamt up by the far right or victimization of the Pakistani community as some claim," said Shafiq, adding that some of those in the latest case were his distant relatives. "This is a concerted effort by a minority of Pakistani men who have groomed, abused and raped young white girls." Britain has been rocked by a series of child abuse scandals in recent years, although the Rotherham case was the most shocking. It helped prompt the government to order a major inquiry into historical abuse cases and whether politicians or those in powerful public roles had failed to act or deliberately covered it up. (Reporting by Michael Holden, editing by Ed Osmond) KABUL (Reuters) - A chartered airplane carrying 125 Afghan refugees back from Germany landed in Kabul on Wednesday, with officials on hand eager to assure the returnees that they have a future in Afghanistan. The refugees returned voluntarily, in what is expected to be the first of many such flights coordinated between the governments in Kabul and Berlin as well as the International Organization for Migration, according the German embassy in Kabul. Seeking to escape the violence and economic malaise that continue to grip their home country, Afghans make up a major portion of the hundreds of thousands of refugees who have been pouring into Europe, which has struggled to find ways to accommodate the arrivals. Officials in Kabul greeted the returning refugees with signs saying "Welcome back, Afghanistan needs you." "After a difficult way to Germany in the hands of people smugglers they realized their future is in Afghanistan and that they are needed in their home country," the German embassy said in a statement. Many Afghans made their way to Germany, but in recent months the German government has launched media campaigns to dissuade would-be refugees from making the trip, warning of dangerous human traffickers and limited opportunities in Europe. Afghans were 27 percent of the more than 100,000 refugees who made the dangerous journey across the Mediterranean Sea in January, second only to the number fleeing war-torn Syria, according to data collected by the United Nations. (Reporting by Josh Smith; Editing by Richard Borsuk) Cologne (Germany) (AFP) - German courts Wednesday tried three North African men for crimes committed on New Year's Eve in Cologne when hundreds of women reported being sexually assaulted or robbed. But the city's police chief conceded that most perpetrators may never be caught over the spate of groping and other attacks that inflamed public debate about a huge influx of refugees and migrants. In the first of three trials, a court in the western city sentenced a 23-year-old Moroccan man who admitted to stealing a woman's mobile phone to a suspended six-month jail term and a 100-euro ($110) fine. He had also been in possession of a small amount of amphetamines when he was arrested. In two more cases, also dealing with property crimes not sexual assaults, a 22-year-old Tunisian man and an 18-year-old Moroccan man were accused of stealing a man's camera in the melee outside Cologne's main railway station and Gothic cathedral. The Tunisian was handed a suspended three-month sentence. The Moroccan teenager was put on probation for two years. The mob violence inflamed tensions in Germany, which took in nearly 1.1 million asylum seekers in 2015, mainly from Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq, and put pressure on Chancellor Angela Merkel for her welcoming stance toward refugees fleeing war. Far-right populist groups have capitalised on the crimes by railing against "sex jihadists" and "rapefugees" in street rallies. Cologne police have been harshly criticised for failing to stop the chaos and then denying it for several days. The city's former police chief Wolfgang Albers was suspended in a bid to restore public confidence in the force. Police have received hundreds of criminal complaints over the violence. They have identified 75 suspects, and arrested 13 for suspected property crimes but only one for sexual assault. Police chief Juergen Mathies told the BBC most of the sex assailants may never be caught, given the poor quality of surveillance camera footage and a lack of reliable eyewitness testimony. "The CCTV footage is not good enough to clearly identify sexual assaults," he said. "We can see some thefts but that's all. We are relying on witness accounts and victims identifying their attackers." KABUL (Reuters) - Afghan President Ashraf Ghani nominated a new interior minister and attorney general on Wednesday, moves the government hopes will help stabilize a worsening security situation and soothe political tensions within the coalition government. Parliamentary opposition means Ghani's administration has struggled to fill key posts since coming to power as part of a power-sharing agreement after a disputed election in 2014. The political infighting has hobbled the fight against the growing Taliban insurgency, at the same time the withdrawal of NATO troops at the end of 2014 placed Afghan forces under greater pressure. Last year, breakaway militant factions added to the government's woes when they announced allegiance to Islamic State and began taking over territory, expanding the group's foothold in one of the world's most volatile regions. Major General Taj Mohammed Jahid, currently serving as commander of the armys 207th Corps in western Afghanistan, is nominated to be the new interior minister, the presidential palace announced. Mohammed Farid Hamidi, formerly a member of the Human Rights Commission, was nominated as attorney general. Both nominations have to be formally approved by parliament, which has blocked several of Ghani's appointments, including all his nominations for defense minister. The country is also without a spy master after the head of Afghanistan's intelligence service resigned in December to protest Ghani's rapprochement with neighboring Pakistan, whom many Afghans suspect supports the insurgency. The current interior minister, Noor-ul-Haq Olomi, has been appointed ambassador to the Netherlands. Multiple government sources told Reuters in early February that Olomi had offered his resignation, but that Ghani was wanted to name a successor before he accepted it. The moves are the latest indication of upheaval within the national unity government, in which Ghani shares power with his rival, Abdullah Abdullah. Parliament moved to launch a no-confidence motion in November against Olomi, who was initially nominated by Abdullah. (Reporting by Mirwais Harooni, writing by Josh Smith; editing by Katharine Houreld) SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Goldman Sachs' senior investment banker and chairman of its Southeast Asia business Tim Leissner has left the bank, a spokesman said. Leissner helped arrange the sale of U.S. dollar bonds for Malaysian state investor 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB), sources told Reuters. The bank drew criticism from Malaysian politicians over the hefty amount it earned from these transactions. Leissner left the bank earlier this month, the bank spokesman added, without giving further details. Leissner is the second Goldman banker linked to 1MDB deals to leave the bank. Roger Ng, then managing director and head of Southeast Asia sales for fixed income, currencies and commodities, also left two years ago, sources had told Reuters at the time. (http://reut.rs/1TEWbgU) Leissner did not respond to several attempts by Reuters to contact him. Leissner was named chairman of Southeast Asia in mid-2014 and was supposed to relocate to Singapore from Hong Kong, but instead spent time between Hong Kong and Los Angeles, where his wife lives, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters. The sources declined to be named because the information remained confidential. (Reporting by Saeed Azhar; Editing by Miral Fahmy) By Tom Bergin LONDON (Reuters) - A panel of British lawmakers criticized a back-tax deal between Google and UK tax authorities on Wednesday, calling it "disproportionately small" and branding the company's explanation of its tax planning as disingenuous. The Public Accounts Committee, which scrutinizes public spending, also criticized the tax authority, saying it appeared "to have settled for less corporation tax from Google than other countries are willing to accept". It was "not possible to judge whether a 130 million-pound ($180 million) tax settlement agreed between Google and HMRC is fair to taxpayers," the Committee said in its report, adding that more transparency was needed in corporate tax affairs. Google, now a unit of holding group Alphabet Inc, was not immediately available for comment. The tax authority, Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs (HMRC) said it "does not settle for a penny less than is due under the law from multinationals". The internet search giant prompted a political storm last month when it announced the settlement, which was hailed by British finance minister George Osborne as a "great success". The opposition Labour Party described it as derisory and said it showed the government's failure to act against corporate tax avoidance, a hot topic for austerity-weary Britons. Google has said it follows the tax rules in every country in which it operates. But the committee questioned this. "Google told us that international tax rules are complex and that it just follows them. This is disingenuous. There is nothing in the rules that says you must set up two companies in Ireland and send large royalty payments, via the Netherlands, to a company that is tax resident in Bermuda," the report said. BOOMING UK BUSINESS, FEW PROFITS Google generated around 24 billion pounds of revenue in Britain between 2005 and 2015 -- the period covered by the settlement. But the back tax deal brought its total tax bill for the period to less than 180 million pounds. "The sum paid by Google seems disproportionately small when compared with the size of Google's business in the UK," the committee said. The Committee said reports that tax authorities in France and Italy were seeking much larger sums from Google, raised questions about whether HMRC was being too soft on big companies like Google. Google enjoyed profit margins of around 30 percent over the past decade, suggesting its UK sales generated profits of around 7 billion pounds between 2005 and 2015. However, Googles tax bill for the period implies that it was deemed to have taxable UK profits of just 600 million pounds, according to Reuters calculations based on prevailing tax rates. Google says it reports relatively little profit in the UK because most of its earnings are derived from intellectual property like computer codes developed overseas, rather than the sales staff, administrators and programmers based in the UK. HMRC told the committee earlier this month that the tax bill reflected "the full value of the economic activities carried on by Google in the UK and that the fact most of the profits from Google's UK sales ended up in Bermuda didn't influence its calculations. Other tax authorities can take a tougher approach. A decade ago, the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) demanded billions of dollars in back taxes from British drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline (GSK). The IRS rejected GSK's argument that almost all the profits derived from selling a drug in the United States related to the drug formula, which was owned in the UK. Rather, the IRS argued, over half the profits should be attributed to the marketing efforts of the U.S. operation, which made the drug a commercial success. By comparison, the HMRC settlement means Google has reported around 8.5 percent of the profits derived from UK sales, in Britain, according to Reuters calculations. ($1 = 0.7193 pounds) (Additional reporting by Noor Zainab Hussain in Bengaluru; Editing by Alexander Smith and Keith Weir) By George Georgiopoulos ATHENS (Reuters) - Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras urged European Union countries to honour the bloc's decisions on sharing the burden of the migrant crisis, saying that if they did not, Athens would block future agreements. Austria, defying criticism from Greek and U.N. refugee officials, took further steps on Wednesday to coordinate border restrictions spanning the Balkans that are intensifying a logjam of migrants in Greece. "We will not accept turning the country into a permanent warehouse of souls with Europe continuing to function as if nothing is happening," Tsipras told parliament on Wednesday. "Greece will not agree to deals (in the EU) if a mandatory allocation of burdens and responsibilities among member countries is not secured," he said. Athens has protested against restrictions imposed by countries further north along the main land corridor into Europe, including along Austria's frontier with Slovenia and Macedonia's border with Greece. Defying criticism from Greek and U.N. refugee officials, Austria on Wednesday took further steps to coordinate a slew of border restrictions spanning the Balkans that have caused a worsening logjam of migrants in Greece. "We will not tolerate that a number of countries will be building fences and walls at the borders without accepting even a single refugee," Tsipras said. "Greece will demand the mandatory participation of EU countries in the relocation of refugees." He said it was unacceptable for EU partners to dump the burden of the crisis on Greece, forcing it to shoulder a weight way disproportionate to its size. "We did and will continue to do everything we can to provide warmth, essential help and security to uprooted, hounded people," he said. "We will either be in a union of common rules for all or everyone will do they please: we will not accept the latter." Addressing worries that flow restrictions at the northern border could swell the number of migrants stranded in Greece, Tsipras said he would meet political party leaders to form a common stance before an early March summit of EU leaders on the migration crisis. Earlier on Wednesday, he told German Chancellor Angela Merkel he was deeply displeased about the failure of some EU leaders to stick to bloc decisions on tackling the refugee crisis. The two leaders agreed to intensify efforts to implement EU decisions and start NATO operations in the Aegean Sea immediately to counter smuggling networks to reduce migrant inflows. (Reporting by George Georgiopoulos; Editing by Ruth Pitchford) ATHENS (Reuters) - Greece's Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras spoke with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, expressing his deep displeasure over the failure of some EU countries to stick to decisions on tackling the refugee crisis, his office said on Wednesday. The two leaders agreed to intensify efforts to implement EU decisions, support Greece and begin NATO operations in the Aegean Sea immediately to counter smuggling networks to reduce migrant inflows. Greece has protested against restrictions imposed by countries further north along the main land migration route into Europe, including along Austria's frontier with Slovenia and Macedonia's border with Greece. (Reporting by George Georgiopoulos) Within two months, a judge in Connecticut is expected to decide whether a lawsuit against the companies that made and sold the rifle used in the December 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre will proceed. A survivor and nine families affected by the fatal shooting are suing the maker, distributor and seller of the Bushmaster AR-15, which authorities said the gunman used to kill 26 educators and childrenincluding 20 first-gradersin less than five minutes on December 14, 2012, at the school in Newtown, Connecticut. The case names Remington Arms Co., the manufacturer of the weapon, as well as Camfour Inc., a distributor of firearms, and Riverview Gun Sales, the now-defunct dealer in East Windsor, Connecticut, that sold the rifle to the shooters mother in 2010. In a crucial hearing Monday, the lawyers representing the companies asked Fairfield District Superior Court Judge Barbara Bellis to dismiss the lawsuit, saying their clients are shielded by a 2005 federal law that provides gun businesses immunity from civil lawsuits. The legislation at the center of the case is the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA), which prevents gun violence victims from taking legal action against firearms distributors whose weapons are used in crimes and fatal shootings. Congress has expressed its clear intention that these kinds of cases against firearms manufacturers shall not be brought and shall not proceed, James Vogts, a lawyer representing Remington, said in court. The 20-year-old gunman, Adam Lanza, obtained the rifle from the Newtown home he shared with his mother, Nancy Lanza. He first killed her, then drove to Sandy Hook Elementary during the morning of the rampage. He shot his way into the locked building, then proceeded to kill 26 people as well as himself. Lawyers representing the families argue the rifle shouldnt have been entrusted to the general public because it is a military-style assault weapon that is unsuited for civilian use. They say the companies knewor should have knownabout the high risks posed by the rifle, including the ability for a shooter to use it to inflict maximum casualties and serious injury. Story continues It was Remington that did the marketing, it was Remington that pushed the weapon, said the plaintiffs lead attorney, Josh Koskoff. It was Remington that took a military weapon and tried to profit from its sale. He cited some of the companys marketing campaigns, including consider your man-card reissued. The plaintiffs believe they have a case because the PLCAA includes six exemptions, including a negligent entrustment clause. Koskoff said that Remington manufactured a firearm designed to kill and designed for mass murder and made it available to the general public. We are saying that its their job, their responsibility to decide which weapons to sell to which people, he said. We fully believe that we have a just casethe utmost confidence that the justice system will work here to the fairness of the families. In a press conference before the hearing, Koskoff said, Children and the victims in Sandy Hook stared down the barrel of an assault rifle designed for Vietnam and in war. These arent weapons designed for home defense. These arent weapons designed to hunt. Theyre designed to kill. The victims relatives initially filed the legal action two years after the massacre, in December 2014. The case was delayed because the defendants tried to transfer it to federal court, where it was less likely to move forward than at the state level. In October 2015, it was returned from federal court to the state. Having the case in a Connecticut courtroom is viewed by some as an advantage for the plaintiffs because of its proximity to the shooting. The court, located in Bridgeport, Connecticut, is about 20 miles from where the massacre occurred. The two-hour hearing Monday stemmed from the defendants motion to dismiss the case. Were simply asking the court to do what courts do all the time, and that is read statutes and apply plain languageand keep those words in mind and the purpose of the statute in mind when deciding what the legislative intent was, Vogts said. The attorney representing Camfour, the distributor, argued that his client can be held liable only when the individual whom the company directly entrusted with the firearm uses it in a crime. Peter Berry, the attorney for the seller Riverview, argued that the firearm wasnt used to injure others by the individual who purchased it legally, namely Nancy Lanza. I think the chain is broken when Adam Lanza kills his mother and steals a firearm. I think that he on that point is on his own and he is the person who the defendant should be, not necessarily the seller or distributor of the firearm, Berry said. Koskoff argued the case is more serious, more heartfelt, more thought through than any other case a lawyer will ever see. What happened at Sandy Hook connected the lives of not only the people who died but their families to these defendants in the worst possible way, he said. Relatives of the victims were present in the courtroom, as well as members of the media. Before the hearing, some of the families represented in the lawsuit addressed the media near the court at the offices of Koskoff, Koskoff & Bieder. This is an instrument of war, designed for the battlefield, that is sold and marketed to the general public, said Mark Barden, whose 7-year-old son, Daniel, died at the school. We feel that we deserve our day in court, and thats what were asking for. Nicole Hockley, whose son Dylan was 6 when he was shot and killed, said the ultimate goal of the lawsuit is to prevent other individuals and communities from going through what the families have endured in the wake of the tragedy. There were a lot of guns that the shooter couldve chosen from his arsenal and his mothers arsenal to attack the people at Sandy Hook School, she said. He chose the AR-15 because he was aware of how many shots it could get out, how lethal it was the way it was designedthat it would serve his objective of killing as many people as possible in the shortest time possible. Bill Sherlach, whose wife, Mary, was killed at Sandy Hook, said businesses outside of the gun industry, such as car manufacturers, risk being held liable for making dangerous products or not providing adequate instructions. The PLCAA has become an issue in the presidential campaign. Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has gone after her Democratic challenger, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, from the left for his gun record, which includes voting for the PLCAA earlier in his career. She has accused him of being out of step with progressives on guns. He defends his record, saying that he is from rural Vermont and that he wanted to protect mom-and-pop gun shops from legal responsibility. In 2005, Clinton was a senator who voted against the measure. She acknowledged the hearing in two Twitter posts on Monday: Gun manufacturers should be held accountable when they endanger Americans. Add your name if you agree: https://t.co/T9nZ3kFPEm Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) February 22, 2016 How one law gives gun makers immunity from accountability and could derail justice for Sandy Hook families. https://t.co/qNgOGW2q41 Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) February 22, 2016 When then-President George W. Bush signed the PLCAA into law, the National Rifle Association called it the most significant piece of pro-gun legislation in 20 years. A month ago, congressional Democrats and the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence introduced a bill that seeks to repeal the PLCAA by allowing victims to sue firearms manufacturers and sellers. Sanders has vowed to co-sponsor the measure, taking on a leadership role in the gun debate during a critical time in the primary season. Judge Bellis didnt issue a ruling on Monday. The two sides in the lawsuit are scheduled to meet again for a status hearing on April 19. Bellis could rule before then, which likely would turn the date into the discovery phase before the trial. Related Articles BAMAKO (Reuters) - Gunmen attacked a checkpoint southwest of the Malian town of Timbuktu overnight killing three soldiers and wounding two others, a soldier in the town said on Wednesday. There were few further details of the attack, which the soldier, who declined to be identified, said took place at Lere, a town near the border with Mauritania. A Defence Ministry spokesman confirmed the toll but gave no further details about where or how the attack occurred. Mali is facing a growing threat from Islamist militant groups including al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb that have staged a series of high profile raids in recent months as numerous attacks on army and United Nations personnel. (Reporting by Adama Diarra; Writing by Matthew Mpoke Bigg; Editing by Alison Williams) This story first appeared in the March 4 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. To receive the magazine, click here to subscribe. Chris Rock has hit a wall. It's a Saturday afternoon in mid-December, and the Oscar host has been holed up on a Hollywood soundstage since breakfast, shooting what he'd argue is a never-ending string of promos for the big show, still two and a half months away. He jokes, "You could learn how to take out a pancreas in two and a half months." Rock swears hosting didn't require this much work or draw this much early scrutiny back in 2005, the first and only other time he emceed. And this is all weeks before the 88th awards show will become a flashpoint in a national debate about race. By 4 p.m., he's run through the battery of prepared riffs - "I'm hosting the Oscars - someone at ABC is going to get fired for this" and "The Oscars: where blood, sweat and nepotism finally pay off " - and he's starting to get punchy. "My favorite Disney memory?" he winds up: "I remember I was disappointed as a kid that the Tower of Terror wasn't as scary as my neighborhood." A dozen or so crewmembers dissolve into howls. Rock goes again, his smile growing wider: "My favorite Disney memory? I became so rich and famous that I could skip in front of white people in line. Now you know how it feels to be black." Neither joke is likely to air on Disney's squeaky-clean ABC, but that kind of unflinching commentary is precisely what makes many excited - and others nervous - for the Feb. 28 telecast. On this day, Rock says he hasn't settled on the guts of his monologue, though he points to pay inequality and the superhero glut as prime targets. (During his first Oscar foray, digs at actors, including Jude Law and Tobey Maguire, passed as controversial. "Clint Eastwood is a star, OK? Tobey Maguire is just a boy in tights," he quipped of the Spider-Man star.) Nor at this point in December has Rock, himself a director, producer and star, seen many of the movies in contention. Of those he has, his picks include African-American-led films Straight Outta Compton and Dope. Story continues "I told my agent I wanted to present because it's like, what's easier and better than presenting? You come in, do something really funny and get out of there," said Rock, photographed Dec. 14 at Sowden House in Los Feliz. When Rock turns up two days later at a Hollywood Reporter cover shoot for a profile that will never materialize, he acknowledges he hadn't been clamoring for the job of host. "I told my agent I wanted to present because it's like, what's easier and better than presenting? You come in, do something really funny and get out of there," he says. "But it just seemed like a good time. I hadn't [hosted] in a while, and I'm in between projects." Though Steve Martin ranks as his all-time favorite Oscar host - "Steve Martin wanting to be funny is about as funny as a human being can get," he says - he admires what Ellen DeGeneres did with the show. "And let's not get it twisted: I'm only here because Ellen said no." Not five weeks later, this year's 20 acting nominees - exclusively white for the second consecutive year - will be announced. #OscarsSoWhite will grow from a Twitter trending topic to a social movement, with high-profile African-Americans including Spike Lee and Jada Pinkett Smith vowing not to attend the ceremony and the Academy enacting bold plans to diversify its membership. Rock will chime in once, tweeting Jan. 15 to his 3.8 million followers: "The #Oscars. The White BET Awards." But it will be the last comment from him about the controversy that has engulfed the awards show. In the weeks that follow, he will clam up and cancel all press opportunities he had leading up to the show, including his THR cover profile. Everything Rock has to say on the topic will be saved for the Dolby stage. This story first appeared in the March 4 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. To receive the magazine, click here to subscribe. When HBO launched Vinyl, the ambitious rock drama from Martin Scorsese and Mick Jagger, on Feb. 14, its ratings even with three days of DVR viewing were wan. But the network promptly renewed the series. As the motto used to go, "It's not TV, it's HBO." And that's still true. Yet the pay TV service, with 36 million U.S. subscribers and a nearly year-old streaming service that CEO Richard Plepler said Feb. 10 has 800,000 subs, no longer is alone in the premium space. As Netflix and Amazon, not to mention Showtime, AMC, FX and others, fight it out for prestige projects, HBO still is the first choice for many A-listers. In 2015, it mopped up 43 Emmys with such diverse offerings as Game of Thrones, Olive Kitteridge and Veep. (NBC came in second with 12.) "As far as television goes," says David Simon, who created The Wire and Treme, "these guys are the fing Medicis." Yet HBO is in a period of challenge. It hasn't had a breakout drama hit since Game of Thrones launched in 2011, and in recent months, it has seen several troubled shows go expensively into and then out of production. Those include the mega-budgeted futuristic Westworld, which was halted in December with several episodes shot but needing additional work. The series now might be pushed into 2017 despite an initial plan to have it ready last year. Other projects shut down well into the process include two shows from David Fincher, a limited series from Steve McQueen and another on Lewis and Clark from producers Brad Pitt and Tom Hanks. HBO says some of these may be revived. "We make no apologies for sticking by a project we believe has the potential to be great," says programming president Michael Lombardo. "Unfortunately, we also at times find ourselves in the position of deciding not to move forward with others. That is never fun, but that is our business." Story continues 'Vinyl,' with Bobby Cannavale and Olivia Wilde, debuted to only 1.1 million live-plus-3-day viewers. Meanwhile, adjustments are being made. In January, drama head Michael Ellenberg was ousted, and since then, the famously development-rich network has been looking to winnow the 100-plus shows in the pipeline. (Casey Bloys, who oversaw such well-regarded comedies as Silicon Valley, now heads drama as well.) HBO is putting pressure on budgets for scripted shows as the network has increased its programming hours by 40 percent with expensive forays outside scripted, adding offerings from Vice, ESPN alum Bill Simmons and Jon Stewart as well as a family programming effort spearheaded by Sesame Street. These moves come at a delicate time. HBO is the jewel in the Time Warner crown, contributing 27 percent of the company's operating income in 2015, but sources say it is paying a price for that. "Connect the dots," says one veteran, contending that HBO is dealing with added pressure as its parent grapples with struggles at its Warner Bros. film studio and challenges at its TV production arm. In selling off assets like Time Warner Cable, CEO Jeffrey Bewkes has laid bare a susceptibility to the vagaries of the content business. Read More: Surprise! Paramount to Profit From HBO's 'Vinyl' Observers long have perceived Bewkes as a seller, either of all of Time Warner or of HBO. So he wants his most desirable asset to shine brightly. One source with business at HBO believes Fox's 2014 play for Time Warner "changed the culture at the network," with increased emphasis on performance and cost control. While HBO leans on scripted budgets, Ben Weiss of 8th & Jackson Partners perhaps ironically believes the network should be spending more. HBO is a valuable source of steady revenue but "needs to take more swings," he says, arguing that "the old model of two big scripted series in the fall and spring does not provide enough value for subscribers relative to what competitors [Amazon and Netflix] are offering at a lower price." As HBO is only too aware, Netflix and Amazon have the luxury of operating on a different and far less transparent model. They throw up a seemingly limitless number of series while HBO's prime real estate for scripted shows still is Sunday nights. HBO series are rated by Nielsen even though the network is not ratings-driven, while the streamers reveal nothing. Their failures go unrecognized. Meanwhile, HBO's big swings can be mind-bendingly expensive. The two-hour Vinyl opener is said to have cost about $30 million and the first season $100 million. HBO executives still are optimistic that Vinyl will recover from its disappointing launch, which pitted it against the midseason return of The Walking Dead. As for projects that haven't made it to air yet, HBO has gone throughstarts before; it dumped the pilot for Game of Thrones before a reset that has been successful in every sense of the word. But given the names involved, HBO's troubled projects can be especially noisy. Last summer, Fincher's Videosyncrasy a half-hour about a music video PA (as Fincher was) was halted with four episodes shot. After directing the first two, Fincher turned his focus to Utopia, a thriller about graphic novel fans. Gone Girl author Gillian Flynn wrote scripts for the series, and a cast led by Rooney Mara was deep into rehearsals when HBO pulled the plug in August. The network reportedly balked at Fincher's insistence on a $100 million budget. HBO still hopes Fincher will return to Videosyncrasy and plans to make Utopia with another director. Meanwhile, Fincher has returned to his House of Cards home, Netflix, to develop a new drama. Last summer, HBO also shut down a six-part Lewis and Clark miniseries after weeks of shooting. Sources say the network lost faith in director John Curran's vision; Masters of Sex creator Michelle Ashford, whose credits include John Adams, was hired to start from scratch. THR has learned that McQueen's drama, Codes of Conduct, with Paul Dano, Helena Bonham Carter and Rebecca Hall, has been scrapped. The pilot was shot, and HBO had ordered a six-episode series before pulling out. Late last year, HBO stopped work on the pricey J.J. Abrams-produced Westworld, based on a 1970's sci-fi movie series. and with an enormous cast including Anthony Hopkins and Ed Harris. Initially produced with Warners' TV production arm, HBO took back control after what sources call clashes with creator Jonathan Nolan, whose TV credit is the WBTV-produced Person of Interest on CBS. (HBO usually makes its own programming but works with Warners on The Leftovers.) Nolan is said to be every bit as controlling as his filmmaker brother Chris. Sources say cuts came in slowly, scripts started running behind, and it became apparent that episodes already shot needed tweaks requiring additional filming. Since stopping production, HBO persuaded Nolan to "put aside his ego," one source says, and has brought in two additional producers and two more writers. Production is set to resume in March. "Westworld is wildly ambitious on the page and on set," says Nolan. "In broadcast TV, it's been routine for us to write and shoot at the same time. This is a completely different animal. As we got closer to the final episodes, we realized we needed to take a break from shooting to catch up on writing. HBO and WBTV have been incredibly supportive throughout the process. It would have been literally impossible to make this show anywhere else." Read More: 'Vinyl': TV Review Says WME co-CEO Ari Emanuel: "The great thing about HBO is they do take those shots. They back artists." But several HBO veterans lament the network suffers from the allure of big film names who have turned to the channel as the movie business became less hospitable. Noting that he's always kept his shows at or under his comparatively modest budgets, Simon says, "A lot of feature people have thought, 'It's HBO. The world is my oyster.' I saw the thing with David Fincher, and I can't imagine an argument with HBO over whether I can spend $100 million or $80 million." Star talent is hard to resist, continues Simon, but "it's got to be a tough dynamic. You want to do a project that you think might be glorious, but if they're all $100 million for the first season, you're going to exhaust your budget pretty quickly." Some insiders feel the culture at HBO has changed. "If you can get something on there, I still think it's a great place to be," says a high-profile HBO talent. "But if you're looking for a steady hand to shape and mold, I don't think that's happening." An agent with business at the network adds, "At times there are directives from those guys that conflict with what they then feel later, in terms of who you should hire and what role they should play." With the recent executive shuffle, he adds, "They're obviously saying that it wasn't working." HBO points with pride to upcoming programming, including the Reese Witherspoon-Nicole Kidman limited series Big Little Lies and a Sarah Jessica Parker half-hour series Divorce, that it believes will prove HBO is still HBO. And Leftovers creator Damon Lindelof says there is every chance the new shows will do the job, starting with Westworld. "The first Game of Thrones pilot was disastrous," he says. "They spent and they retooled and, lo and behold, Game of Thrones." Lombardo adds he wants to be "proud of everything we put on the screen. We look out at 2016 and beyond with great pride and couldn't be more excited or optimistic about our slate of programming." This story first appeared in the March 4 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. To receive the magazine, click here to subscribe. Eight years after Heath Ledger's death at age 28 from accidental prescription-drug intoxication, his father, Kim Ledger who accepted a posthumous acting award for The Dark Knight on his son's behalf (one of only eight times ever) at the 2009 Academy Awards reflects from his home in Western Australia: "Bittersweet is probably the best way I can describe that night," says Ledger, 66. "It was only a year and a month since his passing. We hadn't got our heads around the tragedy of losing him, but at the same time, he was receiving such accolades for what he knew was his best work." The best supporting actor statuette for Heath's role as the Joker has been temporarily retrieved from the Western Australian Museum in Perth (also where Heath's sister, Kate, and his mother, Sally, from whom Kim is divorced, live), where it will return to a collection that includes the star's Dark Knight costume, letters, diaries and self-penned scripts, all destined for permanent exhibition. Says Ledger, an owner of automotive businesses, of the most esteemed of the 98 awards that his son received over a decadelong career: "It was peer recognition that was important to Heath and the Oscar was the epitome of that." Ultimately, the award will go to Heath's now-10-year-old daughter, Matilda, who lives in Brooklyn with her mother, Michelle Williams. "Michelle is aware the Oscar remains secured with the museum. At the end of the day, everything is there for Matilda, and when she can take possession of it, it's all hers," says Ledger, who is a patron of both ScriptWise, which promotes the dangers of prescription drug abuse, and the Heath Ledger Scholarship, awarded annually to a young Australian actor. "One way or another, we are always in contact with our New York girls." Budapest (AFP) - Hungary will hold a referendum on whether to accept mandatory EU quotas for migrants, Prime Minister Viktor Orban said Wednesday, protesting that Brussels has no right to "redraw Europe's cultural and religious identity." "The government believes the decision about the mandatory relocation quota cannot be taken away from the Hungarian parliament," Orban told reporters, without disclosing a date for the nationwide ballot. "Apart from the Hungarian parliament no one else can decide," Orban said, speaking in parliament. He said the referendum will ask voters: "Do you want the EU to prescribe the mandatory relocation of non-Hungarian citizens to Hungary without the approval of the Hungarian parliament?". "We cannot make above the heads of people, against the wishes of European people, decisions that seriously change their lives, and the lives of future generations," Orban added. "The quota could redraw Europe's cultural and religious identity. Neither Brussels nor any other European body is authorised to do that." Orban's government voted against an EU plan last September to distribute 160,000 asylum-seekers among member states under a quota system, but the scheme was nonetheless approved. In December Hungary joined Slovakia in filing a legal complaint against the plan, which would see Hungary take in 2,300 migrants. By Ulf Laessing LAGOS (Reuters) - The International Monetary Fund (IMF) called on Wednesday for Nigeria to lift foreign exchange curbs and let the naira reflect "market forces" more closely, also urging more fiscal discipline and structural reform to bolster growth. President Muhammadu Buhari has rejected a naira devaluation and backed hefty restrictions imposed by the central bank to prevent a collapse of the naira as Africa's biggest economy is whacked by a slump in oil revenues, its lifeblood. Companies have laid off thousands, cut production and even closed operations as they struggle to get enough dollars to pay for imported spare parts and raw materials. The naira is trading as much as 40 percent below the official rate on the black market. Devaluation would encourage investment and make domestically produced goods more affordable. "The exchange rate should be allowed to reflect market forces more and restrictions on access to foreign exchange removed, while improving the functioning of the interbank foreign exchange market," the Washington-based fund said in a statement, after consultations with top officials in Nigeria. Currency curbs had "significantly" affected parts of the private sector and the economic outlook for Africa's top oil producer was "challenging", it said. Nigeria needs to import anything from milk to machines as authorities have failed to end its dependency on oil, a fact Buhari wants to change but which business leaders say will be impossible to achieve if plants cannot import raw materials. The IMF also said it expected the West African nation to grow by 3.2 percent this year, below the official forecast of 3.78 percent. It urged boosting non-oil revenues, raising infrastructure spending and collecting more taxes. "With oil prices expected to remain low for a long time, continuing risk aversion by international investors, and downside risks in the global economy, the outlook remains challenging," it said. The views of the IMF are relevant as Nigeria wants to borrow from the World Bank to help fund a budget deficit of 3 trillion naira. Sometimes the IMF gets involved in such programmes asking for policy changes. The government wants to borrow up to $5 billion abroad for the budget and has also held talks with China and the African Development Bank. It has also considered issuing Eurobonds although nothing concrete has emerged publicly on that. Buhari was elected last year on an anti-corruption ticket, promising to create jobs in the nation of 170 million, where only a super-rich elite has benefited from its energy wealth. He unveiled a record budget in December to improve power supply, build roads and invest in telecommunications but had to withdraw it due to flaws and optimistic oil price calculations. On Wednesday, the former military ruler vowed to punish those he blamed for adding "unauthorised alterations" to the draft. "The culprits will not go unpunished," he said, according to a statement of his office. The IMF has welcomed his plans to lift capital expenditure. (Editing by Louise Ireland) Washington (AFP) - The International Monetary Fund warned Wednesday that the world economy is "highly vulnerable" and called for new mechanisms to protect the most vulnerable countries. In a report on economic challenges ahead of the Shanghai meeting of finance chiefs of the powerful Group of 20 economies, the global crisis lender said world growth had slowed and could be derailed by market turbulence, the oil price crash and geopolitical conflicts. "The global recovery has weakened further amid increasing financial turbulence and falling asset prices," the IMF said. "Strong policy responses both at national and multilateral levels are needed to contain risks and propel the global economy to a more prosperous path." The report, to be presented to the finance ministers and central bank chiefs of the G20 leading economies meeting in Shanghai on Friday and Saturday, said the Fund expects to lower its forecast for world growth in 2016, barely six weeks after making its most recent estimate of 3.4 percent. "Global activity has slowed unexpectedly at the end of 2015, and it has weakened further in early 2016 amid falling asset prices," the report said. How countries should react to the threats to growth will be the main agenda in the Shanghai talks. The IMF is urging countries to boost fiscal stimulus and to push through reforms in order to increase demand. It said central banks, including the US Federal Reserve, need to keep monetary policy accommodative to be sure tighter financial conditions do not stifle growth momentum. However, the Fund stressed, "to avoid over-reliance on monetary policy, near-term fiscal policy should support the recovery where appropriate and provided there is fiscal space, focusing on investment." Besides the shocks to the world economy from China's slowdown and the crash in commodity prices, the IMF said geopolitical issues like the Syrian refugee crisis and the rising infections in Latin America from the Zika virus pose economic threats. Story continues For countries shouldering the biggest burden of those crises, and countries otherwise fit but left vulnerable by the commodities downturn, the IMF said the world's financial safety net -- which includes the Fund's own programs -- could be enhanced. Without any specifics, it called for new financing mechanisms to help countries in financial turmoil. "Many countries at the center of such shocks are shouldering a burden for others, with often limited capacity and fiscal space," the report said. "Recognizing the global public good nature of their actions, they could be backed up by a coordinated worldwide initiative to provide financial support." Say student government to most Americans and they might think cheesy cafeteria stump speeches or campaign posters smeared with bad yearbook photos and paste. But say it to most Indians and they get another vision altogether one of fiery debates, occasional physical violence and, these days, suicide, arrest, terrorism and treachery. Indias college campuses are in an uproar. The ostensible spark: Over the course of the past six months, several student groups organized high-profile protests against the death penalty and what some called judicial killings. It didnt help that at least two mourned convicted terrorists. At the countrys top liberal arts college in Delhi, one such event recently resulted in the arrest of the student union president on charges of sedition and antinational sloganeering. Weeks earlier, down south in Hyderabad, another event had resulted in Ph.D. candidate and Dalit-born (low-caste) Rohith Vemula losing his stipend; shortly thereafter, he reportedly hanged himself with the banner of his caste-rights student organization. The arrest and the suicide have left the nation with a hefty set of conversations about privilege, speech, dissent and nationalism on college campuses. Student protests in India have a long and rich history, dating back to the Independence movement, says Anshul Tewari, founder of the millennial news site Youth Ki Awaaz. But theyre picking up in speed under a new right-of-center government. Its understandable: Universities tend to lean left and brew dissent Delhis Jawaharlal Nehru University, where campus president Kanhaiya Kumar was arrested, is no exception. But this isnt just a case of leftist students versus conservative government. Theres social media and demographics at play here too. Over half the population of the nation of 1.4 billion is under 25. Young muscle has been flexed on everything from supporting anticorruption activist Anna Hazare in 2011 to responding to the Delhi rape case in 2012. Story continues Much of this story is uniquely Indian: Few university systems enjoy the kind of political activity that Indias does. Student politicos on either side of the spectrum agree something is heating up. The old government was a slow poison, says Abhilasha Sandhya Shrivastava, one of the national joint secretaries of the All India Students Association, the Communist Partys student wing. She figures the rise of what she calls fake nationalism is now just easier to see and to protest. On the flip side of the ideological spectrum is Saket Bahuguna, who became motivated to participate in campus politics while an undergraduate at JNU because of the lack of patriotism at the university. Indias hullabaloo is a familiar story, notes Philip Altbach, founding director of the Center for International Higher Education at Boston College. In the U.S., from Yale to the University of Missouri, a new, controversial student activism is taking hold, pitting free-speech enthusiasts against those hoping to turn the conversation toward questions of race, class and privilege. Meanwhile, in Chile, student protests over educational costs have significantly impacted national politics. And in South Africa last year, students demanded that the University of Capetown remove a statue of Cecil Rhodes to decolonize education. Things are bubbling over globally, although Altbach, whos written about student activism in India, says nothing worldwide today approaches the scale of 1960s antiwar fervor. Yet much of this story is uniquely Indian, Altbach adds: Few university systems enjoy the kind of political activity that Indias does. Student government elections here include conversations about better dorm facilities right alongside swirling ideological speeches. Take Shrivastava, a masters student in Mumbai who found left-wing politics as an undergraduate in Nagpur, the city where the right-wing volunteer organization the RSS was formed. It all began over a dress code. With her eight best friends, she protested gendered curfews and bans on blue jeans. But national ideology soon bled into local problems: After gender followed questions of caste and other issues. Shrivastava, whos jointly protesting Vemulas institutional murder and the events at JNU in Delhi this week, says its impossible to discuss student issues without handling national debates too. Bahuguna, a JNU alum whos now a Ph.D. candidate in linguistics at Delhi University, points me toward the sheer scale of Indias student bodies hundreds of thousands of students might vote in an election. As in Chile, those students can be mobilized to weigh in on national issues related to education. Yet some argue that the students were openly seeking the breakup of India and glorifying a terrorist, which doesnt just fall into a simple case of freedom of expression and speech. Nalin Kohli, for one, the national spokesperson of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, asks me to consider what the U.S. would do in the case of a proOsama bin Laden rally at a premier Ivy League institution. Indeed, the argument in some states has been that student politics is a dangerous distractor; in the 1990s, Maharashtra banned campus elections after a young man affiliated with the Congress partys student wing was murdered. But in Chennai, an Asian College of Journalism student named Archit Mehta says though he expected some marches to take place over the weekend, in his masters program people were busy with schoolwork. He went to college in Gujarat, on a campus where politics was banned, so hes happy to see conversations about dissent take prominence. Yet, at times, hes also seen his peers get carried away with the whole political involvement. Theyre not focusing on the education and thats very sad. Related Articles Mexico City (AFP) - Top-seeded Victoria Azarenka pulled out of the Mexico Open in Acapulco on Wednesday with a left wrist injury, sending Dominika Cibulkova into the third round. Azarenka was playing her first event since falling in the quarter-finals of the Australian Open to eventual champion Angelique Kerber. The former world number one from Belarus, now ranked 14th in the world, had needed two hours to beat Slovenia's Polona Hercog in three sets in the first-round on Tuesday. Wednesday's withdrawal from the ATP and WTA hardcourt tournament was another setback for a player who displayed strong form early in 2016, having apparently moved on from the injuries and personal issues that hampered her career over the past two years. Slovakia's Cibulkova next faces either Sweden's Johanna Larsson, the sixth seed, or American Shelby Rogers. Tammy Weeks was living a mothers worst nightmare. Her favorite color was blue. Nicole was a very lovable person, said Weeks, speaking about her 13-year-old daughter at a news conference on Feb. 2. Nicole Lovell went missing from her home in Blacksburg, Va., on Jan. 27. Three days later, her body was discovered in North Carolina. She had been stabbed to death. According to investigators, Nicole had been secretly messaging with David Eisenhauer, an 18-year-old Virginia Tech student, on the social media app Kik. The middle-schooler snuck out of her parents house to meet up with Eisenhauer and never returned home. Eisenhauer and alleged female accomplice, 19-year-old Natalie Keepers, have been arrested on charges relating to Nicoles disappearance and murder. Neither has entered a plea. While the reaction to her murder has fueled a growing national conversation about teens and social media, Nicoles story has become a cautionary tale about the dangers of messaging apps. These dangers are just one of the topics journalist Nancy Jo Sales explores in her new book, American Girls: Social Media and the Secret Lives of Teenagers. She sat down with Yahoo Global News Anchor Katie Couric. One of the first conversations that I had with some girls in Los Angeles really set the tone for the whole book to me, Sales told Couric, recounting a specific exchange she had with one of the girls. She said, Social media is destroying our lives. And I said, So why dont you just go off it? And she said, Because then I would have no life. Sales says what she discovered was troubling a culture playing out on various platforms that was promoting negative self-esteem and instant judgment. 18-year-old Olivia agrees. Youre like, I got over 150 likes, like oh, what a good picture I took, she said. And also if you post a photo that you think is good as well and you dont get a lot of likes, youre like, Oh my God, should I take this down? Story continues Sales says social media has become a popularity contest in which teens seek validation from the pictures they post and the number of likes they receive. If what you are thinking about is, Do I look hot? Am I gonna get likes on this photo? I mean, this is the constant kind of thought being raised in teenage girls minds through their use of social media, said Sales. Its not something that produces a feeling of well being or security. And all this, Sales says, is having a major impact on how teenage girls view themselves. Sheryl, mom to 13-year-old Carrie, who says she was bullied on social media, believes the solution may start at home. This is the way the kids will communicate. This is the way life is, said Sheryl. If you want your kid to be safe, you need to have the channels of communication open. You need to educate them as early as possible as to what the dangers are. You need to be smart. BEIRUT (Reuters) - Iran will pay thousands of dollars to families of Palestinians killed in a wave of anti-Israeli protests and violence, or whose homes have been demolished by Israel, Tehran's ambassador to Lebanon said on Wednesday. Scores of Palestinians and dozens of Israelis have been killed in five months of street violence. Palestinians have carried out stabbings, shootings and car rammings, and Israeli security forces have shot dead many assailants. The recent violence has been stoked by a dispute over Jerusalem's al-Aqsa mosque compound and the failure of several rounds of peace talks to secure the Palestinians an independent state in Israeli-occupied territory. "The decision firstly includes giving an amount worth $7,000 to every family of a martyr of the intifada in Jerusalem," ambassador Mohammad Fathali said at a Beirut news conference. Iran would also offer "$30,000 to every family whose home the occupation (Israel) has demolished for the participation of one of its sons" in the unrest, he said. Israeli army bulldozers on Tuesday demolished the homes of two Palestinians who killed five people in attacks in the occupied West Bank and Israel last year. Israeli officials say such demolitions could deter other Palestinians from launching attacks in a campaign that has killed 28 Israelis and a U.S. citizen since October. In the past five months, Israeli security forces have killed at least 168 Palestinians, 111 of whom Israel says were assailants, while most others were shot dead during violent anti-Israeli protests. (Reporting by John Davison and Laila Bassam; Editing by Dominic Evans) BEIRUT (Reuters) - Iran will pay thousands of dollars to families of Palestinians killed in a wave of anti-Israeli protests and violence, or whose homes have been demolished by Israel, Tehran's ambassador to Lebanon said on Wednesday. Scores of Palestinians and dozens of Israelis have been killed in five months of street violence. Palestinians have carried out stabbings, shootings and car rammings, and Israeli security forces have shot dead many assailants. The recent violence has been stoked by a dispute over Jerusalem's al-Aqsa mosque compound and the failure of several rounds of peace talks to secure the Palestinians an independent state in Israeli-occupied territory. "The decision firstly includes giving an amount worth $7,000 to every family of a martyr of the intifada in Jerusalem," ambassador Mohammad Fathali said at a Beirut news conference. Iran would also offer "$30,000 to every family whose home the occupation (Israel) has demolished for the participation of one of its sons" in the unrest, he said. Israel condemned Iran's move. A Foreign Ministry statement said it "demonstrates again Iran's role in encouraging terror," adding that "following the nuclear agreement, Iran continues to be a major player in international terror." On Tuesday, Israeli army bulldozers demolished the homes of two Palestinians who killed five people in attacks in the occupied West Bank and Israel last year. Israeli officials say such demolitions could deter other Palestinians from launching attacks in a campaign that has killed 28 Israelis and a U.S. citizen since October. In the past five months, Israeli security forces have killed at least 168 Palestinians, 111 of whom Israel says were assailants, while most others were shot dead during violent anti-Israeli protests. (Reporting by John Davison and Laila Bassam in Beirut and by Ori Lewis in Jerusalem, Editing by Dominic Evans) If Zoolander 2's recent performance at the box office is any sign of what's to come from Paramount Pictures this year, 2016 isn't going to be much better for the struggling studio than 2015. Last year, the studio clocked in last among Hollywood's six largest studios in terms of box office receipts, with a market share of just under 6%. ZOOLANDER 2, from left: Ben Stiller, Owen Wilson, 2016. ph: Wilson Webb / A Paramount Pictures / courtesy Everett Collection With parent company Viacom's (VIAB) stock off more than 40%, investors want changes, and Philippe Dauman, Viacom's executive chairman, president and CEO, thinks Paramount may be an asset he can leverage into long-term value for shareholders. At the Jefferies Media & Communications Conference in New York City, Dauman announced he's pursuing discussions with potential partners for strategic investment in the studio. The stock popped on the news and ended the day xx higher. Many on Wall Street think a Chinese partner could be the most likely for Paramount. Dauman believes that "this is the perfect time to explore new strategies to capitalize on Paramount's content expertise and global platform, maximize opportunities for its continued growth, and unlock the value of the business for the benefit of shareholders." Of course, Paramount isn't Dauman's only challenge given declining TV ratings and cord cutting. Viacom is looking to complete a deal by the end of its third quarter. Jerusalem (AFP) - Israel's Shin Bet domestic security agency abuses Palestinians under interrogation in a manner so systematic it points to official endorsement, two Israeli NGOs said in a report published Wednesday. The 70-page joint study by rights groups B'Tselem and Hamoked is based on accounts by 116 suspects interrogated at Shikma prison in the southern Israeli city of Ashkelon between August 2013 and March 2014. The report, a third in a series on interrogations of Palestinians, said there are marked similarities with other facilities. "Time and again, the detainees interviewed described unlawful conduct by the authorities," said the report, entitled "Backed by the System". "The descriptions bear a striking resemblance to accounts previously provided by detainees held at other interrogation facilities. Taken together, it would seem that this conduct constitutes official interrogation policy." The Shin Bet called the data in the report "misleading and distorted," and said in a statement that all its interrogations were carried out "in accordance with the law and to prevent activities aimed at harming the security of the state." Its activities were "subject to ongoing review and inspection by internal and external bodies," it added. A Shin Bet spokesman told AFP that the Palestinians interrogated at Shikma were "terror suspects." The report said that practises in the Shin Bet detention block at Shikma included sleep deprivation for long periods, being bound hand and foot to a chair for hours on end and exposure to extreme cold and heat. "Being denied the possibility to shower or change clothes for days and even weeks; incarceration in a small, foul-smelling cell, usually in solitary confinement, for many days...are some of the standard features," it added. A 1999 ruling by Israel's High Court of Justice forbade interrogators to use violence during interrogations except in the case of a "ticking bomb" when measured physical pressure could be used, but the report accuses the Shin Bet of torture. Story continues "The combination of conditions both in and outside the interrogation room constitutes abuse and inhuman, degrading treatment, at times even amounting to torture," it read. The report also noted that 39 of the Palestinians interrogated by Israel had been arrested and tortured by the Palestinian Authority prior to their interrogation at Shikma. Some of them said that the questioning by Israeli agents implied that the PA had shared its information with the Shin Bet. Daniel Shenhar, who was part of the team that compiled the report, lamented the lack of response of Israeli legal authorities to the allegations arising from the testimonies. "No investigations lead to no accountability, and de facto immunity to investigators and human rights breachers," he told reporters. By Steve Scherer ROME (Reuters) - Italy on Wednesday said Egyptian investigators should hand over the evidence they had uncovered in the death of an Italian graduate student who was tortured and killed in Cairo. Giulio Regeni, 28, disappeared in January and his battered body was found in a ditch at the beginning of this month. Egypt invited Italian investigators to take part in the probe, but judicial sources in Rome say the collaboration has been limited. "Cooperation with our investigative team can be and must be more effective. It cannot be only formal," Italian Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni said during parliament's question time. Regeni had been researching independent trade unions in Egypt and written articles critical of President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi's government, prompting speculation that he was killed in the hands of Egyptian security forces. Earlier on Wednesday, Egypt's Interior Ministry said there were still several possible scenarios for the murder, but it did not mention the involvement of security forces as a hypothesis. Gentiloni said Italy wanted access to specific evidence. "Italian investigators must have access to audio and video documentation, medical test results and the legal documents from the Giza prosecutor's office," he said. Some Egyptian, Italian and international media have speculated that Regeni was killed by the police or secret services. Egypt's interior ministry said possible motives included criminal activity or the desire for revenge "due to personal reasons." Regeni had "many relationships with people near where he lives and where he studied," it said in a statement carried by state news agency MENA. In the Italian parliament, Gentiloni referred to the investigative developments "evoked this morning" as "improbable" -- a sign of increasing strain between the two countries over the mysterious death. Italy has significant economic interests in Egypt, including the development of the giant Zohr gas field off the North African coast being developed by Italy's state oil producer Eni. Egypt's interior and foreign ministers have dismissed the notion that security forces were behind Regeni's murder. Human rights groups accuse Egypt's Interior Ministry of widespread abuses, allegations it denies. A senior source at Egypt's forensics authority told Reuters that Regeni, a graduate student at Britain's Cambridge University, had suffered seven broken ribs, with signs of traumatic injuries all over his body. A second autopsy in Italy "confronted us with something inhuman, something animal", Italian Interior Minister Angelino Alfano said. (Additional reporting by Mostafa Hashem and writing by Ahmed Aboulenein in Cairo; Editing by Michael Georgy, Crispian Balmer and Raissa Kasolowsky) For years, his name has loomed above the Las Vegas Strip, and on Wednesday night Donald Trump strode like a colossus across the Republican political landscape, winning the Nevada caucuses easily and standing poised to win upcoming contests in the South, while Senators Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio were once again left fighting for a distant second place. We love Nevada, Trump said at his announcement speech, flanked by two of his sons. Tonight, this was a great evening. I love Las Vegas. He left the stage to chants of USA! USA! The outcome in Nevada proved that even without the meticulous ground operations or super PAC spending of some of his rivals, the fervency of Trumps supporters can propel him to victory in a caucus as opposed to a primary. (Trump came in second in the Republican caucuses in Iowa and won the primaries in New Hampshire and South Carolina.) Enthusiasm is a particularly important factor in Nevada, where turnout is traditionally very low. In 2012, just 33,000 Republicans voted in their partys contested presidential caucuses. RTX28A3H James Glover II/REUTERS Trump won across every ideological category, including very conservative, conservative and moderate Republicans, according to exit polls. He won evangelical white voters. He won a full 50 percent of non-college-educated Republicans, while Rubio and Cruz won 21 percent each. (I love the poorly educated, Trump said at his victory celebration.) Trump even won a plurality of the Hispanic vote. He also won those with college degrees. Small solace for Rubio came in two bits of data. Late decidersa plurality, 41 percent of themvoted for Rubio, suggesting his attacks on Cruz and Trump may have worked. And the very youngest voters, aged 17 to 29, opted for Rubio. Story continues The Trump win adds to the moguls delegate count. Thanks to his big win in South Carolina, Trump has amassed an early lead in the delegate count in the Republican race, and hell build on that with Wednesday nights win in Nevada. The states Republicans award their 30 delegates proportionally, which means Cruz and Rubio will also add to their totals. The remaining Republicans in the race, Ohio Governor John Kasich and retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson, were trailing far behind in single digits. In March, major states like Florida, Texas and Ohio will vote in massive multi-state contests each week. Trump seems well positioned to add to his count and to develop what could be an insurmountable lead, although his three leading opponents will try to stop him and try to avoid the campaign-ending embarrassment of losing their home states which are Ohio for Kasich, Texas for Cruz, and Florida for Rubio. The contest between the two Cuban-American freshmen senators, Cruz and Rubio, to be the Trump alternative has become increasingly nasty in recent weeks, with each accusing the other of playing dirty. On Monday, Cruz fired his chief spokesman, Rick Tyler, for sharing an erroneous news report claiming Rubio had made a dismissive remark about the Bible. Early on, Nevada looked like it would be a race between the two men, but those hopes faded as Trumps star rose. The campaigns have no room to dwell on Tuesdays results. Even before Nevada voted, most already has their eyes on the big series of elections in March, beginning with Super Tuesday on March 1. Between then and March 15, 28 states will vote, with nine times as many delegates up for grabs than in the whole month of February. And unlike the four early states, which drew the whole fields attention, the campaigns are now scattering to try to consolidate their advantages in different parts of the country. Rubio left Nevada early Tuesday to hold rallies in Minnesota and Michigan, both of which vote in early March. Ohio Governor Kasich had already thrown in the towel in Nevada, spending the day in Georgia, a Super Tuesday state. Just Cruz and Trump stayed in Las Vegas to watch the caucus results roll in Tuesday night, early Wednesday morning on the East Coast. For his part, Cruz took to the microphones to declare next weeks Super Tuesday contests as the most important night of this campaign. He touted himself as the only candidate other than Trump to win one of the early electoral contests. He quickly ticked off a list of hot-button issues designed to energize conservatives. Ive been told folks in Nevada kind of like their guns. As a Texan, I can understand, Cruz said, noting that he would sleep in his bed for the first time in a month. Related Articles Joe Biden had a front-row seat to Whiskey Tango Foxtrot on Tuesday night. The vice president showed his support for Tina Fey at an invite-only Washington, D.C. screening of her film, which took place at the U.S. Navy Memorial. The dark comedy stars Fey as a dissatisfied American journalist who heads to wartime Afghanistan as a foreign correspondent and becomes addicted to chasing more ambitious subject matter. Read More: Diane Sawyer, Ann Curry Laud Tina Fey at 'Whiskey Tango Foxtrot' NYC Screening Biden was an unannounced guest at the event, which was hosted by MPAA chief Chris Dodd and Viacom evp global government affairs Dede Lea. After watching the film, attendees were treated to a Q&A session with Fey, Saturday Night Live's Lorne Michaels, who produced the movie, and screenwriter Robert Carlock. The screening follows an intimate Sunday night screening of the Paramount Pictures title at New York City's Museum of Modern Art, which was hosted by Diane Sawyer and Ann Curry. Whiskey Tango Foxtrot, which hits theaters on March 4, also stars Margot Robbie, Martin Freeman, Alfred Molina and Billy Bob Thornton. Read More: Ted Cruz Tweets 'Fat Bastard' Clip at Donald Trump OCTFME Director #AngieGates and Vice President @JoeBiden takes an "Usie" at the premiere of #wtfthemovie pic.twitter.com/FtIfIu9ZeE - Film DC (@Film_DC) February 24, 2016>var el = document.getElementById('targetParams');if (el !== null && typeof(el) != 'undefined') {var srcParams = $('.advert iframe').attr('src');var addParams = srcParams.split(";");for (i=1;i<=addParams.length - 1;i++) {if (addParams[i] != '=null' && addParams[i] != 'dcopt=ist' && addParams[i] != '!c=iframe' && addParams[i] != 'pos=t' && addParams[i] != 'sz=728x90') {el.value += addParams[i]+";";}}}brightcove.createExperiences();>>>>>>> According to the Academy, more than half of the statuettes given out over 87 years have gone missing one way or another. NCIS: Los Angeles co-star Miguel Ferrer found out the hard way about the replacement policy. After his late father, Jose Ferrer, was named best actor in 1951 for Cyrano de Bergerac, the Puerto Rico-born star married vocalist Rosemary Clooney, had five kids with her, divorced her, remarried her, then again divorced - along the way becoming uncle to George Clooney and donating the Oscar to the University of Puerto Rico. "I never saw the thing, never laid eyes on it. It was not in the house [growing up]," says Miguel. "I have no idea why he had it there outside of the fact that he had great affection for the island and the people who live there." His father died in 1992 of colon cancer at 80 after a career that included a Princeton degree; playing Iago on Broadway opposite Paul Robeson's Othello (Ferrer's first wife, Uta Hagen, played Desdemona); leading roles opposite Ingrid Bergman, Cary Grant, Rita Hayworth; and even working with such directors as Woody Allen. In 2000, the university was renovating its theater when the Oscar was misplaced and stolen. The theft made headlines. Says Miguel: "Through Benicio Del Toro, who is a great friend of mine and whose parents live in Puerto Rico, I spoke with several newspapers and put up a cash reward. We got no response. I suspect it's at the bottom of the ocean." Ferrer says he contacted the Academy for a replacement and was happy to pay for it, "but their position was, 'If it's lost or stolen and the guy's alive, we replace it. If the guy's dead, it's too bad.'" At a time when "the Academy is tripping over themselves to be culturally inclusive," Ferrer finds it ironic that "my dad won an Oscar in 1951 with an un-Anglicized name, the first Hispanic to ever win an Oscar, and the Academy is so intractable to this day." Read more: Oscar's Life After Death: 10 Statuettes, From Heath Ledger's to Liz Taylor's, Today This story first appeared in the March 4, 2016 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. To receive the magazine, click here to subscribe. Colombo (AFP) - Sri Lanka gave visiting New Zealand Prime Minister John Key a baby elephant on Wednesday, sparking anger from animal rights activists who said it was cruel to separate her from her family. President Maithripala Sirisena presented a deed of ownership for five-year-old "Nandi" during a red-carpet welcome in Colombo for Key, who arrived for a two-day official visit. Nandi, born at Sri Lanka's oldest elephant sanctuary, is the second bequeathed to New Zealand in the last 12 months after baby "Anjalee" was also gifted to the Auckland Zoo. "The first elephant has gained 700 kilos (1,540 pounds) in one year," Key told Sirisena at the ceremony. "So, it is loving its life in New Zealand and I am sure its friend will have such a good time as well in New Zealand." Sri Lanka has a long history of giving elephants as presents, with China gifted three over the years, and two each for Japan, South Korea, the Czech Republic and the United States. But activists urged the government to halt the practice, saying some of the animals had found it difficult to adapt to their new climates and without their families. "We are very disappointed," Sagarika Rajakarunanayake, head of the Sathva Mithra (Friends of Animals) group, told AFP. "We wrote three weeks ago asking the government to stop this practice. I think they don't even read our letters." Nandi has been raised in a herd of 93 elephants in a coconut grove at Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage, about 80 kilometres (50 miles) east of Colombo. Local environmental lawyer Jagath Gunawardana said the government had given away too many, describing the animals as sacred in the mainly Buddhist nation. "There should be a stop to these knee-jerk gifts of baby elephants," Gunawardana said. The government said the elephant was given in recognition of "excellent bilateral relations". Nandi is soon set to be flown to Auckland, where mean annual temperatures of around 15 degrees Celsius (59 Fahrenheit) may come as a shock to a calf more used to the tropical 27 degree average in Sri Lanka. New Zealand vets visited her recently to prepare her for the journey, a top local zoological official said. Tiana Carruthers, 25, was the first person wounded on Saturday in the series of random shootings that left six people dead and two injured. Carruthers grandmother, Phoenix Windwalker, told the Detroit Free Press on Tuesday that the young woman used her body to shield several children from the assailants gunfire as she screamed for them to run from an apartment complex playground. The children were saved, Windwalker told the newspaper. Her 7-year-old daughter saw her get shot, along with her niece and the three other children. She saved the children by doing what she did, which was really courageous for her and I'm proud of her, but I feel so, so sorry for her. Its just not fair. Tiana Carruthers, the first victim of the Kalamazoo shooting spree, shielded her daughter and several other children from the gunman and sent them running for safety. (Photo: Facebook) Two children described the chaotic scene to WWMT-TV in Kalamazoo, which is about 150 miles west of Detroit. He shot her once and she was still running, and then he shot her again and she fell, said Joi Coleman, 12. Megan Coleman said the group of children, which included Carruthers young daughter, kept hearing more shots as they sought shelter in an apartment. The little girl ran to the window and kept yelling, My mom is dead! My mom is dead!, Coleman told the news station. Police said Carruthers was shot at least three times before the gunman, 45-year-old Uber driver Jason Dalton, sped away in a silver SUV. Detectives reportedly recovered 10 spent shell casings from the scene. Windwalker said her granddaughter may not walk for six to eight months, but is expected to make a full recovery, the Free Press reported. They had to put a cadaver bone in her collarbone because the bone in her collarbone was shattered and they couldnt repair it, Windwalker said. Before she went into her second surgery, Tiana almost went into a depression, she wanted to see her daughter. She got to talk to her, see her, spend some time with her. And my great-granddaughter, she got to know her mother was OK and that shes alive. That relieved her. SLIDESHOW Deadly shooting in Kalamazoo, Michigan >>> Story continues CLICK IMAGE for slideshow: Michigan Uber driver Jason Dalton has been charged with killing six people and wounding two. (Photo: Kalamazoo County Court/Reuters) Police have not revealed a motive for the deadly spree. Witnesses said Carruthers was getting ready to take her daughter to gymnastics class at about 6 p.m. when Dalton pulled to the curb and waved her over. Joi Coleman said the man asked, Have you seen Mazie? Carruthers barely had time to reply, Is there something I can do for you? before Dalton pulled a handgun from his coat and began firing. Police said Dalton, a married father of two and former insurance adjuster, apparently picked up passengers for the Uber ride-hailing service in-between his alleged shooting episodes that spanned five hours. Dalton even switched vehicles after sideswiping a car following the shooting of Carruthers. The other shootings occurred at a restaurant parking lot and at a car dealership. The victims range in age from 14 to 74. Abigail Kopf, 14, was the only survivor where four people died outside a Cracker Barrel restaurant. Late Tuesday, Abigails family said the teen remains on a ventilator and is fighting for her life. Dalton was denied bail on Monday after a court hearing in which a detective testified that Dalton admitted to the shooting rampage. Jason Sickles is a national reporter for Yahoo News. Follow him on Twitter (@jasonsickles). WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said he spoke with Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Wednesday and that their teams would meet soon to discuss plans for a planned "cessation of hostilities" due to go into effect in Syria this weekend. The United States and Russia earlier this week called for a voluntary cessation of hostilities - a less formal effort to halt the violence than a ceasefire - to begin on Saturday. The plan, however, excludes the Islamic State and Nusra Front militant groups, which Syrian rebels fear will allow government forces backed by the Russian air force to continue to attack them under the pretext of targeting the militant groups. "I am not here to vouch that it's absolutely going to work, but I am telling you that this is the one way that we can end this war. The alternative is that the war gets worse, that Syria might get totally destroyed, not able to be put back together again," Kerry added. "Everybody has said you've got to have a diplomatic solution at some point in time. The question will be, is it (ripe)? Will Russia work in good faith, will Iran work in good faith to try to bring about the political transition?" In a statement posted on its website, the Russian Foreign Ministry said the call took place at the initiative of the United States. It also said Lavrov and Kerry continued to discuss the ceasefire plan "which requires close coordination of efforts between our countries, including on military matters." (Reporting by Arshad Mohammed; editing by Eric Walsh, G Crosse) Lakers star Kobe Bryant and funnyman Will Ferrell are among the stars who have joined the city of Los Angeles' campaign to land the 2024 Summer Olympics. In a nearly two and-a-half minute video released on Tuesday by the committee orchestrating the bid, Bryant, Ferrell, Jessica Alba and others answer the question: "Where will you be in 2024?" "In 2024, we'll finally be in flying cars," said Ferrell. "I know that for a fact." Bryant, who is retiring at the end of this season, said, "In 2024, we're going to be rolling." Among the numerous picturesque shots of the city are numerous interludes with children who say they plan on competing in the 2024 Summer Olympics. The video ends with Ferrell humming "Olympic Fanfare and Theme." A host city will be selected by the International Olympic Committee in September 2017. Rome, Paris and Budapest are seen as the top global contenders vying to host the 2024 games. Read more: L.A. Touts Itself as "Northern Capital of Latin America" for 2024 Olympic Bid South Korea's military warned North Korea on Wednesday to halt all "provocations", saying its reckless actions would only speed up the "collapse of its dictatorial system." The verbal volley comes a day after North Korea's military supreme command, angry over upcoming joint US-South Korean exercises, threatened to attack Seoul's presidential Blue House. "We strongly urge North Korea to immediately halt provocative actions that are propelling it to destruction," the South's Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement. North Korea will face "stern punishment" if it ignored Seoul's warning, it said. "North Korea must keep in mind that it will be responsible for all situations arising from its reckless provocations and we warn it will only speed up the collapse of its dictatorial system," it said. Seoul and Washington will next month hold their largest-ever annual exercise in response to the North's recent nuclear test and long-range rocket launch. Pyongyang habitually claims that the annual Key Resolve/Foal Eagle exercise is a rehearsal for invasion while Seoul and Washington say it is purely defensive. Tensions are high on the peninsula, with the United Nations considering tougher sanctions against the North to punish it for January's nuclear test and this month's rocket launch. That came a step closer on Tuesday, when the US and China -- Pyongyang's chief protector and only major ally -- said they had made progress in talks. The South, in an unprecedented move, has shut down a Seoul-financed and jointly-run industrial estate in the North, saying it was helping finance its neighbour's military programmes. By Sruthi Ramakrishnan (Reuters) - Macy's Inc plans to open Backstage off-price stores within some existing Macy's, betting that the benefit of bringing new customers into stores outweighs the risk of diluting the company brand and undercutting sales of full-price items. Macy's on Tuesday reported a drop in quarterly sales that was less than feared and said it plans to open Backstage stores within 15 Macy's this year. It will add one more standalone Backstage store this year to the five it has opened since September. Macy's Chief Financial Officer Karen Hoguet said the new Backstage brand would test entry into the booming market for discount stores, which offer up to 80 percent off regular prices. Standalone Backstage stores created so far have not undercut, or cannibalized, sales at nearby Macy's, she said, adding that the new plan could do so. "When you open it in-store, the capital is less, but then there is also more cannibalization of the existing store," she said on a conference call with analysts following the earnings release. But the Backstages will pull customers into Macy's, she said. "We believe this could be an exciting way to drive traffic to our Macy doors, and to offer some price points and categories - for example, home decor or baby gear, toys, et cetera - that we don't currently carry at Macy's." Some analysts said, however, that Macy's risked muddying its brand and undermining sales of full-price items. Neil Saunders, chief executive of research firm Conlumino, said the move could be "quite dangerous," undermining Macy's efforts to sell at full price. "Macy's is very unclear about where it wants to go, what kind of brand image it wants to project," Saunders said. Macy's offers more discounts than chains such as Nordstrom Inc , which will make it more difficult to distinguish Macy's from Backstage, said Morningstar analyst Bridget Weishaar. Story continues Macy's does not break out sales for the Backstage business but said it was "in the very early test stages." Operating a low-margin business within Macy's stores, which are often in high-rent areas, could also be expensive, analysts warned. "If you look at a TJX or a Ross , the model works because they put the stores in cheaper real estate areas," Weishaar said. However, putting Backstage in less productive Macy's stores, could help boost traffic there, said Dan Hess, chief analyst at research firm Merchant Forecast. (Reporting by Sruthi Ramakrishnan in Bengaluru; Editing by Steve Orlofsky) KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) - Malaysia's anti-graft agency on Wednesday said an external review panel had asked it to continue investigations into a donation of $681 million received by Prime Minister Najib Razak, despite an order by the country's top lawyer to close the case. Last month, Attorney-General Mohamed Apandi Ali closed all investigations of Najib, after reviewing investigation reports from the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) into debt-laden state fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) and the transfer of $681 million into Najib's personal bank account. Apandi said the funds transferred into Najib's account were a donation from Saudi Arabia's royal family, and added that no further action needed to be taken. Najib has been buffeted for months by allegations of graft at 1MDB and revelations of the transfer, adding to a sense of crisis in a country under economic duress from slumping oil prices and a sliding currency. Najib has denied any wrongdoing, saying the funds were a political donation and he did not take any money for personal gain. The scandal had been "an unnecessary distraction", he said, after being cleared by Apandi last month. MACC sought a review of that decision, and on Wednesday it said the review panel had recommended it continue investigations into the transfer of funds, as they were "still incomplete". "Since MACC's investigation into the alleged 2.6 billion ringgit donation case is still incomplete, the panel recommended to MACC that it continues its investigation on the case," the agency said in a statement. It did not say if it would act on the recommendation, and gave no further details. Apandi had no immediate comment, a spokesman for the attorney-general's office told Reuters in a text message. A spokesman for the prime minister's office declined to comment when contacted by telephone. The eight-member review panel includes former civil servants, corporate figures, academics and lawyers. The panel monitors MACC investigations, but lacks the power to enforce its recommendations. The panel also advised the anti-graft agency to seek the help of the attorney-general in obtaining mutual legal assistance to get further evidence and documents from banks overseas. The anti-graft agency said the panel also recommended that investigation papers on SRC International, a 1MDB subsidiary investigated for alleged misappropriation of funds, be resubmitted to the attorney-general for review. MACC has not revealed its findings or indicated whether any wrongdoing was involved, saying any decision to take further action would be up to the attorney-general. Najib enjoys the backing of most of the powerful division chiefs in his ruling United Malays National Organisation party, and most of his critics concede that he cannot be unseated. In moves that were widely seen as stamping out dissent last year, he sacked his critical deputy prime minister, replaced the former attorney-general with Apandi and cracked down on opposition leaders and academics. Najib has said his reshuffle was necessary to maintain government unity. ($1=4.2150 ringgit) (Reporting by Rozanna Latiff; Editing by Praveen Menon and Clarence Fernandez) By Therese Apel BATESVILLE, Miss. (Reuters) - A man has been indicted for murder in the burning death of a 19-year-old woman, a prosecutor said on Wednesday, more than a year after the crime rattled a small Mississippi town. Quinton Verdell Tellis, 27, is charged with killing Jessica Chambers, who was discovered on fire and walking away from her burning car on Dec. 6, 2014, outside the town of Courtland in northern Mississippi. She died of her injuries a short time later. Authorities in Panola County said Tellis and Chambers knew each other as residents of the same town, but gave no motive for the slaying. They also refused to disclose the dying statement she made to firefighters who came to her aid. Tellis was indicted by a grand jury on Tuesday. He was already in jail on charges in an unrelated case in Louisiana, where he moved last summer. In August, he was arrested when he was found in possession of items belonging to Meing-Chen Hsiao, 34, of Taiwan, who had been stabbed to death in Louisiana, authorities said. He has been charged with the unauthorized use of her debit card but not her murder. Ben Chambers and Lisa Daugherty, Jessica's parents, said they had never heard their daughter mention Tellis. They said they felt confident investigators had the right man in custody but were not completely relieved. "She's got to have justice," Daugherty said. "That doesn't come until the conviction." The 14-month probe involved investigators from local, state and federal agencies. "It's very rewarding to know that someone who is capable of this degree of evil will have to answer for his actions," Mississippi Bureau of Investigation spokesman Warren Strain told a news conference in Batesville where the arrest was announced. Prosecutors said Tellis did not yet have a lawyer in the Mississippi case. (Editing by Colleen Jenkins and Peter Cooney) Want to make a purchase online? Say cheese! MasterCard (MA) is rolling out new technology that would allow any online shopper to authenticate their identity with the super high-tech power of...a selfie. Heres how it works: When you shop online using a MasterCard-issued credit card, the merchant will ping you with a text and ask you to verify your identity through MasterCard Identity Check (youll have to download the app on your phone first). From there, you can either pose for a photo or use your fingerprint to verify your identity. If you go for the photo option, the app will prompt you to blink once or twice. And that blink is everything. Its how the app prevents hackers from being able to break into a users account simply by using a photo. The technology, which MasterCard has been testing in the Netherlands for several months, is due to roll out in the U.S. later this year. MasterCard executive Bob Reany, who heads up the companys authentication efforts, said with any luck no one will be using standard issue passwords and PINs a few years from now. People hate passwords because passwords are dangerous and theyre frequently compromised, Reany told Yahoo Finance. Im a busy person. I cant remember 40 passwords. Most cyber security experts have long decried use of old-school passwords, which are easily hackable (12345 and password have been the most commonly used passwords in the U.S. for several years running). Identity theft is still the fastest growing crime in this country. Of the 16.4 million Americans who were the victim of ID theft in 2014, more than half experienced credit card fraud. You rarely need to verify your identity when you use a credit card online, which makes it a breeze to shop but also makes it easier for fraudsters to steal your credit card or bank info and make purchases. Adding an additional verification step, while it might seem like a nuisance, is a way to thwart that, Reany says. Credit card issuers and just about every other business in the world have been trying to come up with a viable solution for years. Some require fingerprint authentication to complete a purchase. Others use two-step verification, which prompts users to punch in a unique code sent to their phone by text message. Wells Fargo, HSBC, and Barclays are among several institutions experimenting with voice recognition tools. MasterCard has also been testing heartbeat verification using the Nymi band, which is able to track the users unique heartbeat rhythms. Story continues MasterCard Identity Check will roll out in mid-2016 in the U.S. for both Android and iPhone users. -- Mandi Woodruff is a reporter for Yahoo Finance and host of Brown Ambition, a weekly podcast about life, love and money. Read more: 9 little-known Amazon Prime perks Did US Marshals arrest a man for unpaid student loan debt? The first 3 things you should do after you get engaged Tegucigalpa (AFP) - Police in Honduras on Tuesday arrested eight people, including a mayor of a town close to the capital and a former policeman, on charges of links to one of the country's most feared criminal gangs, officials said. They were taken to maximum-security holding cells pending prosecution on charges of criminal association, extortion and murder, the head of the police investigation unit, Ricardo Castro, told a news conference. The suspects were thought to be connected to Mara Salvatrucha, a gang that counts among the most vicious in the country. Authorities also seized 42 properties, 13 companies, 53 vehicles and a clinic owned by the suspects on suspicion they came from gang-related activities. Honduras' government has been waging a hardline campaign against gangs that make the country, along with neighboring El Salvador and Guatemala, among the most dangerous nations in the world. The crackdown has shown some signs of success in the past couple of years, but violence is still rife, and the gangs are widely feared. The country has a murder rate of around 60 homicides per 100,000 inhabitants, more than 10 times that for the United States. New York (AFP) - Heavy metal giants Metallica on Wednesday announced a live album recorded at the Bataclan in Paris, with proceeds going to victims of the November 13 attacks at the club. The CD -- entitled, in reference to France's national motto, "Liberte, Egalite, Fraternite, Metallica! - Live at Le Bataclan. Paris, France - June 11th, 2003" -- will come out on April 16 for Record Store Day, a growing annual event that promotes independent music stores. The album features a recording of nine songs performed at the Bataclan by Metallica, who had played three gigs in Paris in one night at clubs much smaller than the band was accustomed to as part of a promotion for its album "St. Anger." Metallica said all profits from the album would go to Give for France, an initiative under the Fondation de France philanthropic group that raises funds for survivors and families of people who lost their lives in the tragedy. Ninety people were killed on November 13 when Islamist extremists opened fire at a Bataclan concert of California rockers Eagles of Death Metal, the deadliest of a series of coordinated attacks around the French capital. Organizers of Record Store Day, a US-based initiative that has gone global and is known as "Disquaire Day" in France, said they planned to highlight the connections between US and French "music-loving humans" for the 2016 edition. While Metallica's live album will be out on CD, Record Store Day has largely tried to highlight the resurgence of vinyl, with many bands releasing special records to be sold at independent stores for the occasion. Metallica -- named 2016 Record Store Day "ambassadors" -- also plans to put out boxed set reissues of the band's 1983 debut album "Kill 'Em All" and follow-up "Ride the Lightning." The boxed sets will each include vinyl, CDs, a DVD and a hardcover book from the band, considered the pioneers of the dark and aggressive subgenre of thrash metal. Story continues Lars Ulrich, 52, the California-based band's Danish-born drummer, said he spent his formative years browsing records at the Bristol Music Center in Copenhagen. "As music becomes available either through only the Internet or in gigantic airport-size retail stores, it is more important than ever -- actually vital -- that all us fanatics continue to bring to light the importance of records, and to support to the maximum of our abilities the independent record store outlet," he said. Metallica has said it will release a new album this year or early next, the band's first since 2008's "Death Magnetic." By Lefteris Papadimas and Yannis Behrakis IDOMENI, Greece (Reuters) - Migrants cradling young children blocked a Greek motorway on Wednesday demanding onward passage to Macedonia, part of a growing bottleneck of refugees stranded by new border controls that have put Athens on a collision course with its EU peers. Families chanted "We want to go" after police stopped their convoy at Tempe in central Greece and authorities elsewhere in the country stepped up measures to control the flow of people trying to reach more prosperous nations further north. Reuters journalists saw hundreds gathered at petrol stations and motels along the 530-km (330-mile) route from Athens to Macedonia, where guards periodically opened the border, letting 100 people through at a time. Facing the problem of catering for more than ten times that number of new arrivals daily, Greece escalated protests against that restriction and others imposed by countries further along Europe's main land migration route. "It's scandalous... that five police chiefs can overturn a decision of European Union prime ministers," Migration Minister Yannis Mouzalas told Reuters in Athens. Austria, Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia and Macedonia imposed controls after the heads of their police forces met last week. Austrian Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz brushed off criticism of his country's plans to impose daily caps on migrants, saying on Wednesday that Greece needed to do more to reduce the flow. More than one million migrants and refugees passed through Greece last year, many fleeing conflict in Syria and Afghanistan. Another 1,600 arrived on the mainland from outlying islands bordering Turkey on Wednesday morning, and two Greek government officials said there were an estimated 20,000 stranded in the country. "When there is a bottleneck, the bottle could break, and where we had a controlled movement of individuals ... a broken bottle could result in an uncontrolled, illegal influx," Mouzalas said. 'YOU CAN DIE, JUST LIKE THAT' A senior official of the UN refugee agency said the restrictions flew in the face of refugee protection laws. "(They) ...probably go against even European rules and regulations and certainly against basic refugee protection laws," UNHCR head Filippo Grandi told reporters in Athens. In a conversation with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tspiras expressed "deep displeasure" at the failure of EU member states to meet their commitments, a statement from his office said. Balkan decisions to halt the flow would escalate, and not reduce, illegal migration, Minister Mouzalas added. Meanwhile, Greek police had orders to stop buses carrying migrants to Idomeni, at the border with Macedonia, on Wednesday. One driver in a convoy of eight buses told Reuters they were stopped by police and asked to sleep at a stadium on Tuesday night. About 1,000 people were gathered in a field at the frontier on Wednesday, 24 hours after another group of migrants had been rounded up and removed from the area by Greek authorities. At Athens' Piraeus port, Syrian migrant Hasan Frnjari said authorities had told him to stay there until further notice. "We came here in the morning and don't know what to do because we want to continue to Macedonia. Now they tell us the borders are closed," said the 23-year-old marketing student from the northern Syrian city of Aleppo. "I don't think they really understand the cause we left from Syria, in Aleppo people are in danger. The city is under constant shelling. You walk in the street and you can die, just like that." (Additional reporting by Lefteris Karagiannopoulos and George Georgiopoulos, Writing By Michele Kambas; Editing by Andrew Heavens and John Stonestreet) (Reuters) - Minnesota officials seized a "FMUSLMS" license plate and apologized for issuing it at a driver's request, saying on Wednesday that approval procedures for so-called vanity plates were under review. An uproar over the license plate erupted over the weekend after a St. Cloud area resident posted a photograph of the license plate on social media. Governor Mark Dayton denounced the plate, saying he was "appalled" it had been issued in Minnesota and ordering the Department of Public Safety to get it off the road and take a second look at approval procedures for personalized plates. "It is offensive, and the person who requested it should be ashamed. That prejudice has no place in Minnesota," Dayton said in a statement issued on Monday. On his application for the plate, the owner listed alternative choices as "PETALOL" and "8SLUGTHG," saying all three were the names of musical bands in which he is a member. By Monday evening, the state had confiscated the plate. "We continue to review the process for approving personalized license plates," Bruce Gordon, state public safety spokesman, said on Wednesday. "This personalized license plate should never have been issued; it is offensive and distasteful," the department said in a statement. "The Department of Public Safety apologizes for this error." Across the U.S. each year, thousands of license plate requests are denied by motor vehicle agencies that find they violate state rules. The myriad that have passed the acceptability test include "DAMNIML8" and "WTF", while those that failed include "ILVTOFU," "GAY" and "TOILET." Indiana's Supreme Court in November said the state acted properly in forbidding a police officer from using a vanity license plate that said "0INK," reversing a lower court ruling. But a New Hampshire top court in May ruled against the motor vehicle department and allowed a driver to obtain a plate reading "COPSLIE." Story continues In 2012, there were an estimated 9 million personalized license plates in the United States. The Minnesota plate that was scrapped this week is "symptomatic of the overall rise of Islamophobia" in the United States, said Ibrahim Hooper, spokesman for the Council on American-Islamic Relations. "Everyone has a right to be a bigot if they want to, but not on a state-issued license plate," Hooper said. (Reporting by Barbara Goldberg in New York; Editing by Marguerita Choy) Washington (AFP) - More than 13 million Latinos are expected to vote in November's US presidential election -- almost two million more than in 2012 -- according to a study released Tuesday. The total could be even higher depending on which candidates the Republican and Democratic parties nominate and how effectively they reach out to the increasingly influential Latino community, said the report from the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO). Latinos are already affecting voting patterns in some swing states such as Colorado, and NALEO executive director Arturo Vargas said no one camp could claim to own their loyalty. "With more than 13.1 million Latinos expected to head to the polls to make their voices heard, no candidate or political party can afford to take our support for granted if they want to win the race for the White House," he told reporters. The group's diverse nature means "no one can expect Latinos to vote for a candidate just because he has a Latino name or speaks some Spanish," Vargas said. Young voters make up a higher proportion of Latinos than of other ethnicities in the United States, making the youth vote an especially important demographic. Nearly half of Latino voters are millennials. The number of Latino voters has increased by at least 17 percent in each presidential election from the previous one since 2004. NALEO says its latest figures represent a conservative estimate in a country with 27.3 million eligible Latino voters. The largest number lives in Texas, where Latinos represent 39 percent of the population and 23 percent of registered voters, nearly one in four people. - Who gets the votes? - The Democratic Party's caucuses in Nevada on Saturday were the campaign's first vote to involve a large contingent of Latino voters. Although Hillary Clinton beat Bernie Sanders by around five percent, polls so far have not made clear who benefited from the Latino vote. Story continues The only conclusion to be drawn is that "no one can put the Latino vote in one box anymore," Vargas said. In the 2012 election, 71 percent of Latino voters helped re-elect President Barack Obama, who made immigration reform a major campaign pledge -- though his plans were later blocked by the Republican-controlled Congress. Hopes for immigration reform took another blow this year when Republican frontrunner Donald Trump promised to deport 11 million illegal immigrants and build a giant wall along the Mexican border. That set the tone for a Republican race that features two candidates with Cuban parents: Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz. Still, as the candidates campaign in primaries across the country, one certainty their strategists can count on is that the fast-growing Latino vote is changing the future of US politics. Almost two-thirds of Latinos living in the United States were born in the country, NALEO's study shows. Of those under 18, 94 percent were born on US soil, a clear sign of generational change. An estimated 53 million Latinos currently live in the Unites States, and their number is projected to rise to some 86.7 million by 2035 and around 128.8 million by 2060. Moscow (AFP) - In the West former Soviet supremo Leonid Brezhnev was reviled as the embodiment of a corrupt totalitarian system who sent troops into Czechoslovakia and Afghanistan and crushed dissent at home. But a new exhibition in Moscow largely glosses over the dark side of Brezhnev's 18-year rule -- emphasizing instead the stability and global clout many Russians associate with his time in power, as the same spin is being put on the leadership of President Vladimir Putin. The exhibition in Russia's State Archives "aims to present Brezhnev as objectively as possible and to show how the Soviet Union actually was during his time," the exhibition's curator Mikhail Prozumenschikov told AFP during a recent visit. The retrospective is dedicated to the 109th anniversary of Brezhnev's birth and contains pictures of the famously bushy-eyebrowed leader -- who headed the USSR from 1964 to his death in 1982 -- hunting in the woods, partying with friends and dancing a folk dance. "He was a jovial man who loved dancing, women, and to drink a beer with friends," Prozumenschikov told a group of visitors. Among the numerous classified documents, memorabilia, personal diaries and correspondence there are few reminders of the grimmer aspects of the Brezhev period, such as the systemic graft among a corrupt elite and economic stagnation that was eating away at the system. Only two exhibits evoke Brezhnev's crackdown on regime critics: his decree to strip Nobel Peace Prize winning nuclear physicist Andrei Sakharov of government awards and another one that took away the Soviet citizenship of chess grandmaster Viktor Korchnoi. But there is nothing about Sakharov's arrest and exile and the show trial of "anti-Soviet" writers Yuli Daniel and Andrei Sinyavsky or the thousands of political and religious prisoners and dissidents locked in mental asylums or sent to labour camps. "One can't tell everything. We would have needed much more space," said curator Prozumenschikov. Story continues - Parallels with Putin's era - Some exhibits illustrate Brezhnev's cult of personality that marked the last years of his rule: a huge porcelain vase adorned with his portrait, the leader's bronze statue, or a canvas depicting Brezhnev in a military uniform. Brezhnev loved to show up in a full uniform of a Marshal of the Soviet Union and was infamous for his weakness for unmerited medals, but the exhibition discreetly displays only few out of 94 decorations he received from the Soviet and foreign governments. Nowadays in Russia Brezhnev is largely a forgotten figure after nostalgia for his time in power that flourished during the hectic 1990s died down during the relative stability of Putin's tenure, sociologist Lev Gudkov told AFP. Under former KGB officer Putin, however, the authorities in Russia have revived some Communist-era traditions and are accused of reverting to some of the repressive measures used by their Soviet predecessors. And while the current leadership harks back more to the victory under Stalin in World War II rather than Brezhev's period, the early experiences of most at the top now were forged during his rule. "Putin exploits all the motifs of the Brezhnev period -- from being a great power to confrontation with the West," sociologist Lev Gudkov told AFP. "The period when Putin came of age was under Brezhnev. He grew up in that age. And that was when the cult of WWII, veterans, victory began and there was a growth in Russian nationalism." JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - South African mobile phone operator MTN Group withdrew its lawsuit against Nigeria's regulator over a $3.9 billion fine and paid $250 million toward a possible settlement. A judge in Lagos last month gave both parties until March 18 to reach a settlement, after MTN had asked the court to arbitrate over the dispute, saying the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) had no legal grounds to order the fine. MTN, which makes 37 percent of its sales in Nigeria, said it would withdraw its court challenge in an effort to reach an amicable settlement and make a "good faith payment" of $250 million toward a possible settlement. "This is a sign that the fine could be reduced much further. There is some sort of negotiation taking place and the parties are migrating towards a common ground," said Dobek Pater, managing director of Africa Analysis. The original penalty was based on fining the company $1,000 for every unregistered SIM card in use. Shares in MTN, which are down about a third since the fine was first announced in October, rose 1.3 percent to 129.53 rand ($8.34). Nigeria has been trying to halt the widespread use of unregistered SIM cards amid worries they are being used for criminal activity, including by the Islamist group Boko Haram. The fine also came months after Muhammadu Buhari was swept to power after an election campaign which pledged tougher regulation and a fight against corruption. ($1 = 199.0000 naira) (Reporting by Peroshni Govender. Additional reporting by TJ Strydom; Editing by Keith Weir and Louise Heavens) People stand in line waiting for the doors to open for the Nevada Republican presidential caucus at Western High School in Las Vegas. (Photo: David Becker/Reuters) LAS VEGAS Long lines. Not enough ballots. Reports of double voting. Tuesdays Republican caucus in Nevada was plagued with irregularities, after a high turnout overwhelmed the notoriously disorganized system. At one voting site in Valley High School in Las Vegas, caucus-goers wandered around in confusion, asking each other if anyone worked there. They said someone will come. No one has come, one woman said sadly. This is very overwhelming and very disorganized, her neighbor agreed. Slideshow: The GOP battle for votes in Nevada >>> The Republican caucus system changed this year, so that voters could show up to sites, cast their ballots and go home. Previously, they were required to listen to speeches and elect delegates before casting their votes. This change only added to the confusion. What is the caucus and where is the caucus? asked Ivan Kovacic, a Ted Cruz supporter who wandered into a near-empty theater in the high school holding his ballot. Kovacic was disappointed that he was expected to vote and just leave. Nobody knows nothing, and thats whats irritating, said Carroll Enrich, a Trump supporter who had waited an hour for help finding out which precinct she should cast her ballot in. Voters line up for a Republican caucus at Durango High School in Las Vegas. (Photo: Ethan Miller/Getty Images) This is the first one Ive been to, and itll probably be the last, her friend CJ added. A Republican Party official told Jon Ralston Tuesday night that the party would be reviewing ballots after reports of double voting in at least one precinct. The official also added that more ballots were quickly brought to precincts when they ran out. At Valley High School, the lone party official on site weathered hostile comments and even cursing from audience members once the delegate election process finally began. I apologize for the process, said Robin Roberts. I just got this job yesterday. The long lines and confusion suggest results might come in very late Tuesday night, if at all. In 2012, it took party officials three days to count 33,000 votes. WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval, a Republican and a former federal judge, is being considered by President Barack Obama for a possible appointment to the U.S. Supreme Court replacing the late Justice Antonin Scalia, a source close to the process said on Wednesday. The source, who asked not to be identified, said Sandoval met on Monday in the U.S. Capitol with Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid, at which time Reid asked the governor whether he would be interested in being considered for the high court job. "He said he was interested," the source said, adding that "a number of people are being checked out" for the job. (Reporting By Richard Cowan; Editing by Mohammad Zargham) On Sunday night, when the Oscars for the best films are announced, the spotlight will shine brightly on more than just filmmakers and actors. For some of this year's Oscar-nominated films, the real-life settings play just as important a supporting role, be it the red-tinged desert landscape of Jordan to the mystical woodlands of England. Take a look at some of the destinations that have either played body double to faraway locations, or reminded viewers of the planet's natural wonders. England and Ireland, "Star Wars," nominated for film editing To set up a key battle scene between Rey and Kylo Ren, filmmakers chose the ancient woodlands of Puzzlewood in England to portray an otherworldly location. The moss-covered forest floor, deep-cut canyons, twisting walkways and knotted trees are believed to have been the inspiration for another epic fantasy tale: Middle Earth in J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of The Rings. Ireland also gets a turn in the spotlight at the end of the film. Rising dramatically out of the Atlantic Ocean, the craggy rocks of Skellig Michael feature in the final scene as the hideaway for a key Star Wars character. With a history that dates back to the 6th century, the site was once home to monks who made the remote island their sanctuary. Canada and Argentina, The Revenant," nominated for best film Movie director Alejandro G. Inarritu's insistence that the film be shot entirely in natural light with minimal CGI effects meant finding some of the wildest, most frigid and impressive landscapes on the planet to convey the daunting forces of nature, and an unrepentant winter. Enter the remote Canadian backwoods of Alberta and British Columbia and areas of Argentina. Leonardo DiCaprio has repeatedly described shoots as some of the toughest conditions he's ever worked in, with temperatures dipping to -30C. Some of the sites include Bow Valley, the Badlands both in Alberta; Squamish Valley in British Columbia; and Tierra del Fuego in Argentina. Wadi Rum, Jordan, The Martian," nominated for best film Also known as the Valley of the Moon for its otherworldly landscape, the desert sands of southern Jordan doubled as the Red Planet for Matt Damon's "The Martian." The UNESCO World Heritage Site features narrow gorges, arches, towering cliffs, ramps, caverns and ancient and rock carvings that testify to 12,000 years of human occupation. Compared to other desert landscapes, its red-tinged sand makes Wadi Rum a convincing stand-in for Mars. The region has also been used to portray Mars in Red Planet and The Last Days on Mars. The area is popular among tourists for rock climbing, trekking, hiking, camel and horse safaris. Brooklyn, "Brooklyn," nominated for best film The borough of Brooklyn plays a supporting role in the Oscar-nominated film about a young immigrant who leaves her native Ireland for the promise of a better life in America. Though the tale is fictitious, the premise is based on history: During the 1950s, 50,000 Irish immigrants moved to the US following the devastating potato famine. Today, the borough is less known for its Irish settlers and better known for being home to an entirely different community: hipsters. To experience a microcosmic version of New York, head to Williamsburg, the borough's epicenter for creativity and culture. By Alan Baldwin BARCELONA (Reuters) - Rio Haryanto's manager has calmed fears that Indonesia's first Formula One driver may have to raise more money to last the whole season. "There was some speculation but its now all clear. He has a contract for the full season," Piers Hunnisett told Reuters after the 23-year-old's first day of testing since signing for the Manor team. Haryanto has brought at least five million euros ($5.51 million) to the sport's smallest team, thanks to state oil sponsor Pertamina, and will be the only Asian driver on the starting grid. Although he tested previously for the team in its former guises, and is familiar with the Circuit de Catalunya from competing in the GP2 feeder series, Wednesday was still a momentous day. Haryanto completed 78 laps, bringing out red flags when he spun into the gravel, and was slowest of the 12 drivers who took part in the day's sessions by quite some margin. "I made a small mistake and thats it. There was no damage. We managed to get going in the afternoon again," he told reporters. "It was a very productive day for me and the team. "Its been two or three months that I am out of the car, its quite tough but I managed to do the run plan. I just have to focus on my job and not think of the pressure." "Formula One has always been the ultimate goal so its a dream come true," he continued. "I think I will get used to it, day by day. The general feeling of the car was much better compared to the previous one." Hunnisett, who also managed India's first Formula One driver Narain Karthikeyan, said Indonesia had 'gone ballistic' with excitement at Haryanto's breakthrough and south east Asia as a whole stood to benefit. Malaysia and Singapore, which both host races, could expect to see more Indonesian fans than ever. "It's taken a lot of work because the motorsport world is very small and, like in India, advertising budgets are very small compared to European ones," he said of his driver's road to Formula One. "When you talk Formula One money in those countries its huge money: 'How many hospitals can we build?' But eventually they see the global benefits of Formula One and it really puts the country on the map." (Reporting by Alan Baldwin, editing by Toby Davis) WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama on Wednesday said he was cautious about raising expectations regarding the agreement to pause hostilities in Syria. But, if some progress is made in Syria, then that will lead to a political process to end the five-year-old civil war in the country, Obama told reporters after a meeting with Jordan's King Abdullah in the Oval Office. Obama said the United States is committed to helping Jordan deal with the refugees who have fled to its borders to escape the conflicts in Syria and Iraq. (Reporting by Jeff Mason; Writing by Ayesha Rascoe; Editing by Susan Heavey) BARCELONA (Reuters) - Orange's credit rating is unlikely to be impacted by the potential acquisition of Bouygues Telecom, Chief Financial Officer Ramon Fernandez said in an interview with Reuters on Wednesday. "It will depend on the terms of the transaction, but it's unlikely," Fernandez said in the Orange stand at the annual Mobile World Congress held in Barcelona. "We have a very strong balance sheet," he added. The leading French telecoms operator holds an investment-grade rating with all three major credit rating companies. Its grade is Baa1 at Moody's, BBB+ at Standard & Poor's and Fitch Ratings. Orange resumed talks in January to buy Bouygues' telecoms unit in a complex 10 billion-euro transaction that would cut the number of French telecoms operators to three and make Bouygues one of Orange's two main shareholders after the French state. Orange is holding parallel talks with Numericable-SFR and Iliad , as any deal would require selling Bouygues Telecom's assets to rivals to ease competition concerns. Echoing comments made by Bouygues's chief executive officer Martin Bouygues on Wednesday, Fernandez said the talks must reach a conclusion, either positive or negative, in March. "The month of March will be key," Fernandez said. "It's in everyone's best interest that talks don't go on indefinitely." (Reporting by Mathieu Rosemain; editing by Michel Rose) (Reuters) - The leaders of a six-week armed occupation at a U.S. wildlife refuge in rural Oregon are to be arraigned on Wednesday on charges of conspiring to impede federal officers policing the compound during a fight over federal control of land in the West. Ammon Bundy and other anti-government protesters arrested in connection with the takeover of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in eastern Oregon were set to appear in U.S. court in Portland on Wednesday, Bundy's attorneys said in a statement. Four of the 16 protesters facing one conspiracy charge each have asked the court to wave their appearance at the arraignment, affirming their intention to plead not guilty to the charges, court documents show. The 41-day standoff ended on Feb. 11 when the final four protesters surrendered to authorities following a dramatic exchange with mediators. On Jan. 26, Bundy, his brother Ryan and nine other protesters had been arrested on a snow-covered roadside while on their way to speak at a community meeting in John Day, Oregon. A spokesman for the group, Robert "LaVoy" Finicum, was shot dead in the stop. The Bundys and the others face one count each of plotting to prevent by "force, intimidation, and threats" agents of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service from performing their duties. A three-page indictment, returned by a federal grand jury in Portland earlier this month, says the defendants brandished firearms and refused to leave the refuge, threatening violence against anyone who attempted to remove them. It also says they warned the sheriff of "extreme civil unrest" if their demands were unmet, among other acts of intimidation. The Malheur takeover, which began on Jan. 2, was sparked by the return to prison of two Oregon ranchers convicted of setting fires that spread to federal property near the refuge. The occupation also was a protest against federal control over millions of acres of public land in the West. The cost of the standoff likely will run into the millions of dollars with local and state agencies looking to the federal government - and the arrested occupiers - to shoulder the bulk of the bills. (Reporting by Eric M. Johnson in Seattle; Editing by Sharon Bernstein and Bill Trott) LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Oscar-nominated celebrities were urged on Wednesday to skip a $55,000 trip to Israel offered as part of an awards gift bag. Two U.S.-based groups campaigning for an end to Israel's occupation of the Palestinian Territories made the plea in a full-page ad in the Los Angeles Times that appeared five days before the Academy Awards ceremony on Sunday. "#SkipTheTrip. Don't endorse Israeli apartheid," said the ad, sponsored by the U.S. Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation and Jewish Voice for Peace. The ad said the trip, which is partially paid for by the Israeli government, was part of a larger "'Brand Israel' strategy to distract from almost 50 years of illegal occupation of Palestinian land." "As was the case many years ago in South Africa, celebrities are being asked to refrain from whitewashing apartheid policies," Yousef Munayyer, executive director of the U.S. Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation, said in a statement on Wednesday. The trip is one of the most expensive items in a swag bag handed out to the five Oscar-nominated directors and 20 lead and supporting actor and actress nominees, including Leonardo DiCaprio, Sylvester Stallone, Mark Rylance, Cate Blanchett, Jennifer Lawrence, Matt Damon and Kate Winslet. The gift bag is not affiliated with the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, which organizes the Oscars. The Academy last week filed a lawsuit against Los Angeles-based Distinctive Assets accusing the gifting group of promoting the bag as official Oscars swag. The Israeli government earlier this month confirmed it was funding $15,000 to $18,000 of each 10-day trip as a means of offsetting news coverage of the country's troubles. "These are the most senior people in the film industry in Hollywood and leading opinion-formers who we are interested in hosting," said Israeli Tourism Minister Yariv Levin. "They will experience the country first-hand and not through the media." It was not immediately known whether any of the Oscar-nominated directors, actors and actresses will take up the offer, which must be declared to U.S. tax authorities. "Creed" supporting actor Stallone signed a pro-Israel petition during the 2104 Gaza war, while "Bridge of Spies" nominee Rylance has signed a petition circulated by Artists for Palestine UK which calls for a cultural boycott of Israel. (Reporting by Jill Serjeant, editing by G Crosse) By Joseph Ax (Reuters) - Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf announced on Wednesday that he has a "treatable form" of prostate cancer but said it would not interfere with his official duties. "I'm not going to be incapacitated at all by this," Wolf told reporters at a news conference alongside his wife, Frances. "It's eminently treatable." The 67-year-old Democrat said he would begin a months-long regimen of treatment within the coming weeks. He would not go into details of the treatment but described it as "minor" and "routine" and said it would not include chemotherapy. Wolf, a businessman, defeated Republican incumbent Tom Corbett in 2014. Since his election, the state has been locked in a bitter budget battle. It still has only a partial spending plan for the current fiscal year, which began more than seven months ago. Illinois, the U.S. state with the country's lowest credit rating, is the only other state without a current budget in place. Wolf and the Republican-controlled state legislature have been fighting over whether to implement a severance tax on natural gas producers, among other tax hikes, and use the revenues to increase education spending. Wolf said his doctor found some abnormalities during a routine examination in late November or early December and that further testing had confirmed the cancer. "Prostate cancer is something that older men get," he said. "A lot of older men die with prostate cancer; not a lot die of it." He said he hoped his announcement would reinforce the importance of getting annual checkups. Other governors have also continued to work while undergoing treatment for cancer. Maryland Governor Larry Hogan, 59, a Republican, pledged in June 2015 to keep working despite chemotherapy for advanced cancer of the lymph nodes. California Governor Jerry Brown, 77, a Democrat, kept a full schedule in 2012 while receiving treatment for prostate cancer. (Reporting by Joseph Ax; Additional reporting by Hilary Russ and Barbara Goldberg; Editing by Nick Zieminski) MANILA (Reuters) - A Roman Catholic bishop in the Philippines on Wednesday urged the faithful to stay away from American pop singer Madonna's two-night concert in Manila, calling her music "suggestive" and her clothes "vulgar". Madonna, 57, is on a world tour to promote her 13th studio album, "Rebel Heart", which combines her trademark sexually charged performance and lyrics. She performs on Wednesday and Thursday in the same hall where Pope Francis met Filipino families a year ago. "Why is the Catholic Philippines the favorite venue for blasphemy against God and the Holy Mother?" asked Ramon Arguelles, archbishop of Lipa City, south of the capital. "Pinoys and all God-loving people should avoid sin and occasions of sin," he said in a statement on the website of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines, referring to Filipinos. Roman Catholics make up about 80 percent of the Philippine population of more than 100 million and the church has strong influence, blocking legislation on the death penalty, divorce and same-sex marriage. There was no immediate reply to telephone calls from Reuters seeking comment from the event organizer or Madonna, who arrived in Manila on Monday and visited Catholic-run orphanages, including one of the oldest, near the presidential palace. Tickets for the concert can cost as much as 57,750 pesos ($1,211.84). Madonna is famed for her hits, "Like A Virgin" and "Material Girl", but some of her music videos used religious symbols in ways the Roman Catholic prelates found offensive and disrespectful. The performer's concerts were among "subtle attacks of the evil one", the bishop added, in an apparent reference to Satan. In 2012, Arguelles also opposed the Manila concert of Lady Gaga as the work of Satan. In the wealthy neighboring city state of Singapore, where Madonna is scheduled to perform on Sunday, Catholic authorities also expressed grave concern. "It is our moral obligation not to support those who denigrate and insult religions, including anti-Christian and immoral values promoted by the secular world," Singapore Archbishop William Goh said on the archdiocese website. (Reporting by Manuel Mogato; Editing by Clarence Fernandez) Philippine Catholic bishops called Wednesday on the faithful to boycott pop diva Madonna's sexually charged concerts in the nation's capital, calling them the devil's work. The 57-year-old "Like A Virgin" and "Erotica" hit-maker is scheduled to cavort on a giant cross-shaped stage during two concerts on Wednesday and Thursday as part of her global "Rebel Heart" tour. "Pinoys (Filipinos) and all God-loving people should avoid sin and occasions of sin," Archbishop Ramon Arguelles said in a statement posted on the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines' official website. Arguelles said the concerts, Madonna's first in the Philippines, were among "subtle attacks of the evil one". "Why is the Catholic Philippines the favourite venue for blasphemy against God and the Holy Mother?" said Arguelles. Arguelles had previously campaigned against provocative pop diva Lady Gaga, saying her 2012 Manila concert was the work of Satan. Conservative bishops are famously outspoken in the Philippines, where 80 percent of its 100 million people are Catholic. Ahead of her concerts, Madonna visited a shelter for abused children and a Catholic orphanage in Manila on Tuesday. "Chillin' with my homies," Madonna said in a caption to an Instagram selfie with three children, as they lay on cardboard mats on the floor of Bahay Tuluyan, home to about 500 abused or abandoned children. Wearing head-to-toe black and oversized shades, Madonna came with an entourage of 20 dancers and burly bodyguards, Bahay Tuluyan executive director Lily Flordelis told AFP. "The children were very happy to see her. She played with them, danced with them and chatted with them," Flordelis said. Tipping her maroon hat in another Instagram post, Madonna said: "Hats off to the Bahay Tuluyan Foundation in Manila for taking so many kids off the street and providing food and shelter." Story continues Madonna also visited the Hospicio de San Jose, one of Manila's oldest orphanages. She posted a picture of herself carrying a baby in pink overalls while holding the hand of an emaciated girl, also in pink, whom she identified as Celeste. Madonna is touring the world to support her 13th studio album, Rebel Heart, which combines her trademark sexually charged lyrics and imagery with an array of musical genres. Madonna has courted controversy since bringing her tour to Asia this month. A Catholic bishop in Singapore called for a boycott of her concert for insulting religion. She also drew Chinese anger for draping herself with the Taiwanese flag during a concert in Taipei. By Manolo Serapio Jr and Enrico Dela Cruz MANILA (Reuters) - The Philippines expects to finalize a new set of rules on genetically modified organisms over the next few days, after a top court demanded an overhaul of previous regulations in the nation that has been seen as a trailblazer for GMO in Asia. The government had hoped the new rules would be signed by five ministers on Wednesday, but Merle Palacpac, chief of the plant quarantine service at the Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI), told Reuters there had only been one signature so far as other officials were traveling. "We hope they will all be able to sign over the next few days," said Palacpac. Thursday is a public holiday in the Philippines. The Supreme Court in December halted the issuance of fresh permits for planting or importing genetically modified crops until the new rules were in place, putting in limbo nearly 1 million corn farmers and buyers of GM soybean meal, the Philippines' top GMO import. Proponents of GM technology warn that delays could spark a food crisis in the Southeast Asian country, while critics have sought more time to ensure there is enough regulatory scrutiny to meet concerns over public health and the environment. The new rules would take effect 15 days after being published, Palacpac said, adding that a permit to plant a variety of GM corn domestically will expire on March 3. The Philippines was the first in the region to allow planting and commercialization of GM corn, which it did in 2002, and has permitted GM crop imports for more than a decade. "We can't really rush (the ministers) because they have to examine it and they have to consult," said Dr. Jaime Montoya, a government health scientist who heads an inter-agency panel that drafted the new guidelines. (Reporting by Manolo Serapio Jr. and Erik dela Cruz; Editing by Joseph Radford) By Kate Kelland LONDON,(Reuters) - Evidence is building for the theory that Zika can cause newborn brain defects and the World Health Organization is promising more answers in weeks, but nailing a definitive link will be neither simple nor swift. Picking apart numerous potential connections between mothers who show evidence of infection with the mosquito-borne virus and babies born with microcephaly, in which the head is abnormally small, will require precision and patience, specialists say. In the case of rubella, another similar virus that is now known to cause congenital defects, it was a decade before the matter was finally settled. Anthony Fauci, director of the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease (NIAID), says the timing of any conclusion "depends on how definitive you want to be". "The absolute definitive proof will come from case-controlled studies, and those usually take months," he said. The current outbreak of Zika started in 2015 in Brazil and has since spread to over 20 countries in the Americas, leading the WHO to declare the virus and its suspected links to birth defects and neurological problems a global emergency. Brazil has confirmed more than 500 microcephaly cases in the last few months and officials believe most are Zika-related. Authorities are investigating another 3,900 suspected cases. Ian MacKay, a virus specialist at Australia's University of Queensland, has no doubts that proving or disproving a causative Zika-microcephaly link will take "a long time". "Even then there may not be any single 'smoking gun'," he told Reuters. Among criteria used by experts seeking to prove whether or not a pathogen is causing disease are a group of tests known as "Koch's postulates". Developed in the 19th century, they were used in 1984 to show that human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) causes AIDS. Albert Ko, a tropical disease expert at Yale University and at Brazil's Oswaldo Cruz Foundation, a government research institute, said these criteria would take some time to fulfill. "We need to do rigorous science, and doing rigorous science helps us understand better how to treat the disease," he said. POSSIBLE SUSPECTS Part of the challenge is the difficulty of ruling other things out. Microcephaly is known to be linked to some parasitic and bacterial diseases, as well as rubella, herpes, HIV, exposure to chemicals such as arsenic, mercury and alcohol, and radiation. To be certain that Zika is also a culprit, scientists must test for links with these known suspects, and also be sure not to ignore unknown possibilities. "It's a huge amount of work, but a powerful study would be one lasting a year or more that enlists a cohort of mums-to-be months before becoming pregnant and intensively monitors them until the delivery of their baby," said MacKay. Which is exactly what scientists in Brazil are aiming to do. Various research projects are in the works already, including a retrospective study in the northeastern state of Paraiba, and studies led by Ko's team in Salvador, on Brazil's east coast. In Recife in Pernambuco State on the eastern tip of Brazil, a team led by Laura Rodrigues, a professor of infectious disease epidemiology at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, plans three studies. In the first, researchers will interview mothers of babies born with microcephaly about Zika exposure during pregnancy, collect blood samples, measure head circumferences and conduct infant CT scans. They will also do the same with a comparative group of mothers and babies with no microcephaly. For a second study, pregnant women who get the kind of rash associated with Zika will be recruited and tested for Zika, as well as dengue and chikungunya, two other mosquito-borne viruses. "Then we follow them to establish what proportion will have a miscarriage or a stillbirth, and what proportion have a baby with microcephaly or other malformations," Rodrigues said. "That will tell us how common microcephaly really is and how it is affected by the trimester in which the mother becomes infected." The third study will track potential developmental delays by looking at factors such as whether babies have convulsions, and how they interact and make eye contact. Rodrigues, whose team is working with closely with local hospitals and with the Pernambuco state health department, says there is "a sense of urgency", but full answers will take some months to emerge. MOUNTING EVIDENCE Researchers have found the Zika virus in the brain tissue and amniotic fluid of babies and stillborn fetuses with microcephaly whose mothers had Zika during pregnancy. This still falls short of causative proof, but as NIAID'S Fauci believes "the evidence is increasingly mounting that there is a direct connection". Preliminary results of two case control studies could come in May, according to U.S. officials. The WHO, which in its Feb. 1 emergency declaration cited a "strongly suspected" link between Zika and microcephaly, says it hopes to see some new data within weeks, but it will likely be six months "before we can say with some certainty". In the case of rubella, also known as German measles, the process of establishing proof of a link with congenital defects started in 1940, when Norman Gregg, an ophthalmologist from Sydney, noticed a spike in cases of babies with congenital cataracts after an epidemic of German measles in Australia. He concluded in a paper published in 1941 that the disease was responsible. The Lancet medical journal weighed in three years later, by which time rubella had also been linked to deafness and heart defects, to say Gregg still needed better data and "he cannot yet be said to have proved his case". Definitive verification of the link only came in a 1951 paper by Australian statistician Oliver Lancaster, who showed that peaks in the age distribution of deaf people dating back decades coincided with past rubella epidemics. Today, the connection is taken as proven and rubella vaccination is routine. (Additional reporting by Julie Steenhuysen in Chicago and Ben Hirschler in London; Editing by Sonya Hepinstall) Doha (AFP) - Qatar and Kuwait on Wednesday became the latest Gulf states to urge their citizens to leave Lebanon due to tensions over the pro-Iranian Lebanese Shiite militia Hezbollah which backs the Damascus regime. Doha's foreign ministry, in a statement on the official Qatar News Agency (QNA), called on citizens in Lebanon to "leave for their own safety" and said no Qatari nationals should travel there. Earlier on Wednesday, in a statement cited by the official KUNA news agency, the Kuwaiti embassy in Beirut also advised Kuwaitis to postpone any planned travel to Lebanon. The mission said all citizens should leave "except in extreme circumstances," and advised those who stay to exercise caution and avoid unspecified, unsafe areas. Qatar and Kuwait join Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain in issuing travel warnings for Lebanon. Riyadh, which supports the Syrian opposition, has also halted a $4-billion military and police funding programme for Beirut in response to what it said were "hostile" positions linked to Hezbollah. Riyadh's ambassador in Lebanon. Ali Awad Assiri, said on Wednesday that Lebanon must apologise for failing to join other Arab nations in condemning attacks on Saudi diplomatic missions in Iran last month. "This has upset the kingdom and (Lebanon) has to repair the error with wisdom and courage," Assiri told AFP. The attacks on Saudi missions in Iran, which followed the kingdom's execution of influential Shiite cleric Nimr al-Nimr, prompted Riyadh to cut diplomatic ties with Tehran. Syria's war has exacerbated political rivalries within Lebanon, which has been without a president for almost two years because of fierce disagreements between Hezbollah and its rivals, some of whom are supported by Riyadh. Meanwhile, the spokesman of Yemen's internationally-recognised government accused Hezbollah of training Shiite Huthi rebels and orchestrating attacks on Saudi Arabia from Yemen. Story continues The government has evidence of "Hezbollah's involvement in the Huthi war on the Yemeni people," Rajih Badi said in a statement to the official sabanew.net agency. Hezbollah militants are present in "the battlefields along the border with Saudi Arabia," said Badi, urging "international legal measures" against the movement. Saudi Arabia is leading a coalition battling the Iran-backed rebels in support of the Yemeni government. Vienna (AFP) - Reducing the flow of migrants is a "question of survival" for the European Union, Austria's interior minister said Wednesday as she pressed Balkan countries in Vienna to help cut the record influx. "We have to reduce the influx now. This is a question of survival for the EU," Johanna Mikl-Leitner said after talks in Vienna with ministers from nine countries along the west Balkans route from Greece towards northern Europe. Vienna has come under fire for organising Wednesday's talks, not least from Greece which was not invited, and for imposing last week daily limits on the number of migrants who can apply for asylum in Austria or transit to other countries. But Vienna says that the measures are necessary because the 28-nation EU has failed to get off the ground any effective common response to the continent's biggest refugee crisis since 1945. "I am optimistic that we can reach a joint EU response. The question is when," Mikl-Leitner told a news conference. "We want to generate pressure so that the EU can reach a solution... A partnership with Balkan countries is not only in the interest of these countries but also of the EU. We want to generate pressure and urgency," she said. Mikl-Leitner also announced the creation from April 1 of an international command centre with Interpol and Europol based in Vienna to combat people-smugglers. In a surprise twist in the Relativity Media saga, the company terminated the contract of its corporate communications head David Shane late Tuesday night, The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed. The move comes as a shock given that Shane recently renewed his contract with Ryan Kavanaugh's embattled studio. Relativity couldn't be reached for comment on Wednesday morning. Shane declined to comment. Shane, who had served as executive vp, corporate communications, was a three-year veteran of the studio and was entrusted with one of the most difficult PR jobs in Hollywood over the past year as Relativity faced numerous media battles, culminating with its bankruptcy filing in July. Before Relativity, Shane worked for crisis PR firm Hiltzik Strategies. He also was senior vp, corporate communication at ICM Partners. Prior to that he worked for Comcast. Shane's exit is the latest in a string of departures for the studio that is poised to emerge from bankruptcy in the coming months. (President and board member Tucker Tooley was the most notable executive to leave.) Earlier this month, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Michael Wiles provisionally agreed to Relativity's reorganization plan. Read More: Netflix Aims to Exit Relativity Deal With Appeal of Bankruptcy Judge's Conclusions By Megan Cassella (Reuters) - Republican presidential candidate Marco Rubio aimed to capitalize on rival Ted Cruz's recent missteps leading up to Tuesday's Nevada caucus, where a strong finish could bolster his position as the establishment favorite for his party's nomination. Looming over the tight race between the two first-term Cuban-American U.S. senators is Republican front-runner Donald Trump, the billionaire businessman who has won two of the first three state nominating contests for the Nov. 8 election and is expected to dominate the field in Nevada. With Trump, a blunt-spoken political outsider, commanding a double-digit lead in a handful of Nevada opinion polls, political strategists in the state said Rubio and Cruz had a more modest goal: a clear win over the other, which could propel them through the busy voting month of March. "They're playing for second," said Nevada political analyst Jon Ralston. A recent CNN/ORC poll put Trump ahead by 26 percentage points in Nevada, at 45 percent, followed by Rubio, from Florida, at 19 percent, and Cruz, from Texas, at 17 percent. Lagging behind were retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson, who stoked controversy on Tuesday by suggesting that Barack Obama, the first African-American U.S. president, was "raised white," and Ohio Governor John Kasich. Carson was at 7 percent and Kasich was at 5 percent. Kasich, who finished second to Trump in the Feb. 9 New Hampshire primary, kept his focus on bigger states, including Michigan and Virginia. Trump took to Twitter as polls opened on Tuesday night to encourage voters to turn out and cast ballots for him, taking a jab at Cruz, whom he has continually described as dishonest. "Make sure you get on the Trump line and are not misled by the Cruz people," he wrote. "They are bad! BE CAREFUL." BATTLING FOR SECOND Hoping to gain an edge in Nevada, Cruz spent time engaging rural voters and far-right conservatives. Rubio, the son of former casino workers who spent six years in Nevada as an adolescent, played up his ties to the region. "He's not pushing it hard, like, 'I'm really a Nevadan'," said Eric Herzik, a political science professor at the University of Nevada-Reno. "But both he and his surrogates have highlighted he has the best understanding of Nevada because he actually lived here." The rivalry between Rubio and Cruz, who won the first-in-the-nation Iowa caucuses on Feb. 1, has intensified as both seek a boost going into the nominating contests in a dozen states on March 1, known as Super Tuesday. Rubio beat Cruz by fewer than 1,000 votes for second place in South Carolina's Republican primary on Saturday. Strategists said Rubio was benefiting from the withdrawal of one-time establishment favorite Jeb Bush, some of whose donors were preparing to shift to Rubio immediately after Bush dropped out on Saturday night. Rubio has picked up endorsements from several Nevada party leaders since then, including U.S. Senator Dean Heller and Nevada Lieutenant Governor Mark Hutchison. He touted those gains at a campaign rally in Michigan on Tuesday, saying he was "proud" of supporters who had made the switch to him after Bush's exit. The Cruz campaign, meanwhile, lost a key staffer on Monday when the candidate fired his main spokesman, Rick Tyler, for posting a video that falsely showed Rubio dismissing the Bible. The firing came amid intense criticism of the Cruz campaign for unethical behavior from both Trump and Rubio. Trump, known for his blistering attacks against his rivals, continued to focus his venom on Cruz on Tuesday, writing on Twitter that he "lies like a dog." Cruz aimed to quiet one of Trump's most common attacks - that he isn't eligible to run for president because he was born in Canada - on Tuesday when he asked a federal court in Houston to throw out a class-action lawsuit questioning his eligibility. (Reporting by Megan Cassella in Washington; Additional reporting by Alana Wise; Editing by Peter Cooney, Jonathan Oatis, Leslie Adler and Paul Tait) ERBIL, Iraq (Reuters) - A Swedish teenager rescued from Islamic State militants in Iraq has said life in the so-called caliphate was "really hard" and that she was duped into going there by her boyfriend. In her first interview since Kurdish special forces recovered her in northern Iraq, the 16-year old told a Kurdish TV channel she had met her boyfriend in mid-2014 after dropping out of school in Sweden. "First we were good but then he started to look at ISIS videos and speak about them and stuff like that," she told Kurdistan 24 in a brief interview, using another name for the Islamic State group. "Then he said he wanted to go to ISIS and I said ok, no problem, because I didn't know what ISIS means, what Islam is -- nothing," said the girl. The couple set off from Sweden in late May 2015 and made their way across Europe by bus and train until reaching the Turkish border province of Gaziantep, from which they crossed into Syria. From there, Islamic State militants ferried them by bus with other men and women to the city of Mosul in neighboring Iraq and provided them with a house. There was no electricity or running water. "I didn't have any money either - it was a really hard life," she said, looking relaxed and healthy. "When I had a phone I started to contact my mum and I said 'I want to go home'." The teenager, who was rescued on Feb. 17, is currently in Iraq's Kurdistan region and will be handed over to Swedish authorities. Security services estimate that hundreds of Western men and women have left home to join Islamic State since the group overran large parts of Iraq and Syria in June 2014. A mother who took her 14-month-old son to Syria to join Islamic State fighters was jailed for six years by a British court earlier this month. Smiling occasionally, the girl compared life under Islamic State to that in Europe: "In Sweden we have everything, and when I was there, we didn't have anything". (Reporting by Isabel Coles; Editing by Paul Tait) PARIS A+E Studios historical drama miniseries Roots is set to have its international premiere on the opening night of the Cannes-set conference MipTV. Anna Paquin, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Anika Noni Rose and Malachi Kirby are all expected to attend the premiere screening along with exec producer Mark Wolper and co-exec producer LeVar Burton. Developed by History and based on Alex Haleys 1976 novel, Roots charts the journey of a family fighting against the adversity of slavery while witnessing and contributing to notable moments in U.S. history, including the American Revolution and Civil War. Roots opens with the capture of Kunta Kinte in his homeland of Gambia and follows his transportation to colonial America, where he is enslaved. Its a story with exceptional gravity, emotion and universality, which will impact viewers around the world, said Sean Cohan, president of A+E Networkss international and digital media. Cohan pointed out Roots was developed and produced by A+E Studios, its recently launched in-house production arm. We launched Studios () to produce and own our premium content. To that end, Roots () embodies the type of ambitious storytelling that A+E Studios is bringing to the global marketplace, added Cohan. Haleys novel was previously adapted into a show that aired on ABC in 1977 to massive audiences. The MipTV premiere screening will take place on April 4. The show will bow in the U.S. on History, A&E and Lifetime on May 30. The Alex Haley novel and original series left its mark on a generation of readers and television viewers around the world. The quality of the talent associated with this new version of Roots and the incredible production team involved once again confirms the commitment that broadcasters have towards event drama with international potential, said Laurine Garaude, Reed Midems TV division topper. Related stories U.S., U.K. Are World's Top TV Exporters, Australia Shows Improvement Story continues RTL Group's Guillaume de Posch to Deliver MipTV Keynote Novelist Harlan Coben to Speak at MipTV Television Conference Moscow (AFP) - Russia on Wednesday said it would appeal a European Court of Human Rights ruling that it deprived opposition leader and anti-corruption blogger Alexei Navalny of a fair trial on embezzlement charges. The court on Tuesday ruled that Russia's conviction of Navalny and his co-accused Pyotr Ofitserov in a 2013 trial was "prejudicial" and based on an "arbitrary application of the law." "Russia's justice ministry will appeal the ruling of the European Court on the case of Navalny and Ofitserov vs Russia to the ECHR's Grand Chamber within the deadline," the ministry's press service told TASS state news agency. Russia said it would base its legal position on precedents set at the ECHR "including those confirming the right of national courts to interpret and implement national legislation." Russia has three months to ask for another review of the case, but the European court is not obliged to grant it. Navalny and Ofitserov were convicted over a business deal to buy timber from state-owned company Kirovles in northern Russia and sentenced to suspended sentences of 5 and 4 years respectively. Navalny, 39, who has fearlessly exposed the corruption of Russian elites, welcomed the European court decision on his blog. "The truth is with us and we will win," Navalny wrote, adding that he wants to "defend the country from the thieves and villains who seized power in Russia". His lawyer Olga Mikhalova told TASS that the European verdict gives Navalny and Ofitserov the "right to receive a not-guilty verdict over Kirovles" from Russia. The court ordered Moscow to pay damages of 8,000 euros ($8,800) to the two men, and to cover their court expenses. Navalny wrote on Twitter that despite the European ruling, he will still not be able to stand for office because he is still serving a suspended sentence in another case. He was given a 3 1/2-year suspended sentence in 2014 after being convicted on charges he embezzled money from French cosmetics company Yves Rocher. Kabul (AFP) - Russia delivered 10,000 Kalashnikovs to the Afghan government Wednesday, with officials saying they were for the fight "against terrorism", a day after Kabul hosted talks on reviving the peace process with the Taliban. The assault rifles, delivered with pomp at a ceremony on the tarmac at Kabul's military airport, will be directly transferred to security forces, said President Ashraf Ghani's national security adviser Hanif Atmar. "We are trying to continue our efforts for peace, but in the meantime our nation should have the ability to defend itself," Atmar said. He said "international terrorism" in Afghanistan was a threat not only to the country and the region, but also to "our friends in Russia". Despite the $60 billion spent by Washington over more than 14 years to equip and train the Afghan security forces, they have struggled to contain the resurgent Taliban. Kabul is trying to resume a dialogue with the militants, and after talks with the US, China and Pakistan on Tuesday said it expects to relaunch the stalled peace process by early March. Russia is not part of the quartet. In a recent interview with state news agency Ria Novosti, Zamir Kabulov, the Kremlin's special representative to Afghanistan, described Washington's efforts to restore peace as "futile". At Wednesday's ceremony Russia's ambassador in Kabul Alexander Mantitski said cooperation between his country, NATO and the United States in Afghanistan ended in April 2014 "at the initiative of the West". The decision was taken in retaliation for Russia's annexation of Crimea. However the diplomat said Moscow would continue to cooperate directly with its Afghan partner. Russia remains concerned about the growing influence of Islamic State in the east of the country, where the group counts fighters from Uzbekistan and Tajikistan -- two former Soviet republics bordering Afghanistan -- in its ranks. MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday discussed a U.S.-Russian ceasefire plan for Syria with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, agreeing to work jointly for a peaceful settlement of the Syria crisis, the Kremlin said. The two leaders agreed in a telephone conversation on the need to continue the decisive fight against Islamic State, the Nusra Front and other terrorist organizations included in the United Nations Security Council sanctions list, the Kremlin said. (Reporting by Alexander Winning; Writing by Dmitry Solovyov) Democratic White House hopeful Bernie Sanders knocked Donald Trump on Tuesday over his outspoken support for false claims that President Obama was not born in the United States. Sanders said the so-called birther movement is partly motivated by racism but stopped short of saying thats what drove the bombastic mogul to be its champion. Sanders comments came in a CNN town hall event at which he was asked about Senate Republican promises to block any Obama nominee to fill the Supreme Court seat long held by the late Antonin Scalia. What you are seeing today in this Supreme Court situation is nothing more than the continuous and unprecedented obstructionism that President Obama has gone through at the hands of Republicans, the Vermont senator said. This is on top of the birther issue, which we heard from Donald Trump and others, a racist effort to try to delegitimize the president of the United States, Sanders continued. Bernie Sanders talks with TV host Chris Cuomo during a CNN town hall event in Columbia, S.C., on Tuesday. (Photo: Gerald Herbert/AP) Sanders said his father came from Poland but, Guess what? Nobody has asked for my birth certificate. Maybe its the color of my skin, I dont know. CNNs Chris Cuomo asked the senator whether Trump was motivated by racism. Sanders demurred. You know, Im not a psychoanalyst and boy, would a psychoanalyst have an interesting time with Donald Trump, he said, to laughter from the crowd. Im not going to speak to Trump, but do I think that at least in some parts of that Republican base there is race involved in that? Absolutely. Absolutely. Back when Trump was fueling speculation he might run for president in 2012, the real estate developer repeatedly questioned whether Obama was born in Hawaii, at one point saying he had sent private investigators there. The president responded to the rekindled rumors by releasing his long-form birth certificate in April 2011. The death toll from super-cyclone Winston jumped to 42 Wednesday as concerns grew for remote Fijian villages still waiting for help after the most powerful storm in the Pacific nation's history. While international aid efforts are intensifying, with New Zealand saying it will send two navy ships, relief teams are yet to reach some isolated communities devastated in the weekend tempest. "42 Fijians now confirmed dead -- disaster officials continue to deploy teams to help those affected across Fiji," government spokesman Dan Gavidi tweeted, raising the toll from 29 given Tuesday. The Red Cross said the body count was likely to rise further as word filtered back from far-flung corners of the island nation. "The numbers will continue to change as we have better access to information and establish communications," the acting head of the Red Cross's Pacific office Ahmad Sami told AFP. Severe tropical cyclone Winston lashed the Pacific nation overnight Saturday, packing wind gusts of 325 kilometres (202 miles) per hour and leaving a trail of destruction. In addition to the mounting death toll, Care Australia said the number of people left homeless had ballooned to 34,000, up from 8,500 two days ago, and was also inexorably rising. Care spokesman Dylan Quinnell said preventing disease outbreaks was a major challenge. "The main priorities, for the whole country really, is to make sure that people have clean water and adequate sanitation," he said. - 'Worst in living memory' - While humanitarian aid is pouring into the main island Viti Levu, some of the worst-hit villages are on remote islands that relief workers have not yet been able to reach. Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama on Tuesday acknowledged the problem and asked for patience from affected communities. "We realise the desperate position that you are in, how traumatic this is for you and your families... but as prime minister, I want you to know that we will not rest until we have reached you." Story continues Former prime minister Laisenia Qarase said he held grave fears for his home island Vanua Balavu, which has not yet been heard from. Suva-based Qarase said aerial photographs showed there were "probably a thousand houses destroyed" on the island. "I'm 75 years old and the damage I've seen, the extent of the damage, this must be the worst thing in living memory for Fiji," he told Radio New Zealand. New Zealand's foreign minister said two naval ships would depart for Fiji this weekend carrying building materials, water storage tanks and medical supplies. Fiji's disaster management director Akapusi Tuifagalele said rebuilding would be a lengthy process. "We would expect the reconstruction and rehabilitation to run into a couple of years," he told reporters. - Farewell kiss - Survivors recalled harrowing tales of the maximum category cyclone, the first in Fiji's history, which is already simply being referred to as "the monster" by locals. Sevanaia Ravania said his wife Titilia Mua, the village nurse, was trying to help her neighbours flee their house in Viti Levu's Ra province when a tree fell on the building, crushing her. "I entered the house and crawled to her, calling to her but there was no response," he told the Fiji Times. "I tried everything in my power to do something but could not." Ravania, 42, who is in temporary accommodation with his six-year-old daughter, said his wife died following her professional calling trying to help others. "All I could do was kiss her and thank her for her devotion to all the duties allotted to her," he said. At Lautoka, in the island's west, Luke Nacei told how his father Taniela Voreqe was killed after being lifted up bodily by the high winds and smashed into the wall of their home as he tried to keep a door closed. "Suddenly we heard a loud sound, and my father flew to the middle of the house. We called his name and tried to resuscitate him but it was no use," Nacei told the Fiji Sun. He said his father's last words were for his wife to look after their four children. By Toni Clarke WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Senate voted overwhelmingly on Wednesday to confirm Dr. Robert Califf as head of the Food and Drug Administration, an agency that regulates everything from food and drugs to tobacco, cosmetics and dietary supplements. Califf, 64, a well-regarded cardiologist and researcher, takes the helm at the FDA when lawmakers are pressuring it to speed the approval process for drugs and medical devices and to finalize a proposed rule giving it authority to regulate e-cigarettes. He said one of his first priorities is to strengthen the workforce by reaching out to academic and other centers to attract new talent and create professional "homes" for scientists who work at the FDA. For example, he said in an interview, "we've been working to create a coordinated effort to have all our statisticians have an identity and support services that they need." "For docs like me," he added, that might mean help with administrative matters such as keeping medical licenses up to date. Another priority for Califf is improving surveillance systems to monitor for safety. "We're not proposing to do away with the adverse event reporting system that currently exists," he said, "but we are acutely aware that it is not enough." Tools to monitor the safety of medical devices also need to be modernized, he said, and though it will not happen overnight, "we have to do the hard work of making it happen." He said he thinks medical professions also need to "step up" and be part of the process. And he said getting the authority to regulate e-cigarettes is also a priority. The FDA is also attempting to implement sweeping new regulations to improve food safety and has begun to tackle the approval process for biosimilars, which are cheaper versions of biologic drugs. The U.S. House of Representatives recently passed the 21st Century Cures Act, which would require the FDA to consider more flexible forms of clinical trials. The Senate is considering similar legislation. The rate of new drug approvals at the FDA is higher than it has been in decades. Last year it approved 45 new drugs, the most since 1996. From 2006 through 2014 it has averaged about 28 new drug approvals per year. Lawmakers and patient groups want the agency to move even faster. Califf has worked on many high-profile clinical studies, and has said he is eager to make the clinical trial process more efficient. Four senators, including Democrat Edward Markey of Massachusetts and Joe Manchin of West Virginia, opposed Califf's nomination. They took the opportunity leading up to the vote to lambaste the FDA for what they said was a lax approach to approving potentially addictive opioid painkillers. Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders was also among the senators who opposed the nomination, saying Califf's ties to the pharmaceutical industry made him unfit to regulate it impartially. Califf joined the FDA as a deputy commissioner a year ago. Previously he held senior positions at Duke University, where he founded a large academic research center that received more than half its funding from the drug industry. He has said the funding never compromised his research. Califf's confirmation was widely expected. He fills the position left by Dr. Margaret Hamburg, who stepped down after six years as commissioner. Dr. Stephen Ostroff has filled the post on an interim basis. (Reporting by Toni Clarke; Editing by Eric Walsh, Lisa Von Ahn and Jonathan Oatis) By Patricia Zengerle WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The chairman of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee said on Wednesday he did not expect Congress to lift the half-century-long embargo against Cuba this year but it could happen under a new president, if there are changes in Havana. President Barack Obama has been moving quickly toward more normal relations with Havana in the past 14 months but the crippling trade embargo is one of the remaining major obstacles. "It's not going to happen this year but I think it's something that could happen as we move into a new president('s administration)," Republican Senator Bob Corker told journalists at a breakfast sponsored by the Christian Science Monitor. "If Cuba were to evolve its behavior and people were able to see results from what's happening with the executive order changes that are occurring, then I think it's possible," he said. Obama and Cuban President Raul Castro announced in December 2014 that they would normalize relations after decades of hostility. Those changes have been strongly opposed by many congressional Republicans, who say Cuba needs to do more to improve human rights before trade is eased. Obama, a Democrat, has used his executive powers to ease restrictions on travel and trade. His administration just announced that next month Obama would become the first U.S. president to visit Havana since 1928. But the U.S. trade embargo, imposed on the communist-ruled nation in 1960, cannot be lifted without congressional approval. Republicans control Congress and although several agree with the overwhelming majority of Democrats who want the embargo ended, the party's congressional leaders are strongly opposed. Corker has not taken a position but has noted in the past that the embargo has not changed Cuban policy. The politics are more complicated because two Cuban-American senators vying for the Republican presidential nomination, Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz, are vocal opponents of Obama's policy and party leaders are unlikely to come out against them during the campaign. Corker said things are already changing, although Havana still needs to change. "To me it appears that things are gradually moving along. We have air flights that are now going in, and it seems to me that this is going to be a year where those things take hold," Corker said. "Obviously there's still tremendous human rights abuses that are taking place in Cuba," he said. (Reporting by Patricia Zengerle; Editing by Bill Trott) WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Senators unveiled legislation on Wednesday providing federal aid to help states fix water infrastructure in the wake of Flint, Michigan's crisis over lead-tainted drinking water. Senators James Inhofe, an Oklahoma Republican, and Debbie Stabenow, a Michigan Democrat, and others introduced the measure providing $100 million to a revolving fund states can tap if they have drinking water problems. The funding in the agreement is paid for by cuts from the Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing loans for auto companies, aimed to speed development of electric cars and other technologies. Inhofe called it a "failed program" that hasn't been used in more than a year and has only issued five loans since 2008. It was unclear whether the measure would be attached to a wide-ranging energy bill that failed to advance early this month or whether the senators would try to pass it as a separate bill. Under the plan, states must first explain how the money would be spent, according to details of the agreement. If they do not use the aid in 18 months, it would return to the federal government. "This is not a blank check," according to a document explaining the deal. Thousands of children in Flint, a predominantly African-American city of 100,000, are believed to have consumed dangerous amounts of lead in drinking water after a state-appointed emergency manager directed the city to switch from Detroit's drinking water supply to the Flint River. Lead is a neurotoxin that can harm brain development in children. Under the deal, Flint and the states would also have access to $70 million in a credit subsidy under a federal program called the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Authority, or WIFIA. Congress conceived the WIFIA to help lower borrowing costs for municipal water projects. The federal program acts as a loan guarantee, rather than a grant, and is aimed at bringing borrowing costs in line with U.S. government bond rates. Story continues Some critics say local governments need direct federal aid, not borrowing support, to improve infrastructure. There would also be $50 million in aid available for national use for a childhood lead poisoning prevention program, a health registry and other items. Earlier this month, Michigan lawmakers had at first opposed getting funding from the advanced vehicles program, saying it would hurt auto workers. (Reporting by Timothy Gardner; Additional reporting by Patrick Rucker; Editing by Jonathan Oatis and Alan Crosby) Sexual transmission of the Zika virus from men to women may be a more common mode of the virus's spread than researchers previously thought, officials said today. Authorities at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and several state public health departments are now investigating 14 new reports of possible sexual transmission of Zika virus. All of them involve men in the United States who had recently traveled to places where the virus is actively spreading, and their female sex partners who had not traveled, the CDC announced today (Feb. 23). The agency stressed the importance to men of following its recent recommendation: those who travel to areas known to have Zika virus cases should use condoms or abstain from sexual activity with their partners, particularly if those partners are pregnant. Currently, researchers think that the main way that people become infected with Zika virus is from the bite of an infected Aedes aegypti mosquito, the same species that transmits dengue fever and chikungunya disease, according to the CDC. But sexual transmission of Zika has been reported in a few previous cases, and the virus has been found to persist in semen long after a man has recovered from the infection. The virus is causing infections in South and Central America as well as in the Caribbean, where these mosquitoes are found, according to the CDC. The infection itself is mild, and only 1 in 5 people infected with Zika virus even become ill. The most common symptoms are fever, rash, joint pain and conjunctivitis (red eyes). [Zika Virus News: Complete Coverage of the 2016 Outbreak] But pregnant women who become infected with Zika may have babies born with a condition called microcephaly. The condition causes a small head and brain, and it can lead to severe, lifelong cognitive impairments. Several of the possible cases of sexual transmission that the CDC is now investigating involve pregnant women, the agency said. Story continues Officials have not definitively linked Zika with microcephaly, and studies are underway to look at whether there may be a causal connection. Additionally, the CDC noted in its statement that there is no evidence yet that women can transmit the disease through sexual activity. Follow Elizabeth Newbern @liznewbern. Follow Live Science @livescience, Facebook & Google+. Original article on Live Science. Copyright 2016 LiveScience, a Purch company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Ottawa (AFP) - Sixty Canadians have returned home after travelling abroad to join banned terror groups, while another 180 are still engaged with these organizations, Canada's spy master told a local newspaper. "The total number of people overseas involved in threat-related activities, and I'm not just talking about Iraq and Syria, is probably around 180," Canadian Security Intelligence Service director Michel Coulombe told the Globe and Mail newspaper. "In Iraq and Syria, we are probably talking close to 100," he added. An agency official was not immediately available to confirm the figures, which represent a significant jump in the number of Canadians reported to be involved in "terrorist" activities. A 2014 national security report said 130 Canadians overseas were being tracked by CSIS. They are said to be involved in fighting, training, fundraising to support attacks, promoting extremist views and planning attacks. Federal police chief Bob Paulson said the Royal Canadian Mounted Police is keeping tabs on those who have returned to Canada, some of them around the clock. By Brendan O'Brien (Reuters) - A major wind and snow storm downed power lines, closed highways and schools and grounded hundreds of flights over a wide swath of the U.S. Midwest on Wednesday. Blizzard and winter storm warnings were in effect until Thursday morning for parts of Indiana, Michigan and Illinois as the National Weather Service (NWS) predicted as much as 13 inches (33 cm) of snow and winds of up to 50 miles per hour (80 km per hour). "That's creating a lot of blowing and drifting snow and creating very hazardous travel conditions," said Chuck Schaffer, a meteorologist with the NWS in Illinois. Some 860 flights were canceled on Wednesday at O'Hare International Airport in Chicago. The NWS predicted as much as 10 inches (26 cm) of heavy snow and strong gusts in the Chicago area during the afternoon commute and into the evening. "This will create a wind-whipped snow that will reduce visibilities to near zero, making travel dangerous if not nearly impossible at the height of the storm," it said in an advisory. The Illinois Department of Transportation reported downed power lines and several crashes on state highways and warned motorists blowing snow and slick roads will make for treacherous conditions. Hundreds of schools in the Chicago area, northwest Indiana and southern Michigan canceled after-school activities and classes on Thursday. The storm left about 38,000 households without power in the St. Louis area while a downed power line diverted traffic from a portion of interstate I-270 southwest of the city for seven hours on Wednesday. The highway has since reopened, according to local media. Michigan Governor Rick Snyder said state offices in the lower part of the state would close Wednesday afternoon. I encourage all Michiganders to ... put safety first, especially while driving and heating their homes," he said in a statement. State officials in Michigan said emergency water operations will continue through the storm in Flint, a city that has gained national attention for high lead levels in its drinking water. Flint Mayor Karen Weaver, however, canceled a town hall meeting on Thursday to discuss the water crisis. (Reporting by Brendan O'Brien in Milwaukee; Editing by James Dalgleish and Lisa Shumaker) WEST DES MOINES, IA--(Marketwired - Feb 24, 2016) - Spotlight Innovation Inc. (OTCQB: STLT) announces today the addition of John M. Krohn, Jack E. Price, Craig A. Lang and Steven Katz as new members to its board of directors. Cris Grunewald, President and Chief Executive Officer of Spotlight Innovation, said, "The addition of these highly experienced healthcare and other business executives will help guide Spotlight Innovation in the execution of our new and highly focused commercialization strategy. This is one in a series of changes we have recently made in anticipation of entering the capital market. Other steps included engaging WithumSmith+Brown, PC as our new independent registered public accounting firm and retaining Saul Ewing LLP as outside counsel. We have also strengthened our management team and added other new professionals." New Board Members John M. Krohn is a Senior Financial Services Advisor with Principal Financial Group, a global investment management leader. He is Spotlight Innovation's largest investor. Mr. Krohn is also an investor in and a board member of other companies. Prior experience includes Chief Financial Officer positions with two central Iowa companies, Vice President of Operations for Economy Data Products from 1994 to 1996, and Controller for Seneca Corporation, a Des Moines, Iowa-based petroleum services company from 1986 to 1994. Mr. Krohn, a CPA, is a 1981 graduate of the University of Iowa with a degree in Accounting. Jack E. Price is a Founding Partner of J. Price & Associates which provides business, product and acquisition strategies to emerging high technology medical and other companies. From 2003 to 2006, Mr. Price was President and Chief Executive Officer of VSM MedTech Ltd., a publicly traded and leading supplier of magnetoencephalography (MEG) systems for noninvasive imaging of brain function. From 1993 to 2003, he was President and Division Chief Executive Officer of Philips Medical Systems North America, a leading manufacturer of diagnostic imaging systems, healthcare information technology solutions, healthcare informatics, patient monitoring, and cardiac devices. Mr. Price has degrees in Mathematics and Zoology from the University of Oregon and has served on a number of public and private boards. Story continues Craig A. Lang is President of The Prairie Strategy Group, a policy, communication and logistics consulting company. He is also President of Windward Iowa, an organization advocating for clean energy. From 2001 to 2011, he was Chairman of the Board of FBL Financial, an insurance and annuity company. From 2005 to 2009, Mr. Lang was the Lead Director and Chair of the Compensation Committee of Iowa Telecom. From 2001 to 2011, he was President of the Iowa Farm Bureau Federation, Iowa's largest general farm organization which promotes policies adopted by its membership. Prior to the above, Mr. Lang was Chairman of the Board of Iowa's Grow Values Fund, a $100 million seed fund program supported by Iowa Economic Development. Mr. Lang received a Bachelors of Science degree from Iowa State University in 1973. Steven Katz is President of Steven Katz & Associates, Inc., a life sciences/health care and technology management consulting firm focusing on strategic planning, corporate development and technology licensing, since 1982. From November 2006 to August 2008, he was Chairman of the Board and President of GammaCan International, Inc., a Bulletin Board listed public company engaged in the development of a plasma-derived pharmaceutical product. From January 2000 to October 2001, Mr. Katz was President, Chief Operating Officer and a director of Senesco Technologies, Inc., an American Stock Exchange listed company engaged in the identification and development of proprietary gene technology. Prior positions included General Manager of a non-banking business unit of Citigroup, National Patent Development Corporation, and Price Waterhouse & Co. Mr. Katz received a Bachelors of Business Administration degree in Accounting from the City College of New York in 1969. He has proxy contest experience and has served as a member of the board of directors of many publicly-held and several privately-held companies. These four individuals join Cristopher Grunewald, who was previously the sole director of Spotlight Innovation Inc. Comprehensive biographies of the new board members are available at www.spotlightinnovation.com/board-of-directors/ and in the Company Overview presentation which can be viewed at www.spotlightinnovation.com/investors/. The press release announcing the engagement of WithumSmith+Brown, PC can be found at www.spotlightinnovation.com/press-releases/. About Spotlight Innovation Inc. Spotlight Innovation Inc. (OTCQB: STLT) identifies and acquires rights to innovative and proprietary platform technology candidates with a focus on cancer drugs and related treatment therapies, solutions for infectious disease, and other specialty and unique opportunities. Access to platform technology candidates is accomplished via our extensive relationships with many leading academic institutions and other sources. We provide value-added development capability and funding in order to accelerate development progress. When commercially significant benchmarks have been achieved, we will partner with proven market leaders via sale, out-license or strategic alliance. For more information, visit www.spotlightinnovation.com or follow us on www.twitter.com/spotlightinno. Oil (CLJ16.NYM) is once again the focus on Wall Street as falling crude prices are sending stocks (^DJI, ^GSPC, ^IXIC) to big losses. Keith Bliss of Cuttone & Co. joins us live from the floor of the New York Stock Exchange to discuss the markets. To talk about some of the other stories that Yahoo Finance is keeping an eye on today, Alexis Christoforous is joined by Yahoo Finance editor-in-chief Andy Serwer. ExxonMobil gets investor pressure on climate change Could it be that the Church of England and the New York State Comptroller are joining forces against big oil? Yes, since they're both large ExxonMobil (XOM) shareholders and they're both trying to force the oil giant to disclose the impact of climate change regulation on its bottom line. Exxon had previously declined to put a requested resolution for a vote at its annual shareholder meeting. And now, some of the larger shareholders are enlisting the Securities and Exchange Commission. Will Chevron (CVX) and Hess (HES) be the next targets? Google gets Spotify cloud business from Amazon It's the tech version of a heavyweight prizefighter landing a punch to the jaw of the champ! Google's (GOOGL) cloud service is stealing Spotify away from Amazon (AMZN). The streaming music provider is moving much of its technology to Google's platform, saying the Alphabet-owned unit's ability to analyze massive amounts of data is the reason behind the switch. Facebook adds more choices beyond "Like" And a lot of Facebook (FB) users will "like" thisthey can now go beyond like! The social media site now allows you to pick five other options to react to someone's post: love, ha-ha, wow, sad and angry. Author Carson McCullers famously wrote about the heart as "a lonely hunter," but her description seems to apply just as well to a shark. They cruise the ocean on their own and generally have little contact with other sharks or do they? While these apex predators were typically thought to lead mostly solitary lives, a new study finds that sand tiger sharks may be a lot more social than scientists had suspected. Sand tiger sharks (Carcharias taurus) go by a number of common names, including grey nurse shark, spotted ragged-tooth shark, slender-tooth shark and ground shark. They swim in coastal waters in the western and eastern Atlantic, the Mediterranean, and near Australia and Japan, and measure about 10 feet (3 meters) long. During the summer months, sand tigers that inhabit the waters off the coast of the eastern United States migrate to Delaware Bay, where they are in close contact with one another. However, scientists were uncertain about whether the sharks continued to interact socially when they dispersed back to the open ocean. [See Photos of a Sand Tiger Shark Nursery] Previously, researchers had explored shark interactions in controlled environments like pens or laboratories, but this was the first study to investigate social behavior in sharks swimming in the open ocean. For the study, scientists attached acoustic tags to more than 300 sand tiger sharks, tracking their movements and recording interactions among the sharks for nearly a year. The scientists conducted initial data analysis from two individual animals, and found that the sharks enjoyed an active social life year-round. They registered almost 200 encounters with other sand tiger sharks, and interacted repeatedly with the same individuals. The sharks also formed groups that varied in size depending on their location and the time of year. And during late winter and early spring, the sharks took a break from their socializing and hardly encountered any other sharks, the scientists discovered. Danielle Haulsee, one of the researchers and a doctoral candidate in oceanography at the University of Delaware in Lewes, suggested in a statement that sharks might self-regulate their time in a group, depending on individual needs for certain activities that are best done alone, like finding food or mating. Story continues Discovering that sharks are capable of making decisions associated with social networking casts these former "loners" in a new light, Haulsee said. "Our research shows that it is important for the scientific community to not rule out these types of behaviors in nonmammalian species," she said. The findings were presented Feb. 22 at the 2016 Ocean Sciences Meeting, and the abstract was published online. Follow Mindy Weisberger on Twitterand Google+. Follow us @livescience, Facebook & Google+. Original article on Live Science. Copyright 2016 LiveScience, a Purch company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. ZURICH/SAO PAULO (Reuters) - Swiss authorities have arrested a Brazilian citizen linked to a criminal investigation into suspected bribes paid to former directors at Brazil's state-run oil company Petroleo Brasileiro SA, Swiss federal prosecutors said on Wednesday. Brazilian prosecutors said the Swiss had arrested Fernando Migliaccio da Silva, an executive with engineering group Odebrecht SA, one of the largest companies at the center of a price fixing and political kickback scandal. The arrest could provide more evidence against Latin America's largest engineering firm and its former chief executive Marcelo Odebrecht, who is standing trial for corruption and money laundering in Brazil. "The person concerned was arrested after entering Switzerland for a short period in order to close a bank account and move the assets in the account abroad," a spokesman for the Office of the Swiss Attorney General (OAG) said in an emailed statement, adding the suspect had been placed in custody. "The court based its decision on the strong suspicion that the person arrested was involved in the payment of bribes to former Petrobras directors." Brazilian prosecutors said the Swiss had acted alone, though the investigation in Brazil had pointed to Migliaccio as one of Marcelo Odebrecht's subordinates in charge of distributing bribes into offshore accounts. They said Migliaccio moved abroad in June, after Marcelo Odebrecht was arrested in Brazil. The Swiss attorney general's office said in July it had widened a corruption investigation into Petrobras, as the oil company is known, to include Odebrecht SA, and its subsidiaries. Brazilian police launched the 23rd phase in their two-year-old investigation on Monday, ordering the arrest of the architect of President Dilma Rousseff's 2010 and 2014 campaigns and his wife. They also said they had obtained more evidence against Marcelo Odebrecht, including that the company had bribed foreign officials in Argentina and Peru. Odebrecht has declined to comment on the latest phase of the investigation, saying it has not had access to the terms of the inquiry. (Reporting by Joshua Franklin in Zurich and Caroline Stauffer in Sao Paulo; Editing by Michael Shields and W Simon) Daraya (Syria) (AFP) - Syria's army said Wednesday it will exclude an important rebel bastion near Damascus from a ceasefire set to begin at the weekend because rebel forces there include jihadists. The announcement is further indication of the complexities of implementing the truce, which the government and opposition approved this week. According to the agreement announced by the US and Russia, the truce does not apply to jihadists from the Islamic State group or Al-Qaeda's affiliate Al-Nusra Front. Al-Nusra militants make up one-fifth of rebel fighters in Daraya. "The Syrian army is committed to the decision of the Syrian leadership when it comes to the ceasefire, which will not include areas where Al-Nusra Front and Daesh are fighting," an army general said, using the Arabic acronym for IS. "Therefore, Daraya is not included in the cessation of hostilities agreement, because Al-Nusra Front is one of the factions inside the town," he added during a patrol inside Daraya. The general said he estimated between 1,000 to 2,000 anti-government combattants remained in the town. Daraya is the largest rebel bastion west of Damascus where fighting is still taking place, said Rami Abdel Rahman, head of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group. "It's an essential opposition stronghold that has been out of regime control for nearly four years," Abdel Rahman said. According to the agreement announced Monday, a task force headed by the United States and Russia is responsible for delineating territories held by IS and Al-Qaeda that would be excluded from the agreement. Analysts say that given the facts on the ground -- in particular the complicated make-up of Syria's opposition forces and frequently shifting frontlines -- the ceasefire may be doomed to fail. While IS control over territory is relatively clear and stable, Al-Nusra works closely with many other rebels groups, particularly in the north. More than 270,000 people have been killed since Syria's war erupted in March 2011, and millions have fled their homes. Ankara (AFP) - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday said Syrian Kurdish militia forces must remain outside the scope of a ceasefire agreed between Syria's warring parties, in a blow to the deal days before it is due to be enforced. Lashing out at Western policy in Syria, he said the Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD) and its People's Protection Units (YPG) militia were a "terror group" just like Islamic State (IS) jihadists and the Al-Qaeda affiliated Al-Nusra Front. The issue has already provoked a rare rift between Ankara and its chief NATO ally Washington, which works closely with the YPG as an effective fighting force against IS in Syria. "If Daesh (IS) and Al-Nusra are kept outside the ceasefire, then the PYD-YPG must similarly be excluded from the ceasefire for it is a terrorist group just as they are," Erdogan told local officials in Ankara. The United States and Russia-brokered ceasefire calls for a "cessation of hostilities" between forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad and opposition groups, and is due to take effect at midnight on Friday Damascus time. But the truce agreement, clinched Monday, does not apply to jihadists such as the Islamic State group and Al-Nusra Front or other groups deemed terror outfits by the UN. Erdogan said Turkey welcomed the Syria ceasefire as "positive in principle" and said: "We support a ceasefire that will help our Syrian brothers breathe." - 'Matter of survival' - But he warned that Turkey would be "on alert" against any steps that threaten its national security and would continue to closely monitor the ceasefire process. Turkey says the YPG is a branch of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which which has waged a three-decade insurgency against the Turkish state and is recognised as a terror group by the United States and EU. Ankara blames the YPG for last week's suicide car bomb attack in the Turkish capital that killed 29 people and fears the creation of a Kurdish stronghold along its southern border. Story continues A militant Kurdish group claimed the suicide car bombing of a convoy of military buses in Ankara but Turkish officials said the bomber was a Syrian Kurdish national working on behalf of the PYD. The PYD has denied any involvement in the attack. On successive days last week, Turkish artillery shelled YPG targets inside Syria, defying US calls to cease firing. The president said its key ally Washington's approach towards the PYD did not bode well with the "alliance spirit." "This is a matter of survival for Turkey," Erdogan said. "Believe me, I barely understand how clearly we can explain for our allies to understand that they are at a crossroads on this issue." He quipped that if fighting IS was the only criteria, then the West should cooperate the Al-Nusra front which often battles the even more extremist IS jihadists. Erdogan said the PYD and the YPG must be designated as "a terrorist organisation" by Turkey's allies "To accept it as a terrorist organisation, will it require that the PKK and PYD explode their bombs not in Ankara but in other (foreign) capitals?" he said. AMMAN/BEIRUT (Reuters) - The Syrian army and Islamic State militants waged fierce battles on Wednesday around Khanaser, a strategic town southeast of Aleppo, where an attack by the jihadist group has cut the main land route to the city during three days of fighting. A government military source denied reports Khanaser had fallen to Islamic State. But he said its fighters were firing on it from nearby positions. "They are around Khanaser - it is under their sniper fire," the source told Reuters. Islamic State is escalating its assaults on government-held areas. Its suicide bombers launched some of their deadliest attacks of the war on Sunday in Damascus and Homs, killing about 200 people. It also attacked government forces near Palmyra on Wednesday. The attacks appear to be a preemptive move, the military source said, because the militants expect to come under more pressure from the Syrian army soon. The group is not part of a U.S.-Russian plan to halt fighting in Syria, due to start on Saturday. Suicide bombers also helped Islamic State seize Khanaser, according to Amaq, a news outlet that supports the group. It said three of them drove into army fortifications there - a tactic the militants have used before to take government-held towns. Two rebel sources credited the Islamic State attack with relieving pressure on them around Aleppo. The latest attack cut a main army supply route to parts of Aleppo where the Syrian army, backed by Russian warplanes, Iran's Revolutionary Guards and Lebanon's Hezbollah, has been gaining ground. Islamic State also said it hit an army convoy between Salamiya and Athriya that was heading to Khanaser. The military source said the road was closed as a result of military operations, denying Islamic State had seized it. "There were fierce battles yesterday evening, in which Daesh suffered large numbers of dead, and three armored vehicle bombs were destroyed," the source said, using the Arabic acronym for Islamic State. Russian air strikes hit Islamic State outposts near Khanaser while army artillery pounded them from government-held Safira, a rebel source said. Separately, the army said it had repelled infiltration by Islamic State militants against the government-held towns of al Barda and al Bayarat almost 10 km (six miles) west of Palmyra and killed dozens of militants. The militants seized the ancient city of Palmyra from the government in May. The Syrian army and its allies have also extended their control of parts of a road running towards the jihadist group's stronghold of Raqqa, building on gains made earlier this month. (Reporting by Suleiman Al-Khalidi and Tom Perry, editing by Larry King) BEIRUT (Reuters) - The powerful Syrian Kurdish YPG militia will abide by a U.S.-Russian plan aimed at halting fighting in Syria, but reserves the right to respond if attacked, YPG official Redur Xelil told Reuters on Wednesday. "We, in the People's Protection Units (YPG), give great importance (to the plan), and we will abide by it completely, while reserving the right to respond to any aggressor in the framework of legitimate self-defense," Xelil said. The YPG has been an important partner for the U.S.-led coalition fighting Islamic State in Syria, but has also been fighting Syrian insurgent groups in northwestern Syria near Aleppo in recent weeks. Islamic State is not included in the "cessation of hostilities" agreement. (Reporting by Tom Perry; Editing by Dominic Evans) Paris (AFP) - For teenagers the world over, life is often an edgy, even volatile balance -- do you live for the moment or plan for what's ahead, chase the ideal or focus on the pragmatic. From one continent to another, their priorities are strikingly similar -- friends, studies, family, future -- but their worries are often shaped by where they live. As part of our series on teenagers, we asked a random selection of middle-class youngsters from various cities how they see their world. Anthika, 18, Bangkok Being a teenager in one of the world's most vibrant capitals is a thrill, says Anthika, but she admits to worrying about the impact of globalisation on Thai culture. Her generation has led Bangkok's transformation into social media hotspots and Anthika enjoys how sites such as Facebook and Instagram keep her in touch with her peers and the easy access to information. But, she adds: "Our values (as teenagers) are more materialistic, people want big cars and motorbikes from parents. Maybe it is the influence from other countries." This first-year psychology student fears that with everyone glued to their gadgets, there is a danger teens are losing their way. "People nowadays use so much social media that they forget to interact with people in their own families," she says. "They often don't go to temples...They interact less with older people." Katinka, 17, Berlin Katinka is representative of a new Germany that is open to the world, and welcomes the arrival of hundreds of thousands of refugees to her country. She views the future with an optimism, in a country often weighed down by its war past. "I think that we are... becoming more tolerant towards all kinds of minorities. We have not reached the goal of course but we are on the right path," she says. What she does not like about the world today is "hate, and all the things it causes, such as racism, sexism and all other kinds of humiliation." Story continues Like many other teenagers, Katinka is focused on "handling school and keeping my relations up while still graduating with good grades." "But I also worry what may come after school. What will I study? Will I get a good job? Will I be able to 'succeed' and do I want that?" Jedidiah, soon to be 13, Lagos For Jedidiah, who lives in an upmarket suburb in sub-Saharan Africa's biggest city, the priority is getting the best education she can. "And having fun!" There are not many places for teenagers to go out in Lagos. "But we go to the cinema and we have sleepovers at friends," says Jedidiah, who also enjoys making music videos on a smartphone app. In this megacity, where crime is an ever-present fear, there is no chance of going anywhere without a chaperone as youngsters elsewhere might do. "I am afraid of getting kidnapped," says Jedidiah, adding how much she hates what Boko Haram Islamists are doing to her country. "I wouldn't want to stay in Nigeria," she adds. "I would like to become an architect or a fashion designer and go around the world." Elad, 14, Tel Aviv Elad dreams of a "less hateful world" and thinks the solution is that "each country calms hatred in its own territory, or makes it illegal." Afterwards, "we talk to one another to make peace," he says. This young man, who faces compulsory military service in four years, is not yet too worried about the wars "far away". "I'm afraid of an attack outside my home, murders of Jews, because we are Jewish," he says. But his most immediate concern is that Beyonce does not cancel her upcoming show in the face of pressure by anti-Israel campaign. "If we are boycotted because of hate toward us and she cancels the concert, it will be annoying," he says with a sigh. Florencia, 15, Santiago "What matters to us right now is going out and having a crazy time! Hanging out with other young people smoking on the town squares," says Florencia, a high school student on the outskirts of Santiago. But she worries that youngsters her age are growing up too quickly in the Chilean capital. "You see girls of 12 in the street with makeup and dressed like grown women." "I don't like that there are so many cases of paedophilia. And I don't like that now that young people nowadays are more agitated, we want everything right now, quick," she says. Florencia sees a world where one day "children will no longer be children, they will skip that step." "But all the same, diversity and new ideas about conservation make me think there will be a better future where we can live in harmony with nature," she said. By Jon Herskovitz and Jim Forsyth AUSTIN, Texas (Reuters) - The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals on Wednesday dismissed an abuse of power indictment against Rick Perry, ending a case that dragged on the former Texas governor's unsuccessful bid for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination. Perry, who campaigned for the nomination in 2012 and 2016, faced a first-degree felony charge in state courts that could have brought up to 99 years in prison because of a funding veto he made in 2013 seen as being intended to force a Texas county district attorney to resign. "When the only act that is being prosecuted is a veto, then the prosecution itself violates separation of powers," the court said. The longest serving governor in Texas history, Perry, 65, was indicted on the two charges in August 2014 by a grand jury in Travis County, a Democratic stronghold in the heavily Republican state. "The court's decision today proves that this indictment was nothing less than a baseless political attack," Perry told a news conference. "I have always known that the actions that I took were not only lawful and legal - they were right." He first threatened and then vetoed $7.5 million for an integrity unit in the Travis County District Attorney's office. Many said Perry played hardball politics to force out county District Attorney Rosemary Lehmberg, a Democrat, after she pleaded guilty to drunken driving. In July 2015, a Texas state appeals court threw out a lesser charge against Perry for coercion of a public official, leaving only the abuse-of-power charge. Lawyers for Perry, whose term ended at the start of 2015, have argued the governor was acting within his powers when he made the funding cut. A prosecutor in the case said that Perry acted unlawfully to pressure Lehmberg by threatening the funding cut. Lehmberg remained in office. In September 2015, Perry, struggling to raise money and languishing near the bottom in presidential opinion polls, became the first member of the crowded Republican field to drop out of the 2016 White House race. Story continues On the campaign trail, Perry tried to rally support among Republican voters by saying the indictment was the result of a partisan attack by Democrats. Analysts noted, however, the threat of a trial during his campaign likely scared away major donors, dooming a campaign seen as a long-shot. Perry dropped out of a gaffe-filled campaign for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination. (Reporting by Jon Herskovitz in Austin and Jim Forsyth in San Antonio; Editing by Alden Bentley and Alan Crosby) This story first appeared in the March 4 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. To receive the magazine, click here to subscribe. It was Jan. 31, 2006. I was in Memphis, Tenn., laying in bed. It was early in the morning when Juicy J called. He was going crazy: "Man, we're nominated for an Oscar!" And I was like, "A what?" "An Oscar." "All right. Let me call you back. I'm asleep." To be honest, I didn't know what the hell an Oscar was. So I Googled the word. And then I saw that gold man and I was like, "Holy sheriff!" That woke me right up. I had heard of the Academy Awards, but I didn't know the name "Oscar" meant the Academy Awards. So I called Juicy J right back: "You mean the gold man?!" "That's right! It's for Hustle & Flow!" Then we got on the phone with our lawyer: "Yeah, they want y'all to fly out to L.A. and meet with them [about performing during the ceremony]." I think they wanted to see what they were getting into. So we flew out to L.A., and they fing loved us. We met Gil Cates, and he ran us through the process what they wanted us to wear and what we'd be doing. I was like, "Do y'all want us to wear suits?" "Nah, we don't want you to wear suits." And I'm like, "For real?" "We just want you to be yourself wear street clothes." Gil Cates was a real good guy, man. Real, real cool. Three 6 Mafia showed off their trophies at the 2006 Oscars. Read More: Obama's Former Speechwriter Offers 5 Tips for Oscar Winners (Guest Column) We came back to L.A. a few weeks before the show for rehearsals. And that's when they hit me with a real banger: "You gotta sing live with no vocals." I was like, "Damn," because we always have like a little layer of the vocal tracks behind us when we do concerts. You know just in case we miss a word. If we're too drunk or something. And they was like: "You gotta say all the words. And this person's going to run over here and do a flip, and this person will do this" and so on. And I said: "Oh, man. So we're doing a real show outright." And you know what that means. No drinking. Story continues So it's finally Oscar night, and the four of us Jordan "Juicy J" Houston, Darnell "Crunchy Black" Carlton, Cedric "Frayser Boy" Coleman and myself are walking down the red carpet in $6,000 Armani suits and $55,000 watches we got for free. My lawyer wrote out a piece of paper with the names of all the people we were supposed to thank if we won: Craig Brewer, the director. John Singleton, the producer. Sony Records. This person, that person. We balled it up and threw it away. We were like, "Man, we don't need this paper. We're not going to win. F that paper!" There was some liquor in our dressing room, but we weren't going to drink or get high or nothing because we didn't want to mess up. Right before it was time for us to go onstage, though, we was like, "F this shit," and we took a shot of vodka each. Then we walked out onstage, and it was crazy. I looked in the crowd and remember seeing Charlize Theron. Then Jamie Foxx gave us a thumbs-up. Three 6 Mafia and Taraji P. Henson performed the original song nominee Its Hard Out Here for a Pimp, from Hustle & Flow. Read More: #OscarsSoBlack: Comedian W. Kamau Bell on the 2002 Denzel Washington, Halle Berry Wins That Changed Maybe Nothing? (Guest Column) That's when I started feeling better because this was the most different concert I'd ever done. I'm used to looking in the crowd and seeing drug dealers and gangbangers. But this crowd was out there in gowns and tuxes and all kind of shit. And I'm sober, so I'm taking everything in. My other concerts just be a blur; I would have never remembered Jamie Foxx giving me a thumbs-up at one of my regular concerts. So we're done performing and start walking back to the dressing room to drink the rest of the vodka. And a stage director was like, "No, stand here to the side. Just in case you win." I said, "Dude, we are not going to win." But just as we turned to walk off, that's when Queen Latifah said our name. We went crazy. We turned around and started running and jumping. I think Taraji P. Henson might have run up onstage, and Queen Latifah got the awards, and she handed them to us. I named everybody in my speech except the people that had anything to do with the movie. I even sent a shout-out to George Clooney. Why Clooney? Because when you go to the Oscar luncheon, you can't sit with the people you come with. They split us all up, and I ended up sitting with Clooney. I was a huge fan. I got all these tattoos because of him in From Dusk Till Dawn. While I'm talking to him, I'm looking across the room over at Charlize Theron, thinking, "I wish they'd put me at the table with that chick." Everyone was nice to us at the luncheon. They loved us. Because everyone listens to rap music, you know? I'm sure they was happy to see that a rap song was getting nominated versus some big orchestra thing. Even after we won, Dolly Parton, who we were up against, sent us a letter: "We're proud of you guys, and I'm just glad that the Oscar came back to Tennessee one way or another." She's real cool from Tennessee, too, you know. Read More: Legendary Host Dick Cavetts Advice to Oscars Chris Rock: "Don't Be Afraid to Offend" (Guest Column) After we won, my phone was going crazy. I've got 200-some text messages. I didn't call nobody back but my momma. We were going to the Governors Ball, which is right upstairs, and we were on the elevator with John Travolta. I said, "Momma, guess who I'm on the elevator with? John Travolta." We're drinking and eating hot dogs at the Governors Ball, and someone says, "Let's go to a party!" So we get in a limo with John Singleton, and we head to the Vanity Fair party. Everybody's there. Russell Simmons and Kimora Lee Simmons are there. Salma Hayek walked up to me who I was super in love with because of From Dusk Till Dawn with George Clooney and said the craziest shit: "You know your brothers and sisters are dying over in Africa because of all this jewelry you're wearing." Because I guess we had those big ole watches they gave us on, and these platinum necklaces. So I was like, "What?! What are you talking about? I don't have no brothers and sisters in Africa!" And like that, Salma Hayek killed my hard-on. I just went limp. I told her it was nice meeting her and walked out away from that. Terrence Howard and Henson in a scene from the film. After the incident with Salma, we decided to ditch the party. As I walked up to the door, I didn't realize Carla Gugino was behind me. I was too busy trying to hold my Oscar and not let it fall or bump into nothing (I had already scratched it once). And Carla Gugino a super-hot chick that I fing loved was just looking at me real mean. She said, "You let the door slam in my face!" I was like, "Oh man, I'm sorry." She just rolled her eyes and stomped off. I was like, "Oh my God, this is not the night for me and Hollywood chicks." So we get in the limo, and we pull up to [the party at] Prince's house at Sunset Plaza. John Singleton's like, "I know Prince. Let me handle this." So he goes to a security guard and was like, "I got Three 6. They just won the Oscar. Let Prince know we're out here." And the security guard went up and comes back out and says, "He said no." Read More: Half a Chris Rock Interview? Thats What Happened for This Oscars Issue Cover Singleton gets back in the car, and he's like, "Hey man, he turned us down." I'm like, "What?!" I look out the limo window, and hundreds of people are streaming up into Prince's house. I'm like, "That Prince is a motherfer! You better go in there and tell that short little purple-wearing thing how many Purple Rain albums I bought, OK?" At that point, we were like, "We're done. Let's go to the hotel and go to sleep. Maybe this is a dream." So we went back to our room at the Sofitel on Beverly and go straight to sleep. Then we got woken up by people knocking at the door. "Hey, we're here to take a picture." And then the record label called us and said, "We're switching y'alls' room. We got big suites at the Beverly Wilshire." Look, man: I don't think the Oscars is racist or whatever the hell they're saying. Because if the Oscars were racist, they wouldn't have given this to three black gangsta rappers for a song about pimping. There's no getting blacker than that. Three 6 Mafia broke up after the 2008 album 'Last 2 Walk.' DJ Paul continues to produce music. SANTIAGO (Reuters) - Three people were injured after a gas leak caused an explosion at a residential building in Chilean capital Santiago on Wednesday, and firefighters said residents might be trapped. Local television said one person was in critical condition and showed images of a partially collapsed underground parking lot at the building, with a car flipped over, in the upscale Vitacura neighborhood. Firefighters said on Twitter that some people had been burned by the explosion and that others could be trapped under rubble. (Reporting by Anthony Esposito; Editing by Lisa Von Ahn) LAS VEGAS (AP) Notching three in a row, Donald Trump decisively won Nevada's Republican caucuses Tuesday as Marco Rubio bid to elbow out Ted Cruz for second place in an increasingly urgent effort to slam the brakes on the Trump juggernaut. Trump now can claim victories in the West, the South and Northeast a testament to his broad appeal among the mad-as-hell voters making their voices heard in the 2016 presidential race. "We're winning, winning, winning the country," Trump declared. "Soon, the country is going to start winning, winning, winning." Ticking off a list of upcoming primary states where he's leading in preference polls, Trump predicted he'll soon be able to claim the GOP nomination. "It's going to be an amazing two months," he told a raucous crowd at a Las Vegas casino. "We might not even need the two months, folks, to be honest." Read More: Ted Cruz Tweets 'Fat Bastard' Clip at Donald Trump Six in 10 caucus goers said they were angry with the way the government is working, and Trump got about half of those angry voters, according to preliminary results of an entrance poll. With time running out, Nevada was a critical test for Rubio and Cruz, the two senators battling to emerge as the clear alternative to the GOP front-runner. Rubio was out to prove he can build on recent momentum, while Cruz was looking for a spark to help him recover from a particularly rocky stretch in his campaign. Lagging far behind the two senators in the Nevada vote were Ohio Gov. John Kasich and retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson. Read More: Donald Trump Ends Up in 'Game of Thrones' Montage Rubio, already campaigning in Michigan as caucus results rolled in, sought to project confidence that he can consolidate the non-Trump voters who have been splintering among an assortment of GOP candidates, saying, "we have incredible room to grow." But after finishing third in Iowa, fifth in New Hampshire and second in South Carolina, Rubio needs a win soon to support the idea he can beat Trump. Story continues Cruz, a fiery conservative popular among voters on the GOP's right, finished a disappointing third in South Carolina after spending much of the past two weeks denying charges of dishonest campaign tactics and defending his integrity. Another disappointing finish in Nevada would raise new questions about his viability heading into a crucial batch of Super Tuesday states on March 1. The election calendar suggests that if Trump's rivals don't slow him by mid-March, they may not ever. Trump swept all of South Carolina's 50 delegates, giving him a total of 67 compared to Cruz and Rubio who have 11 and 10, respectively. There were 30 delegates at stake in Nevada, and a whopping 595 available one week later in the March 1 Super Tuesday bonanza. Read More: Donald Trump Tells Protester He'd Like to "Punch Him in the Face" The billionaire businessman, in his victory speech, dismissed the notion that if more GOP candidates drop out of the race, they'll coalesce around an alternative. "They keep forgetting that when people drop out, we're going to get a lot of votes," he said. Nevada's caucusing played out in schools, community centers and places of worship across the state a process that's been chaotic in the past. Count Tracy Brigida, fed up after her husband was laid off from his mining job, among those caucusing for Trump. "I want a businessman to run the biggest business in the world," Brigida said as she caucused at a Las Vegas high school. Jeremy Haight drove straight from his marketing job to caucus for Marco Rubio at the same high school. "He's the most level-headed. He hasn't said anything stupid or crazy ... which is really what I think the country needs," Haight said. It was Cruz for Megan Ortega, who declared: "He's consistent, he's bold and he's a class act." Read More: Donald Trump to Skip Fox News' Town Hall Event With Megyn Kelly Preliminary results of the entrance poll found that about 3 in 10 early caucus goers said the quality that mattered most to them in choosing a candidate was that he shares their values, slightly more than the quarter who said they want a candidate who can win in November. About a quarter said they want a candidate who can bring change. About 2 in 10 want one who "tells it like it is." The GOP field that included a dozen candidates a month ago has been reduced to five, with former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush the latest to drop out after a disappointing finish in South Carolina. Kasich and Carson could play spoilers as Trump, Cruz and Rubio, battle for delegates with an increasing sense of urgency. Indeed, Republican establishment heavyweights have been flooding to Rubio in recent days, including Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson, North Carolina Sen. Thom Tillis and Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch. South Florida's three Cuban-American members of Congress announced their support for him in the hours before the Nevada contest. Nevada marked the first Republican election in the West, the fourth of the campaign. And it's not one that's gotten much attention from the GOP candidates. Through Tuesday, the Republican candidates and the super PACs supporting them had spent a combined $3.8 million on television and radio advertisements in Nevada less than a tenth of the $39.3 million spent ahead of last weekend's South Carolina primary, according to Kantar Media's CMAG data. The entrance poll survey was conducted for The Associated Press and the television networks by Edison Research as Republican voters arrived at 25 randomly selected caucus sites in Nevada. Feb. 23 10:15 p.m. PT Updated with Trump victory speech By Humeyra Pamuk and Tulay Karadeniz ISTANBUL/ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Wednesday he feared a U.S.-Russian ceasefire plan would do little more than benefit Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and accused the West, Russia and Iran of only seeking to further their own interests. The United States and Russia have announced plans for a cessation of hostilities in Syria to take effect starting on Saturday. But rebels backed by Saudi Arabia and Turkey have expressed doubts about the proposal, which excludes attacks by the Syrian army and its Russian backers on the jihadist groups Islamic State and the al Qaeda-linked Nusra Front. "The West, the United States, Russia, Iran, the European Union and United Nations have unfortunately not managed to stand tall by the honor of humanity," Erdogan said in a speech in Ankara broadcast live on television. "On the contrary, all these countries, because of their own calculations, have permitted, directly or indirectly, the killing of nearly half a million innocent people by the regime and its backers," he said. NATO member Turkey has grown increasingly frustrated by the international response to Syria's five-year-old war, incensed by a Russian intervention which has tipped the balance of power in favor of Ankara's arch-enemy Assad and by U.S. support for a Kurdish militia it sees as a hostile insurgent force. Relations with Moscow hit a nadir after Turkey shot down a Russian jet near the Syrian border last November, while ties with Washington are at their most strained for years. The rebels fear Russia will use the exclusion of attacks on jihadists like Islamic State as a pretext to bomb them. Erdogan said the ceasefire should also exclude attacks on the Kurdish YPG militia, which Ankara views as a terrorist group. "If the identification of who is from which opposition group in the region will be carried out by Russia, the Assad regime and structures like the YPG, then that is a grave situation," Erdogan said. Syria's opposition High Negotiations Committee (HNC), which groups Assad's political and armed opponents, said on Monday it accepted "international efforts for a cessation of hostilities", but only on the condition that previous demands including an end to blockades and the bombardment of civilians were fulfilled. The grouping's chief negotiator said on Wednesday it had yet to commit to the U.S.-Russian plan. KURDISH CONFLICT Turkey's stance on the Syrian war is becoming increasingly intertwined with the battle it is waging in its own southeast against militants from the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which has fought a three-decade insurgency for Kurdish autonomy. Ankara views the YPG militia and its PYD political wing, which have enjoyed U.S. backing in the fight against Islamic State in Syria, as a hostile insurgent force with deep logistical and operational ties to the PKK. Like Ankara and the European Union, the United States lists the PKK as a terrorist group. But it sees the YPG as a useful ally and has indicated it will continue to work with them. "What are they saying? The PYD and YPG, they fight against Islamic State and thats why support them? That is a great lie," Erdogan said. He has repeatedly called on Washington to decide who its allies are - Turkey or the Kurdish militia. Erdogan and Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu have both said the YPG, working with Kurdish militants in Turkey, were responsible for a suicide bombing that killed 29 people, most of them soldiers, in the capital Ankara last week. A DNA report suggested the main perpetrator was Turkish, not a Syrian Kurdish YPG fighter as initially claimed by the government, but two security sources told Reuters on Wednesday that he had entered Turkey from Syria in July 2014 using a fake ID. The Turkish armed forces shelled YPG positions in northern Syria in the days after the Ankara bombing and launched air strikes on PKK camps in northern Iraq, as the government vowed that those responsible would pay the price. Washington urged Ankara to stop shelling the YPG. Clashes have also continued inside Turkey, where violence in the southeast is at its worst since the 1990s. Military helicopters killed nine PKK militants near the border with Syria on Wednesday, security sources said. In its annual report on Wednesday, Amnesty International said round-the-clock curfews had left civilians in some areas in Turkey's southeast unable to access basic rights such as food, education and medical care. The government has blamed the militants for bringing their armed campaign to urban centers and has said military operations are not targeting civilians. (Additional reporting by Ayla Jean Yackley and David Dolan in Istanbul, Orhan Coskun in Ankara; Writing by Nick Tattersall; Editing by Andrew Heavens and Sonya Hepinstall) By Seyhmus Cakan DIYARBAKIR, Turkey (Reuters) - Turkish military helicopters killed 12 Kurdish militants in strikes near the southeastern border with Syria on Wednesday, security sources said, in a conflict becoming increasingly intertwined with developments in Turkey's war-torn neighbor. The Cobra attack helicopters launched the assault at around 6 a.m. (0400 GMT) as a group of Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) fighters traveled through a mountainous area near the Idil district of Turkey's Sirnak province, the sources said. Parts of Idil were placed under 24-hour curfew last week as the security forces carried out an operation against the militants. That was part of a wider military campaign which began last December in towns in the mostly Kurdish southeast following the collapse in July of a ceasefire with the PKK. Late on Wednesday, Turkish warplanes carried out an air bombardment on PKK camps in Qandil, the group's center in northern Iraq, sources said, hitting ammunition depots, shelters and logistical centers. The violence in Turkey's southeast is at its worst since the 1990s, turning parts of the region into a war zone. PKK militants have dug trenches and erected barricades in towns and cities, and the death toll has climbed into the hundreds as the security forces try to flush them out. It has also complicated international efforts to end the war in Syria. Ankara sees the PKK as closely linked to the Syrian Kurdish YPG militia, which has enjoyed U.S. support in the fight against Islamic State insurgents but which Ankara sees as a hostile force bent on seizing Syrian territory abutting Turkey. Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu has blamed a member of the YPG, working with Kurdish militants inside Turkey, for a suicide bombing that killed 29 people in the capital Ankara last week, most of them soldiers. The Turkish armed forces shelled YPG positions in northern Syria in the days after the attack and bombed PKK camps in northern Iraq, as the government vowed that those responsible would pay the price. Clashes inside Turkey have also continued. On Tuesday, security forces killed six PKK militants in Idil and two others in the Sur district of the region's largest city Diyarbakir, the armed forces said in a statement. One soldier died of his wounds after coming under attack from PKK fighters in Sur on Wednesday, it said. Another was lightly wounded. The statement also said security forces had detained four members of the PKK and PYD, the political arm of the Syrian YPG, on Tuesday in the Akcakale district of Sanliurfa province, two of whom had sought to cross the border from Syria illegally. The PKK is deemed a terrorist group by Turkey, the United States and European Union. It launched its insurgency in 1984. (Additional reporting by Humeyra Pamuk; Writing by Nick Tattersall; Editing by Daren Butler/Mark Heinrich) By Louis Charbonneau and Michelle Nichols UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - The United States and China have agreed on a draft resolution that would expand U.N. Security Council sanctions against North Korea over its latest nuclear test and hope to put it to a vote in the coming days, council diplomats said on Wednesday. Speaking on condition of anonymity, two council diplomats said Beijing and Washington reached a deal on the draft, which could go to the full 15-member council soon. The two veto powers had been negotiating on a draft resolution for the past seven weeks following Pyongyang's fourth nuclear test on Jan. 6. "It's a substantive, long, full draft ... which I hope will be adopted in the coming days," a senior council diplomat said. "There were a significant number of blockage points between the two countries ... There is an agreement between those two countries." China and the United States have had different views on how strong the response should be to North Korea since Pyongyang's nuclear test last month with Washington urging harsh punitive measures and Beijing emphasizing dialogue and milder U.N. steps that are confined to non-proliferation. The diplomats declined to divulge details about the draft sanctions resolution. Western diplomats told Reuters that restricting North Korean access to international ports was among the measures Washington was pushing Beijing to accept in the wake of Pyongyang's nuclear test and its latest rocket launch earlier this month. Washington also wanted to tighten restrictions on North Korean banks' access to the international financial system, the diplomats said. North Korea has been under U.N. sanctions since 2006 because of its multiple nuclear tests and rocket launches. In addition to a U.N. arms embargo, Pyongyang is banned from importing and exporting nuclear and missile technology and is not allowed to import luxury goods. China and the United States signaled on Tuesday that they were near agreement on a draft sanctions resolution on North Korea. (Editing by G Crosse and Alistair Bell) WASHINGTON (Reuters) - China and the United States signalled on Tuesday they were near agreement on a U.N. resolution against North Korea for its Jan. 6 nuclear test. "Important progress has been made in the consultations and we are looking at the possibility of reaching agreement on a draft resolution and passing it in the near future," Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said at a joint news conference with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry. China and the United States have not entirely seen eye to eye on how strong the response should be to North Korea since the nuclear test, Pyongyang's fourth, with Washington urging harsh punitive measures and Beijing emphasizing dialogue. Neither man was willing to describe what the potential U.N. Security Council resolution might say and both emphasized a willingness to resume so-called six-party talks on reining in the North's nuclear programme. China, North Korea's most important ally and largest trading partner, has historically been reluctant to put undue pressure on its southern neighbour for fear of destabilising the country and unleashing a flood of refugees across their border. "We have made significant progress. It has been very constructive in the last days," Kerry told reporters. "We both hope that this can move forward very soon." He also stressed U.S. openness on an eventual peace agreement to conclude the 1950-53 Korean War, which ended with an armistice rather than a peace treaty, if the North were willing to "come to the table and negotiate the denuclearisation." (Reporting By Arshad Mohammed; Editing by Chris Reese) By Andrea Shalal WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Pentagon's chief arms buyer on Tuesday said U.S. sanctions against Russia do not at this time bar the use of Russian RD-180 engines to power the Atlas 5 rockets that carry U.S. military and intelligence satellites into space. Defense Undersecretary Frank Kendall said the Pentagon had reviewed the issue with the Treasury Department in response to questions raised by Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman John McCain after Russia revamped the way it manages its space businesses. Kendall told an event hosted by the Washington Space Business Roundtable the review was still being finalized, but it did not appear that the Russian reorganization would extend U.S. sanctions to rocket engines built by NPO Energomash. McCain had asked the Pentagon to report back by Monday on the legality of doing business with Energomash after the reorganization put Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin and others facing U.S. sanctions in charge of Energomash. Kendall told reporters the Treasury Department had reached a preliminary determination that the sanctions did not apply since they required more than 50 percent ownership and control over Energomash. He said he expected the government to finalize its decision "fairly soon." United Launch Alliance, a joint venture of Lockheed Martin Corp and Boeing Co, buys RD-180 engines for its Atlas 5 rockets from RD-AMROSS, which is a U.S.-based joint venture of Energomash and Pratt & Whitney, a unit of United Technologies Corp. Pratt spokesman Bradley Akubuiro said the individuals in question were not members of the board of directors of either RD AMROSS or Energomash, and repeated reviews had shown they did not benefit financially from the sale of the engines. Dustin Walker, a spokesman for the Senate Armed Services Committee, said McCain believed it was time to end the purchases, regardless of the determination on sanctions. "American taxpayers should not be subsidizing the corrupt Russian military industrial complex with continued purchases of Russian rocket engines," he said. U.S. lawmakers banned future military use of the Russian engines after Russia annexed Ukraine's Crimea region in 2014. But Congress weakened the ban late last year, worried that it could drive ULA out of business, leaving only privately held SpaceX to lift satellites into space. Kendall reiterated the Defense Department's desire to end its reliance on the Russian engines as soon as possible. (Reporting by Andrea Shalal; Editing by Jonathan Oatis and Cynthia Osterman) By Emma Farge THIES, Senegal (Reuters) - Ahead of a drill to teach West African police about forensics by blowing up a car filled with crash test dummies posing as suicide bombers, FBI agents met an unexpected question: why bother to investigate if the militants are already dead? The query from a Senegalese officer demonstrates the steep learning curve for the region's security forces if they are to keep pace with increasingly brazen and sophisticated jihadists moving in from the north-central Sahara and possibly Libya. Since Islamic State's entry into Libya last year, al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) has responded with a series of attacks to bolster its claim of primacy in the western Sahara. Western governments worry the Islamic State presence in Africa may lead to ties with West Africa's Boko Haram, which pledged allegiance to the group last year, and could herald a drive south. Some al Qaeda-linked brigades also appear to be merging. Reflecting the changing threat and after major attacks in the last four months in Mali and Burkina Faso in which at least 50 people, including many Westerners, were killed, this year's annual "Flintlock" counter-terrorism exercises have included police training for the first time. Recent West African efforts have revealed blunders, security sources say. So many people touched an assault rifle used by militants in the Bamako attack, for example, that it was impossible to take fingerprints. In January, an AQIM death row fugitive who fled Mauritania via Senegal was able to travel 500 km (300 miles) before being stopped in Guinea, acquiring arms and accomplices on the way, thanks in part to bungled communication between Senegalese and Mauritanian officials, a Senegalese security source said. U.S. experts say three main shortfalls need to be addressed: intelligence, cross-border cooperation and reaction times. "In most African countries the capacity to respond to these sorts of incidents is middle-of-the-road at best," said a senior U.S. military officer, who asked not to be named because of the sensitivity of his remarks. "But they are very eager to learn." NEW TECHNIQUES Security experts report a growing sophistication since last year in the tactics and weaponry used by AQIM and associated groups, which they say may be born of competition with Islamic State. An armoured suicide truck, albeit a makeshift one, was used in an attack on a U.N. base in Kidal in northern Mali that killed seven peacekeepers this month. Boko Haram suicide vests now often include hidden cell phones so they can be remotely detonated and increasingly resemble those used in the Middle East, weapons experts say. Until last year, desert militants, aiming by moonlight, had fired rockets from far away and mostly missed their targets. As the threat grows, there are signs the U.S. is increasing its commitments. Already, there are up to 1,200 special operations forces on the continent, providing training, operating drones and, very rarely, intervening directly such as in the Ouagadougou siege. Last week, the U.S. launched its second set of air strikes in Libya in three months in what risk management consultancy Signal Risk's director Ryan Cummings called a "point of departure" from a strategy previously characterised by a limited appetite for offensive roles in Africa.[L8N155342] Washington is proposing $200 million in new military spending for North and West Africa. Both the United States and France, which has 3,500 troops in the region, intend to boost support to regional security body Group of Five Sahel, diplomats and officials say. Three sources familiar with the agreement told Reuters that the United States and Senegal had agreed a new accord granting rights to establish a base here in case of an emergency. Intelligence sharing among the different countries of West Africa will be key, security officials said. The United States plans to set up the first of many "intelligence fusion" centres at the headquarters for a regional anti-Boko Haram task force in Chad to allow countries to share sensitive information in a secure environment. "If we continue to invest in the development of regional platforms, it will pay huge dividends over the next year, but it cannot be done without a comprehensive approach," said Commander for Special Operations Command Africa Brigadier General Donald Bolduc. Overcoming suspicions between neighbours and historic rivals will be a challenge, however. "The sharing of intelligence between neighbours is not where it should be and this is critically important," said a Western intelligence source at Flintlock. (Writing by Emma Farge; Editing by Sonya Hepinstall) London (AFP) - A group of climate change activists who staged a sit-in on a runway at the UK's largest airport last year avoided prison sentences on Wednesday. The July 2015 protest against plans to add a third runway to London's Heathrow Airport caused the cancellation of 25 flights and disruption to thousands of passengers. The 13 protestors were found guilty last month of aggravated trespass and entering a security-restricted area. The protestors, known as the Heathrow 13, each received a six weeks prison term suspended for 12 months. A judge had previously warned them to expect a custodial sentence. They have been banned from Heathrow and will have to do unpaid community work. The activists, from the group Plane Stupid, attached themselves to each other and to fencing with bicycle locks to protest at plans to build a third runway at the airport. District judge Deborah Wright told the defendants at the sentencing in Willesden, north west London, that the crimes they carried out had been "carefully orchestrated and timed to a date that was to your convenience". There was a carnival atmosphere on the steps outside the court, with supporters bursting into a chorus of We Are The Champions. Crowds had gathered throughout the day holding banners which read "stronger together" and "if government will not protect our climate ordinary responsible people have to take a stand". The government is not expected to make a decision on the runway before the summer of 2016. London's five airports form the busiest air hub in the world with around 135 million passengers a year. Heathrow handled 73.4 million passengers in 2014, making it Europe's biggest airport by passenger traffic. United Nations (United States) (AFP) - The United Nations on Wednesday carried out its first humanitarian airdrop in Syria to reach thousands of people facing severe food shortages in a city besieged by Islamic State jihadists. "Earlier this morning, a WFP plane dropped the first cargo of 21 tonnes of items into Deir Ezzor," in eastern Syria, UN aid chief Stephen O'Brien said. Reports from aid teams on the ground confirm that "pallets have landed in the target area as planned", he told a UN Security Council called to discuss the humanitarian crisis. UN agencies are working to scale up aid deliveries to Syria before a cessation of hostilities enters into force at midnight Friday to shore up peace efforts. Last month, Russia said it had dropped aid into Deir Ezzor, where some 200,000 people are in dire need of food and medicine since IS fighters surrounded the city about a year ago. The air drops carried out by the World Food Programme are considered less efficient than land deliveries, but O'Brien argued that there were "benefits to this approach as a last resort." The UN aid chief said some 110,000 people living in besieged towns had received aid and that deliveries to a further 230,000 people in cut-off areas including through air drops had been approved. "We are still waiting for approval for an additional 170,000 people. We expect those approvals to happen immediately," he said. - Syria 'doing its best' - Syrian Ambassador Bashar Jaafari accused the United Nations of using the humanitarian crisis as a political tool and argued that no such attention was directed to Yemen, which he argued was in a much worse state. "It is clear that our government is doing its best to deliver assistance," he told the council. The ambassador blamed armed groups for civilian suffering and said delays in approving aid deliveries were due to concerns for the safety of humanitarian workers. Story continues "We have not witnessed any humanitarian crisis other than in the areas where these terrorist groups entered," he said. The United Nations is calling on all sides to lift starvation sieges across Syria, where it estimates that 487,000 people live, although some non-governmental organizations say the figure is much higher. The council has approved several resolutions demanding full access for humanitarian workers, but these have been largely ignored. O'Brien stressed that the ceasefire deal agreed by the United States and Russia must produce an "immediate end" to attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure such as hospitals, schools and markets. "Enough is enough. This brutality must be brought to an end," he said. More than 260,000 people have died in Syria's conflict, which began in March 2011 with anti-government protests but has since imploded into a multi-sided proxy war. Oslo (AFP) - One is a devout and cheery Saudi, the other a British convert overcome by doubt, the third a Syrian fascinated by the promise of 72 virgins: a new documentary unveils the shadowy world of Syria's would-be suicide bombers. In a rare, in-depth look at the Al-Nusra Front, Al-Qaeda's affiliate in Syria, the 58-minute documentary "Dugma, the Button" reveals the convictions and doubts of those ready to become martyrs -- "the precision weaponry of the poor," in the words of the filmmaker, Norwegian journalist Pal Refsdal. The film follows the three future suicide bombers as they wait for their missions, without any commentary. "When I get close to the target, I'll pull the safety switch, the first one... and I'll keep driving until I'm a few metres away from the target, and then I'll pull the other safety switch," says Abu Qaswara, sitting at the wheel of a lorry loaded with explosives, covered in makeshift armour so it looks like something out of road movie "Mad Max". "This is the button. This is Dugma. I'll press it... and with Allah's permission I'll send them all to hell," he says with a disconcerting smile. Aged 32 when the documentary was shot and father of a little girl he's never seen, the Saudi national arrived in Syria two years earlier. He's on "the list" of volunteers ready to blow themselves up to take out a Syrian army position. The wait is usually a long one, between one and two years, according to Refsdal who spent more than six weeks with the men at the end of 2014 and in mid-2015 in northwestern Syria. The Al-Nusra Front is parsimonious with its use of suicide bombers, according to Refsdal. "Several weeks can go by in between two operations," he told AFP in an interview in Oslo. "They're not like IS (the Islamic State group, which they are also fighting) which sends car bombs one after the other with very young drivers dying en masse," he added. Story continues While waiting for a target to be selected -- always strictly military, according to Refsdal -- the candidates for martyrdom go about the daily routines that are part of a messy and never-ending war. At the risk of being overcome by doubt. - 'Relaxed' kamikazes - Born Catholic to a British mother and an American father who worked in Hollywood -- Patrick Kinney worked on "Braveheart", "Indiana Jones" and "Rambo II" -- Lucas Kinney, who goes by the name Abu Basir al-Britani ("the Briton"), sees his convictions falter after his young wife gets pregnant. "Now I can't do that to my family," he admits, his voice cracking with emotion. There are also moments of levity and humour, such as when the Syrian, who goes by the pseudonym "Abu Ljaman", asks where the speedometer is on the armoured vehicle that Abu Qaswara is teaching him to drive. "You're on your way to martyrdom. Are you really going to worry about speeding?," the Saudi asks him incredulously. Abu Ljaman also gets gently chided when he makes a second reference to the 72 virgins promised in the afterlife. "I was surprised by the ease of relations with them, by their relaxed side," said Refsdal, who converted to Islam while being held by Afghanistan's Taliban in 2009. "If I hadn't known they were Al-Qaeda, I would never have guessed based on my gut feeling alone," he said. But does his documentary, filmed after the Al-Nusra Front gave him free access, not risk giving a grandstand to members of what many countries consider to be a "terrorist" organisation? "I understand that there may be people who disagree with it in principle and argue that Al-Qaeda attacked New York in 2001, Madrid in 2004, London in 2005, Paris and Charlie Hebdo," he said. "But the film isn't trying to tell people what to think, it's just depicting their daily lives and then it's up to people to think what they want after having seen it," he added. The Norwegian intelligence service PST had no problem with his time spent with the suicide bombers. "What's illegal is to support and participate in the Al-Nusra Front or IS," PST spokesman Martin Bernsen told AFP. "Making a documentary about them can not be considered as providing support or participation," he said. Sold to at least four television channels, "Dugma, the Button" will air on Norwegian television in early March. A message in a bottle dropped in New York harbour in 2013 by an American painter has been found years later, and 5,700 kilometres (3,500 miles) away, on a beach in southwest France . .. by a French artist. George Boorujy threw the bottle, containing a drawing of a cormorant and a signed letter into the harbour at Staten Island in October 2013, regional French newspaper Sud Ouest reported. It washed up two and a half years later on a beach in the Aquitaine region of France where it was found last week by Brigitte Barthelemy, a painter, and her husband Alain who were out walking their dog Elton. Brigitte was intrigued by the perfectly preserved drawing and the letter congratulating the finders of the bottle and jokingly asking that they did not respond with another letter in a bottle, a "very inefficient" means of communication. In fact, Boorujy gave his email address in the letter, so Brigitte was able to make contact by more modern means. "When I saw the email from Alain and Brigitte, I was amazed and crazy with excitement," the French newspaper quoted the American as saying. "And the fact that Brigitte is also a painter is extraordinary," he said. Boorujy hopes his bottle will help raise awareness about the protection of wild birds. Washington (AFP) - US and Russian officials will meet in coming days to form a task force to monitor the implementation of a ceasefire in Syria's civil war, Secretary of State John Kerry said Wednesday. Kerry told US lawmakers he had spoken to his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov earlier in the day about measures to oversee the truce, which is due to come into effect early on Saturday. "I talked this morning with Foreign Minister Lavrov and we have a team that will be meeting in the next day or so -- the task force for the ceasefire, cessation of hostilities," he said. "I'm not here to vouch that it's absolutely going to work, but this is the one way that we can end this war," he warned. "The alternative is that the war gets worse, that Syria might be totally destroyed, not able to be put back together again." US officials have repeatedly couched the promised ceasefire as a test of Russia's good faith in seeking a negotiated end to the conflict pitting Kremlin ally Bashar al-Assad's regime and Russian warplanes against am array of rebel factions The following factors are likely to influence Malaysian palm oil futures and other vegetable oil markets. FUNDAMENTALS * Malaysian palm oil futures dropped for a fourth straight session on Tuesday to hit their lowest level in more than two weeks, after data from a palm millers' body showed an unexpected rise in production. * Chicago Board of Trade wheat futures sank 1.4 percent on Tuesday to their lowest in nearly six years, weighed down by huge global supplies and spillover weakness from falling crude oil, traders said. * Oil prices slid in early trading on Wednesday, extending sharp falls from the previous session after top exporter Saudi Arabia ruled out production cuts and industry data showed a further build in U.S. crude stockpiles. MARKET NEWS * Asian shares were on the back foot on Wednesday as a nascent recovery in the oil market lost momentum after Saudi Oil Minister Ali Al-Naimi effectively ruled out production cuts by major producers anytime soon. RELATED > Soaring sugar bucks commodities slump as El Nino fans supply concerns > EXCLUSIVE-China to toughen standard on Canadian canola shipments > Malaysia durian farmers demand mining clampdown > PREVIEW-U.S. farmers seen betting on corn amid weak price outlook > Saudi's Naimi rules out production cuts; sees 'freeze' expanding DATA/EVENTS > Cargo surveyor ITS releases Malaysia's Feb 1-25 palm oil export data on Feb 25. > Cargo surveyor SGS releases Malaysia's Feb 1-25 palm oil export data on Feb 25. * 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 0039 GMT Story continues Contract Month Last Change Low High Volume MY PALM OIL MAR6 0 +0.00 0 0 0 MY PALM OIL APR6 0 +0.00 0 0 0 MY PALM OIL MAY6 0 +0.00 0 0 0 CHINA PALM OLEIN MAY6 4962 -50.00 4956 5022 353694 CHINA SOYOIL MAY6 5700 -40.00 5696 5766 185430 CBOT SOY OIL MAR6 30.75 -3.10 0.00 0.00 0 INDIA PALM OIL FEB6 481.00 -3.10 480.90 484.60 1821 INDIA SOYOIL MAR6 620.00 -5.80 620.00 625.00 49820 NYMEX CRUDE APR6 31.44 -0.43 31.25 31.52 11765 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 Praveen Menon) Media-entertainment giant Viacom said Tuesday it was seeking a minority investor for its Paramount studios in Hollywood to adapt to a shifting industry landscape. Viacom's chairman and chief executive Philippe Dauman said the company had "received indications of interest from potential partners" and that it would explore these options. Viacom and Paramount have been under pressure to adapt to changes in the industry as power shifts to streaming media giants like Netflix and Amazon. Dauman took on the title of chairman earlier this month, replacing 92-year-old Sumner Redstone amid concerns the company was failing to keep pace with its rivals. "In this time of change and enormous opportunity in our industry, a partnership will bring significant benefit to Paramount and Viacom, both strategically and financially, provide new opportunities for Paramount's employees and talent, and enhance long-term value for all Viacom shareholders," Dauman said in a statement after he unveiled the plan at a conference in New York. The comments suggested that Viacom and Paramount are looking for ways to get more value for their vast library of content. "Paramount Pictures has been a leading motion picture studio for more than a century and is among a select few that has significant reach and scale, a deep library, a robust pipeline with proven global franchises, and a high potential television production operation," Dauman said. "In addition, the value of motion picture content continues to increase with the explosion of screens and the rapid expansion of the global theatrical market. This is the perfect time to explore new strategies to capitalize on Paramount's content expertise and global platform." Viacom owns the large Paramount studios in Hollywood and cable networks including MTV and Nickelodeon, but its stock has been hit by growth concerns, as well as by the uncertainty surrounding Redstone, who had remained in firm control despite failing health until recently. Story continues One fund, SpringOwl Asset Management, called last month for the replacement of the entire Viacom board, claiming it was underperforming compared with rival media groups. SpringOwl said in a statement Tuesday that the move by Viacom "is an important step and something we've specifically urged the company to pursue" and added that "the positive reaction in (Viacom's) share price illustrates the support we have among shareholders." Viacom shares rose one percent to $41.01 at the close but remain around half the level of two years ago. soe-rl/acb/mdl VIACOM Senegalese reporter Amadou Sarra Ba is one of hundreds of African journalists to have enjoyed all-expenses-paid trips to China courtesy of the Communist Party, as Beijing seeks to win hearts and minds among the continent's opinion-formers. His itinerary on what was officially called a "training seminar" last year -- after an earlier visit in 2012 -- took in both the Great Wall and less standard attractions such as the headquarters of state outlet China Radio International (CRI). He was given plenty of books and audiovisual materials touting "the autonomy of certain provinces" and the "multi-party democracy" of the one-party state, he said. Communist officials "left nothing to chance to present us with China's best and brightest face," he told AFP. Such trips -- and equipment for African media organisations -- are new items in Beijing's soft-power toolkit to combat what Cai Fuchao, the head of the country's media regulator and censorship authority, has called "the Western media that dominate the world." China will host and train 3,000 African media professionals over the next three years, President Xi Jinping told the China-Africa Summit in Johannesburg in December. But Beijing's view of the role of the media was made clear when Xi visited three state media outlets last week, urging them to protect the ruling party's authority and guide public opinion on the correct path, according to the official Xinhua news agency. Journalists should be "disseminators of the party's policies and propositions", he said. Visits by African reporters were intended to impact depictions of China on the continent -- where critics say it is interested primarily in natural resources -- and boost Beijing's diplomatic and political weight, said Hong Kong Baptist University professor Jean-Pierre Cabestan. China has an image as "a predatory actor which operates as a new great power in Africa", he said. "Beijing's goal is to influence the discourse about China, about its actions in Africa and China-Africa relations." Story continues - 'Former colonisers' - Beijing says it offers an alternative to Western media narratives. "The theories used in Western countries are not valid in China and Africa," Ba said the head of CRI told his group, instead encouraging them to "find their own route in the field of communication that corresponds to their culture and country". The rhetoric can strike a chord in Africa, and elsewhere -- at a meeting of media from the BRICS grouping of emerging nations in Beijing in December, Xinhua quoted an executive from Brazilian government broadcaster and news agency EBC calling for the "breaking of the hegemony of Western media". Assane Diagne, editor-in-chief of the website Africa Check, a site supported by the AFP Foundation, who interned in China in 2011, said: "Today, when we are in Senegal and we want to learn about South Africa, the fight against Boko Haram or the situation in northern Mali, we have to fall back on the media outlets of former colonisers. "This trend must be reversed. "China can install satellites, help African media organisations acquire equipment to operate at the same levels as the Western media, or train technicians," he added. Beijing is spending a fortune on the effort. One beneficiary of a week-long press trip estimated it cost $6,000-7,000 per person. China has significantly boosted the African presence of major state media such as broadcaster CCTV in recent years, and Cabestan said it offers Xinhua's products to outlets on the continent at discount prices. Whether the drive will fulfil Beijing's goals remains open to question. Zine Cherfaoui, head of the international department of El Watan, Algeria's main French-language newspaper, who travelled to Beijing and the northern region of Ningxia last summer, was adamant: "We must simply ensure that Chinese aid does not affect the editorial choices of the assisted media outlets, and that it doesn't become a way to exert pressure." Cabestan added: "Journalists who travel to China do not want to give their readers the impression that they have been bought and brainwashed. They usually keep their distance from China after having taken full advantage of Beijing's largesse." But support cannot come without strings attached, said Clea Kahn-Sriber, head of the Africa desk of NGO Reporters Without Borders, which ranks China 176th out of 180 countries for press freedom. "Nothing comes free and I do not believe that (funding) can happen without any influence on the editorial line," she said, "especially given China's policy inside its own borders towards free information. A "warm blob" of surface water played a role in Greenland's wild climate swings during the last ice age, a new study finds. Greenland's climate flipped quickly and brutally from cold to warm and back again 25 times between about 20,000 and 70,000 years ago, ice cores and ocean sediments show. The abrupt climate swings, called Dansgaard-Oeschger events, involved extreme changes in average temperature. Each time, the cold snaps continued for centuries, while the rapid warming lasted a few decades. The new study adds to evidence that warm Atlantic Ocean currents set the tempo for Greenland's climate swings. The findings were published Feb. 5 in the journal Scientific Reports. The Atlantic Ocean's modern-day currents are similar to its ice age circulation pattern, with the Gulf Stream pulling heat from the southern and tropical Atlantic toward the North Atlantic. In the cold Nordic seas, the Gulf Stream cools off, and the cold water descends, flowing back to the south to repeat the cycle. [See Stunning Photos of Greenland's Melting Glaciers] Researchers think the wild ice age climate swings are linked to a temporary pause in deep, sinking cool water. "Most researchers agree that these [climate] shifts were controlled from the Northern Hemisphere through an 'on and off switch' of deep-water formation in the Nordic seas," lead study author Tine Rasmussen told Live Science in an email interview. "This study clarifies that the whole of the Atlantic was involved," said Rasmussen, a professor at the Centre for Arctic Gas Hydrate, Environment and Climate in Troms, Norway. According to the study, when the subpolar regions were in the midst of a cold snap, with thick ice cloaking land and sea, a blob of warm water still pushed slowly northward toward Greenland and Iceland, even though the deep-water convection system was slack. "During cold periods, the surface and intermediate water of the Atlantic from Antarctica to Iceland gradually warmed, finally penetrating below the sea ice into the Nordic seas," Rasmussen said. "Once the ice was gone, the pump started up again, bringing additional warm water into the Nordic seas. And we got a warmer period for 50 years," she said. Story continues The researchers determined past ocean temperatures by examining fossils in an ocean sediment core collected southeast of Greenland, along 60 degrees north latitude. This area is close to the Nordic seas and Greenland ice cap, yet still represents the open Atlantic, Rasmussen said. The researchers tracked changes in ocean temperature with foraminifera tiny, shelled organisms that record water conditions during their lifetimes. The team compared the temperature changes to the arrival and disappearance of iceberg-carried debris. The results also confirmed that iceberg activity followed the rapid warming events. This suggests that warm water broke up sea ice and calving glaciers in the North Atlantic, the researchers said. This delivered icebergs and fresh water into the sea, again slowing down the deep-water current. Although the sudden climate swings aren't a good analogue for human-induced climate change, the findings could be used to test and improve the global climate models, the researchers said. "The situation during the ice age, as we see it, was quite different," Rasmussen said. "We see the abrupt climate changes during the ice age basically as warming during a cold period. [This is] in contrast to the present situation, where a future abrupt climate change would be a cooling during a warm period," she said. Follow us @livescience, Facebook & Google+. Original article on Live Science. Copyright 2016 LiveScience, a Purch company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Last nights results from the Republican presidential primary in Nevada have made it clear that, barring something bordering on the miraculous, the Republican Party is not going to wake up from its Donald Trump nightmare anytime soon. The billionaires dominant performance in the first Western state to select a Republican nominee earned him 45.9 percent of the vote in a five-way race, more than his two closest challengers combined. He rolls into Super Tuesday having won his most convincing victory of the primary season yet, and he holds 82 of the 132 delegates pledged so far. Its a small fraction of the total at stake nationally, and only about 7 percent of the total he will need to lock up the nomination ahead of the Republican convention in July. By comparison, though, his closest rivals, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz and Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, hold 17 and 16 delegates, respectively. Related: A Struggling Cruz Doubles Down on Mass Deportation Voters will award 595 delegates on Tuesday across 11 different states. (Colorado will also hold a caucus, but its delegates will not be bound to a candidate until the state party convention in April.) So far, Trump has taken 62 percent of the pledged delegates in the first four states. For arguments sake, say he wins that percentage of the delegates allocated on Tuesday. That gives him 451 delegates in total, more than one-third of what he needs for the nomination with more than two-thirds of the states still in play. Its looking increasingly inevitable that Trump is going to become the nominee, and you dont need theoretical delegate math to see why. The demographic breakdown from the Nevada vote tells the story. As the results of CNN entrance polls at last nights Republican caucuses demonstrated, Trumps 22-point victory came from support that was neither narrow nor shallow. Trump won last night in just about every conceivable demographic group, including evangelical Christians who were vigorously courted by Cruz and Rubio and Hispanics who were thought to be alienated by the billionaires harsh, anti-immigrant policies and threats of mass deportations. Story continues Among self-described conservatives, he picked up 44 percent of the vote, to just 24 percent each for Rubio and Cruz. Among more moderate voters, Trump claimed 55 percent of the vote, to 27 percent for Rubio, who is offering himself as a more moderate, Establishment Republican candidate. Related: Donald Trump Is Just a Symptom. Marco Rubio Is the Cure Trump won among men with 41 percent of the vote and women with 45 percent. He claimed 47 percent of the Republican vote and 44 percent of GOP-leaning independents. Forty-seven percent of white voters went for Trump over Rubio and Cruz, while Latinos favored him with 47 percent of the vote. Rubio and Cruz are both Hispanic and children of Cuban refugees, yet each was able to garner barely a quarter of Nevadas Hispanic Republican vote last night. Trump was dominant as well among evangelical Christians, an influential segment of the Republican electorate that Cruz greatly appealed to in scoring his one victory against Trump in the Iowa caucuses on Feb.1. Trump last night won 40 percent of the conservative Christian vote, compared with only 26 percent for Cruz and 25 percent for Rubio. Trump, 69, swept every age group except Millennials 17 to 29, who favored the 44-year old Rubio over him. And despite earlier snide commentary that his campaign was most appealing to poorly educated voters who never went to college, the CNN poll found that he swept all educational groups, including voters with college degrees. Related: Voters Say Clinton Is Dishonest and Trump Is Stupid Why Are They Winning? On the issues, Trump reigned supreme on questions of who would be best as president in handling immigration, combating terrorism and improving the economy. On his signature issue of immigration and his promise to build a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border and deport millions of illegal immigrants living in this country Trump garnered the support of two thirds of the Republican caucus goers, to just 21 percent for Cruz and 13 percent for Rubio. While Trump appears to be nearly unstoppable heading into next weeks Super Tuesday contests in nearly a dozen mostly Southern and Western states, some analysts caution against reading too much into last nights returns, which reflect the views of only a large slice of the Republican and independent electorate. Ill agree that Trump is the very likely nominee toward the end of March if he wins some of the big states that havent voted yet, University of Virginia political scientist Larry J. Sabato said on Wednesday in an email. Only four small states have voted. So lets resist the temptation to write a review of the play after Act One. Sabato said that there is still a narrow pathway for mainstream Republicans to follow in order to defeat Trump. Only Rubio has any real chance of stopping him, Sabato said. Cruz would need to get out right after March 1 if he doesnt do well on a day when he simply must win. Ohio Gov. John Kasich is obviously dying on the vine, and Ben Carson is no longer a factor. Related: Trump and Rubio Gang Up on Ted Cruz The leadership of the GOP, officeholders and donors, have to stand up and do what they have utterly failed to do so far: Make coherent arguments against Trump and explain clearly why he is unlikely to win in November, Sabato added. If all of these things dont happen, then Trump is probably the GOP nominee and the Republican Party will have to come up with a coherent strategy to protect Senate control, if possible. Sabatos message is being echoed by some in the conservative media. William Kristol, editor of the conservative magazine The Weekly Standard, urged his readers on Wednesday morning not to succumb to Trump Fatalism. Yes, he's defied expectations in a pretty remarkable way. Yes, he's won three of the first four GOP contests. Yes, he's ahead in the polls in the states coming up. Yes, he has an easier path to victory than any other candidate. Kristol even concedes that Trump will dominate the Super Tuesday returns. However, Kristol insists that even a dominant Trump performance next week wont be the end for the rest of the GOP candidates. Even if he wins two-thirds, the March 15 winner-take-all states of Ohio, Florida, and Illinois will be fiercely contested. And this is all before further debates, before any sustained television advertising assault on Trump, while the other candidates are still (foolishly) sniping at each other instead of taking on Trump. And in a circumstance where the frontrunner has unusual vulnerabilities. The problem is that all of Trumps weaknesses have been known since the day he entered the race, and Republicans have been calling for the party to coalesce behind an alternative for months now. Kristol may have some reason to hope these things will suddenly happen, but it sounds a lot like hes whistling past the graveyard. Top Reads from The Fiscal Times: Trump triumphs again: The Republican trounced his nearest rivals last night in the Nevada caucuses to win his third straight GOP presidential race. As Russell pointed out, The Republican nomination for president is now clearly his to lose. No survivors in Nepal crash: A Tara airlines flight with 23 people on board crashed over the mountains, airline and Nepalese authorities confirmed. The plane had taken off from Pokhara, about 125 miles west of Kathmandu, en route to Jomsom, a starting point for trekkers. The flight typically takes 18 minutes. Cologne suspects may never be caught: The German citys police chief tells the BBC that CCTV footage, which captured footage of men assaulting women on New Year Eve, wasnt good enough to identify sex crimes. Most of the suspects were asylum-seekers, German authorities have said. No fourth term for Evo Morales: The Bolivian president failed in his attempt to amend the constitution so he could run for re-election in 2019. He said hed respect the results of the referendum. News from last night here. Read more from The Atlantic: This article was originally published on The Atlantic. The Changi Prison Gate, Wall and Turrets were recently gazetted as a national monument on 15 Feb. Read on to find out more about this monument and other historic sites in Singapore Image: National Heritage Board/ Singapore Prison Service It was designed to hold only 600 prisoners. However, the old Changi Prison eventually held thousands of civilians and prisoners of war (POW) during the Second World War. Today, the prisons steel entrance gate, two turrets and a 180-metre long wall, are the only remnants of the old prison from 1936. The prison was first constructed in the same year, to replace the Outram Prison. As of 15 Feb, parts of the old Changi Prison have been gazetted by the National Heritage Board (NHB) as a national monument, in remembrance of the wartime experience. The prison is now one of Singapores 72 national monuments. Sites gazetted as national monuments are selected based on their cultural, historical, architectural and symbolic significance. The Fullerton Hotel building and the Former Tanjong Pagar Railway Station are a few of such monuments. But do you know about the building that replaced a lunatic asylum (College of Medicine Building at Singapore General Hospital) or the home that is said to have extraordinary fengshui (Former House of Tan Yeok Nee at Penang Road)? Here are some other national monuments Singaporeans might not even know about. Former House of Tan Yeok Nee Where: 101 Penang Road, Singapore 238466 Surrounded by sleek high-rise buildings of Orchard Road, this Chinese-style building may have drawn more than a few curious gazes. It dates back to 1882 and was the home of wealthy entrepreneur Tan Yeok Nee. The house was said to have a prime location as it was situated in front of a hill (Oxley Hill), with a stream located in front of it (Stamford Canal) and was on low-lying grounds. This combination was said to help bring wealth to its homeowner while protecting the home from evil spirits. Today, the former residence is the last of the Four Grand Mansions left standing in Singapore these were the grand homes of Teochew towkays (affluent business owners) from the late 19th century. Story continues The other three mansions have since been demolished during Singapores rapid redevelopment in the 20th century. Over the years, this building has been used as a home and school for young Eurasian girls, the home of a station master, as well as the Command Headquarters for the Salvation Army. The building is now occupied by the University of Chicagos Graduate School of Business. College of Medicine Building Where: 16 College Road Singapore 169854 Situated within the Singapore General Hospital compound, this building was the centre of medical education in Singapore. Gazetted in 2002, the College of Medicine building is now occupied by the Singapore Medical Council, the Ministry of Health and the College of Family Physicians. But it was formerly the site of a lunatic asylum. From 1905, the asylums abandoned female wards were converted into the medical school. As the needs of the medical college grew, the old wards were demolished in the 1920s to make way for the College of Medicine building. Completed in 1926, the college building was equipped with laboratories, classrooms, offices and a museum. During the war, the college was taken over by the Japanese army and used for medical research. Classes resumed in 1946, and the building continued to be the centre of western medical education in Singapore up until 1982. From 1980, the college became known as the Faculty of Medicine and became a part of the National University of Singapore campus at Kent Ridge. Another fun fact: youll find decorative resemblances between the College of Medicine Building, the Old Supreme Court and the Former City Hall. The latter two buildings are now part of the National Gallery Singapore. All three buildings feature Neoclassical details, as designed by sculptor-architect Cavaliere Rudolfo Nolli. Former Ford Factory Where: 351 Bukit Timah Road, Singapore 588192 Built in 1941, this former automobile factory was intended to serve as Ford Motor Companys first assembly plant in Southeast Asia. A year later, the factory was seized by the occupying Japanese forces and used as its military headquarters and a vehicle assembly plant, during the Second World War. The factory building was also the location where the British had signed its unconditional surrender of Singapore to the Japanese on 15 February 1942. Although it briefly produced fighter planes for the British military, these planes were never used against the Japanese. The planes were flown out of the region in Jan 1942, when Singapores surrender seemed imminent. As of 16 Feb, the museum has been temporarily closed for a revamp and is slated to reopen in 2017. Maghain Aboth Synagogue Where: 24/26 Waterloo Street, Singapore 187968 Built in 1878, this synagogue is the oldest synagogue in Singapore as well as Southeast Asia. Its located in the former Jewish neighbourhood, in the areas now known as Dhoby Ghaut and Bras Basah. The synagogues name means Shield of Our Fathers in Hebrew. Gazetted as a national monument in 1998, this synagogue features Neoclassical details, such as Roman-style columns and arches. Its covered porch at the front of the building was constructed such that it was large enough for horse carriages to pass through. Only men could be accommodated within the synagogues original one-storey building; the balcony on the second floor was added later on, for women. Today, this synagogue continues to serve as the primary place of worship for the Jewish community in Singapore. Former Nagore Dargah Where: 140 Telok Ayer Street, Singapore 068604 Situated in between rows of cafes and Korean barbeque restaurants at Telok Ayer, this ornate building certain stands out. Completed in 1830, this shrine (or dargah in Tamil) was built by the Chulia community in Singapore, who worked as moneylenders and traders. It replicates the style of the original Nagore shrine in Tamil Nadu, such that these immigrants could continue to venerate the Tamil Sufi preacher-saint Shahul Hamid. A similar shrine can also be found in the Little India of Georgetown, Penang. Within this building, youll find an eclectic mix of architectural details, varying widely from minaret-like towers to French-style windows and classical Doric columns and arches. As of 2011, the former shrine has been known as the Nagore Dargah Indian Muslim Heritage Centre. Here, visitors get to learn more about the history of the early Indian Muslim immigrants and their contributions to Singapore. Abdul Gafoor Mosque Where: 41 Dunlop Street, Singapore 209369 With its distinctive architecture and striking pastel hue, this mosque stands out even among the rows of colourful shophouses in Little India. It has over a century of history and it features Moorish details, as well as Neoclassical motifs. The mosque was first built to replace the neighbouring Al-Abrar Mosque, which was housed in a simple wooden building that became dilapidated. This mosque was named after Abdul Gafoor, a Tamil Muslim chief clerk who helped oversee the construction of the mosque from 1907. Sadly, he passed away before the mosque was completed. During the major restoration work on the mosque in 2000, the mosque was painted in the striking pastel yellow that you see today. The basement level was refurbished to fit a prayer hall for up to 600 people. Junior doctors in England start on a basic salary of a little under 23,000 ($32,900), so youd think theyd be happy to be offered a pay raise of 13.5 percent. Not so fast. The government wants to change the way overtime is calculated in return, making most hours worked on Saturday normal hours rather than overtimea move that would leave many of them losing out, the doctors say. After they were asked to vote on a proposed new contract in November, 98 percent voted to strike. Theyve held two 24-hour stoppages this year, the first strike action by English doctors in 40 years. The latest, on February 10 and 11, led to the cancellation of 3,000 surgeries. The dispute has cast a spotlight on the way the National Health Service (NHS)often cited as a source of pride for the country because it offers free health care for alltreats its staff. One recent poll showed 64 percent of British voters blamed the government, with just 13 percent faulting doctors. There are about 45,000 junior doctors working in England. Under their present contract, they can work for a maximum of 91 hours in any seven-day period (this will fall to 72), and on average they are supposed to work no more than 56 hours a week (dropping to 48 with the new contract). The starting salary of almost 23,000 rises to about 28,000 ($40,100) in the second year, and the average salary for an English doctor in training is 37,000 ($53,000). Some trainees in hospitals are still classed as junior doctors in their 14th year of work. Those at the top of the scale can earn in excess of 70,000 ($100,300). Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt has vowed to impose the contract without the agreement of the doctors, who have threatened more strike action. Critics of the government fear a brain drain to Australia and other countries that offer good opportunities for U.K.-trained doctors. On the day Hunt promised to impose the new contract, some 300 doctors applied for certificates that would allow them to move abroad, compared with an average of 26 a day earlier in February. Others are considering quitting. I have never considered leaving the NHS before, says Robyn Jacobs, a junior doctor, but Im not going to spend the next 10 to 15 years of my life beaten down and undervalued. Aden (AFP) - Yemen's embattled government accused Lebanon's Hezbollah Shiite militia on Wednesday of sending fighters to support Iran-backed Huthi rebels controlling parts of the war-ravaged country including the capital. The government has evidence of "Hezbollah's involvement in the Huthi war against the Yemeni people," its spokesman Rajih Badi said in a statement published by the official sabanew.net website. Hezbollah militants are present in "the battlefields along the border with Saudi Arabia," where attacks from Yemen have killed about 90 civilians and soldiers in the kingdom since March last year, said Badi. Hezbollah is taking part in the Yemeni war on the ground by training the Shiite Huthis and orchestrating attacks against Saudi Arabia, said Badi, urging "international legal measures" against the movement. "This evidence is documented and Hezbollah cannot deny its role in the destruction it is contributing to through the clear moral and logistic support" for the rebels, said Badi. Sunni-dominated Saudi Arabia is leading an Arab coalition battling the Huthis and their allies since last March in support of the government. The United Nations says the war has left more than 6,000 people dead. The government moved to the southern city of Aden after the Huthis captured the capital Sanaa in 2014. However, most of its senior officials, including President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi, spend most of their time in Riyadh against a backdrop of worsening security. Riyadh said last week it had halted a $3 billion military funding programme for Beirut in response to "hostile" positions linked to Hezbollah, which is also fighting opponents of the Syrian regime. In a statement, Iran-backed Hezbollah said Saudi Arabia stopped the military aid because of economic pressures from the war in Yemen and lower oil revenues. Riyadh cut diplomatic ties with its regional rival Tehran last month after demonstrators stormed its embassy and a consulate following the Saudi execution of a prominent Shiite cleric. RIYADH (Reuters) - Yemen's Gulf-backed government on Wednesday accused the Lebanese Shi'ite Muslim militia Hezbollah of training the Houthi rebels and fighting alongside them in attacks on Saudi Arabia's border, it said in a statement carried by official media. Yemen's government and its Gulf partners have long accused Hezbollah's ally Iran of backing the Houthis and seeking to transform the group into a replica of the Lebanese militia to use as a proxy against its main regional rival, Saudi Arabia. Its latest assertion is based on "many documents and physical evidence" which Hezbollah would not be able to deny, it said, but that it did not immediately produce. Saudi Arabia is leading an Arab coalition against the Houthis and forces loyal to former president Ali Abdullah Saleh in a bid to restore the internationally recognized government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi. Although both Iran and Hezbollah have given vocal support to the Houthis, dismissed Hadi's government as illegitimate and condemned Saudi involvement in the civil war, they deny giving the group military aid. (Reporting by Angus McDowall; Editing by Catherine Evans) Mother forced to drink acid He gained entry by jumping through the kitchen window. It was reported that apart from forcing Rachael Chadee to drink acid, the 40-year-old man slashed her across the face and doused her with the acid. She and the man have been separated for the past seven months with police saying Chadee had taken out a restraining order against the man. During the incident, her mother Doris Chadee, with whom she shares the house, stood helplessly outside the locked bedroom door. On hearing her daughters screams, the woman raised an alarm but by the time neighbours arrived, the man had already escaped. Chadee was rushed to San Fernando General Hospital where she remains warded under police guard in a serious but stable condition. The injured woman is unable to speak because of damage done to her throat by the acid. The suspect is well-known to police and his image was posted on a Most Wanted List on the TV6 Beyond The Tape crime show, hosted by Insp Roger Alexander and Marlan Hopkinson. The suspect is considered armed and dangerous. Yesterday, under the watchful eyes of a police officer, several relatives along with members of Chadees church gathered around her bedside offering prayers and support. Its the first time we are now hearing her voice, said a visitor. She was writhing in pain on the bed, the visitor said. Chadees mother and three grandchildren aged five, nine and 13, have since moved out of the familys humble home at Southern Main Road in La Romaine. A police report stated that at about 5.20 am on Monday, Chadee was confronted by her estranged common-law husband during which time there was an argument. The man grabbed a knife and slashed Chadee on the left side of her face. He then took a bottle containing acid and threw it on her face and back. Holding her in a necklock, the man forced a weeping Chadees mouth open and poured the acid down her throat. He then left the house and escaped. When he come out of the bedroom, I said, (name called) what you do with my child? And he told me to go inside the room and see. I saw her in a state, he threw acid on her head and it come right down her body. He sliced her on her face with the knife. She got cut on her hand because she tried to fight back. The room was stink with the scent of acid, Doris Chadee told Newsday. She said her daughter has been a victim of domestic abuse for several years and when it became unbearable, she ended the relationship last July. The couple shared a relationship for 14 years. Chadee said that due to the violence, her daughter has not been able to keep a steady job. Police sources said the suspect remains at large and the hunt for him continues. Detective Cpl Dinoo is continuing enquiries. HDC official held for fraud It has been alleged the official back in 2014, demanded sums of money be placed in her bank account to secure a HDC home for a woman. However, the woman went to the HDC and reported the officials conduct. The woman even presented a bank deposit slip with the HDC officials personal account number showing deposits were made. A report was sent to the HDC Managing Director Jearlean John who made all the documents available to the Fraud Squad. This prompted an intense investigation under Snr Supt Dookie which led to the arrests. The HDC official and her male companion remained at the Fraud Squad office at Richmond Street, Port-of-Spain, being interrogated. Officers were expected to approach Director of Public Prosecutions Roger Gaspard SC, late last night for instructions in the matter. The arrested official is among several persons sent on administrative leave by new chairman of the HDC Newman George Yorke apologises to Machel Montano has formally discontinued all legal proceedings against the former midfielder, saying his court action against Yorke was, never about money. Montano was granted an injunction on February 13 - the same day of Yorkes Island Vibe event at Heritage Park, Tobago. The injunction was discharged and High Court judge Justice Frank Seepersad was expected to set a trial date to ascertain damages owed to Montano for the use of his image and music in the promotion of the Island Vibe fete. Montanos attorney Larry Williams on Monday filed a notice of discontinuance to end all legal matters against Yorke. According to Williams, Montano was not seeking damages for the use of his image, name and music in the promotion for the event but approached the courts because he simply wanted the truth to be known. He said Montano only took legal action on the basis of principle and to protect his brand and it was never about money. In a one-line statement from Yorke, the former midfielder acknowledged that he met with Montano on February 8 and asked him to perform at his event. He told me no and I misunderstood. I apologise for any harm caused to the Monk/Machel Montano brand, Yorke said in the statement. In an emergency session on February 13, Justice Ricky Rahim granted the injunction to Montano preventing Yorke from using the 2016 Road March winners image or music to promote his event. Montano was advertised as being the headline act for Yorkes annual event, but he said he never agreed to perform. Montanos manager Chetan Kothari in documents filed in court, expressed concern that the advertisements intentionally promoting Montano as the primary performer for the Island Vibe event, led to a real risk that his reputation and brand will be compromised, as the soca artiste, took pride in always attending every show. In a post on its Instagram account, Montanos management company Xtatik Limited said, As some one who loves and respects soca music fans, Machel is posting this notice to make sure that no one is falsely misled into purchasing tickets on the mistaken belief that he will be performing. Thank you. Morvant man acquitted of ammunition charges Codi Alves, 33, of Cipriani Avenue, Second Caledonia, was before Justice David Harris in the Port-of-Spain Fourth Criminal Court charged with possession of a large cache of ammunition in 2003. It was the prosecutions case, led by prosecutor Maria Lyons, that several police officers conducted surveillance at an abandoned house close to Alves home, and he was seen at the location with several other people. Police raided the house on January 19, 2003, and allegedly found 72 rounds of 5.56 calibre ammunition in an old oven. It was presented by the defence, during cross examination of the police officers by Alves attorney Delicia Helwig-Robertson, that Alves visited the property to have sex with his girlfriend and did not know there were ammunition hidden there. In October 2009, Alves escaped death when he and three of his neighbours were killed during a shootout with police on Lady Young Road in Morvant. Alves, Kerwin Lal Joseph, 24, Akee Caballero, 32, and Joel Romaine, 19, were in the same vehicle when the incident occurred. The three men were killed and Alves escaped unhurt. No charges were laid against him in that incident. State opens death by dangerous driving case Harewood is facing a jury of nine on an indictment for allegedly causing the death of Nicholas Antoine by dangerous driving on November 17, 2001. Yesterday, state prosecutor Shabana Shah opened the case before the jury. She said the incident occurred along the South Trunk Road near the Gulf City intersection. Shah added that Antoine was riding his motorcycle in a northerly direction when Lawrence was proceeding in a westerly direction along the South Trunk Road. Lawrence, the state attorney said, broke a red traffic light and collided with the motorcycle. Antoines father Edmond Jason Antoine yesterday testified. Under cross-examination Edmond said that on the day of his sons death , he left home at 3.35 pm. He said that his son was the owner of a Yamaha 400 special motorcycle. Edmond said that his son left the family home on the day he was killed to get a haircut in Palmiste. The court heard that Antoine received his licence at the age of 17 years and three months. Harewood is being represented by attorney Lisa Singh-Phillip. The trial continues today. . CRIMINAL STUDENTS As a start, Garcia revealed that 24 students identified as ring leaders in the delinquency that has plagued the school are to be sent home with immediate effect. Following a return visit to the school yesterday, this time along with Minister of National Security Edmund Dillon, Garcia told reporters, I have taken a decision, a definite decision, that I will not tolerate indiscipline and violence in our schools. My mantra is no school indiscipline, no violence in schools. Dillon also said the country may have to consider boot camps for delinquent students as Garcia said he will be looking at ways in which the students who are removed from the school could be reintegrated into the system. Garcia returned to the school yesterday following his presence there last Friday in response to the disclosure that some students, supported by criminal elements, were planning to stage a gun attack and even kill a teacher and other students. The Minister was in Tobago until Monday evening where he hosted the final sessions of the national consultation on education. In making the visit to the central school again yesterday, the Minister wanted to ensure the suggested ramping up of security was in place and working, and he also wanted to continue discussions with the Principal, teachers and other personnel on the way forward. The situation at the school is real and not exaggerated, he told Newsday. I am the Minister of Education and the Education Act, which governs activities of the Ministry, gives me responsibility for the entire education system, Garcia told a media briefing shortly after addressing both teaching staff and students at a special school assembly on the schools compound in Helen Street, Chaguanas. But more than that, the Minister is the only person who has the authority to take certain action against errant students. The principal has identified 24 students whose behaviour is the cause of a lot of the problems that we are having in this school. Many of those 24 students have criminal records. Many of them have pending matters before the courts. Many of those students have been engaged in attacking other students and they have been engaged in bullying. 24 STUDENTS REMOVED I have taken the decision, in consultation with my colleagues, that with immediate effect, these students will be removed from the Chaguanas North Secondary School, he said. I want to give the national community the assurance that the 24 students, who we will be removed with immediate effect from this school, we will not leave them to pasture, he said. We are going to have certain interventions. We are going to do certain assessments, and we are going to do whatever is possible so that we can have them rehabilitated in the school system, perhaps in the not too distant future, but we will leave no stone unturned to ensure that our school is safe. Asked whether the students were all from one particular class or form, he responded that they were scattered throughout the schools population though he could not say whether any females were among the 24 students. The Minister also pointed out that police patrols would continue at the school as a number of other problems were identified, including the dilapidated condition of the schools wall and the inordinate amount of acting positions among staff members. Garcia noted that the size of the Chaguanas North Secondary compound some 11 acres pose serious difficulties in ensuring adequate patrols. We will have constant and consistent police patrols, we want to ensure the schools compound is safe...that is our immediate objective, he added. In speaking with members of staff and the Principal, we have identified certain infrastructural deficiencies and we are going to make sure these deficiencies are remedied BOOT CAMP RETURN? Garcia said he will be discussing the issue of the many acting appointments at the school with the Teachers Service Commission today as this could be related to persons not taking decisive action on school issues. The Minister revealed, The principal is acting, the vice principal is acting, there are nine deans on staff and only one has been appointed...the other eight are acting. There are seven heads of department, only three have been appointed... four are acting. At every level of the school system, most of the persons are holding acting appointments. Minister Dillon who also addressed the media briefing, suggested that the national population may have to consider boot camps as a means of dealing with delinquent students. He also observed that the removal of corporal punishment may have been a contributing factor to the high level of indiscipline. This is a problem that didnt happen overnight, Dillon said. It has been festering for some time and from a national security perspective, we may have to consider how do we treat with them. Do we treat with them in the sense, do we introduce boot camp into our system? These are questions the national community need to look at. We have done away with corporal punishment in our school system to a large extent, that may be a source of our concern right now, but we are here to ensure the safety and security of the students who come to school to learn and the teachers who come to school to teach, he added. We as a society must take stock because the future of our country, the future of our generation lies in the education of our students, Dillon added. Student exposes himself to MTS guard When the incident occurred, school was already dismissed and the students were awaiting transportation. The officer is said to have since reported the matter to senior school officials. We are waiting to see if any action will be taken against this student who was very rude to the officer, a source at the school said, while explaining that MTS workers get very little or no respect from the students. They say they hardly ever get redress when they complain. Newsday was informed that it was only a few days before Carnival, that official action had to be taken against another male student who wined on a female MTS employee while she was going about her duty on the school steps. According to reports, the MTS guard was walking up the staircase when she was blocked by two male students. She asked them to allow her to pass and while one removed himself from her path, the other jumped behind her while chant- ing, I wining on she bumper as he proceeded to gyrate on the womans rear end. She could be his mother, said a MTS employee. But that was a big joke to them and they laughed and laughed at what their friend did. The matter was subsequently reported to school officials and following investigations the student received a two-week suspension. He has since returned to classes but not without letting the MTS employee know how he felt. He confronted and cursed her when he returned to school on the first day after his suspension ended. This was reported and the student has since cooled down a little, the school source said. Like a number of other government secondary schools, Williamsville Secondary has been plagued with problems of indiscipline and violence. New police commissioner in 6 months So possibly it may take us, maybe around six months to have the entire process completed, she said. Asked if she was saying that in six months time, the PSC would have hired an independent firm to select a CoP, or a CoP will be appointed, Gomes said, No, no, no. In six months time we need a commissioner. That is the cry, not just of the country, but in terms of resolving the crime issues. While acting CoP Stephen Williams and his team were doing a good job, she said, We know it is more than time. It is overdue, and so that is the aim. That is what we are aiming to. Our time lines are that. Asked if the six month period will mark the end Williams tenure, she said, Yes. Actually it coincides with that. She said that the PSC has met with National Security Minister ,Edmund Dillon, who has requested that the PSC begins the process to appoint a CoP. I want to assure the general public that we have, she said. At present, she said that the PSC was doing robust background work and was working assiduously to make sure that they start on the right foot. Asked when the firm will be selected, she said, That one you will have to ask me later on. I have no idea, but it will be sooner than later. As I said we are working assiduously towards it. I have a meeting this afternoon (yesterday), I had a meeting yesterday (day before yesterday). The PSC statutory meeting is due tomorrow. After the firm is selected, she said, the terms of reference will be done, followed by advertising. She said that the PSC will start issuing press releases to give updates on what it has done, including strategic planning, over the last year since she became chairman. The PSC, she said, has adopted some core values which it wants to implement. We are doing all of that. We are coming up with our own take. We are doing our background work. Our research department is doing that. We have tried to be as pro-active as possible, so that when we do select the firm, we are on top of things, she said. Garcia reports to Senate Teachers, students scared Speaking in the Senate hours after he visited the school as he responded to a question from Opposition Senator Wade Mark, Garcia said the ministrys Student Support Services Unit provided counselling to teachers and students at Chaguanas North Secondary School. The teachers are scared in some instances to interact with students, the Minister said. Saying that students are also scared in some cases, Garcia disclosed that the mother of one student at the school requested a transfer for him after he was injured. Indicating that security at the school has been increased, Garcia said, Instead of four security officers, there are now eight MTS security officers. He added, instead of one safety officer, there are now two safety officers. Reiterating that the ministry will today request that the Teaching Service Commission move swiftly to fill a large number of vacancies at the school because of the number of persons acting in various posts, Garcia remarked, Yes. Its like Hollywood. He also said the police have agreed,to have constant patrols, in and around the school on a daily basis and efforts will be made to secure the schools perimeter. Government senators thumped their desks as Garcia vowed there will be zero tolerance on violence at the school Colm: More pension staff soon He visited the Senate yesterday to reply to a motion on the adjournment by Opposition chief whip, Wade Mark, who complained that pensions and gratuities usually take three months to process, and in some cases up to two years, when they should be done within one month. Mark had described the delays as unbearable, untenable, inexcusable and unacceptable, and said they affect hundreds, and maybe thousands of citizens. He speculated that the delays could be due to problems with record management systems, succession planning, human resources and/or a central data base. Imbert in reply said there is nothing new about this problem, as he noted long-standing delays and staff-shortages. He noted that the Government was in office just five months, during which time the Treasury partially out of service being one of the buildings shut by the Public Services Association (PSA) on grounds of occupational safety and health (OSH). He also noted an increasing number of officers retiring from the Public Service, who numbered 825 retirees in 2014; some 972 retirees last year; and 843 due this year. When one adds judges and legislators, and persons who die, or exit on medical grounds, or retire voluntarily, these figures rise even higher he said. From these figures, in 2014 and 2015 almost 2,000 persons retired from the Public Service, and this year we may have another 1,000, he said. Refuting Marks claim that the Pensions Management Branch has just eight staff, Imbert said the true number is 81 persons. He aims to hire 20 more persons to increase staff levels to 100, but said delays in this lengthy hiring process involving the Public Service Commission, mean he will first clear the existing pension backlog by initially and quickly hiring 25 contract workers. Imbert scoffed at Marks description of cheques having to be signed off by the Minister, saying that Mark as a former minister should know that this is not the procedure. Admitting a rise in workload and a decline in staff to process pensions, he said, Im very dissatisfied. Imbert said he has been pushing hard for former legislators to be paid their pensions/gratuities. Senate agrees Agenda 2030 Samuel issued this warning when he spoke in the Senate on a private motion pertaining to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, questioned whether the light in the Parliament Chamber could be affecting the mental health of parliamentarians. Some senators laughed when Samuel claimed that because of the presence of dirty current in the Chamber, persons on the outside find it hard to believe that some parliamentarians act differently from how they did when they entered Parliament for the first time. Expressing concerns for water coming out of the Guanapo Water Treatment plant, Samuel questioned whether the population was receiving a safe supply of water. Claiming there was an increase in bottled water in the country, Samuel argued this was reflected in Parliament by the fact that parliamentarians are given bottled water to drink. Stressing he was not criticising any particular brand of bottled water, Samuel wondered if this meant the population was not comfortable with consuming water which came out of their taps. Earlier in the sitting, Government senator Daniel Dookie said the ruling Peoples National Movement (PNM) is developing a framework for information communication technology (ICT) in TT. AG: Speed guns coming The Motor Vehicle and Road Traffic Bill 2014 is under review right now by the LRC (Law Revision Commission) and the speed guns are a tool which can be enabled under existing laws, not only the laws to be amended. The procurement of those things is under review right now to make sure we get the best product for the best value and the Ministry of Works and Transport is the procuring agency on that end. They are very, very busy right now, making sure we get what we need to get. Al Rawi provided Newsday with an update on the outstanding acquisition of speed guns for use by the police service, while at a Security Networking Cocktail Reception held at the Maraval residence of Britains High Commissioner to Trinidad and Tobago, Tim Stew, this past Monday. The reception preceded a one-day private exhibition of the goods and services of 17 British companies yesterday (Tuesday) at Hyatt Regency, Port-of-Spain for TTs national security forces, and a select few private security firms. The services on display included the latest in forensic sciences, helicopter operations and training, and crowd management training. The AG cited forensic sciences as one area he was interested in finding out what the British companies had to offer because locally, forensics has been left in a state of disarray for a number of years. Its a very urgent priority that we pay attention to enabling that structure as best as we can. (So) learning from other jurisdictions is critical, not only in the physical management of forensics from a pathology or crime scene investigation point of view, but from an evidential, criminal justice system point of view. We have to connect those dots AG: Heavy fines for breeding mosquitoes Governments plan to amend Regulation 27 of the Public Health Ordinance, Chapter 12, Number 4 was announced in Parliament last Friday by Attorney General Faris Al-Rawi during debate on a motion by Caroni East MP Dr Tim Gopeesingh, that the Zika virus is, a matter of urgent public importance. Speaking with reporters after the sitting, the AG said he had, just finished the review, and has to send it back to the Health Ministry, which would then send a note to Cabinet on the proposed amendment. We think that its important to look at all avenues to motivate compliance with the laws of TT, particularly on issues as serious as Zika, Dengue, Chikungunya and Yellow Fever. Its about time that we used every bit of weaponry in our arsenal as a nation. Once Cabinet has considered the position, we will very shortly be bringing forward a policy which will become law because its done by way of regulations in subsidiary legislation, Al-Rawi explained. Earlier, during the Zika debate, Gopeesingh argued that while Health Minister Terrence Deyalsingh recently advised the nation, Dont panic, he (Gopeesingh) has received calls from pregnant women who are worried about contracting Zika, because of its possible link to microcephaly during pregnancy. Microcephaly, abnormal smallness of the head, is a congenital condition associated with incomplete brain development. I, as a gynaecologist, have received hundreds of calls within the last two weeks from patients who are pregnant and theyre very frightened as to what to do. Gopeesingh then asked, When do we screen (Zika) patients who are pregnant? Is it the first trimester after 14 weeks, the second trimester? We have to be able to measure the size of the babys head as the baby grows in utero, so we have to find ultrasounds across the country (and) the competent people to measure the (babies) heads in the pregnancy. We have 17,000 pregnant women in TT. How best are you going to monitor these patients? Responding to Gopeesingh, the Health Minister noted that TT already has protocols in place, courtesy the World Health Organisation (WHO), and the ministrys own Integrated Management Response System. They include contacting the immediate family of a Zika patient; as has been done with the confirmed case in Diego Martin, taking blood samples from the patients immediate family and testing them for Zika, and visiting the persons workplace to determine if anyone has symptoms Google, which owns the Android system, now indicates that it will follow Apples lead. For those companies, and others like them, there is a sound argument in not wanting, even indirectly, to become an arm of the government. But when you are the two companies whose operating systems handle more than 90 percent of mobile communications worldwide, you should be accountable for more than just sales. Ms. Mills was an Apple customer. So were some of the people who died with iPhones in their pockets in the San Bernardino and Paris attacks . How is not solving a murder, or not finding the message that might stop the next terrorist attack, protecting anyone? The ramifications of this fight extend beyond San Bernardino. Brittany Mills was a 29-year-old woman who was eight months pregnant when she was murdered in Baton Rouge, La. Apple says it cant comply with a search warrant and open her iPhone even though the police believe the identity of the killer is contained in her device. The phone in the San Bernardino case stopped uploading data to the cloud about six weeks before the killings. That suggests there may be information inside the device that was deliberately concealed. That could include the identities of terrorists who influenced or directed the attack; such information, if pursued, could prevent future plots. Or the iPhone might contain nothing of value. It is Apples position that we should never know. Mr. Cook says Apples ultimate goal is to provide customers safety from attack. But Mr. Cook does not seem to be talking about the kind of attack that took 14 lives in San Bernardino. Presumably, he means attacks from hackers or what he may view as government intrusion even when that intrusion is legal. What the government is actually requesting here is that Apple restore a key that was available until late 2014. Complying with constitutionally legal court orders is not creating a back door; in a democracy, that is a front door. Apple and privacy advocates have framed this debate as the government wanting to create a back door into peoples devices. But the Constitution protects people from unreasonable search and seizure. And for more than 200 years, the standard has been for law enforcement to obtain a warrant signed by a judge, based on probable cause. Apple partisans also argue that the company is trying to protect privacy in places like China, where governments could demand access to phones belonging to dissidents. But Apple could refuse those requests, or have China make them through the State Department, a means of insulating itself from unreasonable demands. That is often how the United States asks for assistance from overseas corporations in investigations. But Mr. Snowden claimed that the N.S.A. was capturing some Americans Internet traffic from overseas, not that the agency was hacking into smartphones. Moreover, Apples position on privacy seems at odds with its own strategy of encouraging customers to pay to store personal data on iCloud, which is also vulnerable to hackers. Some believe that allegations by Edward J. Snowden of mass surveillance of phone and Internet communications by the National Security Agency stoked fears among Apples customers that the government was spying on them. Perhaps an iPhone that even Apple couldnt unlock might allay such fears, while also helping sales by offering more privacy and security. Until 17 months ago, Apple held the key that could override protections and open phones. Apple used this master key to comply with court orders in drug, kidnapping, murder and terrorism cases. There was no documented instance of this code getting out to hackers or to the government. So what was the problem Apple was trying to fix when it abruptly announced, in September 2014, that with its new iOS 8, Apple will not perform iOS data extractions in response to government search warrants? Mr. Cooks position is hyperbolic, in our view. But beyond the legal case, there is an ethics issue unfolding here. But Apple is making a stand because the government wants it to create something against its will: code that would disable a feature that erases all content after 10 failed password attempts. Tim Cook, Apples chief executive, has said that if this happens, the floodgates will open to similar law enforcement requests, putting customers data at risk. And not just in the United States: Apple supporters have raised concerns that other countries, particularly China and Russia, are likely to follow suit. On one level, this should be comfortable space for the government. First, the phone is owned by the County of San Bernardino, which issued it to Mr. Farook, an employee of its health department. The county, as Apples customer, has no problem having its phone opened. Second, Mr. Farook and his wife were killed in a gun battle with the police early last December. Under the law, dead people have no privacy rights. THE government and Apple have chosen interesting ground on which to contest the limits of government access to data on mobile devices. The case involves an F.B.I. request for Apples assistance in opening a phone once carried by Syed Rizwan Farook, who with his wife was responsible for the terrorist attack in San Bernardino, Calif., that left 14 dead and 22 wounded. Maxim Trudolyubov, editor at large at the business newspaper Vedomosti, writes The Russia File blog for the Kennan Institute and is a fellow at the Bosch Academy in Berlin. It may not be true that Mr. Putin is purposefully exacerbating the refugee crisis, or that there is no sound economic logic behind Nord Stream 2. But if you have the reputation of turning everything you touch into a weapon, everything you say and do might be construed as an attack. You become everyones enemy. Russias leaders have become so adept at their game of projecting menacing ambiguity that it is now impossible for them to persuade anyone that sometimes the Russians might just simply want to do business. Historically, the Kremlins rulers have always considered their countrys first line of defense against what they perceive as Western mischief to lie well beyond Russias borders. But Moscow has made people in the West think that its policies are motivated by aggressive revisionism, not defense. Their success is full of ironies. And so Moscow is not loved but feared. But snatching land from other nations, scaring your neighbors and destabilizing your business and political rivals are not policies you can maintain forever. They will return to haunt Moscow. It is much safer to be feared than to be loved Machiavelli wrote, an observation that the Russian leader and generations of his predecessors have taken to heart. As one high-ranking Russian official told me: We are not known for being particularly nice or elegant. But that is fine with us as long as our interests are taken seriously. Mr. Putins talent for disruption amounts to a kind of Midas touch. It has made him a formidable adversary in Russias hybrid war of force and manipulation, where anything can be a target and everything can be a weapon. It has also given him what he has long coveted: Western acknowledgment that Russia is a force to be reckoned with. The German vice chancellor, Sigmar Gabriel, who also serves as minister of economic affairs and energy, recently went to Warsaw to push for the project, even though his partner in Germanys governing coalition, Chancellor Angela Merkel, remains silent. Opponents argue that another pipeline is unnecessary at a time when Nord Stream 1 is operating at half its capacity. Brussels has yet to issue a ruling. Moreover, proposals to build another natural gas pipeline are being used to divide the European Union. Germany, France and Britain treat the Nord Stream 2 project as a business venture; Poland, Slovakia and Ukraine bitterly oppose it. They say it would enable Moscow to avoid funneling gas through Central Europe, deprive them of revenue from transit fees, and enable Moscow to cut off their supplies without jeopardizing its customers in Western Europe. Moscow is also widely seen to have weaponized the migrant crisis. Many analysts and government officials the Turkish security services among them agree that Moscow not only thwarts U.S. policies in the Middle East, but is targeting Russias perceived enemies by purposely creating additional flows of migrants moving through Turkey and, ultimately, on to the European Union. Mr. Putins strategy, Senator John McCain said recently, is to exacerbate the refugee crisis and use it as a weapon to divide the trans-Atlantic alliance and undermine the European project. Take the example of a news story by Russias state-run television this January about the alleged rape by migrants of a German girl of Russian extraction in Berlin. German prosecutors said the allegations were not confirmed, and Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier who usually weighs his words with great care dismissed the affair as propaganda. But the Russian media succeeded in blowing the incident out of all proportion, stoking anti-immigrant protests and resentment among Germanys nearly six million Russian speakers. It is not by crude force alone that Russia twists events to its advantage. By using its total control over the Russian news media to sow confusion in the West, Mr. Putin has managed, in the words of the journalists Peter Pomerantsev and Michael Weiss, to weaponize information. In a report published in late 2014 by the New York-based Institute of Modern Russia, they outlined how the Kremlin manipulates the media, ethnic tensions and trade and financial transactions abroad to further its own ends. Meanwhile, the West goes on declaring one Kremlin success after another in ways that many Russians themselves cannot see. Under an editorial headline Putins Syria Victory, for example, The Wall Street Journal opined on Feb. 12: Negotiations can freeze the conflict in place, a tactic Russia used to its advantage after the invasion of Georgia in 2008 and last years Minsk agreement over eastern Ukraine. Almost anything Vladimir Putin touches these days is perceived by the West as a weapon, and almost everything he does is seen as an attack, very often a successful one. The Kremlin can change facts on the ground, stage quasi cease-fires and create zones of influence to exert pressure on other nations. It has done so in Moldova, Georgia and Ukraine, and the pattern is now being repeated in Syria. Azerbaijan's Supreme Court has upheld the imprisonment of the Caucasus nation's noted lawyer Intiqam Aliyev. Azerbaijan's Supreme Court Upholds Sentence Against Noted Lawyer mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. Azerbaijan's Supreme Court has upheld the imprisonment of the Caucasus nation's noted lawyer Intiqam Aliyev. We Are Europe, New Georgian Prime Minister Tells RFE/RL mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. PRAGUE, Czech Republic -- Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili used his visit to RFE/RLs Prague headquarters today to affirm his governments commitment to Europ... UN chief: Number of displaced people has never been higher mikenova shared this story from World. United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon says the number of displaced people around the world has never been higher and the international community needs to improve the way humanitarian support ... NATO Seeks to Stem Greek-Turkish Row Over Migrant Mission mikenova shared this story from WSJ.com: World News. NATO diplomats are working to head off a disagreement between Greece and Turkey that threatens to derail the mission to deter migrants from traversing the Aegean Sea to reach the Europ... Hammond: 'Disturbing evidence' that Kurds are coordinating with Syrian regime and Russia mikenova shared this story from World news. Foreign Secretary says UK "uneasy" about Kurdish role in Syria, as YPG forces take advantage of northern offensive to take territory from US-backed rebels Shifting Power Over Saudi Arabia's Oil mikenova shared this story from WSJ.com: World News. 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CNN Russia is using Syria to run circles around US CNN In October, when Russia started bombing Syria, Obama confidently predicted that Putin would regret his decision to enter the Syr... United States and Russia agree to a partial cease-fire in Syria - Washington Post mikenova shared this story from Russia - Google News. Washington Post United States and Russia agree to a partial cease-fire in Syria Washington Post The United States and Russia announced Monday that they have agreed to the terms of a p... US-Russia Deal on a Partial Truce in Syria Raises More Doubt Than Optimism - New York Times mikenova shared this story from Russia - Google News. New York Times US- Russia Deal on a Partial Truce in Syria Raises More Doubt Than Optimism New York Times WASHINGTON The United States and Russia announced an agreement on Monday fo... Russia wants to fly more spy planes over the US, and the Pentagon can't stop it - Washington Post mikenova shared this story from Russia - Google News. Washington Post Russia wants to fly more spy planes over the US, and the Pentagon can't stop it Washington Post Russia filed a request Monday to fly a spy plane carrying advanced digi... Syria conflict: Warring parties accept US-Russia truce plan - BBC News mikenova shared this story from Russia - Google News. BBC News Syria conflict: Warring parties accept US- Russia truce plan BBC News The Syrian government and the main opposition umbrella group say they accept the terms of a deal to ceas... Chechen leader Kadyrov 'threatens whole of Russia', opposition warns - The Guardian mikenova shared this story from Russia - Google News. The Guardian Chechen leader Kadyrov 'threatens whole of Russia ', opposition warns The Guardian The Chechen leader, Ramzan Kadyrov, is a ruthless and corrupt leader who could pose a t... Iran Calls Proposed Oil-Output Freeze Ridiculous mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. Irans Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh has dismissed a proposal by Russia and three OPEC members to freeze oil production as "ridiculous." Ukrainian Nuclear History Fellowship mikenova shared this story from Latest From the Wilson Center. The Odessa Center for Nonproliferation (OdCNP), a partner of the Nuclear Proliferation International History Project, invites applications for a fellowship hosted in Odessa, ... , mikenova shared this story from golosamerikius's YouTube Videos. From: golosamerikius Duration: 02:59 , Originally published... mikenova shared this story from golosamerikius's YouTube Videos. From: golosamerikius Duration: 02:54 Originally published at - http://www.gol... Despite skepticism, Syrian truce may have a chance mikenova shared this story from Stars and Stripes News. After five years of carnage, the Syrian civil war can seem poised to go on indefinitely. But the "cessation of hostilities" engineered by the U.S. and Russia may actually stand a ch... Mark Davis: The FBI's demand on Apple is unacceptable - Dallas Morning News mikenova shared this story from james b. comey - Google News. Mark Davis: The FBI's demand on Apple is unacceptable Dallas Morning News These are challenging days for FBI Director James Comey . As his agency ... Director Comey misdefined... 2016 Election: The Next Presidents Choice in the Middle East mikenova shared this story from In Homeland Security. Middle East: The next president will have to make a distinct choice - either engage in the region or continue to disengage. Enemies mikenova shared this story from Intelligence Analysis and Reporting. Title: Enemies Author: Tim Weiner Weiner, Tim (2012). Enemies : A History of the FBI . New York: Random House LCCN: 2011005353 H... Turkish authorities confirm Ankara bomber's identity mikenova shared this story from Stars and Stripes News. Turkish authorities on Tuesday confirmed the identity of the suicide bomber who killed 29 people in last week's suicide car bomb attack in Ankara as a Turkish man, the state-run age... Central Intelligence Agency An Instrument of Government mikenova shared this story from Intelligence Analysis and Reporting. Title: Central Intelligence Agency An Instrument of Government Author: Arthur B. Darling Darling, Arthur B. (1989). The Central Int... Harper Lee, 1926- 2016 | Obituary | The New York Times mikenova shared this story from TheNewYorkTimes's YouTube Videos. From: TheNewYorkTimes Duration: 01:41 Harper Lee, whose first novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, about racial injustice in a small Alabama town, sold more than 40 million... Italy summons US envoy over reports Berlusconi was spied on - Washington Post mikenova shared this story from World - Google News. Daily Times Newsweek Italy summons US envoy over reports Berlusconi was spied on Washington Post ROME The Italian foreign ministry on Tuesday has summoned the American ambassador in ... 'Major incident' declared after collapse at UK power plant - Tulsa World mikenova shared this story from World - Google News. The Independent Newsweek 'Major incident' declared after collapse at UK power plant Tulsa World LONDON (AP) Washington Post LONDON British emergency services say they are responding ... GOP Senators: No Hearing, No Vote for Obama Court Pick - ABC News mikenova shared this story from Top Stories - Google News. GOP Senators: No Hearing, No Vote for Obama Court Pick ABC News Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday ruled out any hearing for President Barack Obama's nomine... Iran getting less than $50 billion in cash after nuclear deal: Kerry mikenova shared this story from Reuters: World News. WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said on Tuesday that the amount of cash Iran will receive due to the implementation of the nuclear agreement is below the $50 ... Polish president backs communist spy allegations against Lech Walesa mikenova shared this story from Reuters: World News. WARSAW (Reuters) - President Andrzej Duda, an ally of Poland's new euroskeptic government, accused Lech Walesa on Tuesday of collaborating with the communist-era secret services, furth... DNA report suggests Ankara bomber was Turkish: security official mikenova shared this story from Reuters: World News. ANKARA (Reuters) - A DNA report from a suicide bombing that killed 29 people in the Turkish capital Ankara last week suggests the main perpetrator was Turkish-born, not Syrian as initi... Canada PM Trudeau joins gay pride march mikenova shared this story from BBC News - World. Canada's Justin Trudeau is to become one of the first world leaders to take part in a gay pride march, say organisers of the Toronto event. Afghan Troops Seek to Shore Up Provincial Capital mikenova shared this story from WSJ.com: World News. The Afghan army is setting up a protective ring around the capital of Helmand province to defend it from possible Taliban attacks after losing control of more remote districts. Italy summons US envoy over reports Berlusconi was spied on mikenova shared this story from World. The Italian foreign ministry has summoned the American ambassador in Rome for clarifications after Italian media reported a U.S. intelligence agency intercepted phone calls by then-Premier Silvio ... Afghan government, Taliban set to resume direct peace talks next week mikenova shared this story from World. It remains unclear which Taliban factions will travel to Pakistan for the talks, which stalled last summer. All right, let's talk about Hitler's penis mikenova shared this story from World. Another week, another round of stories about the Nazi leader's genitals. Estonia: 3 cigarette smugglers imprisoned for espionage mikenova shared this story from World. Prosecutors say a court in Estonia has sentenced three cigarette smugglers to prison for spying for Russia in a rare low-level espionage case. This City Has the Best Quality of Life in the World, Study Says mikenova shared this story from World TIME. Vienna, Austria is the city with the highest overall quality of life in the world, according to a survey released on Tuesday. Mercers 18th annual Quality of Living survey evaluates liv... 14 New Cases of Sexually Transmitted Zika in U.S., CDC Reports mikenova shared this story from World TIME. Fourteen more people have caught the Zika virus in the U.S. without traveling to affected zones, federal health officials said Tuesday strong evidence that the virus is sexually trans... British helicopter pilot held in Kenya over policewoman 'assault' mikenova shared this story from World news. Pilot Alistair Llewelyn, 41, captured on camera shouting at and pushing a female police officer for apparently failing to control a crowd around a helicopter he was using to fly the country's d... EU 'Concerned' Over Humanitarian Crisis On Balkan Migrant Route mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. The European Union says it is making plans to deal with a possible humanitarian crisis as new border restrictions are halting migrants traveling across the Balkans. European Court Rules Russia Responsible For Violations In Transdniester mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. The Strasbourg-based court ruled on February 23 that Russia had violated various rights of a Moldovan man arrested in Transdniester in 2008 and that he was subject to inh... U.S. Envoy Says Number Of Islamic State Foreign Fighters Dropping mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. The U.S. special envoy to the coalition fighting Islamic State (IS) militants says the group's ranks of foreign fighters have dropped to about 25,000 from a peak of 35,000. U.S. Strikes Help Break Impasse and Restore Power to Kabul mikenova shared this story from NYT > World. The head of the United States delegation, David E. Lindwall, left, with Salahuddin Rabbani, Afghanistans foreign minister, during the fourth round of four-way peace talks at the presidenti... Gun shop owner: Suspect bought jacket before killings mikenova shared this story from AP Top News at 2:19 p.m. EST. PLAINWELL, Mich. (AP) -- A gun shop owner says the man charged in the Kalamazoo shootings came into his store hours before the rampage and bought a jacket with an inside pocke... GOP Senators: No hearing, no vote for Obama Court pick mikenova shared this story from AP Top News at 2:19 p.m. EST. WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Barack Obama's nominee to the Supreme Court won't get a hearing or a vote from the Republican-led Senate, GOP members of the Jud... More than 100,000 migrants reach Europe in 2016 mikenova shared this story from World news. New figures show more migrants reached Europe in the first six weeks of 2016 than the first six months of last year. mikenova shared this story from golosamerikius's YouTube Videos. From: golosamerikius Duration: 02:34 : , Originally published at - ht... Questions Linger Over Russias Endgame in Syria, Ukraine and Europe mikenova shared this story from NYT > Russia. A partial truce in Syria capped something of a foreign policy trifecta for President Vladimir V. Putin, but his goals are uncertain for all three. Bill Gates Weighs In on Apple's Clash With the FBI - New York Times mikenova shared this story from james b. comey - Google News. New York Times Bill Gates Weighs In on Apple's Clash With the FBI New York Times The director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, James B . Comey Jr., made the case in a p... Former Gitmo Detainee Among 4 Arrested for ISIS Connections mikenova shared this story from Washington Free Beacon. A former Guantanamo Bay prisoner was reportedly among four individuals arrested Tuesday by authorities in Spain and Morocco for alleged ties to terror group ISIS. The Associated Pre... News Analysis: Russian Buildup Focuses Concerns Around The Black Sea mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. For the last decade, Russia has systematically bolstered its position in the Black Sea region, redrawing international borders and pouring billions of dollars into milita... Kerry: U.S. Considering 'Plan B' In Syria If No Peace mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has warned that Washington is considering a "Plan B" to deal with Syria if Damascus and Moscow are not serious about negotiating a poli... News Analysis: Questions Linger Over Russias Endgame in Syria, Ukraine and Europe mikenova shared this story from NYT > Europe. A partial truce in Syria capped something of a foreign policy trifecta for President Vladimir V. Putin, but his goals are uncertain for all three. Migrants find doors slamming shut across Europe mikenova shared this story from Europe. Nations are moving to block migrants, dashing the hopes of countless families seeking sanctuary in Europe. FBI director James Comely pens open letter to Apple over San Bernardino iPhone - Daily Mail mikenova shared this story from fbi - Google News. Daily Mail FBI director James Comely pens open letter to Apple over San Bernardino iPhone Daily Mail The American people should expect nothing less from the FBI . The particular legal is... SAN BERNARDINO SHOOTING: FBI chief defends legal action against Apple - Press-Enterprise mikenova shared this story from fbi - Google News. SAN BERNARDINO SHOOTING: FBI chief defends legal action against Apple Press-Enterprise In the ongoing battle between the FBI and Apple over gaining access to the iPhone of San Bernardino... He was fired from the CIA and jailed for a leak. Now he's trying to hang on. - Washington Post mikenova shared this story from cia - Google News. Washington Post He was fired from the CIA and jailed for a leak. Now he's trying to hang on. Washington Post Locked away in federal prison, Jeffrey Sterling is struggling to keep his dem... Russia dropping 'dumb' bombs in Syria, indiscriminately killing rebels and civilians alike mikenova shared this story from www.washingtontimes.com stories: Security. Russian President Vladimir Putin has thrust a much-modernized air force into the civil war in Syria, but the U.S. military says his bombers still drop mostly grav... UN warns of nuclear material falling into terrorist hands mikenova shared this story from www.washingtontimes.com stories: Security. VIENNA (AP) - The head of the U.N. nuclear agency warned Monday of the dangers of nuclear material falling into the hands of terrorists and urged world nations to... Cuba sending 9,000 soldiers to fight Zika virus mikenova shared this story from Stars and Stripes News. Cuban President Raul Castro announced Monday that he is dispatching 9,000 soldiers to help keep the Zika virus out of Cuba, calling on the entire country to fight the mosquito that ... Former NSA and CIA chief says Apple is right on the bigger issue of encryption back door - 9 to 5 Mac mikenova shared this story from cia - Google News. 9 to 5 Mac Former NSA and CIA chief says Apple is right on the bigger issue of encryption back door 9 to 5 Mac Retired General Michael Hayden, former head of both the NSA and CIA , told ... Trump Needs His 'Own Damn Bucket' to Waterboard: Ex-CIA Chief - NBCNews.com mikenova shared this story from cia - Google News. NBCNews.com Trump Needs His 'Own Damn Bucket' to Waterboard: Ex- CIA Chief NBCNews.com If Donald Trump is serious about wanting to waterboard terrorists, he'd better bring his own bucket... Dems Oppose Obamas OT Rules mikenova shared this story from Washington Free Beacon. Two Congressional Democrats joined the chorus of lawmakers opposed to the Obama administrations wide-ranging overtime regulations that could cut jobs. Rep. Brad Ashford (D., Neb.) ... US leaving CIA-trained militants at Russia's mercy: Ex-Obama aide - Press TV mikenova shared this story from cia - Google News. Press TV US leaving CIA -trained militants at Russia's mercy: Ex-Obama aide Press TV Separately, the CIA has also been running a similar program aimed at pressuring Assad to step down. T... Pentagon IG launches full investigation into Afghanistan child sex abuse mikenova shared this story from Stars and Stripes. The Pentagons Inspector General has launched an investigation into the response by American troops to allegations that Afghan military and police officials were involved in the sexual a... Obama: China knows it cannot sustain export-driven growth model - Reuters mikenova shared this story from Cyber Warfare - Google News. Reuters Obama: China knows it cannot sustain export-driven growth model Reuters Speaking to state governors at the White House, Obama urged them to press the U.S. Congress to a... The terrifying link between concussions and suicide mikenova shared this story from Stars and Stripes News. Suicide and brain injury have long been linked by scientists, but just how many people who have had a brain injury end up committing suicide? A new study has a grim answer: It found... A former CIA and NSA director says the US is a 'safer, more secure' nation without back doors - AppAdvice mikenova shared this story from cia - Google News. AppAdvice A former CIA and NSA director says the US is a 'safer, more secure' nation without back doors AppAdvice Retired Gen. Michael Hayden, former head of both the CIA and NSA, said i... For Moscow, Talks Are About Sowing Discord, not Solving Conflicts mikenova shared this story from Eurasia Daily Monitor - The Jamestown Foundation. A ceasefire in Syria, which appeared possible if not probable in early February, has again turned out to be unreachable. And in hindsight, it is rather obv... Handover of Oil Assets to Chechen Authorities: Start of Devolution of Power in Russia? mikenova shared this story from Eurasia Daily Monitor - The Jamestown Foundation. Chechnya is gearing up to establish control over its oil-extracting business. The procedure for handing over the Rosneft affiliate Chechenneftekhimprom to ... For Now, Italys Relations With Azerbaijan Do Not Upset Russia mikenova shared this story from Eurasia Daily Monitor - The Jamestown Foundation. The steady build-up of Italys long-term economic partnership with Azerbaijan is adding an important geopolitical dimension to Romes foreign policy. Sitti... FBI: Embezzled $20 million funded life of jets, mansions and gambling - Atlanta Journal Constitution mikenova shared this story from fbi - Google News. Atlanta Journal Constitution FBI : Embezzled $20 million funded life of jets, mansions and gambling Atlanta Journal Constitution Nathan E. Hardwick, 50, and Asha R. Maurya, 40, were char... Americans tortured by the UAE, a US ally mikenova shared this story from Stars and Stripes. Amid a maelstrom of sectarianism and extremism, the Arab democrats represent the Middle Easts best hope. But they are often ignored these days in Washington. US Commander: China Seeking Control of East Asia - ABC News mikenova shared this story from Cyber Warfare - Google News. ABC News US Commander: China Seeking Control of East Asia ABC News The commander of U.S. forces in the Pacific says China is seeking control of East Asia. Adm. Harry Harris, Jr... McConnell: Obamas Plan to Close Guantanamo Is Illegal mikenova shared this story from Washington Free Beacon. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R., Ky.) said that it is illegal for President Obama to transfer terrorists from Guantanamo Bay into the United States Tuesday. [Obamas] At... Dealing With The Devil mikenova shared this story from Intelligence Analysis and Reporting. Title: Dealing With The Devil Author: Donal OSullivan OSullivan, Donal (2010). Dealing With The Devil : Anglo-Soviet Intelligenc... OPM cyber chief resigns ahead of data breach hearing mikenova shared this story from www.washingtontimes.com stories: Security. Donna Seymour, the chief information officer for the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, announced her resignation on Monday, two days before she was scheduled t... Don't buy the hype: Russia's military is much weaker than Putin wants us to think mikenova shared this story from Vox - All. Today is Defenders of the Fatherland Day in Russia, a public holiday and a celebration of all things military: triumphalism about the latest weapons, about operations in Syria, about the seizure... Kerry says Syria truce may not lead... mikenova shared this story from Google News. Kerry says Syria truce may not lead to political solution Daily Mail - 29 minutes ago WASHINGTON (AP) Secretary of State John Kerry told Congress on Tuesday that he... Don't buy the hype: Russia's military is much weaker than Putin wants us to think - Vox mikenova shared this story from Cyber Warfare - Google News. Vox Don't buy the hype: Russia's military is much weaker than Putin wants us to think Vox Russian President Vladimir Putin (C) reacts after a wreath laying ceremony at the Tomb... FBI Director Comments on San Bernardino Matter mikenova shared this story from Current. Washington, D.C. Sanders once urged abolishing CIA - Politico mikenova shared this story from cia - Google News. Politico Sanders once urged abolishing CIA Politico The CIA is a dangerous institution that has got to go, Sanders told an audience in Vermont in October 1974. He described the agency ... Exclusive: Deputy CIA director: U.S. faces urgent challenges - WTOP mikenova shared this story from cia - Google News. WTOP Exclusive: Deputy CIA director: U.S. US faces urgent challenges WTOP In this file photo, David Cohen arrives to testify to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee when he was Treasur... Bernie Sanders Wanted to Abolish the CIA - Daily Beast mikenova shared this story from cia - Google News. Daily Beast Bernie Sanders Wanted to Abolish the CIA Daily Beast Forty years ago, a 29-year-old Bernie Sanders called for abolishing the CIA . He was at the time running for U.S. Senate ... Pentagon, CIA Chiefs Don't Think Russia Will Abide by Syria Cease-fire - Wall Street Journal mikenova shared this story from cia - Google News. Press TV Pentagon, CIA Chiefs Don't Think Russia Will Abide by Syria Cease-fire Wall Street Journal WASHINGTONPresident Barack Obama's top military and intelligence advisers don't belie... Obama Appears Not to Know the Name of Boston Marathon Bomber mikenova shared this story from Washington Free Beacon. President Obama botched the name of the Boston Marathon bomber on Tuesday while making a statement laying out his plan to close the military detention center at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba... Kerry says Syria truce may not lead to political solution mikenova shared this story from Stars and Stripes. Secretary of State John Kerry says he can't be sure the cease-fire agreement in Syria will work and lead to a political resolution in the war-ravaged country. Suspected explosion declared major incident at British power station mikenova shared this story from DEBKAFile. February 23, 2016, 7:45 PM (IDT) A major incident with casualties was declared as British police and emergency services rushed to the Didcot Power Station in southeast England Tues... Feds Can Fine Drone Users $27,500 For Failing to Register With Govt mikenova shared this story from Washington Free Beacon. Drone users can be fined nearly $30,000 for failing to register with the government, according to rules that can even apply to toy drones. Beginning Feb. 19, all owners of Unmanned ... Trial starts for dozens alleged Islamic State members in Turkey mikenova shared this story from Stars and Stripes. Dozens of people have gone on trial in Istanbul accused of being part of the Islamic State group's Turkish network. Kerry: Given Vulnerability of Our System, I Dont Allow State Department Staff to Use Private Servers mikenova shared this story from Washington Free Beacon. Secretary of State John Kerry acknowledged Tuesday on Capitol Hill that neither he nor his staff uses a private email server because of the vulnerability of our system in today&#... Israeli Defense Minister Says Russia, U.S. Recognize Israels Freedom to Act and to Defend Interests in Syria mikenova shared this story from Washington Free Beacon. JERUSALEMLess than a week after Israel was reported to have rocketed Syrian army outposts in the Damascus area despite the Russian presence as defender of the Syrian regime, Israel... We cannot trust our government, so we must trust the technology mikenova shared this story from US national security | The Guardian. Apples battle with the FBI is not about privacy v security, but a conflict created by the US failure to legitimately oversee its security service post Snowden The show... U.S. Scrambles to Contain Growing ISIS Threat in Libya mikenova shared this story from NYT > United States Defense and Military Forces. As U.S. intelligence agencies say the number of Islamic State fighters in Iraq and Syria has dropped, the groups ranks in Libya have roughly doubled. Russia Wants Closer Look From Above the U.S. mikenova shared this story from NYT > United States Defense and Military Forces. Russia has requested to upgrade the cameras it uses on sanctioned surveillance flights across the United States, which are part of a treaty. Review: In Playing to the Edge, Michael V. Hayden Discusses Bush-Era Intelligence mikenova shared this story from NYT > United States Defense and Military Forces. Mr. Hayden, a former director of the C.I.A., gives his opinions and settles some scores in his new book. Invitation to a Dialogue: Ways Iraq Could Break Up mikenova shared this story from NYT > Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS). A retired Marine colonel analyzes how a partition of Iraq could come about. Readers are invited to respond. U.S. and Russia Set Date for Cease-Fire in Syria to Begin mikenova shared this story from NYT > Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS). The cease-fire is to begin Saturday, but officials acknowledge that obstacles remain in getting the Syrian government and the armed opposition to comply. Italy: American Drones to Get Base, Official Says mikenova shared this story from NYT > Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS). Italy has agreed to allow American armed drones to take off from an air base in Sicily to fight Islamic State extremists in Libya. Relying Again on an Unreliable Mr. Putin mikenova shared this story from NYT > Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS). The Russian president, eager to restore glory to his nation, holds many of the cards in Syria but should not confuse that for respect for his power. Government in Syria and Some Rebel Groups Agree to Partial Cease-Fire mikenova shared this story from NYT > Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS). President Bashar al-Assad and the umbrella group of opposition and rebel groups in Syria announced they would accept a new cessation of hostilities. For Apple, the Moral High Ground Lacks Clearly Defined Boundaries mikenova shared this story from NYT > Federal Bureau of Investigation. Is the companys primary moral obligation to the help the government, protect its customers privacy or maximize profits for its shareholders? Apple Moves to Shift Battle Over Unlocking iPhone to Capitol Hill mikenova shared this story from NYT > Federal Bureau of Investigation. The company has proposed that federal prosecutors withdraw demands that it unlock an iPhone belonging to a gunman involved in the San Bernardino, Calif., shooting. Seeking iPhone Data, Through the Front Door mikenova shared this story from NYT > Federal Bureau of Investigation. Apple argues that helping the F.B.I. gain entry to an iPhone will put customers privacy at risk. But they are undermining those customers safety. In Poll on Apple, Public Sides with F.B.I. mikenova shared this story from NYT > Federal Bureau of Investigation. Apples challenge is still in court, but in the court of public opinion, 51 percent of respondents backed the F.B.I., as 38 percent sided with Apple. Common software would have let FBI unlock shooters iPhone mikenova shared this story from In Homeland Security. A county government The Justice Department paid for, but never installed, a feature that would have allowed the FBI to easily and immediately unlock the iPhone. FBI director makes personal, passionate plea on Apple San Bernardino controversy mikenova shared this story from In Homeland Security. FBI Director James Comey has weighed in on the controversy over whether Apple should help unlock an iPhone used by one of the San Bernardino terrorists. Uber driver suspected in shootings in Mich. that kill six mikenova shared this story from In Homeland Security. The man accused of killing six people in a Michigan shooting spree is an Uber driver who reportedly picked up passengers before and after the murders. Snowden: Would return to US with guarantee of fair trial mikenova shared this story from In Homeland Security. Edward Snowden told an audience of supporters that he is willing to be extradited to the U.S. if the federal government would guarantee him a fair trial. How a tiny mosquito became one of the worlds most efficient killers mikenova shared this story from In Homeland Security. It has used a tiny, needle-like probe to wipe out entire cities over the centuries - and it's arguably the most relentless killer on Earth. Bill Gates says giving FBI access to iPhone info no special thing mikenova shared this story from In Homeland Security. Bill Gates on Apple and the FBI: "They're [Apple] just refusing to provide the access you shouldn't call the access some special thing." IDF Chief Viewed as Voice of Moderation Amid Political Extremism mikenova shared this story from Defense News - Home. Lt. Gen. Gadi Eisenkot, the Israel Defense Forces chief of staff, is becoming known here as a voice of moderation. US Dominates Arms Trade as Asia, Mid-East Boost Imports mikenova shared this story from Defense News - Home. The US has increased its dominance in arms sales due in part to big exports to Asia and the Gulf. DIAs Beyond the Beltway: U.S. Southern Command mikenova shared this story from Defense Intelligence Agency News. In this Beyondthe Beltway episode, DIA takes a behind-the-scenes look at U.S. SouthernCommand Second Palestinian shooting incident near Beit El mikenova shared this story from DEBKAFile. February 22, 2016, 8:17 AM (IDT) An IDF post at the entrance to Beit El near Ramallah came under fire from a Palestinian vehicle Sunday night. The troops fired back, striking the car before it r... More than 140 killled by ISIS bomb blasts in Homs, Damascus mikenova shared this story from DEBKAFile. February 21, 2016, 10:21 PM (IDT) The death toll rose to 57 with more than 100 injured from the two car bombs that exploded Sunday morning in the center of the city of Homs in central Syria - th... DEBKAfile: Scaled down US-Israel air defense exercise takes off mikenova shared this story from DEBKAFile. February 22, 2016, 9:04 AM (IDT) The US and Israel Monday launched their biannual Juniper Cobra 16 air defense exercise, which is designed to improve their cooperation and test Israels ai... Shoigu in Tehran to rescue Putins plan from Assads Iranian-backed obstructionism mikenova shared this story from DEBKAFile. February 22, 2016, 12:26 PM (IDT) President Putin this week sent Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu to Tehran to unsnarl his blueprint for a solution of the Syrian crisis from the blockage placed in... Obama and Putin in phone call on Syrian ceasefire mikenova shared this story from DEBKAFile. February 23, 2016, 7:35 AM (IDT) Presidents Barack Obama and Vladimir Putin talked on the phone Monday to clinch Saturday Feb. 27 as the date for another attempt to enforce a ceasefire in Syria.... Syrian regime accepts partial ceasefire mikenova shared this story from DEBKAFile. February 23, 2016, 12:04 PM (IDT) The Syrian government announced in a statement Tuesday that it accepts the ceasefire deal on the basis that military efforts continue against the Islamic... Abu Mazen rebuffs Kerrys appeal to cool Palestinian terror against Israelis mikenova shared this story from DEBKAFile. February 23, 2016, 1:40 PM (IDT) US Secretary of State John Kerry came away empty-handed from his latest meeting with Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmud Abbas (Abu Mazen) in Amman on Sunday, ... The Early Edition: February 23, 2016 mikenova shared this story from Just Security. Zoe Chapman Before the start of business, Just Security provides a curated summary of up-to-the-minute developments at home and abroad. Heres todays news. IRAQ & SYRIA Cessation of h... 'Provisional' Syria ceasefire plan called into question as bombs kill ... mikenova shared this story from world news - Google Blog Search. We have reached a provisional agreement in principle on the terms of a cessation of hostilities that could begin in the coming days, Kerry told a news conference in Amman... UK Tourist Stabbed In Head By San Francisco Mugger mikenova shared this story from World News - Breaking international news and headlines | Sky News. The British man is in a life-threatening condition after being stabbed in the head during an unprovoked attack by two muggers. Russia Plans To Fly High-Tech Spy Jets Over US mikenova shared this story from World News - Breaking international news and headlines | Sky News. Washington fears Moscow is trying to exploit a surveillance treaty to gather vital intelligence on the United States. The Latest: Turkey: Ground troops in Syria 'not on agenda' - Washington Post mikenova shared this story from World - Google News. Sydney Morning Herald The Latest: Turkey: Ground troops in Syria 'not on agenda' Washington Post BEIRUT The Latest on the civil war in Syria (all times local): 3:05 p.m.. The Turkish... Woman In Coma 'After Craiglist Roommate Attack' mikenova shared this story from World News - Breaking international news and headlines | Sky News. Danielle Jones was allegedly beaten, strangled and cut with a knife during an attack on Valentine's Day. Labrador retrievers hit their 25th year as top US dog breed - seattlepi.com mikenova shared this story from Top Stories - Google News. seattlepi.com Labrador retrievers hit their 25th year as top US dog breed seattlepi.com FILE- In this Oct. 8, 2011 file photo, a Labrador Retriever emerges from he water with a t... Iranian media outlets add to bounty for killing Britain's Rushdie - Reuters mikenova shared this story from World - Google News. Reuters Iranian media outlets add to bounty for killing Britain's Rushdie Reuters ANKARA Iranian state-run media outlets have added $600,000 to a bounty for the killing of British auth... Peter Mondavi, Napa Valley wine pioneer, has died at 101 - seattlepi.com mikenova shared this story from Top Stories - Google News. seattlepi.com Peter Mondavi, Napa Valley wine pioneer, has died at 101 seattlepi.com A winery board member says Peter Mondavi, seen here in 1982, a wine country innovator who led... Kerry Hails Deal With Russia for Syria Ceasefire mikenova shared this story from World TIME. The U.S., The United States, Russia, and other countries have reached an agreement for a cease-fire ceasefire in Syria , U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said Monday. The announcement follo... US spokesman: Syrian ceasefire won't apply to Isis and al-Nusra Front video mikenova shared this story from World news + Video | The Guardian. The US State Department says President Barack Obama has discussed terms for a ceasefire in Syria with Vladimir Putin. Spokesman Josh Earnest says that the truce would not... Russian Opposition Leaders Targeted Year After Nemtsov's Assassination mikenova shared this story from VOAvideo's YouTube Videos. From: VOAvideo Duration: 02:43 Critics of Russian President Vladimir Putin will soon be marking one year since the assassination of opposition leader Boris Nemtsov, who was s... Iran's Hard-Line Press Adds to Bounty on Salman Rushdie - New York Times mikenova shared this story from World - Google News. New York Times Iran's Hard-Line Press Adds to Bounty on Salman Rushdie New York Times TEHRAN A group of hard-line Iranian news media organizations says it has raised $600,000 to add ... Cruz Now Wants ICE Agents To Round Up And Deport All 12 Million Illegals [VIDEO] - Daily Caller mikenova shared this story from Top Stories - Google News. Dallas Morning News Cruz Now Wants ICE Agents To Round Up And Deport All 12 Million Illegals [VIDEO] Daily Caller MANCHESTER, NH - FEBRUARY 08: Republican presidential candidate ... Google is shuttering Google Compare - WSJ - Reuters mikenova shared this story from Top Stories - Google News. Reuters Google is shuttering Google Compare - WSJ Reuters Google is shuttering Google Compare, its U.S. comparison-shopping site for auto insurance, credit cards and mortgages af... Iranian Hardliners Raise Bounty on Salman Rushdie to Almost $4 Million mikenova shared this story from World TIME. A group of hard-line Iranian news organizations have raised over half a million dollars to add to a bounty calling for the killing of British novelist Salman Rushdie. Irans supreme lea... Ben Carson: Obama 'Raised White,' Doesn't Understand Black Americans - NBCNews.com mikenova shared this story from Top Stories - Google News. NBCNews.com Ben Carson: Obama 'Raised White,' Doesn't Understand Black Americans NBCNews.com Dr. Ben Carson said Tuesday that President that Barack Obama was "raised white" and c... Report Blames Chechen Leader Over Killing of Kremlin Critic - New York Times mikenova shared this story from World - Google News. ABC News Report Blames Chechen Leader Over Killing of Kremlin Critic New York Times MOSCOW A Russian opposition activist bluntly accused Chechnya's Moscow-backed regional leader of i... Hitler's Mein Kampf is now a best-seller in Germany mikenova shared this story from World. Historians had previously warned that the book was "too dangerous for the general public." US chocolate maker Mars recalls candy bars in 55 countries after finding plastic in product mikenova shared this story from World. US chocolate maker Mars recalls candy bars in 55 countries after finding plastic in product . Mars Recalls Candy Bars in 55 Countries mikenova shared this story from World TIME. (BERLIN) U.S. chocolate maker Mars says its recalling candy bars and other items in 55 countries after plastic was found in one of its products. Roel Govers, spokesman for Mars... European court: Romania must pay victims of 1989 revolution mikenova shared this story from World. The European Court of Human Rights has ordered Romania to pay compensation to 17 Romanians whose relatives were shot dead during the 1989 anti-communist revolt. The Shops That Turned the Calais Jungle Into a City mikenova shared this story from World TIME. There are bars, restaurants, and nightclubs. There are Mosques, markets and hairdressers. In the so-called Jungle of Calais, Francethe camp where nearly 3,000 refugees and migrants fro... Italy summons U.S. ambassador after reports U.S. spied on Berlusconi mikenova shared this story from Reuters: World News. ROME (Reuters) - Italy's foreign ministry on Tuesday summoned the U.S. ambassador after media reports that American intelligence services tapped the telephones of former prime minister... Afghan, Taliban Peace Talks Expected By 1st Week Of March mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. A four-nation group says direct peace talks between the Taliban and negotiators from Kabul are expected to begin in Islamabad by the first week of March. Snow Plows Disrupt Business Owners' Protest In Minsk mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. As owners of small businesses demonstrated against new government regulations in the Belarusian capital, a fleet of snow plows drove up close by, setting off scuffles wit... Ingushetia Commemorates Deportation Victims, Chechnya Does Not mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. Residents of Ingushetia are remembering the victims of the Soviet Union's 1944 deportation of Chechens and Ingush from the North Caucasus. Ukraine's "Project Wall" Digs In As Front Line Defense Against Russia mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. Ukraine is attempting to build a barrier along the whole of its 2,000 kilometer land border with Russia, to thwart any potential attack. "Project Wall" is ambitious and, ... Macedonia Bars Afghan Asylum Seekers, Stoking Violent Clashes mikenova shared this story from NYT > World. An Afghan man pushing against the border fence during a demonstration on Monday near the Greek village of Idomeni, against Macedonias refusal to allow Afghans to pass the border. The Latest: UN: New Balkan border changes pressure Greece mikenova shared this story from AP Top News at 11:05 a.m. EST. CALAIS, France (AP) -- The Latest on the migrant influx into Europe (all times local):... Man pulls shark from Florida waters for photographs mikenova shared this story from World news. Shark is the latest sea creature dragged on to beach for pictures - days after baby dolphin dies in similar circumstances British tourist 'fighting for life' after stab attack in San Francisco mikenova shared this story from World news. British national stabbed in the head as he struggled to keep attackers from taking his bag Hitler 'had tiny deformed penis' as well as just one testicle, historians claim mikenova shared this story from World news. Hitler suffered from a condition called hypospadias which left him with an abnormally small manhood, according to historians Jonathan Mayo and Emma Craigie Chill out in the world's coldest city, Yakutsk in Russia's Siberia region, in pictures mikenova shared this story from World news. The remote city in Siberia where winter temperatures hover around -40F (-40C) Syria war: US and Russia agree new truce 'to start at weekend' mikenova shared this story from World news. United States and Russia agree on new ceasefire in Syria starting Saturday that would exclude attacks on Isil and al-Qaeda's local affiliate US ambassador to South Africa: 'If I tried to organise a coup it would look like Mardi Gras' mikenova shared this story from World news. Envoy hits back "with sarcasm" at suggests by ANC chief that his diplomats were acting "irregularly" and plotting "regime change" Hollywood facing 'inclusion crisis', new report says mikenova shared this story from World news. Study follows race diversity row over the Oscars and declares "Hollywood is so white" Uber driver accused of murderous rampage in Kalamazoo appears in court mikenova shared this story from World news. Jason Dalton allegedly picked up passengers before killing six people in three separate incidents, with one victim's mother saying "my heart is shattered" Brazil plans to zap mosquitoes with radiation to halt spread of Zika virus mikenova shared this story from World news. Authorities want to release sterilised males so that females lay inviable eggs, eradicating the Aedes mosquito that carries the virus blamed for surge in babies born with microcephaly Passengers describe riding with 'Uber gunman' during shooting spree in US mikenova shared this story from World news. Customers claim Jason Dalton picked them up before he was arrested over the murders of six people in Kalamazoo 'At least one dead' and ten injured after train 'crashes into crane' in the Netherlands mikenova shared this story from World news. Passenger train derails after hitting crane in the Dutch town of Dalfsen EU referendum: Business advisers to David Cameron and major UK companies decline to sign pro-EU letter - live mikenova shared this story from World news. Letter backing EU membership circulated by Downing Street not expected to be signed by string of leading FTSE 100 companies as Tories descend into war over Brexit fears - latest updates Chinese Move Money Abroad as Economy Slows mikenova shared this story from Voice of America. The Chinese have been moving money abroad at record levels as Chinas economy continues to slow, boosting real estate prices around the world while raising concerns. In places like New Y... Russia Wants to Fly Over US with Advanced Digital Camera mikenova shared this story from Voice of America. Russia will ask permission on Monday to start flying surveillance planes equipped with high-powered digital cameras amid warnings from U.S. intelligence and military officials that such o... Turkey's Pro-Kurdish Party Accuses Security Forces of Massacre mikenova shared this story from Voice of America. Turkey's main pro-Kurdish party is calling for an investigation into what it says was a massacre of dozens of people by Turkish forces during recent security operations against the Kurdis... A Year After Nemtsov's Assassination, New Threats Emerge mikenova shared this story from Voice of America. A memorial procession on Saturday for murdered Russian opposition leader, Boris Nemtsov, will trace the same route as his last march - a 2014 protest against Russia's hybrid war in Ukrain... Tensions, Violence Rise in Ukraine mikenova shared this story from Voice of America. Violence in eastern Ukraine is on the rise again after relative calm during the winter. Recent reports from the contested Donbas region say the death tolls since mid-February are similar ... Protesters Set to Back Apple in FBI Fight mikenova shared this story from Voice of America. Supporters of Apple in its objections to helping the FBI break into an iPhone used by a mass shooter are planning demonstrations protests in more than 40 cities Tuesday, including at the ... Syria Agrees to US-Russia Cease-fire Plan mikenova shared this story from Voice of America. Syria said Tuesday it accepts a cease-fire plan proposed by the United States and Russia that would begin Saturday. A government statement said the military will continue its operations a... Bill Gates Sides Against Apple in FBI iPhone-unlocking Case mikenova shared this story from Voice of America. Bill Gates is siding against Apple and many other technology companies in saying the firm should help the U.S. government to hack into a locked iPhone as part of an investigation into... Kerry Going Before Senate Foreign Relations Committee mikenova shared this story from Voice of America. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry is expected to face questions Tuesday about a Syrian cease-fire plan as he appears before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Monday the U.S. and Ru... Terms of Syria Cease-fire Agreement mikenova shared this story from Voice of America. A U.S.-Russia cease-fire plan for Syria is scheduled to take effect at midnight (local time) Friday in Syria. The Syrian government accepted the plan Tuesday. Opposition groups have until... Report Blames Chechen Leader Over Killing of Kremlin Critic mikenova shared this story from Voice of America. A Russian opposition activist released a report Tuesday accusing Chechnya's Moscow-backed regional leader of involvement in the killing of a prominent Kremlin foe. Ilya Yashin said he h... Rousseff campaign chief Santana surrenders to Brazilian police mikenova shared this story from Reuters: World News. RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) - Joao Santana, the architect of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff's 2010 and 2014 campaigns, returned to Brazil and police are taking him to the city of Curi... Putin ally is threat to Russian national security, says Kremlin critic mikenova shared this story from Reuters: World News. MOSCOW (Reuters) - The hardline leader appointed by President Vladimir Putin to maintain order in the turbulent Chechen region has created his own caliphate that may one day unleash an... Islamic State tightens grip on Syrian government road to Aleppo mikenova shared this story from Reuters: World News. BEIRUT (Reuters) - Islamic State fighters were reported to have tightened their grip on a Syrian government supply route to Aleppo on Tuesday as the army battled to retake the road, wh... EU fears new migrant crisis in Balkans mikenova shared this story from BBC News - World. The EU says it is making plans for a possible humanitarian crisis as new border controls halt migrants moving through the Balkans. Government in Syria and Main Opposition Agree to Partial and Conditional Truce mikenova shared this story from NYT > World. President Bashar al-Assads and the umbrella group of opposition and rebel groups in Syria announced they would accept a new cessation of hostilities. Letter From Europe: Russia and Germany Cling to Fragile Business Ties mikenova shared this story from NYT > World. Prime Minister Dmitri A. Medvedev of Russia during an interview on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference this month. Azerbaijani President To Visit Iran mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev will make an official visit to Iran on February 23. France, Germany Urge Ukraine To Push Forward On Reforms mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. The German and French foreign ministers have praised Ukraine for its reforms thus far but is urging Kyiv Ukraine to push for greater progress in battling corruption. Firebomb Attacks Target Russian Banks In Ukraine mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. In Ukraines western city of Lviv, an office of the Russian Sberbank was torched late on February 21 shortly after would-be arsonists failed to set ablaze another Sberban... Saudis Start Spy Trial Against 32 Shi'ites, Including Iranian and Afghan mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. Saudi Arabia has put 32 people on trial, including 30 members of its own Shi'ite Muslim minority, on charges of spying for Iran. Kazakh Authorities Detain Head Of Journalists Union And His Son mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. The chairman of Kazakhstan's Journalists Union and head of the National Press Club in Almaty has been detained, together with his son, on charges of embezzlement and tax ... Briefing: Exposing Kadyrov mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. What will we learn about Ramzan Kadyrov this week? The Daily Vertical: Ukraine Deserves Better (Transcript) mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. The Daily Vertical is a video primer for Russia-watchers that appears Monday through Friday. Russia & Me: Viktor Yushchenko mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. Former Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko says his country hasn't had a day of peace in 350 years. But he says "truth and God" are on Ukraine's side. He sat down for a... Syrian Opposition Meets In Riyadh As U.S., Russia Reach 'Provisional' Deal mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. Syrias main opposition umbrella group was meeting in the Saudi capital on February 22 as Washington and Russia continued diplomatic efforts aimed at brokering a cease-fi... Russia & Me: Arnold Ruutel mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. Former Estonian President Arnold Ruutel oversaw his country's entry into NATO and the EU. For now, he says, Baltic security is "guaranteed." He made the statement in an i... Tajiks Detained After 'Liking' Islamic State Video mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. Fourteen residents of Tajikistan's Yovon district have been detained for questioning after they clicked a "like" button on an Islamic extremist video that had been posted... Chechen Leader Does U-Turn Over 'Spiritual-Moral Passports' mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. Chechen Republic head Ramzan Kadyrov has formally denied that all young males in Chechnya will be required to obtain a "spiritual-moral passport" registering details of t... Russia Reportedly Plans To Ask For Spy-Plane Flights Over U.S. mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. Russia is planning to ask permission on February 22 to start flying surveillance planes equipped with high-powered digital cameras over the United States, the Associated ... Russian Bank Attacked In Kyiv mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. Right-wing Ukrainian nationalists attacked a branch of privately-held Alfa-Bank in Kyiv on February 20. It was just one of a series of attacks on Russian banks in the cap... UN Inquiry: War Crimes 'Rampant' In Syria mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. A UN commission of inquiry says war crimes in Syria are "rampant," and government forces and the Islamic State extremist group continue to commit crimes against humanity. German, French Foreign Ministers In Ukraine mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. The foreign ministers of Germany and France have arrived in Kyiv for a visit aimed at reaffirming EU support for Ukraines leadership. Iranian Appeals Court Gives Filmmaker Year Sentence, Lashes mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. An Iranian filmmaker says an appeals court had sentenced him to a year in prison, reducing his initial sentence of six years for "insulting sanctities" and "spreading pro... Pentagon To Submit Plan To Close Guantanamo Bay Prison mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. The Pentagon is preparing to submit to Congress a long-awaited report on closing the U.S. prison in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Cuba, on February 23. Chongqing Journal: China Maintains Respect, and a Museum, for a U.S. General mikenova shared this story from NYT > World. A bust of Gen. Joseph W. Stilwell of the United States Army outside the Stilwell Museum in Chongqing, China. William J. Perry, who was then the secretary of defense, came for the opening of... Taxi driver held over Kalamazoo deaths mikenova shared this story from BBC News - World. A taxi driver is being held over the deaths of six people in an apparently random shooting spree in the Michigan city of Kalamazoo. Kalamazoo killings baffle US police mikenova shared this story from BBC News - World. Authorities in the US state of Michigan search for a motive after a taxi driver went on a random shooting spree on Saturday, killing six people. 'Two dead' as Dutch train derails mikenova shared this story from BBC News - World. A passenger train derails near the Dutch town of Dalfsen, reports of two dead German recall of Mars and Snickers bars mikenova shared this story from BBC News - World. Chocolate maker Mars recalls Mars and Snickers bars in Germany after bits of plastic are found in a product Libyan Islamist militias in 'key losses' mikenova shared this story from BBC News - World. Islamist militias in Libya lose two major areas in the eastern city of Benghazi, including the port, military sources and residents tell the BBC. VIDEO: Dutch train crash: Aerial view mikenova shared this story from BBC News - World. A train driver was killed when his train hit a crane on a level crossing near the Dutch town of Dalfsen. Obama in bid to close Guantanamo prison mikenova shared this story from BBC News - World. Plan to close Guantanamo Bay prison and move some detainees to US submitted by President Obama to Congress. AP Poll: Social Security, joblessness top economic concerns mikenova shared this story from AP Top News at 9:40 a.m. EST. WASHINGTON (AP) -- Finally, something that polarized Americans can agree on.... Artist Replicates Sistine Chapel---15 Years and Counting mikenova shared this story from WSJ.com: World News. For 15 years, Miguel Macias has tried to replicate on the ceiling of his local church what the Italian master did in four at the Sistine Chapel. Police Arrest Militants Over Bangladesh Beheading mikenova shared this story from WSJ.com: World News. Police arrested three people they described as local militants over the beheading of a Hindu priest in northern Bangladesh. Lech Walesa Documents Released By Poland's State Archive mikenova shared this story from WSJ.com: World News. Polands state archives released documents it says show Lech Walesa had been a paid informant of communist-era secret police in the 1970s, before leading the Solidarity movement that h... Ukraine Fighters Bridle at Idleness mikenova shared this story from WSJ.com: World News. President Petro Poroshenko sees the best path for Kiev to regain control of its borders from Russia-backed separatist is to stick to the terms of the Minsk peace deal, a passive stance... U.S., Russia Agree to Implement Syria Cease-Fire mikenova shared this story from WSJ.com: World News. The Obama administration and Russia agreed to implement a cease-fire in Syria beginning Saturday, in whats hoped to be a crucial step in ending the countrys five-year civil war. Syrian Government Accepts U.S.-Russia Cease-Fire Deal mikenova shared this story from WSJ.com: World News. The regime of President Bashar al-Assad says Islamic State, the al Qaeda-linked Nusra Front and other terrorist groups connected to them will be exempted from the truce and will be t... Russian Opposition Leader Calls on Chechnya's Kadyrov to Step Down mikenova shared this story from WSJ.com: World News. One of Russias most prominent opposition leaders has called for the resignation of Ramzan Kadyrov, the Chechen strongman who is a staunch loyalist of Russian President Vladimir Putin,... Pentagon, CIA Chiefs Skeptical of Syria Cease-Fire mikenova shared this story from WSJ.com: World News. U.S. military and intelligence advisers dont believe Russia will abide by a cease-fire in Syria and want the Obama administration to ready plans to increase pressure on Moscow. Child sex abuse victims to hear cardinals testimony in Rome mikenova shared this story from World. Victims of clergy abuse have won permission to be present next week when Pope Franciss finance minister testifies from Rome to an Australian inquiry into child sex offenses within the Roman Catholi... Concerns in Saudi Arabia over signs of more military involvement in Syria mikenova shared this story from World. Saudis are already feeling the sting from war in Yemen and worsening economic problems at home. Across Europe, gay migrants face abuse in asylum shelters mikenova shared this story from World. Alaa Ammar fled Syria to escape not just civil war but also the threat of persecution as a gay man. Yet when he arrived in The Netherlands last spring, he did not find the safe haven he craved. Polish state archive releases secret file on ex-president mikenova shared this story from World. A Polish state archive has released documents which allegedly show that democracy leader and former president Lech Walesa collaborated with the communist secret police in the 1970s, before he took l... Saudi Arabia to put 32 on trial for spying for Iran mikenova shared this story from World. Saudi-owned media report that 32 people have been accused of spying for the kingdoms regional rival Iran and now face trial. The Latest: Turkey: Ground troops in Syria not on agenda mikenova shared this story from World. The Latest on the civil war in Syria (all times local): France, Germany push Ukraine to implement reforms mikenova shared this story from World. Germany and France are pushing for Ukraine to move ahead with reforms needed in order to implement the year-old Minsk peace agreement. World arms sales up 14 percent in past 5 years, led by US mikenova shared this story from World. A Swedish think-tank says global arms exports increased 14 percent during the five years to 2015, with the U.S. retaining top position after its sales grew 27 percent from the previous five-year per... UKs Cameron: June vote on EU membership is final decision with no 2nd referendum possible mikenova shared this story from World. UKs Cameron: June vote on EU membership is final decision with no 2nd referendum possible. UN on Syria: Major powers feeding military escalation mikenova shared this story from World. War crimes are rampant in Syria, and the conflict has become a multisided proxy war steered from abroad by an intricate network of alliances, U.N. investigators said in a new report Monday. Trump's outrageous 'pig blood' comments are a reminder of an often forgotten history mikenova shared this story from World. U.S. troops occupied the Philippines for nearly half a century. Paul Goble Staunton, February 23 In one of the longest, most closely researched and heavily footnoted studied published to date, Rais Suleymanov says that ethnic Russian Muslims have become a significant factor in the Islamic community of Russia and a major source of terrorist activists in part because they can more easily pass unnoticed in Russian cities. In a 13,500-word article, the Kazan specialist at Russian Institute of National Strategy, says that the growh in the number of ethnic Russian Muslims reflects the effectiveness of Islamic propaganda in Russian, Islams attractiveness as a protest religion, intermarriage, and the weakness of Russians knowledge of their national faith and of the missionary work of the Russian Orthodox Church ( In a 13,500-word article, the Kazan specialist at Russian Institute of National Strategy, says that the growh in the number of ethnic Russian Muslims reflects the effectiveness of Islamic propaganda in Russian, Islams attractiveness as a protest religion, intermarriage, and the weakness of Russians knowledge of their national faith and of the missionary work of the Russian Orthodox Church ( kavkazgeoclub.ru/content/russkie-musulmane-obzor-fenomena ). Suleymanov who many Muslims believe is anti-Islamic may be overstating the problem because he considers ethnic Russian Muslims not only those who are in fact ethnic Russians who have converted to Islam but also representatives of those peoples who do not traditionally follow Islam but who use the Russian language as a means of communication with believers. Nonetheless and despite that limitation, his article provides extraordinary detail on dozens of specific cases of ethnic Russians who have converted, who have risen to the position of imam or mufti, and who have taken part in terrorist actions both within the Russian Federation and abroad. Suleymanov suggests that such people never become finally part of the community of ethnic Muslims even though for Russian society [they] cease to be Russians. And he documents hhis suggestion that the several thousand actively believing ethnic Russian Muslims have in percentage terms have produced many more terrorists than the five million Tatars who traditionally profess Islam. In his review, the Kazan-based scholar suggests there are four basic groups of ethnic Russian Muslims: those who accept Islam because of their own spiritual searches and who often were deeply involved with other faiths including Orthodoxy earlier, those who join because of marriage, those who do so for pragmatic reasons, and those who were POWs in Afghanistan or now Syria. Suleymanov says there are only a few dozen of the last group. According to Suleymanov, ethnic Russian Muslims quite quickly have come to occupy strong positions within the umma of Russia because of their involvement with Wahhabi jamaats. They are accepted because most Muslims see conversion to Islam as evidence of the truth and strength of their faith. One consequence of this and of the fact that Islam does not focus on ethnicity is that ethnic Russian Muslims become part of the umma as a whole rather than forming any separate Russian diaspora inside it, but because they lack an Islamic tradition, they are an easy catch for radical ideological groups, Suleymanov says. The main reason for the success of Islamic proselytism among particular representatives ofhte Russian people is that the majority of ethnic Russians up to now are cut off from their spiritual roots and in fact are not acquainted with the religion of their Orthodox Christian ancestors, he says. And Suleymanov concludes with what must be the most disturbing aspect of this trend: The frequency of the participation of ethnic Russians in the ranks of terrorist bands and also the geopolitical situation in which Russia is conducting military actions against ISIS in Syria means that such Russian converts are going to be even more inclined to radicalism because they will be shunned by other Russians. A second article this week, this one by Vladislav Maltsev, a Moscow journalist who writes frequently on religion in general and Islam in particular, adds to this portrait of ethnic Russian Muslims by reporting on one part of this trend: the tendency of some radical Russian nationalists to adopt Islam ( lenta.ru/articles/2016/02/22/nazi_islam/ ). When the Supreme Court last week confirmed the sentence against Ilya Goryachev, the leader of the Militant Organizaiton of Russian Nationalists (BORN), many assumed that this group was finished. But in fact, many of its figures have remained in the shadows; and not a few of them have become Russians. How could it be that those who profess national socialism could end by linking up with Wahhabism, Maltsev asks rhetorically. His answer is that both groups share a commitment to radicalism and the use of force and that it was only a matter of time that they would come together even if the former had very publicly persecuted the latter in the past. Many Russian national socialists, he continues, view Islam as a religion of the strong and one that is prepared to act on its beliefs as in the Caucasus Emirate. One expert Maltsev cites says that Jihad in the Caucasus is a conjunction of Islam and hatred to Russia and the regime. Slavs go to Chechny because they can prepare for real military actions elsewhere. Nine out of ten of them accept Islam there, he says, for it is a super-strong religion. Roman Silantyev, a controversial specialist on Islam in Russia, agrees. He told Maltsev that people with protest or criminal attitudes really form a significant percent of those who convert no tonly to Islam in general but also to Islamic sects like Wahhabism. As a result, ethnic Russian Muslims represent a greater terrorist threat than other Muslims. Window on Eurasia -- New Series: Despite His Offensive Moves, Putin is Now Playing Defense in Europe, Oreshkin Says Spy mania 2.0: the rise in 'crimes against the state' in Russia | World news | The Guardian __________________________________________________ Russian and Syrian warplanes and artillery pounded Islamic State positions near Aleppo on Wednesday, a group monitoring the conflict said, trying to regain access to a strategic road whose fall to the militant group set back their allied military effort days before a truce is to take effect. Donald Trump's dominating victory in the Nevada caucuses pushes him further out ahead of his nearest competitors for the Republican presidential nomination, giving his unorthodox candidacy a major boost heading into Super Tuesday contests next week. Donald Trump won New Hampshire, a moderate Northeastern state that prides itself on its sober analysis of the candidates at hand. Donald Trump won South Carolina, a conservative Southern state with a number of religious voters. Donald Trump has now won Nevada, a Western state with its own eclectic mix of Republican voting groups. BEIRUT (AP) The Syrian president on Wednesday assured Russia's Vladimir Putin of Damascus' commitment to a Russia-U.S. proposed truce, even as a spokesman for a Saudi-backed alliance of Syrian opposition and rebel factions expressed "major concerns" about the ceasefire, due to begin later this week. mikenova shared this story from RSS. .. ( ) .. , ( ). Syrian, Russian warplanes pound Islamic State with eye on key road mikenova shared this story from Stars and Stripes News. Russian and Syrian warplanes and artillery pounded Islamic State positions near Aleppo on Wednesday, a group monitoring the conflict said, trying to regain access to a strategic roa... Trump's decisive Nevada win pushes him nearer to nomination mikenova shared this story from Stars and Stripes News. Donald Trump's dominating victory in the Nevada caucuses pushes him further out ahead of his nearest competitors for the Republican presidential nomination, giving his unorthodox ca... How Donald Trump dominated Nevada, in one word: Anger mikenova shared this story from Stars and Stripes News. Donald Trump won New Hampshire, a moderate Northeastern state that prides itself on its sober analysis of the candidates at hand. Donald Trump won South Carolina, a conservative Sou... Syrias Assad assures Putin in phone call on truce details mikenova shared this story from In Homeland Security. Syria's President Assad on Wednesday assured Russia's Vladimir Putin of Damascus' commitment to a Russia-U.S. proposed truce. Syria's Bashar Assad assures Vladimir Putin in phone call on truce details mikenova shared this story from www.washingtontimes.com stories: Security. BEIRUT (AP) The Syrian president on Wednesday assured Russia's Vladimir Putin of Damascus' commitment to a Russia-U.S. proposed truce, even as a spokesman... D.C. looks to communist Cuba for lessons to improve literacy mikenova shared this story from www.washingtontimes.com stories: Security. The D.C. Public Schools System is looking to Cuba for lessons to improve literacy in the nation's capital. D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser and Schools Chancellor Kaya He... Playing to the Edge: American Intelligence in the Age of Terror mikenova shared this story from United States Defense and Military Forces - News - Times Topics - The New York Times. Playing to the Edge: American Intelligence in the Age of Terror (Book) , This post has been generated by Page2RSS Obama Courts Chaos With His Taliban Fantasy mikenova shared this story from ThereAreNoSunglasses. Obama at Bagram Obama Courts Chaos With His Taliban Fantasy Mr. Haqqani, the director for South and Central Asia at the Hudson Institute in Washington, D.C., was Pakistans ambassador... ON POINT: Russo-Ukraine War Two Years On mikenova shared this story from StrategyPage.com. None Israel says Iran building terror network in Europe, US mikenova shared this story from Stars and Stripes. Israel's defense minister is accusing Iran of building an international terror network that includes "sleeper cells" that are stockpiling arms, intelligence and operatives to be ready to... The Early Edition: February 24, 2016 mikenova shared this story from Just Security. Zoe Chapman Before the start of business, Just Security provides a curated summary of up-to-the-minute developments at home and abroad. Heres todays news. IRAQ & SYRIA Cessation of h... Are Russian engineers working at an ISIS-controlled gas facility? mikenova shared this story from intelNews.org. Syrian and American media are reporting that Russian engineers, employed by a Moscow-based contractor with close ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin, are working at a Syrian gas plant u... Most Americans Support FBI Over Apple, Finds Pew | TechCrunch mikenova shared this story from fbi - Google Blog Search. Pew Research Center has released a study on the dispute between the FBI and Apple. 51 percent of Americans think Apple should assist the FBI and unlock the.. Apple Fans Don't Actually Care About the Whole FBI iPhone Thing mikenova shared this story from fbi - Google Blog Search. Apple is waging a vicious war in the court of public opinion against the FBI and its court order mandating Apple to hack an iPhone. It's a big deal, but despite the hand-wringing ... Russias Cost-Benefit Interest in Syria mikenova shared this story from Eurasia Daily Monitor - The Jamestown Foundation. As Washington and Moscow join efforts to initiate a ceasefire in war-torn Syria, there is growing evidence that Russian policymakers believe the cost-benef... Surkov and Gryzlov: Russias New Negotiators on Ukraine (Part Two) mikenova shared this story from Eurasia Daily Monitor - The Jamestown Foundation. *To read Part One, please click here. Russias new representative in the Minsk Contact Group on the implementation of the peace plan in the East of Ukrain... Russia seeks to carry out surveillance flights over US mikenova shared this story from DEBKAFile. February 24, 2016, 9:09 AM (IDT) Russia announced on Tuesday that it will request to carry out flights above US territory using intelligence collection planes fitted with highly advanced digital... Justice Sonia Sotomayor - Above the Law mikenova shared this story from Top Stories - Google News. CNN Justice Sonia Sotomayor Above the Law ... * On the first day of oral arguments since Justice Scalia passed, it looks like Justice Sotomayor is stepping up to take up the snar... Analysts: Assads Ba'athists Would Win Electoral Landslide mikenova shared this story from Voice of America. Syrian President Bashar al-Assads ruling Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party would win a landslide victory in any parliamentary elections held either in the next few months or during a political... Ramon Castro, Cuban leader's older brother, dies at age 91 - Miami Herald mikenova shared this story from Top Stories - Google News. CBS News CBC.ca Ramon Castro, Cuban leader's older brother, dies at age 91 Miami Herald Leader's Older Brother, Dies at Age 91 ABC News Ramon Castro, a lifelong rancher and farme... Islamic State militants forced out of Libya's Sabratha after clashes: officials - Reuters mikenova shared this story from Top Stories - Google News. Reuters Islamic State militants forced out of Libya's Sabratha after clashes: officials Reuters MISRATA, Libya Islamic State militants briefly entered the center of the western L... Syrian army battles Islamic State for third day near key road mikenova shared this story from Reuters: World News. AMMAN/BEIRUT (Reuters) - The Syrian army and Islamic State militants waged fierce battles on Wednesday around Khanaser, a strategic town southeast of Aleppo, where an attack by the jih... Japanese Premier Said To Shun Obama Request To Not Visit Russia mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. Japanese media are reporting that U.S. President Barack Obama has asked Prime Minister Shinzo Abe not to visit Russia in May for talks with President Vladimir Putin. Russian Military Command Found Linked To MH17 Downing mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. A team of open-source researchers investigating the crash of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 has published a report it provided to Dutch prosecutors linking the commanders of... The Daily Vertical: Russia's Spooks And Crooks (Transcript) mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. The Daily Vertical is a video primer for Russia-watchers that appears Monday through Friday. Obituary: Republic Of North Ossetia Head Dies Just Months After Taking Office mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. Tamerlan Aguzarov died last week in a Moscow clinic at the age of 52, having served just five months as head of his native Republic of North Ossetia. The Daily Vertical: Russia's Spooks And Crooks mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. The Daily Vertical is a video primer for Russia-watchers that appears Monday through Friday. Putin Talks About Syria By Phone With Saudi King, Iranian President mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. The Kremlin says Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke by telephone to Saudi Arabia's King Salman on February 24 and that the two had agreed to continue contacts about r... US polygamist sect leaders arrested mikenova shared this story from BBC News - World. Eleven members of a polygamist Mormon offshoot group are arrested in the US on suspicion of food stamp fraud and money laundering. Researchers Spot Genetic Markers for Ischemic Strokes mikenova shared this story from Voice of America. Stroke is a brain attack caused either by a broken blood vessel that results in bleeding in the brain or, more commonly, a blockage by a blood clot or plaque. The blockage interrupts the ... Lawmakers Question Russian Commitment in Syria mikenova shared this story from Voice of America. A U.S.- and Russian-led plan for a partial cease-fire in Syria to begin Saturday has drawn skepticism from U.S. lawmakers who question whether Russia will live up to its commitments. Lawm... Ramon Castro, Brother of Cuban Presidents, Dies at 91 mikenova shared this story from Voice of America. Ramon Castro, older brother of Cuban leaders Fidel and Raul Castro, died Tuesday in Havana at age 91. Born in the rural town of Biran, Ramon Castro participated in the rebellion that led ... Syria on the Agenda as Jordan's King Visits White House mikenova shared this story from Voice of America. President Barack Obama is hosting Jordan's King Abdullah II at the White House on Wednesday for talks focused on the battle against Islamic State and the humanitarian fallout from the war... Assad: Syria Ready to Help Implement Cease-fire Plan mikenova shared this story from Voice of America. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad confirmed to his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin that Syria is ready to help implement a cease-fire planned to begin on Saturday. The two leaders spoke... Beijing Overtakes NYC as 'Billionaire Capital of the World' mikenova shared this story from Voice of America. The Chinese capital has overtaken the Big Apple as home to the most billionaires, 100 to 95, according to Hurun, a Shanghai firm that publishes a monthly magazine and releases yearly rank... Israel Rights Groups: Dozens of Palestinian Detainees Abused mikenova shared this story from Voice of America. A report by two Israeli rights groups released Wednesday says dozens of Palestinian detainees at an Israeli detention facility are subjected to mistreatment, which in some cases amounts t... Russia Gives a Gift of 10,000 Automatic Rifles to Afghanistan mikenova shared this story from Voice of America. Afghan officials took delivery of 10,000 automatic rifles and millions of rounds of ammunition as a gift from Russia on Wednesday, another sign of deepening involvement by Moscow in the w... Egypt's Sisi says Russian plane was brought down by terrorists mikenova shared this story from Reuters: World News. CAIRO (Reuters) - Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said on Wednesday that the Russian plane that crashed in Sinai last year was downed by terrorists seeking to damage Egypt's to... Ramon Castro, Brother to Cuban Revolutionaries, Dies at 91 mikenova shared this story from NYT > World. Mr. Castro, a rancher and the elder brother of Fidel and Raul, took a smaller role in the countrys Communist revolution and government. Editorial: How Turkey Misreads the Kurds mikenova shared this story from NYT > World. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan refuses to acknowledge important differences between the P.K.K. and other groups. Crackdowns on Protests Rise Across a Europe Increasingly Afraid of Terror mikenova shared this story from NYT > World. A rally in Madrid this month protested the arrests of two puppeteers accused of glorifying terrorism and promoting hatred. The puppeteers could face up to seven years in prison. US citizen found dead in northern Dominican Republic mikenova shared this story from World. A U.S. citizen who worked for more than a decade as a reporter for The New York Times was found dead at her home in a northern beach town of the Dominican Republic, officials said Tuesday. Syrian president receives phone call from Russias Putin mikenova shared this story from World. Syrias state-run news agency says Syrian President Bashar Assad has received a phone call from Russian leader Vladimir Putin. Polish truck driver gets prison for deadly 2015 train crash mikenova shared this story from World. A Czech court has convicted a Polish truck driver of being responsible for last years collision between a truck and a high-speed train that killed three passengers and sentenced him to 8 1/2 years ... Putin goes on diplomatic blitz seeking to bolster Syrian cease-fire deal mikenova shared this story from World. Putin reaches across both sides of Syrias conflict with calls to Saudi Arabia and Iran. John Kerry says partition of Syria possible if ceasefire fails video mikenova shared this story from World news + Video | The Guardian. US Secretary of State John Kerry tells Senate committee it may be too late to keep Syria as a whole. Kerry says it is essential to reach a political settlement to end the... Kim Jong-un threatens to bomb South Korean president's home mikenova shared this story from World news. Army's Supreme Command warns of strike on official residence of "murderous devil" Park Geun-hye Ramzan Kadyrov and the hunt for answers one year after opposition leader Boris Nemtsov's death mikenova shared this story from World news. Ramzan Kadyrov styles himself as Russian President Vladimir Putin's most loyal follower, but the scale of his ambitions is now being questioned as he becomes increasingly independent from the K... Gunmen kill three Mali soldiers in attack on checkpoint mikenova shared this story from Reuters: World News. BAMAKO (Reuters) - Gunmen attacked a checkpoint southwest of the Malian town of Timbuktu overnight killing three soldiers and wounding two others, a soldier in the town said on Wednesday. Turkish military helicopters kill 9 in strikes on PKK targets mikenova shared this story from Reuters: World News. DIYARBAKIR, Turkey (Reuters) - Turkish military attack helicopters struck a group of Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) fighters in southeast Turkey on Wednesday, killing nine militants, se... Russia's Putin discusses situation in Middle East with Israel's Netanyahu mikenova shared this story from Reuters: World News. MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed the situation in the Middle East during a telephone conversation with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesd... Apple to tell judge in California case: Congress must decide mikenova shared this story from AP Top News at 8:50 a.m. EST. WASHINGTON (AP) -- Apple Inc. will tell a federal judge this week in legal papers that its fight with the FBI over accessing a locked and encrypted iPhone should be kicked to ... Ramon Castro, Cuban leader's older brother, dies at age 91 mikenova shared this story from AP Top News at 8:50 a.m. EST. HAVANA (AP) -- Ramon Castro, a lifelong rancher and farmer who bore a strong physical resemblance to younger brother Fidel Castro, has died, Cuban state media announced Tuesda... APNewsBreak: Scalia suffered from many health problems mikenova shared this story from AP Top News at 8:50 a.m. EST. DALLAS (AP) -- Antonin Scalia suffered from coronary artery disease, obesity and diabetes, among other ailments that probably contributed to the justice's sudden deat... AP Exclusive: HealthCare.gov 'passive' on heading off fraud mikenova shared this story from AP Top News at 8:50 a.m. EST. WASHINGTON (AP) -- With billions in taxpayer dollars at stake, the Obama administration has taken a "passive" approach to identifying potential fraud involvi... With woman running S. Korea, North's insults get uglier mikenova shared this story from AP Top News at 7:43 a.m. EST. SEOUL, South Korea (AP) -- North Korea's description of South Korea's president as an "old, insane bitch" destined for violent death may ta... Germany sends home rejected Afghans mikenova shared this story from BBC News - World. A special flight from Germany carrying 125 deported Afghans arrives in Kabul, as European countries try to reduce the numbers of asylum seekers. Israeli killed by army gunfire meant to foil Palestinian knifing mikenova shared this story from Reuters: World News. JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israeli soldiers who opened fire at a knife-wielding Palestinian in the occupied West Bank on Wednesday accidentally shot dead an Israeli whom he was trying to st... Seeking iPhone Data, Through the Front Door mikenova shared this story . THE government and Apple have chosen interesting ground on which to contest the limits of government access to data on mobile devices. The case involves an F.B.I. request for Apples assistance in openi... Russias Hybrid War - The New York Times mikenova shared this story . Almost anything Vladimir Putin touches these days is perceived by the West as a weapon, and almost everything he does is seen as an attack, very often a successful one. The Kremlin can change facts on the gro... Azerbaijan's Supreme Court Upholds Sentence Against Noted Lawyer mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. Azerbaijan's Supreme Court has upheld the imprisonment of the Caucasus nation's noted lawyer Intiqam Aliyev. We Are Europe, New Georgian Prime Minister Tells RFE/RL mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. PRAGUE, Czech Republic -- Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili used his visit to RFE/RLs Prague headquarters today to affirm his governments commitment to Europ... UN chief: Number of displaced people has never been higher mikenova shared this story from World. United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon says the number of displaced people around the world has never been higher and the international community needs to improve the way humanitarian support ... NATO Seeks to Stem Greek-Turkish Row Over Migrant Mission mikenova shared this story from WSJ.com: World News. NATO diplomats are working to head off a disagreement between Greece and Turkey that threatens to derail the mission to deter migrants from traversing the Aegean Sea to reach the Europ... Hammond: 'Disturbing evidence' that Kurds are coordinating with Syrian regime and Russia mikenova shared this story from World news. Foreign Secretary says UK "uneasy" about Kurdish role in Syria, as YPG forces take advantage of northern offensive to take territory from US-backed rebels Shifting Power Over Saudi Arabia's Oil mikenova shared this story from WSJ.com: World News. Saudi Arabias oil minister broke his silence over falling prices on Tuesday in remarks that deepened the debate over who controls the countrys oil policy. "" - mikenova shared this story from Google. "" ... SIPRI: c - BBC Russian mikenova shared this story from Google. BBC Russian SIPRI: c BBC Russian , , ... : " " - mikenova shared this story from Google. : " " , , ... 8 , - .RU mikenova shared this story from Google. .RU 8 , .RU 8 . . ... - mikenova shared this story from Google. 72- . ... - .Ru mikenova shared this story from Google. .Ru ... Chechenization of Russia Latest Case of Russias Adapting Itself to Its Imperial Borderlands, Portnikov Says mikenova shared this story from Window on Eurasia -- New Series. Paul Goble Staunton, February 22 A major reason that Moscow has reacted so hysterically to Andrey Piont... Putin Allying with Europes Far Right Not Just to Change European Policies but to Change Europe, Eidman Says mikenova shared this story from Window on Eurasia -- New Series. Paul Goble Staunton, February 22 Most commentators have suggested that Vladimir Putin is supporting the... Moscows Creeping Annexation of South Osetia via the Military mikenova shared this story from Window on Eurasia -- New Series. Paul Goble Staunton, February 22 Leonid Tabilov, the president of South Osetia, says that he and the Ru... Democratic Lawmaker Asks FBI Director to Withdraw Apple Unlocking Case mikenova shared this story from Voice of America. A Democratic U.S. congressman on Tuesday asked the FBI to rescind its demand that Apple help unlock an iPhone linked to one of the San Bernardino shooters. U.S. Representative Ted Lieu ar... Day 735: Military Casualties Reported On Both Sides As Fighting Rolls mikenova shared this story from The Interpreter. Day 735: Military Casualties Reported On Both Sides As Fighting Rolls On Opposition Activist Yashin to Release Report on Kadyrovs 30,000-Strong Personal Army LIVE UPDATES: An opposition... The Briefing: Exposing Kadyrov mikenova shared this story from The Interpreter. Chechnyas mercurial leader Ramzan Kadyrov will be back in the news this week as the first anniversary of Boris Nemtsovs assassination approaches and Russias opposition... Standing Up for Reason: Russian Academia Fights Pseudoscience mikenova shared this story from The Moscow Times Top Stories. A A young woman named Nikol looks to the camera, wiping away the what seem to be tears of happiness. She has reason to be happy, having navigated through to the next round o... Russian Prosecutor General Appeals House Arrest of Domodedovo Owner mikenova shared this story from The Moscow Times Top Stories. The Russian Prosecutor General's Office has appealed the court's decision to put the owner of Moscow's Domodedovo Airport Dmitry Kamenschik under house arrest, the Interfax ne... Turkey Will Not Invade Syria Without UN Permission mikenova shared this story from The Moscow Times Top Stories. Turkey will not engage in ground military operation in Syria without UN Security council approval, Ankara's UN envoy said, the Interfax news agency reported Saturday. U.S., Russia Agree on Partial Cease-Fire in Syria mikenova shared this story from The Moscow Times Top Stories. The new cease-fire deal agreed upon by Russia and the U.S. was deemed so momentous in Moscow that state-run Rossia-1 television network interrupted its regular programming to ... Kadyrov Publishes Russian Oppositioner Yashin's Damning Report mikenova shared this story from The Moscow Times Top Stories. Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov has published on social media a report by an opposition activist Ilya Yashin which claims that Kadyrov's rule poses a threat to Russia. Teenager who killed Swedish refugee worker 'had psychiatric problems' mikenova shared this story from The Independent - Europe. Newspaper suggests staff at the refugee home in Molndal were aware of suspect's mental health problems German man burns pregnant girlfriend alive because he did not want to be a father mikenova shared this story from The Independent - Europe. 'For him the crime was a solution. He wanted a free, happy life which he had control over,' judge says Historian rejects claim Adolf Hitler had a micropenis mikenova shared this story from The Independent - Europe. German dictator could have suffered from medical condition called 'hypospadias' US and Russia agree to enforce new Syria ceasefire mikenova shared this story from Russia | The Guardian. The ceasefire, subject to the agreement between the warring parties, would take effect on Saturday A new deal between the US and Russia to enforce a ceasefire in Syria has been reach... Chechen leader Kadyrov 'threatens whole of Russia', opposition warns mikenova shared this story from Russia | The Guardian. Putin has let former rebel turn region into his personal fiefdom with 30,000 fighters loyal only to him, says report The Chechen leader, Ramzan Kadyrov, is a ruthless and corrupt lea... John Kerry says partition of Syria could be part of plan B if peace talks fail mikenova shared this story from Russia | The Guardian. US secretary of state tells committee it may be too late to keep Syria whole and suggests Washington would support partition if ceasefire is unsuccessful John Kerry, the US secreta... Russia is using Syria to run circles around US - CNN mikenova shared this story from Russia - Google News. CNN Russia is using Syria to run circles around US CNN In October, when Russia started bombing Syria, Obama confidently predicted that Putin would regret his decision to enter the Syr... United States and Russia agree to a partial cease-fire in Syria - Washington Post mikenova shared this story from Russia - Google News. Washington Post United States and Russia agree to a partial cease-fire in Syria Washington Post The United States and Russia announced Monday that they have agreed to the terms of a p... US-Russia Deal on a Partial Truce in Syria Raises More Doubt Than Optimism - New York Times mikenova shared this story from Russia - Google News. New York Times US- Russia Deal on a Partial Truce in Syria Raises More Doubt Than Optimism New York Times WASHINGTON The United States and Russia announced an agreement on Monday fo... Russia wants to fly more spy planes over the US, and the Pentagon can't stop it - Washington Post mikenova shared this story from Russia - Google News. Washington Post Russia wants to fly more spy planes over the US, and the Pentagon can't stop it Washington Post Russia filed a request Monday to fly a spy plane carrying advanced digi... Syria conflict: Warring parties accept US-Russia truce plan - BBC News mikenova shared this story from Russia - Google News. BBC News Syria conflict: Warring parties accept US- Russia truce plan BBC News The Syrian government and the main opposition umbrella group say they accept the terms of a deal to ceas... Chechen leader Kadyrov 'threatens whole of Russia', opposition warns - The Guardian mikenova shared this story from Russia - Google News. The Guardian Chechen leader Kadyrov 'threatens whole of Russia ', opposition warns The Guardian The Chechen leader, Ramzan Kadyrov, is a ruthless and corrupt leader who could pose a t... Iran Calls Proposed Oil-Output Freeze Ridiculous mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. Irans Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh has dismissed a proposal by Russia and three OPEC members to freeze oil production as "ridiculous." Ukrainian Nuclear History Fellowship mikenova shared this story from Latest From the Wilson Center. The Odessa Center for Nonproliferation (OdCNP), a partner of the Nuclear Proliferation International History Project, invites applications for a fellowship hosted in Odessa, ... , mikenova shared this story from golosamerikius's YouTube Videos. From: golosamerikius Duration: 02:59 , Originally published... mikenova shared this story from golosamerikius's YouTube Videos. From: golosamerikius Duration: 02:54 Originally published at - http://www.gol... Despite skepticism, Syrian truce may have a chance mikenova shared this story from Stars and Stripes News. After five years of carnage, the Syrian civil war can seem poised to go on indefinitely. But the "cessation of hostilities" engineered by the U.S. and Russia may actually stand a ch... Mark Davis: The FBI's demand on Apple is unacceptable - Dallas Morning News mikenova shared this story from james b. comey - Google News. Mark Davis: The FBI's demand on Apple is unacceptable Dallas Morning News These are challenging days for FBI Director James Comey . As his agency ... Director Comey misdefined... 2016 Election: The Next Presidents Choice in the Middle East mikenova shared this story from In Homeland Security. Middle East: The next president will have to make a distinct choice - either engage in the region or continue to disengage. Enemies mikenova shared this story from Intelligence Analysis and Reporting. Title: Enemies Author: Tim Weiner Weiner, Tim (2012). Enemies : A History of the FBI . New York: Random House LCCN: 2011005353 H... Turkish authorities confirm Ankara bomber's identity mikenova shared this story from Stars and Stripes News. Turkish authorities on Tuesday confirmed the identity of the suicide bomber who killed 29 people in last week's suicide car bomb attack in Ankara as a Turkish man, the state-run age... Central Intelligence Agency An Instrument of Government mikenova shared this story from Intelligence Analysis and Reporting. Title: Central Intelligence Agency An Instrument of Government Author: Arthur B. Darling Darling, Arthur B. (1989). The Central Int... Harper Lee, 1926- 2016 | Obituary | The New York Times mikenova shared this story from TheNewYorkTimes's YouTube Videos. From: TheNewYorkTimes Duration: 01:41 Harper Lee, whose first novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, about racial injustice in a small Alabama town, sold more than 40 million... Italy summons US envoy over reports Berlusconi was spied on - Washington Post mikenova shared this story from World - Google News. Daily Times Newsweek Italy summons US envoy over reports Berlusconi was spied on Washington Post ROME The Italian foreign ministry on Tuesday has summoned the American ambassador in ... 'Major incident' declared after collapse at UK power plant - Tulsa World mikenova shared this story from World - Google News. The Independent Newsweek 'Major incident' declared after collapse at UK power plant Tulsa World LONDON (AP) Washington Post LONDON British emergency services say they are responding ... GOP Senators: No Hearing, No Vote for Obama Court Pick - ABC News mikenova shared this story from Top Stories - Google News. GOP Senators: No Hearing, No Vote for Obama Court Pick ABC News Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday ruled out any hearing for President Barack Obama's nomine... Iran getting less than $50 billion in cash after nuclear deal: Kerry mikenova shared this story from Reuters: World News. WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said on Tuesday that the amount of cash Iran will receive due to the implementation of the nuclear agreement is below the $50 ... Polish president backs communist spy allegations against Lech Walesa mikenova shared this story from Reuters: World News. WARSAW (Reuters) - President Andrzej Duda, an ally of Poland's new euroskeptic government, accused Lech Walesa on Tuesday of collaborating with the communist-era secret services, furth... DNA report suggests Ankara bomber was Turkish: security official mikenova shared this story from Reuters: World News. ANKARA (Reuters) - A DNA report from a suicide bombing that killed 29 people in the Turkish capital Ankara last week suggests the main perpetrator was Turkish-born, not Syrian as initi... Canada PM Trudeau joins gay pride march mikenova shared this story from BBC News - World. Canada's Justin Trudeau is to become one of the first world leaders to take part in a gay pride march, say organisers of the Toronto event. Afghan Troops Seek to Shore Up Provincial Capital mikenova shared this story from WSJ.com: World News. The Afghan army is setting up a protective ring around the capital of Helmand province to defend it from possible Taliban attacks after losing control of more remote districts. Italy summons US envoy over reports Berlusconi was spied on mikenova shared this story from World. The Italian foreign ministry has summoned the American ambassador in Rome for clarifications after Italian media reported a U.S. intelligence agency intercepted phone calls by then-Premier Silvio ... Afghan government, Taliban set to resume direct peace talks next week mikenova shared this story from World. It remains unclear which Taliban factions will travel to Pakistan for the talks, which stalled last summer. All right, let's talk about Hitler's penis mikenova shared this story from World. Another week, another round of stories about the Nazi leader's genitals. Estonia: 3 cigarette smugglers imprisoned for espionage mikenova shared this story from World. Prosecutors say a court in Estonia has sentenced three cigarette smugglers to prison for spying for Russia in a rare low-level espionage case. This City Has the Best Quality of Life in the World, Study Says mikenova shared this story from World TIME. Vienna, Austria is the city with the highest overall quality of life in the world, according to a survey released on Tuesday. Mercers 18th annual Quality of Living survey evaluates liv... 14 New Cases of Sexually Transmitted Zika in U.S., CDC Reports mikenova shared this story from World TIME. Fourteen more people have caught the Zika virus in the U.S. without traveling to affected zones, federal health officials said Tuesday strong evidence that the virus is sexually trans... British helicopter pilot held in Kenya over policewoman 'assault' mikenova shared this story from World news. Pilot Alistair Llewelyn, 41, captured on camera shouting at and pushing a female police officer for apparently failing to control a crowd around a helicopter he was using to fly the country's d... EU 'Concerned' Over Humanitarian Crisis On Balkan Migrant Route mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. The European Union says it is making plans to deal with a possible humanitarian crisis as new border restrictions are halting migrants traveling across the Balkans. European Court Rules Russia Responsible For Violations In Transdniester mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. The Strasbourg-based court ruled on February 23 that Russia had violated various rights of a Moldovan man arrested in Transdniester in 2008 and that he was subject to inh... U.S. Envoy Says Number Of Islamic State Foreign Fighters Dropping mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. The U.S. special envoy to the coalition fighting Islamic State (IS) militants says the group's ranks of foreign fighters have dropped to about 25,000 from a peak of 35,000. U.S. Strikes Help Break Impasse and Restore Power to Kabul mikenova shared this story from NYT > World. The head of the United States delegation, David E. Lindwall, left, with Salahuddin Rabbani, Afghanistans foreign minister, during the fourth round of four-way peace talks at the presidenti... Gun shop owner: Suspect bought jacket before killings mikenova shared this story from AP Top News at 2:19 p.m. EST. PLAINWELL, Mich. (AP) -- A gun shop owner says the man charged in the Kalamazoo shootings came into his store hours before the rampage and bought a jacket with an inside pocke... GOP Senators: No hearing, no vote for Obama Court pick mikenova shared this story from AP Top News at 2:19 p.m. EST. WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Barack Obama's nominee to the Supreme Court won't get a hearing or a vote from the Republican-led Senate, GOP members of the Jud... More than 100,000 migrants reach Europe in 2016 mikenova shared this story from World news. New figures show more migrants reached Europe in the first six weeks of 2016 than the first six months of last year. mikenova shared this story from golosamerikius's YouTube Videos. From: golosamerikius Duration: 02:34 : , Originally published at - ht... Questions Linger Over Russias Endgame in Syria, Ukraine and Europe mikenova shared this story from NYT > Russia. A partial truce in Syria capped something of a foreign policy trifecta for President Vladimir V. Putin, but his goals are uncertain for all three. Bill Gates Weighs In on Apple's Clash With the FBI - New York Times mikenova shared this story from james b. comey - Google News. New York Times Bill Gates Weighs In on Apple's Clash With the FBI New York Times The director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, James B . Comey Jr., made the case in a p... Former Gitmo Detainee Among 4 Arrested for ISIS Connections mikenova shared this story from Washington Free Beacon. A former Guantanamo Bay prisoner was reportedly among four individuals arrested Tuesday by authorities in Spain and Morocco for alleged ties to terror group ISIS. The Associated Pre... News Analysis: Russian Buildup Focuses Concerns Around The Black Sea mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. For the last decade, Russia has systematically bolstered its position in the Black Sea region, redrawing international borders and pouring billions of dollars into milita... Kerry: U.S. Considering 'Plan B' In Syria If No Peace mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has warned that Washington is considering a "Plan B" to deal with Syria if Damascus and Moscow are not serious about negotiating a poli... News Analysis: Questions Linger Over Russias Endgame in Syria, Ukraine and Europe mikenova shared this story from NYT > Europe. A partial truce in Syria capped something of a foreign policy trifecta for President Vladimir V. Putin, but his goals are uncertain for all three. Migrants find doors slamming shut across Europe mikenova shared this story from Europe. Nations are moving to block migrants, dashing the hopes of countless families seeking sanctuary in Europe. FBI director James Comely pens open letter to Apple over San Bernardino iPhone - Daily Mail mikenova shared this story from fbi - Google News. Daily Mail FBI director James Comely pens open letter to Apple over San Bernardino iPhone Daily Mail The American people should expect nothing less from the FBI . The particular legal is... SAN BERNARDINO SHOOTING: FBI chief defends legal action against Apple - Press-Enterprise mikenova shared this story from fbi - Google News. SAN BERNARDINO SHOOTING: FBI chief defends legal action against Apple Press-Enterprise In the ongoing battle between the FBI and Apple over gaining access to the iPhone of San Bernardino... He was fired from the CIA and jailed for a leak. Now he's trying to hang on. - Washington Post mikenova shared this story from cia - Google News. Washington Post He was fired from the CIA and jailed for a leak. Now he's trying to hang on. Washington Post Locked away in federal prison, Jeffrey Sterling is struggling to keep his dem... Russia dropping 'dumb' bombs in Syria, indiscriminately killing rebels and civilians alike mikenova shared this story from www.washingtontimes.com stories: Security. Russian President Vladimir Putin has thrust a much-modernized air force into the civil war in Syria, but the U.S. military says his bombers still drop mostly grav... UN warns of nuclear material falling into terrorist hands mikenova shared this story from www.washingtontimes.com stories: Security. VIENNA (AP) - The head of the U.N. nuclear agency warned Monday of the dangers of nuclear material falling into the hands of terrorists and urged world nations to... Cuba sending 9,000 soldiers to fight Zika virus mikenova shared this story from Stars and Stripes News. Cuban President Raul Castro announced Monday that he is dispatching 9,000 soldiers to help keep the Zika virus out of Cuba, calling on the entire country to fight the mosquito that ... Former NSA and CIA chief says Apple is right on the bigger issue of encryption back door - 9 to 5 Mac mikenova shared this story from cia - Google News. 9 to 5 Mac Former NSA and CIA chief says Apple is right on the bigger issue of encryption back door 9 to 5 Mac Retired General Michael Hayden, former head of both the NSA and CIA , told ... Trump Needs His 'Own Damn Bucket' to Waterboard: Ex-CIA Chief - NBCNews.com mikenova shared this story from cia - Google News. NBCNews.com Trump Needs His 'Own Damn Bucket' to Waterboard: Ex- CIA Chief NBCNews.com If Donald Trump is serious about wanting to waterboard terrorists, he'd better bring his own bucket... Dems Oppose Obamas OT Rules mikenova shared this story from Washington Free Beacon. Two Congressional Democrats joined the chorus of lawmakers opposed to the Obama administrations wide-ranging overtime regulations that could cut jobs. Rep. Brad Ashford (D., Neb.) ... US leaving CIA-trained militants at Russia's mercy: Ex-Obama aide - Press TV mikenova shared this story from cia - Google News. Press TV US leaving CIA -trained militants at Russia's mercy: Ex-Obama aide Press TV Separately, the CIA has also been running a similar program aimed at pressuring Assad to step down. T... Pentagon IG launches full investigation into Afghanistan child sex abuse mikenova shared this story from Stars and Stripes. The Pentagons Inspector General has launched an investigation into the response by American troops to allegations that Afghan military and police officials were involved in the sexual a... Obama: China knows it cannot sustain export-driven growth model - Reuters mikenova shared this story from Cyber Warfare - Google News. Reuters Obama: China knows it cannot sustain export-driven growth model Reuters Speaking to state governors at the White House, Obama urged them to press the U.S. Congress to a... The terrifying link between concussions and suicide mikenova shared this story from Stars and Stripes News. Suicide and brain injury have long been linked by scientists, but just how many people who have had a brain injury end up committing suicide? A new study has a grim answer: It found... A former CIA and NSA director says the US is a 'safer, more secure' nation without back doors - AppAdvice mikenova shared this story from cia - Google News. AppAdvice A former CIA and NSA director says the US is a 'safer, more secure' nation without back doors AppAdvice Retired Gen. Michael Hayden, former head of both the CIA and NSA, said i... For Moscow, Talks Are About Sowing Discord, not Solving Conflicts mikenova shared this story from Eurasia Daily Monitor - The Jamestown Foundation. A ceasefire in Syria, which appeared possible if not probable in early February, has again turned out to be unreachable. And in hindsight, it is rather obv... Handover of Oil Assets to Chechen Authorities: Start of Devolution of Power in Russia? mikenova shared this story from Eurasia Daily Monitor - The Jamestown Foundation. Chechnya is gearing up to establish control over its oil-extracting business. The procedure for handing over the Rosneft affiliate Chechenneftekhimprom to ... For Now, Italys Relations With Azerbaijan Do Not Upset Russia mikenova shared this story from Eurasia Daily Monitor - The Jamestown Foundation. The steady build-up of Italys long-term economic partnership with Azerbaijan is adding an important geopolitical dimension to Romes foreign policy. Sitti... FBI: Embezzled $20 million funded life of jets, mansions and gambling - Atlanta Journal Constitution mikenova shared this story from fbi - Google News. Atlanta Journal Constitution FBI : Embezzled $20 million funded life of jets, mansions and gambling Atlanta Journal Constitution Nathan E. Hardwick, 50, and Asha R. Maurya, 40, were char... Americans tortured by the UAE, a US ally mikenova shared this story from Stars and Stripes. Amid a maelstrom of sectarianism and extremism, the Arab democrats represent the Middle Easts best hope. But they are often ignored these days in Washington. US Commander: China Seeking Control of East Asia - ABC News mikenova shared this story from Cyber Warfare - Google News. ABC News US Commander: China Seeking Control of East Asia ABC News The commander of U.S. forces in the Pacific says China is seeking control of East Asia. Adm. Harry Harris, Jr... McConnell: Obamas Plan to Close Guantanamo Is Illegal mikenova shared this story from Washington Free Beacon. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R., Ky.) said that it is illegal for President Obama to transfer terrorists from Guantanamo Bay into the United States Tuesday. [Obamas] At... Dealing With The Devil mikenova shared this story from Intelligence Analysis and Reporting. Title: Dealing With The Devil Author: Donal OSullivan OSullivan, Donal (2010). Dealing With The Devil : Anglo-Soviet Intelligenc... OPM cyber chief resigns ahead of data breach hearing mikenova shared this story from www.washingtontimes.com stories: Security. Donna Seymour, the chief information officer for the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, announced her resignation on Monday, two days before she was scheduled t... Don't buy the hype: Russia's military is much weaker than Putin wants us to think mikenova shared this story from Vox - All. Today is Defenders of the Fatherland Day in Russia, a public holiday and a celebration of all things military: triumphalism about the latest weapons, about operations in Syria, about the seizure... Kerry says Syria truce may not lead... mikenova shared this story from Google News. Kerry says Syria truce may not lead to political solution Daily Mail - 29 minutes ago WASHINGTON (AP) Secretary of State John Kerry told Congress on Tuesday that he... Don't buy the hype: Russia's military is much weaker than Putin wants us to think - Vox mikenova shared this story from Cyber Warfare - Google News. Vox Don't buy the hype: Russia's military is much weaker than Putin wants us to think Vox Russian President Vladimir Putin (C) reacts after a wreath laying ceremony at the Tomb... FBI Director Comments on San Bernardino Matter mikenova shared this story from Current. Washington, D.C. Sanders once urged abolishing CIA - Politico mikenova shared this story from cia - Google News. Politico Sanders once urged abolishing CIA Politico The CIA is a dangerous institution that has got to go, Sanders told an audience in Vermont in October 1974. He described the agency ... Exclusive: Deputy CIA director: U.S. faces urgent challenges - WTOP mikenova shared this story from cia - Google News. WTOP Exclusive: Deputy CIA director: U.S. US faces urgent challenges WTOP In this file photo, David Cohen arrives to testify to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee when he was Treasur... Bernie Sanders Wanted to Abolish the CIA - Daily Beast mikenova shared this story from cia - Google News. Daily Beast Bernie Sanders Wanted to Abolish the CIA Daily Beast Forty years ago, a 29-year-old Bernie Sanders called for abolishing the CIA . He was at the time running for U.S. Senate ... Pentagon, CIA Chiefs Don't Think Russia Will Abide by Syria Cease-fire - Wall Street Journal mikenova shared this story from cia - Google News. Press TV Pentagon, CIA Chiefs Don't Think Russia Will Abide by Syria Cease-fire Wall Street Journal WASHINGTONPresident Barack Obama's top military and intelligence advisers don't belie... Obama Appears Not to Know the Name of Boston Marathon Bomber mikenova shared this story from Washington Free Beacon. President Obama botched the name of the Boston Marathon bomber on Tuesday while making a statement laying out his plan to close the military detention center at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba... Kerry says Syria truce may not lead to political solution mikenova shared this story from Stars and Stripes. Secretary of State John Kerry says he can't be sure the cease-fire agreement in Syria will work and lead to a political resolution in the war-ravaged country. Suspected explosion declared major incident at British power station mikenova shared this story from DEBKAFile. February 23, 2016, 7:45 PM (IDT) A major incident with casualties was declared as British police and emergency services rushed to the Didcot Power Station in southeast England Tues... Feds Can Fine Drone Users $27,500 For Failing to Register With Govt mikenova shared this story from Washington Free Beacon. Drone users can be fined nearly $30,000 for failing to register with the government, according to rules that can even apply to toy drones. Beginning Feb. 19, all owners of Unmanned ... Trial starts for dozens alleged Islamic State members in Turkey mikenova shared this story from Stars and Stripes. Dozens of people have gone on trial in Istanbul accused of being part of the Islamic State group's Turkish network. Kerry: Given Vulnerability of Our System, I Dont Allow State Department Staff to Use Private Servers mikenova shared this story from Washington Free Beacon. Secretary of State John Kerry acknowledged Tuesday on Capitol Hill that neither he nor his staff uses a private email server because of the vulnerability of our system in today&#... Israeli Defense Minister Says Russia, U.S. Recognize Israels Freedom to Act and to Defend Interests in Syria mikenova shared this story from Washington Free Beacon. JERUSALEMLess than a week after Israel was reported to have rocketed Syrian army outposts in the Damascus area despite the Russian presence as defender of the Syrian regime, Israel... We cannot trust our government, so we must trust the technology mikenova shared this story from US national security | The Guardian. Apples battle with the FBI is not about privacy v security, but a conflict created by the US failure to legitimately oversee its security service post Snowden The show... U.S. Scrambles to Contain Growing ISIS Threat in Libya mikenova shared this story from NYT > United States Defense and Military Forces. As U.S. intelligence agencies say the number of Islamic State fighters in Iraq and Syria has dropped, the groups ranks in Libya have roughly doubled. Russia Wants Closer Look From Above the U.S. mikenova shared this story from NYT > United States Defense and Military Forces. Russia has requested to upgrade the cameras it uses on sanctioned surveillance flights across the United States, which are part of a treaty. Review: In Playing to the Edge, Michael V. Hayden Discusses Bush-Era Intelligence mikenova shared this story from NYT > United States Defense and Military Forces. Mr. Hayden, a former director of the C.I.A., gives his opinions and settles some scores in his new book. Invitation to a Dialogue: Ways Iraq Could Break Up mikenova shared this story from NYT > Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS). A retired Marine colonel analyzes how a partition of Iraq could come about. Readers are invited to respond. U.S. and Russia Set Date for Cease-Fire in Syria to Begin mikenova shared this story from NYT > Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS). The cease-fire is to begin Saturday, but officials acknowledge that obstacles remain in getting the Syrian government and the armed opposition to comply. Italy: American Drones to Get Base, Official Says mikenova shared this story from NYT > Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS). Italy has agreed to allow American armed drones to take off from an air base in Sicily to fight Islamic State extremists in Libya. Relying Again on an Unreliable Mr. Putin mikenova shared this story from NYT > Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS). The Russian president, eager to restore glory to his nation, holds many of the cards in Syria but should not confuse that for respect for his power. Government in Syria and Some Rebel Groups Agree to Partial Cease-Fire mikenova shared this story from NYT > Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS). President Bashar al-Assad and the umbrella group of opposition and rebel groups in Syria announced they would accept a new cessation of hostilities. For Apple, the Moral High Ground Lacks Clearly Defined Boundaries mikenova shared this story from NYT > Federal Bureau of Investigation. Is the companys primary moral obligation to the help the government, protect its customers privacy or maximize profits for its shareholders? Apple Moves to Shift Battle Over Unlocking iPhone to Capitol Hill mikenova shared this story from NYT > Federal Bureau of Investigation. The company has proposed that federal prosecutors withdraw demands that it unlock an iPhone belonging to a gunman involved in the San Bernardino, Calif., shooting. In Poll on Apple, Public Sides with F.B.I. mikenova shared this story from NYT > Federal Bureau of Investigation. Apples challenge is still in court, but in the court of public opinion, 51 percent of respondents backed the F.B.I., as 38 percent sided with Apple. Common software would have let FBI unlock shooters iPhone mikenova shared this story from In Homeland Security. A county government The Justice Department paid for, but never installed, a feature that would have allowed the FBI to easily and immediately unlock the iPhone. FBI director makes personal, passionate plea on Apple San Bernardino controversy mikenova shared this story from In Homeland Security. FBI Director James Comey has weighed in on the controversy over whether Apple should help unlock an iPhone used by one of the San Bernardino terrorists. Uber driver suspected in shootings in Mich. that kill six mikenova shared this story from In Homeland Security. The man accused of killing six people in a Michigan shooting spree is an Uber driver who reportedly picked up passengers before and after the murders. Snowden: Would return to US with guarantee of fair trial mikenova shared this story from In Homeland Security. Edward Snowden told an audience of supporters that he is willing to be extradited to the U.S. if the federal government would guarantee him a fair trial. How a tiny mosquito became one of the worlds most efficient killers mikenova shared this story from In Homeland Security. It has used a tiny, needle-like probe to wipe out entire cities over the centuries - and it's arguably the most relentless killer on Earth. Bill Gates says giving FBI access to iPhone info no special thing mikenova shared this story from In Homeland Security. Bill Gates on Apple and the FBI: "They're [Apple] just refusing to provide the access you shouldn't call the access some special thing." IDF Chief Viewed as Voice of Moderation Amid Political Extremism mikenova shared this story from Defense News - Home. Lt. Gen. Gadi Eisenkot, the Israel Defense Forces chief of staff, is becoming known here as a voice of moderation. US Dominates Arms Trade as Asia, Mid-East Boost Imports mikenova shared this story from Defense News - Home. The US has increased its dominance in arms sales due in part to big exports to Asia and the Gulf. DIAs Beyond the Beltway: U.S. Southern Command mikenova shared this story from Defense Intelligence Agency News. In this Beyondthe Beltway episode, DIA takes a behind-the-scenes look at U.S. SouthernCommand Second Palestinian shooting incident near Beit El mikenova shared this story from DEBKAFile. February 22, 2016, 8:17 AM (IDT) An IDF post at the entrance to Beit El near Ramallah came under fire from a Palestinian vehicle Sunday night. The troops fired back, striking the car before it r... More than 140 killled by ISIS bomb blasts in Homs, Damascus mikenova shared this story from DEBKAFile. February 21, 2016, 10:21 PM (IDT) The death toll rose to 57 with more than 100 injured from the two car bombs that exploded Sunday morning in the center of the city of Homs in central Syria - th... DEBKAfile: Scaled down US-Israel air defense exercise takes off mikenova shared this story from DEBKAFile. February 22, 2016, 9:04 AM (IDT) The US and Israel Monday launched their biannual Juniper Cobra 16 air defense exercise, which is designed to improve their cooperation and test Israels ai... Shoigu in Tehran to rescue Putins plan from Assads Iranian-backed obstructionism mikenova shared this story from DEBKAFile. February 22, 2016, 12:26 PM (IDT) President Putin this week sent Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu to Tehran to unsnarl his blueprint for a solution of the Syrian crisis from the blockage placed in... Obama and Putin in phone call on Syrian ceasefire mikenova shared this story from DEBKAFile. February 23, 2016, 7:35 AM (IDT) Presidents Barack Obama and Vladimir Putin talked on the phone Monday to clinch Saturday Feb. 27 as the date for another attempt to enforce a ceasefire in Syria.... Syrian regime accepts partial ceasefire mikenova shared this story from DEBKAFile. February 23, 2016, 12:04 PM (IDT) The Syrian government announced in a statement Tuesday that it accepts the ceasefire deal on the basis that military efforts continue against the Islamic... Abu Mazen rebuffs Kerrys appeal to cool Palestinian terror against Israelis mikenova shared this story from DEBKAFile. February 23, 2016, 1:40 PM (IDT) US Secretary of State John Kerry came away empty-handed from his latest meeting with Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmud Abbas (Abu Mazen) in Amman on Sunday, ... The Early Edition: February 23, 2016 mikenova shared this story from Just Security. Zoe Chapman Before the start of business, Just Security provides a curated summary of up-to-the-minute developments at home and abroad. Heres todays news. IRAQ & SYRIA Cessation of h... 'Provisional' Syria ceasefire plan called into question as bombs kill ... mikenova shared this story from world news - Google Blog Search. We have reached a provisional agreement in principle on the terms of a cessation of hostilities that could begin in the coming days, Kerry told a news conference in Amman... UK Tourist Stabbed In Head By San Francisco Mugger mikenova shared this story from World News - Breaking international news and headlines | Sky News. The British man is in a life-threatening condition after being stabbed in the head during an unprovoked attack by two muggers. Russia Plans To Fly High-Tech Spy Jets Over US mikenova shared this story from World News - Breaking international news and headlines | Sky News. Washington fears Moscow is trying to exploit a surveillance treaty to gather vital intelligence on the United States. The Latest: Turkey: Ground troops in Syria 'not on agenda' - Washington Post mikenova shared this story from World - Google News. Sydney Morning Herald The Latest: Turkey: Ground troops in Syria 'not on agenda' Washington Post BEIRUT The Latest on the civil war in Syria (all times local): 3:05 p.m.. The Turkish... Woman In Coma 'After Craiglist Roommate Attack' mikenova shared this story from World News - Breaking international news and headlines | Sky News. Danielle Jones was allegedly beaten, strangled and cut with a knife during an attack on Valentine's Day. Labrador retrievers hit their 25th year as top US dog breed - seattlepi.com mikenova shared this story from Top Stories - Google News. seattlepi.com Labrador retrievers hit their 25th year as top US dog breed seattlepi.com FILE- In this Oct. 8, 2011 file photo, a Labrador Retriever emerges from he water with a t... Iranian media outlets add to bounty for killing Britain's Rushdie - Reuters mikenova shared this story from World - Google News. Reuters Iranian media outlets add to bounty for killing Britain's Rushdie Reuters ANKARA Iranian state-run media outlets have added $600,000 to a bounty for the killing of British auth... Peter Mondavi, Napa Valley wine pioneer, has died at 101 - seattlepi.com mikenova shared this story from Top Stories - Google News. seattlepi.com Peter Mondavi, Napa Valley wine pioneer, has died at 101 seattlepi.com A winery board member says Peter Mondavi, seen here in 1982, a wine country innovator who led... Kerry Hails Deal With Russia for Syria Ceasefire mikenova shared this story from World TIME. The U.S., The United States, Russia, and other countries have reached an agreement for a cease-fire ceasefire in Syria , U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said Monday. The announcement follo... US spokesman: Syrian ceasefire won't apply to Isis and al-Nusra Front video mikenova shared this story from World news + Video | The Guardian. The US State Department says President Barack Obama has discussed terms for a ceasefire in Syria with Vladimir Putin. Spokesman Josh Earnest says that the truce would not... Russian Opposition Leaders Targeted Year After Nemtsov's Assassination mikenova shared this story from VOAvideo's YouTube Videos. From: VOAvideo Duration: 02:43 Critics of Russian President Vladimir Putin will soon be marking one year since the assassination of opposition leader Boris Nemtsov, who was s... Iran's Hard-Line Press Adds to Bounty on Salman Rushdie - New York Times mikenova shared this story from World - Google News. New York Times Iran's Hard-Line Press Adds to Bounty on Salman Rushdie New York Times TEHRAN A group of hard-line Iranian news media organizations says it has raised $600,000 to add ... Cruz Now Wants ICE Agents To Round Up And Deport All 12 Million Illegals [VIDEO] - Daily Caller mikenova shared this story from Top Stories - Google News. Dallas Morning News Cruz Now Wants ICE Agents To Round Up And Deport All 12 Million Illegals [VIDEO] Daily Caller MANCHESTER, NH - FEBRUARY 08: Republican presidential candidate ... Google is shuttering Google Compare - WSJ - Reuters mikenova shared this story from Top Stories - Google News. Reuters Google is shuttering Google Compare - WSJ Reuters Google is shuttering Google Compare, its U.S. comparison-shopping site for auto insurance, credit cards and mortgages af... Iranian Hardliners Raise Bounty on Salman Rushdie to Almost $4 Million mikenova shared this story from World TIME. A group of hard-line Iranian news organizations have raised over half a million dollars to add to a bounty calling for the killing of British novelist Salman Rushdie. Irans supreme lea... Ben Carson: Obama 'Raised White,' Doesn't Understand Black Americans - NBCNews.com mikenova shared this story from Top Stories - Google News. NBCNews.com Ben Carson: Obama 'Raised White,' Doesn't Understand Black Americans NBCNews.com Dr. Ben Carson said Tuesday that President that Barack Obama was "raised white" and c... Report Blames Chechen Leader Over Killing of Kremlin Critic - New York Times mikenova shared this story from World - Google News. ABC News Report Blames Chechen Leader Over Killing of Kremlin Critic New York Times MOSCOW A Russian opposition activist bluntly accused Chechnya's Moscow-backed regional leader of i... Hitler's Mein Kampf is now a best-seller in Germany mikenova shared this story from World. Historians had previously warned that the book was "too dangerous for the general public." US chocolate maker Mars recalls candy bars in 55 countries after finding plastic in product mikenova shared this story from World. US chocolate maker Mars recalls candy bars in 55 countries after finding plastic in product . Mars Recalls Candy Bars in 55 Countries mikenova shared this story from World TIME. (BERLIN) U.S. chocolate maker Mars says its recalling candy bars and other items in 55 countries after plastic was found in one of its products. Roel Govers, spokesman for Mars... European court: Romania must pay victims of 1989 revolution mikenova shared this story from World. The European Court of Human Rights has ordered Romania to pay compensation to 17 Romanians whose relatives were shot dead during the 1989 anti-communist revolt. The Shops That Turned the Calais Jungle Into a City mikenova shared this story from World TIME. There are bars, restaurants, and nightclubs. There are Mosques, markets and hairdressers. In the so-called Jungle of Calais, Francethe camp where nearly 3,000 refugees and migrants fro... Italy summons U.S. ambassador after reports U.S. spied on Berlusconi mikenova shared this story from Reuters: World News. ROME (Reuters) - Italy's foreign ministry on Tuesday summoned the U.S. ambassador after media reports that American intelligence services tapped the telephones of former prime minister... Afghan, Taliban Peace Talks Expected By 1st Week Of March mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. A four-nation group says direct peace talks between the Taliban and negotiators from Kabul are expected to begin in Islamabad by the first week of March. Snow Plows Disrupt Business Owners' Protest In Minsk mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. As owners of small businesses demonstrated against new government regulations in the Belarusian capital, a fleet of snow plows drove up close by, setting off scuffles wit... Ingushetia Commemorates Deportation Victims, Chechnya Does Not mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. Residents of Ingushetia are remembering the victims of the Soviet Union's 1944 deportation of Chechens and Ingush from the North Caucasus. Ukraine's "Project Wall" Digs In As Front Line Defense Against Russia mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. Ukraine is attempting to build a barrier along the whole of its 2,000 kilometer land border with Russia, to thwart any potential attack. "Project Wall" is ambitious and, ... Macedonia Bars Afghan Asylum Seekers, Stoking Violent Clashes mikenova shared this story from NYT > World. An Afghan man pushing against the border fence during a demonstration on Monday near the Greek village of Idomeni, against Macedonias refusal to allow Afghans to pass the border. The Latest: UN: New Balkan border changes pressure Greece mikenova shared this story from AP Top News at 11:05 a.m. EST. CALAIS, France (AP) -- The Latest on the migrant influx into Europe (all times local):... Man pulls shark from Florida waters for photographs mikenova shared this story from World news. Shark is the latest sea creature dragged on to beach for pictures - days after baby dolphin dies in similar circumstances British tourist 'fighting for life' after stab attack in San Francisco mikenova shared this story from World news. British national stabbed in the head as he struggled to keep attackers from taking his bag Hitler 'had tiny deformed penis' as well as just one testicle, historians claim mikenova shared this story from World news. Hitler suffered from a condition called hypospadias which left him with an abnormally small manhood, according to historians Jonathan Mayo and Emma Craigie Chill out in the world's coldest city, Yakutsk in Russia's Siberia region, in pictures mikenova shared this story from World news. The remote city in Siberia where winter temperatures hover around -40F (-40C) Syria war: US and Russia agree new truce 'to start at weekend' mikenova shared this story from World news. United States and Russia agree on new ceasefire in Syria starting Saturday that would exclude attacks on Isil and al-Qaeda's local affiliate US ambassador to South Africa: 'If I tried to organise a coup it would look like Mardi Gras' mikenova shared this story from World news. Envoy hits back "with sarcasm" at suggests by ANC chief that his diplomats were acting "irregularly" and plotting "regime change" Hollywood facing 'inclusion crisis', new report says mikenova shared this story from World news. Study follows race diversity row over the Oscars and declares "Hollywood is so white" Uber driver accused of murderous rampage in Kalamazoo appears in court mikenova shared this story from World news. Jason Dalton allegedly picked up passengers before killing six people in three separate incidents, with one victim's mother saying "my heart is shattered" Brazil plans to zap mosquitoes with radiation to halt spread of Zika virus mikenova shared this story from World news. Authorities want to release sterilised males so that females lay inviable eggs, eradicating the Aedes mosquito that carries the virus blamed for surge in babies born with microcephaly Passengers describe riding with 'Uber gunman' during shooting spree in US mikenova shared this story from World news. Customers claim Jason Dalton picked them up before he was arrested over the murders of six people in Kalamazoo 'At least one dead' and ten injured after train 'crashes into crane' in the Netherlands mikenova shared this story from World news. Passenger train derails after hitting crane in the Dutch town of Dalfsen EU referendum: Business advisers to David Cameron and major UK companies decline to sign pro-EU letter - live mikenova shared this story from World news. Letter backing EU membership circulated by Downing Street not expected to be signed by string of leading FTSE 100 companies as Tories descend into war over Brexit fears - latest updates Chinese Move Money Abroad as Economy Slows mikenova shared this story from Voice of America. The Chinese have been moving money abroad at record levels as Chinas economy continues to slow, boosting real estate prices around the world while raising concerns. In places like New Y... Russia Wants to Fly Over US with Advanced Digital Camera mikenova shared this story from Voice of America. Russia will ask permission on Monday to start flying surveillance planes equipped with high-powered digital cameras amid warnings from U.S. intelligence and military officials that such o... Turkey's Pro-Kurdish Party Accuses Security Forces of Massacre mikenova shared this story from Voice of America. Turkey's main pro-Kurdish party is calling for an investigation into what it says was a massacre of dozens of people by Turkish forces during recent security operations against the Kurdis... A Year After Nemtsov's Assassination, New Threats Emerge mikenova shared this story from Voice of America. A memorial procession on Saturday for murdered Russian opposition leader, Boris Nemtsov, will trace the same route as his last march - a 2014 protest against Russia's hybrid war in Ukrain... THE government and Apple have chosen interesting ground on which to contest the limits of government access to data on mobile devices. The case involves an F.B.I. request for Apples assistance in opening a phone once carried by Syed Rizwan Farook, who with his wife was responsible for the terrorist attack in San Bernardino, Calif., that left 14 dead and 22 wounded. On one level, this should be comfortable space for the government. First, the phone is owned by the County of San Bernardino, which issued it to Mr. Farook, an employee of its health department. The county, as Apples customer, has no problem having its phone opened. Second, Mr. Farook and his wife were killed in a gun battle with the police early last December. Under the law, dead people have no privacy rights. But Apple is making a stand because the government wants it to create something against its will: code that would disable a feature that erases all content after 10 failed password attempts. Tim Cook, Apples chief executive, has said that if this happens, the floodgates will open to similar law enforcement requests, putting customers data at risk. And not just in the United States: Apple supporters have raised concerns that other countries, particularly China and Russia, are likely to follow suit. Mr. Cooks position is hyperbolic, in our view. But beyond the legal case, there is an ethics issue unfolding here. Until 17 months ago, Apple held the key that could override protections and open phones. Apple used this master key to comply with court orders in drug, kidnapping, murder and terrorism cases. There was no documented instance of this code getting out to hackers or to the government. So what was the problem Apple was trying to fix when it abruptly announced, in September 2014, that with its new iOS 8, Apple will not perform iOS data extractions in response to government search warrants? Some believe that allegations by Edward J. Snowden of mass surveillance of phone and Internet communications by the National Security Agency stoked fears among Apples customers that the government was spying on them. Perhaps an iPhone that even Apple couldnt unlock might allay such fears, while also helping sales by offering more privacy and security. But Mr. Snowden claimed that the N.S.A. was capturing some Americans Internet traffic from overseas, not that the agency was hacking into smartphones. Moreover, Apples position on privacy seems at odds with its own strategy of encouraging customers to pay to store personal data on iCloud, which is also vulnerable to hackers. Apple partisans also argue that the company is trying to protect privacy in places like China, where governments could demand access to phones belonging to dissidents. But Apple could refuse those requests, or have China make them through the State Department, a means of insulating itself from unreasonable demands. That is often how the United States asks for assistance from overseas corporations in investigations. Apple and privacy advocates have framed this debate as the government wanting to create a back door into peoples devices. But the Constitution protects people from unreasonable search and seizure. And for more than 200 years, the standard has been for law enforcement to obtain a warrant signed by a judge, based on probable cause. What the government is actually requesting here is that Apple restore a key that was available until late 2014. Complying with constitutionally legal court orders is not creating a back door; in a democracy, that is a front door. Mr. Cook says Apples ultimate goal is to provide customers safety from attack. But Mr. Cook does not seem to be talking about the kind of attack that took 14 lives in San Bernardino. Presumably, he means attacks from hackers or what he may view as government intrusion even when that intrusion is legal. The phone in the San Bernardino case stopped uploading data to the cloud about six weeks before the killings. That suggests there may be information inside the device that was deliberately concealed. That could include the identities of terrorists who influenced or directed the attack; such information, if pursued, could prevent future plots. Or the iPhone might contain nothing of value. It is Apples position that we should never know. The ramifications of this fight extend beyond San Bernardino. Brittany Mills was a 29-year-old woman who was eight months pregnant when she was murdered in Baton Rouge, La. Apple says it cant comply with a search warrant and open her iPhone even though the police believe the identity of the killer is contained in her device. Ms. Mills was an Apple customer. So were some of the people who died with iPhones in their pockets in the San Bernardino and Paris attacks . How is not solving a murder, or not finding the message that might stop the next terrorist attack, protecting anyone? Google, which owns the Android system, now indicates that it will follow Apples lead. For those companies, and others like them, there is a sound argument in not wanting, even indirectly, to become an arm of the government. But when you are the two companies whose operating systems handle more than 90 percent of mobile communications worldwide, you should be accountable for more than just sales. What you need to know about the Octagon Art Festival on Sunday in Ames news Share Nokia made it clear this week at Mobile World Congress (News - Alert) in Barcelona that its eager to help enable the future of 5G and IoT, but it also has plans for the data center. This is highlighted by the recent announcement that integrated manufacturing solutions company Sanmina Corporation and Nokia (News - Alert) are collaborating to deliver a broad range of data center solutions that help operators harness the cloud. To accomplish this, Sanmina is now a partner for Nokias recently announced Data Center Services. "Nokia's Data Center Services coupled with rapid delivery of validated and tested data center solutions tailored to each operator's requirements will be critical for our customer's success in launching services quickly and efficiently. Sanmina's deep global supply chain and assembly expertise with complex, multivendor solutions will ensure seamless transition from design to delivery," said Deepak Harie, vice president of Systems Integration at Nokia. The strategic partnership between Nokia and Sanmina will focus primarily on the delivery of cost effective and scalable multivendor cloud infrastructure solutions. By leveraging Sanminas experience with IT infrastructure, hardware integration and global fulfillment for the telecommunications and cloud computing markets, Nokia can quickly deliver custom infrastructure solutions to improve operator time to market. In addition, Sanmina will provide extensive services from worldwide delivery support, to managing complex multivendor supply chains and everything in between. The combination of Sanminas global footprint, ability to scale and experience in staging and testing services along with Nokias culture of innovation, technology and thought leadership will enable customer to quickly take delivery of industrialized, integrated, turn-key, state of the art data center solutions around the globe. "Sanmina is a proud, longstanding partner for Nokia and we are pleased Nokia is looking to us to help them achieve their vision of delivering data center services to help operators navigate the cloud through our Embedded, Connected and Cloud Solutions business," said Chuck Kostalnick, executive vice president and chief business officer at Sanmina. Nokia and Sanmina plan to continue working closely to further expand their partnership and bring more value to Nokias customers. Edited by Peter Bernstein Authorities want to release sterilized males so that females lay inviable eggs, eradicating the Aedes mosquito that carries the virus blamed for surge in babies born with microcephaly Brazil is planning to fight the Zika virus by zapping millions of male mosquitoes with gamma rays to sterilise them and stop the spread of the virus linked to thousands of birth defects. Called an irradiator, the device has been used to control fruit flies on the Portuguese island of Madeira. The International Atomic Energy Agency said on Monday it will pay to ship the device to Juazeiro, in the northeastern state of Bahia, as soon as the Brazilian government issues an import permit. Its a birth control method, the equivalent of family planning for humans, said Kostas Bourtzis, a molecular biologist with the IAEAs insect pest control laboratory. Brazil is scrambling to eradicate the Aedes mosquito that has caused an epidemic of dengue and more recently an outbreak of Zika, a virus associated with an alarming surge in cases of babies born with abnormally small heads. The new epidemic threatens to scare visitors away from the Rio 2016 Olympic Games in August. A Brazilian non-profit organisation called Moscamed will breed up to 12 million male mosquitoes a week and then sterilise them with the cobalt-60 irradiator, produced by Canadian company MDS Nordion, said Dr Bourtzis. The sterile males will be released into target areas to mate with wild females who will lay eggs that produce no offspring, he said during an IAEA meeting of mosquito control experts. With no cure or vaccine available for Zika, which has spread to more than 30 countries, mostly in the Americas, the only way to contain the virus is to reduce the mosquito population. Brazilian researchers are also experimenting with radiation. The Fiocruz biomedical research institute has released 30,000 sterile mosquitoes on an island 217 miles off the coast of northeast Brazil. SOURCE Telegraph UK The global military laser market will reach $4.63 billion by 2020, according to a forecast by market research firm MarketsandMarkets. This reflects a compound annual growth rate of 8.86 percent from 2015. The solid-state laser market is estimated to hold the largest market share in 2015 of the military laser systems market, the report said. The chemical laser market is projected to grow at the highest [compound annual growth rate] during the forecast period. This is due to the continuous rise in the R&D activities of military laser systems in the U.S., as well as the in the emerging economies such as India and China. There will also be strong growth in the Middle East as laser weapons are deployed against rockets, mortar shells and unmanned aerial vehicles The laser weapon segment is expected to dominate the military laser systems market, among all products Based on products, the Military Laser Systems Market is segmented into Laser Designator, LIDAR, 3D Scanning, Laser Weapon, Laser Range Finder, Ring Laser Gyro, and Laser Altimeter. The 3D scanning market is anticipated to be highly profitable during the forecast period. China has increased its defense budget and it would be procuring more military aircraft, submarines, and tactical missiles. This will fuel the growth of the laser technology market in this sector. The defense application is anticipated to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period Based on applications, the market is segmented into defense and homeland security. Among the defense and homeland security applications, defense is a major field where military laser systems are more functional. The defense application segment holds the largest share of the total military laser systems market in 2015 due to increase in applications and technological requirements in lethal weapons for military forces, globally. The solid-state laser segment is expected to dominate the military laser systems market, among all technologies Based on technologies, the military laser systems market is segmented into Fiber Laser, Solid-State Laser, Chemical Laser, CO2 Laser, and Semiconductor Laser. The solid-state laser market is estimated to hold the largest market share in 2015 of the military laser systems market. The chemical laser market is projected to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period. This is due to the continuous rise in the R&D activities of military laser systems in the U.S. as well as the in the emerging economies such as India and China. The military laser systems market in the Middle East is expected to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period On the basis of regions, the market is divided into North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, the Middle East, and rest of the world (RoW). Regions such as Latin America and Africa are covered under RoW. In 2015, North America is estimated to account for the largest share of the military laser systems market. However, this market in the Middle Eastern region is projected to grow at the highest CAGR from 2015 to 2020. This growth is mainly attributed due to the enhancement in the force protection against small boat swarms, unmanned aerial vehicles or rocket, artillery, and mortar or missile attack. Raytheon Company (U.S.): The top player in the military laser systems market A strong focus on innovation is observed in the military laser systems market. The rich pipeline of innovative products in the military laser systems market opens an array of opportunities for the market. Players are particularly focused on making devices that are compact and efficient. But, you could argue, one doesn't need rewards with a body of work like that of Douglas Slocombe, whose achievements will last far longer than any statuette. Slocombe began his work behind the lens as a wartime cameraman during the German invasion of Poland in 1939. In the middle of an attempted escape, Slocombe's train was machine-gunned, forcing him to instead make his way into Latvia on horseback, from where he made his way to Sweden, and finally to the United Kingdom. He worked with directors including multiple times with Norman Jewison (Jesus Christ Superstar and Rollerball) and Trevor Nunn, but it was his collaboration with Spielberg on the Indiana Jones trilogy that cemented his legacy. Saudi Arabia halts $4B in Lebanese deals amid Iran dispute A slide in the USA equity markets, which have for weeks been trading in tandem with oil, also weighed on crude, traders said. There was no immediate confirmation of the report, and it was not clear if it was related to the Saudi decision. He told the BBC: "Dougie Slocombe was facile, enthusiastic, and loved the action of film-making". His works included classic Ealing comedies such as the Lavender Hill Mob and Kind Hearts And Coronets and he also won Best Cinematography Baftas for The Servant (1963), The Great Gatsby (1974) and Julia (1977). Following Ealing's demise, Slocombe signed on to a number of CinemaScope releases, such as "A High Wind in Jamaica" and "Guns at Batasi". During the 1960s, he shot Roman Polanski's The Fearless Vampire Killers, The Lion In Winter with Katharine Hepburn and Peter O'Toole and the original Italian Job. He had also filmed the first two entries in the Indiana Jones series, "Raiders of the Lost Ark" and "Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom". "I found I was able to change techniques on picture after picture". Target halts the sale of hoverboards on its website Hoverboard maker Swagway said Saturday that customers should stop using their boards until they are deemed safe. Hoverboards have been pulled from the Toys "R" Us website amid fears that the devices are unsafe. Stay on topic - This helps keep the thread focused on the discussion at hand. Share with Us - We'd love to hear eyewitness accounts, the history behind an article, and smart, constructive criticism. Chocolate giant Mars has recalled bars and candies in 55 countries including Ireland, after plastic was found in one of its products. "As far as we know there are 55 countries involved", Eline Bijveld, Mars corporate affairs co-ordinator for the Netherlands told AFP, refusing to divulge the whole list. In February 1990 mineral water icon Perrier voluntarily recalled its entire inventory of bottled mineral water from store shelves throughout the world - some 160 million bottles - after tests showed the presence of the chemical benzene in some bottles in the United States and Britain. The products being recalled have best-before dates ranging from June 19, 2016 to January 8, 2017. The company is expected to release a statement about the recall. Vanderbilt center launches line-drive buzzer-beater for the ages Schuyler Rimmer broke inside on a roll but his layup attempt was blocked by Matthew Fisher-Davis with seconds left. You could see that in the reaction to Henderson's shot and the way they handled Tuesday's win. Mars is voluntarily recalling variants of its Snickers, Mars, Milky Way and Celebrations chocolate confectionery according to the Dutch food and safety authority, Nederlands Voedsel- en Warenautoriteit (NVWA), website. The affected product was made at a Dutch factory in Veghel, according to a Mars spokeswoman. The company is recalling products that say "Mars Netherlands" on the packaging. It's unclear if there are affected products in Australia. Product recalls don't only have a financial effect on companies, but also a reputational one. "Only certain products labelled on pack as "Mars Netherlands" are affected by this recall", a statement on its official website reads. Wednesday forecast: Heavy wet snow, 4 to 8 inches possible Rain changes to snow quicker in west-central in which promotes higher snow totals in the long run. Breezy with a northeast wind 14 to 21 miles per hour , with gusts as high as 32 miles per hour . However, if you do find that you have the recalled Mars candy, email or call Mars Consumer Care for assistance. The recall "only involves the products that are made in the Netherlands" at the Mars factory in the southern town of Veghel, she said, adding the products were mainly sold in the Netherlands and elsewhere in Europe. Mars, based in Mount Olive, New Jersey, is one of the world's biggest food companies, with 29 chocolate brands including M&M's, Galaxy, Twix, Bounty and Maltesers. Mars claimed that the recall was completely voluntary and meant as a precautionary measure to avoid any possible choking hazards. He said the detention center is counterproductive in the fight against terrorism because it's used as propaganda to recruit terrorists and drains military resources. President Barack Obama gave a statement at The White House on Tuesday, February 23, outlining his plan, presented to Congress that morning, to close the prison at Guantanamo Bay. For detainees who remain designated for detention, they will be considered, on a case-by-case basis, for dispositions including military commission or foreign prosecution, transfer to a third country, or transfer to the USA for prosecution, should Congress lift the ban on such transfers. "Furthermore, our judicial system has a proven record of trying and incarcerating terrorists, with over 500 terrorists now being held in US prisons". Earlier today, the Defense Department submitted to Congress the Obama administration's plan for closing the detention facility. MS Dhoni Says He Is Not Retiring Soon Enough The specially commissioned trophy is exquisitely crafted in silver and golden color with Micromax's logo christened on it. The presence of in-form Virat Kohli at the number 3 slot makes for a deadly top-order for India . Moreover, "Keeping this facility open is contrary to our values", he said. Since he took office in 2009, Obama has resettled 147 Guantanamo prisoners overseas. A Hassan spokesman has said she will review the Obama administration proposal. The White House has sought to buttress its argument for closing the prison by focusing on its high cost. The president, who will complete his second and final term in January, said it was important not to pass the problem on to his successor. Housing remaining detainees in the United States would be $65 million to $85 million cheaper than at the Cuba facility, the official said, so costs would be offset in three to five years. Dexter Fowler signs with Orioles, surges up draft boards The Orioles and outfielder Dexter Fowler agreed to a three-year deal, worth around $35 million, according to multiple reports . He set a career high in home runs (17) and walks (84) in 2015 after struggling through a mediocre first half. To move forward with its closure plan, Congress would have to alter current law, which now prohibits the administration from spending any money on bringing detainees to the United States. "So we can capture terrorists, protect the American people, and when done right, we can try them and put them in our maximum security prisons and it works just fine". This includes those who "pose a continuing, significant treat to the United States". Obama, however, noted that Republicans, including former President George W. Bush and 2008 Republican presidential nominee and U.S. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., both previously expressed support for closing the Guantanamo facility. Saudi Arabia said on Friday it suspended a $3 billion aid package for the Lebanese army as a result of Lebanon's recurrent official position against Arab interests and its failure to condemn attacks on Saudi diplomatic missions in Iran. "Despite these honourable stands, the kingdom of Saudi Arabia had been met with Lebanese stands that are against it on Arab, regional and worldwide arenas, in the shadow of the confiscation of the will of the state by the so-called Lebanese Hezbollah", the official said. Another $1 billion in assistance to the Lebanese police force was also axed. Analysts at Credit Suisse said in their February 16 research note that they believe the deal between Saudi Arabia and Russian Federation will make short-sellers more nervous. The United Arab Emirates backed Saudi Arabia's decision on the grounds that Lebanon's interests have been "hijacked" by Hezbollah, the state-run WAM news agency reported. Sian Blake murder case: Arthur Simpson-Kent to fly home It contained CCTV of Simpson Kent at his house after the homicides and details of ATM withdrawals in London. Miss Blake and her sons were reported missing on December 16 - three weeks before their bodies were found. According to the minister, Iran had taken a relatively constructive stance on the preliminary output freeze deal but had not yet said it was ready to sign up to those proposals. Lebanon's political scene is deeply divided, with the government split roughly between a bloc led by Hezbollah and another headed by former prime minister Saad Hariri, to which Rifi belongs. Hezbollah, for its part, criticizes Saudi military intervention in neighboring Yemen, where Riyadh is leading a fierce a campaign against the Shia Houthi militant group, which in 2014 overran much of the country. The Saudi decision likely will be a painful one for the Lebanese army. Clinton tops Sanders in tight lead at Nevada caucus Sanders' campaign has cited entrance polls of Nevada caucus-goers showing him doing better than Clinton among Latino voters. With strong support from black voters, Clinton won the caucuses with close to 53% of the vote compared to Sanders' 47%. "The GCC members reiterate their support for the Lebanese people and their right to live in a stable and safe state that is fully sovereign", the GCC secretary-general said. The aid which is considered the largest in Lebanon's history was annulled in light of the recent positions taken by the Lebanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs at Arab and Islamic meetings and its refusal to join the Arab consensus that rejects Iranian interventions. Lebanon has received the first batch of arms, which included armored vehicles, attack helicopters, and artillery. After an initial delivery of 48 Milan anti-tank missiles in April the programme was delayed as Saudi authorities sought a review of certain aspects of the deal, a French source said earlier. The U.S.-led coalition is only attacking the Islamic State and other extremist groups, not Assad's military. "Unlike Russia's obscured hand in Ukraine, its actions in Syria are being played out in daily headlines that report on Russia's indiscriminate bombing and its support of the Syrian regime in areas where moderate forces are aiming to get out from under the rule of the Assad regime", Clapper said. The UN has conceded that enforcing the plan on the ground will be challenging. The deal will not apply to the two main jihadist groups in Syria, Islamic State (IS) and the rival al-Nusra Front. The Syrian opposition has been more cautious. Corker and other Republican senators chided Kerry for the lack of leverage the USA has against Russian Federation if Moscow violates the terms of the agreement. The Kurds have been fighting IS, even as they face attacks from America's North Atlantic Treaty Organisation-ally Turkey. Khanaser lies along the government's only access route to Aleppo, Syria's largest city and once commercial center. Com updated and improved Also starting today, GIFs are supported in Outlook.com emails with integration of Giphy, again with the help of add-ins support. That's over as of Wednesday, and Microsoft has added some new plugin capabilities to go along with it. The High Negotiations Committee (HNC) - the leading Syrian opposition group - gave its conditional acceptance to the deal late Monday. "For us, al-Nusra is a problematic point, because al-Nusra is not only present in Idlib, but also in Aleppo, in Damascus and in the south. The critical issue here is that civilians or the Free Syrian Army could be targeted under the pretext of targeting al-Nusra", said a senior opposition figure, Khaled Khoja. In their recent meetings in the White House, US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Marine General Joseph Dunford, and Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Director John Brennan have voiced increasingly hawkish views towards Russian Federation, the Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday, citing a senior administration official. However, Talal Sillo, a spokesman for the predominantly Kurdish Syria Democratic Forces told The Associated Press that his group will not abide by the truce because it's fighting against IS in northern Syria. Hua said a ceasefire and an end to violence is an important part of the political process in Syria, adding that it can help to maintain progress and peace talks. Are Amy Schumer and Taylor Swift now in 'thigh gap' feud? After Schumer pals Tina Fey and Amy Poehler jokingly told Swift at the 2013 Golden Globes to "stay away from Michael J. Fox's son", Swift told Vanity Fair there was a "special place in hell" for women who don't support other women. The Syrian government said Tuesday that it had accepted a proposed truce in the country, adding that operations would nevertheless continue against the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and al Qaeda's branch in Syria. President Obama welcomed that an understanding was reached between the United States, Russia, as well as other partners in the International Syria Support Group on the terms and modalities for such a cessation of hostilities. The second round of inter-Syrian talks was planned to start in Geneva under United Nations auspices on February 25. The main umbrella for the Syrian opposition and rebel groups says it "agrees to a temporary truce" as long as the main opposition's demands are met. Russian Federation and the USA also agreed to set up the communications "hotline" to facilitate the exchange of information on the cessation of hostilities, monitor compliance and for urgent matters. Almost six in 10 GOP caucus-goers (57 percent) say they are angry at the federal government, according to the NBC News Entrance Poll. Nevada, typically a swing state with a substantial Latino population, is crucial to the election process. The billionaire businessman has a two-to-one lead over Rubio among male GOP primary voters. Donald Trump has consistently polled high in Nevada with a double-digit lead. Several of the candidates made a final push to win over voters at the weekend, holding town hall meetings and canvassing neighborhoods. CDC Investigating 14 New Reports of Sexual Transmission of Zika Four more women have tested positive for Zika in preliminary tests but are still waiting for tests to confirm they have Zika. While Guam doesn't have a single confirmed case of Zika virus transmission, the local public health department and the U.S. The field of Republican candidates, which once stood at more than a dozen, has been whittled down to five. Jeb Bush was the latest to pull out of the race, on Saturday, following his poor showing in SC. Polling has been hard to come by, but the most recent numbers from a CNN/ORC poll released last Wednesday show Trump at 45 percent in the Silver State, while Rubio and Cruz are far behind at 19 and 17 percent, respectively. People like Doug Pickett, who drove three hours from his home in neighboring Idaho to hear Rubio speak in Elko, may be exactly the kind of supporter Rubio is playing to in Nevada. It's the next big primary in the 2016 presidential election calendar. Donald Trump got 33.5 percent of the vote in SC. US to play Colombia, Costa Rica, Paraguay in Copa America The U.S. were drawn into the Group of Death with Colombia, Costa Rica and Paraguay chosen as the Americans' Group A rivals. However it turns out, we expect either Brazil, Argentina , Chile and Uruguay to win the Copa America Centenario . Cruz said there were only three viable Republican candidates left, and "at this point here in Nevada, it's all about turnout". Hillary Rodham Clinton defeated Bernie Sanders in the Nevada Democratic caucuses, which was seen as a key contest for the former secretary of state in the race for the party's presidential nod. Can this bartender's son beat Trump? Another disappointing finish in Nevada would raise new questions about his viability heading into a crucial set of Super Tuesday states on March 1. Addressing the firing of spokesman Rick Tyler, Cruz told reporters he had no choice but to dismiss his aide. Also read: When is my state's primary? Caucus start times vary by county; in Washoe County, doors open at 5 p.m. and caucusing begins at 6 p.m. The Nevada Republican Party expects to start reporting results around 9 p.m. As less successful Republican rivals for the nomination drop out, Rubio will attract enough support to take on Trump head-to-head come March 15, when Florida, Ohio, Illinois and Missouri award all their delegates to whoever wins their primaries that day. Tuesday's caucus vote is taking place amid increasing recognition that Trump, the political outsider who blasts the Washington establishment as incompetent, may well end up the party's nominee. I will sing of the mercies of the Lord forever; with my mouth will I make known Your faithfulness to all generations. Psalms 89:1 " ... How many opportunities do they afford to tamper with domestic factions, to practice the arts of seduction, to mislead public opinion, to influence or awe the public... " [From George Washington's farewell address.] Other Quotes: "Don't worry about genius and don't worry about not being clever. Trust rather to hard work, perseverance and determination. The best motto for a long march is ' Don't grumble. Plug on.'....Be honest. Be loyal. Be kind. Remember that the hardest thing to acquire is the faculty of being unselfish. As a quality it is one of the finest attributes of manliness." Sir Frederick Treves "...To be clear, the Constitution of the United States of America is the United States of America. They are one and the same. Any individual or agency which seeks to subvert the Constitution and wage political and/or rhetorical war on it, are self-declared enemies of the United States of America, as they are subverting and waging war on the United States of America." - Pat Dollard The truth to the matter is that Obama lies but he does it with such finess that the easily fooled are easily fooled. ~ Norman E. Hooben "Going for the grandest illusion of all, [Obama] ... told the New York Times: 'We've actually been operating in a way that has been entirely consistent with free-market principles.' Excuse me while I pick my jaw off the ground. Everyone knows -- or should know -- that putting more and more of the government in charge of more and more of the economy is entirely inconsistent with free-market principles. This means that the president's statement to the contrary is what is known as a big lie." --columnist Diana West When you trust a stranger more so than your friend, you become stranger than the stranger; Barrack Husein Obama is a stranger. - Norman E. Hooben We the peopleWe the people now have a New World Order that we the people did not order. Norman E. Hooben "We are now in a great civil war of words and you have the honor of participating as a true patriot. The battle has not been won but you will be there when we are victorious. The pen is mightier than the sword and you will inscribe your name in the book of freedomand that, my friend is an honor "If you will not fight for the right when you can easily win without bloodshed; if you will not fight when your victory will be sure and not too costly; you may come to the moment when you will have to fight with all the odds against you and only a small chance of survival. There may even be a worse case: you may have to fight when there is no hope of victory, because it is better to perish than to live as slaves ." - Winston Churchill It has been said that politics is the second oldest profession. I have learned that it bears a striking resemblance to the first. - Ronald Reagan Thomas Sowell For those who promote a race they are called, "racists". For those that promote American they are called "American". For 'American' is a 'concept' and no racial tones are tolerated either in shades or sounds. -Norman E. Hooben (In reference to Lourdes Galvan of San Antonio, Texas racial bigotry regarding American military heroes.) Note to NATIONAL COUNCIL OF LA RAZA ( Hola! I know you are watching): Will Rogers never met Nancy Pelosi or Harry Reid. - N. E. Hooben, July 2008 Harvard University was once an all boys school...today they have no balls at all. - N. E. Hooben I will stand with the Constitution For The United States of America should the political winds shift in an ugly direction Politicians are like vampires... Whether its blood or money they want to suck it out of you till you die. ~ N. E. Hooben (Norman E. Hooben in response to a writer who complained of not having the honor of serving in the U.S. Military)Back in the days of "The Lone Ranger" program, someone would ask, "Who is that masked man?" People need to start asking that question about Barack Obama. -N.E. HoobenThe Police State of Massachusetts is now imposing laws against nature. Massachusetts is by far the most un-Constitutional government of the State, by the State, and for the State than any among the the fifty that hold a star on the banner of freedom. It is run by Socialists and hypocritical so-called Christiansthe worst among them are the Catholics who go to Church on Sunday and forget what they Prayed for on Monday. - Norman E. Hooben - "A proud Catholic proud of my Faith. A proud Catholic NOT so proud of my Church!" - July 16th 2008 N. E. Hooben When a people are satisfied with receiving gifts paid with their own taxes as a way of life Anarchy is sure to follow. - Fred Boutin 2008 From the first time I heard about the boogey-man as a child to the first time I got shot at in Vietnam, nothing in my entire lifetime, THAT'S NOTHING! has put more fear into me than this man Obama. - Norman E. Hooben - July 2008 We are here for only a mini-second in the sands of time. Then we become the dust that makes the sand; and the Hand of God molds us anew. Take care my friend and may God Bless... - Norman E. Hooben on the death of our dearly beloved pet dog, Stirling The evidence is overwhelming! In order to save America we must destroy the Socialst Marxist Party... - N. E. Hooben "America is like a healthy body and its resistance is threefold: its patriotism, its morality, and its spiritual life. If we can undermine these three areas, America will collapse from within." -- Josef Stalin -- When it comes to lying, prudent people are guided by a Higher Authority driven by thou shall not written in stone. Whereas Bill Clinton has no Higher Authority to guide him, thou shall not has no conscious objections; for without a conscience there is no guilt. - Norman Hooben The victor will never be asked if he told the truth. - Adolph Hitler The accumulation of all powers, legislative, executive, and judiciary, in the same hands, whether of one, a few, or many, and whether hereditary, self-appointed, or elective, may justly be pronounced the very definition of tyranny. - James Madison, the Federalists Papers There was a Chemistry professor in a large college that had some Exchange students in the class. One day while the class was in the lab the Prof noticed one young man (exchange student) who kept rubbing his back And stretching as if his back hurt. The professor asked the young man what was the matter. The student told him he had a bullet lodged in his back. He had been shot while fighting communists in his native country who were trying to overthrow his country's government and install a new communist government. In the midst of his story he looked at the professor and asked a strange question. He asked,'Do you know how to catch wild pigs?' The professor thought it was a joke and asked for the punch line. The young man said this was no joke. 'You catch wild pigs by finding a suitable place in the woods and putting corn on the ground. The pigs find it and begin to come everyday to eat the free corn. When they are used to coming every day, you put a fence down one side of the place where they are used to coming. When they get used to the fence, they begin to eat the corn again and you put up another side of the fence. They get used to that and start to eat again. You continue until you have all four sides of the fence up with a gate in the last side. The pigs, who are used to the free corn, start to come through the gate to eat, you slam the gate on them and catch the whole herd. Suddenly, the wild pigs have lost their freedom. They run around and around inside the fence, but they are caught. Soon they go back to eating the free corn. They are so used to it that they have forgotten how to forage in the woods for themselves, so they accept their captivity. The young man then told the professor that is exactly what he sees happening to America. The government keeps pushing us toward Communism/Socialism and keeps spreading the free corn out in the form of programs such as supplemental income, tax credit for unearned income, subsidies, payments not to plant crops (CRP), welfare, medicine, drugs, etc. while we continually lose our freedoms- just a little at a time. One should always remember 'There is no such thing as a free Lunch!' Also, 'You can never hire someone to provide a service for you cheaper than you can do it yourself. You apparently don't share a sense of patriotism, Americanism, freedomism, or whatever kind of 'ism' that true Americans believe in... You do however, display a bit of socialism, communism, marxism or whatever kind of 'ism' that you make excuses for... ~ Norman E. Hooben (in response to an Obama supporter's views about the ACS census) A nation that knows not from where it came, knows not where it is going! Today, Americans know too little about the foundations of our nation. The result is a nation now in chaos, its people unable to discern what is wrong with the transformation (paradigm shift) of our society and form of government that, if left unchecked, will destroy every facet of freedom, liberty and justice. The price of freedom is vigilance; the price of vigilance is knowledge. Many of America's founding documents are now available on the web. ~ Learn USA Libyan National Army Tuesday announced it liberated the last jihadist-held area of Benghazi after two years of fighting. We have totally liberated the area of Lithi, said Fadel al-Hassi, of Libyas Special Forces. Lithi neighborhood had been a stronghold of militant groups including the Islamic State. Loyalists led by the Libyan Army Chief Commander Khalifa Haftar have been fighting for two years to retake the city from terrorists who established a nerve center in the second large city of the oil-rich North African country. Haftar issued a video statement praising forces win over the jihadists, a win he described as the fruit of much patience. Delighted local residents were allowed to tour the battle field. Some were seen firing celebratory shots into the air while others celebrated with loyal forces holding flags, flashing their cars lights or honking their horns. While the IS group is defeated in Benghazi, its fighters are trying to regain control of Sabratha, west of Libya where US air raids killed dozens of terrorists last Friday. According to reports, IS fighters launched attacks on several strategic places of the town before being driven out by forces loyal to Tripoli-based administration. Four IS fighters were killed. Meanwhile in separate reports, Libyan international recognized parliament, the House of Representatives (HoR) failed to have a vote of confidence on the Government of National Accord proposed by Prime Minister-deisgnate Faiez Serraj. Contradictory reports indicate that the parliamentary session was adjourned for lack of quorum (89 lawmakers). Other reports say a group of anti-unity government disrupted the vote which has been postponed to next week. According to the Libya Herald, a group of Cyrenaican / Federalist, an anti-GNA minority within the House of Representatives disrupted proceedingsof the Tuesdays session. The 10-member group insulted, threatened, bullied and shouted during the session to ensure that no vote took place. The group also physically prevented the Speaker of HoR, Ageela Salah, from launching the voting procedures. The House is set to meet next week for the vote. However, UNSMIL Chief Martin Kobler expressed his disappointment following the second postponement of the vote saying he was concerned by the slowness of the process. The Gabonese government is determined to lower down the obstacles faced by Moroccan companies operating in the central African country. During a high profile meeting last week with Moroccan companies established in the country, Gabonese Prime Minister Daniel Ona Ondo vowed to ease investment and business operations for the Moroccan companies which have voiced their concerns about various obstacles they face. Moroccan companies complain abot numerous challenges including payment of Value Added Tax (VAT) and commercial debt. The crisis is severe. In Port-Gentil, we work with oil companies which are severely affected by the crisis, so we are also affected, said Ait Ben Ali Mohamed, General Manager at SATRAM, a company operating in oil shipping and logistics. Our turnover has plunged by 45 per cent. Over the 2,800 employers at SATRAM EGCA, 700 should be normally dismissed due to lack of activity. However we did not do it. We on the contrary have continued paying salaries, he added. To that Prime Minister Ona Ondo indicated that he understood the various concerns and that governments efforts to facilitate business operations for companies are under way. I am aware that delays in the respect of our financial commitments might have affected development of your activities and therefore jeopardize employments. Our efforts to pay off the domestic debt, initiated since 2014, will continue because they are essential to the maintenance of growth and the improvement of the business environment, Ona Ondo said. Moroccan entrepreneurs received assurance from the Minister of Budget, Christian Magnagna who indicated that the government is determined to pay off its domestic debt and help companies go on with their activities. Settlement of the debt is scheduled for 2016. In 2015, we discharged our debt which was estimated at 189 million. In 2016 we are going to pay off in total over 239 million, Magnagna said. According to Gabonese e-journal gabonreview.com Moroccan companies have been very active in Gabonese economy and operate in various sectors including finance, insurance, wood, cement, telecom, food industry, mines and transports. In 10 years, Moroccan companies have created 4,500 direct employments and injected around 550 million investment in the country. After the first plant of Noor-Ouarzazate solar complex in Morocco started operating few weeks ago, materializing the countrys efforts to boost renewable energy sources, reduce dependence on fossil fuels and become a green-power leader in the region and the world, neighboring Algeria unearthed its own renewable energy program. At a meeting Monday with some members of his cabinet focused on energy issues, President Abdelaziz Bouteflika called for developing renewable energies to help the country secure its energy independence permanently and also to generate a dynamic of economic growth. He went as far as calling the renewable energies development program a national priority. Some critics of the countrys management as a whole mockingly wondered why it took him so long to realize that the program adopted in May 2015 is crucial for the country, while others candidly thanked Morocco for having launched its solar energy farm, prompting Algeria to follow its steps. When Morocco inaugurated earlier this month one of the biggest solar farms in the world, Algerian media, which is usually critical of the Kingdom, hailed as spectacular the growth and development achieved by their neighbor, although it has neither oil nor gas. The local media had then lashed out at the Algerian Government which shelved its renewable energy program. Algerias energy consumption is so far based on hydrocarbon resources but as hydrocarbon output is declining, the country needs to develop other energy resources. During the Monday meeting, Bouteflika called for implementing the renewable energies development program and also urged to intensify natural gas prospection and to refurbish gas fields that are underexploited RAINIER EHRHARDT By Mark Hosenball WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. spy agencies have told Congress that Hillary Clinton's home computer server contained some emails that should have been treated as "top secret" because their wording matched sections of some of the government's most highly classified documents, four sources familiar with the agency reports said. The two reports are the first formal declarations by U.S. spy agencies detailing how they believe Clinton violated government rules when highly classified information in at least 22 email messages passed through her unsecured home server. The State Department has already acknowledged that the emails contained top secret intelligence, though it says they were not marked that way. It has not previously been clear if the emails contained full classified documents or only some information from them. The agencies did not find any top secret documents that passed through Clinton's server in their full version, the sources from Congress and the government's executive branch said. However, the agency reports found some emails included passages that closely tracked or mirrored communications marked "top secret," according to the sources, who all requested anonymity. In some cases, additional classification markings meant access was supposed to be limited to small groups of specially cleared officials. Under the law and government rules, U.S. officials and contractors may not transmit any classified information - not only documents - outside secure, government-controlled channels. Such information should not be sent even through the government's .gov email network. The front-runner for the Democratic nomination for president and former secretary of state has insisted she broke no rules. Clinton's lawyer, David Kendall, did not respond to a request for comment. Clinton campaign spokespeople did not respond to multiple requests for comment. Two sources said some of the top secret material was related to the CIA's campaign of drone strikes against Islamist militants in the Middle East and South Asia. That campaign has been widely reported by Reuters and other media outlets, but it officially is classified as a "Top Secret/Special Access Program" (SAP), meaning only a limited number of people whose names are on a special list are allowed to learn details about it. One source said the reports identified some information in messages on Clinton's server that came from human sources, such as confidential CIA informants, and some from technical systems, such as spy satellites or electronic eavesdropping. The Clinton campaign criticized the State Department's decision last month to withhold the 22 emails containing top secret information from the public, blaming it on "bureaucratic infighting" and "over-classification run amok." "As we have previously made clear, we are not going to speak to the content of the emails," a State Department official said on Wednesday when asked about the intelligence agency reports. Clinton's use of a private server in her New York home for her government work is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the State Department's and spy community's internal watchdogs and several Republican-controlled congressional committees. Two of the sources told Reuters that one of the reports on the emails came from the CIA. Three sources said the other report came from the National Geospatial Intelligence Agency (NGA), which analyzes U.S. spy satellite intelligence. A spokesman for NGA did not immediately respond to requests for comment. CIA spokespeople declined to comment. The two spy agencies' reports were sent to Congress in the past few weeks by the intelligence community inspector general, an official government watchdog for multiple spy agencies. The inspector general's office has confirmed that it requested the reports from two intelligence agencies, but didn't identify them. It was unclear what the congressional committees that received the classified reports, the House and Senate intelligence and foreign relations panels, will do with them. The contents cannot be discussed publicly. The committees requested intelligence reports in connection with their efforts to ensure that government secrets are appropriately protected. (Editing by Stuart Grudgings) This article was funded in part by SAP. It was independently created by the Reuters editorial staff. SAP had no editorial involvement in its creation or production. The familiar emergency alert system, the one where we in the U.S. occasionally hear a radio or television broadcast interruption that... Linked Hybrid, Steven Holl, Beijing, China, 2009. Photo: Shu He/View Pictures/Corbis Thou shalt not be weird. That commandment has come down from the Chinese government, which is fed up with the orgy of outlandish international architecture currently cluttering the skyline. The order threatens to rattle Western firms that for years have been treating their projects in China like a weekend in Vegas a chance to indulge fantasies they could never get away with at home. In New York, even the boldest architects are hemmed in by zoning codes, vigilant preservationists, cautious lenders, and resistant neighbors. Over there, architects have leveraged the eagerness of local officials to encrust their cities with costly icons. A taste for sinuous towers, woozy museums, ovate concert halls, and various other organic-looking structures have kept Chinese patrons and Western architects in a state of co-dependency that the government may now be trying to break. Sliced Porosity Block, Chengdu, China, Architects: Steven Holl Architects, 2012. Photo: Nathan Willock/View Pictures/Corbis Theres a lot at stake. According to the American Institute of Architects, U.S. architecture firms working in China earned a cumulative $370 million in fees in 2013 22 percent of all of their international work. And its not just corporate juggernauts raking in jobs: Firms with 10 to 19 employees get nearly a third of their revenue from projects on the mainland. Architects who in lean times have to scramble for the chance to design an American doghouse return from Shanghai with contracts for entire campuses. The New Yorkbased architect Steven Holl has been struggling for years to build a small public-library branch in Long Island City. In China, he has built the equivalent of two Rockefeller Centers, which bear his fancifully architect-y names Linked Hybrid (in Beijing) and Sliced Porosity Block (in Chengdu). The Galaxy Soho developed by Soho China in Beijing, China, 25 May 2014. Photo: Imaginechina/Corbis This funfair atmosphere has kept firms in New York and European cities solvent and staffed, and also given them a laboratory in which to try out their most outlandish ideas. Surely Zaha Hadids experience designing the Guangzhou Opera House and Galaxy Soho shopping center in Beijing yielded lessons that could be applied to her smallish apartment building near the High Line. Even the buttoned-down firm Skidmore, Owings & Merrill has gone globular in its design for the Hebin Theater in Guiyang, which resembles a pileup of mercury droplets. Hebin Theater. Photo: Skidmore; Owings & Merrill LLP The line between creativity and weirdness is notoriously hard to police, and centralized bureaucracies have a spotty record in this area. The new State Council directive warns against oversized, xenocentric, weird designs, but it doesnt distinguish between bursts of wild sophistication and multi-million-dollar novelty items like buildings in the shape of coins, phalluses, gods, or the U.S. Capitol. In any case, the partys over. Regional officials, wary of being cashiered for backing too-fanciful projects, will likely stick to irreproachably conventional towers or dumb horizontal blocks. Guangzhou Opera House, Zaha Hadid Architects, Guangzhou, China, 2011. Photo: View Pictures/UIG via Getty Images Thats why the latest announcement is so ominous for New York architects. If China doesnt want foreign fanciness, it may not need to import design anymore at all. Western stars have hired, and helped train, a generation of local architects who can follow official taste wherever it leads. Some already know how to translate a poetic idea of Chineseness into the prose of construction documents. Wang Shu, for instance, won the 2012 Pritzker Prize for modest, quiet designs that spring from local tradition. If the Chinese authorities want architecture that is innovative but not weird, startling yet sensitive, they could look to the translucent, textured Guardian auction house that Beijing-based Ole Scheeren is inserting amid the low-rise hutongs near the Forbidden City. Scheeren is a hybrid product of the global city: Born and raised in Germany, he worked on the famously eccentric pretzel-twist CCTV Tower as an employee of Rem Koolhaas, then became so enamored with the land of opportunity that he decided to stay. His firm is now one of Chinas most visible engines of international architecture. Guardian Auction House. Photo: Buro-OS Even before the official edict, there were signs that local architects were ready to challenge their Western colleagues. When George Lucas wanted a brazen design for the lakeshore Museum of Narrative Art that he hopes to build in Chicago, he wound up with a strange conical structure that appears to be melting into a puddle of silvery fat. The designer is MAD Architects, whose founder, Ma Yansong, received an M.A. from Yale and who claims to be the first Chinese architect to win an overseas landmark-building project. Weirdness has begun to flow the other way. Sanders at Tuesdays town hall. Photo: Scott Olson/2016 Getty Images The Democratic presidential candidates participated in yet another CNN town hall on Tuesday night, their last matchup before Saturdays Democratic primary in South Carolina. Both Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders seemed very aware that theyre heading into a state where 60 percent of likely voters are African-American (and that in last weekends Nevada caucus, most black voters went for Clinton). Sanders attacked birtherism, accusing Trump and the rest of the GOP of racism, and Clinton recognized five black mothers whose children were killed by police, hours after she secured their endorsement. CNN also prodded Sanders about his religious beliefs and Clinton about the latest Beyonce controversy, with interesting results. Here are the highlights. Bernie and Hillary Battle Over Wall Street Transcripts Sanders threw down the gauntlet in his segment, saying hed happily release the transcripts from all of his paid speeches to Wall Street because there aint none. Clinton said shell release her speech transcripts too but only when everybody does it, including the Republicans. Why is there one standard for me and not for everybody else, Chris? she asked. Clinton Still Doesnt Know Why the Kids Dont Like Her Feel free to keep asking her about why young people dont feel the Hillmentum, but it seems she really has no idea. Maybe it has something to do with student-loan debt? Anyway, heres her plan to reduce the burden of paying for college (unlike Sanders, she still doesnt think school should be free). Sanders Sort of Tackles Lifes Biggest Mysteries Speaking of uncomfortable questions, would Bernie care to elaborate on his religious beliefs? Not really, but if youre a Christian, a Jew, a Buddhist, or a Jedi, rest assured that he agrees with the general message of your faith. Bernie Launches Birther Attack on Himself While decrying the GOP blockade of President Obamas Supreme Court nominee, Sanders raised the issue of birtherism, which he described as the racist effort to delegitimize the president of the United States, backed by Trump and company. My dad came from Poland. Im running for president, he said. Guess what? Nobody has asked for my birth certificate. Maybe its the color of my skin. I dont know. Clinton Courts Black Lives Matter Supporters She recognized the five moms involved in the movement, and said theres no denying that there was a racial component in the famous cases of police violence or misconduct that took their childrens lives. Hillary Probably Hasnt Seen the Formation Video When asked about the police officers calling for a Beyonce concert boycott, Clinton said she was going to put aside any particular celebrity, or any particular song or performance. She gave a substantive answer on criminal-justice reform, but we hope the Beygency didnt catch this pivot. This is really happening. Photo: Win McNamee/Getty Images Just moments after the polls closed, multiple outlets called the Nevada caucus for Donald Trump (in fact, ABC reportedly made the call a few seconds early). With all precincts reporting, Trump has 45.9 percent of the vote, followed by Marco Rubio at 23.9 percent, Ted Cruz at 21.4 percent, Ben Carson at 4.8 percent, and John Kasich at 3.6 percent. This is Trumps third straight win, following the New Hampshire and South Carolina primaries. Turnout was high on Tuesday, and organizers were reportedly overwhelmed at some locations. There were also complaints on social media about caucus workers wearing Trump paraphernalia, prompting the Nevada Republican Party to release a statement noting, Volunteers went through extensive training & are doing a great job. Man here says "it's a disaster." No one is checking in or checking IDs. They're handing out ballots willy nilly. Some guy voted trump twice Emily Cahn (@CahnEmily) February 24, 2016 Elderly couple calls Rubio line: "We've been registered R's our whole life. They said we weren't in the system." Elaina Plott (@elainaplott) February 24, 2016 Second woman says no one checked her ID. She was just handed a ballot. She says it's very scary. #Nevadacaucus pic.twitter.com/VqxrOianFj Emily Cahn (@CahnEmily) February 24, 2016 Updated quote from source: "40-50 loose ballots on table." Counter looked at them, put them under envelopes. Wouldn't budge when called out. Elaina Plott (@elainaplott) February 24, 2016 GOP official on caucus insanity, reports of double voting. pic.twitter.com/CY6ACvLssM Jon Ralston (@RalstonReports) February 24, 2016 Trump was widely expected to win in Nevada, after leading every recent poll by double digits. The New York Times reports the mood at his rally in the Treasure Island casino was jubilant, with his supporters brandishing Trump signs and flags and a few Bud Lights. When CNN projected Trump would win the race there was a minute-long cheer, which switched to boos when Cruz was mentioned. It was nearly an hour before Trump took the stage, and the networks were pretty excited about what he had to say. Fox News is actually showing an image of an empty Donald Trump stage rather than carrying the Ben Carson speech Tim Mak (@timkmak) February 24, 2016 We love Nevada. Thank you, thank you, Trump said when he finally emerged. A couple of months ago we werent expected to win this one Now were winning, winning, winning. And soon the country is going to start winning, winning, winning. Trump also preemptively knocked the pundits who will note that when you add together the other candidates, a majority of Nevadans actually didnt vote Trump. They keep forgetting that when people drop out, were going to get a lot of votes! he declared. Trump concluded by saying that from here on out hes going to be greedy for states. Were going to grab and grab and grab, he said. Now, were going to get greedy for the United States. This post has been updated throughout. Photo: Sarah Rice/Getty Images Michigan officials are still waiting to find out whether theyll be charged with manslaughter in the Flint water crisis, but in the meantime theyve allocated $30 million to reimburse residents for the past two years water bills. Michigan governor Rick Snyder told Reuters he plans to sign the bill, which was passed unanimously by both the Michigan State House and Senate. A spokesperson for Snyder said the funds are meant to cover residential water payments from April 2014 through this April, when Flints tap water will allegedly be lead-free. Snyder said the state will work with city leaders to figure out exactly how those credits will be applied. (But theyre definitely called for: A study found that Flint residents were paying nearly double the national average for their bad water.) This brings the total emergency state funding for Flint up to $70 million just a fraction of the $360 million Snyder has pledged to invest in the city. Pro-Apple protesters rally outside the FBI building in D.C. Photo: Chip Somodevilla/2016 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, the FBI proves Apple right, Trumps ascent continues, and Jean-Claude Van Damme gets work. Heres the rundown for Wednesday, February 24. WEATHER Three people have already died in the severe weather passing through the South. In New York, we will continue to avoid the snow afflicting states to the north, but the rain shows no sign of letting up until tomorrow. [Weather.com] FRONT PAGE Apples Worst Fears Are Totally Founded Just like Apple predicted it would, the government has requested the companys help in unlocking nine iPhones, along with the one used by the San Bernardino shooter. Investigators had insisted these requests to Apple would not become routine, but didnt qualify exactly what routine entails. We guess more than nine. [NYT] EARLY AND OFTEN Irregularities, Including a Trump Victory, Plague Nevada Caucus Donald Trump won his third victory in a row at Tuesdays Republican Nevada caucus, with Rubio narrowly winning the battle for second place. The caucus was plagued by problems, including complaints about poll-volunteers wearing Trump gear. Among other charming things Trump said after winning: I love the poorly educated. Clinton, Sanders Court Minorities Tuesdays Democratic town-hall event in South Carolina found the candidates going over plenty of old ground Hillarys speeches to Wall Street banks, Sanderss lack of concrete plans while strengthening their pitches to minorities, especially African-Americans. Sanders called out Republicans for promoting racist birther attacks on President Obama, while Clinton avoided an in-depth analysis of Beyonces Formation. Trump: Name-Calling and Face-Punching His Way to Victory Politics has rarely been so hard to watch. First, Donald Trump said he wanted to punch a protester in the face, and then, in an exchange that should have embarrassed everyone involved but clearly didnt, Donald Trump called Ted Cruz a baby. Not wanting to seem sympathetic for even a moment, Cruz responded by tweeting a stupid video from Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me. [CNN] Senate Turns Back on Governance Entirely Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has flat-out said that the Senate will not hold any hearings or votes on Obamas Supreme Court nominee, nor will they even meet him or her. Critics have been quick to point out that Antonin Scalia, who was well known for his literal reading of the Constitution, would have been against the move, but it is obstructionist and bad for the country so he might have actually loved it. THE STREET, THE VALLEY Gates Breaks Ranks, Sides with Government Or Does He? Bill Gates has been dragged into the ongoing debate between Apple and the federal government over encryption. It was first reported that Gates sided with the government, but Gates has since responded that he thinks neither side is entirely right. Come on, Gates, theres no room for nuance in this highly charged and complex issue. [The Verge] Audi Tops List in Rare Good News for Volkswagen Despite what has pretty much been a full year of unrelenting bad press, Audi and its parent company, Volkswagen has topped Consumer Reports annual list of top vehicles. The other surprise on the list is Tesla. The electric cars standing has dropped precipitously following the new models quality problems. [Reuters] Home-Video Sales Save Film Company. What Year Is This? Dreamworks is having a great year. Dreamworks Animation posted fourth-quarter earnings yesterday that surpassed analyst expectations across the board. The unexpected spike in earnings is being attributed to the companys focus on home-video releases and new Netflix shows. [Bloomberg] Hoverboards Get Even Hotter Amazon has officially stopped carrying hoverboards. The company changed course from its usual carry anything even if its crappy business model. The company dropped the popular non-hovering hoverboards following a Consumer Product Safety Commission decision that all hoverboards are unsafe because they just burst into flames all the time. [CNet] MEDIA BUBBLE Tribune Publishing Situation Ugly, and Getting Worse Jack Griffin is out and Justin Dearborn is in, as things keep getting crazier in the upper echelons of Tribune Publishing. New CEO Dearborn is from the health-care technology industry, which makes no sense not that an intra-industry hire turned out to do any good. Griffin came in fresh off being fired from Time Inc. after only six months on the job. Lets just say things are uncertain. [CNN] Why Do People Want to Buy Yahoo? Speaking of Time Inc., the company is said to be mulling a purchase of Yahoos core business. If the power players at Time decide to go for it, they might find themselves up against big names like AT&T and Verizon. What is Yahoos core business exactly? Is it still a search engine? [Bloomberg] The Best News of the Year, Perhaps Decade Huge announcement: Jean-Claude Van Damme will star in an upcoming action-comedy show on Amazon. The actor will go full method and embody the character of someone named Jean-Claude Van Johnson. Johnson is an over-the-hill professional martial artist and actor. Were just excited to see how Van Damme handles his transformation. PHOTO OP Kesha thanked those supporting her legal battle with music producer Dr. Luke in a post on Instagram. I am beyond words in gratitude, she said. Thank you is not enough but it is all I have. A million times over and forever thank you. The support I have received has left my face swollen from tears. I love you all so much. A statement too large for this format is coming MORNING MEME This is the kind of political discourse we can get behind. Lets all just give up and talk about Beyonce. Because why not? OTHER LOCAL NEWS You Make One Tiny Mistake In a charming story out of small-town America, a Limestone County, Virginia, man asked a friendly police officer for a ride to the local Walmart. One problem: He was carrying 0.5 grams of methamphetamine, 6.4 grams of marijuana, 0.7 grams of unidentified crystals, 5 baggies containing 5.2 grams of black tar heroin, a ball of black tar heroin weighing 13.2 grams, 18 needles, a cooking spoon, two marijuana smoking pipes, one meth smoking pipe, a grinder and a large quantity of plastic baggies. A lot of bad choices here. [AL.com] Joanie Pepperoni: Crusader for Justice Your everyday story of a murder-for-hire plot thwarted by an undercover cop is made truly special by the alter ego the police officer chose for herself: Joanie Pepperoni. Will somebody please give this pizza-loving crime fighter her own series? [WTAE] HAPPENING TODAY World Readies for Crash Landing SpaceX will be trying its hand at launching a Falcon 9 rocket again today, this time sending a telecommunications satellite into orbit for the company SES. If youre excited for an upright landing after the last near-miss, dont hold your breath. The company isnt. [The Verge] Bill on First Dude Duty In Richmond today, Bill Clinton will headline a get-out-the-vote rally for Hillary ahead of the Virginia primary on March 1. Lets hope we get fun, presidential Bill, not Sanders-bashing Big Dog Bill. [Richmond Times-Dispatch] Maybe its okay to ask him about his underwear now. Photo: Matthew Cavanaugh/Getty Images Before Bernie Sanders was known as the Democrats favorite grumpy grandpa before Larry David lovingly mocked him in Saturday Night Live sketches, and before he became the hero of a thousand viral internet memes he was known for being just, well, a grump. Bernie was an asshole, a nameless Democrat who worked with Sanders on one of his campaigns told a Vermont alt-weekly last year, backing up the comments of other (mostly nameless) former employees who found him impossible. Just unnecessarily an asshole. It wasnt just staffers either. Sanderss curmudgeonly ways extended to constituents Excuse me, shut up! You dont have the microphone, he shouted at activists protesting against Israel during a town hall in 2014 and maybe most notoriously the press, which hes been lecturing and cajoling throughout his political career. Weirdly, the cranky-old-man persona has become one of his great assets in the 2016 race. Its almost never talked about, thanks in part to his repeated insistence that the press focus on issues and not fluffy personality politics, but in the course of his run for president, Sanders has emerged as far more gifted at the politics of personal charm than the popular image of him as a cantankerous crank suggests. Hes shown a real pleasure for campaigning thats obvious to anyone, managed to turn a career of stubborn commitment to his chosen policy issues into a convincing argument for the sincerity of his convictions, and learned to benefit from the caustic-septuagenarian caricature of himself. His charmless charm has become an unseen benefit over Clinton, who has worked (against immense sexism, among other things) for more than two decades to establish herself as the leader of the Democratic Party. Bernie, whos never worried too much about getting people to like him, now has slightly higher favorability ratings and much lower unfavorability ratings than she does. Its the rooms that move me, that energize me, Sanders told The Guardian earlier this month, explaining how hed come to enjoy the campaign grind and believe that he was onto something with voters. I am really moved by it. But it wasnt really until the Democratic forum hosted by MSNBCs Rachel Maddow last November that Sanders started to show that he could turn his reputation for self-seriousness into an endearing in-joke. Maddow, with apologies, told Sanders to pick from a stack of cards containing less-than-serious questions for the candidates. Sanders has a well-earned reputation of cutting off or interrupting reporters he finds unserious he told a New York Times interviewer who asked him last year about the gendered coverage of Hillary Clinton, I dont mean to be rude here. I am running for president of the United States on serious issues, okay? Do you have serious questions? But instead of hectoring Maddow for the frivolity of the exercise, Bernie turned up the charm, mock-anticipating the questions he was going to be asked: How many pairs of underwear do I own? he guessed, referencing Davids SNL impersonation of him. Am I really Larry David? As the crowd responded to nearly everything with huge laughs, Sanders visibly softened a little. Do you curse? Maddow asked him, to which Sanders gestured at her like he was about to give her the best profanity-laced Brooklyn-tough-guy routine he had. Not on this show! he said. When asked what the biggest misconception was about him, he said, People think I am grumpy. People think I am too serious. He was deadpanning, and the audience was laughing along with him, but then he turned it into a moment that, with another politician, might have sounded canned: I think what people dont see is that I have seven beautiful grandchildren which are the joy of my life. It was just about the least Bernie Sanders-ish thing he could have possibly said. The Maddow event was not a one-off moment of crowd magic but a piece of broader campaign strategy, led by Sanders chief strategist Tad Devine, to revamp Sanderss image. It appears to have worked, too, perhaps helping to broaden his base of support. Back in October, when Clinton still enjoyed comfortable leads with women and nonwhite voters, the campaign outlined a new strategy to Politico aimed at softening his image. It would entail forgoing some of the large rallies he held in progressive enclaves in favor of smaller venues where he could interact with voters. It included a plan to do more TV interviews to pitch himself on shows like Ellen and The View. It required hiring a pollster to look at his support in different slices of the electorate and cutting a series of ads aimed at introducing him to voters in early primary states. Ultimately, Larry David may have done more to cement Bernies image as an endearing grump than anyone else. And its difficult to imagine how a female candidate could ever turn a similar quality into a great strength. But the Sanders running for president now is not the same one I saw on the Capitols lawn last April, when he launched his presidential bid in the least sentimental way imaginable. Let me just make a brief comment, he said. We dont have an endless amount of time. Ive got to get back to work. He went into a speech that lasted less than ten minutes and included an admonishment to the media. Then he turned around and did, in fact, go back to work. Back then, when he was waging a campaign primarily through free press coverage, he told reporters, Dont underestimate me were going to do better than people think. He was right. A certain young senator over a decade ago offered Democrats some perspective on how to deal with SCOTUS nominations thats germane to his SCOTUSBlog post today. Photo: Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images; Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images Regular readers of that fine online watering hole for all things Supreme, the SCOTUSblog, were probably startled Wednesday morning by a guest post from a former constitutional scholar named Barack Obama. On reflection, it makes sense he chose this wonky but accessible venue to lay out his talking points on the criteria he will use in selecting a Supreme Court nominee whom Senate Republicans have already announced they will block. This is not, however, Obamas first blog post, or even his first blog post about Supreme Court nominations. Back in 2005, during his first year in the Senate, he took to the virtual pages of Daily Kos to address progressive activists who were angry at Democratic senators who did not go to the mattresses to stop the confirmation of John Roberts as chief justice. Obama himself voted against Roberts, but did not choose to support a filibuster. So he was partially defending himself against the then-common netroots charge (still popular among many Bernie Sanders supporters) that Democrats in Washington were surrendering to the evil right-wing foe without a real fight. What makes Obamas 2005 essay interesting now, however, is a certain through-the-looking-glass quality. Substitute Republican for Democrat and conservative for progressive in his post, and hes offering the very Republicans pre-rejecting his own SCOTUS nominee some pretty good advice: There is one way, over the long haul, to guarantee the appointment of judges that are sensitive to issues of social justice, and that is to win the right to appoint them by recapturing the presidency and the Senate. And I dont believe we get there by vilifying good allies, with a lifetime record of battling for progressive causes, over one vote or position. I am convinced that, our mutual frustrations and strongly-held beliefs notwithstanding, the strategy driving much of Democratic advocacy, and the tone of much of our rhetoric, is an impediment to creating a workable progressive majority in this country. According to the storyline that drives many advocacy groups and Democratic activists - a storyline often reflected in comments on this blog - we are up against a sharply partisan, radically conservative, take-no-prisoners Republican party. They have beaten us twice by energizing their base with red meat rhetoric and single-minded devotion and discipline to their agenda. In order to beat them, it is necessary for Democrats to get some backbone, give as good as they get, brook no compromise, drive out Democrats who are interested in appeasing the right wing, and enforce a more clearly progressive agenda. The country, finally knowing what we stand for and seeing a sharp contrast, will rally to our side and thereby usher in a new progressive era. In case you dont recognize it, Obama is accurately portraying again, in a mirror the theory of change that Ted Cruz articulates every day. A plausible argument can be made that too much is at stake here and now, in terms of privacy issues, civil rights, and civil liberties, to give John Roberts the benefit of the doubt. That certainly was the operating assumption of the advocacy groups involved in the nomination battle. I shared enough of these concerns that I voted against Roberts on the floor this morning. But short of mounting an all-out filibuster a quixotic fight I would not have supported; a fight I believe Democrats would have lost both in the Senate and in the court of public opinion; a fight that would have been difficult for Democratic senators defending seats in states like North Dakota and Nebraska that are essential for Democrats to hold if we hope to recapture the majority; and a fight that would have effectively signaled an unwillingness on the part of Democrats to confirm any Bush nominee, an unwillingness which I believe would have set a dangerous precedent for future administrations blocking Roberts was not a realistic option. As you may know, Obama went on to support a filibuster against the confirmation of Bushs second justice, Samuel Alito a step he now says he regrets. But that doesnt necessarily undercut his 2005 argument that tactical rigidity is the enemy of strategic success. [T]o the degree that we brook no dissent within the Democratic Party, and demand fealty to the one, true progressive vision for the country, we risk the very thoughtfulness and openness to new ideas that are required to move this country forward. When we lash out at those who share our fundamental values because they have not met the criteria of every single item on our progressive checklist, then we are essentially preventing them from thinking in new ways about problems. We are tying them up in a straightjacket and forcing them into a conversation only with the converted. And thats the sort of reasoning that movement conservatives denounce as RINOism when it is articulated a rare thing these days among Republicans. The Russian missile launcher that Bellingcat believes took down the plane. On June 23, 2014, the 2nd Battalion of the 53rd Anti-Aircraft Missile Brigade left its base outside Kursk, Russia, driving south to the village of Millerovo, near the Ukraine border. Commanded by Lieutenant Dmitry Yuryevich Trunin, the battalion was equipped with a Buk medium-range surface-to-air missile system, including six missile launchers, three missile loaders, a command vehicle, and a Buk Snow Drift radar vehicle. Reaching Millerovo on June 25, the battalion encamped within five miles of an area of Ukraine controlled by separatists, and settled in. Three weeks later, on the night of July 16, one of the Buk launchers was hauled across the border and taken down the M4 highway to the rebel-held city of Donetsk. The next morning, it was brought to the village of Snizhne, then to an open field almost directly underneath a busy commercial aviation airway, L980. At 4:20 p.m. local time, flight MH17, a Malaysia Airlines 777, en route from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, approached from the northwest at an altitude of 33,000 feet. The Buk fired a single 9N314M rocket, whose 150-pound shrapnel-laden warhead exploded within feet of the cockpit. The passengers and crew of MH17 were scattered over the fields near the village of Hrabove. The Buk was taken back across the border into Russia the next day. This, at least, is the story that emerges in a 114-page report released Wednesday by the public-source intelligence analysts Bellingcat. Titled MH17: Potential Suspects and Witnesses From the 53rd Anti-Aircraft Missile Brigade, it builds on a series of earlier Bellingcat reports. Pieced together from Russian social-media postings by the soldiers and officers and their wives, todays report paints a detailed picture, complete with names, pictures, and license-plate numbers, of a military mission that culminated in the deadliest shootdown of a civilian airliner in history. Ultimately, Bellingcat wrote in an email to journalists that accompanied the report, responsibility for the downing of MH17 from a weapon provided and possibly operated by the Russian military lies with the Ministry of Defense and the Supreme Commander of the Russian Armed Forces, President Vladimir Putin. This is not the first international controversy provoked by Bellingcats founder, Eliot Higgins. The U.K. blogger first attracted attention after using social media to locate evidence that the Syrian regime had used chemical weapons, a finding that provoked a showdown between Assad and Obama. He then formed Bellingcat as an informal network of amateur investigators who use satellite images, tweets, status updates, and other forms of open-source intelligence to produce freely available analysis on a wide range of pressing topics. Highly regarded for its reliability and transparency, the groups work has been praised by the Columbia Journalism Review as rigorous, evidence-based examinations of extremely specific questions that are extremely valuable in helping us understand complex subjects. The sequence of events depicted by Bellingcat in which MH17 was shot down by a regular Russian army unit runs counter to the accepted narrative, which holds that the missile was accidentally launched by ill-trained militiamen who had gotten their hands on an extremely powerful and dangerous piece of weaponry and didnt understand how to use it. This narrative has ample foundation. In the immediate aftermath of the attack, separatist leader Igor Strelkov gloated over social media that the rebels had managed to shoot down an Antonov 26 transport, then took down the posting once it became clear that the plane was actually a passenger airliner. Likewise, Ukrainian intelligence intercepted cell-phone calls by militia members exhibiting shock after recognizing the nature of the act. It has since then been almost universally accepted among journalists and analysts that, as Aviation Weeks Bill Sweetman put it, Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 was shot down by Ukrainian separatist rebels who believed they were engaging a military aircraft. The Bellingcat report doesnt specify who pushed the fire button. But given that the machine in question was delivered from Russia the night before, and went back to Russia immediately afterward, the group discounts the idea that its presence under MH17s flight path was an unlucky mishap. When the order was given to send over surface-to-air missiles to shoot down aircraft, this was all part of something that was begun with Vladimir Putin deciding to send Russian troops and Russian equipment into eastern Ukraine, says Higgins. Eventually they sent over a Buk missile launcher that shot down a commercial airliner, and 298 people died. In the course of its investigation, Bellingcat contributors delved widely and deeply into Russian social-media sources, such as VKontakte and Odnoklassniki, as well as the likes of Instagram and Google Earth. This report represents over a year of investigative work, says Higgins. It shocks me just how much information these soldiers put out there, and how we can piece it all together. When you talk about the Russian military, you just think about this huge nebulous military machine, but were saying its possible to identify the specific individuals and the specific units who took this missile launcher to the border. It didnt find its way there by itself. Bellingcats painstaking research notwithstanding, the idea that Putin would order MH17 shot down is hard for some to swallow. The consequences were severe for Russia, especially after Europe and the United States imposed sanctions that helped put the Russian economy into a severe recession that continues today. Given the lack of obvious benefit, some observers are skeptical that the Kremlin deliberately ordered the mass murder. I have seen nothing to suggest the Kremlin ordered or wanted MH17 shot down, Mark Galeotti, an NYU professor of global affairs who specializes in the Russian security apparatus, told me via email. (Galeotti had not yet read the report; I apprised him of its contents.) Last year, Dutch civil-aviation investigators officially concluded that MH17 had been shot down by a Buk missile fired from Snizhne, but they pointedly did not affix blame. Responsibility for doing so lies with another group called the Joint Investigation Team, whose members come from the Netherlands, Belgium, Australia, Ukraine, and Malaysia. Bellingcat has already sent the JIT a version of its report, including identifying information and photographs redacted from the public release, but the JIT isnt saying when or if its final determination will be made. The group was originally scheduled to deliver its findings this year, but last week issued a press release announcing that it is not possible to say when in the future the JIT will be able to establish what [possible perpetrators] exact connection to the crime is, their identity, and actual place of residence. Winning. Photo: Bill Pugliano/Getty Images Marco Rubio may not be good at winning primary elections, but hes the all-time master of the expectations game. And since the true winner of the Republican nomination isnt determined by delegate count but by news cycles won, the former Florida senator has this thing nearly locked up. First, there was Rubios triumph in Iowa, where he spun a third-place finish into a landslide victory. Then, by carefully sabotaging himself in New Hampshire, the senator set himself up for a second-place win in South Carolina. But Tuesday night in Nevada Rubio took his game to whole different level. At first things didnt look so great for Marco Donald Trump did beat him by 22 points in the states caucus. But on Fox News Wednesday morning, Rubio revealed that drawing roughly half of Trumps support in Nevada was actually a come-from-behind win in the expectations game. Last time, Mitt Romney got over 50 percent, so Donald Trump actually underperformed [what] Mitt Romney did, not once but twice in this state, Rubio explained to Fox & Friends, referring to the 2008 and 2012 primary races. Rubio is to spinning defeat as Steph Curry is to the three-pointer, and this was Marcos half-court shot. Mitch McConnell will give President Obamas Supreme Court nominee zero hearings or meetings. Photo: Mark Wilson/Getty Images Senate Republicans announced today that they would refuse to consider any candidate nominated by President Obama for the Supreme Court. The Constitution gives the Senate the right to offer advice and consent on Court nominees. The two bodies have frequently quarreled over just how much power each is entitled over a nomination. Sometimes, senators have granted presidents wide latitude. At other times, they have insisted on forcing the president to nominate a jurist with mainstream views. But never before in American history has the Senate simply refused to let the president nominate anybody at all simply because it was an election year. One can defend the moral or procedural legitimacy of the Republican escalation. But few Republicans or conservative intellectuals have done so. Instead they have asserted that they are merely following historical precedent. This is demonstrably false. Republicans formulated their no-nomination position in real time, literally within moments of Scalias death, and hastily backfilled in justifications only afterward. The first defense, offered up on the fly by Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio at the Republican presidential debate that happened to take place that night, relied on 80 years of precedent of presidents abstaining from nominating anybody to the Court in an election year. This precedent has turned out to be a complete fiction. Presidents have nominated, and Senates have confirmed, numerous justices to the Court in election years, as law professor Amy Howe pointed out. The Senate did reject Abe Fortass elevation to chief justice in 1968, but it did so out of opposition to Fortass allegedly improper ties to the administration, not out of a principled rejection of President Johnsons right to alter the Court in an election year. The initial insistence that the Senate traditionally blocks any election-year appointments has fallen by the wayside for lack of any supporting evidence. Instead Republicans have fallen back to insisting that Democrats have advocated blocking Court nominees in an election year. Its worth noting that evidence that members of a party have advocated something is far from saying that its a routine use of senatorial power; one can find examples of, say, Republicans advocating impeachment of President Obama merely because they disagree with his policies, but this would not make it routine for a future Democratic Congress to follow through on what had been loose talk. But even this far weaker bit of evidence turns out, on closer inspection, to have been trumped up. The first alleged example of a Democrat advocating a full election-year blockade is a widely disseminated partial quote by Senator Charles Schumer from 2007 we should not confirm any Bush nominee to the Supreme Court except in extraordinary circumstances. The coverage of Schumers remarks has usually excerpted the second, and sometimes the first, sentence. But the third sentence, transcribed by Josh Marshall, changes the context completely: We cannot afford to see Justice Stevens replaced by another Roberts or Justice Ginsburg replaced by another Alito. Given the track of this President and the experience of obfuscation at hearings, with respect to the Supreme Court at least, I will recommend to my colleagues that we should not confirm any Bush nominee to the Supreme Court except in extraordinary circumstances. They must prove by actions not words that they are in the mainstream rather than we have to prove that they are not. Schumers clear point was that Bushs previous two nominees had misleadingly presented themselves to the Senate as moderates who would respect precedent, and then gone on to demonstrate judicial activist tendencies. Schumers proposed solution was not to stop any Bush nominee, but to require evidence of their moderation in their judicial record, not merely in promises they would make. One could believe Schumer was demanding too much deference for the Senate. But he was not arguing that the Senate should refuse to consider any nomination at all. An especially comic example of the mischaracterization of Schumers position comes from Charles Krauthammer, who informs his readers that Schumer publicly opposed filling any Supreme Court vacancy until Bush left office. (Except in extraordinary circumstances. None such arose. Surprise!). The last parenthetical passage is supposed to be a dagger revealing Schumers hypocrisy. But the circumstances did not arise because there was no Supreme Court vacancy at all. Schumers remarks, which did not say what Krauthammer claims they said, were completely hypothetical. A second example of Democrats allegedly advocating the current Republican position comes from recently unearthed 1992 remarks by Joe Biden, then a senator, urging the Bush administration to delay hearings for a prospective justice until after the election. But Biden, while typically windy, was not advocating a blockade of any nomination by then-president George Bush. He was insisting that Bush compromise ideologically. I believe that so long as the public continues to split its confidence between the branches, compromise is the responsible course both for the White House and for the Senate, Biden said. Therefore I stand by my position, Mr. President, if the President consults and cooperates with the Senate or moderates his selections absent consultation, then his nominees may enjoy my support as did Justices Kennedy and Souter. It is certainly true that Biden, like Schumer, was demanding broader latitude for the Senate. Both these remarks are within the historic tradition of senators tussling over how much say their chamber should have in the ideology of a new justice. But neither of them advocated flat-out blocking the president from any nomination, however moderate or well-qualified. And maybe the old system, in which social norms dictate that the Senate allow the president to put his ideological imprint on the Court, is simply untenable in a polarized age. Maybe that system was bound to perish. (Thats the case I made.) And maybe the Democrats would have wound up becoming the party to kill that old system if they found themselves in the position Republicans currently occupy. But the clear fact is that they didnt kill that system and they didnt create the new one that is taking its place. The current Senate Republicans did. Update: National Reviews Ramesh Ponnuru replies to my characterization of Schumer. The thrust of Ponnurus argument is to rely on the truncation of Schumers quote. The last italicized line that I quote above shows that Schumer was not arguing against Bushs right to fill any vacancy at all; he was pushing back against what he perceived as the administrations practice of letting Court nominees furnish empty promises of moderation to cleanse their highly conservative records. Ponnuru simply repeats the same quote without the crucial final line. Ponnuru does not explain why Schumers quote without the relevant context tells us more than the quote with context. He proceeds to dispute Schumers belief that previous Bush administration Court nominations were unacceptably conservative. But that is all beside the point. Obviously a conservative like Ponnuru is going to disagree with Democrats about what constitutes a conservative ideologue and what constitutes a moderate who merely follows precedent. Opposing parties have disagreed for decades about how far to the right (or left) the president can go with a nominee. Schumer and Biden were both arguing within the boundaries of that tradition insisting that any future nominee must sit closer to the center than the president would like. But they were not disputing the presidents right to appoint a mainstream, moderate justice of his own party to the open seat. Indeed, they both explicitly allowed for such a possibility, which Republicans currently refuse to consider. The Staten Island hospital that dispatched paramedics to try and save Eric Garner, the 43-year-old black man killed in July 2014 by a police officer using an illegal chokehold, is paying his family $1 million in a settlement reached in July. According to court documents obtained by the Associated Press, the agreement, with Richmond University Medical Center, is separate from the $5.9 million settlement the city worked out with the family around the same time. As seen in one of the videos of the scene that have been circulated, the medical responders found Garner unresponsive on the sidewalk in handcuffs. They questioned him for a couple of minutes, but he was out cold. Minutes later, they loaded him onto a stretcher and carted him away. Two paramedics and two emergency medical technicians were suspended a few days after the incident. The hospital has not given a reason for the suspension and has since reinstated the hospital workers into non-patient-care positions. The citys medical examiner called Garners death a homicide, and yet the officer who administered the illegal chokehold, Daniel Pantaleo, was never indicted, setting off a national outcry and protests around the country. A federal grand jury in New York has begun to hear evidence determining whether Garners death was simultaneously an attack on his civil rights. 252 East 57th Street. Photo: 252e57 On a cool, clear evening last week, Chiu-Ti Jansen, a writer and socialite and the founder of the Chinese lifestyle consultancy China Happenings, threw a belated Valentines Day party for real-estate investors and their advisers. Jansens company provides marketing and PR services to high-end brands looking to attract wealthy Chinese shoppers. Fendi, Van Cleef & Arpels, and the developers of the Baccarat Residences condominium are among her previous clients, and tonight, Jansen would be trying to sell investors on 252 East 57th Street a Skidmore, Owings & Merrilldesigned condo and the smallest of the glassy midtown towers known collectively as Billionaires Row. Demand on that rarified strip has lately been tepid. And so Jansens co-hosts for the evening the buildings co-developers, the World Wide Group and Rose Associates hoped that the party could help acquaint potential buyers with the condos charms. Since the building is still under construction, a fourth-floor office suite on Third Avenue had been staged to resemble one of 252 East 57ths 55th-floor condos. After the cocktail hour, Jansen had arranged for an expert speaker to hold forth on the partys theme: 2016 Hot Feng Shui Tips for Your Real Estate Investments & Love Life. In a Miele-equipped kitchen, Bryce Shuman, the executive chef at Betony, prepared feng shuiinspired hors doeuvres to be passed on silver trays: Chong Ching Crunch; marshmallow with green-tea powder; crispy chicken skin. Waiters in black poured Riesling, prosecco, and sparkling water for an effortfully stylish crowd speaking a mix of Mandarin and English. Among the attendees were Niko Elmaleh, an owner of the World Wide Group, and the architect Chien Chung Pei, a son of the legendary I.M. Pei. Beyond the softly lit entryway, in a small, rectangular room carpeted royally in maroon, a cardboard model of 252 East 57th Street rose above the heads of passersby from a circular pedestal. Jansen greeted guests there, dressed in quilted shorts, a flowing pullover, and perilous heels all Valentine red. A onetime corporate lawyer, Jansen is now something of a media polymath. In recent years, she has hosted awards shows on Fashion TV, blogged for the Sothebys website, and contributed a column to the Chinese edition of Financial Times. From 2011 to 2015, she edited Yue magazine, a luxury quarterly that she co-owned with the real-estate developer and New York Observer publisher Jared Kushner. Since the magazines closure last year, she has focused her energies on uniting her monied Chinese contacts with the merchants that would like to make them clients. Chiu-Ti Jansen. Photo: Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images There have lately been signs, however, that the network of affluent Chinese and Chinese-American influencers on which Jansen relies might be becoming somewhat less influential. Late last year, in an effort to keep resources at home, the Chinese government began more vigilant enforcement of a law forbidding the transfer abroad of more than $50,000 per person annually, circumvention of which had previously been semi-tolerated. Another popular method of moving money overseas, involving the conversion to cash of large insurance policies, was targeted by a similar crackdown. These and other pressures at home have had an outsize impact on the global luxury market. In a gloomy report on the Swiss watch industry published last year by Deloitte, 81 percent of the executives surveyed indicated that Chinese demand for their wares had fallen in the last 12 months due to anti-corruption legislation. Louis Vuitton has been hurting, too. Last month, the Times reported a rash of multi-million-dollar price cuts in luxury Manhattan real-estate listings, including at 252 East 57th Street. Of course, those discounts cant be attributed solely to waning Chinese investment, but they suggest a significant contraction in an area of the market that foreign capital particularly from China has played an outsize role in shaping. According to a report published last year by the National Association of Realtors, Chinese buyers accounted for $28.6 billion in U.S. sales over the previous 12 months, more than twice the amount spent by any other foreign group. Purchases in New York, Los Angeles, and other major cities account for much of that spending. Daniel Chang, a broker with Sothebys International Realty who heads one of his firms Asia desks, estimates that 50 to 60 percent of his clients are Chinese. In recent years, hes helped sell them units at 30 Park Place, a Tribeca condo designed by Robert A.M. Stern, where a duplex is currently available for $29.5 million; the Baccarat Residences, an ultra-modern building across the street from MOMA; and One57, arguably the citys fanciest address. Not long ago, appetites for these Manhattan trophy properties among wealthy Chinese seemed insatiable. It was about buying big and buying bold, Chang said. They didnt care about the price. In the last two years, though, just as some of these same buildings were being completed, interest began to wane. Chang attributes cooling passions to oversupply at the top of the market, combined with tightened regulations at home. Among the projects seemingly affected by this confluence is the still-under-construction 220 Central Park South, a limestone-clad skyscraper rumored to have a $175 million penthouse in the works. They are calling us every day now, Chang said. Asking us if we have wealthy customers who are wanting to buy. Making matters potentially worse for luxury developers was a recent announcement by the federal government that beginning in March, the identities of buyers involved in pricey purchases made in cash, or with the use of a shell company, must be reported to the Treasury Department. (Shell companies, mostly LLCs, have increasingly become part and parcel of the luxury real-estate trade often because of innocent concerns about privacy, other times to cloak ill-gotten gains.) The new program, which is slated to run until August, will affect residential Manhattan transactions worth $3 million or more, and purchases in Miami-Dade County of $1 million and up. If Treasury officials identify a lot of suspicious activity during that interval, according to the Times, they will develop permanent reporting requirements across the country. Marc Landis, who chairs the real-estate practice at the law firm of Phillips Nizer LLP, envisions several likely effects. People who have legitimate needs for privacy but are concerned that their information may not be secure may back away from investing, he said recently. Money launderers, I suspect, will fall into two categories. Some will back away from the market, and others will simply lie. Someone who has gotten whatever they have through bad acts I suspect a lot of the time, that kind of a person will find a second cousin once removed to appear on the paperwork. Much of the investment from China that helped fuel luxury development in New York falls into yet another category a gray area, in Changs estimation. It is true that many of those who got rich in Chinas boom did so, in one way or another, through connections to government officials, and that by Western standards, their business practices might not have been exactly clean. At the time, though, the boundaries of legality were often blurry. Chinese investors eager to secure condos at One57 and the like have generally been more concerned with protecting their profits from a volatile economy and from anti-corruption prosecutions that can be arbitrary, motivated more by personal animus than justice than with cleaning their cash. The U.S. is the biggest recipient of flight capital in the world, said Ed Wilson, a former deputy general counsel to the Treasury. A lot of it is legitimately made. It may be tax evasion where theyre from, it may be illegal exportation of capital. What is it here? Its investment. Both Chang and Landis doubt that their clients will abandon deals as a result of the new Treasury regulations. But there are undoubtedly people who wont feel the same way, Landis said. I think developers are a little bit concerned. For the super luxury stuff thats been softening in the last few months, knowing that thats such a small world to begin with, its concerning that some of those potential buyers are being taken out. As the faux condo filled up, Pamela DArc, the director of sales for 252 East 57th Street, seemed cautiously optimistic. She acknowledged, though, that the developers had resorted to promotions that wouldnt have been necessary five years ago. Prices, particularly of units asking more than $10 million, had fallen. Brokers had been offered a commission within 60 days of a signed contract payable even if the contract didnt ultimately close. On the bright side, DArc noted, interested parties had told her that the building had good feng shui. An announcement was made indicating that a presentation by the feng shui master Zhi Hai was about to begin, and in the living room, young women with long black hair cozied on cream-colored furniture arranged around an oversize coffee table. A handful of men in suits occupied standing room. Chiu-Ti Jansen and Hai, a petite woman in a bright red jacket whose business card also touts her status as a metaphysics master and architect took low chairs facing the crowd. Waiters freshened drinks. Backlit drone captures set behind windows of curved glass provided the crowd with fake but convincing vistas encompassing Central Park and the East River. (Proximity to water and greenery is a frequent selling point among the feng shui faithful.) Alternating between Mandarin and English, Jansen and Hai reviewed changes to the feng shui order for 2016, the Year of the Monkey, emphasizing the ancient practices practical applications to the timeless pursuits of love, money, power, and property. The inauspicious i.e., northeastern orientation of an apartment might be neutralized, Hai said, using plants and jarred water. Good energy could be accentuated with the right colors, and the results might make you rich in more than spirit: If feng shui in your house is good, you can just increase the price buyers will sense your prosperity. Its so easy to sell! The discipline could also be deployed as an evasive tactic. Ive helped so many people win lawsuits, said the master, drawing a chuckle from a bespectacled man, who nodded knowingly. As the lecture transitioned to a Q&A, the crowd began to disperse. A woman in a sleeveless dress and a blue fur Russian hat with matching vest flitted through the entryway. This is fox, she explained, heading onto the elevator. Poor fox! Elmaleh, of the World Wide Group, followed some minutes later, joined by Chien Chung Pei. Are you doing good traffic? the architect asked, referring to demand at 252 East 57th Street. Weve had good traffic, Elmaleh said after a pause. Weve got a great location. Pei nodded, seeming to consider the matter closed. And you cant miss the sales office, Elmaleh continued. We havent even done much advertising. We havent done a full-page spread in the Times, nothing like that. They had reached the ground floor, and Pei moved toward the coat check. Elmaleh walked after him. Were really only starting to advertise now, he insisted. Were booming along. Ever since Adele released 19, the beauty world has been thinking hard about her eyeliner. The source of that elusively perfect cat-eye swoosh is her longtime makeup artist and hairstylist Michael Ashton, who has worked with Louise Roe, Hilary Swank, and Chris Pratt. Ashton doesnt often give interviews, but he talked to the Cut about how he started his career in New Zealand, why product cocktailing is the key to getting Adele-worthy liner, and the importance of a good face massage. Click through the slideshow for some more of Adeles best beauty looks, and see his favorite seven beauty products below. How did you start your career? Id always done my mothers hair and makeup growing up. My uncle Sir Howard Morrison was an entertainer in New Zealand, and I would go backstage and help get my grandmother ready before she performed with him. I remember, my mother had a NutriMedics kit with these amazing eye shadows that you could use wet or dry. I always wanted to do makeup growing up, but in New Zealand, at the time, you had to learn to do both hair and makeup. I started working part-time at a salon whilst I was still at high school and then went onto train at Servilles Academy of hairdressing. At 19 I won the New Zealand Young Protege scholarship for hairdressing and after having taught myself make up with a little help from Kevyn Aucoins book Making Faces, I was booked on my first fashion shoot, a campaign for New Zealand designer Nom*D. I first started working with celebrities when Girls Aloud and Jamelia came to New Zealand on promotional trips and had started travelling to New York working alongside the M.A.C Pro team with Gordon Espinet. When I first moved to London in 2006, I assisted Val Garland and Dick Page on the show circuit both here in the U.K. and Europe. It was through a friend in PR that I worked with Bianca Jagger and Elle McPherson and thats when I began to focus on the red carpet. How do you see a face? How would you describe your approach? I try to gauge the client as a person and what they feel comfortable in. Its about not scaring them, but still putting your mark on it as well. Its always a very collaborative process. I tend to start with the eyes, whether its a smokey eye or clean eye. You need to look at the person and see if they are more of an eye or lip person, and how they might like the texture of their skin, whether its more dewy or matte. If you look at my work together, you see its about making them look flawless but not too perfect. Old-school Hollywood is a big reference for me, with iconic films and print images. They look very put-together Elizabeth Taylor, Grace Kelly, and Lauren Bacall were stunning. Also photographers like Helmut Newton. But its more about a feeling, whether its a texture in the hair or a tone of the lip. How do you prep the skin before you begin working on it? Skin preparation and skin care is key. There are also some amazing sleeping masks. Im a huge fan of facial oils and balms that really nourish the skin. Its about making the skin look hydrated and doesnt lose that elasticity. Facial massages are also amazing. Sometimes you have hours, sometimes five minutes. Its not just plumping the skin but working the product in. I work across the face, focusing on the forehead first, nose area, but always working up and outwards, also going up the throat, through the jawline. I do it with the moisturizer or with facial oil. Its a great way to get the products on and to awaken the facial muscles. How did you and Adele start working together? We were introduced through a mutual friend in the summer of 2007 leading up to the release of her first album, 19. I popped over to her house to trim her fringe and she asked if I could do a quick bit of eyeliner for her before she went to meet friends. The eyeliner obviously got the seal of approval and the rest, as they say, is history. The first beauty looks we did together were for a collection of images to coincide with the release of 19. Adele has beautiful almond-shaped eyes and fantastic natural bone structure, which is the perfect canvas to work with, so at the beginning it was always about making the eyes a focus feature. We played around with different eyeliner looks, lashes, and some dazzling dustings of metallic glitters. How do you create Adeles cat-eye? Product cocktailing is key to achieving the intensity and opaqueness of the eyeliner. I always start by outlining the shape of the liner, working from the inner to outer corner of the eye with a black gel liner. I then work the product right into the root of the lashes and then build thickness gradually. Once Im finished creating the desired shape, I use a waterproof liquid liner with a precision tip to intensify and refine the line, finishing by winging the end of the liner last. I have a couple of fantastic eyeliner brushes I picked up in a little beauty store in Japan years ago and they have the perfect taper. Theyre thicker at the bottom, which allows a quick application of product, but the tip is extremely fine so you can gently drag out the wing of the liner until it fades away into the finest point. If I do need to clean up any edges, Im never without Bioderma Crealine and Muji thin cotton tips close by. In another interview, you called Adele a modern beauty icon relevant to todays woman. Why do you think shes so relevant? I think her beauty look resonates with people because its aspirational but also extremely achievable. It seems everyone is always wanting to try and wear the latest beauty looks from the runway or the high street and often it just doesnt translate. Adele is known for her makeup, but what makes her a modern beauty icon is the strength of keeping things simple and classic so they stand the test of time. Ive noticed that Adele has also been wearing more red lip colors during promotion for 25. How are you achieving this look? Ive always loved a red lip on a woman its a great way to amp up the volume of any beauty look. At the moment I have a few different products in my kit, but one that Im using a lot is a liquid lipstick, Lip Maestro by Armani, which has a demi-matte finish. I start by applying the product onto the lip with a lip brush and then have the client distribute the color by rubbing their lips together in different directions. To finish, I will either feather the edges using my fingertip, or, for a more defined shape, I will sketch the outline using a slightly darker lipliner for added dimension. What type of contour do you use to create Adeles look? It always looks so perfectly sculpted. Contouring and highlighting the face is the ultimate way of creating a truly three-dimensional polish. Contouring is another time when product cocktailing works so well to give added depth. I always start using a cream stick in a deep-brown shade, applying product first to the back of my hand and then buffing it into the skin using a natural hair foundation brush right underneath the cheekbone toward the center of the face, through the temples and around the hairline, then lightly down each side of the nose. The second stage is to go back over using a powder and an angled blusher brush in a circular buffing motion to set and soften. I have a palette of contour colors, which are a mixture of matte shadows, blushes, and bronzers as well as some with soft reflective finishes mixing them together depending on the finish Im wanting to achieve. When it comes to Adeles look, do you take care to make the cat-eye look a little different each time? It is always a collaborative process. We have worked together for so long now that we have our own memory bank of references to work from, so it might be lets do classic liner, but with the shimmer through like we did on SNL and just lip balm. Its brilliant because we know we are both reading from the same page, so to speak. Michael Ashtons seven favorite products: How to prep your skin like Adele. Bobbi Brown Extra Illuminating Moisture Balm: Skin prep is one of the most important stages of makeup, and this moisture-rich balm instantly makes skin look hydrated, plump, and glowing. The biggest beauty import out of Australia. Lucas Paw Paw Ointment: The ultimate multipurpose product for lush lips, shimmering lids, and a freshly flushed sheen on the cheeks. Ashtons favorite cream foundation brush. Tom Ford Cream Foundation Brush: When it comes to achieving a flawless and polished base, this is my go-to brush that helps create a cashmere-soft texture to the skin. The perfect eyeshadow. Charlotte Tilbury Eyes to Mesmerize: For creating a soft but dramatic eye quickly, these pots of metallic cream shadows are perfect. Custom blend shades together for the perfect hue and then buff metallic eye shadow on top for an expensive-looking finish. Michael Ashtons mascara of choice. Diorshow Black Out Mascara: Fantastic for party-pumping up your lash volume to a rich, blacker-than-black flirty flutter. Consider black not clear mascara. Duo Lash Glue in Black: When it comes to making sure lashes stay the distance, there isnt a better lash glue out there. The best thing about the glue being black is it helps to blend false lashes into the natural lash line, and it also dries matte, which makes it more seamless. The best nude pencil. M.A.C Lip Pencil in Boldly Bare: An absolute makeup kit must-have for creating the illusion of a full and defined pout, without being too obvious. This interview has been condensed and edited. The scene at Louis Vuittons last PFW show. Photo: Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images Burberry may have just shown its first buy-now-wear-now collection at Fashion Week to much fanfare, but it doesnt sound like its neighbors across the pond are going to follow suit. The succinctly titled Federation Francaise de la Couture du Pret-a-Porter des Couturiers et des Createurs de Mode has a position on the new seasonless trend, and that is a unilateral Nah. After assembling a fact-finding mission similar to the one the CFDA is conducting now, its board cast a unanimous vote not to adopt the consumer-facing approach at Paris Fashion Week. That means that Dior and Chanel will be among the houses continuing to show in the traditional fashion. Paris is undisputedly the fashion capital of creation, the organizations president, Ralph Toledano, told WWD. As far as we are concerned, the present system is still valid. Among the concerns he cited were that designers would tire of their own collections by the time runway shows came around, and a fear that embargoed imagery from the early editor/buyer previews required by the schedule would leak. Instead of us controlling our image, our image would be in the hands of pirates, he told the paper. Toledano isnt the only big figure in French fashion to reject buy-now-wear-now. Last week, Francois-Henri Pinault, the head of Kering, also came out against the concept, at least when it comes to luxury brands. The notion of see-now, wear-now, or sell-now, for example, is a negation of dreaming, of desire, he told the Business of Fashion. So much for your plans to buy Chanel straight off the runway. that is awful Reply Thread Link The guy with the shoe comment is a moron and a racist asshole to boot (cwidt?) This is basic stuff. Reply Thread Link Had to check to make sure he's white and of course he is. Reply Parent Thread Link "Rude jokes. Offensive rants. Comedy!" Dipshit. Reply Parent Thread Link "youtube star" lmfao what kind of desperation for posts Reply Thread Link yes, that's the real issue here Reply Parent Thread Link smdh, the tsa are racist fucks, no surprise there. Reply Thread Link jasmeet is hilarious, it sucks this happened. on snapchat he said he isn't mad that he had to take off his turban, he's mad that they didn't provide him a mirror to put it back on. he found it disrespectful for them to be so meh about it when he was nothing but cooperative. Reply Thread Link I mean, they all followed protocol. I doubt they have mirrors lying around for this sort of thing. Reply Thread Link Why not? I mean if they gonna ask to check these things? Reply Parent Thread Link so they can't go find one? wtf Reply Parent Thread Link You sound white. Reply Parent Thread Link maybe they could be more sensitive and have one since they have a penchant for searching people with turbans. Reply Parent Thread Link so their protocols should include provision of mirrors, it's not hard Reply Parent Thread Link so? i have to take a hat off as well. sth could be under both, doesnt mean its a race thing. its not like they asked him to shave off his beared Edited at 2016-02-24 01:54 pm (UTC) Reply Thread Link because a hat and a turban are interchangeable right? Reply Parent Thread Link no but you could hide something under both? unless the turban is see through i dont see the big deal. now if he was told to shave his beard while white guys could walk through it with a beard now that would be something different Reply Parent Thread Expand Link omg youre so ignorant. Reply Parent Thread Link his pagh is religious headwear. it's not like a fedora. Sikh men cover their uncut hair. the problem was that after he took it in a private room, he had to walk all the way across the terminal to find a mirror so he could put it back on. Reply Parent Thread Link You sound white. Reply Parent Thread Link Wtf Reply Parent Thread Link Did you read the post? He's not angry that they made him remove it. He's angry that they were insensitive fucks and told him to leave the private room with it off. Reply Parent Thread Link The TSA seem to assume all Sikh's are Muslim, which just baffles me, cos isn't that basic religious knowledge? Reply Thread Link you'd be surprised lol Reply Parent Thread Link I highly doubt even the average American knows what a Sikh is or what they look like. Reply Parent Thread Link It is.....but honestly religious and cultural sensitivity isn't America's strong point when it comes to brown people. Reply Parent Thread Link lol you assume that corporations/companies gaf about minorities Reply Parent Thread Link You presume people are willing to learn about religions other than their own instead of just demonizing them Reply Parent Thread Link I mean in school we covered the six major religions enough to know stuff like that. I guess I naively assumed that was something most places did. Reply Parent Thread Expand Link Nope. I had to explain it to my coworkers once, who refered to Sihks and Muslims as "turban people". Reply Parent Thread Link Unfortunately not. You'd think so, but people are dumb as fuck. Reply Parent Thread Link all brown people = muslims. period. Reply Parent Thread Link honestly it's just as f'd up to be all "but he isn't even muslim!", as if profiling anyone because of their religion is okay and as if going after muslims in particular is okay. Reply Parent Thread Expand Link When I first became friends with these peeps from Cali they assumed I was Muslim, I laughed and just educated them what the Punjabi culture is what the religion is Sadly not many people know unless they know a Punjabi/Sikh person, so I usually don't take offence cause the education is not there unless they educate themselves via Google. Reply Parent Thread Link honestly at this point it's just the thing to racial profile if anyone even has darker skin. they really don't care. Reply Parent Thread Link Do the people who leave racist comments know they're racist? Every time I see a story about a POC you can bet that the comments will be full of racism...I just wonder if these people know that what they're saying is racist and just don't care, or if they genuinely believe they're making a valid point. Its just so wtf to me, like do these people say things like this in public and have people agree with them?? That is all. Reply Thread Link 99% of them probably don't a lot of people seem to think you're only racist if you're burning crosses on lawns tbh, any terrible things you think or say throughout the day about other races is just "what everyone is thinking" Reply Parent Thread Link It's upsetting how much just stepping out of the if it ain't white it ain't right bubble for even 10 seconds could change so much of the hatred I see spewed so much on comment forums. Reply Parent Thread Link do these people say things like this in public and have people agree with them?? In my experience, yeah. I'm white, my family is generally rather racist -- and if one of them says something, they've surrounded themselves with enough people that use this "well, someone said it, so it must be okay" form of logic to go off on the same tangent. Then again, a lot of people seem to think it's only racist if you're killing James Byrd or burning crosses, and that micro-aggressions aren't a thing, so they just can't be racist, you guys. Reply Parent Thread Expand Link a lot of them are either racist and don't care or are racist trolls. either way those two camps are horrible. Reply Parent Thread Link I think it's a bit of both, honestly. When my mother watches TV she'll drop obviously racist comments when I'm in the room. Some of them she just didn't think through and if she'd told anyone but me they'd agree with her, so that echo chamber tells her she's right. I tell her she's wrong and try to walk her through why and sometimes it'll break through and she'll get it. I'll overhear her passing it on to someone else later. Other times she'll say something and when I tell her that's messed up, she'll indicate she knew I'd respond that way.. which tells me she knew what she was saying was racist and wrong and didn't care. And yes, people do say these things in public and have perfect strangers agree with them. I've been in situations where a whole waiting room goes on such a blatantly racist rant that I have to get up and leave. You can truly say the absolute worst things I swear and have people agree with you. Reply Parent Thread Expand Link Usually I'd say it's more of people not realizing their racism. Like my mom is pretty good for the most part but for some reason always makes the argument of "if they made a WET (White Entertainment Television) people would be up in arms!" not realizing that pretty much ALL TV is that (obviously this is in regards to there being a BET). I think most people that are somewhat or kinda racist are so used to the world being one way and have never really had to question it or be in another position where they were a minority that they just accept it without a second thought and don't even realize the issue because it's their norm. Reply Parent Thread Link Do the people who leave racist comments know they're racist? Nope, they don't see colour. Reply Parent Thread Link my mom's side of the family (who are not white + MAJORLY evangelical christian) are so deep into their religious beliefs they say the dumbest shit about other "cultures". i can't even be in the car with them for more than 15 minutes without losing it. Reply Parent Thread Link ew @BasicallyBrentt Jussss! the only youtube star I care bout tbh.ew @BasicallyBrentt Reply Thread Link @VillaDT Friend of JusReign he's in some of his videos too. Reply Parent Thread Link Other guy is hot Reply Parent Thread Expand Link They both fine. Reply Parent Thread Link saaaaaaaaame! I hate ALL youtubers/ vine stars except for jusreign <3 Reply Parent Thread Expand Link rottweiler! big goofy puppy! Reply Parent Thread Link DO YOU LISTEN TO DRAAAAAAAAAKE lol dude is hilarious Reply Parent Thread Link who's in your icon? Reply Parent Thread Expand Link I love Jus Reign. He needs to break beyond Youtube. Reply Parent Thread Link Sooo hot Reply Parent Thread Link The guy on the right is fiiiiiine. Reply Parent Thread Link Damn the guards could have at least held up his phone and use it as a mirror for him. Reply Thread Link right? my thoughts. Reply Parent Thread Link aw i love him :( this is fucking horrible. Reply Thread Link I see the messy comments started here like last time. As a sikh i have no energy to fight dumb assholes here who compare our turban to your fucking hat. Reply Thread Link seriously, these comments Reply Parent Thread Link it's fucking disgusting Reply Parent Thread Link ugh not sikh but holy ontd is so fucking racist. Reply Parent Thread Link Yup especially when it is anything asian (east and south) Reply Parent Thread Expand Link ONTD is fucking ridiculous about these things. Anything they don't understand is 'ew' or 'stupid'. Reply Parent Thread Link your icon + your comment is perfect lol, ppl r so fucking dangerously stupid Reply Parent Thread Link It's disgusting. And then a lot of them proclaim to not even reading the article, which is indicative of the source of the problem. Learn about other cultures, don't just expect them to conform to yours. Reply Parent Thread Link Whenever stuff like this happens the ignorance and racism comes out full force. Reply Parent Thread Link I'm sorry people are (for the most part) really dumb and insensitive about this. Reply Parent Thread Expand Link Omg IKR >:((( Reply Parent Thread Link mte, I'm sorry people are so ignorant and blase about your faith. Reply Parent Thread Expand Link mte ugh Reply Parent Thread Link It's exhausting dealing with ignorant people who feel it's okay to be disrespectful or racist, especially about another person's religion. I'm sorry you have to deal with these types of comments. Reply Parent Thread Expand Link I'm a Sikh, too! I come into these posts expecting the worst. Reply Parent Thread Link I just feel they're not educated, they just assume all of us brown people are either Hindu or Muslim or assume Hindus are Muslim too lol Obviously not educated well enough, thats all. As a Sikh too I'm not over offended they just need to learn if someone gives them facts haha Edited at 2016-02-24 09:33 pm (UTC) Reply Parent Thread Expand Link The comparisons are gross af. And when people use the false equivalency of a nun's habit it pisses me off even more. Like they have no idea wtf they are talking about but obviously everybody should follow the same arbitrary ~rules~ rme Reply Parent Thread Expand Link YIKES! And that designer recently had to do the same :( Reply Thread Link Difference with the model if you're talking about http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3438310/Sikh-actor-barred-boarding-plane-turban-refusing-fly-home-three-demands-met.html they refused him on the flight and he voluntarily said he would remove his turban for security check but they still wouldn't let him on the flight :( Reply Parent Thread Link what's the point of letting him remove his turban in private, only to make him go out into a public space without it? LOL YES SERIOUSLY how the fuck are people not getting this. Fuck protocol, fuck that shit. What about a woman wearing a hijab or another sort of covering? What if she also does not feel comfortable going outside to the bathroom to put it back on because there are men who might see her? The point is TSA doesn't give a shit about cultural differences when they should seeing as how they are targeting brown people who are typically Muslim/Sikh/etc. and have different rules for adhering to their religion/cultural norms. TSA should be respectful of that considering how they target us all the time, but NOPE. Reply Parent Thread Link if they're asking people to take religious garments off, shouldn't they have a mirror? it doesn't seem like it would be a hard thing to get ahold of. Reply Parent Thread Expand Link How big a mirror did he really need, I'm sure he wasn't asking for a gold framed mirror six feet tall floor length lmao he prob just wanted a handheld mirror that many people might have on them tbh. Reply Parent Thread Link they could have easily used a smartphone camera... Reply Parent Thread Link more importantly, did everyone see how ripped liam is?? Reply Thread Link SCREAMING. We have our priorities in order. Reply Parent Thread Link LMAO Reply Parent Thread Link omg. if only he could go shirtless on the red carpet. Reply Parent Thread Link https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=nEFzMLsWBwQ We met at a cinema where we went to see a children's movie (I was in the Zootopia or whatever Shakira post last night) and he was wearing sweatpants and there was no one in the cinema just the two of us and like 5 kids and he had his hand in his pants when the movie ended and then we stood by the exit and talked for a little and he wasn't at all Liam like he was super chill and cazh and then I just kissed him and he told me to come over for a beer and I said lol if you think that's what's gonna make me have sex with you but then I ended up going to his place and we had sex. He wasn't in 1D or anything. Just a regular dude. I had a sex dream about Liam last night and I don't know what the fuck happened but I watched this before going to sleep last nightWe met at a cinema where we went to see a children's movie (I was in the Zootopia or whatever Shakira post last night) and he was wearing sweatpants and there was no one in the cinema just the two of us and like 5 kids and he had his hand in his pants when the movie ended and then we stood by the exit and talked for a little and he wasn't at all Liam like he was super chill and cazh and then I just kissed him and he told me to come over for a beer and I said lol if you think that's what's gonna make me have sex with you but then I ended up going to his place and we had sex.He wasn't in 1D or anything. Just a regular dude. Reply Parent Thread Link YES I love his thotty instagram pics. bless u liam Reply Parent Thread Link I'd say "skinny" not "ripped" Ripped implies he has muscle mass and low body fat. But he seems to lost it all just so he could be skinny again. He looks much better in the face though. Reply Parent Thread Expand Link more like pubes. Reply Parent Thread Link He deserves his own post! Reply Parent Thread Link Cackling @ this being the first comment Reply Parent Thread Link ripped? hes just super skinny Reply Parent Thread Link YES give us back 2013 liam + additional body hair Reply Parent Thread Link But did everyone see the thirst trap Liam posted on IG this morning? Reply Thread Link I almost fell out of my chair at work tbh Reply Parent Thread Link I was on the bus and had to quickly exit out of the app, I was so flustered. Reply Parent Thread Expand Link I've looked at it like 10 times already this morning Reply Parent Thread Link ok i just looked it up and he is ripped but he needs to gain a lot of muscle tbh, he looked much better in the this is us workout bits!!! Reply Parent Thread Link IT WAS TOO FUCKING EARLY FOR HIM TO BE POSTING THAT SHIT. IT WAS 8 AM HERE. I HATE HIM. Reply Parent Thread Expand Link when i scrolled down i legit cackled...could his pants be any lower? lool Reply Parent Thread Expand Link how did harry go from the biggest attention hoe at the start of the year to invisible (he went to one grammy pre party but didn't walk the carpet so whatever) smh i'm so BORED Reply Thread Link what a dickhead Reply Thread Link Good Reply Thread Link Time for a Harry Styles tag. Why? Reply Thread Link so people can track his hot pap pics with kendall jenner Reply Parent Thread Link Damn Nile is actually backpacking around Asia? That's what I would do if I was a millionaire so young just travel the world. That and get tickets to tennis and football matches. Basically have Niall's life. So jealous. Reply Thread Link He's allegedly been to Indonesia, Philippines, Cambodia, Vietnam, and Thailand. There are receipts of him flying to the Phils. and he flew economy on a budget airline. Bless Niall for being so down to earth. Reply Parent Thread Link IA... they've been on the road pretty much non-stop for so many years... so Niall would actually be "excused" if he wasn't there. He actually has stuff to do, not sit around nearby slurping bulletproof coffee, like Harry. Reply Parent Thread Link wait, is he really? shit i totally respect that, thats exactly what i would do Reply Parent Thread Link I saw rumors that Niall was back too...hmmmm... Reply Thread Link same. would love to see Wooton proved wrong but it's 1D - or the remnants thereof - so i have a hard time hoping Edited at 2016-02-24 04:02 pm (UTC) Reply Parent Thread Link LOL same Reply Parent Thread Link Noo I was hoping for Narry to reunite. But I'm glad Niall is getting to travel like he said he wanted to do over the break. I wonder where he will pop up next. Reply Thread Link He's an IRL "Where in the world is Carmen San Diego??" Reply Parent Thread Link Edited at 2016-02-24 03:55 pm (UTC) all I care about rn: Reply Thread Link i used to thirst like crazy for him but this does nothing to me at all lol Reply Parent Thread Link Grindr realness Reply Parent Thread Link Weird looking... everything about this looks so 2D... his abs might just as well have been painted on. And pull your pants up fs.. we don't need to see your pubes... it's payneful to watch :\ Reply Parent Thread Link IKR.. I don't expect him to be a bulky steroid monster, but the fact that this excites people shows how low the bar is for guys. Reply Parent Thread Link LOL WHAT?!? This is Skinny fat to you??? I'm dyinnnnnnnnng Reply Parent Thread Link this looks gross Reply Parent Thread Link no Reply Parent Thread Link yikes at all the bad taste in these replies Reply Parent Thread Link Cackling Damn you tho. I love pubes Reply Parent Thread Link I stil think they're all going to show up tbh lmao we'll see i guess Reply Thread Link also that harry pic is a sin Reply Parent Thread Link I think so too. It's too suspicious that they ALL decided to take a 13 hour flight home the exact same week. Reply Parent Thread Link yeah harry even got his hair trimmed for god's sake Reply Parent Thread Expand Link Here's hoping too! it would be stupid of Harry to be in London and then not show up. Reply Parent Thread Link An update account just tweeted that Niall's bodyguard is at the red carpet so you may be right. Reply Parent Thread Link I don't want harry to show up so the larries can be mad >:) Reply Parent Thread Expand Link Wait a minute: Harry is actually in town but can't be bothered... ugh, that little shit. Reply Thread Link he sucks Reply Parent Thread Link ew @ his face Reply Thread Link This comment made me LOL Reply Parent Thread Link lol do you have an answer? Reply Parent Thread Link Lol.. i like that question.. but does it happen that often with guys? Can't even think of a single one :\ Reply Parent Thread Link OH FUCK OFF HARRY STYLES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! goddamnit! Reply Thread Link me every day tbh. i need a new icon i'm done with his boring robot ass Reply Parent Thread Link Her and Charlize should have switched roles Reply Thread Link ia Reply Parent Thread Link totally Reply Parent Thread Link for real tho but then with how Dark Places ended up I guess it's better for her to end up with this one lol Edited at 2016-02-24 03:58 pm (UTC) Reply Parent Thread Link In what movies? Sorry I'm not up to what Charlize is doing Reply Parent Thread Link In Dark Places Reply Parent Thread Expand Link Charlize starred in Dark Places which is based in another book by the same author. Reply Parent Thread Link mte Reply Parent Thread Link MY FIRST THOUGHT Reply Parent Thread Link riiiiight? libby had red hair, wtf. Reply Parent Thread Link exactlyyyy that casting made zero sense Reply Parent Thread Link Oh shit, I did not picture her while reading this, but I think she'll kill it. GET THAT EMMY AMY!! Reply Thread Link the little sister in the book freaked me out so bad Reply Thread Link I wonder if they'll make her 18 for the show. Reply Parent Thread Link the author did such a great job of conveying that feeling of unease and insecurity you get when you're around someone intimidating. especially someone younger who you just want to like you. Reply Parent Thread Link omg seriously what a nightmare Reply Parent Thread Link Yas queen! This sounds sf good, and Amy is literally flawless. Can't wait to see it. Reply Thread Link Wait, is this going to be a mini-series or have multiple seasons? Reply Thread Link Mte Reply Parent Thread Link Mini-series as far as I know. I don't know how multiple seasons would work. Reply Parent Thread Link I think she'll be incredible in the role. But then again anything is better than that garbage VOD shitshow Dark Places - it should've been someone like Lauren Ambrose for that role not Charlize Theron, I got about 25 minutes in and couldn't finish it. Edited at 2016-02-24 03:50 pm (UTC) Reply Thread Link I was so blindsided by this movie. I went in expecting something along the lines of Gone Girl and at the 30 min I was lmfao Reply Parent Thread Link did it come out already?! lmaooo Reply Parent Thread Link they really did that story SO WRONG Reply Parent Thread Link I really don't understand what was so bad about it? Like I thought the acting was pretty good and I loved the book but something about the movie was just terrible.. So bad Reply Parent Thread Link I understand what you mean. For me, I think what lost its touch is the fact that Hollywood tried to "Hollywood" the movie. They casted an attractive looking cast, which didn't really fit the narrative. The book is very grimy, everyone in the book was grimy and dirty and poor. But in this movie, we have the beautiful Charlize Theron, and sexy-ass Nick Hoult and stunning Christina Hendricks, and teen superstar Chloe Moritz. The cast just didn't fit the story at all. Reply Parent Thread Link I didn't even realize that movie came out????????????? Reply Parent Thread Link underrated queen! I was talking about male-female romance age gap in Hollywood movies the other day with a friend and Henry Cavill and her in Man of Steel was like one of the only example I could think of where the woman is older. Reply Thread Link the Dressmaker Kate Winslet and the lesser Hemsworth Reply Parent Thread Link I see ads for that movie everywhere (in Australia) but I still have no idea what it's about lmao Reply Parent Thread Expand Link I saw that trailer a while ago..aren't they suppose to be the same age in that movie? lol Reply Parent Thread Expand Link Was that good? I kind of want to see it. Reply Parent Thread Link I was going to say Unfaithful, but I just looked it up and Diane's only a year older?! Wtf. Reply Parent Thread Link Yesss I love this book and heard it was gonna be TV show like a year ago .... I always pictured Rose Byrne as Camille though but I love Amy Adams so I'm excited. Reply Thread Link Now that you say Rose Byrne I think she would've been better actually Reply Parent Thread Link Oooh, Rose would have been great. Reply Parent Thread Link Can't win an Oscar so she's going for that Emmy. She deserves all the internets love, not Leo. Reply Thread Link AGREED! I hope she gets her meme love now that they can't do it for Leo come Sunday. Reply Parent Thread Link She'll get it one day. Juliane Moore style. Reply Parent Thread Link I always saw Jessica Lange as Adora - but Amma is who they really have to worry about nailing imo Reply Thread Link I always saw Elle Fanning as Amma Reply Parent Thread Link Me too--can't think of any other actress who could pull her off Reply Parent Thread Link I agree about Amma. I kind of hope they go with an unknown actress. I also kind of hope they age her up, although aging her up in the show will kind of take away from why her character was so messed up. If that makes sense lol. Reply Parent Thread Link Oh my god, Jessica Lange would be perrrrfect! Reply Parent Thread Link So a Female Will Graham? Reply Thread Link Not really... Reply Parent Thread Link Camille finds herself identifying with the young victimsa bit too strongly. Dogged by her own demons, she must unravel the psychological puzzle of her own past if she wants to get the storyand survive this homecoming. That's basically how Will Graham is described in Red Dragon. Reply Parent Thread Expand Link i loved this lifetime ass movie of a book Reply Thread Link SAME Reply Parent Thread Link omg yesss, this is my favorite of her books. Reply Thread Link Amy is one of my favorite actresses but no to this casting. She should've starred in Dark Places. I'm still pissed about movie and the way it was handled. Reply Thread Link amy adams on tv?!??!?! give it here malfoy or i'll knock you off your broom Reply Thread Link LOL IRL Reply Parent Thread Link OP, Idk if that's your footnote, but just in case it is, stfu! Reply Thread Link I don't know what this is concerning but she is always ott about things. One time someone said she was too skinny and she posted a pic of an anorexic person to prove she's not anorexic. I love ha but girl... Reply Thread Link Also she's escaping racism by moving to Australia... I really hope that's not the reason.Also she's escaping racism by moving to... Reply Thread Link australia is where she's from... Reply Parent Thread Link How do we know she is moving to escape racism? Reply Parent Thread Link she's from australia tho...flop comment with a flop ass gif. Reply Parent Thread Link Oops.... I guess being an Australian living in the (ONTD exclusive) most racist country in the world is better than working in the fashion industry? Reply Parent Thread Link dont u know? anywhere outside of the US is 100% racist!1111!! Reply Parent Thread Link I dunno, I think it's pretty racist here. Not that the US doesn't have it's own issues but it's easier to call out when it's another country, I guess? (ETA: I imagine, though - and this is just from some of the Sudanese Aussie kids I know, I'm not well informed on the US side at all - that being African-Australian is a bit of a different experience to be being African-American. If only because of the size of the community and the length of its history.) Edited at 2016-02-25 12:21 am (UTC) Reply Parent Thread Link i'm australian. We racist. Reply Parent Thread Expand Link Has to more than that, I don't think Australia would be where I would go to escape racism Reply Thread Link she didnt say she was leaving to escape racism Reply Parent Thread Link I replied to the OP's original foot note. They brought up racism as a possible reason then updated it after I already commented. Edited at 2016-02-24 08:12 pm (UTC) Reply Parent Thread Expand Link Where does it say racism? Reply Parent Thread Expand Link she's SO beautiful, it's unfair tbh i'm sad about this but happy for her at the same time Reply Thread Link umm excuse me wtf is that footnote/italicized part? Reply Thread Link It's in the first article. Reply Parent Thread Link what did it say? Reply Parent Thread Link "If racism is her reason for quitting her job then she might as well quit life while she is at it. Racism is present in all forms of life" ....ok so she should just accept it? wtf Reply Thread Link Not OP but it was a part of the article Reply Parent Thread Link That footnote... ETA: You should really say that it's part of the article before people come for you bb Edited at 2016-02-24 06:05 pm (UTC) Reply Thread Link op didnt make the footnote but lmao lets not pretend the racism, sexism, and criticism you can experience in the fashion industry is anything like what you can expect from a "real life" job Edited at 2016-02-24 06:05 pm (UTC) Reply Thread Link it's part of the article peoopleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee Reply Thread Link yikes, that footnote is awful. sometimes you have to remove yourself from toxic and stressful situations for your own mental health. i couldn't imagine being in the modeling industry where they're never ever shy about telling you that you don't have the right skin color. so kudos to her for putting herself first and leaving behind something that no longer made her happy! Reply Thread Link You need to put quotes around that foot note,so people know you didn't hit your head & suffer a concussion Reply Thread Link That's a harsh side note Reply Thread Link I can't imagine having to go on stage and sing at all, let alone love songs so soon after losing your partner. She is incredible. Hands down, my favourite performer. Reply Thread Link i respect her for pushing on and being strong! Reply Thread Link Damn, I wouldn't have even attempted to sing All By Myself right now D: Reply Thread Link aw I love Celine. her genre of music may not be my favourite but mannnn her voice is so beautiful (and powerful as fuck). her Christmas album is the best! Reply Thread Link I'm not an emotional person but I think I would cry if I ever saw her live show, even before she lost Renee, her voice just hits my cold, cold heart and sets in on fire and I turn into an emotional mess. Reply Thread Link damn i can't imagine how difficult all by myself would be oh my g o d :( bb Reply Thread Link Celegend <3 Reply Thread Link She is my #1 I have to see her before I die Reply Thread Link racist bitch!! Reply Thread Link She's so strong omw Reply Thread Link When I started watching the video, I instantly thought of Because of You. I honestly can't imagine the pain she's going through. I can't imagine not only singing love songs, but ones that he's helped craft with feedback and love. Because every memory will be tangled up with every song. Gah. Breaks my heart for her. The idea of my partner not being around leaves me a wreck. And going on 3 years, not all our lives. She's so damn brave. Reply Thread Link gimme a DVD of this show! Reply Thread Link I fucking LOVE Where Does My Heart Beat Now. I've been a fan of hers since I was 9 because of how much I loved that. My brother and sister used to call me into the room whenever it came on the radio. Reply Thread Link She's so fucking perfect. <3 Reply Thread Link my eyes got foggy during All By Myself Reply Thread Link Oh my God i need to buy and frame this...right next to my Ebony issue for Best Holiday. Gorgeous black women doing thangs... Reply Thread Link She is so gorgeous, its sad the way Hollywood has treated her. Reply Thread Link Sorry I was talking about my girl Lupita Reply Parent Thread Expand Link they look gorgeous Reply Thread Link danai is such a queen <3 Reply Thread Link I was blinded by the collective beauty! I wish I could see the play! Reply Thread Link Everyone looks so REGAL Reply Thread Link all that beauty Reply Thread Link OMG, they all look like royalty, gorgeous. Danai Gurira is so so pretty and even tho I don't watch TWD I was living for the reaction of what happened last sunday. So much beauty in one pic. Reply Thread Link Beautiful. Their skin is so pretty. Reply Thread Link Chechnya is gearing up to establish control over its oil-extracting business. The procedure for handing over the Rosneft affiliate Chechenneftekhimprom to the Chechen authorities is expected to be completed in March. For the first time in many years, Grozny is close to acquiring full control over the oil business in the republic. Chechnyas governor, Ramzan Kadyrov, appears to have outsmarted the giant Russian state oil company Rosneft and its head, Igor Sechin, who is reportedly a close associate of President Vladimir Putin. The Chechen authorities accused Rosneft of failing to invest in oil extraction and refining and vow to revive the republics oil sector (Onkavkaz.com, February 18). Related: Iraq On The Brink Of Chaos As Oil Revenues Fall Sources close to the Chechen leadership have said Kadyrov intends to force Sechin to rid Rosneft of all its remaining assets in the republic. Low oil prices and the existence of prospective oil fields in Siberia make doing so quite profitable for Rosneft. Oil extraction in Chechnya started long ago and many of its oil fields have been exhausted, while deeper oil fields require greater investment to exploitsomething Rosneft apparently did not want to do. Oil extraction in Chechnya was a small fraction0.23 percentof Rosnefts total. Despite the impracticality of controlling oil extraction in Chechnya, the political symbolism of handing over the assets to the republic is quite significant. The republics oil business was one of the main flashpoints in Russian-Chechen relations during the past 25 years. The Chechen quest for independence from Russia in the 1990s was partly based on its oil reserves and oil refineries. Prior to the second Russian-Chechen war of 19992000, the republics three oil refineries cou ld jointly process 20 million tons of oil per year. Chechnyas oil-processing enterprises accounted for 6 percent of Russian gasoline and up to 90 percent of the oil products for the countrys aviation industry. After Russian forces leveled the Chechen oil industry and established control over the republic, Moscow started investing in the oil industry in Chechnya in an effort to rebuild its war-torn economy (Meduza.io, February 16). Now, the Chechen authorities are set to take control over what is left of the oil industry once again, this time with the approval of Moscow. Related: Firesale In Energy Assets Handing over the oil industry in Chechnya to the regional authorities is not merely an economic question, but also a major political one. The Russian opposition has accused the Chechen leadership of masterminding the murder of prominent Russian opposition politician Boris Nemtsov, in Moscow, in February 2015. Since then, Kadyrov has made a number of controversial statements that put him at odds with large parts of Russian society, which may dislike the Russian opposition, but tends to dislike ethnic non-Russians even more. Some Russian analysts see a struggle going on between the Russian security services and Kadyrov, with the former having appealed to Putin to let them remove Kadyrov from power, to no avail (Newrezume.org, February 17). Instead of removing Kadyrov from power, or at least somehow undermining his authority, the Kremlin announced that it is handing over critical assets to the Chechen government. Is it a sign of devolution of power from the center to the periphery in Russia or a local victory for Kadyrov? Russias economic downturn is evidently taking a toll on Moscows centralizing efforts in the country. The central government has already had to rewrite the budget for 2016, because it was drafted based on the assumption that the average oil price would be $50 dollars per barrel$35 per barrel as the worst scenario. However, oil prices have dropped to $30 and lower since the beginning of 2016 (Vedomosti, January 11). Related: Solar Power Growth Soars In Africa Moscow will soon have no money to send to Chechnya or the rest of the North Caucasus, meaning that it will have to drastically reduce government subsidies. Hence, the Kremlin may be trying other ways of sustaining the region in an effort to keep the local elites happy. This particularly applies to the Chechen Republic, which on the one hand still lacks the necessary tools to sustain itself but on the other hand has substantial armed forces that have to be provided for in order to ensure they remain under control. Handing over the oil industry to Grozny appears to be a way to appease the republican elites and is simultaneously a sign of approval for Ramzan Kadyrov. As the next step, Moscow will likely have to expand its accommodations for Kadyrovs government. Perhaps more important is the significance of this move for the other North Caucasus republics, particularly its implications for neighboring Dagestan. Dagestan reportedly has substantial oil and gas deposits that its officials are not allowed to touch without Moscows approval. The devolution of power is likely to accelerate further if the leadership of Russia changes. But even with Putin in charge, it seems that regionalization of the country is slowly taking place; and the possibility that Chechnya could regain control over its energy resources has enormous implications for the rest of the North Caucasus. By Valery Dzutsati via Jamestown More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: Rumors are circulating that a hundred billion barrels of oil have just been discovered at Gatwick airport. I first came across this story at WUWT who tipped their hat to the GWPF. To place this in context, the UK North Sea has produced around 28 billion barrels of oil since production began in 1975. How could we Brits be so dumb as to miss 100 billion barrels just waiting to be pumped from under the home counties? The well that has caused so much interest is called Horse Hill 1 (HH1) located to the south of London near Gatwick airport on a geological structure called the Weald Basin. This area is already home to a number of small oil fields (Figure 1). HH1 made an oil discovery that flowed at 456 barrels per day from a Kimmeridge age limestone (See Figures 1 and 2). This is very decent for an onshore well these days but at this rate it would take 219 million days to produce that rumoured 100 billion barrels, i.e. 600,817 years. Alternatively, 1000 wells producing at this rate would produce the oil in just 601 years. Thats still a long time for investors to wait for their returns. How do we bridge this gap between 100 billion barrels of oil in the ground and a flow rate of 456 barrels per day? (Click to enlarge) Figure 1 Surface geology of the Weald Basin [1]. HH is not on the map but lies just to the east of Brockham. This is how The Telegraph reported the news: The well flowed for more than seven hours yesterday (Monday) and further flow tests will be carried out today. UKOG and its partners in Horse Hill have claimed that more than 9.2 billion barrels of oil lie under the 55 square kilometre licence area in the Weald Basin. However, some experts have questioned how much of this oil will be recoverable and the viability of large scale drilling ever taking place in the area. - Horse Hill gusher is a test case for new onshore oil regulator - Gatwick oil gusher claims wildly optimistic warns expert Protesters flocked to the Surrey site over the weekend to oppose the controversial use of hydraulic fracturing in the area, but the operators say they have no plans to use fracking to produce the oil. This is how The Telegraph reported on the story last April, UKOG has been accused of exaggerating the potential of Horse Hill after it said earlier this month that the area within its licence could contain a total oil in place of 158m barrels per square mile. Subsequent statements by the chief executive Stephen Sanderson and the chairman Mr Lenigas claimed that the field held up to 100bn barrels of crude and was very significant for the UK. Related: Who Will Be Left Standing At The End Of The Oil War To understand the reality it is necessary to begin with an explanation and an understanding of the differences between resources and reserves and the difference between conventional oil and light tight oil (LTO, or shale oil). And before doing that a simple explanation of the geology also helps. (Click to enlarge) Figure 2 The stratigraphy of the Weald Basin [1]. Figure 2 shows the stratigraphy of the Weald basin according to The British Geological Survey and DECC [1]. Stratigraphy is the study of the layering and depositional history of sedimentary rocks. To the left is chronostratigraphy that is a measure of age. The foot of the Rhaetian is about 209 million years old while the top of the Valanginian is about 134 million years old. Hence the rocks in the Weald were deposited over a 75 million year period. To the right is the lithostratigraphy which is a description of the sedimentary rocks being laid down sequentially. Note how the lithostratigrpaphy switches between limestone and mudtsone with only occasional sandstone beds in the sequence. The surface geology and locations of existing, small, oil fields are shown in Figure 1. HH is not on the map but lies just to the east of Brockham. The most important unit in the section is the Kimmeridge Clay Formation which is an organic rich black shale with over 20 percent organic matter [1]. This formation occurs throughout southern England and below the North Sea where it is the source rock for most of the oil and much of the gas. The BGS note, however, that in the Weald basin, there are 5 organic rich shale units that may all be targets for shale oil drilling. In the recent past, the Weald basin was more deeply buried than at present, sufficiently deep and hot to generate oil in the organic shales. The area has since been buckled and uplifted by tectonic forces that have their origins in Alpine tectonics. Hence, many of the oil fields in the area occur at much shallower depths than would normally be expected. Conventional versus shale oil In conventional oil fields the oil migrates out of the organic rich source rock and accumulates in a reservoir that is normally a porous limestone or sandstone that is located below an impermeable seal. The buoyancy of oil on water is the force that drives the migration and trapping of conventional oil. In a conventional oil field, the oil will normally flow to surface un-aided owing to its buoyancy. Related: Iraq On The Brink Of Chaos As Oil Revenues Fall Shale oil (LTO) developments are targeting the oil left behind in the source rock which in normal circumstances is most of the oil that was generated. This oil has not escaped the shale by natural processes and will not flow into a well unaided. It needs help by means of fracking. Fracking creates a myriad network of tiny fractures in the well that are pumped full of sand and this enables some of the oil to flow from the shale into the well. Resources versus reserves In simple terms, oil resources represent the amount of oil that a company or government believe may exist. Oil reserves are the portion of that resource that may be produced commercially using existing technology. In a conventional oil field, the geologists and reservoir engineers work out the size of the trap (the field) and how much oil it contains. They then make educated assumptions about how much of that oil may be recoverable and further assumptions about how much more oil may be found. The recoverable oil provides the reserve figure while the total amount of oil believed to exist in the companys area provides the resource figure. All of these figures are constrained by measurements made on the size and porosity of the oil trap. With shale oil, there is no trap, just a very large volume of shale that contains relatively small amounts of oil per unit volume. The conventional methodology of applying resources and reserves breaks down since there is no finite trap to measure. But companies apply the conventional methodology none-the-less and may, as we will see in the case of Horse Hill, come up with some very big numbers that are all but meaningless. Horse Hill actually provides a good test case to explain how this works. Horse Hill The Horse Hill exploration license is owned by Horse Hill Developments Ltd, a consortium of investment vehicles and their website is not at all instructive. But roughly 20 percent of the license is owned by a listed company called UK Oil and Gas (UKOG) [2] and they are bound by stock market rules to report information that is compliant with international standards. UKOG, keen to see their share price rise, actually report a lot more information than required making their website a data mine or should I say data mine field? The challenge is distilling the facts. Let me begin by looking at the data from the HH1 well. We know that under an extended well test dry oil was produced at a rate of 456 barrels per day from a single zone a lower Kimmeridge limestone. Other zones remain to be tested and so there is still upside from this single well. The oil is light (40?API gravity) sweet (i.e. low sulphur) crude that is prized most by the industry. To be clear, UKOG and partners have made a conventional oil discovery. The next question normally asked is how much oil is there? Schlumberger produced the resource estimate shown in Figure 3 prior to the well test being made with a total figure of 271 million barrels oil in place per square mile. At first glance this looks like a huge field. A quarter billion barrels onshore UK would be massive. But then scratching the surface we find that this is not an estimate for the conventional oil discovery but more an estimate of the shale oil resource per square mile of the license block area. In this video issued by the Daily Mail, David Lenigas the Chairman of UKOG mentions that conventional oil estimates in the Portland Sandstone ranges from 3 to 16 million barrels. He also mentions that it was a surprise to find oil in the Kimmeridge limestone but I have failed to find any indication of how large the Kimmeridge accumulation actually is. It is likely that UKOG dont actually know yet. Figure 3 Schlumbergers estimate for LTO resources at HH [2]. UKOG seem content to see conventional oil reserves and unconventional resources conflated. They have in fact done a lot of work estimating the latter (Figures 4 and 5). Figure 4 UKOGs estimate for shale oil resources in the whole of their license area [2]. Figure 4 explains that the HH license covers 55 square miles. Hence simply taking the 271 million barrels per square mile from Figure 3 and multiplying that by 55 we get 14.9 billion barrels of oil in place. Figure 4 claims a mere 9.25 billion barrels. Presumably the strata thickness and oil richness declines away from the HH 1 well location. Related: Why OPEC Production Freeze Could Pave The Way For Actual Cuts (Click to enlarge) Figure 5 UKOGs claim of 1 billion barrels in the Kimmerdige Limestones which once again we must presume is LTO resource and not conventional oil. Figure 5 focusses on the limestones like the one recently flow tested at HH 1. A claim is made for 1 billion barrels of oil in place, but again it is not made clear if this is conventional oil that would flow to surface unaided or light tight oil that requires fracking. It is almost certainly the latter. Concluding thoughts To sum up. HH 1 has made a nice conventional oil discovery, we dont know how large it is but it is likely to be closer to 10 100 million than 100 billion barrels. The 55 square mile HH license block may contain 9 billion barrels of LTO disseminated throughout the rock volume that may only be produced by fracking. It has yet to be proven that any of that oil may be produced. Without a positive fracking test, we still have no idea what percentage of the oil in place may be recovered. And none of this is likely to be commercially viable at current oil prices. The BGS / DECC report [1] also provides an estimate for the oil in place for the whole of the Weald Basin (Figure 1) with a range from 2.2 to 8.6 billion barrels and a most likely estimate of 4.4 billion. This estimate for the whole of the Weald basin is seriously at odds with the UKOG estimate of 9.2 billion barrels for their relatively tiny license area. Either UKOG and their contractors or the BGS and DECC have not done their sums properly. It should be clear that the authorities who regulate financial statements from the oil industry in the UK and globally need to provide clear guidance on how LTO resources are reported, especially in circumstances where conventional oil and LTO may occur together as is the case in the Weald basin. By Euan Mearns More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: What on earth is "democratic Socialism"? A euphemism for Bernie Sanders cryto-communist ideology, the direction that Hillary Clinton and the entire Democratic party are headed to keep the hard-left base happy, or something else? The answer is all three, but it's the 'something else' that is interesting.The Democrats, by a significant majority, enthusiastically promote big government. The bigger the government gets, the more power Democrats derive by addicting significant percentages of citizens to government benefits paid for a shrinking band of taxpayers. Bernie Sanders is a master at this, suggesting that lots of free stuff can be had if only "the rich" were taxed more. It's a proposal that has been proposed by many leftist politicians worldwide. It also an approach that has failed in every country in which it has been tried. The real question isn't whether socialism will fail, it's when. In countries like Venezuela, socialism destroyed a vibrant country in only 20 years. In Europe, the damage has occurred more slowly, but over the past 60 years, countries like Greece, Spain, Denmark, Italy, Portugal, and many others are struggling economically and teetering financially. No matter, socialism soundsgood to leftists who rely on belief rather than history or a basic understanding of human nature.If you listen to Bernie Sanders, the government should control almost everythingbanks, big businesses, the "rich," healthcare, profits, executive paythe works. It should do this with suffocating regulations, politically correct hiring, and intrusive regulation. This, of course, is to ensure that "income inequality" is erased. But at the end of the day, Bernie's covert strategy is anti-capitalist. Of course, he won't admit that, suggesting the capitalism is goodas long as it's his kind of capitalism. And Bernie's capitalism isThat's the 'something else' that defines "democratic socialism."Most people have heard the phrase 'crony capitalism,' but don't really understand its intent or structure. Here's conservative commentator Jay Cost with a useful discussion:Win or lose, Bernie Sanders run for the presidency will shape the platform of the Democratic party. As a consequence, the party will define a platform in which the governmentever more than it does todayrewards the companies it likes and punishes those that it does not like. This is wrong, whether a Democrat or Republican is in the White House. Crony Capitalism sits at the core of Big Intrusive Government (BIG) and it's just one more reason why a party that promotes BIG as its central tenet should not be in the White House. Reprinted from Alon Ben-Meir Blog Dear Prime Minister Netanyahu, I write this letter to you with a heavy heart as it pains me deeply to see the beautiful dream of a strong and proud Israel, the country that was expected to embrace what is virtuous, moral, and just, now losing its reason for being -- as a free and secure Jewish state living in peace and harmony with its neighbors. The state's social fabric is being torn apart by political divisiveness and economic injustice. The country is increasingly isolated, degenerating into a garrison state surrounding itself with walls and fences, vilified by friends and reviled by enemies. As the Prime Minister who served longest in this position, the country is virtually crumbling under your watch. The question is, where are you leading the people, and what will be in store for them tomorrow as Israel is now at a fateful cross-road and facing an uncertain future? Certainly you and those who follow you in good faith will disagree with my analysis, but I urge you to look carefully into the dire issues I am raising here as they unfold, for which you are now more responsible than any of your predecessors. You conveniently surround yourself with a corrupt political elite -- ministers with no morals, no compunction, and nothing but an insatiable lust for power. They are consumed by their personal political agendas and absorbed in domestic corruption and intrigues. You have several such ministers -- among them a Justice Minister, Ayelet Shaked, who endorsed the idea that "the entire Palestinian people is the enemy" which is nothing short of a call for indiscriminate killing that will include "its elderly and its women, its cities and its villages, its properties and its infrastructure"; an Education Minister, Naftali Bennett, who wants to annex most of the West Bank without giving a single thought to the ominous danger that such an ill-fated scheme would inflict on Israel; and a Cultural Minister, Miri Regev, who is out to stifle freedom of the arts and expression -- who make a mockery of Israel's democratic foundation and institutions. You backed three draconian bills: one would suspend Knesset members who deny Israel as a Jewish and democratic state; the second would withdraw funding from cultural institutions deemed "not loyal" to Israel; and the third would require leftwing NGOs who receive foreign funding to label themselves as such in any publication (while exempting privately-funded right-wing NGOs). You are enveloped in an ideological siege with a ghetto mentality and selective religious precepts, supported by a blind chorus of parliamentarians that only echoes your distorted tune. You manipulate the public with national security concerns and falsely connect security to borders, only to usurp more Palestinian land and defend the ruinous settlement policy. You delight in facing an inept political opposition -- relegated to a permanent state of suspension -- and are thrilled to see them decaying with no political plans to challenge you to find a solution to the endemic Palestinian conflict on which you politically thrive. With these lame opposition parties sitting on the fringes of political despair, they have now become easy to co-opt in support of your misguided domestic, foreign, and Palestinian-targeted policies, all in the name of national unity. You still boast about Israel's economic prowess, when in fact the economy as a whole is in a state of stagnation and labor productivity is the lowest among Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries, and a handful of billionaires control the financial heart of the state while tens of thousands of families are scrambling to survive. More than 1.7 million Israelis are living in poverty -- 775,000 of whom are children -- while hundreds of millions of dollars are siphoned off to spend on illegal settlements and hundreds of millions more are spent to protect the settlers, leaving Arab villages and towns with mostly Middle Eastern Jews to rot. The gulf between the rich and poor is widening. The top 10 percent of the population earns 15 times that of the bottom 10 percent, making Israel one of the most unequal countries in the developed world. Tourism is diving, foreign investments are plunging, and the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement is gaining momentum. The corruption and criminality among top officials is staggering; more than 10 ministers and at least 12 members of the Knesset have been convicted of crimes over the past 20 years alone. Former President Moshe Katsav and Prime Minister Ehud Olmert were sentenced to seven years and 19 months in prison, respectively. Scores more were indicted, but escaped punishment through various legal loopholes often accorded to top officials. You discriminate against Israeli Arabs (who constitute 20 percent of the population) with your government's policy of unequal treatment, and then question their loyalty to the state. I remember one time singing enthusiastically along with Kate Smith -- God Bless America. Yes, we need God's blessing even more today. In this supposed land of the free, it seems to me that we have used this freedom in too many selfish and even cruel ways which promote our interests --no matter the cost to others and especially to our animals. Today I read "A Journalist is Exposing How the FBI Targets Animal Activists as Terrorists." At one time I would have gasped reading this title, but today I was not at all surprised because of all the cruelty to animals which exists in our country. The subtitle read -- "Will Potter's reporting reveals what he believes is an assault on free speech in defense of big profits for big Ag." I remember when the then House Representative Dennis Kucinich was the ONLY one in Congress who voted against AETA (Animal Enterprise Terrorist Act) which sought to criminalize peaceful demonstrations of animal activists at places where animals were being cruelly treated. He defended the people who sought to assuage the suffering of animals while all the other voting members of the House (400+) supported this thoughtless and even cruel act which sought to punish people of compassion for demonstrating against animal cruelty. I assure you that hereafter I looked at the House of Representatives with a jaundiced eye. Maybe it was then and since then that I have lost a great deal of respect for our congress, our presidents, and people in general who do nothing to help suffering animals. I, like Gandhi, measure the greatness of a people by their compassion -- a compassion which not only extends to humans but animals as well. In his post -writer David McNair tells how reporter Will Potter of the Chicago Tribune decided that in the months after 9/11 he wanted to report on something other than cops, crime, and shootings in Chicago. Hoping to make a difference in the world as a reporter, one day he joined a group of activists handing out leaflets opposing animal testing. Imagine his surprise when shortly thereafter - two FBI agents showed up at his door. They told him he could be put on a terrorism watch list if he didn't help them gather information about the animal activists he had helped. If you are not shocked by this, I am. I would have loved to have been one of those caring people passing out leaflets as well. This move on the part of the FBI sounded more like the workings of a Gestapo state to me. And Potter was also very much shocked when the agents mentioned to him that the application for student aid to graduate school he had submitted could be pulled if he didn't cooperate. To this Potter said "I couldn't believe they were using that rhetoric of terrorism against someone handing out leaflets." Though the charges against him were dropped and nothing came of the veiled threats from the FBI agents -- Potter would spend the next 13 years in the politics and policing of dissent. In 2011 he wrote the book Green is the New Red: An Insider's Account of a Social Movement Under Siege . In his book- he would expose the way the "terrorist" label has been used by the FBI to go after animal rights and environmental activists. America the Beautiful? I don't think so. And if the AETA Act as written was not bad enough, it has since been amended giving government greater authority to prosecute radical animal rights activists. If interested in reading more about this compassionate reporter and his concern for freedom to protest and demonstrate, please go to the internet to find out more about the forthright and illuminating account of him by McNair. Potter has also covered the passage of the fight against the "ag-gag" laws which are heavily subsidized by the US government and which escape regulation of all farm animals. There may be some light in this cruel tunnel of ag-gag darkness when recently an Idaho judge struck down its ag-gag law saying that it was an unconstitutional criminalization of free speech rights. A judge with a conscience. God bless him. We need many, many more like him. On the day the death of Justice Antonin Scalia was announced, Georgetown Law School issued an official statement and press release headlined "Georgetown Law Mourns the Loss of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia." It quoted the school's dean, William M. Treanor, heaping unqualified praise on the highly controversial justice. "Scalia was a giant in the history of the law, a brilliant jurist whose opinions and scholarship profoundly transformed the law," Dean Treanor pronounced. "Like countless academics, I learned a great deal from his opinions and his scholarship. In the history of the Court, few justices have had such influence on the way in which the law is understood." Moreover, "he cared passionately about the profession, about the law and about the future. ... We will all miss him." It went on and on in that vein. That's all well and good: If Dean Treanor revered Justice Scalia and his jurisprudence, there is no reason why he should refrain from expressing those sentiments. It's a bit odd for the official statement of a major law school to depict Scalia as though he were some sort of universally beloved figure, but there's nothing wrong with Dean Treanor personally advocating his viewpoint. That, after all, is one of the primary purposes of academic institutions: airing differing views and perspectives and vigorously debating them. Two Georgetown law professors, Mike Seidman and Gary Peller, disagreed with Dean Treanor's glowing assessment of Scalia and said so. That night, Seidman posted a brief email to the dean and faculty noting: "Our norms of civility preclude criticizing public figures immediately after their death." As a result, said Seidman, "all I'll say is that I disagree with these sentiments and that expressions attributed to the 'Georgetown Community' in the press release issued this evening do not reflect the views of the entire community." A full two days after Scalia's death, Professor Peller wrote an email -- first to the dean and the faculty, and thereafter to the entire law school -- explaining his dissent from the dean's praise. Like a huge number of Americans generally, and legal professionals particularly, Professor Peller viewed Scalia's role on the Supreme Court as toxic in the extreme, and he explained why. Click Here to Read Whole Article Reprinted from The National Benjamin Netanyahu's government in Tel Aviv is drafting legislation that ought to resolve in observers' minds the question of whether Israel is the democracy it proudly claims to be. The bill empowers a three-quarters majority of the Israeli parliament to oust a sitting MP. It breathes new life into the phrase "tyranny of the majority." But in this case, the majority will be Jewish MPs oppressing their Palestinian colleagues. Mr Netanyahu has presented the bill as a necessary response to the recent actions of three MPs from the Balad faction of the Joint List, a coalition of parties representing the often-overlooked fifth of Israel's citizens who are Palestinian. He claims the MPs "sided with terror" this month when they visited Palestinian families in occupied East Jerusalem who have been waiting many months for Israel to return their relatives' bodies. The 11 dead are among those alleged to have carried out what are termed "lone-wolf" attacks, part of a recent wave of Palestinian unrest. Fearful of more protests, Israel has demanded that the families bury the bodies in secret, without autopsies, and in plots outside Jerusalem. There is an urgent moral and political issue about Israel using bodies as bargaining chips to encourage Palestinian obedience towards its illegal occupation. The three Palestinian MPs also believe they are under an obligation to help the families by adding to the pressure on Mr Netanyahu to return the bodies. Israel's Palestinian minority has a severely degraded form of citizenship, but it enjoys more rights than Palestinians living under occupation. When a video of the meeting was posted online, however, the Israeli right seized the chance to attack and disenfranchise the MPs. A parliamentary "ethics" committee comprising the main Jewish parties suspended the three MPs for several months. Now they face losing their seats. This is part of a clear trend. Late last year, the government outlawed the northern Islamic Movement, a popular extra-parliamentary political, religious and welfare organization. Despite Mr Netanyahu's statements that the movement was linked to "terror," leaks to the Israeli media showed his intelligence chiefs had advised him weeks before the ban that there was no evidence to support such accusations. At the time many Palestinians in Israel suspected Mr Netanyahu would soon turn his sights on the Palestinian parties in the parliament. And so he has. Balad, which decries Israel's status as a Jewish state and noisily campaigns for democratic reform, was always likely to be [at the] top of his list. In every recent general election, an election committee dominated by the Jewish parties has banned Balad or its leaders from standing, only to see the Israeli courts reverse the decision. Now Mr Netanyahu is legislating the expulsion of Balad and throwing down the gauntlet to the courts. It won't end there. If Balad is unseated, the participation of the other Joint List factions will be untenable. In effect, the Israeli right is seeking to ethnically cleanse the parliament. For those who doubt such intentions, consider that two years ago the government raised the electoral threshold for entry to the parliament specifically to exclude the Palestinian factions. By David Swanson, American Herald Tribune The U.S. government, from Dick Cheney to Hillary Clinton, told blatant lies about the Iraqi government creating chemical, biological, and nuclear weapons in 2002, despite having been informed of the fact that Iraq was doing no such thing. U.S. leaders lied about ties between Iraq and terrorists that they also knew did not exist. Then the U.S. military attacked and invaded Iraq, in the process heavily bombing old sites of Iraqi chemical weapons from the 1980s, many of those weapons having been provided by the United States. In large part because of the U.S. origin of the old Iraqi chemical weapons, the U.S. kept quiet about them during the new war. Another reason for the official silence was that, during the 2003 U.S. destruction of Iraq, many of those old weapons were seized by fledgling terrorist groups. The war had done exactly what it had been justified as being needed to prevent; it had given WMDs to terrorists. The geniuses running the U.S. military set up U.S. bases at the sites of old chemical weapons piles, dug giant burn pits into the ground, and began burning the military's trash -- monumental quantities of trash, something like The Story of Stuff on steroids. They burned hundreds of tons of trash every day, including everything you can think of: oil, rubber, tires, treated wood, medicines, pesticides, asbestos, plastic, explosives, paint, human body parts, and . . . (wait for it) . . . nuclear, biological, and chemical decontamination materials. The burn pits poisoned Iraq, together with depleted uranium weapons, napalm, white phosphorous, and various other horrors, creating unprecedented epidemics of birth defects, and killing untold masses of Iraqis. The burn pits also poisoned tens of thousands of U.S. troops, many of whom have died as a result, including very likely the son of the current U.S. vice president. The burn pits profited Halliburton, the company of the previous U.S. vice president. The burn pits were no secret, although bases sometimes stopped the burning during VIP tours. Typically, huge clouds of smoke filled the air and created immediate breathing difficulties and sicknesses. Soldiers knew which colors of smoke were most dangerous and discussed it as they discussed an enemy. Numerous burn pits turned hundreds of previously healthy U.S. troops into invalids. But the burn pits at six particular bases caused the most severe illnesses and the most deaths. They caused, among other things, numerous cases of constrictive bronchiolitis, which could only have resulted from exposure to mustard gas -- a chemical weapon left over from a program the United States had supported when it existed and used as an excuse for war when it didn't. I'm reminded of a ship that sits at the bottom of the Mediterranean. In 1943, German bombs sank a U.S. ship at Bari, Italy, that was secretly carrying a million pounds of mustard gas. Many of the U.S. sailors died from the poison, which the United States dishonestly claimed to have been using as a "deterrent," despite keeping it secret. The ship is expected to continue leaking the gas into the sea for centuries. The earth and water of Iraq have been similarly poisoned, as have U.S. soldiers. The Pentagon made crystal clear in Iraq, as most everywhere else, that it cares not a damn for the people or the natural environment of the places it attacks, and that it cares even less for the troops it uses to do so. But if you imagine that the Pentagon has reserved its concern for the civilian inhabitants of the Fatherland, don't look too closely into the open-air burns still happening in the United States. The U.S. military is the third-largest polluter of U.S. waterways, top producer of superfund disaster sites, and top consumer of petroleum. At least 33,480 U.S. nuclear weapons workers who have received compensation for health damage are now dead. Where it is blocked by legal regulations effectively enforced, the military shows restraint; where it isn't, it doesn't. In Virginia, the military very responsibly throws dead soldiers into a landfill rather then burning them. Either method communicates equally well just how much the military cares. Halliburton, for its part, is as happy to deal death at home as abroad. Residents of Duncan, Oklahoma, have sued Cheney's cash machine for poisoning the ground water with ammonium perchlorate. Government investigators also concluded that Halliburton was, in part, to blame for the BP oil spill that flooded into the Gulf of Mexico in 2010. Joseph Hickman's new book, The Burn Pits: The Poisoning of America's Soldiers, collects the evidence, including from similar incidents during the first Gulf War that were known before the first 2003 burn pit was dug and lit. Hickman gives us stories of young healthy men who headed off to Iraq believing the lies, believing that the U.S. government that is now begging Russia to stop attacking terrorists because the U.S. wants to overthrow yet another government -- believing that this U.S. government had good intentions in attacking Iraq. These poor souls went to Iraq hoping to protect people from horrible suffering, and ended up inflicting horrible suffering on people including themselves. They come home, develop cancer, get stonewalled by the VA, and die dreaming of what it might have been to have health and the wealth needed to attend college. Their American Dream was cut short by the militarized American Fantasy. Joe Biden supported a war that very likely killed his son by means of burn pits. He then chose not to run for president because of his grief. His decision not to run received more media coverage than several months of the campaign of Senator Bernie Sanders who had voted against the war. But did Biden lift a finger to hold Halliburton or the military or the Congress accountable? Not that I've heard. Hickman describes the burn pits, and analogous poisons from past wars like Agent Orange in Vietnam, as "recklessly endangering the health of our fighting men and women." The only trouble with this is the fact that all war, all "fighting," consists of recklessly endangering the lives of the vast bulk of the victims (the Vietnamese, Iraqis, etc.) and of the U.S. troops. There's nothing non-reckless about any war. Perhaps distant drone pilots are not endangered in the typical way, but then look at how they're mocked within the Air Force. If troops weren't endangered, people wouldn't treat them with reverence and describe them -- as Hickman does -- as somehow "serving" their country, even while the facts he includes in his book speak otherwise. The U.S. Supreme Court has held since 1950 that members and former members of the military cannot sue over injuries received on the job. It may, however, still prove possible to win compensation from Halliburton. If so, you can probably chalk up another assist to Chelsea Manning who leaked evidence that the military had knowledge of the dangers when it created the burn pits, knowledge that General David Petraeus blatantly lied about in response to a Congressional inquiry. It now appears that the 2003- war on Iraq not only created ISIS, but armed it with mustard gas, thereby proving, I guess, that Saddam Hussein could indeed had given WMDs to terrorists had he just been as evil as the U.S. military. See original here Vladimir Putin has much more influence over Syria's President Bashar Assad than the United States has over its allies in the region, and this could hinder the Syrian ceasefire, former CIA officer Ray McGovern told RT. Russia and the US agreed the terms for a cessation of hostilities in Syria. The ceasefire will start on February 27 at midnight Damascus time. ISIS, Al-Qaeda and many other terrorist organizations are not part of the truce. RT: How optimistic are you about the agreement? Ray McGovern: The good news is that the US has decided to cooperate with Russia and use their considerable influence and their considerable power to force this thing to stop. There are still considerable obstacles namely Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Israel. They are all allies of the US and the question is will Barack Obama be able to make good on his pledge for a ceasefire? Will he be able to rein in his allies? It is a little different on the Russian side. When we talk about Syria or Iraq and Iran and Hezbollah, I believe that Moscow has much more control over its allies than President Obama does. Will Turkey stop the infiltration of ISIS? RT: What are the tools in Obama box, if you like, to make sure that people comply with the ceasefire? RM: As we say in the United States, [Obama should] talk "turkey" to them. In other words, to say -- "enough is enough, we know what you've been doing, we can disclose even things that we have covered up for you, namely supporting the sarin attack outside of Damascus on August 21, 2013. We know that you've facilitated the sarin down to Syrian rebels. We've been covering up for you and now we will not do it anymore, unless you cooperate here and finally seal that border. If you decide to invade Syria, forget about NATO, forget about being part of NATO, because we want the Syrian conflict to stop and we know that you in large measure, together with the Saudis, are responsible for it continuing." RT: Do you think conversation would've been that frank between them? RM: Well it depends who's talking. If it's the Assistant Secretary of State for European Affairs, Victoria Nuland, I don't think it will be that frank. If it is John Kerry, if it is President Obama talking to Erdogan, I believe [the conversation] will be that frank because their patience has worn out here and deservedly so. This thing has to stop. We are talking about hundreds of thousands of people here, hundreds of thousands of refugees. The NATO allies want the refugee stream to stop and more has to be done with respect to quieting down things in Syria and a ceasefire or a cessation of hostilities, which will allow an exchange of locations of where the so-called 'white hats' - or the good guys -- are so we don't bomb them. But, by elimination we are able to go after ISIS, which after all is doing all it can to prevent this -- witness the carnage in Homs and Damascus just yesterday. RT: Isn't it going to be very hard to uphold this ceasefire and disentangle everything on the ground? RM: It will be difficult... Part of the problem is [locating] moderate rebels. Mr. Putin and Mr. Lavrov have asked several times: "please, just show us where your moderate rebels are and we won't bomb them." And the US has been slow to come up with those maps because in truth, as Obama himself admitted a year-and-a-half ago, moderate rebels in Syria is 'a fantasy' -- his word. So al-Nusra, the people that we have been supporting, have pretty much folded in with them and given them their weapons. It is going to be a little embarrassing for the US to admit that those moderate rebels are a fantasy. This time you have not only Lavrov and Kerry behind it, you have a telephone call announced by Mr. Putin where he says he and Obama have drawn on the experience of destroying all the chemical weapons in Syria, which was a big deal back in 2013. It remains to be seen whether the President of the US could exert enough influence on Turkey and on Saudi Arabia. Why can't we influence Saudi Arabia? This is why: A hundred billion dollars' worth of arms sales to Saudi Arabia accepted during the tenure of Obama. Only $50 billion have been approved -- only $50 billion? When we talk about realities here, the US officials worry about offending the Saudis... RT: How much people would trust the Assad government to abide by this? He has been making huge gains recently, hasn't he? RM: His [Assad] incentive depends on his reliance, his dependence on Russia. If Russia hadn't intervened in September or October, he would not be where he is. In my view, Moscow has much more influence over Assad than Obama has over the Turks or Saudis, and they have, let's face it, the fly in the ointment... When you talk about the carnage that took place in Homs or Damascus just yesterday it will put the nail in the coffin. I think Obama will make a good try, it just remains to be seen whether he can convince the neocons in our government and make sure that Turkey understands, "look, it's over, stop it!" On Friday, the United States rejected a draft resolution by Russia that was intended to prevent a Turkish invasion of Syria. Moscow had called for an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) to address its growing concern that Turkey is planning to send thousands of ground troops and armored vehicles it has massed on its southern border, into Syria to protect Turkish-backed militants and to block the Kurdish militia, the YPG, from establishing a contiguous state in northern Syria. Moscow's one-page resolution was a thoroughly-straightforward document aimed at preventing a massive escalation in a conflict that has already claimed the lives of 250,000 and left the country in ruins. According to Russia's deputy U.N. envoy, Vladimir Safronkov, "The main elements of this Russian draft resolution are to demand that all parties refrain from interfering in the internal affairs of Syria, that they fully respect Syria's sovereignty and independence, stop incursions, and abandon plans for ground operations." The resolution also expressed Moscow's "grave alarm at the reports of military buildup and preparatory activities aimed at launching foreign ground intervention into the territory of the Syrian Arab Republic." There was nothing controversial about the resolution, no tricks and no hidden meaning. The delegates were simply asked to support Syrian sovereignty and oppose armed aggression. These are the very principles upon which the United Nations was founded. The US and its allies rejected these principles because they failed to jibe with Washington's geopolitical ambitions in Syria. Quashing the resolution confirms in the clearest terms that Washington doesn't want peace in Syria. Also, it suggests that the Obama administration thinks that Turkish ground troops could play an important role in shaping the outcome of a conflict that the US is still determined to win. Keep in mind, if the resolution had passed, the threat of a Turkish invasion would have vanished immediately. Why? Because the Turkish "military has publicly stated that it is not willing to send troops across the border without U.N. Security Council approval." (Washington Post) Many people in the west are under the illusion that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has dictatorial powers and can simply order his troops into battle whenever he chooses. But that is not the case. While Erdogan has removed many of his rivals within the military, the top brass still maintains a certain autonomy from the civilian leadership. Turkish generals want assurances that they will not be prosecuted for war crimes in the future. The best way to do that is to make sure that any invasion has the blessing of either the US, NATO or the UN. The Obama administration understands this dynamic, which is why they quashed the resolution. Obama wanted to leave the door open so Turkish troops could eventually engage the Russian-led coalition in Washington's ongoing proxy war. This leads me to believe that the Washington's primary objective in Syria is no longer the removal of Syrian President Bashar al Assad but the bogging down of Russia in a never-ending conflict. Just hours after the US defeated Moscow's draft resolution at the UN, closed-door talks were convened in Geneva where high-level U.S. and Russian military officials met to discuss the prospects for ceasefire. The cease-fire, which is typically referred to as a "cessation of hostilities," is aimed at temporarily stopping the fighting so the battered jihadists and US-backed rebels can regroup and rejoin the war at some later date. Both Moscow and Washington want to deliver humanitarian aid to war-torn cities across Syria, and to move towards a "political transition" although both sides are deeply divided over Assad's role in any future government. According to the Washington Post: "One of the many problems to be overcome is a differing definition of what constitutes a terrorist group. In addition to the Islamic State and Jabhat al-Nusra, al-Qaeda's affiliate in Syria, Russia and Syria have labeled the entire opposition as terrorists. "Jabhat al-Nusra, whose forces are intermingled with moderate rebel groups in the northwest near the Turkish border, is particularly problematic. Russia was said to have rejected a U.S. proposal to leave Jabhat al-Nusra off-limits to bombing as part of a cease-fire, at least temporarily, until the groups can be sorted out." ("U.S., Russia hold Syria cease-fire talks as deadline passes without action," Washington Post) Repeat: "Russia was said to have rejected a U.S. proposal to leave Jabhat al-Nusra (al Qaida) off-limits to bombing as part of a cease-fire, at least temporarily, until the groups can be sorted out." In other words, the Obama administration wanted to protect an affiliate of the group that killed 3,000 Americans in the terror attacks on 9-11 and that is responsible for the deaths of tens of thousands of innocent Syrian civilians whose only fault was that they happen to occupy country that these Wahhabi mercenaries wanted to transform into an Islamic Caliphate. Naturally, Moscow refused to go along with this charade. Even so, Secretary of State John F. Kerry announced on Sunday that he and his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, "had reached a 'provisional agreement in principle' for a temporary truce in the Syrian civil war and that it could start within days" although no one really knows how the "cease-fire would be enforced and how breaches would be resolved." Consider how hypocritical it is for Obama to reject Russia's draft resolution at the UN and, just hours later, try to put Al Qaida under the protective umbrella of a US-Russia brokered ceasefire. What does that say about America's so called "war on terror"? In this hotly contested primary campaign we hear Senator Bernie Sanders, candidate for U.S. president, promoting social initiatives that most of the other 31 developed nations of the world, primarily in Europe and Scandinavia, have implemented over past decades. Sanders stands alone among the various candidates, both the Republicans and his Democratic opponent, Hillary Clinton, in making substantive recommendations to bring America up to the standards set by its fellow Western nations. But the dinosauric Republicans scoff at his proposals and call them unrealistic. Hillary Clinton dismisses them as far too ambitious and challenges Sanders to show how he would pay for them. Let's review some of these ideas that Sanders is trying to sell to the American people. He continues to stress that America needs to develop a universal health care system in which all Americans have medical coverage. But that's the last thing in the world the Republicans want, a world class health care system, while Hillary says that everything is just fine as is. Republicans condemn that idea because, in their minds, it would be just another socialist program run by the government; never mind that socialism is alive and well in America as evidenced by the following very important and successful social programs and organizations: Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, police enforcement agencies, teachers, and, yes, the U.S. military. In fact, Sanders does not want to add another social program, he simply wants to expand Medicare for all Americans and substantially lower overall costs for everyone. What else does this visionary, forward --thinking individual want to bring to this country? Well, he also wants to create decent paying jobs, millions of which would come from hiring American workers to repair and rebuild our rapidly deteriorating infrastructure; he wants a living wage for all Americans, he wants to restore the middle class, the heart of America; he says we need to address America's massive inequality of wealth and income. And there is even more: Sanders believes that, above all, we need to completely remove Corporate America's money, power and influence from our government, he wants free tuition for students at public/community colleges, far more assistance for veterans, a greatly improved system of justice, addressing climate change as well as developing solar power. Sander's message seems to be resonating with a rapidly growing number of Americans who see his proposals as being a great benefit to this country; positive, constructive measures that will make this country stronger and more advanced. The millennials really like what they hear and are getting behind the Sander's movement. Let's look at some of these areas where America lags behind their fellow Western nations. Check out this article and the map which shows the countries that provide universal health care to their citizens. It looks like the vast majority of the nations of the civilized world provide medical coverage for all of their citizens but America is not one of them. It is on a par with the continent of Africa and parts of Asia. What about free education for college students? Well, most of these developed nations have free college tuition or offer generous subsidies for their students. Here is an article that lists seven countries that offer free tuition to their own students and, if you can believe it, they also offer it to foreign students, including Americans. Here's a headline from uncut.com: "Why American College Students Are Flocking to Germany -- and Staying; Because they are getting free tuition." What a contrast; free education for American students in Germany while here in America our students are weighed down with a total tuition debt of over $1.2 trillion. Something is really rotten and it sure isn't in Denmark. We could go on and on with various programs that other nations have and America does not have. Sometimes the truth is too painful to accept and many of us lapse into a state of denial, refusing to acknowledge that these countries are way ahead of us; ahead because they set their priorities first and foremost in line with the needs and wants of their people. Here in America the many craven politicians embedded in the Establishment will fight tooth and nail to prevent Sanders or anyone else from implementing some or all of these revolutionary changes. They don't want a living wage, a $15 an hour minimum wage; they have no inclination to create jobs for millions of Americans, they have no interest whatsoever in the development of solar power and they are perfectly content with the power and control that Corporate America holds over this failed government. They are stuck in the quagmire of their own shallow thinking. Our national priorities are really twisted. Sanders has made it clear that the funding for free college tuition would come from a small tax on Wall Street speculative transactions; and universal health care will involve combining the current Medicare, Obamacare and private medical insurance system into one, which will greatly reduce waste and redundant procedures, resulting in much lower costs for Americans. There is no question but that America has more than enough wealth to afford the societal advancements that Sanders is recommending. If all those 31 other developed nations can do these things then the richest country in the world should also be able to do so. It's all about setting priorities for the good of all Americans. Next Page 1 | 2 (Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher). Reprinted from Civil Arab Many of us read Professor Steven Salaita's hard-hitting oped in Salon 10 days ago, where he declared, quite loudly and articulately, that he won't be voting for Bernie Sanders. He succinctly laid out American politicians' long-standing and very consistent policies of bowing to the interests of the Israeli lobby, to the constant detriment of Palestinian life. He wrote: "Supporting Israeli ethnic cleansing is more than a flaw or an oversight. Until Sanders states an intention to defund Israel's occupation, his proclamations about two states will continue to sound perfunctory and disingenuous, dull bromides uttered by a man who otherwise avoids them." He is no doubt right about this. The problem with his analysis is that it relegates Palestine supporters to the sideline. If one chooses to do, that is of course his/her right. Inherent in the right to vote is the right not to vote. I'm not a proponent of the old mantra that tell us, "If you don't vote, you have no right to complain." But we might be served to think strategically. And if we do so, we might ask ourselves a few questions: Can we relate Palestine to a candidate's stated principles? Which candidate is most likely to be swayed on Palestinian rights? If we seek the answers to these questions, we most definitely end up in one place: the Sanders campaign. What seems quite clear is that Palestine supporters can find no place anywhere else. We can quite quickly dismiss a role in any Republican campaign, as they are all mired in Islamphobia, anti-Arab racism, a quite acute hatred of immigrants, and clear distaste for anything darker than snow. This is why we should summarily disregard any and all organizations that seek dialogue and understanding with the GOP, such as Saba Ahmed's Republican Muslim Coalition. We might take a quick look at the campaign of Hillary Clinton, gauging if her movement should appeal to us at all. But that assessment shouldn't take too long. We would be well served to recall her 2000 Senate election, when she returned over $50,000 of donations to Muslim organizations, in an attempt to avoid any "misimpression" that she supported the widely held belief in our community that Palestinians have the right to resist an illegal, violent, and murderous Israeli occupation. It would also be quite within our interests to reject her embracing of Haim Saban, the Hollywood billionaire media mogul who has been quoted as saying, "I'm a one-issue guy and my issue is Israel." He is a very close friend of the Clintons (he brags about it often), spending numerous nights in the White House during Bill Clinton's presidency. I wish some Palestinians could have spent the night there, instead of being slaughtered in Gaza in 2014, after which Saban held an event that raised $34 million for the IDF. Hillary Clinton has vowed to put an end to the Boycott, Divesment, and Sanctions movement against Israel, or BDS. In a letter to Saban, she pledged to "stand up for Israel" as president, further stating "that we need to make countering BDS a priority." In other words, Clinton has made it quite clear that she opposes all forms of resistance against Israeli policies, including explicitly nonviolent ones like BDS. All in all, Saban has "donated" $6.4 million to Hillary and her super PACs. So, back to Bernie. Has he recently advocated for defunding Israel, called for cutting off arms, or explicitly expressed support for Palestinian self-determination? No. But he hasn't done the opposite, as every other candidate has. Now, Professor Salaita might call that a low bar, and he would be correct. But we should also recognize that the spectrum of progressives who are supporting the Sanders campaign are generally averse to Israeli policies, and it is not immoral or unprincipled to find some common ground there in our attempt to further American policy on the issue. On his website, Sanders proclaims that "he does not favor Israel over the Palestinians." No other candidate would dare put such words in print. And on the issue of Palestine, Sanders' Jewishness cannot be understated. Until we get a Palestinian president, a progressive Jew might be best equipped to stand up to the Israeli lobby and create just foreign policies when it comes to Palestine. Is that a pipe dream? Maybe. But if we Palestinians have an abundance of anything, it's optimism. Finally, Bernie has spoken out more strongly against Islamophobia and racism than any other candidate. We are all familiar with his well-documented participation in civil rights movements since the 1960s. But we might also remember back in October 2015 when Sanders embraced a young Muslim student during a rally at George Mason University in Virginia. After expressing her disgust at the anti-Muslim rhetoric dominating the presidential primaries, Remaz Abdelgader was called to the stage by Sanders, who hugged her and went on to invoke his own Jewish familial history in pledging to rid America of its "ugly stain" of racism. Most Sanders supporters may soon learn a harsh lesson. A lesson in how excessive political optimism--as opposed to hopeful realism (embodied in Antonio Gramsci's brilliant adage "pessimism of the mind, optimism of the will")--can instantly turn to political despair. The type of despair, in fact, where once-fired-up "revolutionaries," having basked for months in "feeling the Bern," return broken-hearted and empty-handed to their heatless hearths, murmuring that politics just isn't worth it. Is the flame of political revolution about to .Bern. out? (Image by Yanitof) Details DMCA All of which simply proves what Sanders has said all along: that political revolution is "bigger than Bernie," and that even in victory, he would need behind him a movement, willing to march by millions in the streets, to succeed in overhauling our radically corrupt political system. Unfortunately, he never prepared his followers for the prospect of defeat. Which seems to be coming. What's worse yet, he declared last year that if he lost, he would support the Democratic nominee . For ardent revolutionaries, that's a flagrant counsel of despair, since that nominee--Hillary Clinton--is precisely as revolutionary as Marie Antoinette. In other words, the type revolutionaries introduced to Monsieur Guillotine in days of yore and gore--certainly not the type they campaigned for. Yet that's what exactly what "milquetoast revolutionary" Bernie will soon ask us to do. We must refuse now to vote for Clinton, before he even gets to ask us. In that gesture of revolutionary desperation lies our only hope of avoiding revolutionary despair. Desperation is not despair, but a last-ditch attempt to ward off the worst, made by people who realize the worst is likely. And in this case, the desperation move I suggest--rallying behind Revolt Against Plutocracy 's Bernie or Bust pledge --is guaranteed to ward off the worst. For the worst is not Hillary Clinton being nominated--and there's certainly no guaranteed way to ward off that. Rather, the worst is Hillary Clinton being nominated without a savage opposition movement in place, one that regards her as warmly and trustingly as French sans-culottes regarded Marie Antoinette. For, whatever Bernie's deficiencies as a political revolutionary, he's a virtual gold standard of integrity and good policy among incumbent national politicians, and Hillary is almost Bernie's anti-matter. The hideous bait-and-switch involved in swapping Bernie for Hillary is best summarized in a play on Marie Antoinette's infamous words: "Let them eat FAKE." Political revolutionaries, demanding the wholesome bread of system overthrow, must vomit at the prospect of eating fake. Unfortunately, neither Berniacs nor the Sanders-skeptical Left really seem up to the task of seizing this ideal moment for political revolution. As a betting man, I'd say the most likely--and utterly dismal--prospect is a Clinton presidency wherein Bernie's vaunted revolution disappears without a trace. "Not with a bang but a whimper," as poet T.S. Eliot memorably wrote. Consider, first, the Berniacs. I use the term "Berniacs" affectionately, by the way; if I meant derision, I would use CounterPunch editor Jeffrey St. Clair's incisive coinage "Sandernistas." The term "Berniacs" suggests derision, because, as a coinage based on maniac, it implies excessive obsession with Bernie Sanders, a case of having "Bernie on the brain." However, I would argue that in our dire political circumstances the obsession was fully justified: here's a once-in-a-lifetime case of a progressive politician, uncorrupted by political money, running for president in one of America's two electable parties, focused obsessively on the lynchpin problem of political money, and causing endless nightmares for the pin-up girl of corruption by such money, Hillary Clinton. Unlike the Sanders-skeptical Left (some of whom later honestly recanted; see here , here , and here ), I applauded Sanders' decision to run as a Democrat, giving him a huge mainstream audience and the prospect (as Revolt Against Plutocracy terms it) of "radicalizing the mainstream." Whatever the Faustian bargain involved in Sanders' decision --above all, the probably imposed condition of supporting the Democratic nominee--Bernie's Democratic candidacy has been a wildly successful case of reaching mainstream voters with an unprecedentedly leftist message they were ready to hear. Up to and including the taboo word socialism. If I have a bone to pick with my fellow Berniacs, it's not their obsession with electing Sanders, whose presidency could make a night-and-day difference in U.S. politics--a difference fully meriting the honored name of political revolution. Rather, it's their naive, utter lack of seriousness about political revolution--their pure Pollyanna optimism that corporatist Democrats and equally corporatist mainstream media would let Bernie win without ferocious resistance: that they would respect honest debate, democratic process, and popular will. I fully expect CounterPunch managing editor Joshua Frank (author of the wake-up call article I cited earlier ) will prove right, Hillary will unjustly defeat Bernie in a series of primaries, and Bernie's revolution will be swept away like so much chaff in a reactionary tempest. Unless Sanders supporters embrace the revolutionary willfulness of desperation. As embodied in the Bernie or Bust pledge . If I have a bone to pick with my fellow "Berniacs," I have an even bigger one to pick with the Sanders-skeptical Left. Sure, you've shown yourself politically less naive than Berniacs--but have you come anywhere close to their insight? Basically, that they perceived--as you decidedly did not-- that Bernie Sanders was anti-establishment enough to build on, that he (whatever his deficiencies as a full-blown socialist ) would make even the taboo word socialism (which you yourselves never succeeded in reviving) respectable among mainstream voters. If Bernie's revolution tragically ends "not with a bang but a whimper," the Sanders-skeptical left, in its ideology-driven paralysis, will have a lot to answer for. But time still remains for the Left to redeem itself--but only at the price of aiding Berniacs in their desperation efforts, via the Bernie or Bust pledge, to elect Sanders. For the only real prospect of near-term reform is the prospect--based on considerable empirical evidence --of convincing the Democratic Party that nominating Hillary Clinton virtually guarantees losing the presidency to Republicans. An effort of persuasion we-- a united movement of Berniacs and Sanders-skeptical leftists--help along by pledging our refusal to vote for corporatist Clinton. What the Left has to gain from this supporting this desperation effort by Berniacs to elect Sanders--a far better prospect than anything else remotely possible--is a united, energized movement ready to offer savage opposition to Clinton or any Republican, along with many first-time Green voters who've acknowledged the Green Party as a vastly preferable alternative to Bernie than Clinton. What the Left has to gain from nonchalantly leaving Berniacs to their electoral disappointment--and likely political despair--is absolutely squat. It's almost inconceivable how psychologically tone-deaf the Left has been in expecting severely disappointed Sanders supporters to arise as a post-Bernie movement when they themselves haven't shown the faintest trace of sympathy for Berniacs' very rational support of their genuinely insurgent candidate. One might think leftists, understandably skeptical of Berniacs in their days of ardent hope, might at least come to Berniacs' aid--for movement-building's sake--in their days of desperation. But even this minimal, sympathetic act of buoying Berniacs' declining spirits seems beyond the ken of the ideological Left. Consider CounterPunch managing editor Joshua Frank, who at least has the decency (in the article I've twice cited) to acknowledge disappointed Berniacs as potential revolutionaries. But his calling them to carry on revolutionary effort in the face of profound electoral disappointment strikes me as being unreasonable as asking Jesus' disciples to continue the "Jesus movement" in the face of their Master's crucifixion without their purported encounters with the risen Christ. If one wishes to motivate the crestfallen, one might at least come to their aid in their moment of desperation. But the prize for leftist tone deafness surely belongs to Chris Hedges. As I acknowledged in my comment to Hedges' most recent article, Hedges is a true U.S. prophet, worthy of honoring, alongside Noam Chomsky, as the "conscience of America." But Hedges, so long "a voice crying in the wilderness" (as in heroic opposition to the Iraq War ) has apparently gotten so accustomed to the political wilderness that he never wishes to leave it. Far worse than Frank, he simply supports likely Green Party presidential nominee Jill Stein, without for one second acknowledging why quite reasonable average people might support the far more electable Bernie Sanders, or without considering for one second ( as Stein herself clearly considers ) that Berniacs, predictably stiffed by the Democratic establishment, could soon--in a truly revolutionary "bait-and-switch"--become Stein's most ardent supporters. Bottom line: the desperation move of taking the Bernie or Bust pledge is the only real hope for carrying on Bernie Sanders' political revolution, and if leftists won't show Sanders supporters the minimal support of taking it, they might as well postpone all hopes of revolution until the Second Coming. And knowing leftists as I do, they probably will. Congress Switchboard: 202-224-3121 "Rob Kall's Bottom-Up weaves together the many strands of new thinking about how to use decentralized, non-hierarchical approaches to solve crucial social and economic problems. Bottom-Up presents a tapestry of ideas and examples that can inspire and guide readers." Peter Plastrik, coauthor of Connecting to Change the World: Harnessing the Power of Networks for Social Impact Articles Listed By Date List By Popularity Search Title Date Between Any 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 Any 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 and Any 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 Any 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 Page 1 of 12 First Last Back Next 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 View All (5 comments) SHARE Rep. Barbara Lee, Who Cast Sole Vote After 9/11 Against "Forever Wars," on Need for Afghan War Inquiry California Democratic Congressmember Barbara Lee, her voice trembling with emotion as she spoke from the House floor, would be the sole member of Congress to vote against the war in the immediate aftermath of 9/11. The final vote was 420 to 1. Friday, September 10, 2021California Democratic Congressmember Barbara Lee, her voice trembling with emotion as she spoke from the House floor, would be the sole member of Congress to vote against the war in the immediate aftermath of 9/11. The final vote was 420 to 1. SHARE David Gilbert, Ex-Weather Underground Member, Granted Clemency by Cuomo. Will Parole Board Free Him? Outgoing New York Governor Andrew Cuomo used his final hours in office to grant clemency to six men, including former Weather Underground member David Gilbert, who was sentenced to 75 years to life in prison for his role in a 1981 robbery of an armored truck that left a security guard and two police officers dead. Tuesday, August 24, 2021Outgoing New York Governor Andrew Cuomo used his final hours in office to grant clemency to six men, including former Weather Underground member David Gilbert, who was sentenced to 75 years to life in prison for his role in a 1981 robbery of an armored truck that left a security guard and two police officers dead. (2 comments) SHARE Calls Grow for Biden to Close Guanta'namo Military Prison as U.S. Sanctions Cuba over Human Rights As the United States imposes new Cuba sanctions, citing human rights abuses, we look at the U.S. military prison in Guanta'namo Bay, Cuba, a notorious gulag that President Biden himself has called an "advertisement for creating terror." Tuesday, July 27, 2021As the United States imposes new Cuba sanctions, citing human rights abuses, we look at the U.S. military prison in Guanta'namo Bay, Cuba, a notorious gulag that President Biden himself has called an "advertisement for creating terror." SHARE Republicans Won't Even Debate "For the People Act" as They Flood States with Voter Suppression Bills Lawmakers in Washington continue to negotiate over an infrastructure bill that Democrats say needs to include major new funding to address the climate crisis. Tuesday, June 22, 2021Lawmakers in Washington continue to negotiate over an infrastructure bill that Democrats say needs to include major new funding to address the climate crisis. SHARE U.S. Led 2020 Nuclear Weapons Spending; Now Biden Going "Full Steam Ahead" on Trump's Nuclear Plans Despite President Biden's criticisms of Trump's nuclear policies during his candidacy, heis continuing initiatives to expand the U.S. nuclear arsenal and is seeking $43 billion for nuclear weapons in his new budget. Thursday, June 10, 2021Despite President Biden's criticisms of Trump's nuclear policies during his candidacy, heis continuing initiatives to expand the U.S. nuclear arsenal and is seeking $43 billion for nuclear weapons in his new budget. SHARE "Lynch Mobs": Palestinians Face Brutal Attacks Inside Israel as Assault on Gaza Escalates at least 83 Palestinians, including 17 children, are dead in Gaza, as Israel continues its assault on the besieged territory. Israel is now amassing ground troops near Gaza. Thursday, May 13, 2021at least 83 Palestinians, including 17 children, are dead in Gaza, as Israel continues its assault on the besieged territory. Israel is now amassing ground troops near Gaza. (2 comments) SHARE Climate Change Is a Driving Force in Central American Migration Look at the link between migration and the climate emergency, which studies have estimated could displace over 200 million people by 2050, including many in Central American countries such as Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras. Saturday, April 24, 2021Look at the link between migration and the climate emergency, which studies have estimated could displace over 200 million people by 2050, including many in Central American countries such as Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras. SHARE "He's Going to Be So Missed": Funeral Held for Police Shooting Victim Daunte Wright in Minneapolis The time has come for police to understand they're not above the law, they're to enforce the law. Friday, April 23, 2021The time has come for police to understand they're not above the law, they're to enforce the law. SHARE Killed over a Car Air Freshener: Outrage Grows over Police Shooting of Daunte Wright in Minnesota Protests continue in the Minneapolis area after a white police officer shot and killed a 20-year-old Black man, Daunte Wright, during a traffic stop Sunday in the suburb of Brooklyn Center. Tuesday, April 13, 2021Protests continue in the Minneapolis area after a white police officer shot and killed a 20-year-old Black man, Daunte Wright, during a traffic stop Sunday in the suburb of Brooklyn Center. (1 comments) SHARE Pandemic Profiteers: How U.S. Billionaires Like Amazon's Jeff Bezos Saw Wealth Grow by $1.3 Trillion A new report reveals that as a record number of people in the United States lost their jobs and struggled to put food the table during the past year of the pandemic, the combined wealth of the 657 billionaires in the country grew more thonan $1.3 trillion. Thursday, March 25, 2021A new report reveals that as a record number of people in the United States lost their jobs and struggled to put food the table during the past year of the pandemic, the combined wealth of the 657 billionaires in the country grew more thonan $1.3 trillion. SHARE Biden "Illegally" Bombs Iranian-Backed Militias in Syria, Jeopardizing Nuclear Talks with Tehran The Biden administration is facing intense criticism from U.S. progressives after carrying out airstrikes on eastern Syria said to be targeting Iranian-backed militia groups. Monday, March 1, 2021The Biden administration is facing intense criticism from U.S. progressives after carrying out airstrikes on eastern Syria said to be targeting Iranian-backed militia groups. (6 comments) SHARE Fossil Fuel Shock Doctrine: Naomi Klein on Deadly Deregulation & Why Texas Needs the Green New Deal Millions of Texans are still suffering after severe winter weather devastated the state's energy and water systems. About 8 million Texans remain under orders to boil water, and 30,000 homes still have no power. Monday, February 22, 2021Millions of Texans are still suffering after severe winter weather devastated the state's energy and water systems. About 8 million Texans remain under orders to boil water, and 30,000 homes still have no power. SHARE Teacher Unions: We Want to Reopen Schools as Well, But We Need Vaccines & Resources to Do It Safely Years of underfunding and privatization have left many school districts ill-equipped to meet the needs of students, as well as educators. "It's not just the context of opening schools. It's reopening schools safely with the resources that are necessary to keep people safe. Wednesday, February 17, 2021Years of underfunding and privatization have left many school districts ill-equipped to meet the needs of students, as well as educators. "It's not just the context of opening schools. It's reopening schools safely with the resources that are necessary to keep people safe. SHARE Ibram X. Kendi & Keisha Blain on Impeachment, White Supremacist Violence & Holding Trump Accountable Donald Trump is the only president in U.S. history to be impeached twice. Now the question is if he will be convicted in his Senate trial. And if he is, will they prevent him from running again for federal office? Wednesday, February 10, 2021Donald Trump is the only president in U.S. history to be impeached twice. Now the question is if he will be convicted in his Senate trial. And if he is, will they prevent him from running again for federal office? SHARE Is Far-Right QAnon Conspiracy Theorist Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene the New Face of the GOP? Greene is a far-right conspiracy theorist who has promoted QAnon, supported the execution of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and claimed the school shootings in Sandy Hook, Connecticut, and Parkland, Florida, were staged as was the September 11 attack on the Pentagon. Wednesday, February 3, 2021Greene is a far-right conspiracy theorist who has promoted QAnon, supported the execution of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and claimed the school shootings in Sandy Hook, Connecticut, and Parkland, Florida, were staged as was the September 11 attack on the Pentagon. SHARE Dr. Peter Hotez: "Globalized Anti-Science Movement" Threatens Pandemic Response & Public Health The Biden administration has vowed to increase the rate of vaccinations as COVID-19 continues to spread uncontrollably across the entire U.S., with 90,000 people predicted to die in the next four weeks. Friday, January 29, 2021The Biden administration has vowed to increase the rate of vaccinations as COVID-19 continues to spread uncontrollably across the entire U.S., with 90,000 people predicted to die in the next four weeks. SHARE As Death Toll Tops 410,000, Biden Pushes "Wartime Effort" to Fight COVID. But Could More Be Done? On his first full day in office, President Joe Biden unveiled a 198-page national plan to tackle the coronavirus pandemic as the U.S. death toll tops 410,000. Friday, January 22, 2021On his first full day in office, President Joe Biden unveiled a 198-page national plan to tackle the coronavirus pandemic as the U.S. death toll tops 410,000. (1 comments) SHARE Is Big Tech Too Powerful? Chris Hedges & Ramesh Srinivasan Debate Twitter & Facebook Banning Trump Twitter, Facebook and other social media companies have removed President Trump from their platforms, after years of debate about the disinformation he shared to millions of followers from his accounts. Monday, January 11, 2021Twitter, Facebook and other social media companies have removed President Trump from their platforms, after years of debate about the disinformation he shared to millions of followers from his accounts. SHARE "No Reason to Let Up" on Masks as U.S. COVID-19 Deaths & Infections Skyrocket During Vaccine Rollout The United States has once again shattered global records for daily coronavirus cases and deaths, with nearly a quarter-million infections reported on Wednesday alone. More than 3,600 Americans died of COVID-19 Wednesday, by far the worst one-day death toll for any nation since the start of the pandemic. Thursday, December 17, 2020The United States has once again shattered global records for daily coronavirus cases and deaths, with nearly a quarter-million infections reported on Wednesday alone. More than 3,600 Americans died of COVID-19 Wednesday, by far the worst one-day death toll for any nation since the start of the pandemic. SHARE Greta Thunberg: 5 Years After Paris Agreement, World Is "Speeding in the Wrong Direction" on Climate Five years ago, world leaders signed the Paris Agreement, and they promised to keep the global average temperature rise to well below 2 degrees Celsius and to pursue 1.5 degrees to safeguard future living conditions. Since then, the action needed is still nowhere in sight. Monday, December 14, 2020Five years ago, world leaders signed the Paris Agreement, and they promised to keep the global average temperature rise to well below 2 degrees Celsius and to pursue 1.5 degrees to safeguard future living conditions. Since then, the action needed is still nowhere in sight. Page 1 of 12 First Last Back Next 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 View All On the evening of September 11, 2012, an organized force of Islamic terrorists, including elements of the Libyan branch of al Qaeda, attacked the United States embassy in Benghazi, Libya, killing four Americans. The attacks, murders and looting of the embassy occurred despite repeated requests for increased security, all of which were ignored or denied by the United States State Department. The attacks, murders and looting of the embassy occurred despite repeated requests for military assistance during the course of the attacks, all of which were ignored or denied by military commanders, the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and the State Department. The four Americans killed were Ambassador Chris Stevens, foreign service officer Sean Smith, CIA operative Glen Doherty and CIA operative Tyrone Woods. Ambassador Stevens left behind his wife Mary and his parents and three siblings. Sean Smith left behind his wife Heather and two young children, Samantha and Nathan. Tyrone Woods left behind his wife, Dr. Dorothy Narvaez-Woods, and three children (two teenagers and an infant son. CIA operative Glen Doherty left behind a sister, Kate Quickley and other family members. All were young men with a lifetime of opportunities ahead of them. For those of you who have lost a loved one, a family member, or a close friend to a sudden act (a fatal accident, a sudden medical onset, or an act of violence) you can recall the dismay you felt and the hope that there has been a mistake that the report is wrong and that the pain and the nightmare that is just beginning will vanish as if it were simply a bad dream. The intensity of that feeling is magnified when the incident occurs at a distance from you. And even more so when there are conflicting reports about what happened those conflicting reports giving additional hope that somehow, if there is confusion about the incident, there could also be confusion about the victims. And so you sit. And wait. And the fear of what will come next if the report is right begins to crowd into you. If you are a spouse, it is the loss of your companion the person to whom you have dared to give your heart (s)he will never be there again. That agony is magnified when there are children. Children to whom you must explain why their father (mother) is never coming home again. And infant children who never had the chance to actually know their parent, to learn from them, to love them as they have been loved by the one that is gone. And if you are a parent, your heart tells you that this is not supposed to be that your children should live beyond you and that you should never have to bury someone to whom you have dedicated so much of your love and life. The hollowness that is left by the death of a loved one particularly a sudden death may dissipate over time, but not for a time, not for a spouse, a child, or a parent. While this miasma enveloped the wives, children, parents and siblings of the four slain American, they are called to Andrews Air Force Base to receive the bodies. There is probably not a time in ones life when you are more vulnerable. What little hope that there has been a mistake is crushed and all of your fears are now reality. On September 14, the bodies of these four men slain in Benghazi were returned to the United States where members of their families were joined by President Barack Obama, Vice-President Joe Biden, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta the four people primarily responsible for denying requests for additional security at the Benghazi embassy prior to the attacks and for denying military assistance during the attacks. There was a public part of this reception and then a private meeting between the family members and Mr. Obamas senior officials, including Ms. Clinton. During the course of the private meeting, Ms. Clinton told various family members that the Benghazi attack was a spontaneous uprising of Libyans angry about a video produced in America that was critical of the Prophet Mohammed. That despite the fact that she had been informed by her own State Department that Ansar al Sharia (an affiliate of al Qaeda) had claimed responsibility for the attack. That despite the fact that on the night of the attack (two days before the bodies were returned) Ms. Clinton send an email to her daughter, Chelsea, stating: Two of our officers were killed in Benghazi by an al Qaeda-like group: The Ambassador, whom I handpicked and a young communications officer on temporary duty w a wife and two young children. Very hard day and I fear more of the same tomorrow. So intent on deception was Ms. Clinton that her email was addressed to Diane Reynolds which was the cover name that she used for her daughter. Ms. Clinton has subsequently denied that she told the family members that the incident was due to the video. But CNN reported that Patricia Smith, mother of Sean Smith stated: National Security Adviser Susan Rice talked to me personally, and she said this is the way it was. It was because of this film that came out. Later, in testimony before a House Committee on Benghazi, Ms. Smith stated that Mr. Obama, Ms. Clinton and Ms. Rice all told her that the Benghazi attack stemmed from the video. On the October 25, 2012 Glenn Beck Show, Tyrone Woods father Charles Wood confirmed Ms. Clintons statement and noted tht Ms. Clinton stated that: We will make sure that the person who made that film is arrested and prosecuted. Later Mr. Woods would share with Fox News, a diary with notes of that day which noted: I gave Hillary a hug and shook her hand. And she said we are going to have the filmmaker arrested who was responsible for the death of my son, Kate Quigley in an October 2015 interview with Anderson Cooper of CNN stated: She spoke to my family about how sad we should feel for the Libyan people because they are uneducated, and that breeds fear, which breeds violence, and leads to a protest, Quigley said, adding that Clinton chose to perpetuate what she knew was untrue. There is additional external evidence which tends to confirm the statements of the family members. First, the families had no reason to lie. Ms. Clinton, on the other hand, needed to protect herself from her internal decisions that left the Benghazi embassy virtually defenseless and from her role in deposing former Libyan dictator Mummar Ghadafi and abandoning the successor government thus creating the chaos that actually gave rise to the attack. Additionally, Ms. Clinton has a long and unchecked history of lying running from back in the days when she was dealing with Whitewater all the way through the current scandals involving her use of a private email account and server through which passed literally ten of thousands of State Department messages, including classified, Top Secret, and some so secret that they cannot be currently released. In this instance history and the law are the on side of the victims and not on that of a demonstrable liar. Ms. Clinton in public speeches, prior to and following that fateful meeting, blamed the attack on the video. Due to her email to her daughter, we know that she knew her statements were a lie and yet she continued to perpetuate the lie for political expedience. We also know that in furtherance of this deception, including the threat to bring the filmmaker to justice, he was arrested in a very public manner. (The arrest was for other charges since by the time the Obama administration affected the arrest not a single American, including the members of the Obama administration believed the video was responsible.) But lets bring this back to actual perspective. Here were the families of the four men murdered in Benghazi at their most vulnerable point a point at which they were seeking answers and reconciliation and Ms. Clinton, for political expedience, lied to them. Lie not once but repeatedly. Lied before the meeting, during the meeting and after the meeting. Here stood a women so cold, callous and calculating that she would prey on the vulnerable for her own political ambitions. That is the ultimate Hillary Clinton. And for those who continue to support her to be President of the United States, it tells as much about you as it does about Ms. Clinton. India is on a roll. A 7.6 per cent GDP growth is forecast for the next year, and the 'start-up' buzzword has created a positive circle of influence in the overall ecosystem. As almost every segment throws up its own unicorns, the employer brand is experiencing interesting changes. And the same is visible in the Business Today-PeopleStrong Best Companies to Work For study. For the past five years, the study has been bringing interesting insights on employee perceptions and aspirations, right from the need for differentiated HR strategy for employees of different genres and geographies (2010), to driving coherence for the employer and the consumer brand (2011), casualty of the bosses (2013), and relationship between ethical leadership and employer brand (2014). This year provides a glimpse of how the start-up and digital agenda are impacting the employee psyche, as entrepreneurship goes mainstream and college pass-outs want to venture out and experiment. It's not just the challenge that drives the pull towards start-ups, or because it is cool. Since the roles in start-ups are complex and need understanding of not only how an organisation works, but a deep understanding of the market as well, an individual gets to perform roles in the initial two years that one would otherwise get after 10 years of hard work. This opportunity along with excellent compensation and a fun work environment are driving the attractiveness of start-ups. The hidden message from these young people: de-layer the organisation, give us more accountability, we are okay to do a hands-on job, but make it meaningful and with the right compensation. This new reality has to be carefully mapped by organisations to bring in parity in roles and growth that are offered to campus hires and millennials as well. Diversity is another issue that organisations have worked on globally and in India, with gender being the primary thread. But what is heartening to see is that companies across all industry verticals have this on the agenda. This is good news. But the bad news is: employees are saying this is not enough. They want concrete measures around both diversity - gender or ethnicity - and inclusion. In short, companies with a culture in which differences of all sorts are recognised, accepted and respected, are the ones considered successful in nurturing a truly diverse workplace. Communication is never enough, and this is true for all times when the message has to travel to the last mile. There is a clear correlation between this dimension and the overall satisfaction scores with HR practices. What's interesting is that it's not about top-down communication, but about two-way channels that are available. Clearly, the mandate is to leverage technology like never before. It's the only way a continuous, two-sided communication can be sustained. But ensure that you don't stop at social media and collaboration. Organisations have to go beyond and look at each interface of the employee on a regular working day - for example, can the reimbursement option be completely automated, can we make attendance process intuitive through an HR app, etc. The future of the workplace is going through some fundamental changes as the nature of work and preferences evolve. Part-time working, multiple jobs and making the work more complex, and the experience of the employee through mobile and digital are realities. So, go simple! Go digital! The author is Co-founder and Chief Business Officer of PeopleStrong. BFSI: HDFC Bank Demanding Caregiver HDFC Bank constantly challenges its employees, but also goes the extra mile in accommodating them. "My husband has a transferable job, which has required us to move four times across three cities," says Soumi Sengupta, Mumbai-based Head of High Net Worth Business Development. "HDFC Bank has accommodated my request every time for transfer to whichever place my husband was posted." Nor have the transfers she sought impacted her professional growth At the same time, HDFC Bank is a demanding employer, insisting its staff get better and better. "We work like a start-up," says Priyanka Bakshi, Vice President. "The bank continuously throws challenges at us. Despite having spent 12 years in retail banking, I don't find my job monotonous." Rewards for excelling can be much more than the salary earned - the bank offers employee stock options (ESOPs) to all employees, irrespective of rank, who perform above a certain benchmark. "We are among the few companies in india to have created wealth for our employees," says Philip Mathew, Chief People Officer. ESOPs are certainly one reason why attrition at HDFC Bank, above the rank of Assistant Vice President, is just 2-3 per cent. "There is a sense of ownership among our employees ... because they feel they are building the business," says Paresh Sukthankar, Deputy Managing Director. And success feeds the desire to do even better - HDFC Bank is now India's largest bank by market capitalisation (yes, even bigger than State Bank of India), having grown consistently for the past two decades. Such growth - and the resultant expansion - has ensured that there are always plenty of avenues for promotion. "The long and consistent track record of the bank in a volatile environment has made a big difference," says Sukthankar. - Mahesh Nayak BPO/KPO & ITES: TCS BPS All About Inclusion Baisakhi Deb, HR Lead at TCS BPS (Business Process Services) in Kolkata, met with a horrifying accident in 2006. The state-level badminton player lost a leg and injured her spinal chord irreparably. But after being confined to bed for eight long years, Deb not only found herself heading an important HR function at TCS BPS but was also able to get back to her passion, badminton. This time as a para badminton player. Currently, the world number six in para badminton, Deb has recently been awarded the Khel Ratna Award. She gives full credit for her achievements to her organisation, TCS, which never discriminated against her because of her physical disabilities. "This gave me immense confidence to turnaround," she says. As its manpower strategy, the 67,000 employee strong company has made diversity its mantra. "Diversity for us goes beyond gender," says Ranjan Bandyopadhya, Global HR Head, TCS BPS. The company already has over 800 employees with physical disabilities. "It is busy integrating the LGBT community into its workforce. TCS is an extremely open organisation," says Indira Parekh, management consultant and former dean of IIM Ahmedabad Bandyopadhya proudly claims that the attrition rates at TCS BPS is as low as 18 per cent. The industry average is 40 per cent. Bandyopadhya says that the reason for this is the rich work profile its able to offer. "We are highly focused on domain centricity. People join us as business analysts and that helps us retain talent. " - Ajita Shashidhar Core Sector: Tata Steel Future Ready One of India's oldest corporates is changing with the times. In February, Tata Steel changed something that had been continuing for 108 years. It reduced the nearly two-hour lunch break for 28,000 non-shift workers to 30 minutes. In return, the employees got an extra day off every Saturday. "This has improved productivity and reduced costs related to vehicles going out and coming back six days a week during lunch hours, and reduced carbon footprint and traffic congestion in places such as Jamshedpur," says Suresh D. Tripathi, Vice President (HRM), Tata Steel. Tata Steel employs about 89,000 people across the globe. In India, many of its workers are third or fourth generation employees. Though it is difficult to do justice to every employees aspirations, it is managing well. Attrition is as low as 4 per cent. Tripathi says the figure for the steel industry is over 11 per cent. The company has devised several programmes for employees to educate themselves and nurture their talents. In Europe, for instance, it delivered 96,000 training interventions for its 30,000 employees. It also offers certificates and assistance for higher studies, besides providing quality social and cultural environment at its townships. Even though it is going through a bad phase, the company has not laid off people, says the HR executive. "We have been following the 1956 pact with the unions on not retrenching people during bad times," says Tripathi. Unions are key to the company's success, believes the management. - P.B. Jayakumar Engineering & Automotive: M&M A Helping Hand When it comes to human resources, Pawan Goenka, Executive Director, Mahindra and Mahindra (M&M), questions himself rather than others. "Why would somebody want to join us and stay and grow with the company?" So, in 2011, the automaker documented 'Employee Value Proposition'(EVP), on the lines of 'Customer Value Proposition' that others do. M&M's expectations are aligned with its fundamental principles - driving change, alternative thinking and accepting no limits. "We have done quite a bit in talent development and management," says Goenka. The M&M group has over 2,00,000 employees in 100 countries. "The outcomes have to be sustained business outperformance, care for stakeholders and nurturing of organisational values," says Rajeev Dubey, Group President (Human Resources and Corporate Services) and CEO (after-market sector). It is because of these things that Goenka says they have a fabulous relationship with trade unions. "We go out of the way to help employees and it is not just about financial support," he says. - Nevin John Other Manufacturing: HUL In Sync with the Timesa HUL for decades has been the dream job of every management graduate. Its intense people training processes and people - friendly policies are well known. Despite all this, the most sought after recruiter in the Indian corporate sector, like all manufacturing sector companies, has been finding it slightly more difficult to attract and retain talent.The year 2015 saw the manufacturing sector losing talent to e-commerce in a big way, and HUL was no exception. Be it marketplaces such as Flipkart or Amazon, verticals such as Urban Ladder, e-commerce became the sought after job destination for the manufacturing sector employees. However, HUL, say head hunters, has lost the least number of people to e-commerce and that is because of its ability to respond to the situation fast. In the past couple of years, the company has been actively offering its high potential employees opportunities to take charge of a vertical and be completely responsible for its growth. So, not only has HUL started offering entrepreneurial opportunities, head hunters claim that it is even considering offering employee stock options to them. HUL also has embraced the digital media in a big way. This again is a conscious effort of the company to be in sync with the changing times and thereby be able to attract the best of young talent. Digital advertising is the order of day. The countrys largest FMCG company is leaving no stone unturned to keep in pace with the changing world. - Ajita Shashidhar Pharma & Healthcare: Abbott India A Nursery of Talent It's a hat trick for US drug major Abbott India. The company has been ranked first for three years in a trot in the pharma and healthcare category of Business Today's annual survey. "Abbott follows a 'Growth Oriented Culture' and we provide employees an opportunity to 'Grow with the Leader'," says Bhasker Iyer, Vice President of Abbott's pharmaceuticals business and Country Management Representative in India. . Abbott is a diversified healthcare company with many leadership positions across nutrition, pharmaceuticals, devices and diagnostics verticals in India. This provides employees career opportunities across all of these businesses, says Bhaskar. About 85 per cent of Abbott's front-line and senior sales management vacancies are filled through the internal assessment and development route. The company has a comprehensive internal talent grooming process.The end objective is to make Abbott a nursery of talent. - P.B. Jayakumar Telecom and Allied: Bharti Airtel Employee-Centric More than 50 per cent people who quit their job at Bharti Airtel want to return. That's a startling figure for a company in a sector known for high employee burnout, work pressure and intense competition. Unlike other organizations, Bharti Airtel's exit interview takes place a few days after an employee leaves the organization. The idea is to find out how the employee feels in the new workplace. "We have a robust exit interview process. People say that they wish they hadn't done that," says B. Srikanth, Chief Human Resources Officer, Airtel. Srikanth says that other telecom companies look at Airtel employees as finished products. "For people who want to build digital businesses, Bharti Airtel is a one-stop shop. We tell our people that start-up environment is available in Bharti Airtel itself. If you think of something, you have the power and ability to do execute it, implement it and see it come to life," he adds. The regretted attrition at Bharti Airtel is less than 14 per cent. It refers to employees who have good performance ratings and whose exit is regretted by the company. The overall attrition is 17-18 per cent. "By joining Bharti Airtel, employees have a great opportunity to come and explore so many aspects of a business here," says Srikanth. - Manu Kaushik ATC sentenced two JeM activists to 10 years RAWALPINDI: An anti-terrorism court (ATC) on Tuesday sentenced two Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) activists to 10 years in prison for raising funds for the banned outfit. Kashif Siddique and Rashid Iqbal were arrested by the Punjan Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) in Attock district on Aug 7 last year, along with a money box placed near a mosque. The CTD officials found Rs210 in the box and seized empty cash receipts, membership cards, books and pamphlets related to JeM, led by Maulana Masood Azhar. Public prosecutor Imran Qaiser informed the ATC that Siddique and Iqbal were not only openly raising funds for the banned outfit, but also inviting people to join the group. In 2014, the Punjab home department, through a notification, had placed Iqbal in the fourth schedule of the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) 1997 and they were under surveillance of law enforcement agencies. According to the courts documents, an FIR was also registered against Iqbal under Section 9 of the ATA for delivering hate speech. The prosecutor requested the court to punish the two accused for raising funds and inviting people to join the banned outfit. ATC Judge Rai Mohammad Ayub Khan Marth awarded 10 years imprisonment each to Siddique and Iqbal under sections 11-F (membership, support and meetings relating to a proscribed organisation) and 11-H (fund-raising for banned outfit) of the ATA. This is perhaps the first time that the JeM men from Attock have been convicted under the Anti-Terrorism Act. A senior criminal law expert Ahsanuddin Sheikh said the JeM had little presence in Attock, but people belonging to the banned Lashkar-i-Jhangvi (LJ) were active in the district. According to him, the attack on Punjab home minister Shuja Khanzada had the backing of LJ, but there is low conviction rate of the activists belonging to the banned outfits in Attock. The JeM has come into limelight after the Jan 2 terrorist attack on the Pathankot airbase in India. The CTD Gujranwala had on Feb 18 registered an FIR in connection with the attack. Adviser to the Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz has reportedly admitted that one of the mobile phone numbers linked to those who had attacked the Pathankot airbase had been traced to the JeMs headquarters in Bahawalpur. He also confirmed the media reports that JeM chief Masood Azhar had been under protective custody since Jan 14. Modi wants mutually respectful relationship with Pakistan NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi wants a mutually respectful relationship with Pakistan, his governments policy paper said on Tuesday. The policy paper was read out by President Pranab Mukherjee as his traditional address to a joint sitting of the parliaments two houses, which kicks off the annual budget session. The Modi governments agreeable posture appeared to follow reported progress in Pakistan with the Pathankot attack probe. The statement also came ahead of a possible meeting between Prime Ministers Modi and Nawaz Sharif in Washington next month during a nuclear security summit. The president said the government was committed to forging a mutually respectful relationship with Pakistan and in creating an environment of cooperation in combating cross-border terrorism. He called upon all MPs to discharge their responsibilities in a spirit of cooperation and mutual accommodation. Asserting that the government was fully committed to firmly dealing with all challenges concerning Indias security, President Mukherjee said terrorism is a global threat and strong counter-terrorism measures are necessary worldwide to eradicate it. Let me congratulate the security forces in successfully foiling the recent attack at the Pathankot airbase by terrorists. Firm and effective steps will be taken to deal with any situation arising out of cross-border terrorism, he said. He said the government believed in a secure and prosperous future for the neighbourhood while committing itself to the principle of the world is one family. The government on its part would strive for smooth and constructive conduct of parliamentary business. The remarks assume significance in the context of repeated disruption of business on various issues, loss of time of parliament and the stalling of legislative business in Rajya Sabha, where the government lacks majority. Let noble thoughts come from all directions, should be the spirit behind the debate in this temple of democracy. Being a member of this great institution bestows great honour as well as important responsibilities, Mr Mukherjee said. Nawaz Sharif,Mamnoon Hussain discussed CPEC ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and President Mamnoon Hussain on Tuesday discussed progress on China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and Afghan reconciliation process. They also discussed overall law and order and economic situation in the country, Zarb-e-Azb and the Karachi operation. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who called on President Mamnoon here at the Aiwan-e-Sadr, exchanged views on matters of national importance, a press release issued by the Presidents office said. The prime minister briefed the president on policies and decisions of the government on different issues. They also reviewed the Zarb-e-Azb operation and the law and order situation in Karachi. Both the leaders expressed satisfaction at the successes achieved and resolved that the operation would continue till elimination of the last terrorist from the country. Expressing satisfaction at the pace of implementation of CPEC projects, the duo hoped that the completion of these projects would be a game changer not only for Pakistan but for the entire region also. The two leaders agreed that this landmark project would benefit the whole country, including all regions. The president noted with appreciation that the prime minister and his economic team have revitalised the national economy through sound policy initiatives and the two resolved to pass on the benefits of the improved economic situation to the common man. They reiterated their commitment to lay greater emphasis on the health and education sectors for betterment of the people. Both the leaders emphasised upon timely completion of the ongoing power generation projects to get rid of the malaise of load shedding from the country. The prime minister also briefed the president on his foreign visits and various agreements and memorandums of understanding signed therein, including the recent LNG deal with Qatar. He also took the president into confidence regarding making the state enterprises profitable and service oriented. Premier Sharif also apprised the president about holding of the census and they hoped that the exercise would be beneficial in policy formulation and judicious allocation of national resources for development of the country. Both the leaders reviewed the regional situation and reiterated Pakistans desire to have friendly relations with all the neighbouring countries for peace and prosperity in the region. The two leaders underscored the need for national unity and cohesion in order to confront and overcome the challenges being faced by Pakistan and put the country on the path to progress and prosperity. Raheel Sharif decision to retire will turn people hopes into disappointment: Asif Zardari DUBAI: Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari on Tuesday said that Chief of Army Staff General Raheel Sharifs decision to retire will turn peoples hopes into disappointment and can also affect the countrys war on terror negatively. Terming the COASs decision as premature, Zardari said the retirement decision at this critical juncture of Pakistans history may turn peoples hopes into despair, as internal and external elements are hatching conspiracies against the motherland. The statement released on Tuesday further said that the armys struggle against terrorism and for stability of the country is unmatched and PPP stands shoulder to shoulder with the army and lauds all its soldiers for the sacrifices rendered. Nation is united against terrorism and people are hopeful that the war on terror will reach its logical conclusion under the leadership of General Raheel Sharif, said the former president. It must be remembered that Zardari, back in June last year, cautioned the army in a hard-hitting speech, where he lashed out at the military establishment for overstepping its domain. The former president had earlier stated that army chiefs change after every three years, but the political leadership stays. We know the country better and we know how to run its affairs, he had stressed in his now infamous speech. Zardari had said that he did not want to weaken the countrys institutions, but they [establishment] should also not try to create hurdles for politicians. This is our country, our army and we want to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with them. He had suggested that the establishment separate itself from politics and not interfere in matters out of its domain. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif had cancelled his pre-scheduled meeting with Zardari after this speech. Within a week, the PPP co-chairman left the country for UAE for Dubai, where he currently resides. Last month Gen Raheel had announced he will retire from service when his three-year term ends, ending weeks of speculation that the tenure of army chief was likely to be extended. In messages posted on Twitter, ISPR DG Lt Gen Asim Saleem Bajwa had said that rumours about an extension in the service of the army chief were baseless. Pakistan Army is a great institution. I dont believe in extension and will retire on the due date, the DG ISPR quoted Gen Raheel Sharif as saying. Efforts to [root] out terrorism will continue with full vigor and resolve. Pakistans national interest is supreme and will be safe guarded at all costs, said Gen Raheel Sharif. General Raheel Sharif is set to retire from service in November this year. Rumours had been circulating in Islamabad and Rawalpindi that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has decided to offer extension to General Raheel Sharif. A section of the media claimed that the army chief had not accepted the offer but he may do so, with reports claiming that Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif was also playing his role in this regard. But Gen Sharifs announcement put an end to weeks of speculation that his term would extend longer than November 29, his date of retirement. The countrys past two military chiefs had sought extensions of their terms instead of stepping down. General Pervez Musharraf and General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani shared the office of chief of army staff between them for almost 16 years, with Musharraf remaining army chief for almost ten years. Gen Raheel took over as chief of army staff from Gen Kayani, who stepped down on November 29, 2013 after serving six years at the top military slot. Raheel Sharifs appointment was approved by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on November 27 the same year. Gen Raheel Sharif has been instrumental in leading Pakistans fight against extremism, militancy and terrorism in the form of Operation Zarb-e-Azb, which was launched after a deadly terrorist attack on Karachis Jinnah International airport and the failure of peace talks between the government and Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) negotiators. Leaders of peace jirga had staged a protest rally against the retirement decision of Gen Raheel Sharif last month and asked the government to ensure his extension on the basis of his performance in the war against terrorism. The rally participants chanted full-throated slogans in favour of COAS General Raheel Sharif and asked him to take back the decision of retirement in November 2016. Raheel Sharif departed for North Waziristan RAWALPINDI Chief of Army Staff General Raheel Sharif on Wednesday departed for North Waziristan to review progress in the ongoing Zarb-e-Azb operation. General Raheel left for Shawal area in North Waziristan. Will visit front lines and meet with troops participating in Operation Zarb-e-Azb, Inter-Service Public Relations (ISPR) Director General Lt Gen Asim Bajwa said on twitter. General Raheel Sharif is visiting the restive tribal agency along Afghan border a day after military jets killed at least 15 terrorists in bombardment at different areas, destroying several hideouts. Pakistan Army launched Operation Zarb-e-Azb on June 15, 2014 following a deadly attack on the Karachi airport after talks with the Taliban failed. Zulfikar Mirza met Rangers officials KARACHI: Estranged leader of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and former Sindh home minister Dr Zulfikar Mirza on Tuesday met Rangers officials investigating charges against suspected Lyari gangster Uzair Jan Baloch and owned his past connection with the suspected gangster but denied that he had ever supported Uzairs alleged criminal activities and that was he ever involved in such activities when he was part of the government, sources privy to the meeting said. The meeting between Dr Mirza and the Pakistan Rangers, Sindh, officials was held after a month the suspected Lyari gangster Uzair Jan Baloch mysteriously surfaced in Karachi only to be arrested by the Sindh Rangers in their targeted action. While the high-profile arrest caused quite a stir in the national political scene because of Uzairs previous association with the PPP, the official version of the actual events remained shrouded in mystery. Dr Mirza, however, came up with his straightforward and old stance owning his relations with Uzair. At the Tuesday meeting, the sources said, the former home minister repeated his stance but denied his role in any of Uzairs alleged widespread crime rackets that ranged from street crime to extortion and killings to kidnapping for ransom. Dr Mirza said when he was at the helm of affairs and had close contacts with Uzair, the law and order in Lyari was in control and the overall crime rate in the city was not as high as it got after he stepped down. Zulfikar Mirza was called for the meeting by the Rangers authorities, said a source. He met senior Rangers officials and replied to their question related mainly to investigations into charges against Uzair Baloch. He did not deny those words he had shared with the media when Uzair Balochs arrest was announced by the Rangers last month. Zulfikar Mirza showed confidence about his role in overall law and order in Lyari saying that during his days as home minister the neighbourhood was not facing such problems. Once known for his loyalty to the PPP and close contacts with its certain leaders, including Dr Mirza, Uzair took over the now proscribed Peoples Amn Committee (PAC) in August 2009 after the death of Abdul Rehman Baloch, aka Rehman Dakait, in a police encounter more than a year after the PPP formed its government at the Centre and in Sindh. Though the PAC was portrayed as a community group by its leaders, it was accused of killings, extortion and running a narcotics business both by the police and the PPPs rival parties. The Sindh government banned the PAC and in April 2012 launched a botched police operation in Lyari against it. The provincial government later announced a Rs2 million bounty on Uzair. However, it was withdrawn before the May 2013 general elections in an attempt to appease the PAC, which had an iron grip over Lyari, once considered a PPP stronghold. The incorporation of Dr Mirzas feedback in findings of investigations into charges against Uzair may put further pressure on the beleaguered PPP in the ongoing tussle with the establishment and the federal government. Owning to some personal engagements, Zulfikar Mirza left the city after the meeting, which was held in a good atmosphere, said the source. During the meeting Zulfikar Mirza vowed that he would not change his stance about Uzair Baloch. The meeting lasted over an hour and concluded with a clear hint from the law enforcement personnel that he [Zulfikar Mirza] could be called again if needed. *T*his is yet another example of the corruption of the mainstream media. If you like this blog's content please subscribe to our mailing at upper right c... 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... Search This Blog About Me Patrick Dunleavy - Author In the world of counter terrorism, Patrick T. Dunleavy has long been noted as one of the leading experts. Throughout his career as the Deputy Inspector General of New York, Patrick has the advantage of prison radicalzation knowledge that comes from firsthand experience. View my complete profile Nicht Ihr Computer? Dann konnen Sie fur die Anmeldung ein Fenster zum privaten Surfen offnen. Weitere Informationen By Paul Shalala Dr. Grace Mukupa She grew up in a poor family in Mwanamangala Village in what is now Shibuyunji District of Central Zambia... NEWPORT Ruth Calkins has a travel itinerary, and it doesnt include a day trip to the nearest casino (not any time soon, anyway). The 89-year-old Newport resident is bound for The Republic of Malawi in South Africa starting May 27 and ending when she returns in September. Her only traveling companion will be her 11-year-old dachshund, Max. She originally had a friend who was going to accompany her, but the friend cannot travel due to health reasons.If I have to go by myself, I go by myself, Calkins says nonchalantly. If you think about it, Im only going to be traveling alone on the plane for about 20 hours. When I get to where I am going, Ill hardly be alone.Her goal is to lend economic aid to locals by volunteering through World Medical Fund USA (WMF), a non-profit that focuses on providing medical care to vulnerable children in the world's poorest nations, working predominately in Africa as an international NGO (Non Governmental Organization).Calkins will be staying at the WMF compound in the District of Nkhotakota in central Malawi, one of the least developed regions in the nation. There, she will help local women and girls learn how to create and market indigenous crafts like wall hangings, dolls and jewelry in order for them to make a profit and benefit WMF operations in their communities.Its (Malawi) called The warm heart of Africa, Calkins says. The people there are really some of the friendliest, peaceful people Ive ever met. Muslims and Christians live side by side and theres no problem.There is little in the way of infrastructure or construction in Nkhotakota. The area covered is just in excess of 4,000 square kilometers and the population estimate is 331,000, according to the WMF website. There is no industry in the region and few job opportunities so most people work as subsistence farmers or fishermen.Calkins is hoping to raise $3,000 to be spent on craft supplies and treadle sewing machines (electricity in Malawi is often unreliable), for the women to start their business.I think they will appreciate having a way to make money for themselves and to help an organization that has done so much for them, Calkins says, noting several of the women she will be working with are AIDS patients treated by WMF.This isnt Calkins first trip to Africa. She lived in Nigeria during the 1960s and early '70s when her first husband worked for the United States Agency for International Development (he passed away after 25 years of marriage). She and her family also lived in Sri Lanka for a short period of time.When people hear about Africa in the news, particularly Nigeria nowadays, theres a lot of sadness and violence connected to it, Calkins says. It wasnt that way when we lived there. We let our five children run around without supervision and they were perfectly safe. It was a good time, for the most part.In 2002, Calkins and her second husband, Don (married for 35 years before he passed away), moved to Newport to be closer to Dons daughter and their son-in-law, plus Calkins wanted to escape the sweltering heat of Sierra Vista, Ariz.I was getting tired of all the nice, sunny days, Calkins quips. I was ready to have some variety in my weather.Through her website, www.AfricanAidsOrphans.org, she became acquainted with World Medical Fund CEO and Founder Michael Burt. She offered to help if Burt ever wanted to expand his operation to the United States. So, in late 2006, World Medical Fund USA was initiated. So far, Calkins has helped send more than $40,000 to help with work in Malawi.Once youve been there, it pulls you back, Calkins says of Africa. Its a beautiful place. The sky above you just makes you feel so small, in such a wonderful way.Three of her five children and one grandson will join her in Malawi during the summer for a safari vacation. Calkins says her family is supportive of her decision to travel to Malawi for the summer. Shes hoping the sciatica in her legs clears up before she leaves, but other than that, shes not overly concerned about any medical mishaps that could occur abroad. She says that when people find out what shes doing, they either call her crazy or encourage her.I have a feeling that this is my last hurrah, and if it is, it might as well be doing something that brings me joy that I believe strongly in, Calkins states.For more information about WFM, go to www.worldmedicalfund-usa.org. An account has been set up at Mountain West Bank in Newport for those who would like to donate to Calkins goal. To be on the mailing list to receive the WMF newsletter, contact Calkins at [email protected] and request to be put on the mailing list. There is a delicate balance the Armenian Diaspora has always had to maintain between that which we label Armenian, and that which we d... The current chancellor and vice chancellor will be voting on their successors, the Board of Regents said this week. Some education advocates asked that the board wait until new members are appointed to fill the seats of Chancellor Merryl Tisch and Vice Chancellor Anthony Bottar, whose terms expire in March. They said that the Legislature had replaced four members because of concerns over the direction of Common Core and the states education and testing policies. About 20 percent of the state's students in grades three through eight opted out of taking the state tests last spring. Tisch announced in October that she would not seek reappointment to another term. She was appointed to the board on April 1, 1996 and has served as chancellor since April 2009. The Board of Regents decided that it will vote on a new chancellor and vice chancellor at its March meeting. The advocacy group High Achievement New York praised the decision as putting education policies first and not politics. The Regents two decade long written rule is very clear that the vote for new leadership takes place at the March meeting, but opt out organizers always want to change the rules for their own political purposes. By disregarding these special interests, the Regents did whats right both for public school students and the future of education in our state, the organization said in a news release. Media reports last month said that this regions representative to the Board of Regents is interested in becoming the vice chancellor. Beverly Ouderkirk, the retired superintendent of the Clifton-Fine Central School District, in St. Lawrence County, was appointed to the board last year to represent the Capital Region and North Country including Warren, Washington, Saratoga, Clinton, Essex, Franklin, Fulton, Hamilton, Montgomery, St. Lawrence and Schenectady counties. Eighty state legislators have signed a letter supporting a $2.4 billion increase in education funding that the Board of Regents has recommended. The lawmakers held a rally Wednesday on the steps of the Capitol in Albany, along with representatives from organizations such as the Alliance for Quality Education and Citizen Action of New York. They are also emphasizing the importance of Foundation Aid, which is awarded on a per-pupil basis, to address the inequities in education across the state. The Republican-controlled Senate has urged for the full repeal of the Gap Elimination Adjustment, which was education aid withheld from schools by the state in order to balance its own budget. New York schools are owed $4.4 billion in Foundation Aid and $434 million in GEA funds, according to state Education Department data cited in an Alliance for Quality Education news release. Education advocates are asking the states to target more money to high-needs schools to comply with the requirements of the Foundation Aid formula enacted in 2007 to settle the Campaign for Fiscal equity lawsuit, which claimed that schools are being shortchanged and students were being denied a sound basic education." Its been a full decade since the Campaign for Fiscal Equity was settled, said Assembly Education Chairwoman Catherine Nolan, a Queens County Democrat, said in a news release. But schools are still waiting on the funding their schools need and deserve. Right now, our schools are owed $4.8 billion. We, in the legislature together with the Governor, must come up with a real plan to resolve these issues. The time is now, while there is a budget surplus. Our children and our states future is limitless if we provide the proper education for all. Jeff Lawrence has been fishing area lakes for salmon for decades, and he knows the feeling of a big landlock on the end of his line. When he saw the fish that took his bait Friday morning approaching the hole he drilled through the ice on Lake George, Lawrence knew the fight was far from over. After a half-hour battle, the Hartford resident landed a 15-pound, 4 ounce Atlantic salmon that was the biggest landlock caught on the lake in 30 or so years. "A little ways into it, I realized it was a big salmon. When I finally got it near the hole, I couldn't believe the size of it," he said. "I gaffed it and it barely squeezed through the hole." The 35-inch fish was weighed in later that morning at Country Pets in Hudson Falls, a bait-and-tackle shop where owner Dave Leavitt said it was the nicest salmon he had seen in 35 years of business. "It was a beautiful fish, just perfect," he said. Lawrence was fishing with a shiner in the south basin just after 6 a.m. He got it through a six-inch hole in the ice, even though its tail alone was 9-1/2 inches wide. It's a massive fish, but short of the 19-pound, 2-ounce lake record set in 1982. (The state record is just under 25 pounds, caught on Lake Ontario.) Still, no one could remember a landlock topping 10 pounds on the lake in years, though there have been rumors of a couple approaching that mark caught last summer. Leavitt said Lawrence is a longtime customer of his who is very knowledgeable about fishing for salmon and lake trout. "He called me and said he caught a big salmon on Lake George, and asked me to guess how big. I said seven, eight pounds. He told me no, 15 pounds and three feet, and I couldn't believe it," Leavitt said. "Then he brought it in." The state Department of Environmental Conservation asked for a sample of its scales, which Lawrence said he will provide once taxidermist Carl Brainard of Warrensburg is done with it. Leavitt said it's been a good few months for salmon fishermen on the lake, where the salmon population has struggled for a variety of reasons for nearly two decades. "We've had quite a few caught recently. One guy caught eight small ones the other day, and I have heard of a dozen of so in the 21- to 24-inch range this winter," Leavitt said. "The charter boat fishermen were saying it was the best fall for salmon they have seen in years," Lawrence said. Landlock Atlantic salmon generally don't live much past 4 or 5 years, and Lawrence said there were indications this one was 9 or so years old. The DEC will be able to tell from the scale sample. It appeared by a fin clipping that the fish was one of thousands stocked under a program in which some salmon are held at Warren County Fish Hatchery into the fall so that they are bigger and more able to survive predation, said Jeff Johnson, president of the Lake George Fishing Alliance. The state stocks yearling salmon in the spring. "One thing I noticed in the pictures is the fish had a clipped left ventral fin, which means it is a Fall stocked fish held at the county hatchery over the summer, a program started by the LG Fishing Alliance," Johnson said. The DEC has also changed the strain of fish being stocked to one from Maine that is believed to be hardier than the Little Clear Lake strain it had been using, which may be playing a part in the resurgence. But Lawrence's fish appeared to be one of the older strain. Johnson, a charter boat captain who runs Rod Bender Charters on the lake, said he has also seen the uptick in Lake George salmon fishing. In addition to the new strain of fish, the lake's smelt population -- the prime food for salmon -- has seen an uptick as well. "I definitely saw a huge improvement numbers last spring and summer, went from five keepers in 2014 to nearly 100 or more in 2015," he said. "Things are really looking up with the Sebago strain and the smelt numbers stabilizing." -- Don Lehman GLENS FALLS At a time when the Internet gives the average Joe just enough information to think they can diagnose their own health issues, wire their own kitchen outlets or forecast the weather, Stasu Bizzarro knows better. The president of Weather Routing Inc., a Glens Falls-based company that tracks weather for vessels at sea, said technology is a boon to the field of meteorology and a danger. People think, Ive got a rash on my face, WebMD can tell me what it is, he said. Thats a problem we face, too. Theres a difference between Googling a pimple on your face and monitoring your blood, he said, and compared that to different levels of weather forecasts. Whats the severity? Is it going to be sunny today? Can I have a picnic? But if youre traveling across the Midwest and its tornado season, you might need us. People Google the weather in the ocean, he said, and think they understand what it means. But without a scientist to interpret the data, the information isnt always indicative of actual conditions. The safest and most prudent way is a man-machine mix. Weather Routing Inc. provides data to yachts, cruise ships, cargo ships and freighters; forecasts for major events, such as rafting trips or world record pursuits someone swimming or sailing solo, for instance; and gets information for crews doing oil exploration or environmental studies. For a wine producer, the business tracks temperatures so the producer knows if refrigeration or heating will be needed to keep wine at its optimal temperature. What started as a small business in Glens Falls has grown consistently over the past several years. Weather Routing Inc. outgrew its Glen Street space in the TV-8 building four years ago and moved into Warren Street Square with a staff of 20. The space is its fifth location in 20 years. The company now employs 26 people, all but one of whom the accountant are meteorologists. Bizzarro is looking to hire about three more in the coming year. The space in Warren Street Square is quickly closing in, too, so Bizzarro said as neighboring tenants plan to move out, he and property owner Peter Hoffman are discussing an expansion of WRIs office. We have been in Glens Falls for some time and we will remain in Glens Falls, he said. When Bizzarro started at WRI, he was one of four staff members. It worked out well for me, I was able to grow the company, he said. Now, things get so busy sometimes, the seven workstations are occupied and staff is working from home. The interesting thing with growth is, dont lose perspective of what your company goal is, Bizzarro said. Ours is to offer personable service to clients, not to put them on hold or have them talking to someone who doesnt know what their situation is. All the people here, if theyre dealing with a difficult situation, they will even on a day off call in to say, How did that pan out?, he said. No one here goes home with the punching of a clock. The meteorologists track weather conditions for clients 24 hours a day, using specialized software and information from satellites to look at what is happening on their planned routes and examining trends in the region. My responsibility ... is to make sure ships dont put themselves in potential danger, Bizzarro said. Ships cant move as fast as cars; they cant pull over and find a safe berth. Weather Routing Inc. has never suffered a tragedy with a client having problems at sea. But it is frequently called to monitor weather for rescue and cleanup crews. In the days after the El Faro cargo ship was caught in Hurricane Joaquin in October 2015, the company helped come up with forecasts for the search and rescue barges. Bizzarro didnt know why El Faro, or more recently, the cruise ship Anthem of the Seas, encountered storms that had been forecast well in advance. Weather Routing wasnt working for either ship. He said companies like his can only provide information, that captains dont have to take advice theyre given. He also pointed out ship captains have a constant onslaught of information to handle about cargo, weather, a sick person on ship, anything happening on board. He looks at the weather, then deals with something else, Bizzarro said, and conditions can change quickly and drastically. With us, we constantly have eyes on them. GLENS FALLS Terry Archard was shopping at Price Chopper in Granville in March 2014 when his heart stopped beating due to ventricular fibrillation, the most serious type of heart attack. I reached up for paper towels and that was the end, Archard recalled. A curtain came down over my eyes just like that. Harry Ralph was in the checkout line when a woman who saw Archard fall screamed for help. His face was a deep purple color, said Ralph, who rushed to assist. Ralph, who had been trained in CPR on his job at Green Mountain Power Co., started chest compressions and used an automated external defibrillator to restart Archards heart. An AED uses electrical shocks to restart an effective heart rhythm. Archard and Ralph told their stories Tuesday at a Glens Falls Hospital press conference to announce the hospitals new At Any Moment campaign to promote CPR training and use of AEDs. Any one of you could be any one of them at any moment, said Dr. David Judkins, a cardiologist with Adirondack Cardiology. The hospital is offering free CPR classes to the general public, the first of which will be held at 6:30 p.m March 2. Call Heidi Sullivan at 926-5901 to register. There often is a charge for CPR classes elsewhere. American Heart Association, for example, charges $35 for a three-hour CPR certification class. As an organization that is committed to keeping people healthy, were stepping forward and saying, Let us help you learn, said Dianne Shugrue, the hospitals president and chief executive officer. The hospital also is offering CPR courses for employers, and is conducting a marketing campaign about the importance of being trained in CPR. Judkins spoke at a hospital board meeting about how Ralph saved Archards life. After hearing the story, Gary Hicks, a hospital board member, suggested board members and senior management staff should do CPR training. About 300,000 people in the United States each year experience heart failure, Judkins said. Unless CPR is administered, the chance of survival is only 5 percent. Odds improve dramatically with CPR and even more with use of AED. The training is easy to understand and only takes a few hours, said Joseph Raccuia, a hospital board member. Raccuia, chief executive officer of Morcon Inc., said he has arranged CPR classes for employees at his plant in White Creek, which converts bulk rolls of tissue into individual rolls. He bought four AEDS two for the plant in White Creek and two for his other tissue-converting plant in South Carolia. Its been a great awakening, he said. The hospitals hope is that people who participate in CPR training will encourage others to take it, just as Raccuia is now encouraging his employees, said Dr. John Leary, another hospital board member. Its sort of a multiplier effect, he said. Carl Cedrone, a new hospital board member who will be doing the CPR training soon, said he has had a fear of heart attacks since he read the I Am Joes Heart feature in Readers Digest magazine when he was 8. Archard, the man whose life was saved, said he took CPR training himself, once he recovered from open heart surgery. SOUTH GLENS FALLS The abandoned convenience store on Route 9 reopened without fanfare Tuesday morning. The store opened at 5 a.m. after two weeks of work to clean out decaying and expired food and restock. We worked so hard, said owner Navjeet Chawla. In addition to throwing out almost everything even the beer and soda had expired workers ripped out floor tiles and repainted the walls. The deli had to be scoured down to the metal to clean up the remains of rotten meat and cheese. Pipes had frozen in three places, so they also had to be replaced. It could have been worse, Chawla said. The mild winter probably saved most of his pipes after National Grid turned off the power, he said. By Monday, the store had passed all the required inspections to reopen. We got the clean certificate from the food inspector that theres no hazards in the store, Chawla said. The Sunoco gas pumps are open as well. Hes hoping to win back his customers. Im glad Im back and Im excited to get my old customers back, my beautiful customers, he said. The deli is selling. They are coming back. The saga began last fall, when Chawla flew to India to handle a personal emergency. He has declined to offer details, but along the way law enforcement seized $48,000 in cash from him. He is contesting that seizure in civil court, where he must prove the money was earned legally. While he was in India, his manager texted him to announce that she had learned of the cash seizure. Law enforcement said the cash was suspected of being the proceeds of drug sales, because of the amount of cash in his possession. Given that announcement, his manager said she was closing the store. She told him he could pick up the keys when he returned. He asked another employee to pick up the keys and reopen the store. She stopped by the managers home twice, but she wasnt home either time. And so the store sat closed, with perishable food slowly rotting. The milk in the coolers went bad. The bread on the counter grew mold. Eventually, National Grid turned off the power for lack of payment and pipes froze. At that point, the village turned off the water. Police locked the windows after some vandals managed to steal some cigarettes. By January, village officials believed Chawla was not coming back. He hadnt contacted anyone at the village office. They began researching ways to clean out the store, worried that rotting food could attract vermin. Then Chawla returned, rehired most of his staff and set to work without much explanation about his absence. He has stayed focused on the future. We will do our best to give the best customer service, he said. GLENS FALLS A lawyer who represents the Glens Falls Police Benevolent Association has informed the city of Glens Falls that a referendum would be needed for the city to consolidate the Glens Falls Police Department. Getting rid of the department would require a change to the city charter, and to make such a change requires a public vote, lawyer James Tuttle has notified Glens Falls Mayor Jack Diamond and members of the Glens Falls Common Council. The charter, adopted in 1908, requires the city to appoint and maintain a police force, Tuttle wrote. Changing the charter requires a local law, and local laws that make any such changes are subject to mandatory referendum under Muncipal Home Rule Law, he added. Diamond said counsel for the city looked into the issue and disagreed with Tuttles legal opinion. Our attorney does not believe a referendum is required, he said. Supporters of the police department have pushed for a vote because they do not believe there is sufficient public sentiment in favor of consolidating the agency with the Warren County Sheriffs Office. With Glens Falls leaders not agreeing that a vote would be needed, it would be up to the union to force the issue through a grievance or possible litigation. Jarred Smith, a Glens Falls patrol officer who is president of the PBA, said the union did not get a response to the letter from city leaders, but he understood that Diamond disagreed with the unions position. Earlier this month, Diamond made a second formal proposal for a series of annual payments, totaling $22,524,000 over 15 years, to have the county take over police protection in Glens Falls. A proposal last fall that included lesser payments was rejected by the county board as supervisors expressed concerns about the finances of the deal and public and Common Council support. At least four police officer jobs would be cut, which has, in part, prompted the union opposition. Kevin Geraghty, the Warrensburg supervisor who is chairman of the county Board of Supervisors, said he is working with Evelyn Wood, chairwoman of the county boards Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee, to respond in writing to Diamonds proposal. The issue is expected to be discussed at a meeting of the committee on Feb. 29. Diamond said he is getting frustrated at the slow pace of the discussions and apparent lack of interest in pursuing consolidation discussions among some on the Board of Supervisors. Were playing a game of ping-pong here and Im about ready to take my paddle and go home, he said. They seem to be reluctant to take this on. If its something they are not interested in, just say no. Regularly ahead of the curve, the Review has opposed federal drug policy for nearly 50 years, was a lonely media voice against the massive freeways planned for Washington, was an early advocate of bikeways and light rail, and helped spur the creation of the DC Statehood Party and the national Green Party, In November 1990 it devoted an entire issue to the ecologically sound city and how to develop it. The article was republished widely. Even before Clinton's nomination we exposed Arkansas political scandals that would later become major issues. . We reported on NSA monitoring of U.S. phone calls in the 1990s, years before it became a major media story. In 2003 editor Sam Smith wrote an article for Harper's comprised entirely of falsehoods about Iraq by Bush administration officials. The Review started a web edition in 1995 when there were only 27,000 web sites worldwide. Today there are over 170 million active sites. In 1987 we ran an article on AIDS. It was the first year that more than 1,000 men died of the disease. In the 1980s, Thomas S Martin predicted in the Review that "Yugoslavia will eventually break up" and that "a challenge to the centralized soviet state" would occur as a result of devolutionary trends. Both happened. In the 1970s we published a first person account of a then illegal abortion. In 1971 we published our first article in support of single payer universal health care In 1970, we ran a two part series on gay liberation. i n 1965 we called for the end of the draft. In the 1960s we proposed community policing In a conference call talking about second quarter results, Barnes & Noble CEO Ron Boire said that the nations largest bookselling chain was working on a new prototype store. More details emerged about the creation of a bricks-and-mortar store that integrates online elements at the annual eTail West conference in Palm Springs, Calif., although the company did not give any specifics on the size, location, or opening date beyond calendar year 2016. Boire's remarks were reported by internetRetailer. One of the challenges of that store is going to be the digital experience, Boire told conference-goers. I dont think until youre fully connectedmobile, desktop, and storethat youre going to be providing the full experience. Thats our goal. B&N has been working on upgrading its e-commerce experience through BN.com. During the same conference call in December, Boire acknowledged problems with BN.com, which had been revamped over the summer, but which has been having problems early in the fall that led to a decline in online sales in the second quarter. Fixes to the site led to a better consumer experience over the holiday season. The website and e-commerce would play an integral part in any attempt to launch a digital-physical bookstore. Since taking over as CEO last fall, Boire has promised to develop an "omni-channel" approach for the chain going forward, one that would blend its retail, website and Nook businesses. The company has already begun strengthening its e-commerce team. In January it promoted Mary Amicucci, v-p of adult trade and childrens books at Barnes & Noble, to chief merchandising officer. Editor's Note: This story has been updated since it was originally published Wednesday morning. The year 2015 was pivotal in moving towards a fairer, more sustainable world. The global Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Conference of the Parties (COP21) to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change aimed to address some of the greatest~challenges facing humanity, including climate change,environmental degradation and the persistent disparity between rich and poor. To deliver on the post-2015 agenda, it is clear that traditional forms~of development aid will no longer be adequate and that new forms of governance, partnerships and financing particularly between public, private and informal economy actors will be required. This report draws on a series of case studies to consider what works, bringing together an initial evidence base to help inform effective aid and business intervientions for sustainable development, with a particular focus on those which involve and support small- and medium-scale businesses. 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.'' WHY SHOULD I ALWAYS I APOLOGIZE FOR THEMONSTER YOU HAVE MADE ME BECOME WHEN NO ONE HAS EVER APOLOGIZED FOR MAKINGME THIS WAY.IF YOU PUT ME IN A CAGE LIKE AN ANIMAL AND FEED ME WITH FRESH BLOODY MEAT FOR YEARS,IMAGINE WHAT WILL HAPPEN IF I BREAK THE CAGE AND COME OUT,I WILL BE FORCED TO LIVE THE BLOODY WAY YOU TRAINED ME, he posted on his timeline. At the Ghana launch of the international report which looks at human rights issues through the world, Amnesty International reported that the Ghana police force used excessive force in 2015's demonstrations and mass evictions. PIPS DCOP David Ampah-Bennin said Amnesty International's report is unfair on the Ghana Police Service The report pointed to the September Let My Vote Count demonstration in Accra, where police fired tear gas and used batons to disperse demonstrators taking part in a peaceful demonstration, after failing to agree on a route for the march. It also said there was excessive force used by police regarding the June evictions of Old Fadama, known as Sodom and Gomorrah, where police used tear gas against people demonstrating against the demolition and several people were injured. However, in responding to the report at the Accra launch, Director General of the Ghana Police Intelligence and Professional Standards (PIPS) DCOP David Ampah-Bennin, said I believe that today we have been hit below the belt. He said Ghana police were one of the best police bodies on the continent, and the unit he directed worked to check the excesses of our own personnel. The unit received about 20 complaints a day from citizens accusing police of unfair treatment, extortion or abuse of office. Of the Amnesty International accusations, DCOP Ampah-Bennin said police were tasked with protecting life and property. With demonstrations, he said routes will be agreed on but most often the demonstrators they want to do their own thing and go outside the routes. Defending the use of teargas, DCOP Ampah-Bennin said sometimes it becomes necessary when we see stark destruction facing the police. He said police were concerned with youth aggressiveness. This is what is becoming a menace in the country. The youth are becoming more aggressive and destructive. Police also wanted to stop 'mob justice' where a suspected criminal is attacked and lynched by a mob. He said some of the people attacked and lynched by the mobs could be falsely accused of the crime. Responding to DCOP Ampah-Bennin's comments, Amnesty International Ghana director Lawrence Amesu disputed the below the belt accusation. We believe that the police are very professional and we congratulate them on the work they have done and are doing, but, there are some actions they are taking now, that if it is not nipped in the bud will be a problem." Amnesty was concerned about civilian deaths at the hands of police when trying to control a crowd, particularly when people are killed from behind. He said for police to use their guns they have to be under attack. If the police shoot from behind it means the people are running away....we want to draw the attention of the Ghana government and the Ghana police too so that they will be more professional when handling crowds, now that we are in an election year and they will have a lot of crowds and mobs to deal with. He also wanted to see more transparency in the PIPS reports. We do not hear of the reports from the investigation so we do not know if they investigate or not. That is the major problem the Ghana people has with PIPS. It's because of that we have been campaigning for an independent complaints unit. Speaking at the Amnesty International annual report for 2015, Ghana director Lawrence Amesu said the organisation was concerned about overcrowding in prisons and the discrimination of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex people in Ghana. Consensual same-sex conduct between men remained a criminal offence and many LGBTI people faced discrimination, violence and police harassment, Amesu said. Amnesty also reported there was excessive use of force by police in demonstrations and mass evictions. The annual report pointed to the September Let My Vote Count demonstration in Accra, where police fired tear gas and used batons to disperse demonstrators taking part in a peaceful demonstration, after failing to agree on a route for the march. "The nation is in an election year and the people will as usual continue to cherish and maintain peace, [but] we have noted recently of people who were killed by the police," he said. Amesu said Ghana police are professional but "we think crowd management and mob management will be very important this year. We would like to encourage the police and the security agencies to continue to exhibit a high level of professionalism in crowd and mob situations to avoid any blood shed during the elections." The Annual Report also noted that in October 2015, the UN Special Rapporteur on torture visited Ghana to follow up on the recommendations he had made following his 2013 visit. The report noted that while some progress had been made, there were concerns that the police and intelligence services continued to use torture and other ill-treatment, and said there was a lack of due diligence and urgency shown by oversight mechanisms in investigating allegations of torture or other ill-treatment. Overcrowding in prison needed to be addressed as well as poor sanitation and inadequate nutrition, Amesu said. Responding to this call, Deputy Director of Prisons Sylvester Rabbles said he welcomed the work of Amnesty International, and its previous report, which was damning of the prison service, had led the prison service to improve conditions. He said prisons were continuing to make progress, and there was a ten year plan to improve conditions. Rabbles said the Government had committed 50 million cedi to put up another prison to deal with the overcrowding in the current prisons. Rabbles said embassies in Ghana had offered support to improve conditions, but they need everyone on board. "The prison is the potential home of everyone, no body can tell. Let us keep the prisons as we would want to come and enjoy it when we get there." Also in the report was concerns about the several hundred women accused of witchcraft and banished to live in isolated camps with minimal access to health care, education, sanitation and other services. While the government, in collaboration with traditional leaders and civil society, shut down the Bonyasi witch camp in December 2014, and announced it would close others, some camps remained open, Amesu said. Ghana was not the only country Amnesty looked at - it covered human rights issues through the world, with no country exempt from scrutiny. Amnesty found many governments have broken international law and are deliberately undermining institutions meant to protect peoples rights. Through the report, Amnesty International warned of an "insidious and creeping trend undermining human rights which has come from governments deliberately attacking, under funding or neglecting institutions that have been set up to help protect our rights. Amnesty International has documented how many governments have brazenly broken international law in 2015 in their national contexts: more than 122 states tortured or otherwise ill-treated people and 30 or more illegally forced refugees to return to countries where they would be in danger. In at least 19 countries, war crimes or other violations of the laws of war were committed by governments or armed groups. Addressing a press conference on Tuesday, Emmanuel Buabeng, the Chairman of the Agogo Youth Association (AYASS) said the ban has become necessary due to failure of authorities and other security personnel to flush out the nomads from the town. We have realized that the course to flushing out the Fulani herdsmen is becoming political and some politicians are mischievously making ill-comments and down-playing the effort of the ring leaders. Therefore, we ban all political activities be it fun fares, campaign or rallies until the last cattle leaves Agogo land, he added. The angry youth have also called on the Inspector General of Police and the Ashanti Regional Police Command to "effect immediate transfer on the District Police Commander of Asante Akim North District, Inspector Agyekum, since he has been corrupted and has not made any effort to help the course of flushing out the Fulani herdsmen and their cattle." Below is the full statement from the Youth of Agogo: PRESS RELEASE ON CONTINUOUS INCURSION OF FULANI HERDSMEN ON AGOGO LANDS Gentlemen of the press Peaceful and Hardworking citizens of Agogo who farm to feed the nation have become strangers on their own inherited lands. Ladies and gentlemen: Once upon a time, people of Ghana know Agogo to be a breeding place for beautiful music, great personalities (IGP and Finance Minister), Schools and food stuffs of all kinds. But now, Agogo has become synonymous with Fulani atrocities. The immeasurable economic loses, many social distress and grief by the malevolent destruction of our farm lands, pollution of water sources, raping of women, the barbaric murder and maiming of several citizens of Agogo by these Fulani herdsmen have shattered the good name Agogo has toiled for over the years. Ever since the Traditional Leaders stealthily leased of Agogo lands to the herdsmen, about 40 peaceful and hardworking farmers have been murdered in cold blood and countless people maimed while others have been chased out of their farms and villages. Now, fear has engulfed these farmers and as a result can no longer go to their farms as expected. The atrocities of these itinerants have caused single parenting, school drop-outs, handicaps and jobless. In all these barbaric acts, not a single culprit has been arrested and prosecuted. When a Fulani herdsman is arrested, the next thirty minute, order will come from above for his released. However, Agogo citizen, on mere suspicious and apparent entrapment, have been put behind bars or thrown into the dungeon. As we speak, a citizen of Agogo is languishing in Nsawam Prison as a condemned inmate. The most recent one is the 5 Komkomba farmers who have been put behind bars for allegedly shooting at a Fulani herdsman. We create the indulgence of government through IGP to release these 5 Komkoma farmers. Even though, the security services have their personnel stationed at Agogo, we, AYAS are yet to see a move that testifies their seriousness to carry out the 2012 court order. This is because instead of pitching their tents in the villages where the Fulani rape our women, kill our fathers and brothers, burn our crops and buildings, they have been stationed in one of the expensive guest houses in town (Pentecost Hostel) and are fed three square meals from the most expensive restaurant in Agogo (Dollar Days Inn). Therefore, AYAS can conclude that the security services have repeated their yearly rituals of coming to Agogo during the dry season to shield the Fulani herdsmen but not to flush them out as IGP Kudalor promised. We believe that their presence and continuous stay in Agogo will be a burden on the limited resources of the Asante Akyem North District Assembly. In addition to the above, we AYASS plead with the IGP and the Ashanti Regional Police Command to effect immediate transfer on the District Police Commander of Asante Akim North District, Inspector Agyekum, since he has been corrupted and has not made any effort to help the course of flushing out the Fulani herdsmen and their cattle. Gentlemen of the press, all peaceful, legal and amicable ways sought to combat this Fulani issue confronting Agogo lands have been futile. The matter was taken to Kumasi High Court, where judgment was attained in favour of the Farmers on 20th January, 2012. In the same year 2012, the evacuation plan was drawn by the Evacuation Plan Committee under RESEC and made two evacuation proposals, that: 1. The cattle owners shall voluntarily remove the cattle from the Agogo stool land by 31st March, 2012. 2. The security shall use force to flush out the cattle from Agogo stool land if they fail to comply by the first proposal. Gentlemen of the press, from 2012 till now, THREE YEARS AND ELEVEN MONTH AFTER, practically nothing has been done to effect either the court judgment or the evacuation plans proposed by the Evacuation Plan Committee under RESEC. Why are these Fulani herdsmen and their cattle still residing on Agogo lands? Is it lack of political will to carry out the court orders or do the cattle belong to government officials or influential people in Ghana? There are more questions than answers. Having consciously and critically analyzed these developments, we the Youth of Agogo will not sit down aloof and watch things to rot. With immediate effect, and until action is taken by the Regional Coordinating Council and the District Security Council to flush out the marauding Fulani herdsmen from Agogo lands as instructed by the Kumasi High Court, we uphold all the measures instituted on the 27th January, 2016 press conference and add the following to them: 1. We have realized that the course to flushing out the Fulani herdsmen is becoming political and some politicians are mischievously making ill comment and down-playing the effort of the ring leaders. Therefore, we ban all political activities be it fun fares, campaign or rallies until the last cattle leaves Agogo land. 2. Also, the right to live is been taken gradually from the people of Agogo as well justice. These have made us foreigners on our own land. Hence, the need boycott all state functions and durbars including the 6th March Independence Day Celebration. We thank you all for your attention and we crave your esteem cooperation in this matter. As the state, our traditional leaders and the security services have not made us trust them and have failed us, the youth will not relent on our peaceful public campaign until the last Fulani and their cattle leave Agogo land. Yours in the love and interest of Agogo Agogo Youth Association (AYASS) ..Signed.. The veteran journalist and member of Nkrumah's Convention People's Party was just a young school boy when the coup happened, and 50 years later, he says Ghana has suffered very severe setbacks because of the coup. Speaking to Pulse.com.gh, Pratt shares his memories of the 1966 coup and what it led to. My first recollection was my father coming back from town with bullet holes in his car, and I understood very clearly that he had bullet holes in his car because he was a trade union leader. I was struck by the fact that those who claimed to be liberating us from dictatorship and so on, were targeting trade union leaders and were attempting to assassinate people who did not believable in the ideals of the coup. With his friends, Pratt went around Accra and saw people alleged to be security people for Nkrumah arrested. I saw the blood, the carnage, the pain on their faces. He recognized it as mindless violence. Calculated to intimidate the population into supporting the coup d'etat that had been organized and orchestrated by the Western intelligence agencies. He saw soldiers point the nuzzle of the armored vehicles into buildings and open fire. Pratt said to himself, this ought to be resisted. The coup completely hampered Ghana's development, Pratt said. If you look around us, it's all despair, it's all carnage. Before the coup, Ghana produced what it needed, from cars to refrigerators, and education was expanding. But now, with the exploitation of Ghana's natural resources, the country was getting next to nothing for the minerals exported from Ghana, Pratt said. Nkrumah's programme for Ghana to produce what it needed, from clothes to electronics went when he did. Today, look around. Everything is imported. We have to import handkerchiefs. If in 2016 when other countries are rushing to the moon, advancing in nanotechnologies, developing nuclear power plants and we can not produce handkerchiefs, where do we stand? After the coup the trade union movement was disbanded and starved of financial resources. Within the first three years of the coup close to 600,000 jobs were lost. The unemployment situation got exasperated. The 1966 coup has had a debilitating effect on Ghana, on our ability to demonstrate that we are capable of managing our own destiny. More and more we become dependent on others for survival. Pratt pointed to declassified files that show the American and British government's were also involved in the coup, adding Nkrumah knew through his political career that the independence movement was going to be subverted by those who wanted to keep the new colonial arrangement. These forces of reaction and underdevelopment managed to take power and to keep power for so long. The methods used were ruthless he said. Pratt remembers around 1970 parliament had to sit under urgency to pass a law making it a criminal offense to distribute photographs of Nkrumah. That was how bad it was. Further, after the coup, academics and intellectuals at Ghana's university campuses organised bonfires to burn the books of Nkrumah. Burning books is the height of vandalism, and yet it happened. They went to ridiculous extents, the trade union movement has lost some of the most important documents of its history you can never find those documents because they were burnt. "How is that different from ISIS and what they are doing in the Middle East, destroying historical artifacts and so on. It's the same mentality that we were confronted with in 1966. "I think we have suffered very severe setbacks as a result of that military intervention. With both parents members of the CPP, and his father a trade union leader, Pratt has remained a dedicated Nkrumahist. It's been 50 years since and I have not been able to change my ideas about the coup. Every year our stance gets vindicated. When you look around us, look at every sector of the national economy, look at everything that has occurred since 1966. And, through Nkrumah's writing, Pratt says it's obvious he knew what was going to happen. The US Ambassador made this known on Tuesday February 23 when he visited the flagbearer of the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP), Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo at his Nima residence. Mr Jackson, who was accompanied by the Political Chief at the US Embassy, Robert Carlson, explained that the transfer of the two, Mahmud Umar Muhammad bin Atef, 36, and Khalid Muhammad Salih al-Dhuby, 38, will not pose any security threat to Ghana. This follows earlier fears by some Ghanaians including religious bodies and security analysts that the presence of the two could pose a risk to the country's security. On his part, Nana Akufo-Addo said Ghanaians are yet to be persuaded that this decision was in our national interest." He believed that government erred in communicating the transfer of the two former detainees into the country, a situation he adds could affect relationship between US and Ghana. None of the institutions of State, not even Parliament, were consulted on the issue. Political parties were not consulted before this decision was taken. Not surprisingly, the overwhelming majority of Ghanaians and civil society were strongly against this decision, Nana Addo added. MINERALS AND MINING POLICY FINALLY UNVEILED 17 YEARS AFTER IT WAS FIRST PROPOSED A comprehensive minerals and mining policy to guide government in its management of he extractives sector has finally been launched, 17 years after it was first proposed. NO REGULATIONS FOR FACILITIES MANAGEMENT INDUSTRY Facilities Management companies have had to rely on international best practices for growing the industry, as legislations for their operations are not locally standardized. DKM DIVERTED GHC77M TO SUBSIDIARY COMPANIES A special audit of embattled company DKM Diamond Microfinance Company Limiteds operations, carried out by chartered accountants Lobban, Hyde $ Partners, revealed that the company diverted GHC77.26 million to subsidiary companies, the Finance Minister Seth Terkper told Parliament on Tuesday. MORE ROT AT GNAT A total of 80,000 copies of a quarterly magazine for teachers printed by the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) at a cost of GHC120, 000 with monthly deductions from teachers meagre salaries have been shredded. ECS CONTROVERSIAL STEERING COMMITTEE: CHRAJ, 3 OTHER BODIES MUST WITHDRAW AMIDU Anti-corruption crusader, Martin Amidu, has advised for independent constitutional and statutory bodies to withdraw their representatives from the controversial election committee se up by the EC. NDC ORGANISER ALLGEDLY DEFRAUDS BUSINESSMAN A businessman has accused the Krowor Constituency Youth Organiser of the National Democratic Congress, Hajia Dzigbordi Afiamevu, of fraud. GOVT, TEACHER UNIONSNEGOTIATIONS OVER ARREARS FAIL AGAIN A meeting between government and three teacher unions over a roadmap towards the payment of salary arrears has ended inconclusively. DKM BLOWS GHC100M; MPs DEMAND BAILOUT The issue of the DKM Diamond Microfinance Company Limited and other savings and loans companies operating mainly in the savings and loans companies operating mainly in the Brong Ahafo Region the three northern regions stirred emotions and angered most Members of Parliament (MPs) when the Minister of Finance, Seth Terkper, came to brief them on the matter yesterday. LEGALISE WEE KOFI ANNAN Former UN Secretary General, Kofi Annan has stressed that narcotic drugs should be legalized worldwide since the war on drugs appears not to succeed. TEACHERS DECLARE WAR OVER ARREARS I dont think a cripple can lead a political party, Franklin Jantuah told GH Today in an interview to mark the 50th anniversary of the overthrow of Osagyefos dr Kwame Nkrumah's government. The Ghana Federation for the Disabled had earlier welcomed the decision by the Convention People's Party to elect Ivor Greenstreet as the flag bearer to lead the party in the 2016 elections. The election of Ivor Greenstreet makes him the first person with disability to run for presidency in Ghana. But, the only surviving member of Nkrumah's cabinet, Jantuah believes Dr. Agyeman Badu Akosa would have been better because he is not a cripple. Jantuah added that If you have a CPP with a leader who is a crippledI wonder how he is going to rule, because "he has to walk alsohave the capacity to walk and go places and talk. According to Dr. Bawumia, the NDC had increased Ghanas debt in seven years by GHC90 billion, from GHC9.5 billion at the end of 2009 to some GHC99 billion currently; an equivalent of some 37 billion dollars at the time of borrowing. But, in a response, Communications Minister Dr. Edward Omane-Boamah said "On the specific claim, without source, that this government has borrowed US$37 billion since 2009, we wish to put on record that this is false and a desperate attempt to find basis for the flawed conclusions he churned out at the event." "Given that his claims on our debt which forms the basis of his accusations are false, it stands to reason that his weak inferences with regards to how much has been spent on the projects highlighted in the book Accounting to the People are problematic and unacademic. In deed Dr Bawumia cannot feign ignorance of the use to which loans contracted are put. Every external loan contracted by Government is subject to Parliamentary approval and the use to which it is put is clearly stated in the documents presented to Parliament. By constantly pretending not to know this, Dr Bawumia is casting aspersions on the competence and diligence of his NPP MPs who help to approve these loans," a statement signed by the Communications Minister said. Below is the full statement: Government has noted a number of false and or misleading claims attributed to Dr Mahamadu Bawumia, the third time running mate to the New Patriotic Party (NPP) flagbearer. At a party event in Wa, Dr Bawumia among other falsehoods claimed that; 1. The NDC government had borrowed US$ 37 billion out of which it accounts for only US$ 7 billion 2. That there are six reasons why Ghanaians should reject what is contained in the Accounting to the People book. We are constrained to respond as follows; 1. It is instructive that after years of living in denial that these projects exist, he has finally acknowledeged their existence except that he wants to tread down the path of discrediting them for partisan gain. Dr. Bawumias latest untruths is only a last-gasp effort to create doubts about the unprecedented investments made in all spheres of our national life by President John Dramani Mahamas Government. It is borne out of a morbid fear that the overwhelming evidence provided in the 210-page book, shatters the many unsustainable falsehoods churned out by him, the NPP and their allies about the performance of President Mahama. On the specific claim, without source, that this government has borrowed US$37 billion since 2009, we wish to put on record that this is false and a desperate attempt to find basis for the flawed conclusions he churned out at the event. At paragraph 127 on page 36 of the 2016 Budget presented to Parliament in November 2015, the Minister for Finance clearly indicated that our total National Debt stood at GH92,161.84 million or US$24,285.07. This was made up of GH54,488.26 million(US$14,357.91million) for external debt and GH37,673.58 million ($9,927.16 million) for domestic debt. This represents our entire national debt since independence and includes US$8.1 billion bequeathed President Atta Mills Government by Dr Bawumias NPP in January 2009. Given that his claims on our debt which forms the basis of his accusations are false, it stands to reason that his weak inferences with regards to how much has been spent on the projects highlighted in the book Accounting to the People are problematic and unacademic. In deed Dr Bawumia cannot feign ignorance of the use to which loans contracted are put. Every external loan contracted by Government is subject to Parliamentary approval and the use to which it is put is clearly stated in the documents presented to Parliament. By constantly pretending not to know this, Dr Bawumia is casting aspersions on the competence and diligence of his NPP MPs who help to approve these loans. 2. Regarding his claim that his phantom total loan amount could have been supposedly used for six things he itemised, we wish to state as follows; a) Claim 1: The money could have been used to develop the Rail network from Accra to Paga and Transformed many parts of our country by this Investment. Response: A review of the NPPs 2000 and 2004 manifestos reveals the basis for this claim. The NPP promised at page 15 of their 2000 manifesto to ensure a Modernization and extension of railway network and Connection to the Northern Regions. At page 25 of their 2004 manifesto, the NPP also promised to ensure Preparatory work towards the expansion project to link Ghana by rail to its northern neighbours of Burkina Faso, Niger and Mali. The records show that Dr Bawumia and his NPP failed spectacularly to fulfill their promise. The records also show that the railway sector collapsed under the NPP and in some instances they sold existing rail tracks as scrap. We entreat Dr Bawumia to peruse pages 94, 95 and 98 of Accounting to the People where irrefutable proof of our superior performance in the Railway sector has been provided. b)Claim 2: The money could have solved the water problems in Ghana. Response: Once again, Dr Bawumia inadvertently sets his party up for mockery. The NPP holds the most abysmal record in the provision of water by any government in this fourth Republic.In all their 8 years in office, they increased water coverage by a paltry 2%. We invite him again to turn to pages 58 to 65 to learn about the unmatched record of President Mahama with regards to the provision of water. The facts as presented in the book show that since the NDC came to office, water coverage has increased from 58.5% in 2009 to 76% in 2015.This is set to increase to 85% by close of this year when an additional 20 water projects are completed around the country.In absolute terms we have provided 77.5 million gallons of water per(MGD) day for 4.2 million Ghanaians as of the end of 2015.By the end of 2016 this will increase to 110million (MGD) for a total of 7 million Ghanaians. In all 52 years preceding the NDC in 2009,available water capacity could only serve 14 million people. c) Claim 3: Solve the energy problem Response: Between pages 69 and 78 in Accounting to the People, incontrovertible proof is provided on work done to increase our generation capacity which has not only ended load shedding but,made available for the first time in our history reserve capacity to take care of eventualities. d) Claim 4: Put in place at least 1000 kilometres of asphalted roads in each region. There will be no major road problem left in any region after this. Response: Pages 100 to 111 of the book provides pictorial proof of massive first-class road investments across the country.A regional breakdown is also provided for some of the road projects being undertaken in the country.Unlike Dr Bawumias dubious claims of expanding the road network by 8 times of what we have done, we have provided proof. We challenge him to list all, and we mean all, these roads and show where they are. e)Claim 5: Put in place one world class hospital in each region. Response:Dr Bawumias NPP also has the worst record in the provision of health infrastructure.The NPP has the dubious distinction of being the only party that failed to build a single Regional hospital in all 8 years of their tenure under the fourth republic.The President Rawlings Government built the Cape Coast,Ho and Sunyani Regional Hospitals.President Mahama is currently providing world-class Regional hospitals at Ridge in Accra, Sewua in Kumasi, Bolgatanga in the Upper East and Wa in the Upper West Region.In addition to this he is providing two world-class teaching hospitals and 15 District Hospitals. He has already provided 5 polyclinics with another 15 about to start,over forty health centres and hundreds of CHPS compounds. Together these hospitals will deliver over 6,000 additional beds representing the biggest investment ever by any Government in health infrastructure in Ghanas history. It is also a fact that every Region in Ghana has benefitted or is benefiting from the provision of a world-class hospital equipment under President Mahama. Regarding the provision of equipment,President John Mahama also holds the record for best performance.In the last four years,US$ 267 million has been invested in the provision of critical diagnostic and treatment equipment for over 150 health facilities nation-wide.This also represents the biggest ever investment in health equipment by any Government. Unshakable evidence of these and facts on the robust performance of the NHIS are set out from page 22 to 39 of Accounting to the People. f) Claim 6: These investments have not translated into improved services for the people. Response: It is obvious from this claim that Dr Bawumia and the NPP are not in tune with developments in our communities. The tens of thousands of school children who now sit in comfortable classrooms after almost half of the 4,321 schools under trees the NPP bequeathed know otherwise. The millions of Ghanaians in whose taps water had not flowed for decades but who now enjoy supply of treated water know better and cannot be deceived. The many Ghanaians who can now receive quality health diagnostic care know better. Indeed we urge Dr Bawumia to check page 25 of Accounting to the People for evidence of massive improvements in critical human development and health indicators as culled from the Ghana Health and Demographic Survey of 2014.It shows that Infant, Child and under-five mortalities which were alarmingly high under the NPP have reduced significantly under President Mahama. 3. Contrary to Dr Bawumias claims,capital expenditures as a ratio of GDP averaged 5.6% from 2001 to 2008 and not 11% as claimed by Dr Bawumia. It is currently within the same band.The resort to Capex/GDP ratios is only an attempt to mask his partys horrendously appalling record with regards to the delivery of critical infrastructure like schools, hospitals, water, housing, roads, communications, energy among others. Dr Bawumia is fully aware that a thorough analysis of the actual amounts pumped into these projects vis-a-vis the outcomes will expose the staggering mediocrity exhibited by his party when in Government between 2001 and 2008. 4. On Job creation,Dr Bawumia is encouraged to read pages 137 and 138 of Accounting to the People where evidence of job creation arising from several interventions is given.We wish to assure that Government will continue to do more to ensure that more jobs are created for our youth.It would be recalled however that the NPP is bereft of a sustainable track record when it comes to job creation save for the ignominious tag of deceiving Ghanaians at page 5of their 2000 manifesto that they will Create jobs for all persons able and willing to work and to reward each of them appropriately. Let Dr Bawumia disprove this horrible deception by pointing us to which jobs they created for ALL Ghanaians. 5. Dr Bawumia also repeated the discredited mantra of inflated cost of projects as means of chipping away at their positive impact on the lives of our people.In doing so he has placed himself firmly in the ranks of the Political Quantity Surveyors whose modus operandi is to claim without basis, logic or fact that the cost of every project is inflated. This is done for the sole purpose of undermining the projects in question for political gain. But the Danquah-Busiah tradition will no longer be allowed to undermine the interest of Ghanaians for their parochial gains- not anymore! Dr. Nkrumah, President of Ghana was on his way to Hanoi Vietnam to help resolve the Vietnam War when he was overthrown through a military and police coup detat in which the key figures were Col E.K. Kotoka, Major A.A. Afrifa and Inspector General of Police J.W.K. Harlley. The soldiers led by Lt. Col. Emmanuel Kotoka and Major Akwasi Afrifa made sure Nkrumah did not make a return trip to Ghana and to power again. Back home, his own country, which he had helped to liberate from British colonial rule, was in turmoil. The overthrow of Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah shook Ghana's politics and totally shifted and changed the organizations and institutions that Nkrumah developed. It also threw out his ideas and structures. Over the past 50 years, there has been several stops and starts with democratic rule, but the country now has political stability with the successful elections of four presidents. However, political stability alone does not propel economic development. Kwame Nkrumah despite his overthrow chalked up unprecedented successes in six years than any other government from the first republic to the fourth republic. The Akosombo Dam is one of such infrastructures that continues to pump life for the country, some 50-odd years later. But the problem is that Ghanas population has swelled to five times what the population was at the time Dr. Nkrumah led the dams construction. Our leaders are apathetic about how the nation has outstripped the capacity of the dam. As a result, Ghana has daily experienced an energy crisis over the last three to four years. We now call it Dumsor. But Dr Nkrumah predicted it back in 1968 from lessons learned firsthand with our people. Seems not much has changed. These leaders are so unlike him. Visionless vultures. Its heart wrenching to witness how disconnected political leaders are from the concerns of citizens, how easily amnesia sets in after we transfer power from our thumbs into their hands. Today, our government does nothing but insult our intelligence. Ministers of State mock and disrespect us, blatantly and constantly, all the while, looting taxpayer money and participating in the glad rape of our resources. I cannot end without some memorable quotes of the great leader on the African continent. I salute Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah, the entrepreneur, visionary leader and a world leader icon. Kwame Nkrumah quotes "Common territory, language and culture may in fact be present in a nation, but the existence of a nation does not necessarily imply the presence of all three. Common territory and language alone may form the basis of a nation. Similarly, common territory plus common culture may be the basis. In some cases, only one of the three applies. A state may exist on a multi-national basis. The community of economic life is the major feature within a nation, and it is the economy which holds together the people living in a territory. It is on this basis that the new Africans recognise themselves as potentially one nation, whose domination is the entire African continent." He described the incident as a "tragedy" which should be treated as a "national emergency." He said, This is a tragedy that has befallen us as a nation. This is a national emergency to some of us and it should be treated as such. Is it the case that we should always be lamenting and leave people who are responsible for it? We were told some officials of the Bank of Ghana went to the enclave to encourage people to invest. Bank of Ghana failed to act even when huge monies were being withdrawn and converted into foreign currencies. he added. READ MORE The finance minister Seth Terkper told Parliament yesterday that DKM, diverted GHS77 million of investors' deposits into personal businesses and subsidiaries belonging to the firm's managers. According to the finance minister, DKM was registered as a savings and loans company in 2013 but breached the Bank of Ghana's regulations concerning the operations of microfinance companies, a situation that forced the Central Bank to close down the company. The finance minister could not give details on what the GHS77 million cedis was used for. The Bank of Ghana in October 2015 froze accounts of DKM after placing a 120 day moratorium on the company for flouting the Banking Act. An audit report by the Bank of Ghana released to the Brong Ahafo Regional Security Council (REGSEC) established that DKM has no investment in the country and beyond after it collected huge amounts of money from numerous customers. DKM, contrary to Bank of Ghana (BoG) regulation, set up subsidiary companies and lent peoples money to themselves, the report said. About fifty persons were said to have committed suicide in the Brong Ahafo Region after several months of failed efforts to get back their monies. In a letter to the house signed by Ing. Nana Sarpong Agyeman-Badu enumerated nine reasons why the bill must be passed in its current state. Occupy Ghana enumerated nine reasons including the fact that the executive arm of government has not had enough public engagement on the bill before proceeding to parliament. They also assert that the bill is compromised by the parochial interests of the executive and as such, steps must be taken to limit the potential machinations of the Executive to the extent that the Act will be used to spy on government opposition. Occupy Ghana also objected to the provision that mandate will be given to the National Security Coordinator to give ORAL authorization for the interception of the postal packets and telecommunication messages of Ghanaians within 48hours before confirmation through the law court. Here is the letter written to parliament and copied to Pulse.com.gh 23 February, 2016. The Chairman Parliamentary Select Committee on Defence and Interior Parliament House Accra Dear Sir, OccupyGhana has followed with keen interest discussions on the Interception of Postal Packets and Telecommunication Messages Bill. We will make detailed remarks about the idea in a later publication and possibly testify before the respective Parliamentary Committee. Meanwhile we are by the observations below registering our opposition to the passing of this Bill by the Parliament of Ghana: We hope our reasons stated above will be considered by the Parliament of Ghana to suspend the passing of the Interception of Postal Packets and Telecommunications Messages Bill. OccupyGhana is willing to appear before the Committee to explain further and add to the points we have raised in this document. Yours in the service for God and Country. Ing. Nana Sarpong Agyeman-Badu For OccupyGhana Cc: The Rt. Honourable Speaker Parliament House Accra The Minority Leader Parliament House Accra The Majority Leader Parliament House Accra The Chairman Select Committee on Communications Parliament House 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! 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! 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 Daily Mail reports that paramedics from the Richmond Hospital were dispatched to the scene, but failed to give him medical attention because they thought he was alive despite appeals from onlookers. A worker with the EMS service attempted to speak with Garner when he said, 'Sir, it's EMS. We're here to help you. We're getting the stretcher, all right?', but this followed no response from the unconscious man. Hospital records revealed within the court documents show Garner went into cardiac arrest on the stretcher. This incident has sparked further rage in an American society that has seen widespread violence by white police officer against black suspects. A court ruling on the matter stated that, "The EMTS did not conduct the appropriate examination' of Garner and 'failed to provide him with the necessary life-saving procedures," Two paramedics and two emergency technicians who were on hand to give medical attention Garner while he was being arrested were suspended without pay but have since been reinstated. Garner died from a chokehold by officer, Daniel Pantaleo while others officers pinned him to the ground. Adamu, who resides at No. 5, Abattoir Market Road in Agege, a suburb of Lagos, is facing a two-count charge of conspiracy and stealing. The prosecutor, Insp Racheal Williams, told the court that the offences were committed on Feb. 19 at the Abattoir Market in Agege. Williams told the court that the accused fought both Mohammed Bashiru and Mohammadu Usmam and arrested them with a fake police officer. "After the arrest, the fake police man dropped off the accused and drove the complainants to a private place, searched their pockets and took all the N55, 000 on them. "When the complainants reported the matter at the police station, it was discovered that the man that arrested them impersonated a police officer. "When the accused was arrested, he could not produce the fake police man that arrested the complaints, she said. Williams said the offences contravened Sections 285 and 409 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2011. The accused, however, pleaded not guilty to the charges. Magistrate L.Y. Balogun granted the accused bail in the sum of N50, 000 with one surety in like sum. Incorporated in 1972 as a joint venture between the Federal Government and Automobile Peugeot of France, the Kaduna factory was commissioned in 1975 and production commenced the same year. The factory has an installed capacity to produce 90,000 cars per annum in three shifts with ample space for future expansion and can generate direct employment for over 5000 people. The factory attained peak production in 1981 producing 160 cars per day in two shifts. Today, the plant has a capacity to produce 250 vehicles a day, assembling two models Peugeot 301 (with four variants)and508 (two variants).They make significant contributions to the industrial sector by the companys heavy reliance on a large pool of local content in both material and human respects for the production of vehicles - all built and maintained to the highest international standards in automobile manufacturing. PAN has a network of nine (9) accredited dealerships and after sales points that sell and provide modern vehicle services across some states of Nigeria. It is also on the verge of establishing three (3) modern Peugeot Service Points broadening its reach and accessibility to Peugeot users. In addition to this PAN Nigeria Limited has a fully licensed Learning Centre. In 2000, the centre commenced a training program to empower youth to become entrepreneurs and skilled professionals in the industry. Over 600 people have benefited from its programs; some of these programs have been done in collaboration with NECA and ITF. In addition to this it has embarked on a corporate social responsibility program called The Shade Tree Initiative (STI) and is in collaboration with other interested agencies such as State Governments, which share common aspirations of reducing poverty incidence and creating wealth among the teeming unemployed and under employed youths in Nigeria. In order to continue to development the industry it only makes sense that we Buy Nigeria to grow Nigeria. Visit us today www.peugeotnigeria.com Read his letter here: "My name is Richard, a 25-year-old young man trying to make ends meet in Lagos. But my life is being threatened by my childhood friend, Dimeji, who has vowed to kill or maim me, whichever he can achieve first. It's not as if I am afraid of him but he also vowed to harm members of my family, all because his mother lured me to bed and he caught us in the act. I have known Dimeji all my life and we grew up together. In fact, we were so close that many thought we were brothers. We were always in each other's house and did a lot of things together. One thing that was very clear even to my young eyes, was that his single mother had this carefree attitude and seemed to have so many men coming to look for her. Dimeji always told me his father was in the United States but I was sure he never knew who his dad was. I had just rounded up my National Youth Service Corps scheme and was lazing about at home, with nothing specific to do, while Dimeji still had one more year to round up owing to the fact that he had lost a year due to strike in his school. I had free access to their house and went there quite often, whether he was at home or not. And it was on one of such days that his mother seduced me and made sure I had sex with her. I felt guilty afterwards and thought it would end that day but she continued enticing me till I could not help myself but continued having sex with her. I thought we were very discreet until Dimeji burst into the hotel room we had lodged for the night and caught us red handed. We had a big fight and only separated by the hotel staff and other customers. Since that time, about three months ago, Dimeji has made life difficult for me and has vowed to send cult boys after me and my family members. Some people have said I call him and beg him to let it go, while others say I should join a cult so as to protect myself. How do I go about this dilemma? Richard." The teaser for the day was: How Nigeria voted: 15% - I will deal with him/her 45% - I will blame my parent 14% - I will report them to the police 26% - I will not do anything as they are adults After all, we are barely eight months in office. What we crave of Nigerians is to be patient with us as there are silver linings in the horizon, the minister said. Amaechi had reportedly said during the meeting that the Federal Government was unhappy with the way the countrys ports were being run. Almost ten years after NPA surrendered its cargo handling functions to private terminal operators, there seems not to be any remarkable difference even though it is a known fact that the maritime sector generates a lot of money every year without a corresponding contribution to the budget, he said. Amaechi, a former governor of Rivers State, was sworn in as transport minister on November 11, 2015. ---------------------------------------- The Chairman of the commission, Justice Muhammadu Garba, announced the adjournment following the request of Maxwell Kyon, the counsel to the movements leader, Sheikh Ibrahim El-Zakzaky. Kyon had applied for two weeks adjournments to enable him have access to his client. A member of the commission, Usman Yunus Ustaz (SAN), had objected to the request , saying that two weeks was too long as the panel had only six weeks to conclude its assignment. The commissions chairman rejected Kyons request and adjourned the sitting till Monday. Garba said that the adjournment was to enable Kyon have access to El-ZakZaky who leads the group made up of Shiites. "We are adjourning till Feb. 29 to enable you get access to your client, and whether you get access to him or not, you have to report back to the commission so that we can continue with the proceedings, he said. The commission was set up by the Kaduna State Government following the clash between soldiers in the convoy of the Chief of Army Staff and members of El-ZakZaky-led Islamic group on Dec.12 in Zaria. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the sect had declined to submit a memorandum to the commission and rather demanded for access to their leader to guide them. The commission at its inaugural sitting on Monday announced that it had received 105 memoranda from various interest groups and individuals. The disclosure was made via a statement issued by Army spokesperson, Colonel Sani Usman on Tuesday, February 23, 2016. It reads: The joint operation which was carried out with Cameroonian forces was quite successful as a number of the terrorists were killed, some of their weapons and equipment either destroyed or captured. Unfortunately, 3 soldiers sustained injuries and a vehicle damaged as a result of an Improvised Explosive Device (IED). Troops also encountered about 10 other IEDs along the route of advance which were cleared. Most of the terrorists ran in disarray towards Fatake where troops on blocking position cleared them. Along the Talala axis despite an IED in which 1 soldier was wounded and a damaged vehicle, the operation is progressing very well. Moreso as the Nigerian Air Force has been assisting with interdiction and surveillance. It is important to state that 5 Brigade and 7 Multinational Joint Task Force were doing very well in their respective area of operations. This is made possible by the steady supply of needed logistics into the various formations and units fighting the Boko Haram terrorists. Nigeria and Cameroon have been collaborating to fight the terrorists whose operations have extended into the latter country due to a shared border. -------------------------------- Dr Nasir Isa, President of ASUU made the call at a news conference on Tuesday in Abuja. The practice will cause shortfalls in personnel costs and ASUU will be compelled to take appropriate steps against it if this is not checked on time. TSA is incompatible with the autonomy of universities and our union calls on FG to exempt it from implementation on account of peculiarities of the institutions. According to him, federal universities experienced shortfalls in personnel cost in December 2015 and January 2016. He said the adoption of the TSA was hindering payment of salaries. The TSA adopted by the Federal Government, ostensibly to ensure transparency and avoid misapplication of public funds has constituted a clog in the wheel of progress of federal universities in Nigeria. With the operation of TSA, federal universities find it difficult to discharge their core responsibilities of teaching, research and community services, Isa said. The culprits will not go unpunished. I have been a military governor, petroleum minister, military Head of State and headed the Petroleum Trust Fund. Never had I heard the words budget padding, he said. Our Minister of Budget and National Planning did a great job with his team. The Minister became almost half his size during the time, working night and day to get the budget ready, only for some people to pad it. What he gave us was not what was finally being debated. It is very embarrassing and disappointing. We will not allow those who did it to go unpunished, he added. The budget has been the centre of controversy since it was reported missing from the Assembly premises in January. Senate President, Bukola Saraki later said that two different versions of the document had been submitted to the legislative house. It reads: Following the recommendation of the then GMD of NNPC, the minister approved OPAs for a new term of 2 years commencing from 1st January 2015. The entities recommended by NNPC were Sahara Energy Resources Ltd, Aiteo Energy and Duke Oil. NNPC strongly recommended and outlined the benefits of the OPA over the SWAPs and put forward the case for migration from the OPA and crude exchange (SWAP) Contracts to OPAs fully. NNPC posited that the experienced benefits of the OPA to the Federation, would be much greater. There would have been little need to respond to this particular issue at this time considering that the former minister is still indisposed and would have wished to be left alone to recuperate. She will speak for herself in due time. It is nevertheless imperative that records are set straight so that Nigerians and posterity will know the truth. Mr. Oniwon was right when he stated that the 445000 barrels of crude oil were the property of NNPC, bought from the federal government of Nigeria at the prevailing rate and therefore as GMD, he did not need the Federal Executive Councillor Presidential Approval to enter into SWAP arrangements that will enable NNPC fulfill its statutory obligations. It was also correct that contrary to the picture being painted in the media, not more than 210,000 bpd out of the 445000 bpd lifted by NNPC to ensure adequate supply and distribution of petroleum products were traded under the SWAP arrangement. What the GMD required to execute the above was statutory approval from the minister for the companies! Refineries chosen by NNPC to participate in the SWAP arrangement as outlined in section 4 of the Petroleum Act and section 20 of the NNPC Act. It is however incorrect to say that the former minister gave approval for extension unless extension can legally be substituted for renewal because what the Minister gave (and the records are there) was approval for renewal of contract. And these approvals were given based on letters of request received from the GMD of NNPC. In the suit, with file number CV/995/16 and filed by the plaintiff through his counsel, Ogwu Onoja (SAN) on February 17, 2016, Adegbe said he has been detained since February 11,2016 without being charged with any offence. The suit was filed before the Federal Territory High Court in Gudu and is to commence hearing before Justice Y. Halilu on Friday, February 26, 2016. The plaintiff, according to the suit, posed that his continued detention is a violation of right to personal liberty and freedom of movement guaranteed under Section 35 and 41 of the 1999 Constitution. He also said his detention violates Articles 5,6 and 12 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights. The plaintiff's prayers reads: A declaration that the arrest and continued detention of the applicant by the respondent since February 11, 2016 is unconstitutional as it offends his right to personal liberty as guaranteed by S. 35 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended). An order directing the respondent to release the applicant from unlawful detention with immediate effect. Or in the alternative to prayer 2 hereof, an order admitting the applicant to bail pending his trial in a court of competent jurisdiction. N100m as general damages for unlawful detention of the applicant. Written apology by the respondent to the applicant. Adegbe was arrested in connection with the $2.1b arms purchase scam, involving the embattled former National Security Adviser (NSA), Sambo Dasuki. The former ADC allegedly collected N10 billion from the office of the NSA. Metuh made the statement in a no-case submission filed before the Federal High Court in Abuja. The PDP spokesperson said, through his lawyer, Chief Onyechi Ikpeazu (SAN), that some of the funds he was accused of laundering had been used for Jonathans campaign in 2015 hence the former president was a vital witness that ought to be called by the prosecution. Dr Jonathan, to whom the presentation was made for which the payment was made, is therefore a material and indispensable person in order for a prima facie case to be present, Metuhs lawyer argued. Where the prosecution failed to call such a vital witness, a strong presumption will arise that the evidence, if called, would be unfavourable to the prosecution. In any case, the mens rea of the defendants to the effect that former NSA, Col. Sambo Dasuki (retd) committed a criminal offence cannot be inferred, but must be established by a competent evidence which must come from the prosecution, he added. The EFCC however said, in a response filed on Tuesday, February 23, 2016, that Jonathans presence as a witness was not required to prove the allegations against Metuh. The EFCCs response read: In response to the above argument my lord, we submit that nothing can be farther from the truth. The defence cannot pick and choose witnesses for the prosecution and as rightly pointed out by the defence, the prosecution is not required to call a host of witnesses or a particular witness in proof of its case. What the law requires the prosecution to do is to call material witness(es) in proof of its case. Metuh has been accused of laundering N400 million, a sum which is believed to be part of $2.1 billion in funds which were meant for the procurement of arms for Nigerias military but were instead diverted by public officials. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the volume of trade between Nigeria and China in 2015 stood at 14.94 billion dollars in favour of China. The Minister of State for Industry, Trade and Investment, Hajiya Aisha Abubakar, said this when she received in her office the Chinese Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr Gu Xiaojie, on Tuesday, in Abuja. "China and Nigeria have been in bilateral relationship for so long. "What needs to be enhanced is the level of development particularly in Nigeria when it comes to balancing of trade, technical capacity for Nigerians, transfer of technology, industrialisation and all of these things that Nigeria needs as it embarks on its own industrialisation journey. "We are also diversifying our economy, it is not just industrialisation, we also have solid minerals and so on. "We already know what China is capable of doing, we have seen it, and we also know the people of China, they are not strangers to us. "When you compare the population and level of development, China and Nigeria are almost the same but China has been able to make a difference. Magu made the disclosure on Tuesday, February 23, 2016, during a meeting with the Association of Chief Audit Executives of Banks in Nigeria, Punch reports. The cooperation from the Chinese end has been very minimal, it is not encouraging, Magu said. There is more collaboration from the US, the United Kingdom and Switzerland essentially through INTERPOL or government to government, he added. Magu also urged the bankers to assist the agency in the fight against corruption. The EFCC boss had earlier said that he is willing to pay the ultimate price to fight corruption. ------------------------------------ The Oil mogul has put down his assets reportedly worth N500b as a wager, if his idea does not bring down the Naira to N200 per Dollar. Ubah recently boasted in an interview with Channels Television, that he knows what to do, to restore Naira in 30days. The founder of the Transformation Ambassadors of Nigeria (TAN) also said he will not disclose his idea, until the Buhari led administration gives him the go ahead. According to ThisDay, he said his activities as the coordinator of the Transformation Ambassadors of Nigeria (TAN) exposed a lot of things to him. Ubah also said he is not asking for any appointment or payment, adding that he wants to do it for the love of Nigeria. He alleged that there are some individuals who are masterminding what he called an artificial crash of the Naira. There were reports in the media that undefinedinto their country. Allegedly as retaliation to Nigerias initial move, restricting 41 items from accessing foreign exchange. According to Vanguard the Ghanaian authoritys say there was no deliberation on the matter, and at no point was any such decision taken. A statement from the Ghana Consulate-General,obtained from Vanguard reads The Ghana High Commission would wish to state categorically that the (story) is false and does not reflect the position of the Ghanaian Government or that of the Hon. Minister of Trade and Industry of Ghana, Mr. Ekwow Spio-Grbarah, as alleged by the Vanguard report. Find out what is making headlines all over the country from the covers of The Punch, Vanguard, The Guardian and more. For today, Wednesday, February 24 2016: THE NATION NEWSPAPER EFCC: N676m Immigration jobs cash blown on housesThe Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) believes the cash was splashed on choice property. Former Interior Minister Abba Moro and four others are to stand trial for allegedly collecting fraudulently N676.6million from 676,675 job seekers. READ MOREEx-ministers kick as PDP gives Sheriff three monthsMOVES by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to resolve the crisis that followed the appointment of Senator Ali Modu Sheriff as national chairman collapsed yesterday. Former ministers, who are still members of the party, insisted that there was no new reason to make them change their position that Sheriff must quit immediately. READ MORECJN, 600 judges yet to get Jan. salaryJUDICIAL officers, including the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Mahmoud Mohammed, Supreme Court Justices, justices of the Court of Appeal and all Federal and state High Court judges, are yet to get their January salaries, it was learnt yesterday. READ MORE_____________________________________ VANGUARD NEWSPAPER Protesters storm Senate, turn heat on SarakiABUJA The expected showdown in the Senate between Senate President Bukola Saraki and his Senate rivals arising from alleged plots to suspend Senator Kabiru Marafa was yesterday twisted by demonstrators who turned the heat on Saraki by clamouring for his resignation. READ MOREIMF backs Buhari govts efforts at promoting targeted infrastructure in power, othersLAGOS The International Monetary Fund, IMF, yesterday, said it was supportive of the Federal Governments ongoing efforts at promoting targeted and core infrastructure in power, integrated transport network, housing; reduce business environment costs through greater transparency and accountability, and promote employment of youths and female populations. READ MORE$2b Malabu scam: Stop maligning me, go and clear your name, Atiku tells AdokeBARELY 24 four hours after writing a comprehensive letter to Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, exonerating himself of any infraction in the controversial Malabu Oil scam, the immediate past Attorney General , Mohammed Adoke, has been asked to face his problems and stop dragging others in the mud. READ MORE_____________________________________ THE GUARDIAN NEWSPAPER EFCC sends INTERPOL after fleeing suspectsEXTENDING the anti-corruption campaign beyond the nations borders, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has turned to the global police organisation Interpol for help in tracing and apprehending former government officials who have been indicted for graft. READ MOREI didnt bid for NIMASA contract but got paid, says witnessThe 6th prosecution witness in the ongoing trial of the former Director-General of Nigerian Maritime Safety and Administration Agency (NIMASA), Dr. Patrick Akpolobokemi and others, Mr. Uchenna Emenalo, yesterday informed the court that he was paid N29 million for the contract he did not bid for by NIMASA. READ MORE13 prospective ISIS members arrested in KanoTHIRTEEN persons were arrested in Kano yesterday with fake ECOWAS passports on their way to Libya, suspected of traveling to an unidentified ISIS recruitment camp. READ MORE____________________________________ THE PUNCH NEWSPAPER 75-year-old pensioner slumps, dies during screening in EdoThere was outrage on Tuesday by pensioners of the Oredo Local Government Area of Edo State after a local government pensioner, identified as Sunday Oboite, slumped and died during screening. READ MOREMoro faces N676m money laundering, fraud chargesThe Economic and Financial Crimes Commission says it is set to arraign the immediate past Minister of Interior, Mr. Abba Moro, for allegedly defrauding graduate applicants of N676,675,000 during the 2014 Nigeria Immigration Service recruitment during which about 20 job seekers lost their lives. READ MORE$2bn deal: Clear your name, Atiku tells AdokeFormer Vice-President Atiku Abubakar has refuted allegations that he was behind the travails of a former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mohammed Adoke (SAN), in the hands of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission. READ MORE____________________________________ BUSINESS DAY NEWSPAPER Following Tarfa's U-turn on the suit today, February 24, Justice Mohammed Idris awarded a punitive cost of N10, 000 against the lawyer in favour of the five respondents - the EFCC, its Acting Chairman, Ibrahim Magu, Mrs. Rashidatou Abdou, Mr. Femi Falana (SAN) and MTN Nigeria Communications Limited. Tarfa had filed the suit following his arrest on February 5 by EFCC operatives on the premises of the Lagos State High Court in Igbosere, where he allegedly hid two alleged suspects of economic and financial crimes in his car to prevent their arrest. His two mobile phones and his Mercedes Benz SUV with Registration No. KJA 700 CG, were confiscated by the anti-graft agency. In his N5bn fundamental rights enforcement action, Tarfa had urged the court to declare that the respondents violated his right to privacy protected by Section 37 of the Constitution, when, without a court order, MTN allegedly made the call log on his mobile line, 08034600000, available to the EFCC and the others respondents, who in turn allegedly released the information to Sahara Reporters and other online media. But a lawyer from Tarfa's chamber, O. Oladele, showed up in court today with an ex parte application seeking to withdraw the case. He gave no reason for the decision. Reacting to the withdrawal, the EFCC lawyer, Wahab Shittu said; My Lord, we have no objection to the discontinuance of the suit but we want the court to award a punitive cost against the applicant; our names have been flying around in the major newspapers since yesterday". But in objection, Oladele argued that the counsels had no right to respond to his applicationand demanding cost because it was an ex parte application; and moreso that Tarfa had not served them with the suit. Shittu argued that the EFCC was served the suit, but only by substituted means, given that the suit was widely reported in the newspapers. Speaking at a meeting with Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, Kaigama said The National Minimum Wage (Amendment) Act 2011 will be five years old in March and in recognition of the International Labour Organisations Minimum Wage Fixing Convention 131 of 1970, an adhoc committee should be raised every five years for the review. He also said We use this opportunity to serve notice that it is time for the federal government to set up that committee and mandate it to kick start work on the fixing of a new minimum wage. We trust that this will be done immediately to save Nigerian workers from the harsh effects of present day economic realities, which are taking a toll on their meagre incomes. Speaking on the planned hike in electricity tariff, the TUC President condemned the move, saying it is anti-people. Kaigama also accused the electricity distribution companies (DISCOs) of profiting by fraud, without making any attempt to invest in infrastructure. Chairman of the forum, Governor Olusegun Mimiko of Ondo, announced this at a news conference after forums meeting in Abuja on Tuesday. Mimiko said the major organs of the party had agreed to stand by Sheriff as the partys national chairman. "I am happy to let you know that all the major organs in the party have agreed to stand by our national chairman, to ensure that our party moves forward. They are the Governors Forum, National Working Committee, National Assembly Caucus and the Board of Trustees. "We have put behind us all the controversies in the press in recent times. I want to assure you that we are together as a party, Mimiko said. He added that the organs mandated the national chairman and the national working committee to organize the partys national convention within three months. "We will brief all our members nationwide within the next two weeks, of the timetable in that direction. "In the next two weeks, the timetable will be out, all cumulating in our national convention within three months." Mimiko said all past PDP ministers were were represented at the meeting. "They emanate from the state. The caucus of the party is designed in such a way that every state is represented by the chairman of the party. "Secondly, all the key organs in the party are also represented in the caucus. Mimiko said that while all state chairmen were members of the caucus, they were also part and parcel of the decision that led to this controversy. The Acting Chairman of BoT, Sen. Walid Jibrin, said all organs of the party took the decision revealed by PDP governors. Jubrin commended the forum for bringing the matter to an end. The second thing is that you come in as National Chairman or claim you are National Chairman and that you want to move a party forward and the first thing you do is start issuing threats, which I think is unacceptable and nobody is intimidated. The fact of the matter is this, He wants to set Nigeria on fire. He also wants to set the PDP on fire and that fire will consume him and him alone. As regards his personal threat to me, I am more than ready for him. I am waiting for him and I assure him that unlike anybody that he has ever met before in his life, he will meet a resistance that he never banked on. I am not intimidated. I cannot be intimidated and I will quote Shakespeare for you. In Macbeth, he said something which I have always found very interesting. Beautiful line in Macbeth. He said I shall fight until the flesh is hard for my bone and damned be he who first cries oh in this issue. We will remove him. We will ensure that he does not remain National Chairman because he has divided this party and this meeting we are having today will take a decision on that and I would not like to pre-empt their decision. I sincerely hope that all the other stakeholders of the party recognize that this man is divisive, he is unacceptable; he is unfit and he is somebody that none of us has any respect for and cannot move our party forward, he added. Sheriff had earlier threatened Fani-Kayode saying that he would not go scot free for linking him with Boko Haram. The party also alleged that it was a deliberate plot by the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), to cripple the economy of Ekiti state. Premium Times reports that the state PDP spokesman, Jackson Adebayo said Out of N29 billion requested from the federal government, only N9.6 billion was released to Ekiti State, hence it was evident that Ekiti State was particularly marked for this financial punishment to prepare ground for the 2018 governorship election in the state. He also said We want to alert the public that in all the meetings of the APC leaders they have not been discussing the progress of the state. "Rather, they have preoccupied themselves with the business of how Ekiti State government will not be able to meet its obligations again in terms of regular payment of salaries and furtherance of the populist projects it has embarked upon. They have approached President Muhammadu Buhari and other notable leaders of their party on this matter. The party described the Edo Governors action as a policy somersault. The PDP also said the government needs to tell the citizens of Edo state, the real reason why he sacked the traffic agency officials. Speaking to newsmen, the PDP state chairman, Dan Orbih, said Oshiomhole told a big lie when he said EDSTMA officials were not employed, constituted and empowered by his government to harass, intimidate and collect levies and fines from innocent Edo road users. Oshiomhole wants us to believe that his government is not connected to EDSTMA, even though EDSTMAs offices were scattered all over Benin including its operational headquarters at the Ministry of Works located on Sapele Road. Governor Oshiomhole, recently sacked the Managing Director of the Edo State Traffic Management Agency (EDSTMA), Austin Evbakhavbokun, with immediate effect. He said that the calibre of appointees like the FCT Minister, Malam Muhammad Bello, would move the Federal Capital Territory to enviable heights considering his pedigree. He stated this on Wednesday, February 24, in Abuja when he received the FCT Minister, Malam Muhammad Bello who paid him a courtesy visit. "The economy of the country was plunged into a sorry state by the previous governments. "This is in addition to the down turn of oil price, which has remained the nations major source of revenue thereby making things very difficult, he said. Oyegun pointed out that if previous governments had diversified the countrys economy all these years, the situation would have been better today. He commended the FCT Minister for the visit, saying it is necessary for the party to rub minds with all stakeholders. He assured that the APC will work closely with the FCT Minister and the FCT administration to take Abuja to the next level. On the forthcoming FCT Area Councils election, the National Chairman promised to support the FCT Chapter of the APC to deliver the Councils to the party. He stressed the need for teamwork among party faithful to ensure that the APC emerge victorious in the elections. Speaking earlier, the FCT Minister promised to work closely with the party in his efforts to deliver the desired Change Agenda of the Federal Government. Secondus was said to have been picked up today, February 24, in connection with alleged 25 exotic cars he received from the embattled promoter of Atlantic Energy Concepts Limited, Jide Omokore, and distributed to top officials of the Peoples Democratic Party"It is true; he is right now (4:30pm) in our office for interrogation, the Head, Media and Publicity of the EFCC, Wilson Uwujiaren, told ThisDay. According to Vanguard, a top EFCC source said the cars, which are said to be worth over N300 million, were discovered in the course of interrogating Omokore. Omokore has been in EFCC custody for two weeks over alleged fraudulent oil deals worth billions of naira. Until last Monday, Secondus was the Acting National Chairman of the PDP. He handed over to the newly appointed National Chairman of the party, Alhaji Ali-Modu Sheriff. READ:Uche Secondus hands over to new PDP Chairman [PHOTOS]Secondus' arrest is coming less than one month the party's National Publicity Secretary of the PDP, Chief Olisa Metuh, regained his freedom after spending weeks at the Kuje Prison in Abuja. SaharaReporters shared pictures of the President in Medinah today, February 24th. The Independent Hajj Reporters (IHR), an NGO have urged President Mohammadu Buhari to appeal to the Saudi Arabian government to increase the Hajj quota for the country. In a statement by the National Coordinator and Publicity Secretary of the group, Messrs Ibrahim Muhammed and Abubakar Mahmoud, it was noted that the visit of Buhari to Saudi Arabia provided an opportunity for him to plead for Hajj quota increment for the country because of its large number of Muslim population. It said that in 2015, Indonesia Hajj quota was increased by 10,000 after Indonesias president pleaded with the then King Salman during their bilateral meeting. In the last three years, the number of Hajj seats allocation to Nigeria stands at 76,000 due to the 20 per cent cut necessitated by the Grand Mosque expansion project, said the statement. Treasurer of the Northern CAN, Pastor Haruna Karatu said having a Northerner as president is not wrong. There is nothing wrong with having a Northerner as CAN President; after all CAN started from the North. The Presidency of CAN is not for the South only. Buhari has nothing to do with CAN, it is just a blackmail by mischief makers who want to drag the name of the President into their gimmicks, Karatu said in Kaduna. Ex-Chairman of the North-East CAN, Rev. Shuaibu Byal, also supported this claim, saying CAN started in the north in 1964 and became national in 1976. Since then, Northern Christians have never shown interest in the leadership of CAN, apart from John Onaiyekan who is from Kogi State. All we do is to support anybody, in the believe that Christians are one. We back any president regardless of tribe or region. Obasanjo was President of Nigeria when Peter Akinlola became the President of CAN, both from Ogun State. Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor became CAN President from the Niger Delta region at the time Goodluck Jonathan was President of this country. So, it is unfortunate for any group to come out and say President Muhammadu Buhari is trying to install a Northern as CAN President. That is a divisive language and we dont encourage such. In a statement issued by Dogara's spokesman, Turaki Hassan, he said that the only task before Christian leaders was to build unity of purpose in accordance with teachings of Jesus Christ. He said: The body of Christ is not divided, and leadership in the kingdom is not about what you desire to do to God. Election into leadership of the church should never be a do-or-die affair at all. Let it be that we are yielding our output for God. He urged that all Christians should emerge stronger from the election and be united more than ever before. Speaking at the institutions 5th inaugural lecture on Saturday, Oyedepo also said that the level of education of the citizenry would help to drive nation building and development, PM News reports. He said: People need to be educated before they can partner with stakeholders to achieve meaningful development. He also urged Nigerians, in the spirit of the campaign slogan, 'Change', to change their approach to issues. Nothing will change until our approach to issue change because each Nigerian needs to play a role by taking responsibility. The founder of Living Faith Church a.k.a Winners Chapel advised the Federal Government to review its investment policy on education. According to him, there must be huge investment in the sector before any meaningful development can be achieved in the country. Every development in all the nations involves heavy investment in education, he said. The strength of a chain is determined by the strength of its weakest link. The foundation of a house determines how many storey buildings can be built on it. The university said this in its official bulletin obtained by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos. It identified the late student as Miss Omolara Gbadeyan of the Department of Industrial Relations and Personnel Management, Faculty of Management Science. According to the bulletin, Gbadeyan attended a party hosted by the History and International Studies Students Association on Feb. 11 at an Event Centre at Igando, Igando/Ikotun Local Government Development Area. University management also said that the organisers of the party did not inform the university authority or seek its approval for the event. According to the university, this is contrary to the rules and regulations of the institution. The event was tagged Industry Opportunities For Tech-Savvy Students & Graduates and had Nkem Bergho, MD, Future Software Resources Nigeria; Bunmi Okunowo, National Coordinator, Office for ICT Innovation and Entrepreneurship; Akin Oyebode, Executive Secretary, Lagos State Employment Trust Fund and a representative of Mrs. Funke Opeke, CEO Main One, as panelists. The panel was moderated by Gbenga Sesan, Executive Director, Paradigm Initiative Nigeria (PIN). Panelists spoke on the need for individuals to improve themselves first so that they can have value to offer whilst still students or as graduates ion the job market. Furthermore, they urged tech-savvy students and graduates not to confine themselves to their respective field of study but to strive for as much knowledge as is possible so they can apply themselves to a wider range of employment opportunities. Speaking on the lack of very many employment opportunities, Nkem Bergho said tech-savvy students and graduates need not only focus on getting degrees and certifications but more importantly, the necessary skill-set needed to excel in their chosen field. "A degree is important, but it's just a piece of paper. Nobody is going to employ you if you don't have the needed skills," she said. * More than 60 million people were displaced from their homes. Many had been displaced for several years or longer * At least 30 countries illegally forced refugees to return to countries where they would be in danger * Armed groups committed human rights abuses in at least 36 countries * War crimes or other violations of the "laws of war" were carried out in at least 19 countries * At least 122 countries tortured or otherwise ill-treated people * At least 156 human rights defenders died in detention or were killed * At least 113 countries arbitrarily restricted freedom of expression and the press * At least 61 countries locked up prisoners of conscience The two were arrested in June 2012 and convicted a year later of planning attacks and possessing 15 kg of military-grade RDX explosives. But the sentence was reduced on appeal. "Judge Luka Kimaru ordered the two Iranian men to serve 15 years jail sentence." Kenya has suffered several deadly attacks from al Qaida-linked Somalia militants, but investigators later said it appeared that the men were not connected to those groups. Instead, they may have had links to the Quds Force, the elite extra-territorial special forces arm of Iran's Revolutionary Guards, investigators said. Last year, Kenyan authorities arrested two Kenyans with links to Iran on suspicion of plotting attacks on hotels frequented by Western diplomats and tourists. It will be the first time Machar-allied troops will be deployed in Juba since December 2013, when a row between Kiir and his sacked deputy quickly descended into a civil war that often ran along ethnic lines. Both sides, under pressure from Washington, the United Nations and other powers, signed an initial peace deal in August, and agreed to share out ministerial positions in January. But that deal has broken down repeatedly, and a U.N. report last month said both leaders qualified for sanctions over atrocities in the conflict. However, earlier this month, Kiir gave Machar his old job back as deputy leader, raising hopes of a breakthrough after months of troubled negotiations and failed ceasefire agreements. In a meeting late on Tuesday, signatories of the deal agreed that 1,370 troops from Machar's SPLM-IO group will be deployed in Juba starting March 1, according to Festus Mogae, chairman of the Joint Monitoring and Evolution Commission (JMEC). A spokesman for Machar confirmed he is expected to return to Juba during "the first week of March." Kiir sacked Machar as vice president in 2013, exacerbating a political feud that erupted into fighting between soldiers loyal to both men in Juba. The fighting has so far killed thousands and displaced 2.3 million people since late 2013. The war has also devastated South Sudan's economy, slashing the oil production that funds most public spending. Defense Undersecretary Frank Kendall said the Pentagon had reviewed the issue with the Treasury Department in response to questions raised by Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman John McCain after Russia revamped the way it manages its space businesses. Kendall told an event hosted by the Washington Space Business Roundtable the review was still being finalized, but it did not appear that the Russian reorganization would extend U.S. sanctions to rocket engines built by NPO Energomash. McCain had asked the Pentagon to report back by Monday on the legality of doing business with Energomash after the reorganization put Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin and others facing U.S. sanctions in charge of Energomash. Kendall told reporters the Treasury Department had reached a preliminary determination that the sanctions did not apply since they required more than 50 percent ownership and control over Energomash. He said he expected the government to finalize its decision "fairly soon." United Launch Alliance, a joint venture of Lockheed Martin Corp and Boeing Co, buys RD-180 engines for its Atlas 5 rockets from RD-AMROSS, which is a U.S.-based joint venture of Energomash and Pratt & Whitney, a unit of United Technologies Corp. Pratt spokesman Bradley Akubuiro said the individuals in question were not members of the board of directors of either RD AMROSS or Energomash, and repeated reviews had shown they did not benefit financially from the sale of the engines. Dustin Walker, a spokesman for the Senate Armed Services Committee, said McCain believed it was time to end the purchases, regardless of the determination on sanctions. "American taxpayers should not be subsidizing the corrupt Russian military industrial complex with continued purchases of Russian rocket engines," he said. U.S. lawmakers banned future military use of the Russian engines after Russia annexed Ukraine's Crimea region in 2014. Pahrump helped propel Hillary Clinton to victory in Nye County, with the former secretary of state capturing the Nevada Caucus on Saturday. Clinton beat Bernie Sanders 59 percent to 41 percent in the county, a much wider margin of support than the 53 percent to 47 percent she received statewide. Pahrump Democrats took to several caucus sites to cast votes for their candidates morning along with the rest of the state. Prior to the caucus kickoff on Saturday morning, lines could be seen outside of several Pahrump locations including Hafen Elementary School and Floyd Elementary School. Many voters said they had decided about their candidate. The statewide numbers mirror those from 2008, when then-Sen. Barrack Obama lost Nevada to Clinton by almost six points, 45 to 50.8 percent. Saturdays caucus is the first step for Nevada to send delegates to the Democratic National Convention. Precincts throughout Nevada awarded 12,000 delegates to the two candidates. The delegates go to county party conventions in April, where county delegates are picked for the partys state convention in May. Winners there go on to the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia in July. Nevada will send 43 delegates to Philadelphia. Of those, 23 delegates who worked their way up from the caucuses; 13 pledged and unpledged party leaders and elected officials; and seven at-large delegates. The data provided by the Nevada Democrats website shows that Sanders had a strong showing in the northern part of the state, including Washoe County and the metro area of Reno and Carson City, as well as Elko, Pershing, Humboldt, Eureka and Lander counties while Clinton dominated in the southern part, including Clark County and Las Vegas, Nye County, Lincoln County, White Pine County and Mineral County. In Nye County, Clinton carried all of the Pahrump precincts, while Sanders won most of the northern precincts. Several online reports show that Clinton was given one delegate in tied Precinct 10 after a precinct captain drew a card from the deck to break a tie. A photo of Pahrump Precinct Chair Peggy Rhoads posted on Twitter was captioned: Hillarys ace beat Bernies six. Nevada was once considered Clintons firewall with heavy union support and many Democratic politicians endorsing her. Sanders however finished five points behind her after his grassroots movement propelled him across the state. January polls showed that Clinton had a double-digit lead over Sanders. A few weeks before the caucus Clinton and Sanders operations in Nevada were boosted by volunteers and staffers from Iowa, New Hampshire and other states. Christopher Fleury of Vermont, volunteer for the Sanders campaign, spent a few days in Pahrump where he was canvassing door to door. He said he found a lot of excited supporters in Pahrump. And the people that were excited, were quite excited. They are very passionate about it. Those that feel the Bern, truly feel the Bern. However, Clinton was bolstered by a Pahrump visit by her husband, former President Bill Clinton, on Feb. 6. Just before 11 a.m., Pahrump resident Christy Giles stood in line in front of Hafen Elementary School. Giles, who caucused for Clinton, said she would vote for any Democratic nominee in the general election but favored Clinton over Sanders. I will vote whoever gets in Democratic, but Im more for her because I think she has the ability to get it through, said Giles who was caucusing for the first time. Anything, any changes that can be done because the Republican Congress just absolutely blocks everything. Standing next to Giles was Joe Penney, who said he would vote for Sanders. Penney said unlike Clinton, Sanders had a plan. He explains to you what he will do, he said about Sanders. She is for her to be the first woman president, not for us. Thats why I dont think I want to go for Hillary Clinton, he said. Laraine Babbitt, who was walking to the Hafen Elementary School after the doors opened said she was still undecided but was leaning toward Hillary Clinton. Im not the type of person who is going to vote for her just because she is a woman, said Babbitt, who switched her party from Republican to Democratic. I dont think thats the way to vote for somebody. I think she has a lot of political experience, I think she would do a good job, she said. At about 12 p.m. when the caucus was supposed to kick off, the line was still stretching outside of Floyd Elementary School. Precinct 19 Chair Dennis Parker was passing along stickers for Hillary Clinton supporters. A staffer for the Bernie Sanders campaign was passing cups of water and chairs to people. Henry Engelstein, field organizer for the Clinton campaign in Pahrump, said the number of supporters who showed up the the caucus was a testament of their hard work. I think its amazing, Engelstein said about the process. Weve been here in Nevada since April, when the first staff arrived. Ive been working here for many months working hard with an amazing team of volunteers to turn out the vote and a lot of people that we spent hours calling on the phone and hitting the roads in Pahrump to knock on their doors, they showed up to vote to support the candidate. Precinct 30 Chair Joanna Lien said technical difficulties bogged down the lane at Floyd Elementary delaying the caucus by almost 40 minutes. These processes can always be smoother, however I think given the amount of volunteers that we had, everybody worked extremely hard to get the process done as quickly as possible, she said. I think it was a lot of fun, she added. Contact reporter Daria Sokolova at dsokolova@pvtimes.com. On Twitter: @dariasokolova77 As the medical marijuana industry continues to bloom in the Silver State, a new Las Vegas company dedicated to ensuring the purity of the drug is looking to do business with the Nye County medical pot industry. DigiPath, Inc. supports the cannabis industrys practices for reliable testing, education and training within the industry. Company officials gave a presentation to the Pahrump Senior Center on Feb. 10. Dr. Cindy Orser, chief science officer for DigiPath Labs, has created a testing environment to ensure cannabis and cannabis-based products are safe for patients. The purpose of testing the marijuana is because its being grown indoors and thats really not such a natural setting. Anytime you have that higher density of plants in a small environment where there is high humidity, you have the likelihood that theyre going to be using pesticides to deal with insects and powdery mildew. The testing process is a multi-step system where results can be produced in 48 hours. DigiPath Labs CEO Todd Denkin noted that at present the service is exclusively for businesses in the medical marijuana industry for the time being, as testing for regular consumers may also come to fruition. Right now we could only do business with licensed medical marijuana establishments, he said. According to state regulations, we have petitioned for being able to test patients products. Its been turned down but they might pass it in the next legislative session. As a natural herb, Orser noted that many people are not aware of the various compounds found in the plant when the cultivation process is underway. Some pesticides used to cultivate marijuana can contain heavy metals such as lead, arsenic, mercury and cadmium. The residue can be transferred into smoke when inhaled. The tests also screens for mold and microbial bacteria. Mold inhalation can cause fever, diarrhea, vomiting and respiratory problems. Moisture content is also screened. Purity aside, Orser said DigiPath offers additional services for growers, including tests for the plants potency, which she said is determined by the plant itself. She noted cannabinoids, or CBDs, are a class of chemical compounds contained in marijuana, which acts on the brain. There are many, many strains of marijuana and the genetics of the plant determine which cannabinoids are produced in the highest levels, she said. You can also vary that by how you grow the plant. The potency depends on whether the plant is being grown to produce higher levels of CBDs, or higher levels of THC, which is psychoactive. Denkin, meanwhile, pondered the future of the marijuana industry as societal standards become increasingly lenient. He pointed to Novembers ballot question on the legalization of recreational marijuana for Nevada residents. Im not only hopeful, I am confident that it will pass, he said. I think the state has done a really good job in setting the table in preparation for recreational marijuana. I dont really like the term recreational, because its all medical. It is a no-brainer based on revenue and based on the fact that 42 million people come to Las Vegas every single year. I believe this will become a marijuana destination and be known as Vegasterdam in time. Sarah Chapman, president of Nye County Consultants Association, began operations at 2780 S. Homestead Road location last year. The organization was created to strengthen the medical marijuana industry in Nye County. We are going to be doing more educational events such as this one where different companies come out to Pahrump and explain their process and what all is happening in this new industry, she said. Contact reporter Selwyn Harris at sharris@pvtimes.com One person was killed and four others injured after a fatal crash that caused a portion of State Route 160 between Pahrump and Las Vegas to be closed for several hours Monday night. Las Vegas resident Heath Vanstone, 46, died in the crash that involved three motorcycles and two sport utility vehicles. The incident also sent four others to UMC Trauma in Las Vegas, with one being life-flighted to the hospital and the other three transported via ambulance. The crash took place between mile marker 17 and mile marker 18 around 5:50 p.m. Monday night, when Vanstone was headed west toward Pahrump, attempted to pass a Honda CR-V and was hit head-on by a Ford Edge traveling eastbound, killing him on the scene. The Ford Edge flipped as result of the crash with Vanstone and ran into the oncoming Honda CR-V, causing the two other motorcyclists to hit the CR-V they were trailing. One other motorcyclist and the three occupants of the Ford were taken to UMC Trauma. The other motorcyclist and the two occupants of the Honda were uninjured. Traffic was closed to motorists in both directions for about fives hours as law enforcement officials conducted their investigation, reopening the highway to drivers at 10:45 p.m. Drivers were told to take U.S. 95 through Indian Springs while the road was closed to travel between Las Vegas and Pahrump. The crash marks the first fatal incident of the year on the deadly stretch of road, which occurred just a week after crews began a widening project designed to make a five-mile stretch of SR-160 safer. The $16.5 million project is slated to be complete in early 2017 and will widen SR-160, the main and fastest route to Pahrump from Clark County, between mile marker 10.89 (just past State Route 159 or the Red Rock Canyon Road junction) and mile marker 16.63, from two lanes to four lanes of travel. Mondays crash occurred close to the end of the widening project. Improvements include flattening side slope shoulders for safer vehicle turnouts, while installing new drainage pipe and tortoise fencing. Other work consists of placing barrier and guardrails as well as hydro-seeding 38 acres. Tony Illia, Nevada Department of Transportation spokesman, said that nighttime work concluded on Tuesday and that the project is still on schedule. In a five-year crash study, NDOT found that the stretch of road between mile marker 11 and mile marker 22 saw an average crash rate almost double the rate for the average NDOT maintained rural principal arterial. The crash is the latest of several fatal incidents in the past 14 months and the second crash involving multiple motorcycles during that span. In December 2014 near mile marker 16, a fatal crash involving seven motorcycles and a passenger vehicle took the life of an 18-year-old North Las Vegas man and injured several others. Contact reporter Mick Akers at makers@pvtimes.com. On Twitter: @MickAkers Tragedy struck again along the narrow stretch of State Route 160 between Pahrump and Las Vegas, claiming another life and changing travel routes for hundreds of commuters. At approximately 5:50 p.m. Monday night, a motorcyclist swerved into oncoming traffic to pass a vehicle 4.5 miles west of the Route 160/159 interchange. The resulting crash involved three motorcycles, two SUVs, one fatality, and four transports to University Medical Center Trauma and a closing of the road in both directions for more than five hours. The sad irony of all this is the crash happened while the Nevada Department of Transportation has begun a $16.5 million widening project for that stretch of state highway to help prevent these types of tragedies. Since starting at the newspaper in September of 2014, I have been able to avoid various traffic ensnarements on that road between Las Vegas and Pahrump. Last night I was among the hundreds, maybe more than a thousand, travelers who were set upon a different path by this tragedy. As I came over Mountain Springs, I could see the red shine of car brake lights ahead. I then noticed that headlights were also stationary in the distance, meaning something was stopping traffic. My first thought was it had something to do with the aforementioned road-widening project, but as I got closer I didnt see the flashing of road crews. Even though I was only 10 cars back when I pulled up, the cover of darkness had already blanketed the area so I couldnt see what lay ahead. I placed a call to Pahrump Valley Times reporter Mick Akers (see his story on A2) to check online sources to find any information on what may have happened. Basically, I was checking to see how long I would need to wait it out (it is important to note that the news that someone had died a few yard ahead was not known at this time). Akers told me the initial report was that it was an injury accident involving multiple vehicles. Ok, that might be a couple of hours, but I could wait it out. It was 5:56 p.m., a mere six minutes after the first report of the crash. However, emergency crews had yet to arrive. When Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department and Highway Patrol vehicles started to arrive en masse, I knew that something really bad had happened beyond a mere fender bender. Then vehicles started turning around and started heading back toward the mountain. At approximately 6:15 p.m., 25 minutes after the crash, someone walked up to my car window and said the police were advising people to turn around because there was a fatality. Bodies everywhere is the term this apparent witness said to me. When I heard there was an unfortunate loss of life, I knew it could be close to midnight before the road was reopened (it opened around 11 p.m.) I called my wife, told her what was happening and that I would have to take the long way home on U.S. Highway 95 through Indian Springs. I drove the 38 miles back past the Times offices, then another 112 miles to my home in Henderson. When I stopped at the gas station in town, I met another man who works in Pahrump and lives in Henderson who would also be making the journey. Im sure we were two of many. Just more than four hours after I left the Times offices, I finally arrived at home, 90 minutes before State Route 160 was reopened. But as I sat in my driveway, I thought about those families involved in the tragedy who would not make it back to their homes that night. It is for those people involved that I am looking forward to seeing that road widened to avoid future tragedies. Arnold M. Knightly is the editor of the Pahrump Valley Times Our regional sites have now moved. If you are not redirected automatically, please click here to access our new PwC in Northern Ireland site. A roundup of legislative and Capitol news items of interest for Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016: TOO LATE TO COUPLE: The Iowa Department of Revenue issued a statement saying at this point it would be virtually impossible to couple with federal tax law by the impending March 1 filing deadline for farmers and commercial fishers. State lawmakers are debating whether the state should couple its tax laws with federal tax laws. Such action would result in roughly $96 million in tax relief for Iowans who purchased equipment and supplies for business use, but also result in $96 million less in the state coffers. Farmers and business owners spoke at a news conference this week at the Capitol stressing the need for coupling, saying they made business purchases expecting the law to be in place, since its something the state historically enacts. If it doesnt, those taxpayers that made purchases say they will be hit with unexpected tax bills. The Department of Revenue said if state lawmakers enact coupling after March 1, taxpayers can file an amendment to their tax returns in order to receive their rebate. FERTILIZER PLANT UNDER FIRE: A company building a $1.9 billion fertilizer plant in Wever, Iowa, is being sued for $53 million, and that news drew some attention at the State Capitol. Sen. Tom Courtney, D-Burlington, during remarks on the Senate Floor criticized the project, which has received more than $100 million in state tax breaks. Courtney noted the project has gone through three lead construction companies, one of which is suing the owners of Orascom, a subsidiary of an Egyptian construction company. People in my district are calling it Ora-scam, because it seems like a scam, Courtney said. We are in danger of losing our public investment. Bob Krause, a veterans advocate and Democratic U.S. Senate candidate, told reporters the state must offer assistance to construction workers who may be laid off if construction halts, and investigate any issues that may have risen during construction. SENATE CONFIRMATIONS: Members of the Senate Education Committee voted 12-3 Tuesday to recommend Gov. Terry Branstads choice of Ryan Wise to be interim director of the state Department of Education. Supporters said Wise had strong academic qualifications and demonstrated a passion and dedication for the children of Iowas educational opportunities in backing his appointment. Three Democratic senators opposed the recommendation. Sen. Bob Dvorsky, D-Coralville, said he is disappointed in the Branstad administrations commitment to state aid to schools and funding a third-grade reading initiative slated to kick in during the summer of 2017. Dvorsky said Wise should be a stronger advocate as state education chief and should be pushing to delay the reading program if the administration is not prepared to fund it adequately. Gubernatorial appointees must receive at least 34 affirmative votes to meet the two-thirds majority required for Senate confirmation. On Tuesday, senators voted 49-0 to approve five low-profile gubernatorial appointments to state boards and commissions. ZIKA TRAVEL ADVISORY: Officials with the Iowa Department of Public Health are advising Iowans to travel healthy on spring break. Health officials say vacation planning should include taking time to learn about the health concerns that may await travelers regardless of whether theyre heading to a sunny beach or a ski resort. State health experts say that while the Zika virus is primarily a concern for pregnant women traveling to areas where Zika transmission is ongoing, locations with biting mosquitoes also carry the threat of diseases like malaria, chikungunya, dengue or West Nile virus. Travelers to warmer climates are advised to use mosquito repellant at all times and try to minimize skin exposure when possible. The CDC has specific travel-related health advisories, including information about Zika virus at wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/notices. Also, health officials say that while the influenza season has been relatively mild in Iowa, parts of the country are seeing higher activity levels. Arizona, for example, has been experiencing high influenza activity, so health officials advise those who have not received a yearly flu shot to get vaccinated before traveling. The final word of caution is that basic hand hygiene is the single most effective way to prevent the spread of illnesses ranging from norovirus to the common cold, according to the state health agency. For more information about healthy traveling, visit wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/page/survival-guide. LAW ENFORCEMENT ACADEMY: The director of the Iowa Law Enforcement Academy made a pitch to lawmakers Tuesday to upgrade the Des Moines facility built in 1967 as the main training and certification center for Iowa law officers. Judy Bradshaw, who formerly served as Des Moines police chief, said the facility lacks in technology upgrades and needs about $6.8 million in improvements to address current problems. She said her agency conducts six police academies annually to train and certify law officers, crediting the centralized and standardized approach as helping to head off problems that police officers have encountered in other states such as Missouri or Illinois with inappropriate policy behavior caught on camera. She said the academy recently landed a federal grant to conduct blue courage training to better interactive with the community and she is working with former state Rep. Wayne Ford, D-Des Moines, to enhance sensitivity training to issues like racial profiling and biased policing. Sen. Tony Bisignano, D-Des Moines, told fellow Senate Judiciary Committee members that Bradshaw should have no problem winning Senate confirmation and he called physical conditions at the academys headquarters disgraceful and substandard. CULVER RETURNS: Former Iowa Democratic Gov. Chet Culver and health care providers, medical professionals, disability advocates, Medicaid beneficiaries and their families will stage a 2 p.m. rally at the Capitol on Feb. 24 to raise awareness of concerns with privatization of Medicaid management. The public rally is the culmination of a series of town hall meetings and citizen involvement over the last four weeks with the goal of ensuring policymakers put Iowans first as they determine their next steps. There are more than 560,000 Iowans who currently use Medicaid including more than 120,000 with disabilities. PRAYER BREAKFAST: Alveda King, the niece of the Rev. Martin Luther King, will be the keynote speaker at the 55th annual Maundy Thursday Iowa Prayer Breakfast from 7-8:45 a.m. March 24 at the Community Choice Credit Union Convention, Des Moines. The purpose of the breakfast is to bring together Iowas governor, legislators and community and religious leaders to join with the public to ask Gods direction and blessing upon the state. Gov. Terry Branstad and his wife, Chris, and other elected officials have committed to attend The breakfast is open to the public. Tickets are $25 for adults and $10 for students. RSVP by March 16. To register, visit www.IowaPrayerBreakfast.com. QUOTE OF THE DAY: In my neighborhood, Ive grown to understand that Id rather hear a gunshot than a pop, Rep. Ako Abdul-Samad, D-Des Moines, explaining his opposition to HF 2279 to legalize use of suppressors on guns Compiled by the Des Moines Bureau DES MOINES After four years of trying, Iowa House members finally had a chance to vote on an anti-bullying bill. But its not an anti-bullying bill that seeks to protect Iowas children, Rep. Mary Wolfe, D-Clinton, said, referring to Gov. Terry Branstads so far unsuccessful efforts to win passage of legislation to address bullying and cyberbullying in schools. Instead, House File 2331 is a bill to restrict the investment of state funds in companies that are engaged in what has been described to me as pretty much bullying of Israel, Wolfe said. Theyre being called names accused of things they say they didnt do being demonized, lots of the things that Im sure all of us sometimes have to deal with on social media. Similar to restrictions the Legislature has approved on the investment of public funds in Iran and Sudan, HF 2331 would have restricted the Board of Regents, Iowa Public Employees Retirement System and police, fire and judicial systems retirement programs from investing in companies that have a policy of boycotting Israel. Several states and Congress are considering similar legislation, floor manager Rep. Quentin Stanerson, R-Center Point, said. Its intended to counter the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions Movement that is trying to encourage countries, governments and companies to boycott Israel and Israeli companies. If enacted by the Legislature, it will not impact the state general fund and the impact on the retirement funds cannot be determined, according to the Legislative Services Agency. But it sounded like an infringement of free speech to Rep. Ako Abdul-Samad, D-Des Moines, who referred to the use of boycotts as part of the civil rights movement. This goes beyond whether or not we support Israel, he said. This bill is making a determination whether one has a right to boycott. How do we have the audacity to do that? Stanerson disagreed that the bill limited or violated anyones 1st Amendment rights. Instead, it exercises states right to choose companies in which it will invest. Exercising discretion with taxpayer funds is an important part of reinforcing of public policy and the basic ethical standards of government, Stanerson said. Representatives voted 70-25 to send the bill to the Senate. YOUTUBE Even in the best of times, a journalists job is hazardous. Here I am referring to real journalists and not trolls and puppy-eyed ... The Dawes County Commissioners took no action on ending its participation in the Joint Airport Zoning Board, but will consider the matter again March 8 after rural residents protested a proposed ordinance impacting the area. The County Commissioners plan to discuss airport zoning changes March 8 at noon. Several rural residents have asked that Dawes Countys Zoning Board oversee all of the zoning around the airport, a shift away from the current arrangement. A 1956 resolution between the county and the City of Chadron established a Joint Airport Zoning Board with representation from each entity to manage zoning regulations in a three-mile circle around the airports boundaries. The resolution was updated in 1980, with the Joint Airport Zoning Board giving the Chadron city manager authority to oversee the zoning area. Recently, rural residents have objected to that arrangement; the dispute arose when the Joint Airport Zoning Board drafted an ordinance to comply with the states Airport Zoning Act, passed in 2013. Dawes Countys Zoning Board and rural residents argued that the proposed ordinance was overreaching and insisted that the county have more input. Earlier this year, a committee of rural residents volunteered to draft their own ordinance. The Dawes County Zoning Board approved that draft Thursday, which will also be considered by the County Commissioners March 8 at noon. Jerry Schumacher, who served on the committee, said they reviewed a suggested ordinance by the Nebraska Department of Aeronautics, as well as ordinances from several other cities. They chose to follow the NDA outline, with some modifications. The group believes their proposal complies with state law, which requires the creation of 10-mile zoning cones off the ends of instrument-rated runways. Included in the version approved by the Dawes County Zoning Board is a definition of county jurisdiction which calls for the county to have exclusive zoning authority around the airport, except for within the boundaries of the airport and a 500-foot circle around its perimeter. The committee also prepared a draft resolution to withdraw the countys participation in the Joint Airport Zoning Board; that is the resolution the commissioners tabled 2-1 Tuesday. The Joint Airport Zoning Board made sense in 1956, Schumacher said, because the county did not have its own Zoning Board. County Assessor Lindy Coleman also argued for ending the joint board, saying it does not have jurisdiction over the 10-mile cones outside of the three miles anyway and has been difficult to work with. J.F. Policky, who serves as one of the countys representatives on the Joint Airport Zoning Board, pointed out that the current board can rescind the 1980 update and assert its own authority again. That board meets this Thursday at 4 p.m. at the Chadron City Hall and could discuss the matter, as well as the ordinance proposed by the county, then. Policky argued strongly Tuesday to keep the board in tact. This board will work if you give it a chance to work, he said. The first ordinance was a draft and the joint board was waiting for comments, not approval. Take a red pen, draw it out, return it to us. Then well take a look at it he said. We never got that opportunity. Individuals on both sides of the argument called the process ridiculous and silly Tuesday, but no consensus was reached on the best course of action. Commissioners Webb Johnson and Vic Rivera voted in favor of tabling the matter for two weeks as they see what action the joint board takes and seek a spot on the Chadron City Council agenda March 7. The pair is concerned over differing legal opinions on the matter of which entity assumes control if the county ceases its participation but the board continues to exist. The NDA has said it will only recognize the joint board as a valid authority, and actual dissolution of the joint board would have to be agreed upon by both the county and the city. County Commissioner Chairman Jake Stewart voted against tabling the matter. I want to take action now, he said. Domodedovo Airport ex-manager charged in 2011 terror attack case put under house arrest MOSCOW, February 24 (RAPSI) The Moscow City Court on Wednesday ruled to put Svetlana Trishina, ex-head of Export Management Company Limited who stands charged with the provision of services that allegedly do not meet security standards in connection with 2011 terrorist attack that left 37 dead, under house arrest, RAPSI reported from the courtroom. Earlier, the Basmanny District Court ordered the detention of Trishina, former director of Domodedovo Airport Vyacheslav Nekrasov and Andrei Danilov, Managing Director of Domodedovo Airport Aviation Security until February 28. Defense appealed the ruling in the Moscow City Court. On February 19, the Basmanny District Court of Moscow placed Dmitry Kamenshchik, the owner of the Domodedovo airport, under house arrest until April 18 in connection with this case. On January 24, 2011, a suicide bomber detonated a bomb in the Domodedovo Airports international arrivals hall, killing 37 people and injuring 172. Doku Umarov, Russias most wanted terrorist at the time, claimed responsibility for the attack. Altogether, 28 men connected with the terrorist organization called the Caucasus Emirate were linked to the attack, according to the investigators. Seventeen of them were killed in special operations in 2011, and four were detained. In November 2013, a Moscow Region court sentenced three men to life in prison and a fourth man to 10 years for their role in the suicide bombing. The question of Domodedovo Airports ownership arose back in 2011, when the investigators first stated that they couldnt determine the owner of the airport. The Investigative Committee initiated criminal proceedings against the airports former managers for failing to guarantee the safety of passengers, which resulted in the death of two or more people. The airport administration argued that this charge was inapplicable to the case in point and that they were only made responsible for airport entrance control in 2014, after the law on transport security was amended. Russia to appeal ECHR ruling on compensation for Navalny MOSCOW, February 24 (RAPSI) Russian Ministry of Justice is going to appeal a ruling by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) that granted a compensation for opposition politician Alexei Navalny and his accomplice Pyotr Ofitserov in Kirovles embezzlement case, RIA Novosti reported on Wednesday. On Tuesday, ECHR published a ruling regarding Kirovles embezzlement case, claiming that Navalnys and Ofitserovs rights on a fair trial were violated. However, ECHR did not find a political motive in this case. ECHR ruled to compensate Navalny with 48,000 euro of legal costs and Ofitserov with 22,000 euro. Additionally Russia is to pay 8,000 euro each in damages. Navalny was given a five-year suspended sentence in July 2013 for embezzlement at the Kirovles timber company. In May, Moscow's Lyublinsky District Court increased a probation period for him to 5.5 years in the case. Ofitserov has received a four-year suspended sentence. According to investigators, while serving on a voluntary basis as an adviser to the Kirov Region governor, Navalny allegedly organized the theft of over 10,000 cubic meters of timber from Kirovles between May and September 2009. He presumably acted in collusion with Vyatka Timber Company Director Pyotr Ofitserov and Kirovles CEO Vyacheslav Opalyov. ABSORKEE, Mont. A lot can happen in 24 hours.Carl and Denise Loynings recent stint in and around Bozeman proves it. The Hereford seed stock producers attended a bull sale and checked out a used mixer wagon in Manhattan; in Willow Creek, they viewed some other herd bull prospects, as well as a cow, whose embryos they bought at auction in January; and they delivered a donor cow to Toston, where shell be flushed at a donor facility.For the Loynings, bent on bolstering their registered herd with leading genetics, life is chockfull.In this case, they were scouting bulls at the Churchill Bull Sale in Manhattan in advance of their own open house and bull viewing for their first private treaty offering March 16. They also checked out the bulls over at Cooper Herefords in Willow Creek, where they identified some possible new additions to their herd sires.Were looking to see whats coming up in everyones sale, Denise said. The research never stops because we are already planning on what to breed the cows and heifers to this spring.That means combing over pedigrees on the internet, as well as visiting bulls in the pen, always looking for quality over quantity, Denise said.A purchase to us needs to provide value and move our genetics forward in the way we want to direct our program, she said.The same goes for embryos.The Loynings use embryo transfer in two ways: to cherry-pick outside genetics to increase the diversity of the herd, much like using frozen semen; and to take advantage of superior quality cows in their own herd.The cow they visited in Willow Creek is CL1 Dominette 055X. The Loynings, who bought her flush at the Mile High Eve Frozen Hereford Genetics Sale in Denver last month, wanted to get a look at her, as well as her newborn twin calves, and figure out their timing, since they want to put her embryos into their recipient cows fresh, not frozen.Since she just calved, theyre looking at a minimum of 60 days to do a conventional flush. The donor cow will then get a series of hormone shots to cause her to super ovulate. When she shows standing heat, the most sexually intensive period of the estrous cycle, she is artificially inseminated twice, 12 hours a part. After seven days, her embryos are flushed. The embryos need to be implanted in the Loynings recipient cows on the seventh day, so timing and planning is crucial.They also have to prepare the recipient cows for implanting the embryos. The recipient cows are set up to have a standing heat seven days before implanting the embryos, which tricks their bodies into accepting them.Were guaranteed so many, but dont ultimately know how many shell produce, Denise said. So we need a back-up plan.The registered cow they delivered to Marlo Leachmans in Toston to get conventionally flushed for embryos is that plan. The process results in a reserve of embryos in the tank from her and takes about four months, depending on how well she responds.She offers a lot of the qualities were looking for: high quality progeny, with pigment, thickness, and a well-balanced set of EPDs, Denise said.Expected Progeny Differences, (EPDs), are numbers that predict the genetic quality of future offspring or progeny of a particular cow. The figures help seedstock producers like the Loynings determine whether that particular cow will produce sale-quality progeny and add genetic value to their breeding herd.The Loynings are all about reading, interpreting and understanding the various numbers and abbreviations for an animal of interest. This particular cows vital statistics are such that its worth keeping her open in order to do the conventional flush.Starting out in the seed stock side of things, we still need to be diversified and limit our risks. Its smart business, Denise said. We also have commercial cattle and we are utilizing the genetics we are trying to sell as seed stock producers on them, promoting what Hereford genetics can do for commercial cattlemen.Carl put it like this: We are our own best proving ground.Carl is what his wife calls the new gadget guy. He likes to tinker with machinery almost as much as he likes to swat EPDs. Now he can fiddle with his second-hand mixer wagon he bought in the Bozeman expedition.The wagon weighs, mixes and distributes feed rations for cattle. The Loynings will use it at their Bull Development Center, some eight miles away from the home place. This will free up their herdswoman, Emily Shilling, who has been bucket feeding the bulls and heifers twice a day, in addition to filling round bale feeders every couple of days.We are deep in calving at the moment and Emily has to get home before dark to feed the second ration, Denise said. This will help the operation go smoother to do a morning feeding and will help the heifers and bulls whose bodies break down ground hay better and will utilize more of the roughage in a more complete way.After all the excitement of their trip to Bozeman, the Loynings came home to plenty more at the ranch. Their first 19 head of embryo transfer cows were due Jan. 31. The first few trickled in a couple of days before their due date, then 15 delivered in one night, a combination of embryo transfer and commercial cows.When they decided to go, they decided to go, Denise said. Thats been our craziest night.Hormones were running heavy in the calving barn, with cows not yet delivered trying to mother new calves belonging to other cows.A cow will lie down and go through a series of contractions, and, in the meantime, another cow will calve, and her natural instinct is, That must be mine, when really its not, Denise said. It was comical in the calving barn. Bless their hearts, theyre all great mothers.That night, nobody slept, and they all stumbled through the next days tagging, weighing, vaccinating and feeding jacked on coffee and energy drinks.That long night trickled into the next day, Denise said.The next 10 embryo calves are due Valentines Day. Meanwhile, a handful of commercial cows are calving daily, thankfully unhindered by ice that has mostly melted with the recent balmy temperatures.The Loynings have also been preparing for the March 16 open house and bull viewing. With that event in mind, theyve been adding the pedigrees of their sale bulls to their website and wrapping their heads around the dizzying number of details such as meals, weather contingencies, display configurations and which cow-calf pairs will be on display.Soon, the bulls will be clipped for their website and sale brochures photos, which will help potential buyers see their definition and bone structure.It pretties them up, Carl said. BILLINGS A fifth victim has come forward in a sexual abuse of children case involving the adult son of a Billings day care owner. An additional charge of sexual intercourse without consent was filed Tuesday against Jared Addison Terhune, 40, who is being held on a $250,000 bond in the Yellowstone County Detention Facility. Terhune pleaded not guilty to the new charge Tuesday before of Yellowstone County District Court Judge Michael Moses. The new victim brings the total to five children, between ages 2 to 13, who have reported they were abused by Terhune while they were at Sunshine Daycare. An additional three counts of sexual abuse of children were added earlier this month after a search of Terhunes electronic devices revealed an extensive collection of child pornography. The newest victim, an 8-year-old, alleges Terhune had abused her since she was five or six years old. The most recent occasion happened only a few months before Terhune was arrested. He came to the girls house and sexually assaulted the girl. The mother of the girl had asked her about the abuse after she picked up her kids from Terhunes mother, Sunshine West, at her home on Declaration Ave. West was crying and told the mother Terhune was arrested for allegedly touching kids. The mother asked her 8-year-old if Terhune had ever touched her and the girl began to cry. The 8-year-old reported Terhune had told her it was "a secret between them." Since the inception of this case, more counts have been added and more kids have come forward, Senior Deputy County Attorney Mary Barry said. Barry is the prosecutor assigned to Terhunes case. Sunshine Daycare at 432 Declaration Ave. has been licensed as a family child care center since 2010 with an enrollment of six children. It closed in August of 2014, a month after the first report of abuse was made to police. West is the listed care provider, according to the State of Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services. According to court documents, Terhune is the son of West and was in charge of the children when West was not present. West operated a day care from 1998-2007, closed for three years, and reopened in 2010. Prior to 2010, West was licensed for group home child care as well as family care. In a group home, West looked after up to 12 children at a time and would have needed a second adult to look after the children. A second staff member's name is not listed. Since 1998, 40 children have been enrolled in some type of day care through West, according to DPHHS records. West denied Terhune's actions to a parent of one of the victims in the case, and said another mother's daughter had "tried that sh, saying Jared touched her but they were just playing and wrestling," according to an application for a search warrant filed in the case. According to court documents, a child, who was 7, reported the abuse to officers in July 2014. The girl formerly lived in an apartment in the basement of the day care. The child said Terhune touched her vagina while he was wrestling with her while moving into the apartment. He also touched her on a camping trip with the day care, court documents state. A 2-year-old reported Terhune had used his finger to hurt her "pee pee and her butt." Another 7-year-old reported Terhune had assaulted her while she was asleep watching TV and tried to bribe her with pie to show him her underwear. She said she refused, but that later while she was sleeping Terhune took photos of her underwear while she slept, which she later saw on his camera. She said the abuse escalated to him touching her under her underwear and rubbing her, saying he was checking her for ticks. A 13-year-old came forward in May and reported Terhune touched her in July 2013, when she awoke during a backyard camping trip to find her pants undone. She went inside the home day care and went to sleep in the basement. She said she woke up again and found Terhune with his hand down her pants. Terhunes trial is scheduled for April. BILLINGS - U.S. Customs and Border Protection has announced that it will start testing operations the Port of Raymond at reduced hours. The agency said on Tuesday that the border crossing, which is the only 24-hour port from Montana to Saskatchewan, will be open for 18 hours per day starting April 18. The new hours will be 6 a.m. to midnight, and the port will close at midnight on April 18. The border crossing lies north of Plentywood and south of Regina, Saskatchewan. The only other 24-hour port in Montana is at Sweetgrass. The closest 24-hour crossing to the Port of Raymond is at Portal, N.D. According to Border Patrol, a study revealed that an average of about three vehicles passed through the port during those nighttime hours. Border Patrol is calling the move to reduce hours a test that will last 60 days past April 18. The agency is taking public comments through the end of the test period at raymond-testhours@cbp.dhs.gov. Masters Of War Come you masters of war You that build all the guns You that build the death planes You that build all the bombs You that hide behind walls You that hide behind desks I just want you to know I can see through your masks. You that never done nothin' But build to destroy You play with my world Like it's your little toy You put a gun in my hand And you hide from my eyes And you turn and run farther When the fast bullets fly. Like Judas of old You lie and deceive A world war can be won You want me to believe But I see through your eyes And I see through your brain Like I see through the water That runs down my drain. You fasten all the triggers For the others to fire Then you set back and watch When the death count gets higher You hide in your mansion' As young people's blood Flows out of their bodies And is buried in the mud. You've thrown the worst fear That can ever be hurled Fear to bring children Into the world For threatening my baby Unborn and unnamed You ain't worth the blood That runs in your veins. How much do I know To talk out of turn You might say that I'm young You might say I'm unlearned But there's one thing I know Though I'm younger than you That even Jesus would never Forgive what you do. Let me ask you one question Is your money that good Will it buy you forgiveness Do you think that it could I think you will find When your death takes its toll All the money you made Will never buy back your soul. And I hope that you die And your death'll come soon I will follow your casket In the pale afternoon And I'll watch while you're lowered Down to your deathbed And I'll stand over your grave 'Til I'm sure that you're dead.------- Bob Dylan 1963 A Nigerian man was arrested in Bertoua in the East region of Cameroon over illegal marketing of ivory and pangolin scales. The 43-year-old man was arrested this week in an operation conducted by agents of the Regional Delegation of Forestry and Wildlife of the East in collaboration with the police. The Last Great Ape Organization (LAGA) provided technical assistance during the operation. The man was on board a taxi with suspicious packages hidden in a trunk; when he stopped, he got out and headed to a bar, he was surrounded by wildlife officers. Azemte Mbemo Alain Patrick, the head of the regional department of the Eastern fauna, is the man who led the operation. "The suspect hired a taxi and headed for the place of the transaction with a client when he was arrested. He tried to resist, but was quickly neutralized by the gendarmerie that helped us and was immediately taken to our offices. This operation was carried out through collaboration with LAGA a nongovernmental organization that helps us dismantle the wildlife trafficking network." said Patrick. He was found in possession of five bags containing 12 ivory tusks and more than 200 kg of giants pangolin scales that are wildlife species protected under the 1994 Act of wildlife. According Azemte Mbemo, the man is known by the judicial police and is believed to have been involved in wildlife trafficking since 2013. He was born in Bertoua and control the area very well. He used an auto parts store sales as a cover to conceal his illegal activities, but rarely had this shop auto parts. His main customers are Chinese buyers and had a Chinese contact list and names that indicate the extent of his business and professionalism. According to sources close to the file, he buys the products to poachers in the East, but also in Congo and Gabon, and then resells them to Chinese and Nigerian buyers, he also exports these products to Nigeria. Buyers come from Yaounde and Douala. According to reliable sources, he would own a nearby storeroom at Garoua Boulai where he keeps products. The illegal trade in pangolin scales is becoming a huge problem for wildlife officers and in order to halt this situation, the Minister of Forestry and Wildlife, Ngole Ngwese Philip, had signed a circular letter in June 2013, suspending all licensing authorizing the movement of pangolin species in the country. the law enforcement concentrated to hinder trade and this operation is one of many that have been conducted in the last two years as part of the agreement signed between the Ministry of Forestry and Wildlife and The Last Great Ape Organization (LAGA) Revenue declines, the pandemic, and rising competition create new realities in higher education. 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. Experience suggests that Washington often says one thing and does another, using beautiful concepts as their brand of bullying and forcefully reshaping the meaning of those concepts. For example, Washington often talks about "rules," but the world has seen the US consistently commit the most brutal violations of the rules on which the United Nations system is based. The rules they talk about are actually a framework for protecting the interests of the US and its major allies. They are also a behavioral norm to force other countries to maximize those interests. To search both this blog AND Religious Liberty Monitoring together, use the search field at the bottom of the page. Contributions to the Turner Report/Inside Joplin can be sent to: Randy Turner, 2306 E. 8th, Apt. G, Joplin, MO 64801. Send information, news tips, documents, or comments you prefer not to share on the blog or on Facebook to rturner229@hotmail.com. Aggression war jets target bridge, house in Mareb MAREB, Feb. 23 (Saba) The Saudi aggression fighter jets waged on Tuesday a series of raids on citizens houses and the public road in Serwah district of Mareb province. A local official explained to Saba that the hostile warplanes targeted Hajlan bridge in Serwah with two airstrikes, causing large damage. In addition, the aggression war jets targeted the home of the businessman Naji al-Malahi al-Zaidi, which led to its destruction. The artillery of the mercenaries pounded intensively citizens' houses in Serwah district, the official added. BA Saba Facebook Facebook Twitter Twitter Whatsapp Whatsapp Telegram Telegram Email Email Print Print [23/February/2016] sacw.net - 24 February 2016 Delhi University Teachers in Solidarity with JNU We, the undersigned teachers of Delhi University, extend our solidarity with the students and teachers of Jawaharlal Nehru University. We unequivocally condemn the police action on campus following the events of February 9, 2016, the lodging of an FIR and the arbitrary arrest of JNUSU President Kanhaiya Kumar on grounds of sedition, and the subsequent attack on him and other citizens within the precincts of the Patiala House courts in the presence of large numbers of police personnel. JNU has had a long tradition of nurturing a culture of politically engaged debate. We believe that the attack on JNU is a part of a larger campaign by the state to undermine the autonomy of university campuses as spaces where all kinds of ideas and opinions, no matter how sensitive, provocative and potentially controversial, can be freely aired, critiqued and openly discussed without fear of reprisal. It is essential for institutions of higher education to foster critical thinking that engages with social and political issues. We have seen similar attacks in other spaces a our own campus and in places like the Hyderabad Central University (HCU) where we witnessed the tragic death of the scholar and activist, Rohith Vemula. The assault on JNU, coming as it does in the wake of the cutbacks in public funding for higher education, is a clear indication that the state is intent on instrumentalising patriotic sentiments for purposes of imposing an anti-constitutional, homogenized, exclusivist nationalism. In this particularly worrying manner, it seeks to stifle all dissent on campuses and in society at large, while moving simultaneously towards dismantling and destroying meaningful public education in India,. Further, the law on sedition, a colonial era provision in the Indian Penal Code, has no place in a modern democracy. The increasing harassment and persecution by the police, of Kashmiri students, their families, and others, including teachers from Delhi University who have been branded as aanti nationala, is unconscionable and unconstitutional. In this context, the irresponsible behaviour of some sections of the media that have incited violence with the circulation of misinformation and doctored videos is reprehensible.. We demand the release of Kanhaiya Kumar and the dropping of all charges against the students of JNU, especially the malicious and unfounded targeting of another student, Umar Khalid. As teachers and academics we ask that the autonomy of universities be nurtured so that they remain democratic spaces where debate and disagreement are upheld and respected as a critical, integral part of academic life. SNc Channels: Search About Salem-News.com Feb-24-2016 10:42 TweetFollow @OregonNews Remarks by President Obama and His Majesty King Abdullah of Jordan After Bilateral Meeting President Obama, Vice President Biden and King Abdullah of Jordans hour long bilateral meeting wrapped up just around 11:45 a.m. ET. President Barack Obama Meets with King Abdullah of Jordan in the Oval Office. Photo: Whitehouse.gov (file) (WASHINGTON D.C.) - President Obama praised the Kings efforts in fighting ISIS and acknowledged the enormous challenges his majesty and the Jordanian people face and called Jordan an outstanding partner Jordan is a country that punches above its weight. On the Israeli-Palestinian situation, Obama said Jordan has played a critical part in reducing some of the immediate tensions around the Temple Mount and called the King a voice of reason ...and tolerance. Were lucky to have a friend like Jordan. For his part the King praised President Obama, saying he is so grateful for the support youve shown no country other than the United States has given us so much support in the fight against ISIS. The King also appeared optimistic about the peace process in Syria, saying the political process is the priority at the moment and that it is important for all parties to understand that at the end of the day Daash [ISIS] is the enemy for all of us. The president was asked about Senate Republicans decision to not hold hearings on any nominee to replace the late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia. Obama said he remains hopeful Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell will reverse course and hold hearings, though he conceded I dont expect Mitch McConnell to say that today. He also insisted Republicans do not seem fully committed to their decision to not hold hearings. Theyre pretty sheepish about it. He also indicated that he will wage a public relations fight for his eventual nominee, and will take it to the public so that the American people will have the ability to judge the qualifications of his nominee, and argued it will be very difficult for Mr. McConnell to maintain a blockade if the public backs him. Obama also rejected efforts to use past statements by Biden and Sen. Chuck Schumer calling for a block on election year nominees to the high court, insisting it has no application to the actual situation we have right now because in those instances, Democrats were speaking about a hypothetical nominee. Obama warned that if Republicans do decide to block a nominee, then invariably what were going to see is a further deterioration of [the ability of] any president to make any judicial appointments, and that the credibility of the court itself is diminished because it is seen as an extension of our politics. By John Stanton, Buzzfeed.com DC Bureau Chief FULL TRANSCRIPT BELOW: " PRESIDENT OBAMA: Well, it's wonderful to be back with one of our most stalwart allies in the world, King Abdullah of Jordan, and his delegation. We've had, as usual, excellent consultation about the enormous challenges that His Majesty and the Jordanian people face in a very difficult time, in a very difficult neighborhood. We spent the bulk of our discussion around the situation in Syria, Iraq, and our joint efforts to combat ISIL. Jordan has been an outstanding partner in that process. As I've said publicly, we have seen progress in pushing back against ISIL in territory both in Iraq and now in some portions of Syria. But a lot of work remains to be done. And so the coordination between our nations and other coalition partners is absolutely critical. And Jordan has made enormous contribution. Jordan is a country that punches above its weight when it comes to the fight against ISIL. With respect to Syria, I briefed him on the conversations that I've had with President Putin and the cessation of hostilities agreement that has been put in place. We are very cautious about raising expectations on this. The situation on ground is difficult, but we have seen modest progress over the course of the last week or so with respect to humanitarian access to populations that are threatened. If, over the next several weeks, we can see some lessening of the violence that's been wracking that country, then that provides us a basis to build a longer-term ceasefire both in the north and the south, and allows us to move forward on the political transition that ultimately is going to be necessary to bring an end to the civil war in Syria. It also would allow us, then, to focus all of our efforts -- all the parties in the entire world community, including Russia -- in going after ISIL, something that right now they are not doing and are not focused on. We talked about refugees and the burden that Jordan, as well as other countries in the region, are bearing. The Jordanian people have been extraordinarily generous in accommodating the hundreds of thousands of Syrians who have been fleeing the fighting, and the United States is the leading contributor to humanitarian efforts to house and provide basic care to these refugees. But the numbers continue to grow. And I expressed to His Majesty our commitment to make sure that as they continue to be open to helping people in need, they will have a strong partner in the United States and we will make sure that our money is where our mouth is in terms of looking after these refugee populations. In addition, I'm proud of the both economic and military assistance that we have consistently provided to Jordan. Considering everything that Jordan is doing essentially for the region and the world, and the strains that this has placed their economy under, I think it's important for them to know that the United States is there every step of the way. Finally, we discussed the situation in Israel and the West Bank, and the increasing tensions that exist between Israelis and Palestinians there. His Majesty has been a critical component of reducing some of the immediate sources of tension around the Temple Mount and visits there. But we continue to agree that it's important for us to provide both sides a sense of possibility and hope, and not simply despair. That's hard to do. And so we have explored ideas in terms of how we can make progress. But His Majesty has continued to be a voice of reason and moderation and tolerance for all the parties concerned in this issue. And we very much appreciate his partnership in the process. So we're lucky to have a friend like Jordan. Hopefully, they feel that the United States has been with them during these very difficult times. The good news is, is that, whether it's fighting ISIL, reducing the violence in Syria and trying to get that country on a track for political reconciliation, trying to bring Israelis and Palestinians to recognize their shared interest in peace -- on all these issues, our countries have been in sync. And that will continue as long as I'm President and long after I'm gone, thanks to the leadership of His Majesty. Appreciate you being here. HIS MAJESTY KING ABDULLAH: Mr. President, thank you very much for really your kind words. Im delighted to be back here in Washington. And I just wanted to echo the kind words that the President has just said. We are so grateful for the support that you've shown me and our people, our country. Truly, no country other than the United States has given us so much support -- whether its to the economy so that we can take the challenge of refugees to our country, but also to the military and security so that we can defend our borders, but also secure our people. The help that weve gotten from you, Mr. President, from your administration, from the Congress, and the people of the United States is something that is very difficult to express in any words. And we are very, very grateful for that. Im also here to thank the President for his tremendous leadership in dealing with the threat of ISIS -- Daesh -- specifically when it comes to the challenges in Syria. We are all working together as part of the international team to try to find, as the President said, a political solution. Yet, at the same time, the threat of Daesh is one that has taken some of our consultations today on how do we defeat Daesh as quickly as possible -- not only in Syria, but also to reach out to our Iraqi brethren to make sure that they too are part of this struggle against extremism. I do think that we are moving in the right direction. The coordination with the United States is exceptional. And again, Id like to thank you, sir, and all your institutions for working very closely with us in this respect. So Im actually leaving Washington very optimistic about the level of support from the United States, the leadership that the President has shown on the issue of Syria. And hopefully, the discussions between yourself and the Russians will move the process in the right direction. But also looking at the larger picture when we're looking at the challenge of ISIS and their franchises around the world, I think that the future looks much better with the leadership of the United States. We did, again, as the President said, speak about bringing hope to the Israelis and Palestinians. These are obviously challenging times, but hope is something that we have to bring both sides. And we did talk about this issue and to see what we can do in 2016 to bring the momentum in the right direction. But I actually am here just to thank the President and the American people for all the support theyve given for our country and how truly grateful I am for your leadership, sir, for your support to me and my people. Q: Mr. President, can you respond to Mitch McConnells comments yesterday about your Supreme Court choices and the fact that theyre not planning on holding a hearing whatsoever? PRESIDENT OBAMA: Well, the Constitution says that I nominate candidates for the Supreme Court when theres a vacancy, and that the Senate exercises its constitutional role in advise and consent. Im going to do my job. We are going to go through a process, as we have done in two previous Supreme Court vacancies, to identify an outstanding candidate that has impeccable legal credentials and would bring the kind of ability and compassion and objectivity and legal reasoning to the Court that the Highest Court in the Land demands. One side made the nomination, and then Leader McConnell and all the members of the Senate are going to make a decision about how do they fulfill their constitutional responsibilities. I recognize the politics are hard for them, because the easier thing to do is to give in to the most extreme voices within their party and stand pat and do nothing. But thats not our job. Our job is to fulfill our constitutional duties. And so my hope and expectation is that once there is an actual nominee and once this is no longer an abstraction, that those on the Judiciary Committee recognize that their job is to give this person a hearing, to show the courtesy of meeting with them. They are then free to vote whatever their conscience dictates as to whether this person is qualified or not. In the meantime, the American people are going to have the ability to gauge whether the person Ive nominated is well within the mainstream, is a good jurist, is somebody whos worthy to sit on the Supreme Court. And I think it will be very difficult for Mr. McConnell to explain how, if the public concludes that this person is very well qualified, that the Senate should stand in the way simply for political reasons. Well see what happens. And I think the situation may evolve over time. I dont expect Mitch McConnell to say that is the case today. I dont expect any member of the Republican caucus to stick their head out at the moment and say that. But lets see how the public responds to the nominee that we put forward. The one thing I think is important to dispel is any notion that somehow this is some well-established tradition, or some constitutional principle that a President in his last year of office cannot fill the Supreme Court vacancy. Its not in the text of the Constitution. Ironically, these are Republicans who say they believe in reading the text of the Constitution and focusing on the intent of the Constitution. But none of the Founding Fathers thought that when it comes to the President carrying out his duties, he should do it for three years and then on the last year stop doing it. Theres an argument that, well, the President shouldnt do this because he is a lame duck. Well, the truth of the matter is, is that traditionally the term lame duck refers to the two or three months after an election has taken place in which a new President is about to be sworn in. Ive got a year to go. I dont think they would approve of me abdicating on my duties as Commander-in-Chief and to stop doing all the other work that I got to do. Well, this is part of my job. Theres been arguments that for 80 years this has been the tradition. Well, thats not the case. Justice Kennedy was approved after being nominated by Ronald Reagan in Ronald Reagans last year of office. They say, well, thats different because he had been nominated in 1987, even if he was confirmed -- or 85 -- even if he was confirmed in 86. Well, the notion that there is some two-month period in which suddenly it all flips and everything shuts down, thats not a credible argument. What other arguments are they making? They suggest that, well, there had been a couple of times where Democrats said it would be wise for a President not to nominate someone. First of all, we know senators say stuff all the time. Second of all, these were comments that were made where there was no actual nomination at stake. So it has no application to the actual situation that we have right now. Im trying to think of any other reeds that theyre grasping here as to why they would not carry out their duties. And I cant really think of one. I recognize that this is an important issue for their constituencies, and its particularly sensitive because this was Justice Scalias seat that is now vacant and that a whole host of decisions on the Supreme Court could turn on this ninth justice and their vote. But thats how our democracy is supposed to work. And what I do -- the last point Ill make -- we have already seen a breakdown of the judicial appointment process that gets worse and worse each and every year, each and every Congress. It becomes harder and harder to get any candidates for the judiciary confirmed. We saw Senator Reid have to employ the so-called nuclear option because there was such a logjam in terms of getting judicial appointments through. If, in fact, the Republicans in the Senate take a posture that defies the Constitution, defies logic, is not supported by tradition simply because of politics, then invariably what youre going to see is a further deterioration in the ability of any President to make any judicial appointments. And appointments to the Supreme Court as well as the federal bench suddenly become a complete extension of our polarized politics. And at that point, not only are you going to see more and more vacancies and the court systems break down, but the credibility of the Court itself begins to diminish because its viewed simply as an extension of our politics -- this is a Republican judge or this is a Democratic judge, as opposed to, this is a Supreme Court justice who is supposed to be standing above the day-to-day politics that take place. So I understand the posture that theyre taking right now. I get the politics of it. Im sure theyre under enormous pressure from their base and their constituencies around this issue. Ive talked to many of them, and Ive told them Im sympathetic. And, by the way, theres not a lot of vigor when they defend the position that theyre taking, that they wouldnt even meet, for example, with a Supreme Court nominee. Theyre pretty sheepish about it when they make those comments. So well see how this plays itself out. But Im going to do my job. Im going to nominate somebody and let the American people decide as to whether that person is qualified. And if they are qualified, let the American people decide whether theres enough time for the U.S. Senate to hold hearings and have a vote. Its not as if, from what I see, the Senate calendar is so full that we dont have time to get this done. All right? Thank you, guys. Q: Your Majesty, Nadia Bilbassy with Al Arabiya. In light of the Syria accord and the cessation of hostility, how do you envision the next step in terms of fighting ISIS and pursuing a political career? And if I may, can you describe the current cooperation and coordination with the United States, considering the rise in challenges and crises in the Middle East? HIS MAJESTY KING ABDULLAH: Well, as I said early on, the relationship and coordination with the United States is outstanding. And one of the reasons were here is to make sure that were taking the coordination between our two countries to the next level. As to what is happening in Syria, obviously the political process is I think the priority of the moment. And were all supportive of what John Kerry and Sergey Lavrov are doing as part of a political process, but at the same time making sure that the second part of that dimension is the fight against ISIS and Daesh. And I think that both elements are complementary to each other. Specifically, obviously to the southern part of Syria, it is whether or not, based in connection to what the Americans and the Russians have been doing, can we get a cease-fire going into the south alongside our border as part of a building block of the political process that helps move the politics of this issue forward between the regime and opposition forces. Because at the end of the day, Daesh is the enemy for all of us. And well have to see how things are moving between the two foreign ministers. But again, weve got some good initiatives moving in that, and were just keeping our fingers crossed that the political process continues to move in the right direction. And so far, I think things are -- PRESIDENT OBAMA: Well see. HIS MAJESTY KING ABDULLAH: -- well have to keep our fingers crossed. PRESIDENT OBAMA: Thank you, everybody. " _________________________________________ Foreign-affairs | Human-rights | Business | Jordan | Most Commented on Articles for February 23, 2016 | Articles for February 24, 2016 | Articles for February 25, 2016 This is a blog of my book reviews. Expressed views and opinions are my own unless it is quoted verbatim. No copyrighted material is listed in this site. Comments are welcome. Popular Science, History, International politics and simple Finance are the main topics which are covered. Reviews may appear harsh sometimes, but they are the fearless expressions which come only from an amateur. 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"Judging Federal White-Collar Fraud Sentencing: An Empirical Study Revealing the Need for Further Reform" | Main | Former judges and Justice in Washington urge state's current Justices to strike down state's death penalty February 24, 2016 Vetting Brian Sandoval: who might (other than Ohio State fans) get super excited about his possible SCOTUS nomination? UPDATE: Gov Sandoval does not want to be considered! This afternoon I receive two email news alerts about a new SCOTUS nominee "front-runner": Nevada GOP Gov Brian Sandoval. I had been planning to do a post about Gov Sandoval as an interesting possible SCOTUS candidate over the weekend, but a few folks I spoke with suggested it would be almost silly to imagine Prez Obama nominating a GOP elected official. But, this Washington Post article, headlined "Republican governor of Nevada Brian Sandoval being considered for Supreme Court," suggests that at least a few Beltway insiders are having silly thoughts similar to mine. Here are the basics with the Post: Brian Sandoval, the centrist Republican governor of Nevada, is being vetted by the White House for a possible nomination to the Supreme Court, according to two people familiar with the process. Sandoval is increasingly viewed by some key Democrats as perhaps the only nominee President Obama could select who would be able to break a Republican blockade in the Senate. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) on Tuesday pledged no action on any Supreme Court nomination before Novembers election, saying the decision ought to be left to the next president. The White House declined to comment Wednesday for this story. White House press secretary Josh Earnest has emphasized in recent days that the president has not arrived at a short list of potential nominees. The nomination of a GOP governor albeit one with a bipartisan record could break that resolve. Sandoval met Monday with Senate Minority Leader Harry M. Reid, a fellow Nevadan with whom he enjoys cordial relations. A person familiar with the conversation said that while Sandoval told Reid he had not made a final decision on whether he would accept a Supreme Court nomination, he would allow the vetting process to move forward. Another person in Nevada familiar with the process confirmed that the process is underway.... It is unclear how many potential nominees are undergoing White House vetting for the high court vacancy left by Justice Antonin Scalias death. Obama was seen last week carrying a thick binder of materials on potential picks to review. Obama outlined his thinking in a guest posting on SCOTUSblog Wednesday [available here]: A sterling record. A deep respect for the judiciarys role. An understanding of the way the world really works. Thats what Im considering as I fulfill my constitutional duty to appoint a judge to our highest court. Some Democrats believe that nominating Sandoval could fracture the front of Republican opposition and force McConnell to take up the nomination in this contentious election year. It would also put on the spot a handful of Senate Republicans who are up for reelection in blue states in November. The Senate unanimously confirmed Sandoval as a district court judge in 2005 after he was nominated by President George W. Bush. The Nevada Republican stepped down from the bench in 2009 to run for governor and is now counted among the most popular governors in the nation. He also represents a swing state with a heavy concentration of Latinos who will be important in the presidential race. One Republican who is considered likely to support Sandoval if nominated is Nevadas junior senator, Dean Heller. Heller suggested in a statement last week that the chances of approving a new nominee are slim but he did not discourage Obama from putting forth a nominee. [W]ho knows, maybe itll be a Nevadan, he said a comment widely interpreted as signaling his support for Sandoval. But nominating Sandoval would carry risks for Obama. Sandoval is aligned with Democrats on some key issues, including abortion rights and the environment. As governor, he has moved to implement the Affordable Care Act, and has said he considers same-sex marriage to be a settled issue. But Sandoval is not seen as labor-friendly potentially alienating a swath of the Democratic base. His legal credentials are also lacking compared to some of the other names under consideration who are mainly sitting federal judges. A Senate confirmation of Sandoval through this year could deny a Democratic successor to Obama, whether Hillary Clinton or Bernie Sanders, the opportunity to nominate a more orthodox liberal to the court and cement an ideological shift in its jurisprudence. Asked by The Morning Consult in a brief interview Saturday about a potential nomination, Sandoval said, It would be a privilege, calling the Supreme Court the essence of justice in this country.... As governor, Sandoval alienated many conservatives by accepting the Medicaid expansion that was a cornerstone of Obamas Affordable Care Act, and one of his recent budgets, passed over the opposition of many Republicans in the legislature, included tax hikes designed to boost funding for the states notoriously under-performing public schools. One big reason I was thinking about blogging about Gov Sandoval even before this news broke is the fact that he received his law training at the law school where I now teach: The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law. Because Gov Sandoval graduated in 1989 from OSU College of Law, he was at "my" law school roughly a decade before I started teaching here. But he has long been an OSU alum whose career I have closely followed, and I have had the pleasure to meet Gov Sandoval a few times. (In addition, no doubt because Gov Sandoval became a US District Court judge not long after the Booker decision, he mentioned once that he was familiar with this blog.) Though it may be a waaaay too premature to get too excited about the prospect of a Justice Sandoval, folks interested in know more about his personal background and his family's many links to Ohio State should check out this article from our OSU College of Law alumni magazine. Here is an excerpt that perhaps will help others join me in considering Gov Sandoval as a very appealing possible SCOTUS nominee: Sandoval returned to Moritz on March 15 to share his thoughts on leadership as the keynote speaker for the Program on Law and Leaderships Fifth Annual Speaker Series. The former Nevada attorney general, state legislator, and federal judge spoke in detail about transformational and servant leadership. You can never go wrong when you make principled decisions, he said. Dont take shortcuts. Sandoval grew up in Sparks, Nev., where he raised sheep and sold wool for spending money as a child. His mother, a legal secretary, often took him to work. Sandoval said his first job outside of selling wool was working in the cafeteria of a federal courthouse. He graduated from the University of Nevada, Reno in 1986 and chose The Ohio State University for law school over the University of California Hastings College of Law in San Francisco. Sandovals brother, Ron, was in veterinary school at Ohio State when Sandoval made the decision to come to Columbus. I had never set foot in Ohio, he said. The brothers started somewhat of a family tradition: Their mother, Teri Sandoval, would later earn her Ph.D. in education from Ohio State. Sandoval returned to Nevada after graduation and entered public life shortly thereafter. He was elected to serve in the Nevada Legislature in 1994 and became the youngest state gaming commission chairman a few years later, at age 35. Sandoval became the first Hispanic elected to statewide office in Nevada when he was elected attorney general in 2002. It was the first of many such designations: Sandoval is Nevadas first Hispanic governor and became its first Hispanic federal judge when he was appointed to the bench by President George W. Bush in 2005. I wish I wasnt the first. It shouldnt have taken this long, he said. Sandoval credits the help of mentors, including former Nevada Gov. Kenny Guinn and longtime Nevada state legislator William Raggio, for inspiring him to think longterm and make the right decision, not the popular decision when faced with tough challenges. Sandoval encountered plenty during his first stint in statewide office. His first week as attorney general had him facing journalists during a press conference on one of the most pressing issues of his tenure: Yucca Mountain. As attorney general, Sandoval led the states efforts to prevent the federal government from storing nuclear waste at the site. During his first year in the Attorney Generals Office, a budget stalemate at the statehouse resulted in a crisis that threatened to leave public schools unfunded as lawmakers failed to reach the two-thirds supermajority the state required for any tax increase. At the request of then-Gov. Guinn, his office sought a writ of mandamus to force the Legislature to pass a budget. The case ended up before the Supreme Court of Nevada, which granted the writ and ordered the Legislature to pass a budget by simple majority. The outcome drew protest from some GOP leaders. Sandoval, a Republican, said he remembered the advice of his mentors thinking of long-term effects and making principled, sometimes unpopular decisions whenever he took heat from members of his own party. It was important to me that (the attorney generals office) be a law office, not a political office, he said. Prior related posts on new SCOTUS nominee possibilities: UPDATE on Feb. 25: Gov. Sandoval, according to this new local press report, "took his name out of consideration Thursday for a possible nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court." Oh well, I guess I now have to go back to rooting for the elevation of Sixth Circuit Judge (and former Justice Scalia clerk) Jeff Sutton to bring a Buckeye law degree to a seat on the Supreme Court. And I also now need to be thinking about the next new name to consider as a short-lister for Prez Obama. February 24, 2016 at 03:46 PM | Permalink Comments Life tenure wasn't enough for the guy the first time ... Posted by: Joe | Feb 24, 2016 4:23:45 PM He'd be a brilliant choice. Posted by: memyself | Feb 24, 2016 9:11:40 PM Its an exercise in futilty, its a dead issue left for the newly elected. Same outcome as repealing obamacare, its not going to happen. Its just another expense dragging down the country. Posted by: MidWestGuy | Feb 25, 2016 11:40:23 AM oh well ... maybe next time Posted by: Joe | Feb 25, 2016 1:38:52 PM You know what would be great: Have Obama nominate Kent or Bill from you know where and see if this nonsense continues. Posted by: albeed | Feb 25, 2016 5:46:47 PM We need a law grad from Ohio, not Harvard or Yale. I nominate the author of this blog. I read this blog almost every day. I make snide and humorous comments but I do not wish to offend any of you folks. Posted by: Liberty1st | Feb 25, 2016 10:42:03 PM I favor a graduate from Ohio State Law School for the Supreme Court. No Ivy League. Too many of those lame brains on the bench. Not one has ever defended a human in a criminal jury trial. Posted by: HaroldRectum | Feb 26, 2016 8:28:20 AM Maybe not in a criminal trial, but they defended humans in criminal appeals. Posted by: Joe | Feb 26, 2016 10:11:48 AM Post a comment Division Street's tent city, a sizable homeless encampment beneath a section of the Central Freeway that has grown in size over the last two winters, will be cleared by city agencies within 72 hours. The Chronicle's Matier and Ross write that city officials are now officially declaring the area a health hazard, and video shows the Department of Public Works already performing sweeps of the area. According to Department of Public Health spokesperson Rachel Kagan, notices will be posted this evening or tomorrow that "will say that this area is now in violation of health codes and is not inhabitable." To ensure compliance, "The Department of Public Works will go in like they did with the Occupy encampment [in 2012]," according to Police Chief Greg Suhr. "We will be there in support to make sure that nobody gets hurt, he added, not commenting on whether his Department would make arrests. Additionally, a "hot team" from the Health Department has also been on site, urging campers toward Pier 80 and other shelters, and the California Highway Patrol is reportedly present as well. Furthermore, here's a video from the Coalition on Homelessness, as posted to Facebook, showing the cleanup already in motion Tuesday. They are currently doing major sweeps on Division. Throwing people's belongings and tents in the dump truck. Told to "... Posted by Coalition on Homelessness on Tuesday, February 23, 2016 During a rainy winter season, the nearly mile-long section of sidewalk on Division Street saw a steady influx of occupants, some reportedly displaced by Super Bowl City at Justin Herman Plaza. Of late, the scene on Division Street has come to represent the City's seemingly intractable problem of homelessness. Local politicians like Supervisor Scott Wiener, pundits like the Chronicle's Chuck Nevius, and businesses like a nearby gym have called for the area to be cleared. Others, however, raised upwards of $10,000 to purchase tents for homeless people in the area in part because of rumors that the Department of Public Works was confiscating them. Confusingly, Public Works spokesperson Rachel Gordon has denied those allegations but now says We have been doing what we always have been doing, whatever that means. Mayor Lee, meanwhile, was not coincidentally touring Pier 80's expensive but seemingly unpopular new shelters, where he hopes many homeless San Franciscans will land, Mayor Lee reportedly said that Once we clean up the area, we expect the area to be kept clean and not be re-encamped. Previously: Nevius Thinks You Should Stop Buying Tents For The Homeless Tent City Residents Fear City Efforts To Corral Them Ahead Of Super Bowl "This government never furthered any enterprise but by the alacrity with which it got out of the way." Henry David Thoreau "Free association . . . the only true form of society." Pierre-Joseph Proudhon DES MOINES | Many times, the owner of the Argosy of Sioux City riverboat casino attempted to renew its license with Iowa gaming regulators, only to be told it couldn't. Yet despite the IRGC's contention that the Argosy no longer had a valid license, the gambling boat continued to take bets on the Missouri River while the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission granted a land-based casino license to backers of the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Sioux City. The commission only later voted to shut down the Argosy, which closed July 30, 2014, said Mark Weinhardt, a Des Moines attorney representing Belle of Sioux City, an Iowa-based subsidiary of Penn National Gaming Co., which operated the Argosy. "If they believed it was unlicensed, illegal gambling, they would be obligated under law to shut it down," Weinhardt said of the IRGC, as he spoke Tuesday to a three-judge panel of the Iowa Court of Appeals. Chief Judge David Danilson and judges Amanda Potterfield and Gayle Nelson Vogel heard oral arguments on the Argosy's challenge of the IRGC's granting of a state gaming license in April 2013 to the Hard Rock and its then-local nonprofit partner, Missouri River Historical Development, as well as subsequent judicial rulings that upheld those actions. Weinhardt said the IRGC gave Belle differing messages throughout the license-renewal process. The Belle for more than a year was told the issue was whether it had an operating agreement with MRHD. At the last minute, the IRGC said that was not an issue. "It was an audacious case of bait and switch," Weinhardt said. "They wouldn't let us file an application. They wouldn't send us a form. We did have a valid operating agreement with MRHD." Yet, it didn't have a license, Potterfield said. "That's the rub," Potterfield told Weinhardt. "When the Belle filed an application, it didn't have a license. The Belle failed to have an operating agreement in addition to the application, which made it insufficient on its face." Danislon said at the hearing's conclusion that the court would issue a written ruling as soon as possible. Weinhardt said if the appeals court were to rule in Belle's favor to reverse the IRGC's decisions to award the Hard Rock license and take away the Belle's, "many options present themselves for gaming in Sioux City." How the court rules might determine those options, but it's hard to say what would happen if the licensing decisions were vacated and pushed back to square one, Weinhardt said as he quoted the final line of his closing brief filed with the court. "Put bluntly, the IRCG created this mess and the IRGC can fix it," he said. Guy Cook, a Des Moines attorney who represented SCE Partners, the owners of the Hard Rock, said the only failure in the case was that Belle realized too late that its attempt to hold the Argosy employees "hostage" as a way to get a better deal had failed. Only then, was it willing to make a deal. "The commission warned them if they don't reach an agreement, we have a problem here," Cook said. "There was no bait and switch by the way, it's just not true." Cook said the commission had never faced such a situation before and allowed the Argosy to remain open for the sake of its employees. He said that only after Belle realized its "heavy-handed conduct in order to squeeze out profits" was failing, it attempted to reach an operating agreement with MRHD, Woodbury County's state-licensed nonprofit gaming group. "These folks were warned repeatedly, you need to reach an agreement," Cook said. The commission found that the Argosy license lapsed after MRHD refused to sign off on a renewal application in December 2012. That case was a result of a lengthy contract dispute between Argosy and MRHD that led to the IRGC's decision in April 2013 to accept bids for Woodbury County's first land-based casino, a bid eventually awarded to Hard Rock, which had partnered with MRHD. The IRGC ordered the Argosy to close because it was in violation of a state law that requires casinos to partner with licensed nonprofit groups. District Judge Eliza Ovrum upheld that IRGC decision, and the floating casino was forced to close July 30, 2014, two days before the $128 million Hard Rock opened in downtown Sioux City. Belle appealed in December 2014 to the Iowa Supreme Court. The company challenged Ovrum's ruling in Polk County District Court that the IRGC had acted within its authority when it granted the gaming license to SCE Partners and MRHD. Belle claims the IRGC's actions violated state law and the company's rights of due process. The Iowa Supreme Court this year transferred the case to the Iowa Court of Appeals. The Argosy riverboat and accompanying structures on shore have since been removed from the Missouri riverfront. The riverboat was sold to an Illinois shipyard. Share a book review on Shelfari, where this reader meets fellow readers. 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 The AIDS Healthcare Foundation, the largest provider of HIV/AIDS medical care in the U.S., is supporting the confirmation of Dr. John Armstrong as Surgeon General for the State of Florida. In a telephone interview with SFGN Monday ahead of Armstrongs appearance before the Florida Senates Ethics and Elections Committee, David Poole, Director of Legislative Affairs for AHF, said his organization stands behind Governor Rick Scotts pick to head the Florida Department of Health. We took a long hard look and observed his responses to questions in last weeks committee hearing, Poole said. He swayed us with his comments about HIV/AIDS. Armstrongs nomination has been criticized by human rights activists who contend his administration is often too cozy with cultural conservatives. Michael Rajner, an HIV activist in Broward County, testified in Tallahassee that Armstrongs managerial style had cloaked the sunshine state in darkness. Florida leads the nation with the highest rate of new HIV infections and Rajner likens the states response to the original crisis in the 1980s. Like that of President Ronald Reagans shameful legacy of refusing to respond to the nations AIDS epidemic, Armstrong avoided the issue and has never engaged stakeholders responding to Floridas HIV/AIDS crisis, Rajner said. Poole admits AHF had been concerned the last two years of the silence coming from Tallahassee, but changed positions on Armstrong after hearing his testimony in last weeks Senate Health Care Policy Committee. Armstrongs nomination advanced out of committee on a 5-4 vote. He responded to our satisfaction, Poole said. Hes now talking about HIV/AIDS and we are delighted to hear that. Food. Wine. Celebrities. South Beach. If you had to pick one from this list on any given day, any choice would be a win. There's no need to choose with the 15th annual Food Network & Cooking Channel South Beach Wine & Food Festival, presented by Food & Wine Magazine, which began on Monday and runs through the weekend. Did we mention that Hollywood heartthrob Neil Patrick Harris and (ahem) his husband actor and chef David Burtka are among the long list of celebrities and food notables expected at this year's event? Both Harris and Burtka are self-proclaimed foodies. It is fun. I like to tweet [pictures] of food. But [Neil] will tweet the food before I get the chance to. Im like, Neil! Let me do it! We love to eat. We are crazy eaters," Burtka has been quoted as saying in media. If you're a fan of these two, they can be spotted at: Amstel Light Burger Bash | Friday, Feb. 26 | 7:30 p.m.-10:30 p.m. Goya Foods Grand Tasting Village | Saturday, Feb. 27 | Noon-5 p.m. Here are other event highlights that may tickle your taste buds: Fireman Dereks Midnight Breakfast hosted by Chrissy Teigen ($95) on Friday, Feb. 26. Grilled Cheese Happy Hour hosted by Laura Werlin & Ms. Cheezious ($95) on Friday, Feb. 26. Nutrishs Yappie Hour hosted by Rachael Ray ($95) on Saturday, Feb. 27. Croquetas & Champagne hosted by Jean-Georges Vongerichten ($95) on Saturday, Feb. 27. Bank of America Lifestyle Seminars ($55-$85) Saturday, Feb. 27 & Sunday, Feb. 28. These events, and many more, are available online at SoBeFest.com or by calling 1-877-762-3933 (phone sales open Monday-Friday, 9 a.m.-5 p.m.). SOBEWFF has raised more than $22 million to date for the Wine Spectator Restaurant Management Laboratory and Southern Wine & Spirits Beverage Management Center at the Chaplin School of Hospitality & Tourism Management located on Florida International Universitys Biscayne Bay campus. Bernie Sanders came up a tad short in last weekends Nevada Caucuses, but that hasnt stopped his appeal to a certain element of the Democratic Party. On Monday, Floridas Democratic Progressive Caucus endorsed Sanders for President ahead of the Sunshine States March 15 election. Throughout his political career as well as his presidential campaign, Bernie Sanders has proved to be a bold progressive who is ready to fight for the values that DPCF members hold dear, said Caucus President Susan Smith in a news release. Like our membership, Bernie views the problems of income inequality, institutional racism and money in politics as structural issues that must be addressed for real change to occur. Sanders remains a big underdog in Florida with a recent poll conducted by Florida Atlantic University showing former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton with a commanding 62 to 26 percent lead. Clinton holds a similar lead in South Carolina, site of Saturdays Democratic primary election. In terms of delegate counts, Clinton has 502 to 70 for Sanders, a margin bolstered by her support among superdelegates (451 to 19). A candidate must garner 2,382 to claim the partys nomination in Philadelphia this July. Meanwhile, on the Republican side, billionaire businessman Donald J. Trump picked up a huge victory last Saturday in South Carolina, winning the Southern state and all of its delegates while knocking out rival Jeb Bush in the process. Heading into Tuesday nights caucuses in Nevada, Trump took aim at his chief rival, U.S. Senator Ted Cruz of Texas. Ted Cruz lifts the Bible high into the air and then lies like a dog-over and over again! The Evangelicals in S.C. figured it out & said no!, Trump tweeted. Cruz, who started the campaign with a win in the Iowa Caucuses, is in full damage control amid accusations of deploying dirty tricks. Cruz stands accused of spreading false rumors about Ben Carson dropping out in Iowa, running inaccurate television ads about fellow senator Marco Rubio and trying to paint Trump as sympathetic to gay rights in robo-calls to South Carolina voters. In the calls, the Cruz campaign suggested Trumps commitment to traditional family values was questionable because he told a lesbian reporter she could expect forward motion on LGBT rights from a Trump Presidency. Its about mandatory celebration, the robot blares. Its about forcing people to bake cakes and photograph gay weddings. Forcing clergy to officiate. Its about transgender bathrooms in your childs school. Its about tearing down your Judeo-Christian values. Its about tearing down America. Trump, of course, wasted no time in returning fire. The reason that Ted Cruz lost the Evangelicals in S.C. is because he is a world class LIAR, and Evangelicals do not like liars!, Trump tweeted. Trump leads the GOP field with 67 delegates, followed by Cruz (11), Rubio (10), Ohio Governor John Kasich (5), Bush (4) and Carson (3). The winner must collect 1,237 pledged delegates in order to claim the Republican Partys nomination in July in Cleveland. THE CONSTITUTIONAL Court has overturned the ruling in a case of a Roma woman who unsuccessfully took legal action against discrimination in her access to employment. Font size: A - | A + The lower instance courts violated Viera Pompovas guaranteed right to a just court process, the court said, as reported by the TASR newswire. This decision might significantly improve the odds of many individuals who are being discriminated against to secure justice in discrimination lawsuits, said Pompovas lawyer Vanda Durbakova of the Centre for Civil and Human Rights, as quoted by TASR. Skryt Remove ad Article continues after video advertisement Skryt Remove ad Article continues after video advertisement Pompova applied for a job as a social worker in Spisska Nova Ves (Kosice Region) back in 2010. Despite the fact that she met the requirements in terms of education and multi-year field experience with social work in Roma communities, the job went to another candidate of non-Roma origin, who was less qualified and did not have any command of the Roma language. Even the Social Development Fund, which financed the position at the time, voiced doubts over the lawfulness of selection proceedings based on Ms Pompovas complaint, yet it was too late for the selection to be reversed, said Durbakova, as quoted by TASR. Subsequently, the unsuccessful applicant turned to the courts, seeking to redress the discrimination. In 2012, the Spisska Nova Ves District Court turned down her complaint as unsubstantiated. This decision was reaffirmed also by the Kosice Regional Court in 2013, prompting Pompova to bring her case to the Constitutional Court on the grounds that the previous verdicts violated her right to just court proceedings, guaranteed under the Slovak constitution and a number of international treaties. Pompova stated before the Constitutional Court that the district and regional courts had ignored her objections and arguments, while incorrectly interpreting both the domestic and international anti-discrimination legislation, when they requested her to provide evidence to back her claims that (according to the anti-discrimination laws) need to be supplied by the accused party. The case will now return back to the regional court. To me, the verdict of the Constitutional Court represents a satisfaction because after years of demanding justice, Ive finally lived to see the Constitutional Court ordering lower courts to deal with my case again, Pompova said, as quoted by TASR. I hope that theyll rule on it justly. Also, I hope that the verdict will help other people, whose civic and human rights are being trampled. The Roma woman has received free-of-charge legal counsel and representation from Kosice-based NGO Centre for Human and Civil Rights, TASR wrote. SANCTIONS against Russia for annexing Crimea are nonsense, said Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico in an interview with the Bloomberg newswire, as reported by the Sme daily. Font size: A - | A + The sooner they are removed, the better, Fico told the newswire. The European Union imposed economic sanctions against Russia in mid-2014 in response to the annexation of the Crimean peninsula, significantly impacting the Russian economy, particularly the banking sector, oil and defence industry. The validity expires on July 31 in case they will not be extended, Sme wrote. Skryt Remove ad Article continues after video advertisement Skryt Remove ad Article continues after video advertisement Fico also said that the western countries should agree with Russia to stabilise the situation in Ukraine as there are some indications that a growing number of Ukrainians want to leave the war-torn country. This might endanger solutions to the refugee crisis in Europe, he added. Fico criticised the sanctions also in the past. According to him, they did not have the expected effect and harm both Europe and Russia, as reported by Sme. I do not know who may be happy with these mutual damages, Fico said back in May 2015, as quoted by Sme. What was achieved by sanctions against Cuba? They changed neither the Cuban approach to the USA nor the American approach to Cuba. A few days later, before negotiations with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Fico called Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and assured him that Slovakia would observe sanctions, as reported by Sme. Fico talked to Bloomberg also about the situations in the United Kingdom and Greece. In Western Europe and the United States, it is increasingly fashionable to criticise the Visegrad countries for deviating from norms of liberal democracy. Prime Ministers of Hungary Viktor Orban, Poland Beata Szydlo, Czech Republic Bohuslav Sobotka and Slovakia Robert Fico, from left, are about to cut a cake to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the Visegrad group prior to a Summit of the V4 Prime Ministers with the Prime Minister of Bulgaria and the President of Macedonia in Prague on February 15. (Source: AP/SITA) Font size: A - | A + Alarm bells are ringing. Last weeks edition of Prospect magazine, an influential centrist intellectual magazine in the UK is but the latest example. The cover reads: The new nationalism: Eastern Europe turns right. It depicts the flags of the Visegrad countries, all of which are in Central Europe and two of which have left-leaning governments but never mind such silly details. The story is co-written by a London-based Russian affairs specialist and a scholar who focuses on European far right movements. Skryt Remove ad Article continues after video advertisement Skryt Remove ad Article continues after video advertisement The only explanation for this sudden shift toward Visegrad bashing is the change in governments in Poland. In fact, before the October 2015 elections in Poland, nobody paid much attention to the region and Poland was a favourite in western capitals. The June 28, 2014 edition of The Economist declared this Polands second golden age, though it was apparently a short one. In the other three V4 countries, the governments are exactly the same as they were in 2014, but if one were to believe the headlines they have somehow suddenly become worse. Most amazing about this wave of criticism targeting Central Europe is that it takes place almost entirely out of context of other global events, as if the V4 countries were operating in a vacuum. The response by Central European governments to the refugee crisis has been deplorable and the language coming from Robert Fico and others is cynical, sickening and self-serving but it is obvious now that most of the continent has scarcely done any better. Speaking at an event commemorating the V4s 25th anniversary in Prague last week, Pavol Demes, the former Slovak foreign minister rightly asked: Should we learn from Denmark about how to react to the migrant crisis? The Danish government is of course confiscating the property of all asylum seekers that arrive there. Austria has introduced a cap on how many migrants it can take each day and just a few hundred of the hundred of thousands of migrants that were meant to be resettled under the EU quota plan have been relocated. Quite simply European leaders make promises that they dont keep. All this took place as last weeks EU summit focused on finding a palatable way to allow the UK to limit migration and benefits for migrants including ones with jobs that come from within the EU. That distraction means that there will need to be another special summit in March to make new policies targeting the migration crisis, because the old ones were never implemented. Oh yes, and dont forget Donald Trumps rise in the United States, Marine Le Pen in France and the Alternative for Deutschland party in Germany sounds like a dangerous rightward shift to me. No doubt there are plenty of reasons to criticise the current V4 governments, but it would mean a whole lot more if they were informed criticisms. THE DISTRICT court in Zilina made a plea bargain with 19-year-old David from Cadca district who published an internet ad offering money for killing migrants in August 2015. Font size: A - | A + Comments disabled The court punished him with a suspended three-year sentence with a three-year probation supervision. Moreover, he will have to participate in a social training programme, the TASR newswire reported. The 19-year-old man committed several crimes, including producing the extremist documents, spreading them, and inciting national, racial and ethnic hatred, said Marian Ukrop from the district prosecutors office in Zilina. The punishment corresponds with the fact that the man has not been prosecuted before, he added, as reported by TASR. Skryt Remove ad Article continues after video advertisement Skryt Remove ad Article continues after video advertisement Read also: Read also: A Slovak placed online ad offers money for shooting migrants Read more The young man published the ad on the internet on August 19, 2015, offering a reward for shooting migrants. The text was accompanied with a photo of the refugee camp in Gabcikovo (Trnava Region) and also a picture of a group of people sailing on a rubber boat, said Jana Balogova, spokesperson for the regional police corps headquarters in Zilina. Moreover, on his social network profile he published a video capturing the production of extremist materials and his statements against migrants, she added, as reported by TASR. SLOVAKIA failed in human rights protection last year, particularly by discriminating against Roma and its approach to refugees. Font size: A - | A + Comments disabled This stems from the 2015 report on human rights protection published by Amnesty International (AI) on February 24. Our country fails not only in its inadequate approach to refugees, but also in investigating inappropriate use of police power, Lucia Bernatova of Amnesty International Slovakia (AIS) told the press, as quoted by the TASR newswire, adding that the latter problem is the most visible during police raids in Roma settlements. Skryt Remove ad Article continues after video advertisement Skryt Remove ad Article continues after video advertisement In this respect, Bernatova reminded of last years police action in Vrbnica (Kosice Region), which resulted in 19 people being injured, damage to several houses and traumatising of children who witnessed the raid. The police did not explain the reasons for the raid and used inappropriate power there, she added. Read also: Read also: Ombudswoman: Police used unnecessary violence Read more Moreover, Bernatova also pointed to the 2013 police raid in Roma settlement in Moldava nad Bodvou (Kosice Region). The prosecutor has halted the investigation of the incident in several points, including the accusation of causing bodily harm. The AIS questions the independence of the police inspectorate. Read also: Read also: Investigation found no torture in infamous police raid Read more Another problem highlighted in the report is segregation of Roma children and their excessive placement to special schools. Though the parliament adopted an amendment to the Education Act, the change will not prevent discrimination, Bernatova said, as reported by the SITA newswire. Regarding refugees, Bernatova pointed to the practice of drawing links between them and terrorist threats. Following the terrorist attacks in Paris in November 2015, Slovakia adopted the so-called anti-terrorist package. The AIS, however, considers it problematic. The measures significantly interfere with human rights and liberties, Bernatova said, as quoted by TASR. Read also: Read also: Anti-terrorism laws sail through parliament Read more The AIS is concerned especially with longer detention of people suspected or accused of terrorism and broader powers of police. The organisation also criticised Slovakias response to the New Years incident in Cologne. Instead of calming down the situation, the government incited hatred and discrimination against the Muslim community, Bernatova told the press. The whole community should not be accused of crimes of individuals, she added, as reported by TASR. Read also: MIGRANTS kidnapped and raped a 13-year-old Russian-German girl for several hours, according to the Czech server AC24, but German investigators debunked the story in a matter of days but ads from some of the country's biggest companies appear on the conspiracy web site. Font size: A - | A + That same website publishes several similar stories each week, according to reports made by European Unions special Task Force StratCom East which monitors disinformation and pro-Russian propaganda spreading via media, but its popularity makes it a valuable spot for advertisers. Skryt Remove ad Article continues after video advertisement Skryt Remove ad Article continues after video advertisement In 2014, AC24 had an average of 1.9 million users per month and most analysts believe those numbers are growing. Even big well-known companies have advertisements there via Google AdWords, the online advertising service that posts ads based on a web users surfing history. Precitajte si tiez: Precitajte si tiez: Analysts: Slovakia ill prepared to face Russian propaganda Read more Reporters for the Sme daily found in mid January the Slovenska Sporitelna, the countrys largest bank, the mobile operator O2, ski pass advertisement from Tatra Mountain Resorts (TMR), cable network opertor UPC and one of the Slovakias largest internet shops Hej.sk. Those firms expressed their surprise that they have advertisement there and several said that they will withdraw their brand from such a website. It is really absurd that advertisements funds websites which spread anti-European, extremist or militant anti-capitalistic rhetoric similar to [socialist] rhetoric from the 1950s, Marian Jaslovsky, the social media manager in Mindshare media agency told The Slovak Spectator. Hard to avoid When advertisers use online systems like Google Adwords they can adjust focus of the campaign using several distinguishing criteria. Usually this is work for their online marketing departments, according to Juraj Mytny, the expert on online marketing of Finc3 company. Google did not answer question about whether advertisers could opt out of advertising on such sites. It is possible to reject some types of websites such as websites with sexual content or tragedies but it is not possible to avoid specific group of conspiracy or pro-Russian websites, Jan Urbancik, the head of NetSuccess digital agency that works with Google Adwords on daily basis, told The Slovak Spectator. (NOTE: Both NetSuccess and The Slovak Spectator are partially owned by Petit Press media house). It is possible to avoid such websites by regularly checking online campaign statistics showing every website publishing the advertisement, Urbancik added. There could be thousands of such websites and that is the reason why this control is so complicated, Urbancik said. Subsequently it is possible to reject those websites in media campaign. Firms that have their ads appear in conspiracy websites should not be blamed for unethical advertising because the whole problem is new and companies have never had to dealt with it, according to Jaslovsky. Google ads Firms approached by The Slovak Spectator stated that they are visible on conspiracy webpage because of Adwords system run by Google. Probably it is Google Adwords which can be visible after visiting our official webpage and subsequently on various websites using the Google Adsense program [to target an audience], UPC Broadband Slovakia spokesman Jaroslav Kolar told the Slovak Spectator. Advertisers choose the price which they are willing to pay for click on advertisement banner or for its visualisation. Then they choose criteria for targeting the advertisement, budget and the length of the campaign. Then they upload banners to the system and after provider accepts it the campaign is launched, Mytny explains. On the question of The Slovak Spectator whether Google has the list of conspiracy websites Google Slovakia and Czech Republic spokeswoman Janka Zichova responded that advertisers are able to control where their advertisement is published. Moreover, Google constantly monitors websites that are part of its advertising network of the company. In case that it is proved that publisher is violating rules and conditions of the service their account is deactivated, Zichova told The Slovak Spectator. Firms did not know TMR claims that it is not controlling the day to day operations of its web advertising, but that its media agency can alter what sites the ads appear on. We did knot know about this webpage. In our next campaign the publishing of our advertisement in AC24 webpage will be banned, TMR spokeswoman Zuzana Fabianova told the Slovak Spectator. The Zuno bank also stated that it did not specifically choose AC24 for its ads. We are regularly creating and actualising the list of web pages which we dont want to publish our advertisement on, spokesman Vladimir Michna told the Slovak Spectator. Thus, we will add this website to our list. Hej.sk promised that it will check why Google runs its services on such webpages and Slovenska sporitelna stated that it will analyse the whole case. Fairness has been always among the basic values of the company to such an extend that it will want to precise list [of webpages] from Google Adwords, O2 O2 spokeswoman Martina Jamrichova told The Slovak Spectator. Ethics in advertising Slovak rules for advertising are relatively weak. The behaviour of advertisers cannot be shaped by rules, according to Milan Lechnicky, the former head of The Club of Advertising Agencies Slovakia (KRAS). On the other hand, firms naturally do not want to be connected with conspiracy or extremist websites, according to Jaslovsky. Advertisers however should know from its media agency on which web pages their advertisement will be published. The behaviour of advertisers can be regulated also by their customers, according to Lechnicky. Customers can give feedback to advertisers that they dont like websites in which their advertisement is published, Lechnicky said, and it can affect their decision which product they will buy or not. This is the most effective regulation. EVEN IF the ruling Smer party failed to put together a government after the election and the opposition parties took power, people connected with incumbent Prime Minister Robert Fico and his party would remain at the helm of important regulatory and audit offices for some time to come. Font size: A - | A + Several of them can be removed, according to law, only due to extraordinary failings or if they are convicted of crime. For example Sona Potheova, the Smer elected chairwoman of the Office for Personal Data Protection, is a former journalist and was head of the parliamentary communication office when this had Pavol Paska as speaker, the Sme daily wrote. Potheova chose Smer MP Anna Vittekova as her vice chair. They both should stay in office for five years. Skryt Remove ad Article continues after video advertisement Skryt Remove ad Article continues after video advertisement Another figure hard to remove is Vladimir Kesjar, chair of the Office for Regulation of Electronic Communications and Postal Services. This office regulates phone-calls and internet business. Only the three biggest operators, Orange, Telekom and O2, reported profits of 176 million in 2014. Since 2011, Kesjar was a member of the ruling Smer party; and he was also the official of Bratislava-Ruzinov district organisation of Smer. After being chosen to head the office, he had to leave the party, as law stipulates. Already his predecessor in the office, Ladislav Mikus, was connected with the party, as he was a nominee of former Smer transport minister Lubomir Vazny and was elected for the position by MPs of the Smer-SNS (Slovak National Party)-HZDS (Movement for Democratic Slovakia) coalition. Pociateks man oversees tenders Since January 2014, Jan Breja is the chairman of the Transport Office; during the first term of Robert Fico government, he was an official in the Transport Ministry. Andrej Holak is vice-chairman of the Public Procurement Office and is meant to check the fairness of tenders on which the government and the regions spend about 5 billion a year. He used to head the administration of Transport Minister Jan Pociatek. During the first Fico government, he sat on a selection committee which chose the SkyToll company to collect road tolls, even though they had the most expensive bid in the competition. Public data show that in the last four years, Smer has not even tried to cover up its connections to people whom he sent to leading positions at regulatory and control offices, and placed MPs or rank-and-file members in key posts. MP Viera Tomanova, for example, became the childrens ombudswoman; and Ficos government appointed MP Mojmir Mamojka as a member of the Anti-Trust Offices council. Socialna poistovna state social insurer is led by Dusan Munko of Smer, who did not even give up his parliamentary seat after he re-acceded the position. He was recalled by the government of Iveta Radicova; but this step was questioned by the Constitutional Court. The courts finding made the dismissal of SP head more difficult also for the future, as such an official must be proven to have engaged in misconduct. Kovacik had no rival candidate During the past four years, Smer has prolonged public service of several officials who are hard to be sacked. For example, the Statistics Office has been led by Ludmila Benkovicova since 2007; and Ficos government prolonged her position in July 2012 until 2017. In 2006 and 2007, she was Ficos advisor for communication and public opinion. In May 2014, Smer re-elected Dusan Kovacik for special prosecutor. He has been in the position since 2004 and the term for the special prosecutor has been prolonged from five to seven years. Under Kovaciks leadership, the Special Prosecutors Office failed to uncover a single corruption case connected to top politicians. The office marked, however, successes in fight against Mafia gangs. Though Jan Hrivnak, Jan Santa or Peter Sufliarsky were mentioned as Kovaciks rival candidates, Sme notes, in the final selection procedure he had no competitors. This probably confirms what atmosphere can be found at the prosecutors office, then justice minister Lucia Zitnanska said around that time. Only those who have had their victory secured in advance apply for the positions. Sipos: This is not good Gabriel Sipos, head of the Transparency International Slovensko watch-dog, claims that during right wing governments, the quality of nominees for audit and regulatory offices is higher. He points out that the takeover of the audit and regulatory apparatus by party cronies is dangerous for the country. Control and audit offices were put outside the government exactly to make them as little depending on politics as possible, and to stand up for public interest not oblige to party priorities. Partisan and non-expert nominations undermine this public interest, Sipos said. He also reminds that in many cases, audit and regulatory offices control not just business but also state bodies themselves, like ministries. Any supervision cannot be effective, if there are strong connections between the supervisors and those to be supervised, Sipos said. 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Yes, I have gone against the code of customer service to expressly, and covertly, betray the order of a valued guest, replacing what they believed to be a luxurious shot of fine, highly caffeinated espresso with a trick shot of caffeine-less decaf. I have knowingly, and with vengeance in mind, deprived a handful of customers their daily, or twice-daily, dose of coffee-produced energy. Thinking back now, I want to acquit myself at least in part by saying that anyone I decaffed damned well deserved it. This move was reserved for the very worst type of customers, needy bullies who had, in my mind, long ago foregone the politeness that should be afforded to anyone in the service industry. These are the customers who might, say, whistle at a barista as if they were a dog, or pour a beverage on the floor if it wasnt up to snuff before demanding another. My colleagues and I (I wont name the cafe) kept the power of decaffing in our back pocket as a revenge tactic, a deserved punishment for those who saw us as little more than coffee-making robots. In the years since, Ive oftentimes wondered: how widespread is this practice? At the time it felt like I and my colleagues had invented this particularly devilish form of passive aggressive comeuppance, but surely that was not the case. Fifteen years ago, when I was dropping a shot of decaf into an offending customers beverage, how many other people around the world were doing exactly the same dirty deed? Coffee has some far since the early 2000s; has this dark practice made the journey alongside? Was decaffing, in this day and age, still in fact a thing? I had to know more. For starters, I chatted with the baristas at my own everyday local coffee shop, the wonderful Linea Caffe in San Francisco. And though there were knowing chuckles and smirks, none of them could remember (or cop to on the record to a Sprudge reporter) a specific moment where theyd replaced espresso with decaf. Bad customers they could remember, sure, but doling out unknown punishment? Certainly not. But maybe my baristas were the good ones, the type to simply grin and bear it through whatever tirade was taking place in front of them. Or maybe Linea is the kind of place that attracts polite, respectful, in-the-know patrons, the sort who would never earn a decaffing in the first place. Regardless, one cafe does not nearly constitute enough of a sample size: I would have to gather more information, The next person I spoke with was Eric Grimm, a barista at Everyman Espresso and fellow Sprudge contributor. Grimm was stunned not by the fact that out in the wild world of specialty coffee, people were decaffing customers, but rather that this was the most creative solution that baristas had come up with. As someone who serves medium-rich assholes on a daily basis, Grimm told me, I think there are people who deserve some sort of punishment. It just needs to be better than decaffing. Weve got to be more clever and diabolical than that. You have to NAIL revenge, and decaf aint cutting it. He continued, Do you remember the episode of South Park where Cartman kills his bullys parents and serves them to him at his birthday? You need to find the coffee equivalent of that. Harsh words, and definitely the context I was looking for to assuage my long-held guilt. Maybe decaf deception isnt the worst thing a bad customer could merit, but if so, I wondered, what would a customer have to do to incur a baristas wrathand Grimms specifically? A customer would have to be reprehensible enough to make my blood boil, he told me, Like ordering a skim macchiato while talking with someone on the phone about how theyre not really THAT wealthy. Elsewhere in the East Village, Ninth Street Espresso founder and Manhattan coffee legend Ken Nye hadnt even heard of the term. Sounds like a possible extreme health trend perhaps a colonic sub-category, he told me, before going on to denounce the concept. I think its a very bad idea. Nye sees it as more than just a unspoken practical joke played on an offending coffee consumer. In essence, someone is messing with a food product that you intend to consume. Rather heinous if you ask me. When asked what he would do if he ever caught one of his many baristas engaging in the practice, Nye said, I would advise that any barista that intends to do this should have a great dental plan and a lead on another line of work. Across the board, those I spoke to in the upper realms of coffeeshop owners, roasters, etc.seemed entirely put off by the drink-switching practice. Rafael Vizcaino of San Franciscos Chapel Hill Coffeea cafe that does not serve decaf in the first placeargued that the antics of a bad customer should only be met with kindness Best way to deal with obnoxious customers, he said, is to smile with indifference. Ariana Akbar of San Franciscos Hearth Coffee deals with bad customers like any respectable shop owner: We reserve the right to refuse service to anyone, that includes highly strung-caffed-out crazies, she said, comparing a bad customer to a drunk at a bar pawing at the counter for another shot of cheap whiskey. If a person exhibits a similar behavior, its probably time to cut them off. It might be better to refuse service than force a decaf on them. Upon reflection, the act of decaffing does seem a tad immature, but more than anything, it seems ineffective. Worst of all, punishing bad behavior with something a customer may not even know about (and could still taste delicious) doesnt really pass along the message that acting like a douchebag has consequences. Bad customers, from my personal experience, dont know that theyre bad customers, theyre just people acting like they think a customer should act, or like they act in any other situation. And if they do know, if they continue to harass and cajole and fail to express any sort of humanity whatsoever in the simple act of asking another human being to make them a coffee beverage, then, hell, maybe Grimm is right: a little less caffeine just isnt enough. I can tell you this: the act of decaffing a noxious customer exists, despite the completely understandable fact that nobody would admit to doing it on the record. Ive done it, and I know nameless others who have done it as well. But researching this article has helped cement for me just how much coffee has grown up since my time behind the bar. The people in charge nowadays seemed not just ignorant of the practice, but downright ashamed that it could happen in their industry. There is a professionalism and respect vibe running through each of the businesses and business owners I spoke with, and this might well be one of the defining characteristics of todays New Wave coffee scene. I think a lot of people back in the late 90s and early 2000s were gleefully decaffing the shit out of unruly customersI sure wasbut today that joke isnt funny anymore. Does that mean that baristas out there arent dropping a little decaf on occasion? Reply hazy, try again. But one thing I am decidedly sure of is that you, as a respectful class of coffee drinking human reading this website, have absolutely nothing to worry about. Just keep treating your baristas like people, not robots; drop a dollar into the old tip jar; say please and thank you; and generally comport yourself in a way that shows respect and kindness. Its not a lot, but itll make all the difference. Noah Sanders (@sandersnoah) is a Sprudge.com staff writer based in San Francisco, and a contributor to SF Weekly, Side One Track One, and The Bold Italic. Read more Noah Sanders on Sprudge. "Under the expected durable oil price stagnation, it will be hard for the United States to keep the supply at the current level. That is why when the borders open, the United States starts to export oil but it will import the same amount, and overproduction or structural changes in the oil market will not occur," he said. Shayakhmetov added that "balance wise, world oil supply and demand will not change by opened exports streams." "The driver for opening the border, in my opinion, was not oil, it was gas, shale gas in particular, which requires clearer rules for return on investments in midstream infrastructure, including for LNG," he stressed. "The US decision to export oil was prompted more by other factors than by a probable attempt to influence the market." The Tatneft representative added that the export ban lift will have a positive effect on the US oil price determination. The decision to allow the sale of US crude on the world market comes at a time when oil price levels have been lowest in more than a decade. HOUSTON (Sputnik) Bourisly added that the high-level delegation from Russia recently visited Kuwait, and the two sides agreed to continue discussions. Still we are continuing discussion as to get a joint venture on one of the LNG projects in Russia. We are now waiting for information from Russia on the potential opportunities, and on when we can get to the projects. We hope that we can progress in the near future to get into this venture, Bourisly said. It goes very slow, but hopefully in the future we can get to some sort of cooperation. Nabil Bourisly thinks that the global oil market will balance itself and eventually get to the right pricing levels. British complaints towards the EU have always been most vocal from its pro-business, rightwing Conservative party, which tends to be the more dominant governing party. A recurring protest from the Tories is that British sovereignty is being undermined by the plurality of European states. Britain, it seems, wants to be part of Europe for partial economic benefits, but when it comes to any other issue, London has always wanted to go it alone. Britain didnt join the single currency system, and it was never part of the passport-free travel arrangement that most of the EU have participated in. It wants special exemptions for the City of London as a free-wheeling financial centre, and, as shown in Prime Minister David Camerons latest deal with Brussels, Britain has arrogated a new raft of opt-out privileges, giving it a special status within the EU. This British dissent has been a hallmark under avowedly socialist Labour governments too, albeit less vituperative, which shows that there is something inherently frigid about Britain towards Europe. De Gaulle was right after all, it seems, in his assessment that British rulers were congenitally hostile to all things European. Britains malign influence on the EUs development is perhaps best seen in the area of foreign policy, and in particular in its subservience towards Washington. Europe has shown itself to be nothing more than a collection of vassal states that kowtow to American demands. Rather than pursuing an independent, critical stance on world affairs, the EU is just a pathetic branch of Washingtons global reach. A classic illustration of this obsequious syndrome is the impasse over the past two years with Russia. Instead of growing as natural partners with Russia, Europe is in throes of a bizarre standoff. This is because Washington has accused Russia under Vladimir Putin of all sorts of ridiculous transgressions, including being a threat to European security, and the EU unblinkingly follows the Americans. Twelve years on, the people are blaming President Petro Poroshenko and Premier Arseniy Yatsenyuk for dragging their feet on the much-promised economic and judicial reforms, Paul Lendval wrote. With sporadic firefights still flaring up in the eastern Donbass region, Finance Minister Natalia Yaresko said that the countrys economy had slowed down by 20 percent as a result of the illegal occupation. However, it is the handful of billionaires and politicians on their payroll who are responsible for the ongoing political chaos in Kiev, the author wrote, adding that President Petro Poroshenko was part and parcel of the oligarchic system now existing in Ukraine and had no desire to change the status quo. The reform-minded people, the civil society and independent media desperately need EU support in their fight against corruption, Paul Lendvai wrote in conclusion. They are faulting Putin for everything that is happening in Ukraine, apparently to shift the blame from the West, which is responsible for the twists and turns of the past two years. But, luckily enough, we have Putin who is responsible for everything, even the assassination of President Kennedy, one reader commented after reading Paul Lendvais article. How come you took so long to figure it all out, Herr Lendvai? Is it because of your professional duties, or emotional pressure, or, maybe you just lost your mind? Unlike journalists, it took us, ordinary folks, mere days, maximum weeks, surely not two years, to realize this! wrote another. Lost their trust after two years?! What did you expect from these bloodthirsty gangsters who surged to power with a couple of time-serving tycoons in tow? This is absolutely irresponsible behavior! Something to laugh at if it hadnt been for the 10,000 dead in eastern Ukraine, one more reader added. The government in Ankara is refusing to accept a paragraph in the agreements between the EU, NATO and Ankara, according to which boat refugees rescued by NATO ships are to be returned to Turkey, German newspaper Deutsche Wirtschafts Nachrichten (DWN) reported. According to the newspaper, German Chancellor Angela Merkel might have exaggerated the progress in the negotiations with Turkey with a view to the forthcoming elections. If it turns out that the deal with Turkey has not worked, the impact on Merkel's CDU party's prospects to win the next elections would be devastating. However, Turkey's stance is not the only factor that may endanger Merkel's plan. Another one is a great chaos on the border between Greece and Macedonia, where more and more refugees are trying to find a way to by-pass the newly introduced restrictions. PM spoke in @HouseofCommons on how Britain will be stronger, safer & better off in a reformed EU. Full speech https://t.co/lIvgJOgGy3 #EUref No. 10 Press Office (@Number10press) February 22, 2016 Reforms? What Reforms? Greens/EFA alliance co-president Rebecca Harms told Sputnik: "Now that we know the date of the UK referendum on its membership of the EU, it is time for the real discussion to start a discussion that focuses not on the narrow terms of David Cameron's 'deal' but on the real issues about the UK's relationship with the rest of Europe. "The Greens/EFA group firmly believes that the UK's place should be at the heart of Europe. But we also believe that the process of reform of the EU should not stop with this referendum. "There is still much more that can and should be improved in the way the EU works, issues of far more importance to European citizens than just those areas covered by the UK's 'deal' But the only way to address these issues is collectively, from within the EU. That is why it is so important that the UK votes to remain in the EU, based on a clear understanding of what is at stake. Then the real work to reform the EU can begin," Harms told Sputnik. However, the French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault, sounded a note of caution over the British deal. Speaking to the Journal du Dimanche, he said there had been "no treaty change, no veto for the UK on strengthening the Eurozone and no questioning of the principle of free movement." Guy Verhofstadt (@GuyVerhofstadt) February 20, 2016 EUref is abt much more than whether UK stays in or not, it's about stability of entire EU. The @aldegroup will strongly campaign a YES vote Guy Verhofstadt (@GuyVerhofstadt) February 20, 2016 This was disputed by Guy Verhofstadt, leader of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats, who said: "This deal makes it clear that the UK is no longer committed to ever closer union or further political integration, while ensuring those countries who wish to integrate further can do so. The UK will be given a special status in EU law; this is historic. I have no doubt this is the best deal David Cameron could have hoped for and the last one that should be offered." Lawmakers in the European Parliament are set to debate Cameron's deal over two days and it is likely there will be similar disagreements over the significance of the reforms he has managed to achieve. MOSCOW (Sputnik) The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (UNWGAD) ruled earlier this month that Assanges confinement at the Ecuadorian Embassy in London was arbitrary and said he should be able to walk free. Senior UK politicians, including Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond, ridiculed the decision. "Rulings by the UNWGAD are not always followed by states, but rarely do they result in such personal attacks as made by UK politicians after the Assange opinion," Professor Mads Andenas told The Guardian. He warned that countries with a poor human rights record would use remarks by UK politicians, who said the UNWGAD judgment was flawed and not binding, to justify their own defiance of international laws. This will have consequences for people who are at risk of ill-treatment. MOSCOW (Sputnik) Foreign and interior ministers from Albania, Bosnia, Bulgaria, Croatia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia and Slovenia met for the "Managing Migration Together" conference in Vienna earlier on Wednesday. Greece was not invited to the meeting, which prompted Athens to issue a note of protest to the Austrian ambassador to the country on Tuesday. Greece demonstrates no interest in decreasing the number of refugees passing through its territory, Kurz said, as cited by the Macedonian Independent.mk news portal. The foreign minister reportedly added that Athens wants to continue letting migrants cross to Macedonia on the way into more prosperous European countries. Participants in the Vienna conference were expected to discuss border control, the fight against human smugglers and information exchange. They reportedly plan to work out a joint position ahead of the EU interior ministers' meeting on Thursday. The argument is that even though all 28 member states have agreed on a deal, the UK's new reforms could be torn apart by the European Parliament or the Luxembourg-based ECJ. Gov't Hits Back The comments and subsequent reporting of the issue set off a flurry of responses from politicians and legal experts in the UK and Europe, with British government officials dismissing concerns over the legality of the newly negotiated agreement. "It is not true that this deal is not legally binding. Britain's new settlement in the EU has legal force and is an irreversible international law decision that requires the European Court of Justice to take it into account," a government spokesperson said. Dominic Grieve MP QC slaps down Michael Gove's scaremongering #r4today Suggests he consults a legal specialist within his department. Clapton Blues (@garyfoskett) February 24, 2016 Former Attorney General Dominic Grieve, solicitor general Robert Buckland MP and current Attorney General Jeremy Wright QC MP backed the government's stance and eased to halt concerns over the legality of London's new EU deal. "The suggestion that this agreement does not have legal effect until it is incorporated into EU treaties is not correct," Mr Wright said. "It has legal effect from the point the UK says it intends to remain in the EU, and the European Court must take it into account. The job of the European Court is to interpret the agreements between the 28 nation states of the EU. This is one of those agreements, with equivalent legal force to other agreements such as treaties." 'Fluffed Up Political Promise' However the legal row has raised more concerns about any potential legal hurdles the UK-EU agreement may face, with pro-Brexit campaigners in the UK claiming the deal may not eventuate into EU treaty chance. @Nigel_Farage @BBCNews Not could.WILLit us simply a question of when. I'll give you a heads upit won't be before June 24th 2016 Tony Homewood (@TonyHomewood) February 24, 2016 Swedish MEP Max Andersson, epitomized the confusion over the deal's legality during an address to the European Parliament on Tuesday. "I have a great difficulty understanding whether this deal is really legally binding. The European Council does not have the right to decide on treaty changes. It cannot decide what future governments will say in a matter of many years. It cannot decide what parliaments will say or what those countries that will have referendums will say. "This document claims it is legally binding and says the substance of it will be incorporated into treaties in accordance with procedure blah blah blah. This means either this treaty is not legally binding, or the European Council has committed a massive over-reach, almost a coup d'etat or this is not really a legally binding document." "It is a fluffed up political promise that is going to be lodged at the United Nations," he added. At the same time, 31 percent believe that the economic situation in the country would suffer in the event of Brexit, while only 23 percent assume the opposite. An even more drastic split 29 percent versus 18 divides those who believe that Brexit would have a negative impact on British jobs versus optimists who believe it would help the situation. Regarding the effect on the United Kingdom's projected influence in the world, 33 percent said, the country would be more likely to lose weight internationally than gain it. Only 12 percent believe the British position in world politics would improve were it to be outside the bloc. "Maybe this list will expand," Kaminski said, explaining that since the audit has not been completed it is not clear yet whether the surveillance was legal or not. Earlier this month, a new law expanding government surveillance powers came into force in Poland. Under the law, Poland's Interior Ministry gains the ability to access citizens' personal data, communication and internet records without requiring a court's decision. The move has been widely criticized by the opposition, the European Union and human rights groups. Amnesty International called the legislation "a major blow to human rights." Poland remains the subject of an EU inquiry into a possible breach of EU legal standards that began in January after President Andrzej Duda approved laws restricting media freedom and enabling the government to appoint heads of public television and radio services. Dror Sharon the CEO and Co-Founder at Consumer Physics, the Israeli company that built the SCiO sensor, said in his interview with Youtubes Pentalog TV that there are many ways to use the technology: Applications can be nutritional values, quality of food, medications, it can be used today in the pharmaceutical industry, food industry, cosmetics, it can be used for luxury goods, for diamonds No less remarkable about SCiO is the way in which the project was funded. Almost 13,000 people from all over the world sent their donations through Kickstarter an internet crowdfunding platform. And with 2.7 million dollars pledged, the venture became a massive success. Founded in 2009 as public benefit corporation, Kickstarter helped launch almost 260,000 creative projects in areas such as music, film, software and technology development. Through its website, Kickstarter collects money from the public to fund projects with a deadline and a minimum funding goal. Backers get some kind of reward, whether its simple thank you from the authors of the idea, or, as in the case of the SCiO sensor the right to preorder the innovative merchandise. Even though most modern crowdfunding projects rely on the Internet community, the first major attempts at this type of fundraising date back to the 18th and 19th centuries an era characterized by postal wagons and early newspapers. Heres a hint at one of these endeavors: Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free Thats right its the famous Emma Lazarus sonnet written on the base of the Statue of Liberty. When New York authorities failed to provide $100,000 dollars to complete the pedestal for the statue in 1884, John Pulitzer, the publisher of the local newspaper, launched a public fundraising campaign which pledged to print the name of every contributor in the pages of the New York World; 120,000 people donated enough money to build the base of the monument, where we can now see the tablet featuring the poem The New Colossus. In recent years, crowdfunding has become huge. The website Crowsourcing.org estimated that the global crowdfunding market expanded to $34.4 billion in 2015, experiencing 167% growth the year before that. So it looks as if in the 21st century, the idea of funding public ventures without the use of traditional avenues of investment has already far exceeded what John Pulitzer had ever imagined, proving that when human beings combine their power, nothing is impossible. And even that wasnt all. As the story went viral and was picked up by the media worldwide, Zack Brown raised 55 thousand dollars. Not only he was able to make a bowl of good old potato salad, for desert he also co-authored a potato salad cookbook and launched the PotatoStock festival to celebrate the greatness of Americas favorite side-dish. Hello, is it me you looking for? When Lionel Richie wrote his famous song in 1984, at first he thought it sounded corny. Hello turned out to be a huge hit, inspiring lovers all over the world. In 2013, two artists who call their collaboration Hungry Castle were apparently still quite inspired and launched a crowdfunding campaign to enable them to produce a giant inflatable Lionel Richie head. They raised 8,000 pounds on Kickstarter for their project, calling it The Stonehenge of Soul and monstrous totem of purest surrealism. Dave Glass and Kill Cooper the members of Hungry Castle said in their interview with Youtubes Hoala Channel that there are two key references in their work: In our work we always refer to the Internet and pop culture. And thats what makes it cool s**t. Thats what we do. And if all that has failed, we follow the rule of funny: if it makes us laugh, hopefully it makes everyone else laugh. With several major crowdfunding platforms for creative projects on the Interntet, such as Kickstarter and Indiegogo, there are hundreds of ways to make the crowd go Wow (and sometimes Why?) Hiring a pilot with a plane to write stupid things in the sky? Check. Financing 13 dates for a man who was desperately seeking attention from the opposite sex? Thats easy. Creating a diaper wetness sensor that can do the checking all by itself, so you dont have to? Done all thanks to crowdfunding websites. So whether you want to look cool as. ice, youre an artist hungry for fame, or youre just plain hungry formulate your thoughts, make a small introduction video for your project and put it on a crowdfunding website. Maybe your strangest idea is just what the world is looking for. MOSCOW (Sputnik) Last week, the United Nations brokered access for inter-agency humanitarian aid convoys in five Syrian towns. On Tuesday, the organization announced that some 30,000 people in the cities of Moadamiyeh and Kafr Batna received medical and food supplies. "These are the first of what we hope to be series of deliveries to meet the needs of people that humanitarian workers have not been able to reach for a long time. The humanitarian community continues to call for unconditional, unimpeded and sustained access to the 4.6 million people in Syria who are in hard-to-reach and besieged towns across the country," spokesman Stephane Dujarric said, as quoted by the United Nations. Most of the hospitals in Benghazi have closed their doors due to the instability, according to Al-Za'tari. Only one or two facilities are still functioning, but they are of low quality and are now quickly running out of resources. "It is really difficult for a hospital to continue like this in a town that is witnessing constant daily fighting in certain parts," Al-Za'tari said. Soon there will be no place left in the country for Libyans to receive proper care. The problem has reached a point where 1.3 million people in Libya need humanitarian assistance. The UN appealed to the international community for $166 million in financial aid for some 2.4 million affected Libyans, of which only $4.4 million was made available, a mere 7.3 percent of what was requested. "The perception is Libya is rich and can fend for itself. Libya is rich but it can't fend for itself today," said Al-Za'tari, in reference to Libya's status as an oil producer. "It is not an easy story to sell and I admit it. I am living it. Telling people that Libya has a humanitarian situation makes them go back in their seats and say no way.'" Al-Za'tari was due to meet Arab League delegates on a visit to Cairo to explain and highlight the overall deterioration of the health network in Libya. He stressed that unless the international community promptly pays due attention to the humanitarian crisis in Libya, the situation would worsen and could have global consequences, including the spread of infectious diseases. "The Syrian government forces have continued to hit the lines of defense of ISIL [Daesh] and Jund al-Aqsa terrorist groups along the Ithriya-Khanaser road at Rasm al-Nafal and al-Syria Tel region towards al-Sa'an," the army said in a statement. It added that despite recapturing a number of checkpoints along the Ithriyah-Khanasser road, the Syrian army had failed to retake a number of strategic villages under Daesh control and reopen the supply route. Meanwhile, the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) stormed the militant groups' centers in the neighborhoods of the northern city of Aleppo and captured more city blocks, Fars News reported. The YPG and SDF fighters, backed by Syrian warplanes and artillery, pushed the Free Syrian Army (FSA) back from a complex of houses in several neighborhoods and inflicted a heavy death toll on the enemy. Also on Tuesday, the Turkish artillery shelled the Kurdish strongholds in the newly-liberated town of Tal Rifaat and the strategic Minaq airbase in the northern part of Aleppo to prevent rapid advances of pro-government forces against Ankara-backed militants. The deal between Russia and the United States was approved by the International Syria Support Group (ISSG). During its meeting on February 12, the ISSG agreed a final communique calling for swift humanitarian access to all besieged areas in Syria, and set a one-week deadline for measures to be implemented toward the cessation of hostilities in the country. All Efforts Should Be Focused on Russian-US 'Plan A' for Ceasefire in Syria Moscow is unaware of any "Plan B" by Washington should the current cessation of hostilities in Syria come apart at the seams and all efforts should be focused on the original signed agreement, the source said. The Russian side knows of no 'Plan B.' Intensive work was done on the joint statement and all efforts need to be focused on its fulfillment. Earlier, the Guardian reported Kerry announced steps that would be made toward a backup plan that could include the division of Syria if the ceasefire planned for February 27 does not work or if an actual swing to a transition government does not happen within the next few months. Pekin further said that there is considerable opposition in the Turkish ranks towards the current situation. There is an understanding that the overthrow of Assad, in fact, will not solve the problem. On the contrary, this step can cause more serious long-term instability in the region. In fact, it is in the interests of Turkey that Damascus strengthens its positions and establishes effective control and security at the border. According to the former head, stability in the region would help Turkey provide its own security. For many it is clear that instead of getting involved in a useless, very expensive and protracted war it makes more sense and is much more profitable to strengthen the Syrian regime and move military operations away from Turkish borders. The former head of the Office of Intelligence stressed that Turkey's invasion of Afrin or Azaz can have very dangerous consequences. The slightest move into Syrias inland threatens us with a clash with Russia. Even a small-scale ground operation will lead Turkey into a deadlock. Meanwhile, there are signs that preparations for such an operation are being carried out. Pekin said that the security measures inside the country are rising, and there are new methods being introduced in order to respond to external threats. I think that if Turkey still dares to take this step and invade the territory of Syria, the consequences will be irreversible, the head concluded. BAGHDAD (Sputnik) In December, Turkey deployed about 150 troops and 25 tanks to a base in the Iraqi Nineveh province, without Baghdads approval. Turkey said its troops had entered Iraq to protect Turkish instructors deployed at the base earlier to train local militias, fighting against Daesh, a terrorist group outlawed in a number of countries worldwide, including Russia. "Frankly speaking, it was insolence, it cannot be explained. Iraq, as a sovereign country, a member of the UN, cannot accept it. The country is capable of defending itself, and this attempt to distract Iraqis from the crucial fight against IS looks really weird," the ministry's spokesman Ahmed Jamal said. Jamal added that Turkish deputy foreign ministers visited Iraq to discuss the issue and provided the Iraqi foreign minister with guarantees of the troops' withdrawal. MOSCOW (Sputnik) Washington's containment policy does not exclusively target Russia, but is also directed against the European Union, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said in an interview published Wednesday. Speaking on the issue of anti-Russian sanctions the spokeswoman noted that the EU was persuaded to impliment them by the United States. "Washington is implementing a containment policy, but in this case these actions target not only Russia but the European Union also," she told the Russian Argumenty i Fakty newspaper. It was first opened during the Second World War to protect the North Atlantic supply route and was later used to hunt for Soviet submarines when tensions escalated between Moscow and Washington. In 2006, the base was closed, due to relations between the two sides having dramatically deteriorated at the time. The White House decided to resume its military presence. The Pentagon plans to upgrade its hangar at Keflavik base, which would allow it to station the P-8 Poseidon plane. The aircraft will be used to hunt for Russian submarines. Washingtons move raised eyebrows in Iceland. Opposition parties insist it threatens the countrys security. Another bizarre fact is that Iceland's media didn't cover this issue and residents learnt about the news from Americans news agencies. WASHINGTON (Sputnik) US Secretary of State John Kerry spoke with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Wednesday about the terms of the ceasefire in Syria ahead of the duos upcoming task force meeting to discuss the terms of the agreement on cessation of hostilities in the country. "I talked this morning with [Russian] Foreign Minister Lavrov, and we have a team that will be meeting in the next day or so, the task force for the ceasefire, cessation of hostilities," Kerry told the US House of Representatives Committee on Appropriations. Kerry underscored "I'm not here to vouch that it's [the agreement] absolutely going to work, but I'm telling you this is the one way we can end this war." "Obama's war on Syria continues, its objective unchanged destroying Syrian sovereignty, replacing it with another US vassal state," the US author notes. "Realpolitik has no Hollywood endings," Lendman remarks, "Expect no meaningful change for the better on the ground ahead." In an exclusive interview with Radio Sputnik Larry Johnson, retired CIA intelligence officer and State Department official echoed Lendman's concerns. "The Syrian army with the backing of Russia and Iran is operating very effectively and retaking significant swats of territory from the terrorists and pushing them towards Turkey. I don't see why Syria would go for the ceasefire now when the situation is working out to their advantage," the CIA veteran underscored. On February 22 the United States and Russia reached a compromise on the Syrian ceasefire starting on February 27. However, in accordance with the deal, military actions conducted by Syria, Russia and the US-led coalition will continue against Daesh, al-Nusra Front, and other UN-designated terrorist groups. According to international relations scholar Pami Aalto the agreement is a "diplomatic victory for both sides." The breakthrough deal is a "very positive development" and a sign showing that Washington and Moscow can ultimately come to agreement, Aalto told Radio Sputnik. According to the academic, the best way to implement the 'cessation of hostility' agreement would be "to have UN-approved troops to be on the ground in Syria in order to collect information, oversee the implementation of the agreement and confirm that things actually go as the agreement stipulates." In light of the ceasefire deal it is possible that the Geneva peace talks scheduled to resume on February 25 would be postponed until early March. WASHINGTON (Sputnik) The United States may take a more aggressive stance in Syria, including the partition of the country, if the current ceasefire and UN process for a political transition fails, US Secretary of State John Kerry told the Senate Appropriations Committee. "If the Russians and Iranians arent serious about having this [Syrian peace process] work, then we got to go to a Plan B, which may be more confrontational and may wind up carving things out," Kerry stated on Wednesday. Kerry stated previously that in the coming months, the United States will be testing the "seriousness" of all the stakeholders in Syria, to determine whether the Syrian political transition, agreed to in late 2015 by international powers in Geneva, is possible. Worthington explained that the attacks on September 11, 2011 and the war on terror provided the US government with the pretext to hold suspects in Guantanamo and strip them of any due process rights. "Because the bottom of it is youre either a prisoner of war or a criminal suspect," Worthington underlined. Other categories such as "enemy combatant" are nonsense, he argued, which allow the US government to "hold people indefinitely without charge." Worthington added that if President Obama truly wanted to close Guantanamo before his term is up he needrf to accelerate the Periodic Review Boards that review prisoner cases and determine if they are fit to leave or deemed "too dangerous" and a threat to national security. "It has taken [the United States] two years for these 21 [reviews] to take place and there are twice as many that need to take place in less than a year," he said. "So those need speeding up massively." The Periodic Review Boards have approved 18 prisoners for release out of the 21 cases reviewed, which is an 86 percent success rate, Worthington claimed. UN Human Rights Chief Zeid Ra'ad al-Hussein said in a statement on Tuesday that "all Guantanamo detainees should either be transferred to regular detention centers in the US mainland or other countries where fair trials before civilian courts and due process guarantees can be provided." Officials in the Obama administration have said about ten detainees out of remaining 91 are too dangerous to ever be released. US Congress has banned the transfer of Gitmo prisoners to US prisons since 2011. US House Speaker Paul Ryan said lawmakers would prepare legal options to ensure Obama is not able to realize his plan to shut down Guantanamo. There is no key that Apple can give the FBI, the technology does not exist or does it? "The technology is quite simple; the iPhone has all the necessary hardware to do this. But the vendor will be deciding whether it [the upgrade] will annoy users too much and if it is going to be too inconvenient," Dr Steven Murdoch, a security researcher in computer science at University College London told Sputnik. Dr Murdoch explains that tech companies could follow the example set by the banking industry. "When these devices are upgraded, sensitive information is deleted. If a modification is made that doesn't compromise information previously stored on that device, then that is a way technology firms could get around it." "The banking industry came up with the solution, it's been tried and tested", Dr Murdoch told Sputnik. "But it is inconvenient to do one of these upgrades as you have to get the data back. There is an extra procedure for keeping the data around. It's an extra inconvenience but it is more secure." Balance of Inconvenience & Security Following the revelation by Edward Snowden of widespread spying carried out by the US and it's National Security Agency (NSA), niche technical firms have developed smartphones such as Blackphone, RedPhone or Priv with increased security being their main selling point. But for the mass market to start producing niche models with increased security, it would have to be done without compromising what the average user wants from a cellphone. "Consumer organizations make their money by helping the average user, so they're not going to be building something suitable for the people who have the most security requirements at the cost of annoying everyone else," Dr Murdoch told Sputnik. Weiler pointed to statements made by Dr. Brian Willoughby, director of the Brigham Young Universitys RELATE Institute, a nonprofit organization that studies what it defines as a romantic relationship. Willoughby tied pornography exposure to changes in sexual expectation, decreases in relationship intimacy, sexual harassment among boys, increased substance abuse, men being more critical of womens bodies, as well as higher depression and less self-worth among women, the Standard Examiner reported. The average age for first-time porn viewers online is purported to be about nine years old, according to Weiler. The senator explained that the National Center on Sexual Exploitation, a Judeo-Christian anti-porn group funded, in part, by the federal government, assures him that there are 10 to 15 states that will follow Utahs lead, should the resolution pass. Within a few clicks they can see some of the most vile and disgusting images that the mind can even imagine, Weiler declared, speaking to the Standard Examiner. For us to pretend that this is having no impact on our values and our society and culture and the brain development of our adolescents is very naive. The resolution has the support of Utah Governor and Mormon Republican Gary Herbert. At a committee hearing on the resolution at the beginning of the month, Senator Allen Christensen, also a Republican and a Mormon, asked if anyone was brave enough to speak out against the resolution, but not a single person raised their hands. Olsson added that in UN rulings, human rights have always been considered by the country's court, and thus Sweden has left itself with just one option. "Both Sweden and United Kingdom have in many other cases been very clear with the importance to follow rulings like this from panel of experts under the UN commission of human rights," he said. "Now Sweden has to live up to those demands for themselves." Assange has spent the last three years in the Ecuadorian embassy in London, filing a complaint with the UN in 2014, arguing that he was arbitrarily detained, since he could not leave without fear of being arrested and extradited. He was granted asylum at the embassy in June 2012, to avoid extradition to Sweden, where he is wanted for questioning over rape allegations he claims are a part of a conspiracy to secure his further extradition to the United States, where he would likely be charged with espionage for his whistleblower activities. He has not been formally charged of any crime. WASHINGTON (Sputnik), Anastasia Levchenko Deputy High Commissioner for Refugees Kelly Clements stressed that UNHCR has been attempting to deliver humanitarian aid to the besieged areas in Syria for a long time, however, due to intense fighting the agency was unable to reach all of them. "We hope that this plan will improve the situation in Syria," Clements told Sputnik on Tuesday. "The situation in Syria is quite dire <> We have been trying since very long time to get to the besieged areas. Hopefully, this will mean that we can actually get in and not just to deliver the [humanitarian] convoy and leave again, but to be able to have a sustained access," he said. CAIRO (Sputnik) Iraq welcomes the freezing of oil production at the January level, but simply freezing extraction is insufficient, Iraqi Petroleum Ministry spokesman Assem Jihad told Sputnik on Wednesday. Earlier this month, the energy ministers of Russia, Saudi Arabia, Venezuela and Qatar met in Doha, where they agreed to keep their average monthly oil output throughout 2016 at January levels if other major oil producers followed suit. According to Venezuela's minister, the agreement was later supported by Ecuador, Algeria, Nigeria, Oman and Kuwait. Iraq welcomes the freezing of oil production on the level of January, this is a step in the right direction, but not enough, Jihad said. Trot Insider has learned that longtime Standardbred owner Vic Hayter of Stratford, Ont. passed away suddenly on Tuesday (February 23) at the age of 78. Hayter, who has long been a participant in harness racing, owned or has owned more than a dozen hotels in the Stratford area over a career as a hotelier spanning more than four decades. He's most often affiliated with Arden Park Hotel in Stratford, known to have copies of Trot Magazine out for reading material in the hotel's lobby. Among the successful horses Hayter owned were Sokys Baron in the 1980s and most recently, Hard Rock N Roll. That trotter was especially dear to him for being a good racehorse before moving on to a stallion career, siring his good horse Rockys First. Hayter's sons Ed and Greg are both active in the Standardbred industry and carry on his name. Visitation will take place on Sunday, Feb. 28 from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m and 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at W.G. Young Funeral Home. A funeral service will be held on Monday, Feb. 29 at 11 a.m. at the Stratford Festival Theatre, located on 55 Queen Street in Stratford, Ont. A reception will immediately follow the funeral service at Arden Park Hotel, located at 552 Ontario Street in Stratford. Please join Standardbred Canada in offering condolences to the family and friends of Vic Hayter. This Web site is designed to provide information on the subject of personal finance. It is provided with the understanding that neither the author nor the publisher is engaged in rendering legal, accounting, or other professional services by providing this web site. The authors and publisher shall not be liable for any loss of profit or any other commercial damages, including but not limited to special, incidental, consequential or other damages. As each individual situation is unique, questions relevant to personal finances and specific to the individual should be addressed to an appropriate professional to ensure that the situation has been carefully and appropriately evaluated. Shifting Gears Making a life decision to drop everything and go west... TO ISIS RADICALS & ALL TERROR GROUPS: I INVITE you to accept JESUS CHRIST as your LORD & SAVIOR and BE SAVED TODAY ! IT is not too late to be forgiven and become Christian, and inherit eternal life (true heaven with our true God ) ! There are NO SINS that cannot be forgiven UNLESS you refuse to ask JESUS for forgiveness and commit your life to Him ! You CAN be forgiven if you accept JESUS CHRIST as SAVIOR and commit your LIFE TO GOD, and WALK AWAY from Terrorism right now ! Many of you have been BRAINWASHED by false ideology and evil leaders. We have a CHRISTIAN GOD WHO LOVES US and loves you, but you cannot feel HIS LOVE if you do not surrender to our God (Father Son Spirit). Now is the time ! Kneel down, humble yourself, say to JESUS: I AM SORRY for my SINS, Thank You for dying to Save Me. I welcome you into my heart, and COMMIT my life to you, JESUS. If you can do this, you are NOW A CHRISTIAN ! Congratulations ! Now you must walk away from terrorism or if you stay you must NOT do anymore killing but only try to CONVERT other members of your group to become Christians also ! You need to TALK TO GOD, thats called PRAYER. You need to read the HOLY BIBLE, not the KORAN. You need to tell others about JESUS, thats called being an evangelist . And you need to have FELLOWSHIP with other Christians. God be with you and bless you. We are PRAYING 4 U ! 1377/5000 : ! ( )! ! ! . ( ). ! : " . ". ! ! ! . . "". . . A new (since 2003) favorite among snipers, the 8.6mm (.338) Lapua Magnum round, was in the news again recently. In this case it was a situation in Syria where a British SAS commando used an Israeli 8.6mm sniper rifle to kill an ISIL (Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant) instructor. The ISIL teacher was about to show his students how to behead prisoners by using a live victim. The British sniper was 1,200 meters away and managed to hit the ISIL instructor in the head at that range. The head shot caused the skull to sort of explode, which apparently made an impression on the ISIL recruits because the SAS sniper was using a new Israeli designed rifle equipped with a suppressor. This is not a silencer but it does greatly reduce the flash and sound of the rifle. For long range shots this means those on the receiving end have a very difficult time telling where the shooter is and that often causes panic. The rifle involved here is the Dan .338, which was introduced in 2014 and was designed by an Israeli firm for the Israeli military. The manufacturer expected to sell many to foreign police and military organizations and the British, who have been using .338 rifles for nearly a decade, were apparently giving the Dan .338 some field testing. The Dan .338 is a 6.9 kg (15.2 pound) weapon that, with scope and loaded ten round magazine weighs about nine kilos (20 pounds). This is a bolt action, adjustable stock, weapon with a 737mm (29 inch) barrel. The design is very well thought out, showing the influence of the many Israeli snipers who contributed ideas and opinions to the designers. The British were already fans of the 8.6mm cartridge. Starting in 2007 the British Army began replacing most of its 3,000 7.62mm L96A1 sniper rifles with one modified to use the .338 (8.6mm) Lapua Magnum caliber round. This Accuracy International "Super Magnum" rifle is basically a L96A1 "Arctic Warfare" rifle modified to handle the larger, 8.6mm round. The L115A1 weighed 6.8 kg (without a scope), was 1.27 meters (fifty inches) long and had a 686mm (27 inch) barrel and a five round magazine. Snipers in Iraq, and especially Afghanistan, had been calling for a smaller long range round because they found the 12.7mm weapons too heavy. The Lapua Magnum round has an effective range (about 1,500 meters) about 50 percent greater than the 7.62mm standard NATO round. Like most long range rounds, if the weather (clear) and winds (calm) are right, you can hit targets farther away. The 8.6mm round entered use in the early 1990s, and became increasingly popular with police and military snipers. Dutch snipers have also used this round in Afghanistan with much success, and have a over a decade of experience with these larger caliber rifles. Recognizing the popularity of the 8.6mm round, Barrett, the pioneer in 12.7mm sniper rifles, came out with a 7 kg (15.5 pound) version of its rifle, chambered for the 8.6mm. The 8.6mm also began setting records. Between 2009 and 2015 the distance record for sniper kills was held by a .338 rifle. In 2015 that record was broken by two Australian snipers in Afghanistan using M82A1 12.7mm (.50 caliber) rifles. In a coordinated shot at a Taliban leader 2,800 meters away the two snipers fired simultaneously and six seconds later the Taliban chieftain fell dead. It will never be known which of the two shots got him. The victim would not have heard the shot, the rifles were so far away and the bullet was travelling faster than the speed of sound. About two seconds later anyone with the dead Taliban man would have heard the two shots, but faintly as the shooters were nearly three kilometers (two miles) away. The previous record shot was made in November 2009 by a British sniper (corporal Craig Harrison) who killed two Taliban in Afghanistan, at a range of 2,620 meters (8,596 feet). He did this with a L115A3 rifle firing the 8.6mm Lapua Magnum round. Before that the record was held by a Canadian soldier, corporal Rob Furlong, who dropped an al Qaeda gunman at 2,573 meters (7,972 feet) in 2002, also in Afghanistan with a 12.7mm rifle. These weapons are good at 2,000 meters or more, but weigh twice as much as the 6.8 kg (15 pound) 8.6mm rifles. by Austin Bay February 23, 2016 On February 25, 2014 -- two bloody years ago if you live in eastern Ukraine -- Vladimir Putin's Russia invaded Ukraine's Crimean peninsula. Since then, the Kremlin has cleverly pursued its "creeping war of aggression" and its death toll -- Russian and Ukrainian alike -- continues to mount. Ukraine gets the worst of it, suffering extensive economic loss and endless political crises. As I write this column, the Ukrainian government is on the verge of collapse. Since a government collapse in Kiev seeds more chaos, it counts as a political win for the Kremlin. Germany, Great Britain, France and the U.S. are trying to stabilize Ukraine, or so they say. NATO has tentatively decided to pre-position military equipment in Poland. NATO is deploying small troop contingents on a rotational basis. Poland, on Ukraine's western border, is still not convinced the major powers have their heart in it. In February 2016, the West is paying for its collective failure to support verbal condemnation of Russia's invasion with effective collective action to support the 1994 Budapest Accord. Russia's invasion and the March 2014 annexation of Crimea shredded that agreement. The accord involved nuclear weapons and territory, so it mattered. With the Budapest Accord, Ukraine agreed to exchange its potent nuclear arsenal for Russian guarantees of Ukrainian territorial sovereignty. Put monosyllabically, No Nukes for No Land Grabs. The No Land Grab dimension reinforced a lesson everyone supposedly learned from WW2: aggression, annexation and territorial expansion by a major European power produce mass slaughter across the continent. In the 20th Century, European territorial wars became global wars. Given these terrible consequences, a nation just didn't do it. One other sad point: the U.S. and Great Britain backed the Budapest Accord. The Clinton Administration touted it. But so much for hard-learned lessons, diplomatic guarantees and Washington and London's promises to insure political compliance. Putin's Russia invaded and annexed, and its blatant act of aggression recalled the worst of the 1930s-era European history. Putin is a master of propaganda. He claimed that the February 2014 collapse of Ukraine's pro-Russian regime was illegal and amounted to a coup. Why that justified Russia filching Crimea was finessed, not addressed. Putin wowed Russian television viewers and crowds in Red Square by invoking Russian historical territorial claims, alleging Ukrainian crimes against ethnic Russians (first in Crimea, then eastern Ukraine) and accusing NATO of promulgating nefarious plots against Mother Russia. His real reason for launching the attack in February 2014? Ripe opportunity. The chaos in Kiev made a coordinated Ukrainian response unlikely. Putin also correctly assessed key NATO leaders, especially U.S. President Barack Obama. Not one of them had the spine to stop him. Putin concluded that if his war could "creep" below the radars of outrage and major media, he might succeed in taking eastern Ukraine and Ukraine's Black Sea littoral. Ethnic Russian militias armed and trained by Moscow and backed by Russian Special Forces and artillery would invade neighborhood by neighborhood. If the opportunity appeared, some Russian tanks might make thrust to seize a key objective -- then disappear in an easterly direction. So in late March and April 2014, the war crept into eastern Ukraine. Ukraine resisted, however, with unexpected ferocity. There is also some evidence that at a particularly dicey moment, Poland provided some military supplies. The drop in oil prices has hindered -- but not stopped -- Russia's ability to wage economic war. For two years, Ukraine has just been strong enough to cling to independence, but is too weak to regain control of the Donetsk basin. Regain Crimea? Crimea is lost. And Putin's creeping war proceeds. ...they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so. Acts 17:11 To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them. Isaiah 8:20 "Whatever it is, I'm against it. No matter what it is or who commenced it, I'm against it." Groucho Marx, from Horse Feathers Fish again? Overcome fatigue with a fun recipe each diner gets to unwrap like a present. And, of course, a glass of wine for all. With halibut, look for white wines with acidity and salinity, like the three below. MAKE THIS HALIBUT WITH CAPERS AND DILL Fold 4 large sheets of parchment in half; cut out a big half-heart-shaped piece from each. Open the pieces; spray with cooking oil. Combine 1 carrot, cut into matchsticks; 1 onion, sliced; 1 small zucchini, cut into matchsticks; 4 teaspoons each capers and minced dill; and 1/2 teaspoon lemon zest. Divide among parchment, placing a mound just off the fold on one side of the heart. Season 4 halibut fillets (6 ounces each) with salt and pepper; place fillets on vegetables. Sprinkle each fillet with 1 teaspoon vermouth. Close the parchment: Starting at the top of the heart, crimp the edges, overlapping the folds, until you reach the point. Twist the point tightly; tuck it under the parcel. Bake on a baking sheet at 400 degrees F., about 18 minutes. Serve packets on plates; open each packet slightly to release any steam, then let diners open the rest of the way. Makes 4 servings. Recipe by Robin Mather DRINK THIS Pairings by sommelier Michael Taylor of Del Friscos Double Eagle Steak House, as told to Michael Austin: 2013 Chimney Rock Elevage Blanc, Stags Leap District, Napa Valley, Calif.: A blend of sauvignon blanc and sauvignon gris, this delightful and impressive white wine is bursting with tropical fruit and mineral aromas, along with a vast array of citrus flavors that are ever-growing and changing on the palate. The wines crisp pop of acidity, combined with a lingering mid-palate, is just what this dish needs to bring out the lemon zest and aromatic vegetables. $48 2014 Antinori Tenuta Guado al Tasso Vermentino, Bolgheri, Tuscany, Italy: A coastal grape variety by nature, vermentino never fails to enhance the flavors of a beautiful seafood dish. With a deep mineral core and fresh, zesty citrus aromas, this wine has a slight salinity built into its rich but vibrant frame. That salinity will help tie the flavors of the fish together with the salty and slightly bitter components of the capers and dill. 2013 Domaine Robert-Denogent La Croix Pouilly-Fuisse, Maconnais, France: If youve had watered-down Pouilly-Fuisse wines in the past, this pure version of chardonnay will make you forget about them. The propertys old vines produce wines of elegance and balance, and this one has layers of mandarin orange and lemon peel, with subtle hints of smoke and flint. Those qualities are sure to take the delicate flavors of the baked halibut to the next level. Weve written about political skulduggery in the past. We find it reprehensible when people employ it. This time, we are looking at Senate Republicans for their downright shameful yes we are using Governor Inslees words move to fire the Washington State Department of Transportation Secretary Lynn Peterson. Lynn Peterson was fired in a reprehensible manner. Instead of abiding by traditions, and having some civility, Senate Republicans did not let the governor know in advance that Peterson would not be confirmed. Traditionally, instead of humiliating a cabinet member on the Senate floor, the governors office would be notified well ahead of time that an individual would not be confirmed. This gives the governors office the chance to choose a path forward. Using this age-old system also maintains dignity and civility. The governor is allowed to either fight for his appointment or find a replacement. Cabinet members are allowed to resign to spend time with family and help with an orderly transition. Our governmental system does not require parties to agree, but it works substantially better without the skulduggery. The TDN editorial board has been critical of Inslee on numerous occasions, but this time, we are on the governors side. The firing of Lynn Peterson appears to be a political move in an election year, more than dissatisfaction with performance. Its one thing to not confirm a candidate, but its entirely inappropriate to treat the governors office, the transportation secretary and the institution of the state Senate so poorly. As reported by the Seattle Times, the Republicans claim their vote was because of problems with Bertha, I-405 tolls and the ferry system. We take issue with these claims. These are not new problems. Bertha, the SR 99 tunneling machine, has had problems since December of 2013, when Bertha struck a steel pipe. This pipe was included in the plan WSDOT engineers submitted to the contractor. I-405 and the ferries have issues as well, but they arent new. At the same time the senators claim ferry issues, the Mukilteo mayor praised Jefferson on a planned terminal rebuild. Republican Sen. Don Benton from Clark County had an issue with Peterson talking with Oregon officials about the canceled Columbia River Crossing. We dont see this as a bad thing in fact just the opposite. We know and have discussed the need for better solutions to get to Portland. And then there was Mark Schoesler, R-Ritzville, who called Peterson a racist over a complaint that the Washington state Civil Rights Coalition criticized the record of minority-owned business participation in transportation programs at both the state and federal levels. These Senate Republicans first voted in favor of her confirmation in June. They then passed, what we applauded as outstanding, the states largest transportation package. So what changed? The calendar moved to 2016, which is an election year. And out of 49 senators, 25 are up for reelection. So we see this move to fire her as a pure sneak attack on the governor. This state has some major issues facing it right now. Early release of inmates, the department of Social and Health Services is a mess, school funding, and creating jobs outside of the Puget Sound region. With these significant problems yet to be solved this session and in the years to come, this type of skulduggery only breeds contempt and shows an unwillingness to work together. How can we expect our elected officials to ever get anything done if they pull this type of stunt? We challenge them to stop these moves, reach across the aisle and get to work. We the people deserve better. Nimish Sawant Oppo Mobiles had some key technology announcements at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona this year. These announcements did not include the launch of new phone, but two key parameters which will be seen in Oppo mobile phones and hopefully phones from the brands some months or years down the line. The two announcements were the SmartSensor image stabilisation technology and the SuperVOOC Flash Charging technology. You can read about these technologies in detail here. To put it in a nutshell, the SmartSensor image stabilisation brings 3-axis image stabilisation capabilities on the sensor front, as opposed to lens based IS technologies that are seen on most mobile phones today. The SuperVOOC Flash Charging technology on the other hand adds more finesse to Oppos already popular VOOC fast charging technology. SmartSensor 3 axis IS lets you achieve IS in 15 milliseconds says @Oppo. It also saved power consumption pic.twitter.com/ZukSGmsmjo Tech2 (@tech2eets) February 23, 2016 Post the announcement, we had a chance to interact with Luma Lu, the technology planning director and head of Oppos DaVinci Laboratory. The obvious question was when would we start to witness these technologies in Oppo phones. While we would have liked to get an exact or even an approximate timeline, there was no real confirmation on that. According to Lu, both the technologies were brand new and are still being tested. We want to be absolutely sure about their working, before we launch it officially in the market. We cannot give you a time frame as of now, as after the testing of the SmartSensor module, we need to implement it in a smartphone camera and test that entire phone unit as well. So it will surely take some time for this technology to go under mass production of phones, said Lu. Considering the SmartSensor technology is the first of its kind on smartphones, we were curious to know if Oppo had any plans of licensing it out to other smartphone makers out there? The SmartSensor technology will first and foremost be used on Oppo smartphones. This technology has been developed by a company backed by Oppo called MEMS drive and our imaging laboratory. This technology has been under test for a couple of years. We do not rule out the possibility of it being used on other phones in the future, said Lu. According to Oppo, the SuperVOOC Flash charging technology will initially be seen on high-end devices, as there is cost component attached to develop the right kind of batteries and charging adapter, wire and connectors. According to our company roadmap, it is possible to apply this technology to lower end handsets as well in the future. The SuperVOOC Flash charging technology is a combination of software and hardware, and it is processor agnostic - so it doesn't matter what kind of chipset your phone has, Qualcomm or MediaTek, SuperVOOC will still work as long as its an Oppo phone and you have the right adapter, cables and connector. It will work with both USB Type C as well as microUSB ports, said Lu. Lu put to rest all fears of these technologies increasing the thickness of the handsets. According to him, the SmartSensor image stabilisation will occupy less space than a traditional lens based OIS configuration. As for the SuperVOOC Flash Charging, Lu said that there would only be an increase in the cost component initially, and not the phone's thickness. At the event, Oppo demoed the SuperVOOC Flash charging technology during the presentation itself. When Alen Wu, the vice president of the Oppo Mobile business came up on stage to talk about the SuperVOOC flash charging technology, the phone being charged was at 5 percent battery level. And by the time Wu was done with his presentation, which was easily under 15 minutes, the demo phone was charged to 100 percent. Oppo did not mention the exact capacity of the battery, but claims that with the SuperVOOC flash charging technology could charge a 2500mAh battery capacity phone fully in 15 minutes. Going by Oppos VOOC charging technology as compared to Qualcomms QuickCarge, it wouldnt be a surprise if it delivers on that promise. But of course, we will have to wait for an end product to see if SuperVOOC can indeed charge a phone by the time you finish your lunch. Disclaimer: The correspondent was invited by Oppo India to attend the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain. All flight and accommodation expenses are taken care of by Oppo India. hidden Facebook Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg on Monday tried to extend an olive branch to mobile phone companies, on which the popular social network company increasingly relies, but which are also among his biggest critics. Speaking for the third straight year to an annual gathering of telecoms executives at the Mobile World Congress here, Zuckerberg sought to show his company could be a valuable, if truculent, ally to the wireless industry. He described a new project Facebook is working on with major telecom players, including Nokia, Deutsche Telekom, SK Telecom and Intel to help rapidly build far faster mobile networks at lower costs. But while listing the various ways Facebook was prepared to help network operators contend with spiralling consumer appetites for data, he also criticised and made more demands on the industry. Zuckerberg challenged the priorities for next-generation 5G networks, which the industry is gearing up to deliver around 2020. He called them "faster connections for rich people" and said the companies should make more effort to "finish the job of making sure that everyone in the world gets Internet access." More than 4 billion people have no access to the Internet, he noted. Telecom operators complain that companies like Facebook and Google Inc that offer data-heavy mobile services are effectively free-loading on the big investments they must make to keep fixed-line and mobile networks from becoming overloaded. "Facebook has always had a love-hate relationship with carriers," Forrester Research analyst Thomas Husson said after Zuckerberg's comments. Further complicating his relationships with the telecom industry, Zuckerberg said video would be the next big driver for Facebook growth, putting more pressure on existing networks. Its users watch more than 100 million hours of video daily. While criticizing the industry for failing to do more to reach unconnected populations, Zuckerberg is a leading proponent of new virtual reality cameras that he said could be a killer app for 5G but which would place vast new demands on networks. He also defended Facebook's Free Basics program, through which the company works with operators in emerging markets to offer a pared-back free Internet service to reach consumers who cannot afford data plans. The Indian government introduced rules blocking Internet services from having different pricing policies for accessing different parts of the web, effectively shuttering the Free Basics program in that country, one of Facebook's most important emerging markets. Zuckerberg is kicking off a tour of Europe on Monday that includes a town hall meeting in Berlin on Thursday. Facebook has faced criticism in Germany in recent months from politicians and regulators over its privacy practices and a slow response to anti-immigrant postings by neo-Nazi sympathisers on the popular social network. Reuters hidden A 33-year-old Indian-origin man has been sentenced to over two years in prison and ordered to pay over USD 300,000 in fine for sending a malicious computer code to his former employer's servers that caused financial losses. Nikhil Nilesh Shah of New Jersey was sentenced to 30 months in prison by US District Judge Louise Flanagan of the Eastern District of North Carolina and ordered to pay USD 324,462 in restitution. According to the plea agreement, from 2007 to 2012, Shah was an information technology manager at a company located in North Carolina that developed platforms for the creation of mobile applications. Shah admitted that in March 2012, he left the company to work for another technology company and in June that year he sent malicious computer code to his former company's computer servers in Durham and Raleigh, North Carolina, deleting much of its intellectual property. PTI hidden A move by cellphone operators to use airwaves freely available in the same bandwidth as Wi-Fi networks has raised concerns that consumers' home Internet service could be disrupted, along with connected devices such as security monitoring systems. For the operators, who have spent billions of dollars on acquiring licensed frequencies, using the new LTE-unlicensed (LTE-U) technology to tap into higher-frequency Wi-Fi spectrum could prove a relatively cheap way to cope with the explosive growth in data traffic, particularly within buildings. "It is the Wild West at the moment. Anyone can use it and the parameters change a lot more quickly than when you use licensed spectrum," said Todd Mersch, co-founder of start-up XCellAir, which helps telecoms companies to make use of Wi-Fi. But the risk of a clash can still be avoided, he says, as only around 15 percent of the Wi-Fi spectrum, which is in the 5 gigahertz (GHz) range, is currently being used. The technology to use Wi-Fi spectrum for mobile on a large scale is far from ready but the first operational connections could be in place in less than two years, industry experts say. U.S. network operator Verizon is currently running tests with chipmaker Qualcomm and Deutsche Telekom completed a trial last year in the German city of Nuremberg. Deutsche Telekom says the Nuremberg test using a technology known as LTE-Licence Assisted Access (LAA) showed no problems with interference. "It would be bad if we created something new that ended up pushing others out, wouldn't it?" Bruno Jacobfeuerborn, chief technology officer Deutsche Telekom, told Reuters. But if there was interference the symptoms could go beyond simply disrupting a connection, says XCellAir's Mersch, pointing to an incident he encountered in his own work involving Wi-Fi signals. "Interference caused the home security system to increase its power transmission to each of the little sensors on the windows and doors," he said. "Their batteries were dying faster, so our customer constantly had these false alarms and battery alarms." In the early days of Wi-Fi, consumers faced similar issues as some household electronics including microwave ovens, baby monitors, cordless phones and even some older Bluetooth devices interfered with the home Wi-Fi network. Watching a streaming movie over the Internet would, for instance, be interrupted when the cordless phone rang. Nest, the wireless home security company owned by Google's parent Alphabet, still warns users that microwave ovens and other appliances can interfere with its systems. Certain television sets, even when turned off, can also affect Wi-Fi signals, it cautions. The only solution has been for consumers either to buy a new dual-band Wi-Fi router or to replace their existing consumer electronics with more Wi-Fi friendly devices. U.S. digital civil rights organization Electronic Frontier Foundation says nobody knows how LTE-U and Wi-Fi will coexist if LTE-U is deployed on a large scale. Google last year voiced concerns in a white paper to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) that LTE over unlicensed spectrum had the potential to crowd out unlicensed services. "Holders of licensed spectrum shouldn't be able to convert the unlicensed 5 GHz band into a de-facto licensed spectrum band, and certainly they should not have the ability to drive out other unlicensed users," Google said. However, with monthly global mobile data traffic expected to reach 30.6 exabytes by 2020, telecoms operators are desperate to find more capacity to satisfy users of data-guzzling smartphones. Global mobile data traffic increased by 74 percent in 2015, reaching 3.7 exabytes per month at the end of the year, up from 2.1 exabytes per month at the end of 2014, according to networking company Cisco. But while LTE-U offers some sort of a solution within buildings the very fact that the spectrum is freely available could lead to overcrowding on these frequencies, making the networks as well as home Wi-Fi unreliable. And if cash-starved governments decide to regulate Wi-Fi spectrum, operators could end up with stranded investments. Tony Brand, director of marketing and industry development at the Wireless Broadband Alliance - which seeks to promote interoperability between operators in the Wi-Fi industry and improve the user experience, sums up the operators' dilemma. "The good thing about unlicensed spectrum is that is unlicensed. The bad thing is, it is unlicensed." Reuters hidden Prosecutors took unusual steps in enlisting victims of the San Bernardino attack in the government's heated battle with Apple over access to an iPhone belonging to one of the shooters, according to people involved in the effort and legal experts. Family members of at least two victims will join a legal brief to be filed next week urging Apple to help the government unlock the phone, they told Reuters on Monday. The lawyer representing them, former federal judge Stephen Larson, said he was brought into the case by Eileen Decker, the U.S. Attorney in Los Angeles, who personally asked him if he was interested in representing the victims. San Bernardino County prosecutors subsequently contacted at least one victim's husband about joining in the case. The FBI wants Apple's help to access shooter Syed Rizwan Farook's phone by disabling its passcode protections. The company argues that such a move would set a dangerous precedent and threaten customer security. Several former federal prosecutors and defense lawyers said they had never encountered a situation in which the Justice Department asked a particular lawyer to represent victims. None suggested that the action was inappropriate, though they did point out that it could become complicated if the interests of the government and the victims were to diverge. Larson acknowledged that the move was "unprecedented" in his experience, but said that the refusal of a company like Apple to comply with a court order was also very unusual. "Apple has close to unlimited resources to litigate this thing," Larson said. "It is hardly a surprise the U.S. Attorney wants to make sure victims have someone looking after them." The entry of victims into the case gives the Justice Department a powerful and sympathetic ally, with a clear and compelling interest in the case. Supporters of the company, meanwhile, suggest the government's actions are as much a bid to alter the political landscape around encryption as they are a quest for legal remedies in the case at hand. Michael Tigar, a professor at Duke Law who has represented several high profile defendants in disputes with the federal government, said Apple could petition the court to ensure the victims are making their own decisions. "I would ask the court to make sure that the control of who the lawyer is, and of the arguments the lawyer is going to make, is firmly in the hands of the person the lawyer purports to represent," Tigar said. Larson, who is representing San Bernardino victims for free, said each person joining the case chose to become involved. DOJ spokesman Thom Mrozek said prosecutors simply suggested that victims "who wished to have separate representation in the litigation at no cost contact Mr. Larson." Such an action, he said, was not unusual, and witnesses in criminal cases are often advised to contact counsel to represent their interests, he said. "Because the third-parties in this case are crime victims, our responsibility to them is even greater," Mrozek said. James Godoy, whose wife was killed in the attack, said San Bernardino County prosecutors called late last week to ask if he would participate in the case, and he agreed. Larson called soon after to provide more information. Godoy said he is supporting the government because "it doesn't really affect anybody if they're trying to get information off of people who are dead." In a statement on Tuesday, San Bernardino district attorney Mike Ramos said victims deserve a voice in federal court. "We owe it to them to do everything we can to make sure justice is served," he said. George Velasco, whose niece was killed in the shooting, said his brother decided to join the case last week after a call from Larson. "We want to ensure appropriate justice is served, and the contents of the cell phone could contain critical information needed to ensure that happens," Velasco said. Larson declined to comment on how many victims might ultimately sign onto the brief. An Apple representative did not respond to a request for comment. Federal prosecutors have legal obligations to victims, such as making sure they are aware of court hearings and have a chance to speak at sentencing. Prosecutors should also help victims understand that DOJ attorneys do not represent them, and that they can seek separate counsel to protect their interests, said Miranda Kane, a defense lawyer who previously served as DOJ's criminal chief in Northern California. As a prosecutor, Kane said, she never suggested a particular attorney for a victim and was not aware of other prosecutors having done so. "I would be very careful doing that," she said. The clash between Apple and the Justice Department is the latest skirmish in a long-running war over how much law enforcement and intelligence officials should be able to monitor digital communications. The Justice Department won an order in a Riverside, California federal court last week against Apple, without the company present in court. Apple is scheduled to file its first legal arguments on Friday, and U.S. Magistrate Judge Sheri Pym, who served as a federal prosecutor before being appointed to the bench, has set a hearing on the issue for next month. Not all victims are firmly in the government's camp. Salihin Kondoker, whose wife is recovering after being shot in the attack, said at first he agreed with the government that Apple should cooperate. Now he is undecided. "I use Apple phones," said Kondoker, who has not been contacted about joining the government lawsuit. "So I want to keep my information confidential, keep my information private so it should not be accessed by anyone - not even law enforcement officers." Reuters tech2 News Staff Xolo has announced yet another Era smartphone called the Era X. The Xolo Era X is a budget smartphone that is priced at Rs 5,777 with the highlight being its 4G bands. The smartphone is already on sale at Amazon.in. The Xolo Era X packs in a 5-inch HD IPS display (1280 x 720 pixels) sporting a pixel density of 294ppi with Corning's Gorilla Glass protection. Inside we get a quad-core 1.5GHz Spreadtrum SC9830A SoC with 2GB of RAM and a Mali 400 GPU. The device features just 8GB of internal storage, but the same can be expanded to 32GB with the help of a microSD card slot. Coming to the cameras the Era X comes with an 8MP camera with an LED flash on the back and a 5MP unit up front for selfies. On the connectivity front we get a 4G (VoLTE), Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth and a micro USB port for charging and data transfers. All of the above is powered by a 2500mAh battery that is removable. The handset runs Android 5.1 Lollipop and the company states that it is upgradeable to Android 6.0 Marshmallow when the update is made available. The handset is available in black and is priced a bit higher than the Era 4G, which was announced for Rs 4,777 last week. The Xolo Era X is similar to its siblings and also includes multilingual support for regional languages such as Assamese, Bengali, Gujarati, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Odia, Punjabi, Tamil and Telugu. Volleyball results from Thursday Friday, Oct. 7, 2022, 8:34 a.m. -- LAPEER COUNTY -- The Almont varsity volleyball team beat Madison Heights Lamphere and New Lothrop in a triple header at Almont Thursday. Dryden beat Bay City All Saints... Golf and tennis regional results Thursday, Oct. 6, 2022, 5:41 p.m. -- LAPEER COUNTY -- Boys' high school tennis regionals and girls' golf regionals took place yesterday. Lapeer girls' golf placed 11th at the Div. 1 regional hosted by Oxford... Friday night football scores Friday, September 30, 2022 10:15 p.m. LAPEER COUNTY Lapeer beat Grand Blanc 39-17 at Lapeer to remain undefeated at 6-0. Almont upset Croswell-Lexington 37-26 North Branch routed Richmond 62-10 Imlay City/Dryden fell to Yale... Summer sports camps/clinics Wednesday, June 15, 2022, 4:40 p.m. -- LAPEER COUNTY -- Below is a list of the summer sports camps and clinics that will take place through early Aug. The regular sports update posting of high... SC verdict on Mir Quasem`s appeal March 8 The Supreme Court (SC) will deliver its verdict on March 8 on the appeal filed by condemned war criminal Mir Quasem Ali challenging the death penalty for his crimes against humanity during the Liberation War. After the closure of the appeal arguments on Wednesday, a five-member bench of the SC, led by Chief Justice SK Sinha, first set March 2 for delivering the judgment but it later shifted the date to March 8 on account of absence of the Chief Justice who will then be out of the city on a tour. The other judges of the bench are Justice Syed Mahmud Hossain, Justice Hasan Foez Siddique, Justice Bazlur Rahman and Justice Mirza Hussain Haider. The appeal hearing began on February 9. Attorney General Mahbubey Alam represented the state while Khandker Mahbub Hossain stood for the Jamaat leader. Earlier on May 28 and August 18, 2015, the SC asked the defence and prosecution to submit the concise statements of the appeal. On November 30, 2014, Mir Quasem Ali filed the appeal with the SC challenging the death penalty awarded to him by the International Crimes Tribunal-2 for his crimes against humanity during the Liberation War in 1971. On November 2 the same year, the tribunal had condemned Jamaat-e-Islami leader Mir Quasem Ali to death for his crimes against humanity during the Liberation War. --Dhaka, Feb 24 (UNB) N Korea warns of preemptive strikes against US, S. Korea S Korea military warns of 'stern punishment' for Pyongyang North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un inspecting maneouvers for attack and defence between large combined units of the Korean People\'s Army. AFP, Seoul :North Korea on Tuesday lashed out at an upcoming joint US-South Korean military exercise, warning it would attack the South and the US mainland in case of any armed provocation.The South and its close US ally will next month hold their largest-ever annual exercise in response to the North's recent nuclear test and long-range rocket launch, Seoul's defence ministry has announced.The North's military supreme command said the allies planned to practise a "beheading operation" aimed at the North's leadership, and other moves to neutralise its nuclear weapons and missiles.If there were even a "slight sign" of special forces moving to carry out such operations, the military said, "strategic and tactical" preemptive attacks would be launched.The primary target would be the South's presidential Blue House, it said in a statement on the official news agency, condemning it as "the centre for hatching plots for confrontation with the fellow countrymen in the north, and reactionary ruling machines".The North also threatened attacks on US bases in the Asia-Pacific and the mainland.It said it has "the most powerful and ultra-modern strike means" in the world capable of "dealing fatal blows at the US mainland any moment and in any place".Such blows would "reduce the cesspool of all evils to ashes, never to rise again on our planet", it added in a reference to the United States.The North habitually claims that the annual Key Resolve/Foal Eagle exercise is a rehearsal for invasion while Seoul and Washington say it is purely defensive.Tensions are high as the United Nations considers tougher sanctions against the North to punish it for January's nuclear test and this month's rocket launch.Meanwhile, South Korea's military warned North Korea today to halt all "provocations", saying its reckless actions would only speed up the "collapse of its dictatorial system."The verbal volley comes a day after North Korea's military supreme command, angry over upcoming joint US-South Korean exercises, threatened to attack Seoul's presidential Blue House."We strongly urge North Korea to immediately halt provocative actions that are propelling it to destruction," the South's Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement. China deploys fighter jets to contested Island in South China Sea AFP, Washington : China has deployed fighter jets to the same contested island in the South China Sea to which it also has sent surface-to-air missiles, US officials said on Tuesday. Citing two unnamed US officials, Fox News said US intelligence services had spotted Chinese Shenyang J-11 and Xian JH-7 warplanes on Woody Island in the disputed Paracel Islands chain over the past few days. Navy Captain Darryn James, a spokesman for US Pacific Command, confirmed the report but noted that Chinese fighter jets have previously used the island. Woody Island, which is also claimed by Taiwan and Vietnam, has had an operational airfield since the 1990s but it was upgraded last year to accommodate the J-11. "We are still concerned that the Chinese continue to put advanced arms systems on this disputed territory," James said. The move was reported as US Secretary of State John Kerry hosted his Chinese counterpart, Foreign Minister Wang Yi, in Washington. Last week, China confirmed it had placed "weapons" on Woody Island, defending what it said was its sovereign right to do so. A US official told AFP that Beijing has deployed surface-to-air missiles on the island, apparently HQ-9s, which have a range of about 125 miles (200 kilometers.) Wang had been scheduled to visit the Pentagon earlier Tuesday but the visit was canceled due to a "scheduling conflict," officials said. On Monday, the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies released satellite imagery showing what appeared to be a high-frequency radar installation under construction on an artificial island on Cuarteron Reef in the Spratlys. China's land reclamation and military buildup in the South China Sea have drawn international condemnation and the United States has said it will continue to sail through waters claimed by Beijing. StanChart Bank sets up new ATM at Cox's Bazar Abrar A Anwar, CEO; Aditya Mandloi, Head of Retail Banking, Standard Chartered Bank, Bangladesh and Md Hayat Khan, Finance Controller, Ocean Paradise Hotel & Resort along with other senior officials of both organizations, inaugurating the new ATM at the h Economic Reporter : Standard Chartered Bank, Bangladesh has expanded its footprint by opening its first ATM at Cox's Bazar. It is located at the premises of Ocean Paradise Hotel & Resort. With the addition of this new ATM, the bank's customers travelling to Cox's Bazar will have easy access to their funds and also goes on to show its brand promise of 'Here for good'. Abrar A Anwar, CEO, Standard Chartered Bank, Bangladesh; Aditya Mandloi, Head of Retail Banking, Standard Chartered Bank, Bangladesh; along with senior officials of Ocean Paradise Hotel & Resort were present during the inauguration program. Abrar A Anwar, CEO, Standard Chartered Bank, Bangladesh stated, "I am very thankful to the management of Ocean Paradise Hotel & Resort for giving us the opportunity to set up an ATM inside their premises. At Standard Chartered, we are constantly endeavoring to provide easy access to our client's fund with highest level of client satisfaction." Hearing on charge framing against 25 BNP leaders deferred again Court Correspondent :The Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (CMM) Court of Dhaka on Wednesday deferred the hearing once again on charge framing against 25 BNP men including BNP Acting Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir in a case filed for interrupting police while they were performing their duties. Magistrate SM Masud Zaman of the CMM Court passed the order fixing May 25 for next hearing on charge framing. Mirza Fakhrul Islam was not present in the court-room and his lawyer Joynal Abedin Mesba moved a time petition on his behalf. The First Information Report (FIR) of the case says that on December 12, 2012, Mirza Fakhrul threatened car owners not to go to the road with their vehicles. Later, on the same day, 30 to 40 BNP-Jamaat men allegedly interrupted police and brick-bated pedestrians, some of them were injured in the incident.Kalabagan Police Station SI Asaduzzaman filed the case against 25 men in this connection. Later, on October 20, 2014, the SI of the police station submitted the charge sheet of the case against 25 people. A fathers heart-bleeding Habibur Rahman : It's an utterly haunting recollection of my lost son Shaheed Colonel Quadrat Elahi Rahman Shafique, ndc, psc. From his very childhood he appeared to be extremely sharp and meritorious. As growing older dream for a bright and blissful future flashed in his eyes. As he was going through his professional career in Bangladesh Army his performances were bringing him laurels of glory adding more and more feathers to his cap. Quadrat Elahi was known as one of the most brilliant officers in the Bangladesh Army. But my wife and I could never imagine that we would stumble on such a bizarre freak of fortune and be thrown into our life's greatest dungeon of despair. All our happiness faded into the void of time like a house of cards! Col. Elahi and 56 of his colleagues were so brutally butchered in the BDR mayhem on February 25, 2009. Finishing his studies at Jhenaidah Cadet College he joined the Bangladesh Military Academy (BMA) and commissioned on 10th June 1983. The Military Academy gives a short name to all cadets and he was named " Elahi". While undergoing his military training in Bhatiary he stood first in B.Sc. from Chittagong University. Then as usual he was going through his career as an officer of 3 East Bengal. As a Captain he was posted to the School of Infantry & Tactics (SI&T) in Sylhet as Instructor, a post given only to the best officer in each course, which he had done earlier with flying colours. He then went to UN Peace Keeping Mission in Bosnia for one year. Soon after his return he was posted as Brigade Major (BM) in 69 Infantry Brigade in Bandarban just for a few months. Meanwhile, he appeared for the examination for Defense Services Command & Staff College (DSCSC) for psc. For his outstanding result in DSCSC he was sent to Malaysia for doing his second staff course for a year where also he kept the head of Bangladesh high. He was placed in SI&T for the second time after his return from Malaysia as a Major to train a group of elder officers (some Lt. Colonels and below) whose further promotion was stopped for some reason or other. And from there he was posted as 2nd in Command in 1 East Bengal in Sylhet. In the history of Pakistan and Bangladesh Army for the first time three officers were sent to the Institute of Business Administration (IBA) under University of Dhaka appearing through its normal intake examination for the same. In the two-year regular course Elahi stood first in MBA (Marketing) bringing glory to Bangladesh Army. Meanwhile, the government decided to open a Military Institute of Science & Technology (MIST) to impart education to military officers as well as civilians for B.Sc (Engineering), MBA, Computer Engineering etc which previously were being done in BUET and other institutions. Elahi was posted to MIST as an Instructor for the MBA course. Soon he was promoted to Lt. Col. As normal practice of the Army after being promoted to Lt. Col. one is immediately sent to Command a Battalion as first posting. As a special case, in order to set up the MIST Quadrat Elahi's file was called by the Army Chief and he wrote "Lt. Col Elahi is essentially required to design and commence the first MBA Course in MIST for a year and then he would go for command". After that Elahi was posted as Commanding Officer of 18 East Bengal in the Chittagong Hill Tracts. Finishing his Command for two years he was brought back to the Staff College (DSCSC) as Directing Staff (DS). After a few months he was promoted to Full Colonel in 2007 and posted as Senior Instructor (SI) in the Staff College. A few months later he was sent to Sudan in the UN Peace Keeping Mission as Sector Commander for one year. While in Sudan the UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon came to Sudan and decorated him with the Medal of Gallantry which only a few officers of the UN Peace Mission have received. A year later he returned from Sudan to the country and was sent to NDC (National Defense College) for the one-year course for his extraordinary merit. He successfully completed his NDC in December 2008.This course is generally meant for officers of the rank of Brigadier General and above, except in rare cases of outstanding merit, another crown which Elahi achieved. While doing his ndc course he completed M.Phil from Dhaka University aiming at doing his Ph.D at a suitable time. When he decided to join the Army in his teens, myself and my wife were not at all keen that he joins the Army. In consideration of his merit we wanted him to finish his studies in the country, go abroad, do his Ph.D and become a Professor in a foreign university. To all appearances, he wanted to fulfill our desire and make us happy, showing that he could be a Ph.D even being in the Bangladesh Army. But, Allah's will was different that he would join the Army and be shot dead in the brutal BDR mutiny in Feb- 2009 in such a diabolical manner. What an appalling butchery in the history of the army veiled in mystery and unthought of in our wildest dream. After all his achievements as a bright young officer, things didn't get anything better for Elahi! Precisely speaking, on 11th of January 2009 as a full Colonel he joined as Sector Commander of BDR in Dinajpur Sector (being there for only 1 month and 10 days). He came to Dhaka for the BDR Annual Conference on 21st February 2009. As ill-luck would have it, the hellish BDR carnage occurred on February 25 in Pilkhana, Dhaka. Among others he was also a hostage in the Darbar Hall, shot in his head and he left this world forever and a day. It is learnt that while in hostage he sent some messages to the Army Chief, DGFI and some of his colleagues that they were still alive under grave life-risk and asked them to save their lives, which was only a cry in the wilderness. During the entire episode our eyes were glued to the TV watching names of the dead continuously for two days and nights over without food or a wink of sleep hoping that Elahi's flame of light was still shinning. But then his name appeared on the screen on the 27th afternoon. It was as if the whole world came crushing down. All was over! A terrible chill ran down our spine. We were crest fallen! Around 9.30 am on the 25th Feb. hearing about some trouble in BDR I was frantically trying to contact him in his mobile but to no avail. He had such unflinching affection to the family that he would always make a telephone call or send messages to us wherever he was. But in this tragic event he did not make a single call or send any message to any one of us realizing that we would unnecessarily worry and run hither and thither to find news about him for nothing. It simply shows how considerate a child, a father and a husband he was! As usual, the Promotion Board sat in July- 2009 and Elahi was top in the list to be a Brigadier General - a pity he left this world in the prime of his Career without a Star (Brigadier) although he proved himself a brighter star in the Bangladesh Army. In 2-3 years time five of his course mates have now become Major Generals but not Elahi. He ended up as a colonel, although many of his colleagues believed that Elahi's shoulders would be crowned with many stars in recognition of his extraordinary calibre. The English poet Longfellow very rightly wrote: "Full many a gem of purest ray serene The dark unfathomed caves of ocean bear: Full many a flower is born to blush unseen, And waste its sweetness in the desert air." Quadrat Elahi was throughout his life a sweet and loveable person of impeccable manners to his superiors, colleagues, friends, relations and all those he was rubbing shoulders with. He was even very dear to his drivers and domestic aides. He was soft spoken and would always be helpful whenever somebody was in any distress or problem. I may cite one example of his humane nature. When he was commanding 18 East Bengal in Chittagong Hill Tracts, his 2nd in command, a Major was shot in his belly by the Shanti Bahini from a hill-top while patrolling in a speedboat in Kaptai Lake. The officer was quickly flown to Dhaka CMH by helicopter. Perhaps, he was operated upon but within a short time the doctors suggested that he had to be taken abroad to Singapore or better to London in view of the gravity of his injury. Authorities decided to send him to Singapore. Elahi was terribly upset thinking that the officer would certainly get better treatment in London and maybe his life would be saved. Breaking the chain of command he personally met the Army Chief and persuaded him to send the officer to London. In a couple of months the officer returned to Bangladesh fully cured so much so that in a short time he was promoted to Lt. Col. I believe, that officer must have had further promotions by now. He would surely pray for Elahi all his life for his magnanimous feat of gesture beyond the call of duty. To add salt to the injury, another tragedy befell us when Elahi's mother passed away in 2012 silently suffering and groaning in pain for the loss of her "golden" son - a grievous wound she couldn't bear any longer. In my late 70's I am counting my days discreetly suppressing my agony from all I come across everyday. Hardly a day passes that I do not weep for Elahi in my daily prayers and when I offer Fateha standing by his grave. But there is no cure or qualms. Each passing day is a drugery of life for me with none to share. After the BDR bloodbath while his coffin draped in national flag was being lowered to the grave, one officer whom I did not know remarked "Wherever Elahi has served, his juniors or even his seniors there had many things to take lessons from". At the same place a Brigadier General in uniform said "In the loss of Colonel Elahi the countrymen will never know what the Army has lost". An officer with tears in his eyes was commenting "In the BDR Mutiny the colossal loss we have suffered, Bangladesh Army cannot recover in 50 years". Out of thousands of BDR men only a handful of them knew him in 1 month and 10 days in Dinajpur. He had no enemies. Albeit, so many moons and monsoons have passed by, the lurking question remains unanswered, why? What then was the cause that 57 brilliant unarmed officers were so brutally murdered - a conspiracy, national or international to weaken the Bangladesh Army. Will the truth ever come out? Possibly not! It's a million dollar question and the answer is a far cry. Those of us who have lost our dearest ones are only helplessly biting the dust. To our utter dismay, the victim families have been made to stomach it all and reel from the rudest shock of our life-time. Almighty Allah alone knows how long it will take when in death the blood-oozing from my heart will finally stop and I run out of steam. The only beacon of hope is that our heart-rending cry and ocean of tears will certainly fall on the conspirators and murderers from the Creator Himself today or tomorrow. If earthly justice is denied, justice from Allah will never spare anyone, sooner or later. This is our firm faith in Him, the omniscient and the greatest judge in heaven and earth. As I write the above lines in memory of my son, my eyes are getting moist, tears are blurring my vision, my heart is bleeding, I cannot write any more! May Allah grant Elahi and all his fellow shaheed colleagues Jannatul Ferdous. (Habibur Rahman, Father of Shaheed Col. Quadrat Elahi Rahman Shafique, ndc, psc) Show success in recovery of stolen money from banks FINANCE Minister AMA Muhith's statement in the Jatiya Sangsad Tuesday describing how 27 bank officials, 56 business organizations and eight surveyor firms were instrumental in swindling Tk 4,500 crore from BASIC Bank has come as a reminder how our banking system is open to organized robberies by people having access to powerful quarters of the government. The Finance Minister described the scams replying the question of a lawmaker but one would only wonder why lawmakers did not want to know what the minister himself did all these years when money was systematically removed and senior management officials and audit firms did everything to cover the scams. We know that the Finance Minister is personally an honest man but it can't be denied that he has utterly failed to protect the bank and not only BASIC Bank, more such banks from organized swindlers' hand. Under his nose Sonali Bank alone lost Tk 3,600 crore to a single business firm and it is known to all that an Adviser to Prime Minister had the hands behind it. Other state-owned banks also lost huge money in bad loans to faulty borrowers and many of them are now trying to survive on regular recapitalization from budgetary fund. The Finance Minister owes an explanation to the nation how he has managed the sector and why he failed to protect it from powerful quarters. Even by doubling the salary of government servants without weighing its impact on common people and the private sector, the Finance Minister has showed his utter helplessness to powerful lobbies within the government. In case of BASIC Bank he has squarely blamed the then chairman of the bank Abdul Hye Bacchu for the scams along with senior bank officials including managing director, deputy managing directors, general managers and others. But it is no secret that it was the Finance Minister himself who approved the extension of service of the bank chairman at least on two occasions staggering over six years despite hefty media reports on his loan scams. Bangladesh Bank had also appointed an observer to the bank to improve its loan performance but it served no purpose as the chairman remained untouchable over the years. Now the lengthy statement on the scam without least success on recovery of the lost money makes no sense. In our view leadership equally involves accountability and the Finance Minister must set an example by accepting the failure. Because the banking sector suffered the worst over the past several years when, apart from swindling of bank money loan rescheduling to big business houses, apparently on political consideration also made the state-owned banks severely sick. There must be new leadership dynamism to save the sector from the brink. Dhaka must do everything to improve the city`s living quality DHAKA has been ranked as the 214th least liveable city among the world's 230 cities in this year, which focused in a survey titled "Quality of Living Ranking 2016" released by the US-based research institute, MERCER. Despite recent security issues, social unrest, and concern about the region's economic outlook, European cities continue to offer some of the world's highest quality-of-living and Vienna, the capital city of Austria has secured rank one. The vast region of Asia has considerable variation in quality of living. In 26th place, Singapore remains its highest ranking city; a media outlet reports on Tuesday. This ranking of Dhaka city in the world has once again created a sense of fury and frustration among many of us. It lucidly focuses that Dhaka's liveable standard is deteriorating day by day for the lack of concern of its authorities to make the city liveable.According to WHO, Dhaka has been ranked 23rd among 1,600 cities of 91 countries with worst urban air quality (2014 Ambient Air Pollution database). The economic cost of particulate (PM10) air pollution in Dhaka city estimated in a research is 2.4 percent of the GDP of the country. The challenges of Dhaka city and the way they affect the lifestyle of its residents, are probably much deeper than reflected in quantified indicators. The city has been suffering from perennial traffic gridlock, destruction of wetlands and green spaces and encroachment of pedestrian space. It lacks an efficient waste management system, a well-functioning public transportation arrangement and a pulsating cultural life.Over the years, public resources have been allocated to vanity projects, which have not improved the quality of urban life and poor emergency services are among many inconveniences that its residents face in their daily lives. The city is overcrowded and by 2050, urban population is predicted to rise to 70 percent of total global population where effective decentralization and development devolution remain a far cry. As a result, the city has simply become unliveable. Dhaka's urbanization is undernourished with basically non-existent civic amenities. However, none can yet say for sure how successful the mayors will be in their campaign to brighten the image of Dhaka. It is time for the government to upgrade the status of Dhaka as the capital by all means. The stigma of being the 214th least liveable city in the eyes of the international community sadly lingers on, even when the government is talking about faster progress. Nobody around is really taking care of the parameters related to the quality of life in the capital. If our policymakers want to make Dhaka a sustainable city, there has to be a change in the way they think, the way they plan, the way they take decisions and the way they work. A futuristic view of the political leadership, along with actual implementation, is what Dhaka city needs for its survival. BCL activists attack general students at Titumir College: 10 injured Staff Reporter : A group of Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL) attacked the general students, who were continuing their movements for cancellation of extra fees during form fill-up of honours class at Government Titumir College on Wednesday. At least 10 students were injured during the attack on the college campus in the morning. The injured were admitted to different private hospitals in the capital. Of them, three students were shifted to Dhaka Medical College and Hospital (DMCH) in a critical condition. Police raided the campus receiving the information of the incident and recovered some unclaimed country-made arms, including swords and machetes, behind the main building of the college, said Rafiqul Islam, Assistant Commissioner of Gulshan Division of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP). Additional police personnel were deployed on the college campus to meet the emergency, the police official said. Titumir College unit BCL President Niazul Islam Dollar rejected the accusation of the attack on the students. Freedom of expression restricted in BD: AI Staff Reporter : Independent media outlets came under severe pressure from the authorities restricting the freedom of expression in Bangladesh, according to the annual report of Amnesty International (AI). "In October the government warned business enterprises that they would be penalised if they advertised in Prothom-Alo and the Daily Star, two leading newspapers known for their critical stance," added the report published on Tuesday. The report added that in November, a parliamentary standing committee recommended that the anti-corruption NGO Transparency International should be deregistered in Bangladesh for criticising the Parliament.' 'A court in Dhaka imposed charges of contempt of court against 49 civil society activists who criticised its trials as unfair.' 'Authorities blocked social media messaging and other communications applications in November, in what constituted restrictions on freedom of expression.' 'Bloggers expressing secular views were attacked, reportedly by Islamist groups.' 'In February 2015, Avijit Roy was hacked to death by men wielding machetes. His wife, Rafida Ahmed Bonya, survived. By August, three other bloggers, Washiqur Rahman, Niloy Neel and Ananta Bijoy Das, had been hacked to death. 'In October 2015, a publisher of secularist literature was hacked to death, and a publisher and two secularist writers survived an attack. Government authorities, including the Prime Minister, accused the bloggers and publishers of offending religious feelings in their writings.' Regarding enforced disappearance in Bangladesh, the Amnesty International in its report said that members of the security forces in plain clothes arrested dozens of people and later denied knowledge of their whereabouts. A survey of national newspapers conducted by the human rights organization Ain O Salish Kendra indicated the enforced disappearance of at least 43 individuals, including two women, between January and September. Of the 43, six were later found dead; four were released after their abduction; and five were found in police custody. The fate and whereabouts of the other 28 was unknown.' "Trials continued against three Rapid Action Battalion officers charged with abducting and killing seven people in April 2014. No members of security forces or officials implicated in other cases of enforced disappearance were brought to justice," it said. AI also warned of a global assault on human rights in its annual report and accused institutions, such as, the United Nations of not doing enough to protect civilians. "A number of governments have "brazenly" broken international law and are undermining human rights by attacking, neglecting and underfunding institutions meant to protect people," it said. Those bodies include U.N. human rights mechanisms, the International Criminal Court and regional bodies, such as the Council of Europe and the Inter-American human rights system. Amnesty reported that in 2015 more than 98 states tortured or ill-treated people, and at least 30 countries "illegally forced refugees to return to countries where they would be in danger." Governments or armed groups in at least 18 countries committed war crimes or other violations of war. Ploy to grab land of Uttara graveyard Not my headache, it is mayor's responsibility, says ward commissioner: NGO given space for running clinic Vast space remained vacant in the Uttara Sector-4 graveyard due to a writ filed against new burials whereas a private clinic was allowed to build there a multi-storied service center. The photo was taken on Wednesday. Staff Reporter : A vested quarter is still on a ploy to grab the remaining land of the of Uttara graveyard under sector 4 in city by constructing more establishments there in the future, according to locals. The residents of the sector have urged the Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) mayor as well as the authority concerned to take steps to settle this long-standing issue so that the remaining land of the graveyard can be used for burial purpose. To cope with the growing pressure, Rajdhani Unnayan Kartipakkha (RAJUK) about a decade ago had handed over 23 kathas land to then undivided Dhaka City Corporation (now DNCC) in the north site of the Uttara graveyard under sector 4 but this space remain unused due to the land litigation. According to the DNCC statistics, the capacity of Uttara graveyard at sector-4 is 600 graves while sector 12 is 1,200. But these burial grounds cannot meet the rising demand for burial plots in the area. Residents of Uttara sector alleged that some local influential people remain always active to grab the land and they have already taken various moves in this regard. They are telling other residents of the sector that a new mosque and a madrassa would be established there on the north side of the graveyard. Talking to this reporter, some residents in the area said that a section of house owners in the northeast side of the graveyard do not get tenants to let their flats as the graveyard is just situated in front of their balconies. "It is very simple nobody wants to go to bed by saying goodnight to the graveyard or wants to say good morning in the dawn again. Observing the situation, some house owners blessed by local leaders are opposing not to expand the northeast part of the graveyard for using as burial ground," a resident said. He alleged that these people along with the incumbent councillor Mohammad Afsaruddin Khan are advocating for establishing a new mosque and a madrasa there. "But we local people don't have any need to establish another mosque or madrassa as we have already a big mosque with sufficient accommodation facilities. It does not mean that I'm opposing mosque and madrassa. I would like to make my stand clear that we have a nice mosque, which has the capacity to accommodate more people. But we need sufficient space for our graveyard," another local said. He added local should attach importance on the final resting places for the dead instead of mosque and madrassa. When contacted the incumbent councillor Afsaruddin Khan of Ward No-1, said he does not have any headache about the issue. As asked that the ward counsellor is a key person who can play an effective role for his ward, he said, "Actually I know nothing about this issue. And I don't have any interest too. Mayor is all in all." Meanwhile, some employees of the graveyard preferring not to be named told The New Nation that they are worried as the graveyard's land is being grabbed in many ways. "We don't have any option. Some local people don't want to see the existence of the graveyard here. As a result, the graveyard is running out of space." On an average 100-150 bodies are buried in the graveyard in a year. The densely populated area has hardly any place for eternal rest for its dwellers in the near future, they added. The chare for a general grave (two years) is Tk 500 only, for 10 years Tk 5 lakh, for 15 years Tk 8 lakh, for 20 years Tk 12 lakh and for 25 years Tk 15 lakh at Uttara graveyard Recently, the graveyard authority allows three options-general, 15 years and 25 years. The city corporation is not selling any space as the government in January, 2009 had declared rules and regulations that no one will be able to buy permanent space in any graveyard under its jurisdiction. According to DNCC official, every two years the soil of the graveyard is sifted. The bones retrieved are buried in a specific place and the soil is replaced. This gives space for new graves. As per the Islamic rules, burial space should not be bought permanently. Moreover, the space in Dhaka is decreasing day by day. So, it will be difficult for us to accommodate more bodies in future, he added. Besides, Ahsania Mission, a non-government organisation, occupying some portions of the northeast area of the graveyard, is running a clinic named Nagar Shastho Kendra. Locals have raised question why Ahsania Mission was allocated land inside the graveyard to establish this clinic (Nagar Shastho Kendra) as it has reduced the space of the graveyard. In the past it was a family graveyard of late two brothers Mohammad Aminuddin and Mofizuddin. Later, RAJUK acquired 43 kathas of land and handed it over the undivided DCC for graveyard to meet growing demand for burial plots in the residents of city's Uttara area, according to graveyard authority sources. They added RAJUK also handed some 23 kathas of land to the DCC for expansion of the graveyard almost a decade ago. Originally, RAJUK had a plan to construct a mosque and a madrassa on that 23 katha of land. But as a big mosque with a sufficient land is situated just 500 yard off the graveyard at Road No 6 under sector 4 in the area, RAJUK later handed it over to DCC for expansion of the graveyard. The Uttara graveyard was established on July 10 in 1995 on 66 kathas of land. Hazi Mohammad Abdul Alim Mollik, a residence of House No. 39, Road No 10 under Sector 4, filed a writ petition against the expansion of graveyard during the army-backed emergency government in 2007. Since then, the open space of the north side of the graveyard has remained unused. The then ward councillor late Hafizul Islam along with local people on several occasions had tried to convince some residents whose houses are adjacent to the northeast and northwest side of the graveyard to withdraw the writ petition and not to oppose the expansion the last resting place. "But all his efforts went in vain," a local said. Talking to The New Nation Md Quisarul Islam, General Secretary, Uttara Jano Kallan Sangstha Sector 4, said that they are hopeful to get back the remaining space of the graveyard. "On several occasions, we raised the issue and requested Mr. Abdul Alim Mollik to withdraw the stay order. And he (Mollik) has already been convinced and assured us of withdrawing the stay order," he said. Meanwhile, DNCC, the regulatory body of the graveyard has taken initiative to move the case. "We have already taken a move to fight the case. The hearing of the date of case has not yet been fixed. We are waiting for the hearing date. As the stay order is on, I think I should not tell about it more," Mohammad Ershadullah, Law Officer of DNCC told The New Nation. When contacted Zia Uddin Ahmed, Zonal Executive Officer of DNCC said as part of providing medical service to the dwellers, the DNCC in association with the Ahsania Mission, is running a clinic under urban health project. "It is DNCC's asset. We are using the space for running the clinic. And the clinic is not hampering the burial ground," he said. Approximately 1,000-year-old church View from the hill of the church Are you a fan of noir stories? Do you have an animal that's not a pet that comes by regularly? ne of the earliest things we noticed on arriving in Switzerland was the views of the Swiss, or of expats who'd lived here for much longer than us, on the weather. Every change was heralded by the words "it's not normal". Thus, a long sunny summer was "not normal". The interruption of the sunshine by two or three weeks of rain and cold (as happened last July) was "not normal". Bitter wind in December was "not normal". A lovely mild spring early in March (as when we first arrived in 2014) was... you guessed it... "not normal".What is normal weather for this part of Switzerland, I wonder? This winter seems to have gone on longer than last winter, though when I look back at temperature charts, it's relatively the same (though it might have been sunnier, but maybe that's looking back through rose-coloured glasses). And nothing could compare to the grimy slush and icy endlessness of a Montreal winter (where the only saving grace on a day of -40 is that, if you can stay home, the sunshine pouring in through your windows into your nice warm house is very heartening. I always feel guilty about this, not just in thinking of those without homes, but also in wondering whether my rejection of the cold and the long-lasting winter betrays the native population, including the Inuit, who may have participated more fully in all the changing seasons of the land. But then, -40 in the deep silence of the woods does not feel half so miserable as -40 on a dark morning, surrounded by the wind tunnel-forming concrete hulks of a city street).All that to say I'm sharing more snowy photos today! The first batch is of a walk in the medieval village of St Prex, a couple of months ago:And here's our village under snow (down by the lake, it's snowed a handful of times since November, but it never stays on the ground for longer than half a day. It's fun to look up and see the snow-covered tops of the hills and mountains, and to not have to live with the inevitable brown slush and grey polluted snowbanks that follow snowfall in a city):Then there's ROW80. I went through my box of Writing To Do and pulled out the notebooks for NaNo2014 (this story needs a title!) but in the process discovered -- a la Christopher Tolkien finding bits and pieces of his father's papers -- more parts ofthat I haven't typed up yet. I've got to get into a regular habit of spending at least 15 minutes, if not 30, every morning typing up these handwritten drafts.The second part of my update is long, and detailed partly for record-keeping purposes (I love this blog as a record of books read!); feel free to skip it!Speaking of Christopher Tolkien, and my other ROW80 goal of reading all the unread books in the house, I've just completed a project started in 2012 -- rereading all 12 of the books in the History of Middle-earth series. I first read them all over 14-20 years ago (dated, in Christopher Tolkien fashion, by various slips and receipts used as bookmarks or to take notes on that I left in between the pages during my first reading. From these, and from the way I left everything but a schoolbag behind at my parents' house when I moved to Turkey for a year in 2002-2003, it seems clear that I read the twelfth book in the winter of 2002, exactly 14 years ago. I'm not sure when I first read the first book, the; it could have been any time between 1995 and 1999. When I was young, I was intimidated by the books, because all 12 were never displayed at once in order in any bookstore. Sometimes there'd be only one, sometimes a handful, and it was never clear what they were. Gradually, with the advent of the Internet, and with flipping through some of the copies, I figured out what they were and what their proper order was, and started on them, but that could only have happened after I was 15 or so, when I first started travelling downtown to the bookstores by myself), and it's been fun to see my notes from then, to reread my favourite parts (The Lost Road and The Notion Club Papers and the draft Fourth Age stories), and to rediscover certain passages on language, stories, and the patterns of subcreation, not to mention the references here and there to other authors, including Neil Gaiman.Now to turn to a reread of Tolkien's letters! Among other things...One of the books I'm in the middle of is the intriguing, published by Akashic Books in their noir series of anthologies, launched in 2004, of which each story is set in a distinct neighborhood or location within the city of the book.I discovered the Noir anthologies when Diana Gabaldon contributed a story to Phoenix Noir . I can't wait to see which authors are featured in Montreal Noir Then there's this fellow, who comes to visit me every morning: If you are looking for the new Immoral Minority posts, you should know that they can be found here at our new home Please stop by to get caught up on politics, join the conversations, or simply check out the new digs. The U.S.'s first liquefied natural gas export is headed for Brazil. Chevron-owned LNG tanker Asia Vision, built in 2014, docked Sunday at Cheniere Energys Sabine Pass export terminal in the U.S. Gulf, according to Lloyds List. The terminal is located in Cameron Parish on more than 1,000 acres of land along the Sabine Pass River. The location borders Texas and Louisiana. The Chevron-owned Asia Vision vessel is carrying the U.S.'s first shale LNG export out of the Sabine Pass Terminal. The site reports that another LNG carrier built last year, the Kanellakis Group-owned Energy Atlantic, has been waiting since January to load cargo from the terminal, but the export schedule has been delayed. Brazils state-owned energy company Petrobras is scheduled to receive the first cargo of shale gas, a person familiar with the deal told Bloomberg. The shipment of liquefied natural gas was agreed to Monday, said the person, who asked not to be identified because the information isnt public. Cheniere Energy Inc. began loading the first tanker at its Sabine Pass terminal in Louisiana, U.S. Coast Guard spokesman Dustin Williams said in an e-mail Tuesday. The biggest buyer of LNG outside of the winter is Brazil first and Argentina second in the Atlantic Basin, said Ted Michael, an analyst for energy data provider Genscape Inc. They buy LNG for gas-powered, air-conditioned power. Cheniere rose 1.5 percent to $30.77 at 3:24 p.m. in New York after earlier gaining as much as 6.5 percent. Americas first LNG export will hit the water just as global supplies begin to swell, weighing on prices. Other gas-export projects are expected to come under pressure to secure financing and long-term contracts amid the global commodity rout and shifts in demand overseas, Daniel Yergin, vice chairman of the energy consulting group IHS Inc., said in an interview Feb. 17. Demand is forecast to be higher in South America during the spring, in part due to a drought that has increased Brazils dependence on the power-plant fuel. Brazil has increased LNG imports in the past few years after an agreement to buy gas via a pipeline from Bolivia reached its limits. Petrobras bought about 80 LNG cargoes last year. Its expected to purchase another 50 in 2016, according to Porto Alegre-based Gas Energy consultancy. Petrobras had no immediate comment on the shipment. Cheniere didnt respond to an e-mail and voicemail. Initial exports will be considered commissioning cargoes as part of the start-up process to ensure the terminal is fully operational. Once thats complete, Cheniere will need approval from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to operate the export terminal commercially. Read the Bloomberg story here. Depending on what turns up, further inspection of the marshal's email data could determine what penalties he faces in an upcoming contempt hearing. The city marshal, flanked by his deputies, delivers the original press conference that set off this ongoing records dispute last fall. photo by Robin May Attorneys for The IND and City Marshal Brian Pope have agreed to the terms of an IND-requested inspection of the marshals computer and email network. Governed by a protective order, The INDs technical consultant Doug Menefee will be allowed to inspect the marshals computer and email services, as well as the network and servers employed by his office, pursuant to the search terms used in The INDs three standing public records requests. Menefee will also further inspect the contents of email servers operated by Lafayette Consolidated Government, who provides email service to the marshals office. Popes newest IT consultant, Brian Hanks of Global Data Systems, will accompany Menefee throughout the inspection for technical assistance and to ensure that private and confidential documents not meeting the standards of The INDs requests are not inspected or reproduced. The protective order requires that any documents found to be of questionable relevance to the public records search would be evaluated by attorneys for both parties. Presiding judge Jules Edwards III of the 15th JDC would have the deciding say as to the admissibility of any controverted documents. Following a bizarre press conference attacking then-sheriffs candidate Mark Garber last fall, The IND submitted a public records request seeking emails that would potentially demonstrate that Pope had coordinated that press conference with the campaign of Garbers opponent, Scott Police Chief Chad Leger. After initially claiming an exemption from the October request, Pope stated through his attorney that no responsive records existed. At a hearing last December, Edwards ordered Pope to search his files again, suggesting he employ technical assistance, and issued an injunction preventing Pope from withholding any documents. Pope then produced 588 pages of documents. Meanwhile, The IND filed a parallel public records request with LCG, stipulating the same terms for which Pope originally claimed no responsive documents. The LCG request produced 79 pages not included in Popes own certified production, many of which indicated that Pope had, in fact, coordinated and organized that October press conference with the aid of Legers campaign manager, Hilary Joe Castille. In a deposition, Pope admitted under oath that Castille had written materials for that press conference, conflicting with testimony from an earlier hearing. This weeks inspection, requested by The IND on Feb. 11, will attempt to determine whether and when emails not contained in Popes document production were deleted, in clear violation of a court order. Popes current technical consultant has certified that they cannot fully comply with The INDs standing requests without access to LCGs own servers and information. Pope issued a massive public records request on LCG earlier this year, seeking to demonstrate collusion between The IND and city government. Documents found in the inspection, and deemed responsive to The INDs requests, will be reproduced in time for a contempt hearing set for Feb. 29. At a hearing earlier this year, the court ruled Popes responses to two IND requests from 2015 woefully inadequate, awarding attorneys fees to The IND and enforcing statutory penalties that are currently accruing at a rate of $200 a day. Pope has filed an appeal of that ruling, with an appeal bond set at just north of $80,000. Depending on how the inspection informs the courts opinion of Popes compliance or lack thereof, Pope could face civil or criminal contempt penalties. 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! Pre-purchase property inspection is a relatively new thing in the United Kingdom. Its not something that most people have heard about, but it has become increasingly popular over the last few years with the rise in property prices and increased demand for high quality homes. What are the benefits of pre-purchase building inspection? What can you expect to find out when you pay someone else to inspect your home before you buy it? And what should you look for during an inspection? Many people want to know if theyre buying a house thats been well maintained or if its had any serious problems. If youve found a place on the market that seems attractive, but then discover some issues after moving in, you may not be as excited about buying it as you thought you were. Its important to do your due diligence when looking at properties. A lot goes into making a property appealing to potential buyers, from the landscaping to the flooring to the kitchen appliances. The same applies when inspecting a property there are many things that need checking over to make sure everything is running smoothly. Here are some of the benefits of performing a pre-purchase inspection: You get to see exactly what will happen to your money When you go shopping for a new car, youll probably be shown several different models. You might even be shown one that looks like a great value, but doesnt fit around all of the extra features that you want. When it comes time to actually buy the vehicle, however, you wont have seen how your money will be spent on it once you drive it off the showroom floor. Likewise, when you shop for a new home, you dont really know what youre getting yourself into until you move in. In order to get a feel for whether the home youre considering is what you want, you normally have to spend quite a bit of time inside it. This allows you to learn more about everything that youre going to be spending your hard-earned cash on. A pre-purchase building inspection gives you much the same kind of experience without having to spend thousands of dollars. Since youre paying for the service, you can expect to see exactly what youre paying for, instead of just seeing a vague idea of what you might end up with. You find out about potential major repairs Some buildings are very expensive to maintain, which means that owners often neglect them for the sake of saving money. While youre paying for a building inspection, youre also paying for a professional who knows how to spot signs of trouble and repair work that needs doing. If you notice that a particular area of your new home needs fixing right away, you can call in an expert to take care of it quickly. If you find that theres something wrong with your boiler, you wont have to wait weeks for a plumber to come over and fix it. Instead, youll have access to a solution immediately. You can save hundreds of pounds by finding out about potential problems early on One of the biggest expenses when you first buy a home is the cost of moving in. Many people dont realize this until its too late. Buying a home involves not only paying for the actual house, but also for moving costs, furniture, and other items that have to be moved along with the home. Having a good idea ahead of time of what youre likely to encounter can help you avoid these kinds of costs. If you know youll need to replace the plumbing system, for example, youll be able to put together a budget for the expense and plan accordingly. You can protect your investment by finding out if the homes been well cared for While there are plenty of people who think that houses always look better when theyre newly built, youd be surprised at how well maintained older residences can still look nice. Sometimes, though, those homes need some additional maintenance to keep them looking their best. This could involve repairs that arent so noticeable or small improvements that you wouldnt consider otherwise. Even worse, some houses have fallen into disrepair without anyone noticing. This is why having a professional perform a building inspection prior to purchasing a home is such a big benefit. Not only will it give you insight into the state of the property, but it will also give you peace of mind knowing youre not getting taken advantage of. As long as youre aware of the potential pitfalls, youll have less reason to worry about the state of your new home. You can use information gathered during a building inspection to negotiate a lower price If youre worried about buying a home because you suspect that it may need extensive renovation work, you may already have a rough idea of how much work youll need to do to bring it up to scratch. That knowledge can come in handy if you decide to buy the home. You can use all of the details that you gather during a building inspection to present a realistic picture of what the home is worth to prospective buyers. If a potential buyer thinks that the home is worth more than what you paid for it, you can try negotiating a lower price. You can sell your home faster and for more money If you decide to list your home on the market soon after buying it, youll need to price it accurately in order to attract buyers. But if youve already done a thorough building inspection, youll know exactly what work is needed and what the current market conditions are. In other words, youll be able to make a more accurate estimate of the amount of money youve invested in the home and how much its worth. If you find that youre selling your house for close to its full market value, you can use this information to convince the potential buyer that your home is worth the asking price. Even if youre planning to stay in the home for a while before you decide to sell, the fact that you did a thorough building inspection will give you more confidence when listing it. Prospective buyers will know exactly what theyre paying for. Your home will hold its value longer As mentioned earlier, the value of a home depends heavily upon the condition of the building itself. If your home is in bad shape, potential buyers wont be interested in buying it. On the other hand, if youve performed a thorough building inspection and know what sort of repairs are necessary, you can offer your prospective buyer a compelling reason to invest in your property. When you buy a home, youre essentially agreeing to have it inspected periodically to ensure that it stays in top shape. Not only does this allow you to avoid expensive repairs down the road, but it can also increase the value of your home. You can make smart decisions about property investments Buying real estate isnt as simple as just driving a couple of minutes to pick up a house. There are lots of considerations involved, ranging from location to cost. The same is true when youre investing in property. If you find a house that meets all of your requirements, youll want to make sure that you have a solid understanding of where it stands with regards to the rest of the market. If you havent spent enough time researching the area, you could inadvertently end up with a bad deal. There are lots of resources available online that can help you determine the overall level of competition in your area. They can also help you figure out if there are any properties that meet your requirements that you didnt know about. If you own rental property, you can use the information to identify tenants who might cause damage If you own rental property and youve noticed that certain tenants consistently cause damage, you can use the results of a building inspection to identify them. You can then contact them directly to let them know that youre watching them closely and that you dont appreciate the problem theyre causing. They might start taking better care of their homes, which would be good news for everyone. It could also be the case that youll find out that theyre responsible for previous damages that werent caught during a previous visit. You can make smarter decisions about hiring contractors If youve hired contractors to build or repair your home, you might want to ask them for references. However, unless you perform a thorough building inspection, you might not know exactly what to look for. For instance, maybe you only checked the roof for leaks or the walls for cracks. You might not have looked underneath the foundation for anything that could cause a future issue. By performing a building inspection, you can ensure that you hire reputable contractors who will be trustworthy with your money. You can avoid purchasing a home thats in poor condition Of course, the main benefit of structural inspections perth is that it helps you avoid purchasing a home thats in poor condition. Before you make the decision to buy a home, you should do whatever you can to find out about the state of the building. You can also ask your realtor about what sorts of inspections are typically recommended. Some agents say that its standard practice to check the heating system, the roof, the electrical wiring, and the floors. Others will tell you that they recommend that you check the entire structure. Either way, if you choose to hire an inspector, youll find out exactly what needs to be fixed and how much it will cost to do so. As a result, it can be concluded that a pre-purchase building inspection is highly important for the buyers because it provides transparency regarding the current conditions of the structure. Additionally, the building owner is made aware of any upgrades or repairs that are required, which could lead to a fair deal throughout the purchasing and selling process. Jedd's movie reviews, articles, movie-related musings and several other things. On the eve of the centenary of the 1916 Easter Rising and what could be an historic general election in the Republic of Ireland let us appeal to all republicans, socialist, democrats, all those in the anti water charge, anti austerity movement and all who hold freedom and sovereignty dear. Do not be fooled once again by false promises made by charlatans and corrupt leaders. We are not talking about the devils we know like Fine Gael, Fianna Fail, and Labour. No, we are talking about Sinn Fein. To honour the men and women of history who fought and died for freedom, for Republicanism, for sovereignty, for self determination, let us stop the march of this totalitarian party in its tracks and let us consign it to the dustbin of history for being the failed and corrupt entity that it has become. Many believe that Sinn Fein is our only hope to win the anti water, anti austerity campaigns and to build a strong socialist opposition to the right wing austerity parties. This is what we have been conditioned to believe but it is far from the truth. Sinn Fein are not our only hope. We are our hope, not any party, especially Sinn Fein. In fact, if elected in numbers, Sinn Fein will be a barrier, to achieving our goals for many, many years to come. They will impede Irish Socialism and progressive thinking and community empowerment for decades. Firstly by giving false hope and secondly as it has shown through it's involvement in the Right2Water movement, if powerful enough Sinn Fein will sideline and demonise any left opposition, that stand against it's power and control. Sinn Fein is like a cuckoo that uses the strong nests of others to lay it's eggs in. It uses, feeds of the host and then when the time comes, discards it leaving only it's brainchild in place. All to procreate it's ever changing philosophy and to build strong and powerful party. It has no morals or principles left, just tactics and manoeuvres to achieve it's end. It believes that the end justifies the means and any means will do. History has proven this. Sinn Fein will sacrifice anybody and anything to achieve it's goal. Sinn Fein's goal is a totalitarian party, strong, powerful and dictatorial that cocoons it's leader safe in their illusionary images, protecting them against all dissenters and ostracising any who dare question their credentials. It's raison detre, it's principles, long since jettisoned in the Good Friday Agreement and even way before that when it cold-heartedly used the 1981 hunger strike to build it's political base. The cool calculating leaders, Adams and McGuinness in Northern Ireland betrayed their comrades for the Queen's shilling and the USA dollar and threw out all republican principles, joined up with the establishment and proceeded to administer imperialist rule. Like the cuckoo they used and then discarded, the principles of the Irish Patriots, the 1916 rebels, the 1981 hunger strikers, all those republicans who suffered greatly through Irish history. What was it all for? Certainly not what we have in Northern Ireland today, ministerial jobs and Armani suits. And the clincher is; Martin McGuinness, castigating the DUP, calling for sovereignty and opposing EU membership. Sinn Fein will campaign vigorously to retain membership of the EU, an extreme right wing body which along with it's international buddies, the IMF, has inflicted everlasting austerity on nation states. Gone totally are Sinn Fein's republican principles of sovereignty and self determination. Gone totally are any notion of socialism. To grow, Sinn Fein, the party must consolidate it's southern electoral base and maximise it's Dail representation. The party is stagnating in the North and loosing control of it's base who are now seeing Sinn Fein for what it truly is. To build in the South, just like it has done before, it will use anybody or any group and it will do, say and promise anything. That is why it is using the anti water charge and anti austerity movement. It infiltrated the Right2Water movement at the outset and has been quietly pulling the strings ever since. All with this election and the party growth in mind. The only thing that matters is the growth of the party. Water charges, property charges, doesn't matter, they are all means to an end. What better way to do this than to maximise the parties vote in the general election and to do this, use the growing discontent of the anti water charge, anti austerity movement. And the nearer we get to the election and the more Sinn Fein's share in the polls is dropping, the more it knows it needs the Right2Change candidates. Hence the call in today newspaper stating that Gerry Adams is ready to be Taoiseach and Sinn Fein together with their Right2Change fellow candidates can make this happen. In order to get control of the Right2Water movement Sinn Fein fostered fear and disunity, impeded internal strategy and controlled individual members. It stunted the general growth of the movement by splitting it and ousting members who criticised them. It fostered the notion that only with Sinn Fein at the helm, could the movement succeed. It confused the movement's aims, firstly by it's leaders not being clear about paying the charges, secondly, by being unclear about Irish Water ( whether to get rid of Irish Water or not), and thirdly and probably the biggest barrier, was and still is it's stance on the water charges 'Boycott'. Sinn Fein leaders have never backed or called a boycott. Right2Change followed it's lead. It is unbelievable that it took Sinn Fein until November 2015, in it's General Election Manifesto 2016, to state for the first time that they were against water charges and that it was calling for the disbandment of Irish Water. Up until then there was confusion as to what Sinn Fein were advocating. However, even after the launch of their election manifesto, confusion still remains because the fine print is still not clear even though we are just days away from the general election. This dithering has been further demonstrated in recent interviews where Sinn Fein spokespersons at the hurdle in trying to explain how the party was going to achieve the manifesto promises in relation to Irish Water. A wing and a prayer. Sinn Fein are not a socialist party and they are not a republican party. This has been been clearly demonstrated in Northern Ireland and like there, Sinn Fein will do the same here. They are no more left than the Labour Party, or the once Democratic Left and like Pat Rabbitte, Sinn Fein will capitulate and administer an austerity economy just like it is doing in Northern Ireland. And just like Labour it may claim some kind of socialist tendency or like Fianna Fail some type of nationalist aspiration but in the heel of the hunt will join in a coalition with anyone in order to get it's hands on power. Let us make this centenary year, one that Pearse and Connolly and all our brave forefathers would be proud of. 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Table And Chair For Rent Near Me Fox cities party rental is located in. Jack's abby shipping out of boston abv; Domainmobile friendly checksitemap generator table and chair rentals near mehometable and chair rentals near top seo. For the past many years since my stroke, I have worn an AFO (ankle foot orthotic) to help me walk. It is big, plastic, and custom fit to my foot and calf. It has required wearing shoes big enough to accommodate its width and means that all of my shoes have been too big and wide. Men's shoes have often been the best fit. Needless to say, I have hated shoe shopping for the past five years, and the only pair of shoes I've even liked a bit has been a pair of gray men's Converse One Stars. After a year, they are beat up, falling apart, and have been what I jokingly called Sunday school shoes. Until a few weeks ago. My neurologist suggested that I look into device called the Bioness L300--an electrical stimulation cuff that is worn around the calf and under the knee on the affected leg (my left). It uses electric shock to trigger the muscles that lift the foot and toes at the right moment in gait to facilitate walking. It is an alternative to wearing an AFO and allows the user to wear regular shoes as long as they have a back to hold the heel in place. No flip flops. The electrical stimulation helps establish neural pathways from the brain to, and some users are able to walk independently in time with no gait device at all. I visited the company's website and requested their informationalDVD for the Ness L300 foot drop system. It is very cool. If you visit the website or look up the Bioness L300 on You Tube, you can see clearly what it is and how it works. When Bioness contacted me directly to follow up, we scheduled an evaluation and trial, tried one, and saw immediate results. We received purchasing information, decided it was a big decision because of thee price tag, and spent a few weeks thinking about it. On Christmas morning, I opened an envelope from Dad, and discovered that Bioness was offering us a deal that made it more affordable if I wanted it. It didn't take me long to decide that wearing normal shoes without a clunky brace sounded like a really great idea! After the package arrived, the Bioness rep came back to Denver and calibrated my device to work just right for me and how I walk. I wore a pair of Mom's shoes the first day since all of the shoes I had are far too big without my brace. She and I went to DSW and had more fun than we have ever had in a shoe store. We came home with five new pairs of shoes for me! I wear a control unit around my neck that communicates with the cuff and the weight sensor in my left shoe, as well as the gait sensor attached to the shoe itself. It looks normal and can be worn under all of my clothes without being too noticeable. Then off I go!No cane, no brace, just me (in new shoes!). I am still working on having a normal gait with more even, smooth steps and less of a jerky limp thing going on. Friends joke that I should make the bionic sounds like the TV character, but I am hoping to blend into the world around me more subtly than that for now.I would include photos and video here for you, but I haven't done that in so long that I'm not sure I remember how... In other news, we leave onMonday to spend some time in Arizona like we did last year. We are so over winter! The mid-80s are sounding really good! 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 Really pleasant male masturbation and how to do it Are you in a rut with your daily masturbation routine? I'm going to show you five ways men masturbate that you might ... [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. CAIRO -- More than 50 people packed the board room of the Alexander County Housing Authority on Tuesday evening to hear from the new federal directors who have taken over the local agency. Co-administrators Towanda Macon and Stephen Schneller and four other team members from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development introduced themselves to those in attendance and spent nearly two hours answering questions about what the federal takeover means for residents and the community. In Cairo, HUD takes possession of Alexander County Housing Authority CAIRO With a team of six HUD officials reporting to work in Cairo on Monday, The Alexander At the opening of the meeting, Schneller told the crowd that the intent of the meeting was to hear their concerns. HUD announced its decision to move into Cairo on Monday morning, citing a years-long pattern of financial and operational mismanagement, poor housing conditions, and alleged civil rights violations. Macon stated she was glad to see so many people attend the meeting on such short notice. That interest from the community, she said, tells us a lot. We are here in partnership with you, she said. We know that you all have been gathered in this room many times, and you all have probably been told a lot of things that were going to happen, and some things that were not going to happen. We want to move forward. We know that there are things we want to get accomplished as a team, but we need your help in getting those things accomplished. At the meeting, residents voiced numerous concerns, many they have been complaining about for months or even years. Those concerns included crime, infestation, broken appliances, not enough maintenance workers, and a belief that master keys have fallen into the wrong hands. Members of the HUD team recorded each persons concern, name and unit number and promised to follow up individually regarding unit-specific concerns. For all complexes, Macon said infestation control and safety are top priorities. One person asked whether HUD was there to lock the doors and move everyone out. Macon assured that was not the case. She reiterated on several occasions that the team was there to try to make things better for residents, and to stabilize the housing authority so it can be returned to local control. Voice of The Southern: HUD makes good on its promise For years the Board of Commissioners of the Alexander County Housing Authority has been on a The meeting was cordial throughout and even included a few light moments and some laughter. But some of the comments were pointed. Gerald Watkins Sr., who lived for years in Cairo and is now a resident of nearby Mounds, asked what took so long for the federal government to show up, as people have been living in deplorable conditions for years. Now all of the sudden HUD is here? he said. HUD should have been here years ago. Macon responded saying only, Its frustrating, I know. Several people at the meeting also asked about the status of executive director Jason Ashmore, who was appointed to the post in January by former members of the ACHA board, but has continued to work without pay because a contract was never approved. Paul Lambert, a longtime resident of Elmwood and president of a citizens advocacy group, said his concerns about Ashmore are not personal. But, he believes the way Ashmore was brought into the office was disrespectful to the people of Cairo, and that there should be a do-over on selecting a director. Ashmore attended the meeting and stood against a side wall but did not speak. Several other people expressed similar concerns. Macon would only say that their concerns had been heard, and that while there have been no changes to anyones employment terms, a review of staff and responsibilities will take place. Schneller noted that HUDs actions to seize control of operations on Monday means the five members of the Alexander County Housing Authority (ACHA) board were dismissed, and Macon and Schneller appointed to a two-member board in their place. Macon and Schneller, as HUD's appointed co-administrators, are ultimately in charge of day-to-day operations moving forward, he noted, regardless of what title others may hold. Most of the people who attended the meeting are residents of the ACHAs public housing complexes in Cairo. Several other concerned citizens also were in attendance, including Mayor Tyrone Coleman and Councilwoman Connie Williams. Coleman said he was relieved to see HUD in town after facing months of issues with former board members he felt were not listening to the people. He noted that Tuesdays meeting wasnt hostile, and everyone was able to speak their mind. Thats all people have been wanting, Coleman said. He said hes hopeful HUDs presence means improvements are headed Cairos way, but he added that tenants and other community members also must play a big part in making positives changes, and building Cairo up. "Though defensive violence will always be 'a sad necessity' in the eyes of men of principle, it would be still more unfortunate if wrongdoers should dominate just men." - St. Augustine "A new idea is first condemned as ridiculous, and then dismissed as trivial, until finally it becomes what everybody knows." - William James "This is the real task before us: to reassert our commitment as a nation to a law higher than our own, to renew our spiritual strength. Only by building a wall of such spiritual resolve can we, as a free people, hope to protect our own heritage and make it someday the birthright of all men." -- Ronald Reagan A patriot must always be ready to defend his country against his government." -- Edward Abbey "A free people ought not only to be armed and disciplined, but they should have sufficient arms and ammunition to maintain a status of independence from any who might attempt to abuse them, which would include their own government." ~~~George Washington"Conservatives are enemies of the government. Liberals are enemies of the nation because they are not enemies of the government."Aristotle the Hun"Life is not about waiting for the storms to pass...it's about learning how to dance in the rain." ANONA nation that substitutes emotion and empathy for rational thought will eventually digress into the Dark Ages,Congressman Steve King (R-IA),Of all tyrannies, a tyranny sincerely exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive. It would be better to live under robber barons than under omnipotent moral busybodies.The robber barons cruelty may sometimes sleep, his cupidity may at some point be satiated; but those who torment us for our own good will torment us without end for they do so with the approval of their own conscience.They may be more likely to go to Heaven for good intentions yet at the same time likelier to make a Hell of earth. This very kindness stings with intolerable insult. To be cured against ones will and cured of states which we may not regard as disease is to be put on a level of those who have not yet reached the age of reason or those who never will; to be classed with infants, imbeciles, and domestic animals.~ C. S. Lewis In 1956, the vision of Daisy Oliver was accomplished and that same vision was planted in her daughter Rose Rush, which led to a social and health care revolution especially for many of the poor black people of Orangeburg and the surrounding counties. The mother-daughter duo began a transformation in the world of health care. For years, blacks and whites had struggled with the issues involving health care and the care of people who were in need of specialized attention. In the cases of the physical and mentally challenged, most families did the very best they could. The visions of Daisy and her daughter brought about a feeling of relief for the families that simply did what they had to do as it related to the health care of their loved ones. The first known facility for the aging and handicapped for blacks in Orangeburg was founded in 1956 by Mrs. Daisy G. Oliver. It was named the South Carolina Home for the Aging and Handicapped Boarding Home and was located at Crawford and Magnolia streets. Over the history of nursing care facilities, they were called old folks homes, nursing homes, convalescent homes, residential care and today, assisted-living homes. Mrs. Oliver was born Nov. 25, 1896, to Tom and Annie Donaldson Graves of Cope. She was educated in Orangeburg County. Oliver departed Orangeburg and was trained and employed at a Veterans Administration hospital in Ashville, North Carolina, where she remained on active duty for 25 years. In 1956, Oliver returned to Orangeburg. She was a visionary woman with plenty of experience working with the sick and disabled. The South Carolina Home for Aging and Handicapped came about as a result of a situation that happened in 1956 when an aged lady fell on Daisy G. Olivers steps, begging for food and shelter. She indicated that she could not live any longer with family members. Daisy welcomed the lady into her home and served her breakfast. With that compassionate act of kindness, that same day, Daisy had a conference with the director of the Department of Public Welfare on how she could help the black people in Orangeburg who suffered under various conditions of need when they became aged and handicapped. The hearing and report from Daisy was received with great joy that someone cared. The concept of a nursing home grew out of a need for providing skilled nursing care for those persons who are chronically ill, incapacitated or convalescent as diagnosed by a licensed physician. A woman of self-driven character, Oliver drafted her plans and the action began when she consulted with local and state health departments, Orangeburg City Council, church ministers, lay people, statesmen, whites and blacks from all denominational groups in South Carolina. On Dec. 24, 1956, a charter was handed to Daisy as administrator of the first home on Crawford Street. The South Carolina Home for the Aging and Handicapped served in the following capacities: care for young and aged that are handicapped, the homeless aging without family or relatives, forsaken or unwanted persons, senile persons, mentally handicapped persons, blind persons, naked and hungry persons, persons needing medicines and all provisions and care from recipients, welfare checks only. Oliver constructed additional space to accommodate the needs of black folks from five counties. The home operated successfully for nine years with the family, employees and guests in the spirit of compassion. At that time, she was indeed one of a few women to have the visionary trait to take on a social problem that was growing within our society. With this project, Oliver worked extremely hard in her capacity to help improve the living conditions of black Orangeburg. The South Carolina Nursing Home for the Aged and Handicapped continued to operate on Crawford Street until it was closed on Sept. 14, 1964. From there, Olivers vision was taken to another level that would result in a state-of-the art facility for the needy black folks of Orangeburg. On Jan. 23, 1966, groundbreaking was held on Enterprise Street at Glover Street. The new name was the State Eureka Sunshine Memorial Manor Inc. Oliver and her board of directors were required to match the sum of $50,000, and they did. The facility included a 49-bed nursing home with extended care of persons 14 years of age or older after being diagnosed by a licensed physician. The total cost of the project was more than $300,000. An extraordinary woman who brought both the black and white community to support her cause, she pounded the pavement seeking support of her dream. She was able to attract people like Mayor E.O. Pendarvis, former Mayors Clyde Fair and Robert H. Jennings III, H.A. McGee, Sen. Marshall Williams, N.R. Austin, Henry F. Mabry, Dr. Benjamin Blackmon, Dr. Harlowe Caldwell, the Rev. J.W. Curry, Paul Webber, G.P. Zimmerman and a cross section of the total community. While Oliver mapped out her plans, her daughter Rose Lee Zeigler Rush, a teacher of 23 years in the field of home economics, made the decision to retire and voluntarily assist her mother with the home. Knowing that her mom would need professionals in the new facility, Rose was able to receive a scholarship through a National Health, Education, and Welfare scholarship to attend the University of Oklahoma, where she was awarded a certificate as a nursing home administrator, which was a pilot study in 1962. Seeing the vision of her mother, Rose returned to the University of Oklahoma again in 1963 for private study and research in the evaluation of nursing homes on a proprietary basis. For this, she earned additional certificates to qualify her to take the lead in the operation of the first black-owned nursing home facility between Charleston and Columbia. Oliver said of her daughter, I dont know what I would have done if she had not caught the vision and carried it forward. The State Eureka Sunshine Memorial Manor Inc. opened on Jan. 8, 1967. The facility closed in the early 1970s. Since that time, the building has been used by various other health care management systems including Laurel Baye Healthcare. Mrs. Daisy Graves Zeigler Oliver died on Aug. 2, 1971. She was survived by her daughter, Mrs. Rose Lee Zeigler Rush; her son-in-law, Clay C. Rush, Sr., a grandson, Clay C. Rush Jr.; three granddaughters, Eller Glaster, Daisy Morgan and Rose Mary Rush. Olivers daughter, Rose Lee Zeigler Rush, died in June 1980 at the age of 65. She was the widow of Clay C. Rush Sr. who was the founder and operator of Rushs Cleaners for many years in Orangeburg. The survivors included three daughters, Mrs. Eller P.A. Glaster, Mrs. Daisy R. Morgan and Mrs. Rose Mary Murray, all of Orangeburg; son, Clay C. Rush Jr. of Orangeburg; and nine grandchildren. Special note: Mrs. Olivers granddaughter, Daisy Rush Morgan, also worked in the health care business until she retired. For many years, Daisy worked with the Regional Medical Centers Blood Mobile project. When meeting her, one could instantly see the glaring passion that she always displayed in her position. Both mother and daughter were visionary humanitarians who served the Orangeburg community when life needed to be uplifted to a higher level. Daisy Oliver and her daughter Rose Rush planted their footprints into the history of Orangeburg for the good of mankind. For their works, they should be commended highly and remembered as pioneers. The battle around the nation over voting rights continues. In South Carolina there is no unanimity of opinion, but there is at least a measure of stability after a long battle over the states laws pertaining to voter identification. South Carolina is a model for other states in that it requires a photo ID but provides that no voter is to be denied the right to vote, with or without a photo ID. A South Carolina voter at the polls must show a drivers license, an ID card issued by the S.C. Department of Motor Vehicles in lieu of a drivers license, a South Carolina voter registration card that includes a photo, a federal military ID or a U.S. passport. Free photo IDs are available from the DMV or county voter registration offices. If a voter does not have one of these IDs, he or she may vote a provisional ballot that will count only if the person shows a photo ID to the election commission prior to certification of the election (usually Thursday or Friday after the election). If a person cannot get a photo ID in time for the election, he or she may bring a non-photo voter registration card to the polling place and vote a provisional ballot after signing an affidavit stating he or she has a reasonable impediment to obtaining a photo ID. A reasonable impediment is considered any valid reason, beyond a persons control, creating an obstacle to obtaining photo identification: A disability or illness. A conflict with a work schedule. A lack of transportation. Lack of a birth certificate. Family responsibilities. A religious objection to being photographed. The ballot will count unless someone proves to the election commission that a person is lying about his or her identity or having the listed impediment. South Carolina is protecting the right of those without a state-issued photo ID but at the same time is moving toward the ideal, which is every voter having such identification. To further that objective nationally, its time for a concept put forth by Andrew Young, former U.N. ambassador, congressman and mayor of Atlanta, and Martin Luther King III to gain traction. Called No Voter Left Behind, the idea was developed by Young and Norm Ornstein. At the LBJ Summit celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act on April 9, 2014, they proposed that the Social Security Administration by mail or at each of its roughly 1,300 offices be authorized and equipped to issue at a citizens request a Social Security card bearing the persons photo. A Social Security photo ID would be acceptable as voter ID in any state. Young and proponents of the program, led by the Drum Major Institute, say it would greatly alleviate concerns that voter ID laws disenfranchise otherwise eligible voters simply because they lack photo identification. It would also ensure uninterrupted voting rights if a citizen moves. The concept makes sense since the Social Security card is the only form of ID to which every American citizen is already entitled. SSA employees are trained to assist citizens in establishing proof of identity and the agency even offers a hotline. Compared to many programs, the price tag is minimal. The estimated cost of providing the necessary equipment to each office is $2,000 $2.5 million nationwide. The actual cost of producing the cards has been estimated at 8 cents each. In addition to fixed costs, a campaign to alert the public would also be required. The combined costs of these efforts, however, remain tiny as a budgeting matter compared to the benefits conferred not to mention the costs of litigation surrounding voter IDs. Support for the program is widespread, according to Young and proponents, but to date President Barack Obama has not signed off on it, something he could do with an executive order that likely would not be among his mandates so opposed by Republicans. As an added benefit, photo-bearing Social Security cards would, according to law enforcement, significantly improve the integrity of the I-9 employee-verification process. It would be much harder for workers to use another persons card. In a broader societal context, the lack of photo ID is a serious burden on many citizens, especially low-income Americans. This would address that problem. Andrew Young is right: Without a photo ID in todays world you are a second-class citizen You cant easily check into a hotel, get on an airplane or enter a voting booth, so what the Social Security card with a photo should be called is a Freedom Card. The National Weather Service is forecasting a good chance of severe weather for The T&D Region on Wednesday, including the possibility of tornadoes. There is a 100 percent chance of showers and possibly a thunderstorm mainly before 4 p.m. and then a chance of showers and thunderstorms after 4 p.m. New rainfall amounts are forecast between a quarter and a half of an inch, according to the NWS. Some of the storms could produce damaging winds. The NWS has issued a wind advisory for The T&D Region from 7 a.m. today to 7 p.m. Thursday. Winds could gust around 45 miles per hour, especially this afternoon, according to the NWS. The wind advisory means that motorists in high-profile vehicles such as vans, campers and trailers should exercise caution. Individuals are also encouraged to secure outside light-weight objects such as trash cans and lawn furniture. The winds will continue to howl Wednesday night with sustained winds around 24 mph with gusts as high as 40. The rainfall chance will be about 30 percent, the NWS forecasts. The storms are attributed to a system along the western Gulf Coast states. The surface low associated with this system will strengthen as it moves north into South Carolina, according to the NWS. The strong cold front will exit off the coast by late Wednesday night and most of the precipitation will diminish. Behind the cold front, sunny skies and cooler temperatures will return. Visit Gudrun Mouws website Visit the authors blog.. Connect with Gudrun on Facebook. Find out more about Gudrun at Goodreads. Q: Welcome to The Writer's Life! Now that your book has been published, wed love to find out more about the process. Can we begin by having you take us at the beginning? Where did you come up with the idea to write your book? Because of my background as a displaced person, whose German family belonged to a persecuted religion (Seventh-Day Adventist), I have always been fascinated by the subjects of tolerance, broad-mindedness and acceptance. I asked myself, what would be the impact if, as human beings, we knew ourselves to have lived before, in very different lives from our current situation. So the question of reincarnation began my journey to write From Ashes Into Light. Q: How hard was it to write a book like this and do you have any tips that you could pass on which would make the journey easier for other writers? It took a long time to finish this book, so my main advice is to be persistent and patient. When a writer is deeply committed to a project, its helpful to have a universal vision in order to sustain effort for the long haul. Blunt comments the director of a writers conference once made to me, over 20 years ago, was to become curiously comforting. He advised, You may be another Virginia Woolf but dont count on commercial success. Have a source of income for at least the next 15 years. And it did take more than 15 years to publish. Q: Who is your publisher and how did you find them or did you self-publish? My publisher is Raincloud Press. My daughter founded Raincloud Press in 2014. She has always been an avid reader who had periodically helped me over the yearsediting manuscripts and query letters, and giving advice on marketing. Several years ago, I mentioned that Id given up publishing a book in my lifetime. She called me a few months later and said she would help me self-publish a book of poetry. I agreed. Only, the more my daughter researched the field, the more she she decided to become an independent publisher herself. She now has two other authors besides myself and more in negotiations. I feel very lucky to have a publisher who respects my work and who gives me feedback in an honest yet kind manner. Shes a great publisherthe kind who stands up for work she believes deserves a broader readership. Q: Is there anything that surprised you about getting your first book published? I was surprised by the intensity of response to my first book (a collection of poetry called Wife of the House). I gave a reading after it was published, which was quite an inspiring experience. I did not expect that. Q: What other books (if any) are you working on and when will they be published? I have several writing projectsanother novel (a sequel to From Ashes Into Light), a collection of poetry, a non-fiction work. My publisher has not yet decided on a specific publishing date, or which project she will focus on next. Q: Whats your favorite place to hang out online? Facebook and Goodreads Q: Whats your nightly ritual before retiring for the night? Reading, or reviewing the days events with my partner. Q: Finally, what message (if any) are you trying to get across with your book? I wish to celebrate the human capacity for transcending suffering and healing. Q: Thank you again for this interview! Do you have any final words? Thank you for this opportunity to share my experience. I have been someone who has not spoken much being a writer but, nevertheless, have felt compelled to write. About the Book: Title: From Ashes Into Light Author: Gudrun Mouw Pages: 240 Genre: Literary/Visionary Fiction Publisher: Raincloud Press For More Information From Ashes Into Light is available at Amazon. Discuss this book at PUYB Virtual Book Club at Goodreads. Gudrun Mouw was born in East Prussia (formerly part of Germany) in 1944. At the age of 7, she arrived in the United States as a displaced person. Mouw moved many times in the US before ending up in California in the 60s. There she studied at San Jose State University, receiving her Masters Degree in English Literature in 1969. Mouw has worked as a college English teacher, a Stanford librarian, a columnist, a California poet-in-the-school, as well as a yoga and meditation teacher. She lives in Santa Barbara County, California and has for over thirty years.Mouw wrotebeginning with a research trip to various locations in Eastern Europe, Germany, Austria and Switzerland (in the 1990s). Her research took her places like Dachau, the concentration camp, a Jewish graveyard in Prague, and the streets of Salzburg.Mouw is a prolific and award-winning poet and her poems have appeared in literary journals such asand others. Her collection of poetry calledwas published in April 2014. Mouw won first place in a short fiction contest at the Santa Barbara Writers Conference in 1992.will be her first published novel.is a transpersonal tale of epic tragedy, spirituality, family, and personaledemption. It is told through three distinct voices: the haunting story of Ruth, a Jewish adolescent during Kristallnacht in World War II Austria, Saqapaya, a stalwart Native American from coastal California during the time of the Spanish conquest, and Friede Mai.Friede is born during WW II to a Bavarian soldier and an East-Prussian mother. As those around her struggle with the inevitable chaos and paradox of war, young Friede opens her heart to gruesome enemies, at times helping her family members escape atrocities.With war behind them, the Mai family immigrates to the US, where Friede, her veteran father and ex-refugee mother, struggle with reverberations of trauma, suspicion and prejudice. Upon leaving home, Friede meets her spiritual guide and confidant in her fiances Rabbi, who helps her see that the voices from her past are teachers and the horrors of history also contain beacons of light. We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking Accept, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. NEW YORK Thomson Reuters (NYSE, TSX: TRI), the worlds leading source of intelligent information for businesses and professionals, announced today that its full-year and fourth-quarter 2015 earnings will be issued via news release on Thursday, February 11, 2016. James C. Smith, chief executive officer, and Stephane Bello, executive vice president and chief financial officer, will host a conference call and simultaneous webcast that morning at 8:30 a.m. EST. Discussions may include forward-looking information. You can access the webcast by visiting the Investor Relations section of the Thomson Reuters website. Registration for the webcast is now open. Additionally, an archive of the webcast will be available following the presentation. Thomson Reuters Thomson Reuters is the worlds leading source of news and information for professional markets. Our customers rely on us to deliver the intelligence, technology and expertise they need to find trusted answers. The business has operated in more than 100 countries for more than 100 years. Thomson Reuters shares are listed on the Toronto and New York Stock Exchanges (symbol: TRI). For more information, visit www.thomsonreuters.com. CONTACT Media Andrew Green Director, Corporate Affairs Tel: +1 646 223 4228 Email: andrew.green@tr.com Investors Frank J. Golden Senior Vice President, Investor Relations Tel: +1 646 223 5288 Email: frank.golden@tr.com Here I want to discuss issues other than gender. This is the "other issues" blog that will be used to discuss issues other than gender. Now that can include a lot of things under the sun and yes it will from politics to sports to jokes to whatever. If it's a non-gender issue that I want to bring up then it will be here. Azerbaijan has defined the main directions in the industrys development, Niyazi Safarov, Azerbaijani deputy economy minister, said in Baku Feb. 23. He made the remarks at a conference titled State Support for Development of the Industry. This development is based on a rational use of natural resources, creation of technological chains until the output of final goods, modernization and innovation, increasing competitive industrial production volumes, as well as expanding non-oil export, he said. Safarov also said comprehensive measures are being taken in the country. He added that these measures are aimed at the growth in economic activity, promotion of non-oil export and increasing investments made in the economy through domestic and foreign sources. /By Trend/ SOCAR Trading, a trading arm of SOCAR (State Oil Company of the Republic of Azerbaijan), plans to open an office in the US city of Houston, Arzu Azimov, SOCAR Trading chief executive officer, said in an interview with Reuters. The office will be opened to trade and arbitrage oil and products in and out of the US, he said. It already has a business unit in Canadas city of Calgary, where it is actively exploring trading opportunities between the US and Canada, according to Azimov. SOCAR Trading, with headquarters in Geneva, was created in late 2007 by the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan (SOCAR). SOCAR Trading sells the main part of crude export volumes from the Ceyhan port (the Mediterranean Sea, Turkey), carries out trading of oil and oil products of other countries, and also renders assistance to the parent company with the international investments. /By Trend/ An opening of the catacombs of Saints Marcellinus and Peter restored with the initiative of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation has been held in Vatican . Azerbaijan`s first lady, president of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation Mehriban Aliyeva attended the event. Prior, Azerbaijan`s first lady Mehriban Aliyeva attended the presentation on restoring the catacombs of Saints Marcellinus and Peter. Director of the Museum Rita Paris welcomed Azerbaijan`s first lady Mehriban Aliyeva. Professor Fabrizio Bisconti thanked Mehriban Aliyeva for her attention to restoration of catacombs of Rome . The professor highlighted the history of the catacombs, as well as its importance for Christian world. We could protect this historical place with the support of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, he added. A movie on restoring the catacombs has been demonstrated. The movie highlights ongoing process of restoring the catacombs, its technical-creative aspects. The movie also thanks the Heydar Aliyev Foundation for services in preserving the world cultural heritage. President of the Pontifical Council for Culture, cardinal of the Catholic Church Gianfranco Ravasi stressed the value of the catacombs of Saints Marcellinus and Peter for world cultural heritage and Christians. Heydar Aliyev Foundation gave great support for preserving this value, he added. Azerbaijan`s first lady Mehriban Aliyeva addressed the event. The president of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation thanked for kind words. The first lady highlighted the activity of the Foundation in protecting the world cultural heritage and said Azerbaijan was a crossroads of religions and cultures. As today, representatives of various religions live in Azerbaijan in peace, the first lady added. Following the ceremony, Mehriban Aliyeva viewed the Palazzo Massimo. This nineteenth-century palace in Neo-Renaissance style houses one of the world's most important collections of Classical art. On the four floors of the museum, sculptures, frescoes and mosaics, coins and jewels document the evolution of the Roman artistic culture from the late Republican age through Late Antiquity (2nd c. BCE - 5th c. CE) along an exhibition path in which Ancient Roman history, myths and everyday life live anew. In the rooms of the ground floor are exhibited splendid Greek originals discovered in Rome such as the Boxer at Rest, the Hellenistic Prince and the Dying Niobid from the Horti Sallustiani as well as portraiture of the Republican and Imperial ages, culminating in the statue of Augustus Pontifex Maximus. The Museum demonstrates frescoed walls and pavement mosaics document the domestic decor of prestigious Roman dwellings. The basement houses the sizeable numismatic collection, besides grave ornaments, jewels and the Grottarossa Mummy. Then the opening of the catacombs of Saints Marcellinus and Peter has been held. Azerbaijan`s first lady Mehriban Aliyeva and cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi cut the ribbon the symbolizing the opening of the catacombs. The Catacombs of Marcellinus and Peter are ancient catacombs. In 2006, over a thousand skeletons were discovered in these catacombs; the skeletons were stacked one on top of each other and still bore the togas they were buried with. The Catacombs of Rome are underground burial places underRome, Italy , of which there are at least forty, some discovered only in recent decades. Though most famous for Christian burials, either in separate catacombs or mixed together, people of all the Roman religions are buried in them, beginning in the 2nd century AD, mainly as a response to overcrowding and shortage of land. The Etruscans, like many other European peoples, used to bury their dead in underground chambers. A bilateral agreement was signed between the Heydar Aliyev Foundation and Vatican on restoration of Roman catacombs in 2012. The Italian media and society appreciate the Foundation`s step as one of the important contributions to development of inter-religious and intercultural dialogue. /By Azertac/ **** 11:26 Azerbaijan`s first lady, president of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation Mehriban Aliyeva has visited Pius-Clementine Museum as part of her trip to the Vatican. The first lady viewed the art samples and monuments restored with the support of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation. The museum was commissioned by Popes Clement XIV (1769-1774) and Pius VI (1775-1799) to collect the most important Greek and Roman masterpieces in the Vatican . Valuable samples of architecture related to the Antique and Renaissance periods are preserved at the museum. Located in the Belvedere Palace , the museum is included in the Vatican museums complex and is distinguished by universal richness in terms of the number of exhibits and historical significance. The museum is comprised of a courtyard, an animals room, a statues gallery, the Rotonda room, the Greek cross room, the gallery of busts and other divisions. Antique statues related to the time of Pope Julius II are displayed in its courtyard. Restoration works were carried out here in 1775, following the instructions of Pope Pius VII. Among the valuable exhibits of the museum, statues such as "Laocoon and His Sons", "Apollo Belvedere", "Hermes" and others are considered to be art works of universal significance. There are statues of about 150 animals in the animals room. A number of famous sculptors and artists were involved in the restoration of these statues. Part of the exhibits in the hall - second to none in the world by the richness accommodates copies of antique works preserved in Greece and Rome . A summer pavilion of Pope Innocent VIII was located in the statues gallery. Over 100 works related to the Renaissance period have been gathered in the busts gallery of the museum. Director of the Vatican Museums Antonio Paolucci thanked the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, especially Azerbaijan`s first lady Mehriban Aliyeva and applauded her role in preserving the pieces of world culture. President of the Pontifical Commission for Vatican City State Giuseppe Bertello expressed gratitude to the Azerbaijani state and president of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation Mehriban Aliyeva. He stressed the importance of continuing such dialogues in terms of the development of Azerbaijani-Vatican relations. Mehriban Aliyeva said Azerbaijan was interested in continuing this cooperation. First lady Mehriban Aliyeva viewed cupboards in Sala Sistina Grand Hall of Apostolic Library. The restoration of the cupboards is being carried out with the support of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation. Azerbaijan`s first lady Mehriban Aliyeva then met with President of the Pontifical Council for Culture, Cardinal of the Catholic Church Gianfranco Ravasi. Following the meeting, Cardinal Ravasi spoke about the projects to be implemented as part of the future cooperation with the Heydar Aliyev Foundation. He said this cooperation contributed to intercultural and interreligious dialogue, and applauded Azerbaijan`s role on this front. First lady Mehriban Aliyeva highlighted the importance of the restoration of the catacombs of Saints Marcelline and Peter. The president of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation noted that this cooperation played an important role in improving inter-civilization dialogue. Azerbaijan`s first lady, president of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation Mehriban Aliyeva and President of the Pontifical Council for Culture, cardinal of the Catholic Church Gianfranco Ravasi signed the agreement for the restoration of St. Sebastian Sarcophagi. The signing ceremony was followed by a question-and-answer session. Responding to questions from journalists, Mehriban Aliyeva said Azerbaijan was a crossroads of religions and cultures. "There has never been any religious or ethnic conflict in Azerbaijan ." She highlighted the projects of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation in Azerbaijan and various parts of the world. "Restoration of the catacombs of Saints Marcelline and Peter is a perfect example of excellent cooperation between Azerbaijan and the Vatican ," Mehriban Aliyeva said. Cardinal Ravasi highlighted the cooperation between the Heydar Aliyev Foundation and the Vatican . "This cooperation includes ties with Vatican museums, restoration of ancient manuscripts and other issues," he added. /By Azernews/ By Nazrin Gadimova PACE members are free to discuss any issue that they consider appropriate. Newly appointed president of the PACE, Pedro Agramunt made the remark at the weekly meeting of representatives committee of the Council of Europe, the dailykarabakh.com website reported. Addressing the meeting, Agramunt spoke about the fight against international terrorism, freedom to live safely, the crisis of refugees and migration crisis, as well as promotion of good-neighborly relations between countries. The new head of PACE emphasized the CoE member states sovereignty and territorial integrity. Moreover, Agramunt especially noted the continuation of the discussion on frozen conflicts in some regions of Europe, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan. During the discussion on the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Pedro Agramunt sharply criticized the Armenian delegation. Thus, Armenias representative to PACE expressed dissatisfaction with the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan expression that Agramunt used in his speech. She voiced a disagreement with this statement, considering it incorrect to discuss the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict in PACE, given the permissions of the OSCE Minsk Group. In response, Agramunt said PACE members are free to discuss any issue that they consider appropriate, adding that the long lasting Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict should be resolved and that hiding head in a sand like an ostrich will not bring any results. Earlier, Turkish delegation to the PACE made a protest against Naira Zohrabyan, Armenian member of the PACE Bureau. Zohrabian behaved disrespectfully against the Turkish representative Margar Yesayan (ethnic Armenian) who voted for adopting resolution titled The escalation of violence in Nagorno-Karabakh and other occupied territories of Azerbaijan during the PACE winter session on January 26. Armenian Haykakan Zhamanak newspaper reported that it is possible that Zohrabyan will be sanctioned at the spring session of PACE to be held in April 2016. The EU High Representative Federica Mogherini will visit Azerbaijan Feb. 29 - March 1, said Hikmat Hajiyev, spokesman of Azerbaijan's Foreign Ministry. Mogherini will discuss issues on the cooperation between Azerbaijan and the EU, said Hajiyev. The visits program includes the High Representatives meetings with the Azerbaijani officials, including the Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov, he added. Azerbaijan expects to receive the EU Council's mandate to negotiate on a new agreement on strategic modernization partnership, which will determine the format of the future cooperation with the EU. The Azerbaijani government submitted a draft agreement to the EU in May 2015 as part of the Eastern Partnership summit in Riga, Azerbaijani Deputy Foreign Minister Mahmud Mammadguliyev said earlier adding that we are expecting now to obtain a mandate from the highest political body of the EU to start the negotiation process. Currently, the bilateral relations between the EU and Azerbaijan are regulated on the basis of agreement on partnership and cooperation, which was signed in 1996. A new agreement envisages the adjustment of Azerbaijans legislation and procedures to the EUs most important international and trade norms and standards, which should lead to an improvement in the access of Azerbaijani goods to the EU markets. /By Trend/ /By Azernews/ By Amina Nazarli Azerbaijan's clerics have appealed to the world community to stop the Armenian aggression against Azerbaijani people. The heads of Azerbaijans religious confessions, including Chairman of Caucasus Muslims organization Sheikh-ul Islam Allahshukur Pashazadeh, Orthodox Community's Head Archbishop Alexander Ischein and Head of Mountain Jews Religious Community MilikhYevdayev, have addressed a joint appeal to the worlds religious leaders, parliaments, international organizations and European Court of Human Rights in connection with the Khojaly genocide. On the eve of the 24th anniversary of the genocide committed against civilians in the Azerbaijani town of Khojaly, expressing the will and the feelings of millions of the people of Azerbaijan, we appeal to the world community, to all people of good will, regardless of the religious, language, race or ethnic identity, the statement says. No any nation, no religion can justify those outrage cruel crimes that are incompatible with universal values as violence, murder and aggression. On the night from 25th to 26th of February, 1992, thousands of unarmed and defenseless peaceful people of Khojaly were unexpectedly and brutally attacked by Armenian aggressors. The militaries massacred 613 civilians, including some 300 children, women and elderly people. As a result, Khojaly was wiped out of the ground, while 150 people were missing, 1275 civilians captured and severely tortured, unthinkable atrocity was committed on the bodies of brutally murdered people. Aged people, children and even pregnant women were killed mercilessly, the appeal reads, adding that the victims dead bodies, bearing extensive signs of torture and wounds, proved the insanity of the vandals. Armenian extremists, intermittently committing ethnic cleansings as well as acts of physical and moral terror against the people of Azerbaijan throughout history, have invaded 20 percent of our territories, banished more than one million Azerbaijanis from their home places. They carried out acts of vandalism in Karabakh to destroy our historical, religious and cultural monuments and relics. The premeditated genocide committed in Khojaly became a culmination of all these atrocities, the statement says. The authors also voice regret that although it has been over 20 years since adoption of the UN Security Council Resolutions calling for the unconditional withdrawal of Armenian invaders from the occupied Azerbaijani territories, they did not obeyed till today, while the Armenian terrorists remain unpunished for the crimes they have committed. In its turn, such impunity provokes recurrence of new crimes, the statement emphasized. We should not forget that such impunity creates a chain reaction of similar crimes. We, the religious leaders of different faith, keep the dear memory of all people fallen killed in Karabakh, the integral part of our homeland Azerbaijan, as well as in the town of Khojaly, and wish peace, prosperity and fortune to all the people of the world. Each one of us, we have a sacred duty before The Lord and the Mankind to achieve the Triumph of Justice. Therefore, once again we appeal to the world's religious leaders, the parliaments and the international organizations, to the European Court of Human Rights and call to stop the Armenian aggression against Azerbaijan, to give a principled political and legal assessment of the criminal acts, to punish the committers of the crimes and to recognize the Khojaly massacre as the Genocide. May the Great Creator help us in fair deeds! The suicide bomber behind last week's deadly Ankara blast was identified as Abdulbaki Somer, according to prosecution sources Tuesday, Anadolu Agency reported. The terrorist attack in the Turkish capital on February 17 had claimed 29 lives. The attack also left 60 others wounded. The identity of the bomber was revealed by a DNA test, the sources, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed, adding that the DNA samples provided by Somer's father matched the assailant's DNA. Somer's father, who lives in the eastern province of Van, had informed the police that his son was behind the attack. Abdulbaki Somer, born in 1989, reportedly joined the terrorist PKK organization at the age of 16 in 2005, and was based in the Qandil mountains - the PKK base in northern Iraq until 2014. Meanwhile, the media ban on the blast was lifted upon request by the chief prosecutor's office, the same sources said. Currently, 14 suspects are in custody in relation to the attack. /By Trend/ Active work in the industrial sector, assistance in export development with emphasis on sectoral diversification and modernization can support the growth of the national economy of Turkmenistan and reduce the risks associated with volatility of global commodity prices, according to the article of the Strategic Planning and Economic Development Institute of Turkmenistan. Taken together, the reforms aimed at strengthening market mechanisms in the Turkmen economy, contribute to enhancing its flexibility and competitiveness in conditions of an integrated and changing world, said the article. State programs for manufacturing import-substituting products and increasing the export volumes of products manufactured in the country were approved in Turkmenistan. These measures are aimed at developing chemical industry, light and food industries, machine building, agriculture, domestic pharmaceutical industry. /By Trend/ Lennon makes promise to Speedo Mick after he achieves double goal , 22 February, Speedo Mick, the Everton fan braving winter weather in just his blue swimming costume, skull-cap and goggles as he raises money for charity, completed his latest challenge this weekend and passed the 20,000 mark for donated funds this weekend. @AaronLennon12 Aaron cheers I know it was, but it's fine the lad didn't know that , see ye at the next game ay pic.twitter.com/11ISsygnEI speedomick (@speedomick) February 21, 2016 And Toffees winger, Aaron Lennon, had hoped to reward him with a match-worn shirt after the 2-0 win over Bournemouth but an over-eager fellow supporter took the jersey not knowing it was intended for the intrepid 50-year-old in the crowd behind. Lennon tweeted, however, that he will make sure that Speedo Mick, whose real name is Michael Cullen, gets another shirt at a future Everton match. The sight of Cullen, in his blue speedos, has become a famous one in the Everton end at Premier League grounds up and down the country this season as he bids to raise money for Woodlands Hospice Charitable Trust in Liverpool. He set off last week on a five-day, 100-mile walk to Bournemouth for the Blues' FA Cup Fifth Round tie against the Cherries in aid of Julias House, the Dorset and Wiltshire Childrens Hospices, and arrived at his destination on Friday evening. This latest endeavour coincided with him reaching and passing the goal he had set on his JustGiving page where he has raised more than 20,750. It's not too late, of course, to help Mick in his fundraising efforts and you can make your donation at justgiving.com/speedomick/ Note: the following content is not moderated or vetted by the site owners at the time of submission. Comments are the responsibility of the poster. Disclaimer About these ads ToffeeWeb A 2018 target to open a transnational rail network in the Arabian peninsula is unrealistic and the six Gulf countries will meet in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, next month to discuss a more plausible launch date, the UAE's infrastructure minister said. The 2,100-km passenger and cargo railway would run from Kuwait down the Gulf coast and through the UAE to Oman, with lines connecting to Qatar, Bahrain and Saudi Arabia's interior and Red Sea coast. The project, costed at $30 billion in a 2011 report by consultants Frost and Sullivan, has suffered from technical and bureaucratic delays since its announcement last decade, with the completion date already shifted to 2018 from a year earlier, regional media reported in 2013. Now even that later date appears unachievable. "We know that 2018 is not realistic," Abdulla Al Nuaimi, UAE Minister of Infrastructure development and chairman of the Federal Transport Authority, told a news conference in Dubai, saying he had met ministerial counterparts of the other Gulf countries in Doha in late 2015 to re-think the timetable. "We've asked the ministers to come up with a realistic programme," said Nuaimi. He said the plans had not been modified, but declined to comment when asked what would be a more realistic opening date or whether he had any doubts that a pan-Gulf train network would become reality. Gulf transport ministers will meet next month in Riyadh for further discussions, said Nuaimi. A sustained slump in oil prices has dragged the finances of governments in the region into deficit, prompting them to slow construction plans in some areas. In January, state-backed Etihad Rail suspended a tender to build the 628-km second phase of a rail network within the UAE. This would have extended an existing 264-km line transporting sulphur from Abu Dhabi's interior to the coastal industrial city of Ruwais, as well as to the Saudi and Oman borders and other parts of the UAE including downtown Dubai and Abu Dhabi. That prompted Oman's transport minister this month to warn his country may change its railway plans to facilitate Oman's seaborne exports, rather than using its trains to distribute imports via the Gulf network. Reuters DP World, the leading enabler of global trade, has signed two major contracts for civil construction work at its new Container Terminal 4 on a reclaimed island in Jebel Ali Port in Dubai, UAE. The agreement was signed by Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem, DP World Group chairman and CEO with Zeyad Baker, the executive director, Dutco Balfour Beatty and Patrick McKinney, the area manager, Middle East and Gulf, BAM International Abu Dhabi Dubai Branch at DP World Head Office in Jebel Ali. The signing ceremony was attended by senior officials including vice chairman Jamal Majid Bin Thaniah, senior VP and managing director of UAE Region Mohammed Al Muallem, senior vice-president (global procurement) Iqbal Khoory and senior vice-president (project management) Adnan Al Abbar. Under Phase One, Dutco Balfour Beatty is developing an operational yard area with a quay length of 1,200 m, while BAM International Abu Dhabi is building a 400-m-long bridge and adjacent causeways and the 2.2-km quay wall with an alongside depth of 18 m, designed to accommodate the largest mega container vessels, said a statement from DP World. CH2M Hill (Halcrow) will deliver the civil works on the reclaimed island north of Jebel Alis Terminal 2, connected to the mainland by a 3,000-m causeway, it added. On the new projects, Bin Sulayem said: We are excited to see construction work going ahead as planned for Container Terminal 4 in the run up to Expo 2020. Under Phase One, Terminal 4 will add 3.1 million TEU (twenty-foot equivalent units) by 2018, taking Jebel Ali Ports total capacity to 22.1 million TEU." "The port will be equipped with at least 110 cranes with a total quay length of around 11,000 metres by that time, he added. "This terminal is the big idea that will change the way ports work in the future. We will deploy the latest technology in equipping our quays and yards, and run them with the most sophisticated terminal operation systems," remarked Bin Sulayem. "We have a long track record of investing proactively to expand capacity at our operations to meet changing customer needs. We are building Terminal 4 from the ground up, which enables us to future proof it for smart container ships emerging in the future," he stated. According to him, DP World will further expand Terminal 4s capacity to a total of 7.8 million TEU in line with market demand under Phase Two, with an additional operational yard with a quay length of 1,000 metres that will be built by Dutco Balfour Beatty. Baker said Dutco Balfour Beatty's association with DP World goes back to 1976 when it undertook the construction of Jebel Ali Port. "Our new partnership for this exciting new chapter in the ports development demonstrates the long term nature of our continuous involvement in a port that emerged four decades ago to become the worlds largest man-made harbour. We thank DP World for the sustained trust they have placed in us," he added. McKinney said BAM International was delighted to be associated with a global trade enabler like DP World in developing infrastructure. "We are grateful for their confidence in our expertise and capabilities to execute this engineering challenge. Our strategy of deploying advanced construction techniques, expert line management highlighting safety processes will underpin the delivery of this project on time and on budget," stated the official. Terminal 4 will be equipped with semi-automated quay cranes, providing operational efficiencies for customers, comfortable and safe working conditions for employees and environmental benefits by reducing its carbon footprint. Phase 1 will feature 13 of the worlds largest and most modern quay cranes, remotely operated from a sophisticated control room off the quayside. Some 35 Automated Rail Mounted Gantry cranes (ARMG) will operate in the yard. Bin Sulayem pointed out that with its 4 million capacity TEU Container Terminal 3 fully operational this year, Jebel Ali will have the capability to accommodate ten mega container ships simultaneously and the new Terminal 4 will increase that handling capability. "It will be ready in time to meet the expected increase in trade over the next five years and to ensure Jebel Ali Port reinforces its position as the top commercial gateway to this region," he observed. When complete Terminal 4 will operate as a dedicated container operation, including storage of full, reefer and empty containers using modern container handling equipment, said the top official. According to him, Jebel Ali and other DP World terminals in the UAE handled 15.6 million TEU in 2015. Utilisation at Jebel Ali remains high at approximately 90 per cent. Last year, DP World s global portfolio of container terminals handled 61.7 million TEU, he added.-TradeArabia News Service Saudi Telecom Company (STC) has selected US-based Juniper Networks PTX5000 Series Packet Transport Routers to expand its fixed and mobile Internet gateway backbone. The new backbone will enable STC to handle services and functions that can scale seamlessly in order to keep pace with growing customer demand. The expansion project is designed to provide ultra-high speed Internet access to 3G/4G and fixed subscribers in many locations throughout the Middle East. In addition to the PTX Series, the project also includes Junipers SDN-ready MX2020 3D Universal Edge Router, the industrys highest throughput edge router. This choice of systems was especially valuable to STC, as the company was able to easily integrate the new equipment running on the Juniper Networks Junos operating system without disruption to existing network operations. The new multi-terabit per second magnitudes will meet the fast-rising demand for high-speed Internet connectivity, a statement said. The new expanded network will provide a major increase in capacity with international providers, it added. This will also help accommodate national and international customers who share critical voice, data and multimedia applications between facilities. We invest in our network to stay ahead of our customers ever increasing expectations for more bandwidth and new applications and services. Junipers innovative technologies allow us to maintain our market leadership and future-proof our business through the deployment of state-of-the-art technologies. This is an impressive leap forward in network capacity and performance to meet customer expectations, said Nasser Al Nasser, senior vice president for technology and operations at Saudi Telecom Company. Adrian Pickering, vice president, Middle East and Africa at Juniper Networks said: Traffic dynamics like mobility, video and cloud-based services are transforming traditional networks. STC has moved quickly to accommodate the constant increase in Internet traffic and continues to enhance its business through innovation. Juniper is committed to helping STC create unprecedented network scale and the freedom to create new virtualized services anywhere in the world without sacrificing the service experience, Pickering added. TradeArabia News Service Radioactive material that went missing in Iraq has been found dumped near a petrol station in the southern town of Zubair, officials said on Sunday, ending speculation it could be acquired by Islamic State and used as a weapon. The officials told Reuters the material, stored in a protective case the size of a laptop computer, was undamaged and there were no concerns about radiation. Reuters reported last week that Iraq had been searching for the material since it was stolen in November from a storage facility belonging to US oilfield services company Weatherford near the southern city of Basra. It was not immediately clear how the device, owned by Swiss inspections group SGS, ended up in Zubair, around 15 km (9 miles) southwest of Basra. "A passer-by found the radioactive device dumped in Zubair and immediately informed security forces which went with a special radiation prevention team and retrieved the device," the chief of the security panel within Basra provincial council, Jabbar al-Saidi, told Reuters. "After initial checking I can confirm the device is intact 100 percent and there is absolutely no concern of radiation." A security official close to the investigation said it had been established soon after the material was stolen that it was being kept in Zubair and controls had been tightened to prevent it being taken out of the town. "After failing to take it out of the town, the perpetrators decided to dump it," the security official said. "I assure you it is only a matter of time before we arrest those who stole the radioactive device." The material, which uses gamma rays to test flaws in materials used for oil and gas pipelines in a process called industrial gamma radiography, is owned by Istanbul-based SGS Turkey, according to the document and officials. The material is classed as a Category 2 radioactive source by the IAEA, meaning that if not managed properly it could cause permanent injury to a person in close proximity to it for minutes or hours, and could be fatal to someone exposed for a period of hours to days. SGS and Weatherford have both denied responsibility for the disappearance of the material last year. - Reuters Etihad Airways, the national airline of the UAE, has announced an enhanced agreement with Citi as its international cash management bank partner. The new mandate, covering Etihad Airways' worldwide operations outside the GCC, will enable the airline to leverage Citis substantial investment in financial technology to further develop its cash management operations and help reduce costs. Etihad Airways will now be able to utilise Citis Liquidity Management solution to achieve substantial cash optimisation and competitive market rates through automated treasury tools, resulting in significant transaction cost savings. Citi's cash management solution rationalises account opening processes and moves the Abu Dhabi-based carrier to a fully automated and centralised account administration, and automated account payable and account receivable management tools to achieve better control and minimise transactional risks. The enhanced partnership comes a year after the signing of an innovative Supply Chain Finance (SCF) agreement between Etihad Airways and Citi enabling the airline to unlock liquidity and pay its suppliers almost immediately through funding provided by the bank. James Rigney, Etihad Airways chief financial officer, said: We are delighted to have entered into this agreement with Citi which is designed to drive more cost benefits for our business on a global level. As Etihad Airways continues to grow, this partnership will help bring about greater economies of scale, increased operational efficiency, enhanced financial procedures and immediate solutions to local needs across our worldwide operations. Emre Karter, managing director and regional head Treasury & Trade Solutions (Middle East, North Africa, Pakistan & Turkey), said: At Citi, we value our strategic alliance with Etihad Airways which is one of the worlds fastest growing airlines, and we're proud to provide global cash management services that meet the exact needs of the carrier. This is demonstrative of our ability to offer clients worldwide, local and regional solutions with global service standards. Citi has been present in the Middle East and North Africa since 1955, and offers full scale corporate and investment banking services in Egypt, UAE, Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait, Lebanon, Jordan, Tunisia, Morocco, Algeria, Pakistan and Iraq. Citi's institutional capabilities in the region include Treasury & Trade Solutions, Corporate & Investment Banking, Capital Markets Origination, Global Markets and Islamic Banking. TradeArabia News Service The High Commission of Rwanda in India, in cooperation with the Rwanda Development Board (RDB), turned its focus to the Indian travel market by organising a road show to promote Rwanda as a new destination for tourism and investment opportunities. This followed close on the heels of a very successful participation at the Mumbai Outbound Travel Mart held at the Bombay Exhibition and Convention Centre earlier this month. This is the first major initiative undertaken by an African country following the successful India Africa summit hosted by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in October 2015. The road shows were held in Mumbai and Bangalore. Ernest Rwamucyo, the High Commissioner of Rwanda, said: We are happy to be here in Mumbai and showcase Remarkable Rwanda to the second outbound travel market in the world. In 2014-15, Indians were the second largest visitors to Rwanda after Americans. Anny Batamuriza, vice chairperson of Tourism Chamber Rwanda Private Sector Federation, said: We look to India as the future for various tourism opportunities in Rwanda. A Memorandum of Understanding was signed by Batamuriza in the presence of the High Commissioner with the president of the Travel Agents Federation of India (TAFI), Zakkir Ahmed in Mumbai. During their visit to Bangalore the Rwandan delegation had the opportunity to interact with members of the Federation of Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Karnataka. A large section of the business investors from Karnataka expressed their interest in the various investment opportunities in Rwanda at the Bangalore road show. The seminars held in Mumbai and Bangalore were a huge success with an attendance of over 200 participants at each city, including eminent leaders from the travel trade and the corporate world. The event concluded with a colourful cultural performance by the Rwandan students in India who showcased the traditional Rwandan dance with active participation from the audience. TradeArabia News Service Meet award-winning artisans and buy their products at Kerala Arts and Crafts Village RAWLINS A California couple accused of human trafficking in Wyoming have pleaded not guilty to the charges. In separate hearings in Carbon County District Court on Monday 38-year-old Lester Tucker, of Oakland, California, and 27-year-old Janice Scott, of Modesto, California, both pleaded not guilty to two charges each of first-degree human trafficking. Carbon County District Court Judge Wade Waldrip says the cases will be combined and a trial will be scheduled within 180 days. Tucker and Scott were arrested by Wyoming Highway Patrol in early January. When officers arrived, two young women were taken into protective custody. According to court documents, the victims said Rucker had planned to make the women prostitutes once they got to California. CHEYENNE State lawmakers cut and then added back money for local government during a whirlwind Wednesday that saw over a dozen elected city and county officials from as far away as Evanston plead with lawmakers for funding at higher levels. In the morning, the Senate Appropriations Committee decreased to $90 million money for cities, towns and counties. But late Wednesday afternoon, the Senate voted to raise local government funding to $105 million. The money included in House Bill 51 has fluctuated between the two figures since the Legislature began Feb. 8. Whatever number lawmakers ultimately land on, the final amount to local governments will likely be lower than the $183 million the Legislature gave for the current two-year funding cycle. A downturn in oil, gas and coal is projected to result in a $477 million drop in state revenues through mid-2018, prompting lawmakers to cut and eliminate a number of programs. But local officials said their revenue streams are also decreasing, for the same reasons the state is hurting. Local governments raise money through sales and property taxes both of which are dropping. Were getting a double whammy: a possible reduction in the state distribution, as well as our local revenues going down,said Cheyenne Mayor Rick Kaysen, one of several local government officials who testified in the morning committee meeting. Laramie City Councilwoman Andrea Summerville said her city is looking at a $500,000 cut based on the bill advanced by the Senate Appropriations Committee. It will likely result in layoffs on a city staff with about 175 full-time employees, one of the smallest staffs per capita in the state, Summerville said. Depending on where funding comes out, we are looking at 15 to 20 positions, in addition to the hiring freeze in place, she said. Senate Vice President Drew Perkins, R-Casper, sponsored the amendment in the Senate Appropriations Committee that reduced the money. All Republicans on the committee voted for it. Sen. John Hastert, D-Green River, opposed the amendment and later voted against the overall bill. Members of Senate Appropriations did honor a request of the Wyoming Association of Municipalities and removed from the bill a new distribution formula that cities and towns dislike. The Wyoming County Commissioners Association largely did not find fault with the new formula and the Senate Appropriations Committee kept the new formula intact. Under HB51, $90 million in state money would bring almost $1.7 million to Natrona County over two years, while $105 million would bring just over $2 million, said Commissioner Rob Hendry. The current years budget was about $50 million, but this years is expected to be lower, he said. In Natrona just this last month, our sales tax was down 27 percent, he said. It looks like our assessed valuation would be down around somewhere near 20 percent. Robert Short, vice chairman of the Converse County Commission, said his county is experiencing a 49 percent decrease in sales tax receipts. Property tax figures are still being calculated. With $90 million in state funds, Converse County would receive nearly $82,000. With $105 million, it would receive $98,000, he said. Goshen County Commissioner Carl Rupp said sales taxes are down 19.5 percent. If the bill ultimately provides $90 million to local governments, Goshen County would receive $1 million over the two-year period. But that amount is boosted to $1.2 million if the bill ultimately ends up with $105 million in state funds. Laramie County, the states largest, would receive $2.3 million over the next two years if HB51 is passed with $90 million or $2.7 million if its approved with $105 million in state funds, Commissioner Amber Ash said. Sales taxes will be down about 10 percent in Laramie County. Property taxes values havent been all calculated yet, she said. At a time when revenues are falling, the county is growing in population. That will put a demand on roads, water lines and other infrastructure, Ash said. We are going to be in a very difficult position in addressing how do we balance that out, she said. Laramie County recognizes the state budget is declining. But we think its important to look at how we invest in the community. Late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia was passionate about the law. He was a committed jurist and arguably the most provocative member of the high court. In the wake of his recent death at 79, the nation has mourned him and will continue to do so. But given the importance of his job, the United States must not lose time moving forward. To that end, President Barack Obama and his advisers are putting prospective jurors through the vetting process. The exhaustive nature of the questioning means the process can be a long one, but the president has indicated that he intends to nominate someone to succeed Scalia in due time. Thats the right approach in the most recent presidential election, a majority of Americans voted for Obama to serve as president for four more years, and part of that responsibility is nominating jurists to the nations highest court. The U.S. Senate is the body that must confirm the presidents nominee. It is frustrating to hear some Senate Republicans play politics by insisting that a replacement should not be named until Obamas successor takes office and nominates a justice for the senates consideration nearly one year from now. It is almost unforgivable that leading members of the party said that any candidate, no matter how worthy, would be rejected out of hand. Its outrageous because, politics aside, the country needs a judge. With an even number of justices, the court has a diminished ability to set precedent. Any tie decision would effectively uphold the ruling of a lower court. Take the Obama administrations Clean Power Plan for example: In the week before Scalias death, the court delayed the plan with a 5-4 vote to stay the regulations. This one vote changed the outlook of regulations especially critical to the coal industry in Wyoming. Absent one judge, Scalia, the vote would most likely have been tied 4-4. The issue is further complicated because there is no lower court ruling to fall back on. But it is clear an empty position on the court leaves Wyoming in a precarious and unpredictable position. Without nine judges, the Supreme Court process is hamstrung. Wyoming and other states need clarity on issues that come before this court. And its unlikely there are any unimportant cases before the court now or in the next court term. Senate Republicans are under no obligation to confirm an Obama nominee, of course. They will ask tough questions, as they should, of any candidate, and only a judge they collectively believe will be good for the nation will be confirmed. Pledging to reject any nominee outright raises questions of disenfranchisement. American voters put Obama in the position to nominate the nations next Supreme Court justice, and their will must be carried out. There is no doubt there will be plenty of politics to go around. Supreme Court nominations are famous for hardball politics. But given the time frame and the importance of a functioning court, when the process begins should not be a political question. The process may be high stakes, but it needs to begin now, not next year. BARCELONA, Spain (AP) While tens of thousands flock to the Mobile World Congress to check out the latest smartphones, the show also offers glimpses of some of the coolest off-beat and downright strange innovations. Many of these newfangled prototypes found a niche at the trade show's special corner for start-ups, which gathered here to find business deals for their inventions. Here is a look at the quirkiest of the gadgets and apps on display this week in Barcelona. ___ MAGIC DRAWINGS Remember pop-up books? Chromville takes the idea to another dimension with its augmented reality educational app. Here is how it works: Kids download and print pages with designs that they color in as they wish. Next, they hold a tablet over the page and, via the Chromville app, the drawing turns into a 3-D image they can interact with through the screen. The one on the solar system, for example, lets kids explore the planets, zoom in and out, and learn facts. Other modules teach about the human body, the metamorphosis of a frog, simple geography, or how to build a machine. "It is something like magic. We have to play and enjoy education," said Hector Perez, CEO of the company from Zaragoza, Spain. As of December, a one-time fee of 3.99 euros ($4.39) gives customers the app and access to drawings. ___ FOOD PRINTER Natural Machines co-founder Lynette Kucsma insists her company hasn't replicated Star Trek's "food synthesizer" that made munchies appear at Captain Kirk's mere command. But they sure have come close with their 3-D food printer. The Foodini lays down layer after layer of food from nozzles, ultimately creating treats like ravioli, crackers, or chicken nuggets. The company says you can even make more complex items like hamburgers, though it's not clear what they would look like coming through nozzles. "You become the food manufacturer," Kucsma said, adding that the Foodini would allow cooks to use more natural ingredients to make healthier food instead of buying prepared foodstuffs with added preservatives. The Foodini can also link up with other connected devices. "You can print recipes from a chef who is halfway around the world," Kucsma said. The Barcelona-based company is launching the Foodini with the target of professional chefs to meet the $1,500-2,000 price tag. They plan to later expand to regular customers. "In 10 to 15 years we think 3-D food printers will be as common in kitchens as microwaves," Kucsma said. ___ EYE WRITING We can write with our touch. We can write with our voice. Irisbond is making it easier to write with our sight. Their eye-tracking app, which can work with standard smartphone cameras, allows you to type on a computer. Co-founder and CEO Eduardo Jauregui said the app is designed for disabled users. "They can send emails or write books with their eyes. It changes their lives completely," Jauregui said. But it could also be helpful for professionals, like surgeons, who may have limited use of their hands during work. Irisbond allows users to control a mouse pointer on a virtual keyboard of a smartphone or tablet. Stare for one second over a letter to "push" the button and type. Jauregui said his company based in San Sebastian, Spain, is in talks with smartphone makers, including Samsung, to be acquired. ___ PAPER PROGRAMMING Take paper art, a little round robot, throw in some low-level coding, and, voila! You have the Kamibot, an interactive toy that helps children have fun while learning computer programming. Aimed at kids as young as eight, the Kamibot robot can be covered with paper-made "skins" to turn it into a variety of characters, including Dracula, Frankenstein, and several popular figures in Korea. An app controls the robot's movement, and teaches users how to program routes for the robot to follow. Head of design Asaph Kim said "the idea was making programming fun through characters (children) have seen on TV." Still at the kick-starter phase, the Korean company 3.14 is hoping to ship its first Kamibots in June. Pre-orders go for $89. ___ PACK ROBOTS One gadget that caused a big stir as it moseyed through the aisles of the trade show was Starship's delivery robot. Don't let the company's name fool you. The tub-sized robot on rollers won't blast you away, but it just might make home delivery more convenient as it creeps its way down the sidewalk. Co-founder Janus Friis, one of the creators of Skype, had the idea to create a fleet of wheeled robots that would work with stores making deliveries from hubs that cover neighborhoods. Keith Cornell, Starship's senior advisor, said customers would gain from being able to decide exactly when they receive their packages, while stores will reduce costs. To ensure the robot doesn't cause mayhem on the street, its max speed is a slow 4 mph and it includes sensors that force it to stop when facing an obstacle. If stuck, it can be taken over remotely by an operator. Customers will use an app to program the drop-offs and unlock the robot once it arrives to retrieve their goods. It can carry up to 20 pounds of stuff. Still in testing phase, these modern-day pack mules are expected to be deployed in 2017. TUCSON ScriptSave takes on different name A Tucson-based company that has been doing business as ScriptSave will officially be branded with its legal name of Medical Security Card Company (MSC) LLC. The company bills itself as the nations leading consumer-focused pharmacy benefit manager specializing in the 100 percent copay market. MSCs rebranding represents its successful and ongoing transition to a company well beyond its heritage, said Paige Berger, its executive vice president for marketing and sales, in a news release. Today the company competes in markets that include business-to-business as well as direct-to-consumer. ARIZONA Gold, silver coins sales could be tax-exempt PHOENIX The state Senate gave preliminary approval Tuesday to exempt profits made by people who buy gold and silver coins from state taxes on capital gains. Under current law, if someone buys such coins for $500 and sells the same coins for $750, that $250 gain is taxable under federal and state law. Jeremy M. Mikolajczak has been named chief executive officer of the Tucson Museum of Art. He succeeds Robert Knight, who retired in January after 10 years at the helm. Mikolajczak has been head of Miami Dade Colleges Museum of Art + Design for four years. He and his wife, Ana Tello, plan a road trip across the country and theyll land in Tucson shortly before he begins the job in April. Tucsons size, the museums staff, the docent program and the community were all factors in his decision to join the TMA, Mikolajczak said in a phone interview Monday. I love mid-sized cities and engaging with the community, the 36-year-old said. I knew it was a great fit from my initial conversations with the museum and from people I know who knew Tucsons cultural community, the support of the museum, and the staff. Mikolajczak is taking over a 91-year-old museum with an operating budget of $3.3 million. Fundraising will be a key component of the job, but he has his eye on a much broader agenda. My first objective is to get the institution out there in the public persona, to get the profile of the institution in the conversation, said Mikolajczak, whose salary will be $150,000. He plans to increase attendance and membership, and to see the TMA become a pacesetter in the community. Museums around the country struggle with shrinking audiences, he said. The TMA has a membership of 2,800, though attendance to galleries and educational programs in the 2014-15 fiscal year was 63,067. He hopes to boost those numbers through working with other cultural institutions in the city. One of the things weve found successful in Miami was establishing an extensive list of community partners, he said. Thats something Ill bring with me. Partnerships bring in diverse audiences. He is also aware that younger audiences often shun museums, labeling them as elitist. We need to have a sense of inclusion, he said. For instance, in Miami, weve partnered with young musicians to draw unique audiences. There has to be new ways to look at museums, how they serve the community. TMAs efforts to diversify its audience and reach out to the community are made a bit easier due its location in downtown Tucson. On July 7 it opened up in the former On a Roll Sushi building at 63 E. Congress, which had been vacant since last July. Dee Buizer, who owns the restaurant with her husband Jim, has been in the restaurant business since 1987 and also owns Basil Thai restaurant in San Francisco. Her family members also own the swank Soi 4 restaurants in Scottsdale and Oakland, California. A botched mission to eject a Taliban militia from a rural Afghan village results in unintended collateral damage in Tobias Lindholms A War. In A War, Danish army commander Claus Pedersen (Pilou Asbaek) joins his nervous armed unit on its entry to a rural village. They plan to help residents eject the Taliban militia so many locals fear. That overly optimistic mission triggers a volatile firefight. In moments the botched assault devolves from raid to havoc. The battles drastic collateral damage hits unintended targets in Afghanistan and Denmark. Some of the aftermath is lethal; some is legal. Writer/director Tobias Lindholms compelling thriller offers sharp-focus snapshots of conflict on the ground for its first hour, and in a military courtroom for the second. Pedersen, on trial for possible war crimes, faces a prosecutor who is self-righteous in her criticism of his official actions, but not entirely wrong. Each arenas strategies are half-blinded by the fog of war. The courts unnerving scenes grapple with contradictions. Each battle is messy and deeply painful, victimizing people who meant no harm. If youre looking for a film offering new insights into the war on terror, move on. This is not foreign policy scholarship, but a complex, outstanding film deserving its status as a best foreign language nominee at this years Oscars. It gives us human interest stories of how families affected by ongoing war live, not just how they die. Asbaek gives us a documentary-style character portrait of Pedersen as a flawed everyman. Hes a sound leader for his corps, although the soldiers emotional trauma after losing a comrade isnt a problem hes qualified to handle. Hes a responsible family man, although the best support he can offer his stressed wife, Maria (Tuva Novotny), and their three children in Denmark is an overnight satellite phone call. Hes gutsy in battle, but capable of mistakes that could win hearts and minds for the wrong team. Holding that extremely stressed conflict in check may be why he follows the military rules of engagement to the nth degree. He insists that an Afghan family under threat by the Taliban must wait for his troops to arrive the next morning, sleeping in a traditional mud house, rather than sharing his troops fortified compound. When they meet again, bullets flying, Pedersen is trapped in a no-win calamity where even his best choices can threaten lives, military careers and his own sense of who he is. Then he returns to Denmark to struggle against a legal system condemning one split-second decision in the heat of battle. For obvious reasons, Pedersen is worried at every symbolic and literal mine field. Sidebar scenes in his Danish hometown show that even child-rearing can stumble from routine to nerve-racking unease. Abroad for months at a time, there can be conflict and insecurity in every corner of Pedersens world. When he returns to face charges that might lock him away from his seldom seen children for years, Maria demands that he reject any moral guilt feelings and mount a solid defense. He may have killed kids in Afghanistan, but you have three living ones at home, she blurts. Lindholms film wisely notes in its hushed parting shots that even when official inquiries end and rulings are announced, the jurys still out. "The world lost another good one" Margaret Lacklen slipped away from us all, Wednesday, February 10, 2016. Born Margaret Alberta Samsel in Bean Station, TN April 21, 1924 to proud parents, Albert and Alice Samsel, she was the oldest of six children, Al, Knox, Ben, Jerry and Shirley. Maggie graduated from Rutledge High School and went on to study at Knoxville Business College. She moved to San Francisco, CA for a short time and then relocated to Washington, DC for secretarial work during WWII. It was there she met Samuel Daniels and they married shortly after the war. Their happy marriage produced four boys, Scott, Mark, Curt and Craig. Maggie married again, to longtime friend, Bob Lacklen. Bob had four children from his previous marriage, the twins Brian and Kevin, Jay and Anne. Bob died in 1994. In 1996, Maggie met Richard Geldof at the Green Valley Presbyterian Church in Arizona. They have lived happily together for the past 18 years. Maggie was liked by all because she saw the best in everyone she met; her perpetual smile, sharp mind and outgoing disposition brought out the best in people. She was an avid reader, crossword puzzler, ardent scrabble player and accomplished bridge player. Maggie always made the best of the cards dealt to her. In her later years she accepted her deteriorating muscle condition with grace and without complaint. Those who knew her, will miss her. Maggie is survived by her partner, Rich; her brothers, Al and Jerry; her sons, Mark and Curt; her grandchildren, Travis, Adrianne, Sam and Leo and her stepsons, Jay and Brian and her stepdaughter, Anne. In lieu of flowers, please feel free to donate to a charity of your choice. Her favorites were The Salvation Army and Community Food Bank. A Service will be performed at St Marks in Bethesda, MD later this spring. Arrangements by ADAIR FUNERAL HOME, Dodge Chapel. A Marana man has been sentenced to one year of probation and fined $10,000 for damaging cacti and other vegetation in the Ironwood Forest National Monument northwest of Tucson. John Samuel Rahe, 50, was sentenced last week by U.S. Magistrate Judge Leslie A. Bowman after previously pleading guilty to resource damage and littering. Rahe will pay the $10,000 restitution to the Bureau of Land Management. According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, Rahe in March 2015 drove his Polaris Ranger ATV off road within the monument's boundaries, running over and destroying two small saguaros, a palo verde tree and more than 30 cacti and shrubs. When his vehicle became stuck, Rahe attempted to free it by attaching a winch cable to an 8-foot saguaro, which resulted in the cactus being pulled over and destroyed. A man wanted in connection with a Monday night shooting near the University of Arizona campus was arrested Wednesday night in Coolidge. Marcus G. Webster, 30, was taken into custody by federal marshals and the Coolidge Police Department, said Sgt. Kimberly Bay, a Tucson Police Department spokeswoman. An arrest warrant was issued for Webster who is one of three suspects connected to the shooting at a house across the street from the UA Police Department headquarters, said authorities. He was last seen near Coolidge and was considered to be armed and dangerous. It's unclear if any other suspects have been identified. The maroon 2015 Nissan Altima associated with the shooting was located Tuesday by police, said Officer Daniel Lucas, a Tucson Police Department spokesman. Investigators did not release where or under what circumstances the vehicle was found. The other two men officers also were looking for are between 20 and 30 years old. Webster and the two men were seen leaving the scene in the Altima, Lucas said. Investigators ask that anyone with information about the shooting, or the other two men call 911 or 88-CRIME. Shortly before 10 p.m. Monday night, police were dispatched to the 1000 block of North Campbell Avenue to a reported shooting, said Sgt. Kimberly Bay, a TPD spokeswoman. Detectives learned that a woman and man associated with the residence had gotten into a confrontation in the front yard with three men, during which the woman was shot, Bay said. Officers with the University of Arizona Police Department heard the screams from the station, and responded to the scene. They rendered first aid until Tucson Fire Department paramedics arrived and transported the woman to a hospital, Bay said. The victim is in serious condition, but is expected to survive. No other injuries were reported. An undercover operation at last years gem show led to the conviction of a Canadian man for smuggling dinosaur fossils from China. Jun Yang, a 36-year-old resident of British Columbia, pleaded guilty to smuggling a psittacosaurus fossil and 16 hadrosaur egg fossils into the United States. He was sentenced Monday in U.S. District Court in Tucson to five years probation and ordered to pay a $25,000 fine, the U.S. Attorneys Office said. The conviction stemmed from an undercover operation in February 2015 at the Globe-X Gem and Mineral Show at the Days Inn Hotel, 222 S. Freeway, court records show. Homeland Security Investigations agents posed as shoppers while Yang, who was president of Arctic Products Inc., showed off his wares, court documents show. Yang told the agents he was trying to sell the 100-million-year-old psittacosaurus fossil, which was dug up about 150 miles south of the border with Mongolia, for $15,000. The hadrosaur eggs, which Yang was trying to sell for $450 each, were found in central China. Yang told the agents he removed the fossils from China and shipped them in containers along with stone carvings. He said he did not declare the fossils to customs agents. The agents purchased the psittacosaurus fossil and hadrosaur eggs and sent photographs to an expert, who confirmed the type of fossil and their place of origin in China. Agents reviewed the law of the Peoples Republic of China and found the sale of special protected fossils to foreigners was prohibited, court records show. The fossils were protected by cultural antiquities laws and therefore were illegal to import into the United States, said Chad Plantz, special agent in charge at Homeland Security Investigations. Now that Yang has been sentenced, the fossils will be returned to the Chinese government, Plantz said. In order to identify illegal fossils, agents go through rigorous training with the Smithsonian Institution, Plantz said. They have a pretty good idea by looking at the fossils and can determine where theyre from, he said. When an agents suspicion is aroused, photos are sent to experts to determine whether the fossils are protected under the Cultural Property Implementation Act, Plant said in reference to a U.S. law that came about after an international meeting to stop the black market trade of cultural antiquities. Its a pretty large industry, Plantz said of the illegal trade of fossils and other items. Since the cultural antiquities program at Homeland Security began in 2007, the agency has seized more than 7,000 artifacts from 26 countries. The artifacts include paintings from France, Poland, Germany and Austria, as well as Italian and Peruvian manuscripts dating from the 15th and 18th centuries. The arrest of Yang was the first one dealing with fossils that Homeland Security agents have made at Tucson gem shows, Plantz said. The agency did not make any busts at the 2016 gem show. But agents seized Burmese rubies at the 2015 gem show that were prohibited by the Office of Foreign Assets Control, a division of the U.S. Treasury that deals with economic and trade sanctions designed to further U.S. foreign policy goals. The rubies were determined to be in the same class as conflict diamonds, the proceeds of which go to regimes that violate human rights or exploit child labor, Plantz said. The bill is dead, but the idea is not. The idea heard on local airwaves, at coffee shops and bars, and in the halls of the state Capitol is that Tucson is a sanctuary city. Its a place, the idea goes, where cops wont call the Border Patrol, where the jail will let people free rather than hand them over to the hated Migra. Its a hot issue again because of something that happened last year in San Francisco, a recognized sanctuary city. A Mexican man was released from jail despite immigration authorities wanting him to be handed over to them. A couple of months later, on July 1, he randomly shot 32-year-old Kate Steinle on a pier. Rightful anger has resulted. The idea that Tucson, too, is a sanctuary city was reinforced this month at the state Legislature, a place where if you testified that each Tucson home is required to have a copy of the Communist Manifesto, the legislators would believe it and shake their heads in disgust. Zack Taylor, a Santa Cruz County man, got that sort of reception from the state Senates committee on public safety, military and technology Feb. 3. Giving a presentation on border threats, Taylor, a retired Border Patrol agent, intoned: The big threat to the state of Arizona is the sanctuary city policies that exist here. And Im telling you I live and work in Tucson, Arizona, and Ill tell you it is a sanctuary city. Im not sure what Taylor meant when he said he lives here. He is, after all, the chairman of the Santa Cruz County Republican Party. But senators seemed prepared to believe him. Why do you say that? Sen. Steve Smith, R-Maricopa, asked Taylor about the sanctuary city accusation. Ive heard the chief of police that just recently retired saying that they dont intend to assist the immigration authorities with picking up illegal aliens and getting them off the street, Taylor said. Is this a written policy? Sen. John Kavanagh asked. When the chief of police goes on TV and says it, its probably already a policy thats been put out to the field officer, Taylor responded. In part on the strength of that inexpert testimony, the panel went ahead and passed a bill that would have taken away state tax money from any city shown to be a sanctuary city. Fortunately, the Senate shot down the bill by a 16-14 vote on Monday. I say fortunately because it was really unnecessary. First, its questionable whether there are any sanctuary cities in Arizona. Second, there are already enforcement mechanisms left from SB 1070 if cities dont follow state law. Eliminating sanctuary-city policies was one of then-Sen. Russell Pearces main aims when he got SB 1070 passed. A rare portion of the bill not thrown out by federal courts says that officers must contact federal immigration authorities if they develop reasonable suspicion that a person theyve detained or arrested is in the country illegally. Its true that Tucson officials such as recently retired chief Roberto Villasenor and former Pima County Sheriff Clarence Dupnik fought the proposal, arguing it was unnecessary, potentially racist and could divide the police from residents. But in more recent years, the trouble Tucson police have faced has been for enforcing the law, not for avoiding it. Repeatedly from 2012 through 2014, protesters gathered when Tucson police called U.S. Border Patrol agents about people suspected of immigration-law violations. One former local resident became notorious for crawling underneath the Border Patrol vehicle where arrestees were held to prevent them from being taken away. Villasenor opposed the law but said he was obliged to enforce it. About a year ago, the city revised its general orders for police on immigration enforcement, narrowing the situations in which police will call federal authorities. Officers are now prohibited from asking crime victims or witnesses about their immigration status, and juveniles can be asked only in the presence of a parent or lawyer. The debate over San Franciscos sanctuary policy has focused more on its refusal to hand prisoners over to immigration authorities than on local arrest practices. In Pima County, Sheriff Chris Nanos said, the jail will alert immigration authorities when somebody they want is about to be released. If the feds dont pick him up, the jail releases him, Nanos said. If youre law enforcement, you cant hold somebody without probable cause or a warrant, he told me Tuesday. When I asked Shawn Moran, vice president of the National Border Patrol Council, how he defines a sanctuary city, Moran said, I think the simplest definition is where local law enforcement does not cooperate with immigration officials by order of some policy. You could say some of our policies dont encourage local police to eagerly cooperate with immigration officers. But a more strict definition would say no way is Tucson a sanctuary city. The Center for Immigration Studies, a think tank that supports restricting legal and illegal immigration, defines sanctuary cities as those that protect criminal aliens from deportation by refusing to comply with ICE detainers or otherwise impede open communication and information exchanges between their employees or officers and federal immigration agents. By that definition, last month the center only called one city in Arizona, South Tucson, a sanctuary city. And that was not because of a philosophical decision but because, as the center put it, South Tucson will not honor ICE detainer unless ICE pays for cost of detention. Seems fair to me. And if thats the worst we have to offer in Arizona, then its a good thing that bill was voted down. PHOENIX The state Court of Appeals on Tuesday rebuffed a bid by former Attorney General Tom Horne to overturn findings he violated state campaign finance laws. In a unanimous ruling, the three-judge panel said there was more than enough evidence for Yavapai County Attorney Sheila Polk to conclude that Horne and aide Kathleen Winn had coordinated with each other on how some money she had collected for her campaign finance committee would be spent. Polk said that was illegal because Winns committee, Business Leaders for Arizona, was supposed to operate independent of Horne as the candidate in 2010. Horne said late Tuesday he intends to appeal. He also said Polk, a trial judge and now the appellate court all got it wrong. In fact, Horne said, the only one who got it right was the original administrative law judge who found there was insufficient evidence of coordination to conclude any laws had been violated a finding that Polk personally overruled. At issue is $513,340 spent by Business Leaders for Arizona, run by Winn, on a last-minute television commercial attacking Felecia Rotellini, Hornes 2010 Democrat foe. The group was registered as an independent campaign committee to help Horne get elected. As an independent committee, it could not legally coordinate its expenses with the candidate. Undisputed evidence presented to the administrative law judge showed a series of phone calls and emails between the pair. Campaign finance A measure given preliminary House approval Wednesday could allow charities to spend money on ballot measures without disclosing their activities and their donors to the public. HB 2296 deals with groups organized under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. They are supposed to spend most of their money on charitable purposes. While they cannot seek to influence who is elected, they can spend up to 20 percent on political and lobbying activities. And that latter category includes ballot measures. Rep. J.D. Mesnard, R-Chandler, said his main goal is to protect charities from having to make public the names of their donors. But the measure exempts these charities from filing any campaign finance reports, a move that could permit them to fund independent expenditure campaigns for or against ballot measures without having to report any of those activities. It now needs a roll-call vote. Gun regulations The state House voted 33-21 Wednesday to forbid state and local governments from helping to enforce any federal law, act, order or rule that deals with the personal possession of firearms and infringes on the constitutional right of people to have weapons. Rep. Anthony Kern, R-Glendale, said HB 2300 spells out what he says is already the right of state and local governments: to refuse to help the federal government implement its laws. But the legislation goes beyond that, cutting off state funds from any local government that does agree to cooperate. The measure also subjects any employee who knowingly violates the law to a $3,000 fine for a first offense and up to six months in jail for subsequent violations. Proponents see the measure as a way of countering any moves by the Obama administration to impose regulations on the transfer of firearms. That would include closing what some see as a loophole in laws that say those who buy weapons at gun shows are not subject to the requirement of a background check. Wednesdays vote came over the objections Rep. Randall Friese, D-Tucson. He said a 2015 online poll shows that close to two-thirds of Arizonans want stiffer gun regulations to keep weapons out of the hands of those who should not have them. Separately, the House gave preliminary approval to HB 2338. It allows people who can lawfully possess weapons to have them on streets and other public rights of way even if they run through a public school, community college or university campus. Nothing in the measure, however, allows individuals to bring those guns into school buildings. Local control The state Senate voted 17-12 Wednesday to deny state shared revenues to cities and counties that enact ordinances that the attorney general determines are contrary to state law. SB 1487 is being pushed by Senate President Andy Biggs, R-Gilbert. He said some cities have effectively ignored restrictions the Legislature has placed on cities, doing so because they have concluded there is no way for the state to enforce its will. Taking away their share of $600 million distributed would do that, he said. Sen. Martin Quezada, D-Phoenix, said lawmakers should not take away the ability of our local elected officials to enact the best laws they can. He acknowledged that some communities are doing things the Legislature does not like, such as proposing their own minimum wages and regulating the use of plastic bags. But Quezada said that is no reason to take away their share of state revenues. Water supply Without debate the Senate on Wednesday voted to impose a new hurdle on counties that want to have their own water restrictions. State law already imposes some restrictions on development in active management areas where groundwater supplies are at risk. There are five such areas in the state Prescott, Phoenix, Pinal, Pima and Santa Cruz covering close to 15,000 square miles. Cochise and Yuma counties have imposed their own requirements that developers show an adequate water supply. That, however, has thrown some legal roadblocks into plans for a 7,000-home development in Sierra Vista as well as a proposal for a development of up to 28,000 homes in Benson. SB 1400, sponsored by Sen. Gail Griffin, R-Hereford, requires any county-enacted proposal to be reconsidered every five years, with a specific requirement for Cochise and Yuma counties to vote within two years. And the restrictions can be reenacted only by a unanimous vote, meaning a single supervisor can thwart the move. Griffin also is the sponsor of SB 1268, approved by the Senate a week ago, which permits cities to ignore county ordinances on assured water supply. Public meetings City councils, county boards of supervisors, school boards and other public agencies would be required to make audio and video recordings of all meetings open and executive sessions under terms of legislation given preliminary House approval Wednesday. Current law requires these agencies to keep minutes of their meetings. It also allows a judge to review the minutes of closed sessions to determine if there were discussions taking place behind closed doors that should have occurred in public. HB 2583 requires the public portions of the meeting to be made available on agency websites, with the executive sessions kept for review by courts, just like the current requirement for minutes. Rep. Charlene Fernandez, D-Yuma, worried about the cost, saying there are small school districts in her area that dont have video equipment. But Rep. Bob Robson, R-Chandler, said even a recording made with a cell phone would comply with the law. The measure needs a roll-call vote before going to the Senate. Supreme Court Arizona lawmakers want to add two more justices to the states high court. The court currently consists of five justices, a figure it has had since 1960, when it was raised from just three. Rep. J.D. Mesnard, R-Chandler, said it makes sense to go to seven given the size of the state. Mesnard also said it could result in more diversification on the bench. If HB 2537 becomes law the Commission on Appellate Court Appointments would screen candidates and make nominations. The final decision would be up to Gov. Doug Ducey. That would give him three of the seven on the bench after he named Clint Bolick to the court in January. The measure requires a final House vote. Capitol Media Services On Twitter: @azcapmedia PHOENIX Rejecting a last-minute plea from the state schools chief, the Senate voted overwhelmingly Tuesday to strip her of many duties she contends are constitutionally hers. The 24-5 vote came just hours after Diane Douglas wrote to senators telling them adoption of SB 1416 would be a mistake. I urge you to read its provisions and see the administrative authority being transferred to a non-elected, unaccountable body, without the expertise or resources to properly administrate and oversee its functions or its employees, Douglas told senators. She said defeating the measure would safeguard the will of the voters and the statutory and constitutional authority of all elected officials in office now, and in the future. But while five senators refused to support the measure, not a single one of them stood up to vocally oppose the legislation. It now goes to the House. The legislation crafted by Sen. Jeff Dial, R-Chandler, comes after a year of squabbles with the Board of Education that started shortly after Douglas took office in January 2015. Douglas was elected largely on her promise to eliminate the Common Core academic standards. A month into office, she attempted to fire the boards executive director and assistant, calling them two liberal staff who have publicly stated they will block all efforts to repeal or change Common Core. That move was effectively thwarted when Gov. Doug Ducey told state personnel officials to ignore Douglas order and keep the pair on the payroll. The board eventually moved its workers out of the Department of Education Building. Douglas sued, contending state law gives her control over the boards employees and where they work. A trial judge refused to rule, calling it a political matter; the case is now at the Court of Appeals. The board later filed its own lawsuit after Douglas refused to give its investigators remote access to teacher files. Dial said his legislation is designed to end all the litigation and stop having taxpayers foot the bill for attorneys for both sides. The measure, which now goes to the House, spells out that the Board of Education has the power to hire, fire and supervise its own employees. The board is composed of gubernatorial appointees, with Douglas also serving on the panel as a voting member. It also makes clear that it is the board that sets policy. Douglas argued that as the lone person elected by voters, she should have some role in that. But the legislation says her role is to carry out board-elected policies. Charles Tack, press aide to Douglas, sidestepped questions of whether Douglas, who contends the bill infringes on her constitutional authority, will sue if it becomes law. Since the bill is still moving through the process, I am sure she will wait to determine what the next steps need to be based on its final disposition, he said. Help India! By Sadiq Zafar for TwoCircles.net, When elections are around, politics in Uttar Pradesh starts revolving around communal issues and Ram Mandir Babri Mosque debate erupts like a flaring inferno. Society gets polarized easily and in that atmosphere of hate if we look at the Ram Mandir movement we can conclude that the state has seen the summit of communalism during the movement when each vote was casted in the name of Ram, a Hindu deity and the ruler of Ayodhya as per the mythology. Support TwoCircles On December 6,1992 an ideology invaded the peaceful city of Ayodhya and filled the air with hate, enough to distinguish humans on the religious lines. A historical monument was turned into ruins with lakhs chanting Praise to God slogan. Recently, similar incident happened in Paris, when some terrorists attacked innocents and killed people shouting the similar Praise to God slogan. Now, does God really need himself to be praised by such mindsets who are themselves a blot on humanity?? Demolition of a structure in the name of God in an independent democratic nation was one of the saddest events which tattered the social and communal fabric of a diverse nation. And this was followed by arson, killings, looting and riots across the nation. A man calls his protests peaceful and says he didnt ask people to bulldoze the structure, but it is evident that this peaceful protest took many lives in the name of religion. National political representation was busy making drafts for liberalization, globalization and privatization policies and didnt take any action to save the structure, by the way in politics not to take any action is also a decision. It is evident that politics has taken away smiles from many families. Line drawn on the basis of religious belief may give escalations to few but weakens the roots of a society, shrinks interactive spaces, minimalizes creative ability, limits growth and affects communities. Just a day, and the history of civilizations was turned into ruins, crumbling and decaying. Since then, the divided society never sat together to stitch that torn fabric and many succeeded in their attempt to see this division and see themselves in the power corridors of the nation. Whether it is a black day or not, that can be argued but yes it can never be called as a day of victory. ( Sadiq Zafar is the author of book Sustainable Development of Yamuna Floodplain, Delhi) Help India! By Mansoor Durrani for TwoCircles.net, Some leading members of Indias fascist forces publically admire Adolf Hitler. Martin Niemoller was a German national conservative and also, initially, an admirer of Hitler. But unlike Indian fascists, Martin became one of the founders of the Confessional Church, which opposed the nazification of German Protestant churches. For his opposition to the Nazis state control of the churches, Martin was imprisoned from 1937 to 1945. Support TwoCircles He narrowly escaped execution and survived imprisonment. After imprisonment, Martin expressed deep regret for not having done enough to help the victims of the Nazi atrocities. He turned away from his earlier nationalistic beliefs and in a kind of repentance wrote this famous, heart-touching poem: First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out Because I was not a Socialist. Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out Because I was not a Trade Unionist. Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out Because I was not a Jew. Then they came for meand there was no one left to speak for me. Every profession is identified by a certain dress code. The dress then becomes a symbol of what that profession is meant to deliver. For instance, doctors wear white coats and they work to save lives. So folks in white coats are considered life savers. Similarly lawyers wear black coats which symbolizes justice and fairness. Lawyers primary job is to first investigate and determine (not fabricate) the truth and only then seek to deliver justice through an established legal process! Lawyers take oath on their respective Holy books to follow this process. A societys life depends on justice and justice alone (social justice, political justice, economic justice, criminal justice). For this reason, in my humble view, lawyers add more relative value to our society as a whole than doctors though both are extremely important for our well being. Any society with a weak judicial system is not a society, but a jungle. The stronger the judicial system, the more peaceful and prosperous are the societies. There is a plenty of evidence for this within the globalized village that we all are now a part of. In this context we need to carefully look at an extremely alarming trend recently emerging in India. A number of fabricated terrorism charges have been slapped on innocent youths which were later found as completely bogus and were thrown out by various competent Courts across the country. My earlier article Judiciary: Indias only hope has more details on how many innocent lives have been ruined by such atrocities. Rather than looking at such objectively delivered Court verdicts as a strength of our judicial system (and therefore our nation), some anti-national organizations and their backers adopted a weird approach to establish their own justice (or injustice) system in a country that takes pride in being the worlds largest democracy. And one of the defining features of true democracies is their trust in the rule of law. But in their unconstitutional and illegal approach, these lawyers first started intimidating their professional colleagues who (i) were prepared to honor the oaths they took when they first dawned black coats and (ii) vouched to defend any client who approached them and (iii) consider him/her innocent until proven guilty in a Court of law (not TV screens)! A large number of ethically upright lawyers did not shy away from offering legal assistance to those who approached them seeking justice. When the personal intimidations failed (because India is not a country of cowards), then a number of Bar Councils associated with fascist organizations instructed their members not to defend certain types of clients and cases another unconstitutional and illegal action. Even this did not stop courageous Indian lawyers from taking up the cases of underdogs. Ideally, honorable High Courts (or even Supreme Court of India) should have taken a suo moto action against what some people consider as black coat terrorism. But they did not. This may have encouraged some anti-national lawyers to push the envelope further; and now resort to physically attack their political and ideological opponents within the Court premises. And they have been so emboldened that they did not resort to this terrorism in some remote corner of a vast country like India. Instead, they did this on-camera, in the national capital New Delhi, right under the nose of the honorable Supreme Court of India! Within minutes, pictures of this crime were splashed all over the world. I happened to be in the US that shameful day. Some American friends asked me how is it possible for defendants to get terrorized by lawyers; and that too inside the court premises? I was speechless. And ashamed. If this was a scene from the so called failed states, then no one would question. But this was coming from one of the emerging super powers of 21st century which also happens to be a thriving democracy! And this small bunch of thugs insulted one of the most dignified and respectable professions in the world. In reality, such physical attacks are not meant for the targeted individuals. These attacks are, essentially, on the power and sanctity of our honorable Courts themselves. Because the real message of such brazen attacks is this: (a) we, the black coat terrorists, do not believe that the Courts are capable of delivering justice (the kind of justice we desire) to our political and ideological adversaries (b) so we have already judged them as criminals, even before the Court proceedings start (c) we are more competent than Indian Courts to deliver verdicts against these accused (d) and not just delivering verdict BUT we are also capable of instantly executing our own verdicts in the presence of police force! And (E) Courts or police cannot even touch us no question of throwing us into the prison for our extra-judicial actions!! In the late 1930s and early 1940s, Nazis were at the peak of their power and therefore arrogance. Within a decade, they were completely wiped out from the face of this planet due to their manufactured lies and fascist propaganda. In the eventual humiliation of Nazis lies a great lesson for all admirers of Hitler! Our political or religious ideologies aside, these are extremely dangerous precedents. And they have the potential to unleash completely uncontrollable chain of events, if not checked immediately. This is why, I want to speak out before they come for me! What about you? (Author is a PhD in Islamic Banking from UK. He is currently serving as a Senior Vice President at a top bank in the Middle East) Help India! By Jaspal Singh for Twocircles.net News reports from India have been full of demonstrations, counter-demonstrations about the JNU events and there have been plenty of debates and discussions over the question of what qualifies as sedition, and who is an anti-national. Support TwoCircles Questions have also been raised about certain media houses stoking the fire with false news. A producer from Zee News resigned, condemning his employers of inciting passions and misrepresenting facts on the February 9 events at JNU. He has accused the owners of the media house of supporting the ruling party and distorting facts, which were then used by the Delhi Police to arrest JNUSU president Kanahya Kumar and slap charges of sedition. All this has given rise to a very healthy debate on fundamental issues, which have been presented to us as articles of faith never to be questioned. However, they need to be: one of the participants in one such debate on a TV channel pointed out that India is much older than the Indian state, while nationalism as an ideology only emerged in last couple of hundred years. So what is national and what is anti national is very problematic in countries like India which has many nations, nationalities, languages and people. One nation, one language, one religion cannot work here. The ruling elite have been trying to impose a mono culture on the diverse peoples of India. An ideologue of RSS, who was participating in a debate, stated that in India, nationalism is different from the west. To substantiate his claim, he quoted from Valmiki Ramayana: Janani Janambhoomischa Svaragadapi Garyasi (mother and motherland are more glorious than heaven). He did not bother to explain how one line in a poetic composition can become a line of demarcation. Who decided so? What is meant by Janambhoomi? For example, Punjabis consider their Janambhoomi as Punjab, not Bharat or some abstract nation. Similarly, Bengalis refer to their Janambhoomi as Sonar Bangla. Other nations and nationalities too have have different ideas. However, the colonial state has no respect for these Janambhoomis: they all are branded anti national as they do not submit to colonial notions of European nation state. On the question of nationalism, I am reminded of a statement by Wali Khan. He said that he had been a Pakistani for last sixty years, Muslim for a thousand years and a Pathan for five thousand years. But, like the current situation in India, the ruling dispensation in Pakistan too accused him of being anti-national, even though was stating a historical fact. The pressure of the ruling elite and their colonial state to impose the mono culture is because this tiny minority wants to have unfettered control of all the natural and human resources of this area. Anybody who opposes this is branded anti national. They want their writ run unopposed in every nook and crony. Off course it is meeting with a vast resistance. There is also debate about constitution and unity and territorial integrity as the hallmark of what is national. This constitution is only 60 years or so old. So before the constitution, were there no nationalists? No nations? Moreover, this constitution is 100% colonial. All constitutional experts agree that it is a constitution of continuity, which is a colonial continuity. So, constitution as a basis for nationalism is rather problematic. Similarly, unity and territorial integrity is also a bit problematic. In the last 100 years, the territory of India has gone through many changes. So, this cannot be a hallmark of a nationalist or nationalism. Like the constitution, the present territory is also a creation of the British. It is ironic to consider them as hallmarks of nationalism. India is much bigger and greater than both of these. Many people have raised the point that nationalism is the last refuge of scoundrels and given many examples of how nationalist passions are incited to victimise a definite set of people or divert the majority of people. I think that it is good that such debates are taking place in a public domain. There is great need of such debates and discussions. The JNU row has brought some very fundamental problems to the fore: they have remained under a rug for far too long. (The author is a philosopher based in Cambridge, Massachusetts) Help India! By TCN News, The candle light protests for Rohith Vemula, a follow up of yesterdays protests, were thwarted after a majority of protesters were taken away by the Delhi Police. Support TwoCircles Compared to yesterdays protests, the number of people who had gathered was far less. The detained people have been taken to the Tilak Marg Police Station. Rohiths mother was talking to the media, explaining why they chose India Gate to protest. This place has seen various protests in the past in the struggle for social justice, and we want to do the same, she said. However, within minutes the cops arrived with two buses and started picking them up. A brief scuffle followed, following which the cops started rounding up people. As the crowd started shouting and sloganeering against Delhi Police, they attempted to lathicharge at the crowd. After twenty minutes, some of the protesters gathered in front of the barricades and started the protest again, only for the police to detain the remaining protesters also. Help India! By TCN Staff Reporter Delhi: Amit Shah, President, BJP, has assured the Sir Syed Minority Foundation of India that he will raise the issue of the minority status of Aligarh Muslim Univeristy in front of PM Narendra Modi. Support TwoCircles A four-member team of the Foundation visited the BJP party office on Wednesday. During a ten-minute meeting, they submitted a memorandum to Shah. who added that the issue was raised in front of the Central Government. Mohammed Pervez Siddiqui, president, Sir Syed Minority Foundation, told Twocircles that this was part of an effort to meet leaders from all fronts to raise the issue of the Universitys Minority status. We had met a BJP leaders from Delhi earlier this month and expressed our view with regards to the issue. We also asked for his help in arranging a meeting with Amit Shah, said Siddiqui, who refused to name the leader. He also added that they now hope to meet PM Narendra Modi over the issue. Membership Has It's Privileges The Tyrconnell Heritage Society is always looking for new members. We have special membership rates available for individuals, families, businesses and organizations. Email us at info@backuspagehouse.ca or call us at 519-762-3072 for more information. UAA is an AA/EO employer and educational institution and prohibits illegal discrimination against By Sunny Ikhioya It is said that no matter how far you have journeyed on the wrong route, it is never too late to turn back, otherwise yo... News, Updates, and Opportunities for CCJS Undergrads at the University of Maryland UNHCR is concerned by recent restrictive practices adopted in a number of European countries that are placing additional undue hardships on refugees and asylum-seekers across Europe, creating chaos at several border points, and putting particular pressure on Greece as it struggles to deal with larger numbers of people in need of accommodation and services. On 17 February, Austria announced it would place a daily limit of 3,200 people to enter its territory and only accept 80 new asylum applications per day. Slovenia followed suit and announced a similar cap to restrict movements across its borders. These newest restrictive measures risk violating EU law and undermine efforts for a comprehensive and coordinated approach to deal with the refugee and migrant crisis in Europe. In addition, on 18 February, the Heads of Police Services of Austria, Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia issued a statement announcing their agreement to jointly profile and register refugees and asylum-seekers at the border between the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and Greece, as well as take a number of additional actions to manage the situation. While coordinated action can help the management of the mixed migration movement, the statement has been interpreted differently by countries resulting in increased protection risks for refugees and asylum seekers, particularly those with specific needs, such as unaccompanied and separated children. These include lack of proper registration in line with EU and international standards, the selection of people on the basis of nationality and other criteria rather than protection needs, the heightened likelihood of pushbacks and people being stranded in the open exposed to freezing cold weather and at risk of violence and exploitation at the hands of smugglers and traffickers waiting to prey on their vulnerability. These practices also undermine the Conclusions reached by the European Council last week recalling that to enter the European Union without adequate travel documentation, people need to apply for asylum when reaching an EU country. The domino effect of Austria and Slovenia's daily caps and their joint approach with Croatia, Serbia and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia has already resulted in a buildup of refugees and asylum-seekers and migrants in Greece and in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, where nearly 700 people, mostly Afghan nationals, have been barred from accessing admission into Serbia. In order to support a joint approach and to allay fears and potential chaos, States need to inform refugees and asylum seekers of their procedures, including clear details on the criteria for access to admission, asylum or return, in line with applicable laws. UNHCR and its partners are supporting persons of concern and States with the emergency response across Europe and have been urging countries to implement contingency planning measures and ensure adequate reception conditions, including accommodation, food, and access to asylum procedures, since the beginning of the crisis last summer. UNHCR is making good progress in providing accommodation for 20,000 asylum-seekers in Greece in order to stabilize the situation, reduce irregular secondary movements, but further support and solidarity with Greece, including support for better functioning relocation programme, is needed. Some 85% of those arriving to Europe come from the top ten refugee producing countries. Most are fleeing war and persecution and in need of international protection. They risk their lives and the lives of their children fleeing the inhumanity and tragedy of conflicts and persecution in their homelands - places like Aleppo that is once again in the news. And yet, with every passing week, it appears some European countries are focusing on keeping refugees and migrants out more than on responsibly managing the flow and working on common solutions. Some States are shifting problems onward rather than trying to genuinely share responsibility and show solidarity with one another and with those in need of protection. A comprehensive, coordinated strategy built on shared responsibility, solidarity and trust among all European States working together is the only way to approach the current emergency. UNHCR will continue to provide support to States to help manage the situation humanely and in line with international standards including support to reception, asylum systems, and identifying and supporting people with specific needs, such as women-headed households, unaccompanied or separated children, elderly or refugees with disabilities. UNHCR also urges the creation and expansion of credible alternative pathways for refugees to reach safety in Europe and elsewhere in order to ensure that movements are manageable and safe, such as enhanced resettlement, humanitarian admission, family reunifications and student/work visas. Media contacts: Uprooted Palestinians are at the heart of the conflict in the M.E Palestinians uprooted by force of arms. Yet faced immense difficulties have survived, kept alive their history and culture, passed keys of family homes in occupied Palestine from one generation to the next. The objective of this study was to characterize changes in the quality of life (QOL) of Japanese patients following robot-assisted radical prostatectomy (RARP). This study included 298 consecutive localized prostate cancer (PC) patients undergoing RARP. The health-related QOL and disease-specific QOL were assessed using The Medical Outcomes Study 8-Item Short Form (SF-8) and The Extended Prostate Cancer Index Composite (EPIC), respectively, before and 1, 3, 6, 12 and 24 months after RARP. At 1 month after RARP, four (physical function, role limitations because of physical health problems, social function and role limitations because of emotional problems) of the eight scores in SF-8 were significantly impaired compared with those of baseline scores. However, all eight scores on all postoperative assessments, except for at 1 month after RARP, showed no significant differences from baseline scores. Although there were no significant differences in the bowel function, bowel bother, sexual bother, hormonal function or hormonal bother between baseline and postoperative assessments of EPIC at all time points, the urinary function, urinary incontinence and sexual function scores at 1, 3 and 6 months after RARP were significantly inferior to those of baseline scores, and urinary bother and urinary irritation/obstruction scores at 1 month after RARP were significantly impaired compared with those of baseline scores. These findings suggest that the health-related QOL of Japanese PC patients undergoing RARP may not be markedly deteriorated following RARP; however, as for the disease-specific QOL, urinary and sexual functions, particularly those early after RARP, appeared to be significantly impaired. Journal of robotic surgery. 2016 Feb 17 [Epub ahead of print] Hideaki Miyake, Akira Miyazaki, Junya Furukawa, Nobuyuki Hinata, Masato Fujisawa Division of Urology, Kobe University Graduate School of Medicine, 7-5-1 Kusunoki-cho, Chuo-ku, Kobe, 650-0017, Japan. Division of Urology, Kobe University Graduate School of Medicine, 7-5-1 Kusunoki-cho, Chuo-ku, Kobe, 650-0017, Japan. , Division of Urology, Kobe University Graduate School of Medicine, 7-5-1 Kusunoki-cho, Chuo-ku, Kobe, 650-0017, Japan. , Division of Urology, Kobe University Graduate School of Medicine, 7-5-1 Kusunoki-cho, Chuo-ku, Kobe, 650-0017, Japan. , Division of Urology, Kobe University Graduate School of Medicine, 7-5-1 Kusunoki-cho, Chuo-ku, Kobe, 650-0017, Japan. PubMed Scientists with Rutgers University claim sea levels are rising faster now than in the last 2,700 years. After looking at climate data going back 3,000 years, they concluded that ocean levels will continue to rise at an alarming rate and global warming is the cause. We can say with 95 percent probability that the 20th-century rise was faster than any of the previous 27 centuries, said lead researcher Bob Kopp. Sea levels will continue to rise no matter what humans do The study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, indicates ocean levels rose around 14 centimeters (5.5 inches) from 1900 to 2000. Recent data released by NASA suggest levels are still rising at an accelerated pace, increasing at 3.4 millimeters per year.The team of scientists thinks that if the planet had not been on a warming trend, it's unlikely the ocean would have risen so much in the last hundred years. They predict the sea level change would have been anywhere from a three centimeter fall to a seven centimeter rise. Its not the tide. Its not the wind. Its us. Thats true for most of the coastal floods we now experience, said Benjamin H. Strauss, another researcher. The researchers speculate that sea levels will continue rising regardless of the amount of carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere. However, choices humans make will still make a difference.The data forecasts a level rise between 24 and 61 centimeters should the amount of carbon dioxide emitted be reduced. In contrast, an increase in emissions could lead to a rise of as much as 131 centimeters, or nearly 4.3 feet. By the 22nd century, many cities on the coasts will be abandoned as sea levels will continue to rise. Over thousands of years, humans have benefited from stable sea levels, allowing for the growth of large coastal cities. That is about to change, according to climate scientists. I think we can definitely be confident that sea-level rise is going to continue to accelerate if theres further warming, which inevitably there will be, said Stefan Rahmstorf, a professor of ocean physics at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research in Germany. Global temperature linked to sea level In the 20th century, the melting of mountain glaciers and the natural expansion of ocean water as it warms were the major factors in the rising sea levels. However, in the next 100 years, the scientists believe the ice sheets that cover Greenland and Antarctica will have a greater role to play.The new study is a much larger look at previous research done by the same authors. In 2011, they measured the ocean and climate records of several salt marshes in North Carolina and discovered a sea level rise in the last 100 years as well. To get a global picture of the changes, the new data is a reconstruction of past sea levels from 24 locations across the Earth. Additionally, more recent measurements were taken from 66 global tide gauges. Other factors, including whether land is rising or sinking as well as the changes in ocean currents, were also calculated and taken into account.The ocean is sensitive to small changes in the Earths temperature. According to the data, ocean levels dropped almost three inches when global temperatures cooled during the Middle Ages. Yet, when temperatures rose again, so did sea levels.The study seems to link global warming to the rise in sea level. The scientists concluded that climate change caused by humans was to blame for three quarters of the coastal floods recorded from 2005 to 2014. Physics tells us that sea-level change and temperature change should go hand-in-hand, Dr. Kopp said. This new geological record confirms it. Chinese firm wins condom battle Updated: 2016-02-24 04:04 By Xu Jingxi in Guangzhou(China Daily) A condom maker in South Chinas Guangdong province has won a lawsuit against a Japanese company over its competing claim to be manufacturer of the worlds thinnest prophylactic. The Guangzhou Yuexiu District Peoples Court pronounced on Monday that Tokyo-based condom brand Okamoto used unfair practices to compete against Guangzhou Daming United Rubber Products. Guinness World Records verified the Chinese companys Aoni condom, which has an average thickness of 0.036 mm, as the worlds thinnest in December 2013 breaking the previous record of 0.038 mm set by Okamoto in 2012. But Guangzhou Daming United Rubber Products said it found Okamotos condoms still on sale bearing phrases such as worlds thinnest and Guinness World Record in May 2014. A lawsuit was filed in September 2014 by the Chinese company against its Japanese counterpart, citing false advertising and seeking 1 yuan ($0.15) as compensation for economic loss. The court held that Okamoto knew about the verified world record and ordered it to stop selling condoms bearing false advertising and pay the compensation. The small amount of compensation claimed has led to speculation that the Guangzhou-based condom maker sued the famous Japanese brand as a publicity stunt. Some netizens on Sina Weibo even claimed that they had only heard about the Chinese condom brand because of the lawsuit. Yoshiyuki Okamoto, president of the Japanese condom company, also viewed the legal challenge as self-promotional and described the legal battle as primitive, according to a report in the Financial Times. Guangzhou Daming United Rubber Products has denied the claims. We sued Okamoto intending to stop their act of infringement. We decided to demand compensation of only 1 yuan, a nominal amount, because we didnt want the proceedings to get stuck on the matter of economic losses, Victor Chan, general manager of the Chinese condom company, told China Daily on Tuesday. Calling Okamoto a shameless competitor, Chan said the Japanese company continued to claim it was the manufacturer of the worlds thinnest condom to take advantage of their popularity in China and of Chinese consumers trust in their brand. xujingxi@chinadaily.com.cn Aussie eggs scrutinized for toxic additives Updated: 2016-02-22 22:22 By Shadow Li in Hong Kong(chinadaily.com.cn) The Centre for Food Safety has moved to allay local fears that Australian eggs on sale here may have been injected with toxic food dyes intended to make the yolks appear brighter. Strong dosages of chemical food dye additives are believed to raise higher risks of cancer and their sale is banned here. The agency said Monday that it found no traces of substances banned in Hong Kong among 630 eggs samples examined over the past three years. But the center promised to continue monitoring the situation and to consult with the Australian government. Louis Shih Tai-cho, physician and president of the Hong Kong Medical Association, told China Daily the issue is potentially serious and bears close scrutiny. The agency's statement came in response to reports in Australian media, quoting several organic farmers as saying that artificial food dyes were being added to exported eggs from Australia. Australia's leading egg producer Sunny Queen, a cooperative based in Queensland, signed an exclusive distributorship agreement with a local registered company in Hong Kong, Century Food Company, to sell its products at supermarkets in Hong Kong, Macao and the Chinese mainland. Hong Kong's major supermarkets approached by China Daily said they do not sell Australian eggs, adding those are available only at high-end supermarkets. Census and Statistics Bureau figures show Hong Kong imported a total of 2,117 million fresh eggs in 2013, the last year for which statistics are available. The great majority came from the Chinese mainland, the US, Singapore and Thailand. The Australian news report however was critical of Australia's lax regulation on free range chickens. Anyone convicted of selling food with unauthorized additives in Hong Kong is liable to a maximum fine of HK$50,000 dollars a day and six months' imprisonment. Nick Li in Hong Kong contributed to the reporting. Chinese scientists find potential infertility treatment for PCOS patients Updated: 2016-02-23 05:09 (Xinhua) WASHINGTON -- Chinese scientists said Monday they have found a potential treatment for women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), a leading cause of infertility marked by chronic lack of ovulation. Transplanting brown adipose tissue (BAT), one of two types of fat found in humans and other mammals, into rats with PCOS significantly stabilized menstrual irregularity and improved ovulation and pregnancy outcomes, they reported in the U.S. journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The study was jointly conducted by Wanzhu Jin at the Institute of Zoology, part of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and Zijiang Chen at the Shandong University. PCOS is one of the most common endocrine diseases in women of reproductive age, which can cause irregular menstrual cycles, polycystic ovaries and infertility, The disease is also associated with a high risk for the development of insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes, obesity, dyslipidemia, and cardiovascular disease. Because the cause of PCOS is largely unknown, there is no cure or specific treatment for the disorder. Lifestyle changes, such as weight loss and exercise, have been recommended for women with PCOS. In the new study, the researchers found BAT transplantation activated endogenous BAT, which secrets adiponectin,a systemic brown adipokine that plays a prominent role in whole-body energy metabolism and ovarian physiology, Jin told Xinhua. Further research showed that injection of adiponectin into PCOS rat "recapitulates the beneficial effects of BAT transplantation by normalizing BAT activity, metabolic abnormalities, acyclicity and abnormal hormonal levels." "The study provides a brand new clue to the treatment of PCOS patients," Jin said. However, BAT transplantation itself is far from clinical application because it's not easily applied to human beings, he noted. As a result, administration of drugs that enhance BAT activity will be alternative strategies for the treatment of PCOS, he added. New look at an Arab hero Updated: 2016-02-24 08:04 By Andrew Moody(China Daily USA) In his latest work, writer John Man focuses on a general who is probably as relevant today as he was nearly a thousand years ago, when the Silk Road linked China to the Islamic world. Andrew Moody reports. John Man, a leading writer on China, is unconcerned about being described as a popular historian. His books, which include biographies of Marco Polo and Genghis Khan, and have a trademark light jaunty style, sometimes sell in their hundreds of thousands. The latest, Saladin: The Life, The Legend and the Islamic Empire, to be published in paperback in April, examines the life of the great 12th-century Arabic leader who fought off the Crusaders from Europe. "I hope the books are easy to read. That is the idea. There is an awful lot of academic work on all these subjects but quite often the authors are just experts on the sources only. They are not bothered to go to the places. I think if you go there - like I do - you always find something new," he says. Man, 74, who was speaking at his booklined study in London, hopes he will generate fresh interest in Saladin, still an iconic figure in the Middle East but largely anonymous in most other parts of the world. "He was a great Kurdish Arab general during the Crusades and his major claim to fame was that he kicked the Europeans out of Jerusalem, and is therefore a hero in the Arab world," he says. "Just at the moment he is relevant and crucial because he united Shias and Sunnis - not in the best possible way because he was pretty rough on the Egyptian Shias - but at least he united them." The author points out he remains an important figure to current leaders such as Bashar al-Assad, the president of Syria. "This is largely because Damascus was Saladin's base and that is where his grave is and also a major statue of him. The Assads look back to Saladin and, of course, as everyone is hoping and looking for the next leader who can unite Sunnis and Shias." Saladin lived at a time when the Silk Road provided major trade links between the Islamic world and China. "This was a time when Islam and the Chinese were probably the leading civilizations in the world. Islam at the time was very outgoing and tolerant," he says. Man, who read modern languages at Oxford before taking a separate degree in Mongolian at the School of Oriental and African Studies in London, began his career as a journalist with Reuters in Bonn in the late 1960s. He then moved into publishing before becoming a full-time author in 1983. He has produced 18 books (14 of which are still in print), including several on China covering subjects as diverse as the Terracotta Warriors, the Great Wall and Marco Polo. His biography of Genghis Khan has sold 200,000 copies alone and has been translated into 21 languages. The Mongol leader has had something of a historical makeover with a more nuanced image emerging than that of just a brutal military leader. Man was an adviser on Sergei Bodrov's 2007 Oscar-nominated film Mongol. "For his victims the older image was certainly a reality. He was responsible for many millions of deaths in China and in the Islamic world but he was at the same time a brilliant leader." Man insists that the Mongol leader also didn't habitually boil people as a form of capital punishment. "There was a traditional form of death in Mongolia, which involved, apparently boiling people. It was a barbaric practice. He didn't do it. I think it was done to his people and he took revenge." Man coincidentally lives barely a mile from Frances Wood, the now retired curator of the Chinese collection at the British Library, who wrote a book claiming that Italian explorer Marco Polo did not go to China, evidenced by him not mentioning chopsticks among other things. Not a view that Man shares in his 2009 book Xanadu: Marco Polo and Europe's Discovery of the East. "Yes, I have had lunch with her many times," he says laughing. "He (Marco Polo) doesn't mention tea either or the Great Wall. The reason was that Mongolia was ruling China at the time and so these things didn't feature. There are one or two things he exaggerates but he did go to China, for sure." Man, who was awarded the rare honor of a Friendship Medal by the Mongolian government in 2007, has made many trips to Mongolia but has never fallen in love with the local food. "If there is a genuine Mongolian restaurant anywhere, I want to avoid it. I love Chinese though," he says. Man believes his latest book as well as his work on Mongolia and China, will renew interest in the Silk Road trading corridor. One of the Chinese government's current core strategies is its Belt and Road Initiative. "Between China and Islam and what we call the Silk Road, and also around the coasts there was this terrific interaction at the time of Saladin." Somewhat frustratingly, however, he has struggled to find during his research for the new book any answers to the various current Middle East crises. "I don't think anybody has a clue as to what a modern-day Saladin could do. There seems to be no reconciliation between Shias and Sunnis. It is rather like the Protestants and Catholics during the religious wars," he says. Contact the writer at andrewmoody@chinadaily.com.cn John Man, a wellknown writer on China, talks about his latest book, Saladin: The Life, The Legend and the Islamic Empire, which will be published in April.Nick J.b. Moore / For China Daily (China Daily USA 02/24/2016 page7) Tuna Tartare at Paletto Italian restaurant in Shenzhen. [Photo by Mike Peters/China Daily] Some appreciate art through sight, while others savor it through taste, says chef Stefano Nicodemo, who seems determined to have it both ways. In his first year at Paletto Italian restaurant in Shenzhen, Nicodemo has showcased seasonal flavors from the south of Italy with a lot of flair. Fresh octopus, white truffle and porcini mushrooms have been stars in his signature dishes of his native Naples. The chef's modern approach favors dishes that are "light yet richly defined," he says. "The visual presentation of food is the art of modifying, processing, arranging or decorating it to enhance its aesthetic appeal. I often take the simple classics I grew up with and adapt or modernize them." His focus starts with healthy ingredients as well as preserving and maximizing their natural qualities and flavors. "I often use low-temperature cooking techniques as a way to retain their inherent nutritional value," says Nicodemo. At a recent lunch, we start by digging into an artfully crafted tuna tartare, a colorful round of flaky fish, capers, cooked egg white, cooked egg yolk, caviar and baby vegetables that gleams thanks to a light application of olive oil. Next comes risotto Milanese, with a golden glow thanks to 17 minutes of cooking in saffron water, and veal osso buco, cooked for three hours in a 140-degree oven. The meat is sauced with beef stock enriched with bone marrow and herbs, and topped with a scattering of rosemary, thyme and lemon zest; meanwhile, the risotto bears delicate hints of parmesan, onion and garlic. The mobilization of Chinese Americans in response to the manslaughter conviction of a New York City police officer could be a watershed moment for their political standing in the US. Last weekend, tens of thousands of people across the United States protested the guilty verdict returned on Feb 11 by a Brooklyn jury against Peter Liang, a rookie NYPD officer, in the shooting death of Akai Gurley, 28, in November 2014. Liang, now 28, discharged his gun in a darkened stairwell of a Brooklyn housing project, and the ricocheted bullet fatally struck Gurley on a lower floor. Prosecutors successfully argued that Liang was reckless, more concerned about losing his job and showed indifference to Gurley's injury. He didn't attempt to provide CPR, choosing to wait for paramedics to arrive, witnesses testified. But many of the protesters countered that the shooting was an accident and that a rookie officer without CPR experience should not have been sent to patrol a dangerous area. They also allege that Liang was scapegoated because an African-American man once again had died in an incident involving police, and someone had to be held responsible. Many protesters made sure to express condolences to Gurley's family and also mourned his death. Some Chinese Americans, including New York City Councilwoman Margaret Chin, also spoke out in favor of Liang's indictment. Still, the overarching message of the protests seemed to be that the Chinese won't be quiet or taken for granted, even in a case with racial elements. New York gets tense in such incidents, whether they happen here or elsewhere in the country. Another notorious incident involving the death of a black man, Eric Garner, sparked waves of protests around the city. Garner died in July 2014 in a confrontation with police on Staten Island, who had accused him of illegally selling cigarettes. The officer who was filmed with his arm around Garner's neck was not indicted. The city also had seen protests related to other violent incidents involving police and black men, including the deaths of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri; Freddie Gray in Baltimore; and Laquan McDonald in Chicago. The Chinese seemed to be sending a message that the community will not abide by judicial expediency. They expect to be treated evenly in US courts, and Liang's case, which many saw as an unintentional killing, was not as clear cut as others in which officers were not even indicted or were acquitted. A petition calling for the withdrawal of Liang's indictment reached almost 124,000 signatures on whitehouse.gov. The Obama administration responded that it "has no role in the decision of a state or local prosecutor to prosecute or not prosecute a case, and so we are not in a position to address the specific request of the petition." "The local entities in this case, the District Attorney's office and the New York Police Department will be the best source for information on this matter." The political influence of Asian Americans is clearly rising. This year for the first time, New York City schoolchildren were given the day off for Lunar New Year, a day also now celebrated on Capitol Hill and in the White House. But suspicion and finger-pointing about China and Chinese persist in the US, over any number of topics such as cybersecurity, the South China Sea, the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, the trade imbalance and the value of the Chinese currency. Such issues come up frequently in the 2016 presidential campaign, and China invariably is on the wrong end of the commentary. There probably always will be wariness between the two countries as long as they have such different political systems, but the cultural, economic and educational exchanges between the US and China are still expanding. China sends more college students to American universities than any other country. Chinese companies also invest heavily in their own subsidiaries in the US and provide Americans with jobs. When there is a disconnect in the political and judicial realms, it is jarring to those vested in the vast exchanges between the two nations. The Liang verdict could serve as a signpost for Chinese Americans, and based on the turnout at the protests last weekend, they expect their voices to be heard. Contact the writer at williamhennelly@chinadailyusa.com Who are the people rooting for China's 'collapse' and why? Updated: 2016-02-24 07:58 By Robert Lawrence Kuhn(China Daily) A stevedore works at Qingdao port in Shandong province, July 1, 2015. [Photo/IC] The "China collapse" theory can be analyzed in three parts: What is the argument? Who are its advocates? Why does it resonate? I explain why the theory is either misconceived or underdetermined, and at best wrongly categorizes complex, evolving issues under a simplistic, inflammatory title. The "China collapse" argument is that the country's economy is facing a constellation of severe, debilitating forces: slowing growth, market volatilities, social imbalances, industrial overcapacity, excessive debt, rising wages, reduced competitiveness, overbuilt housing, unproductive infrastructure, massive pollution, insufficient State-owned enterprise reform, global uncertaintiesthe list is not short. These issues are real, each the natural result of unprecedented economic development in a compressed period of time. But what follows? Each issue is being addressed, imperfectly of course, but in a coordinated manner. China's focus on innovation, entrepreneurship, science and technology, Made in China 2025, hukou (household registration) reforms to help migrant workers, and the like, are all part of the country's 13th Five-Year Plan (2016-20). When mistakes are made, such as tight circuit breakers on stock market volatility that fueled rather than doused anxiety, they are corrected rapidly. In mid-2015, China's stock market "collapsed", but stability was restored. Economics runs in cycles, boom and bust, with peaks and troughs higher or lower. So those who predict China's "collapse", loosely defined, must be "correct" at some points in the cycle. A fallacy of China's slowing GDP growth is using year-on-year percentages as the benchmark. If China's GDP grows at 6.5 percent this year, on a base of almost $11 trillion, the absolute increase (about $700 billion) would be roughly double of what it was 10 years ago (in 2006, when the economy grew at 12.7 percent). Moreover, because China's population is now only slightly larger, the incremental per capita GDP today is larger than what it was in those so-called high-growth years. Yet the problem of China's unproductive growth is real, which has led to overcapacity in industry, housing and infrastructure. China's story is not a simple one. Who advocates "China's collapse"? Some economists are pessimistic about China's short-term prospects, but almost none would use the term "collapse". Rather, some of their comments are taken, selectively, by those who have a vested interest in China's "collapse"authors of books on sensationalized doom, political analysts viscerally opposed to China's system of governance, financial short-sellers seeking short-term profits and the like. I've been amused that purveyors of the "China collapse" theory are often also purveyors of the "China threat" theory. How China could "threaten", which requires power, at the same time that it "collapses", which reduces power, is a mystery. Although self-refuting, the threat-collapse nexus reveals a common connection, as "threat" and "collapse" both emanate from a built-in bias toward China. But even as "China collapse" advocates remain few in number, the idea has gained in prominence. Why? Two factors drive "China's collapse" in the public eye. The first is not so much that China's economy has become more fragile but that world markets have come to depend too much on China's growth. China is still a developing country and cannot bear the world's burden. The second is that China's increasing clout generates a natural backlash. Politically, there are no broad, boiling tensions as "China collapse" advocates contend. The vast majority of the Chinese people want social stability, a watchword in China, which is required for increasing standards of living. The Chinese government is exquisitely sensitive to instability and reacts rapidly to even early indicators of unrest. This can lead to stricter regulations, such as in traditional and social media, but almost everyone accepts the tradeoff. China's economy will cycle but it won't collapse. I'm sorry if this disappoints a few false prophets, but assuming that people do what is best for themselves, other than the handful of doomsayers who make their money by bashing China, no one should root for China's collapse. China's success is the world's success. The author is a public intellectual, political/economics commentator, and international corporate strategist. The TPP and its implications for Beijing Updated: 2016-02-24 08:12 By Amitendu Palit(China Daily) The Trans-Pacific Partnership signed at Auckland, New Zealand, earlier this month has 12 APEC members (Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, Vietnam and the United States). Led by the US, the TPP is one of the largest free trade agreements in the world with its members accounting for about 40 percent of the global economic output. Though all negotiating members have signed the TPP, it will need to be ratified by each member country, which could take a couple of years because their legislatures will minutely scrutinize it before doing so. The implementation of the TPP will have major implications for the Asia-Pacific region, many of which are particularly significant for China. All TPP member countries are also members of Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation, and some other APEC members, such as the Philippines, Thailand, the Republic of Korea and Colombia, have expressed interest in joining the TPP. If the majority of APEC members decide to sign the agreement, the TPP could isolate the remaining members, particularly China, because most APEC members will come under common trade rules of the TPP and the APEC members will do business according to these rules. And as an APEC member, but not a TPP member, China might have problems in doing business with TPP members, because the US-led trade partnership will have many different rules and standards. The TPP is moving on to trade standards that are higher than those in the World Trade Organization and most FTAs across the world. Its implementation will also require members to change their domestic policies in a number of fields. These include quality standards, intellectual property rules, government procurement laws, and laws relating to labor, investment and the environment. While there are challenges, the TPP also gives many countries the opportunity to reform their existing policies. Joining the TPP could give China the opportunity to change many of its domestic rules and move to more market-oriented trade and business systemssimilar to the opportunity China had in 2001 while joining the WTO. In this regard, the TPP can help usher in the second phase of domestic reforms in China. But the TPP has another dimension that might be a greater challenge for China. It comprises the US and several of its political allies and partners. The US played the leading role in the TPP negotiations with the Barack Obama administration making it a top priority. The trade agreement is consistent with the Obama administration's strategic emphasis on the US becoming a major actor in the Asia-Pacific region. Indeed, the US has made it clear that by pushing the TPP it wants to ensure that it is able to write the rules of trade in Asia-Pacific, which makes joining the TPP an uncomfortable proposition for China. Apart from being a US-led agreement, the TPP also includes several members with whom China has difficult political relations and territorial disputes in the East China Sea and the South China Sea such as Japan, Vietnam, Brunei and Malaysia. This makes the TPP an even greater political challenge for China. What then are the options for China? One possibility is quick conclusion of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership negotiations that include China, Japan, the Republic of Korea, India, Australia and New Zealand and member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. But the RCEP might not be as ambitious as the TPP. Many RCEP members, who are members of the TPP, might see more economic gains from the TPP, which could make the RCEP insignificant in the long term. Perhaps a better option for China would be to press for convergence of the RCEP with the TPP and push for a Free Trade Area for the Asia-Pacific, which it has already proposed. But the FTAAP must be as ambitious as the TPP to make it a credible alternative. Otherwise, more regional economies will choose the US-led TPP leading to strategic complications for China. The author is senior research fellow and research lead (trade and economic policy) at the Institute of South Asian Studies in the National University of Singapore. China's Global Newspaper Sorry, the page you requested was not found. Please check the URL for proper spelling and capitalization. If you're having trouble locating a destination on Chinadaily.com.cn, try visiting the Chinadaily home page New York gets lessons in Chinese ballet Updated: 2016-02-24 12:16 By Niu Yue in New York(China Daily USA) Chinese ballet is making an educational swing through New York City from Monday to the end of the month, as Feng Ying, general director and artistic director of the National Ballet of China, gives three lectures with demo performances at NYU, the China Institute and Columbia University, introducing Big Apple dance fans to the essentials. According to Feng, China's ballet has undergone a 60-year evolution, and its characteristics have been inevitably changing with the times. Chinese ballet started when the Beijing Ballet School was established in 1954 and continued to develop under the heavy influence of the Russians through the late 1970s. Then, according to Feng, Chinese ballet moved away from the exaggerated facial expressions and body language of the Russian style and imported some of the gentility of the European school. Performers from the National Ballet of China put on a demonstration from The Red Detachment of Women at New York University on Monday. Long Yifan / For China Daily The Chinese version of Swan Lake was more than an imitation of foreign culture - it was a homemade cultural product, Feng said. Feng played the protagonist in Swan Lake in the 1980s. "We tried to combine traditional Chinese elements into the classic ballet," she said. Feng said one of the most successful modern Chinese ballets was The Red Detachment of Women, a ballet produced in 1963 portraying the southernmost province of Hainan women's determination to devote themselves to the glorious and epic revolution. The National Ballet of China (NBC) made a series of innovative experiments in artistic expression in the early 1990s, which included "a more individual-focused detailed narration and internal emotional description", according to Feng. NBC broke the stereotype of the three-scene model of ballets and extended it to a six-scene model - a prelude, four separate scenes and a conclusion - when they performed the 1992 version of The Red Detachment of Women. Feng said NBC's innovations went to a whole new level when they staged Raise the Red Lantern in the early 2000s. Feng said the sanguine, red color of the stage symbolized Chinese women's sacrifice in the loss of their virginity, and the high-tech special effects of the stage set evoked the nostalgia for ancient traditions and customs. Kristin Harris, professor of East Asia studies at NYU, said Chinese ballet brought a lot of freshness of the ballet art to New Yorkers and The Red Detachment of Women set a good example of the fascinating artistic ways to demonstrate the fusion of Chinese traditional culture and Western culture. Jodyn Corkery, a local New Yorker in the audience, said she was awed by the unexpected representation of Chinese arts and philosophy in the performance. "I didn't realize that there was a Chinese version of ballet," she said, "but this interesting form made me fascinated by the thought-provoking ancient Chinese philosophy - incomprehensible, but interesting." Long Yifan in New York contributed to this story. China, US should boost cooperation, FM says Updated: 2016-02-24 12:27 By Wang Qingyun(chinadaily.com.cn) China and the United States should expand cooperation and constructively manage discrepancies, Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on a visit to the US. Wang made the comments during a joint news conference with US Secretary of State John Kerry in Washington on Tuesday. Wang said the relationship between the two countries is complex and hard to fit into a simple definition, and that missed opportunities for cooperation may turn into discrepancies, while well-handled discrepancies may turn into highlights of cooperation. He said that China's interests and US interests have blended into each other, and the two countries need to coordinate and take part together in addressing issues such as non-proliferation, climate change, Middle East peace and the development of Africa. He said common interests shared by both countries will only expand, and the two, rather than focusing just on things they will ask each other to do, should think more about things they can do together. Speaking of discrepancies between the largest developed country and the largest developing country, Wang said both should face up to the contradictions, eliminate misunderstandings and misjudgments through effective communication, and manage discrepancies in a constructive manner, to prevent small problems from turning into major ones. He also suggested the two countries continue to handle and advance the relationship with a long-term and strategic vision. Female Chinese tourist among 21 people on board missing Nepalese aircraft Updated: 2016-02-24 13:41 (Xinhua) KATHMANDU -- A female Chinese tourist was among 21 people on board a missing aircraft of Tara Airlines in Nepal, Bhim Raj Rai, Media Officer of the airlines informed Xinhua Wednesday. "Among 18 passengers, two are foreigners including one Chinese and one Kuwaiti national," he said. Passport information indicates the Ying-surnamed female Chinese tourist might be from China's Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. The Chinese Embassy in Nepal told Xinhua that they don't have official information about the missing Chinese national yet. The Twin Otter aircraft was flying to Jomsom from Pokhara on Wednesday morning. It lost contact a few minutes after taking off from the airport at 7:47 AM local time. The aircraft was scheduled to land at Jomsom Airport, district headquarter of Mustang district which is popular for trekking purpose. Here will be found facts and opinions regarding matters of sociopolitical significance. Ideas and opinions expressed on external links are not necessarily shared by the Vehmgericht. One never knows when a blog post will go on to have currency and life, years after it was written. An essay of mine -- originally written for this blog -- has been adapted and reprinted in a beautiful new book called Jewish Rites of Death: Stories of Beauty and Transformation, edited by Richard A. Light. Here's how the editor describes the collection: This book is an introduction to an inter-world space, the boundary where death and life meet, the space between worlds that we encounter when we deal with the dead. We enter into it through a series of extraordinary processes in which the physical actions, the prayers, and the kavanah involved in Jewish death rituals open a window for us to glimpse this unique boundary. We can feel the experience of helping souls move from this world to the next as the book explores the practices and rituals of the Jewish tradition in preparing the dead for burial. It is an invitation to touch the fine line separating realms of existence. Why should we put ourselves in the decidedly uncomfortable position of coming face to face with mortality? For those who engage in Jewish death rituals, the question is analogous to asking why we should see the Grand Canyon or a magnificent sunset first-hand. Helping a soul move between realms of existence inspires us, cultivates wonder, and expands our spiritual awareness. This book is dedicated to that liminal arena that allows us to peek through the doorway to heaven. The volume moves through different stages: here are essays on aging and diminishment, accompanying the dying, accompanying the dead, mourning and grief, Jewish ideas of soul and afterlife, planning for death, and -- the section in which my piece appears -- taharah experiences, experiences of lovingly washing and preparing a body for burial. I've only just received my copy and begun reading what it contains, but I can already tell that this is an incredible collection. I'm planning to teach an adult education course on Jewish ideas about death and mourning at my synagogue this spring, and I think I've just found my text. Rabbi Malka Drucker (who until recently served with me on the ALEPH board of directors, and who is a longtime friend, in addition to being the author of many excellent books) writes, "Rick Light has written a moving, important, and impassioned book on a subject that is no one's favorite. By looking through the God lens, he integrates death and life, and in so doing replaces fear with depth and meaning. He offers scholarly sources, intimate accounts of encounters with death from a variety of voices, and a well-organized, useful book for all who are planning to die -- and especially those who help others on their journeys." And Rabbi Jack Riemer, editor of Jewish Reflections on Death and Jewish Insights on Death and Mourning, writes, "I don't usually say this about any book, but I believe that the vitality, the authenticity, and the future of Jewish life in America can be measured by how many people read this literally awesome book and learn to see both life and death in a new perspective as a result." Jewish Rites of Death: Stories of Beauty and Transformation is available on Amazon for $23.95. Please turn JavaScript on and reload the page. Loading... Checking your browser before accessing the website. This process is automatic. Your browser will redirect to your requested content shortly. Please wait a few seconds. Introduction The 2009 report Agriculture at a Crossroads by the International Assessment of Agricultural Knowledge, Science and Technology for Development clearly defines what the problem of climate change implies for the future of agriculture. In a context of increasing demand for food, feed, fibre and fuel, is the potential to irreversibly damage the natural resource base on which agriculture depends. A reciprocal relationship between climate change and agriculture exists: agriculture significantly contributes to climate change in multiple ways and climate change in general has a negative impact on agriculture. Water scarcity and the timing of water availability will increasingly act as a constraint on production. Climate change will necessitate a re-examination of water storage as a strategy to cope with the impacts of more and extreme precipitation, higher intra and inter-seasonal variations, and increased rates of evapotranspiration in all types of ecosystems. Extreme climate events such as floods and droughts are increasing and expected to augment in frequency and severity. Significant consequences are expected in all regions for food and forestry production and food insecurity. Climate change is affecting the distribution of plants, invasive species, pests and disease vectors and the geographic range and incidence of many human, animal and plant diseases is likely to increase. In this article I examine the implications for coffee and explore the options for farmers to adapt to the climate threat to production and livelihoods. Results and Discussion Brodziak et al articulate climate change from two different perspectives: social conflict and vulnerability. They highlight that changes are likely to impact the ecological, political, economic and social systems, with the poor and the vulnerable likely to suffer the more severe consequences. Mexico is regarded as highly sensitive to the impact of climate change at the social, economic, institutional levels. Depending on the region, partial or total loss of agricultural production is expected due to floods, droughts or hurricanes. The social effects that could occur from an agricultural sector under increasing threat from changing climate conditions include increase in food prices with repercussions for food security and the potential for conflict between producers and consumers; social unrest as governments are put under pressure to address the decline in production and rural incomes; an exacerbation of the migratory flights towards urban centres or other countries, and an increased exploitation of natural resources such as forests in order to sustain rural livelihoods. The International Trade Centre has explored the possible effects of climate change on quality, yield, pests and diseases, and irrigation; considers potential areas of intervention, and looks at short-term solutions and long-term strategies to make coffee producers better prepared; discusses the issue of carbon credits, and provides examples of individual initiatives to reduce the products carbon footprint. The ITC consider that smallholders will be most affected and make a salient point in saying that measures agreed globally are aimed at limiting further warming, rather than reverse it. There are warnings that if the current trend in greenhouse gas concentration is not slowed or even reversed, then it would be difficult to imagine the impact and harder to plan for. This highlights the urgent need for adaptation. More coffee may need to be grown under irrigation, which will increase pressure on water resources. Together with the increasing incidence of pests and diseases, production costs could spiral, rendering the future of parts of the industry unsustainable. It needs to be emphasized that different forms of agriculture including coffee production also contribute to climate change. This refers not only to the agricultural element, but to other links in the chain including processing, trading, packaging and logistics. However, growers represent the most vulnerable part of the chain to the impacts of climate variability, and are also the most numerous. Further research has underlined the importance of agroforestry systems in which the majority of coffee is produced. These environments are home to biodiversity and provide a wide range of ecosystem services. Climate data generated for the 2040-2069 period has projected an increase to temperatures and a greater incidence and intensity of landslides and floods. If actions are not taken, the consequences are higher rates of migration and the abandonment of plantations, possibly leading to the conversion to pastures. Consequently, biodiversity loss will accelerate. In Mexico, the predominant coffee species is Arabica, which requires optimum temperatures of 15C to 24C. Temperature is the most relevant climatic factor for coffee production given its response to seasonal temperature patterns. Higher temperature will reduce the yield and the quality. Rainfall requirements are between 1500mm and 2000mm per annum. The relationship between temperature and quality is such that as the former rises, the berries ripen more quickly. This leads to a fall in quality. A higher quality has been demonstrated at higher altitudes and therefore lower temperatures. One estimation of the suitability for growing coffee is based on an assumption that temperatures will increase by 3C by the end of the century. Should this happen, the lower altitude limit may rise by some 15ft (4.57 metres) per annum. This would result in areas currently deemed unsuitable due to cold potentially becoming suitable. Modelling has been used to demonstrate a profoundly negative impact on indigenous Arabica using three time horizons (2020, 2050, 2080). The most favourable outcome was a reduction of 38% of land area possessing suitable bioclimatic conditions for the species. Other studies specifically assess the effects of temperature and precipitation specifically on the flowering and fruit development phases of the plants phenology. The importance of average monthly rainfall at the start of the blooming period impacts are experienced both in terms of surplus water as well as increased drought. The unpredictable rains will cause coffee to flower at various times throughout the year, causing the farmers to harvest small quantities continuously. This is opposed to more distinct wet and dry seasons that lead to the preferred option of large quantities during a short harvest season. Extended droughts can cause flowers to abort. Increased temperatures and sunshine can induce the premature ripening of the beans, with a concomitant reduction of the quality of the coffee as well as the yield. As well as shifts in suitability, another consequence of climate is the proliferation of pests. In Mexico, areas where coffee is grown at relatively high altitudes and previously therefore not regarded as at risk, are now being impacted by the coffee borer. The severe 2014-2015 outbreak of leaf rust, a fungal disease, has been attributed to increasing temperatures and unfavourable patterns of rainfall distribution. In response a range of potential approaches has been proposed, ranging from changes in crop management, the introduction of new, more resistant varieties, the concentration of the coffee crop in production areas with more a favourable climate, and the diversification of revenue through sales of other agricultural products such as wood , fruit, honey, flowers. The following caveat is provided: the viability of these options will depend on the direct participation of farmers in decision-making and implementation. While a diverse range of measures was proposed, it should be noted that much of the literature laments the lack of finance available to producers to be able to affect changes and that this obstacle appears to be particularly acute in Mexico. By 2011, arguments on adaptation had evolved to demand that adaptation measures be taken across the entire supply chain and that should address improvements to farmers livelihoods. Site-specific adaptation has been proposed that identifies the critical impacts of climate change and the repercussions for all actors in the system. A case study has looked at the prospects for coffee in Veracruz, the second biggest producer in Mexico after Chiapas. Typified by its high acidity content, the highly suitable areas for this characteristic were expected to move towards higher altitudes. While it was suggested that many farmers in response to climate variation vary their annual crops, there is limited capacity for coffee growers to do the same: coffee systems are characterized by longer lead times in which to realize the changes, approximately three years is required before the plants begin to produce fruit. In a 2006 study, crop diversification as a response to climate variation and market volatility was identified by some households involved in coffee production in Mexico, Guatemala and Honduras. Diversification, while a preferred option proposed by the Mexican government, has not been well defined in terms of financial support nor in terms of the precise nature of technical assistance to farmers. It is also not clear if this would be the preferred route for producers themselves. More recent studies have focussed on the potential of sustainable production techniques under which shade management and the development of new varieties fall; the pursuit of financing options to invest in adaptation and mitigation, payments for environmental services initiatives, a strengthening of organisation among small scale farmers and, finally strategies that seek to introduce adaptation strategies throughout the value chain. Determining the optimal combination of activities should be based on careful site-specific analysis and be developed in conjunction with farmers themselves and other key stakeholders. Conclusion The relevance and urgency in continuing research in this area is clear: climate change poses a distinct threat to coffee production and quality as well as vulnerable peoples livelihoods and biodiversity. With projected increases in temperature and decreases in rainfall, agricultural production will be impacted. Monitoring the latest climate trends, strengthening institutions from academia to government and utilizing local farmers knowledge could contribute to effective adaptation strategies to reduce vulnerability to and promote sustainability across the sector. Additionally, the success stories around existing adaptation activities should be shared widely across the region. Bibliography Avelino, J., Cristancho, M., Georgiou, S., Imbach, P., Aguilar, L., Bornemann, G., & Morales, C. (2015). The coffee rust crises in Colombia and Central America (20082013): impacts, plausible causes and proposed solutions. Food Security, 7(2), 303-321. Brodziak, F., Garcia, A. L., & Chow, L. G. (2011). CLIMATE CHANGE IMPACTS ON SOCIO-ENVIRONMENTAL CONFLICTS: Vulnerability in Facing Climate Change and Social Conflicts in Mexico. Davis, A. P., Gole, T. W., Baena, S., & Moat, J. (2012). The impact of climate change on indigenous arabica coffee (Coffea arabica): predicting future trends and identifying priorities. PloS one, 7(11), e47981. Eakin, H., Tucker, C., & Castellanos, E. (2006). Responding to the coffee crisis: a pilot study of farmers adaptations in Mexico, Guatemala and Honduras. The Geographical Journal, 172(2), 156-171. Gay, C., Estrada, F., Conde, C., Eakin, H., & Villers, L. (2006). Potential impacts of climate change on agriculture: A case of study of coffee production in Veracruz, Mexico. Climatic Change, 79(3-4), 259-288. Haggar, J., & Schepp, K. (2012). Coffee and climate change: Impacts and options for adaptation in Brazil, Guatemala, Tanzania and Vietnam. Climate Change, Agriculture and Natural Resource. International Assessment of Agricultural Knowledge, Science and Technology for Development (IAASTD). 2009. Agriculture at A Crossroads: Synthesis Report. International Trade Centre (2010), Climate Change and The coffee Industry. Retrieved from http://www.intracen.org/uploadedFiles/intracenorg/Content/Exporters/Sectors/Fair_trade_and_environmental_exports/Climate_change/Climate-Coffee-Ch-13-MS-ID-3-2-2010ff_1.pdf. Jassogne, L., Lderach, P., & van Asten, P. (2013). The Impact of Climate Change on Coffee in Uganda: Lessons from a case study in the Rwenzori Mountains. Oxfam Policy and Practice: Climate Change and Resilience, 9(1), 51-66. Kornell, S. (2011). Coffee and climate change. Retrieved from Laderach, P., Lundy, M., Jarvis, A., Ramirez, J., Portilla, E. P., Schepp, K., & Eitzinger, A. (2011). Predicted impact of climate change on coffee supply chains. In The Economic, Social and Political Elements of Climate Change (pp. 703-723). Springer Berlin Heidelberg. Ruiz, L. V., Arizpe, N., Orellana, R., & Hernandez, J. (2009). Impactos del cambio climatico en la floracion y desarrollo del fruto del cafe en Veracruz, Mexico. Interciencia: Revista de ciencia y tecnologia de America, 34(5), 322-329. Schroth, G., Laderach, P., Dempewolf, J., Philpott, S., Haggar, J., Eakin, H., & Ramirez-Villegas, J. (2009). Towards a climate change adaptation strategy for coffee communities and ecosystems in the Sierra Madre de Chiapas, Mexico. Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change, 14(7), 605-625. Van der Meer, L. (2010) Climate change adaptation in small-holder coffee plantations in Costa Rica [PDF]. Retrieved from http://scarpplan545.weebly.com/uploads/9/1/2/7/9127373/liesbeth_van_der_meer_545.pdf Photo credits: Coffee plantation in Naolinco, Veracruz, photo by the author. Hemmed in by the Delhi High Court's decision, Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) student Umar Khalid, along with Anirban Bhattacharya, surrendered to Delhi Police Tuesday night. Khalid, who faces charges of sedition, is among the five students who allegedly shouted anti- slogans at a campus event on February 9. The former Democratic Students Union (DSU) leader has remained at the centre of the storm surrounding JNU in the past few weeks. After getting hectored on prime time news television, absconding from the campus, to a late-night speech which went viral on social media, Khalid has acquired several avatars. Here are few things to know about the 'angry young man' of JNU. The student and the student leader is a student of PhD in JNU's Centre for Historical Studies. He did his M.A. in history and M.Phil from JNU and has been doing field work in Jharkhand. The 28-year old resigned from his post in the DSU in November 2015 along with 10 others, to pursue his research, which according to a news report in Hindustan Times, is about the land alienation of tribals in Jharkhand. Khalid's name surfaces as one of the main applicants who sought permission for organising a cultural event organised by the Democratic Students Union (an ultra-leftist group) titled A Country without a Post Office to commemorate the anniversary of the hanging of Afzal Guru on February 9, and to protest the judicial killing of Guru and Maqbool Bhat. Intelligence reports suggest the group wanted to hold such events in 18 universities in the country. Khalid has denied this. Disappearance and rumours In the next few days, he appeared on different television channels defending the event. On Friday, immediately after Delhi Police arrested JNUSU president Kanhaiya Kumar on charges of 'criminal conspiracy' and 'sedition' under Sections 124A and 120B of the Indian Penal Code, Khalid reportedly went missing from the campus. Following this, several media reports claimed he was a Jaish-e-Mohammad sympathiser and had links with several terrorist organisations, while several others reported posters outside JNU and in the Munirka area calling him a Kashmiri traitor. The Delhi Police also said they were investigating his phone calls to various places, including Kashmir and Pakistan, which they alleged he has visited. Clarifications and Family background Following a uproar, Khalids father Syed Qasim Ilyas, a former leader of the now-banned Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI), said My son and Kanhaiya Kumar are the worst victims of the media trial. My son is being called a terrorist and someone who travelled to Pakistan, even though he doesnt have a passport. He may be anything but he's not a terrorist, Ilyas said. He also pleaded that his own background as a SIMI leader should not be made grounds for any action against his son. Umar is not Kashmiri. His parents live in Delhi and he is actually from the Amravati district of Maharashtra. According to a Firstpost.com report, his family moved to Delhi 35 years ago, where they live in the Jamia Nagar area and have no connection with Kashmir. Ideological leanings "His ideology has become his worst enemy. He is a meritorious student, did his MA and MPhil in such a prestigious institution. The country's media is slowly turning on him because he is a perfect fit: A Muslim face with views that don't gel with the State's opinion on things," Illyas has been quoted as saying. The firstpost.com report also quoted Umar telling a television channel on February 9 that he is "not from Kashmir, but what is happening there is Indian occupation of Kashmir. Just like one territory is occupied by Pakistan, another territory is occupied by the Indian State. (Jawaharlal) Nehrus words in 1947 were very clear Kashmir will be given a plebiscite. Speaking about his religious views, Khalid in his speech February 22, when he resurfaced on the campus, said, "I have never thought of myself as a Muslim, never projected myself as a Muslim. Today the society represses not only a Muslim, but several social groups like the Dalits and the adivasis, and for those of us who come from oppressed communities, there is a need to come out of our immediacy and look at all of this in a holistic manner. The first time that I felt I was a Muslim in the past seven years, was in these last ten days. To quote Rohit Vemula, I was reduced to my immediate identity." Umar is a communist and self-proclaimed atheist, according to his friends at JNU, reports Firstpost.com. The hunt for Khalid Delhi Police had been looking for Umar since February 11 after he was charged with sedition. Ten other DSU activists and students were named as the organisers of the February 9 event to commemorate Guru's death anniversary. Police had issued a lookout notice for Khalid, as well as four other students- Anant Prakash Narayan, Ashutosh Kumar, Rama Naga, Anirban Bhattacharya, who were charged with sedition after they were seen on camera raising anti-India slogans on February 9. On February 23, Delhi Police commissioner B S Bassi declared that he was waiting for the students to surrender peacefully, and that they would will wait till evening before moving in paramilitary forces. Earlier, the Delhi High Court had ordered Umar to respect the law of the land and surrender. Faced with tremendous margin pressure, producers have shifted from selling loose oil in container form to value-added and branded products. The switchover has rescued many small and regional entities from threatened closure and helped large entities such as Ruchi Soya Industries, Adani Wilmar and Cargill to fetch premiums of up to 30 per cent over loose oil in bulk containers. The larger players have also started better prospects in the promotion of value-added products with health benefits. As a consequence, the share of branded and packaged segments in sales is now 6570 per cent from 30-35 per cent five years ago, with a compounded annual growth rate of 15 per cent. This is a natural transition with the change in consumer preferences. There has been a rapid shift towards packed oil from loose oil in the past few years, said Siraj Chaudhry, chairman, Cargill India, producer of the NatureFresh, Gemini and Sweekar brands. The shift has been rapid due to squeezing of producer margins between high oilseed and low oil prices. While the government has continued to raise the minimum support price (MSP) of oilseeds, resulting in a sustained rise in input cost, falling prices globally have made survival difficult for seed crushers. The MSP of groundnut in shells was raised to Rs 4,030 a quintal for 2015-16 from Rs 2,300 a qtl for 2010-11. For soybean (yellow), it was raised to Rs 2,600 a qtl for 2015-16 from Rs 1,440 a qtl five years before. Prices of edible oil have slid in the past five years due to a global supply glut and reduced demand from the biofuel sector. After a record of 3,982 ringgit a tonne, crude palm oil (CPO) on the benchmark Bursa Malaysia slumped to 1,800 ringgit a tonne in August last year. It has since recovered, to trade currently at 2,454 ringgit a tonne. KEY TAKEAWAYS Share of branded and packaged segments in edible oil sales grew at a compounded annual rate of 15% The shift towards packed oil has been rapid due to squeezing of producer margins between high oilseed and low oil prices While the MSP of oilseeds has been raised, falling edible oil prices globally have made survival difficult for seed crushers Prices of edible oil have slid in five years due to a global supply glut and reduced demand from biofuel sector Squeezing of margins has resulted in shutting down of small entities, giving larger players an opportunity India produces around eight mt of edible oils against annual consumption of 23 mt, the difference being made up by exports We were selling 65 per cent loose oil and the remaining 35 per cent packed oil five years ago; this has reversed. Within the packed oil segment, we have focused more on branding. So, despite doubling of oil volumes in five years, contribution of the branded and packed segment has surged within our group, said Satendra Aggarwal, operations head at Ruchi Soya Industries, producer of the Mahakosh, Sunrich and other brands. With the branded segment in focus, group revenue has grown to Rs 18,000 crore annually from Rs 8,000 crore five years before. Squeezing of the margins, however, has resulted in the shutting down of small and regional entities, opening an opportunity for national brands to grab their share. Since oilseed availability has been either constant or has declined in India, the government should reduce import duty on these to enable crushers to procure from foreign markets, said Atul Chaturvedi, chief executive officer at Adani Wilmar, producer of the Fortune brand of edible oil. On Monday, it had launched an anti-diabetic brand, Vivo. The country's oilseed output was 26.7 mt for 2014-15, against 32.5 mt in 2010-11. India produces around eight mt of edible oils against annual consumption of 23 mt. The difference is met through import from Malaysia, Indonesia, Brazil and Argentina. Coroners tragic conclusion on mystery disappearance of teen backpacker A coroner has handed down her findings on the Belgian backpacker who disappeared almost without trace in an idyllic New South Wales tourist town more than three years ago. Jim Chalmers warns disaster floods will weigh on GDP growth Treasurer Jim Chalmers has revealed the "initial estimate" the recent flooding would have on the economy but warns costs associated could be "even more significant" ahead of his first federal budget on Tuesday. Limited value: Liberal Senator against royal commission into COVID Liberal Senator Jane Hume acknowledged the long-term effects of lockdowns and school shutdowns but said Australia fared well compared to other countries. Heavy rain, hail and more flood warnings for four states this weekend Millions of residents along the east coast have been told to brace for more wet weather this weekend, with warnings of large hailstones for Friday and severe thunderstorms bringing heavy rain to already flooded river systems. MOLINE, Ill. Deere & Co. is better equipped to ride out the agricultural slowdown and is focused on leading the industry with its innovations, the companys CEO told shareholders Wednesday morning. Sam Allen, Deeres chairman and CEO, spoke of the challenges ahead as the downturn in the agricultural economy moves into another year. But he also pointed to the opportunities for the equipment maker as the global population continues to grow and the demand for food and shelter expands. More than 350 shareholders, many of them retirees and employees, filled the auditorium at John Deere World Headquarters in Moline for the annual meeting. Our company is doing well in a challenging environment, he said. This is happening not as a matter of chance but as a matter of choice, thoughtful planning and decisive actions. The companys latest forecast calls for sales to decline this year by more than $2 billion, or 10 percent. The forecast also projects earnings to decrease by more $2 billion from 2013 levels. In fact, Allen said sales of Deeres larger, more profitable models are less than half the levels of 2012 and 2013 representing some of the largest declines since the 1980s. He stressed Deere has remained solidly profitable, continues to invest in innovation and is well-positioned to continue earning sound returns even in a harsh business environment. During two video presentations that showed John Deere equipment at work, shareholders got a look at some of the Deere innovations being introduced to its ag, forestry, construction and turf equipment markets. Deere is making a major push to become the undisputed global leader in precision agriculture, he said. These advanced tools someday could evolve to the point that farmers will be able to monitor, manage and measure the status of virtually every plant in the field. Among the shareholders in attendance was former Deere Chairman and CEO Bob Lane, who applauded the companys two acquisitions last year of precision farming companies. The management team should be so proud of how they are leading the company in these challenging circumstances and at the same time investing heavily in innovation, he said after the meeting. Lane said Deere is working to give farmers very precise tools. When they become more productive, we become the company they continue to chose, he added. Deeres farm equipment sales have been hit hard by falling commodity prices and lower farm incomes. Still, Allen said, Deere does not think it reflects any fundamental weakness in the sector. We do not, in other words, see this as a repeat of the 1980s for Americas farmers, he said. Previously, such a sharp downturn would have meant little profit, if any, and inventories piling up and very likely, a loss of faith on the part of investors, Allen said. That is a part of our history were determined not to repeat. A handful of shareholders posed questions to Allen that covered a gamut of topics from Warren Buffetts stake in the company to biofuels, workforce training for the next generation and more. Quad Cities area shareholder Mary Ann Zimmerman asked whether Deere is considering entering the Cuban market with its products and a manufacturing plant. Were watching what is going on in Cuba, Allen said, adding Cuba has potential to be a good market to export equipment to, but not to set up a manufacturing facility in. At his first Deere shareholders meeting was 13-year-old shareholder Bob Liking, of St. Charles, Ill., who brought his father as a guest. I came down to learn what is going on in the company, said Bob, who has owned stock since his parents bought it for him at age 3. I learned the company is kinda down right now. DETROIT (AP) Uber is once again facing tough questions about safety after one of its drivers was charged with murder. The fast-growing, San Francisco-based ride-hailing company defended its screening of drivers Monday, saying it couldnt have predicted driver Jason Dalton would engage in the random shootings that left a half-dozen people dead in Kalamazoo on Saturday night. Uber said its safety procedures are robust and dont need to change. But some experts say the company needs to take a harder look at potential drivers if it wants to convince riders the service is safe, even as they agreed Dalton wouldnt have raised red flags because he didnt have a criminal record. Dalton, who had been driving for Uber for less than a month, was charged Monday with killing six people. The shootings began Saturday evening and took place over nearly five hours. The Kalamazoo County prosecutor says Dalton picked up Uber passengers after the first shootings and probably after subsequent shootings. Uber security chief Joe Sullivan said Dalton cleared a background check and was approved to be a driver Jan. 25. He had given slightly more than 100 rides and had a rating of 4.73 stars out of a possible five. Until Saturday, Sullivan said, Uber had no reason to believe anything was amiss. No background check would have flagged and anticipated this situation. Still, the incident raised more questions about Ubers security. The company earlier this month agreed to pay $28.5 million to settle two lawsuits that alleged it misled customers about safety procedures and fees. Its also facing a separate lawsuit by district attorneys in San Francisco and Los Angeles, who alleged Ubers checks failed to prevent the company from hiring several felons. Last fall, an Uber driver in Massachusetts was sentenced to prison for raping a female passenger. Around the same time, a sixth-grade teacher moonlighting as an Uber driver was accused of raping a passenger in South Carolina. And in India in November, an Uber driver was sentenced to life in prison for raping a passenger. Uber was briefly banned from operating in New Delhi after that incident. In response to the lawsuits, Uber has stopped using terms like safer than a taxi and industry-leading background checks. But it insists riders are protected, and points out, unlike taxis, riders can rate drivers. The system that Uber has is extremely safe, said Ed Davis, a former police commissioner from Boston who serves on Ubers Safety Advisory Board. Ubers driver background checks compare names to public court records and are far less effective than fingerprint checks that access the FBI criminal history database, said Matthew Daus, a former New York City Taxi Commissioner and a transportation lawyer who has studied the issue. Name checks can miss court records if a person uses an alias or their name is even slightly different from the records, Daus said. Uber disputes that, and said the FBI records can be flawed because they dont always make clear cases in which charges were dropped. That can discriminate against potential drivers. Sullivan says Uber checks court records back to seven years and will send someone in person to check records that arent online. A background check is just that. It does not foresee the future, Davis said. But Daus said Ubers process is still troubling, since background checks done by fingerprints by a government agency are public records anyone can review. In this case, Uber controls the information, he said. Sullivan indicated Uber became aware at some point Saturday of issues with Daltons driving. He said the company received complaints about Dalton from several passengers Saturday, including one about dangerous and erratic driving. Sullivan said Uber immediately suspends drivers who are accused of violent acts. But in the case of erratic driving, it typically contacts the driver first to make sure it hears both sides. Sullivan wouldnt say whether Uber contacted Dalton on Saturday night, referring questions to law enforcement. Driver behavior is a problem Uber must address with the public as it grows and adds more cars, said Allen Adamson, founder of Brand Simple Consulting. The company, which is currently chalking up 3 million rides per day worldwide, needs to show it has tough screening procedures and doesnt just take anyone as a driver, he said. DES MOINES House members approved a bill to restrict the investment of state funds in companies that are engaged in what has been described to me as pretty much bullying of Israel, Rep. Mary Wolfe, D-Clinton, said. Theyre being called names accused of things they say they didnt do . Similar to restrictions the Legislature has approved on the investment of public funds in Iran and Sudan, HF 2331 would have restricted the Board of Regents, Iowa Public Employees Retirement System and police, fire and judicial systems retirement programs from investing in companies that have a policy of boycotting Israel. Several states and Congress are considering similar legislation, floor manager Rep. Quentin Stanerson, R-Center Point, said. Its intended to counter the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions Movement that is trying to encourage countries, governments and companies to boycott Israel and Israeli companies. If enacted by the Legislature, it will not impact the state general fund and the impact on the retirement funds cannot be determined, according to the Legislative Services Agency. But it sounded like an infringement of free speech to Rep. Ako Abdul-Samad, D-Des Moines, who referred to the use of boycotts as part of the civil rights movement. Representatives voted 70-25 to send the bill to the Senate. DECORAH Defense attorneys and prosecutors in Alexander Fazzinos murder trial battled at times Wednesday, putting the adversarial nature of the process on display. Judge Michael Moon reminded both sides they are responsible for giving the professional courtesy that is expected in an Iowa courtroom. Fazzino, 41, is charged with killing his wife, Emily Fazzino, 32, on Jan. 29, 2012, in the couples home in Boone. Moon moved the case to Winneshiek County after extensive pretrial media coverage. The trial began Monday in Decorah with jury selection. Prosecutors Daniel Kolacia and Scott Brown began calling witnesses Tuesday and continued Wednesday with paramedics and police officers who got involved with the case on the night Emily Fazzino died. Kolacia objected when defense attorney William Kutmus questioned a police officer about what prosecutors may not have done during the investigation. This is a cross examination, Kutmus started. That doesnt matter, Kolacia shot back, interrupting. Judge Moon raised a hand and calmed the conversation. Lets leave the prosecution out of this, Moon said. Officer Korie Barber told jurors he arrived at the Fazzinos duplex with two colleagues for what they thought was a suicide. He spent much of his time with Alexander Fazzino. He said his wife was trying to drown herself, Barber testified. Initially, Alexander Fazzino and his three children were running around in circles crying. Fazzino later punched a hole in a kitchen cabinet door, according to Barber. Kolacia asked Barber what else he noticed about Fazzino. I found it odd that he was crying a lot but I didnt notice any tears, Barber said. Barber added Fazzino seemed to develop a pattern: When someone new arrived at the house or he took a phone call, Fazzino appeared to get upset and sob. Moments later he would be back to normal, Barber testified. Barber also fielded a question from one of the Fazzino children. Does this mean Im not going to have a mommy anymore? Barber said. According to the officer, Fazzino answered: Dont talk. Lets pray. Barber also spoke to Cindy Beckwith, Emily Fazzinos mother. She was adamant that Mr. Fazzino had murdered her daughter, Barber said. Boone Fire Capt. Kent Peterson testified about opening the airway in Emily Fazzinos throat. He described the scene as normal chaos for such an event. Over Kutmus objection, the judge allowed paramedic John DeLavergne to demonstrate, using a model, how to push a tube down the patients windpipe. Kutmus suggested the state was engaging in a little theater and was a stunt prejudicial to Fazzino. Brown countered such demonstrations are common in Iowa trials. During the demonstration, Moon allowed jurors to leave the jury box. Each filed by DeLavergne for a closer look at the medical equipment and dummy. Paramedics Justin Holihan, DeLavergne and Peterson all testified the emergency medical procedures were performed on Emily Fazzino without any difficulties. Each testified no one touched the womans neck where bruising was observed by officers John Wiebold and Josh Olsen. John Sloter, administrative commander with the Boone Police Department, also told jurors about recovering a red backpack Feb. 1, 2012, from the Fazzino home after Emilys death. Sloter said the pack contained the clothes Alexander Fazzino was wearing on the night his wife died. There was also a box containing Emily Fazzinos jewelry, including a least three watches, at least five rings and multiple bracelets and necklaces. Sloter also told jurors he found a life insurance policy and documents related to Emily Fazzinos shares of Fareway Stores stock. Emily Fazzinos father, Rick Beckwith, is chairman of the grocery store chains board of directors, and Alexander Fazzino worked for the company. Detective John Mayse with the Boone Police Department, on video for jurors, tested the Fazzino homes bathtub to see if the overflow valve was functioning properly. He recorded as the tub filled with water in the upstairs master bathroom and then walked throughout the furnished basement. Mayse said he could hear the water running, as Fazzino claimed on the night his wife died. The tub, however, did not overflow, even with both hot and cold faucets open completely. Fazzino also claimed he found his wife face down in the tub but first noticed water on the floor, according to court documents. Witness Cassie Frye of Ogden told jurors about first serving the Fazzinos three children at Child Care Junction, a day care center. Eventually, though, Frye said she also moved into a role more as a nanny and became close friends with Emily Fazzino. Frye said the couples relationship was rocky and she saw them fighting on Jan. 21, 2012, when Frye said Alexander Fazzino took away his wifes medications. He had told Emily he was going to take Emilys prescription and flush them down the toilet, Frye testified. On cross examination, Frye said Emily Fazzino pushed her husband away, and he grabbed his wifes arm. Jurors also heard about a conversation Frye had with her friend. I asked Emily two questions. One, if she was afraid of Alex. She said yes, Frye testified. Frye also asked if Emily Fazzino thought her husband was capable of hurting or killing her. She nodded her head yes, Frye said. WATERLOO Hawkeye Community College students, faculty and alumni traveled to Haiti on Jan. 1-8 through its Global Agriculture Learning Center to help develop and improve farming practices there. The group collaborated with Universite de la Communaute Chretienne de Caiman students on projects in agronomy, animal science, alternative energy and rural health. This is the second trip to Haiti for Hawkeye students. A year ago, a group visited the same university to perform soil quality tests and develop plans to improve food production. Participants on this trip included students Dalton Fangman of Independence and Alex Waller of Dubuque; almuni Kyle Cook of Ackley, Mitch Boevers of Readlyn and Kayla Stafford of Dunkerton; faculty Meghan Bond and Brad Kinsinger; and community members Darwin Cannegieter of Dike and Julie Grunklee of Reinbeck. January is the dry season in Haiti, so a lot of time was spent learning about irrigation practices. The students toured a farm growing black beans and papayas. They worked with the local farmers and university students to conduct soil testing using GPS coordinates to track sampling for future tests a continuation of the work begun in January 2015. Hawkeye students also led discussions on livestock production, focusing on animals most often raised in the area: hogs, dairy goats and chickens. Topics included everything from breeding to meat production. The students toured the universitys dairy goat facilities and talked about issues related to health and nutrition. JESUP Akela Warm clicked a button on a stylus and pointed it at a three dimensional image of a beating heart on a computer screen. A line extended from the stylus, which functions like a computer mouse, across the screen to the heart. The Jesup High School sophomore, who was wearing 3-D glasses, virtually picked up the heart and began looking at it from all angles. I can feel the heart beat, she said, through the stylus. By moving a camera icon into the heart with the stylus, Warm also could get a view on the screen of the hearts interior. Warms science class was visiting Hawkeye Community Colleges STEM Mobile Learning Lab, which is parked at their school all week. STEM is an acronym for science, technology, engineering and mathematics. The sides of the semi trailer are extended out to create a virtual reality classroom space. Jesup is the second school to have a visit from the learning lab. The first was Denver Community Schools, which hosted the trailer earlier this month. Along with anatomy, groups of students working at computer stations explored gravity, the laws of motion, electrical currents, circuits, building design and more. In the center of the trailer other students gathered around a table wearing 3-D glasses as teacher Mandy Gleiter led them through some of the programs virtual dissections, projected on a large screen. Topics students can explore include human anatomy, botany, zoology, earth science, microbiology, chemistry, engineering and paleontology. In each program, Gleiter can instantly dissect the subject whether it be the human brain and nervous system, a snake, a woolly mammoth or the earth. That allows students to see the layers of the earth or the mammoths skeletal structure, for example. The programs were created by Cyber Science, a Cedar Rapids company, in partnership with California-based zSpace. Jill Dobson, Hawkeyes STEM coordinator, said the semi trailer and the software system were purchased as an outreach vehicle for the college. We thought it would be a great opportunity for us to go out to schools and have experiences that are outside of their regular curriculum, she said. The learning lab is intended to introduce the virtual reality technology and tweak their mindset about how difficult STEM fields would be as a career. Hawkeyes initial investment in the semi trailer and virtual reality technology was about $90,000 in Iowa Workforce Development funds allocated to the college. Dobson noted it is important to get more students interested in exploring STEM because of worker shortages in those fields. She plans to do her part to spread the word. I hope to have this vehicle out two or three times per month. That would be our goal, she said. Gleiter and teacher Ann Rigdon, who are both middle school science teachers in Jesup, received training from Hawkeye to lead students through sessions along with other area educators. There also is a 3-D printer component in the learning lab that has not yet been set up. Dobson said teachers could connect the printers to the computers, allowing them to create three-dimensional copies of whatever the students are studying out of a waxy filament. For example, she noted, a copy of the aorta could be made for students studying the heart. Back at one of the computer stations, Warm and her partner Kylie Wilberding agreed it was cool to explore the heart using the virtual reality technology. Warm admitted, though, she didnt know much about the different parts of the heart. Gleiter said their objective at this point is to pique students interest just to give them the experience, the exposure to virtual reality technology. The school district is bringing all fifth- through 12th-grade students who currently have a science class through the trailer for a 45-minute class period. That includes everyone except a small number of high school students. She said thats all they will have time for this week. Students will get a lesson connected to what theyre studying in science class next time the trailer returns if we can get it back, said Gleiter. WATERLOO The Waterloo Commission on Human Rights will hold a presentation on the ban the box initiative. The meeting will be held at 6 p.m. Thursday at the Waterloo Center for the Arts Schoitz River Room. The event will continue the conversation about the ban the box initiative, also called the fair chance initiative, which aims to create employment opportunities for those who have a felony arrest in their background. The event is free and open to the public. The presentation will kick off a series of Waterloo Commission on Human Rights training academy presents events. DES MOINES The organizer of a 2015 anti-bullying conference that allegedly provided students with graphic sexual information refuses to voluntarily appear before an Iowa legislative committee. Nate Monson, executive director of Iowa Safe Schools, declined through his attorney to appear before the House Government Oversight Committee. He said appearing would unnecessarily blur the bright line between the private organization and the states regulatory authority. Iowa Safe Schools organizes the annual Iowa Governors Conference on LGBTQ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Questioning) Youth. That is simply a step too far, Monsons attorney Nate Boulton wrote to Rep. Greg Heartsill, R-Melcher-Dallas, who had requested the meeting. Heartsill is vice chairman of the committee. Chairman Bobby Kaufmann, R-Wilton, Wednesday called Monsons refusal poor form and an escalation. Initially, he said he wanted to come in and not only explain the questions ahead of him but talk about how great the conference was, Kaufmann said, adding hed prefer that to issuing a subpoena. Monsons change of heart kind of shows guilt in light of the accusations students in middle and high school were presented X-rated material, Kaufmann said. However, Boulton explained for Monson to participate in hearings would appear to acquiesce to state regulation and oversight of the content of this private organizations programming. Monson has stated hes proud the 11-year-old conference provides a one-of-a-kind opportunity for an at-risk population to come together to discuss important and life-saving information they do not receive elsewhere. Boulton also pointed out the conference is funded by private foundations and individuals. Iowa Safe Schools is not a state agency and is not funded with state appropriations. However, Heartsill contends because taxpayer dollars were used to pay for busing and registration for students there is a public interest. Theres also confusion because the conference is called the Governors Conference, Heartsill said. There is the air that this is in some way a conference that is not private. The April conference attracted about 600 students and 400 parents, school personnel and members of faith communities, according to Monson. He said the Oversight Committee investigation is fueled by lawmakers obsessed with the LGBTQ lifestyle. Students, he said, were given sexual health information not widely available in school health classes. DES MOINES -- The Iowa Department of Revenue issued a statement saying at this point it would be virtually impossible to couple with federal tax law by the impending March 1 filing deadline for farmers and commercial fishers. State lawmakers are debating whether the state should couple its tax laws with federal tax laws. Such action would result in roughly $96 million in tax relief for Iowans who purchased equipment and supplies for business use, but also result in $96 million less in the state coffers. Farmers and business owners spoke at a news conference this week at the Capitol stressing the need for coupling, saying they made business purchases expecting the law to be in place, since its something the state historically enacts. If it doesnt, those taxpayers that made purchases say they will be hit with unexpected tax bills. The Department of Revenue said if state lawmakers enact coupling after March 1, taxpayers can file an amendment to their tax returns in order to receive their rebate. Fertilizer plant A company building a $1.9 billion fertilizer plant in Wever, Iowa, is being sued for $53 million, and that news drew some attention at the State Capitol. Sen. Tom Courtney, D-Burlington, during remarks on the Senate Floor criticized the project, which has received more than $100 million in state tax breaks. Courtney noted the project has gone through three lead construction companies, one of which is suing the owners of Orascom, a subsidiary of an Egyptian construction company. People in my district are calling it Ora-scam, because it seems like a scam, Courtney said. We are in danger of losing our public investment. Bob Krause, a veterans advocate and Democratic U.S. Senate candidate, told reporters the state must offer assistance to construction workers who may be laid off if construction halts, and investigate any issues that may have risen during construction. Senate confirmations Members of the Senate Education Committee voted 12-3 Tuesday to recommend Gov. Terry Branstads choice of Ryan Wise to be interim director of the state Department of Education. Supporters said Wyse had strong academic qualifications and demonstrated a passion and dedication for the children of Iowas educational opportunities in backing his appointment. Three Democratic senators opposed the recommendation. Sen. Bob Dvorsky, D-Coralville, said he is disappointed in the Branstad administrations commitment to state aid to schools and funding a third-grade reading initiative slated to kick in during the summer of 2017. Dvorsky said Wyse should be a stronger advocate as state education chief and should be pushing to delay the reading program if the administration is not prepared to fund it adequately. Gubernatorial appointees must receive at least 34 affirmative votes to meet the two-thirds majority required for Senate confirmation. On Tuesday, senators voted 49-0 to approve five low-profile gubernatorial appointments to state boards and commissions. Zika advisory Officials with the Iowa Department of Public Health are advising Iowans to travel healthy on spring break. Health officials say vacation planning should include taking time to learn about the health concerns that may await travelers regardless of whether theyre heading to a sunny beach or a ski resort. State health experts say that while the Zika virus is primarily a concern for pregnant women traveling to areas where Zika transmission is ongoing, locations with biting mosquitoes also carry the threat of diseases like malaria, chikungunya, dengue or West Nile virus. Travelers to warmer climates are advised to use mosquito repellant at all times and try to minimize skin exposure when possible. The CDC has specific travel-related health advisories, including information about Zika virus at wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/notices. Also, health officials say that while the influenza season has been relatively mild in Iowa, parts of the country are seeing higher activity levels. Arizona, for example, has been experiencing high influenza activity, so health officials advise those who have not received a yearly flu shot to get vaccinated before traveling. The final word of caution is that basic hand hygiene is the single most effective way to prevent the spread of illnesses ranging from norovirus to the common cold, according to the state health agency. For more information about healthy traveling, visit wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/page/survival-guide. Culver returns Former Iowa Democratic Gov. Chet Culver and health care providers, medical professionals, disability advocates, Medicaid beneficiaries and their families will stage a 2 p.m. rally at the Capitol today to raise awareness of concerns with privatization of Medicaid management. The public rally is the culmination of a series of town hall meetings and citizen involvement over the last four weeks with the goal of ensuring policymakers put Iowans first as they determine their next steps. There are more than 560,000 Iowans who currently use Medicaid including more than 120,000 with disabilities. Prayer breakfast Alveda King, the niece of Rev. Martin Luther King, will be the keynote speaker at the 55th annual Maundy Thursday Iowa Prayer Breakfast from 7 to 8:45 a.m. March 24 at the Community Choice Credit Union Convention, Des Moines. The purpose of the breakfast is to bring together Iowas governor, legislators and community and religious leaders to join with the public to ask Gods direction and blessing upon the state. Gov. Terry Branstad and his wife, Chris, and other elected officials have committed to attend The breakfast is open to the public. Tickets are $25 for adults and $10 for students. RSVP by March 16. To register, go to www.IowaPrayerBreakfast.com. Q: In the New Hampshire primary Bernie Sanders beat Hillary Clinton. Now Im hearing Sanders came out of there with 13 delegates and Clinton has 15. How does that work? A: The short answer is super delegates. The longer answer is that as the winner of Tuesdays primary contest, Sanders earned 15 delegates to Clintons nine delegates. But six of the states super delegates these are typically elected officials and party committee members have pledged their support to Clinton. That means theyre currently tied for delegates in New Hampshire, but two super delegates have yet to publicly announce their support. Its also important to note that super delegates are not bound to that support, so they could shift to another candidate. nnn Q: Can you print background information on Bernie Sanders? A: The Democratic presidential candidate was born in Brooklyn, N.Y. He went to school at Brooklyn College and the University of Chicago. After graduating, he moved to Vermont. He was elected mayor of Vermonts biggest city, Burlington, in 1981. Sanders, 74, is now in his second term in the U.S. Senate, after serving 16 years as the congressman from Vermont. He is an Independent progressive politician who calls himself a Democratic socialist. He lives in Burlington with his wife, Jane. He has four children and seven grandchildren. nnn Q: Why do Republicans hate Obamacare and think low-income people dont deserve health care? A: The 2012 national Republican platform which is currently being updated ahead of the 2016 national convention states that Republicans consider the federal health care reform law known as Obamacare to be about the expansion of government, and not about health care. It states that the law imposes on Americans a euro-style bureaucracy to manage all aspects of their lives. Republicans oppose the law because of its cost, regulatory impacts and its mandate requiring people to have health insurance, among many other reasons. Republicans believe that a free market, with consumer choice, among other reforms, will make health care affordable and accessible to all. In last years attempt to repeal the law, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said repealing the law would be a victory for the middle class families. More about their platform stance is available at www.gop.com/platform/. nnn Q: What are the gigantic telephone poles for south of C-57? A: Those poles will hold electric transmission lines as part of MidAmerican Energys Multi-Value Project 4, from the Black Hawk substation to the Franklin substation just north of Iowa Falls. Construction will continue from the Waterloo area west over the next nine months. nnn Q: Will they be tearing down the old Toys R Us building at Crossroads? A: At the time this question was received, the building was still being listed for lease. DC Comics Despite what bitter Superman fans or the more cynical pop culture-obssessive might tell you, Batman isn't invincible. They may carp and moan about him not being a real superhero, but they'll almost always insist that he's nonetheless as boring a character as Superman for the simple reason that nobody ever beats him. Which, well, first of all is a fallacy, since superhero comics and most traditional media in general is geared so as that the good guys always win. It's reassuring, an alternative to how the real world works. Batman and Superman never get beaten, but neither does Indiana Jones, the CSI team, or Manchester United. Except all of those things do get beaten, but Batman especially. The Dark Knight is not invincible. He's smart give him enough prep time, and he can reasonably be expected to take most people down (including the Man Of Steel). But really he's a comeback kid. He's an underdog. The Caped Crusader gets his ass handed to him all the time, but then he learns, comes back, and ultimately triumphs. Even those moments are rare, though, since he's usually prepared for everything. Usually. Here are ten different ways Batman has been defeated. 10. A Single Kick To The Ribs DC Comics Oh yes, even with all his grandstanding and spending the better part of a decade travelling the world and training with various martial arts experts and hard nuts, the Dark Knight isn't quite unbeatable in hand-to-hand combat. It probably helps if he comes up against someone with even more training, though, as is the case with the Bronze Tiger. A fighter on the level of Batman (who is routinely named one of the best in the world) who was brainwashed by Ra's Al Ghul and sent out to stop Batman and Batwoman. As a member of the League Of Assassins he managed to dispatch the Caped Crusader with a single kick to the solar plexus, putting him into such crippling pain he can't stop the Tiger from then stabbing Batwoman. One punch? One kick! After a disappointing Fastlane Sunday night, WWE ramped up for the final six-week push to WrestleMania, dropping a couple bombshells on fans on Raw. Mondays episode was bookended by shocking moments, but for very different reasons. Raw opened with the Prodigal Son returning to soak in the cheers and closed with the Chosen One being booed when that clearly was not what WWE was going for. We saw Shane McMahon make his first significant appearance on WWE television in six years to confront his father and sister, instantly making him the biggest babyface on the roster, which is a problem in some ways, but awesome in others. We also saw Triple H dish out an epic beatdown of Roman Reigns that resulted in fans cheering for Hunter rather than rallying around the brutalized #1 contender. So much for the Roman Empire. We also got two major matches confirmed, as we now know who part-timers Undertaker and Brock Lesnar will tangle with at WrestleMania (hint: they arent facing each other), and we got a glimpse of another title match that should be coming in the next couple weeks. All in all, it looks like Mania is coming together, though some feuds certainly feel forced at this point. Still, for a first episode in the final stretch, this was a pretty good effort. Well see how the next few weeks go, though. So what rocked Detroit Rock City, and what should be deported to Canada? 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(1) Focusing on the world of wines, beer, and spirits that we experience through our travels at WineCompass.com and theCompass Craft Beverage Finder. Westinghouse fuel assemblies arrive at Zaporozhe plant 24 February 2016 Share Westinghouse Electric has delivered the first batch of "upgraded" nuclear fuel assemblies to the Zaporozhe nuclear power plant in Ukraine, with fuel loading at unit 5 planned for May, pending regulatory approval. According to a statement published on the plant's website on 22 February, the State Nuclear Regulatory Inspectorate of Ukraine is currently assessing the "technical solution" to load the fuel assemblies, which were produced by Westinghouse Electric Sweden. The introduction of new fuel involves "certain changes to the unit's systems", it added. Among these are modification of the core monitoring system in order to enable "in-service inspection" of the fuel assemblies. After their successful "pilot operation" at Zaporozhe 5, Westinghouse's TVS-WR fuel assemblies will be loaded into units 1, 3 and 4. USA-headquartered Westinghouse, which is majority-owned by Japan's Toshiba, has been working in the Ukrainian market since 2003 and its fuel is already operating at the South Ukraine plant. Ukraine traditionally relied solely on Russia's TVEL for supplies of nuclear fuel, but in December 2014 Energoatom and Westinghouse agreed "to significantly increase" nuclear fuel deliveries to Ukrainian nuclear power plants until 2020. Westinghouse originally signed a fuel supply contract with Energoatom in 2008. Through that contract, Westinghouse supplied a total of 630 nuclear fuel assemblies to the three VVER-1000 pressurized water reactors at the South Ukraine plant. The South Ukraine plant is the only one to date to use both TVEL and Westinghouse fuel assemblies. The Zaporozhe statement noted that the move to Westinghouse fuel assemblies is part of Ukrainian nuclear power producer Energoatom's strategy to diversify its fuel supply. "Calling the fuel American is arbitrary, since it is produced in Sweden," it said, adding that inspection of the fuel upon its arrival at the site had been "passed without comment". Energoatom and Westinghouse signed a contract for the extension of Ukraine's use of TVS-WR fuel assemblies to the Zaporozhe nuclear power plant in November last year. The agreement concerns testing of Westinghouse software at the plant. The software - BEACON (Best Estimate Analysis of Core Operations - Nuclear) - is a core monitoring and operational support package developed by Westinghouse for use at pressurised water reactors. In September last year, Energoatom said it had awarded a 339,990 ($369,000) contract to Westinghouse Electric Sweden, to supply four fuel assembly simulators for the Zaporozhe plant. If and when the licence to load the fuel assemblies at Zaporozhe 5 is granted, Energoatom said it planned to order five supplies of fresh nuclear fuel from Westinghouse - two for South Ukraine and three for Zaporozhe. Vasteras in Sweden is one of Westinghouse's ten nuclear fuel manufacturing locations. Researched and written by World Nuclear News Related topics Visit JazzWorldQuest.com to find more about jazz and world music artists from all continents! features latest news from all over the world including Jazz festivals, New Jazz Releases, Jazz Concerts and other events from the global jazz scene! EPRDF regime's self image of ethnically Balkanized Ethiopia, established by late Dictator Melese Zenawie. Freedom of Press is Dead in ethnocracy based irridentism. Fertile land is grabbed by foreign speculators, over 5 million are starving. 500'000 kids are on the streets. Millions are displaced by force. The regime is arming proxy warriors. Dams are built wantonly risking the existence of millions of indigenous people. Eritreans Moles are Ruling even after seceding in 1991. If youre looking to try out an online casino, there are several things that will help you make a decision. Heres what you should look for when choosing an online casino Are they regulated? A lot of the larger ones have licenses issued by the authorities in their respective regions, so its worth checking this first. Do they offer games from different software providers? Some casinos just use one software provider and limit your selection. This is fine if you like playing those types of games but you may want to check other casinos as well. What does their payout percentage look like? The payout rate refers to how much money you can expect to win after every bet. A high payout rate means youll be able to play more often without having to worry about losing all your money. Its also important to know the minimum and maximum bets allowed on each game. If youre going to play roulette, for example, then you probably dont want a casino with a minimum bet of less than $2.50 or even lower than that. The players used to play the game slot online in the land based casinos in the past time. But now with time after the invention of the online casinos players play the game slot online. Online platform provide the players with the convenience in playing and even better winning. Even after keeping a good percentage of the profits, they distribute good funds to players. How many games do they offer? There are lots of different types of games to choose from. Roulette, blackjack and poker are some of the most popular options, but you might find slots, video pokers, video bingo and others as well. You can usually filter these games down to only show the ones that interest you best, so make sure that your list isnt too long! Is there a bonus offer? Many online casinos offer free bonuses as part of their welcome package which includes new players being awarded 100% up to $10 instantly, for example. These offers are great but not everyone has access to them all the time (and some require you to deposit real money). If youd prefer to avoid paying a fee, some casinos offer no-deposit bonuses where you can get a certain amount of funds before you need to put any actual money into the account. These are usually offered alongside welcome bonuses, so make sure you read both parts of the terms and conditions carefully before signing up. Does it offer live dealer games? Live dealers are much preferred by many over regular virtual versions, so it pays to check this option out too. Most online casinos now offer live dealer games in addition to their regular offerings, allowing you to experience the thrill of the real thing without needing to leave home. Now that youve got an idea of what to look for when choosing an online casino, heres some tips for making the right choice It really comes down to personal preference. No two people are exactly alike, so everyone has an opinion on what they like and dislike about each casino. That said, here are some things to consider in order to narrow down your choices Popularity. Check out reviews, forums and Facebook pages to see what other people think of the casino. Also, ask around at work or friends houses who they would recommend to you. You could always take a look at the casinos website too, to see what kind of information they provide about themselves. Reputation. Find out what the general public thinks about the casino. Check out any customer reviews on sites like Trustpilot, Amazon and Google Play to find out more. As far as gaming goes, you can also check out the Better Business Bureau to see whether there have been any complaints against the casino. Security. Make sure the casino uses SSL encryption to secure its transactions, meaning that your private data stays safe during transactions. Other than that, look for security seals on the site itself and verify that theyre legitimate. You can also check out the casinos privacy policy to see how they handle confidential information. Payment methods. Its good to have multiple payment options available, especially if you plan to play frequently. Its also nice to find a casino that accepts cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum. If youre worried about safety, you can always opt for a credit card or PayPal instead. With all those criteria in mind, heres our top picks Betway: Betway is a relatively new UK casino offering online gambling to residents of the United Kingdom and European Union. They offer hundreds of games across both land based and digital platforms, with plenty of top software providers like Net Entertainment, Microgaming and Yggdrasil Gaming Network. With a generous welcome offer that gives players 100% up to 100, you really cant go wrong with Betway. Coral Casino: Coral Casino is operated by the same company that runs the famous Caribbean casino, Grand Reef. Like many casinos, Coral Casino offers a wide variety of games, including plenty of video slots and table games. New players can benefit from a huge 100% match bonus up to 1000, while existing customers enjoy 25% cash back on deposits made within 48 hours of opening an account. Ladbrokes Casino: Ladbrokes Casino is owned by the same company as the famous bookmaker that started life in 1921. With more than 500 games from leading software providers such as Amaya, NetEnt and Microgaming, you wont be disappointed by the quality of the games here. New players get a 200% match bonus up to 500, while existing customers can claim 35% cashback on their first three deposits. Paddy Power Casino: Paddy Power is another Irish-owned casino that operates throughout Europe. Not only does Paddy Power Casino offer traditional casino games like blackjack, roulette and slots, but it also provides a full range of sports betting, including football, tennis, boxing and horse racing. New players can receive a massive 100% match bonus up to 200, while existing customers can claim 35% cashback on their first three deposits. William Hill Casino: William Hill Casino is one of the biggest names in the industry, operating in Europe, Asia and North America. Founded in 1984, this online casino has more than 400 games to choose from, including slots and table games, with a wide array of software providers like WagerLogic, Big Time Gaming and Rival. Bonus: 100% Match Bonus up to 100 Register Now Betway: 100% Match Bonus up to 100 Claim Now Coral Casino: 25% Cash Back on Deposits Claim Now Ladbrokes Casino: 35% Cash Back on First 3 Deposits Claim Now Paddy Power Casino: 100% Match Bonus up to 200 Claim Now William Hill Casino: 100% Match Bonus up to 200 Claim Now If youre interested in trying out an online casino but arent quite ready to commit to one, why not try out one of the many no deposit casinos weve reviewed? You can test drive various casinos completely risk-free, so you can feel confident about your choice before you make a single penny deposit. Feb 23, 2016 | By Bryn Huntpalmer If youre already dialed into the 3D printing world, you dont need to be told about all the extraordinary ways the technology is being usedyou already know about the bionic limbs and Disneys robot uprising, just to name a few. But the expansion of ink materials, combined with the dropping price of 3D printers will make 3D printing a household game as well, enacting some fabulous changes in our day-to-day lives. In fact, well-known designers, with the help of communal platforms like Shapeways and Thingiverse, are already pushing forward a design revolution that will greatly shape the kinds of furniture and fixtures we have in our homesas well as shaking up traditional production and consumer-provider relationships. Here are some of the ways that 3D printing may epically alter home decor: 1. 3D printing will increasingly be used for functional pieces While vases, sculptures, and other purely decorative items are natural candidates for 3D printings limitless design, we were interested to discover that some highly-functional household goods had already made their way to the printer as well, such as American Standards 3D printed DXV faucets. Theyre made using direct-metal laser sinteringmetal powder that is fused into tiny, near-invisible bands that push water into the sink, like a technological magic trick. As 3D printing becomes more popularly used, we anticipate the release of more items that combine practicality with aesthetics. 2. 3D printing makes for more intelligent seating Theres nothing more annoying than dragging around a heavy couch to accommodate a large party or set of houseguests. Artist Janne Kyttanen solved that issue when she 3D printed a geometric mesh sofa that can be lifted with one handweighing in at 5.6 pounds, its just slightly heavier than a bag of sugar. Meanwhile, Dutch 3D designer Lilian Van Daal was so disgusted by the waste involved in traditional seating manufacturing that she set out to create her own model, inspired by natural cellular structures. The result? A seat that molds to fit your own, ahem, cushioning. With designs like these surfacing, we predict that 3D printed furniture will become even more ergonomicand environmental. 3. 3D printing could alter the face of cabinetryand prefab production Currently, cabinetmakers are limited by traditional manufacturing techniques, so mouldings and paneling designs are standardized into a small handful of options. But among the benefits of 3D printing is that there are no such restrictions on personalization3D printed objects can be pretty easily customized to accommodate the taste of the end-user. This is most notably demonstrated by design firm BD Barcelonas Cabinet Tout va Biena custom 3D mural, originally pulled from a hand drawing on a whiteboard, adorns the panels of their multi-tiered storage unit. Another beautiful example is Stelios Mousarris' 3D printed Wave City coffee table. Across various industries, the rise of 3D printing will increasingly push manufacturers to digitalize machinery and localize production centers, meaning increased selection and better delivery times for customers. 4. 3D printing wont be confined to the indoors If at first the challenge facing the 3D printing community was materials, that obstacle has been nearly obliterated, as evidenced by the organic planters developed by project Print Green. The ink, a mixture of soil, seeds, and water, can be used form to print terra firma in a variety of patterns and shapes. The outdoor applications are obvious, and accordingly, the American Society of Landscaping Architects predicts that 3D printing will vastly change how landscapers run their businesses, as well. Again, homeowners will benefit in terms of selectionwith a 3D printer in tow, pavers, walls, and pottery can be sampled live, on the fly, rather than resorting virtual models or drawings. Additionally, printed products can be easily customized to adapt to a space, which could reduce waste from cutting materials. 5. 3D printing will precede the rise of biomimicry in home design Trend hunters be advised. Like never before, 3D printing has made possible the replication of naturally-inspired forms, a concept known in the design world as biomimicry. While biomimicry has obvious aesthetic benefits (who wouldnt want a 3D printed lamp that blossoms like tulip or one that shines through the darkness like a bioluminescent sea anemone?), natural shapes also possess a structural integrity previously unmatched by man made construction. For instance, Janine Beyusone of the founders of the Biomimicry 3.8 Institute, a design consulting and educational groupsays that a single seashell is much stronger than factory-fired ceramics, because the structure is formed to distribute stress rather than resist it. Expect to see organically-inspired forms on the rise as 3D printing expands. 6. 3D printing will draw inspiration from all the senses Every day the 3D printing community yields another technological revelationbut none floored us so much as the Solid Vibrations project from Olivier van Herpt. The exhibit features ceramic pieces that take their shape from sound wavesa speaker mounted below the printer provides the vibrations, giving the works a stunning, unique and, dare we say, vibrant texture. Previously, wed also learned about John Edmarks animated sculptural 3D printed Blooms, another project that takes shape using an untraditional process. These pieces appear to blossom when spun on a turntable under a strobe light (go watch the videoit must be seen to be believed). With 3D printing freeing small-scale inventors and artists to let their imaginations run wild, we expect to see more home goods produced by incorporating unusual sensory elements. What other fantastic pieces will local creators come up with? No predictions thereit remains to be seen. About the Writer: Bryn Huntpalmer is a mother of two young children living in Austin, Texas where she currently works as an Editor for Modernize. In addition to regularly contributing to Home Remodeling and Design websites around the web, her writing can be found on Lifehacker and About.com. Posted in 3D Printing Application Maybe you also like: Feb 24, 2016 | By Alec Life in space is strange in so many ways. The weightlessness is one thing, but there are so many little habits from your daily life that are suddenly lost, and that can get quite stressful. If a 10 minute coffee break is what gets you through the day, youre going to have a bad time. Things like drinking from a cup or even smelling the coffee within it is actually impossible. To make life a bit easier, a collaboration of astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) and researchers from Portland State University have been studying zero gravity fluid dynamics to make things like drinking that cup of coffee feel more normal. Their latest invention, a 3D printed handheld coffee brewer designed by mechanical engineering graduate student Drew Wollman and his professor Mark Weislogel, was just successfully tested in space. All of this is part of an ongoing project that has resulted in some interesting 3D printing innovations over the past few years. As professor Weislogel, who teaches physics at Portland State, explained, drinking is fundamentally different in space. For starters, it would be a chore just getting the coffee into the cup. Absent the pull of gravity, pouring liquids can be very tricky. But, for the sake of argument, lets suppose you are on the space station and you have a cup of coffee in your hand, he explained back in 2013. The most natural thing would be to tip the cup toward your lips, but when you do. The coffee would be very hard to control. In fact, it probably wouldn't [come out]. You'd have to shake the cup toward your face and hope that some of the hot liquid breaks loose and floats toward your mouth. In the worst case scenario, you actually get hit in the face with scalding globules of coffee. Thats why astronauts were, until recently, limited to drinking from sealed containers. But thats where 3D printing comes in. Back in 2014, Weislogel and his team already designed 3D printed espresso cups that feature a very special geometric setup (the result of their fluid dynamics studies) that pour the coffee right into your mouth, almost as a regular coffee cup does here on earth. A year later, this resulted in cups that even allow astronauts to smell the coffee. These 3D printed cups were actually so safe, they could be thrown back in forth without any trouble. Hey, you can smell the coffee, This is eerily like drinking on Earth, and fits of laughter were among the responses from the astronauts. As you can see in the clip below, that special cup design has now been expanded upon. Astronaut Kjell Lindgren, currently in the ISS, contacted Portland State mechanical engineering graduate student Drew Wollman and Weislogel, after seeing the fantastic results of their espresso cups. Lindgren loves freshly brewed coffee, so Wollman and Weislogel designed an expansion for their espresso cup to feature a modified brewing attachment, capable of holding a k-cup. Like the cup, the attachment is 3D printed in transparent polymer. The long plastic crease keeps the liquid right where it needs to be, with surface tension slowly bringing it to your lips. Wetting conditions and the cup's special geometry create a capillary pressure gradient that drives the liquid forward toward the face of the drinker, Weislogel previously explained about the special cup. So how does it work? As you can see in the clip below, the attachment enables the astronaut to hook up a syringe with hot water. By pushing that through the cup, freshly brewed coffee is created with the help of capillary forces. The attachment was designed in just about a week, with the help of 3D printing. Kjell is really excited about coffee and I think he loved it, Wollman said of the results. On the video we saw nothing but joy so it was a success all around! And with innovations like this, life in space can be made more normal and less stressful, extending our capacity to explore the galaxy around us. Posted in 3D Printing Application Maybe you also like: Feb 24, 2016 | By Andre 3D printing, like most technologies out there, relies heavily on a one-step at a time approach when it comes to pushing adoption forward. A case in point example of this can be seen in elements of the aeronautics sector. As reported before, military aircraft are beginning to use 3D printers when replacing parts that are no longer produced while Chinese airliners are already playing with cost cutting measures that utilize 3D printing technology. Well, it now appears that Air New Zealand is taking yet another step forward by researching the use of 3D printers to build parts on its long haul flights. While early efforts between the airline and Auckland University of Technology have already provided the means to 3D print fold down cocktail trays for its business class section, other strategies are being researched that would further the use of 3D printing technology to streamline their business model and reduce inventory at the same time. Bruce Parton, COO of Air New Zealand suggests that aircraft interiors are made up of tens of thousands of parts. Not only can't we hold stock of every replacement part we might need, We often only require a small number of units which can be really expensive to produce using traditional manufacturing methods and can involve frustrating delays while a replacement part is delivered. He goes on to illustrate that if a seat part is broken, it may lock out all three seats for up to 120 days which obviously means that seat cant be sold. So this is one of the real big benefits. We can do quick turnaround times. So your imagination really is the limiting factor." Feasibility studies surrounding the 3D printed cocktail trays have already been done and the airline is hoping to start installing them onto their airplanes in the next few weeks. Cutting down inventory with the help of 3D printing has big implications on cost savings theres no question about it. "A big advantage of 3D printing is that it allows us to make cost-effective lightweight parts ourselves, and to do so quickly without compromising on safety," Parton said. 3D printing is one of the many technologies that enables us to perhaps not to hold any inventory anymore and go to an idea when you can digital print, on demand, as you require it, he added. Furthermore, with fierce competition between airlines these days, these cost saving measures are important when it comes to the ability to provide cheaper tickets to its customers. In the end, while installing small parts such as 3D printed cocktail trays might not win any 3D printing breakthrough awards any time soon, the further use of the technology to provide cost-saving measures in an already cash-strapped industry is a good sign. The ability to avoid keeping a large inventory of parts that may never be used is part of the appeal behind 3D printing and it seems like more and more airlines are beginning to figure this out. Posted in 3D Printing Application Maybe you also like: Feb 24, 2016 | By Benedict Aerospace giant Boeing has patented an additive manufacturing process for 3D printing objects while floating in space. Using multiple 3D printers and diamagnetic printing materials, the system would be able to rotate a levitating print about every axis and deposit layers from all directions. Illustration of an isometric view of an apparatus for 3D printing a part while acoustically levitated in space On February 4, 2016, the United States Patent and Trademark Office published the exciting patent under the name of Free-Form Spatial 3-D Printing Using Part Levitation. Filed by aircraft manufacturer Boeing on July 29, 2014, the patent details a novel additive manufacturing method involving multiple 3D printers, magnetic forces, and a floating printed object. The abstract for the planned 3D printing method reads: A part is fabricated by an additive manufacturing process while levitating in space. Constituent features of the part are formed by 3-D printing. A part levitation system allows the spatial orientation of the part to be manipulated relative to one or more print heads. The barely believable invention seems to have slipped under the radar since its publication earlier this month. However, should the revolutionary 3D printing method be developed, its technological implications within the industry could be significant. 3D printing currently necessitates bottom-up construction. Whether its FDM, SLS, SLA, or some other additive manufacturing process, each method involves building an object from the print bed upwards. Boeings levitation process would completely rip up the rulebook in this respect, with layers applied to the floating 3D print from all directions. How would this rotational, floating 3D printing method change the way we use 3D printing? The ability to deposit layers to any side of a floating 3D print would, for example, completely eliminate the need for support structures, and would lift many of the gravitational restrictions currently imposed on 3D printed objects. This levitating 3D printing business certainly sounds impressive, but how exactly would it work? Although the technology has presumably not yet been realized, the patent goes into some detail as to the physical processes behind the system. 25 individual claims are made within the patent, which explain potential steps in the floating 3D print process. According to the patent, the levitating 3D printing technique would involve forming a feature of a part by printing material into space; levitating the part; changing a spatial orientation of the part while the part is levitating; forming another feature of the part by printing material into the space; and repeating the steps of changing the spatial orientation of the part and printing material into the space until an entire part is formed. The first stage of the process would appear to require printing a nugget of the material into space, and printing additional material onto the nugget. Printing material into space would be achieved by jetting or extruding the material into space. Alternatively, rather than build a 3D printed object from scratch, an existing object could be levitated, with the system then able to [print] material onto the object. In both cases, materials would be deposited by a plurality of print heads located at different positions around the space. Illustration of a perspective view of an alternate form of an apparatus for 3-D printing a part while magnetically levitated in space The 3D printed object could be levitated in a number of ways. The Boeing patent claims ownership over any 3D printing process wherein levitating the part is performed by acoustic levitation or magnetic levitation, whilst quantum levitation and electrostatic levitation are also mentioned. Magnetic levitation would, according to the patent, necessitate super-cooling the part, and subjecting the part to a magnetic field that produces a magnetic force repelling the part. The additive manufacturing system would be largely autonomous, being able to [sense] a position of the part in the spaceand [manipulate] the part based on the sensed position of the part. It would also be able to stabilize a 3D printed part as it levitates within the printing space. So could it really happen? Boeing has clearly put some thought into the many ways that levitation could be achieved, and there are good reasons why a levitating 3D printing method could prove advantageous over existing bottom-up methods. Furthermore, Boeing and the aerospace sector in general has the resources to experiment with costly and complex manufacturing methods. After floating such an interesting idea, Boeing now must get it off the ground. We certainly hope that they can. Posted in 3D Printing Technology Maybe you also like: MB wrote at 12/15/2018 2:22:22 AM:hold your virtual horsesBuddyFrom wrote at 2/25/2016 2:22:37 PM:Sounds like... WOW!Colin L. Cini wrote at 2/25/2016 1:59:45 PM:Publication 20160031156 "Free-Form Spatial 3-D Printing Using Part Levitation" is a published U.S. Patent Application and not a U.S. Patent. The two terms are often confused. Feb 24, 2016 | By Kira BB-8, the famous and much-loved roly-poly droid from Star Wars: The Force Awakens, has become a Force all of its own. The inexplicably cute orange and white spherical robot has captured hearts around the world, and in the past few months alone, has been re-created in the form of countless meticulously crafted fan-made replicas. The most recent and realistic of these comes from Southwest Floridas Ed Zarick, a fire-fighter by day, and self-taught 3D printing engineer by night (or vice versa, depending on how his hectic shift schedule lines up). Since Christmas 2015, Zarick has been hard at work designing, 3D printing, and assembling full-size working Star Wars BB-8 replica, and the finished model has recently been revealed, along with a detailed, downloadable build guide. 3Ders.org talked to Zarick to find out more, and learned how somebody who initially thought 3D printing was just a toy went on to complete a project of this scale. Zaricks fully functional BB-8 droidthe first robot he has ever madeconsists of a base sphere with a single-axis rotation system, a magnetically-attached 3D printed head, and a single-handed joystick, which controls the movement, sounds, and lights. Three main components may seem easy enough, but unsurprisingly, it took hundreds of hours of designing, building, and assembling to bring this advanced droid to life. The first thing to tackle was BB-8s dome-shaped head. Luckily for Zarick, a quick Internet search led him directly to the BB-8 Builders Club, a maker community with over 10,000 members sharing and contributing detailed information on how to assemble a functional, 3D printed Star Wars BB-8 Droid. Using his MakerBot Replicator 2x, Zarick was able to 3D print the 25+ parts required for BB-8s head and assemble them using the Builders Clubs excellent guides. Mostly everything in the head was 3D printed, with the exception of the clear sphere on the eye and a few parts I laser cut, Zarick told 3Ders.org. But 95% was 3D printed and took about 50 hours. What makes Zaricks 3D printed BB-8 so impressive however is not just its movie-realistic size or exterior, but the wonderfully wobbly way it moves around. This is made possible thanks to a novel single-axis rotation system. The single-axis system was kind of figured out by watching the red carpet BB-8 and analysing its movement, explained Zarick. It was figured out that the real one used a single axel system, so I decided to give it a shot. Everyone was doing hamster-style, so I wanted to be different. By hamster-style, hes referring to the more common BB-8 build, in which a wheeled device inside the sphere rolls around to push it forward. In contrast, the single-axis setup (also used by James Burton of XRobots) relies on a counterweight: when you spin the motor, the counterweight will spin one direction, causing the whole sphere to spin the other way. There are a lot of different forces involved, explained Zarick. He wants to roll, he wants to wobble. The only way to prevent that is the counterbalance. The BB-8s body consists of a polycarbonate sphere and aluminium CNC parts, which sustain the droids weight better than plastic. To put it all together, however, some 3D printed parts were required, including the magnet mount and several parts that hold the motors within the sphere. The final touch is a single-handed controller that could easily be brought into conventions or theatres. It controls the BB-8s movement, flashing lights, and activates a series of pre-programmed bleeps and bloops. After hundreds of hours and thousands of dollars (Zarick estimates he spent roughly $3,000 on parts, but that could be brought down to $1,500-2000), the end result is a wonderfully fun and realistic life-size BB-8 replica. My absolute favorite part is him coming together has a whole, said Zarick, who has combined his Star Wars fandom and 3D printing in the past. None of the parts look too exciting or alive on their own. But man, once you put it all together, BB-8 comes to life, and it feels like he came to visit from his planet of Jakku! Ed Zarick with this life-size, working Star Wars BB-8 replica Perhaps most impressive of all is that this BB-8 is Zaricks first ever attempt at making a robot, and his first time 3D printing high quality, professionally finished parts. My personality is one of, if I dont know how to do something, I come up with a project that forces me to learn how to do it, he explained. I try not to be scared by the unknown of a skill and just figure out how to do it. Its an admirable quality, though it comes as no surprise, as Zarick is a professional fire-fighter and considers it to be one of the best jobs in the world. He added that he only began 3D printing two years ago, and initially, wasnt very impressed: It seemed like it was just a toy to print knickknacks off the Internet That was, until I got into making my XBOOK Laptop and needed a custom plastic part that I just couldnt make on my laser. Thats when I realized the power of 3D printing. Now I have three Makerbots that run almost constantly printing custom parts I design. It has become an invaluable tool. The drive system guide, Arduino codes, and controller files can all be downloaded via his website, Eds Junk, along with several great videos of the 3D printed BB-8 in action. For now, Zarick plans to continue improving the BB-8 droid, and eventually will bring it to a local childrens hospital to visit with the kids. His next project will be a 3D printed life-size R2D2, which, based on this awesome success, we absolutely cannot wait to see. Posted in 3D Printing Application Maybe you also like: A Conversation With Ed Boyden in Edge: How can we truly understand how the brain is computing the mind? Over the last 100 years, neuroscience has made a lot of progress. We have learned that there are neurons in the brain, we have learned a lot about psychology, but connecting those two worlds, understanding how these computational circuits in the brain in coordinated fashion are generating decisions and thoughts and feelings and sensations, that link remains very elusive. And so, over the last decade, my group at MIT has been working on technology, ways of seeing the brain, ways of controlling brain circuits, ways of trying to map the molecules of the brain. At this point, what Im trying to figure out is what to do next. How do we start to use these maps, use these dynamical observations and perturbations to link the computations that these circuits make, and things like thoughts and feelings and maybe even consciousness? There are a couple of things that we can do. One idea is simply to go get the data. A lot of people have the opposite point of view. You want to have an idea about how the brain computes, the concept of how the mind is generating thoughts and feelings and so forth. Marvin Minsky, for example, is very fond of thinking about how intelligence and artificial intelligence can be arrived at through sheer thinking about it. On the other hand, and its always dangerous to make analogies and metaphors like this, but if you look at other problems in biology like, what is life? how do species evolve? and so forth, people forget that there are huge amounts, centuries sometimes but at least decades of data that was collected before those theories emerged. Darwin roamed the Earth looking at species, looking at all sorts of stuff until he wrote the giant tome, On the Origins of Species. Before people started to try to hone in on what life is, there was the tool development phase: people invented the microscope. People started looking at cells and watching them divide and so forth, and without those data, it would be very hard to know that there were cells at all, that there were these tiny building blocks, each of which was a self-compartmentalized, autonomous building block of life. The approach I would like to take is to go get the data. Lets see how the cells in the brain can communicate with each other. Lets see how these networks take sensation and combine that information with feelings and memories and so forth to generate the outputs, decisions and thoughts and movements. More here. Sean McFate in Aeon: It is a familiar story. A superpower goes to war and faces a stronger-than-expected insurgency in distant lands, yet has insufficient forces to counter it because of political and military constraints. The superpower decides to hire contractors, some of whom are armed, to support its war effort. The armed contractors prove to be both a blessing and a curse, providing vital security services to the campaign, yet at times killing innocent civilians, causing strategic setbacks, and damaging the superpowers legitimacy. Without these contractors, the superpower could not wage the war. With them, it is more difficult to win. The armed contractors in question are not in Iraq or Afghanistan but in northern Italy, and the year is not 2007 but 1377. The superpower is not the United States but the papacy under Pope Gregory XI, fighting the antipapal league led by the duchy of Milan. The tragic killing of civilians by armed contractors did not occur in Baghdad but in Cesena, 630 years earlier. The military companies employed were not DynCorp International, Triple Canopy or Blackwater, but the Company of the Star, the Company of the Hat and the White Company. Known as free companies, these for-profit warriors were organised as corporations, with a well-articulated hierarchy of subcommanders and administrative machinery that oversaw the fair distribution of loot according to employees contracts. CEO-like captains led these medieval military corporations. The parallels between medieval and contemporary private military companies (PMCs) are strong. Today, the US and many others hire contractors to fulfil security-related contracts in the worlds most dangerous places. In the late Middle Ages, such men were called condottieri literally, contractors who agreed to perform security services described in written contracts, or condotte. Both modern and medieval contractors were organised as companies, their services available to the highest or most powerful bidder for profit. Both filled their ranks with professional men of arms drawn from different countries and loyal primarily to the paycheck. Both have functioned as private armies, usually offering land-based combat skills rather than naval (or aerial) capabilities and deploying force in a military manner rather than as law enforcement or police. Mercenaries are back. More here. Northern football player donates hair to Wigs for Kids Zach Bohnenkamp has been growing his hair out since he arrived at Northern. Thursday he had 12 inches of hair cut and donated to Wigs for Kids. Announces Full Year Results With Strong Online Growth Up 46% Sydney, Feb 25, 2016 AEST (ABN Newswire) - MYOB Group Limited ("MYOB") ( ASX:MYO ) ( 7MY:FRA ) today announced its results for the twelve months ended 31 December 2015 (CY2015). MYOB is a leading provider of online business management solutions provider and a partner to 1.2 million small businesses across Australia and New Zealand. Financial Highlights*: meeting or beating prospectus forecasts - 10% pro forma revenue growth to $328 million (prospectus forecast: $323 million) - 19% pro forma EBITDA growth to a record $153 million (prospectus forecast: $151 million) - 22% pro forma NPATA** growth to $86 million (prospectus forecast: $85 million) - 87% pro forma cash flow conversion - 95% recurring revenue reflecting the high quality nature of the revenue stream - 8% growth in SME paying users to 545,000 (in line with prospectus forecast) - Dividend of 5.0c per share Operational Highlights: 2015, a year of firsts - Undertaking the largest technology IPO in the history of the ASX - Investing >14% of revenue in innovative technology for clients, launching MYOB Smart Bills, MYOB PaySuper, MYOB Advanced and the MYOB Portal - Winning the BRW title of "Most Innovative Large Company" - Securing the highest ever team engagement scores across the MYOB business Justin Milne, Chairman said: "On the back of strong financial results and significant cash generation, the Board is pleased to declare a final dividend of 5.0c per share. In a world where the market often divides stocks into "growth stocks" and "dividend stocks," MYOB offers both." Tim Reed, Chief Executive Officer said: "2015 saw MYOB return to the ownership of public investors, undertaking the largest technology IPO in the history of the ASX. We enter 2016 with great momentum. We believe the accounting industry is transforming, with transaction processing, compliance and advisory services converging into one connected business process. We see this transformation and are preparing by developing a MYOB single platform, which will offer accountants, bookkeepers, small businesses and their consultants unparalleled ability to drive business success." Richard Moore, Chief Financial Officer said: "In 2015, MYOB made record investment in technological innovation while delivering double digit pro forma revenue, EBITDA and NPATA growth, all exceeding IPO forecasts. In 2016 we continue our strategy of targeted investment for future growth and reaffirm June 2016 prospectus guidance. For FY16, we expect revenue growth to continue in line with historical trends and EBITDA margin to remain within the 45-50% range." *The MYOB Annual Report contains a reconciliation between statutory and pro forma measures. ** MYOB considers NPATA, rather than NPAT, to be a more meaningful measure of after tax profit due to the large amount of non-cash amortisation of acquired intangibles that is reflected in NPAT MYOB reported pro forma revenue of $328 million, up 10% on FY14, reflecting strong growth across all segments of the business. Pro-forma earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) was up 19% to $153 million. Pro forma net profit after tax excluding amortisation of acquired intangibles (NPATA) was $86 million, up 22% on prior year. Pro forma financials exclude the one-off costs associated with the IPO, restate the historical capital structure to that now in place post-IPO and remove other one-off costs. The MYOB Board has declared a final dividend of 5.0c per share, reflecting the company's pleasing results, strong cash flow and forward growth pipeline. Segment Revenue Performance SME Solutions (63 per cent of total revenue) - SME revenue up 14% to $205 million (FY14: $180 million), including that from the acquisitions of Ace Payroll and IMS o Ace Payroll and IMS contributed $2.9 million of revenue in FY15 (of which $2.7 million was recurring) - Organic revenue up 12% to $202 million, driven by strong uplift in recurring revenue and growth in online users - Online users up 46% to 170,000, driving: o 8% growth in the Paying User base to 545,000; o high and stable retention rates of 80%; and o 5% growth in Average Revenue per Paying User (ARPU) to $379 per year - Growth in online and paying user bases supported by investment in product and increased sales and marketing spend year on year - MYOB launched a number of new and innovative products to SME clients in 2015, including MYOB Smart Bills, MYOB PayDirect and MYOB PaySuper, helping drive uptake of its online solutions Practice Solutions (25 per cent of total revenue) - Practice Solutions revenue up 3% to $81.7 million (FY14: $79.4 million) - Growth driven primarily by ARPU increases offset by limited (less than 2%) client churn - Recurring revenue represents 97 per cent of Practice Solutions total revenue, in line with FY14 - In April 2015, MYOB launched the MYOB Portal, the first online practice module, which by the end of 2015 was being used by 1,000+ practices and 16,000+ clients, making it the most successful launch of a Practice Solutions product in MYOB history. Enterprise Solutions (13 per cent of total revenue) - Enterprise Solutions revenue up 4% to $41 million (FY14: $39.5 million) - 2015 saw the start of the shift from selling up-front desktop software licences (MYOB Exo) to online subscriptions (MYOB Advanced) - Even with the shift to online subscriptions slowing revenue growth in the short term, Enterprise Solutions revenue grew 5 per cent faster than expected in the Prospectus, due to stronger than expected revenues from PayGlobal (driven by higher than expected sales conversion rates), and higher than forecast sales of the new MYOB Advanced product, launched in January 2015 - Recurring revenue represents 80 per cent of Enterprise Solutions total revenue, up from 79 per cent in FY14. Outlook - June 2016 pro forma Prospectus guidance reaffirmed - Guidance for FY2016 o Revenue growth expected to be in line with historical trends o EBITDA margin expected to be maintained within the previously guided 45%-50% range o As targeted and disciplined investment in online solutions continues, it is expected that for FY16 R&D will be in the upper half of the 13 per cent to 16 per cent range. - Dividend payout ratio for FY16 expected to be between 60 and 80 per cent of NPATA (Dividends are likely to remain unfranked until at least the financial year ending 31 December 2017). Further Information The MYOB market release should be read in conjunction with the MYOB Investor Presentation and MYOB Annual Report, all simultaneously released this morning on the ASX platform and MYOB IR website: http://investors.myob.com.au/Investors/. CEO Tim Reed and CFO Richard Moore will present the results to analysts in a conference call at 10am (AEDT) today. Conference call details: Dial in: T: +61 2 8038 5221 T: 1800 123 296 Pin: 5016 6256 For those unable to listen to the call live, playback facilities will be available via the MYOB IR website. A conference call transcript will also be published on the ASX website later today. To view the release please visit: http://media.abnnewswire.net/media/en/docs/82801-ASX-MYO-439121.pdf To view the Investor Presentation, please visit: http://media.abnnewswire.net/media/en/docs/82802-ASX-MYO-439114.pdf About Myob Group Ltd MYOB Group Ltd (ASX:MYO) is a leading provider of online business management solutions. It makes business life easier for approximately 1.2 million businesses and accountants across Australia and New Zealand by simplifying accounting, payroll, tax, practice management, CRM, job costing, inventory and more. MYOB operates across three core segments Clients and Partners (business solutions to SMEs and Advisers); Enterprise Solutions (larger businesses) and Payment Solutions. It provides ongoing support through client service channels including a network of over 40,000 accountants, bookkeepers and other consultants. It is committed to ongoing innovation, particularly through its Connected Practice Strategy and through the development of the MYOB Platform. For more information, follow @MYOB on Twitter or visit https://investors.myob.com.au/Investors ACAs library of educational tools help members improve their business practices. ACA also holds the most popular industry conferences and offers credentialing for collectors, attorneys, and more. ACAs Training Zone subscription gives agencies access to almost all of our education for one low cost. 20 Ontario students made Canada'sCommon Final Examination's (CFE)Honour Rollfor top marks on the first year of the CPA entry examinations in the country,CPA Ontarioannounced on Wednesday. The CFE marks the first time that Canadian test-takers can become CPAs by passing a single examination. The CFE, taken in September, is a national three-day evaluation exam that assesses professional knowledge, judgment, ethics and communication. It is an important component of Canada's new CPA qualification program, which includes education, experience, and exam requirements. Only those who complete this entire CPA program successfully are entitled to use the CPA title. A total of 20 Ontario students placed on the prestigious 52-member National Honour Roll. Furthermore, Ontario had 782 of the country's 2,219 successful CFE test-takers. CPA Ontario also celebrated more than 3,550 successful students, who were either admitted into membership or close to achieving it, during four convocation ceremonies that took place last November. On February 27, CPA Ontario will hold its annual convocation ceremony in Toronto to celebrate the success of students who successfully participated in this year's CFE. Toronto's Erin Compeau will be honored for achieving the highest marks in Canada during the inaugural CFE. Compeau has a Bachelor of Business Administration with Distinction from York University's Schulich School of Business and works at Deloitte in Toronto. "I appreciate the respect that the designation affords and that there is an element of altruism in being a CPA, in that it provides a valuable public service," Compeau said in a statement. "This is definitely a transitional year for the accounting profession and being the first year of students to write the new CFE exam definitely brought with it a pressure to uphold the high standards set by past writers of the former Uniform Evaluation (UFE)." "Congratulations to all the successful Ontario candidates," stated Carol Wilding, president and CEO of the Chartered Professional Accountants of Ontario. "Qualifying to become a CPA is a very challenging process and the resulting career is rich in rewards and opportunities. I am confident that all the students will make great contributions to the accounting profession and will uphold the high standards of the CPA designation." For more on the CFE Exam, head to CPA Canada'ssite here. A taxpayer has been charged with mailing a threatening communication after he responded to a notice from the Internal Revenue Service about overdue taxes by scribbling a profanity on the letter and mailing it back to the IRS. Enrique Santiago of the Bronx, N.Y., allegedly wrote, I do not live at this address anymore, so go f--k yourself, on the IRS notice and told the post office to return it to the sender. The IRS had intended the notice for his nephew, named Enrique A. Santiago, but he had moved out of the elder Santiagos home a month earlier after a physical altercation with his uncle, according to the New York Post. Santiago shares a similar name with his nephew, who owes the IRS $3,032.57 in unpaid taxes. In addition to the curse-filled missive, the elder Santiago also allegedly put white powder in the envelope, causing an IRS office in Long Island to be locked down until authorities determined it was only soap. He was charged with providing false information and mailing a threatening communication. IMRB International, a leading market research firm announces the launch of its SMB Sentiment study 2016. B2B & Industrial Business Unit at IMRB International conducts the study to assess the industry outlook towards Economy and business among manufacturing, services and retail sectors. The study was conducted; pan India among senior level stakeholders. SMB Sentiments 2016 gives details of perception and expectations from the economy in terms of market and Investor sentiments. It talks about the overall growth of Industry, growth of revenue and export, job creation, capacity utilization, levels of competition and the study concludes with SMB expectations from the impending budget in reference to the current economic environment Key highlights of SMB Sentiment study 2016 After three successful editions, the International Advertising Associations (IAA) today announced the 4th edition of the IAA Leadership Awards. The awards recognise individuals and teams across the fields of marketing, advertising and media and celebrate their achievements. The magnificence of the 4th IAA Leadership Awards will be showcased through an exclusive By Invite Only event on Saturday, March 12, 2016 at Grand Hyatt, Mumbai. For the fourth year in a row, the IAA India chapter will recognize the achievements of diverse groups in the Marketing, Advertising and Media community for their incredible performance as they raised the bar of innovation and creativity in delivering high impact marketing initiatives. 24 categories have been identified after deliberation over an extensive number of quantitative and qualitative parameters. This year, the performance of the shortlisted individuals will be scrutinized by a technically-sound jury comprising of industry leaders. Speaking on the fourth edition of the IAA Leadership Awards, Sam Balsara, Chairman IAA Leadership Awards Committee said, 2015, as a year, has seen some truly remarkable and noteworthy marketing initiatives that have furthered the brand value and propositions for many businesses. The IAA Leadership Awards honours these programs, designed by some of the best marketing minds in the industry, which have helped in furthering of the organizations goals through a focused and targeted outreach. With competition on a rise across sectors, we are looking forward to celebrating the achievements of those talented individuals who have shined through. Commenting on the awards journey, Srinivasan K Swamy, President of IAA India Chapter, said, Over the past three years, the IAA Leadership Awards have become a coveted one to win within the community, which makes us strive harder to ensure the winners are picked through a robust process. As we prepare for the fourth edition to take off, we are looking forward to celebrate the hard work of the marketers and professionals who have furthered the meaning of excellence within their respective industries / sectors. This years categories include the following: Sr. No Category Names 1 Marketer of the Year Banking 2 Marketer of the Year Insurance 3 Marketer of the Year FMCG Food (Chocolates, Noodles and Biscuits) 4 Marketer of the Year FMCG Beverage (Soft Drinks, Health Drinks and Energy Drinks) 5 Marketer of the Year FMCG Home Care (Household products) 6 Marketer of the Year FMCG Personal Care 7 Marketer of the Year Two-wheelers 8 Marketer of the Year Passenger Vehicles 9 Marketer of the Year Consumer Durables 10 Marketer of the Year Mobile Devices 11 Marketer of the Year Mobile Services 12 Marketer of the Year E-commerce (Ominibus) 13 Marketer of the Year E-commerce (Niche / Specialized Services) 14 Marketer of the Year Home Improvement 15 Marketer of the Year Retail 16 CEO of the Year 17 Media Person of the Year 18 News Anchor of the Year 19 Editor of the Year 20 Media Agency Head of the Year 21 Creative Agency Head of the Year 22 Hall of Fame 23 Brand Visionary of the Year Male 24 Brand Visionary of the Year Female Building its stature as the most authentic and transparent awards, IAA has streamlined the evaluation process to determine the awardees. As a measure to shortlist the nominees, IAA along with its knowledge partner, Nielsen have analysed the market presence and marketing spends of brands for the latest available period. The shortlisted nominees are then inspected closely by an expert jury panel, who will focused on criteria like market share data, growth and other qualitative aspects to select the winners. The fourth edition of the IAA Leadership Awards is slated to be held on Saturday, 12th March 2016 at Hotel Grand Hyatt, Mumbai. Top executives and professionals from the world of Marketing, Media and Advertising are expected to be present at the awards function. APACs leading digital media technology brand Komli Media, now a part of Indias SVG Media Group, today announced that it is expanding operations in South-East Asia with the opening of an office in Jakarta, Indonesia. Komli Media has also partnered with Smartpipe, one of the leading real-time data broker for network operators, for its Indonesia operations. Direct integration to Smartpipe will allow Komli to deliver greater audience accuracy via Smartpipes unique and patent protected intelligent identification technology. Smartpipe will provide Komli with MNO (Mobile Network Operator) privacy compliant, deterministic behavioural data, allowing Komlis in-app advertising clients to accurately target specific user segments aligned to their exact requirements. At a time when Indonesia is experiencing a significant increase in mobile advertising growth, we are excited by the opportunity to broker targetting advertising soutions for Komli with Smartpipe said Chirag Shah, Business Head, Komli Media. Komli is a leading ad tech brand in South East Asia and has enjoyed a position of leadership in the regional markets for many years with strong equity among advertisers and publishers. Komli also appointed Mr. Udit Dave as head of its South East Asia operations based in Jakarta. The company further said that it will expand the team to 15 members in the next four months. The company will launch with two proprietary and successful ad tech products: appjacketTM PLUS and Product Listing Ads (PLA) in Indonesia, Singapore and Thailand in the first stage. Malaysia, Vietnam and Phillippines launches will follow in the second stage. Speaking about the expansion , Chirag Shah, Business Head, Komli Media, said, We see tremendous business opportunity for Komli Media in South East Asia, building on the strong brand equity that Komli enjoys in the region. Our expansion in Indonesia marks the beginning of the next phase in SVGs journey towards becoming South East Asias number one digital and mobile marketing platform. We are also pleased to have a leader of the caliber of Udit Dave spearheading the South East Asia operations. His rich local experience and unmatched understanding of local markets is going to be an asset for Komli as we strengthen our local relationships towards serving our customers better. Udits priority will be to strengthen our on-ground teams and hire the best people to address the unique needs of local advertisers, Chirag Shah added. The company currently reaches out to more than 85 million consumers ascross South-East Asia and India. According to a recent report by eMarketer Indonesia is the fastest growing market in terms of mobile ad ecomomy. Komlis products for South East Asia Product Listing Ads (PLA) is the worlds first native ad platform, by an independent ad network, open to all app publishers and competes directly with Google and Facebooks PLA. The PLA platform allows app publishers to deliver ads without compromising on a users app experience, by embedding these ads natively, similar to the Facebook and Google ads. Product Linked Ads mark a major innovation in global mobile ad tech industry. This is for the first time that ads have been developed keeping consumers at the epicenter of the mobile advertising ecosystem. While other e-commerce ads overwhelm and confuse a consumer by showing different products to choose from, Product Linked Ads only show relevant products as per consumer interest, reducing their efforts of buying products online. appjacketTM PLUS is an In-App Advertising Platform that brings greater monetization capabilities to app developers and publishers. It is powered with enhanced features & controls for publishers including but not limited to the worlds first zero buffering and HD-quality video display technology. It also features revolutionary machine learning algorithm for best consumer targeting and reach, and a powerful mediation engine for best in class yield. Leading Indian app publishers like Nazara Games, Times Internet Ltd., HT Media Ltd, India Today Group, Bhaskar Group, Digivive, Zapak Games, Kompas etc. are using appjacketTM PLUS in their popular apps including Chhota Bheem, Gaana, India Today, Dainik Bhaskar, NexGTV and Live Mint. ZenithOptimedia Group and Google has just concluded the first ever Zoogle Day in India. The digital marketing event focussed was on the micro-moments that are arising everyday in the lives of consumers, given their shift to mobile. Craig Greenfield, COO, Performics Worldwide, part of ZenithOptimedia Group, and Tanmay Mohanty, Managing Director, Performics and Resultrix, share their insights on the growth of performance marketing, rise of big data, creating a lasting connect with consumers and more. Excerpts: Adgully (AG): Please tell us about the scale of Performics globally and plans/ projections. Craig Greenfield (CG): Performics is the performance marketing arm of ZenithOptimedia and operates within the Publicis Groupe. Were also an independent global performance marketing AOR. We are now in 41 countries, the most recent being South Africa, Greece, Indonesia, Argentina and Czech Republic. We continue to be focused on corporate development through acquisitions, new offices and strategic alliances. Latin American is a region seeing incredible digital growth and one that we are watching closely. We continue to be focused on corporate development through acquisitions, new offices and strategic alliances. Well continue to focus around our competitive advantages. We have a top global footprint amongst performance marketing agencies. We support projects in 50 global offices with various models depending on business need (central, local, and hybrid). 20 per cent of clients run multinational campaigns. Our practice is built upon capturing and converting consumer intent. Our strength is understanding intent at each decision point to deliver relevant experiences that drive performance. We will continue to grow as a network in APAC to meet client needs, so the focus is to make sure all our markets have a consistent skill set around biddable and actionable media, as well as the capabilities in data insights. There can be no weak link in our network when driving sales for our clients. All markets in APAC have had a tremendous growth, and this will continue. In mature markets such as Australia, we have made strategic acquisition in FirstClick Consulting, to maintain and build on our strong product in that market. We will continue to grow as a network in APAC to meet client needs, so the focus is to make sure all our markets have a consistent skill set around biddable and actionable media, as well as the capabilities in data insights. There can be no weak link in our network when driving sales for our clients. All markets in APAC have had a tremendous growth, and this will continue. In mature markets such as Australia, we have made strategic acquisition in FirstClick Consulting, to maintain and build on our strong product in that market. ASEAN as Region has done a great job of unifying in the past five years, as they realised that together they were stronger and were able to compete better with the larger markets such as India and China. Performics has taken the same approach, by working as close network with offices in Singapore, Manila, HCMC, Bangkok and of course the recently opened Jakarta office. Growth has been significant working on key clients Nestle, Mead Johnson Nutrition and Sanofi as well as winning new business Singapore Airlines, Scoot, Acer. AG: Where is Indias place among other international markets? Both India and China are now among the top ten markets in the Performics global network, which was not the case two years ago. So their growth is clear to see and due to size and opportunity, this growth will become even stronger. We believe the opportunity around ecommerce especially on mobile in these markets will play a key role in Performics global growth. India is a vibrant democracy with a healthy economic outlook and with huge ambitions in the digital space. What we have been doing so far has just been the tip of the iceberg. India has just crossed the 1 billion mobile subscribers mark and given that mobile becoming the first point of access for the Internet, the future looks extremely exciting. India is taking huge strides in digital. Programmatic and data will be the necessary to catch up. At Performics, were elevating Performance Display Marketing through the sophisticated use of consumer data. Our Performance Display practice is built on measurement, enabling us to collect and analyze all campaign and consumer intent data to activate audiences, buys and ad creative. Through data, we find the right moments. We then cater to those momentsby device, channel, geo, creative format, context and behavior. We have always believed in data driven planning. The richness of the data points only adds to the success of the campaign. With this very thing in mind, we have been making investments, especially in India. AG: How has Performics growth been in India? Tanmay Mohanty (TM): We have always had a distinctive position in the market as being a pure-play performance player. This position was further strengthened by our acquisition of Resultrix in 2012 which was one of the largest standalone performance marketing agency. We have been able to leverage both brands and draw out the similarities to build a very strong performance product be it with our One-search approach or technology and data driven planning and media innovations. We launched Performics Mobile in 2015 as we saw this is a mobile first market and we have seen tremendous growth and response here. We also set up the first ever media-tech and analytics division in Bangalore that helps clients make informed decision on the choice of technology and works on implementing them to drive maximum ROI on their investments. In India, client acquisitions are our main focus. Existing clients are moving from single digit spend in digital to double, due to growth in mobile internet. We are examining further investment opportunities in technology driven solutions to drive the Indian growth story. When we first began, we felt that in order to have a sustainable growth plan, we needed to find a way to differentiate ourselves from the pack. The way to do that is with data, media technology and the intelligence we bring to the planning process. We opened our tech and analytics division in Bangalore exactly with this vision. The assumption here was that in order for digital to really reach its potential, data needs to be unified so that the clients can have a single view of the customers and make informed marketing decisions. While there are a lot of technologies out there which help bridge the gap almost no one in the market knows how to set it up right. As a result clients invest in a lot of expensive products that are never really used to derive their potential and we as their partners need to help them leverage these new age solutions. So we partnered with Adobe to fuel our Media tech division which will help clients make the right choice of technologies that meet their needs, help them set it up and run it so as to derive intelligence that can be fueled into all their media activities and bring the customer experience to the forefront. AG: How high is the reliance on big data? TM: Advertising started out as 100% art. But with the rise of big data, its now shifting to a blend between art and science. Performicss main focus in to extract meaning from big data to understand consumer intent and deliver dynamic and personalized experiences. We then measure performance and rigorously optimize (investment level, creative/copy and audience) based on each touch points influence on revenue. Nothing is sacred, as we relentlessly test and learn and make decisions based on data. However, its important to not let big data carry you away. Successful performance marketing campaigns must blend art and science, man and machine. Advertisers cannot treat consumers like data points; they must uncovering the distinct motivation behind each click to match experiences to intent. AG: But with increasing fragmentation in platforms, how do you create a lasting connection with the consumer? TM: As the digital ecosystem continues to fragment, and consumer attention spans continue to shorten, clients are seeking agency expertise and capabilities to move from mass marketing to moment marketing. This means creating hyper-relevant experiences for consumers with specific needs, in-the-moment, by leveraging data to understand and cater to intent. As its more challenging than ever to get consumers attention, these are the only experiences/ads that will convert these days. We have set up a special Communication Planning team in India that helps bring in the intelligence of data to the build a communication approach that helps map the consumer journey from awareness to buying. This team helps glean insights into what sort of communication works at which touchpoints and at which stage of the buying journey. This team is actively involved in all brand and product launch campaigns and helps drive branding solutions with communication driven approach as opposed to a pure play media approach. AG: What is the potential and growth of performance marketing? CG: The size and scope of performance marketing will continue to grow. To illustrate, programmatic display spend has just recently outpaced non-programmatic; and programmatic is expected to be 66% percent of total display spend by 2020 (U.S). RTB (real time bidding) formats in mobile and video are also quickly closing in on traditional. And the potential of performance marketing is no longer limited to the traditional digital channels. For instance, Google recently started testing DoubleClick ad serving technology for out-of-home (OOH) billboards. And ZenithOptimedias Performics is making early investments in integrated bid sciences for direct-response TV (DRTV). This is performance marketing for TV: ads bought on a biddable basis and customized to specific audiences. Performance marketings ability to target relevant audiences in the right moment at the right bidin addition to leveraging advanced analytics and measurement to power optimizationmakes it very appealing to advertisers, even in channels where its not yet widespread, like OOH and TV. AG: Please tell us about Zoogle Day held in India for the first time ever. What were the key points that were covered? CG: Zoogle Day is a digital marketing event jointly hosted by ZenithOptimedia Group and Google in various parts of the world and has just concluded in India. ZenithOptimedia and Google first created this property in the UK, twelve years back, with the clear objective of leading the change that digital technology is bringing in the consumers' lives. Back then the digital transformation was just starting to take shape. Zoogle Day was so successful in the UK that the format was retained and expanded across years and across markets. This time around we brought it to India and it has seen extraordinary success. The focus was on micro-moments that are arising everyday in the lives of consumers, given their shift to mobile. Micro-moments occur when people reflexively turn to a device, increasingly a smartphoneto act on a need to learn something, do something or discover something and in the process, make a purchase or consume interesting information around a product. There were some interesting ideas discussed and case studies that were presented. In my own presentation at the session, we brought key trends for the mobile medium. For instance, voice search is growing at a rapid pace, not just in India but across the world. 23% of people have used voice search/voice commands. There has been a 50% increase in usage over the past year. Another key trend is that ad blocking is likely to kill the banner and increase share of native advertising. IPhone Users are 18% more likely to block ads. 32% of iPhone users have used an Ad Blocker. About Craig Greenfield & Tanmay Mohanty Craig Greenfield, COO, Performics Worldwide works in tandem with Performicss worldwide leadership, client teams and external partners to help clients identify and capture new business opportunities, negotiate strategic partnerships and enhance operational efficiency. To deliver more comprehensive solutions, the team cultivates the organizations innovation capacity by building processes or systems. This allows them to share learning, knowledge, and the tools needed to execute effective strategy. Craig earned a Master of Science in Integrated Marketing Communications from Northwestern University and a Bachelor of Arts in English from the University of Iowa. Prior to Performics, Craig worked at Jacobs & Clevenger and J. Walter Thompson serving clients in Automotive, Financial Services, Retail/e-commerce and Deregulated Industries.Craig has traveled extensively to countries such as: Belgium, Canada, China, the Czech Republic, France, German, Israel, Italy, Mexico, Netherlands, Singapore, Spain, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and throughout the United States. Tanmay Mohanty is the Managing Director of Performics and Resultrix, digital companies under the ZenithOptimedia Group. He has rich and diverse experience of over 15 years, in areas as diverse as aeronautics, stockbroking and digital media. Mohanty has played a pivotal role in scaling up the digital capabilities for ZenithOpimedia . His core specialty is digital insights, especially with BFSI (banking, financial services and insurance) clients. Mohanty has handled management portfolios at companies such as Jasubhai, Merchant Media, Dalal Street and Urja Communications. Prior to joining Resultrix, he was the chief operating officer at Interactive Media & Communication Solutions (id8 Labs) Indias foremost wildlife channel Animal Planet has announced its 5th annual campaign to protect and conserve the tiger population in India. Bollywoods leading actor Sonakshi Sinha will be the face of Animal Planets 2016 WHERE TIGERS RULE campaign. Danger Se Darr Nahi Lagta Endangered Se Lagta Hai said Sonakshi Sinha expressing her long held emotion on the tiger crisis in India. The campaign will have Sonakshi Sinha inviting viewers to watch the month long programming on tigers and will relate her affection and dependence on her mother to a cubs love for their mother. Starting March 1, every night at 9 PM, Animal Planet will offer viewers an unprecedented access into the lives, habitats, behavior of various tiger species. WHERE TIGERS RULE will bring to fore captivating stories of tigers their co-existence with humans, the threatening environment and the conservation efforts of leading experts from India and around the world. Filmed in breathtaking landscapes located in Indias magnificent forests, grasslands and protect reserves, including Madhya Pradeshs Kanha and Bandhavgarh National Parks, Uttarakhands Jim Corbett National Park, Rajasthans Sariska and Ranthambore National Parks, West Bengals Sunderbans, and Maharashtras Tadoba; WHERE TIGERS RULE provides an intimate look into the mysterious world of the tiger. Announcing Animal Planets 2016 WHERE TIGERS RULE campaign, Rahul Johri, EVP & GM South Asia, Discovery Networks Asia-Pacific said, My entire team feels deeply gratified that the tiger population in India has increased in the last few years. Our WHERE TIGERS RULE campaign attempts to bring attention to the imminent danger to tigers and to sensitise millions of viewers through breathtaking programming. We are ecstatic that we have made a small and vital contribution. Rahul Johri added, The challenge is far from over and we will continue to invest our resources and energy and lead the campaign from the front. Revealing her true passion for wildlife leading Bollywood Star Sonakshi Sinha said, I feel fortunate that I can participate in this wonderful cause and be a change agent. I believe that humans have to respect other species and their habitats and adapt to co-exist. My parents took me to a national park to see a tiger and I would certainly love to take my children one day and show them this magnificent creature. Nearly half of the tiger species in the world have been wiped out in the last 100 years. Out of the nine species of tigers, four are extinct in the wild and five are endangered. India is home to more than 50 per cent of the tiger population in the world and therefore the epicenter of all action. Watched by over 30 million viewers in India (cumulative viewership for year 2015), Animal Planets WHERE TIGERS RULE is an initiative to reach viewers around the country and inform them about the importance of its survival in the wilderness. The series also travels to countries like Sumatra and Russia to track the last living species of the tiger. AF rapid response unit enhances their skills during Patriot Sands The distinct sound of helicopters hovering, mixed with the roar of jet engines and automatic weapons fire from a nearby range, filled the air on a cool, sunny day in southeast Georgia. Members from the 315th Airlift Wings Airlift Control Flight (ALCF) took part in Patriot Sands, a training exercise that kicked off Feb. 17 at Hunter Army Airfield. The exercise incorporated the resources of several ALCF units, as well as affiliate agencies such as the FBIs Rapid Response Team and the Coast Guard Maritime Security Response Team. ALCF is a rapid response unit comprised of experienced airlift and operations team members. This includes Airmen from nine Air Force career fields, who manage, coordinate and control air mobility assets in austere locations under combat conditions. Unit members are ready to deploy to any part of the world in 36 hours. Exercises like Patriot Sands are essential to our mission, said Maj. John Ramsey, the 315th ALCF commander. The pilots get to experience heavier loads than they normally do. The aerial porters get to work away from their home station, which helps them develop their skills. The loadmasters get operational experience with rolling stock, which isnt normal to their everyday mission. And finally, we get the chance to practice and train on our mission set, which is setting up an airfield where we are able to handle the command and control of aircraft. For 315th ALCF members, the exercise started at Joint Base Charleston, South Carolina, where they loaded a C-17 Globemaster III, piloted by a crew from the 317th Airlift Squadron, and flew to Hunter AF. This type of training is an excellent example of how we stay mission ready and mission focused, said Col. Caroline Evernham, the 315th Operations Group commander. The ALCF works hard with their affiliates to ensure they are trained and ready to prepare their equipment for transport at any time. The efficiencies gained from this week's training will help us when we really need it." One of the main items loaded onto the C-17 for the training was a large, tan-in-color container -- a hardside expandable light air mobility shelter (HELAMS). The HELAMS, once set in its desired location, transforms from a plain box to a fully expanded and functional command and control center with doors, windows and electricity. This workspace is then used to house the communications equipment and gear needed for ALCFs operational readiness. Other than the hands-on training that ALCF receives from setting up their equipment during the exercise, team members also benefit from the affiliate agencies that they have partnered with to accomplish their training objectives. We make sure that the sister services and Department of Defense affiliates are current and ready for a real-world missions, said Master Sgt. Mark Schmidt, 315th ALCF Operations NCO in charge. ALCF teaches the FBI and other affiliate agencies to properly prepare their equipment for air mobility, Schmidt said. This includes the standardization of weighing, fueling, packing, cleaning, inspecting and sorting of their equipment so that its ready to load when the aircraft gets on station. Patriot Sands is an annual Air Force Reserve Command exercise for ALCF to train in accordance with their designed operational capability mission statement to deploy as a contingency response element. The exercise is scheduled to last for five days. Reserve Airmen assist, rescue helicopter crash victims When a tourist helicopter suddenly fell from the sky into Pearl Harbor and submerged the occupants aboard as it flipped over in the water, two of Scott Air Force Base's highly trained medical aircrew members rendered immediate assistance. Capt. Bradley Stone and Senior Airman Samantha Strom, both Reservists assigned to the 932nd Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron, were touring Pearl Harbor, Hawaii while on downtime during a deployment Feb. 18, when they heard a crash in the nearby harbor waters. "We saw everyone running, but we really weren't sure what had happened," said Strom. "A lady nearby said it looked like a helicopter had just fell out of the sky." Both Stone and Strom ran toward the area where the noise had come from and found the helicopter submerged under 15 to 20 feet of water. "There were four people above the water," Strom said. "Everyone was asking how many people were on board. That's when we discovered that there was still one person missing." That person was a 16-year-old who was still trapped and had to be cut free, according to reports. Stone said the teen was positioned halfway out of the helicopter and tangled in a rope. After what he described was about 10 minutes, Stone and others aiding in the rescue were finally able to cut the teenager free. Once on the shore, Stone administered CPR for approximately 10 minutes before the victim coughed up the water in his lungs. While Stone assisted with the teenager, Strom tended to four others who had suffered injuries during the crash. Strom recalled, "I was holding one of the victims because he said he had a back injury ... I was asking him if he could feel his feet or wiggle his toes." She also assisted local emergency responders in placing the injured victims on backboards to be taken to a nearby hospital. "I had no medical experience before joining the Air Force," Strom said. "They definitely train you to act quickly, know what to look for, and at least try to help. I don't remember thinking at all really; I just reacted." In an interview with local media, Stone's wife, Erica, said her husband was shaken by the experience and that he's a person who always looks out for others and wants to help. Stone is a nurse at a local VA hospital, and has two young children who see him as an example of service, according to his wife. "You can make a difference," she said. "No matter where you are, people are put into positions, and I truly believe Brad was put there because this was happening." "We are proud of our Citizen Airmen," said Lt. Col. Kathleen Kent, 932nd AES commander. "The training they receive from the Air Force, in addition to the skills they obtain in the civilian sector, make them a valuable resource in a variety of situations." Sadly, the teenager succumbed to his injuries and died four days later. According to news reports, the victim's family decided to donate his organs. As of Feb. 22, two other family members remained hospitalized but in stable condition. This Account has been suspended. Contact your hosting provider for more information. Bangladesh captain Mashrafe Mortaza termed the Indian batting line-up as one of the best in the world but said his highly skilled pacer Mustafizur Rahaman can upset any kind of homework done by the visiting batsmen. On the eve of the Asia Cup T20 opener against India, the Bangladesh skipper had to field various questions on the 20-year-old left-arm fast medium bowler, whom he feels can do things which others in his team cant. Mustafiz (thats how Mashrafe refers to him) has many variations of his slow cutters. It is only important as to how confident he is about the execution part. He does he not focus on opposition batsmen and only concentrates on what he knows best. You can do your homework against Mustafiz but it might not work, Mashrafe told mediapersons on Tuesday. Since his mindblowing debut against India last year, the frail left-arm seamer attracted a lot of attention, but his skipper assured that his feet are rooted to the ground firmly. Mustafiz doesnt think about all things like what all is said about him. So, as a captain, it is easier for me to guide a boy who has no inclination towards all these external factors. And since he does not really care, it does not put him under any sort of pressure. I think Mustafiz is diametrically opposite of what people perceive him to be as he has got so much success so early in his career. What he does is to go out there and play and come back. But, at the same time, what he is capable of is something others may not be capable of. He is scared of only one thing when I am bowling from the opposite end, the skipper said bursting into laughter. But, as a reminder, Mashrafe cautioned that T20 is a different format than 50 overs and Mustafizur alone cannot win Bangladesh matches. It is a different format and Mustafizur alone cannot win us matches. The others will also have to chip in. Our T20 record has not been that great but that does not mean we cant improve. This tournament is our chance to prepare for the big event (World T20). We should not be afraid of failures. Mashrafe said that even though they won the ODI series last year, Bangladesh have to be at the top of their game to beat a quality side like India. Not only T20s, Indias batting is a challenge for all formats. So, we have that challenge, but we have to play very confidently, without any fear, with freedom. We are very confident we will do our best. While doubts remain over Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhonis participation in the match, his opposite number is preparing his strategy keeping the Jharkhand dasher in mind. Dhoni has been a tremendous player for India, we all know that. The batting order they have, it wont bother them so much. He is a tremendous captain and player. We have to make plans for everyone, not just MS. Their batting order is outstanding, one of the best in the world. Still we are planning with Dhoni in mind. The road ahead doesnt look smooth for Chhagan Bhujbal after ACB filed chargesheet against him. Senior NCP leader Chhagan Bhujbal is in deep trouble after the Maharashtra Anti-Corruption Bureau filed a chargesheet against him in connection with the Maharashtra Sadan scam. Bhujbal who had earlier claimed that nothing will happen to him as he has the support of NCP supremo Sharad Pawar finds himself isolated as no political leader came forward to defend him. Is it the end of the road for Bhujbals political career? Bhujbal was keen to revive his political career prior to the 2019 state election in the state. However the road ahead doesnt look smooth for Bhujbal after the filing of chargesheet against him. Ever since the BJP government has come to power in the state, it has ordered for a probe into the various scams in which the Bhujbals family members name has cropped up. BJP MP Kirit Somaiya had said that after Bhujbal, former Maharashtra deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar and NCP state chief Sunil Tatkare are in the line of fire. He tweeted, ACB filed 20000 pages ChargeSheet against #ChhaganBhujbal #SamirBhujbal #PankajBhujbal & 1 dozen others in #MaharashtraSadan PWD scam. I assure the people of Maharashtra all 3 Bhujbals will go to Jail followed by Sunil Tatkare and Ajit Pawar. AAP leader Anjali Damania said that Bhujbal must pay for his misdeeds. She said, The FIR and subsequent chargesheet is full proof to ensure that Chhagan Bhujbal and his associates get penalised for their deeds. What is more important is that which has been looted in corruption should come back. Other than Bhujbal, who was Public Works Department minister in the previous Congress-NCP government in Maharashtra, his son Pankaj and nephew Sameer as well as 14 others have also been chargesheeted in the case. The voluminous chargesheet, which runs into 20,000 pages contains statements of 60 witnesses. According to ACB sources, the case is entirely based on documentary evidence such as fund transfer and bank transactions. Sources also claimed that in construction of Maharashtra Sadan, contractors have earned 80 percent profits while as per the government circular such contractors are entitled to only 20 percent gains. However, books of accounts have been fudged to show that the profit earned is only one percent, they added. The ACB had in June last year registered two FIRs against Bhujbal. The first one was related to alleged irregularities in allotment of a prime plot at Kalina in Mumbai to a developer. The second case was for alleged rampant corruption and large-scale irregularities in the construction of the new Maharashtra Sadan, the state governments guest house in New Delhi. The Public Works Department under Bhujbal had then allegedly awarded sub-contracts to firms, in blatant violation of rules, in the Maharashtra Sadan case. IT hardware sector can generate four lakh jobs over five years if the government rectifies the tax duty structure in the Budget to encourage manufacturing of products such as notebook and desktop personal computers in India, says a study by industry body MAIT. Measures of the Union Budget 2016-17 can potentially generate 4,00,000 jobs in the Indian IT manufacturing sector if estimated demand for 30 million PCs per annum is fulfilled entirely through domestic production over the next five years, MAIT Executive Director Anwar Shirpurwala said while sharing details of the study. The total estimated jobs include 1 lakh direct employment and 3 lakh jobs in component manufacturing over the next five years, the study noted. Policy reforms and plugging market ecosystem gaps can lead to doubling of IT hardware production in one year to USD 2.6 billion and make India become a global electronic system design and manufacturing (ESDM) supply hub, it added. The study is based on data from some members of the Manufacturers Association for Information Technology (MAIT), which includes chip-maker Intel, PC maker Lenovo and software giant Microsoft. The IT hardware industry through the Manufacturers Association for Information Technology (MAIT) has suggested to the government that the differential excise duty regime introduced in 2015 for mobile phones and tablets be extended to notebook PCs and desktop PCs (personal computers) to encourage domestic manufacturing of IT products. The differential duty regime requires the excise duty on notebook PCs and desktop PCs to be brought down to 2 per cent without any facility for input tax credits. MAIT has sought exemption from excise duty for parts, components and sub-assemblies that go into manufacturing of PCs. The excise duty structure for mobile handsets was changed to 1 per cent without Cenvat credit, or 12.5 per cent with Cenvat credit, which gave domestic manufacturers cost benefit of about 11 per cent over imported phones. The current fiscal saw investments in India from the worlds biggest contract manufacturer Foxconn while many others such as Gionee, Xiaomi, Lava, Karbonn, HTC, Datawind, started production of their handsets locally. The mobile phone production in the country shot up by over 90 per cent to 100 million smartphones a year. Due to various disabilities impacting domestic manufacturers, a large part of this (India) market is being served by imported products, mostly from China, Shirpurwala noted. The Budget Session of the Parliament on Wednesday witnessed drama similar to TV operas. In Rajya Sabha, BJP leader and Union HRD Minister Smriti Irani and BSP supremo Mayawati got into a horrible quarrel over Dalit student Rohith Vemulas suicide. By creating JNU episode, BJP tried to divert peoples attention from Rohit Vemula but Mayawati, whose core vote bank is Dalit, how she can let this go? As soon as the Upper House of the Parliament was convened for Zero Hour, former UP Chief Minister Mayawati raised the suicide issue of research scholar Rohith Vemula in Hyderabad Central University (HCU), questioning the inclusion of Dalits in the probe committee investigating his death. Mayawati, in her long tirade which continued despite the Speakers intervention, accused the Modi government of not doing enough to punish those she alleged were responsible for pushing the student to take his life and demanded the resignation of two central ministers -Bandaru Dattatreya and Smriti Irani. To this, evidently frantic education minister Smriti Irani replied, Mayawatiji, you and your BSP leaders and workers, hear this out for once and all. I will cut off my head and present it at your feet if you are not satisfied with my reply. Mayawati who was not convinced with Iranis explanation said, You are not letting anyone speak. And you are an anti-Dalit. I am just asking, what was the problem in including a Dalit in the probe committee? If the person appointed was a Dalit, why arent you replying to our questions? Irani in response said, There were Dalits in the probe committee. You didnt accept their judgement. The probe committee included a Dalit professor, the warden is a Dalit. Do you want to say that a citizen becomes a Dalit only when Mayawati certifies him to be so? After this verbal duel, the deputy chairman of the Rajya Sabha PJ Kurien was forced to adjourn proceedings multiple times. Whatever incidents happening in the education front has proved that this HRD minister is not capable of handling the ministry and its affairs properly. Because of her unrest in the countrys education has developed and student community has been provoked to come on streets. Thus, she must tender her resignation from the post otherwise situation is unlikely to turn normal. Moreover, the entire government will have to shun the path of confrontation which they have adopted in order to implement the poisonous ideology of RSS (i.e. Hindu nationalism) as the nation is not going to accept this under any circumstances and at any cost. This could lead to dangerous consequences of dis-integration of the nation as I feel need of the hour is to convince the people that this government believes in the present Constitution of India and have full respect for its values as they do not want any change in the position stated in the Constitution of India. Presently, people think that freedom of expression and religion has snatched from them, which need to be rectified from peoples mind. Moreover, Smriti Irani is an arrogant lady who is not even qualified to occupy the important HRD Ministry. There are several qualified and more competent ministers in the ruling party, NDA who should be assigned the HRD portfolio. It is deplorable that the BJP, being ruling party, itself is resorting to disruption of Parliament. BJP is cheating the common people of India, who have given clear mandate to the party. The saffron party is resorting to all sorts of gimmicks and distortions/disturbances/aggressions exclusively to divert the attention from its utter failure in governance. Modi government have not fulfilled any of the promises of its manifesto. So, it wants a scapegoat and that is pseudo-nationalism. Middle class and poor people are struggling to make both ends meet due to spiralling prices of essential commodities, due to price hike of essential commodities by BJP to help the rogue traders. Modi made impractical promises like Achche Din, Sabka Saath Sabka Vikas, Kaala Dhan Waapsi in 100 days, etc. and cheated the voters. As the government failed at every front, they found a scapegoat in pseudo-nationalism. They have a FM, an agent of rogue corporates who cheated the national banks to the tune of lakhs of crores of rupees and a HRD Minister, who is out to destroy the educational system of this country. The saga did not stop here, similar attack on the Left came soon after Prime Minister Narendra Modi entered the House and a BJP MP passed on some papers to party member Meenakshi Lekhi. Amid sharp protests from CPI(M) members, Lekhi listed out killings allegedly committed by Left cadres in the southern poll-bound State and accused them of committing atrocities on campus and white-washing their brutalities through repressive policies. The attack on the Left also came against the backdrop of CPI (M) and its allies being in the forefront in targeting the BJP and the Centre over the JNU row. After that, they targeted the Congress. Lekhi claimed that India was known for corruption till the government under Mr. Modi came to power. Noting that the biggest drawback that led to corruption was the problem with the banking system; she said there have been improvements in that sector since the NDA came to power. Earlier, loans were sanctioned to big businessmen and some of them did not repay the money. There were attacks and counter attacks but Mayawati and Irani were involved in bitter arguments. God only knows, when will our parliamentarians learn to put substance instead of drama in their discussions? (Any suggestions, comments or dispute with regards to this article send us on feedback@afternoonvoice.com) By Dan Olmsted I tell our fellow editors that the best response to a nasty note, at least in my experience, is we always enjoy hearing from our readers. Its disarming, impersonal, and, as warranted, manifestly insincere without being blatantly sarcastic. Were no good bums and baby killers who are in it for the money? Well, we always enjoy hearing from our readers. Sometimes, though, one is tempted beyond all reason to respond in kind thus the headline above. Recently we got a comment from a reader that says, in its entirety. This [never mind which post, it hardly matters] is complete and utter bull. First of all while vaccine side effects can be awful, they are manageable and even so, your child is more likely to be struck by lightning than have an allergic reaction to a vaccine. Secondly, your list of actual vaccine side effects looks incredibly shady to me. If this list was put together by an actual certified doctor they would never say autism. They would say Autism Spectrum Disorder. If these were common side effects wouldnt kids be dropping like flies? To sum it all up, you should be more scared of lightning than vaccines. Well, I would be more concerned about lightning than vaccines if lightning killed or disabled more than 1 in 68 children. Oh, and children are dropping like flies, which aptly characterizes the moral regard in which those children are held by, say, the vaccine court and the AAP. And CDC. And NIH. And our reader, from whom we enjoy hearing. And dont you love the idea that an actual certified doctor must be summoned (presumably from his or her duties injecting 14 vaccines in a total of 49 shots before kindergarten) to help us get the nomenclature right about autism? I suppose we lost credibility when we didnt title this site The Age of Autism Spectrum Disorder As Defined By The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition. This readers e-mail is titled Done With You Idiots. And the first part of the e-mail address is i.am.definately.god@ Definately! -- Someday Ill be able to program my TV with the following instruction: Mute any and all random comments about how safe and wonderful vaccines are by people who dont know what theyre talking about, or maybe they do but are lying for money. The proximate cause of this little reverie is the Dr. Drew show the other night. Dr. Drew is, overall, a pretty sane shrink type. He has had his drug problems, though, in particular getting caught hawking Wellbutrin any chance he got while, oh yes, hauling in $275,000 in March and April 1999 to push Wellbutrin as an antidepressant that was different from the others in not killing sex drive, according to AlterNet, which called his behavior throwing medical ethics to the wind. As far as I can tell Dr. Drew never really apologized for this. The other night I had him on in the background, counting down the minutes to the next Forensic Files (addict here), when somehow he found it necessary to mention, in the context of healthy choices like not smoking or doing drugs, the HPV vaccine. It was, he averred, one of the safest vaccines in the history of vaccines do not let the b.s. scare you. February 23, 2016 Turkish experts aside from the most hardened, pro-government experts agree that Ankaras foreign policy under the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) is in shambles. They generally agree this was caused by the country abandoning its traditional foreign policy in favor of an Islamist outlook. This situation, experts argue, has reduced Ankaras options significantly, especially at this turbulent time in the region. Al-Monitor asked three retired ambassadors, who served under the AKP and are known as seasoned foreign policy commentators, to explain why Ankara finds itself isolated and unable to influence regional events that are having seriously negative effects on Turkeys interests. The foreign policy framework drawn up by Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the founder of modern Turkey, is summarized by the adage he coined, Peace at home, peace in the world. It was based on a realistic assessment of Turkeys geopolitical location, as well as bitter past experiences, said retired Ambassador Uluc Ozulker. A basic tenet of this policy was to remain Westward-looking a tenet Ozulker said has changed under the AKP. "The AKPs ideological world view is based on what is known as the national vision, which is Islamist-based and veers toward the outlook of the Muslim Brotherhood," he said. That outlook is related to the anger felt toward Israel and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, Ozulker added. The AKP also tried to implement policies that were beyond Turkeys means and capabilities. Turkeys foreign policy in the past was cautious and defensive. When the Turkish economy started growing, the AKP used this, combining it with its national vision outlook, to pursue more active policies, Ozulker said. It aimed for good relations with neighbors but tried to achieve this from the perspective of a patronizing big brother, which gradually alienated its neighbors and other regional powers. Ozulker added that another mistake the AKP made was to pursue an idealistic foreign policy, especially under the tutelage of Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, who served as foreign minister from 2009 to 2014. The assumption was that Turkey was the principal player who could rearrange things and change the established order in the region according to its will. But realpolitik and Turkeys geopolitical place was never conducive to achieving this, he said. The AKP has a vindictive approach to foreign policy and ostracizes those who refuse to listen to it, eventually looking on them as its foes, according to Ozulker. We see this in Turkeys ties with Israel, Egypt and Syria. The AKP forgot that in foreign policy there are no eternal friendships or eternal enemies, only eternal interests, he said. Everyone knows which bloc they more or less belong to today. This is also the basis for collective security. The AKP allowed Turkey to drift away from the West but failed to find a new port for itself. It asked to be admitted to the Shanghai Cooperation Organization but failed. Today it is isolated and does not know where it belongs. There are signs that it is trying to return to the Western fold, but even that is tentative, Ozulker said. Retired Ambassador Temel Iskit also said the AKPs principal mistake was to move Turkey away from its traditional foreign policy. The vision it tried to replace this with was ideologically based and leaned heavily on a Sunni worldview. It assumed that Turkey could be the regional Sunni leader, which was not only out of tune with Turkeys traditional policies, but also not realistic, Iskit said. The Syrian crisis provided a concrete example of how misguided all of this was. Of course everyone made a mistake in Syria. The assumption in the heady days of the Arab Spring was that the [regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad] would be replaced quickly by a democratic one, Iskit said. "Ankaras real mistake, however, was that it insisted on maintaining its original mistake even after everyone else woke up to the reality of what was going on in that country." Iskit said President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, more than Davutoglu, is the main reason Turkey finds itself in its current position. Erdogan tried to impose his personal outlook on others, and when they refused to accept this, as in the case of Assad, he became their enemy and pursued what amounts to a kind of blood feud against them. This is also why Turkey is at odds with the West, with Russia and with just about everyone else today, Iskit said. He has been overtaken by hubris and personal obsessions." Turkey's difficult international position is likely to continue as long as Erdogan remains in power, Iskit added. Retired Ambassador Murat Bilhan, for his part, believes Ankaras biggest mistake was to take sides in complex regional disputes. Foreign policy requires that you stay clear from emotional and doctrinaire positions. If you surrender to these, then it is only a matter of time before the negative results appear," he said. Pointing out that Turkeys geopolitical position requires it to pursue a multifaceted foreign policy, Bilhan said Turkey has become trapped by its one-dimensional policies. Turkey leaned exclusively toward the West in the past, and that, too, was a mistake. But today it is only looking to the Middle East, Bilhan said. Another foreign policy mistake was believing that the person in charge shouldn't show his hand while situations are developing, Bilhan said. "This limits Turkeys maneuverability and ability to backtrack from mistakes, he added, clearly referring to Erdogan. Bilhan also said Turkeys decision-makers did not take expert advice seriously and, thus, added to their mistakes. Strategic mistakes cannot be corrected by tactical moves, Bilhan said, indicating there is nothing diplomacy cannot solve, provided failed policies are reversed. Decision-makers always have the final say, but their decisions should also factor in the views of experts." Jay Williams visiting Regions U.S. Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Economic Development Jay Williams, left, hears from graduates of Operation HOPE's 12-week small business court at the Five Points South branch of Regions Bank on Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2016. When Emmett Davis and his wife started Loved Before Furniture & Decor in Birmingham, they started making a profit - but they quickly realized they didn't know how to manage their profits. That's why Davis is taking a 12-week small business course through Operation Hope, a local non-profit designed to give entrepreneurs in under-served areas the foundation they need to start business. Since starting the course, the profits of his furniture service company have increased dramatically, and he's booked through May, whereas before he was never booked more than two weeks in advance. "I was selling myself short," Davis said. "At the classes, I saw some things I was doing wrong." Davis was one of many success stories presented Tuesday to Jay Williams, U.S. Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Economic Development. Williams, an appointee of President Barack Obama, visited the Regions Bank branch in Five Points South Tuesday to hear from the program's graduates. "[Operation HOPE] is serving as a nexus of working with corporations like Regions, of working with the government, and that is a model of success in public-private partnership that can be replicated across the country." Williams is also visiting Huntsville and Mobile during his trip. Regions partners with Operation HOPE as well as financially supporting HOPE Inside, a free program that helps clients learn financial literacy, especially by raising their credit score or obtaining a mortgage. HOPE Inside is free and anyone is eligible, and operates inside the Five Points South branch as well as the Regions branch in Woodlawn. As one of the area's most promising young entrepreneurs, Noah Huber-Feely struggles with finding peers who share similar interests. The 17-year-old Tennessee home school student and Hop Around Huntsville app developer travels each week to downtown Huntsville to attend Coworking Night with coders, designers, photographers, writers, entrepreneurs and other like-minded members of the tech community. He will be one of dozens of students to participate next month in 24Hr Generator, a new business competition for youth in Huntsville hosted by nonprofit organizations Rocket Hatch and Village of Promise. "24Hr Generator is the perfect opportunity to find these similarly driven people, and engage with them by solving complex and productive problems real establishments are facing," said Huber-Feely. The team-building competition will take place March 11-12. 24Hr Generator Chair and Phocaz Group Founding Partner Mary Ramsey said close to 50 students have applied for the inaugural event and they are expecting even more applicants next year. Global Ties will also have a group of 27 students from South America who will join the competition, adding even more diversity to the teams. "We are planning to select eight teams to participate with a broad representation of our private, public and home schooled students," said Antonio Montoya, founder of Rocket Hatch. The event will conclude with cash prizes at an awards ceremony in the Chan Auditorium in the UAH Business Administration Building on 301 Sparkman Drive. Rocket Hatch and Village of Promise are still seeking individuals or companies who wish to sponsor or volunteer with 24Hr Generator. Bryan Powell, CEO of Metabahn, is an example of a local business that is sponsoring the competition. Powell said 24Hr Generator "aligns perfectly" with the company's vision, which is to make software development and the business behind it more accessible. "We're excited to sponsor an event that's intent on bringing students together and exposing them to the idea of entrepreneurship," he said. "Exposing students to the unstructured nature of entrepreneurial problems is vitally important, and the 24Hr Generator will do just that." For information on the event, visit generatorhsv.org. This week, pianist extraordinaire Chuck Leavell is playing stadium concerts in Brazil with The Rolling Stones. In 1966, he was a 14-year-old doing Friday night gigs at the Tuscaloosa YMCA. In between, Leavell's playing, which strikes a rare balance between accomplished and tasteful, has led to a career few rock 'n' roll musicians can match. Allman Brothers. Eric Clapton. George Harrison. John Mayer. The Black Crowes. And on and on and on. Leavell's been with The Stones since 1982. And served as the legendary - and still potent, as fans who saw the 2015 "Zip Code Tour" will attest - band's musical director for decades. On Friday, Leavell, born in Birmingham and raised there, Montgomery and Tuscaloosa, is being inducted into the Alabama Music Hall of Fame. Fellow 2016 inductees include former Grateful Dead vocalist Donna Jean Godchaux, producer Johnny Sandlin, Southern rockers Wet Willie and session musicians the Muscle Shoals Horns. On Tuesday morning, Brazil time, Leavell took the time to answer the below interview questions via email. Hi Chuck. Thanks for your time and congratulations on the Alabama Music Hall of Fame induction. What's the best compliment you've ever received about your playing and who gave you that compliment? First, let me say it is an enormous honor to be inducted. I cherish my Alabama roots and am so grateful that Alabama is where I grew up and where I started playing music. It was a great place to learn and develop as a musician. One friendly compliment that stands out is from Ian McLagan. As many of your readers will know, "Mac" was in the Faces with Ronnie Wood, and also played with the Stones for a while. I had never met him, but when the Stones came to Atlanta in 1981 and did an unannounced show at the Fox Theater, I was invited to sit in with them, the first time I played with the band in public. About halfway through the set, I got the signal to come up. Mac was on organ and I sat behind the piano. We were right next to each other at a 90-degree angle. We were playing a rockin' number ... I believe it was a Chuck Berry tune. Around the middle of the song, Mac looked over his shoulder and loudly exclaimed, "Ah...you've done this before, haven't you?" It was such a nice thing to say and so disarming. We remained good friends until his unfortunate death a couple of years ago. Mac was a brilliant player and a fine man. You've toured with The Stones going on almost 35 years now. What's a Stones song you're enjoying playing live more than ever with the band, and why are you enjoying playing that song so much these days? They are all so thrilling that it's difficult to pick favorites but one is "Honky Tonk Women." I fondly remember when I first heard the tune. I was living in Nashville making one of the first records I ever played on by a guy named Bucky Wilkin. I was in the house and Bucky came running in one day, gasping for air, saying "I've got it!! I've got it!" I said "Got what?" He said, "The new Stones record. I was driving down the road and it came on the radio, and I went straight to the record store and bought it. Here it is!" We put it on and must have listened to it a hundred times. All day we played it. It just sounded so cool and it still resonates today. The irony is there is no piano on the original recording. But when I got in the band, they suggested I play a solo on the song, which I do every night, and it has become quite the feature for me. Growing up, what sort of piano did you first how to play on, and do you know what ever happened to that piano? It was a Kimble console piano that my mother had. Nothing special, but it fit nicely in our house. I honestly can't remember what happened to it. I think she sold it when she moved into a smaller home. But it was my first instrument and my oh my did it serve me well. I've always loved your solos on the Allman Brothers songs "Jessica" and "Southbound." Got some behind the scenes insight about cutting those tracks? Well, I had just joined the Allman Brothers Band and was barely 20-years-old. I wanted so much to make good contributions to the music. When Dickey Betts came in with the tunes and we started arranging them, they suggested we find solo space for me, which of course I jumped on. I just went with my heart and let my fingers do what they thought best. I'm grateful it turned out OK. I read that seeing a Ray Charles concert at age 13 changed your life and made you want to pursue a career as a musician. Where was that show and what's your most distinct memory of that concert? It was in Tuscaloosa at the (Memorial) Coliseum [known as Coleman Coliseum since 1988]. My older sister, Judy, had a date to go to the concert and my parents were going out elsewhere and suggested they let me tag along with them. Judy graciously, and likely begrudgingly, agreed and I joined. I was already playing music and hadn't seen very many live concerts at the time. Ray was just so amazing, powerful. Not just Ray, although he blew my socks off, but Fathead Newman on sax; Billy Preston on organ; The Raelettes singing - it was so formidable, so moving. I walked out of the coliseum knowing what I wanted to pursue in life. Eric Clapton's "Unplugged" was such an immediate classic performance and your playing is exquisite on that album, on such tracks as "Old Love," Lonely Stranger," "Nobody Knows You When You're Down and Out" and many more. After doing huge shows for so many years what appealed to you most about doing such an intimate yet high profile performance like that? At the time when I came in to Eric's band, I was actually sort of "second chair keyboardist" to a fine player and wonderful guy named Greg Phillinganes. Ironically, Greg decided he didn't want to tour and wanted to stay at home in L.A., play on sessions and not travel as much and told Eric he was resigning. "Unplugged" was the next project we were set to do, so Eric came to me and asked if I thought we needed another keyboard player or if I wanted it on my own. I was like a dog unleashed in a field full or rabbits, so I said I'd like it on my own, please. He agreed, and when those solos came up, I couldn't wait to give it my best shot. Do you remember any of the songs your first band, The Misfitz, would play at those Friday 1966 gigs at the Tuscaloosa YMCA? We not only had the "Y" gig, but eventually when the first local TV enterprise came to Tuscaloosa, they wanted a Saturday morning show that mimicked "American Bandstand," and hired us. So we had both gigs and were in seventh heaven. We practiced in my mom's living room during the week and would work up a couple or three new songs, whatever was hot on the radio. Often it would be something from the British Invasion: Beatles, Stones, Dave Clark Five and such. But sometimes it would be something more indigenous from the South, like Wilson Picket, Otis Redding or some other soul or R&B tune. We even did a couple of country things, so we hit just about every category. Chuck Leavell on his tree farm in South Georgia, circa 2014. (Courtesy Fernando Decillis) Your best suitable-to-print Keith Richards story from the 1982 Stones tour? Keith was so kind to me when I finally came on board. He would always invite me to hang with him in his room, along with some of the other cats like Bobby Keys, Ronnie Wood. We had great times listening to music and talking about anything and everything. But one story stands out, from the first day of rehearsals for that tour. I went straight from the plane to the rehearsals and we worked for some six or seven hours. So I was really beat. Keith said he would drop me off at my hotel room, which was great - all I could think about was getting some sleep. Well, as I stepped out of his famous orange Bentley and was walking to the lobby, he said, "Wait a minute...why don't you come with us to Redlands?" Redlands is a place he owns that is about two hours from London. You don't say "no" to Keith Richards. I jumped back in and he was driving like a madman, racing at 70-80 miles per hour through these narrow little streets. It was like a cartoon where the car is driving up on the sidewalk and barely missing lamp posts and flying up in the air, bouncing off buildings. I thought, "Well, this is a heck of a way to go, but it might as well be in Keith's Bentley!" Somehow we made it without wrecking, and we stayed up another five or six hours listening to music. He made breakfast for us and we finally crashed after. I'm still amazed that I survived that ride, as thrilling as it was terrifying. The first thing you do or think every time you sit down at the piano? It depends. If I am practicing technical exercises, which I try to do fairly regularly, then I think about stretching out my fingers and hands, think about my hand position on the keys, think about playing evenly without straining and such. But after doing that for an hour or more, I usually try to clear my mind and let my fingers wander where they want. Sometimes it leads to a new melody, a new idea. Sometimes it doesn't go anywhere particularly interesting, but it helps to foster creativity. If I have new material to absorb, as I do now that I have accepted a European tour this summer with David Gilmour, of Pink Floyd fame, then it's all about the homework - listening carefully, learning the changes, trying to find space for me to be me and contribute something new to the music. Where exactly are you right now as you answer these questions? Thanks again for your time. We arrived here in Sao Paulo last night from Rio. My wife Rose Lane and I had a nice hang in our private Club Lounge area with Keith and Patti Richards - such dear friends and we had a great time talking about all kinds of things, from music to our families, from how amazing it is to still be out doing stadium gigs and selling them out to just how well the band is playing and how we are all so blessed to still be doing this. And we talked about the recording possibilities that will likely come up before too long. Then Rosie and I went to dinner and came back to the room to unwind. I am learning the mandolin, so I practiced that for a while before we went to bed. Got up an hour ago and as we always do, downed a couple cups of coffee while checking emails. I have a few more to do then will head to the gym to try and shake off the road dust. We're off today, so we'll likely explore this amazing city of 20-million-plus people, perhaps get to know a few folks. One final thing. I just want to give my sincere thanks to the fans in Alabama. It is a distinct honor beyond words for me to enter the Alabama Music Hall of Fame. If it wasn't for the folks who listen to the music and have followed my career, we wouldn't be having this conversation. So thanks again to you, Matt, and to all the great Alabama fans. chuckleavell.com Trisha Kennamer spotted a familiar face on her TV on Super Bowl Sunday. Kennamer, a resident of the tiny northeast Alabama town of Henagar, was watching the Puppy Bowl and saw Gordon, a puppy she had rescued the previous summer. Gordon was a part of the starting lineup of pooches in the Animal Planet broadcast and romped around the field, happy and ecstatic. You wouldn't have known that months earlier he was set to be placed in a high-kill shelter in Alabama. Kennamer said she felt happy and humbled to see one of her puppies doing so well. "You never know when you rescue (a puppy) what journey they're going to go on," she said. "So it's just amazing to think that going to that shelter and saving that puppy - and he's now on TV!" But it was bound to happen. When you rescue 264 puppies (and one rabbit, but more about it later) in eight months and that number continues to grow, one of the pups just may become famous. How it all began A couple of years ago, Kennamer faced a dilemma. The stay-at-home mom had homeschooled her sons for 19 years, but when the youngest graduated, she was a bit unsure of how to spend her free time. "I spent about a year thinking, 'What do I want to do when I grow up?'" she laughs. "... Everyone told me I could go back to school, but I had just been to school for 19 years, plus the years I went before that. That's a long time for school!" But she kept mentioning her love of animals to her husband, Mike, and then through their pastor they met Ann Brown of the Tri-State Humane Society in Trenton, Ga. For the past few years, Brown has been taking dogs to the Atlanta Humane Society, which is a no-kill shelter. Kennamer traveled with Brown one day on a transport to Atlanta, and she was instantly hooked. Kennamer knew what she was going to do when she grew up. The process Kennamer then started volunteering with a high-kill shelter in Dekalb County, and Brown mentioned that if there were any puppies there that needed to be adopted, she could rescue them by taking them to the no-kill shelter in Atlanta. "So that just kicked it all off," Kennamer said. Here's what happens: Leslie Ledbetter, director of the DeKalb County Animal Adoption Center, contacts Kennamer whenever puppies are brought in. Whenever the puppies are first brought in, they're put in the intake room for a while and not on the Shelter floor. And when they're in the intake room, Kennamer says, Ledbetter contacts her. "She usually texts me a picture of the puppy and she'll say, 'I've got four 6-week old lab puppies,'" Kennamer explains. "And I go get them. With that process they never have to touch the shelter floor." If they're not on the shelter floor, that cuts down their risk for Parvo, according to Kennamer. But what next? She typically bathes them before she leaves the shelter, then when she gets them to her home, she begins their vaccination process and deworms them. (The vaccinations are provided by the Atlanta shelter, according to Kennemer.) Then they stay at Kennemer's home for at least two weeks while she monitors their health. (The tiny pups stay there for much longer.) She has 10 outdoor pens -- four that she bought at Tractor Supply, and six that she built and designed herself (with the help of her husband, Mike). She feeds the dogs and cleans their cages twice a day, but most importantly, she finds time for some one-on-one time with each pup before she transports them to Georgia (which is an adventure in itself -- she recently took 21 pups to Atlanta in her Jeep Liberty). "Because when they leave me I want them to know they're loved, and know they don't have to be scared," she says. "So that when they get to Atlanta, they're ready for whoever adopts them." But sometimes it's a difficult job. She's lost six dogs to Parvo and one to liver failure. (But she's also saved six from Parvo.) "The vet told me that puppies are so hard to rescue because they're so innocent and they get sick so quickly," she said. "That's hard, but you can't let it stop you from doing it." But all the dogs don't go to Atlanta ... There has been a pup or two that haven't made the trip over the state line -- because they've taken up permanent residence in Kennemer's home. "I went to the shelter to pick up some four-day old puppies, and when I walked in to get them I looked in the intake cage and there was this one little, tiny puppy," she says. "So I asked the girl at the shelter, I said, 'do you want me to take this puppy?' and she said, 'Well, if you want to, but I think he's sick. I'm afraid he's not going to make it.' Well, I took him anyway. Got him home, got him cleaned up, and he was fine. He wasn't sick." And not only was he not sick, but he started inching his way into the Kennemer family's lives more and more. "My intention wasn't to keep him right from the start," she says, "but he stayed in my garage, then he ended up in my kitchen, then he ended up in the bathroom, then he ended up watching TV with me, and I remember Mike looking over at me and said, 'That puppy's not going anywhere, is he?'" Her husband, Mike, also fell in love with his own rescue pup, even though he was more of a cat person. And that rabbit she rescued? Its name is Bonsai, and it also is now a member of the Kennemer household. But what about Gordon? Kennemer still remembers the first time she saw the now-famous pup. She arrived at the shelter last summer to pick up a litter of puppies and immediately spotted him. "Gordon was back in the corner of the intake cage just a sad little face," she said. "So I brought him home and we bathed him, and my middle son, Cody, named him Cowboy Troy while he was here. And so we had Cowboy Troy and (named his sister) Martina. So we had a country-western group." And six months later, Cowboy Troy -- uh, Gordon, seems to be having a pretty nifty life. Besides his starting lineup slot in the Puppy Bowl, he was adopted by a family in Lawrenceville, Ga., according to the Atlanta Humane Society, and renamed Duke. And to celebrate the pup's TV appearance, Atlanta rolled out the red carpet: Monday Night Brewing hosted a Puppy Bowl watch party in honor of the dog, and Cowboy Troy/Gordon/Duke was in attendance. A job well done Whenever it comes time for Kennemer to take the pups to Atlanta, it's not always an easy journey. "I've had some that have been hard to let go," she says. "Especially the ones I have to keep in the house that are too little to go out in a pen or they don't have a sibling." But during her journey, she always consoles herself the same way: "But I always tell myself that as soon as I let them go on their journey there's another one right back in its place. That makes it easier: To know there's always another one." Jacksonville State University has confirmed that an individual has been arrested in connection with an unauthorized website that provided students' personal information. JSU spokeswoman Buffy Lockette said this evening that a person has been arrested by order of the District Court of Calhoun County and is being detained by the Coosa Valley Regional Detention Center. "Any additional questions about the suspect will need to be directed to the juvenile court system," she said. JSU announced earlier today that a juvenile student suspect was being questioned in the investigation of a website that provided students' personal information. In a statement JSU officials said that "a peripheral system with limited information was accessed on campus and placed online." "The compromised information was the result of an internal security violation and not the result of an external 'hack,'" the school said. Those impacted include students who have been accepted for admission. However, JSU officials said there is no evidence that Social Security numbers, credit cards or any other banking information has been compromised. "The university is working with state and federal law enforcement officials to have the website removed and to seek prosecution of the offenders," the statement went on to say. This website, which is not being identified, allows users to search for students' personal information. University officials say this information was apparently taken from JSU's database. The site's stated aim is "to bring awareness to JSU's information security problems." The site's opening page reads, "If you'd like to shut this down, I live in Russia, the VPS is in Bulgaria, and the domain is in Switzerland. Start buying tickets." However, Lockette said that is not accurate. "The site apparently went live yesterday, so it had only been up for a few hours before we discovered it," she said. "We are working to have it taken down." The website allows users to search for students' names to get access to photographs, addresses, birth dates, phone numbers, student ID numbers, fraternity and sorority affiliation and other information. JSU issued a statement Tuesday night to say the incident is being investigated internally as well as by state and federal authorities. Students have been encouraged to change their student logins and email passwords in the meantime. Families sue firearms producer, arguing that it should not market and sell lethal military-style weapons to civilians. Do gun manufacturers market their products to appeal to potential mass murderers and the mentally unstable? Thats what some American families who lost their loved ones in the Sandy Hook School shooting in Newtown, Connecticut, believe and now they are suing Bushmaster Firearms, arguing that the gunmaker should not be allowed to market and sell lethal, military-style weapons to the public. The manufacturer is marketing to people like Adam Lanza and they know it, Mark Barden, whose seven-year-old son Daniel was one of 26 people Lanza shot and killed at the school in 2012, told reporters before a court hearing on Monday. And now we know it and its time that everybody knows it and its time they take responsibility for that. School shooting In December 2012, Lanza used a Bushmaster AR-15 model semi-automatic rifle to fire more than 150 shots in under five minutes, according to court documents. The 20-year-old who had struggled with autism and obsessive-compulsive disorder for years also shot himself. It was Lanzas mother, the first person he killed that day, who legally bought the weapon as well as others she kept in their home. READ MORE: Ten recent US mass shootings The lawsuit, filed by nine families, argues that the AR-15 should not be sold to civilians at all. Lawyer Joshua Koskoff says in his brief that the rifle was designed for the military and mass casualty assaults to deliver more wounds, of greater severity, in more victims, in less time. These arent weapons designed to defend or to hunt. Theyre designed to kill, Koskoff said before the court appearance this week. They were designed for mass murder. Consider your Man Card reissued An AR-15-style weapon was also used in the San Bernadino workplace shooting that left 16 people dead, including the shooters. On Monday, Koskoff faced lawyers for the gunmaker, who are trying to get the lawsuit thrown out of Connecticut State Court. They argue that Lanza alone is responsible for the crime and their client cannot legally be held liable. Al Jazeera has contacted Bushmaster Firearms for comment but has received no response. The industry has been protected from lawsuits since 2005 when Congress passed a law shielding it from liability for crimes committed with its weapons. In this case, however, the plaintiffs are relying on an exception to the law that has been used successfully against gun dealers in the past for selling a gun to someone they know shouldnt legally have one a form of negligence. These Bushmaster AR-15 ads are at issue in #SandyHook suit appealing to "man card" machismo pic.twitter.com/SJyBB94WMl Nick Penzenstadler (@npenzenstadler) February 22, 2016 They also cite a state law against irresponsible advertising. Koskoff points to Bushmaster catalogues steeped in military imagery, including lines such as: Forces of opposition, bow down. You are single-handedly outnumbered. One Bushmaster campaign that ran prior to the Sandy Hook shooting suggested that these rifles overcome any shortcomings in ones masculinity. Consider your Man Card reissued, said one ad featuring an assault rifle. The campaign was highly criticised and, according to The Boston Globe, featured a quiz mocking the manhood of guys who can find cilantro [coriander] in the supermarket and those who fail to act on road rage. Judge Barbara Bellis is expected to decide in two months whether or not the lawsuit can proceed. If the trial continues, gun industry executives could be forced to testify and reveal details of their marketing strategy during the discovery process. The families say they know that they are fighting an industry with deep pockets and experienced lawyers. What Im hoping to do here is to pull that curtain back, said Bill Sherlach, whose wife Mary, a school psychologist, was killed. Lets take a look at what it is that you guys have been doing to foster, to stoke the fires, to fuel the rage of these militaristic, typically young males to go and do what they do. The industry can point to the many people who collect military grade weapons and use them responsibly. But every time the families show up in court it calls attention to the growing number who dont. Abdelbaset al-Megrahi was convicted of the deadly bombing, but many believe his conviction was a miscarriage of justice. Glasgow, Scotland It was an atrocity that occurred in the skies above Scotland but shook the entire world. The bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie on December 21, 1988 remains the deadliest terrorist attack ever perpetrated on British soil. It claimed 259 passengers and crew on board and 11 others on the ground, and thrust a small Scottish border-town into the international spotlight where it has remained for nearly three decades. January 31 marked 15 years since Libyan Abdelbaset al-Megrahi was convicted of the bombing by three Scottish judges sitting in a specially convened Scottish court in the Netherlands. His co-accused Al Amin Khalifa Fimah was acquitted. To this day, Megrahi, who died in May 2012 protesting his innocence, remains the only person convicted of bringing down the American-bound airliner with a smuggled bomb, which, detonating 38 minutes into its flight from London, flung victims and debris over an 81-mile corridor covering 845 square miles. Yet, Megrahis January 31, 2001, conviction, his controversial release by the Scottish government on compassionate grounds due to illness in August 2009, and even his death in Libya from cancer three years later, have all failed to put to rest a murder case that remains one of the most contentious in modern criminal history. Indeed, as the debate between those who maintain that Megrahi was guilty as charged and those who contend that he was the victim of a miscarriage of justice rages on, for many the case has not limited itself to a battle of evidence alone. It has also seen Scotland and its justice system put through years of unwarranted hardship which has taken its toll. Guilty or innocent? I think we should finally put to bed all the conspiracy theories about Lockerbie, which have occupied a great deal of time and space over the last 20 years maybe, said Magnus Linklater, a prominent Scottish political commentator who has become a noted critic of those advocating Megrahis innocence. Linklater told Al Jazeera that those who promote the notion of the Libyans innocence and the innocence of Libya itself in the Lockerbie bombing are misguided. As the evidence has gradually built up, I think we can now say that those theories are wrong and are misplaced, said the former editor of the Edinburgh-based Scotsman newspaper. The main focus of Linklaters wrath and that of others who share his views is Scottish-based Justice for Megrahi (JFM), an organisation that has called into question Megrahis guilt and is calling for a public inquiry into the bombing. It makes no apology for pushing its line that Megrahis conviction may constitute one of the gravest miscarriages of justice in modern legal history. Len Murray, a retired Scottish criminal court solicitor and committee member of the group, told Al Jazeera that any notion that the case against Megrahi was overwhelming, could not be further from the truth. It is worth bearing in mind that while the three [Scottish] judges [who tried the case] were experienced judges, judges in our High Court have never ever had to determine guilt or innocence thats always left to the jury, he added. But, when for the first time in modern legal history, its left to three judges, they get it appallingly wrong. Many observers share this view. Professor Alan Miller, the outgoing chairman of the Scottish Human Rights Commission, said in an interview with Holyrood magazine on February 19, that the decision to release Megrahi brought out the best in Scotland and in the Scottish government. But, for those convinced of Megrahis guilt, who include Linklater, Britains and Americas political leaders and most if not all of the families of the US victims of Pan Am Flight 103, the case is overwhelming. Megrahis complicity in the loading of the bomb on to an Air Malta feeder flight at the islands Luqa airport and the clothes which were said to have been wrapped around the bomb and which were traced to a shop in Malta owned by a man who testified to selling them to the Libyan was successfully argued by the Crown prosecution during the trial. Linklater also points to recent research conducted by Ken Dornstein, the brother of one of the Lockerbie victims. In a TV documentary broadcast last year, Dornstein, said Linklater, bolstered the guilty verdict after supposedly uncovering a link between Megrahi and the alleged Libyan bomb-maker, Abu Agila Masud. Flaws in justice? For JFMs part, a whole raft of concerns, including major doubts over the reliability of the testimony of the Maltese shopkeeper and the starting point of the bomb itself, have caused them to question almost every aspect of the police investigation and trial. It is this refusal to accept the 15-year-old judgement that has placed the Scottish justice system under unprecedented strain, Linklater stated. The Scottish justice system has been subjected to relentless criticism and it has been accused of a miscarriage of justice and worse a miscarriage of justice in which a succession of lawyers and judges have colluded, said the veteran commentator. I think a lot of people have got a lot of apologies to make. I think, yes, they have vilified the judicial system, but I think the judicial system got it right. Not so, says JFM, which contends that, far from being conspiracy theories, the weight of evidence casting doubt on the Libyans guilt has been arrived at convincingly. Retired police officer Iain McKie, who is also a JFM committee member, told Al Jazeera that his two JFM colleagues, signatory John Ashton and committee member Morag Kerr, authors of Megrahi: You Are My Jury and Adequately Explained by Stupidity? Lockerbie, Luggage and Lies respectively, had backed up their various assertions which have become central to the groups miscarriage of justice case with hard evidence. Scotlands shame is quite clearly the way the whole affair has been conducted from the beginning from the investigation, the prosecution, the judicial process and the aftermath. Thats Scotlands shame, added McKie. Supporting Linklaters position is the continuing work of Police Scotland. It told Al Jazeera that Lockerbie remains a live investigation and that, along with the Crown Office, it was committed to working with our colleagues at the FBI, the Department of Justice and the US Attorneys Office in Washington DC to gather any information or evidence that identifies those who acted along with al-Megrahi to commit this despicable act of terrorism. Yet JFM is itself awaiting the final report of Operation Sandwood Police Scotlands investigation of nine allegations of criminality levelled by the group at Crown, police and forensic officials who worked on the Lockerbie case. JFM is publicly calling for the inquirys final report to be assessed by an independent prosecutor. As Lockerbie itself remains a live case, JFM awaits the results of Operation Sandwood and continues to campaign against the findings of the 15-year-old verdict, the events of December 21, 1988, will continue to cast a very long shadow. For the likes of Linklater, that shadow has seen the Scottish judicial system [dragged] through the mud, and, inevitably, some of it has stuck. McKie, on the other hand, while expressing his hope that one day a line can be drawn under Lockerbie, sees himself and JFM, which includes Jim Swire, an English doctor who lost his daughter in the atrocity, as a committee member, as pursuing a noble cause against the odds. I would agree that aside from some of the relatives and others deeply affected by the disaster, Lockerbie is a distant tragedy overtaken in a world full of tragedy, he explained. That does not mean, however, that it is irrelevant. Follow Alasdair Soussi on Twitter: @AlasdairSoussi The Republican Muslim Coalition president explains why she thinks Islamic and Republican party values are aligned. Comments by Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump proposing a ban on Muslims entering the US and by fellow candidate Ben Carson saying a Muslim should not be elected US president have been decried by many as racist and Islamophobic. But Saba Ahmed, an attorney and the president and founder of the Republican Muslim Coalition, says that while she found them hurtful, they would not stop her from urging other American Muslims to vote for the Republican party, and even for Trump. Ahmed, who lives in the Washington DC, area, says she left the Democratic party in 2011 because she could not reconcile her own views with what she considers to be the partys liberal values and incompatibility with Islam. Despite what appears to be a firmly anti-Muslim sentiment among some US conservatives and elements of the countrys Christian religious right, Ahmed says she believes that Islamic values are most closely aligned with those of the Republican party and that American Muslims would be better off voting for it. Al Jazeera spoke to her about the current political climate as the election campaign continues. Al Jazeera: What is it that you think makes or should make the Republican party attractive to American Muslims? Saba Ahmed: The appeal to American Muslims is that Republicans have values such as [being] pro-life, [in favour of] traditional marriage, business, trade, etc, that align with Islamic beliefs. Democrats, [on the other hand], espouse liberal values which are incompatible with Islam. I couldnt support their pro-choice, pro-LGBT, pro-taxes approach. [While] some [of the] social values [of the Democratic party] are good, mostly they promote same sex relations, which are completely forbidden in Islam. I have been extremely disappointed in the Obama administration policies [in this regard]. Al Jazeera: If that is the case, why do you think some conservative Americans, elements of the countrys Christian right and Republicans appear to be the most outspoken in suggesting that Muslims pose a threat to the American way of life? Ahmed: Many conservatives dont know any single Muslim. They only hear about Islam after a terrorist attack so they direct all their anger against us. Our goal at the Republican Muslim Coalition is to have Muslims in key electoral states get involved in their local Republican parties and be a resource for them to understand Islam. Muslim Americans are better off being Republicans because Islamic values align with the GOP [the Grand Old Party, another name for the Republicans], such as [the] state of the economy, lower taxes and traditional family values. Al Jazeera: How do you, as a Muslim Republican, feel about Donald Trump and Ben Carsons comments about Muslims and Islam? Ahmed: I am deeply hurt by their ignorant views of Islam, which is exactly why we started the Republican Muslim Coalition to educate them about our faith. I hope to see GOP presidential candidates change their views if they are serious about winning back the White House. Al Jazeera: Did you try to reach out to any of the candidates, and, if so, what was their response? Ahmed: Yes, I have reached out to Donald Trump, Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio, and several other Republican presidential candidates. They all are interested in Muslim American voters but have reservations about reaching out to mosques. We hope to have the Republican Muslim Coalition become a resource for them. They are being advised by people who hate Muslims and Islam . Having hardly any credible Muslim voices within the GOP makes it hard for them to support Muslim Americans. The Republican Muslim Coalition needs to step up its efforts and strongly lobby all candidates to change their positions on Islam. Al Jazeera: What is your opinion on Muslim assimilation and integration into mainstream American culture? Is that possible? Ahmed The best way to assimilate and integrate into mainstream America is to get politically involved and exercise our civic duties. Our votes can make all the difference and potentially decide the next president in the upcoming 2016 elections. I would urge all Muslim Americans to get involved in their local Republican parties and attend their events, volunteer at campaigns and, most of all, get out the votes. Al Jazeera: There is now a move to ban Islamic law in several mainly Republican states, the latest being South Carolina. Why do you think people are opposed to Islamic law being applied to Muslims in matters such as marriages and divorces in the US? And what do you believe the implications will be for American Muslims? Ahmed: Most Americans dont know that Sharia [Islamic law] is a way of life and governs many aspects of following Islam. No government can take away our rights to worship according to our deeply held religious beliefs. The movement to ban Sharia is playing on the fears of Americans by scaring them about Islam. We are lobbying against such bills and hope to defend ourselves in court should there ever be a conflict. Follow Ali Younes on twitter @ali_reports Nawal Soufys phone number is passed to refugees who then contact her if their boat gets into trouble at sea. In the early hours of January 5, 28-year-old Nawal Soufy received a voice message on her mobile phone. Help us, we are sinking, it said. She forwarded the message to the Italian, Greek and Turkish coastguards but got no reply. It had been left by a 32-year-old Syrian refugee called Ayman who was aboard a small boat that had set sail from Didim, on Turkeys southwest coast, and was heading for the Greek island of Farmakonisi, about 20km away. The boat never made it and Ayman was among the 34 mostly Syrian and Iraqi men, women and children who drowned off Turkeys Aegean coast that night. Many more have perished attempting the crossing from Turkey to Greece. But Nawal, an Italian-Moroccan who has acquired the nicknames Mama Nawal and Lady SOS, is determined to do all she can to stop that happening to others. Since she travelled to the Syrian cities of Homs and Aleppo to deliver humanitarian aid in 2012, she has become a reference point for many of the refugees fleeing that war-torn country. Her telephone number has been passed from one to another with the message and in the hope that she might be able to help those who find themselves in the most desperate of circumstances. Her mobile phone rings almost constantly, night and day. The majority of calls come from people stranded at sea. Some are aboard small dinghies; others are on larger boats with no crew. All of them need help. Saving refugee lives Nawal used to live in Sicily, where as a translator and interpreter for the Italian coastguard she was able to help refugees. But since October 2015, when thousands of refugees began reaching the Greek islands daily, she has been moving between the islands of Lesbos, Kos, Quios and Samos. She initially moved to the Greek islands to see the unfolding humanitarian tragedy with her own eyes. But she didnt just want to be a witness to it; she wanted to help. When she receives a call, Nawal alerts the coastguard, providing the co-ordinates of the boats in need of help. She then runs to the docks to welcome the refugees as they arrive, giving practical information and handing out water, food, clothes and nappies for the babies. According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), from the start of January 2015 to the end of January 2016, nearly 530,000 people landed in Lesbos. Since the start of this year, almost 30,000 refugees have reached the island. Nawals simple approach to helping them has saved dozens of lives. It is work she does free of charge and without affiliation to any NGO or organisation. Its the heart that repays me, she says. Others have started to join her and she now has a small team two Syrians, a Palestinian and an Egyptian. They have all been in a similar situation to those they now help fleeing war in Libya and Syria and economic stagnation in Egypt. But, instead of continuing their journeys on to other destinations in Europe, they chose to stay and help Nawal as she tries to help others like them. One of the men who works with me now called me last summer from a sinking ship which had 550 people onboard, Nawal explains. I alerted the Italian coastguard and they redirected a commercial ship near Libya to come to their aid, as the Italian military boats were far away and not able to offer immediate help. Refugees attacked at sea The work can be frenetic and seemingly unending. Nawal often goes 48 hours without sleep when there are many boats making the journey. One of the hardest things is trying to reassure the refugees while they are at sea, trying to calm them down, she says. I often have to shout to interrupt them because all they keep repeating is that they are sinking, the waves are high and the women are crying. But the most important information I need to know to be able to help them is their exact co-ordinates. Once Nawal is given the co-ordinates she tries to get information about the type of boat the refugees are on and instructs them not to move once they see the rescue ship approaching. Lastly, she explains that if they are on a larger boat with a hold they must open it to ensure that there are no refugees trapped inside. On the longer crossings from Egypt and Libya, it is common for larger wooden boats to be used. Those who have paid the smugglers a lower fee are often stowed in the cargo holds of these boats, perishing in the cramped, airless confines and unable to escape if the boat sinks. The International Organization of Migration believes that more than 5,350 men, women and children died making the crossing in 2015. In January 2016, an estimated 362 people perished. Once Nawal receives a boats co-ordinates, she flags them to the Greek and Turkish coastguards. If they are overwhelmed with other rescue missions, Nawal calls the Italians. She says that between October and November, on the island of Lesbos alone, an average of 35 dinghies would arrive daily. Greece cannot be left alone to handle the crisis, just like Italy cannot be left alone in handling the refugees from Libya and Egypt, she says. READ MORE: The Greek island helping Syrian refugees Recently, Nawal has been receiving reports from refugees of masked men approaching them on other boats, attacking them at sea and stealing or destroying the outboard motors of their boats, leaving them stranded. A boat in one such attack was photographed by a refugee and Nawal posted it to her Facebook page. Shameful for humanity Her voice trembles as she recalls examples of the suffering she witnesses every day. When you receive a call from a mother describing her [adult] childs tattoos, the colour of their undergarments and then you recognise the body they are describing lying dead on the beach, its devastating, she says. She recounts how, on January 15, the Greek coastguard called her to identify a number of bodies off the coast of Samos. One by one, she had to describe each body to the families in order to identify them. Nawal and the other volunteers do the best they can, financing their efforts with voluntary donations from private individuals. But they know there is only so much they can do in the face of such a huge crisis. Nawal laments Europes failure to devise a collective and humane strategy to deal with it. Europe has become inaccessible in legal terms, but porous due to the illegal trafficking of refugees, she says. There is a need for a humanitarian corridor and a need to keep advocating for it, demanding its establishment. These people must be given the right to take an airplane to escape their war-torn countries. When a father asks you to hug his [dead] family members, who perished at sea, on his behalf, for me this is not just devastating personally, it is shameful for humanity. Hour after hour after hour, all they did was kill people I will never forget it as long as I live. For the five days leading up to December 20, 2013, South Sudanese government soldiers from the Dinka tribe went from house to house killing members of the Nuer tribe in what quickly turned into a civil war that has claimed tens of thousands of lives. Two years ago, Juba resident Gabriel Gatluak Dak Yau, a Nuer, fled South Sudan for the safety of Kakuma refugee camp in Kenya. He recalls the events of those dark days in Juba, and explains why he is making plans to return to his home country. I will never forget 2013. I was in Juba on December 15 when the soldiers came. Hour after hour after hour, all they did was kill people, until December 20. I will never forget it as long as I live. What happened in South Sudan at that time even the young kids know. Imagine, they were telling people go and rape your mother and your sister, and after you rape them then they will kill you. And they were telling people to eat the meat of your brother. And imagine, you are all South Sudanese together. If you have a mark [the Nuer have tribal scars across their foreheads] they will definitely kill you, because they know you are really Nuer. It was not all the Dinka. It was those from Warrap state. They say that [Nuer leader] Riek Machar killed people in Bor in 1991, and they decided that they were going to take their revenge. I really give thanks to God because when the attacks happened I was on the other side of the River Nile in the Gumbo area of Juba. If you tried to cross the river they would just take you and put you inside the river, they would just kill you. They killed eight of my relatives. They just rounded them up and killed them. I wanted to get to the UNMISS camp [the UN Mission in South Sudan, which opened its gates to provide protection to Nuer civilians], but there was no way to get there safely. I waited eight days, and then eventually I reached the UNMISS camp and thanked God because I had reached there safely. Not all the Dinka have a problem with Nuer. Not all Dinka support [President] Salva Kiir. The only person who called me in December 2013 to ask me if I was OK was a Dinka friend of mine. Gabriel, are you fine? he asked me. Yes Im fine, I told him, Im in the UNMISS camp. Our relationships havent been broken by the war. We still have relationships with them. The one who asks if you are OK when you are in trouble you cannot forget him. I spent one month and a half in UNMISS. On February 27, 2014, I left there to go to Kakuma refugee camp in Kenya. It was very difficult to get here. I was afraid that if I travelled by plane that they would take my passport in the airport. So I used a bus. When I reached the bridge across the Nile, soldiers there asked me: Where are you going? I told them: Im going to Kakuma. They told me: You want to escape? I told them: No. Im not going to escape! They said: You are Nuer, we are going to kill you. I told them: No problem. Fortunately one of the security guards came and said: Let these people go. I didnt travel with any of my family, but I travelled together with some of the Nuer. Most of them were boys. They dont have marks. If you have no marks, sometimes its an advantage. I arrived at Kakuma on February 28, 2014. Id lived there before for 10 years, from 1999 to 2009. Now Ive been back here almost two years. Im staying with my brother in Kakuma, who I left here when I went back to Juba. I really appreciated seeing him again. To be apart from your brother is hard sometimes. When we met again I really gave thanks to God. Wed been apart for almost five years. My brother has been here for more than 10 years. Hes at school in Form Four. He is supposed to complete his education first and then he can go back to South Sudan. When I arrived at Kakuma the first time, it was really different from how it is now. Youd maybe get water once a day, but now it is available. At that time youd go to school, then go to get water, then cook. But if the dust came you could not even cook. I owe my health to UNHCR, and I have a ration card from them. But theres not enough food. We used to get rations every 15 days, now its once a month, even though its not more food. Its very hard to manage. If I have my ration card alone I will not survive. We come together in a group of 10 and collect the food. You may get sorghum, or maize, they give you oil and salt. If it is only one person its very hard to survive unless you have someone who can assist you somewhere. Maybe someone in South Sudan or in Africa can send money to you and you can go and buy a sack of maize. The top officials at UNHCR dont know that this food is not enough. I want to go back to UNMISS camp in Juba, because here in Kakuma it is too difficult. Being in the camp without any education is very hard. I wanted to get a diploma in computing, but its very hard to get the funds for a computer. Even if I dont get to work at UNMISS at least I will get to be with my people. The only problem with going back is the killing. Nowadays I hear there is a lot of killing there. If you have these marks they know you are Nuer and they will kill you. UNMISS really saved the lives of people. If you go outside [the UNMISS camp] and you get killed then its up to you because you are the one who wants to get killed. I am waiting for Riek Machar to go back to Juba, then I will know there is peace, and that is when I will go back. If it is peaceful, I will go back to Juba town. If not I will go to UNMISS. The problem now is that when you go back you might have lost your parents, your relatives, your friends. South Sudan has been completely destroyed. I dont think peace will come back to South Sudan very soon. Salva Kiir doesnt want peace. The history of South Sudan is a very, very, very sad story, a very sad story. But for the future, even though we lost many people, we have to go forward. The enemies of the state existed nowhere but in the muddled head of the ageing Great Helmsman. Spotting my grandfathers stiffened body hanging from the wooden beam in the hall was my earliest memory. I was four then and the year was 1968, at the height of the Cultural Revolution. Grandfather, a small-time grain-dealer in his 50s, took his own life because he was terrified that his politically problematic background he wasnt from a poor farmer or workers family would land him with the fate he had often witnessed: humiliation and torture at public gatherings. This year will see the 50th anniversary of the movement, formerly called the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, which lasted for 10 years. In May 1966, Chairman Mao Zedong launched the mass movement, intending to preserve true socialist ideology of the new regime, and purge those capitalist elements that had supposedly infiltrated the Chinese Communist Party. In reality, the enemies of the state existed nowhere but in the muddled head of the ageing Great Helmsman. In response to the call from the chairman who was worshipped like a god, wars were fought between different factions, each believing themselves to be the true revolutionaries. Leaders of all levels were overthrown, couples denounced each other, students beat up their teachers, intellectuals and other bad elements were persecuted and were banished to the countryside, and ancient temples and cultural relics were destroyed. Cultural disaster In 1981, the Communist Party announced the Cultural Revolution a disaster, and more or less told its citizens to forget about it and look forward. And this year there will be no public event to mark the start of the movement that shaped contemporary China. The authorities obviously dont want to associate themselves with something that could damage their credibility. Not being the most confident regime, the Chinese government is extremely concerned with its legitimacy. During the Cultural Revolution, Chairman Mao practised a prerogative system which protected the privileged stratum, a fertile breeding ground for corruption. While the ordinary people survived on rationed rice, luxury villas were built for Mao and other top leaders. by In contrast to the official silence, the internet is abuzz with debate. Many liberal intellectuals are calling for 2016 to be made the year to thoroughly reflect on the Cultural Revolution, yet some ultra-leftists are calling for the movement to be re-evaluated, arguing that the Cultural Revolution has been demonised. Demonised? It appears the majority of those who hold such a view have little idea what actually happened during one of the most traumatic decades in recent Chinese history, let alone the scale or the depth of its horror. In some ways, they cant take all the blame for their ignorance. The excesses of the Cultural Revolution have been very much glossed over. Books and films on the topic are subject to strict censorship at school, pupils can learn only the skeleton of the event. Ba Jin was a renowned writer who described the movement as a spiritual pollution, and requested on his death bed that the government build a Cultural Revolution museum. Many renowned writers, such as Feng Jicai, who risked his life by recording the stories of that mad decade, have joined in the chorus. So far, their wishes have not been fulfilled. The official stance that ignores what happened and encourages Chinese citizens to forget about it is deeply disturbing. As Confucius says: Study the past if you would define the future; we have to study the past, especially a past event of such significance. Unless we truly confront the Cultural Revolution, certain aspects of it may repeat themselves. The complexity of the movement One wonders why so many Chinese are not willing to face the countrys past. I guess there have always been disasters in Chinese history. For some, the best way to cope with past tragedy is to forget about it and move on. Others passively accept the official verdict as they believe that in an undemocratic society, their views on the Cultural Revolution dont make any difference. OPINION: Chinas feminists defy government oppression Some die-hard leftists, as well as those who have not benefited much from the reforms and opening-up, tend to look at the Cultural Revolution nostalgically, arguing that there was no corruption under Mao and that people were more equal. The reality was quite different. I believe that some of the social vice in todays China, such as moral decline, the lack of trust among the people and corruption, are rooted in the movement. During the Cultural Revolution, Chairman Mao practised a prerogative system which protected the privileged stratum, a fertile breeding ground for corruption. While the ordinary people survived on rationed rice, luxury villas were built for Mao and other top leaders. READ MORE: Chinas Great Famine a mission to expose the truth Apart from the official silence on the Cultural Revolution, I find the attitude of some patriotic youth equally troubling. The countrys fast-growing economy and its rising position in the world has generated a growing nationalism among some young people, who choose not to examine the mistakes China has made. A decade of horrors Despite the authorities effort to keep the lid firmly in place, more and more information is coming to light. Last May, a well-respected academic, Qin Hui, published an essay entitled The Rejection of the Cultural Revolution is not Thorough and the Truth Still Needs to be Further Revealed, on a liberal intellectual website, Aisixiang. Qin detailed the horrors that took place in Southwest Chinas Guangxi province in 1967, horrors too deplorable to describe, including cannibalism. In dozens of cases, even the wives and daughters of the accused were not spared. They would be raped first. After their murder, their breasts and private parts were cut out and sometimes their livers were eaten. All in the name of the revolution. Qins piece is still being circulated widely among netizens, together with other articles shedding light on the turbulent decade. I welcome articles like Qins and the debates they have sparked as the anniversary is approaching. I hope they will push the Chinese people to ask some hard questions: Why did the Cultural Revolution take place? What happened exactly? Why did so many people participate with religious zeal? What did it say about the national characteristics of the Chinese people? What lessons can be learned from the catastrophe? And, more importantly, what can be done to prevent it from happening again? I, for one, will never forget about the Cultural Revolution, for the sake of my family as well as for the nation. Without confronting the past and learning the lesson, the China Dream the countrys drive towards national rejuvenation will, sadly, remain a dream. Lijia Zhang is the author of Socialism is Great!: A Workers Memoir of the New China. The views expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeeras editorial policy. Its time to stop passing the buck and launch an efficient effort for refugees based on the best modern innovations. The fist-sized rolls of dough are plopped on to a conveyor belt by a machine. The belt carries them through various stages as they are coated with oil, travel up and around into a giant metal toaster and emerge on the other side transformed into ballooning, hot pieces of flat bread. Take one, says Abdulsalam Sharif the coordinator for the local branch of Insani Yardim Vakfi, or Humanitarian Relief Fund (IHH). The piping hot bread is buttery in the mouth; it is a welcome nourishment after a long day visiting refugees on the Turkish-Syrian border near the town of Kilis in southern Turkey. The IHH operation in Kilis, which has recently opened a 2,800 sq metre warehouse for storing dry foodstuffs, clothing, and essentials such as toiletries, as well as producing meals, is one of several innovative projects aiding Syrian refugees. What makes the IHH stand out is its efficiency and modern design: With 365 men, almost all Syrians, volunteering and employed, they are providing 25,000 hot meals a day and 100,000 pieces of bread to be shipped across the border to Syria. There are estimated to be some 100,000 refugees in Syria across the border from Kilis, and another 110,000 living in Kilis itself and near the border. These are just one portion of the 2.5 million Syrian refugees estimated to have crossed into Turkey from Syria. More than a million have decamped for Europe, creating the scenes of refugee crises that brought European Union member states and Turkey to yet another summit meeting on February 17 in Brussels. The discussions in the EU come amid threats in France to demolish the Jungle in Calais, home to 1,000 refugees, by Tuesday night. On February 21 it was reported that people cheered an arson attack in Bautzen in Germany on a building converted to house asylum-seekers. According to officials, there have been more than 1,000 attacks on shelters and other services associated with refugees in Germany since last year. The scenes of chaos on the Greek islands, the violence, human trafficking and abuses women refugees have been victims of; the masses of people unchecked and herded across borders by border police in Greece, Macedonia, Serbia and elsewhere, without a semblance of imposing order or providing dignity, is symbolic of a continent-wide breakdown. by Why has this crisis been so difficult for the EU to handle? With a population of 500 million and a gross domestic product of $18 trillion, why is the EU so much less capable of dealing with a refugee crisis than Turkey with a GDP of $798bn and a population of 77 million? Explanations range from a supposed historical lack of expertise in dealing with immigrants, to the unwieldy nature of the EU structures and open borders of the Schengen agreement, along with refugee and asylum seeker statuses that seem to encourage poorer countries to push the burden on to wealthier ones. The fact is that the EU member states have a long history of dealing with refugees. They were more than capable of housing and settling the tens of millions displaced after World War II and the Holocaust. Austria was capable of processing 200,000 Hungarian refugees in 1956. Yet, in 2016 it has advocated taking only 80 people a day. How is it possible the country that had barely recovered from the ravages of the World War II was more able to handle a massive crisis than one of the most technologically advanced countries of the EU today? The scenes of chaos on the Greek islands, the violence, human trafficking and abuses women refugees have been victims of; the masses of people unchecked and herded across borders by border police in Greece, Macedonia, Serbia and elsewhere, without a semblance of imposing order or providing dignity, is symbolic of a continent-wide breakdown. In Turkey the Afet ve Acil Durum Yonetimi Baskanligi (Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency, AFAD), an organisation established in 2009 to deal with natural disasters, has pioneered building refugee camps across Turkey of which there are now 23. It is building new two-storey, container-type housing for the people. OPINION: Smarter assistance for Syrian refugees Turkey struggles with some of the same issues facing Europe, namely a population of refugees that may be using the country to pass through to other places or may end up putting down permanent roots. It also has locals who resent them and a government that does not provide them with equal rights. But, the level of order it has imposed, and the attempt to teach children Turkish and provide job training should be studied and provide a model. The problem in Europe is an unwillingness to face the need to invest massive sums needed for dignified refugee housing and services continent-wide as well as create order and processing from the chaos that feeds stereotypes and violence. I have travelled the refugee route from Greece to Austria and it is one band-aid fix and tragedy after another. Europe has had refugees arriving in large numbers by boat from North Africa for two decades now, and addressed it piecemeal and failed. Its time to stop passing the buck and launch a serious and efficient effort for refugees based on the best modern innovations. Seth J Frantzman is a Jerusalem-based commentator on Middle East politics and has lectured in American studies at Al-Quds University. The views expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeeras editorial policy. Syrian president voices support for ceasefire in telephone call with President Putin, Kremlin says. Syrias president has assured Russia of his readiness to respect a ceasefire deal brokered by Moscow and Washington, the Kremlin said. A phone call took place between Russian President Vladimir Putin and President of the Syrian Arab Republic Bashar al-Assad, the Kremlin said in a statement on Wednesday. In particular, [Assad] confirmed the readiness of the Syrian government to facilitate the establishment of a ceasefire. Assad described the ceasefire as an important step towards a political resolution for Syrias civil war, the Kremlin said in the statement on its website. However, Putin and Assad emphasised the need to continue an uncompromised fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant group, the al-Nusra Front and other groups which are included in the respective list of the United Nations Security Council, the Kremlin said. Putin also discussed the ceasefire with the leaders of Iran and Saudi Arabia on Wednesday. Primary attention was focused on the Syrian issues, in particular the discussion of initiatives and proposals laid out in the Joint Statement of Russia and the United States on the cessation of hostilities in Syria, the Kremlin said in reference to Putins call with Irans President Hassan Rouhani. Saudi Arabias King Salman bin Abdulaziz al-Saud welcomed the achieved agreements and expressed readiness for mutual work with Russia to realise them, the Kremlin said in the statement. Saudi Arabia has been a key backer of the Syrian opposition and rebel factions, whereas Russia supports Assad, a longtime ally. OPINION: A ceasefire in Syria is pure fantasy The Syrian opposition had yet to decide whether it would commit to the US-Russian plan to stop fighting in Syria on Saturday, chief opposition negotiator Mohamad Alloush told Orient News. Alloush said that the opposition bloc, known as the High Negotiations Committee, of which he is a member, would give the final answer. Alloush heads the political office of Jaish al-Islam, one of the biggest rebel factions. Also speaking on Wednesday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that he was concerned that the US-Russian plan would provide an advantage for government forces and their backers while being indecisive on the terms for the Syrian opposition. Erdogan said in a televised address that Turkey welcomed efforts towards a ceasefire in principle, but he accused the US, EU, UN, Iran and Russia of acting dishonourably in Syria by directly or indirectly permitting government forces to kill civilians. The Syrian government said on Wednesday it was more determined more than ever to preserve Syrias unity after US Secretary of State John Kerry said it would be hard to hold the country together if the fighting did not stop. Damascus was determined today more than any time to crush terrorism and preserve the unity of Syria, according to a statement published by state media. On the fifth anniversary of the 2011 uprising, two Bahrainis offer their take on the countrys past and future. An ongoing dream for change Human rights activist Sayed Ahmed Alwadaei , the director of advocacy at the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy, was jailed for six months in Bahrain for participating in pro-democracy protests. He later sought asylum in the United Kingdom. I joined the protests because they gave us hope. When we saw Tunisia and Egypt achieve their revolutions, we decided to have our own day of rage. We started the largest popular uprising in all of Bahrains history. It was a fight against injustice, discrimination and corruption. We wanted to turn a new page, where all citizens were equally respected and had their dignity, and had a say in the governance of their nation and destiny. We wanted a share of the wealth and opportunity. What motivated me the most was my own bleak future. It was not only about getting a job; it was about being treated as an equal citizen. In May 2010, I returned to Bahrain after completing my electronics engineering degree and fulfilling two years of experience at British firms. I began to see problems everywhere. I was struck by the sight of police officers wearing Bahraini uniforms, struggling to speak Arabic, and felt insulted that with so many unemployed in the country, we were importing people from outside Bahrain. The state has kicked sand over the embers, but the embers are still burning. by I protested on February 14, the very first day of protests, and saw how police attacked us. We were peaceful protesters. We held nothing except Bahraini flags and chanted pro-democracy slogans. They threw tear gas at us. That night, I went to Salmaniya hospital and witnessed the states crimes. There were so many wounded protesters. It was overwhelming to see how my own people were being treated by our government. I attended a funeral the next day. It was the bravest protest I ever saw. People chanted freely. They were so angry. There was no fear. The determination and aspirations of the people remain today, but in the five years since the uprising, the government has created a state of fear by arresting, jailing and torturing opposition leaders. The state has kicked sand over the embers, but the embers are still burning. I went through beatings, arrest, torture and unfair trial in Bahrain. They tried to take my dignity with these acts. I left Bahrain into exile with nothing but my citizenship, and last year they took that from me. But this has only given me strength, and made me more determined to create change. The revolution was a fraud Bahraini journalist and politician Adnan Bumetea believes that the countrys uprising was not a revolution, but rather an attempted coup against the royal family. The 2011 uprising in Bahrain was merely part of a sectarian coup movement against the ruling family, conducted in coordination with Iranian secret intelligence. It promoted vandalism, roadblocks and organised assaults on security officers, along with civil disobedience, in parallel with the withdrawal of Shia parliamentarians from the elected parliament and from the consultative council, in an attempt to suggest that most Bahrainis approved of this movement. During the uprising, significant efforts were made by local, regional and international media to portray the demonstrations in Bahrain as a vast public movement that encompassed various groups and segments in Bahraini society. But this was absolutely contrary to the truth. It was not a revolution, but rather a planned coup. With the rapid escalation of events, resulting in numerous civil confrontations in the streets of Bahrain, various patriotic parties rushed to unite in a public front to uphold the regime and to defend the existence of the nation. The escalation required the Bahraini government to further assure its security by seeking assistance from other countries in the Gulf Cooperation Council, which instantly responded and rushed to send troops to save Bahrain from imminent civil destruction. The future of Bahrain is dependent on... severing all forms of malignant foreign intervention. by In spite of the judicial decrees against the groups that have plotted the coup and other acts of sedition, violence remained persistent, to project an image of Bahrain as destabilised. Such acts of violence continue until today. The Iranian-backed sectarian movements in Bahrain have obstructed the march of political reforms and have tremendously affected economic growth, as actors involved in the coup refused to participate in the legislative elections held in 2014, in an attempt to create further obstacles towards any real democratic transition. The future of Bahrain is dependent on normalising the current situation and severing all forms of malignant foreign intervention, especially Iranian intervention. Paying full attention to the principles of citizenship that would produce patriotic generations, and rejecting all forms of intervention against the interests of the nation, is equally paramount. It is also crucially important to eradicate the corruption in Bahraini society and government institutions to produce an effective political environment that is based on transparency, international human rights and social justice. At least three people have died in severe weather in the southern states of the United States, where tornadoes, damaging hail and flash floods left a swath of destruction. Tornadoes churned across many states, from Louisiana to Georgia, but the most destructive were in Louisiana and Mississippi. More than 30 people were injured in the storms. Two people died in the hamlet of Convent, Louisiana, after a tornado demolished more than 160 mobile homes. The third casualty died in a trailer park in Purvis, Mississippi. The storm left tens of thousands of people without power in Louisiana, and John Bel Edwards, the state governor, declared a state of emergency in seven parishes. The powerful storm developed when the jet stream dived across the region on Tuesday. A jet stream is a fast-flowing ribbon of air, blowing high above the Earths surface, which can dictate the path of storms and can also encourage their development. Tuesdays jet stream was particularly intense and it is unusual for one this strong to travel so far south. This resulted in a particularly powerful storm, and encouraged moisture to be fed into the system from the Gulf of Mexico. As the system developed, the winds above the Earths surface were much stronger than at ground level. This encourages the air to start to roll, and it is this rotation that encourages the formation of tornadoes. The storm system is now heading northeast across the eastern portion of North America. As it does so, its weather will become increasingly wintry. Up to 30cm of snow is expected in the northeastern US and eastern Canada on Wednesday. Further south, torrential rain and damaging hail will be a hazard, and there is a threat of more tornadoes. Virginia and North Carolina will be most at risk. Indian President says women will be allowed to occupy combat roles in all sections of the army, navy and air force. India has announced that women will be allowed to occupy combat roles in all sections of its army, navy and air force, indicating a radical move to gender parity in one of the worlds most-male dominated professions. Indian President Pranab Mukherjee announced the move on Tuesday while addressing both houses of the parliament before the budget session, saying that the government would in the future recruit women for fighting roles in Indias armed forces. India, which has one of the largest armies in the world, has previously resisted such a move, citing concerns over womens vulnerability if captured and over their physical and mental ability to cope with the stress of frontline deployments. My government has approved the induction of women as short service commission officers and as fighter pilots in the Indian Air Force. In the future, my government will induct women in all the fighter streams of our armed forces, Mukherjee said. In our country Shakti, which means power, is the manifestation of female energy. This Shakti defines our strength, he added. READ MORE: Screening rape Indias debate While most countries employ women in various roles in their armed forces, only a handful including Australia, Germany, Israel and the United States have allowed them to take on combat or fighting roles. India began recruiting women to non-medical positions in the armed forces in 1992, yet only 2.5 percent of its more than one million personnel are female most of them administrators, intelligence officers, doctors, nurses or dentists. In October, the government took the first steps towards bringing women into fighting roles and approved plans by the Indian Air Force for women pilots to fly warplanes from June 2017 on a three-year experimental basis. Womens rights activists welcomed the presidents remarks but said that bringing real gender parity into the armed forces would be a slow process. The two countries follow Saudi, UAE and Bahraini move after Riyadh halted $4bn aid to Lebanon over Hezbollah. Kuwait and Qatar have become the latest Arab Gulf countries following Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain to call on their citizens to leave Lebanon or avoid travelling there. The moves by the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) member states came days after Riyadh halted $4bn in aid to Lebanese security forces in response to hostile positions linked to the Lebanese Shia group Hezbollah. Dohas foreign ministry, in a statement on Wednesday on the official Qatar News Agency, called on citizens in Lebanon to leave for their own safety and said no Qatari nationals should travel there. Earlier on Wednesday, the Kuwaiti embassy in Lebanons capital Beirut also said that all Kuwaitis should leave except in extreme circumstances, and advised those who stay on to exercise caution and avoid unspecified places that are not safe. The statement, cited by the official KUNA news agency, gave no reason for the move. READ MORE: Saudi, UAE and Bahrain ban citizens from travelling to Lebanon On Tuesday, the Saudi foreign ministry issued a statement calling on all citizens not to travel to Lebanon, for their safety, and asking citizens residing in Lebanon or visiting not to stay unless extremely necessary. The statement, carried by the official SPA news agency, urged citizens to contact the Saudi Embassy in Beirut. Announcing the stopping of aid on Friday, an official said that the kingdom had noticed hostile Lebanese positions resulting from the stranglehold of Hezbollah on the state. The UAE on Tuesday also banned its citizens from travelling to Lebanon and reduced its diplomatic presence in Beirut. Bahrain also urged citizens against travelling to Lebanon, and called on Bahrainis there already to leave quickly, according to a statement posted to state news. On Friday, the United Arab Emirates announced full support of Saudis review of its relations with Lebanon, blaming the countrys failure to condemn Irans aggression after Saudi Arabias embassy was attacked in Tehran in January. The embassy attack followed the execution of a renowned Shia leader in Saudi Arabia over terrorism charges. READ MORE: Lebanon vows to maintain Saudi ties despite tensions Lebanons main political divide pits a Sunni-led coalition against another led by the Iran-backed Shia Hezbollah movement. Al Jazeeras Mohammed Jamjoom, reporting from Beirut, said that the political process in Lebanon, a country with deep sectarian divisions that has gone without a president for two years, is heavily influenced by Iran and Saudi Arabia. [Out of] the two main power players here the two main government blocs one of them is Sunni-dominated [and the other one] is dominated by Hezbollah, which of course is supported by Iran, Jamjoom said. Lebanon is really at the forefront of the proxy war thats been going on for quite some time between Saudi Arabia and Iran for regional dominance. On Wednesday, Yemens government accused Hezbollah of training Houthi forces, fighting alongside them and planning attacks in Saudi Arabia. Yemens government and its Gulf partners have long accused Hezbollahs ally Iran of backing the Houthis and seeking to transform the group into a replica of the Lebanese militia to use as a proxy against its main regional rival, Saudi Arabia. Its latest assertion, in a statement carried by official media, is based on many documents and physical evidence, found in military positions abandoned by the Houthis, which it said Hezbollah would not be able to deny. Both Iran and Hezbollah reject accusations that they have provided military aid to the Houthis. The 24-hour strike by four largest labour unions aims at blocking a government draft bill to reform pensions. Moroccan trade unions have held a one-day strike in an effort to block a government draft bill to reform pensions. Public and private sector workers in Moroccos four largest labour unions went on strike for 24 hours on Wednesday, protesting against government efforts to overhaul spending on pensions and subsidies. According to the largest labour union in the country, the national participation rate is nearly 85 percent. Inside Story Migration in Morocco: residency granted Morocco has ended fuel subsidies and frozen public-sector hiring, winning praise from international lenders who say it has made better progress in controlling public spending than some other countries in the region. The strike comes after the government last month adopted a bill to reform the pension system. But protests such as Wednesdays general strike, called by the Moroccan Labour Union (UMT) and three other union movements, have started to weigh on the Islamist-led governments plans to curb deficits and revive public finances. We have been facing a stubborn government which does not believe in dialogue, but in destroying peoples purchasing power, UMT leader Miloudi Moukharik told Reuters, forecasting that parliament would reject the pension bill. We have already delayed it three times inside the parliament and I can tell you that it will not pass. READ MORE: Earning a living on border of Moroccos Spanish enclave Dozens of workers gathered in the headquarters of UMT and CDT, the Democratic Confederation of Labour, chanting slogans against government and foreign lenders such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. The strike disrupted the port of Casablanca, Moroccos biggest city, as well as transport and other sectors, a Reuters witness said. However, small shops, bars and cafes and some taxi drivers were working. We have always been in talks with the union and we will keep talking on the pension reform, Communications Minister and government spokesman Mustapha Khalfi told Reuters. He called the strike unjustified and said without reform, the pensions of 400,000 workers would be at risk because the government would not be able to finance them. The pension bill reached the second house of Moroccos parliament last month but the government has so far failed to get it discussed. Unions control 20 of the 120 seats in the upper house and experts say other opposition parties would join them in rejecting the reform. Moukharik declined to give details on the unions next move, saying that they would meet to decide on action. The proposed changes to state pension funds include raising the retirement age to 63 by 2019, and raising contributions, according to a government statement. Workers will have to pay 14 percent of their salaries by 2019 and government contributions will rise in tandem, from 10 percent before the reform, adding 1 percentage point each year to meet the new plan. Tara Air passenger plane crashes in mountainous Myagdi area, west of Kathmandu, killing all 23 people on board. Rescue teams in Nepal have found the wreckage of a small passenger plane that went missing in a remote mountainous area with 23 people on board. Aviation Minister Ananda Prasad Pokharel said the Twin Otter turboprop aircraft had been found in the western district of Myagdi on Wednesday and bodies could be seen scattered around it. The wreckage of the plane was found in a completely burned state in Solighopte in Myagdi district, Pokharel said. The team there say that the bodies are scattered and it is not possible to identify anyone right now. More security agencies are being deployed and we are trying to get more information, he added. The AFP news agency quoted a police official as saying all the passengers and crew were dead. The army had deployed helicopters and foot soldiers to search Myagdi, a mountainous district around 220km west of Kathmandu, after locals reported seeing possible wreckage of the Tara Air plane. The airline said the plane was carrying three crew and 20 passengers, including a Chinese and a Kuwaiti national, revising an earlier figure of 18 passengers. All the others were from Nepal and two of them were children. Tara Air said the Twin Otter had lost contact with air traffic control eight minutes after taking off from the tourist town of Pokhara early on Wednesday. A statement on its website said weather conditions were good when the plane took off for Jomsom, a popular trekking destination in the Himalayas about 20 minutes flight from Pokhara. The weather at both origin and destination airports was favourable and the airport cleared for departure by the control tower at Pokhara, it said. Tara Air is a subsidiary of Yeti Airlines, a privately owned domestic carrier founded in 1998 which services many remote destinations across Nepal. It suffered its last fatal accident in 2010 when a plane chartered by a group of Bhutanese tourists crashed into a mountainside in eastern Nepal. Experienced pilot Air travel is popular in Nepal, which has only a limited road network. Many communities, particularly in the mountains and hills, are accessible only on foot or by air. The country, which is still reeling from a devastating earthquake last April, has in recent years suffered a number of air disasters which dealt a blow to its tourist industry. Most have been attributed to inexperienced pilots, poor management and inadequate maintenance. Two years ago, a Twin Otter plane belonging to the national carrier Nepal Airlines crashed into a hillside shortly after taking off from Pokhara, killing all 18 people on board. The countrys aviation sector has come under fire from international authorities and in 2013 the European Union blacklisted all Nepals airlines. Siim Kallas, the EU Transport Commissioner at the time, said the countrys safety record does not leave us any other choice. The head of the Palestinian anti-corruption body said he has clawed back $70m in five years from officials who used state money to strike business deals abroad and then pocketed the profits. But Rafiq al-Natsheh, chairman of the Palestinian Anti-Corruption Commission, told the Reuters news agency in an interview late on Tuesday that tens of millions of dollars still needed to be tracked down. One of the biggest challenges for his team, he said, was finding money that had disappeared abroad. Natsheh said his investigators had failed to uncover evidence to justify allegations that hundreds of millions of dollars in government funds had gone missing. After years of talk of vast sums going astray, the attorney general of the Palestinian Authority announced in February 2006 that he was investigating 50 cases of embezzlement from the authoritys budget totalling $700m. President Mahmoud Abbas is under pressure from donors to show he is taking action. The European Union and the United States, both of which give direct budget support to the Palestinians, want to see tighter controls, with the Europeans going as far as to send investigators to track where some of their money has gone. Over the past five years, direct support to the Palestinian budget from the EU and others has fallen from around $1.3bn a year to less than $700m, with the decline attributed in large part to frustration over money not being spent where it was intended, or not being fully accounted for. Natsheh was given sweeping powers to investigate misappropriation of funds, embezzlement, bribery, nepotism and any other corrupt practices. Stressful, difficult The $70m recouped for the Palestinian Authority came from a series of successes against senior officials, including three ministers and a director general of the finance ministry, he said. We got $40m back from Egypt and $20m from Iraq, he said, describing deals in which Palestinian officials used state funds to do business abroad and pocketed the proceeds, rather than transferring them to the PA budget. He mentioned a conviction handed down by the corruption court against an adviser to former president Yasser Arafat, but the $34m missing has not yet been recovered. The same goes for a case involving $1m, and the former ambassador to Abu Dhabi was convicted of embezzling more than $2m. The biggest challenge we face is to get the money back, he said. There are many millions outside Palestine, so it depends on foreign countries for us to get the money back. Asked how much money was still outstanding, he talked of tens of millions of dollars, but wouldnt go into more detail. Its very stressful work, its difficult, he said. Palestinian refugees are inaccessible in Damascus and Deraa camps as UN delivers aid to areas near Yarmouk. The United Nations has called for immediate and sustained humanitarian access in the Deraa and Damascus areas of war-torn Syria, where more than 20,000 Palestinian refugees live. In an interview with Al Jazeera, Chris Gunness, spokesperson for the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), said an estimated 17,500 Palestinians remained inaccessible in the Deraa province, along with another 5,000 civilians in Khan Eshieh. UNRWA is extremely concerned about the safety and liberty of every Palestine refugee and each of its staff, Gunness said. Last week, UNRWA was able to deliver aid to neighbouring areas of Yarmouk, the besieged Damascus-area camp home to both Palestinians and Syrians, for the first time in nine months. Yet the agency has been unable to gain access to Yarmouks interior since late March 2015, days before the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) invaded and took control of most of the camp. Palestinian refugees in Syria Between 5,000 and 8,000 Palestinian refugees live in Yarmouk today, according to the Jafra Foundation. Already vulnerable as refugees, many Palestinians in Syria were displaced yet again during the five-year conflict, including 42,500 to Lebanon, 15,500 to Jordan and another 6,000 to Egypt, according to the UK-based Action Group for Palestinians of Syria. The Action Group has documented the deaths of at least 3,154 Palestinians throughout the war. Another 1,059 are believed to be behind bars in the governments jails, while 282 are missing. While some have joined armed groups loyal to President Bashar al-Assad, and others have thrown their lot in with rebel groups, most Palestinian refugees are caught in the civil wars crossfire. Elsewhere, UNRWA has been unable to reach camps in the Deraa area, as well as the Khan Eshieh camp in southern Damascus, for more than two years. Al Jazeera spoke to Gunness about recent developments in Palestinian refugee camps across Syria. Chris Gunness: UNRWA has been able to maintain basic healthcare in Khan Eshieh, thanks to the work of staff living in the camp and running the UNRWA clinic inside the camp. Limited traffic in and out has been permitted for civilians, enabling them to receive medicines which are unavailable in the camp at a nearby UNRWA health facility. Similarly, civilians have been able to receive cash and food assistance at distribution points near the camps. A large proportion of the population of Deraa camp was displaced or fled, leaving the camp largely uninhabited. There has been no UNRWA access to Deraa camp since late 2012,when the camp was regularly struck by explosive munitions, causing widespread damage, including to several UNRWA schools and health clinics. No UNRWA facilities are currently operational in the camp. There is still very limited civilian traffic in and out of the camp, to access services and assistance in Deraa City, albeit via a highly dangerous route. School attendance and learning opportunities are regularly interrupted by armed conflict. In all areas, children have been exposed to horrific levels of armed violence, prolonged displacement and severe hardships. by Chris Gunness, UNRWA spokesperson The villages of Mzeirib and Jillin, west of Deraa city, are under the control of opposition armed groups. Resident UNRWA staff continue to provide education and health services, but no humanitarian missions or deliveries have been possible on account of the ongoing armed conflict in the area. Palestine refugees must travel to Deraa city to receive assistance and some services. UNRWA remains extremely concerned that civilians from these areas continue to endure deprivations and deplorable living conditions, including sustained exposure to armed violence, as the areas continue to be affected by the conflict. Al Jazeera: At least 13 Palestinian children were killed near a government-run school by the bombings in Sayyida Zainab on February 21. How emblematic is this of the plight of Palestinian children throughout the conflict? Gunness: School attendance and learning opportunities are regularly interrupted by armed conflict. In all areas, children have been exposed to horrific levels of armed violence, prolonged displacement and severe hardships. In Khan Eshieh, children have been able sporadically to attend a school facility near to the camp. In Mzeirib and Jillin, UNRWA has provided children with self-learning materials to enable them to continue informally to study. Al Jazeera: How have Palestinian camps been affected by armed activity throughout the ongoing fighting in Syria? Gunness: In the course of the war in Syria, several Palestine refugee camps in Syria have been engulfed by the armed conflict, as armed groups have approached or entered the camps, triggering armed responses from government forces. The affected camps include Ein al-Tal in northern Syria, Yarmouk, Khan Eshieh, Khan Dannoun in rural Damascus, and Deraa camp, Muzeirib and Jilin in southern Syria. READ MORE: ISIL takeover of Palestinian camp in Syria a siege within a siege All sides have deployed in and around Palestine refugee camps heavy weapons with indiscriminate effect. Al Jazeera: Beyond humanitarian aid, what is the most pressing need for Palestinian refugees in Syria? Gunness: As for Syrians, the most pressing need for Palestine refugees is for an end to the Syria war; a long-term, durable cessation of hostilities that enables them to recover a semblance of the safe refuge that Syria had provided to them since 1948. Who can save Yarmouk? With time and substantial international support, such a cessation will eliminate the grave threats to lives, wellbeing and livelihoods that plague Syrians and Palestinians alike. It could also generate opportunities for economic recovery, which in turn could enable Palestine refugees to find work and help them to emerge from entrenched, chronic poverty. Before the crisis, a significantly higher proportion of Palestine refugees fell below the poverty line than the Syrian population: 11.7 percent of Syrians were living below the national poverty line of approximately $1.50 per day, whereas 27 percent of Palestine refugees fell below an even lower poverty line of $1 per day. As Palestine refugees remain trapped in an increasingly complex and deadly conflict, it is important that their plight is not forgotten. Follow Patrick Strickland on Twitter: @P_Strickland_ Blows to the head and sleeping in insect-infested beds are among numerous examples of degrading and inhuman treatment of Palestinian detainees by Israeli interrogators, according to a new report from Israeli human rights groups. The 54-page report from HaMoked and BTselem, released on Wednesday, alleges that the treatment of detainees is at times tantamount to torture. It documents physical abuse by Israeli interrogators both in the field and at the Shikma detention facility in the southern Israeli city of Ashkelon. [One Palestinian] was beaten until he passed out. Another detainee related that police officers photographed themselves next to him as he lay handcuffed on the ground after being beaten for about half an hour, the report stated, noting that abusive conditions had been used systematically against Palestinians interrogated at Shikma. The findings are based on the testimonies of 116 Palestinians interviewed between August 2013 and March 2014, along with dozens of affidavits and medical records. OPINION: Israels torture method force-feeding Israels high court prohibited the use of torture in 1999 and explicitly outlawed some of the specific interrogation tactics detailed in the report. At the time, the court said that interrogators would not be immune from prosecution over prisoner abuse. The by Ibrahim very dirty. The blankets stank. After about 10 days, I had a rash all over my body.] One of the things we noticed is that certainly there was a clear decline in cases of torture and ill-treatment, which was very common before the ruling, BTselem spokesperson Sarit Michaeli told Al Jazeera. The issue of detainee treatment has come under the spotlight again in recent months, amid a wave of violence and arrests since October. [While] there is a renewed escalation in the amount of violence in the West Bank, that does not justify increasing and using these kinds of methods, Michaeli said. Researchers found that interrogations by the Israel Security Agency are a lengthy component of Palestinian prison stays, and can last up to three months. Most Palestinians interviewed for the report said they were arrested overnight, blindfolded and handcuffed during transit. Thirty percent reported beatings before arriving at a detention facility. Once transferred to holding facilities, the report found detainees were punched, kicked or beaten with rifle butts or clubs. One-third of the Palestinians interviewed said they were imprisoned outdoors. At night, four soldiers came and made us go out into the yard. It was cold and raining, and they made us take all our clothes off, strip completely naked, said Imad Abu Khalaf, 21. Others were held indoors in solitary confinement between interrogation rounds. The cell was full of cockroaches [and] very dirty, said Ibrahim Sabah, 19. The blankets stank. After about 10 days, I had a rash all over my body. I scratched myself so much that I bled. Researchers said many prisoners were tortured by the Palestinian Authority (PA) before arrest by Israeli authorities. Several were transferred directly from one agency to the next. Obviously the torture [in Israeli jails] is systematic, Jamal Dajani, director of strategic communications and media in the PA prime ministers office, told Al Jazeera. However, he said he was not aware of similar practices in Palestinian prisons: I have no information where I can confirm these allegations. The Israeli Ministry of Justice did not immediately respond to Al Jazeeras request for comment. BTselem and HaMoked said there has been a lack of accountability for the mistreatment of detainees. Of more than 3,000 complaints filed with army prosecutors from September 2000 to the start of 2010, only 15 resulted in indictments for physical abuse, and of around 950 complaints made directly against Israels interrogation agency from 2001 to 2015, all cases were closed without any formal investigation. In September 2015, HaMoked filed a petition with Israels high court to review the conditions in Shikma, and the court ruled in January that prison authorities must begin cleaning mattresses once a month and build walls between restrooms and sleeping areas. More than 6,000 Palestinians are currently held in Israeli prisons throughout Israel and the occupied West Bank. Egypts president says he will remove from the face of the Earth anyone plotting to bring down the state. Egypts president has said that unfair criticism of the government is contributing to attempts to bring down the state, telling Egyptians not to listen to anyone but him. On Wednesday, President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi did not go into specifics in an address broadcast live, saying only that he would remove from the face of the Earth anyone plotting to bring down the state. Sisis government has faced a wave of criticism in recent weeks over alleged police brutality and other rights abuses, as well as its handling of the economy. The recently elected parliament, a 596-seat chamber, has been widely dismissed by critics as a rubber-stamp legislature. The remedy Sisi said he knows the remedy for Egypts problems. Please, dont listen to anyone but me. I am dead serious, he said in a loud, angry voice. Be careful, no one should abuse my patience and good manners to bring down the state. I swear by God that anyone who comes near it, I will remove him from the face of the Earth. I am telling you this as the whole of Egypt is listening. What do you think youre doing? Who are you? WATCH: What will stop police brutality in Egypt? As military chief, Sisi led the July 2013 overthrow of Mohamed Morsi, Egypts first freely elected president, whose divisive rule ignited mass protests. Sisi was elected president a year later, winning the vote with a landslide. But critics say he has done little to distinguish his rule from that of the Morsi, particularly regarding freedom of expression. One of Egypts most prominent columnists, Ibrahim Eissa, on Sunday accused Sisi of presiding over a theocracy after Ahmed Naji, an author, was jailed for two years over the publication of a sexually explicit passage from one of his novels. Police brutality Rights groups have meanwhile compared his rule with that of former President Hosni Mubarak, who was toppled by a 2011 popular uprising driven in large part by anger at police brutality. The government has jailed thousands of people it says support the Muslim Brotherhood, a now outlawed group in the country, since 2013 along with scores of secular activists, including leaders of the 2011 uprising. Rights activists have documented the return of arbitrary arrests, torture and disappearances. OPINION: Egypt has become an international laughing stock Sisi said that it was still very early for open democratic practices, like criticising and pushing [officials] out of office. I am not saying that there is no democracy. By God, no I am not, but be careful. We are practising it under difficult circumstances, so let us safeguard Egypt, he said. Sisi devoted much of his 120-minute speech, by far his longest since coming to office in June 2014, to the threats Egypt faces and his efforts to spare it from the violence convulsing much of the region. What has been achieved in the last year and half was not achieved in 20 years before then, he said, referring to a series of infrastructure projects, including an expansion of the Suez Canal. Sinai plane crash He also suggested for the first time that militants were behind the downing of a Russian passenger plane that crashed in Sinai on October 31, killing all 224 people on board. The crash dealt a major blow to Egypts vital tourism sector and raised troubling questions about the state of its airports security. The Islamic State of Syria and Iraq (ISIL) group claimed responsibility for the crash, and Russia announced in November that a bomb brought down the aircraft shortly after take-off from a popular Red Sea resort. Egyptian officials, however, have maintained that they must wait for the findings of an international probe before they can say what caused the crash. Those who downed the aircraft, what did they hope to achieve? Just to hit tourism? Sisi said. No, they also wanted to strike at our relations with Russia and, if they could, with the whole world, so we are left alone and isolated. Egypt has been battling an ISIL-led insurgency in the Sinai that grew increasingly assertive after Morsis overthrow, and which has carried out attacks across the country. On Wednesday, Sisi acknowledged also for the first time that security forces had committed excesses in Sinai, saying it was difficult to combat terror while safeguarding peoples rights. Am I happy about it? No, he said. Syrias main opposition bloc has said it will support a temporary two-week truce to test the seriousness of the other sides commitment to a US-Russian plan to end fighting. Earlier this week, the US and Russia agreed on a cessation of hostilities between the Syrian government and groups fighting it in a deal that excludes the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) and the al-Nusra Front. The agreement called on all sides to sign up to the deal by midday on February 26 and to stop fighting by midnight. The High Negotiations Committee believes a provisional truce for two weeks would provide a chance to determine the commitment of the other side to the ceasefire, the opposition bloc said in a statement on Wednesday. Assad ready for ceasefire The opposition statement came after Syrias president assured Russia of his readiness to respect the ceasefire, the Kremlin said on Wednesday. A phone call took place between Russian President Vladimir Putin and President of the Syrian Arab Republic Bashar al-Assad, the Kremlin said in a statement. In particular, [Assad] confirmed the readiness of the Syrian government to facilitate the establishment of a ceasefire. Assad described the ceasefire as an important step towards a political resolution for Syrias civil war, according to the Kremlin statement. However, Putin and Assad emphasised the need to continue an uncompromised fight against ISIL, the al-Nusra Front and other groups which are included in the respective list of the United Nations Security Council, the Kremlin added. Putin also discussed the ceasefire with the leaders of Iran and Saudi Arabia on Wednesday. Primary attention was focused on the Syrian issues, in particular the discussion of initiatives and proposals laid out in the Joint Statement of Russia and the United States on the cessation of hostilities in Syria, the Kremlin said in reference to Putins call with Irans President Hassan Rouhani. OPINION: A ceasefire in Syria is pure fantasy Saudi Arabias King Salman bin Abdulaziz al-Saud welcomed the achieved agreements and expressed readiness for mutual work with Russia to realise them, the Kremlin said. Saudi Arabia has been a key backer of the Syrian opposition and rebel factions, whereas Russia supports Assad, a longtime ally. Erdogans doubts Also speaking on Wednesday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that he was concerned that the US-Russian plan would provide an advantage for government forces and their backers while being indecisive on the terms for the Syrian opposition. Erdogan said in a televised address that Turkey welcomed efforts towards a ceasefire in principle, but he accused the US, EU, UN, Iran and Russia of acting dishonourably in Syria by directly or indirectly permitting government forces to kill civilians. The Syrian government said on Wednesday it was more determined more than ever to preserve Syrias unity after US Secretary of State John Kerry said it would be hard to hold the country together if the fighting did not stop. Damascus was determined today more than any time to crush terrorism and preserve the unity of Syria, according to a statement published by state media. Aid delivery Meanwhile, the UN said early on Wednesday that it had made its first airdrop of humanitarian aid to civilians in Syria, delivering 21 tonnes of relief to besieged residents in the eastern city of Deir az-Zor. Earlier this morning a WFP [World Food Programme] plane dropped the first cargo of 21 tonnes of items into Deir az-Zor, UN aid chief Stephen OBrien told the Security Council on Wednesday. We have received initial reports that pallets have landed in the target area. Yet WFP later released a statement saying there had been technical difficulties and that they would try the airdrop again in a few days. It is not clear if any aid reached those in need. UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric also told reporters that the WFP was still trying to get information on where the aid had ended up, suggesting it may not have all reached the target area. As you know, airdrops can be very challenging, he said. The pallets were dropped. Theyre [the WFP] trying to reach local partners to ensure that the aid was received. Al Jazeeras James Bays, reporting from the UN headquarters in New York, said the timing of the discussion of aid deliveries was important. The idea is not only to help desperate, in some cases, starving people. It is also an important component of the plan drawn up in Munich earlier this month to restart talks between the warring parties in Syria. The other part of that plan is the cessation of hostilities which is supposed to come into effect on Saturday. Health officials investigating possible sexual transmission of 14 new cases of disease usually spread by mosquitoes. United States health officials are investigating whether 14 new Zika virus infections may been transmitted through sexual contact, raising questions about the role of sex in spreading a disease that has been linked to birth defects in Brazil. Several of the cases involved pregnant women, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) warned on Tuesday. In two of the suspected cases, the infection has been confirmed in women whose only known risk factor was sexual contact with an ill male partner who had recently travelled to an area where the virus was present, the CDC said. Most experts had believed that sexual transmission of the illness was rare, but the new alert suggests sexual transmission of Zika may be more of a factor than previously thought. READ MORE: Zika virus facts you need to know Dr Peter Hotez, endowed chairman of Tropical Pediatrics at Texas Childrens Hospital, told Al Jazeera that it was a significant development for a virus mostly transmitted by mosquitos. These are all men in the early stages of infection, meaning that they have the ability to transmit the virus in the first two weeks of it to their wives or partners, Hotez said. This is a rare event, but transmission through sex is possible in certain circumstances However, we should still focus on Zika spreading through mosquitos. No spread through women All of the newly reported cases of sexual transmission have been in the US. There have been no reports of women transmitting Zika to male sex partners. In a recent study, British researchers reported evidence of Zika in the semen of a 68-year-old as long as 62 days after he was infected. Zika infection generally causes mild symptoms, but it may be linked to thousands of cases of birth defects in Brazil known as microcephaly, which is marked by undersized heads and underdeveloped brains. There is no cure or treatment for Zika infection. For pregnant women, the CDC recommended that if a male partner has travelled to an area of active Zika transmission that couples use a condom correctly and consistently for the duration of the pregnancy, or that they abstain from sex entirely. The war of words between Apple and the FBI over the encryption of a shooters smartphone is escalating. It is a public battle that goes to the heart of a very big debate. How much power should law enforcement and intelligence officials have to monitor our digital communications? On one side, the US Justice Department and the FBI. On the other, tech giant Apple, which is refusing to make software to unlock one of its iPhones. The device in question was used by one of the San Bernardino attackers. And the FBI says it needs to be unlocked so it can carry out a full investigation. But for Apple, it is about much more than a single phone. It is about the security of hundreds of millions of peoples private communications. And a precedent that could threaten civil liberties. So, who is the real defender of the people in this story, Apple or the FBI? Presenter: Mike Hanna Guests: Dean Crutchfield brand adviser and strategist for the Dean Crutchfield company. Gary Miliefsky co-founder and CEO of SnoopWall, a mobile device security company. Aral Balkan founder and chief lead designer of Indie. While vocalistmight seem to be a newcomer here in the States, Olhos de Mar is actually her sixth release dating back to 2002.Samba, bossa nova, the Brazilian ethos itself, including the language, all have a sensuousness which soothes life's troubles, and from this point of view, Olhos de Mar is way too short in the best way. Cunha's lovely and emotionally subtle voice, when coupled with the simple but effective accompaniment and arrangements sweeps everything superficial away, allowing one to experience the music directly, even if one does not know Portuguese (Brazilian or otherwise).Cunha has chosen to present songs composed by less well-known (than say, Jobim) song writers, and this was an excellent choice in that what is heard is many times pure poetry. The English-only listener can most certainly revel in the sounds of the words and the rhythms they produce when sung. But, in the spirit of deeper understanding, Cunha sent English translations, which have been tweaked. An example will make clear the composer's poetic intent.The title tune "Olhos de Mar" (Cristovao Bastos/Nelson Wellington) means "Eyes of the Ocean" and is typical:Eu mergulheiNo teu olharComo se fosse o marMar que sonhei, Em navegarLivre como os ventos e as ondasOndas em vaoVao me levarMas vou seguirSem naufragarSao os teus olhosQue vao guiarComo un farol no marFui muito alemSonhei voarIlhas em alto marMares cruzei, Ao navegarSob um ceu repleto de estrelasJuro pensei, Nao mais voltarE ao descobir, Que todo marTal qual amor, Pode secarVolte pr te encontrarI dove in your eyesAs if I was the seaThe sea that I dreamed ofWhile sailingFree as the winds and the wavesWaves in vainWill take meBut I will followWithout crashingBecause you eyesLead as a lighthouse on the seaI went much beyondI dreamed of flying toIslands on the high seasI crossed the oceanUnder a sky full of starsI swear that I thought I wound not ever again come backBut when I found out that the sea can be as dry as loveI came back to find youOf course, not all of the tracks are this beautifully intense, but quite a few are, and their cumulative effect is extremely moving.The lyrics of two tunes, "Saudades de Voce" (Longing/I Miss You) and "Pode ser que eu fique dessa vez" (Perhaps I Will Stay This Time) were written by Cunha, with music by guitarist Reg Schwager, and one, "Naquele outono" (That Autumn) was written by Cunha's mother:Oh world...This world is so big and I am so smallI remember things and suddenly I forget them allI think I got lostI cannot see the stars in the skyI just keep goingPlease come, light the flame in meMake my heart beat fastChange the autumn into summerMy dear, make the sun come during the nightAnd whatever that will be,I am a boat and you are a lighthouseI am a fish and you are a hookI am the rain and you are the blueI am a mouth and you are the honeyOf special note is "Manha Mineira" (Mornings In Minas gerais -a state in the southeast of Brazil). While the words evoke clear images and the music itself is light, Cunha uses vocal manerisms which add a touch of melancholy or consternation to the happy scenery.Brazil is beautiful, as are its people, and Cunha's performances reach deep within all of us. If you own a small business, you need business insurance. Period. But the type you need can vary widely depending on what your business does. Dont make the mistake that many young business owners make and assume that theyre protected simply because theyre incorporated. You need small business insurance. You can still be sued. If you think risks to your business are identifiable and avoidable, then you really dont understand how business works! Case in point: although my business is a software business, one of my employees unwittingly caused an explosion at a laundromat, and I almost lost my company because of it. Before you read any further, you should know Im not an insurance specialist or even a generalist. Im simply a battle-hardened entrepreneur who has bought insurance over the years, experienced my fair share of claims, and experienced the fanny-saving powers of insurance firsthand. In this article, Im offering a few basic insurance tips for small business owners. Even so, the insurance market is always in flux, and you should consult a good, ethical, and educated insurance broker. The broker will ask you questions about your business and help you find the right small business insurance for you. From liability insurance to health insurance, here are the basic types of small business insurance in laymans terms: Commercial General Liability (CGL) Insurance is intended to protect your business from claims resulting from accidents, injuries, and negligencethese could include libel, slander, property damage, or bodily injury. It may also cover the cost of your defense in a lawsuit. Every small business owner should have this type of insurance. Product Liability Insurance may give you some protection from safety issues if you manufacture, distribute, or even sell a product via retail or wholesale. It could protect your company from financial loss resulting from a product defect that causes an injury. Professional Liability Insurance, also known as errors and omissions insurance (E&O), may give your business some protection if you commit any malpractice, errors, or are negligent in the delivery of your services to customers. Commercial Property Insurance is intended to cover damages to business property from events such as fire, smoke, wind, hail, storms, vandalism, crime, civil disobedience, etc. The phrase business property can mean a lot of things. It includes not only your physical assets, which are generally considered deductible business expenses such as buildings, equipment, inventory, tools, computers, etc., but may also include your companys important documents and files, and the financial cost of a business interruption. Workers Compensation Insurance is a requirement if you have employees. It covers the costs involved if an employee experiences any kind of job-related injury. Check with your insurance broker to see if you must purchase it from a state-run program (i.e., North Dakota, Ohio, Washington, and Wyoming), or if you can buy it from your broker. Unemployment Insurance is also a requirement if you have employees. This insurance program allows employees to collect unemployment if they stop working for your business. Each state has its own state unemployment insurance coverage which is often referred to as SUI or SUTA, and your tax payments are calculated during the payroll process. Disability Insurance: If your business is located in California, Hawaii, New Jersey, New York, Puerto Rico, or Rhode Island, your business is required to purchase disability insurance for your employees. Check with your insurance broker. Homeowners Insurance is not intended to cover your business; its intended to cover your home. Check with your insurance broker to find out if you can add a rider onto your homeowners policy that may cover some aspects of your home-based business. Life Insurance is optional insurance that you can purchase to provide cash for your family members and/or business partner(s) if you were to die. It can also provide cash for your business if a key employee dies (e.g., your partner). Commercial Auto Insurance covers the physical damage and bodily injury caused by accidents involving the vehicles used in your business. Some states require commercial auto insurance for vehicles used in business. Directors and Officers Insurance (D&O) is liability insurance that is intended to pay for the legal defense for directors or officers of your company against claims that their actions harmed the company. Employment Practices Liability Insurance (EPLI) is intended to pay the defense costs should you be sued by a current or sometimes even a past employee. Reasons you might be sued include wrongful termination, discrimination, sexual harassment, wage and hour claims, etc. Cyber Liability (aka data breach) covers a business in situations where sensitive data (e.g., business data, employee data, customer data, etc.) is compromised or stolen, or if a business interruption involving computer systems or files occurs. Personal Umbrella Insurance is an inexpensive all-purpose policy that may offer a little extra protection to a business owner in a variety of situations. I personally like the idea of having a general, catch-all insurance policy that may provide some coverage in areas where nothing else protects you. Health Insurance may be required under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) to cover you and your employees. There are many different qualifications that determine the level of coverage you must provide, and the ACA adds another level to the mix. Health care is a complicated can of worms, so youll definitely need to consult with an insurance broker. Again, as a small business owner, you should sit down with your insurance broker (i.e., salesperson or agent) and learn what types of small business insurance policies are needed for your operation. Find the right insurance for your small business at The Hartford. UF has ranked among the top-10 public universities in the nation. The 2016 report by Buffalo Business First placed UF 10th in the nation out of 477 public universities. This puts UF above all other Florida schools. Last year, however, UF ranked seventh. Buffalo Business First assessed schools based on factors such as graduation rates, admission rates, racial and gender diversity of faculty and staff, housing affordability and rankings from other reports, such as the U.S. News & World Report. UF will continue to work to raise its national status, UF spokesman Steve Orlando wrote in an email. He said he wasnt sure why the ranking fell from seventh to 10th. Were still in the top 10, which is certainly a highly competitive group of institutions, he said. He said in the report, UF performed well in categories such as six-year graduation rates, affordability, and retention, or the number of students who come back to UF the next year. In some of the other areas, such as diversity, theres always room for improvement, he said. Erin Seu, a UF psychology sophomore, said she thinks UF could improve its ranking with more student diversity. I agree that diversity could use some more work, the 19-year-old said. But I dont necessarily think that its worse than last year. She said UF should be ranked a top-10 university. Its a competitive school because its a good school, she said. Enjoy what you're reading? Get content from The Alligator delivered to your inbox Subscribe Now GatorWell is educating students about positive body image this week. The Celebrate Every Body event series started Monday and ends Thursday, said Natalie Rella, a health promotion specialist at GatorWell. In 2014, GatorWell hosted four events. It planned three events this year in honor of National Eating Disorders Awareness Week. GatorWell held the BeYOUtiful Health and Wellness Fair on the Plaza of the Americas on Tuesday to allow GatorWell partners such as KIND Healthy Snacks and the Student Health Care Center to discuss positive body image. KIND had students write something positive on a compliment card to give to another student. To receive a shirt at the event, students visited organizations tables and wrote three things they love about themselves that dont involve their physical appearance. Rella said GatorWell is trying to get students to accept their bodies. We are trying to reach people before they reach the point of having an eating disorder by giving them some love around and asking them to reflect on all of the wonderful and amazing things this organism that is their body does for them every day, she said. Meaghan Nguyen, a UF architecture sophomore, represented KIND. She said she wanted to promote body positivity and self-kindness. They thought it would be a good idea for me to come here and interact with the students because our message also is to be kind, the 20-year-old said. Engineers Without Borders is letting students vote for a professor to pie. The fundraiser aims to raise $500 out of the $13,000 needed to travel to Bolivia in May. The money will go toward purchasing materials to provide residents with water filtration and irrigation systems to grow crops. The group of seven students going to Bolivia asked five UF professors to participate in the fundraiser, said Caroline Young, a UF mechanical engineering senior. Students can donate $1 on the Plaza of the Americas this week to pick which of the professors will have a whipped-cream pie thrown at them at 11 a.m. Friday on Turlington Plaza. We thought it would be a fun way to get the rest of our school involved with our project, the 22-year-old said. Aaron Thomas, a UF chemical engineering senior, said he will travel to Bolivia for the third time with the group this summer. On the trip, he will monitor the equipment installed to filter water. Its cool that I can also say that Im the one that will be using the money, so I can for sure tell you where its going, the 22-year-old said. Young said if the group reaches its goal of $500, theyve gotten permission to throw a pie at another UF faculty member. If we reach that amount, then were also going to pie President Fuchs, which would be really cool, she said. Police arrest man for attempted murder A Chicago man was arrested in Gainesville on Tuesday morning after police said he nearly shot someone in the head. At about 3 a.m. Tuesday, Christian Jamel Harris, 21, entered an unlocked unit of The Laurels, an apartment complex on Southwest 34th Street, according to a police report. Harris and an accomplice then walked into a bedroom, where they found a man, according to the report. Harris put his gun to the mans head and demanded money, according to the report. As the man pushed the gun away from his head, Harris fired. He narrowly missed the mans head, but the muzzle flash left a burn on his neck, Gainesville Police spokesman Officer Ben Tobias wrote in an email. Detectives think Harris might have specifically targeted the man, Tobias said. This is not a random attack, he said. After leaving the unit empty-handed, Harris and his partner tried to get back in through a window, according to the report. From inside, the mans mother yelled and the intruders left. Police later found Harris hiding in a bush outside the apartment complex. His accomplice was found near the entrance and was not arrested, according to the report. Police arrested Harris on charges of attempted murder and home invasion robbery with a deadly weapon. Authorities took him to the Alachua County Jail where he remains without bond. Police: Woman threatens to kill neighbors A Gainesville woman was arrested Monday afternoon after police said she swung a hammer and knife around Sunset Apartments. Enjoy what you're reading? Get content from The Alligator delivered to your inbox Subscribe Now At about 5 p.m. Monday, Asheeria Jashondrea Henderson, 25, screamed at one of her neighbors who was walking down a stairwell to her own apartment, according to a police report. Whats up, p---- hoe? Henderson said, according to the report. As her neighbor kept walking, Henderson entered her own apartment and emerged with a hammer, according to the report. I will kill one of you hoes, she said, according to the report. Henderson again returned to her apartment and grabbed a knife, according to the report. From an upstairs balcony, Henderson threatened to stab her 19- and 20-year-old neighbors, according to the report. She later ran across the balcony and spit on one of the womens chests, according to the report. No one was injured. Henderson told police her neighbors threatened to fight her, which is why she grabbed the weapons from her apartment, according to the report. She could not be reached for comment as of press time. Police arrested Henderson on a charge of battery and two charges of aggravated assault without intent to kill. Authorities took her to the Alachua County Jail where she was released on her own recognizance Tuesday. Man arrested with 13 ounces of weed A Kissimmee, Florida, man was arrested Monday night after police said they found three ounces of marijuana in the trunk of his car. At about 6:30 p.m. Monday, Reynaldo Jordan, 39, followed a car too closely on State Road 93, according to a police report. After police pulled him over, Jordan gave them permission to search his car, according to the report. Police with the Gainesville-Alachua County Drug Task Force found about 10 grams of weed in a red sweatshirt in Jordans trunk, according to the report. The weed was packaged in four small bags, according to the report. After searching further, police found three ounces 85 grams of weed in a white envelope that was also in his trunk, according to the report. Jordan told police he forgot the weed was in his car when he consented to the search, according to the report. He then told police he uses the weed for medicinal purposes, according to the report. Police arrested Jordan on a charge of possessing more than 20 grams of marijuana. Authorities took him to the Alachua County Jail where, as of press time, he remains in lieu of a $15,000 bond. Gainesville restaurants are selling grilled chicken sandwiches with fries for $5 until Sunday. The citys second annual Grilled Chicken Week started Monday, and a coupon is available on the Gift Certificates and More app. Gators Dockside, Texas Roadhouse, Cairo Grille, Napolatanos Restaurant, Chomps Sports Grill, Beef O Bradys and TGI Fridays are included in the promotion. Since were 100 percent digital, and since its gift certificates literally free money it hasnt been that challenging to get students,said Kevin Awe, the marketing director for the app. I think more students like the quality of our service, so they are coming on board. He said people must first create a free account on the app, and the coupon is listed under a category for Grilled Chicken Week. However, not everyone is excited about the discount. Manny Rutinel, the vice president of UFs Student Animal Alliance, said he does not support coupons for animal products. Rutinel, a 21-year-old UF microbiology and economics senior, said he believes animal products are bad for people, animals and the environment. However, Rutinel said the promotion will not stop him from possibly using the app for vegan-oriented deals. I think that helping out companies who are sponsoring vegan products is a great way to encourage them to keep doing that, he said. For people who feel otherwise, the coupon is available throughout the week, Awe said. Its a great deal, he said. Enjoy what you're reading? Get content from The Alligator delivered to your inbox Subscribe Now UFs Student Senate christened the white walls of the new Senate chambers with the election of a new Senate president and pro tempore at Tuesdays meeting. Jenny Clements, (District A, Impact) was elected as the new Senate president, and Smith Meyers (District A, Impact) was elected as the new pro tempore at the Reitz Union Senate chambers. Both ran unopposed. Janae Moodie (Public Health and Health Professions, Impact) and Ian Green (Business Administration, Impact) were chosen as the two members-at-large. Moodie received 68 votes, and Green received 55. Green ran against Dwayne Fletcher (District D, Access), who won 27 votes. SG elected Clements as Senate president with all 84 senators at the meeting rising in support. Im very excited to lead you all throughout this next term, Clements said. Im excited to get to work. Meyers won pro tempore, also with 84 votes. I want to offer an open-door policy to all of yall, Meyers said, referring to senators from both parties. If we can all develop that mentality, we will be able to accomplish so much good. SG held back-to-back meetings, welcoming newly elected senators as others finished their terms. An amendment to the agenda passed during the first meeting, certifying election results for the Spring Student Government election held Feb. 17. Erica Baker, the UF supervisor of elections, didnt attend the meeting. A few tears were later shed as 12 senators gave goodbye speeches during the first meeting. Replacement senator Katherine Feldner also left senate. Replacement senators for District A, B, C and D were approved unanimously. Dakota Stanford was unanimously approved to be on the allocations committee. UF Student Body President Joselin Padron-Rasines spoke about the success of Gator Day, where senators, students and UF administrators traveled to Tallahassee to lobby for funding. She said she believes the students were successful in lobbying for Norman Hall and mental health resources. Enjoy what you're reading? Get content from The Alligator delivered to your inbox Subscribe Now We have high hopes for the passage of the Norman Hall funding, she said. She also talked about how she launched an SG remote online voting code-revising task force for the 700 codes, with the hopes of online voting being implemented in the Fall. The Student Body passed an amendment for online voting during the Spring 2016 SG election. Sen. Chris Boyett (College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Impact), was expelled from the Senate for failing to meet with his constituents during his time as a senator. Former Senate President Pro-Tempore Jenny Clements is sworn in as Senate President by UF Student Body Chief Justice Andy Schein in the Reitz Union Senate Chamber on Feb. 23, 2016. When we talk about Florida politics, we usually do so in language expressing exasperation and disbelief. There is, after all, plenty to be angry about these days: Statewide, the ongoing battle over whether to allow fracking in Florida has intensified in recent days, and here in Gainesville, were contending with how to best correct overbilling and mismanagement on the part of Gainesville Regional Utilities and the Gainesville Renewable Energy Center. Theres also the not-so-little matter of gun legislation. As we reported Feb. 5, the Florida House of Representatives passed two bills aimed at allowing registered gun owners to openly carry firearms in Florida. As it stands, Florida is one of four states that do not allow firearms to be carried, well, anywhere in public. Naturally, this law also applies to college campuses. We find it silly that such bills would even be drafted, as Florida is doing just fine on regrettable gun violence without them. Back in November, the Jacksonville-based Florida Times-Union published an extended story complete with a compilation of relevant cases in Duval County on Floridas Stand Your Ground laws, which have become the center of national controversy, particularly following the 2012 murder of Trayvon Martin. In their research, they came upon several instances where Stand Your Ground not only failed to protect those it was meant to help, meaning Floridians seeking to make self-defense claims, but also created further ambiguities for lawyers and defendants seeking recourse through our states legal system; this is without even acknowledging the uncomfortable racial politics behind the law. With both our states polarized political climate and gun-crazy culture in mind, we expected the worst when the two aforementioned open-carry bills reached the Florida Senate. But something remarkable happened in Tallahassee on Friday: Sen. Miguel Diaz de la Portilla, R-Miami, refused to hear the bills. Because the bills had been assigned to the Senate Judiciary Committee, which Diaz de la Portilla chairs, his refusal to hear them more or less sentenced them to an ignominious death. When explaining his decision, Diaz de la Portilla said his reasoning stemmed from Really nothing more than common sense. If it werent Wednesday and we didnt abide by our own strict, self-imposed rules, wed give Diaz de la Portilla ALL of the Laurels. Operating on principle, rather than answering to lobbyists, is what good politicking is or at least ought to be all about. I just dont think any of these bills are necessary, Diaz de la Portilla said when talking to The Sun Sentinel on his policies. And I dont think any of these bills have anything to do with gun rights. They have to do with public safety, and I dont think any of these bills make us any safer. In fact, quite the opposite. In the same article, Diaz de la Portilla went on to say, I think theres a reason why every college and university president and all campus law enforcement are all against campus carry. And with open carry, same thing Just because you have a concealed carry permit and just because you have a handgun doesnt mean youre trained to respond in an emergency situation. We couldnt agree more. In a time when Home Alone 2: Lost in New York star Donald Trump is the GOP front runner and American politicians on both sides of the aisle seem more interested in serving their respective parties than their people, it is comforting, if only slightly, to know some elected representatives still value their morals and consciences over party prerogative and interest-group favoritism. Makeup artists are known for stocking the most hard-to-locate creams from French pharmacies, small batch oils from teeny tiny brands, and superluxe serums in their kits. In other words, a beauty junkie's dream. And it's not uncommon to find said makeup artists "cocktailing," or mixing up their own beauty concoctions. Take that one step further and you have the pros creating their very own products based on gaps they find in the market. Introducing: makeup artist Jillian Dempsey's newly-launched Lid Tints. "I created Lid Tints for selfish reasons," Dempsey says of the cream-gloss eye shadow hybrid. "I used to have to mix multiple products to get the desired 'worn in but pulled together' look." We've been testing them for a few weeks and they're seriously cool. In the conveniently small, mirrored compact, the formula looks like a typical cream shadow. But when you dab your finger into the pot and blend over your eyelid, it produces a subtle, stain-like effect that's glossybut not sticky. This stuff is virtually mistake-proof and produces the same come-hither eye effect you've seen on clients Jennifer Lawrence and Kristen Stewart. Speaking of gloss, this isn't the first time we've seen a polished eye this season, but like we mentioned above, the product breakdowns aren't always the simplest. Here, you only need this one, but if you're feeling adventurous, try layering it over a powder shadow or kohl liner. "Sometimes, powder eye shadows can make lids look crepe-y or flat," Dempsey says. To solve the problem, dip a brush into the tint and then blend everything together. "You're basically merging the whole look, almost like you're messing it up, but actually you're creating a unique, glow-y eye that has dimension." Jiillian Dempsey Lid Tints come in five pretty shades (Bronze, Lilac, Peach, Plum, and Smoke) and you can buy them now on Jilliandempsey.com for $28. The IMF will hold a conference call on background with journalists on Wednesday, February 24, 2016 on the Completion of the 2016 Article IV Staff Mission to Nigeria. Who: Gene Leon, Senior Resident Representative / Mission Chief for Nigeria, Africa Department, IMF When: Wednesday, February 24, 2016 at 9:00 a.m. Washington, D.C., time (3:00 p.m. []http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Appa-sourceTheAfric... On 23 February 2016, the HR/VP Federica Mogherini met in Brussels with the UN Secretary-Generals Special Representative and Head of the UN Support Mission in Libya, Matin Kobler. They exchanged views on the implementation of the Libyan Political Agreement and, in particular, on the importance for the House of Representatives to be able to quickly []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 The Deadly Assault and Bush Administration Cover-Up by S. Eben Kirkesby 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] Retailers who claim that restrictions on debit card fees benefit credit unions and community banks miss the point: These price controls are bad for consumers. After Congress passed the Durbin amendment which was authored by Sen. Dick Durbin as part of the 2010 Dodd-Frank Act merchants promised to pass the savings on to consumers in the form of lower prices. The price controls lawmakers were able to impose on those providing electronic payment options have resulted in an $8 billion annual handout to retailers that they have not passed on to consumers. Five years after the Federal Reserve issued a rule to implement the amendment, retailers have kept most of this revenue an estimated $32 billion for themselves. While Congress may have thought this legislation would provide a benefit to consumers, data from a survey of merchants contained in a recent Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond study indicates that the amendment is simply not working as intended. The report found that "few merchants are found to reduce prices or debit restrictions as debit costs decrease." This just reinforces the argument that the Durbin amendment is essentially a merchant handout from Congress. Consumer research echoes the reality that retailers are not passing on this revenue in the form of savings for customers. In September, Phoenix Marketing International conducted its fourth annual survey of nearly 2,000 consumers and found that the vast majority of shoppers have not experienced a price drop at the point of sale. In fact, in each of the 15 categories measured, at least 92% of shoppers reported that prices rose or stayed the same over the past year. In October 2013, the National Retail Federation said retailers have seen significant savings from swipe fee reform and are sharing that savings with their customers in a variety of ways. But the findings from the Richmond Fed and Phoenix Marketing International illustrate this is simply not the case. Merchants are now trying to claim that these restrictions benefit credit unions and community banks. This is also not the case. A study released last week by the Credit Union National Association reported estimated reduced revenue of $1.1 billion for credit unions resulting from Dodd-Frank's regulatory costs, all of which the report attributed to the swipe fee provision. Real data in the form of costs of processing changes and declining fees since 2011 debunks claims that credit unions and small banks below $10 billion in assets are not feeling the pinch. Further, there has been a decline in the interchange rate since the price controls went into effect. It continues to remain around 4 or 5 cents below where it was pre-Durbin, according to a survey by the National Association of Federal Credit Unions. Unlike merchants, financial institutions do not simply pocket interchange revenues. Instead, in addition to the many costs of supporting a global payments network, they invest in developing the latest security technologies, such as real-time predictive analytics, EMV, tokenization, biometrics and end-to-end encryption, to help keep consumers' data safe. The financial industry has put billions of dollars toward these and other technologies, and many of the security solutions being implemented today were originally developed by this industry. Unfortunately, lack of competition, market regulations and price controls have produced an economic environment beneficial to retailers and harmful to credit unions, small banks and most apparent of all the people they serve. Under the current price-controlled environment, Durbin has been a failure for everyone but retailers. Instead of trying to convince credit unions and community banks that price controls are good for them, the retail industry's time is better spent identifying ways to pass along their $8 billion annual boon to their customers. Jim Nussle is the president and CEO of the Credit Union National Association. Camden R. Fine is the president and CEO of the Independent Community Bankers of America. B. Dan Berger is the president and CEO of the National Association of Federal Credit Unions. Marketplace lending San Bernardino Attack Highlights Online Lending's Fraud Problem The Dec. 2 mass shooting has shone a light on the sector's vulnerability to borrowers who, exploiting the absence of face-to-face contact on the Internet, lie on their loan applications. December 10 Bank technology Trade-Off Gets Tougher Between Security, Convenience Authentication methods meant to keep cybercriminals from taking over accounts can also lock out legitimate users. This old dilemma is growing more vexing as cybercriminals get better at impersonating customers and as regulators increasingly push multifactor authentication. January 7 I am glad the Department of Justice picked a fight with Apple. Let me explain why. For a long time, Apple has had a differentiated stance on how its choices in security drive privacy of user data one that the tech giant has often sought to contrast with that of its competitors, especially Google. Where it once seemed that Apple's rigid stance on privacy and encryption hobbled its own ability to deliver a continuous user experience across its devices and services, that position has now equipped Apple to take up a principled position against the DOJ on behalf of user privacy. The careful considerations Apple has made toward encryption and device security throughout its device lineup, such as those detailed in the iOS security white paper, are based on a core premise: Apple is disassociated enough from how the data on the device is encrypted. The data encryption on the device uses both the user-supplied PIN code and a globally unique device ID that cannot be queried by anyone or ever leave the device. In other words, Apple can't be influenced by a third party to decrypt data on the device. So, iCloud backups which Apple encrypts with its own encryption keys remain the only accessible data for Apple to decrypt. This is bound to change in favor of better privacy and security in the future as Apple pivots slowly from a device-centric company to a services-oriented one. Since Apple won't easily be intimidated, the company can offer a better challenge to the DOJ than others the latter has battled. Take the anonymous email service Lavabit, for example. Chronicled here, Lavabit went from being told to install surveillance equipment that can sniff traffic, to being told to hand over its encryption keys so that every single email can be read, to ultimately deciding to shut down its service all in under six weeks. Something tells us that this fight, however, won't be so asymmetrical and shrouded in secrecy. What is being asked of Apple and why should it concern us? The FBI has asked Apple to provide custom firmware, which can be installed on the device in question at either an Apple or FBI facility to: a) remove the rate-limiting restrictions that exist to discourage endless attempts to enter a device PIN code; and b) remove the automatic-wipe security measure that wipes the data on the device after 10 incorrect PIN code attempts. Lacking the encryption keys Apple uses to sign its firmware, the FBI cannot attempt to do so itself. As Apple continues to be silent on the technical feasibility of an FBI request to break into an iPhone 5c, there has been much industry debate on whether such an attempt will work on newer iOS devices. The FBI contends that not only is Apple able to comply but it also can ensure the custom firmware it creates will be limited to the specific device. Irrespective of whether Apple can limit the firmware's applicability to the device in question, the risk is the legal precedent may guide futureadjudication in matters relating to encryption, data security and privacy. It could also mean that other tech and security companies may get pressured similarly and the outcome may not be as scope-bound as a specific device, and instead could result in poorly conceived and badly implemented back doors or master keys. Stuxnet is the perfect example of such an asymmetrical weapon, engineered to sabotage Iran's uranium enrichment program, only to lose control of it and see it spread outside of its originally intended scope. Regardless of whether Apple custom designs a firmware, specifically for the iPhone 5c in question, the larger concern is once such firmware exists, it amounts to a back door that cannot be unlearned. If Apple's own private keys are what afford such firmware legitimacy and trust so that it can be installed on a device, then what happens if the federal government asks Apple to surrender its keys, as they have in the case of Lavabit under a gag order? Apple has an unenviable position, that any decision the company makes specific to a single device can affect security decisions it is allowed to make on everything else Apple hasn't yet designed. What does this impact? Apple has commendably abstracted away all of the complexity around pervasive and unbreakable security in its devices so user data can remain secure, private and conveniently accessible. By encrypting the data on a device using both the PIN code and the unique device ID, Apple has ensured that no one can break into your device without authorization. You can back up your data into iTunes and store data on a computer, which then again is encrypted by the same key combination putting the data out of reach for any and all malicious or unauthorized access. The iCloud backup remains the third route for either you or law enforcement to access your files the former using your Apple ID, and the latter with a subpoena. The question then becomes: How will Apple respond in the future, especially in how it designs security into its devices, to counter what it sees as an overreach by the U.S. government? It has already disassociated itself from encrypting data on the device, using a combination of user-supplied PIN codes and unique device IDs that aren't known to Apple. But will it go even further? Will Apple discourage future law enforcement requests to weaken device security by triggering a device data wipe if a firmware were to be forced without the correct PIN code? Will Apple stop using its own encryption keys for iCloud backups, and instead, bring backups in line with how user data is encrypted in the other two scenarios a two-factor method that uses a user-supplied PIN code? These decisions, if Apple chooses to implement them, could cost Apple the careful balance it provides between user experience and pervasive and unbreakable security. And what if the government or the courts begin to force companies like Apple from engineering stronger security? Instead of recommending thresholds in system security to protect consumer data and commerce, will we begin to dictate how tall the ceiling can be? For instance, could Apple be stopped from changing how iCloud backups are encrypted which will obviate any and all incoming subpoenas for access to encrypted data? Should judges, who are woefully behind in understanding technology, be proposing boundaries in cryptography? San Bernardino won't be the last time we explain the importance and role of cryptography in securing everything from private messages and pictures to banking and global commerce. Regardless of how the DOJ makes this out to be about a single, specific device, outcomes rarely behave by the same rules. What is at risk requires a strong articulation in a climate of fear, and Apple and Tim Cook deserve all the credit for trying their best. Choices in security affect us all. Cryptography is not a tool for the criminal and math has no agenda. Cherian Abraham is a mobile security and payments consultant. He writes regularly on topics surrounding fraud, identity and payments on his blog Drop Labs. He can be reached on Twitter @cherian_abraham. BBVA has recruited Simple co-founder Shamir Karkal to build a platform that would open the bank's application program interfaces to outside fintech companies. Karkal has been named head of open APIs, he announced Tuesday in a blog post on the bank's website. Additionally, the blog post disclosed that the Madrid-based banking company is conducting early testing on an open API platform with a few partners in Spain. The rehiring comes at a time when banks and fintech companies are looking at ways to partner. Open APIs facilitate such collaboration by giving outside software developers easier (though controlled) access to a bank's data. Karkal stepped down from Simple, where he was also chief financial officer, in June 2015, about 15 months after the digital-only "neobank" was acquired by BBVA. In the blog post, Karkal said that acquisition familiarized him with the bank, whose U.S. operations are based in Birmingham, Ala. He has rejoined BBVA in the newly created position to mimic in banking what Amazon created with its Web services division. "When Amazon Web Services launched in 2006, people wondered why an online retailer was launching a new business offering companies server capacity from its own technology platform. I think that question has been answered fairly robustly: In the quarter ending in December 2015, AWS had revenues of $2.4 billion and operating income of $687 million," Karkal wrote. "Amazon has built the world's fastest-growing technology business (yes, faster than Google and Apple) by letting third parties build businesses using its technology platform," he added. BBVA is among the earlier adopters of open APIs. For instance, its BBVA Compass Bank unit provides a startup called Dwolla with access to its APIs for real-time money transfers. Although the opportunity to build an open platform holds great promise, the company must build it methodically with security and privacy of customer data as the highest priorities, Karkal said. "Of course building an open API platform for banking is a huge challenge as well," he said. To understand why there's been so much excitement about so-called blockchain technology, consider the drastic change coming this spring to the nearly $600 billion secondary market for leveraged loans. Sometime in the second quarter, the Loan Syndications and Trading Association plans to enact new rules on how investors and sellers in nondistressed loans are compensated for late-settling trades. Bearing the brunt of the changes will be buyers, who will lose out on collecting loan interest payments that are made between a loan trade's purchase agreement and ultimate settlement. That period averages three weeks. Rather than being automatically entitled to the spread on a loan during that period, buyers will have to bring funds and documents to the table to close the transaction within seven days or forfeit the so-called delayed compensation. While sell-side firms do collect their own delayed comp in carrying charges from buyers during the period of delay, the loan trades are holding up capital on their books while waiting to clear. For the LSTA, the delayed comp changes are an overdue correction to a slow settlement practice that provided investors with no-risk income as they waited for a deal to close. "You could argue the buyer wouldn't do all the things they need to do to close that trade in a timely fashion because they are getting free delayed compensation here," said Ted Basta, the trade group's senior vice president of market data and analysis. The directive by the LSTA has spurred complaints by investors, however, that they are being punished for the tortoise-paced settlement practice in loans. Loan buyers argue the delays are caused by the lack of automated processing of trades, rather than any incentive for them to sit on their thumbs while collecting free money. They have a point. The processing regime behind loan settlements is notoriously anachronistic, with agent banks often ferrying faxes and e-mails between buyers and sellers to close loan trades. Trades are often held back by exceptions that must be manually fixed such as having to determine a trader's compliance with know-your-customer regulations, or whether a buyer is permitted to obtain the loan under borrower's consent clauses in the original credit agreement. The delayed comp dilemma is among many of the sludgy settlement and processing practices in the capital markets. For many proponents of modernization and greater efficiency in the loan, bond, swaps, and private placement fields, it's well past time to put investors, banks, brokers and borrowers on the same technological page. Or, perhaps, the same chain. Over the past two years, a buzz has been building over the potential for the use of blockchain technology in financial services and markets. The original blockchain is the distributed ledger behind bitcoin, providing a constantly updated, public record of the history and ownership of each unit of the virtual currency. But most of the financial industry's recent flirtation has been with blockchain systems that are unconnected to bitcoin, or any digital token for that matter. What has financial markets intrigued about blockchains is the potential to offer the same shared ledgers across multiple users to perform financial transactions or back-office functions in a manner that delivers real-time data to all parties involved. Instead of data, documents or other information rolling out from a central database to users' private systems, the ledger is viewable and usable at once by any and all nodes on a distributed network (either private or public). "It's both automation and sharing the automation," said Preston Byrne, the chief operating officer and co-founder of Eris Industries, a startup blockchain company based in London whose open-source platform is used for developing shared ledgers tied to syndicated loan origination and issuance. "You can automate anything" on a Microsoft SQL server platform, said Byrne. "That was doable 10 years ago. But what you can't do is automate something at the same time in two different places with an SQL server." Many of the exact case uses of blockchain technology remain theoretical. In a recent white paper, the Depository Trust & Clearing Corp. noted that distributed ledger technology had key platform challenges to overcome, including a lack of coordination on standards and the ability for improvements in settlement time that won't need mass blockchain adoption. "Importantly, while there has been a great deal of discussion around implementing real-time settlement using distributed ledger technology, the current U.S. equity market convention of T+3 [three days to settle a trade] is based on laws and market structures," the report stated. "Modernizing current practices and laws to enable real-time settlement are not dependent on the use of blockchain technologies. However, the DTCC did single out syndicated loans as an area "where blockchain could fill the gap that has not been filled by proprietary automated workflow solutions." Chris Whalen, a senior managing director at Kroll Bond Rating Agency, is even more skeptical about the applicability of a technology invented by a pseudonymous cypherpunk to a complex, regulated industry. "Ultimately the blockchain was created to replicate an exchange of [digital] cash between two individuals, not to enable global payments or securities transactions," Whalen wrote in a recent research note. Nevertheless, the industry is under enormous pressure to reduce its operational costs. At a conference last summer hosted by American Banker, former JPMorgan executive-turned-blockchain-champion Blythe Masters spoke of the need for improving settlement latency in the back office. She noted the delays of days, weeks or months in back-end processing, and the inefficiencies in record-keeping (and the related hazards in regulation and compliance) and settlement, which can take days or even months to complete. "I believe that [blockchain] technology has the potential to truly change the way the financial world operates, to reduce costs, improve efficiency, reduce risks and ultimately provide better customer service, which ultimately is what financially services needs to be all about," Masters said. Her startup, Digital Asset Holdings, has been one of the most watched firms in the blockchain space. In February, Masters' firm announced the company has formed strategic partnerships with Accenture, PricewaterhouseCoopers and Broadridge to drive adoption of blockchain solutions for clients. Accenture will be the preferred systems integrator, implementing the tools from Digital Asset. Both companies are founding members of the Linux Hyperledger Project that involves banks, clearing houses like the DTCC and tech companies collaborating on potential solutions. According to a blockchain industry report last fall, Digital Asset is one of the most widely focused vendors in its plans to produce blockchain capital markets solutions. Digital Asset is developing tools that would handle workflow in origination/issuance, middle-office automation and clearing/settlement across loans, over-the-counter and listed derivatives, fixed income, private equity, private placement and trade finance. While not working on settlement solutions, Eris has been focused on the handling of the origination and issuance of syndicated loans. The company has its own alliance with PwC, and several "bulge-bracket banks" are testing Eris' open-source software to handle lifecycle management of debt instruments, according to Byrne. Few details have emerged about specific uses that financial institutions are planning to develop with blockchain technology. That seems less a trade secret than the reality that banks aren't sure how blockchain-based protocols will evolve, according to Gabriel Wang, a buyside analyst on institutional securities and investments for the technology research firm Aite Group. The mechanism that many point to as a means of delivering blockchain's promise is the use of "smart contract" applications within the blockchain format that carry instructions on how information or data is to be carried out. For example, according to Wang, a smart contract could automate a business process (such as a title transfer) when certain conditions or trigger events are met in a trade. But of the all the financial sectors, the capital markets may be the most conducive to blockchain's structures. Capital markets deals tend to be large-value, low-volume deals that fit into a blockchain's limited scalability and speed of execution; they also carry high clearing and settlement risks mired in paper-based workflows and have a finite number of market participants that a blockchain could expand to include. "If you are trying to use this in U.S. equity markets, where you have high speed trading, algorithms, and the ticket sizes are pretty small, blockchain is not very suitable for markets like that," said Wang. "For syndicated loans and ABS, you have this really large notional amount of volume to trade," he continued. "They are made over the phones, in which trade negotiations could take days and settlement times can be weeks. That's why a lot of blockchain vendors in the space have looked at syndicated loans, corporate bonds and ABS as a focus in their area." In looking at efficiency gains, the potential changes to existing practices and transaction structure in capital markets are expansive. Eris' Byrne sees a host of new realities that could govern how transactions are conducted and managed through blockchain automation. "Let's say it's a note or bond," Byrne said. "Do you need a registrar anymore if the software is keeping track of who owns what? Do you need a clearing system if all of the software that is managing the lifecycle is not only tracking who owns what, but also all the transfers that [can] become legally valid once someone has submitted an instruction to transfer them? "And can you then take all those roles and collapse them into the lead manager or the arranger/agent, whoever is sitting at the top of these transactions?" One of the first successful tests of a blockchain technology taking on a traditional role was December's announcement by Nasdaq OMX Group that a client had used its Linq blockchain ledger technology to conduct a shares transfer to a private investor all without the benefit of a middle man clearing house. That may be a bridge too far in some areas of capital markets. As Byrne pointed out, there is a market pricing function to exchanges and clearing houses that can't be replaced or replicated in a direct blockchain connection. These intermediaries also allow some information to be kept confidential. "Bitcoin was trading among a closed group of participants that needed perfect transparency," Byrne said. "With trading in the financial markets, you don't want perfect transparency. You want your affairs and your holdings to be opaque. "The blockchain is a big blank slate and will do exactly what the bank tells it what to do," Byrne said. It's really up to them what those problems are." Mobile payments are often described as a problem in search of a solution, but there is one niche that is gaining traction: virtual corporate cards for employees with infrequent business expenses. Several banks say that corporate clients are embracing single-use virtual cards, as they make it easier for companies to monitor spending, limit the number of physical cards issued and reduce paperwork in expense reporting. "Virtual will continue to accelerate and will be much more meaningful in terms of total volumes," said Kevin Phalen, head of commercial cards and comprehensive payables at Bank of America Merrill Lynch. "Clients are very interested and are widely adopting virtual accounts." The increasing adoption of single-use virtual cards is a tangible example of an in-demand mobile payment solution at a time when other mobile wallets' use cases struggle to get users. Banks, card companies and mobile phone companies clearly see mobile payments as the way people will pay for things in the future but are still searching for a catalyst for adoption. Companies like JPMorgan Chase see tying rewards to its mobile wallet as the way to increase usage, for instance. Observers say the world of corporate mobile payments is perhaps even more uncertain, given the considerably slower pace of innovation at the corporate banking level. "We're seeing [adoption] happen, but we're seeing it happen very slowly," said Jim McLeod, emerging payments practice lead for Carlisle & Gallagher Consulting Group. "On the retail side there is somewhat of an 'If you build it, they will come' mentality, and in fact we are seeing a slow but nice curve of adoption of digital payments [by retail customers.] I think everyone thinks the same concept holds true for corporates, and I believe it eventually will, but it will take a lot longer." For now, commercial clients are more interested in these one-time virtual cards rather than a holistic mobile payments solution, Phalen said. "Mobile payments [for corporate customers] will continue to evolve and many issuers will begin to adopt them for early-adopter clients, but they will not represent a meaningful amount of volume in 2016," he said. Virtual cards store payment information in a digital format for one-time use, and can be used for a singular need for payment for a business expense, or to give to contractors, consultants or other non-employees on a limited basis. For instance, such a card could be generated to pay for a hotel for someone who rarely travels on behalf of the company. The 16-digit card number can be accessed via an app on a mobile device by users, or directly by the business where the payment is authorized via the Web. Once the payment is made, the one-time card number generated becomes invalid. Part of the attraction is the security. In general, digital payments are more secure than physical corporate cards, said Eric Brewer, head of treasury and payment solutions at SunTrust. "When you eliminate all these physical cards floating around out there, it can definitely reduce the amount of fraud," he said. Further, virtual or digital payments can be limited for use by a specific employee at a specific place for a specific amount, thus greatly reducing the chance of fraud or theft, he said. American Express, one of the major providers of corporate payments solutions in the United States, has also noted an increased demand for virtual cards. Its vPayment solution allows companies to set a specific payment amount, date range and other transaction details. Corporate clients like the solution because it helps control spend and streamline the reconciliation process, said Terry Bodensteiner, vice president of global corporate payments for Amex. "Some of our larger corporate clients have been increasingly interested in single-use virtual cards, particularly to book hotels and air travel," he said. Global travel, however, does create some problems for virtual cards. For instance, an employee could travel to a place where such technology is not supported and would still need a physical card. "Given the global nature of [business] travel the reality is that each market is evolving at its own pace," Phalen said. "As such you can expect to see cards in wallets for at least the next three to five years, but the use of physical plastics will continue to diminish." While digital payments offer such advantages for commercial customers, banks themselves can also realize benefits, such as not having to manage and ship cards. And greater security means less time and resources banks have to dedicate to investigating fraud, and potentially reimbursing customers who were legitimate victims of fraud. "By digitizing payments, you rid the cost of plastic, and with companies having employee turnover, there's a lot of cards to manage from a security perspective," McLeod of Carlisle & Gallagher said. Many moons ago, I clerked on the U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit. I worked for a wonderful man, a former U.S. Marine with a 1950s sense of humor, a Reagan appointee. While he has since died, I recently thought again about one day in his chambers. A famous, irrepressible and ever-candid lawyer -- and Harvard Law professor was preparing to present a case to the three-judge panel. He was -- and is -- a celebrated appellate litigator. His name was and is Alan Dershowitz. Dershowitz is a bit of a character, a noted scholar of constitutional and criminal law, but a rough and ready legal maverick, always candid. He is also a notorious political liberal. While I went to Columbia Law School, friends that knew him and anyone who has ever read about him know he is outspoken. So, I had read his briefs. They were, as expected, cogent. He had tried to squeeze too many words into them, and the judges had pointed that out. But otherwise, his voluminous written material had permitted an allowance of considerable time which is rather rare to present his case. I sat in the back of the room, wondering how he would tear through 20-some legal points in as many minutes. He would have to be a speed demon, and surely would lose his race with the clock. The proceedings commenced, and a funny thing happened. This legendary legal mind was ahead of us. In so many words, he calmly, and without the expected fanfare and fireworks, approached the bench and said now set aside all my arguments, except this one. And he then used his entire 20 minutes to carefully articulate with many questions coming at him why this one argument should win the day. It was a brilliant legal maneuver, making the judges focus on one issue and what mattered most, although against a backdrop off many other options. My memory is that he split the bench, causing a 2:1 decision, although I believe against him not for him. Still, strategic. I raise this example of how Dershowitz approached the bench long ago, because it illustrates his capacity to see beyond the expected, and as usual to say exactly what he thinks. He does not shrink from controversy or try to gild the lily. What is more, in the many years since, this Harvard professor has distinguished himself as a diehard Democrat, supporting both Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. So, what relevance can such a dyed-in-the-wool Democrat if also exceptionally successful litigator on constitutional issues -- have for us in this moment? Mostly none, except for this. He was forced since professors are always forced to teach a student that came his way. The student came his way about twenty years ago, almost exactly. The student did not share the liberal professors views. He actually was, by all reports, an articulate unpacker of those views. The student was an attendee at Harvard Law School in the mid-1990s. And a standout. That student, who sparred and bravely spoke truth to power, who spoke as a young, principled mind to a professor already years beyond the day I had watched him court, was none other than Ted Cruz. Now U.S. Senator Cruz. What those classes must have been like! Here was Dershowitz, who has boldly, openly diminished, denounced and decried the Second Amendment, facing off against a young student who would later argue and help win the so-called Heller case, which preserved the Second Amendment. Here was the famed professor likely dueling with the young conservative student, who would later defend and win the Ten Commandments case at the U.S. Supreme Court as the Texas Solicitor General. What sparks must have flown in that classroom! But here is the real point. Many candidates in this years primary cycle are pounding their chests or trumpeting their virtues of wit and vigor, resolve and ability to deliver. But Ted Cruz has been through a dozen crucibles, and emerged victorious from these varied fights. Some have been political, some legal, some simply tests of consistency, principle and stick-to-it-ness. He has won in the heat of battle, and is someone who -- in fact -- warms to the battle. But there is just this one last fact. Seldom does a conservative, in battle with a political and legal liberal, or as distinguished a litigator as Alan Dershowitz, win both the argument and a compliment. Usually, the reverse occurs, at least in the modern world. The victor is reviled and faces endless recriminations, complaints and allegations of this and that. But to the credit of the liberal Harvard professor, he paid young Ted Cruz perhaps the highest compliment he could muster. Asked by the National Review what Dershowitz thought of the young conservative -- now with a chance to become Americas level-headed president -- the esteemed litigator just this: Cruz was off-the-charts brilliant. So, as we go to the polls and think about the future, what about that? If Ted Cruz can not only win Iowa, and a healthy proportion of New Hampshire and South Carolina --- and can even earn the grudging respect of a senior adversary before the bench --- should we not be thinking hard about how he could serve America? Rebuild America? Win for America? Let me collapse 20-plus arguments, if I may, into one: Ted Cruz is the kind of leader that would bring respect to America, if we are ready for that. I am. Robert Charles, a former Assistant Secretary of State, former litigator and former Harvard University extension school instructor on law and congressional oversight, writes regularly on constitutional law, national security, and foreign policy. At a moment when Turkey is involved in a host of problems -- its fight against the Kurdistan Workers Party in southeast Turkey, friction with Russia, uncertain involvement in the war against ISIS, and purported secret negotiations with Israel -- it can still render service to the cause of international peace. It could indicate how the process leading to the creation of Turkey could encourage Palestinian authorities to enter into peace negotiations with Israel. Turkey evolved from the Ottoman Empire that had lasted from the 15th century until World War I. Ottoman power had been diminishing for over a century, and in 1908 the Young Turk Revolution took effective control, limited the powers of the Sultan and ruled through a military clique. After a number of wars, with Italy 1911-12, with Balkan countries, 1912-13, the Empire chose the wrong side in World War I by fighting on the side of the Central Powers, (primarily Germany and Austro-Hungary) against the Allied Powers (UK, France, Italy, Belgium, Russia for a time, and the U.S.). After WWI, the military leader Mustafa Kemal Ataturk led the Turkish National Movement and established a provisional government in Ankara in 1921. The last Ottoman Sultan Mehmed VI was deposed on November 1, 1922 by the National Assembly and fled to San Remo, Italy. To settle the conflict that had existed between the Ottoman Empire and the Allied Powers because of the world war a peace conference as held at Lausanne, Switzerland, beginning in November 1922. The provisional government sent representatives, headed by Ismet Inonu, to the conference. The conference concluded with the Treaty of Lausanne on July 24, 1923, which the Turkish leader Arafat called a diplomatic victory unheard of in the Ottoman history. The treaty ended the conflict in which Turkish forces were involved, and defined the border of the new Turkish Republic. Turkey gave up all claims to the rest of the Ottoman Empire; in return, the Allied Powers (UK, France, Italy, Japan, Greece, and Romania) recognized the independence and sovereignty of Turkey. By the terms of the Treaty, which also defined the boundaries of Greece and Bulgaria, Turkey lost various territories. There had already, in January 1923 in Lausanne, been a population agreement between Turkey and Greece, largely based on religious identity. Turkey renounced claims on territory outside its agreed boundaries. It lost Cyprus that had remained de jure Turkish though it had been leased to Britain after the Treaty of Berlin in 1878. It lost Egypt and the Anglo-Egyptian Sudan that was also de jure Turkish but had been under British control. Turkey ceded all claims to Syria and Iraq, and also, though not explicitly, claims to territory south of Syria and Iraq, including what is now Israel. The result was the creation of a number of Arab states, most of which are now involved in conflict, and many of which are failing states. A parallel can be drawn from the story of the creation of Turkey concerning what Palestinian authorities should do if a peace agreement is ever to be reached with Israel. What is most important about the Treaty, and what perhaps makes it unique, is that the losing power, now called Turkey, came to the negotiating table with its concerns and objectives but without preconditions. It bargained in good faith and accepted the result. Consequently, a new state emerged, one acceptable to the international world. Indeed, the Turkish representatives at the conference behaved as, and were treated as, equals. The head of the Turkish group, Inonu, later to become prime minister (November 1923-November 1924), and president (1938-1950), raised objections to procedures and drafts, was adept at delay, and feigned deafness to avoid confrontations. He challenged the British delegate, Foreign Minister Lord Curzon, by ascending the rostrum and stating that he hoped that all the peace demands would prevail in the conference and we would make peace that would be fair to everyone. Why cant the leaders of the Palestinian authorities behave as did those nationalistic Turks almost century ago? Like the rulers of the Ottoman Empire they choose to be on the losing side of so many conflicts, but unlike the Turks have persisted in refusing to reach a compromise solution and international recognition by the negotiating process. Like the Turks they would profit by coming to the table without preconditions, by playing an equal role in the give and take of negotiations and by agreeing to abide by the results. Instead, we have the regrettable statement by the Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Palestinian Authority, Riyad Malki, in Tokyo on February 15, 2016 that We will never go back and sit again in direct Israeli-Palestinian negotiations. The PA prefers the negative approach ignoring any negotiating process, and engaging violations of the 1993 Oslo Accords. Its positive contribution has been encouraging the BDS movement against Israel. Malkis statement is a reminder of the irresponsible statement in October 1947 by Abdul Rahman Azzam, Secretary of the Arab League. He declared that the establishment of a Jewish state would lead to war of extermination and momentous massacre it will be distinguished by 3 serious matters, the shortest road to paradise... an opportunity for vast plunder avenging the martyrdom of Palestinian Arabs. Will the Palestinian leaders be interested in building a stairway to paradise? They have the opportunity now that the French have proposed a diplomatic initiative to prepare an international peace conference to resolve the Arab-Israeli conflict. The Palestinians might reflect on the nature, significance, and success of the Lausanne Treaty. In the meantime, Turkish President Recep Tayyid Erdogam, who stated on January 1, 2016 that Turkey needs a country like Israel will make his mark in international politics by persuading Palestinian leaders that they should have the same need. Have you ever heard of Wentworth Cheswell or the Reverend Jonas Clark? How about Peter Salem? If you havent, dont feel bad. I didnt know either and I taught history. With all the chatter about February being Black History Month, I thought I would throw myself into the fray to offer a little sneak peek into the history we never learned in school. Frankly, I have never been a fan of Black History Month. No, Im not a racist. To me, history ought to be taught through a more integrative rather than separatist approach. The fact of the matter is black and white Americans have often worked side by side contributing to our rich history -- a history that dates back to our nations founding. Unfortunately, this history has often been distorted, even erased from our history books by progressives -- the real racists. Lets take a closer look at some of these amazing black American patriots. 1) Wentworth Cheswell (1746-1817): Few people have ever heard of Wentworth Cheswell, yet in 1775 he rode alongside Paul Revere to alert everyone that the British were coming. As the story goes, the two men eventually split off -- Cheswell rode north and Revere rode west. In addition to being a patriot, Cheswell was a respected schoolteacher, church leader, and historian. He also became Americas first black judge in 1768. Thats seven years before America won her independence! 2) Jonas Clark (1730-1805): At one point during the all night ride, Paul Revere visited the home of the Reverend Jonas Clark in Lexington where Samuel Adams and John Hancock were also lodging. At the time, British invasion was imminent and when asked, Rev. Clark reassured everyone that he and his mixed black and white congregation were ready to fight. And fight they did! It was the Battle of Lexington on April 19, 1775. Theres even a painting of the famous battle depicting the members of Rev. Clarks church defending their town. 3) James Armistead (1760-1832): When James Armistead was granted permission by his master to serve under the young General Marquis de Lafayette in the American Revolution, I doubt he ever imagined himself as Americas first double-spy. Thats right, a double-spy. Armistead was originally dispatched to turncoat General Benedict Arnolds camp posing as an escaped slave looking for work. He got the job. Even better, he was assigned to work amidst other British generals, including the bigwig himself, General Charles Cornwallis. Armistead gathered all kinds of vital information on the British and promptly gave it to Gen. Lafayette. Ironically, Gen. Cornwallis trust in Armistead developed into another job offer -- to spy on the Americans. Of course, Armistead couldnt resist the opportunity and immediately began filtering inaccurate information about the Americans to the British, ultimately impacting the outcome of the war. After the war, Lafayette wrote to the Virginia General Assembly, describing Armisteads valuable service. In return, he was officially granted his freedom and a full retirement pension. From then on, James Armistead called himself James Lafayette. 4) Lemuel Haynes (1753-1833): Another black patriot was the Reverend Lemuel Haynes, who was abandoned by his parents when he was just five months old. He was taken in by Deacon David Rose and his family who guided him through the successful completion of an apprenticeship and schooling. Soon after, Haynes enlisted with the Minutemen in the Connecticut militia, taking part in important battles including the siege of Boston and a military expedition against Fort Ticonderoga. Later, after the war, Haynes became the first black preacher to be ordained by a mainstream Christian denomination. You might also be surprised to learn that he had all-white congregations in Connecticut, Vermont, Massachusetts, and New York. 5) Peter Salem (1750-1816): Then theres Peter Salem, another member of the legendary Minutemen, who fought in a number of important battles including the famous Battle of Bunker Hill on June 7, 1779. This battle was depicted in a painting titled The Death of General Warren at the Battle of Bunker Hill by John Trumbull. In the painting, Salem is standing behind the man with the sword to the right, Thomas Grosvenor. Salem fired the shot that killed Major John Pitcairn, the British officer who led the Redcoats to attack Salems small unit at Lexington. Salem received 14 military commendations and was even brought before Gen. Washington who honored him as a hero. Like others, he was a slave until he joined the army and fought as a free man. Most people are not aware that many of the soldiers during the American Revolutionary War were black, with nearly 5,000 fighting in the fledgling Continental Army. In fact, military units often consisted of both black and white patriots fighting and dying side by side. Whats even more astonishing is that while much of this history is unknown today, it wasnt always the case. For generations historians had written about this in school textbooks. William Cooper Nell, for example, published an 1855 textbook called, The Colored Patriots of the American Revolution. Since then, these fascinating stories have been excluded from the classroom as if they never existed. Instead, todays school children are filled with demoralizing stories about black struggle and victimization by whites, as if this is the whole picture of the black experience. I dont know about you, but I believe American children deserve better. They deserve to be taught an accurate history of America, one that includes the inspiring stories of patriotism, integration, and sacrifice. Indeed, these forgotten black heroes are worth remembering -- and not just in February. Kimberly Bloom Jackson is a former actress turned teacher and cultural anthropologist. She can be found snooping behind the scenes of Hollywood, education, and culture at SnoopingAnthropologist.com. The latest batch of Hillarys classified emails now totals over 1,700. Her decision to exclusively conduct official business on a separate remote and unsecure email server has placed the men and women of the Intelligence Community (IC) in turmoil. Members of the IC would never be allowed such permissions and it is an abuse of authority to purposefully circumvent classified information safeguards. Within the IC there exists (at least) two systems, one classified system and an unclassified system. The Non-classified Internet Protocol (IP) Router Network (abbreviated as NIPRNet) is a private IP network used to exchange unclassified information. The Secret Internet Protocol Router Network (SIPRNet) is a system of interconnected computer networks used by the U.S. Department of Defense and the U.S. Department of State to transmit classified information (up to and including information classified SECRET). In a letter to the chairmen of the Senate intelligence and foreign affairs committees, the intelligence communitys inspector general, said that he has received sworn declarations that cover several dozen emails containing classified information determined by the IC element to be at the CONFIDENTIAL, SECRET and TOP SECRET/SAP information. The rules for the management of Special Access Programs is in a category unto itself. SAPs are so sensitive that even people who have security clearances giving them access to Top Secret/Sensitive Compartment Information (TS/SCI), an enormously high security clearance level, cannot have accesses to a SAP unless they receive a special indoctrination into the SAP based on an operational must know that exceeds all other need to know standards. Compromise of a SAP is the single most dangerous security violation that can ever happen to the USA. Even the enormously damaging revelations of the Edward Snowdens TS/SCI security compromise does not reach the level of a SAP compromise. The unauthorized disclosure and transfer of SAP information, onto something like Hillary Clintons unsecure server, is a class one felony. That is because such a compromise is so dangerous that it could and likely will result in the death of people protected by and within the scope of the SAP. To transfer any classified information onto an unclassified system, you have to work at it. To transfer classified information from a secure classified system and move it to an unclassified system is not only difficult, it is illegal. Its called espionage. Seventy years ago, the former government lawyer and State Department official Alger Hiss, removed classified information from the State Department. He typed them on his office typewriter, slipped the copies into a briefcase, and provided them to his Soviet agent who photographed and microfilmed them. When the FBI retrieved the spools of microfilm, the Hiss Papers printed out to a stack 4 feet tall. The FBI case against Alger Hiss was a clear-cut case of espionage, but because of the statute of limitations, Hiss was convicted of a lesser crime -- perjury. There is little doubt the Democratic presidential candidate under investigation by the FBI had her State Department minions strip off the classification headers and footers of thousands of classified documents and input those documents -- they had to type them into an unsecured email server. Alger Hiss found a way -- he typed them -- to remove classified information from the offices of the State Department. The essence of espionage is to get classified documents out of a Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility, a SCIF, and into the hands of someone not authorized to receive them. Whittaker Chambers walked away from the Communist Party USA and accused the number three man at the State Department, Alger Hiss, of espionage. Hiss copied thousands of the most classified documents in the State Department on his office typewriter and for years spirited those documents out of Foggy Bottom in his briefcase. The classified originals never left the security of a SCIF. The 4-foot tall stack of documents held by the FBI were so explosive, the heavily left-leaning Justice Department abandoned plans to indict Whittaker Chamber. One official involved in the investigation said that the special access program information found on Hillary Clintons email was so sensitive that Intelligence Communitys Inspector General, Charles McCullough and some of his aides, had to receive clearance to be read on the SAP before they could view the sworn declaration about the Clinton emails. The Special Access Program material does not appear to be the same two Top Secret emails identified earlier among the hundreds of classified emails found on Clintons server. FBI may refer Hillary Clinton and her staff -- Huma Abedin, Cheryl Mills, and Jake Sullivan -- for indictment for the simple charge of mishandling classified information. But dont bet the rent money. Over the last 70 years, left-leaning Justice Departments have a history of watering down or drowning any indictment of top-level Democrats caught in the act or suspected of conducting classic espionage. Mark A. Hewitt is a former member of the Intelligence Community and the author of espionage thrillers. His novels have been approved by the CIA Publication Review Board. In the past two weeks a number of events have taken place in Turkey that, taken together, indicate that this erstwhile U.S. ally is spinning dangerously out of control with neither Ankara nor Washington and its European allies having the slightest clue of what to do. It started several days ago with the Turkish artillery targeting the Kurdish YPG military units n Syria, a key U.S. ally against ISIS, as they made progress in taking over formerly terrorist-occupied terrain north of Aleppo. This was followed by Turkey enabling thousands of jihadists entering Turkish territory from Syria with all of their weapons and exiting back into Syria from a different border crossing to join the battle against the anti-Assad forces. As if to show on whose side Ankara really is, a local news agency provided pictures of trucks loaded with Turkish ammunition delivered to these very people. It may be recalled that for publishing similar pictures of supplies to Syrian jihadists by the Turkish Intelligence Organization (MIT), in January 2014, two prominent journalists were accused of treason and espionage and are facing the prospect of life in prison. In yet another proof of Turkish collusion with ISIS terrorists, wiretaps of phone conversations between Turkish military and ISIS commanders have just been made public that show close cooperation. The problem that Turkey and its Islamist leadership are now facing is something that has been known for a long time, but is no longer credibly deniable. Under Erdogan, Turkey has never been interested in fighting ISIS, Al-Nusra, and other Sunni terrorists. On the contrary, it has assisted them in every way possible for at least the last three years. Washington under Obama preferred to look the other way, but the latest events have faced it with a stark choice -- either defeat ISIS and limit growing Russian influence in alliance with the Syrian Kurds, or continue to put up with Erdogans duplicitous Islamist agenda and lose the last shreds of credibility it has left in the region. With the leader of the Turkish parliamentary opposition, Kemal Kilicdaroglu, now openly calling for the leaders of the AKP to be tried for aiding and abetting terrorist organizations, it is high time for Washington to reconsider its failing policies. There is yet another compelling reason to stand up to what more closely resembles an Islamist dictatorship in Turkey. After suffering a major electoral defeat with the rise of the Kurdish HDP party in parliamentary elections last June, Erdogan opted for new elections that many experts both in and outside of Turkey believe were rigged, along with massive repression of the Kurds. In a number of Kurdish cities in southeastern Turkey, military suppression of the youth wing of the PKK and de facto martial law imposed have been so heavy-handed that civil war is a more accurate description of whats happening. In the town of Cisre, for instance, after two months of curfew and heavy fighting, the Turkish General Staff announced on Feb. 12 that it had successfully rid the town of terrorists, though it did not lift the curfew. It gave the following figures for terrorists killed and weapons confiscated: 600 terrorists killed, 2 machine guns, 27 AK-47s and 2 RPGs plus ammunition. This, of course, means that all but 31 of the terrorists killed were unarmed. No wonder that Selahattin Demirtash, co-chairman of the HDP, has accused the government of mass murder. His charges were seconded by the European Parliaments rapporteur for Turkey, Kati Piri, who on Feb. 22 from Diyarbakir described the operations of the Turkish Security Forces as civil war and accused the military of opening fire on civilians. It is, of course, true that the PKK was a terrorist organization, but times and circumstances have changed and for the AKP to risk a full-fledged civil war with the Kurds now is suicidal. First, the peace process with the PKK, which had progressed well until Erdogan unilaterally cancelled it last June, demonstrated that the Kurds would be satisfied with autonomy within Turkey. Secondly, the previous war with the PKK in the 1980s and 1990s, which claimed 40,000 victims, was fought primarily in rural areas which could be controlled by depopulation. Today, the Kurds make a large percentage of the population in all large towns outside the southeast where it dominates. The HDP also enjoys considerable support among non-Kurds, who appreciate its secular stands against the oppressive and intolerant Islamist dogmatism of the AKP. Finally, the Kurds now have 2 million co-ethnics on the other side of the 565-mile-long Syrian border, who are well-armed and already enjoy wide-ranging autonomy. If Erdogan continues to insist on brutally suppressing the Kurds, Turkey will descend into chaos. As Abdullah Gl, former president of Turkey and founding member of AKP, put it succinctly, Turkey is going through one of the most difficult days in its history. Finally, there is a third and hugely important reason for the United States and its allies to confront Turkeys Islamist government. Since AKPs coming to power, virtually unnoticed in the West, Turkey has become a major exporter of radical Sunni extremism in the West. Erdogans main instrument for Islamization in Turkey and abroad, the Turkish Directorate of Religious Affairs, better known as Diyanet, has had its budget increased sevenfold since 2003 and now has an army of 150,000 religious functionaries doing its bidding. It is active in promoting radical Islam in virtually every European state and dominates the Islamic establishment in countries like Germany, Austria, Belgium, and in the Balkans. In many of these countries it works in close cooperation with radical Islamist organizations like the Muslim Brotherhood, Hamas, and Milli Grs. It has also begun a program of funding and building mega-mosques worth hundreds of millions of dollars, often in places where there are but few Muslims like Bucharest, Budapest, and Lanham, Maryland. Unfortunately, it is unlikely that President Obama will do much along these lines for the rest of his term, because he was the one who in 2009 advertised Erdogans regime as a model of democratic Islam worth following. Nor are we likely to hear much from the presumptive democratic presidential nominee, Hillary Clinton, who did the same as U.S. Secretary of State. But it is more than curious than we have not heard a single Republican presidential contender mention Turkeys nefarious role in the disastrous Middle Eastern conflict. Especially because it is certain that one of the first questions the next president of the United States will have to deal will be Who lost Turkey? Alex Alexiev is chairman of the Center for Balkan and Black Sea Studies (cbbss.org). He tweets on national security at twitter.com/alexieff and could be reached at alexievalex4@gmail.com. Donald Trump is "gringo numero uno" in the Mexican media, from the serious pundits to the comedians who make fun of his hair. My friend Allan Wall just got back from one of his trips to Mexico and posted a long list of samples about how our friends south of the border are reacting to Trump: The Trump candidacy inspired the production and sale of Donald Trump pinatas (just a few days after his announcement), and Donald Trump masks were doing a brisk business in mid-October. The Mexican video game company Karaokulta developed a game calledTrumpealo, in which the player throws shoes, beer bottles and nopal cacti at Donald Trump. Yes, Mexicans have always been very sensitive about criticism from abroad, specially from the United States. Mr Trump has pushed this to a new level. Nevertheless, I have a lot of questions about what Mr. Trump is saying about Mexico. Mr. Trump wants to build a fence on the border. Frankly, I'm OK with that, although it's hard to see how beneficial a border fence would be in the open and desolate areas of Arizona and Mexico. I would rather see a military presence in the open areas, because it is cartels, who use these routes. Also, let's remember that many illegal immigrants are simply flying in and overstaying their tourist visas. Mr. Trump also wants Mexico to pay for the fence. It is one of his most popular lines. Unfortunately, he has not explained how exactly Mexico will do that. A Trump supporter told me recently that he plans to tax "remittances," currently about $25 billion. How do you determine whether Jose sending money to his mother is illegal or not? My point is that there are a lot of Mexicans here legally who send money to their families. Is Western Union going to be requiring documents before wiring money? Is 7-11 going to require documents when someone buys a $100 pre-paid Visa? My point is that this is very difficult to do. Mr. Trump is talking about "Mexico ripping off the U.S.," another popular line. Where is that happening? According to the latest info available, U.S.-Mexico trade is rather substantial: The United States is Mexicos largest trading partner, buying 77.5% of Mexican exports in 2012. Total U.S. goods trade with Mexico equaled USD 493 billion in 2012; 7% more than in 2011. Mexico exports more to the United States in goods and services in just over a month than it does in one year to the 27 countries of the European Union. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. goods exports to Mexico were USD 216 billion in 2012, up 9% compared to 2011 and 31.9% from 2010. U.S. goods imports from Mexico in 2012 accounted for USD 277.5 billion, an increase of 5% over 2011 and 20% since 2010. I see a lot of business. I don't see anybody getting ripped off. I don't hear exporters to Mexico, or the people working in those companies, complaining about it. On the contrary, they are looking for people who speak Spanish to service their customers south of the border. Mr. Trump touches a nerve when he talks about U.S. companies moving to Mexico. However, you can fix that by making the U.S. more attractive to manufacturing rather getting into a trade war with Mexico. Last, but not least, our trade relationship with Mexico is in the context of NAFTA. Is Mr. Trump calling for a renegotiation of NAFTA? Remember what happened to Senator Obama when he suggested that in 2008? His calls for renegotiating NAFTA stopped when someone whispered in his ear that the "NA" in NAFTA means North America, such as Canada. Sorry, but Mr Trump needs to get more specific. So far, I hear good campaign lines but not much more. P.S. You can listen to my show (Canto Talk) and follow me on Twitter. The Pew Research Center has released new data from 38 countries around the world. Residents were asked whether or not it was somewhat or very important that "people can use the internet without state/government censorship in our country." Consistent with previous analyses that have demonstrated that increasing Muslim proportions of the population correlate with decreasing support for democratic institutions, this more recent data shows that much lower levels of support for internet freedom correlate strongly with increasing percentages of Muslims among a nation's population. Above a Muslim population of 5 percent, support for internet freedom declines rapidly and continues dropping as the Muslim population increases. At less than 5 percent Muslim population, the average support for internet freedom is 85 percent. When the Muslim proportion is greater than 50 percent of the total population, on average, the support for internet freedom is less than 60 percent. The same patterns exist when just the percentage that very strongly supports internet freedom is considered. With less than 5 percent Muslim population, almost 60 percent very strongly support internet freedom. At more than 50 percent Muslim population, this strong level of support for internet freedom is dramatically reduced to only 33 percent. Thomas Homan, the head of deportation operations at ICE, told the Senate Judiciary Committee that only about 3% of the more than 125,000 unaccompanied minors who entered the country illegally over the last two years have been deported. Homan said that Spanish-language media is giving instructions on how to avoid ICE agents and foil deportation orders. Washington Times: Spanish-language media and human rights activists are actively educating illegal immigrants on how to break the law, avoid immigration agents and remain in the country even after a judge has ordered them to be kicked out, a top Obama administration official testified to Congress on Tuesday. Sometimes families shield the children by refusing to open the door to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents, and other times they move the children to other locations, breaking their agreement with the Obama administration to notify the government of the childrens whereabouts. In as many as 75 percent of cases, the children are actively hidden from agents sent out to try to deport them, Thomas Homan, the head of deportation operations at ICE, told the Senate Judiciary Committee. Even though were out looking for them, its getting more difficult, based on everything I just told you, to actually apprehend these people and remove them, he said. Overall, only about 3 percent of the more than 125,000 unaccompanied alien children (UAC) who surged across the border in the last 30 months have been deported, as Mr. Homan and his agents struggle with the sheer size of the population and the difficulties in tracking them down. The Department of Homeland Security last month began trying to target children and families for deportation, working about 1,800 leads. But only 121 were actually rounded up. Mr. Homan said thats because when they show up at the address where the children are supposed to be staying, usually the agents leave empty-handed. For the number of UACs we arrested since January, three times as many werent at the address they were supposed to be at, never were or werent there any longer. The Spanish media, Spanish newspapers, a lot of NGOs are educating these folks on how not to comply with law enforcement, Mr. Homan said. Theres been many situations where weve been at the residence, we know theyre there, but they wont open the door. My officers dont have the authority, of course, to go into that house. Governor John Kasich is now being accused of being misogynist: Gov. John Kasich is still in the race and still trying to frame himself as the moderate, compassionate Republican, but on Monday, the governor issued two glaring reminders of his very un-moderate contempt for women. During a campaign event, in a video that went viral almost instantaneously, Kasich made a comment about his female supporters that was as bizarrely unnecessary as it was condescending. How did I get elected? Kasich said. I didnt have anybody for me. We just got an army of people, and many women who left their kitchens to go out and to go door to door to put up yard signs for me. He did not specify if they untied their aprons or put on their shoes. Later, a woman in the audience decided to confront him, sort of, on this. Ill support you, she said. But I wont be coming out of the kitchen. Of course, the woman in the audience wont be coming out of her kitchen, because living in an information-age society has liberated her from a lot of the drudgery her mother or grandmother had to endure. The question Governor Kasich needs to address is whether it was private enterprise on government that created the industrial society in the United States. As a Republican, he ought to be in favor of free markets. But the undertone of his comments is that having served in government should serve as a qualification to become president. If he is trying to win over female voters in Michigan, for example, he might remind those voters that, unlike the situation in many backward countries, the type dominated by real ISIS-style misogynists, they live in a country where fetching water from a well is not the norm (except in places like Democrat-controlled Flint, Michigan!). American women can simply go into their kitchens or bathrooms or laundry rooms and turn a tap. Mirabile dictu, hot or cold running water on demand! So simple even a child can do it. What a great country! With this liberation from drudgery, women can more fully realize their innate potential. As James Taranto of the Wall Street Journal noted in his "Heard on the Street" column, "Youve Come a Long Way, Baby! Feminism and Fast Food": Another example is prepared food, especially from fast-food restaurants. With Mom and Dad both busy at the office (assuming Dad is around at all), home-cooked meals are far less common than they used to be. According to the official history of McDonald's, the chain opened its 100th restaurant in 1959. At the end of 2010, according to the company's 10-K filing, there were 14,027 of them in the U.S. alone, an increase of nearly 14,000%. The symbol of radical feminism is a Venus sign with a fist. The most fitting symbol of mainstream feminism is a Happy Meal. Ray Kroc, global liberator of women and American entrepreneur, got women of the kitchen. Did you do as much while serving in government, Governor Kasich? Do you even know how it is done in the private sector? Do you know how to create jobs? If not, there is still hope for you in the American Thinker archives. Read "McDonald's, Technology, and Job Creation." To the outside world, Genghis Khan, the fearsome Mongolian warrior who conquered half the known world in the 13th century, is remembered for his brutalities and destruction that he brought upon the conquered regions resulting in the death of forty million people. But to Mongolians, he is a national hero, a larger-than-life figure and the symbol of Mongolian culture, and for good reasons. Genghis Khan founded the Mongol Empire, which became the largest contiguous empire in history, revived the Silk Road, uniting warring tribes and was responsible for cementing the position of Mongols in the worlds map. After Mongolia overthrew communist rule more than 20 years ago, there appeared a slew of monuments and products celebrating the famous personage known locally as Chinggis Khaan. Mongolia's main international airport in Ulaanbaatar is named Chinggis Khaan International Airport, students attend Chinggis Khaan University and tourists can stay at the Chinggis Khaan Hotel. His face can be found on everyday commodities, from liquor bottles to candy products, and on bank notes. Photo credit In 2008, a gigantic statue of Genghis Khan riding on horseback was erected on the bank of the Tuul River at Tsonjin Boldog, 54 km east of the Mongolian capital Ulaanbaatar, where according to legend, he found a golden whip. The statue is 40 meters tall and wrapped in 250 tons of gleaming stainless steel. It stands on top of the Genghis Khan Statue Complex, a visitor center that itself is 10 meters tall, with 36 columns representing the 36 khans from Genghis to Ligdan Khan. The statue is symbolically pointed east towards his birthplace. Inside the two-story base of the statue, visitors can see a replica of Genghis Khans legendary golden whip, sample traditional cuisine of horse meat and potatoes, or play billiards. Visitors can ascend to the exhibition hall using an elevator at the back of the horse and then walk to the horses head passing through its chest and the back of its neck from where they can have an excellent panoramic view over the complex area and the scenery beyond. The Chinggis Khan Statue is currently the biggest equestrian statue in the world. Photo credit Photo credit Photo credit Photo credit Photo credit Photo credit Photo credit Photo credit Sources: NYTimes, Wikipedia Error. Page cannot be displayed. Please contact your service provider for more details. (32) In a break from tradition, Xiaomi, the Chinese upstart giving Samsung and co something to worry about, announced their latest flagship in Europe. The Mi 5 was officially announced during an event in Barcelona, Spain during Mobile World Congress 2016. Traditionally an event for big International brands, Xiaomis presence at the event has certainly caused some controversy, to say the least. As for the device itself, it appears as though the Mi 5 is an evolution of both the Mi 4 and the Mi Note Pro. In terms of appearance, the Mi 5 does look quite different, but there are also some changes under-the-hood, too. The Mi 5 is powered by a Snapdragon 820, but keeping this beating heart going is a 3,000 mAh battery. As weve come to expect from Xiaomi, theyve managed to pack in a sizeable battery, despite the devices 5.15-inch display and small form factor, coming in at 144.55 69.2 7.25mm. This also supports Qualcomms new Quick Charge 3.0 standard, which should allow the Mi 5 to get 2.5 hours of talk time from a scant 5 minutes of charging. This is part of the good news out of the way, but for some theres also a little bad news. This 3,000 mAh battery isnt removable, and the Mi 5 charges using a Type-C connector. The latter is perhaps more of a blow to people, as it means theyll need to purchase a whole new load of Type-C USB cables. Which were sure that Xiaomi will be more than happy to sell people lots and lots of different USB Type-C cables under their Mi brand of course. Advertisement Whil not much is known about the 3,000 mAh battery used by the Mi 5 just yet, well hopefully be able to get our hands on one soon and put it through its paces. In the past, Xiaomi devices have been known for fairly good battery life, so wed expect some similar performance from this higher-density and larger capacity battery inside the Mi 5. Quick Charge 3.0 support should help make this a much more flexible battery over time, and theres more than enough juice on hand to ensure that the Mi 5 lasts beyond a day. Facebook, owner of the Oculus VR platform, recently asked Samsung for 8,000 of their own VR units, the smartphone-centric Gear VR. A Cardboard-esque antithesis to the Oculus high price and system requirements, the Gear VR is made to function hand in hand with Samsungs smartphones and provides as close to a premium VR experience as possible at a fairly low price, costing only a fraction of the high-end HTC Vive and Oculus. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg made the announcement at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, where he met with key Samsung execs like mobile communications chief Koh Dong-Jin. With Oculus having partnered with Samsung to help create the Gear VR, Facebook ordering reference units for development is the next logical step in the partnership. According to Zuckerberg, the plan at this time is to give 3,000 of the units to developers and 5,000 units to other employees for testing and daily use. Although Facebook owns Oculus and will mainly develop VR content on that platform, the reality is that you cant be a content leader for a format by only producing for one platform. That said, Facebook plans to develop content for the Gear VR in the future, which will likely be compatible with similar platforms such as Durvois Dive and Google Cardboard. Between helping to develop the Gear VRs hardware and now snapping up over a billion Korean won in hardware reference units to develop software with, Facebook is positioning themselves to be a prime contender in the VR space. Advertisement The two companies have been developing in concert for some time to bring VR to the forefront in what they hope is a way that competitors will not be able to match. Zuckerberg stated that this partnership should yield at least 200 different games and apps, mostly focused around Facebooks services. VRs potential as a platform for everything from gaming to social applications was a huge motivator for Facebook to buy up Oculus and make their entry into the space in the first places and remains a core motivator. Zuckerberg said, VR has become the most social tool through which people share experiences. , and confirmed that Facebook will further develop VR in concert with Samsung Electronics. When Google started its search engine business nearly two decades ago, it quickly became obvious that it was becoming the central hub of the Internet, if such a thing could even exist. Searching on the web through Googles service became so common that people stopped saying they searched the web for something, and instead they just Google it. The term means more now than ever, as Googles Android operating system runs on more than 80% of smartphones worldwide and its now parent company Alphabet is a powerful player in all sorts of different industries worldwide. As an Internet-centric company though, the actual service of providing connectivity means Googles focus has slowly shifted to the actual pipelines that bring its services to billions around the world. Youve got to start small though, and while Google Fibers last 6 years as a service have been ultra slow growing to say the least, with only 9 cities in the US having coverage from the network, over 30 possible areas are in the works. The biggest hurdles often seem to come in the forms of local governments and existing telco and cable companies, who own much of the land used to bury the cables required for the fast connectivity. Since this is a huge obstacle Google has been looking into other ways of delivering its incredibly fast Internet connection, which reaches speeds of up to 1Gbps and certainly faster than the speed of the average Americans Internet connection. Better yet this service provides TV service to those willing to pay $70 a month, a discount rate compared to many local companies, and there are also completely free Internet options to boot. Advertisement Now Google is moving its latest target right next door to its Mountain View, CA headquarters: San Francisco. Unlike other cities where Google has planned expansions, however, they will not be laying their own infrastructure to begin their service in San Francisco. Instead Google will be relying on existing connections and building their network out from those points, so at least initially the service will be extremely limited to say the least. Google will be working with property owners and managers to expand the network, and even have plans to move ultra high speed access to some public and affordable housing districts at no cost. If you live in San Francisco check out the source link below to see if Google is planning on coming to your building or neighborhood. Alphabet has been running afoul of tax regulators and lawmakers in the European Union lately, mainly over policies that optimize their tax portfolio to pay out the least possible by law, or by avoiding tax altogether. Mostly, this is done by routing business to their Ireland arm, where corporate taxes are a great deal less expensive. These practices are fairly common among large companies, particularly in the tech sector. Alphabet had recently paid out around 130 million in a back tax settlement with Great Britain, though analysts and authorities seemed to come to the general consensus that the amount paid wasnt fair and should have been higher. France has now come out and made their grievances known. To fulfill back tax obligations in France, authorities want Google to pony up 1.6 billion Euros. According to Frances Finance Minister, Michel Sapin, the amounts involved here are far too much to allow for a simple settlement to be made in the way Google struck a deal with British tax authorities. Back in 2012, there were rumors of a 1 billion Euro demand from France, which Google denied. According to local tax authorities, a tentative assessment is issued before the real thing is done and the taxes become due, which can be contested in court, should a taxpayer see fit. A Google spokesperson who was contacted on the matter said that Google is obeying applicable tax laws in all the countries in which they operate. Advertisement According to European Union tax laws, an international companys tax liability within a country can be reduced or even eliminated entirely, should the company lack what is termed as a permanent establishment in the country. For this reason, many of the tax-based allegations being thrown Googles way in Europe have been largely ignored. Frances plea to see some back tax from Google is nothing new or much different from existing and previous cases, but France is asking for what may be the largest amount left due in the Google and Europe tax scuffle to date. Beyond confirming the amount owed and that there would be no settlement, both Google and France declined to comment on the situation. While Mobile World Congress is often dominated by the big names like LG, Samsung, Sony and co. theyre far from the only brands to bring new hardware to the show. Acer, despite their prowess in PCs and Laptops Chromebooks, too have long had their feet in the smartphone arena. During this years Mobile World Congress, the Taiwanese firm had a couple of new devices to show off, the Liquid Jade 2 and the Liquid Zest. Both are devices that aim to offer maximum bang-for-buck, but in the case of the Liquid Jade 2, Acer might surprise some of you. Starting off with the Liquid Jade 2, which was announced earlier this week, complete with a 5.5-inch AMOLED which promises to cover 100% of the NTSC color gamut, Acer have a good-looking phone on offer here. From the limited time that we spent with the handset, it felt good in the hand, and theyve definitely selected a decent AMOLED panel here. Running what appears to be mostly stock Android, its refreshing to see Acer just let Android be what it wants to be, something they presumably learnt from their partnership with Google on their Chromebooks. With a 21-megapixel rear-facing camera, capable of 4K video recording, and quality sound from Dolby, the Liquid Jade 2 has a lot going for it. On the inside, theres a distinct 2015 feel here, and while the build quality isnt stunning, its a good-looking package for a device that will launch later this year for much less than most smartphones at this level. Advertisement For those not looking to spend quite as much, or even looking for a device as large as the 5.5-inch Liquid Jade 2, the Acer Zest and its 4G brother, the Zest 4G will be more applicable. The Zest pair of devices regardless of choosing the 4G option or not feature 5.0-inch 720p displays, MediaTek quad-core CPUs and little else in between. Theres a fairly lackluster look and feel here as well, but considering a109 and a149 price tags, without or with 4G support, its hard to complain. All-in-all, the Acer Zest and Zest 4G is a budget-bargain for those looking for something on the cheap without having to totally slum it, and theres certainly a market out there for this sort of thing. Earlier today, during an event in Barcelona, Spain Xiaomi announced the new Mi 5. As weve come to expect from Xiaomi, the Mi 5 features all sorts of new hardware and software innovations. Becoming one of the first devices to run a Snapdragon 820, Xiaomi have introduced a new design language with the Mi 5 and taken more than a few leaves from other big name play books out there. Those wanting to know whats on the inside, can take a look at our post on specs here, and those looking to read about the main announcement can do so here. On the face of it, it would be difficult to tell the Galaxy S7 and Mi 5 apart from each other, but there are differences. The glass back on the Mi 5 isnt quite so shiny or colorful, and the 16-megapixel camera around the back doesnt protrude as much or stand out like the 12-megapixel camera on the Galaxy S7. The Mi 5 is launching with a Snapdragon 820, a new fingerprint sensor and its also adopting USB Type-C, as well. The 3,000 mAh battery keeping everything moving supports Qualcomms Quick Charge 3.0, and can deliver 2.5 hours of talk time from just 5 minutes worth of charging. Advertisement Xiaomi have gone for the sort of throw it all in approach with the Mi 5, and it shows. Theres faster LPDDR4 RAM at play here, along with super-fast flash storage which should help larger files load quicker and apps launch almost immediately. An infrared blaster is included here as well, and there are more than enough fancy software features included in MIUI 7, running on top of Android here, to keep people occupied. While these devices are often those that are only sold inside of China, theres a good chance that the Mi 5 will be coming to European and North American markets a little later on in the year. After all, why would the Chinese upstart hold an event in Europe if it had no intention of making the device available there. Those interested in the new Mi 5 can take a look in the gallery below, and look around the site for further coverage on the Mi 5 from todays launch event. Motorola has been through a pretty interesting few years, with Google buying them in 2011 for $12.5 billion then sold it to Lenovo in 2014 for $2.9 billion. Google didnt public state that they sold Motorola because they were getting negative feedback from their hardware partners over possible preferential treatment towards Motorola, but many feel thats the reason. Google sold Motorola to Lenovo in 2014, but kept the patents (hence why the price was a huge difference). Also in 2014, Motorola built the Nexus 6. Which is still the largest Nexus smartphone to date. Its said that the Nexus 6 by Motorola was thrown together at the last minute. And thats a big reason why the device looks a lot like the Moto X 2014 that Motorola released about 6 weeks earlier. The Nexus 6 had a 5.96-inch display, thats a huge display, especially with front-facing speakers. Many reviewers were not to happy with the size, and that shouldnt be a surprise. According to Motorolas Chief Marketing Officer, Adrienne Hayes, Google wanted this screen size. She also noted that they could have built it with the same display size as the Moto X. Advertisement Hayes also notes that you learn as you gothis time period that we were jumping screen sizes so quickly. I think it was one of those where we were like is it [screen size] going to continue to go up? I think unfortunately, that was one of the products that was going to be the example of no, its not. Shes right actually. Since the Motorola Nexus 6 came out in the end of 2014, weve started seeing a shift towards smaller smartphones again. The Nexus 6P is a bit smaller at 5.7-inches, the LG G5 actually shrunk a bit to 5.3-inches and even Sonys own Xperia X Performance that was announced this week has a 5-inch display when their Xperia Z5 had a 5.2-inch display. Its unfortunate that Motorolas Nexus 6 had to be the guinea pig to show everyone that screen sizes wont continue to grow, but at least we know now. While the Nexus 6s screen size was pretty large, there were still a good number of people that enjoyed that large of a display, even though it was definitely a two-handed smartphone. It also made Google think about the 2015 Nexus cycle, and bring them to the epiphany of creating two smartphones, one thats a bit smaller and one thats more of a phablet sized device. When Samsung first announced its Samsung Pay, Canada was conspicuously absent from the list of countries where it would be available. After Samsung Pay hit the US on September 28, 2015, Canada thought surely they would be next, but nothing. However, back in October some Samsung job openings appeared for the Vancouver area that very much sounded like they were for Samsung Pay. This was either good news that Samsung Pay was coming or Samsung was just using Vancouver for the offices. By adding Canada to its 2016 Roadmap we now know for sure that Samsung Pay will eventually arrive in Canada, just not exactly what time-frame. We are betting that whenever Samsung pay does arrive in Canada, it may have limited capabilities so far only American Express is signed up to work in Canada. Most likely Visa and MasterCard will jump onboard; it is just a matter of getting the Canadian banks that issue the cards to agree to the terms. More customers use Visa and MasterCard, so it could slow Samsung Pays adoption rate. In order to expand Samsung Pay, Samsung is promising it will support loyalty and gift card purchases at some point, but until it does, Samsung Pay will function a lot like Apple Pay in Canada. What sets Samsung Pay apart from Apple Pay and Android Pay is that payments can be made two ways via NFC (Near Field Communication) and via MTS (Magnetic Secure Transmission) or LoopPay. The NFC purchasing is what Android Pay and to an extent, Apple Pay uses. The retailer must have a machine that reads NFC transmissions and in Apple Pays case, they must have a reader specifically designed for Apple Pay. Samsung was thinking ahead and purchased LoopPay allowing them to utilize MST payments as well, so most merchants that have the old swipe machine can accept a payment from Samsung Pay. This opens the door to many smaller merchants that still require you to swipe your card. Not only is it convenient for all involved, but it is also very secure since your credit or debit card number never leaves your device or enters the merchants reader. It creates a random token number that only the bank can decipher so if a hacker steals a merchants accounting records, your card number is nowhere to be found. Advertisement One thing is certain mobile payments are here to stay. It gives consumers a method to carry around all of their credit cards, loyalty cards and rewards cards all on the one device that most people take everywhere with them. I have not carried a wallet or cash around with me for years I would grab my debit card and take off. Apps have already allowed us to make easy mobile payments at retailers such as Starbucks and Tim Hortons. From many studies, we know that Canadians love to shop online and Samsung Pay can only expand the amount of sales, while at the same time make it easier on the consumer. When Samsung Pay hits Canada in 2016, they way Canadians make their purchase will quickly change, especially when Visa and MasterCard and the Canadian banks are onboard. Now that the fingerprint sensor can be used to authenicate mobile payments, Samsung Pay will soon allow online shopping purchases to be finalized with the touch of your finger no more information to enter online. You will be able to make an Amazon purchase or order an Uber ride and pay for it by touching your fingerprint sensor. As more and more Samsung devices are sold with Samsung Pay, the more prevalent it will become. Samsung has even promised Samsung Pay support for its new Gear S2 smartwatch talk about convenience. It will take some time, but Samsung pay will quickly invade Canada once it started. (ANSA) - Brussels, February 24 - Italy like other EU member States must take into account a forthcoming European Commission report on macroeconomic imbalances when it plans its 2017 budget and reforms, European Commissioner for the Euro Valdis Dombrovskis said Wednesday. "We expect Italy to come up with proposals on how to deal with those imbalances," he said. The country-by-country reports on macroeconomic imbalances "are usually reflected in national reform and budget plans, which must be submitted to Brussels by April," said the commissioner and EC vice president. "Member States provide their assessment of the challenges they face, and we hope our reports can assist (them) in their preparation," Dombrovskis said. "This is exactly the case of Italy," he added. (ANSA) - Rome, February 24 - Libyan Ambassador to Italy Ahmed Safar said Wednesday that an alleged plan to divide the country into foreign protectorates would be rejected by the population. "It would be like dividing Germany with a wall again," he told reporters. The reference was to press leaks claiming that work is underway in Washington, Paris, London and Rome on an alternative action plan to defeat the so-called Islamic State (ISIS) fundamentalist group if efforts to get the UN-backed unity government approved were to fall through. "Only Libyans will decide their future," the ambassador said. "And they want a united, democratic and liberal government." The international community is waiting for an official request from Libya's government of national unity before engaging in anti-ISIS operations in the country. As well, the Libyan ambassador said he hoped to get good news soon on four employees of Bonatti engineering contractor, who were taken hostage in Libya in July. (ANSA) - Rome, February 24 - The left-right government coalition patched up its differences over a Democratic Party (PD) civil unions bill Wednesday, coming up with a so-called maxi-amendment that will have the backing of both the center-left PD and its junior partner, the small New Center Right (NCD) party. "The agreement on civil unions is a historic event for Italy," PD Premier Matteo Renzi tweeted. The maxi-amendment strikes down two provisions the NCD objected to, namely a measure allowing civil union partners - including same-sex ones - to adopt each other's children, and another measure calling for the obligation to be faithful. The latter came too close to equating civil unions with traditional marriage, which Catholic conservatives in the NCD and in the opposition object to. The first comma of the maxi-amendment reads: "the current law institutes civil unions between people of the same gender as a specific social formation, as per Articles 2 and 3 of the Constitution". Article 2 of Italy's Constitution recognizes "the inviolable rights of man, both as an individual and within social formations" and Article 3 concerns the equality of all before the law, without gender or other distinctions. Article 3 also says it is the republic's task to "remove the economic and social obstacles that de facto limit citizens' freedom and equality". The maxi-amendment leaves in place current adoptions law, which dates back to 1983, but PD Senate Whip Luigi Zanda said a separate bill on stepchild adoptions by partners in civil unions - including gay ones - will be on "a fast track" and must be approved by the end of the current legislative term in 2018. Right now in Italy, children of gay parents risk ending up in the foster care system if their biological parent dies, because the surviving parent has no custody rights over them. By leaving this matter unresolved, government de facto leaves such decisions up to family courts. Italy's Constitutional Court on Wednesday ruled as "inadmissible" the case of a lesbian couple who married in the United States - where gay marriage is now legal - and who requested that their adoption of each other's stepchildren be recognised in Italy after they moved to Bologna. A Bologna lower court had turned the case over to the Constitutional Court, a move newly elected Chief Justice Paolo Grosso said was down to "a judge that didn't know how to do his job". The majority maxi-amendment - which now has the necessary backing, barring any last-minute coups de theatre - will be put to a confidence vote, Reform Minister Maria Elena Boschi told the Senate. That vote will likely take place Thursday or Friday, she said earlier. (ANSA) - Rome, February 24 - Rightwing populist Northern League leader Matteo Salvini on Wednesday said Italy should rethink the US presence in Italy in the light of Wikileaks reports that the National Security Agency spied on former premier Silvio Berlusconi during his last term in office in 2011. "Let's call back into question this omnipresence of the United States in Italy, from all points of view," Salvini said. "I'm a friend of everyone, all it takes is that others respect our work", he said. Daily La Repubblica and sister weekly l'Espresso carried the Wikileaks reports that the NSA listened in on three-time premier Berlusconi as Italy was on the brink of a Greece-style crisis, an economic emergency that eventually forced him from office. Berlusconi has often said he was the victim of an international plot. Salvini also said Wednesday that European Commission President Jean-Claude "Juncker and the European Commission are not welcome in Italy". Salvini, who wants to hold a referendum on leaving the EU, was speaking during a visit to a Roma camp in Rome. Juncker and an EC delegation are scheduled to visit Rome Friday. Migrants: Austria holds Balkans route summit without Greece Athens complains; debate over how to curb influx (ANSAMED) - BRUXELLES, FEBRUARY 24 - A summit entitled 'Managing Migration Together' held on Wednesday in Vienna discussed how to reduce migrant flows across the Balkan route. Opening remarks were made by Austria's interior minister, Johanna Mikl-Leitner, and its foreign minister, Sebastian Kurz. Invitees included the ministers of Slovenia, Croatia, Bulgaria, and the six Balkan countries Albania, Bosnia, Kosovo, Serbia, Macedonia and Montenegro. Greece was, however, excluded, drawing heated criticism from both Athens and Brussels. The Ekathimerini website reported that Greek foreign minister Nikos Kotzias said that the country's exclusion was seen as a ''non-friendly act'', giving the impression that decisions directly affecting the country were being made in its absence. Austrian foreign minister Kurz responded by saying that Greece had ''clearly expressed no interest in reducing the (migrant) influx and in contrast wants to continue waving them through'' to the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, from where they make their way northward. Despite a maximum limit set on migrants (80 asylum requests and 3,200 transits per day), Kurz said that his country's solidarity was shown by the fact that it is doing much more than the US and Greek immigration minister Ioannis Mouzalas stressed in a televised interview that ''there are about 12,000 migrants'' stuck in the country at the moment and tomorrow this number could rise to 14,000 and 16,000 the following day. He added that he expected the figure to reach ''tens of thousands'' after Western Balkan nations brought in restrictive measures. To manage the situation, the Athens government is seeking places to set up additional transit camps by the end of the week. ''This is not something that we can do in a day or two, but we are trying to keep people in humane conditions,'' Mouzalas said. Greece, he added, is pressuring the EU and NATO to limit unilateral actions by member states and to that Aegean patrols will be more effective. Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orban has meanwhile announced that a referendum will be held in the country on EU migrant quotas. (ANSAmed). Syria: Turkey and Russia trade accusations on military acts Lavrov and Kerry work on 'truce', Italian FM expresses 'hope' (ANSAmed) - ROME, FEBRUARY 24 - Russian and Turkey continue to trade accusations about military actions in Syria. Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said that Moscow continues to violate Turkish air space, even after tensions arose following the November shooting down of a Russian jet along the border. The Russian defense ministry has meanwhile said that Turkey continues to bomb Syrian territory along the border between the two countries. Russia and the US nevertheless continue to work on a resumption of talks between Syrian factions. Italian foreign minister Paolo Gentiloni said that the two countries' proposal for a ceasefire by February 27, potentially enabling greater access to humanitarian aid in Syria, ''is a step that gives hope'', he said to the lower house of the Italian parliament on Wednesday. ''We are working,'' he added, ''so that the parties involved do not set pre-conditions to the ceasefire.'' US president Barack Obama has meanwhile met at the White House with the King of Jordan and said he was very cautious about expectations for the ceasefire in Syria and an end to hostilities. (ANSAmed). Ambassador rejects idea of dividing Libya into three 'No one would accept it', he says on leaks about a 'Plan B' (ANSAmed) - ROME, FEBRUARY 24 - Libyan ambassador to Italy Ahmed Safar said Wednesday that an alleged 'Plan B' to divide the country into foreign protectorates would be rejected by the population. ''It would be like dividing Germany again with a wall,'' he said in meeting with journalists at the Italian-Libyan Chamber of Commerce. The reference was to press leaks claiming that work is underway in Washington, Paris, London and Rome on an alternative action plan to defeat the Islamic State (ISIS) if efforts to get the UN-backed unity government approved were to fall through. The 'Plan B' would focus on the Islamist-dominated Tripoli parliament and no longer the Tobruk one. It would also foresee the country's division into the three regions of Tripolitania, Cyrenaica and Fezzan, as had been seen in the Ottoman era. ''The three-way division of Libya is part of our past,'' the diplomat stressed. ''It is an old idea. Only Libyans will decide their future. And they want a united, democratic and liberal government.'' The international community is waiting an official request from the national unity government prior to engaging in substantial anti-ISIS activities in the country. The government, however, still does not exist. Yet once more, on Tuesday the Tobruk-based parliament postponed voting on the government under Prime Minister Designate Fayez Al-Sarraj, officially due to a lack of a quorum. The situation worries UN special envoy for Libya Martin Kobler, since - he stressed - military events are running ahead of political ones. The Libyan ambassador on Wednesday said that he hoped to get good news soon on the four Bonatti workers taken hostage in Libya in July. ''There is a great deal of collaboration between Italy, the crisis unit, and Libyan authorities to protect the four from harm,'' Safar said. However, Italian-Libyan Chamber of Commerce chief Gianfranco Damiano stressed that ''much time has passed. Other cases have been resolved much more quickly.'' The Bonatti employees Gino Pollicardo, Fausto Piano, Filippo Calcagno and Salvatore Failla were taken hostage on July 19 when they were returning from Tunisia in the Mellitah area, 60 kilometers from Tripoli, near the Mellitah Oil Gas Company compound. (ANSAmed). Italian-Palestinian accord for environmental protection Signed in Bethlehem by Minister Galletti (ANSAmed) - TEL AVIV, FEBRUARY 24 - A memorandum of understanding on environmental protection and sustainable development was signed in Bethlehem (West Bank) yesterday by Minister of Environment Sea and Land protection Gian Luca Galletti and his Palestinian counterpart, the president of the Environment Quality Authority, Adalah K. A. Atteireh. The agreement - the first one with Palestine regarding this sector - entails collaborations, mission exchanges, information, good practices and technical assistance. The fields of cooperation are the collecting and handling of garbage, emergency-response and environmental catastrophies, environmental governance, education activities linked to sustainable development. The Memorandum provides for the management of joint- programmes on environmental protection and it will be followed by a technical mission to promote concrete initiatives in Palestine. A Steering Commitee will promote the Accord facilitating partnerships between scientific and academic institutions and between organisations and civil society. "Signing this accord - declared at the end of the cerimony minister Galletti, assisted by Consul General Davide La Cecilia - is a demonstration of Italian support towards the strenghtening of Palestinian institutions. This falls within a wealth of activities that are testament to the wide co-operation between our two governments, with the addition of the important environmental dimension keenly felt by the Palestinian side''. PARIS - "France's secret war in Libya'': according to information obtained by French newspaper Le Monde, French special forces are conducting "clandestine operations" to combat the terrorist expansion of the Islamic State (Isis) in the Libyan territory. A high officer of the French Defense Ministry quoted by newspaper Le Monde said "the last thing to do would be to intervene in Libya''. Or put it another way: "We must avoid any open military intervention, we must act discretly''. For France, added the newspaper, the objective is to hit Isis positions and curtail its growth in Libya. These actions are carried out ''in agreement'' with Washington and London as illustrated by a US raid against against a training camp in Sabratha, on February 19, which also hit Noureddine Chouchane, reportedly the Tunisian mastermind of the attacks against the Bardo Museum and the Sousse resort. At the moment, President Francois Hollande is supporting a line of action based on "unofficial military operations" with the support of "special forces". Their presence, a fact Le Monde was able to confirm was signalled "in mid February, in the east, by specialised bloggers''. Several sources agree that the fight against Isis is being conducted through "clandestine operations'' carried out by Dgse, the French external intelligence unit. According to a source in the French military navy, thanks to its stronghold in Libya - ''Isis controls a stretch of coast for the first time. We are prepared to confront tough scenarios at sea''. (ANSAmed) - CAIRO - Giulio Regeni, the Italian student found tortured to death in a ditch outside Cairo February 3, was possibly the victim of premeditated murder motivated by revenge for personal reasons, the Egyptian interior ministry said in a statement Wednesday. A revenge killing was among the possible motives, it said. The ministry said investigations had shown Regeni had numerous personal relationships with the residents of the Cairo district he lived in, many of whom have been questioned. Egypt has repeatedly denied its security forces had anything to do with the murder of Regeni, a Cambridge doctoral researcher and freelance journalist who disappeared on January 25, the heavily policed fifth anniversary of the uprising that toppled former strongman Hosni Mubarak. Egyptian security sources said Tuesday that Regeni's life, was "full of ambiguities," according to the website of the Al-Masry Al-Youm daily. Citing sources at police HQ in Giza, the website also reported that "the young Italian entertained relations with a large number of people". The same sources "also said the investigating team has not yet obtained new information on the criminals". Regeni, who was researching the Egyptian labour movement for his doctoral thesis, was found in a ditch with signs of torture all over his body. Italian Premier Matteo Renzi has vowed to get to the bottom of the murder. Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni said Wednesday the Egyptian interior ministry statement suggesting revenge as a possible motive for the murder of Italian student Giulio Regeni was "unlikely". He said "Italy is simply asking an allied country for the truth and punishment of culprits" for the torture and death of Cambridge doctoral researcher Regeni. "We will not settle for a convenient truth, nor for unlikely leads such as those suggested by Cairo today", he told the Lower House in a question time. Italian agents working in Cairo on Regeni's murder "must have access to all the sound files and footage as well as all the procedural files in the hands of the Giza prosecutors," Gentiloni told the House. "The government will convey specific requests on this via diplomatic channels," he said. "We owe it to Regeni's family and to the dignity of our country", Gentiloni added. Egyptian Ambassador to Italy Amr Helmy on Wednesday said the murder of Regeni may have been a criminal or terrorist act committed by someone "who wants to undermine relations between Italy and Egypt," according to the MENA news agency. He said Rome and Cairo were "cooperating fully" on the case. (ANSAmed). Syria:fighting between army and Isis in south-east of Aleppo Government forces seeking to regain strategic corridor (ANSAmed) - BEIRUT, FEBRUARY 24 - At least 20 Isis jihadists were killed in the last 24 hours after Russian air-strikes hit the south-east of Aleppo, where government forces are seeking to take hold of the only road linking the side of the city held by loyalists with other territories under their control, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (Ondus) reported. Strikes and fighting are concentrated close to the town Khanaser, seized yesterday by the Islamic State which managed to interrupt links with the army in Damascus. Ondus added that Russian raids on another town in the province of Aleppo, Al Atarib, killed four civilians, including a child. (ANSAmed). (ANSAmed) - ROME - Libyan ambassador to Italy Ahmed Safar said Wednesday that an alleged 'Plan B' to divide the country into foreign protectorates would be rejected by the population. he said in meeting with journalists at the Italian-Libyan Chamber of Commerce. The reference was to press leaks claiming that work is underway in Washington, Paris, London and Rome on an alternative action plan to defeat the Islamic State (ISIS) if efforts to get the UN-backed unity government approved were to fall through. The 'Plan B' would focus on the Islamist-dominated Tripoli parliament and no longer the Tobruk one. It would also foresee the country's division into the three regions of Tripolitania, Cyrenaica and Fezzan, as had been seen in the Ottoman era. ''The three-way division of Libya is part of our past,'' the diplomat stressed. ''It is an old idea. Only Libyans will decide their future. And they want a united, democratic and liberal government.'' The international community is waiting an official request from the national unity government prior to engaging in substantial anti-ISIS activities in the country. The government, however, still does not exist. Yet once more, on Tuesday the Tobruk-based parliament postponed voting on the government under Prime Minister Designate Fayez Al-Sarraj, officially due to a lack of a quorum. The situation worries UN special envoy for Libya Martin Kobler, since - he stressed - military events are running ahead of political ones. The Libyan ambassador on Wednesday said that he hoped to get good news soon on the four Bonatti workers taken hostage in Libya in July. ''There is a great deal of collaboration between Italy, the crisis unit, and Libyan authorities to protect the four from harm,'' Safar said. However, Italian-Libyan Chamber of Commerce chief Gianfranco Damiano stressed that ''much time has passed. Other cases have been resolved much more quickly.'' The Bonatti employees Gino Pollicardo, Fausto Piano, Filippo Calcagno and Salvatore Failla were taken hostage on July 19 when they were returning from Tunisia in the Mellitah area, 60 kilometers from Tripoli, near the Mellitah Oil Gas Company compound. (ANSAmed). ANSAmed - Tomorrow's events in the Mediterranean (ANSAmed) - ROME, FEBRUARY 24 - The following are the main events scheduled to take place in the Euro-Mediterranean area tomorrow. THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 25 GENEVA - fresh round of UN-brokered talks on Syria. ROME - meeting of the Supreme Defense Council called by Italian President Sergio Mattarella to examine the situation in Libya and anti-ISIS efforts. PARIS - European Commission Vice President Frans Timmersman will be taking part in a public event at the Paris Institute of Political Studies (Sciences Po) and a working dinner with member of the French industrialists union (also 26/2). VIENNA - OSCE Parliamentary Assembly (also 26/2). DELPHI (GREECE) - first Delphi Economic Forum under the aegis of Greek president Prokopis Pavlopoulos (until 28/2). DUBAI - the Dubai Food Festival begins, with chefs from around the world (until 12/3). MILAN - Marcelline Institute presents Italy's first certification of Arab language. (ANSAmed). (ANSAmed) - ROME, FEBRUARY 24 - Palestinian journalist ''Mohammed Al-Qiq is on hunger strike since November 24. He lost 30 kilos and doesn't speak anymore, he can't see and cannot move. He risks death''. The appeal was launched this morning by Palestinian Ambassador to Italy, Mai Al Kaila. Jailed by Israeli authorities ''without formal charges and without a trial, he chose this form of protest in order to fight against the administrative immobilisation he was subjected to'', she added. In view ''of the situation we request all human rights organisations of the international community to intervene as soon as possible''. At the moment - stressed the diplomat - there are 600 Palestinians held inside Israeli jails subject to an administrative immobilisation, while there are 17 Palestinian MEPs in jail, a blatant disregard of parliamentary immunity''. Since 1967, she continued ''more than one million Palestinians were jailed'' by the Jewish State. More than 30% of Palestinians passed through Palestinian jails and I am one of them''. A correspondent for Saudi news outlet Al Majd in the West Bank, Al-Qiq, 33 ''chose this extreme form of protest to denounce an illicit practice''. Allowed by article 285 of military code 1651, administrative detention, she argued ''can jail a person for up to six months and even further, with no reason and without a possibility to appeal''. 'Without an accusation and without a trial, which mean in total violation of international law'' she added. ''The ordeal and dramatic hardships suffered by Al-Qiq must not be ignored. His life must be saved by all of us, at any cost''. A few days ago, President ''Abu Mazen spoke to John Kerry about it and an Italian parliamentary question regarding his liberation was presented'' concluded Al Kaila. ''Without the help of the international community, it will not be possible to save him''. Amnesty International launched an appeal for his liberation on February 18. (ANSAmed). (ANSAmed) - ROME, FEBRUARY 24 - Italian foreign minister Paolo Gentiloni said Wednesday at the lower house of parliament that the Libyan crisis could not be solved through military means. ''Italy is coordinating planning efforts to respond to the new Libyan government's requests on the ground in the security sector. We are leading an international process, but the process is very fragile and the road is not yet smooth,'' he added. ''We must distinguish counterterrorism activities from the solution to the Libyan issue. These are two different sectors,'' he said. According to the Arabic Huffington Post, French special forces are already in Benghazi ''to support'' military operations undertaken by the army under General Khalifa Haftar. The special forces are reportedly at the Benina base and have set up a coordination center for military operations with Libyans. (ANSAmed). Syria: Erdogan calls for Kurds to be excluded from ceasefire 'PYD-YPG must be treated the same as ISIS', Turkish president (ANSAmed) - ISTANBUL, FEBRUARY 24 - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Wednesday that Syrian Kurdish militia forces should remain excluded from a ceasefire agreement, since the Islamic State (ISIS) and local Al-Qaeda affiliate Al-Nusra are. ''It is a fact that the PYD (the Democratic Union Party) and YPG are terrorist organizations that are extensions of the PKK,'' Erdogan said. ''Should the PKK-PYD detonate their bombs not in Ankara but in other capitals so that it (the PYD and YPG) is recognized as a terrorist organization?'', he asked, criticizing the country's allies - especially the US - for lacking a ''spirit of alliance'' in the decision not to recognize the PYD-YPG as terrorist groups, as Ankara has asked them to. He added that though Turkey supported the idea of a ceasefire that enables ''our Syrian brethren to breathe'', the country is concerned that ''this agreement clearly helps Assad'' and could this lead to ''further tragedies''. (ANSAmed). The situation our TV station is in has been debated this week in the European Parliament also. Politicians in Brussels will ask the Government for explanations about what they say is an abuse and a violation of the freedom of speech. "The European Parliament must guarantee the freedom of the press (...) colleagues from the European Parliament will demand explanations," said Viorica Dancila, PSD MEP. Mihai Gadea announced Monday during the 100 minutes show that the Antena 3 s broadcasting was threatened . The NAFA inspectors said that in five days the buildings in which Antena 3 operated had to be evicted . Antena 3 invited the Antena 3 viewers to a public meeting in the Constitution square . The inauguration of the first segment of the Barcelona metros Line 9 joining Zona Universitaria and the airport via Fira, where the Mobile World Congress is currently being held sparked off some controversy when Spains Minister for Infrastructure was not invited to the event. The Catalan government gave a simple explanation: Madrid has not spent a penny on Line 9. You could argue that Barcelona city, LHospitalet and El Prat havent either, but the new line obviously goes through those cities and their mayors had forever demanded that this segment be completed; and now it has been, so they were issued an invitation. This might be a good time, then, to review the relationship between the undergrounds Line 9 and the government of Spain. The Third Additional Provision of the Catalan Statute (TAP) was supposed to guarantee a bare minimum commitment by Madrid to public spending in Catalonia. The TAP, which is in full force and effect and was never amended by Spains Constitutional Court (CC), states that the Spanish governments total public spending on Catalan infrastructures over a seven year period (2007 to 2013) must amount to the equivalent percentage of Catalonias contribution to Spains GDP. Any outstanding amount after Madrids investment must be transferred to Catalonias coffers for the Catalan government to invest. This transfer would be made three budget years later: the first year was needed to certify the actual amount spent, the second to budget for the difference with the target set by the TAP, and finally the amount would be sent to Catalonia during the third year, provided that the Catalan authorities could show evidence of completed public works. Catalan president Montilla chose to have the bulk of the TAP spent on building the L9 and banked on it to speed up the new lines construction. In 2010 Catalonia received the outstanding amount from 2007, but in 2011 Spanish vice president Elena Salgado froze the payment of the 2008 sum. At the time, Spains socialist government justified this move purely on financial grounds: they simply lacked the funds. However, when the PP took over they opposed the TAP on principle. Right from the very first PP budget in 2012, Catalonias TAP was wiped off the slate. Since 2011, the Spanish State has accumulated a huge historic debt with the Catalan government and Catalonia as a whole. The Catalan government has estimated that Spains failure to comply with the TAP amounts to nearly 4 bn. Yet Madrid has refused to fulfill its institutional duty. Rather, it has attempted to debase it and to ensure by means of a CC ruling that it is under no obligation to pay the TAP. As it has done many times before, the PP has ignored agreements and commitments, imposing its will with legal subterfuges. The PPs hostility against the TAP has spread to anything that the Catalan government intended to pay for with those funds. They turned down every request by the Catalan authorities to help them complete Line 9, even when they offered to allow Madrid to take credit for the works that had ground to a halt following Catalonias budget and financial crisis. Madrid also refused to help finance the outstanding amount and lower the financial costs of the project. Madrids hostility has been permanent. Not one euro, not a helping hand, not one gesture. The cost of completing the segment that runs from Zona Universitaria to the airport was under 300 m. Building the second segment also known as Line 10 that runs underneath Passeig de la Zona Franca will cost roughly the same. The third, central segment from Zona Universitaria to La Sagrera will be nearly 1 bn. Earmarking the cash from the TAP to complete Line 9 was no fools errand. The Spanish government should have recognised that this was a common good infrastructure. But their statesmanship manifested itself with the usual mix of hostility and jealousy towards Catalonia and its government. I fail to see how the Spanish minister could possibly be surprised not to receive a formal invitation, at first, to inaugurate a project against which she and her government had fought tooth and nail, a project which has been completed against Madrids will. It would have been so easy to collaborate! The whole project would have been finished years ago. Sources involved with the Iran-Brazil talks suggest that these will be part of a lease deal. The civil aviation authority director Ali Abedzadeh said that regional aircraft would be in great demand in the country as it emerges from trade sanctions. He estimated that Iranian carriers would need about 160 aircraft in the 100-seat and below category. Iran Air has recently ordered up to 40 ATR turboprops . Recent figures from Iran suggest that 80% of domestic passengers are transported through just 14 airports in the country. The government is looking for private investment to support development of regional airport facilities. Issues over the regional Iran aviation scene as well as the infrastructure challenges that growth will bring are to be discussed at the forthcoming Aviation Iran conference and exhibition which will take place in Dubai in September. Grissom Airmen return from deployment Welcomed back by family and friends, Airmen on two 434th Air Refueling Wing KC-135R Stratotankers returned to Grissom Feb. 07 after a four-month deployment to Southwest Asia. "We are very proud our returning Airmen," said Col. Anna Schulte, 434th Maintenance Group commander. "They did an outstanding job during the deployment, and that is a true testament of their professionalism and dedication to the mission." The families were hosted by the Grissom Airman and Family Readiness center where they decorated signs and socialized as they waited for their loved ones to return. "Just in time to be my Valentine," read a sign held by Katherine Fruit who waited for Senior Airman Brian Snead, 434th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron crew chief, to return. "It's been too long, and all of us are ready for him to come home." The group of returning Airmen also included an additional six aircrew who returned from a 60-day deployment. Together they provided aerial refueling and aircraft maintenance in support of Operation Inherent Resolve. "During the deployment we generated 885 sorties, more than 4,700 flying hours, offloaded 45.5 million pounds of fuel and supported 4,300 coalition receivers," said Chief Master Sgt. Chad Weisend, 434th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron superintendent. "Our Airmen did a great job and morale was good throughout the deployment." 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. Stay connected with the 434th ARW on Facebook and Twitter. Mildenhall KC-135s support French operation Three KC-135 Stratotankers, along with 50 Airmen from the 100th Air Refueling Wing at Royal Air Force Mildenhall, England, temporarily deployed to Istres-Le Tube Air Base, France, in support of Operation Juniper Micron. The U.S. has been supporting the French government in Operation Juniper Micron at their request since 2013, providing air refueling and airlift support of French operations in Mali and North Africa. Since December 2015 alone, the 100th ARW has flown more than 750 sorties, refueled more than 2,900 French aircraft, and off-loaded nearly 28 million pounds of fuel while supporting French operations. The strategic decision to temporarily deploy the KC-135s to Istres is the result of the continual evaluation of how to best support French ally forces in the air and on the ground. The long-standing relationship between the U.S. and France enables operational success by allowing a forward-based presence of U.S. Air Forces in Europe Air Forces Africa assets and the ability to move forward quickly in support of French operations. Pacific partners practice humanitarian assistance during Cope North Military members from six nations joined together for a humanitarian assistance and disaster relief deployment throughout the region of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands Feb. 14-18. The deployment is part of Cope North 16, a multilateral exercise, including the U.S. Air Force and air forces from across the Indo-Asia-Pacific region. Col. Brian Toth, the CN16 lead for the U.S. Air Force, said the HA/DR portion enhances regional capabilities to respond to crises and lays the foundation for the expansion of regional cooperation in the face of real-world contingencies. Humanitarian assistance and disaster response is an awesome capability we can provide, Toth said. The ability to have our forces train together allows us to understand what each part brings to the response and what we can provide together to provide the aid any country in the region may ask for. It demonstrates our commitment to working together with our coalition partner countries across the Pacific, he continued. We work well together and provide a strong presence and we know we can rely on each other in a time of need. Members from the U.S. Air Force, Navy and Coast Guard -- partnered with the Japan Air Self-Defense Force, Royal Australian Air Force, South Korean air force, Royal New Zealand Air Force and Philippine Air Force -- reacted to a fictional, yet realistic, disaster scenario that was said to affect the Marianas region. What were focusing on is interoperability, learning from one another how to better respond to disaster situations, said Sharon Rohde, the CN16 HA/DR lead planner. Its about overcoming not only language barriers but differences to how we do business, whether thats regulatory in nature or based on our understanding of the situation. We open up communication and derive lessons learned to be better prepared in response to disaster. The exercise scenario posed a severe impact from a typhoon traversing between the islands of Tinian and Rota, prompting Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands to issue a simulated request for immediate assistance to Guams neighboring islands. During the HA/DR response, Guam acted as the hub for all aid efforts. From Guam, crews traveled to two deployed operation centers on spoke locations on Rota and Tinian. Upon notification of the emergency, coalition units responded in a phased approach based on real-world response plans by deploying Royal Australian Air Force combat controllers and Andersen AFBs 36th Contingency Response Group teams to the islands to survey airfield conditions and establish security for incoming aid flights. The notional disaster tested the main training objectives of airfield assessment team insertion and substandard airfield operation. Bringing together Airmen from varying Air Force specialties, multilateral contingency teams demonstrated their ability to assess and operate previously inaccessible airfields within 12 hours of notification. Contingency response of this type is one of our major functions, said Lt. Col. Glenn Rineheart, the 36th Mobility Response Squadron commander and exercise mission commander on Rota. Cope North provides the ability for our Airmen to respond to a foreign location and operate only with those assets which were brought in order to surmount challenges with equipment and personnel and the environment. There is a lot to be gained from operating away from main base. After declaring the airfields as safe, contingency teams provided continued communications and aerial port support to allow aircrews to deliver aid. Within hours of the airfield opening, coalition teams began set up of an expeditionary medical support health response team mobile hospital, which stands ready on Guam to deploy to real-world disasters. Expeditionary medical teams deploy to save lives From emergency resuscitation to life-preserving surgery, the teams are well-equipped and trained to handle a large variety of possible ailments, yet the priority for medics and nurses lies with triage and initial stabilization of patients. The EMEDS-HRT is the first-line response package in the region, said Staff Sgt. Carlos Rance, a 36th Medical Group medical logistics contracting officer. We set up the ER tent first, and within a 12-hour period we have a fully operational medical facility that allows our teams to treat more than 300 patients. During this exercise we get the opportunity to not only complete a full setup, from the box up, but doctors and medics also get valuable hands-on experience on what its like to operate exclusive with the equipment we carry. Receiving a steady stream of typhoon victims who were hypothetically transported from Tinian for medical care, medical technicians and military doctors practiced real-time care procedures on simulated injuries ranging from burn wounds and open fractures to psychological distress and child delivery. Focused on the patient When patient condition required a higher echelon of care, a team or flight nurses and medical administrators ensured expedient aeromedical evacuation to a location with a fully functioning hospital. The focus of this whole exercise is the patient, said Australian Flight Lt. Emma J. Dingle, a Royal Australian Air Force flight nurse and CN16 aeromedical evacuation liaison. It is really important for us to understand how each country functions, so that when we do have to come together for joint disaster responses, we can do it smoothly and effectively and have the best outcome for the people who are in need of help. The aeromedical evacuation exercises culminated with a joint rescue event Feb. 17. Coalition search and rescue aviators located simulated downed aircrew in open waters off the coast of Guam and performed a subsequent rotary wing evacuation by U.S. Navy's Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 25. Planning success through past lessons learned For the first time, international HA/DR mission planners gathered during a two-day subject matter exchange and tabletop exercise before kickoff. Airmen from three nations shared their experiences, failures and successes during responses as far ranging as the 2011 tsunami in Japan and the 2015 earthquakes in Nepal. This year we added a tabletop exercise, which allowed participants to collaborate before exercising, Rhode said. This facilitated discussion about actual disasters that occurred in the Pacific and to hear that firsthand experience from somebody who was actually there and could speak to specific issues that occurred. Experts also discussed the integration with civilian agencies that would take important roles in real disaster response situations, such as international civic aviation authorities and USAID coordinators. Typically the civilian response agencies can handle most emergencies, even large once, said Scott Aronson, the senior USAID humanitarian assistance adviser to U.S. Pacific Command. But the U.S. military has unique abilities that either no one else has or nobody can deploy as quickly. We know, for instance, the CRGs capabilities during an HA/DR event are likely one of the unique abilities we might call on. As the lead federal agency for disaster response, we participated to make sure the exercise is realistic from our perspective and to have that face-to-face time with the people and agencies we will see in the field, Aronson continued. The biggest challenge is understanding each others capabilities and Cope North allows both sides to see what the other brings to the table and how those things work together. Maintaining those relationships is essential. Following the tabletop exchange, the teams practiced multinational interoperability during the stressful team building required during mission planning. The planning group this year was incredible to see, said Royal Australian Air Force Squadron Leader Chris OByrne, the Australian HA/DR scenario planning lead and exercise mission commander on Tinian. When you see service members come together and realize that theyre talking about the same thing, while calling it by a different name, and we notice that all the time; its an amazing thing to see. International interest rises Because of the resounding successes of HA/DR exercises in the past, an increased number of medical subject matter experts from Bangladesh, Canada, India, Indonesia, Malasia and Thailand visited the HA/DR portion as observers this year to witness operations firsthand and gather information on how to improve or establish their own contingency programs. Natural disasters are the when not the if of contingency scenarios and HA/DR is becoming more and more important and recognized as a critical capability, which is why our partner nations have sent their observers to the tabletop and field training exercises, OByrne said. During the conduct of the field training, the observers saw the U.S.-led CRG in Rota and the Australian Contingency Response Squadron on Tinian, which will allow them to see how different agencies would react. Success in numbers and increased interoperability Through effective use of its hub-and-spoke relief plan, the coalition teams successfully evacuated approximately 40 patients, moving more than 180 passengers, conducting 30 airdrops and transporting more than 438,600 pounds of cargo from island to island, Rhode said. Each year, this exercise has been getting more advanced, she said. We are learning more about what types of cargo can go on what types of aircraft or what type of communication capability each country uses. We learn it in the exercise and then when things really kick off, we are not starting from square one. Were working in the interest of saving lives and no one country can do it all themselves, so its a lot easier to get on board and figure out the problem together. Currently ongoing, this year marks the 87th iteration of exercise Cope North, which includes a long-standing, multinational HA/DR event designed to increase interoperability and develop a synergistic disaster response capability between the U.S. Air Force, Japan Air-Self Defense Force and Royal Australian Air Force. The second half of Cope North will shift the focus to air combat training, which will include air-to-air and air-to-ground combat and large force employment training. Disbrow confirmed as under secretary of the Air Force The U.S. Senate recently confirmed Lisa S. Disbrow as the new under secretary of the Air Force to ensure efficient and effective management of Air Force resources. In this position, Disbrow oversees the Air Forces annual budget of more than $120 billion and serves as the co-chair of the top Air Force corporate decision-making body, the Air Force Council. Being prior Air Force and having walked in those shoes helps me understand and appreciate the challenges and stresses our Airmen face on a daily basis, Disbrow said. I know when we are creating visions of how it will be implemented in the field, because I have been there. We have incredibly bright people in the Air Force and I get a sense of how valuable every single person is and how hard they work. Working with the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the vice chairman prior to her current position, Disbrow gained a lot of understanding of the issues the service leaders faced. That insight will help me enormously in my new position because I saw things across the full spectrum of issues, and to see and understand the joint operations side is a huge benefit for me, Disbrow said. The insight to processes like (Office of the Secretary Defense), budgeting and programming, (just to name a few) is invaluable to me here and I am completely amazed at the people who come from outside and can do this job; its a lot of complex, moving pieces. Disbrow discussed her top priorities, starting with ensuring Airmen know and feel like they are part of something bigger than themselves. The work we do is important and I want every Airman to know how much they matter, Disbrow said. The vice chief and I want to make sure Airmen who are separated or retired with symptoms of (post-traumatic stress disorder) get what they need. Taking care of Airman has been the number one priority for the secretary of the Air Force since she took charge and one of the best ways to do that is by growing the force. We just got approval to plus up our numbers so the question we need to ask is, as we grow, how do we bring capable and diverse people into our ranks? Disbrow asked. We need a wide range of skills and a diverse group of people with different ways of thinking. It will help our Airmen out enormously to grow quick, but we need to make sure we are growing with the right people. She also wants to push hard for top-line dollars the Air Force needs to support the Defense Department and the nation. I want to make sure we get what we need to focus on getting the mission done, Disbrow said. I also want to invest in our IT infrastructure because it supports every mission we have. We need to be able to modernize that so it can continue to support the growing needs of the Air Force. As under secretary of the Air Force, Disbrow is also charged with providing for the welfare of more than 664,000 active-duty, Guard, Reserve and civilian Airmen and their families. Every morning when I walk in through the (Pentagon) River Entrance, I pause and think about the enormity of the things going on here and how I play a role in all of that its very exciting, Disbrow said. Disbrow also discussed the role every Airman plays in the overall Air Force mission. Every person, no matter the rank, (has) a critical role to play in the mission and we need them to think about ideas on how they can make things better for the next person or for the next mission, Disbrow said. Our people are highly valued. Airmen for life thats what I want them to think. I want them to know they are part of something really important and we need their ideas. Every single person is mission critical. SecAF extends maternity leave an additional 6 weeks Air Force Reservists on active duty orders will now have an additional six weeks of maternity leave under a Secretary of Defense Directive-type Memorandum signed Feb. 5. Active-duty female Airmen and Reserve component service members on orders to active service for a continuous period of at least 12 months will receive up to 12 continuous, non-transferable weeks of fully paid maternity leave in accordance with Defense Department-wide changes to the policy. This change, like many others weve made, will help ensure our high-performing female Airmen can continue to serve both their families and the Air Force, said Secretary of the Air Force Deborah Lee James. In this case, these Airmen can concentrate on their family without the undue stress or pressure associated with returning to their job on a short timeline. This change in policy carefully balances mission effectiveness with our ongoing efforts to retain talent. Airmen who are currently on maternity leave will automatically be granted a 42-day extension. Those Airmen currently on approved ordinary leave in conjunction with their maternity leave are authorized to convert their regular leave to non-chargeable maternity leave, not to exceed a total of 12 weeks. The memorandum outlines the specifics under which a Reservist is eligible for extended maternity leave, according to the DTM. Service members, irrespective of Military Department, who become pregnant after March 3, 2016, will be entitled only to the new, 12-week benefit of non-chargeable Maternity Leave. The new 12 week period of Maternity Leave will start immediately following a birth event or release from hospitalization following a birth event (whichever is later), be continuous, and accrue at a rate of 12 weeks for each birth event. Commanders may not disapprove maternity leave, which begins immediately following a birth event or release from hospitalization following a birth event for a continuous 12-week period. This policy in no way restricts unit commanders or medical professionals from granting convalescent leave in excess of 12 weeks if a medical authority deems that leave is warranted. A birth event refers to any birth of a child or children to a female service member wherein the child or children are retained by the mother. Multiple children resulting from a single pregnancy will be treated as a single event so long as the multiple births occur within the same 72-hour period. The new policy also protects Airmen from any disadvantages in their career, including but not limited to assignments, performance appraisals or selection for professional military education, as a result of maternity leave taken. While some initiatives are force-wide, others are more targeted, but all have the same objective, said Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark A. Welsh III. Where we can, we will ease the burden on our Airmen by not forcing a decision between either having a family or career. We believe our Airmen should be able to have both. In addition, DOD is requesting legislative changes to paternity leave. We will seek authorities to increase paid paternity leave for new fathers from 10 to 14 days, which they can use in addition to annual leave, Carter said. Airmen with questions can contact their chain of command or local force support squadron for more details on eligibility, applicability and any other specifics related to the new benefit as the Air Force begins incorporating the changes into appropriate regulations and guidance. AFR officials are currently reviewing maternity leave policies to determine what other adjustments will be needed based on the extended period of maternity leave. Best Career Products and Services Would you like to submit an article in the Career category or any of the sub-category below? Click here to submit your article. Would you like to have your product or service listed on this page? Contact us. 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. For the past decade I have enjoyed the privilege of regularly collaborating in Dvorak and America festivals with Kevin Deas, one of the supreme African-American concert artists of our day. His performances of Goin Home and the Hiawatha Melodrama invariably make a great impression. Kevins self-evident generosity of spirit is as vital to his appeal as his luscious bass-baritone. But he has his foibles, one of which is a chronic reluctance to sign CDs. For the recent El Paso Dvorak and America festival, I instructed both the El Paso Symphony and the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) to purchase hundreds of CDs for signature and sale. The CD in question is Dvorak and America (Naxos), featuring Kevin Deas singing Goin Home and the Hiawatha Melodrama, plus a number of startling Dvorak-related novelties. Kevin invariably predicts that no one will purchase Dvorak and America. Knowing El Paso, I knew otherwise. I managed to goad him into venturing into the lobby of the Plaza Theatre at intermission, where a table stacked with CDs awaited his attention. He discovered a line of customers so long that it disappeared around a corner. They were young and old. Many were Hispanic. Some were first-time concertgoers. They all had something they wanted to tell him. And they wanted to buy signed CDs. In fact, El Paso is the perfect place for a Dvorak festival. Serendipitously, the El Paso Symphony is the only American orchestra with a Czech conductor. His name is Bohuslav Rattay and he is terrific. The orchestra enjoys a following both hungry and diverse. The orchestra roster includes 18 Hispanic musicians. As for UTEP, I have never encountered more eager or absorbent students. Of UTEPs 22,800 students, 78 per cent are Hispanic. More than 60 per cent of UTEP graduates are the first in their family to earn a B.A. One-third of all UTEP students report a family income of $20,000 or less. They disclose no sense of entitlement. The faculty is distinguished pedagogues who savor the opportunity at hand. The school is a launching pad. Its purposes and effectiveness are inspirational and obvious. El Paso itself, with a population of 650,000 (80 per cent Hispanic), is a perfect size for communal cultural endeavor. The orchestra, the university, the public schools partner easily. The various departments of the university are seamlessly collaborative. For the Dvorak festival, a fabulous scholar of nineteenth century American literature, the Melville specialist Brians Yothers, boned up on Longfellow and vitally participated in our explorations of the impact of The Song of Hiawatha on the New World Symphony. The Dvorak topic is protean, actually inexhaustible. His ecumenical conviction that African-Americans and Native Americans were emblematic Americans, crucial to any valid notion of American identity, remains provocative and timely. The El Paso festival began with a presentation at Chapin High School that was streamed to other public schools. I lectured for three large UTEP classes, connecting with a mixture music and non-music undergraduates and graduate students. Kevin and I performed our Harry Burleigh Show for a gathering of all UTEP music majors and grad students. The multi-media El Paso Symphony concerts featured the Hiawatha Melodrama and a visual presentation for the New World Symphony. The pre-concert speaker was Brian Yothers on Longfellow his range of influence, his shifting reputation. Finally, there were two concerts on the UTEP campus. Lowell Graham led the UTEP Orchestra in an arresting program of music from Dvoraks America by George Chadwick, Edward MacDowell and Dudley Buck. The UTEP Chorale offered spirituals and rare Indianist works. Here, the main event was Arthur Farwells 16-part a cappella Pawnee Horses, an American choral masterpiece that remains virtually unknown, brilliantly prepared by UTEPs Elisa Wilson. More than 300 UTEP students attended the El Paso Symphony concerts. Many had never before heard an orchestra. Two indispensable factors were Frank Candelaria, a visionary music historian who also serves as UTEPs Associate Provost, and the National Endowment for the Humanities, which supported the festival as part of its Music Unwound orchestral consortium. Next February I return to El Paso for Copland and Mexico, which will use Aaron Coplands Mexican epiphany as a starting point for exploring the Mexican cultural efflorescence of the 1930s. In that decade, it was not only Berlin and Paris that lured American artists and intellectuals abroad. Copland, Paul Strand, John Steinbeck, and Langston Hughes were among those flocking south of the border. Mexicans own cultural vanguard included a composer of genius still insufficiently recognized: Silvestre Revueltas. The iconic Mexican film Redes, scored by Revueltas with cinematography by Strand, will be the centerpiece of Copland and Mexico. UTEP, the El Paso Symphony, the El Paso Film Festival, and the El Paso Museum are already on board. There is a strong push to include events across the Rio Grande in Juarez. The opportunities at hand are inexhaustible. More than any other American city I know, El Paso deserves to be recognized as a national showcase for the ways in which cultural and educational institutions can work together to instruct, inspire, and unite. 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. by Melani Manel Perera A group of religious and lay Catholics published a 12-page booklet in Tamil, Sinhalese and English with the highlights of five speeches by Pope Francis and President Sirisena. The purpose of the visit to Sri Lanka was "primarily pastoral" and the focus of the popes speeches was "truth and reconciliation. Colombo (AsiaNews) The Alliance for Justice (AFJ), a group of Catholic priests, religious and lay people, presented the first booklet on the pastoral visit Pope Francis made to the island nation in January 2015. Titled Remembering the Papal Visit, the 12-page booklet (in Tamil, Sinhalese and English) contains the salient points of the five speeches made by Pope Francis and President Maithripala Sirisena, who had been elected just a few days before. The common thread in the popes speeches was the pursuit for truth and reconciliation. The booklet was distributed throughout the country via Caritas. The papal speeches have been very helpful for reconciliation, Fr Reid Shelton Fernando, an AFJ member, told AsiaNews. Our intention is to make the booklet available to our people so that they may get involved in reconciliation and building social harmony. This work is not limited to leaders; it is a task for everyone." The booklet looks at the popes arrival. On that occasion, Francis said, my visit to Sri Lanka is primarily pastoral. At the same time, The canonization of Blessed Joseph Vaz, whose example of Christian charity and respect for all people, regardless of ethnicity or religion, continues to inspire and teach us today. The booklet also contains President Sirisenas welcome speech. Your Holiness, this visit to Sri Lanka is of special significance, as my government is progressing on promoting dialogue and reconciliation amongst the people, as a means of consolidating the peace dividend. In view of this, The significant contribution that Your Holiness is making to bring about peace and reconciliation among nations and communities is gratifying, as interreligious dialogue helps social harmony and solidarity. by Thanh Thuy The diocese is one of four in the Mekong Delta, southern Vietnam, home to the countrys best universities. Hundreds of young people take part in diocesan activities, focusing on prayer and study. For bishop, Among Jesus disciples were people who did not always do his will. He calls for welcoming others with their imperfections. Ho Chi Minh City (AsiaNews) The Diocese of Can Tho, one of four in the Mekong Delta, is a place frequented by thousands of students. Most universities in Vietnam are concentrated in southern Vietnam, south of Ho Chi Minh City. During Lent, the diocese offers a series of activities for young people, who are often far from home. In Long Phu Parish for example, about 150 students, half of them non-Catholics, took part in workshops with prayers and reflections organised by catechists with the Year of Mercy and Lent as the main topics. The parish also invited academics and medical faculty to meet with students to discuss teaching, and, for medical students, work in hospitals. Last week, diocesan administrators held a two-day meeting to plan parish activities for the coming months. Mgr Stephan Tri Buu Thien, bishop of Can Tho, gave his thoughts about the dignity of the human person, even when people are imperfect. "Among Jesus disciples were people who did not always do his will or that he, from a human point of view, would not have wanted, said the prelate. Yet, Jesus received them from the Father and trained them. Among them some failed. The bishop, who celebrated 13 years as the dioceses bishop, called on priests, catechists and volunteers to welcome others as they are, imperfections included. The Diocese of Can Tho covers an area of 13,00o sq km, including the city of Can Tho and the provinces of Bac Lieu, Ca Mau, Hau Giang and Soc Trang. The bishop can rely on 207 priests and 344 religious serving 190,000 faithful divided in 94 parishes and 143 sub-parishes. The Neapolitan Jesuit arrived in the Philippines in 1644 and was killed four years later by a tribal chief who had distanced from the faith. Bishop of Dipolog: "He was a true son of Mindanao, he had a passion for the people of Lumad". PIME missionary: "His story is handed down from father to son in the tribes. We hope he will be proclaimed a saint in 2021, the 500th anniversary of the evangelization of the Philippines ". Manila (AsiaNews) - Yesterday the diocesan process of beatification and canonization began of Fr. Francesco Palliola, Neapolitan Jesuit priest, missionary for the tribals of Mindanao, who was killed in 1648. The process officially began yesterday, with a Mass celebrated in the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Holy Rosary of Dipolog (Zamboanga province), in the place where the missionary did most of his preaching. The bishop of the city, Msgr. Severo Caermare, had announced the cause of beatification on 9 January with Fr. Patrick Dalangin, who is the official postulator. If the trial proves successful, he will be the third saint (adopted) for the Philippines - after St. Lorenzo Ruiz of Manila and San Pedro Calungsod of Cebu - and the first to come from Mindanao. The island is the largest Islamic majority zone in the country, the scene of past civil wars the scars of which are still visible. Born in 1612 into a noble family of Naples, Francesco Palliola is part of a group of 40 Jesuit missionaries who landed in the Philippines in 1644. The priest began his preaching in Mindanao, in the Zamboanga peninsula, spreading the Gospel among the local populations, including tribal Subani Lumad. During the Mass, Msgr. Caermare, said: " Father Palliola was a Neapolitan, Italian by birth, but his love for God and his great passion for the care of the people of Zamboanga, in particular of the Lumad, make him a true son of Mindanao". Fr. Pilliola was killed in Ponot on January 29, 1648 by Tampilo, a converted indigenous leader who had abandoned the faith, and whom the priest was trying to bring back into the Church. In a statement released by the diocese of Dipolog, which deals with the cause of beatification together with the Jesuits and the Augustinians, it is written that "his grave, marked by a small memorial, is regularly visited by those who seek his intercession. The opening of the beatification cause "is good news - comments Fr. Sebastiano D'Ambra, PIME missionary in Zamboanga - and is a major boost for the mission in Mindanao. The Jesuits have a very important story in the Philippine Church ". "In 2021 continues Fr. D'Ambra - there will be a great celebration for in the Philippines the 500 years since the beginning of evangelization in the country. It would be nice if Fr. Palliola could be declared just blessed or saint on that occasion. " The history of the Jesuit missionary, he explains, "is still passed down from generation to generation among the tribes of Mindanao: I heard about it for the first time in 1977. They still speakl of those Jesuits who were the first to reach them to announce them Gospel". by Mathias Hariyadi Ahmad Al Thayyeb is on visit to the most populous Muslim country in the world. Indonesian President asks him to defend the moderate vision of Islam, against the radical threat. Muslim Scholars: "Al Thayyeb is a great authority, his visit is meant to strengthen cultural ties with Jakarta and prevent a Shiite-Sunni conflict occurring in Indonesia." Catholic professor: "The Church is ready to support a moderate reform of Islam." Jakarta (AsiaNews) - "Terrorism is not part of Islam". This is what Syekh Ahmad Muhammad Ahmad Al Thayyeb, the Great Imam and rector of Al-Azhar University in Cairo, said in an interview to Indonesian press in course of his visit to Indonesia. Welcoming the highest Sunni authority in the Islamic world, the Indonesian president Joko Widodo asked Al Tayyeb to defend the moderate face of Islam. "The president - says Alwi Shihab, former foreign minister - asked the Grand Imam to spread his vision and his enlightened thought among Muslim organizations and communities in Indonesia". The rector of Al-Azhar arrived in the Southeast Asian nation on February 21 last year and still remain for a few days. Yesterday, he visited the Islamic State University of Jakarta (UIM) and will also travel to that of Malang (East Java) to accept an honorary degree. AsiaNews spoke to some Islamic and Catholic figures, who pointed out the deep reasons of this important visit. Al-Azhar, explains Ali Mushanif, professor of social policies at the Syarief Hidayatullah Islamic University, "is the central icon of Islamic studies in the world. It is not the first time that the Great Imam of this prestigious university has visited Indonesia: Muhammad Tantawi was here in 2006 ". "The main reason for this trip - continues the professor - from Al-Azhar's point of view is to improve the education cooperation with Indonesia, which already has 3,500 students studying there." Al Tayyeb announced that the number of annual scholarships reserved for Indonesian students will increase to 50. In addition, says Ali Mushanif, "Al Tayyeb is the main reference of other Muslim nations in internal disputes within Islam, such as the dispute between Sunnis and Shiites." Historically, the scholar continues, "Al-Azhar has always had a moderate view of the conflict with the Shiites, and has never termed them outlaws. But I think the visit is also a way to reaffirm the dominance of the Sunnis. With more than 200 million Muslims, Indonesia has become a strategic country to maintain the unity of Islam, where you can prevent the symptoms of rivalry between Sunnis and Shiites [in Indonesia are less than 1%, ed] . The Great Imam excels in maintaining the right balance between the parties ". M. Qasim Mathar, of the Islamic University of Makassar (South Sulawesi), says Al Tayyebs visit is important "not only because Indonesia is the most populous moderate Muslim nation in the world, but also because it is battling fundamentalism and Islamic radicalism, which are not in accordance with the schools of thought spread by Al-Azhar ". "As an Indonesian - concludes the professor - I hope that this visit will strengthen the bonds between Indonesian Muslims and Egyptians, who are often affected by the violent attacks of the radicals." Wijoyo, a Catholic scholar of Islam has expressed his hope for a reform that promotes a moderate Islam. Al Tayyebs visit, he explains, "does not directly concern the Catholic Church, but if there is some attempt to reform, then the Indonesian Church will support it." The pregnant 16-year-old left Sweden with an IS member, going first to Syria, then Mosul. The rescue took place in the caliphates capital. The Swedish government has not yet commented the case. Erbil (AsiaNews/Agencies) Kurdish troops rescued a 16-year-old girl from Sweden held in Mosul. The city in northern Iraq has been held by the Islamic State (IS) group for almost two years and serves as the capital of the self-proclaimed caliphate. In a statement, the Kurdistan Regional Security Council (KRSC) yesterday said that the girl had been "misled" by an ISIS member in Sweden to first travel to Syria and then onwards to Mosul. The girl, whose photo appears in the statement, was rescued on 17 February. An anonymous Kurdish source told the AFP news agency that the rescue operation had taken place in secret in Mosul without clashes with IS gunmen. According to Swedish media, the girl is from Boras. She was 15 at the time and pregnant and left with her boyfriend for Syria. The Swedish government said it had no information about the case, but it has previously said that up to 300 Swedes are believed to have travelled to the region to fight alongside ISIS. Of these, 120 have returned home. by Fady Noun The decision not to pay US$ 4 billion to the Lebanese military, the travel warning for Saudis, Bahrainis and Emiratis, and the likely expulsion of 400,000 Lebanese nationals from the Gulf States are part of King Salmans vendetta after Lebanon failed to stand with Riyadh against Tehran. Lebanon is a place of reconciliation between Sunnis and Shias and where modernity can exist without atheism. Fady Noun, deputy editor of LOrient-Le Jour and our collaborator, offers an analysis and makes an appeal. Beirut (AsiaNews) We present an open letter to King Salman of Saudi Arabia, written by the deputy editor of LOrient-Le Jour, Lebanons most respected newspaper. To understand better its significance, we must mention recent events. Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) issued a warning for their citizens from travelling to Lebanon, a traditional destination for tourists from these countries. Riyadh took the decision yesterday, followed by the other two, citing security concerns. This comes after Saudi Arabia decided last week to halt a US$ 4 billion grant to Lebanons military and security forces. At the same time, reports indicate that the Sunni Gulf States are planning to expel some 400,000 Lebanese nationals, mostly from Saudi Arabia. Other reports suggest that the same countries might withdraw their deposits from Lebanese banks, causing Lebanon to plunge into an economic and social disaster. These steps against Lebanon follow Lebanese Foreign Minister Jebran Bassils decision not to support Saudi resolutions against Iran at two recent meetings of Arab and Muslim foreign ministers. Mr Bassil heads the Free Patriotic Movement that is allied with Hizbullah. In his letter, Fady Noun asks Saudi King to understand the special role Lebanon plays in the Middle East and to meet the Mufti and the Maronite Patriarch, who can explain how Lebanon can help the Middle East dialogue with modernity and a divided Islam find reconciliation. There is so much to say, but let us start with the most immediate, an open letter to the king Salman. "Your Majesty, with respect, you are making a mistake. The three billion dollars are not for you to take back. They are ours. His Majesty King Abdullah donated them, as President Michel Sleiman said, attested and witnessed. We believe that one never takes back a gift, and we ask for something that is ours. You felt you had to take it back, but we believe that in doing so the givers intention is not respected nor is the friendship between our two peoples upheld. You were offended, but overlooking an affront is all to the honour of the offended party. That is the real crown, the royal "keffiyeh". In addition, we have a weapon that nobody can take from us or sell us: our blood. Without the three billion, it will be used more efficiently, that's all. All the strategists will tell you that an army gains victory first with its morale." That said; let us turn to the most urgent. The most urgent thing now are the divisions within the Islamic world. With no false modesty, let us not hesitate to say that the answer to this division is (also) in Lebanon. The Maronite Church has given Lebanon an openness to true modernity, one that was its treasure and now is a shared treasure. Such openness has allowed the Lebanese to play a unifying role that honours them, throughout the genesis of what became the Lebanese state. The Maronites played this unifying role at the ecclesial level. Hence, there are no Maronite Catholics nor Maronite Orthodox. They then transposed this at the national level, which allowed the emergence of Lebanon as an independent Arab country. This partnership is what we value the most. The Patriarch invited us a few days ago to continue this mission "of building build bridges and links between communities." The regional crisis is a golden opportunity for the Church and Lebanon to act in accordance with their spirit, not to exacerbate the feelings of identity and affiliation of the various communities, but to bring together and reconcile. Secondary issues aside, we must think about the long-term development of theocracies like Iran and Saudi Arabia, reflect upon the hidden eschatological gnosis that inspires the Islamic Republic and about the return to basics of the Wahhabi doctrine developed in the early 20th century. We must realise that both are forms of a return to a repressed spirituality or transcendentalism, which was done in the West, and was offered to them as a future, and which, rightly, they did not want and still do not want. We must realise that we face a civilisational question that concerns everyone, the West included, the atheist West of the death of God, of colonial and imperial conquests, unequal exchanges, overt or covert racism and ethical relativism. The American philosopher Eric Voegelin, who reflected on millenarianisms, described this relativism as "a deification of society by itself." How in our dangerous times we miss the vigorous debate on civilisational relations that allowed us to play our role as cultural brokers for peace and truth. How we miss thinking about the 20th century we inherited. How we miss the in-depth reflection on Islam to understand what has led to the cultural and political aberration called "Islamic State." Where are the funds for basic research? Where are the Michel Hayeks and Yuakim Mubaraks today? Where are the Mohamad Hussein Fadlallahs and Mohammed Mahdi Shamseddines today? Hatred has covered everything. Instead of calling on the prime minister to visit Saudi Arabia, let us send the Mufti and the Patriarch; let us send one of the heirs of the founding fathers of the Lebanese peoples profound unity, a deep unity that holds back consciously or not the flood of violence that is often hidden by political speeches. In doing so, we would be first doing a service to Lebanon, in particular to the Maronite Church, which is a school of fairness that would not ask from others what it would be unwilling to do itself. by Kamran Chaudhry Since December 2014, Pakistan has been ranked third in terms of executions worldwide. For Catholic priest, the popes statement was widely covered in the newspapers; at least everybody got to read it. Muslims react negatively. The popes appeal is part of the international pressure. They should avoid telling us what to do, said one. We are Muslims and will follow our own law. Lahore (AsiaNews) Pope Franciss appeal for the abolition of the death penalty in the Year of Mercy has caused mixed reactions in Pakistan. On the one hand, the pontiff's call joins a long-standing demand by human rights organisations, the United Nations and local Church groups. On the other, some Pakistani lawmakers and Islamic leaders have reacted coldly to the papal plea. Pakistan reactivated the death penalty in March 2015 after a seven-year moratorium in reaction to a Taliban attack against a military school in Peshawar that left 132 students dead. Since then, 351 people have been executed, placing Pakistan third after Saudi Arabia and Iran in terms of executions. "The pope's appeal is quite appropriate for our country, said Fr James Channan, regional coordinator for the United Religions Initiative-Pakistan. His statement was widely covered in the newspapers; at least everybody got to read it. Christian nations should take the lead against the death penalty. For the clergyman, "Army operations against the Taliban, not capital punishments, have decreased terror incidents. The government should look into the political, religious and economic reasons including the lack of education and unemployment that breed terrorism". In June 2014, Pakistans army launched the Zarb-e-Azb operation against Taliban groups in the North Waziristan tribal area to end the Islamist insurgency that has claimed thousands of lives. For most Pakistanis however, the authorities are not doing enough to defeat the terrorists, because they have not yet approved the National Action Plan decided in January 2015 after the Peshawar attack. According to a recent survey by Gallup Pakistan, 92 per cent Pakistanis support hanging terrorists. Sajid Nawaz Khan, a Member of the National Assembly, is among the supporters. "The popes appeal is part of the international pressure, the lawmaker said. The international community should avoid telling us what to do, he told AsiaNews. "We are Muslims and will follow our own law. Death sentence is a minor thing. Those who kill children need extreme punishment. The fires of hell await them." For Tahir Ashrafi, head of the Central Ulema Council, the Peshawar tragedy would not have happened had the terrorists been executed before. What is more, "Without the concept of reward and punishment, society turns into a jungle, he explained. We support our government and the army fight against the terrorists." The meeting in Manila between leaders of Caritas Internationalis and Catholic members of non-governmental organizations of the mainland China bodes well for the future of the "third sector" in the Asian country. The Beijing government grants more space to social groups, and in some cases even allows for clear faith-based activities. This is because the spread of Christianity is now so broad that even the Party must take it into consideration. But behind these openings remains the authorities fear that NGOs can subvert the established order. Beijing (AsiaNews) - The Chinese government needs non-governmental organizations, particularly those of a Christian matrix, since this religion is rapidly expanding in the country and love of neighbor is among its founding principles. However, the party fears the "peaceful transformation" that NGOs can cause and the subsequent overthrow of the existing power system, and, as a direct consequence of this, is tightening controls while opening up new fields of work for religious groups. This is shown by a study presented by two researchers at Cambridge and Oxford, who analyzed the "third sector" of a religious character in the Chinese world. These assessments are confirmed by the recently held meeting held in Manila, organized by Caritas Internationalis, which was also attended by representatives of some Catholic NGOs from mainland China. During the three days of meetings, possibilities for greater cooperation in the humanitarian level were discussed. The fact that the Chinese government has allowed the delegates to leave for the Philippines, said an AsiaNews source for, "is in itself a notable change". However, when the situation at home for non-governmental groups seems to be the same of the last decade. A much-criticized draft law, submitted in July 2015, aims to revolutionize and worsen the NGOs working conditions and margins for maneuver and especially the religious ones. In addition, several articles appeared recently on state media denouncing that "too much power" had been granted by the executive to these realities. At the moment, to be in accord with the law, NGOs must obtain a double permit: one from the Ministry of Civil Affairs or the Department of Civil Affairs (for the smaller bodies), and an official institution willing to act as "sponsor"(ie a guarantor) for the organization. The first is obtained if the body is in accordance with the Rules for the registration and administration, the latter only if the sponsor (literally "professional management unit" yewu zhuguan danwei ) is part of the government or the Party. This figure is important, since according to current legislation it carries out annual inspections, approves the budget, projects, provides for the supply of staff and establishments in which to operate. So this is a dual management system: registration depends on both the department in charge of management and administration, and the government or the Party sponsor. This way only the organizations that actually operate in accordance with the policies and the needs of the government have the ability to legally register. Another important requirement is linked to the principle of non-competition: it is forbidden for organizations that have a similar or identical project to place their bases in the same administrative region. This principle means that the State's monopoly in the sector is protected, while the possibility of establishing new individual NGOs is effectively prevented. To all this is added, for the religious groups, the need to obtain registration with the Religious Affairs Office (local) and the State Administration for Religious Affairs (National). According to article 10 of the Rules, the criteria social organizations must adhere to also include: possession of a minimum of 100 thousand yuan nationwide and 30 thousand yuan at local-provincial level; having at least 50 members, a number that drops to 30 if it is existing staff is from state institutions; the drafting of an annual report on the work done by the social organization to be submitted to its official sponsor, so as to ensure the possibility of appropriate conduct of examinations with respect to the Government; a "proper" office, where employees operate with full-time and permanent contracts. In their study Hasmath Reza and Jonathan Tam, say all of this is prohibitive for religious NGOs if it prevents them from having access to international donations. These are very negatively viewd by the authorities, who consider funding by foreign powers contrary to the regime in power. However, they add, the rapid growth of the Christian population and the higher average level of prosperity could soon change the situation by allowing Christian groups engaged in social work to rely solely on Chinese donors. The authors write that it is still necessary to keep a low profile and a good relationship with the local authorities, at least, whose trust the religious NGOs must "earn". After spending about a year and a half in the Chinese social reality, Hasmath and Tam explain that they understand that "the key to survival" is accepting the Partys control. Once accepted, things can improve. To the point that some leaders of Christian NGOs say they have now permission to conduct theological seminars for young people and other clearly religiously motivated activities without fear of government reprisals. In the long run, however, they add, that they are ready "at any time be asked" to shift gears or even disrupt operations "until further notice." Additionally, the same sources said the authorities insist on the use of Chinese staff, even better if from the local area that the NGO is operating in: "Foreigners are viewed with great suspicion, and their use should be avoided". The ambivalence of this behavior is theorized and explained in the article "How to evaluate foreign and religious NGOs in China", which appeared on August 23, 2006 in Xuexi Shibao, the official newspaper of the Communist Party School in Beijing penned by Zhao Liqing. The text has become the focus of official policies enacted over the past decade. Even President Xi Jinping repeatedly mentioned it during meetings with the leaders of the "third sector" of Zhejiang Province, where he was governor until March of 2007. The state, writes the professor, "appreciates and little by little, harvests the fruits that have blossomed in China thanks to foreign NGOs." However, "great attention must be taken" to understand "the real effects of the role played by these organizations." The government is concerned that "foreign NGOs could undermine national security, destroy the political stability, further disseminate corruption and encourage foreign practices that are not beneficial to the conditions of China." The most feared factor is infiltration: "The international and religious NGOs should not enter structures such as universities, government bodies, or the same party, with the intention of spying and then collecting information on China's military, political and economic areas, nor should they inculcate subversive ideas among Chinese young people. " Finally, Professor Zhao warned the leaders of the Party: "NGOs supported by foreign countries risk leading to a subversion of the party through the so-called 'peaceful transformation'. In Eastern Europe and Central Asia the so-called 'color revolutions' occurred due to the direct or indirect involvement of local NGOs, which funded, or directly participated in the riots. We must avoid these groups becoming powers, capable of launching a 'color revolution' in China at all costs". Erwiana Sulistyaningsih only wanted to do what tens of thousands of other Indonesians do: support her family at home by working as a housemaid for the wealthy in Hong Kong. Maids' remittances pay down their parents' debts, cover their children's school fees, or accumulate capital to later open up their own businesses or buy a house. It didn't work out that way for Erwiana, who was 22 when she arrived in the city. Instead, eight months later she found herself in a hospital bed, hardly able to walk, after her employer beat and starved her, while making her work for up to 21 hours a day. Her case made international headlines two years ago when it came to light, with thousands demonstrating on the streets and demanding "Justice for Erwiana." Last year her employer was sentenced to six years in jail and fined around 1,850 dollars. It wasn't enough, said Erwiana. "It seems that while we recognize maltreatment of migrant workers as bad, and (know) that slavery exists in Hong Kong, the Hong Kong government seems to tolerate it," she said outside the court. Rights organizations say food deprivation, 17-hour working days, unpaid wages, beatings and even rape are just some of the dangers that migrant workers mostly women face in Hong Kong. And it's not just employers, but the authorities too, who put the workers' safety at risk, according to a report by Amnesty International. Getting a job abroad is often only possible via unscrupulous government-licensed placement agencies. "Most of them demand illegal or disproportionately large fees," says Anna Olsen of the International Labour Organization (ILO). Many women don't see a cent of their wages for months. Their salaries are paid directly to the agencies and their passports are taken away to prevent them from leaving. "For many it's a modern form of slavery," says Olsen. "Because employees can't really escape from their abusive jobs." Hong Kong's migration rules, whereby housemaids have to find new employment within two weeks of leaving a job, make the situation even more difficult. Domestic worker recruitment is a billion-dollar business, and it's growing as the population ages. Worldwide there are 67 million domestic workers, 11 million of whom work abroad, mostly in Asia, according to the ILO. And at least 3.4 million people work in slave-like conditions, with agencies and employers stealing around 7.6 billion dollars through illegal fees for recruitment and low wages, the organization charges. In some countries, remittances from their workers abroad are crucial to the economy. Around 10 per cent of the Philippines gross domestic product (GDP) comes from remittances, according to the World Bank. One recruitment agency, founded by David Bishop, has been trying to introduce a new "fair" business model to the industry in Asia. At his Fair Employment Agency, the employers pay all the costs of recruitment, which prevents the kind of thing that happened to Erwiana, says Bishop. That's because though Erwiana fled her employer, the agency sent her back there because she still owed them money. Bishop has recruited around 400 domestic workers since 2014 and the governments of Singapore and Malaysia have shown an interest in the model. "We want to prove that you can also make a fair profit," says Bishop. "Until now, government haven't really regulated agencies, because then they say that they can't be profitable." Hong Kong's government has said that its laws adequately protect its 330,000 foreign domestic workers. They are guaranteed a minimum wage, health insurance, one day off a week and the right to demonstrate, which they don't have in many other countries. "But it's still the responsibility of employees to register abuse," says Eni Lestari, spokeswoman for the biggest association of foreign domestic workers in Hong Kong. Legal action can often take months and most can't afford it. "Everybody knows how bad the situation is," says lawmaker Emily Lau Wai-hing. "But there's a lack of political will to do more." "There's no evidence that Hong Kong is a source territory, a destination or a transit point for human trafficking," a government spokesman says. The rights group Justice Centre plans however to present "worrying" evidence to the contrary in February. According to spokeswoman Victoria Wisniewski Otero, the organization has produced the first representative study of forced labour among domestic workers in Hong Kong. A current example is that of a Pakistani man who has accused the government before the courts of not doing enough to protect victims of human trafficking. His lawyer, Patricia Ho, says her client is one such victim. He was brought to Hong Kong on a visa for foreign domestic workers and worked as a forced labourer for four years. When he sought help from the local authorities, they took no action. "My client hopes that no one else is ever treated in the same way," says Ho. "He's fighting for justice." The most googled person in India hails from Sarnia, Ontario. Sunny Leone, a Bollywood movie star, is the best-known Canadian in this nation of almost 1.3 billion. Leone has topped India's Google searches every year since 2012 - eclipsing even wildly popular Prime Minister Narendra Modi. A daily fixture on the Bollywood pages of India's thousands of newspapers, she appears in ads for energy drinks, her own line of perfume and condoms - a wink at her early career starring in American porn films. Leone exudes Canadian modesty when discussing her fame in the world's largest movie industry, which annually releases more than twice as many productions as Hollywood. "I just see myself as a girl that just wants to work and is happy doing that. I know it all goes hand in hand but for me I'm just following my dream of working in Bollywood," she said. Born Karenjit Kaur Vohra in Canada 34 years ago, she has happy memories of her childhood in southwestern Ontario before her family moved to the U.S. when she was a teenager. "It was great growing up in Sarnia - great place for kids to grow up," said Leone, whose parents have since passed away. Asked if her candour about her career choices was liberating for women in patriarchal India, Leone said, "I don't know about empowering, but the only thing I say all the time is that I believe people should do what they want to do as long as they are not hurting someone, stealing or cheating someone." "I don't regret my decisions in life and they were solely made by me. We should live life with integrity and honour our decisions," she said. Guest Commentary By Norm Letnick Minister of Agriculture Day in and day out over 55,000 farmers, ranchers, fishers, and food processors work around the many unique regions in our province to grow, catch, process, and deliver some of the best tasting, highest quality food to British Columbians. I know, Ive had the privilege of meeting hundreds of them over the past three years during my travels throughout the province and speak with them about their passion for the land, their products, and their contribution to our way of life. Together, with the support of over 300 men and women who work in the agriculture ministry, they achieved a milestone in agrifood receipts last year topping a record $12.3 billion. That was almost 6% more than the year before which was also a record year. Many farmers are making more money, with net cash income for this last year rising over 33% above the year before. Weve seen records shattered in total honey production yield to nearly 4 million pounds, sweet cherries 22% higher than the year previous at nearly 14,000 tonnes, record years in hectares harvested of asparagus, beets, cauliflower, field tomatoes, greenhouse peppers and cucumbers, and more including records in cattle, milk, and chicken. In 2014, B.C. producers led the nation in sales of blueberries, cranberries, sweet cherries, raspberries, apricots, with 17 of B.C.s crops ranked second in national sales including floriculture products, nursery products, grapes, and more. And with our long shoreline weve also led the nation in sales of salmon, halibut, rockfish, skate, dogfish, hake, tuna, wild crabs, farmed clams, oysters and scallops. All this in an environmental and sustainable manner that not only meet and exceed standards but also attract buyers from around the world who are hungry for clean, safe, nutritious, high quality food and drink to consume and feed their children. This growing demand has propelled our exports to record levels of nearly $3 billion with the USA consuming two-thirds of that and China coming in at number two at $264 million. Through the recent throne speech and budget our government has communicated its intent to continue to support and expand this important industry for the benefit of those men and women working in agrifoods, for all British Columbians who enjoy the over 300 commodities harvested and hundreds more food and drink products manufactured here, and many in over 150 countries who import our products. Whether its more money for our highly successful Buy Local program, more resources to help the Agriculture Land Commission enhance its oversight of the over 4 million hectares in the ALR (32,000 more than 2001), a new non-refundable farmers food tax credit to those in the farming sector who donate produce and products to people in need or school meal programs, funding for the B.C. Agriculture in the Classroom Foundation to ensure the continuance of the school fruits, vegetable and dairy program, which now serves fresh B.C. agricultural products to 549,000 students in more than 1,400 First Nations and public schools, or many other program area investments you can rest assured that our government is fully committed to see agricultures success continue now and for years to come. Latham & Watkins is to open its sixth office in the region, in Seoul. South Korea has been eyed by the firm following a strategic review of Asia-Pac which began last summer and the new location builds on the success of the firms offices in Beijing, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Tokyo and Singapore.A case against McGraw-Hill Financial and Standard & Poors has been settled in Australia, subject to court approval and conditions. The action was brought by almost 100 investors including institutions, individuals, councils and charitable organisations which bought SDCOs in Lehman Brothers Australia Ltd, which is in liquidation. The debt obligations were rated by S&P. The applicants in the case, who alleged negligence on the part of S&P, were advised by Squire Patton Boggs The decision of the US Supreme Court to dismiss a patent infringement case brought against Facebook by Bascom Research LLP has been named the Top Verdict of 2015 by The Daily Journal. Facebook was defended by Cooley and won the argument that the ability to friend other users did not infringe four patents held by the plaintiff which then court said were abstract ideas". Corrs Chambers Westgarth has appointed its fifth partner of the year so far. Jillian Button has joined the firms environment and planning group in Melbourne. Button was previously with Minter Ellison.The potential for increased levels of nonperforming loans to result in more defaults is worrying law firms in Singapore. The view is in contrast to the city-states big banks who believe the level is manageable. NPLs will have to increase due to weakness in the oil sector, the banks have said, but they are confident that they will not hit the highs seen during the financial crisis. News.markets reports that law firms including Rajah & Tann are concerned that distressed loans will spread across multiple sectors. Asia-Pacs fastest growing alternative law firm AdventBalance has announced it will merge with London-based alternative legal service, Lawyers On Demand, to create the largest international NewLaw firm spanning Europe, Australia and Asia. Post-merger, the business will have over 600 lawyers across seven offices: London, Hong Kong, Sydney, Singapore, Brisbane, Melbourne and Perth. Its about creating scale, AdventBalance COO Ken Jagger told Australasian Lawyer. Weve already got the Australian/ Asian market and we think if we can combine that with the UK and European market that will have an integrated offering which clients will be able to take advantage of which will give more opportunities to our lawyers. Jagger said the leadership teams in Australia, Asia and the UK will remain in place. In a joint announcement released today, the firms said the merger is a natural progression, bringing together a shared commitment to alternative ways of working. I think over the last few years, the new law players have carved themselves out a niche in the market and this is all part of the consolidation and improvement of that tradition, said Jagger. To take it to the next stage, the new law players need to get global scale and thats exactly what this is about so we think well be ahead of the pack once we bed down this merger. Merging will also allow the businesses to continue their rapid growth, the statement said. Weve known and admired AdventBalance for many years, having grown-up together in the NewLaw environment we helped to create, LOD managing director Simon Harper said. Both businesses are very successful in their own right. What we also share is an unwavering commitment to our people and time has shown us that happy lawyers mean happy clients. AdventBalance has exactly the same approach. The firms are already working together on client opportunities. The merger will be complete mid-March. Local member for Bega Andrew Constance has called for the resignation of a district court judge after his lax sentencing of a child rapist. Judge Clive Jeffreys sentenced former Bega Cheese CEO Maurice van Ryn to just 13 years in prison with a non-parole period of 7 year for molesting nine children between 2003 and 2014. According to The Daily Examiner, the non-parole sentence was almost doubled to 13 years and six months on appeal, with an aggregate sentence of 18 years. Several judges called the original sentence an affront to the administration of justice in the appeal. Whilst I'm not going to canvass the exact nature of the crimes in my address to parliament today, I do rise on behalf of my community to convey the outrage at the inappropriate handling of this matter by the District Court, Constance said in parliament, suggesting Jeffreys should consider if hes fit to keep his job. This sentence was a mere slap on the wrist and can only suggest the judge made a significant error of judgment. In my humble opinion and that of my community, van Ryn should never be released to re-offend again. I'd suggest very clearly that Judge Jeffreys look within himself at what has occurred here as a result of his decision. He must surely consider his position as a result of this ruling, as I'm sure most people would reflect. Constance said he would seek a judicial commission review of the decision. Channel 7 reported that five sentences that Jeffreys has imposed have now been increased by the Court of Appeal. Hungary has today become the latest country to sign a reciprocal arrangement with Australia, allowing young people from both countries to visit each other's nations under the Australian Government's work and holiday arrangements.Australian Immigration Minister Peter said it will encourage young people to add Australia or Hungary as another holiday destination when going abroad to travel, work and study for a short term.Under the arrangement, people aged 18 to 30 years will be able to travel to each other's country for one year and undertake short-term work and study under the Work and Holiday subclass 462 visa. It will be capped at 200 places each year."We will be working closely with our Hungarian counterparts to establish a mutually agreed start date for this arrangement as soon as possible. Once the arrangement has commenced, eligible young people from Hungary and Australia will be able to apply for this visa programme," Dutton added.The agreement comes as official figures show that in trend terms, short term visitor arrivals to Australia during December 2015 reached 652,800, up 1% from the previous month and 11.1% higher than December 2014.The data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) also show that 10,390 people stated they were permanent arrivals to Australia during December 2015, a decrease of 11.5% compared with December 2014.A breakdown of the figures show that people born in China accounted for the largest proportion of settlers at 14.7%, followed by people born in India at 12.9% and people born in New Zealand at 12.1%.There were 8,970 Australian residents who stated their intention was to depart permanently from Australia during December 2015, an increase of 0.8% compared with December 2014.However, analysis shows that the majority of those with an intention of permanently departing, return to Australia within the following year. For example, in the calendar year 2011, out of the 84,240 Australian residents who stated they were departing permanently, only 15,890 spent 12 months or more overseas. Hi there, Am curious to know if the Australian Sponsor is required to renew all police clearances if the 12 months lapses before an outcome is given for PMV. I require police certification from both Australia and Kenya and am having a cow of a time organising one from Kenya when I am currently in Australia- I am dreading the thought that I would have to do this again in 12 months.. My partner is Kenyan and has a child that is coming with him- this is the reasoning for the clearance. I know he will need to renew if the 12 month timeframe lapses but can't seem to find out if I would need to as well. Many thanks for any advices given! AWD As mentioned earlier, the 2017 Audi R8 Spyder will be officially unveiled in April. Its first public outing should be at the Beijing Motor Show in China, which is slated to open its doors on April 25. Until then, two pics uploaded by cars_in_namibia on Instagram will have to suffice. Both units of the Audi R8 Spyder have been snapped west of the border of Namibia with South Africa. The location is near Upington, which is a stones throw away from the Kalahari desert.Temperatures in the Kalahari occasionally reach 113 degrees Fahrenheit (45 degrees Celsius), which is perfect for putting a test mule through its paces. From above we can see two arched cowls that give the hood a similar appearance to that of the first-gen R8 Spyder . The cowls taper from the bulkhead and include air vents. Furthermore, a wide discharge vent is located between the cowls.The diffuser, shape of the tailpipes, the taillights and the vents located underneath are identical to the fixed head Audi R8. As for the windscreen frame, anodized aluminum makes for an appealing contrast with the stainless steel brackets for the top. Expect Audi to offer the fabric roof in two colors: black or red. The electrohydraulic soft top will be similar to the mechanism used by the Lamborghini Huracan LP 610-4 Spyder, so expect the top to open or close in approximately 17 seconds at speeds of up to 31 mph (50 km/h).The V10 Plus variant of the 2017 Audi R8 Spyder will employ a naturally aspirated 5.2 V10 with 602 horsepower (610 PS) and 413 lb-ft (560 Nm) of torque. Thanks to a fast-shifting 7-speed dual-clutch transmission and the quattrosystem, 0 to 62 mph (100 km/h) should occur in 3.4 seconds. The maximum speed will definitely be lower than the 205.1 mph (330 km/h) of the fixed head Audi R8 V10 Plus. SUV Clearly, this technology is the same as the famous Mercedes-Benz Magic Sky Control, which you can get on the SL and SLK roadsters. Exotic models also offer it, but Mercedes actually made it famous. We are not aware of it being offered on the side of any, though we have heard rumors that the Dartz Prombron and the US Special Vehicles Rhino GX Sport have it.As cool as this feature is, we don't understand what it's for. It may have been designed as a privacy application to protect mobsters and oligarchs from the gaze of the peasants while they are eating caviar. The magic glass apparently doesn't work like tint, since when it's activated, you can't see out of the car. That makes driving dangerous, and it's why the police are always after drivers with dark windows.But can you imagine getting pulled over in this thing? By the time the policeman gets to your car, the windows will look completely normal. What will he do then? Mercedes uses Magic Sky Control on the roof of its two roadster models, allowing the cars to get the same lighting as those with a sunroof without any moving parts. Physics tells us that having black windows will make the car heat up much faster, which is why the best IR protection films are almost transparent.How does it work? Well, there are particles in the glass that align vertically when an electric current is run through them. When the power supply is cut off, the particles go back to their original random setup and block out a large portion of the light. Mercedes asks $2,500 for the roof of its clever roadsters so we could be looking at an SUV with $10,000 windows. Photo courtesy of Ford. Ford Motor Co. is recalling 48,990 2015-2016 model-year Ford Transit wagons in the U.S. to address a potential issue with the rear seat belt buckles, the automaker said. The rear seat belt buckles are being damaged when heavy objects are placed on top of them, which could cause the buckle not to latch completely, increasing the risk of injury in a crash, Ford said in a released statement. Ford added that it isnt aware of any related accidents or injuries. Dealers will conduct inspections and either repair or replace the seat belt buckles as needed. The recall covers Ford Transit wagons built at the Kansas City Assembly Plant from Feb. 13, 2014, through Jan. 13 of this year. Additionally, 1,781 vehicles will be recalled in Canada and 699 in Mexico for the same issue. Efforts to bring Uber-like flight sharing to private aircraft, such as FlyteNow and Airpooler, have been derailed by the FAA, but similar efforts that use the power of apps and easy online reservations to fill empty seats on commercial charter aircraft are booming. Blade has done so well selling helicopter service from Manhattan to the Hamptons that it sparked an uproar among beachgoers annoyed by the constant roar of rotors. Now another service, Rise, which launched last summer in Dallas, says its service booking charter jets and turboprops has completed 1,500 flights and is ready to expand into six additional cities, in Texas and beyond. Rise doesnt operate any aircraft of its own, but partners with local vetted charter providers, serving five airports with 60 flights a week. Members pay a monthly fee, starting at $1,650, which provides unlimited access to flights. Members say they like that they can catch a plane from an FBO just minutes before departure and avoid the long lines at the terminal. The service also helps charter operators make better use of their fleet, according to Rise CEO Nick Kennedy. In the first six months of operation, we have transformed business for operators by enabling them to increase aircraft utilization from 20 percent to 80 percent, Kennedy said in a news release last week. Diamonds new seven-seat DA62 twin debuted last April at Aero Friedrichshafen in Germany and visited the NBAA show in Las Vegas in November, so its already familiar to many aviators, and as of today its officially FAA-certified. The twin offers a combination of cabin volume, utility, performance and efficiency, said Diamond CEO Peter Maurer. The airplane comes with two turbo diesel Austro AE 330 turbocharged engines, each with 180 hp. Maximum speed is 201 knots and maximum range is 1,280 nm. The company is introducing the new twin to U.S. customers with a Southwest Demonstration Tour, which began last week in San Diego and is now in Long Beach. A team of pilots, flying the latest versions of the companys twins and single-engine airplanes, will visit airports in California and Nevada, and arrive in Scottsdale, Arizona, on March 12. The team then will visit Texas and the Southeast, with more tours to be announced later in the year, the company said. The DA62 sells for about $1.25 million. Click here for a video of the DA62s debut at NBAA last year. 24 February 2016 19:11 (UTC+04:00) By Nazrin Gadimova The international community must have true information about the Khojaly genocide, committed by the Armenian military back in 1992. Ismayil Akhundov, Head of the working group of the State Commission on Prisoners, Hostages and Missing Persons made the remarks during the round table held on February 24. The event brought together members of the commission and international organizations, members of the joint investigation team of Azerbaijans General Prosecutors Office, the Interior Ministry and the State Security Service, as well as representatives of NGOs and many others. Addressing the event, Akhundov said the commission was established in order to search for missing persons and to return those captured and taken hostage during the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. The head of the commission emphasized the importance of ensuring the rights of the victims of war, as well as informing the world community about the Khojaly massacre for the legal evaluation of the tragedy in accordance with the international practice. Touching upon the atrocities of Armenians against Azerbaijanis, Akhundov noted that Armenians subjected the Azerbaijani hostages to incredible tortures. Armenians brutally killed them, disregarding the fact that the hostages were elderly, children, women and the wounded, he said. Khojaly, the second largest town in the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan, came under intense fire from the towns of Khankendi and Askeran already occupied by the Armenian armed forces in 1992. As many as 613 civilians mostly women and children were killed in the massacre, and a total of 1,000 people were disabled. Eight families were exterminated, 25 children lost both parents, and 130 children lost one parent. Moreover, 1,275 innocent people were taken hostage, and the fate of 150 of them remains unknown. Addressing the event, Alekper Khalilov, a member of the joint investigation team, said that evidences given by the Khojaly residents, who managed to get out of the encirclement, once again prove that Armenians committed horrible crimes against the humanity. Children, elderly and wounded persons were tortured. They [Armenians] cut off their noses, ears, and heads, gouged out eyes, [the hostages] were burned alive, armored vehicles passed over them, he said, adding that the list of such tortures is long enough. Khalilov further added that Azerbaijan has commenced proceedings against 39 persons engaged in the Khojaly massacre. About 78,000 investigative actions were carried out on criminal cases related to crimes committed by Armenians against Azerbaijanis, said Ulvi Ahmadov, a member of the joint investigative group. Over 7,000 people have been testified as witnesses, about 26,000 people - as affected individuals, and 809 different examinations were held, he added. Among 296 accused persons there are three Russians, one Ukrainian, 18 soldiers of the 366th infantry regiment of Soviet troops, including 14 Armenians, 18 members of internal affairs agencies and 11 employees of the former Committee for State Security of the Soviet Union, Ahmadov said, adding that the others worked in the former party and government bodies, in the spheres of education, catering, transport, agriculture and others. Meanwhile, expert Eldar Samedov informed that Armenia has turned Azerbaijani hostages into the object of trade, as 68 Azerbaijani citizens have been redeemed from the captivity for the large sum of money. The investigation revealed that Armenia has captured more than 6,000 citizens of Azerbaijan, he said adding that 1,435 Azerbaijanis have been released up to date. Samedov said that the medical examination of those liberated from Armenian captivity revealed that most of them were infected. "Currently, 3,860 citizens of Azerbaijan are prisoners and hostages. including 3,162 soldiers, 698 civilians, 60 minors, 249 women, and 303 elderly people, Samedov said. Armenia occupied over 20 percent of Azerbaijan's internationally recognized territory, including Nagorno-Karabakh and seven adjacent regions, after laying territorial claims against its South Caucasus neighbor that caused a brutal war in the early 1990s. Long-standing efforts by the U.S., Russian and French mediators have been largely fruitless so far. The UN Security Council has adopted four resolutions on Armenia's withdrawal from Azerbaijani territory, but they have not been enforced to this day. -- Nazrin Gadimova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @NazrinGadimova Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 24 February 2016 10:20 (UTC+04:00) Azerbaijan`s First Lady, President of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation Mehriban Aliyeva has visited Pius-Clementine Museum as part of her trip to the Vatican. The first lady viewed the art samples and monuments restored with the support of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation. The museum was commissioned by Popes Clement XIV (1769-1774) and Pius VI (1775-1799) to collect the most important Greek and Roman masterpieces in the Vatican. Valuable samples of architecture related to the Antique and Renaissance periods are preserved at the museum. Located in the Belvedere Palace, the museum is included in the Vatican museums complex and is distinguished by universal richness in terms of the number of exhibits and historical significance. The museum is comprised of a courtyard, an animals room, a statues gallery, the Rotonda room, the Greek cross room, the gallery of busts and other divisions. Antique statues related to the time of Pope Julius II are displayed in its courtyard. Restoration works were carried out here in 1775, following the instructions of Pope Pius VII. Among the valuable exhibits of the museum, statues such as "Laocoon and His Sons", "Apollo Belvedere", "Hermes" and others are considered to be art works of universal significance. There are statues of about 150 animals in the animals room. A number of famous sculptors and artists were involved in the restoration of these statues. Part of the exhibits in the hall - second to none in the world by the richness accommodates copies of antique works preserved in Greece and Rome. A summer pavilion of Pope Innocent VIII was located in the statues gallery. Over 100 works related to the Renaissance period have been gathered in the busts gallery of the museum. Director of the Vatican Museums Antonio Paolucci thanked the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, especially Azerbaijan`s first lady Mehriban Aliyeva and applauded her role in preserving the pieces of world culture. President of the Pontifical Commission for Vatican City State Giuseppe Bertello expressed gratitude to the Azerbaijani state and president of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation Mehriban Aliyeva. He stressed the importance of continuing such dialogues in terms of the development of Azerbaijani-Vatican relations. Mehriban Aliyeva said Azerbaijan was interested in continuing this cooperation. First lady Mehriban Aliyeva viewed cupboards in Sala Sistina Grand Hall of Apostolic Library. The restoration of the cupboards is being carried out with the support of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation. Azerbaijan`s first lady Mehriban Aliyeva then met with President of the Pontifical Council for Culture, Cardinal of the Catholic Church Gianfranco Ravasi. Following the meeting, Cardinal Ravasi spoke about the projects to be implemented as part of the future cooperation with the Heydar Aliyev Foundation. He said this cooperation contributed to intercultural and interreligious dialogue, and applauded Azerbaijan`s role on this front. First lady Mehriban Aliyeva highlighted the importance of the restoration of the catacombs of Saints Marcelline and Peter. The president of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation noted that this cooperation played an important role in improving inter-civilization dialogue. Azerbaijan`s first lady, president of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation Mehriban Aliyeva and President of the Pontifical Council for Culture, cardinal of the Catholic Church Gianfranco Ravasi signed the agreement for the restoration of St. Sebastian Sarcophagi. The signing ceremony was followed by a question-and-answer session. Responding to questions from journalists, Mehriban Aliyeva said Azerbaijan was a crossroads of religions and cultures. "There has never been any religious or ethnic conflict in Azerbaijan." She highlighted the projects of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation in Azerbaijan and various parts of the world. "Restoration of the catacombs of Saints Marcelline and Peter is a perfect example of excellent cooperation between Azerbaijan and the Vatican," Mehriban Aliyeva said. Cardinal Ravasi highlighted the cooperation between the Heydar Aliyev Foundation and the Vatican. "This cooperation includes ties with Vatican museums, restoration of ancient manuscripts and other issues," he added. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 24 February 2016 09:24 (UTC+04:00) Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani held talks in Tehran Feb. 23 in an expanded format with participation of delegations. The expanded meeting took place following a one-on-one meeting on the same day. During the meeting, Rouhani said the official visit of Azerbaijani president to Iran is very significant and will make an important contribution to further development of cooperation between the two countries. Today, cooperation develops rapidly and covers all areas, he said. Iranian president also stressed that the documents to be signed during the Azerbaijani presidents visit to Tehran will contribute to the development of relations. He went on to praise the work of the Azerbaijan-Iran state commission on economic, trade and humanitarian cooperation. Rouhani added that the current development of relations between Iran and Azerbaijan is based on friendship and historical closeness of the two countries and their peoples. He added that the relations have already reached the level of strategic partnership and further promotion of relations in all spheres is an important task. Stressing that Iran is committed to the principle of territorial integrity of states, President Rouhani said his country recognizes the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan, adding that it is unacceptable to interfere in the internal affairs of states in international relations. Iranian president also highlighted the importance of cooperation between the two countries in the area of security. In turn, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said the relations between the two countries have a long history and are built on a solid base. He also congratulated the Iranian president and the people of Iran with the lifting of sanctions. Saying the positions of Azerbaijan and Iran coincide on many issues, President Aliyev stressed that Azerbaijan and Iran are a model of stability, despite the tensions in the region. Azerbaijani president also noted the importance of fair approach, stability and security in international and interstate relations, and stressed the importance of cooperation in the fight against terrorism. During the meeting, the parties also stressed the need to step up efforts to develop cooperation in the economic area, including energy, investment and banking sectors, commercial and transport sectors, transportation, infrastructure, culture and others. It was also stressed that the Caspian Sea is a sea of friendship and cooperation. The sides also discussed possibilities for Azerbaijan and Iran to cooperate together with other countries. At the meeting, the parties also expressed concern over the increase of Islamophobic tendencies and also held discussions on prevention of such cases. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 24 February 2016 11:13 (UTC+04:00) A regular meeting of the 7th Global Forum of the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations Organizing Committee was held in Baku. The meeting, which discussed the preparation for the Global Forum, was attended by a UN Alliance of Civilizations delegation. Opening the meeting of the Organizing Committee, Azerbaijans Minister of Culture and Tourism Abulfas Garayev highlighted the preparations for the forum, noting that the preparations have approached the final stage. Holding such an event in Baku demonstrates the growing prestige of Azerbaijan in the world, the minister said, adding that President Ilham Aliyev signed an executive order implying the excellent organization of the forum. The minister pointed out that Baku Declaration, which is currently being discussed at the UN headquarters, will be adopted at the Seventh Global Forum of UN Alliance of Civilizations. Chief of Cabinet & Spokesperson for the High Representative of the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations Nihal Saad stressed that the program of the forum has already been approved. Saad also announced the topics that will be discussed at the plenary and group sessions. Prior to the Seventh Global Forum of UN Alliance of Civilizations, on April 25, the Youth Forum and Business Symposium will take place, Azertac state news agency reported. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 24 February 2016 12:29 (UTC+04:00) A commemorating event on the occasion of the 24th anniversary of the Khojaly genocide has been held in Izmir, Turkey. The event organized by Izmir-Azerbaijan Fraternal and Cooperation Association was attended by the officials, intellectuals, scientists, cultural figures and youth. The meeting featured a documentary on the Khojaly genocide. Addressing the event, head of the Izmir-Azerbaijan Fraternal and Cooperation Association Asif Gurban, member of the Azerbaijan-Turkey Inter-parliamentary Friendship Group, MP Qanira Pashayeva, education advisor of the Azerbaijani Embassy in Turkey Najiba Nasibova, Director of the Ege University Turkish World Research Institute Professor Metin Ekici gave information about the Khojaly genocide, stressed the importance of increasing the activity of the young generation in conveying the historical truths to the world community. Later, the meeting featured an exhibition of works of the talented young artist Gulnara Mukhtarova on Khojaly genocide and Karabakh. The same day, another event on Khojaly genocide was held in Eskishehir, Azertac state news agency reported. The Khojaly massacre took place on February 26, 1992, when Armenian armed forces attacked the town of Khojaly in Azerbaijans Karabakh region and massacred 613 civilians, including some 300 children, women and elderly people. The Human Rights Watch called it the largest massacre in the conflict. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 24 February 2016 12:36 (UTC+04:00) An opening of the catacombs of Saints Marcellinus and Peter restored with the initiative of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation has been held in Vatican. Azerbaijan`s First Lady, President of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation Mehriban Aliyeva attended the event. Prior, Mehriban Aliyeva attended the presentation on restoring the catacombs of Saints Marcellinus and Peter. Director of the Museum Rita Paris welcomed Azerbaijan`s First Lady. Professor Fabrizio Bisconti thanked Mehriban Aliyeva for her attention to restoration of catacombs of Rome. The professor highlighted the history of the catacombs, as well as its importance for Christian world. We could protect this historical place with the support of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, he added. A movie on restoring the catacombs has been demonstrated. The movie highlights ongoing process of restoring the catacombs, its technical-creative aspects. The movie also thanks the Heydar Aliyev Foundation for services in preserving the world cultural heritage. President of the Pontifical Council for Culture, cardinal of the Catholic Church Gianfranco Ravasi stressed the value of the catacombs of Saints Marcellinus and Peter for world cultural heritage and Christians. The Heydar Aliyev Foundation gave great support for preserving this value, he added. Later, Mehriban Aliyeva addressed the event. The president of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation thanked for kind words. The first lady highlighted the activity of the Foundation in protecting the world cultural heritage and said Azerbaijan was a crossroads of religions and cultures. As today, representatives of various religions live in Azerbaijan in peace, the first lady added. Following the ceremony, Mehriban Aliyeva viewed the Palazzo Massimo. This nineteenth-century palace in Neo-Renaissance style houses one of the world's most important collections of Classical art. On the four floors of the museum, sculptures, frescoes and mosaics, coins and jewels document the evolution of the Roman artistic culture from the late Republican age through Late Antiquity (2nd c. BCE - 5th c. CE) along an exhibition path in which Ancient Roman history, myths and everyday life live anew. In the rooms of the ground floor are exhibited splendid Greek originals discovered in Rome such as the Boxer at Rest, the Hellenistic Prince and the Dying Niobid from the Horti Sallustiani as well as portraiture of the Republican and Imperial ages, culminating in the statue of Augustus Pontifex Maximus. The Museum demonstrates frescoed walls and pavement mosaics document the domestic decor of prestigious Roman dwellings. The basement houses the sizeable numismatic collection, besides grave ornaments, jewels and the Grottarossa Mummy. Then the opening of the catacombs of Saints Marcellinus and Peter has been held. First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva and cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi cut the ribbon the symbolizing the opening of the catacombs. The Catacombs of Marcellinus and Peter are ancient catacombs. In 2006, over a thousand skeletons were discovered in these catacombs; the skeletons were stacked one on top of each other and still bore the togas they were buried with. The Catacombs of Rome are underground burial places under Rome, Italy, of which there are at least forty, some discovered only in recent decades. Though most famous for Christian burials, either in separate catacombs or mixed together, people of all the Roman religions are buried in them, beginning in the 2nd century AD, mainly as a response to overcrowding and shortage of land. The Etruscans, like many other European peoples, used to bury their dead in underground chambers. A bilateral agreement was signed between the Heydar Aliyev Foundation and Vatican on restoration of Roman catacombs in 2012. The Italian media and society appreciate the Foundation`s step as one of the important contributions to development of inter-religious and intercultural dialogue, Azertac state news agency reported. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 24 February 2016 16:40 (UTC+04:00) By Amina Nazarli Azerbaijan's clerics have appealed to the world community to stop the Armenian aggression against Azerbaijani people. The heads of Azerbaijans religious confessions, including Chairman of Caucasus Muslims organization Sheikh-ul Islam Allahshukur Pashazadeh, Orthodox Community's Head Archbishop Alexander Ischein and Head of Mountain Jews Religious Community MilikhYevdayev, have addressed a joint appeal to the worlds religious leaders, parliaments, international organizations and European Court of Human Rights in connection with the Khojaly genocide. On the eve of the 24th anniversary of the genocide committed against civilians in the Azerbaijani town of Khojaly, expressing the will and the feelings of millions of the people of Azerbaijan, we appeal to the world community, to all people of good will, regardless of the religious, language, race or ethnic identity, the statement says. No any nation, no religion can justify those outrage cruel crimes that are incompatible with universal values as violence, murder and aggression. On the night from 25th to 26th of February, 1992, thousands of unarmed and defenseless peaceful people of Khojaly were unexpectedly and brutally attacked by Armenian aggressors. The militaries massacred 613 civilians, including some 300 children, women and elderly people. As a result, Khojaly was wiped out of the ground, while 150 people were missing, 1275 civilians captured and severely tortured, unthinkable atrocity was committed on the bodies of brutally murdered people. Aged people, children and even pregnant women were killed mercilessly, the appeal reads, adding that the victims dead bodies, bearing extensive signs of torture and wounds, proved the insanity of the vandals. Armenian extremists, intermittently committing ethnic cleansings as well as acts of physical and moral terror against the people of Azerbaijan throughout history, have invaded 20 percent of our territories, banished more than one million Azerbaijanis from their home places. They carried out acts of vandalism in Karabakh to destroy our historical, religious and cultural monuments and relics. The premeditated genocide committed in Khojaly became a culmination of all these atrocities, the statement says. The authors also voice regret that although it has been over 20 years since adoption of the UN Security Council Resolutions calling for the unconditional withdrawal of Armenian invaders from the occupied Azerbaijani territories, they did not obeyed till today, while the Armenian terrorists remain unpunished for the crimes they have committed. In its turn, such impunity provokes recurrence of new crimes, the statement emphasized. We should not forget that such impunity creates a chain reaction of similar crimes. We, the religious leaders of different faith, keep the dear memory of all people fallen killed in Karabakh, the integral part of our homeland Azerbaijan, as well as in the town of Khojaly, and wish peace, prosperity and fortune to all the people of the world. Each one of us, we have a sacred duty before The Lord and the Mankind to achieve the Triumph of Justice. Therefore, once again we appeal to the world's religious leaders, the parliaments and the international organizations, to the European Court of Human Rights and call to stop the Armenian aggression against Azerbaijan, to give a principled political and legal assessment of the criminal acts, to punish the committers of the crimes and to recognize the Khojaly massacre as the Genocide. May the Great Creator help us in fair deeds! -- Amina Nazarli is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @amina_nazarli Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 24 February 2016 14:40 (UTC+04:00) By Nazrin Gadimova Baku has sent a note of protest to Moscow over illegal sale of weapons to Armenia. Hikmet Hajiyev, spokesperson for the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry, made the remarks commenting on the loan agreement signed between Russia and Armenia on providing $200 million preferential loan to Armenia for the purchase of Russian-made military equipment. Azerbaijan has repeatedly brought to the attention of the international community irrefutable facts that the weapons and military equipment purchased by Armenia are dislocated in the occupied Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan, the note of protest reads. Yerevan, by placing these weapons in the occupied territories without the consent of the exporting country [Russia], grossly violates its international legal obligations, as well as the weapons control regime and transparency. Thus, Armenia is strengthening its military presence in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan, Hajiyev said, adding that Azerbaijan wants Russia to give guarantees on non-use of the military equipment on the occupied Azerbaijani territories, as well as along the Azerbaijan-Armenia border. For over two decades, Azerbaijan and Armenia have been locked in conflict which emerged over Armenia's territorial claims against its South Caucasus neighbor. Since a war in the early 1990s, Armenian armed forces have occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan's territory, including Nagorno-Karabakh and seven surrounding regions. A fragile ceasefire has been in place since 1994, but long-standing efforts by U.S., Russian and French mediators have been largely fruitless so far. Armenia has not yet implemented the U.N. Security Council's four resolutions on its pullout from the neighboring country's territories. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 24 February 2016 15:10 (UTC+04:00) EU High Representative Federica Mogherini will be on visit to Azerbaijan on February 29 - March 1, said Hikmat Hajiyev, spokesman of Azerbaijan's Foreign Ministry. Mogherini will discuss issues on the cooperation between Azerbaijan and the EU, said Hajiyev. The visits program includes the High Representatives meetings with the Azerbaijani officials, including Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov, he added. Baku expects to receive the EU Council's mandate to negotiate on a new agreement on strategic modernization partnership, which will determine the format of the future cooperation with the EU. The Azerbaijani government submitted a draft agreement to the EU in May 2015 as part of the Eastern Partnership summit in Riga, Azerbaijani Deputy Foreign Minister Mahmud Mammadguliyev said earlier adding that we are expecting now to obtain a mandate from the highest political body of the EU to start the negotiation process. Currently, the bilateral relations between the EU and Azerbaijan are regulated on the basis of agreement on partnership and cooperation, which was signed in 1996. A new agreement envisages the adjustment of Azerbaijans legislation and procedures to the EUs most important international and trade norms and standards, which should lead to an improvement in the access of Azerbaijani goods to the EU markets. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 24 February 2016 17:03 (UTC+04:00) Romanian ambassador to Baku Daniel Cristian Ciobanu took part in a two-day meeting dedicated to NATO public diplomacy activities in partner countries on February 23-24. The event was organized at NATO Headquarters in Brussels by NATO Public Diplomacy Division. Ambassador Ciobanu participated in the event within the mandate Romanian diplomatic mission is fulfilling as NATO Contact Point Embassy in Azerbaijan for the 4th time in a row. High-ranking NATO officials presented in-depth different topics of joint interest for North Atlantic Alliance and partner countries. The ambassador underlined in the discussions that NATO and Azerbaijan cooperation in the field of public diplomacy is developing successfully. The Romanian embassy operates as an active channel for disseminating information about the role and policies of the North Atlantic Alliance. Earlier, Cristian Ciobanu took part in the third edition of NATO Public Diplomacy Forum on February 22. The Forum explored how the unpredictable security environments impact the role of public diplomacy, what challenges it faces and what best practices can be applied. The key note address of Forum was delivered by NATO Acting Assistant Secretary General for Public Diplomacy Ted Whiteside and touched upon preparations for NATO Warsaw Summit (8-9 July 2016). NATO-Azerbaijan partnership has a strategic value. Azerbaijan plays an important role in increasing energy security of Europe. Romania, which has been the second country in the world to recognize independence of Azerbaijan and concluded a strategic partnership with Baku in 2009, is ready to share its experience of Euro-Atlantic integration, presenting best practices and providing expertise on the implementation of reforms in the security and defense sectors in accordance to NATO standards. Romania is confident that NATO-Azerbaijan cooperation will strengthen in the coming years. -- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 24 February 2016 12:13 (UTC+04:00) By Nazrin Gadimova Export volume of Azerbaijans software may reach $1 billion within the next five years, said Ismail Alakbarov, head of Azerbaijans Neuron Technologies company. Azerbaijans software market has a great potential, which allows us to make such optimistic forecasts for the upcoming years, he told Trend, adding that to achieve this goal it is necessary to unite the efforts of all export-oriented local companies. Alakbarov believes that a key moment in achieving this goal until 2020 is the development of human resources, which requires close cooperation of the state with economy's private sector, and business with universities. It is very important to prepare world-class professionals, to enable them to improve their skills outside of Azerbaijan and invite foreign experts to the country to conduct trainings, he emphasized. Alakbarov further added that the priority markets for exporting Azerbaijani software are the markets of Central Asia, Africa, Iran and other countries,. The main task in the export of intellectual products is to ensure its competitiveness. This can be achieved either through reasonable prices or functionality of the intellectual product. The head of the company added that the African market, being one of the most promising, has great resources. In terms of price, solutions proposed by global brands are less competitive compared with those decisions, which our local companies may represent. The price difference can be tenfold, Alakbarov said. -- Nazrin Gadimova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @NazrinGadimova Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 24 February 2016 18:06 (UTC+04:00) By Aynur Karimova Kazakhstan has revealed its plans on Trans-Caspian international transport route. Kanat Alpysbayev, the Deputy Head of Kazakhstan Railways JSC, told Trend that the Central Asian nation eyes starting regular flights on the route in 2016 and sending 53 container trains via it by the end of the year. He believes that a number of issues remain unresolved, in particular the timing of development of port infrastructure, further optimization of the tariff conditions and automation of process of management of transport corridors. It is necessary to optimize the empty runs, which affect the cost of transportation. The Trans-Caspian route connects China with Europe via the territory of Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan and Georgia. This is a multimodal corridor which uses railway, maritime and road transport for transportation of goods. The Trans-Caspian route enjoys an opportunity to become attractive and profitable for consignors from European countries. This route will transport approximately 300,000-400,000 containers by 2020. Three test container trains have already been sent from China to Europe via this corridor. This project, being very profitable, has involved even Ukraine, the territory of which will make the delivery of goods to customers even faster. Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Georgia and Ukraine have signed a protocol on setting preferential tariffs for cargo transportation via this route, and the final document on resolving the technical problems is expected to be signed this February. Signing of this document will likely lead to full commercial operation of the Trans-Caspian route in March. Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Ukraine have agreed to establish an international railway consortium to organize and develop regular container traffic through the Trans-Caspian route. This consortium will include KTZ Express (a subsidiary of Kazakhstan Railways), the Azerbaijan Caspian Shipping Company, Azerbaijani Karvan Logistics and Trans Caucasus Terminals (a subsidiary of Georgian Railway). This route is attracting the attention of the transport and logistics communities of China, Turkey, Ukraine and European countries, which are looking for new routes of supply of their products to foreign markets. In January 2016, the Ukrainian Railways, the Ukrainian Ukrferry shipping company and the Romanian TRANSLOGIST SRL company have expressed intention of joining the Committee of the Trans-Caspian international transport route. Earlier, Azerbaijan Railways reported that Germany has expressed interest in joining the Trans-Caspian route. The number of orders for transportation cargo from Ukraine to Central Asia through Azerbaijan has increased. Currently, works for attracting cargo from Germany are underway. The results in this regard will be achieved in the near future. Being the cheapest and most profitable corridor for freight traffic, the Trans-Caspian route is expected not to have an alternative in the coming decade. -- Aynur Karimova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Aynur_Karimova Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 24 February 2016 11:36 (UTC+04:00) By Aynur Karimova SOCAR Trading, a trading arm of Azerbaijan's energy giant SOCAR, eyes reactivating deals with Iran and expanding into new oil and gas markets from North American crude to natural gas in Europe. This was stated by Arzu Azimov, SOCAR Trading Chief Executive Officer, on February 23. Azerbaijan and Iran, two neighbor countries and strategic partners, have been strengthening ties since the removal of international sanctions against Tehran in January. On February 23 SOCAR signed two memorandums of understanding with National Iranian Oil Company and Ghadir Investment Company as part of President Ilham Aliyev's Tehran visit. We have been actively trading with NIOC in the Caspian Sea region, until international sanctions forced us to discontinue such deliveries, Azimov said in an interview with Reuters. There is a great potential to explore. Azimov said that other possibilities include trading refined products with Iran in the Gulf, where SOCAR has storage facilities in the United Arab Emirates port of Fujairah. One option was to supply Iran with gasoline and to buy naphtha and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), he added. Baku and Tehran are fruitfully cooperating in the energy sector. The two countries are engaged in the implementation of several oil and gas projects. In particular, the Islamic Republic participated in the development of Azerbaijans giant Shah Deniz gas field in the Azerbaijani section of the Caspian Sea. The two countries also carry out gas swap operations: Azerbaijan supplies its fuel to Irans northern provinces while Iran ensures the gas demand of Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic. Currently, the possibility of transporting Iranian gas through Azerbaijan to Europe via the Southern Gas Corridor is high on the agenda of talks between the two governments. Azimov went on to add that SOCAR Trading, which currently employs less than 200 people globally, sees its role as somewhat different from the trading arms of many national oil companies. "Where the market is oriented towards direct deals between producers and consumers, there is no space for trading houses, he said. We need to be customer oriented. I see us as a services provider. About 90 percent of SOCAR Tradings profit was from outside trading of its parent companys oil or products and it was expanding in new markets beyond oil, such as LNG. "We decided that buying and selling LNG wasn't terribly attractive, he said. So we started looking at other options. We looked at Malta, an interesting case as it is not connected to an EU gas grid and has been burning fuel oil for heating needs. ElectroGas Malta consortium has been chosen to implement the gas power plant construction project in Malta. SOCAR Trading holds a 20-percent share in this project. SOCAR Trading will also act as a supplier of liquefied natural gas, floating storage unit and equipment for its processing. The cost of the plants construction is estimated at 175 million euros. It is planned to commission it in the summer of 2016, and its capacity will enable to meet up to 50 percent of Maltas electricity demand. SOCAR Trading, with headquarters in Geneva, was established in late 2007 by SOCAR. SOCAR Trading sells the main part of crude export volumes from the Ceyhan port (the Mediterranean Sea, Turkey), carries out trading of oil and oil products of other countries, and also renders assistance to the parent company with the international investments. -- Aynur Karimova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Aynur_Karimova Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 24 February 2016 12:09 (UTC+04:00) There are no guarantees of support from Arab countries if Turkey starts ground-based operations in Syria, said Prime Minister of Turkey Ahmet Davutoglu, the Turkish newspaper Hurriyet reported on February 24. Davutoglu said that none of the Arab countries supported the Syrian opposition the way Turkey did. If today, Assads army has no full control over Syria, it is only thanks to the support of Turkey, said Davutoglu. He went on to add that now for Turkey the security of its borders is most important, and every effort will be made to ensure it. Earlier, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said that Turkey and Saudi Arabia are not planning to launch joint military operations in Syria. Moreover, previously, Saudi Arabias Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir stated that ground-based military operations planned by Saudi Arabia in Syria are not against the countrys President Bashar al-Assad, but the IS. He added that Saudi Arabias intention to participate in the ground-based operations in Syria shows that the country is not indifferent to the growth of terrorism threat in the region. Syria has been suffering from an armed conflict since March 2011, which, according to the UN, has so far claimed the lives of over 220,000 people. Militants from various armed groups are confronting the Syrian government troops. The Islamic State and Jabhat al-Nusra are the most active terrorist groups in Syria. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 24 February 2016 12:50 (UTC+04:00) By Aynur Karimova Kazakhstan and Iran, the two Caspian littoral states, are keen to increase the volume of cargo traffic to 2.5 million tons in 2016. This was stated at a meeting held between Askar Mamin, the Head of Kazakhstan Railways JSC, and Mohsen Poursaeed-Aqaei, the Managing Director of Iran Railways, Kazakhstan Railways reported on February 23. During the meeting held in Tehran, the sides discussed the issues of organization of container trains from China to Iran via Kazakhstan on a regular basis. Kazakhstan and Iran also discussed the intensification of works towards involving Russian exports to Iran through the Uzen-Bereket-Gorgan railway (Kazakhstan-Turkmenistan-Iran) line. The Kazakhstan-Turkmenistan-Iran railway was commissioned by Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev, his Turkmen counterpart Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani in December 2014. Preliminary estimates show that annually 3-5 million metric tons of cargo will be transported via this route, which is a part of the North-South international transport corridor. In the long term, the transportation will increase to 10-12 million metric tons. The new railway line opens the optimal transport route between countries of Europe and the Persian Gulf, contributes to the creation of related infrastructure, logistics centers, new points of growth, thousands of new jobs. In February 2016, the first test container train launched on the China-Kazakhstan-Turkmenistan-Iran railway route proceeded from Turkmenistan to Iran. The total length of China-Kazakhstan-Turkmenistan-Iran route is about 10,000 kilometers, and the journey time is about two weeks. The creation of such transport and transit corridor became possible after the construction of the Kazakhstan-Turkmenistan-Iran international railway route. Kazakh and Iran railway agencies also mulled the prospects for cooperation in the field of railway engineering and export of Kazakhstan-made 150 locomotives of "Evolution" series, 70 passenger locomotives, 5,000 freight cars, rails and switches to Iran. The Kazakh delegation also held a meeting with Iranian Social Security Investment Company and the parties discussed joint construction of a terminal in the Iranian Bandar-Abbas sea port and infrastructure on the basis of a dry port near the Incheburun station, located on the border of Turkmenistan and Iran. Kazakhstan Railways also held talks with Raja Rail Transportation Co. to supply 200 passenger cars of a new type, produced by Kazakhstan's Tulpar-Talgo plant, to Iran. -- Aynur Karimova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Aynur_Karimova Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 24 February 2016 14:12 (UTC+04:00) Irans Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned that the US runs plots against the Islamic Republic. He made the remarks during a meeting with thousands of people from the central city of Najafabad on Feb. 24, said the message on the official website of the supreme leader. The US has plans for the region following the nuclear deal, including plots for infiltration in Iran, Khamenei said. He once again accused the US of plotting against Irans upcoming election for parliament, as well as the Assembly of Experts to be held in Feb. 26. One of enemys artifices in election is creation of bipolarity like governmental and anti-governmental parliaments, he said, adding that Iranians want neither a governmental, nor an anti-governmental parliament, but a brave, faithful parliament aware of its duties and not bullied by US. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 24 February 2016 16:56 (UTC+04:00) Head of Turkeys oppositional Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) Devlet Bahceli has called on the armed forces to completely destroy the positions of People's Protection Units (YPG) in Syria and Iraq, TurkishYeniSafak newspaper reported on February 24. Bahceli noted that currently, Turkey faces a serious threat and the countrys army should shell the positions of the militants. Turkey has been periodically shelling the positions of terrorists throughout two weeks in response to the shelling of its territories by PKKs Syrian wing Democratic Union Party (PYD). Turkey launched a missile attack on PYD positions for the first time on February 19. Turkeys President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the National Defense Minister Ismet Yilmaz have said that the country will continue shelling the PYD positions. The Democratic Union Party was listed as a terrorist organization in Turkey. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 24 February 2016 18:27 (UTC+04:00) By Aynur Karimova Turkmenistan and Iran enjoy considerable potential to expand effective bilateral partnership based on the successful experience of cooperation in various fields. The two Caspian littoral states, known in the world for their huge hydrocarbon resources, are keen to further develop cooperation in the fields of trade and economy. During a meeting of Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov and Iran's Vice President for Executive Affairs Mohammad Shariatmadari in Ashgabat, the two countries expressed intention to further intensify productive business contacts, increase the volume of bilateral trade and stimulate investment activity. Iran, as Shariatmadari said, attaches significant importance to strengthening the traditionally friendly relations with Turkmenistan. "Turkmenistan pays special attention to the development of fruitful relations with the neighboring countries, including Iran," Berdymukhamedov, in turn, said. Turkmenistan and Iran cooperate in various fields, and the energy sector is priority among them. The Central Asian nation is the largest supplier of natural gas to the Islamic Republic. The most convenient transportation route for Turkmen resources to the energy markets of the region passes through Iran. Other most vivid example of successful cooperation of Ashgabat and Tehran is the transport sector. The two countries are currently linked by Kazakhstan-Turkmenistan-Iran railway, which was put into operation in December 2014. This railway is designed to facilitate the optimization of cargo traffic throughout the Eurasia continent. Preliminary estimates show that annually 3-5 million metric tons of cargo will be transported via this route, which is a part of the North-South international transport corridor. In the long term, the transportation will increase to 10-12 million metric tons. The new railway line opens the optimal transport route between countries of Europe and the Persian Gulf, contributes to the creation of related infrastructure, logistics centers, new points of growth, thousands of new jobs. In February 2016, the first test container train launched on the China-Kazakhstan-Turkmenistan-Iran railway route proceeded from Turkmenistan to Iran. It is expected that China's joining the railway will give impetus for developing trade relations and increasing the volume of trade turnover. Turkmenistan and Iran are also keen to boost trade turnover between them. During Iranian President Hassan Rouhanis visit to Turkmenistan in March 2015, they decided to bring their bilateral trade up to $60 billion within 10 years. Turkmenistan was the seventh leading importer of Iranian non-oil goods in the previous Iranian calendar year, which ended on March 20, 2015, according to the Iran Customs Administration. As of the first nine months of 2015, the trade turnover between the two countries exceeded $2.62 billion, which is 2.2 percent more than the same period of 2015. -- Aynur Karimova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Aynur_Karimova Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz Filed under: MMAjunkie Radio , News , UFC UFC middleweight Chris Camozzi couldnt have planned a better outing in his most recent fight, a meeting with veteran Joe Riggs that ended in just 26 seconds when he landed a flurry of knees. The force of the blows left Riggs (41-17 MMA, 5-7 UFC) with a broken arm, which obviously Camozzi (23-10 MMA, 8-7 UFC) feels bad about. Read more here: After thunderous KO, Chris Camozzi headed to two very different places: Qatar and tropics MMA Junkie 3.0 ( - - ): editor [at] bahrainmirror.com 10 THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW: Todays guide to the obscure, the possibly relevant and things in between Thank you for reading! Please log in, or sign up for a new account and purchase a subscription to continue reading. Family-run bakers, Bells Food Group, is looking to recruit up to 30 workers as part of the expansion plan. The Shotts-based bakery is looking to take on a further 20 to 30 staff to add to its 200-strong workforce as part of the three-year investment plan. Bells is ranked fifth in the top 50 recognised food brands in Scotland, and accounts for a 58% market share of all branded pie sales nationally. The company has also developed a range of export cakes under the Kirriemuir Gingerbread brand, which sell in North America. Airdrie & Shotts MP Neil Gray said: Bells is a huge success story for Shotts, known and respected nationwide. Having discovered the plans for the future, I can only see that success continuing. Bells Food Group is a tremendous asset for the area and I will help and support them in any way that I can. A new Indian-inspired vegetarian pie is to be launched by Bristol-based pie manufacturer Pieminister to celebrate British Pie Week. The Saag Pie-Neer is filled with a combination of pea, paneer, spinach, potato, chilli and mango, and was designed by Leah Shields, a vegetarian customer from Leeds. It beat off competition from more than 1,000 entries as part of Pieministers national competition to find a new vegetarian pie. The pie will be available from Pieminister restaurants, pie pubs and independent customers from the start of British Pie Week on 7 March for an RRP of 5. The company said the pie would then be a permanent fixture on its menus, and added it would be offering the pie to all its retail stockists such as Waitrose, Sainsburys and Ocado. From 7 March, Pieminister will also start reducing the price of its vegetarian pies by 50p on Mondays in its restaurant and cafes. This is a collaboration with Meat Free Monday, the campaign which aims to reduce meat consumption. Tristan Hogg, co-founder and managing director of Pieminister, said: My business partner Jon Simon and I have both found were eating a little less meat nowadays for health and environmental reasons and were hearing the same from our customers too. So we both felt our new pie to launch for British Pie Week just had to be meat free. Our Vegetarian Society Approved Heidi and Wild Shroom Classics have always been as popular as our steak and chicken pies so we wanted this new recipe to also be full-bodied and robust enough to tempt meat eaters and vegetarians alike. Pieminister said the new pie takes its vegetarian range to five and pointed to Mintel figures which said 35% of Britons identify themselves as semi-vegetarian, with 71% wanting more vegetarian choice. The pie chain is also due to open two new restaurants in time for British Pie Week, one in Nottingham and a second Bristol restaurant, on Broad Quay. Mexico Sets Temporary Ban on Shrimping in the Pacific Mexico City - The Secretariat of Agriculture, Livestock, Rural Development, Fisheries and Food (SAGARPA) has published the Agreement establishing a temporary ban on fishing for all species of shrimp in marine waters under federal jurisdiction of the Pacific Ocean, Gulf of California and lagoon estuarine systems, marshes and bays of the states of Baja California Sur, Sonora, Sinaloa, Nayarit, Jalisco and Colima. Through the National Commission of Aquaculture and Fisheries (Conapesca), based on research and biological sampling by the National Fisheries Institute (Inapesca), the measure will be applied, aiming at maintaining sustainability in the use of the crustacean. According to what was published in the Official Gazette (DOF), the temporary fishing ban will be established for all species of shrimp in the waters under federal jurisdiction of the Pacific Ocean, in the following areas and dates: From 00:00 on 29 February 2016, in lagoon estuarine systems, marshes, bays and marine waters of the Gulf of California to the border between the states of Nayarit and Jalisco. From 00:00 on 7 March 2016, in marine waters of the Pacific Ocean off the west coast of the peninsula of Baja California from the US border to Los Cabos, Baja California Sur, located at 2230'00''north latitude and 10954'45'' west longitude geographic coordinates and estuarine lagoon systems located in Magdalena-Almejas Bay and marshes surrounding Puerto Lopez Mateos, Baja California Sur. From 00:00 on 20 March 2016, in marine waters ranging from the boundary between the states of Nayarit and Jalisco to the border with the Republic of Guatemala. The publication states that SAGARPA will announce, in advance, the dates of ban completion based on research and biological samples performed by Inapesca through an Agreement to be published in the Official Gazette. The measures to be followed by producers, in cases in which they already have shrimp in different forms of conservation, from areas in which the closure will be applied, and transportation of the crustacean, are also detailed. The federal government enforces these bans as one of its main management measures that help protect the maximum periods of reproduction and recruitment of these organisms. In addition, they induce the production of higher value sizes and increase amounts of resource production. ExPats in Vallarta March Happy Hours and Events Puerto Vallarta, Mexico - ExPats in Vallarta, a totally social group with informal fellowship and assistance for Expat residents or visitors living, working or investing in or around Puerto Vallarta, or those considering it, has announced next month's schedule of events. During the month of March, ExPats in Vallarta will be having two Happy Hour gatherings at Langostinos from 5-7 pm. The first one will be on Tuesday, March 1st and the second on Tuesday the 15th. Langostinos is located on the beach just north of Los Muertos pier. Join them for a couple cool ones and some of Langostinos' great food. Getting out is great therapy for everyone. If you are a first-timer let them know and they will introduce you to other ExPats living in the greater Banderas Bay area. A Neighborhood Coffee will be held on Tuesday, March 7th at 10 am at the Starbucks in Peninsula Plaza. Come out, grab a cup of coffee, and visit with other ExPats. Bring along your contact information to share with your new friends and neighbors. Reservations are not needed. Wine and Appetizer evenings are scheduled for Friday March 4th in the 5 de Diciembre area and on Wednesday, March 9th in the Marina area. Both events are from 6:30 to 8:30 pm. Bring a bottle of wine or your favorite beverage and an appetizer to share with approximately 40 people and have an enjoyable, relaxing evening with fellow expats. Since these events are held in private homes, seating is limited and reservations are necessary. Special event dinners will be held on Thursday, March 3rd at Los Muertos Brewing and on Thursday, March 17th, St. Patrick's Day, at El Andariego. Reservations and tickets for these events need to be made in advance. To make reservations for the Happy Hours, Wine and Appetizer evenings and the special event dinners, please go to the ExPats in Vallarta website. The local group of Expats In Vallarta is open to all ExPat residents, visitors and investors from other countries. The purpose of the group is informal fellowship and assistance for ExPats around Vallarta for those considering the area. There is no membership fee or requirement; everyone pays for only what they use or consume. For more information, to join the group, or for insight on what others have experienced during their move to Vallarta, visit ExpatsInVallarta.com. Friends of PV Animals Host 3rd 'Paws for the Cause' Puerto Vallarta, Mexico - Friends of Puerto Vallarta Animals, a group of dedicated and passionate volunteers who are committed to the well-being of the homeless pets staying at the municipally run pound (Centro de Acopio), is hosting the 3rd Annual 'Paws for the Cause' Fundraiser on Wednesday, March 2 from 6-10 pm at Food Park PV. For a donation of just $350 pesos, you will enjoy an evening of food, music and prizes - all for a good cause! This annual fundraiser helps provide much needed food and medication for homeless animals in Puerto Vallarta. Please join us - you'll be glad you did! Included in the price of your ticket are three food coupons and one drink coupon. One food coupon buys one food dish from any of the participating trucks, who will be creating a special dish for the event. Choose from your favorite Food Park eateries, including Extintor, Truckaburger, Chef Gourmet, Teatro Pizza, El Bar, White Canvas, Kashi Sushi, Santa Marea, Park Grill, Black Pig, and Ancla 21. Your drink coupon is redeemable for one beer, Margarita, or non-alcohol beverage. Additional food and drink coupons will be for sale. There will be free parking at the South entrance, and paid parking at the North entrance of the Food Park, which is located at Francisco Medina Ascencio #2450 in the Hotel Zone. Tickets can be purchased at the Friends of PV Animals booth at the Marsol Market on Fridays from 9:30 am to 1:00 pm; at Cassandra Shaw Jewelry on Basilio Badillo; by calling Adriana Riestra at 209-2159; or at the entrance to the Park on the day of the event. Advertiser Disclosure We are an independent, advertising-supported comparison service. Our goal is to help you make smarter financial decisions by providing you with interactive tools and financial calculators, publishing original and objective content, by enabling you to conduct research and compare information for free - so that you can make financial decisions with confidence. Bankrate has partnerships with issuers including, but not limited to, American Express, Bank of America, Capital One, Chase, Citi and Discover. How We Make Money The offers that appear on this site are from companies that compensate us. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site, including, for example, the order in which they may appear within the listing categories. But this compensation does not influence the information we publish, or the reviews that you see on this site. We do not include the universe of companies or financial offers that may be available to you. Homeowners in the Cimarron community of Lakeland are now facing higher annual association fees now that their long-time treasurer is accused of stealing more than $120,000 in association funds. Sheriffs investigators have arrested Martha Beard and her son Matthew Beard on grand theft charges. Investigators claim Martha Beard had been stealing community funds for a decade. They said she had used it for personal expenses and ATM cash withdrawals. The funds in the account were meant to be used to maintain the property by paying bills like lawn care, electricity, taxes, insurance, supplies and a business license. However, association leaders said they didnt realize there was a problem until their lawn care company said it had a huge unpaid bill. When we went to the bank, we had like $39, said homeowner Billie Wheeler. Suspicion focused on long time homeowners association president Beard, who was responsible for paying those community bills. Investigators say Martha Beard was seen on surveillance video withdrawing money from ATMs at TD Bank locations around Lakeland. Matthew Beard is accused of using association funds to help support his production company named Ultra Production Group and to pay for a cruise. It makes me feel like I was played, and thats not good, said homeowner Irisbaldi Jusinio. Jusinio received a letter from the homeowners association telling him his annual fees would increase by $100 to make up for missing funds. Jusinio said he had known Martha Beard for years and she always seem like a caring person. Many people trusted her with all this money, he said. As the battle for the Republican presidential nomination continues, there is growing speculation that front runner Donald Trump may pick Florida Gov. Rick Scott as his running mate. Scott is one of several names being mentioned as a vice presidential candidate in a Washington Post article. Besides Scott, other potential picks for Trump's vice presidential candidate are South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, businesswoman Carly Fiorina, who dropped out of the race after the New Hampshire primary, and fellow Trump business moguls Carl Icahn and Jack Welch. With a big win in Nevada on Tuesday, Trump claimed a third straight commanding victory in the race for the Republican presidential nomination. The presidential race now shifts to Super Tuesday, featuring 11 largely Southern states, including Texas, with 155 GOP delegates. Those delegates will be awarded proportionally. On March 15 will come primaries in Florida, with 99 delegates, and Ohio with 66, and they are winner take all. If no one can dent Trump's advantage by then, the race for the nomination may be all but over. Information from the Associated Press was used in this story. Its such a huge honor. Martin Luther King was able to unite a whole host of people for one mission, and thats because he centered it on something thats beyond race, that goes down to core identity, said Okorie, who was born in Nigeria and came to the U.S. when she was eight. Thats been the focus of my reflection. What is my identity and how do I use that?" It was Boston Colleges commitment to service that attracted Okorie. Service was a big part of my high school career. No other school put that at the forefront of their mission [like BC did]. That really spoke to me. I thought This is going to be a community of people who are going to be engaged in conversation and are going to set the world aflame. I wanted to be one of those people. Freshman year, Okorie got involved in Campus Ministrys Jamaica Magis program, which brings BC students to live and serve in solidarity with people in Jamaica. She participated in the summer service trip in 2014, and led the winter trip this year. She has served as a teachers assistant at Holy Family Primary School in Kingston, as well as with Missionaries of Charity, Missionaries of the Poor, and Mustard Seed, providing companionship and care for their populations which included the elderly and children with disabilities or HIV/AIDS. Okorie entered BC as a political science major intent on a career as a diplomat. She had a change of heart during her freshman year after returning to Nigeria over semester break, prompting her to transfer to the Connell School. Okorie plans to pursue a career in public health policy. She wants to work as a nurse first, which she feels will inform her advocacy efforts. She is particularly passionate about maternal health. Maternal health is linked to the idea of female empowerment, she said. Women and child face the greatest burden of health care disparities. If a woman isnt taking charge of her health and her childs health then it is a lost opportunity for the whole community. Last summer, Okorie traveled to Ghana on an Amanda Houston Fellowship to conduct a research project on malaria prevention for mothers and babies. This past fall, she presented her findings at the Conference on Child Rights & Sight at Yale University. Sonic Boom Rattles N. Oregon Coast Residents Published 02/24/2016 at 4:01 PM PDT By Oregon Coast Beach Connection staff (Rockaway Beach, Oregon) About 6 p.m. on Tuesday, a massive boom rattled residents of the north Oregon coast in a fairly wide stretch of nearly 20 miles from Garibaldi all the way up to Manzanita. It shook homes and windows, sending some out into the street to look for explosions, and it lit up social media. (Photo above courtesy Oregon Air National Guard). It turned out to be just what many thought: a sonic boom from military aircraft doing exercises in the region. The incident echoed another similar situation earlier in the day at Ocean Shores, Washington, where residents there got spooked by a sonic boom around 3:30 p.m. Sonic booms occur when a jet breaks the sound barrier, creating shockwaves in the air. The answer to all of it lay in social media the whole time: Oregon Air National Guards (OANA) Facebook page had a post about operations going from February 16 to 25. The OANA's 142nd Fighter Wing have been conducting routine F-15 night training missions in the region, to help keep Citizen-Airmen pilots based in Portland and Vancouver to stay current with mandatory Air Force requirements. Flights will depart from and land at the Portland International Airport, and training will occur in approved airspace several miles off the Oregon coast, the OANA page said. Nothing about this was known by residents at the time, however, so the community Facebook page for Rockaway Beach went into high gear with a barrage of tales and worries. A few hours later, one member discovered the post from OANA and the big questions were resolved. Some residents caught on quickly to the sonic boom idea, with one writing: We did go outside right after the boom that rattled the house and windows, and we could hear jets in the sky. We guessed military drills. I really want to know what it was! A few darted outside their front doors half expecting to see smoke from an explosion. The boom was heard and felt near Garibaldi, throughout the seven miles of Rockaway Beach, in Nehalem and in Manzanita almost 20 miles of Oregon coastline. It's interesting to note Nehalem is a few miles inland from the beach. There don't appear to be reports of it at Cannon Beach, so it's possible Neahkahnie Mountain shielded the areas northward from the sound. More about Oregon coast science. More on Rockaway Beach and Manzanita below: More About Oregon Coast hotels, lodging..... More About Oregon Coast Restaurants, Dining..... Coastal Spotlight LATEST Related Oregon Coast Articles Back to Oregon Coast Contact Advertise on BeachConnection.net All Content, unless otherwise attributed, copyright BeachConnection.net Unauthorized use or publication is not permitted This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Jeanine and Jon Ott scooped holy water from the fountain at St. Anthony Cathedral Basilica as they encountered an unexpected surprise at the church - relics of the 13th century saint on display Wednesday. Their friend, Mary Garza, president of Cathedral Ladies and a teacher at St. Anthony's for children's religious instruction, invited them to come to the church. Garza knew the relics were coming but didn't remember Wednesday was the day. Jeanine Ott considered it more than coincidence. "We were meant to come here today," she said. "There are no words to describe it." The relics of St. Anthony refer to fragments of the saint's remains. As the guardian of the relics who accompanies them on tours, Friar Mario Conte said they are only a portion of the saint's remains uncovered on Jan. 6, 1981, an event he attended. It was only the second time St. Anthony's remains were uncovered since 1263, when they were moved from a small church in Padua, Italy, to a basilica built nearby. The uncovered coffin contained two compartments, he said. One held the skull, jaw and intact tongue and the other had bone fragments. The major remains stay within the basilica at Padua, which is visited by up to 5 million people a year. But for those who cannot travel to Padua, the relics come to them. Conte is in charge of relics that are brought to English-speaking countries. This tour is specifically for the Galveston-Houston archdiocese of which the Diocese of Beaumont is a part. The visit is the first for St. Anthony Cathedral Basilica. Dressed in his friar's cassock, Friar Mario explained the significance of the relics, which include a skin fragment from St. Anthony's face and a piece of a rib. He compared them with relics that people might have in their homes, such as a photo of a loved one who has died or a wedding ring from a parent. He has his mother's ring at home in Padua, he said. "That ring, a common object, is a link, a connection," Friar Mario said. "When you meet a friend, you offer your hand. That is a connection." He said the relics allow people to figuratively take St. Anthony by the hand. "In the Catholic Church, we are the communion of saints. St. Anthony is close to God. As a simple friar, I can say, 'God is great,' and I can pray to St. Anthony who says to God, 'Help this man, this woman, this child.' Saints do not perform miracles. God does. The church does not forget that, in the end, they are just human remains, bones. But they are bones touched by the living power of God, the love of God." A boy approached Conte and asked if he could touch the bust of St. Anthony that held one of the relics. "Sure," Conte said. "This is, in a sense, the house of St. Anthony in Beaumont." An honor guard of the Knights of Columbus stood next to a bust of St. Anthony containing the skin fragment. Sitting atop a pedestal next to the bust was the container with the piece of rib. A line formed for people to approach the relics, pray, touch, peer and venerate. St. Anthony is the patron saint of the lost. The relics continue on tour Feb. 25 to churches in Houston, ending on Feb. 28 at St. Anthony of Padua in The Woodlands. DWallach@BeaumontEnterprise.com Twitter.com/dwallach Jefferson County Republicans, after consecutive days of high early voter turnout, have closed the gap between Democrats and themselves and are outpacing the party's early turnout in the last two primary cycles. With three days of early voting remaining, Southeast Texans have cast nearly 20,000 ballots in the presidential primary election that also will decide nominees or winners of several local seats. More than 12,000 of the 19,900 ballots cast in the three-county area through Tuesday were in Jefferson County, which is reporting a higher early voting turnout at this stage than it did in the 2008 primary cycle, the county's highest presidential primary turnout since at least 1992. Republicans, who have more than doubled their early voting pace from '08, are 18 percent ahead of where they were at this point in 2012, primaries in the middle of President Barack Obama's term that saw the county GOP post its highest primary turnout since at least 1992. Jefferson County Democrats were about 18 percent shy of their 2008 pace. Of the early Jefferson County voters so far, 68 percent have filed Democratic ballots, according to the county clerk's office. The party had filed 87 percent of the ballots at this stage of early voting in 2008, the last time both parties had competitive presidential primary elections. County Democrats, whose ballot is topped by the presidential race between former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, are deciding nominees for sheriff and a court-at-law judgeship while also picking their party chair, a constable and a county commissioner. The Jefferson County primary ballot includes just two Republican races: a commissioners court seat and a lightly discussed congressional race between incumbent Congressman Randy Weber and Keith Casey. The race for the presidential nomination, however, includes Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, real estate mogul Donald Trump, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, Ohio Gov. John Kasich and former neurosurgeon Ben Carson, a field that has generated high Republican turnout in earlier voting states. This year is viewed as important for the county's Republican Party, which, under new leadership, is trying to gain local seats in a longtime Democratic stronghold. Party leaders hope the excitement of an open presidential race could help them in open races for sheriff and two judgeships. In Orange County, 85 percent of the 5,200 early voters have filed Republican ballots, a dramatic shift from 2008, when 83 percent of primary voters cast Democratic ballots. The 4,400 Orange County GOP voters through the first eight days of early voting is up from 2,700 in 2012, the last time the party picked a presidential nominee. In Hardin County, 2,400 voters have already submitted ballots. A party comparison was not available. According to news reports, Gov. Greg Abbott and Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto had a pleasant get-together this week in Houston at an energy meeting. Abbot even said he hopes to continue strengthening "economic and cultural bonds" between the two governments. That would make sense. Texas exports more to Mexico by far than to any other country - more than a third of all state exports. Many Texas border towns depend heavily on Mexicans who cross the Rio Grande to buy products that aren't available in their country. Many exports from other states pass through Texas via truck or train on their way to Mexico. The Mississippi State House is moving forward with a bill that would allow physicians to excuse children from the state's vaccination requirements, according to NH Voice. Here are six observations: 1. The state Education Committee voted to move House Bill 938 to the full chamber on Feb. 23 for further discussion. 2. The current law requires the state Health Department to approve requests to excuse children from the state's requirements. 3. The state's top health officials oppose the proposed bill. 4. A group of parents in support of the bill say they should have the right to decide whether to vaccinate their children, not the state. 5. Mississippi had the largest percentage of kindergartners vaccinated against diseases in 2013 to 2014. 6. On Feb. 23, legislators denied a wider bill allowing parents to decline vaccinations for their children for philosophical reasons. More articles of quality & infection control: Avera McKennan utilizes Xenex Germ-Zapping robots for ORs, ASC 5 observations Broome County receives $35K grant to educate physicians on opioid abuse 4 takeaways University of Kentucky student may have disease causing meningitis 4 notes A long-fought battle over fair reimbursement rates for both in-network and out-of-network medical coverage has largely pitted payers against providers. When navigating a complicated and embittered topic, it is critical to shed light on the various agents involved in and affected by the fight for fair reimbursement. In response to a recent article on balance billing, Jay Kaplan, MD, president of the American College of Emergency Physicians in Washington D.C., shared his expertise on balance billing with Becker's Hospital Review to address the challenges emergency physicians face when negotiating sustainable payment rates. ACEP represents more than 35,000 practicing emergency physicians nationally. 1. Surprise billing, or surprise coverage? A recent study by Crowe Horwath shows consistent growth in the share of uncompensated care costs associated with insured patient populations. Similarly, a Kaiser Family Foundation and New York Times report found for Americans aged 65 or under who have insurance, 20 percent report problems paying medical bills in the past year due to out-of-network care or unexpected claims denials. Americans who have chosen health plans based on affordable premiums have found themselves unable to afford relatively high deductibles. Many times what a patient perceives as a surprise medical bill is simply the high deductible associated with low-priced premium, Dr. Kaplan believes. "[Insurers] are misleading patients by offering 'affordable' premiums for policies that actually cover very little," says Dr. Kaplan. "What they have called 'surprise billing' should more accurately be called 'surprise coverage.'" 2. Insurers are driving providers out-of-network with low reimbursement rates. "By reimbursing at ridiculously low rates, to the point of not covering costs, health insurance companies are driving physicians out-of-network," says Dr. Kaplan. The news has been rife with payer-provider contract disputes over the past year, largely centered on unfair reimbursement rates that shift financial responsibility onto patients and physicians. Late last year, Carondelet Health Network in Tucson, Ariz., accused Blue Cross Blue Shield of paying extremely low reimbursement rates, and threatened to leave the BCBS network unless rates changed. Community Health System in Munster, Ind., severed ties with Anthem BCBS earlier this year citing an inability to agree on fair and sustainable network costs. 3. Insurance companies may choose which patients to cover, whereas emergency physicians cannot. Hospital emergency departments operate under a federal mandate Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act that requires physicians to care for all patients, regardless of his or her ability to pay. Insurance companies have the ability to decide which individuals to cover, as well as which physicians to bring into their network. As more insurance companies consolidate and narrow their network coverage of medical providers, they increase the likelihood patients may find themselves in out-of-network situations, says Dr. Kaplan. In this way, some providers feel purposefully narrow emergency physician networks take advantage of a physician's mandate to provide care with the possibility of not getting paid. 4. Some payers have fraudulently calculated data to manipulate provider reimbursement rates. In 2010, UnitedHealthcare paid a $350 million settlement to resolve allegations the insurer used the Ingenix database to systematically low-ball reimbursement rates, thereby shortchanging physicians for out-of-network medical services. The settlement required UnitedHealthcare to scrap two major databases sold by wholly owned subsidiary Ingenix and used by most major insurers to determine usual, customary and reasonable reimbursement rates for out-of-network services. Former American Medical Association President Nancy Nielsen, MD, PhD, said the artificially low UCR figures given to patients meant patients would assume their physicians were overcharging them for services, creating a rift between patient and provider, reports American Medical News. As part of the settlement, UnitedHealthcare pledged $50 million to establish the independent Fair Health database. 5. Insured patients have increasingly delayed medical care due to high out-of-pocket expenses. According to a recent ACEP poll, 7 in 10 emergency physicians saw patients with health insurance who had delayed medical care because of high out-of-pocket expenses associated with high deductibles and co-insurance costs. According to a study from Kaiser Family Foundation and New York Times, 62 percent of insurance carriers facing financial difficulties with medical costs delayed dental care, 43 percent skipped physician-recommended tests or treatment, and 41 percent did not fill a prescription. When patients delay timely medical intervention, they may increase their chance of eventually ending up in the emergency room for care, where they may not be in a state to choose in-network from out-of-network services. "This is unacceptable," says Dr. Kaplan. More articles on revenue cycle management: 20 hospital, health systems seeking revenue cycle talent 20 things to know about balance billing ECG Management Consultants establishes national bundled payments practice Knoxville, Tenn.-based Tennova Healthcare, part of Franklin, Tenn.-based Community Health Systems, has expanded its brand with the addition of five hospitals. The Tennova network was previously owned by Naples, Fla.-based Health Management Associates, and CHS took over the hospitals when it acquired HMA in 2014. This week, CHS consolidated five more hospitals under the Tennova brand. Those hospitals include Tennova Healthcare Jamestown (Tenn.), Tennova Healthcare Clarksville (Tenn.), Tennova Healthcare Harton in Tullahoma, Tenn., Tennova Healthcare Lebanon (Tenn.) and Tennova Healthcare Shelbyville (Tenn.). With the addition of the five hospitals, Tennova's network includes 17 hospitals. More articles on healthcare finance: Tenet posts $140M net loss in 2015: 6 things to know Partners HealthCare earnings dragged down by Epic transition CHS reports surprising $83M loss as admissions fall The following hospital and health system CEO moves were reported by Becker's Hospital Review in the last week. They are listed below, beginning with the most recent. 1. Pamela Reed, MSN, RN, was promoted to CEO of Kindred Hospital Melbourne (Fla.). 2. Boston-based Dana-Farber Cancer Institute named Laurie H. Glimcher, MD, CEO, effective January 2017. 3. Peter Chalke, CEO of Lewiston-based Central Maine Healthcare, will retire from his post later this year. 4. Elizabethtown (N.Y.) Community Hospital, part of Burlington-based University of Vermont Health Network, named John Remillard interim administrator and CEO. 5. Joseph Woodin, administrator of Gifford Medical Center in Randolph, Vt., will leave the organization in May to become president and CEO of Oak Bluffs, Mass.-based Martha's Vineyard Hospital. 6. Tracie Haughey, CFO of Washington, Ga.-based Wills Memorial Hospital, will take over the CEO position while also, for now, continuing as CFO. More articles on healthcare executive moves: Albany Medical Center names chief of cardiothoracic surgery: 5 things to know Dana-Farber names new CEO: 3 things to know Diplomat Pharmacy promotes executives: 4 things to know Troy, Mich.-based Beaumont Health has named Constance O'Malley, RN, president of Beaumont Hospital-Farmington Hills (Mich.), formerly Botsford Hospital, effective March 7. Ms. O'Malley will be the first female to serve at the helm of the organization since it opened in 1965 as Botsford General Hospital. She succeeds Paul LaCasse, DO, who has been made Beaumont Health's executive vice president of the post-acute care division and diversified business operations. Prior to her appointment, Ms. O'Malley served as vice president and COO of Beaumont Hospital-Troy. As president, Ms. O'Malley will lead Beaumont Hospital-Farmington Hills and its various outpatient service lines while delivering on its mission to provide compassionate, extraordinary care every day. "I am thrilled to lead Beaumont-Farmington Hills," said Ms. O'Malley. "With our $160 million construction project underway, we are improving our facilities to create a more comfortable, efficient and private healing environment for our patients and their families. The Farmington Hills area is a terrific community and I look forward to meeting and working with community members and business leaders." More articles on executive moves: 6 latest hospital, health system CEO moves University of Michigan School of Medicine appoints health equity and inclusion officer Dana-Farber names new CEO: 3 things to know Here are five brief updates on what's happening in the Republican and Democratic races since last weekend, as well as what to expect this week. 1. Republicans are casting their votes in the Nevada Caucus Tuesday evening. The five remaining candidates include businessman Donald Trump, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson, MD, and Ohio Gov. John Kasich. Many expect Mr. Trump to take the lead again in Nevada, considering he owns a large hotel on the Las Vegas Strip. Sens. Rubio and Cruz continue to duke it out, though Sen. Rubio's campaign still sees Gov. Kasich as an obstacle, based on its open push to get Gov. Kasich to leave the race, according to The New York Times. 2. Last Saturday's Republican primary in South Carolina ended a few campaigns, and fired up a few others. Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush dropped out of the running, and Dr. Carson is likely to drop out soon based on his performance so far. The primary fired up the competition between Sen. Rubio, who came in second place, and Sen. Cruz, who came in a close third place. Mr. Trump led the way with a healthy win in South Carolina. 3. On the Democratic side, the race is also heating up. According to coverage of the campaigns in Reuters, what was once a fairly amicable rivalry between former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) is ramping up. Previously, the candidates have sparred over their healthcare plans and ties to Wall Street, but have otherwise agreed on many other issues. However, tensions have erupted this week, over the Latino vote in Nevada and casino owners allegedly pushing the vote for Ms. Clinton, according to Reuters. 4. Ms. Clinton currently leads Sen. Sanders with delegates. Ms. Clinton won the Nevada caucus, and currently has 502 delegates compared to Sen. Sander's 70, according to The New York Times. This count includes both delegates won in state primaries as well as superdelegates, who are able to choose any candidate. It is expected Ms. Clinton will dominate the black and Hispanic vote in the South, but as this election has proven anything but traditional, the tides could still turn. It takes 2,383 delegates to win the nomination, so both candidates have a long way to go. 5. Coming up this weekend is one more Democratic primary in South Carolina on Saturday, Feb. 27. Super Tuesday is up next March 1. Votes will take place on Super Tuesday in Alabama, Alaska (Republicans only), American Samoa (Democrats only), Arkansas, Colorado (Democrats only), Georgia, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont and Virginia. Democrats abroad can also begin placing their votes March 1. More articles on leadership and management: Push to incentivize STEM studies may cost students support for liberal arts Texas Hospital Association elects new board: 4 things to know National Governors Association works to reduce opioid abuse Mergers, acquisitions and other types of partnerships remain critical as hospitals and health systems face extraordinary pressure to reduce costs, manage care more effectively and improve patient engagement and experience. Healthcare M&A activity grew by 14 percent last year, to 1,498 transactions, setting a new record for industry deal volume, according to Irving Levin Associates. That compares to 2014, when 1,318 deals were announced across 13 healthcare sectors. In 2015, 356 deals involved long-term care entities, 102 for hospitals and 88 for physician medical groups. The year prior, it was 302, 99 and 60, respectively. What does the pace of healthcare M&A look like for 2016? Here, Roger Strode, a Partner and healthcare business attorney with Foley & Lardner in Chicago, shared his thoughts and forecasts. Mr. Strode's practice focuses on healthcare business transactions, including mergers, acquisitions, corporate restructurings and joint ventures, general corporate matters and healthcare regulation. He has represented institutional healthcare providers (hospitals, health systems and integrated delivery systems), large physician groups, specialty providers (ASC development organizations), healthcare private equity firms and industry consultants. Volume of healthcare M&A 1. Hospital expansion. Mr. Strode expects large insurance deals Aetna's proposed acquisition of Humana and Anthem's proposed acquisition of Cigna to prompt more hospitals to consider expansion to counter the payers' greater bargaining power. He says payers will increasingly pressure hospitals and health systems to trim prices, thereby requiring them to become more efficient and cost effective. Additionally, more hospitals and health systems will increasingly shift toward population health management, placing a premium on size and scale. "There are markets where significant fragmentation among providers remains and numerous hospitals and health systems remain unaffiliated. We expect to see consolidation in those markets, especially those that include large providers with excess capital to deploy," Mr. Strode says. 2. Physician group consolidation. Large physician groups also appear interested in consolidation. For instance, Downers Grove, Ill.-based DuPage Medical Group recently entered into a strategic partnership with Summit Partners, a global growth equity firm. Through the partnership, Summit made a reported $250 million investment, through a combination of equity and debt, in DMG. Proceeds will be used to support growth initiatives at DMG's practice management company. In addition, groups like Denver-based DaVita Healthcare Partners, which last September announced plans Monday to acquire The Everett (Wash.) Clinic, a 500-physician group, have been very active consolidating physician practices. "This is kind of a perfect storm," Mr. Strode says. "Private equity sponsors with capital to employ and an interest in high-quality platform practices are converging with physicians who are interested in cashing equity out of their practices and obtaining growth capital. We are seeing a lot of activity in areas such as dermatology and pain management along with hospital-based practices like anesthesiology and radiology." FTC challenges 3. Challenges to hospital mergers. As the volume of healthcare M&A deals increased, so have challenges from the Federal Trade Commission. Last December, the FTC authorized action to block the planned merger of Downers Grove, Ill.-based Advocate Health Care and Evanston, Ill.-based NorthShore University HealthSystem a deal that would create the largest health system in Illinois. The month prior, the FTC authorized action to block the merger of Cabell Huntington (W.Va.) Hospital and Huntington-based St. Mary's Medical Center. The FTC will continue to challenge what they believe to be problematic combinations as long as they keep winning, according to Mr. Strode. He noted some public FTC victories in recent years. In April 2014, for instance, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit issued a major decision within the hospital sector, as it backed the FTC and ordered Toledo, Ohio-based ProMedica to unwind its acquisition of St. Luke's Hospital in Maumee, Ohio. Mr. Strode, though, was quick to point out the dichotomy between antitrust law and the Affordable Care Act and the new payment models burgeoning because of the ACA. "We have a reimbursement system that would seem to encourage consolidation of hospitals and physicians ... and which are pro-competitive, such as cost cutting, increasing of efficiencies, raising capital to build IT infrastructure and to acquire physicians. Yet we have an antitrust enforcement system that seems to view this type consolidation as a bad thing," he says. "Those two ideologies seem at odds with each other." 4. Advocate/NorthShore merger. In discussing the specific proposed merger between Advocate and NorthShore, Mr. Strode says Advocate/Northshore and the FTC have completely different visions of the market and whether ther are efficiencies to be gained through the merger. "Right now they're very far apart. The government asserts that the merged entity will comprise more than 55 percent of the market while the merger partners contend that they will capture little more than 20 percent," he says. "Right now, the FTC does not appear interested in negotiating a settlement short of abandonment of the proposed deal." Mr. Strode noted that hospital-FTC challenges are lengthy, painful battles. "They're expensive. If [the government] believes they have a good case, they're unlikely to back down," he added. 5. Challenges to physician group mergers. Mergers between physician groups have also caught regulators' eye. "They're concerned not only about combinations of hospitals but also what they believe to be anti-competitive combinations of physicians," Mr. Strode says. For instance, in January 2014, a federal judge sided with the FTC, ruling that Boise, Idaho-based St. Luke's Health System violated antitrust law with its 2012 acquisition of Saltzer Medical Group in Nampa, Idaho, one of the largest independent multispecialty groups in the state. Private equity firms 6. Private equity firms in M&A. In 2016, Mr. Strode believes private equity firms will continue to be active in M&A. "There's still plenty of money to be put to work out there, and even though there's been a pullback in the broader stock market, I think that private equity is still pretty darn bullish on physician groups, pretty bullish on service lines [such as] pain management, dermatology, radiology and anesthesia," he says, "We will see private equity continue to be interested in those lines and services." More articles on healthcare industry transactions: 5 recent hospital transactions and partnerships Kindred inks swap arrangement for 5 hospitals: 6 things to know Why one hospital merger could be off limits to the FTC Richmond University Medical Center in New York, the hospital that dispatched paramedics and treated Eric Garner as he died from injuries administered by police, will pay $1 million dollars to Mr. Garner's family. Information on the confidential agreement comes from disclosed court documents obtained by The Associated Press on Tuesday. Mr. Garner's death was ruled a homicide acute asthma, obesity and heart disease were cited as contributing factors. This settlement is separate from the $5.9 million the city announced this past July, and the number is the maximum claim allowed under the hospital center's liability insurance policy. Richmond University Medical Center had no comment on the settlement. According to the court documents, the emergency medical technicians did not conduct an appropriate examination of Mr. Garner and did not deliver necessary life-saving procedures. After the incident, two paramedics and two EMTs were suspended without pay. They've since been reinstated. Their new roles do not involve patient care. Pittsburgh-based UPMC has sued United Educators Insurance, its liability insurer, claiming the insurer should pay the $12.5 million antitrust settlement the health system tentatively agreed to pay a local property management company, according to the Pittsburgh Business Times. The property management company, Whitehall, Pa.-based Royal Mile Co., filed an antitrust lawsuit in 2010 alleging UPMC and Pittsburgh-based Highmark conspired to allow their for-profit subsidiaries to overcharge customers for premiums by keeping competing insurers out of the local market. UPMC and Royal Mile entered into a tentative $12.5 million settlement agreement Jan. 28. On Feb. 19, UPMC filed a complaint for declaratory judgment in Pennsylvania federal court, arguing United Educators should pay the entire settlement amount. Since 2013, the liability insurance company said it didn't owe coverage for the 2010 lawsuit. UPMC disputes that claim in its recent court filing, arguing the Royal Mile case is included in the same claim as an antitrust lawsuit brought by Pittsburgh-based West Penn Allegheny Health System against UPMC in 2009. "Based upon the plain similarities between the WPAHS and Royal Mile complaints, all of UPMC's underlying insurers in its 2008 to 2009 tower of insurance, except UE, rightly concluded that the WPAHS suit and the Royal Mile suit are the same claims, first filed in [the] 2008 policy period," says UPMC in its complaint for declaratory judgment. UPMC stands to avoid paying the $12.5 million out of pocket to settle the Royal Mile case if the court agrees and if the settlement is accepted. Law enforcement authorities are searching for a Pine Island, Minn., man who was arrested in 2015 for allegedly making threats against Rochester, Minn.-based Mayo Clinic, according to a WDay 6 report. Adam Bussman was arrested in December after Mayo Clinic security were made aware of threats he posted on social media against the hospital and its employees. Police say Mr. Bussman posted a picture of himself with a replica AK47 gun, threatened the clinic and described his dissatisfaction with the treatment he received at the Rochester hospital while he was a patient there, according to the report. He also allegedly posted a picture of his appointment sheet with a caption stating, "Intern hunting I go." Mr. Bussman is charged with two felony counts of threats of violence and one felony count of fifth-degree drug possession, according to the report. He had been released from police custody after posting bond, but has since failed to show up for a number of court dates. Health Republic of New York a nonprofit insurance co-op formed under the Affordable Care Act abruptly closed last November. Now the FBI may be investigating why, according to NewsDay.com. In late September, New York and federal regulators ordered Health Republic to stop selling policies by the end of 2015. One month later, the New York Department of Financial Services announced Health Republic would close at the end of November, leaving 200,000 New Yorkers looking for coverage. In December, New York Rep. Lee Zeldin (R) sent U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch a letter asking for "a thorough criminal investigation" into "what, if any, illegal actions" caused Health Republic to shut down, according to the report. Rep. Zeldin recently received a response stating his request had been forwarded to the FBI. "The FBI will determine whether an investigation is warranted," said Assistant Attorney General Peter Kadzik in the response letter. A spokeswoman from the FBI didn't comment on how long the investigation would take, according to the report. Due to ever-increasing costs of healthcare coverage, health sharing ministries were started throughout the U.S. more than two decades ago. But critics contend these ministries may have underlying disadvantages, according to U.S. News & World Report. Another option for health insurance As an alternative to traditional health insurance, health sharing ministries offer their members the chance to "share" the financial burden of medical bills. For some health sharing ministries, this means members will receive a letter every month about the cost of another member's medical bills. The member will then send the requested monetary amount directly to the member who is in need of medical care. Through the Affordable Care Act, ministry members do not have to obey the law's individual mandate meaning they're exempt from paying the penalty that comes with not having individual insurance. According to the Alliance of Health Care Sharing Ministries, membership in health sharing plans has increased from 200,000 to 530,000 since the passage of the ACA in 2010. Numerous health sharing organizations are based on Christian values, meaning their members must follow specific codes of conduct to remain part of the ministry. The rules of the code include regular church attendance, making a profession of faith and refraining from drunkenness, tobacco usage and sex outside marriage. When members need medical assistance because they disobeyed these rules, the plans do not cover the cost. In some organizations, members can even vote on whether they think other members' medical care should be covered. Skeptics voice their worries In recent years, commissioners and judges in a number of states have attempted to shut down health sharing ministries, but their plans were thwarted when state lawmakers allowed the plans to continue to run. Still, critics are concerned about the intentions of the plans. Rather than joining the plans due to religious reasons, Tim Jost, JD, professor of law at Lexington, Va.-based Washington and Lee University School of Law, is "concerned that you have people joining because they're trying to find cheap coverage or because they're ideologically opposed to the Affordable Care Act, or people who aren't committed," according to the report. Others are worried about how these plans could affect the ACA exchanges. Because members of health sharing ministry plans are often healthier, the sicker people flock to the exchanges or Medicaid, according to Rachel Sachs, an academic fellow at Cambridge, Mass.-based Harvard Law School. Past problems Due to a lack of external regulation, it hasn't always been perfect for health sharing ministries. Although they're now required to complete annual audits performed by an independent firm, internal problems have crept in at health sharing ministries over the years. A member of one organization, Medi-Share, needed heart-valve surgery after an infection. But Medi-Share wouldn't pay for it, claiming the heart condition was pre-existing. Medi-Share members subsequently filed a lawsuit. In 2000, members of Christian Healthcare Ministries formerly the Christian Brotherhood Newsletter told the Ohio attorney general there were $34 million in unpaid claims. The organization's founder and his nephew were found guilty of civil and solicitation fraud, having used the extra donations to fund higher salaries, motorcycles and vacations. A consensus? Nevertheless, the ministries continue to succeed. Even internal supporters agree the ministries aren't for everyone. "Someone who isn't of the faith doesn't have a familiarity of the commands and requirements of the scripture," said Tony Meggs, president and CEO of Christian Care Ministry, according to the report. "We live our lives in a way that we share in each other's needs. That's a biblical mandate Christ gives us in scripture." But many opponents still aren't convinced. "Getting together with a group of like-minded people sounds good and works well until it doesn't," said a spokesman from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, according to the report. "You don't have any protections in terms of making sure your claims can be paid." Is expanding Medicaid coverage feasible and beneficial? That is the question many states have been asking themselves since 2014, when the government extended eligibility to low income adults up to 138 percent of the federal poverty level. If a state does choose to expand its Medicaid coverage, who exactly is eligible for expanded coverage? The Kaiser Family Foundation dove into data and outlined the following five findings. 1. Approximately 8.8 million or 27 percent of the 32.3 million nonelderly people who were uninsured as of 2015 are eligible for Medicaid or the Children's Health Insurance Program. This includes 5.7 million who are Medicaid-eligible adults and 3.2 million who are Medicaid or CHIP-eligible children. 2. The majority of these uninsured and eligible individuals 6.8 million people, or 77 percent live in states that have expanded Medicaid. These states have higher income eligibility requirements than non-expansion states. 3. Uninsured individuals eligible for Medicaid are concentrated in a few large states. One third of uninsured and eligible individuals live in California, New York, Pennsylvania or Texas. Approximately 37 percent of uninsured and eligible children live in one of four states: California, Florida, New York or Texas. 4. In both expansion and non-expansion states, more than 50 percent of the uninsured and Medicaid-eligible adults are people of color. In expansion states, African Americans make up 16 percent of the uninsured and eligible. In non-expansion states, African Americans make up 29 percent of the uninsured and eligible. In both expansion and non-expansion states, Hispanics make up the greatest portion of uninsured and eligible children (40 percent in expansion states and 38 percent in non-expansion states). 5. Eligibility patterns among the uninsured differ between expansion states and non-expansion states. Nationwide, approximately two thirds of the uninsured and eligible are adults and one third is children. In expansion states, the proportion of eligible, uninsured adults is a bit higher, at 76 percent. Approximately 55 percent are non-parent adults. But in non-expansion states, 25 percent of the uninsured and eligible are adults, and just 3 percent are non-parent adults. Click here to read all of the Kaiser Family Foundation's findings. Healthgrades, an online resource for information on physicians and hospitals, named its list of America's 50 and 100 Best Hospitals for 2016 on Tuesday. Here are four things to know about Healthgrades' highest distinction and the hospitals that received it this year. 1. Healthgrades selected hospitals for the Best Hospitals Awards by looking at clinical outcome data from 2012 through 2014 for the 32 most common inpatient conditions and procedures, among other data points. Find more information here. Hospitals in the top 100 have all received the Healthgrades Distinguished Hospital Award for Clinical Excellence consecutively for at least the last three years. 2. Healthgrades' 100 Best Hospitals are not spread evenly throughout the United States: 22 states and the District of Columbia do not boast a hospital in the top 100. 3. Patients receiving care at one of the 100 Best Hospitals are less likely to die in the hospital, according to Healthgrades. The 100 Best Hospitals had an overall 26.5 percent lower risk-adjusted in-hospital mortality rate across 19 procedures and conditions, when compared to all other hospitals. 4. Healthgrades' top hospitals also out-perform their peers in emergency care for conditions like heart attack, stroke, pneumonia and sepsis. More of the Best Hospitals had a Healthgrades five-star rating for treatment of those conditions than all other hospitals for example, 94 percent of America's 100 Best Hospitals had a five-star rating for treatment of sepsis, compared to just 21 percent of all other hospitals. "We are pleased to recognize those organizations that have achieved this distinction and urge all consumers to do their homework when selecting a hospital especially as it relates to emergent conditions since hospitals do not perform equally," said Evan Marks, Healthgrades' chief strategy officer. A 50m development in Newry, which would create more than 400 jobs, could be facing a setback as supermarket giant Asda reconsiders setting up at the site, it can be revealed. The Hill Partnership, a family-owned business run by Laurence Breen and son Eamon, fought a long campaign through the courts to get permission for the project in the Co Down city. Asda has long been strongly rumoured to be in discussions about becoming the lead retailer in the development, but has never officially said it's eyeing up the site. But it's believed Asda may now not proceed with the store, in line with its decision to reconsider other sites in Northern Ireland. When the initial go-ahead was given for the development, a spokeswoman for Asda couldn't confirm any potential deal for the location. But she did say it was "interested in opening a store in Newry". Speaking to the Belfast Telegraph last month, Asda chief executive Andy Clarke would not confirm which stores would not proceed. "The challenge in the last five years is that commercial sites have been less viable," he said. Asked whether it had pulled the plug entirely on the development in Newry, a spokesman for Asda said: "While the retail market continues to face one of its most challenging periods ever, Asda remains committed to considering all new opportunities where they reflect our ongoing strategy." Asda's cold feet comes after the Belfast Telegraph revealed the supermarket looks set to pull the plug on plans for a 25m store in Monkstown, a facility that was earmarked to create up to 300 new jobs. In relation to Newry, the Hill Partnership had said a "major multi-national supermarket chain" would set up at the Carnbane Way development. The overall scheme could include a business park with 70 units and 14 homes. Environment Minister Mark H Durkan gave the article 31 scheme the green light in 2014. Planning applications are designated article 31 where they are regarded as so significant that they are decided by the Minister. But the scheme was opposed by Newry Chamber of Commerce, and a judicial review began into the decision. In July last year, the development received the go-ahead after the review ruled in its favour. Judge Seamus Treacy dismissed the contentions of Newry Chamber of Commerce, which objected to the development. At the time, reacting to the ruling, Laurence and Eamon Breen said they had been "vindicated, as has the Minister". According to developers, a survey conducted by LucidTalk said 95% of more than 1,000 people polled believed Newry would benefit from the plans. "The result of this survey was overwhelming and illustrates the popularity of the proposal," Mr Breen said. Food giant Kerry Group - which operates several brands based in Northern Ireland - has posted trading profits of 663m (520m) after a "record year". The company posted turnover of 6.1bn (4.8bn) for 2015 across both arms of its business. And Kerry Group's operations in Northern Ireland are also performing in line with the overall positive numbers across the board, the company said. The firm owns brands including Henry Denny & Sons, which has a business in Portadown, along with Dairy Producer Packers in Coleraine and Golden Cow in Craigavon. Kerry Group said it had been a good year for its brands, with the Denny Gold Medal sausage achieving good brand growth year-on-year. Consumer confidence was also up in both UK and Ireland markets. And despite concerns from many firms in the UK about what impact a vote to leave the EU could have on their businesses, Frank Hayes, director of corporate affairs for Kerry Group, said a Brexit would not be a "materially significant risk". "Britain is a small part of our total group," he added. "A lot of the production in the UK is supplying the UK market. On top of that, we do supply from the Republic into the UK market, and we also export products from the UK. "We would not consider this (Brexit) to be a materially significant risk to the business." The company has two divisions - the global taste and nutrition business, and a consumer foods division, Kerry Foods. The operations in Coleraine and Omagh are part of the company's supply chain. "We have continued to grow the taste and nutrition offerings, particularly into the food service category," Mr Hayes said. Kerry Group chief executive Stan McCarthy added that in a "record year of business development in 2015" the business "achieved a strong financial performance, delivering continued business margin expansion". "Our industry-leading technologies are well positioned to meet today's consumer and customer requirements," he said. "We expect to achieve 6% to 10% growth in adjusted earnings per share in 2016, taking into account a 3% currency headwind at today's exchange rates". Revenue in the firm's taste and nutrition and consumer foods arms both increased. Taste and nutrition experienced 4% in volume growth, up to 4.7bn (3.7bn), while the consumer foods division rose 3%, up to 1.5bn (1.2bn). One of Kerry Group's companies, Golden Cow in Craigavon, produces a range of products, including LowLow Snack Packs and Mattessons chicken dippers. The company has also been building its sales in Asia - where demand was also strong for its protein-enriched foods. Kerry Group is also known as the firm behind brands such as Dairygold and Cheesestrings. The London Stock Exchange is in talks over a possible 20bn merger with Germany's Deutsche Boerse to create one of the biggest exchange companies in the world. It marks the latest attempt by the pair to join forces after a proposed deal collapsed in 2000, and then again in 2004-5. Shares in FTSE 100-listed LSE jumped as much as 17% after it confirmed "detailed discussions" were taking place over a possible all-share merger. The LSE said it would be a "merger of equals", forming an enlarged group that would rival the likes of CME Group and Intercontinental Exchange in the US and Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing, which is the world's largest exchanges group. Latest talks between the two come nearly 16 years after LSE and Deutsche Boerse first sought to strike a deal. The LSE said it is working on plans that would see LSE shareholders hold 45.6% of the combined group and Deutsche Boerse the remaining 54.4%. Northern Ireland's exports to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have grown by nearly 20%, the Enterprise Minister has said. Jonathan Bell spoke as led a delegation of 13 food firms - selling products from salmon to sugar-free confectionery - taking part in one of the world's biggest trade shows in the Gulf. Dale Farm, Glenarm Organic Salmon and confectionery company Free'ist are among those exhibiting at Gulfood in Dubai. The Minister said 2016 - the Year of Food and Drink in the province - was an opportunity for Northern Ireland to grow its foodie reputation on the world stage. And he said the United Arab Emirates (UAE) were a key target market, with a 17% increase in exports in the 12-month rolling period from October 2014 to September 2015, compared to the year before. He added: "As an Executive, we recognise the importance of supporting our local businesses to explore export markets, helping them to develop international business opportunities in key markets. Northern Ireland already boasts some of the world's finest produce and, as we look to grow our international reputation during Northern Ireland's Year of Food and Drink, this exhibition is giving us a platform to raise our profile and to promote our local food offering on a global stage." Glanbia Cheese, Graham's Bakery, Greenfields Ireland Ltd, Glens of Antrim Potatoes, LacPatrick, Lakeland Pritchitts, Mackle Snacks, Antrim Hills Spring Water Co Ltd, BFree Foods, CocoMojo and Crust & Crumb are all taking part in the event, which ends tomorrow. This week, Antrims Hills Spring Water, which is based in Ballyclare, announced that it had reached a deal with Dubai Duty Free to supply its water brand Water Within. The Executive should make the setting up of a Northern Ireland food export marketing body a priority, a lobby group has said. The call for a counterpart of the Republic's Bord Bia was made by the Northern Ireland Food and Drink Association (NIFDA) as it launched its manifesto. NIFDA has set a target of creating 15,000 new jobs in the industry by 2020. Around 20,000 people are currently working in it, according to 2011 estimates. Chairman David Dobbin - also the head of United Dairy Farmers - said the industry needed the support of the Executive and Assembly. He said: "Our target is to grow our industry's turnover to 7bn by 2020 and create 15,000 new jobs as outlined in the 'Going for Growth' report. However, we need the continued support of the Executive. "In the NIFDA manifesto we outline a range of issues which require the Executive's support to create an environment which will improve our international competitiveness and allow us to generate sustainable growth through increased export sales." He said the agri-food sector should be at the heart of economic strategy. The Executive needed to ensure that costs and skills were competitive, and that food and drink products were marketed. And he added: "We need to address our higher energy costs, maintain rates relief for food manufacturers and get the food export marketing body up and running." Government also needed to continue support for innovation and technology advancements, he said, adding: "We have an excellent platform upon which to grow the sector." The manifesto launch was attended by representatives from major food and drink firms including Linden Foods, Mash Direct and SHS Group. Two thirds of British Oscar winners were privately educated - such as Eddie Redmayne, a former Eton pupil Top British actors are more than twice as likely to have attended private school than stars in the music industry, a study has found. It also reveals that the UK is still overwhelmingly run by privately-educated Oxbridge graduates, who dominate professions including politics, journalism, the military and the law. The Sutton Trust, which published the research, said the findings show that a child's chances of reaching the top in British life still depend heavily on their schooling and their family's contacts and called for more to be done to open up fee-paying schools to all youngsters, rather than just those whose parents can afford to pay. Researchers looked at the educational backgrounds of more than 1,200 people, working in high-level jobs in medicine, the law, the military, journalism, politics, the civil service, business, film and pop music, as well as Nobel Prize winners. It found that more than two in five (42%) of British Bafta winners went to an independent school, compared to around a fifth (19%) of those who have won a Brit music award. In addition, two thirds (67%) of British Oscar winners were privately educated - such as Eddie Redmayne, a former Eton pupil, and Kate Winslet, who studied at Redroofs Theatre School. The successful state-funded BRIT school in Croydon, which counts Adele and Jessie J among its former pupils, may be one reason why the proportion of state-educated top music stars is higher, the Sutton Trust said. The study also found that three quarters (74%) of the UK's top judges went to a fee-paying school, and nearly eight in 10 (78%) went on to Oxford or Cambridge. Among top military personnel, seven in 10 (71%) came from the private sector, although just 14% were Oxbridge educated, while around half of leading print journalists and solicitors (51% each) were taught at fee-paying schools. Just over half (54%) of these journalists attended Oxford or Cambridge, along with 55% of solicitors and 51% of the senior civil servants included in the study. In politics, half of the Cabinet were privately educated, - including old Etonian Prime Minister David Cameron - compared to 13% of the shadow cabinet, and around a third (32%) of MPs. The current Cabinet does have fewer former independent school pupils than the coalition government Cabinet of 2010, the report notes, but slightly higher than Tony Blair's post-election Cabinet in 2005. Just under half (47%) of the current Cabinet are Oxbridge graduates, along with 32% of the shadow cabinet. "The top of many of the UK's most prestigious professions remain disproportionately constituted by those with elite educational and socio-economic backgrounds," the study concluded. Sutton Trust research fellow Dr Philip Kirby, who conducted the study, said: " Young people from more advantaged backgrounds often have broader professional social networks, which can be used to access certain jobs, as well as parents who might be more able to support them through unpaid internships, which are increasingly important for career development." Trust chairman Sir Peter Lampl said: "Our research shows that your chances of reaching the top in so many areas of British life are very much greater if you went to an independent school. As well as academic achievement an independent education tends to develop essential skills such as confidence, articulacy and team work which are vital to career success. "The key to improving social mobility at the top is to open up independent schools to all pupils based on merit not money as demonstrated by our successful Open Access scheme, as well as support for highly able students in state schools." A Department for Education spokesman said 1.4 million more children are being taught in good or outstanding state schools compared to 2010 and that university entrants are at an all-time high, with more disadvantaged youngsters going on to study for a degree. "We are determined to spread this educational excellence everywhere, extending true social mobility for all," he said. "We are continuing the pupil premium at current rates for the duration of this parliament, providing billions of pounds to support disadvantaged pupils reach their potential." Leonardo DiCaprio looks set to add an Oscar to his Bafta award Leonardo DiCaprio will pick up his first ever Academy Award on Sunday, if the Oscars continue their recent trend of mirroring the top winners at the Baftas. A total of four of the previous five recipients of the Bafta for best actor - and eight of the last 11 - have gone on claim the same title at the Oscars. The pattern is exactly the same for women, which could mean good news for this year's Bafta winner Brie Larson. New analysis by the Press Association shows that the two academies are increasingly picking the same people to win the biggest film awards. Between 1995 and 2004, Bafta correctly forecast the winners of the top four Oscars on just under a third of occasions (30%). But between 2005 and 2014, this figure rose to 68%. The British judges' choice for best film is also increasingly matching that of their American counterparts. Since 2007, there has only been one instance when the same movie did not win the best film award at both the Baftas and the Oscars. That was last year, when Bafta picked Boyhood while the Oscar went to Birdman. If both academies opt for the same choice this year, DiCaprio's film The Revenant will triumph on Sunday. History is not on the side of the man who directed The Revenant, however. Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu could miss out on an Oscar to go with his Bafta, as the winners of the award for best director have been less unanimous recently. In only two of the last five years has the same person picked up both titles. Inarritu won the Oscar for best director last year, and the Academy hasn't given this award to the same person two years in a row since 1950. Eddie Redmayne, nominated best actor for his role in The Danish Girl, can take heart from the fact that UK-born males have thrived at the Baftas and Oscars in recent years. Brits have won best actor at six of the last nine Baftas and three of the last five Oscars. The story is not so impressive for females. No British stars have won the best actress award at either ceremony since 2009 - unless you count Julianne Moore, on account of her Scottish mother, who did the double in 2014. Brigid ONeill and Ciara ONeill will perform at the 12th United Airlines Belfast Nashville Festival Local singer-songwriters Brigid O'Neill and Ciara O'Neill are tuning up for a concert set to be broadcast into 60 million homes across America, celebrating the musical connections between Belfast and Nashville. Next Friday, March 4, they will take to the stage of The Empire Music Hall for a show billed as a highlight of the United Airlines Belfast Nashville Festival. The musicians recently received the Arts Council of Northern Ireland's Artist Career Enhancement Award, funding which allows our most talented emerging artists to take their careers to the next level. Ciara, from Portadown, will launch debut album, The Ebony Trail, at another festival performance on Saturday, March 5. Ciara, who released her debut EP in 2014, was spotted at last year's festival by visiting Nashville-based publishers and songwriters, then spent three months in 2015 working with Grammy award-winning songwriters and publishers and performing live. Downpatrick's Brigid O'Neill released her debut EP, Arrivals and Departures, in September 2014 to critical acclaim. She will use her ACES award to network and co-write in Nashville with award-winning songwriters and develop her musical skills. Festival Director, Colin Magee, said: "We're co-producing a one-hour television programme with Music City Roots and it's going to be great exposure for both the Panarts Belfast Nashville Festival and our local artists." Ciaran Scullion, Head of Music, Arts Council of Northern Ireland, said: "The Belfast Nashville Songwriters Festival is a wonderful celebration of the art of songwriting, bringing some of the finest international artists of this genre to Belfast audiences. The 12th United Airlines Belfast Nashville Festival, backed by National Lottery funding, runs from March 2-6 and features 40 concerts and 100 songwriters. For further information visit www.belfastnashville.com Karen Sharkey (36) lives in Omagh with her partner Gary, also a carer. She was named Foster Carer of the Year in 2015. She says: My aunt had fostered children for 25 years and I was always interested in doing so myself, as I was always around foster kids. I'm from a childcare background, having worked in nurseries and as a childminder. I decided to apply to be a foster carer when I was 22. I wasn't living with my partner at the time, but was with my sister, Anita. We went along to an information evening when I applied. Both my sister and I had to go through the application process - it took months. We were initially registered for short-time and respite care and our first placement was a family of three siblings - they ended up staying with me for years. I've now had 17 children through my care and they have mostly been babies - the oldest child we have had was eight. At the moment we have two boys who have both been with us since they were newborn babies - and they will continue to live here until they don't need to be in care anymore. It is hard when it's time for them to move on but as soon as one child goes to their new home then we're at the door waiting for the next to come in. Every child who comes here has been part of our family, but at the same time, we always work with their families and keep in close contact with them. I don't think I've missed out on anything by spending years fostering. Our lives have been so fulfilled by it." Jenny Gillespie (50) lives in Bangor with her husband Mark, a joiner. She was named runner-up in last years Foster Carer of the Year awards. She says: Nine years ago, Mark and I started fostering. We had discovered we werent able to have kids but then were approached by a relative who is a social worker they suggested that we might make great foster carers. My initial thought was no I feared it would be too hard to hand the children back after their placement. But after having a chat with Kindercare Northern Ireland we realised that although we have no kids of our own, that it was something we could do. Foster kids come to you with complex needs but from day one Mark and I decided that any child who came into our house would have a clean slate. Weve now had 10 children in total. Initially we provided short-term care but one of the boys has been with us for more than eight years and will probably stay. We have had children with emotional difficulties but last year we took in a boy who has cerebral palsy and has acute physical needs. He doesnt sit but he does walk, so he needs a lot of care but his brain and personality are perfect. It was a whole new area for us and we didnt know if we were making the right move but its worked out perfectly. Now both the boys will be with us for the long term. We were worried about when the children had to leave, but when you care for them you know youre working for them to be returned to their families. Unfortunately, as with our two boys, sometimes its not possible but there are wee ones who do reunite with a parent who has overcome any issues which stopped them caring for their kids in the first place. Could you be a foster parent? To find out more call Kindercare Fostering Northern Ireland, tel 028 9094 1690 or visit http://kindercareni.co.uk/ Simon Hamilton made the announcement of the 175,000 investment at the opening of a mental health summit A total of 175,000 has been invested to help set up a new mental trauma service for Northern Ireland. Low-level help provided by voluntary and community organisations will be integrated with more intensive measures by qualified professionals under the auspices of a new regional specialist service, health minister Simon Hamilton said. Mr Hamilton made the announcement at the opening of a mental health summit hosted by Action Mental Health. He said: "To assist in getting our new mental trauma service off the ground I can confirm that I have invested 175,000 of funding for early set-up costs. "I envisage that the service will allow for a range of interventions, meeting the spectrum of need across our community. It will involve leading edge, evidence-based treatments in line with NICE guidelines, with a focus on recovery of the individual. "Mental health is an absolute priority for my department, and the publication of Action Mental Health's evaluation report in October acknowledges that there has been progress in realising the Bamford vision for improving mental health provision. "However, we still face significant challenges." Tony Blair's former head of communications, Alastair Campbell, will tell the Belfast mental health conference that Northern Ireland has been let down by failure to tackle the mental trauma of the Troubles. The rate of illness is a quarter higher following decades of violence but the level of investment a quarter lower than in other parts of the UK, the former Labour government director will say. A quarter of adults will suffer from a problem at some stage in their lives. Mr Campbell was part of the British government which helped engineer the 1998 Good Friday Agreement. Arlene Arkinson's friend has told the murdered Tyrone schoolgirl's inquest of her hatred for Robert Howard, who had boiled her pet rabbit and smashed the skulls of kittens for fun before showing her the bodies. Donna Quinn sobbed as she told a coroners court in Belfast that she thought Howard had sexually abused and then murdered her friend, but she did not know where she was buried. Ms Quinn said: "I thought in my heart and soul that she was dead." Fifteen-year-old Arlene, from Castlederg, vanished after a night out at a disco across the Irish border in Co Donegal in 1994. She was last seen with convicted child killer Howard, who died in prison last year aged 71. He was acquitted of Arlene's murder in 2005 by a jury which was not told of his conviction for killing a south London teenager several years earlier. Ms Quinn was the daughter of Howard's partner Pat - and was among the last people to see Arlene alive. Expand Close Donna Quinn sobbed as she told a coroner's court in Belfast that she thought Robert Howard had sexually abused and then murdered Arlene / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Donna Quinn sobbed as she told a coroner's court in Belfast that she thought Robert Howard had sexually abused and then murdered Arlene Even though she knew he was a dangerous and violent sexual predator who liked teenage girls, Ms Quinn had no concerns about leaving her friend alone in his car after their night out, it was claimed. The penny only dropped that something "suspicious" had happened when Arlene failed to tun up and Howard asked her to lie, the court was told. Ms Quinn said: "I believed that Saturday that Arlene was dead and that Bob Howard had murdered her." Expand Close Arlene Arkinson was last seen in a car with child killer Robert Howard, her inquest has been told / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Arlene Arkinson was last seen in a car with child killer Robert Howard, her inquest has been told When asked why Howard had not wanted her to say Arlene had been with them on the night she vanished, Ms Quinn repeatedly claimed not to recall. Ms Quinn, who was 18 at the time, described herself as a vulnerable young girl. She said she detested Howard who had boiled her pet rabbit and smashed the skulls of kittens for fun before showing her the bodies. "I hated the man," she told the court. She also conceded that Howard may have been using her to groom her friends. "He probably was, aye," Ms Quinn told the court. Expand Close Arlene Arkinson's sister Kathleen arrives at Belfast's Laganside court complex / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Arlene Arkinson's sister Kathleen arrives at Belfast's Laganside court complex Ivor McAteer, representing the Arkinson family, questioned her poor recollection of the events which had "shaped" her life. He said: "Let's just stop this. Let's have some straight answers to straight questions. Every time you are asked something difficult your default answer is you 'cannae mind'." Police have launched an appeal to help track down missing Co Armagh teenager Chelsea McGarry. The 16-year-old was last seen on Monday in the William Street area of Lurgan. She is described as being around 5ft1", slim build with shoulder length blonde hair and was last seen wearing a dark jacket with a fur lined-hood, denim shirt, jeans and dark boots. Anyone who has had any contact with Chelsea is urged to contact Police on 101 quoting ref: 1143 22/02/16. Donna Quinn sobbed as she told a coroner's court in Belfast that she thought Robert Howard had sexually abused and then murdered Arlene Convicted child killer Robert Howard was seen near a forest carrying a spade after schoolgirl Arlene Arkinson disappeared. During a dramatic day of evidence at the teenager's inquest in Belfast, it was claimed police had been tipped off by an unnamed informant. A partially blanked-out intelligence document read to the court claimed Howard and his then partner Patricia Quinn told a taxi driver they were going fishing. Fifteen-year-old Arlene, from Castlederg, Co Tyrone, vanished after a night out at a disco across the Irish border in Co Donegal in August 1994. She was last seen with convicted killer Howard, who died in prison last year aged 71. He was acquitted of Arlene's murder in 2005 by a jury which was not told of his conviction for killing a south London teenager several years earlier. The intelligence document is among a number of redacted files at the centre of an ongoing disclosure dispute. Coroner Brian Sherrard, who is presiding over the high profile case, has yet to rule on whether to approve the Police Service of Northern Ireland's application not to hand over some sensitive information to the inquest. Grounds for Public Interest Immunity include matters of national security or the protection of police methodologies such as the use of informers. While the Government has obtained such immunity on sensitive papers relating to legacy terrorist cases in Northern Ireland, doubt surrounds why such issues would be at play during an inquest into the death of a missing schoolgirl. It was also revealed that more intelligence material suggests Howard and Patricia Quinn were overheard talking about going to Pettigo in Co Donegal at night time. And, another redacted police report alleges that Patricia Quinn and her daughter Donna Quinn knew Arlene was buried in bogland near Pettigo. The allegation was strenuously denied by Donna Quinn, who was giving evidence for a second day. "Who said that?" she said. "I don't know, I swear on my child's life, I do not know." Ms Quinn a lifelong friend of Arlene, was among the last people to see her alive. She wept uncontrollably as she denied sending her as "a sacrificial lamb" with a known violent sexual predator. When asked if she did not care, Ms Quinn replied: "Of course I did. I didn't know the half of his (Howard's) life story until recently. "Trying to make out that I knew? Jesus Christ." At one point proceedings had to be halted to allow a visibly distressed Ms Quinn to regain her composure. Earlier she had told the court that when Arlene failed to turn up after a week, she "knew in her heart" she was dead. Knowing that Howard was on bail for an alleged sex attack on another teenage girl, she thought he had sexually abused and then murdered her friend, the court heard. "I believed that Saturday that Arlene was dead and that Bob Howard had murdered her," said Ms Quinn. And, when an agitated Howard asked her to lie, the penny dropped that something dreadful had happened. Ms Quinn added: "I thought in my heart and soul that she was dead." But, she insisted, she did not know where the schoolgirl was buried. In another tearful outburst Ms Quinn cried: "I know nothing about Arlene Arkinson. Definitely. I pray every night she'll be got. She was my friend." She later added: "If I knew where she was I wouldn't have suffered this. "I do not know. I wish I did. I really don't know." Ms Quinn, her boyfriend Sean Heggarty, Arlene Arkinson and Robert Howard all travelled to and from the disco in Bundoran together on August 13 1994. The inquest heard how Ms Quinn had lied to police officers about the route they had taken home and about Arlene being in their company. She claimed Howard asked her to lie, but could not provide an answer as to why. She denied covering for him. "It's not me that's covering up for him," she said. "I can't see why he wasn't arrested and put in jail. Why was he even walking the streets?" Her poor recollection of events in the wake of Arlene's disappearance was called into question by a barrister for the Arkinson family. During cross-examination, Ivor McAteer warned: "Let's just stop this. Let's have some straight answers to straight questions. Every time you are asked something difficult your default answer is you 'cannae mind'." Ms Quinn, who was 18 at the time, described herself as a vulnerable young girl. She said she detested Howard who had boiled her pet rabbit and smashed the skulls of kittens for fun before showing her the bodies. "I hated the man," she told the court. She also conceded that Howard may have been using her to groom her friends and spoke of her relief at his death. "I am glad he's dead," she said. "He can rot in hell for the damage he has caused. "I know I lied to police but it should be him sitting there answering the questions. It's not fair. I can't say nothing more. I don't know. I am just glad he is dead." The case has been adjourned. A seven-month-old baby boy died days after he was found face down in bathwater when his mother left the room to boil a kettle, an inquest has heard. The coroner at yesterday's inquest into little Alex McCartney's death issued a stark warning to parents over the dangers of leaving young children alone "even for a short period of time". Baby Alex got into difficulties at his home in Co Armagh as he sat in the bath with his two-year-old sister. Their mother, Joanne Pedlow, was alerted to the incident when the toddler screamed. Desperate attempts were made to resuscitate the baby, but he died in his mother's arms four days later in the Royal Victoria Hospital after suffering a catastrophic brain injury. Alex's mother and his father, Stephen McCartney, donated his liver, both kidneys and his heart to save the lives of other infants. The inquest into his death heard how healthy Alex died from pneumonia, cerebral hypoxia and probable drowning on January 21 last year. Joanne, a distribution co-ordinator, wiped tears from her face as she gave evidence. The 33-year-old explained to the court that she placed her youngest child into his blue baby bath seat beside his sister Lily after the pair had been playing outside in the snow on January 17. She said the seat was secured to the bath by "three or four" suction cups. "I then popped down the stairs to put the kettle on to wash the floor when my brother Richard and his partner Nicky came in. "We chatted for about a minute when we heard Lily crying and the three of us went up the stairs. "Nicky went into the room first, then Richard, but I didn't go in, and I heard Nicky squealing," she added. Coroner Suzanne Anderson asked Ms Pedlow about the depth of the water. She said it was filled to the level of Alex's belly button, while Ms Anderson also pointed out a water level marker on a picture of the bath seat. The mother-of-three added: "Richard rang for an ambulance and they talked us through CPR. I ran outside to get my neighbour and she came in and started working on Alex. "He was quite a big child and was quite heavy, I think he had leaned forward and toppled it (the seat) over." Nicola (Nicky) Barr told the inquest that she and Richard Pedlow were dropping off his daughter at Joanne's house. She continued: "We found Joanne in the kitchen and she said she was bathing Alex and Lily because they had been out playing in the snow. "Then we heard Lily screaming and we went up to see her, and I went in first. "I looked in and saw Lily sitting in the bath. "For a second I didn't see Alex, but then I saw his bum sticking out of the bubbles. "I put my hands under him and tipped him over. "His face was grey and lips were blue. "I then lifted him out and saw the seat floating on its side. "We took him out to the landing and started CPR. "I took Lily down the stairs as she was squealing as she could see everything. "We called his father Stephen and he arrived home at the same time as the paramedics." Richard, who also gave evidence during the inquest, said he could see Alex's head in the water and rang for an ambulance after seeing his lifeless body. In a desperate attempt to revive the baby, he lay little Alex in the recovery position. "When we found him face down in the water I couldn't believe it," he added. Paramedic Aidan Kelly was called to the family home where he found the group attempting to resuscitate the baby. In a statement read to the court, he described how he couldn't find Alex's pulse. "He was pale and cold to touch," the statement continued. They made desperate attempts to clear his airway but Alex did not respond and was rushed to Craigavon Area Hospital. Dr Samuel Lamont, a consultant paediatrician with the Belfast Health Trust, said the young boy suffered a catastrophic brain injury after being submerged in bathwater. As the doctors were removing the life-support tubes from Alex, he took three or four small breaths, then died in his mother's arms. State Pathologist Dr Peter Ingram said that Alex survived for four days following the incident in the bath, but never regained consciousness. The coroner said little Alex McCartney's death had been a tragedy for his family. Ms Anderson expressed her "heartfelt sympathy" to his parents. She added: "This has highlighted the important issue for parents about the dangers posed when a child is left unsupervised for a short period of time and even in the shallowest of water. "Hopefully this message will serve to spare the agony this family has had to endure." One of the protesters who have been picketing the site ahead of drilling The Avengers star Mark Ruffalo has become the latest big name to back the protesters battling to stop oil drilling at Woodburn Forest in Co Antrim over fears of water contamination. In a letter to Environment Minister Mark H Durkan, the Water Defence founder, who plays The Hulk in the Marvel movies, said the clean water advocacy group would be sending water-testing kits to local residents. "We implore you to protect your citizens by protecting their water," Mr Ruffalo wrote. "The small amount of oil and gas that can be extracted from that site pales in comparison to the nightmare that contaminating the water supply for over 131,000 residents in your community would cause." This week protesters including residents and Stop The Drill campaigners reacted angrily after InfraStrata began felling trees in preparation for drilling, even though no waste management plan has been approved. The firm has been granted a licence to drill an exploratory borehole for oil and gas under permitted development rights after the Department of the Environment (DoE) did not deem it necessary to require planning permission. Mr Ruffalo said it was troubling that the DoE was not intervening to stop an activity that appeared to be unlawful because of the lack of an approved waste management plan and alleged inadequate assessment of environmental considerations. "It is extraordinary that on this sensitive site there has been no public scrutiny through the planning process and no environmental impact assessment," he wrote. But Northern Ireland Water claimed it was satisfied that the proposed work would have no detrimental impact upon the nearby reservoir or the public water supply. "If a spill into the catchment was to occur and enter surface watercourses to any of the Woodburn reservoirs, then NI Water has the ability to isolate the reservoir and cease abstraction from the reservoir," it added. InfraStrata, meanwhile, insisted the worksite had been designed to ensure the maximum level of environmental protection. A spokeswoman said: "This will involve the development of a fully watertight site surrounded by a high bund which will contain all fluids, including rainwater, within the site. (It is) lined with a specialised geosynthetic clay liner which prevents any liquids onsite from penetrating into the ground below, thereby protecting local watercourses and ensuring there will be no adverse impact on the Woodburn River and dams catchment. "The borehole itself will be lined with multiple layers of steel casing and cement to protect the surrounding ground. "NI Water is satisfied that the proposed works will have no detrimental impact on the public water supply. "In any event, a strict regime of water monitoring has been agreed with the Northern Ireland Environment Agency." Motorcycle road racer Glenn Irwin is also backing the protest and has been picketing the site since last Wednesday. Vernon Coaker said Brexit would create uncertainty over links between Northern Ireland and the Republic Trade with Europe supports one in eight jobs in Northern Ireland, pro-European campaigners have said. Manufacturing is by far the most reliant sector. The Peace programme, agriculture and security could also be threatened by Brexit, according to the Britain Stronger In Europe lobby group, which includes prominent Westminster politicians. Will Straw, executive director of Britain Stronger In Europe, said: "People in Northern Ireland are stronger, safer and better off because of our membership of the European Union. "Our EU membership supports 111,480 jobs in Northern Ireland and enables our businesses to trade freely in the world's largest free trade zone. It is good for jobs, good for business and good for workers." He said those posts were equivalent to one in eight workers in 2011. The figures showed 53,614 positions were underpinned by European trade in manufacturing, 7,098 in motor trades and 5,366 in accommodation and food services. The European Arrest Warrant had been used to remove 150 criminals from Northern Ireland and bring 27 to face justice since 2010, the figures showed. Former Labour home secretary Alan Johnson is campaigning to remain in Europe and was due to visit Belfast to launch the campaign in Northern Ireland but cancelled. Vernon Coaker, shadow Northern Ireland secretary , joined Mr Straw for a tour of the Science Park in the Titanic Quarter, where they visited facilities working on cyber security and innovation. Mr Coaker said Brexit would create uncertainty over links between Northern Ireland and the Republic. He added: "If Northern Ireland comes out of the EU what does that mean? "What does it mean for people criss-crossing the border? It becomes an important issue. "Everybody seems to say it will be all right, don't worry, that is fine but the risk and uncertainty around that is enormous." Justice Secretary Michael Gove has clashed with Downing Street by claiming that David Cameron's deal changing Britain's relationship with the EU is not legally binding and could be overturned by a prominent European court. Mr Straw said it was being endorsed at the UN on Wednesday. "I think it is unfortunate timing for Michael Gove to make these rather spurious claims because it is being entrenched in international law and will be binding. "The European Court of Justice has to pay attention to this agreement. It would be extraordinary if an agreement by heads of government agreed unanimously was overturned by the European Court of Justice and it is absolutely clear that the hard-fought reforms that the Prime Minister achieved on Friday are legally binding and will stand." Former Irish president Mary McAleese has hailed the transformation in relations between the UK and Ireland in the 100 years since Dublin's Easter Rising. In a speech to MPs and peers in the Palace of Westminster, Mrs McAleese discussed how once-fraught diplomatic links across the Irish Sea were now positive. Her address covered the Easter rebellion against British rule in 1916, the Troubles in Northern Ireland and the subsequent peace process that brought that conflict to an end. She referred to the Queen's historic visit to the Republic of Ireland in 2011 and also noted Ireland and Britain entered into the European Union on the same day in 1973. The event was organised by the All Party Parliamentary Group on the Irish in Britain, in partnership with St Mary's University, Twickenham, London, where Professor McAleese is a Distinguished Professor in Irish Studies. "These hundred years have seen massive changes in the relationship between Ireland and Britain and further afield," said Mrs McAleese. "Things that were deemed strong and invincible a century ago have disappeared into the footnotes of history. "Things that seemed weak and set for failure have grown strong and enduring. A conflict that seemed intractable has been quelled by the politics of peace based on justice, equality, parity of esteem and a willingness to compromise. "Ireland and Britain are today egalitarian democracies held accountable nationally and internationally by our commitment to the same human rights. We meet now on the international stage as equals and as good neighbours. "Behind the world of politics and diplomacy are legions of men and women from Ireland who have made their lives in Britain and vice versa. The web of personal connections is richly textured and strong. It is infused with a new confidence and trust in one another. "I pay tribute to the men, women and young people on all sides who have worked to recalibrate the historically-skewed relationships between these islands. Today's peace came at an awful cost in terms of lives lost, bodies and hearts permanently broken and bitter lessons learnt. Its momentum, however, is clear. It is towards a permanent, stable peace through politics and partnership." Conor McGinn MP, who is chairman of the Irish in Britain APPG, said it was a honour to host the former president. "She is a seminal, inspirational figure who has been central to relations between the UK and Ireland over the last 20 years," he said. "The centenary of the Easter Rising is hugely important to the Irish in Britain, and as on the island of Ireland there are a range of views, experiences and thoughts about its impact and its consequences. "The Irish in Britain played a significant role in the events of 1916, and our community now - 100 years later in 2016 - is at the forefront of driving forward a new and positive relationship between these two islands." District commander Superintendent Mark McEwan said he believed the money belonged to dissidents and was earmarked for the purchase of arms The PSNI has for the first time used new powers to seize money that was believed to have been in the hands of violent dissident republicans. Police acting under the Crime and Security Act confiscated 3,500 after an investigation into suspicious activity in Londonderry in September. District commander Superintendent Mark McEwan said he believed the money belonged to dissidents and was earmarked for the purchase of arms. He added: "When it was seized, we believed the money was in the hands of a proscribed organisation known as the New IRA. "We know that these people are involved in criminality that creates harm and suffering in our community. "This legislation gives us a tool to help us tackle illegal activity. It means that money that may have been used to buy guns and explosives to attack members of the community, including police officers, has been taken out of circulation." Antrim Crown Court was told that a claim by an individual to contest the forfeiture had been dropped. Money seized under the legislation is retained by the Treasury, with a portion of it also being allocated to the PSNI. Supt McEwan said: "Police can use this money for specific operations to combat crime and criminality and to keep people safe. "It cannot, for example, be used to buy police equipment." Foyle DUP MLA Gary Middleton said using the money to benefit the community in this way was a victory for justice. He said: "I am delighted that money intended to buy weapons to be used most likely to kill police officers will be used now to protect the whole community and combat crime. "These new powers have been tested and have shown they can work, which will send out a strong message to paramilitaries that the PSNI are going after them. "I hope this is the first of many similar successes for the police." The National Crime Agency (NCA) already seizes the assets of criminals and money deemed to have been earned from criminal activities. The NCA also looks at the bigger strategic picture across the UK, analysing how criminals are operating and how they can be disrupted. The organisation works closely with the PSNI. Barry McCarney, who beat a toddler to death in one of Northern Ireland's most horrific crimes, claims fellow child killer Robert Black confessed to him in prison before he died. Black, who was convicted of four child murders but suspected of many more, died in Maghaberry Prison aged 68 in January. He had never admitted to any of his crimes in court. During his time behind bars he befriended Barry McCarney, who is serving a 25-year jail sentence for the murder of 15-month-old toddler Millie Martin in 2009. And it has now emerged the sadistic thug told prison authorities that Robert Black had confided in him that he had killed many children. It is understood that detectives from England flew to Northern Ireland last week to question McCarney at length on his claims. Black, from Falkirk in Scotland, was a delivery driver who stalked the roads of the UK searching for victims. Expand Close Millie Martin / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Millie Martin He spent the final days before his death in jail playing poker with fellow paedophiles. He is understood to have been friends with Gerry Adams' child molester brother Liam Adams and convicted rapist and pensioner killer Trevor Hamilton. His reign of terror was ended in 1990 when he was caught red-handed by police with a barely alive six-year-old girl hooded, bound, gagged and stuffed in a sleeping bag in the back of his van in the Scottish village of Stow. He had sexually assaulted her moments earlier. Expand Close Liam Adams, who was convicted of the rape of his daughter Aine / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Liam Adams, who was convicted of the rape of his daughter Aine Once in custody, the predator was linked to a series of unsolved crimes in the previous decade. In 1994, Black was found guilty of three child murders in the 1980s - those of 11-year-old Susan Maxwell, from the Scottish Borders, five-year-old Caroline Hogg, from Edinburgh, and Sarah Harper, 10, from Morley, near Leeds - as well as a failed abduction bid in Nottingham in 1988. In 2011, he was found guilty of the 1981 murder of nine-year-old Jennifer Cardy, from Ballinderry, Co Antrim. Expand Close Jennifer Cardy was snatched as she cycled to a friends house in the Co Antrim village of Ballinderry in 1981 / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Jennifer Cardy was snatched as she cycled to a friends house in the Co Antrim village of Ballinderry in 1981 Black was also suspected of involvement in other killings and unexplained disappearances and had long been the prime suspect in the case of missing 13-year-old Genette Tate, who was last seen in a rural lane in Aylesbeare, Devon, in 1978. No trace of the newspaper delivery girl has ever been found. All that remained at the scene were her bike and scattered papers. Black died in non-suspicious circumstances in Maghaberry on January 12 and his body was cremated at the direction of prison authorities. His ashes were scattered at sea without ceremony. Lorna Moore was one of a number of young people from Walsall accused of being intent on travelling to the war zone in Syria A group of British Muslims who allegedly set out to bring up their children under the Islamic State in Syria are facing jail. Muslim convert Lorna Moore, 33, was accused of planning to take her three young children to the war zone - including an 11-month-old baby. Around the same time, a number of pregnant women from the same community were poised to give birth in the Caliphate. Following an Old Bailey trial, Moore, from Walsall, West Midlands, was found guilty of failing to tell authorities her husband Sajid Aslam, 34, was about to leave for Syria. The jury, which deliberated for more than 17 hours, also convicted Ayman Shaukat, 27, of preparing terrorist acts by helping Aslam and Muslim convert Alex Nash, 22, on their way. The pair will be sentenced on a date to be fixed alongside Nash and Kerry Thomason, 24, who was pregnant when she was stopped from flying out with her two children to join her husband in Syria. At the time of Aslam's departure in August 2014, Moore had taken the rest of the family on a Butlin's holiday in Skegness. The day after dropping him off at the airport, Shaukat sent a photograph of himself on his mobile phone posing with the IS flag, the court heard. As Aslam crossed into Syria, he sent a triumphant coded message back to Shaukat in the form of a video link to a song called I Made It by Cash Money Heroes. Within months, Moore had booked flights to Palma, Majorca, but the prosecution said her final destination was given away in a text from Nash's pregnant wife in Turkey saying "see you there". But giving evidence, Moore said she would "never" put her children's lives in danger, adding: "They mean the world to me." She insisted she had been planning to take them back to her family's farm in Omagh, Northern Ireland, after finishing her teacher training - a claim backed up by her mother. Her relationship with Aslam ended after he became abusive and they only lived together for the sake of the children who are now aged three, nine and 10, the court heard. She told jurors that when she turned to a Muslim cleric for a divorce, he told her that a "white Muslim is not a special Muslim" and she must take her husband back. She said Aslam should "grow a pair" and come back to Britain and explain himself "if he is innocent and got nothing to hide". Aslam's sister Sarwat told jurors her brother had been in touch with her during the course of the trial to say he wanted to "start a dialogue with police about coming home". Shaukat, of Pargeter Street, Walsall, denied helping his friends join IS by dropping Aslam and Nash off at airports. The convicted burglar and law degree graduate was nicknamed Karma Chameleon during the trial because he presented different versions of himself and his home in the Caldmore area in Walsall is known locally as Karma. He described IS as "evil" and said that he had told MI5 he would "assist in any way I could" after agents contacted him as treasurer of the community group Islam Walsall. The former Legal and General personal case manager had several meetings and phone calls with security services before their association "fizzled out", he said. Jurors were told about other members of the West Midlands group who allegedly set off for Syria between July and December 2014. The first to join IS was Muslim convert, Jake Petty, 25, also known as Abu Yaqoob Britany. His Christian minister mother Sue Boyce wept as she told jurors how she begged him not to go and later had to identify his body from video footage on social media after he was killed in December 2014. Petty was swiftly followed by former schoolmate Isaiah Siadatan, 24, whose pregnant wife Thomason was prevented from joining him. The court heard he had sent her an email in December 2014 insisting that she should bring their children to him in IS. Siadatan is believed to have been killed in the summer of 2015, although his death is unconfirmed. Thomason has previously pleaded guilty to assisting her husband in preparation of his terrorist acts. Nash and his pregnant wife Yousma Jan, 20, were arrested by Turkish authorities and sent back to the UK. He took sole responsibility for the plan and admitted preparing acts of terrorism, while a charge against Jan was discontinued. The jury was not told about more men and women from Walsall who are also believed to have gone to Syria. One of the men has since died in fighting, according to unconfirmed reports. The wife of another man is understood to have given birth to a child after becoming pregnant in Syria. Moore and Shaukat made no reaction as the guilty verdicts were delivered. Judge Charles Wide granted Moore conditional bail out of "concern" for her children but told her she should have "no expectations raised". Afterwards, West Midlands Police's Assistant Chief Constable Marcus Beale said the case showed that "whether you are a traveller and going to join" or you are someone who helps in organising, "that's just as criminal and just as dangerous". He said: "Isis (another term for IS) is a really dangerous organisation and the criminal courts will be interested in hearing those cases." He added: "Another important part of this case is where you have got people who have knowledge of travel and the intent when they get there who have not come forward, and that's committing a crime. "If they are helping Isis, then that's a danger to the UK." More than 8,300 patients across the UK could have been treated by the former healthcare worker. Five are from Northern Ireland, it has emerged Patients in Northern Ireland who may have been treated by an ex-healthcare worker who tested positive for hepatitis C have been urged to arrange a blood test after two infected patients were found. The worker did not return to clinical practice after testing positive in 2008, but NHS Lanarkshire is working with other health boards to notify people who may have had a surgical procedure carried out by the individual between 1982 and 2008. More than 8,300 patients across the UK could have been treated by the former healthcare worker. Five are from Northern Ireland, it has emerged. The individual worked in hospitals across Lanarkshire, mainly in Wishaw General Hospital and the former Law Hospital, and at the William Harvey Hospital in Kent for three months between January and April 2006. When the worker initially tested positive in 2008, the UK Advisory Panel said patients did not need to be warned as the risk was thought to be low. But two cases have now emerged. A patient referred for treatment for hepatitis C in Lanarkshire in 2015 previously had a surgical procedure carried out by the worker. Further investigations found it was "probable" the patient was infected with the virus during a surgical procedure carried out by the individual. Another similar case has now been found. In total, 8,383 patients across the UK are to receive letters urging them to arrange a blood test. The vast majority - 7,311 - are in Lanarkshire, with more than 700 in the rest of Scotland, 336 in England, a further 11 in Wales and five in Northern Ireland. NHS Lanarkshire said: "Patients are receiving a detailed question-and-answer sheet with their letter, which includes information about hepatitis C and how to arrange to be tested." Dr Iain Wallace, medical director at NHS Lanarkshire, added: "We would like to reassure people that the likelihood of patients acquiring the virus from a surgical procedure carried out by the healthcare worker is low. We know some people receiving the letter may be anxious about what this means. We have apologised to patients for any concern that may be caused by this situation. "We are committed to supporting patients and are ensuring they have every opportunity to get information about hepatitis C, the testing process and the situation in general. "We are also putting on additional clinics locally to make it as straightforward and convenient as possible for people to get tested." The virus infects the liver and can cause serious and potentially life-threatening damage. Around 215,000 people in the UK have hepatitis C, according to the NHS. It is usually spread through blood-to-blood contact and can be passed by sharing unsterilised needles, razors or toothbrushes. The NHS said it does not have any noticeable symptoms until the liver has been significantly damaged, meaning that people can have the infection without realising it. When symptoms do occur, they can be flu-like and cause tiredness and a loss of appetite. A caravan used by missionaries for prayer meetings has been destroyed in an arson attack. The and all that survived was a sign with a piece of scripture written on it. Evangelists Robert Little and Ronnie Killops had been using the caravan for the past few months for small prayer meetings during a mission along the border between Fermanagh and Monaghan. They had been in Dernawilt, Co Fermanagh before Christmas, but had moved to Newtownbutler, just a few miles away, in recent months. They had left the caravan and a portable mission hall at Dernawilt near the border until they needed it for their next mission. On Sunday afternoon, police told them that the caravan had been set alight in the early hours. All that remained was the sign, which read: "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." Mr Little said: "The caravan has been completely destroyed and it's amazing that this piece of scripture survived. It had been leaning up against the caravan, but miraculously it survived. "The verse is significant, as that gift of God is on offer to all but especially to the people who did this. It says that they can turn their back on sin and still have that gift of salvation." The group said they had had a very positive response in Dernawilt during their mission there before Christmas and they are now struggling to understand why they were targeted. Mr Little added: "We were very annoyed and hurt that this had happened. The nature of the Faith Mission is that we reach into quite rural areas. We want to reach both sections of the community and we're interdenominational. We want to share the Gospel with everyone. "We had a wonderful reception in that area and people took our literature and listened to us on their doorsteps, so we were very shocked to discover that the caravan had been attacked." Police are currently investigating the circumstances surrounding the fire, but have not yet established a motive. Mr Little said: "We don't want to point the finger at anyone. It could have just been some youths on their way home from a night out. It's impossible to know if we were targeted because of our work." Luckily, no one was harmed in the attack and there was only a small amount of damage to their portable hall. "We're just so glad that they didn't burn the mission hall itself. It's a wooden construction. The heat of the caravan blistered the front of the mission hall, but it didn't ignite it. "In days gone by, the caravan had been used by Faith Mission workers to sleep in, so we were thankful that there were no injuries or loss of life," Mr Little said. Despite the incident, the group will carry on their work in the area and they said they have been very encouraged by the support they have received, including from First Minister Arlene Foster. "It only makes us more determined to carry on our work", Mr Little said. "We have been inundated with messages of support from as far east as Ukraine and as far west as Canada. I also had a very encouraging message from our First Minister, Arlene Foster. It was very kind of her. We've also had offers of donations to buy another caravan and it just makes us more determined to carry on." Detectives have questioned a prisoner after he claimed child killer Robert Black confessed many of his crimes to him. Scottish-born Black, who was convicted of four child murders but suspected of many more, died in Maghaberry Prison in Northern Ireland in January. Barry McCarney, also a convicted child killer, apparently befriended Black inside the high- security jail near Lisburn, Co Antrim. In the wake of the 68-year-old serial paedophile's death, McCarney apparently told prison authorities that Black had confided in him that he had killed many children. In court, Black never admitted to any of the murders he was convicted of. It is understood that detectives from England flew to Northern Ireland last week to question McCarney at length on his claims. McCarney, 36, from Trillick, County Tyrone, is serving a minimum 25-year sentence for murdering Enniskillen toddler Millie Martin in 2009. Black, from Falkirk, was a delivery driver who stalked the roads of the UK searching for victims. His reign of terror was ended in 1990 when he was caught red-handed by police with a barely alive six-year-old girl hooded, bound, gagged and stuffed in a sleeping bag in the back of his van in the Scottish village of Stow. He had sexually assaulted her moments earlier. Once in custody, the predator was linked to a series of unsolved crimes in the previous decade. In 1994, Black was found guilty of three child murders in the 1980s - those of 11-year-old Susan Maxwell, from the Scottish Borders, five-year-old Caroline Hogg, from Edinburgh, and Sarah Harper, 10, from Morley, near Leeds - as well as a failed abduction bid in Nottingham in 1988. In 2011, he was found guilty of the 1981 murder of nine-year-old Jennifer Cardy, from Ballinderry, Co Antrim. Black was also suspected of involvement in other killings and unexplained disappearances and had long been the prime suspect in the case of missing 13-year-old Genette Tate, who was last seen in a rural lane in Aylesbeare, Devon, in 1978. No trace of the newspaper delivery girl has ever been found. All that remained at the scene were her bike and scattered papers. Black died in non-suspicious circumstances in Maghaberry on January 12 and his body was cremated at the direction of prison authorities. His ashes were scattered at sea without ceremony. A Tyrone pensioner whose husband was murdered by the IRA has made an emotive appeal to the Ministry of Defence (MoD) to restore her war widow's pension. Eileen Johnston's first husband, UDR Corporal David Graham, died at the hands of the IRA aged 38 in 1977. Mrs Johnston (73) and their three children received a war widow's pension for a number of years until she remarried, after which it was stopped. The Dungannon woman told the Belfast Telegraph she was made to feel as if she had done something wrong. Her plea came as English woman Susan Rimmer started a similar campaign. Mrs Rimmer's first husband, Private James Lee, of the 1st Battalion the Duke of Wellington's Regiment, was killed by a bomb in Northern Ireland in July 1972. Her war widow's pension was also cut off when she remarried. In 2014, war widows' pensions were restored to the spouses of RUC officers who were killed but who went on to remarry. Now, victims organisation Innocent Victims United has joined the Justice for War Widows campaign on behalf of UDR widows who were stripped of their pensions. Mrs Johnston said she felt the anomaly was wrong and should be immediately rectified. "My initial response to the issue of my widow's pension being withheld is that I never wanted to be a widow and it is not my fault that I lost my husband," she told the Belfast Telegraph. "The responsibility for that lies with the terrorists who shot and murdered my husband while he was working as a civilian in a factory in Coalisland. "Corporal David Graham was shot by the IRA in Mastock factory in Coalisland on March 15, 1977. He lived for 10 days and died of his injuries . "It is unfair to allow some widows to retain their war widows' pension after they remarried, while at the same time not allowing some others to keep theirs. This is wrong and adds to the injustice many widows and their families feel about a lack of justice which surrounds their murder, especially those who served with the UDR in Northern Ireland. "I feel like I have done something wrong. My husband served the community to help protect everyone, and I feel that this pension issue is also a lack of respect towards him and his children, Derek, Serena and Alan, who continue to suffer from the horror of David's murder almost 39 years on. "The murder of David Graham was wrong and this war widows' pension anomaly is also wrong. I reluctantly have to say this is a shame on the MoD, and it is a mystery how or why they think a difference should be made among war widows." Innocent Victims United spokesman Kenny Donaldson said that the group knew of a number of UDR widows in Northern Ireland who have similarly lost their pensions. "We are aware of a number of cases where the wives of UDR soldiers murdered in Northern Ireland have fallen foul of existing MoD rules, which state that any war widow who remarried between 1973 and 2005 cannot claim the war widows' pension that is rightfully theirs, but those who remarried before or after these arbitrary dates can," Mr Donaldson said. "Those women who remarried between 1973 and 2005 are effectively being treated as pariahs. "There is no right or wrong, and it is important to understand that for those who do remarry, that does not change the heartache that they suffered in losing a husband, who they will continue to grieve for, whether they are remarried or not". Mr Donaldson also called for the law to be changed, criticising it as "unjust". The MoD was contacted for a response to this article. Robert Black's police interviews were the most chilling and disturbing pieces of evidence I have ever heard in a criminal court. Several members of the jury became visibly distressed as they listened to this evil serial child killer admit how he fantasised about abducting and sexually abusing young girls. Black's graphic accounts of his sexual interest in young girls were given to detectives during three days of intensive interviews in 2005, as they investigated the murder of Ballinderry schoolgirl Jennifer Cardy. Excerpts of those interviews were played to the jury at Armagh courthouse in October 2011 during Black's trial for nine-year-old Jennifer's murder. The interviews played a crucial element in the successful prosecution and conviction of the killer rapist. It was a female detective who finally made him crack during the interviews. Detective Constable Pamela Simpson, who has since retired from the force, outsmarted the notorious paedophile after he refused to engage with her male colleagues. Ms Simpson's interview techniques got Black to open up and he freely described his sick "fantasies." "I'd be driving along and see a young girl. "I'd get out and try to persuade her to get into the van and take her somewhere quiet," he told her. Police believed this "fantasy" was a veiled confession to the murder of Jennifer. In another chilling revelation, he recalled how a young girl once appeared close to his van. She was crying and had lost her mother. Black told the police how there was no-one around and it would have been "easy" for him to have bundled the little girl into his van, but that instead he took her by the hand and walked her back to her mother. Listening to these interviews took its toll on some jury members, who left the courtroom quietly weeping after the evidence had been heard. A total of 175,000 has been invested to help set up a new mental trauma service for Northern Ireland. Help provided by voluntary and community organisations will be integrated with more intensive measures from professionals under the auspices of a new regional specialist service, Health Minister Simon Hamilton said. Mr Hamilton made the announcement at the opening of a mental health summit hosted by Action Mental Health. He said: "To assist in getting our new mental trauma service off the ground, I can confirm that I have invested 175,000 of funding for early set-up costs. "I envisage that the service will allow for a range of interventions, meeting the spectrum of need across our community. "It will involve leading-edge, evidence-based treatments in line with Nice guidelines, with a focus on recovery of the individual. "Mental health is an absolute priority for my department, and the publication of Action Mental Health's evaluation report in October acknowledges that there has been progress in improving mental health provision. However, we still face significant challenges." Tony Blair's former head of communications Alastair Campbell is due to tell the conference that Northern Ireland has been let down by failure to tackle the mental trauma of the Troubles. The rate of illness is a quarter higher following decades of violence but the level of investment a quarter lower than in other parts of the UK, he will add. A quarter of adults will suffer from a mental problem at some stage in their lives, figures have previously suggested. Some of the pages in the graphic novel commemorating the life of IRA man Bobby Sands, who died on hunger strike in 1981 Some of the pages in the graphic novel commemorating the life of IRA man Bobby Sands, who died on hunger strike in 1981 The front cover of the comic Some of the pages in the graphic novel commemorating the life of IRA man Bobby Sands, who died on hunger strike in 1981 Some of the pages in the graphic novel commemorating the life of IRA man Bobby Sands, who died on hunger strike in 1981 Some of the pages in the graphic novel commemorating the life of IRA man Bobby Sands, who died on hunger strike in 1981 Some of the pages in the graphic novel commemorating the life of IRA man Bobby Sands, who died on hunger strike in 1981 A row has erupted over an "astounding" comic book biography of IRA hunger striker Bobby Sands funded by the National Lottery through the Arts Council of Northern Ireland. Authored by 80-year-old Gerry Hunt and published by O'Brien Press in Dublin, the graphic novel is called Bobby Sands: Freedom Fighter, and is set in 1981, the year in which Sands and nine other republican prisoners starved themselves to death in the Maze Prison. Unionists slammed the book as "republican propaganda" and questioned the use of what they deemed public money in its publication. The Arts Council stressed it had no part in the projects publishers spend their funding on. Mr Hunt writes in the comic: "At the time this book is set, Catholics were second-class citizens with no influence in government, the police force was sectarian and Protestants dominated the Civil Service. "The property franchise (which meant that only those who owned property could vote) rather than 'one man, one vote' weighted representation heavily in favour of the Protestant community, leaving unionists in control of all but two major councils and a disproportionate share of housing, employment benefits and school funding. "The famous shipbuilders Harland and Wolff employed virtually no Catholics." In fact, the one person, one vote system came into being a decade earlier. The book, which costs 16.99, left Stormont culture, arts and leisure committee chairman Nelson McCausland shocked that public money should have been spent in supporting such a publication. Mr McCausland said last night: "I'm astounded that the Arts Council and the Lottery should support such a book. Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Previous Next Close Bobby Sands' son Robert Gerald holds his mother's hand at the funeral of his father Bobby in west Belfast flanked by Masked IRA men. Picture by Martin Wright Hunger striker Bobby Sands' coffin, flanked by an IRA colour party, leaving his mother's home in Twinbrook. Tomboy Loudon, Gerry Roche, Denis Donaldson and Bobby Sands pictured in the Long Kesh prison, Northern Ireland. Hunger strike protesters outside the Dail in Dublin 1981 Brian Farrell/Photocall Ireland! Hunger strike marchers blocked by gardai as they approach the British Embassy in Dublin Eamonn Farrell/Photocall Ireland PACEMAKER BELFAST Rioting in west Belfast on the day hunger striker Bobby Sands died in 1981 A man walks past the Bobby Sands mural, in the Falls road area of Belfast Masked gunmen fire a volley of shots beside hunger striker Bobby Sands coffin, at Milltown Cemetery. Deceased hunger striker Bobby Sands (seated fourth from left). The Star of the Sea football team. Hunger striker Bobby Sands funeral procession making its way down Stewartstown Road on Route to Milltown cemetery Several unionist politicians have called for Maze cells which housed hunger strikers to be flattened PA Archive/Press Association Images Bobby Sands funeral Jonathan Porter/Presseye.com - Press Eye Ltd -Northern Ireland - 1st March 2011. Launch of the Hunger Strike 30th Anniversary Exhibition in the Linen Hall Library, Belfast. Ten republican prisoners died during the 1981 protest inside the Maze Prison. A letter written by Bobby Sands on cigarette paper which was smuggled out of the prison pictured at the exhibition. Michael Fassbender stars in Hunger, the film about the last six weeks in the life of Bobby Sands Kieran Doherty died in the Maze prison in 1981 after being on a hunger strike Former taoiseach Garret FitzGerald pleaded with Ronald Reagan to pile pressure on Margaret Thatcher over the hunger strikes / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Bobby Sands' son Robert Gerald holds his mother's hand at the funeral of his father Bobby in west Belfast flanked by Masked IRA men. Picture by Martin Wright "This is simply Irish republican propaganda. "The story is told in a way that endorses a Sinn Fein/IRA narrative, portraying Sands as a hero rather than the terrorist he was. "Such propaganda, which turns a terrorist into a hero and an icon, can poison young minds and point another generation towards the republican tradition of terrorist violence." The DUP MLA said that, in his view, support for the book was a misuse of public money. "At a time when the arts budget in Northern Ireland is under pressure, it seems that the Arts Council can still find money to fund such a propagandist book." The former Culture Minister also indicated that he would be putting the issue on the agenda of Stormont committee for tomorrow. He said he would be seeking an explanation of how the graphic novel came to receive Lottery and Arts Council support. "This is money that would other wise be going to mainstream arts organisations, spent on something positive rather than negative," he added. TUV leader Jim Allister was also scornful of the book. "Clearly, the Arts Council and the Lottery need to explain their waste of public money on such a wholly partisan and pathetic publication," he said. "Above all, it is unbridled republican propaganda, which no public body should support. "As for its supposed artistic content, it is pitiful, making the Arts Council's support even more inexplicable." An Arts Council spokeswoman said last night: "The Arts Council supports publishers of work by Northern Ireland writers and writing of cultural value to Northern Ireland. "O'Brien Press is one of the most significant publishers in Ireland, north and south, and the Arts Council has provided funding for two titles published by O'Brien Press. "The Arts Council does not interfere with the publishing choices of its funded publishers and supports their artistic freedom to publish titles of their choice." She was unable to say how much support the publishers received from the Arts Council. Ulster Unionist Trevor Wilson also expressed discomfort at the level of spending on Irish Mid Ulster Council has been given a tongue-lashing by outraged unionists for spending 80,000 on promoting the Irish language - despite it being only the sixth most commonly spoken in the area. Not a single penny was spent on any other language as part of a funding scheme despite Lithuanian, Polish, Portuguese and Slovak being more widely spoken locally. With 406 people in the council area speaking Irish as their first language, the 80,000 equated to 200 spent per Irish speaker. It is understood consultation is now under way about investing in the promotion of Ulster-Scots. Mid Ulster Council defended the expenditure, claiming it had a responsibility under a European charter to promote Irish. But DUP councillor Wilbert Buchanan blasted it as a waste of cash at a time when the council was trying to save money. He said 40% of the local population was unionist and an even higher percentage had no interest in the Irish language. "The council ran a consultation which found 50% of respondents don't really want Irish at all," he added. According to the 2011 Census, Irish is the sixth most commonly spoken first language in Mid Ulster. Most residents (124,496) speak English, followed by 2,033 with Lithuanian, 2,004 with Polish, 903 with Portuguese, 475 with Slovak and 406 with Irish. Mr Buchanan sat on the former Cookstown Council before being elected to Mid Ulster Council, which took over responsibility for the area last year. He said he had noticed a push towards promoting Irish language and culture since the new council took over. Ulster Unionist Trevor Wilson also expressed discomfort at the level of spending on Irish. "It is extremely disappointing," he added. "Nobody should be afraid of a language, but there has got to be some sort of equality and fairness right across the council area. Languages should not be used for political ends." Mid Ulster Council opened a regional and minority languages bursary scheme last April, attracting 200 applications. A total of 159 obtained funding totalling almost 23,500 to attend summer Gaeltacht courses in 2015. A further 25 community groups received Irish language activity funding of 15,995 last November to run classes and heritage talks. Another 5,000 was contributed to events to celebrate the Irish language, and the council worked with Ulster University to provide Irish Language diplomas in Cookstown. Further projects to be delivered this year include one for schools costing 18,000 and the Gaelfest festival in March at a cost of around 15,000. A council spokesperson said: "We have a specific responsibility under the European Charter to promote and develop Irish and Ulster-Scots, and the bursary scheme was open to applications in all regional and minority languages, not just those who speak Irish. "Beyond particular funding schemes, the council does also actively support those who speak lamguages other than English through our community development and good relations programmes." Northern Ireland has higher records of poor mental health than Israel or Lebanon, the Ulster Unionist Party has warned. Sufferers face "fundamental challenges" in receiving "the right type of care" because services have not kept pace with increased numbers suffering mental ill-health and related disorders, a new party document argued. It called on the Government to release half of the 150 million ring-fenced for dealing with the legacy from the Troubles to tackle mental health issues - 75m over five years. Next year will mark a decade since the Bamford review of mental health services demanded widespread changes, including new legislation to protect people unable to make decisions for themselves. The review was conducted by a team led by Professor David Bamford of Ulster University. In the first of a series of detailed policy papers planned for the run-up to the Assembly election, the party said mental health was a key priority. Party leader Mike Nesbitt said his interest in the issue goes back more than 20 years to when his wife Lynda Bryans suffered from clinical depression. "It gave me an insight into how debilitating mental health problems can be for the individual and how it impacts on the wider family, friends and colleagues," he said. "It also convinced me that people with mental health issues deserve to have their dignity respected in the same way as people enduring physical issues." He said his period as one of the former four Commissioners for Victims and Survivors "made clear to me how deep-rooted mental health issues are in Northern Ireland". It's estimated 28.5% of the population is suffering from mental health issues. "Per capita, we have one of the worst records of poor mental health and wellbeing in the world - not just higher rates than England, Scotland and Wales, but also Israel and Lebanon," he said. "It is a moot question whether Syria will now assume the unenviable position of the world's worst." The party pledged delivery of the Bamford report on tackling mental health issues, primarily for the Department of Health, but across all Executive ministries. This would include a shift from hospitals to community-based services and the development of specialist services for children and young people, older people, addicts and those in the criminal justice system. The party said the pace of implementing the Bamford report had been too slow, and uncertainty over funding of mental health meant "there has been no strategic planning of services". Jeremy Clarkson was involved in a bust-up with Oisin Tymon at a hotel in North Yorkshire Jeremy Clarkson has issued a formal apology to the Irish Top Gear producer he punched in a deal to settle a racial discrimination and personal injury claim against him. Oisin Tymon launched the action against Clarkson and the BBC after the presenter gave him a bloody lip in a bust-up last March. Clarkson reportedly flew into a rage after being told he could not order steak after a day of filming, calling Mr Tymon a "lazy, Irish c***" during the fracas at a North Yorkshire hotel. In an apology issued through Mr Tymon's law firm, Slater and Gordon Lawyers, Clarkson said: "I would like to say sorry, once again, to Oisin Tymon for the incident and its regrettable aftermath. "I want to reiterate that none of this was in any way his fault. "I would also like to make it clear that the abuse he has suffered since the incident is unwarranted and I am sorry too that he has had to go through that. "I am pleased that this matter is now resolved. Oisin was always a creatively exciting part of Top Gear and I wish him every success with his future projects." No details of the settlement were given, but it is understood to be more than 100,000. Clarkson and the BBC both contributed. The settlement means there will not be an employment tribunal hearing, which could have heaped further embarrassment on the popular presenter. The BBC sacked Clarkson, 55, from Top Gear following the bust-up, prompting his co-presenters James May and Richard Hammond to quit the show. Clarkson had reportedly tried to apologise to Mr Tymon in the past and last June he tweeted that he was "so sad and sorry it's ended like this" after his last Top Gear show with Hammond and May was screened. Mr Tymon's lawyer, Paul Daniels, said: "The action involving Mr Tymon has been concluded. Oisin is keen to put the matter behind him now that it has been brought to a close. "Oisin greatly appreciates all of the support he has received, including from the BBC. He remains focused on the creative work he loves at the BBC." A BBC spokesman said: " Oisin is a valued member of the BBC who behaved with huge integrity in dealing with the very difficult circumstances last year - a situation in which, as (BBC director-general) Tony Hall has stated, he was completely blameless. "We are pleased that matters have now been resolved. Oisin has made an important contribution to the BBC in his 12 years with us and we hope to see him continue to realise his potential in his role as a development executive. "We believe Oisin has a very exciting future at the BBC." Clarkson, May and Hammond have signed up to launch a rival show on Amazon's TV service, while Chris Evans is filming a new series of the BBC's Top Gear show with fellow presenters including Matt LeBlanc and Eddie Jordan. Thousands of people could be missing out on 'their most basic civic right' to vote, the study found Hundreds of thousands of people are at risk of missing out on a vote in the EU referendum and crucial elections after being erased from registers, campaigners warned. Official statistics showed almost 600,000 fewer names on December's registers compared with a year ago - with some of the most dramatic declines among young people and in more deprived areas. It is the first such assessment since the full introduction of individual voter registration (IVR) in a bid to clamp down on electoral fraud by scrapping the system where "heads" of households submitted all the names. Critics blamed the Government's decision to accelerate the change by 12 months for leaving huge numbers of people in limbo with important votes just four months away. And Labour and the Liberal Democrats accused ministers of deliberate attempts to skew the political battleground in their favour as the latest Office for National Statistics Data will underpin changes to Commons constituency boundaries. The ONS said there were 44,934,029 people on local government election registers and 43,478,635 on parliamentary registers, down around 1.3% on the last annual UK figure. A separate study by the Electoral Commission found that 770,000 names were removed from the register in December when the transition period to IVR ended, a year earlier than originally planned. The watchdog - which cautioned the Government against speeding through the switch - said it could not say how many of those were legitimate entries - as opposed to people who had moved house or otherwise changed circumstances. But it said it was "likely" people were missing out and noted that a pre-deadline push by returning officers to sort out 1.9 million remaining anomalies had resulted in nearly a quarter (24%) registering under the new system. The Commission also found a 40% drop in the number of registered "attainers" - teenagers set to reach voting age during the year - suggesting they were missing out now that it was not down to parents to include them. It is urging town halls to engage in a further push by writing to all those potentially at risk and said it was engaged in a concerted effort to ensure registers were up to date and accurate by June. Electoral Reform chief executive Katie Ghose said the slump "shows the danger" of the speeded-up process and called for an awareness drive and a "registration revolution" including the ability to sign up on polling day itself. "With elections all over the country in just three months, far too many people are now in danger of missing out on their most basic civic right," she said. "Any fall at this early stage of transition from household registration to IER is worrying, particularly if it begins to become a trend as the new system takes hold. "The constituencies which saw the biggest drop are largely student seats and deprived areas - groups which are already under-represented. The areas with the biggest rise are largely wealthier areas. "This patchy picture means electoral registration - and the number of parliamentary seats representing each area - is getting more unequal by the year." "We can't have a democratic system based on a registration postcode lottery. And whatever the size of the fall, this evidence of growing social and age divides in our democracy could be hugely damaging if it carries on in the long run." Shadow minister for young people Gloria De Piero said: "What's worse is that the Government are shamelessly taking this as an opportunity to redraw constituency boundaries based on an electorate that is far lower than it should be. "This is another example of David Cameron and the Conservative Party trying to rig the system for their own political ends. "They want to reduce by fifty the number of directly elected Members of Parliament under the guise of reducing the cost of politics, whilst cramming the Lords at taxpayers' expense." Liberal Democrat spokesman Tom Brake said: "There were already millions of people who were not on the register before this move - this has just made that problem worse. Individual Electoral Registration is a system worth moving to, but it shouldn't have been rushed and the Government should have followed Electoral Commission advice. "It is another example of the Tories trying to stitch up the system in their favour." John Penrose, Minister for Constitutional Reform, said: "Councils have only removed 'ghost' electors - people who have moved, died or never existed in the first place - so keeping them on the register when we know they shouldn't be there, and then sending them all poll cards on election day, would be wrong, expensive and increase the risk of fraud." Sally Adey was killed in a terror attack in Tunisia (Metropolitan Police/PA) An inquest into the death of a British tourist killed in a terror attack in Tunisia is due to resume today. Mother-of-two Sally Adey, of Caynton, near Shifnal, Shropshire, died in the shooting at the Bardo National Museum in Tunis on March 18 2015. She had been on a Mediterranean cruise with her husband Robert, who survived the attack. The opening of the inquest last March heard Mrs Adey, 57, died of gunshot wounds to her abdomen and pelvis. Coroner's officer Julie Hartridge said retired solicitor Mrs Adey and her husband had "disembarked from the MSC Splendida in Tunis on March 18" before going to the museum. "It is reported the museum came under fire from gunmen and she received fatal gunshot wounds," she added. Ms Hartridge said a post-mortem examination carried out in the UK by a Home Office pathologist on March 25 last year had established the provisional cause of death as "consistent with gunshot wounds to the abdomen and pelvis". The inquest is due to resume this morning at Shropshire Coroners Court in Shrewsbury. More than 20 people were killed in the attack, including 17 cruise ship tourists, with Mrs Adey among them. Islamic State later claimed responsibility for the attack. The BBC's 'scale and scope' should not be squeezed as part of the renewal of its charter The BBC's "scale and scope" should not be squeezed as part of the renewal of its charter, the House of Lords Communications Committee has warned. Peers said they had heard "no compelling evidence" that it should further restrict its output - though they backed calls for it to face a tougher regulatory regime. Showbiz stars have warned the public service broadcaster risks being "diminished" under political pressure - with ministers due to publish a White Paper on its future before the summer. The committee criticised as "inappropriate" a controversial licence fee deal which saw the BBC accept responsibility for the cost of providing free licences for the over-75s, which critics portrayed as a backdoor welfare cut. It endorsed the idea of replacing the BBC Trust with a beefed-up independent regulator, potentially part of Ofcom, which would be able to recommend a licence fee to the Culture Secretary, who would retain the final decision. And it said more needed to be done to ensure output reflected the whole population - suggesting young people, ethnic minorities and those with disabilities felt particularly unrepresented. But it rejected suggestions that the broadcaster should pull back from making programmes to rival those of commercial channels or otherwise reduce its output and warned against any reduction in spending on news and current affairs. Chairman Lord Best, said: "The BBC is, indeed, a national treasure. It is the envy of countries all over the world. "We received no compelling evidence for a reduction in the BBC's scale and scope. "Rather, the Committee sees merit in the universality of the BBC, underlining its special role of reflecting and bringing together the nations, regions and diverse communities of the UK." "However, while we are not advocating radical change to the BBC, we do see benefit in its independent regulator, whoever that may be, holding the BBC to account through a clearer, simplified framework." The report said the BBC "remains, in global terms, a comparatively small player" and "should not be restricted to providing content which the commercial market does not provide". Welcoming increased spending on children's programmes "at a time when other providers have significantly cut back", it concluded: "Although we recognise the case for additional resources for content made for children in the UK, we see no merit in redistributing funds from the BBC to the rest of the industry to provide this." While the BBC's original stated purpose "to inform, educate and entertain" remained as valid today, the committee suggested a further mission "to reflect" should be added. "We expect the BBC to make a particular commitment to reflecting the different opinions, lifestyles, beliefs and values of the nations, regions and diverse communities of the UK," it said. "We heard from a number of witnesses who felt that the BBC did not reflect their lives, particularly the panel of young people, those with a disability and those within the BAME community. "We note that the BBC has recognised this and we expect to see a marked improvement here." The committee also put its weight behind calls for the duration of the next charter to be stretched to 11 years to try to reduce political pressure by ensuring the process did not coincide with general election cycles. A BBC spokesman said: "The Lords' report is an important, thorough and considered contribution to the debate about the future of the BBC. "We welcome the growing political consensus on the need for a longer charter to take debates about the BBC out of the election cycle. "The report also makes clear that there is no need for contestable funding or further top slicing of the BBC's funding for other purposes. "We also note that the committee believes that the BBC should be deregulated - we endorse this, as it will put creativity first and will always enable the BBC to make its own decisions about programming, rather than those decisions potentially being prescribed from Whitehall. "In particular, we welcome the recognition that the BBC is a small player globally and their backing for the broad remit of the BBC with no need for reductions in the BBC's scale or scope." A BBC Trust spokesman said: "We welcome the committee's support for a clear and transparent process to set the licence fee, including proper public consultation and a role for an independent regulator in recommending the right level to the Government." The families of three people still missing after part of a power station collapsed have visited the disaster scene as emergency crews admitted it was "highly unlikely" they are still alive. A man named locally as Mick Collings died when a concrete and steel building at the derelict Didcot A site in south Oxfordshire came down on Tuesday afternoon while it was being prepared for demolition. Five other people were taken to hospital, with all but one expected to be discharged by the end of the day. Thames Valley Police said relatives of those missing had visited the power station site and discussed the search operation with the fire service. The military has also been brought in to aid the search. Dave Etheridge, Oxfordshire Fire and Rescue Service chief fire officer, said the families of the missing were "obviously distraught". He said: "We have explained to them we have not picked up any signs of life, but we are doing everything we can to locate their loved ones. "It is highly unlikely they are alive." He said the operation "may take several days, possibly several weeks". "We remain committed and determined to return the missing people to their families, and work continues overnight," he added. Police have yet to identify the deceased, although members of the Teesriders Motorcycle Club identified him as Mr Collings - also known as Whitby Mick. There was no answer at Mr Collings's home in Brotton. It is understood family members have travelled down to Oxfordshire to identify his body. Friends described him as "a big lad with a massive heart" and an "inspiration". The red-brick semi-detached home, with a tidy front garden, is adjoined by a wooden garage with a sign saying "Mick's Man Cave" above the door. A tribute on the Teesriders Motorcycle club's Facebook page read: "Words can not describe how gutted I am to be writing this. "The accident that happened at Didcot power station yesterday has killed a good friend and dedicated member of Teesriders Mcc. All our thoughts go out to Lynn and all the family at this very sad time RIP Mick." The building was due to be demolished when it collapsed and the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has been investigating on-site. It has emerged that the firm behind the demolition, Coleman and Company, had never done a job involving a power station. In a corporate video posted on YouTube, project director Kieran Conaty said: "The client was made aware that this was our first power station - we'd never done anything like this. "But we're that type of a company that we learn to adapt." The rescue operation has involved the use of sniffer dogs, listening devices and drones and emergency services were considering deploying remote control probes to access the dangerous parts of the site. Didcot A opened in 1970 as a coal-fired power station and was later converted so it could also generate power from natural gas. It ceased generation in March 2013 and hundreds gathered to watch when three of its enormous cooling towers were blown up in July 2014 after dominating the town's skyline for more than four decades. The incident comes 16 months after a major fire struck a cooling tower at Didcot B in October 2014. Keith Anderson said while it was a "matter for the British people", the UK is better off being part of the EU The head of Big Six giant Scottish Power became the latest energy boss to back Britain staying in the EU to help secure crucial gas supplies. Keith Anderson, chief corporate officer of Spanish-owned Scottish Power , said while it was a " matter for the British people", the UK is better off being part of the EU. He said: "We are encouraged by and support the strong position the Prime Minister is putting to the people of Britain. "From tackling emissions to strengthening security of supply, the UK benefits from being part of a greater European market." His comments came as Scottish Power, which is owned by Spain's Iberdrola, reported an 8% drop in earnings from its retail and generation business in the UK, to 421 million euro (332 million) in 2015. The chief executive of British Gas owner Centrica last week warned Britain should stay in Europe to help keep energy bills down. Iain Conn said Britain would have more influence on energy policy if it remained within the European Union. Britain imports half of its natural gas from Norway and the EU - a trend that is expected to increase over the coming years. Annual results for Scottish Power showed the group's generation and supply business was hit by lower energy prices, higher taxes for generation emissions and the cost of a new customer service system. Iberdrola also took a 235 million write-down on its soon-to-close Longannet Power Station. Scottish Power recently announced a 5.4% gas tariff cut from March 15 as part of a round of reductions across the industry in response to falling wholesale gas prices. But firms have been criticised for not cutting faster and further, while consumer groups have also called for electricity prices to be reduced. Scottish Power held its customer base firm, with 5.5 million gas and electricity accounts in 2015, flat on a year earlier. Earnings overall for Scottish Power rose 11% to 1.14 billion euro (900 million) thanks to a better performance from its renewable arm, where earnings jumped by 65%, helped by a full year of production at West of Duddon Sands offshore wind farm. Results for parent company Iberdrola showed a 4.9% rise in earnings to 7.3 billion euro (5.8 billion) last year. It also set out a 24 billion euro (18.9 billion) five-year investment plan, of which 8.4 billion euro (6.3 billion) has been earmarked for the UK. Part of the cash will go towards the East Anglia ONE project - set to be the world's biggest offshore wind farm. Iberdrola recently gave the final green light to invest 2.5 billion in the wind farm off the Suffolk coast, with construction due to start in 2017 and the first turbines installed by 2019. Officers say the boy may be in the company of a woman seen in the area Two women have been arrested on suspicion of child abduction after a baby boy went missing from his home in Telford. A massive police search was launched after the nine-week-old was reported missing from a property in Manor Road, Arleston, shortly before 3pm. He has since been found safe and well and taken to hospital to be checked over, West Mercia Police said. A force spokesman said: "We are pleased to confirm that the missing baby boy has been found. He is currently being checked over by hospital staff and will be reunited with his family shortly. "Two local women have been arrested on suspicion of child abduction and are currently in police custody." Residents in Manor Road claimed the mother of the baby may have been tricked into leaving the infant with a woman who called at her home. One woman, who declined to be named, said the mother returned shortly afterwards and found her baby had gone. The resident said: "It was about 10 minutes to three and the police were here very quickly. They have done a great job and I'm so relieved they have found the baby." Another resident in the cul-de-sac, Val Harris, 75, said: "It's a nice community and it has come as a shock. "But at the end of the day I'm just happy they have got the baby back." Sapheena Sultan, who also lives in the street, said: "Being a parent myself I know what pain the parents must have been going through, but the main thing is he is safe." Amnesty said concerns have been raised that the Bill does not contain adequate human rights Britain is setting a "dangerous precedent" to the world by "undermining" human rights, Amnesty International has claimed. The organisation criticised plans to scrap the Human Rights Act, the UK's absence from EU refugee resettlement schemes and proposed new spying laws. Amnesty International UK director Kate Allen said: "The UK is setting a dangerous precedent to the world on human rights. "There's no doubt that the downgrading of human rights by this government is a gift to dictators the world over and fatally undermines our ability to call on other countries to uphold rights and laws." Ministers are planning to replace the Human Rights Act 1998, which was brought in by Labour, with a British Bill of Rights. The draft Investigatory Powers Bill unveiled last year is an attempt to bring surveillance tactics used by police and intelligence agencies under one legal umbrella. Non-governmental organisations have raised concerns that the Bill does not contain adequate human rights, Amnesty said. Its annual report on the state of the world's human rights also referred to "continued opposition" to participating in EU efforts to "share responsibility for the increasing number of refugees arriving in Europe". The Government last year opted out of plans to relocate 160,000 people from Italy, Hungary and Greece amid the international migration crisis. Britain has committed to taking in 20,000 Syrian refugees from camps bordering the country and allocated more than 1 billion in aid. Amnesty's report cited concerns raised last year about repealing the Human Rights Act. Referring to the plans, Justice Minister Dominic Raab said: "It is irresponsible for any campaign group to criticise our proposals before they've seen them. "Amnesty have already been told our plans involve the UK remaining in the European Convention, so this scaremongering undermines their own credibility." A Government spokeswoman said it is "absolutely committed" to " promoting and protecting universal human rights". She added: "The Foreign and Commonwealth Office's departmental report is clear that human rights, democratic values and strengthening the rules-based international system are vital and integral parts of the FCO's work. "The FCO has also doubled funding for global human rights and democracy projects to its highest ever level of 10.6 million." "Far from undermining human rights, the Investigatory Powers Bill will promote freedoms and rights by protecting both the privacy and security of the public while ensuring world-leading oversight and safeguards. "A comprehensive solution is needed to deal with the causes of the migrant crisis, not just its consequences. "This is why the UK has prioritised humanitarian aid to people in the region and has contributed 1.12 billion to the Syrian crisis - the largest ever UK response to a humanitarian crisis. Britain is also committed to taking in 20,000 of the most vulnerable Syrian refugees." Austrian foreign minister Sebastian Kurz, right, and Austrian interior minister Johanna Mikl-Leitner, centre, welcome Slovenia's foreign minister Karl Viktor Erjavec, left, before the start of the western Balkans conference in Vienna (AP) Overwhelmed by a wave of refugees and what they call indecision in the European Union, Austria and its southern neighbours along the Balkan migrant route agreed Wednesday to tighter border controls - and warned that sooner or later they will have to shut their doors entirely. Playing off warnings that the restrictions will lead to disastrous accumulations of refugees on borders along the route, Austrian interior minister Johanna Mikl-Leitner called for "a chain reaction of reason". "We need measures that lead to a domino effect. We must reduce the flow of migrants now," she said. "Because the refugee question can become a question of survival for the European Union." Interior and foreign ministers from EU members Austria, Slovenia, Croatia and Bulgaria, as well as Albania, Bosnia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia met Wednesday in Vienna and issued a declaration that struck the same tone. It cited "limited resources and reception capacities, potential consequences for internal security and social cohesion as well as challenges with regard to integration". "It is not possible to process unlimited numbers of migrants and applicants for asylum," it said, suggesting that a full stop in the future was inevitable. Greece, the first point of landing for most of the migrants arriving by boat from Turkey, was not invited to the meeting and responded angrily by threatening to block decisions at a forthcoming EU migration summit if sharing of the refugee burden is not made obligatory for member states. Prime minister Alexis Tsipras said that from now on Greece "will not assent to agreements" unless all its partners in the EU are forced to participate proportionately in the relocation and resettlement of refugees. A senior government official said that Mr Tsipras was specifically referring to the March 7 summit on immigration. Mr Tsipras lashed out at EU member states that "not only erect fences on their borders but at the same time do not accept to take in a single refugee". Austria has recently capped the number of asylum-seekers it will accept daily at its borders to 80, and limited the number of refugees it will let pass through the country. That has led to more border restrictions being introduced further south, hurting countries along the route, including Greece, which has seen 102,000 migrants reach its shores so far this year. In central Athens, several hundred Afghan migrants, who have been barred from crossing the border into Macedonia, camped out in an inner city square, lying on blankets or pieces of cardboard. "I got here yesterday, but we haven't tried to go to the border," said Aman Golestani, a 22-year-old psychology student. "I don't know what I'll do now. We just hope the border will open." Golestani, wearing a tracksuit top of the German football club Bayern Munich, said he was afraid to return home. "The Taliban are killing people like us, young people who are trying to get an education." The referendum result means Evo Morales cannot run for a fourth consecutive presidential term in 2019 Voters in Bolivia have narrowly rejected a constitutional amendment that would have allowed President Evo Morales to run for a fourth consecutive term in 2019. It is the first direct electoral defeat for the leftist coca grower union leader since he first won the presidency in 2005. The government's election website said the vote was 51-49% against the ballot question, with 99.5% of the ballots counted, a margin of just over 150,000 votes, the Supreme Electoral Tribunal announced. The outcome of the referendum also bars vice president Alvaro Garcia from running again. Mr Morales, Bolivia's first indigenous president, helped lift millions out of poverty by more equitably distributing natural gas revenues, spurring the creation of an indigenous middle class. But his governing Movement Toward Socialism party has been buffeted by scandal and the vote closely followed a revelation that Mr Morales may have been personally involved in influence-peddling. "Evo's traditional opposition among the affluent and middle class was joined by a wide swathe of voters who have long been a part of his political support," said Jim Shultz, executive director of the left-leaning Democracy Centre political advocacy group. "Their turnaround isn't about moving rightward", but rather a rejection of corruption that reflects a belief "that 20 years is too long for one person to be president", he added. Until the ballot, he had won nationwide elections, including a 2009 rewrite of the constitution, with an average 61.5% of the vote The referendum's margin of defeat coincided almost exactly with two unofficial "quick count" samples announced by polling firms. The results showed allegations of vote fraud by some members of the opposition to be unfounded, said Jose Luis Exeni, a member of the electoral tribunal. The vote count had been unusually slow and Mr Garcia said earlier that the outcome would be a "cliff-hanger". He said a right-wing conspiracy was "trying to make disappear by sleight of hand the rural vote that favours Morales", but provided no evidence to back the claim. Organisation of American States observers reported no evidence of fraud and the OAS delegation's leader, former Dominican Republic president Leonel Fernandez, left Bolivia on Tuesday. Early in his presidency Mr Morales crushed the right-wing opposition with an anti-colonialist agenda that championed Bolivia's long-downtrodden native majority. He expelled the Drug Enforcement Administration and a US ambassador, thriving on anti-American rhetoric. Mr Morales, who leads a coca-growers union, also upset drug warriors with a less violent coca-eradication programme in the world's third biggest producer of cocaine. But a more formidable opposition eventually emerged from within his own movement and it stung municipal and regional elections in March 2015 , when opposition mayors won in eight of Bolivia's 10 biggest cities. "The cost of corruption has been high," said political scientist Marcelo Silva of the Universidad Mayor de San Andres. He said in-fighting in the governing party over a successor could now weaken it even further. The unprecedented economic boom over which Mr Morales presided, in which gross domestic product per capita rose by nearly one-third, has now waned. Bolivia's revenues from natural gas and minerals, making up three-fourths of its exports, were down 32% last year. Looking shaken as early results showed the ballot question losing, Mr Morales expressed confidence on Monday that he would prevail and blamed "a smear campaign" on his poor showing in cities, where 70% of the electorate now lives. He also suggested social networks bore some responsibility by spreading unreliable information. The vote's timing could not have been worse for him. He was hit this month by an influence-peddling scandal involving a former lover that analysts said cost him dearly. The girlfriend, it was revealed, was named sales manager of a Chinese company in 2013 that has obtained nearly 500 million dollars in mostly no-bid state contracts. Photos of her mansion in a wealthy southern La Paz enclave spread online. Mr Morales denied any impropriety and claimed he last saw the woman in 2007. But a picture of the two together last year emerged, casting doubts. Most harmful among scandals plaguing the governing party was the skimming of millions from the government-managed Fondo Indigena, which runs agricultural and public works in the countryside. Judicial corruption has also been endemic and freedom of expression suffered under Mr Morales, with critical media and environmentalists complaining of harassment by the state. Donald Trump's campaign for the Republican US presidential nomination is building a momentum that may sweep away challenges by Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz, with his crushing win in the Nevada caucuses marking a third straight victory in state contests. Florida senator Mr Rubio captured second place with fewer than 2,000 more votes than Texas senator Mr Cruz as final vote totals were reported. Mr Trump, the billionaire New York businessman, can now claim victories in the west, the south and north east - a testament to his broad appeal among voters. His rivals are running out of time to stop him. "We're winning, winning, winning the country," Mr Trump declared. "Soon, the country is going to start winning, winning, winning." Listing the upcoming primary states where he is leading in preference polls, Mr Trump predicted he will soon be able to claim the Republican presidential nomination. "It's going to be an amazing two months," he told a raucous crowd at a Las Vegas casino. "We might not even need the two months, folks, to be honest." A candidate must have 1,237 state delegates to win the Republican nomination at the National Convention this summer. Mr Trump won 14 delegates in Nevada. Mr Rubio won seven, and Mr Cruz got six. Overall, Mr Trump has 81 delegates so far, and Mr Cruz and Mr Rubio have 17 apiece. The race for the nomination in both major political parties has produced candidates who reflect a deepening anger among American voters with the nation's political establishment and the gridlock for much of the Obama administration. Mr Trump and Mr Cruz in particular have found strong support among those voters, who express concerns over terrorism, immigration and an economy whose recovery from the Great Recession has mostly benefited the country's most wealthy. Entrance polls captured the sentiment propelling Mr Trump's insurgent campaign: Six in 10 caucus-goers said they were angry with the way the government is working, and Mr Trump got about half of them. After winning in New Hampshire, South Carolina and Nevada, Mr Trump has momentum heading into March 1, or Super Tuesday, when Republicans hold nominating contests in a dozen states. But on Wednesday, Mr Cruz won the endorsement of the governor in his home state of Texas, the largest of the Super Tuesday states. On the Democrat side, impatient voters have rallied around Vermont senator Bernie Sanders, a democratic socialist, who has put up a strong challenge to front-runner and former secretary of state Hillary Clinton. Mrs Clinton was looking for a commanding victory over Mr Sanders in Saturday's South Carolina primary to give her a boost heading into Super Tuesday. Polls show the former first lady with a huge advantage among African-Americans, which bodes well for her prospects in the southern states that vote on Super Tuesday. Nevada was a critical test for Mr Rubio and Mr Cruz, who are battling to emerge as the clear alternative to Mr Trump. Lagging far behind in the Nevada vote were Ohio governor John Kasich and retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson. Mr Rubio, already campaigning in Michigan as Nevada results rolled in, was projecting confidence that he can consolidate the non-Trump voters, saying "we have incredible room to grow". Mr Rubio and Mr Cruz have been attacking each other viciously in recent days, an indication they know Mr Trump can be stopped only if one of them is eliminated. Later on Wednesday, Mr Trump won his first endorsements from sitting members of Congress, with Duncan Hunter of California and Chris Collins of New York announcing they are backing him for the Republican presidential nomination. Fidel Castro's older brother Ramon, a life-long rancher and farmer who bore a strong physical resemblance to the former Cuban leader, has died at 91. Widely known by his nickname "Mongo", white-bearded Ramon Castro preferred tending crops and livestock to the revolutionary political life embraced by younger siblings Fidel and Raul - who replaced Fidel as Cuba's president in February 2008. Two years older than Fidel, Ramon was long used to getting double-takes from people who insisted he looked just like his famous brother. At times, Ramon was said to reply that because he was older, Fidel actually looked like him. Ramon, Fidel and Raul were the second, third and fourth children of Angel Castro, a Spanish-born rancher, and his second wife, Lina Ruz. Angel Castro also had two other children from a previous marriage. The three brothers attended Roman Catholic schools in eastern Cuba, where their teachers complained about their pranks and troublemaking, prompting Angel to pull them out of classes for some time. Once grown, Fidel and Raul headed off to Havana for studies, then the business of launching a revolution against dictator Fulgencio Batista, who seized power in a 1952 coup. But Ramon was content to remain in the village of Biran in eastern Cuba, where he helped his father with the family business. Ramon remained in contact with his siblings, writing letters to Fidel in prison when he, Raul and other followers were arrested after their unsuccessful 1953 attack on a military barracks that launched their armed struggle. Sometimes, along with the correspondence, Ramon sent them a ham or a box of cigars. According to letters from that period, Fidel asked Ramon to assure their parents that prison was not "a horrible and shameful idea. When one's motives are lofty and great, then it is an honourable place". After Fidel and his followers established their rebel stronghold in Cuba's eastern mountains, there was at least one recorded instance of Fidel visiting the family ranch, where he feasted on a turkey that Ramon had kept frozen for months in the hope of such a visit. Following the 1959 triumph of the Cuban revolution and Fidel's subsequent rise to power, Ramon often worked as a consultant for the government ministries of agriculture and sugar. In the early 1960s he oversaw sugar production in eastern Cuba, where he helped increase output. Ramon founded several state companies, including ones that handled the transportation of sugar cane and the production of oranges. He also was involved in agricultural research. Although he wielded little government power, Ramon nevertheless was a founding member of the Communist Party of Cuba and served as a deputy in the country's parliament, the National Assembly. Little was known about his private life except that he was born on October 14 1924, had been married and had at least two sons, Ramon Omar Castro and Angel Castro. Being the president's brother often brought him into contact with high-profile visitors, including American film director Oliver Stone, who met both Fidel and Ramon during a 2002 visit. More recently, Ramon befriended rancher John Parke Wright, of JP Wright & Co of Florida, during the American's recent visits to negotiate sales of US livestock to the communist government. Wearing big cowboy hats, the pair rode horses and inspected cattle at the Nina Bonita ranch in the western province of Pinar del Rio. Although Fidel gave up smoking cigars in 1986, Ramon maintained the habit that he picked up from his father when he was just 12. "Is it true that he never smoked again?" he asked during a 2002 international cigar festival about his younger brother's former love of the island's world-famous tobacco. "As for me, I haven't given it up." Ramon liked to boast about his family's longevity. Their father lived until he was 82 and there was reportedly at least one aunt who lived past 100. "It seems that we have a good genetic mix," Ramon said in late 2004, expressing confidence that Fidel would quickly recover after a fall, which in fact he did. Viktor Orban said the referendum question had already been submitted for approval Hungary's prime minister has called for a national referendum on the European Union's plan for a mandatory quota for the resettlement of migrants and refugees. Viktor Orban said that the referendum question would be: "Do you want the European Union to prescribe the mandatory settlement of non-Hungarian citizens in Hungary even without the consent of Parliament?" He said a "no" vote would be "in favour of Hungary's independence and rejecting the mandatory settlement plan". The EU has set up a scheme to share 160,000 migrants arriving in overburdened Greece and Italy. But so far, barely 600 people have been relocated, and only some EU partners have offered places for them - fewer than 5,000 spots in all. For Hungary, the plan would gravely impact people's lives and "redraw Hungary and Europe's ethnic, cultural and religious identity" for generations to come, Mr Orban said. "The Hungarian government believes that neither the union nor Brussels nor the European leaders nor any European body has the authority to do this," he said. "We feel that introducing a settlement quota without the consent of the people is nothing but abuse of power." He said the referendum question had already been submitted for approval to the National Election Office. Analysts said that Mr Orban was trying to become the leader of the movement opposed to the German and EU position on quotas. "It is not a wider anti-EU initiative but Orban wants to show strength on the migrant issue," said Tamas Boros, analyst at Policy Solutions, a political research and consultancy firm. "He wants to show Europe what an influential politician he is." Mr Boros said that with the referendum idea Mr Orban was also trying to give leaders of other countries in the region opposed to the quota plan, such as Poland, the Czech Republic and Slovakia, a resource that could be used to put pressure on EU leaders. For the referendum to be valid, turnout has to be above 50%. IS affiliates in Libya briefly took over the security headquarters in the western city of Sabratha Islamic State affiliates in Libya briefly took over the security headquarters in the western city of Sabratha, killing and beheading 12 security officers before being driven out, city officials said. The incident early on Wednesday highlighted the enduring presence and unpredictable striking power of the local IS militants in the strategic city which serves as a hub for migrants heading to Europe. Taher al-Gharabili, head of Sabratha Military Council, told the Associated Press that the gunmen "exploited a security vacuum" by deploying in the city centre as the military was occupied carrying out raids elsewhere. A second security official said the militants used the headless bodies of the officers they killed to block the roads leading to the security headquarters - which they occupied for about three hours. The official said the total number of officers killed in the occupation and ensuing clashes reached 19. Sabratha has become the latest Libyan power centre for the local IS affiliate. Last week, US air strikes killed dozens of suspected militants in the city along with two Serbian hostages kidnapped last year. Libya's chaos, five years after the uprising that led to the ousting and killing of longtime autocrat Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, has paved the way for the IS affiliate to take control of several cities. The divided country is ruled by two parliaments: an internationally recognised body based in the eastern city of Tobruk and a rival government, backed by Islamist-allied militias, which controls the capital, Tripoli. The United Nations brokered a deal last year to unite the country's various factions. A new unity government is awaiting endorsement by the eastern parliament. The unity government could pave the way for an international military intervention against the Islamic State group. The extremist group has previously taken over the city of Darna, before being driven out, and still controls the central city of Sirte, Gaddafi's home town. Beyonce's Super Bowl act and new video were said to contain 'anti-police' messages Police officers in Raleigh, North Carolina, have said they will not boycott Beyonce's upcoming concert in response to her Super Bowl half-time act and new video, which some said contained "anti-police" messages. Union members took the unanimous vote during a meeting of the Raleigh Police Protective Association, news reports said. Up to 50 association members were expected to vote at a meeting originally scheduled to discuss the group's support for better pay for rank-and-file officers, according to The News & Observer of Raleigh. Beyonce will perform at Carter-Finley Stadium in Raleigh on May 3. Police unions in Miami and Tampa in Florida and Nashville, Tennessee, are either calling for officers to boycott her music or urging them not volunteer to work at her shows. An Australian high school has sparked a national furore by allowing pupils to wear boy or girl uniforms, regardless of gender. An education department statement said the Newtown High School of Performing Arts in Sydney had changed its uniform policy to allow all pupils to "wear any part of the available uniform options". Several parents and students hailed the change as a boon for transgender students who previously needed a psychologist's report to get permission to cross-dress. But the change was condemned as radical by the Australian Christian Lobby, an influential conservative advocacy group. A number of MPs this week backed the ACL's call to remove government funding from a national programme aimed at preventing bullying in schools that also advocates allowing cross-dressing. "It's a deeper problem than just boys choosing to wear a girl's skirt to school," ACL spokesman Wendy Francis said. "What they're trying to do in schools is make boys' and girls' gender disappear." Nearly 500 schools have signed up to the Safe Schools Coalition Australia, which runs the programme that also advocates that schools allow pupils to cross-dress. It is not known how many schools adopted that uniform policy, but the education department said Newtown High was not the only one in New South Wales, Australia's most populous state. Newtown High declined to comment. Maya Saric, who has two children aged 15 and 13 at Newtown High, described the change as progressive and responsive to students' needs. "All the parents I mentioned it to didn't bat an eyelid and thought it was perfectly reasonable," she said. Prime minister Malcom Turnbull bent to pressure from MPs by agreeing on Tuesday to review the continuation of eight million dollars in government funding for the Safe Schools programme, which teaches pupils about gay and lesbian issues. Mr Turnbull was criticised by opposition members and the national teachers' union for launching the review. Safe Schools Coalition Australia said it welcomed the opportunity to demonstrate to the federal government the positive impact of its programme. The group's website says it is a national coalition of organisations and schools working to create safe school environments for same-sex attracted, inter-sex and gender-diverse students, staff and families. Spain's Socialist party has signed an agreement with centrist newcomer party Ciudadanos to support the Socialists' bid to form a government next week, but they are still short of a majority. Socialist leader Pedro Sanchez can now count on his party's 90 seats and 40 from Ciudadanos in the 350-seat lower house of Parliament. But the conservative Popular Party, which has 123 seats, has said it will vote against him, while far-left newcomer Podemos, which has 69, said it would vote against Mr Sanchez if he did a deal with Ciudadanos, which it considers to be too far to the right. The Socialists had been due to continue talks with Podemos on Wednesday but Podemos called them off at the last moment, blaming the pact. It said it would continue to seek a deal with the Socialists and other leftist groups, but not with the Popular Party or Ciudadanos. The Socialists and Ciudadanos signed the pact after agreeing on a set of reforms to be made by the next government. Ciudadanos leader Albert Rivera said the two parties would work toward persuading others to come on board. The Socialists' main difference with Podemos is the latter's insistence that the north-eastern region of Catalonia should be allowed to hold a referendum on secession. Mr Sanchez will present his government plans for debate in Parliament on Tuesday, and the next day face a vote of confidence, which he must win with a majority. If he fails, a second vote takes place two days later where he only needs more votes in favour than against - allowing some parties to abstain. If he wins neither vote, Parliament must choose a government in two months or face fresh elections. The ruling Popular Party came first in the December 20 election but its leader, acting prime minister Mariano Rajoy, refused to try to form a government, saying he lacked sufficient support. The elections, with the emergence of Podemos and Ciudadanos, have led to Spain's most fragmented Parliament in decades and shattered the dominance of the Popular Party and the Socialists. Russian president Vladimir Putin spoke to the Syrian leader on the telephone, reports say The Syrian president has assured Russia's Vladimir Putin of Damascus's commitment to a Russia-US proposed truce, even as a spokesman for a Saudi-backed alliance of Syrian opposition and rebel factions expressed "major concerns" about the ceasefire, due to begin later this week. Salem Al Meslet, spokesman for the alliance known as the High Negotiations Committee, said his group is worried that Russia and Syrian president Bashar Assad's forces would continue to strike at mainstream rebels under the pretext of hitting "terrorist groups" during the truce. The agreement, engineered by the US and Russia, is set to take effect at midnight Friday local time. It does not cover the Islamic State group, Syria's al Qaida branch known as the Nusra Front, or any other militia designated as a terrorist group by the UN Security Council. On Wednesday, Mr Assad and Mr Putin discussed the truce agreement in a telephone call, according to the Syrian state-run news agency and a Russian official. SANA said Mr Putin called Mr Assad, adding that the two leaders stressed the importance of continuing to fight the Islamic State, the Nusra Front "and other terrorist organisations". Mr Putin's spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, confirmed the phone call, saying there were differences in opinion between Moscow and Damascus but that Russia is one of the few countries still in contact with "the legitimate Syrian leader". He did not elaborate. Speaking in a conference call with journalists, he said Moscow was doing its part and is expecting the United States to also do its part to make sure the groups they support adhere to the ceasefire. "The main goal is to stop the bloodletting in Syria," he said. Asked whether Moscow had a plan B in case the truce did not hold, he replied: "We are concentrating on Plan A right now... it's too early to speak of other plans." Mr Putin also had telephone conversations with key players in the Syrian conflict, including the leaders of Iran and Saudi Arabia who support opposing sides of the conflict. The truce agreement remains shaky at best and major questions over enforcement are still unresolved. It is not clear exactly where along Syria's complicated front lines the fighting would stop and for how long - or where counter-terrorism operations could continue. Also unresolved are how breaches in the truce would be dealt with. In a further reflection of the complicated terrain, Turkey's president said that a US-backed Syrian Kurdish militia group - which Turkey regards as a terror organisation - should also be kept outside of the scope of the agreement. Turkey has in the past few weeks been shelling the group known as the People's Protection Units, or YPG, in northern Syria. Addressing dozens of local administrators in Ankara, Recep Tayyip Erdogan also voiced serious concern that the proposed truce will strengthen Assad and lead to "new tragedies". Fighting continued meanwhile, particularly around the city of Aleppo. Syria's state-run news agency said 18 people were killed in shelling by insurgents of government-held neighborhoods of Aleppo in the past 24 hours. It said eight people died on Wednesday when shells fired by Saudi and Turkey-backed "terrorists" struck the Jamilieh district in Aleppo city. Mr Assad's government uses the term "terrorists" to refer to all rebels, militants and armed opposition against Damascus. The agency also reported that on Tuesday night, 10 people were killed in shells that hit the Zahraa and Sheikh Maksoud residential areas of Aleppo. US Secretary of State John Kerry told American lawmakers on Tuesday that he would not vouch for the success of the ceasefire agreement but that it is the best pathway for ending five years of violence in Syria that has killed more than 250,000 people and displaced another 11 million from their homes. Al Meslet, the opposition spokesman, said the HNC is holding open meetings in the Saudi capital of Riyadh and is seeking guarantees and clarifications from the United States about the mechanism for the implementation of the agreement. Speaking in a phone interview , he said however that the opposition wants to stop the bloodshed and would abide by the truce. "The Americans are taking note of our concerns and we are waiting for their replies," Mr Al Meslet said. At least three people have been killed as a storm system spawned tornadoes in the Gulf Coast states of the US. Two people were killed at a motorhome park in the town of Convent in southern Louisiana, police said, and authorities are searching for people possibly trapped under the debris. Thirty-one people were taken to hospital with seven in critical condition, officers said. St James Parish Sheriff Willy Martin said: "We never had anything like this, we never had this many people injured in one event, and so much destruction in one event. We won't stop searching until we're satisfied we've searched every pile." He said three people were still believed to be missing but efforts to account for them were hampered because authorities did not know how many people were at the park when the storm hit or how many were taken to hospital in private vehicles. In Mississippi, officials are sorting through reports of damage to some buildings, and the Lamar County Emergency Management Agency said a 73-year-old man died in a mobile home west of Purvis. In Alabama and Georgia, forecasters issued flash flood watches ahead of the storm system, which was expected to drop 1in to 2in of rain. The northern part of Georgia was also under a wind advisory. The reported tornadoes were part of a line of severe weather and storms that ripped through the region, which is expected to reach the Carolinas later. The forecast for the Carolinas predicts possible flash flooding and severe thunderstorms, including damaging winds, hail and isolated tornadoes. W ind gusts may be particularly strong, reaching 70mph or more. News outlets in Georgia, South Carolina and Florida said schools had cancelled Wednesday classes ahead of the storm. At least seven tornadoes hit south-east Louisiana and south-west Mississippi, said Ken Graham, the meteorologist in charge for the National Weather Service's south-east Louisiana office. That number includes the ones in Convent and Purvis, he said. Teams are documenting the damage and rating the tornadoes. The storm even affected the National Weather Service, Mr Graham said. At one point staff in the Slidell office took shelter because a tornado was nearby, and lightning took out the office's radar, forcing them to use back-ups, he added. In Florida, the National Weather Service said a tornado hit Pensacola. Meteorologist Steve Miller said the service has had many reports of property damage and people injured. A reported tornado caused damage but no injuries near New Orleans's main airport, while high winds ripped off roofs and downed trees around the greater New Orleans area. Other suspected tornadoes were reported north of Lake Pontchartrain and west of the city in St Charles and Ascension parishes, and in Prairieville, between New Orleans and Baton Rouge, heavy damage was reported to some buildings, including a gym. Earlier this month, Asda introduced their wonky vegetables to critical acclaim and are, apparently, struggling to meet consumer demand, such has been the success of their clever campaign It seems there's almost no stopping the supermarkets these days in their attempts to remain innovative and imaginative as they struggle to please customers. Earlier this month, Asda introduced their wonky vegetables to critical acclaim and are, apparently, struggling to meet consumer demand, such has been the success of their clever campaign. The supermarket chain is offering a 5kg box of wonky veg for only 3.50. It claims the contents will adequately feed a family of four for a week. But, surely, this begs the question, what constitutes 'wonky' and what constitutes 'normal' in the vegetable world? It appears to me that the definition of wonky is most likely to be arbitrarily based on the views of the supermarket buyers. But did anyone ever ask the customers what they considered acceptable? I don't think so. Personally, I couldn't care less what shape the carrots were originally, just as long as they taste great when they arrive on my dinner plate. Meanwhile, over at Tesco, they have been trying to get the croissant problem straightened out, because, apparently, 75% of customers surveyed stated they prefer their croissants straight, as opposed to crescent-shaped, claiming they find it too difficult to get the jam into the corners. The Tesco croissant debate has led to a (not-unexpected) outpouring of witty comments and cynical posts in the Twittersphere, providing much hilarity for the general public. And I must say that I, too, find the notion of wonky vegetables and straight croissants extremely amusing. However, it strikes me that the home economists over at the supermarkets could try to find better things on which to focus in their R&D kitchens. I most certainly approve of the Asda wonky veg idea - not just because it's a clever marketing concept, but because it will help prevent the monumental amount of food waste which we currently witness in this country. On the other hand, I think Tesco should concentrate on getting their accounts straight and leave the croissants alone. Donald C McFetridge is a retail analyst at Ulster University During the course of the last two weeks the public has again seen first-hand the utter contempt that Sinn Fein - and in particular its leadership - has for the institutions of the Republic, the victims that it and its illegal army have left in their wake and its disingenuous attitude towards the truth. It is because of this that I feel compelled to bring to the public's attention several matters which I believe need to be addressed by both Sinn Fein and its leadership. My father was the chief prison officer in Portlaoise Prison in 1983 when he was shot on a Dublin street by the IRA. He was left severely brain-damaged and paralysed and died 18 months later. The IRA murdered my father because he was the main stumbling block in its efforts to effect a mass breakout. The decision to murder my father was taken at a leadership level within the IRA. It has been alleged to me by reliable sources that the person who ultimately sanctioned my dad's murder was a man who now holds a very senior Sinn Fein position and is a very recognisable figure. It has also been alleged that another senior Sinn Fein politician was present when the operation was being planned. Gerry Adams's response when I placed this information in the public domain last week was to deflect the issue away from these two murderers whom he protects. He firstly played the victim and tried to make out that he has suffered in a similar way to my family. It is quite painful for all of us who suffered at the hands of Sinn Fein/IRA to see it continually playing the victim. Let me be quite clear: my dad was not any enemy combatant, he never held a gun in his life, and he was a man of peace and tolerance. Adams then told me to "move on", and secondly to "embrace" those who have harmed my family, as he has said that he did. This was a very calculated, disingenuous response, as Adams knows I have tried to do this by meeting him and allowing myself and my brother to be taken in a blacked-out van to a secret location to meet the IRA leadership. I am a very prominent advocate of a truth commission. Adams and the IRA told my family 70% of the truth. They withheld the truth about who sanctioned my father's murder because it suited them politically. Gerry Adams now says that he knows who these individuals are; he has incorrectly claimed that he received this information from me. I purposely refused to give him this information when asked as I believe he was always in possession of the identities of those figures. I again call on Sinn Fein to suspend these individuals pending investigation. During my father's time working in Portlaoise Prison he would have come across Martin Ferris. In his autobiography, Ferris casts a very vindictive slur on my father's character. Sinn Fein likes to pontificate about justice being seen to be fair. Maybe Ferris is off-message here, but surely a servant of the State like Brian Stack is entitled to the same procedures of fairness that he would afford to the murderers and criminals who reside within the ranks of Sinn Fein? The questions I posed this week are legitimate in the context of my family's suffering, but also in the context of what this country will do on Friday in the polls. My questions were aimed at securing truth and placing information in the public domain. The responses I received demonstrated how much the army wing is still in control of Sinn Fein and how far it is away from being considered a legitimate political party worthy of high office. A female orangutan is recovering at a wildlife reserve in Thailands Phang Nga province after being discovered locked in a cage in the jungle Sunday, two days after vanishing from the Phuket Zoo. Activists who had been pushing for the animals release and wildlife officials went to the zoo Friday and found no trace of her, they said. Two days later, officials at the Khao Phra Thaeo Non Hunting Zone found the orangutan, Milo, in a jungle about 35 kilometers (22 miles) north of the Phuket Zoo, in Phukets Thalang District. The cage was locked. She couldnt get out, said Edwin Wiek, director of the Wildlife Friends of Thailand (WFFT). Officers hammered off the padlock and Milo is now being housed and cared for at the Phang Nga Wildlife Breeding and Rescue Center, he said. Police investigating Prior to her disappearance, Milo was kept in a dark concrete box at the Phuket Zoo and forced to take photos with tourists, according to a petition for her release posted on the website Change.org by animal activist Vicki Kiely in January. Zoo officials were not available to comment on Milos disappearance. Weve had many requests for interviews about this case from many media outlets, so we have to ask for written requests in order to schedule interviews at times that are convenient for both sides. We are sorry for any inconvenience, an operator at the zoo told BenarNews. An email request to the address on the zoos website was not answered. Police are investigating the case and collecting evidence to determine who was responsible for Milos disappearance, according to Surapong Chaweepak of the Department of National Parks CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) Management Authority. If they are unable to find the responsible party within five years, the orangutan will become state property, after which time DNA tests will be conducted to determine if she is from Sumatra or Borneo. After that, we will begin the process to repatriate her, he said. Black market value Orangutans exist in the wild only on the islands of Sumatra and Borneo, where populations are listed as critically endangered and endangered, respectively. Sumatra is in Indonesia and Borneo is divided among Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei. CITES lists orangutans as a protected species that cannot be kept without a license. Thailand is a signatory to the agreement. A young orangutan like Milo has a black market value of about 250,000 to 300,000 baht ($6,990 to $8,390 U.S.) on the Thai black market, which is why it is unlikely the zoo would abandon it, Wiek said. If they really wanted her to disappear they could have sold her, he added. In November 2015, Thailand returned 14 orangutans, including two born in captivity, to Indonesia after the Thai government dropped its demand to be compensated for caring for the animals, Agence France-Presse reported. Past efforts to charge smugglers and private zoo owners with possession, sale and disposal of CITES-listed species had failed because of a loophole in Thai law. Thailands law on the matter applies only to species native to Thailand and African elephants, according to Wiek. Wiek said his organization is working with the Department of National Parks to draft a revised law that would give orangutans and other CITES-listed species similar protection. The WFFT has rescued more than 100 orangutans since its establishment in 2003 when it rescued 78 baby orangutans from the Safari World tourist attraction in Bangkok. For Immediate Release, February 24, 2016 Contact: Catherine Kilduff, (202) 780-8862, ckilduff@biologicaldiversity.org $25,000 Reward Offered After Deaths of 13 Bald Eagles in Maryland WASHINGTON The Center for Biological Diversity is offering up to $15,000 for information leading to an arrest and conviction in the case of 13 bald eagles that were killed and found on Marylands Eastern Shore. The pledge, along with contributions from the Humane Society of the United States, the Humane Society Wildlife Land Trust, the Phoenix Wildlife Center Inc. and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, pushes the total reward to $25,000. The 13 dead eagles were the most deaths attributed to a single incident in Maryland in more than 30 years. The eagles were discovered over the weekend, and officials suspect they may have been poisoned. Photo Robin Silver, Center for Biological Diversity. This photo is available for media use. These 13 bald eagles deserved better than to be killed, said Catherine Kilduff, a staff attorney at the Center. Bald eagles have been a remarkable story of national conservation and recovery over the past 40 years, but clearly theres more work to be done. If they were poisoned or shot, the heartbreaking deaths of these 13 bald eagles is a crime. Those responsible need to be caught and prosecuted. Killing a bald eagle is a violation of the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act and the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. The Fish and Wildlife Service is tasked with enforcing the laws, which contain provisions calling for civil penalties, criminal penalties, or prison time for violations involving the killing of bald eagles. Anyone with information may contact the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Office of Law Enforcement in Cambridge, Maryland, at 410-228-2476, or the Maryland Natural Resources Police Hotline at 800-628-9944. For many Americans the bald eagle represents freedom and strength. The unthinkable death of 13 birds at once stands in stark contrast to the ideals this majestic wild animal personifies, said Kilduff. Bald eagles were taken off the endangered species list in 2007 thanks to 40 years of conservation efforts. Their remarkable recovery was due to a ban on the use of DDT and the protection of eagle habitat under the Endangered Species Act, including nesting sites and summer and winter roosts. 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. For Immediate Release, February 23, 2016 Contact: Jay Lininger, Center for Biological Diversity, (928) 853-9929 Tom Wheeler, Environmental Protection Information Center, (707) 822-7711 Wildlife Officials Allow Killing of 100 Spotted Owls in Klamath National Forest Federal Biologists Conflicted Over Effects of Post-fire Logging YREKA, Calif. Federal wildlife officials authorized the U.S. Forest Service to kill up to 103 threatened northern spotted owls in 14 timber sales slated for auction this spring in the Klamath National Forest. The Westside Fire Recovery Project will clear-cut 6,800 acres on slopes above the Klamath River where lightning fires in the summer of 2014 affected owl habitat reserves. Natural fires restored the forest after decades of fire suppression and gave spotted owls a kitchen full of food, said Jay Lininger, a senior scientist with the Center for Biological Diversity. Owls can thrive with fire, but they cannot survive clear-cutting after fire. In a biological opinion signed on Friday and released today, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service states that post-fire logging may incidentally take 74 adult owls and up to 12-29 juveniles, but will not jeopardize the continued existence of the forest raptor overall. The opinion is required by the federal Endangered Species Act before the Forest Service can formally offer the timber sales, which were initially advertised last year. More than 70 percent of the area proposed for logging overlaps Late-Successional Reserves designated by the 1994 Northwest Forest Plan to secure old-growth forest habitat for crashing spotted owl populations and prevent their extinction. A recently published demographic study found sharp declines of spotted owl populations at an annual rate of nearly 4 percent range-wide from 1985 to 2013. The Klamath Mountains are thought to be the best hope for recovery of the species and a source for long-term repopulation of owls in the Cascades and Coast ranges. Despite the owls ongoing decline and the scientific recommendation in published literature that post-fire logging should not be conducted within owl territories, the biological opinion allows the Forest Service to remove habitat from up to 57 established activity areas where the owls nest. Clear-cut logging at that scale in occupied habitat is a major setback for spotted owl recovery, Lininger said. The Fish and Wildlife opinion signals for the first time since the regional forest plan went into effect that federal biologists openly disagree about impacts to spotted owl resulting from a post-fire logging project. Last fall Dr. Paul Henson, the top Fish and Wildlife official responsible for spotted owl recovery, commented to the Forest Service that logging in the Westside project should be minimized where owls remain after fire because large, dead trees will greatly improve the quality of forest habitat as it naturally recovers over time. In general, most scientists agree that salvage logging does not contribute positively to the ecological recovery of naturally disturbed forests, Henson wrote. It is important for (land managers) to seek ways to implement important fuel reduction work without over-utilizing salvage logging that can adversely affect the restoration of natural conditions. Henson also cast doubt on the core rationale advanced by the Forest Service for the project, namely to reduce hazardous fuels and fire danger. In our experience many post-fire salvage projects tend to be more opportunistic than part of a larger-scale, proactive strategic planning effort to reduce fire spread and severity, he wrote. Foresters also recently wrapped up a separate consultation with the National Marine Fisheries Service stating that post-fire logging would harm threatened coho salmon by adding sedimentation to Grider and Walker creeks and reducing egg survival. 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. ### For Immediate Release, February 24, 2016 Contact: Nathan Donley, (971) 717-6406, ndonley@biologicaldiversity.org Advocates to EPA: It's Time to Ban Organophosphate Pesticides PORTLAND, Ore. A diverse group of farmworker, child-safety and environmental advocates has sent a letter to the Environmental Protection Agency urging it to ban seven organophosphate pesticides that are currently under review. According to the EPAs own recently released risk assessments, the use of these neurotoxic pesticides may result in significant risks to people and animals that are exposed to them. Organophosphates are widely used in agriculture on crops such as corn, cotton, watermelon and wheat. A recent study at the University of California at Berkeley found that an astonishing 87 percent of umbilical-cord blood samples tested had detectable levels of an organophosphate. Early childhood exposure to organophosphates has been linked to cognitive delay and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD. Organophosphates were also used as nerve agents in chemical warfare and have been linked to Gulf War syndrome, which causes fatigue, headaches, skin problems and breathing disorders. These pesticides pose unacceptably high risks to children, workers and wildlife, and really cant be used safely, said Nathan Donley, a scientist with the Center for Biological Diversity. In this letter farmworkers, child-safety and consumer advocates have spoken with one voice, asking the EPA to ban these relics of our toxic past. The agencys levels of concern were exceeded, in some cases by more than 1,000 percent, for many exposure scenarios for people who ingest pesticide-contaminated food and water. Further risks of concern were present for farmworkers for many different occupational handler scenarios. In addition to effects on human health, organophosphates are also very dangerous to many species of wildlife. By the end of 2005, more than 1,440 bird-related incidents involving organophosphates had been recorded in North America, resulting in the deaths of more than 335,000 birds. Organophosphate use has also been linked to population declines of several amphibians in California, a state with heavy use of these pesticides. For organophosphates a high toxicity risk is not the exception, it's the rule. When risk of toxicity is exceeded by nearly every single metric in a risk assessment, it's a sure indication that these pesticides can't be used safely, said Donley. This letter was submitted in response to the EPAs request for public comments on new releases of human-health and ecological risk assessments for chlorpyrifos-methyl, dicrotophos, dimethoate, ethoprop, profenofos, terbufos and tribufos. The groups signing onto the letter include: Alaska Community Action on Toxics American Bird Conservancy As You Sow Beyond Pesticides Beyond Toxics California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation Californians for Pesticide Reform Center for Biological Diversity Center for Effective Government Center for Environmental Health Center for Food Safety Clean and Healthy New York Coalition for Clean Air Columbia Legal Services Earthjustice Environment America Factory Farming Awareness Coalition Farmworker Association of Florida Farmworker Justice Food & Water Watch Friends of Farmworkers Friends of the Earth Global Workers Justice Alliance Headwater LLC Made Safe Migrant Clinicians Network New Mexico Center on Law and Poverty Organic Consumers Association Parents for a Safer Environment Pesticide Action Network Physicians for Social Responsibility Texas RioGrande Legal Aid The Environmental Justice Coalition for Water Toxic Free North Carolina Womens Voices for the Earth Worker Justice Center of New York Worksafe 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. The highlight of the day looks as though it's going to be the sentencing of the Heathrow 13 - the gang from Plane Stupid who thought it would be amusing to shut down Heathrow airport for several hours. Expectations are that a jail sentence beckons. The usual suspects are protesting outside the Magistrates Court and there will no doubt be lots of spurious claims that these were "peaceful protestors", as if preventing people from going about their daily business were anything other than thuggery. Massive support for #Heathrow13 here Willesden for sentencing. A travesty and a disgrace if they are jailed. pic.twitter.com/HmamLzvV4x Sian Berry (@sianberry) February 24, 2016 It's about time these people were dealt with. Update on Feb 24, 2016 by on Feb 24, 2016 by Bishop Hill As always, it's good to look at the protests from a wider angle. Bit late but im here to support the #Heathrow13 pic.twitter.com/1NyEVM2DTY Isabel Bottoms (@IBottoms) February 24, 2016 Anyone in a long-term relationship knows it can be challenging at times. It's not always wine, roses and long walks on the beach. So how do you keep the love alive? James Wilson This Valentines month, WE South Africa hosted a romantic roundtable entitled Falling in love with your brand again. We wanted to talk about a real love affair the one your consumers should be having with your brand. And we brought in the experts for some relationship counselling. Communication in times of crisis Kirby Gordon, VP of Sales and Marketing at FlySafair, knows how difficult it can be to continue to woo your audience after something goes wrong. All companies run the risk of having their CEO caught with their pants down, he said. But in the aviation space there is the added element of real crises happening on an operational level. Thats exactly what happened in late January when FlySafair found itself in the news after two unrelated loss of cabin pressure incidents took place in a single week on the same aircraft. Gordon explained that since FlySafairs launch in October 2014, the brands aim has been to develop a meaningful relationship with consumers. Through strategic communication, they have been working to educate would-be flyers about true low-cost flying, while positioning themselves as experts in the aviation field. Holding company, Safairs 50 years of operation helped to cement this position. So the relationship was blossoming until it literally started feeling the pressure or lack thereof. Thats when the value of PR and crisis communications came into play. After ensuring that both flights made it safely to the ground and all safety procedures had been followed to the T, it was all about managing the narrative for Gordon and the team. Some say that managing the narrative is dead, as we move more into the space of public leadership, said Gordon. However, when it comes to crisis communications, going back to basics and managing the narrative is essential. By owning the story, remaining the central source of news and being strategic in terms of their media engagement, as well as communicating this approach internally, FlySafair managed to turn a potential break-up around. The initial negative comments and coverage were far outweighed by positivity and acknowledgement that the airline had done everything by the book. Aleksey Mnogosmyslov via 123RF FlySafair also proved it could keep the brand love alive with a spike in sales following Januarys incidents, proving that good communication is always important in a relationship. Innovating to keep things fresh Equally important is keeping things fresh and not getting stuck in a rut. Talk Radio 702s tech guru, Aki Anastasiou, was on hand to share the latest digital innovations brands should be thinking about to continue wooing consumers. In the next 20 years humanity will change more than it has in the past 300, said Anastasiou. Were living in a digital world and evolving using technology. With the number of smartphone users in Africa predicted to reach 600 million by 2020, the Syrian refugees counting their smartphones as their most important possession, and the worlds cheapest smartphone launching in India for just R58, its clear that this is the sweet spot for brands to develop a love affair with consumers. That said, Anastasiou added that innovation in smartphones has reached a plateau. The next wave of innovation is coming in the form of self-driving and electric cars. With only seven of the existing car manufacturers predicted to survive over the next few decades, brands wanting to continue feeling the consumer love need to innovate. And that goes for brands across the board, as homes become more connected, health devices allow us to check our health as often as we check our emails and virtual reality becomes, well, a reality. 40% of todays Fortune 500 companies will be gone in the next 10 years, said Anastasiou. Our take-out: to sustain a long-term relationship, think customisation and brand experience and dont forget communication is key. Content is king in today's high-octane, info-rich world. And for brands to stay relevant and save money, it's vital they maintain an archive of their valuable brand material that they can access, use and reuse with a dash of speed. This requires a proven system, which is easily and accurately searchable, and specifically designed for media assets like stills and footage. Greatstocks Media Asset Management (MAM) is a unique service that creates and maintains innovative, customisable corporate intranets and websites that act as secure, permission-based, private content libraries accessible from anywhere in the world, 24 hours a day. This pioneering technology allows brands, agencies, corporates and anyone looking to store valuable media assets to access and search their content in one consolidated place. Finding the right asset is as simple as completing a Google-type search on a customisable internet platform. In an age where drives, servers and discs are all at risk of failure and rapidly becoming obsolete, centralised management is essential. This allows access to an extensive database of medium-res footage and images, with the high-res versions available as needed. Lets get technical Clients can customise their own platform with various levels of security features, which are automatically detected when logging onto the platform. Search results are quick and accurate, with thumbnails for easy scanning. Results can be saved to a Lightbox for future reference and are easily shared with other collaborators on the project. Modern archiving To build a strong brand identity over time, media assets need to be maintained, so regardless of which agency or individuals are working on a brand, they have access to all legacy content without scratching through endless files and hard drives to find what they need, explains Greatstock Managing Director Margi Sheard. Over the years, local companies have built up stores of rich media assets, (typically video, stills, recordings, completed marketing pieces and virtually any kind of digital file) with no way to store and access them reliably thats where MAM services come in. Controlled access Authorised employees can access MAM systems remotely and find the material they need quickly and easily from anywhere, anytime. Sheard goes on to explain that MAM isnt simply a programme or filing system Greatstock tailor-makes every MAM platform to uniquely fit the needs of the specific business, brand or agency. Advantages of a Greatstock MAM solutions A centralised MAM platform facilitates efficiency across multiple offices and countries. Employees come and go, and companies lose track of their own media assets, and where theyre stored. Assuring all media assets are safely stored in one place, and fully backed up, allows for total peace of mind. Assets are available in high and medium resolution, any hour of the day this service is provided by an experienced, professional production team, says Sheard. One of our clients saved R6 million in a single year, as a result of our MAM service. How it works Sheard highlights the convenience and efficiency of a MAM platform for corporates and agencies working on large-scale marketing projects, with limited resources. A Latin American subsidiary of a multinational client needs to produce a TVC at short notice, on a tiny budget. They log onto the MAM site and search for video assets, which they view and assemble according to their needs, says Sheard. They order hi-res clips, which are promptly sent to them digitally, and easily edited. The project is completed in record time, with little or no need to embark on a costly and time-consuming film shoot. The same applies to a company in the tourism sector, needing to produce a marketing piece promoting Cape Town, for example. They can easily find footage of the winelands, shot in the perfect season, or an exquisite aerial shot to incorporate into their new production. For more information on Media Asset Management services, visit greatstock.co.za or email az.oc.kcotstaerg@igram. It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you'll do things differently - Warren Buffet. If youre in any doubt as to the cogency of this statement, just think Volkswagen, Malaysia Airlines, FIFA, SAA, Bill Cosby, Sony, Penny Sparrow, Chris Hart and Nicole de Klerk. All have taken an absolute beating in the court of public opinion. Some have limped to some semblance of recovery with the help of reputational communications and management specialists, others never will. For corporate brands that lose their reputational lustre, the impact soon manifests on the bottom line and in the share price consumers vote with their wallets. For individuals, prospects for employment after a public blunder on the scale of Penny Sparrows reprehensible racist rants, amount to exactly zero. In the digital age, nothing ever escapes Google search or the speed of social media. Were seeing employees sharing controversial opinions on social media channels that are increasingly putting employer brands in the spotlight. Employers now pay close attention to the company they keep no job interview is likely to go by without a thorough interrogation of your online persona. Social media and employees arent the only ways that inappropriate remarks can wreak reputational havoc. I have seen countless executives making the most extraordinarily stupid statements in media interviews, and no amount of media training can save them from themselves. Who can forget the ghastly vaseline remarks made by Macintosh Polela after the JubJub trial? The spokesperson for an elite police made an utterly ill-conceived tweet about prison rape as if this was perfectly ok. It cost Polela his job, his reputation and left the Hawks credibility in tatters. Anyone seen or heard from Mac lately? Anyone drive a Volkswagen? In the heat of the emissions dieselgate, the once trusted car brand was forced to recall 500,000 vehicles and slapped with a potential fine of $18bn by the US Environmental Protection Agency (does this hurt yet Mr Financial Director?). VW issued all measure of statements with little solace. Volkswagen's stock price fell in value by a third in the days immediately after the news broke, its group CEO resigned and it was claimed by Der Spiegel newspaper that at least 30 people at management level in VW knew about the emissions deceit for years something that VW denies. Amidst all of this, Wheels24 reported that Volkswagen SA was not affected by the emissions saga. VWSA said at the time: "South African VW/Audi vehicles are not affected. South Africa does not have a legislative emission standard so this issue does not apply locally. We meet the CO2 emissions as published in our official specification sheets for all our vehicles. Really! So the mere fact that a global citizen like VW lied to the public for six years and intentionally used a device in its cars to evade clean air standards, which are a threat to public health, should not matter to me here in SA? Reputation 101 just like pandemics, screw ups on this scale know no geographic boundaries. And know that a multi-national reputation brings with it all measure of complexities and multicultural nuances to consider. Given just how easy it is to send a hard-earned and expensive reputation up in smoke, it really is not surprising that damage to reputation/brand has emerged as the #1 risk facing companies worldwide according to Aon Risk Solutions. The global risk management business polled CEOs, CFOs and risk managers in its 2015 Global Risk Management Survey, providing comparative insight into different perceptions of risk. Pixabay The Aon report goes on to add that with the rapid development of media technology and heightened awareness of multiculturalism, there has been a dramatic increase in the number of ways a companys reputation can be damaged. However, the tools and levels of effort business leaders use to manage their reputations are lagging, heightening such risk. Despite the fact that damage to reputation is cited as the No.1 Business Risk, the survey shows that 40% of businesses are unprepared to deal with a major reputational crisis. While some brands may have cookie-cutter plans in place for dealing with a crisis of reputation, few have thoroughly interrogated and documented all the potential risks and scenarios they could face. In fact, few have made a distinction between crisis communications - the what is said, to whom, when and why and managing stakeholder perceptions - versus crisis management - the all-important logistics and background work across multiple departments to sort the mess out. Most simply view crisis communications and management as one big amorphous mass. For those endowed with a greater appreciation of the power of words and communication, theyve intrinsically known the value of reputation since forever. But it took a few monumental gaffs to make financial executives realise that there simply is no line item on the financial statements that can calculate the true monetary value of trust, which is after all what reputation is about. Until the paw-paw hits the fan, that is! Then the realisation that broken trust equates to lost sales and dismal turnover manifests faster than a VW can dodge an emissions test! The reality is, in our hyper-connected society, there has been a dramatic increase in the number of ways a companys reputation can be damaged. But none of these should come as a complete surprise. A tsunami might be a surprise because you were expecting fire and brimstone instead, but then, you would still have your natural catastrophe recovery plans in place which would work for either scenario. However, product recalls, data breaches, offensive language or slurs on social media, in the workplace or customer communication, fraud, money laundering, system crashes, inappropriate remarks or behaviour by company executives and supply chain disruptions cannot be on your list of unexpected incidents. And yes, there is insurance cover available to manage such a reputational crisis, but insurers expect clients to have proper plans and resources in place at the outset. The reality is that while insurance can cover the immediate costs of resourcing the response and crisis management campaign, can you really quantify the value - current and in the future - of lost clientele, patronage and respect from public, shareholders and the media? As Aon says in its risk report, companies need to treat damage to their reputations as understandable and even predictable challenges that one should expect in todays business environment. As a final parting thought, there are more than enough factors outside of your control that can impact on your brands reputation that will demand your attention and resources. So walk the fine line, keep your promises and always behave in an ethical manner towards your clients, suppliers and stakeholders. Do that and you will have removed at least 80% of the serious risks that can blow your hard-earned reputation to pieces. Behave like a rogue and no amount of reputation management is going to save you from a public execution. In honour of World Day of Social Justice, commemorated annually on 20 February, LexisNexis South Africa has reinstated a partnership with the Women's Legal Centre, (WLC), a non-profit law centre that seeks to achieve equality for women - particularly black women. LexisNexis SA originally sponsored the WLC with access to MyLexisNexis online solutions from 2009 to 2011. This sponsorship was reinstated earlier this year - but with an upgraded package consisting of six user licences, valued at R210,000. Senior litigation secretary at the WLC, Ingrid Johnson, said their internal legal personnel made extensive use of the packages, which the WLC would not be able to afford without sponsored access. As we are an impact litigation centre, our work often entails extensive research on case law, which is a fundamental part of the cases taken on by the centre. Access to case law "By having access to LexisNexis reliable legal resources, we are able to obtain case law and research for use in our submissions to court which in turn has led the court to grant favourable judgments. Positive judgments further impact on improving legislation in our country for women and girl children who are often severely affected by inequality," she said. Notable work by WLC includes a contribution to a clause on forced sterilisation to the National Contraception Policy and Clinical Guidelines, which held that coercive sterilisation is against the law. Furthermore, the organisation represented Her Rights Initiative (HRI) in 2012 at the Commission for Gender Equality in relation to its research report detailing the practice of coerced sterilisation of HIV positive women. WLC is a member of the Expert Group of the SA National AIDS Council Women's Sector Focus Group and a provider of legal support to the Amanitare Sexual Rights Network for Womens Health. The organisation also provides legal support to Marie Stopes South Africas work in womens health. Underlying purpose Billy Last, CEO of LexisNexis South Africa, said the company was passionate about providing products and services that enabled its partners to operate more effectively, efficiently and transparently. Anything we undertake as a company is founded on our underlying global purpose and responsibility of advancing the Rule of Law across the world. "This partnership is a true example of the value we see in partnering with legal and law enforcement role players, anti-human trafficking organisations and community upliftment projects to make a positive impact on society and pursue sustainable social, political and economic progress that is founded on the Rule of Law." We also feel it is equally as important for us to support and involve our employees, so that they can help improve the lives of their surrounding communities, he said. Avoiding an investment downgrade, boosting revenue collection and announcing further cost-containment measures in the public sector are among the expected features in Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan's Budget Speech, later today. The Minister will table the budget in Parliament at 2pm. Denis Raev via 123RF Following President Jacob Zumas State of the Nation Address on 11 February, the Minister has said that the country would have to wait for the Budget Speech to hear what government will do to avoid an investment downgrade. Avoiding a sovereign downgrade In his reply to his State of the Nation Address debate, the President said avoiding a sovereign downgrade was a top priority, and that after fruitful meetings, both government and CEOs of top companies agreed that a solid partnership was required between the two sectors in order to stimulate investment. Stimulating investment is key to keeping South Africas economy in a good state and government has announced the opening of Invest SA, a one-stop-shop aimed at removing bottlenecks to make doing business easy for investors. While there are global pressures, including a slump in commodity prices that has affected emerging markets, President Zuma urged all sectors of the economy to focus on addressing domestic constraints like energy, among others. Business partnerships Minister Gordhan said business partnerships remain one of the key steps towards ensuring the economy does not take a further knock. we are making every effort to partner with the business sector, to get an understanding with trade unions as well, and basically send a message to all of South Africa we are in this together - it is not just governments job to save the ratings. If you want to improve the investment climate, all of us need to talk positively about South Africa and work as one team. I think the president gave important leadership today, he said, in reaction to the Presidents State of the Nation Address. President Zuma during his speech said that to further curb wastage, several public sector areas of spending, including post-budget vote gala dinners, amongst others, will no longer be held. He said the Finance Minister would announce further measures in this regard. Ratings agencies, meanwhile, are expected to also use the Finance Ministers budget to pronounce on the countrys fiscal stability going forward. Consumers will have their eyes glued to any proposed changes to the tax regime, from personal income tax to 'sin' taxes. South Africa and the United States have resolved all outstanding issues relating to agricultural imports from the US. This, according to Telecommunications and Postal Services Minister Siyabonga Cwele, has paved the way for the continuation of African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) benefits for South Africa's agricultural exports into the US market. "South Africa is working with the relevant stakeholders to facilitate the first shipment of US poultry imports under the agreed quota," Minister Cwele said at the International Cooperation, Trade and Security cluster briefing on Tuesday. AGOA is a legislation that provides duty-free market access to the US for qualifying sub-Saharan African countries by extending preferences on more than 4,600 products. Minister Cwele said South Africa and the US have recommitted themselves to work towards resolving issues affecting South Africa's agricultural exports to the US. The affected agricultural exports include, among others, citrus, avocadoes, litchis, beef, mutton and racehorses. AGOA was re-authorised in June 2015 for 10 years until 2025, with South Africa's inclusion. This move, Minister Cwele said, will secure continued market access for South African products, including in value-added generating sectors such as agriculture and automobiles. "The renewal of AGOA beyond September 2015 and a pledge to support African-led peace initiatives in the continent are among the significant outcomes of the US-Africa Leadership Summit held in the US last year." Mandela Washington Fellowship Meanwhile, the cluster said government is looking into having an engagement with the US embassy with regard to the Mandela Washington Fellowship for Young African Leaders. The cluster, however, did not give timeframes for the engagement. State Security Minister David Mahlobo said the programme, which began in 2014 as the flagship programme of President Barack Obama's Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI), remains important. He said when African leaders met under the auspices of the US-Africa Leaders' Summit in Washington, concerns were raised that in as much as the programme is very important, it must be done working hand-in-hand with African governments. "We remain ready to engage with them in terms of mutual respect. If there are matters of concern, we should be able to raise them," Minister Mahlobo said. He said Pretoria's relationship with Washington remains strong and cordial. Corobrik has announced the finalists from eight South African universities who will compete for the national title at the 29th Corobrik Student Architect of the Year Awards in Johannesburg on 11 May 2016. Competing for the accolade are: Leon van der Westhuizen from the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University in Port Elizabeth. The thesis title is 'RE-generating the Boet Erasmus Stadium in Port Elizabeth'. The project is concerned with issues pertaining to the impact of derelict sites on ecological systems and the opportunities presented by these for the restoration and regeneration of damaged ecosystems - socio-economically, culturally and physically," Van der Westhuizen says. Ulrich Pieterse from the Tshwane University of Technology. His thesis is titled 'The design of an institute for the documentation of fossil heritage in Nieu Bethesda, Karoo'. This dissertation deals with the making of a palaeontological research and display centre to document fossils from the Nieu Bethesda area and the Karoo at large. The project acts as catalyst for the creation of a satellite campus for the use by South African universities and scientists. The purpose of the facility is to study prehistoric biodiversity and geology and to understand how and why mass extinctions occur. Matthew Mills from the University of Cape Town. His thesis title is 'Transurbance: a walk about the river'. Mills believes the cities in which we live are designed to be technically enhanced but consist of functionally isolated systems that bear no relevance to the living environment. Paarden Eiland in Cape Town is an area that exemplifies a disconnected and disjointed environment. The focus of his project is on a portion of Salt River, which runs through Paarden Eiland and reaches its mouth surrounded by industrial factories. Jaco Jonker from the University of Johannesburg. His thesis is titled 'The Plug-In Plantation - Reforestation and industrialisation of the Nasrec precinct through the implementation of a new timber mill industry'. Jonkers thesis explores how an important part of Johannesburgs southern reef band, the Nasrec Precinct, can reduce direct and secondary impacts of soil erosion, heavy-metal toxins, and rampart water evaporation from increasingly frequent dust storms along the engineered mine dumps in the area. In order to do this, the project envisioned how existing 'thirsty' Eucalyptus tree groves in the area can be replaced with more sustainable varieties of Conifer tree plantations. Najeeba Hassim from the University of KwaZulu-Natal. The thesis title is 'Defining an architectural typology: Inner City Green Centres within South Africa'. Hassim proposes an environmental research facility in KwaZulu-Natal to address threatened natural resources. She says this does not seem to be high in priority in most city projects within South Africa. The Green Centre is located within a dynamic context of light industrial, commercial and environmental nodes, sits along the edge of the Umgeni River, in Briardene. Gillian van der Klashorst from the University of Pretoria. Her thesis title is 'Urban Observatory - Re-introducing Observation and Measurement to reveal the invisible city'. The Johannesburg Observatory site, situated on the highest point of the Witwatersrand, exhibits a history of the application of different types of viewing. It is not used as the night sky has been obscured by the citys artificial radiance and pollution. The site is analysed with the aim of re-interpreting a weather station and astronomical observatory paying tribute to the historic value. Nilene van Niekerk from the University of the Free State. The title of her thesis is Freedom of Expression Forum. Van Niekerk says the project developed by examining the Secrecy Bill. This led to an investigation into the intimidation of journalists by the controversial Secrecy Bill. Although freedom of expression and the press are generally protected practices in South Africas constitution, the persistent role of the government to protect state information, is a substantial threat to citizens constitutional right of freedom of expression. This inevitably influenced the idea of creating a Freedom of Expression Forum within the direct vicinity of Constitutional Hill in Johannesburg. The tower provides protection to journalists, becomes a pivotal point where classified information can be sent to and archived, as well as establishing a public space that encourages communication. Vedhant Maharaj from the University of Witwatersrand. The thesis title is 'YANTRA. Infrastructures of the Sacred and Profane.' Located on the edge of the River Ganga in Varanasi, India, YANTRA proposes a water purification infrastructure for an ecological life force which has become hazardously polluted. The project responds to the biomedical requirements of the treatment infrastructure and designs it into the rich socio-cultural fabric of one of Indias most sacred cities. Connecting your smartphone to the web with just a lamp - that is the promise of Li-Fi, featuring Internet access 100 times faster than Wi-Fi with revolutionary wireless technology. Alexander Kirch via 123RF French startup Oledcomm demonstrated the technology at the Mobile World Congress, the world's biggest mobile fair, in Barcelona. As soon as a smartphone was placed under an office lamp, it started playing a video. Digital equivalent of Morse Code The big advantage of Li-Fi, short for 'light fidelity', is its lightning speed. Laboratory tests have shown theoretical speeds of over 200 Gbps - fast enough to "download the equivalent of 23 DVDs in one second", the founder and head of Oledcomm, Suat Topsu, told AFP. "Li-Fi allows speeds that are 100 times faster than Wi-Fi" which uses radio waves to transmit data, he added. The technology uses the frequencies generated by LED bulbs - which flicker on and off imperceptibly thousands of times a second - to beam information through the air, leading it to be dubbed the "digital equivalent of Morse Code". It started making its way out of laboratories in 2015 to be tested in everyday settings in France, a Li-Fi pioneer, such as a museums and shopping malls. It has also seen test runs in Belgium, Estonia and India. Dutch medical equipment and lighting group Philips is reportedly interested in the technology and Apple may integrate it in its next smartphone, the iPhone7, due out at the end of the year, according to tech media. Connected objects With analysts predicting the number of objects that are connected to the internet soaring to 50 million by 2020 and the spectrum for radio waves used by Wi-Fi in short supply, Li-Fi offers a viable alternative, according to its promoters. "We are going to connect our coffee machine, our washing machine, our toothbrush. But you can't have more than ten objects connected in Bluetooth or Wi-Fi without interference," said Topsu. Deepak Solanki, the founder and chief executive of Estonian firm Velmenni which tested Li-fi in an industrial space last year, told AFP he expected that "two years down the line the technology can be commercialised and people can see its use at different levels." Analysts said it was still hard to say if Li-Fi will become the new Wi-Fi. "It is still a laboratory technology," said Frederic Sarrat, an analyst and consultancy firm PwC. Much will depend on how Wi-Fi evolves in the coming years, said Gartner chief analyst Jim Tully. "Wi-Fi has shown a capability to continuously increase its communication speed with each successive generation of the technology," he told AFP. Drawbacks Li-fi has its drawbacks - it only works if a smartphone or other device is placed directly in the light and it cannot travel through walls. This restricts its use to smaller spaces, but Tully said this could limit the risk of data theft. "Unlike Wi-Fi, Li-Fi can potentially be directed and beamed at a particular user in order to enhance the privacy of transmissions," he said. Backers of Li-Fi say it would also be ideal in places where Wi-Fi is restricted to some areas such as schools and hospitals. "Li-fi has a place in hospitals because it does not create interference with medical materials," said Joel Denimal, head of French lighting manufacturer Coolight. In supermarkets it could be used to give information about a product, or in museums about a painting, by using lamps placed nearby. It could also be useful on aircrafts, in underground garages and any place where lack of Internet connection is an issue. But Li-Fi also requires that devices be equipped with additional technology such as a card reader, or dongle, to function. This gives it a "cost disadvantage", said Tully. Source: AFP The Outdoor Advertising Association of America (OAAA) recognises creative excellence in the out of home (OOH) medium through its OBIE awards. The finalists have been selected for the 74th competition and will be announced at a gala event on 19 April 2016, as part of the TAB/OAAA Out of Home Media Conference & Expo in Boca Raton, Florida, US. The OBIE Hall of Fame Award, established in 1992 to reward brands that have exemplified long-standing distinction in using the OOH medium, will go this year to Corona Extra. Since its introduction in the US in 1981, the brands use of OOH ads has helped it to become the fastest-growing imported beer in US history. Using simple tropical imagery, applied to daily routines, Corona embraces the medium to inspire a welcome interruption to our busy days, says Stephen Freitas, OAAA chief marketing officer. OBIE is a reference to the Egyptian obelisk, thought by some historians to be the first form of advertising. Primedia Outdoors marketing and marketing sales executive, Terry Murphy, says, The awards celebrate some of the worlds best outdoor campaigns. They both inspire and set a standard for future campaigns conducted using out of home advertising. The trend of increasing integration of OOH with digital technology is likewise on the rise locally. The ability of digital technology to galvanise out of homes inherent strengths is driving a renaissance in OOH. Nurlan Urazbaev, editor-in-chief of Digital Signage Pulse, notes, The 108 nominated campaigns demonstrate the myriad ways that simplicity can be captured and expressed through the OOH medium, singling out McDonalds Endless Refreshment campaign as an example. This shows the fast food brands red and yellow straw, emblazoned as an infinity sign against its characteristic red background. Another contender is Apples shot on iPhone 6 campaign, which selected 162 photographs taken by a global public using the iPhone 6. These were used on more than 10,000 billboards across 25 countries to make the largest mobile photo gallery in history. Along with the beauty and simplicity demonstrated by the finalists, there is an increasing integration of OOH and digital technology, which allows greater opportunities to personalise interactions with consumers. Marcolins GUESS Eyewear engaged consumers in a unique interactive way, using custom iPad additions at mall kiosks that enabled consumers to take a selfie and try on sunglasses while viewing the ad. Yet another finalist, JetBlue, created an interactive trivia game hosted within a custom-built fuselage. Mall shoppers were challenged to select the correct city from a multiple choice list corresponding with the aerial view to win a roundtrip ticket sweepstakes, he concludes. Read the full article here and view the full list of finalists. Merck ( www.Merckgroup.com ), a leading science and technology company, have announced the launch of its second "Merck More than a Mother" campaign in Africa for the first time in Uganda as part of the Merck Capacity Advancement Program. The campaign was first implemented in Kenya in 2015 and will be implemented this year in Uganda, in collaboration with the Ministry of Health, Africa Fertility Society (AFS) and the Uganda Women Parliamentary Association, and progressively rolled-out in more African countries. Hon. Sarah Opendi and Rasha Kelej, Chief social Officer of Merck giving a wooden shield In some cultures, childless women still suffer discrimination, stigma and ostracism. As such, a central difficulty associated with infertility is that it can transform from an acute, private distress into a harsh public stigma with complex and devastating consequences. An inability to have a child or to become pregnant can result in being greatly isolated, disinherited or assaulted. This may result in divorce or physical and psychological violence. Therefore this campaign is very important for Africa since it aims to define interventions to reduce the stigma and social suffering of infertile women across the continent, said Rasha Kelej, chief social officer, Merck Healthcare. The Ugandan Minister of State and Health, Hon. Sarah Opendi emphasised during her speech at the campaign: We are happy to partner with reputable and innovative companies such as Merck. We believe that improving access to regulated and equitable fertility care is important, but it is even more important to intervene to decrease stigmatisation and social suffering arising from this condition. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), lower levels of development are thought to be associated with higher levels of non-genetic and preventable causes of infertility such as poor nutrition, untreated sexually transmitted infections (STIs), unsafe abortion, consequence of infections caused by the practice of female genital mutilation, exposure to smoking and to leaded petrol and other environmental pollutants. Hence prevention awareness is very important, Opendi added. The campaign will provide training for embryologists and education for healthcare providers and will also support governments to define policies to improve access to safe and effective fertility care, address the need for interventions to reduce stigmatisation and social suffering of infertile women and raise awareness about male infertility and the necessity for a team approach to family building among couples. Themed "Together we can create a culture shift, the Merck More than a Mother social media campaign will challenge the social and cultural perception of infertile women in Africa. Moreover it will raise awareness about male infertility, prevention of infertility and infertility management at large. Dr. James Olobo-Lalobo, Vice-President of Africa Fertility Society stressed: Through this historic campaign, Merck More than a Mother, we will challenge the perception about infertile women, their roles and worth in society, both within and beyond the medical profession in order to achieve any systemic shift in the current culture of gender discrimination in the context of fertility care. Through this campaign Merck, a pioneer in reproductive health, will address together with local stakeholders, the key challenges that are associated with resource-constrained settings such as prevention of infertility, education and self-development, regulation of assisted reproductive technology (ART) and in-vitro fertilization (IVF), geographic barriers, reproductive rights and over-population and limited resources arguments. Group photo with Fertility patients and Minister of Health , Sarah opendi, Hon. Bety Amongi, MP Dr. Oladapo Adenrele Ashiru, President of Africa Fertility Society explained: In Nigeria where I practice, infertility is caused by infections in over 85% of women, like in the rest of Africa, compared to 33% worldwide which emphasises the importance of prevention programmes in Africa. Therefore our partnership with Merck is very essential to address this sensitive topic for the first time in the continent. We are going to host this important campaign in Nigeria and many other African countries this year, he added. During the event, Merck announced the appointment of Hon. Sarah Opendi, Ugandas Minister of State of Health, to be the ambassador of Merck More Than a Mother in Uganda in recognition for her support and efforts to reduce the stigma of infertility and raise awareness about the condition in the country. At the launch event, Merck awarded Berna Amulen, a Ugandan woman, who openly shared her story of stigmatisation and suffering for being infertile. The award was in recognition of her courage in creating awareness and sharing her devastating experience so that no other woman would suffer the same. Hon. Joyce Lay, Member of Parliament and ambassador of the campaign in Kenya, has joined hands with Uganda Ministry of Health and Uganda Women Parliamentary Association to raise awareness about male infertility. Lay emphasised: In order to improve access to safe and effective fertility care, a discussion with the relevant authorities will be needed to discuss the strengthening of infertility services, education, auditing, regulation, community awareness and the need to integrate them in programs which already exist in the local health infrastructure. Kelej urged the Ugandan stakeholders to join the social media campaign in order to reduce the stigma of infertility, create awareness and define interventions to improve access to better fertility care in Africa. Let your voice heard and lets work together to create a culture shift, Kelej added. Take a moment and watch these two videos of infertile women sharing their experience of stigma and social suffering in Uganda: To read more about Merck More than a mother concept and objectives please click here. Distributed by APO (African Press Organization) on behalf of Merck KGaA. It looks like you have reached this page in error ... The content you are looking for has either moved, or if you typed in the address there might have been a mistake. If you believe there has been a technical error please let us know. Most Popular Destinations In their quest to place as many nonsensical restrictions on clinics that provide abortion as possible, Republicans in Alabama have moved beyond unnecessary licensing requirements to challenging the physical location of clinics. State Senator Paul Sanford (R) has introduced a bill that would prohibit clinics from operating in close proximity to schools. If that sounds a little too familiar to restrictions placed on sex offenders, that's exactly what he has in mind. Said Sanford: We can put a restriction on whether a liquor store opens up across the street and make sure pedophiles stay away from schools, I just think having an abortion clinic that close to elementary-age school children that actually have to walk on the sidewalk past it is not the best thing. Ironically, the clinic at the center of the debate in Alabama was moved closer to a school because a previous anti-abortion law passed by the state legislature forced the clinic to move there. They are legislating abortion out of existence without outright banning it and lying through their teeth along the way. State Senator Sanford claims reducing the number of clinics in the state is not his goal, but that is what his legislation will accomplish. Republicans love Red Tape and regulation as long as it's directed at women. (h/t: Reality Check) Ohio governor and Republican presidential candidate John Kasich was confronted by a voter who identified herself as a student nurse at a town all meeting at George Mason University (GMU) yesterday who wanted to know why he signed the bill to defund Planned Parenthood. Kasich's response was just about the most hollow hogwash you can imagine. As a future nurse, I recognize that primary care and prevention is the most cost-effective health care for our nation, she continued. But we are also facing an STD epidemic. Planned Parenthoods largest percentage of services are toward STD treatment and prevention. Can you please tell me the economic and public health benefit of defunding an organization that has treated over 4 million people seeking STD services this last year? [...] On Monday, Kasich also appeared to use [heavily edited smear videos] as reason for defunding the organization, saying Planned Parenthood had discredited itself and that other womens health centers would be funded instead. We consider womens health to be critical, he said, but you dont have to be captive towards delivering it through an organization that frankly is largely discredited. Planned Parenthood has apparently "discredited itself" by being the victim of a goddamn hoax that Kasich's own administration could not find evidence of. The Ohio state attorney general's office investigated Planned Parenthood and found no evidence that their clinics were selling body parts in some kind of black market bazaar. Ohio is hardly alone. A dozen states have investigated Planned Parenthood and turned up exactly jack shit. Some states have actually been ordered to reimburse Planned Parenthood for legal costs incurred while fighting this hoax. The organization has only been discredited insofar as John Kasich says they have. This ridiculous position is not reflected by a single poll of public opinion and it certainly isn't reflected by empirical reality. Even if it were true that Planned Parenthood had been "discredited," that would not serve as a valid reason to effectively punish their patients who rely on the organization for a host of services none of which include abortion. Only three Planned Parenthood clinics in Ohio provide abortion services. None of them have ever participated in a fetal tissue research program. Senate Republicans have reportedly agreed that they should not and will not hold a vote or even a hearing for President Obama's nomination for the Supreme Court. "No hearing, no votes," Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-South Carolina, a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, told reporters after members of the panel met with Senate GOP leaders in Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell's, R-Kentucky, office. Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn, R-Texas, echoed Graham: "No hearings." It's fitting that the Obama era will conclude in this manner because this is exactly how it began. A little over 7 years ago Mitch McConnell held a secret meeting with his colleagues where they pledged to make President Obama a one term president. That didn't work out for them so well and I don't believe it will this time. We knew this was coming, right? Without even taking time to review and consider it, much less hold a hearing, House Republicans have announced that they will block the president's plan to close the prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. In the event that Congressional Republicans cannot scrounge enough votes to accomplish their goal, they're also preparing to take legal action. Ryan told reporters that lawmakers have the votes to block Obama's plan in Congress and enough votes to override any veto. Separately, the Wisconsin Republican said the GOP is "preparing our legal challenge" to ensure the prison remains open and detainees aren't moved to the U.S. Earlier this month, House Republicans awarded the Jones Day law firm with a $150,000 contract to perform the legal work in case Obama tries to move Guantanamo detainees to federal prisons. I believe this will end with the prison remaining open for the next president to deal with. The only question I have is how useful idiots in the media and the far left will spin this. After faintly praising the president for unveiling a plan, will they now go back to pretending he never cared about closing the prison? Will they selectively forget Congress has blocked closure every single year with this year being no different? Will they resume their two-term habit of blaming him for Republican (and some Democratic) intransigence? If they don't, I'll eat my hat. To be clear, some Republicans who've previously pretended to be in favor of closing the prison, such as John McCain, are now saying they oppose the president's plan because it isn't "detailed" enough, but if that is true there is a very good reason for it. What the president's plan lacks in detail can be directly attributed to laws passed by Congress. Navy Cmdr. Gary Ross, a Pentagon spokesman, said the administration was adhering to Sec. 1032 of the NDAA. "We are constrained by law from undertaking design or detailed planning for a U.S.-based facility, which hinders our ability to develop precise cost estimates. However, we reviewed a number of possible locations," Ross told CQ. "Rather than initiate a debate about the merits of any particular location, we believe it is important to seek a dialogue with Congress and establish parameters for a U.S.-based detention facility." In the words, the language Republicans in Congress have added to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) in previous years to block the closure of the prison has made it that much more difficult to even come up a plan to close the prison. (Cartoonist - John Darkow) In other news, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) says he will not even talk to a supreme court nominee because Mitch McConnell is 5 years old. Meanwhile, the CDC now says up to 14 out of 90 (so far) Zika virus cases in the U.S. can be linked to sexual activity which is apparently far more than they expected. And finally, I'm sure it won't come as a big surprise but congressional Republicans have already come out against President Obama's plan to close the prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. A lot of useful idiots in the media have faintly praised the president for "finally" releasing a plan today without immediately acknowledging that Congress has blocked closure every single year of his presidency. I don't expect this year will be any different. Puerto Rico released a draft version of its fiscal year 2014 comprehensive annual financial report to improve its chances of getting help from the United States government. The commonwealth government released the report Tuesday night in response to repeated calls by Republicans in the U.S. Congress and others to release an audited CAFR for fiscal 2014. Congress is considering measures including bankruptcy authority for Puerto Rico and creation of a federal fiscal control board to help handle the island's financial crisis. Gov. Alejandro Garcia Padilla said the Congress has enough data to justify a response, even though audited numbers aren't yet available. "Denying any congressional assistance to Puerto Rico on the basis that the commonwealth has not issued audited financial statement is simply an excuse for inaction," he said. "The commonwealth has provided an unprecedented amount of reliable and up-to-date financial information regarding the depth and imminent nature of Puerto Rico's debt crisis." After a hearing Tuesday on reasons for the delay, the Puerto Rico Senate press office sent out a release quoting a representative of auditing firm KPMG saying the audited CAFR was still six to seven weeks away. Fiscal Year 2014 ended at the end of June 30, 2014. Most states get their CAFR's in within five to 12 months after the end of the fiscal year. "It's been a real challenge to obtain verifiable financial information from Puerto Rico," U.S. Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, chair of the Senate Finance Committee and a member of the Judiciary Committee, said in an email to The Bond Buyer. "The territory has taken positive steps forward," he said. "I plan to review the unaudited statements in their entirety, but I also hope the government of Puerto Rico fulfills my request for detailed audited financial statements as well as information regarding the territory's public pension plans and other budgeting issues. "As any entity that borrows with federal tax preference understands, unaudited statements or reports from groups hired by the government, complete with disclaimers against assured accuracy, are no substitute for audited, verifiable information," Hatch said. In presenting the draft CAFR, Garcia Padilla said, "the commonwealth has reiterated the critical need for Congress to provide Puerto Rico with a broad restructuring framework to address its unsustainable debt burden. The risk of Congress not providing such framework - which costs nothing to U.S. taxpayers - is condemning Puerto Rico to a legal morass that will jeopardize essential services for U.S. citizens living in Puerto Rico, further accelerate out-migration to the U.S. mainland and severely impair creditors' ability to recover on their claims." The draft CAFR focuses on fiscal year 2014, though it includes information on what has happened since and the commonwealth's current situation. The draft shows a widening in the net deficit position of the commonwealth's "primary government" to $49.2 billion as of June 30, 2014 from $46.7 billion a year earlier. Its "governmental activities" net deficit position widened to $50 billion from $47.5 billion in the same period. "The commonwealth currently faces a severe fiscal and liquidity crisis, the culmination of many years of significant governmental deficits, a prolonged economic recession (which commenced in 2006), high unemployment, population decline, and high levels of debt and pension obligations," said Treasury Secretary Juan Zaragoza in a statement that accompanied the draft CAFR. "If management is unable to complete [a debt] restructuring by the end of fiscal year 2016, or to otherwise obtain additional funding or other arrangements with its creditors, the commonwealth's management expects that the commonwealth and various instrumentalities will be unable to comply with their scheduled debt obligations," according to the draft CAFR. Ryan McDonald, an analyst at BlackRock, said the unaudited report confirmed much that was already known regarding the Commonwealth's challenged financial position. "As expected, the General Fund deficit was $1.2 billion as the Commonwealth had previously disclosed," he wrote in an email. The report may help investors determine the size of the consolidated commonwealth deficit as of FY2014, he said. "However, as the information is nearly two years old at this point and the commonwealth's fiscal picture continues to evolve, the report's value is somewhat limited," McDonald said. "The focus of the crisis has shifted to Washington where the size and scope of possible federal government intervention will define the next phase for Puerto Rico." Arturo Porzecanski, distinguished economist in residence at American University, noted the draft CAFR maps out Puerto Rico's government. "You just look at [the CAFR] and one wants to shoot oneself," he said in a phone interview. "One could not create a more complex [government] structure if one tried." If the release of the draft CAFR doesn't lead to a federal financial control board for Puerto Rico to simplify and reform the government, "than I don't know what it will take," Porzecanski said. Also on Tuesday, Gov. Garcia Padilla signed a bill reforming the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority. This was another step forward in a negotiated deal that would restructure roughly $8.4 billion of PREPA debt. Jack Casey contributed to this story. WASHINGTON The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority ordered George K. Baum & Co. to pay $270,000 for charging a Colorado school district more than four times the firm's normal underwriting fee, partly to pay for costs associated with promoting bond ballot initiatives. The Kansas City, Mo-based underwriter, without admitting or denying FINRA's findings that it charged the district $43 per $1,000 of bonds issued for a total fee of $416,173.59, consented to the $100,000 fine and the order to pay the school district $170,000 in ill-gotten gains. Andrew Sears, executive vice president and general counsel for Baum, declined to comment on the matter. FINRA found that Baum had told the district in a December 2010 memo sent before the February 2011 offering of $9.67 million of general obligation bonds that the typical fee for the offering was much lower, at between $7 and $9 per $1,000 of bonds issued. FINRA said Baum violated the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board's Rule G-17 on fair dealing for charging a fee that was "inappropriate" and "disproportionate," given the facts of the offering. While FINRA did not name the school district in its action, EMMA documents suggest that it is Adams County School District 1 in Colorado, known as Mapleton Public Schools. Documents show the school district issued $9.67 million of GOs in February 2011 and that the bonds were underwritten by Baum, which took $416,173.59 in underwriting fees -- the same information cited by FINRA. School district officials could not be reached for comment. The path to the large underwriter discount Baum received for the deal began in December 2007 when the firm started assisting the district in obtaining voter approval for a proposed bond issue of $65 million. If voters approved the bond issue, the firm was to underwrite it. That issue and another one planned for June 2009 were voted down despite Baum's work with the district. In an effort to get the desired financing, the school district eventually applied to a state program for financing and, in 2010, was able to get the state to agree to match funds the district raised. In November 2010, voters gave their approval for the school district to issue $31,705,000 in debt with $22,035,000 paid through the state program. The district then selected Baum to underwrite the remaining $9.67 million of bonds and was charged the $43 per $1,000 of bonds issued fee. In a memo to the district superintendent in December 2010, Baum gave multiple justifications for its high fee, including that it was appropriate because it had originally believed it would be underwriting $64 million instead of $9.67 million of bonds. The firm also cited its prior work on the unsuccessful ballot initiatives and took credit for the district's success in the 2010 bond election, even though that success was in part because of the district's participation in the state program, FINRA said. Additionally, Baum told the district that its higher fee was necessary because it was only serving as a co-manager on the state program financing and would have received higher compensation if it had been a senior manager. FINRA found those justifications "were not appropriate given the facts and circumstances of the 2011 offering." Muni market participants and regulators have been concerned for several years that some dealer firms are contributing to bond ballot campaigns in return for obtaining the underwriting business that results if voters approve the bonds. At least a dozen Wall Street and other firms and some of their executives have urged the MSRB to severely restrict such contributions to prevent pay-to-play practices, much like it restricted dealer and muni advisor contributions to issuer officials under Rule G-37. But so far, the MSRB has only required dealers to disclose bond ballot contributions as well as the deals they underwrite. The MSRB initially began collecting quarterly dealer disclosures detailing contributions to bond ballot campaigns in 2010. Changes to Rule G-37 required firms to disclose contributions over $250 made to political action committees that were formed to raise money for ballot initiatives in states like California where voter approval is required for bond sales. In 2013, the SEC approved expanding G-37 to require dealers to make public the timing of their contributions, the identity of the issuer of the voter-approved bonds, and any related underwriting activity. In January of this year, California Attorney General Kamala Harris issued an opinion that said in part that it is illegal in California for school and community college districts to purposely incentivize municipal finance professionals with the promise of business if they advocate for passage of bond ballot initiatives. A 2014 study by Todd Ely, a professor in the School of Public Affairs at the University of Colorado Denver, and Thad Calabrese, a professor in New York University's Wagner School of Public Service, found that the underwriters that contributed to campaigns in California received higher fees in their deals and generally saw an average rate of return of $1.70 for every dollar they contributed. The study observed California underwriting activity between 2007 and 2012 and concluded the bump in fees was likely because underwriters were recouping their contributions to bond ballot initiatives. Another study, by Marc Joffe of Public Sector Credit Solutions, examined more than 800 bond deals since 2012 and found that issuance costs averaged 1.02%, but ranged to about 10% for some California school districts. The 2015 study, published by the Haas Institute for a Fair and Inclusive Society at the University of California-Berkeley, also found that underwriter discounts made up the largest amount of total issuance costs for municipal entities. Additional data Joffe shared with The Bond Buyer showed the underwriter discount as a percentage of the face amount of the issuance exceeded 2% in a number of issuances. Supporters of the Muslim Brotherhood stand next to the bodies of fellow protesters killed in clashes with Republican Guards forces, at a hospital morgue in Cairo, Egypt, on July 8. Clashes between Islamist protesters and the army in Cairo erupted at dawn killing at least 42 and injuring 322 others, according a health official. Fighting broke out when an armed group attempted to storm the Republican Guards club, where the ousted president Mohamed Morsi is thought to be held by the army. The violence amplifies the conflict between the army and supporters of the Muslim Brotherhood group, who vowed to continue demonstrating until he is restored to power. (Mohammed Saber/European Pressphoto Agency) # The Africa Union (AU) representative at SADC, Dr Alhaji Sarjoh Bah leaves the regional economic bloc headquarters at the end of February a happy man, knowing that the AU-SADC partnership is at an all-time high. Bah, who came to SADC specifically to set up office in November 2012, boasts of successfully meeting his mandate as the AU office is now fully functional and recognised in the SADC region. Among the highlights of his term of office is that response tool for the AU and the Regional Economic Communities under the African Peace and Security Architecture (APSA) successfully hosted an exercise called AMANI AFRICA II. However, what would have been a great celebration is spoiled by the Lesotho government led by Dr. Phakalitha Bethuel Mosisili as they are still to comply with all the efforts made thus far in order to bring the situation in that country to normalcy. Asked to state his views on what action has to be taken in order to normalise the situation in Lesotho, Bah, who is a diplomat of note, said that AU has provided political support to SADC on Lesotho. But looking at the present situation, AU may need to scale up its engagement as it was the case with Madagascar so as to help resolve the current impasse, he said. Speaking to the Botswana Guardian this week, Bah said the main objective for the establishment of the African Union (AU) liaison office to SADC was to promote and improve relations between the AU and SADC. The liaison office is established in accordance with the protocol relating to the sstablishment of the AU Peace and Security Council (PSC), which requires the PSC and the Chairperson of the commission to harmonise and coordinate the activities of Regional Mechanisms (RMs) in the field of peace, security and stability and to ensure that these activities are consistent with the objectives and principles of the Union as well as the Memorandum of Understanding on cooperation in the area of peace and security signed between the AU and the RECs- RMs in January 2008. He revealed that the opening of the Liaison Office is also in pursuance to the Protocol on Relations between the AU and the Regional Economic Communities (RECs) signed in 2008, where the AU pledged to open a liaison office at the headquarters of each REC to deal with all aspects of AU-RECs relations. Moreover, the AU liaison office to SADC is mandated to contribute in the full implementation of the African Peace and Security Architecture (APSA), as well as to strengthen cooperation and closely coordinate all the various AU and SADC activities, particularly in the areas of peace and security, and regional integration more broadly. Bah said the relationship between the AU-SADC and other regional economic communities is underpinned by the principles of subsidiarity, complementarity and division of labour. It would be recalled that SADC and the other regional economic communities such as Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) are the building blocs or pillars of the AU, so, improving the relationship between these organisations is a critical factor in the AUs quest for a prosperous and peaceful Africa, driven by its own people and occupying its rightful place in the international arena. AU- SADC accomplishments Bah is happy that so far the two organisations have achieved a lot, key among them the improved communication, cooperation, collaboration and dialogue on a range of issues including peacemaking efforts in the region. AU and SADC successfully partnered in resolving the political and security crisis in Madagascar which had festered on for over six years. The country is now on the track to recovery and has been readmitted to both the AU and SADC after it was suspended following the military coup detat. AU- SADC on DRC AU supported and partnered with SADC in standing up and developing the Intervention Brigade which has been successful in neutralising the threats posed by some of the armed groups in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), most notably, the M23, which was defeated by the Intervention Brigade, which consists of three SADC Member states - Malawi, Tanzania and South Africa. Bah said that SADC initiated the idea of the Intervention Brigade (IB) in Eastern DRC. The IB is operated under the auspices of the United Nations Organisation Stabilisation Mission. (MUNUSCO) and the UN paid for the expenses. Currently the AU and SADC act as the guarantors of peace, security and stability framework for eastern DRC and the region. The framework provides the best opportunity to resolve the long-standing conflicts in DRC and the great Lakes region of Africa, according to Bah. AMANI AFRICA II During his term of office, AU and SADC jointly planned and hosted the first-ever continental military, police and civilian exercise, codenamed AMANI AFRICA II in Lohathla South Africa. The exercise, which was held in November last year brought together over 5,500 military, police and civilian personnel from across Africa with military hardware including aeroplanes, tanks, helicopters and other motorised armoured vehicles. The exercise was focused on testing the decision-making and employment of rapid deployment capability of the African Standby Force (ASF). The ASF is a key response tool for the AU and the Regional Economic Communities under the African Peace and Security Architecture (APSA). Following the successful exercise, Africa now has the capability to respond in a timely manner to situations of mass atrocities and, or genocide for as long as the political will to do so can be generated. Election Monitoring AU and SADC are increasingly working together in election monitoring and observation in the SADC region. The two organisations have fielded separate but well-coordinated elections observer missions for all elections in SADC including the general election in Botswana in 2014. The pronouncements by AU and SADC on the conduct and outcome of elections are increasingly becoming a litmus test of the credibility of elections in its member states. Their pronouncements also help to provide a sense of stability in situations where the parties dispute the outcomes. AU- SADC 2050 Bah pointed out that on broader integration issues, the AU and SADC are collaborating in harmonising the main provisions of the AUs Agenda 2063, especially the first ten-year plan with SADCs Vision 2050. Additionally, the two institutions are working on other joint efforts such as the recently launched negotiations for the Continental Free Trade Area (CFTA), Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP), and Programme for Infrastructure Development in Africa (PIDA), Campaign for Accelerated Reduction of Maternal Mortality in Africa (CARMA). Africa Day celebrations The AU liaison office in partnership with the African Diplomatic Corps in Botswana and with the Support of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation hosted the first-ever celebrations of Africa Day on 25 May 2014, in Botswana. Former Botswana president, Sir Ketumile Masire and representatives of the Botswana Government, the diplomatic community, the private sector and the media graced the event. Bah engaged the local media on the World programme to discuss the significance of Africa Day for Botswana and the continent as a whole. This is now an annual event that provides a unique opportunity to showcase the activities of the AU on the continent in furtherance of its continental integration agenda. Africa Against Ebola campaign The AU Liaison office with the support of Orange Botswana mounted a successful Africa Against Ebola campaign through SMS messages and other communication outlets. The Africa Against Ebola campaign raised awareness about the Ebola disease, addressed issues of stigmatisation and more critically, raised over P22, 000 which was collected by Botswana Communications Regulatory Authority (BOCRA) and transferred to the AU to support the over 1,000 medical volunteers who responded to the AUs calls for volunteers to stem the tide of the deadly virus. The three most affected countries namely Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone have all been declared Ebola free by the World Health Organisation and efforts are now underway to rebuild the public health and other response systems in those countries. The health volunteers personified the concept of being one brothers or sisters keeper as they marched into the battle knowing the potential deadly consequences to them but they were not deterred. The AU partnered with 10 Mobile Operators in 41 countries in Africa covering over 600 million African citizens in the campaign. The Africa-Against-Ebola campaign is perhaps the most spectacular successful African solidarity drive since the establishment of the OAU Liberation Committee for the Liberation of Southern Africa from white minority rule and apartheid. AU has access to SADC meetings Dr Bah leaves SADC a happy person, he says that currently improved confidence between the two institutions is demonstrated by the fact that AU representative has access at all levels to both open and closed sessions of all SADC statutory and non-statutory meetings be it officials, ministerial and heads of states summit. This was not the situation three years ago and it brought the two institutions closer together. Moreover, the AU is now starting to consult with SADC and other RECs as it develops the agenda for its bi-annual Summit of Heads of State and Government. This practice, if consolidated, would go a long way in promoting harmonisation of policies, programmes and activities, and would give the RECs a sense of ownership of the AUs continental programmes and activities Who is Dr Bah? Alhaji Sarjoh Bah is head of the AU liaison office to SADC. He was the lead facilitator of an executive Post-Graduate Programme at the Institute for Peace and Security Studies at Addis Ababa University. Bah was Senior Fellow at New York Universitys Center on International Cooperation where he served as programme coordinator of the peace operations and lead scholar and editor of the annual review of Global Peace Operations. He worked as a senior researcher at the Institute for Security Studies and was a guest lecturer at the Geneva Center for Security Policy (GCSP), and is on the editorial board of the African Security Review, Africas premier journal on peace and security. He has published widely on issues of peace and security and is the co-editor of A Tortuous Road to Peace The Dynamics of Regional, UN and International Humanitarian Interventions in Liberia, Institute for Security Studies: Pretoria, South Africa, 2005. He has been a consultant to several international organisations including the African Union, European Commission, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), Fundacionparalas Relaciones Internacionales y el Dialogo Exterior (FRIDE) and the Center for Humanitarian Dialogue among others. The anointed items are fast becoming idols among Christians. Some men of God are giving or selling out to unsuspecting and gullible followers anointed water, stickers, bracelets, handkerchiefs, underwears and what have you with the belief that they will receive miracles and breakthroughs. BG reporter YVONNE MOOKA writes. The miracles include jobs, marriages, favour, success, freedom from oppression of demons and generally, a happy stress free life for the purchaser of the anointed item. The most dangerous thing is that these anointed items are slowly and steadily taking the place of Christ in peoples lives, hence ending up as idols. People are told to use them whenever if they want to experience miracles or blessings from God, and it doesnt matter whether they are Christians or not, says Pastor Meshack Molatedi of Gospel of Christ church in Mahalapye. His observation is that the target is Christians who are still growing in the Lord or those that are still in the dark. Recently I met a sister who greatly boasted about a certain sticker bearing the face of a man of God. She spoke fondly of how powerful the sticker is and that it protects her from road accidents, he says, adding that the sister told him that the sticker also helps her whenever she goes for job interviews. According to Pastor Michael Sihambe of Fountain of Christ ministries, placing faith on anointed stuff is nothing else but superstition. It is not different from relying on charms from witchdoctors. Witchdoctors keep their clients coming by telling them who is bewitching them and what they should use or bathe with to escape their curses, pastors who sell anointed things arent any different, he says. Apostle Mothusi Mmereki of Zion Apostolic church cautions people to refrain from patronising the sale of anointed oils and other odd items from pastors and prophets, saying the practice is satanic. He informs that in the spiritual realm, objects like anointing water and oils are given to establish contact with demons for a breakthrough. According to him, all those who desire breakthroughs in life should faithfully and diligently seek the face God through constant prayers and living righteous lifestyles that will glorify God. His view is that those who get rich through the purchase of anointed materials live to regret their short-lived wealth and breakthroughs. These anointed items make people to depend on man not God; thats why they even bear their pastors faces and names on them, he states. Anointing items work and are supernatural Pastor Daniel Micah Usulumeh of Miracle Centre says he believes in anointing water and oil. He argues that Apostle Paul in the Bible used handkerchiefs and aprons, citing Acts 19:11-12 which says that And God was doing extraordinary miracles by the hands of Paul, so that even handkerchiefs or aprons that had touched his skin were carried away to the sick, and their diseases left them and the evil spirits came out of them. But Pastor Peculiar Tshenolo of Shofar Prophetic Voice counteracts that Apostle Paul never sold these handkerchiefs and aprons, citing Matthew 10:7 that says And as ye go, preach, saying, The Kingdom Is at hand. Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give. His take is that if indeed these anointed items are elements of grace, they should be given for free. Lets not manipulate people. If we are to follow principles of God, we dont need these things, he said, however, suggesting that selling of church merchandise like T-shirts to support the vision and raise funds is acceptable. Further supporting anointing oil, Elder Philip Moshowe of Miracle Centre says God in the book of James 5 tells church elders to use anointing oil to anoint the sick after prayer. But Pastor Meshack Molatedi of Gospel of Christ responds that items used in the Bible were a daily routine but were used only once. If the Bible tells believers that greater is He thats in them than their enemies, why do they walk around and sleep with so-called anointed things? he asks. Bishop Michael Myuthu of Divine Healing church says canal Christians cannot understand spiritual things and will continue to question them with a human mind. Rev. John Philip of Botswana Bible Training Institute says anointed items exist to exploit peoples ignorance, misery and misfortunes. God anoints us with his spirit. Why are we stretching His power where it doesnt belong? he asks. His take is that when people are desperate for help, they become victims of exploitation. Scramble for T. B. Joshuas anointing water and oil One of the mediums used at Prophet Temitope Balogun Joshuas Synagogue Church of All Nations is the anointing or morning water. Even though he gives it for free, people from across Africa who visit SCOAN, whether it is the clergy or just ordinary people with problems, sell it at their respective countries and churches. Its popularity continues to grow. My child had eye problems, then I ministered morning water in his eyes and he got healed, said a woman on Emmanuel TV, the churchs telecast recently. At one popular church in Kanye, 100ml of T.B. Joshuas morning water is sold for P75. Joshua features among the top three richest pastors in Africa in 2015, with a net worth of $15 million, after Bishop David Oyedepo of Living Faith Church World Wide and Pastor Chris Oyakhilome of Christ Embassy church, with $150 million and $50 million respectively, according to Forbes. Anointing oil is also common, but Pastor Molatedi says it can be used occasionally in churches, such as when the year begins to start right. Pastor Molatedi argues that T. B. Joshua is a true man of God and that people should refrain from using his name to increase their church membership and to gain wealth. In one of his live services, Prophetic Healing and Deliverance (PHD) ministry Prophet Walter Magaya warned that some bogus prophets were riding on his popularity and selling fake healing oil and anointing water with PHD labels to unsuspecting people. He said that the con artists were charging $3 and $5 for anointing oil. An estimated 60,000 Batswana queued to get miracle water and miracle oil from popular South African Pastor Stephen Zondo when he was at Ditshupo Hall in Gaborone during a three-day crusade by his church, Rivers of Living Water Ministry. The miracle water goes for P10, P25 and P50, depending on the quantity. Church elder Leka Mofokeng says it is not just water. It is anointed water, prayed for by the man himself at a secluded location, he says. Anointing soap called Jesus Soap Meant to wash peoples problems away, the Jesus Soap never saw light of the day in Botswana. A Zambian man who was allegedly selling it house-to-house for P100 a bar never succeeded as members of the community allegedly rejected him for a conman. Anointing soil to chase all problems away, pens to pass exams Zimbabwean Prophet Sham Hungwe recently grabbed headlines for selling anointed pens. He pulled another shocker when he sold anointed soil to congregants during a church service. The prophet ordered church ushers to fill a small bucket with soil and prayed for it before ordering congregants to come and purchase it. He said the soil operates like anointing oil. He was selling it between $5 and $25. Prophet selling anointed underwears! There is a story doing rounds on mobile phones believed to have been published in a Zambian newspaper titled Some Lusaka prophet sells anointed underwear. The prophet is said to be targeting women with marital problems, telling them they are possessed by spiritual husbands and that it can be repelled by wearing these anointed underwears, which are selling at K100 (approximately $10) a pair. A pair of underwear usually costs between $1 and $2. The prophet is said to have cashed in on many women in Lusaka, who later learnt that the individual was a dubious character that was not reachable on the phone. The story also quotes a minister of religion, who complained that a prophet in Lusaka was also selling anointed straw brooms for K20 ($2), which followers are instructed to use to sweep out problems from their homes. These brooms are not to be shared with neighbours like what normally happens, particularly in high-density areas. The sale of anointing items goes on and on and is not associated only with the charismatic churches. Johane Masowe, also called Apostolic Church of Zimbabwe sells holy water and rocks. A member says the rock protects her against road accidents and her enemies in general. Bishop Barnabas Lekganyane of the Zion Christian Church sells holy coffee at Moria, but in Botswana it is not on sale. Here, church members buy their own coffee and church leaders pray over it, says a leader. Botswana Police Service has purchased over P27 million worth of shares from Botswana Telecommunications Corporation Limited (BTCL) for its officers. The 352 million shares of BTCL currently selling at P1 per share are available to citizens only. The public offer is expected to close early March. Police Commissioner, Keabetswe Makgophe announced this week at the ongoing 44th Police Senior Officers annual conference at Special Support Ground (SSG) hall in Gaborone. For our part as the leadership of the BPS, we continue to encourage officers to save for a future beyond service life. In this regard, there are currently a number of schemes in place that promote savings, property ownership and funeral relief, amongst others. When the BTCL offered its shares, we facilitated our officers to acquire shares worth over BWP27 million, said Makgophe. On the issue of conditions of service for Special Constables Makgophe said that, their engagement contract from six months has been extended to two years, adding that the news was received with excitement by this cadre. For his part Minister of Defence, Justice and Security, Shaw Kgathi expressed concern over the abuse of social media in the country. Whilst this platform was established for a good cause, some people, especially the youth have subjected it to abuse by opening false accounts under false identities for the purpose of either insulting or victimising innocent citizens. This is both insane and unacceptable and cannot therefore be tolerated under any circustamces, warned Kgathi. Two weeks ago presidential affairs and public administration minister Eric Molale also warned about the abuse of social media and that they want to start policing it. He was briefing Parliament about the self-confessed hit man who was allegedly hired by the spy agency, DISS. Vice President and leader of the house in Parliament Mokgweetsi Masisi has called Botswana Democratic Party Members of Parliament to order and warned them against bunking Parliament, which results in lack of quorum. Masisi met the MPs on Friday last week after Parliament business was adjourned to Monday. The closed-door meeting was held in Parliament shortly after Masisi arrived and parliament adjourned. A BDP MP who attended the meeting told Botswana Guardian after that VP was warning us against the continued premature adjournment of Parliament business. He was concerned that the conduct is affecting the efficiency of Parliament. Masisi allegedly indicated that going forward the MPs should show commitment to Parliament business especially when they are available and not away on other official duties. The MPs started walking one by one out of Parliament during the debate of a motion tabled by MP for Francistown West Ignatius Moswaane, which called for government to improve conditions of service for Dikgosi by providing them with official residence and official transport. Prior to that Assistant Minister of Local Government and Rural Development, Botlogile Tshireletso proposed an amendment to the motion, which was defeated. Speaker of Parliament Gladys Kokorwe expressed her concern about the continued failure by MPs to attend Parliament proceedings. Kokorwe then adjourned parliament business. BDP Chief Whip Liakat Kably refuted the claims that the leader of the house had reprimanded BDP MPs. He said what they discussed during their closed door meeting inside Parliament was of no public interest. Just like any other time we do meet the vice president from time to time as BDP MPs. We discuss things that affect the party and the country as the party in government. What we were discussing there concerned us and cannot be shared with a third party. It had nothing to do with the quorum. How can we collapse the quorum while the motion was from one of us (BDP MPs)? Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC) Parliamentary Spokesperson, Dr Phenyo Butale condemned the BDP MPs for collapsing the quorum. He said the BDP seems not to care about Parliament especially when the business of the day is for Private members business like on Fridays. We usually see them in Parliament in large numbers when it is something that will benefit them. Which means this is about them and not Batswana. Dr Butale stated that what transpired on Friday was a deliberate move by BDP MPs because they wanted Parliament to adjourn before UDC Secretary General Ndaba Gaolathe could table his motion. Gaolathe who is the MP for Bonnington South was to table a motion calling for establishment of an independent regulatory body for water and electricity. When there is something that is important for this country and its citizens BDP MPs we know will always find a way to frustrate such efforts. They were just trying to frustrate Gaolathes motion. They have now turned Parliament into a joke, said Dr Butale. There is need to set parameters for the construction industry so that opportunities can be provided for all to participate, Minister for Infrastructure Science and Technology Nonofo Molefhi has said. Receiving the Construction Industry Authority Botswana (CIAB) Laymans Draft Bill, Molefhi promised that as they re-organise the construction industry they want to correct what is happening to small-time construction companies. He observed that those with muscle exploit small construction companies, pay them their dues very late and at low rates. People are saying that in the absence of regulation they may not succeed in participating from the opportunities offered by the Economic Stimulus Programme. If this bill redirects the industry we would be happy to use it to make sure that the industry is orderly arranged for all, explained Molefhi. MIST Permanent Secretary Dikagiso Mokotedi who was instrumental in the formulation of the draft said they have been working with the industry to prepare for a final laymans bill. It has taken us three years working hand in hand with the industry to help them come up with this laymans draft. So we are pleased to see them hand it to the Minister today. It will transform the industry and steer it into the right direction, said Mokotedi. The PS described the bill as a game changer, as it will force industry players with no knowledge to conform to legal requirements thereby protecting the public. PPC Cement Botswana General Manager Werner De Beer pointed out that the company was committed to improving the construction sector. He said the industry has taken a lot of flak as some major projects were previously not delivered on time and in accordance with specification. De Beer said they will continue to support the industry as they previously did with initiatives such as the Number 1 Builders competition and the Construction Summit. The laymans draft will be formulated into a bill which will then be taken to parliament for debate. The objective of CIAB bill will be to implement an integrated strategy for the reconstruction, growth and development of the construction industry in Botswana. Hillary Clintons close association with President Barack Obama may be hurting her in West Virginia, where the former secretary of state is trailing behind Sen. Bernie Sanders in the race for the Democratic presidential nomination ahead of the states May 10 primary. A REPASS research poll on Monday showed Sanders sweeping West Virginia with support among 57 percent of Democratic respondents. Clinton, who bested Obama in the state by a 42-point margin in 2008, only netted 27 percent in the REPASS poll. Close watchers of the Democratic race say the reversal is largely due to Clintons ties with the president, with whom she served as secretary of state until 2012. Throughout her campaign, Clinton has held up her experience in Washington and loyalty to Obama as reasons to choose her over the Vermont senator. But Obama is deeply unpopular in the Mountain State, where constituents believe his environmental policies targeting big coal a major industry in the state have stifled economic growth. According to a recent Gallup poll, Obamas approval rating in West Virginia is a mere 24 percent, the worst of any state in the union. Its hard to tack away from the president, and with the president at the same time, said Rex Repass, whose polling agency conducted the study published in Metro News. Unemployment in West Virginia is about 7 percent, higher than the national average of 5.5 percent, according to the Department of Labor. In the coal-producing regions of the state, unemployment is almost 10 percent, according to the Federal Reserve. Local politicians and businesses leaders have for years blamed Obamas increasing regulation of the coal industry for massive layoffs, and have even dubbed his policies a war on coal. Although Sanders, like Clinton, has pledged to fight carbon pollution, that aspect of his platform doesnt seem to register among many Democrats in the state. I dont think the voters this cycle are really looking at policies, said Scott Crichlow, chair of the political science department at West Virginia University. This is an election where identities of the campaigns feel so visceral. The concept of Sanders is so much let's turn over the apple cart. I think that idea is compelling for a lot of voters here, Chrichlow said. So strong is the anti-Obama sentiment and by extension anti-Clinton sentiment that State Sen. Jeff Kessler, running for the Democratic partys nomination for governor of the state, has chosen to endorse Sanders over Clinton. Kesslers Democratic rivals, millionaire coal magnate Joe Justice and former U.S. Attorney Goodwin Booth, have been conspicuously silent on their partys presidential hopefuls. None of the candidates replied to Al Jazeera's requests for comment. I think to associate themselves with Hillary Clinton at this point would just end up in extremely negative ads for them in November, Crichlow said. Still, backing for Sanders goes deeper than opposition to Clinton, said Chuck Nelson, an environmental activist who spent 30 years mining coal in West Virginia. Nelson lives in Raleigh County, where he says coal companies have ravaged both the economy and environment. Nelson said he plans on voting for Sanders. Why Sanders has won me over is that hes not afraid to go out and talk about corporations, where Hillary is a little hesitant, Nelson said. She said she will address coal field problems, like poverty, but wont address corporate welfare, he added. As for Republicans in the state, Donald Trump looks poised to win their vote. The same REPASS Research poll that found Democrats favoring Sanders over Clinton shows Trump leading with 40 percent of Republican respondents. Trump, hes a businessman, Nelson said. And when hes talked about jobs in a place as desperate as we are, people have a little bit of hope. Governments promise to benefit and enrich citizen contractors by unbundling huge projects through Economic Stimulus Programme (ESP) has been thrown in doubt, Botswana Guardian has established. Government has promised on several occasions at different fora by President Ian Khama, cabinet Ministers, Members of Parliament and other government officials that through the ESP, Batswana, especially those in the construction industry are to benefit and create more employment for Batswana as the programme is among others tailor-made largely for them. Investigations by Botswana Guardian suggest that citizen contractors continue to be disadvantaged by the programme. This is largely because most huge projects under the first batch, second batch and third batch have not been unbundled. Construction companies registered with Public Procurement and Asset Disposal Board (PPADB) have been invited to express interest to carry out infrastructure projects under the ESP for Building, Electrical and Mechanical Works across the country. The Ministry of Infrastructure Science and Technology (MIST) has been tasked on behalf of all ministries with the responsibility of coordinating the process of procurement of construction contracts for the projects. After the expression of interest the following stage is expected to be competitive bidding, which is set to take place before beginning of the 2016/17 financial year in April this year. Documents on ESP from MIST, assessed by this publication shows huge projects, which have not been unbundled and are to be tendered for by companies in category D with a ceiling of P30 million and E which is unlimited. Companies in these categories are mostly foreign owned. Most citizen contractors fall in category OC with a ceiling of P1.5 million, category A (P3 million) and category B (P7.2 million) and others in category C (P12 million.) According to documents in possession of this publication companies in category OC, A, B and C are expected to tender for projects in which they will construct mainly one unit to about seven units of staff houses for teachers, nurses and in some areas toilets especially in remote areas. On the other hand big projects like building of police stations, schools, hospitals and some maintenance are exclusively reserved for contractors in category D, which are foreign owned. Contractors who spoke to this publication said that their expectation was that the projects would be unbundled. If you take for instance building of teachers houses in the number of ten, only category D and E are to apply. Why cant they unbundle that and ensure that at least one citizen contractor gets one or two houses to construct so that as many as we are as citizen contractors get a fair share, asked a contractor who did not want to be named. Another contractor said, You can also see that most of those projects where citizens are to benefit are in very remote areas. So how do you expect a newly registered contractor without funds or equipment to undertake work in Zutshwa, Xhumo, Vaalhoek and Omaweneno? This means there would not be any profit because all the funds will go towards transportation of material and other things. People should know that construction industry is very expensive. Botswana Guardian can reveal that Grade E contractors will construct 12 staff houses in Francistown under the expansion of Goldmine junior school and 12 staff houses for expansion of Selolwane junior school; construction of 84 staff houses for Mogoditshane Senior Secondary School; 55 staff houses in Mmathubudukwane and a police station; and refurbishment of Old Sekgoma Memorial Hospital in Serowe among others. The same goes for Mechanical and Electrical works. In another document in possession of this publication for Kgatleng District close to 400 citizen owned contractors have submitted their expression of interest to bid for the construction of six and half double classrooms (Grade C companies) three water system toilets (Grade A) and eight teachers quarters (Grade B) at Segale Primary School in Mochudi. MIST Permanent Secretary Dikagiso Mokotedi and PPADB Executive Director Elijah Motshidi could not be reached for comment at the timer of going to press. Construction Industry Authority Botswana (CIAB) Meanwhile a Laymans construction industry draft bill has been concluded and early this week was handed over to the ministry to be tabled before Parliament. The objective of CIAB Bill is to implement an integrated strategy for the reconstruction, growth and development of the construction industry in Botswana. San Francisco health officials declared a tent city that has been growing along a city street a health hazard and gave homeless people living on the sidewalk 72 hours to clear the area. The Department of Public Health said notices declaring the area along Division Street a public nuisance and encouraging homeless people to move to city shelters would be posted Tuesday. "Unfortunately, conditions where multiple tents are congregated have become unsafe," said Barbara A. Garcia, the department's director of health. "People are living without access to running water, bathrooms, trash disposal or safe heating or cooking facilities." An inspection found that people in tents along a section of Division Street are living among garbage, human feces, hypodermic needles, urine and other insanitary conditions, the department said. San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee told the newspaper the tents would be gone within weeks. Once we clean up the area, we expect the area to be kept clean and not be re-encamped, Lee said. The tents had drawn numerous complaints and in some places the tents blocked sidewalks forcing people to walk in the street. If people don't vacate by Friday, the department will recommend the San Francisco Department of Public Works and the San Francisco Police Department remove all encampments from the area, according to city officials. Police Chief Greg Suhr said it was unclear what will happen to anyone who remains after the 72-hour deadline expires, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. He did not say whether those who stayed would be arrested. Lee said at least two other encampments in the city would be cleared in the coming weeks. "We're going to encourage people first to get out of those situations and persuade them. Persuasion usually means a backup from people who say you can't be here," Lee told the San Francisco Chronicle while touring the city's newest homeless shelter at Pier 80, which can house up to 150 people. The health department said its homeless-outreach team has been urging campers to move to Pier 80 or other city shelters and will continue to do so through Friday. Al Jazeera with The Associated Press Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 24/02/2016 (2431 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. EDMONTON Alberta Finance Minister Joe Ceci says the prolonged cratering of world oil prices is expected to saddle his province with a $10.4-billion deficit in the next budget. Its a lot. Its a helluva lot of money, Ceci admitted at a legislature news conference Wednesday. That is simply the reality of our circumstances. Alberta Finance Minister Joe Ceci gives a third-quarter fiscal update in Edmonton on Wednesday, February 24, 2016. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Amber Bracken In last falls budget, the province projected a $5.4-billion deficit for the 2016-17 fiscal year. Ceci said the new $5-billion figure would be on top of that. This is the steepest and most prolonged slide in oil prices in recent history, dropping more than 70 per cent in the last year and half, he said. Projections for a quick recovery have proven wrong. This is a once-in-a-generation challenge. Oil and gas have long been the mainspring of Albertas economy, delivering multibillion-dollar surpluses earlier this decade. But the benchmark price for oil has fallen from a high of more than $US100 a barrel in June 2014 to around US$30 today. Every $1 drop in the average price of oil over the course of a year drains $170 million from Albertas coffers. Ceci also said he can no longer promise to balance the books by 2020 and added he cant set a new target date for when that might happen. He emphasized the province will stick to its plans to avoid cuts in front-line jobs and critical services, to find savings where possible and to take on debt to create jobs in the construction of roads, schools, and hospitals. We wont respond with knee-jerk cuts to make a bad situation even worse. The government wont create new taxes, increase existing ones or introduce a provincial sales tax, he said. Nor are there plans to use any of the $19-billion in the Heritage Savings Trust Fund to reduce some of the red ink. Alberta is now almost $19 billion in debt. Most of that money is being used for capital projects. The plan is to continue borrowing in the coming years to pay for capital and, if necessary, operating costs. The debt by decades end had already been projected to hit almost $48 billion, but that was before Cecis $5-billion bombshell Wednesday. Ceci said the 2016-17 budget is to be introduced in early April, but he wouldnt give a date. Opposition Wildrose critic Prasad Panda said no one blames the NDP for the collapse in oil prices, but the government is not dealing with it. Their plan is not working, said Panda. How theyve responded to the situation is hurting Albertas economy. Cecis third-quarter update Wednesday for 2015-16 shows the government expects to run a $6.3-billion deficit this fiscal year, which ends March 31. Thats almost $200 million more than was forecast in the fall. The update shows that the cash crunch is burrowing deeper into Albertas economy. Personal income tax revenue is down, while housing starts and car and truck sales are expected to continue to drop. Oil and gas investment is expected to slow by 20 per cent in 2016. Alberta also expects to see a net population outflow of 6,000 to other parts of Canada this year the first such decline since 2010. Self-enhancement bias is just one of a number of differences in thinking that have been identified so far. Others are even more fundamental, reaching deep into perception and ontology. For instance, imagine a cow, a chicken and some grass. Which of those two go together? People from the U.S. tend to pair the cow and chicken because theyre both farm animals, whereas people from China tend to pair the cow and the grass, because cows eat grass. In the crudest terms, Western thinking can be described as individualistic and analytical, while Asian thinking can be described as collectivistic and relational. (One theory is that this all goes back to the different crops that are cultivated in different parts of the world; rice farming requires a lot more cooperation than wheat farming.) This understanding of thinking styles was the basis for Mesoudis study in Tower Hamlets. How Do People Become WEIRD? reports that the second-generation subjects are positioned about halfway between the first-generation subjects and the nonmigrant subjects, particularly with regard to collectivism versus individualism in response to questions such as Family members should stick together, no matter what sacrifices are required agree or disagree? Its no great shock to hear that the children of immigrants have, like Abdul Shohid, one foot in each culture. What makes this study important is that this is a mode of assimilation so ineffable that you might never even think to look and yet now we can put numbers on it. If these characteristics were hard wired or genetic, then we wouldnt expect to see any such rapid shift, Mesoudi said. Or if they were just parentally taught, then, again, you wouldnt see that kind of shift. But these results implicate what we call horizontal cultural transmission, meaning things like education and the mass media. Does it really make any difference whether your neighbor thinks the cow goes with the grass or with the chicken? There is evidence to suggest that harmony in thinking styles may make at least some contribution to harmony in real life. This field of inquiry is still nascent, but multiple studies have found, for instance, that immigrants who retain Asian thinking styles have briefer and less effective conversations with their doctors suggesting that the problems that Shohids parents had accessing services may have had other causes apart from inexperience and language barriers. Mesoudi chose the Bangladeshis of Tower Hamlets in part because he believed them to be, he said, the hardest test case, given their high concentration and robust culture. Although there is considerable evidence of immigrations benefits, its sometimes suggested by critics of immigration that these benefits will halo some ethnicities much more than others. Our study, I think, speaks to that point, he said, by showing that Muslim British Bangladeshis are no different from other migrant groups in showing rapid acculturation. Even in the densest Banglatown, assimilation seems to be unstoppable. Regardless of whether a second-generation kid wears a jubba or sweatpants, his thinking is becoming more Western at the most abstract and instinctual levels. The Jamiatul Ummah School, a private secondary school in Tower Hamlets Whitechapel neighborhood, recently failed its third government inspection in a row after inspectors found books in the library that promoted inequality of women and punishments including stoning to death. Mesoudis prior research involved asking college students in Missouri to imagine themselves in the role of Neanderthal hunters designing flint arrowheads by trial and error interesting but not all that provocative. Asked whether he was aware when he started the Tower Hamlets study that he was wading into much more turbulent waters, he said, It was always scientifically driven. We had no political motivation to prove anything or campaign for anything. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 24/02/2016 (2431 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. TORONTO When Canadian composer and pianist Stephan Moccio needed a suit for his wedding, he turned to Don Fabien Lee to outfit him for his walk down the aisle. Moccio will once again be wearing a custom creation from the Toronto tailor as he takes another big step: this time onto the Oscars red carpet. The homegrown hitmaker, who grew up in Niagara Falls, Ont., has a best original song nomination for the Weeknds Earned It from the Fifty Shades of Grey soundtrack. Designer and tailor Don Fabien Lee poses for a photo at Trend Custom Tailors' space, in Toronto, on Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2016. Lee is designing Oscar and Grammy outfits for Canadian nominee Stephan Moccio. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young Moccio shares the nod with Toronto pop sensation the Weeknd, whose real name is Abel Tesfaye, and fellow Canadian songwriters Ahmad Balshe (a.k.a. Belly) and Jason (DaHeala) Quenneville. Prior to riding his recent wave of success with the Weeknd on his Grammy-winning album Beauty Behind the Madness, Moccio made significant splashes in the music industry with songwriting credits for Celine Dion (A New Day Has Come) and Miley Cyrus (Wrecking Ball). It doesnt come as a tremendous surprise, the success that has come to Stephan, Lee said in an interview at Trend Custom Tailors, a bespoke tailoring house established in Toronto in 1972. Hes extremely hard-working, hes talented. Of course, hes been successful before. but the recognition internationally is now coming to him in a very immediate way very quickly. Its due. Lee said when he starts work on crafting a suit for Moccio, he likes to draw creative influence from the artists solo work, turning to tunes from his albums Elements and Color for inspiration. There are many tracks that I like of his and they all take me into his world and give me a sense of how hes feeling at the time. Lee said Moccio is very specific about his fit, and he works towards crafting garments that are both fashionable and functional. He likes collars that frame his face and give a crispness and then an air of ease, but without being stuffy. So, he likes sharp collars and cuffs especially when hes performing because theyre often on-camera, in focus. I think those are things that remain constant with everything that we do make. Its a crisp outline of the hands and the neck area, and a silhouette that alludes to the music hes playing. The Trinidad-born Lee came to Canada in 1991, earning degrees from Western University in London, Ont., and Torontos Ryerson University. He worked on a seven-year apprenticeship at Trend Custom Tailors and has devoted more than 20 years to the craft. While Lee said the number of tailors in the city has dwindled from its heyday in the 50s and 60s, its a storied tradition which still appeals to modern-day consumers seeking longevity and quality. Its not fast fashion, he said. These are things that are made for people that have a sense of self, and its a personal style choice that theyre making, to have something made for them rather than still being dictated to by designers. Follow @lauren_larose on Twitter. Already have an account? Log in here TORONTO - Toronto-born filmmaker Don Owen, a pioneer at the National Film Board of Canada, has died. We need your support! Local journalism needs your support! As we navigate through unprecedented times, our journalists are working harder than ever to bring you the latest local updates to keep you safe and informed. Now, more than ever, we need your support. Starting at $4.99/month you can access your Brandon Sun online and full access to all content as it appears on our website. or call circulation directly at (204) 727-0527. Your pledge helps to ensure we provide the news that matters most to your community! Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 24/02/2016 (2431 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. TORONTO It couldnt be a busier time for firebrand filmmaker Michael Moore. Between his new documentary Where to Invade Next, the U.S. presidential race and a crisis in his hometown of Flint, Mich., the outspoken activist has no shortage of causes to champion or scandals to denounce. But on one recent afternoon, hes reached by phone at his home in New York, resting. Flint, Mich., native and filmmaker Michael Moore drinks from a Fiji water bottle accompanied by dozens of residents as he accuses Gov. Rick Snyder of poisoning the city's water during a rally outside of city hall in Flint, Mich., on Saturday, Jan. 16, 2016. Moore says Toronto trash is contributing to Flint's environmental woes. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP/Jake May/The Flint Journal - MLive.com via AP LOCAL TELEVISION OUT; LOCAL INTERNET OUT; MANDATORY CREDIT A recent bout with pneumonia landed him in intensive care, forcing him to cancel a slew of promotional stints on the TV talk show circuit, the Berlin Film Festival and this fantasy of hopping the train and going across Canada in advance of Fridays release of Where to Invade Next. Moore plays the role of invader as he visits several countries to steal ideas for improving the U.S. education, labour and justice systems. During an interview with The Canadian Press, the Oscar-winning director sounded off on a range of topics including the U.S. primaries (Were inside of a big clown car right now); his disdain for mobile streaming (Whatever youre watching on an iPhone is not a movie) and thoughts on his own mortality (You could not be here a few minutes from now). And Canadas supposed culpability in Flints water disaster. It didnt take long for Moore to implicate Toronto in Michigans environmental woes, taking issue with the citys garbage ending up in the states landfills. A city staffer says Toronto stopped sending its waste across the border in 2010, a contract that actually sent trash to a landfill nowhere near Flint. But the Ontario Waste Management Association notes that Toronto continues to send industrial and business waste to landfills in the Detroit area. A 2015 annual report filed by the Michigan government does say its largest source of imported waste comes from Canada and represents 17.1 per cent of all of the states trash. Moore warned that the contaminated water crisis in his hometown of Flint where lead from corroded pipes leaked into the citys drinking water is everybodys problem. The Canadian Press: These stories out of Flint are stunning and heartbreaking. Michael Moore: No ones immune from it and everyones responsible. Think about this. theres truck after truck after truck, every hour of every day coming across the Blue Water Bridge in Sarnia, Ont., to dump the garbage of Toronto in landfills in and around Flint. Thats not even in the discussion of whats going on. Just like so many other things arent being discussed in how Nestle is pumping out all the free, fresh water they can out of the ground (in Michigan) to bottle into what they call Ice Mountain water. I mean, in a way, a lot of people here dont even know theyre culpable. CP: How should the trash be treated? Moore: The trash has to be dealt with in Canada. If its produced by Canadians, if its produced by people in a town, the people in the town have got to figure that out. Look, its not just a problem for Toronto or Canada, its everybodys problem. Its a worldwide problem. You really have to be responsible for your own (crap). I mean isnt that one of the basic (things)? Its like the golden rule. CP: Where To Invade Next includes stops in Italy, France, Finland and Slovenia. Why didnt you stop in Canada? Moore: I always somehow find a way to bring Canada into my movies so I thought I would take a break. (Laughs) I knew I was going to do this movie at some point because Id been thinking about how other countries do things for a very long time. But in your last general election not the one where (Justin) Trudeau (won), but the one before that I wanted to film as one of my examples how you do your elections compared to ours. So the election season goes five to eight weeks, a member of Parliament is limited to a very small amount of money to spend, the CBC provides equal time for the five parties that qualify. But most importantly what I liked was the fact that in many places you guys have always voted with a No. 2 pencil on a white piece of paper. Its so basic and so simple and so not corruptible. It was just a time thing. Maybe Ill use it with another election thing some other time. I dont know. I always have lots of Canadian ideas going on in my head. CP: What do you think of the diversity debate surrounding the Oscars? Moore: I support Spike Lee and Jada Smith and others, who have decided to boycott it. Somethings really wrong. Its not so much wrong with the Oscars, its really about the industry itself. I belong to the directors guild, I belong to the writers guild, and I forgot what the statistic was but I think like 74 per cent of the directors guild are white men and I think its higher in the writers guild. So its an issue with race and its an issue with women. And it has to get fixed. The audience is the loser in this case because if you dont allow large chunks of the population the access, the ability to tell their stories, then were missing out on some great stories, you know. I plan to be more active in trying to fix that. CP: Are you boycotting the Oscars? Moore: I chose not to go and I wont be watching. In part, Ive got other things that Im going to be doing. Im helping, at least from a distance Ava DuVernay and Ryan Coogler and other African Americans who are coming to Flint on Sunday to do a benefit and a thing for the people in Flint. Theyre going to live stream it so you could watch it anywhere and thats how theyve chosen to spend Oscar night, is in Flint, Michigan. I wouldnt say so much that there are some of us boycotting the Oscars, I believe that the Oscars have boycotted our fellow African Americans. This interview has been edited for clarity and condensed Note to readers: An earlier story quoted Moore criticizing Toronto for sending its residential garbage to Michigan. In fact, a 12-year contract to haul city trash across the border ended in 2010. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 24/02/2016 (2431 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. EDMONTON The president of the Alberta Medical Association says its time for physicians in the province to focus on how they will deal with patients who want help to die. Dr. Carl Nohr says the Supreme Court has ruled that assisted death is a patients right by law, regardless of individual opinions. Nohr says some may want to continue debating the morality of the law, but physicians must look at how they will treat patients compassionately. The Supreme Court has given the federal government until June 6 to come up with a new law that recognizes the right of consenting adults enduring intolerable suffering to seek medical help in ending their lives. The Alberta Medical Association is to hold meetings next month to discuss practical ways on how physicians are going to meet such requests. Nohr says he believes there will be enough doctors in Alberta who will be willing to help, so that no doctors will have to do so against their will. With respect to the objections of individual physicians, I am confident that a sufficient number of physicians will be available without any need to override an individual physicians conscience, Nohr wrote in a letter sent to association members Wednesday. Respecting the choice of physicians who do not wish to participate will not hinder patient access. Nohr said the March meeting is to include presentations by the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Alberta, the Canadian Medical Association, Alberta Health Services and the Alberta government. The meeting is not intended to reopen the debate over whether physicians should be involved with assisted dying, he said. The principle of physician autonomy is not served by forcing all to one side or the other. Regardless of personal opinion, we must all support the right of choice either way. Alberta Health Minister Sarah Hoffman has said the province will consult with the public about assisted death. The province is expected to announce details of the consultation in the coming days. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 24/02/2016 (2431 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. BRIDGEWATER, N.S. A Nova Scotia doctor has been charged with drug trafficking after police accused her of prescribing 50,000 potent opiate pills to a hospital patient who never received them. Bridgewater police said Wednesday that 35-year-old Sarah Dawn Jones wrote prescriptions for oxycodone and oxyneo pills of a variety of dosages over a one-year period. Police Chief John Collyer says its alleged the physician prescribed the powerful painkillers for a patient at the local hospital, but picked up the prescriptions herself at a Bridgewater pharmacy. He said hes concerned that a doctor is at the centre of the case, in a province thats seen a series of deaths of young people tied to illegally circulating prescription drugs. The trafficking of prescription narcotics is a problem throughout Nova Scotia. Weve had a number of high profile deaths over the years, so we take it very seriously, he said in a telephone interview. Jones is also accused of possession of narcotics for the purpose of trafficking, theft, breach of trust, drawing a document without authority and fraud. Collyer said the seven-month investigation showed the alleged dosages of the opiates range from low levels to some of the highest available, with most in pill form. Its probably fair to say that most of those narcotics are out there in the community, he said during a telephone interview. Jones worked at the Crossroads Family Practice in the Halifax suburb of Tantallon, but the provinces College of Physicians and Surgeons says shes under an interim suspension and has stopped practising. Shes been released from custody and is scheduled to appear in provincial court in Bridgewater on May 11. Dr. Gus Grant, registrar of the college, said the matter was reported to investigators at the regulatory body on Aug. 21 by a clinical pharmacist. We acted on that concern that day, he said. The amount of medications at issue and the nature of the criminal charges are both serious and disturbing. By Michael Tutton in Halifax Follow @mtuttoncporg on Twitter. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 24/02/2016 (2431 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. REGINA The Saskatchewan government has unveiled a plan that it hopes will reduce the number of people in poverty by 50 per cent by the end of 2025. Social Services Minister Donna Harpauer says Saskatchewans poverty rate is at 10.6 per cent, or 107,000 people, down from about 14 per cent in 2006. We now have the second-lowest level in all of Canada. However, we know theres more work that needs to be done and that is why our government is launching a new poverty reduction strategy, Harpauer said Wednesday at the legislature in Regina. The poverty reduction strategy is extremely challenging because there are so many roots causes. Its very broad reaching. Some of those causes include a low level of education and health issues. The report notes that single-parent families, First Nations and Metis people, northern residents, recent immigrants and people with disabilities tend to experience higher rates of poverty. The 35-page strategy recaps many of the programs that the Saskatchewan Party has introduced since taking power in 2007. It then lays out short-term actions, including a redesign of provincial income assistance programs to better match benefits and services with what people need. Other plans include expanding housing, making it easier for parents to find child care so they can go back to work and improving access to health care in vulnerable neighbourhoods. However, some initiatives in the report are listed under future direction for when the provinces fiscal capacity allows. That includes enhancing before and after school programs, as well as employment readiness and literacy programming in correctional facilities. Premier Brad Wall has already said the government will run a deficit this fiscal year and next. Harpauer said poverty levels go down when the economy is strong. And she is concerned that a struggling Canadian economy could impact poverty rates. Working with the youth as your first priority I think is what will help keep the curve from just shifting unexpectedly, she said. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 24/02/2016 (2431 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. A former Brandon-Souris MP is concerned about the federal governments Senate appointment process in Manitoba. Rick Borotsik, who served as a Progressive Conservative MP from 1997 to 2004, said a number of key organizations in the province werent allowed to provide input on candidate selection. The most glaring omission is the Association of Manitoba Municipalities, according to Borotsik. Why municipal organizations werent asked or consulted kind of irritates me, he said. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau changed how the Senate is appointed in an attempt to end the upper chambers 149-year stature as a hub for political patronage. Since Confederation, Senate appointees were selected by the prime minister. The new process, however, asks organizations to nominate candidates who are forwarded to an independent advisory board. The board reviews nominations and presents a short list to the prime minister for selection. The first recommendations, which are laid out under a transitional process, are set for early 2016 and will fill five seats, including two in Manitoba. There are currently three of six Senate seats filled in the province Conservative Janis Johnson appointed in 1980 by Brian Mulroney, Liberal Maria Chaput by Jean Chretien in 2002 and Conservative Don Plett by Stephen Harper in 2009. JoAnne Buth was appointed to the Senate in 2012, but resigned less than three years later to become CEO of the Canadian International Grains Institute. During the transition, the board must undertake consultations with groups that include indigenous peoples, community-based service groups, municipal organizations, as well as a host of other groups. Borotsik said the whole process was orchestrated quickly. It wasnt terribly well advertised either, he said. While its unclear at this point who will be recommended to the prime minister, Borotsik said he wont be surprised if it doesnt include a candidate from Westman. I sat with a lot of senators when I was there and the majority of them come from Winnipeg, Borotsik said. I cant think of anybody who came from southwestern Manitoba. Brandon Chamber of Commerce president Jordan Ludwig said the chamber wasnt consulted as part of the process. Borotsik said he was told the Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce was consulted. Manitoba Chamber of Commerce president Chuck Davidson said he was consulted for the appointments. Based on the time frame we didnt put anyone forward, Davidson said, adding the organization had approximately two weeks to nominate people. He did, however, write a letter in support of Michael McMullen, who was recommended by the Canadian Chamber of Commerce. McMullen is the former chair of the board of directors for the national chamber. Its not known whether he will make the short list. Privy Council Office spokesman Raymond Rivet said in addition to two seats being filled in Manitoba, two will be filled in Ontario and Quebec. Rivet wouldnt discuss which organizations were consulted during the process. With regard to the groups consulted in Manitoba, the Independent Advisory Board for Senate Appointments for Senate Appointments does not have information to share at this time, he said. It is continuing its work and a report on its operations will be forthcoming. Calls to the AMM and Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce were not returned by press time. ctweed@brandonsun.com Twitter: @CharlesTweed His story is not an isolated one. A product of byzantine penal codes and indifferent prison bureaucracies, so-called inaccurate sentencing could be affecting thousands or even tens of thousands of inmates nationwide. But while many aspects of the U.S. criminal justice system have come in for scrutiny recently, this problem is almost completely unknown to the general public as well as reformers. Even the few familiar with the issue know of no statewide nor nationwide initiatives seeking to quantify inaccurate sentencing, much less attempt to address it. Terence Davidson, a paralegal with the Legal Aid Society, in New York, who specializes in sentence calculations, says he helps correct 100 to 200 sentences each year. But when considering how common inaccurate sentencing may be across the country, he says, Theres no way to tell. McPherson didnt go through with his escape plan, but in a sense, it would have been justified. His release date had come and gone, and he should have been a free man. But no one not the prison counselors, corrections officers nor deputy wardens he approached on a daily basis, nor the lawyers, prison grievance committees nor judges hed been writing to for months would agree to help. What if I just get up and walk out right now? Michael McPherson posed this question to a friend one day last spring, when they were both inmates at Marcy Correctional Facility, a medium-security prison in Oneida County, New York, about 250 miles north of Manhattan. I cant understand that, says McPherson, who is now living with his brother in Harlem and working for a window cleaning company. Whose job is to make sure people dont have to go through that? After looking into McPhersons case, Davidson realized something was wrong: The New York City Department of Corrections had failed to credit the inmate for 307 days of jail time. With those days served, he should have been freed on Jan. 8, 2015, months earlier than even McPherson himself had calculated, due to a slip in his arithmetic. Davidson contacted the U.S. Marshals Service, under whose authority McPherson was being held for wire fraud, to confirm the completion of the federal sentence, and he contacted the New York City Department of Corrections to correct McPhersons jail time, which was then forwarded to Marcy. A process McPherson had been working on for months was completed by Davidson in less than two weeks. McPherson was released on Aug. 7, 2015, his 27th birthday. It was 96 days earlier than if Davidson hadnt intervened but 212 days after the inmates sentence actually expired. With his letters ignored and his petitions to prison officials rebuffed, McPherson asked his mother for help. She sought out the Legal Aid Society, a Manhattan-based nonprofit that provides counsel to New Yorkers unable to afford representation. The letter she wrote to Legal Aid in July 2015 made its way to Davidson. By McPhersons calculations, the two concurrent sentences, reduced for time served in jail and and good behavior, should have been up on July 31, 2015. But upon receiving his time computation sheet, a report produced by prison officials that calculates release dates, he discovered that the state intended to hold him until Nov. 10, 2015. He immediately began lobbying to correct that. Like some of the inmates incarcerated beyond their rightful terms, McPherson was serving multiple sentences. Hed been arrested in the Bronx on Nov. 15, 2013, on charges of assault and gang assault. While awaiting trial at Rikers Island jail, an additional charge of conspiracy to commit wire fraud was brought against him following the conclusion of an FBI investigation unrelated to the alleged assault. Acknowledging his guilt in the federal case, McPherson took a plea deal and accepted a 15-month sentence. He also accepted a plea deal in the assault case, though he says he was innocent of those charges and only took the deal to avoid a longer term. If hed gone to court, he would have faced a minimum of five years. Under the plea deal, he received two years for assault in the second degree, to be served concurrently with his federal sentence. 'Quite frankly I dont think the personnel know what the hell theyre doing. Its frequently a battle with them over the calculation of the sentence.' In New York state, much of the responsibility for calculating sentences rests with the New York City Department of Corrections. The department itself does not keep statistics on inaccurate sentences. But its administration of Rikers Island, the second-largest jail in the U.S., involves the DOC in the majority of sentences calculated throughout the state. The DOC must certify jail time at its facilities, creating a paper trail that, if not properly accounted for, as in McPhersons case, introduces the first dimension of difficulty in calculating sentences. Additionally, DOC officers are responsible for performing the actual arithmetic of calculating sentences at city courts and jails. The math seems simple, involving only the addition and subtraction of days from sentences. But the layers of federal, state and municipal statutes, rules and regulations are esoteric. Accurate sentencing requires knowledge of minute aspects of these laws and the ways in which they intersect. The difficulties can begin right at the moment of sentencing. For example: Does the day of sentencing count as jail time or sentence time? From there, the questions become more particular to the sentence and inmate: Should the amount of time earned for good behavior be estimated at one-third or one-seventh of the sentence? That depends on the kind of sentence, namely whether its a determinate sentence meaning it has a flat term, such as five years or if its an indeterminate sentence meaning it has a minimum and maximum, such as five to seven years. Besides considering this new sentence, the calculation also has to account for any previous sentences and any outstanding ones. Should any remaining post-release supervision time be added to the new sentence? Again, that depends: Yes, if its a determinate sentence; no, if its an indeterminate sentence. Questions arise from every facet of the inmates criminal history, and getting the right answers requires knowledge and application of very specific laws. This complexity has been compounded by the devolution of New York states penal code in the last five decades, according to Frank Bress, a professor of law and director of clinical programs at New York Law School. When it was passed, it was sort of an elegant statute, elegant in its simplicity, he says. The calculations were a lot easier. That elegance was lost, according to Bress, through the introduction of new measures, like mandatory minimums, three strikes statutes and the Rockefeller drug laws, which lengthened sentences while also complicating their calculations. According to the DOC, all corrections officers receive five days of general office training, which includes sentence calculation, when theyre hired. Captains and assistant deputy wardens receive additional training on discharge procedures, the department says. Yet two veterans of the DOC who retired in 2005 after collectively serving 40 years say they did not receive any training in sentence calculation nor were they aware of such mandatory training despite their involvement in calculating sentences and overseeing discharges. In response, the department says it updates its training periodically. Regardless, there remains a lack of expertise, which shows, according to Bress, who spent 44 years as a criminal defense attorney in New York. Quite frankly I dont think the personnel know what the hell theyre doing, he says of DOC officers. Its frequently a battle with them over the calculation of the sentence. But even attorneys who practice criminal law receive little formal training in sentence calculation. It is not part of standard law school curricula, criminal law courses nor bar exams. Bress sets aside one day per semester for the study of sentence calculation as part of his criminal defense clinic, an elective course he teaches at NYLS. The results are not foolproof, he says. Even for relatively simple misdemeanor sentence calculations, 16 students may come up with 16 different answers. To simplify the process, Davidson of the Legal Aid Society recently developed an online tool known as Sentence Calculator. Users input lengths, dates and types of sentences, along with jail time served and time earned for good behavior. That data is referenced against a database of statutes, rules and regulations related to sentencing in New York state to produce accurate release dates. Legal Aid has already licensed the technology for 800 of its lawyers. Davidson hopes the next step will be adoption by municipal and state governments. Aside from the toll on inmates and their families, inaccurate sentencing also costs taxpayers. The DOC spends $100,000 per inmate each year. Extrapolating from this figure, Davidson estimates that he saves taxpayers roughly $4 million to $5 million annually by helping to correct prolonged sentences. In addition, inmates who serve overly long sentences sometimes file civil lawsuits against the city and state. McPherson has begun meeting with attorneys to prepare such a suit. Three of McPhersons close friends died during the seven extra months he spent incarcerated, he says. If I would have come home in January, he points out. I would have been home for my goodbyes and I-love-yous and to show the families support. McPherson estimates that he heard from 150 other inmates at Marcy who say they were serving inaccurate sentences. These men banded together in groups to research relevant laws, file grievances and provide emotional support, he says. One friend, Brock, had already served 30 months on a one- to three-year sentence. After accounting for time served and good behavior, he should have been free. When I left he was still there, says McPherson. When I was going home he was saying, Any day now, any day now they should fix it. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 24/02/2016 (2431 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. VANCOUVER A British Columbia man who filed a human rights complaint against his townhouse council for conducting Mandarin-only meetings says he wants the law changed to prohibit the use of unofficial languages. Andreas Kargut lives in a 54-unit townhouse complex in Richmond, where he served on various council positions between 2005 and 2014. Kargut and six other residents filed a complaint with the B.C. Human Rights Tribunal in December because they couldnt participate in a 90-minute meeting where only Mandarin was spoken. Kargut said Wednesday that he was vice-president during his last year on the council but was ousted by a group that wanted to conduct meetings only in the Chinese language. Respondents have until March 23 to decide if they want an early settlement meeting, Kargut said, before the process proceeds, possibly to a hearing. Council president Mary Zhang said she did not wish to comment. While council members have now decided to conduct meetings in English and minutes are provided in English, Kargut said he wants compensation because the rights of non-Mandarin speakers were violated. The bottom line is weve been oppressed for about year and a half and them just changing things right now basically is nice going forward but it doesnt change whats been happening, he said. They want us to feel really uncomfortable for actually living there in hopes that we sell and move away so they can build a monocultural community. Kargut said four residents feel demoralized because theyve been prevented from securing council positions by Mandarin-speaking members. Regardless of the outcome at the tribunal, he said hell lobby to have antiquated laws changed so that only French or English can be spoken at council meetings to prevent similar problems elsewhere. We want financial retribution and we want them all to resign and we want them all to give us a formal apology for what theyve done. Kargut said a translator was available for last summers annual general meeting, but the person wasnt qualified. Robyn Durling, spokesman for the B.C. Human Rights Clinic, which provides legal aid in such cases, said the threshold for filing a complaint in the province is very low, no matter how wild the allegations are. Ontario and B.C. have similar models for complainants alleging discrimination, Saskatchewan residents can take their cases to small-claims or civil court and the rest of the provinces have human-rights commissions. Townhouse or condominiums owners are merely observers at council meetings unless theyre speaking on a particular matter, Durling said. Residents dont have a right to demand a certain language be used, but can arrange in advance to be accommodated with a translator, he said. Human rights is not going to mandate any language in particular be spoken and certainly the Strata Property Act in B.C. does not mandate any particular language be spoken. Durling said a council or any business should use a language that makes sense for the majority of people involved and the province is unlikely to change the law by becoming the language police. Most of the Mandarin-speaking residents at Karguts complex couldnt participate in council meetings for years because they didnt understand English, Durling said. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 24/02/2016 (2431 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. OTTAWA Criminal Code provisions on marijuana must be upheld and enforced even as the government considers a legalized regime, says former Toronto police chief and Liberal MP Bill Blair. Blair who has been tapped by the Trudeau government as the pot frontman, was among a group who spoke at an open Senate Liberal caucus meeting Wednesday focused on the legalization of marijuana. Earlier this month, members of the police community which Blair belonged to before starting his political career said the discussion surrounding legalization had created confusion, especially for front line enforcement officers. Bill Blair, parliamentary secretary to the Minister of Justice, speaks as a panelist as the Senate Liberals hold an open caucus meeting and panel discussion on the legalization of marijuana on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick Blair, parliamentary secretary to the Justice minister, seemed to make a concerted effort to nip that in the bud on Wednesday. Laws remain on the books, he said. The laws that currently exist, exist in this country and we are a nation of laws, Blair said. Quite frankly, until those laws are repealed by Parliament through the appropriate processes, they should be upheld, they should be obeyed. Criminal sanctions should be eventually be replaced by a regulatory framework, Blair added. The Liberal government has been under fire from critics, including outspoken marijuana activists like Jodie Emery, on the need to explore amnesty for those facing simple possession charges. Sen. Jim Munson also raised the issue Wednesday, saying the governments timing on legalization gives him pause, considering the Senate studied and recommended it some 14 years ago. In the interim, as everybody works on these issues, is that a possibility that amnesty could be granted during this four-year term? Munson asked. Blair did not answer the question directly. We are going to take the time to do it right. This is a complex issue, Blair said. In order to get this right, the government is undertaking a number of initial steps. The first step will be establishing a provincial, territorial and federal task force to hear from public health, substance abuse and public safety experts. The details of the task force should be announced in the coming weeks, Blair said. NDP Leader Tom Mulcair said the government should decriminalize marijuana right away. That could have been done immediately, make sure nobody gets a criminal record because there are people being arrested now for simple possession, he said outside the Commons. So, lets get it done. Blair may be driving home a message about unchanged laws but public perception certainly has shifted, Mulcair added. I think that we owe it to ourselves to be clear on this, he said. You can remove that criminal restriction right away. Clive Weighill, president of the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police, also addressed the Senate Liberal caucus on Wednesday. Almost all of the chiefs understand legalization is coming and can offer meaningful suggestions on how to proceed, Weighill said following the forum. But he warned current expectations stretch beyond what can be achieved now. Ive been very public about this, he said. I think the expectations are far outreaching the capability of the government to reach a conclusion on this for us to have a crystal ball and say what the regulations are going to be in the future leaves us in a real grey area, so we have to rely on what we have for the laws right now. Tom Stamatakis, president of the Canadian Police Association, welcomed Blairs remarks on the Criminal Code provisions that remain in effect. Front line police want to be constructive partners in modernizing Canadas marijuana laws, but our members are the ones who are put in difficult positions when mixed messages are sent regarding the enforceability of current laws, he said in a statement. Follow @kkirkup on Twitter Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 24/02/2016 (2431 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. TORONTO A Toronto mother accused of killing her severely disabled daughter appeared to be in shock as her child was in hospital on life support, her trial heard Wednesday as the dead girls sister took the witness stand. Amanda Ali was called to testify in her mothers defence and told jurors hearing the case that her disabled sister was considered a blessing, not a burden for the family. As the girls life hung in the balance in February 2011, Amanda said her mother was stunned. She looked blank, she looked like she was in shock, she recalled. Cindy Ali has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder in the death of her 16-year-old daughter Cynara, who had cerebral palsy and couldnt walk, talk or feed herself. Crown prosecutors have argued that after years of being the primary caregiver for the infant-like Cynara, Ali smothered her daughter with a pillow and then created an elaborate story about a home invasion to cover up the crime. Ali claimed two masked men in black suits rang her door bell and pushed their way into her home demanding a mysterious package which they never found and harmed her daughter, her trial has heard. She claimed she saw one of the intruders hold a pillow over the girls face, but later told police she only saw him with a pillow in his hands standing over Cynara, court heard. In a 911 call played for the court, a hysterical Ali reporting the purported home invasion was heard saying her baby Cynara was not breathing. The jury has heard that emergency personnel found Cynara with a pillow on her forehead and no pulse but revived her and rushed her to a local hospital. Ali was found on the floor, close to Cynara, with no injuries, the trial has heard. Amanda, who was 21 at the time, said Cynara was first taken to a local hospital and then transferred to one in downtown Toronto, but her mother was taken to a police station for questioning before being allowed to go to the second hospital. Eventually the entire family gathered at the second hospital, where Amanda said she was finally able to see her sister. I didnt know what to think, she said, as tears streamed down her face in court. I just see her there in the hospital bed. She had tubes and stuff on her. Two days after Ali called 911, Cynara was taken off life support, court heard. At the girls funeral, Amanda called her sister an inspiration, and said she created beautiful memories for her family, court heard. She was a blessing for us, Amanda said. Nonetheless, Amanda noted that Cynara needed to be accompanied by someone around the clock and was known to have lung infections, seizures she had one the evening before Ali called 911 and trouble swallowing. Cynara could express herself by crying and laughing, but didnt always do so at typical times, sometimes laughing when she was in pain, Amanda added. An autopsy found Cynaras immediate cause of death was a brain injury from deprivation of oxygen, which was caused by cardiac arrest. That cardiac arrest, court heard, could have been caused by suffocation. A pathologist called by Alis defence lawyer has testified, however, that he found no physical evidence of smothering in the case, but noted he also could not entirely rule it out as a possibility. He suggested Cynara could have stopped breathing and suffered a cardiac arrest as a result of seizures. He also said a lung infection that was recorded in her autopsy could have been a factor in her death. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 24/02/2016 (2431 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. WINNIPEG Manitoba Opposition Leader Brian Pallister said Wednesday he would review the rules governing political financing in the province if he wins the April 19 election. But he rejected accusations from the NDP government that he would open the door to corporate and union donors. Thats not our intention. But our intention is certainly to look at the elections act in terms of making sure that we do our part to encourage democratic involvement by people, Pallister said. He added later that corporate and union donations are not on our radar. Pallister has long promised to do away with a subsidy the NDP government introduced almost a decade ago that funds political parties based largely on how many votes they received in the two most recent elections. Pallisters Progressive Conservatives have never accepted the money, while the NDP and Liberals have. The NDP, with its majority in the legislature, has garnered more than $250,000 a year. The subsidy was introduced after the NDP government banned corporate and union donations and limited individual donations to $3,000 per year. Premier Greg Selinger said Wednesday the changes ensured Manitoba would not see the kind of big-money influence experienced in the United States. He said the changes go hand-in-hand, and Pallister would have to reinstate corporate and union donations if the subsidy is wiped out. If youre going to ban corporate and union donations, you need some administrative support for political parties so that they are independent, Selinger said. Pallister said political parties should work for donations instead of relying on a subsidy. He said a Tory government would look at possible changes, including raising the $3,000 individual donor limit, which he called one of the lowest among provinces. Rules governing advertising by lobby groups and other non-politicians could also be reviewed. Any changes, Pallister said, would follow consultation with the other political parties. Id like to have a process whereby we have a good look at the thing and we do it properly, he said. Its not a (law) you want to open every year, but it sure could be updated. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 24/02/2016 (2431 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. OTTAWA A special joint parliamentary committee is poised to make recommendations to the federal government on how to deal with some of the thorniest questions surrounding medically assisted dying. The committee is to table its report Thursday, offering its recommendations for legislation which the Supreme Court has given the government until June 6 to produce after striking down the ban on physician-assisted dying last year. The top court ruled that the ban violated the right to life, liberty and security of the person as guaranteed under the Charter of Rights. It said any new law must recognize the right of clearly consenting adults who are enduring intolerable physical or mental suffering to seek medical help in ending their lives. Committee co-chair Rob Oliphant refused Wednesday to divulge the contents of the report. But he said the committee has met difficult issues head on, offering advice on how the government should handle the age of consent, physicians who conscientiously object, advance directives and psychological suffering. Those would be the main issues that I would say had to be dealt with, the Toronto Liberal MP said in an interview. We have given a full set of recommendations on every issue that was a substantive issue that was raised by our witnesses. I think we have not equivocated. The Canadian Press has learned the report is short, about 25 pages, and is entitled: Medical Assistance in Dying: a Patient-centred Approach. The emphasis on the patient suggests the majority of MPs and senators on the 16-member committee has adopted the position that suffering Canadians should have relatively open access to doctor-assisted death. However, at least one member, believed to be a Conservative MP, has written a dissent and another has filed a supplementary report. The committee, which included both MPs and senators, heard from witnesses who advocated everything from invoking the constitutional notwithstanding clause to override the court ruling to those who wanted absolutely no restrictions on access to medically assisted dying, Oliphant said. The reality is there are people witnesses, as well as members of our committee who would tie this process up so tightly as to make null and void the Supreme Court decision, for all intents and purposes. But he said the committee attempted to strike a balance, keeping its recommendations consistent with the letter and the spirit of the Supreme Court ruling and with the charter, while protecting vulnerable people. Indeed, he said the committee tried to anticipate what could happen if someone challenged one of our recommendations in a court of law. Among conceivable challenges, mature minors denied the right to choose medical assistance in dying could argue discrimination based on age. Canadians diagnosed with dementia or other degenerative illnesses could similarly argue their rights have been violated if they arent allowed to spell out their wishes in advance, before their ability to give consent is impaired. You cant be charter-proof completely, Oliphant said, but the committee has hugged very closely to the charter. Oliphant said he thinks the reports recommendations reflect the view of most Canadians who, according to polls, believe there should be medical assistance in dying available if someone asks for it. So thats where were finding a way to honour that. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 24/02/2016 (2431 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. PICKERING, Ont. A 14-year-old girl who allegedly moved through the corridors of her high school brandishing knives and wounding both staff and students is now facing 15 criminal charges, police said Wednesday. Durham Regional Police laid the charges 24 hours after the stabbing at Dunbarton High School in Pickering, Ont., which left seven people with non-serious injuries. Police said five students and two staff members were hurt in the attack, revising the figures of six students and three staff offered by the Durham District School Board on Tuesday night. A victim is taken away on a stretcher following a stabbing incident at Dunbarton High School in Pickering, Ont., on Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Salvatore Sacco The girl, who cannot be named under the Youth Criminal Justice Act, is facing seven counts of assault with a weapon and six counts of assault causing bodily harm. She is also charged with possessing a dangerous weapon and assault. She was scheduled to attend a bail hearing on Wednesday morning, the outcome of which was not known. Dunbarton High was open for classes on Wednesday 24 hours after chaos reigned in the hallways. The knife attack, which police say began after 8 a.m., sent students and teachers running for cover. Witnesses described seeing a girl running down school hallways waving a knife in each hand. One emotional 14-year-old girl said she came face-to-face with the suspect, who slashed at her with the knives. I just ran for my life, the girl said as she began to cry. I just cant believe it happened. She almost got me. Another student said the scene hardly seemed real. People were running and screaming. There was blood on the ground. I thought it was fake. Police credited two staff members with thwarting any further attacks by wrestling the girl to the ground and holding her there until officers arrived. Were giving kudos to the staff members that stopped this before it got worse, Sgt. Bill Calder said after the incident. They did the right thing. Investigators said in a release they did not believe any particular student or staff member was targeted in the attack. She appeared to be acting alone, Calder said. Dunbarton High tweeted that life appeared to be returning to normal, adding that supports were available to students who may need them. Great to see so many students back at school, read a tweet sent Wednesday morning. Supports are available in guidance for all staff students. Opinion Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 24/02/2016 (2431 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. In regards to the front page photo of the fatal collision south of Boissevain on Feb. 18, I am sure it was a tough decision whether to put this on the front page editorially. I hope some serious thought was put into it by senior staff before it was published. I am appalled and disappointed that this graced the front page. A photo could have been taken farther away from the scene and still have got the message across! When I first heard of this accident on the radio, I was hoping it involved a grain spill or something like that which required the highway to be closed. Then we heard on the radio that a 37-year-old Alberta man was killed. There was a ripple of fear in the minds of some of us because an Alberta man could easily be any young guy from southern Manitoba who had been living in Alberta working in the oil industry and on his way home. When I saw your front page photo, my thoughts were not only for the deceased, but the EMT workers and police who attended this horrific collision. In a rural area, these first responders may easily know the victim or his family. I cant imagine how emotionally impacted they must have been. Again, this photo could have been taken from a more respectful distance without showing them so up close and personal. News is necessary, but not at the expense of the privacy of these attendants and the accident victims family. Your reputation as a respected newspaper has certainly dropped a few notches in my opinion. Maureen Nicholls Killarney Opinion Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 24/02/2016 (2431 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Lately, there has been much discussion around the Energy East pipeline project. Mayors, premiers and elected officials in Ottawa are all weighing into the discussion. What needs to be recognized at every level of government are the national benefits and job creation that pipelines bring. It goes without saying that all large infrastructure projects, including pipelines, need to pass through a rigorous environmental and community approval process. However, the Liberals have demonstrated that they do not understand this. There is no reason that pipelines cannot be supported in principle by federal leaders, just as they support essential agriculture, urban development or manufacturing infrastructure. During the construction of Energy East, we would see 634 jobs created in Manitoba. Manitoba would also receive $466 million in tax revenue. Canada as a whole would stand to gain more than 14,000 jobs during construction and more than 3,300 during the first 20 years of operation. Federal leadership is needed to advance energy infrastructure. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Natural Resources Minister Jim Carr should be champions for responsibly built pipelines. Pipelines create jobs and they are by far the safest and cleanest way to move oil. Sadly, the Liberals have demonstrated that they do not support Canadian jobs in the energy sector. They even went as far as to vote against, showing that they support the sector at all. You can count on me and the Conservative party to continue to stand up for Canadas energy sector. Robert Sopuck Conservative MP, Dauphin-Swan River-Neepawa LIHUE, Hawaii When 2016 began with North Korea declaring it had detonated a hydrogen bomb, its fourth nuclear test, the U.S. military had already tested a land-based Aegis Ashore missile defense system in Hawaii Lockheed Martins version of the short-to-intermediate-range ballistic missile defense (BMD) system used on Aegis Navy destroyers. Now, as tension mounts after Pyongyangs satellite launch on Feb. 7, media reports suggest the Pentagon is mulling making the Aegis Ashore test facility operational at the Pacific Missile Range Facility (PMRF) at the Barking Sands naval base on the Hawaiian island of Kauai. A Navy spokesman said, There are no plans for an operational site of Aegis Ashore at PMRF. It was constructed as a test and training site only. But Adm. Harry B. Harris Jr., the commander of U.S. Pacific Command, has publicly stated that he believes the Aegis Ashore test facility should be considered as an operational site. Home to the Kauai Test Facility rocket launch range (operated by Sandia National Laboratories), the PMRF clings to a narrow strip of coastline on the far west of the island, largely out of view. The facility offers 2.1 million square miles of controlled air and sea space, making it a prized asset for the U.S. military. But not everyone is enthusiastic about a more militarized Hawaii. Raymond Catania of the Kauai Alliance for Peace and Social Justice said any further militarization of his home island is unhelpful. He said an Aegis system on Kauai would put the U.S. in direct conflict with China. He pointed to the military buildup on Okinawa, Japan, and on Jeju Island, where South Korea has built a large naval base. He said making the PMRF combat ready would be a dangerous move but added that with many people in Hawaii dependent on the military for jobs, the likelihood of widespread opposition is small. On Kauai, youre going to have the political apparatus the business elements in the community say we need this buildup, its jobs, he said. But we have to wean the working class away from war for employment. Another Hawaii resident, retired Army Col. Ann Wright of Veterans for Peace said, There is no doubt that deployment of operational Aegis missiles on Kauai would be seen by the Chinese and North Korean governments as an offensive, not defensive, measure and intentional provocation by the U.S., increasing instability in the Asia-Pacific region. The missile testing facility on Kauai is just miles from popular tourist sites. Jon Letman Aegis Ashore testing on Kauai was first proposed by Sen. Daniel Inouye, D-Hawaii, in 1999. The PMRF was the launch site of the first Aegis Ashore fly-out test in May 2014 and saw its first successful intercept in December 2015. Today one of Aegis Ashores most active proponents is the nonprofit Missile Defense Advocacy Alliance. Its chairman, Riki Ellison, said in an email that deploying Aegis Ashore on Kauai would offer persistent 24/7 coverage [and] tremendous cost savings. The Pentagons Missile Defense Agency has requested $514 million for Aegis missile defense for 2017. In December the first Aegis Ashore system was declared technically capable at a new U.S. naval base in Deveselu, Romania, where it will begin defensive operations by this summer. A second similar site is scheduled for completion in Poland by the end of 2018. Aegis Ashore launches Raytheons (SM)-3 Block IB guided missiles, but in order for the PMRF to be made combat ready, Ellison said, a dedicated crew of Navy Aegis BMD specialists would be needed, as well as minor software changes, the installation of interceptors in existing launchers and an enhanced security force which, he said, would provide local employment opportunities. With close to 1,000 jobs tied to the base, the PMRF is one of the islands largest employers. A target missile moments before being hit by an (SM)-3 interceptor, a kind of missile that could be deployed at the Kauai facility. U.S. Navy/Getty Images But jobs are not the only things at stake. Zhu Haiquan, a spokesman for the Chinese Embassy in Washington said in a statement, The anti-missile issue has a direct bearing on global and regional balance and stability. All measures seeking to increase military capacities will only intensify antagonism. China hopes the relevant country will adopt a responsible attitude and act prudently in regard to the anti-missile issue. All four members of Hawaiis congressional delegation declined requests for comment, but all have been outspoken proponents of expanded sanctions against North Korea and support a more aggressive military posture that includes increased missile defense capabilities in Hawaii and the Pacific. Speaking on the House floor in January, Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, D-Hawaii, said, North Korea continues to pose a serious and dangerous threat to my constituents in Hawaii, the Pacific and the West Coast of the United States. Our communities, our families lie within range of North Koreas intercontinental ballistic missiles. David Santoro, a senior fellow for nuclear policy at the Pacific Forum/Center for Strategic and International Studies, said that while the threat posed by North Korea has often been exaggerated, North Koreas missile capabilities are improving. He thinks an attack from North Korea against the U.S. is unlikely but said the threat is increasing. Missile defense is one way to defend against this threat. It is not a silver bullet, but it is one important solution to the problem, he said. Kingston Reif, the director for disarmament and threat reduction policy with the Arms Control Association in Washington wrote in an email, While missile defenses have a role to play in confronting the North Korea threat it cant be a substitute for a diplomatic strategy. Augmenting missile defenses hasnt deterred North Korea from advancing its nuclear capabilities, but it complicates U.S.-China relations, he said. Missile defense is one way to defend against [the North Korea] threat. It is not a silver bullet, but it is one important solution to the problem. David Santoro senior fellow, Pacific Forum CSIS Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 24/02/2016 (2431 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. CHARLESTON, S.C. The spirit of the late Supreme Court justice Antonin Scalia is hovering over the U.S. presidential election trail in different ways and different places. Radio ads in primary states mention his name. Republican rallies observe moments of silence for him. The countrys political parties are preparing an epic showdown over his replacement. Republicans in Congress announced Tuesday that they would not confirm, vote on, or even meet any nominee put forward by the current president, with the all-important balance of the Supreme Court of the United States at stake. Widow Maureen McCarthy Scalia, center, and other family members, walk behind the casket as it is ushered out of the Bascilica following the funeral mass for the late Supreme Court Associate Justice Antonin Scalia, at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, Saturday, Feb. 20, 2016. The spirit of the late Supreme Court justice Antonin Scalia is hovering over the U.S. presidential election trail ??? in different ways and different places. Radio ads in primary states mention his name. At Republican rallies, moments of silence are held for him. The country's political parties are preparing an epic showdown over his replacement.THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP/Pablo Martinez Monsivais This vacancy should not be filled by this lame-duck president, said Sen. Mitch McConnell, the top Senate Republican. The nomination should be made by the president the people elect in the election thats underway right now. He said it had been 130 years since a president nominated a justice in an election year and had it approved by a Congress controlled by the other party. The current stakes could not be higher. On the campaign trail, Ted Cruz reminded his conservative audiences that cases dear to them were won in 5-4 votes that could easily go the other way now: on gun rights, religious monuments in public places and on certain abortion restrictions. Its a message promoted in radio ads by different campaigns, including Cruzs super-PAC. Cruz wants to reframe the Republican nomination race as a battle over whos likeliest to appoint a conservative judge. He argues hes best-qualified for that role, because hes argued nine cases before the Supreme Court including landmark religious-monument and gun-rights cases and because he never bends on right-wing principles. He demonstrated his knowledge of the court by rattling off the top of his head the names of judges whod disappointed conservatives after being appointed by Republicans: Earl Warren, William Brennan, John Paul Stevens, David Souter and Harry Blackmun who wrote the Roe vs. Wade abortion decision. Justice Scalia was a lion of the law. He was someone I was blessed to know for 20 years. He was brilliant, he was principled, Cruz told a rally in Charleston. Scalias passing leaves a huge vacuum. I give you my solemn word: As president, every justice I put on the Supreme Court will be a principled constitutionalist who will be faithful and will protect the Bill of Rights for our children and our childrens children. Outside the rally, his fans expressed doubts about the Republican frontrunner. Donald Trump used to be pro-abortion, pro-universal health care, donated to Democrats and has suggested his sister Maryanne would make a great justice despite her lower-court rulings that infuriated conservatives. Shes a Looney-Tune liberal, roofing contractor K.C. Lombard said of Trumps sister. Shes the one that struck down the partial-birth abortion where they kill babies right there. Its not abortion its murder. Lombard said Scalias death had focused conservatives on the fact that nearly half the court could be replaced by the next president, given the number of elderly justices: It was already important. Its our future. Its where our future is going to be decided. He and other Cruz fans called the court their No. 1 priority. Apparently, not enough South Carolina Republicans agreed. Asked in exit polls whod be best to handle Supreme Court nominations, voters gave Trump and Cruz equal marks. But Trump absolutely crushed the rest of the field in another, apparently more powerful subset: those who wanted to deport illegal immigrants and bar Muslims from visiting the U.S., which both had clear majority support. At a Trump rally, a fan agreed the next justice matters. But he didnt raise it until prompted. He did raise immigration which was his top issue. Immigration is the No. 1 issue. Existential, Id even say, said Scott Barry. Trump won the primary by 11 percentage points. James Bond car maker Aston Martin is to open a new factory in South Wales, creating more than 750 jobs. The luxury marque will build its new DBX model at a plant in St Athan in the Vale of Glamorgan from 2020 following a worldwide search for a new manufacturing facility. The plant will be Aston Martin's second factory and will create an estimated 1,000 jobs in the wider supply chain and local businesses. The firm is famous for the sporty models associated with 007, and Daniel Craig drove an Aston DB10 in the latest Bond movie Spectre. Aston Martin's chief executive Andrew Palmer said: "During our 103-year history, Aston Martin has become famous for making beautiful hand-crafted cars in England. "Through a detailed evaluation of over 20 potential global locations for this new manufacturing facility, we were consistently impressed with the focus on quality, cost and speed from the Welsh Government team. "As a great British company, we look forward to St Athan joining Gaydon as our second centre of hand-crafted manufacturing excellence." First Minister Carwyn Jones said: "I am delighted to officially welcome Aston Martin to Wales. We have been working closely with the company for almost two years in the face of fierce competition from other potential sites across the world. "Our success today is testament to the reputation, dedication and skills of the Welsh workforce, all qualities that are synonymous with such a luxury, hand-crafted brand as Aston Martin. "Today is the start of a long-term relationship between Wales and Aston Martin. We will work together in building on the strong foundations of our partnership to nurture a prosperous and rewarding future for this iconic company and its skilled workforce in Wales." Economy Minister Edwina Hart said the plant making the DBX would mean cars rolling off a production line in Wales for the first time in almost 50 years. She said: "We already have more than 150 companies involved in the automotive supply chain, employing around 18,000 people and generating over 3 billion to the Welsh economy, but this will be the first time in almost 50 years that we will be seeing vehicles roll off a production line in Wales." Gardai in Dublin are looking for the public's help in tracing the whereabouts a woman in her 20s. 22-year-old Eimear Duffy was last seen around lunchtime on Monday in Finglas when she took a taxi to O'Connell Street. Tanaiste Joan Burton has said that the appointment of John McNulty to the board of the IMMA was "not the Taoiseach's finest hour". However, she said that the issue has now been put behind the Coalition after the adoption of new rules on State appointments. Earlier Enda Kenny rowed back from comments made on a TV debate last night, where he appeared to state that he had made the controversial appointment. Media go directly to McNulty appointment issue as Taoiseach leaves #leadersdebate pic.twitter.com/ZhOcadwFSn Juno McEnroe (@Junomaco) February 23, 2016 Joan Burton says it was a difficult time for the Taoiseach, but it's behind him now: Well I think the Taoiseach has made it clear, as he said himself, that it was not his finest hour, she said. But the consequence there has been that the whole system of appointments to public Boards, members of public Boards, has in fact been completely overhauled. The Labour Party leader faced Read More: Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin said today that the Taoiseach should apologise to the people of Ireland for misleading the Dail. Speaking in Edenderry, Co Offaly, Deputy Martin said the Taoiseach has deceived the people. He should apologise for misleading the Dail, he said. I think theres no doubt that the revelation last night, and the frankness of it actually, was in stark contrast to his performance in the Dail. And I think that follows a pattern with Enda Kenny. You know the same thing happened with the forced resignation of Martin Callinan, the Garda Commissioner, You know, it actually took an inquiry to try and unravel that. He is a coal miners son, and his father has managed to hang on to this $30-an-hour job. A barber learns an areas social and political pulse one lock of hair at a time. So how does the local populace feel about a proposed prison coming to town? Ive heard not one person against it. Everyone is for it, he said. Brent Vance, 23, is one of the luckier young people in Whitesburg. He owns and operates a successful barbershop in the downtown area, which has its share of empty storefronts but still manages to be picturesque. This whole area is struggling economically. A lot of people have lost their jobs all over eastern Kentucky, he said. The proposed prison will house approximately 1,000 inmates. The Letcher County facility would join four large federal prisons in eastern Kentucky, in Clay, Martin, McCreary and Boyd counties. A federal medical prison facility is in Lexington, and there are also prisons nearby in western Virginia. The omnibus spending bill recently passed by Congress in December earmarked $444 million for a new federal prison, and since the only site under consideration for a facility by the Bureau of Prisons is in Letcher, most locals are hopeful. But many people in Letcher think they have found a cure: a planned federal prison slated for an old coal mining site outside Whitesburg. Letcher County, Kentucky, is typical of the region. In 1988 a quarter of Letchers workers were employed in coal-related jobs, comprising 1,679 positions. Today the number has dwindled to 271, making up just 8.6 percent of the workforce, according to the Kentucky Energy and Environments annual energy report. This is an area where coal was king and still is but its power isnt what it once was. WHITESBURG, Ky. Appalachia has been battling a dry spell. But the drought isnt in rain; there has been plenty of that lately. Its a job drought. Despite the hemorrhaging of jobs, the local economy is still largely dependent on coal. A pizzeria on Hazards main street stays open 24/7 to serve hungry miners. A sign on the door proclaims, We support our miners. A local breakfast diner advertisers a miners sandwich: egg served on Texas toast with bacon and sausage. But the Center for Rural Strategies, headquartered on Whitesburgs main street, is one of the few dissenting local voices opposing the correction facility. It doesnt work, said Dee Davis, the centers president. Prisons have become de facto rural policy in America. The reality is those poor places in eastern Kentucky [that] thought bringing a prison in would turn their prospects around have been disappointed. Look at Clay County, McCreary County It sounds like a lot of money you are bringing into the county, but there are people lined up to produce the construction, supplies, even to work the jobs, and though there are some benefits to host communities, they are pretty slim. The benefits are often tied up with making a profit off the families of prisoners who live far, far away, she said. Davis points to unemployment, which has remained stubbornly high in counties that have prisons. Letcher Countys unemployment as of 2015 was at 11.8 percent, and Clay County, home to the Federal Correction Institute at Manchester, was at 10.3 percent. Joe DePriest is the president of Letcher Countys Chamber of Commerce and respectfully disagrees with Davis. I am 100 percent for the federal prison locating here in Letcher County. I dont see a downside. I see it as a favorable thing. Of course, if you didnt have people committing crimes, that would be the best-case scenario. Id be all for that, he said. He said the countys industrial park was a key element in weaning the economy off coal, with its variety of industries employing over 300 people. But then the Great Recession blew in, knocking down employment there to approximately 100. I feel like a large portion of people here have lost hope for the future and for living where they actually want to live. Losing hope is a bad thing. So I think the prison gives them something to cling to, DePriest said, adding that if the prison arrives, maybe some related industries will follow. We have had projections of jobs 350 to 450 jobs in the prison and another 300 to 400 jobs from related industries. Theoretically, this could bring in 500, 600, 700 jobs, with an annual payroll of $25 [million] to $30 million a year, he said. He hopes that with more money coursing through the county, maybe some of the empty storefronts will fill with businesses. He said Letcher County has learned from other counties in the area that may not have fully capitalized on their prisons. But Davis isnt sold. Everyone is looking for some magical solution to turn things around. If a prison would work, Id be all for it. Instead, we are the prisoners of the prisoners, she said, pointing to the lack of economic revitalization that accompanies a prison. Meanwhile, Panagioti Tsolkas, the director of the Human Rights Defense Centers prison ecology project, has vowed to file suit to block any planned prison, on the basis of its environmental impact. He added that federal incarceration rates are declining, so a new prison isnt needed. But DePriest believes that there really isnt much choice but to move forward and that those opposed are short on offering alternatives. Our choices have been limited. At this point, we dont see a lot of other possibilities. We are just thankful where we are on the progress of the thing. We think it is getting closer and closer and in the next six months well get some firm dates as to when construction will begin, he said. Area residents can only hope that the prison walls will be strong enough to free them from some of the economic confinement that they have endured. Daniel McConnell, Political Editor Irish Examiner Taoiseach Enda Kenny has admitted he appointed John McNulty to the board of the Irish Museum of Modern Art (IMMA). Having previously distanced himself from the controversial appointment, Mr Kenny for the first time admitted his role in the affair and acknowledged it was a mistake. Mr McNulty was the Fine Gael candidate for the Seanad by-election and was appointed to the board by Minister for Arts Heather Humphreys to ensure his election. Speaking during the Leader's debate on RTE, Mr Kenny confirmed during the debate he had made the decision, one he shouldnt have made. His admission was seized upon as Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams said this was the first time the Taoiseach admitted his role in the process. Speaking to reporters after the debate, Mr Kenny said he took responsibility for the appointment, adding it "was not my finest hour". "I dealt with this in the Dail, I accept responsibility, but it was not my finest hour". Mr Kenny said he has put in place a new set of protocols around such appointments. Former Irish president Mary McAleese has hailed the transformation in relations between Ireland and the UK in the 100 years since Dublin's Easter Rising. In a speech to MPs and peers in the Palace of Westminster, Mrs McAleese discussed how once-fraught diplomatic links across the Irish Sea were now positive. Her address covered the Easter rebellion against British rule in 1916, the Troubles in the North and the subsequent peace process that brought that conflict to an end. She referred to the Queen's historic visit to Ireland in 2011 and also noted Ireland and Britain entered into the European Union on the same day in 1973. The event was organised by the All Party Parliamentary Group on the Irish in Britain, in partnership with St Mary's University, Twickenham, London, where Professor McAleese is a Distinguished Professor in Irish Studies. "These hundred years have seen massive changes in the relationship between Ireland and Britain and further afield," said Mrs McAleese. "Things that were deemed strong and invincible a century ago have disappeared into the footnotes of history. Things that seemed weak and set for failure have grown strong and enduring. A conflict that seemed intractable has been quelled by the politics of peace based on justice, equality, parity of esteem and a willingness to compromise. "Ireland and Britain are today egalitarian democracies held accountable nationally and internationally by our commitment to the same human rights. We meet now on the international stage as equals and as good neighbours. "Behind the world of politics and diplomacy are legions of men and women from Ireland who have made their lives in Britain and vice versa. The web of personal connections is richly textured and strong. It is infused with a new confidence and trust in one another. "I pay tribute to the men, women and young people on all sides who have worked to recalibrate the historically-skewed relationships between these islands. Today's peace came at an awful cost in terms of lives lost, bodies and hearts permanently broken and bitter lessons learnt. Its momentum, however, is clear. It is towards a permanent, stable peace through politics and partnership." Conor McGinn MP, who is chairman of the Irish in Britain APPG, said it was a honour to host the former president. "She is a seminal, inspirational figure who has been central to relations between Ireland and the UK over the last 20 years," he said. "The centenary of the Easter Rising is hugely important to the Irish in Britain, and as on the island of Ireland there are a range of views, experiences and thoughts about its impact and its consequences. "The Irish in Britain played a significant role in the events of 1916, and our community now - 100 years later in 2016 - is at the forefront of driving forward a new and positive relationship between these two islands." By Jackie Cahill Limerick GAA could be rocked to its foundations tonight as speculation mounts that county board treasurer Donal Morrissey is on the verge of resigning his post. Shannonside sources have indicated that Morrissey is preparing to deliver the bombshell news to colleagues at this evenings management committee meeting, scheduled to take place at Munster GAA HQ in Castletroy. It is understood that Morrissey is deeply dissatisfied with procedures surrounding the proposed reappointment of county board secretary Mike ORiordan, whose current tenure is due to expire shortly. ORiordan was appointed as Limerick GAAs first full-time secretary in 2009 and has been in the position for almost seven years. Under GAA rules, officers vacate positions after five years but full-time officials can be employed for seven-year stints. The measures taken to push through a fresh tenure for O'Riordan have not met with Morrisseys approval. It is believed that Morrissey has indicated to county board chairman Oliver Mann that if ORiordan is rubber-stamped as secretary again, he will step down in protest. Morrisseys stance leaves fellow top table officials in something of a quandary and indications from reliable Limerick sources indicate that he is unhappy that the secretarys position has not been advertised publicly. These developments have the potential to create a major split in the Limerick board and tonights gathering looks set to be a heated affair. Morrissey is a highly-regarded professional, a chartered accountant by trade who has been working extremely hard with Commercial Manager John Loftus to transform the finances of the county board in recent years. Morrissey was unavailable for comment last night but could break his silence following this evenings meeting. Limerick GAA is no stranger to controversy in recent years, with their minor hurlers denied a legitimate point in the 2013 All-Ireland semi-final by a HawkEye error. Later that year, senior boss Tom Ryan left aggrieved after he was snubbed for the intermediate hurling team managers role. Just a few months later, former Cork supremo Donal OGrady quit as Limericks joint senior team manager following disagreements with the county board. But the fact that high-ranking Limerick officials are at loggerheads over the manner in which one is seeking reappointment is something of a new departure. Louis van Gaal wants his players to be "horny", hungry and full of desire as Manchester United look to avoid a humiliating European exit to FC Midtjylland. A bleak season would reach a new low at Old Trafford on Thursday should the Danish champions follow up last week's shock 2-1 win and progress from this Europa League last-32 tie. Midtjylland were only formed in 1999 and their own sporting director, Claus Steinlein, even admitted it would still be "a bit of a miracle" if they can progress past the three-time European champions. Van Gaal is not taking the visitors for granted, though, especially after a chastening first-leg defeat in Herning, after which he admitted the travelling fans had been right to criticise United's display. The Dutchman expects the chance to upset the apple cart on a stage like Old Trafford to inspire Midtjylland and called for his players to match their determination. "I was not a great player, as you know, but when I played for full stadiums I was always at my best," Van Gaal said. "It is not a good signal for Manchester United. "I think most the players shall be excited and for them it is the match of their lives, especially at Old Trafford and not at home. "It is always the reason why I say that top teams have to cope with the resistance of their opponent also." Juan Mata, sat alongside Van Gaal at the pre-match press conference, was then asked if matching the visitors' desire was key, but his manager excitedly interjected. "You are right, you are right - your word is fantastic: desire," he added. "Hungry and a lot of times I use the word horny to my players." Van Gaal's turn of phrase led to chuckles - including from Mata - in the press conference, where the United boss regularly underlined the difficulties posed by the visitors. Dismissive when asked about the seeming gulf in individual quality, he also scoffed at suggestions that this tie should have been a cake-walk. "I do think that Midtjylland had a very good organisation, very detailed, and the players want to perform that organisation," Van Gaal said. "They play with diagonal pressing. I do that also with my team and not many teams are doing that. "When I see the data of Midtjylland, they have always won against English opponents. "Everybody is thinking it's nothing, but you have to analyse every opponent on its own qualities and I think they have a lot of qualities." Van Gaal knows United have to win second balls more often than they did last Thursday, in addition to keeping possession better and moving the ball quicker. It is a match they approach without a string of first-team players, from Wayne Rooney to Bastian Schweinsteiger, and Phil Jones to Marouane Fellaini. Questions remain over the fitness of Chris Smalling after Monday's FA Cup win at Shrewsbury, while star turn David de Gea will again be missing in goal. "I was hoping for (De Gea to be available) but he shall not be involved," Van Gaal said. "That is already certain. "(Antonio) Valencia not available for selection, neither (Adnan) Januzaj - they are close. "(Marcelo) Rojo can only come in for 20 minutes, maybe, so it is possible but that depends on the other injuries. He has trained already with the second team." The Syrian president has assured Russia's Vladimir Putin of Damascus's commitment to a Russia-US proposed truce. However, a spokesman for a Saudi-backed alliance of Syrian opposition and rebel factions expressed "major concerns" about the ceasefire, due to begin later this week. Salem Al Meslet, spokesman for the alliance known as the High Negotiations Committee (HNC), said his group is worried that Russia and Syrian president Bashar Assad's forces would continue to strike at mainstream rebels under the pretext of hitting "terrorist groups" during the truce. The agreement, engineered by the US and Russia, is set to take effect at midnight Friday local time. It does not cover the so-called 'Islamic State' group, Syria's al-Qaida branch known as the Nusra Front, or any other militia designated as a terrorist group by the UN Security Council. Today, Mr Assad and Mr Putin discussed the truce agreement in a telephone call, according to the Syrian state-run news agency and a Russian official. SANA said Mr Putin called Mr Assad, adding that the two leaders stressed the importance of continuing to fight 'Islamic State', the Nusra Front "and other terrorist organisations". The truce agreement remains shaky at best and major questions over enforcement are still unresolved. Also, it is not clear exactly where along Syria's complicated front lines the fighting would stop and for how long - or where counter-terrorism operations could continue. Also unresolved are how breaches in the truce would be dealt with. US Secretary of State John Kerry told American lawmakers on Tuesday that he would not vouch for the success of the cease-fire agreement but that it is the best pathway for ending five years of violence in Syria that has killed more than 250,000 people and displaced another 11 million from their homes. Al Meslet, the opposition spokesman, said the HNC is holding open meetings in the Saudi capital of Riyadh and is seeking guarantees and clarifications from the United States about the mechanism for the implementation of the agreement. Speaking in a phone interview, he said however that the opposition wants to stop the bloodshed and would abide by the truce. "The Americans are taking note of our concerns and we are waiting for their replies," Mr Al Meslet said. Mr Putin's spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, confirmed the phone call, saying there were differences in opinion between Moscow and Damascus but that Russia is one of the few countries still in contact with "the legitimate Syrian leader". He did not elaborate. Speaking in a conference call with journalists, he said Moscow was doing its part and is expecting the United States to also do its part to make sure the groups they support adhere to the cease-fire. "The main goal is to stop the bloodletting in Syria," he said. Asked whether Moscow had a plan B in case the truce did not hold, he replied: "We are concentrating on Plan A right now... it's too early to speak of other plans." Donald Trump has won the Republican presidential caucuses in Nevada, giving the billionaire businessman three straight wins in the race for the GOP nomination. We will be celebrating for a long time tonight, he said, add that a prediction that he'll soon claim the GOP nomination. It's going to be an amazing two months, he said. We might not even need the two months, folks, to be honest. If you listen to the pundits, we werent expected to win too much, and now were winning, winning, winning the country, Trump said at a victory rally in Las Vegas. Soon, the country is going to start winning, winning, winning. Trump vowed to keep the open the military dentention center at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, telling supporters: We're going to load it up with a lot of bad dudes out there. Marco Rubio elbowed out Ted Cruz for second place, far ahead of Ohio Gov. John Kasich, who was endorsed by the New York Times for the GOP nomination, and Ben Carson, a retired neurosurgeon. Trump is expected to take the bulk of Nevadas 30 delegates, which would give him more than 80 before February ends, and dwarf the tallies of Cruz and Rubio. While more than 1,200 are needed to secure the Republican presidential nomination, Trump has a formidable head start. If you are Cruz and Rubio you have to worry about how far Trump is getting ahead of you, said Ford OConnell, a Republican strategist in Washington. These guys have to figure out how to turn their fire on Trump. Preliminary entrance polls taken of Republican caucus-goers show that nearly 6 in 10 are angry at the way the government is working, and about half of them supported the billionaire businessman. Trump was also supported by about 6 in 10 of those who said they care most about immigration, and nearly half of those who said they care most about the economy. The race for the Republican nomination now moves on to next week's Super Tuesday, when a dozen states will hold presidential primaries. In the Democratic race, front-runner Hillary Clinton was looking for a commanding victory over Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders in Saturday's South Carolina primary to give her a boost heading into Super Tuesday. Polls show the former secretary of state with a huge advantage among African-Americans which bodes well for her prospects in South Carolina and then the Southern states which vote on Super Tuesday where blacks make up a large segment of the Democratic primary electorate. Trumps victories in the West, the South and Northeast a testament to his broad appeal among the mad-as-hell voters making their voices heard in the 2016 presidential race. Nevada was a critical test for Rubio and Cruz, the two senators battling to emerge as the clear alternative to the GOP front-runner. Rubio was out to prove he can build on recent momentum, while Cruz was looking for a spark to recover from a particularly rocky stretch in his campaign. Rubio, already campaigning in Michigan as caucus results rolled in, was projecting confidence that he can consolidate the non-Trump voters who have been splintering among an assortment of GOP candidates, saying, we have incredible room to grow. Cruz, a conservative popular among voters on the GOP's right, finished a disappointing third in South Carolina after spending much of the past two weeks denying charges of dishonest campaign tactics and defending his integrity. Another disappointing finish in Nevada would raise new questions about his viability heading into a crucial batch of Super Tuesday states on March 1. There's something wrong with this guy, Trump said with his usual measure of tact during a massive Las Vegas rally Monday night. The former reality television star tweeted on Tuesday: He used him as a scape goat fired like a dog! Ted panicked. Nevada's caucusing played out in schools, community centers and places of worship across the state a process that's been chaotic in the past. Nevada was the first Republican election in the West, the fourth of the campaign. And it's not one that's gotten much attention from the GOP candidates. Through Tuesday, the Republican candidates and the super PACs supporting them had spent a combined $3.8 million on television and radio advertisements in Nevada less than a tenth of the $39.3 million spent ahead of last weekend's South Carolina primary, according to Kantar Media's CMAG data. That primary reduced a GOP field that included a dozen candidates a month ago to five, with former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush the latest to drop out after a disappointing finish in South Carolina. Kasich and Carson could play spoilers as the trio of leading candidates, Trump, Cruz and Rubio, battle for delegates with an increasing sense of urgency. Trump's rivals concede they are running out of time to stop him. The election calendar suggests that if the New York billionaire's rivals don't slow him by mid-March, they may not ever. Trump swept all of South Carolina's 50 delegates, giving him a total of 67 compared to Cruz (11) and Rubio (10). After finishing third in Iowa, fifth in New Hampshire and second in South Carolina, Rubio needs a win soon to support the idea that he is the prime heir to Bush's supporters. Indeed, Republican establishment heavyweights have been flooding to Rubio in recent days, including Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson, North Carolina Sen. Thom Tillis and Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch. South Florida's three Cuban-American members of Congress announced their support for him in the hours before the Nevada contest. Wire services A Moroccan man has been given a six-month suspended sentence for stealing a camera and mobile phone and possessing drugs in Cologne. He is first person to be convicted in connection with the series of New Year's Eve crimes in the German city. The 23-year-old asylum seeker also was fined 100 by the Cologne district court. The defendant stole a mobile phone from a woman as she photographed the city's cathedral. The 20-year-old did not see who had stolen the phone but caught him after an Afghan refugee who had witnessed the theft pointed him out. The man apologised to her at today's brief trial. Police found a small quantity of amphetamines in one of the man's socks after he was arrested. The spate of reported thefts and assaults on women outside Cologne's main station caused public uproar as Germany deals with a huge influx of refugees. More than 1,000 criminal complaints were filed, more than 400 of those alleging crimes of a sexual nature. Neither of the two trials scheduled in Cologne today involves allegations of sexual assaults. In a separate case being heard later in the day, a 22-year-old Tunisian and an 18-year-old Moroccan are charged with stealing a camera from a man. Their names have not been released, in accordance with German privacy laws. Latest update: 1.40pm Six people have been convicted in relation to the sexual abuse of girls over several years in Rotherham in the UK. Three men and two women have been found guilty - while one other person admitted the offences. They'll be sentenced on Friday. Two other defendants were cleared of all charges. Latest update 11.30am A jury considering verdicts in the trial of five men and two women charged with offences relating to alleged child sexual exploitation in Rotherham has been told by a judge she will accept majority decisions. For two months, Sheffield Crown Court has heard allegations that teenage girls in the South Yorkshire town were raped and beaten by men who passed them around and forced some to work as prostitutes. A jury of six women and six men has been deliberating on a total of 51 counts, involving 12 alleged victims, since Wednesday last week. The charges include allegations of rape, indecent assault, abduction, false imprisonment and procuring women to be prostitutes. Judge Sarah Wright told the jury she will accept verdicts if at least 10 jurors agreed. But she urged them to continue to try and reach unanimous decisions. At the beginning of the trial, prosecutor Michelle Colborne QC told the jury they will hear from women who were "targeted, sexualised and in some instances subjected to acts of a degrading and violent nature" when they were teenagers. The jury has heard women describe how they were were targeted in their young teens and subjected to brutal treatment as they were passed around men who raped and beat them. Some described how they were trafficked, locked up, physically assaulted and threatened with death. Arshid Hussain, 40, Qurban Ali, 53, Majid Bostan, 37, Sajid Bostan, 38, Basharat Hussain, 39, Karen MacGregor, 58, and Shelley Davies, 40, all deny a range of charges. Syrian president Bashar Assad has received a phone call from Russian leader Vladimir Putin, Syria's state-run news agency said. SANA said that during the call with Mr Putin on Wednesday, the Syrian president confirmed Damascus's readiness to support the implementation of the agreement for a "cessation of hostilities" in Syria. The agreement, engineered by the US and Russia, is set to take effect at midnight Friday local time. It does not cover the Islamic State group, Syria's al Qaida branch known as the Nusra Front, or any other militia designated as a terrorist group by the UN Security Council. SANA said the two leaders stressed the importance of continuing to fight the Islamic State, the Nusra Front "and other terrorist organisations". At least three people have been killed as a storm system spawned tornadoes in the Gulf Coast states of the US. Two people were killed at a motorhome park in the town of Convent in southern Louisiana, police said, and authorities are searching for people possibly trapped under the debris. Thirty-one people were taken to hospital with seven in critical condition, officers said. St James Parish Sheriff Willy Martin said: "We never had anything like this, we never had this many people injured in one event, and so much destruction in one event. We won't stop searching until we're satisfied we've searched every pile." He said three people were still believed to be missing but efforts to account for them were hampered because authorities did not know how many people were at the park when the storm hit or how many were taken to hospital in private vehicles. In Mississippi, officials are sorting through reports of damage to some buildings, and the Lamar County Emergency Management Agency said a 73-year-old man died in a mobile home west of Purvis. In Alabama and Georgia, forecasters issued flash flood watches ahead of the storm system, which was expected to drop 1in to 2in of rain. The northern part of Georgia was also under a wind advisory. The reported tornadoes were part of a line of severe weather and storms that ripped through the region, which is expected to reach the Carolinas later. The forecast for the Carolinas predicts possible flash flooding and severe thunderstorms, including damaging winds, hail and isolated tornadoes. Wind gusts may be particularly strong, reaching 70mph or more. News outlets in Georgia, South Carolina and Florida said schools had cancelled Wednesday classes ahead of the storm. At least seven tornadoes hit south-east Louisiana and south-west Mississippi, said Ken Graham, the meteorologist in charge for the National Weather Service's south-east Louisiana office. That number includes the ones in Convent and Purvis, he said. Teams are documenting the damage and rating the tornadoes. The storm even affected the National Weather Service, Mr Graham said. At one point staff in the Slidell office took shelter because a tornado was nearby, and lightning took out the office's radar, forcing them to use back-ups, he added. In Florida, the National Weather Service said a tornado hit Pensacola. Meteorologist Steve Miller said the service has had many reports of property damage and people injured. A reported tornado caused damage but no injuries near New Orleans's main airport, while high winds ripped off roofs and downed trees around the greater New Orleans area. Other suspected tornadoes were reported north of Lake Pontchartrain and west of the city in St Charles and Ascension parishes, and in Prairieville, between New Orleans and Baton Rouge, heavy damage was reported to some buildings, including a gym. DOHA: The bill being paid by Qatar for the most expensive World Cup ever held is set to rise to fantasy levels in... More than 20,000 immigrant prisoners are serving their sentences at 11 privatized, immigrant-only contract prisons run by three companies: the Geo Group, the Corrections Corp. of America and the Management and Training Corp. Many of these prisoners are convicted only of illegal entry. Private prisons cost less than federal prisons because they provide less. Immigrant prisoners who are deported after serving time dont receive rehabilitation, education or job training, services considered essential for U.S. citizens held in government-operated prisons. Even worse, these prisons fail to provide minimally adequate health care to inmates, leading to death for some and misery for many. Basic human rights standards require prisons to provide adequate medical care to inmates, regardless of their legal status. Reports show a pervasive pattern of inadequate medical care at privately run immigrant prisons in the United States. A Jan. 28 report by Seth Freed Wessler, a senior fellow at the Schuster Institute for Investigative Journalism, analyzed medical records of 103 immigrant prisoners who died in private prisons from 1998 to 2014. It concluded that in at least 25 of those cases, subpar care likely contributed to the premature deaths of the prisoners. Mexican immigrant Claudio Fagardo-Saucedo was one of the prisoners whose death was investigated by Wessler. Fagardo-Saucedo arrived at a private prison in Texas on Jan. 27, 2009, with a positive tuberculosis screen. Medical protocols call for an HIV test for anyone with a positive TB screen. But he wasnt tested for HIV. Over the next two years, he went to the prison clinic numerous times in pain, but a doctor never saw him. Instead, the clinics licensed vocational nurses, who receive only one year of training, prescribed ibuprofen or Tylenol. Fagardo-Saucedo was hospitalized on New Years Day 2011 after he collapsed. He died four days later, shackled to his hospital bed. An autopsy showed an HIV-related infection in his brain. Martin Acosta, a Salvadoran immigrant who served time at the Texas prison for illegal re-entry at the same time as Fagardo-Saucedo, began complaining of abdominal pain late in the summer of 2010, according to Wesslers report. He went to the prison clinic more than 20 times in less than five months. Despite his complaints of vomiting blood and having blood in his stool, no lab tests were performed. In December 2010 he landed in a hospital, where he was diagnosed with severe metastatic stomach cancer. He died in January 2011. Nestor Garay had a stroke during the night at another Texas immigrant prison. His cellmates called for help. Prison personnel refused to take him to the emergency room, instead isolating him in another cell. By morning, when he was finally taken to the hospital, it was too late for the clot-busting medication that could have saved his life. LONDON: Copper prices extended losses on Wednesday as soaring inflation and the prospect of more interest rate hikes... SINGAPORE: US oil may test a support at $83.78 per barrel, a break below which could open the way towards... Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), the countrys national carrier, has been in hot water for a few years now. Its balance sheet shows a debt of 300 billion rupees (almost $3 billion). It has been described as the worlds most overstaffed airline, and despite the fact that oil prices are the lowest theyve been in recent years, the losses continue to accumulate. Notwithstanding the perennial flight delays and the occasional workers strike, however, for a while the airline seemed to be getting by. Then on Jan. 21, the National Assembly passed a bill that proposed to convert the national carrier into a public limited company. The manner in which the bill was passed was sketchy, as were its contents. All that was revealed was that a strategic investor would take a minority stake in as well as management control of the company. The oppositions demands for transparency were ignored, and the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PMLN) partys reluctance to prolong the debate was evident. The day the bill was passed, every member of the PMLN was present in the Assembly an extremely rare feat. It is also worth mentioning that that when the previous government moved to privatize the airline, PMLN leader Nawaz Sharif, who is now prime minister, opposed the move. Instead, he proposed that the airline should sell some assets, pay off its loans, increase its fleet size and add routes. While it is undoubtedly exasperating for the government to continue investing money in an unprofitable enterprise, that the bill was passed without an attempt to build consensus in the Assembly may be one reason for the nationwide protests that emerged in the weeks after the privatization announcement. Once it became evident that PIAs employees would not be taking the announcement lying down and that they had the capacity to bring the airlines services to a screeching halt, the government found itself having to backtrack. Islamabad announced that the privatization plans would be postponed by six months and that all employees should immediately return to work. For good measure, the government invoked a law that essentially restricts union activity in state-administered sectors, including railways, postal services, telephone and affiliated services, airports and seaports. In a moment of heightened tension, the information minister announced that those continuing the strike would be treated as enemies of PIA and Pakistan and they will end up losing their jobs. No one ended up losing their jobs, but two employees lost their lives when the protests got violent. Security personnel fired rubber bullets, water cannons and tear gas shells at the protesters. Although the police and rangers both deny firing, several other PIA employees and media personnel were injured by regular bullets, and bullet casings were found at the site of the clash. And then, just as suddenly as it began, the head of the striking workers called off the action. At a press briefing, he announced that a kind friend had advised him to end the strike and to come to the table for discussions. The offer was available before the employees lost their lives and the airline suffered losses of more than 1.8 billion rupees, so whatever prompted his change of heart is not fully clear. There are good reasons for a publication to commit to a columnist for the long term: A column works best after a writer develops a relationship with his or her audience and a familiarity with the form and schedule. It takes time for readers to get a feel for a writers style, personality and point of view, and with a columns short size, background knowledge is important. A decade or so after my Times discovery, the idea of it being hard to find people writing opinion is absurd, but most of the roster at the Times op-ed page is the same. Krugman, Dowd and Brooks are still there, along with Gail Collins, Thomas L. Friedman and Nicholas Kristof. The Supreme Court had the same turnover during this period; weve had three popes since 2004 and five new Times columnists. Its about as secure a job as exists in media and much more stable than almost any gig in public life. Still, its hard to feel bad for them. Writing several hundred words a week about whatever you want is, as my mom used to say, nice work if you can get it. But content is content is content, and it would be one hell of a coincidence if form based on the physical inches of a broadsheet made sense for online publishers. Why pay some big writer a corresponding salary when an earnest, entry-level social media aggregator can probably get just as many clicks? Opinions from the worlds greatest minds are free on Twitter 24/7. Unlike journalists, columnists arent bound by rigid objective standards. While George W. Bushs administration pointed the country straight toward hell, reporting didnt have enough teeth for me. Reading Paul Krugman explain with math how the Republicans were wrong felt vindicating, and Maureen Dowds mockery lightened the page. I was introduced to hate-reading; the milquetoast condescension of David Brooks helped inspire me to start writing for an audience. The columnists exalted positions made them some of the only consistent opinions on current events that I saw, but now that theyre online fighting with everything else for clicks, newspaper opinion columnists have been brought down from their perch a little bit. When I first stumbled on the New York Times op-ed page as a teenager, I couldnt believe what I had been missing: Every day, at the back of the A section, the worlds brightest minds advanced heady arguments. Up until then, I thought ideas lived in books, while reporting (and box scores) went in the newspaper, but there they were. And surrounding these op-eds were the opinion columns, where a trusted few writers got to cultivate readers attentions and opinions twice a week, 700 or so careful words at a time. But insulating writers has its downsides as well. Some longtime columnists have become institutions in and of themselves thought leaders who are playing the public role of columnists more often than theyre doing the writing job itself. As thought leaders, theyre more like court thinkers for the 1 percent than social critics; they typically get invited to speak by various interests for big money. I dont know what percentage of their income derives from their column, but it would be revealing to know. Friedman, Brooks and Kristof are Aspen Ideas Festival brands as much as they are writers, and Dowds most important piece in years, amid countless vapid takes on politics and culture, was about getting too high on marijuana. Together theyve made being a Times columnist a great job with a lousy reputation. When I was growing up, I Iooked forward to Krugman and Collins, but they werent my favorites. More than any of his colleagues, Bob Herbert imbued every one of his columns with a sense of responsibility. He didnt write like he was filling space with whatever he tripped on that week. Herbert treated every block of words like an opportunity to advocate for the ignored and marginalized. Before editors were looking for it, Herbert wrote about the racist criminal justice system and American poverty. While other columnists flattered or enraged their readers existing passions, he performed honest advocacy. While others mused, he investigated. Ill never forget a column he wrote in 2007 about the arrest of a child in her Florida kindergarten classroom. He called the chief of police and said what I wanted to say: But she was 6. He could do it and print the answer with the disgust it deserved because he was a Times columnist. Herbert seemed to know that and take it seriously. Even though Herbert was my model Times columnist, he never got the positive attention of his flashier colleagues. A 2007 feature in The Washington Monthly summed up conventional wisdom with its headline, Why is Bob Herbert boring? The author, T.A. Frank, writes upfront that Herbert is always right but confesses that neither he nor anyone one he knows reads Herberts work. Frank blames human nature, writing, Poor people plus statistics equals boring. Herbert put it better when he said, The media tends to be drawn like a magnet to power. I think people who are in privileged positions either dont think a lot about people who are not or dont care about them. In 2011 when he left the Times, I was sad but not surprised. If Brooks or Friedman is the Times idea of a columnist, then the institution isnt making a great case for the job or the medium. And if some teenager asked me what columns they should read, Id send them not to the luminaries at the Times but to new columnists such as Melissa Gira Grant at Pacific Standard, Rebecca Solnit at LitHub, Ezekiel Kweku at MTV or Parul Sehgal at the Times Sunday magazine. Their sensibilities havent been dulled by years of DC cocktails parties or Aspen Ideas talks, and they all take their roles seriously. Like an old-growth forest, the Times op-ed page needs a burn. The paper is in a unique position to make the argument for the persistence of the column form, whose limitations still have a lot to offer. But with a commitment to lifetime appointments for its big brands, the Times could also send the newspaper column to the dustbin of history, unable to attract the best potential and turning the job into a mockery. Pakistans goods exports may have only risen 2.6 percent year-on-year in 1QFY23, but there is enough in it to... The Democratic presidential race between former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Sen. Bernie Sanders illustrates a growing generational divide in the African-American community. Although recent polls in the heavily black South Carolina primary point to a significant Clinton victory, enthusiasm around Sanders campaign is rising among younger black voters. We are asking a new question that would have stunned everyone before 2008: What comes after the first black president? Call us the Caleb generation. To understand why, you have to go to church. In 2007, at an address at the Brown Chapel A.M.E. Church in Selma, Alabama, then-Sen. Barack Obama coined the phrase the Joshua generation to describe an emerging group of black political leaders. It was natural for Obama to anoint this group, for it was the sacrifices and accomplishments of the vaunted Moses generation Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Rep. John Lewis and others that laid the groundwork for the plausibility and success of Obamas presidential campaign. Energized by his candidacy, young black people came out in droves in both 2008 and 2012, and their emergence as a political force may decide this race and the future of the Democratic Party. The Bible describes Joshuas leadership of the tribes of Israel and his mission to reclaim the land of Canaan for the Hebrews. Joshua is portrayed as a just, loyal, aggressive chieftain who assumes the mantle of leadership from Moses, who led the Israelites out of Egypt to freedom. One of Joshuas followers is Caleb, a member of the tribe of Judah sent to spy on the Canaanites. The black millennials who voted for Obama, and those even younger than we who are voting for the first time, are seeking new leadership before the departure of Obama. This Caleb generation is hungry for change, and we are just as animated as our biblical namesake. For many African-Americans, Obama is a sacred totem. In spite of determined opposition, often in the form of racist demagoguery, the president has racked up a historic series of policy triumphs, all while presenting himself and his family as path-breaking exemplars of America at its best. Older blacks including members of the Congressional Black Caucus, preachers, journalists and celebrities are determined to defend Obamas legacy. However, younger blacks are more likely to take Obamas election and reelection as givens as we confront new concerns. Staggering youth unemployment and the all too frequent images of young black men and women slain by the police haunt us more than the martyrdoms of Emmett Till or Fred Hampton. From Ferguson to Baltimore, the destruction of black bodies described by journalist Ta-Nehisi Coates in his award-winning book Between the World and Me is still routine, even under a black president. This persistent outrage points to the hollowness of the current political system. LONDON: Liz Truss came to 10 Downing Street vowing to be a disruptor. She U-turned on almost everything else, but... TEHRAN: Iran has once again rejected allegations that it has supplied Russia with weapons "to be used in the war in... NEW DELHI: A panel of Indias top court said on Thursday it was divided on a decision to allow hijabs in classrooms,... The ACT has the lowest number of criminal offenders in Australia, with 2665 people convicted during 2014-15, which was an annual decrease of 13 per cent. According to data released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics on Wednesday, the number of male offenders fell by 10 per cent between 2013-14 and 2014-15. The ACT has the second highest proportion of youth offenders in Australia. Credit:Tanya Lake The number of female offenders fell by 25 per cent during the same period, while the ACT continued to have the lowest proportion of repeat offenders in Australia. But the ACT had the second highest proportion of youth offenders in Australia at 591, although this was a decrease of 24 per cent compared to 2013-14 figures. With the Alexander Maconochie Centre's newest accommodation unit half full, Corrections Minister Shane Rattenbury said he hoped this expansion would be the prison's last. Construction of new cells at Canberra's prison was completed four months ahead of schedule and $7 million under budget, Minister Rattenbury said. The AMC's new accommodation unit. Credit:Jay Cronan Money saved will help fund the prison's industry project, a bakery and expanded laundry where prisoners will work to service the facility itself. It's hoped the new unit would ease pressure on the chronically overcrowded prison, with an extra 112 beds in 56 cells. The prophecy is more than seeing into the future. For the prophecy sees without the element of time. For the prophecy sees things as they were, as they are, and as they always shall be. Prosecutors say a man accused of beating a Canberra grandfather to death was obsessed with paedophiles and believed he was an "undercover police agent" tasked with tracking them down. The trial of Danny Klobucar, 27, for the alleged murder of Miodrag Gajic, 71, began in the ACT Supreme Court on Wednesday. Victim Miodrag Gajic, left, and murder accused Danny Klobucar. Mr Gajic was bashed to death at the front door of his Mansfield Place unit in Phillip on New Year's Day in 2014. Klobucar has denied killing Mr Gajic, but is also relying on a defence of mental impairment in the event that the jury finds he was the murderer. The ACT will be completely encircled on Thursday by the federal electorate of Eden-Monaro, which is surging north and west and gaining 25,000 voters. The bellwether seat will increase in area by about one-third, to 41,000 square kilometres, the size of Switzerland. Dr Hendy's electorate has grown to the size of Switzerland. Eden-Monaro is based on Queanbeyan and extends to the south coast and the Victorian border. However, under the changes made by the Australian Electoral Commission, it will extend past the ACT to take in the Yass and Tumut shires. Westpac Banking Corp director and Stone & Chalk chairman Craig Dunn has been appointed chairman of a new fintech advisory group announced by the federal government on Wednesday to recommend policy changes to grow Australia's financial technology sector. The establishment of the advisory group comes as governments in top global financial services hubs including Singapore and London have changed policies to help fintech start-ups compete against incumbents. Stone & Chalk chairman Craig Dunn will advise the government on how to boost the fintech industry in the region. Credit:Chris Pearce A joint media release issued by Prime Minster Malcolm Turnbull and Treasurer Scott Morrison on Wednesday said the government supported the fintech sector to drive competition and enhance customer service in financial services. It said it wanted the group to help Australia become the leading market for fintech in Asia. "Many traditional financial products are being disrupted by the fintech sector, which is well positioned to become a leading player in the Asia-Pacific. Fintech is at the cutting edge of innovation and will help to deliver more efficient financial markets and more customer focussed outcomes for consumers," the government said. He has now revealed, in a speech to the National Press Club in Canberra, that he approached then SBS managing director, Shaun Brown, at the latter end of Mr Brown's term, which ended in 2011. In a speech, in which he warned of job losses if the government cuts the ABC's news budget in its forthcoming triennial funding round, Mr Scott made a fresh case that combining the public broadcasters would be good for taxpayers and not harm viewers. "Shaun Brown and I had a number of conversations about how a peaceful merger might work. One that would safeguard a distinct identity and remit for SBS and allow the public broadcasters to be more distinctive, in clearly delineated spaces - with no overlap," said Mr Scott. "No bidding against each other, schedules developed side-by-side to maximise specialist audiences, using studios more efficiently. And shared back office support that would deliver economies of scale. "We felt we could have come up with a public broadcasting proposition for Government that worked in the interests of audiences, the taxpayers and the broadcasters. A shared solution. Not a takeover, but a friendly merger in the interests of the owners. "But it wasn't to be. The idea was rejected at the SBS Board level and Shaun wasn't given license to pursue the conversation further. It ended there." SBS board rejected merger The recommendations from a Senate inquiry include changing corporate laws to ensure anyone giving property investment advice is regulated in the same way as other types of financial advice. A dramatic overhaul of property investment laws has been backed by a Senate committee after Fairfax Media revealed notorious property spruikers have cost investors millions of dollars in questionable "land banking" schemes. Henry Kaye and Jamie McIntyre with an associate, Konrad Bobilak, at a fancy dress party. There are no specific regulations covering property investment advice. Credit:Simon Bosch The proposed changes come after a Fairfax Media investigation found unsophisticated investors had sunk up to $100 million into land banking schemes across Victoria and Queensland, buying "options" on undeveloped farmland supposedly earmarked for luxury developments. Investors were promised huge capital profits over the long term and in one case were told a $590,000 investment could be worth $38 million in 40 years. Financial advisors are required by law to work under a financials services licensee, have proper training, disclose their fees and put clients interests ahead of their own. There are no specific regulations covering property investment advice and the industry is rife with spruikers. United States retailer Lowe's has set the scene for legal action against Woolworths after writing down the value of its 33 per cent stake in the companies' home improvement joint venture by $US530 million ($737 million). Lowe's booked a $US530 million charge against its investment in the Masters and Home Timber and Hardware businesses overnight, sending net profits plunging to $US11 million from $US450 million. Lowe's net investment in home improvement is about $US930 million ($1.33 billion at current exchange rates), so the write-down represents more than 56 per cent of the book value of its investment. Woolworths could book impairment charges of at least $1.3 billion if it writes down its 66 per cent stake a similar margin. Electoral justice is not necessarily the same thing as democratic justice. For that reason electoral reform linked to a three-week parliamentary timetable and an early double dissolution to abruptly get rid of micro-party senators is a bad idea. Rushed politics is often poor politics. Nevertheless, I understand the rationale behind these reforms and broadly support them. The introduction of optional preferential voting has been a long time coming at the federal level. The states have already seen the merits of this idea. Introducing party logos onto ballot papers also cannot do any harm and the added clarity will assist some voters in making a more reasoned choice. The reforms have been sold as being directed at eliminating those micro-parties which occasionally manage to get themselves elected on a tiny percentage of the primary or first preference vote. They may also assist in reducing some apparent anomalies. This motivation is reasonable when it is pure and not contaminated by self-interest. Unfortunately that is not always the case. There are also other issues such as voter comfort. Large numbers of candidates have made Senate ballot papers unwieldy in the larger states like NSW and Victoria. As a consequence voting above the line for a single team rather than below the line for a mix of candidates has become unduly attractive as a means of coping with voting on polling day. Yet an opportunity to also introduce optional preferential below the line has been missed. Furthermore it is not enough just to react viscerally to the success of these micro-parties. It may be true that they have brought it on themselves by being too successful. The prominence of so-called preference whisperers has also called attention to gaming the system by stitching together preference deals between squadrons of micro parties. Australias rock-era protest songs were certainly the most successful in terms of mainstream hits, but underground and independent labels have always maintained the rage, albeit with less visibility. And powerful social messages were also conveyed by song well before the angry '80s. A short tour of Australias protest song history shows that protest music didnt so much disappear as morph from mainstream to many streams, tracking alongside popular music in general as it became fragmented and stylistically diffuse. I am Protest, hear me roar Eric Bogle kicked off Australias anti-war ouvre with The Band Played Waltzing Matilda in 1971. A powerful but unassuming song, it combines the sound of anti-war folk music with more than a hint of the original Waltzing Matildas poignancy. Redgums I Was Only 19 (1983) was an important follow-up in this genre. Another early modern-era song of protest was Helen Reddys I am Woman Hear Me Roar. As a song about empowerment, its aim was to inspire. The song uses a technique called modulation to underscore the lyrics, sometimes changing key in a novel or surprising way to make the music and listener feel like theyve been literally lifted up. A Hammond organ provides a subtle southern gospel church feel to heighten the positive vibes. The time had come Some time in the '60s, rock began clawing the mantle of authenticity (in the sense of musically expressing the true emotional state of a community or group) away from folk music. Rocks essential promise was no fakes allowed only genuine-article premium raw emotion, perfect for protest. Even as pops synth-based sheen was increasingly applied to mainstream music, Australian pub rock thrived through the '70s and '80s. And, of course, just either side of the '80s is generally considered to be the golden era of Australian protest songs. You can hear the relationship between folk and rock when comparing two classic songs: Paul Kellys From Little Things Big Things Grow (1991) and Midnight Oils Beds are Burning (1987). The Dylanesque From Little Things Big Things Grow draws on an ossified style, Aussiefied and refreshed here with a dose of country. Narratively down-home lyrics are set to four simple chords, repeated hypnotically throughout the entire song. The balance of circling around two brighter/sweeter chords and two darker/ sadder chords creates an appropriate mix of hope and melancholy. That repetition and predictability gives the ear a sense of reassurance and creates space for the listener to focus on the lyrics. From Little Things Big Things Grow tells the story of how the Gurindji peoples claim can be seen as igniting the Indigenous land rights movement. Aboriginal themes and issues are easily the most significant causes Australian music took up in the protest heyday, and Beds are Burning is probably the most famous example. Midnight Oil ups the anger quotient with spat consonants and grotesque vowels in the verses, contrasting with a soaring and imploring chorus. While harmonically straightforward in general, the famous opening and closing guitar riff frames the song with a harder substance and defines the defiant political stance. The urgency of Beds are Burning reflects the incredible story of the people it advocates for. The Pintupi were among the last groups of people to move from desert to settlement, some voluntarily in the 1930s; others forcibly in the following decades. In 1981 they returned to country and Beds is an expression of support for the return of title to the Pintupi. If Beds are Burning wasnt already seared into public consciousness, it should have been by the events of 2000. Midnight Oil performed the song at the Sydney Olympics closing ceremony with Sorry plastered all over their black clothing. A pointed dig at Prime Minister John Howards recent rejection of symbolic apology and reconciliation, the political irony is legendary: Howard had claimed Beds are Burning was his favourite Midnight Oil song. This either proves that music can be appreciated separate from message (hands up anyone who can understand every word in a Thom Yorke song?), or that Beds are Burning was the only Midnight Oil song Howard was familiar with when put on the spot. Another classic is of course Yothu Yindis Treaty (1991), a stunning song that seamlessly fuses a distinctly rock aesthetic with Indigenous singing, ironwood clapsticks and didgeridoo. It was also the first song in an Aboriginal Australian language (Yolngu-Matha) to gain extensive international recognition. The success of songs such as Treaty might in part be due to the empathic response music creates in people. Such a response allows the listener to metaphorically step into another persons shoes and see the world from their perspective. The irresistible quality of that singing and sound in Treaty is such that people are inexorably drawn into an emotional connection with the music, making space for an empathetic relationship to the lyrics and message. The impact of Treaty was profound: by successfully embedding Indigenous music in a rock context, it became an empathetically accessible sound for people of all dispositions. An increase in support for Indigenous issues flowed from the widespread cultural reach this song enjoyed. The herd versus the pack Previously the most popular vehicle for venting anger over social issues, rocks demotion from pedestal to just another genre was clear by the early 2000s, as musical styles fragmented. Australian hip-hop was one genre that picked up the slack of social conscience. 77%, The Herds post-MV Tampa hip-hop takedown of the Howard government, (named for the percentage of population who supported its actions at the time), was uploaded to YouTube in 2006 but only has 232,000 views to date. Beds are Burning is nudging 60 million views since 2009. Originally released in 2003, The Herds song set itself apart from the pack along with a host of Indie-Rock, Punk, Hip-Hop, Industrial, Electronica, Acoustic-Folk, SynthPop, Power-Pop, and PowerNoise bands. No doubt in reaction to the commercially-driven, blandness of popular music, it had become necessary for these musicians to remain alternative or risk collusion with the big end of town. At that time protest music was also increasingly preoccupied with the pitfalls of global capitalism. Oh protest music The musical expression of protest continues to evolve. Higgins' and Minchins contrasting song styles tackling two very different issues are musically well-crafted, with Higgins' excellent video packing an extra punch. These ruminations havent even managed to get to the phalanx of other Australian musicians that have done and are doing important work in political music Christine Anu, Blue King Brown, the John Butler Trio, Kev Carmody, Neil Murray, Powderfinger, Archie Roach, Xavier Rudd, Tiddas and Warumpi Band, among others. In that context, whether the two prominent songs of the last week might have cracked a new level of mainstream popularity remains to be seen. At the very least theres new and beautiful proof that Australian protest music is brave, alive and well. Its just speaking new languages. The Safe Schools Coalition was not pushed upon an unwitting education system by "gay activists". It was set up in Victoria in 2010 in response to requests from teachers to help them support a growing number of LGBTI students who were wrestling with their identity. It has the backing of beyondblue, the Australian Secondary Principals Association, the Australian Education Union and the Australian Council of State School Organisations. Adding to teachers' concerns were alarming statistics from La Trobe University's 2010 Writing Themselves In study which revealed 75 per cent of LGBTI young people had experienced physical or verbal homophobic bullying. Eighty per cent said the abuse happened at school. These students are up to six times more likely to attempt suicide and self harm than their peers. For this reason, Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews has championed the program, last year fulfilling an election promise to spend $1 million rolling it out in every state secondary school. On Monday he hit out at the "extreme Liberals" saying it wasn't the structure of the program that offended them but the kids who needed it. He may have a point. Until recently the Coalition government backed the scheme, which has almost 500 member schools across Australia and receives $8 million of federal funding. At its 2014 national launch in Melbourne, then Parliamentary Secretary for Education Senator Scott Ryan said in an impassioned speech that creating a safe and supportive environment for students was "simply the right thing to do." So why is a program designed to prevent children from being bullied, that has enjoyed bipartisan political support since inception, suddenly being painted as an attempt to brainwash young people into adopting the "gay lifestyle"? And why did a Safe Schools teachers' resource, publicly launched in November by a federal education department executive amid zero controversy, reappear this month as a breathless front page "exclusive" in The Australian under the headline "Activists push taxpayer-funded gay manual in schools"? One word: plebiscite. As the nation prepares for a costly and unnecessary poll on marriage equality, the key objective for extreme right-wingers and religious groups is to create a culture of misinformation and fear. They know that with 72 per cent of the public supporting the right of same-sex couples to marry, it is a vote they will likely lose. So they are going all out to muddy the water. And it's working. In August the NSW government banned the screening in schools of Gayby Baby a documentary about children of same-sex parents after another News Ltd front page declared parents were outraged at the film being shown in class time. A still from Maya Newell's film Credit:Gayby Baby It was later revealed the school had received no complaints from parents and the attack had been led by a Presbyterian minister who had seen his scripture classes at the school slashed. Last week, in a move that hopelessly backfired, a group who have shown support for the Australian Christian Lobby's views, attempted to hijack a same-sex school formal run by LGBTI youth group Minus 18 by buying up tickets to prevent students from attending. These are desperate acts from ideological crusaders who refuse to accept that the inequality they have built their privilege on is in its death throes. But fear is a powerful emotion. If you can scare conservative voters into thinking the by-product of equality is a world in which their children will be forced into some sort of state-sanctioned gay induction camp, facts are no longer necessary. For the record, Safe Schools does not teach children how to be gay. It encourages young people to be themselves without fear of persecution or judgment, and fosters empathy for those who are different to them. There is no "gay manual" because sexuality is not something that can be learned. Any suggestion to the contrary is a deliberate attempt to deny the very existence of LGBTI people. We cannot let the march of equality be held to ransom by a powerful minority of religious zealots who dress up their bigotry as concern for children. If Malcolm Turnbull is a true 21st century leader he must have the political and moral courage to stand up to those who seek to drag us back to the dark ages. In doing so he will send a powerful message to every child who lives in fear, that they are OK exactly as they are. Jill Stark is an Age senior writer. When thousands of photographs of women are secretly taken, the lens focused on their breasts, it should cause an outrage. The perpetrator should be sacked; the whistleblower should be applauded; and the employer determined to exorcise the rot from their workplace. Nothing about the State Library of Queensland's handling of the sleazy photographs case aligns with best practice. Credit:Xaume Olleros With determination, commonsense would dictate that the employer would then focus on regaining the trust of their female workers, and the public at large. That's what should happen. But nothing about the case of the State Library of Queensland and the sleazy photographs taken there sits comfortably with best practice. APOLOGY: In a column published on February 21 headlined The story of Louise: the hidden scale of the rape epidemic in Sydney, Fairfax Media reported the details of an alleged sexual assault. A subsequent column published below acknowledged key elements of the original story were unable to be substantiated. The original story included aspersions against the Middle Eastern community and raised untested allegations of inaction against the NSW Police. Fairfax Media sincerely regrets the hurt and distress the reports caused to these groups, and our readers, and unreservedly apologises. UPDATE: The original story has been retracted. Illustration: Michael Mucci At 6pm on Monday I had a heart-sinking conversation with Louise, the woman who was the subject of my column that day. In my third conversation with her that afternoon, as I was saying that she needed to talk to the police about the gang rape she alleged took place in 2002, she told me I was "oppressing" her. A museum devoted to Aboriginal culture and heritage would fill this gap in Sydney's cultural offerings and provide a magnet for international tourists looking for a uniquely Australian experience. Possible sites include the state heritage-listed Parramatta Gaol, ownership of which was transferred to the Deerubbin Local Aboriginal Land Council in December. 2. Science and technology Western Sydney does not need a museum concerned with "smoke stack industry", according to astronomer Ragbir Bhathal from Western Sydney University. "The Powerhouse Museum is about smoke stack technology of the 19th century." Dr Bhathal says western Sydney needs an up-to-date, hands-on science museum like the Exploratorium and the Tech Museum of Innovation in the US, City of Science museum in Paris and Science Centre Singapore: "They display the latest developments in science and technology such as nanotechnology, quantum computing and new developments in brain science." Australian schools are falling behind in science and technology, Dr Bhathal adds. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development found students from Shanghai, Singapore and Hong Kong scored top results while Australia languished in 19th position. "The west needs a scientifically literate society to meet the challenges of disruptive technology that is sweeping the globe at a tremendous rate," he says. 3. NSW and migration history Melbourne, Adelaide and Albury-Wodonga have museums dedicated to immigration. Sydney does not since the closure of the Powerhouse Museum's Migration Heritage Centre. This glaring omission could be rectified by the building of a museum dedicated to immigration, multiculturalism and countering racism and discrimination in one of Australia's most diverse regions. NSW also lacks a museum devoted to its own history another strange oversight that could be rectified by creating an institution at the Female Factory, a significant site of women's history that is across the river from the World Heritage-listed Parramatta Park. The National Trust and North Parramatta Residents Action Group support the preservation of the site as an arts/history precinct. It could also headquarter Sydney Living Museums, a network of 12 historical sites across Sydney including Rose Seidler House, The Mint and Elizabeth Farm. 4. A new campus of the Art Gallery of NSW The Art Gallery of NSW has an image problem despite its name, it is perceived as "an institution that has resisted any move west for so long", according to the chairman of the Western Sydney Leadership Dialogue, Christopher Brown. The gallery's $450 million plan to build an extension in The Domain has also run into controversy, with former prime minister Paul Keating labelling it a "land grab masquerading as art". In contrast, a western Sydney-based AGNSW focused on contemporary art would complement existing local council-run cultural facilities such as Campbelltown Arts Centre and Parramatta Arts Studio. Western Sydney Arts and Culture lobby spokesman David Capra asked in 2014 why the AGNSW could not develop a new home in Penrith. The Tate has galleries across England, while the J. Paul Getty Museum, which AGNSW director Michael Brand used to head, has two venues in Los Angeles. Recurrent funding could be split 50/50 between campuses and management headquartered in the west to allay fears a new western Sydney campus would be a mere satellite to The Domain. 5. A multipurpose exhibition space Anna Schwartz & Lisa Havilah in front of Carriageworks, Sydney. Photo by Peter Braig Credit:Peter Braig Sydney's most successful cultural venue is also one of its cheapest. Housed in the historic Eveleigh rail workshops, Carriageworks provides a model for the much talked about 21st-century museum for just $2 million in public funding. Its dynamic program of visual and performing arts, that often engages with Redfern's Indigenous history, and events such as Fashion Week, has seen visitor numbers surpass major institutions that receive far more public funding. That bent is kept under wraps in 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi, a flag-waving spectacle that gives the Bay treatment to a well-known 2012 incident when the US diplomatic base in Benghazi, Libya was attacked by Islamic militants, leading to an overnight battle involving members of a paramilitary unit from a CIA annex nearby. Michael Bay is hardly an artist, but he's an interesting phenomenon to ponder, a creator of seemingly mindless action movies capable of pushing wretched excess to the point where it suggests an underlying satiric bent (most visibly in the offbeat 2013 thriller Pain & Gain). In the US, the film has been greeted by some as an election year broadside against former Secretary of State Hilary Clinton, who goes unmentioned in the dialogue but has faced heat for her supposed efforts to cover up details of the attack. In truth, though, it's hardly more political than any other B-grade action movie about a base under siege. Bay even sets the scene with a flickering caption in a blocky sans-serif computer font, evoking the 1970s and '80s classics of genre directors like John Carpenter, whose Assault on Precinct 13 might well be a specific reference point. While the local CIA chief (David Costabile) is a pompous jerk who tries to get in the way of the heroes, there's little sense that this stock figure stands for anything beyond the typical wimpiness of bureaucrats as opposed to manly men. Also in accordance with genre convention is the portrayal of the Islamic militants as an anonymous horde with no motivations worthy of scrutiny. When the protagonist Jack Da Silva (John Krasinski) arrives in to join the CIA team, he's informed that the area outside the annex is generally referred to as "Zombieland" an apparently authentic detail that tells us all we need to know. Bay certainly has a style of his own, albeit one that again harks back to the 1980s an even more cartoonish variant on the music-video bombast pioneered by directors such as Tony Scott, with backlit actors filmed from below by a jittery yet worshipful camera. The night battle scenes that make up the bulk of 13 Hours have a cosy familiarity and warmth: machine guns blazing, bombs bursting like fireworks against the dark. The Coen brothers' Hail, Caesar! is a playful, highly detailed evocation of the manufacture of Hollywood dreams and illusions. It's set in the 1950s, in a fictional movie studio called Capitol Pictures, where Eddie Mannix (Josh Brolin) is a painstaking, put-upon troubleshooter, mopping up the challenges that stars, studio heads and single-minded gossip columnists throw his way. His task involves managing not only schedules and cost overruns, but also rumours, beliefs and perceptions. George Clooney in Hail, Caesar! As Eddie copes with crisis, the Coens have a ball, embracing the opportunity to create their own mythology, to summon up imaginary studio productions that have a familiar ring to them. There's a religious epic (also called Hail, Caesar!) which stars George Clooney as a Roman centurion present at the crucifixion; an Esther Williams-style swimming spectacular, with Scarlett Johansson as the aquatic centrepiece; an On The Town-style musical is given an unmistakably homoerotic buddy-movie slant, with Channing Tatum in a show-stopping number channelling dance moves from the masters. Alden Ehrenreich is hilarious and touching as Hobie Doyle, a young cowboy star plucked from an oater to take part in a drawing-room comedy directed by the dapper Laurence Laurentz (Ralph Fiennes). The well-meaning Hobie does his best to master a single line of dialogue, in an exchange with an increasingly desperate Laurentz that's as hilarious as anything in the movie. Yet the dogged, enterprising Hobie is not treated as a simple figure of fun: alongside Eddie, he's the undemonstrative heroic centre of the film. A subplot involving the kidnapping of Clooney, still wearing his centurion get-up, has a dreamlike absurdity the movie's treatment of Hollywood politics, in fact, comes as a welcome contrast to the earnestness of a current release, Trumbo. It's graphic but not in the usual way. We don't see piles of bodies, either in black and white actuality or recreation. We perceive them, but the 38-year-old Hungarian director Laszlo Nemes, making his debut, controls point of view so rigorously that we aren't immediately overcome with revulsion. We're thrown into chaos instead: comprehension and reflection are not possible, because we are in the middle of something unknown, a terrible flow from transports to the "showers", shuffling forward. It's the difference between observing and experiencing. Let's start with what it's not, for fear of what it is a Holocaust film. It's not like any of its predecessors, because it throws out all the accepted ways of making such films. It is not objective, in the sense of having wide shots of Auschwitz, sweeping camera movements, or a view from the commandant's balcony as in Schindler's List. We are offered neither the comfort of distance nor linear clarity. Nemes starts the film out of focus. A man walks towards the camera, stopping when he is almost on top of the lens, now in focus. He is gaunt, grim-faced, dark-eyed, in a dirty cap and camp clothes. From here on, we almost never leave that position, at this man's side, looking at his face in medium close-up. This is Saul (Geza Rohrig), a member of the Sonderkommando, the "special" force of (mostly) Jewish prisoners who worked in every phase of the extermination process. Saul helps to calm the people entering the gas chambers and to clear the bodies afterwards; he helps at the crematoria and with the disposal of the ashes. He is at the epicentre of the Nazis' unspeakable project, waiting for his turn to die. Most of the Sonderkommandos lasted only a few months; some of them entered the gas chambers willingly, rather than continue. They have been vilified in some accounts, but not by these filmmakers or this film. What's new here is how Nemes changes the way we see. The greatest dilemma in any Holocaust film is depiction, the showing of something that is unshowable. Nemes skirts that horror, at least in a literal sense. The depth of field is so tight that the carnage is out of focus. We perceive it, but we can't quite see it. Instead, we hear it. The soundtrack is more explicit than the images a terrifying industrial nightmare in multiple languages with extraordinary depth and layering. By privileging sound over image, Nemes finds a way to take us through every part of the process, without evading or softening the truth. We don't see the whole but Saul does, and we watch his face through two days in Auschwitz, in October 1944. Saul finds a teenage boy in the pile of bodies. He is still alive, but not for long. He believes this is his son. He determines that he will be buried, not burned. He must find a rabbi to say Kaddish, the Jewish funeral rite. In a place designed for obliteration of the body, he must preserve this one body, an idea as profound as it is futile. Model Megan Gale has joined Australia's Next Top Model as a permanent judge nearly two years after the death of "irreplaceable" friend Charlotte Dawson. The 40-year-old beauty will join the Foxtel series later this year as it enters a tenth season and will replace former judge Dawson who tragically died by suicide in 2014. Megan Gale will join the 10th season of Australia's Next Top Model. Credit:Aaron Bunch Photographer Gale described the show as a "really good fit" and said it was an "absolute privilege" to serve as a mentor to aspiring young models. Schools will be alert to the welfare of students on Thursday as a record run of warmth for Sydney moves up a notch. The city on Wednesday fell just shy of 30 degrees - but enough to make it a record 20 days in a row of at least 26 degrees, the first time the mark has been recorded in Sydney for any time of the year, Ben McBurney, a meteorologist at Weatherzone said. The Bureau of Meteorology is forecasting a scorcher for Thursday, tipping the mercury will climb to 38 degrees in the city and 41 degrees in Penrith and Richmond. Mr McBurney said sea breezes kept temperatures a few degrees below forecast on Wednesday and a repeat is possible on Thursday. Mark Scott has used his final major speech as ABC managing director to ramp up the case for the ABC to merge with SBS, saying it would save taxpayers tens of millions of dollars a year and stop the broadcasters "tripping over each other". Mr Scott, who departs the ABC in May, revealed he and former SBS managing director Shaun Brown had secretly agreed there should be a "friendly merger" between the two broadcasters and were prepared to make the case to government. Under one scenario discussed, Mr Scott would have been managing director of the merged organisation while the then chairman of SBS, Joseph Skrzynski, would have been the chair. But the idea was rejected by the SBS board and Mr Brown retired in 2011. Mr Scott said it was time for a "grown up conversation" about how the two broadcasters could be combined. Medicinal cannabis will be legally grown in Australia, with changes passed to create a national licensing scheme for growers. The changes to the Narcotic Drugs Act, which passed the Senate on Wednesday, create a national body that can issue licences to growers and regulate local crops of medicinal marijuana. Lucy Haslam, medical marijuana campaigner Credit:Peter Rae The drug remains a "prohibited substance" under the poisons schedule. But Health Minister Sussan Ley said the Department of Health and the Therapeutic Goods Administration were "well-advanced" in considering downgrading it to a "controlled substance" class, putting it in the same category as morphine. "This will in turn reduce any barriers to access, no matter what state a patient lives in," she said. A Catholic women's group has used a photoshopped image of battery hens in an effort to liken commercial surrogacy to factory farming, as part of its submission to a federal government inquiry. The Catholic Women's League of Victoria and Wagga Wagga argues that both commercial and altruistic surrogacy arrangements are a form of violence against women and quotes research linking the practice to prostitution. Commercial surrogacy is illegal in Australia. Credit:Getty Images In its submission to the parliamentary inquiry into surrogacy, the religious group also said legalising surrogacy in Australia would result in another "stolen generation". "Governments do not owe children to people and people do not have the right to demand this of any government," it said. Australian icebreaker the Aurora Australis has run aground at Mawson Station in Antarctica. The ship broke from its moorings just after 3pm on Wednesday during a heavy blizzard with 67 expeditioners on board, the Australian Department of Environment confirmed. All crew are safe and well, according to the Australian Antarctic Division who are responding to the incident. The Aurora Australis was re-supplying the station when it ran aground in the West Arm in Horseshoe Harbour. A 12-year-old boy has been charged with animal cruelty offences after allegedly breaking into a preschool in Sydney's south-west and torturing and killing two pet chickens. The boy and one of his parents went to Campbelltown Police Station on Wednesday, where the boy was arrested and charged over the deaths of the chickens from the Ambarvale preschool at the weekend. CCTV footage from the preschool shows two boys, one riding a bike and the other a scooter, entering the grounds of the Dickens Road preschool on Saturday. One of the boys is shown in the footage running around the preschool grounds as two chickens shelter under their coop. Police allege one of the chickens was killed at the preschool, while the second chicken was stolen and killed later. The 12-year-old boy was charged with torturing, beating and causing the death of an animal, committing an act of cruelty upon an animal, stock theft, trespassing, and destroying or damaging property. The Shooters and Fishers Party has applied to change its name before this year's federal election in a head-on challenge to the Nationals. Name change "reflective of our evolving advocacy": Robert Borsak (left) and Robert Brown. Credit:Steven Siewert And the party is citing Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull's push for Senate voting reform as a key reason for the decision. The party has announced it wants become the Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party and applications have been lodged with Australian Electoral Commission and the NSW Electoral Commission. Several roads around Central Railway Station have reopened on Thursday afternoon, more than three hours after a police operation sparked major traffic delays across the city. Though the traffic returned to normal soon after 1pm, motorists and bus passengers were warned that it would take a while for the traffic gridlock to clear, following the closure of Eddy Avenue and a section of Pitt Street due to concerns for the safety of a woman. Light rail services between Central and Convention are also resuming after that section of the line was earlier shut down. Sydney Trains staff are understood to have alerted police about concerns for the safety of a woman on a bridge near the station about 8.45am on Thursday. On the eve of the historic NSW government apology to Mardi Gras founders the "78ers", The Sydney Morning Herald has underlined its acknowledgment that discrimination towards gay rights protesters at the hands of police, government and media in 1978 was wrong and unjust. On June 24, 1978, more than 500 activists took to Taylor Square in Darlinghurst in support and celebration of New York's Stonewall movement and to call for an end to criminalisation of homosexual acts and discrimination against homosexuals. The peaceful movement ended in violence, mass arrests and public shaming at the hands of the police, government and media. The scene outside the Central Court of Petty Sessions in Sydney where gay and lesbians demonstrated in 1978. Credit:Fairfax Media Three days after the melee, Fairfax Media newspapers including the Herald publicly outed 53 people involved in the pro-equality march, publishing their names, addresses and occupations in the newspaper. Subsequent editions published the details of more protesters, including the names of 104 people facing charges resulting from a homosexual rights march the previous weekend in Sydney. As was common practice at the time, the press routinely published the full details of people who appeared in court, regardless of the nature of the offence with which they had been charged. As the NSW government ramps up its campaign against UberX drivers, the state's neighbour is welcoming them with open arms. The ACT will become the first jurisdiction within Australia to carve out a legal home for drivers using UberX, the ride-sharing platform in which regular motorists offer lifts in their cars. And in a potential preview of changes that may yet happen in other states, the ACT will also slash fees levied on taxi drivers and operators forced to compete with new ride-sharing operators. "These reforms champion innovation and help taxi and hire car services remain sustainable and important modes of travel in the Territory," the Labor Chief Minister, Andrew Barr, said in a press release. Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has firmly rejected claims her government or ministers interfered in a Brisbane hospital's decision not to discharge baby Asha. Clinicians at the Lady Cilento Children's Hospital made national headlines when they refused to release the child, who had suffered burns while in detention in Nauru, until authorities allowed her and her family to stay in community-based detention. The refusal sparked a 10-day protest in support of the doctors. Federal Immigration Minister Peter Dutton has said the family would eventually be returned to off-shore detention. A cyclist who suffered critical head injuries in a bike path crash two weeks ago has died in hospital. The 46-year-old was riding along the Bicentennial Bikeway in Brisbane's inner west on the morning of Friday, February 12, when he crashed into a railing under the Go Between Bridge about 5am. A cyclist has died in hospital two weeks after suffering critical head injuries in a bikeway crash. Credit:Darren Pateman Paramedics were called to the scene, where they found the man with a severe head injury. He was intubated on scene and taken to Royal Brisbane Hospital, where he has remained for the past two weeks. A "massive" tree snapped without warning, killing a female bushwalker in a tragic accident on the Gold Coast hinterland, paramedics say. Emergency services rushed to a popular bush track near the Binna Burra Lodge in Lamington National Park in response to a call just before 11am, police said. Bystanders tried to resuscitate the bushwalker, believed to be in her 30s, but paramedics declared her dead at the scene. QAS Gold Coast senior operations supervisor Darrin Hatchman said the woman had been pushed about five metres off the track and paramedics were working to retrieve her body. The Binna Burra area is popular with bushwalkers. Credit:gailhampshire - Flickr "It's a massive tree, it would be probably three-metre wide, has just broken, probably 20 metres up and has... struck upon these bushwalkers with next to no warning unfortunately," he said. "One of the other persons was able to just narrowly escape the fallen tree and the debris as it hit the ground and slid down the hill." He said the incident took place about two kilometres along the "well-maintained" track, believed to be the popular Caves Circuit. "This is just a freak accident," he said. Police hunting for missing father Greg Dufty believe his body was burned over a number of days. The search continued on Wednesday after police found "items of interest" at a Busbys Flat Rd property at Wyan, near Casino, in the New South Wales Northern Rivers region. Police have released PolAir vision in relation to a search executed at Busbys Flat Road Rappville, NSW today. Police were searching for the remains of Mr Greg Dufty. Forensic police, cadaver dogs and officers with metal detectors were combing the property for any sign of the vanished 37-year-old, with assistance from NSW Police. Lionel Patea, Liam Bliss and Aaron Crawford have all been charged with Mr Dufty's murder and Clinton Stockman appeared in court on Monday, charged with being an accessory after the fact. Queensland's education minister has accused opponents of an anti-bullying program for LGBTI and gender diverse children of "dog whistling". The Palaszczuk government allowed state schools to access resources put together by the Safe Schools Coalition as part of an election commitment, after approaches from education stakeholders. Queensland Education Minister has accused her opposition counterpart of 'dog whistling' over its stance on the Safe Schools program. Credit:Glenn Hunt But the federally funded resources, which were available to Queensland schools in an opt-in arrangement, have come under increasing fire from Christian lobbyists, with Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull agreeing to an independent review of the program earlier this week. Opposition education spokesman Tim Mander had previously called for his government counterpart Kate Jones to review the program in Queensland, claiming it had been "hijacked by activists". The Queensland Government is stalling a $40 million-a-year tourist market by frustrating simple amendments to let local councils rule on nude beaches, a submission to state parliament says. Queensland is the only state in Australia which does not recognise nude bathing and is ignoring the growth in European backpackers who are able to sunbathe naked at home, it says. Despite the name, Nudey Beach has never been an official nude beach. There are no legal nude beaches in Queensland. Credit:Tourism and Events Queensland The submission from the Australian Sex Party, sent to Attorney General Yvette D'Ath on Monday asks the Queensland Government leave it up to local councils to rule if beaches should be "clothing optional". The submission suggests Noosa's Alexandria Bay beach alone has the tourism potential to generate "$40 million to $50 million", noting the increase in backpackers from European countries where nude sunbathing is legal. It's confirmed seven Queenslanders have the Zika virus but the state's health minister says the situation is under control. Cameron Dick told parliament on Wednesday all seven, including a pregnant woman, had contracted the mosquito-borne illness overseas. He said there was no evidence the virus was circulating in the state. "And we intend to do what we can, along with other levels of government, to keep it that way," he said. The Brisbane working space of tomorrow will not be a 9am to 5pm affair, according to two of Australia's fastest growing start-up businesses. And some of the future's jobs could today only be thought bubbles in the imagination someone walking down the Queen Street Mall. Murray Hurps, from Australia's largest start-up space operator Fishburners, and Jock Fairweather, from Brisbane-based start-up Little Tokyo Two, were on Tuesday announced as the first tenants of the council-funded $5 million start-up incubator, The Capital. "People realise that the future of a city anywhere in Australia doesn't look like the way it does today," Mr Hurps said. But mayor Claude Ullin said the cost for the centre could climb as high as $35 million. Architects commissioned by the council have told councillors that the minimum cost for a new performance centre would be at least $23 million. Plans to redevelop the Prahran library, at the back of the town hall, (pictured) would cost at least $23 million, Stonnington Council has been told. Credit:Eddie Jim Stonnington Council has commissioned a secret feasibility study into plans for a $23 million, 500-seat performance centre at the back of Prahran Town Hall, on the site of Prahran Library. "There is demand for it. It's not everyone who wants to go into the city you know, and there is not a venue outside the city of [seating for] 500 people," said Cr Ullin, who said it would marketed to "smaller theatre groups that could not afford the Arts Centre or the Melbourne Recital Centre". The arts centre plan has only been discussed behind closed doors. But Cr Ullin, who is leading the push for the centre, said there was nothing unusual about it not yet being brought into public debate and that the project was at a minimum two or three years away. "It is not going to be any secret - it isn't any secret," he said, estimating a typical feasibility study of the kind the council had commissioned would "generally cost $10,000". Stonnington Council chief executive Warren Roberts said the feasibility study had been undertaken to consider "a broad range of options regarding the future use of the Prahran Town Hall and associated buildings" and was yet to be considered by councillors. Mr Roberts said the council needed to make decisions about the future use of the town hall, that any decision was some time away, and would involve community consultation. Forty-nine years after he allegedly raped a 16-year-old girl, a man is facing court after the son conceived that night tracked down his mother and encouraged her to go to police. Moama man John Thomas O'Connell, now 69, has pleaded not guilty to a rape he was only recently charged with after the son born from the alleged assault was reunited with his mother. John O'Connell has pleaded not guilty to the rape of a 16-year-old girl in 1967. Credit:Darren Howe/Bendigo Advertiser Prosecutor Tim Hoare, in his opening to the jury in the Bendigo County Court on Wednesday, said the son was 33 when he found his birth mother in 2000 and she told him how he was conceived. The son, who was given up for adoption when he was six months old, encouraged her to report it to police, Mr Hoare said. The report sparked an investigation in 2013-2014, which led to DNA being taken from Mr O'Connell, the son and his mother. Plans for a major rail boost for Melton, one of Melbourne's fastest-growing and most public transport-starved suburbs, are being put forward for potential funding in the Andrews government's next budget. Public Transport Victoria is bidding for funds for the duplication of the line from Melton to Deer Park, which would enable a huge increase in train services. Construction work on the Caroline Springs railway station in August last year. Credit:Pat Scala Melton relies on a single-track rail line with a sparse V/Line service that struggles to meet demand in the booming satellite city, which is growing in population by almost 4 per cent a year. The 17-kilometre single track is a bottleneck that severely restricts the number of trains that can run, causing peak-hour overcrowding on the line. Two crashes in two days into a South Melbourne light rail bridge has forced VicRoads to act this week, but the bridge problem appears to be far worse than authorities realise. VicRoads was spurred into action on the Montague Street light rail bridge on Wednesday after a bus earlier this week slammed into the bridge, shearing the top off the bus, injuring four people and trapping a dozen others. The bus slammed into the Montague Street bridge on February 22. Credit:Jason South VicRoads chief executive John Merritt said the road authority would install more signs, and will consider flashing lights and lowering the road to improve the height clearance. Recapping this morning's news ... Two women are in hospital - one with serious injuries - after a car smashed through a wooden fence and plunged into an excavation pit in Flemington. Sixty-seven expeditioners and crew are still stranded on board an Australian icebreaker, which has run ashore in the Antarctic. And, it's D-Day for the Port of Melbourne privatisation at State Parliament. But without opposition support, the bill cannot pass the Upper House. The company that owned a crane that collapsed on St Kilda Road this week also owned a crane that fell from a building site on Southbank last year. Construction company Hickory Group confirmed it had leased the crane, which caught fire and collapsed on The Parque apartments site on Tuesday, from General Cranes. Fire authorities and WorkSafe officers were on site investigating the collapse. The MFB confirmed an electrical short circuit at the battery terminal was the cause. This is not the first collapse for General Cranes. In August 2015, a crane it had leased to Crema Constructions fell into a lift shaft at a construction site on Southbank near the Burnley Tunnel. A Perth family is set to be reunited with their missing puppy after a private investigator discovered the Border Collie had been allegedly stolen back by the woman who sold it to them two weeks earlier. David Micalizzi said the dog, called Jasmine, was stolen from the backyard of his family's Nedlands home on January 19. Unbeknown to Mr Micalizzi at the time, Jasmine had allegedly been taken by her previous owner who had since moved to a Queensland cattle station with the four-month-old puppy. After searching streets around their home, the family soon realised the dog had likely been stolen and hired Alpha Investigation Services to track down the thief. As someone from Celtic stock I've always had a turbulent love affair with spuds. So the idea of getting hot chips from a vending machine seemed a little sacrilegious. But at the same time, the thought of sampling food from a mini "fish and chip shop" at the Ibis Hotel in Redcliffe, seemed far too alluring to pass up. I mean, if you can get live crabs from a vending machine in China, how bad could $3 chips from a giant box be? Chloe and Kelly during their time on reality TV series My Kitchen Rules. It's also given us a chuckle that the West End Deli has played the social media game well and I hope all their new found followers get better meals than Chloe and I did on the four times we visited the restaurant before our review was published. It seems you must have stamina when it comes to following your dreams. Chloe and Kelly during their time on My Kitchen Rules in 2014. Chloe and I have always been passionate about food so when the opportunity to go on reality series My Kitchen Rules came up, why wouldn't we go for it? Perhaps we were young and naive, but the producers chose to cast us as the bad guys and despite all the testimonials from contestants and judges we copped a shellacking from the public that included our houses being vandalised and death threats made against us and our families on social media. Kelly has finally broken her silence on the review and her subsequent sacking. Our cooking shone through though and earned us a place as the first team from Western Australia to make it through to the grand final. We were devastated at our loss and it took a while to get over, but our love for food and cooking kept us going. The scathing review in STM, which West End Deli claim is littered with 'fabrications'. We created our own catering business Chloe and Kelly Pty Ltd two years ago, so MKR helped us on our way to more than just 15 minutes of fame. Chloe and I have catered for weddings, engagements, birthdays and even a funeral. Our multitude of happy customers continue to use our services. The two of us have spent hours in the kitchen preparing for events that no one would think humanly possible for two people to not only pull off but deliver fabulous results. As well as our catering business, I was working as a trainee chef at the Trustee for nearly six months when we had a phone call from STM. I was still in my chef clothes between lunch and dinner service when we had our meeting. Can you imagine how excited we were? The Sunday Times knew that Chloe and I weren't journalists or chefs but we worked in kitchens and we knew our food. That was the appeal for The Sunday Times. Talking to friends and people in the media everyone was excited that a fresh, new and young approach was going to be taken to restaurant reviews in Perth. Finally food critics would go into print who slog it out in the kitchen weekly, know what it feels like to put your heart, soul and sleep patterns on the line in order to truly impress their diners. We also thought the younger crowd of bloggers and Instagrammers would get behind us, who knew that Perth was only comfortable with what they already know? We were extremely excited to start our journey as food critics for STM and we were assured we would be nurtured along the way. We know we're not journalists, I'm dyslexic and journalism would never be my choice of profession. But I love food, I love the culture of food and I love that fewer and fewer people think of Perth as a country town because of our increasing world class food venues. We were excited to seek out the lesser known restaurants and sing their praises for offering amazing food with reasonable prices. We're going to miss that. Our inexperience and a lack of guidance from The Sunday Times did get us into trouble with "West End Gate". But let's set the story straight about what actually did take place. West End Deli claim our first visit was in October. My fiance and I were in the UK at the time. Their menu did not change at any time during the four visits we made to the restaurant in spite of West End Deli's claims about "seasonal menus". There were no plates scraped clean when we ate there. I even took photos. Our visit to the restaurant started as a date night to celebrate my fiance and I moving to our new little cottage and we'd had amazing breakfasts at The West End Deli in the past, so we were excited to try them for dinner. After leaving most of our food I decided I would write a review. Yes my card was rejected, because the next day ANZ called and told me they had cancelled it because I had apparently been using it to pay for car hires in Las Vegas. I know we love a mob mentality here in Perth but if I was just after a free meal, why would I give over my bank card, when STM pays for it anyway. We have records of the numerous calls we made before we finally got through to West End Deli three days later. Chloe gave them her card details along with our apologies. It was two weeks later that we received a call from the restaurant requesting payment, which shocked us, because to our knowledge the payment had been made. Chloe promptly went back to West End deli and again paid the bill, even though the person taking the money made light of the late payment. Chloe and I went back to the West End Deli together and I went back three more occasions after my first experience and each time the food we were served was unsatisfactory, in my opinion. A WA man has been arrested after he allegedly tried to steal a 'bait car' set up by police with the aim of catching would-be car thieves in Northam. A 25-year-old York man was charged with stealing a motor vehicle after police officers witnessed him stealing the bait car from the town's centre on February 9. Northam police tweeted about the successful arrest. Credit:Western Australia Police. Northam Police officer-in-charge Geoff Dickson said it was the first time his team had used the enticement tactic, which WA Police began trialling in 2015. "The man was in the process of reversing the vehicle out of where it was parked when the bait car technology was activated and he was trapped within the vehicle," he said. An American jury has awarded more than $100 million in damages to the family of a woman who died from ovarian cancer and blamed it on Johnson & Johnson talcum powder. The verdict comes despite some researchers saying there is insufficient evidence to prove the link between using talcum powder and ovarian cancer. The woman, Jacqueline Fox, died last year, but her voice recently came alive in a St. Louis courtroom. In an audio deposition, the Birmingham, Alabama native, who died at 62, recounted 35 years of using Johnson & Johnson products containing talcum powder, from the pharmaceutical giant's trademark baby powder to its shower-to-shower body powder. Fox had used them for "feminine hygiene" - applying them in her genital area. More than three years ago, she was diagnosed with an ovarian cancer that proved fatal. Fox then joined more than 1200 women from across the country suing Johnson & Johnson for failing to warn consumers of the dangers associated with talc, the mineral used in baby powder. The University of Bristol has today announced that rising star Monika Gierszewska will become the new director of its world-leading business incubator. She will take up the reins at the Bristol SETsquared Centre on 1 March, bringing with her a wealth of experience in the technology sector, supporting start-ups and driving innovation. Monika will work alongside Nick Sturge, Director of Engine Shed, to build on the success of the high-tech, high-growth business incubator, which is part of the national SETsquared collaboration between the universities of Bath, Bristol, Exeter, Southampton and Surrey. It was named the best university business incubator in the world last year. Bringing experience from the London fintech (financial technology) scene, as well as from her own start-ups, a degree in Business Innovation and a passion for building innovation ecosystems, Monika will be helping new high-tech businesses in Bristol to grow. She will meet SETsquared mentors and members past and present - at a SETsquared Founders Forum today [24 February]. Monika said: "I am thrilled to be joining the world's best university business incubator, and look forward to working with a team of such high calibre. Bristol hosts an exceptionally vibrant entrepreneurial ecosystem and I am delighted, that in this exciting role, I will be able to contribute to its growth." Monika's career includes setting up a student incubator at the University of Westminster; running an entrepreneurial community of 6,000 members; setting up two co-working spaces and a digital accelerator programme at Dreamstake; facilitating open innovation programmes between corporate companies, academics and start-ups; facilitating global innovation events at Fortune500 firm Cognizant; and managing corporate innovation delivery across EMEA at venture capital firm Ariadne Capital. Nick Sturge, who has been Director of the Bristol SETsquared Centre for the past 10 years, will now be focussing on the development of Engine Shed, a collaborative project between Bristol City Council, the University of Bristol and the West of England Local Enterprise Partnership based in Brunel's original train station at Bristol Temple Meads. He said: "We are absolutely delighted to have attracted Monika, a rising star of the UK tech scene with valuable global experience, to the Bristol & Bath tech cluster. All her experience to date will be relevant to how we develop what we have now and we look forward to Monika taking the Bristol SETsquared Centre to the next level. She will be a great asset to the team and bring an exciting and fresh new perspective." Latest News NAB reveals six market megatrends for brokers More opportunities for investors, first home buyers Firstmac shifts up a gear on auto loans National sales manager appointed to pursue growing market Commonwealth Bank was crowned Best Third Party Lender at the Australian Lending Awards 2016 held last week in Sydney.Dan Huggins, executive general manager of home buying at CBA told Australian Broker said this is an important accolade for the countrys biggest mortgage provider.This award is a great acknowledgement of the strong relationships we have with our mortgage broking partners, and our efforts to consistently deliver great outcomes for our customers, Huggins said.Thank you to our broker and industry partners for their ongoing contribution and support.The judging panel assessed lenders on how they position themselves to capitalise on the third party channel, including product offering and servicing capabilities; the commitment to the third party channel in terms of training and education; and assessed real life case studies on how lenders help to empower brokers and contribute to the development of the third party channel. The judging process also included the results of a broker survey.Amongst the judging panel was the chief executive of the Finance Brokers Association of Australia ( FBAA ), Peter White. Latest News NAB reveals six market megatrends for brokers More opportunities for investors, first home buyers Firstmac shifts up a gear on auto loans National sales manager appointed to pursue growing market Google had barely dipped a toe in the mortgage business, but it appears the tech giant is getting out.Last November, Google launched Google Compare for mortgages, an online tool that allowed home buyers to find and compare home loans. The product was initially available only in California, and joined other Google Compare products that allowed consumers to find and compare credit cards and various types of insurance. There was talk that Google Compare could have eventually entered the Australian market as well.Google didnt actually fund mortgages, but it did register as a licensed mortgage broker, according to a CNN report. The company had hoped to use its global reach to provide consumers with niche products and financial services, according to a Wall Street Journal report.But it appears the Compare product line hasnt been as successful as the search engine titan had hoped. According to the Journal, Google struggled to sell ads on Compare and the largest lenders and insurers simply declined to come on board.In an email acquired by the website Search Engine Land, Google informed its partners that all Compare products mortgage, insurance and credit card would begin winding down immediately and shutter for good on March 23.Despite people turning to Google for financial services information, the Google Compare service itself hasnt driven the success we hoped for, the email stated. We greatly appreciate your partnership and understand that this decision will be disappointing to some. But after a lot of careful consideration, weve decided that focusing more intently on AdWords and future innovations will enable us to provide fresh, comprehensive answers to Google users, and to provide our financial services partners with the best return on investment.The Compare site was always a risk. According to a Fox Business report, analysts warned at the outset that the product, by allowing consumers to buy mortgages and insurance policies directly, had the potential to anger lenders and insurers who were major advertising clients of Google.Google has not yet officially commented on the shutdown. Latest News NAB reveals six market megatrends for brokers More opportunities for investors, first home buyers Firstmac shifts up a gear on auto loans National sales manager appointed to pursue growing market Mutual lender Heritage Bank has announced a newly created broker head role in a bid to drive stronger growth through the broker channel.Michael Trencher has been appointed to the new position of head of intermediaries. In this role, he will take responsibility for driving the expansion of business within Heritages national mortgage broker business.Trencher has more than 15 years of experience in strategic leadership of national distribution teams. Most recently he was the national manager partnerships of the NAB Broker business. Prior to that, he held senior roles with ANZ and Mortgage Choice , as well as formerly operating his own broker franchise business.Trencher will be based in Heritages Melbourne office and will join the mutual on March 14.This is an exciting time to join Heritage and Im very much looking forward to working with the team as part of their growth strategy going forward, he said.Heritage has a strong brand within the broker market and Im very excited about the opportunities we have to build on this and grow the channel.Heritage CEO Peter Lock says the appointment highlighted the importance of the broker market and Heritages determination to extend its presence nationwide.Creating this new role and recruiting such an outstanding leader as Michael Trencher positions us to extend our penetration in the broker market around Australia, Lock said.Heritage has a great story to tell and a great package to offer, both to brokers and to home loan customers.Weve put additional resources into the broker channels and weve committed to improving our processes, to make us easier to do business with.Were determined to build our brand, increase our profile and lift our loan volumes around the country. Latest News NAB reveals six market megatrends for brokers More opportunities for investors, first home buyers Firstmac shifts up a gear on auto loans National sales manager appointed to pursue growing market The Mortgage and Finance Association of Australia ( MFAA ) is partnering with YMCA NSW for Global Money Week.Global Money Week is an annual international money awareness initiative, founded in 2012 and coordinated by Child & Youth Finance International (CYFI). The MFAA recently announced its partnership with Global Money Week and CYFI to bring the initiative to Australia.Financial literacy is a growing problem in our community. In Australia alone some 25% of children and young people aged 12-17 have some form of financial debt, the CEO of YMCA NSW, Leisa Hart said.According to the MFAA, children and young people are more at risk of financial strife because credit cards are a way of life for many Gen Ys. Australians are signing up for their first credit card earlier and about 42% of people under 24 have between $10,000 and $30,000 of personal debt, says the association.As a part of Global Money Week, the MFAA and YMCA will be running free 20 minute interactive presentation sessions at schools and fitness centres in NSW to help teach Australian families about savings.The MFAA is happy to be partnering with the YMCA NSW for Global Money Week. The YMCA is an organisation with strong ties in the community and the MFAA has the best educated brokers. We are equipping our members with the content to facilitate the delivery of information on savings to Australian families, the CEO of the MFAA, Siobhan Hayden said.Just making children and young people aware of money basics early can make a difference so were covering concepts like saving, spending, needs and wants, said Ms Hart, We are very pleased to be working with the MFAA to bring the Global Money week program to Australia for the first time.Global Money Week 2016 is themed 'Take Part, Save Smart' and will take place on 14-20 March 2016. Latest News NAB reveals six market megatrends for brokers More opportunities for investors, first home buyers Firstmac shifts up a gear on auto loans National sales manager appointed to pursue growing market Mortgage Ezy has taken home the Best Non-Bank Award in the 2016 Australian Lending Awards after the non-bank saw a significant increase in broker numbers and business volumes.Mortgage Ezy increased its number of brokers by 60% over 2015, leading to an increase of 111% in business volumes over the year.Speaking to Australian Broker, Mortgage Ezy CEO Peter James says the lenders impressive growth wasnt just off the back of APRAs investment lending restrictions, which affected the banks. He said the non-bank has invested heavily in improving its technology systems to cut turnaround times in half.We enhanced our in-house technology system so we could improve our turnaround times, which has seen us cut our turnaround times by about half from 18 months ago. We are finding that our rate of applications to settlements has also increased dramatically, James said.For example, last year our record from actual submission to settlement was 28 hours we are talking from when the applicant dropped the home loan application to when we gave an unconditional loan approval and settled no one can do that.James says the non-bank is now well-placed to benefit from the major tailwinds 2016 is likely to bring the non-bank sector.The banks have indicated that there are probably more out-of-cycle rate increases, so certainly for the first time in many years, non-banks are roaring back with competitiveness and we are seeing that right through from prime loans to speciality products to non-resident loans, James told Australian Broker.Mortgage Ezy is undercutting the banks substantially now across the board.James says he believes APRAs investment lending restrictions are likely to ease this year, however, that doesnt mean the banks will also ease their investment policies.I do think it will ease, however, many of the banks have committed themselves to further increases on investment loans and I know one or two in particular are predicting, in the medium to long term, that investor rates will be significantly higher than owner-occupied rates even over 1% of a difference.It is almost like back to the future. Many, many decades ago investor rates were higher than owner-occupier and I think banks are suggesting that that is where they want to head to. Sign up for our amNY Sports email newsletter to get insights and game coverage for your favorite teams This landmark application is taking on water. The Landmarks Preservation Commission has no immediate plans to designate the Coney Island Pumping Station, commissioners announced on Feb. 23 during a hearing to clear backlogged applications that have been on the commissions books for decades. The group isnt interested in the station, which preservationists credit with helping save Coney Island from burning down in the mid-1900s, because owners made significant alterations and have let the building rot since it went out of commission in the 1970s. But the city owns the structure and should have taken care of it, one preservationist said. Its a city-owned property, so its completely within their realm to fix this, said architect Sean Khorsandi, who advocated the landmarking during hearings last fall. Its their responsibility that it was not better protected. Refusing to landmark based on the citys apparent negligence is the latest example of the municipal neglect for Coney Island at least the parts that arent slated for redevelopment as an amusement park an area historian said. I think its a great disappointment and continuation of the citys record of neglect for Coney Islands West End, said historian Charles Denson. It was the last building that has architectural significance. The entire West End was destroyed by urban renewal. All the beautiful buildings were torn down in the 1960s, but this one survived, and it should have been recognized. Its a real slap in the face to the community. Architect Irwin Chanin designed the Art Deco pumping station, and the city built it in 1937 to provide high-pressure water to put out the many fires that routinely flared up in the sprawling, mostly wooden amusement area. Preservationists first filed an application to landmark the structure in 1980. Four marble Pegasus sculptures once guarded the stations entrance, but the city moved them to the Brooklyn Museum in 1981 to protect them from vandalism. Commissioners also cited the statues absence from Coney as reason not to designate the station a notion that left Khorsandi incredulous. Its more appropriate for them to sit in a parking lot on the other side of the borough than to grace the front of the building that they were specifically commissioned for? he said. The commission will quietly remove the pumping station from its backlog rather than outright denying the designation the latter would hurt future landmarking attempts, the commissions leader said. Its just sort of a recognition that, during the public hearing process, we did receive a lot of support in terms of designating this building, said chairwoman Meenakshi Srinivasan. So I think that thats the reason why we are not voting on it being taken off the calendar on the basis of merit. Maybe at some point it time, if it happens, it could be restored, she said. Six proposed Brooklyn landmarks avoided the chopping block on Feb. 23: The Lady Deborah Moody House in Gravesend (first proposed in 1966). Green-Wood Cemetery (proposed 1981). St. Barbaras Roman Catholic Church in Bushwick (proposed 1980). The cast iron-clad 183195 Broadway Building in Williamsburg (proposed 1980). The Ukranian Church in Exile in Williamsburg (proposed 1966). St. Augustines Roman Catholic Church and Rectory in Park Slope (proposed 1966). Reach reporter Julianne Cuba at (718) 2604577 or by e-mail at jcuba @cngl ocal.com . Follow her on Twitter @julcuba. Sign up for our amNY Sports email newsletter to get insights and game coverage for your favorite teams 62nd Precinct BensonhurstBath Beach Packing steel Police arrested a teen who they say broke into a womans Benson Avenue apartment on Feb. 22 and was found armed with a machete. The victim told police she was at her home near Bay 31st Street just after noon when she saw the intruder coming in through her fire escape window, police said. She yelled, which scared him off, then called police. Officers later found him in the area with a blade in his backpack, according to a police report. Light feet A cat burglar broke into a familys home on W. 11th Street on Feb. 19 while they were watching television in the living room, police said. The thief crawled in through an already broken window leading to the master bedroom at their home between Avenues T and U around 10:30 pm, police reported. The crook stole cash and jewelry and fled without alerting either homeowner watching TV, or their daughter asleep in her bedroom, police said. Wheres my car? Some snake broke into and stole a mans car parked on Shore Parkway sometime overnight on Feb. 21, police said. The victim parked his 2013 Infiniti near Bay 14th Street around 10:30 pm and returned the next night around 7:30 to move it for alternate-side parking. But he found nothing but a bunch of broken glass where his car was parked, according to police. No shame A reprobate stole a private ambulance services van parked on McDonald Avenue on Feb. 17, according to a police report. An employee told police he parked the Ford E250 van around 11 pm near the ambulance garage between Avenue P and Quentin Road. He returned the next day to find it missing. A neighbor saw someone driving the vehicle about 15 minutes after the employee parked it, but could not be sure who was driving it, police said. Keys in the cupholder A carjacker made away with a mans sport utility vehicle parked on Bay Parkway on Feb. 20, police said. The owner parked his Jeep outside his girlfriends place between 82nd and 83rd street around 5 pm with his keys in the cupholder and his trunk unlocked, he told police. On his way out he noticed that someone had stolen the Jeep. Officers found no broken glass or other signs of forced entry, a police report said. Dennis Lynch Sign up for our amNY Sports email newsletter to get insights and game coverage for your favorite teams 78th Precinct Park Slope Shrimp scamp Police arrested an employee of a Third Street grocery store who they say stole a bunch of shrimp and other foods on Feb. 9. Another employee of the market near Third Avenue was conducting random bag searches at 8:10 am when he noticed the alleged crooks bag was stuffed with $75 worth of shrimp, some cream lime sauce, and orange juice, authorities said. The suspect had no proof of purchase for the items, and cops cuffed him at the scene, according to a police report. Bad taste A villain punched a diner employee and threatened him with a knife at a Fifth Avenue diner on Feb. 5. The victim was working at the eatery between Ninth and 10th streets at 10:30 pm when he got into a verbal spat with the lowlife and asked him to leave, according to a police report. The bad guy then punched the victim several times in the head, pushed him to the floor, and brandished a knife before hoofing it, authorities said. The perp also caused damage to the diner before he left, cops said. Hack attack Some jerk snatched a taxi drivers license from his cab while it was parked at Fifth and Fourth avenues in the early morning hours of Feb. 9. The 63-year-old driver told cops he left his car parked at the corner the night before, but when he returned at around 4 am, the car door was open and his taxi license was gone from the holder on the back of his seat. There was no sign of broken glass or damage to the door, authorities said. Allegra Hobbs Sign up for our amNY Sports email newsletter to get insights and game coverage for your favorite teams 90th Precinct SouthsideWilliamsburg Double trouble Cops cuffed a guy who they say looted a Bushwick Avenue deli while wielding two knives on the night of Feb. 18. The victim told cops the man came into the deli near Boerum Street at around 11:50 pm and allegedly said Give me all your money while brandishing a pair of blades. The guy then allegedly waved one of the knives in the store clerks face in a slashing motion while the employee forked over the cash, said cops. Police arrested the alleged crook the next day, and took two knives from him, according to a police report. Aw, nuts A knife-wielding rogue robbed a Grand Street doughnut shop on Feb. 17 after asking for a couple of the delicious cakes. The victim was working at the shop near Bushwick Avenue at 7:05 pm when the ruffian came in and asked for two of the fried dough treats, police said. When the employee turned around to get the pastries, the ruffian leaped onto the counter and snatched roughly $300 from the register, authorities said. The employee turned around and saw the goon standing over her, holding a knife, before the perp hoofed it down Grand Street towards Humboldt Street, according to a police report. Purse snatching Cops collared two teens who they say bashed a woman in the head and snatched her purse on Boerum Street on Feb. 20. The victim told cops she was between Manhattan Avenue and Leonard Street at 7:20 pm when she felt a tug at the pocketbook and turned around to see the duo trying to grab her purse. The kids then allegedly punched her in the side of the head and ripped the purse off her shoulder, pushing her to the ground, before fleeing through the yard of a nearby residence, authorities said. Police arrested two teen boys, a 15- and 16-year-old, for the crime the next day, according to a police report. Cash bagged An armed wretch wearing a ski mask and latex gloves robbed a Metropolitan Avenue gas station at gunpoint on Feb. 21. An employee told cops the reprobate came into the convenience store near Varick Avenue at around 11:40 am and pointed a gun at him, saying Ill kill you if you dont give me all the money. The dirtbag went behind the counter and pulled $250 from the register, placing the cash in a clear plastic bag before fleeing down Ten Eyck Street towards Stewart Avenue, cops said. The guy was wearing a black ski mask, a gray hoodie, a black baseball cap, and blue latex gloves while committing the crime, police reported. Allegra Hobbs The six men started chiming into the church stage --in their lab technician-meets-butcher outfits-- making sweet synchronized sounds with gold bells in hand. Meet Pantha du Prince & the Bell Laboratory. One by one they headed towards their instrument --laptop, drums, bell carillon, etc!-- and slowly built the weird cloud we were to float on all night. We wanted to dance, we shook the pews, we wanted to clap but there was no time to stop for breaks! [Cheep & Snail] by Bill Pearis Minneapolis band Night Moves will release their new album Pennied Days on March 25, 2016 via Domino. If the band's name elicits images of Bob Seger, their music continues in the '70s vein, recalling Steely Dan, The Band, Fleetwood Mac, Gerry Rafferty, etc. You can listen to new single "Carl Sagan" (billions and billions of times if you like) and watch the video for "Denise, Don't Wanna See You Cry" below. Night Moves will be trying to make some front page drive-in news on tour this spring, including a stop at Brooklyn's Rough Trade on April 22. Tickets for that show go on sale Friday (2/26) at noon. All dates are listed below. --- Night Moves - Pennied Days tracklist 1. Carl Sagan 2. Denise, Don't Wanna See You Cry 3. Leave Your Light On 4. Border On Border 5. Kind Luck 6. Hiding In The Melody 7. Staurolite Stroll 8. Alabama 9. Only To Live In Your Memories Looking for the big games to watch in Week 9? We have them right here. Last time on NCIS, the team rescued Secretary of the Navy Sarah Porters daughter from a kidnapper bent on revenge. Of course, Gibbs was one step ahead of the kidnappers the whole time. Thats part of the reason why we love him. This episode of NCIS, Loose Cannons, finds the team investigating a murder that takes place when some crates of weapons are stolen. Dr. Cyril Taft (Jon Cryer) lends the team a hand, and an uncomfortable Tony runs into his ex-love, Dr. Jeanne Benoit (Scottie Thompson). I love it when Dr. Taft makes an appearance. Best NCIS Quotes from React >>> Take My Therapist, Please The episode kicks off with Gibbs and Dr. Taft playing chess and bonding. Taft attempts to get Gibbs to open up about his childhood, but Gibbs is hesitant. Taft wants Gibbs to see his own therapist, Grace. Grace already knows all about Gibbs, since Taft has spent many a session discussing his former patient and friend. Gibbs, of course, resists the idea of head shrinking and is not willing to meet with Grace. Gibbs and Taft both receive calls at the same time, which I am sure is never a good thing. There is a shooting in Reston at the Naval Operations Center. Bishop is the first on the scene and tells Gibbs that the victim is Petty Officer First Class Lamar Finn. His fellow Master-At-Arms, Petty Officer First Class Janet Shor, was injured in a gun battle along with one of the shooters. Finn and Shor came upon the shooters when they were sent to investigate an area of the base where the cameras were disabled. The shooters were in the middle of stealing crates that each contained a dozen M-16 rifles, along with a lot of ammunition. Staying Alive Gibbs calls Taft and orders him to keep the shooter alive so Gibbs can talk to him. The shooter has major trauma, and Taft isnt sure that he can save him. Gibbs simply repeats his order to keep him alive. After all, what are friends for if not to save the life of a murderer so your friend can get information from him? Gibbs heads to the hospital, where Taft delivers the bad news that the shooter died. Gibbs is annoyed and asks if the patient ever woke up. He didnt but was muttering to himself in German. Poor Dr. Taft. Hes probably almost ready to call his therapist, Grace, right about now. At headquarters, the team has identified the shooter as Fritz Beimler. He was wanted in Germany for drug smuggling, robbery, extortion and some other crimes. Interpol lost track of him in Zaire four months ago. Dr. Taft comes in to share the good news that Petty Officer Shor is awake. Gibbs demands to know why Taft is there, and Taft is actually there to see Ducky. Taft noticed something during surgery and wants to talk with Ducky. A Curious Find It turns out that Ducky also noticed the red scar on the shooters arm. It was sewn up with fishing line or regular thread, and Taft thinks that it looks terrible. There is also a metal plate under the scar, and Ducky asks Taft if he would like to remove it. That would be just ducky, Ducky, Taft responds. Hilarious! Bishop and McGee go to see Shor at the hospital. An agent from the ATF has just finished interviewing her. Agent Kitt would like NCIS to keep them in the loop and promises to do the same. Shor is wracked with guilt over her friends death. She is able to provide enough of a description of the man who taunted her for a sketch. Abby figures out that the titanium plate removes from Beimler was made for a larger bone. It was actually implanted in a Catholic priest named Father Carlin, and the piece was manufactured in 1995. Abby thinks the whole situation is weird, and I agree. Tony does some digging and finds out that the plate was implanted in Father Gerard Carlin in 1995. Carlin left Texas to work in the Sudan, when his family lost contact with him in 2003. Carlin is presumed dead. Calling the Doctors Gibbs wants Tony to talk to Dr. David Woods, who Tony helped rescue not too long ago. Of course, Woods is now married to Tonys former flame, Jeanne. Since doctors with experience in the Sudan arent all that common, Gibbs tells Tony to talk to them. Taft, who is surging on adrenaline since joining the investigation, offers to go along to explain the medical side of things. Tony, who looks like he was just ordered to step in front of a firing squad, is more than eager to have some company for this little chat. Taft knows from Tonys behavior and demeanor that Tony was once involved with Jeanne. Tony confides that he doesnt think Jeannes husband, David, knows about his romance with Jeanne, and he wants to keep it that way. Jeanne is out doing errands, but just as Tony is about to breathe a sigh of relief, she returns. Bad Choice of Words David is more than happy to contact some doctors that they know in the Sudan area. It isnt unheard of for medical devices to be removed from graves, and Jeanne isnt happy about helping NCIS. David is grateful to Tony, and McGee and wants to take them out for dinner as a thank you gift. Jeanne quickly points out that it isnt necessary since they were only doing their jobs. When David asks what the bad guy who was sporting the recycled titanium plate did, Taft explains that he murdered someone and stole a large quantity of weapons. Jeanne confronts Tony, asking him if he is there because of the weapons, and her father, who was an arms dealer. Tony reassures her that NCIS is only asking for their help because of their experience as doctors in the Sudan. Jeanne isnt buying it, and if looks could kill, Tony would be pushing up daisies right now. Back at headquarters, everyone wants to know if it is weird for Tony to deal with Jeanne and her husband. Gibbs mostly wants to know if Tony sent Dr. Taft home. Taft is down in autopsy with Ducky, and Ducky found a bullet near Beimlers spine from a previous shooting. Dr. Taft, who has issues with losing patients, is consoling himself by telling himself that Beimler had used up his ninth life already. The 13 Most Eligible Characters on Television >>> A Bad Impression Gibbs takes Taft out to the diner for a quick dinner. Taft is relishing his chance to play cop for the day. Eventually, Taft asks if Gibbs has done any more thinking about calling Grace for a therapy appointment. Just then, a woman stops by the table, and Gibbs assumes that it is Grace. Nope it is Catherine, Tafts wife. Gibbs apologizes by sharing his fries with her when Taft leaves to take a call. Catherine thanks Gibbs for being a good friend to her husband, since he hasnt been doing well since losing his son. Ghost from the Past Abby calls Gibbs and Tony to her lab. The bullet from Beimlers spine was part of a stolen batch of bullets that link back to La Grenouille Jeannes father. Tony is visibly shaken since he promised Jeanne that the investigation has nothing to do with her father. Oskar Bruenig, one of La Grenouilles former henchman, left his fingerprints on the wheel of the recovered van used in the gun theft. Jeanne and her husband arrive at headquarters, and Jeanne sees a picture of her father on the video screen. She is furious and accuses Tony of lying to her again. Gibbs suggests they go and talk in the conference room. Gibbs tells Jeanne that the connection to her father was made just last night and that her father isnt a suspect. Jeanne identifies the picture of Oskar Bruenig as being her fathers driver, but he was called Pierre at that time. Outside of the conference room, Tony admits to David that this situation is difficult for him as well. David responds that he can see the way that Tony looks at his wife and also the way that she looks at Tony. David makes it plain that he isnt giving up his wife. Tony apologizes once again to Jeanne, and she asks her husband to give them a minute alone. She makes it known that seeing him opens old wounds. So Much for Sharing Meanwhile, McGee finds an address for a Pierre Oskar in Reston, Virginia. Taft is more than ready to tag along, but Gibbs tells him to go and spend some quality time with his wife. At the house, they find Oskar dead of two gunshot wounds to the chest. The team has company when Agent Kitt and other ATF agents also raid the home. Bishop notices an empty box of detonators. After enjoying an afternoon movie, Dr. Taft stops to answer a phone call while his wife goes to start the car. The engine doesnt turn on, so she crosses the street to tell her husband. A moment later, the car explodes. Gibbs goes to the hospital to comfort Taft. His wife doesnt have any major injuries, but she may need to stay overnight in the hospital. Taft has decided to leave and take a long trip with his wife. The team receives a call from ATF Agent Kitt that the guns are on a plane to be sold in the Ukraine. Agent Kitt assumes that the third shooter is also on the plane. Gibbs isnt buying it and asks Kitt to come by for a little talk. Kitt finally explains that, in a covert operation, they installed tracking chips with the guns, and this robbery happened at a good time to test their new program. The plane to the Ukraine was a lie, as the guns and ammunition were split up and sent to different parts of the country. Agent Kitt doesnt know who the third shooter is, but he may be able to track which gun he has. Is This Goodbye? The team apprehends the shooter after ensuring that he gets a flat tire. Tony goes to see Jeanne for what he promises will be the final time. He fills her in on the case and explains that they dont need any help from physicians in the Sudan. Tony confesses to Jeanne that if he could have one wish, he would stop the clock back to when they got home from the Sudan. Jeanne thinks that he should maybe turn the clock back a bit further. As they say goodbye, it looks for a moment like they might kiss. At the diner, a lonely woman at the counter strikes up a conversation with Gibbs while he waits for Taft. As they bond over her crossword puzzle, Gibbs puts it together that he is talking with Grace, Tafts therapist, who is making a special diner call for Gibbs. I really enjoyed this episode of NCIS. I cant help but wonder if Jeanne and Tonys story is really over, or will we see more of Jeanne ahead of Tony leaving the show? NCIS airs Tuesdays at 8pm on CBS. (Image courtesy of CBS) In this episode of Teen Wolf, The Maid of Gevaudan, Chris and Gerard tell Lydia about the woman who brought down The Beast. Scott battles the monster in an effort to spare more innocent lives. The Argents believe Lydia has the power to defeat The Beast, while Scott and Liam finally uncover the human identity of the creature. When we last saw our band of hapless BH teen supernaturals or most of them, anyway they were trapped in the high school after The Beast, drawn by high-pitched frequencies, decided to make an appearance at a charity lacrosse match. Teen Wolf Star Tyler Posey to Appear on Lip Sync Battle, Meagan Tandy Joins UnREAL >>> La Bete and Marie-Jeanne In this episode, we learn about the creature thats so fierce, it has most of the townspeople soiling themselves. We start with a flashback 1760, North America-French territory. Two men, Sebastien and Marcel, are fleeing on foot through the woods. They stumble across a cabin and seek refuge inside. A woman (its apparent sole inhabitant) warns them that theyve come to the wrong place to hide because theres a creature lurking just outside, a demon wolf. A group of British soldiers have surrounded the cabin but are savagely attacked. The fate of Sebastien and Marcel is yet to be known, but one of them found time while running from the enemy to write a letter to his sister. He says that even with the help of their Indian allies, they are losing the war to the British. He is injured, and the only thing that keeps him alive is the hope of one day seeing his home, and her, again. That letter, according to Gerard Argent, found its way into the hands of a young women, a skilled hunter, who would face down The Beast armed with nothing more than a steel-tipped pike. She would become known as The Maid of Gevaudan, but her real name was Marie-Jeanne. Oh, and shes Allison Argents doppelganger. Chris and Gerard are sharing this story with Lydia and Parrish, and Parrish suggests they resurrect Marie-Jeanne and have her deal with The Beast. He walks off, and Lydia pleads with him not to leave. Parrish tells Lydia hes not like her; hes not just a harbinger of death, hes the cause of it. Gerard tells her to let him go. Chris confides in Lydia that even though they believe Parrish could take on the big, bad monster, neither of them think hes the only hope for stopping it. There is another: Lydia. Marie-Jeanne was a lot like Lydia. She was skeptical of her abilities and, at one time, skeptical of the supernatural. Flash back to Marie-Jeanne sitting alone in a tavern. She listens as some of the men discuss the creature that is killing people in the area for sport. Things have gotten so bad that the King himself is thinking of sending a group of hunters over to take care of the problem. Until then, theyll have to use volunteers for their hunting party. Sebastien appears and boasts that his sister is the most skilled hunter. He and Marcel survived that rainy night after all. After a super brief reunion, its back to the business at hand. The men concede that Marie-Jeanne is the best woman for the job, but she says she hunts animals and not rumors. Thats when a man busts into the tavern with the body of a lifeless child. He tells the group that the childs last words were La Bete, The Beast. Obviously, this display gets Marie-Jeanne to agree to find and hunt whatever did this horrific deed. The hunting party leaves at dawn but doesnt encounter The Beast until after midnight. Marie-Jeanne is quickly the only one left standing, but her so-called impressive skills are proving to be no match against the creature. In fact, she would have died had a young man armed with Mountain Ash not come to her rescue. Once The Beast is gone, Marie-Jeanne comments that the creature is not just a wolf, and her protector informs her that it is, in fact, a werewolf. Scott vs. Beast While Chris and Gerard tell Lydia about Marie-Jeanne, we catch glimpses of the action taking place at the school. Chaos has erupted as everyone runs for cover. Liam survived his run-in with The Beast and is carried into an empty classroom by Stiles and Hayden. His wounds are so extensive and gruesome, Stiles looks ready to pass out or puke or both. Desperate to help her boyfriend in any way, Hayden questions Stiles as to what she can do. He suggests trying to take some of Liams pain away, so Hayden kisses him which seems to bring the kid some temporary relief. Scott is chasing down The Beast, and Malia calls Braeden and tells her to come to the high school and to make sure she arrives heavily armed. People are screaming and running everywhere, and one particularly stupid blonde finds herself in the creatures path. Scott saves the day and shoves her into a classroom. As he braces against the door, The Beast begins to try and make its way in, so Scott orders the girl to jump out the window as he stays behind to pull hero duty. A Werewolf Hunter is Born Lydia senses that something is wrong and wants to leave, but Gerard insists she listen to the rest of the story. Lydia questions why she should even listen to Gerard, and Chris says because the old man knows the tale better than anyone else. Lydia isnt so sure. All of her research says The Beast was killed by Jean Chastel. Gerard asks Lydia if she got that tidbit searching the Internet, and if that is her most reliable source of information she might as well go. A subtle shake of the head from Chris causes Lydia to decide to ride it out until this hour-long excuse to bring back Crystal Reed is finished. Back in the woods, Marie-Jeannes rescuer, Henri, takes her to his place, a cozy little cabin surrounded by Mountain Ash. The two continue to converse with terrible French accents. I mean, really bad. Henri tells Marie he has spent the better part of his life gathering the implements and skills to protect himself from a werewolf and offers to teach her. Marie is only interested in knowing how to kill a werewolf, not how to survive one. Marie-Jeanne serves all of the local men a drink, presumably spiked with rowan berries. Marcel appears to have an adverse reaction, and Marie-Jeanne takes him outside. But when he fails to heal, the woman realizes hes covering for someone: her brother. Marie-Jeanne confronts Sebastien, and apparently he became the demon-wolf simply by drinking rainwater from the footprint of a werewolf. Marie-Jeanne considers exposing her brother, but he swears that if she does, hell rip everyone in the tavern to shreds. Hes not exactly super sorry hes a monster. Sebastien tells his sister that not only will she not catch him, she wont kill him either because theyre family. Marie goes back to Henri to figure out how to kill both a beast and a brother. He decides one bolt wont be enough; they need something that uses the weight of The Beast against itself. The two come up with a pretty fierce weapon. Why Someone Needs to Die This Season on Teen Wolf >>> A Close Encounter Scott makes his way to the library and that notices many students have taken refuge among the stacks of books. He whispers to them to go upstairs, and they all quickly and gladly oblige, since The Beast is mere seconds from bursting through the door. The Beast and Scott do battle, which mainly consists of Scott getting thrown around the room. Just as Scott is about to fall victim to the creature, Malia, Liam and Braeden enter and inflict enough damage to get The Beast to flee. Lets just say Braeden brought a mighty big shotgun. Scott may not have expected to triumph over The Beast, but now he does have its scent. Death and Damnatio Memoriae Marie-Jeanne hunted Sebastien for three years, finally cornering him in 1767. She sets a trap, and The Beast runs right into her spike/pike/spear whatever the hell it is. He transforms back into human form and tells his sister that if she thinks shes managed to kill him, shes sorely mistaken. He will live on and continue to kill and become famous for his savagery. But Marie-Jeanne says nobody will remember (Damnatio Memoriea). Shell make sure his name is erased from history. Sebastien soon realizes hes suffering from more than a flesh wound. Marie-Jeanne didnt use ordinary steel. This weapon was forged of Mountain Ash, Wolfsbane and their blood under the light of the full moon. She kisses her brother and tells him history may remember him but only as a beast, and then he dies. Every detail of Sebastiens existence was extinguished. The locals burned it all. The name of Sebastien Valet has been forgotten for over 150 years. But when its remembered, the teenager inside will be forgotten forever. Lydia points out that Marie-Jeanne didnt conquer The Beast alone; she had Henri. And Lydia needs Parrish and is off to find him. Chris warns her that Parrish is dangerous. Hes a shapeshifter who is just beginning to understand his power. Lydia argues that shes no different and wonders why Gerard even cares. She wants to know why hes suddenly on their side? Gerard says because it is his name as well. Marie-Jeanne wound up marrying Henri and taking his name, Argent. The Big Reveal Scott immediately begins tracking The Beast and his nose leads him to a car. In the truck are a pair of size 10 sneakers with bloody soles. Thats when Mason appears and asks what Scott is doing to his car. Corey, lingering invisibly nearby, grabs Mason and takes off. Things just got interesting. Teen Wolf airs Tuesdays at 9pm on MTV. (Image courtesy of MTV) 1st Congressional District race sees Norcross, Gustafson rematch U.S. Rep. Donald Norcross, D-1, is looking to repeat his win two years ago over Republican Claire Gustafson when voters turn out this November. Burnham-On-Seas second farmers market of 2016 comes to the towns High Street this Friday (February 26th). Over a dozen stalls will be set-up selling local produce including fruit, local meat, vegetables, cakes, cheese, pies, bakery items and milk from 9am-1pm. This month there will be a new addition in Blackrock Kitchen, who make delicious French patisserie and sweet treats using Somerset ingredients, including their super feather-light croissants. This Fridays line up includes: G M Country Sports smoked game and fish along with fresh game Humble Pie pies packed full of flavour perfect for the cold weather Old Castle Farm Pork sausages, sausage meat and pork joints from outdoor reared pigs Orchard Farm Preserves its marmalade season! Look out for whisky marmalade amoung the full range of preserves. Also home made cakes including apple, coffee & walnut and fruit cake. Moorland Farm.- succulent Aberdeen Angus beef Nutts For scotch eggs in a variety of tasty flavours Portbridge Farm- crisp winter vegetables from the Chew Valley Taylors Bakers freshly baked bread and buns from Bruton Times Past Dairy award winning cheeses in many flavours The Woodland Trust will be joining the market for the day to offer information about all the projects they undertake to protect our vital woodlands. Also see: Whats on in Burnham-On-Sea and Highbridge MARCEL CIOLACU: "Nu cred ca ar fi crescut pensiile anul acesta daca PSD nu ar fi intrat la guvernare" Goa-based startup has raised an undisclosed amount from Indian Angel Network (IAN) led by chief financial officer of Naukri Internet Services Ambarish Raghuvanshi and Vikas Kathulia who will be joining the board. is a chain of backpackers' hostel and it was started by a group of school friends in 2014 with their first hostel starting its operations in Goa in November the same year. Currently, Roadhouse is operational in Goa and Jaipur and planning to add five more cities in near future. The fundraising will support company's proposed expansion and setting up new properties, to build the brand, expand the team and infuse technology to support the venture. Lead IAN investor Raghuvanshi commented that the backpacker space is seeing a lot of interest from founders and investors. However, the key will be to build an organisation model to replicate many such hostels and to deliver superior and consistent service. "We invested when they had a hostel in Goa. They now have one in Jaipur. More importantly, I feel that with their passion and complementary skills, they have a real chance to build an organisational structure that will help create a network and community of past and potential users," he said. D-Mart, the third largest grocery retailer by revenues, plans to raise up to Rs 600 crore through non-convertible debentures to fund expansion and its foray into e-commerce. Avenue Supermarts, D-Mart's parent company, is looking to open 20-25 stores in the coming financial year in north India and expand in Maharashtra, Gujarat, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, where it is already present, said a source in the know. Currently, the chain has 98 stores. The 16-year-old supermarket chain is also looking to borrow funds to fuel its growth. It is seeking shareholders' nod to increase its borrowing limits from Rs 1,500 crore to Rs 1,800 crore, according to Avenue's notice for its upcoming extra ordinary general meeting. The chain has around Rs 1,000 crore debt on the books. "D-Mart would continue to open its no-frills stores and stick to basics," said the source cited above. The chain operates stores of 10,000-50,000 sq ft in neighbourhood areas and standalone locations, which carry lower lease rents than malls. D-Mart management executives could not be contacted for comments. The company is also looking to pilot its e-commerce services in Mumbai. It has hired Vikram Dasu, an executive from HomeShop18 to head its e-commerce operations. It has also set up an entity called Avenue E-commerce Ltd. Both Reliance Retail and Tata's Trent Hypermarkets have pilots for online grocery retail in Mumbai. Avenue Supermarts posted a profit of Rs 211 crore in 2014-15, in comparison with Reliance Retail's Rs 159 crore and Future Retail's Rs 153 crore, Bloomberg said in a recent report. Its sales in FY15 rose 38 per cent to Rs 6,450 crore, and would likely show another 29 per cent growth when the current year's figures are calculated, Bloomberg said. According to experts, D-Mart does certain things different from its peers. The chain offers prices that are six to seven per cent lower than its competition, no matter where it operates, which are a huge draw among its customers, say retail consultants. "We sell at a price lower than others as we keep our costs low and run the business efficiently," explained a executive in the company. What lets it achieve such pricing tactics is its operational style. It owns majority of its stores, saving substantially on rent, which constitutes six to 10 per cent of retailers' sales. Workers strike at Tata Motors plant at Sanand entered its second day on Wednesday as workers refused to budge from their demands of re-instating the suspended labourers and the company, on its part, maintained its stand to take action only after an inquiry. As many as 422 workers at the Sanand site had gone on a strike on Tuesday after making demonstrations at the unit on Monday. The workers were demanding that the suspension order of 28 colleagues be immediately revoked. It is learnt the workers had also damaged some cars at the plant on Monday. The state labour department had sprung into action immediately and officials tried to mediate the agitating workers with the company, however, no consensus has been reached yet. When contacted, a Tata Motors spokesperson claimed there had been no significant production loss at the site due to the strike. It may be noted here that the Tata plant had been hardly utilising its installed capacity due to lack of demand for the Nano car. 42,561 Nano cars were produced from the Sanand factory from January 2014 to December 2015, against an installed capacity of 250,000 cars per annum, the state government on Wednesday informed at the assembly in response to a question. Deputy labour commissioner of Ahmedabad zone, V V Pandya, said, There have been no change in the situation at the site. The company has claimed that their production is not much affected due to the strike, and thereby, the deadlock continues. Police sources inform the workers commute to the plant in company buses, sit on a dharna, and then head home in the same buses after the shift ends. Tata Motors had suspended two workers around two months ago for indiscipline, and had not taken them back in, after an inquiry. Protesting against this, a few hundred workers staged a demonstration at the site on Monday, and eventually another 26 were suspended. As many as 400 workers had gone on strike since Tuesday. Striking workers have formed a seven-member committee to negotiate with company management and the Gujarat government as there is no union. Pandya said the workers had indicated that they do not seek any outside support. A company spokesperson highlighted that Tata Motors continued to engage with the workers and hold talks. Incidentally, the Tata Motors plant was shifted from Singur in West Bengal to Sanand in Gujarat in 2008, following protests over land acquisition. Domestic companies are hoping to and trying to fill the gap left by the retreat of foreign wealth managers in India. In the past year, the arms of IIFL, ASK Group, Anand Rathi, and Centrum have been expanding by adding advisors. This is despite the volatility in Indian equities and the underperformance of asset classes such as real estate or gold. EYE THE PIE Domestic arms of IIFL, ASK Group, Anand Rathi, and Centrum are expanding Many foreign players have either scaled down or sold their wealth businesses in the past few years Domestic players want to tap the ultra-rich and cater to promoters who have sold their stakes The total wealth held by individuals in India grew 8.9% to Rs 280 lakh crore in FY15 over the previous year Wealth managers are currently selling mutual funds, private equity funds, real estate funds, and tax-free bonds Many foreign players have either scaled down or sold their wealth businesses in the past few years, owing to the challenges in their overseas . This is a good opportunity for Indian firms to capture market share, said Rajesh Saluja, managing director, ASK Wealth Advisors. With foreign players slowing down, we are cornering some of their business and acquiring talent from them, added Karan Bhagat, chief executive officer at IIFL Wealth Management. IIFL has increased its advisor count by roughly 20 per cent in the past year, recruiting senior executives from foreign entities such as Citibank, Morgan Stanley and Standard Chartered. Anand Rathi has more than doubled its advisor count to 125 from 60 in the year and set up new branches at Jaipur and Dubai. ASK plans to add 15 advisors over the next few months to its current tally of 30. Experts say a lot of new wealth is being generated by promoters selling their stake. This is a good opportunity to cater to this underserved ultra-high net worth segment. Given the kind of volatility and uncertainty in the global markets, we see a space for advisors. As long as the economy continues to do well and people generate wealth, there will be opportunities for wealth managers, said Bhagat. Wealth managers are selling mutual funds, private equity funds, real estate funds, non-convertible debentures, portfolio management services, structured products and tax-free bonds to customers. In the past year, the benchmark BSE Sensex has slid 20 per cent, while real estate prices have remained flat or slid in some cities. In rupee terms, gold prices have slid 6.5 per cent in calendar year 2015 and 8.6 per cent in CY2014. This is a good time to acquire customers. In a bull market, clients are blinded by portfolio returns and do not pay heed to the quality of advice being offered and risk management processes being adhered to, said Amit Rathi, managing director, Anand Rathi Financial Services. Last year, RBS sold its Indian wealth management business to Sanctum Wealth, a company led by Shiv Gupta and backed by a clutch of venture capital investors. HSBC shut its private banking business in India, through which it provided asset management services to wealthy individuals. UBS and Morgan Stanley exited their wealth business in 2014. A few years earlier, Credit Suisse scaled down its Indian wealth management operations and DSP Merrill Lynch sold its domestic wealth management business to Swiss banking group Julius Baer. The total wealth held by individuals in India grew by 8.9 per cent to Rs 280 lakh crore in FY15 over the previous year, with wealth in financial assets growing in double digits and that in physical assets experiencing a fall, according to a recent report by Karvy Private Wealth. Individual wealth in financial assets rose from Rs 134.7 lakh crore in FY14 to Rs 160.5 lakh crore, growth of 19 per cent. This figure is expected to double to Rs 326 lakh crore in the next five years. The civil aviation ministry has accepted a demand to extend the deadline to phase out expat pilots by December 2016, providing relief to companies that are planning to expand their fleet substantially. The decision comes after the Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) sent a letter to the ministry asking for the extension, based on a request from airlines. "The ministry has decided to extend it as airlines are expanding rapidly and need commanders," a senior ministry official said. "The deadline is to be extended by two years to December 2018," he added. Leading domestic player IndiGo plans to induct 430 A320 neos, the delivery of which has been delayed by Airbus because of operational issues. Go Air has ordered 72 A320 neos. Spice Jet chairman Ajay Singh said the airline was in negotiation with both Boeing and Airbus for an order of 150 planes by the end of this financial year. DGCA issues Foreign Aircrew temporary Authorisation (FATA) licence after scrutinising documents. This data is sent to the home ministry and Intelligence Bureau and narcotics department. According to data provided to the Lok Sabha by Minister of State for Civil Aviation Mahesh Sharma, 284 foreign pilots were employed by domestic companies at the end of September. IndiGo has the highest at 94, followed by Jet Airways at 84, Air Costa at 14. State-run carrier Air India had no foreign pilots on its roll. "The problem with our country is there is a shortage of type-rated pilots with airlines inducting new planes. Indian pilots are trained enough to become co-pilots but not commanders," the official said. To become a type-rated pilot, a person has to take additional training. The meeting was overdue for a while. After several rounds of scheduling and cancelling in what already seems a long week, the men behind Ringing Bells settle for a morning meet at a cafe in Kalkaji. Ashok Chadha, 65, suave astrophysicist in a sharp suit and designated president of Ringing Bells, is first to arrive. The bald, bespectacled Chadha, who speaks fluent Bangla apart from English and Hindi, holds forth for the next hour as we wait for his young partner. Asking almost as many questions as he answers ("Do you know the designation of London's police chief?"), Chadha, associated with the New York-based Avenue Capital, dwells on how Ringing Bells brings together the best of flagship government programmes such as Make in India, Digital India and Skill India. He believes the Rs 251 phone will help the 12-14 million consumers who buy feature phones every month to upgrade to smartphones. This will convert the Digital Divide into a Digital Connect, he adds with a gleam. While articulate about the big picture, questions about company plans are met with guarded responses, which at times turn cryptic. He also refuses to answer why he has not taken a board position in the company, saying, "It is an internal matter." By the time Mohit Goel, promoter and managing director, joins us, Chadha has spoken at length about the four pillars of the business - technology, economies of scale, online distribution and the network effect. He also tells us how it was unfair for journalists to have gone after family pictures of the recently-married Goel. Goel, a lean, young man, arrives in deep blue jeans and a denim jacket. More comfortable in Hindi than English, Goel explains how the partnership developed from a chance meeting. "We met at a function two years ago," he says, adding, "I had some ideas and Chadha had the strategy to execute these. We started about eight months ago on this specific project." Goel answers questions about his past with some confidence though Chadha does not appear happy. The MBA from Amity University recalls how he started a dry fruit business in Shamli, a district near the western border of Uttar Pradesh, and scaled it up. Brushing off questions why Chadha chose him for this business and doubts about whether he was fronting for someone else, Goel says ideas are more important than experience. He adds he has pumped in Rs 1 crore to top up the initial investment of Rs 60 lakh. "Investment is not a problem," Goel says, claiming he is in talks with 10-12 investors, including corporate houses, and can raise Rs 500 crore in quick time. Under scrutiny from government departments, Goel and Chadha had met Union Minister for Telecom & IT Ravi Shankar Prasad to explain the viability of their business model. The minister was convinced, they claim. The minister's statement though came with a warning. "Our ministry enquired into how prepared they (Ringing Bells) are. Whether they can provide a phone for Rs 251 or not. Whether they have the Bureau of Indian Standards certificate or not. We have spoken to them," PTI quoted Prasad as saying. He added this was done to ensure that there were no discrepancies later. "If there are any, we will take action. Our department is keeping a watch," Prasad said. Goel is confident he will be able to deliver on time. He expected shipments of Freedom251 by April, in time for the June deadline. Even accounting for the excise duty cut, online distribution and economies of scale, the input cost of the handset comes to about Rs 1,000. Goel claims he can comfortably make a margin of 10 per cent at this level. This is where an alteration to the company memorandum in January comes into play. Four months after starting out as a phone maker with main objects in telecom handsets and m-commerce, Ringing Bells added e-commerce and allied activities to its objects. The duo now hopes to convert the 75 million registrations into a consumer base that will form the foundation of an online marketplace. "Even Snapdeal has 45 million users. We are already bigger," Goel says, his thick eyebrows stretching in excitement. Both Goel and his mentor iterate how the fear of them running away with Rs 62.8 crore raised from 2.5 million bookings is baseless. "The money is safe with the payment services solutions provider." However, some tech websites had pointed out an inconsistency between the statement from PayU Biz, the payments service provider, and Ringing Bells' claims. While company says the money stays in an escrow account till delivery of goods, the portals interpreted the PayU Biz statement read with the description of the payment models on its website otherwise. "PayU is a payment gateway provider, but it has two products, PayU Biz and PayU Money. The company provides buyer protection/escrow services in PayU Money, but doesn't do so under PayU Biz, in which the merchant gets the money in a matter of days. Which means Ringing Bells is misleading customers," said tech portal Digit.in. It appears Freedom251's success hinges on the proposed online marketplace, which the company will offer through a preinstalled app. Chadha says they are in talks with at least 300 sellers. The phones will also have utility apps that will earn the company additional revenue (it is in discussions with 25 such service providers). The company will be launching the services in five major Indian languages, including Hindi, Bangla and Tamil, apart from English. The model will be a key for many sellers to reach millions of consumers in the hinterland. Goel says they are in the middle of a pilot focusing on Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Delhi. He reasons this focus on Uttar Pradesh created the confusion over the registered office. "We want to scale up our base in Uttar Pradesh fast. That's why we had moved to Noida." The scheme to leverage the network seems crucial for Goel and Chadha, as it will help them subsidise the phones by Rs 700-800 apiece. When suggested this strategy sounds like an improvisation of the deep discounts offered by many e-commerce portals and needs the deep pockets of venture funds, Chadha shoots back, "You are absolutely wrong." The pair does not rule out a possible tie-up with a telecom service provider. "We may, say, provide a BSNL SIM," Goel says. As the answers bring with them more questions, Chadha receives a call and is in a hurry to leave. Goel does not want to be left behind. NEW CLAIMS RING ALARM BELLS An arbitration tribunal in Singapore has ruled in favour of the GMR group of companies on its dispute with the Maldives government on the airport project in that country. GMR, the tribunal has decided, is entitled to payment of damages for termination of its contract in Maldives for the airport. This will include all the money it had borrowed from Axis Bank for the project. The payment is to be completed by the third quarter of this calendar year. A subsidiary of GMR had signed an agreement with the government of that country and Maldives Airport Company Ltd for modernisation and operation of the airport in Male, the capital city, in 2010. The GMR company had won the right to build and operate the Ibrahim Nasir International Airport for 25 years, extendable by another 10 years. GMR had planned to invest a little over $500 million in the project, which included a debt component of $358 mn, arranged by Axis. GMR stated the ruling in its favour came on Tuesday; the damages awarded would be in addition to those decreed in an earlier arbitration award of 2014. At the time, the tribunal had ruled the original concession agreement was valid and binding and that the Maldives government had unlawfully repudiated it. An Axis bank official said the bank is awaiting formal order. However it is a positive development for a lender as the ruling by the tribunal favours payment of dues to the bank. Infosys, Indias second largest information technology services company, has recommended extending the tenure of its chief executive officer and managing director Vishal Sikka by two years apart from revising his annual compensation significantly. In a regulatory filing on Wednesday, the Bengaluru-based company said the board of directors proposed to extend his tenure until March 31, 2021 in recognition of his outstanding initiatives towards restoring the company to industry leadership, which has already begun to show results. Read more from our special coverage on "VISHAL SIKKA" Infosys extends Vishal Sikkas term as CEO by 2 years The board has also said the management has drawn up goals for improving revenue and people productivity by 2020-2021, to progressively achieved in the next five years. The board believes Sikkas leadership will be essential to achieve these goals. Hence, it recommends Sikkas present contract of employment be replaced with a new contract fully aligned to the period and goals, as well as to shareholder value creation, the company said. As per the proposed revised compensation, Sikka would receive a total compensation of $11 million per annum including a base pay of $1 million, target variable pay of $3 million and another $7 million on stock based compensation. In case, he fails to achieve the minimum performance target, Sikkas minimum remuneration would fall to $3,000,000 annually, the company added. Previously, Sikkas annual compensation stood at $5.08 million (Rs 30 crore), in addition to stock options worth $2 million. The new agreement that would be effective from April 1, 2016. The proposal, with a few others, would now be sent for voting by shareholders through postal ballot, the statement added. Sikka, widely recognised as an ace technocrat and former technology head at German software company SAP, had joined Infosys in June 2014 and assumed the role of CEO and MD with effect from August 1 the same year. According to the original contract, his term till June 13, 2019. This was ratified by the shareholders in an extraordinary general meeting on June 30, 2014. As a part of Sikkas Vision 2020, Infosys has set a target to touch $20 billion in revenue by FY21, with an operating profit margin of 30 per cent and per-employee revenue contribution of $80,000. The company expects to come back to industry leading growth path in FY17. is considering an increase in frequency to Delhi as a part of its plan to grow business in India. At present flies a MD-11 freighter aircraft once a week to Delhi and the airline believes there is a room for adding more cargo only flights to the city. While Lufthansa expects a boost in air freight demand from India as manufacturing is expected to get a filiip under Make in India programme, the airline's current cargo business is under pressure due to over capacity and competition from the Gulf carriers. " India is one of the important market for us. Currently we serve Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru, Chennai and Hyderabad which handle about 88 per cent of all international air freight from India. We are looking to increase service to Delhi. We will play to our strength which is our network in Europe and North America and improve our services," said Alexis von Hoensbroech, member of executive board of . The airline also offers a road feeder service in South India enabling connectivity to shippers in cities such as Kochi and Coimbatore. Lufthansa operates 67 passenger and 13 freight flights per week to India. Last year the airline reported 86 per cent freight load from India last year. Nightingales Home Health Services today announced its entry into Mumbai. After establishing a presence in the Bengaluru and Hyderabad markets, Nightingales has established its first branch at Nariman Point in South Mumbai. A multi-disciplinary and experienced team will provide comprehensive healthcare services at home including visits by doctors, nurses and therapists. Nightingales has been present in Bengaluru for over two decades and was acquired by Medwell Ventures in 2014. Medwell Ventures is promoted by former CEO of Fortis Hospital, Vishal Bali. Vishal Bali, co-founder & chairman, Medwell Ventures said, "Our model of home healthcare through Nightingales aims to reduce recurrent hospitalisation of patients with chronic diseases by devising personalised care plans for their management at home. Non communicable diseases and neurohealth issues will cost India $4.58 trillion by 2030 and will cause huge health affordability issues. ". Nightingales currently provides deep coverage through its network of five branches in Bangalore and four in Hyderabad. Some of its branches also provide on-site physiotherapy services in conjunction with home physiotherapy to provide patients with continuous care. Private equity (PE) investors have put substantial amounts into microfinance institutions (MFIs) and non-banking financial (NBFCs) over the years. Now, with many MFIs getting an in-principle nod to become small finance (SFBs), some PE investors are expanding their role to guide and hand-hold the former in the transition. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has said SFBs have to start operations by April 2017. Those who have invested in MFIs come with focus, domain expertise and a track record for impact investment, say two executives with a public sector bank that had lent to them. The assistance could range from guidance at the board level to developing of information technology (IT) systems, as SFBs need to have an edge and control costs as they scale up operations. We are enabling them in entire capital raising and capital restructuring, with the help of our relationship with domestic investors, says Venky Natarajan, managing partner, at Rockefeller Foundation-backed Lok Capital. RBI, from 72 applicants, granted in-principle approval for 10 entities to start SFBs. Among these are eight MFIs, including Lok Capital-backed Suryoday, Utkarsh, Ujjivan and Equitas. Natarajan is chairperson of the transformation committee at a couple of these licence holders. We are also helping them in part of the business transformation, especially on IT. We are providing these with consultants in our network who have worked as CIOs (chief information officers) in large companies, he says. Sanjay Agarwal, managing director and chief executive, Au Financiers, says it is not only the capital that PE investors chip in with, but there is also a lot of thought behind such investments. It is long-term money. They are aware of the ups and downs these businesses face, including a slowdown for a year or two. Equitas, Ujjivan Financial Services and Utkarsh Micro Finance have 93 per cent, 90 per cent and 85 per cent foreign holding, respectively. The association of investors also brings credibility to the enterprise (bank). For example, investment from a multilateral funding agency could bring such support, he said. Jaipur-based Au Financiers, an NBFC, has received in-principle nod for SFB. Its investors include Warburg Pincus, ChrysCapital, IFC and Kedaara Capital. PE entities are also chipping in with operational help. Vibha Batra, senior vice-president and co-head of financial sector rating at ICRA, says in some instances (MFIs turning into SFBs), PE entities are also providing board supervision and assisting in building systems and processes, helping the company scale up. PEs with exposure to financial sector units understand that in retail business such as lending to small and medium enterprises, a mainstay of SFBs, patience is necessary. Such realisation enables promoters to think of long-term, Batra says. While PEs definitely add value in association, they also need to factor in the regulatory angle participating in the working of units which deal with public money. A PE adviser at a multinational professional services firm says as SFBs are going to solicit deposits from the public, RBI as sector regulator was concerned about safety of money. RBI will not like investors with a dominant stake to control operations of SFBs. The regulator is always concerned about risks on fund diversion. Online marketplace Snapdeal has put around 200 employees on notice. These workers have been asked to undergo a 30-day performance improvement plan (PIP). Their performance during this period will decide their fate in the company, sources say. According to sources, the Gurgaon-based company has been bogged down by constant pressure to stay on top in the face of stiff competition from other marketplace giants such as Flipkart and Amazon India, forcing it to crack the whip on poor performers. Sources said those not meeting the criteria set under PIP might be asked to leave or get transferred. The employees have been zeroed in based on their performance of the past six months. "This is the first time this sort of review is being done at Snapdeal. Some employees, according to the company's internal review, have not been doing well. The company has zeroed in on 200 and asked them to improve. The company has made it clear that the non-performers would be asked to leave. However, no one has been fired till now," said a source close to the company. This move has had an adverse effect on Snapdeal's employees. Sources in the know of the developments said that while some of them openly protested saying they were singled out, many chose to put in their papers. Snapdeal has around 8,000 employees, which is less than one-fifth of its biggest rival Flipkart's total employee strength of 45,000 employees. Snapdeal, however, maintained that employees were quitting voluntarily and no one has been laid off as of now. "There have been no layoffs at Snapdeal. As part of the on-going performance management and development programme, some team members at our contact centre have been offered PIP. While many team members have opted for this opportunity to improve the requisite skills set, some team members have desired not to undertake this and have instead decided to move on voluntarily," said a company spokesperson. This is not the first time an e-commerce firm has taken such a step. Last year, online restaurant search firm Zomato had laid off as many as 300 people. Right after that, its co-founder Deepinder Goyal sent a strongly-worded mail to its sales team in which he lambasted his sales team and painted "the real picture" of the company's performance to them. However, after breaking even in six markets this year, Goyal said laying off 300 employees had nothing to do with Zomato's performance. "It was a way to make our operations better. Many were given a choice to join other teams; some took it, others did not," he said in an earlier interview to Business Standard. Similarly, TinyOwl had shut down offices in four cities and laid off 300 employees in mid-October last year. Foodpanda, too, laid off 300 people. Snapdeal till now has partnered with several global marquee investors and individuals such as Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan and Singapore-based investment entity Brother Fortune Apparel, SoftBank, BlackRock, Temasek, Foxconn, Alibaba, eBay Inc, PremjiInvest, Intel Capital, Bessemer Venture Partners, and Ratan Tata - chairman emeritus of Tata Group, among others. Tata Motors, after losing its number one position in the light commercial vehicle (LCV) segment to Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) in the first eight months (April-November) of this financial year, has reclaimed the lead. The company sold more LCVs than M&M, the nearest competitor, consecutively in December and January. Cumulatively (April to January), however, M&M is first, show data from the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers. The body classifies passenger and goods carriers of up to 7.5 tonnes as LCVs. Tata Motors has been a leader in this segment for years. Led by the Tata Ace (pictured), termed the chhota hathi (baby elephant). Launched in 2005, about 1.5 million units of the Ace have been sold till date. You have to look at longer periods of growth or decline in this segment. Somebody was stronger in pick-up vehicles. Our Ace had seen a drop and that was hurting us; it has started recovering. The Ace Mega is counted as a pick-up and doing well. I am confident this will only get better, Ravindra Pisharody, executive director (commercial vehicles), told this newspaper. Tata had sold almost 14,000 more LCVs than M&M in 2014-15 and about 50,000 more units in 2013-14. A decline in demand due to a slowing economy and defaults in financed vehicles had impacted LCV demand; sales declined 11.6 per cent in FY15. In the first 10 months of this year, the decline has been a little over two per cent. However, growth seems to be coming back; January saw a rise of 6.5 per cent. M&M, which launched the Jeeto, a mini truck, in June 2015 and the Supro Maxitruck passenger LCV in October, succeeded in expanding share even as the market was declining, with Tatas product line not ready. However, Tata launched the Ace Mega, a small pick-up, in August last year and has seen the Ace portfolio grow since then. He recently said the company would continue to launch new products and upgrade the existing ones as customer needs evolved. The LCV market is significant, with a size of 382,206 units in FY15. These small trucks are used for intra-city transport of goods. By comparison, medium and heavy CVs find use in inter-city movement of goods. The fight for a greater share in the LCV space, starting to grow after a long decline, is set to pick up. Iron ore mine allotted to Tata Steel by Chhattisgarh government in Dantewada district stands cancelled as the company failed to complete prospecting work within the stipulated period. The state had allotted 2,500 hectares of iron ore bearing land in Bailadila deposit No. 4 to Tata Steel in 2008 to feed raw material for its proposed steel plant to be set up in Bastar district with an annual capacity of 5 million tonnes. The company had signed an agreement with the state government for the project. A prospecting licence was issued to the company for the mine with an estimated reserve of 108 million tonnes of high grade iron ore. The prospecting work was to be completed within stipulated period of five years. An extension of another term was given to the company following multiple challenges as the mine site was located in the pocket where Naxalites had considerable sway. After prospecting, Tata Steel would have qualified and applied for getting the mining lease (ML). The company failed to complete the prospecting work within the set time following which the agreement reached with the state government for the allocation of iron ore mine stand cancelled, Chhattisgarhs Industry Secretary Subodh Kumar Singh told Business Standard. Under the new policy, the mine cannot be allocated to any company and would be put for auction. Singh said if Tata Steel wanted to get the mine back, it had to participate in the auction. As of now, the company had lost the iron ore mine. The development was likely to cast shadow over the Bastar plan of countrys largest steel producer. The company had planned to set up a 5 mtpa Greenfield integrated steel plant in Bastar with an investment of over Rs 20,000 crore. The Dantewada mine would have been used to feed the plant located at a distance of about 100 km. The land has been acquired by the state and been transferred in favour of the Department of Industries, which will subsequently lease it out to Tata Steel Limited. The process is still underway. Local head of Tata Steel, Abhay Narayan Singh, did not take calls and did not responded either to text message. Ride-hailing app has opened a Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Hyderabad on Wednesday. The CoE, its first in Asia, is part of an agreement signed with Telangana government in July 2015 to invest $50 million in the state. "The CoE will provide support to both riders and driver partners in India. We plan to employ about 500 customer service specialists in the CoE by next year. We have already hired close to 30% of the total team strength," Amit Jain, president of India, told mediapersons on Wednesday. The Hyderabad CoE will provide support via multiple channels like email, phone and social media to ensure seamless experience before, during and after the ride.A team of specialists proficient in multiple local languages will also be roped in to address support issues from across the country. Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) students and Anirban Bhattacharya were on Wednesday sent to three days' police remand by a city court, after their midnight surrender and subsequent arrest in a case of sedition. The South Campus Police Station near JNU where they are being kept, was turned into a makeshift court room following an order by the Delhi High Court to "maintain confidentiality" during their remand proceedings. Read more from our special coverage on "UMAR KHALID" JNU row: All you need to know about Umar Khalid During the hearing, the police demanded a seven-day custody of the duo, who allegedly had organised a controversial event at the JNU on February 9, where anti-India slogans were said to have been raised. Police has also applied for production of JNU Students' Union President Kanhaiya Kumar, also arrested on sedition charges, so that all the three students can be interrogated together. The Delhi High Court has also directed the police to ensure that no one "suffers even a scratch" and there is no ruckus this time. Lawyers had allegedly assaulted Kumar when he was brought to Patiala House Court for remand proceedings, in defiance of a Supreme Court order. Two days earlier, when Kumar was to be brought to the court, the same set of lawyers had thrashed journalists and JNU students and teachers. The court order came during the hearing on Kumar's bail plea after it was informed that the student leader and two arrested co-accused - Umar and Anirban - were apprehending threat to their safety and security during production before Patiala House courts for remand proceedings. "We are presently investigating the case on the basis of one raw video. There is no multiple video footage. Not only the journalists, everyone else who were in their contact were questioned," said Deputy Commissioner of Police (South) Prem Nath. Umar and Anirban, who had surrendered before the police midnight last night, were arrested in the wee hours today after being questioned for five hours. "Before being arrested they were questioned for at least five hours in which the police enquired about their whereabouts and hideouts during the phase when police was looking out for them in connection with the sedition case which led to arrest of JNUSU president Kanhaiya Kumar," a senior police official said. The police also enquired whether two of them were the main organisers of the February 9 event against the hanging of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru, and whether they were involved in anti-India sloganeering which allegedly took place. The duo had returned to the JNU campus last Sunday after going missing since February 12. Besides Kumar, Khalid and Bhattacharya, the other students are Rama Naga, Ashutosh Kumar and Anant Prakash. Delhi Police had issued a look-out notice on February 20 against Khalid, Bhattacharya, Naga, Ashutosh and Prakash. In its order, the high court also directed the Registrar General to depute a Metropolitan Magistrate for the purpose of conducting remand proceedings and asked DCP (South) Prem Nath, who was present inside the courtroom during the hearing, to co-ordinate with the Registrar General for this. The bench said Kanhaiya's counsel has apprehended serious threat to his client's life during production before the court for remand proceedings and for this reason, his bail plea was transmitted to the High Court by the Supreme Court. The court heard brief arguments on Kanhaiya's bail plea and posted it for further hearing on February 29 as Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Tushar Mehta said that in view of the arrest of Khalid and Bhattacharya, the police would file an application seeking his further police custody. The court also heard separate petitions filed by Khalid and Bhattacharya, in which they had sought security before they surrender to police, and their advocates told the bench that since their clients have surrendered so the prayer "does not survive". Ex-chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda's aide Virender was on Wednesday charged with sedition by Haryana police for allegedly inciting violence during the Jat quota stir that killed 28 in Haryana, limping to normalcy. Over 200 persons, including a few personnel, were injured during the nine-day agitation. An official said the charges were in connection with an audio clip of Virender's conversation. An FIR has been registered in Rohtak against Virender and Man Singh Dalal, who also allegedly figured in the taped conversation, under various sections of the IPC, including section 124-A (sedition) and section 120-B (conspiracy), Singhal told the media here. They have also been charged with IPC sections 153-A (promoting enmity between classes) and section 153-B (imputation, assertion prejudicial to integration), he said. The FIR against the duo has been registered on a complaint of a Bhiwani resident Pankaj Kumar, he said. ALSO READ: HC seeks status report on Jat agitation by Monday Virender had earlier accepted that the voice in the clip was his but alleged that it had been "doctored". He has maintained that nowhere had he talked about instigating Jats or anyone. "Moreover, the conversation is an old one, much before the current unrest started," he had said. "Twenty eight people have been killed during the stir. We have arrested 127 persons and registered FIR against 535 others. Over 200 persons including few security personnel were also injured during the agitation," Singhal said. Curfew was lifted in Hisar district and relaxed in violence-hit Rohtak and Bhiwani districts while rail and road traffic were gradually resumed on routes which had remained blocked during the agitation. A totalof 35 popular trains including Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra Mail, Kalka Shatabdi, Amritsar Shatabdi and Jammu Rajdhani resumed operation today while about services of 60 trains were still affected. In Bhiwani, one of the worst-affected districts in the agitation, authorities gave a four-hour relaxation in curfew as the situation was improving, officials said. Curfew was lifted from Hisar and its nearby town Hansi, though prohibitory orders under Section 144 banning assembly of five or more persons will remain in force. Day-long relaxation in curfew was allowed in Rohtak, the epicentre of the pro quota agitation in Haryana. "The situation is peaceful in Rohtak city today. No untoward incident has been reported from anywhere," a senior police official said. Life was also returning to normal in violence-hit Sonipat, where three persons had died in a clash with security forces two days back. Security forces were patrolling sensitive areas including Bhiwani, Hisar, Sonipat and Rohtak, officials said. The arterial Delhi-Ambala Highway, which had remained closed for four days, was thrown open last evening. The Cabinet on Wednesday approved a proposal to provide $150-million credit from for the development of Chabahar Port in Iran. Chabahar Port lies outside the Persian Gulf in Iran and will help in expanding maritime commerce in the region. India is negotiating this project to facilitate the growing trade and investment with Iran and other countries in the region, notably Afghanistan, and also to provide opportunities to Indian firms to enhance their footprint in the region. According to a memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed between India and Iran on May 6, 2015, India is to equip and operate two berths in Chabahar Port Phase-I with capital investment of $85.2 million and annual revenue expenditure of $22.9 million on a 10-year lease. KEY DECISIONS Other proposals approved by the Cabinet To set up directorates for Atal Innovation Mission and self-employment and talent utilisation in NITI Aayog To raise raw jute MSP by 18.5% to ~3,200 per quintal for 2016-17 Agreement between India and the Maldives for avoidance of double taxation of income from international air transport Cabinet was apprised of signing of an arrangement for the establishment of an Indo-French Joint Committee on Science & Technology Cooperation The ownership of equipment will be transferred to the Iranian side on completion of 10-year period or for an extended period, based on mutual agreement. The Iranian side had requested for provision of a credit of $150 million in accordance with the MoU. According to the MoU, operation of the two berths will commence within 18 months after the signing of the contract. The two berths will be operated by India Ports Global Private, a joint venture between Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust and Kandla Port Trust two major ports under the shipping ministry. The Cabinet has authorised the ministries of finance, external affairs and shipping to approve the final contract with Iran and for resolution of any issue arising in implementation of the project. It also authorised the shipping ministry to form a company in Iran to implement the Chabahar Port development and related activities. A day after the government claimed success in Parliament over implementing the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), government data reveal the Centre owes states Rs 5,595 crore dues for work already completed 16 per cent of the budgeted funds for the scheme causing stress to people, particularly in drought-hit states. After two quarters of revival in 2015-16, the rural employment scheme is again looking down an empty barrel. Many states have been pleading with the Centre since October 2015 for release of promised and greater funds, in the face of higher demand for work in drought-hit rural India. With only a month left in this financial year, fund transfer from the Union government to states has dried, leaving 21 of them with a negative balance of Rs 5,595 crore to people for work already done. Of the total liability of the Centre, Rs 4,322.97 crore is towards wages to be paid and the rest for expenses on material. Four of the eight states with officially-declared drought and where the Centre had committed to extra work of 50 days beyond the usual 100-day limit, are among those in the red. The Centre owes these four states Rs 1,455 crore for the work done till February. The financial crunch began in the third quarter of the financial year with many states warning they were running out of the money the Centre was to provide and were either paying out of their own pockets or running up pending wage bills. Some noted they had enthusiastically taken up work after commitments from the Centre to back the scheme, unlike in the previous financial year when neglect had brought the scheme to its worst performance since inception. Several states have been warning since the end of last year that they needed substantial additional support to meet the demand that has been generated. The high demand in the current financial year, compared to last year, for work arose out of two factors the drought and the initial commitment of the Centre to financially support the scheme. By law, the scheme is demand-driven. That means if people demand work, then the state is required to create and provide work. In practice, the availability of funds, or the lack of it, decides how the states artificially suffocate demand or let people register their work demand. The budgetary allocation for the scheme is supposed to be only indicative and not a cap unlike other centrally sponsored schemes. The Centre prepares an indicative labour Budget at the beginning of the calendar year to estimate the budgetary support needed. However, by law, the Union government is required to pay states higher sums even if the work demand breaches the estimated levels. Business Standard reviewed some of the correspondence from states since October 2015 to the Union rural development ministry warning of a crisis and asking for immediate release of funds against standing dues, existing demand, and the projected demand for the coming months. Madhya Pradesh warned that for it to continue to confidently proceed with labour engagement, it would need Rs 2,960 crore, out of which it wanted Rs 1,000 crore immediately. Karnataka had in December 2015 warned it had consumed 67.5 per cent of the funds and required an injection of much higher sums because of severe drought conditions in the state. Andhra Pradesh, too, noted that in view of drought conditions prevailing across the state, it had consumed 90 per cent of the Central funds released so far. It needed more money to provide the additional 50 days of work the Union government had promised in drought-impacted areas. In October, it noted it had only Rs 85.5 crore left, while it needed Rs 3,273.8 crore for the demand of work being generated. Jammu & Kashmir had warned in October that its coffers were empty and work had to be done before winter snow. Odisha had also warned in October that it was drawing money out of its state funds for the fully-central funded scheme (only 25 per cent of the material costs are borne by the state). It noted the Centre had not released even the earmarked funds by October, leaving it in the red. Tamil Nadu wrote in October that it had only Rs 11 crore available from the Centre to carry on work. Himachal Pradesh sent a distress letter saying the Centre was not responding to its earlier requests to resolve the fund crunch. Arunachal Pradesh noted in September it had been unable to make payments for 1.16 million person-days of work. But, the Centres response since then has been tepid. Against a demand of Rs 3,237 crore, Andhra Pradesh has got only Rs 300 crore from the Centre in its latest release in December. Himachal Pradesh, which asked for Rs 211 crore, has got less than half that. Kerala has got Rs 365 crore against its demand of Rs 507 crore and Tamil Nadu was last given Rs 2,369 against a demand of Rs 3,758 crore. The release of funds after October remains pending or is under process at the ministry. RUNNING ON EMPTY Arvind Gupta, national head of the information technology & communications cell at the Bharatiya Janata Party, was a much sought-after man at Surge2016, a two-day start-up event in Bengaluru that concluded on Wednesday. Several start-ups came up to Gupta, requesting him to showcase their projects to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who has been a big champion for entrepreneurs. Gupta spoke to Nivedita Mookerji on the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government's signature schemes, communication strategy and its start-up policy. Edited excerpts: You seem to be much in demand as start-ups seem to be chasing Prime Minister Narendra Modi... The whole country is after the PM - why only start-ups? How many such start-ups have you met that had a message for the PM? It's one of the largest conferences on start-ups that I have attended. There's tremendous energy here. There must be around 1,000 start-ups here and 50-60 have said how they gained from the start-up policy. I have got inputs from many of them. Where is the start-up policy headed? We haven't heard much about it after the January event in New Delhi... The start-up policy has multiple aspects. On tax and funds, we need to wait for the Union Budget. On April 1, a lot of it will take off. Among the many signature projects of the NDA government - Smart City, Start Up India, Swachch Bharat, and Digital India - which one would you call the most successful? They are addressing different segments - youth, employment, urban life, farmers, etc. These are all flagship schemes. You must realise that the government has to do multiple things together. Has there been any which has not clicked? They are all work in progress. Some could have been faster. Smart city is a reality as it has taken off. There's lot happening in Startup India and Digital India. Make in India is also a project in progress. What's the Budget theme like? We must wait for the finance minister to tell us. Has the communication strategy of the NDA government been all good? Do you feel any need for a change? The communication of the government and of the PM is direct and participative. But, a car does not move in the same gear; one must shift gears. In the same way, the government, too, will shift gear appropriately. When is change likely? The communication is direct to consumers through many means, including social media and Mann ki baat. I am sure at the right time, it will change gears. Has work started on the communication strategy for general election of 2019? I can't comment on that. Will let you know at the right time. PMKVY Funds for Punjab . . The Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship Shri Rajiv Pratap Rudy has said that Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana, a flagship scheme has been launched by the Government on 15th July, 2015 where in the trainees after their successful assessment and certification, get monetary reward through direct bank transfer to their account. . . In a written reply in the Lok Sabha today the Minister said, the scheme implemented through a Public Private Partnership entity, National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC), has the coverage across the Country. During the current financial year i.e. 2015-16, an amount of Rs. 435 crore has been released to the NSDC under the scheme. As on 22nd February, 2016, 12.50 lakh candidates have been enrolled in 9,314 training centres spread in 29 States and 6 Union Territories (UTs) including Punjab (candidates enrolled:- 45,544 and trained:- 31,221). Under the scheme, monetary reward of Rs. 6,54,62,500/- (in total) has been given to 7,174 candidates of Punjab. Out of candidates who successfully completed the skill training, 1205 candidates have already got employment. . . Shortage of Trainers . . The Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship Shri Rajiv Pratap Rudy has said that the Government is aware that there is shortage of adequate trainers to implement skill development programmes across the country; . . He said, at present, total seating capacity under different training schemes comes to about 25 lakh(ITIs/ Apprenticeships/ Short-term courses) which requires about 1,25,000 trainers in the country. Presently about 25,000 trained instructors passed out from Central Institutes under Craft Instructor Training Scheme (CITS) are available in the Country. . . In a written reply in the Lok Sabha today the Minister said, further, there are 30 Central Institutes and 16 Institutes for Training of Trainers (Private & State Government) with an annual capacity of about 10,600 seats and catering to the requirement of mostly manufacturing sector. Further, the industry practitioners are also being encouraged to join the training institutes as trainers. At present, my ministry is collaborating with Chambers in Germany to train master trainers in the field of mechatronics and welding. . . The justice department is demanding Apple's help in unlocking at least nine iPhones nationwide in addition to the phone used by one of the San Bernardino, California, attackers. The disclosure appears to buttress the company's concerns that the dispute could pose a threat to encryption safeguards that goes well beyond the single California case. is fighting the government's demands in at least seven of the other nine cases, Marc J Zwillinger, a lawyer for the company, said in a letter unsealed in federal court on Tuesday. " has not agreed to perform any services on the devices," Zwillinger wrote. Starting in December, the letter says, has in a number of cases objected to the justice department's efforts to force its cooperation through a 1789 statute known as the All Writs Act, which says courts can require actions to comply with their orders. In the San Bernardino case, prosecutors have cast their demands for Apple to help them unlock the iPhone used by Syed Rizwan Farook - one of the attackers in the December rampage, in which 14 people were killed - as a limited effort in response to an unusual situation. Still, "no one should be surprised that we're investigating other cases and looking for assistance in those other cases," a law enforcement official said on Tuesday. Since challenging a judge's demand in the San Bernardino case, which called for Apple to create a special tool to help investigators more easily crack the phone's passcode, the company has repeatedly asserted that such a move could not be done in isolation. "Once created, the technique could be used over and over again, on any number of devices," Apple's chief executive, Timothy D Cook, said in a letter to customers. And in a note on its website on Monday, Apple said law enforcement agencies nationwide "have hundreds of iPhones they want Apple to unlock if the FBI wins this case." Apple has long maintained that it would hand over data to comply with a court order when it was technically able to do so. In a report covering the first six months of 2015, Apple said it had received nearly 11,000 requests from government agencies worldwide for information on roughly 60,000 devices, and it provided some data in roughly 7,100 instances. But, while the data backed up on Apple's iCloud service is readily accessible by the company, it has made the security on the iPhone itself increasingly hard to crack. Because a number of the newly disclosed cases remain sealed, Apple's letter did not describe the types of crimes at issue. But they appear to involve run-of-the-mill prosecutions for offenses like drug trafficking and pornography, rather than a high-profile terrorism investigation, officials said. The newly disclosed cases are in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Boston. The existence of the other demands came to light in a drug-trafficking case in Federal District Court in Brooklyn, where prosecutors are seeking access to the data held in an iPhone linked to a methamphetamine distribution ring. The owner of the phone, Jun Feng, 45, has pleaded guilty to conspiracy in the case. But prosecutors have pushed ahead anyway with their efforts to force Apple to unlock his phone, in part because they maintain that it could lead them to other drug suspects. The two sides are awaiting a ruling from Magistrate Judge James Orenstein on whether Apple should be forced to cooperate. Before issuing a ruling, Judge Orenstein wanted Apple to detail other pending requests from prosecutors. The Brooklyn drug-trafficking case has been dwarfed by the fight in California. But national security lawyers say the Brooklyn case remains important, because Judge Orenstein's decision is expected to be the first to offer a broad examination of the government's authority under the All Writs Act to force Apple to unlock passcode-protected iPhones. The judge has indicated skepticism over the government's demands. Initially, Apple agreed to a formal order to help the Justice Department gain access to Feng's phone, but Judge Orenstein balked, questioning whether the All Writs Act could be used that way. He invited Apple's lawyers to raise objections. While his ultimate decision will not be legally binding in California, it could influence the legal arguments there. And an appeal by either side has the potential to work its way through the federal court system to become significant case law. Law enforcement officials around the country are anxiously watching the cases in both Brooklyn and California to see how their own investigations might be affected. At a news conference last week after the debate erupted in California, the New York City police commissioner, William J Bratton, and the Manhattan district attorney, Cyrus R Vance Jr, said they had collected about 175 iPhones, in investigations, that they have been unable to unlock. Vance rejected the notion that Apple should be forced to cooperate only in certain prominent crimes. "What we discover is that investigation into one crime often leads into criminal activity in another, sometimes much more serious than what we were originally looking at," he said. 2016 The New York Times News Service DERIVATIVE STRATEGIES TCS: SELL TARGET: Rs 2,216 STOP LOSS: Rs 2,295 SELL TCS FUTURES at Rs 2,269 [MACD & STOCHASTICS SELL+BELOW MOVING AVERAGES + BELOW PREVIOUS CLOSE] YES BANK: SELL TARGET: Rs 671 STOP LOSS: Rs 693 SELL YESBANK FUTURES at Rs 687 [VOLUME JUMP +BELOW 50 DMA +MACD & STOCHASTICS SELL] Disclaimer: This report has been prepared by Geojit BNP Paribas Financial Services Limited (GBNPP), here in after referred to as GBNPP. GBNPP, a publicly listed company, is engaged in services of retail broking, credit, portfolio management and marketing investment products including mutual funds, life and general insurance and properties. Each recipient of this report should make such investigation as it deems necessary to arrive at an independent evaluation of an investment in the securities of companies referred to in this report (including the merits and risks involved). This document is not for public distribution and has been furnished to you solely for your information and must not be reproduced or redistributed to any other person. Persons into whose possession this document may come are required to observe these restrictions. Opinion expressed herein is our current opinion as of the date appearing on this report only. While we endeavor to update on a reasonable basis the information discussed in this material, there may be regulatory, compliance, or other reasons that prevent us from doing so. Prospective investors and others are cautioned that any forward-looking statements are not predictions and may be subject to change without notice. The market slid through the last seven sessions, despite the proximity of the Budget. It may need an extraordinary turnaround in sentiment to cause a trend reversal. Overall, global volumes have improved, after the Chinese re-opened. There was a mild recovery of sentiment after the Saudi-Russia freeze on crude production. But, crude has fallen again. Forex remain in complete disarray with unpredictable movements in major currencies. In India, the major trend is clearly down. FIIs have been consistent equity sellers since November 2015. Retail investors have been forced out after January. Domestic institutions remain net positive, but they have not stemmed the tide. The Nifty bounced from its latest 21-month low of 6,869 on February 12, but it was unable to move past resistance at the earlier low of 7,241 (January 20). On the downside, the low to beat is therefore 6,869. Assuming the bear market stays in force, even if the 7,250 resistance is broken, the rally could terminate below 7,600 (Peak of February 1). A move beyond 7,600 setting up higher highs would be very encouraging. The Nifty Bank has run weaker than the overall market. It has dropped over 11 per cent in the last 30-day, while the Nifty has fallen by around 5.7 per cent. The financial index made a new 21-month low on Wednesday at 13,760. A long Bank strangle with long March 13,500p (332), long March 14,500c (180) is not zero-delta since the index is around 13,800. But, this could be worth taking since March, one way or another, will be volatile. Breakevens are at about 12,980, 15,015. Four big trending sessions either way would put this spread into profit. The Nifty call option chain for March has ample open interest (OI) between 7,000c and 8,000c with a big peak at 7,700c. The March put option chain has a major big OI peaks at 7000p and high OI until 6,500p. The Nifty's put-call ratios (PCR) are very bearish at less than 0.6 but PCR is not a reliable signal close to settlement. The Nifty closed at 7,019 on Wednesday. March option premiums are very high at the moment. Even allowing for the Budget's proximity, it's tempting to sell near-the-money. The March 7,100c (150) and the March 6,900p (127) look overpriced with spot at roughly half-way between. This strangle could be sold short and bought back on Friday with some profits unless the Nifty went beyond one of the breakevens at 6,670, 7,320. This is unlikely to happen in just two sessions. If a trader wants long spreads, a long March 7,300c (73), short 7,400c (48) costs 25 and pays a maximum 75 but it's 280 points from spot. A long March 6,800p (97), short 6,700p (73) also costs 24. This is 220 points from spot. These spreads could be combined for a cost of 48, and breakevens at 7,348, 6,752. Perhaps these distant spreads are okay for a positional trader given the high chances that March will be exceedingly volatile. But it may make sense to not take such positions until the Budget is declared. There is usually a trend post-Budget and a trend would obviate the need to hedge. Historically, and based on current market sentiment as well, further bearishness seems much more likely than a trend reversal. The shares of Asian Paints and Kansai Nerolac Paints have outperformed the benchmark S&P BSE Sensex in the past month. The index fell 4.4 per cent in this period and the shares of the two companies fell a mere 0.3 per cent and 0.8 per cent, respectively. As for Berger Paints, it has outperformed the Sensex in most time periods and made a new all-time high of Rs 283.5 on February 5. With its rich valuation, though, there was some profit booking recently by holders of this scrip. Berger is now trading 26 per cent below its peak level; Kansai and Asian Paints are at 11 per cent and five per cent below their peaks. The valuations are pricing in their near-term growth. Both Berger and Kansai are trading closer to their historical average one-year forward price to earnings ratios of about 35; Asian Paints is trading at 39 times the FY17 estimated earnings, with its leadership position and strong brand equity in the industry. Over the next three to five years, too, a healthy show is expected from these companies, on the back of continued traction in demand for decorative paints. So, buying on dips with a longer time horizon could be considered. Says Abneesh Roy of Edelweiss Securities, We are quite positive on paints stocks, a play on urban consumption. Housing for all, smart cities, road developments and similar initiatives should boost demand for these companies. An uptick in demand from automobile and other industrial segments will be another positive. Especially for Kansai, given its strong leadership position in this segment, believe analysts. Falling input costs have pushed the operating earnings margins of some of these companies to historical peaks. Even as crude oil prices seem to be firming up, analysts say pricing power remains strong. This and the increasing share of premium products will support margins in the medium term, though this metric could see some moderation as a high base effect starts kicking in. Still, most analysts remain positive on these companies. Among the three, Berger has been consistently gaining market share from peers such as Kansai in decorative paints. And, its recent joint venture with Nippon Paints will strengthen its position in the industrial segment. Its earnings are expected to grow at a compounded annual rate of 26-30 per cent over the next two years and push both margins and return ratios meaningfully higher. Analysts at MOSL expect Bergers return on equity to increase 340 basis points this financial year and another 100 bps in FY17, to 26.6 per cent. Despite rising competitive intensity, Asian Paints has held its market leadership in the domestic decorative paints segment and continues to see good growth in both the Indian and foreign businesses. Analysts at JPMorgan raised their earnings estimates by three to six percentage points for the two years ending FY18 after the December quarter results. Its home improvement businesses (Sleek, Ess Ess) will help diversify the revenue stream in the longer run but need investments in the medium term. It has huge growth potential but its current share in the company's overall business is small and not have a meaningful impact on the financials. Last Friday, Asian Paints closed its factory at Rohtak, Haryana, due to the ongoing stir. While it is too early to assess the impact of this on its financials this quarter, the company might step up production at its other plants. Nifty Current: 7,019 (fut: 7,023), Target: NA Stop-loss long positions at 6,950. Stop-short positions at 7,100. Big moves could go till 6,900, 7,150. A straddle of long February 7,000c (45) and long February 7,000p (23) has breakevens at 6,950, 7,090 so traders don't expect big swings. Bank Nifty Current: 13,795 (fut: 13,805) Target: NA Stop-loss long positions at 13,695. Stop-short positions at 13,910. Big moves could go till 13,550, 14,050. Downtrend likely to continue into Budget settlement. BHEL Current price: Rs 93 Target price: Rs 91 Keep a stop at Rs 94 and short. Add to the position between Rs 91.75 and Rs 92.25. Book profits at Rs 91. HDFC Current price: Rs 1,022 Target price: Rs 1,035 Keep a stop at Rs 1,012 and go long Add to the position between Rs 1,032 and Rs 1035. Book profits at Rs 1,040. ITC Current price: Rs 287 Target price: Rs 283 Keep a stop at Rs 290 and go short. Add to the position between Rs 284 and Rs 285. Book profits at Rs 283. Target prices, projected movements in terms of next session, unless otherwise stated The Nepal Civil Aviation Authority has confirmed that all 23 people, including three crew members and two children, who were on board on the ill-fated Tara Twin-Otter plane, has been killed in the crash in Rupse of Myagdi district in western Nepal on Wednesday. The aircraft, operated by Tara Air was travelling from Pokhara to the trekking region of Jomsom,reports The Himalayan Times. No sooner after taking off it lost contact with the control tower shortly , an airport official said. Pokhara is a resort town some 200 kilometres west of the capital Kathmandu. Jomsom, further north, is the starting point for many people trekking in the Himalayas. There are no landing strips between the two locations. In 2013, the European Union banned all Nepalese airlines from flying there. Bharatiya Janata Party MP Anurag Thakur on Wednesday lashed out at Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi, saying he visits the university named after his great grandfather and supports the anti- elements. "Rahul Gandhi goes to a university named after his grandfather and supports anti-nationals," he told the Lok Sabha. Continuing his tirade, the BJP MP from Hamirpur in Himachal Pradesh said the Congress' slogan is 'family first, party second and nation last'. "Are you with Afzal Guru, the Parliament or democracy?" Thakur asked. Congress leader Jyotiraditya Scindia, however, hit back at the BJP MP for his unwarranted criticism of Gandhi. "Anurag Thakur made derogatory allegations against the Congress vice-president. He must be expunged from the record," Scindia said in the Lok Sabha. Scindia earlier lashed out at the government over the suicide of Hyderabad University scholar Rohit Vemula and sedition charges imposed on the JNU students in a stormy budget session of the Lok Sabha. The Congress vice-president had earlier on Saturday evening accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government and the ABVP of bullying an institution like the JNU. "The most anti- people are the ones who are suppressing the voice of this institution," he said while addressing the students during his visit to the JNU campus. New Delhi, Feb.24 (ANI): In a bid to encourage transparency in the healthcare sector, Fortis Healthcare has published clinical outcome data for major cardiology procedure, based on global norms specified by the International Consortium for Outcomes Measurement(ICHOM). The outcomes which was published in January this year encourages transparency and also ensures justification of service and performance. While speaking to ANI, Dr. Bishnu Panigrahi, head of medical strategy and operations group at Fortis Healthcare, said the data would be revealed on the website every six months. "The clinical outcomes not only encourages transparency in the healthcare sector but it also enhances clinical decision making," Panigrahi said. "Following the adoption of the ICHOM methodology, it takes nearly two to three years before stable data becomes available for analysis. Having had a head-start in this space, Fortis is now ready to ramp up and will soon be adding more hospitals and specialties that include the Fortis Memorial Research Institute and Fortis hospitals at Mohali, Mulund and Bangalore for Coronary Artery Disease (CAD). Later this year, Fortis would post outcomes for kidney transplant, as well," he added. Panigrahi also said that Fortis has been a part of the ICHOM Working Group that developed the standard sets for Coronary Artery Disease (CAD). Fortis has been working with ICHOM to track the patient's even after he or she recovers and leaves the hospital. The CEO of Fortis Healthcare Limited, Bhavdeep Singh said his chain of super specialty hospitals are committed to the delivery of value based medicine in bringing about greater predictability in outcomes. "Fortis has always pioneered initiatives that improve the quality of healthcare while making the system transparent and open. I believe this is a significant step in patient empowerment," Singh said. Conference (NC) president Dr. Farooq Abdullah on Wednesday said the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) should either form a government in Jammu and Kashmir or the Central Government should dissolve the state assembly and hold fresh elections. Abdullah said his party was fully prepared for the elections and the people of the State deserved a chance to elect a government. Taking a dig at the PDP-BJP alliance, former J&K chief minister Omar Abdullah said, "When they say that the PDP and the BJP are together, then why there is no government. They have got numbers in the assembly; Governor Rule is imposed when there is no numbers, which is also called the Breakdown of Constitutional Order, where there is no possibility of the formation of a government." "But neither PDP nor BJP had ever said that they were not in alliance. Both say they are together. If they are together, then there is number, and when there is number why there is no government," he sought to know. Last week, BJP general secretary Ram Madhav met Mehbooba to iron out differences between the two parties and pave the way for government formation, which has been under Governor's rule since January 9. Madhav, who arrived here in a special flight, held a closed-door meeting with Mehbooba that lasted for an hour, but the meeting failed to yield a decision on government formation. Accusing the main opposition of practicing "political opportunism" over Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula's suicide, Union Human Resource and Development Minister Smriti Irani on Wednesday sought to know as to where was Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi when more than 600 students died during the Telangana movement. "Did Rahul go once? No. Have you ever seen Rahul Gandhi going to one spot twice? No, never. He saw a political opportunity here," she said. "Today I am being accused of discrimination. One student dies and there is political battle over it. In my 20 months as minister, I have served my country, people without any prejudice. I did my duty, and I won't apologise for it," said Irani in response to Vemula's suicide in Parliament's Budget Session. "Indira Gandhi too lost in elections, but her son never supported anti-India slogans," she added. She further said that she would retire from politics if any vice-chancellor of the Indian Universities accuses her of saffronising education. "I have been accused that with which authority, do I write letters to Universities? Just because I contested from Amethi, you would crucify me," she added. Expressing disappointment over Haryana being divided on the basis of caste, the Congress Party on Wednesday asked the Centre and the state government to compensate for the losses in the wake of the protests by members of the Jat community. "Whatever has happened in Haryana in the last week is extremely unfortunate. And this episode sends a very wrong message not only to Haryana but the entire nation.There is a Constitution in independent India and we must work as per the law," said Congress leader P L Punia. "The manner in which Haryana is being seen divided on the basis of caste, approximately properties worth Rs 30,000 crore has been damaged and many people have been killed. Neither the Centre nor the state government is taking adequate steps to compensate for the damage. Even this is an issue, which needs attention," he added. ALSO READ: HC seeks status report on Jat agitation by Monday Earlier, Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu called on all the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MPs from Haryana for a meeting in wake of the violence across the state by the members of the Jat community demanding reservation in government jobs. Union Ministers Mahesh Sharma, Rao Inderjit Singh and Sanjeev Baliyan were present in the meeting along with Ashwini Chopra, BJP general secretary in-charge of Haryana Anil Jain and Haryana BJP chief Subhash Barala. Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, who was yesterday heckled by protesters and shown black flags when he visited Rohtak, met with the members of the high-level committee headed by Naidu. The committee formed by the BJP is looking into the pros and cons of various options on the Jats' demand. The Haryana Government has asked insurance companies to settle within 15 days the claims of the persons, whose insured establishments have been damaged due to arson, loot and vandalism during the recent agitation. Expressing disappointment over Haryana being divided on the basis of caste, the Congress Party on Wednesday asked the Centre and the state government to compensate for the losses in the wake of the protests by members of the Jat community. "Whatever has happened in Haryana in the last week is extremely unfortunate. And this episode sends a very wrong message not only to Haryana but the entire nation.There is a Constitution in independent India and we must work as per the law," Congress leader P.L. Punia told ANI. "The manner in which Haryana is being seen divided on the basis of caste, approximately properties worth Rs. 30,000 crore has been damaged and many people have been killed. Neither the Centre nor the state government is taking adequate steps to compensate for the damage. Even this is an issue, which needs attention," he added. Earlier, Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu called on all the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MPs from Haryana for a meeting in wake of the violence across the state by the members of the Jat community demanding reservation in government jobs. Union Ministers Mahesh Sharma, Rao Inderjit Singh and Sanjeev Baliyan were present in the meeting along with Ashwini Chopra, BJP general secretary in-charge of Haryana Anil Jain and Haryana BJP chief Subhash Barala. Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, who was yesterday heckled by protesters and shown black flags when he visited Rohtak, met with the members of the high-level committee headed by Naidu. The committee formed by the BJP is looking into the pros and cons of various options on the Jats' demand. The Haryana Government has asked insurance companies to settle within 15 days the claims of the persons, whose insured establishments have been damaged due to arson, loot and vandalism during the recent agitation. In a bid to aid Pakistan with 742 million dollars, United States Secretary of State John Kerry has told US lawmakers that the Obama administration was helping Afghanistan and Pakistan fight terrorism. Kerry said that he is helping Afghanistan and Pakistan to counter violent extremism, deepening strategic dialogue with India, supporting democratic gains in Sri Lanka and Burma and encouraging the peaceful resolution of competing maritime claims in the South China Sea. In his testimony before the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Kerry said the State Department has requested 742 million dollars in aid to Pakistan to support its citizens as they seek security, build democracy and sustain economic growth and development, reports Dawn. However, US plans to sell F-16 fighter jets to Pakistan was also questioned by the committee. Kerry responded that the issue is complicated and said Pakistan also has been an ally for a long period. Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena has held discussions with the President of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) Takehiko Nakao on the development projects funded by the lender. The ADB Chief, who arrived in Sri Lanka last night on a two-day official visit called on President Sirisena on Tuesday at the Presidential Secretariat, reports Lanka page website. President Sirisena discussed some of the new projects including a Rural Electrification Project of 70 million dollars, an SME Credit Line of 100 million dollars and a Local Government Enhancement Sector Project costing 40 million dollars. The ADB last week expressed its interest to increase its funding portfolio by more than 1.2 billion dollars in the next three years. A new Country Partnership Strategy is also on the cards to cover the period 2017-2021. As of July 2015, ADB has approved a total of 194 loans, to Sri Lanka, both sovereign and non-sovereign, with a cumulative lending of billion dollars. Sirisena thanked the ADB for the assistance provided for development projects in Sri Lanka. Students from University of Juridical Sciences (NUJS), Kolkata and Ashoka University, Delhi emerged winners after battling it out with ten teams from across India at the GREAT Debate Finals today. The four students Archit Krishna, Yashvi Ganeriwal from NUJS and Aditya Khemka, Isherjeet Singh from Ashoka University win themselves the GREAT prize of a week-long study tour in the UK which includes visits to historical sites, academic institutions and cultural events, as well as interaction with students in the UK. GREAT Debate Competition celebrates India and the UK's traditional interest in vibrant discussion and debate. The competition organised by the British High Commission is the biggest this time around with participation from ten cities across India. Students from over 600 universities and colleges participated in the regional editions. British Acting High Commissioner to India, Dr Alexander Evans said,"The British High Commission has immense pleasure in organising the GREAT Debate Competition. This gives us an opportunity to celebrate the UK and India's shared tradition of lively, reasoned debate and our close educational ties. It also gives us an opportunity to further strengthen our relationship with the universities/colleges across India. In its third year now and in its biggest edition, we took the competition to ten cities across India". Gill Caldicott, Director Operations, British Council India, said, "The British Council is pleased to have partnered with the British High Commission for the GREAT Debate 2015-2016. The initiative aimed at celebrating the rich history of debating in India and facilitated a number of informed discussions amongst the student communities over the past few months. This year's theme reminded us of the 400th death anniversary of eminent playwright and poet, William Shakespeare, which is being celebrated this year across the world. We congratulate the winners and participants of the GREAT Debate and hope that it was a good learning experience for everyone." During the GREAT Debate Finals, a special puppet show - 'All the World is a Stage' about the life and times of Shakespeare was put together by Enactus wing of Sri Ram College of Commerce. The play becomes a part of the Shakespeare Lives campaign which celebrates Shakespeare's life and work to mark his 400th death anniversary this year. British Council, the Chevening Scholarships programme, Virgin Atlantic, Premier Explore and Luxury Hotels Group are partnering with the British High Commission to organise the GREAT Debate 2015. New Zealand Prime Minister John Phillip Key,who is on a two-day official visit to Sri Lanka, today described the island nation as the 'Shining Light of Asian Region' . Array Key said that said there are enormous opportunities in Sri Lanka for New Zealand entrepreneurs and investors, reports Lanka Page Website. Array Prime Minister Key at the bilateral discussions with Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena at the Presidential Secretariat said that agricultural nations New Zealand and Sri Lanka could enhance cooperation in this field. Array Key added that his country would assist the dairy sector in Sri Lanka and said a Dairy Production Institution will be set up in Sri Lanka and that would help in transfer of technology and ideas to the farmers. Array Key further thanked President Sirisena for the gift of a second baby elephant to New Zealand and said the first baby elephant gifted by Sri Lanka is now a major attraction for children visiting the zoological park. Mobile app for transportation, Ola has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Government of Uttar Pradesh in order to generate entrepreneurship opportunities along with skill development for 50,000 men and women across the next five years. Ola will also work with the state government to introduce innovative and customised mobility solutions like Ola Auto, Ola Share and Ola Shuttle across the state in the coming months. By bringing more transportation solutions onto its app using technology, Ola is looking to serve citizens across Uttar Pradesh, giving them instant access to reliable and convenient mobility. "The state of Uttar Pradesh is growing as an economic centre for the country faster than ever before. The compounded annual growth rate of UP in the last three years has been higher than the national growth rate. Technology and skilling are two major areas we would like to focus on to further accelerate the impact on the state's economy," said Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav, who was present at the signing of MoU. "Ola's commitment to building mobility for citizens by using cutting edge mobile technology and by enabling entrepreneurship and skilling will be invaluable. We are extremely delighted to bring them onboard as part of this MoU to skill and create opportunities for over 50,000 youth in the state of Uttar Pradesh," added Akhilesh Yadav. Pranay Jivrajka, Chief Operating Officer at Ola said, "We are proud to partner with the Uttar Pradesh Government. We aim to create more than 50,000 employment and entrepreneurial opportunities in the state by investing in skill development of youth." "We are bullish about Uttar Pradesh and will work with the state towards further improving access to mobility in its cities by bringing on-board innovative transportation use cases like Ola Auto, Ola Share, Ola Shuttle and more to complement the existing transportation infrastructure in Uttar Pradesh," added Pranay. Ola was introduced in Uttar Pradesh in early 2014 and has redefined personal transportation in the state by being the first ever on-demand cab booking app. It took over the local transportation space with presence across nine major cities like Lucknow, Kanpur, Agra, Meerut, Aligarh, Allahabad, Saharanpur, Varanasi and Mathura. Maner (Bihar), Feb. 24 (ANI): In her marital home in Maner block, Patna district, Gita Devi had constructed a toilet utilising funds made available under the Government of India programme, Total Sanitation Campaign (TSC), that had begun in 1999 . The campaign was the first step towards a community-led, people-centered, demand-driven approach to rural sanitation. One of the main objectives of the programme was the elimination of open defecation to minimise risk of contamination of drinking water sources and food. Despite having the facility of a toilet at home, all the members of the family including Gita continued to defecate in the open. The toilet would be opened up like a showpiece during special occasions such as marriages, festivals or for guests. It was another matter that family members were prone to falling sick often especially during summer and rainy months, but somehow the correlation between the practice of open defecation and recurring illness - was not made. Years later in 2011 a programme called "Gram Varta" began as a pilot in Maner block. Literally meaning Village Dialogue, this was an intervention by the Government of Bihar, implemented under the Sector Wide Approach to Strengthening Health (SWASTH) programme with support from DFID. The programme uses the platform of women's SHGs to conduct a series of meetings with village women- a 20- meeting cycle termed as PLA (Participatory Action and Learning). The SHG movement in Bihar has been a widespread one, facilitated by established organisations and networks such as Women's Development Corporation (WDC), the Bihar Rural Livelihoods Project (BRLP) or Jeevilka and Mahila Samakhya - providing a viable forum for women's collectives to engage with initiatives for their overall socio- economic empowerment. The meetings of the PLA cycle use engaging and interactive methods such as role play and story-telling to facilitate participatory group discussions and decision-making. These are aimed at improving capacities of individuals, families and communities to provide appropriate care for pregnant women, mothers, and newborns. The focus is on behavior change and demand generation for improved services related to Health, Nutrition and Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH). Messages are simple, acceptable, and consistent across various mediums including those provided by frontline health functionaries - Anganwadi workers and ASHAs working with the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS). Gita who participated in Gram Varta meetings related to sanitation was in for a shock. The 16th Meeting in the PLA cycle was termed "Mapping of Open Defecation Sites" involved Social Mapping as an activity. A group of women gathered at a large open area in the village, bringing with them bright dry colours used for making a traditional rangoli. This however was a rangoli with a difference. The women first drew a wide circle with white powder to show village Shame Walk boundaries. The colour red depicted houses, green indicated fields and the colour yellow used to show where faeces lay in the open. It was a powerful visual that left everyone aghast - the yellow was overpowering and this could only mean that the faeces were lying all around in the village! The mapping exercise also showed using a mix of yellow and red - the few households in the village having toilets. If the 16th Meeting blew the lid of the prevalence and sites of OD in the village, the 17th Meeting took the message further. The activity undertaken was "Sharam Yatra (Shame Walk)" in which women were asked to walk to the area commonly used for defecation. Averting their eyes and covering their noses- the women gingerly walked to the spot. It was obvious that they were repulsed but what added to their discomfiture was the painful realisation that each one of them was responsible for the ghastly sight, the foul smell, they were witnessing. Array The Yatra culminated at the spot where faeces were rampant. The women used a string to depict a housefly and showed how the fly that sits on the faeces also sits on exposed food items. The complete cycle beginning with the practice of open defecation to the stage where one unknowingly consumes one's faeces - was brought alive through in the 17th Meeting aptly called, "Understanding the Transmission Cycle from Faeces to Food". The activity filled Gita with revulsion but also a resolve to change her own situation. She shared her new-found knowledge with her family and made a spirited attempt to enable them to change behavior patterns from open defecation to toilet usage. Gita demonstrated the essence of the PLA cycle - the crux of the Gram Varta intervention and showed how it works. Array Activities in the PLA cycle are easily integrated in the SHG savings and loan programme thus adding the dimension of improved critical social indicators to its already existing one of economic empowerment of women. The intervention requires no infrastructure, nor are there costs to be paid out, beyond what is incurred in training and technical expertise. Further, Gram Varta effectively complements the work of ICDS by increasing the demand for and utilisation of services by women and community at large. The massive expansion of SHG's under The Charkha Development Communication Network feels that the Rural Livelihood Mission provides a ready opportunity to empower communities to seek better health and nutrition outcomes at scale and at a substantially low cost. Array The views expressed in the article are of Ms. Sujata Raghavan. Bharatiya Janata Party President Amit Shah on Wednesday asked Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi to clarify whether he supports anti- slogans in name of freedom of speech. Array "There is a debate going in Parliament that whether anti- slogans are freedom of speech or not. I want to ask these parties and the Congress, Congress vice president, if they support raising of anti- slogans in name of freedom of speech? Shah said while addressing a rally in Bahraich. Array Shah further asked that the people who said 'Bharat tere tukre honge', is that freedom of speech or an act of sedition? Array The BJP president added that all parties should make it clear if they support the slogans that were raised inside JNU, if not, then they should condemn it. Array Earlier today, Rahul Gandhi said that he will raise the JNU issue in parliament, but the government will not let him speak as they are scared of what he will say. Array Speaking to the media, Rahul said, "the government said they are open to a discussion but they will not let me speak in the Parliament". Nalini Sriharan, a convict serving life sentence in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case, was on Wednesday granted a day's parole to participate in the last rites of her father, who died at Tirunelvelli. She left the Vellore Central Prison (women's jail) under police escort at 6.50 a.m to attend the last rites of her father, a retired police inspector, in Chennai. Expressing her gratitude to the Tamil Nadu Government and the Prison Department for granting parole, Nalini said, "There was nobody like us who would be behind bars for 25 years. Only Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa is capable of releasing the seven of us, and I am expecting it." Praising Congress president Sonia Gnadhi, she said she would be indebted to her. "We would, however, be equally happy if Rahul Gandhi (Congress vice president) extends his support for our release. He should at least consider it for the sake of my child," Nalini added. Nalini and three others, including her husband Murugan, were sentenced to death in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case. However, her death sentence was commuted to life imprisonment in 2000, while the death sentence of the other three was commuted by the Supreme Court a few years ago, citing inordinate delay in the disposal of their mercy pleas. They have been lodged in the jail for the last 25 years. Rajiv Gandhi and 14 others were killed on May 21, 1991 when a suicide bomber blew her up after touching his feet at an election campaign rally in Sriperumbudur near Chennai. India's new High Commissioner to Pakistan, Gautam Bambawale, called on Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif at the Prime Minister's House today, where he was extended a warm welcome. During their meeting, Sharif said that it has been and will continue to be Pakistan policy to pursue good relations with all of its neighbours, including India, and added that mutual cooperation between the two nations will lead to numerous benefits as also to socio-economic uplift of both countries. The Indian High Commissioner thanked Prime Minister Sharif and expressed the hope that his role would be beneficial in normalisation and strengthening of bilateral relations between the two countries. Australia skipper Steve Smith has been fined 30 per cent of his match fee for breaching Level 1 of the ICC Code of Conduct during the second Test against New Zealand in Christchurch on Tuesday. The player was found to have breached Article 2.1.5 of the ICC Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel, which relates to "showing dissent at an umpire's decision during an international match". On Tuesday, after TV umpire Richard Illingworth had turned down a referral against Kane Williamson, Smith had shown his obvious disappointment at the outcome by questioning on-field umpire Martinez about his decision and that of the TV umpire. Following the conclusion of the match on Wednesday, Smith admitted the offence and accepted the sanction proposed by Chris Broad of the Elite Panel of ICC Match Referees. As such, there was no need for a formal hearing. The charge was levelled by on-field umpires Richard Kettleborough and Ranmore Martinesz, third umpire Richard Illingworth and fourth official Derek Walker. When the whole area is covered with snow, everyone feels like having fun, so did the 'Shivaay' team. Ajay Devgn, who is busy now-a-days shooting for his new movie 'Shivaay,' went behind the camera, shooting the team members having a gala time with the snow all around. The 12-year-old British actress Abigal Eames, who plays Ajay's onscreen daughter, was also seen with the team. The 46-year-old actor took to his Twitter handle to share the video which reads, "And we decide to rock and roll amidst extreme Bulgarian snow. #TeamShivaay #SnowBoarding #SnowMan." With this movie, scheduled to release this Diwali with 'Ae Dil Hai Mushkil,' the ultimate 'Singham' of Bollywood steps in the industry as a director; Sayesha Sehgal, Ali Kazmi and Jabz Farooqi will also appear in the film alongside Ajay Devgn. Expressing concerns over a huge loss of lives and property in Haryana, ASSOCHAM today said Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar should ensure that those who have suffered at the hand of violent agitation should be compensated in a speedy manner to restore confidence in the state. "The Jat agitation seeking OBC reservation has resulted in one of the worst violence in the state, which had been so far been known as peaceful and progressive and had remained a preferred investor destination. While these incidents have shaken India Inc present inside and outside Haryana, immediate succor would partly restore confidence," ASSOCHAM President Sunil Kanoria said in an appeal. While the ASSOCHAM Research Team had done initial estimates of loss to the state's economy and public private property between Rs. 18,000-20,000 crore, the damage could even rise, given an unprecedented level of damage done to cities like Rohtak and Jhajjar, which have suffered maximum of the brunt. The chamber President also urged Home Minister Rajnath Singh to help the state government in providing relief to the people of Haryana. "The Centre should strengthen the state administration by way of finances and logistic support in rebuilding the damaged infrastructure. At the same time, individuals who have suffered losses to their properties should be immediately compensated" added Kanoria. He said a thorough post-mortem of the violent incidents should be done to ensure that never such things are repeated. Besides, complete probe should be initiated to punish those who indulged in loots, arson, rioting and killings of innocent. Hundreds of small shops, malls, factories were burnt besides huge damage to the public property. Thousands of people were left stranded on the highways and are still suffering. No economic development can take place unless lives of people are secure. Thus, immediate confidence building measures have to be implemented. Polling in 528 of the 587 village committees (VC) under the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC) is going on peacefully under tight security. Array The ruling Left parties have been elected unopposed in 59 VCs; so elections would be held on Wednesday for 3,695 seats of 528 VCs. Array All total 8,194 candidates of various and local parties are contesting the elections. Among the aspirants, more than 50 percent are women. Array The ruling Communist Party of India-Marxist led Left Front has put up 3,697 candidates, followed by the Indigenous People's Front of Tripura, a local party, which has 1734 candidates, the Bharatiya Janata Party has 983, the Indigenous Nationalist Party of Tripura 782 and the Congress 601 candidates. Array In all 6,45,840 people, mostly tribals, including 318,909 women, are eligible to cast their votes. Array Around 10,600 personnel of state security forces, including counter insurgency-trained Tripura State Rifles, and over 1000 personnel of central para-military forces would be deployed to ensure security. Array The polling started at 7am and will end at 4pm. Array The block development officers in 58 blocks will act as returning officers for the village committee polls. Array The counting will take place on February 27. The Rajya Sabha witnessed three adjournments today following uproar over Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula's suicide. Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) supremo Mayawati raised this issue as soon as the House met for the day and said the 'Dalit students are targeted'. The other BSP MPs started raising slogans against the BJP-led NDA Government and demanded justice for Vemula's family. CPI (M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury, speaking in the Upper House, said Mayawati wants an answer as to whether the government will include a Dalit person in the Enquiry Committee in Vemula's suicide case. However, the government said it was ready for an immediate discussion followed by a reply by the concerned minister. "We will not respond to things in bits and pieces, there will be a proper discussion," Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said. "Have a discussion right away sir! Who uses a child as a political tool?" asked Union Human Resource and Development (HRD) Minister Smriti Irani. Rohith, who committed suicide last month, was among the five research scholars suspended by the Hyderabad University in August last year over an alleged assault case. The matter took a political turn with allegations that the extreme step taken by Rohith was a result of discrimination against Dalit students at the behest of Union Minister of State for Labour Bandaru Dattatreya, following his letter to the Union HRD Minister, seeking action against their 'anti- acts'. Afghan security forces have killed at least 19 militants in fresh military operations across the war-torn country, the Defence Ministry said on Thursday. According to a statement, the operations began on Wednesday in 18 of 34 Afghan provinces. "In one operation, the Afghan air force struck the enemies' positions, killing five Taliban militants and destroyed two vehicles in Maruf district, southern Kandahar province," Xinhua news agency said, quoting the ministry statement. Ten insurgents, including two foreigners, were killed and nine wounded during a cleanup operation along a highway connecting southern Helmand province with the neighbouring western Nimroz province, the statement said. It said the security forces also found and defused 20 landmines and Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) there. The Afghan army commandos destroyed a militants' bunker and seized arms and ammunition in Maywand district of Kandahar, the statement said. The remaining casualties occurred in separate provinces. The statement did not disclose if security forces suffered any casualties. Also, a security guard was killed and a passerby injured in an IED explosion in Jalalabad. --IANS sakshi/sar/bg (Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Two infants were among the 23 people killed when their Nepal airlines plane -- missing for over four hours -- was discovered crashed in the Himalayas on Wednesday, a minister said. Civil Aviation Minister Ananda Prasad Pokharel confirmed the crash. The Tara Air Viking 9N-AHH Twin Otter took off from Pokhara at 7.47 a.m., deputy director of Pokhara airport Yogendra Kumar told IANS. It was headed to Jomsom town in Mustang district. Located 200 km west of capital Kathmandu, Pokhara is the second largest city of Nepal. It is a popular tourist destination and the kick-off point for climbing expeditions to the 8,091-metre Mt Annapurna. The aircraft, which was added to the Tara Air fleet last September, had 23 occupants -- 20 passengers, among them one Chinese and one Kuwaiti national and two infants, and three crew members. It lost control with the Air Traffic Control minutes later. "The plane has crashed and all its occupants have been killed," said Civil Aviation Minister Pokharel, quoting Nepal Army officials at the crash site in a forest in Soli Ghoptebhir of Myagdi district. Army Spokesperson Brigadier General Tara Bahadur Karki too confirmed that all 23 people aboard the plane were killed in the crash. Karki said a Nepal Army team has reached the crash site and located the wing and tail section of the plane, the Kathmandu Post said. The plane's wreckage was found after four hours of intense search and rescue operation. Eyewitnesses said the debris of the plane was scattered over an area and the aircraft was still burning, the report added. One local said the weather at the site was extremely cold and the area was likely to get rainfall. Police constable Phool Kumar Thapa Magar who was among the first to reach the crash site said it was situated on a very treacherous terrain and the debris of the plane were scattered in an area of some 200 metres. Pilot Roshan Manandhar, during his final conversation with Pokhara Air Traffic Control, mentioned that the flight was normal, said Jasoda Subedi, chief air traffic controller at Pokhara airport, the media report added. "See you back, Ghorepani normal, good day" were the last words from the captain. "The weather at Pokhara and Jomsom is fine today (Wednesday). So we have no clue about what went wrong," said Bhim Raj Rai, media officer at Tara Airlines, soon after the plane was reported missing. But the areas adjoining the suspected crash site were covered in a cloud of dust on Tuesday following dry landslides in Mt Annapurna South base since Monday night. The expected flying time for the plane from Pokhara to Jomsom town is approximately 20 minutes. Over 100 people have died in plane crashes in the Himalayan nation in the past five years. The last crash was on February 16, 2014, when a Nepal Airlines Twin Otter crashed in Masinelek, Argakhanchi, killing 18 people. At least 15 people were killed when an Agni Air plane carrying Indian pilgrims crashed on May 14, 2012, near the treacherous high-altitude airport of Jomsom in northern Nepal, while six made a miraculous escape, the Kathmandu post said. (Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) All 23 people on board a Nepali airliner were on Wednesday killed when it crashed in the mountains of western Nepal early in the morning, officials here said. The Tara Air Viking 9N-AHH Twin Otter had taken off from the western Nepali tourist resort of Pokhara at 7.47 a.m. for Jomsom from where trekkers usually commence their hike. Deputy director of Pokhara airport Yogendra Kumar told IANS that the plane, which carried 20 passengers besides a three-member crew, lost contact with the air traffic control (ATC) within minutes of taking off. The passengers included two infants and two foreign nationals, Kumar said. The plane remained missing for nearly four hours after losing contact with the Pokhara ATC and its wreckage was found scattered over a forested mountainside in Soli Ghoptebhir of Myagdi district, Civil Aviation Minister Ananda Prasad Pokhrel told news men in Kathmandu. Citing Nepal Army rescue teams which had reached the crash site, Pokhrel said: "The plane has crashed and all its occupants have been killed." Located 200 km west of capital Kathmandu, Pokhara is the second largest city of Nepal. It is a popular tourist destination and the kick-off point for climbing expeditions to the 8,091-metre Mt Annapurna. Jomsom too is the starting point for many trekkers in the Himalayas. The aircraft was added to the Tara Air fleet last September. Among the occupants were a Chinese national and a Kuwaiti and the others were Nepali nationals, BBC reported. Army spokesperson Brigadier General Tara Bahadur Karki confirmed that all 23 people aboard the plane were killed in the crash. Karki said a Nepal Army team had reached the crash site and located the wing and tail section of the plane, the Kathmandu Post said. The plane's wreckage was found after four hours of intense search and rescue operation. Eyewitnesses said the debris of the plane were scattered over a large area and the aircraft was still burning, the report added. One local said the weather at the site was extremely cold and the area was likely to get rainfall. Police constable Phool Kumar Thapa Magar who was among the first to reach the crash site said it was situated on a very treacherous terrain and the debris of the plane were scattered over an area of some 200 metres. "No one has been found alive," Myagdi district Deputy Superintendent of Police Bishwa Raj Khadka said, adding that it was difficult to identify the bodies due to the raging fire at the site. Two helicopters sent for the rescue bid were unable to land due to dense fog, he added. Roshan Manandhar, the pilot of the ill-fated plane, in his final conversation with Pokhara Air Traffic Control, reported that the flight was normal, said Jasoda Subedi, chief air traffic controller at Pokhara airport, the media report added. "See you back, Ghorepani normal, good day," were the last words from the captain. "The weather at Pokhara and Jomsom is fine today (Wednesday). So we have no clue about what went wrong," said Bhim Raj Rai, media officer at Tara Airlines, soon after the plane was reported missing. But the areas adjoining the suspected crash site were covered in a cloud of dust on Tuesday following dry landslides in Mt Annapurna South base since Monday night. The expected flying time for the plane from Pokhara to Jomsom town is approximately 20 minutes. Over 100 people have died in plane crashes in the Himalayan nation in the past five years. The last crash was on February 16, 2014, when a Nepal Airlines Twin Otter crashed in Masinelek, Argakhanchi, killing 18 people. At least 15 people were killed when an Agni Air plane carrying Indian pilgrims crashed on May 14, 2012, near the treacherous high-altitude airport of Jomsom in northern Nepal, while six made a miraculous escape, the Kathmandu post said. A total of 412 students caught cheating in Class 12 exams were expelled in Bihar on Wednesday and dozens of people who helped them to cheat have been arrested, officials said. "The students were expelled on charge of adopting unfair means," a Bihar School Examination Board official said. The highest number of students caught cheating and expelled was 40 in Sheikhpura district followed by 29 in Jehanabad district and 17 in Rohtas district. The authorities have decided to take tough measures to conduct cheating-free exams. Around 70,000 officials, including teachers and policemen, have been deployed to hold free and fair exams, said Hariharnath Jha, an official of the Bihar School Examination Board. The examination centres would be monitored by CCTV cameras. To curb mass cheating, the authorities have decided to impose a fine of up to Rs.10,000 on students found using unfair means and punish the guardians found helping their children to cheat. Parents, guardians or friends found helping students to cheat would be sent to jail. Nearly 11.60 lakh students appeared for Class 12 exams at 1,109 centres across the state on Wednesday. Students caught cheating would be expelled for three years. Earlier, the board debarred them only for a year, Jha said. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will visit Russia despite the US urging him not to do so, a top government official said on Wednesday. According to Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, Abe's top spokesperson, the prime minister will make an unofficial visit to Russia to discuss a long-standing territorial dispute between Tokyo and Moscow, Xinhua reported. "Prime Minister Abe is planning an unofficial visit to Russia at an appropriate time before Russian President Vladimir Putin visits Japan," Suga told a press briefing. The Russian president is expected to visit Japan at some point later this year. The media quoting diplomatic sources said, however, that US President Barack Obama, in talks on the telephone on February 9, had pressed Abe to refrain from making the trip to Sochi in May, due to the US's stance over Russia's actions in Ukraine and Syria. The sources were also quoted as saying that Washington feels that Tokyo is overly cozying up to Moscow as it seeks to resolve the territorial spat. To this end, Suga said that communications between Japan and its main ally the US would continue as well as its special cooperation, and through the Group of Seven countries' mechanisms, Japan would jointly stand up to the challenges facing the international community. "We will closely cooperate and communicate with the United States and Japan will appropriately respond to challenges facing the international community such as the situation in Ukraine through cooperation with the Group of Seven countries," said Suga. Economic sanctions have been slapped on Russia following incidents pertaining to the Ukraine in 2014, by the US, Japan and other countries, and Russia's membership of the Group of Eight highly industrialised nations. The nations in G8 are France, Germany, Italy, Britain, Japan, the US, Canada, and Russia. Despite imposing sanctions on Russia, which has delayed the process, including hopes for an earlier visit by Putin to Japan, Tokyo has been keen to resolve its territorial dispute with Moscow over islands located north of Hokkaido, despite some angst from the US over Abe's eagerness to woo Putin. The islands in question are Etorofu, Kunashiri, Shikotan and the Habomai rocks, which are believed by Japan to be a part of the Nemuro subprefecture of Hokkaido prefecture and are referred to by Japan as the Northern Territories. Russia, however, maintains that the islands that they refer to as the Southern Kurils are Russian territory and were recaptured by the Soviet Union after World War II. The territorial dispute has prevented both sides from inking a peace treaty after the war. Traffic was restored on Srinagar-Jammu national highway on Wednesday after an attack by militants in Pampore town of south Kashmir forced its closure for four days. Markets remained closed for the fourth day in Pampore, 10 km from Srinagar city, but the traffic was restored through the town. Protests rocked Pampore town for three days after a fierce gunfight between three holed up guerrillas and security forces at the Jammu and Kashmir Entrepreneurship Development Institute (JKEDI). As many as nine people were killed in the 48-hour long gunfight. The victims were a civilian, three army soldiers, two paramilitary troopers, and three guerrillas belonging to Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) outfit, who were citizens of Pakistan. The authorities imposed restrictions on movement of people in Pampore for three days while the gunfight continued, but protestors kept on defying the curbs by pelting stones at police and central police force (CRPF) troopers deployed to keep them away from the site of the gunfight. The authorities in Kashmir Valley have battled a new dimension of separatist violence during the last few months, especially in south Kashmir's Pulwama district. Despite repeated advisories by police on restrictions at the places where the security forces were engaged in the gunfight, people were trying to breach cordons by resorting to heavy stone pelting at the security men to distract and disrupt them. During a gunfight between the holed up militants and security forces in Kakapora area of Pulwama district on February 15, civilians resorted to violence against security personnel. Two civilians, 23-year Shaista and 22-year old Danish, were killed reportedly by stray bullets. Power Minister Piyush Goyal on Wednesday said power distribution companies, now in a state of disarray, can get their financial health back if state governments adopt the scheme approved by the union cabinet. "I am confident that before 2019, every discom (power distribution company) in this country will be making profits," he said at the Power Focus Summit 2016 here. The minister said that as far as discoms were concerned, his bigger thrust was on operational efficiency rather than financial profits. "I believe we cannot burden the people of India with tariff increases indiscriminately." Goyal also said that the government had fixed a target of electrifying 7,000 un-electrified villages by the end of the current fiscal on March 31. "The village electrification target for 2015-16 was 2,800 villages, which I set to 5,800. Now my officials told me they would be able to electrify 7,000 villages by March end. I'm sure we would be able to achieve this target. "The figure, as we speak, of villages that have already been electrified is 5,542, that's one-third of the total. There are another 1,390 villages where electrification work is done, they are under energization," he said. "Officials have themselves fixed their target to electrify 7,000 villages by March end. I'm sure that we would be able to achieve this target." Referring to the Ujwal Discom Assurance Yojana (UDAY), Goyal hoped that more states would join the discoms' debt restructuring scheme. "The agreements signed with the states specify the timelines and the reduction in losses to be achieved. The central government will monitor their work very religiously. I am sure more states including Kerala and Karnataka will join UDAY." Bihar became the sixth state to sign the Uday MoU earlier this week. Days ahead of the presentation of the union budget in parliament, Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi on Wednesday urged for a special package to uplift scheduled castes and tribes and other backward classes in the state. In a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Gogoi sought Rs. 1,000 crore each for these communities in Assam. He said the state government had been implementing various welfare schemes and projects aimed at the well-being of these weaker sections of society, including creation of infrastructure, employment generation, skill development and providing education and health care facilities. The Assam chief minister said more focused attention and interventions were required for all-inclusive development of these people. For this, he added, there was an urgent requirement of additional allocations from the central government. The chief minister said the Centre should provide assistance for setting up separate girls and boys hostel for students of these communities in every district of the state. Gogoi said new streams may be introduced in industrial training institutes in ST/SC/OBC dominated districts of Karbi Anglong, Baksa, Chirang, Udalguri, Dima Hasao, Kokrajhar and Dhemaji for ensuring skill development of the youth of these communities. He also highlighted the need to grant ST status to six communities of Assam, namely Koch Rajbongshi, Tai-Ahom, Chutia, Moran, Motak and Tea and ex-Tea tribes. He mentioned the unanimous resolution passed by the Assam assembly on August 5, 2004, for inclusion of these communities in the list of Scheduled Tribes of Assam. Taiwanese smartphone maker ASUS on Wednesday released a 14-minute short film on YouTube that documents real life experiences of three people in distress who were helped at odd hours by local citizens. The film exhibits how three people -- entangled in various tricky situations in night hours -- used the ASUS' new low-light mode feature available on its smartphones to tackle the problems, the company said in a statement. The film titled "Low Light Heroes," features the real experiences of Pooja Banerjee, Ramesh Narang and Aditya Shah who, when confronted with emergencies in the middle of the night, receive aid from responsible citizens. While Banerjee was helped by an honest cab driver, an auto driver helped Shah reach hospital while he was lying down on the side of the road after meeting with an accident. There was no one in the hospital when a nurse helped Narang's wife while she was having labour pains. "There are inspiring stories about unsung heroes all around us. Yet, most people are unaware about them," Peter Chang, regional head, south Asia, ASUS India, said in a statement. The concept of the film emerged from ASUS' very own "PixelMaster" low-light mode feature which allows the camera to capture sharp images even in low-light conditions. Like the camera mode, the gallant acts of the "Low Light Heroes" only come to light at night, when the rest of the city sleeps. The film can be viewed at this link: https://goo.gl/Qn6dzl The publicist for Brazil's ruling Workers Party and campaign chief for President Dilma Rousseff's re-election campaign is set to be jailed for corruption. Joao Santana gave himself up to police after an order for his arrest was released, Xinhua news agency reported. Santana landed in Sao Paulo on Tuesday from the Dominican Republic, where he had been working on the re-election campaign for President Danilo Medina. Santana has been implicated in the police investigation into the state company Petrobras corruption scandal. Upon arriving in Brazil, Santana and his wife, Monica Moura, were taken in a police plane to the southern city of Curitiba and driven to the judicial centre which has been leading the investigation into Petrobras. On Monday, a Brazilian court issued an arrest warrant against the couple for their presumed part in laundering money through offshore companies in tax havens linked to the Brazilian construction giant, Odebrecht. Brazil's federal police stated they had found documents registering details of Rousseff's campaign expenditures in 2008 and 2012 which showed Santana illegally deposited $3 million in a Swiss bank account. They also alleged that Santana had been bribed in 2014 by Keppel Fels, the Brazil subsidiary of Singapore oil rig builder, Keppel Corp Ltd. The union cabinet on Wednesday approved the provision and operationalisation of a $150 million EXIM Bank credit line for developing Iran's Chabahar Port that India intends to use as a transhipment point for expanding maritime commerce in the region. "Chabahar Port lies outside the Persian Gulf in Iran and will help in expanding maritime commerce in the region," an official statement said after a cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. "India is negotiating this project to facilitate the growing trade and investment with Iran and other countries in the region, notably Afghanistan, and also to provide opportunities to Indian companies to penetrate and enhance their footprint in the region," it added. A memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed for this by Minister for Shipping, Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari and his Iranian counterpart in May last yeard. According to the MoU, India will equip and operate two berths in Chabahar Port Phase-I with capital investment of $85.21 million and annual revenue expenditure of $22.95 million on a 10-year lease. Ownership of equipment will be transferred to Iranian side on completion of the 10-year period or for an extended period, based on mutual agreement. The Iranian side had requested for provision of a credit of $150 million in accordance with the MoU. The operation of the two berths will commence within a period of maximum 18 months after the signing of the contract. The two berths will be operated by the India Ports Global Private Limited, a company promoted by the Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust and Kandla Port Trust - two major ports working under the shipping ministry. The cabinet has now authorised the ministers of finance, external affairs and shipping to approve the final contract with Iran and for resolution of any issue arising in implementation of the project. The cabinet has also authorized the shipping ministry to form a company in Iran for implementing the Chabahar Port Development Project and related activities, according to the official statement. An international conference on disaster mitigation and management in India's northeastern region has called for a special cadre of engineers trained to assess damage as well as an "army" of masons and artisans to deal with post-disaster scenarios. The two-day conference, "When the Mountains Move and the Waters Rise", urged governments, scientists, researchers and civil society groups to break out of their silos, disciplines and departments and develop fresh approaches to disaster scenarios. Organised by the Centre for North East Studies and Policy Research at Jamia Millia Islamia in collaboration with National Institute of Disaster Management (NIDM), the North Eastern Council, the central government , and National Centre for People's Action in Disaster Management(NCPDP), Ahmedabad, the two-day conference that concluded on Wednesday focussed on health and shelter. The conference underlined the lack of a network of specially trained engineers "who can be the first assessors of damage" based on sound engineering and science to provide a rational basis for a just compensation package, according to a statement issued by the organisers. This gap was a crucial part of the situation despite many improvements in preparedness and having several institutions to handle disaster conditions. Another priority was to create communities of trained caregivers who can counsel those suffering the effects of trauma. Institutes like National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences (Nimhans) could take a lead in this sector. "The suddenness of calamities often caught governments unawares. Thus, in terms of post-disaster capacity building, governments and partner groups need to have the curriculum and trainers to launch rapid training programs which will create an army of artisans (masons, carpenters etc.) for rebuilding programmes," the statement said. "Disasters are built into the concept of 'development' although the latter has the potential to increase or minimize risks. Development projects carry with them opportunities and risks," the conference said in its recommendations. Those who participated included technical experts from Nepal and India, especially from the northeast, representatives of the NIDM, National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), state disaster management authorities (SDMAs) of Mizoram and Assam, Andhra Pradesh, as well social scientists and other Himalayan scholars, environmentalists, activists and officials from the UN. There were detailed presentations on risks and risk assessment from Nepal, Meghalaya, the Sunderbans, Gujarat, Uttarkhand and Jammu and Kashmir. Assam's SDMA representative Nandita Hazarika described what she called the state government's innovative approach to floods and earthquakes while Young Mizo Association's Lalswamliana and Hari Kumar of Geo-Hazards sketched the acute pressures on a vulnerable town like Aizawl, capital of Mizoram. According to the recommendations of the conference, while it is not possible to make all infrastructure disaster-free, it is important that every vulnerable human settlement in the northeastern region be assessed with regard to multiple, current risks. This information must be put in the public domain in simple local languages. Governments need to have multi-disciplinary and multi-cultural approaches. Governments, academic institutions, the private sector and civil society organisations need to develop innovative partnerships. Local communities need to acquire the sustained competence to innovate and absorb other forms of knowledge, technologies and practices. The role of communities and independent groups in developing local innovative solutions to specific problems such as health care was emphasized - these include best practices such as the boat clinics on the river Brahmaputra. Traditional ways of habitat planning need to be built into a repository while exploring ways of connecting the best of the vernacular to "modern" processes through participatory methods and recognition of local knowledge, the conference recommended Protocols of government engineering institutions require to incorporate new approaches including those which emphasize vernacular architecture. Psycho-social support at times of disasters should be part of an integrated and inter-sectoral approach, especially with promotion of community capacity building In post-disaster conditions, it has been observed that due to lack of preparedness precious time is lost, resulting in avoidable hardships. For example, communication materials which deal with both pre- and post-disaster scenarios (videos, leaflets in the local languages etc) should be accessible to the public. The progress of shelter and rehabilitation construction should be placed in the public domain, the recommendations said. A coordination centre began operations at Syria's Hmeimim airbase in order to implement the ceasefire, the Russian defence ministry has said. "In accordance with the Russian-US February 22 agreement on the cessation of hostilities in Syria, for the implementation of mechanism to monitor compliance with the ceasefire regime, a coordination centre for reconciliation of the warring parties started operations at the Russian airbase Hmeimim in Syria," Xinhua quoted the ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov as saying on Tuesday. The Syrian airbase was used to deploy Russian air forces since last September when Moscow started airstrikes against terrorist targets in Syria. Konashenkov said that Syrian opposition groups willing to start peace talks may get help from the centre to establish contact with the government. "Russian contact information for hotline connection (primary and backup) was transferred to Americans," the ministry said. The ministry added that the Russian side expected Washington to provide the same data. The US and Russia announced on Monday in a joint statement that any party engaged in conflict in Syria will indicate to Russia or the US their commitment to the ceasefire by no later than 12.00 (Damascus time) on Saturday. Russian President Vladimir Putin called the ceasefire agreement "a real step" toward ending five years of bloodshed in Syria. Amid heated arguments between the opposition and the treasury benches, the Lok Sabha on Wednesday discussed the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) row and the issue of the death of a research scholar in Hyderabad University. Initiating the discussion, the Congress accused the central government of using government machinery for crushing the voices of those who are opposed to the ideology of the BJP and the RSS. But the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) took pot shots at Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi for standing with anti-nationals. "Inside parliament, the ministers of this government take oath of constitution and outside they crush it. Using government machinery they are crushing the voices of those who oppose the ideology of RSS," Congress chief whip Jyotiraditya Scindia told the Lok Sabha. "They targeted Kanhaiya Kumar, the student's union leader just because he was opposed to the ideology of RSS and had defeated an ABVP candidate in JNU election," he added. The Congress MP from Guna in Madhya Pradesh also accused the BJP-led government of creating an atmosphere of intolerance in the country, alleging that efforts were on to crush any opposing point of view. "What we have seen in the last two years is an atmosphere of intolerance in the country. There is every possible attempt to crush opposing viewpoint," Scindia said. Scindia said the government wants a particular thinking to prevail. Scindia demanded action against Human Resources Development Minister Smriti Irani and Labour Minister Bandaru Dattatreya over the suicide of Dalit research scholar Rohith Vemula in Hyderabad university. Participating in the debate BJP member Anurag Thakur accused Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi of standing with anti-nationals and said the Congress party would have to decide either they were with the martyrs of the country or with those who support terrorists like Afzal Guru. "You will have to decide whether you are with those who attacked our parliament or those who protect it? You will have to decide whether you are with ideology of Gandhiji or Maoists," Thakur said. Targeting the Congress and its vice president Rahul Gandhi, Thakur said: "Your leader goes and sympathises with those who were celebrating Afzal Guru as a martyr." Thakur accused the Congress of "standing with those who call Afzal Guru a martyr", and sought to know from Congress president Sonia Gandhi whether Afzal Guru was a terrorist or not. Thakur began by invoking the sacrifices of Captain Pawan Kumar and Lance Naik Hanumanthappa, adding the BJP stood with the soldiers and implemented the long-pending 'One Rank One Pension' (OROP) scheme. "For them (Congress), it is family first, party next and nation last. But for us, it is nation first, party next and self last," he said. Thakur, while quoting a reply of 2014 in parliament by the then union minister of state for home affairs, R. P. N. Singh, termed the Democratic Students Union (DSU) as one of the frontal organisations of Maoists. However, during his entire speech, the BJP leader didn't speak a single word about Rohith Vemula, the research scholar of Hyderabad University who committed suicide alleging harassment. The JNU has been on the boil after a police crackdown on students accused of shouting anti-India slogans, while Hyderabad Central University had erupted in protests against alleged harassment of Dalit students following the suicide on January 17 of Rohith Vemula, who was one of the five suspended for clashing with an Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad leader. Syria on Wednesday condemned the remarks of US Secretary of State John Kerry, who warned that Syria would be hard to be held together if the cessation of hostilities did not succeed, according to state news agency SANA. "Kerry's remarks run counter to the reality and fall in the framework of misleading the public in a bid to hide his country's responsibility for the crimes committed in Syria," the ministry said in a statement. "The US and its allies and regional tools hold all responsibility for the eruption and continuation of the crisis in Syria through supporting terrorism," the ministry added. A day earlier, Kerry said if a political transition to a government to replace the current administration in Syria did not unfold, there would be options, in a reference to an undefined plan B the US has, which could include military action. Moscow said it had no idea what the US' plan B might be. Russia and the United States agreed to enforce a cessation of hostilities starting from February 27. Any party engaged in conflicts in Syria will indicate to Russia or the US their commitment to and acceptance of the terms for the cessation of hostilities by no later than 12.00 Damascus time on February 27, according to a joint statement issued by the US State Department. On Tuesday, the Syrian government and rebel groups accepted a plan for a cessation of hostilities. Syrian President Bashar Assad reassured his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in a phone call Wednesday that his administration will resolve to observe a cessation of hostilities as planned by Russia and the United States, according to SANA. Russia's President Vladimir Putin phoned Assad on Wednesday, in which both leaders discussed the current situation in Syria in light of the agreed upon ceasefire, according to SANA. Both presidents also agreed on the need to continue the war against the terrorist-designated groups, namely the Islamic State and the Al-Qaida-linked Nusra Front, both were excluded from the ceasefire plan as they are designated as terrorist groups by the UN. Donald Trump cemented his frontrunner status in the Republican presidential race with a third consecutive victory in Nevada caucuses as his two major rivals Senators Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio failed to arrest his winning streak. With the real estate mogul with over 42 percent votes leading with double digit margins over Rubio and Cruz, who are fighting for the second place, major news channels were quick to declare him the winner shortly after the polls closed. Significantly, exit polls showed Trump's support across all demographics, virtually paving his way towards party nomination and strengthening as it did his position before March 1 Super Tuesday when 12 states hold nominating contests. Trump has now come in second in Iowa and first in New Hampshire, South Carolina and Nevada. While Texas Senator Cruz managed to push him to the second place in Iowa, establishment favourite Rubio has yet to win a state. Rubio's entire campaign is predicated on other candidates dropping out and Rubio picking up their support, CNN said. But there's no indication that anyone with a substantial base of support will bow out before mid-March, and that may be too late, it said. For Trump, "the outcome in Nevada is another sign of his campaign's durability and the breadth of his appeal," said the New York Times. "He won over independent voters in New Hampshire and evangelicals in South Carolina, and prevailed in Nevada, where Mormon voters and rural activists wield influence," it noted. "This latest triumph may only encourage Mr. Trump in the brash campaign style that has alienated many Republican officials and mainstream voters," the Times said. "The results are likely to reinforce the sense among national Republican leaders that only direct confrontation can block Mr. Trump from claiming the party's nomination, because none of the party's most powerful voting blocs seems likely to thwart him on its own," the Times said. The Washington Post attributed Trump's third straight win in Nevada to "an angry electorate hungry for a political outsider in the White House." (Arun Kumar can be contacted at arun.kumar@ians.in) Amid the protests at the JNU and Jadavpur University, West Bengal Governor K.N. Tripathi on Wednesday warned that higher educational institutions were becoming 'platforms of politics'. Addressing an event here, Tripathi said the freedom of speech and expression was being misused to politically influence the governance of the educational institutions. "Higher institutions are becoming platforms of politics. Generations of unhealthy politics needs to be avoided. Educational institutions have been witnessing political and extraneous influences in the governance of educational institutions. "This is being particularly done in the name of freedom to form associations and freedom of speech and expression, forgetting that these freedoms are subject to reasonable restrictions as provided in the constitution itself," said Tripathi, the ex-offiicio chancellor of various state-run universities in the state. The governor said the "autonomy of a university wasn't unlimited but controlled by statutes". Tripathi's comments come in the wake of the JNU row and the arrest of its student leader Kanhaiya Kumar. Protesting against the government's handling of the issue, a section of Jadavpur University students staged a protest where slogans were raised praising Afzal Guru, hanged for the terror attack on parliament, and seeking independence for Jammu and Kashmir, Manipur and Nagaland. Tripathi's comments were condemned by educationists. "His comments are not that of a governor or a chancellor, rather that of a politician. It is really childish to say that students should refrain from politics. Most of our political leaders came from student politics," said educationist Pabitra Sarkar. Strasbourg, Feb 24 (IANS/AKI) The Italian government abused state secrecy in the CIA's kidnapping of an Egyptian cleric who was spirited to his homeland for interrogation under torture, the European Court of Human rights has ruled. The Strasbourg-based court found Italy guilty of numerous human rights violations and ordered it to pay a total of 115,000 euros compensation to Osama Mustafa Hassan Nasr - better known as Abu Omar - and to his wife Nabila Ghali. The abuses included violating the ban on torture and inhuman or degrading treatment, the right to liberty, the respect for private and family life and the right to an effective remedy, the court ruled on Tuesday. The court also condemned the Italian government for allowing agents involved in the kidnapping to escape with "impunity" and the quashing by Italy's top criminal court of the convictions of five Italian military intelligence agents on state secrecy grounds. Italian authorities "were aware that Abu Omar was a victim of the extraordinary rendition operation" involving his 2003 abduction in the northern city of Milan, the court concluded. Nasr's lawyer, Carmelo Scambia, expressed bitterness at the low level of damages but welcomed the court's affirmation of "certain principles". "The European Court's ruling is harsh," commented centre-left lawmaker Rosa Calipari, a member of the Italian parliament's national security commission. "It should make us reflect on the use of state secrecy, which is a legitimate instrument but a delicate one," Calipari added. Nasr was kidnapped by CIA operatives in 2003 on a street in Milan and flown to a US air force base in Germany and then on to Egypt under the CIA's extraordinary rendition programme. He was released from prison in 2007 but cannot leave Egypt. His lawyers say he was ill-treated and tortured for months before being released without charge. Italy has denied involvement in the rendition of Nasr and never pursued the extradition of 26 Americans, including 22 CIA agents, convicted in absentia over the case in 2009 by an Italian court, which ordered the US nationals to pay a million euros to Nasr and 500,000 euros to his wife. A Milan court in 2013 convicted Nasr in absentia and sentenced him to six years in jail for membership of a terrorist organisation. He had been granted political asylum by Italy in 2001. The CIA's controversial extraordinary rendition programme was set up to capture and question Islamist terror suspects in the wake of Al Qaeda's September 2001 attacks on the US. The European Court ruled in three previous rendition cases involving detention sites in Macedonia and Poland that the treatment of "high-value" detainees was torture. Representatives of various organisations of farmers on Wednesday staged a protest here against what they termed anti-agriculture policies of the central government, and demanded a reasonable hike in Minimum Support Price (MSP) of crops. "We want the Modi government to implement the recommendations made in the Swaminathan Committee report. A farmer must get the double of the cost incurred in cultivation," said social and agricultrual activist Medha Patkar, addressing a farmers' gathering at Jantar Mantar. "The MSPs of many crops and farm yields are abysmally low and the government needs to increase this substantially. A farmer in Madhya Pradesh gets Rs.6 for papaya which is sold by a retail vendor in metro cities for Rs.60 to 80 per piece. The money is going in pockets of middlemen and hoarders," she added. "Government must fix Rs.2,200 per quintal of wheat and Rs.2,000 per quintal of jowar as MSP. We will continue with the protest till it is done," said Patkar, the Narmada Bachao Andolan and Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sanghathan convener. "We along with 300 farmer bodies had organised the protest which was attended by peasantry of 14 states," Madhuraesh Kumar of National Alliance for Peoples' Movement told IANS. Internet giant Google and global community for tech entrepreneurs TechHub on Wednesday announced their global partnership that will benefit startups from India for the first time. The partnership with Google for Entrepreneurs will bring more opportunities to TechHub's 700-plus tech startups around the world including India, said a statement released here. Google supports TechHub's work to help hundreds of tech companies scale up their businesses. "In Bengaluru, we see a huge variety of startups creating innovative products, and we want to help them succeed both in India and all around the world. TechHub and Google for Entrepreneurs is a strong partnership that will empower Indian entrepreneurs to go global from the very beginning," Elizabeth Varley, TechHub's global co-founder and CEO, said in a statement. Now TechHub members in Bengaluru and other TechHub locations in Riga, Bucharest, Madrid, Warsaw and London will have access to programmes and assistance from Google. "TechHub's 'community first' values and their focus on supporting founders and startups with education and programs align perfectly with the goals of Google for Entrepreneurs," added David Grunwald, Google for Entrepreneurs' head of EMEA Partnerships. TechHub members hail from over 60 countries and every member can access Google in six international cities. TechHub membership gives each entrepreneur access to every TechHub in the world and all the programmes and opportunities available there. TechHub's programme helped startups face the challenges of building and growing a global tech company, the statement said. Haryana remained calm on Wednesday, with people pouring out of their homes in violence-hit districts and supplies of essential commodities restored. Shops and business establishments, which survived the wrath of the Jat community rioters in the last few days, opened in Rohtak, Bhiwani, Jind, Jhajjar, Sonipat, Hisar, Panipat and other districts. Traders, businessmen, companies and government officials started assessing the damage to immovable and movable property during the peak of the violence in the state. Several government buildings, private shops, malls, educational institutions, hospitals and showrooms were set on fire by the hooligans. Hundreds of shops were looted and set on fire. Experts have pegged the losses in Haryana due to the agitation at around Rs.20,000 crore. Soldiers and paramilitary forces continued to be deployed in the worst affected areas. Traffic was restored on all highways and roads and railway tracks were being repaired to restore railway traffic. The Jat community is demanding reservation in government jobs and educational institutions. Political developments in the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) shifted to Delhi where all its Haryana MPs were called to meet Parliamentary Affairs Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu. Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar and some other ministers and legislators are also camping in Delhi. Non-Jat leaders within the BJP are upset with the party leadership for bowing before the demands of the Jat community which brazenly resorted to violence. The Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) said on Wednesday that the BJP government in the state and Congress leaders were responsible for the mindless violence during the Jat agitation. "A case should be registered against Bhupinder Singh Hooda as his close aide Varinder Singh was caught on audio tape trying to instigate violence," a party leader said. Himachal Pradesh Health Minister Kaul Singh on Wednesday said the two new government medical colleges in Chamba and Nahan towns may start functioning from this academic session in July. "The state is in touch with the Medical Council of India. The buildings for both the medical colleges have been finalised. The classes may begin from this session," the minister told reporters here. Regarding the third medical college at Hamirpur, he said it might take some time. He said there is a shortage of 600 doctors in the state and to overcome that the government wanted to have more medical colleges. "Out of 58 medical colleges sanctioned by the government of India, Himachal Pradesh is lucky enough to get three in one go. Even in case of the ESI Medical College (near Mandi town) that was constructed at a cost of Rs.600 crores by the central government, our talks are in final stage to take it over," he added. Kaul Singh said the government has decided that 58 life-saving medicines would be given free of cost to people in the government hospitals. Police on Wednesday registered a case of sedition and criminal conspiracy against Virender Singh, a close aide of former Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, on charges of inciting violence during the Jat agitation, officials said. A Khap leader, Man Singh Dalal, who represents the Dalal Khap in Haryana, was also named in the FIR (first information report) registered at the Civil Lines police station in Rohtak town, 75 km from Delhi. Both have been booked for sedition, trying to incite violence and criminal conspiracy. An audio tape of a telephone conversation, allegedly between Virender Singh and Dalal, surfaced recently in which Virender Singh is purportedly telling Dalal to activate youths in Sirsa district to take part in the Jat reservation agitation. Virender Singh was the political advisor to Hooda for nearly 10 years (2005-14) when the latter was Haryana's chief minister. He is considered very close to Hooda. The Congress, after the audio clip surfaced, issued a notice to Virender Singh seeking his explanation. The notice was issued by Haryana Congress president Ashok Tanwar. Virender Singh has claimed the tape was "doctored" and demanded that the whole conversation be brought out in the public. It is not known who had ordered and taped the conversation illegally. Nineteen people were killed and nearly 200 injured in the Jat agitation claiming job quotas. Property worth crores of rupees was destroyed. The violence affected 10 of Haryana's 21 districts. The Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) said on Wednesday that the BJP government in the state and Congress leaders were responsible for the violence. Haryana Agriculture Minister O.P. Dhankar blamed Hooda for the violence during the agitation. "People of the state will hardly forgive such people. There is a deep conspiracy behind this movement," Dhankar said. Hooda, who was shooed away from Rohtak town by locals and traders and even shoes were hurled at him on Tuesday, has not said anything on the audio clip of his close aide. "I had come to Rohtak to share their pain and grief and the anger shown by the people was natural. It is not wrong to show anger and to express their feelings. I accept the anger of the residents with humility," Hooda said in a statement. Rohtak bore the brunt of the Jat violence with hundreds of shops and other establishments, government and private buildings and educational institutions and private hospitals set on fire. Shops were looted. Haryana Food and Supplies Minister Karan Dev Kamboj said the properties of those who indulged in unlawful acts such as arson and vandalism should be attached to compensate for the damage caused to public and private properties. "Persons responsible for the heavy losses that have been incurred in the state should be identified and strict action be taken against them," he said. Describing the recent agitation as a "sponsored movement", the minister said: "By giving their full support and assistance to it, the opposition parties, including the Congress, created problems for the people. The government is identifying those who had created strife among the people and would not spare them." Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti (PAAS) convenor Hardik Patel's father Bharat Patel on Wednesday said he too was tempted with a monetary offer last year when the quota stir by the Patels had just begun. His revelation comes in the wake of Hardik Patel's statement that he was offered Rs.1,200 crore by an IAS officer to call off his agitation. According to Bharat Patel, he was offered Rs.15 crore to Rs.20 crore to stop his son from attending the 'Mahakranti Rally' in Ahmedabad on August 26, 2015. Hardik Patel's agitation for quota for the Patels in government jobs and educational institutions made a big impact with this rally. Speaking at a rally in Jam Jodhpur in Saurashtra to mark the beginning of the Patidaar Ekta Yatra across the Saurashtra region on Wednesday, Bharat Patel claimed: "They said take this money and just see that your son does not attend the rally." "I spoke to my son Hardik and he also said we do not want such money," he told a massive gathering of the Patels. He, however, did not reveal who made this offer to him. The Patels in Saurashtra region on Wednesday kick-off the 'Patidar Ekta Yatra', which will travel across Saurashtra region in the coming month to press their demand for reservation. Officially though, the rally has been dubbed as an attempt to spread awareness about "saving the girl child" and "favouring de-addiction". Bharat Patel's claim comes less than a month after Hardik wrote a letter claiming that he was offered Rs.1,200 crore by a senior bureaucrat posted with the Gujarat government and considered close to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP president Amit Shah to give up his agitation in the state. Meanwhile, Hardik Patel on Wednesday again confirmed that he held discussions with BJP parliamentarian Vitthal Radadiya on a 35-point agenda about reservation but reiterated that he would not succumb to any compromise with the government. "We are willing to talk on any topic as long as it is in the interest of our community," Hardik Patel told the media at Visnagar in Mehsana district. He was brought to Visnagar for a court hearing there, before he was taken back to the Lajpore jail in Surat. In a related development, as many as 60 members of the Patel community were booked by Ahmedabad police for allegedly resorting to violence in the city late on Tuesday night. A mob, allegedly comprising of Patels, resorted to violence and damaged public transport buses and BRTS corridor in support of their agitation. India has made the right move to allow the Pathankot terror attack probe team's visit, said a Pakistani daily on Wednesday. An editorial "Pathankot developments" in the Daily Times said that Adviser to Prime Minister (PM) on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz has elucidated on the progress of investigations into the Pathankot attack, which took place on the Indian airbase, on January 2, leaving seven dead and several injured. After a First Investigation Report (FIR) was registered on Friday by Punjab police's counter- department, Indian Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar had said that it was an insufficient step and that Pakistan should take legal action to India's satisfaction. Aziz asserted that the FIR could not have been taken on the basis of inadequate evidence, especially considering it is a cross-border terrorist attack, which is why it had been delayed. He said that the FIR had enabled Pakistan to visit the Pathankot airbase. "Contrary to the unequivocal refusal by the Indian defence minister earlier to allow Pakistan's Special Investigation Team (SIT) to visit the airbase, Indian authorities have now agreed to the visit. Aziz stated that the visit to the crime scene would only aid the expeditious investigation," said the daily. Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) group has been named by India as the principal instigator of the attack and its chief, Masood Azhar, the mastermind. Aziz confirmed that "Azhar and a few other JeM operatives were under 'protective custody' and the moment evidence became available action would be taken against them". He also revealed that one of the mobile numbers provided by India had been found to be associated to JeM's headquarters, which have been sealed by the authorities. The editorial noted that before the Pathankot attack, "there was a clear thawing of tensions between Pakistan and India, made possible by the growing amity of the premiers". "However, unfortunately, it appears from statements by officials that India may well be going back to relying on suspicions as it did after the Mumbai attacks, which resulted in an impasse. "While India has made the right move to allow the SIT's visit, there is a need for mutual cognisance that to overcome the hurdles placed in the way to a diplomatic endeavour by the spoilers, there is a need for more definitive action," it added. The daily observed that the "onus is on Pakistan to ensure that investigations are taken to their logical end and not bogged down by political to and fro in order to maintain the possibility of dialogue". "Indian authorities too need to tread with caution, realising that, ultimately, a solution can only come from dialogue, which will not be effective if the political atmosphere is soured by the disobliging demeanour of any party." An Indian-origin man was arrested in Canada's Ontario province in connection with a gun-point threatening incident, the media reported. Parmpal Gill, 32, was arrested on Monday after he allegedly got involved in a dispute with a person in Brampton city during which he brandished a firearm and threatened him, voiceonline.com reported on Tuesday. He has been charged with possession of a weapon for a purpose, dangerous to public peace and uttering a threat to cause death or bodily harm. In an another setback to the YSR Congress Party in Andhra Pradesh, one more legislator has switched loyalties to the ruling Telugu Desam Party (TDP). Jayaramulu, a member of the assembly from Budvel in Kadapa district, met Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu here on Wednesday and formally joined the TDP. The legislator told reporters that he was impressed by the development works undertaken by the TDP-led government. He said nobody influenced him to join the TDP. The development comes two days after four MLAs and an MLC of the only opposition party in the state decided to join the ruling party. The lawmakers said they joined the TDP for the development of their respective constituencies and also the state. YSRCP chief Y.S. Jaganmoahn Reddy accused Naidu of engineering defections and said it would prove costly for the TDP leader. Jagan said Naidu had been engineering defections from the very beginning of his political career and adopting unethical methods to lure opposition party legislators. He said that within a year, TDP MLAs and leaders will make a beeline to join the YSRCP as they will not be able to face the people due to Naidu's anti-people policies. Building on the structure of Rudyard Kipling's timeless classic and the power of the 1967 animation film, director Jon Favreau has given a new vision to "The Jungle Book" backed by cutting-edge technology. The director says he has blended technology with the old story to honour the original and at the same time appeal to new audiences with his animation offering. The director also asserted that with the film, which will come out in Indian theatres on April 8, a week before it releases in the US, he has tried to push the envelope by embracing new technology to create a virtual world. Favreau, who began his career in the industry as an actor in "Rudy", sat down to explain his vision at Hollywood's The El Capitan Theatre here with selected mediapersons from all across the world. Why remake a classic? Why give it a technological twist? These are the questions that Favreau set out to answer around Disney's film, which brings a story straight from the enchanting forests of India and presents a modern take on Kipling's classic, originally published in 1894. Favreau said that he was motivated by Walt Disney Studios chairman Alan Horn to take the technological route for the film. "The idea of going out to the jungle and shooting this, it just felt like it wouldn't have the magic that the 1967 film had had. There was a dreamlike quality to it. There was a surreal quality to it. It was a high-water mark for character animation and to me, that's what I remember about it. And so I wanted to make sure we preserved that. "But what Horn said was: look at the technology. Look at 'Life of Pi', 'Avatar'. Why not use the technology to create a whole world that transports you? Let's really embrace this new technology and see what we can do if we push its limit." The live-action epic adventure showcases Mowgli's journey of self-discovery when he's forced to abandon his home in the forest. And Neel Sethi, who traces his roots to India and plays Mowgli, is only just being in an otherwise animation film. The film is supported by a stellar voice-over cast including Bill Murray, Ben Kingsley, Idris Elba, Lupita Nyong'o, Scarlett Johansson and Christopher Walken. Favreau also presented a glimpse of his vision by screening portions of the film. The director explained that by re-imagining the film "you are serving many masters...you are trying to honour the memory, preconceived memory of people who grew up with it, but you are also trying to make a movie that appeals to the full audience -- that is ethically what we set out to do". "We are trying to pay tribute, and we can also see that with the visual effects, we are pushing the technology. We are mixing the old story with cutting edge technology," he added. So, how was the film made? "We went back to the structure of it and saw what Kipling did because he offered a lot. We kind of picked between the two. The story structure of the 1967 film was good and offered a lot; so I stuck to it as much as I could. What I have tried to do is to focus on the images that I remember from it before going back to look at it again," he said. He is brimming with joy after using "level of artistry and technology" to narrate a story with "humour and emotion, and showing nature, animals, and getting into that real deep mythic imagery that I think always marries well with technology, and always has." (The writer's trip is at the invitation of Disney. Sugandha Rawal can be contacted at sugandha.r@ians.in) The family of Dalit student Rohith Vemula, who committed suicide in Hyderabad, on Wednesday urged Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal to provide a government job to his younger brother. "Rohith's mother requested the chief minister to provide a government job to the brother as the family does not have any source of income," a Delhi government official said. "Kejriwal assured the family their demand will be sympathetically considered," the official told IANS. The Delhi cabinet is likely to take a decision on the issue later Wednesday. Vemula committed suicide on January 17 after he four other Dalit students were suspended in Hyderabad University following an alleged clash with a leader of the ABVP, the student wing of the RSS. The suicide triggered nationwide protests. Vemula's family refused to accept compensation offered by the government. Kerala Governor P. Sathasivam on Wednesday held meetings with people from various walks of life with regards to Swachh Bharat Mission activities in the state. He invited leaders from private and public entities and also religious leaders, who extended full support for the programme. Praising the state where 97 percent households have toilets, Sathasivam pointed out that even though Kerala could begin many innovative initiatives under solid and liquid waste management sector, its achievements were yet to show an impact at the grass-roots level. He urged the business community to come up with financial and other support for constructing more toilet in the state in areas like Attappady, Kuttanada, coastal belt and scheduled tribes and schedule castes hamlets, which demanded higher investment. Sathasivam also asked the leaders in business and religious fields to put forth their suggestions and mode of involvement in writing to the state government agencies. An aircraft with 20 passengers, among them two children and two foreigners, and three crew members on board which went missing in Nepal on Wednesday morning may have crashed, media reported. The plane took off from Pokhara at 7.47 a.m., deputy director of Pokhara airport Yogendra Kumar told IANS. Located 200 km west of capital Kathmandu, Pokhara is the second largest city of Nepal. It is a popular tourist destination and the kick-off point for climbing expeditions to the 8,091-metre Mt Annapurna. The Tara Air Viking 9N-AHH Twin Otter was headed to Jomsom town in Mustang district. It lost contact with the Air Traffic Control minutes later and reportedly crashed in Myagdi district in western Nepal, the Himalayan Times reported. Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Mahendra Pokharel of Pokhara-based Gandaki zonal police office said that the suspected crash site lies in Rupse Chhahari in Myagdi district, the report said. "The weather at Pokhara and Jomsom is fine today (Wednesday). So we have no clue about what went wrong," said Bhim Raj Rai, media officer at Tara Airlines. But the areas adjoining the suspected crash site were covered in a cloud of dust on Tuesday following dry landslides in Mt Annapurna South base since Monday night. Tara Air has released the list of passengers on board that includes one Chinese and one Kuwaiti national and two children. The expected flying time for the plane from Pokhara to Jomsom town is approximately 20 minutes. "See you again, good day" were the last words from the plane's senior captain Roshan Manandhar. Mustang district is located beyond the Himalayas and any flight has to cross difficult geographical terrain and deep rocky cliffs. Myagdi district police chief Bishowraj Khadka said locals informed the police about huge flames in Rupse area and that they were headed to it, the Kathmandu Post reported. The plane could have crashed in Rupse in Myagdi district in northern Nepal, the report added. A police team has been sent to the border of Myagdi and Mustang districts after locals reported a fire in the area. Three helicopters also have been sent for rescue, said Hari Mainali, chief district officer of Kaski district. Myagdi district is located between Kaski and Mustang districts. However, there is no official confirmation so far about the crash but rescue teams have yet to reach the possible crash site, said Narendra Singh, DIG of Nepal Police. The aircraft was added to the Tara Air fleet last September. (Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A Nepal airlines plane with 23 people -- 20 passengers and three crew members -- that went missing on Wednesday morning has crashed and all people on board have been killed, said Civil Aviation Minister Ananda Prasad Pokharel. The minister quoted Nepal Army officials at the crash site in Myagdi district as confirming the crash. "The plane has crashed and all its occupants have been killed," the minister said. The Tara Air Viking 9N-AHH Twin Otter took off from Pokhara at 7.47 a.m., said deputy director of Pokhara airport Yogendra Kumar. It was headed to Jomsom town in Mustang district. "The weather at Pokhara and Jomsom is fine today (Wednesday). So we have no clue about what went wrong," said Bhim Raj Rai, media officer at Tara Airlines. But the areas adjoining the suspected crash site were covered in a cloud of dust on Tuesday following dry landslides in Mt Annapurna South base since Monday night. Tara Air has released the list of passengers on board that includes one Chinese and one Kuwaiti national and two children. The expected flying time for the plane from Pokhara to Jomsom town is approximately 20 minutes. "See you again, good day" were the last words from the plane's senior captain Roshan Manandhar. Mustang district is located beyond the Himalayas and any flight has to cross difficult geographical terrain and deep rocky cliffs. Myagdi district police chief Bishowraj Khadka said locals informed the police about huge flames in Rupse area and that they were headed to it, the Kathmandu Post reported. A police team has been sent to the border of Myagdi and Mustang districts after locals reported a fire in the area. Three helicopters also have been sent for rescue, said Hari Mainali, chief district officer of Kaski district. Myagdi district is located between Kaski and Mustang districts. The aircraft was added to the Tara Air fleet last September. Bacteria in the gut of disease-bearing insects -- including the mosquito which carries the Zika virus -- can be used as a Trojan horse to help control the insects' population, reveals a new research. "Our method could also help in the fight against the Zika virus, as the Aedes mosquito that bears the virus has bacteria that would be suitable," said Paul Dyson, professor at Swansea University in Wales in Britain. It can help us to tackle some of the insects and crop pests that have such a devastating impact on human health and the food chain, he added. The research showed decline in fertility up to 100 percent and an increase of 60 percent in the mortality rate of larvae, amongst the insects studied. Researchers used a technique, known as symbiont-mediated RNAi, that uses friendly (symbiotic) bacteria to inhabit an insect's gut as a Trojan horse to deliver a "switch off" command to chosen target insect genes. "This technology allows us to target insects much more effectively than conventional pesticides, and without their side effects. Using bacteria as a Trojan horse gets round some of the problems in delivering RNAi to the insect," Dyson noted. The study revealed that the RNAi can be targeted specifically at the species in question, and does not harm other insects, such as bees and other pollinators. It also does not carry the risk of environmental damage and harm to human health and insects do not acquire resistance to it in the way that they do to chemical pesticides. The symbiotic bacteria are programmed to manufacture the RNAi molecules inside the insect's body, for as long as needed, and they do this without being detected by the insect's immune system. The bacteria are specific to that particular insect and cannot live outside it. The study, published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B, represents a significant advance in the ability to deliver RNAi, potentially to a large range of non-model insects, the researchers said adding that the technique would be transferable to many insect species, including the Aedes mosquitoes, which carry the Zika virus. The faction led by Congress dissident and Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Kalikho Pul on Wednesday said nine more legislators loyal to his predecessor Nabam Tuki had extended unconditional support to Pul. "Nine more (Congress) legislators once loyal to (former chief minister Nabam) Tuki have extended unconditional support as they have reposed full faith in the leadership of Pul," Congress legislator Pasang Dorjee Sona told IANS. With nine Tuki loyalists jumping the fence, Pul now has the support of 41 legislators - 29 Congress legislators, 11 BJP and two Independents - in the 60-member assembly. "They have extended their unconditional support to the chief minister realising the interests of their electorates and development in their respective constituencies," Pasang said. Governor J.P. Rajkhowa summoned the assembly session on February 25 and 27 after Pul was sworn in as chief minister on February 19 after the central government recommended that President's Rule be lifted from the state. Pul will try to prove his majority in the assembly on Thursday after Governor Rajkhowa's address to the members of the house and the election of the new assembly speaker. The speaker's election was necessitated after 21 legislators led by Pul impeached the then speaker Nabam Rebia during a assembly session at a makeshift venue here and elected Pul as the new leader of the house. Rajkhowa advanced the sixth session of the assembly from January 14 to December 16 and 17 last year after the rebel Congress legislators openly revolted against the then chief minister Nabam Tuki. Nepal and India did not issue a joint communique at the end of a state visit by Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli to Delhi on Wednesday due to India's position on the new constitution of the Himalayan nation. Nepalese Ambassador to India Deep Kumar Upadhyay confirmed there would be no joint communique at the end of Oli's visit after the Indian side did not show interest in it. However, sources in New Delhi maintained that every state visit by a foreign leader need not end with a joint communique. The development will mark a departure as the tradition of issuing joint communiques at the end of visits of Nepalese heads of state or government to India has usually been followed - at least since 1990. Officials privy to the visit said preparation were afoot in New Delhi earlier on the joint communique and senior officials from both the sides were engaged in finalising its wording. But at the last moment, no joint statement was issued after India refused to say categorically that it welcomed Nepal's new constitution. On the other hand, Nepal wanted to get 'India welcomes the new constitution in Nepal' incorporated in the joint communique, said a Nepali official. Until Wednesday afternoon, Ministry of Foreign Affairs Joint Secretary Prakash Subedi, who looks after the India desk, and Joint Secretary (North) Abay Thakur, in charge of Nepal and Bhutan, were busy working on the joint communique in Hotel Hyatt in Mumbai but could not finalise it due to no agreement on its contents and wording. The Indian side stressed on the wording as per Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's statement after a delegation-level talks with Oli on Saturday at Hyderabad House in Delhi, said the officials. Oli and Modi jointly addressed the press conference but did not take any questions from the media. Modi said: "...after a struggle of decades, making and promulgation of the constitution (in Nepal) are significant achievements... but its success depends on consensus and dialogue." Both the prime ministers had addressed a joint conference and made statements. The foreign ministers from both sides have also made several statements in New Delhi and so there was no need to come up with such joint statement, the Indian side is said to have told the Nepalese delegation. According to Upadhyay, the Indian side communicated that of late, they have stopped issuing joint communiques during the visits of other heads of state or governments and hence will follow the same during this visit also. Personal transportation mobile application company, Ola, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Uttar Pradesh government to provide entrepreneurship opportunities for 50,000 men and women across the state over the next five years, a company statement said here on Wednesday. "We aim to create more than 50,000 employment and entrepreneurial opportunities in the state by investing in skill development of youth," Pranay Jivrajka, chief operating officer of Ola said. "Ola's commitment to building mobility for citizens by using cutting edge mobile technology and by enabling entrepreneurship and skilling will be invaluable," Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav said. Now Ola has become a key component of the local transportation space with presence across nine major cities in the state -- Lucknow, Kanpur, Agra, Meerut, Aligarh, Allahabad, Saharanpur, Varanasi and Mathura. Currently, over 2,100 vehicles are registered on the Ola platform in the state and it is expected to go up to 20,000 in the next five years. Nalini Sriharan, serving life term for her role in former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi's assassination, on Wednesday attended her father P. Sankaranarayanan's final rites here during a 12-hour parole. Speaking to reporters here, she said all the convicts in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case were innocent and must be freed from the prison. She is lodged in Vellore prison, around 150 km from here. Though her father died in Tirunelvelli, the body was brought here for final rites. Nalini was sentenced to death by a special court for her involvement in Gandhi's assassination at Sriperumbudur near Chennai on May 21, 1991. The sentence was commuted to life imprisonment after Sonia Gandhi, the former prime minister's widow, petitioned for clemency -- for the sake of Nalini's daughter. Nalini, an Indian, had accompanied the Sri Lankan woman suicide bomber who blew up Rajiv Gandhi with concealed explosives. Nalini, who was a close friend of an LTTE operative known as Murugan, who too is an accused in the case, later gave birth to a girl in prison. All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) president Asaduddin Owaisi on Wednesday accused the Narendra Modi government of having "double standards" on the issue of nationalism. "Where was their feeling of nationalism when they allied with a party (Peoples Democratic Party) in Jammu and Kashmir that called Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru a martyr and termed his execution a travesty of justice," Owaisi said in the Lok Sabha. "The BJP gives certificates of nationalism, while the Congress gives certificates of secularism. I request them not to impose their ideology upon others," he added. Owaisi also blamed Human Resource Development Minister Smriti Irani for the death of Dalit research scholar Rohith Vemula, who committed suicide, on the Hyderabad University campus. "Had the HRD minister not intervened in the matter, Rohith Vemula wouldn't have died. As far as (Jawaharlal Nehru University Students Union president) Kanhaiya Kumar is concerned, he is innocent and action should be taken against all those (TV news) channels which spread lies about the JNU incident," the AIMIM leader said. Pakistan Army chief General Raheel Sharif on Wednesday expressed satisfaction over the gains and effects of the ongoing military Zarb-e-Azb operation, and acknowledged the army's resolve to fully eliminate terrorists from their sanctuary. General Raheel Sharif visited the country's mountainous northwest region to review progress of the ongoing military Zarb-e-Azb operation against terrorits. Gen Sharif was briefed by Zarb-e-Azb operation commander that the deeply forested ravines of the Shawal Valley and area ahead of Data Khel that have been frequent infiltration routes of terrorists between Pakistan and Afghanistan, was now the last bastion of terrorists left in North Waziristan, said an Inter-Service Public Relations statement. Gen Sharif directed the forces to commence forthwith the last phase of the operation in North Waziristan which aims at clearing the remnants of terrorists from their hideouts in deeply forested ravines, isolate them and indiscriminately sever their links with their abettors anywhere across the country. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Wednesday said that Pakistan was pursuing good relations with all its neighbours, including India, as mutual cooperation was vital for the socio-economic uplift of both the countries. He was speaking to Indian High Commissioner Gautam Bambawale who called on Sharif here at the Prime Minister House. Sharif extended a very warm welcome to the newly appointed Indian High Commissioner and expressed confidence that he would work to bring the two countries closer. The Indian high commissioner and the premier exchanged views on Pakistan-India bilateral relations. Bambawale thanked the prime minister and expressed hope that his role would be beneficial in normalisation and strengthening of bilateral relations between the two countries. The Pakistan-India bus service, disrupted by the violent Jat protests in Haryana, resumed on Wednesday, the Pakistani media reported. A bus with 21 passengers left Lahore on Wednesday for New Delhi via Wagha border, The News International said. Both the bus and train links between the two countries were suspended following widespread violence in Haryana. The Partition of the Subcontinent remains a traumatic experience for its victims as well as continues to poison relations between India and Pakistan and Hindus and Muslims but its toxicity is also due to several misconceptions that persist and not seeing it in a wider, contemporary perspective, says British historian Yasmin Khan. "What information we have (about the Partition in 1947) is through family stories, cliches... but when you read the scholarship on it, there is a different view. Among the misconceptions is the conflating of the demand for Pakistan with the violence that was seen," Khan, an associate professor of history at Oxford University, told IANS in an interview. "The demand for Pakistan was not a call for a violent carnage... if you take the case of Muslims' displacement only, it nearly wrecked the Pakistan project. "But both these issues have been linked, virtually fused together, thus making the demand offensive and upsetting with consequences that are well known. "Disentangling both (the demand for Pakistan and the violence that accompanied Partition) is difficult but important," maintains Khan, whose debut work "The Great Partition: The Making of India and Pakistan" (2007) makes a compelling case that while there was both wide support - and opposition - to Partition, virtually no one had any understanding of what it would entail or what its results would be. The author, who was in India to attend the Jaipur Literature Festival, also notes that the leaders on both sides were shocked by the level of violence and tried to take steps to curb it, but it is also important to remember that they were also human and faced many pressures and compulsions that prevented them from reaching any compromise solution, despite several opportunities. "The Cabinet Mission Plan (of 1945, recommending a loose confederation) was one," she said. Khan says it is also important that Partition should be seen in the "broader" international context of the late 1940s, as the Second World War had ended recently, most of Europe was in ruins, with colonial powers themselves having sustained heavy damage and expenses and there were refugees all over Europe and Asia - as well as a large number of returning, demobilised soldiers. This was the milieu in which moves towards decolonisation were initiated, but colonial powers like Britain in the case of India were themselves weakened and in a hurry to transfer power, she said. "The focus for the British government was rebuilding the country... setting up the British welfare state, and there was a strong inclination to reduce the Empire's commitments and bring soldiers home," said Khan. The situation in Palestine, also ruled by the British and seeing similar tension between two religious communities, also had many "commonalities" with the situation in the subcontinent, she said. In this context, she also notes that since there has been extensive literature and advanced scholarship on Partition, South Asian scholarship can lead the way for understanding of more regions that underwent decolonisation - with varying results and outcomes. Khan, who has also written "The Raj at War: A People's History of India's Second World War" (2015), an extensive account of the effect of the conflict on the Indian "home front" as the country faced a total war and its manifold demands, as well as the political implications - radicalisation and growing communal divide including among the armed forces, also argues that war also had a major role in the Partition - as well as the violence. "Partition would have not happened without the war.. the Congress leaders were in jail (following the Quit India protest in 1942) and the Muslim League made advances. "There was free availability of arms, of the trained returning Indian soldiers, including those of the INA, specially in Punjab, while the British found it difficult to maintain peace because of divided loyalties of Indian troops and pressure to send British soldiers home," she said. (Vikas Datta can be contacted at vikas.d@ians.in) Unidentified criminals on Wednesday snatched Rs.10 lakh from a person after he arrived at the railway station here from Bokaro, police said. Police said Rajendra Prasad Yadav was in the process of boarding a vehicle at the railway station when the criminals snatched his bag containing Rs.10 lakh. Yadav later lodged a complaint with Chutia police station in Ranchi. On Monday, criminals had snatched Rs.6 lakh from the staff of a petrol station at Mecon Gate here. "Jungle raj seems to prevail in Jharkhand. Criminals are looting cash, killing people on a regular basis in Ranchi," said Jharkhand Congress spokesperson Kishore Sahdeo. Ahead of a major nomination contest in South Carolina, Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders accused Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump of fomenting a "racist effort" to delegitimise President Barack Obama. Appearing at a CNN town hall on Tuesday Sanders portrayed the "birther" controversy that Trump pushed during Obama's first term as part of a Republican strategy to thwart his presidency, based on the mantra "obstruct, obstruct, obstruct". "We have been dealing in the last seven years with an unprecedented level of obstructionism against President Obama," the self-styled Democratic Socialist said. Democratic presidential frontrunner Hillary Clinton has criticised Sanders in recent debates and town halls for not being sufficiently supportive of Obama, America's first African-American president. African-American voters are expected to play a crucial role in South Carolina and the string of Southern contests that follow on March 1, which could tilt the momentum of the Democratic White House race toward Clinton. Addressing the race issue, Sanders called for reforms in the criminal justice system and promised to hike funding for historically black colleges and universities if he is elected president. Clinton responded in more personal terms, saying that white people should be honest and recognize "that our experiences may not equip us to understand what a lot of our African-American fellow citizens go through every single day". Sanders, who is posing a tough challenge to Clinton, also reiterated his call to the former secretary of state to release transcripts of paid speeches that she made to Wall Street banks after she left the State Department. "I am happy to release all of my paid speeches to Wall Street -- here it is," Sanders said, with a wave of his hands. "There ain't none." Clinton, who appeared on stage after Sanders, sidestepped questions about the senator's call for her to release her speeches. "If everybody does it, and that includes the Republicans -- because we know they have made a lot of speeches," Clinton said. She said the real issue was about who had the best plan to crack down on Wall Street. Meanwhile, a federal judge paved the way for possible future subpoenas by the State Department against Clinton and her long time Indian-American aide Huma Abedin to obtain personal emails. Clinton told her supporters that they had nothing to fear from the controversy, which she said was part of a long succession of episodes that turned out to be nothing. "I am well aware of the drip, drip, drip. I have been in the public arena for 25 years," she said. "The facts are that every single time somebody has hurled these charges against me, which they have done, it has proved to be nothing." (Arun Kumar can be contacted at arun.kumar@ians.in) Actor Sanjay Dutt will walk free from the Yerawada Central Jail in Pune on Thursday. He will reportedly have a relaxed day and spend time with his family rather than partying hard with fraternity members. The 56-year-old will be released after serving the remainder of his five-year sentence for possessing illegal arms in the March 12, 1993, Mumbai serial bomb blasts case. "He will take a charter from Yerawada Central Jail to Mumbai. He won't be partying immediately after his release. He will offer prayers at Siddhivinayak temple and then go to his mother's (Nargis) grave in Marine Lines," a source told IANS. "There is a portrait of his father (Sunil Dutt) in his building in Pali Hill. There will be a small puja there. It will be basically a relaxed day with his family," the source added. Of the five-year sentence, Sanjay has served more than 50 months in two installments, excluding the parole and furlough he was granted at various times on different grounds. He spent 18 months in jail as an undertrial before he was granted bail and later, following a Supreme Court order in May 2013, he was sent to the Yerawada Jail to serve the remaining 42 months of his five-year sentence. To celebrate Sanjay's release from prison, a Mumbai restaurateur will offer a special culinary delight -- named 'Chicken Sanju Baba' -- free of charge to all patrons and fans. Mughlai eatery Noor Mohammadi Hotel here will offer the signature recipe, created by Sanjay himself and gifted to restaurant owner Khalid Hakim. On the film front, his projects are yet to be revealed, but some filmmakers have shown interest in working with the "Khalnayak" star. National Award-winning director Umesh Shukla said he has a film for Sanjay. "Sanjay liked my subject. We will get to know the status of the film once he returns home. First of all, he needs to be with his family. That's his priority. As far as the film is concerned, he certainly liked my script, which I narrated to him last year," Shukla had earlier told IANS. "The script suits him the best. It's content-oriented subject," he added. Filmmaker Vidhu Vinod Chopra, who shares a close bond with Sanjay and also cast him in the highly successful "Munnabhai" franchise, said the actor "committed a mistake and paid for that. Now it's his new birth and we are with him". "We have been writing scripts for him for the last few years and right now we have many scripts for him," he added. He also shared that the pre-production of the third part of "Munnabhai" franchise is in full swing. "Aligarh" actors Manoj Bajpayee amd Rajkummar Rao are "delighted" that actor Sanjay will return from his incarceration. Filmmaker Subhash Ghai has a special message for him. "If I know Sanjay like he was during 'Vidhaata' and 'Khalnayak', he will come out this time with much more maturity and a greater sense of responsibility as a human, a family man and also a star. He just wants to focus on his career as an actor and nothing else. That's what he told me two months back," Ghai said in a statement. Pakistan's National Command Authority (NCA) here on Wednesday stated that nuclear deterrence is a factor in South Asia's stability. The authority, under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, expressed its resolve to maintain full spectrum deterrence, in line with the policy of minimum credible deterrence. Ahead of the upcoming Nuclear Security Summit to be held next month in Washington, Islamabad has ratified the Convention on Physical Protection of Nuclear Material, the only international legally binding undertaking in the area of physical protection of nuclear material. "As a responsible nuclear state, Pakistan would continue to contribute meaningfully towards the global efforts to improve nuclear security and nuclear non-proliferation measures," said a statement released by the NCA. The NCA also comprehensively reviewed the safety and security mechanism of Pakistan's nuclear programme and expressed satisfaction on the measures in-place to ensure highly effective security of nuclear assets. While taking note of the growing conventional and strategic weapons' development in the region, the NCA expressed serious concerns over the adverse ramifications for peace and security on this account. NCA reiterated its determination to take all possible measures to make national security robust, enabling it to effectively respond to the threats to national security without indulging in arms race. The meeting was attended by the top military and civil leadership of Pakistan. In previous meetings, NCA has noted with concern India's rapidly expanding conventional military asymmetry and dangerous limited conventional war policy called Cold Start doctrine. Slamming the Narendra Modi government over the JNU row, former Lok Sabha speaker Somnath Chatterjee on Wednesday said police crackdown on the students was a shame for the country. "We have seen that there had been nothing anti-national in the speech of (JNU) students' leader Kanhaiya Kumar. We will have to rethink if we are really independent," Chatterjee said at a meet by 17 mass, rights and cultural organizations here. "The government at the centre is indulging in dividing the people on the basis of religion. It is a shame for the country what happened at the JNU campus. The time has come for us to think if we are going to take everything sitting," Chatterjee, the expelled CPI-M leader. Chatterjee also attacked the state BJP, which had criticised the Jadavpur University (JU) for not acting against a section of students who had allegedly raised slogans in favour of parliament attack convict Afzal Guru. "It becomes clear what the intentions of the BJP are. It is also disheartening that even after making such a statement in media, the Mamata Banerjee government has not come out with any strong statement opposing it," Chatterjee said, referring to state BJP president Dilip Ghosh calling JU vice-chancellor Suranjan Das a "Trinamool Congress appointee". Speaking on the occasion, former Supreme Court judge A.K. Ganguly called on to fight against the BJP's bid to "talibanise" the education system. "It is the Talibanisation of education system which cannot be tolerated. There should be a united fight against this attack on the democratic system of the country," said Ganguly, who blamed the RSS affiliated Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad for the JNU row. The speakers also questioned the legality of the arrest of JNU students' union leader Kanhaiya Kumar who has been charged with sedition. "Even for arguments' sake, if it is accepted that the alleged slogans had been chanted during Kumar's speech, even then, he cannot be legally booked for sedition," said lawyer and former city mayor Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharya. --Indo-Asian news Service and/sd The suicide bomber behind last week's Ankara blast was identified as Abdulbaki Somer, the prosecution sources told Turkish Anadolu Agency. The identity of the bomber was revealed by a DNA test, the anonymous sources confirmed, adding the DNA samples provided by Somer's father matched the assailant's, Xinhua news agency reported on Wednesday. Somer's father, who lives in the eastern province of Van, had informed police that his son was behind the attack. Abdulbaki Somer, born in 1989, was listed as a missing child in the Turkish police's records, the Hurriyet daily reported on Tuesday. The report said Somer had gone missing in August 2005 in Van. His parents informed the police and also said some of his friends had joined the terrorist Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). Somer had joined the PKK after his disappearance, and went to the organization's camps in northern Iraq where he was trained for 8 years, the report said. He returned to Turkey in 2014 and registered himself with the state as "Salih Muhammed Neccar", according to Hurriyet. The car bombing attack in the Turkish capital on February 17 had claimed 29 lives, leaving 60 wounded. Currently, 14 suspects are in custody. A 10-year-old girl flew in from Djibouti with a deformed spine that restricted her height to 123 cms. After a life saving critical surgery here, she stands tall at 140 cms, cheerful and confident of facing the world. No! This is not any cosmetic surgery or a magical cure! The dramatic change came about due to the efforts of a multi-disciplinary team of medical professionals - surgeons, paediatricians, cardiac specialists, anesthesiasts and others - at the Mumbai-based Sir H.N. Reliance Foundation Hospital and Research Centre who set straight the girl's life-threatening curved spine. In medical lingo, the abnormal curvature of a person's spine is called thoracolumbar scoliosis. Three weeks back, the bright fifth grade student (name not disclosed) from Djibouti - a country in the Horn of Africa - came to the spine clinic at Reliance Foundation. She had a deformed spine and a hump on the right side of her back. She could not stand erect. "Her parents noticed the spinal deformity three years back. The deformity resulted in a severe imbalance in her posture. She also complained of short breath while running," Kshitij Chaudhary, one of the surgeons who operated upon her, told IANS over phone from Mumbai. What added to the parents' worry is the death of the girl's grand-aunt at the age of 40 due to complications related to untreated scoliosis. The doctors found that the girl from Africa had severe right sided thoracolumbar scoliosis with trunk decompensation. There was a significant right sided rib hump. Neurological examination was normal. "Many Indian hospitals turned her away owing to the complications involved in the surgery," Chaudhary said. The X-rays showed that the thoracolumbar scoliosis curve or spinal curvature measured 125 degrees with an associated kyphosis (excessive out ward curve that causes hunch) of 85 degrees. "We advised surgery as her life span in her current condition would be only around 40 years as such large curves impacts the functioning of the lungs and the heart," Chaudhary said. However, the surgery was not simple like opening the back and straightening the spine and closing it back. "The pulmonary function test showed she already had restricted lung function that was 66 percent of normal. Echocardiogram showed a patent foramen ovale (hole in the heart). The MRI did not reveal any spinal cord anomalies," he said. According to him, it was the first time the hole in the girl's heart was discovered. While the go ahead signal was given by the pediatric cardiac services team, a detail plan for the surgery and post-operative care was chalked out after going into minute details. As the patient would be required to be woken up during the surgery (wake up test), her father's voice recording for some instructions was made. "She was woken up once during the surgery. She will not feel the pain but would be able to hear as to what she has to do," Chaudhary said. "We also used the cell saver technology to minimise the blood loss and infuse back the blood that came out during the surgery. So the total blood loss was minimal. Nearly 50 percent of the blood loss was saved and there was no blood transfusion." According to him, as two surgeons did the surgery - Chaudhary and Arjun Dhawale - the blood loss was less and the surgery time was also cut short by nearly an hour. The spinal osteotomies or the spinal reconstructive procedures were done at the apex of the deformity for better correction. Rigid contoured rods were connected to the pedicle screws and good correction was achieved. As a consequence, she woke up after the surgery with intact neurological function. Chaudhary said the Djibouti girl can lead a normal life like anyone else. "Currently physiotherapy exercises are being given to her and her improvement is steady and good," he said. On the hole in the heart, he said the cardiac specialists felt it will not create any problem and there was no need for any surgery to close the hole. "There is certainly a change in the girl's attitude. She is now more confident," Chaudhary said. (The writer can be reached at v.jagannathan@ians.in) Tata Sons, owners of carriers Vistara and AirAsia, said on Wednesday the "5/20 rule" rule restricting new carriers from flying overseas should be scrapped as it gives an unfair advantage to foreign airlines that now dominate international air travel. "The rule is discriminatory to Indian airlines as foreign airlines that do not meet these criteria are allowed to operate in Indian skies, but Indian airlines cannot enjoy reciprocal rights," Tata said in a statement here. It said the rule had allowed foreign airlines, led by Gulf carriers like Etihad and Emirates, to capture 70 percent of international traffic. Both the Tata airlines are less than two years old and hence not eligible to operate international flights. Vistara is a joint venture with Singapore Airlines, while AirAsia India is a tri venture with Air Asia Berhard of Malaysia and Arun Bhatia's Telstra. In a tweet on Sunday, Tata Sons chairman emeritus Ratan Tata had favoured waiver of the 5/20 rule, and charges older airlines were seeking it be retained but budget carrier SpiceJet chairman Ajay Singh had joined issue, opposing his demand. "It is sad to see incumbent (old) airlines lobbying for protection and preferential treatment for themselves against the new airlines, which have been formed in full compliance with prevailing government policy and providing air transport to Indian citizens in line with the dream of 'New India'," tweeted Tata. Tata's tweet follows a representation by the Federation of Indian Airlines (FIA) comprising Jet Airways, SpiceJet, IndiGo and GoAir to Minister of State in the PMO Jitendra Singh on retaining the 5/20 norm, auctioning of additional seats to foreign carriers among other issues. Meanwhile, the FIA on Tuesday criticised the lobbying by the Tata Sons airlines for removal of the 5/20 rule, saying it was in the "self-interest and not in "national interest" of the two carriers. "FIA is deeply disturbed by the statements issued by Tata claiming to be in national interest but effectively in self-interest," FIA said in a statement. "They (Vistara and AirAsia) claim to be 'Indian' Airlines and so it is puzzling that they now do not wish to serve the Indian civil aviation growth story be a part of India's future growth. They only wish to, it appears, serve their self-interest and establish themselves in India in order to fly International," it said. Riding on voters' anger, Donald Trump scored his third consecutive victory in the Nevada caucuses to cement his frontrunner status in the Republican presidential race with his rivals failing miserably to arrest his winning streak. To the chagrin of the establishment, the real estate mogul won with a huge margin garnering about 45.9 percent of the total vote in Tuesday night's fourth nomination contest with his two main rivals Marco Rubio at 23.9 and Ted Cruz at 21.4 percent together falling short of his vote share. In a stunning show of momentum for his campaign, Trump swept almost every category of the electorate to build his dominance in the delegate count virtually paving his way to the Republican nomination at the party's convention in July. "If you listen to the pundits, we weren't expected to win too much - and now we're winning, winning, winning the country," a triumphant Trump declared to supporters at his Las Vegas victory party. Basking in his success across demographics, he said: "We won the evangelicals. We won with young. We won with old. We won with highly educated. We won with poorly educated. I love the poorly educated." On Wednesday morning, he looked ahead to a Trump presidency, detailing the three things he'd do on Day 1 if he wins the White House. "First thing is knock out some of the executive orders done by our president," Trump told ABC. "One, on border where people can pour into (the) country like Swiss cheese. I would knock out Obamacare. Take care of our vets and military," he said. For Trump, "the outcome in Nevada is another sign of his campaign's durability and the breadth of his appeal", said the influential New York Times. But "this latest triumph may only encourage Mr. Trump in the brash campaign style that has alienated many Republican officials and mainstream voters," it said. The Washington Post attributed his victory to "an angry electorate hungry for a political outsider in the White House." The billionaire mogul "used visceral rhetoric to tap into anxieties about the economy, terrorism and illegal immigration," it suggested even as it acknowledged the "staggering breadth" of Trump's support. The Nevada results demonstrated the power of Trump's appeal in this anti-establishment year, said CNN. "It also underscored his ability to use his media savvy and enormous popularity to sweep a state with complex caucus rules and where rivals were far more organised," it said. (Arun Kumar can be contacted at arun.kumar@ians.in) Uber, the global tech-based transportation firm, on Wednesday opened a Centre of Excellence in Hyderabad, its first in Asia and fifth globally. The Centre of Excellence (CoE) is part of the $50 million investment in Hyderabad announced by the firm last year. This state-of-the-art centre, with 500 customer care executives, will provide 24x7 assistance to both riders and drivers The facility will offer services through channels like email, phone and social media to enhance ride experience. Proficient in different languages, the staff will address the grievances of passengers from across the country, the company said. Amit Jain, President, Uber India, said they already hired about 30 percent employees and started support operations from CoE. The headcount will go up to 500 by the end of 2017. This is Uber's first facility in Asia and the fifth globally. It currently has centres of excellence in Phoenix, Chicago, Ireland and Poland. The company had last year signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the government of Telangana to commit an investment of $50 million in the state, its biggest investment in India. The company officials had then said that Uber will set up a facility which will be the biggest outside its headquarters in the United States. Uber, which has presence in 361 cities in 66 countries, has a market share of 40 percent in India, where it is offering its services in 26 cities. The UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon expressed hope that the head of the countries will commit at the World Humanitarian Summit in May to reducing internal displacement across the globe by at least 50 percent by 2030. He made the remarks on Tuesday while visiting a camp of internally displaced people (IDPs) in Goma in Congo, Xinhua quoted UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric as saying. Visiting a camp of IDPs, Ban was deeply moved by what he saw and heard. "He stressed that the number of displaced people has never been higher and that the international community needs to improve the way humanitarian assistance and development support are provided to ensure that no one is left behind," said Dujarric. "This will be one of the main objectives of the World Humanitarian Summit he is convening in Istanbul in May," the spokesman said, referring to the first such summit in the UN history which is to be held in Turkey. Ban said he hoped that world leaders will commit to reducing internal displacement by at least 50 percent by 2030, the spokesman said. The growing number of refugees around the world is overshadowed by even greater numbers of internally displaced people, who have not crossed an international border in search of shelter and safety. As of the end of 2014, a record-breaking 38 million people were forcibly displaced within their own country by violence, up from 33.3 million for 2013. A massive 11 million of these IDPs were newly uprooted during 2014, equal to 30,000 people a day, reports said. In mid-2014, the UN refugee agency cared for around 26 million of the world's IDP population at that time. Like refugees, they were forcibly displaced by conflict, generalised violence and human rights violations. The UN Refugee Agency helps IDPs as part of a wider intervention by the international community. It is reported that the majority of the increase in new displacement during 2014 was the result of protracted crises in Congo, Iraq, Nigeria, South Sudan and Syria. The five countries accounted for 60 percent of new displacement worldwide. UN Assistant Secretary-General for Political Affairs Miroslav Jenca has held two days of talks in the Maldives with government and opposition leaders to facilitate a dialogue in the Indian Ocean nation riven by political discord and facing Western criticism over its human rights record. During his visit that ended Monday, Jenca "underscored the importance of building trust, including through strengthening independent democratic institutions and reforming the judiciary", according to a UN statement. His visit followed a request by President Abdulla Yameen to Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon for help in holding dialogue with the opposition political parties. The UN said Jenca met Yameen, Foreign Minister Dunya Maumoon, Attorney General Mohamed Anil, Legal Affairs Minister Azima Shakoor, members of the ruling coalition, the Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) and the Maldivian Development Alliance (MDA), and the pro-government Jumhooree Party (JP). Jenca also held separate meetings with all parliamentary parties and with members of the opposition Adhaalath Party (AP) and Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), the UN said. While in the Maldives, Jenca could not meet MDP's Mohamed Nasheed, the former president who recived a 13-year sentence on terrorism charges, and is currently in Britain for medical treatment. According to media reports, he has asked for two more months of leave from prison after his 30-day medical leave expired Monday. Nasheed was elected president in 2008 after the 30-year-rule of Yameen's half-brother Abdul Ghayoom. Yameen resigned in 2012 amid opposition protests and pressure from the military and police, which he has called a "coup". His cause has been taken up by high profile human rights activists like Amal Clooney, a lawyer married to the actor George Clooney. A spokesman for UN Human Rights High Commissioner, Rupert Colville, has called Nasheed's trial "clearly flawed", a criticism made also by the United States and other Western countries. Accompanied by Amal Clooney, he met British Prime Minister David Cameron last month. Last week a Maldives court sentenced another opposition leader, Sheikh Imran Abdulla of the AP, to 12 years in jail on terrorism charges. Last Wednesday, the US State Department called his trial and conviction "deeply flawed". Deputy Spokesman Mark Toner said, "Imran is the third prominent politician to receive a lengthy sentence in just the past 12 months." He added that in each instance the government "failed to provide appropriate procedural and substantive protections in accordance with Maldivian law and Maldives' obligations". Cameron last month warned in parliament, "We are prepared to consider targeted action against individuals if further progress isn't made" in the Maldives. Yameen's vice presdient, Ahmed Adheeb Abdul Ghafoor, was arrested last October in connection with a bomb blast on the president's boat, in which his wife was injured, and is still in custody. Goa Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar on Wednesday accused the opposition and the media of unfairly attacking his coalition government over de-recognition of coconut palm as tree and on wild animals that destroyed crops. "We have never called coconut grass. How are you putting it in our mouths? How are you publishing this?" Parsekar said during a media interaction at his official residence here. Last month, the Goa assembly passed a controversial amendment to the Goa, Daman and Diu Protection of Trees Act which de-recognised the coconut palm as a tree in order to allow farmers to cut down old and non-productive trees, without red tape. The Act, according to the opposition, also makes felling of coconut groves easy for real estate development. On the issue of declaring wild animals vermin, Parsekar said leader of the opposition in Goa assembly Pratapsing Rane himself had requested for classification of some species of monkeys and wild boar as vermin. "Rane raised the issue in the assembly and said monkeys and wild boar were troubling us," Parsekar said, while ruling out the inclusion of the Indian bison and peacock from the list of potentially vermin wild animals and bird. Parsekar also said that the state chief secretary had been asked to form a committee to examine which animal caused damage to farm and horticulture crops the most and could be declared as vermin. The US should show respect to China as a major power, said a state-run Chinese daily which described as "quite insulting" that China keeps being reprimanded by the US when it is deploying basic military facilities. An editorial "US push leaves China no wiggle room" in the Global Times on Wednesday said that before Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi's three-day visit to the US hyperbole about China's "militarization" of islands in the South China Sea was ramping up among US media. The Washington Post said China may be building a new high-frequency radar system on Huayang Reef. Chinese authorities have not confirmed the authenticity of the installation of the radar system. "If it is real, we think China is in a legitimate position to conduct this move, even if it is for military purposes. China has the right to build radar systems on its own soil to discover and track possible threats -- a way to defend national security instead of an aggressive act. It has nothing to do with the more assertive militarization," said the daily. It added that the "true examples of militarization can be found in Okinawa and Guam, which are heavily garrisoned by the US, whose projection of power can extend in a radius of thousands of kilometres". "They serve Washington's military hegemony as pivots. China meanwhile only updates its facilities on these islands from anti-aircraft artillery to HQ-9 missiles, and from telescopes to radar. They are solely for defense." It wondered that if Washington keeps regarding these normal upgrades and deployments of military forces as a threat, and sends warships to the West Pacific, "does it expect China to respond with our bare hands?" "The US should show respect to China as a major power, recognizing its basic rights to grow in strength. The US should recalibrate its parameters while observing China," the editorial added. The daily went on to say that it is "quite insulting that China, the second-largest economy, keeps being reprimanded by the US as it is deploying basic military facilities". "If the US refuses to change its perspective, China has no alternative but to continue in this way in hopes that it will eventually force the US to change its mind." It added that China should warn the US that more military installations will be set up in response to Washington's provocations. "As an outsider, Washington is stirring choppy waters in the region, and framing China as a peace breaker. "Actually, China's restraint, rationality and compliance with international laws are the major reason that the South China Sea can sustain peace through these years. What a mischievous Washington aims for is a strategic game with a rising China." With China's increasing assertiveness on its claims over the South China Sea, Vietnam, the southeast Asian nation that is most vulnerable to this, on Wednesday appreciated India's position on th issue. "We appreciate the position of India on resolving the South China Sea disputes peacefully, without threat or actual use of force, and early concluding of a code of conduct on the South China Sea," Vietnamese Ambassador to India Ton Sinh Thanh said at a workshop on "The South China Sea: Security and economic implications" here. The workshop was organised by the M.L. Sondhi Institute for Asia Pacific Affairs (MLSIAPA) in collaboration with the National Maritime Foundation (NMF) and the Centre for China Analysis and Strategy (CSAS). Speaking at a session on regional security dynamics vis-a-vis the South China Sea, Ton said that External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj correctly stated at the Delhi Dialogue 2016 earlier this month that oceans and seas, including the South China Sea, were pathways to prosperity and security. The Delhi Dialogue is a premier annual track 1.5 diplomatic event for discussing the politico-security, economic and socio-cultural engagement between India and the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean). "The security of sea routes in the Asia-Pacific is essential for India's economy as a majority of Indian global trade flows across the straits of Malacca and beyond," Ton said. He cited the settlement of the maritime disputes between India and Bangladesh in the Bay of Bengal by using the UN's Arbitration Tribunal as a good example for the claimants in the South China Sea to solve their problems. Stating that the Paracel and Spratly islands in the South China Sea, over which China has laid claim to, belonged to Vietnam, the ambassador said Hanoi has full historical evidence and legal foundation to confirm its sovereignty over these islands, "which in fact have been owned and controlled peacefully and continuously by Vietnam since the 17th century when no other countries claimed their sovereignty over these islands". "However, Vietnam is ready to work with other claimants to settle territorial disputes over Paracel and Spratly islands by means of multilateral and also bilateral negotiations in a peaceful manner in accordance with international laws," he said. Asserting that Vietnam would spare no efforts to make the South China Sea a region of peace, stability and cooperation for development, Ton said that there has been a series of escalating illegal activities of China that were threatening the peace and stability in the South China Sea. "Before 1947, all geographical maps printed by China show their territory stopped at Hainan island only. In 1974, China used force to occupy the Paracel islands which were under Vietnam's administration. In 1988, China again used force to occupy some reefs in the Spratly islands of Vietnam," he said. According to ambassador, over the past 20 months alone, more than 2,900 acres of land was reclaimed by China, accounting for 95 percent of all land reclaimed by other countries in the Spratly islands over the past 40 years. "China has built big airstrips on three artificial islands there," he said. "As you are aware, the South China Sea with over 3.7 million sq km area not only provides the surrounding countries with oil and gas, sea food and other natural resources, but also serves as the most critical shipping routes between the Pacific and Indian Ocean. The South China Sea has naturally become important to all countries countries within and outside the region, including major powers like India." Earlier, speaking at the inaugural session, former foreign secretary Kanwal Sibal said that China wanted to solve all issues pertaining to the South China Sea bilaterally. He said that India should deal with the issue with China in cooperation rather than in confrontation. In this regard, he said the security pact signed between India and Japan during Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's visit to New Delhi in December was a step in the right direction. According to Srikanth Kondapalli, professor of China Studies at the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), previously, China only had Tibet and Taiwan as core interest areas, but it now has the South China Sea too. G.V.C. Naidu, professor in the Centre of Indo-Pacific Studies at JNU, said that Asean alone has the clout to deal with Beijing on the South China Sea issue. "But there is clear division within the Asean on dealing with China as only four Asean countries have claims over the South China Sea," he said. It is war of mocking advertisements from political parties in Tamil Nadu, with DMK making the first move with costly newspaper advertisements while the ruling AIADMK and PMK resorting to low-cost social media. On Wednesday, DMK continued with its paper campaign with full page advertisement as a poster stating that companies like Nokia, Foxconn have shut down operations leaving over 75,000 people jobless. DMK on Tuesday had issued front full page advertisement, asking the readers whether they have seen the chief minister in person than on television, banners and stickers. While it had the first mover advantage, the AIADMK supporters soon gathered their arsenal and fired at DMK using the social media. On day one, the end was in AIADMK's favour while DMK had the advantage of first mover and surprise element. While the two parties resorted to negative campaign-hurling charges against each other- PMK, on its part, asked the people whether they have seen it ruling the state while the people have seen AIADMK, DMK and Congress rules. The PMK has its tag line 'Change' and 'Progress'. "The newspaper ads is a strategy of DMK to convey that the fight is only between AIADMK and DMK. They want to keep the state bi-polar in nature," Ramu Manivannan, professor of political science at the University of Madras, told IANS. According to him, DMK cannot question other parties as they did not rule the state. "The DMK has adopted a negative approach instead of positive approach and has backfired in the social media. While the party had spent several crore in newspaper ads the AIADMK and PMK has responded through social media," a communication professional not wanting to be quoted told IANS. What is interesting now is that from the days of wall posters, the campaign media now includes wall postings-postings on the social media. While the DMK's campaign and AIADMK's retort were welcomed by youth on the social media, the middle and older generation have an opposite take on campaign. Meanwhile, the PMK had blocked media space three days prior to February 14 as it had slated to hold its conference on that day. However, the party postponed its conference to February 27 and its media campaign is expected to start anytime. The recently declared cessation of hostilities must not affect the war on terror, Syrian Minister of National Reconciliation Ali Haidar said. The minister on Tuesday hailed the government acceptance to observe a cessation of hostilities as agreed upon by the US and Russia, Xinhua reported. He, however, said that government acceptance includes details that should not be overlooked. "There are details for the government acceptance, mainly not to exclude the war on terror from any effort, to have a clear roadmap about the areas where terrorists are located," minister said. He added that the Islamic State (ISIS) and the Al-Qaeda-linked Nusra Front were not the only terrorist groups in . "Here I also say that terrorism is not only confined to Daesh and al-Nusra, but all of the other groups, which are still holding arms in the face of the Syrian army," he said. Syria's Foreign Ministry on Tuesday announced that the Syrian government consents to observe a cessation of hostilities as agreed upon by the US and Russia. The ministry said the military campaign against the IS and Nusra Front will continue in accordance to the US-Russian agreement. It, however, warned that the Syrian army has the right to respond to any violation by the opposition forces against the people or the military forces. A day earlier, Russia and the United States agreed to enforce a cessation of hostilities starting from February 27. Several areas of the national capital continued to be hit by acute water shortage on Wednesday, with the normal water supply from Munak canal in Haryana yet to be restored. The Munak canal, the only source of water for west Delhi and Dwarka, was damaged during the Jat quota stir. Residents of these areas rued the water crisis in their areas. Grappling with a severe water shortage, residents in Dwarka said they were compelled to buy mineral water at exorbitant prices, with a bottle worth Rs.20 costing as much as Rs.50. "Taps ran dry at my house today (Wednesday) and Delhi Jal Board is not able to provide us adequate water through tankers. Residents in the locality are now resorting to buy mineral water. Shopkeepers are selling the water bottles at very high rates," Shweta Dutt, a resident of DDA (Self Finance Scheme) flats in Dwarka sector-22, told IANS. Stating that the tanker mafia's business had been jolted since the Arvind Kejriwal government came to power as the water supply improved in Dwarka, she said: "The current water crisis might bring the tanker mafia back in business, as people are now opting for private water tankers due to current water shortage." "There is no piped water supply at my house. Water tankers which are being sent to the locality are not able to address the problem as they provide only two or three buckets of water," Smita Pandey, a housewife in Dwarka sector-22 told IANS. Residents in west Delhi said the water is very dirty and not usable. "We received water supply only for 10 to 15 minutes in the morning. The water which we got was dirty and unfit to use. I hope this water crisis gets solved soon," Pramila Mishra, a resident of Dwarka Mor told IANS. Delhi's Water Minister Kapil Mishra said more water tankers were rushed to these places to mitigate water problem in the areas. "More tankers have been diverted to Dwarka and Janakpuri. Limited supply in central and some parts of north Delhi," Mishra tweeted. He said partial water supply was started in some parts of north and central Delhi. In a statement, the Delhi government admitted some parts of Dwarka, Rohini and in north Delhi were yet to receive water. The city government said 419 trips of the water tankers have already been done in Dwarka and west Delhi area by 1 pm in the light of water problem. "By evening the number of the trips of water tankers should reach 900. This will partially take care of the problem caused by the non-working of Dwarka plant," it added. World Health Organization (WHO) chief Margaret Chan is in Brazil to assess the Zika virus situation and response, a UN spokesman said. Chan is visiting Brazil along with the director of the Pan American Health Organization, Carissa Etienne, UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said at a daily news briefing here on Tuesday, Xinhua news agency reported. Their itinerary includes meetings with Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff and a visit to the National Center for Risk and Disaster Management, Dujarric said. The visit comes after an increase in babies born with microcephaly in northeast Brazil. The WHO still cautions that more investigation is needed to better understand the relationship between microcephaly in babies and the Zika virus outbreak. The WHO said that an increase in Guillain-Barre syndrome in Brazil has coincided with Zika virus infections. The Zika outbreak in Brazil has caught the attention of the WHO as the virus would cause infants to be born with microcephaly if their mothers are infected during pregnancy. More than 4,000 reported cases of microcephaly have been registered in Brazil, among them more than 400 have been confirmed. Of the confirmed cases, 141 were attributable to the Zika virus. In June 2012, then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh urged a gathering of economic bureaucrats to reverse the climate of pessimism - then popularly termed "policy paralysis" - and revive the "animal spirits" in the economy. In January 2016, Prime Minister Narendra Modi told Indian and foreign investors attending the second Make in India jamboree in Mumbai, "My advice to you is to make India your centre if you want this century to be your century. I invite everyone sitting here, and also those not here, to be a part of India's unfolding story. This is the best time ever to be in India." In the four years between the two statements, it is clear that such animal spirits as the Indian economy may have been harbouring remain in urgent need of resuscitation. This state of affairs is not for want of trying on Mr Modi's part. But as the exhortatory nature of his Make in India appeal unwittingly underlines, there's a critical difference now; the transparent and hapless paralysis of the earlier government has been replaced by a culture of animated mendicancy within a policy framework. Of late, metal stocks have seen some bounceback on the bourses. Base-metal firms Hindalco and Vedanta are up 8.8 per cent and 22 per cent, respectively, from their lows seen on February 12. In steel, Tata Steel is also up from its recent lows, while JSW Steel hit a 52-week high on Tuesday. While these gains come on the back of significant share price corrections since June 2014, there are doubts over further gains. The steel sector has been in the limelight for positive news flow in the past month. While China announced a 13 per cent capacity cut over 2020, the Indian government imposed minimum import price on steel imports to support the domestic sector. There was relative appreciation seen in yuan, too. Data also indicated Chinas finished steel exports for December 2015-January 2016 remained flat versus successive increases. The European Union has also imposed an anti-dumping duty on cold-roll steel from China and Russia. All this bodes well for domestic steel prices. Analysts at JM Financial say the positive rub-off on prices has been factored in. Analysts at Religare say any rally in steel stocks would hinge upon a sharp demand recovery or extension of the minimum import price beyond a year. For now, there arent any signs of a meaningful pickup in demand. In the past month, base-metal prices have seen some rebound. Per-tonne aluminium prices on the London Metal Exchange are almost $100 higher at $1,570. Again, there are questions on its sustainability, say analysts, especially given concerns around China and demand across the world. If prices rise further, analysts believe that after completion of expansions, Hindalco is well placed to benefit. But, they are not convinced on significant upsides yet. Analysts at JM Financial say despite poor world (excluding China) aluminium prices, Chinas large surplus and yuan depreciation can keep Chinese exports high for some more time. While the downside might be limited for base metals and stocks, significant upsides are unlikely. If Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati outfoxed the treasury benches and left Human Resource Development (HRD) Minister Smriti Irani seething and speechless in the Rajya Sabha in the afternoon, by evening Irani, a former television actor, employed histrionics with telling impact to make public letters to her from opposition leaders seeking admissions of children of their constituents to government-run central schools. Irani was replying to a discussion in the Lok Sabha on the situation in the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) and the University of Hyderabad. The ministers attack left many red faced, and not only in the Opposition ranks. Speaker Sumitra Mahajan twice requested Irani to not get agitated and seemed to disapprove of the minister crossing the line of political etiquette by making public letters from Opposition leaders. The Speaker reminded Irani that replying to the letters of members of Parliament (MPs), both from her own as well as Opposition parties, was part of the job of a minister. Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu defended Irani, while Prime Minister Narendra Modi later tweeted the link to the ministers speech. Satyameva Jayate. Do hear this speech, he tweeted. The HRD minister said she was taking the attack on her personally and that she was being attacked for having fought the 2014 Lok Sabha elections against Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi from Amethi. I will not seek forgiveness for doing my duty you (Congress members) never wanted to listen to my reply, she said, as members of the Congress, Left parties and Trinamool Congress staged a walkout. Irani said she would quit if anybody could prove she saffronised education. I respect your patriotism, dont demean mine. I have my idea of India dont demean it, she said. She recounted the anti-India slogans shouted by students on the JNU campus on February 9. Irani said some students observed Mahishasura martyrdom day in which Goddess Durga was demeaned. The minister accused the education policy of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government for this state of affairs. On student Rohith Vemulas suicide, Irani, in a choked voice, said a mother who gives birth cannot take lives. She said a Congress MP had repeatedly written to her to intervene into affairs of the Hyderabad University. The minister copiously quoted from school textbooks to establish how those prescribed during UPA rule were 'anti-Hindu'. A little later, Home Minister Rajnath Singh said in the Lok Sabha that the government would not allow any innocent students arrested on sedition charges from JNU to be harassed. He also said those who were guilty of violence in Patiala House courts would not be spared, but stood by his claims that JNU students could have terror links. The day, in the Rajya Sabha, belonged to Mayawati. The BJP had planned to corner a united Opposition for allegedly siding with anti-national forces. But, Mayawati outmaneuvered the government by insisting that the issue at the Hyderabad University wasnt that of nationalism but of injustice to Dalit student Rohith Vemula, and should be discussed separately. Mayawati wanted to know whether the judicial inquiry committee into the suicide of Vemula had any Dalit representation. Ministers pleaded that the BSP chiefs query would be answered when the HRD Minister replies to the discussion. However, the BSP chief was unmoved and her party members time and again trooped into the well of the House to force repeated adjournments, accusing the government of being anti-Dalit. A war of words also ensued between Irani and the BSP chief. Irani said the BSP chief had no right to issue certificate as to which caste be part of the inquiry committee. Shouting wont help. Please answer my simple question, Mayawati said, adding she didnt want to talk with the PMs stooges. The exchange between the former UP chief minister and Irani also comes in the wake of talks that the BJP might field the latter as a CM candidate in the upcoming Assembly elections in UP. The Congress, which had also demanded a joint discussion on both Hyderabad University and JNU, sensed its opportunity and agreed with the BSP chief. Mayawati, who is preparing for the Uttar Pradesh Assembly election due in early 2017, eventually relented to discuss both the issues together when the House convenes on Thursday but only after having secured a commitment that her queries on the Vemula suicide would be answered. It wasnt a coincidence that BJP chief Amit Shah was in Bahraich in Uttar Pradesh on Wednesday to unveil the statue of 11th century warrior Suheldev, a ruler still remembered by the most backward Rajbhar community. As legend goes, Suheldev battled and defeated Muslim invader Syed Salar Masood Ghazi. By honouring B R Ambedkar and the Rajbhar king, the BJP has been trying to make inroads into what the BSP considers as its support base in UP. In the Lok Sabha, the Congress demanded the government take up the discussion on Wednesday itself. It was earlier decided that the discussion would be taken up after the Railway Budget on Thursday. Congress leader Jyotiraditya Scindia accused the government of muzzling the voice of the youth in institutions of higher learning. Trinamool Congress MP Sugata Bose delivered a passionate speech in which he quoted from the writings and speeches of Rabindranath Tagore, Subhas Chandra Bose, Aurobindo as well as the conception of nationalism in the epics Mahabharata and Ramayana. He said the Bharatiya Janata Partys idea of nationalism was of centralised despotism and was narrow, selfish and arrogant. He demanded the repeal of the sedition law. Home Minister Rajnath Singh today said in the Lok Sabha that the government will not allow any innocent students arrested on sedition charges from the Jawaharlal Nehru University to be harassed. He also said that those who indulged in violence in Patiala House courts will not be spared. The Home Minister's assurance came at the end of a raucous first working day of the Budget session of Parliament with both the Houses taking up a discussion on the situation in institutions like Jawaharlal Nehru University and University of Hyderabad. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had planned to corner a united Opposition for allegedly siding with anti- forces. But the star of the day was Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati when she outfoxed the government by insisting that the issue at the Hyderabad University wasn't that of nationalism but of injustice to Dalit student Rohith Vemula. She said Vemula was victimised and pushed to commit suicide. The onslaught by the BSP chief left the government searching for answers. Mayawati wanted to know whether the judicial inquiry committee into the suicide of Vemula had any Dalit representation. Ministers pleaded that the BSP chief's query will be answered when Human Resource Development Minister Smriti Irani replies to the discussion. Mayawati was unmoved and her party members time and again trooped into the well of the House to force repeated adjournments, accusing the government of being "anti-Dalit". A war of words also ensued between Irani and the BSP chief. "Shouting won't help. Please answer my simple question," Mayawati said. She persisted that Vemula's was a Dalit issue and not that of nationalism. The Congress, which had also demanded a joint discussion on both Hyderabad University and JNU, sensed its opportunity to government on the mat. It agreed with the BSP chief that the government should first address the concerns of the BSP chief. Mayawati, who is preparing for the Uttar Pradesh assembly election due in early 2017, eventually relented to discuss both issues together when the House convenes on Thursday but after having secured a commitment that her queries on the Vemula suicide will be answered. It wasn't a coincidence that BJP chief Amit Shah was in Bahraich in Uttar Pradesh today to to unveil the statue of 11th century warrior Suheldev, a ruler still remembered by the most backward 'Rajbhar' community. As legend goes, Suheldev battled and defeated "Muslim invader" Syed Salar Masood Ghazi. By honouring B R Ambedkar and the Rajbhar king, the BJP has been trying to make inroads into what the BSP considers as its support base in UP. In the Lok Sabha, the Congress demanded that the government take up the discussion today itself. It was earlier decided that the discussion will be taken up after the Railway Budget on Thursday. The discussion was taken up after BJP MP Meenakshi Lekhi spoke on the presidential address to the joint sitting, in which she accused the Left parties of being the "witch" in India's growth story and sought to highlight the alleged killings of her party and Rashtriya Swayamsevak (RSS) cadres by the cadres of the Left parties in Kerala. Congress leader Jyotiraditya Scindia initiated the discussion. He said the government was muzzling the voice of the youth in institutions of higher learning. Trinamool Congress MP Sugata Bose delivered a passionate speech in which he quoted from the writings and speeches of Rabindranath Tagore, Subhas Chandra Bose, Aurobindo as well as the conception of nationalism in the epics Mahabharata and Ramayana. He said the BJP's idea of nationalism was of centralized despotism and was "narrow, selfish and arrogant". He demanded the repeal of the sedition law. In a related development, Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan has invited leaders of several political parties for lunch on Friday as another effort to ensure smooth passage of the Budget session. A bill to amend two electoral laws to allow a limited delimitation exercise in West Bengal for granting voting rights to people who became Indian citizens following the exchange of enclaves with Bangladesh was introduced in the Lok Sabha today. A teenaged Dalit girl was allegedly gangraped by two men in Haibatpur village here, police said today. The girl was returning from a programme yesterday when the accused abducted and took her to a vacant house where she was gangraped, SHO Shoeb Khan said. A case has been registered against the two accused and the police have arrested one person, identified as Pawan Kumar, in this connection, he said. The minor has been sent for medical examination, Khan said. In another case, 22-year-old girl was gangraped allegedly by four men in the district yesterday, police said. Police have registered a case against four youths - Imran Munawer, Aftab and Salman - under Titawi police station. The girl was sent for medical examination with proved rape, police said, adding efforts are underway to nab the absconding persons. Two men were convicted of theft and given suspended sentences today in the first trials for New Year's Eve crimes in the German city of Cologne. A third suspect was convicted under juvenile law and put on probation. The spate of thefts and assaults on women near Cologne's main station, blamed largely on foreigners, caused public uproar as Germany faces a huge influx of migrants. More than 1,000 criminal complaints were filed, over 400 of those alleging sexual crimes. Neither of today's trials involved allegations of sexual assaults. Names were not released in accordance with German privacy laws. The Cologne district court handed a 23-year-old Moroccan asylum-seeker a six-month suspended sentence and a 100-euro (USD 110) fine for stealing a cellphone from a woman as she photographed the city's cathedral and for possessing drugs. In a separate trial, a 22-year-old Tunisian was given a three-month suspended sentence for theft. The court found he distracted a man on a bridge near Cologne's main station while his 18-year-old Moroccan co-defendant stole a bag containing a camera. The younger man, who the court said also committed three thefts nearly a year ago, was convicted and put on probation for two years. Both will have to do 60 hours' community work. In the first trial, the Moroccan apologized to the victim. The 20-year-old woman didn't immediately see who had stolen the phone but caught him after an Afghan refugee who had witnessed the theft pointed him out to her. The court stressed that the future of the man's asylum application wasn't a matter for today's proceedings. Amid outrage over the Cologne crimes, the German government is moving to make it easier to deport criminal foreigners. The changes would mean that even a suspended prison sentence would be grounds for deportation if someone is found guilty of certain crimes including bodily harm, sexual assault, violent theft or serial shoplifting. Medical education is set to get a major boost in Himachal Pradesh as four government colleges with 100 MBBS seats each and an AIIMS will come up in the state soon. The medical colleges being set up at Nahan and Chamba are expected to become functional from this year as the government has already set in motion the process of admissions to MBBS course and Medical Council of India teams have inspected the colleges, state Health Minister Kaul Singh said. Forest clearance is awaited for the landidentified for Hamirpur medical college, while the ESI Medical College at Ner Chowk in Mandi district would be handed over to the state government soon, he said. The ESI Medical College was to be set up by the Union Labour Ministry. But after change of government at the Centre, the state was offered to take over the college, Singh said. The Union government has already spent Rs 650 crore on the project and an interest of Rs 285 crore had accrued during this period. The state government agreed to pay the principal amount in 10 instalments but not the interest, the minister said. A consensus had been reached on not paying the interest and the college would be handed over to the state and made functional soon, Singh said. The medical colleges at Nahan, Chamba and Hamirpur were approved during UPA rule and Rs 190 crore was sanctioned for each of these colleges for building infrastructure, he said. The Centre also released Rs 12 crore and Rs 10 crore for Chamba and Nahan medical colleges respectively, Singh said. The land of animal husbandry department near Bilaspur, in the home district of Union health minister J P Nadda, has been transferred for setting up of AIIMS and its foundation stone would be laid soon, he said. The two government medical colleges currently functioning in the state - the Indira Gandhi Medical College in Shimla and Dr Rajendra Pradesh Medical College in Tanda (Kangra)- have 100 MBBS seats each. After these new medical colleges become functional the total number of MBBS seats in the government medical colleges would go up to 700, Singh said. Four Indians were arrested in Syria recently not because they had gone there to join and fight alongside the ISIS but for entering the country without valid visa, the government today clarified. Syrian Deputy Prime Minister Walid Al Maoulem, during his visit here last month, had said the four Indians had "crossed over from Jordan to Syria to join the ISIS" and that they were under custody in Damascus. Replying to a question in Lok Sabha, Minister of State for External Affairs V K Singh said the Indians had entered Syria illegally from Jordan on their way to Lebanon where they were heading for employment. "Arun Kumar Saini, Sarvjeet Singh, Kuldeep Singh and Joga/Jagga Singh entered into Syria from Jordan on their way to Lebanon for employment without valid visa. They were caught by the Syrian authorities as illegal immigrants," he said. He said Syrian authorities, after making "necessary inquiries", conveyed to New Delhi that they can be brought back to India. The Minister said officials from Indian Embassy in Damascus have met the four persons and modalities are being worked out to bring them back. A common drug used to treat epilepsy has caused congenital defects in around 450 babies in France who were exposed to the medication before birth in the uterus, according to an estimate by health authorities. Yesterday's report put at between 425 and 450 "the number of cases of children born alive or stillborn exposed to valproate in utero between 2006 and 2014 who have congenital defects." The estimate for all of France was extrapolated from data obtained in the Rhone-Alpes region, it said. Starting on March 1, the warning for pregnant women -- which is already in the notice that comes with valproate -- will also be written on the box, the country's general director of health, Benoit Vallet, told AFP. The anti-convulsion drug has been flagged for several years due to the high risk of birth defects -- around 10 percent -- but also for increased risks of mental retardation and autism. A European report in 2014 urged all countries on the continent to review their conditions for prescribing valproate "to minimise risks". It also called on them to take steps to ensure the medication is not prescribed to women of child-bearing age -- 15 to 49 years -- or pregnant women, unless no alternative treatment for epilepsy was effective. In France, the new report noted, the drug has also been prescribed for the treatment of bipolar disorder. Valproate has been marketed in France by pharmaceutical company Sanofi under the brand name Depakine since 1967. Also available as a generic, the drug is sold by Sanofi in some 120 countries, the manufacturer said. Amid chants of "vande mataram", ABVP members today marched through the heart of the city denouncing "anti-nationals" and demanding strong action against JNU students who had allegedly raised "anti-India" slogans. The slogan-shouting RSS' student wing leaders and volunteers, with several wrapped in saffron flags and wielding the tricolour, marched down from Ramlila Maidan to Jantar Mantar, partially affecting traffic on the Tolstoy Road. Carrying placards which bore slogans like "Bharat Mata ki Jai", "Bharat Ma ka Ye Apmaan, Nahin Sahega Hindustan" and "Kashmir Bharat ka Abbhin Aang hai", the protesters also raised slogans such as "Agar Hindustan mai rehna hoga, Vande Mataram kehna hoga" (One who wants to live in Hindustan must chant Vandemataram). A "150 m-long" national flag was also carried by volunteers who had come to join the rally from different parts of the country, including Baghpat and Sonepat. Some slogans like -- "Na Marxwad, Na Maowad, sabse upar Rastravad" (Marxism and Maosim is not above Nationalism)-- sought to counter the Left. The protesters accused the Left of spoling atmosphere of Jawaharlal Nehru University. A few others like "Maowad ki kabra khudegi, JNU ki dharti par" directly attacked JNU, which for the last couple of weeks has been in an eye of a storm over holding of a controversial event in the campus on February 9 in which it is alleged that anti-national slogans were raised. Addressing the rally at Jantar Mantar, ABVP's National General Secretary Vinay Bidre condemned the controversial event held against the hanging of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru. "We cannot tolerate anyone raising slogans that threaten the unity of the country. ABVP shall not tolerate such anti- national forces," he said. "We demand strict action against all those students involved in raising anti-national slogans in the campus," Bidre said. Senior ABVP leader Saket Bahuguna alleged, "Anti-national activities led by the Left in JNU have vitiated the atmosphere of the university. This anti-national sloganeering should have been unanimously condemned in Parliament, but some parties are debating over it." "We demand that it be condemned in Parliament. And, if not then we will take this protest to other parts of India and the streets will be filled with national flags," he said. Indian mining giant Adani's 6.5 billion dollar controversial coal mine project in Australia's Queensland state has inched closer to getting its mining lease after it struck a mining compensation deal with a local government body. The agreement was signed yesterday at state's Isaac Regional Council meeting. Adani now needs to strike a similar compensation for council infrastructure as well as landholders and native title holders before getting its mining lease. That will then allow the company to make formal approaches to banks for financing for the mine. Mayor of Isaac region in the state,Anne Baker, said Adani and Council have worked closely together to ensure a way forward and a positive outcome. "Our joint focus is to responsibly deliver mutual and long-term economic benefits for the community," Baker said adding, "This compensation agreement fundamentally provides Adani with access to Council roads and reserves integral to the project while maintaining public access." Shesaid Queensland's mining sector hassuffered with over20,000 jobs losses over the past two years. "It's essential our communities and our businesses benefit from the Carmichael project. Both parties are committed to commencing negotiations on the next and important step, the infrastructure agreement," Baker further commented. "Comprehensive maintenance agreements on existing infrastructure like road corridors are critical," she said. "The infrastructure agreement determines the extent of infrastructure works and maintenance over the life of the mine," she said. Welcoming the move, Adani CEO Jeyakumar Janakaraj said, "Working together with Isaac Regional Council, the project is moving one step closer to delivering long term benefits to Queensland, while helping deliver higher quality, lower emitting coal that will help alleviate energy poverty in India." The mining compensation agreement recognises that part of Adani's mining operations will be over council-controlled road and reserves. The Queensland state in February gave environmental approval to controversy-hit project but with about 140 conditions. Adani's plan to build one of the world's largest coal mines in Australia has been hampered time and again. A federal court in August last year had revoked the original approval due toa bureaucratic bungle over two vulnerable species--the yakka skink and the ornamental snake. The Afghan Taliban said today they had not been officially contacted by Kabul about the resumption of direct talks aimed at ending their conflict. The comment came a day after the latest round of dialogue in the Afghan capital between officials from Afghanistan, the United States, China and Pakistan. The representatives of the four states called on the militants to return to the negotiating table and said they expect the process to begin by the first week of March. "We are not aware of this, I cannot say anything regarding talks in Islamabad," said the Islamist group's spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid in a phone conversation. "We have not received anything officially in this regard, we only heard it from media." A first round of direct talks with the Taliban took place in the Pakistani resort town of Murree last July, but came to a standstill after the Kabul government leaked of the death of Taliban leader Mullah Omar two years before. The announcement, and the appointment of his successor Mullah Akhtar Mansour, accentuated divisions among the militants, with many holding Mansour responsible for lying to them about Omar's death. A splinter group formed under Mullah Rasool and challenged Mansour's leadership. But the disunity has not dented the Taliban's fighting ability. The insurgents are waging an unprecedented winter campaign of violence across Afghanistan, underscoring a worsening security situation more than 14 years after their government in Kabul was toppled by a US-led invasion. In January, during a seminar organised by the Pugwash peace movement in Qatar, Taliban representatives called for their cadres to be removed from US and UN blacklists which have frozen their assets and restricted their freedom of movement. In addition, they have said talks cannot take place until the withdrawal of some 13,000 NATO troops still deployed in Afghanistan. "We have expressed our position clearly in the Pugwash conference," Mujahid told AFP. Mothers-to-be, take note! Drinking alcohol during pregnancy may increase the risk of developing alcoholism in next three generations, a new study has warned. Researchers investigated the effects of alcohol consumption during pregnancy on alcohol-related behaviour on generations that were not directly exposed to alcohol in the uterus during the pregnancy. Pregnant rats received the equivalent of one glass of wine, four days in a row, at gestational days 17-20, the equivalent of the second trimester in humans. Researchers led by Nicole Cameron, assistant professor of psychology at Binghamton University in New York, then tested juvenile male and female offspring for water or alcohol consumption. Adolescent males were tested for sensitivity to alcohol by injecting them with a high-alcohol dose, which made them unresponsive (drunk on their back), and measuring the time it took them to recover their senses (back on their four paws). The results suggest that if a mother drinks during pregnancy, even just a little bit, she increases the risk that her progeny will become alcoholic. "Our findings show that in the rat, when a mother consumes the equivalent of one glass of wine four times during the pregnancy, her offspring and grand-offspring, up to the third generation, show increased alcohol preference and less sensitivity to alcohol," said Cameron. "Thus, the offspring are more likely to develop alcoholism. This paper is the first to demonstrate trans-generational effects of alcohol consumption during pregnancy on alcohol-related behaviour in offspring," said Cameron. To date, no study has shown a transgenerational effect of prenatal ethanol exposure on ethanol consumption in the second or third generation, researchers said. A non-profit organisation today called for doubling the spending on education and suggested overhaul of the key sector to improve quality and competition among institutes. Education Promotion Society for India (EPSI), a not- for-profit autonomous body, demanded liberalisation of the important social sector. "Our first and foremost request to the Union Government is that it should implement liberalisation policy in the education sector like it did in economic field in 1991," said G Vishwanathan, President of EPSI. Addressing a press conference here, he said the need of the hour is to ensure there is no shortage of resources and infrastructure in the sector anywhere in the country. This will reduce the chances of agitation for reservation. The former Member of Parliament said EPSI has submitted a charter of demands to ex-bureaucrat T S R Subramaniam, Chairman of the committee that is framing a new education policy for the Union HRD Ministry. The Centre must allocate at least 8 per cent of GDP to education sector from 4 per cent now, Vishwanathan said. "Currently, there is a big demand-supply gap in the medical education field. The Union Government should open one medical college in each district to overcome this gap. There are only 350 medical colleges in the country and they are not able to meet the demand of doctors." The Founder-Chancellor of VIT University said the Government should offer incentives to well-performing educational institutes. This would encourage competition among institutes and improve quality of education. EPSI has been formed by a group of educationists, educational entrepreneurs, intellectuals, industry leaders and policy makers. It coordinates between Government and institutional operators, academia and industry, students and employers and national and international bodies committed to the advancement of education. Authorities in India failed to stop "incidents of religious violence" and often "contributed to tensions through polarising speeches", Amnesty International said today, as it condemned "growing intolerance" that led to attacks on journalists, authors, artists and rights activists. The London-based rights body in its annual report for 2015-16 warned against worldwide assault of freedoms with many governments "brazenly" breaking international law, including an "intensified crackdown on key freedoms" in India. "Scores of artists, writers and scientists returned national honours in protest against what they said was a climate of growing intolerance," the report said on India. "Authorities clamped down on civil society organisations critical of official policies, and increased restrictions on foreign funding. Religious tensions intensified, and gender and caste-based discrimination and violence remained pervasive. Censorship and attacks on freedom of expression by hardline Hindu groups grew," it added. Aakar Patel, Executive Director of Amnesty India, said: "In 2015, India saw several backslides on human rights. The government intensified restrictions on civil society organisations..." "What is heartening is that there has been opposition to the erosion of rights. The widespread outrage around incidents of religious intolerance, a Supreme Court ruling striking down an oppressive law on free speech online, the many public protests against ill-conceived reforms to land acquisition laws - these offer hope that 2016 can be a better year for human rights in India." Amnesty rebuked Indian authorities for "failing to prevent many incidents of religious violence, and sometimes contributing to tensions through polarising speeches and pervasive caste-based discrimination and violence". "There were several instances of intimidation and attacks against journalists, authors, artists and human rights defenders by religious and caste-based groups. Two rationalist writers were killed in attacks thought to be related to their criticism of religious intolerance and idolatry." Laws which did not meet international standards on freedom of expression were used to persecute human rights defenders and others, the report said. It also highlighted "restrictive foreign funding laws" being used to repress NGOs critical of the government. The government took a series of actions against Greenpeace India, including preventing one of its campaigners from travelling to the UK in January, ordering the organisation's bank accounts to be frozen in April and cancelling its Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA) in September. High Courts ruled that some of these steps were illegal. The Ministry of Home Affairs cancelled the FCRA registration of thousands of NGOs for violating provisions of the law. In April, the Ministry ordered that it would have to approve foreign funds from certain identified donor organisations. There was some progress when the lower house of Parliament passed an amendment to the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, recognising new offences and requiring that special courts be established to try them, and stipulating that victims and witnesses receive protection, it said. In reference to violence against women, it said: "Although nearly 322,000 crimes against women, including over 37,000 cases of rape, were reported in 2014, stigma and discrimination by police officials and authorities in India continued to deter women from reporting sexual violence, and most states still lacked standard operating procedures for the police to address violence against women." In a positive move, the Supreme Court directed states to install closed-circuit television in all prisons to prevent torture and other violations, while the government stated it was considering amending the Penal Code to specifically recognise torture as a crime, it noted. In another positive development, it lauded a historic peace framework agreement reached in Northeastern India between the government and the "influential armed group National Socialist Council of Nagaland (Isak-Muivah faction)". Globally, Amnesty International warns of an insidious and creeping trend undermining human rights which has come from governments deliberately attacking, under-funding or neglecting institutions that have been set up to help protect our rights. "Your rights are in jeopardy: they are being treated with utter contempt by many governments around the world. Millions of people are suffering enormously at the hands of states and armed groups, while governments are shamelessly painting the protection of human rights as a threat to security, law and order or national 'values'," said Salil Shetty, Secretary General of Amnesty International. An anonymous caller threatened to kill Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao during his visit here, police said today. The threat call was received by Korutla MLA Kalvakuntla Vidyasagar Rao on his mobile yesterday, a day ahead of the CM's visit to Karimnagar. "Vidyasagar Rao received a call on his mobile phone at about 6 PM on Tuesday from an unidentified person," a top police official said. "The person, who used the Internet to make the phone call, threatened to kill the Chief Minister during his visit to Metpalli in Karimnagar district on Wednesday," he said. The MLA handed over his mobile phone to Metpalli Sub- Inspector Babu Rao, to whom the caller repeated the same threat, police said. In view of the threat call, security was stepped up in Metpalli, where the Chief Minister arrived this morning by a chopper to attend a private function. After attending the event, he returned to Hyderabad, they said. Police have not yet identified the caller but said a probe was on. An Andhra Pradesh court today acquitted 288 Tamils in cases related to murder of two forest officials and redsander smuggling. "Third Additional District and Sessions Court, Tirupati has acquitted 288 innocent Tamils today due to the legal efforts taken by Chief Minister Jayalalithaa," Tamil Nadu government said in a release here. A legal team headed by Tamil Nadu government advocates Mohammed Riyaz and Arul and Tirupathi-based lawyers represented the Tamils in the court and 20 hearings were held since November 3, 2015 in the cases, the government said. The accused were charged for the 2013 twin murder of Andhra Pradesh forest officials in Seshachalam forests and red sanders smuggling, the government said. PMK chief Ramadoss welcomed the release of the prisoners and alleged that they had undergone inexplicable torture at the hands of police in Andhra Pradesh and dubbed the cases against them as foisted and false. Last year, Jayalalithaa had written to her Andhra Pradesh counterpart Chandrababu Naidu, seeking legal assistance for Tamil prisoners held in connection with red sanders smuggling, considering their indigence. She had also sought legal steps for bail to prisoners who were in various jails for more than 90 days without charge sheets being filed against them. A total of 312 petitions seeking free legal assistance were procured from relatives of those in prison by district collectors and it was sent to Andhra Pradesh Legal Services Authority by its counterpart here on October 29, 2015. Subsequently, a legal team headed by two Tamil Nadu government advocates were sent to Andhra Pradesh for securing bail to those facing charges related to red sanders smuggling. An amount of Rs eight lakh was allotted by the government as advance for legal expenditure. As many as 172 Tamil prisoners received bail last year. Armenian President Serzh Sarkisian invited a fiercely anti-Turkish party to join his government, in a controversial power-sharing deal highlighting a stalemate in efforts to normalise ties with arch-foe Ankara. The Armenian Revolutionary Federation, or Dashnaktsutyun, took three ministerial posts and appointed two regional governors, according to the memorandum it signed with Sarkisian's ruling Republican Party (HHK). "This agreement marks the beginning of a long-term political cooperation based on common values and joint goals and action plans," the HHK deputy chairman, Armen Ashotyan, told journalists yesterday. In a decree signed by Sarkisian, Dashnaktsutyun's Avik Minasyan was named economy minister. Davit Lokyan and Levon Mkrtchyan were appointed ministers of education and of the local administration respectively. Armenia and Turkey are at loggerheads largely because of a historical dispute over a World War I-era massacre of ethnic Armenians in the Ottoman Empire. Dashnaktsutyun, a socialist party which currently holds five seats in Armenia's 131-member parliament, also advocates territorial claims to Turkey. Highly popular among Armenia's influential diaspora abroad, Dashnaktsutyun went over to the opposition in 2009 after Armenia and Turkey signed an agreement to normalise relations. The so-called Zurich protocols, which would have led to the opening up of the border between the two neighbours, have since languished without ratification in both nations' parliaments. In February 2015, Sarkisian recalled the protocols -- brokered by the United States, France and Russia -- from parliament, citing the "absence of political will" on the Turkish side. The massacre of some 1.5 million Armenians by Ottoman forces between 1915 and 1917 is formally recognised as genocide by some two dozen countries, including France and Russia. Turkey rejects calls to recognise the killings as genocide, saying up to 500,000 Armenians died in fighting and of starvation after Armenians sided with invading Russian troops. It claims a comparable number of Turks were also killed. Financial services firm ASK group will invest about Rs 1,400 crore as equity over the next two years in mid-sized housing projects. The group has achieved the closure of its real estate fund 'ASK Real Estate Special Opportunities Fund II' of Rs 1,373 crore (USD 205 million). "The company is planning to invest the same in next 18-24 months in six major cities i.E. Mumbai, Pune, Chennai, Bengaluru, Delhi-NCR and Hyderabad; in midsized residential projects," ASK group said in a statement today. With the closure of this fund, ASK group's real estate private equity assets under management/advisory stands at Rs 3,500 crore. "Investors in the current market conditions see performance track record and strategy. So far, ASK has returned superior risk adjusted returns and focused on partnering with reputed developer, midsize residential projects and top six metro cities have earned us almost two-third of repeat investors," ASK Property Investment Advisors MD and CEO Amit Bhagat said. He said so far 25 per cent of the fund has already been committed in two projects. ASK group MD and CEO Sunil Rohokale said, "This is our third domestic real estate fund raised in the last seven years and previous two domestic real estate funds are fully committed. We have primarily focused on family offices/ultra HNI investors. We have made five full and seven part exits from the first two funds in just over four years." In this financial year, ASK group has invested Rs 365 crore in Rajesh Lifespaces' Vikhroli project, Rs 125 crore with ATS group in Noida project, Rs 112 crore in Purvankara's Chennai project. ASK group through its real estate business has committed Rs 2,000 crore in 19 projects. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has assured Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin of his government's readiness to respect a ceasefire deal brokered by Moscow and Washington, the Kremlin said today. The Kremlin said the two leaders discussed the deal in a phone call and that Assad noted that the proposals laid out in the agreement were an "important step in the direction of a political settlement." "In particular, (Assad) confirmed the readiness of the Syrian government to facilitate the establishment of a ceasefire," it said in a statement. The ceasefire agreement, which does not apply to jihadists like the Islamic State group and Al-Nusra Front, calls for a "cessation of hostilities" between regime forces and opposition groups from midnight Friday Damascus time. Putin and Assad "stressed the importance of continuing an uncompromising fight" against the IS group, Al-Nusra Front and "other terrorist groups included in the relevant UN Security Council list," the Kremlin said. Putin, whose air force is flying a bombing campaign to support Assad's troops on the ground, on Monday pledged to do "whatever is necessary" to get Damascus to uphold the deal after sealing the agreement with US President Barack Obama. But some Washington officials have expressed doubt over whether Russia will respect the ceasefire. Secretary of State John Kerry yesterday warned that the United States was considering a "Plan B" to deal with Syria if Damascus and Moscow do not keep their end of the bargain. The Russian foreign ministry said Moscow was not aware of "any Plan B" and that it was important to stick to the current deal. "We are proceeding from the fact that so many efforts have been put into the preparation of a joint communique that it's necessary now to implement it and not work out some additional plan Bs," spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told reporters today. "This may end up contravening the agreements that have been reached because the opposition may get the wrong impression that there is an alternative to the joint communique. The ruling Congress today took out a rally here demanding that Prime Minister Narendra Modi restore Assam's special category state status (SCSS) and the 90:10 funding pattern enjoyed by it. Led by Assam PCC president Anjan Dutta, the protesters submitted to the Kamrup (Metro) district deputy commissioner a memorandum addressed to the Prime Minister. Drawing Modi's attention to "vital issues" for the all- round development of Assam, the memorandum demanded the Centre restore the SCSS which it has been enjoying since 1969 and that the move be reflected in the 2016-17 budget. Congress further demanded that the 90:10 (central grant: state contribution) funding pattern for Assam and other northeastern states be restored along with the suspended North East Industrial and Investment Promotion Policy (NEIIPP). It also called for the special funding system enjoyed by a few cities of Assam under the backward area region fund of the Centre to be restored immediately. The party also sought Scheduled Tribe status for six ethnic communities -- Koch Rajbongshi, Moran, Muttak, Sutiya, Tai Ahom and Tea Tribes. Congress demanded that the prime minister implement his government's decision to form a North East Brahmaputra River Valley Authority for controlling flood and erosion in Assam. The memorandum claimed the "whimsical" policy decisions of the BJP government at the Centre to discontinue SCSS, 90:10 funding pattern and NEIIPP had adversely affected the development of the state. "It is unfortunate that despite repeated demands, your government has not taken any steps to restore these policy decisions, which were in operation till your government discontinued it," the memorandum said. Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis today said the attack on policemen in Latur district is an attack on the entire force and such acts will not be "tolerated" in the future. "I have told the DG and Minister of State for Home to visit Pangaon in Latur," he said. "The government feels that it is not an attack on an individual but on the (police) force. Won't tolerate such act," the CM tweeted. Sixteen people have been arrested so far in connection with the assault on two policemen in Latur when they prevented them from putting up a flag at a spot in Pangaon village. Meanwhile, Inspector L V Rakh, of Renapur station near Pangaon, has been suspended in connection with the incident. MIM legislator from Aurangabad, Imtiaz Jaleel, said the guilty needs to be punished. On Saturday, Yunus Shaikh, an assistant sub-inspector in Latur district, and his colleague K Awaskar was allegedly beaten by a mob of villagers for allegedly stopping a group of local youths from hoisting a saffron flag in a "sensitive" area. "The group included Marathas and other Hindus who were celebrating Shivaji Jayanti," police said. Both suffered head injuries, but Shaikh was hit worse and was hospitalised. A video of the purported attack, which has gone viral, shows Shaikh being made to hold a saffron flag and walk down a street with the mob. In another incident in Maharashtra's Dhule district, a police inspector was today attacked with a sword when he was trying to intervene in a clash between two groups. The inspector, identified as Ramesh Pardesi, sustained head injury in the incident and was admitted to a local hospital, Dhule police said. An Australian high school has been criticised for allowing students to wear boy or girl uniforms regardless of gender. The Newtown High School of Performing Arts in inner Sydney changed its uniform policy last week to allow all students to "wear any part of the available uniform options," the New South Wales state education department said in a statement today. Several parents and students hailed the change as a boon for transgender students, who previously needed parental approval and a psychologist's report to gain the school's permission to cross-dress. The change was condemned as radical by the Australian Christian Lobby, an influential conservative advocacy group. "It's a deeper problem than just boys choosing to wear a girl's skirt to school," ACL spokesman Wendy Francis said. "What they're trying to do in schools is make boys' and girls' gender disappear." A number of federal government lawmakers this week backed the ACL's call to remove federal funding from a national program aimed at preventing bullying in schools of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender students. Almost 500 schools have signed up to the Safe Schools Coalition Australia, which runs the program that also advocates that schools allow students to cross-dress. It is not known how many schools adopted that uniform policy, but the education department said Newtown High was not the only one in New South Wales, Australia's most populous state. Newtown High declined to comment. Maya Saric, who has two children aged 15 and 13 at Newtown High, described the change as progressive and responsive to students' needs. "All the parents I mentioned it to didn't bat an eyelid and thought it was perfectly reasonable," Saric said. Prime Minister Malcom Turnbull bent to pressure from government lawmakers by agreeing Tuesday to review the continuation of 8 million Australian dollars (USD 5.7 million) in federal funding for the Safe Schools program, which teaches students about gay and lesbian issues. Turnbull was criticised by opposition lawmakers and the national teachers' union for launching the review. Safe Schools Coalition Australia said it welcomed the opportunity to demonstrate to the federal government the positive impact of its program. The group's website says it is a national coalition of organizations and schools working to create safe school environments for same-sex attracted, intersex and gender diverse students, staff and families. Senior IAS officer V P Joy has been appointed as Central Provident Fund Commmissioner in Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) as part of mid-level bureaucratic reshuffle effected today. As many as seven new Joint Secretaries have been appointed to different central government ministries. Of these, three are from Indian Administrative Service (IAS) and remaining from other Group A services. Joy, a 1987-batch IAS officer of Kerala cadre, has been appointed for two-year tenure in place of K K Jalan, according to an order issued by Department of Personnel and Training. Besides him, Sanjay Singh has been appointed Administrator in Universal Service Obligation Fund (USFO), which provides widespread and non-discriminatory access to quality Information Communication Technology services at affordable prices to people in rural and remote areas, under Telecom Ministry. Anuradha Joshi, an Indian Post and Telecommunication Accounts and Finance Service officer, has been appointed as Controller and Joint Secretary in National Technical Research Organisation (NTRO)--a technical intelligence agency under the National Security Adviser in the Prime Minister's Office. IAS officer Sameer Kumar Khare has been appointed as Joint Secretary in Department of Economic Affairs. IRS officer Shefali Shah and Indian Civil Accounts Service officer Padma Lochan Sahu have been appointed as Joint Secretaries in Culture Ministry, it said. Indian Forest Service officer Bipin Behari has been appointed as Joint Secretary in Department of Official Language for five years, the order said. Banks are expecting some specific measures, including additional budgetary allocation for capitalisation of public sector lenders, in the budget to deal with rising bad loans issue, says a study by Ficci and IBA. The Ficci-IBA Bankers survey, which was conducted during January-February 2016, highlights key operational areas of banks in India for July-December 2015 period. The survey saw participation by 17 banks including public, private and foreign banks. Most of the banks suggested for establishing a National Asset Management Company (NAMCO) or a Bad Bank which can take over stressed loans from them and either sell them off or revive them, the release said. Banks have also suggested for an additional budgetary allocation for capitalisation of public sector banks over and above the original commitments. They also want revamping of Debt Recovery Tribunals and setting up of a fund to aid revival of stalled infrastructure and power discom projects, the survey said. There has been a rise in NPAs and stressed assets during the period under review and the proportion of respondent banks reporting rise in the level of their non-performing assets (NPAs) is higher at 76 per cent in this round of survey as against 63 per cent in the previous round, finds the survey. "A majority 53 per cent of the respondent banks have also indicated that there has been a rise in the number of cases requesting for restructuring of advances," it said. The key sectors that have seen a surge in NPA levels in the second half of 2015 include infrastructure, metals, textiles, and chemicals, amongst others, as per the survey. Among others, most of the bank said the new lending rates based on Marginal Cost of Funds to be applicable from April 1, 2016 will lead to effective transmission of monetary policy into the lending rates. It was also revealed that majority (41 per cent) of the respondent banks reduced rate by 0.20-0.30 per cent, only 24 per cent cut the base rate by more than 0.40 per cent over the July-December 2015 period. This research helped establish the fact that, majority of the foreign tourists are aware of only a few well known destinations but are unaware of the new ones, or are bit hesitant to explore new and emerging tourist circuits in the state. "As knowledge partner MRSS has not only provided the data for the report but also has kept to the promise of 'actionable insights' by delivering a 12 point roadmap for UP tourism to be positively impacted", stated Raj Sharma, Chairman MRSSIndia.Com. Sarang Panchal, Managing Director,MRSS India.Com added, "MRSS continues to be a leading knowledge partner for various such properties and this is a starting point for such initiatives in the Tourism Industry". About MRSS INDIA Ltd. MRSS India relies exhaustively on usage of technology for data acquisition offering reliability, validity and faster turnaround times to its clients. The company has wide range of offerings such as eye tracking, mobile analytics, video analysis, facial recognition, digital tracking, online communities, neuroscience, emotional analysis, automated audience measurement, sensory sciences, etc. It is India's first and only listed market research company, and also a member of MRSI and DIN (Digital Insight Network - Global). MRSS India is a subsidiary of Majestic Market Research Support Services Limited , one of Asia's largest full service market research firm. MMRSS is a member of ESOMAR, QRCA, MRA, etc. with presence in 18 countries across Middle East and Asia Pacific region. Media Contact: Deepika Jagasia Deepika.Jagasia@majesticmrss.Com +91-9819390309 Corporate Communication Manager Majestic MRSS Photo: http://photos.Prnewswire.Com/prnh/20160224/10140876 http://photos.Prnewswire.Com/prnh/20130912/10075151-a Source: MRSS INDIA Ltd. At least 426 students, including girls, were expelled after being caught cheating during the Intermediate Examination that started today. The control room set up in Bihar School Examination Board (BSEB) said a total of 426 students were expelled across the state on the first day of the examination. Maximum 49 students were expelled in Munger district, followed by 48 in Aurangabad for using unfair means in the examination, the control room said. The BSEB has been making elaborate preparation to conduct a cheating-free examination this year to erase the bad name the state had earned after photographs of parents and friends supplying chits to examinees at a centre in Vaishali district had gone viral last year. New Education minister Ashok Choudhary had on several occasions talked about stringent arrangements to check copying in the board exam. A total of 11.57 lakh examinees are writing the Intermediate examination in Bihar at 1,109 centres. Despite putting elaborate arrangements, reports of cheating came from examination centres in many districts. Media reports highlighted that people vandalised a school in Chapra after they were not allowed to copy. People were shown climbing a school building in Vaishali district to provide chits to examinees at a centre. Move over, New York City: Beijing is the new "Billionaire Capital of the World." The Chinese capital has overtaken the Big Apple as home to the most billionaires 100 to 95 according to Hurun, a Shanghai firm that releases yearly rankings and research about the 1 per cent. The study, which comes months after reports suggested China now has more billionaires than the United States, highlights how China's elite are continuing to accrue vast wealth despite a wobbling stock market and tepid economy. Beijing took the title from New York after minting 32 new billionaires last year, while New York gained four. Moscow came in third place, with 66 billionaires, while Hong Kong and Shanghai came in fourth and fifth with 64 and 50, respectively. Government is considering a bill to make Aadhaar mandatory for securing benefits or subsidies funded from the consolidated fund of India. The new legislation to grant statutory footing to Aadhaar is proposed to be introduced as Aadhaar (Delivery of benefits, Subsidies and Services) Bill 2016 as Money Bill under Articles 109,110 of the Constitution of India, an official source told PTI. "The proposed Bill was seen by the Attorney General who has opined that the same can be introduced as a Money Bill as per Articles 109 and 110 of the Constitution of India," the source said. Government has plans to withdraw National Identification Authority of India Bill, 2010, from Rajya Sabha and replace it with the Aadhaar Bill on approval of the Cabinet. At present Unique Identification Authority of India, issuer of Aadhaar numbers, is functioning under an executive notification of the Planning Commission. In October 2015, Supreme Court has issued an interim order rejecting mandatory requirement of Aadhaar for availing benefits or subsidies or services of government and said that that the Aadhaar card scheme is purely voluntary and it cannot be made mandatory till the matter is finally decided by it. "To rule out an adverse order as well as provide a legal foundation for expanding the use of Aadhaar for a range of developmental purposes, it is necessary that the Aadhaar scheme be given a firm statutory footing," the source said. The official added that there is requirement of a framework which is essentially service delivery centric for effective implementation of Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) schemes. It is proposes that all benefits, subsidies or services funded from the consolidated fund of India should be through Aadhaar platform. The source said that the Bill will address issues of legislation, privacy, data security raised before the apex court. Till date over 98 crore Aadhaars have been generated. Per day average of 26 lakh biometric and over 1.5 lakh e-KYC transactions are made. Aadhaar numbers have been seeded in 11.19 crore DBTL accounts out of total 16.5 crore DBTL beneficiaries. Maintaining that "BJP is his first and last party", disgruntled MP Shatrughan Sinha today berated party leaders from Bihar for suggesting that he quit his Lok Sabha membership in the wake of his critical comments about affairs of the saffron outfit. The septuagenarian actor-politician said he has the highest regard for Prime Minister Narendra Modi. "Who is saying this, those who are responsible for the humiliating defeat in Bihar. Those who themselves are on their way out, those who are not able to show their faces. They are only giving vent to their frustration," he said. Such leaders should look their own credentials first, he told reporters here. "Let them look at their own credentials. They have made such a humiliating defeat. Who is the leader there? I feel some people, may be some small people are saying this. Bharatiya Janata Party is my first and last party," he said. The MP from Patna Sahib was replying to a query on the remarks of some BJP leaders in Bihar that Sinha should quit his Lok Sabha membership over his critical comments. "I have never ever gone against my party, against the Constitution. I never ever gone against my nation. I love my motherland. I am a very proud Indian. I have full faith in the Constitution. I have highest regard for our Prime Minister Narendra Modi. But, certain things which have happened, I wish, hope and pray that good sense will prevail upon our people and peace would return. "This chaotic situation we are going through, without blaming anyone, we only hope, sooner the better, the country would again be put back on the peace...," he said. When told he appeared to have earlier supported JNUSU President Kanhaiya Kumar, arrested on sedition charge, Sinha said he had spoken on the issue when it was not sub-judice and on the basis of material available to him then. "...We have the highest regard for judiciary. Let the judiciary decide (the case involving Kumar)," he said. Sinha was speaking on the sidelines of an event where his biography "Anything but Khamosh" was launched. Actor-turned-politician and former Union Minister Chiranjeevi, Malayalam superstar Mohanlal, Telugu actor Mohan Babu spoke on the occasion. The event was organised by Congress leader T Subbirami Reddy. The 57-year-old Union Minister of State for Railways and Communications, who represents Gorakhpur in the Lok Sabha, was initially admitted to Apollo Hospital and later shifted to the Railway Hospital. According to sources, the accident took place when the vehicle ahead of the minister's car in the cavalcade suddenly applied brakes to avoid hitting a man. The car carrying Sinha hit the vehicle from behind and in the impact, the minister sustained injury. The CPRO said the minister would be flown to Delhi tomorrow morning. Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu tweeted: "Shocked to learn about accident to my colleague and friend @manojsinhabjp Wishing him speedy recovery." Union Minister of Food and Public Distribution, Consumer Affairs, Ram Vilas Paswan also tweeted, "Very sad to hear about accident of my colleague Minister and friend Sh Manoj Sinha Ji. I Wish him speedy recovery. @manojsinhabjp. A threat to add countries who are slow to combat terrorism financing to a public black list has proved effective in pushing them into action, a top executive at an international task force said ahead of G20 talks on the topic opening Friday. Since the Paris attacks in November, some 50 countries have responded to a new call by the Paris-based Financial Action Task Force (FATF) for concrete steps to choke the funding of terrorist organisations, the body's executive secretary, David Lewis, told AFP. The threat of inclusion on the FATF's black list of governments failing to comply has been instrumental to get this response, he said in an interview, as states tried to avoid being named and shamed. "The prospect of the FATF taking such action has led to more than 50 countries amending legislation or being in the process of doing so," Lewis said. "So we see countries act very quickly to ensure that they do not get onto that list." The FATF's current black list includes North Korea, Afghanistan and Syria. Iran is also high on the list but Tehran, which last July signed a deal with western powers ending economic sanctions, has now signalled its willingness to cooperate, Lewis said. "Iran is coming back to the table. They have approached us. They have shown a willingness to start cooperating with us," he said. G20 countries asked the FATF to evaluate progress on measures against illicit money flows ahead of their meeting in Shanghai this week which will discuss the fight against terrorism financing. The FATF, created in 1989 to promote the fight against money laundering, terrorism financing and other threats to the international financial system, has found that governments' responses are still inadequate measured against the threats. The use of tools at governments' disposal "is much lower than it should be given the threat we face", Lewis said. "Only 36 countries have ever convicted someone for terrorism financing and only 40 have used targeted financial sanctions," he noted. Freezing assets is effective, but often takes up to a month to implement, Lewis said. "In a world where you can move funds in seconds online, that is not an adequate response to the threat we are facing," he said, adding his organisation had made a push for swifter action a priority. Targeting money flows exploits a major vulnerability of organisations like Islamic State who need massive funds to function, Lewis said. "They require substantial amounts of money to be able to operate, because they try to provide some of the services of a state. Bolivia's President Evo Morales reluctantly conceded defeat today in a weekend referendum aimed at delivering him a fourth term -- his first direct election loss since taking office a decade ago. "We have lost a democratic battle, but not the war," the indigenous leftwing leader said of the Sunday plebiscite that had proposed a constitutional reform to allow him to run for a new mandate. Morales, 56, had been refusing to accept defeat until the full count was in. But, with 99.72 per cent of votes tallied showing 51.3 per cent against the reform and 48.7 per cent in favor, he finally bowed to the outcome. "We respect the results, it is part of democracy," he told a press conference at the presidential palace, adding: "The struggle goes on." The official results were in line with exit polls published by private media since the weekend. Morales is already Bolivia's longest-serving leader since independence from Spain in 1825. Under Bolivia's constitution, the president gets a five-year mandate renewable just once. Morales already had the constitution changed once, three years after taking power in 2006. Under that revised constitution he was again elected president in 2009, then won his one-off renewal in 2014. His current term ends in 2020. He has wide support from indigenous groups and grassroots organizations in one of the Americas' poorest countries. Bolivia's mineral and gas-rich economy has more than tripled in size during his time in office. Opposition groups had feared Morales' delay in acknowledging the result might have indicated the government was preparing to manipulate the result. Groups had chanted "Fraud! Fraud! Fraud!" during a sit-in outside the La Paz office where votes were being counted late Monday. However, the general mood across the country of 10 million was calm. Opposition figures celebrated their victory, especially in anti-Morales bastions such as Potosi and Santa Cruz. "We have recovered democracy and the right to choose," said Samuel Doria Medina, whom Morales twice defeated in presidential elections. Despite Morales' declaration that his Socialist "struggle" would continue regardless of the poll loss, the president is on the record as saying he was ready to go quietly into political retirement. Government bonds (G-Secs) prices remained bearish for the third-straight day due to consistent profit-taking by market participants and lack of demand from corporates. Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) and retail investors did not want to take positions ahead of the Union Budget, a trader commented.. Read our full coverage on Union Budget 2016 Interbank call money rates recovered modestly on the back of some demand from borrowing banks amid tight liquidity conditions in the banking system. The 7.59% government security maturing in 2026 declined to Rs 98.34 from Rs 98.41 yesterday, while its yield moved up to 7.83% from 7.82%. The 7.88% government security maturing in 2030 moved down to Rs 97.35 as compared to Rs 97.45 previously, while its yield rose to 8.20% from 8.19%. The 8.27 % government security maturing in 2020 fell to 101.3050% from to 101.47, while its yield firmed up to 7.90% from 7.85%. The 7.72% government security maturing in 2025, the 7.59% government security maturing in 2029 and the 7.68% government security maturing in 2023 were also quoted lower at Rs 98.03, Rs 95.4150 and Rs 97.89, respectively. The overnight call money rates ended firmly higher at 6.95% from Tuesday's finish of 6.30%. It largely moved in range of 7.15% and 6.50% in early trade. Meanwhile, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), under the Liquidity Adjustment Facility (LAF), purchased securities worth Rs 208.31 billion in 43-bids at one-day repo auction at a fixed rate of 6.75% Wednesday evening, while it sold securities worth Rs 49.88 billion from 29-bids at the one-day reverse repo auction at a fixed rate of 5.75% late on Tuesday. A brain dead engineering student has given new lease of life to eight persons who were transplanted with vital organs harvested from him. A team of doctors from Kovai Medical Center and Hospital (KMCH) and Coimbatore government hospital harvested Ramesh's heart, liver, pancreas, kidneys, eyes and skin, this morning. While the liver and one of the kidneys were given to KMCH, the heart and pancreas were sent to private hospitals in Chennai, and the other kidney, eyes and the skin were sent to private hospitals in the city, which gave new lease of life to eight persons, a KMCH release said. Ramesh, an engineering student, met with an accident near Dharapuram in Tirupur district on February 22, while returning home from college on his motorcycle. Though passersby rushed him to Dharapuram Government Hospital, Ramesh, who suffered serious head injuries, was later shifted to KMCH. He was declared brain dead the next day morning and his family agreed to donate the organs, the release said. The Union Cabinet was today apprised of an agreement between India and France to establish a joint committee on science and technology cooperation. India and France signed the agreement on January 25 here. Under the arrangement, the committee would identify, establish synergy and define priorities for Indo-French cooperation in science, technology and innovation aimed at achieving economic and social development, a statement said. The agreement came in the backdrop of enhanced scientific and technological cooperation between the two countries, and the role played by multiple national science and technology agencies of both countries in promoting this partnership. A candle light march at India Gate demanding justice for late Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula was today foiled as they had not taken permission and several protesters were detained following which his mother Radhika lit candles outside the Tilak Marg police station. "We were doing a peaceful candle march at India Gate and my mother and female protesters were dragged by police," Rohith's younger brother Raja said. The detained persons were taken to Tilak Marg police station in the afternoon and released after nearly an hour. While detained persons were inside the police station, Rohith's mother lit candles outside the station demanding their release. CPI MP D Raja also arrived at the police station to talk to the police over the issue. "The protesters had not sought permission from the police, so we detained around 70-80 of them from India Gate when they tried to go ahead to hold the event. They were flouting Section 144 of the IPC. We released them after an hour," said a senior police official of Tilak Marg police station. Students from different universities, including Hyderabad Central University and JNU had planned to hold the event under the banner, Joint Action Committee for Social Justice. The event was announced from the dais at Jantar Mantar yesterday where a public rally was held demanding justice for Rohith, a PhD scholar, who was found hanging in a hostel room at the Hyderabad Central University campus on January 17. BJP-ruled Chhattisgarh has recorded a staggering 340 per cent increase, highest among all the states, in the atrocities against Scheduled Castes between 2013 and 2014, Rajya Sabha was informed today. The figures from National Crime Records Bureau were provided by Minister of State for Home Affairs Haribhai Parathibhai Chaudhary in Rajya Sabha. The figures show 242 cases were registered for crimes against persons belonging to Scheduled Castes in 2013 whereas in the year 2014 the number went to 1,066. Delhi recorded an increase of 55 per cent from 55 in 2013 to 87 in 2014. Haryana recorded 68.3 per cent increase in the crime against the Scheduled Castes from 493 in 2013 to 830 in 2014 while Madhya Pradesh recorded an increase of 40.9 per cent from 2,945 in 2013 to 4,151 in 2014. Rajasthan recorded an increase of 23.9 per cent from 6,475 in 2013 to 4,151 in 2014 and Uttarakhand recorded an increase of 44.2 per cent from 34 in 2013 to 61 in 2014. Bihar recorded an increase of 17 per cent in cases from 6,721 in 2013 to 7,893 in 2014. States such as Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Jharkhand, Assam, Gujarat, Odisha, Punjab have recorded decrease in such crimes between 2013 and 2014. China has deployed fighter jets to the same contested island in the South China Sea to which it also has sent surface-to-air missiles, US officials said today. Citing two unnamed US officials, Fox News said US intelligence services had spotted Chinese Shenyang J-11 and Xian JH-7 warplanes on Woody Island in the disputed Paracel Islands chain over the past few days. Navy Captain Darryn James, a spokesman for US Pacific Command, confirmed the report but noted that Chinese fighter jets have previously used the island. Woody Island, which is also claimed by Taiwan and Vietnam, has had an operational airfield since the 1990s but it was upgraded last year to accommodate the J-11. "We are still concerned that the Chinese continue to put advanced arms systems on this disputed territory," James said. The move was reported as US Secretary of State John Kerry hosted his Chinese counterpart, Foreign Minister Wang Yi, in Washington. Last week, China confirmed it had placed "weapons" on Woody Island, defending what it said was its sovereign right to do so. A US official told AFP that Beijing has deployed surface-to-air missiles on the island, apparently HQ-9s, which have a range of about 125 miles (200 kilometers.) Wang had been scheduled to visit the Pentagon earlier yesterday but the visit was canceled due to a "scheduling conflict," officials said. On Monday, the Washington-based Center for Strategic and Studies released satellite imagery showing what appeared to be a high-frequency radar installation under construction on an artificial island on Cuarteron Reef in the Spratlys. China's land reclamation and military buildup in the South China Sea have drawn condemnation and the United States has said it will continue to sail through waters claimed by Beijing. The United States and China have made progress toward agreeing on a United Nations sanctions resolution to punish North Korea for its recent nuclear tests, the powers' top diplomats have said. After talks in Washington, China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi and US Secretary of State John Kerry said the terms of the resolution were still being evaluated but that they hoped to agree on a draft in the coming days. "I would like to tell you important progress has been made in the consultations and we are looking at the possibility of reaching agreement on a draft resolution and passing it in the near future," Wang said yesterday, while Kerry hailed "significant progress." Both men said the goal of the eventual sanctions is not to worsen the standoff with Kim Jong-un's isolated North Korean regime, but to persuade him to resume talks on ending his nuclear program and rejoining the community. "We have made significant progress, it has been very constructive in the last days, and there is no question that if the resolution is approved, it will go beyond anything that we have previously passed," Kerry said. "I believe that what we are considering is significant but, as I say, it is in the appropriate evaluative stages and we both hope that this can move forward very soon." Wang said Washington and Beijing are in agreement that Pyongyang cannot be allowed to develop nuclear weapons and said China's difficult neighbor should return to six-party talks. "We do not accept the DPRK's nuclear missile program and we do not recognize the DPRK as a nuclear weapons state," he said, using the abbreviation for North Korea's official name. Kerry said that if North Korea agrees to de-nuclearization "over a period of time," then Washington would be ready to negotiate a formal peace deal to officially end the hostilities that began with the outbreak of the Korean War in 1950. A Christian organisation has sought ban on publication of a controversial book penned by brother of Hindutva ideologue V D Savarkar, claiming Jesus Christ was a Tamil Hindu. The book - Christ Parichay - is being re-launched 70 years after it was first published. The United Christians Council, an NGO, today asked Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis to ensure the publication doesn't take place. "The contents of the book are defamatory and will evoke strong emotions in the community," it said in a letter. "There will be a law and order situation in case the publication takes place," it said. The book, penned by Ganesh Savarkar, elder brother of V D Savarkar, is scheduled to be re-launched here on February 26, the death anniversary of the Hindutva icon, President, Swatantryaveer Savarkar National Memorial, Ranjit Savarkar said. The book, first published in 1946, also claims that Christianity was initially a Hindu cult and that Jesus died and attained 'Samadhi' in Kashmir. Asked about the claims in the book, senior priest and director of the Bombay Archdiocesan Heritage Museum, Father Warner D'Souza, said such books will not shake the faith of Christians. America's top spy said in an interview today that he supports the FBI's high-profile battle to force to unlock an iPhone used by one of the San Bernardino attackers. In a conversation with National Public Radio, Central Intelligence Agency Director John Brennan said the public would never accept criminals or terrorists having exclusive access to a physical storage box, and asked why an encrypted phone should be treated any differently. "What would people say if a bank had a safe-deposit box, or a storage company had a storage bin, that individuals could use and access and store things, but the government was not going to be able to have any access to those environments?" Brennan asked. "The FBI clearly has a legitimate basis to try to understand what is on a phone that is part of a very active investigation." is at the heart of a closely watched legal battle after a US judge ordered the tech giant to find a way to unlock the encrypted iPhone in question, which belonged to Syed Farook, a US citizen. Along with his Pakistani wife Tashfeen Malik, Farook gunned down 14 people in the Californian city of San Bernardino in December. Investigators want help hacking the device, and have demanded Apple's technical assistance in at least 10 other cases. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has said he is "sympathetic" with Apple's quandary and other tech firms have offered guarded support. Microsoft founder Bill Gates has straddled the issue, saying in a BBC interview that there should be a debate over whether governments "should be able to access information at all or should they be blind." However, he disputed a report by the Financial Times that he "backed" the FBI in the case. The newspaper later changed its headline to reflect Gates's subsequent comments. Brennan was also asked more broadly about the general threat of terrorism. He said that even though al-Qaeda has been "neutered" in many regions, the global terror risk has grown considerably with the rise of the Islamic State group, whose targets seem to know few boundaries. "It's seen as more of a threat (than al-Qaeda,) not just to individuals, but also to economic and commercial and other types of interests globally," Brennan said. Raising the pitch on the JNU issue, BJP chief Amit Shah today said Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi and other opposition leaders should clarify in the Parliament if "anti-national" slogans should be tolerated in the name of freedom of speech. Attacking Rahul Gandhi, who had joined the agitating JNU students, Shah alleged that he was supporting the forces dividing the country for "votebank ." "Today the debate is being held in the Parliament on whether raising anti- slogans should be tolerated in the name of freedom of speech or not. I specially want to ask Congress and its workers, whether those raising slogans like 'Afzal Guru tere hatrayre zinda hain' and 'Bharat ke tukde honge' were traitors or not," Shah said at a public meeting at the unveiling of the statue of 11th century king of Shravasti, Raja Suheldeo. "I want that members of all parties sitting in the biggest panchayat of the country, which is the Parliament should clarify whether raising anti- slogans was freedom of speech or sedition. This also has to be decided by the people of the country," he added. Targeting Rahul Gandhi, Shah remarked, "I want to ask him to clarify before the people, whether he supports the anti- slogans...If not, then he should condemn it." "Rahulji don't stoop so low for votebank . The country got freedom due to the sacrifice of thousands of martyrs. You are supporting the forces dividing the country in the name of freedom of speech," he said Rahul Gandhi has come out in support of JNU students, who are protesting the arrest of JNU Students' Union leader Kanhaiya Kumar on sedition charges, and has accused the RSS and BJP of imposing their ideology. Describing the contribution of Raja Suheldeo, Shah said his name is taken with pride not only in Uttar Pradesh but the entire country. As Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu gets ready to present Rail Budget, commuters and activists are hoping he pays attention to improve safety on the suburban network, where passenger deaths are a major concern. On the Rail Budget eve, a group of transport activists today highlighted the issue of alarming rise in number of passenger deaths, mostly due to crossing of tracks and falling off crowded trains, and demanded a separate zone for local services in Mumbai to address the woes of commuters. Protesters under the banner of Observers Research Foundation (ORF) led by its chief Sudheendra Kulkarni and rail activist Sameer Jhaveri gathered at Azad Maidan in South Mumbai to raise a slew of issues. Holding banners and posters, they appealed to the Minister to make necessary provisions to safeguard the lives of nearly eight million passengers travelling daily in suburban trains. "An analysis of the budgetary allocations made to Mumbai over the last three years shows the suburban network is almost always ignored in the Railway Ministry's overall scheme of things. And if a few were announced, they were hardly implemented," said Kulkarni. He demanded that the suburban services of Central and Western Railway be merged into a common zone. This unified zone should eventually be converted into an autonomous body which may be called the "Mumbai Metropolitan Region Railway Corporation" (MMRRC). "Is the life of eight million Mumbaikars, who commute daily on local trains, so cheap that Railway Ministry in New Delhi continues to ignore the death of nearly 3,500 people in 'accidents' on tracks each year? Mumbai's suburban network needs immediate and sustainable solutions to stop these avoidable deaths," said Dhaval Desai, an associate of ORF. Speaking on the occasion, the activists listed a number of demands. These included urgent and result-oriented measures to end all forms of trespassing by constructing subways and connecting all platforms, introducing standard practices in time of accidents, creating new suburban railway hubs and terminus to ensure better dispersal of commuter traffic. They demanded fast-tracking of the work on extending Harbour Line (of Central Railway) to Borivali from Andheri. Accusing Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis of indulging in nepotism, Congress today questioned Maharashtra government's move to make beneficiaries of Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA) scheme and slum developers open bank accounts in a private sector bank, where his wife works in a senior position. Addressing a press meet here, former Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) president Manikrao Thakre alleged that the SRA, headed by the Chief Minister, was giving business to the bank as the CM's wife was associated with it. "The Chief Minister has flouted prescribed norms by choosing Axis Bank, a private lender, and not a scheduled or a nationalised bank for the government scheme," he said. Amruta Fadnavis works as a Deputy Vice President (Transactional Banking) of Axis Bank and is positioned as its central officer in Worli in south Mumbai. "The SRA is under the Chief Minister and it is surprising to note that why only one branch of Axis Bank at Worli (in Mumbai) was chosen by the department," Thakre said. All the SRA account holders, right from Thane to Mumbai, have been asked to operate from Worli branch of Axis bank. There are about 1,200 builders engaged in the SRA work and every individual (beneficiary) deposits in the range of Rs 10,000 to Rs 15,000 per month, Thakre said. "This is a clear case of nepotism and corruption," he alleged. Meanwhile, BJP rubbished Congress's claims, saying Fadnavis does not oversee the day-to-day functioning of SRA and, therefore, has no relation with Axis Bank opening of beneficiaries' bank under the scheme. "The SRA works independently and the CM does not oversee its day-to-day activities and thus cannot favour his wife for opening of beneficiaries' under the scheme," BJP spokesperson Madhav Bhandari told PTI. The previous Congress government had also issued orders for working with this bank, the BJP leader said, adding, there was nothing new in this. "If the government has decided to work with the bank, it is because of its working style. Neither the CM nor his wife has any relation with the issuance of the Government Resolution (GR)," he said. When contacted, a spokesperson of Axis Bank said, "The bank has always been one of the leading players in this area with long-standing relationships with several central and state government departments, including those in Maharashtra." "Enhanced customer experience, superior technology and competitive pricing have been the key drivers for us in securing government business over the years," the bank official added. A Congress MLA today demanded a probe into alleged illegal coal transport to brick kiln owners in Barkakana constituency in Ramgarh district. The MLA, Nirmala Devi, raised the issue during Zero Hour of the Jharkhand Assembly. The lawyer of the jailed quota agitation leader Hardik Patel today argued before the Surat sessions court that a personal talk with a friend cannot be used as a ground to slap the serious charge of sedition. Hardik, who is leading the Patel community's agitation for reservations, has sought bail from the Surat court. Apart from Surat, he is facing a sedition case in Ahmedabad too. At present he is lodged in Lajpore jail here. After hearing the arguments of Hardik's lawyer Zubin Bharda, principal district judge Geeta Gopi adjourned the hearing to February 26 when the public prosecutor is expected to argue. Surat police registered a case of sedition against Hardik on October 18 last year for allegedly advising a Patel youth, Vipul Desai, to kill policemen rather than committing suicide. "If you have so much courage...Then go and kill a couple of policemen. Patels never commit suicide," Hardik allegedly told Desai on October 3 in front of TV reporters. Advocate Bharda today argued that Hardik's conversation with Desai was personal and not meant for telecast as he had not invited the reporters of news-channels to cover his informal meeting with Desai. The Patel leader was only trying to console Desai, his friend, he said, adding such a personal communication can not be used as a ground for sedition charge. While the meeting with Desai took place on October 3, the FIR was filed on October 18. In the meantime Desai or any other Patel youth did not indulge in violence, which proved that Hardik did not mean to instigate the agitators, the lawyer said. Also, as the chargesheet was already filed, Hardik should be given bail, he added. The Delhi High Court on Wednesday deferred the bail petition of JNUSU President Kanhaiya Kumar to February 29. The court's decision came after Delhi Police told the court that further custodial interrogation of Kanhaiya Kumar is required following the arrests of two other accused students, Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya in the sedition case. Read more from our special coverage on "JNU ROW" As soon as the hearing on Kanhaiya's bail plea commenced before Justice Pratibha Rani, Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Tushar Mehta told the court that police have a statutory right to take police custody of an accused for 15 days and that due to new developments Kanhaiya's custodial remand was necessary. "After yesterday's development, two of the accused have surrendered and are in safe custody. Their remand is yet to be taken. In the backdrop of the new development and as per our statutory right of 15 days police custody of an accused, we will be seeking remand of Kanhaiya Kumar to confront him with Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya," Mehta submitted. The ASG said, "Our right cannot be curtailed and the present bail petition be deferred." However, during the hearing, when the court was informed about violence at Patiala House court complex during Kanhaiya's remand proceedings, the bench observed, "We have to ensure that no one suffers even a scratch this time. The Registrar of the Delhi High Court and the police should ensure that no ruckus, as happened in the past, should take place while the accused are being produced." Then Mehta told the court to defer the bail petition in wake of the new development. Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for Kanhaiya, contended that as per the status report filed by Delhi Police, in pursuance to the court's direction yesterday, there was no evidence of any anti-India slogans being raised by his client. "I would like to tell the court that in the light of the status report filed by the police, there is no evidence of anti-India slogans raised by Kanhaiya. So he should be granted bail," Sibal said. Mehta, however, said that as per the new circumstances and evidence which have emerged, Kanhaiya is required to be confronted with the two arrested accused. Kanhaiya, who was arrested on February 12, was in police custody till February 17. He was then remanded to judicial custody till March 2 amidst violence on the court premises during the remand proceedings. A number of journalists, students and teachers were attacked by a group of lawyers. A subsequent sting operation by India Today showed that some of these lawyers had also managed to beat up Kumar for almost three hours even in police custody. One of those lawyers, Yashpal Singh, was arrested but granted bail. Leading bourse BSE today said companies seeking revocation of their suspension from the stock exchange can file applications on the exchange's web-based portal, a move that would help expedite the process for such firms. "As a further step in providing automated solutions to listed corporates, companies whose securities have been suspended from trading and are now seeking revocation, can also submit their applications for revocation along with the supporting documents thereon, through the 'Listing Center' portal," BSE said in a statement today. "This facility would make the filing process with the exchange easier, more convenient and faster," it added. The web portal provides a single point resource for companies to file various submissions/ disclosure documents as well as track past filings. It also provides an instant confirmation of the filing done, to the company. BSE had recently framed a procedure to help firms, suspended on account of non-compliance with listing norms, to meet the necessary regulatory requirements expeditiously. Under the new procedure, BSE-listed firms are required to meet with the compliances to revoke their suspension, within a prescribed time limit, and failure to complete the process would result in compulsory delisting of such companies from the stock exchange. Companies accessing the Listing Centre would be allotted a unique case number, upon filing of their application, that would need to be quoted for all future filings done by the company for its revocation. Suspended companies can obtain user credentials for the Listing Centre by writing to bsehelp@bseindia.Com. With a view to reform an 18-year-old college student involved in a group clash, a local court today asked him to memorise 100 couplets from Tamil treatise 'Thirukkural', while granting him bail. Judicial magistrate Vivekanandar, who did not want Shenbagamurthy to appear before police "considering his tender age", directed him to memorise 100 Thirukkural couplets along with their meaning and appear before the court on March 7. Police had registered cases against 10 people and produced Shenbagamurthy in court in connection with the recent group clash here, in which one student was injured. The magistrate observed that if a young boy is asked to sign at the police station, he may be affected psychologically. "Considering the tender age of the student, he is directed to memorise 100 Tirukural couplets on topics, including discipline, Vekulaamai (not getting angry), Theevinai (Unworthy act), Oppuravu (help), Kutram kadithal (punishment for crimes)." The student should be produced before the court on March 7, the judge said. A Delhi court today reserved for March 16 its order on a plea seeking registration of an FIR against Aam Aadmi Party leader Kumar Vishwas for allegedly molesting a party volunteer. Metropolitan Magistrate Pankaj Sharma reserved the order on the plea in which the complainant has claimed that she had approached the police but no action was taken against the leader. In its status report filed before the court, the Delhi police had said that during its probe, nothing was found to substantiate the allegations levelled by the complainant against Vishwas to register any criminal case against him. The court had on December 21 asked the police to file a status report as to whether any FIR has been registered on the complaint. The woman, in her complaint seeking registration of FIR against Vishwas, has alleged that he had molested her here. The CPI(M) and the Congress, which are in talks for a possible alliance for the upcoming state assembly polls, today organised a joint rally in the Raidighi area of South 24 Parganas district against the "communal" BJP and the "undemocratic" TMC. West Bengal Congress General Secretary Omprakash Mishra said it was the first such big rally in South 24 Parganas district where senior leaders of both parties marched together holding the respective flags of their parties. "Today we took out a massive rally against the communal and undemocratic forces like BJP and TMC," Mishra said. Mishra said the rally signified how grassroot-level workers were in favour of an alliance between the Congress and the CPI-M. CPI(M) leader Sujan Chakraborty said, "Those who are in favour of secular and democratic forces in the state and the Centre and those who want peace in the state were present in the rally." West Bengal Congress had hailed the decision of the CPI(M) seeking cooperation from all democratic forces by stating that every secular party in the state should respect the aspirations of the masses. Cuba and the European Union are set to resume talks on normalizing relations next week as an agreement appears in sight, the EU office in Havana said today. The European Union suspended relations with Havana in 2003 over a crackdown on journalists and activists, but both sides are now pushing a new accord in the wake of a historic rapprochement between Washington and Havana. Negotiators for both sides will meet in Havana on March 3 and 4 for a seventh round of talks, a statement from the office of the EU representative in Cuba said. Talks will be headed by the EU's Christian Leffler and Cuban deputy foreign minister Abelardo Moreno, the statement said. Cuba is the only Latin American country without a framework cooperation agreement with the European Union. The final points still to be hammered out include reaching a consensus on the issue of human rights, according to European diplomatic sources. The EU moved to accelerate the process of normalizing relations, which began in mid-2014, after Havana and Washington announced a historic detente, restoring diplomatic relations in July 2015. Cuba has been pushing the European Union to scrap its nearly 20-year "common position," which makes restoring European ties with the island contingent on democratic reforms. The European Union is currently Cuba's second most important trading partner after Venezuela. The Cuban government loosened travel restrictions on some of the island's best-known dissidents, granting them one-time permission to travel abroad ahead of President Barack Obama's trip to the island, activists said today. Obama has said his March 21-22 trip to Havana is designed to push the Cuban government to improve conditions for its people. Critics say Obama is rewarding the Cuban government despite its refusal to give citizens the ability to freely vote for their leaders and exercise their rights to free speech and assembly. Members of a group of 11 dissidents imprisoned during the 2003 crackdown known as the Black Spring said today that officials have told seven of them that they will be free to travel one time as a reward for good behavior. Four more-politically active members of the group remain unable to travel, the dissidents said. Activist Marta Beatriz Roque said that she and six other former prisoners were contacted by Cuban immigration officials on Sunday and told to report to state offices the following day. There, they were told that they would be able to travel overseas once and return to Cuba. She said she intended to travel to the United States to see family as soon as she was able. She credited the Cuban government decision to Obama's upcoming trip but criticized the one-off nature of the permits and the fact that four of the more active former Black Spring prisoners remained under travel bans. "It's a concession for Obama's visit," she said. "But I also think that Cuba's doing it so that some of us say, 'OK, if I can't travel again, I'm going to stay." Dissident Jorge Olivera, a former state television editor, said he was assessing whether he could now accept a yearlong fellowship at a US university that he was granted while under the travel ban. He also complained about ongoing restrictions on fellow former prisoners, including Jose Daniel Ferrer, head of the Patriotic Union of Cuba dissident group that is active in eastern Cuba. "They told some of us that this was because of good behavior," he said. "In reality, it's totally arbitrary. Maharashtra government today told the Bombay High Court that it would install CCTVs cameras in 25 police stations across the state by March-end on a pilot basis in view of the increasing number of custodial deaths. Additional public prosecutor Mankhuvar Deshmukh informed a division bench of Justices V M Kanade and Revati Mohite Dere that bids have been allotted and work orders will be issued within a week and by the end of March cameras will be fitted in all the rooms of 25 police stations. This will be implemented in other police stations as well. The high court was hearing a bunch of petitions, including a public interest litigation, on the increasing number of custodial death cases in the state. In 2014, the state recorded 17 cases of custodial deaths, while last year 14 such cases were registered. Deshmukh further told the court that the government has asked the state CID to submit monthly reports on custodial deaths to the judicial registrar of the high court. The reports will have columns mentioning name, address of the police station, FIR lodge date and other relevant information. The court today asked the government to set up a committee of three members headed by the Commissioner of Police to study and find a solution to custodial deaths. The petitions will be heard on April 11. Karnataka government today raised questions in the Supreme Court about crores of rupees allegedly received as gift by AIADMK Chief and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa from party cadres on her birthdays, saying these earnings cannot be said to be from "lawful source of income". Continuing his arguments, senior advocate Dushyant Dave, who is appearing for Karnataka in the disproportionate assets case, questioned the methodlogy adopted by the High Court in computing assets of Jayalalithaa. "Can the Rs 1.5 crore received from (party) cadres as gifts on birthdays be said to be lawful source of income. It can't be. Then tomorrow every politician will go and do the same thing. All the politicians are revered by their cadres," Dave told the bench of justices P C Ghose and Amitava Roy. The Karnataka government is arguing its appeal in the case as the trial was shifted from Tamil Nadu and a Bangalore court had convicted the accused including Jayalalithaa who had succeeded in her challenge before the High Court there. "These leaders are like demi gods. They command enormous power. They have the capacity to subvert the system to their advantage. It is a reality," Dave said. He said that the high court had accepted the contention of the accused that the gifts received by Jayalalitha on her birthday and also for her son's wedding have to be included in the income and has concluded that the income from gifts would be estimated as Rs 1.5 crore. Dave also questioned the loan of Rs 15 crore taken by Jaya Publication in which AIADMK chief and her close aide were partners and said no authority was intimated during the check period between 1991 and 1996. "Here loan was taken but no authority was intimated about it during the check period. Each of these defence taken by the accused were clear cut after thought and a carefully crafted legal advice," Dave said. He added that no one can tell the Income Tax department five years later that you had taken so much loan and acquired properties from that amount. "The intimation has to be done at that time. Being a public servant you need to intimate the authorities concerned about any loan taken or acquiring properties," Dave said. To this the bench said that is there any rule or law in Karnataka which mandates the public authority to disclose his or her assets while holding the office. The senior advocate further said that under civil service conduct rules government servants have to disclose their assets and income but they are unaware of any law in Tamil Nadu as the state has not rendered any cooperation. The bench said it is not the question of cooperation given or not and if there exists any rule or law, the court can order for it. The hearing remained inconclusive and will continue tomorrow. The apex court had yesterday commenced final hearing on various appeals including the one filed by Karnataka against the acquittal of AIADMK supremo Jayalalithaa and others in the case. Karnataka had said that the High Court's order acquitting Jayalalithaa and others needs to be set aside as there were glaring mistakes. On July 27, last year the apex court had issued notices on Karnataka government's appeal seeking stay of the high court judgement to Jayalalithaa, Sasikala and her relatives V N Sudhakaran and Elavarasi, asking them to file their replies within eight weeks. The apex court had earlier allowed an intervention application by BJP leader Subramanian Swamy in the matter and asked him to file the 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 last year order, claimed that HC had 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. Jharkhand Chief Minister Raghubar Das today asked the Opposition not to politicise development matters after former chief minister Hemant Soren picked holes in the state's 2016/17 state Budget. Replying to the debate over the Budget, Das asked Soren to know the meaning of struggle and poverty before politicising development schemes. "I alone know the struggle in my life as a mazdoor (labourer). I can't compromise on the interests of the poor as I had seen poverty from close," Das said while replying to the debate. Taking on the Opposition for repeatedly raking up tribal interests being "compromised due to a non-tribal Chief Minister," Das asked them what welfare works had been done in the last 15 years? For the first time in the history of Jharkhand, the government had tabled an action taken report on its works underlined in the 2015/16 Budget, he said. He said issues like education, rural irrigation, employment, welfare programmes for the poor in rural areas should be kept away from politics. Reacting to Opposition criticism of 'Yojana Banao Abhian' (public campaign for creating schemes), Das said even this effort had not gone down well with the Opposition. He said he has not come to rule, but to work and would work for the people as long he was there. Das, however, praised Soren and Congress MLA Sukhdeo Bhagat for apprising the people of the campaign in their respective constituencies. The Chief Minister said he was working on the pattern of 'village secretariat' in which villagers could prepare their own schemes at their village level. Das said he had promised the people that he would get rid of middlemen in government schemes and he would fulfil the pledge. The state has given emphasis on progress of women as village economy has a big role, he said. Earlier in his speech, Soren alleged a misinformation campaign had been launched that the state could not progress since its creation due to tribal chief ministers and development was going on under a non-tribal chief minister. He termed the Budget as "soul-less" and said it was "silent" on the landless, the youth, drought and relief measures. Soren claimed the state's Economic Survey has showed GSDP being doubled in the last 11 years, per capita income doubled in the last 10/12 years, there was drop in poverty by 7.3 per cent, an increase in literacy rate by 14.1 per cent, which were achieved when Jharkhand was under tribal chief ministers. The Delhi High Court today allowed the Delhi government to go forward with the appointment of Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission (DERC) chairperson. A bench of Chief Justice G Rohini and Justice Jayant Nath, however, clarified that it would be subject to final orders of this court on the PIL which had challenged the appointment process by the government. The high court passed the order after the counsel for the Delhi government told the bench that it has shortlisted names of candidates which are kept in a sealed cover and sought its nod for the appointment process. The matter will now be taken up for hearing on March 11. The direction came while hearing a PIL by Delhi resident Raman Suri challenging the Delhi government' December 2015 notification seeking applications for the post of DERC chairperson and one member. The Delhi government had told the court that notification had been issued under the existing provisions, which allow for the appointment of a sitting or former judge as the chairperson if so decided by the government. Suri, in his PIL through advocate Sujatha Balachander, had contended that the chairperson of the commission should be a former high court judge, since the adjudication of disputes between generating companies or transmission licensees is a "judicial function". It had challenged section 84 of the Electricity Act 2003, arguing that the provision that a judge "may" be appointed should be read as mandatory. The PIL had sought an interim stay on the process of appointment, claiming that "valuable rights of the public" would be affected if the appointment was allowed to go on. Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah today accused the Centre of "slowly doing away" with the conditions on which the accession of the state to the Union of India had taken place, saying New Delhi has failed to keep its side of the agreement. He said the responsibility of maintaining the basis of J-K's accession to India lay more with the Centre than the people of Jammu and Kashmir. "We should say this with courage that if the accession of Jammu and Kashmir happened, it happened on certain conditions. You cannot compare us with Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal because they acceded to India without any condition. "We had put conditions. We said we will join you but it should be your responsibility to look after three things - Finance, Communication and Defence, Foreign Affairs only and the rest will be ours. This is what we called autonomy. What justice is this that even as we stand on our agreement, Delhi has not kept its word," the National Conference (NC) working president said addressing party workers on the first death anniversary of the party's former general secretary Sheikh Nazir. He said it is an "ironic arrangement" that on one hand you tell us to talk about accession but "you are slowly doing away with those conditions on which that accession happened." "What type of agreement is this? If the accession has happened on certain basis, it is your responsibility to maintain that basis much more than it is the responsibility of the people of Jammu and Kashmir. "I seek forgiveness, but they (Centre) have failed to fulfil their responsibility. That is why the situation in the state has deteriorated to such an extent," Omar said. Referring to the controversy over the state having a separate flag after a BJP member challenged it in a court, he said, the people of Jammu and Kashmir will protect the state's flag till their death. "We have inherited the state's flag when we acceded with you (India), but who are you to snatch our flag away? This flag is our identity, it is our mark. The three lines on it are of Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh and we will protect this flag till our death," Omar said. Maintaining that the issue of Jammu and Kashmir was political and can only be resolved politically, he said it was surprising that some people thought even today that the solution to it lay in money. He alleged that PDP wanted only money and not asking for anything political (from the BJP) to form the government in the state. (Reopens DES47) "These ink-pot people (symbol of PDP) are not asking for anything political to form the government. They want money in their kitty. The militant who picks up gun, he does not pick it up for money. "The issue of Jammu and Kashmir was never of money. It is a political issue and has to be solved politically. So, if (PDP president) Mehbooba (Mufti) sacrifices her political agenda and hopes that people will laud her for getting the money, then that will not happen," Omar said. He said he will be the first person to laud Mehbooba if she gets any political package for the state. "If you (Mehbooba) want to get anything for the state (before the government formation), then you should get a political package and I will be the first person to stand and laud you," he said. The NC working president said some people at the Centre were under the wrong impression that the solution to militancy in the state lies in a financial package. "No one could get more money than (former Prime Minister) Bakshi Ghulam Mohammad, but even then he could not wipe Sher-e -Kashmir (Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah) out from people's hearts. "Even now, some people at the Centre are under this wrong impression that the money will be able to wipe the sentiment from the hearts of the youths of Kashmir, which is impossible. The solution to that sentiment does not lie in money," Omar said. On the issue of government formation by PDP and BJP, Omar said he failed to understand why the two parties were not forming the government despite having numbers. "They have the numbers in the Assembly. Governor's rule is imposed when no one has the numbers in the assembly, which is known as breakdown of constitutional order as there is no opportunity for any party to form a government. "Both the parties say they are together and, if that is the case, then they have numbers and if they have numbers, why there isn't a government?" he said. Omar, however, said today people do not care for government formation as the previous PDP-BJP government had washed away all their hopes. "Today, the situation in the state is such that they (police) are afraid of even handing over dead bodies of militants to the people. "We (NC) may have done lakhs of mistakes but we did not take the state to such a situation. Today, the bodies of militants have to be buried secretly in the border areas of Uri because of apprehension of law and order. This is what the government that was here for 10 months has given to J&K. People have not benefited in any way," he said. Noting that PDP President Mehbooba Mufti was right in saying (during her meeting with the Governor) that she does not have the experience and the ability to run the government, Omar said, "You get to know about the abilities of the person when he or she sits on the (chief ministerial) chair. I am not making fun of her, but her understating is right." When Mehbooba said she wants CBMs before forming the government, the NC had asked her what her demands were from the Centre but there was no response, he added. "Then (senior PDP leader) Muzaffar Baig said the party has not demanded any CBMs and that the agenda (of the alliance) is sacred. Perhaps, they do not understand the meaning of the term sacred and which book is called sacred. "One says CBMs, other says no CBMs and a third one comes to Srinagar secretly in the night and then leaves without saying anything. It is as if they think it is some joke or some game that is being played, he said. Despite the massive deletion of 12.15 lakh names from the voters lists across Mumbai city and suburban districts in October last year, a net increase of 1.25 lakh voters was registered in the past four months after the revision of electoral rolls in January. Of the total 36 assembly constituencies in Mumbai city and suburbans districts, the most substantial rise was seen in Bandra East, Chandivali, Malad West, Dindoshi and Borivali assembly constituencies. As per the revised voter list of January 11, a maximum rise of 13,866 voters were registered in Bandra East assembly constituency itself as compared to figures of October, 2015. Shiv Sena spokesperson Neelam Gorhe attributed this net increase to various factors. "It could be because of more youths enrolling their names. Many NGOs and Shiv Sena urging youth to register their names. Other reasons could be new families moving in, new constructions taking place or existing buildings having gone redevelopment," Gorhe said. "The slum factor may not count as new slums are not possible. It may be that this rise has got something to do with complaints during 2014 Lok Sabha elections where many voters found their names missing from the voters list. They were given a fresh chance to enrol their names again," she said. In October 2015, the total voters in Bandra East were 2.13 lakh which rose to 2.27 lakh in January this year, a rise of 13,866 voters despite the deletions of 51,345 names in October. As per the revised list, the total voter population of Mumbai suburban district is 67.98 lakhs which includes 37.28 lakh male, 30.69 lakh female and 174 other (transgenders and others). The other notable increase in Mumbai suburban district include - Chandivali which saw a rise of 9,170 (voters), Malad West- 7,575, Andheri West- 7,112, Borivali- 6,262 and Dahisar 5,442- voters. There was also a net decrease noticed in voter registration in assembly constituencies of Mankhurd Shivaji Nagar with 4,434 voters and Anushakti Nagar- 3,024 voters. Sources in the election branch of the Election Commission of India (ECI) here said ECI had undertaken the exercise of cleaning the voters list, removing name of deceased voters and voters who had permanently migrated elsewhere as part of its intensive revision of electoral rolls. In the 10 assembly constituencies of Mumbai City district, the net rise even after deletion of names in October 2015 and subsequent enrolment in January this year was, however, only 28,061 voters. In October, 2015, the total voter population in the 10 assembly constituencies was 23.60 lakhs with deletion of 1.18 lakh voters. In January this year, the total voter population has increased to 23.88 lakhs. Substantial rise has been noticed in Sion-Koliwada 5,917 voters and Byculla 6,850 voters. Nominal increase of just 780 voters has been noticed in Colaba and 355 voters in Malabar Hill assembly constituencies. Asking officials to keep the capital clean, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar today said he often faces embarrassment when VVIPs tell him about the garbage here and such remarks belittle the work done by the state government. "Whenever some VVIPs meet me, they point towards dirt prevailing in Patna. I feel such adverse comments belittle all the development work done by the state government. Its very sad," Kumar said while addressing a function after inaugurating a sting of projects of Urban Development Department. Hitting out at Patna Mayor Afzal Imam who was present at the programme, Kumar said "I am fed up reading about the clash between Mayor and Patna Municipal Corporation officials." "The government could use the Patna Municipal Corporation's 'last right' (if the situation does not improve because of the clash)," he said without elaborating. "See how Mumbai Municipal Corporation and other municipalities are working efficiently," he said. The Chief Minister expressed the concern in wake of a recent survey which listed Patna among the ten dirtiest cities of India. Noting that the growing noise pollution in Patna was due to unnecessary honking by vehicles, Kumar said the state government has initiated steps to curb noise pollution. "Blowing of siren in the convoy of CM and others has been banned. Permission has been given only to cars of Governor and Chief Justice of Patna High Court to use siren in addition to Ambulances," he said. Kumar also expressed concern over the rise in level of carbon emissions and suggested greater use of public transport to minimise use of private vehicles. The CM flagged off 140 new buses of Bihar State Transport Corporation, including two women specials. Kumar travelled in a women special bus on a Rs 5 ticket. In the women special buses, there would be female conductors and drivers should also be woman, he said. The CM inaugurated a sting of projects on the occasion, including water supply, electronic traffic light for Patna and a multi-storeyed parking near Patna junction. Viewers will have a glimpse of the fascinating 12-hour journey of Maitree Express from Kolkata to Dhaka as part of Discovery Channel's new line-up 'India's Frontier Railways'. The show will capture the 392 km-long journey dotted with similar landscape on both sides of the border, a channel spokesman said. "We will show how people speak the same language, share a historical past and are fond of fish," he said. The entire programme explores the journey of passengers on the international trains that connect India to Pakistan, Nepal and Bangladesh. The unique three-part series will showcase the heartwarming stories of re-union, cultures, history and journey of people across borders. Each episode will be one-hour long. The show will be beamed tomorrow at 9 PM, the spokesman said. Dodo, an iconic extinct bird whose name has entered popular culture as a symbol of stupidity, may have been actually quite intelligent, a new study suggests. The study found that the overall size of the dodo's brain in relation to its body size was on par with its closest living relatives: pigeons - birds whose ability to be trained implies they are no dummies. The dodo (Raphus cucullatus) was a large, flightless bird that lived on the island of Mauritius in the Indian Ocean, where they were last seen alive in 1662. When sailors discovered the island in the late 1500s, the dodo did not fear these new arrivals. That led to the birds being herded onto passing boats as an easy meal for passing sailors. "Because of that behaviour and invasive species that were introduced to the island, they disappeared in less than 100 years after humans arrived," said Eugenia Gold, a research associate at the The American Museum of Natural History's Richard Gilder Graduate School. "Today, they are almost exclusively known for becoming extinct, and I think that's why we've given them this reputation of being dumb," said Gold. Though the bird has become iconic in popular culture, most aspects of the dodo's biology are still unknown, partly because specimens are extremely rare, researchers said. To examine the brain of the dodo, Gold tracked down a well-preserved skull from the collections of London's Natural History Museum and imaged it there with high-resolution computed tomography (CT) scanning, which can produce images of the brain inferred from the shape of the skull. Gold also CT-scanned the skulls of seven species of pigeons for comparison, while colleagues at the Natural History Museum of Denmark and National Museum of Scotland sent her the endocasts for the dodo's closest relative, the now-extinct Rodrigues solitaire (Pezophaps solitaria). The results found that the dodo's brain was about average for its body size. "So if you take brain size as a proxy for intelligence, dodos probably had a similar intelligence level to pigeons," said Gold, also an instructor at the Stony Brook University. "Of course, there's more to intelligence than just overall brain size, but this gives us a basic measure," Gold said. While the brains of dodos might not have been small, they did show some unexpected surprises, researchers said. The study found that both the dodo and the Rodrigues solitaire had large and differentiated olfactory bulbs, an unusual trait in birds, which depend on sight and thus usually have more heavily developed optical lobes. The researchers suggest that because dodos and solitaires were ground-dwellers, they relied on smell to find food, making an oddly large olfactory lobe an asset. The study was published in the Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society. Anita I'm currently finishing up my law degree in Madrid. Read on to find out more about that, plus my many adventures and misadventures around Europe. Dolls worth of Rs 25 lakh, imported by the local Rotary Club for exhibiting in a museum here, have gone missing from a warehouse, the police said today. The Rotary Club set up a dolls museum on Yagnik Road here in 2005. "We have been informed that dolls worth over Rs 25 lakh have been stolen from the museum's warehouse near Bhaktinagar area," police control-room in-charge Bimal Dubey said. The theft was discovered yesterday during the annual inventory of the goods. The museum showcases some 700 dolls while about a thousand more were kept at the warehouse. The club has collected dolls from 110 countries. In the wake of protests at AMU in connection with the JNU row, the BJP MP from Aligarh has asked the varsity authorities not to allow students to follow in the footsteps of their JNU counterparts or give permission to hold any "anti-BJP" and "anti-national" function on the campus. In a strongly worded letter to Aligarh Muslim University Vice-Chancellor Lt Gen (Retd) Zameer Uddin Shah, Satish Gautam said in recent weeks AMU has witnessed several events which were "anti-government and anti-BJP" in their content. He asked the VC to "ensure that in the future no permission is given to any function which can be construed as anti-national and anti-government". "Recently the university had been inviting only those personalities to the campus for conferences and seminars who are known for their anti-BJP views," the letter said. The letter claimed that everybody knew that the recent agitation at JNU was at the behest of "anti-national" elements and people were also aware of the attempts being made to spread similar sentiments in other universities of the country. The letter has asked the AMU VC to take the suggestions seriously and inform Gautam after necessary follow up administrative action. Refuting allegations of any anti-national activity having taken place in AMU, the VC said, "I do not think anything new has taken place in the campus and none of the protests which took place in the campus had any anti-national connotation to them." "Even though I have not received it till now, copies of this letter are being circulated all over the media. When I called up Gautam, he confirmed having sent the letter and claimed that the contents had been leaked to the media without his knowledge," Shah said "I have no idea whatsoever of the so-called anti-national activity, which was referred to by Gautam. I will reply to him in detail once I examine the contents of his letter," he said. He said AMU is a prestigious centre of higher learning and there were various fora within the varsity, which enjoy the autonomy of holding seminars, conferences and debates. "The heart of a university lies in engaging in debates and discussions through different platforms. Over the years many political parties and governments have faced protests and agitations in various varsities including AMU," he said. He maintained having served in the army, he could say that his patriotism and love for the country is second to none. "How can anybody even think that I will allow any activity which is even remotely anti-national to take place at the campus," he said. The letter, which has sparked another controversy at AMU, comes in the wake of an uproar over the alleged serving of beef biryani at AMU Medical College canteen. Donald Trump's wife Melania, in a rare TV interview, today defended her husband's fiery rhetoric on immigration, denying the Republican White House frontrunner had painted Mexican migrants as rapists. The Slovenian-born former fashion model defended her husband's incendiary call for a ban on Muslims entering the United States, first made in the wake of the Paris and San Bernardino attacks. "What he said is it will be temporary and it's not for all the Muslims," Melania Trump told MSNBC. "We need to screen who's coming to the country." And she denied Trump had insulted the Mexican people when he notoriously claimed in his announcement speech last year that the country was sending crime, drugs and rapists across the border. "No, I don't feel he insulted the Mexicans. He said illegal immigrants. He didn't talk about everybody," said the 45-year-old. Trump's third wife, who is now a US citizen, said she had scrupulously respected immigration laws since moving to the country 20 years ago. "I followed the law the way it's supposed to be," she said. "You should not just say, 'Okay, let me just stay here and whatever happens, happens.'" Two years after moving to the United States in 1996, Melania married the real estate mogul a quarter century her senior, drawn to him, she said, by "his mind". "Amazing mind and very smart. Very charming. Great energy," she said. While Trump's grown children have repeatedly joined him on the campaign trail, his wife only recently stepped up her appearances at his side including at victory parties in New Hampshire and South Carolina saying she prefers to stay focused on raising their nine year-old son Barron. "It's amazing what's going on," she said in today's interview. "We're having fun. I like to keep it, life, as normal as possible for my son and I'm a full-time mom," she said, adding, "I love it so I decided not to be in the campaign so much but I support my husband 100%." While she has kept a low public profile, Melania said she followed the news "from A to Z," and was on the phone with her husband several times a day. "Do I agree all the time?" she said. "No, I don't, and I tell him that. I tell him my opinions. I tell him what I think. Sometimes he listens, sometimes he doesn't," she added. A drug peddler was arrested near Wajeedowal village here and 400 gram heroin worth Rs 2 crore in the international market besides arms and ammunition were seized from him, police said today. Rajneesh Kumar alias Preet, a resident of local Daddal mohalla, was arrested last night, DSP Manpreet Singh Dhillon said, adding besides heroin, a revolver and three live cartridges were seized. Preet was a member of dreaded gangster Sukha Kahlwan's group and was involved in freeing an undertrial, Akul Khatri, in Nawanshahr district on February 4 by firing at two constables, he said. Sukha Kahlwan was shot dead near Phagwara in January last year by a rival gang, Dhillon said. Preet has been arrested under various sections of Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act and Arms Act and investigation is underway, he said. Voicing his frustration over the double game played by ISI in the war against terror after 9/11, a former CIA chief has said that "duplicitous" is a gentler way to describe the notorious Pakistani spy agency, which has close links with terror groups. In his latest book "Playing to the Edge", Michael Hayden, the former CIA Director used the word "duplicitous" for Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and its then head Ahmed Shuja Pasha when he was asked by The Time magazine to draft a short write up on the ISI chiefs. The Time magazine in 2011 named Pasha as one of the world's 100 most influential people. "I agreed and then called current and former US government officials to get some advice on what to say, particularly something to say that might help the overall relationship," Hayden wrote. "I asked for specific words to describe Pasha and ISI. One of the gentler ones suggested to me was 'duplicitous'," the former CIA chief said adding that this wasn't particularly useful. "So I just observed that "changes in Pakistan- the growth of fundamentalism, nationalism and anti-Americanism have squeezed the space in which any ISI chief can cooperate with the US," he wrote. Pasha, a Pakistani patriot and American partner, now must find these two roles even more difficult to reconcile and at a time when much of US counterterrorism success depends on exactly that," Hayden wrote in the book that hit the stores yesterday. Hayden who was also Director of National Security Agency wrote that some uninformed observers have opined that the Abbottabad raid in May 2011 to kill bin Al-Qaeda Chief Osama bin Laden poisoned the relationship between the US and Pakistan. "It didn't. It merely tore the veil off," he wrote. The famous statement of the then Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Admiral Mike Mullen, that Haqqani network was a "veritable arm" of ISI was an expression of his frustration. (Reopens FGN 16) Reflecting on the increasing frustration in the previous Bush administration, Hayden said he remembers an incident during one of the daily presidential briefing on Pakistan, George W Bush, he just yelled to the outer office. "Get me Musharraf!". Years after he left government, Hayden said as he reviewed his Thursday morning briefing scripts for the President and was struck by how much they focused on terrorism, and within terrorism how much they were about South Asia- Pakistan and Afghanistan. "And during the last six months of the administration, I was struck that we covered the hunt for HVT-1 (High-Value-Target-1, ie, bin Laden) and HVT-2 (Ayman al-Zawahiri) in practically every session. We were certainly focused," he wrote. Pakistan, he said, was one area where all the dilemmas of the war on terror seemed to play out in their most extreme form. CIA had actually good success working with Pakistani ISI sweeping up al-Qaeda in the settled regions of that country. Hayden said professional-level CIA exchanges with Pakistan's ISI were usually dispassionate and factual. Mid-level ISI officers seemed to get it in terms of what the US was doing and why, he said. "But ISI often acted like a plural noun and there were occasional issues, like their trying to squeeze the manpower that CIA could get into the country," he added. The US was clearly getting some very good intelligence there, a reality that must have made ISI incredibly uncomfortable, he said. "They may or may not have had a clear window into how we were developing intelligence, but they correctly judged that it would be harder to do if we had fewer people in the area. So ISI began to quibble, question, delay, and ultimately deny visa requests for multiple officers we were trying to dispatch," Hayden wrote. Two top Republican lawmakers have accused Pakistan of "duplicity" when it comes to fighting terrorism as they criticised the Obama administration for giving away US taxpayers' money to Islamabad. "Do you agree with my position that should not occur until they stop the duplicity that has continued for 14 years while we have been in Afghanistan?" Chairman of the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee Senator Bob Corker asked Secretary of State John Kerry during his testimony before the hearing on State Department's annual budgetary proposals. "They (Pakistan) have asked to be able to purchase F-16s. I would rather ask them to purchase from a US company than some other company but they also want US taxpayers to subsidise more than half of that purchase over time," Corker said yesterday. "We are evaluating all aspects of the counterterrorism efforts with respect to Pakistan's impact on Afghanistan obviously. "I just met with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif a few weeks ago and we discussed our concerns about the need to rein in particular terrorist groups that are either homegrown in Pakistan or are using Pakistan as a sanctuary. And we have been very, very clear that they have to target all militant groups," Kerry said to a question from Corker. Corker, who was in Afghanistan a few months ago, said he "witnessed continued duplicity on Pakistan's part, outright blatant duplicity, where they continue to support the Taliban, the Haqqani network, and give safe haven" to al-Qaeda. "Most of us have been to the Waziristans and seen the tremendous amount of taxpayer money that has gone into changing the context of those areas, but they continue to give them safe haven," he said. Corker alleged that the Pakistan army is not taking actions against terrorists. Meanwhile, Senator Rand Paul said Pakistan can be described as a "frenemy" - sometimes friends, sometimes enemy. "But really duplicitous is probably the best way to put it. We have given them (Pakistan) USD 15 billion over the last 10 years," Paul said. "I do not think I will convince you but I think the American people are convinced that we do not have the money to be sending money all around the world when our infrastructure here is falling down and our country is struggling. We just simply do not have the money and it makes no sense to borrow it," he said. Paul said it is equally absurd for a country to borrow money from China to send to Pakistan. Egypt's interior ministry said today it was still investigating the brutal killing of an Italian graduate student in Cairo, and suggested he may have fallen victim to criminals. Giulio Regeni, a Cambridge University PhD student who was researching Egyptian labour movements, disappeared on January 25 and his badly mutilated body was found a week later. Italian media have suggested he may have been detained by Egyptian security forces, something the interior ministry has strongly denied. The ministry said it had not yet determined who abducted Regeni, but "available information suggests all possibilities." "These include a criminal motive or personal revenge," the statement said, adding the ministry was cooperating with Italian investigators in Cairo. Regeni went missing on the fifth anniversary of the start of the uprising which overthrew longtime autocrat Hosni Mubark. Police had been deployed across the city to prevent demonstrations. The interior ministry has been on the defensive over a string of deaths in police custody and other abuses that prompted the interior minister to apologise to the country this week. An Egyptian man is to stand trial for claiming in a television interview that adultery is common among married women in the country's conservative south, the state prosecutor said today. Taimour Subki, who runs a Facebook page titled "The Diary of a Crushed Husband," hurriedly backtracked on the claim after the interview on a talk show spread on social media this month. But the prosecution said Subki, who was arrested last week, would face trial for "spreading false that disturbs public peace". An uproar on social media has led to the cancellation of the talk show, aired on private satellite station CBC, that hosted Subki in December. "Many women cheat on their husbands... I can say that 30 per cent of women are ready to be deviant," Subki said, pointing to the southern cities of "Asyut, Minya, Sohag, Qena, Luxor and Aswan". Subki said his remarks had been taken out of context. "I didn't mean to insult anyone and I was speaking generally," he wrote in a Facebook post before his arrest. Egyptian President Abdel Fatah Sisi today admitted that a Russian passenger plane was downed by terrorists to harm the country's tourism industry and its ties with Russia, months after he dismissed ISIS' claims that the terror group hit the jet killing all 224 people aboard. "Has terrorism ended? No it has not, but it will if we unite. Did the person behind the plane crash aim to hit just the (Egyptian) tourism industry? No, the intention was to harm relations with Russia, Italy and all other countries," Sisi said in in a speech shown live on television. This was the first time that Sisi confirmed that the Russian-operated Airbus A321 had been brought down by terrorists. Sisi had earlier dismissed as "propaganda" a claim by the ISIS that it targeted the Russian plane on October 31, which crashed in the Sinai Peninsula, killing all 224 people aboard. "When there is propaganda that (the Russian plane) crashed because of (Islamic State", this is one way to damage the stability and security of Egypt and the image of Egypt," he had told British media before his visit to the UK. After the crash, Russian flights to Egypt were suspended on November 6 and then on November 14 flights of Egypt Air to Russia were also suspended. A bill to amend two electoral laws to allow a limited delimitation exercise in West Bengal for granting voting rights to people who became Indian citizens following the exchange of enclaves with Bangladesh was introduced in the Lok Sabha today. The Election Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2016, introduced by Law Minister D V Sadananda Gowda, seeks to amend Section 11 of the Delimitation Act, 2002 and Section 9 of the Representation of the People Act, 1950. As the term of the 294-member West Bengal Assembly ends on May 29 and elections are likely to be held before that, there is a need for early passage of the bill. Government is hopeful that it would be passed by both the Houses in the next two days without discussion. At a recent meeting between officials of the Law Ministry and the Election Commission, the poll body made it clear that it was necessary to grant voting rights to these people as the assembly polls in the state were nearing. Following delimitation, these people will be made voters of assembly and parliamentary constituencies. Once passed, the proposed Bill will enable the Election Commission to carry out a limited delimitation of assembly and parliamentary constituencies in Cooch Behar district of West Bengal following the exchange of 51 Bangladeshi and 111 Indian enclaves in July last year. The enclaves were exchanged pursuant to the 1974 Land Boundary Agreement and 2011 Protocol and Instruments of Ratification during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Bangladesh on June 6-7 last year. Other than the 14,000 people of the 51 enclaves that became part of India, about 921 who came from Bangladesh have also become Indian citizens. Law Ministry was earlier planning to bring an ordinance to amend the two laws. But the idea was shot down at a meeting of inter-ministerial group chaired by Home Minister Rajnath Singh a few days back as dates of the Budget session were set to be announced. As per convention, ordinances are avoided when session dates are announced. The last delimitation exercise in West Bengal was carried out in 2008 and laws needed to be amended for a fresh, but limited delimitation exercise. Beautiful Friends are like Music! A friend is someone we turn to when our spirits need a lift. A friend is someone we treasure for our friendship is a gift. A friend is someone who fills our lives with beauty,joy and grace and makes the whole world we live in a better and happier place. EU president Donald Tusk insisted today that the bloc's top court cannot overrule Britain's renegotiation deal, weighing into a debate between Prime Minister David Cameron and a top minister. British Justice Secretary Michael Gove -- who backs a British exit from the European Union -- said earlier in the day that the agreement by Cameron and European leaders at a Brussels summit last week was not legally binding. But Tusk, a former Polish prime minister, told the European Parliament that the deal was "irreversible" so long as British people voted to stay in the EU in a referendum on June 23. "The 28 heads of state or government unanimously adopted a legally binding and irreversible settlement for the United Kingdom in the EU," Tusk said. "The decision concerning a new settlement is in conformity with the treaties and cannot be annulled by the ECJ (European Court of Justice)." "But it will only enter into force if the British people vote to say." Tusk said that however that a "leave" vote in the referendum meant the deal would no longer exist and that Britain would leave the bloc that it first joined in 1973. "We will respect the decision of the British people. If the majority votes to leave this is what will happen," he said. "It will change Europe forever and it will be a change for the worse." Tusk also urged the European Parliament to approve the deal so it can be turned into legislation, addressing fears that MEPs could choose to block key parts of the agreement. Cameron says the deal will give Britain a "special status" in the bloc, allowing the government to limit welfare benefit payments to migrants and giving it safeguards as a non-member of the eurozone. But the issue deeply divides Britain's ruling Conservative Party with the "Leave" campaign now supported by five cabinet members including Gove, as well as London's outspoken mayor Boris Johnson. Former union minister P K Thungon, who is in jail in a graft case, was today convicted by a Delhi court for his alleged role in a scam relating to allotment of government shops here during 1993-94. Special CBI Judge Sanjeev Aggarwal, however, acquitted two other accused in the case - Lhakpa Tsering and Krishna, who were facing trial in this case along with Thungon, then Urban Affairs and Employment Minister Sheila Kaul, and one Tulsi Balodi. Proceedings against Kaul and Balodi were abated after the court was informed that they died during the pendency of trial. The court, which will hear arguments on sentence tomorrow, held Thungon, also ex-Chief Minister of Arunachal Pradesh, guilty of offences under section 120B (criminal conspiracy) of IPC read with sections 13d(iii)(if while holding office as a public servant, obtains for any person any valuable thing or pecuniary advantage without any public interest) and other provisions of Prevention of Corruption Act. Thungon was, in July 2015, awarded a four-and-a-half year jail term in a 1998 graft case relating to misappropriation of central funds. A case was registered by the CBI in 1996 against Kaul, Thungon, Tsering, Krishna and Balodi for allegedly hatching a conspiracy in allotting shops and stalls in 1994. According to CBI, the five accused allegedly conspired during September 1993 to June 1994 with the object of dishonestly and fraudulently obtaining undue benefit in the allotment of shops on economical licence fee basis in contravention of rules governing such allotments. CBI had claimed that Kaul and Thungon allegedly committed offence of criminal breach of trust to cause undue pecuniary advantage to their relations and friends, Tsering, Krishna and Balodi and dishonestly allowed these three to convert to their own the government shops entrusted to the minister. It had said that in pursuance to conspiracy, Kaul abused her official position as Minister and in the capacity of custodian of government shops, dishonestly and without any public interest sanctioned allotments of three shops without calling for any tenders of applications from general public on mere recommendation of Thungon in a market opposite Red Fort. The agency had also alleged in the charge sheet that Kaul caused huge pecuniary advantage to Tsering, Krishna and Balodi and corresponding loss to the state exchequer. CBI said the case was registered after the Supreme Court in 1996 directed the agency to probe the allegations of corruption and bribery in the matter of out-of-turn allotment of government shops and lodge cases against the offenders. The three shops were alloted on April 9, 1994 and May 12, 1994, the agency had said. The court had framed charges against the accused in March 2009 for the offences of criminal conspiracy read with criminal beach of trust by public servant of the IPC and under relevant provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act. An international team of genomics experts and forensic specialists has said it will study the remains of Nobel Prize-winning poet Pablo Neruda to try to solve the cause of his death. The socialist poet died in the chaos following Chile's 1973 military coup led by Gen Augusto Pinochet. Some people have speculated he was poisoned by agents of the right-wing dictatorship. Neruda's body was exhumed in 2013, but tests showed no toxic agents in his bones. Even so, Chile's government said in 2015 that "it's clearly possible and highly probable that a third party" was involved in his death, although it warned that more tests needed to be carried out. The remains of Neruda's bones and teeth will be analyzed by a lab at Canada's McMaster University's Ancient DNA Center and the University of Copenhagen's Department of Forensic Medicine. The panel of experts will focus on identifying pathogenic bacteria that might have caused Neruda's death. The researchers say they will use techniques to "extract, purify and enrich fragments of the bacterial DNA," which they hope will yield genomic data that will help solve the nearly 43-year old mystery surrounding his death. "The search for the truth of the death of the poet, Pablo Neruda, is a forensic challenge. We hope that the work of the Chilean Human Rights Program and the scientists will contribute to the reconciliation between the various groups in Chile," forensic geneticist Niels Morling, director of the Department of Forensic Medicine at the University of Copenhagen, said in a statement yesterday. Neruda was best known for his love poems. But he was also a leftist politician and friend of Marxist President Salvador Allende, who killed himself rather than surrender to troops during the Sept 11, 1973, coup led Pinochet. Neruda, who was 69 and had prostate cancer, was traumatized by the coup and the persecution and killing of his friends. He planned to go into exile, where he would have been an influential voice against the dictatorship. But a day before his planned departure, he was taken by ambulance to a clinic in Santiago where he had been treated for cancer and other ailments. Neruda officially died there Sept 23 from natural causes. But suspicions that the dictatorship had a hand in the death remained long after Chile returned to democracy in 1990. Although the tests carried out after the exhumation of Neruda's remains showed no signs that he was poisoned, his family and driver demanded further investigation. The judge investigating the case has asked for testing for substances that were not looked for in the first round of tests. Vikram Singh Chauhan, the face of two brazen attacks on journalists and JNU students and teachers at a court complex here last week, was arrested today in connection with the assaults. Chauhan was caught on camera leading a group of lawyers in mounting the assaults on two occasions -- February 15 and 17 -- at the Patiala House court complex, triggering widespread outrage and condemnation. The lawyer appeared before the police, six days after he was served summons in connection with the violence in the court complex. There have been angry protests over alleged police inaction against the lawyer though he was the most prominent among the lawyers involved in unleashing violence at the court complex on two occasions. On Monday, a channel had aired a sting operation in which the lawyer was seen boasting about beating JNUSU President Kanhaiya Kumar, charged with sedition, when he was brought to the court on February 17. In the video, he was purportedly heard saying "We bashed him (Kumar) for three hours. He wet his pants. We beat him up so much." Before presenting himself to police, Chauhan today said "None of the charges against me have been proved. Few channels are projecting me as a goon. I did not beat the reporters. Others did." Groups of lawyers led by Chauhan had thrashed journalists and JNU students and teachers on February 15 and repeated their act on February 17 against Kumar and some journalists, in open defiance of Supreme Court instructions. "While one case against Chauhan pertains to the February 15 incident, the other relates to the violence on February 17," a senior Delhi Police official said. Yashpal Singh, one of Chauhan's colleagues who was also caught on camera thrashing journalists and JNU teachers and students, was arrested last night and released on bail immediately. Fatalities among security personnel and civilians in cross-border firing by Pakistan registered an increase in 2015 as compared to the year before, Parliament was informed today. Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju, however, said there has been a "declining trend" in incidents of cross- border firing as compared to the previous year. He said that the number of infiltrators apprehended by border guarding forces increased due to continuous surveillance. In a written reply in Rajya Sabha, Rijiju said while 13 security personnel were killed in such incidents in 2014, 21 jawans were martyred in 2015. Also, while 150 troops were injured in cross-border firing last year, the figure for 2014 was 128. As to the casualties among civilians in the border areas, 15 of them were killed till November 20 last year while 12 lives were lost in such firing in 2014. The injuries to civilians, however, came down to 73 last year from 88 in 2014. Last year, while 50 houses were damaged (till July 26) as compared to 140 in 2014, 7,110 people were displaced (till July 26) against 2.08 lakh the previous year. Federation of Indian Airlines (FIA), the grouping of four established domestic carriers today criticised the lobbying by two Tata Sons - invested airlines - Vistara an AirAsia India - for removal of 5/20 norm, saying it was in the "self-interest and not in "national interest" of the two carriers. Last Sunday, Ratan Tata had said that established carriers were using "monopolistic pressures" to retain "preferential treatment" under the 5/20 rule. Under the rule, only local airlines having five years of domestic operations and at least a fleet of 20 aircraft can fly overseas. "FIA is deeply disturbed by the statements issued by Tata claiming to be in national interest but effectively in self-interest," FIA said in a statement today. "They (Vistara and AirAsia) claim to be 'Indian' Airlines and so it is puzzling that they now do not wish to serve the Indian civil aviation growth story be a part of India's future growth. They only wish to, it appears, serve their self-interest and establish themselves in India in order to fly International," it said. AirAsia India and Vistara -- two airlines operated by the Tatas through joint ventures -- are currently ineligible to operate overseas under the 5/20 norm. Scrapping of 5/20 rule is one of the proposals made by the Ministry in the draft civil aviation policy, which is in the advanced stage of finalisation. Significantly, the proposal to do away with the 5/20 norm was mooted around the time Tata Group announced its re-entry in the domestic airlines industry in 2013. "Tata (Group) is a 51 per cent shareholder in Vistara while in Air Asia India it is the main Indian shareholder. When the airlines received 'their approvals', currently under challenge in the courts, they were aware of the 5/20 and Route Dispersal Guidelines (RDGs) rule. These rules were made primarily to ensure passenger growth in India, improve connectivity across the country, and serve the geo political and remote out lying areas of our country," the FIA, which comprises Jet Airways, SpiceJet, IndiGo and GoAir, said. Under RDGs, local carriers are compulsorily required to operate flights to certain regional and remote areas of the country. FIA which represents 95 per cent of domestic civil aviation industry (excluding Air India) have in their submissions made to the Civil Aviation ministry, the Minister of State in PMO and other cabinet Ministers stated that "in fact it is the proposed new policy that discriminates against 95 per cent of the Industry and seems to serve only the new start-ups, Vistara and Air Asia, promoted by Tatas," it said. "As stated in our submissions we have drawn the government's repeated attention that the intention of these airlines is to serve their own financial and strategic interests, namely to fly international, to expand their international network in order to fuel their growth using India as a base," the FIA alleged. Payments technology company FINO PayTech (FINO) today said it has tied up with Reliance Commercial Finance to provide credit to rural poor in Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh. FINO Fintech Foundation, an associate company of FINO, would source and service customers on behalf of Reliance Commercial Finance, a press release said here. "We are pleased to partner with Reliance Commercial Finance in its efforts to bring credit closer to poor rural masses," said Vipr Bhardwaj, Executive Vice President and Head - Lending business, FINO PayTech. Bhardwaj added that the tie-up will help FINO improve the product bouquet for its payments bank, for which it has received in-principle approval. Reliance Commercial Finance CEO K V Srinivasan said, "Our tie-up with FINO is part of our effort to continuously expand our reach and grow business manifold over the long term." A pilot project has been initiated in Vidarbha region in Maharashtra, and Bhopal, Hardha, Khandwa, Vidhisha, Khargone in Madhya Pradesh, where loans are being disbursed under Joint Liability Group (JLG) model. Reliance Commercial Finance will offer small loans to women borrowers for a tenor of up to 24 months for carrying out revenue-generating activities. Four people are feared dead following the collapse of a disused British power station, and another five are seriously injured, emergency services said today. One person was confirmed killed when the Didcot A coal and gas-fired power station, owned by a subsidiary of German giant RWE and scheduled for demolition, collapsed on Tuesday in a cloud of dust and rubble. Rescue workers are searching for three other people who are missing but regional fire and rescue service chief Dave Etheridge, said: "It is highly unlikely they are alive." Etheridge told reporters that the families had been informed that "we have not picked up any signs of life". "We have tried their construction site radios and have had no response. We see this as significant," he said. Prime Minister David Cameron paid tribute to the emergency services in comments in parliament and expressed his condolences to the confirmed victim's family. Etheridge said sniffer dogs were being used in the search for the missing, adding that the operation "may take several days, possibly several weeks". Scott Chilton, a senior police officer, described the five people taken to hospital as "seriously injured, but not critical". Emergency workers said there were no explosives in the 10-floor building at the time of the collapse despite initial reports that it had been preceded by a blast. About 50 people were treated for dust inhalation at the scene. Didcot A was opened in 1970 and ceased generation in 2013. Three of its enormous cooling towers were blown up in July 2014. Four Pakistani-origin men belonging to a single family were today found guilty of raping and sexually abusing teenage girls for over 16 years in a town in northern England. Three brothers and their uncle were found guilty of multiple rapes, indecent assaults and conspiracy to rape girls as young as 11-years-old in the South Yorkshire town of Rotherham. Co-conspirators Karen MacGregor, 58, and Shelley Davies, 40, were also convicted of conspiracy to procure prostitutes and false imprisonment at Sheffield Crown Court today. All six will be sentenced on Friday. Brothers Arshid, Basharat and Bannaras Hussain targeted 15 girls, subjecting them to brutal and degrading acts between 1987 and 2003, the court was told. Arshid Hussain was the 40-year-old mastermind and found guilty of 23 offences and 39-year-old Basharat Hussain was found guilty of 15 offences. The women - Karen MacGregor and Shelly Davies - who were found guilty of assisting them in their abuse were found guilty of four and two charges respectively. The third brother, 36-year-old Bannaras Hussain, had already pleaded guilty to 10 offences before the three-month trial started. Qurban Ali, the 53-year-old uncle of the Hussain brothers was found guilty of conspiracy to rape. Detective Chief Inspector Martin Tait of South Yorkshire police described the verdicts as a "crucial milestone" after years of violence and sexual abuse. He said: "I can't begin to put into word the trauma that these women experienced at such a young age. "I'm pleased that their voices have finally been heard and believed and that those responsible have been publicly held to account for their crimes." Peter Mann, from the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), added: "These defendants in their differing ways targeted these teenage girls because they were vulnerable and then facilitated their systematic sexual abuse. "They were mocked and spat at, some of the violence was extreme and protracted." He singled out Arshid Hussain as having "played a key role" in the abuse. "He was domineering and in some instances brutal in his treatment of the girls. He used them for his own gratification then often prostituted them or passed them on to his brothers or associates," he said. Two other defendants, Sajid and Majid Bostan, were acquitted of all charges. A Jewish teacher in France who claimed he was attacked by Islamic State jihadists was taken into custody today, accused of lying to police. The man invited the press to his house in Marseille in southern France the day after the supposed attack in November, saying he had been beaten by three men claiming to represent the jihadist group. But a police source confirmed today that the man had been arrested for allegedly fabricating the story. He is not the only French teacher to be accused of lying about an IS attack. In January, a nursery school teacher was sent for psychiatric tests after admitting he lied about an attack in his classroom. The 45-year-old man in Aubervilliers, northeast of Paris, initially said a man had burst into his classroom and cut him with a box cutter and scissors. But he later admitted inventing the story and cutting himself on the neck and side. The cases came with France still on edge in the wake of the November attacks in Paris, claimed by IS, that killed 130 people. There is no doubt over another attack in Marseille in January, when a teacher wearing a kippa, a Jewish skullcap, was set upon by a self-radicalised teenager -- the latest in a series of anti-Semitic incidents in the port city. The city's top Jewish leader, Zvi Ammar, called on Jewish men and boys to stop wearing the kippa "until better days", saying: "Unfortunately for us, we are targeted. As soon as we are identified as Jewish we can be assaulted and even risk death. Well, I am starting a Wall of Shame for people who show that they have no clue about plants in general. I will be totally fair and I'm not going to expect ... 12 years ago Iranian authorities have arrested a US citizen whose son has been detained in Iran for the last four months, friends and family have said, describing what would be the first such action against an American national in Iran since last month's prisoner swap between the two countries. Baquer Namazi, whose son Siamak has been held since October, was arrested on Tuesday, his wife wrote in a Facebook post. She said she was told he is now in Tehran's Evin prison. "I must share the shocking and sad that Baquer was arrested," Effie Namazi posted. "Now both my innocent son Siamak and my Baquer are in prison for no reason. This is a nightmare I can't describe." She said she and a lawyer have been unable to get more information or see her husband, who suffers from "serious heart and other conditions" that require medication. Appearing at a Senate panel hearing yesterday, Secretary of State John Kerry said he was engaged on the matter but couldn't comment because of privacy considerations. "We are aware of reports that a US citizen was detained in Iran," State Department spokesman Mark Toner said. "The US Department of State has no higher priority than the protection of US citizens overseas. We take our obligation to assist US citizens abroad seriously." Haleh Esfandiari, a friend of the family and a Mideast expert at the Wilson Center, said Namazi is more than 80 years old and a dual US-Iranian national. "I'm in a state of shock," said Esfandiari, who was detained herself in Iran for more than three months in 2007. Her take: "They want Siamak to make concessions that he wasn't willing to make." Namazi, she said, worked for the United Nations and at one point as a World Bank consultant, while also being a civil society activist. She described him as a "not at all political" person who consistently spoke out against US-led economic sanctions against the Islamic Republic. The family lived outside New York for a period after the Islamic Revolution that toppled the US-backed shah in 1979, though later returned to Iran, she said. According to a Daily Beast article last year, the family has played a key role in trying to bridge ties between the long-time foes. It said Namazi was a governor of the oil-rich province of Khuzestan under the shah who was allowed to emigrate to the US in 1983. Siamak Namazi, an Iranian-American businessman who similarly advocated a warmer US-Iranian relationship, is thought to have been arrested in October. Jharkhand Chief Minister Raghubar Das today warned that funds meant for the poor will not be allowed to be looted. Intervening to reply to a Call Attention Motion on allegedly irregularities in schemes under MGNREGA in the state Assembly, Das agreed the concern of the House was proper and asked them to have faith in the (ongoing) inquiry into it. He added that there would not be any compromise on corruption and very soon the veil would be drawn. Earlier, replying to the Motion of JMM MLAs Deepak Birua, Dasarath Gagrai and Niral Purty, state Rural Development minister Nilkanth Singh Munda said the department has already sent five letters to the Anti-Corruption Bureau asking to speed up the inquiry, which was initiated in 2012. The Motion alleged embezzlement of funds under MGNREGA since 2007. The Goa government today denied reports of deaths due to monkey fever in the state. There were reports in a section of the media about death of two women due to monkey fever. "If a person dies at the age of 70 or 75 it cannot be called as death due to monkey fever. It is natural death," Goa Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar said, adding, "Average life of Goan is around 70 years. After 60-70 years, the immunity of a person decreases." Health Minister Francis D'Souza said both the persons had died due to other ailments, though it is true that they were being treated for monkey fever. "In case of the first woman, she had high blood pressure which took her life. Both the women were above 65 years of age," he said. "The second women was suffering from high diabetes and as per doctor's report she died due to that (diabetes). Though traces of monkey fever were found in her body you cannot link her death to that," D'Souza said. Some persons are being treated for the disease in Sattari tehsil and the state government has started a mass campaign to spread awareness about it. Noting that the travel and tourism industry has been impacted due to collapse of Russian market and disturbed European economies, the Travel and Tourism Association of Goa (TTAG) has urged the state government to reduce promotional foreign junkets. In its pre-budget memorandum to Goa Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar, the association has asked the state government not to add taxes on the tourism industry just for the sake of marketing. "There is no need to raise the budgetary expenditure on tourism marketing at the cost of additional taxation on the hospitality industry," TTAG president Fransisco Braganza said in the memorandum. "It has been a wasteful expenditure with no tangible benefits or increase in foreign tourist arrivals. There is a need to rationalise the marketing expenditure and see that it is result oriented," Braganza said. The government should reduce the number of foreign junkets, which are undertaken under the pretext of marketing the destination, he said. "The tourism industry is struggling to keep its head above the water, with rising costs and reducing revenues, on account of the collapse of the Russian market and disturbed European economies," Braganza said. "This situation is expected to continue for the ensuing season as well. The margins are squeezed and the future looks bleak," he added. Braganza said there is a need to divert the marketing expenditure from road shows and marketing to markets which are not Goa-centric into incentives per passenger to foreign tour operators, who actually bring foreign tourists like it is being done by competing tourist destinations and is measurable in terms of specific numbers. Goa government will present its budget in the upcoming session scheduled next month. Godrej Consumer Products Ltd (GCPL) is targeting leadership position in the estimated Rs 500-crore air freshener segment in the next three years and plans to expand its portfolio of Aer fresheners. "We are now extending our range of Aer fresheners to the next phase after car and home to bathroom fragrances. The aim is to have a leadership position in all the three categories in the next three years," GCPL business head India and SAARC Sunil Kataria told PTI. The fresheners segment has players like Dabur, which sells its products under Odonil range besides others such as P&G's Ambipur and RB's Airwick. According to Kataria, the overall segment is estimated to be around Rs 500 crore at present with home fresheners around Rs 150 crore, car fresheners at Rs 250 crore and the rest with bathroom fresheners. Commenting on the bathroom freshener segment, where GCPL has entered recently, he said: "This segment has not seen many innovations in last 30-40 years. Aer will expand the category as no one has invested earlier and the consumer adoption is not so good. "I would like Aer bathroom freshener to reach a turnover of Rs 50 crore in next three." The company had recently launched Aer Slim Bathroom priced at Rs 49 per pack of 10 gm in the Indian market. Besides the domestic market, GCPL also plans to introduce the product in Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. On future product launches, Kataria without sharing details said the company has a strong pipeline and over the next one year, there could be four to five launches. Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi today ordered a CID inquiry into the leaking of question paper of the ongoing Higher Secondary examinations. According to an official release, CID would inquire the leak of physics paper this morning. The physics exam was scheduled to be held today afternoon, but was cancelled after this development. The Union Cabinet today gave its approval for signing of an agreement between India and Maldives that will provide relief from double taxation for their airlines operating between the two countries. "The agreement provides for relief from double taxation for airline enterprises of India and Maldives by way of exemption of income derived by the enterprise of India from the operation of aircraft in international traffic, from Maldivian tax and vice-versa," an official release said. Under the pact, profits from the operation of aircraft in international traffic will be taxed in one country alone. Accordingly, the taxing right is conferred upon the country to which the enterprise belongs. The Agreement will provide tax certainty for airline enterprises of India and Maldives, it added. The pact further provides for a mutual agreement procedure for resolving any difficulties or doubts arising as to the interpretation or application of the pact. Rooting for passage of in the ongoing Session, industry body IAMAI said the move would bring in clarity in tax rules for online marketplaces and ease shipping of products by small and medium enterprises across states without worrying about multiple taxation.. Read our full coverage on Union Budget 2016 "It is crucial that the Bill is passed in the Session. This will bring huge benefits to the SMEs and e-commerce companies," IAMAI President Subho Ray said. "The extant tax structure of India is heavily fragmented with multiple indirect taxes levied by different authorities at different stages of a transaction," he added. The Bill, which subsumes all indirect taxes to create one rate and integrate the country into a single market, will help digital industry by providing clarity and uniformity in tax rates and regulations across the country, he said. Currently, different procedures and rates of VAT and other forms of LBTs prevail across various states. "This has created logistical challenges for the industry, besides giving rise to compliance related complications. Conflict of interests between tax authorities in case of inter-state transaction is a major pain point for us," Paytm founder Vijay Shekhar Sharma said. Ray cited the examples of states like Uttarakhand, Kerala and Karnataka that charge a tax on online purchases ranging up to 10%. "This often affects deliveries to these states and also, higher costs for consumers if the tax is passed on. Bringing will take away this multiplicity of taxes and boost e-commerce in the country," he added. The Constitution Amendment Bill on GST is stuck in Rajya Sabha as the opposition Congress is seeking three key amendments in the proposed law, derailing the government's plans to roll out GST from April 2016. The ruling party does not enjoy majority of its own in the upper house. Congress, the main opposition party in the house, wants three amendments in the bill. Its three demands are a cap on the GST rate in the Constitution itself, removal of the proposed one per cent additional tax on inter-state movement of goods and setting up a judicial panel to adjudicate disputes among states. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley had said he hopes the Congress would "see reason" and help in passage of GST legislation in the Session of Parliament. Haryana government today announced that those who suffered property loss during Jat quota agitation could claim upto 25 per cent as interim relief immediately on the basis of self-assessment of the damage. An official spokesman said the state government announced to give an interim or part assistance immediately to those who would submit their details on a prescribed proforma on the basis of self-assessment of the damage caused to their properties in the Jat agitation. "An applicant can claim upto 25 per cent as an interim relief," he said. The spokesman informed that the government had made available a proforma for claiming compensation at the earliest. The proforma has been made available on the website of Urban Local Bodies Department. It is also available in the offices of Deputy Commissioner, Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM), Tehsildar and Municipalities. Claimants are required to provide details such as name, Aadhaar number, bank account number along with RTGS/NEFT code, address, electricity account number, if meter is installed, date of natural disaster, fire or law and order disturbance, and whether the damage is covered by an insurance policy, he said adding, other details include category of property damaged and extent of damage. Under the extent of damage, claimants are required to fill details of estimated cost of repairing the damage caused to building, both commercial and residential. They have also been asked to fill up estimated loss of the items suffered by them, he said. The enclosures to be attached include copy of First Information Report (FIR) or DD entry, item-wise photographs of the damaged property, proof of ownership of residential or commercial property or tenancy. In case Aadhaar number is not available, the claimants could enclose copy of voter ID card, driving license and PAN card, he said. Affected persons should submit the completed proforma at the earliest to any of the offices of the Sub Divisional Magistrate, Tehsildar and Municipality who would also assist in filling up the proforma, if required. The claimants could also contact the office of the Deputy Commissioner in case of any difficulty, he added. Yesterday, Haryana government had directed general insurance companies to disburse insurance claims within 15 days to those whose property got damaged because of arson, violence incidents during the Jat agitation. Actor Demian Bichir, last seen in Quentin Tarantino's "The Hateful Eight", has joined Michael Fassbender and Katherine Waterston in Ridley Scott's sequel to "Prometheus", titled "Alien: Covenant". Details about Bichir's role are kept under wraps, reported Deadline. Bichir, 52, will next be seen alongside Eva Longoria and Melissa Benoist in the drama "Lowriders". "Covenant", set ten years after "Prometheus", will follow a colony ship bound for a remote planet on the far side of the galaxy. The crew discovers what they think is an uncharted paradise, but is actually a dark, dangerous world - whose sole inhabitant is the "synthetic" David (Fassbender), survivor of the doomed Prometheus expedition. The film is scheduled to begin filming this April in Australia for an October 6, 2017 release in the US. Directed by: Tara Harish Music: OP Nayyar Lyrics: Qamar Jalalabadi Starring: Raj Kapoor, Madhubala, Sheikh Mukhtar, Uma Dutt, Sulochana Latkar, Daisy Irani 'Raj Kapoor - Musically' post. Then, I came across another lovely tripping number when I was looking for the 'I am.. You are...' songs. Since I liked both numbers, I decided I had to watch the film. Besides, it had Raj Kapoor and Madhubala, both of whom I like very much indeed. And how bad could it be, anyway? I first came across this film when I was randomly flipping through YouTube channels. I ignored it all the while, until I was researching songs for mypost. Then, I came across another lovely tripping number when I was looking for thesongs. Since I liked both numbers, I decidedto watch the film. Besides, it had Raj Kapoor and Madhubala, both of whom I like very much indeed. And how bad could it be, anyway? Jagannath (Sheikh Mukhtar) is being tried for the crime of having escaped from jail, and while on the run, having murdered a Seth Roshanlal Sharma. He has consistently refused to say a word in court, and the judge exhorts him to speak before the court is compelled to accept his silence as guilt, and sentence him for the crime. (It's a strange court for a Hindi film - no one 's shouting. ) As he continues to remain silent, the judge begins to pronounce the sentence when there's an interruption - it is Rajkumar/Rajan/Raju (Raj Kapoor), the younger brother of the accused. He requests the court's permission to talk to his brother - perhaps his pleas may do what the court couldn't. The judge agrees, and Rajan pleads with his brother to break his oath of silence, if not for himself, for the sake of those who love him. He, Rajan, had been the one to lie and steal. His brother had consistently tried to turn him away from the path of crime. It is he, Rajan, who was capable of taking a man's life; how could his brother, who had always shown him the right way to live, kill someone ? Finally, Rajan declares that he will break his oath. It prompts Jagannath to speak. It is true that Jagannath had been a dacoit, and that he had been imprisoned for ten years. It is also true that he broke out of jail - he desperately wanted to see his son. It is also true that a man died at his hands. He does not deny any of these charges. But how did he reach here? He was not born a criminal. The journey from a self-respecting man to a prisoner standing at the dock did not happen overnight. ( Tan ta -tan! Flashback time! ) His brother and he (Master Randhir; no, not Randhir Kapoor as IMD B has it ) had been orphaned while still very young. To make ends meet, the brothers work for a Seth; one day, Jagan breaks a plate, and the Seth throws them both out without paying them, claiming that their month's wages wouldn't cover the cost. While Jagan is wondering where their next meal is coming from, Raju is insouciant. They could sell the Seth's watch. Jagan is furious. Raju is stealing again! How many times should he tell his brother that thieving is wrong? Raju is unrepentant. He doesn't have any time for moral lessons. One day, he will be the king of thieves. In their scuffle, the watch falls down, and hearing the Seth's outcry, the boys run away. It's Rajan's turn to be furious - without money, and without the watch to sell, they have no way of getting a meal. And he's hungry! (I sympathi se ; I'm hungry too . ) Perhaps they could sell their mother's mangalsutra? But Jagan is unwilling to do that either - it's all they have left to remember their mother. He breaks the mangalsutra in half, and gives one to his brother, after making him promise that he will never sell it, come what may. (How that 's going to help them get food, I don't know. Neither does Jagan. ) While the boys are talking, a man (a baaad ma n! ) overhears their conversation. He promises to give the boys Rs10 if they would do a chore for him. All they have to do is to go to the railway godown and bring back a small parcel. Jagan is reluctant, but Raju is so enthusiastic that he goes along. Unfortunately, the police are watching over the goods, and in the melee, Rajan is separated from his brother. (At this point, I'm muttering, 'But they have the mangalsutra!') (This s cene of angst-against-God predates t he famous Maine kabhi tumse kuch nahin maanga Deewar. Must say I prefer Amitabh Bachchan. Seems like Shiva sha res my op inion . ) ' scene from notor ious jewellery thief heading a gang of his own. And now, he's stolen a necklace worth Rs12 lakh. Broken-hearted at being separated from his brother as well, Jagan swears an oath - from now on, he will be the master of his own destiny.From then on, Jagan sets his feet firmly on the path of crime; from picking pockets, he graduates to ajewellery thief heading a gang of his own. And now, he's stolen a necklace worth Rs12 lakh. The police have their own suspicions - there's a seasoned thief who has previously been on their books. He appears under different names, but it is the same person. The jailor scoffs; the person they suspect is in jail at the moment; in fact, he's just being released that day. Rajan is glad he met the inspector inside the jail; if he were outside, the inspector would have lost no time in putting him back in for a crime he didn't commit. The inspector is sure he will catch the thief anyway; the man whose necklace it was, has offered a reward of Rs10,000 for its recovery. Rajan wishes he could claim that reward. Once outside the jail, Rajan is met by his friends, and is soon back to his old tricks . Only, he's chosen the wrong man this time. It is Jagan who, in the cold light of dawn, is a respectable citizen, with a loving wife (a young and pretty Sulochana Latkar), who's expecting their first child. She is completely unaware of her husband's dual life, and wishes that he wouldn't tire himself out running to attain all his dreams. Meanwhile, Rajan has just caught his first sight of paradise. His friend informs him that the young woman also happens to be rich. Rajan scoffs. His friend persists - she had filled her car at the Santa Cruz petrol station and changed two 1000-rupee notes. Rajan and his gang of friends have to figure out a way to relieve her of that money. Suddenly, a man passes them, advertising Shree 420 on a microphone. One of his friends has an idea. As Rajan begins to run, they run after him, shouting 'Raj Kapoor! Raj Kapoor!' The young woman and her friends mistake him for the actor as well; Rajan is clever - he tells them he's not Raj Kapoor but that people don't believe him when he tells them the truth. Of course, the girls don't, either, and Rajan is invited to a party at the club that night. Still taking on the persona of Raj Kapoor, he thoroughly fools the girls, even though he slips up a couple of times. He learns that Madhu (Madhubala) is an heiress, whose inheritance is guarded very jealously by her uncle. For some reason (the film keeps jumping scenes), he gives her Rs420 (of her own money) when he leaves, and promises he will reclaim it sometime in the future. He also reiterates that he is not Raj Kapoor. She laughs disbelievingly. Soon, he is dancing his way out of her life, and she is driving back to Pune with her friends. It is very clear from their conversation that there's no love lost between her and her uncle, who is also the trustee of her vast fortune. When Madhu reaches home, it is to find that her uncle, Roshanlal (Uma Dutt) has fixed her marriage to a man of his choice. He doesn't want her wealth 'wasted' on a gold digger, he claims. Madhu is furious. She does not scruple to inform her uncle that she will not marry to suit him; her father's will stated that her fortune will belong to her upon her marriage. The only reason her uncle is getting her married to a donkey, she says, is so he can continue to make use of her wealth. Her uncle is equally direct; this wedding will take place, with or without her consent. Her uncle has not quite got his niece's measure - Madhu runs away from the wedding mandap. (Of course, we don't see that - the DVD make rs attack again! ) He has an advertisement published in the newspapers claiming Madhu has run away with Rs1 lakh. Anyone giving news of her will be rewarded Rs10,000/-. Back in Bombay, Jagan's wife is amused at the advertisment - she cannot believe that such an innocent-looking girl would have swindled anyone to the tune of a lakh of rupees. Jagan agrees, and expresses regret that this beautiful girl will now be the target of all the rogues in the city - especially that jewel thief who's absconding from the police. Jagan is not the only man who se attention is attracted by the advertisement. Rajan is also sure that the girl will be target ed by every criminal worth his name . Well, the two of them are in the forefront, anyway, though Rajan recognises Jagan through his disguise. Almost as easily as Jagan (and Rajan ) recognise Madhu through hers. Jagan manages to bundle 'Ab dul Rehman' into a cab by pretending to be his chacha , but is cleverly followed by Rajan , who disguises himself as 'Abdul Rehman's' begum. Rajan 's friends pretend to be bystanders and help to bundle him into the cab as well - which then takes off leaving Jagan with a note that says 'Ustadon se ustaadi nahin chalegi!' As can be imagined, Jagan is furious. In the cab, 'Abdul Rehman' is also furious - who is this woman, and why does she claim to be married to 'him'? But the presence of the cab driver prevents her from escaping - at that moment. Rajan directs the cab to a hotel. Once in the room, 'Abdul Rehman' is forced to have a bath; while she's in there thinking up a plan to escape, the 'begum' is searching her belongings. not Raj Kapoor, and she finally believes him when he says so. But he's in love with her, he says in all sincerity, and Madhu, already half in love with him the first time she met him, But all this is momentary - a quick trick has Madhu running out of the bathroom, straight into 'Raj Kapoor's' arms. Only, he isRaj Kapoor, and she finally believes him when he says so. But he's in love with her, he says in all sincerity, and Madhu, already half in love with him the first time she met him, melts That night, as she sleeps, Rajan searches through her belongings once more. Much to his chagrin, he fails to find a single penny. But someone else finds him. While Madhu is heartbroken, Rajan does strike a deal - he will take Rs10,000 now, which is what he would have got from Madhu's uncle; the 'big brother' can have the girl and the one lakh that she's carrying. Back in his den, Jagan discovers that Madhu does not have any significant money with her. When he questions her, Madhu tells him the truth - her uncle wants her wealth; he's willing to kill her to get it. Meanwhile, Rajan is having a crisis of conscience. Nope, no idea how. ) But Madhu is not sitting around waiting for him to come and rescue her. The intrepid young woman is also not the sort to weep over her fate; she is more than capable of taking care of herself . And while the men are busy elsewhere, she manages to escape. ( Chased by the men, the beleaguered young woman seeks refuge in a house; the mistress of the house is sympathetic to her distress until... But of course, she refuses to believe Madhu's story. And hatches a plan to prove her wrong. Unfortunately for the poor woman, she sees proof of her husband's perfidy with her own eyes. She's not the only person who gets a shock. Jagan has no answers to his wife's accusations. Distraught at learning the truth, Jagan's wife decides to leave him. She has no wish to be married to a man who has destroyed so many innocents' lives. In fact, she has no wish to live. She is saved by Rajan , who takes her to his house, calls a doctor, and even donates his blood to save her. Repenting over his actions which put Madhu in harm's way, Rajan decides to turn over a new leaf. He promises his new house guest that he will not only take care of her as a sister, but ensure that her son will never want for anything. But it is not as easy as all that. Meanwhile, Madhu has gone to a broker 's to pawn a ring. But the man recognises Madhu and informs Jagan of her presence. While Jagan asks him to keep Madhu there until he arrives, Rajan arrives at the shop to pawn his watch. Madhu wants nothing to do with him - she'd trusted him, loved him, and he had sold her to a criminal for Rs10,000. She'd rather go with Jagan; at least, she knew what to expect from him. While Rajan pleads with her to believe him, Jagan arrives and Madhu is taken away. But not before Rajan has a close encounter with Jagan's shoes. He promptly makes his way to the police station to inform the inspector of Jagan's whereabouts. Imspector Choubey doesn't believe him - does the police department need thieves to catch a thief? But Rajan is both insistent, and persistent. Finally, Choubey listens. stolen necklace - the buyer will deal in hard cash. Jagan is cautious - what if there is a hitch? His man is sure the buyer, a Prince, is legitimate. The man has immense wealth, but is also an aficionado of women and wine. And so, they set up a meeting with Meanwhile, Jagan's man has found a buyer for thenecklace - the buyer will deal in hard cash. Jagan is cautious - what if there is a hitch? His man is sure the buyer, a Prince, is legitimate. The man has immense wealth, but is also an aficionado of women and wine. And so, they set up a meeting with the potential buyer at Jagan's hotel. And of course, Jagan and his men, the supposed 'Prince' and Madhu, as well as every other person there, are rounded up and carted off to jail. One of the guests present is Madhu's uncle. Both he and Madhu are set free, while Jagan is imprisoned for the theft. When Madhu realises that the 'Prince' is Rajan, she is ecstatic, but her happiness is cut short by the appearance of her uncle, who promises her that if she truly loves Rajan, he will surely get them married. Madhu is under no delusions about her uncle and very rudely tells him to mind his own business. But their tete-a-tete is destined to be cut short - one of Rajan's friends comes there to tell him that 'sister's' health has taken a turn for the worse. Rajan rushes off, leaving a bewildered Madhu behind. Madhu follows him home, only to hear Rajan's friends discuss the imminent birth of the child, and what Rajan would do if something happened to either mother or child. Poor Madhu! It seems like she's betrayed - again! Heartbroken, Madhu leaves the place. Meanwhile, Jagan has been sentenced to ten years in prison, and Rajan has collected the reward announced for his capture. When he goes back home and gives the money to the woman he deems a sister, she is aghast - has he? Once again? Rajan explains. But there's a problem - Rajan discovers that Madhu, who joined a theatre company, has left the country. He has no clue what went wrong between them, and is grieved that she left without meeting him. The overseas contract is for four years. The theatre owner is a kindly man, and promises her that she will soon become a big star. Then, when she returns to Bombay... 'I'll never return here,' avows Madhu passionately. But so it comes to pass. Years go by, and as the theatre company winds its way around the world - Burma, Japan, Spain, France - Madhu goes from strength to strength. And finally, like the boats returning to harbour, she returns to Bombay - a big star, as prophesied by the theatre owner. Rajan sees the advertisement and takes Raja (Daisy Irani) along to see the play. At the theatre, he attempts to meet Madhu in the green room, and is taken aback when, giving his name to the manager, he's told that 'Rajan' is definitely not allowed to meet her. But Rajan is loath to give up without making an attempt to meet his love. Madhu is furious that he even dares to meet her, especially when Rajan is offered the role of the hero by the theatre manager. And even more so, when Raja comes along and calls Rajan 'Baba'. That is not the end of her troubles. Her uncle, having seen the same advertisment no doubt, has come in search of his missing niece. This time, he's taking no chances - he asks his henchman to kill her. But as Madhu's car speeds along, she has a mishap, and Raja is knocked down. Madhu decides to take the child with her, and asks the bystanders to let Raja's family know that he is with her. By the time Raja's mother comes on the scene, she has driven away; Roshanlal's henchman recognises her, however, as Jagan's wife, but his boss has no time to waste on such nonsense. Jagan's wife rushes home to Rajan - she has no clue who Madhu Sharma is; all she knows is that Raja's had an accident, and though bystanders told her he only has a minor wound, she's worried. At Madhu's house, Raja is just making matters worse - he informs Madhu that his 'baba' loves him very much, and he loves Raja's mother as well; it's only Madhu who keeps quarreling with him. Thanks to the DVD/VCD makers, I have no idea how Madhu escapes..) Even as Madhu's attendants capture him, Rajan arrives there to take Raja home. Refreshingly enough, they clear matters up without much melodrama, and However, the confusion is soon cleared up when Raja lets out that his mother is his 'baba's' sister. Before Madhu can express her happiness, her uncle's henchman arrives to fulfil his boss's orders - only to find Raja a hindrance. () Even as Madhu's attendants capture him, Rajan arrives there to take Raja home. Refreshingly enough, they clear matters up without much melodrama, and things are sunny once again What happens to Rajan and Madhu - does their love triumph over Madhu's uncle's greed? (Need you ask?) Does Jagan even know that he has a son? Or that his wife is alive? How does he discover that Rajan is his long lost brother? (Their mother's mangalsutra, of course! Duh!) What, indeed, is to become of Jagan's wife and Raja? Where is the uncle by the way? Will he let Madhu and Raja live in peace? (Fat chance!) Will Jagan find his missing son? (This is a Hindi movie!) So many questions... But... as they say, picture ab bhi baaki hai doston... Do Ustad wasn't bad at all. Despite the fact that I think Sheikh Mukhtar is one of the most wooden actors around (he produced the film, so I guess he gets to act in it), and I could have done without him trying to emote in the last 15 minutes or so, the film moved remarkably quickly. Raj Kapoor and Madhubala make a really good pair, and along with OP Nayyar's rollicking tunes, and Kapoor letting his hair down and having fun, the songs-and-dances were fabulous. (Apart from the ones I linked in the post, is To answer my own question,wasn't bad at all. Despite the fact that I think Sheikh Mukhtar is one of the most wooden actors around (and I could have done without himemote in the last 15 minutes or so, the film moved remarkably quickly. Raj Kapoor and Madhubala make a really good pair, and along with OP Nayyar's rollicking tunes, and Kapoor letting his hair down and having fun, the songs-and-dances were fabulous. (Apart from the ones I linked in the post, Hum pe dil aaya toh bolo kya karoge (picturised on Bimla Kumari and Sadiq, apart from Raj Kapoor and Madhubala). Despite what is now a hackneyed plot, I liked that both women - Jagan's wife and Madhu - have agency, and that they think and act for themselves. I found it refreshing to see the lead pair behave like adults and actually talk to each other, and solve their misunderstandings - not once, but twice. Both Raj Kapoor and Madhubala were remarkably natural - their comfort with each other was very evident in their scenes together. The film works mainly because of the two of them, and their sense of timing. The Allahabad High Court today dismissed the appeals filed by senior IAS officer Rajeev Kumar and the state's former Chief Secretary Neera Yadav challenging their conviction in a corruption case by a special CBI court at Ghaziabad four years ago. Justice Harsh Kumar dismissed the appeals of Kumar and Yadav who had challenged the CBI court order dated November 20, 2012 holding them guilty of financial irregularities while they occupied top posts at the Noida Authority. Both were sentenced to three years' imprisonment as per the aforesaid order. Yadav, who had retired before the CBI court judgement, was serving as the Chairperson of the Noida Authority during the period under investigation while Kumar was the Deputy CEO. The High Court had stayed their conviction during the pendency of their criminal appeals. A murder convict, who is serving life sentence in Pune Central prison and sought release on parole to attend his son's wedding slated to be held tomorrow, has failed to get relief from the Bombay High Court. A division bench of Justices Ranjit More and V L Achilya, rejecting the plea of Sadashiv Tare, said releasing the prisoner on parole would send a "wrong" message to those attending the marriage ceremony if he (convict) arrived with police escort. "There are other family members who will participate in the ceremony...Your presence is not required", said the Judges yesterday while dismissing Tare's petition. Tare contended that being a father, his attendance at the wedding ceremony was very much necessary. Hence, he may be allowed to attend the ceremony with police escort. Public Prosecutor Usha Kejriwal opposed Tare's plea on the ground that earlier too he had sought parole citing his son's medical treatment. However, on investigation, police submitted an adverse report and his application was rejected, she said. Earlier, when the convict had been released on parole, he had absconded for five years and was arrested and brought back to jail, the prosecutor submitted. On perusing police report, the bench noted "going by your past record, what is the guarantee that you (petitioner) would return after release on parole?" A trial court had in 2006 sentenced Tare to life imprisonment. In 2009, the Bombay High Court dismissed his appeal challenging the order of conviction. The Bombay High Court has refused to allow a policeman to correct his birth date in the service records on the ground that he was seeking a change at the fag end of his career and not within the five years of his joining service as per rules. A bench of Chief Justice D H Waghela and Justice V K Tahilramani, hearing a plea of Devendra Shinde, noted, "the judgement of the Supreme Court has been quoted extensively (by this court) to emphasise that facts in the present case are strikingly similar and that the petitioner cannot be allowed to change his date of birth at the fag end of his career". "The petitioner had failed to move the authorities within five years of his entry into service to correct his date of birth. Now that option is not available to him," said the bench in a recent order. "Even otherwise, his claim that he came to know that his date of birth is incorrectly entered into his service book only in 2012, lacks credibility. Hence, the petition is dismissed," the bench added. The petitioner had challenged an order of Maharashtra Administrative Tribunal (MAT) delivered on January 8 this year which had rejected his claim to correct the birth date in his service record. In the application filed before MAT, Shinde had challenged a letter of March 11, 2014, by which, he was told that his request for change of birth date in his service record from January 1, 1958 to October 1, 1958 is rejected. Shinde joined service on March 1, 1983, as a police sub-inspector. In his service record, his birth date is stated as January 1, 1958 on the basis of SSC certificate. Shinde contended that his correct birth date as per SSC certificate is October 1, 1958, and that an incorrect entry was made in his service book. He, therefore, prayed that the birth date may be corrected in his service record. The Government Pleader submitted that the birth date of the petitioner is January 1, 1958, which is the date given by the petitioner himself and the same is recorded in the service book of the petitioner. Even on the first page of the service book, the petitioner had himself signed the entries in token of the acknowledgement thereof. Thus, the petitioner's claim that his birth date was wrongly recorded, lacked credibility when he himself acknowledged the same to be correct, the pleader said. However, the bench noted that Rule 38 of Maharashtra Civil Services (General Conditions of Service) Rules, does not permit any change in the date of birth of a government servant after five years of joining service. India today said it was awaiting a visit by Pakistan's Special Investigation Team and other details in connection with the Pathankot terror attack, days after Pakistani authorities registered an FIR in the case. "The government awaits details from Pakistan and also awaits visit by Pakistan's SIT," Minister of State for External Affairs V K Singh, replying to a question in Lok Sabha said. Pakistan Prime Minister's Foreign Affairs Advisor Sartaj Aziz on Monday had that the SIT from Pakistan may visit Pathankot in the first few days of March and that his country was pursuing the investigation seriously. In first official confirmation, he had also said Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar, named by India as the mastermind of the Pathankot attack, has been under "protective custody" since January 14. Singh said NSAs and Foreign Secretaries of the two countries are in regular touch and that Pakistan conveyed to India that leads provided to it about the attack are being investigated. "The government of India is committed to addressing all outstanding issues with Pakistan through bilateral peaceful dialogue, as envisaged in the Simla Agreement and the Lahore Declaration," he said. He said after the Pathankot attack, it was conveyed to Pakistan that it must take firm and immediate action against the organisations and individuals in Pakistan responsible for and linked to the attack. "This was done at the highest level when Prime Minister received a call from Prime Minister of Pakistan Nawaz Sharif on January 5," he said. Pakistani authorities had lodged an FIR in connection with the Pathankot attack on February 18, without naming Azhar. Referring to a press release issued by Pakistan on January 13, he said it mentioned about apprehending several individuals belonging to Jaish-e-Mohammad and sealing of the outfit's offices. Replying to a separate question on attack on Indian Consulate in Mazar-e-Sharif in Afghanistan last month, Singh said government was awaiting detailed information from Afghan authorities regarding "result" of their investigation into the attack. He said in view of the attack, government has undertaken further review of security measures in the Embassy and four consulates in coordination with Afghan authorities. Former Union Minister Farooq Abdullah today said India will not be able to keep Kashmir if the forces who see Muslims of the country with suspicion and pit the minority community against the majority are not reined in. "A storm is brewing in India which is ringing alarm bells and, if we do not understand this, if we continue fighting Hindus with Muslims, then I am telling them from here that they (Centre) cannot keep Kashmir. This is the truth even if you do not like it," Abdullah said addressing National Conference workers on the first death anniversary of the party's former general secretary Sheikh Nazir. Abdullah said Muslims were not the enemies of the country but were still seen with suspicion. "Today, a Muslim is seen with suspicious eyes. Is a Muslim not Indian? Has he not sacrificed anything? Have you forgotten Brigadier Usman (the highest ranking officer of Indian Army killed in the Indo-Pakistan war of 1947)? He sacrificed his life for saving the country. "Have you forgotten those soldiers who were Muslims and fought for the nation and are fighting even today? Muslim is not the enemy of India. Control these elements who label Muslims as enemies," he said. Abdullah said India lives in the hearts of Muslims. "For God's sake, do not take this country in that direction where we can place Hindus and Muslims separately. This is not the India Mahatma Gandhi, (Maulana Abul Kalam) Azad, Sher-e-Kashmir (Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah), Jawaharlal Nehru and others built," he said, adding there is no difference between "our God and yours". "If there was any difference, my blood would not have been red but green and yours saffron and Christians of some other colour...God has created us all alike. Try to mend differences and unite the hearts," Abdullah, a former Chief Minister and Union Minister said. He said the dialogue process between India and Pakistan has to be taken forward irrespective of the incidents like Mumbai and Pathankot. "Peace can be established if you win peoples' hearts and that can happen when you address the basic issues here along with firmly holding the hand of friendship (with Pakistan). "Pathankot and Mumbai (attacks) will continue to happen because some people want India and Pakistan to remain far from each other and fight with each other. We have to fight those powers and that will happen only through the process of dialogue," he said. He favoured an open border between the two countries for greater people-to-people contact. The former chief minister reiterated that this part of Kashmir will continue to be with India, while the other part across the Line of Control (LoC) will remain with Pakistan. "I am telling you honesty that we have to live with India only. Keep this in mind that the other part will live with Pakistan...But our demand is that our autonomy be restored. The honour which you (Centre) took away should be restored," he said. The National Conference president said Peoples Democratic party (PDP's) coalition with BJP is one of the reasons for the latest tendency of people to rush towards encounter sites. "The present government (during electioneering) had made a promise to the people that they won't align with communal parties. (Former Chief Minister) Mufti (Mohammad Sayeed) entered into an agreement with them (BJP). The people will not accept this. And this is the one of the reason for it," he said. Abdullah also criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his claim about discrimination in power supply during Ramzan and Diwali in Uttar Pradesh. "It is regretful. Prime Minister should talk in such a way that unites people rather than creating a division. I had not expected such statements from the Prime Minister," he said. During his address to party workers on the occasion of the second death anniversary of former NC general secretary Sheikh Nazir Ahmad, Abdullah said the youth of Kashmir were "sacrificing their lives for their rights and not for any political positions." He said the people of Kashmir are not enemies of any nation. "We are not anyone's enemy. Neither are we India's enemy nor Pakistan's enemy, but we ask them to do justice with us. You have not done justice with us," he said. He said for peace in the region, India and Pakistan's friendship is vital. India has submitted to the UN's Sanction Committee a fresh list of 11 terrorists from Pakistan -based terror groups affiliated to Al-Qaeda, Taliban and other outfits responsible for in the country. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj while replying to a query in Lok Sabha said government was making continued efforts to have terror groups and individuals targeting India designated by United Nations Sanction Committees. "On February 18, 2016, a fresh submission of 11 individuals and one organisation linked to in India, has been submitted to the 1267/1989/2253 ISIL (Da'esh) and Al-Qaeda Sanctions Committee," the minister added. Sources said the fresh submission includes names of terrorists belonging to Pakistan-based terror outfits affiliated to Al-Qaeda, Taliban and ISIS. However, they did not divulge their names. The UN Committee covers asset freeze, travel ban, arms embargo and listing criteria for ISIL, Al-Qaida and "associated individuals, groups, undertaking and entities". It also asks that those responsible for committing, organizing or supporting terrorist acts must be held accountable. Swaraj also noted that India has signed extradition treaties with 40 countries and entered into extradition agreements and arrangements with nine countries. It was the policy of government to sign extradition treaties, agreements and arrangements with as many countries as possible to bring back from abroad fugitive criminals wanted in India for various criminal offences including those relating to terrorism, the minister added. India is pressing for greater market access in the services sector, particularly easy movement of professionals, in the ongoing negotiations for a mega trade deal at RCEP - a group of 16 nations. Liberalisation of the services sector was the main issue of discussion in the recently concluded 11th round of talks in Brunei. The 12th round of negotiations is scheduled at Perth in Australia from April 22. "India wants greater relaxation in visa regime in RCEP countries. During the last round of talks, the 10-nation bloc Asean has raised issues with the offer of India in the services sector. However, Australia has supported our offer," an official said. The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) is a mega trade deal which aims to cover goods, services, investments, economic and technical cooperation, competition and intellectual property rights. Besides, senior officials from 16 Asian countries, including India and China, held wide ranging deliberations on duty cuts in goods. "In the goods sector, India has asked the members to fulfill their commitments as their current offers are not up to the level they have committed," the official added. As part of its goods proposal, India has not offered any duty cut on steel to China, Australia and New Zealand in the proposed free trade agreement among the 16 Asian members. The RCEP talks started in Phnom Penh in November 2012. The 16 countries account for over a quarter of the world's economy, estimated to be more than USD 75 trillion. The RCEP deal is also important amidst the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement led by the US. Indian industry is apprehensive that TPP would impact Indian exports. India already has free trade agreements (FTAs) with the Asean grouping, Japan and South Korea. India has offered to open its market the most for Asean countries -- with which it has an FTA in place -- and has proposed to eliminate duties or tariffs on 80 per cent of items for the 10-nation bloc. Similarly, for Japan and South Korea, it has offered to open up 65 per cent of its product space. For Australia, New Zealand and China, New Delhi has proposed to eliminate duties on only 42.5 per cent of products. As India does not have any kind of FTA with these three countries, its offer is less. The 16-member bloc RCEP comprises 10 Asean members (Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand, the Philippines, Laos and Vietnam) and their six free trade agreement partners -- India, China, Japan, Korea, Australia and New Zealand. India's newly appointed High Commissioner in Pakistan Gautam Bambawale today called on Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif who said mutual cooperation was vital for the socio-economic uplift of both the countries. Bambawale, who arrived in Pakistan last month to assume the charge of the High Commission, called on the prime minister here at the PM House. "High Commissioner Gautam Bambawale had a meeting with H.E. The Prime Minister of Pakistan today @ PM House," the Indian High Commission tweeted along with a picture of their meeting. "Pakistan was pursuing good relations with all its neighbours including India as mutual cooperation was vital for the socio-economic uplift of both the countries," Sharif was quoted as saying by the state-run APP agency. Bambawale, an IFS officer of 1984-batch, replaced T C A Raghavan. He has worked in Germany, US and China. In 2007, he became the first Consul General of India in Guangzhou, China. An Indian national in Saudi Arabia has been killed by stray bullets during a security operation targeting a wanted Bahraini terrorist in the eastern province of the Kingdom, Indian officials said today. Mohammad Owais, from Bahraich in Uttar Pradesh, was killed and three others injured when stray bullets entered the room they were staying during the exchange of firing between security forces and a terror suspect, an Indian embassy official told PTI, citing local sources. The police had gone to arrest terror suspect Ali Mohamoud Ali Abdullah, a Bahraini national who was involved in a number of terrorist acts, after he was spotted at a farm in Al-Awamiyyah town yesterday, the Saudi Press Agency reported. The terrorist fired at security authorities when they attempted to catch him and in the ensuing shootout he was killed. A machine gun and revolver was seized from him, it said, quoting an Interior Ministry spokesman. Saudi authorities, however, have not verified the killing of the Indian national. A 32-year-old Indian-origin man has been arrested in Canada on charges of possessing a weapon and threatening to kill his business partner. Parmpal Gill was arrested on Monday from Ontario province, 955 kilometres from Toronto, following his alleged involvement in a business dispute with a 20-year-old man in Brampton city. Gill brandished a firearm and began to threaten the victim prior to leaving the area in a green Honda CRV. He has been charged with possession of a weapon for a purpose, dangerous to public peace and uttering a threat to cause death or bodily harm, voiceonline.Com reported. Ontario's Peel Regional Police said they arrested Gill from Caledona and have already asked the public to contact Criminal Investigation Bureau for any information related to the incident. Ontario is the most multicultural province in Canada where half of all new immigrants live. Located in the middle of Canada, the province has a population of 12 million and includes people from 200 countries who speak as many as 130 languages. Humans settled, set fire to Madagascars forests 1,000 years ago Stalagmites reveal huge shift in ancient Madagascars plant life, unrelated to climate change [Credit: Christine Daniloff/MIT] University of Massachusetts professor Stephen Burns (left) and Malagasy student Peterson Faina cutting a stalagmite at Anjohibe Cave [Credit: MIT] TANN you might also like There's no question that our species has had a dramatic impact on the planet's physical environment, particularly over the last few centuries, with the rise of modern industry, transportation, and infrastructure. But as new research shows, humans have been transforming the landscape, with lasting impacts, since long before the start of the Industrial Era.Scientists from MIT and the University of Massachusetts at Amherst have found that a widespread and permanent loss of forests in Madagascar that occurred 1,000 years ago was due not to climate change or any natural disaster, but to human settlers who set fire to the forests to make way for grazing cattle.The researchers came to this conclusion after determining the composition of two stalagmites from a cave in northwestern Madagascar. Stalagmites form from water that percolates from the surface, through the soil, and into a cave. These finely layered pillars can be preserved for thousands of years, and their composition serves as a historical record of the environment above ground.From their analysis, the team found that around 1,000 years ago, both stalagmites' calcium carbonate composition shifted suddenly and completely, from carbon isotope ratios typical of trees and shrubs, to those more consistent with grassland, within just 100 years.Was this landscape transformation triggered by climate change? The team's results suggest otherwise. Around the same period, they found that oxygen isotope levels remained unchanged in both stalagmites, indicating that rainfall rates -- and climate in general -- remained relatively stable."We went in expecting to just tell a climate change story, and were surprised to see a huge carbon isotope change in both stalagmites," says David McGee, the Kerr-McGee Career Development Assistant Professor in the Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences at MIT. "Both the speed at which this shift occurred and the fact that there's no real climate signal suggest human involvement."McGee, who studies the composition of stalagmites as an indicator of past climates, teamed up with lead author Stephen Burns, professor of geosciences at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst; Laurie Godfrey, professor of anthropology also at UMass Amherst; and colleagues at the University of Antananarivo in Madagascar. Godfrey has been studying the extinctions of giant lemurs that occurred in Madagascar over the past 1,000 years. Populations of other large animals declined dramatically around this time, including pygmy hippos and giant tortoises.The megafaunal extinction was likely accelerated by habitat loss and the widespread destruction of forests at the time. However, it's been difficult to pin down exactly why the forests shrank, and when. Scientists who have analyzed sediment deposits from ancient lakes in the region and in other parts of Madagascar have observed an increased abundance of charcoal microparticles -- a signal of fire. They've also noticed a spike in grass pollen levels, indicating a larger extent of grasslands. But dates for these sediments are uncertain.McGee says stalagmites offer a more precise record of environmental change."You'd think stalagmites in a cave are insensitive to what's going on in the landscape above them," McGee says. "But because they're basically fossilized groundwater deposits, precipitated in very regular layers, they're a fairly sensitive recorder of climate and ecosystem changes."In a 2014 expedition to the island, Burns, Godfrey, and their Malagasy colleagues collected samples of stalagmites from Anjohibe Cave, a large cave system in northwestern Madagascar. They sent two meter-long stalagmites to McGee to analyze at MIT.In the lab, McGee and research scientist Benjamin Hardt determined the ages of each stalagmite's layers by measuring the ratio of uranium to thorium -- a common geological dating technique, but difficult in these samples given their relative youth. Burns then measured their carbon and oxygen isotope ratios. All plants take up carbon dioxide for photosynthesis. While carbon dioxide in the air consists of a fixed isotopic ratio of carbon-12 to carbon-13, all plants preferentially take up carbon-12. Among plants, trees and shrubs more strongly exclude carbon-13 compared with grasses.When the dating and isotope results were put together, McGee and Burns observed a dramatic shift in the ratio of carbon-12 to carbon-13 around 1,000 years ago in both stalagmites."What we see in the record is that the change from carbon isotopes that look like forest, to isotopes that look like grassland, happens really rapidly, within a century, and it would be unusual for a forest to naturally completely turn into grassland that quickly," McGee says.With additional analysis, Burns and McGee determined there was no corresponding change in oxygen isotopes at the time, eliminating climate change, or any natural drop in precipitation, as a trigger for forest loss.Godfrey and others have found evidence that humans settled on Madagascar around 3,000 years ago and later adopted a more agrarian lifestyle, introducing cattle to the island before 1,000 years ago. McGee says the results suggest that humans used "slash and burn techniques" around this time to create pastureland for cattle."I think this is one more piece of evidence that human impacts on the environment don't just start with Europeans and the Industrial era," McGee says.Going forward, Godfrey says the team plans to sample more caves across Madagascar to determine the timing and extent to which humans transformed the landscape."The transition from ephemeral forager to dedicated agro-pastoralist occurred, probably across Madagascar, around 1,000 years ago," Godfrey says. "We know that a dramatic landscape transformation occurred in the northwest. We know that this transformation was not triggered by climate change. But we don't yet know whether similar shifts, also unrelated to natural aridification, occurred elsewhere on the island, and if so, when, exactly. We are currently seeking to answer these questions."The team's results are published in the journal Quaternary Science Reviews A 33-year-old Indian-origin man has been sentenced to over two years in prison and ordered to pay over USD 300,000 in fine for sending a malicious computer code to his former employer's servers that caused financial losses. Nikhil Nilesh Shah of New Jersey was sentenced to 30 months in prison by US District Judge Louise Flanagan of the Eastern District of North Carolina and ordered to pay USD 324,462 in restitution. According to the plea agreement, from 2007 to 2012, Shah was an information technology manager at a company located in North Carolina that developed platforms for the creation of mobile applications. Shah admitted that in March 2012, he left the company to work for another technology company and in June that year he sent malicious computer code to his former company's computer servers in Durham and Raleigh, North Carolina, deleting much of its intellectual property. A 33-year-old Indian-origin techie has been sentenced to more than two years in jail and ordered to pay over USD 300,000 in fine for sending a malware to his former employer's servers that caused financial losses. Nikhil Nilesh Shah, of New Jersey, was sentenced to 30 months in prison by US District Judge Louise Flanagan in North Carolina and ordered to pay USD 324,462 in restitution. According to the plea agreement, from 2007 to 2012, Shah was an information technology manager at a company in North Carolina that developed platforms for the creation of mobile applications. Shah admitted that in March 2012, he left the company to work for another technology firm and in June that year he sent malicious computer code to his former company's computer servers in Durham and Raleigh, North Carolina, deleting much of its intellectual property. Country's second largest IT firm Infosys has extended the tenure of its chief by nearly two years till March 2021, saying his initiatives have helped the company move towards reclaiming its industry leadership position. Under Sikka, who took over as the CEO and Managing Director in August 2014, the company is now posting strong growth numbers for the last few quarters. "The company's nomination and renumeration committee and Board recognised the outstanding initiatives taken by towards restoring the company to industry leadership, which have already begun to show results," Infosys said in a BSE filing. It added that the management, under Sikka's leadership, has drawn up goals for revenue, margins and people productivity for FY 2020-2021, which is expected to be progressively achieved in the next five years. "The Board believes that Sikka's leadership will be essential to achieve these goals. Hence the Board recommends that Sikka's present contract of employment be replaced with a new contract that is fully aligned to the period and goals, as well as to shareholder value creation," it said. The Board has reduced the term of his existing contract to December 31, 2016 from June 13, 2019. Also, Infosys will execute a new executive employment agreement with Sikka for his re-appointment as the MD and CEO with effect from April 1, 2016 until March 31, 2021 to reflect certain changes in his compensation. Once an industry bellwether, Infosys lost out to rivals like Tata Consultancy Services and HCL Technologies in terms of growth. Besides, it faced other issues like attrition and exodus of senior-level executives. Sikka was brought in to turnaround the company, a strategy that has worked well for the Bengaluru-based company. Apart from posting stellar growth in the last few quarters, Infosys has also set up an aspirational goal of $20 billion in topline by 2020. Earlier this year, the $9.2-billion IT firm raised its revenue outlook to 12.8-13.2% in constant currency for 2015-16, from the earlier target of 10-12% growth. Infosys also aims to increase revenue per Full-time Equivalent (employee) to $80,000 by deploying automation and innovation in existing businesses, with a goal of generating at least 30% productivity improvements in existing service lines from these solutions, thereby making the company more competitive to win larger deals. New services like Design Thinking, solutions in artificial intelligence and intellectual property-led businesses are expected to contribute at least 10% of Infosys' revenue in the coming years. Besides, the company has also been aggressively investing in startups working on new technology areas under Sikka's leadership. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's main regional ally Iran said today that it was confident his regime would respect a planned ceasefire brokered by Moscow and Washington. "From the start of the crisis in Syria, Iran has always insisted on a ceasefire," Deputy Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian said, quoted by the official agency IRNA. "We have confidence in the commitment of the Syrian government to respect the ceasefire, but it is unclear whether armed groups linked to known terrorist groups will respect it," he said. "Tehran has always led efforts to fight terrorism, implement a ceasefire, facilitate humanitarian assistance and establish an inter-Syrian dialogue," he added. Iran provides financial and military support to Assad, notably sending "military advisers" and volunteers to fight alongside the Syrian army. Syria's regime has agreed to the "cessation of hostilities", due to take effect at midnight (2200 GMT) Friday, while vowing to keep fighting jihadists and other "terrorists". The opposition has also given conditional approval to the deal, announced on Monday by the United States and Russia. But the agreement does not apply to the Islamic State jihadist group and Al-Qaeda-affiliated Al-Nusra Front and many analysts are sceptical about its chances of success. Hardline Iranian media outlets have raised USD 600,000 to add to a bounty for the killing of Salman Rushdie, it emerged today, 27 years after a death fatwa was issued by Iran's former supreme leader Ayatollah Khomeini over one of the India-born author's controversial novels. About 40 organisations, including state-run media outlets, raised the sum to reinforce the religious edict calling for Rushdie's assassination issued by Khomeini in 1989 on charges of blasphemy after the publication of 'The Satanic Verses'. "The fatwa against Salman Rushdie is a religious fatwa. Nobody in the world can nullify a religious fatwa. It has been, it is, and it will be," a senior member of the editorial team at state-run Fars New Agency in Tehran told The Times. The original fatwa against the 68-year-old British-Indian Booker Prize winner had caused international outcry, with the UK severing diplomatic ties with Iran for nearly a decade. It was suspended in 1998 when Mohammad Khatami, then the president of Iran, announced that as a pre-condition to the restoration of ties with Britain the Iranian state would "neither support nor hinder assassination operations". The new bounty came to light in an account by an unnamed journalist at Fars of a digital media fair in Tehran. The story included a declaration by a man known as "Mr Amini", setting a bounty equivalent to USD 600,000, and listed 40 organisations, including NGOs and private donors, which had pledged the money, The Times reported. Fars, which pledged 100 million Tomans (23,500 pounds), was among the top three cash donors named on the list, which also included the Centre for Cultural and Science Research, Miqat Radio and the Iranian Centre for Training Journalists. A religious organisation called the 15 Khordad Foundation initially offered a USD 2.7 million reward to anyone carrying out the fatwa, then increased it to USD 3.3 million in 2012. The new money brings the total bounty to nearly USD 4 million. Jo Glanville, director of English PEN, an organisation that defends freedom of expression and has worked with Rushdie for many years, said: "Given the new relations between Iran and the West, I think we rather hoped [the fatwa] might disappear." In the early years of the fatwa, Rushdie was forced to go into hiding under police protection as bookshops across the world were destroyed and people associated with the translation or publication of his book were attacked. His son, Zafar Rushdie, who is also his publicist, declined to comment on the new bounty. Hardline organisations in Iran make symbolic gestures involving the Rushdie fatwa every year around its anniversary on February 14. But it's unclear whether the bounty would really be paid. Islamic State group jihadists briefly occupied the heart of a Libyan city near Tripoli but were ousted by militia fighters, in clashes that left 16 people dead, officials said today. IS has taken advantage of growing chaos to expand its foothold in the North African country, which has rival governments vying for power. The jihadists' overnight seizure of the security headquarters and other buildings in Sabratha came days after a US air strike hit an IS training camp near the western city, killing dozens, probably including a senior IS operative. IS fighters exploited the "security vacuum" in the city centre as security forces loyal to authorities in militia-held Tripoli conducted raids looking for IS operatives in the suburbs, Sabratha's municipal council said in a statement. Up to 200 IS fighters from "sleeper cells" seized the chance at around midnight Tuesday to take control of the security headquarters and other buildings, Taher al-Gharabli, the head of the city's military council, told television. Ten members of the security forces were killed when IS attacked the security base, while six others died in clashes before and afterwards, military council spokesman Adel Benwir said. Security forces have since regained "complete control," Benwir said. "Some IS fighters are south of the city," he added, without giving a number. Libya has had rival administrations since mid-2014 when the internationally recognised government fled Tripoli after the Fajr Libya militia alliance overran the capital and set up its own parliament. Last June, IS seized the coastal city of Sirte, east of Tripoli, raising fears that it is establishing a new stronghold on Europe's doorstep. The group has since attacked key coastal oil facilities and staged a string of suicide bombings. Israel's defence minister has accused Palestinians of not mourning their dead as much as Jews, wading into a debate on Palestinian grief amid a wave of violence that has left more than 200 dead on both sides. The controversy erupted two weeks ago when a presenter on Israeli army radio compared the grief of Israeli parents of soldiers killed in action to that of Palestinians whose loved ones died while seeking to kill Israelis. In a speech last night to Israeli relatives of fallen soldiers, Defence Minister Moshe Yaalon said there was a "difference between us and our neighbours". "There is no place for any comparison between bereavement on our side and on theirs," a statement from his office quoted him as saying. "We are a society that sanctifies life and unfortunately many of them sanctify death. A society that chooses death achieves nothing, has no future." His remarks followed similar claims from Israel's police chief, who spoke to an organisation of bereaved Israeli families on Monday. "One cannot ignore the fact that the mourning we share with you is starkly different from the kind of bereavement we find that is increasingly prevalent among our enemies," he reportedly said. "They ascribe no value to life." Two weeks ago veteran Israeli army radio broadcaster Razi Barkai interviewed Internal Security Minister Gilad Erdan, who has refused to allow the bodies of some Palestinian attackers to be released to their families for burial saying he wants to avoid funerals becoming political rallies. Barkai suggested that this caused the Palestinian families no less distress than that suffered by families of Israeli soldiers killed in the 2014 Gaza war and whose remains are still held by the strip's Hamas rulers. "Bereavement is bereavement both here and on the other side of the fence," Barkai was quoted as saying in later comments. "The feelings of bereaved families - both here and there - are immeasurable." That interview came in the wake of a visit in early February by three Arab Israeli lawmakers to relatives of killed Palestinian assailants who were seeking to retrieve their bodies. The visit prompted Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to lend his report to a draft bill which would suspend lawmakers for "inappropriate conduct". A wave of Palestinian knife, gun and car-ramming assaults that erupted in October has claimed the lives of 27 Israelis, as well as an American and an Eritrean. The violence has also seen 176 Palestinians killed by Israeli forces, most while carrying out attacks but others during clashes and demonstrations. An Israeli citizen was arrested along the Indo-Nepal border area here for allegedly trying to cross over to India without a passport, a senior official said today. The official said police stopped Ran Rosenzweie during a routine check last evening when he was roaming in Sonouli bus stand area. He was on his way to India from Kathmandu. Rosenzweie was arrested by Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) in Sonauli area as he was without a passport, SSB Commandant KS Bankhoti said. A case has been registered and intelligence agencies have been informed, he said. Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar today concluded a two-day visit to the UK where he attended the Extraordinary Meeting of the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG) of which India is a member. During his visit, Jaishankar also had bilateral meetings with Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Oliver Letwin MP, minister of state at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Hugo Swire, and UK National Security Adviser Mark Lyall Grant to discuss the follow-up actions on decisions reached during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit here in November, 2015 and other issues of mutual interest, the Indian High Commission said in a statement. The foreign secretary also interacted with a select group of UK-based scholars and editors on a range of topics, including India's foreign policy and regional and global issues of contemporary importance. Congress today demanded that the Haryana government be dismissed, assembly dissolved and fresh election held as the BJP dispensation does not have the right to stay in office in the wake of the Jat quota agitation that has left several people dead and damaged properties worth Rs 20,000 crore. "They do not have the right to stay in office even for five minutes in the wake of the incidents. The government should be dismissed. The Assembly should be dissolved and fresh elections ordered," Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad told reporters here. Targeting BJP and the M L Khattar government in Haryana, he blamed its "misgovernance" for the present state of affairs and alleged that they neither have the experience nor the capacity to rule. "They are responsible for making the most forward and developed state the most backward," he said. Asked about the audio tape allegedly implicating a close aide of former Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda and whether the party would take action against him, Azad made a veiled reference to the JNU row. "These are days when fake audio tapes are running on TV channels. They (channels) are equally responsible for tensions across the country," he said. "TRP has finished the country. This rat race... Baked, half-baked, unbaked . We are all responsible for this mess," he said. When told that the Haryana Congress chief has already initiated action in the matter, he said, "I don't blame PCC President. He may have taken it on face value." Taking a dig at BJP, Azad said, "They cannot run a government. They got dozens killed (in the Jat agitation). One should only do the work for which one is fit. They just cannot do it. All of a sudden this issue of nationalism cropped up. Which anti-national is sitting here. We did not see any anti-national in the last 50 years. They are doing this to promote their party." Alleging that there are "divisions" within the BJP, Azad said the Chief Minister, ministers and MPs make different statements on the same issue. Responding to the attack by some BJP members on Rahul Gandhi over the JNU row, Azad said, "Are they nationalists? I ask this to those who are calling us anti-national. If anybody calls a person anti-national that is the start of anti-nationalism. (REOPENS DEL49) Addressing the press, Leader of Congress in Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge said the government had promised to discuss issues the opposition wanted but they themselves are creating controversies. On the GST Bill, Kharge said if the government agrees to accept the three amendments suggested by Congress, the bill can be passed. Putting the blame on the government for disruptions in Rajya Sabha, Azad said it took the treasury benches an entire day to decide to say "yes" or "no" to the demand to include a dalit in the panel probing Hyderabad Central University student Rohith Vemula's suicide. "If there is no dalit in the panel, it also shows the mindset of this government," Azad said. YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 24, ARMENPRESS. Armenpress state news agency introduces on the air of Lratvakan.am all that you will read, hear and see on todays news. Haykian award ceremony will take place at National Academic Theatre of Opera and Ballet after Alexander Spendiaryan today, on February 24. The goal of the award ceremony is to promote the activity of student self-governing bodies, foster unique student initiatives, involvement of students in science and international cooperation. Workshop headlined From humanitarian response to sustainable solutions will be held in Yerevan. It is dedicated to integration problems of people deported as a result of the Syrian war who found a shelter in Armenia. It is organized by the joint efforts of the Ministry of Diaspora, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Armenia, Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation and Armenian General Benevolent Union. Political scientist v will refer to domestic and foreign political developments and regional re-orderings. National Assembly MP Aragats Akhoyan will introduce his remarks on The Middle East and regional security theme. Associate Professor of Economics, economist Karlen Khachatryan will speak about the economic situation in Armenia under the light of geopolitical and economic developments. Hazardous goods have been unveiled in Russias consumer market. What kind of goods is it about and can they appear in the Armenian market? Babken Pipoyan, Chairman of the Informed and Protected Consumer NGO, will talk about the issue. Objective exercise at Service for the Protection of Historical Environment and Cultural Museum-Reservations SNCO. The experts of the Ministry of Territorial Administration and Emergency Situations will try to improve the organization of protection of employees and cultural and material values by the exercise. Founding director of Commander Andranik museum Ilyich Beglaryan will introduce the activities of the museum and events dedicated to the 150th anniversary of Commander Andranik. Annual awards ceremony 2015 will take place at the Writers Union of Armenia. More on these and other topics is available on armenpress.am. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook. Former Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda's close aide Virender was today charged with sedition by Haryana police for allegedly inciting violence during the Jat quota stir that killed 28 people in Haryana which was limping back to normalcy. The death toll in the violence that put Haryana on the edge and left a trail of destruction was put at 28 by State DGP Yashpal Singhal. Over 200 persons including few security personnel were also injured during the nine-day-old agitation. Singhal said the sedition charges were in connection with an audio clip of Virender's conversation in which he allegedly incited violence. An FIR has been registered in Rohtak against Virender and Man Singh Dalal, who also allegedly figured in the taped conversation, under various sections of the IPC, including section 124-A (sedition) and section 120-B (conspiracy), Singhal told the media here. They have also been charged with IPC sections 153-A (promoting enmity between classes) and section 153-B (imputation, assertion prejudicial to national integration), he said. The FIR against the duo has been registered on a complaint of a Bhiwani resident Pankaj Kumar, he said. Virender had earlier accepted that the voice in the clip was his but alleged that it had been "doctored". He has maintained that nowhere had he talked about instigating Jats or anyone. "Moreover, the conversation is an old one, much before the current unrest started," he had said. "Twenty eight people have been killed during the stir. We have arrested 127 persons and registered FIR against 535 others. Over 200 persons including few security personnel were also injured during the agitation," Singhal said. Curfew was lifted in Hisar district and relaxed in violence-hit Rohtak and Bhiwani districts while rail and road traffic were gradually resumed on routes which had remained blocked during the agitation. A totalof 35 popular trains including Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra Mail, Kalka Shatabdi, Amritsar Shatabdi and Jammu Rajdhani resumed operation today while about services of 60 trains were still affected. In Bhiwani, one of the worst-affected districts in the agitation, authorities gave a four-hour relaxation in curfew as the situation was improving, officials said. Curfew was lifted from Hisar and its nearby town Hansi, though prohibitory orders under Section 144 banning assembly of five or more persons will remain in force. Day-long relaxation in curfew was allowed in Rohtak, the epicentre of the pro quota agitation in Haryana. "The situation is peaceful in Rohtak city today. No untoward incident has been reported from anywhere," a senior police official said. Life was also returning to normal in violence-hit Sonipat, where three persons had died in a clash with security forces two days back. Security forces were patrolling sensitive areas including Bhiwani, Hisar, Sonipat and Rohtak, officials said. The arterial Delhi-Ambala National Highway, which had remained closed for four days, was thrown open last evening. (Reopens DEL 48) Meanwhile, the Haryana government appointed retired IPS officer Prakash Singh "to inquire into the acts of omission and commission on part of all officers and officials of both police and civil administration during the Jat reservation agitation (which) resulted in blockades of roads including national highways, violence and extensive damage to public and private properties in many districts", an official spokesman said. As the situation in the state improved, the government opened all institutes under the control of Directorate, Industrial Training with effect from today. Also, the Khattar government announced those who suffered property loss during the stir could claim up to 25 per cent as interim relief immediately on the basis of self-assessment of damage, an official spokesman said. The business community in Rohtak, which faced extensive property damage in arson and violence during the pro-quota Jat stir, today pegged their loss at Rs 1,000 cr in this district alone and sought a CBI probe into the incidents. Accusing that the Haryana government of having "completely failed" in controlling the violent mob, the traders and shopkeepers compared the arson and violence with partition riots of 1947. The trading community sought licenses for keeping arms and ammunition to protect their property in future as their "faith in administration has been completely shattered". "We want a CBI probe into the whole incident. We want to know who were behind the incidents which caused heavy financial losses to us," Ashok Bhambri, president, Rohtak Hotel and Banquet Association said. Bhambri, whose hotel was ransacked, alleged the security personnel acted just as "mute spectators" when their property was being looted and burnt. He said most businessmen after partition shifted from areas which now fall in Pakistan and settled in Rohtak. "It was like a repeat of what we had witnessed during Partition in 1947," said Bhambri. Traders put the number of damaged shops and commercial establishments at 500 and estimate the loss at Rs 1,000 crore in Rohtak alone. They alleged the looting and burning of commercial establishments of non-Jats by mob was "preplanned". "They knew which property belonged to whom and looted and damaged property belonging to non-Jat persons," he said. "We feel mob deliberately targeted shops and commercial establishments of non-Jat people of Rohtak," said Sudhir Gupta, a shop owner in Rohtak. Rohtak, the epicentre of the Jat stir, saw massive damage to private property. Among shops and outlets which were damaged and burnt were McDonald's, Chevrolet showroom on Sonepat road, a mall, a Hyundai showroom at Jind bypass, Toyota showroom and Honda showroom on Hisar road. Besides, schools and educational institutions of non-Jat community were also damaged. Curfew was today lifted in Hisar district and relaxed in violence-hit Rohtak and Bhiwani districts while rail and road traffic resumed on routes which had remained blocked for over a week due to the Jat stir that claimed 19 lives. In Bhiwani, one of the worst-affected districts in the agitation, authorities gave a four-hour relaxation in curfew as the situation was improving, officials said. Curfew was lifted from Hisar and its nearby town Hansi, though prohibitory orders under Section 144 banning assembly of five or more persons will remain in force. Day-long relaxation in curfew was given in Rohtak, the epicentre of the pro quota agitation in Haryana, where extensive damage has been caused to property that includes destruction of many shops, showrooms, hotels, malls and vehicles. "The situation is peaceful in Rohtak city today. No untoward incident has been reported from anywhere," a senior police official said. Both Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar and former Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, who visited Rohtak yesterday, had to face the ire of traders and shopkeepers, who had suffered heavy losses. While Khattar was heckled and shown black flags as residents demanded strict action against people who took the city to ransom, Hooda was also ghearoed by the angry traders when he reached his stronghold. Life was also returning to normal in violence-hit Sonipat, where three persons had died in a clash with security forces two days back. Security forces were patrolling sensitive areas including Bhiwani, Hisar, Sonipat and Rohtak, officials said. The arterial Delhi-Ambala Highway, which had remained closed for four days, was thrown open last evening. Officials said that protesters had cleared the rail and road blockades and normal traffic across the state had started to resume. Train services on the Delhi-Ambala-Chandigarh route will be restored this evening from Delhi end after inspection and repair of the track on Ambala-Delhi route. A railway spokesman said that train service from Hisar has resumed to various destinations, including Delhi, Bhiwani, Rewari, Jaipur, Sadulpur and Ganganagar following removal of blockades and safety clearance of the tracks. Bus service from Hisar to various destinations including Chandigarh, Delhi and Rohtak has also been restored, General Manager of Haryana Roadways, Hisar, Ram Kumar said. Cutting of a 68-kg cake by her ministers, special prayers in places of worship across the state, mega feasts and welfare measures marked the birth day celebrations of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalitha, who turned 68 today. Popular 'Amma Unavagam', the subsidised canteens run by Corporation of Chennai, distributed free food for people as Prime Minister Narendra Modi and a host of dignitaries including Tamil Nadu Governor K Rosaiah, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu and TRS MP and Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, K Kavita, greeted Jayalalitha on the occasion. The Prime Minister, who is said to enjoy good ties with the AIADMK supremo, also wished her over phone and she thanked him for the gesture. "Birthday wishes to Jayalalithaa ji. May Almighty bless her with a long life, filled with good health," he said in a tweet. Tamil Nadu ministers participated in special prayers in places of worship while mega feast, 'annadanam', and distribution of welfare measures were undertaken by AIADMK workers all across the state. At Chennai a 68 kg cake was cut by ministers and party workers. A similar initiative was held at Villupuram. As many as 18 lakh callers had greeted Jayalalithaa on a dedicated phone line established for this purpose, party's IT Wing Secretary K Swaminthan said. "We have received 18 lakh calls as of 12 noon today and we expect to cross 25 lakh by midnight," he told PTI. Rosaiah heaped praise on Jayalalithaa and credited her with making the state a 'model' one. "Your rich acumen, wisdom, dynamism and affection towards the people have made Tamil Nadu a model state for people's welfare projects. I wish you a long, happy and healthy life in your mission to steer Tamil Nadu to greater heights," he said in a message to Jayalalithaa, accompanied by a bouquet. Chandrababu Naidu and Union Minister M Venkaiah Naidu wished her over phone. US Consul General in Chennai, Philip A Min, yesteryear actor B Saroja Devi and Arcot Nawab Mohammed Abdul Ali were among others who greeted the CM. The Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Department, which manages a large number of temples across the state, launched a massive tree sapling planting drive, covering 68 Shaivite and Vaishnavite temples across the state. While Vilvam (bael) saplings were planted in Shaivite temples, Punnai (Alexandrian Laurel) and Magizham (ape flower tree) were planted in Vaishnavite temples, by the department. Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa today turned 68, with wishes pouring in from various leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, state Governor K Rosaiah and her Andhra Pradesh counterpart Chandrababu Naidu. The Prime Minister, who is said to enjoy good ties with the AIADMK General Secretary, also wished her over phone and she thanked him for the gesture. "Birthday wishes to Jayalalithaa ji. May Almighty bless her with a long life, filled with good health," he said in a tweet. While Modi, as Gujarat Chief Minister, had attended Jayalalithaa's swearing-in ceremony in 2011, she visited Ahmedabad the next year when he was elected for a successive term in the state. Tamil Nadu Governor Rosaiah heaped praise on Jayalalithaa and credited her with making the state a 'model' one. "Your rich acumen, wisdom, dynamism and affection towards the people have made Tamil Nadu a model state for people's welfare projects. I wish you a long, happy and healthy life in your mission to steer Tamil Nadu to greater heights," he said in a message to Jayalalithaa, accompanied by a bouquet. Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu and Union Minister M Venkaiah Naidu also wished her over phone, an official release said. TRS MP from Nizamabad and Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekar Rao's daughter, Kalvakuntla Kavitha, US Consul General in Chennai, Philip A Min, yesteryear actor B Saroja Devi and Arcot Nawab Mohammed Abdul Ali also greeted the CM. AIADMK workers also celebrated their leader's birthday with usual fervour. Ministers participated in special prayers in places of worship while mega feast, 'annadanam' and distribution of welfare measures were undertaken by AIADMK workers all across the state. At Chennai a 68 kg cake was cut by ministers and party workers. A similar initiative was held at Villupuram. As many as 18 lakh callers had greeted Jayalalithaa on a dedicated phone line established for this purpose, party's IT Wing Secretary K Swaminthan said. "We have received 18 lakh calls as of 12 noon today and we expect to cross 25 lakh by midnight," he told PTI. The popular Amma Unavagam (subsidised canteens) under Corporation of Chennai, distributed free food for people. The Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Department, which manages a large number of temples across the state, launched a massive tree sapling planting drive, covering 6868 Shaivite and Vaishnavite temples across the state. While Vilvam (bael) saplings were planted in Shaivite temples, Punnai (Alexandrian Laurel) and Magizham (ape flower tree) were planted in Vaishnavite temples, by the department. Jammu and Kashmir Pradesh Youth Congress (JKPYC) today held here protest demonstrations against NDA government for failure on all the fronts and police detained dozens of them. JKPYC said that alienation among young generation is increasing with each passing day due to wrong policies of NDA government. Led by JKPYC Chief Pranav Shagotra, over 200 activists today took out procession against BJP-led NDA government for its "failure on all fronts". As soon as the PYC activists marched towards Dogra Chowk from Press club area, they were stopped by the police, who were deployed in huge number to stop them. Police detained dozen of activists and later let them off. Shagotra said that woes of the common masses are compounding with every passing day due to misdeeds of the NDA government. He recalled that NDA government had promised to solve problems of the border residents by providing them shelter at alternative places but the same promise remained only on papers. He also expressed concern over the increase of ceasefire violation across the border during the last two years and said that Modi government has failed to deal the situation in a befitting manner. "In a democratic system like ours,BJP-led NDA government is trying to gag dissent voice by adopting oppressive means," he said. Under attack, Government today asserted in Lok Sabha that it has not branded JNU as an anti-national institution and urged all political parties to keep aside their ideological differences and speak in one voice against the anti-national voices. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Venkaiah Naidu asserted that the government will not tolerate anti-national activities and will punish those indulging in it, irrespective of the uproar over the handling of JNU issue. "I am disappointed that some people are trying to divert from the main issues," Naidu said while intervening in the debate on the 'Situation arising out of recent incidents in institutions of higher education with reference to JNU and University of Hyderabad'. He said "nobody is saying that JNU is anti-national" but some anti-nationl activities are happening. "I would like to ask Congress that shouldn't we not say in one voice and condemn it," he added. To gain political points, people joined the anti-national people and expressed solidarity, Naidu said. "Instead of knowing the background, some people went and expressed solidarity with the people who eulogise Afzal Guru ...Any sympathy with these people is nothing but sheer anti-national and against the integrity and sovereignity of India," he added. "We may have ideological differences but at the end of the integrity of the country can not be compromised... Integrity and sovereignity are an issue of all," he said. Condemning the Patiala Court incident where some lawyers beat up some journalists, Naidu said: "there is no second opinion on that". Earlier when CPI (M) leader M B Rajesh said the BJP is branding JNU as a centre of anti-national activities, Naidu said: "nobody can brand entire university as anti-national... JNU is a great university and we want it to flourish." Congress leader M Mallikarjun Kharge said nobody should politicise the issues of Hyderabad central University and JNU. "You have 80,000 constables and you are not able to catch 8-10 students and instead you are defaming all the people," Kharge said and asked whether it was Congress' fault. He also appealed the government to put one dalit person in the inquiry committee probing the suicide of Rohith Vemula. Left parties today held a protest demonstration here over police action against JNU students and demanded the release of those arrested and the withdrawal of the sedition case against them. Led by CPI(M) leader and Kulgam MLA Mohd Yousuf Tarigami, workers of his party and CPI demonstrated at Press Club here against police action in the JNU case. The protesters raised slogans against the "hate campaign" targeting students and Left parties. They charged that BJP wants to capture universities and run them like RSS shakhas, saying that the attack on students and journalists at the Patiala House court complex in Delhi demonstrates the designs of the party and its affiliates. The protesters wanted to hold a march in the city but police prevented them. BJP workers are "openly threatening democracy" and the right to debate and dissent thereby weakening the very foundations of our constitutional rights, the protesters said while demanding the immediate release of all JNU students who have been arrested following a protest on their campus against the hanging of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru where anti -national slogans were allegedly raised. The protesters also called for an end to harassment of Kashmiri students at various universities and raised slogans against "encroachment of universities" by police authorities. Abdul Rehman Takroo and Sham Prasad Kesar, CPI and CPI(M) leaders, respectively, addressed the protesters and pledged to carry forward the message of brotherhood and tolerance in J-K. Tarigami underlined the necessity of broader mobilisation against "RSS and its other affiliates". "Whatever the BJP-led government is doing is fraught with serious consequences. The RSS campaign is deliberately designed to polarise the situation," he said, adding that it is "time that the Left and democratic forces unitedly resisted the onslaught of communalism". A city court today extended the judicial custody of Trinamool Congress leader and former West Bengal minister Madan Mitra, an accused in the Saradha chit fund scam, by 14 days till March 9. Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate Sougata Roy Chowdhury passed the order after Mitra's counsel did not press for bail. The counsel requested the court that Mitra be treated as a division I prisoner and provided with all necessary medical assistance as he is suffering from various ailments. Mitra, former state transport minister who was arrested on December 12, 2014, had surrendered before the court after his bail was cancelled by the Calcutta High Court on November 20. Sri Lanka gave visiting New Zealand Prime Minister John Key a baby elephant today, sparking anger from animal rights activists who said it was cruel to separate her from her family. President Maithripala Sirisena presented a deed of ownership for five-year-old "Nandi" during a red-carpet welcome in Colombo for Key, who arrived for a two-day official visit. Nandi, born at Sri Lanka's oldest elephant sanctuary, is the second bequeathed to New Zealand in the last 12 months after baby "Anjalee" was also gifted to the Auckland Zoo. "The first elephant has gained 700 kilos in one year," Key told Sirisena at the ceremony. "So, it is loving its life in New Zealand and I am sure its friend will have such a good time as well in New Zealand." Sri Lanka has a long history of giving elephants as presents, with China gifted three over the years, and two each for Japan, South Korea, the Czech Republic and the United States. But activists urged the government to halt the practice, saying some of the animals had found it difficult to adapt to their new climates and without their families. "We are very disappointed," Sagarika Rajakarunanayake, head of the Sathva Mithra (Friends of Animals) group, told AFP. "We wrote three weeks ago asking the government to stop this practice. I think they don't even read our letters." Nandi has been raised in a herd of 93 elephants in a coconut grove at Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage, about 80 kilometres east of Colombo. Local environmental lawyer Jagath Gunawardana said the government had given away too many, describing the animals as sacred in the mainly Buddhist nation. "There should be a stop to these knee-jerk gifts of baby elephants," Gunawardana said. The government said the elephant was given in recognition of "excellent bilateral relations". Nandi is soon set to be flown to Auckland, where mean annual temperatures of around 15 degrees Celsius may come as a shock to a calf more used to the tropical 27 degree average in Sri Lanka. New Zealand vets visited her recently to prepare her for the journey, a top local zoological official said. YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 23, ARMENPRESS. Agreement on military cooperation will be signed between Armenian and Czech governments. Armenpress reports that the issue on approving the signing of the agreement is involved in the agenda of the governments February 25 issue. The agreement provides the supply of military products, repair, modernization, operation and technical support, organization of production allowed for military products, ensuring control of the military products quality and preparation of professionals and technical staff in educational institutions. According to the agreement, cooperation between the Armenian and Czech companies, signing separate agreements in the field of military-technical cooperation between organizations and institutions are expected. Pakistan's former Army Chief Gen (Retd) Gen Ashfaq Pervez Kayani has been accused by another senior officer of being involved in a major land scam in a defence housing scheme to benefit a real estate company. A former official of the Defence Housing Authority (DHA), Lt Col (Retd) Tariq Kamal on February 22 approached the anti-corruption watchdog National Accountability Bureau (NAB) to investigate whether Kayani was involved in irregularities or misappropriation related to DHA Valley contracts or whether his name was used by the decision makers to benefit real-estate developers Bahria Town. The DHA Valley scam is one of 50 mega land scams the NAB has listed before the Supreme Court and the anti-corruption watchdog is already investigating alleged embezzlement in sale, development and purchase of land, the Dawn reported. The NAB has estimated that the scam involves 1,310,000 kanals of land. According to the application, Bahria Town failed to fulfil its commitment and caused losses to DHA. All DHA big deals should be approved by the army's top command and it is where Kayani may be probed for overlooking a joint venture which resulted in losses. Kayani was appointed army chief in December 2007, while DHA and Bahria Town signed a joint venture contract for DHA Valley in 2008. Kayani's two brothers, including a retired brigadier are already under scanner of the NAB for alleged corruption in the development projects of DHA. Kamal's application, however, may not be processed as NAB cannot take up matters related to armed forces personnel who are not working in the civil administration, the daily said. NAB Rawalpindi Director General Zahir Shah told the paper that the bureau cannot initiate inquiries against army officials. However, NAB recently arrested former DHA administrator Brig (Retd) Javed Iqbal and former DHA project director Col (Retd) Sabahat Qadeer Butt for misusing their authority and violating the contract by selling DHA Islamabad allotment certificates illegally and in violation of the agreement between DHA and Elysium Holdings Pakistan. According to Shah, since Iqbal and Butt were working for DHA - which was created through an act of parliament - the bureau can take action against them. But army can initiate cases against any former officer if there is evidence of his involvement in any wrongdoing. With Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) convener Arvind Kejriwal starting his five day visit to Punjab from tomorrow to "study" various issue concerning the state, ruling Akali Dal and opposition Congress today hit out at the AAP leader describing him as a "seasonal bird" and his visit a show of "political theatrics". Kejriwal will be in Punjab from September 24 to 29 to interact with families of distressed farmers, members of dalit families against whom alleged atrocities were committed, unemployed youth and families of victims of drug abuse, an AAP spokesman said here today. On February 25 Kejriwal will visit Sangrur, Bathinda, Ferozepur and Faridkot, next day he would be in Khaddor Sahib, Gurdaspur and Amritsar, on February 27 he will visit Hoshiarpur and Jalandhar and February 28 Ludhiana, Fatehgarh Sahib and Patiala on February 29. Ahead of Kejriwal's visit, Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal today said in 'poll season' many 'seasonal birds' would visit the state, but claimed it would hardly have any effect "as the SAD-BJP alliance is all set to register third consecutive win and will form the government again in 2017." Talking about the AAP leader's visit, the 88-year-old five-time CM said, "they will come and go back but due to our pro-people and development oriented policies, the SAD-BJP alliance will again form government in 2017". The Delhi Chief Minister had addressed a major AAP rally last month at the Maghi fair in Muktsar. Badal said during almost nine years of the SAD-BJP rule "the state has witnessed unprecedented development in all the sectors". Meanwhile, Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee president Capt Amarinder Singh asked the Aam Aadmi Party leader and Delhi Chief Minister to come clear about the commitments he makes before the polls and later backs out. "If your intentions are such that you really don't mean to fulfil all the promises, then why make such promises at the first instance and befool the people?" the PCC president asked Kejriwal, while adding, "this is wilful cheating with the people that you make promises which you really don't mean and intend to fulfil". Taking a dig at the AAP's 'Punjab Dialogue' to "study" various issues in Punjab over next "six months" for preparing the manifesto, Capt Amarinder remarked, "it is quite natural for a party which has no roots but just a few shoots in Punjab to struggle to identify the issues". (REOPENS DES 42) "If you really don't know what are the issues and problems ailing Punjab you really don't have any right to claim to represent Punjabis", he said, adding, "if you think by bringing in half-hatched eggs from outside for the local mule ducks to hatch here, you will be badly disappointed". Maintaining that the 'Punjab Dialogue' was just a show of "political theatrics" by Kejriwal and AAP, Capt Amarinder pointed out, there are 12581 villages in Punjab and the party claims to be going to each and every village to seek opinion of people and find out the issues which is virtually impractical and impossible. "You really don't need to visit 12581 villages to know about the problems of people as everybody everywhere knows what is ailing Punjab", he said, adding, "that is why I have been insisting that Punjab cannot afford any new experiment with the people who have no experience, no competence, no knowledge and not even any roots in Punjab". The final session of the 13th Kerala Assembly today ended on a stormy note with CPI(M)- led LDF opposition members boycotting proceedings, demanding resignation of "tainted" and "corrupt ministers" in the Congress-led UDF government over solar and bar scams. With Opposition members continuing their protest and raising slogans, the House passed a resolution suspending the sitting scheduled for tomorrow, moved by Chief Minister Oommen Chandy, who said "the decision was in view of difficulty in carrying on the proceedings due to Opposition protest." LDF has been on the warpath since start of the session on February 5, demanding resignation of Chandy, Power Minister Arayadan Muhammed and Excise Minister K Babu.They had taken up various issues, attacked government and disrupted proceedings on every day of the sitting that lasted for 11 days. Though the brief Budget session was scheduled for 14 days till Feb 25, the House did not meet for three days due to various reasons. The session witnessed presentation of 2016-17 budget by Chandy, who took up the finance portfolio following resignation of former Finance Minister K M Mani over the bar scam. The presentation assumed significance as it was after a 29 year gap that aCM was presenting it in the Assembly. LDF members came to the house today carrying placards with slogans against the government and attacked it over an observation against Chandy by a Vigilance Court in the 23-year old palmolein graft case. They raised slogans against Chandy since question hour and trooped to the Well of the House as Speaker N Sakthan denied permission to move an adjournment motion over the observation. Yesterday, the Court while acquitting two top officials involved, had observed that Chandy, the then Finance Minister, was aware about the deal, which pertains to import of palmolein at an inflated price from Malaysia, causing a loss of Rs 2.32 crore to the state exchequer. Rejecting the charges, Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala said the court had made just an observation and it could not be treated as a final verdict. Raju Abraham of CPI(M), while seeking permission for the motion, said the palmolein case was one of the first scams witnessed by modern Kerala. Though the amount involved was not as big as in the bar and solar scams, it was also one of the biggest corruption cases the state had faced, he said, adding that Chandy should quit office, taking moral responsibility. The House witnessed noisy scenes when Opposition members stood up and disrupted the speech of the Chief Minister. Unfazed, Chandy continued his speech and said the case was politically motivated and opposition was trying to create a 'smokescreen' over the recent Vigilance Court observation. He claimed the exchequer had not incurred losses over the deal and actually helped government gain Rs nine crore profit. As the opposition did not go back to their seats, the Speaker hurriedly took up other business of the day, including Vote on Account for the next four months. Pakistan resumed Lahore-Delhi 'Dosti' bus service Wednesday, days after it was suspended indefinitely at India's request following violence and arson in in Haryana. The bus service, which was suspended on February 21, was resumed after clearance from India and about 21 passengers mostly Indians left for Delhi, Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation Manager Col (retired) Khalid said. "We had been in touch with the Indian authorities that gave us go-ahead yesterday to resume the bus service today," he said, adding the department had facilitated the passengers especially Indians who were to leave for Delhi on last Monday. TheSamjhota Express train service which was also suspended due to the agitation will resume from Thursday. "Since the agitation is over in India, the train service will also resume tomorrow," a Pakistan Railways official said. Pakistan and Indian authorities had extended the visas of the passengers who were to leave for their destinations early this week bythe Lahore-Delhi Dosti Bus Service and Samjhota Express. The bus and train services between the two countries were suspended after the Jat agitators blocked major road and rail routes in Haryana for days, demanding quota under OBC. At least 19 people were killed in the violent agitation. Lawyer Yashpal Singh - caught on camera thrashing journalists, JNU teachers and students at the Patiala House court complex here last week, was today granted anticipatory bail by Delhi High Court in a separate case of cheating and forgery. Justice Suresh Kait granted relief to Singh while asking him to furnish a bail bond of Rs 25,000 with one surety of the like amount. The court also took into consideration that the parties have settled the matter among themselves. The order came on an appeal filed by Singh against the trial court's January 29 decison, by which his anticipatory bail was rejected. This matter relates to an FIR lodged by Delhi Police in 2014 against Singh for allegedly trying to sell off a dead woman's plot of land by propping up a woman accomplice as the owner. The same was refuted by the lawyer, who claimed before the court that he is innocent. The police has lodged a case of forgery, cheating and criminal conspiracy on a complainant of Sudhir Kumar. Singh was caught on camera beating journalists and JNU students and teachers along with his colleagues, after which he was arrested and granted bail yesterday from the police station itself. Yashpal Singh, one of the three lawyers caught on camera thrashing journalists, JNU teachers and students at the Patiala House court complex here last week, was arrested tonight amid an outrage over alleged police inaction against those involved in the assault. The arrest came a day after a news channel aired a sting operation in which the lawyer was seen boasting about beating JNUSU president Kanhaiya Kumar, arrested and charged with sedition, when he was brought to the court on February 17. A senior Delhi Police official said Singh has been arrested in connection with two cases of assault when he presented himself to the investigators at Tilak Marg police station responding to summons. Singh was later released on bail from the police station. Singh was caught on camera beating journalists, JNU students and teachers along with his colleagues Vikram Singh Chauhan and Om Sharma among others. While Sharma was arrested on Saturday and subsequently released on bail, Chauhan, who led two brazen attacks, is yet to respond to multiple notices issued by the police asking him to join probe. Groups of lawyers led by Chauhan had thrashed journalists, JNU students and teachers on February 15 and repeated their act on February 17 against Kumar and some journalists, in open defiance of Supreme Court instructions. "While one case against Singh pertains to the February 15 incident, the other relates to the attack which took place two days later," the senior official said. Yashpal Singh was questioned at the police station for several hours and most of the queries revolved around the February 15 incident and the sting operation, which led investigators to suspect Singh's alleged involvement in the second day's assault at Patiala House court complex and hinted towards a "criminal conspiracy", a senior official said. Earlier in the day, Delhi Police Commissioner B S Bassi asserted that coercive action will be taken against the lawyers if they do not respond to the police notices. "We had summoned them many times. We have arrested one after he joined the investigation. For eight days, we have sent repeated summons to the others. "Now we have the option of taking coercive action against them. We will go with the law and arrest them if it demands so," Bassi said. The Lok Sabha on Wednesday advanced the discussion on the from tomorrow to today, with Speaker Sumitra Mahajan deciding so amid a push by Congress and willingness shown by the government for such a move. Soon after Question Hour, Mahajan said the House would take up a short duration discussion on the functioning of universities in the country, including incidents at JNU and Hyderabad University, in the afternoon. Leader of Congress Mallikarjun Kharge along with two others had given notice of Adjournment Motion on the issue and the Speaker decided to go for the discussion on the issue today itself. This led to protests by other Opposition parties, including Trinamool Congress, CPI (M), CPI, BJD and TRS, who said that Congress leader Jyotiraditya Scindia had himself proposed yesterday in the Business Advisory Committee (BAC) meeting that the discussion should be held on February 25 after presentation of the Railway Budget. They wanted to know as to what had happened between yesterday and today that prompted such a drastic change. Kharge said it would be good if the matter is taken up today itself as the "issue is very important and discussions are going on everywhere". Congress President Sonia Gandhi and Vice President Rahul Gandhi were present in the House when other Opposition parties opposed the move to have the discussion today. Kharge emphasised the issue would lose its importance if it is taken up tomorrow for discussion. "Let it happen today itself," he added. Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu said his priority is to run the House and that the government is ready for discussion anytime. It is not a matter of prestige or protocol but only that if the discussion is taken up tomorrow, the (HRD) Minister concerned would not be able to reply as she would be in Rajya Sabha where the matter is scheduled to be discussed today, Naidu said. TMC leader Sudip Bandyopadhyay, who had initially opposed the suggestion, then expressed readiness to go along with Congress saying it is the largest party in the Opposition. Mahajan requested the Opposition members to agree to the discussion today itself, which was agreed to by them. Earlier, Bandyopadhyay wanted to know why suddenly the matter had been scheduled for today. "What is the reason for this change," he wondered. Tathagat Satpathy (BJD) said there should be "ample time" to discuss the issue and that the discussion should not be done in a hurry. Citing the decision of the BAC, A P Jithender Reddy (TRS), P Karunakaran and Mohammed Salim, both from CPI-M also said the discussion was to be held on February 25. Reddy said his party members were not prepared for the discussion today. Macedonia's snap elections were postponed by more than a month, after the opposition threatened to boycott the polls over concerns they were open to fraud. The vote is part of a European Union-backed deal reached last year between the government and the opposition to end months of political turmoil in the former Yugoslav republic of about 2.1 million people. The early parliamentary polls, initially agreed for April 24, were delayed yesterday until June 5 after the main opposition party, Social Democratic Union of Macedonia (SDSM), threatened to boycott them, complaining they could not be free and fair. The ruling VMRO-DPMNE agreed to postpone the vote after US and EU ambassadors to the country said the preparations for the polls had not progressed enough to hold a "credible" vote by April. Ambassadors from the EU and US said they were particularly concerned at "reports of pressure and intimidation of voters and others", and about the lack of an agreement "on media reforms, to ensure a more level playing field". The ruling "VMPRO-DPMNE decided to change the election date to June 5," its leader and former prime minister Nikola Gruevski told reporters. Lawmakers voted late yesterday to dissolve the parliament on April 7, instead of the previously agreed February 24. The SDSM boycotted parliament after Macedonia's last polls in 2014, won by VMRO-DPMNE, saying the polls had been marred by fraud. The crisis deepened last year when the opposition accused Gruevski of wire-tapping and high-level corruption. The government denied the allegations, accusing the main opposition leader of spying and of trying to destabilise the country. The row triggered rival protests on the streets of Skopje and eventually prompted the European Union to step in and mediate. Last month Gruevski stepped down from the post of prime minister to pave the way to the elections, in accordance with the deal. Macedonia has been an EU candidate nation since 2005 but has yet to open membership negotiations. The Delhi High Court today ordered to "maintain confidentiality" during the remand proceedings of JNUSU President Kanhaiya Kumar and two other accused arrested in the sedition case and directed the police to ensure that no one "suffers even a scratch" and there is no ruckus this time. The court ordered this during the hearing on Kanhaiya's bail plea after it was informed that the student leader and two arrested co-accused - Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya - were apprehending threat to their safety and security during production before Patiala House courts for remand proceedings. "With a view to avoid any unpleasant incident as well to ensure the safety of the petitioners (Kanhaiya, Khalid and Bhattacharya) and that remand proceedings be conducted in accordance with law, all concerned are expected to maintain confidentiality in respect of above," Justice Pratibha Rani said. During the hearing, when the issue of safety and security of accused was raised, the bench observed, "We have to ensure that no one suffers even a scratch this time. The Registrar of the Delhi High Court and police should ensure that no ruckus, as happened in the past, should take place while the accused are being produced." The order and observations came in wake of the violence on February 15 and 17 inside Patiala House courts premises during which a mob, dressed in lawyers robe, had assaulted Kanhaiya, JNU students, journalists and others during production of the student leader before the magistrate. In its order, the high court also directed the Registrar General to depute a Metropolitan Magistrate for the purpose of conducting remand proceedings and asked DCP (South) Prem Nath, who was present inside the courtroom during the hearing, to co-ordinate with the Registrar General for this. The bench said Kanhaiya's counsel has apprehended serious threat to his client's life during production before the court for remand proceedings and for this reason, his bail plea was transmitted to the High Court by the Supreme Court. The court heard brief arguments on Kanhaiya's bail plea and posted it for further hearing on February 29 as Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Tushar Mehta said that in view of the arrest of Khalid and Bhattacharya, the police would file an application seeking his further police custody. The court also heard separate petitions filed by Khalid and Bhattacharya, in which they had sought security before they surrender to police, and their advocates told the bench that since their clients have surrendered so the prayer "does not survive". During the 30-minute hearing, senior advocate Kapil Sibal, who appeared for Kanhaiya, said that police should get a fair opportunity to probe the case and he would contest the plea seeking further remand of his client before the magistrate. Sibal said police should be directed to inform them about "the date and timing of filing such application and when and where it is likely to be heard so that the petitioner gets an opportunity to contest the said application." The court ordered that senior advocate Rebecca M John, who also appeared for Kanhaiya, shall be communicated about such application when it would be filed by the police. After ASG Mehta told the bench that they would move a plea seeking further police remand of Kanhaiya, who is presently in Tihar Jail under judicial custody till March 2, Sibal said that the bail plea be deferred for February 29. In its separate order on the petitions filed by Khalid and Bhattacharya, the bench noted the concern expressed by their lawyers about safety of their clients. "Both these petitioners (Khalid and Bhattacharya) have surrendered voluntarily before the police. The concern expressed by counsel for petitioners regarding their safety needs to be addressed by this court to ensure not only their safety but also that remand proceedings are conducted in accordance with law," the bench noted. Mehta assured the bench that all the efforts would be made to ensure safety of the accused. The police told the court that place and timing of remand proceedings would be informed to the defence counsel to enable them to be present there. "It has also been informed that to ensure safety of the petitioners, they are not likely to be produced at Patiala House Court and a safe venue shall be identified and informed to counsel for the petitioners," the bench noted. During the hearing on bail plea, Kanhaiya's uncle and his elder brother were present in the courtroom and elaborate security arrangements were at place in and outside the high court premises. The police also filed a status report on its investigation as per the court's direction and claimed that Kanhaiya had not only participated in the event where anti-national slogans were allegedly raised in the JNU campus but had "actually organised" the programme. Sibal, however, said that as per the status report filed by the police, there was no evidence of any anti-India slogans being raised by his client. Mehta, however, said that as per the new circumstances and evidence which have emerged, Kanhaiya is required to be confronted with the two arrested accused. Besides Mehta, ASG Sanjay Jain and Special Public Prosecutors, Anil Soni and Shailendra Babbar, appeared before the court today. Delhi Government's senior standing counsel Rahul Mehra was also present during the hearing. A city court today rejected the anticipatory bail plea of former MLA Mohammed Sohrab, whose son Sambia was arrested in a hit-and-run case in which an airman was killed during the Republic Day parade rehearsal here. Additional District and Sessions Judge of First Fast Track Court, Kallol Kumar Das, rejected Sohrab's plea after the public prosecutor stated that the bail, if granted, could influence the investigation into the case. Sohrab had moved the anticipatory bail plea on February 17 when the hearing was adjourned by Subhra Ghosh, Chief Judge at the City Sessions Court, on a request by the prosecution till today. The prosecution lawyer described Sohrab as an influential person and the case as a high-profile one and submitted the case diary in a CD-format to the court. Sohrab's counsel submitted that IPC Sections 201 (causing disappearance of evidence), 212 (harbouring an offender) under which the former MLA has been charged are bailable and should be granted bail. Sambia has been charged under sections 302 (murder), 120B (criminal conspiracy), 201 (causing disappearance of evidence), 212 (harbouring an offender) and 427 (mischief) of IPC for the death of IAF Corporal Abhimanyu Gaud. He is in judicial custody now. Mohammed Sohrab, said to be a Trinamool Congress member and a former RJD MLA, and his elder son Ambia have been absconding since the January 13 incident and police have launched a search for the two in and outside the state. TMC, however, has denied any connection with Sohrab or his sons. Two friends of Sambia, Shahnawaz Khan alias Sonu and Johnny, were also arrested in connection with the case. A warrant of arrest has been issued against Sohrab by a city court on a plea by Kolkata Police which is investigating the matter. Gaud was mowed down by a speeding Audi SUV at around 6.30 AM on January 13 on Red Road outside Fort William, the Eastern Command headquarters, following which the occupants fled. YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 24, ARMENPRESS. A number of MEPs were awarded by a Presidential decree of February 16. As "Armenpress" was informed from the Information and Public Relations Department of the Presidents Office, member of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the European Parliament and MEP Jacek Saryusz-Wolski (Poland) was awarded with Mkhitar Gosh medal for his contribution to the international recognition of the Armenian Genocide. Vice President of the European Parliament Ryszard Czarnecki (Poland) was also awarded with Mkhitar Gosh medal for significant contribution in expanding and developing parliamentary cooperation between Armenia and the EU. By another presidential decree, President of European Parliament- Armenia Friendship Group Eleni Theocharous was awarded twith Mkhitar Gosh medal for developing Armenia-Cyprus friendly relations, and for significant contribution to the expansion of parliamentary cooperation between the European Union and Armenia. For significant contribution to the international recognition of the Armenian Genocide ,member of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the European Parliament, MEP Charles Tannock (UK) was awarded with Medal of Gratitude, and for contribution to the international recognition of the Armenian Genocide MEP Frank Engel (Luxembourg) was awarded with Mkhitar Gosh medal . For the strengthening of parliamentary cooperation between the European Union and Armenia and for contribution to the international recognition of the Armenian Genocide, Co-chair of Euronest and MEP Heidi Hautala (Finland) was awarded with Mkhitar Gosh medal. For contribution to the international recognition of the Armenian Genocide the Mkhitar Gosh Medal was also awarded to the Vice President of the European Parliament's Legal Affairs Committee, MEP Jean-Marie Cavada (France), member of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the European Parliament MEP Knut Fleckenstein (Germany) and member of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the European Parliament and MEP Jaromir Stetina (Czech Republic). Mutual funds (MFs) lowered allocation to banking stocks by Rs 6,662 crore (nearly $1 billion) to Rs 78,600 crore in January, primarily on account of mounting bad loans of public sector banks (PSBs). Fund managers have been continuously trimming allocation to banking stocks since November, lowering exposure by Rs 9,000 crore in two months. In recent months, banking stocks, specially PSBs like Punjab National Bank and Bank of Baroda have declared massive NPAs (as part of the Reserve Bank of Indias push to clean the banking system) leading to downgrade in their stocks. Consequently, MFs have reduced their exposure to such stocks as they are no longer growth bets for the short term, Wealth-force.com Founder Siddhant Jain said. However, due to the sheer size of the financial sector in India, MF exposure to this sector is still the highest as compared to others such as auto and software and also because in the long run, finance/banking is a major part of the growth story which is India, he added. In percentage terms, exposure to banking stocks was at 19.24 per cent of equity AUM last month as against 19.97 per cent in December. Overall deployment of equity funds in bank stocks stood at Rs 78,644 crore at the end of January as compared with Rs 85,306 crore in the preceding month, as per the data available from Sebi. The industry's exposure to banking sector was at Rs 88,000 crore and Rs 85,376 crore in November and October respectively. The BSE bankex index slumped by nine per cent during the period under review, while the benchmark Sensex witnessed a plunge of nearly five per cent. The gross non-performing assets (NPAs) of banking sector are estimated at over five per cent of total loans, while overall stressed assets (including declared and potential bad loans) are at about 11 per cent. An analysis of their latest quarter results shows that the cumulative gross NPAs of 24 listed public sector banks, including market leader SBI and its associates, stood at Rs 3,93,035 crore as on December 31, 2015. Despite the current decline, banking is the most preferred sector with fund mangers as they cannot take a bearish call on banking stocks, given the high weightage attached to the index. After banks, information technology was the second-most preferred sector with fund mangers. Equity fund managers' deployment in software stocks was at Rs 43,115 crore followed by pharmaceuticals (Rs 33,785 crore, automobile (Rs 26,653 crore) and finance (Rs 23,131 crore). MFs are investment vehicles made up of a pool of funds collected from a large number of investors. They invest in stocks, bonds, money market instruments and similar assets. The Budget Session of Madhya Pradesh Assembly was today adjourned for the day after paying rich tributes to departed leaders including former Lok Sabha Speaker Balram Jakhar. Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said the void created by the demise of Jakhar, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, former MP Basori Singh Masram and former MLAs Vinay Kumar Diwan and Ramnarayan Tainguria, cannot be filled. He recalled their rich contribution to the country and praised their qualities. Mourning the death of these politicians, Deputy Leader of Opposition, Bala Bachchan said the late leaders had worked tirelessly for the uplift of the downtrodden. Also, he paid respects to the people who attained martyrdom protecting the borders and in terror strikes in Pantankot and other places. Members of the House led by Assembly Speaker Sitasharan Sharma observed a two-minutes silence as a mark of respect to departed leaders before the Chair adjourned the session for the day. Nalini Sriharan, who is undergoing life imprisonment in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case, was lodged back in the Vellore prison this evening, after she attended the last rites of her father during the 12-hour parole she was granted. In her 25 years of incarceration, this is the second time she has got parole. In 2004, she had got a similar parole to attend the marriage of her brother. She left the Vellore Central Prison (Women's Jail) at 6.50 am under police escort and reached Chenani at 10 am and attended the last rites of her father Sankara Narayanan at Kotturpuram. "She started for Vellore at 3.25 pm from Chennai and reached the prison at 6.45 pm, and she was immediately lodged in her cell," a senior Women's prison official told PTI. Ninety-two year old Sankara Narayanan, a former Police inspector passed away yesterday in Tirunelveli District. His body was brought here to his son Bhagyanathan's house at Kotturpuram here. Political party leaders including actor-director turned chief of Naam Tamizhar Katchi Seeman, Manithaneya Makkal Katchi MLA Jawahirullah, Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi chief Thol Thirumavalavan paid their last respects to Sankara Narayanan. They expressed their condolences to family members including Nalini. Nalini's brother Bhagyanathan said that his sister and others convicted in the case like Perarivalan alias Arivu had spent over 25 years in prison. "I request the government to release them. They have parents in advanced age who are eagerly expecting their release," he told reporters. Nalini was sentenced to death by the trial court in the case on January 28, 1998. Her sentence was commuted to life term by the Tamil Nadu Governor on April 24, 2000. In December 14 last year, she had moved Madras High Court seeking a direction to Tamil Nadu government to consider her representation for premature release, saying she has undergone imprisonment for more than 24 years. New Zealand Prime Minister John Key today assured his support to the Sri Lankan government's reconciliation efforts with the minority Tamil community following the three-decade civil war with the LTTE. During his talks with President Maithripala Sirisena, Key, who arrived here last night and today began bilateral talks with President Maithripala Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, assured New Zealands' support for the ongoing reconciliation efforts, officials said. Key was accorded a Guard of Honour at the presidential secretariat this morning. He became the first New Zealand Prime Minister to make an official bilateral visit to the island nation in many decades. The New Zealand leader, who is being accompanied by a Kiwi trade delegation, had last time visited Sri Lanka for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Summit in November 2013. He is due to address the premier business chamber, Ceylon Chamber of Commerce today. Key will also inaugurate a dairy farming facility and a training centre in the north western region of Pannala. Sirisena, who came to power last year after ending nearly a decade-long regime of former president Mahinda Rajapaksa, has taken several steps to achieve reconciliation with the Tamil minority. Several confidence-building-measures such as the release of Tamils-owned lands, lifting of travel restrictions to the North and de-escalating the military presence have been taken since January. Lankas main Tamil political party has accepted the government efforts to ensure reconciliation after three decades of civil war with the LTTE that claimed over 100,000 lives. The Government today denied that a large number of innocent Muslim youths were in jails on fake terror charges. Replying to a question in Rajya Sabha about whether a large number of innocent Muslim youths are in jails on fake terror charges, Minister of State for Home Affairs Haribhai Parathibhai Chaudhary said "no". "The data of undertrial prisoners is maintained by the state governments since public order and police are state subjects as per the 7th Schedule of the Constitution of India. At the level of central government, the cases relating to terrorist acts are investigated by the National Investigation Agency (NIA)," he said. The Minister said during the last 10 months, five cases of NIA have been decided by different NIA special courts, wherein 43 accused have been convicted and 30 acquitted. "The NIA is in the process of filing appeals on a case-to- case basis against the acquittal. There are adequate constitutional and statutory provisions available to all persons including those who are accused of any offence including terrorism to seek legal remedies," he said. The Minister said every action of the investigation agency is subject to court and legal scrutiny--including the issue of bail, conviction and sentencing. "The acquittals by the courts are also an outcome of a free and fair trial. The law enables the courts at the conclusion of trial, if it results in an acquittal, to pass strictures on the nature and quality of the investigation and evidence collected," Chaudhary said. He said in every case, acquittal from charges cannot be considered to prove that innocent persons had been wrongly framed. "The acquittal by the courts can also be due to lack of sufficient evidence which could prove the charges beyond all reasonable doubt," he said. The Minister said security agencies are sensitised from time to time to keep the investigation of terror cases scientific, fair, impartial and transparent, so that no innocent person suffers. Government today said there has not been any meeting between National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and his Pakistani counterpart Lt Gen (retd) Naseer Khan Janjua in Paris after the Pathankot attack in January. "We denied it then and we deny it now," External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Vikas Swarup tweeted. He was replying to a query on a media report that Doval and his Pak counterpart met in Paris in second week of January after Pathankot attack. Though the Spokesperson has been maintaining that the two NSAs are in touch over the probe into the Pathankot terror attack, he has always denied that there was any meeting between the two. According to a report in a national daily, Doval had a second secret meeting with Janjua in Paris in the second week of January when he was there to meet French President Francois Hollande who came to India as chief guest for the Republic Day parade. The meeting in Paris with Janjua came soon after the Pathankot airbase attack on January 2 carried out by terrorists belonging to the Jaish-e-Mohammad, it added. "Not happy" with handling of by RBI and banks, a Parliamentary panel said Wednesday that NPAs raise serious questions about credibility of the mechanism to deal with the issue that is threatening the stability of banking system. It also said the Reserve Bank hasn't "quite succeeded" in enforcing its rules on as it should not be a passive regulator but exercise powers of punitive action against in case of defaults. As of September 2015, the net Non Performing Assets of public sector stood at Rs 2,05,024 crore, while the Gross NPAs were at Rs 3,69,990 crore. "Such high incidence of NPAs obviously raises serious questions on the credibility of the mechanisms to deal with NPAs and stressed loans as such, even as certain estimates indicate that gross NPAs may touch Rs 4 lakh crore by the end of this fiscal year," said the report of Standing Committee on tabled in Parliament. The Committee noted with "deep concern" that in spite of various measures taken by the Government and Reserve Bank of India (RBI) from time to time, "the NPA problem confronting the financial sector and threatening the stability of the banking system seems far from over". It said that bank balance sheets continue to remain under pressure and recent quarterly results of are a "grim reminder" of the situation that banks find themselves in, with most of them reporting sharp dip in profits, with NPAs and provision for write offs ballooning. "On the one hand, the country's economy is growing fast and competing with economic superpowers and on the other hand, the rising trend of NPAs has the potential to damage this growth story," it said. The panel headed by senior Congress leader M Veerappa Moily said: "The Committee are thus not happy with the management of the problem, on both fronts viz at the level of the RBI and at the level of the banks. The banks have evidently failed to notice the early signs of stress on the loans disbursed by them". The report said the Committee are "constrained" to observe that the "RBI does not seem to have quite succeeded, as a regulator", in so far as implementation and enforcement in letter and spirit of its own guidelines, on stressed loans is concerned. "Mere issuing of guidelines by RBI does not seem to have yielded the desired results... As the Committee would not like the RBI to be a passive regulator, when major lapses occur in banks, it would be in the fitness of things if RBI exercises its regulatory powers vis-a-vis banks to take punitive action in cases of default and to enforce their guidelines," it said. It also said RBI as a regulator should have its regulatory role well delineated and thus not have its Director in the Board(s) of the banks as part of their management, "as conflict of interest may lead to avoidable laxity".\ The panel of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, which also includes Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh as one of the 31 members, said that early and timely intervention as well as consequential remedial measures are necessary to stem the rising trend of NPAs. The stressed assets ratio for the system as a whole exceeded 11 per cent at the end March, 2015 compared to 10 per cent in March last year. "This figure is expected to be even higher this fiscal, as there is apprehension that the number of failures of restructured advances would increase," it said. As of September 2015, the panel said, "it is alarming" that nearly Rs 6.8 lakh crore worth of bank loans were in the stressed category, compared with Rs 5.91 lakh crore last year. The panel recommended that specially empowered Committees at all the three levels - RBI, Banks and the borrower - should be set up to continually monitor the status/progress of large loan portfolios. "Accountability of nominee Directors of RBI/Ministry on the Bank Boards as well as the CMDs/MDs of banks should also be fixed in the matter," it said. In view of the "fact" that diversion of funds by promoters to unrelated businesses and poor pre-sanction due diligence have been cited as key reasons for bank loans turning toxic, the panel opined that forensic audit should be made mandatory for specific class of borrowers. The extent and the quality of the equity that the promoters are capable of infusing into a project, therefore, "also needs" to be factored in by a lender bank. It also made a case for developing and strengthening a vibrant bond market to infrastructure projects. It asked the government to make structural changes including revival of Development Financial Institutions (DFI) for long-term and allowing Infrastructure Finance Companies (IFCs) to purchase infrastructure projects turning into NPAs. Companies, which have undergone restructuring process for their stressed loans, should be made public, there cannot be any justification for maintaining secrecy on this count, the report said. Considering the "non-efficacy" of the CDR mechanism, it said the RBI's scheme for Strategic Debt Restructuring (SDR), which empowers banks to take control of defaulting entity and its assets by converting loan into equity, may armour the banks with an additional tool to cope with their NPAs. A change in management must be made mandatory in such cases involving wilful default or sheer inability on the part of the promoters, where they have diverted funds and no redemption is possible, it added. The panel said it would like to put a "caveat" that the SDR mechanism should be used sparingly so that it does not become a smoke screen for large scale write-offs. It is necessary that even after SDR, the penal consequences for a willful defaulter should continue to operate". The Naga Students' Federation (NSF) today launched an indefinite ban on movement of vehicles owned by Meitei people, the majority ethnic groups in the state, within the Naga inhabited areas in Manipur and Nagaland. Nagaland Chief Minister T R Zeliang appealed to the NSF to reconsider their decision stating it would affect the lives of people in both the states and might cause communal tension. The indefinite ban, which started from 6 am today, has been imposed as the Manipur government has allegedly failed to respond to a seven-day memorandum of the NSF submitted on February 16, which ended last night. The NSF memorandum had demanded assurance from the Manipur government to provide security to Nagas and Naga vehicles in and around the valley areas of Manipur. NSF president Subenthung Kithan said since the Federation did not receive any response from the Manipur government, its volunteers are checking the movement of vehicles owned by Meiteis. The NSF demand comes against the backdrop of an incident on February 14 at Mantripukri in Imphal in which an NSF team was "harassed" by Manipur Police. The memorandum demanded termination of service of the duty officer in charge and suspension of all police personnel involved in the incident. Meanwhile, Zeliang asked NSF to resort to other peaceful and democratic means to achieve their goals. Nagaland government has taken up the issue with its Manipur counterpart and the NSF should wait for response from the Manipur government before resorting to any form of agitation, Zeliang said in a letter to the NSF. Besides affecting vehicular traffic, the Chief Minister said this stir would hit the supply of essential commodities in Manipur and parts of Nagaland. As Nagas are on the threshold of a new political era, it should be kept in mind such an agitation would only create animosity in the minds of the affected neighbours, and could hamper peace and harmony in the region, he said. Describing its nuclear arsenal as a "factor of stability in South Asia", Pakistan today said it will maintain a full-spectrum deterrence and take steps to effectively respond to the threats to its national security. During the 22nd meeting of the National Command Authority under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, the nuclear watchdog reviewed regional and international security environment. "NCA took note of the growing conventional and strategic weapons' development in the region. It expressed serious concerns over the adverse ramifications for peace and security on this account," a statement by the army said. The NCA reaffirmed its determination to take all possible measures to make national security robust, enabling it to effectively respond to the threats to national security without indulging in arms race. "Reiterating that nuclear deterrence is the factor of stability in South Asia, NCA expressed the resolve to maintain Full Spectrum Deterrence, in line with the policy of Credible Minimum Deterrence," the statement said. Today's meeting was held ahead of the nuclear security summit scheduled next month in the US. It was attended by Federal Ministers for Defence, Finance and Interior, Advisor on Foreign Affairs, Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, Services Chiefs, Director General Strategic Plans Division. In previous meetings, the NCA has noted with concern India's rapidly expanding conventional military asymmetry and dangerous limited conventional war policy called the 'Cold Start' doctrine. Today, it re-emphasised Pakistan's desire for establishing the Strategic Restraint Regime in South Asia and the inescapable need of a meaningful and sustained comprehensive dialogue process for resolution of all outstanding disputes, ushering in an era of peace and prosperity in the region. The NCA noted that Pakistan has the requisite credentials to become part of all multi-lateral export control regimes, including the Nuclear Suppliers Group, for which it seeks a non-discriminatory approach. (Reopens FGN 29) The participants reviewed the security and safety mechanism of Pakistan's nuclear programme and expressed satisfaction over the measures in-place to ensure highly- effective security of strategic assets and installations. They reposed confidence in the command and control system of the national strategic capability and appreciated the standard of operational preparedness of strategic forces. Details of inter-agency process to ratify the Convention on Physical Protection of Nuclear Material (Amended) by Pakistan were presented to the NCA and it gave approval for its ratification. The NCA said as a responsible nuclear State Pakistan would continue to contribute meaningfully towards the global efforts to improve nuclear security and non-proliferation measures. 'Nyay Yatra', a 35-day-long march from 'Kashmir to Kanyakumari and Kutch to Kolkata', highlighting the need for a "fair and fast" justice delivery system, reached here last evening. The Yatra took off from Raj Ghat in Delhi on January 30 and would conclude on March 4, followed by a two-day convention at Jantar Mantar where a resolution of the demands would be passed, Bhagvanji Raiyani, Chairman of 'Forum for Fast Justice', spearheading the movement, told reporters today. "Justice should be available to the poor and the rich alike within three years (cases should be resolved within that period)," he said. Raiyani said eight months time would be given to the government to address their demand. "If there is no positive response of initiation, then we will hold a nation-wide 'Satyagrah' based on Gandhian principles." A large network of centres of the 'Forum for Fast Justice' spread across the country, is spearheading the movement with participants moving in vehicles to reach out to people with the message for fair and fast justice, officials said. The campaign is premised on the stand that "justice delayed is justice denied", they said. YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 23, ARMENPRESS. The adversary fired nearly 700 shots from different caliber weapons in the direction of Armenian border protecting units on February 23 and early in the morning of February 24. As Armenpress was informed from the press service of NKR Defense Ministry, the Defense Army front line units continue to confidently carry out their military duty and take counter actions only in case of severe necessity. Oil prices fell further in Asia today after OPEC kingpin Saudi Arabia shut the door on an output cut to ease the global crude supply glut, touting only a freeze in production. Traders were cautious ahead of the release later today of data on US commercial crude stockpiles which have been rising for weeks, indicating softer demand in the world's top energy consumer. US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for delivery in April was down 56 cents, or 1.76 per cent, at USD 31.31 and Brent crude for April fell 33 cents, or 0.99 per cent, at USD 32.94 a barrel. WTI tumbled 4.6 per cent and Brent tanked 4.1 per cent yesterday. "We think that it's inevitable that oil prices move back below the USD 30 market soon as supply continues to outstrip demand and inventory levels are very high," Jason Wong, a currency strategist in Wellington at Bank of New Zealand Ltd said in an e-mail to clients, according to Bloomberg. Bernard Aw, market strategist at IG Markets in Singapore said there was a "litany of oil-negative comments". He added: "Saudi oil minister said the country will not reduce output, while Iran said the Saudi-Russia pact is 'ridiculous' amid plans to raise Iranian oil output". Saudi Arabia and Russia -- the world's top oil producing nations - had earlier proposed to freeze output if other producers followed suit. But Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Zanganeh described the proposal as a "very funny joke" as production levels vary among oil producers. "These developments reinforced my view that there is unlikely to be any concrete plans to ease the supply glut in the near term. Any solutions may be demand-led when the global economy picks up pace," Aw told AFP. While trimming production may be out of the picture for now, Saudi Oil Minister Ali Al-Naimi said he remained hopeful other producers would join a tentative freeze to January output levels it had agreed with Russia, Qatar and Venezuela last week. He said freezing output was more realistic than cutting because "not many countries are going to deliver, even if they say they will cut production". Taxi aggregator Ola today entered into an agreement with the Uttar Pradesh government to create over 50,000 entrepreneurship opportunities across the state. As per the pact, Ola will work with the state government towards skill development of youth in state and providing entrepreneurship opportunities for 50,000 men and women across the state over the next five years, according to a release. Ola will also work with the state government to introduce innovative and customised mobility solutions like Ola Auto, Ola Share and Ola Shuttle across the state in the coming months. By bringing more transportation solutions onto its app using technology, Ola is looking to serve citizens across UP giving them instant access to reliable and convenient mobility. On signing of pact with the taxi-hailing app, Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav said the state is growing as an economic centre for the country faster than ever before. "The compounded annual growth rate of UP in the last three years has been higher than the national growth rate. Technology and skilling are two major areas we would like to focus on to further accelerate the impact on the state's economy," he said. Ola's commitment to building mobility for citizens by using cutting edge mobile technology and by enabling entrepreneurship and skilling will be invaluable, he added. "We are extremely delighted to bring them onboard as part of this MoU to skill and create opportunities for over 50,000 youth in the state of Uttar Pradesh," Yadav said. Ola Chief Operating Officer Pranay Jivrajka said, "We are proud to partner with the UP government. We aim to create more than 50,000 employment and entrepreneurial opportunities in the state by investing in skill development of youth." Ola has presence across nine major cities in the state that include Lucknow, Kanpur, Agra, Meerut, Aligarh, Allahabad, Saharanpur, Varanasi and Mathura. Currently, over 2,100 vehicles are registered on the Ola platform in the state and it is expected to go up to 20,000 in the next 5 years. One person has been arrested and fake Indian currency of face value Rs 73,000 was seized from him in Kama town of Bharatpur district, police said today. Acting on a tip-off, Special Operation Group sleuths of Rajasthan Police arrested Jakir Hussain alias Master (46), hailing from West Bengal, and seized fake currency notes from him, said Additional Director General of Police SOG and ATS Alok Tripathi. The fake currency reportedly arrived from West Bengal. This was the second seizure in this district following recovery of fake Indian currency notes of the face value Rs 3 lakh earlier this week, he said. One person died and 25 others were injured when a Tripura-bound bus coming from Guwahati fell into a 150-foot gorge in Meghalaya's East Jaintia Hills district, officials said today. The accident was reported to have taken place roughly after midnight last night at the accident-prone stretches of the NH 44 at Ratacherra area of the district, they said. Addl deputy commissioner K Nongbri said Saurakh Chaudhury of Chaqtham village in Tripura's Khagaria district was killed in the accident. The injured were admitted to the nearest hospital in the district for treatment. NH 44 is also the only National Highway that links Tripura state capital Agartala with the rest of the seven NE states. At least one person was killed and 25 others were injured when a Tripura-bound bus fell off the road and rolled down into a 150-feet gorge in Meghalaya's East Jaintia Hills district around midnight last night. Additional Deputy Commissioner K Nongbri said at least one person has died in the accident which took place at about midnight in the accident-prone stretch of NH 44 at Ratacherra area. He said the 25 injured were rushed to a hospital. The night bus from Guwahati was bound for Tripura and police and fire personnel have rushed to the accident site, he said. The firemen's help is being taken to pull out the bus from the gorge. However, details are awaited due to bad connectivity. NH 44 is the only national highway that links Agartala with the rest of the seven NE states. The Centre's green panel has given approval to state-owned oil major ONGC for developing 30 wells and other infrastructure in Tripura, entailing an investment of Rs 758 crore. "The Expert Appraisal Committee (EAC) of the ministry has given clearance to the ONGC's Tripura project with some conditions," a senior Environment Ministry official said. The panel has specified that the company should obtain forest clearance, monitor ambient air quality, control noise from drilling activity, put in place oil spillage mechanism among others, the official added. Based on the EAC recommendations, the ministry will take a decision on giving final environment clearance. As per the proposal, ONGC will develop 30 wells across six gas fields -- Boramura, Konaban, Agartala Extension Dome II, Manikynagar, Sundalbari and Gojalia in Tripura. The depth of wells vary from 2,500 to 3,000 meters. Besides, it will also construct a gas collection station (GCS) and a pipeline (54.15 km) connecting GCS to ONGC Tripura Power. Total cost of the project is estimated at Rs 758 crore. A combined opposition Wednesday targeted the government on the issue of call drops saying the problem continued unabated despite efforts, as the government maintained that "stringent measures" have been put in place to check the problem at the earliest. Responding to a volley of questions in the Lok Sabha, Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said nearly 65,000 BTS (Base Transceiver Stations) have been set up across country, including Delhi, in four months time. Read more from our special coverage on "CALL DROP" Call drops: Telcos performance worsens in July-Sep quarter He said during Question Hour that telecom regulator TRAI has also proposed "punitive provisions" which have been challenged in the courts. Responding to a question on poor 3G services in Parliament House complex, he said while extending facilities in and around the complex, the heritage nature of the main building has to be kept in mind, along with security considerations. Speaker Sumitra Mahajan told the Minister that he was free not to answer questions on the subject as the main question was regarding 4G services. Responding to posers on the state of BSNL and MTNL, Prasad said a debate should be held in the House on how the two state-owned operators became loss-making entities under the the previous UPA government. He said things are changing now and the two companies are on the verge of a turnaround. Prasad also said by March 2016, wi-fi facility will be provided at 2,500 spots in the country. Sugata Bose (TMC) said his official residence here has been provided with a new internet connection which lacks security. When he raised the issue of an unsecure connection with MTNL, he was told that an Ahmedabad-based company, Sangvi, has been sub-contracted to provide net facilities. He claimed the company lacked credentials. Prasad promised to look into the matter. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif today said that Pakistan and Afghanistan should work together to get rid of terrorism, underlining that the talks between Afghan government and Taliban is a positive signal for the peace process. He was talking to Speaker Wolesi Jirga of Afghanistan Abdul Raouf Ibrahimi who called on him in Islamabad here. "Pakistan believes that terrorism is a common enemy and Pakistan and Afghanistan need to work together to rid the two countries of this menace," Sharif said. Sharif expressed hope that Pakistan's engagement in sincere and consistent efforts for promoting peace and reconciliation through an Afghan-owned and Afghan-led peace process would bring lasting peace in Afghanistan. The Quadrilateral Coordination Group has been making good progress in right direction, he said. Sharif said that the decision to hold talks next week between Afghan government and Taliban is a "positive signal for the peace process". He said that Afghanistan must have an environment where Afghan migrants return back to their country with respect, honor and dignity on the right time. The Prime Minister offered help to Afghanistan in its infrastructure development. Sharif said that he has a vision of comprehensive and enduring partnership with Afghanistan that contributes to the security and prosperity of our two nations and reinforces efforts for peace and development in the region. Recalling President Ashraf Ghani's visit to Pakistan in December last year, the Prime Minister said that Pakistan's focus is on enhancement in mutual trust that paves way for deeper engagement in diverse areas of cooperation including security and counter-terrorism, peace and reconciliation in Afghanistan and trade and economic development to the benefit of both the countries. The Speaker said that Pakistan was the only nation which supported Afghanistan against external aggression in 1979. "We appreciate and applaud the role of Pakistani nation for hosting Afghan migrants for 30 years despite difficulties. They have hosted their Afghan brothers in an affectionate and caring manner," he said. "Pakistan is second home for its Afghan brothers and we must remain steadfast friends in every situation," he said. The Speaker said that friends of Afghanistan are friends of Pakistan and enemies of Afghanistan are enemies of Pakistan. Pakistan army today launched the final phase of an ongoing operation to clear the last strongholds of militants based in North Waziristan tribal region close to the Afghanistan border. Chief of Army Staff General Raheel Sharif was briefed about the military operation during his visit to the tribal region. The operation will target ravines and forests in the Shawal Valley and Dattekhel areas of North Waziristan, which had been used by militants for years as safe havens, military spokesman Lt Gen Asim Bajwa said. "Final phase of operation in left over pockets of North Waziristan has begun," Bajwa said. He said that Sharif had directed to commence last phase operation in North Waziristan to cleanse remnant terrorists from hide outs in deeply forested ravines and jungle. He said troops were in a high state of morale and ready for last phase of operation and determined to finish work as soon as possible. He said local support for terrorists even in Shawal Valley had totally diminished and people want to sever their links with militants across the country. The forested ravines of Shawal, Dattakhel had also served as popular infiltration routes between Pakistan and Afghanistan. Army launched operation 'Zarb-e-Azb' in North Waziristan in June 2014 to clear the remote area of militants and had so far cleared more than 90 per cent area of the district. It says that more than 3,500 militants have been killed in the operation so far. Pakistan's military provides weapons and training to ISIS militants in Afghanistan and instructs them to kill the "infidel" Afghan forces, according to a 10-member faction of the group who laid down their arms today. The group also said that Pakistani military provides light and heavy weapons to ISIS fighters in Afghanistan. "Pakistani military gave us weapons and used to tell us that Afghan forces are infidels and you must kill them," Zaitoon, a former ISIS fighter who laid down his arms and joined the peace talks, was quoted as saying by the TOLO . Arabistan, Zaitoon's co-fighter, said: "I was tasked to fight in Nazian district [in Nangarhar]. We used to present our daily report to Punjabis and Pakistanis and they encouraged us to fight the Afghan government." The 10-member group has joined the peace process due to efforts by the High Peace Council office in the province and also with the help of the Afghan security forces, said Chairman of Nangarhar Provincial Council Malik Nazir. "There were 24 men in two groups - the first group was 14 Taliban fighters and the second group included 10 Daesh fighters who for the first time joined the peace process," Nazir added. YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 24, ARMENPRESS. The European Court of Human Rights has made two separate verdicts condemning Turkey, "Armenpress" reports citing the Turkish "Hurriyet" newspaper. The first case refers to Selma Jiveki, who has been assaulted and harassed by her husband Hussein Jiveki during the time of their marriage. The other case concerns Jayden Evrim Chami, who has vision problems and as a result was not accepted to a music school in 2004. ECHR ordered Turkey to pay Chami 13 thousand euros in compensation. All 23 people, including two children and two foreigners, on board a small plane were today killed after it crashed in a remote mountainous area in Nepal in bad weather, in the latest aviation tragedy in the country. The Twin-Otter turboprop aircraft operated by Tara Air had gone missing eight minutes after it took off from the airport in the resort town of Pokhara on way to Jomsom, the starting point for people trekking the Himalayas which is also popular among Hindu pilgrims visiting the Muktinath temple. Only small planes can fly the difficult route, which goes between mountains, and is notoriously windy. The aircraft's burnt-out wreckage was found in Solighopte forest in the western district of Myagdi, said Ananda Pokharel, minister for culture, tourism and civil aviation. He said a few bodies have been found but are unrecognizable. All 23 people aboard the N9-AHH aircraft, including two foreigners, were killed in the incident, Pokharel told PTI. The victims included 18 Nepalese citizens, two of them children, and two foreigners, apart from three crew members. One of the foreigners was confirmed as a Chinese and the other was a Kuwaiti national. The plane caught fire after it crashed, according to a search and rescue team at the site of the accident. Residents in the area said they heard a huge explosion and saw flames shooting up from the forest and called security officials. Nepal's Civil Aviation Authority officials said the reason of crash was being probed. A preliminary investigation suggested that low visibility due to a cloud of dust shrouding the area following dry landslides in Mount Annapurna might have caused the crash. According to Home Ministry officials, there were dust particles in seven villages around the crash site. Earlier, three helicopters were dispatched from Kathmandu to locate the aircraft while Nepal Army, Armed Police Force and Nepal Police personnel had also been mobilised. "The weather at both origin and destination airports was favourable and the airport cleared for departure by the control tower at Pokhara," the airline had said in a statement on its website. In Nepal, air travel is hugely popular as there is only a limited road network. Several areas, mainly in the mountains and hills, are accessible only on foot or by air. Since 1949 - the year the first aircraft landed in Nepal - there have been more than 70 crashes involving planes and helicopters, in which more than 700 people have died. In 2012, child actor Taruni Sachdev and mother Geeta Sachdev were among 15 people killed when a dornier aircraft crashed close to the Jomson airport. Taruni died in the Agni Air Flight CHT plane crash on her 14th birthday on May 14. In 2013, the European Union banned all Nepalese airlines from flying there. And in 2014, a Nepal Airlines plane crashed into the side of a snow-clad mountain in the country's west, killing 18 people. All 23 people, including two children and two foreigners, on board a small plane were today killed in Nepal after their aircraft crashed in a remote mountainous region amid poor visibility, in the country's latest aviation tragedy. The Twin-Otter turboprop aircraft belonging to Tara Air had gone missing minutes after it took off from the airport in the resort town of Pokhara on its way to Jomsom, the starting point of people trekking the Himalayas. Its burnt-out wreckage was found in the western district of Myagdi and bodies could be seen scattered around it. Ananda Pokharel, minister for culture, tourism and civil aviation, said the wreckage was found in Solighopte forest. All aboard the N9-AHH aircraft, including two foreigners, were killed in the incident, he told PTI over phone. The 23 people on board included 18 Nepalese citizens, including two children, and two foreigners, apart from three crew members. One of the foreigners has been confirmed to be a Chinese and another a Kuwaiti national. The aircraft caught fire after it crashed, according to a search and rescue team present at the site of the accident. Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal officials said that the reason of crash is yet to be probed. Residents in the area said they saw a huge explosion and fire in the remote area. A preliminary investigation has suggested that low visibility due to a cloud of dust shrouding the area following dry landslides in Mount Annapurna might have caused the crash. According to Home Ministry officials, there were dust particles in seven villages around the site in the district. Earlier, three helicopters were dispatched from Kathmandu to locate the aircraft while Nepal Army, Armed Police Force and Nepal Police personnel were also mobilised. "We have dispatched three helicopters on a search and rescue mission," the airline had said in a statement on its website. "The weather at both origin and destination airports was favourable and the airport cleared for departure by the control tower at Pokhara," said the statement. In Nepal, air travel is hugely popular as there is only a limited road network. Many communities, particularly in the mountains and hills, are accessible only on foot or by air. Since 1949 - the year the first aircraft landed in Nepal - there have been more than 70 different crashes involving planes and helicopters, in which more than 700 people have been killed. In 2012, child actor Taruni Sachdev and mother Geeta Sachdev were among 15 people killed when a dornier aircraft crashed close to the Jomson airport. Taruni died in the Agni Air Flight CHT plane crash on her 14th birthday on May 14. In 2013, the European Union banned all Nepalese airlines from flying there. And in 2014, a Nepal Airlines plane crashed into the side of a snow-clad mountain in the country's west, killing 18 people. Terrorists belonging to Jaish-e- Mohammad entered into a criminal conspiracy to infiltrate into India and carry out the attack on Pathankot air base with the active support of co-conspirators operating from Pakistan, Rajya Sabha was informed today. The handlers and co-conspirators operating from outside the territorial borders of India sent trained terrorists with arms, ammunition and other logistics from Pakistan, Minister of State for Home Haribhai Parathibhai Chaudhary said in reply to several written questions. The terrorists attacked the Pathankot air base, he said, adding the matter has been taken up by India with Pakistan to take action against the masterminds of the terrorist attack. Chaudhary said the security audit of all security related establishments, infrastructure has been carried out by agencies concerned to assess physical security measures and upgrade it wherever necessary. The BSF has identified 30 kms border in the area of responsibility of Gurdaspur sector for installation of pilot project for comprehensive integrated border management system to improve the border surveillance further, he said. Admitting that there was specific intelligence with regard to Pathankot attack, the Minister said a committee headed by Lt General (retd) Philip Campose has been appointed to look into the Pathankot incident and recommend measures to strengthen security of various military establishment and submit its report by March 31, 2016. Chaudhary said as per the investigation conducted by the NIA so far, Punjab Police SP Salvinder Singh, his jeweller friend Rajesh Verma and cook Madan Gopal were abducted by the terrorists on the intervening night of December 31, 2015 and January 1, 2016. While Singh was tied up and thrown out from the vehicle, his car was robbed and Verma's throat was slit by the terrorists. The Minister said investigation was to find out whether the midnight activities of the unarmed SP and the accompanying goldsmith (Verma) and others on the border were not deemed to be suspicious. Chaudhary said it is a fact that in many terror incidents, including the recent one at Pathankot, the militants were wearing army outfits and such uniforms are easily available in open markets in the country. He also said so far there is no proposal under consideration to bring a law to prevent misuse of uniforms of armed forces personnel by terrorists. A small plane carrying 23 people, including two foreigners, today went missing in a mountainous area in amid poor visibility, with officials fearing that the aircraft might have crashed. The Twin-Otter aircraft belonging to Tara Air went missing minutes after it took off from Pokhara airport on way to Jomsom. Pokhara is a resort town some 200 kilometres west of the capital Kathmandu. Jomsom, a short distance further north, is the starting point for many people trekking in the Himalayas. There were 23 people, including three crew members, two children and two foreigners, on board, officials said. One passenger was later confirmed to be from China and another a Kuwaiti national. All the were from and two were children. The aircraft might have crashed in Dana village which lies between Mustang and Myagdi district in northern Nepal, a police officer from Pokhara Zonal Police office quoted local residents as saying. Three helicopters have been dispatched from Kathmandu for search operations and Army, Armed Police Force and Nepal Police personnel were mobilised for the same purpose. "We have dispatched three helicopters on a search and rescue mission," the airline said in a statement posted on its website. "The weather at both origin and destination airports was favourable and the airport cleared for departure by the control tower at Pokhara," said the statement. The cause of the incident could not be immediately known. However, Dana Village Development Committee and adjoining areas were enshrouded in cloud of dust yesterday following dry landslides in Mount Annapurna. Local residents said they have heard a huge sound of explosion and fire in the remote mountainous area. Since 1949 - the year the first aircraft landed in Nepal - there have been more than 70 different crashes involving planes and helicopters, in which more than 700 people have been killed. In 2013, the European Union banned all Nepalese airlines from flying there. In 2014, a Nepal Airlines plane crashed into the side of a snow-clad mountain in the country's west, killing 18 people. 'Gender Park', India's first gender equality convergence center, will be inaugurated by President Pranab Mukherjee here on February 27. The park is aninitiative of the Social Justice Department of the Keralagovernment to bring together the state, academia and civil society on a common platform to address the gender issues. "The Centre, the country's first such large-scale initiative,will create an environment to share global knowledge and experiences in reducing gender inequalities," CEO of the park Dr P T M Sunishsaid in a release. A dedicated Gender Institute at the park would focus on learning research and capacity development as part of supporting efforts ofthe central and state governments in ensuring an inclusive society. It would cover issues pertaining to all threegenders in accordance with the 2015 gender and transgender policies of the state government, he said. Kerala Governor P Sathasivam, Chief Minister OommenChandy and Rebecca Reichmann Tavares, United NationsRepresentative for women in India, Sri Lanka, Maldives and Bhutanwill take part in the inaugural function. The President will also inaugurate UL Cyber Park, declare Keralaa digital state,launch the Digital Empowerment Campaign and also declare open "Kanivu" (Compassionate Kerala) scheme, by unveiling commemorative plaques. (REOPEN MDS4) The UL Cyber park is the first IT park set up by a labour co-operative society, Uralungal Labour Contract Co-operative Society (ULCCS). Digital Empowerment Campaign is a project formulated by Kerala state IT Mission to empower citizens throughtraining imparted by selected high school students across thestate. In the first phase, the plan is to distribute 5,600 tablets preloaded with application among Students Police Cadets (SPCs) from across 280 schools in 14 districts so as tomake citizens digitally literate. The SPCs would train 10 lakh citizens in internet operations, a release from authorities ofDigital Empowerment Campaign said. It also aims to teach, enable and empower the common man the potential of Information and Communication Technology in day-to-day life and also tunes him up on the potential of Internet and the opportunity that it provides. "Kanivu" is a registered Charitable Society dedicated to address the issues of mentally ill persons in general, and women in particular. A pro-RSS cultural outfit today opposed the alleged move by Kerala government to include controversial Pattanam excavation in President Pranab Mukherjee's programme during his visit to Kodungallore later this week. "We strongly protest the move to include controversial Pattanam excavations in the programme of the President who visits Kodungallore (in Thrissur district on Saturday) to launch the first phase of Muziris heritage project," Bharatheeya Vichara Kendram, headed by RSS ideologue P Parameswaran, said in a release here. Alleging "an agenda by a particular religion to wrongly interpret historical facts" with regard to Pattanam, R Sanjayan, joint director of BVK said the Pattanam excavators had been giving contradictory statements on archaeological finds in the media and quite different versions in articles published in journals and Kerala Council of Historical Research (KCHR) reports. "There is a move to include exhibition of artifacts claimed to be from Pattanam archaeological site as part of the President's programme," Sanjayan told PTI. He said KCHR's 'Pattanam excavations' near here to identify ancient Indo-Roman port of Muziris on the state's coast has been challenged at various fora, including the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI). "We are questioning unscientific approaches adopted by KCHR for excavating the site and it is being probed by the ASI," he said. Sanjayan said eminent archaeologists and historians such as Professors Dilip Chakrabarthy, MGS Narayanan and R Nagaswamy have questioned the authenticity of the Pattanam excavations associated with Muziris project. "The association of many foreigners, who are not archaeological experts but theologians, with this project have raised suspicion in the minds of the academicians," he said. The RSS-linked organisation said it has written to the President to apprise him of the issues related to the controversial project. "The Pattanam excavations lacked transparency and hence the Bharatheeya Vichara Kendram submitted complaints to the Union Ministry of Culture and the Archaeological Survey of India," he added. Several organisations have come together to carry out 100 free-of-cost plastic surgeries for the acid attack and burn victims. 'Project Revive' will be undertaken in Delhi-NCR from March 1 to March 12, wherein victims from remote and distant areas like Nagaland, Mizoram and Kashmir have reached out to avail the treatment, according to a statement issued by Acid Survivors Foundation India. ASFI is a leading NGO for prevention of acid burn violence across the country, which is leading the outreach and acid attack victim identification under the project. The project has been conceptualised by an Indian doctor and would be monitored and assisted by a specialist from an international organisation of plastic surgeons and associated professionals. "The campaign has garnered response from Kenya, UAE, America, Australia and Germany. It is heart-warming to see that Indians living abroad have been calling to cross-check the authenticity of the message and have been referring people," Megha Mishra, manager, north India of ASFI, told PTI. "A lot of doctors, army officials, housewives have reached out to us. It is so good to see the society come out and help each other," she said. According to a report, India accounts for one-third of reported acid violence cases in the world. As per Acid Survivors Trust International, of the 1,500 cases that were registered in 2014, about 500 cases were from India. About the project, Mishra said, "Pre-screening will be done based on photos received on Whatsapp or email. The patients identified would be requested to report to the hospital starting February 29." "Surgeries will be conducted in a planned manner. Post-operative care will be provided at the hospital. Accommodation is being worked out in case the patients require out-of-hospital stay for a longer time," she said. The team of doctors includes experienced surgeons from Europe and specialist nurses, who have worked extensively in the area of acid violence in the past. "We don't end it at just doing surgeries, we go ahead in bringing awareness about the issue at hand. There will be workshops and presentations at various night shelters and slums," Mishra said. In past three years, the acid violence has gone three times higher in the country, and the recent Soni Sori case only reaffirms the menace that plagues the society, AFSI said. On February 20,three unidentified motorcycle-borne youths attacked tribal rights activist and AAP leader Soni Sori with an acid-like black chemical near a village in Chhattisgarh's Dantewada district. Hundreds of protesters opposing the holding of Defence Expo at Betul in south Goa today blocked the trucks carrying construction material to the site. Defence Minister and former Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar had announced that 'Def Expo 2016' will be held at Betul but the locals are opposed to it, fearing "they would lose their lands permanently" to the Defence Ministry. Three trucks loaded with material required for fencing were sent back by a crowd today. "There were at least 300 people at the site. We have decided that Expo will not be allowed to be held at Betul. This is an attempt to grab the land," said Freddy Fernandes of Orixtt Porjecho Avaz, a local group, speaking to PTI. The government did not take the local people into confidence before finalising the site, he claimed. Local Congress MLA Chandrakant Kavlekar and Independent MLA Vijai Sardessai were present among the protesters, who began to arrive at the site from early morning. "They are planning to lay foundation stone for the infrastructure tomorrow. That will not be allowed," Fernandes said. This is the second time the attempt to start work at the Expo site has faced resistance. On February 15, protesters sent back district officials went to inspect the site, following which Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar warned that FIRs will be filed against those opposing the Expo. The Defence Minister had last month rubbished criticism from certain sections that land was being acquired for the event. He had also said that eight states had shown interest in organising the Expo but Goa was selected. "There will be no land acquisition to host Defexpo. It will be held in temporary structure where the defence equipment would be on display," Parrikar had said. Sardessai alleged that Parrikar had been summoning police and government officers and others to Delhi and giving them instructions to continue with preparations. "There is a picture on the Facebook where superintendent of police (south) Shekhar Prabhudessai is seen (with Parrikar). The collector was also summoned to Delhi," the MLA said. The war of words between a grouping of four private Indian carriers and two new Tata Sons-invested airlines over a norm for starting international operations escalated today with the latter being accused of not acting in national interest by opposing the rule. The Tata Group called for abolishing the controversial 5/20 norm for local carriers, saying it has only "benefited foreign airlines" and its removal would help "improve" India's air connectivity with the world. The norm bars airlines from starting overseas operations till they have a fleet of 20 aircraft and five years of domestic flying experience which will effectively keep out Tata's startup airlines Vistara and AirAsia India. The four private carriers want the norm to continue. The Federation of Indian Airlines (FIA), which comprises IndiGo, SpiceJet, Jet Airways and GoAir, criticised the alleged lobbying by the two new carriers for removal of 5/20 norm, saying it was in the "self-interest" and not in "national interest" of the two carriers. "FIA is deeply disturbed by the statements issued by Tata claiming to be in national interest but effectively in self-interest," FIA said in a statement. "They (Vistara and AirAsia) claim to be 'Indian' Airlines and so it is puzzling that they now do not wish to serve the Indian civil aviation growth story and be a part of India's future growth. They only wish to, it appears, serve their self-interest and establish themselves in India in order to fly International," it said. Scrapping of 5/20 rule is one of the proposals made by the Ministry in the draft civil aviation policy, which is in the advanced stage of finalisation. Significantly, the proposal to do away with the 5/20 norm was mooted around the time Tata Group announced its re-entry in the domestic airlines industry in 2013. Tata Sons, the major holding companies of diversified Tata Group--which holds stakes in Vistara and AirAsia India--said claims that airfares would go up if 5/20 norm is removed is "specious and unfounded". "The claim that air fares in India will go up as a result of removing the 5/20 rule is specious and unfounded. Not protectionism, but increased competition within the country will further contribute to lower prices and greater accessibility of air travel to common people," Tata Sons said in a statement. Coming out strongly against Ratan Tata's pitch to scrap the norm, the Federation said the removal of the rule would lead to higher airfares and result in "reverse discrimination". The statement bt Tata Sons comes days after Tata Group Chairman Emeritus Ratan Tata accused older carriers of lobbying and using "monopolistic pressures" to retain preferential treatment under the 5/20 rule. Qatar and Kuwait today became the latest Gulf states to urge their citizens to leave Lebanon due to tensions over the pro-Iranian Lebanese Shiite militia Hezbollah which backs the Damascus regime. Doha's foreign ministry, in a statement on the official Qatar Agency (QNA), called on citizens in Lebanon to "leave for their own safety" and said no Qatari nationals should travel there. Earlier today, in a statement cited by the official KUNA agency, the Kuwaiti embassy in Beirut also advised Kuwaitis to postpone any planned travel to Lebanon. The mission said all citizens should leave "except in extreme circumstances," and advised those who stay to exercise caution and avoid unspecified, unsafe areas. Qatar and Kuwait join Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain in issuing travel warnings for Lebanon. Riyadh, which supports the Syrian opposition, has also halted a USD 4-billion military and police funding programme for Beirut in response to what it said were "hostile" positions linked to Hezbollah. Riyadh's ambassador in Lebanon, Ali Awad Assiri, said today that Lebanon must apologise for failing to join other Arab nations in condemning attacks on Saudi diplomatic missions in Iran last month. "This has upset the kingdom and (Lebanon) has to repair the error with wisdom and courage," Assiri told AFP. The attacks on Saudi missions in Iran, which followed the kingdom's execution of influential Shiite cleric Nimr al-Nimr, prompted Riyadh to cut diplomatic ties with Tehran. Syria's war has exacerbated political rivalries within Lebanon, which has been without a president for almost two years because of fierce disagreements between Hezbollah and its rivals, some of whom are supported by Riyadh. Meanwhile, the spokesman of Yemen's internationally-recognised government accused Hezbollah of training Shiite Huthi rebels and orchestrating attacks on Saudi Arabia from Yemen. The government has evidence of "Hezbollah's involvement in the Huthi war on the Yemeni people," Rajih Badi said in a statement to the official sabanew.Net agency. Hezbollah militants are present in "the battlefields along the border with Saudi Arabia," said Badi, urging "international legal measures" against the movement. Saudi Arabia is leading a coalition battling the Iran-backed rebels in support of the Yemeni government. YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 24, ARMENPRESS. Behavior of German authorities in relation to Armenian Genocide is the same as it was in 1915. Famous genocide scholar Tessa Hofmann made such a remark in an interview with Armenpress. Although this topic is on the agenda of the German Parliament for this Thursday, Hofmann highly doubts that the issue will be discussed. She explains her opinion by the relations between Turkey and Germany, which are currently mostly focused on the refugee crisis. In this situation our Foreign Office will do everything possible not to disturb the relations with Ankara comparable to the situation in 1915, when official Germany sacrificed all human and humanitarian criteria for the sake of Ottoman-German military alliance. Neither the Ottoman genocide, nor the ongoing fight against the Kurds in Turkey (with all its collateral damage to the Kurdish civic population) will change this, I am afraid. And the critics of such realpolitical attitudes in this country are not numerous and influential enough to stop it. And even if the possibility of a parliamentary debate on the Armenian genocide is discussed next Thursday, there is little chance that the oppositional Green Party gains enough support among the ruling coalition of conservatives and Social-Democrats, Tessa Hofmann said. The Armenian Genocide issue will be discussed at the German Bundestag on February 25, paying tribute and honoring the victims of the crime that took place 100 years ago. The discussion was initiated by the Bundestag "Alliance 90 / The Greens" party, the co-president of which is Cem Ozdemir, who is Turkish by nationality. The discussion will last 45 minutes. "Alliance 90 / The Greens" and its co-president have repeatedly condemned the Armenian Genocide, urging Turkey to recognize the historical facts and come to terms with the reality. Araks Kasyan Rajasthan BJP MLA Kailash Chaudhary has been booked for allegedly calling Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi a "traitor" over his stand on the JNU row. A case has been lodged against the MLA and four others under Section 352 (assault or criminal force otherwise than on grave provocation), 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace), 506 (criminal intimidation) of IPC, SHO Amethi S K Mishra said yesterday. Chaudhary was also booked under IPC Section 120(B) (criminal conspiracy). The complaint was filed by Congress worker Ravi Darshan in Amethi. Choudhary represents Baytoo constituency in Rajasthan and reportedly made the remarks against the Congress scion at his residence in Barmer on February 17. Nalini Sriharan, a convict in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case, was today granted a 12-hour parole to attend the last rites of her father. "She has been granted a 12-hour parole and will return to jail by this evening," a jail official of Women's prison said. She left the Vellore Central Prison (women's jail) under police escort by 6.50 a.m. She is on her way to Chennai where she will attend the cremation of her father Sankara Narayanan. Nalini was sentenced to death by the trial court in the case on January 28, 1998. Her sentence was commuted to life term by the Tamil Nadu Governor on April 24, 2000. In December 14 last year, she had moved Madras High Court seeking a direction to Tamil Nadu government to consider her representation for premature release, saying she has undergone imprisonment for more than 24 years. Reserve Bank has allowed foreign investors to invest up to 49 per cent of the paid-up capital in Ponni Sugars (Erode) Ltd. Foreign Institutional Investors/Registered Foreign Portfolios Investors/Qualified Foreign Investors/Non Residential Indians)/Person of Indian Origin can now invest up to 49 per cent of the paid up capital of Ponni Sugars Erode Limited under the Portfolio Investment Scheme (PIS). RBI said the aggregate limit for NRI investment shall not exceed 24 per cent within the overall limit of 49 per cent. The company had passed resolutions at its Board of Directors' level and a special resolution by the shareholders, agreeing for enhancing the limit for the purchase of its equity shares and convertible debentures by these entities. As of quarter ended December 2015, the promoters held 42.36 per cent in Ponni Sugar, while public owned shares were 57.64 per cent, as per data available on BSE. Ponni Sugars scrips closed 4.75 per cent higher at Rs 154.40 a piece on BSE today. A team of researchers in the UK have made a breakthrough reclassification of Pancreatic Cancer, offering new opportunities to treat the disease. The study, co-led by Professor Andrew Biankin and a team at the University of Glasgow's Institute of Cancer Sciences, has identified four key subtypes of Pancreatic Cancer - currently the 4th leading cause of cancer death in Western societies, and projected to be the 2nd within a decade. The research paper 'Genomic analyses identify molecular subtypes of pancreatic cancer' which is published today in Nature, has named the four subtypes as Squamous, Pancreatic Progenitor, Immunogenic and ADEX (Aberrantly Differentiated Endocrine eXocrine). The groups were categorised based on data sets from the Australian Pancreatic Cancer Genome Initiative, after examining key aspects of pancreatic tumours including their mutational profile, the expression of genes and epigenetic changes. Currently those suffering with pancreatic cancer have a poor prognosis, with a median survival measured in months and a five year survival rate of less than 5 per cent. The disease progresses "silently" within the pancreas for up to 15 to 20 years, until patients present to the clinic when they are in the later stages of the disease. From those who are diagnosed with the disease only a small number can have their tumour affected by treatment. The current methods of treating pancreatic cancer are not targeted or selective and have been described as "hitting the disease with a mallet with your eye closed". Researchers hope that the new reclassification will help to identify the correct targeted treatment for each individual subtype of the disease. Professor Biankin, the Regius Chair of Surgery/Director of the Wolfson Wohl Cancer Research Centre, said: "The four subtypes that we have identified represent a reclassification of the disease and as such should provide a basis to offer new insights into personalised therapeutic options for individual patients and a launch pad to investigate new treatments." The study also found that the four key subtypes matched with known pancreatic cancer histopathology. Many of the genes associated with Squamous are highly expressed in molecular "Squamous-type" tumours that also appear to occur in breast, bladder, lung and head and neck cancer, while gene networks that regulate the early embryonic development of the pancreas characterise Pancreatic Progenitor. ADEX class is defined by transcriptional networks that are important in later stages of pancreatic development and differentiation, and is a subclass of Pancreatic Progenitor tumours, while Immunogenic shares many of the characteristics of the Pancreatic Progenitor class but is associated with evidence of a significant immune infiltrate. One of the key findings of the report was the identification of the Immunogenic subtype, which the study found could potentially prove to be responsive to types of immunotherapeutic cancer treatments. Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee has ruled out any hearing for President Barack Obama's nominee to the Supreme Court, insisting that the choice rests with the president's successor. "Because our decision is based on constitutional principle and born of a necessity to protect the will of the American people, this committee will not hold hearings on any Supreme Court nominee until after our next president is sworn in on January 20, 2017," they said in a letter to Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. "I agree with the Judiciary Committee's recommendation to not have hearings. In short, there will not be action taken," McConnell told reporters yesterday. Even the most divisive nominees for the high court have received a hearing before the Judiciary Committee, and the election-year decision to deny such a session is a sharp break with the Senate's traditional "advise and consent" role. A committee review and a hearing is the first step in the process. Antonin Scalia's February 13 death ignited a major fight in Washington over whether Obama should be able to replace him in a presidential election year. He had been dead only for a few hours when McConnell announced that he would oppose replacing him before the election. The Republicans' action is certain to have repercussions, not only in the presidential race but in congressional contests where vulnerable Senate incumbents in Illinois, Wisconsin, Ohio, Pennsylvania and New Hampshire face tough Democratic challengers. At least one of those senators, Republican Mark Kirk of Illinois, has suggested holding hearings. But Republican members of the committee met with McConnell and emerged with a simple message: "No hearing, no vote," said Senator Lindsey Graham. Confirmation hearings for a Supreme Court nominee are the most high-profile in the Senate, and any session is certain to be a spectacle. Among the members of the panel is Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz, and the Texas senator has vowed to block any nominee. White House spokesman Josh Earnest said it was "absolutely" still possible the Senate would hold hearings, pointing to a handful of Republicans who he said had expressed a willingness, including Kirk, Susan Collins of Maine, Dan Coats of Indiana and Roy Blunt of Missouri. Earnest said in the last day, Obama has spoken to Republican lawmakers, including some on the committee. Republicans pointed to a 1992 speech by Vice President Joe Biden, then the chairman of the Judiciary Committee, in which he said that in a presidential election year the Senate should "not consider holding hearings until after the election." As it turned out, there was no opening on the court that year. Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula's mother today met Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal at his residence and requested a job for her younger son. At the meeting, Radhika Vemula, Rohith's mother, was accompanied by her younger son Raja Vemula who is a post graduate in Applied Geology and Sunkanna Velpula, one of Rohith's closest friends, among others. The Delhi Cabinet shall meet later this evening to take a call on the request put forth by the family of the deceased PhD scholar. The family participated in a protest march yesterday demanding justice for Rohith, who committed suicide at Hyderbad University. Kejriwal had joined the protest where he lambasted the Centre accusing it of waging a "war" against students and voiced his support for 'Rohith Act', a law proposed by the agitating students against discrimination in Universities. Addressing protesters, Radhika had attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi asking "what action did you take against your minister who had called my son anti- "She also condemned the "attacks" on students in universities including JNU and said such things "should be stopped". Rohith's body was found hanging in a hostel room on Hyderabad University campus on January 17. The first working day of the budget session in Rajya Sabha started on a stormy note as the House faced repeated adjournments over the suicide of Dalit student Rohith Vemula, with slogan-shouting BSP members led by Mayawati trooping into the Well several times seeking resignation of some Union Ministers. An exasperated Chairman Hamid Ansari remarked that disruption of Question Hour was "violation of privilege of individual members" and asked the agitating members "not to trample" over the privilege of their colleagues. Amid sloganeering by BSP, HRD Minister Smriti Irani said the opposition was using a "dead child" (Rohith) as "a political tool and strategy" and asked the opposition to start discussion on the issue "right now". BSP members forced five adjournments in the pre-lunch session raising slogans that the "anti-Dalit, anti-Ambedkar" government will not be allowed to run, even as party chief Mayawati dubbed the incident an "insult to 25 crore Dalits" in the country. She also wanted the government's response over her demand for the resignation of two union ministers allegedly linked to the suicide. A visibly upset Ansari, who went the extra mile to hold an all-party meeting days before start of the session to ensure smooth functioning, said, "Disruption of House is the violation of the privilege of individual members of the House. Do not trample the privilege your colleagues." Members from treasury benches welcomed Ansari's remarks. The Chairman asked Mayawati to follow procedures, arguing that her party members can raise the issue any other time during the day. He also held an informal meeting with leaders of parties in his chamber after the House was adjourned for the third time. Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said if Question Hour was not being allowed, the legislative business should be taken up as otherwise it will not send a right message. He said a response can be given only if a thorough debate is allowed in which everybody gets a chance to participate. As eight of the BSP members continued shouting slogans from the Well of the House, an apparently irked Ansari said, "you had enough. Please sit down. Take care of your health." However, his pleas remained unheeded. Raising the issue, Mayawati (BSP) said the suicide by the Vemula, a Dalit student of the Hyderabad University, was a matter of grave concern. A number of Union Ministers like Rajnath Singh, Arun Jaitley, Piyush Goyal, Smriti Irani, Nirmala Sitharaman, Prakash Javadekar, Thawar Chand Gehlot and Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi among others were present in the House. Rajnath Singh later left the House amid the din. The row in the Upper House began virtually from the start. Even though a discussion on the issue was listed for today, Mayawati (BSP) wanted a response from the government to her demand for resignation of the union ministers allegedly linked to the suicide, sacking of the Vice Chancellor of University of Hyderabad and inclusion of a Dalit member in the judicial committee probing the suicide. "Since the time, BJP came to power at the Centre, nefarious means are being used to impose RSS ideology," she said adding that prestigious institutions like Hyderabad University, Aligarh Muslim University, Jamia Milia and Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) were being interfered with. Suicide by Rohith is not the first case and many Dalit students have committed suicide in the past including when Congress-led UPA was in power at the Centre, she claimed. Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said if the House agreed, a debate on the issue could be taken up immediately. Deputy Chairman of Rajya Sabha P J Kurien too agreed that a discussion can be taken up immediately if the House agrees. But Mayawati insisted on a response to her demands first, even as Naqvi said "We are not running away from debate." Kurien said the subject raised by Mayawati was already in the list of business and could be taken up now and the government will reply to it. But BSP members remained unrelenting, forcing Kurien to adjourn the House first for 10 minutes. After the brief adjournment when the House reassembled, Mayawati again wanted to know from the government if there would be a Dalit member in the inquiry committee. To this, Deputy Chairman Kurien said "don't take the House to ransom". As BSP members trooped in to the Well, Naqvi said a discussion would take place on the issue and the government cannot reply to questions in bits and pieces. "After the debate the Minister will intervene and reply. (It is) not possible to answer each member," he said. As BSP members kept shouting anti-government slogans, Naqvi said "(this is) is a frustrated agenda". While CPI(M) leader Sitaram Yechury said Mayawati has raised a simple question and the government should reply to it, Leader of Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad said his party too demands inclusion of a dalit member in the probe panel. Amid continued sloganeering by BSP, HRD Minister Smriti Irani said the discussion on the issue should begin "right now". As the Minister was speaking, Mayawati too joined her party colleagues in the Well. Kurien then adjourned the House till noon. Similar scenes were witnessed when the House again met in the noon and Ansari tried to take up Question Hour. However as BSP members remained unrelenting even after his angry remarks, he adjourned the House for ten minutes. During the short break, Ansari met leaders including Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, CPI(M)'s Sitaram Yechury, NCP chief Sharad Pawar, JD-U's K C Tyagi, SP's Ramgopal Yadav and CPI's D Raja in an apparent bid to restore normalcy. However, as the row continued as the House reassembled, Ansari adjourned the House twice more for 15 minutes and then till 2 PM. (Reopens PAR12) When the House reassembled at 2 PM, BSP members again trooped into the Well and continued slogan shouting, even as their party chief Mayawati insisted that the government should reply on whether a Dalit member would be included in the judicial panel probing Rohit Vemula's suicide case and sought a separate debate on both issues. To this, Irani said "I am ready to reply to all questions. First you allow the discussion... You are senior to me. You are a woman. If you want, I am ready to reply. If you are not satisfied with my reply, I am ready to behead myself and lay it on your feet." Urging the Chair to start the debate on the issue, Naqvi said "Call those members willing to participate... If Congress is not ready, we are ready to begin. Please start the debate". But the BSP members continued shouting slogans "Dalit virodhi yeh sarkar nahi chalegi, nahi chalegi (anti-Dalit government will not be tolerated). We want resignation of HRD Minister." As the commotion continued, Leader of the House Arun Jaitley said the members should have "patience" to discuss the matter. "If you are not satisfied, we can take up that issue later. First at least listen to the government's version." Naqvi requested the chair to allow BJP members to begin the debate if the Congress and Left parties were not ready. Trying to put the House in order, Deputy Chairman J Kurien said, "Discussion is on your subject. Why don't you allow? ...It is a matter of 2 hours of discussion. The government will reply thereafter." Kurien called CPI(M) leader Sitaram Yechury to begin the debate. But Yechury said, "How can I speak? Stop this (shouting scenes) sir." As commotion continued, a visibly upset Kurien said, "I think action should be taken. I don't see any justification. I will have to expel them." "This is irrational to the core. This kind of shouting is not acceptable," Kurien said and later adjourned the House for 15 minutes. When the House reassembled at 2.30 pm, Kurien said the issue raised by BSP was valid but the government has assured reply after the discussion. Hence there was no rationale in demanding a reply before the debate, he said. Mayawati said the two issues are important and should be discussed separately. "The government wants to neglect Rohit Vemula's issue. The JNU issue comes later. We want response from the government." Later, BSP members trooped into the Well shouting, "Give justice to Rohit Vemula's family". "Down with HRD Minister". As sloganeering continued, irked Naqvi asked the members to begin the debate as Home Affairs and HRD Ministers were present here to reply. He even suggested members to take up the bill if they are not keen to start the short duration debate today. "Everyday, every time, this cannot go on. We need protection from the House," he asked the Chair, who later asked Yechury to initiate the debate. Yechury said, "I am ready. I can speak. May be one more chance you can give them to pursuade BSP members." Ram Gopal Yadav (SP) and Sharad Yadav (JDU) said the BSP members are not allowing the debate. "It should be take place tomorrow. They are ready for tomorrow, we have spoken to them," Yadav said. Mayawati said her party will not allow discussion unless the government is ready for a separate debate on Rohit Vemula's suicide case and makes it clear if it has included a dalit member in the judicial committee probing Vemula's case. "We have made one demand that the investigating commitee set up on Vemula's case has one downtrodden member in it. Instead of saying yes or not, they (government) have resorted to reply to the discussion. ....Why cannot reply to this one question?" she said and also insisting for a separate discussion on this issue. To this, Kurien asked Mayawati to give a separate notice for having a separate discussion on this issue. Amid din, Leader of Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad said, "On the issue raised by Mayawatiji, we are one with her. The way Rohit was forced to commit suicide, it is a national issue. We will not allow the issue get diluted. We will certainly have vivid discussion." "If the government decides to discuss separately, then we are prepared to discuss the Hyderabad University issue today and JNU tomorrow," he suggested. Naqvi said fresh notices need to be issued for this, while Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar said the two issues were not clubbed by the government. Yechury said the situation in the House has arisen with the raising of one question: will the government include a dalit member in the committee? To this, Kurien said, "It is for the government to take the decision. As far as I am concerned, I have to go by the agenda. The government is saying it will reply including this issue after the discussion." Irked Irani said, "I am ready to answer to all questions. Either they decide which question to ask or be it from Yechuryji or Mayawatiji. ...Are we sending this kind of signal to the nation that a judge in his capacity will depend on the caste?" Unrelenting Mayawati said, "Which signal are you talking? Tell me clearly whether the government is keeping a dalit member in the commitee or not. If PM was here, he would have agreed for the discussion. These people are fearful. I think PM has not given the signal. He also does not want a dalit to be part of it." As angry-exchanges and slogan shouting continued, the chair adjourned the House for half an hour till 3.30 pm. Similar scenes were witnessed when the House met again with Mayawati asking the government to state whether a Dalit member would be included in the probe panel and said the government seemed to be waiting for a "signal from Nagpur", indicating RSS headquarters. The House was adjourned at 4 PM after an assurance from Kurien and Naqvi that Irani will respond specifically to Mayawati's question after the conclusion of the discussion tomorrow. Russia delivered 10,000 Kalashnikovs to the Afghan government today, with officials saying they were for the fight "against terrorism", a day after Kabul hosted talks on reviving the peace process with the Taliban. The assault rifles, delivered with pomp at a ceremony on the tarmac at Kabul's military airport, will be directly transferred to security forces, said President Ashraf Ghani's national security adviser Hanif Atmar. "We are trying to continue our efforts for peace, but in the meantime our nation should have the ability to defend itself," Atmar said. He said "international terrorism" in Afghanistan was a threat not only to the country and the region, but also to "our friends in Russia". Despite the USD 60 billion spent by Washington over more than 14 years to equip and train the Afghan security forces, they have struggled to contain the resurgent Taliban. Kabul is trying to resume a dialogue with the militants, and after talks with the US, China and Pakistan yesterday said it expects to relaunch the stalled peace process by early March. Russia is not part of the quartet. In a recent interview with state agency Ria Novosti, Zamir Kabulov, the Kremlin's special representative to Afghanistan, described Washington's efforts to restore peace as "futile". At today's ceremony Russia's ambassador in Kabul Alexander Mantitski said cooperation between his country, NATO and the United States in Afghanistan ended in April 2014 "at the initiative of the West". The decision was taken in retaliation for Russia's annexation of Crimea. However the diplomat said Moscow would continue to cooperate directly with its Afghan partner. Russia remains concerned about the growing influence of Islamic State in the east of the country, where the group counts fighters from Uzbekistan and Tajikistan - two former Soviet republics bordering Afghanistan - in its ranks. Moscow said today it had started ceasefire negotiations with armed groups in several Syrian provinces following a Moscow-Washington deal on a cessation of hostilities in the war-torn country. The Russian defence ministry said it had opened a coordination centre at its air base in that is "already carrying out work with representatives of the groups in various settlements in the provinces of Hama, Homs, Latakia, Damascus and Deraa". Some local ceasefires have already been agreed, its statement said. Moscow said it had already secured "practical results in the north of Latakia province", adding that "military action has halted" in settlements including Ghnaymeh and Borj Islam in the mountainous area. Still, over the past two days Russian warplanes have carried out 62 sorties over 187 targets in the provinces of Hama, Raqqa, Aleppo, Homs and Deir Ezzor. Talks on ceasefires in other settlements in Latakia and Homs were under way, Russia said. "This work is not simple as it requires not only phone talks but also trips to sites to implement the ceasefire agreements and the delivery of humanitarian aid to the people," the ministry said. Russia said it has also reduced the number of airstrikes over the past two days, primarily in the areas from where ceasefire requests were received. A ceasefire agreement brokered by Russia and the United States does not apply to jihadists like the Islamic State group and Al-Nusra Front and calls for a "cessation of hostilities" between regime forces and opposition groups from 2200 GMT on Friday. But some US officials have expressed doubt over whether Russia will respect the ceasefire, with Secretary of State John Kerry warning that Washington was considering a "Plan B" if Moscow and Damascus do not keep their side of the bargain. The Russian defence ministry in turn urged the US to take practical steps towards the ceasefire. "We are preparing for and moreover have begun concrete and difficult practical work towards reconciliation in the Syrian Arab Republic," it said. "We are expecting our American partners to shift to concrete deeds as soon as possible instead of letters and words," it said in an apparent dig at Kerry's Plan B comment. Moscow said that Russians had yesterday informed the US military about the work of the coordination centre. "So far there have not been any reciprocal steps from our partners," the ministry said. South Korea today dismissed China's warning that the planned deployment of a US missile defence system could damage ties, stressing that it was to counter "growing threats" from North Korea. "The deployment of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defence system (THAAD) is a measure of self-defence against growing nuclear and missile threats from North Korea," presidential spokesman Jeong Yeon-Guk said. Jeong said the issue would be "decided in accordance with security and national interests," adding that "China will have to recognise the point." The remarks came after Chinese ambassador Qiu Guohong warned Tuesday that installation of the THAAD system on the Korean Peninsula could "destroy" relations between Beijing and Seoul. Qiu, in a meeting with Kim Jong-In, the leader of opposition Minju party, also warned that it would be "hard" to mend the ties once damaged, the party spokesman said Tuesday. China has repeatedly protested since Washington and Seoul announced plans to deploy the missile defence in the South, in response to North Korea's recent nuclear test and rocket launch. But yesterday was the first time that a Chinese diplomat or official has warned of the effect on diplomatic ties with Seoul. South Korea's foreign ministry summoned Qiu to make him clarify the comment, Yonhap agency said, citing a ministry official. "Qiu sincerely clarified the circumstances around the meeting (with Kim)...And what he actually said then," the official quoted by Yonhap said without elaborating further. The THAAD system fires anti-ballistic missiles to smash into enemy missiles either inside or outside the Earth's atmosphere during their final flight phase. The interceptor missiles carry no warheads, instead relying on kinetic energy to destroy their targets. The allies announced their intention to begin talks on its deployment following Pyongyang's long-range rocket launch on February 7, which was seen by the US and its allies as a covert ballistic missile test. South Korea's defence ministry said it expects official talks on THAAD to begin next week. YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 24, ARMENPRESS. The 6-7 thousand Armenian community of Austria is represented in the social, cultural and also economic life of a number of large cities. Evidences about Armenian presence in Austria date back to the 17th century. The first cafe of Vienna, a city with rich coffee traditions, belonged to an Armenian, who, getting permission from monarchs, was the first to import tea and coffee to Vienna. Armenpress took an interview from Archimandrite Fr. Tiran Petrosyan, Pontifical Legate for Central Europe and Scandinavia, about the activities and future plans of the community. In his words, there is one community in Austria, the community of the Church, where Armenians are consolidated, which is governed by Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin and is called Pontifical Legate for Central Europe and Scandinavia. Nearly 6-7 thousand Armenians live in Austria the majority of which, 3-4 thousand, reside in Vienna. We have communities also in Graz, Bregenz, Innsbruck cities, but Vienna is the centre. St. Hripsime Armenian Apostolic Church and Hovhannes Shiraz school adjunct to it with 140 pupils operate here. Pupils learn the Armenian language, literature, religion, history of the Armenian nation, geography, singing and dancing at the school, Fr. Tiran Petrosyan informed. To the question what is the role of Armenians in Austria and how they are represented, Fr. Tiran mentioned, Armenians are present in almost all spheres, we have scientists, lawyers, teachers, professors, doctors, intellectuals and artists. Armenians presence in Austria is evidenced back at the end of the 17th century, 1683, when the Turks, conquering Europe, reached the vicinity of Vienna. At that time, Armenians subject to Turkey, came and found shelter here, he said. Fr. Tiran finds it surprising that the first cafe in Vienna belonged to an Armenian. Vienna is rich in cafes and coffee traditions. Here you can taste 20-30 types of coffee, and it is an interesting fact that the first one to import coffee to Austria was an Armenian. There is a small cafe in the city centre. Entering there you will see a marble board reading This is the oldest cafe of the city. Belonged to Hovhannes Diodato or Astvatsatur meaning Hovhannes Astvatsaturyan, Fr. Tiran said, adding that he was a Turkish subject, but Armenian by nationality, and arriving in Vienna asked the monarchs for a permission to import tea and coffee. He got the permission by an imperial decree and imported coffee also to Prague, Bratislava and Budapest. The priest noted that in some sense he was a monopolist at that time. According to Fr. Tiran Petrosyan, the Austrians have started to speak about Armenia and the Armenian Genocide, it is worth recalling that the first novel on this topic is Austrian Jewish writer Franz Werfels 40 Days of Musa Dagh. He also informed that on the coming April 24 an Armenian made cross-stone is planned to be raised in the central square of Innsbruck City, dedicated to the memory of the innocent victims of the Armenian Genocide. He informed that the governor, city mayor, Armenias Ambassador to Austria, diplomats and Church representatives will attend the opening and consecration ceremony of the cross-stone. Fr. Tiran Petrosyan also informed that next Sunday elections of the Parish Council of Armenian Apostolic Church of Austria will be held. SAIL will invest over Rs 10,200 crore on mine development as the domestic steel giant embarks on a modernisation and expansion programme, Parliament was informed today. The Maharatna PSU's modernisation and expansion drive is to enhance its steel production capacity from 12.8 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) to 21.4 MTPA at an indicative investment of Rs 61,870 crore, Minister of State for Steel Vishnu Deo Sai said in a written to Rajya Sabha. The programme is being undertaken at the SAIL's facilities in Bhilai, Bokaro, Rourkela, Durgapur and Burnpur as well as the special steel plant at Salem. "Besides, a provision of Rs 10,264 crore has also been made towards investment in mines," Sai said. On raising of funds for the modernisation and expansion programme of Steel PSUs, he said the same were arranged through internal resources/borrowings by the companies. To a query on demand and supply of steel, Sai said with a crude steel production capacity of about 101 MT (million tonnes) in 2013-14, India produced about 87.67 MT of finished steel with an apparent consumption of about 74.09 MT. In 2014-15 also with a capacity of about 110 MT, the country produced around 91.45 MT of finished steel with an apparent consumption of about 76.99 MT. "Thus India is capable of meeting almost the entire domestic steel demand," the minister said. India has witnessed about 75.5 per cent increase year-on-year in imports of total steel (alloy + non-alloy) in 2014-15 and about 24 per cent increase during April 2015-January 2016. "The jump in imports is largely on account of global steel glut. Due to this reason, steel is being exported by China and other countries, often at below cost of production. Further, a small quantity of high quality steel, not manufactured locally, are also imported," he added. Donald Trump and other Republican politicians are making "racist" efforts to try to delegitimise US President Barack Obama, Democratic presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders alleged today. "Trump is clearly not the only person involved in this. There was an effort to try to legitimatise the president," Sanders told a CNN town hall in Columbia South Carolina, ahead of the crucial Democratic primary here over the weekend. Sanders was responding to a question, if he believed Trump was motivated by racism by raising the birth issue of Obama. "Look, you can disagree with Obama all you want but to say that the President of the US who won an election fair and square was not a legitimate president, it really undermines what we are as a nation," Sanders said. "I am not going to speak to Trump but do I think that at least in some parts of that Republican base there is race involved in that. Absolutely," the Senator from Vermont said. Sanders alleged that the birther issue from Trump and others was a racist effort to try to de-legitimatise the president of the US. "Can you imagine that? To say he is not really the president. He was not born in the US which is nonsense. You know, it is a funny thing on that issue. My dad, as I mentioned, came from Poland. I am running for president. Guess what? Nobody has asked for my birth certificate. May be it is the colour of my skin, I do not know," Sanders said. The "birther" controversy erupted during the 2008 presidential campaign when conspiracy theories asserted that Barack Obama was not a natural born citizen of the US and was ineligible to be President of the US. Theories alleged that Obama's published birth certificate was a forgery, that his actual birthplace is not Hawaii but Kenya. Other theories alleged that Obama became a citizen of Indonesia in childhood, thereby losing his US citizenship. Later, Obama released his original birth certificate and said the controversy surrounding the issue had become a "sideshow". The Supreme Court today came down on Maharashtra government for putting certain conditions for granting licences to dance bars across the state like providing live CCTV feed of performances to police and segregating the dance area from the restaurant. "Why the stage should be covered from all sides? Why there should a non-transparent partition between dance area and restaurant area? The dance is an art," a bench comprising justices Dipak Misra and Shiva Kirti Singh said. The bench was critical of some pre-requisites fixed by the state police for granting licences to dance bar owners and said the condition that there should be segregation of dance area from that of restaurant presumes that performance would be "obscene". "Why are you imposing the condition? As long as nothing obscene is happening...Why," it asked Additional Solicitor General Pinky Anand, appearing for Maharashtra, and told her to clarify the stand on some contentious conditions on March 1, the next date of hearing. The dance bar association, represented by senior advocate Jayant Bhushan, has red flagged certain conditions. "This licence is valid for only one stage of 10ft x 12 ft. in size in restaurant area as per approved plan of the excise department for ... With non transparent partition between restaurant and permit room area," one of the conditions reads. The dance bar owners would be permitted to keep only four "dancers/artists to remain present on permitted stage", another contentious condition said. The owners will not be allowed to "add or alter" anything in the premises except "without the written permission of the Competent Authority ie DCP(HQ-1) for Mumbai or concerned DCP/SP for other areas," the condition said. Bhushan said that these are "regressive ones" and needed to be amended. Bhushan also objected to the condition that makes it compulsory to dance bar owners to "ensure that adequate number of CCTV cameras which will live feed continuously to police control room be installed to cover the entire premises which will record the entire daily performance and the same would be monitored by a specially appointed person on a monitor/ display. "The daily recording of last 30 days would preserved and will be made available to any competent authority as and when required for viewing." The apex court had in November last year pulled up the Maharashtra government for not complying with its October 15, 2015 order, asking it to consider granting licences of dance bars to hoteliers and had ordered it to process such pleas within two weeks. It had also raised questions over the state government laws banning dance bars and said as to "how individual morality, perceptive morality and selective morality can merge into collective and legal morality". It had allowed Vinod Patil, president of R R Patil Foundation, to intervene in the matter. Patil had in his plea claimed that reopening of dance bars would increase crime. On October 15, 2015, the apex court had stayed the operation of 2014 amendment in Maharashtra Police Act that had banned dance performances at bars and some other places, paving the way for reopening of dance bars across the state. The order had come on a petition filed by Indian Hotel and Restaurant Association challenging the amendment and sought contempt of court action against the Maharashtra government. The court had noted that the provision was brought back in Maharashtra Police Act in 2014 after being held ultra vires in 2013 by the top court. The death toll from super-cyclone Winston jumped to 42 today as concerns grew for remote Fijian villages still waiting for help after the most powerful storm in the Pacific nation's history. While international aid efforts are intensifying, with New Zealand saying it will send two navy ships, relief teams are yet to reach some isolated communities devastated in the weekend tempest. "42 Fijians now confirmed dead -- disaster officials continue to deploy teams to help those affected across Fiji," government spokesman Dan Gavidi tweeted, raising the toll from 29 given yesterday. The Red Cross said the body count was likely to rise further as word filtered back from far-flung corners of the island nation. "The numbers will continue to change as we have better access to information and establish communications," the acting head of the Red Cross's Pacific office Ahmad Sami told AFP. Severe tropical cyclone Winston lashed the Pacific nation overnight Saturday, packing wind gusts of 325 kilometres (202 miles) per hour and leaving a trail of destruction. In addition to the mounting death toll, Care Australia said the number of people left homeless had ballooned to 34,000, up from 8,500 two days ago, and was also inexorably rising. Care spokesman Dylan Quinnell said preventing disease outbreaks was a major challenge. "The main priorities, for the whole country really, is to make sure that people have clean water and adequate sanitation," he said. While humanitarian aid is pouring into the main island Viti Levu, some of the worst-hit villages are on remote islands that relief workers have not yet been able to reach. Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama yesterday acknowledged the problem and asked for patience from affected communities. "We realise the desperate position that you are in, how traumatic this is for you and your families... But as prime minister, I want you to know that we will not rest until we have reached you." Former prime minister Laisenia Qarase said he held grave fears for his home island Vanua Balavu, which has not yet been heard from. Suva-based Qarase said aerial photographs showed there were "probably a thousand houses destroyed" on the island. "I'm 75 years old and the damage I've seen, the extent of the damage, this must be the worst thing in living memory for Fiji," he told Radio New Zealand. New Zealand's foreign minister said two naval ships would depart for Fiji this weekend carrying building materials, water storage tanks and medical supplies. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif today said Pakistan wants to have good ties with all neighbours, including India, and asserted that mutual cooperation was vital for the socio-economic uplift of both the countries. Sharif made the remarks during a meeting with India's newly appointed High Commissioner in Pakistan Gautam Bambawale who called on him at the PM House here. An official source said that the two discussed various aspects of Pakistan-India relations and also agreed on the importance of improving the relations. "Pakistan was pursuing good relations with all its neighbours including India as mutual cooperation was vital for the socio-economic uplift of both the countries," Sharif was quoted as saying by the state-run APP agency. Sharif also extended a very warm welcome to the new High Commissioner and hoped that he will work to bring the two countries closer. Bambawale, who arrived in Pakistan last month to assume the charge of the High Commission, thanked the Prime Minister for warm welcome and expressed the hope that his role will be beneficial in strengthening relations between the two nations. "High Commissioner Gautam Bambawale had a meeting with H.E. The Prime Minister of Pakistan today @ PM House," the Indian mission tweeted along with a picture of their meeting. An official of Indian mission refused to share what was discussed. "It just a courtesy call only," he said. Bambawale, an IFS officer of 1984-batch, replaced T C A Raghavan. He has worked in Germany, US and China. In 2007, he became the first Consul General of India in Guangzhou, China. Southern India Mills' Association (SIMA) has urged the Centre to introduce a debt restructuring scheme for SMEs in the textile sector, considering their vulnerability. In a memorandum submitted to Commerce Minister Nirmala Sitharaman here recently, SIMA chairman M Senthil Kumar claimed that the textile industry, particularly the spinning sector, is going through a rough patch. In the absence of profits, several hundred spinning mills are finding it difficult to service their debts. The large-scale units have facility of corporate debt restructuring that give breathing space to financially stressed units once the lenders are convinced of their viability, he said. Such facility was not available for SMEs (the small and medium enterprises) and with the revised NPA norms, both banks and the spinning sector are facing huge problems, he added. To resolve the problem, SIMA has asked for introduction of a debt restructuring scheme for SMEs, which were highly vulnerable, Kumar informed. India has to necessarily export at least 150 million kgs of cotton yarn per month due to continued fall in demand from China, he said. Also, it has to market the yarn in other countries for which MEIS (Merchandise Exports from India Scheme) benefit is essential to meet additional transport cost, he added. Considering this, the government should extend the 3 per cent export incentive extended to other textile exports for cotton yarn, to revive the export performance, Kumar said. Several students here today took out a candlelight vigil to protest against the suicide of Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula and the government crackdown on students in Jawaharlal Nehru University. The event, held in Colaba in south Mumbai, was jointly organised by Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI), Progressive Students' Forum (PSF) and Student Federation of India (SFI). The march began at Regal Cinema and the participants made their way towards the Gateway of India. DYFI also organised a screening of the controversial documentary "Muzaffarnagar Abhi Baki Hai", whose screening was allegedly disrupted by Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), the student wing of RSS, in Hyderabad Central University, where Vemula studied. "Political interference in campuses of educational institutions is wrong. It was not long ago when we were demanding justice for Vemula, and now we see our friends from JNU being declared anti-national," said a student from the Nirmala Niketan College of Social Work. Jawaharlal Nehru University "brainwashes" its students and does not encourage alternative viewpoints, according to former Infosys Director T V Mohandas Pai. "...It's not an open university, it doesn't allow other thoughts to come in. It's a closed university, it has set shop to further the interest of certain faculties and students and they are brainwashing the students," Pai said on the sidelines of an event here. "Those in JNU are very much shut up from the outside world. They abuse anybody and everybody who holds different views," said Pai. The chairman of Manipal Global Education Group also alleged that JNU stands "isolated" from the country and the current administration and faculty of the central university must be held responsible. "The faculty is responsible, the university administration is responsible. They are not open to other views. When they hold seminars and debate they call only people of their type," he said. Pai also rubbished opposition leaders' claims of the Centre "muzzling dissent" in the country. "Nobody is muzzling dissent, you can criticise but don't abuse. There is freedom of speech but you can't cross boundaries," he said. He also spoke out against those who termed the recent circular that made it mandatory to hoist the national flag in all central universities as a 'diktat'. "How can it be a diktat? The universities are not a public property? How can they protest?" he said. Pai, who stepped down from his corporate position to lead efforts in the areas of human resources, education and research, said the Patiala House Courts lawyers who had allegedly attacked scribes and students recently should be punished. "Lawyers broke the law, they have to be punished, anybody who obstructs the rule of law has to be punished," he said. The stay on the fare hikes of Mumbai Metro will continue for another month with the Bombay High Court today rejecting a plea for early date and scheduled a bunch of petitions on the issue for hearing on March 18. A division bench of Justices A S Oka and C V Bhadang was hearing the petitions, including one by MMRDA, challenging the report of the Fare Fixation Committee as well as the proposal by R-Infra run Mumbai Metro One Private Limited (MMOPL) to hike fares. The court was also hearing an intervening application filed by Congress leader Sanjay Nirupam challenging the fare hike. Nirupam's lawyer B A Desai sought an earlier date for final hearing which the court refused saying it has already scheduled several other PILs for hearing. The High Court had, in an interim order on December 17 last, stayed the proposed hike in fares of the Versova-Ghatkopar Metro Rail Corridor. Aggrieved, MMOPL, a subsidiary of Reliance Energy, which operates the Metro, moved the Supreme Court challenging the HC stay. The Supreme Court, on January 27 this year, refused to interfere with the HC order and asked the High Court to take up the matter for final hearing. MMOPL today informed the High Court that its application seeking clarification from the Supreme Court whether the final hearing was on the issue of interim relief or on the petition will come up for hearing on March 16. MMOPL, which is operating the Versova-Ghatkopar corridor, had earlier announced that it will increase the fares by Rs 5 from December 1, 2015. Instead of the earlier slabs of Rs 10, 20, 30 and 40, the proposed new structure will have five slabs of Rs 10, 20, 25, 35 and 45. However, MMRDA, which has commissioned the Mumbai Metro, challenged the hike alleging that the Centre was facilitating private profiteering by allowing multiple fare hike. YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 24, ARMENPRESS. Ramon Castro, a lifelong rancher and farmer who bore a strong physical resemblance to younger brother Fidel Castro, has died, Armenpress reports, citing Associated Press. Widely known by his nickname "Mongo," the white-bearded Ramon Castro preferred tending crops and livestock to the revolutionary political life embraced by his younger siblings Fidel and Raul, who replaced Fidel as Cuba's president in February 2008. During the Cuban Revolution in 1953-1959 Ramon Castro was content to remain in the village of Biran in eastern Cuba, where he helped his father with the family business. Following the 1959 triumph of the Cuban revolution and Fidel's subsequent rise to power, Ramon often worked as a consultant for the government ministries of agriculture and sugar. In the early 1960s, he oversaw sugar production in eastern Cuba, where he helped increase output. Ramon founded several state companies, including ones that handled the transportation of sugar cane and the production of oranges. He also was involved in agricultural research. Although he wielded little government power, Ramon nevertheless was a founding member of the Communist Party of Cuba and served as a deputy in the country's parliament, the National Assembly. Workers' unions of Coal India, who have threatened to go on strike, are likely to meet the Maharatna firm's management early next month to deliberate on issues like pension scheme for coal workers. "The workers' unions are likely to hold a meeting with CIL Director Personnel and Industrial Relations either on March 3 or 4," Indian National Mineworkers Federation Secretary General S Q Zama told PTI. "The trade unions will deliberate on various issues, including review of pension scheme," Zama said, adding that the the scheme has not been reviewed since its inception in 1995. Government had earlier sought the unions' cooperation in combating the "difficult situation" the sector is passing through due to fall in global commodity prices. "Coal Minister (Piyush Goyal) invited cooperation and support from 5 CTUs/coal workers to combat difficult situation the coal industry is passing through," Indian National Mineworkers' Federation (INTUC) had earlier said. The coal industry has been hit "due to deep recession globally and also internally in India... The stock of coal in power houses of states/NTPC and also in CIL/subsidiaries is piling up," it had added. The Central Trade Unions (CTUs), which held a meeting with Goyal this week, assured the government of full cooperation in combating the adverse situation. "However, in order to have positive result, the representatives of five CTUs submitted few suggestions, like increasing the frequency of consultation with one of the most important stakeholders, that is coal workers/CTUs, particularly in policy related issues like disinvestment, re-structuring, coal pricing mechanism...And welfare related issues," it had said. TMC leader Sugata Bose, who made a rousing speech in Parliament today on the JNU row, enquired about the present stature of Pakistan's Leftist PPP party. "Has the Pakistan People's Party now been reduced to a benign regional party, which once had made its mark with a strong support in Punjab and is now sliding in that province," Bose posed the question to visiting Pakistani politician and former diplomat Syeda Abida Hussain. Bose was among the panelists at the launch of Hussain's political biography 'Power Failure: The Political Odyssey of a Pakistani Woman' here. Congress leader and former diplomat Mani Shankar Aiyer was also present. Outlining the trajectory of the 1967-founded PPP, which once had been regarded as one of the most influential parties in Pakistan and was voted to power five times, Hussain said its leader Asif Ali Zardari had failed to endear himself to the people who harboured deep hostility towards him and viewed him as "a brigand and a thief". "In the last three years nothing happened to brighten his prospects. People still deeply dislike Asif Zardari," Hussain said. The author also referred to the arrest of Uzair Baloch, who is allegedly involved in the killing of Khalid Shahenshah, the former Pakistan PM Benazir Bhutto's security chief at the time of her assassination, and who is alleged to have good relations with the PPP. "The average Pakistani also tends to suspect Asif Zardari behind the death of Bhutto," she said. Hussain, who was the first woman to be popularly elected as Member of the National Assembly of Pakistan and also served as Pakistan's ambassador to the US, said people in her country had an open mind about his son Bilwal Bhutto Zardari. "Bilwal Bhutto Zardari, people have an open mind but to win Punjab back he would have to work really hard. If he has the capacity for hardwork then he can win," she said. She also said, "PPP is the only liberal left of the centre party we have at the moment. We have a right wing government in power and there is a large constituency in Punjab that is Left wing and I hope that the PPP will come to power soon." Meanwhile, Bose today in his Lok Sabha speech on the Jawaharlal Nehu University row rebuked the "heartless government" for its failure to listen to the cries of despair from society's marginalised. Bose, the grandson of freedom fighter Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, told the Lok Sabha Speaker that he was not a communist but "would stand in support to the right to freedom of expression by young students who maybe inspired by Marx as well as Ambedkar." He condemned the "acts of vigilantism by self-appointed protectors of the nation foments a climate of fear." "I believe that students, teachers, university personnel - all be permitted to express opinions freely, without fear, even if they conflict with the government's political stances," he said and called for an end to the "witch-hunt for anti-nationals and the shameful scapegoating of university students". A 30-year-old suspectedMaoist wasarrested todayduring a joint operation by security forces in Chhattisgarh's insurgency-hit Sukma district, police said. Madkam Bhema was apprehended by a composite squad of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and district force from Dondpal village of Gadiras police station limits, Sukma Additional Superintendent of Police Santosh Singh said. Acting on a tip-off, security forces had launched the operation to the interiors of Gadiras region, located around 450 kms away from here, he told PTI. On reaching Dodpal, they arrested Bhema. He was allegedly involved in looting ballot boxes and polling materials during last year's panchayat elections, the officer said. The Home Secretary asked the ministries to look into different eligibility norms realistically and alter them suitably, if need be, after getting necessary approvals, in view of the extreme necessity. The central government has adopted a multi-pronged strategy which includes security-related interventions, development measures and ensuring rights and entitlement of local communities, the official said. Special projects such as construction of roads, installation of mobile towers and construction of fortified police stations have been sanctioned by the central government. The development works are implemented through the states and relate to various schemes/programmes of the development ministries of the central government. While 106 districts in 10 states are affected by Maoist activities in varying degrees, 35 districts in seven states are considered to be worst hit. According to a recent Parliamentary Standing Committee report, Naxal activities continue to be a matter of concern with 35 districts in seven states being badly-hit. "Left Wing Extremism (LWE) remains an area of concern for internal security of the country. CPI (Maoist) continues to be the most potent among the various LWE outfits in the country and accounts for more than 80 per cent of total LWE violence incidents and resultant deaths," the report said. Three suspected Islamists arrested over the brutal murder of a top Hindu priest in Bangladesh near the Indian border gave out "important information" about the first attack against the minority community, authorities said today. "We have got important information during interrogation of the three arrested persons. But we do not want to disclose details at the moment," Babul Akhtar, offficer-in-charge of the police station of Debiganj, the scene of the murder in northern Panchagargh, told reporters. The chief priest of Hindu temple Sri Sri Shantu Santo Gaurio, 50-year-old Jagneshwar Roy, was on Sunday slaughtered at Sonapota village, some 494 km from here, in a pre-dawn attack by unidentified assailants who also injured two Hindu devotees before fleeing on a motorbike. Chief investigator of an eight-member police investigation team Deen Mohammad said: "We are advancing successfully, expecting to bring to justice the culprits very soon." Their comments came a day after a Panchagargh court ordered the trio - two suspected operatives of the outlawed Jamaatul Mujahideeen Bangladesh (JMB) and an activist of fundamentalist Jamaat-e-Islami - to be remanded to police custody for 15 days. The envoys of the US, Britain and European Union in Dhaka condemned the murder, calling it a "cowardly act" while authorities ordered an intense investigation into the killing, believed to be carried out by Islamists. US-based private SITE Intelligence Group said that the Islamic State (ISIS) claimed the responsibility even as authorities dismissed it, saying the Middle-East-based dreaded group had no presence in Bangladesh. Key opposition outside parliament Bangladesh Nationalist party (BNP) chief and ex-prime minister Khaleda Zia also issued a rare condemnation of the killing, a move seen as her party's efforts to avoid accusations by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's government that it was sympathetic to the Islamists. "I, in the possible strongest terms, condemn and deplore the attack and the killing of a member of a minority religious community. They are also peace-loving citizens of this soil and have the right to live in this country," Zia said in the statement issued yesterday. Roy's murder is the first attack on a Hindu priest and the fifth assault on minority religious communities including Shia Muslims and liberal Sufi preachers in the past six months by suspected Islamists. Hindus make the Sunni-majority country's largest minority with nearly 10 per cent of the total population of 160 million. Systematic assaults in Bangladesh over the last five months have killed nine persons including two foreigners besides wounding nearly 100 others. Leading textile player T T Ltd said it is targeting revenue of Rs 1,500 crore by 2020 and aims to become more of a garment company from an innerwear company. "We plan to launch a premium innerwear brand in the near future as part of our new strategy to move towards the fashion side of the fibre to fashion spectrum. This move will help enhance margins and build the brand equity of the company. The company has enhanced knitwear range to become a garment company from an innerwear company," T T Ltd Managing Director Sanjay Jain told reporters on the sidelines of an event here. T T Ltd today celebrated the completion of 25 years of public listing by ringing the bell on BSE. The company is targeting revenue of Rs 1,500 crore by 2020. It has clocked total income of Rs 679.19 crore in FY15. "Our yarn and fabric business is expected to grow at 10-15 per cent. However, we are focused to step the rate of growth of our branded garments by investing into distribution, brand building and product range - we look to step up rate of growth rather than a steady one," Jain said. The company also plans to launch a premium brand in the near future. "We are looking at launching new inner wear brand/ range in the premium segment for Indian sub continent Middle East and Africa," Jain said. Commenting on future plans, Jain said, the company looks to be a 50:50 company in terms of exports and domestic sales. Hence, going forward, focus is going to be on more value added garments business, brand building and focusing on the domestic market - which is the fastest growing opportunity for it. "We see our cotton based textiles business growing rapidly with Vietnam, Ethiopia and the United States also provide interesting opportunities. We shall make structural and organizational changes to target higher growth rates of 20-25 per cent per annum," he added. Tata Group today called for abolishing the controversial 5/20 norm for local carriers, saying the rule has only "benefited foreign airlines" and its removal would help "improve" India's air connectivity with the world. Tata Sons, the major holding companies of diversified Tata Group -- which holds stakes in new airlines Vistara and AirAsia India -- said claims that airfares would go up if 5/20 norm is removed is "specious and unfounded". Under the 5/20 norm, only those domestic carriers having five years of flying experience and having at least a fleet of 20 planes are allowed to fly abroad. This makes Vistara and AirAsia ineligible to have flights overseas. "The claim that air fares in India will go up as a result of removing the 5/20 rule is specious and unfounded. Not protectionism, but increased competition within the country will further contribute to lower prices and greater accessibility of air travel to common people," Tata Sons said in a statement. Coming out strongly against Ratan Tata's pitch to scrap 5/20 norm for airlines, the Federation of Indian Airlines today said the removal of the rule would lead to higher airfares and result in "reverse discrimination". The statement bt Tata Sons comes days after Tata Group Chairman Emeritus Ratan Tata accused older carriers of lobbying and using "monopolistic pressures" to retain preferential treatment under the 5/20 rule. "Keeping the national interest in mind, Tata Sons believes that the 5/20 rule must be abolished if Indian aviation is to achieve its full potential and improve India's connectivity with the world," the statement said. It said there are no global parallels to this rule, which is "discriminatory" to Indian airlines as foreign airlines that do not meet these criteria are allowed to operate in Indian skies but domestic ones cannot enjoy reciprocal rights. "The 5/20 rule has thus far principally benefited only foreign airlines who have captured 70 per cent of the international traffic with India, taking Indian jobs and revenue with them. "This has also resulted in poor utilisation of bilateral air traffic rights by Indian operators," the statement said. According to Tata Sons, removal of the rule is estimated to boost international traffic to and from India to over 100 million passengers by FY 2021, compared to 43 million in financial rule 2014. "Majority ownership and effective control of both airlines are with the Indian parties...Further, all the important decisions concerning the day-to-day operations of the airlines are taken by the management teams of these airlines under the overall supervision, control and direction of the respective boards of directors (which include a majority of Indian nationals)," the statement said. Boards of AirAsia India and Vistara are chaired by Tata veterans -- Ramadorai and Bhaskar Bhat, respectively, it added. The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Tata Steel's embattled European arm, Tata Steel Europe, Karl Koehler has resigned from his post, effective February 29. Koehler, who was appointed as CEO and Managing Director of Tata Steel Europe in October 1, 2010, will also step down as the member of the Tata Steel's Board of Directors. "Karl Koehler, member of the Board of Directors of the company has decided to step down from the Board, effective February 29, 2016," Tata Steel said in a regulatory filing. "Effective the same day, Koehler has also decided to step down as the CEO and Managing Director of Tata Steel Europe (company's subsidiary)," it added. The development comes at a time when Tata Steel announced last month that it will cut 1,050 jobs in the UK, including the country's biggest steel plant, as part of its broader cost-reduction plan amid "unfair" steel imports from China. The restructuring and "cost-saving" proposal comes over and above the October 2015 lay-off of 1,200 roles employed by Britain's biggest steelmaker, that also appealed to the EU to take urgent action to check the imports in the country for a level-playing field. Koehler, a former member of the executive committee of industry body World Steel Association, was Vice Chairman of VDEh, the German Iron and Steel Institute. During his over 30-year steel career, he has worked as a member of the Executive Board of ThyssenKrupp AG and has also been President of Eurofer or European steelmaking federation. Javid, who is likely to attend Tata Steel board meeting tomorrow, had announced earlier that the British government is willing to take an equity stake of up to 25 per cent alongside a new owner and offer "hundreds of millions" in financial support in an effort to save the British steel industry, which is struggling under the pressure of cheap Chinese exports and high energy costs. The Tatas had acquired as Corus Steel in April 2007 at the peak of commodity price hike cycle for over USD 12 billion, but has since then never been able to turn it around. Tata Steel UK employs around 15,000 people and the British government is keen to save these jobs in an already bad economic environment. Tata Steel Europe had announced its plans to sell its UK steel business last week after a "strategic review" by its board, throwing the industry into chaos. The company since the acquisition has sunk over 3 billion pounds into the company that has been hit by Chinese dumping and a massive 30 per cent fall in demand since the 2008 global financial crisis. The British government in a statement said "the meeting with the Tatas in Mumbai follows constructive meetings in London with trade unions, the EEF and UK Steel this week." Earlier, British prime minister David Cameron had become personally involved in trying to work out a solution to the crisis triggered as a result of a combination of cheap imports from China, falling global demand, high energy prices and a tougher tax regime than many rival nations. But his government is not ready to impose higher tariffs on Chinese steel. In an unexpected move, Tata Steel today said Karl Koehler, the CEO of its embattled overseas arm Tata Steel Europe, has resigned and the firm has appointed Chief Technical Officer Hans Fischer as its new chief. Kohler, who took over as Tata Steel Europe's CEO and Managing Director in October 2010, has resigned from the post, effective February 29, 2016, Tata Steel Europe said in a statement. Fischer will assume the charge of Tata Steel Europe's CEO from March 1, 2016. A former CEO of German engineering giant ThyssenKrupp's Steel Americas, Fischer joined the firm as Chief Technical Officer in July 2012. Tata Steel board said "Karl Koehler has decided to step down as a director of Tata Steel Ltd and as CEO and Managing Director of Tata Steel Europe so he can take up a senior leadership position with a large privately-owned industrial company in Germany. He will remain available to Tata Steel for a short period in an advisory capacity, the firm added. Koehler, a former member of the executive committee of industry body World Steel Association, was Vice Chairman of VDEh, the German Iron and Steel Institute. During his over 30-year career in steel industry, he has worked as a member of the Executive Board of ThyssenKrupp AG and has also been President of Eurofer or European steelmaking federation. The development comes at a time when Tata Steel announced last month that it will cut 1,050 jobs in the UK, including the country's biggest steel plant, as part of its broader cost-reduction plan amid "unfair" steel imports from China. The restructuring and "cost-saving" proposal comes over and above the October 2015 lay-off of 1,200 roles employed by Britain's biggest steelmaker, that also appealed to the EU to take urgent action to check the imports in the country for a level-playing field. Tata Steel group ED Koushik Chatterjee will be Tata Steel's Executive Director for Europe in addition to his current responsibilities. "With effect from March 1, 2016, Fischer, currently CTO of Tata Steel Europe, will be appointed CEO and will join the Board of Tata Steel Europe," it added. He will be responsible for the operational and business performance of Tata Steel Europe and will report to the Board of Tata Steel Europe and will seek advice and guidance from Koushik Chatterjee. Koehler said: "The last six years have been a challenging journey of change for Tata Steel in Europe as it dealt with unprecedented market conditions. Focus on efficiency gains, meanwhile, has been key to creating a better foundation for the company." Fischer said: "We understand making our customers more successful is crucial to our long-term sustainable success while we continue to improve our efficiency in supplying higher-value products to our customers. NDA constituent TDP was today at variance with the government over invoking sedition charge against JNU students, calling it "too harsh". Participating in a debate in the Lok Sabha over the JNU row and the controversy over Hyderabad Central University research scholar Rohith Vemula's suicide, TDP member Ravindra Babu said Jawaharlal Nehru University had a culture of debate and never any serious acrimonious incident occurred there. "But an unnecessary controversy has erupted there and sedition charges invoked against some students. I think it is too harsh a measure," he said. He instead favoured slapping sedition charge against people who deserved such treatment. "How many banks, one after the other, have declared NPAs? Everybody is competing. Economic frauds are committed by people who belittle the country, who embezzle the country's money and make India economically weak. Sedition charge needs to be invoked against them and not the students," he said. Babu said the students are "innocent" and need to be "corrected". "We cannot do it by punishing them. By punishing them we will make them hardcore criminals. Let us not do that," he said. "We are very proud of all our institutions. There has always been unity in diversity. If anybody who criticises India is labelled as anti-national, then Ambedkar also needs to be labelled as anti-national because he burnt 'Manusmrti' in public," Babu said. South African telecoms giant MTN said today it had paid USD 250 million to the Nigerian government in a dispute over a USD 3.9-billion fine imposed last year for failing to disconnect unregistered users. The company also said it had agreed to withdraw its legal challenge over the huge fine in a case that was adjourned in Lagos High Court to enable the two parties to try to negotiate a settlement. "Pursuant to the ongoing engagement with the Nigerian Authorities, MTN Nigeria has today made a... Good faith payment of 50 billion naira (USD 250 million)," Johannesburg-based MTN said in a statement. The money was paid "on the basis that this will be applied towards a settlement, where one is eventually, hopefully arrived at," the statement added. "In an effort to achieve an amicable settlement, MTN has agreed to withdraw the matter from the Federal High Court in Lagos." Nigeria, Africa's most populous country, is the MTN group's largest market, where it had more than 62.8 million subscribers by the second quarter of 2015. MTN was slapped with the penalty in October 2015 after it missed a deadline to disconnect 5.1 million unregistered SIM cards. The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), the country's telecoms regulator, at the time cited security concerns over the inability to trace users in a country plagued by frequent kidnappings and an extremist Islamist insurgency, Boko Haram. It imposed a USD 5.2-billion fine that was later reduced to USD 3.9 billion following an appeal by MTN. The company issued a profit warning last week and said the Nigerian dispute was a factor in falling earnings. The fine also led to the resignation of chief executive Sifiso Dabengwa and some Nigerian executives. Nigeria's four major phone companies have routinely been fined in the past for regulatory infractions but none has received as big a punishment as MTN. The initial fine of USD 5.2 billion was more than MTN's total sales in Nigeria in 2014 and the equivalent of about 37 per cent of the group's total revenue, according to Bloomberg . Analysts fear Nigeria's decision to fine MTN will deter investors at a time when the country is reeling from the plunging oil price. The NCC and Nigerian government were not immediately available to comment. YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 24, ARMENPRESS. The head of the World Health Organization Margaret Chan, who is currently in Brazil, warned Tuesday that the fight against Zika, a mosquito-transmitted virus linked to serious birth defects, will be long and complex. The Zika virus is very tricky, tenacious and very difficult. And so is the Aedes aegypti mosquito. We should expect to see more cases, and we should expect this is to be a long journey. "Armenpress" reports, WHO chief Margaret Chan said in the Brazilian capital Brasilia. She added that the Brazilian authorities will be able to protect the athletes and guests of the Olympic Games in August. The virus was first discovered in 1947 in Uganda. It causes fever, headaches, conjunctivitis, joint pains, inflammation, and in some cases nausea, diarrhea, stomach disorders, pain and vomiting. Outbreaks of the disease have been recorded in Asia, Africa, North and South America and the Pacific region. There is evidence that the virus causes microcephaly during pregnancy and can cause congenital defects, along with mental retardation and decrease in the size of the skull, neurotic disorders, hearing and vision problems. An "atmosphere of development" is prevailing in the country but there is no commensurate "atmosphere of trust" among people, Union Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said today as he urged representatives of minorities commissions to work towards "correcting" it. Addressing the concluding session of an annual conference of State Minorities Commissions here today, the Minister of State for Minority Affairs also targeted the opposition for allegedly exploiting secularism to divide people for political gains and asserted no "destructive" agenda can affect the Centre's commitment towards "inclusive growth". "I can't say everything is fine (in the country), several problems are there. There is an atmosphere of development but there is no (commensurate) atmosphere of trust. "Somewhere, there is an atmosphere of suspicion among people, which I would like to note with honesty. And it is the equal responsibility of governments, be it central or states, and minorities commissions to correct it," he said. Hitting out at the opposition without naming any party, Naqvi said secularism runs through the veins of the people of India but it is being exploited for political interests. "When we say our country is a secular country, secularism has become a big part of Indian politics. Sometimes, we feel that secularism, which was incorporated in the Constitution to bring together communities, is being used to divide people," he said. The minister lauded "unequivocal patriotism" of minorities, especially that of Muslims, and said the country's history is "witness" to that. He assured the gathering of the NDA government's commitment towards achieving the goal of "inclusive growth" and said no "destructive" efforts can dominate the Centre's development agenda. "So, judge us based on our performance, not on what some people say after some minor incidents." Naqvi asked national and state minorities commissions to develop confidence among the people who, he said, look up to them for justice. The concluding session was also attended by National Commission for Minorities (NCM) chairman Naseem Ahmad, member Praveen Davar, secretary Amrendra Sinha and representatives of State Minorities Commissions. Crime Branch Mumbai today arrested three more persons, a week after they held four persons in connection with attempt on the life of a construction professional in Chunabhatti area of the city. Those arrested have been identified as Suraj Gaud alias Suraj Mhatre (22), Umesh Falle (35) and Rakesh Devendra alias Rajesh (34), police said. On February 16, police had arrested Ajay Karosi (27), Vinod Vishwakarma (28), Babukumar Gupta (21) and Sumeet alias Pappu Yerunkar (38). On February 5, two persons in veils entered the office of Jignesh Jain, a city-based builder, and opened fire, leaving him severely injured. According to the police, Yerunkar, a history-sheeter, was the mastermind of the crime. Ajay and Vinod were the shooters while Babukumar had driven them to the builder's office. Those arrested in the last couple of days too were close associates of Yerunkar and among them, Suraj played a key role of providing logistical support for the crime, police said. Umesh Falle was a hardened criminal and a co-accused of Yerunkar in another case. Rajesh, also a close associate of Yerunkar, provided the vehicle used in the crime, police said. Yerunkar, awarded life sentence in a murder case, was out on temporary bail at the time of the crime. According to police, he had asked Jain to give him a contract for demolition of a building for redevelopment, but Jain refused, so the former hatched a conspiracy to kill him. Suraj and two others were remanded in police custody till tomorrow. The police have also recovered a 7.65 bore pistol with six live cartridges, two cars, an empty cartridge of a 7.65 mm pistol and two mobile phones. Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff's former campaign strategist, Joao Santana, was arrested in Sao Paulo after returning to Brazil to face allegations that he received payments linked to funds from a massive corruption network. Prosecutors are investigating USD 7.5 million in payments to Santana in foreign bank accounts. The funds were connected to Brazilian construction giant Odebrecht and engineer Zwi Skornicki, who have both been implicated in a huge probe into embezzlement and bribery at state oil company Petrobras. Santana arrived in Sao Paulo from the Dominican Republic, where he had been working for President Danilo Medina's reelection campaign. He and his wife and business partner Monica Moura were then immediately flown in police custody to Curitiba, the southern city where the Petrobras-related corruption is headquartered. His arrest is an embarrassment to Rousseff and her fellow Workers' Party predecessor Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, just two of the many presidents in the region that Santana has helped elect. The country's electoral court is investigating whether Rousseff benefited from illegal funding in her 2014 reelection. She also faces an impeachment drive in Congress over her government's allegedly illegal accounting practices during her first term. Odebrecht is one of the key players in a network where bribes were paid to Petrobras to win lucrative contracts. Kickbacks were then allegedly used to pay off prominent politicians in a scheme estimated to have cost Petrobras some USD 2 billion over a 10-year period. Rousseff chaired the company's board during much of that time. She has not been directly accused in the scandal, but it has ensnared top leaders of her Workers Party. Santana is a campaign star in Latin America, having also worked for Venezuela's late president Hugo Chavez and his successor Nicolas Maduro, among others. A police spokesman in Curitiba said that Santana would be held in detention for up to five days. "In principle, that can be extended or transformed into preventative detention," he said. Prosecutors say there are "clear indications" that the funds paid to Santana originated in stolen Petrobras money. However, his lawyers say that any money paid to Santana abroad was for work done outside of the country. There is tremendous business opportunity between India and Alabama, Indian envoy to the US has said during a rare visit to the country's southeastern state which is India's 10th largest trading partner. "It is clear that we already have good areas of cooperation. There is investment and engagement by companies based here in India through production in India, sales to India; through service sector relationships, getting design work related to some of the products done in India," Ambassador Arun K Singh said yesterday. "We are very good in India now in services, design-related work in the IT sector," Singh said during his rare address to the Alabama State Senate. The top Alabamian leadership welcomed Singh's rare visit aimed at giving a big push for the state's relationship with India particularly in trade ties. Among others, Singh met Alabama Governor Robert Bentley and Lieutenant General Steven L Kwast. He visited the University of Alabama at Birmingham, toured Innovation Depot and spoke with the Alabama India Business Partnership. Singh told Alabama Center it was his visit to Innovation Depot that really impressed him and made it obvious where some of the greatest opportunities exist. "With all of the energy here in the innovation domain, the opportunity for partnership with India in innovation is going to be tremendous because the US remains the world leader in innovation, including in digital technology," Singh was quoted as saying by Alabama Centre. "We have found, based on our experience that Indian companies, Indian-origin tech entrepreneurs, Indian-origin tech workers are an integral part of the US being part of the world leader in innovation in these areas," he said. "International business development in Alabama, including both investment and trade, continues to grow and the importance of strong diplomatic relationships with the countries we do business with is also growing," Brian Hilson, president and CEO of the Birmingham Business Alliance, said. "India is now Alabama's 10th largest export market and direct investment from Indian companies is increasing," Hilson added. Donald Trump today scored decisive victory in Nevada's crucial Caucuses, a third consecutive win that brightened the controversial real estate tycoon's prospects to secure the Republican presidential nomination. The 69-year-old billionaire reality TV star trounced his Republican rivals with a resounding victory which sent shockwaves across the Grand Old Party (GOP) as he swept almost every category of the electorate to build his dominance in the delegate count. Projections on TV networks gave Trump 46 per cent of the vote, with Senators Marco Rubio of Florida and Ted Cruz of Texas trailing some 20 points behind. Turnout was high, exceeding all expectations, with some Caucus sites running low on ballots. The remaining two candidates for the Republican presidential nomination, retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson and Ohio Governor John Kasich, came in at about six and four per cent, respectively. "We will be celebrating for a long time tonight," Trump told cheering supporters in a victory speech. "We were not expected to win too much and now we are winning the country. And soon the country is going to start winning, winning, winning," Trump told enthusiastic and cheering supporters. Trump has now won three of the four early nominating states, after convincing wins in South Carolina and New Hampshire. He came second in Iowa Caucus which was won by Cruz. The Republicans now look ahead to Super Tuesday on March 1 when 11 states are due to hold contests and could have a decisive impact on the Republican nomination for the White House. Trump's campaign hopes to take an unsurmountable lead over his nearest rivals in the Super Tuesday. Referring to the recent opinion polls, he said "some great numbers are coming out of" Texas, Tennessee, Georgia, Arkansas, Florida. "We are doing very well in Ohio. We are beating the Governor (John Kasich, who is a presidential candidate), and Michigan. It is going to be an amazing two months," he said referring to the calendar of the GOP's presidential race. "We might not even need the two months, folks to be honest," Trump said in his brief victory speech wherein he took a dig at critics who have doubted his winnability. "They keep protecting that when people drop out, we are going to get a lot of votes," Trump said as he reiterated his vision of making America great again. "It is hard for me to turn down money, because that's what I have done my whole life...Grab, grab and grab. I get greedy, I want money. Now I will tell you what I am going to do.Now we are going to get greedy for the United States, grab, grab and grab," he said. Congratulating Trump on his victory, Cruz told supporters that he is the only Republican leader left in the race who can defeat Trump. (Reopens FGN 12) In a statement, Democratic National Committee Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz said Trump's victory tonight means he has won the vast majority of the Republican primary delegates to this point, and is well on his way to winning his party's nomination. The anti-establishment fervor within the electorate underscored the enormous challenge facing Rubio and Cruz in the coming weeks as they try to stop Trump. Rubio and Cruz had campaigned aggressively in Nevada, but had downplayed expectations as they tried to consolidate Trump-averse Republican voters around them. Cab aggregator Uber today said it is evaluating options to have its own payment wallet as it finds the two-factor authentication system imposed by RBI "cumbersome" for riders while making payments through credit or debit cards. Amit Jain, the President of Uber India also said the app-based taxi service provider may also launch UberPool and UberCommute in some of the metro cities during this year. "In the US, the majority of our transactions or all the transactions are through credit cards and debit cards. In India, we have a much wider options than any other country. "So, we continue to evaluate options and whether our own wallet is the right choice, but, do we have any plans on launching in future, is to be determined. We are evaluating options. We have to come to a conclusion," Jain told PTI in an exclusive interview. At present, Uber riders can pay through payment wallet services like Paytm. Riders have also the option of making payment in cash. Replying to a query whether the company has approached the Reserve Bank of India seeking permission to launch its own wallet, Jain said, "We are not denying it," and added the company may go for its own wallet when it will reach seamless payment experience from commuters. "We all know that 2FA (two-factor authentication) is in India today. 2FA is there because it is for the security of the consumers...That is RBI's thinking. "It has certain benefits but also has disadvantages because the consumer experience in entering multiple digits after a ride is cumbersome. That doesn't exist in the US. So, we will continue to evaluate options until we have seamless payment experience from the consumer which does not exist in India today," he explained. Jain said currently Uber operates in 26 cities across the country partnering with over 2.5 lakh drivers. It also launched UberPool and Uber Commute in Delhi and Bangalore recently. "Uber Commute is another version of Uber Pool. If you got a commuter who is going from home to work, work to home, how does (it work) that particular commuter pick up another passenger who is going in the same direction. That is the focus for this year. These are the trends that we expect to see this year," he said, adding as of now these products will be expanded in several tier-I cities. Refusing to divulge the time-frame for achieving operational breakeven, he said the company has earlier committed USD 1 billion for Indian market and is in the investment phase. A director with Ukraine's most popular TV channel was expelled today after posting online pictures of herself posing with pro-Russian insurgents and expressing messages in their support. Maria Stolyarova worked as a contract producer with a highly-rated Russian-language weekly show on Inter -- a channel that has often been accused of tacitly backing the Kremlin and opposing Ukraine's pro-Western leadership. Inter is owned by a top aide to Ukraine's ousted Russian-backed president and has previously faced parliamentary calls to have its license removed. "Russian journalist Maria Stolyarova received a one-way ticket (out of the country) and left the territory of our state under the supervision of security service personnel," Ukrainian Security Service spokeswoman Olena Gitlyanska wrote on Facebook. The spokeswoman did not say to which country the reporter was deported but stressed that she was barred from returning to Ukraine for five years. Stolyarova is a Russian citizen who worked with a pro-Kremlin Moscow TV channel before joining a Ukrainian television production company that Inter hired for its weekly roundup. That company fired Stolyarova today after a firestorm erupted over a series of pictures she posted on Facebook with camouflage-clad armed pro-Russian fighters that she described as "my beloved guys". The outrage grew only stronger when activists found a Facebook post from March 2014 in which she called for the deployment of Russian troops in Ukraine so that they could reverse the former Soviet republic's new pro-European course. An eastern pro-Russian separatist insurgency that broke out the following month has claimed more than 9,000 lives and forced Moscow to repeatedly deny either orchestrating or backing the revolt. The company contracted by Inter said it sacked Stolyarova over an episode Sunday in which she was heard swearing on air while the channel was showing pictures of mourners honouring victims of the February 2014 police shooting of pro-EU protesters. Sunday's incident prompted many to try and find out more about Stolyarova by digging through her Facebook account. Stolyarova said yesterday that the expletive that accidentally went on air was aimed at the programme's presenter and in no way expressed her opinion about the more than 100 that died. She also explained her Facebook posts as a work necessity that allowed her to establish closer contacts with the rebels and provide more in-depth reports about the war. Two Jawaharlal Nehru University students Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya, facing the charge of sedition, surrendered before the police late tonight, hours after the Delhi High Court refused to grant them protection from arrest. The duo, who returned to the JNU campus last Sunday after having gone missing since February 12, drove from the administrative bloc to the main gate of the university, got into a Delhi Police vehicle and were taken to an undisclosed destination. Police sources said Khalid and Bhattacharya surrendered at around midnight. The two have been placed under police custody at South Campus police station. They will be produced before a magistrate tomorrow morning, the sources said. Khalid and Bhattacharya are among the five students who, along with JNUSU President Kanhaiya Kumar, had allegedly shouted anti-national slogans at an event organized in the university campus to mark the death anniversary of parliament attack convict Afzal Guru on February 9. Besides Kumar, Khalid and Bhattacharya, the other students are Rama Naga, Ashutosh Kumar and Anant Prakash. Delhi Police had issued a look-out notice on February 20 against Khalid, Bhattacharya, Naga, Ashutosh and Prakash. Earlier, Khalid and Bhattacharya left the JNU campus at around 1150 pm tonight for the surrender. The university students formed a human chain to prevent the media from following Khalid and Bhattacharya when they were leaving the campus this evening. The United Nations today carried out its first humanitarian airdrop in Syria to help civilians besieged by Islamic State jihadists, the UN aid chief said. "Earlier this morning, a WFP plane dropped the first cargo of 21 tonnes of items into Deir Ezzor," Stephen O'Brien told the UN Security Council. Reports from aid teams on the ground confirm that "pallets have landed in the target area as planned", he added. UN agencies are working to scale up aid deliveries to Syria before a cessation of hostilities enters into force at midnight Friday to shore up peace efforts. Russia airdropped aid to the eastern town of Deir Ezzor in January as part of its campaign in support of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. The air drops carried out by the World Food Programme are considered less efficient than land deliveries, but O'Brien argued that there were "benefits to this approach as a last resort." The UN aid chief said some 110,000 people living in besieged areas had received aid and that deliveries to a further 230,000 people including through air drops had been approved. "We are still waiting for approval for an additional 170,000 people. We expect those approvals to happen immediately," he said. The United Nations is calling on all sides to lift starvation sieges across Syria, where it estimates that 487,000 people live, although some non-governmental organizations say the figure is much higher. Last week, 114 trucks loaded with food and other basic goods reached 80,000 people in five besieged areas and two more convoys were sent to two towns surrounded by government forces yesterday. More than 260,000 people have died in Syria's conflict, which began in March 2011 with anti-government protests but has since imploded into a multi-sided proxy war. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is backing the concerns of international observers about shortcomings and irregularities in Uganda's elections and is urging all parties to settle any disputes peacefully. UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said yesterday that Ban calls on Ugandan authorities to ensure that all election-related claims and concerns "are handled in a fair, expeditious and transparent manner." Neutral observers criticized Uganda's government for using security forces against opposition candidates and supporters. Tensions rose Monday when police arrested President Yoweri Museveni's main challenger, Kizza Besigye. The UN human rights office expressed concern yesterday at reports of at least two people killed, heavy military and police forces deployed in the streets of the capital Kampala, and the arrest of four opposition leaders since Thursday's elections. YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 24, ARMENPRESS. Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia Eduard Sharmazanov left for Germany on a working visit on February 24. As "Armenpress" was informed from Eduard Sharmazanovs office , the Deputy Speaker will attend the international conference entitled Genocides of Christians in the Ottoman and Kemalist Turkey on February 25 at Berlin's Humboldt University ,where he will deliver a speech. During the visit, Eduard Sharmazanov is scheduled to meet the Vice President of the Bundestag Edelgard Bulmahn and leader of the "Alliance `90 / The Greens" party Cem Ozdemir. After two JNU students surrendered before police in connection with a sedition case, uneasy calm prevailed in the varsity campus today amid confusion whether three more students will adopt the same approach. The five students -- Umar Khalid, Anirban Bhattacharya, JNUSU General Secretary Rama Naga, Ashutosh Kumar and Anant Prakash -- had gone missing from the campus since February 12 after JNU students union president Kanhaiya Kumar was arrested on sedition charges for allegedly raising anti-India slogans during a controversial event at the campus. While Khalid and Anirban had surrendered before police late last night, the remaining trio maintained that they will not surrender. "We will not surrender. We have reiterated many times that we have nothing to hide and we are open to questioning as and when police approaches us," Ashutosh said. The students who have been agitating demanding Kanhaiya's release ever since he was arrested took a break today from the slogan shouting at the varsity's administration block. While the JNUSU office bearers met today to decide on further strategy, a group of students went to India Gate to participate in a candle light vigil in solidarity with Hyderabad varsity students who are in Delhi demanding justice for Rohith Vemula. "We have been hoping that Kanhaiya will be granted bail and will join us in protest against this branding of the university as anti-national but unfortunately that has not happened so far," JNUSU vice president Shehla Rashid Shora said. In the evening, members of ABVP had invited a group of Army veterans to address a gathering who spoke about the difficulties officers of three forces have to face to guard the country and how any "anti-national" activity is a disrespect to them. The other group including students with leanings of left affiliated parties continued with their poetry reading and rendition of songs simultaneously. "The administration block and the university belongs to everybody. Any one can book the venue and raise their voice. I appeal everybody to be careful and not get provoked or intimidated by any activity," Shehla said while addressing the students. Classes continued in some departments while others went ahead with their exams. The varsity authorities maintained that the academic functioning of the university should not be affected and the students should wait for the enquiry to take its course. JNU is caught in a row over an event in the campus against the hanging of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru, where "anti-national" slogans were alleged to have been raised. Vikram Singh Chauhan, the face of two brazen attacks on journalists and JNU students and teachers at the Patiala court complex here last week, was arrested today in connection with the assaults. He was, however, freed on bail later this evening, a senior police official said. Chauhan was booked on charges of rioting, unlawful assembly and causing hurt pertaining to two separate cases. "While one case against Chauhan pertains to the February 15 incident, the other relates to the violence on February 17," the official said. Chauhan was caught on camera leading a group of lawyers in mounting the assaults on two occasions -- February 15 and 17 -- at the Patiala House court complex, triggering widespread outrage. The lawyer appeared before the police, six days after he was served summons in connection with the violence in the court complex. There have been angry protests over alleged police inaction against the lawyer though he was the most prominent among the lawyers involved in unleashing violence at the court complex on two occasions. On Monday, a channel had aired a sting operation in which the lawyer was seen boasting about beating arrested JNUSU President Kanhaiya Kumar, charged with sedition, when he was brought to the court on February 17. In the video, he was purportedly heard saying "we bashed him (Kumar) for three hours. He wet his pants. We beat him up so much." Before presenting himself to police, Chauhan today said "none of the charges against me has been proved. A few channels are projecting me as a goon. I did not beat the reporters. Others did." Groups of lawyers, led by Chauhan, had thrashed journalists and JNU students and teachers on February 15 and repeated their act on February 17 against Kumar and some journalists, in open defiance of the Supreme Court instructions. Yashpal Singh, one of Chauhan's colleagues who was also caught on camera thrashing journalists and JNU teachers and students, was arrested last night and released on bail immediately. US and Brazilian health workers fanned out across one of Brazil's poorest states in search of mothers and their infants for a study aimed at determining whether the Zika virus is causing birth defects in babies. Brazil's health minister, Marcelo Castro, said yesterday he is "absolutely sure" mosquito-borne Zika is responsible for a spike in cases of the rare birth defect microcephaly, which sees babies born with small heads and brains and can cause severe developmental problems. But with scant scientific literature published on the matter, some doctors in Brazil and elsewhere say there is not yet enough scientific data to prove the connection. Jointly run by the Brazil's Health Ministry and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the study is intended to fill that vacuum by comparing babies with microcephaly and their mothers to babies without the condition. The popular "understanding is that Zika virus (behind the microcephaly spike). How much of that is Zika virus is really one of the important goals of this study," said Erin Staples, a Colorado-based epidemiologist who heads the CDC contingent in Paraiba state. "I do believe there is something occurring that is unique and knowable, but we really need to understand better, mostly so we can prevent this from happening to other generations." Eight teams made up of one CDC staffer and three Brazilian health workers will knock on the doors of several hundred randomly selected families with infants throughout Paraiba, a northeastern coastal state that is one of Brazil's least developed. The teams hope to recruit at least 130 babies with microcephaly and their mothers and two to three times that number of mothers and babies without the condition, all born in the same areas and at around the same time. The researchers will take blood samples from mothers and babies that will be sent to labs in Brazil and the United States to test for Zika and dengue, a similar virus also transmitted by the Aedes aegypti mosquito. The idea is to determine whether mothers whose babies have microcephaly were infected with Zika and, if so, when during their pregnancies. Teams will also be on the lookout for other factors that, possibly in conjunction with Zika, could be behind Brazil's increase in microcephaly, such as a prior infection with dengue, toxoplasmosis or the ingestion of toxins. "If we can provide some basic information or show a potential association, that will allow us another avenue of how do we prevent this and what do we need to do next," Staples said. Sarah Kershaw, a former reporter for The New York Times, has been found dead in the Dominican Republic. Officials in the Caribbean country say Kershaw's body was found at her home in the northern town of Sosua, where she moved with her husband, William Norton, in 2014. Norton was being questioned about her death, according to Osvaldo Bonilla, a prosecutor for the province of Puerto Plata. Bonilla said yesterday that authorities had not ruled out suicide or homicide in Kershaw's death. Norton is an editor and writer who has worked for a number of US publications. Kershaw, 49, worked as a reporter for The New York Times from 2000-2011. She previously worked for Newsday, among other publications, and was a freelance writer at the time of her death. A top American environmentalist group today slammed the over its ruling against India's solar localisation policies for US firms. Alleging that almost half of US states have a programme like that of India, the top environmentalist group urged the US to drop its case against India. Read more from our special coverage on "WTO" US lauds WTO ruling against Indias localisation rules "The ruling is a step in the wrong direction, away from the climate progress that the global community committed to achieve in December's Paris climate agreement," Ilana Solomon, director of the Sierra Club's Responsible Trade Program, said after ruled against what it described as a common-sense solar energy initiative in India that is a core component of the country's contribution to the Paris agreement to tackle climate disruption. By offering solar power companies government subsidies and long-term contracts, India's programme has already rapidly scaled up solar energy. The programme aims to achieve 100,000 megawatts of solar power capacity by 2022 more than the current solar capacity of the world's top five solar producers combined, it argued. The WTO ruled against India's ambitious solar programme because its first phase requires power companies to use solar cells and modules made in India in order to benefit from the government-subsidised programme. "Clean, renewable energy like solar is becoming cheaper in the US and abroad, creating new jobs, helping us move beyond coal and other dirty fuels and solve the climate crisis. We cannot afford to let decades-old, over-reaching trade rules trump policies that can create new green jobs and accelerate the transition to 100% clean energy," Solomon said. "Almost half of US states have programmes that, like India's, offer incentives for renewable energy production that creates local, green jobs. The US should drop this case to avoid undermining climate protections abroad and at home," Solomon demanded. "This decision is a warning against expansive trade deals like the Trans-Pacific Partnership that would replicate rules that undermine clean energy initiatives and constrain climate progress. Destructive trade deals like the Trans-Pacific Partnership go far beyond trade and interfere with commonsense policies needed to solve the climate crisis," the group said. "Congress should view this ruling as another reason to stand up for green jobs and climate action by rejecting the Trans-Pacific Partnership," Solomon said. The Sierra Club is America's largest and most influential grassroots environmental organisation, with more than 2.4 million members and supporters. The US Food and Drug Administration officials are visiting India to discuss the new law on food safety with the Indian government and industry stakeholders. The US food and drug regulator is conducting a series of trips abroad including India to update government and industry stakeholders on the bipartisan and landmark FDA Food Safety Modernisation Act, (FSMA), its most sweeping reform to food safety system in 70 years. "India is of particular importance to the FDA because it is the seventh largest supplier of food to the US. FDA values its partnership with India as US - India continue to advance their ability to prevent food-borne illnesses and enhance the safety of the food supply in both countries," FDA Deputy Commissioner Howard Sklamberg told reporters here. "We have come here to speak with Indian government regulators and industry stakeholders about the FSMA. This follows a visit eleven months ago, when we signed a MoU with the Centre in order to develop opportunities for cooperative engagement in regulatory and technical matters related to food products, Sklamberg said. India exports USD 4 billion worth agri, spices and sea food exports to US every year. "Our office (in India)(is) engaged in technical workshops with Indian regulators, where we engaged in training on food and drug related issues and inspections techniques, good manufacturing practises and the detection of data integrity issues," he added. FNMA mandates a food safety system that is preventive rather than reactive, and in which foreign food producers are held to the same safety standards as our domestic farmers and food companies. FSMA is our food safety system in 70 years and we are committed to working with our international partners, as well as consumers and industry, to implement the law in a timely and efficient manner, he added. Under FSMA's new import safety system, importers in the US are made accountable to US FDA for verifying that their foreign suppliers are using methods to prevent food safety problems that provide the same level of public health protection as those used by their US counterparts. Under FSMA, this new accountability for importers will be backed up by more overseas inspections by FDA and crucial for the purposes of this trip to India, more active partnership with our foreign government counterparts and with industry stakeholders, he said. A jury in the US state of Missouri has awarded $72 million to the family of an Alabama woman who died from ovarian cancer, which she said was caused by using Johnson & Johnson's well-known baby powder and other products containing talcum. The civil suit by Jackie Fox of Birmingham was part of a broader claim in the city of St Louis Circuit Court involving nearly 60 people. Her son took over as plaintiff following his mother's October 2015 death at 62, more than two years after her diagnosis. Marvin Salter of Jacksonville, Florida, said his late mother, who was a foster parent, used the iconic talcum powder as a bathroom staple for decades. "It just became second nature, like brushing your teeth," he said. "It's a household name. " A Fox attorney said the jury verdict on Monday which came after nearly five hours of deliberations at the conclusion of a three-week trial, was the first such case among more than 1,000 nationally to result in a jury's monetary award. The jury said that Fox was entitled to $10 million in actual damages and $62 million in punitive damages. Attorney James Onder said he "absolutely" expects - the world's biggest maker of health care products - to appeal the verdict. The New Jersey-based company previously has been targeted by health and consumer groups over possibly harmful ingredients in items including its iconic Johnson's No More Tears baby shampoo. In May 2009, a coalition of groups called the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics began pushing to eliminate questionable ingredients from its baby and adult personal care products. After three years of petitions, negative publicity and a boycott threat, the company agreed in 2012 to eliminate the ingredients 1,4-dioxane and formaldehyde, both considered probable human carcinogens, from all products by 2015. Spokeswoman Carol Goodrich said that the New Jersey-based company was considering its next legal move. In a written statement, she said the verdict "goes against decades of sound science proving the safety of talc as a cosmetic ingredient in multiple products," citing supportive research by the US Food and Drug Administration and National Cancer Institute. At trial, Fox's attorneys introduced into evidence a September 1997 internal memo from a medical consultant suggesting that "anybody who denies (the) risks" between "hygenic" talc use and ovarian cancer will be publicly perceived in the same light as those who denied a link between smoking cigarettes and cancer: "denying the obvious in the face of all evidence to the contrary. The US today said it would host American "innovation roadshows" across Asia including in four Indian cities. Assistant Secretary of State for Economic and Business Affairs Charles H Rivkin will lead the US delegation for the American Innovation Roadshow in New Delhi, Gurgaon, Ahmedabad and Hyderabad from March 14-18, the State Department said. The roadshows will showcase the American brand of innovation and entrepreneurship with the objective of promoting shared prosperity and inclusive growth, the State Department said, adding that it has three objectives. It includes highlighting American approaches to entrepreneurship as embodied in the experiences of the delegation members; to engage with Asian entrepreneurs to strengthen their ties to America's innovation and entrepreneurship communities; and to encourage local and national governments in Asia to develop regulatory environments that foster innovation, attract investors, and create jobs. "Nurturing innovation and new business formation in international markets is critical for achieving inclusive and sustainable economic growth, and will also increase opportunities for US businesses overseas," the State Department said. Senior Advisor to the Secretary of State, Ambassador David H Thorne, will lead a delegation to Vietnam, Indonesia and the Philippines from March 1-11. Chinese handset company Xiaomi has unveiled its latest flagship device 'Mi 5' here as it looks to compete head-on with larger rivals like Samsung and Apple to capture a bigger share of the global smartphone market. Priced RMB 1,999 (USD 305 or about Rs 21,000) onwards, Mi 5 will be one of the first devices with Snapdragon 820 processor to be commercially available. It features up to 4GB RAM and 128 GB flash memory. Sales will start from March 1 on Mi.Com and Mi Home outlets in China. It will be made available in selected global markets at a later date, Xiaomi founder and CEO Lei Jun said. "Our latest flagship has been in the making for 19 months, and it's the most beautiful device we have unveiled so far. With several tech breakthroughs built into Mi 5, it is insanely fast. I am extremely excited to start 2016 on such a strong note," he added. Mi 5 builds upon the design language of Mi Note, featuring 3D glass. It weighs 129 gm and has 3000 mAh battery and a front fingerprint sensor. It supports 4G+ network (Cat 12) and VoLTE. Founded in 2010, Xiaomi has grown to become the world's fifth largest smartphone maker. According to research firm IDC, Xiaomi shipped 70.8 million units in 2015, posting year-on-year growth of 22.8 per cent from 2014. The overall smartphone market grew 10.1 per cent to 1.43 billion in 2015 from 1.30 billion units shipped in 2014. Xiaomi had a global market share of 4.9 per cent, behind Samsung (22.7 per cent), Apple (16.2 per cent), Huawei (7.4 per cent) and Lenovo (5.2 per cent) till the end of December 2015. IDC said Xiaomi still gets close to 90 per cent of its sales from China. Xioami sells its products in countries like India, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, Philippines, Indonesia and Brazil. A team of central committee of the Young Mizo Association (YMA) led by its President Lalbiakzuala left the state this morning to distribute relief materials among flood-affected people in neighbouring Myanmar's Halkha area. A YMA spokesman said the delegation would distribute around Rs 32 lakh among 920 families in Halkha area ravaged by flood last year. The YMA collected more than Rs one crore from people across Mizoram for aid to the victims of massive flood that caused massive destruction to the Mizo-inhabited area in Myanmar. The first phase of relief was already handed over to the people residing in other areas of Myanmar last year. YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 24, ARMENPRESS. President Serzh Sargsyan sent a congratulatory message on February 24 to President of Estonia Toomas Hendrik Ilves on the occasion of Independence Day. "Armenpress" was informed from the Public Relations and Mass Media Department of the Presidential Administration. A 26-year-old resident of Navi Mumbai in the district has been sentenced by a court here to three years simple imprisonment for assaulting a shopkeeper. Thane Additional Sessions Judge A S Jadhav pronounced Navi Mumbai resident Niteen Navle guilty and ordered the jail term in a recent order. Additional Public Prosecutor Prakash Pujari told the court that Niteen Navle had borrowed Rs 20 lakh from the victim Kishore Patil (42) who operated an eatery in Ghansoli in the district. Patil gave him a cheque of Rs 20 lakh. However, he stopped the cheque payment after he developed doubts that Navle might not return the money, he said. Navle, who was enraged after Patil changed his mind, went to his shop on July 14, 2012, where a fight broke out between the two. Navle then attacked the victim with a sharp-edged weapon, he said. A complaint was lodged by Patil's daughter, who used to assist him in the shop, following which a case was registered under relevant sections of IPC, Arms Act and Bombay Police Act, he said. The court observed that there was no evidence against Navle under Arms Act and Bombay Police Act. However, he was convicted under section 324 (voluntarily causing hurt by dangerous weapons or means) of IPC. The judge also imposed a fine of Rs 1,000 on Navle. The head of the World Health Organization has warned that the fight against Zika, a mosquito-transmitted virus linked to serious birth defects, will be long and complex. "The Zika virus is very tricky, very tenacious, very difficult. And so is the Aedes aegypti mosquito," WHO chief Margaret Chan yesterday said in the Brazilian capital Brasilia. "We have learnt lessons from dengue and from chikungunya outbreaks in the past, so we should expect to see more cases, we should expect this is going to be a long journey." Brazil is at the center of a Zika outbreak and the virus is strongly suspected of causing a spike in microcephaly, a congenital condition that causes abnormally small heads and hampers brain development. Cases of active Zika transmission have been reported in 28 countries and territories in the Americas and Caribbean, with 1.5 million in Brazil, the hardest-hit country. Countries throughout the region have launched massive operations to eliminate pools of stagnant water where the mosquitoes, which also spread dengue and chikungunya viruses, can breed. There is currently no cure or vaccine against the Zika virus. The WHO had previously warned that the virus's spread could be "explosive," infecting up to four million people. Foreign venture funds are stepping up investments in Indian mobile application makers, betting a surge in sales in the country will drive demand for home-grown apps, mirroring the trend in world's biggest mobile phone market China. San Francisco-based incubator and venture capital firm 500 Startups on Tuesday launched a $25 million fund called '500 Kulfi' to invest in Indian mobile app-makers. The firm said it would make 20 to 30 early-stage investments in India every year. By comparison, it made 50 investments in India in the last four years. "How many places in the world do you know where there are half a billion people online, up from 100 million people just five years ago," said Dave McClure, founding partner at 500 Startups, attending a high-profile start-up industry conference in India's hub Bengaluru. Indian start-ups raised a record $4 billion last year. But much of that went into established e-tailers such as top online marketplace Flipkart, which received $700 million in funding. Smartphones account for about a quarter of the more than 1 billion mobile phone accounts in India, the world's second-biggest telecoms services market by number of users. And that segment is growing the fastest, with new sales crossing 100 million for the first time last year. That bodes well for app-makers and their investors in a country where computer penetration is low and people use their smartphones to do everything from watching movies to shopping for goods and services. With sales growth slowing in China, India is also becoming more important for those looking to cash in on the opportunity. "India will become very likely the only growth engine for mobile internet in the entire world, when you think about it in reality China's smartphone sales significantly tapered off in 2015," said Alex Yao, who looks after strategy, innovation and investments at China-based app-maker Cheetah Mobile. New York-listed Cheetah, which has more than 600 million monthly active users on its suite of mobile apps, this year launched its Indian operations and is looking to invest in, or buy out, Indian app-makers. "The market in India is three to four years behind China. Given the similarity in population density, (economic development), so very likely what happened in China will also happen here in the next few years," said Yao. By Ben Hirschler LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's departure from the European Union would threaten scientific research and jeopardise the 28-nation bloc's system of drug regulation, the European pharmaceutical industry said on Wednesday. The declaration is the clearest statement yet on the issue by an industry that includes EU-based players such as Britain's GlaxoSmithKline and AstraZeneca, France's Sanofi and Germany's Bayer. The European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations (EFPIA) said Britain's continued EU membership was in the best interests of a strong life sciences sector both in the UK and across Europe. Particular concerns about a so-called Brexit centre on the future of the London-based European Medicines Agency (EMA), which approves medicines for all EU countries and might have to move to a new location if Britain left. But there are also worries about the impact on biomedical research, given the leading role of British scientists and universities in European research programmes. "Pharmaceutical companies across Europe face considerable uncertainty at the prospect of the UK leaving the EU. Brexit has the potential to impact on regulation, the status of the EMA, finance, employment, the transfer of personal data and the European research ecosystem," the EFPIA said in a statement provided to . "The decision to leave or remain within the EU is a decision for UK citizens, however, EFPIA firmly believes that the UK's continued membership of the EU is in the best interests of a strong life sciences sector in the UK and Europe." The pound hit a seven-year lows on Wednesday as concerns intensified that Britons could vote to leave the EU in a June referendum, with the latest poll showing the "In" camp is ahead but the gap has narrowed. The leaders of nearly 200 companies threw their weight behind the "In" campaign in a letter published in the Times newspaper on Tuesday. They included 36 FTSE 100 firms, among them AstraZeneca and GlaxoSmithKline. (Editing by David Holmes) By Andreas Kroner FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Deutsche Boerse Chief Executive Carsten Kengeter would run the day-to-day operations of a new company formed by a possible merger with the London Stock Exchange, sources familiar with the matter said on Wednesday. The two companies announced on Tuesday they were exploring a merger and that the board of the holding company would be composed of an equal number of LSE Group and Deutsche Boerse directors. Deutsche Boerse and LSE declined to comment on specifics. The combined company is likely to have a two-tier structure, with an executive board and a non-executive board, one of the sources familiar with the discussions told on Wednesday, speaking on condition of anonymity. Under this structure, Kengeter will chair the executive board, taking on a role akin to a chief executive, they added. The talks are still going on and no final decisions have been taken, the source said, adding that the head of the non-executive board is likely to be from the LSE, probably Donald Brydon, who is currently LSE's chairman. No decision has yet been taken about where the holding company will be based. London or Amsterdam are the most likely locations, the source said, adding that a formal merger offer is unlikely to come within the next 10 days. (Additional reporting by Rama Raman and Edward Taylor; Writing by Jonathan Gould and Edward Taylor; Editing by Alexander Ratz and Alexander Smith) By Naomi Tajitsu TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan's Honda Motor Co Ltd on Wednesday repeated that it was not planning to extend new financial support to Takata Corp, as a costly global recall of the air bag maker's potentially faulty inflators broadens. The Japanese auto parts supplier is facing additional pressure to step up its recall after U.S. lawmakers on Tuesday said the company manipulated data to cover up problems with its products. Separately, the results of an investigation initiated by a group of 10 automakers including Honda on Tuesday showed that issues including humidity and design and manufacturing issues were the cause of the defective inflators, which have been linked to 10 deaths and more than 100 injuries. As evidence mounts that responsibility for the faulty airbags may lie with Takata, the Japanese company so far is facing a massive bill to replace its inflators. At the moment, automakers have been paying recall costs. "We've said this before, but we are not considering offering any financial support to Takata," Chief Executive Takahiro Hachigo said during a media conference to announce the company's strategy update. While Honda vehicles account for roughly half of the 50 million vehicles recalled over the issue since 2008, Hachigo said Honda was one of many automakers which were affected by the inflator issue, and that it had no plans to deal with the issue on its own. (Reporting by Naomi Tajitsu; Editing by Christopher Cushing) NEW DELHI (Reuters) - India on Wednesday approved a $150 million credit line for the development of Iran's Chabahar port, the government said in a statement. The port in southeast Iran is central to New Delhi's efforts to circumvent arch-rival Pakistan and open up a route to landlocked Afghanistan where it has developed close security ties and economic interests. Under the agreement signed last year between the two countries, India will equip and operate two berths in the first phase of development at Chabahar Port and extend a credit line of $150 million through its external lending arm. Both berths will commence operations within 18 months of the signing of a final contract, the statement said. India will make a capital investment of $85.21 million and annual revenue expenditure of $22.95 million on a ten year lease following which the ownership of equipment will be transferred to Iran. New Delhi and Tehran agreed in 2003 to develop Chabahar on the Gulf of Oman, near Iran's border with Pakistan, but the venture has made little progress because of the sanctions over Iran's atomic programme. Western nations last month lifted some of those sanctions. (Reporting by Nidhi Verma and Sankalp Phartiyal; Editing by Mark Potter) By Diane Bartz and Greg Roumeliotis WASHINGTON/NEW YORK (Reuters) - A spate of proposed Chinese takeovers of U.S. companies, from the Chicago Stock Exchange to makers of high-end semiconductors, has created a vibrant business for a small circuit of Washington insiders who advise on how to get cross-border deals approved by the U.S. government. Several former U.S. officials have in recent years joined the ranks of lawyers, consultants and lobbyists that have emerged as key brokers in trying to get Chinese acquisitions or investments in U.S. companies approved by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), which scrutinizes deals for national security concerns. Because this interagency panel, comprising 16 U.S. government departments or agencies and chaired by the Treasury, does not publish its decisions or its reasoning for them, advisers say inside knowledge and connections are important to navigate what outsiders often see as a "black-box" review process. There have been 22 M&A transactions announced in the United States so far in 2016 involving Chinese acquirers, worth a combined $23 billion, according to Thomson data. That is a massive increase from 88 deals worth $13 billion for all of 2015, and 88 deals for $7 billion in 2014. For a graphic showing Chinese acquisitions of U.S. companies by number and value, see http://tmsnrt.rs/1T4e6hF It has all boosted corporate demand for former officials who served on CFIUS or have knowledge of the inner workings of the agency, several lawyers, consultants and lobbyists involved in the advisory work told . "We're just completely overwhelmed," said one lawyer involved in advising on the CFIUS process, who asked not to be named because he was not authorized to speak with the media. China's aggressive, often state-backed overseas buying spree has set off alarm bells among some politicians in Washington who are already on edge as China's armed forces expand their presence in the South China Sea and because of high-profile hacking attacks against U.S. government agencies and corporations, which U.S. officials and security software companies have blamed on China. Adding to the tensions are attacks on China's trade policy, and in particular its surplus with the U.S., by Donald Trump, who is leading the race to be the Republican candidate in November's presidential election. Among the former officials who use their CFIUS experience in advisory work are Anne Salladin, who reviewed some 500 deals that went to CFIUS during her 20 years at the Treasury. Her role at law firm Stroock & Stroock & Lavan LLP has included advising a Chinese private equity firm on the acquisition of some semiconductor-related assets. Other officials include former U.S. Treasury deputy assistant secretary for investment security and policy Nova Daly, now with the law firm Wiley Rein LLP, and former Department of Homeland Security assistant secretary for policy Stewart Baker, now with law firm Steptoe & Johnson LLP, according to the websites of their employers. Baker worked on the acquisition of Motorola Mobility by Chinese PC and smartphone maker Lenovo Group in 2014, while Daly advised U.S. hard-disk maker Western Digital Corp on a proposed investment by China's Unisplendour Corp Ltd that was abandoned this week amid CFIUS concerns. All three of the former officials declined to comment for this story. Whitney Smith, a Treasury spokesperson, declined to comment on CFIUS's relationship with company advisors. GAUGING SENTIMENT Before a deal is announced, the advisors will often seek to gauge its chances for CFIUS approval by holding a preliminary meeting with key officials. If the initial reaction is hostile, then this can avoid the embarrassment and cost of announcing a deal that is later scuppered, said Mark Plotkin, a CFIUS expert with the law firm Covington & Burling LLP. A good CFIUS advisor will figure out what issues might crop up in a certain deal - such as cutting edge chip technology or Pentagon contracts -- and discuss how to best handle these with the agencies most likely to be concerned, said Plotkin. "The CFIUS process is going to be a full-body X-ray of the target," he said. Another lawyer involved in CFIUS work, who spoke privately, said that he gives a 45-minute presentation to Pentagon officials and then carefully examines the questions asked, as well as body language, to judge their level of discomfort with a particular deal. It is not unlike a preliminary meeting that antitrust lawyers might request with the Justice Department or Federal Trade Commission about an antitrust review of a merger, the lawyers said. Not all CFIUS advisors are hired to help a deal go through. Some are brought in by corporate competitors to lobby against a deal, while others are tapped by investors making bets on whether a transaction will be cleared by CFIUS. For instance, Mario Mancuso, a partner at law firm Kirkland & Ellis LLP who formerly sat on CFIUS as undersecretary of commerce for industry and security, now typically advises companies. But he also represented some investors in pork producer Smithfield Foods when China's Shuanghui International made a successful bid for the company in 2013. MORE WILLING TO HIRE This CFIUS advisory business is also benefiting from Chinese companies' new willingness to spend on advisors. Traditionally, Chinese companies had been mistrustful of advisors, or unwilling to pay for them, some investment bankers and lawyers say. But the Chinese government's encouragement of outbound deal-making has spurred many of the country's companies to spend on advisors, including CFIUS experts, these people say. A CFIUS review typically lasts between one and three months and can cost from as little as $50,000 to as much as $1 million for more complicated or controversial transactions, according to a CFIUS expert who has shepherded deals through the process. China led the pack of countries whose planned U.S. acquisitions and investments in 2014 were probed for U.S. security implications, making it the most scrutinized country by CFIUS, according to the latest CFIUS annual report, which was released last Friday. No official data is available for 2015. Chinese bids for technology and chip makers get particular scrutiny, CFIUS experts say. Semiconductors form electronic cores for a long list of military systems, including drones, guided missiles and bombs. To be sure, even with expert advice, companies can get it wrong. In the case of Western Digital, the company had told investors that it believed Unisplendour acquiring a 15 percent non-controlling stake would not be subject to a CFIUS review But CFIUS informed Western Digital it would review the transaction nonetheless, prompting Unisplendour to pull out. CFIUS concerns also killed other semiconductor deals in the past few weeks. Fairchild Semiconductor International Inc earlier this month rejected an acquisition offer from China Resources Microelectronics Ltd and Hua Capital Management Co Ltd, over concerns that CFIUS would stop the deal. Last month, Philips scrapped a $3.3 billion deal to sell a division which makes LED lights to Chinese investors also because of CFIUS concerns. U.S. politicians have also began to agitate over some of these deals. Last week, a group of 46 U.S. lawmakers urged CFIUS to take a hard look at a bid by Chongqing Casin Enterprise Group to buy the Chicago Stock Exchange because of concerns that China would gain access to information about U.S. companies. COTTAGE INDUSTRY The cottage industry that has developed around CFIUS includes a wide array of actors. Law firms such as Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP and Covington & Burling offer to provide insight into how CFIUS will view a deal, tapping into their working relationships with CFIUS officials at several government departments. Skadden declined comment for this story. Lobbying firms, including Podesta Group and BGR Group, both of whom boast CFIUS experts on their websites, seek to persuade lawmakers and U.S. officials that a transaction is not threatening, as any concerns they harbor can trickle down to CFIUS officials, according to industry sources. BGR declined to comment, while Podesta did not respond to requests for comment. Management consulting firms, such as Accenture Plc and Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Ltd, offer to help companies address national security risks identified by CFIUS. So-called "mitigation measures" can range from asset sales to ensuring that only U.S. citizens perform certain tasks. Deloitte declined to comment. Sorting out who among the advisors have connections and insight into CFIUS is not always easy. "Some of the law firms specializing in this stuff are excellent, while others sign companies on for terms that are utterly unimplementable," said Accenture consultant Andrew Walker, who helps companies comply with conditions imposed by CFIUS. (Additional reporting by Elizabeth Dilts in New York; Editing by Soyoung Kim and Martin Howell) By Alex Lawler LONDON (Reuters) - Oil fell below $33 a barrel on Wednesday after Saudi Arabia ruled out production cuts and U.S. crude inventories rose, though a decline in U.S. gasoline stocks limited losses. Saudi Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi said on Tuesday production cuts would not happen, though more countries would join a deal to freeze output. OPEC and non-OPEC producers who support the idea are planning a mid-March meeting, his Venezuelan counterpart said. "Al-Naimi's remarks punctured an oil price rally that has lacked substance," said David Hufton of broker PVM. "The market correctly interpreted the presentation as bearish." Brent crude was down 33 cents at $32.94 a barrel at 1611 GMT. U.S. crude fell 85 to $31.02. Both dropped more than 5 percent in intra-day trading on Tuesday following the Saudi comments. The U.S. government's Energy Information Administration said on Wednesday that crude stockpiles rose 3.50 million barrels last week. Inventories on the Gulf Coast rose to the highest since at least 1990, after some refineries cut back production in response to low margins. [EIA/S] But gasoline inventories fell for the first time since early November. "It's a mixed bag for both bulls and bears as crude stocks continue to rise while gasoline and distillate stocks dropped," Chris Jarvis, analyst at Caprock Risk Management said. "Overall, this week's data point will do very little to offset the Saudi oil minister throwing cold water on production cuts any time soon," he said. Oil has slid from more than $100 a barrel in mid-2014, pressured by excess supply and a decision by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries to abandon its traditional role of cutting production to boost prices. OPEC and outside producers have stepped up diplomatic activity after prices slumped to their lowest since 2003 last month, with Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Venezuela and non-OPEC producer Russia saying on Feb. 16 that they would freeze output. One stumbling block in attempts to forge a wider agreement is Iran, which is increasing output after the lifting of Western sanctions in January and whose oil minister was quoted on Tuesday as calling the deal "laughable". And merely not adding more barrels to the market may have little impact on the excess supply, given that OPEC production is running at its highest in many years and increased further in January. "At these levels, even if OPEC members honestly implement a production freeze, it will do little to improve balances in the coming months," Energy Aspects analysts said in a report. (Additional reporting by Henning Gloystein and Ahmad Ghaddar; editing by David Goodman and David Clarke) Venezuela's state oil company PDVSA is about to clinch a deal for Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) to invest some $500 million in their San Cristobal joint venture, the South American company's president said on Tuesday. "We're about to firm up ONGC's financing to the joint venture we have in the San Cristobal field," Eulogio Del Pino, who is also Venezuela's Oil Minister, told Reuters. He said the deal, which has been under negotiation for months, would be signed "soon." The funds would go towards shoring up production at San Cristobal, which has fallen from a peak of over 40,000 barrels per day to around 28,000 bpd. The deal is expected to ensure state-owned gradually receives around $530 million of unpaid dividends, though it could take years for the entire amount to be repaid. The investment is also likely to involve the creation of an offshore account, probably in Asia, to receive the export income. It was not immediately possible to get a comment from ONGC, India's largest oil and gas explorer. The deal would come on the heels of last week's announcement that Russia's top oil producer, Rosneft, will invest $500 million as it raises its stake in the Petromonagas joint venture in Venezuela's Orinoco Belt region to 40%. Fresh investment could help Venezuela, home of the world's largest crude reserves, shore up oil output. Videsh, ONGC's overseas investment arm, has a 40% stake in the San Cristobal oilfield. PDVSA subsidiary CVP has the rest. YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 24, ARMENPRESS. Syrian authorities will c onsider all those who do not support the ceasefire as terrorist groups. As "Armenpress" reports, this was announced by Al Mayadin TV channel, citing an official source at the Syrian Foreign Ministry. "Those armed groups which refuse to cease military operations, will be considered terrorists," the ministry representative said. By Patrick Rucker WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The ailing coal industry must face the costs of cleaning up spent mines even as companies get pushed toward bankruptcy, the U.S. Interior Secretary said on Tuesday. The mining industry is responsible for restoring old mine sites but a taxpayer subsidy called "self bonding" has allowed some of the largest companies to forego a large share of cleanup insurance. Bankrupt Alpha Natural Resources and Arch Coal have sought to jettison cleanup liabilities in bankruptcy court and Interior Secretary Sally Jewell said officials will not tolerate such manoeuvres. "Even at a time of financial distress, it is still the responsibilities of these companies to do the reclamation that they signed up for," Jewell told reporters after a meeting of the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. "We need to make sure that those companies are held accountable." Senator Maria Cantwell, the most senior Democrat on the energy panel, pressed Jewell on self-bonding during the hearing. "How are we making sure that the taxpayer isn't left on the hook?" the Washington lawmaker asked during one round of questioning. Jewell said federal officials were committed to shielding taxpayers from $3.6 billion in self-bonding liabilities across the country but coal-producing states have largely been left to manage the issue so far. In some cases, the state has settled for much less money than needed to finish the cleanup work. In a bankruptcy court in St. Louis on Tuesday, a federal judge approved a deal between Wyoming regulators and Arch Coal that earmarked just $75 million to cover self bond liabilities that top $450 million. Wyoming reached a similar deal with Alpha Natural Resources with $61 million promised to cover $411 million in future cleanup now covered by self bonds. Of the roughly $2 billion in future cleanup costs facing Peabody Energy Corp, $1.47 billion of that is self-bonded and has no concrete backing. Those costs could fall to taxpayers during bankruptcy. Investors have lately worried whether a call to replace self-bonds with costly surety bonds could push struggling Peabody closer to bankruptcy. A spokesperson for Peabody Energy said the company is a good steward of mined land and complies with mine-reclamation rules. (Additional reporting by Sue Britt in St. Louis; Editing by Chris Reese and Alistair Bell) Indian conglomerate Tata Sons, part-owner of airline Vistara, said on Wednesday that a rule restricting new carriers from flying overseas should be scrapped because it gives an unfair advantage to foreign airlines that now dominate international air travel. Under the government's so-called "5/20 rule", Indian airlines must be operational for five years and possess 20 aircraft before they can fly abroad. The controversial rule, which the government is reviewing, has split Indian airlines between older carriers that can fly abroad and newer entrants like Tata's Vistara, which launched in 2015, that want to tap into lucrative overseas routes but cannot. Tata said the rule had allowed foreign airlines, led by Gulf carriers like Etihad and Emirates, to capture 70% of international traffic. "The rule is discriminatory to Indian airlines as foreign airlines that do not meet these criteria are allowed to operate in Indian skies, but Indian airlines cannot enjoy reciprocal rights," Tata said in a statement. Vistara is a joint-venture between Tata and Singapore Airlines. Other newer entrants into India's fast-growing aviation market include AirAsia India, part of Malaysia-based AirAsia, which also opposes the rule. India's bigger carriers include InterGlobe Aviation's IndiGo, Jet Airways and Air India. - Tata Steel Ltd said on Wednesday its Europe unit's chief executive, Karl Koehler, is stepping down to take up a senior leadership position with a large, privately owned industrial company in Germany. Koehler would be replaced by Hans Fischer, chief technical officer at Tata Steel Europe, effective March 1, the company said in a statement. Koehler, who will also resign from the Tata Steel board, will remain available to Tata Steel for a short period in an advisory capacity, the steelmaker said. Koushik Chatterjee, group executive director and a board member, will become Tata Steel's executive director for Europe in addition to his current responsibilities, the company said. The change in the top ranks of Britain's largest steelmaker comes at a time when the steel industry has been reeling from falling prices and cheap imports. The European Commission is scheduled to propose later this year whether to grant China market economy status, a move that critics say would give the country a license to dump unfairly cheap products in Europe and cost jobs. Tata Steel announced last month that it would axe 1,050 jobs in the United Kingdom soon after European Union steel prices touched their lowest since 2004. That was the second round of job cuts for the company in six months. (Reporting by Devidutta Tripathy in Mumbai and Vidya L Nathan in Bengaluru; Editing by Jason Neely and Savio D'Souza) KEY DEVELOPMENTS Transparency: The oil ministry has put up for comments a draft policy to opt for revenue-sharing model while auctioning future oil & gas blocks for exploration to private firms. The idea is to make the process more transparent and market-oriented. The oil ministry has put up for comments a draft policy to opt for revenue-sharing model while auctioning future oil & gas blocks for exploration to private firms. The idea is to make the process more transparent and market-oriented. Incentives: The ministry has announced a Marginal Fields Policy, to bring into production 69 marginal oil & gas fields with 89 million tonnes or ~75,000 crore worth of reserves, by offering incentives to explorers. These include exemption from payment of oil cess and Customs duty on machinery and equipment. The ministry has announced a Marginal Fields Policy, to bring into production 69 marginal oil & gas fields with 89 million tonnes or ~75,000 crore worth of reserves, by offering incentives to explorers. These include exemption from payment of oil cess and Customs duty on machinery and equipment. Oil diplomacy: To strengthen the countrys security, oil diplomacy initiatives have been intensified through meaningful engagement with hydrocarbon-rich nations.. Read our full coverage on Union Budget 2016 To strengthen the countrys security, oil diplomacy initiatives have been intensified through meaningful engagement with hydrocarbon-rich nations.. Give it Up: The government launched the Give it Up campaign for LPG subsidy. It helped save ~140 crore as on July 22, 2015, with nearly 1.26 million Indians registering for the cause. The government launched the Give it Up campaign for LPG subsidy. It helped save ~140 crore as on July 22, 2015, with nearly 1.26 million Indians registering for the cause. Nelp-X: The government is preparing to issue the 10th round of bidding for the National Exploration Licensing Policy with 52 blocks.. The government is preparing to issue the 10th round of bidding for the National Exploration Licensing Policy with 52 blocks.. Oil prices: A sharp drop in oil prices below $40 a barrel at the end of 2015 reflects rampant supply and weak global demand, amid concerns over slowing economic growth around the world, especially in China KEY ISSUES Infra: Inadequate infra in the gas market. Amid growing demand, efforts to support LNG development will boost security. Inadequate infra in the gas market. Amid growing demand, efforts to support LNG development will boost security. Imports: High dependence on oil imports. High dependence on oil imports. Output: Almost static domestic oil production and declining gas production Deepak Mahurkar PwC expert answers Business Standard readers' questions on what to expect from the BudgetOil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said during the Make in India week the government was looking into a new crude oil import policy for spot purchases by state-owned refiners. What is your take on this? State-owned refiners will get to tap opportunities to procure crude oil at optimal price. It is a matter of companies internal policies to be aligned with the needs of the business. Such change will also place a demand on participating companies of new skills, added competencies, technology frameworks, process enhancements, market understanding and change in delegated authority. Yoga guru Baba Ramdev-promoted Patanjali Yogpeeth will set up four industrial units in Vidarbha region of east Maharashtra, including in the backward district of Gadchiroli, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari said. The units will come up in Multi-modal International Cargo Hub and Airport at Nagpur (Mihan), Amravati and Katol, besides in Gadchiroli. Union Minister for Road Transport, Highways and Shipping Nitin Gadkari has facilitated setting up of the units. "Maharashtra government has decided to provide 347 acres of land in Mihan to Patanjali Yogpeeth for setting up a food processing unit. "Some 108 acres of this land will be in the special economic zone (SEZ) and the remaining 239 acres outside it. The unit will generate employment for over 10,000 locals," Gadkari said after presiding over a meeting of the concerned officials recently. He said 200 acres of land will be given to Patanjali in Katol MIDC (Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation) area, about 40 kms near here, for an orange processing unit. "The land will be handed over within a month and the government will also provide the required infrastructure there. Land will also be provided in Amravati for a food park," added Gadkari, who represents Nagpur Lok Sabha seat. The minister said there is a lot of scope for setting up a medicinal herbs unit in Gadchiroli. "Of the 300 or so herbs, 200 can be grown in Gadchiroli and Chandrapur districts alone. Patanjali will set up a unit to manufacture herbal medicines in Gadchiroli," he said. Gadkari said the Patanjali will also train tribals of Gadchiroli and Chandrapur districts to grow these herbs. He said Patanjali Yogpeeth is also mulling establishing a milk unit in the region, but it is in conceptual stage. Ramdev's trusted aide Acharya Balkrishna said on the occasion that Patanjali has focussed on Vidarbha because farmers in the region are facing a major agrarian crisis. Prime Minister David Cameron's Indian Diaspora Champion on Tuesday said that UK-India relations will be strengthened if Britain leaves the European Union (EU). Priti Patel, the senior-most Indian-origin member of Cameron's Cabinet, is part of the 'Leave' camp, which favours "Brexit" or Britain's exit from the EU in the referendum. "Voting to leave the European Union would be a massive boost to UK-India relations. New opportunities for the UK and India to cooperate more closely and develop stronger trading links would emerge as the UK re-aligns its foreign policy and trade priorities," the 43-year-old employment minister said. In a statement, she claimed the UK's membership of the EU has acted as a "barrier" to developing trade and investment partnerships and remaining within the EU will mean the UK will be in a "weaker position" to forge the closer trading ties that would benefit the Indian and UK economies. "Within the EU we do not have our own trade policy and have suffered as a result of the EU s protectionist instincts and inward-looking and outdated looking approach to global politics. But by leaving the EU we can take back control over this vital area of policy," she said. While praising her Conservative-led government for enhancing the UK's ties with "dynamic and fast-growing" India, she stressed that things could go much further if the UK was not held back by the "vested self-interests of the EU". "Indeed, one of the reasons why our trading links with India were inadequate when we came to Government in 2010 was because of the focus that Britain had given to trade within Europe as a result of membership of the EU," she said. In her attempt to convince Indian Diaspora voters to vote for an exit in the June 23 referendum, she also highlights how immigration from EU has had an impact on skilled immigrants from countries like India. She said: "During the forthcoming referendum the Indian diaspora can vote to make a real and positive difference to the future of the UK and India by voting to leave the EU. "Because we are unable to restrict migration from the EU, immigrants from non-EU countries have faced more restrictions to help ease the pressure from immigration. I know that many members of the Indian diaspora find it deeply unfair that other EU nationals effectively get special treatment. This can and will change if Britain leaves the EU." On a personal note, she adds: "Leaving the EU will help reinvigorate relations between the UK and India. It will help the Indian diaspora living in the UK. As I was born and raised in an Indian family which owned local businesses, I know of the strong entrepreneurial spirit that is within our blood. "The diaspora have a great reputation as business owners and entrepreneurs. However, like all businesses, they have been hit hard by bureaucracy, red tape and regulations from the EU." Her comments are in contrast to Cameron's own assertion in Parliament yesterday that the UK could lose its "negotiating muscle" in future trade deals with countries like India in the event of Brexit. "Country after country have said to me that of course they could sign trade deals with Britain but they also said that their priorities will be trade deals with EU," he said. Glanbia have today released their finacial results for the year ended 2 January 2016. The results show a sixth consecutive year of double digit growth for Glanbia in 2015 with overall revenue increasing 9.3% to 2.77bn. There was a 10.6% increase in adjusted earnings per share, constant currency while operating cash flow improved by 75.2 million to 281.4 million. Glanbia Performance Nutrition showed EBITA of 135.6 million, a 28.3% increase. Global Ingredients had EBITA of 106.6 million an 11.6 % decrease and Dairy Ireland had EBITA of 28.8 million as margins recovered to 4.5%. Group Managing Director, Siobhan Talbot today commented, "Glanbias strategy is to respond to the global megatrends of nutrition as consumers focus on active, healthy lifestyles, seek protein and exert a powerful focus on where their food comes from. "In responding to these trends, Glanbia takes pure and clean ingredients including milk, whey and grains and using our expertise, we produce high-quality nutritional ingredients and branded products for consumers worldwide. "Our unique portfolio of performance nutrition brands and nutritional ingredients are right at the heart of emerging growth opportunities. The outlook for 2016 is positive and we are guiding 8% to 10% growth in adjusted earnings per share, constant currency." Source: www.businessworld.ie About us Food Works, a programme jointly run by Bord Bia, Enterprise Ireland and Teagasc, has been launched today. The programme is an intensive business development and accelerator programme designed for food and drink start-ups. Those with an interest in building an international food or drink business in Ireland are being sought for participation. Over the past three years, following a competitive process attracting in excess of 250 proposals, a total of 60 start-ups from all food sectors have participated in Food Works. The Food Works team have revealed that 60% of these businesses are now trading which is deemed extremely positive given the high rate of start-up failures within the first 12 months of launching, while 32% of them have started exporting. Through a series of workshops and one to one mentoring, successful participants are given a range of practical business supports required to develop an initial concept into a winning food product with global export potential. The available supports provided by Bord Bia, Teagasc and Enterprise Ireland, include consumer market research, business plan development, technical advice, commercial viability testing in addition to access to fast track access to R&D facilities and possible investors and state funding. Speaking today, Natalie and Karen Keane of Bean & Goose chocolate company said, "Developing a food business can be a daunting task, however this programme offers the necessary practical supports for any entrepreneur considering this move. "It was a great opportunity for us to access the expertise of Bord Bia, Teagasc and Enterprise Ireland whose support has enabled us to put a business plan in place that will grow Bean and Goose in the coming years." Interested participants are invited to register online for an introduction meeting in Dublin, Fermoy or Athenry via www.foodworksireland.ie Tuesday, 8th March, Teagasc, MoorePark, Fermoy, Cork Thursday, 10th March, Enterprise Ireland, Eastpoint Business Park, Dublin Tuesday, 22nd March, Enterprise Ireland, Eastpoint Business Park, Dublin Tuesday, 5th April, Teagasc, Athenry, Galway Source: www.businessworld.ie It was announced today that one of the largest development projects in Dublin City Centre will be brought to market. JLL and BNP Paribas Real Estate on the instructions of the joint receivers Luke Charleton and David Hughes of EY, will be bringing the major development opportunity at Spencer Dock, Dublin 1 to the market for a guiding a price of 50m. The waterfront site has planning permission for a 169 bedroom hotel, over 31,580 sq m (340,000 sq ft) of office space and 165 apartments with additional lands to accommodate further mixed use development. This presents national and international developers with the opportunity to deliver a high density city centre development with signature landmark buildings. The site is divided in two by the Red Luas Line on Mayor Street Upper. The southern portion of the site which overlooks the River Liffey is earmarked to accommodate the high quality commercial element. The 169 bedroom hotel will be within the former London and North Western Hotel dating back to the 1800s with an interlinking 8 storey modern extension. The development lands are strategically placed between the completed PwC Headquarters and the new Central Bank Headquarters, which is currently being completed. Located within the Strategic Development Zone (SDZ) and zoned for mixed use development it presents an opportunity to create a new urban quarter adjacent to the existing completed Spencer Dock Development. In addition to the hotel there will be two high quality modern commercial buildings. The front block will provide almost 180,000 sq ft of office space over 9 floors including a penthouse level providing some of the most spectacular views across Dublin. The second block which sits to the rear of the hotel and front office block extends has planning for over 160,000 sq ft over 7 floors with community and retail space at ground floor level and 6 levels of offices above. There is also potential for additional development subject to planning permission on the portion of the site fronting onto Mayor Street. Joint Receiver, Luke Charleton commented, "Given the lack of prime properties available in Dublin to cater for the current volume of demand in many sectors particularly foreign direct investment, this major development site has the potential to house two large headquarters for businesses looking to move or locate in this area. We expect a great deal of interest in this development both from local and international investors." Source: www.businessworld.ie About us Ryanair have today called for a 'Yes vote in the European referendum on 23 June. The airline have claimed that some of the benefits of low fare air travel for British consumers have been eroded by Government regulation including UK APD travel tax and the EUs failure to deliver its single sky project. Ryanair say they are critical of both UK and EU Government for failing to promote low fare tourism growth in areas such as the UK travel tax, however, they remain a committed supporter of the UK remaining in Europe. Ryanair believe that EU membership means more UK jobs and better economic growth. They also believe that foreign inward investment in the UK will be lost to Ireland and Germany if the UK leaves Europe. Ryanairs Michael OLeary today commented, "As the UKs largest airline, Ryanair is absolutely clear that the UK economy and its future growth prospects are stronger as a member of the European Union than they are outside of the EU. "Leaving Europe wont save the UK money or red tape because like Norway the UK will still have to contribute to Europe, and obey its rules if it wants to continue to trade freely with Europe, so its clear that UK voters should vote Yes to Europe and Yes to the reformed Europe, that David Cameron has delivered." Source: www.businessworld.ie YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 24, ARMENPRESS. The cooperation memorandum between the Republican Party of Armenia and the RPA will be signed on February 24. Head of National Assembly ARF faction Armen Rustamyan told the journalists about this at the parliament. We will sign the memorandum today, it will be publicized, and you will see all the directions of our cooperation, Armenpress reports, Rustamyan mentioned. He added that all the issues are already clarified. Wait a little, when it is signed we will introduce it and talk about our perceptions. We will clarify all the issues; no single issue will remain unanswered. Everything will be conducted openly. And we will ask you to be consistent in order to bring into reality what we have agreed upon. You can observe all the sides, make clear and force the cooperating parties to implement what they have signed, Rustamyan said. To the question which point they negotiated upon for such a long time, Rustamyan answered, I am not tired to repeat that this is a package of major issues directed at all the domestic and foreign spheres for the sake of the future. This cooperation does not see limits. There is not a single issue remaining outside our cooperation. Bank of Ireland annual figures released this week show that the volume of personal loans for cars last year increased by 32% on 2014. Dublin, Kildare and Meath saw a spike in Bank of Ireland motor loan applications last year, with Louth, Laois, Offaly and the Cavan / Monaghan region also experiencing strong interest. The median amount applied for remained steady throughout the year, and in line with 2014, at approximately 6,000. Forty three per cent of applicants in 2015 applied for an amount less than 5,000, while one in three (36%) applied for a car loan of 5,000 to 10,000 and one in five were looking to borrow over 10,000. Almost two in three (64%) applications came from male drivers, and the largest cohort of car loans came from 25 34 year olds, with 39% of applicants in this age group. Head of Retail loans at Bank of Ireland, Aoife Kennedy said, "Our personal loan customers are traditionally purchasing second hand cars, or applying for additional finance to combine with a trade-in, and while the average loan amount remains steady, volume is up almost one third on the year before. "2016 looks set to be a strong year for the Irish motor sector, with more people back in the workforce and consumer confidence on the rise, wed expect demand to remain strong through the year." Source: www.businessworld.ie It was announced yesterday that Clare Local Enterprise Week 2016 will take place from March 7th to 11th at various locations around the county. The weeklong series of business training workshops and networking events is aimed at informing, advising and motivating businesses and potential entrepreneurs in relation to the range of supports and opportunities in Clare and is the first to be hosted by Local Enterprise Office Clare. It will kick off on Monday 7th March with a Primary Course in Food Safety at Scariff Co-Op (09.30am-1pm), Start Your Own Business Programme at Westpark Shannon (9.30am-4.30pm) and a Patents Workshop at Aras Contae an Chlair in Ennis (midday-4pm). On 8th March there will be a Business Breakfast at the Oakwood Arms in Shannon (7am-9am) followed by the Student Enterprise Awards County Final at Treacy's West County Hotel (9am-2pm) and a Local Enterprise Office Clare information event in Kilrush (7pm-9pm). The 9th of March will see a Facebook Adverts Workshop in Miltown Malbay (09:30am-4.30pm), Business Clinic for Owner/Manager of Food Businesses at The Falls Hotel in Ennistymon (5pm-8pm) and a Start Your Own Business Programme at The Junction Building in Ennis (6-9pm). On 10th march, a Discover Lough Derg Enterprise Bus will travel around the Lough Derg Area (9.30am-5.30pm), Aras Contae an Chlair hosts an event entitled 'Why set up a technology business?' (10am-1pm) and 'Funding Options to Grow Your Business' is the theme of an event at Treacy's West County Hotel (5pm-7.30pm). Finally, the National Enterprise Awards County Final will be held in The Rowan Tree, Ennis from midday to 3.00pm on 11th March where Clares representative for the National event will be selected. Last year, Clares representative Aine Knitwear, Clonlara won the National Best Design award. Speaking at the launch, Cathaoirleach of Clare County Council, Cllr. James Breen said, "Clare Local Enterprise Week is a useful vehicle for encouraging start-ups, SMEs and multinational companies to share and learn from each others experiences as well as learn about the supports available to anyone seeking to set up a new or invest in an existing business. I would encourage new and existing business owners in Clare to get involved." Source: www.businessworld.ie About us Director of the Central Bank of Ireland, Professor Philip Lane, yesterday won the Gold Medal of the Royal Irish Academy. The medals, which are sponsored by the Higher Education Authority, are awarded to individuals who have made a demonstrable and internationally recognised, outstanding scholarly contribution in their fields. Professor Alan Smeaton of Dublin City University also won an award. President of the Royal Irish Academy, Professor Mary Daly said, "The Academy Gold Medals recognise two of Irelands leading scholars whose work has a demonstrable social impact. The Academy, with the generous support of the Higher Education Authority, is delighted to honour both outstanding recipients." Source: www.businessworld.ie About us It was announced today that Irish energy supplier Vayu Energy has signed a 2.4 million gas deal with Iarnrod Eireann. The three-year agreement will see Vayu supply Iarnrod Eireann with natural gas to meet the year-round heating requirements for its facilities and operations across the country. These include thirteen key sites across Dublin, Cork, Limerick, Kilkenny, Louth, Laois and Waterford. Environment & Energy Manager at Iarnrod Eireann, Willie Pierce said, "Increased cost efficiency is a major focus for us across all aspects of our operations at Iarnrod Eireann. Weve achieved substantial reductions in energy costs over the last decade, cutting our overall energy consumption by 36% since 2006. "Our aim is to build on this over the coming years through more effective energy management and procurement." Energy Specialist at Vayu, Stephen Behan added, "Energy is one of the largest cost components for Iarnrod Eireann and all Irish businesses, and it is an area where significant efficiencies can be achieved in terms of procurement and performance management. "The drive towards greater cost competitiveness is changing the way companies source their energy, as they seek to increase efficiency and minimise the per-unit cost of energy purchased." Source: www.businessworld.ie About us Google's commitment last year to train one million Europeans in digital skills by the end of 2016, has proved so successful that they have today announced that they will be doubling their outreach to train two million people. In Ireland, Googles outreach includes working with content creators, start-ups, established SMEs, trade organisations, NGOs, teachers and young people to enhance their digital skills. This involves monthly Business Breakfasts for SMEs, sectoral training programmes for businesses in the retail, food and tourism sectors, the development and funding of Post-Graduate and Certificate Programmes in Computer Skills from Trinity College Dublin for Teachers, the nationwide Call to Code competition for students and the delivery of Digital Skills seminars during National Digital Week. Head of Google in Ireland, Ronan Harris said, " In Ireland there is a great thirst for knowledge and people at all levels of society are enthusiastic to learn and improve their digital skills. "Our first progamme in 2011 focused on Getting Irish Businesses Online and since then weve expanded our initiatives to include young people, educators, NGOs and others. "These initiatives have grown year on year - last year about 14,000 people participated in Google led programmes in Ireland - and will receive added impetus in the coming year from our commitment to double the digital skills training we are providing across Europe." Source: www.businessworld.ie Mars Inc has recalled chocolate bars and other products in 55 countries, mainly in Europe, due to choking risk after a piece of plastic was found in a Snickers bar in Germany. All of the recalled products, which include Mars, Snickers and Milky Way bars, were manufactured at a Dutch factory in Veghel, a Mars spokeswoman said on Tuesday. They were sold in European countries including Germany, France and Britain, and in certain countries in Asia. The recall, in effect since Monday, follows a Jan. 8 complaint from a consumer in Germany, she said, who found red plastic in a Snickers bar and sent it back to the company. "We cannot be sure that this plastic was only in that particular Snickers," a spokeswoman from Mars Netherlands said. "We do not want any products on the market that may not meet our quality requirements, so we decided to take them all back." It was not immediately clear how much the complex recall would cost the company, which is unlisted and therefore does not disclose detailed financial information. The spokeswoman declined to comment on financial implications of the recall, which is the first to affect the factory. Time delays between customer complaints and recalls are not uncommon since companies often receive notices, some fraudulent, about foreign objects in food, said Stephen Robb, a partner at Weightmans LLP in Leicester, who represents manufacturers and their insurers on product liability matters. Consumer product recalls can result in heavy reputational and financial hits, as Nestle learned last year when it recalled its Maggi noodles from India after a package was found to have unsafe levels of lead. Cadbury's 2006 recall of more than 1 million chocolate bars after a salmonella outbreak cost that company roughly 20 million pounds. Mars Netherlands said it was working closely with the Dutch food safety authority on the matter, according to a statement. The recall affected all Mars and Snickers products, Milky Way Minis and Miniatures as well as certain kinds of Celebrations confectionery boxes with best-before dates ranging from June 19, 2016 to Jan. 8, 2017. Those dates may not be the same in other countries, the spokeswoman said. Mars, based in Mount Olive, New Jersey, is one of the world's biggest food companies, with 29 chocolate brands including M&M's, Galaxy, Twix, Bounty and Maltesers. Aside from chocolate, Mars makes Wrigley gum, Uncle Ben's Rice, Dolmio pasta sauce and Pedigree pet food. (Reuters) Source: www.businessworld.ie About us With the threat of a UK exit from the European Union no longer just a distant prospect, already battered investors are shoring up defensive positions against a host of intensifying geopolitical risks, including a "Brexit". Investors typically dismiss political gyrations as sideshows that might cause temporary market turmoil but with little long-term impact. However, with markets volatile and assets from developed market equities to emerging market bonds a sea of red, the unusually high number of geopolitical risks stalking investors this year could expose already bruised portfolios to further losses. "When you look into 2016, the one thing very clear is there are more fat tail risks out there than we've seen for a long time," said Paul O'Connor, co-head of multi-asset at Henderson Global Investors in London. Across most Henderson funds, cash levels as a percentage of total assets are in the mid-teens, he said. A fat tail risk refers to the higher-than-normal likelihood of an otherwise unusual event that would lead to extreme movements in returns, technically more than three standard deviations from the mean. Current key risks include the UK leaving the euro zone, South China Sea tensions, Middle East conflicts, falling oil prices, the European refugee crisis and a highly uncertain U.S. Presidential race. Crucially, tail risks are growing at a time when global growth concerns and recent market dislocation have made investors crowd into a small number of trades, notably long U.S. dollar, short oil and emerging market positions. That means tail risk events could spark a dramatic unwinding of these positions as large numbers of investors seek to sell at the same time. "The fact that trades are correlated, trades are crowded, and we have a lot of fat tail risks leaves us owning a lot more cash than we typically would," O'Connor said. Henderson is not alone in increasing cash. A Bank of America Merrill Lynch survey of 198 fund managers with combined assets of nearly $600 billion released last week found average cash balances are up to 5.6 percent - the highest level since November 2001 with a U.S recession displacing a slowdown in China as the biggest tail risk for global investors. The prospect that one of these tail risks could further damage the fragile global economy is what makes them so worrying. For Neil Dwayne, global strategist at Allianz Global Investors, which manages 427 billion euros in assets globally, a sharp spike in oil prices caused by an outbreak of conflict in the Middle East could tip the world into recession. Equally, it would spark a rush to the exits by hedge funds who have crowded into trades betting oil prices would remain low for the foreseeable future, causing a massive wave of selling. For example, net short positions in crude oil - a proxy for hedge fund positioning - remain near record highs, according to Thomson Reuters data, indicating how vulnerable the market is to the prospect of a reversal. "A spike in oil prices to $100 per barrel is the number one geopolitical risk that the markets are not pricing for," said Dwayne. (Reuters) Source: www.businessworld.ie About us I can't remember which session it was when I first met Danielle at BlogHer, but we kept bumping into each other at more sessions after... YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 24, ARMENPRESS. Head of the ARF faction of the National Assembly Armen Rustamyan denied media rumors about disagreements within the party regarding Artsvik Minasyans successor in the Parliament. Speaking to the journalists at the National Assembly Armen Rustamyan stated that he is seriously concerned about the "state of mind" of the media. "Seriously, let's analyze and understand why the media is in this condition. For the past two months you have been engaged in this issue, and everything has been fabricated, "Armenpress " reports Armen Rustamyan saying. He stressed that during this time the press has released so many lies, and in some cases even delirium, that he is worried about the condition of the media. "If you wish, we can extract, analyze and see that there really are things to be ashamed of. You should not distort the situation and make fabrications on this level. The MP also denied rumors that the institutions of ARF abroad have a negative attitude in regard to forming a coalition with the government. "Be calm, the structures abroad have a positive attitude. I was in the United States at the moment when it was announced that there is rebellion in the US structure of the ARF. I spoke in front of an audience of 3000 people, and everyone applauded, Armen Rustamyan said. Unpaid Internships Widen Inequalities in the Job Market Published on February 23, 2016 Story by Alix Barre en fr es it de pl If youre fresh out of university and have started job applications, you have probably found yourself thinking: How do I get a job if it already requires me to have experience in my field? The answer is simple: internships. Yet, these opportunities often come unpaid, which means not everybody can afford it. Do unpaid internships close the door to a significant part of society? There are many compromises you need to make in order to do an unpaid internship. Kaisa Larjomaa (32), from Finland, got a very poorly paid internship at an NGO in Brussels in 2013: she received 500 euros a month, which does not even cover the cost of an average rent in the city. She finally managed to do the internship by asking for a loan from the bank, as well as from her home university in Finland in addition to an additional scholarship to cover travel costs. Her salary was still higher than the majority of internships offer, something Kaisa was reminded of when she was told at her office, as she explains in her own words, she should be happy, since most organizations dont pay you a single cent. Human Rights Watch Interns: Perpetuating a System of Inequality Last December, a group of interns at Human Rights Watch in Brussels released a report: Unpaid Internships at Human Rights Watch, are we worth so little when we do so much? They pointed out the irony of an NGO which promotes equal opportunities in the world, not doing the same within their own company. Human Rights Watch promotes itself as an equal opportunity employer that does not discriminate in its hiring practices and, in order to build the strongest possible workforce, actively seeks a diverse applicant pool. Yet, unless you can afford living in Brussels, New York, Washington DC, London and Geneva without getting paid, you will not be part of this diverse applicant pool. Especially in the world of NGOs, you can only get a job in the industry if youve interned before. The report called for an end to the exploitation of interns at Human Rights Watch. Stating that the organization can and must do better than ordinary organisationsif it is to deserve its reputation as a beacon of justice. Jumping through Hoops for Opportunities One option to manage an unpaid internship is to take a job on the side but, when your internship is 35 hours per week, this is an exhausting option that will often interfere with your productivity at the internship. In the US, Melissa Hutsell, 27, from California, had to deal with this issue during her undergraduate studies. Her university required her to do an internship during her studies and, as she explains, a lot of students in America study and work full time. On top of this she then had to take on an internship in spring 2010, which was unpaid since she could not find a paid opportunity. It presented quite a lot of obstacles, there just wasnt enough time in the day to properly spread my energy. It affected my performance and, ultimately, my studies, she said. Your location will help. If you live in a big city with many opportunities then at least you will not have to pay for rent, and if you live with your parents, no additional costs. Sara Abbasi, 23, from the UK, was able to do unpaid internships in 2010 and 2014, in one of the most expensive cities in the world, London, this way. Daria Sukharchuk, 24, from Russia, was able to do an unpaid internship at UNESCO the summer of 2014, before the second year of her Masters at Hamburg University. The university provided her with a small grant to help her financially, and she was particularly lucky because it was in Hamburg, which is not the most expensive city in Europe. Its nothing like Geneva, Amsterdam or Paris.. And, she adds, of course I had the support of my parents. Applicants coming from outside of Europe face the additional challenge of visa procedures and further finances. Daria did not face any immigration restrictions to come to Germany, but in order to get her residence permit she needs to show she has enough income and enough money in her bank account. To do an internship you need to be wealthy, have the right citizenship or the right permit, because Im not sure someone would have been able to come for an internship like mine exclusively Daria explains. A mix of the right circumstances, luck and financial help are necessary to be able to take on an unpaid internship. These are a lot of ingredients to have to put together just for the opportunity to get experience. The Consequences of Limiting Access to Opportunities So what does it mean to close the door to anyone who cant afford to do unpaid internships? As pointed out by Daria, those coming from abroad will struggle even more, and it becomes a very elitist thing. () You have people from developing countries, but they are from the upper class, she says. But even those in Europe will inevitably have to think twice about applying, says Sara, companies and organisations may be losing out on immense talent, simply because a candidate of high calibre is reluctant to apply Which, in the end, will mean that those coming from underprivileged background will miss out on opportunities and therefore find themselves choosing office jobs that they don't really want to do, but have to due to convenience, Sara adds. This will have a long-term consequence as competitive fields such as media and journalism are deprived of diverse talent, because those from less privileged backgrounds do not have enough experience to apply for jobs. It's a vicious cycle and it seems that unpaid internships are a cause of it, Sara concludes. Closing the door to those who simply cannot afford to gain experience for free is losing out on potential candidates and lock out the very people who need a voice, as the report from Human Rights Watch states. A vicious circle that can be easily broken by simply including intern stipend into the budget and putting a stop to this system of inequality. Proofread by Danica Jorden Story by Alix Barre Murphy Givens Columnist SHARE Carlyle Leonard. His grandfather, Will Leonard, a pioneer barber, made sure that William Tecumseh Sherman received a proper welcome to Corpus Christi. Elizabeth (Freasier) David, born in Coleman County, moved with her family to Dinero in a covered wagon in the late 1880s. Her father, Ben Freasier, was a Confederate soldier in Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia. When the war was over her father came home and brought his gray horse with him. Bizlin was his name and, like her father, he had seen a lot in four years of war. Three of the children would get on the back of the old warhorse and another would hang on to his tail, but Bizlin was always steady and polite, like the old soldier that he was. When Elizabeth began courting her future husband, they used a hollow tree as a post office for their love notes. She would write a letter and one of her brothers would ride to put it in the tree. Mr. David would pick up the mail and put an answering letter back in the tree. They were married in 1886 and lived on a ranch near Dinero. Caller-Times, Nov. 13, 1960 Nellie Musselman arrived in Corpus Christi from New Orleans in 1886. She brought with her the elegant dancing pumps that she had worn at Mardi Gras. Her twin brother, Tom, was already living in Corpus Christi and she had half sisters living in Rockport. She married Thomas B. Dunn, chief of the city's volunteer fire department, and they built a 12-room home on North Carancahua. When the house was filled with flowers it was a sign that the firemen's parade was coming up since the Dunn home was headquarters for women who decorated the floats with flowers. Early in the morning after the 1919 storm, volunteers brought survivors to the Dunn home, which became an emergency shelter. "It was awful to see them come in. They were all covered with oil and blood." In the 1950s the Dunn home was razed to build the approaches to the Harbor Bridge. Caller-Times, Oct. 30, 1955 Peter McBride, son of Mr. and Mrs. James McBride, was born Aug. 3, 1863, in the family home on what is now Blucher Street. Growing up, the young McBride helped his father with chores and running the family dairy 5 miles out of town. Peter's father and Matt Dunn bought a herd of wild horses at an auction. It was Peter's job to take them out to the open prairie and bring them home each night. When he was 17 he joined the delivery crew and began to make the daily milk run. "We used horses and wagons to deliver the milk, which was taken to the homes of customers before daybreak. We began deliveries at 3 a.m. Milk was placed in 10-gallon cans at the dairy and loaded on milk wagons. Customers would leave their quart or gallon containers on doorsteps to be filled from the large cans." The days seemed longer then because they got up so early. Peter McBride married Minnie Alice Priour on Aug. 18, 1890. They were married at St. Patrick's by Father Claude Jaillet. They ranched near Corpus Christi until 1913 when they moved to San Diego and from there moved to Realitos. Caller-Times, Aug. 21, 1955 Angie Westbrook arrived in Corpus Christi on Jan. 27, 1900. The wagon she and her family were riding in came down the bluff from Leopard Street. This was 15 years before the bluff balustrade was built. "We had to lock all four wheels of the wagon and then we could hardly hold the horses, the bluff was so steep." Mrs. Westbrook, her husband and three children arrived from Madison County. They had been traveling two months with three other wagons with families from East Texas. Their first night in Corpus Christi was spent in a wagon yard where the Nueces Hotel was later built. Next morning it was drizzling rain when they got up to look for work. Mrs. Westbrook found a job in a dairy, which paid 50 cents a day, and she washed and ironed the white clothes the dairymen wore for a quart of buttermilk every other day and a pound of butter once a week. She and her husband later operated their own dairy for 38 years. Caller-Times, Jan. 22, 1961 Mrs. A.R. Yeargen, with her husband and children, moved to Corpus Christi from Georgetown in 1911. They came by railroad to start a grocery store on King Street. They brought their horse and buggy on the train. "The horse and buggy were a necessity for the grocery business. My husband used to start out early in the morning going house to house taking orders. At the store he filled the orders and delivered them in the afternoon." They sold vegetables, butter, eggs and meat. Sugar and lard came in barrels. Coffee was ground in the store. Coal oil for lamps came in large cans. Caller-Times, June 2, 1963 Carlyle Leonard's grandfather, Will Leonard, came to Corpus Christi as a free bondsman after the Civil War and opened one of the town's first barber shops. Carlyle Leonard once recalled that in the old days all the hauling was done by drays. These were flat bodies with two wheels and one horse. Most of the hauling of cotton, dry goods and other things was done by Ellis and Brown, two men from Jamaica. Ellis was quite a character. He would drive his horse to his dray every day but Sunday. Then he would curry his horse and hitch him to a rubber-tired buggy and drive down Chaparral. He always led parades on horseback." Carlyle's grandfather, Will Leonard, whose barber shop was on Chaparral, was known for an incident when Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman stopped in Corpus Christi for a visit. The mayor, J.B. Murphy, refused to meet the famous general because of his march through Georgia at the end of the war. So there was to be no official welcome. But Will Leonard was at the depot. He jumped on a baggage cart, waved his hat, gave a rousing cheer, and made a short speech welcoming Gen. Sherman to Corpus Christi. Caller-Times, Oct. 18, 1936; April 27, 1952 (This is the second of six columns based on the memories of pioneers and settlers in the Corpus Christi area.) GEORGE TULEY/SPECIAL TO THE CALLER-TIMES With victims in a simulated bus crash scattered around the east lawn outside of Island Hall at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi, nursing student Michel Diaz holds a sign identifying Victim 22 to help high school and middle school students to find the victims they are assigned during the exercise Tuesday in the 14th annual Future Health Professionals Conference. SHARE GEORGE TULEY/SPECIAL TO THE CALLER-TIMES Incarnate Word Academy students Alexander Villagomez (from left) and Andrew Montgomery check the vital signs of Cassandra Stakes during a simulation Tuesday of a bus crash that put to test basic skills that high school and middle school students learned during the 14th annual Future Health Professionals Conference at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi. GEORGE TULEY/SPECIAL TO THE CALLER-TIMES Tuloso-Midway students Klarissa Alvarado (from left) and Celeste Velasquez check the pulse of Caitlin Salinas from Del Mar College during a simulation Tuesday of a bus crash that put to test basic skills that high school and middle school students learned during the 14th annual Future Health Professionals Conference at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi GEORGE TULEY/SPECIAL TO THE CALLER-TIMES West Oso health science students Ashley Mora (top) and Ashlee Trejo (bottom) attend to Sarah Reidy, a nursing student at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi during a simulation Tuesday of a bus crash that put to test basic skills that high school and middle school students learned during the 14th annual Future Health Professionals Conference at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi. GEORGE TULEY/SPECIAL TO THE CALLER-TIMES The east lawn outside Island Hall at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi was filled with simulated victims of a bus crash Tuesday during the 14th annual Future Health Professionals Conference at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi. The conference helps youths learn about health care jobs and attracts them to the professions, organizers said. . By Beatriz Alvarado of the Caller-Times Laura Sanchez remembers the day she decided to become a nurse. Her brother suffered from an asthma attack when she was 6. She and her mother rushed him to the emergency room. Laura's mother, of San Luis Potosi, Mexico, frantically asked questions in broken English and tried explaining her son's condition. Nobody understood. Laura vividly recalls the desperation in her voice. "When I saw that, it changed my view on everything," the 17-year-old Moody High School junior said. Laura, who is bilingual, is part of Moody's Health Science Academy and aspires to be the voice her mother needed that day. She was among 300 area students who attended Tuesday's 14th annual Future Health Professionals Conference at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi. Because Nueces County is among several South Texas counties identified as "Health Professional Shortage Areas" by the federal Health Resources and Services Administration, the conference showcases health care professions available to youth. About 11 schools participated this year. The conference is hosted by the Texas A&M Health Science Center Coastal Bend Health Education Center. "Nursing is the most popular (field of interest among the students)," said Rebecca L. Smith, program coordinator for the center's health careers program. "But that's not all there is." Students participated in hands-on activities for degree programs in respiratory therapy, kinesiology, surgical technology, clinical laboratory science and pharmacy. Each student group rotated through six breakout sessions. After learning basic skills, students took part in a disaster drill as emergency responders for 30 victims of a bus crash. The conference and partnerships expose different health care professions and have shaped the career paths of many Martin Middle School students, school nurse Nelda Cummings said. Cummings, who also leads the school's Health Care and Careers Club, said she has seen students switch from nursing to pharmacy and from pharmacy to surgical technology. "Full 180-degree turns because they saw something they liked," she said. "The hands-on experiences really have an impact." Twitter: @CallerBetty YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 24, ARMENPRESS. Over time, various problems are being solved regarding the Syrian Armenians residing in Armenia, and at the same time new issues arise, creating the necessity to resolve them by other means and by attracting new parties. In this context the most important are the state bodies, NGOs, as well as steps to develop cooperation and joint work between Pan-Armenian and local Diaspora structures. As "Armenpress" reports, the workshop From humanitarian response to sustainable solutions held on February 24 in Yerevan, is aimed at discussing such matters and finding joint solutions. In particular, it is dedicated to the issues and the integration of the displaced caused by the Syrian conflict. Governmental agencies, representatives of NGOs, international and Pan-Armenian organizations dealing with the issues of the Syrian-Armenians are taking part in the joint initiative of the Ministry of Diaspora of the Republic of Armenia, UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation and AGBU. The main objectives of the workshop are the emphasis of the duties of governmental agencies, international organizations, and NGOs on the reception and integration issues of Syrian-Armenians, the thorough and systematic analysis of the integration needs, as well as planning of programs and specific project proposals. The need to search for new routes to expand humanitarian assistance and humanitarian support to ensure the integration of sustainable development was highlighted during the workshop. SHARE By Fares Sabawi of the Caller-Times The mother of a 4-year-old girl sexually exploited by day care worker Christina Cortez blamed herself for what happened to her daughter. "Christina worked with me and I trusted her with my daughter," the mother said in Spanish through a translator. Cortez, 39, took sexually explicit photos of the girl at the day care facility and sent them to a Brownsville man, 30-year-old Matthew Harbin. Both of them pleaded guilty for production of child pornography last year and were sentenced to federal prison Tuesday by U.S. District Judge Hayden Head. Head sentenced Cortez to 20 years in prison and sentenced Harbin, who was also a wanted sex offender in Alabama, to 35 years in prison. Cortez reached out to Harbin after he posted a personal ad on Craigslist, said prosecutor Hugo Martinez. Both indicated a desire to engage sexually with children. Cortez was a victim of sexual and physical abuse as a child, her attorney argued. The attorney said those acts were not an excuse for what Cortez did, but provide context as to why Cortez committed the crime. Cortez apologized for what she did and told the mother "she's not in the least bit responsible for what happened." Harbin admitted he began collecting child porn since he was in high school. Two Homeland Security agents testified about email conversations they uncovered where Harbin talks about molesting his stepsister and kids he baby-sat. Harbin went into detail about his desire to rape and torture children in the conversations. His defense attorney said Harbin knows he needs help, but said no evidence existed that proved Harbin acted on these desires. Harbin was just immersed in the fantasy of the act, his attorney said. The agents testified that Harbin's stepsister denied he had ever sexually assaulted her when they questioned her during their investigation. Harbin, who appeared in court with long black hair and an unkempt beard, admitted his guilt but provided no explanation why he committed the crime. "I wish I did (have an explanation), but it's something I've dealt with for a very long time," he said. Upon release, Cortez and Harbin will be ordered to register as sex offenders. Cortez will have 20 years of supervised release following her prison sentence and Harbin will have lifetime supervised release after his prison sentence. Twitter: @Caller_Fares Courts reporter Krista Torralva contributed to this report Top (left to right): Jesse H. Gonzalez, Jose A. Gonzalez, John Marez; Bottom (left to right): John Martinez, Richard "Dick" Mitchell, Joel Stanley Mumphord SHARE By Julie Garcia of the Caller-Times After more than 20 years, the surname "Ortiz" won't be on the ballot for Nueces County Commissioner Precinct 3. However, some familiar sounding names will be listed in one of the most contested races in the county. The seat had long been held by Oscar Ortiz. There are six Democratic candidates vying for the seat, including a lawyer, sheriff's deputy, former city councilman, election administrator, retired county employee and current county employee. There is no Republican running for the seat. The only other contested commissioner seat is Precinct 1. In that race, Robert G. Hernandez, a Democrat, will face Republican Mike Pusley in November. This is the first political venture for Jesus Jesse H. Gonzalez who has worked for the county for 14 years and is currently a supply clerk. "I really want to let the public know exactly what goes on in the courthouse," he said. "There are so many things that people don't know. There was a 2.5 percent pay increase in the last three years, but it used to be every year, there would be a 2 percent increase." Jesus Jesse H. Gonzalez believes money that should have gone toward increasing the pay for county employees instead went to the county commissioners' salaries. "I've said no to all those things. I wouldn't even give myself a pay increase. I've been riding the bus for the last couple of months, because I don't have a car allowance," he said. Joe A. Gonzalez, an eight-year employee with the Nueces County Sheriff's Office, has experience with fighting for raises for himself and his co-workers. In 2015, as president of the Nueces County Sheriff Officers' Association he brokered a collecting bargaining deal with county commissioners on a 15 percent raise to sheriff's office employees over four years. He said he would take that same persistence to county issues, like Americans with Disabilities Act compliance. Joe A. Gonzalez believes the county will live up to its full potential and stop hemorrhaging young workers through key partnerships with local and state governments. "I want to make sure we try to bring a cruise terminal to Corpus Christi and work with state representatives, and that will help struggling oil and gas industry and shift jobs to construction," he said. "Partnerships, building relationships and making sure it's what people want." John Marez, a former city councilman and current CCISD board vice president, is no stranger to the campaign trail. He said he has been the driving force working to improve neighborhoods, fix streets and improve senior centers. He said his record of voting to reduce taxes and creating a street comprehensive plan to improve roads distinguishes him from the other candidates. He has plans to use the Texas Enterprise Fund, an incentive tool to attract jobs to the state, and work closely with Texas Workforce Solutions to strengthen local economy. John Martinez, a lawyer and former county court-at-law judge, said economic strategies involve more than job development. It involves keeping up infrastructure, streets, drainage issues and dealing directly with county employees and budget. "A lot of it is long term. If you want to do them right, they take planning, preparation and that's something we have to consider," Martinez said. "They've been talking about the Harbor Bridge for 15 years. But now they're doing the work on it, it's going to open up a lot of those opportunities." Dick Mitchell has run for the Precinct 3 seat three times before, most recently in 2012. The root of his message hasn't changed in that he wants to reign in government spending and promote transparency. Mitchell said people need to know where their money is spent and wants to lift any hiring freezes placed on county positions. He said the county needs to be prepared to pay for a new county courthouse and jail complex. "When you go in the courthouse during your lunch break, you should be able to get your errands done in a reasonable time," Mitchell said. "It's overcrowded." Joel Mumphord started working in politics as a young man phone banking and block walking for Carlos Truan Sr., who served as a state representative in the 1970s and a senator from 1977 until 2003. He has been a main stay in the local Democratic Party for years and works as an election administrator. The pillars of Mumphord's campaign are public safety, financial strength and community engagement. "There must be adequate protection across the county. We're losing our young people to crime, so we have to find a way to engage neighborhood communities," he said. Twitter: @Caller_Jules Nueces County Commissioner, Precinct 3 Jesus Jesse H. Gonzalez Age: 65 Occupation: Nueces County supply clerk Residence: Corpus Christi Political experience: None What are your top three goals for the office? First of all, I will try giving our employees an increase in cost of living. Secondly, I will try to prepare a budget line and have a better control of the budget. Lastly, I would like to fix various projects that have been started previously. What distinguishes you from your opponents? What sets me a part from my opponents is that I have worked there for the county for 14 years. I have been able to see firsthand the issues that trouble our county, as well as heard from my fellow coworkers the everyday issues of the county that present themselves. I feel that it has given me firsthand knowledge, as well as experience, of the issues that need to be resolved. Define your strategies for the precinct's economic development. My strategies include first being able to create projects that will bring in revenue, lowering local taxes, as well as the budget by using an alternative of federal grants. What's your strategy to deal with potential gridlock and partisanship on the Commissioners Court? My strategy for dealing with potential gridlock and partisanship on the Commissioners Court would be by auditing the Precinct 3 frequently. It will allow us to have a better understanding of potential problems. Joe A. Gonzalez Age: 29 Occupation: Nueces County Sheriff's Office deputy Residence: Corpus Christi Political experience: I do not consider myself a politician. However, I have been serving as president of the Nueces County Sheriff Officers' Association, and I have negotiated the collective bargaining agreement with the county. I have established relationships with county management and elected officials and because of this I am more familiar with county issues and have ideas on how to implement progress for the county. What are your top three goals for the office? Property tax valuations of our corporate neighbors. If we (the taxpayers) pay our fair share, then our corporate neighbors need to pay their fair share as well. We must partner with our local state representatives to ensure this issue is addressed in the next session. Invest in technology upgrades to make our county a lot more efficient and help catch up to current technology standards. Commit to energy saving upgrades to save taxpayer dollars. What distinguishes you from your opponents? The voters are tired of the same old establishment and same old politics. It's time to pick someone who is not a career politician and someone who wants to be a County Commissioner to truly benefit Nueces County. Define your strategies for the precinct's economic development. Work with all the cities within our precinct and collectively come up with a master economic plan. I would like to focus on bringing in technology companies to help diversify our economy. This would also help keep our young folks here in our community. Help bring cruise ships to bring more jobs and more tourists to our area. This would help new retail shops coming up in Precinct 3 and ensure the shops stay open. What's your strategy to deal with potential gridlock and partisanship on the Commissioners Court? I have already established good working relationships with most of Commissioners Court. I feel that when the time comes, the court will vote on the issues and not what party they belong to. I know if I am elected, I am not going to vote because of what party I belong to, but because it is the RIGHT thing to do. John Marez Age: 43 Occupation: Training supervisor for Texas Family Protective Services Residence: Corpus Christi Political experience: City Councilman and Mayor pro-tem, eight years; CCISD board vice president, four years; chairman, municipal court committee, four years; commissioner, Corpus Christi Charter Revision Commission What are your top three goals for the office? Job development in the county; continue replacing/fixing roads and streets in Precinct 3; develop drainage plan to reduce flooding problems throughout the precinct What distinguishes you from your opponents? I am the only candidate elected to serve as a policymaker (city council & school board); a record of voting to reduce taxes; I created the concept of a Street Comprehensive Plan to address improving roads; the only candidate that has voted/approved incentives for job and economic development in Precinct 3 and in Nueces County (Voestalpine, Liquidfaction, La Palmera mall, TPCO, numerous tax incentives for local businesses); as councilman, I represented four senior centers. Define your strategies for the precinct's economic development. Use the Texas Enterprise Fund that has brought in big name companies to Texas; use Workforce Solutions to help the county find/educate local people for good paying jobs; use Chapter 381 Agreements; allows the county to provide incentives encouraging developers to build here; use Chapter 387 Agreements (County assistance district funds) can be used for construction, maintenance or improvement of roads; fix detention services; create economic development and tourism; fund firefighting and fire prevention services What's your strategy to deal with potential gridlock and partisanship on the Commissioners Court? I will work as a partner with my fellow commissioners and the county judge to find common ground on issues that we can all support. As a city councilman, I have already worked and found solutions, with the Commissioners Court on mutual problems facing Nueces County. However I will fight for the needs of Precinct 3 to ensure that we get our fair share of local county dollars to improve our communities/area. John Martinez Age: 43 Occupation: Managing partner at Hilliard Munoz Gonzales Law Firm Residence: Corpus Christi Political experience: Nueces County Court-At-Law No. 3 Judge (2007-2011); Presiding Administrative Judge for the Nueces County Courts-At-Law (2010-2011); City of Corpus Christi Crime Control and Prevention District Board (2005); Graduate of Leadership Corpus Christi (Class 28); Hispanic Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors (2002-2003) What are your top three goals for the office? Fix county roads and drainage issues; provide infrastructure to attract new industry and increase the tax revenue base; create and maintain a budget that meets the needs of the people of Nueces County without overly taxing them. What distinguishes you from your opponents? I have built strong relationships politically and within the business community over the past several years. I can use these relationships to strengthen our community, so that we can finally reach our maximum potential. Define your strategies for the precinct's economic development. I would partner with other organizations within our community who share common goals. I will also work with our representatives in the state Legislature and federal government to ensure that our community receives all aid and assistance that is available. I will also work with corporations to determine what needs they have and what they would need to be able to succeed in Nueces County. What's your strategy to deal with potential gridlock and partisanship on the Commissioners Court? I have worked with the current County Commissioners and County Judge for several years in my capacity as Presiding Administrative Judge for the County Courts At Law. During that time I built a relationship and trust with the current commissioners to come up with solutions to the issues in the Court. I will use that trust and relationships to do what is best for our County. Richard "Dick" Mitchell Age: 66 Occupation: Retired from Nueces County Appraisal District Political experience: None What are your top three goals for the office? Lift the "hiring freeze" that has been placed on budgeted positions. The freeze does lengthen the period of time between when the vacancy occurs and when the position can be filled. The various departments have a good working relationship with the Human Resources department that would result in the vacancies being filled sooner; Inform the citizens of the amount of unencumbered funds in the budget (this budget year, the amount is at lease $1,600,000.00). What distinguishes you from your opponents? I am the one in the motorized wheelchair. Define your strategies for the precinct's economic development. A large amount of Precinct 3 is agriculture. Economic development is driven by economic situations of the county, the tax liability that would be incurred on the creation of a new business, the availability of a dependable source of water, good regional transportation, and the reasonable expectations of safety from criminal activity. What's your strategy to deal with potential gridlock and partisanship on the Commissioners Court? Gridlock and partisanship have no place on the Commissioners Court. By encouraging mutual respect and consideration of the commissioners, we must think of the prosperity of the county and not be driven by personal political advancement in the future or the possibility of financial gain. Joel Stanley Mumphord Age: 56 Occupation: Election administrator for Nueces County Democratic Party Political experience: My experience starts from childhood when I worked for Carlos Truan in phone banking, block walking and attending local and state conventions. I served eight years as election clerk and led election training for election poll workers. I've also served in the following civic organizations and boards: Vice Chair for Nueces County Community Action Agency; President of H.I.A.L.C.O. Neighborhood Counsel; President of H.I.A.L.C.O. Neighborhood Counsel; Former President of H. Boyd Hall N.A.A.C.P.; Former President Lakewood Village Association What are your top three goals for the office? Public safety; financial strength; community engagement What distinguishes you from your opponents? Opportunity. My immediate concern is about crime, drugs, violence, and the health condition of Precinct 3. I'm the only candidate that has spoken to the youth and college community about their concerns. I'm the only one who speaks to elderly and has a deep compassion for their future well-being and state of their condition. I have a true compassion for making a difference in Precinct 3. Define your strategies for the precinct's economic development. Taking stock of the economic conditions means doing an analysis of the financial, monetary and fiscal situation in the county. It involves assessing the production, development and management of material wealth in the community, as well as the financial necessities of life. By mapping the assets in a community, then looking at the economic trends in a city, state, country in some cases the world. What's your strategy to deal with potential gridlock and partisanship on the Commissioners Court? My strategy is a holistic approach to the process of planning it involves basing plans on a clear and understanding of my colleagues and the mission, vision and values. Another key element is building a relationship to move taxpayer concern forward in order for this to work everyone on the Commissioners Court must be involved in this building relationship in order to achieve the goal of the taxpayer. SHARE Texans should know that in times of drought, which in this state is often, the first come are to be the first served with water. The needs of the many are irrelevant to the seniority of the rights of the few to a state-regulated water source. If, for example, a rancher or an industrial plant has a longer-standing claim to a water source than a city or its electricity source, that's just too bad. The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality has spent the past several years finding this out the hard way, in court. The most recent affirmation of the rights of the few occurred Friday when the Texas Supreme Court declined to hear the case. The court's inaction leaves in place a decision by the 13th Court of Appeals in Corpus Christi that the TCEQ can't give special treatment to cities or power generators in times of drought even if doing so is deemed necessary to protect the public's health, safety and welfare. The case involves a Dow Chemical plant in Freeport that has been in operation since 1940 and relies on the Brazos River for the water it needs to extract magnesium from seawater. The plant needs 100,000 gallons of freshwater per minute. Is magnesium extraction really more important than meeting the water needs of an entire city, or keeping its source of electricity in operation? Of course not. But the question is irrelevant according to Texas law as determined by the courts. The judges who weighed in at the district court and appellate level shouldn't be faulted for their strict, dispassionate, nonactivist interpretation of law. They did their job. If this is to be changed for the better, the Legislature would need to do it with unambiguous new law. That's likely to be harder than it sounds. The Texas Farm Bureau fought for Dow, declaring the case a property rights issue. Most if not all members of the Legislature consider themselves pro-property rights and few would want to cross the Texas Farm Bureau. We don't mean to make the Texas Farm Bureau out to be a villain. It's just a well-informed interest group that got its way in court while providing the public service of bringing attention to the inadequacy of Texas' water resources. It's a challenge that needs to be addressed with more than lawsuits and legislation. It'll take a huge commitment of science, technology and public and private investment. The $2 billion water investment fund established by the Legislature in 2013 was a start. But in the meantime, the Dow case does point to the need for a clear law that defines public health and safety in a way that would give it a reasonable, unassailable legal priority over property rights and magnesium extraction. The boundary lies somewhere between keeping the rose bushes alive and keeping people alive. Find it. SHARE March 12 will be the 75th anniversary of the dedication of Naval Air Station Corpus Christi, a time to reflect on the significance of NAS-CC to both the nation and to our community. In the fall of 1993 Del Mar College was contracted by the Department of Defense to produce an oral history of NAS-CC during World War II. Men and women who were at the station during the war were to be found and interviewed, including, if possible, German POWs brought here just after the war; also, a video to be used at a proposed visitor center. The undertaking was indeed a challenge: locating interviewees, conducting interviews, usually at interviewees' homes, checking transcripts for accuracy, submitting monthly progress reports, research that would include the LBJ Library in Austin, the video, and, finally, the completed narrative. Although not granted release time from my regular classes, I had help from history adjunct Mike Reed, who conducted several interviews and typed up the final narrative, and Bill Mays of the college Media Center, who produced an award-winning video. Lisa Welch found and interviewed several African-Americans who had a connection with the station. Columnist Eleanor Mortensen at the Caller-Times proved indispensable in getting the word out. Every time she had a notice of the project in her column the phone in the history office would ring continuously. It is difficult to imagine the Corpus Christi we know today without these remarkable men and women: Joe Jessel, Ed Parker, Patrick and Gilbert McGloin, Judge Paul Nye, Wayne Lundquist, Joe Rodriguez, Bob and Margie Kirmse, Andrew Samo, Carroll Cage, Eleanor Goldston, Jim Preis, Julius Cazalas, Joe McManus, Dr. John Kohlhaas, Guadalupe Valdez, Thomas Bookout, Paul Laudadio, Dr. Sherman Coleman, Blanca Guzman, Dr. James Barnard, Pauline Glasson, Bob Cole, Gilbert Casarez, Dr. Roger Brooks, Phil Perabo, and so many others. Some of those interviewed, like war heroes Phil Perabo, Joe Rodriguez, Andrew Samo, Ed Parker, and Bob Kirmse, deserved chapters of their own. I was surprised to discover that Ralph Thibodeau "Mr. Music" at Del Mar for many years had received his wings at NAS during the war. Having been a naval aviator meant so much to Ralph that he intended to be in uniform for his burial. Among the former aviators who turned up was Willie Moeller, from Fort Dodge, Iowa, who, along with his wife, Phyllis, served as volunteers on the Lexington while wintering at North Beach. Willie was so enthusiastic about my idea of a Naval History Center at Del Mar that he donated his prized Naval items uniforms, flight gear, air rescue equipment, etc. for permanent display at the William White Library. And former aviator Alfred Trube donated the aircraft models he had meticulously constructed over many years. And talk about movers and shakers! When I dropped by Joe Jessel's office to complain that I had never received a response from Sen. John Glenn to my request for an interview, Joe immediately picked up the phone and minutes later was talking to U.S. Rep. Solomon Ortiz, D-Corpus Christi, in Washington. The congressman had just left a meeting with the Armed Services Committee in which Glenn was also a member and, yes, he would be happy to ask the senator if he would agree to be interviewed. A few days later I was in my office conducting a phone interview with Sen. Glenn! When the oral history project finally ended in 1995, more than 200 men and women had been interviewed in person, by phone, or by questionnaire, far more than the 50 the contract called for, and the completed video was twice as long as required in the contract. A former German POW had been located in England and brought to Corpus Christi as a major media event and a crisis avoided when the local POW organization changed its mind about staging a protest against a reception being held for him. In fact, Hein was a half-Yugoslav who had been forced to join the Wehrmacht. Despite all that had been accomplished, there were still disappointments. The Public Relations officer at the station in 1995 informed me there were no funds available for additional printings of the oral history other than the 500 copies already printed. Also, more research needed to be done in Washington. There are insider stories of NAS-CC during World War II that need to be told, especially from recently released FBI records. A Naval History Center at the college never happened. Nevertheless, the permanent display of donated uniforms, aircraft models, and air rescue artifacts at the Del Mar College library serve as reminders of the crucial role of NAS-CC during both war and peace. SHARE Keith Hammond Shameful for president to miss funeral That a sitting U.S. president did not attend the funeral of a Supreme Court justice speaks volumes about the President and his character. Justice Scalia spent his working days in conversation with ideological adversaries (and, of course, those who agreed with him). He used a collegial approach, perceptive observation and carefully crafted argument to defend and promulgate his opinions. On the other hand, President Obama has never been unafraid to bark behind a fence and his executive style has been more along the lines of "I have spoken." In provincial parlance, he can dish it out but he can't take it. My opinion of Justice Scalia was formed after watching an obscure CSPAN program several years ago. He was the featured guest speaker/moderator of a panel discussion at a college. A list of questions was assembled the intent being that each question, constructed to carry a fair amount of dilemma, would lead to prolonged and possibly heated discussion. Unfortunately, after being read a question, Justice Scalia would reply with remarks which specified actions that would resolve the hypothetical problem in such a way that the crux of the argument was addressed and the dilemma of the situation melted away. The list of questions was quickly exhausted and the CSPAN program cut short. YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 24, ARMENPRESS. Through loans and scholarships, Luys ensures that every year 100 Armenian students receive an education from the worlds most prestigious universities, putting them on par with talented scholars from around the world and setting them up to contribute to Armenia and to the world. The official website of the British prestigious Cambridge University has refers to the Foundation established in 2009, calling it an Armenian miracle. The website states that some of Armenian students received education in Cambridge by the funds allocated by Luys Foundation, hoping that, once qualified, they will be able to pass on their knowledge to boost the economy of the now independent Armenia. We want to create a confident generation to think big and to dream big, says Jacqueline Karaaslanian, Executive Director of the Luys Foundation. Armenia is a country with a turbulent history, says Karaaslanian, referring to events such as genocide by the Ottoman Empire, incorporation into the Soviet Union, gaining independence 25 years ago, a war with Azerbaijan and the recent global economic crisis. It has always had to react rather than enjoy the opportunity to plan ahead. The Luys Foundation enables the new generation to spread its wings and plan the future. The website writes that the Foundation was established in 2009 by Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan and Tigran Sargsyan, Prime Minister at the time and presently Chairman of the Eurasian Economic Commission. It pays for the education of students from Armenia or of Armenian descent after they are accepted on their own merit at one of the worlds top 10 universities. Interestingly, there is no obligation for the Luys students to return to Armenia. Indeed, with three times as many Armenian nationals living outside the country as inside, the foundation views its students as global citizens who dont necessarily need to return to Armenia to empower their countrymen and women, reads the Cambridge University website. We like to think of it not as a brain drain, but as a brain circulation. We are building a rich network of people who are able to think differently. We are living in a knowledge economy but ours is a captive economy knowledge has to circulate to get rich. You have to travel to broaden your horizons, says Karaaslanian, mentioning that 70% of the students having received education by Luys funds have returned to Armenia. Vigen Sargsyan, Chief of Staff of the President, expressed his opinion on Luys Foundation on his Facebook page. I am proud of Luys Foundation and the works and achievements of our scientists all over the world. Lets go on with this task. The results we already have are astonishing and I am convinced that greater achievements are ahead. | BY Ricki Green | The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) has appointed Ogilvys multicultural communications agency Etcom, to lead its multicultural communications campaign to drive awareness and participation in the upcoming 2016 Census. Effective immediately, the appointment will see Etcom develop and implement a cohesive communications strategy and campaign for the first ever digital Census, specifically targeting Australians from Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) communities. The account was won following a competitive pitch. Melissa Chaw, managing partner, Etcom said it was easily the largest multicultural campaign for 2016, and was delighted the ABS had entrusted Etcom with the massive task of communicating to more than 38 different language communities across the nation. Says Chaw: A successful mass-scale public awareness campaign is imperative to ensure the success of the 2016 Census. Significantly, the 2016 Census is the first time the population will be able to complete the census online, and this change will be the core message of our campaign. We are also responsible for ensuring all CALD communities are fully aware participation is compulsory and this includes reaching migrants who have arrived since the last Census in 2011, plus subgroups such as international students and even tourists. Its a massive undertaking and is exactly the sort of challenge the team at Etcom relish. Michelle Howe, director, Census Communication, Communications and Dissemination Branch, Australian Bureau of Statistics said Etcom were an important partner and well placed to effectively reach out to Australias vast multicultural population. Says Howe: While the primary target audience is everyone in Australia on Census night aged over 18 years, subgroups including CALD audiences are important to the success of Census. Etcom clearly demonstrated it has the capability, passion and knowledge of multicultural communities to take on the challenge. We are confident they will help us deliver a successful 2016 Census CALD communications campaign. | BY Ricki Green | Atomic 212 has launched a new division called The Firecracker Factory, which has been dubbed by Atomic 212 chairman Barry OBrien as a creative media connections and ideation department. Its services include content marketing, public relations, social media strategy and management, promotions and experiential. The division will be headed by Atomic 212 staffer David Blight (pictured), who has been promoted from the position of content director to manage the agencys new brand. Blight was formerly the online editor of AdNews, and a founding partner of mining community publication Coalface. Says Blight: Weve actually been developing these services with clients in some way or another since the launch of Atomic 212, but with the rollout of The Firecracker Factory we will ramp up considerably in this area. In todays fluid media landscape, Atomic 212 understands that the boundaries between content, social media, PR and digital marketing are becoming increasingly ill-defined. The glue that ties them together is imaginative storytelling. This is the space we want to own. The Firecracker Factory will work closely with the broader Atomic 212 Group, to ensure a fully integrated approach for clients. Says OBrien: The origins of Atomic 212 are in search and performance media, which means that we are a digital agency first and that insights and measurement are at the core of everything we do. This ethos will apply to The Firecracker Factory as much as it does to the rest of the Atomic 212 Group. Says OBrien on the appointment of Blight to head up the division: I couldnt think of anyone better to lead The Firecracker Factory. David is young, energetic and incredibly bright. Whats more, his editorial background means he brings a unique storytelling approach to marketing. Blight will oversee a team that includes editorial specialists, experienced PR practitioners, social media gurus and a promotional expert. The Firecracker Factory has been working with several Atomic 212 clients under the radar since 2015, and is also working with clients specific to the division. These will be revealed in due course. Says OBrien: Its simple we will be producing a bucket load of explosive ideas. Says Blight: Barry wanted a name that was fun, exciting, a bit crazy and somewhat polarising. We did a vote around the office: half the people loved it; half the people hated it. That was it. We had our name. The launch follows a period of significant successes for Atomic 212. The agency was recently named Campaigns Independent Agency of the Year across Australia and New Zealand, while also winning gongs for Digital Agency of the Year, Emerging Agency of the Year and Media Agency of the Year. Atomic 212 chief executive Jason Dooris was also recently named runner up CEO of the Year across all business sectors, while also winning the Campaign Agency Head of the Year award for 2015. | BY Ricki Green | Carat Sydney has today announced that Louise Romeo will join the business in the newly created role of head of implementation and investment operations, reporting into recently-appointed chief investment officer, Ashley Earnshaw. Romeo brings with her a wealth of investment experience accrued over ten years working at agencies including Mediacom, OMD, and Mindshare. She joins Carat from Ikon Communications, where she was working as amplification and trading group director. Romeo will work across a variety of Carat Sydney clients, including recent new business win, Greenstone Financial Services. The new role has been created as part of a commitment to grow and develop the agencys investment product, and will see Louise work alongside Carats head of investment for the Woolworths Group, Jane Combes. Says Earnshaw: Louise is an incredibly valuable addition to the Carat Sydney team. She brings with her a depth of investment and implementation experience, as well as the respect of the market. It will be great to have her on board as part of the investment leadership team in Sydney. Says Romeo: I am delighted to be joining the Carat team and have been nothing but impressed with their leadership, reputation in market, and passion for our craft. Carat has a strong vision that embraces change in an evolving landscape and I cannot wait to be a part of its future success. YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 24, ARMENPRESS. Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Syrian counterpart Bashar Assad have held a telephone conversation to discuss Syrian settlement issues, Armenpress reports, citing TASS, the Kremlins press-service saying. "Various aspects of the Syrian crisis were discussed in the light of the tasks to implement the statement Russia and the United States made as co-chairs of the International Syria Support Group on the cessation of hostilities in Syria as of February 27, 2016," the Kremlin said. "Assad described the proposals contained in the aforesaid statement as an important stride towards a political settlement. In part, he confirmed the Syrian governments preparedness to promote truce," the statement says. Putin and Assad underscored the importance of uncompromising struggle against the Islamic State, Jabhat al-Nusra and other terrorist groups included in the corresponding list of the UN Security Council, the Kremlin said. The US and Russia made a joint statement on February 22, which says that the ceasefire will come into effect on February 27, at 00:00 Damascus time. The statement says that the ceasefire agreement excludes the terrorist organizations ISIS and Jabhat Al-Nusra, as well as other terrorist organizations designated by the UN Security Council. YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 24, ARMENPRESS. After 100 years Turkey repeats the history and transgresses the rights of its own citizens. Armenpress reports National Assembly MP Aragats Akhoyan expressed such an opinion in an interview with journalists on February 24, mentioning that Turkey will hardly manage to avoid the trap set by itself. The history of 100 years ago repeats, when due to their defeats in World War I the ring around Turkey tightened and they started to perpetuate crimes against their own citizens which was demonstrated by the Armenian Genocide. Today Turkey does the same against the Kurds: the same scenario of burning people alive in cellars, heavy artillery and application of different weapons after 100 years. It calls this operation cleaning, but it does not understand itself who it cleans off, Aragats Akhoyan said. According to the MP, though it is not clear yet how the developments will go on, but one thing is clear, the world is more prudent now and will not allow the repetition of Kemal Ataturks slick politics. Besides, the goals Turkey pursues, according to the speaker, will not be implemented, as they will fail to do that like they failed to deport all Armenians from Turkey. The MP mentioned with regret that the Armenian cultural objects were unable to bypass the military operations carried out by Turkey against the Kurds in the southeastern regions of the country. He asked his uncle whether it belonged to Mr Gajic, and allegedly said words to the effect of: "The blue Nissan Micra is a gay car, he must be a paedophile selling drugs and he might have a DVD relating to me from my past." "To be honest, I don't like having to do it this way but I have no choice," she said. "I wish that they would have a big heart and think about it again, no one wants this to happen to a baby." YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 24, ARMENPRESS. Armenia is not included in the list of countries where Mars chocolates have been recalled from. Mars recalled its products produced in Veghel, Netherlands, from 55 countries, because of the discovery of a piece of red plastic in them. Armenia imports these products from Russia, which is not included in these 55 countries. As "Armenpress" reports, this was announced on the Facebook page of the press secretary of the State Food Security Service of the Ministry of Agriculture Nvard Arakelyan. "However, the border control was instructed to pay attention to this issue ", Nvard Arakelyan said. Dear Annie: I am hoping to retire in six years. I have been investing some money through my job and have accumulated a comfortable amount. My wife had a similar fund at her job, but took the money out a few years ago. She says she doesnt know where she spent it, but Im pretty sure it went to her daughter (from another marriage), the same place the rest of her money goes. We have our own checking accounts, because I was tired of being broke all the time. When I retire, I would like to move to North Carolina. I know that my wife will never leave her grandchildren. I cant take money out of my retirement account without her signature and I have no idea how she managed to empty her account without my signature, but she did. Can you give me some advice before the time comes? Soon to Retire in Florida Dear Florida: We arent sure what you are asking. You already know that your wife is not going to abandon her daughter and the grandchildren. So, it seems you are willing to leave her, but you are concerned that she wont release the money from your retirement account. If she gained access to either retirement account without authorization, talk to someone at your bank or to a lawyer. But ask yourself whether moving to North Carolina is more important than your marriage. And if you divorce her, would the money in your retirement account be split anyway? Is there room for compromise? Please tell your wife what your wishes are regarding your retirement and ask for her input. Would she be willing to come to North Carolina part of the time? If so, would that be a tolerable arrangement? You seem to have a less-than-loving relationship that you can work on if you choose. A lot can happen in six years. Dear Annie: You printed several responses to the letter from Please Leave Animals at Home, about service animals in public places. I work in a clinic and am well-aware that there are service dogs and other types of therapy animals out there. Service animals have their place. However, let me point out that a service vest can be ordered online (as can a doctors note), and that there are many people who just want to bring their pets everywhere, regardless of whether it is healthy for others. We are told not to ask whether the animal is a service animal for fear of offending the patient and being accused of discriminating against those with disabilities. Having an untrained animal in the clinic is not healthy or sanitary. Many of our patients come in with real medical problems, and are then subjected to a waiting room with an animal circus. The trained service animals that come into our clinic are welcome. I wish the others would be kept at home. Train Your Animals Dear Train: Service animals are trained and acceptable (and legal) everywhere. The problem is untrained comfort animals, still a gray area. Who gets precedence the person claiming an emotional disability requiring a comfort animal or his neighbor in the condo with a serious traumatic aversion to dogs? Or a child with a life-threatening allergy? We dont have the answers and right now, it seems no one else does, either. Annies Mailbox is written by Kathy Mitchell and Marcy Sugar, longtime editors of the Ann Landers column. Please email your questions to anniesmailbox@comcast.net, or write to: Annies Mailbox, c/o Creators Syndicate, 737 3rd Street, Hermosa Beach, CA 90254. Dear Annie: My wife and I have been married for 22 years and have two wonderful children. We both have college degrees and full-time jobs. I am an optimistic introvert, and she is a pessimistic extrovert. We have never been close to each other socially. We have different interest and physical abilities. We also dont communicate much, even on important issues. I think conversations should be short and to the point, my wife can go on and on. She doesnt even try anymore because she believes I have no interest. Our sex life is almost nonexistent. She has no interest in any type of intimacy. We both contribute to the problems, and I want to change this. I want to be closer and find common ground. But when I suggested counseling, she refused. She says everyone she knows who has tried therapy has ended up in divorce court. She thinks if I ask for counseling, it means I want a divorce. This puts me between a rock and a hard place. What would you suggest? Stymied Husband Dear Stymied: We wonder how you two ever ended up married for 22 years. While it is true that some couples enter counseling as a pretense to justify divorce, a good counselor will not deliberately steer you in that direction. Weve printed many letters from people saying that counseling saved their relationships by helping each person express themselves clearly so that positive changes could be made. Your wife has to trust you enough to believe that you want to salvage your marriage. Please show her this letter and tell her you wrote it. Say how much you want to be closer, and ask her to come with you for counseling so both of you can find a way back to each other. We hope she will cooperate. Dear Annie: I want to respond to Wondering Mom about women who nurse their children without covering up. My 8-year-old son recently was exposed to a woman openly breastfeeding in my gyms daycare. He came home and asked me if he could get a drink from my breasts. I wish these women would respect my right as a parent to be present when my child is exposed to such things so I can explain whats happening. Not in Front of My Kid Please Dear Not: Your son is old enough to know that babies nurse, especially in a daycare center at the gym, which is not the same as whipping off your top at the local coffee shop. A mother is not going to wait to nurse her child until other parents are present to explain things. Here are a couple more letters on that subject: Dear Annie: What about a child who becomes so overwhelming hot, no matter how light the cover-up, that she pushes it aside? My daughter constantly exposes me in public and theres nothing I can do about it. Poughkeepsie Dear Annie: I nursed both of my children. I either covered the baby with my shirttail or used a light blanket to shield myself. I nursed in church, in front of the pastor during his sermon, and he had no clue. I agree that the naked from the waist up trend is pushing the right to nurse in our faces, and is not really a benefit for the child. Breastfeeding is wonderful, but not everyone has to watch. Illinois Annies Mailbox is written by Kathy Mitchell and Marcy Sugar, longtime editors of the Ann Landers column. Please email your questions to anniesmailbox@comcast.net, or write to: Annies Mailbox, c/o Creators Syndicate, 737 3rd Street, Hermosa Beach, CA 90254. Communities Across Colorado Engage in 100-Day Challenge to House Veterans Experiencing Homelessness After participating in the Coming Home Colorado Action Lab on Feb. 3 4, five Colorado communities have committed to collectively house 290 veterans experiencing homelessness over the next 100 days. Community Teams representing Colorado Springs, Fremont County, Fort Collins, Montrose County, and Weld County have each developed a 100-day Action Plan based on the unique challenges that each community faces in identifying homeless veterans and rapidly connecting them with housing and supportive services. Created by the Office of Governor John Hickenlooper and the Department of Human Services Office of Behavioral Health in partnership with the national technical assistance provider Community Solutions, the Action Lab is part of the ongoing State and National effort to make Veteran Homelessness rare, brief, and non-recurring. Veterans make up 10 percent of Colorados Homeless Population. While homelessness is something that can happen to anyone, it represents a failure on every level when the men and women who have served our nation dont have a safe place to call home, said Jamie Van Leeuwen, Senior Advisor to Governor Hickenlooper as he spoke to Community Team members. The 100-Day Challenge, which ends on May 18th, provides an opportunity for teams to implement or refine Coordinated Assessment and Housing Placement (CAHP) systems, a strategy that focuses on prioritizing individuals based on vulnerability, creating a by-name list of Veterans experiencing homelessness, and tracking housing placements Not only has this strategy proved effective in communities across Colorado and the nation, the data and outcomes it provides will help create a framework for effectively serving other homeless subpopulations including the chronically homeless, youth, and families. By adopting a coordinated, collaborative, and systems-based approach we can ensure that every Veteran has a roof over their head and every community has the tools in place to keep Veterans from sliding back into homelessness, said Rick Garcia, Regional Administrator, Region VIII, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. As part of this effort, a Leadership Team with representation from local and State agencies have partnered with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to ensure the appropriate coordination of resources and programs and to support Community Teams in their efforts. Those interested in volunteering to be part of this initiative to end veteran homelessness in Fremont County are invited to attend an informational meeting from 1-2:30 p.m. March 3 at the Evangelical Free Church, 3000 E. Main St. Rialtos Light, Camera, Action Part 2 The historic Rialto Theater in Florence will once again experience lights, camera and action as a videotaping outside the theater is planned for Feb. 28 beginning at 7 p.m. Local talent, dressed in period clothing and vintage automobiles will portray the opening of the theater in 1923. The approximate three-minute film will be used for a major fundraising initiative which is scheduled to kick off in mid-March to match the Larry and Beryl Baker up to $50,000 donation. Main Street between Maple and Santa Fe will be closed during the taping. An alternate date in case of technical delays or adverse weather is planned for March 6. The Sunday dates and times were chosen for minimum impact on retail business and alternate traffic routes. Casting is being provided by the Fremont Civic Theatre under the direction of Rialto board member Keith Larsen and Red Brick Players (Drew Frady). Lee Albright Films, Florence will be filming and producing the video http://www.albrightfilms.com/About_Us.html. The public is invited to watch and observe the filming and community members are encouraged to dress in period clothing. Extras are not needed at this time. Daily Record Staff YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 24, ARMENPRESS. Vladimir Putin had a telephone conversation with King of Saudi Arabia Salman bin Abdulaziz al-Saud on February 24, during which he gave a detailed explanation of the proposals put forward in the Russian-US joint statement on the settlement of the Syrian crisis. As Armenpress reports, this was announced by the Kremlins press service. The King of Saudi Arabia welcomed the agreement and expressed his readiness to work together with Russia to implement them. The two leaders agreed to continue contacts on this matter the statement says. Putin previously spoke to the Saudi King on February 19. Earlier on February 24, Putin had a conversation with his Syrian counterpart Bashar Assad. The US and Russia made a joint statement on February 22, which says that the ceasefire will come into effect on February 27, at 00:00 Damascus time. The statement says that the ceasefire agreement excludes the terrorist organizations ISIS and Jabhat Al-Nusra, as well as other terrorist organizations designated by the UN Security Council. When ya gotta go, ya gotta go, even in the middle of an emergency situation. Students and staff in all Canon City schools will have one less thing to worry about now thanks in part to a donation from the Colorado State Penitentiary, Centennial Correctional Facility and the Colorado Department of Corrections Training Academy who raised $4,710 to purchase emergency classroom lockdown kits for district. They presented the funds to the district in September. The kits, distributed to classrooms this week, are equipped with essentials to allow a class of 30 people to get through an extended lockdown situation. Each kit contains a tarp, duct tape, toilet paper, wet naps, hand sanitizer, air freshener, latex gloves, a First-Aid kit, toilet bags with powdered chemical, an emergency bright stick and water purification tablets, all contained in a five-gallon bucket with a toilet seat lid. During a lockdown, staff and students are required to move away from sight, maintain silence and wait for a responder to open the door because a threat could be inside the building. The process could be hours long. This is the next step to making sure our kids are safe and able to take care of their needs in an extended situation, said Paula Buser, director of Support Services for the Canon City School District. It takes an element of worry away for not only the students, but also for the teachers, that they do have the means to take care of personal needs. Schools do take part in lockdown drills, but Canon City Middle School this school year has had two instances where a panic alarm was pushed, once intentionally by a student, and once accidentally, causing the school to go into lockdown mode while law enforcement searched the buildings room by room making sure there was no threat. If you have a student who really needs to use the restroom, all we can say is no, just wait, so this gives us an opportunity to keep the kids safe and not have the embarrassment of wetting themselves when we are trying to keep them safe, said Dale Miller, social studies teacher at CCMS. Jesse Oliver, dean of students at CCMS, said the kits will help students be less anxious during a lockdown, whether its an accidental or real event. I hope we never have to use them in a real event, Buser said, but it sure does bring a sense of comfort to know they are there. A total of 336 kits were purchased at the cost of $50 each. In addition to the DOC donation, the balance of the purchase was paid for by funds earmarked for the kits and Busers safety and security budget. Schools also are encouraged to supplement the kits with potable water and non-perishable snacks. Carie Canterbury: 719-276-7643, canterburyc@canoncitydailyrecord.com Rep. Joe Salazar, who calls himself one of the states leading progressive voices, announced Saturday hes endorsing Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders to be the 2016 Democratic presidential nominee. Salazar, D-Thornton, said he feels Sanders is the best choice for Colorado. Last year, Salazar co-sponsored a bill with Rep. Jovan Melton, D-Aurora, to create a subcommittee in the Colorado Commission of Indian Affairs to review the use of American Indian mascots at schools. In January, he introduced legislation to change the name of the Columbus Day state holiday to Indigenous Peoples Day. I think (Sanders) has a better vision, and hes been talking about it the past 40 or 50 years, Salazar said. Hes not the politician who accepts campaign contributions from the wealthiest of America. I have a high degree of respect for Secretary (Hillary) Clinton, but I think Sanders best represents what is needed in Colorado. Salazars endorsement shows Sanders can appeal to Latinos, a coveted voting bloc in Colorado and across the country. The Associated Press reported Saturday that Latino voters are expected to be about 12 percent of the electorate in November. Both Sanders and Clinton are courting Latino voters. Clintons daughter, Chelsea, and actress America Ferrera met with a Latina coffee group Friday in Denver to discuss key issues for that community. On Saturday, Clinton narrowly defeated Sanders in the Nevada caucuses. A large majority of blacks supported Clinton, an outcome that bodes well for her in the upcoming Southern primaries. But Latino voters were closely divided between the two. Salazar said he was particularly excited about Sanders infrastructure plan that would help the states economy while fixing roads and his free public college tuition plan. We have to dream big because America is built off big dreams, he said. Im not hearing that from Secretary Clinton. What I hear from her is typically what I hear from the other side of the aisle: You may have big dreams, but theyre not realistic. Concerned with traffic flow on Main Street Now that the improvements have been completed to downtown, the paving and parking and sidewalk expansion done, and the traffic lights removed, I have a concern with regard to the traffic flow east and west on Main Street. Without any traffic control devices in place, drivers can now drive from First to Ninth streets without stopping. Although Colorado Law states traffic must yield to pedestrians in a crosswalk, this is definitely NOT the case, and drivers will continue on without stopping and usually at a pretty good rate of speed. I would like to know if the city has any plans for addressing this issue, either by installing pedestrian crossing signs in the crosswalks or an increase in police presence? Along with filling up the many now empty buildings with shopper-friendly businesses, a key component of downtown revitalization would be to encourage more safe pedestrian traffic along the Main Street corridor. I am of the opinion having vehicles stop for pedestrians in the crosswalks would be but one way of accomplishing this goal. Ron Zenisky, Canon City YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 24, ARMENPRESS. Regular session of Export Promotion Council chaired by PM Hovik Abrahamyan took place at the Government on February 24. As Armenpress was informed from the Information and Public Relations Department of the Government, a number of proposals by various companies for the promotion of exports were submitted for discussion. Details over the activities of the interested companies were introduced. Exchange of ideas over the proposals took place. It was mentioned that those companies have export potentials and state assistance will significantly reinforce their production capacity and foster exports. Afterwards, a number of export issues were discussed. PM Abrahamyan highlighted the activity of Export Promotion Council which will render operative assistance to exporting companies withing short period and precise methods. [Your Business Name] Contact Info Phone: Fax: Email: Web: CAPITOLHILLCUBANS.COM Business Overview Geographic Area Line of Business Brands We Carry Products and Services Discounts Offered Additional Information Business Hours Timezone We Accept Three college students who first met while attending a Catholic high school in Florida have launched a scholarship fund to help others experience faithful Catholic education at a Newman Guide college. As we went off to different colleges, we kept in touch and found time to catch up whenever we returned [] YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 24, ARMENPRESS. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced that the US, Russia, Iran, EU and the UN are being dishonest regarding the ceasefire agreement in Syria, Armenpress reports, citing Reuters. Previously Erdogan stated that his country has the right to military actions against terrorists not only in Syria, but wherever there are credible terrorist threats. The self-conceited Turkish president was angered by the fact that at the time when the ceasefire agreement was being reached, the leading countries did not only exclude Turkey from participating, but also ignored its various statements regarding taking action in Syria by the Turkish authorities. 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. UCO Bank has released a notification on the recruitment happening. These are the posts they are calling for Law Officer & Engineer Posts. To know more about pay scale, eligibility, how to apply, selection procedure and important dates scroll down. Name of the post and Number of posts allocated 1. Law Officer: 21 2. Engineer: 4 Who is Eligible for the Law Officer & Engineer posts? Qualification: Law Officer: Degree in Law (pass with minimum 55% marks) having 3 Years or 5 Years integrated course from a recognized University/Institute. Engineer: Civil Engineers - Degree in Civil Engineering Electrical Engineer - Degree in Electrical Engineering The degree must be from a recognized University / Institution with 60% marks. Candidates with post graduate degree will be preferred. Age Limit Law Officer: 28-35 years Engineer: 21-30 years How Candidates are Selected for Law Officer & Engineer posts? The selection will be made through the online test conducted by IBPS and interview conducted by Bank followed by interview. How to Apply for Law Officer & Engineer posts? Interested candidates in the above job can apply to the post through the prescribed format. The applications can be sent along with other necessary documents. What is the Application Fee? General & Others: Rs 600 SC/ST/PWD: Rs 100 What are the Important Dates Associated with job/post? UCO Bank job has listed out the important dates for the posts which they are recruiting. Below are the details. Last Date for Submission of Application: 15th March 2016. Admit Card, results and all other details can be found from the official website Also Read: About UCO Bank: UCO Bank some time ago United Business Bank, built up in 1943 in Kolkata, is a noteworthy government-claimed business bank of India. Amid FY 2013-14, its aggregate business was 4.55 lakh crore. In view of 2014 information, it is positioned 1860 on Forbes Worldwide 2000 Rundown. UCO Bank was positioned 294th among India's most trusted brands as indicated by the Brand Trust Report 2014, a study directed by Trust Research Admonitory. It was an ascent of 796 positions thinking of it as was recorded at the 1090th position among India's most trusted brands in the Brand trust Report 2013. Starting 6 January 2013 the bank had 4,000 or more administration units 49 zonal workplaces spread all over India. It likewise has two abroad branches, on each in Singapore and Hong Kong. UCO Bank's headquarters is on BTM Sarani, Kolkata. EREVAN, FEBRUARY 24, ARMENPRESS. According to the Ministry of Territorial Administration and Emergency Situations (MTAES) of the Republic of Armenia (RA), on February 24 by 17.00 all state and interstate highways in the Republic are mainly passable. Armenpress was informed from the Armenian MTAES that Vardenyats Mountain Pass is covered with ice. Sotk-Karvachar highway is difficult to pass. As the department of ES of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of The Republic of Georgia informs Stepantsminda-Larsi highway is open. Runners & walkers dash around Delphi The Do It In Delphi Dash was Saturday morning with the 5K walk/run beginning downtown on the Courthouse Square. The... Special prosecutor issues report on Liggett campaign The Comet sponsored a sheriffs candidate debate on Sept. 29. After the debate, Sheriff candidate and deputy Tony Liggett provided... Delphi Council member Conner resigns post It has been an upward struggle for Delphi City Council member Gayle Conner to represent her constituents as witnessed at... YEREVAN, February 24, ARMENPRESS. Armenian government has quite extensive projects with Iran and measures are being taken to improve the overall situation and the development of new programs and projects after the cancellation of sanctions, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources of the Republic of Armenia Yervand Zakharyan said during the question and answer session with the government. The President also held a consultation recently and there was Presidents clear indication on further development of ourrelations with Iran in all sectors of the economy, Zakharyan emphasized, Armenpress reports. According to him, at present, the construction of a third high-voltage transmission line is also included in the works carried out in the energy system, which is planned for 2018. Gasification works of Meghri and Agarak communities are also included in the mentioned works which will be also finished in the near future; until this winter. Armenian Minister of Transport and Communication also visited Iran recently and memorandum related to connecting railways of Armenia and Iran was signed. The memorandum was signed only recently, and I do not think that Iran, which is already free from sanctions, would allow itself to sign a memorandum of understanding, which will be considered as non-implementable project after a month. These are issues on the agenda both for Armenia and Iran. The discussions are underway, the minister said. Zakaryan added that efforts are underway by the Ministry of Agriculture in order to engage additional contracts and works in the sector. With less than a week left until Geneva Auto Show opens its gates for the media, Bugatti has released a new teaser with the anticipated Veyron successor. The image, posted on Facebook, doesnt reveal much, except for the signature horseshoe grille and the countdown until the manufacturer will pull the covers off its body, next Tuesday, on March 1, at 09.45 CET. Previous data indicate that the design of the Chiron will be very close to the Vision Gran Turismo concept, minus the large rear wing, which will be replaced by an air brake similar to the one found on its predecessor. The Veyrons 8.0-liter quad-turbo W16 engine will reportedly be adopted by the new hypercar in an upgraded form, capable of producing up to 1,500PS (1,479hp) and 1,500Nm (1,107lb-ft) of torque, enough to propel the machine from a standstill to 100km/h (62mph) in roughly 2.3 seconds and up to a top speed of 470km/h (290mph). The numbers are yet to be confirmed, as Bugatti hasnt announced anything just yet apart for its name and the fact that it will debut at the Swiss event. However, if reports turn out to be true, then most of the 500 units assigned for production have been already sold. PHOTO GALLERY A 43-year old CarMax salesman lost his life after a customer, who is believed to have been under the influence of drugs, lost control and crashed a red Corvette during a test drive. Quoting police sources, KTLA reports that the incident occurred Tuesday around noon, near the CarMax used car center in Ontario, California, when 28-year old Alex Demetro, from Union city, was driving the car at a high rate of speed. Witnesses claim the Corvette was being driven at more than 70mph (113km/h), when the driver lost control and crashed into a tree. The aftermath of the accident left victim Warren Smale in the passenger seat, while Demetro was reportedly sitting on the ground, holding his shoulder. Smale was transported to San Antonio Regional Hospital, in critical condition, but was later pronounced dead. Its part of our job, the test drives. I know Warren he probably had no clue, Im sure commented Lydia Garret, co-worker. Today is an incredibly sad day for the CarMax family. Our hearts and prayers go out to our associates family. CarMax is working closely with the authorities on the investigation, CarMax said in a statement. Police did not say if Demetro suffered any injuries, but he was taken into custody on suspicion of vehicular manslaughter and felony driving under the influence of drugs. He is currently held in a San Bernardino jail and will appear in court on Thursday. Bail was apparently set at $100,000. VIDEO Porsches 718 Boxster is heading to Geneva , but before it makes its live debut, the Germans want to show us a new video focusing on its design. Even though Porsche claims extensive revisions on the outside, blink and youll probably miss most of them, except perhaps for the new headlights with integrated daytime running lights, standard bi-xenon and optional full LED. At the rear, the Porsche lettering is flanked by new LED 3d taillights, while theres also an updated bumper that gained an incorporated diffuser with a central-mounted dual-exhaust pipe. As for the interior, theres a redesigned instrument panel, an improved Porsche Communication Management infotainment system and a revised steering wheel. As with most Porsche model updates, its more about what cant be seen with a naked eye, starting with the powertrains, as a 2.0-liter four-banger replaces the naturally aspirated flat-six 2.7-liter in the base version producing an extra 35hp and 100Nm (74lb-ft), with a 2.5-liter turbo four replacing the normally-aspirated 3.4-liter flat-six in the Boxster S offering an additional 35hp and 60Nm (44lb-ft). Engineers have also enhanced steering directness by 10 percent, tweaked the chassis to improve its cornering abilities while the PASM system can drop the cars ride height by 10mm or 20mm with the Sport Chassis option. The Sport Chrono Package was tweaked too and it offers Normal, Sport and Sport Plus modes on models equipped with optional PDK. VIDEO The fracas saga has officially ended with Jeremy Clarkson making a public apology and paying around 100,000 to Oisin Tymon, the Top Gear producer who was attacked in the famous incident. Tymon who suffered a split lip as a result of the assault is to withdraw a personal injury and racial discrimination claim as he was seeking a six-figure sum in damages. Jeremy Clarkson released a statement today saying: I would like to say sorry, once again, to Oisin Tymon for the incident and its regrettable aftermath. I want to reiterate that none of this was in any way his fault. I would also like to make it clear that the abuse he has suffered since the incident is unwarranted and I am sorry too that he has had to go through that. I am pleased that this matter is now resolved. Oisin was always a creatively exciting part of Top Gear and I wish him every success with his future projects. The true figure of the settlement remains confidential but it is said to be in the low six-figures. Tymon will return to work at the BBC after months off work. Mr Tymons lawyer, Paul Daniels said to UKs Telegraph: The action involving Mr Tymon has been concluded. Oisin is keen to put the matter behind him now that it has been brought to a close. Oisin greatly appreciates all of the support he has received, including from the BBC. He remains focused on the creative work he loves at the BBC. PHOTO GALLERY Despite being introduced last year in Frankfurt, the new S4 will arrive on the European market this summer. The S4 Sedan is priced at 59,300 and the S4 Avant at 61,150 ($67,405). Extensive standard equipment found across the range include LED lighting units, 18-inch wheels in the S-specific design, leather-wrapped 3-spoke sport steering wheel and Alcantara/leather upholstery for the sport seats. The MMI Navigation Plus with MMI touch and 8.3-inch monitor integrates Audi Connect hardware component, which connects the S4 to the internet via LTE and allows passengers to use their mobile devices to surf the web, thanks to the integrated Wi-Fi hotspot. Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility is also included, along with a large range of music from iTunes and Google Play Music, different functions such as WhatsApp, Spotify and Pandora and Bang&Olufsen sound system with available 3D sound. A 3.0-liter TFSI V6, with 354PS (349hp) and 500Nm (369lb-ft) of torque, allows the S4 to sprint from 0-100km/h (62mph) in 4.7seconds (4.9sec for the S4 Avant) and up to an electronically limited top speed of 250km/h (155mph). In the NEDC cycle, the four-door consumes 7.4 lt/100km (31.8mpg US) and the estate 7.5 lt/100km (31.4mpg US). CO2 emissions stand at 170g/km and 175g/km, respectively. Sending power to the Quattro permanent all-wheel drive is an 8-speed tiptronic transmission, while the standard 18-inch alloys (or optional 19-inch ones)house 350 mm front brake discs, internally-vented and perforated, gripped by standard black or optional red six-piston calipers. PHOTO GALLERY YEREVAN, February 24, ARMENPRESS. World Banks allocated $ 30 million credit funds for the improvement of the Armenian energy system are not planned for allocating to private companies, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources of the Republic of Armenia Yervand Zakharyan said during the question and answer session with the government, responding to Armenian National Congress (ANC) Faction MP Aram Manukyans question. Explanations of Electric Networks of Armenia and the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources on the loan, provided by the World Bank, do not differ, except for one sentence that statement of the Ministry has not mentioned the new buyer has nothing to do with the created financial gap, the Minister said, Armenpress reports. Zakharyan added that the financial gap was formed by the end of 2014 and the loan is drawn to provide an opportunity to regulate the financial gap in the energy sector. VW has released the new Caddy TGI BlueMotion DSG, the first natural gas-sipping model in the segment with a double-clutch gearbox. The new VW Caddy TGIs engine will burn either CNG or bio-natural gas and is available both in short wheelbase and Maxi versions. The 1.4TGI engine is based on a TSI unit thats been modified to run on compressed natural gas. The available power is 108hp (110PS) at 4800-6000rpm with maximum torque rated at 200Nm (147lb ft) between 1500 and 3500rpm. The cylinder head, valve train, crank drive, pistons, lines and valves have been adapted, among others, to the requirements of the natural gas fuel. VWs latest addition to the BlueMotion family comes with a six-speed manual gearbox as standard, leaving the double-clutch DSG transmission in the options list. The Caddy TGI has four high-pressures tanks mounted under the floor which can hold 26kg of natural gas and a 13-litre petrol tank. The bigger Caddy Maxi has five tanks with a total capacity of 37kg. The under-floor mounting of them means that cargo space remains unchanged from the other models in the range. VW claims a combined natural gas consumption of 4.1kg/100km for the short wheelbase version and 4.3kg/100km for the Caddy Maxi. The driving range on offer can reach 630km (390 miles), or 860km (534 miles) in the pure gas mode. CO2 emissions for the short-wheelbase version are 112g/km (DSG: 123g/km) and 116g/km for the Maxi version (DSG: 126g/km). The new VW Caddy TGI DSG will arrive at the European dealerships at the beginning of June 2016, while the adventurous Alltrack version can also be ordered with a 1.4TGI engine fitted. The commercial version of the Caddy TGI is priced from 22,978 euros in Germany, with the DSG version asking for 25,000 euros. Passenger versions will start at 23,425 euros for the manual and 25,448 for the DSG. The new VW Caddy TGI DSG is scheduled to make its first public appearance at the Geneva Motor Show. PHOTO GALLERY A funny thing happened today; someone contacted us to communicate the sale of an order slot for the 2017 Acura NSX. I have a legitimate paid deposit slot from July 26, 2012 with documentation up for sale on eBay, eBay seller spa_yellow wrote to us in an email. Ive decided to get a 2nd Lamborghini instead. The listing went live on eBay on Sunday, February 21, with the 2017 Acura NSX slot owner starting the bid from $50,000 with a Buy it now price of $100,000. Unsurprisingly to us, there were zero bids on eBay at the time of posting. And yes, thats basically just for cutting in front of the line to order the car from a specific Minneapolis Acura dealer, with the NSX itself to cost you anywhere from $156,000 to $205,700 extra. This lad originally paid $500 to purportedly secure a spot for the car at the dealer, back in July of 2012 thats a solid 10,000% to 20,000% profit in less than four years, if, of course, someone coughs up that cash I have the official deposit and spot secured via the attached doc/image, he writes on eBay. It is for order slot #1 at Buerkle Acura located in Minneapolis where I originally purchased one of the last new 2003 NSX. I cannot confirm, but all indication is that this may very well be the very first paid secured spot for the new 2016/2017 Acura NSX in the country based on the date that I signed this deposit. I also have the email confirmation from the dealership confirming my #1 spot. Both the actual doc (minus the black out security marks) and the email from the dealership will be provided upon the winning bid or buy-now commitment. Quick note here, its definitely not going to be the first production car to land in consumer hands, as Acura itself auctioned off the NSX VIN #1 for charity at the Barrett-Jacksons Scottsdale even in January. According to Acura spokesperson Jessica Fini, there is no such thing as an official cue for orders, though dealers can and have independently accepted deposits for their own allocations. Ive seen people sell there spots on Craigslist too, Fini told Carscoops. Theres no official waitlist or cue for NSX orders. All orders start on February 25th. I have heard of dealers starting waiting lists and taking deposits but none of that is officially supported through Acura. Fini explained that Acura has given specific NSX allocations to select dealers who meet certain criteria throughout the country. If and just how many deposits dealers may have accepted, remains unknown, as they do it independently from Acura, but any buyer with the least bit of sense would contact the brands retailers before even considering to pay anyone for a slot swap even more so when that someone is asking for half the price of the car Plus, dont forget that youre not limited to ordering a vehicle from dealers in your specific State, as youre free to shop around the country. Acura plans to build around 800 NSXs a year at its new dedicated Performance Manufacturing Center (PMC) in Marysville, Ohio, but Fini said that the company can adjust production according to demand. Photo Gallery Photo: Contributed - Andrew E Weber Usually when the topic of memory comes up, I am writing about ways to enhance it or how to identify and deal with signs of memory loss associated with age or the onset of conditions such as Alzheimers. Research is often focused on preserving memory and stopping the brain deterioration that causes symptoms such as forgetfulness, but there are instances when it would be helpful to enhance our ability to forget experiences. One study may prove valuable for just that. Researchers from MIT uncovered information about the way our brains work to extinguish or replace memories. It turns out there may be a gene for forgetting - and it could lead to new treatments for difficult conditions such as post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or addictions. A gene known as Tet1 appears to be very important in the process of memory extinction, and after studying its effects in mice, researchers believe that if we can learn to enhance the activity of this gene, it could be beneficial to PTSD patients or others needing to replace fearful memories with more positive associations. In these studies, normal mice were compared to mice with the Tet1 genes removed. When it came to learning or creating new memories, both groups of mice were the same. However, the mice without the Tet1 genes were unable to extinguish an old memory. Normal mice could be taught to fear a particular cage, then gradually extinguish that fear after several positive exposures to the feared space. In the mice with no Tet1 gene, repeated positive exposures did not erase the previously learned fear. These studies taught on the way Tet1 affects gene expression in the brain, and how this process can affect the brains ability to re-learn. Research is ongoing, but early findings offer considerable promise for future potential treatments in the areas of PTSD or addiction. If we can find a safe and effective means of enhancing the activity of Tet1 genes, we will have a novel approach to helping people with these difficult conditions. Current behavioural treatment for PTSD and some anxiety disorders attempts to help patients to condition their brains reaction to stimuli that can trigger unpleasant associations. If there were an artificial way to boost this effect, we would likely have a much higher success rate with these and some other conditions. It will be interesting to see what else this research uncovers, and what will be learned about the way the brain creates, stores, and erases memories. This article is written by or on behalf of an outsourced columnist and does not necessarily reflect the views of Castanet. Photo: Thinkstock.com Sand and other winter traction materials are causing dust problems in the North Okanagan. So much so, the Ministry of Environment has issued a dust warning for the City of Vernon. The warning was issued because of the high concentration of dust expected to persist in the area until there is a change in weather conditions. According to the Ministry, current 24 hour average PM10 concentrations are 60 micrograms per cubic metre and exceed the provincial objective of 50 micrograms per cubic metre, averaged over 24 hours. To reduce your health risk, you are advised to do the following: Avoid roads with heavy vehicle traffic. If you stay indoors, keep windows and doors closed and reduce indoor sources of pollution, such as smoking, vacuuming and use of wood stoves. Continue to control medical conditions such as asthma, hay fever and chronic respiratory disease. If symptoms continue to be bothersome, seek medical attention. Maintaining good overall health is a good way to prevent health effects resulting from short-term exposure to air pollution. Exposure is particularly a concern for infants, the elderly and those who have underlying medical conditions such as breathing or lung conditions, hay fever, asthma or persons who react strongly to dust. Photo: Contributed A public service board has granted an Ottawa bureaucrat the right to work in a different building from a loud and flatulent co-worker who swore, uttered odd noises and even washed his bare feet with vinegar in the office. Line Emond, a data quality manager at the Parole Board of Canada, has been granted the right to a new workplace in a decision by the Public Service Labour Relations and Employment Board. Emond filed a grievance claiming that the behaviour of her co-worker, identified only as Mr. X, made her ill. Mr. X arrived in Emond's office in the fall of 2009 and Emond took sick leave in August 2011 and was on disability leave until March 2013. At one point, Mr. X filed a grievance against Emond, which was upheld in part. Emond complained that her employer had failed to deal with her grievance properly. Other workers testified about Mr. X's strange behaviour, including making "bizarre noises, such as strange yawns," walking around the office barefoot and washing his feet with vinegar in front of others "who found it disgusting." A lawyer for the government said it appeared the dispute was a personality conflict, not a matter of illness and incapacity. A doctor testified that Emond demonstrated a high anxiety level about the co-worker and felt threatened. The arbitration ruling said there was a clear clash. "Counsel maintained that the evidence is abundantly clear about Mr. X's abusive behaviour and his negative and harmful effect on the grievor," the ruling said. "For example, all the witnesses described him as being physically imposing and behaving strangely, inappropriately, and abusively in the workplace." Linda Gobeil, the arbitrator, ruled that Emond should be moved to another building and ordered that she be reimbursed for salary and benefits lost during her a portion of her time on long-term disability. "I find it hard to believe that a cubicle could not be found in Ottawa in which the grievor could work," Gobeil wrote. YEREVAN, February 24, ARMENPRESS. Armenian Revolutionary Federation will assume the governance of 2 regions and 3 ministries of Armenia, ARF Supreme Council of Armenia representative Aghvan Vardanyan announced after the signing of Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF)-Republican Party of Armenia (RA) political agreement, during the briefing with reporters. We will assume the governance of Shirak and Aragatsotn provinces, as well as the Ministry of Economy, Ministry of Territorial Administration and the Ministry of Education and Science, he said, Armenpress reports. According to Aghvan Vardanyan, Hovsep Simonyan will assume the post of governor of Shirak and Gagik Gurzadyan - the post of governor of Aragatsotn province. Artsvik Minasyan will be the Minister of Economy, Davit Loqyan - Minister of Territorial Administration and Levon Mkrtchyan - Minister of Education and Science, ARF MP added. The Republican Party of Armenia (RPA) and the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF) signed a political cooperation agreement at the Armenian Presidential residence on February 24. Aghvan Vardanyan of the ARF Supreme Council and RPA Vice-Chairman Armen Ashotyan signed the agreement. As the parties point out the agreement lays foundation of long-term cooperation. YEREVAN, February 24, ARMENPRESS. According to the decree of Armenian Republics President Serzh Sargsyan, Armen Ashotyan was dismissed from the post of Armenian Minister of education and Science, Armenpress was informed from the Department of Mass Media and Public Relations of the Armenian Presidents Office. According to the Presidents another decree, Levon Mkrtchyan was appointed the Minister of Education and Science of the Republic of Armenia. CDC adds 2 destinations to interim travel guidance related to Zika virus Media Statement For Immediate Release: Tuesday, February 23, 2016 Contact: Media Relations, (404) 639-3286 CDC is working with other public health officials to monitor for ongoing Zika virus transmission. Today, CDC added the following destinations to the Zika virus travel notices: Trinidad and Tobago and the Marshall Islands. CDC has issued a travel notice (Level 2-Practice Enhanced Precautions) for people traveling to regions and certain countries where Zika virus transmission is ongoing. For a full list of affected countries/regions: http://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/page/zika-travel-information. Specific areas where Zika virus transmission is ongoing are often difficult to determine and are likely to continue to change over time. As more information becomes available, CDC travel notices will be updated. Travelers to areas where cases of Zika virus infection have been recently confirmed are at risk of being infected with the Zika virus. Mosquitoes that spread Zika are aggressive daytime biters. They also bite at night. There is no vaccine or medicine available for Zika virus. The best way to avoid Zika virus infection is to prevent mosquito bites. Some travelers to areas with ongoing Zika virus transmission will become infected while traveling but will not become sick until they return home and they might not have any symptoms. To stop the spread of Zika, travelers should use insect repellent for three weeks after travel to prevent mosquito bites. Some people who are infected do not have any symptoms. People who do have symptoms have reported fever, rash, joint pain, and red eyes. Other commonly reported symptoms include muscle pain and headache. The illness is usually mild with symptoms lasting from several days to a week. Severe disease requiring hospitalization is uncommon and the number of deaths is low. Travelers to areas with ongoing Zika virus transmission should monitor for symptoms or illness upon return. If they become sick, they should tell their healthcare professional where they have traveled and when. Until more is known, CDC continues to recommend that pregnant women and women trying to become pregnant take the following precautions. Pregnant women Consider postponing travel to any area where Zika virus transmission is ongoing. If you must travel to or live in one of these areas, talk to your healthcare provider first and strictly follow steps to prevent mosquito bites. If you have a male partner who lives in or has traveled to an area where Zika transmission is ongoing, either abstain from sex or use condoms consistently and correctly for the duration of your pregnancy. Women trying to get pregnant Before you or your male partner travel, talk to your healthcare provider about your plans to become pregnant and the risk of Zika virus infection. You and your male partner should strictly follow steps to prevent mosquito bites. Guillain-Barre syndrome (GBS) has been reported in patients with probable Zika virus infection in French Polynesia and Brazil. Research efforts underway will also examine the link between Zika and GBS. ### U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICESexternal icon Apply This takes you to the NIRSAL MFB window of NYIF YEREVAN, February 24, ARMENPRESS. According to the decree of Armenian Republics President Serzh Sargsyan, Karen Chshmaritian was dismissed from the post of Armenian Minister of Economy, Armenpress was informed from the Department of Mass Media and Public Relations of the Armenian Presidents Office. According to the Presidents another decree, Artsvik Minasyan was appointed the Minister of Economy of the Republic of Armenia. About Me ARROWSA: Art, Culture and Heritage for Peace (Reg 088-058 NPO) ARROW(Art a Resource for Reconciliation Over the World)SA focuses on projects with predominantly youth in Durban, nationally and internationally in affiliation with Indra Congress: International development of the arts for Reconciliation. Projects include: -ARROWSA Bechet twice weekly arts meetings held at Bechet High Sydenham. -Research, action research, in association with the CCMS, UKZN -Educational programmes and Applied Storytelling in association with the Durban Local History Museums, and other museums. - Educational programmes in association with The Palmiet Nature Reserve, Westville, Durban -Rock engraving recording projects - e.g.National Heritage Council funded project in collaboration with CCMS, UKZN - Annual Intercultural exchange exhibition in collaboration with DUT jewellery students -National intercultural exchange trips in association with members of the Kalahari community and Western Cape theatre for development group, South Roots. - International intercultural exchange trips in affiliation with Indra Congress. View my complete profile Picking up a pencil, pen and brush again. Trying new techniques and maybe developing my own style. This blog features information related to Asian Studies at GW. If youre a student whos gotten a job or internship, won an award, published a paper, won a fellowship or traveled someplace interesting, we want to know! We will also feature information about grants and fellowships you can apply for, jobs, internships, and relevant events in town, as well as information about courses, the Asian Studies program, and our faculty. AUBURN The Cayuga County Legislature has charged District Attorney Jon Budelmann with reworking the budget trajectory of the Crimes Against Revenue Program grant at its full monthly meeting Tuesday night. In order to give Budelmann some time to rework how the office may spend the funds, Chairman Keith Batman called a recess until 6 p.m. Thursday. The grant in question totals about $321,000 spread out in about $107,000 increments each year. It helps the district attorney's office prosecute numerous fiscal crimes including welfare fraud, tax fraud, workers compensation fraud and the like. Legislators at the Ways and Means Committee meeting last week had voted not to accept the grant from the state because County Administrator Suzanne Sinclair said the program cost the county money in 2015. She projected it to cost the county about $74,000 this year. Budelmann expected the $107,000, which had funded three county employees, to run out by this July. He had proposed revisiting the program prior to July to see if new funding was available to carry it until the end of the year. "I have not supported this grant proposal for some time," said Legislator Ben Vitale. "Using the money until it runs out isn't a good fiscally responsible way to do this. I can't support something that's going to run out, and then we're not going to have the funds for the next two years." Carl Rosenkranz, assistant district attorney who prosecuted crimes through the CARP grant, said he came before the Legislature with hope and optimism. "I was fired at 5 o'clock this afternoon," Rosenkranz said. "I was hoping, I was available all day today to take any questions anyone had about the grant and what kind of happens with these cases that go through the pipeline. I think a lot of misinformation has been spread about this. "Criminal prosecution is not supposed to be profitable. As you know, our job as prosecutors, it's our job to do the right thing." Brian Bauersfeld, of Sennett, a former prosecutor for the district attorney's office, also spoke at the meeting. Bauersfeld had conducted similar work to Rosenkranz. "I recognize a lot of your faces," Bauersfeld said to the legislators. "I was here in that same position a couple of years ago, and I had to come to you with an impassioned plea to prosecute crimes against revenue. And the resounding answer that was given to me by the same people who had their line drawn in the sand and their feet set against the crimes against revenue, was that, 'We don't want to fund it. Go get funding from the state.' We did. We received it. Not only did we receive it, we were one of the smallest counties to ever receive that consideration because of the hard work we had dedicated." Legislator Terry Baxter revived the failed motion Tuesday night, amending that the grant would be accepted with overhead costs reduced by 30 percent. Legislator Andrew Dennison amended Baxter's motion, asking the district attorney to come back to the Legislature with a budget that stays within the grant amount and approve it. Legislator Mark Farrell said he would support that resolution, but only if he could see the $107,000 budgeted out in its entirety. Budelmann said he is unsure what the county Legislature hopes to accomplish with him for Thursday night's meeting since they have terminated his employees and the program as of Tuesday afternoon. "I'm open for almost anything," he said. "They want to start over between now and Thursday. The reality is they terminated the employees. They didn't accept the grant. That's the bottom line. "Every other county in the state offered this grant, all 28 of them, have accepted it," Budelmann said. "The county terminated the program and the three employees today (Tuesday) at 5 p.m. and the Legislature did not accept the grant. I question why that is." A controversial $23.3 million power line that will run from Auburn to Elbridge can now move forward. The state Public Service Commission on Tuesday approved the proposal by New York State Electric and Gas and National Grid to build a new transmission line. And in a related decision, the PSC rejected a proposal from the owners of the Cayuga power plant in Lansing to refuel the facility with a subsidy from NYSEG customers at a cost of $102 million. In decisions that have been the subject of years of debate, the PSC said building the new power line is the most efficient way to ensure the reliability of the power grid in the area. We are very cognizant of the potential local economic effects of retiring power plants, said Commission Chair Audrey Zibelman in a press release. However, in this instance, the power plant itself does not solve our reliability concerns. Moreover, when we considered the combined lack of benefit to the power grid with the significantly higher costs of the refueling option, we determined it would simply be unfair to ask NYSEG consumers to shoulder both the transmission and refueling expense." The plant's future is not immediately clear. Although the decision references retiring the plant, the PSC also on Tuesday approved the sale of Lansing facility and one in Niagara County. Current owner Upstate New York Power Producers Inc. will sell the plants to Riesling Power LLC, an independent power producer based in Maryland. "The new owner does not currently own or operate any generating facilities in New York State, and has advised that all plant-level personnel at the Somerset and Cayuga facilities will remain in place after the sale," the PSC stated. The Lansing plant has powered by coal, but the proposal called for the use of natural gas and coal. It faced strong opposition from environmental groups that are trying to get New York's fossil fuel plants taken offline. I'm happy to hear that the Public Service Commission has rejected the repowering of the Cayuga Power Plant with natural gas and is in favor of upgrading transmission lines to address our local energy needs. This is the right decision, both for our economy and the environment, Assemblywoman Barbara Lifton said in a press release issued by Sierra Club. However, this decision needs to be paired with a robust plan to provide state funding to local communities, schools, and workers that are making the transition away from coal. At the end of last year's legislative session, we allocated $19 million to assist communities that are affected by coal plant retirements, and I will continue to fight for more funding if necessary." The power line project also has been the subject of controversy in Cayuga and Onondaga counties. While it's had support from environmental groups and some local and state officials, others have opposed it because of potential impact on landowners in the area where it will run. The project would generally follow existing rights of way from NYSEGs State Street substation in Auburn to a National Grids Elbridge substation. The PSC said the companies have worked carefully to establish a route that minimizes environmental and negative economic impact. ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) An upstate New York mayor's proposal to consider allowing heroin users to shoot up under medical supervision has divided drug policy experts, with some hailing it as an innovative, science-based approach and others rejecting it as radical and a slippery slope to legalization. Ithaca mayor wants managed heroin injection facility ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) The mayor of Ithaca in upstate New York wants his city to host the natio Ithaca Mayor Svante Myrick formally announced the idea Wednesday as one of several proposals to address a wave of opioid addiction. The Democratic mayor also wants to create a new office of drug policy, help at-risk teens learn work skills and adopt a strategy implemented in Seattle that has police sending low-level drug offenders to treatment instead of jail. "We had to try something else," he said of his plan. "I believe this will be a model for cities around the country." It is Myrick's interest in opening the nation's first supervised injection site that has attracted the most praise and criticism. The facilities, which already operate in Canada, Australia and Europe, would allow users to shoot up under the supervision of a nurse, who would deliver an antidote in the case of an overdose. Myrick envisions a facility that also offers clean syringes and access to treatment and recovery programs. The proposal faces significant legal and political hurdles. Myrick said the city could petition the state's Department of Health to declare heroin addiction a health epidemic, a move that would allow the injection site to open. Gov. Andrew Cuomo's administration has yet to weigh in on Myrick's idea. The governor said to reporters Wednesday, "I'm not familiar with Ithaca's proposal. I can tell you this: Heroin is a statewide crisis." Kevin Sabet, a former drug policy adviser to three presidents, said he believes injection sites could be a precursor to efforts to fully legalize drugs like heroin. Other critics said the priority should be more treatment programs. "The goal here should be getting people off drugs, not doing what we can to make it easy for people to continue to do them," said David Evans, an attorney and adviser to the group Drug Free America. The New York City-based Drug Policy Alliance, which opposes the nation's current law-enforcement approach to drug use, said Myrick's plan should be a blue print for other cities. "We are in the middle of a very publicized heroin and opioid epidemic," said Kassandra Frederique, the Alliance's New York state director. She said it is time for the nation to consider "policies that promote saving people's lives over stigma and shame." In Ithaca, Myrick's plan has the support of the local prosecutor, District Attorney Gwen Wilkinson. But Ithaca Police Chief John Barber said he is "wary" of the idea. Australia's one-term Prime Minister above ... Events of interest from a libertarian/conservative perspective below This service applies to you if your subscription has not yet expired on our old site. You will have continued access until your subscription expires; then you will need to purchase an ongoing subscription through our new system. Please contact The Chanute Tribune office at 620-431-4100 if you have any questions Willow Bend Environmental Education Center and the City of Flagstaff announced they have received a $33,960 Heritage Grant from the Arizona Game and Fish Department. The money will be used to support wildlife watching programs, interpretive signage and a new solar pond aerator at Frances Short Pond. Additional partners include various FUSD and charter schools, Friends of the Rio de Flag and many community volunteers. We were so excited to receive funding for this much needed project said Moran Henn, Willow Bend director. Cassandra Roberts, Willow Bends program director added that the funds will be used to support student and community field trips to the pond with a goal of promoting an understanding of and an appreciation for its wildlife, history, and habitat. Charged with DUI Jason Robert Hoyungowa, 47, of North Nyla Drive was arrested by Flagstaff Police Department and charged with extreme DUI at 10:03 p.m. Monday. Sarah Irene Buzzell, 39, of North Oakmont Drive was arrested by Flagstaff Police Department and charged with DUI at 5:49 p.m. Monday. Kenneth Emil Nash, 29, of Queen Creek was arrested by Flagstaff Police Department and charged with DUI at 1:56 a.m. Sunday. Joby Jordan Shirley, 31, of West University Avenue was arrested by Flagstaff Police Department and charged with extreme DUI at 3:28 p.m. Saturday. Kyle O'Brian Phillips, 30, of Kayenta was arrested by Flagstaff Police Department and charged with DUI at 2:35 a.m. Saturday. Jean Michael Bennett, 27, of East Cedar Avenue was arrested by Flagstaff Police Department and charged with extreme DUI and aggravated DUI with a suspended license at 6:37 p.m. Thursday. 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. A Flagstaff resident convicted of killing a man in Sunnyside two years ago will spend more than two decades behind bars. Coconino County Superior Court Judge Jacqueline Hatch sentenced George Azar, 56, to an aggravated sentence of 20 years in prison Tuesday for the second-degree murder of Larry Hernandez, 38. This should never have happened, Azar said at the sentencing. It was a terrible day. It was horrible. I dont go to sleep without thinking about it and I dont wake up without thinking about it. I am truly sorry. He was also sentenced on eight other charges. Flagstaff police arrested Azar on the night of April 17, 2014, after he shot Hernandez once in the head during a dispute over money inside Azars home in the 2700 block of North Rose Street. Hernandez died the next day in Flagstaff Medical Center. He left behind a wife, an 8-month-old daughter and three stepchildren. I always know that he is watching over us, his young stepdaughter told the judge before breaking down in tears. The childs mother then talked about the pain the family has endured since Hernandezs death. There will be no more holidays, no more celebrations, no more laughter, hugs or support, advice or sense of security, she said. There will never be any more of those opportunities to say, I love you. They are forever gone. Our family is forever broken. Azar and Hernandez both worked at the Salvation Army Thrift Store. Hernandez needed money, so Azar loaned him $400. At trial, Azar testified that he was letting Hernandez work off the debt by doing work around Azars house, but Hernandez became less and less reliable. After exchanging text messages all day, Hernandez met Azar at his home. Azar had been drinking alcohol and Hernandez had methamphetamine in his system. An argument ensued and Azar pulled a small gun out of the living room coffee table drawer. Azar testified that the gun went off accidentally when Hernandez grabbed it and then fell backward onto the couch. Friends and family who spoke on Azars behalf described him as a good, generous and non-violent man. The most important thing that I want to say and that I want Larrys family to know is that Larrys death was a horrible, horrible accident, Azars wife said Tuesday. The judge made it clear that she would not entertain that notion while she was deciding on a sentence. The jury didnt find you guilty of an accident, they found you guilty of second-degree murder, Hatch told Azar. In addition to the murder conviction, the jury found him guilty on one count of felony marijuana possession and seven counts of weapons misconduct for possessing firearms as a prohibited possessor. He faced those charged because police found seven firearms, including the murder weapon, and approximately 2 pounds of marijuana in his home while they were investigating the shooting. Azar had two prior felony convictions, which meant he was not legally allowed to own any firearms. The judge told him he should have known better. I find it very difficult to believe what you said happened but the truth of the matter is that nobody is ever going to know except you and Mr. Hernandez, who is not here, Hatch said. You, though, from your own testimony, introduced a gun into the situation and because of that, Mr. Hernandez is dead. Defense attorney Ryan Stevens asked the judge to give Azar the minimum sentence of 10 years in prison for Hernandezs murder. Prosecutor Ammon Barker asked for the maximum sentence of 25 years. Instead, the judge chose an aggravated sentence of 20 years, citing the jurys finding of emotional harm to Hernandezs family as the most significant factor. In addition to 20 years for second-degree murder, Azar will have to serve 2.5 years for the prohibited possession of the murder weapon. That sentence must be served after he completes his murder sentence. He will get credit for 677 days of pre-sentence incarceration. The judge also sentenced Azar to an additional 15 years on the remaining six weapon misconduct charges and the drug charge. However, he will be able to serve that time concurrently with the murder sentence. The defense has filed a motion asking the judge for a new trial. Hatch is expected to rule on that request at a hearing March 3. March 1st Giblin served as chair of the Aquarium Board of Trustees search committee. After a thorough search and review of more than 100 applications, we determined the best person to be the next CEO of one of our citys most cherished institutions was someone who has devoted his entire career to improving the Chattanooga community. Keiths record of achievement during his long tenure at First Tennessee speaks for itself. He will be an exemplary leader for the Tennessee Aquarium. We knew we had some big shoes to fill in finding a candidate to continue Charlie Arants great work, said John Giblin, executive vice president and chief financial officer of BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee. Mr.Giblin served as chair of the Aquarium Board of Trustees search committee. After a thorough search and review of more than 100 applications, we determined the best person to be the next CEO of one of our citys most cherished institutions was someone who has devoted his entire career to improving the Chattanooga community. Keiths record of achievement during his long tenure at First Tennessee speaks for itself. He will be an exemplary leader for the Tennessee Aquarium. Mr. Sanford is well known and respected throughout Chattanooga, both professionally and for volunteer service, lending his business expertise and leadership skills to many of the areas top non-profit organizations, it was stated. Members of the Tennessee Aquariums Board of Trustees have elected Keith Sanford as president and CEO. Mr. Sanford succeeds Charlie Arant who has served as the Aquariums president and CEO for more than 20 years. Mr. Sanford will become the Aquariums fourth president and CEO when he officially assumes his new role onFor the past 36 years Mr. Sanford has been employed at First Tennessee, rising in banking and finance from his start as a management trainee to serving for the past five years in the banks top position as Chattanoogas Market president. He managed the institutions assets and helped grow First Tennessee into the regions largest bank with 25 branch locations and more than $2 billion in assets. Bank veteran Jeff Jackson has been named Chattanooga Market president by First Tennessee Bank. Mr. Jackson has more than 22 years of experience in the financial industry and most recently served as First Tennessees senior vice president and manager of commercial and business banking for Southeast Tennessee and Atlanta. He succeeds Keith Sanford who has been named president of the Tennessee Aquarium. David Popwell, president and chief operating officer of First Tennessee Bank, said, As we began the search for someone to carry on the good work started by his predecessor, Jeff Jackson became the obvious choice for us. Like Keith Sanford, Jeff is committed to a community that has been so supportive to First Tennessee for the last 40 years. He will be Chattanoogas fourth Market Leader, which speaks volumes about the time given to the position by his predecessors. We look forward to the leadership Jeff Jackson will bring to Chattanooga. Mr. Jackson currently serves as chairman of the board for the Southeast Tennessee Chapter of the American Red Cross.He has volunteered his time with the Orange Grove Center and Creative Discovery Museum, and served as the chairman of corporate giving for Pink!, benefiting the Mary Ellen Locher Center at CHI Memorial. Mr. Jackson said, "First Tennessee has built a strong reputation based on relationships that have been nurtured over generations of customers. Our strength begins with our team members at each one of our 25 branches and continues with hours they volunteer each year and the expertise they share so generously. I am proud to serve as the leader of this team and look forward to supporting the community that has done so much for First Tennessee. Mr. Sanford said, Ive been honored to be a part of the First Tennessee family for 36 years. My job has always been to connect people and businesses with answers to meet their needs. Jeff Jackson will provide great leadership for the team and I congratulate him on this appointment. Mr. Jackson holds a degree in finance from Auburn University Parade steps off Audio Article For the first time since 2019, marching bands, classic cars, dance troupes, scouts and politicians made their way along Midlothian Turnpike for the annual Midlothian Day Parade on Saturday, Oct.... Flagstaff Unified School District officials announced Tuesday night that district superintendent Barbara Hickman will leave her position in FUSD to accept a job at the Colorado Department of Education. In a press release from the Colorado Department of Education, officials announced Hickman will be the departments new associate commissioner for quality instruction and leadership beginning March 7. According to the press release, Hickman will begin the job in Colorado on a part-time basis in March during the transition from her role as FUSD superintendent. She will transition to a full-time role this summer. FUSD spokeswoman Karin Eberhard said in a press release that the FUSD governing board members wish to proceed with the transition amicably. The Governing Board wishes to reassure all members of the community that it will maintain its commitment to excellence and the continuity of the fine programs that make the Flagstaff Unified School District the outstanding District of the future, Eberhard said. Hickman came to FUSD from California in 2007 as Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum and Instruction. She previously worked in Patterson (Calif.) Joint Unified School District in a variety of roles. She became interim superintendent in 2010 with the resignation of Kevin Brown, and the title was made permanent in April of that year. With enrollment declining as charter schools multiplied in Flagstaff, she steered the district in 2010 through the closure of a high school, a middle school and two elementary schools. She help the district win passage by voters of a 15 percent budget override, and she oversaw the creation of specialized instruction and curriculum programs at a range of FUSD schools. Those magnet programs helped to stabilize and then increase enrollment, and last year FUSD was able to increase beginning teacher pay for the first time in many years. The district has not released any details about the search for a replacement, or what will be done during the period when Hickman is employed part-time in the Colorado Department of Education. A man supports Apple's decision to fight an effort by the FBI to compel the company to create a so-called 'backdoor' into Apple devices. (Michael Reynolds, EPA / Feb. 23, 2016) The tug-of-war between the FBI and Apple over access to user data is playing out in a federal case in Chicago, where the FBI sought data from an iPhone owned by a couple involved in a personal bankruptcy case and alleged passport fraud. Apple, in a battle with the feds over whether to obtain data from a terrorist's phone in San Bernardino, Calif., released details Tuesday of other instances in recent months in which the federal government invoked the All Writs Act, which is at the crux of the tech giant's dispute with the government. Advertisement In November 2015, the FBI requested a warrant in the Northern District of Illinois, based in Chicago, to search an iPhone 5S owned by Pethinaidu and Parameswari Veluchamy during investigations of potential bankruptcy fraud and other activity. A U.S. magistrate judge ordered Apple to help law enforcement access unencrypted data and provide copies of any encrypted data, according to documents Blue Sky obtained from federal court. The Veluchamys ran Mutual Bank, which was sued by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. after failing in July 2009. The suit, which said insiders paid themselves $10.5 million as the bank was struggling, was settled in December 2015. The two were charged with passport fraud last year, according to court documents. Advertisement According to an affidavit filed Nov. 13, text messages, phone contacts and digital photographs might help confirm travel on fraudulently obtained passports, show business conducted on international travel and "contradict representations concerning lack of ownership or assets" in various businesses. Data on the phone may also provide relevant insight into the cell phone owners state of mind as it relates to the offense under investigation, and could even indicate the owners motive and intent to commit a crime or consciousness of guilt. In a government motion filed Nov. 25, U.S. Attorney Zachary Fardon said law enforcement needed the help of Apple to bypass the Veluchamys' passcode to search, extract and copy data from the device. That same day, U.S. Magistrate Judge Mary Rowland ruled that Apple needed to comply with the order to execute the search warrant. According to a letter by Apple attorney Marc Zwillinger, Apple objected to an order to access an iPhone 5S on Dec. 9. The release mentions two other All Writs Act orders filed in the Northern District of Illinois, but details on other cases were not immediately available. A spokesman for the U.S. attorney's office in Chicago said the office would not comment on the warrant or court order in the Veluchamy case. An Apple spokesman declined to comment on the pending case but said the company has received some 10,000 requests from law enforcement within the past year and has complied with 80 percent of them. The rest may not have resulted in action by Apple if the company did not receive appropriate information or if the government rescinded its request, among other reasons, the company said. Reporter Amina Elahi contributed. mgraham@tribpub.com When Doughnut Vault opened in River North in 2011, lines wrapped around the block for Brendan Sodikoff's old fashioneds; the shop, now with two locations, still sells out most days. Au Cheval in the West Loop, also a Sodikoff project, has three-hour waits for its burger on a Wednesday. So it makes sense that 3 Greens Market, the restaurateur's new venture in River North, collects some of his most coveted dishes in one space: Doughnut Vault doughnuts, the burger from Bucktown's Small Cheval (nearly identical to the one at Au Cheval) and a renaissance of the pastrami at Dillman's, his former Jewish deli. Plus, 3 Greens carries something new for Hogsalt Hospitality: healthier food. Advertisement "Greens refers to a healthier choice in eating," Sodikoff says. "A lot of our restaurants are strictly indulgent, and I wanted to move away from that a little bit and provide something that could be a daily experience." "No one is really going to eat at Bavette's or our other spaces every day," he continues, giving a nod to the decadent food at his French steakhouse a few blocks down from 3 Greens. "That's not how people live." Advertisement The new space is divided: on the right, the coffeehouse, and left, the marketplace. Walk past the narrow putting green (yes, with actual balls and clubs) to find the former, offering coffee, tea, the daily half-dozen Doughnut Vault old fashioneds, baked goods from Bavette's, plus beer, wine and cocktails. Seating ranges from lilac Eames side chairs at wood library tables to a tomato corner couch, all softly lit as chic basement rec room. For the simple, griddled Small Cheval burger or Dillman's thinly sliced pastrami on rye, step left, past the grab-and-go cooler (with pate and demi bottles of Ruinart rose Champagne) and the parallel hot and cold food bars. But this is not your typical buffet. These food trays are more narrow and shallow. "Rather than everything sitting in the hot wells for hours, it's out there for ideally five, six or seven minutes," Sodikoff says. "When we get into the rush, we're cooking much like we would in a restaurant setting, but instead of making individual plates we're making portions of six." Eat. Watch. Do. Weekly What to eat. What to watch. What you need to live your best life ... now. > On a given day, you might find the 3 Greens Mix, which will rotate (recently, shredded kale with red and green cabbage), Edible Feelings (mac and cheese) or perhaps sweet and sour eggplant inspired by (American-style) Chinese food, all priced at $9.95 per pound. Dine in at bright dinette sets, or retreat to the coffeehouse, possibly on the long, low leather sofa facing a large flats-creen. But don't expect news or sports. The TV, perpetually on mute, plays movies that "are in the same sort of palette" as the vintage pieces in 3 Greens, Sodikoff says as "Annie Hall" credits roll. "You'll see a lot of the same colors, a lot of the same tones." He describes the space as "this little other world you get to sit in. For me, I feel like I can be transported anywhere." Even to an island, perhaps. Curiously, the coffee shop offers Tiki cocktails. "Tiki drinks are all about citrus, and coconut, and all these flavors that work really well with pastries," Sodikoff says. "That's where we made the connection. "But more than anything they're fun." Advertisement 3 Greens Market, 354 W. Hubbard St., 312-888-9195. lchu@tribpub.com Twitter @louisachu Beverage cups featuring the logo of Starbucks Coffee are seen in 2003. (Stephen Chernin / Getty Images) There's no question Inarritu and his team went to great lengths to bring back the half-crazed movie they saw in their heads. That is no small achievement. They have been rewarded with an international box-office success, proving among other things that DiCaprio is a rarity: an actor who is also a movie star, and who can, as they say, "open" a movie, even a tricky or challenging one. Having liked Inarritu's "Amores Perros" and the best parts of "Birdman" and "The Revenant" as much as I resisted the most ham-fisted melodramatics of Inarritu's "Babel" and "Biutiful," I remain hopeful and open to whatever this director does next. PHOENIX Rejecting a last-minute plea from the state schools chief, the Senate voted overwhelmingly Tuesday to strip her of many duties she contends are constitutionally hers. The 24-5 vote came just hours after Diane Douglas wrote to senators telling them adoption of SB 1416 would be a mistake. I urge you to read its provisions and see the administrative authority being transferred to a non-elected, unaccountable body, without the expertise or resources to properly administrate and oversee its functions or its employees, Douglas told senators. She said defeating the measure would safeguard the will of the voters and the statutory and constitutional authority of all elected officials in office now, and in the future. But while five senators refused to support the measure, not a single one of them stood up to vocally oppose the legislation. It now goes to the House. The legislation crafted by Sen. Jeff Dial, R-Chandler, comes after a year of squabbles with the Board of Education that started shortly after Douglas took office in January 2015. Douglas was elected largely on her promise to eliminate the Common Core academic standards. A month into office, she attempted to fire the boards executive director and assistant, calling them two liberal staff who have publicly stated they will block all efforts to repeal or change Common Core. That move was effectively thwarted when Gov. Doug Ducey told state personnel officials to ignore Douglas order and keep the pair on the payroll. The board eventually moved its workers out of the Department of Education Building. Douglas sued, contending state state law gives her control over the boards employees and where they work. A trial judge refused to rule, calling it a political matter; the case is now at the Court of Appeals. The board later filed its own lawsuit after Douglas refused to give its investigators remote access to teacher files. Dial said his legislation is designed to end all the litigation and stop having taxpayers foot the bill for attorneys for both sides. The measure, which now goes to the House, spells out that the Board of Education has the power to hire, fire and supervise its own employees. The board is composed of gubernatorial appointees, with Douglas also serving on the panel as a voting member. It also makes clear that it is the board that sets policy. Douglas argued that as the lone person elected by voters, she should have some role in that. But the legislation says that her role is to carry out board-elected policies. Charles Tack, press aide to Douglas, sidestepped questions of whether Douglas, who contends the bill infringes on her constitutional authority, will sue if it becomes law. Since the bill is still moving through the process, I am sure she will wait to determine what the next steps need to be based on its final disposition, he said. Aside from the lawsuits between Douglas and the board, there was an incident at an August board meeting where she said she was grabbed by board President Greg Miller. Miller insisted he was simply brushing away her microphone when she was speaking out of order but conceded he may have touched her. Maricopa County Attorney Bill Montgomery, after reviewing police reports, declined to prosecute. "I think it's harder and may create more tension than being in a conservative/liberal marriage," says Kelley Kitley, a licensed clinical social worker who provides couples counseling at her Chicago practice. "Chances are you knew your partner was a liberal or conservative before you married them, so you knew what you were getting into. It comes as more of a shock when you share common core values and you disagree who the best candidate is." A rendering of what the San Antonio Convention and Visitors Bureau food truck will look like Thursday. (Proof Advertising) It's going to be chili in Chicago on Thursday, thanks to San Antonio. The Texas city is temporarily taking over the Tamale Spaceship food truck, where free cups of chili con carne will be handed out from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday, which happens to be National Chili Day. Advertisement The truck tricked out with Texas flair will be parked at Wacker Drive and Adams Street near Willis Tower. It's part of a campaign by tourism officials in San Antonio to spur Chicagoans to visit the vacation destination that boasts 300 days of sunshine a year. Advertisement "We're excited to bring some warmth from San Antonio to Chicago," said Emily Gary, a Proof Advertising account director who helped create the event, along with Matador Network, for the San Antonio Convention and Visitors Bureau. The hashtag? #ChiliNotChilly. "We have a real cultural and culinary connection with Chicago," Gary said. "Back at the 1893 World's Fair, San Antonio chili was first introduced to those outside of Texas." San Antonio representatives will be handing out free chili made from an old chili con carne recipe. (San Antonio CVB) That same chili con carne recipe is what will be used by San Antonio chef Elizabeth Johnson and Tamale Spaceship food truck co-founder Manny Hernandez, she added. That evening, San Antonio is hosting a public party at Rockit Burger Bar, 3700 N. Clark, from 6 to 9 p.m. Tex-Mex appetizers and signature San Antonio cocktails will be served at the limited-space event. Entry is free. On Saturday, the CVB will put on a family-focused event from noon to 4 p.m. at the DuPage Children's Museum in Naperville featuring folk dancers, a SeaWorld San Antonio Skype session, cookie decorating and giveaways. So what's up with all this Lone Star State love? Tourism officials said Chicago is a key market for San Antonio, which has had quite a bit to brag about in recent years. A worker transforms a food truck for the San Antonio Convention and Visitors Bureau. (Conrad Malus/JPD GRAPHICS) "Everybody knows about the River Walk and Alamo," said Andres Munoz, vice president of marketing and communications for the San Antonio CVB. "What people don't know is how the destination has evolved in the last 10 years to be much broader than those two big icons." UNESCO designated the city's five Spanish colonial missions including the Alamo as World Heritage Sites last summer. San Antonio recently debuted an interactive museum for kids, the DoSeum, and Lonely Planet named the city one of the country's Top 10 places to visit in 2016. www.visitsanantonio.com Advertisement lrackl@chicagotribune.com Twitter @lorirackl What's the world's greatest city? Okay, perhaps that's hard to say for sure, but certain cities do have a reputation. Ernest Hemingway dubbed Paris a "moveable feast," saying that the French capital stays with you for life. "When a man is tired of London, he is tired of life," English writer Samuel Johnson said. And prideful references to the awesomeness and uniqueness of New York City are too numerous to list. However, in 2016 these cities may still be remarkable, but perhaps they are not so great to actually live in. The annual Mercer Quality of Living ranking finds that that neither Paris nor London nor New York are especially livable for expats. Advertisement Instead, the top 25 list goes as follows: 1 Vienna, Austria Advertisement 2 Zurich, Switzerland 3 Auckland, New Zealand 4 Munich, Germany 5 Vancouver, Canada 6 Dusseldorf, Germany 7 Frankfurt, Germany 8 Geneva, Switzerland 9 Copenhagen, Denmark Advertisement 10 Sydney, Australia 11 Amsterdam, Netherlands 12 Wellington, New Zealand 13 Berlin, Germany 14 Bern, Switzerland 15 Toronto, Canada Advertisement 15 Melbourne, Australia 17 Ottawa, Canada 18 Hamburg, Germany 19 Luxembourg, Luxembourg 19 Stockholm, Sweden 21 Brussels, Belgium Advertisement 21 Perth, Australia 23 Montreal, Canada 24 Stuttgart, Germany 24 Nurnberg, Germany Paris comes in at 37 on the list. London at 39. New York City is further down the list, at 44. For reference, Washington, D.C., is 51. In fact, as you can see, no American city cracks the top 25. San Francisco comes highest at 28, just beaten by the Australian city of Adelaide. In fact, Aussie cities do very well on the list, but mostly the list is dominated by Western European and Scandinavian cities. Advertisement Mercer's ranking could be debated, sure. The human resource company bases its annual report on surveys that are designed to probe the quality of life in a city for expatriates. The final ranking is intended to be used for international firms to understand how much extra they should pay employees to move to certain areas. While the company doesn't give away its exact formula, it does give an indication of how each city is ranked, with elements ranging from the availability of consumer goods to the "socio-cultural environment" (which they describe as "media availability and censorship, limitations on personal freedom"). For Paris, London and New York City, personal safety may be an issue. Mercer ranks Paris 71st on the list of the top cities for personal safety, while London comes just before it. Notably, the shifting security situation in Paris appears to have cost it dearly in the overall rankings: It has dropped 10 places from last year. If you care less about this or other factors that Mercer ranks highly, you may feel differently about what city is best to live in. Think these cities are viewed unfairly? A rival ranking designed by the Economist Intelligence Unit last year offered a similar but perhaps even worse diagnosis, with Paris ranked at 29 (before the November 2015 terrorist attacks), London at 53, and New York City at 53. At the top of this list was Melbourne, while Vienna came in second. For their part, the Viennese seem happy but perhaps not excited about their status as residents of the most livable city in the world. The city so frequently tops these lists that perhaps it seems mundane. "The city is safe, clean, and runs smoothly on excellent public transport," Austrian journalist and writer Klaus Hubner told The Local. The status quo held at the other end of the list, too: Mercer found Baghdad to be the least livable city in the world, a title it has stubbornly retained in recent years. I recently booked a round-trip airline ticket from Columbus, Ohio, to Lima, Peru, on Avianca Airlines, a United Airlines partner. The first leg of the itinerary was a codeshare flight with United from Columbus to Washington. This flight was scheduled to depart at 6 a.m. When I arrived at the airport, before 5 a.m., I attempted to check in with a United ticket agent. After a delay of more than 45 minutes, he told me that he was unable to check me in, although he could see my ticket in the computer system and there were seats available on the plane. The stated reason was that the ticket number given to United by Avianca was "invalid." After 30 more minutes of delay, I was told that United would not assist in rebooking for a flight within the next 24 hours. I called United customer service and was told to take up the issue with Avianca. I contacted Avianca and was told that its ticket was indeed valid, and that it was United's mistake in denying me boarding; United also refused to rebook me on the next available flight. I was also told that the airline's records showed my itinerary was canceled due to "no show." I have a signed statement by the United Airlines ticket agent attesting that I was present at the ticket desk an hour before the scheduled departure time. Advertisement I had to travel to Lima for an urgent matter, so I booked a new ticket with a different carrier and hoped to clarify the issue later with United and Avianca. Later, I contacted United and received a letter in which the airline reiterated that Avianca was at fault. I corresponded back and forth with an Avianca representative who, after reviewing the letter sent by United, offered to honor the unused ticket for a date in the future. Avianca would allow me to change the ticket without a penalty fee, but I would pay any fare difference. I replied saying that I agreed to those terms and never heard again from that representative. I'd like to be reimbursed for the money I spent on the ticket I had to book at the last minute or, if that's not possible, another round-trip ticket from Columbus to Lima to be used at a later time. Liz Vivas, Columbus, Ohio Advertisement A: If you arrived on time for your flight from Columbus to Washington, they should have let you on the plane. But did you? A review of the correspondence between you and United suggests you missed your check-in time in airline lingo, that's a "no show." If you weren't checking bags, United recommends that you arrive at least an hour before departure; if you're checking bags, the airline's recommended check-in time is 90 minutes before departure. Still, based on your account, it seems as if something was indeed wrong with your ticket. If you tried to check in with more than an hour before your flight, you should have been fine. It looks as if you arrived at the terminal with time to spare, and that the ticket agent checking you in had an inexplicable problem with your reservation. That was the cause of your delay. Good thing you had a signed statement saying you were on time, and a promise to waive your change fee. So it looks as if United or Avianca was willing to accept some of the blame for this delay. When a company makes a promise it won't keep, it's time to call someone higher up. Here are the executive contacts at United Airlines: http://elliott.org/company-contacts/united-airlines and here are the managers at Avianca: http://elliott.org/company-contacts/avianca-airlines. Personally, I find a case like this to be endlessly frustrating. None of the airlines seemed interested in owning this problem and offering a quick resolution. When you contacted me, they were both in radio silence. How irritating! I contacted United on your behalf, which in turn contacted Avianca. (See what I mean?) Avianca agreed to send you half of your ticket value as a voucher. United Airlines sent you a voucher for $200. That's not exactly the resolution you were hoping for, and I'm sorry we couldn't do better. Christopher Elliott is the ombudsman for National Geographic Traveler magazine and a co-founder of the Consumer Travel Alliance, a nonprofit organization that advocates for travelers. Because of a backlog of cases, your story may not be published for several months. Read more tips at elliott.org or email chris@elliott.org. Criticized by her challengers for months over the Laquan McDonald case, Cook County State's Attorney Anita Alvarez on Wednesday tried to turn the tables by ripping an opponent for using video of the teen's fatal shooting in a campaign ad. Speaking at a City Club of Chicago breakfast, Alvarez blasted challenger Kim Foxx for starting an attack ad with several seconds of footage from the police dash-cam video that shows McDonald walking up the street. Shortly after, a white Chicago police officer shot the black teen dead, firing 16 times. That part is not in the campaign commercial. Advertisement "In her latest television ad, my opponent, Kim Foxx, is willing to use this horrific video as a tool to score political advantage," Alvarez said. Talking to reporters after her speech, Alvarez again criticized Foxx. "It is a lack of decency that someone is trying to, you know, gain cheap political points on the death of a young man and a video that shows someone being shot," Alvarez said. "I don't find that to be decent. I think it's appalling." Advertisement It's politically tricky for Alvarez to condemn Foxx on the McDonald issue. Alvarez has faced scathing criticism for her handling of the McDonald investigation. Alvarez charged Chicago police Officer Jason Van Dyke with murder in November, more than a year after he shot the 17-year-old and just hours before the court-ordered release of the video. In the Foxx ad, the voice-over accuses Alvarez of "doing nothing about this murder," a charge Alvarez strongly denied Wednesday, saying she was working with federal investigators to build a strong case against Van Dyke. "And once again, she lies about the facts," Alvarez said. "Ms. Foxx claims I did nothing in this case for 400 days. That is simply not the truth. It's a boldfaced lie. I did the opposite of nothing." Earlier this month, Alvarez told the Chicago Tribune Editorial Board that "I don't believe any mistakes were made" in the investigation, offering up one caveat: She wishes she had done more "to let the public know" the probe was underway. Foxx campaign spokesman Robert Foley did not respond to a question about the use of the McDonald video in the ad. Asked about Alvarez's contention that Foxx lies in the ad by saying she did nothing about the murder, Foley said the ad points out Alvarez's "lack of judgment." Protesters have accused Alvarez of taking part in an attempted cover-up of the McDonald shooting, and Foxx and fellow challenger Donna More have made the incident and its aftermath central to their campaigns to unseat Alvarez. A group of about a dozen people stood outside Alvarez's City Club appearance on Wednesday. "Sixteen shots and a cover-up!" they chanted in a now-familiar refrain. Alvarez came in through a back door to avoid the protesters, and she tried to make light of their continued presence at her events. Advertisement "Sorry I was a little late, it was a little hard getting in the front door here," she said. "You know, I see the same group of people and I've gotten to know them, so as a mother I hope we can maybe give them some to-go bags to make sure they eat today." The Democratic state's attorney primary election is March 15. jebyrne@tribpub.com Twitter @_johnbyrne Chicago Teachers Union President Karen Lewis speaks at the Merchandise Mart after leaders voted against a contract proposal from Chicago Public Schools on Feb. 1, 2016. (Brian Cassella / Chicago Tribune) The Chicago Teachers Union wants the district to scrap a multimillion-dollar deal for outsourced school nurses, saying in a newly released report that hiring nonunion nurses puts the system's 400,000 students at risk. The union-produced report says "privatizing the nursing department will create a health disaster in Chicago," and calls on Chicago Public Schools to hire a full-time registered nurse for each school, as well as additional support staff. Advertisement In June, the Chicago Board of Education approved a four-year nursing staff contract for up to $30 million with RCM Technologies Inc. The district asked the New York-based firm to improve the scheduling, training and recruiting practices for school nurses. CTU concerns about school nursing services are part of a broader debate over the availability of school-based "wraparound" services which include health care for at-risk students. The union says CPS nurses struggle to meet the demands of complying with specialized learning plans for students with disabilities, not to mention the needs of other pupils. Advertisement But the debate is also political, since many CPS nurses are CTU members who hold protections under the union's expired labor contract with the district. The union has been a frequent critic of district efforts to privatize its operations. Some of the union-member registered nurses, known as certified school nurses, hold educator licenses and are the only personnel cleared to assess the special education needs of students. Those nurses are required to attend regular school meetings with special education personnel. CPS has turned to private contractors to supply nurses before, but the union report argues the latest deal is intended to "eventually eliminate the union nursing positions" and replace them with temporary staffers who don't receive employment benefits that include pensions. "Rather than fully funding certified school nurses, CPS is cutting corners with private contracts which fail to save money and have serious health impacts on kids," the union said. "Their budget practices and priorities are starving students of adequate health services." Daywatch Weekdays Start each day with Chicago Tribune editors' top story picks, delivered to your inbox. > The district's nursing plan presents a threat to the most vulnerable students, the union report argued. "These students need full-time, professional nurses who know their needs and are dedicated to improving their health. CPS should not be outsourcing the health care of our students." Union nurses plan to protest the district contract Wednesday prior to the school board's monthly meeting. The district said many of the company's "supplemental" nurses reported to the same school and that few students have experienced a change to their primary care nurse. Advertisement "CPS is providing more nursing services to more students because our partnership with RCM is filling critical vacancies and supplementing services the district provides," district spokeswoman Emily Bittner said in a statement. jjperez@tribpub.com Twitter @PerezJr The Rev. James Dokos, left, and his attorney Patrick Knight appear in court in Milwaukee on July 18, 2014. (Abel Uribe / Chicago Tribune) A Greek Orthodox priest charged with stealing more than $100,000 from his parish pleaded guilty Monday to felony theft in a case that caused deep rifts in the church and prompted criticism of Greek Orthodox leaders in Chicago for their handling of the controversy. The Rev. James Dokos was accused of taking the money from a trust fund that was intended to benefit Annunciation Church in Milwaukee and instead spending it on himself, family members and other church leaders, including cash gifts to a high-ranking church official in Chicago. Advertisement Dokos was later transferred to Sts. Peter and Paul Church in Glenview but was suspended after he was charged with felony theft in Milwaukee. Under a settlement approved in Milwaukee court, Dokos avoided any jail time. He agreed to plead guilty to felony theft, and prosecutors agreed to reduce the charge to a misdemeanor if the priest meets the terms of the agreement and remains out of legal trouble for one year. He has already paid the church full restitution, officials said, and also must serve 40 hours of community service. Advertisement In court, Dokos, 63, told the judge he understood the terms but he did not speak further. He also left court without commenting. One Glenview parishioner said he was disappointed that Dokos did not apologize during or after court. What remains unclear is whether Dokos will now resume his priestly duties. A spokesman for the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America said it was too early to say whether Dokos would be subject to disciplinary action by the church. Prosecutor David Robles called the outcome "appropriate" and said it was "in the interests of everyone" to have closure in the case. Robles said he presented the terms of the deal to church leaders and members in Milwaukee last week and said they were generally supportive of it. The scandal roiled the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Chicago, causing rifts between the church hierarchy in Chicago and some leaders and members of the Glenview and Milwaukee parishes. Metropolis leaders, who oversee dozens of churches in the Midwest, ousted the parish council president in Glenview after he raised questions about how the internal investigation was handled, and other members left in protest. The priest who replaced Dokos in Milwaukee, and who had spoken out about the case, was later transferred. Before church leaders in Milwaukee contacted local authorities about concerns over the trust fund, the Metropolis conducted its own investigation and determined that Dokos had spent the funds in accordance with the wishes of the couple who had willed the money to the church. Court records and a Tribune investigation showed that Bishop Demetrios of Mokissos, the No. 2 official in the Metropolis in Chicago, received more than $6,000 in checks over about a three-year period that were written from the trust fund account and signed by Dokos. A spokesman later described such gifts to priests as "honoraria" that are traditional in the church and said the source was not questioned. The bishop was later warned by a Milwaukee prosecutor about "potential efforts to intimidate witnesses" in the case related to emails he exchanged with the Milwaukee priest who was later transferred. Advertisement Before Dokos left Annunciation in 2012, he controlled the seven-figure trust fund. The vast majority of the money in the fund more than $1.1 million was paid to the church, but court records indicate that Dokos spent tens of thousands on personal expenses such as jewelry for his wife, shopping trips and pricey dinners, and gave monetary gifts to family members as well as the church leaders. After Dokos was transferred to the Glenview church, leaders at Annunciation began looking at financial records and raising questions about how the trust fund money was spent. They first reported their concerns to the Metropolis in 2013. Metropolis officials argued that the matter should be settled by the church internally, rather than in court. A Metropolis spokesman could not be reached for comment after the plea Monday. Jim Gottreich is the former Sts. Peter and Paul parish council president who was ousted by Metropolis officials after asking them to place Dokos on leave during the criminal investigation. Before Monday's hearing, Gottreich said he believed the priest should serve time. "He has destroyed two churches," Gottreich said. "I'd like to see him go to jail." Advertisement Gottreich was among several people who have or had ties to the Glenview church and criticized not just Dokos but the Metropolis leadership for its handling of the case. "The fish rots from the head," he said. George Karcazes, who served on the parish's stewardship committee, called the plea a "good deal" for Dokos and called on the Metropolis to remove Dokos from the priesthood. Karcazes said he would have liked to see Dokos issue an apology, saying: "He apparently doesn't have any shame." Karcazes also called for discipline for Bishop Demetrios and the church leader in Chicago, Metropolitan Iakovos, over their handling of the matter. Milwaukee County Judge Jeffrey Conen approved the agreement. He found Dokos guilty based on the facts of the case that Dokos agreed to, but the conviction will not be formally entered into the record until it's determined whether Dokos complies with its terms. "I believe it is in the best interests of the parties and the best interests of the community," the judge said. Advertisement Since he was charged, Dokos missed several court appearances, absences that have been mostly attributed by his lawyers to health problems. rmccoppin@tribpub.com Twitter @RobertMcCoppin The final pending criminal case against defrocked Roman Catholic priest and convicted sex offender Daniel McCormack ended Wednesday, when prosecutors said they were forced to drop all charges. McCormack, 47, who was not in court Wednesday, pleaded guilty in 2007 to molesting five boys and was sentenced to five years in prison. In 2009, prosecutors sought to have him declared a sexually violent offender and committed indefinitely to the Illinois Department of Human Services, which holds such offenders. Advertisement That case is pending. The former St. Agatha's priest was charged in 2014 with aggravated sexual abuse involving a 10-year-old boy in 2005. The case had been set for trial, but on Wednesday prosecutors said they were dropping the charges because the alleged victim was no longer cooperating. The decision will not affect any of the other cases. Advertisement "The victim in this case went to police and made a complaint and after reviewing the facts and circumstances, the State's Attorney's Office brought charges in good faith," the state's attorney's office said in a statement. "However, as the case has progressed through the courts, the victim has chosen not to cooperate with the prosecution. As a result, the State's Attorney's Office was forced to dismiss the charges this morning." McCormack's case led to a policy overhaul in the Archdiocese of Chicago and has cost millions of dollars in settlements. A Cook County judge ruled earlier this month that victims abused by the priest after 2000 can seek punitive damages against the archdiocese if their lawsuits go to trial. Allegations against McCormack became public in 2006, four years after Cardinal Francis George urged America's bishops to remove any priest from ministry for a single act of sexual abuse. But the cardinal, when notified that McCormack had been taken into custody by Chicago police in August 2005 for allegedly abusing a boy, did not remove him from ministry until a second arrest in January 2006. Later, outside auditors commissioned by the cardinal uncovered more than 30 missteps by the archdiocese in its handling of the case. So far, all of the civil suits have been settled before making it to trial. The archdiocese says it has paid out $139 million in clerical sexual abuse claims, though it has not publicly tallied the amount spent to settle cases against McCormack. In one case against him that became public in 2014, the church paid over $3 million to settle. As of last fall, the archdiocese had received at least 30 substantiated claims against the former priest. sschmadeke@tribpub.com Twitter @SteveSchmadeke A form instituted by the Chicago Police Department under an agreement with the American Civil Liberties Union will be simplified after officers complained about its being too long. (Chicago Police Department form) The Chicago Police Department on Tuesday announced it will simplify forms for reports that officers must file whenever they stop someone on the street. Starting Jan. 1, officers were required to fill out the investigatory stop reports following changes in the state law and an agreement the Police Department made last year with the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois that required Chicago officers to more thoroughly document their street stops. The reports have caused controversy within the department because officers have complained they are too time-consuming and confusing to fill out. As a result, street stops made by Chicago police officers have plummeted significantly. Advertisement After hearing feedback from officers about new stop reports, interim police Superintendent John Escalante worked with the city's Law Department and the ACLU to simplify the forms. The changes, which are being completed and go into effect March 1, will eliminate some redundancies in the reports. The reports currently require officers to include information such as the officer's name and badge number, the name of the person stopped, their race and ethnicity, their gender, why they were stopped, whether a pat-down resulted in a stop and whether they have gang affiliations. Advertisement Instead of being two pages, the new stop reports will be reduced to 1 pages, Police Department officials said. The ACLU said the reports will not require officers to list whether a car was pulled over during the stop or whether the person was handcuffed. And instead of filling out three different narratives in the report to justify the stops, officers will only have to fill out one narrative field, according to the ACLU. "The Chicago Police Department's partnership with the ACLU is a reflection of our joint effort to protect the people of Chicago and uphold the basic constitutional rights everyone is entitled to," Escalante said in a prepared statement. "After almost two months of using the existing reports, we found area that we could modify on the form to both maintain its intended purpose of promoting transparency, and be an even more effective tool for officers." The department's agreement with the ACLU came after the group raised concerns that Chicago police officers were making unconstitutional stops on citizens, particularly African-Americans. Last March, the ACLU published a study that showed Chicago officers made more than a quarter-million stops from May through August 2014, far more than New York City police did at the height of its controversial stop-and-frisk practices three years earlier. The new stop reports replaced the Police Department's "contact card" system after the ACLU alleged many of the stops were so poorly documented it was often impossible to determine whether they were legal. Chicago's officers now must fill out the new reports even if the stop leads to an arrest or citation. Before, during situations when cops wrote contact cards, they would never arrest or write tickets for those people being stopped. Now, the new policy also requires the officers to issue receipts to people they stop. The officers have to provide their name and badge number on the receipt, in addition to a brief explanation for why they made the stop. Marijuana-related emergency room visits in Colorado have increased at a higher rate for out-of-state guests than for residents since cannabis was legalized, according to a new study. The study, from Northwestern Medicine and the University of Colorado School of Medicine, looked at ER visits at more than 100 hospitals in Colorado in which there was a diagnosis of patients having used cannabis. Researchers compared the records from 2012, when the Colorado ballot measure passed to legalize marijuana, with 2014, when it was legally sold for recreational use. Advertisement It found marijuana-related ER visits by out-of-state visitors grew by 109 percent, from 78 per 10,000 emergency room visits in 2012 to 163 per 10,000 visits in 2014. Over the same time, marijuana-related ER visits by Colorado residents saw a 44 percent increase, from 70 per 10,000 in 2012 to 101 per 10,000 in 2014. "The interpretation is that emergency room visits possibly related to cannabis use are increasing in both Colorado and out-of-state residents, but the rate is increasing more dramatically among out-of-state visitors," said lead investigator Dr. Howard Kim, a postdoctoral fellow in emergency medicine at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine and an emergency medicine physician at Northwestern Medicine. Advertisement Kim said the lower rate of in-state ER visits may be attributed to Colorado's marijuana education campaign. "Our hypothesis is that out-of-state visitors weren't as aware of the potential side effects of marijuana use," he said. The study will be published Thursday in the New England Journal of Medicine. The statewide data provided for the study did not state the purpose of all the ER visits, Kim said. However, the most common reasons for a subset of patients out-of-state residents visiting the University of Colorado Hospital in Aurora were psychiatric, cardiopulmonary and gastrointestinal complaints, Kim said. About 57 percent of the out-of-state patients were discharged while the other 43 percent were admitted, he said. Kim began the study when he was working on his residency in Colorado, before taking the job at Northwestern. "We were observing more and more out-of-state visitors coming to the emergency room for marijuana-related symptoms," he said. Typical adverse side effects of marijuana use can include anxiety, agitation, fast heart rate, high blood pressure and vomiting, Kim said. Marijuana advocates find the statistics problematic because they don't measure whether cannabis was the reason for the ER visits. Advertisement "Obviously, if there was a 50 percent increase in alcohol poisoning, that would be very different than if there was a 50 percent increase in people showing up who mentioned they had a beer," said Mason Tvert, communications director for the Marijuana Policy Project, which seeks to legalize marijuana. He said he had no doubt people who consumed marijuana have felt uncomfortable and were compelled to visit the ER. But he questioned whether some symptoms reported by patients, such as nausea, could be attributed to altitude sickness or alcohol consumption. "It's great there is research being done into this type of stuff. It's really important that we nail it down and make sure we understand what the results mean," Tvert said. More honest reporting from patients could also factor into the increase, said Ali Nagib, assistant director of the Illinois chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws. "In the past, when it was illegal, they might not tell (the doctors about marijuana use), and now that it's legal, they might be more willing to be honest," he said. The study did not look at whether ER patients smoked marijuana or ingested edible marijuana products. Based on his clinical observations, Kim said inexperienced users are unaware of the delayed effect of edibles. Advertisement "Frequently, inexperienced users will eat a pot brownie, not feel any effects and think it isn't working and so they eat another pot brownie. So when the effect finally kicks in two or three hours later, they now have had multiple marijuana products," Kim said. Patients who overconsume marijuana can be treated with anti-anxiety medication if they are experiencing anxiety or agitation, with intravenous fluids if they are having heart palpitations and a fast heart rate, and with anti-nausea medication if they are vomiting or nauseous, Kim said. He suggested future efforts should focus on educating visitors on safe and appropriate marijuana usage. The Marijuana Policy Project has a campaign aimed at responsible consumption and wanted to put up ads at Denver and Seattle airports a year ago to target tourists but did not get approval for it, Tvert said. "There's no doubt education is effective at preventing overconsumption. If the state's efforts and those by organizations and businesses are resulting in more informed consumers locally, the state should look into ways of getting that information to tourists," he said. Businesses must do their part in educating users, and users need to take personal responsibility as well, said Kayvan Khalatbari, co-founder of Denver Relief dispensary and co-founder of Denver Relief Consulting, which is a partner with Cresco Labs, a cultivator in Illinois. Advertisement "We're pretty transparent and honest and communicate what these infused products contain and entail and how they should be used appropriately," he said. For example, his employees will advise a buyer of a 100 milligram chocolate bar, which splits into 10 pieces, to try one dose at 10 milligrams and wait 45 minutes to an hour before taking another for the desired effect. lvivanco@tribpub.com Will originalism survive Justice Antonin Scalia? Will he be remembered, as President Barack Obama suggested just hours after his death, as one of the most consequential judges and thinkers to serve on the Supreme Court? Initial comments have for the most part seconded the presidents kind words: Scalia was brilliant, incisive, larger-than-life. Scalias record, however, is mixed, and his place in the courts history is yet to be determined. In his three decades on the high court, Scalia had an undeniable impact in several areas of the law. His originalist reading of the 4th Amendment, which requires a warrant before any kind of police search, and of the 6th Amendments Confrontation Clause, giving defendants the right to face their accusers, changed police procedures and provided greater protection to persons accused of crime. As Scalia told the Georgia Bar Association last spring, those cases alone ought to make him the poster boy of the criminal defense bar. Scalia famously argued that only by reading the Constitution in the light of the Framers original intent can judges arrive at an impartial and objective understanding of the document. He was a caustic critic of activist courts especially if they were liberal but originalism itself gives conservative judges a fig leaf to cover their activism. Close observers of the court have noted that whenever Scalia invoked an originalist interpretation of the Constitution, it usually favored his biases. In the 2010 Citizens United case which allows companies to make large campaign contributions from their corporate treasuries Scalia wrote a concurrence in which he claimed the Framers believed in free speech rights for corporations. It astounded and dumbfounded historians who know that corporations barely existed in 18th century America. Originalism has long been under attack, and not just by its political opponents. How is it possible to discern absolutely the Framers intent? A book published last fall revealed that James Madisons notes on the Constitutional Convention, long considered a documentary source on the debates of the Framers, was edited later by Madison to emphasize his and Thomas Jeffersons states rights view of government rather than that of their archenemy, Alexander Hamilton, who believed in a strong central government. Moreover, there are many parts of the Constitution for which there is no contemporary source of meaning. The basis for impeachment, for example, is high crimes and misdemeanors, for which no definition is to be found in the Federalist Papers or elsewhere. Scalia will without doubt be remembered as one of the best writers on the court. Even those who disagree with his opinions read them just for the fun of it. But he often went too far, especially when in dissent, and his tirades insulted more moderate conservatives such as Sandra Day OConnor and Anthony Kennedy. The justices shrugged it off with a well, thats just Nino. In recent years, observers have noted that a nastiness is showing up in lower federal courts. A number of opinions have attacked opposing jurists not just on jurisprudental grounds, but on a personal basis as well. If Scalia can do it, the writers seem to think, then so can we. Scalia, appointed by President Ronald Reagan, arrived at the court buoyed by his supporters belief that he would serve Chief Justice William Rehnquist much as William Brennan had the much more liberal Chief Justice Earl Warren providing the intellectual underpinning for a new conservative majority. But Scalia lacked an essential Brennan attribute. At the beginning of each term, Brennan would ask his new law clerks what was the most important number on the court, and then he would hold up five fingers the number of votes needed for a majority. Brennan worked to make his opinions acceptable to the undecided and middle-of-the road justices; he compromised. By doing that, he often turned a minority into a majority, and a potential defeat into a victory. Admittedly, when Scalia spoke for the court, he toned down his rhetoric in order to fairly represent the common ground that had built the majority. His many solo minority opinions however are evidence of his un-Brennanlike demeanor. In them, he seems very much like the most liberal justice of the 20th century, William O. Douglas, who said the only soul he had to save was his own. Scalias harsh, solo opinions were especially notable in the last decade of his tenure, when the majority decided a series of cases recognizing the civil rights of the LGBT community. Scalia attacked his colleagues for signing on to the homosexual agenda, as he derided it, and claimed not only that the Constitution gave no rights to gay people, but the non-gay majority had every right to protect itself from contamination. With each case his dissents grew shriller, reaching an apogee in the 2013 Windsor case, in which a majority of the court struck down DOMA the Defense of Marriage Act and declared that the federal government had to recognize same-sex marriage in those states that had adopted it. Ironically, it is one of Scalias most important dissents. He attacked Kennedys majority opinion, and then went on to warn that the decision was an open invitation to challenge state laws against same-sex marriage in the courts. He laid out several arguments, all implicit, he claimed, in the Kennedy opinion, that activists would use to demand approval of same-sex marriage as a constitutional right. The very next day, ACLU chapters in Pennsylvania and Virginia went into federal court with the Scalia dissent as the template for their arguments. Same-sex advocates won nearly every case in the lower courts, and the Supreme Court validated their claim last term. Historical reputation, of course, requires time for scholars to assess. Scalia and his ideas have played an important role in the Rehnquist and Roberts courts. It will take time, however, to see if originalism can withstand the political, jurisprudential and scholarly analyses that will be forthcoming; whether the blame for the growing nastiness in lower courts will be placed at his feet; and whether his inability and unwillingness to forge a conservative coalition to advance his conservative views will make him no more than an interesting oddity in the courts history. Close observers of the court have noted that whenever Scalia invoked an originalist interpretation of the Constitution, it usually favored his biases. Marilyn Hartmans recent arrest at OHare International Airport was her sixth in Cook County in the past 10 months, according to court records. (Cook County sheriff) Cook County Circuit Judge William Raines was in California last week when he heard the news: The 64-year-old woman he'd hoped to never see in his courtroom again was arrested once more at O'Hare International Airport. Marilyn Hartman has earned national notoriety as a stowaway for trying to sneak onto jets without a ticket. Advertisement "I can't tell you how disappointed I am right now that we're facing this issue," Raines told Hartman on Tuesday in a Chicago courtroom. Last week's arrest marked Hartman's sixth in Cook County in the past 10 months, according to court records. After her last arrest she had been released to Sacred Heart Home, a Chicago nursing home, in December and was on mental health probation. She was being monitored by a GPS system and ordered to keep away from O'Hare, Midway Airport and Union Station. Advertisement Whatever we do going forward, we can't keep doing this over and over and over again. How many times do we have to revisit this? Cook County Circuit Judge William Raines Raines said he had spoken to Hartman's attorney just three weeks ago and had applauded her good behavior. The judge denied a request Tuesday by Parle Roe-Taylor, Hartman's assistant public defender, to consider releasing her back to Sacred Heart while on GPS monitoring. Instead, Raines called for a probation supervisor and a representative from Sacred Heart to attend court next week to figure out the next step. The judge said he was looking for "something that's going to give me some assurance that she is getting the help that she needs." Raines said he wasn't "closing the door" on Hartman returning to Sacred Heart, but "right now I'm not feeling very confident that that worked so well for you." "Whatever we do going forward, we can't keep doing this over and over and over again," the judge said. "How many times do we have to revisit this?" Hartman was transferred from Sacred Heart in February to Margaret Manor Central, a less restrictive facility, Roe-Taylor told reporters. Both facilities are part of the MADO Healthcare Centers system. Hartman still wore a GPS anklet, but she could leave the building to go to a library, coffee shop or bank. Roe-Taylor said in court that a roommate at Margaret Manor with "violent tendencies" had attacked Hartman. Hartman's glasses were broken in the altercation and she lost a tooth, Roe-Taylor said. Advertisement "We want to make sure this is also the appropriate resource and the right placement for Ms. Hartman," the attorney told the judge. Roe-Taylor told reporters that her client was "very stressed" after the assault. She said she wanted her client to return to the more restrictive Sacred Heart because it would at least be "so much better than Cook County Jail." "When a client has very few resources as Ms. Hartman does, this tends to be the place that they land," Roe-Taylor said. "I would say the Cook County Jail is not the appropriate place to deal with people who need treatment for mental health issues. But we do see it often and until we are able to devote the resources that are necessary for treatment and it is a very expensive process I think that we are going to continue to see more Marilyn Hartmans." Daywatch Weekdays Start each day with Chicago Tribune editors' top story picks, delivered to your inbox. > Responding to a question from a reporter, Roe-Taylor said she couldn't speculate whether Hartman understood the implications of her actions. Hartman has been arrested in Florida, California and Arizona in recent years in addition to Illinois. After arrests in Cook County, she was charged with criminal trespassing, violating her bond on previous charges and, in one case, reckless conduct. "We've sat down and we put a lot of time and resources into trying to make this work," Raines said. "And if it's not going to work, then guess what we need to do? There's a punishment factor that comes in. I don't want to even address that until we have more information, but this is really kind of the last opportunity, I think. Advertisement "And I said that the last time, that this was the last opportunity. So maybe this is the last last opportunity," the judge said. "But I gotta make sure in my mind that Ms. Hartman gets it that there's not many more chances left. So we can make this work. It's going to be a lot more restrictive. It's not going to be as easy." Hartman nodded enthusiastically when the judge said she would get new glasses. She was then taken from the courtroom. bgurciullo@tribpub.com Twitter @brigurciullo Barbara Murphy, of Park Forest, wears a head piece in support of Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., during a rally at Daley Plaza Saturday, Jan. 23, 2016, in Chicago. (John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune) Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, the tenacious rival to Hillary Clinton, brings his Democratic presidential campaign to Chicago on Thursday, appearing for a televised event at the University of Chicago before holding a rally at Chicago State University. The collegiate settings underscore one key to Sanders' populist base younger voters who welcome his call for free college tuition and his criticism of income inequity. Advertisement The events come less than three weeks before Illinois' March 15 primary election in which he faces the former secretary of state, who was born in Chicago and grew up in Park Ridge. In part, Sanders' visit is aimed at showcasing a long-haul national strategy for his campaign. On Saturday, Sanders and Clinton face off in the South Carolina primary. Clinton has held double-digit leads over Sanders in polling there, largely because of support from African-American voters who make up about half of that state's Democratic turnout. Advertisement Though Sanders insisted Wednesday he had not given up on the Palmetto State, his schedule for the week showed him traveling to a variety of other states, including several March 1 "Super Tuesday" states, when a dozen primaries and caucuses are being held with 880 nominating convention delegates at stake. In holding the rally at Chicago State, Sanders will be making his appeal at a school with a majority African-American student population, including many nontraditional older students, as he tries to cut into Clinton's advantage among black voters. Chicago State also has been hit hard by a lack of state funding from the lengthy budget impasse in Springfield. University officials this week announced that the school will skip spring break and end the semester early to try to deliver degrees before it runs out of money. Doors open to the Sanders event at 6 p.m. at the university's Emil & Patricia Jones Convocation Center at 9501 S. King Drive, with the rally program scheduled to start at 8:30 p.m. Prior to his Chicago State appearance, Sanders will appear at his alma mater, the University of Chicago, for a televised sit-down with Chris Matthews as part of MSNBC's "Hardball College Tour." Attendance at that event is limited to students who were invited. The show airs at 7 p.m. Sanders has made several visits to Chicago, including a September rally at the U. of C. where he discussed his call for a $15 federal minimum wage, 12 weeks of guaranteed paid family medical leave and pay equity, saying it will require a "political revolution" to carry out his agenda. Clinton and Sanders have been engaged in a close campaign in the early states of Iowa, New Hampshire and Nevada. But Clinton has a big lead in national convention nominating delegates, projected at 502 to 70, because hundreds of Democratic superdelegates party leaders and elected officials have pledged to support her at the convention this summer. A total of 2,383 delegates are needed to win the Democratic nomination. Sanders is scheduled to travel to Ohio on Thursday. Ohio holds its primary with Illinois on March 15. Illinois has 102 delegates who are elected that day; Ohio has 93. Advertisement rap30@aol.com Twitter @rap30 SPRINGFIELD Gov. Bruce Rauner, under pressure over the dire funding situation at Illinois universities that has led Chicago State University to announce plans to shorten its school year and cancel spring break, said Wednesday that he's open to finding a way to get money to those schools. "I think a legislator is trying to protect Chicago State University," Rauner said while touring a high school in Springfield. "Then we've got another legislator from Charleston who wants to protect Eastern Illinois University. They've got a bill, it sounds like there's a real way to pay for it. I'm good with that." Advertisement One of the lawmakers Rauner was referring to appears to be Democratic Rep. Ken Dunkin, of Chicago, who repeatedly has broken with his party in recent months to back the Republican governor on key votes. Dunkin, now facing a heated Democratic primary contest against union-backed Juliana Stratton as a result of his Rauner alliance, on Wednesday announced he has introduced a bill to send $160 million to struggling colleges and universities and $40 million to community colleges. Dunkin said the money would go to Chicago State as well as Northeastern Illinois, Eastern Illinois and Western Illinois universities, although the legislation he filed does not specify which institutions would receive the money or how it would be doled out. Advertisement Dunkin asserted that Rauner had pledged on Wednesday to sign the bill if it passes the governor did not and brushed away skepticism from reporters about the bill's chances, given the political situation at the Capitol. Dunkin said his bill has support from all Republicans and some Democrats, but he couldn't name a single Democratic supporter when asked to do so. Rauner, for his part, made a vague reference to the Dunkin bill and said he "could support that." "I've got to understand that bill a little better, but that's a way, but then we'll have the money, and I could support that," Rauner said. Technically, the state doesn't have the money. Dunkin's bill relies on an accounting gimmick that allows the state not to pay back dollars that were borrowed last year from special state accounts. Rauner's administration borrowed the $454 million last year at the start of the budget impasse to have cash on hand to help get the state through the stalemate. The money is required to be paid back by the end of the year, making it a liability on the state's books. Dunkin's bill would take effect only if a separate bill is approved that allows the state to never pay that money back. In effect, Dunkin's bill spends money that's already been spent. Rauner, meanwhile, has been defending his decision to veto a bill that would have funded tuition grants for college students, saying the General Assembly has to stop trying to spend money it doesn't have. "I'm open to whatever works, but we've got to spend money that we have," Rauner said Wednesday. "We've got to stop trying to spend money that we don't have." Kim Geiger reported from Chicago. cbott@tribpub.com Advertisement kgeiger@tribpub.com Sen. Ted Cruz, seen here in Reno, Nev., on Feb. 22, 2016, is scheduled to attend an Illinois Republican fundraiser in honor of Gov. Bruce Rauner next month. (Marcio Jose Sanchez / AP) 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 The Illinois Republican Party is hoping to profit from the March 15 presidential primary by holding a fundraising dinner in honor of Gov. Bruce Rauner on the Friday before Election Day. Advertisement Already, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz has confirmed he'll be there, and all of the current GOP presidential contenders, including Donald Trump and Sen. Marco Rubio, have been invited to the reception and dinner at the Palmer House Hilton. Even some of the former Republican presidential candidates have been asked to attend. Tickets for the event start at $500 per person and go up to $40,000 to serve as a "Gold Sponsor," which includes two tables of 10 with a photo opportunity and a one-year membership in the "Governor's Council." (Rick Pearson) Advertisement What's on tap *Mayor Rahm Emanuel has no public events set. *Gov. Bruce Rauner will talk education funding in the morning at a Springfield high school. *Cook County State's Attorney Anita Alvarez will speak to a City Club of Chicago breakfast. Live stream likely to start after 8 a.m. here. *The state's attorney's contenders are scheduled to be at a candidate forum on gender-based violence. It runs from 6-8 p.m. at the Chicago Kent College of Law auditorium, 565 W. Adams St. *Chicago Teachers Union says school nurses will have morning news conference to protest privatization of their jobs. What we're writing *Chicago Teachers Union backs Foxx in rare state's attorney endorsement. *Legislation would end lawsuits against prison inmates. *Change in state law made possible largest school bonding referendum in a decade. Advertisement *Illinois doesn't track pharmacies that custom blend medicines. What we're reading *Muslims say opposition to Palos Park mosque "just bigotry." *Field Museum to sell craft beer based on thousand-year-old recipe, but will it be hoppy enough? *Catholic sex abuse hearing will take place in the dead of night in a hotel in Rome. From the notebook *Kirk on the air: Republican U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk is heading to the airwaves in his re-election bid, an $800,000 ad buy for a primary in which the GOP incumbent faces only a minor primary challenge next month. The ad is titled "Security," which follows along the theme that Kirk is seeking re-election upon: national security. The spot targets U.S. Rep. Tammy Duckworth of Hoffman Estates, a two-term congresswoman who is one of three Democrats vying for the party's Senate nomination. Kirk has called for a pause in the immigration of Syrian refugees, warning that Islamic State militants could use it as a way to create terrorist attacks in the United States. Duckworth has called on the U.S. to accept 200,000 refugees from the ISIS battling, more than President Barack Obama has called for. Duckworth is not just using that number for Syrian refugees but others affected by the battling in the Middle East. In the ad, a narrator says Kirk is "leading the fight to stop refugees until I can be done safely" and raises the question, "Who do you trust to protect your family?" (Rick Pearson) *Duckworth also on the airwaves: Duckworth launched her TV campaign for the U.S. Senate nomination Tuesday with an introductory biographical 30-second ad. Advertisement The ad touts Duckworth returning $10,000 of her salary during a federal budget impasse and sequestration and promoting efforts to make student loans more affordable. The ad is scheduled to air on both cable and broadcast TV statewide. (Rick Pearson) *Kirk says Duckworth a "fool": Under pressure from Democrats to say if President Barack Obama is entitled to put forward the name of a successor for Antonin Scalia on the Supreme Court, Republican re-election-seeking U.S. Sen. Kirk finally agreed. In an opinion piece in the Sun-Times, Kirk said he should and would consider an Obama appointee, saying it was part of his oath for serving the country in Washington and as a member of the Navy Reserve. Kirk called on Obama to put forth a nominee who would be less ideological and reflect someone who would build bridges. But in a different opinion piece, in the National Review, Kirk lashed out at Duckworth, calling her a "fool." Kirk has used national security as one of his chief re-election points, calling for a moratorium on Muslim refugees from war-torn Syria to prevent possible terrorist activities. Duckworth has said such a mentality plays into the theme that the radical Islamic State is using to recruit against the West. "Tammy Duckworth is a fool," Kirk's missive in the National Review says. Advertisement "She says I am the reason terrorists become radicalized. This is another example of how Duckworth sees the world through a delusional, partisan lens, willfully ignorant of what motivates the enemy and threatens our safety as Americans," he wrote. For her part, Duckworth on Tuesday used Kirk's description of her to try to raise campaign donations. The email solicitation accused Kirk of using "demeaning language toward women who disagree with him" and talked about Kirk's "past sexist remarks." Among the list was Kirk's remark last summer in which he called bachelor Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina "a bro with no ho." Kirk has three Democrats vying to challenge him: Duckworth, former Chicago Urban League CEO Andrea Zopp and state Sen. Napoleon Harris of Harvey. (Rick Pearson) *Obama Gitmo react: Republican U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk on Tuesday opposed President Barack Obama's plan to close the Guantanamo Bay detention facility. Kirk's news release was headlined: "Gitmo Prisoners Belong in Gitmo, Not in the U.S. with Constitutional Rights." "A bipartisan majority in Congress will stop the transfer of terrorists to the U.S. and will not allow these prisoners to gain the same legal rights as American citizens," Kirk's statement said. Advertisement Andrea Zopp, one of the Democrats seeking the party's nomination in the March 15 primary to challenge Kirk, stood with Obama. "I believe it is both a moral and strategic imperative to close Guantanamo Bay," Zopp, a former state and federal prosecutor, said in a statement. The Duckworth campaign did not say whether the candidate supported what Obama sent to Congress on the issue, but in the past has come out in favor of closing the detention facility in Cuba. Though a federal prison in Thomson, Ill., has long been off the table as a possible home for transferred Gitmo detainees, Obama did not specify where they would be sent. A Department of Defense plan sent to Congress lists 13 possible locations, both existing prisons and military bases, none in Illinois. (Katherine Skiba) *Emanuel on Trump/Ricketts feud: Mayor Emanuel often gets asked to weigh in on the topic du jour in the news. And so it was on Tuesday that he was asked about Donald Trump's vague tweet about the Cubs-owning Ricketts family, which is backing a super PAC that's running ads against the Republican presidential front-runner. The mayor's response in toto: "It sounds like Donald Trump is trying to court Chicago White Sox fans. So I have nothing else to say." *No-parking zone outside Madigan opponent office: The powers of incumbency? Advertisement *Schneider gets Hispanic Caucus endorsement in IL-10: Democrat Brad Schneider has picked up the backing of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus' BOLD PAC in his bid for the primary nomination in the North Shore 10th Congressional District. "BOLD PAC is proud to give Brad Schneider our endorsement," said PAC Chair Tony Cardenas. "I worked side by side with Brad in Congress and, with my fellow colleagues, I know him to be a proven leader dedicated to being a champion for issues important to the Latino community." Schneider, of Deerfield, and Highland Park Mayor Nancy Rotering are vying for the Democratic nomination and the right to take on Republican U.S. Rep. Bob Dold of Kenilworth. Dold defeated then-U.S. Rep. Schneider in 2014. (Rick Pearson) *Frerichs for Hillary: State Treasurer Mike Frerichs is backing Hillary Clinton's bid for the Democratic presidential nomination. "She's a fighter for working families and will ensure that everyone has an opportunity to achieve the American Dream," Frerichs said. Frerichs, as an elected statewide official, is a delegate to the Democratic National Convention and can cast a vote for Clinton's nomination. (Rick Pearson) Advertisement *Sanders opens field offices: Democratic presidential contender Bernie Sanders opened up several campaign field offices in Illinois on Tuesday. In addition to a Chicago South Side field office at 705 E. 75th St., Team Sanders opened offices in Joliet, Berwyn, Lombard, Batavia, Waukegan and in Springfield and Collinsville. Follow the money *Some well-known lawyers have lined up on different sides in the March 15 primary for Cook County state's attorney. Kathleen Zellner, who has built a national reputation for successfully defending the wrongfully convicted in criminal and civil courts, recently gave $2,500 to State's Attorney Anita Alvarez. In late 2013, Zellner praised Alvarez for setting aside the murder conviction of her client, Lathierial Boyd, for lack of evidence. Challenger Kim Foxx, meanwhile, received a $15,000 contribution from Arthur Loevy, whose firm, Loevy and Loevy, has filed many federal court cases alleging police misconduct. And another challenger, Donna More, received $1,000 from former U.S. Attorney Anton Valukis, who was her boss when she was a federal prosecutor. (Hal Dardick) *More also put in an additional $80,000 of her own money to pay for direct mail and consulting from AKPD Message & Media, David Axelrod's former firm. Advertisement *Grosvenor Capital Management, which is run by Emanuel ally Michael Sacks, gave $25,000 to Ald. Michelle Harris' campaign. She's running for Cook County Circuit Court clerk. *Track campaign contribution reports in real time with this Tribune Twitter account: https://twitter.com/ILCampaignCash Beyond Chicago *Presidential race, Republican side: Wild West Nevada caucuses run late as pundits say Trump math on target for nomination. Trump wins Nevada. *Presidential race, Democratic side: Sanders praises Gitmo plans, takes shot at Clinton. *Senate GOP won't consider any Obama Supreme Court nominee. *NYT: Putin on winning streak, but can he cash in? For the first time in its history, the Chicago Teachers Union has decided to take sides in a Cook County state's attorney's campaign, endorsing Kim Foxx in the March 15 Democratic primary. The decision is the latest sign of how unusual the contest for top prosecutor has become in the wake of the controversy surrounding the November release of a police dashboard camera video showing the shooting of black teenager Laquan McDonald by a white Chicago police officer. Advertisement Last month, the Cook County Democratic Party reversed course from an earlier decision not to endorse and backed Foxx over two-term incumbent Anita Alvarez and challenger Donna More. The campaign has attracted national media attention, with observers figuring it's something of a bellwether as to how controversial police shootings and the movement for criminal justice reform can shape an election contest for prosecutor. The CTU endorsement did not come out of the blue. In January, the union's leadership called for the resignation of Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Alvarez, citing the city's efforts to delay release of the video and Alvarez's waiting to charge Officer Jason Van Dyke until just hours before a judge forced the city's hand on the video release. Advertisement "We have never endorsed in a state's attorney's race, but we are at a turning point in Chicago," CTU President Karen Lewis said in a statement, issued after a morning news conference to announce the endorsement was canceled. "This race is critical to everyone that cares about the future of our children. Kim Foxx is (the) only candidate with a real plan to invest in our next generation that will help end the school-to-prison pipeline." The teachers union is well-financed and has 27,000 members, but it remains to be seen exactly how much money and how many volunteers it commits to the Foxx campaign. The union's leadership team voted on the endorsement, not the whole membership. "I think it's very clear how we have participated in electoral politics over the past few years," said Brandon Johnson, CTU's deputy political director, who declined to specify the union's participation plans in the state's attorney's race. Last year, the union's political action committee contributed hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash and campaign services to county Commissioner Jesus "Chuy" Garcia in his unsuccessful effort to unseat Emanuel. Johnson also expressed concern about the "schools-to-prisons" pipeline, something Foxx addressed during a speech last week when she suggested authorities were far to quick to arrest and prosecute Chicago Public Schools students for fighting on school grounds decisions that bring them into the criminal justice system. "We have been accustomed to picking up the phone and calling a police on these children, and it's the state's attorney's office responsibility to say, 'Our juvenile justice system is not where we deal with school disciplinary issues,'" Foxx said during her speech. "We haven't been doing that." An Alvarez campaign spokesman dismissed the CTU backing, calling it "an engineered backroom endorsement" that was "set up to benefit the anointed candidate of insider politicians." Although it's the first time the union leadership has voted to back a candidate for the county's top prosecutor post, the union in 2000 and 2004 did contribute a total of $10,000 to then-State's Attorney Dick Devine, but none of it before a contested primary, according to state campaign finance records. Advertisement Foxx is County Board President Toni Preckwinkle's former chief of staff. In that post, she helped Preckwinkle push criminal justice reforms. Before that, Foxx was an assistant state's attorney and assistant public guardian. Alvarez is a lifelong prosecutor, and More is a former state and federal prosecutor now in private practice, mostly representing gambling interests. hdardick@tribpub.com Twitter @ReporterHal Melvin Moore is a paroled inmate being sued by the Illinois Department of Corrections to recoup the costs of incarceration. (Terrence Antonio James / Chicago Tribune) State lawmakers are seeking to end a little-known but controversial program that tries to recoup the costs of incarceration from current and former inmates, saying the state recovers little money and the program puts up obstacles for prisoners returning to the community. State Rep. Kelly Cassidy, D-Chicago, and state Sen. Daniel Biss, D-Evanston, said they acted after reading a Nov. 30 Tribune story detailing an Illinois Department of Corrections program that sues prisoners to recover the costs of locking them up. Advertisement The two legislators' companion House and Senate bills, introduced earlier this month, would repeal provisions of the code of corrections that allows the prison system to identify inmates with assets and target them for litigation. The lawsuits are filed by the attorney general's office. "It's so wrongheaded," Cassidy said Tuesday of the law. "People mostly were mortified we were doing this." Advertisement Biss said suing prisoners undermined the state's efforts to help inmates stay out of prison. "I don't think it's consistent with how you fund government, nor is it consistent with principles of rehabilitation," he said in an interview Tuesday. "Generally speaking, when someone is released from prison, your hope is they will wind up on their feet. Taking what in many cases is limited resources is counterproductive." State Rep. Mary Flowers, another Chicago Democrat, has filed a similar measure. Flowers called the state's litigation a form of "bullying" inmates. "If a person is released and serves their time, they should be free," Flowers said. "They should not have to continue to pay to remain free." Biss said the measures would stop the state from seeking to recover money in pending cases and end the practice in the future. We pay for prison every day. That's the function of government. Fundamentally, this is just wrong. State Rep. Kelly Cassidy, D-Chicago The Department of Corrections "is neutral" on the legislation, according to spokeswoman Nicole Wilson. The attorney general's office supports the bills; indeed, Lisa Madigan told the Tribune in November that the prisoner lawsuits raise "moral" questions and called on lawmakers to evaluate the issue. "I have encouraged the legislature to review this statute and consider what policy they want in place going forward," Madigan said Tuesday in a statement. "The current law charges my office with recovering incarceration costs when requested by the Department of Corrections, but these cases can present significant roadblocks to former inmates who are trying to lead successful lives outside of prison." Among the cases the Tribune spotlighted was that of Johnny Melton, who served 15 months for a drug conviction. The corrections department sued Melton after he had received nearly $32,000 from a settlement over his mother's death in a nursing home. When he was released from prison last year, Melton was forced to go to a homeless shelter and applied for food stamps. When he died in June, he was destitute, according to his family. Advertisement In other cases the state sued inmates who received relatively modest inheritances or had other money. But the state also has sued such inmates as James Degorski, whom a jury had awarded $451,000 in a lawsuit against a Cook County Jail guard he said had beaten him. Degorski is serving a life sentence for his role in the 1993 murders of seven employees at a suburban Brown's Chicken restaurant. At least 43 states allow officials to seek what are often called room-and-board fees from prisoners, according to a 2015 study from the Brennan Center for Justice, which is based at New York University's law school. Some states charge inmates for medical care. Both fee structures are part of a broad effort also called pay-to-stay to lessen a prison system's financial burden on taxpayers, according to experts. In Illinois, the law allowing the state to sue inmates for the cost of their incarceration dates to 1982. But officials do not appear to have used it much until last year, when the number of lawsuits jumped from two each in 2012 and 2013 to 11 in 2015, according to officials. The state has recovered more than $500,000 since 2010, although about $415,000 of that was obtained from just two inmates. Alan Mills, executive director of the Uptown People's Law Center, which advocates for inmates, said the proposed legislation corrects an injustice in the prison system, one that makes a newly released inmate's adjustment to the outside world all the more difficult. He said that while there is often little enthusiasm among lawmakers for backing prisoner rights, the fact that the lawsuits generate so little money might improve the legislation's chance of passage. A wave of criminal justice reform across the country might boost its chances as well. Advertisement "If this thing were generating $2 million or $3 million a year, I'd say no way in hell," Mills said of the bills' likelihood of passage. "But it's not. It generates so little money and disrupts lives so badly that it's not a fiscal issue." Cassidy said she first gave thought to such lawsuits after a nephew was released from prison in another state and came out with a lien on his future earnings to cover the cost of his incarceration. Reading the Tribune's account of Illinois' law generated added frustration. "I got really mad, really upset," she said. Like Biss, she said the cost of incarceration should be borne by the state, not by inmates trying to get back on their feet. "We pay for prison every day," Cassidy said. "That's the function of government. Fundamentally, this is just wrong." smmills@tribpub.com Advertisement tlighty@tribpub.com Twitter @smmills1960 Twitter @tlighty A federal judge on Tuesday ruled that State Department officials and top aides to Hillary Clinton should be questioned under oath about whether they intentionally thwarted federal open records laws by using or allowing the use of a private email server throughout Clinton's tenure as secretary of state from 2009 to 2013 The decision by U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan of Washington came in a lawsuit over public records brought by Judicial Watch, a conservative legal watchdog group, regarding its May 2013 request, for information about the employment arrangement of Huma Abedin, a longtime Clinton aide. Advertisement A State Department official said that the department is aware of the order and that it is reviewing it but declined to comment further, citing the ongoing litigation. Although it was not immediately clear whether the government will appeal, Sullivan set an April deadline for parties to lay out a detailed investigative plan that would extend well beyond the limited and carefully worded explanations of the use of the private server that department and Clinton officials have given. Advertisement Sullivan also suggested from the bench that he might at some point order the department to subpoena Clinton and Abedin, to return all records related to Clinton's private account, not just those their camps have previously deemed work-related and returned. "There has been a constant drip, drip, drip of declarations. When does it stop?" Sullivan said, adding that months of piecemeal revelations about Clinton and the State Department's handling of the email controversy create "at least a 'reasonable suspicion' " that public access to official government records under the federal Freedom of Information Act was undermined. "This case is about the public's right to know." In granting Judicial Watch's request, Sullivan noted that there was no dispute that senior State Department officials were aware of the email set-up, citing a January 2009 email exchange including Undersecretary for Management Patrick Kennedy, Clinton chief of staff Cheryl Mills and Abedin about establishing an "off-network" email system. The watchdog group did not ask to depose Clinton by name, but its requests in its lawsuit targeted those who handled her transition, arrival and departure from the department and who oversaw Abedin, a direct subordinate. Sullivan's decision came as Clinton seeks the Democratic presidential nomination and three weeks after the State Department acknowledged for the first time that "top secret" information passed through the server. The FBI and the department's inspector general are continuing to look into whether the private setup mishandled classified information or violated other federal laws. For six months in 2012, Abedin was employed simultaneously by the State Department, the Clinton Foundation, Clinton's personal office and a private consulting firm connected to the Clintons. The department stated in February 2014 that it had completed its search of records for the secretary's office. After Clinton's exclusive use of a private server was made public in May, the department said that additional records probably were available. Advertisement In pursuing information about Abedin's role, Judicial Watch argued that the only way to determine whether all official records subject to its request were made public was to allow it to depose or submit detailed written questions about the private email arrangement to a slew of current and former top State Department officials, Clinton aides, her attorneys and outside parties. "We know discovery in FOIA cases is not typical, and we do not ask for it lightly," Judicial Watch President Thomas J. Fitton said before the hearing. "If it's not appropriate under these circumstances, it's difficult to imagine when it would be appropriate." Fitton noted that the State Department's inspector general last month faulted the department and Clinton's office for overseeing processes that repeatedly allowed "inaccurate and incomplete" FOIA responses, including a May 2013 reply that found "no records" concerning email accounts that Clinton used, even though dozens of senior officials had corresponded with her private account. Justice Department lawyers countered in court that the State Department is poised to finish publicly releasing all 54,000 pages of emails that Clinton's attorneys determined to be work-related and that were returned to the State Department at its request for review. The case before Sullivan, a longtime jurist who has overseen other politically contentious FOIA cases, is one of more than 50 active FOIA lawsuits by legal groups, news media organizations and others seeking information included in emails sent to or by Clinton and her aides on the private server. The State Department has been releasing Clinton's newly recovered correspondence in batches since last summer with a final set due Monday. Advertisement Meanwhile, former Clinton department aides Mills, Abedin, Jacob Sullivan and Philippe Reines have returned tens of thousands of pages of documents to the department for FOIA review, with releases projected to continue into at least 2017. The State Department also has asked the FBI to turn over any of an estimated 30,000 deleted emails deemed personal by Clinton's attorneys that the FBI is able to recover in its investigation of the security of the private email server. "There can be no doubt that [the State Department's] search for responsive records has been exceedingly thorough and more than adequate under FOIA," according to filings by Justice Department civil division lawyers, led by Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Benjamin C. Mizer. They argued that FOIA requires the agency to release records only under its control - not under the control of its current or former officials - and that "federal employees routinely manage their email and 'self-select' their work-related messages when they, quite permissibly, designate and delete personal emails from their government email accounts." Sullivan's decision will almost certainly extend through Election Day an inquiry that has dogged Clinton's campaign, frustrating allies and providing fodder to Republican opponents. FOIA law generally gives agencies the benefit of the doubt and sets a high bar for plaintiffs' requests for discovery. However, one similar public records battle during Bill Clinton's presidency lasted 14 years and led to depositions of the president's White House counsel and chief of staff. Advertisement Because of the number of judges hearing the FOIA cases, there is likewise a chance that the fight over Hillary Clinton's emails could "take on a life of their own," not ending "until there are endless depositions of top [agency] aides and officials, and just a parade of horribles," said Anne Weismann, executive director of the Campaign for Accountability. Weismann also is a former Justice Department FOIA litigation supervisor who oversaw dozens of such fights from 1991 to 2002. Still, she said, such drawn-out legal proceedings could be valuable if they shed light on whether the State Department met its legal obligations under open-government laws or systematically withheld releasable records. Last month, one of Sullivan's colleagues, U.S. District Judge James E. Boasberg, dismissed lawsuits brought by Judicial Watch and the Cause of Action Institute that sought to force the government to take more aggressive steps to recover Clinton's deleted emails under the Federal Records Act. Plaintiffs "cannot sue to force the recovery of records that they hope or imagine might exist," Boasberg wrote Jan. 11, adding that, to date, recovery efforts by the State Department and the National Archives under that law "cannot in any way be described as a dereliction of duty." The server's existence was disclosed two years after Clinton left, in February 2013, as secretary of state and as the department faced a congressional subpoena and media requests for emails related to scores of matters, including attacks that killed a U.S. ambassador in Benghazi, Libya, and fundraising for the Clinton family's global charity. In seeking records related to Abedin's employment, Judicial Watch asked to be allowed to depose or submit written questions to current and former State Department employees and Clinton aides, including Kennedy; John Hackett, director of information services; Executive Secretary Joseph Macmanus; Clinton's chief of staff, Mills; lawyer David Kendall; Abedin; and Bryan Pagliano, a Clinton staff member during her 2008 presidential campaign who helped set up the private server. Advertisement More broadly, the group's motion targets who oversaw State Department information systems, Clinton's transition and arrival at the department, her communications, and her and Abedin's departure from the agency. "What emails . . . were deleted . . . who decided to delete them, and when?" Judicial Watch asks in filings. The group also asks whether any archived copies of sent or received emails on the private server existed, including correspondence with Clinton technology contractors Platte River Networks and Datto. This undated photo made from a video provided by WWMT Newschannel 3 shows Matt Mellen. Mellen, an Uber passenger, said he called police to report an erratic driver more than an hour before the driver allegedly began a series random shootings that killed multiple people in Kalamazoo, Michigan. (AP) KALAMAZOO, Mich. Investigators say they are baffled. Neighbors are totally bewildered. All around this traumatized city, residents wonder whether they will ever learn why Jason Brian Dalton allegedly gunned down random strangers while picking up fares for Uber. This week, as police continued looking for clues into Saturday's shootings, so did people close to him. One neighbor was puzzled to learn Dalton, 45, was driving for Uber and not working for Progressive Insurance anymore. Advertisement "He left every morning at 8 a.m. like he was going to work," the neighbor said. Where he was going, what he was enduring, what he was thinking - mass-shooting experts say all these fragments will eventually coalesce into a motive that probably made perfect sense to the killer, even it's incomprehensible to everyone else. Advertisement A man charged with six counts of murder and two counts of attempted murder in a series of random shootings in Michigan has been denied bail. Jason Dalton, 45, made his first court appearance on Feb. 22, 2016, and indicated that he understood the charges. (AP) (Associated Press) "In these cases, people typically don't just snap and go berserk," said James Alan Fox, a Northeastern University criminologist and author of several books on mass murders. "It may seem senseless, but there's always a reason." For investigators, sorting that out takes time. For everyone else, the waiting is agonizing, a cruel ritual in the age of mass shootings. So far, all investigators have been able to offer is Dalton's statement that "he took people's lives." "This first thing I thought of was, why?" said Kalamazoo resident Lisa Stavish, 33. "Everyone I know is talking about it, but no one really knows anything." In some mass shootings, the reason is almost immediately apparent. A married couple in San Bernardino, California, stockpiled bombs and ammunition for a shooting motivated by radical Islamist beliefs. In Colorado, a religious drifter with bitter beliefs about abortion is charged with killing three people at a Planned Parenthood clinic. Dylann Roof, who had expressed his hatred of African Americans, stands accused of killing nine of them in a Charleston, South Carolina, church. But most mass shootings aren't that simple to unravel. Experts say they typically combine precipitating events that might seem like everyday problems - work, money, love - with undiagnosed or untreated mental health issues. Sometimes the idea for a mass shooting unfolds over months. Other times, it's days. "It's not something he did spontaneously," Fox said. In many ways, Dalton fits the typical profile of a mass shooter - a white male with no criminal record, no psychological impairment known to those around him, and the ability to legally purchase firearms. Advertisement What makes him different, Fox said, is that he "killed people in the wrong place at the wrong time." Meaning he targeted total strangers without a specific setting. Most mass killers, even if they target strangers, single out specific places for attacks. Students pick schools. Disgruntled workers pick their workplaces. Those making political statements choose symbolically important places. Dalton's setting was the entire city of Kalamazoo, making his motive more difficult to piece together. J. Reid Meloy, a psychiatry professor at the University of California at San Diego who studies mass murderers, said investigators typically find "a mental state that is coming apart" and recent stressors causing difficultly in life. "We think there's an event that starts the clock," he said. "But the predisposition to commit a mass murder has often been there for quite some time." What may have been Dalton's event? Advertisement Working for Uber, as Dalton had been since late last month, is a clue that might indicate he needed extra money or that he couldn't find a regular job. If he had a grudge against Uber, killing strangers while picking up fares could make total sense to him. But there's also a danger in being too reductive. Meloy said mass killers are often in a depressed and paranoid state, though there's usually a kernel of truth that they feed on. While stressing that he was not talking specifically about Dalton, Meloy said that in cases appearing to take place randomly, "the individual has placed victims into a pseudo community." Uber was something he apparently kept from those around him, including the neighbor, James Bloch. They often talked about politics, guns and other current events through their backyard fence. As far as he knew, Dalton was still working for Progressive, including driving a company van. "Probably around seven months ago he stopped driving it," Bloch said. "And I asked him what was up with it - they said they were downsizing and they weren't using the company vehicle anymore, that he had to use his own vehicle." In recent weeks, Bloch noticed that Dalton would return home at odd times: 11 a.m., 3 p.m. "He never came home at the same time," Bloch said. "It was always different." Was he depressed? Bloch said no. Did he seem mad about something? Bloch said no. Advertisement One of the riders Dalton picked up said he began driving erratically after getting a phone call. But it is not known whom the call was from and whether it somehow set him off. The First Congregational Church hold a candlelight vigil in remembrance of the mass shooting victims on Feb. 22, 2016, in Kalamazoo, Mich. (Bryan M. Bennett, AP) Even if a motive is not readily apparent yet, Fox said, "clearly something was going on making him miserable and unhappy. And if he's miserable and unhappy, then other people need to suffer, too." To Fox and other experts, it seems clear Dalton was quietly planning something. A local gun-store owner said Dalton came in Saturday, the day of the killings, to buy a vest for concealing handguns. And then there's his alleged steely demeanor during the attacks, still picking up customers and reportedly switching vehicles. "That reflects the calmness that is typical in mass killers," Fox said, noting that many mass killers are seen smiling while shooting. "Because they plan their crime, if only in their head, it's something comfortable to them. So they are calm and cool and the rest of us are totally caught by surprise." One characteristic Dalton does not share with other mass killers: He's still alive. Most mass shooters kill themselves or are killed by police. That leaves open the possibility that Dalton will eventually explain his actions to authorities or a court-appointed psychiatrist. Advertisement So far, he's mum on that topic. "From what detectives told me, he is unaffected, kind of monotone," said Kalamazoo Police Chief Jeff Hadley. "Showed no emotion relative to the offense. It's really just baffling." Utility trucks make their way down West Main Street in Waverly, Va., after it was hit by a tornado Feb. 24, 2016. (L. Todd Spencer/The Virginian-Pilot via AP) WAVERLY, Va. Tornadoes tore through towns as far north as Pennsylvania, heavy snow canceled hundreds of flights in the Midwest and power outages left tens of thousands of residents from the Carolinas to New England in the dark as severe weather raked across a broad swath of the country for a third day. The storms Wednesday claimed at least a half-dozen lives, three of them in the tiny town of Waverly, Virginia, where a 2-year-old child and two men, ages 50 and 26, were killed during the storm, said Virginia State Police spokeswoman Corinne Geller. Their bodies were found about 300 yards from their mobile home. Advertisement On Tuesday, a tornado that ripped through a recreational vehicle park in Louisiana left two people dead, and a man died of blunt-force trauma when storms hit in Mississippi. At least five structures were damaged in the town of approximately 2,000 and roads leading into town had to be closed because of downed trees and debris tossed by winds gusting to 60 mph, Geller said. Advertisement In Appomattox County, a tornado left an 8- to 10-mile path of destruction, injuring seven people and killing a 78-year-old man, state police said. Edward Keith Harris was found outside his home in Evergreen late Wednesday, Sheriff Barry Letterman told a news conference Thursday. At least 15 structures were destroyed and 25 injuries were reported when the storm passed through Essex County and the town of Tappahannock, about 45 miles northeast of Richmond, state police said. The injuries ranged from minor to serious, but there were no confirmed fatalities. In Waverly, Larry D. Turner, 50, Devine J. Stringfield, 26, and 2-year-old Ivan T. Lewis died Wednesday afternoon when a twister hit Turner's mobile home in a neighborhood sandwiched between railroad tracks and U.S. 460. Their bodies were hurled 300 yards across the highway and into a field adjacent to a cemetery, police said. The toddler's 30-year-old mother, whose name was not released, was also in the trailer but survived. She remained hospitalized Thursday. Police did not release any further details about the victims, but a state lawmaker and neighbors described Turner as a caring neighbor, fun-loving guy, and concerned citizen who was deeply involved in his community. The toddler's mother was Turner's girlfriend, and Stringfield was her brother, said neighbor Timothy Williams. Williams, whose own trailer two doors down from Turner's was destroyed, described Turner as "a good dude" who sometimes came to Williams' house to hang out and watch TV. Williams said he also was a frequent guest of Turner's. "He loved to cook," Williams said. "Every time I was over there, he was cooking." Advertisement State Del. Roslyn Tyler, who represents part of Sussex County where Waverly is located, said she had known Turner for about 30 years, and that he was a strong advocate for his community. Whenever someone in Waverly needed help in an emergency, she could always count on a call from Turner, Tyler said. "He came from a big family in that particular area and knew everybody," she said. In southern Michigan, a 6-year-old girl died following a three-vehicle crash. State police say Harlyn Radley died after the crash Wednesday afternoon near Battle Creek when a car driven by the child's mother lost control and collided with another vehicle. A third vehicle then struck the wreckage. Police say speed and heavy, wet snow were fact In South Carolina, Darlington County Corner Todd Hardee said in a statement that Michael Gaines Sr., 58, had stopped on a road near his home Wednesday to remove debris from the road when a pine tree fell on him. Sheriff Wayne Byrd said the victim was being a good Samaritan when he was killed. The line of storms moved across Pennsylvania and the New York City area Wednesday night, bringing strong winds and heavy rains that knocked down trees and caused scattered power outages. The storms spawned at least two tornadoes in Pennsylvania. One damaged dozens of homes and barns and leveled an Amish schoolhouse with 100-mph winds as it carved a path of destruction over a 5-mile stretch of rural eastern Lancaster County. The National Weather Service also confirmed that a tornado touched down near Wyalusing in Bradford County, where several buildings were reported damaged. Advertisement A crew was already at work Thursday rebuilding the Amish schoolhouse, which roofer Derek Cummings said looked like it had been hit by a bomb. He said it was hoped the 1,200-square-foot, one-story school could be rebuilt in a week. Emergency management officials said they had no reports of deaths or injuries. In the Midwest, a powerful storm brought heavy snow and biting winds, leading to mass flight cancellations at Chicago airports and school closings in several states. The Chicago Department of Aviation reported more than 1,100 flights had been canceled at the city's two major airports by Wednesday evening. Bill Bunting with National Weather Service's Storm Prediction Center estimated 20 to 24 tornados hit from Louisiana to Florida on Tuesday. On Tuesday, one of the hardest-hit areas along the Gulf Coast was a recreational vehicle park in the town of Convent, in southern Louisiana. RVs were tossed about and lay on top of wrecked cars and pickup trucks. Two people were killed there, and 31 injured people were taken to area hospitals, St. James Parish Sheriff Willy Martin said. In Mississippi, 73-year-old Dale Purvis died of blunt-force trauma in a mobile home west of Purvis, Lamar County Coroner Cody Creel said. Advertisement Florida Gov. Rick Scott said an apparent tornado in the Pensacola area significantly damaged more than 70 homes and 24 apartments, leaving three people with minor injuries. He stopped at The Moorings apartment complex, where winds ripped the roof off of at least two buildings. Residents in LaPlace, Louisiana, were cleaning up Wednesday after a tornado ripped up trees, tore roofs from houses and terrified local residents. Nearly 200 homes were damaged. Rose Fuselier, 80, had a gaping hole where her home's front window once stood. "The whole backyard is covered with trees, and then my shed is torn up, too. The roof is gone, and the siding is partially gone," she said. Still, she said others suffered damage even worse than hers: "I lucked out. I lucked out." Associated Press A Swedish teenager who was rescued from the clutches of the Islamic State by Kurdish militias in Iraq has spoken out to local media about her time among the jihadists. Marlin Stivani Nivarlain, a 16-year-old from the town of Boras, described her ordeal to a Kurdish television in the northern Iraqi city of Erbil, the capital of the semi-autonomous Kurdish regional government. Nivarlain said she had been duped by her boyfriend, who convinced her to accompany to join the extremist group. Advertisement She linked up with the 19-year-old in 2014. "First it was good together, but then he started to look at ISIS videos and speak about them and stuff like that," she said in the interview with Kurdistan 24, using another name for the Islamic State. Advertisement "Then he said he wanted to go to ISIS, and I said 'Okay, no problem,' because I did not know what ISIS meant or what Islam was nothing." According to her narrative of events, last May the couple left a foster home in Sweden and journeyed by train and bus to Turkey, where they then crossed over into Syria from the southern Turkish city of Gaziantep. There, the jihadists eventually moved them to the Iraqi city of Mosul. Not long thereafter, Nivarlain, who was apparently also pregnant, started to regret her decision. "In Sweden we have everything, and when I was there, I did not have anything," she said in the interview. "I did not have any money either. It was a really hard life. When I had a phone I started to contact my mum and I said: 'I want to go home'." The circumstances of her rescue from a house outside of Mosul are not totally clear. Nor does the Kurdish report detail what happened to Nivarlain's newborn child. She is in the process of being repatriated to Sweden. Her story is hardly unique. Numerous would-be jihadists and smitten girlfriends have traveled from Europe to the Islamic State's territories in Iraq and Syria only to discover that things weren't quite as they imagined. A massive explosion was reported Nov. 10, 2012, at a residence off Stop 11 Road and Sherman Drive in Indianapolis. (Matt Kryger, The Indianapolis Star) FORT WAYNE, Ind. A deputy prosecutor told jurors that a natural gas explosion in Indianapolis that killed two and devastated a neighborhood was no accident, while a defense attorney argued prosecutors failed to prove his client was involved despite the testimony of 150 witnesses. The two sides presented closing arguments Tuesday in the trial of 57-year-old Bob Leonard. Prosecutors allege he helped his half brother, Mark Leonard, in a plot to recover $300,000 in insurance money. Advertisement Mark Leonard is serving two life sentences after being convicted in July on murder, arson and other charges. Authorities said he was the mastermind behind the plot, which they say also included his girlfriend at the time, Monserrate Shirley, Bob Leonard and two other men. The jury deliberated for more than an hour Tuesday in the charges against Bob Leonard before being sequestered at a hotel. Advertisement Leonard's attorney, Ted Minch, told jurors on Tuesday that prosecutors failed to prove that his client was at the home on the day of the explosion on Nov. 10, 2012. He also said phone records don't show that Leonard had any contact with Gary Thompson, an alleged co-conspirator. Minch also spent much of his two-hour presentation trying to discredit the testimony of Monserrate Shirley, his half brother's girlfriend who owned the house that exploded. Shirley had the motivation to commit the crime because she was the one with the financial problems, Minch said. Her cooperation led to charges against two alleged co-conspirators, Glenn Hults and Thompson, who face a joint June trial. Shirley testified earlier this month that Bob Leonard was brought into the plot after a first attempt to burn down her house failed in October 2012. She told the court that when she asked him about the explosion that killed her next-door neighbors, he replied: "Oh well, they died. You were in it. You talk, we talk." Shirley, who pleaded guilty last year to two conspiracy charges, faces a prison sentence of 20 to 50 years. Deputy Prosecutor Mark Hollingsworth told jurors the testimony they heard, along with surveillance video and DNA evidence prove that Leonard as involved and told jurors the explosion was no accident. "This was not a utility malfunction by any means," Hollingsworth said. Advertisement Leonard did not take the witness stand Friday as the defense spent about a half hour presenting testimony after jurors heard 16 days of testimony from prosecution witnesses. His trial was moved to Fort Wayne due to extensive media coverage in Indianapolis. Associated Press Donald Trump won New Hampshire, a moderate Northeastern state that prides itself on its sober analysis of the candidates at hand. Donald Trump won South Carolina, a conservative Southern state with a number of religious voters. Donald Trump has now won Nevada, a Western state with its own eclectic mix of Republican voting groups. Trump won them all. According to preliminary entrance poll data reported by CNN, he won every age group and every education group and both genders -- and even every racial and ethnic group. About 1 in 10 Nevada Republicans were Hispanic. More than 4 in 10 of them backed Donald Trump (according to entrance polls with a notably large margin of error). What's the theme here? What's the thing that's turned Donald Trump from the never-gonna-happen outsider of last June into the how-can-he-be-stopped candidate of February? Nevada offers one hint: Anger. Nevada Republicans are mad at the government. This probably isn't too much of a surprise, given that it's also the home of the family of Cliven Bundy, but it's still remarkable how much angrier it is than previous states. Voters were mad. After winning the Nevada Republican presidential caucuses, Donald Trump said he "loves the poorly educated." Finishing far ahead of Senators Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio, the win gives Trump even more distance over the rest of the Republican field. Feb. 24, 2016. (AP) (Associated Press) And voters didn't want a politician to address that anger. Six in 10 Nevada Republicans said that they were looking for the next president to be someone from "outside politics." That's 6 in 10 of a "huge" turnout, by the way. And 70 percent of them voted for Donald Trump. Trump wasn't supposed to win Hispanics, but he appears to have won them. (This was a key question even after returns were in from the Democratic race.) Trump wasn't supposed to win evangelicals in South Carolina or here, really, but he won them in both. In Nevada, he won 4 out of every 10 evangelical votes. He wasn't supposed to win conservatives. Won 'em -- even the "very conservative" ones. Wasn't supposed to win better educated voters. Won 'em. This is an electorate that does not care about what it is supposed to do. Voters who decided later, those who took their time and considered the candidates, one would assume, went more heavily for Marco Rubio than Trump. It's one of the few groups he lost. But the people who've been mad at politics for a long time and decided weeks ago who they were going to back? More than half backed Trump. Advertisement Expand Autoplay Image 1 of 22 Republican businessman and reality TV star Donald Trump announced his candidacy for president on June 16, 2015. (Scott Olson, Getty Images) Trump has proven resilient. His opponents demonstrably don't know how to beat him, and he's eroded all of the pillars they thought were propping them up. We've grown accustomed to Trump being expected to win, but we haven't yet become used to his actually winning. Nevada may be a fluke, as may New Hampshire and South Carolina. Who knows? But if the electorate stays this unhappy at the candidates that were supposed to win, the one that was never supposed to will keep on doing it. Crowds of people line up to get a ballot at a Republican caucus site, Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016, in Las Vegas. (John Locher / AP) Republican voters in Nevada made their voices known by overwhelmingly supporting billionaire Donald Trump in the GOP's first-in-the-West presidential caucuses ahead of the party's national nominating convention in July. Eleven names were on the statewide ballot, but Trump easily outdistanced the other candidates still in the race, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, Ohio Gov. John Kasich and retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson. Advertisement Here are snapshot comments from voters who caucused Tuesday: ___ Advertisement Steve and Irma Eggert cast ballots for Donald Trump at Desert Oasis High School in Las Vegas. Irma Eggert was born in Mexico and immigrated to the United States. She said she likes Trump's immigration stance, and voted in memory of her late father, who brought her legally to the U.S. "I'm here for him, representing him," Eggert said of her father. "He would have loved this, just to know someone's bringing this up." Irma Eggert, 59, lost her job in defense procurement after the real estate crash, and now earns a third of what she used to working in a casino legal department. The couple said they're in danger of losing their Las Vegas house, and like Trump's promise to revive the economy. "America needs to be brought up to a level we've been downgraded," Irma Eggert said. ___ Advertisement Jim and Sharon Turner were among hundreds of people who lined up before 6 p.m. to cast their ballots in Nevada's Republican presidential caucuses at Reed High School in Sparks. Both support Marco Rubio, and believe he could defeat Hillary Clinton. "He's a person who can work with other people," said Sharon Turner, a retired AT&T worker from Sparks. Jim Turner, a retired U.S. government worker, called Rubio a negotiator. "Donald Trump could probably do that as well," Turner said. "But I like the way Rubio has run a positive campaign." ___ Advertisement Retired businessman Roy Leuhsenhop is partially blind and had his daughter drop him off on the curb of a high school caucus site in Las Vegas. He said he came out Tuesday night to vote for someone who could beat Donald Trump. "He's a good businessman. I think he's a spoiled brat," Leuhsenhop said as he waited in a line that started in the crowded cafeteria of Durango High School, snaked through a quad and ended at the curb. Leuhsenhop, 92, said he likes Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio, partly because he admires the courage of people who left Cuba and came to the U.S. against long odds. "I have a fondness for Cubans," he said. "Only certain people have the guts to do it." ___ Advertisement Tiffany Jones, 35, said she's been supporting Marco Rubio ever since she took a Facebook quiz to find her right candidate several months ago, and scored a 92 percent match with the Florida senator. "I like his vision," Jones said as her 3-year-old daughter, Jovi, clung to her at Desert Oasis High School in Las Vegas. "The biggest appeal is his building a foundation for family." Jones owns a bakery in Las Vegas. She said she knew her favorite was an underdog in Nevada. "I'm trying to keep my hope and faith in humanity," she quipped. "I just hope that people are level-headed." ___ Advertisement Retired government worker and New York City transplant Carol Allen, 79, and her husband were first in line at Palo Verde High School in Las Vegas. Alllen said she decided on Marco Rubio, but she was more vocal about defeating Donald Trump. "I don't want Trump," she said. "He's an inexperienced clown." She also said Rubio had a good grasp on foreign policy and economy, although his position on immigration was less clear to her. The lifelong Republican said she voted for Mitt Romney in 2012. ___ Tracy Brigida used to be a Scott Walker backer. Advertisement But after the Wisconsin governor dropped out last fall, and Brigida's husband got laid off from his mining job, Brigida shifted her support. She cast her ballot on Tuesday for Donald Trump. "He's gotten laid off for the second time in three years," Brigida said as she waited in line with her husband, Michael, and their two children at Desert Oasis High School in Las Vegas. "I want a businessman to run the biggest business in the world." ___ Jeremy Haight drove straight from his marketing job to caucus for Marco Rubio. Advertisement "I kind of live for this," said the 23-year-old self-described political junkie, who was a Republican political staffer in the heavily Democratic state of Hawaii before moving to Las Vegas. Haight said he was troubled to see restaurants still open, because Americans fought for the right to vote and those workers wouldn't get a say in the caucus because they had to work. Still, he was enthusiastic about his first caucus at Durango High School in Las Vegas, and about Rubio. "He's the most level-headed. He hasn't said anything stupid or crazy or hasn't pissed too many people off," Haight said, "which is really what I think the country needs." ___ Megan Ortega balanced her 4-year-old daughter on her hip and tried to keep her 5-year-old son close while she waited in line at a caucus site in Las Vegas. Advertisement The 29-year-old military wife dressed up before casting her ballot. She said she was headed to a Ted Cruz victory party after the Tuesday caucus. "He's consistent, he's bold and he's a class act," she said, struggling to hold her daughter as she also signed a petition for a ballot measure to change Nevada's rooftop solar rates. Ortega volunteered for Cruz's campaign and liked that the Texas senator led the charge for a government shutdown in 2013. "Love it. Love it," Ortega said. "What's the point of having a government if all they're going to do is spend money? Out of control. Love it." ___ Former Nevada state Sen. Maurice Washington, a Republican who used to represent the district in Sparks, shook hands with Ted Cruz and had his photo taken with the candidate at Reed High School. Advertisement He said he hadn't made up his mind which candidate to choose. "There are three good candidates," Washington said. "Any one of them has to be better than Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton." ___ Lindsey Berg, 25, came to the caucus at Palo Verde High School with her two children a 2-year-old on her hip and a 1-year-old in a stroller. She said she's most concerned about the economy and national budget, and what it means for future generations. "I don't want them to pay off all our debt. It's getting ridiculous," the stay-at-home mom said of the budget deficit. Advertisement She also said she was caucusing for the first time, to defeat Donald Trump. "Donald Trump has to be stopped," she said. She said she was leaning toward John Kasich because of his more moderate record, but wasn't convinced he could win the nomination. She voted for Mitt Romney in the 2012 election and considers herself a moderate. "I'd like us to stop fighting wars, but that's not very Republican," she said with a laugh. ___ Advertisement Greg Gerhardt of Sparks, owner of a construction company with about 30 employees, said he's backing Ted Cruz "He's the best candidate we have that respects the U.S. Constitution. He will make the right choice for the next Supreme Court justice. I believe he will keep America safe, secure the borders and get the economy back on track," Gerhardt said. His wife, Sharla Gerhardt, liked Carly Fiorina and Jeb Bush and others, but settled on Cruz too. "I liked the fact Trump stirred things up, but I don't trust him," she said. Associated Press Donald Trump speaks to supporters in Las Vegas after his victory in the Nevada caucuses. (Jae C. Hong / Associated Press ) LAS VEGAS With a big win in Nevada, Donald Trump claimed a third straight commanding victory in the race for the Republican presidential nomination. Marco Rubio edged out Ted Cruz in a tight race for second that offered little evidence that Republicans were ready to coalesce around one strong alternative to the businessman billionaire. With victories now under his belt in the West, the South and Northeast, a gleeful Trump was oozing even more confidence than usual Tuesday night that the GOP nomination is within reach. Advertisement "It's going to be an amazing two months," he told a raucous crowd at a Las Vegas casino. "We might not even need the two months, folks, to be honest." Republican presidential candidate Marco Rubio speaks at a campaign event ahead of the Nevada caucus at the Silverton Casino in Las Vegas on Feb. 23, 2016. (Josh Edelson / AFP/Getty Images) Trump's rivals know they are running out of time to stop his juggernaut. Advertisement Rubio edged out Cruz by fewer than 2,000 votes, according to The Associated Press vote count. Appearing Wednesday on NBC's "Today" show, Rubio said the majority of Republicans don't want Trump to be their nominee for president. "The sooner we can get this race narrowed, I think the easier it's going to be to stop Donald Trump, he said. After finishing third in Iowa, fifth in New Hampshire and second in South Carolina and Nevada, Rubio needs a win soon to support the idea he can beat Trump. Cruz, for his part, skipped right past Nevada's underwhelming verdict for him in his caucus-night speech and pinned his hopes on the big round of voting that's coming up next, saying: "One week from today will be the most important night of this campaign: Super Tuesday." The candidates were fanning out to their next targets of opportunity as the lights went out in Las Vegas: Trump was campaigning Wednesday in Virginia, then on to Texas and Oklahoma. Rubio and Cruz both headed for Texas. Entrance polls in Nevada captured the sentiment propelling Trump's insurgent campaign: Six in 10 caucus goers said they were angry with the way the government is working, and Trump got about half of them. Cruz, a fiery conservative popular among voters on the GOP's right, had finished a disappointing third in South Carolina after spending much of the past two weeks denying charges of dishonest campaign tactics and defending his integrity. Nevada raises more questions about his viability. But Cruz harked back to his win in Iowa's leadoff caucuses to remind supporters that his is "the only campaign that has defeated Donald Trump is this campaign." Advertisement The election calendar suggests that if Trump's rivals don't slow him by mid-March, they may not ever. Trump won 14 delegates in Nevada, while Rubio won seven and Cruz got six. John Kasich and Ben Carson each got one, with one delegate left to be allocated. Overall, Trump has 81 delegates, and Cruz and Rubio have 17 apiece. Kasich has six delegates and Carson has four. It takes 1,237 delegates to win the Republican nomination for president. Trump, in his victory speech, took on the notion advanced by both Rubio and Cruz that if more GOP candidates drop out of the race, they'll coalesce around an alternative. "They keep forgetting that when people drop out, we're going to get a lot of votes," he said. Nevada's caucusing played out in schools, community centers and places of worship across the state a process that's been chaotic in the past. Advertisement Count Tracy Brigida, fed up after her husband was laid off from his mining job, among those caucusing for Trump. "I want a businessman to run the biggest business in the world," Brigida said as she caucused at a Las Vegas high school. Jeremy Haight drove straight from his marketing job to caucus for Marco Rubio at the same high school. "He's the most level-headed. He hasn't said anything stupid or crazy ... which is really what I think the country needs," Haight said. It was Cruz for Megan Ortega, who declared: "He's consistent, he's bold and he's a class act." Preliminary results of the entrance poll found that about 3 in 10 early caucus goers said the quality that mattered most to them in choosing a candidate was that he shares their values, slightly more than the quarter who said they want a candidate who can win in November. About a quarter said they want a candidate who can bring change. About 2 in 10 want one who "tells it like it is." Advertisement Trump no surprise here was supported by nearly 9 in 10 of the "tell it like it is" voters. Lagging far behind in the Nevada vote were Kasich and Carson. The entrance poll survey was conducted for The Associated Press and the television networks by Edison Research as Republican voters arrived at 25 randomly selected caucus sites in Nevada. Associated Press Trump's contempt for the truth is no impediment with a large segment of the Republican primary electorate, which has an adversarial relationship with reality. Two-thirds of Trump supporters think Barack Obama is a Muslim, a survey by Public Policy Polling found, and 61 percent think he was born abroad. Other candidates may decline to indulge voters who are ignorant or unhinged. But Trump is not bound by such dreary customs. The Tribune begins endorsements today for the March 15 Illinois primary, starting with contested races for the U.S. House. The Tribune Editorial Board works hard to inform these recommendations. We interview candidates, review the promises they've made to voters and evaluate their voting records. We listen to what our readers have to say about the people who represent them. Advertisement We ask candidates to complete a survey on important issues they'd face if elected. You can read their answers here: chicagotribune.com/elections. You'll find the editorial board's statement of principles here: chicagotribune.com/principles. Advertisement 8th District We begin our endorsements with the open seat in the 8th District. Four years ago, we endorsed Tammy Duckworth over Raja Krishnamoorthi in the Democratic primary here, in what we described as "a very close call." Duckworth went on to win two terms and is now seeking her party's nomination for the U.S. Senate seat held by Republican Mark Kirk. That sets up a three-way Democratic primary for the 8th District seat. This one isn't close at all. Krishnamoorthi's amalgam of business and government experience makes him the best candidate, hands down. A Harvard Law School grad who lives in Schaumburg, he's been a deputy state treasurer and an assistant attorney general. He's president of two high-tech firms focused on military security and renewable energy. Those overlapping experiences give him a valuable perspective on how government policy affects businesses and workers. State Sen. Michael Noland of Elgin has been an occasional thorn in the side of the Democratic leadership in Springfield, but he hasn't absorbed many lessons from watching the state's financial tailspin. How would he balance the federal budget? Why, he'd eliminate waste and increase revenue, i.e. raise taxes. It would take a lot of new taxes to deliver all the goodies listed on Noland's website, including massive investments in expressways and public transit and a single-payer health care system. (He also wants to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment and overturn the Citizens United ruling on campaign finance spending. Look a squirrel!) Deborah Bullwinkel was elected president of Villa Park in 2013 after four years on the village board. It's a big leap from there to Congress, and she had trouble keeping up when our discussion turned to how to restore solvency to Social Security, for example. Krishnamoorthi said he'd raise the cap on taxable income; Bullwinkel stammered. Bullwinkel says she's a quick study and a good listener. That's not the same as being prepared. We were impressed with Krishnamoorthi's command of specifics about the tax code and the Affordable Care Act and even more impressed when he emailed us after our meeting to correct himself on a minor point. We like that he's already scoped out opportunities to join in bipartisan initiatives on criminal justice reform and alternative energy. We agree with his maxim that government must do everything "faster, cheaper, smarter." The Tribune endorses Krishnamoorthi. Peter "Pete" DiCianni of Elmhurst is unopposed in the Republican primary. Advertisement 1st District "The people in the 1st District need somebody who's going to show up." That sounds like what we said two years ago, when we declined to endorse Rep. Bobby L. Rush, of Chicago, for a 12th term in the U.S. House. We'd heard the complaints from constituents, who said they couldn't get Rush's office to return their calls. We knew he had one of the worst missed-vote records in Congress, some of it attributable to health problems. It was time, we said, for an energetic up-and-comer to represent the district. Chicago Ald. Howard B. Brookins Jr., 21st, was not the candidate we had in mind, but he won us over. That's him in the previous paragraph, promising to go to work. He says Rush, who sits on a House subcommittee on communications and technology, is "wholly owned by telecom lobbyists," pointing to a Better Government Association investigation that found charities affiliated with Rush had received $1.7 million from utility and telecommunications companies. The BGA also questioned campaign spending related to Rush's South Side church. Rush, who didn't attend our candidate forum, declined to discuss those points at length in a later interview, but said there had been no wrongdoing. Does he recognize a potential conflict of interest in those transactions? No. Brookins hasn't been untouched by scandal. We endorsed an opponent for the City Council in 2015 after Brookins' former chief of staff, Curtis Thompson Jr., pleaded guilty to taking a bribe, ostensibly from a developer who wanted a liquor license. Federal prosecutors said Brookins was in the room during two meetings in which the deal was discussed. That was more than two years ago. "If I had done something wrong, you'd expect I'd be in prison next to Curtis," Brookins said. Fair enough. He's been an effective alderman, facing down unions that tried to stop him from bringing a Wal-Mart to his ward. The 21st Ward now has Aldi, Lowe's and other employers. When the City Council signed off on a $5 million settlement with the family of Laquan McDonald, Brookins called immediately for release of a video that showed a police officer shooting the teenager. There's a promising third candidate in the race. O. Patrick Brutus, of Chicago, has 20 years of experience in economic development at City Hall and the Illinois Department of Transportation. We disagree with his emphasis on infrastructure projects as job creation panaceas particularly the proposed Illiana toll road, an expensive road to nowhere but he's knowledgeable and deeply involved in his community. We hope to hear more from him. Our endorsement goes to Brookins. Advertisement On the GOP side, August (O'Neill) Deuser would be a voice for the Southland Republicans who were disenfranchised when Democrats gerrymandered them into this district to dilute the suburban vote. But Deuser's plan for balancing the budget "cut discretionary spending in half" is a sound bite short on details. Jimmy Lee Tillman II, son of true-blue Democrats, seeks to infiltrate the Republican Party to give black voters a voice in the majority caucus. But his views are all over the place. We make no endorsement. 2nd District Rep. Robin Kelly has been a breath of fresh air in the 2nd District since 2013, when she took over the seat abandoned by a floundering Jesse Jackson Jr. Kelly, of Matteson, has hosted job fairs she calls them "hiring events" and workshops to promote financial literacy and to help constituents avoid foreclosures. She sponsored a program called "Robin's Readers" to encourage elementary school kids to spend more time with books. She introduced legislation to promote access to dentists in underserved areas, and reached out to Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner immediately after he was elected to lobby for support for the proposed Peotone airport. Marcus Lewis, of Matteson, a former U.S. Postal Service employee who's running against Kelly for the third time, says she's too focused on gun control measures and points to the support she's received from former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg's anti-gun super PAC. That's a curious criticism, given the devastating effects of gun violence in America. Kelly is frustrated that efforts to control access to firearms have gone nowhere in Congress. She's authored legislation that would provide tax credits to employers who hire ex-offenders a key to reducing recidivism but that hasn't gained traction, either. Meanwhile, she's working with a team of Republicans and members of the black caucus on criminal justice reforms meant to reduce the costly and counterproductive level of incarceration. We applaud her determination. Kelly is endorsed. Also on the Democratic ballot are Dorian C. Myrickes of Chicago, a college professor who calls himself a "grass-roots peopletician," and Charles Rayburn of Dolton. John F. Morrow of Country Club Hills is unopposed on the Republican side. 4th District Advertisement In the 4th District, Rep. Luis V. Gutierrez is challenged by Javier Salas, a former Spanish-language radio host who served as then-Gov. Pat Quinn's adviser on Latino affairs. Gutierrez is the nation's strongest advocate for bipartisan immigration reform, and Salas tries, unconvincingly, to cast that as a liability. Asked to name their top priorities, the candidates, both from Chicago, list the same issues in more or less the same order: jobs, education, health care, fighting gun violence and yes, immigration. Gutierrez says his district office helps immigrants apply for citizenship or petition for visas for family members just as it helps facilitate replacement of lost Social Security checks or other benefits. Comprehensive immigration reform is a jobs creator, he argues: "The day I help legalize someone, he stops mowing lawns and opens his own landscaping business." Gutierrez is endorsed. 5th District In the 5th District, Green Party candidates Rob Sherman of Buffalo Grove and Warren "Grizz" Grimsley of Chicago are vying to face Rep. Mike Quigley, D-Chicago, in November. No endorsement. 6th District Gordon (Jay) Kinzler, of Glen Ellyn, says he voted to send Rep. Peter Roskam to the Illinois General Assembly and to Congress, but that support has soured. Kinzler, a surgeon and lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army Reserve, says Roskam's voting record doesn't reflect the priorities of the "die-hard conservative" 6th District. Roskam, of Wheaton, faces an attack from the left as well: Democrats Amanda Howland, a Lake Zurich attorney and College of Lake County trustee, and Robert Marshall, a Burr Ridge radiologist, are vying for a shot at the seat in November. Advertisement For the Republicans, we're sticking with Roskam, who has served capably since 2007. As a member of the Ways and Means Committee and chairman of its Subcommittee on Oversight, he has pressured the Internal Revenue Service to adjust policies on civil forfeitures and passed a Taxpayer Bill of Rights. He was also behind a new law requiring Medicare to use predictive modeling to combat fraud, as major credit card companies do. On the Democratic side, Marshall got our attention with his plan to divide Illinois into four states, which he says would make the population "more governable" while increasing its representation in the U.S. Senate. But we give the edge to Howland, whose experience as a mediation lawyer would be a plus in a divided Congress. Tomorrow, more choices for Congress. Follow the Editorial Board on Twitter @Trib_Ed_Board and on Facebook. Seventy-seven days with no developments after Alvarez assured us that "the investigation into this matter continues." Seventy-seven days for her prosecutors to compare the officers' assertions that McDonald was advancing on police, waving a knife at them with a raised arm "as if attacking," with the video that clearly shows otherwise. Seventy-seven days to decide whether to charge any of them with obstruction of justice. PV Magazine, by Ian Clover Japanese funding and technical expertise will be lent to Egypts promising solar PV sector following the news that the Japanese government is loaning 10 billion yen ($89 million) to support the construction of a large-scale solar PV and storage project near to the city of Hurghada. The project will comprise a 20 MW solar PV plant and a 30 MW storage facility, which will utilize several different types of battery technology, including lithium-ion and sodium-sulfur batteries. For its part, Egypts government will hold a public tender for the project exclusively for Japanese companies that have demonstrable battery technologies ready to go. Sumitomo Electric Industries and NGK insulators are two such companies that are expected to vie for contracts, thus opening the floodgates for more Japanese investment in the growing MENA region. A written agreement on the project is expected to be signed at next weeks PV Expo in Tokyo, when Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi is scheduled to visit Japan to discuss the project, which would be the first in Egypt to boast a large-scale storage facility. Construction costs are expected to mount to around $92 million, and the two governments have established a low interest payback rate for the loan. Japans government has been eager to encourage its domestic companies to explore business opportunities in new and emerging markets, particularly in the field of advanced storage batteries an official growth target announced in 2015 calls for Japanese companies to secure 500 billion yen in revenue for its storage technologies by 2020. "We want to attract global attention with achievements in Egypt," a government official told The Japan News. According to the Middle East Solar Industry Association (MESIA), Japan has targeted the correct country a recent MESIA report says that Egypt could add up to 500 MW of PV in 2016. Meanwhile, government officials in the country are preparing tenders for 30 GW of energy projects, with renewables to the fore as the country seeks to drastically upgrade its energy market. Embattled Aurora Alderman Lynne Johnson was not at Tuesday night's City Council meeting - but some of her constituents were. Four 10th Ward residents spoke before the council to ask Johnson to resign in the wake of retail theft charges, admitting they expected her to be there, too. Advertisement "I have to change my speech," said Patty Sindelar. "I find it amazing that there's a shopping bag sitting at her place right now." Johnson was arrested Jan. 31 and charged with retail theft from the Meijer store on Route 59 in Aurora, just around the corner from her home. It was the second retail theft charge in three years for Johnson, both from the same store. She pleaded guilty to the first one in 2013. While she was first charged with misdemeanor retail theft for the second charge on Feb. 4, the DuPage County State's Attorney's Office raised the charge last week to a Class 2 felony charge for burglary after State's Attorney Robert Berlin said he reviewed information about the case. Advertisement Last week it came out that Johnson had two previous retail theft charges for which she pleaded guilty, in 2003 in Bolingbrook and in 2010 in Willowbrook. Johnson has said she would not resign as alderman, despite pleas from Mayor Tom Weisner and several of her fellow aldermen to do so. She told The Beacon-News two weeks ago she would not resign because residents in her ward had not asked her to. Keith Bradly, a Stonebridge subdivision resident, said he sent an e-mail to Johnson asking her to resign. "You cannot continue to represent us," Bradly said he wrote in his e-mail. "In the interim, you must in good conscience resign from your position." Alma Jones said she has been a 10th Ward resident for 20 years. "She said she would resign if her constituents asked her to do so," Jones said. "I would like to go on record as being one of those who is asking her to resign." Rachel Ossyra, who said she has lived in the 10th Ward since 2003, said Johnson should resign "right now." "I don't believe someone like that can represent us," Ossyra said. She pointed out that her first two retail theft charges were before she ever ran for alderman. Advertisement "She should have disclosed this past conduct to us," she said. "If she had, she would never have been elected." Johnson did not attend Tuesday night's meeting, although she did attend an afternoon meeting of the Building, Grounds and Infrastructure Committee on which she serves. Aldermen did not speak about the situation at the Tuesday night meeting. slord@tribpub.com The Aurora City Council Finance Committee Tuesday recommended a $1.90 increase in a fee charged every two months to help fund federally mandated sewer work throughout the city. The fee goes toward the overall $120 million worth of work to separate sanitary and storm sewers in parts of town where they are combined. That work, which the city has been ordered to do by the Environmental Protection Agency, is supposed to be completed by 2030. Advertisement Eric Schoeny, drainage and underground coordinator for the city's Public Works Department, said this week the city has done about 25 percent of what the EPA says it has to do. In a chart he passed out to aldermen, he detailed about $32.5 million worth of sewer work the city has done just since 2009. Still, the city has about $90 million worth of work to do, which is why the $1.90 increase is needed, city officials said. The increase would bring the bi-monthly fee to $5.85 cents from the current $3.95 cents. The increase would raise about $2.5 million in additional money over the next 15 years, not enough to fund all the work that needs to be done. Advertisement "So we will have to keep raising it every two years or so," said City Finance Director Brian Caputo. Separating combined sewers is not something Aurora alone has to do. There are 772 communities in the country with combined sewer systems, some 108 in Illinois alone. Nearby, Elgin, Joliet, Morris and Chicago have combined sewers. Carie Anne Ergo, Aurora's chief management officer, called the fee "a $120 million unfunded mandate from the federal government." But Alderman Robert O'Connor, at large, Finance Committee chairman, pointed out that separating the combined sewers is something the city likely would want to do anyway. The separated sewers already have resulted in much less sewage and cleaner water in the Fox River and Indian Creek. "It's something that had to be done," O'Connor said. slord@tribpub.com This is a collaborative space to share and to reflect upon reality. This site represents the views of the contributors, and does not represent an official Baha'i perspective. Please comment! Comments are moderated to remove spam and trolls, not opposing views. To contact the site owner, email bahaicoherence@gmail.com Parents of Seton Academy students expressed outrage after learning in January that the Archdiocese of Chicago decided to close the school at the end of this academic year. Many said they had no prior knowledge the school's financial situation was dire. (Erin Gallagher / Daily Southtown) Some parents say it was a "slap in the face" when the Archdiocese of Chicago decided to close Seton Academy. They claim they were never told how dire the financial crisis has been, and perhaps they could have raised the money that was needed. School officials counter that the seemingly insurmountable $2.55 million debt was a decade in the making. Advertisement "It seemed like an injustice to even ask them to raise (nearly) $3 million in a year's time when they didn't even incur that," said the high school's principal, Earl McKay. "It happened 10 years ago." McKay said the problem was created by a perfect storm of decreasing enrollment combining with a down economy. A decade ago, the school had more than 400 students enrolled. Last year, that number was down to about 175. This year, there are 138 students. Advertisement "(There has been) a definite, significant decline over the years," said Anne Maselli, director of communication and marketing for the archdiocese. Last year, the school switched to a blended learning program, which McKay believes was another cause for a drop of enrollment. The school partners with a third-party business to provide Internet-based learning inside the classroom, he said. Students can elect to each study a different language online while being supervised by a single teacher inside the classroom. Although there is a "core group that loves it," McKay said some parents did not want to try it and enrolled their kids in other schools Many parents said they were "blindsided" because school officials knew there were financial problems but never involved the parents. "We were slapped in the face because they never told us the school had these shortcomings," said Ramonde Williams of Calument City, whose son is a junior who will spend his graduation year at a different school. Another parent, Calvin Perdue of Lansing, said his son spent two years at another high school and transferred to Seton for what they thought would be his remaining two years. Now, his son will need to attend a third high school. "I was personally told by the principal (McKay) and several other staff members that the school was going to remain open," Perdue said. "Like I told all parents, we are owned by the archdiocese and I can never say when they are going to pull the plug," McKay responded. "If I assured (Perdue) it was not going to close, I have no way of knowing how I could have assured him." Maselli said school officials knew two years ago they were on a watch list for closing. Maselli said that individual schools, not the archdiocese, determine what and how to tell parents and staff. At that time, Maryann Lynch was principal, while McKay was assistant principal and dean of students. Advertisement Annual tuition at Seton is more than $9,000 per student, in addition to fundraising, McKay said. The school has continued to send parents appeals for money. "Did we say, 'Our doors are going to close if you do not give?'" McKay said. "We did not do that." Many parents say they could have helped raise the money, had they known. "I would have been able to generate some money, and we were not given an opportunity and that's what stings the most," Perdue said. However, McKay said the financial problems were bigger than parents realized. Many parents said they learned last month that they needed to raise $350,000 this year. McKay said that was in addition to a second, simultaneous fundraising campaign for $400,000 needed prior to next year. Those amounts were in addition to the $1.8 million of debt incurred over the past decade, he said. In addition, he said, the school was built in 1962 and is in disrepair. "It's like the Titanic and you're dishing out water with a teacup," McKay said. Advertisement "I know that at the end of the day, you've got to have money to run this," said James Turner, a parent from Hazel Crest. "I get that." Like many parents, Turner said it was not just the decision to close, it was the way parents became involved. He said his daughter, a freshman, opened her school email account and learned of the closing before he did. He said he found about the closing when she called him, telling him to read his email. Daily Southtown Twice-weekly News updates from the south suburbs delivered every Monday and Wednesday > The email was dated Jan. 5 at 3:19 p.m., Superintendent Jim Rigg informed students and parents the school was closing at the end of the school year. In the email was an invitation to attend a meeting that night at 7. "After careful deliberation over the long-term sustainability of the school, the Office of Catholic Schools and the Archdiocesan School Board has recommended that Seton Academy close at the end of the 2015-2016 academic year," said Rigg's email. "Archbishop Blase J. Cupich has accepted this recommendation." "It was handled very poorly," Turner said, calling the email "tactless" for allowing students to receive the news before parents. McKay said everyone learned about the closing from that email, including the faculty. Albert Haskins of South Holland is the former dean of students at Seton when enrollment was high. His three daughters graduated from Seton, and his son is a senior. His concern is that, unlike Seton, other Catholic schools within the diocese are given the opportunity to work to keep the schools open. McKay said the difference is that Seton is a stand-alone high school, which has a different dynamic than a parish grade school that is attached to a church or a priest. Advertisement Another parent, Melanie Sharpe of South Holland, said it would have been nice to have been offered time to raise enough for the current juniors, like her son, to complete their senior year. "We don't know where he's going to go his senior year, being displaced from all his classmates," Sharpe said. "I have no idea where he is going." Erin Gallagher is a freelance reporter for Daily Southtown. A late-winter snowstorm, bringing high winds and white-out conditions in some places, blanketed the Southland Wednesday, causing sporadic power outages, snarling traffic and forcing some schools and government offices to close early. Visually, it appeared to snow horizontally at times due to strong winds. The National Weather Service issued winter storm warnings for several parts of the Southland and blizzard warnings for parts of Indiana. East of Route 50 experienced white-out conditions, said Will County Sheriff Sgt. Vince Gambino, the traffic supervisor. Advertisement "We are seeing numerous vehicles in ditches and we've had some accidents," Gambino said. "The roads are snow covered (but) it's more the wind at this point that's blowing the snow, making visibility limited." Snowfall tallies varied depending on the location, but southeast Cook and eastern Will counties had accumulated at least 6 inches of snow by 6 p.m. Areas further north and west had little to no snowfall, while Northwest Indiana was socked with blizzard like conditions and more than a foot of snow in some places, National Weather Service spokesman Ricky Castro said. Advertisement Hundreds of flights at O'Hare International Airport and Midway International Airport were canceled. Motorists were encouraged to stay off the roads in some parts of eastern Will County, thanks to the late winter blast. By late morning, temperatures hovered above freezing south of Interstate 80 where the storm was most concentrated, prompting a mix of snow and rain. But, that quickly turned into a steady snowfall around lunchtime. Due to the storm, a severe weather spotter course scheduled at the Will County Farm Bureau was among the many activities canceled Wednesday. Schools across the Southland either closed early or canceled afternoon or evening activities and meetings, including in Alsip, Blue Island, Chicago Heights, Country Club Hills, Homewood, Flossmoor, Oak Forest, Palos Park and Tinley Park. In Tinley Park, the village also canceled its proposed state property open house scheduled for Wednesday night and the library closed early. Approximately 8,500 ComEd customers in the Southland were without power, according to the electric company's website. "Being a windy day, it puts some of the power lines to the test a bit," Will County Emergency Management Agency Director Harold Damron said. About 1,000 of those outages were in Will County, which Damron said was a low number given the storm's severity. Other than those outages, he said no significant weather-related events occurred in Will County, which was one of the areas worst hit. There were minimal weather-related crashes reported in the area. Interstate 57 experienced some white-out conditions, but no crashes were reported by evening Wednesday, police said. However, in rural areas, where snow blows across the fields, cars were not as lucky. Advertisement "Everybody's been really good about staying on the road," said an Illinois State Police spokeswoman for an area that includes Will, Kendall and Grundy counties. "We don't have any problem out here, knock on wood." Still, Gambino advised those in eastern Will County to stay home unless absolutely necessary. Illinois Department of Transportation spokeswoman Gianna Urgo said there were 350 snow plows and salt-spreading trucks on roads in the Chicago area, and a total of 1,700 are available statewide. "We'll be out as long as the conditions warrant it," she said. Despite the slick roads, not everyone stayed home. Nancy Stanley, 48, braved the snow Wednesday afternoon to do a little shopping along La Grange Road. Advertisement "I braved the elements," said Stanley, who lives in Orland Park. "Took a chance." Stanley said she didn't think the storm was going to be worse than what already fell on Wednesday. But, if not, she'll be out shoveling her sidewalk on Thursday. Daily Southtown Twice-weekly News updates from the south suburbs delivered every Monday and Wednesday > Others, like brothers Tim and Brian Moriarty got to shoveling on Wednesday. Tim, 15, and Brian, 14, shoveled sidewalks in front of their family's Tinley Park home, as well as several neighbors' walks Wednesday afternoon. "It's just nice to help them out," Tim Moriarty said. "Sometimes, we'll go all the way down the block." While their parents told them go out shoveling, no one had to tell them to help out the neighborhood. Despite the snow, the Moriarty brothers were in school on Wednesday and said they likely would be back there Thursday. Advertisement "We'll probably be back shoveling," Tim Moriarty said. "And doing homework." The Associated Press contributed to this report. Erin Gallagher and Nick Swedberg are freelance reporters for the Daily Southtown. Most oddsmakers and film critics say "Spotlight" is a long shot to take home the Best Picture Oscar at Sunday's Academy Awards. "The Revenant" is favored over the film about The Boston Globe's investigation into the Catholic Church's coverup of priests who sexually abused children. Still, "Spotlight" is an Oscar-worthy film that recounts in dramatic fashion how Globe reporters exposed the systemic transferring of repeat offenders to other parishes, the Church's relentless efforts to discredit accusers and the willingness of good Catholic laymen to go along with the program. Advertisement Reporters who uncovered abuse in other dioceses appreciate "Spotlight's" accuracy and authenticity. I covered how the issue affected the Roman Catholic Diocese of Joliet, which includes all of Will County. Others on the beat at the time included Allison Hantschel of the Daily Southtown and David Heinzmann of the Chicago Tribune. Southtown columnist Tim Placher recounted his experience being abused by a priest. Those of us who investigated this issue locally encountered the same personal and professional challenges faced by the Globe team as depicted in "Spotlight." Advertisement I began writing stories early in 2002 about people who were abused as kids by Joliet Diocese priests. I'll never forget the first man who shared his story. I asked if he had any evidence to corroborate his claims. He showed me love letters and valentines sent to him by his abuser from a treatment facility in California, where he was sent after he was caught molesting another boy. Establishing the truth of the stories was the first hurdle. Many readers believed there were a few "bad apples," but doubted the abuse was widespread. Over the next several months I spoke with more than 50 people who shared heartbreaking stories of abuse. The toll of priests mounted. First, four were removed from active ministry; then 10. Today, the Joliet Diocese on its website lists the names of 35 priests with "credible or substantial" allegations. In "Spotlight," actor Stanley Tucci portrays Mitchell Garabedian, an attorney who advocates for abuse victims. In Joliet there was a similar lawyer, Keith Aeschliman, who represented those courageous enough to come forward. Just as in Boston, all signs pointed to the Church hierarchy, but the paper trail was thin. People filed civil lawsuits, but many were dismissed because the statute of limitations had run. Judges agreed to the Church's request to seal the discovery documents related to the cases. In my search for the truth, I made mistakes. Writing about a priest who went to Europe, I said the Shrine of Fatima was in Spain (it's in Portugal). I once incorrectly reported the birthday of Joliet Bishop Joseph Imesch. I learned later he would tell his supporters, "You can't believe anything that Slowik writes. He can't even get his facts straight." One of the bishop's supporters insisted we meet, and she proceeded to tell me about the many good things the bishop had done for the less fortunate in the community. She told me she'd been abused by a family member as a child and the only way she was able to let go of the anger was to forgive her abuser. We should forgive and pray for all the priests and bishops, she said. But other people kept coming to me with stories and information because they wanted the truth to be known. Some say "Spotlight" is the best film about journalism since "All the President's Men." But it reminds me more of the 1999 film "The Insider" starring Russell Crowe as whistle-blowing "Big Tobacco" executive Jeffrey Wigand, and Al Pacino as "60 Minutes" producer Lowell Bergman. It took tremendous courage for Wigand to share trade industry secrets, and he forever changed public awareness about the health consequences of cigarette smoking. Advertisement High-ranking diocesan insiders came to me. One said at first he was angry with me for hurting the Church, but then he realized what I was doing was good for the Church and he wanted to help me. Minneapolis attorney Jeff Anderson, a prominent legal advocate for clergy-abuse survivors, deposed Imesch and made public his responses to questions. Imesch's own words ended up damning him more than anything I ever wrote, when he said he wouldn't call police even if he knew a priest abused a child. Gradually, the tide turned. Laws were passed extending the statute of limitations. Loopholes were closed, and clergy were no longer exempt from mandatory-reporting requirements regarding sexual abuse of children. Today, it's a crime if a teacher or other authority figure becomes aware of an allegation of childhood sexual abuse and fails to report it. Years passed. I left journalism for a job in public relations. One day in 2013 I received a call from an attorney named Terry Johnson, who wanted to thank me for my work years earlier. Turns out Will County Judge Michael Powers had ruled to unseal thousands of pages of documents about Joliet priests. Johnson was known as an advocate of people harmed by asbestos, not sexual abuse. But he knew how to argue in court for transparency and he was successful at getting documents unsealed. Post Tribune Twice-weekly News updates from Northwest Indiana delivered every Monday and Wednesday > The thing that struck me most about the priest files from the "secret archives" is the compassion with which Imesch and other diocesan officials wrote. The letters ring with genuine apologies and sincere expressions of sadness. But these were letters not to victims, but to perpetrator priests. "I'm sorry for what you're going through, but you got caught and I have to remove you," was the general theme. Advertisement It was a stark contrast to how the Church responded by attacking the credibility of people who had the courage to come forward and report abuse. The bottom line is that a lot of bishops and other good people behaved horribly because they valued protecting the Church's reputation and assets more than the safety of children. And the saddest thing is, not much has changed. To this day, there's a shocking lack of accountability by bishops and other church leaders who perpetrated a system that enabled untold numbers of children to be abused. "Spotlight" should remind us all that the Church's "protect the house at all costs" response was a catastrophic failure. That it was wrong to use its clout to lobby for exemptions from mandatory reporting laws, to obtain court rulings that allowed the truth to remain hidden and to avoid criminal investigations. That placing the good of the Church ahead of all else, including the safety of children, was wrong. Even now, I'm unconvinced the Church has learned that lesson. Bishops gave known predators access to children, and I've yet to see any of them held accountable for that. tslowik@tribune.com Twitter: @tedslowik The Hampshire Township Park District Foundation has slated a fundraiser in order to raise money for a new, firetruck-themed playground at Ralph Seyller Memorial Park, 400 East Jefferson Avenue. Fundraising efforts for the playground equipment began in May 2015, and have included a community garage sale in August and a Yankee Candle sale. Advertisement "To date, we have raised $9,100," said Laura Schraw, Hampshire Township Park District executive director. The proposed playground equipment would cost approximately $15,000 and provide a play area for 20 to 30 children ages 2 to 5. It would be located on the east side of the park near the west parking lot of Little People Playtime Preschool. Advertisement According to the foundation, funds raised beyond the $15,000 could be used for concrete curbing and mulch. Additional funds could also go toward the Hampshire Fire Protection District firefighters' memorial that is planned by the sitting area of the playground. The fire protection district is celebrating its 85th anniversary this year. The fundraiser will be held from 6 to 9 p.m. on Saturday, April 9, in the park district building, 390 South Avenue. It will include both a dinner and drawdown. Tickets for the dinner cost $5 each. Drawdown tickets cost $25 each and are available at the park district building and the preschool. A total of 300 tickets will be sold and later drawn one at a time. Winners need not be present to win. Every tenth ticket drawn wins $25. The 100th and 200th tickets drawn will give two ticket holders $100 apiece. The ticket holders of the 298th and 299th tickets will each receive $200. The grand prize is $1,500. Schraw said that the fundraiser will include a silent auction. Donations for the auction are welcome. The Hampshire branch of Resource Bank, 135 West Oak Knoll Drive (Illinois 72), donated a model of the 1859 one-room Eakin School House to the park district. The actual school house was moved from Rutland Township and attached to the bank where it now serves as a community room. Advertisement The model was part of the annual Hampshire Coon Creek Country Days parade this summer. The model will be raffled at the fundraiser. A cookbook created by the preschool will be sold at the fundraiser. It will include recipes from students and teachers along with student artwork. In addition to the fundraiser, Schraw said the park district is looking forward to a number of upcoming events. The third annual Colour Me Lucky 5k run is scheduled for 10 a.m. on Saturday, March 12, at Seyller Park. Registration until March 11 is $20 for residents and $25 for non-residents. Day of the race registration fee is $30 for residents and $35 for non-residents. During the race, runners can choose whether or not they want to be spritzed with colored powder at different color stations along the route. Race check-in begins at 9 a.m. All runners will receive a wristband. Runners 21 years and older will receive a ticket for one free beer, while runners under the age of 21 will receive Gatorade. The Pirate Radio band will perform pop, rock, dance and disco songs at Seyller Park after the race. Advertisement A free Easter egg hunt, sponsored by the Ella Johnson Memorial Public Library, is scheduled for 10 a.m. on Saturday, March 19, at Seyller Park. The Easter bunny will be available for pictures with the Easter egg hunters. The Easter bunny will also climb aboard the Hampshire fire truck and visit children at their homes in Hampshire Township. The fee of $11 for the first child and $7 for each additional child will include a Polaroid picture with the bunny. The registration deadline for a bunny visit is Friday, March 11. For more information, contact the park district at 847-683-2690 or go to www.hampshireparkdistrict.org. Denise Moran is a freelance reporter. Advanced Disposal and other private garbage collection companies bring solid waste collected from businesses in Evanston and other communities to the station. From there the waste is loaded up on larger trucks and then transferred to outside landfills. (Bob Seidenberg / Pioneer Press) Evanston has agreed to settle a lawsuit that a waste disposal company brought against the city after it imposed a fee on the company's waste transfer station. The City Council voted unanimously Monday in support of a resolution that called for the city to negotiate a settlement of the suit, which was filed was in late 2011. Advertisement Advanced Disposal, then known as Veolia, brought the lawsuit in response to city actions through 2010 and 2011, including a $2 per ton fee the city imposed on waste transferred through the company's waste transfer station at 1711 Church St. The waste station has been in operation since 1984 when it was granted permits from the Environmental Protection Agency. Advertisement Advanced Disposal and other private garbage collection companies bring solid waste collected from businesses in Evanston and other communities to the station. From there the waste is loaded up on larger trucks and then transferred to outside landfills. In its lawsuit, the company, then Veolia, maintained that it had put millions of dollars into upgrading the facility. The suit alleged that the $2 per ton fee was part of a pattern of harassment by the city after the Church Street Village town homes were built in the 1600 block of Church Street and residents began complaining of smells. The suit also alleges the city had come under "immense political pressure" from occupants of surrounding town homes and real estate developers in an effort to close the to close the station an assertion the city has denied. The city responded that it was "rationally exercising its legislative and regulatory authority to address issues that face the community, protecting the city's public health and welfare," court records show. The case is now at a point "where the court is very insistent either this case goes to trial or the case goes away via settlement, said Grant Farrar, the city's corporation counsel, briefing aldermen Monday night. Were the case to go forward it would involve "depositions, discovery of numerous members of the council and perhaps residents," he said, in response to the status of the case. He said the scope of discovery could be "quite far ranging and far reaching." Representatives from Advanced Disposal did not return calls and emails seeking comment. Under the proposed settlement, the city would get to keep all waste station fees paid since 2011, totaling roughly $1.26 million. Advertisement A proposed Host Community Agreement between the city and Advanced Disposal, which would take effect on Jan. 1, 2018, also includes site improvements at the station to be undertaken at Advanced Disposal's expense, Farrar said in a memo. In addition the proposed agreement specifically mandates citizen complaints be responded to within 24 hours, he said. Farrar said the agreement will still permit the city to collect a 75 cents per ton host fee from Advanced for waste transferred through the station. In discussion at the council Monday, Ald. Don Wilson, 4th, referred to the resolution as a "compromise." Wilson addressed criticism from citizens saying the settlement was brought to the council for approval without any community meetings. "Unfortunately, that's not how it works," said Wilson, an attorney. "It's a lawsuit and we didn't file the lawsuit, we're defending it, so we're trying to get out of it as much as we can." Ald. Peter Braithwaite, in whose 2nd Ward the station is located, encouraged residents to use the city's 311 service, "so we can continue to keep track and monitor" complaints. Advertisement Braithwaite also proposed that the 75 cents per ton fee be revisited if the waste station should exceed a certain tonnage figure. New 7th Ward Ald. Eleanor Revelle suggested officials use the settlement as an opportunity to determine what exactly Advanced Disposal is bringing to the station. "I'd like to see us require Advanced Disposal to tell us what types of waste are going into that facility, so we can better assess what might be health impacts," she said. In citizen comment, a number of residents had urged council members to use the opportunity to press Advanced Disposal to make other changes. "I know that the state of Illinois holds the permit to let them operate the transfer station," said Cindy Levitt, one of the speakers, "but I feel that right now this city has the ability right now to make some positive changes. "The legal settlement includes the Host Community Agreement," she said, "but what's missing, in my opinion, is the community part." Advertisement bseidenberg@pioneerlocal.com Twitter: @evanstonscribe Franworks Group of Companies plans to open State & Main Kitchen and Bar at 1941 Tower Drive in early March. (Phil Rockrohr) Two new restaurants, including the first branch in the U.S. of a popular Canadian chain, are scheduled to open in Glenview in the next two months. Franworks Group of Companies plans to open State & Main Kitchen and Bar at 1941 Tower Drive in early March, while Javier Villarreal, an Arlington Heights restaurant owner, plans to open Javier's Mexican Restaurant in the former Las Palmas at 1829 Waukegan Road. Advertisement The Village Board granted liquor licenses to both establishments at its Feb. 16 meeting. Craig Winning, managing partner and area manager in Franworks' Chicago office, said the Glenview venture will mark the company's first State & Main in the U.S. Advertisement "Hopefully the first of many," Winning told the board. "This will certainly be our flagship store." Franworks recently opened its 22nd State & Main restaurant in North America, and owns a total of 100 restaurants in its portfolio of three chains, including two Elephant & Castle restaurants in downtown Chicago, he said. The one-story Tower Drive site, which sits on the corner of Tower and Navy Boulevard in the Glen Town Center, spans 5,544 square feet and includes an outdoor patio, according to Franworks' liquor license application. Javier Villarreal, an Arlington Heights restaurant owner, plans to open Javier's Mexican Restaurant in the former Las Palmas at 1829 Waukegan Road in April. (Phil Rockrohr) Winning did not return phone calls requesting additional comment. Meanwhile, Javier's will serve authentic Mexican food and all types of alcohol, Villarreal said. "We're well known for fajitas and enchiladas," he said. The restaurant will utilize much of the previous structure of Las Palmas, including the bar left standing when the restaurant closed shortly after Christmas last year, Villarreal said. "I knew they were going to go out of business through a friend of mine," he said. "I was able to contact the owner of the building and able to come up with an agreement to reopen." Advertisement Villarreal, who said he has operated Javier's Sabor Mexicano & Agave Bar in Arlington Heights for 24 years, said he is confident he will succeed in Glenview, even though he is not familiar with the site he chose. "I don't know Glenview very well, but I understand there is a lot of traffic," he said. "(Las Palmas) was well-established, but I really don't know what happened with the previous owners. I know I have very good food, so we should be able to make it work." The Glenview restaurant will offer a menu similar to the one at the Arlington Heights location, but with a few less offerings, Villarreal said. Both owners passed background checks and each paid the $2,400 fee for a Class A liquor license, said Sarah Kuechler, assistant to the village manager. Phil Rockrohr is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press. People who live and work in Hinsdale have watched the Garfield Crossing project on Washington and First streets, step by step. It's one of the most frequently traveled intersections in the downtown, and next to the Hinsdale Middle School. They saw the previous commercial building there demolished in August 2013, the site cleared, and work done to shore up the wall of the Hinsdale Chamber of Commerce building, which borders the property to the west. Through two winters, construction of the new 13,000-square-foot building continued. Advertisement It may seem to passers by that renting the building has been an equally slow process. But Todd Naccarato, who is one of the owners, said the pace has been about what he and the development team expected. "It's a large project. There are five different storefronts on the first floor and 10,000 square feet on the second floor," he said. Advertisement The second floor, which contains offices, is completely leased. But Ashley's Custom Stationery & More, which opened in August, is the only store on the first floor, which leaves room for four other tenants, occupying between 1,500 and 2,500 square feet each. "We feel we may have one or two more leases signed this spring, Naccarato said. Claire Bitautas, whose firm, Park Street Commercial Real Estate, is handling the leasing of the building, has been courting businesses on the North Shore, in Chicago's Bucktown and Wicker Park neighborhoods, and in Naperville, Bitautas said. They are targeting boutique retailers in communities with similar demographics to Hinsdale, which might be interested in opening a second or third location. The real estate agents also have contacted businesses along 22nd Street in Oak Brook, but the business owners' current leases and when they expire naturally affect their interest in relocating, Naccarato said. "We are in discussion with several national retailers," Bitautas said. She hopes to fill Garfield Crossing with a mix of national stores and privately owned shops from the Chicago area. "At the current time, we are not negotiating with any food users," Bitautas said, although the building could accommodate a restaurant. Advertisement Interior decorators, clothing designers and children's stores have inquired about the building, Naccarato said. "I wouldn't say we are being choosy. We are hoping that a tenant who does sign is one that is sustainable," he said. Rent is always a factor in leasing space, but Naccarato said the rents they seek are competitive with locations in other downtown areas and much lower than in the Oak Brook shopping center. The Garfield Crossing rents are affordable for stores on the higher end of retail, Naccarato said. "Part of that is because it's a new building," he said. The rent varies depending on whether the tenant wants to finish the interior itself, or wants the landlord to build out the space. Advertisement The two tenants who fill the second floor, an energy consultant and an investment planner, signed their leases before the building was even completed, Naccarato said. That did not surprise him, because office space in a new building with elevators, high ceilings and a lobby, is rare in downtown Hinsdale, he said. Having a parking lot with about 45 spaces right next to the building also is an advantage. "It's a conversation I have with every potential tenant," Naccarato said. Ashley's owner Ashley Killpack, too, agreed to rent space while the building was still under construction. She moved her business from Clarendon Hills to Garfield Crossing and is pleased with the result. "We love it," Killpack said. "It's great exposure. The building is great. The parking is great. We have gotten many compliments." But most retailers want to see a more finished space before they sign a lease, Naccarato said, so they have decided to finish the interior of one or two of the spaces. Advertisement "Right now, it's just raw space. We're thinking we will do a package with dry wall, the floors, bathroom and lights on a specs basis," Naccarato said. "It helps retailers visualize what their store would look like," Bitautas said, and for smaller retailers, who may not want to manage the build out themselves, it helps make a quicker and smoother move. Naccarato and Bitautas expect the building to be fully leased within the next 12 months. "Absolutely," Bitautas said. kfornek@pioneerlocal.com Twitter:@kfdoings Senior Melissa Bolles (left) and junior Arabella McMenamin Walshe rehearse a scene from the musical A Little Princess, which will be presented March 3-5 at Woodlands Academy of the Sacred Heart in Lake Forest. (Woodlands Academy of the Sacred Heart / HANDOUT) Waukegan Concert: Waukegan School District 60 will host its first ever All City Elementary Band Concert at 7 p.m. Friday at Waukegan High School, 2325 Brookside Ave. Nearly 300 student musicians will perform. Students from Carman-Buckner, Clark, Cooke, Glen Flora, Hyde Park, Little Fort, Lyon, McCall, North, Oakdale, Washington and Whittier will perform as one beginning and one intermediate band. The evening will also feature a special guest performance by the Jefferson Middle School Band. Admission is free. Details, 224-303-1200. Advertisement Parent classes: The following Parent University classes are scheduled: "Parents as Partners in the IEP Process" will be at 6 p.m. Tuesday at the Welcome Center, 742 W Greenwood Ave.; "Bullying" at 6 p.m. Wednesday at Clearview Elementary School, 1700 Delaware Road; "Autism Support Group" at 6 p.m. March 3 at Lincoln Center, 1201 N. Sheridan Road; "Ten Steps to Academic Success" at 6:30 p.m. March 3 at Christ Episcopal Church, 410 Grand Ave., Waukegan; and "Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation and Automated External Defibrillator for Infants, Children and Adults" at 4 p.m. March 7 at Lincoln Center. All presentations are free, and will be offered in both English and Spanish. Free child care will be provided for children (age 3 and older) of parents and families attending the presentations. Details, 847-336-3100. Wadsworth Advertisement Celebration: Gurnee School District 56 celebrates Black History Month at 6:15 p.m. Monday at Prairie Trail School, 13600 W. Wadsworth Road. The program highlights historical accomplishments as well as modern-day contributions by outstanding heroes. The program includes student presentations, musical ensembles and guest speakers. The theme this year is "Hallowed Grounds: Sites of African American Memories." Details, 847-847-249-6253. Gurnee Performance: Woodland Intermediate School's Drama Club presents "The Music Man JR." at 7 p.m., March 3 and 4 at the school, 1115 N. Hunt Club Road. It is based on Meredith Wilson's six-time, Tony Award-winning musical comedy. Admission is $5 and free for children 12 and under. The show contains approximately 40 cast members and 11 crew members, led by April Cooksey and Andrea Little. Details, 847-596-5900. Lake Forest Performance: The theater program at Woodlands Academy of the Sacred Heart will present the spring musical "A Little Princess" at 6:30 p.m. March 3-5 at 760 E. Westleigh Road. It's the story of Sara Crewe, a little girl with a big imagination. When things go badly for her at the London boarding school to which she's been sent, Sara's imaginative powers come to the rescue helping to transform a drab institution into a place of magic and mystery. Tickets are $10 in advance and $12 at the door and can be reserved (at the $10 price) by contacting the school at 847-234-4300 or visiting www.woodlandsacademy.org. Mundelein Show: The staff of Mundelein High School will present a staff talent show at 7 p.m. March 3 at the school, 1350 W. Hawley St. The show will include a number of varied acts and staff members from almost every department in the high school. Admission is $2; additional donations will be accepted at the door. All of the proceeds will go directly to #BakerBrave, a fund to support the family of an MHS staff member who have incurred very costly medical expenses. Details, 847-949-2200. Competition: Mundelein High School's all-male show choir, SoundFX, took first place for the third year in a row at the Fort Atkinson Showcase in Wisconsin. All three MHS show choirs, Sound, Lights and SoundFX, took part in the event. The mixed show choir, Sound, took third place in the competition. Advertisement Twitter @newssun Stephano, a drunken butler played by Kyle Perry of Round Lake, and Trinculo, a jester played by Jennifer Nelson, of Lindenhurst, rehearse a scene from CLC Theatres The Tempest. (College of Lake County / Handout) Prospero, the rightful heir to the dukedom, has been stuck on a remote island for 12 years. His brother, Antonio, stole the throne and vanquished Prospero and his daughter to the island. To get revenge, Prospero uses magic to create a storm that will propel Antonio to the island and reveal the truth. Advertisement That is the story of "The Tempest," written by William Shakespeare in the early 1600s and being performed on stage Friday through March 5 at the College of Lake County in Grayslake. "The plays still speak to us," said Craig Rich, co-chairman and associate professor of the CLC department of theatre. Rich is directing "The Tempest." Advertisement "When you look at all of Shakespeare's plays, the issues are still relevant," Rich said. "The characters still matter and they're still teaching us something about ourselves and the world we live in. I think that's why we continue to come back to these plays." Rich said the theater department ties Shakespeare into its curriculum every few years to give students a chance to learn the language of the 17th century and better understand his plays. Rich chose "The Tempest" this year to coincide with the monthlong Shakespeare's First Folio exhibit at the Lake County Discovery Museum in Wauconda, which celebrates the 400th anniversary of The Bard's death in 1616. The Folger Shakespeare Library of Washington, D.C., holds 82 of the 233 known copies in the world of the First Folio, published seven years after the playwright's death by two of his friends and actors. The library officials selected the Discovery Museum as the only place in the state to exhibit one of these books. If the folio had not been published, "The Tempest" and 17 other Shakespeare's plays would have been lost, Rich said. "'The Tempest' has a lot of things he things that people love about Shakespeare and love about theater in general," he said. "We have live musicians there's singing, there's physical comedy, there's characters obsessed with revenge. There's a section in the middle where the characters dance. It has a little bit of everything." "We have a recorder, a violin and lots of percussion instruments played by the members of the cast." In addition, Rich said, "the issues in the play are still relevant today," and include the cycle of violence, servitude and slavery. Most of the cast are students. One is an alumnus and another is a local actor. The lead roles of Prospero and Antonio are being performed by women, Rich said. Rich changed the names to Prospera and Antonia and uses feminine pronouns in the play. Advertisement Men played all the roles in Shakespeare's time, Rich said. In the 21st century, there's been some precedent on stage that characters written for men are being portrayed by women, he said. Before rehearsing, Rich read through the play with the cast and discussed anything they didn't understand. In addition, they looked at the First Folio to examine the punctuation and other clues in the written document about ways to act and say their lines. For example, there's a space in the folio when Prospero is thinking about how he's going to carry out his plan. The space indicates Shakespeare's desire to allow the actor to have a quiet moment of discovery in between lines, Rich said. After digging into the text, Rich led the actors into movement and blocking and helped them incorporate the language into believable characters. Students often approach Shakespeare with fear or dislike, he said. "Then once they get in there and roll up their sleeves, they start to be detectives and they make these discoveries. To me that's one of the exciting things to see as a teacher. All those veils get lifted." Rich said his and the actors' job is to convey the meaning of the play to the audience whether or not they understand all the language. "Even if you don't understand every single word that's spoken, you'll understand the story by what we're doing on stage and how we're saying things. Very few people go to see Shakespeare and understand every word and reference. If we've done our job, you'll understand the meaning." Showtimes are 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday; 2 p.m. Sunday; 7: 30 p.m. March 3, 4 and 5. Advertisement Sheryl DeVore is a freelance writer. 'The Tempest' by William Shakespeare When: Friday-March 5 Where: James Lumber Center for the Performing Arts, 19351 W. Washington St., Grayslake Tickets: $8-$12 Information: 847-543-2300; jlc.clcillinois.edu/ A Beach Park woman was found "unconscious, but breathing" inside her vehicle in a parking lot in Kenosha on Wednesday afternoon, about 24 hours after she went missing, police said. The 28-year-old woman was taken via ambulance to a Kenosha hospital in critical, but stable condition, according to the Lake County sheriff's office. Advertisement She was reported missing from the 38700 block of North Sheridan Road in Beach Park at about 3 p.m. Tuesday after having made comments about harming herself, according to Detective Christopher Covelli, a Lake County sheriff's spokesman. Authorities expressed concern for her safety and urged residents who may see her to contact police immediately, Covelli said. According to police, she left her home in a bathrobe and without shoes Tuesday afternoon. She did not have her cellphone, purse or wallet, and did not report to work, Covelli said. Advertisement The sheriff's office had detectives searching a wide area Tuesday and Wednesday. "She resides in Beach Park, works in Kenosha, and has some ties to McHenry County (particularly the Crystal Lake/Huntley area). A regional bulletin has been sent out to local police departments, who are also on the look-out for her," Covelli said Wednesday morning. Twitter @NewsSun Ride sharing services like Uber and Lyft may soon have to follow some of the same regulations that govern cab companies in at least one Lake County village. Uber has been in the national spotlight since Saturday night, when a series of shootings killed six people in Kalamazoo, Mich. An Uber driver, Jason Dalton, has been charged with six counts of murder and accused of picking up fares between the attacks. . Advertisement In Lake County, police noted one Uber driver who has been arrested. Christopher Covelli, a spokesman for the Lake County sheriff's office, said police would only know if someone was a ride sharing driver if they voluntarily reported it when asked their occupation upon being booked at the Lake County Jail. In that known arrest, an Uber driver was charged with driving under the influence in November 2015, but he was not working when arrested, Covelli said. He would not provide the driver's name. Advertisement While Dalton did not have a criminal record, the company has faced previous critiques of its background checks. Uber has settled lawsuits over its safety procedures and fees, according to the Associated Press. Another lawsuit that has yet to be resolved alleges the company's checks did not prevent it from hiring several felons. An Uber spokeswoman said the company has a dedicated law enforcement liaison and 24/7 consumer support, both of which could lead to information that could cause the company to suspend a driver. The company also conducts periodic audits to catch any infractions made after a driver is hired to ensure good standing. It was not immediately known if the driver arrested in Lake County had been removed from service. Some local communities are considering adding their own regulations as well, Gurnee Deputy Police Chief Willie Meyer said. The village of Gurnee is "actively looking at" ride sharing services as it enters its period for registering cab drivers, Meyer said. The process will also examine what redundancies currently exist between the state and local levels for both groups. Meyer said the village was in its research phase and did not have a timeline on when the village would make a decision. Both Covelli and Meyer recommended Uber users make sure the driver matches the description provided by Uber, check the driver's ratings before agreeing to the ride and letting family or friends know where they're going. Tribune wire reports contributed to this report Advertisement emcoleman@tribpub.com Twitter: @mekcoleman The single no vote on five expulsions approved Tuesday by the Waukegan School District 60 board drew exclamations of approval from some audience members. The supporters of board member Anita Hanna's no votes were primarily members of the Black Abolition Movement for the Mind, a Waukegan-based group founded by activist Chris "Brotha" Blanks, who has filed a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights. The complaint alleged racial discrimination in both discipline matters and sexual harassment protections. Advertisement Tuesday's meeting was the first since the Department of Education confirmed it was investigating Blanks' complaints. The school board did not discuss the investigation Tuesday at Tuesday's meeting, which Blanks and four employees of ARAMARK Education, the contractor that provides the district's food service, attended to express concerns about some management practices. Advertisement The board focused on the expulsion votes. "All of us sitting here have been a young person and we've all done things that would cause us to get in trouble at some time or the other," Hanna said. "I'm sure many of us out there have had fisticuffs, maybe even in school, but that does not mean that you stop an education." The five expulsions, three for fighting, one for possession of a controlled substance and one for possession of a look alike weapon, were not taken lightly, board Vice President Rick Riddle said. The race of the expelled students was not disclosed. A disciplinary committee established in the fall is working on coming up with more alternatives to expulsion, but those options are not yet available, Riddle said. "We have an obligation as board members to make sure we provide a safe environment for our children, and that means safe in that they're not going to be involved in a fight, that they're not going to get accidentally hurt in fights," he said. "We've had students hurt that were not even in the fight. We've had teachers hurt that were not in the fight." Riddle also noted that the students expelled had prior disciplinary issues and were on behavior contracts, which they violated. The length of the expulsions, in these cases the remainder of this school year and all of next year, is part of the Blanks issues with the school board, he said after the meeting. emcoleman@tribpub.com Advertisement Twitter @mekcoleman "Dear Evanston," is a multi-platform campaign with its own website and accounts on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Evanstonians "from all walks of life" are invited to post "imagery, art, use their words, post videos in any way they want about how they're feeling about violence in Evanston and what they think solutions might be and what they think leaders in Evanston could be doing," said Juliet Bond, one of six people working on the project. The Indiana Senate's Public Police Committee voted 7-2 Wednesday to roll a bill allowing the Indiana Department of Natural Resources to apply directly to the state for liquor permits for its properties into another bill and sent the whole thing to the full Senate. House Bill 1247, which critics have contended was a work-around for Pavilion Partners to secure a liquor license for the pavilion at Indiana Dunes State Park after being denied the permit by the county and state alcohol boards, is now part of House Bill 1386, which covers a wide swath of liquor-related issues. Advertisement Sen. Rick Niemeyer, R-Lowell, cast one of the "no" votes. "I was hoping that it would be a stand-alone bill. There's been a lot of talk and testimony over the last couple of months," he said to the committee. Advertisement The committee held a hearing on House Bill 1247 Monday that drew more than two dozen people for and against the matter. Proponents of the bill said allowing all the state parks to apply for the permits would boost jobs and the economy, while those against the measure said it came about because the state's Alcohol and Tobacco Commission upheld the Porter County Alcoholic Beverage Commission's decision to deny a liquor license for Pavilion Partners. Pavilion Partners, led by Valparaiso businessman Chuck Williams, plans to renovate the pavilion at Indiana Dunes State Park in Chesterton and build an adjacent, 17,000-square-foot banquet center. Pavilion Partners has appealed the state's decision on its liquor permit, which an administrative law judge could hear in April. An attorney for the group has said if the bill passes, Pavilion Partners will drop its appeal. Amy Lavalley is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune. The Aoni rubber latex condom which has an average thickness of 0.036 mm (about 0.0014 inches) has achieved the world's Thinnest Latex Condom by Guinness World Records in 2013. [File photo] A condom maker in South China's Guangdong province has won a lawsuit against a Japanese company over its competing claim to be manufacturer of the world's thinnest prophylactic. The Guangzhou Yuexiu District People's Court pronounced on Monday that Tokyo-based condom brand Okamoto used unfair practices to compete against Guangzhou Daming United Rubber Products. Guinness World Records verified the Chinese company's Aoni condom, which has an average thickness of 0.036 mm, as the world's thinnest in December 2013 breaking the previous record of 0.038 mm set by Okamoto in 2012. But Guangzhou Daming United Rubber Products said it found Okamoto's condoms still on sale bearing phrases such as "world's thinnest" and "Guinness World Record" in May 2014. A lawsuit was filed in September 2014 by the Chinese company against its Japanese counterpart, citing false advertising and seeking 1 yuan ($0.15) as compensation for economic loss. The court held that Okamoto knew about the verified world record and ordered it to stop selling condoms bearing false advertising and pay the compensation. The small amount of compensation claimed has led to speculation that the Guangzhou-based condom maker sued the famous Japanese brand as a publicity stunt. Some netizens on Sina Weibo even claimed that they had only heard about the Chinese condom brand because of the lawsuit. Yoshiyuki Okamoto, president of the Japanese condom company, also viewed the legal challenge as self-promotional and described the legal battle as primitive, according to a report in the Financial Times. Guangzhou Daming United Rubber Products has denied the claims. "We sued Okamoto intending to stop their act of infringement. We decided to demand compensation of only 1 yuan, a nominal amount, because we didn't want the proceedings to get stuck on the matter of economic losses," Victor Chan, general manager of the Chinese condom company, told China Daily on Tuesday. Calling Okamoto "a shameless competitor", Chan said the Japanese company continued to claim it was the manufacturer of the world's thinnest condom to "take advantage of their popularity in China and of Chinese consumers' trust in their brand". A woman with a baby selects imported infant formula in a Beijing supermarket. [Photo/China Daily] The Australian government has approved the sale of the nation's biggest dairy farming company to Chinese billionaire Lu Xianfeng. Van Diemen's Land (VDL) - which boasts several dairy farms in Tasmania's north, known for having the world's cleanest air and water - officially changed hands late Tuesday, with the deal getting the all clear from the Australia's Treasurer Scott Morrison. In line with all foreign asset sales, the $200 million deal has been subjected to a review by Australia's Foreign Investment Review Board, which found agreement met its "national interest" criteria. Following the announcement, Senator Eric Abetz said the decision showed Tasmania was "open for business" and the conditions imposed by Treasurer Morrison would safeguard the industry for years to come. "This approval will see an additional 95 jobs in Tasmania as well as a significant investment in VDL of more than ($72 million)," Senator Abetz said in a statement on Wednesday. "With Free Trade Agreements with Japan, (South) Korea and China, combined with the government's shipping reform package, Tasmania has the potential to be opened up to new world markets which could dramatically grow the number of jobs in Tasmania." Originally, VDL had agreed to sell its 13 farms - with a combined area of 19,000-hectares and 18,000 milking cows - to Australian company, Tasfoods, for $180 million. But the New Plymouth District Council, the group's New Zealand-based owner, went back on the deal after receiving a better offer from Lu's Chinese company, Moon Lake Investments. Given VDL has never been Australian owned despite operating out of Tasmania since 1825, many politicians have been lobbying to have the asset acquired by a local company. However, Abetz has labeled some of reasons against the deal as "bizarre" and bordering on "xenophobic". The finalization of the sale has also been praised by the Tasmanian Farmers and Grazers Association (TFGA). "Moon Lake Investments' continued investment in the sector will further reinforce the importance of the dairy industry, and agribusiness in general, to the Tasmanian economy," TFGA chief executive Skillern said on Tuesday. As part of the deal, Moon Lake Investments must comply with Australian taxation law, including disclosing any transactions with non-Australian residents, or face the prospect of hefty fines and potentially divestment of the asset. Wang Jianlin, Chairman of China's Dalian Wanda Group Co., speaks at a summit brainstorm on future trends during the 2014 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) CEO Summit in Beijing, capital of China, Nov. 10, 2014. [Xinhua] Wang Jianlin, chairman of Dalian Wanda Group and the richest man in China, said his organization is hoping to set up its European headquarters in the UK and outlined plans for investment and in Europe. He said he was currently negotiating a large project, which would generate about 10,000 jobs, although he wouldn't say where or give any further details. Wang also said Dalian Wanda would be making a major announcement of a large project in Europe, although again he wouldn't give any details. Wang said it was his personal judgment that Britain will not leave the European Union after a referendum on continued membership on June 29. He told an audience of mainly Chinese business students at the Said Business School, part of Oxford University, that he didn't believe it would happen. "I don't think Britain will leave. That is my judgment. The UK has always been part of Europe, and it cannot live by itself. Don't listen to politicians it is easy to exit, much more difficult to re-enter," Wang said during a half hour discourse. "It would be difficult for Chinese visitors. It would affect the UK economy. So Britain will not leave. That is my personal judgment," he added. Dalian Wanda Group has invested 1.2 billion pounds in the UK, building a hotel and residences on a site in London on the south bank of the River Thames, not far from the gleaming glass building the houses MI5, Britain's intelligence service. Follow China.org.cn on Twitter and Facebook to join the conversation. An international high-wire walking competition will be held at Wulong World Natural Heritage in southwest China's Chongqing municipality on March 30, in which the world's top three exponents will compete. The three top high-wire walkers in the world may perform at Wulong Tiankeng from March 26 to the day of the competition, and visitors are welcome to witness the shows, said Ma Qike, director of the local propaganda department said.[Photo/chinadaily.com.cn] Esqer, the initiator of the competition, has invited Freddy Nock from Switzerland and Maurizio Zavatta from Italy to take part, using wires above a Tiankeng, a naturally formed pit. Performing blindfolded backward walking and the splits, together with steel ring walking with a bottle of water on the head, Esqer is confident in his technique and ability to win the competition. "I'm now in good form and have been actively preparing for the competition," said Esqer. The event will be held above Wulong Tiankeng, the core scenic spot of the Wulong Karst World Natural Heritage site in the northeast of Wulong county in Chongqing. As one of the most popular tourist sites in China, Wulong Tiankeng is known for its fascinating landscape featuring lofty and spectacular steep mountains and topographical terrain as well as a boundless expanse of forest. Esqer, a representative of the sixth generation of descendants of Dawazi Craft, is the current holder of Guinness World Records both for the 100-meter sprint on wire and walking a 36 degree slope of steel wire. He said that he expects to improve his record of 38.86 seconds for the 100 m sprint to within 36s in the upcoming competition. "It's no problem for me to achieve a new world record that I set before with the intensive training, and I'm confident and prepared to win," said Esqer. While the competition is held in one of the steepest parts of Wulong Scenic Area, the safety of the three competitors is of great concern. "Safety always comes first while competition comes second", said Huang Daosheng, general manager of Chongqing Wulong Karst Tourism Group, adding that safety ropes would be recommended for the competitors. Follow China.org.cn on Twitter and Facebook to join the conversation. The New Zealand government Wednesday stepped up assistance to cyclone-struck Fiji, announcing the deployment of a navy supply ship to help with relief and recovery efforts. Foreign Minister Murray McCully said the deployment of HMNZS Canterbury to help following tropical cyclone Winston showed New Zealand's commitment to supporting the government and people of Fiji. "Cyclone Winston has caused extensive and widespread devastation across Fiji, taking lives, and destroying homes and infrastructure," McCully said. The ship would leave Auckland this weekend with essential supplies, such as building materials, water storage tanks, and medical supplies, as well as helicopters and medical and engineering personnel. A further contingent of New Zealand Defence Force and New Zealand Fire service engineers would depart Wednesday to support the Fiji authorities with repairs to public buildings and critical infrastructure. New Zealand air force C-130s were already delivering relief supplies and equipment in Fiji, and a P3 Orion continued to carry out regular reconnaissance flights. "This is one of the most damaging cyclones in Fiji's history and this is reflected in the scale of our response. New Zealand will continue to do all we can to help and we will stand with Fiji in the aftermath of this disaster," McCully said. The New Zealand government has also give more than 2 million NZ dollars (1.32 million U.S. dollars) to help with relief efforts. Tropical Cyclone Winston has reportedly killed at least 42 people and about 13,000 people are still living in emergency shelters. Flash South Sudan government on Tuesday denied media reports on the army's involvement in the recent violence at a UN base sheltering civilians at Malakal town which left more than 18 people dead, Radio Tamazuj reported. "What happened was fighting between members of tribes inside the UN protection site and the government has nothing to do with it," South Sudan's Presidential Press Secretary Ateny Wek was quoted as saying. "The government was like any other institution surprised by what has happened and the kind of guns used during the outbreak of the violence," Ateny said. Violent clashes erupted last Thursday inside the base in Malakal, the capital city of Upper Nile State in South Sudan, where at least 18 people were killed and 90 others injured while around 26000 refugees fled the camp according to the United Nations High Commission for Refugees. The UN base is sheltering around 50,000 civilians out of about 201,000 displaced South Sudanese spreading across eight such bases in the country. Meanwhile, the UN children's Children Fund (UNICEF) said that a number of children were injured and others were separated from their families during the outbreak of violence in the Malakal's UN civilians protection site. UNICEF Country Representative in South Sudan Jonathan Veitch said they have registered 58 unaccompanied children, with 55 of them now reunified with their families. "The vast majority of people sheltering in the site are women and children who have already borne the brunt of this conflict and are now once again experiencing horrific violence, trauma and displacement," Veitch noted. South Sudan plunged into violence in December 2013, when fighting erupted between troops loyal to President Salva Kiir Mayardit and defectors led by his former deputy, Riek Machar. The clashes have left thousands of South Sudanese dead and forced around 1.9 million people to flee their homes. You are here: Home Flash Iran's Deputy Police Chief Brigadier General Eskandar Momeni said Tuesday that some 250,000 police officers have been deployed throughout the country to ensure the security of the two major elections on Friday. An Iranian woman walks past electoral posters for the upcoming parliamentary elections in downtown Tehran on February 22, 2016. [Photo/Xinhua] Police forces will also use 18 helicopters to reinforce security during elections countrywide, Momeni was quoted as saying by Tasnim news agency. Iran's border police commander, Qasem Rezaee, said Monday that Iran set up special headquarters to tighten security measures around the borders until elections end on Feb. 26. The headquarters were established Saturday to monitor security in the region until elections are over, Rezaee said. Police forces intensified security measures around the borders two months ago, he added. Iran's Interior Minister, Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli, said earlier that the ministry took all the necessary procedures to ensure safe elections. Iran's Culture and Islamic Guidance Ministry announced Tuesday that 500 journalists from 29 countries will cover both the Parliamentary and Assembly of Experts elections in Iran Friday. Iranians will participate in both the Parliamentary election as well as that of the Assembly of Experts on Feb. 26. Out of 12,000 registered candidates, 6,229 are competing for 290 seats in the Majlis, or the Parliament. Meanwhile, 166 candidates are running in elections to win 88 seats in the Assembly of Experts. The Assembly is an analytical body composed of Muslim theologians known as Mujtahids who are elected for eight-year terms, and are charged with electing, removing and supervising the supreme leader of Iran and his actions. Flash Around 20 members of a terrorist group and three soldiers were killed while six other soldiers were injured in continuing clashes in southern Philippines since last Saturday, the military reported on Tuesday. Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) spokesman Brig. Gen. Restituto Padilla said the fighting broke out when the terrorists, initially composed of 40 men, attacked a military detachment in Bayabao village in Butig town of Lanao del Sur Province last Saturday night. "The motive of the attack remains unknown," Padilla told reporters in a press briefing, adding that soldiers from the Army's 51st Infantry Battalion manning the detachment were able to defend their position. "When (government) reinforcements arrived late weekend, the (terrorist) group was held at bay, were cordoned off and are holding their position as of press time," Padilla said as of 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Sporadic fighting were ongoing as of Tuesday afternoon. Padilla said the enemy's strength has swelled to about 80. A military official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said troops who were ambushed on Tuesday were from the 5th Mechanized Battalion. The ambush led to a 45-minute firefight. The same source said the ambushers are believed to be followers of Edris Salindawan, alias Abu Hanif, commander of the 102nd Base Command of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front. Flash China said on Tuesday that the US is the root of "militarization" in the South China Sea, urging it to stop sowing dissension among countries in the region. "The actions of the US are the root of the so-called militarization in the South China Sea," the Defense Ministry said in a written response to China Daily, citing increased US military deployment in the region, provocative US reconnaissance of Chinese islands and joint military exercises with allies targeted at China. "Relevant sides have turned a blind eye to it and repeatedly criticized China's legitimate construction on islands, intentionally fabricating issues and fueling tensions. It is hyping with hidden intentions." The ministry was responding to a US think tank report that, citing satellite imagery, said Beijing is installing radar facilities on Huayang Reef of the Nansha Islands in the South China Sea. The report by the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies came after US officials said China had deployed a surface-to-air missile system on Yongxing Island of the Xisha Islands. Washington has voiced concern over what it called China's "militarization" in the South China Sea, but the Foreign Ministry has said its military deployments there were no different from US defense deployments on Hawaii. On Tuesday, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chun-ying, in response to a senior US naval officer's call for more naval operations in the region, urged the US to stop sowing dissension among South China Sea countries. "I must point out that the freedom of navigation in the South China Sea entitled under international law does not mean US naval vessels or airplanes' freedom to flex their muscle," Hua said. Vice-Admiral Joseph Aucoin, commander of the US Navy's 7th Fleet, said on Monday that Australia and other countries should follow the US lead and conduct "freedom of navigation" naval operations within 12 nautical miles of contested islands in the South China Sea, the Australian Broadcasting Corp reported. Asked to comment on some US media saying that China is creating a "great wall of sand" in the South China Sea, Hua said China's sovereignty and claims are grounded in history and upheld by successive Chinese governments. "If the words 'great wall' must be used, we suggest those media pay more attention to Chinese people's 'great wall of will' to firmly safeguard territorial sovereignty and legal rights," she said. Flash Syrian Minister of National Reconciliation Ali Haidar said on Tuesday that the recently declared cessation of hostilities must not affect the war on terror. Syrian Minister of National Reconciliation Ali Haidar speaks during a press briefing in Damascuc, Syria, on Feb. 23, 2016. [Photo/Xinhua] In a briefing, the minister hailed the government acceptance to observe a cessation of hostilities as agreed upon by the U.S. and Russia. He, however, said that government acceptance includes details that shouldn't be overlooked. "There are details for the government acceptance, mainly not to exclude the war on terror from any international effort, to have a clear roadmap about the areas where terrorists are located," minister said. He added that Daesh, the Arabic term for the Islamic State (IS) group, and the al-Qaida-linked Nusra Front are not the only terrorist groups in Syria. "Here I also say that terrorism is not only confined to Daesh and al-Nusra, but all of the other groups, which are still holding arms in the face of the Syrian army," he said. Syria's Foreign Ministry announced on Tuesday the Syrian government consents to observe a cessation of hostilities as agreed upon by the U.S. and Russia. The ministry said the military campaign against the IS and Nusra Front will continue in accordance to the U.S.-Russian agreement. It, however, warned that the Syrian army has the right to respond to any violation by the opposition forces against the people, or the military forces. A day earlier, Russia and the United States agreed to enforce a cessation of hostilities starting from Feb. 27. You are here: Home Flash Yemeni President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi has appointed the vice commander-in-chief in a bid to retake the rebel-held capital Sanaa, the official Saba news agency reported on Tuesday. The top military general Ali Mohsen Al-Ahmar was sworn in the Saudi capital of Riyadh on Tuesday, vowing to fight the rebels and recapture Sanaa, said Saba. Al-Ahmar defected from the Yemeni army and joined the uprising against former President Ali Abdullah Saleh in 2011. He was forced into exile after rebels controlled the capital Sanaa in 2014. The Iran-allied rebels, backed by Saleh's loyalist forces, seized Sanaa in September 2014, and forced Saudi-backed Hadi along with his government into exile. Officials close to Hadi said the decision aims to rally armed tribes loyal to the general Al-Ahmar against the rebels. The Saudi-backed Yemeni government forces have advanced to within 50 km from Sanaa earlier this month, after recapturing military posts in Nihm district and its mountains overlooking the rebel-held capital from the northeast. The advance, backed by the Saudi-led warplanes, came very slowly because of the rebel-planted minefields in the roads ahead towards Sanaa. The Saudi-led coalition started daily air bombing on the Shiite Houthi rebels and their allied forces since March 2015, vowing to drive out the rebels and retrieve Sanaa. More than 6,000 people have been killed in ground battles and airstrikes, half of them civilians. Flash Racial tensions escalated at several South African universities on Tuesday, prompting the ruling African National Congress (ANC) to intervene. The ANC "is outraged by signs of deteriorating race relations and racial tensions, specifically in institutions of higher learning as evidenced by the violent clashes at the Universities of Free State and Pretoria," ANC national spokesperson Zizi Kodwa said. This came after clashes between various groupings as a result of differences on language policy and employment conditions (outsourcing) in these institutions. Tension was high at the University of Free State, where black students and workers who were disrupting a rugby match were attacked by white students on Monday. Workers at the university have been protesting to end outsourcing since last Thursday Meanwhile, the University of Pretoria was on knife's edge after violent clashes between students and police on Monday. Several students have been arrested. Black students have been protesting against using Africans as a medium of instruction, but white students want to protect the language and culture on campus. "We strongly condemn such acts of violence regardless of the circumstances and the race and issues of those who participate in them," Kodwa said in a statement. The violence flared up despite a call by the ANC last week for South Africans to commit themselves to the founding values of this nation being human dignity, equality and freedom, that allow them to live together and build a socially cohesive nation. "The utter disregard of these principles which create a platform for co-existence for our people, flies in the face of the determination of many peace loving South Africans who want to work together, live in harmony and work for common prosperity," Kodwa said. "Racial wars and racial tensions do not in any way bring us closer to the type of society we need to collectively build together," he added. The Constitution guarantees the right of people to protest, but protest action by any group should not hinder on the rights of others, said Kodwa. "As South Africans we must defend our hard earned democracy; doing such demands that we, as difficult as it may be, recognise and promote the rights of all South Africans to their differing standpoints," Kodwa said. The ANC also urges university management across the country to work together with student movements to restore peace and stability on campus, he said. Flash A coordination center was created and began operations at Syria's Hmeimim airbase in order to implement the ceasefire, the Russian Defense Ministry said Tuesday. "In accordance with the Russian-US Feb. 22 agreement on the cessation of hostilities in Syria, for the implementation of mechanism to monitor compliance with the ceasefire regime, a coordination center for reconciliation of the warring parties was created and started operations at the Russian airbase Hmeimim on the territory of the Syrian Arab Republic," the ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said. The Syrian airbase was used to deploy Russian air forces since last September when Moscow started airstrikes against terrorist targets in Syria. Konashenkov said that Syrian opposition groups willing to start peace talks may get help from the center to establish contact with the Syrian government. "Russian contact information for hotline connection (primary and backup) was transferred to Americans," RIA Novosti news agency quoted the ministry as saying. The ministry added that the Russian side expected Washington to provide the same data. The U.S. and Russia announced on Monday in a joint statement that any party engaged in conflict in Syria will indicate to Russia or the U.S. their commitment to the ceasefire by no later than 12:00 (Damascus time) on Saturday. Russian President Vladimir Putin called the ceasefire agreement "a real step" toward ending five years of bloodshed in Syria. Flash Leaders of France, Germany, the United States and Britain on Tuesday hoped the accord to end hostilities in Syria would take effect "as soon as possible," French presidential office, the Elysee said. French President Francois Hollande spoke with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, his American counterpart and British Premier David Cameron about the situation in Syria. The four leaders stressed the necessity to end the humanitarian crisis mainly in Aleppo by calling on Syrian officials and allies to contribute on the implementation of measures aimed at facilitating access to humanitarian aid, according to the statement. They also asked for rapid negotiations to prepare "an effective political transition," it added. On Tuesday, Syrian government and rebel groups have accepted a plan for a cessation of hostilities to begin on Saturday as agreed upon by the United States and Russia. You are here: Home Flash Important progress has been made in talks on a UN resolution on the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) and it is expected to be adopted in the coming days, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said Tuesday. U.S. Secretary of States John Kerry (R) and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi attend a press conference in Washington D.C., the United States, Feb. 23, 2016. [Photo/Xinhua] Once the resolution is implemented, it will effectively curb DPRK's nuclear program, Wang said at a joint press conference with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry. "We do not accept the DPRK's nuclear missile program and we do not recognize the DPRK as a nuclear weapons state," Wang said. The top Chinese diplomat also emphasized that the resolution itself can not fundamentally solve the nuclear issue on the Korean Peninsula. "To solve the peninsular nuclear issue, we need to return to dialogues and negotiations," he said. You are here: Home Flash Some 110,054 refugee and migrant maritime arrivals have been reported in Europe since the start of the year, the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) said on Tuesday. A breakdown of figures reveals that 102,547 of these arrivals have been registered in Greece, with the remaining 7,507 arriving in Italy. In February alone, around 35,132 migrants, mostly Syrians (48 percent), Afghans (25 percent) and Iraqis (17 percent), reached Greek islands having crossed the Aegean Sea. According to IOM, to date 413 people have died while crossing the Mediterranean Sea, often in dangerous embarkations compounded by hazardous weather conditions. By far the deadliest passage, the eastern Mediterranean passage separating Turkey and Greece has claimed the lives of 321 individuals this year. A further 92 people have died while crossing the central Mediterranean route linking North Africa and Italy. Last year saw over one million refugees and migrants arrive in Europe. You are here: Home Flash Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Monday that Israel will join Africa in its fight against terrorism. The prime minister made the decision just before a meeting with Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta visiting Jerusalem. "Israel is willing and ready to work with African countries on our joint target of fighting militant Islamic terrorism," Netanyahu said before meeting with Kenyatta. "I have to say that increasingly more African countries have realized that Israel is a strong partner against extremism," Netanyahu said. This being the first visit by a Kenyan president in 22 years, Kenyatta arrived in Israel Monday hailing Kenya's cooperation with Israel. "We both live in challenging regions with similar security concerns, and cooperation between our two nations since our independence has been formidable," he said. Kenyatta said during his three-day visit to Israel that Kenya is also looking to strengthen its ties with Israel in the fields of water resource management, fisheries, education, technology, and science. Security ties between the two dates back to 1976, when Kenya assisted Israel's Operation Entebbe, a rescue mission of hijacked flight passengers by a Palestinian group. Israel also reportedly preemptively warned Kenya in 2013 of the deadly attack against Nairobi's Westgate mall, a shopping center partly owned by Israelis. Flash Myanmar military has announced intervention in two ethnic armed groups' fighting in Namhsam and Kyaukme townships in the country's Shan state-north, official media reported Wednesday. The military will conduct combined operations in the areas, a military announcement was quoted as saying. Fightings intensified between Shan State Army-South (SSA)-S, led by Ywet Sit, and Taaung National Liberation Army (TNLA) in the first half of this month and their clashes have forced 3,657 people to flee. Due to clashes, villages were set on fire, monks were arrested and some villagers were killed, the report said. Denouncing the acts of SSA-S Ywet Sit Group, the military's North-East Command asked the group to return to the territory designated for them through the joint Monitoring Committee and the Myanmar Peace Center. However, the SSA-S Ywet Sit Group rejected to comply with but deployed more troops in the areas, the report added. Meanwhile, an important proposal was submitted to the parliamentary House of Representatives (Lower House) on Feb. 16, urging to end the current conflict in Shan state-North's Palaung autonomous zones and Kyaukme township as soon as possible. TNLA troops have been fighting with SSA-Ywet Sit Group in Namhkam township since last November, but their clashes have intensified in the middle of this month in the area around Lotnaw village. The SSA-S was one of eight armed ethnic groups that signed the ceasefire pact with the government on Oct. 15 last year. The TNLA, along with two other armed ethnic groups, was not invited to sign the agreement. Flash South Korea's military on Wednesday warned of stern retaliation against "possible provocations" from the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), which issued a warning the previous day of striking South Korea's presidential office Cheong Wa Dae. South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) issued a statement in response to the DPRK's Tuesday warning, saying the military will make the DPRK bitterly regretting with stern retaliations as planned and prepared if Pyongyang conducts provocations in defiance of Seoul's recommendations. The JCS strongly urged Pyongyang to immediately stop provocative acts leading the DPRK to destroy itself, saying the DPRK will have to take all the responsibility for all consequences coming from its reckless provocations. It also warned that those provocations will only speed up the "collapse" of its regime. The statement came after the Korean People's Army (KPA)'s supreme command issued a warning Tuesday that if any "small movements" are found among U.S.-South Koran forces, the first target of attacks would be Cheong Wa Dae, the Blue House, and South Korean authorities. If South Korean armed forces continue to make military provocations despite warnings from the DPRK, the KPA would enter the second phase of attacks, which would target the U.S. bases in the Asia-Pacific and even the U.S. territory, the warning said. Pyongyang accused the United States and South Korea of attempting to bring about a "collapse of the DPRK socialist system," saying the "beheading operation" targets the "supreme headquarter of the DPRK" with preemptive strikes against its nuclear and strategic weapons. Back when Dr. Harold Jacot took over a Beatrice chiropractic practice in 1971, he said there were much fewer chiropractors in Nebraska. There was about 35 chiropractors in the state, Jacot recalled. He said he and several colleagues had moved to Nebraska from Minnesota to address the states shortage. Im happy to say weve gone from 35 in 71 to over 600 now. Think of how many more people can be served with 600 doctors instead of 35 doctors. Jacot, 76, said the love of that service has kept him practicing for 45 years in Beatrice, as well as nine years before that in Pine City, Minn. A representative of the Nebraska Chiropractic Physicians Association said Jacot is probably the oldest and longest practicing chiropractor in the state, that he has been a longtime leader in the state association, and that he spearheaded a legislative effort in 1983 to expand the scope of services chiropractors could be licensed to provide. Chiropractic practice is well-represented in Jacots family. He said he was encouraged by an uncle and his brother, both chiropractors, to enter the field. Now, two of his brothers children and a grandchild, as well as one of Jacots own children, have all become chiropractors as well. Jacot said he feels blessed to be trusted with peoples most precious possession: their health. He said its important, for patients and for him, to stay active physically, mentally and spiritually. Ive learned a lot from my farmer friends. ... Ive got a lot of farmers in their 70s, 80s and 90s that are still farming. They may have slowed down, but theyre still doing it. And I read the Bible a lot, and I dont see anything in there that talks about retiring so I keep saying that Im not going to retire, Im just going to refire. I still basically work full time. Beside there being many more chiropractors in Nebraska, Jacot said the field, and medical practice in general, has come a long way. The world is never status quo; its always changing, he said. If you look at whats happened in the last 10, 20, 25 years ... we keep learning more and more about how the body is so integrated and the importance of the nervous system. He said technological advancements have made more information widely available, as well. Nowadays, with the abundance of whats in computers and books, its fun to keep learning. Theres more chiropractic research, new techniques for spinal adjustments, and more cooperation between medical doctors, chiropractors and other specialist within the medical arena, he said. Another local chiropractor, Dr. Jacob May, said he has had great admiration for Jacot since soon after moving to Beatrice six years ago. One of my first memories of Dr. Jacot was when I came into town, I went around introducing myself to the other chiropractors, May recalled. Everyone was very cordial ... but when I sat down with Dr. Jacot, I truly felt like he was very sincere and wanted to help me succeed. May said it was only after the fact that he found out how much of a celebrity Jacot is in the chiropractic world. He said Jacot has been heavily involved in guiding the state association, and that every time there is a convention he sees Jacot in the front row, ready to learn something new. That level of dedication in someone who has been working so long is uncommon, May said. Working at his age when he doesnt have to says a lot about how much he cares about his work, and how much he cares about his patients, May said. In fact, Jacot said hes had some of the same patients since the early years of his Beatrice practice. They were much younger then, he joked. He said some families are on their third generation of patient Jacot sees the grandparent, parent and grandchild. Hes had some very old patients for health issues and some infants for basic exams, but no matter the age Jacot said he enjoys the opportunity to look after others health. Jacot recalled one patient who started coming in when he was 87 years old. He had a pinched nerve going down his right leg. Two medical doctors told him he needed surgery, but the man said he was too old. He came to Jacot on a friends referral. Eventually we got him stabilized and pain free, and we saw him occasionally over the years, Jacot recalled. When he was 95, he went hunting ... (and) he shot the biggest deer of his life. Jacot, who loves taking wildlife photos and decorates his office with them, said he plans to be active just as long in his life. As long as God gives me the health, I need to carry on. Breitbart By Thomas D. Williams, Ph.D. 23 Feb 2016 As Communist China continues to tighten restrictions on religious practice, more and more believers are opting out of official, state-sanctioned religious organizations and moving their faith underground, according to recent reports. Frustration among Chinas hundreds of millions of religious believers is building and is now said to be running higher than at any time since Chairman Maos death in 1976. The New York-based Human Rights Watch (HRW) has issued another devastating report card criticizing the Chinese government for its ever more restrictive control over religious practice. In its recently issued World Report 2016, HRW documents ongoing egregious abuses of religious liberty in China, noting that its authoritarian Communist regime systematically curtails a wide range of fundamental human rights, including freedom of expression, association, assembly, and religion. Three weeks ago police arrested and jailed Gu Yuese, the pastor of the 10,000-member Chongyi Church, which is Chinas first Christian megachurch. AP Photo/Didi Tang Police sent Gu to a black jail, a detention facility outside of the countrys established penal system, capping a series of arrests and various forms of harassment of religious personnel, notably the ongoing crusade to remove visible crosses from Christian church buildings. More than 1,500 crosses have been removed so far. As a member of Chinas state-approved Protestant denomination, the Three-Self Patriotic Movement (TSPM), Gu was a pastor in good standing with the Communist Party until he began publicly protesting the government-sponsored campaign to remove and demolish crosses in the Zhejiang province in 2014. Though the pastor is ostensibly being held under charges of embezzlement of funds, Gus detention is actually political revenge for Mr Gus disloyalty to the Chinese Communist Partys religious policy according to Bob Fu, president of the US-based Christian human rights group China Aid. Meanwhile, in an effort to increase its direct control of religious groups, Beijing has recently begun assigning certificates detailing the secular name, religious name, national ID card number and a new, unique faith number to Buddhist monks across the country, and intends to extend this practice to Catholic and Taoist priests later this year. Religious personnel without the proper certificates will be barred from conducting religious activities, according to the State Administration for Religious Affairs, the government body that manages religious activity across China. This latest move has already ignited a backlash as believers refuse to submit their faith and religious practice to state control. According to reports, priests belonging to Chinas state-backed Catholic Church have said that instead of procuring the necessary certification, they may instead go underground. As criticism mounts against Chinas heavy-handedness, party apparatchiks have been scrambling to defend Chinas human rights record, while believers scatter to avoid state constraints. Writing for China Daily, a Communist Party lackey named Li Yunlong said that criticism of recent crackdowns on religious freedom in China are a product of subjective bias and prejudice with no foundation in reality. In China, all citizens can freely choose their own religious beliefs, express their beliefs and take part in religious activities. The social environment is constantly improving for the prosperity of religion in China, and society has becomes more and more objective and reasonable toward religions, Mr. Li dutifully wrote. The Chinese government has reason to be afraid, as Christian believers in the country now outnumber membership in the Communist Party itself, in what is still an officially atheist nation. Follow Thomas D. Williams on Twitter China Aid Contacts Rachel Ritchie, English Media Director Cell: (432) 553-1080 | Office: 1+ (888) 889-7757 | Other: (432) 689-6985 Email: [email protected] Website: www.chinaaid.org A Kindle tablet that provides access to Chinese language e-books. LI SANXIAN/CHINA DAILY After witnessing growing interest in paid content in China, Amazon Kindle officially unveiled a new subscription service on Tuesday that offers all-you-can-read digital books for 12 yuan ($1.84) per month. The service called Kindle Unlimited gives Chinese subscribers access to more than 44,000 e-books. Subscribers can read the e-books on any Kindle device or any device, including smartphones and tablet computers, with Amazon's Kindle app installed. The service is aimed to provide Chinese customers a more flexible way to read and to foster China's nascent e-book market, said Gu Fan, the head of Kindle content product management at Amazon China. Amazon launched its Kindle e-book store in China in December 2012. It saw the number of active paid readers per month shoot up about 37 times by the end of 2015. The Kindle Unlimited service was launched when China saw a drop in the number of books being read by its people. Zhu Ning, an economist, who recently published a book named The Guaranteed Bubble, said the number of books read by Chinese people is "embarrassingly low". However, for the sustainable development of the subscription service, Kindle needs to get more publishers and authors to participate. Zou Jihua, director of digital media division of China South Booky Culture Media Co Ltd, a Tianjin-based publisher, saw partnering with Kindle more of a way of marketing books rather than directly making big money by selling e-books. "As long as the books gets well known in China, you can make money in different ways, such as making movies or TV dramas," he said. WeChat to offer paid service WeChat, China's leading mobile messaging application, says it is working on a paid subscription service, a further push to commercialize its platform with 650 million users. The service, which is under development, would allow writers of WeChat's public accounts to charge readers for certain content. It would allow them to show a small part of the content and prevent readers from getting full access to the articles without paying. WeChat, which is owned by the Shenzhen-based Internet giant Tencent Holdings Ltd, wasn't planning to disclose the new service before it was ready. It was accidently found out by users while being tested online. In an e-mail to China Daily on Tuesday, WeChat confirmed it is working on the new feature but didn't say when the service will be officially launched. It said the service is intended to "support and encourage creative work" on WeChat. Public account writers don't necessarily make money when they publish their articles or other intellectual work on WeChat. Some of them are allowed to get small cash rewards directly from readers if they feel satisfied about what they read. Analysts said the move could help WeChat further monetize its huge online traffic. A woman takes a Mars bar from a box of Celebrations in Duesseldorf, Germany, 23 February 2016. Mars announced on 23 February it is recalling all Mars and Snickers bars in Germany as plastic parts might be found in some production lines. [Photo/IC] COPENHAGEN -- Danish chocolate maker Mars has recalled a range of chocolate bars in 55 countries after a piece of plastic was found in one of its products, the company announced on Tuesday. Products affected include bars of Mars, Milky Way, Snickers and Celebrations in various package sizes, with best-before dates from June 19, 2016 to Jan 8, 2017. Mars announced the recall after a customer in Germany found a piece of red plastic in his Snickers bar on Jan 8. The plastic was traced back to the Mars factory in the southern town of Veghel in the Netherlands. The recall only involved products manufactured at the Dutch plant, according to the company. "We are investigating exactly what has happened, but we can not be sure that this red piece of plastic isn't in any other of our products from the same production line," said Eline Bijveld, Mars' corporate affairs coordinator for the Netherlands. Founded in 1911, Mars is one of the world's biggest food companies with 29 chocolate brands. It has about 12 percent shares of the west European chocolate market. It is the first time that Mars has had to recall products made at its Veghel factory, which opened in 1963 and employs about 1,200 workers. BEIJING -- China has banned local governments from borrowing from banks to finance land purchases and preparations for property development, an official statement said on Tuesday. Local governments must reduce the number of institutions responsible for land reserve, whittling down the many departments to just one, according to the statement, which was jointly issued by the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Land and Resources, the People's Bank of China and China Banking Regulatory Commission. Land reserve institutions should no longer have financing, construction or land development arms, these departments should be closed or turned into enterprises, it said. This task should be finished before the end of this year, the statement stressed. Governments with large swathes of land should slow down or even stop adding new reserves to improve land use and cut debt pressure, according to the statement. BEIJING -- Nigel Jones, 51, a British who has been working in China for 15 years, hopes to become a permanent Chinese resident. Director of the international program at a pre-school in southwest China's Chengdu, Sichuan province, Jones married a Chinese woman eight years ago and is a father to two boys. "I want to be able to settle down, without having to worry about renewing my visa every year," Jones said. Jones is one of 98 foreign Chengdu spouses in WeChat group "Chengdu Dads." Many other members of the group are in a similar situation, so last week's news about a more open permanent resident application process may have brought them some cheer. The new process promises better services, including more flexible criteria, a simplified application and shorter approval time. It sounds encouraging but, "it is also important to see how they carry it out," Jones said. He applied for permanent residence in 2012 but has not received a result. "Every time I asked about it, they say there is no problem, but after three years, they told me there was a record on my files which has delayed my application," Jones said. A Chinese green card is one of the hardest to obtain with only around 5,000 issued since 2004, when the policy was introduced. That compares with about 600,000 foreigners currently living in China. Without a green card, foreigners have problems purchasing real estate, applying for credit cards and buying financial products. "Without a permanent resident permit we are always treated as a 'Lao Wai' (foreigner)," said Michael Dann, an Australian who has been working in Hefei, Anhui Province for 11 years. He has a cafe in the city and said the biggest inconvenience for him is the annual $50,000 limit on remitting overseas from China. The lack of specified guidelines for foreigners to apply for visas and certificates in China only adds to the inconvenience. Trevor Manetoa, a New Zealander and another Chengdu Dad, said for financial security for him and his family he needs a more open residency policy. "I don't want a long distance relationship with my family and I wouldn't be able to support them without being here in China," he said. Despite the easing, the green card is still limited. According to the bureau of foreign experts' affairs in Anhui, there are only about 100 foreigners in the province who have obtained green cards. Professor Cho Sung-hye from the Republic of Korea has been working in Hefei University for nearly 20 years. Having made contributions to local education and employment and the communication between the Chinese and ROK governments, Cho is one of the lucky green card holders. She regards the permanent residency permit an honor. Meng Ping, manager of the Golden Apple kindergarten in Chengdu, hopes that the threshold for permanent residency can be lowered even further. Her kindergarten now employs 51 foreign teachers, but due to visa restrictions, only a few of them stay in the long-term. "Besides universities and national core industries, fundamental education also needs foreign talent, and hopefully one day they will be able to stay in China without having to worry about too many things," she said. For Nigel Jones, no green card means no clear future. He is hoping a stable home is not too far in the future. Move will help to promote industrial upgrading and growth of both companies Home appliances and consumer electronics maker TCL Corporation is setting up a 10-billion yuan fund with Tsinghua Unigroup Ltd, China's largest chipmaker controlled by Beijing-based Tsinghua University, for mergers and acquisitions, the two companies announced on Tuesday. The fund will also be used for direct investment in the chip-making industry, TMT, and the government's key economic initiatives, including Made in China 2025 and Internet Plus. "TCL and Tsinghua Unigroup have a profound grasp and strong influence on each other's industry, as well as rich investment experience in industrial upstream and downstream," said Li Dongsheng, chairman of TCL Corp. "The establishment of the fund will promote the future industrial upgrading and development of both parties," he added. Li called the deal a starting point for a comprehensive cooperation between the two companies." They are now expected to strengthen collaboration in a number of fields, including in intelligent mobile terminal, semiconductor and capital market. Tsinghua Unigroup became the third-largest shareholder of TCL when it bought 480 million TCL shares for 1 billion yuan through a subsidiary. In recent years, TCL has stepped up investment in upstream and downstream industries. In 2009, it set up China Star Optoelectronics Technology in Shenzhen to make liquid crystal display panels and smart TVs. "As a technology company, Tsinghua Unigroup is a leader in chip and semiconductor manufacturing, while TCL serves as a terminal electronics products provider, the two sides could complement each other's advantages and achieve further development in technical field though establishing the fund," said Zhao Weiguo, chairman of Tsinghua Unigroup. He said the fund would help cultivate the innovative ability of Chinese technical firms in the Internet Plus and Industry 4.0 era. In 2015, Tsinghua Unigroup announced plans to invest 300 billion yuan over the next five years to become the world's third-largest chipmaker. Zhang Yanbin, assistant director of All View Cloud, a Beijing-based consultancy specializing in home appliances, said that "the establishment of M& A fund is beneficial for the integration of the electronics industry and building up a complete ecosystem and industrial chain." TCL's initiative conforms with the company's overall strategic layout, Zhang said. "In the Internet era, TCL also has a demand for chips, which could be applied into the manufacturing of smart home appliances and telecommunication equipment such as smartphones. It is a business model other Chinese home appliances companies could learn from and copy." File photo taken on June 16, 2014 shows International Monetary Fund(IMF) Managing Director Christine Lagarde speaking during a news conference at the IMF headquarters in Washington D.C., the United States. IMF on Friday announced that it selected Christine Lagarde to serve as its leader for a second five-year term. [Photo/Xinhua] BEIJING -- China supports and welcomes Christine Lagarde serving as the IMF chief for a second five-year term, a Foreign Ministry spokesperson said on Tuesday. The IMF, led by Lagarde, has made a positive contribution to world economic growth and financial stability, Hua Chunying said at a regular news briefing. Appreciating Lagarde's leadership and professionalism, Hua said China is willing to keep up the momentum of cooperation with the IMF, and deepen cooperation in G20. The IMF on Friday announced that Lagarde would serve a second five-year term starting on July 5, 2016. During her first term, the IMF approved inclusion of the yuan in its Special Drawing Rights (SDR) basket as an international reserve currency from Oct. 1, 2016. Lagarde described the decision as "an important milestone in the integration of the Chinese economy into the global financial system." KUALA LUMPUR -- Bank of China celebrated its 15th anniversary of reopening in Malaysia on Tuesday, aiming to further facilitate trade and investment between the two countries. Bank of China opened in Penang in 1939, before opening up more branches in the Malay Peninsula. The bank was forced to end its operation in 1959 for historical reasons, less than two years after Malaysia gained independence. Bank of China reopened in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia's capital on Feb 23, 2001. In 15 years, it has expanded to seven branches and two China Visa Centers across the country with more than 300 staffs. It was designated as renminbi clearing bank in Malaysia by central banks of both countries. Wang Hongwei, chief executive of Bank of China Malaysia, said the bank would continue to facilitate exchanges and cooperation between China and Malaysia. On the cooperation of the "Belt and Road" initiative, Bank of China will provide service to local Chinese community, companies and investors from China, as well as helping its Malaysia customers to venture to global markets, Wang said. The bank will also continue pushing for the building of a renminbi offshore market in Malaysia as part of the efforts for the internationalization of the Chinese currency, he added. Leading British media company Silvergate Media Ltd, producer of popular animation series such as Octonauts and Peter Rabbit, will collaborate with CCTV, China's State-owned national broadcaster, to produce and market the fifth season of Octonauts. Silvergate will also sell its licensed toys and consumer products in China. William Astor, chairman and co-founder of Silvergate, told China Daily during his visit to CCTV in Beijing that the agreement is that Silvergate will provide the script and music and produce content, while CCTV's animation company will work on animation. Jointly, they will broadcast the new season in China and elsewhere. Silvergate claimed it is CCTV's first co-production of a preschool animation series with a Western media company. The project will entail a $10-million investment. Each partner will contribute 50 percent of the investment. They will spilt television sales worldwide. "The new edition will add more unique marine life from China such as the Chinese dolphins," said Astor. Much of the writing will be done at Silvergate offices in London and New York. The previous seasons of Octonauts were broadcast by CCTV nearly two years ago and were believed to have been watched by more than 1.8 billion viewers, said Astor. The Octonauts are an eight-member team of adventure heroes who dive into action whenever there is underwater trouble. First broadcast on CBeebies in the United Kingdom in October 2010, Octonauts is aired in more than 100 countries by channels such as on Disney Jr. in the United States, ABC in Australia, TF1 in France and Super RTL in Germany. It is also one of the fastest-growing kids channels on YouTube with more than 150 million hits. "What makes it unique are the characters - including a cat and a polar bear - that could become any nationalities, and work well with preschool children anywhere in the world," he said. "You can translate the characters and stories into part of the culture where it is broadcast." He sees two ways to work with CCTV. "CCTV can help us make programs that we can translate for Chinese television while we can help sell them to the rest of the world without changing anything but making them more international." Silvergate's another preschool product, Peter Rabbit, which is also broadcast on CCTV, has iconic English-speaking characters, and hence is considered worthy of being made part of school curricula to help children learn English. Astor said it is possible to convert Chinese animated stories into television series and movies and sell them to the world. To do that, it is important to first identify the factors that make the books, stories and comics concerned successful, and then take the best of it for use in television. "You don't change it, You edit it so it becomes more understandable to the global audience." Aston sees China as a market for making motion pictures with its Peter Rabbit or Octonauts properties. The licensed toys market, derived from Silvergate-owned animated characters, is providing immense opportunities in China, he said. He also said Fisher-Price has developed a full range of consumer goods based on the Octonauts characters, offering products at lower prices in China compared with those available in the US. Animated consumer products have dominated toy store shelves for long. For instance, Walt Disney's new release Star Wars: The Force Awakens is a big hit at Toys "R" Us outlets in the US. In China, Walt Disney sells 38 licensed products per second. Its total revenue from consumer goods is $2 billion per year. The competitive advantage that brands like Thomas & Friends, Lego and Transformers have is they are embedded in animation character appearances, said Clover Wei, senior associate with Euromonitor International. Such products give consumers a psychological connection with animation characters, she said. "Licensing is an effective tool to market toys to consumers. Under most circumstances, consumers tend to buy products resembling animated characters they recognize." Leading multinational companies such as Mattel China Inc and Hasbro Trading (China) Co Ltd benefit from consumers' preference for licensed toys. Both companies are under multiple licensing agreements that allow them to build product portfolios covering several markets for traditional toys and games. For example, Disney movie Frozen was screened at cinemas in 2014. Its key character, Princess Elsa, enjoyed a positive image, and was highly appreciated by not only children but their parents. Later, sales of Elsa dolls and Elsa role-play dresses soared. The success of Elsa contrasts with Mattel's deteriorating sales of Barbie dolls. Mattel needs to find a new sales engine, according to Euromonitor. Licensed toys will remain competitive compared to ordinary toys. The success of Frozen signals the great potential that licensed toys can harness if they hit the market after a movie impresses audiences. Sweden is to open 10 additional visa application centers in China to meet demand from Chinese tourists. From April, Sweden will add centers in Xi'an, Chongqing, Nanjing, Chengdu, Shenyang, Wuhan, Hangzhou, Jinan, Kunming and Changsha to its existing centers in Beijing and Shanghai, according to the Swedish tourism bureau. With increasing numbers of Chinese visiting Sweden, the newly-established centers make the application process more convenient. According to the bureau, the number of Chinese visitors to Sweden in 2015 increased by 28.5 percent compared to the same period the previous year, and many visit for the experience of its natural scenery and local lifestyle. Swedavia, a state-owned group that operates and develops 10 airports across Sweden, has also signed a memorandum of understanding with Capital Airport Holding Company to better serve Chinese tourists. According to the group, it has Chinese speaking staff, signs in Chinese and special offers to better serve its visitors. Night view of skyscrapers and high-rise buildings of Jianwai Soho and Yintai Center in CBD in Beijing. [Photo/IC] China's first-tier cities are likely to experience a real estate boom, and analysts believe the property market is off to a well-grounded start this year as property group China Vanke Co plans to raise its property prices in Beijing. Vanke, China's largest residential developer by revenue, will increase the prices on two projects in southern Beijing, according to a project introduction advertisement by the company. However, it did not disclose the range of increase. In Shanghai, meanwhile, the average price for new homes has grown by more than 10 percent in the past two months, from 42,300 yuan ($6,470) to 47,000 yuan per square meter, as demand remains robust with supplies going fast, according to data from real estate information platform anjuke.com. Market professionals said existing inventories of available homes are being reduced at a rapid pace because buyers worry that if they don't buy now, prices will continue to rise and they will no longer be able to afford to buy. Cao Xiaoliang, 38, the father of two boys, said he has had to drop his plan to buy a more spacious home because of the price hikes. "It is so crazy that the price of a 100-square-meter apartment rises some 400,000 yuan in just 15 days after the Lunar New Year," said Cao. Guo Yi, marketing director of the Yahao Real Estate Selling and Consulting Solution Agency, said the governmental measures released recently to boost the property market have a lot to do with the real estate price increases in first-tier cities. Deed and business taxes for home purchases in most cities will be cut in an attempt to relieve the property glut. For example, the deed tax on homes of more than 90 square meters will be reduced to 1.5 percent from the current 2 percent for first-time buyers in all Chinese cities. "The series of policies indicate that the property market in 2016 will see a relaxed policy environment, which is expected to further stimulate more property developers to purchase more land," Guo said. Analysts also said this trend may not benefit the market in the long term, because demand for trading up may be exhausted soon and solid demands for first homes are not met due to a gap of affordability as prices quickly increase. Lu Chao, an analyst with Hanyuan Realty Co, said city authorities' decision to adjust land supplies may help the market become more rational. The secondhand housing market is just as active as that for newly built apartments. A month after Chinese top technology vendors stole the limelight at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, they are taking center stage once again at the Mobile World Congress-the world's biggest exhibition for the mobile industry, being held in Barcelona this week. The trend shows a growing number of Chinese tech companies are now more confident in launching products simultaneously in multiple markets, said analysts. The MWC, running from Feb 22 to 25, is becoming a hotbed for launch events, as companies seek to find sales and technology partners worldwide. Here are seven tech gadgets so far unveiled by Chinese companies at the 2016 MWC. The list is compiled according to launch order. 1.ZTE Spro Plus portable smart projector BARCELONA -- The strong presence of 4G networks coupled with strong local content are factors which will enable a continued rise in mobile internet services in China. That is the conclusion the GSMA (the representative body of the world mobile industry) expressed in the Mobile World Daily magazine published during the four days of the Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona. The GSMA considers China "leads the way in the uptake of IP services when compared to other countries in the BRIC group (Brazil, Russia, India and China) with 79 percent of Chinese customers using non-operator IP voice and 81 percent using IP messaging, partly due to the availability of 4G services." When compared to developed markets, China is more advanced in terms of consumer uptake of mobile data services, with 73 percent of Chinese mobile users accessing social media over their phones, compared to only 43 percent in the UK, where just 40 percent of mobile users have IP messaging apps, compared to 81 percent in China. GMSA Intelligence information shows that Chinese data ARPU increased by 32.5 percent on a year-on-year basis in the second quarter of 2015, compared to 16.9 percent in the UK. Meanwhile there has been a decline in traditional voice calls, with a 19.2 percent fall in China, compared to 8.2 percent in the UK. During this period GSMA highlights that China Mobile noted it has "achieved a notable increase in data traffic operations and a transition from voice-centric to data centric operations." This transition is happening all over the world, but China is leading the field with a strong uptake of mobile data services, such as "gaming, apps and video." GSMA considers "the ability to access a wide array of mobile data services in China - enabled by the country's rapid rollout of 4G networks and supported by strong local content players, (such as QQ messenger) - is creating demand- and supply-side drivers that Chinese operators are exploiting." Regulatory pressure could serve to slow this growth somewhat, but demand is likely to remain strong and consequently China can be expected to "outperform many Western markets for many quarters to come." An employee explains ZTE's 'AXON' during the second day of the annual Mobile World Congress, one of the most important events for mobile technologies and a launching pad for smartphones, future technologies, devices, and peripherals, Barcelona, Spain, Feb 23, 2016. [Photo / IC] ZTE Corp, a major international provider of enterprise and consumer technology solutions for mobile Internet and telecommunications, is eager to provide existing 4G users with "5G-like" experience on LTE devices. The company signed a Pre5G memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Hutchison Drei Austria at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) on Tuesday to build the first Pre5G trial site in Europe. Pre5G, an intermediate step between the current 4G technology and 5G, combines a 5G technology with existing 4G terminal products to allow faster speeds. ZTE makes innovative use of Massive MIMO (multiple input multiple output) technology to enhance wireless spectrum efficiency and boost network capacity. "In a commercial network, the average single-carrier peak rate of Pre5G Massive MIMO exceeds 400 Mbps, increasing spectral efficiency by four to six times as compared with that of existing 4G networks," said Xie Junshi, ZTE CTO of European & American Region. According to Xie, there are currently 800 research and development staffs of the company working on 5G after the company invested more than 200 million yuan ($30.6 million) yearly on 5G-related development. "We are seeking more leading industrial talents from the US and European countries to join our research and development team," Xie added. Pre5G Massive MIMO uses beam forming technology to expand from 2D to 3D coverage, and implements intensive and extensive seamless coverage. ZTE's Massive MIMO base stations have the capability to support more than 100 antenna elements and provide higher space division multiplexing gains than traditional 8-antenna base stations without changing existing terminals or air interfaces, greatly enhancing spectrum utilization. With ZTE's Massive MIMO base station, up to eight users can transfer data simultaneously. Dating back in 2010, Drei chose ZTE as its strategic partner for modernizing its RAN and core network towards a high capacity network with a full nationwide 2G, 3G, and 4G footprint today. Wang Qishan (center), a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and secretary of the CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, addresses a conference on the work of central-level Party inspection in Beijing, China, Feb 11, 2015. [Photo/Xinhua] China's top anti-graft watchdog has pledged to strengthen disciplinary inspections of Party and government departments this year in the fight against corruption. Wang Qishan, head of the Communist Party of China Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, said on Tuesday that the commission will continue to carry out disciplinary inspection work this year targeting Party departments, State institutions and local governments. Wang made there marks at a meeting called to discuss the inspection campaign, which has been launched by the commission to supervise Party and government departments in fighting corruption since the 18th Party Congress in 2012, when China's new leadership took office. The meeting heard that the first round of inspections this year will target 32 Party and State departments as well as central institutions, including the Publicity Department of the Central Committee of the CPC, the Ministry of Justice and the National Tourism Administration. Four provinces, including Liaoning and Shandong, which have been investigated will undergo a second round of inspections as the commission rechecks its work, according to a statement issued after the meeting. Zhu Lijia, a professor at the Chinese Academy of Governance who specializes in public management and anti-graft studies, said that after years of inspections, the lack of internal supervision along with loose disciplinary requirements have been highlighted as loopholes leading to corruption. China is aiming to have 6.66 million hectares on which to grow potatoes by 2020, as the crop is set to become the nation's fourth food staple after rice, wheat and corn, according to a guideline released on Tuesday. The guideline on developing the potato industry, released by the Ministry of Agriculture, also states that the country will encourage consumption of tomatoes as a staple food. It says that authorities will ensure that 30 percent of the potatoes cultivated are varieties that are good for the production of food staples. The consumption of potatoes for food-staple purposes will comprise 30 percent of total potato consumption. China is the world's largest producer and consumer of potatoes, and also had 5.5 million hectares on which to grow tomatoes in 2014, the ministry said in a statement on its website. However, the annual consumption of potatoes per capita is only 41.2 kilograms, far below that of the European Union and the United States, the ministry said. The guideline states that the country will select a number of potato varieties that are good for processing food staples, develop production bases for tomatoes as raw materials, and develop leading enterprises to process potatoes as food-staple products. Zeng Yande, head of the ministry's Department of Crop Production, said in a news release on Tuesday that potatoes have been included in the country's food staples as China faces mounting pressure to upgrade the agricultural sector. A US official and pundit have spoken positively of China's economic transition and reforms while calling for faster and bolder steps to be taken. The comments were made as the US Treasury Department announced that Treasury Secretary Jack Lew will travel to China this week. Lew will be in Shanghai on Friday and Saturday for the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting, followed by trips to Beijing and Hong Kong. In a website article in the US entitled The Importance of China's Transition to Smarter Growth, Nathan Sheets, the treasury undersecretary for international affairs, said the Chinese economy had climbed well above $10 trillion, or five times the figure when China hosted the G20 finance ministers' meeting in 2005. He described China as a key driver of commodity markets, a critical link in global supply chains and, increasingly, a source of end demand for exports of other countries' goods and services." We have long known that China's move from an economy dependent on manufacturing and investment toward one more reliant on services and household consumption would not be easy," Sheets wrote on medium.com. "But the transition is necessary for the economy to rebalance toward more sustainable engines of demand." Chinese leaders have repeatedly voiced their determination to make such a transition to achieve a more sustainable development model. "Important progress has been made," Sheets said, citing faster growth in China's services sector than in the industrial sector in the past three years. Investment in services and more consumption-led sectors has remained strong, even as overall investment has slowed. And the number of new businesses registered last year - many in the services sector - was 4.4 million, a 22 percent annual increase, Sheets wrote. Household and government consumption accounted for two-thirds of last year's GDP growth, and 13 million jobs were created in 2015 in urban areas, far exceeding the government target. Guests attend the launch ceremony of the International Silk Road Think Tank Association in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, on Tuesday. He Na / China Daily The International Silk Road Think Tank Association was launched on Tuesday in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, to provide sustained intellectual support for China's Belt and Road Initiative. The initiative refers to the proposal by President Xi Jinping to build a Silk Road Economic Belt and a 21st Century Maritime Silk Road. Extensive exchanges between think tanks along the old trade routes will deepen people's understanding of the development initiative and avoid misunderstandings between countries, which have different policies and concerns, said Guo Yezhou, vice-minister of the International Department of the CPC Central Committee. So far, 34 countries have signed memorandums of cooperation or other cooperative agreements with China. "China vowed to enhance the dialogue and cooperation of think tanks along the trade routes and provide more chances for exchanges," Guo said at an association conference. The conference attracted about 60 foreign delegates, including former top leaders of the countries along the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road, directors of major think tanks and research centers and scholars and experts. Roza Otunbayeva, former president of Kyrgyzstan, attached great importance to international think tank cooperation. "Think tanks play positive roles in helping solve difficulties," she said. "Research institutes and think tanks in Kyrgyzstan are willing to participate in the initiative research with think tanks from other countries." Alfred Gusenbauer, former chancellor of Austria, said the state of the world's economy shows the initiative was proposed at just the right time. Its success will help countries along the trade routes find economic growth that is not limited to one single channel, he said. Tasked with connection, innovation and sustainable development, the conference was sponsored by the China Center for Contemporary World Studies, the Shenzhen Municipal Government and Fudan University. More skilled workers are needed in Dongguan, a traditional manufacturing base in Guangdong province, as local companies begin looking for qualified employees after Spring Festival to help transfer their businesses into the high-tech sector. CKE-Tech, which focuses on production and sales of precision machinery, is looking for about 10 more engineers this year as the company increases its efforts in research and development. "We are looking for more skilled workers, but it is really difficult to find the right ones," said Chen Guiping, a human resource manager with the company. The company will provide about 6,000 yuan ($920) per month for a skilled worker, higher than the previous year. A growing number of manufacturing companies have increased investment in research and development in recent years, resulting in the need for more skilled workers and engineers, according to Chen. CKE-Tech is one of the hundreds of businesses ranging from furniture, garments, electronics and toys that are transitioning from traditional manufacturing to more service-oriented models. By Feb 17, more than 77 percent of Dongguan workers had returned to their jobs, according to the local human resource authority. In the past, some companies could not begin factory operations after Spring Festival due to a lack of workers. "But now, a growing number of local companies have introduced high-tech processing equipment, including robots," said Li Guochen, a professor at Dongguan Polytechnic. Some labor-intensive businesses, however, have still found it hard to recruit new workers. According to the Dongguan human resources authority, companies involved in shoes, garments and plastics have a relatively larger shortage of labor for their processing lines. A view of the former "comfort station" called Home of the Sea in Hongkou district, Shanghai, Feb 23, 2016. [Photo/CFP] The demolition of a former Japanese military brothel used during World War II in Shanghai has been put on hold, according to the local government on Tuesday. An unnamed media official with Hongkou district government told Xinhua that a historical assessment on the unlisted building has been launched. "Whatever the result, we will do our best to preserve history," he said. The two-story 1920s building was once home to more than 10 households. It had been earmarked for demolition as part of an urban transformation project. The site will make way for a school expansion and a road. Qiaoqiao, the 7-year-old black Labrador. [Photo by Peng Ziyang for China Daily] A guide dog that was stolen from a blind masseur in Beijing was returned with a note from the dognappers that said "please forgive us". The 7-year-old black Labrador, named Qiaoqiao, was stolen by an organized gang of dog thieves on Monday, the Beijing Public Security Bureau said on Tuesday. Shunyi district police investigated after receiving the call from Qiaoqiao's owner. The bureau posted Qiaoqiao's information on the Internet and asked for public assistance. Guide dogs, often Labradors or golden retrievers, are sent to foster families when they are puppies and are socialized for nearly a year. Dogs that show promise receive another year of training. The dognappers are still at large. Qiaoqiao, a 7-year-old Labrador retriever, is finally reunited with its owner after it was stolen by an organized gang of dog thieves on Feb 22, 2016. [Photo by Peng Ziyang / for China Daily] A guide dog that was stolen from a blind masseur in Beijing was returned with a note from the dognappers that said "please forgive us". The event puts spotlight on guide dogs in China. The 7-year-old black Labrador, named Qiaoqiao, was stolen by an organized gang of dog thieves on Monday, the Beijing Public Security Bureau said on Tuesday. Shunyi district police investigated after receiving the call from Qiaoqiao's owner. The bureau posted Qiaoqiao's information on the Internet and asked for public assistance. Guide dogs, often Labradors or golden retrievers, are sent to foster families when they are puppies and are socialized for nearly a year. Dogs that show promise receive another year of training. The dognappers are still at large. Qiaoqiao, the 7-year-old black Labrador. [Photo by Peng Ziyang for China Daily] A guide dog that had been missing for 35 hours was sent home around 6 pm on Tuesday together with a note reading: "We do beg your forgiveness". The previous day a notice had been circulated on social media such as Weibo, the Chinese version of Twitter, as well as popular messaging app WeChat. It remained one of the most discussed items on Weibo, and more than 4.5 million followed the topic by 3:00 pm. "Qiao Qiao", a seven-year-old Labrador, was being taken for a walk by its blind masseur owner around 8 am on Monday when it was snatched and driven away by thieves in a gray minivan. "When I took him out I heard the sound of a car", said Tian Fengbo. Staff at the massage parlor said a minivan appeared and several people took Qiao Qiao. As well as reporting the theft to police, Tian also publicized the missing dog through the Internet, saying: "I beg you do no harm to it and please help me in finding it. Qiao Qiao is my child and I will spare no money to get him back". He also set up a WeChat group which saw a rapidly growing number of volunteers devoted in finding Qiao Qiao. A woman prays over a grave during the annual Qingming festival, or Tomb Sweeping Day, at a public cemetery in Shanghai on April 6, 2015. A joint statement released by nine ministries called for burial of deceased family members in a cemetery plot rather than the traditional one-plot-for-one-body practice, in efforts against mass occupation of land by expensive cemeteries. [Photo/CFP] In the tail of February when Chinese people are still in a post-Lunar New Year festive mood, they have been suddenly pulled back to harsh reality through a topic seen as taboo in such a holiday season death. A joint statement released by nine ministries called for burial of deceased family members in a cemetery plot rather than the traditional one-plot-for-one-body practice, in efforts against mass occupation of land by expensive cemeteries. The statement came on Wednesday, two days after the Lantern Festival, and caused discussions over life and death one month earlier than due as the topic is usually popular in Qingming Festival, or Tomb Spring Festival known as a day when people visit cemeteries and pay tribute to ancestors. With or without the festivity-mutilated statement, Chinese people are still frustrated with the beyond-reach prices of cemeteries especially in big cities where sky-high housing prices, job pressure, and air pollution have already made for difficult standards of living. This leads to philosophical frustrations why is it equally hard to die? How hard can it be? In Beijing, a burial plot can claim from 40,000 yuan ($6,214) per square to tens of thousands of dollars, while price tag also pick up from 50,000 yuan ($7,655) per square and up in Shanghai and Guangzhou. The per square cost of where the body will be laid can rival that of a comfortable apartment one can buy to live an actual life. Soaring prices didn't scare people away from getting their dead family members into earth though. Traditional Chinese funeral rites advocate extravagant burials in a way to make their ancestors rest not only in peace, but also in dignity. Convention also prefers the practice of bodies being buried in the soil than ash spreading as a Chinese saying goes "Falling leaves settle on their roots". This explains why authorities have promoted eco-friendly funerals, such as spreading ash to the sea, but for years they've only received cold shoulders. A former senior legislator in north China's Shanxi province stood trial on Wednesday for accepting bribes. Jin Daoming, formerly vice chairman of the Shanxi Provincial People's Congress Standing Committee, was accused of taking advantage of his position when he served in senior Communist Party of China posts in Shanxi from 2007 to 2014 to "seek interests for other people" in the process of coal mine mergers, official promotions and disciplinary inspections. A statement from the Intermediate People's Court of Zhenjiang in Jiangsu province, where Jin pled guilty in a public trial, said the former Shanxi legislator had received bribes worth over 120 million yuan (about million U.S. dollars) in both cash and goods. The court was adjourned and the verdict will be announced at a later date, the statement said. JINAN - Police in east China have arrested a former pharmacist and her daughter for illegally selling hundreds of millions of yuan worth of vaccines. The pharmacist, surnamed Pang, was head of the pharmacy at a hospital in Heze city in Shandong province. After leaving the hospital, Pang began illegally selling vaccines. She received a suspended jail term for the offence in 2009. Starting in 2011, Pang teamed up with her daughter, a medical school graduate, to buy vaccines from sales representatives of over 100 manufacturers and sold them to 300 buyers, including staff at local centers for disease control and prevention across China. Their sales totaled 310 million yuan ($47.5 million), said the public security bureau in Jinan, capital of Shandong, citing an investigation of their 22 bank accounts. It is against the law in China to sell vaccines without proper licenses. The two also violated the law that requires vaccines be kept in the cold chain at any time, exposing users to potential health risks, police said. Manufacturers who sold the vaccines to the unlicensed duo have received administrative punishments from drug watchdogs, and related disease control and prevention workers are facing criminal investigations. The case has been transferred to prosecutors. Beijing denies its industrial overcapacity is "hurting the world economy", as it questioned a report on Wednesday by a European business group. China's contributed more than 50 percent to global GDP in recent years and last year accounted for nearly 25 percent of global economic growth despite facing increasing downward pressure, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying told reporters during a daily press briefing. The conclusion that "China is wreaking far-reaching damage on the global economy", is difficult to arrive at, Hua added. Earlier this week, the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China issued a report on China's industrial overcapacity. It claimed that that China's overcapacity in heavy industry is wreaking "far-reaching" damage on the global economy, with steel production "completely untethered" from market demand. Hua said overcapacity did exist in some industries in China, but it is only a phenomenon that is occurring as China makes a structural adjustment. Citing China's Belt and Road Initiative and industrial capacity cooperation with other countries, which answers international demand, Hua said the initiative and cooperation are creating new space and releasing more potential for development. This is why a number of developed countries, including some European Union members, joined with us to promote capacity cooperation with other developing countries, Hua said. China can combine its advantage in manufacturing and high-end technology from developed countries with the demand from developing countries to inject new impetus to the world economy, Hua added. After months of effort from prosecutors, an economic fugitive was persuaded home from Canada and surrendered to authorities in the southern province of Guangdong.[File photo] After months of effort from prosecutors, an economic fugitive was persuaded home from Canada and surrendered to authorities in the southern province of Guangdong. Chang Zheng, former deputy general manager of Shenzhen Zhongyou Equipment Import and Export Co. Ltd flew into Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport and turned himself in. Chang said he would make a confession of his guilt and actively co-operate with prosecutors investigating his case, with the aim of receiving a reduced punishment. "I endured all kinds of suffering when I fled abroad," Chang said upon his arrival in the capital of Guangdong province. "I could not fulfill my duty to my parents and meet my beloved family members after I escaped abroad". Chang, born in November 1969, became the first fugitive to surrender in the province this year, according to a statement from Guangdong provincial high people's procuratorate on Wednesday. Chang fled to Canada in November 2011 before his case was exposed. He was suspected of having taken a large sum in bribes and neglect of duty while in office, the statement said. Guangdong provincial high people's procuratorate immediately established a special task force assigned to capture him the next year. After persuasion from prosecutors, lawyers, family members, classmates and friends, Chang finally decided to turn himself in and confess his crime. Guangdong provincial high people's procuratorate persuaded 116 economic fugitives who used to hide in foreign countries and regions back home for further investigation last year. Premier Li Keqiang meets with visiting World Bank President Jim Yong Kim in Beijing on Wednesday. WU ZHIYI / CHINA DAILY China is getting new dynamics for economic growth and creating new jobs, Premier Li Keqiang assured the visiting chief of the World Bank on Wednesday. The Chinese economy is regaining its composure and making new progress, the premier told Jim Yong Kim, president of the World Bank Group. China has earned rich experience from its past reform and development and "has accumulated an ample stock" of policies and political instruments to deal with the difficulties it faces and any new challenges and risks. Kim was in Beijing ahead of the Group of 20 meeting of central bankers and finance ministers, scheduled for Friday and Saturday in Shanghai. The Chinese premier expressed willingness to improve information-sharing and strengthen coordination and collaboration with the international community. The forthcoming meeting of G20 central bankers and finance ministers will focus on stabilizing the global financial market and promoting economic growth. But Li did not mention the so-called second Plaza Accord primarily a consensus about the yuan that some overseas media have talked about. Many Chinese commentators think the Plaza Accord of 1985, reached in New York by finance ministers from five developed countries, did not solve many problems in the world and was partly to blame for the Japanese asset bubble and subsequent slowdown. Zhang Yiming, a commentator on Easternmoney.com, a financial information website, went so far as to call it a product of "Western imperialism". Zhao Xijun, deputy dean of the School of Finance at Renmin University of China, said it is very important for China to enhance policy-level communication with other countries through international platforms such as the G20. "As we are now all facing the pressure of the global economic downturn, it is important for countries around the world to know more about each other's policies and thus to avoid policy conflicts, such as a currency war," Zhao said. Although China's foreign exchange reserve fell in January to $3.23 trillion, the lowest in the past three years, Xiao Lian, an economist with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said the number is still manageable. "The foreign exchange reserve is affected by many elements, not just import and export numbers," he said. "China's foreign reserve outflow has been a trend for one year or so. I believe that if necessary, the government will take due measures to deal with it." Xiao also said that it is China's own decision whether to join the expected "New Plaza Accord". zhangyue@chinadaily.com.cn Tian Fengbo and Qiaoqiao A guide dog that was stolen from a blind masseur in Beijing was returned with a note from the dognappers asking its owner to "please forgive us". The 7-year-old black Labrador, named Qiaoqiao, was stolen by an organized gang of dog thieves on Monday, the Beijing Public Security Bureau said on Tuesday. The dog's owner, Tian Fengbo, 47, from Shunyi district, said a worker at Tian's massage establishment was walking Qiaoqiao on the street on Monday morning when the gang approached and took the dog. "We don't use a leash for walking her around in the mornings," Tian said. Qiaoqiao was grabbed by the occupants of a silver van that was passing by. The distraught owner called the police, and the Beijing Public Security Bureau immediately released information about the incident on its micro blog, hoping for public assistance. Local police also investigated. Tian said the thieves sent the dog home secretly on Tuesday evening. "I burst into tears when I heard Qiaoqiao's voice," he said. The thieves were still at large. "I hope they will stop stealing dogs, no matter whether they are guide dogs or any other dogs," Tian said. "A dog is just a dog to them. But to the owner, it is a friend, or even a family member." Guide dogs, often Labradors or golden retrievers, are sent to foster families as puppies for nearly a year of socialization. Dogs that show promise receive another year of training. Tian said that while Qiaoqiao was missing, he dared not go out alone. Tian met Qiaoqiao for the first time in 2010 at the China Guide Dog Training Center, the country's first and only guide dog training center. It is based at Dalian Medical University in Northeast China's Liaoning province. After spending 20 days at the center training with Qiaoqiao, Tian brought the dog home. He said that every time they crossed the road, Qiaoqiao would stop and check whether it was safe before crossing with Tian. "I felt brave and confident to go outside alone with Qiaoqiao by my side. I felt I was the same as any other person." Tian said Qiaoqiao seemed nervous the first evening after she returned home. "But she is much better now and can eat or go outside as usual," he said. yangwanli@chinadaily.com.cn Delegates from Afghanistan, Pakistan, China and the United States meet to broker peace Afghanistan expects a date for direct talks with the Taliban to be set by the end of February, the foreign minister told an international group seeking to relaunch the peace process at a meeting in Kabul on Tuesday. Delegates from Afghanistan, Pakistan, China and the United States met in the capital for a fourth round of talks aimed at forming a path back to the nascent peace process, which was interrupted by summer's announcement that Taliban leader Mullah Omar had died. A boy poses for a photo with his hero the Monkey King at the "Happy Chinese New Year" event in Brussels, Belgium, Feb 6, 2016. [Photo provided to Chinaculture.org] "Happy Chinese New Year" is a worldwide activity celebrating the traditional Chinese Spring Festival. In 2016, over 2,100 cultural activities have been held in over 400 cities across more than 140 countries and regions worldwide. People around the world have a chance to encounter traditional Chinese culture through the event. And young children always enjoy the festivities the best. Joy blooms on their little faces as they greet the new year. Here are pictures of happy kids from Just Share It - Happy Chinese New Year, the global online photo contest. Click here: Happy Chinese New Year and Just Share It - Happy Chinese New Year Photo Contest 2016 John Man, a well-known writer on China, talks about his latest book, Saladin: The Life, The Legend and the Islamic Empire, which will be published in April. [Photo by Nick J.B. Moore/China Daily] John Man, a leading writer on China, is unconcerned about being described as a popular historian. His books, which include biographies of Marco Polo and Genghis Khan, and have a trademark light jaunty style, sometimes sell in their hundreds of thousands. The latest, Saladin: The Life, The Legend and the Islamic Empire, to be published in paperback in April, examines the life of the great 12th-century Arabic leader who fought off the Crusaders from Europe. "I hope the books are easy to read. That is the idea. There is an awful lot of academic work on all these subjects but quite often the authors are just experts on the sources only. They are not bothered to go to the places. I think if you go therelike I doyou always find something new," he says. Man, 74, who was speaking at his booklined study in London, hopes he will generate fresh interest in Saladin, still an iconic figure in the Middle East but largely anonymous in most other parts of the world. "He was a great Kurdish Arab general during the Crusades and his major claim to fame was that he kicked the Europeans out of Jerusalem, and is therefore a hero in the Arab world," he says. "Just at the moment he is relevant and crucial because he united Shias and Sunnisnot in the best possible way because he was pretty rough on the Egyptian Shiasbut at least he united them." Actors from Urban Aphrodite International, a private theater company in Shanghai, host a workshop to help youngsters better understand Shakespeare's plays. [Photo provided to China Daily] A creative fair was held at the Shanghai Grand Theater at the weekend as part of activities to mark the 400th death anniversary of master playwright William Shakespeare. More than 5,000 people attended the event that included a broadcast of the British National Theatre's production of Hamlet, starring Hollywood actor Benedict Cumberbatch, and a few workshops and seminars on Shakespeare's works. The Royal Shakespeare Company debuted in China this year, beginning with the Henry trilogy in Beijing a few days ago, and the plays will be staged in Shanghai over Feb 25-28. "We have planned yearlong performances and other events for Shakespeare's anniversary," says Zhang Xiaoding, general manager of the Shanghai Grand Theater. "Ballet du Grand Theatre de Geneve has two programs on tour internationally, and we chose to introduce its A Midsummer Night's Dream in April, and likewise, we have intentionally picked concerts that include some Shakespearean pieces," Zhang says. More than half of the events to be hosted at the theater this year are related to the Bard of Avon. Highlights include Mariinsky Ballet's Romeo and Juliet in October; Shakespeare in Love, a show by acclaimed chamber group The English Concert in December; as well as the premiere of Shanghai Ballet's original production of Hamlet in April. "In order to make our efforts known to the public, we decided to ... open the theater to its maximum capacity," Zhang says. "We hosted the creative fair, so that anyonenot only those buying our show ticketsis invited, to have fun with us." Four such fairs have been planned for the whole year, says Li Jiajie, of Shining On Culture, a Shanghai-based company which is working with the theater to host the fairs. "We will handpick vendors to fit in with the theme of each session," Li says. The first session's theme is "retro and England", for which Li's company has brought in vintage jewelry, imported antiques, do-it-yourself handicrafts and Twinings tea. The yearlong program also has public educational projects. During the weekend, when two workshops were held at the Shanghai theater, artists from Fly Improv led participants through experiments of impromptu drama, and those from Urban Aphrodite International shared their experiences of performing Shakespearean plays. Both groups are private theater companies based in Shanghai. Two full-house lectures were also given at the theater, where Shi Zhikang, a professor from Shanghai International Studies University, spoke on understanding Hamlet, followed by translator Lu Dapeng's talk on the House of Plantagenet. Related: Bard fans in China get to watch his Prince Hal in action Launch ceremony of HK - Macao student media tour, in Lanzhou, Gansu province.[Photo/chinadaily.com.cn] The deliberations of the Hong Kong education authorities on Chinese courses recently came to an end, and the document has aroused debates in Hong Kong because it mentioned students becoming able to recognize characters in Simplified Chinese after having mastered Traditional Chinese, as the former is mainly used in the Chinese mainland. Do not politicize the issue, says an article in the Global Times Chinese edition on Tuesday: It should be emphasized that the Hong Kong education authorities advise students to be able to read Simplified Chinese. Teachers and parents have the right to decide whether the advice is practical, but it is unnecessary to protest as if Simplified Chinese characters will "replace" Traditional Chinese ones in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. It is even more absurd to treat the suggestion as a sign the Hong Kong education authorities are simply being obedient to Beijing. Actually, as interactions between Hong Kong and the Chinese mainland have increased, Hong Kong students that recognize Simplified Chinese will find it convenient to travel to the mainland. Shop owners that speak good Mandarin and hang posters in both Simplified and Traditional Chinese get more customers than those who do not. Since 1997, Hong Kong has adopted both Simplified and Traditional Chinese for signs in public buildings, which has made life more convenient and attracted many mainland tourists. The Hong Kong education authorities have the responsibility of giving their advice. They have done the job. Moreover, it is not a challenging task for those who master Traditional Chinese to read Simplified Chinese. A Hong Kong scholar used to print some classic essays in Simplified Chinese to test Hong Kong middle school students; only 5 percent failed the test. It is safe to conclude that the majority of Hong Kong residents do not oppose students learning Simplified Chinese. Those opposing the teaching of Simplified Chinese are being guided by narrow ideological minds. It is time for them to give up that mentality, because that will help neither to broaden students' career chances nor to maintain Hong Kong's prosperity. A Shanghai marriage registration office displays a sign warning about risks in the property market and telling buyers to think twice before getting divorced. Divorce rates in some major cities have risen dramatically in the first three quarters, with experts saying many couples are divorcing to avoid paying property taxes. [Photo provided to China Daily] About 4,500 couples in the Dali Bai autonomous prefecture in Yunnan province, Southwest China gave up the idea of divorce last year thanks to the introduction of a grace period for divorce proceedings promoted in 2015 by the local government, Guangming Online reported on Sunday. The website comments: The civil affairs departments in various regions established grace periods to allow couples to reconsider their decisions. Also some coordination offices were set up to offer counseling to the couples. There has been criticism that such grace periods violate the right of residents to get a divorce by deliberately prolonging the procedure. However, the fundamental purpose of the grace periods is to protect impulsive and irrational couples from making the wrong decision. The grace periods actually offer them a chance to consider if they are really making the right decision. The fact that the divorce rate dropped by 60 percent reveals the positive effect the grace periods have had. On the one hand, divorces lead to a variety of family tragedies, such as disputes over the division of property and conflicts over the issue of child support. On the other hand, if a couple regrets their decision, even though they may remarry, they still waste social resources. From this perspective, the divorce delay system not only helps maintain social harmony and stability but also saves public resources. Of course, delaying a divorce is not the denial of the right to a divorce; its ultimate purpose is to save marriages. For those couples whose relationships completely break down and show there is no possibility of reconciliation, so long as the procedure is observed, the civil affairs department will respect their choice and grant the divorce after the end of the grace period. Protesters hold a rally in support of former NYPD officer Peter Liang in the Brooklyn borough of New York February 20, 2016.[Photo/Agencies] The case of Peter Liang is increasingly catching the attention of people in the United States, and beyond, especially among Chinese, Asians and African-Americans. Peter Liang and Shaun Landau, both young cops with the New York Police Department, were on patrol in Brooklyn, New York City in November 2014, when, while inspecting an apartment building, Liang inadvertently triggered his gun when being startled by a noise in the darkened corridor. The bullet ricocheted off a wall and killed Akai Gurley, an African-American who happened to be going upstairs. This is the case that brought Liang to court. Gurley's death is a tragedy. Liang's job was to maintain social order and the safety of the neighborhood, so as to protect innocent people like Gurley. Although his gun was triggered, it is clear he didn't intend to hurt Gurley as he could neither see nor know Gurley was approaching in the darkness. However, the jury concluded that Liang opened fire, and that cost Gurley his life. As Liang and his colleague failed in their duty to protect, it was necessary for them to experience proper juridical scrutiny to prove either their innocence or otherwise. Objectively, this case may involve a number of stakeholders and their responsibilities. First, the local government and utility companies failed to make sure that the lighting in those apartment buildings worked properly. If the lighting had worked as it should, Liang and his colleague, as well as all residents in the building would have been in a far safer situation, and the police officers would not have misjudged Gurley's presence. Second, given the short experience of Liang and his colleague, the NYPD should better train their teams before sending them to such precarious environments. The inexperienced Liang was not impeccable in doing his job. Especially after finding that Gurley had been shot, Liang and his colleague didn't take immediate action to try and help him. Consequently, Liang is now in a vulnerable position. Nevertheless, Liang's case contrasts markedly with numerous past cases of US police shootings. There are frequent reports of US cops intentionally shooting people in the name of maintaining social order. In most of these incidents, the police are usually white and the victims non-white. Thus far most of the courts in charge of the judicial process of judging the righteousness of police shootings have protected the police in the name of "legitimate self-defense". However, public perceptions of the shootings have often been the opposite, for instance, in the case of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, in 2014. The repeated occurrence of similar cases in which white police officers have killed African-Americans has time and again triggered uproar. But the police officers concerned have rarely been convicted even of manslaughter. Liang's case significantly differs from others. Primarily, he didn't intend to shoot Gurley, while in previous cases the white cops intentionally shot their victims. Also, Liang fired his gun unintentionally in the dark. Since those cops who fired deliberately were not convicted of manslaughter and judged innocent, to rule that Liang was guilty on five counts including manslaughter is stunningly unfair. One can only conclude that Liang has been made a scapegoat to appease the public. The US preaches equality and fairness around the world. However, the country is still deeply plagued by internal inequality and unfairness. All people should be treated fairly, not just African-Americans but also other non-white ethnic groups. All Americans should have the same dream, which is equality regardless of race and color. In this regard, Liang should be measured by the same yardstick. The author is a professor at and associate dean of the Institute of International Studies, Fudan University. A formation of the Nanhai Fleet of China's Navy on Saturday finished a three-day patrol of the Nansha islands in the South China Sea. [Photo/Xinhua] The report of China deploying a missile system on Yongxing Island, part of the Xisha Islands in the South China Sea came as a "surprise", with the Western world citing it as further evidence of China's "direct military provocation" to other countries and a threat to regional peace and order. The United States expects to hold "very serious talks" with China, and its allies have expressed concern over the development. This is quite intriguing. In the past, the international community mostly focused on the disputes over the Nansha Islands in the South China Sea which largely involved China and the Philippines. And despite Beijing's clarifications and stand, Washington has made its policy very pro-Manila along with its actions in the Asia-Pacific, a region that is thousands of kilometers away from its coasts. As a matter of fact, for several decades China has used limited defense measures on Xisha Islands, which it has already announced are its territorial sea baseline and have nothing to do with the so-called militarization of the South China Sea. Therefore, this is not an intentional change that China has brought up at this moment. Instead, the US' intention to confuse between Xisha and Nansha seems to be obvious and direct. As to the confusion over "right to self-defense" and "militarization", Article 51 of the UN Charter entitles the "inherent right" to self-defense to UN members, and for decades China's self-defense measures on the Xisha Islands have not been seen as a controversial issue. But the West is now trying to portray it as a controversial issue despite the fact that high-level officials in the US or its ally countries have not openly raised it. How could such self-defense measures suddenly become China's "reckless step" intensifying militarization in the Asia-Pacific region? Speaking of militarization, the US has decided to deploy 60 percent of its navy and air force in Asia-Pacific. Also, it keeps sending spy planes and battleships on reconnaissance missions in China's territory, and holds frequent joint military drills with its allies in the region and continues to sell huge amounts of military equipment. Talking about confusion over "policy" and "capability", according to US media, the missiles deployed by China on Yongxing Island have a range of about 200 km and pose "a threat to all forms of civilian and military aircraft". This is another ploy of the US to create confusion. China's self-defense measures do not pose a threat to major sea lanes and air routes in the region, so long as some incidental "innocent passage" does not evolve into a serious provocative threat to China's sovereignty. Chinese tourists watch a performance in Bali, a top destination for outbound Chinese. [Photo by Kuang Linhua/China Daily] A growing number of Chinese like Liang Jing are discovering the best time to take a holiday is, well, after the holidayat least officially and financially speaking. And perhaps in other ways. The Shanghai resident opted to stay put during the Spring Festival early this month but headed for Thailand's Koh Samui with her friend for five days at the end of the weeklong national vacation. She saved a considerable sum. And enjoyed other boons. "Scenic spots are less crowded after the festival, and tourism services and experiences are better," she says. It's worth noting Thailand is among the top three destinations for outbound Chinese. She paid 14,000 yuan ($2,150)roughly half the holiday price. Retirees, students and office workers are leading the post-holiday charge abroad, tourism experts say. About 80 percent of Beijing-based Utour International Travel Service's products for late February to mid-March are booked. "Most of our guests are white-collar workers who've decided to take their annual paid leave after the holiday to enjoy cheaper, cheerful trips," explains Utour's publicity manager, Li Mengran. KALAMAZOO, Mich. - The Michigan Uber driver charged with murdering six people switched vehicles after sideswiping a car at the start of the shooting spree, authorities said on Tuesday, adding they hoped his phone would help establish a motive for the killings. Jason Dalton (L) is seen at Southwick's gun shop in Plainwell, Michigan in this still image from closed circuit television taken February 20, 2016 and provided by Southwick's Guns. Dalton, the Michigan Uber driver charged with murdering six people switched vehicles after sideswiping a car at the start of the shooting spree, authorities said on Tuesday, adding that they hoped his phone would help establish a motive for the killings. It also was revealed that Dalton visited the gun shop shortly before the rampage and bought a heavy duty jacket that could conceal a small pistol. [Photo/Agencies] It was also disclosed that the suspect, Jason Dalton, who was reported to have obtained a community college degree in law enforcement two decades ago, visited a gun shop shortly before the shootings and bought a heavy-duty jacket that could conceal a small pistol. Dalton, 45, was denied bail on Monday after a court hearing in which a detective testified that he admitted to the five-hour shooting rampage over the weekend in Kalamazoo, Michigan, about 150 miles (240 km) west of Detroit. Hours before the first shooting occurred on Saturday evening, Dalton and a friend visited Southwick's, a gun shop he frequented in nearby Plainwell, a shop employee told Reuters. Dalton was a regular customer who usually spent time chatting with the staff, but he bought the jacket and left the store within 10 minutes, said the employee, who asked not to be identified. "He's in here enough for me to know he talks to the guys about guns and different stuff," she said. Searching for a motive behind the violence, investigators focused on a 9mm semi-automatic handgun and a cellphone seized from Dalton, as well as the fact that he picked up fares for the Uber car-hailing service between or after the shooting episodes, authorities said. At least one passenger who rode in Dalton's car that night, apparently after the rampage had begun, recounted that the Uber driver seemed oddly calm and even appeared to be fatigued to the point of almost falling asleep at the wheel. "He didn't say much and he didn't act abnormal. He was rather quiet," Marc Dunton, 39, told Reuters of the ride he shared with two friends, taking the front-passenger seat beside Dalton. Prosecutors say Dalton randomly shot at people at an apartment complex, a car dealership and a restaurant, killing six and badly wounding two others, including a 14-year-old girl left in critical condition. "Right after the first shooting at the apartments, he left the scene and sideswiped a car," said Paul Matyas of the Kalamazoo County Sheriff's Department. The accident prompted him to switch cars, from a silver Chevrolet Equinox to a Chevy HHR, both vehicles belonging to his family, Matyas said. Dunton said he was picked up in an HHR. Another Uber passenger, Matthew Mellen, told CNN he rode in Dalton's Equinox and that Dalton seemed normal until he received a call on his cellphone, at which point he began driving erratically, running stoplights and a stop sign and sideswiping another vehicle. Matyas said investigators were examining Dalton's Uber contacts and working to "track his phone calls, track his whereabouts" in the hours before his arrest early on Sunday. Detroit-based NBC affiliate WDIV-TV reported that Dalton graduated from Kalamazoo Valley Community College in 1992 with an associate's degree in law enforcement and criminal justice but did not enroll at the school's police academy. He had no criminal record, authorities said. South Coast Plaza General Manager Werner Escher, second from right, greets Chinese tourists visiting the shopping center in Costa Mesa, Calif. in this July 18, 2014 file photo.[Photo/IC] As the leading destination for Chinese travelers to the United States, California is projected to receive 1 million visitors from China in 2015 and the number is expected to exceed 1.8 million by 2018, a 78 percent increase over 2014, a tourism industry forum was told Tuesday in San Francisco. "Global Ready that's one thing for this room to be sophisticated and understand how to connect with the Chinese traveler. We've got to educate all of our $180-million industry," Caroline Beteta, president and CEO of Visit California, told more than 500 tourism industry leaders attending Visit California's 2016 Outlook Forum. Global Ready is an educational platform launched by Visit California, a non-profit marketing organization tasked with developing tourism in the state by helping California's tourism industry better serve the global traveler. "So 'Global Ready!'" said Beteta, "because we all know that Chinese are prolific in sharing their experiences, and word-of-mouth from friends to family is the most crucial connection to success in bringing Chinese visitors to California." "China really is the largest overseas market and also the fastest growing market for California," Leona Reed, associate vice-president of global marketing with Visit California, told China Daily. "China is probably our largest success story. It has grown double digits in terms of visitation as well as economic impact over the last five years." California welcomed 996,000 Chinese visitors in 2014, a 21.6 percent increase over 2013, making China the largest source of overseas visitors for the state. Chinese visitors spent more than $2.5 billion in the state in 2014, which is more than the spending of all visitors from the UK and Japan, the second- and third-largest overseas markets for California. "By 2018, we are projecting both figures to double, and by 2020, potentially triple," said Reed, adding that "2018, for all intents and purposes, is just around the corner." Airlift between California and China has witnessed a 44 percent increase in terms of the total capacity of seats year-on-year. "It means there's a demand for California, and airlines are realizing that, so they are putting in new routes and new aircraft," said Reed. The growing market has promoted Visit California to increase its investment in Chinese tourism by opening two new offices in Chengdu and Guangzhou this year, in addition to Beijing and Shanghai, as well as committing $9 million in its 2015-16 fiscal year budget to Chinese marketing an 80 percent increase from the previous year. "We have doubled our investment (in China) since 2011. Every year we almost double our budget and we've gone from $800,000, which was our first year investment, to $9 million today," said Reed. The organization's other strategies include telling the story directly to consumers through channels such as broadcast and online TV and social media, and establishing a strong strategy with the travel trade, making sure that California is represented by different tour operators and online travel agencies so that agents understand the diversity that California has to offer, according to Reed. Social media, including Weibo, the Chinese version of twitter, is an important tool to deepen consumer engagement, said Beteta. This year, Visit California launched a social campaign to attract families traveling to celebrate the Chinese New Year in California. San Francisco began celebrating the Chinese New Year in the 19th century and has the biggest Chinese New Year celebration outside of China, she said. "We are so fortunate to have an abundance of cultural connections to that effort," she said. liazhu@chinadailyusa.com PYONGYANG - The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) said Tuesday that its strategic and tactical weapons are ready to be used for preemptive strikes on the Republic of Korea and the United States even if any "small movements" were found among US-ROK special forces, the official KCNA news agency said Tuesday. The first target of the attacks would be Chongwadae, the ROK's presidential office, as well as the ROK's authorities, said the KCNA, citing a statement issued by the supreme command of the Korean People's Army (KPA). If the US-ROK armed forces continued to make military provocations despite warnings from the DPRK, the KPA would enter the phase of its second round of attacks, which would target US bases in the Asia-Pacific and even US territories, the statement warned. The DPRK is accusing the United States and the ROK of attempting to bring about a "collapse of the DPRK social system", read the statement. The US-ROK OPLAN 5015 war plan reportedly includes preemptive strikes on the DPRK and plans to remove the DPRK's weapons of mass destruction. Washington does not want to see the South China Sea become an issue between China and the United States, US Secretary of State John Kerry said on Tuesday. US Secretary of State John Kerry (R) and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi shake hands at a joint news conference after their meeting at the State Department in Washington, February 23, 2016. [Photo/Agencies] He made the remarks when meeting Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Washington, according to a press release issued by the Foreign Ministry. Kerry said the US is willing to carry out smooth interaction with China and does not want the South China Sea to become an issue between the two countries. Wang said he has met Kerry three times in one month, which reflects the great importance both countries attach to the relationship. "International media often focus on some problems between China and the US. But in fact, joint interests of the two countries far outweigh our divisions, and the depth and scope of bilateral cooperation far exceed regional friction," Wang said according to the press release. Bilateral talks, he said, should cover both cooperation and ways to control division. Wang expected the two countries to speed up negotiations on the Bilateral Investment Treaty and deepen anti-corruption efforts this year. China supports the US in holding the fourth Nuclear Security Summit in Washington in late March and early April, and welcomes US President Barack Obama's visit to China in September to attend the G20 summit in Hangzhou, he said. He also made clear China's stance on the Taiwan and the South China Sea issues, and Beijing's opposition to US intentions of deploying the Terminal High Altitude Area Defence system, one of the world's most advanced missile defense systems, in the Republic of Korea. The two top diplomats also discussed the Korean Peninsula nuclear and Iran nuclear issues and the situation in Syria. Wang is visiting the US from Feb 23 to 25. Republican US presidential candidate Donald Trump gives a thumbs up as he addresses supporters after being declared by the television networks as the winner in the Nevada Republican caucuses at his caucus night rally in Las Vegas, Nevada, February 23, 2016.[Photo/Agencies] WASHINGTON - Businessman Donald Trump inched closer to the US Republican presidential nomination after easily outdistancing his rivals in the Nevada caucuses Tuesday, giving him his third win in four early nominating contests. Broadcast networks called the state for Trump almost immediately after voting ended, with the state Republican Party confirming the victory soon after. With returns still being tabulated, US Senator Marco Rubio of Florida was in second place, with Ted Cruz, a US Senator from Texas, coming in third. Trump's decisive win is likely to further frustrate Republican establishment figures who, less than a month ago, were hoping that the outspoken billionaire's insurgent candidacy was stalled after he lost the opening nominating contest in Iowa to Cruz. But since then, Trump has tallied wins in New Hampshire, South Carolina, and now Nevada, with a suite of southern states ahead on March 1, so-called Super Tuesday. "If you listen to the pundits, we weren't expected to win too much, and now we're winning, winning, winning the country," Trump said at a victory rally in Las Vegas. Polls suggest Trump will do well in many of those Super Tuesday states, placing further pressure on Cruz, Rubio, and Ohio Governor John Kasich, another presidential candidate who was not a factor in Nevada, to come up with counter-measures quickly. "These guys have to figure out how to turn their fire on Trump," said Ford O'Connell, a Republican strategist in Washington. Absent that, he said, "Which one is going to get out of this field?" In the run-up to Nevada, most of Trump's rivals left him alone, preferring to tussle with each other in a bid to be the last surviving challenger to the front-runner. Not long after Trump's win was certified in Nevada, Cruz's campaign released a statement criticizing Rubio for not winning the state, but did not mention Trump at all. Foreign Minister Wang Yi and US Secretary of State John Kerry give a joint news conference at the State Department in Washington on Tuesday. SUSAN WALSH / ASSOCIATED PRESS Non-militarization of the South China Sea is not the responsibility of China alone, Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Tuesday in Washington, urging the United States to refrain from close-up military reconnaissance in the region. At a joint news conference with US Secretary of State John Kerry after their talk, Wang said, "China, the United States and the ASEAN countries have all committed to non-militarization. Non-militarization is not the responsibility of one party alone. It's something that we share." Wang is visiting the US from Tuesday to Thursday. The trip comes as recent Chinese military deployments on some of its islands are making headlines in international media. "We don't hope to see any more close-up military reconnaissance, or the dispatch of missile destroyers or strategic bombers to the South China Sea," Wang said, an apparent reference to the high-profile US presence there. In Beijing, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chun-ying urged the media on Wednesday not to "selectively pump up or ignore things" when reporting on the issue. "When you pay attention to what China is deploying, do you also pay attention to other countries that have over the years, on Chinese islands they have occupied, deployed many radars and advanced weaponry?" she said at a daily news briefing. Wang's visit also brought encouraging progress. He and Kerry signaled on Tuesday that an agreement is expected soon on a UN resolution concerning the Democratic People's Republic of Korea's Jan 6 nuclear test and Feb 7 rocket launch. Both Beijing and Washington "do not recognize the DPRK as a nuclear weapon state", Wang said, adding that the resolution, when passed, will effectively limit further progress of the DPRK's nuclear program. He and Kerry agreed that the goal is to go back to negotiations. Wang talked about China's new basic proposal of pursuing, on parallel tracks, the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and the replacement of the Korean armistice with a peace agreement. Wang said he and Kerry feel that the situation on the Korean Peninsula needs to be monitored very closely in the next two months. GF Linamar Becomes Latest Addition to North Carolina's Transportation Manufacturing Industry Contact: Crystal Feldman Crystal Feldman govpress@nc.gov Hendersonville, N.C. Governor Pat McCrory, North Carolina Commerce Secretary John E. Skvarla, III, and the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina (EDPNC) joined executives from GF Automotive and Linamar Corporation in announcing the arrival of 350 manufacturing jobs in Henderson County during the coming five years. GF Linamar LLC, a joint venture between GF Automotive and Linamar, will invest $217 million in a new facility in the Town of Mills River in two phases over the next seven years. The company will supply light-weight powertrain, driveline and structural components to the North American automotive industry.said Governor McCrory.The project unites Switzerland-based GF Automotive with Canada's Linamar Corporation. GF Linamar will apply cutting-edge technology in producing light-weight automotive components that enhance vehicle fuel efficiency. GF Automotive's parent company, Georg Fischer Ltd, was founded in 1802 and has operations in 31 countries. Linamar, founded in Canada in 1966, opened a manufacturing plant in Buncombe County in 2012. Just two years later, it launched a $115 million expansion there. Linamar also operates a forging facility in Wilson, North Carolinasaid Secretary Skvarla.The 350 new jobs at GF Linamar will pay wages well above the Henderson County average. The total cash compensation average for all employees including operators, skilled trade employees, engineers, management and executives will be targeted at an average of $47,738. The county's average annual wage is currently $34,256.stated Linda Hasenfratz, CEO of Linamar.comments Yves Serra, CEO of GF.GF Linamar's arrival in Henderson County will be facilitated, in part, by a Job Development Investment Grant (JDIG) approved by the state's Economic Investment Committee today. Under the terms of the company's JDIG, GF Linamar is eligible to receive up to $4.2 million in total reimbursements. Payments will occur in annual installments over 12 years pending verification by NC Commerce and NC Revenue that the company has met incremental job creation and investment targets. JDIGs reimburse new and expanding companies a portion of the newly created tax-base with the goal of increasing the overall tax benefit to the State of North Carolina.By law, JDIG projects must result in a net revenue inflow to the state treasury over the life of the award. For projects in Tier 3 counties such as Henderson County, 25 percent of the eligible grant is directed to the state's Industrial Development Fund - Utility Account to help finance economic infrastructure in less populated counties. GF Linamar's expansion could provide as much as $1.4 million in new funds for the Utility Account. More information on county tier designations is available at nccommerce.com The project was also made possible by a performance-based grant from the One North Carolina fund of up to $500,000. The One NC Fund provides financial assistance, through local governments, to attract business projects that will stimulate economic activity and create new jobs in the state. Companies receive no money up front and must meet job creation and investment performance standards to qualify for grant funds. One NC grants also require and are contingent on financial matches from local governments.State Representative Chuck McGrady said the economic impact of GF Linamar's new facility will stretch well beyond the Town of Mills River. "The 350 employees who go to work there will come from across Henderson and neighboring counties," he said. "The project's $217 million capital investment will broaden county and municipal tax-base and help fund mission-critical public services for all our residents."said State Senator Tom Apodaca.Since Governor McCrory took office in January of 2013, more than 260,000 private sectors jobs have been created.Governor McCrory praised the collaboration among numerous economic development organizations, partners and allies that led to North Carolina's selection for the project.McCrory said.Working with the North Carolina Commerce and the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina were the North Carolina General Assembly, North Carolina Department of Transportation, NCWorks, the North Carolina Community College System, Blue Ridge Community College, Henderson County, Henderson County Partnership for Economic Development, Town of Mills River, Duke Energy, and Golden Leaf Foundation. (Photo : Getty Images) China has deployed fighter jets to the contested Woody Island raising concerns from US and claimant-countries in the South China Sea. Advertisement China has allegedly deployed fighter jets to one of the disputed islands in the South China Sea, the same location where it has stationed surface-to-air missiles, two US officials said on Tuesday. China is, however, yet to confirm the presence of fighter jets in the region. Like Us on Facebook Advertisement This dramatic escalation to the South China Sea dispute came as US Secretary of State John Kerry and Foreign Minister Wang Yi held talks on pressing issues such as the Korean Peninsula and the South China Sea. Woody island US intelligence officials claim to have spotted the Chinese jet fighters - Shenyang J-11s ("Flanker") and Xian JH-7s ("Flounder") - on Woody island since the past week. US intelligence officials, who spoke to Fox News on condition of anonymity, said the deployment of the fighter jets to the disputed Woody island came days after news that China had two batteries of HQ-9 surface-to-air missiles on the same island. Officials estimate that China has "less than 10" fighter jets in the disputed Parcels islands. 'Defensive purposes' At a press conference on Tuesday, Wang explained that the deployment of the missiles to the Woody island was for "defensive purposes." Woody Island is the biggest island in the Paracel chain of islands in the South China and has been under the control of China since the 1950s. The island has had a runway since the 1900s and has been under China's control despite being contested by Taiwan and Vietnam. Spratly island Following China's deployment of fighter jets to the island, US authorities and the claimant-countries have expressed concerns that Beijing may send the jets to the Spratly Islands in the south next. Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said on Monday that China's military facilities on the Woody island is no different from the defense installations the US has built in Hawaii. "There is no difference between China's deployment of necessary national defense facilities on its own territory and the defense installation by the U.S. in Hawaii , she said. End patrols Meanwhile, Wang told Kerry during their talks that he "hoped" that "close up" naval and aerial patrols by the US Navy over the contested islands would be halted "We don't hope to see any more close-up military reconnaissance or the dispatch of missile destroyers or strategic bombers to the South China Sea," said Foreign Minister Wang. Kerry, for his part, told Wang that he wanted China to end its militarization of the disputed islands in the South China Sea. Advertisement TagsChinese fighter jets, Woody island, foreign minister Wang Yi, US intelligence, 'close-up naval patrols' It has been far too many years since the Woke theology interlaced its canons within the fabric of the Indoctrination Realm, so it is nigh time to ask: Does this Representative Republic continue, as a functioning society of a self-governed people, by contending with the unusual, self absorbed dictates of the Woke, and their vast array of Victimhood scenarios? Yes, the Religion of Woke must continue; there are so many groups of underprivileged, underserved, a direct result of unrelenting Inequity; they deserve everything. No; the Woke fools must be toppled from their pedestal; a functioning society of a good Constitutional people cannot withstand this level of "existential" favoritism as it exists now, unending. (Photo : Photo by Chung Sung-Jun/Getty Images) South Korean protesters attend an anti-North Korea rally on February 11, 2016 in Seoul, South Korea. China and the United States have finally agreed on the sanctions to be imposed against North Korea for its recent missile tests and rocket launch. Advertisement China and the United States have made 'significant progress' in coming up with a United Nations (UN) resolution sanctions against North Korea for its recent rocket launch and missile tests. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and US Secretary of State John Kerry have agreed to punish Pyongyang through the UN-backed sanctions that may include economic penalties as the two officials are wrapping up talks that started on Tuesday in Washington. Like Us on Facebook Advertisement The two nations vowed to work closely on the terms of the resolution and agreed to come up with a draft resolution in the coming days. Important progress "I would like to tell you important progress has been made in the consultations and we are looking at the possibility of reaching agreement on a draft resolution and passing it in the near future," Wang said. Kerry has hailed the the talks as a 'significant progress' as both sides have finally agreed on the terms of punishment they will slap against North Korea. Reports indicate that China and the US have both agreed that the sanctions against North Korea will not be so severe that it will worsen the security situation in the country. Goal Wang and Kerry agreed that the goal of the UN resolution will be to get North Korean leader Kim Jong-un back to the negotiating table and persuade him to abandon his nuclear program, end the proliferation of nuclear weapons, and urge him to rejoin the international community. "We have made significant progress, it has been very constructive in the last days, and there is no question that if the resolution is approved, it will go beyond anything that we have previously passed," Kerry said. Wang said Beijing and Washington were in agreement that North Korea cannot be allowed to develop its nuclear program and must be forced to return to a six-party international talks. Unacceptable "We do not accept the DPRK's nuclear missile programme and we do not recognise the DPRK as a nuclear weapons state," Wang said. The US, for its part, said it will only come up with a peace deal with Pyongyang to end the hostilities between them since the 1950 Korean War if North Korea agrees to denuclearization over a period of time. Advertisement TagsUN Resolution, Sanctions, Pyongyang, Wang Yi, John Kerry Former IMB VP says fired communicators 'grossly undervalued and maligned' Editorial Staff | 23 February, 2016 by Joni B. Hannigan RICHMOND, Va. (Christian Examiner) A former high ranking administrator at the International Mission Board cried "foul" in an online posting last week following a statement by IMB President David Platt that 30 communications missionaries let go last month were downsized as the result of their failure to keep current in the digital age. Calling Platt's statement about the team "patently inaccurate," Ken Winter said the team's "stellar efforts have been grossly undervalued and maligned." Winter, who a year ago stepped down as vice president of church and partner services, in a Feb. 19 blog entry in which he spoke fondly of about 200 "gifted and godly" men and women who accepted a "voluntary retirement incentive" offered by the IMB, nonetheless had choice words about the suggested deficiencies attributed to the 30 others who were involuntarily "removed." "Purportedly 'our mobilization efforts ... have not kept up with our times' and [we] 'struggle with employing new methods for reaching a changing audience' and 'have been disconnected from our field strategy,'" Winter wrote. This, too, is a team of gifted, godly, and passionate followers of Christ. [T]hey are some of the most gifted communicators in their respective crafts. They have been employing new methods for reaching a changing audience for years. Referencing a Feb. 17 Baptist Press release, Winter presumably was speaking of comments made by International Mission Board President David Platt, at a Feb. 16 meeting in Ponce, Puerto Rico, of Baptist state paper leaders. In the release, Platt reportedley told leaders: "We are way behind in the development of a digital mindset that builds on customization and flexibility rather than predictability and uniformity. Our field and stateside communicators struggle with employing new methods for reaching a changing audience." Referencing an earlier statement he made about the difference between God's perfect and God's permissive plan, Winters objected to Platt's assessment of the communication team's effectiveness. "Again I experienced that same feeling that I wasn't witnessing God's perfect plan but this time, every fiber of my being also cried 'foul'! Because I also know this team," said Winter, who served with the team nine years. "This, too, is a team of gifted, godly, and passionate followers of Christ," Winter continued. "[T]hey are some of the most gifted communicators in their respective crafts. They have been employing new methods for reaching a changing audience for years." Platt, in his explanation of why the mission agency closed the Richmond Communications Center at the IMB headquarters, cited a "stewardship of responsibility" to Southern Baptists who provide the resources used. "[O]ur home office mobilization efforts have been disconnected from our field strategy," Platt told Baptist paper leaders. "[I]t's clear we're sorely missing a culture of growth in which silos are broken down, mobilization needs are adequately addressed and mobilization goals are actually accomplished." Winter said it is ironic to him that it is the same team that has "championed the role of the local church in mission and brought other parts of the organization along sometimes 'kicking and screaming'" that has been "jettisoned." "They have led the charge for those new methods and have been the conscience of that changing audience within the organization even when the organization didn't want to acknowledge the changes," Winter said. "'[T]he only field strategy they were disconnected from were the strategies that advocated that the church's role was simply to 'pay, pray and get out of the way.'" Winter wrote that he believes it is the responsibility of leadership to make decisions for the organization, and while he does "not begrudge them that right," he will pray for them. To the communications team, he wrote: "So allow me on behalf of the thousands of churches and hundreds of thousands of Southern Baptists that God has used them to awaken and mobilize in mission to say to them, 'well done, good and faithful servants! You have run the race well. You have run it with excellence. Continue to run it with head held high wherever the Lord leads you.'" Lawmaker wants amendment prohibiting local pro-LGBT ordinances 24 February, 2016 by Gregory Tomlin , | CHARLESTON, W.V. (Christian Examiner) A Republican lawmaker in West Virginia has introduced a resolution calling for a constitutional amendment to forbid cities in the traditionally conservative state from enacting "human rights ordinances" that create a special class of protection for the lesbian, gay, bi-sexual and transgender members of those communities. The state's Human Rights Act already contains protections for West Virginia's citizens based on gender, religion, race and national origin, but none for those who identify as LGBT. So far, eight cities have gone beyond the protections offered in the state's constitution and extended coverage based on the category of sexual orientation. On Saturday, Sen. Craig Blair, who is also the Majority Whip and whose district includes the city of Martinsburg, the latest city to enact a law offering protections for the LGBT persons, said the resolution was necessary because the state was becoming "a quilt or a patchwork of different ordinances pertaining to this issue." "This doesn't have anything to do with discrimination or anything like that," Blair said. "That's not what this legislation is about. It's about jobs. We're trying to level the playing field throughout West Virginia making so we can actually get jobs here and get people back to work and treat every one of our West Virginia citizens equally and fairly." His reasoning wasn't enough to placate critics who believe Blair is stoking the flames of "homophobia." Andrew Schneider, who leads the group Fairness West Virginia, said Blair's resolution was meant to roll back equality and stoke discrimination. The American Civil Liberties Union of West Virginia also stepped into the fray and called on Blair to remove the resolution from consideration. According the group's spokeswoman, Jennifer Meinig, Blair was attempting to "roll back" protections "in a time when it is still legal to be fired, evicted, or denied service in most parts of the state simply because of whom you love. We hope that this resolution fails to advance." The future of the joint resolution is far from certain as a majority of the state's mayors have come out against it. For the resolution offered by Blair to be considered, two-thirds of both chambers (Senate and House of Representatives) also have to approve it. The timing of the joint resolution happens to coincide with the passage of House Bill 4012, which has received significant attention from the LGBT lobby. That bill, titled the "Religious Freedom Restoration Act" offers protections to Christian business owners who refuse to participate in gay weddings and other gay-themed events for fear of violating their Christian consciences. Groups like Human Rights Campaign called the bill "dangerous" and "deeply unfortunate." HRC's legal director, Sarah Warbelow, also said that the First Amendment already guarantees protections on religious freedom, which she called a "core value" in American life. HB 4012, however, will "put LGBT people at risk for discrimination and go even further, allowing a person to use HB 4012 as a defense against child abuse of allow a pharmacist to argue he is not required to provide birth control." HB 4012 was also opposed by the Catholic Committee of Appalachia, but it still passed 72-26. The creation of local human rights ordinances is not new. Other cities in traditionally conservative states have taken or have attempted to take the same course of action, include Fayetteville, Arkansas, Houston, Texas, and Jacksonville, Florida. In September 2015, Fayetteville voters ratified a city civil rights ordinance that broadened the categories of protection to include members of the LGBT community. A previous ordinance did the same thing, but it was repealed by voters. That, however, was before the U.S. Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage in June 2015. The new ordinance, which passed easily after a contentious campaign, included provisions covering housing and employment discrimination against gays and lesbians. It exempted "churches, religious schools and daycare facilities, and religious organizations of any kind." The Jacksonville City Council withdrew a bill from consideration Feb. 18 that would have expanded the city's anti-discrimination protections to include members of the LGBT community after the city's mayor, Lenny Curry, said the change was unnecessary. Curry said he believed the city could accomplish the same thing by executive action. He ordered city officials to expand anti-discrimination rules to cover LGBT persons in the city's employment policies. Houston was among the first cities to attempt to establish a city-wide non-discrimination ordinance for the LGBT community when its openly lesbian mayor, Annise Parker, pushed HERO (the Houston Equal Rights Ordinance) through the city council. The Texas Supreme Court, however, ruled that the 2014 gay rights ordinance had to be repealed and any similar ordinance placed before voters. In November, voters rejected the ordinance by a margin of nearly 2-1. Conservatives and evangelical Christians saw the Houston ordinance as an attempt to force same-sex relationships on churches and other religious organizations, and many pastors came out strong against in when it was first adopted by the Houston City Council. They also protested Mayor Parker's subpoena of ministers' sermons to investigate how they had addressed HERO. The pastors cried foul and refused to provide the sermons. Such speech, they said, is protected by the First Amendment. Parker eventually withdrew the subpoenas. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott to endorse Ted Cruz today for president Editorial Staff | 24 February, 2016 by Joni B. Hannigan HOUSTON (Christian Examiner) Hours shy of an official endorsement in Houston, a YouTube video showing Texas Gov. Greg Abbott endorsing Sen. Ted Cruz was posted by the Cruz campaign late last night. Abbott will endorse Cruz in Houston at a 1 p.m. event today, campaign officials told CNN. "After 8 years of relentless attacks on our values from this White House, it's our duty as Texas conservatives to support a leader we can trust to restore our values and move this country forward," Abbott said in the video message. "That's why I'm supporting Ted Cruz for president." Noting Cruz is a "constitutionalist," Abbott noted, "We need to deliver." "Ted Cruz is our candidate, now let's do our part to take this country back," Abbott said. With over 5,000 members, Houston's First Baptist Church has also confirmed that its senior pastor, Gregg Matte, has endorsed the GOP candidate for president. Second Baptist Church, where Cruz attended as a teenager, in 2013 was the largest church in the Southern Baptist Convention, with nearly 26,000 members, and according to Outreach Magazine is the second largest church in America, with Joel Osteen's Lakewood Church in Houston being the largest, with over 43,000 in attendance. The magazine lists five of 15 of America's largest churches in Texas. 43 Assyran Christians who were abducted one year ago by the Islamic State in Northern Syria were freed on Monday. The released captives, many of whom were women and children, are among the last of 230 who had been abducted from several villages near Tal Tamr last February. Younan Talia from the Assyrian Democratic Organization confirms that the remaining captives were released, according to the Associated Press. No hostages remain and any reports quoting other figures to the contrary are unsubstantiated," the Assyrian Church of the East Relief Organization (ACERO), who had been a part of the negotiating process for the release, said in a Facebook post on Monday. ACERO wishes to extend its unreserved thanks to all those supporters, both institutional and individual, who have stood with the Assyrians of Syria in this arduous 12-month period, ACERO said in a statement on Facebook. While this news thankfully marks the end of the most recent tribulation, we mourn the tremendous losses, both human and material, suffered by the indigenous Assyrians of Syria. The destruction of their livelihoods in the historic Khabur villages is a loss for the Assyrian nation and for Syria as a whole, it continued. Today, Syrian Christians make up about 10% of Syrias population of 22 million. Earlier this month, rapper Kanye West described his latest release as a gospel album with a lot of cursing. The phrase exemplifies the sense of confusion and apparent contradiction surrounding The Life of Pablowhich came out February 14, after lots of hype and speculation. Christians also wondered about what was to come from the famous husband of Kim Kardashian (and foil to Taylor Swift): How much gospel will be in this gospel album? Who exactly is Pablo? For starters, it isnt a typical album in any sense. Following its digital release, it has yet to be transferred to a physical format (no CDs, no vinyl). The Life of Pablo is not, and may not ever be, available for purchase. So while were told the album exists, it requires a certain amount of faith to experience. It is not available on iTunes, Amazon, or Spotify. No man cometh unto The Life of Pablo except through Tidalthe online music-streaming site run by Kanyes figurative big brother Jay-Z offers the only legal way to listen to the project. During the final months of production, the album went through a spiritual journey of its own, rumored to originally be titled So Help Me God, then SWISH, later confirmed as Waves, and finally The Life of Pablo. Its the latest entry on a lengthy timeline illustrating Kanyes use of Christian themes and imagery in his work. Occasionally such efforts have been viewed by believers as an earnest search for truth. The song Jesus Walks from his debut album was nominated for a 2004 Stellar Gospel Music Award. And just as often, Kanyes ideas are seen as outright blasphemy. That Stellar Award nod was later rescinded after the threat of protests ... 1 Around the first anniversary of the infamous beheadings of 21 Coptic Christians on a Libyan beach, believers worldwide celebrated the release of the kidnapped Assyrian Christians that were feared to become ISISs next propaganda massacre. (Instead, it was Ethiopians.) Shortly after the videotaped martyrdoms in February 2015, the Islamist extremists kidnapped more than 200 Assyrian Christians in Syrias Hasakah province as the so-called Islamic State expanded its territory. Some worried that ISIS would threaten to kill the hostages unless the US ended joint air strikes. Others speculated that ISIS would ask for a prisoner exchange for jihadists held by Kurdish forces. In light of the ISIS militants barbaric record with the captured, Assyrian Church of the East leader Emmnauel Youkhana told one outlet, the destiny of these families is a major concern to us. Instead, a few were executed. Five went missing. For the hundreds of remaining captives, ... 1 We are highlighting Leadership Journal's Top 40, the best articles of the journal's 36-year history. We will be presenting them in chronological order. Today we present #24, from 1983 and 1993. * * * The thought of resigning passes through most every pastor's mind, especially in times of conflict. The greater the pain, the more the thought nags us. Leadership Journal first published this article in 1983, and it struck a deep emotional chord among readers. One wrote us, "I was ready to quit my church until I read Don Bubna's ten reasons not to. I decided to stay, and now, past the crisis, I'm glad I did. The article's timing was perfect." "I was feeling a lot of pressure when I wrote that article," says Don Bubna, then pastor of Salem (Oregon) Alliance Church. The ten reasons helped him continue to minister for four more years in that church. Eventually, however, after twenty-three years at Salem, he moved to another church. "Now, ten years later, the pressure on me and other pastors is only increasing," he says. "People have higher and higher expectations of their pastor. Today, handling pressure is what ministry is all about." The ten reasons have helped him "stay by the stuff" for the last five years. "Today I feel as though I'd like to quit, take a leave of absence, resign from the world, or something." So begins a line in my journal, penned about a year ago. I had never felt so much under attack. We had just received another turndown from a potential youth pastor. The church seemed to be on a plateau, the elders stuck on dead center. In a matter of a few days, a young man from our congregation who had recently gone to Africa was killed in an automobile accident. A missionary pilot from our fellowship had been attacked by South Pacific islanders with machetes and almost died. A retired missionary, our esteemed pastor of visitation, passed into the presence of the Lord after a very brief illness. During this same period, I received four letters in one day marked "Personal." This kind of envelope seldom bears good news. One was a complaint from a long-time attender who felt I had gotten soft on the gospel. The person was leaving the congregation in order "to be fed" elsewhere. Another was the resignation of a staff member with whom I had served for more than two decades. Under such an avalanche, I could not help reviewing the many reasons why the North American pastorate is becoming impossible. People now watch tele-Christendom's finest as they munch their sweet roll on Sunday morning, then drive to see how the local reverend compares, sans makeup and retakes. And the generation raised on Sesame Street wants something more appealing than thirty minutes of straight talking. The pastor must also be an extraordinary counselor these days to battle the disintegration of the home and the lack of moral standards in the community. He must be a strong leader, so that people will follow; yet his authority is frequently suspect, like anyone else's in public service. Still he is expected to produce a diversified ministry for all tastes and age groups so folks won't leave to go to the superchurch across town. He must be a change agent-but the changes must never be thought to edge away from biblical standards. All this ran through my mind as I tallied the reasons to quit. Then, one day, I had a change of heart and began rummaging for reasons to stay. Gradually I reconvinced myself that I loved my work. Here's what I came up with: 1. I need to grow in the new demands I'm facing rather than find an excuse to cop out. In twenty-three years of leading multiple staffs, I had experienced only two resignations from associates. Suddenly within a one-year period, three had decided to leave. Needless to say, some of this related to differences with my leadership style. The last year has been uncomfortable for me-but a time of growth. I believe I'm now a more sensitive servant to the congregation. I also identify more with pastors in trial. I'm one of them. It would have been a shame to miss the growth God had planned for my life simply because pressures were greater than I had ever felt. Too often we leave and start over, basically repeating the same experiences. 2. I refuse to be guided only by my emotions. There is nothing wrong with "feeling like resigning." Wise counselors tell us to listen to our emotions but not believe them. Subjectivity must run the gauntlet of objectivity. A move could be a good thing, but it needs to be made on the basis of truth about my own gifts. Any active pastor will pump enough adrenalin on Sunday to cause a natural letdown or depression on Monday. I recently noticed that Mondays, which I have always taken off, tended to be "bad days." I felt worn out. I was cross with my family. I dwelt on problem areas and felt very unproductive. Then I heard a counselor of many pastors say that from an adrenalin management standpoint, we would be much better off to make Monday a light working day and have our day off later in the week. I decided to alter my tradition. Now I try to spend the first couple of hours Monday alone in devotions, reading and thinking. I then refine my schedule for the week, do my dictation, and spend the last part of the morning working with my secretary. This is often the only major block of time we have all week. Most of the staff is gone for the day, and the interruptions seem fewer. I've learned not to take Monday breakfast meetings. I refuse to begin early with people. I try to limit my appointments to two. Now I take Fridays off. My attitudes are much better with my wife, I feel less pressure for the whole week, and the break late in the week helps me store up for the heavy weekend. 3. My family needs love and stability. Many moves tend to hurt children rather than help them. My wife was the daughter of a man who pastored numerous small churches throughout the Southwest. The moves were so painful to her that she has actually blocked many of them out of her mind. Since part of my calling to ministry is my family, they have become a balance to the tendencies to move. The one move we did make while our children were growing up was decided in conjunction with them. I asked to bring my whole family along on the candidating visit. Our family prayed about the decision together, and all had a voice in it, even though the children were elementary and preschool at the time. Children need a support system. They need a church body that loves and cares for them as individuals. Our congregation has shown unusual love and acceptance. If our children exhibited nonconformity at times, that has never been a problem to our leadership. Even if our children were to fail utterly, I believe our people would still love them. Our son is not a great letter writer. But when he was overseas for almost a year, we were both surprised and pleased by the people in the congregation who reported hearing from him. He wrote not only his peers but also an old gentleman who had deeply touched his life and a middle-aged couple from whom he had sensed special support. On the night stand in our youngest daughter's bedroom is the picture of a married couple in their seventies. They are not people of material means, but they have radiated a quality of life over the years that has made this young lady feel they are special friends. 4. Building people takes time. I had arrived early to speak at a pastor's conference, and a young pastor was helping me set up the overhead projector. Suddenly he asked, "What are you going to try to sell us?" He was convinced I was coming in to pitch some new technique for building a church. I told him I had come to teach and share out of my life, and that I had no gimmick. I'm not a medicine man who comes to town to go through his bag of tricks and leave. God has called me to be a people builder. He can grow a squash in three months, but it takes years to build an oak. I want to be part of developing people, particularly leaders. I don't want simply to attract existing people from other churches. I want to counsel couples and conduct their weddings, to dedicate their children, to see their family taught and grow to maturity. I want someday to counsel and conduct their children's marriages. I want to be a part of their time of sorrow when they lose loved ones. I want to be part of the whole process of building what is needed into the lives of people. 5. I want our missionaries to have a sense of permanence in their home church. Missionaries give up a lot to go overseas. To live in another culture and minister as a church planter makes one feel cut off from home base. Repeated changes of pastor in the home church only add to that. To see missionaries we have commissioned go out for a second or third term is very fulfilling. Not long ago a returning missionary said to me, "The longer I'm there, the more important a sense of tie to my home church gets." Recently another missionary referred to himself as "part of your overseas staff." That kind of togetherness takes maturing over the years. 6. A longer ministry better serves the church and community. "Don, what's your view on abortion?" asked the newspaper reporter on the telephone. He was writing a feature article and wanted some local input. "I know you're Pastor Bubna," said the lady in the supermarket. "I've been to your church and appreciate what it stands for." "Ten years ago you conducted my uncle's funeral. I need to talk to someone. Can you help me?" asked a spouse in a struggling marriage. To be seen as one of the senior ministers in the community increases one's responsibilities and opportunities to serve. The johnny-come-latelys are not called by the newspaper editors for opinions nor asked to serve on significant community boards. 7. The support of elders comes gradually. In several different ways, word had come to me about a brother who was considerably disturbed about changes in our church. A visit to his home was revealing. He was deeply exercised by what he termed a lack of content in my preaching, an unbiblical emphasis on psychology, and even the sparse mention of the name of God and the person of Christ. Pretty heavy charges for an evangelical pastor! With his consent, I phoned some respected elders. The man agreed to meet formally with them and present his charges. The loving way in which these mature men listened to his concerns, yet affirmed their pastor, displayed not a blind loyalty but a deep, watchful support. This grows out of praying together as leaders. Many of the key persons in our church meet weekly with me in one of three or four prayer groups. An openness develops before God and with one another. This allows a free interchange and mutual, loving confrontation on issues. The support I sense is not one of cheap words or resolutions written on paper. Rather, it is that we "stand firm in one spirit" (Phil. 1:27). Short of being a one-man tyrant, any visionary pastor must have the support of his church's leadership. This does not mean they agree on everything. Rather, they are striving side by side for the faith of the gospel, and are not frightened by opposition (Phil. 1:27-28). It is not the lack of conflict that makes a great church, but how conflict is handled. 8. Our people have been generous with me. My salary may not be what it would have been if I had stayed a school administrator or entered business. I may not even make the salary of some of my peers. But I have always been given a livable wage. Perhaps more important, our congregation has always been generous in giving vacation time. Our elder board has consistently urged that my wife and I take quarterly study breaks, extended times of preparation and togetherness. Their sensing these as urgent helps me. Our leadership has also encouraged my extended ministry as a lecturer in colleges and seminaries, as a workshop leader for pastors and for missionary groups around the world. This generosity has inevitably enriched my own ministry. I never return without receiving more than I gave. 9. I must not avoid confession and forgiveness. One day when I told the staff I had a special announcement to make, the coffee cups came down on the table. "You are all aware," I said, "that we've been under some special stresses lately. I've come to understand that I have not handled these as well as I should, and I want to ask your forgiveness." A momentary silence followed. Then one associate said, "Don, we accept that. You are forgiven, and you are loved. Thank you for being vulnerable." I have made my share of blunders over the years. I've needed to ask forgiveness from fellow staff members, elders, and even the congregation at times. Some of the other leaders have themselves been guilty of a few blunders. I need to learn to extend forgiveness to them. To leave the church because sin has not been dealt with is to contribute to the immaturity of the body and deny the process of learning to be a confessing fellowship. 10. I can trust God and not panic. God has this congregation's welfare in mind as well as mine and my family's. I don't have to find an immediate solution to every problem or pressure. God wants me to develop a sense of trust, of perseverance, of waiting before him. Staying here facilitates this. Leaving too soon would only prevent me from learning some of the most precious lessons God wants to teach. My feelings over the past year have risen and fallen with my circumstances, or what I perceived my circumstances to be. Many a time I've had to exercise my will, choosing to take my eyes off things and people and place them on the God who does not change. Not very long ago, I experienced one of those unforgettable weekends. On Saturday I received a harsh letter from a family who was resigning from membership. They admitted being bitter. They saw their action as the only way to protest the lack of action by a leader in our denomination. On Sunday, a special children's presentation to the senior citizens "bombed out." The lay leader was embarrassed. The children had tried hard, but some interpreted their presentation as a lack of the right kind of training. On Monday, I received a critical letter from a colleague I greatly admire. The wounds of a friend sting. I am glad weekends like that are not common, but they do happen to all of us. Nevertheless, because I believe I'm God's person and have the support of my family and our elders, I have chosen "to stay by the stuff." To contribute to the church, the people of God, is to be a part of the only thing that is going to last for eternity. God is interested in what is happening to me as a person. He has my maturity in mind as well as that of his whole church. All of these pressures are part of the process. I need to expect them but not be overcome by them. Someday the time may come for me to move. I only want to be patient enough for God to do his work in me and not spoil it by rushing too quickly elsewhere. Copyright 1993 by the author or Christianity Today/Leadership Journal. Click here for reprint information on Leadership Journal. Subtracting Christianity: Sobran's Invaluable Work on Religion in America Contact: Fran Griffin, 877-726-0058 VIENNA, Va., Feb. 24, 2016 / Joseph Sobran (1946-2010) was an important Christian writer of the 20th and 21st centuries. Often called the most articulate pro-life essayist of our time, nearly everything he wrote was imbued with traditional Christian teachings, whether it be on cultural issues, politics, a proper attitude toward the state, the Constitution, or even Shakespeare. Sobran predicted years in advance the war against Christian society, the culture of death, the decline of society, and the perils of government intervention into our lives. Sobran was a sought-after speaker and lecturer who appeared on TV and radio talk shows throughout the country. He wrote a syndicated column for some 30 years, a weekly Wanderer newspaper column for over 20 years, and was a regular commentary on CBS Radio's Spectrum. Many of the essays in this new collection are taken from his newsletter, SOBRAN'S: The Real News of the Month. His book, Alias Shakespeare: Solving the Greatest Literary Mystery of All Time, made a compelling case that the "Shakespeare" plays and sonnets were written by Edward de Vere, the 17th Earl of Oxford. The new collection is "dedicated to a resurgence of Christianity in a world that has chosen to 'subtract' Christ." It carries a Preface by the Most Rev. Fabian W. Bruskewitz of Lincoln, Nebraska, who writes that this collection "constitutes a true spiritual and intellectual treasure" which will be "a genuine enrichment of the reader's spiritual and intellectual life." Patrick J. Buchanan endorses the new anthology with these words: "Christianity and the moral code it bequeathed mankind did not have a more eloquent defender in our lifetimes than Joe Sobran. His wit, his insight, his capacity to clarify, simplify, and beautify the revealed truths were unrivaled. He was a champion of the unborn who relished intellectual combat, and bore his wounds of battle bravely. This splendid collection of his essays, some of them timeless, brings his unique voice back to life for many of us." This collection includes some forthright and candid essays in the chapters, "Killing as a 'Right'" and in "Odd Couplings," in which he predicted (in "Sodomy and the Constitution," written in 2003) that Justice Anthony Kennedy would be the pivotal player in the Supreme Court legalizing so-called same-sex marriage. In "Dark Ages, New Morality," Sobran writes: "The progressives have found no substitute for virtue. They can offer only such morbid stopgaps as contraception, abortion, and euthanasia. The Dark Ages understood virtue built a civilization; the progressive age doesn't understand virtue and is tearing down the civilization it inherited. Euthanasia is a fitting symbol: the last sacrament of a society that cannot aspire to heaven, but only to painless annihilation." In "The Expurgated Christ," Joe Sobran takes apart the "Jesus Seminar" which, in the spirit of Thomas Jefferson, has blue-penciled many of the words of Christ. As Sobran writes, "the result is a paltry figure nobody could worship. Had this 'historical Jesus' really existed, we would never have heard of Him. The message that you should be nice to others and refrain from stuff like imperial exploitation would hardly have transformed the ancient world and haunted the conscience of mankind through several civilizations to come. A man who preached such watery doctrine wouldn't be worth crucifying." He goes on to say that the words of Jesus "have a unique permanence. They have an authority in our hearts, even when we try to deny them. They command. We can obey or rebel. That is why Jesus is still not only loved but also hated and why those who hate Him feel they have to profess to love Him." For more information, go to "Joseph Sobran: Subtracting Christianity: Essays on American Culture and Society." 456 pages. ISBN 978-1-4951-4337-3. $27 postpaid: FGF Books, 713 Park St., SE, #2, Vienna, VA 22180. Or order online and see reviews and endorsements at Review copies for journalists are available. Share Tweet Contact: Fran Griffin, 877-726-0058VIENNA, Va., Feb. 24, 2016 / Christian Newswire / -- A new collection of author and columnist, Joe Sobran, focusing on his writings on religion, has been published. Subtracting Christianity: Essays on American Culture and Society (fgfBooks.com, 456 pages) is a treasure trove of succinct essays written in his trademark style.Joseph Sobran (1946-2010) was an important Christian writer of the 20th and 21st centuries. Often called the most articulate pro-life essayist of our time, nearly everything he wrote was imbued with traditional Christian teachings, whether it be on cultural issues, politics, a proper attitude toward the state, the Constitution, or even Shakespeare.Sobran predicted years in advance the war against Christian society, the culture of death, the decline of society, and the perils of government intervention into our lives.Sobran was a sought-after speaker and lecturer who appeared on TV and radio talk shows throughout the country. He wrote a syndicated column for some 30 years, a weekly Wanderer newspaper column for over 20 years, and was a regular commentary on CBS Radio's Spectrum. Many of the essays in this new collection are taken from his newsletter, SOBRAN'S: The Real News of the Month. His book, Alias Shakespeare: Solving the Greatest Literary Mystery of All Time, made a compelling case that the "Shakespeare" plays and sonnets were written by Edward de Vere, the 17th Earl of Oxford.The new collection is "dedicated to a resurgence of Christianity in a world that has chosen to 'subtract' Christ." It carries a Preface by the Most Rev. Fabian W. Bruskewitz of Lincoln, Nebraska, who writes that this collection "constitutes a true spiritual and intellectual treasure" which will be "a genuine enrichment of the reader's spiritual and intellectual life."Patrick J. Buchanan endorses the new anthology with these words: "Christianity and the moral code it bequeathed mankind did not have a more eloquent defender in our lifetimes than Joe Sobran. His wit, his insight, his capacity to clarify, simplify, and beautify the revealed truths were unrivaled. He was a champion of the unborn who relished intellectual combat, and bore his wounds of battle bravely. This splendid collection of his essays, some of them timeless, brings his unique voice back to life for many of us."This collection includes some forthright and candid essays in the chapters, "Killing as a 'Right'" and in "Odd Couplings," in which he predicted (in "Sodomy and the Constitution," written in 2003) that Justice Anthony Kennedy would be the pivotal player in the Supreme Court legalizing so-called same-sex marriage.In "Dark Ages, New Morality," Sobran writes: "The progressives have found no substitute for virtue. They can offer only such morbid stopgaps as contraception, abortion, and euthanasia. The Dark Ages understood virtue built a civilization; the progressive age doesn't understand virtue and is tearing down the civilization it inherited. Euthanasia is a fitting symbol: the last sacrament of a society that cannot aspire to heaven, but only to painless annihilation."In "The Expurgated Christ," Joe Sobran takes apart the "Jesus Seminar" which, in the spirit of Thomas Jefferson, has blue-penciled many of the words of Christ. As Sobran writes, "the result is a paltry figure nobody could worship. Had this 'historical Jesus' really existed, we would never have heard of Him. The message that you should be nice to others and refrain from stuff like imperial exploitation would hardly have transformed the ancient world and haunted the conscience of mankind through several civilizations to come. A man who preached such watery doctrine wouldn't be worth crucifying."He goes on to say that the words of Jesus "have a unique permanence. They have an authority in our hearts, even when we try to deny them. They command. We can obey or rebel. That is why Jesus is still not only loved but also hated and why those who hate Him feel they have to profess to love Him."For more information, go to www.fgfBooks.com "Joseph Sobran: Subtracting Christianity: Essays on American Culture and Society."456 pages. ISBN 978-1-4951-4337-3.$27 postpaid: FGF Books, 713 Park St., SE, #2, Vienna, VA 22180.Or order online and see reviews and endorsements at fgfbooks.com/FGFbooks.html Review copies for journalists are available. Bodnariu family's Christian faith led to removal of children, says lawyer Norway's Barnevernet child welfare services did remove the children of the Bodnariu family over concerns about their religion, according to the Romanian lawyer monitoring the case. The family, whose father Marius is Romanian and mother Ruth Norwegian, live in Naustdal in Norway. Their children were removed from them last November, it is believed because they were thought to have spanked them, and their case has drawn world-wide attention. Houston-based Peter Costea, president of the Alliance for Romania's Families, has previously said he did not believe the family's Pentecostal faith was a factor in the removal. However, in his most recent analysis he refers to newly obtained records he says show the authorities were concerned the family had "their own faith and way of upbringing when it comes to religion". "They plainly state that Barnevernet 'is worried that this is a way of upbringing which is justified by the Bible'," he said. Costea continues: "The documents also mention that the children were 'brought up to respect God and their parents' values.' Barnevernet interpreted this as a possible conflict between the children's assumed inability to live up to their parents' value expectations and faith and that the parents' religion could create an 'inner conflict' in the children and a stressful family environment. Religion is bad for children, Barnevernet's minutes seem to say, and too much religion is lawful justification for snatching children away from their parents." He blames Norway's "advanced degree of secularization" for the situation, saying that "secular parenting ideologies" have replaced "traditional and faith-based parenting approaches". Barnevernet has declined to comment on the furore around the Bodnariu case, citing privacy issues. However, protests in support of the family have gathered momentum during the last two months. A statement issued today by their spokesman Pastor Cristian Ionescu claims protests have taken place in 63 cities and supporters have numbered in excess of 70,000 individuals. A "worldwide day of Pro-Bodnariu Anti-Barnevernet protests" is planned for April 16 and supporters are asked to participate in 40 days of fasting for the period March 7 April 15. China puts more Christians on trial as pressure on religion mounts Protestant Christians in the Chinese province of Guizhou are facing prosecution in signs of an increasingly harsh clampdown on religion. Zhang Xiuhong, a deacon at the Guiyang Huoshi Church responsible for its financial affairs, was detained by local police on July 28 last year alongside her husband Chen Zukai, who was later released, according to Radio Free Asia. She now faces charges of "running an illegal business", says one of her defence team, Li Guisheng. "The case is going to court," Li told RFA. "The indictment is likely to be released by the end of the month; the prosecutor's office hasn't released it yet." The authorities are still holding Huoshi pastor Li Zhiguo, also known as Yang Hua, his wife Wang Hongwu told RFA. He faces charges of "deliberately leaking state secrets". Li's lawyer has been denied permission to meet with his client, his wife said. The Chinese government has been taking an increasing hard line regarding religion. Many churches have been demolished and their identifying crosses removed in Zhejiang province. Pastor and lawyers who opposed the campaign have been imprisoned on charges widely regarded as concocted by the authorities. In a further sign of the government's determination to exercise control over religion, it has announced it will require Catholic and Taoist priests to carry identification cards. Those without the cards will be barred from taking part in religious activities. According to UCA News, Protestants and Muslims will also be targeted. A Catholic priest, Fr Joseph Li Rongping, told UCA most priests in the official Church did not have ID cards. "It is used only when one travels to another diocese to show the authorities when needed," Father Li said. Another priest said: "If the authorities are serious on certifying all the priests this time, it could result in forcing those priests who refused to get an ID card to go underground." Christian-run refugee camp torched in Philippines A Christian-run refugee camp in the Philippines has been torched, leaving at least five injured, including two children. The incident took place early on Wednesday morning. "At least three men poured gasoline on the tent before lighting it," Piya Macliing Malaayao, secretary-general of the tribal grouop Katribu, told UCA news. An initial investigation by authorities has labelled the fire "intentional", according to an urgent alert sent by the Save Our Schools Network, based in Mindanao. The local fire service told media its initial investigation pointed to arson as the cause of the almost simultaneous fires that broke out on opposite ends of the Haran Misson House of the United Church of Christ in the Philippines. The camp, which stands within the compound of the church in the southern Philippine city of Davao, has been home to around 700 indigenous people, who were displaced by military operations in Davao del Norte, Bukidnon and Surigao del Sur provinces. "We condemn the violence against our tribal people and the attack on the church," said Nardy Sabino of the Promotion of Church Peoples Response. Isagani Zarate of the Nation First Party has suggested the incident was a consequence of the government's inaction over the violence against the tribal people which led to their fleeing in the first place. "The arsonists violated the sanctuary provided by the church to a group already forced to flee from their communities by relentless military operations," said Antonio Tinio of the Teachers Party. In July 2015, the head of the Committee on Indigenous people in Congress, Nancy Catamco, attempted to forcibly eject refugees from the church. Defeat looming for government on Sunday trading The government's attempt to liberalise Sunday trading laws could be defeated before even reaching the House of Commons, Christian Today understands. Despite accusations of a "lack of transparency" and a "gross abuse of power", the business secretary Sajid Javid re-introduced the proposals as a last-minute amendment to the Enterprise Bill after strong opposition forced the government to withdraw its first attempt in November. However a senior source close to the campaign against the proposals has told Christian Today the government is facing defeat again. A number of Conservative MPs on the committee of 18 currently scrutinising the bill could well rebel against the government's amendment, the source said. Amanda Solloway, the new Conservative MP for Derby North, was the "most likely by far" to vote against her party, according to the source. The government's proposals would permit local authorities to relax Sunday trading regulations, allowing large stores to treat Sunday like any other day of the week. Under current legislation, stores over 280 square metres are only allowed to open for six hours on Sunday. The restriction does not apply to smaller high street stores. This committee stage is the first time the government's late amendment has received scrutiny as it was slipped into the bill after initial debates in the House of Lords and Commons. Consisting of 10 Conservative MPs and 8 opposition MPs, it only requires one Conservative to rebel for the amendment to fall. The commitee is expected to consider the amendment on Sunday trading on Thursday. The source told Christian Today he was optimistic the government would be defeated. He said new MPs elected in 2015 "could well" vote against the government. The other potential rebels on the committee are Lucy Frazer and Mark Pawsey, with the remaining Tory MPs having declared their support for the changes. Jo Churchill MP was unavailable for comment. All eight SNP and Labour MPs are expected to vote against the measure. If the committee passes the amendment, MPs across the House of Commons will have one last opportunity to debate the proposals before they are enshrined in law. The changes were initially raised in November but an alliance between 20 Tory rebels, led by Christian MP David Burrowes, and SNP and Labour MPs forced the government to back down. Burrowes has previously told Christian Today he is confident that if a vote in the Commons is decided, he has enough support to defeat the government. "A number of other Conservative MPs have voiced their support", he said, in addition to the original 20 who threatened to rebel. The Church of England has also condemned the plans, saying "changing the law would have a negative effect on community and family life, whilst delivering few, if any, additional benefits for the economy". "We know that over half of shop workers in large stores already feel pressure to work on Sundays and an increase in opening hours will only lead to more people being pressured into spending Sunday apart from their children and families," said the Bishop of St Albans, Rt Rev Dr Alan Smith. "This can only be damaging to community and family life and erode opportunities for shared time and activity, which is central to human flourishing and the common good." The Keep Sunday Special campaign has led opposition to the changes and has urged shop workers to attend a mass lobby of Parliament on Monday in protest. Indian Christians protest rise in attacks against evangelists An Indian evangelical group has protested against the "steadily increasing attacks on Christians" involved in evangelism and has called for government support against the perpetrators. The call has come from the Tirunelveli District Pentecostal Churches Federation in the state of Tamil Nadu. According to The Hindu, the protesters said they were being targeted by Hindu fundamentalists or 'Hindutva' adherents who objected to their preaching. They stressed that they had never been involved in any anti-social activities and that they had a constitutional right to preach their faith. Recent attacks on Christians and their churches, they said, had shattered their belief that they were living in a secular nation. "Though we're being targeted, we've never retaliated and done anything that would undermine the tranquillity of society as Christianity is all about love, compassion and brotherhood. Without breaching the limits and encroaching upon others' religious rights, we're following and practising our religion. "However, heads of a few Hindutva outfits are encouraging their cadres to orchestrate attacks against us," said R Babu Paul Dinakaran, district secretary of the Federation. The protestors said the police should take action against attackers and that leaflets and posters "dividing people in the name of religion" should be removed. A recent report by the Catholic Secular Forum said that the state of Tamil Nadu in the south of the country had the second largest number of anti-Christian incidents in India last year, after the central state of Madhya Pradesh. The 'Hindutva' Hindu fundamentalist ideology is adhered to by the ruling BJP party and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), whose support helped propel Prime Minister Narendra Modi to power. Leave the EU for 'Christian' Europe, says new group Christians for Britain Two prominent opinion formers in British religion have joined in a campaign for Britain to leave the European Union, comparing it to a new Reformation. Adrian Hilton, who is from the conservative end of the spectrum and writes the influential Archbishop Cranmer blog, has allied himself with Giles Fraser, priest-in-charge at St Mary's Newington in south London. Fraser is also regarded as among the most influential of contemporary commentators but is on the left, and in the tradition of Labour giants such as Tony Benn. His Brexit stance comes from his concerns about the erosion of British sovereignty. Christians for Britain is already active on Twitter: Others have said it, but when your best friend tells you, don't you pause, listen, acknowledge truth and apologise? pic.twitter.com/7K7bGKXOc7 Christians4Britain (@Xtians4Britain) February 24, 2016 The group even has its own "creed", advocating a Europe based on the fundamental values of Christianity with diverse nations "freely associating in pursuit of the spiritual, political and moral common good." Fraser, who will be appearing on Question Time tomorrow night to debate the issue, told Christian Today: "There has historically been a long tradition of left-wing 'outers' epitomised by Tony Benn. It is a shame the tradition of left-wing Euro-scepticism has shrunk." Fraser said his reasons had nothing to do with economics or migration. "I want us to welcome more refugees. For me, it is specifically about representation and democracy." As an example of how Europe is lacking in these areas, he questioned how many people could name their MEP. "The Reformation was a Brexit. We did not want to be ruled theologically from Rome. And I do not want to be ruled politically from Brussells." Hilton told Christian Today that he recognised Church hierarchies were generally in favour of staying in and even the Holy See has indicated it would prefer a Europe with Britain in. But he argued that too many laws were being introduced by Europe which affected British people but they had no say in. "They are not subject to any kind of democratic accountability," he said, adding: "I just happen to believe that the nation state is the best way to order the world." Hilton said an example of how unjust the current system can be came last year when Greece had austerity effectively imposed on it by Europe. "It does not suit all nation states," he said. "It causes immense suffering." On the website, Hilton and Fraser say: "Almost all the church leaderships advocate 'Remain', and many bishops certainly do. It falls to laity and other clergy to persuade people of the value and virtue of being a BeLeaver." They add: "We are told there are huge risks in leaving: in fact, the risks of remaining are much greater." Meet the priest offering confession on a double-decker bus Roman Catholic priests in Salford Diocese have taken to the streets in a double-decker bus to offer confession to those who don't go to church. The Mercy Bus emblazoned with the Year of Mercy Logo has been in Manchester city centre, or one of the surrounding towns, each Saturday of Lent to offer blessings, conversation and confession to lapsed Catholics and the unchurched. Young-adult volunteers engage people on the streets through live music and by offering passers-by 'miraculous medals' blessed by Pope Francis. They also invite people onto the bus, whose destination reads "#nextstopmercy", and has itself been blessed by the Pope. The project is inspired by Pope Francis, Father Frankie Mulgrew, a Salford Priest involved in organising the bus, told Christian Today. "When he was cardinal of Buenos Aires, the Pope used to do these open air masses in the slums talking of God's mercy to the poor living there. He was reaching people where they were at." In its first three outings, Fr Frankie said the bus has attracted over 600 people, many of whom have asked for blessings alongside confessions. There have been "significant confessions from some people who haven't been for years or who have been estranged for years," he said. Mulgrew's faith in confession and his desire to make it available to as many people as possible comes from a personal experience. He recalled going to confession during "a time of low ebb" and "having a profound encounter with God's mercy." "Just as the bus is for everyone, mercy is for everyone. Whatever someone's burden might be financial, bereavement, relationship come on board the bus and be free from that burden," he said. So far, both lapsed Catholics and those who have never been involved in church have engaged with the project. "One guy came on [to the bus], who had no faith background, but was really taken aback by the blessing he received. When he came on the bus, he wasn't sure that there was a God, and when he left he said he thought there might be one," Mulgrew said. The initiative has been such a success that the original Lenten timetable has been extended to the entire Year of Mercy. "We have met the enemy, and he is us." - Pogo Muslims converting to Christianity in Nigeria, despite brutal persecution Muslims are converting to Christianity in northern Nigeria amid rapidly rising levels of Christian persecution, which has seen more than ten thousand Christians killed in five years, according to a new report released today. While much media attention has been focussed on Islamic State and the plight of persecuted minorities in the Middle East, 11,500 Christians in northern Nigeria were killed in five years between 2006-2014, and 13,000 churches were destroyed, forcing 1.3 million Christians to flee to safer areas of the country. In 2014, Boko Haram, an Islamist militant group active mainly in northern Nigeria, was named the world's deadliest terror organisation by the Global Terrorism Index. In 2015, the number of Christians violently killed in the country increased by 62 per cent, to 4,028 people, and 198 churches were attacked, according to persecution charity Open Doors' 2016 World Watch List. A new report, Crushed but not defeated, the impact of persistent violence on the Church in Northern Nigeria, by Open Doors and the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) reveals a horrific degree of violence against Christians, but also glimmers of hope from a Church that is determined to remain strong. CAN, Nigeria's largest confederation of churches, has committed to revive the Church in northern Nigeria, both by grass roots action and by advocacy. It is calling on the UN and other international bodies to engage with the plight of Christians who feel long abandoned. Marginalisation, discrimination and targeted violence While Nigeria is technically a secular federal state with religious freedom enshrined in its constitution, "the reality in Northern Nigeria is radically different," said Lisa Pearce, chief executive of Open Doors UK and Ireland. "For decades, Christians in the region have suffered marginalisation and discrimination as well as targeted violence. This is happening not only in the Sharia states of the Far North where the pressure of Islam is hard felt, but also in the non-Sharia Middle Belt states where Sharia has not been formally implemented." Crucial to understanding this situation is that there are three distinct perpetrators of persistent violence against Christians in northern Nigeria, united around one cause: "defending northern Muslims' interests, Muslim identity and the position of Islam," the report says. These perpetrators are not only proponents of radical Islam, such as Boko Haram, but the northern Muslim political and religious elite and the Muslim Hausa-Fulani herdsmen are also major perpetrators of religious violence against Christians. This has lead to a diaspora of Christians from certain areas, the Christian presence becoming "virtually extinct or substantially diminished", and a break down in social cohesian between Muslims and Christians. "Mutual trust has disappeared and Muslims and Christians have become increasingly separate groups, clustering together in town suburbs and distinguished rural areas," the report says. This three-pronged attack against Christianity has left Christians in the north without refuge, unable to conduct themselves in public life or exert public influence. "Many Christians say they face harassment, hatred, marginalization, intimidation and violence," the report says. "They have very limited freedom to worship and to build churches. They have no real voice in public media, have hardly any access to government positions for employment and are barely represented in local politics. Young Christians feel discrimination at school." Three quarters of the 122 church leaders Open Doors interviewed said the outlook is bleak. Renewed faith But while the report highlights that the Church is hardpressed in northern Nigeria, it remains present. Many churches are emptying as congregants flee violence and persecution, but those who leave are not abandoning their faith; instead getting involved in church in slightly safer contexts. Although those living in northern Nigeria are unable to participate in politics and are struggling even to provide a livelihood, there has been an increase in Christian political engagement with politics in the Middle Belt states of the country. Those who are choosing to stay are experiencing a renewed fervour in their faith, according to the report, and some Christians reported that their churches in the north are growing as Muslims convert to Christianity. The report cited reasons including many Muslims having dreams of Jesus. "Many among the Muslims want to become Christians, but they are afraid of being killed or pressured by fellow Muslims," the report quoted one interviewee as saying. But while there are glimmers of hope on the ground, a response is required from those with higher political power, such as Nigeria's government, the UN and other Western governing bodies. "Policy makers in churches, governments and society in Nigeria and in the international community should become aware of the scope and impact of the violence," the report recommended. "There needs to be a united and proper response to end the violence and restore a situation in Northern Nigeria where Muslims and Christians alike can live together, exercise their human rights and have equal access to education, work and property and will have the freedom to worship." Pastor Saeed Abedini recalls torture in Iran prison, hoping this will inspire people to strengthen their faith in God Pastor Saeed Abedini is more than happy that he is finally free from his prison cell in Iran. There are times, however, when he revisits his painful memories while in prison to help inspire people to strengthen their faith to God. On his Facebook page, Abedini shared the Bible verse Isaiah 53:7, which reads: "He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth." He then shared his feelings and personal experience with the verse. "This verse has been on my heart today. To know what our Saviour on the cross went through for our salvation touches my heart deeply. Although I experienced some torture in prison, the thing I remember is that I could not speak for myself. He taught me to turn to Him instead of man," said Abedini. The pastor said he felt comforted while he was in prison because God was with him, adding that no amount of torture was enough to let him renounce his faith. At the same time, he felt grateful for all the support he received from complete strangers who helped in pushing for his release. "And now I know that you all were my voice. I had no voice in prison. My prayer is that we will continue to be that voice for each other. We are one in prayer. It is the most powerful thing we do," he added. Earlier, Abedini received a medical check-up, and he felt so grateful for the experience because "it was so opposite of my experience at the hospital in Iran." "They beat me in front of my mother, picked me up by my arms and legs and threw me to the car. Just one more reason why I love the United States," he said. "I have a few physical issues to get healed but God is able and I trust him to heal my body." TB Joshua's church sued by children of man killed in building collapse The church of popular evangelist TB Joshua is being sued following the collapse of one of its buildings in 2014, which killed 116 people. Two South African children, whose father Kalambaie wa Kalambaie died in the incident, are looking for at least $520,000 (370,000) in damages. The figure is supposed to compensate for the amount their father would have been expected to provide the children, now aged three and six, until he was 70. Synagogue Church of All Nations, Joshua's church, is facing charges for criminal negligence after its six-storey guesthouse, which did not have planning permission, collapsed in 2014. The children's lawyer, Bolaji Ayorinde, said they were not the only ones interested in filing action. He told the BBC he had received lots of inquiries from others who were relatives of those who died. The famous Nigerian pastor has not yet been charged but the engineers responsible for the building face criminal charges, according to the BBC. Joshua and church have denied all wrongdoing. The pastor claims the building fell down after a "hovering" aircraft flew over it. The well-known evangelist is known as the "Prophet" to his followers and runs a healing ministry as well as a Christian television station, Emmanual TV. In 2011 he was listed the third richest pastor in Nigeria by Forbes, which estimated his worth at $15 million. Although he does not face charges himself, he could be charged with contempt of court after he failed to show up for a trial last year, along with the two engineers charged. "It appears the defendants are not mindful that this is a criminal proceeding. This is a criminal trial and a sensitive matter like this one should be given accelerated hearing," said Judge Lawal-Akapo at Lagos Crown Court. Top Christian theologian slams Cameron for Europe referendum Leading theologian NT Wright has criticised the British Prime Minister for calling a referendum on Europe. Professor Tom Wright told Christian Today that he wished David Cameron had not decided on this tactic. He said: "The Scottish Referendum has settled nothing, but rather stirred up all kinds of feelings and antagonisms, and I fear this one will do the same. We have a Parliamentary democracy and, creaky old system though that is, we ought not to try so readily to bypass it." Wright, who holds the chair in New Testament and Early Christianity at the University of St Andrews in Scotland and is also a former Bishop of Durham, warned against applying apocalyptic Bible texts such the Book of Daniel to the Brexit debate. Until the late 17th century, the Bible, especially the Old Testament, was taught in seminaries and colleges as the essential guide to all things political. "The sad truth is that most modern Western Christians have not been taught at all the basic rudiments of a Christian political theology," Wright said. "Various attempts have been made, but most folk are blissfully unaware that there is anything much to be said." From a Jewish and Christian biblical point of view, there are two basic things for people to remember, he advised. These should be the starting-points for any Christian trying to work out what to vote on June 23. "God wants humans to govern his world and he wants them to do so wisely and with special regard for the poor and needy," said Wright. Secondly, God will hold rulers and magistrates to account for the discharge of this responsibility. "In other words, neither anarchy nor tyranny." From early days the Church, fuelled by passages like John 16, saw it as part of the Spirit-led Christian responsibility to speak the truth to power, both in the sense of underlining the truth, and articulating it. "Since the Enlightenment the media, especially the newspapers, have tried to take on elements of those roles, which is why they have wanted to keep the Church off the patch and insist that Christians should concentrate on saving souls instead," Wright explained. This was "all part of the Enlightenment's split-level world which is now shown up on all sides to be morally and socially bankrupt but still dominates the horizon". Beyond that, there are pragmatic issues such as how the present institutions have served Britain and the wider world, and what "words of judgment" people might want to say to these institutions. "In addressing these we would need to take account of the fact that the EU as it now is emerged from a mood in post-war Europe when everything was being lumped together into large units like our unlamented nationalised industries. That was high modernism: make everything part of the one big machine. "But postmodernism has struck back, insisting on the 'little stories', the local identities and so on, and encouraging people, groups, regions and countries to rediscover their true identity and with it their freedom. "So the debate we are now starting to have maps on to that larger cultural to-and-fro and we won't understand the subterranean dynamics unless we recognise that. This is then reflected in Church debates, eg the 'unity vs freedom' appearance in some Anglican discussions." He said there was no specifically Christian "in or out" answer on Europe, but people should be alert to the motives of people making their arguments. He will address these and other issues in his new book, God in Public, due to be published this year by SPCK. Turkey: Christians face eviction in town's last remaining church Christians in the last remaining church in a Turkish town face eviction after the city council refused to allow them to continue worshipping. Protestant, Catholic and Orthodox congregations all share one building in the Bursa, known locally as "The French Church". However authorities have given worshippers until March 26 to leave the building which is the only Christian place of worship in the town in north-west Turkey, according to Middle East Concern (MEC). The Bursa Municipality had agreed the building could be used for Christian worship after it was restored in 2004. For over a decade the Church has been home to around 200 people from four different congregations: German Catholic, Latin Catholic, Orthodox and Turkish Protestant, the persecution charity said in a statement. However after the Church leaders submitted an application to renew their permit to use the building for religious purposes, it was blocked by "an element within the city council", MEC said. On February 18 an official from the building's owner, the Directorate General of Foundations, informed congregants they must leave the building by March 23, a deadline later revised to March 26. However Christian Today has been told the Directorate General has since backtracked on his original demands and the opposition appears to come from certain individuals within the city council who oppose the church. Church officials are in dialogue with the city council, which issues permits for buildings serving a religious purpose, and the Directorate General. A spokesman from MEC told Christian Today "The pastor has been overwhelmed by the support of local citizens and national and local media". He added that as a result of this support both locally and internationally, "it would be very strange if the council resisted renewing the permit, but it could depend on the position and influence of the person(s) who might have been behind the original order to leave the premises". MEC has asked supporters to pray that "the discussions will be positive" and "those in the municipality who are causing difficulties will have a change of heart". Wheaton denies former LGBT support worker's claim she was forced out A former Wheaton College employee hired to support gay and lesbian students on the campus has claimed she was forced to resign because of the college's concerns over how her views would impact on donor support. Wheaton has been under the spotlight in recent months because of its treatment of one of its staff members, Larycia Hawkins, who wore a hijab during Advent in solidarity with Muslims and who said Christians and Muslims "worship the same God". In an article for Time magazine, Julie Rodgers says she was hired by Wheaton in June 2014 as a gay Christian with conservative views who could sign its 'Community Covenant', which says marriage is between a man and a woman and sexual expression is reserved for that relationship alone. She claims she was regarded as the "ideal candidate" to support gay and lesbian students at the college. However, she says, she was repeatedly asked by senior college figures to limit her engagement on social media and was warned by its president, Philip Ryken, that her ministry which he praised had attracted criticism from alumni and donors. She said: "Wheaton has shown flashes of courage and their choice to hire me was a brave one. What's sad is that they caved, capitulating to the fears of one part of their very broad constituency." However, the college issued a robust statement for Time defending its treatment of her. It says: "Like all Wheaton College employees, Julie Rodgers signed and agreed to live by the College's Community Covenant and Statement of Faith, and it was understood that she was voluntarily aligned with the College's theological and moral commitments. "Early in her time at Wheaton, it became clear that Ms Rodgers did not fully realize the extent to which some conflated her public statements and the College's views. For that reason, College administrators encouraged her to learn the College community so that she would understand the impact of her writing, speaking and social media activity. They asked that in referring to herself as gay, Ms. Rodgers also be clear about her moral commitments related to the Community Covenant." It adds: "Ms Rodgers' resignation came as a surprise to President Ryken and to the College community generally. She was not asked, encouraged, or pressured to resign. Her communication of her resignation followed the publication of a blog post that announced a significant change in her views on integrating Christian beliefs and same-sex issues." Why believing the Bible needn't make you a fundamentalist Questions about the influence of Christianity on American politics and policies are front and centre because of the forthcoming election. So a hard look at a controversial subject is particularly welcome just now, and an academic criminologist has provided one. Elicka Peterson Sparks is an associate professor at the Department of Government and Justice Studies at Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina. In her book The Devil You Know: the Surprising Link Between Conservative Christianity and Crime, she argues that it's the Christian Right, or more particularly 'Christian nationalists', that actually cause crime and promote violence. One of the problems she highlights is that fundamentalists uncritically use parts of the Bible that are "rife with violence, particularly violent retribution". She writes: "When viewed as the literal word of God, this conveys God's blessing on the use of violence in the fact of opposition to anything perceived as being God's will." Full disclosure: I haven't read it so won't comment on the book. But as a jumping-off point to think about fundamentalism, it's a good place to start. The online dictionary.com says fundamentalism is "a religious movement characterised by a strict belief in the literal interpretation of religious texts, especially within American Protestantism and Islam" a definition that would horrify both by bracketing them together. There's much more to it than that, and it's not just American Protestantism, of course though The Fundamentals, the 12 books published in 1910 that popularised the term, were American. The fundamental characteristic of any form of religious fundamentalism is a profound reluctance to allow anything from outside the faith to influence the reading of the text. So the fact that the overwhelming scientific consensus is that the world is billions of years old and that life arose from a process of evolution does not affect the fundamentalist's view that the first chapters of Genesis are historical. Scholarly discoveries about processes by which the first five books of the Bible came to be written don't shake their belief that Moses wrote them all. That sort of thing doesn't matter so much. But writers like Sparks put their finger on another, more serious issue: that interpreting the Bible purely in terms of itself can lead us down some very dark paths indeed. There are plenty of places, especially in the Old Testament, where God appears to command, endorse or inflict terrible violence on his enemies. One example is the story of Noah's Ark, when an entire population is destroyed. Another is the massacres inflicted by the victorious armies of Joshua during the conquest of Canaan. No one can read Psalm 137:9, "Happy is the one who seizes your infants and dashes them against the rocks", without wondering what's going on. The question is, how do you deal with these stories? It's possible to say, "They're in the Bible so it must be right to treat God's enemies like that." Certainly the New Testament seems to take a less bloodthirsty line, generally speaking, but real fundamentalists reject any idea of theological development through the Scriptures: what matters is the text, and Old and New Testaments are both the Word of God. So it's possible to use the Bible as a textbook in a most unhelpful way. I recall a sermon at the church where I grew up where the preacher argued for the death penalty on the grounds that the Bible says "the magistrate does not bear the sword in vain" (Romans 13:4). Attitudes toward crime and criminals shaped purely by the text of the Scriptures are not likely to be very enlightened. Furthermore, enemies can be given a religious label and treated with extreme violence. Ted Cruz, for instance, one of the leading contenders for the Republican nomination, has promised to "carpet bomb [ISIS] into oblivion", adding: "I don't know if sand can glow in the dark, but we're going to find out." Any thought that there are real people under the rain of bombs he intends to unleash or even that the terrain of Iraq and Syria might comprise more than sand is entirely lacking. Another example is slavery, which is condoned throughout the Bible. It's fair enough to point out the differences between biblical slavery which was regulated and as humane as such institutions can be and the transatlantic trade, which was the precise reverse but the point is that the one could be credibly used to justify the other (attempts to claim Wilberforce as a great Christian hero need to be set alongside the fact that his opponents were Christians too). It took the Enlightenment to win that argument, not just more Bible reading. What fundamentalists don't get is that new situations and new ideas ask new questions of the Bible and new answers emerge. We don't have to believe in the death penalty just because the Old Testament assumes it's OK. We don't have to believe that wholesale massacres are right for the same reason. The value and the truth of the Bible isn't compromised by that. Instead, it amazes us by still speaking into our world two or three thousand years after it was written. In his short story The Sign of the Broken Sword, GK Chesterton writes of a great general who reads far too much in the Old Testament and is led to commit a terrible crime. "St Clare was an old Anglo-Indian Protestant soldier," says Father Brown. "Now just think what that might mean... It might mean a man physically formidable living under a tropic sun in an Oriental society, and soaking himself without sense or guidance in an Oriental book. Of course he read the Old Testament rather than the New. Of course he found in the Old Testament anything that he wanted lust, tyranny, treason... In each of the hot and secret countries to which that man went he kept a harem, he tortured witnesses, he amassed shameful gold; but certainly he would have said with steady eyes that he did it to the glory of the Lord." He sums it up: "When will people understand that it is useless for a man to read the Bible unless he also reads everyone else's Bible?" The cure for fundamentalism is just that: reading other people's Bibles, being prepared to learn from science, psychology, philosophy and even from other faiths as well as from our own Scriptures. Unless we do, we'll find ourselves at best ignoring the voice of God speaking "beyond the sacred page", and at worst committing serious sin. Follow Mark Woods on Twitter: @RevMarkWoods 'Why should I study? I'm going to die': Heartbreaking words of a 13-year-old in Aleppo The Catholic Bishop of Aleppo, which has been a battleground since 2012, has spoken out about the horrific conditions his community faces. The city has been described as "Syria's Stalingrad" in a reference to one of the most destructive battles of the Second World War. While the Free Syrian Army has been accused of indiscriminate shelling of goverment-held areas, President Assad's Syrian Army to which the Christian community is generally loyal has killed thousands of people with barrel bombs dropped from helicopters and other weapons targeting civilians. Bishop Georges Abou Khazen told Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need: "The people are really very, very afraid because of this bombing. They just hope to see the end of it. Just the other day, a student, a little boy of about 13 years old asked me 'Why do I have to study? I am going to die' so you understand how terrible things are here." Bishop Khazen blamed rebel fighters for the lack of utilities in the city, saying most of the city had had no electricity for five months and now had no water. "I don't know who perhaps it was the jihadist groups but they cut the electricity and the water too. The whole population of Aleppo is affected by the lack of water and electricity." He continued: "For the last 20 days we have been under bombardment, almost daily bombing, that is destroying many houses, many apartments, and causing many, many deaths. Every day, there are four or five deaths some days as many as 10 are killed. And all this is the work of jihadist groups." Bishop Khazen added: "Nearly all our churches are damaged and some of them are completely destroyed. A few days ago the Armenian Protestant church was badly damaged, and five days ago our Roman Catholic church was even damaged, along with the pastoral centre." He said at least 70 per cent of the Christian population had left the city since the fighting began. Russian airstrikes are believed to have tipped the balance in favour of President Assad in the battle for Aleppo, which is on the point of being encircled by the Syrian army aided by foreign troops. Of the ceasefire negotiated by Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov and US Secretary of State John Kerry, the bishop said: "We hope the ceasefire will work. But there are many, many groups affiliated with Al Quae'da or ISIS, and we think they will not observe this ceasefire. Russia and others are pushing for negotiations, and many of the Syrians want this negotiation to succeed. But, as you know, we have thousands upon thousands of foreign fighters in the country." He said despite this, Christian communities in Aleppo still have hope. "We have hope hope for us is like faith and charity we cannot live without hope. God is almighty, God is our father, and remember in the Old Testament how he saved a remnant of the people this is what we hope for too." Ask the fool Explaining 'Islamic investing' Q: What characterizes "Islamic investing"? - S.H., Pueblo, Colo. A: It has certain restrictions. Think of "socially responsible investing," where investors avoid certain kinds of companies, such as those involved in tobacco, guns, alcohol or defense. Similarly, investors who adhere to Islamic tenets also screen out certain industries. They will generally avoid companies focused on alcohol, gambling, pornography and pork - and often weapon, tobacco, hotel and media companies, among others. Islamic finance is also known for a prohibition against paying or earning interest. Thus, Islamic investors will not invest in many financial services companies such as banks and insurers. Even non-financial companies might be rejected if they receive a significant sum of interest in their income. Some Islamic investors get around that by donating to charity the portion of earnings derived from interest. While mutual funds will typically keep cash in interest-bearing accounts until it's invested, Islam-compliant mutual funds may instead just keep the cash as cash. The avoidance of financial companies - for any reason - served investors very well during the big credit crisis some years ago. Islamic investors must avoid bonds, because of their interest payments, but they can seek income from real estate investments and other asset-based income-producing investments. Foolish Trivia Name that company I began some 30-plus years ago as a small telecommunications company in England. Today I'm a global leader in mobile telecom, with more than 440 million customers and operations in more than 25 countries. I enabled the world's first international mobile roaming call in 1991 and offered Internet access on the move in 2002. My money-transfer program is allowing customers in emerging markets to send and receive money via their mobile phones. I used to own 45 percent of Verizon Wireless. In 2014, I transmitted 290 billion text, picture and video messages and 1.2 trillion minutes of calls. Who am I? Last week's trivia answer:1-800-Flowers.com The Take Time for Chipotle? As you've heard, Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE: CMG) has been going through a rough patch, experiencing an E. coli outbreak across several states, a norovirus incident and ongoing federal probes. Its stock was recently down about 30 percent over the past year. So is Chipotle a good buy now? Well, it all depends on whether you see the company's troubles as temporary ones or permanent ones. One promising sign is that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have said that the E. coli outbreaks "appear to be over." Meanwhile, Chipotle recently released its worst quarterly earnings report ever. Still, there's reason to be hopeful about Chipotle's future. The company is returning its focus to marketing, implementing its food safety program and rebuilding sales. A number of Wall Street analysts have upgraded their ratings on the company, citing recovering sales and a general willingness among consumers to return to the eatery. (The Motley Fool has recommended and owns shares of Chipotle.) Universal Uclick This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 3 1 of 3 Courtesy of Al Ross Luxury Homes Show More Show Less 2 of 3 Courtesy of Al Ross Luxury Homes Show More Show Less 3 of 3 A luxury home builder who has been developing multimillion-dollar spec homes in River Oaks has called off his latest project, a 6-story building proposed for a site just south of Buffalo Bayou west of downtown. Al Ross of Al Ross Luxury Homes announced the project about a year ago. He was planning to break ground on the 10-unit building, to be called the Monroe, last fall with the condos starting at $1.3 million. This week's rains and chilly temperatures make it still seem like it's still winter, but spring is, in fact, on its way. And one tell-tale sign: the City of Houston's City Hall Farmers Market is back. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Houston, we've got art. Since 2007, the city has acquired about 250 artworks ranging from monumental outdoor sculptures to small ceramics for its civic collection. The works are distributed across 21 zip codes. Some of the biggest pieces have been commissioned through the percent-for-art ordinance, which earmarks 1.75 percent of new building or renovation costs for the purchase of on-site art. That includes the two largest new pieces installed last fall at Hobby Airport. How big are they? "Cloud Room Field," Christian Eckart's "sculptural painting" of myriad glass panels, is 10 feet high and 60 feet long. It hangs, very securely, above the central security checkpoint SEE ALSO: Houston's colorful murals "Time in Motion," RE:site's fascinating timeline of Hobby Airport history, measures 7 feet high and 75 feet long. You can't miss it in the new baggage claim area. Southwest Airlines funded smaller but still substantial new works by Krista Birnbaum, Libbie Masterson, Kia Neill, Henrique Oliveira Chris Sauter that hang throughout its new terminal. Now the spotlight is on the George R. Brown Convention Center, where two new eye-catchers are in the works. Ed Wilson's monumental assemblage of perforated stainless steel birds and clouds will hang in the center's grand new lobby, where it can be seen from inside or out. It will measure 60 x 30 feet. Outside, on the new pedestrian promenade that's being built into Avenida de las Americas, you won't be able to miss Joe O'Connell's "Wings Over Water." A 25 x 35-foot piece with translucent "feathers" that move, it will hover above the Fountain of the Americas. Houston First Corporation, which manages the convention center, is funding this work. Both will be installed by September, helping to transform a once bland corner of downtown into an ever-changing display of changing light, color and shadows. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate According to a Nashville news outlet notable country music producer and musician Tony Brown was arrested early Tuesday morning in Music City on a domestic violence charge. The Tennessean is reporting that Tony Brown was arrested by Belle Meade police Tuesday just before 1:00 a.m. after an alleged domestic violence incident at his home. The incident stemmed from a disagreement with his wife over a photo shoot that he believed to be inappropriate and "slutty" according to an arrest warrant obtained by People magazine. The woman, Jamie Nicole Brown, and Brown remarried earlier this month after time apart. The violence had occurred late Monday night, the outlet reported, and its alleged he punched and pushed the woman, at one point pulling her hair as well. She was found outside hiding in a car with her dog. Brown was released from jail early Tuesday afternoon after posting bond. According to the Tennessean the woman and Brown had previously been involved in a similar incident back in October 2013. RELATED: Then & Now: Garth Brooks and the biggest stars of country music's '90s heyday Brown, 69, has had a long and lengthy music career in Nashville which has included producing some of George Straits biggest latter day radio hits, not to mention production work on albums by Reba, Lyle Lovett, Rodney Crowell, Pat Green, and Tracy Byrd. Brown is the former president of MCA Nashville and cofounder of Universal South Records, which later merged with another label. Some have said that due to series of influential signings in the 80s he is a key reason that the Americana genre was able to gain an industry foot hold. He spent some time playing piano for Elvis Presley before that artists death in 1977 and Brown also played bass on Bob Dylans classic Blood on the Tracks album. Hes mainly been known for keyboard and piano playing on his musical collaborations and productions. Brown has a court date scheduled next week for this latest charge. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate There are dueling viewing parties as two Houston chefs prepare for their debuts on Chopped at 9 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 23, on the Food Network. RELATED: Miami chef brings new flavor to Oceanaire Seafood Room. The staff of Triniti, 2815 S. Shepherd, will be pulling for its colleague Brandon Soverall when the party gets started at 8:30 in Sanctuari lounge. And it is happy hour all night beginning at 4 p.m. at the Oceanaire Seafood Room, 5061 Westheimer. The folks in the bar there will be cheering on executive chef Rocco Nankervis. Food Networks says of the Feb. 23 episode, titled Cooking Caribbean:" Full of flavor and fun, Caribbean cuisine is the focus of this special Chopped competition! The judges are excited to taste four shrimp appetizers, but one chef suffers a big setback. Then, some beautiful Caribbean ingredients in the second basket inspire the chefs to embark on laborious entree plates, and in the final round, the judges look forward to tasting some sweet potato and rum desserts. Heres hoping the setback doesnt involve one of Houston's own. Last month, the reality cooking show had three Bayou City chefs going head-to-head with a lone New York cook. Houstons Dawn Burrell (Uchi), Jason Kerr and Gary Ly (Underbelly) competed in an episode called Knife Strife. They were whittled away by Raffaele Ronca, who took home the $10,000 prize. Oh, yeah, there are a couple more Houston chefs waiting for their close ups. Bernie's Burger Bus founder Justin Turner will appear on the March 9 episode of "Chopped." And Shannen Tune, who recently launched Craft Burger food truck, will appear on the show March 8. Browse the slideshow above to see other Houston chefs and restaurants featured on television. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate The founders of the Houston Barbecue Festival are launching a dinner series that further blurs the line between fine dining and smokehouses. The first of the Smoke on the Bayou series, featuring Hubbell & Hudson executive chef Austin Simmons and pitmaster Will Buckman of CorkScrew BBQ, will be March 20 at the bistro, 24 Waterway in The Woodlands. The five-course meal with be accompanied by wine and beer pairings selected by Hubbell & Hudson sommelier Derek Ryan. Cost is an all-inclusive $195. For reservations, call 281-203-5641. "This dinner has been almost two years in the making," said J.C. Reid, co-founder of the Houston Barbecue Festival and barbecue columnist for the Chronicle. "The idea originated when I ran into Austin one Saturday morning at CorkScrew BBQ. Chefs are pretty selective about where they eat in their off hours, so I was kind of surprised to see him there. Turns out he is a huge fan of Will's barbecue." Expect future dinners to follow the same recipe, pairing the region's top chefs with the best barbecue pitmasters. Openings VertsKepab, the Austin-based Mediterranean sandwich chain, has opened its 10th Houston-area restaurant. The shop specializes sandwiches and wraps filled with beef, lamb, falafel and house-made sauces. 2630 Pearland Parkway, Pearland Nam Eatery, a small family-owned cafe, has opened in the Heights. The restaurant is offering the Vietnamese comfort fare that Houstonians have come to love, including banh mi, spring rolls and pho. 502 E. 20th, 346-571-8980 Express Rolls has joined the tunnel food court at 919 Milam. The quick-serve restaurant offers sushi, Vietnamese spring rolls, vermicelli bowls and soups. 919 Milam, 713-651-9979 Craft Grill has opened in Tomball. The restaurant's menu features a virtual map of the South, with Bama Balls (fried mac and cheese), Oklahoma Kitchen Sink Nachos, Nashville Hawt Wings on a Waffle and North Carolina Glazed Salmon. There's also a full bar. 25219 Kuykendahl, 281-255-2396 A new Bahama Buck's tropical dessert bar has opened in the Spring/Klein area. The franchise chain offers more than 90 flavors of shaved ice. 3403 Louetta, Spring; 281-377-8482 Take a look at the gallery above for some of Houston's favorite barbecue spots. An elementary school is on heightened alert Wednesday morning after gunshots were reported nearby along Highway 288 near the 610 Loop in south Houston. The incident happened about 7:50 a.m. in the 7900 block of the South Freeway near the South Loop, according to he Houston Police Department. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate High winds whipped up a fire early Wednesday morning as the flames raced through a home in west Harris County. The 2-alarm blaze broke out about 1:15 a.m. at a two-story house in the 21000 block of Highland Knolls in the Katy area, said Jeff Hevey, Chief of Harris County Emergency Services District 48. No injuries were reported. Hevey said a passerby spotted the fire and called 911. When firefighters arrived they saw smoke and flames coming from the home. He said high winds stoked the blaze, pushing the flames toward a neighboring home. As firefighters battled the blaze, they protected the adjacent house from the fire. "The wind was big time," Hevey said. "It really whipped it up and got this fire going." A Wind Advisory is in effect through 9 a.m. Wednesday as a storm system rushes through the Houston area, according to the National Weather Service. West and northwest winds could be between 25 mph and 30 mph with gusts as high as 35 mph. No one was at the home at the time of the fire. The residents arrived about a half hour after the firefighters were called to the scene. Hevey said the home was significantly damaged. A neighbor said she and her family were asleep when their dogs started barking. Her son woke up, heard someone pounding on their front door and then he alerted his mother. The woman, Leeann Johnson, said she looked out her kitchen window and saw flames bursting from the burning home. "It was pretty scary," Johnson said. Investigators are trying to determine what sparked the blaze. If you're downtown this weekend and spot thousands of people walking around in strange costumes, you're not crazy. Anime Matsuri, one of the country's largest Japanese anime conventions, gets under way with more than 27,o00 people expected to attend. The convention was founded by Deneice Leigh, also a Houstonian and an anime expert who owns more than 100 wigs and 300 Lolita dresses. She says costumes average $500-$600 for women and $200-$300 for men, with most purchased online from Japan. In some ways, attending a coin show is like playing the lottery, but with much better odds. Just ask Alvin Stern, an avid coin collector since he was a young boy. Today, he is a nationally certified numismatic appraiser whose services are in high demand throughout the country. Stern said he became hooked on coin collecting at an early age. The then-11 year old was looking through a box of foreign coins at a New York coin show with his dad when he spotted a nondescript, yet enticing coin. "When I looked at the coin, there was no date on the front of it and there was English written on the cardboard holder," he said. "I knew what the card was, and it was not English. It was an early American coin that was struck in Ireland for the American colony in 1722." Stern said he paid $10 for the coin and took it home to show his family. The next week, he took it to a coin shop where the owner looked at it and immediately offered $400 to buy it. Stern decided to keep it, and today the rare coin, valued at about $1,500, is among his prized possessions. And that's the allure of the Bellaire Coin Show, set Feb. 27-28, which this year will include a large selection of Asian and Russian currency, among others, said Dick Hyde, the bourse or show chairman. "I am pumped up on this one because we've gotten the word out to the Asian communities and Russian communities of Texas," Hyde said. "We've got everyone on board." The biannual coin show will be 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday and 9 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Sunday at the Bellaire Civic Center, 7008 S. Rice. Visitors will find rare U. S. coins, gold and silver bullion, world and ancient coins, paper money, medals and tokens and much more. A children's auction also will take place at 1 p.m. Saturday with a coin collecting merit badge workshop to be held afterward. John Trout, a retired construction engineer who's been collecting coins since 1963, said he hopes more young people get involved. "It is an interesting and historical thing (field)," said Trout, 79, of Tomball. "In the long run, if you stay with it long enough, your coins are going to increase in value. But the real reason is the historical learning experience." Coin collecting, Trout said, captures a "shapshot in time." "When I pick up a coin that was minted in 1793, you wonder who handled that coin, and through whose hands it passed," he said. "What were the conditions at that time - of the country and of the people and their interests? It is a snapshot in time." The coin show is sponsored by the Bellaire Coin Club. Club members will have free admission, along with active duty military personnel with IDs and Boy and Girl Scouts in uniform. Stern's love of coins has evolved into a lifelong profession. He owns and operates the Texas Rarities Room, and is an award-winning literary research numismatist and member of the American Numismatic Association. He is also an accredited member of the American Society of Appraisers and is the only numismatic ASA appraiser in Texas and one of only six in the United States. He is in demand for collection appraisals, liquidation sales, research and auctions. "I get calls and work for many different venues, whether it's banks, insurance companies or lawyers," said Stern, 60. "But actually 90 percent of my work comes from families after someone has passed away. "Some want to hold on to the collection and they need an appraisal of what the value is," he said. "Others need an appraisal because they want to sell the collection." Coin collecting is no chump change, he said, noting that he's working with a family of five daughters whose late father was an experienced numismatist who collected world gold coins. "They had me appraise the entire collection and now each month they have me do sales of sections of the collection, which is valued at about $250,000," he said. "My job is to provide them with a monthly income of $10,000 to $20,000 per month." Hyde said he checks his change closely because any U.S. dime, quarter, half dollar or dollar that is dated 1964 or earlier is made of 90 percent silver and is "ten times the value of the later ones that were issued." Quarters dated 1965 or later are all copper-nickel clad coins, except dual-dated bicentennial quarters that were sold by the U.S. Mint in special Mint Sets and proof sets. Bicentennial quarters contain 40 percent fine silver and have an "S" mint mark. These and other tips will be in abundance at the Bellaire Coin Show, which attracts collectors from throughout Texas and the U.S. For more information, email webmaster@bellairecoinclub.com. Health care jobs are booming in northwest Houston. Health care is following population growth across the area, with hospitals, specialists, emergency care facilities and nursing homes being built or expanded around the region. "Health care is the fastest-growing sector in our area, and nurses are the fastest-growing occupation," said Linda Head, associate vice chancellor at the Lone Star College System, who oversees the college's work-force education and corporate college partnerships. Across the Houston metro area, there were 105,000 job openings across all industries from Oct. 24 to Jan. 21, Head said, citing job numbers from Burning Glass Technologies' Labor Insight Tool, a real-time labor market gauge. "And of those, the top industries with job postings were health care, hospitality, insurance, and higher education," she said. Nursing topped the list, Head said. The Lone Star College System is working to respond to that need by adding additional health care programs and certifications. The college has added a program that complements radiology, and the system is expanding its surgical technology and patient care technician certificate programs. Dental programs grow In addition, the system has expanded its paramedics program. And the college's dental hygienist and dental assistant programs continue to grow as well, Head said. In December, 2,800 jobs were added in the Houston region in health care and social assistance, a 0.9 percent increase from the previous month, according to a recent report by Workforce Solutions, which tracks jobs in the area. That is the strongest increase in that sector since 1998, according to the report. There were 1,500 jobs added in ambulatory health care services in December, a 1 percent increase from November, according to Workforce Solutions. In the past year, jobs in ambulatory health care services rose 4.2 percent with 6,100 jobs added, and jobs at hospitals rose 6.9 percent with 5,500 jobs. Construction on new hospitals and health care facilities continues throughout northwest Houston, as companies work to keep pace with the area's rapid population growth. CHI St. Luke's Health recently opened a $120 million medical campus in Springwoods Village to fill the growing need as 10,000 new employees start work at Exxon Mobil Corp's nearby Spring campus. Tomball Regional Medical Center recently completed a $4.5 million emergency room expansion and modernization project, said Joy Hiltabidle, director of marketing at Tomball Regional Medical Center. In addition, nursing homes are expanding in the region. A new senior-care community, Avanti Senior Living, is coming soon to Tomball, located off Kuykendahl and West Rayford roads. The community will have 90 suites, including 50 for assisted-living and 40 suites for memory care, which includes seniors with Alzheimer's or memory impairment. And veterans are flocking to the new Veterans Affairs Tomball Outpatient Clinic, quickly making it one of the busiest VA clinics in the region, said Maureen Dyman, communications director of the Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center. The clinic serves 9,700 veterans, making it one of the largest VA outpatient clinics in Houston. In addition, more medical specialist positions are opening in northwest Houston, giving patients health care closer to home, Head said. Previously, patients traveled to the Texas Medical Center for specialists. The college system is working to expand other programs. Lone Star College System Chancellor Stephen Head and the college's six campus presidents will host an advisory meeting this spring with leaders from area hospitals and health care facilities to discuss the region's needs. "When you look at health care occupations, we are seeing more specialty health care - occupational therapy, physical therapy, radiology," Head said. "All those areas are really growing in northwest Houston." Hospital opens campus CHI St. Luke's Health recently opened its $120 million medical campus in Springwoods Village. Tomball Regional Medical Center recently completed a $4.5 million emergency room expansion and modernization project. Methodist The Woodlands Hospital is building a 470,000-square-foot, 193-bed hospital just south of the intersection of Interstate 45 and Texas 242. It is expected to be complete in 2017. Texas Children's Hospital's new pediatric community hospital in The Woodlands is also slated to open in 2017. The 548,000-square-foot facility will offer inpatient and outpatient specialty pediatric care. And Memorial Hermann The Woodlands Hospital is undergoing a $17.4 million renovation and expansion of its emergency department. It's hard to keep up with Heights resident Rebecca Bass these days. As Art Car season approaches, she kicks into high gear. A retired Houston ISD teacher, the "Art Car Maven" returned to the district last year to lead a spring semester class at John H. Reagan High School, 413 E 13th St., dedicated solely to the creation of an art car in time for the annual parade on April 9. This year, she has another art car project with a small group of students building a car with a Jimi Hendrix theme. Bass was born and raised in Midland, where she had only minimal exposure to the arts. She left for North Texas State University with dreams of becoming a famous artist. More Information At a glance For more information about Rebecca Bass, visit the website www.artcarmaven.com See More Collapse Her life took a different course. She married, moved to Houston and transferred to the University of Houston. "I don't have a degree in art, but I studied art the most," she said. "I have more hours in art than any other subject." While earning her bachelor's degree in behavioral science, Bass enrolled in class after class taught by art professors from James Surls to John Alexander. She also served as a social worker for eight years, before beginning her teaching career in 1984. "I thought I was going to do that for two years and that would be it," Bass said. "I didn't really know what I wanted to do. I'm one of those people who wants to make a difference. I had great aspirations." She soon realized that she could make the world a little better, one child at a time. "I really love kids," she said. "I love making a difference. I love the whole thing about teaching art. It was a great place to get to know kids, open up their minds and change their worlds forever." Bass has started to connect with the local art car scene. "This whole incredible tornadic group of folks got together, and I was on the fringe of that group," she said. "I went to the first art car parade, and I said, 'I think my kids can do this.'" In 1990 she presented the idea to principal Jose Trevino at Edison Middle School, 6901 Avenue I, where she served on the faculty. "He let me take the doors off the school and bring the car in," Bass said. "I didn't know what was happening the first time or what I was doing." But when the kids marched in the parade alongside the car they had created, everything clicked. "I had an 'ah-ha' moment," Bass said. "This is where it's at. It's about beginning and ending a project. The kids had all these people telling them how cool they are. It's one of the first times they feel important. "It changes them." She spent the next couple of decades designing art cars with students at various schools. She retired in 2012, and then returned part-time to Reagan High, as the first ever official "art car teacher" in Houston last year. The class meets after-school and while there are no tests or grades, students are required to put in a lot of hours of hard labor. "They have to work really hard," Bass said. "It's not for everybody." Senior Mark Flores, 18, said the finished product is worth the extra effort. "At first, it's a bit tedious," he said. "You're starting from scratch, and you come every day and spend hours on end." Then everything changes. "It turns into something you enjoy," Flores said. "You enjoy the hard work you put into it. Then you go the parade, and everyone looks at you in awe. It's nice to see other people's reactions." Flores was part of the crew that built the car last year. "I jumped at the chance," he said. "I knew Houston had a strong art car community, and I thought it would be cool to see what an art car was. I kind of fell in love with it." Bass said most of her students end up feeling the same way. "They know what the rewards are," she said. "It's all well worth it." She believes building an art car is an ideal way to teach teamwork. "You learn to work together and work out your differences," she said. "You learn to do something that you don't want to for your team. It spills over into your personal life." And Bass hopes to inspire other teachers to consider taking on community art projects. "We need to have more energetic, thoughtful, think-outside-the-box teachers," she said. "And in Houston, we have this incredible art car community. It's a perfect avenue. "It does take a lot of after-school work, but that's what it takes to be an educator." A development company is planning to construct Houston's first "micro-unit" condominium in east downtown and is marketing its small living spaces and customizable amenities as an affordable option for young single adults wanting to live and work in the area. As the millennial generation enters the workforce, land developers are attempting to determine where the demographic of adults between the ages of 20 and 37 want to work, live and play. Novel Creative Development LLC is betting that its development, The Ivy Lofts, will appeal to that generation. Plans for the 24-story condominium feature 550-units, the majority of which measure less than 500 square feet and will cost less than $200,000. More Information At a glance Novel Creative Development LLC purchased the site for The Ivy Lofts in November 2014. A Vietnamese grocery store once sat on the property. Novel Creative purchased the property in November 2014 for less than $3 million. To learn more about the project, visit www.theivylofts.com. See More Collapse Located on a 1.4-acre city block, bounded by Leeland Avenue, Nagle Street, Pease Avenue and Live Oak Street, the project is to be completed sometime in 2018. First in Texas? "It is an innovative project that could be a first in Texas, maybe in the country," said Jeffrey Brown, principal designer with Powers Brown Architecture, the Houston-based firm Novel Creative hired to draft and plan the construction project. The Ivy Lofts will feature four loft floor plans. The smallest measures 300 square feet. The next plan measures 450 square feet. Prices start at $119,000. Brown said more traditional sized condos measure 600 and 700 square feet. Prices for the larger units start at $375,000. Eight penthouse-style units also will be available. Tables fold into floor All units will feature convertible living spaces that Brown said were designed to make maximum use of the small spaces. Amenities include beds that fold up into walls, bookshelves that transform into chairs, coffee tables that turn into desks, and dining room tables that fold into the floor. "We've designed a package of finishes and micro-furniture accoutrements that you can buy up in," Brown said. "You can have different levels of finishes and built-in furniture that help with space flexibility because the key to living in 450 square feet is all the space has to be used for multiple things." He said buying a condo in The Ivy Lofts is almost like buying a new car. "Nowadays, people go to the website for BMW and they have a ton of pull-down menus and you pick what you want and you customize your car," Brown said. "It is sort of an extension of mass customization." The building features two towers and will offer a number of residential amenities such as a rooftop courtyard and dog park, fitness and yoga centers, rooftop pool, party and lounge areas and views of downtown, including the Toyota Center, Minute Maid Park and BBVA Compass Stadium. A small business retail space will take up the first floor of the building. The parking area will be on the remaining eight floors. "There is a fair amount of residential community space to make up for the fact that, really, the building and the city is the living room for the residents," said Brown, who added that a lot of research on the project considered how much time millennials will spend in their homes. "In terms of the average hours that this demographic will spend in a room is really low," he said. "It is amazing how much time they spend out." Brown's firm was approached by the New York-based developer in mid-2015 to considering designing the project. Brown said he was leery of taking on another condominium. His architecture firm has designed a couple of condo projects, including Arabella, a 33-story, 99-unit tower in the River Oaks district. After a couple of meetings with the development company's own principals and getting to understand how the micro-unit concept could fit into the Houston real estate market, Brown said he was eager to design the condominium. "We take them on with a great sense of responsibility but this was different than just a condominium," Brown said. "What intrigued me was 550 micro-units all in one spot. We haven't seen that anywhere in the world. So our developer thinks this is the largest set of aggregated micro-units in the country." The best comparison, Brown said, is to micro-apartments that are common in high density areas such as New York, Washington D.C. and Shanghai. Thirty or 40 micro-apartments may sit atop retail and office mixed-use developments, for example. Most of these small rental units are found in places where the land is dear and driven by density. "I think that our developer is looking more at an economic demographic rather than a density driven environment," Brown said. The Ivy Lofts' developers are looking to millennials who would like to own their own space but are willing to live a lifestyle that requires less of it. RE/MAX Inner Loop, located at 2011 Leeland St., is handling marketing and sales for The Ivy Lofts. According to a news release posted on RE/MAX Inner Loop's website, East Downtown is a fast-growing area in Houston's original Chinatown. The Ivy Lofts is located approximately 2 miles from the University of Houston and 4 miles to the Texas Medical Center. A pre-sales center recently opened at the site, and Freddy Rodriguez, broker and owner of RE/MAX Inner Loop, said his staff expects inventory to sell quickly. More millennials According to the Urban Land Institute, millennials surpass baby boomers as the largest living generation in the United States. The institute studies land use and conducted a survey of millennials last year to try and learn more about the demographic group, also often referred to as Generation Y. Kathleen Carey, the institute's executive vice president and chief content officer, discussed the survey's findings during a Dec. 16 conference held at the Junior League of Houston. She said millennials have influenced how and where people work, shop, play and live while reshaping social media, the sharing economy, as well as casual, flexible, diverse and collaborative workplaces. Developers, she said, need to be ready for even more changes as this population grows older. According to the institute, Generation Y makes up 27 percent of the population. Of those 62 percent are unmarried, compared to the 42 percent of Baby Boomers at similar ages. Sixty-two percent work full-time, 15 percent work part-time, and 9 percent are in school, according to the survey. Fifty-seven percent of the demographic, Carey said, own pets. The majority own dogs. And millennials are mobile, she said, and looking for quality environments with green space to access parks, that are convenient to public transit and made up of diverse races, nationalities and age groups. And 63 percent of the millennials that participated in the institute's survey said they would consider a "car optional place." Many also indicated they prefer living in urban environments. That could change as they get married and start families, Carey said. "I know that (millennials) don't like to hear that they will do this or that, but by sheer force of numbers, even if a fraction of (the demographic) do something, it will be a lot of people doing whatever it is," she told the developers at the meeting. "Wouldn't it be nice to know where they are going and what they want when they get there?" Brown, The Ivy Lofts' designer, believes the project's developers have put a lot of thought into how the project answers what millennials are looking for. Even though, he said, the micro-unit concept may not make sense to those who just look at the Houston market and the way it's typically understood. "It takes a certain frame of mind to understand the millennial socio-demographic," Brown said. Clare O'Neal has been trying not to smile since landing the starring role of morbid Wednesday Addams in the Feb. 26-March 5 production of the musical "The Addams Family" at St. Agnes Academy. "It's really hard because I like to smile a lot," said the 17-year-old junior, whose parents are Mark and Beth O'Neal. The 2010 Broadway musical finds Wednesday in a bind, all grown up from her somber tween years, when she vowed, in the 1993 movie "Addams Family Values," that if she ever married, she would scare her husband to death. Her boyfriend, Lucas, wants to announce their engagement when he brings his straight-arrow Midwestern parents to meet her parents, as well as their famously creepy and kooky, mysterious and spooky, altogether ooky relatives. More Information Want to go? What: "The Addams Family" Where: St. Agnes Academy, 9000 Bellaire Blvd. When: 7:30 p.m. Feb. 26-28 and March 4-5, 2 p.m. Feb. 28 Details: 713-219-5400, www.st-agnes.org See More Collapse "Wednesday is in love with someone who is completely opposite from the Addams family,"said O'Neal. In a duet, "Pulled," with her younger brother, Pugsley, Wednesday sings about how her somber disposition, "once locked in one position," now feels "pulled" toward DisneyWorld, of all things. She sings, "I'll go there twice!" Offstage, said O'Neal, "I feel pulled, not for love, but my career path. I love musical theater, but I also love animation. I like comic books, so I think it would be cool to bring them to life." Male roles in the show are portrayed by students at St. Agnes Academy's neighboring school, Strake Jesuit College Preparatory. For example, Strake student Andy Gambini, as Uncle Fester, sings a love song about the moon, crooning, "When I feel her pull, then my heart is full." "It's my favorite song in the show," said director Jewell Handy. She graduated from St. Agnes in 1988, then earned degrees from the University of Texas and New School University, and taught at TADA!, a renowned youth theater and arts education programs in New York City. Last year, Handy returned to her alma mater to teach theater arts. About O'Neal, the director said, "Clare has a fantastic voice and she is very funny and bright. She's a unique kiddo who looks at things from a special point of view." Directing "The Addams Family" appealed to Handy because of its big ensemble, giving many students an opportunity to play characters who are familiar to them, from reruns of the popular 1960s TV comedy series. That show's theme song ("snap, snap") is included in the musical, thus giving director Handy a "license," she said, to draw inspiration from some of its recognizable design elements. "The set looks like an old Victorian mansion in disrepair," she said. It also boasts triangular prisms which make it appear that spirits can walk through walls, said Handy, who promised other ghostly special effects and surprises. Tommy Tune "The Addams Family" will represent St. Agnes Academy in the 14th annual Tommy Tune Awards. The program, sponsored by Theatre Under the Stars in Houston, honors excellence in musical theater productions at high schools throughout the Houston area. It will culminate in a Tony Awards-style ceremony April 19 in the much-larger Sarofim Hall at the Hobby Center. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate On a brisk morning in January, Donald Burgs Jr. entered Alief Baptist Church on Avenue A in Katy, as he's done for six years and as other pastors had since the 1960s. The church's golden spire towers in downtown Katy, and inside, a golden key the size of a license plate is framed on an office wall. "That was the exchange between the churches," Burgs said, pointing at the key given to him by former First Baptist Church pastor Randy White when that congregation moved to a different location in 2007 and Alief Baptist bought the building. "First Baptist Church was the first church in Katy," Burgs said. "I think about that history sometimes." More than 50 years ago, the Katy community declared itself the "city of churches," a label fitting for the religious foundation on which the town was built. Decades of growth and an increasingly diverse population followed, but church and city leaders believe the label still holds true. "You know, just in this downtown area, there are six or seven churches," Burgs said as he walked into his office, which holds hundreds of books on shelves that spiral like a maze into a back room. A talkative man who gestures with his hands as he speaks, Burgs felt an attraction to Katy almost 10 years ago, in large part because of the community's spiritual legacy. "That's one of the things we looked at when purchasing this church - the history here," he said. Katy residents stuck a "City of churches" welcome sign into the ground in the mid-1900s, but residents' passion for Christian faith was cemented long before. Katy settlers in the 1890s were adamant about emphasizing Christian values, according to local media reports. The Rev. T.L. Scruggs in 1898 led the first meeting of what would become First Baptist Church. Other longtime Katy churches that flourished include Katy First United Methodist Church and St. Bartholomew the Apostle Catholic Church. But it wasn't the churches that gave the city its early religious identity, it was the passion for faith that many in Katy shared, according to a recent account by local historian Carol Adams. Development drew hundreds of thousands to the area. From 2015-2020, the Katy area is projected to see 11.5 percent more people age 18-34, with some trickling into the city, according to data provided by Memorial Herman Katy Hospital. Katy business owners and city leaders have recognized an influx of the millennials and an increased diversity in culture and beliefs. Katy Mayor Fabol Hughes represents traits of Katy leaders who came before him. A conservative church-goer, Hughes doesn't fear bringing up God when giving a speech. His bio page on the city's website states that Hughes has been an active member of Katy First United Methodist Church for 44 years. Hughes' council members fall on the same line. City voters still look for leaders who represent the same values held a century ago, Mayor Pro Tem Chuck Brawner said. "The only changes I've seen is the expansion of many churches," said Brawner, who's lived in the area since the 1980s and attends Parkway Fellowship Church on Franz Road. "People will move into this city because they are attracted to those values. They know what they're getting here; so the heart of this being a church town continues to exist even with the growth." Catholic churches such as St. Bartholomew direct media questions to The Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston. Communications personnel for the archdiocese could not be reached for comment on this story. The city has about 15 churches. Without having details available, Brawner said a church recently bought property in Cane Island, Katy's new master-planned community. Some churches have added buildings or moved to larger facilities as they grew. Alief Baptist's membership has grown to include 3,000 members and 1,500 families. First Baptist Church, now on Pin Oak Road, moved to expand as population increased to more than 4,000. "The church mentality hasn't changed here," said Johnny Nelson, Katy's mayor from 1983 to 1987 and administrator from 1994 to 2014. Nelson attends First Baptist. "Just from seeing my neighbors and community, and the churches are still full on Sundays, that's how I know it hasn't changed." Faith communities from other religions, such as Judaism, Islam and Hinduism, have found a home in the Katy area, but none are in the 11-square-mile city, which has about 16,000 residents. Despite that fact, Brawner said he believes religious diversity is welcomed in the city. But Katy's robust church passion is not completely immune to signs of declining faith in American culture, said the Rev. John Davis at Memorial Lutheran Church on Third Street, which has been a city institution for 70 years. Last year, a Pew Research Center study revealed that the percentage of Christians in America is shrinking, with an almost 8 percent decline from 2007 to 2014 to 70.6 percent, while the number of those identifying their religious identity as atheist, agnostic or "nothing in particular" population rose from 16.1 percent to 22.8 percent. Locally, Davis, who first became a member of his church in the '90s, said he's noticed a slight loss for Christian passion in the area. His own 900-member church has undergone a sizable leadership transition in its pastors and head staff during recent years and has had to learn to acclimate. "I see (the decline of passion) just from seeing how many folks in my own neighborhood don't think it is the priority it once was to them," Davis said. "I think as a church we like other churches have to adapt to a culture that's less dependent as a whole on Christianity. That said, I think for the millennials and young people that do attend our church and others, they are even more passionate than before because there's less of them out there." At Alief Baptist, Burgs said the millennials in his congregation are leading the new generation of church-goers. "The growth around the city has actually brought some of those people from outside of the city into the city; so the legacy is not just being sustained by people within the city but actually a lot from those on the outside," Burgs said. "It's like everyone says, you look at Old Town Katy and it is still Old Town Katy. It's amazing. I think it will continue this way. It's hard to change the core of what a city was built on." Each Sunday, when Burgs strolls through the door to the sanctuary, he's greeted by maroon-colored worship pews installed when the building opened. He sometimes sits on them when no one else is around - resting his arm on the wooden frame - and reflects on his church's historical significance. "Politically and fundamentally, this town continues to be a conservative and Christian place," Burgs said. "This is a city of churches." The Humble school district will again be honored with an H-E-B Excellence in Education award. This year, Humble will receive H-E-B's Outstanding School Board award. Texas has more than 1,000 school boards, and Humble is one of five to be honored with the title and a $5,000 grant. In 2015, Humble ISD won the Best Large District award, which came with a $100,000 prize. The grocery chain recognized the district for going "above and beyond" to ensure student success, said Jill Reynolds, public affairs manager for H-E-B. Judging for the Outstanding School Board category is based on student academic progress within the district; identification of community needs and the specific actions taken to address those needs; and creative methods for community engagement. Since 2002, H-E-B has honored teachers, school boards and districts annually for making a difference in their communities. "We focus on the systems the district has created to ensure student success," said Anette Carlisle, H-E-B awards judge and a member of Amarillo College Board of Regents. "I personally have been impressed by how they really try to engage the community." School board members include president Robert Sitton, vice president Keith Lapeze, secretary Angela Conrad, parliamentarian Heath Rushing, and trustees Charles Cunningham, Brent M. Engelage and Nancy Morrison. The district plans on using the grant to fund Camp G.I.V.E. or Generously Investing and Volunteering to Empower, a summer day camp for high school students focusing on philanthropy and leadership skills. Superintendent Guy Sconzo is proud of the progress the district has made in impacting community involvement. "More than any other district I served over five states in my career, Humble ISD is special for its commitment to educating the whole child, its culture of every employee is an educator, its sense of family as a district, and it's incredibly supportive community," Sconzo said. For more information on the H-E-B Excellence in Education awards, go to www.heb.com/static-page/article-template/Excellence-in-Education-Awards. For details on Humble ISD, go to humbleisd.net Houston City Councilman Dave Martin and the Houston Public Works and Engineering Department are investigating concerns of water quality issues after residents in Kingwood reported brown or discolored water coming from their faucets. In a press release issued Feb. 11, Martin said the city was working with Severn Trent Services to test the water quality. The water and wastewater company determined the brown water is a result of construction occurring on private development near Northpark Drive and West Lake Houston Parkway. "On Feb. 9, a private contractor was working to isolate fire hydrants in the area, which led to the disruption of built up sediment in the water lines, and resulted in the discolored water experienced by some citizens," Martin said. The water in Kingwood comes from wells, which are naturally cleaner than lake water. This means it also is rich in minerals such as iron and manganese, which if stirred up by main breaks or water hammer can cause the color issues. However, the recent reports regarding the water quality in Flint, Mich., led to comparisons that Martin thought were unfair. "According to Jonathan Dawson, Severn Trent Project Manager - Kingwood, the local water is continually tested and found to be safe," Martin said. "The water from the wells is crystal clear and tested daily. "The water from the storage tanks is also crystal clear and tested daily in accordance with the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality's rules and regulations." The water color has been only found in the transmission mains, and tests to be within the legal limits for iron and manganese, and unlike the Flint water situation, does not contain any trace of lead. Severn Trent flushes dead-end lines every month to prevent buildup of sediments in the pipes at 100 locations in Kingwood. As in the past week, Severn Trent also increases flushing on an as-needed basis to remove discolored water from the system. Martin Morales, who owns GeniSoft in Spring, was contacted by KPRC Channel 2 news to test the water for Kingwood resident Ann Lee, who is suffering from Stage 4 breast cancer, and cannot drink water that contains any impurities. "We went out there to test the water, and on site, there is only so much we can test for," he said. A very thorough test that consists of taking fresh water samples, which are then sent for laboratory testing. For Lee, GeniSoft not only sent her water off for testing at its Ohio lab, but offered to install a free reverse osmosis water filtration system in her home. Morales said GeniSoft has been conducting those water quality tests for several residents in Kingwood, and other areas in and around the area, to ensure the issue is not a widespread problem. "We basically take a sample and send it off to an independent lab that tests for a number of contaminants, different types of metal, radioactive material, pharmaceuticals, chemicals just a variety of contaminates that could possibly be in the water," Morales said. "Once we conduct that, we should have (results) back in two weeks or less." Morales said he was told of a resident in the Kingwood area who'd purchased a $10 water testing kit at the store to test their own water. "It's not a very accurate test, but it does indicate that there are a couple of different types of metals, and coliforms (bacteria) in the water," he said. "That test did indicate that there was some type of bacteria in their water, so they were concerned." As of Feb. 11, all of the distribution water mains were deemed clear of all colored water. Residents who continue to see issues are encouraged to first flush their lines for five to 10 minutes, Martin said. To report discolored or brown water from your faucets, contact the city's 3-1-1 service help line or call Martin's office at 832- 393-3008. To have your water tested in your home, contact GeniSoft at http://genisoftwater.com/ Pediatrician Dr. Peter Jung understands that sometimes a picture can be worth a thousand words. Many times, while explaining a diagnosis to a patient's parents, he has found himself drawing a diagram on the exam room table to help them understand. "I thought if I could collect all of these ideas and drawings, it would help parents understand what their pediatricians are saying," Jung said. That was the beginning of a journey that led to the creation of his first book, an illustrated guide to common childhood illnesses. More Information At a glance To buy a book: "What to Know Before Seeing Your Pediatrician," visit Amazon.com. Aavailable in paperback for $12.50 and Kindle for $8.69. Blue Fish Pediatrics: Memorial, 915 Gessner, 713-467-1741; Cypress, 9530 Huffmeister, 281-855-3700 and Katy, 23960 Katy Freeway, 281-347-0080 Details: www.bluefishmd.com See More Collapse "What to Know Before Seeing Your Pediatrician" became available at all major online book retailers on Feb. 9. Jung said creating the work was a five-year process. He started by drawing the rudimentary diagrams and then handed them over to his friend Becky Seo Kim, an illustrator who would transform his sketches into refined graphics. Jung then went to work writing the text. He went through three drafts. "The first draft was more text heavy with only one picture," he said. "I realized the pictures were really the meat of the story, and I needed to add more." The next draft was a little too complex for most readers. "So I simplified the ideas and made it more lay friendly," Jung said. The finished product is basically a picture book for adults, an eight-chapter, 123-page quick read covering a variety of topics, from germs, fevers and vaccines to the common cold, ear infections, vomiting and returning to school after sickness. Writing a picture book suited the doctor, who named his practice, "Blue Fish Pediatrics" after Dr. Seuss' book, "One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish." Jung grew up in the Memorial area and graduated from Memorial High School in 1991. He earned his bachelor's degree in biology at Rice University, then studied at Baylor College of Medicine. Jung completed his residency at Texas Children's Hospital, and then joined his father Dr. Woo Nahm Jung's private practice in Memorial in 2002. When his father retired, Jung joined Dr. William Pielop, and the two took over the business and renamed it. Now the practice has expanded to include 14 doctors. Besides the original location at 915 Gessner in Memorial, the practice has two additional locations, Blue Fish Cypress, 9530 Huffmeister, and Blue Fish Katy, 23960 Katy Freeway. Jung and his wife Christine live in Cypress, where their three children, Elizabeth, 11, Matthew, 9, and Michael, 8, attend school in the Cy-Fair ISD. Jung hopes his book will help reduce parental anxiety and prevent unnecessary visits to the doctor and their associated costs. "It's geared to the mom and dad who want a greater understanding of simple illnesses," Jung said. He started looking for a publisher about a year and a half ago and found Hatherleigh Press. "It took 18 months to fully edit it and get all the t's crossed and i's dotted," Jung said. Now he's trying to get the word out about the book and hopes other pediatricians will recommend it to their patients. "We're trying to educate moms and dads and empower them so they can take better care of their kids," he said. By the end of the book, readers will better understand the difference between a bacteria and a virus, when the time is right to get antibiotics and the importance of vaccines and how they work. Jung also covers why colds are difficult to treat and how they can lead to a host of complications, including ear infections. He also discusses how to prevent dehydration in a child with gastroenteritis, and when a child should return to school following an illness. "I've always loved educating others," Jung said. "I have a knack for taking complex ideas and simplifying them and that's been my goal with this book." Dr. Joseph Yuhan, a radiologist who attended medical school with Jung, said the book is a success. "From a physician's perspective, it actually gave me a good review of what I had learned in medical school, but haven't practiced in a while," he said. "It has detailed science, but it's also simple and concise." Yuhan already has purchased a number of copies of the book to give to friends. "The illustrations are clear, fun and very accurate," he said. "It's just full of good information. It's a great resource." Yuhan said Jung did a top-notch job on the project. "He took all the recommendations that he gives on a daily basis and put them into a book," Yuhan said. "He's very analytical, but he's also a great teacher. This books gives you insight into the mind of a pediatrician." After 60 years in the community, the Montgomery County United Way will merge with the United Way of Greater Houston in an effort to salvage dwindling funding. The merger, which was an emotional decision for many who have worked and volunteered with the Montgomery County chapter over the years, was approved by more than 80 percent of the 256 voting members at the organization's annual meeting Wednesday. "Now, we celebrate the new chapter of Montgomery County United Way," said Julie Martineau, who will step down after 19 years as the organization's president following the merger. "There are great things we can do better together." Martineau's voice broke with emotion as a shout of "We love you, Julie!" arose from the crowd gathered for the meeting. Although she was offered a consulting role with the United Way of Greater Houston, she thought her previous leadership role would cause confusion for staff and be detrimental to the integration of the two organizations. Martineau plans to look for other ways to serve residents in the area. And she wasn't the only one that had an emotional stake in the decision. "My heart wasn't in this, initially," said Kelly Holmes, chief financial officer of Woodforest National Bank and the Montgomery County United Way executive board vice chair. "We have a lot of pride in this community ... my mind had to get my heart in the right place." "There was a certain amount of healthy skepticism at first," said David Argueta, chief executive officer of CHI St. Luke's The Woodlands Hospital and the 2015 development chair for Montgomery County United Way. The two United Way groups started discussions late last year after major corporations that contribute to Montgomery County United Way encouraged the merger as a way to increase the charitable impact of funds. Without the merger, the Montgomery County United Way would lose major contributors, dropping the funds for community service from $3.4 million in 2015 to $2.6 million in 2016 and $1.9 million in 2017, resulting in significant cuts in staff and programs, officials said. The agreement with United Way of Greater Houston guarantees at least $4 million in funding for community services and programs in 2016 and 2017 and at least one year of employment for all current staff. "Merging is the best decision moving forward for Montgomery County United Way," said Christi Thoms-Knox, senior vice president of corporate planning for CB&I and the chair of the Montgomery County United Way board. "We think we really crafted a great agreement and compromise." Some donors attending the annual meeting wrote on comment cards that they were concerned the merger would pull money away from local programs and that the current agreement with United Way of Greater Houston didn't guarantee anything for Montgomery County beyond two years. "There are uncertainties in both cases," said Thoms-Knox. "But if we don't merge, there are certain consequences ... we wouldn't be able to be everything as we are today." Under the agreement with United Way of Greater Houston, funding decisions will be made by a Montgomery County Regional Council and the organization will maintain a staff presence in the county to oversee programs. The regional council will mostly be comprised of the current board members with subcommittees focused on health and wellness, education, financial independence and other local United Way initiatives. Thoms-Knox also emphasized that the region could benefit from the United Way of Greater Houston's more developed programs and fundraising techniques. "There are actual programs at stake. There are real people in need depending on your generosity to get them through a tough time in their lives," Argueta said. "This decision is about these people." Montgomery County United Way by the numbers $3.4 million: Community impact funding in 2015 $2.6 million: Without merger projected in 2016 $1.9 million: Without merger projected in 2017 $4 million: With merger guaranteed in 2016 $4 million: With merger guaranteed in 2017 A southeast Houston man died after what police said appeared to be an accidental shooting at his home. The 39-year-old man was shot shortly before 5 p.m. Tuesday at his home in the 1300 block of Regal near Arrow. He later died at the hospital, Houston police said. Fourteen women were charged with prostitution in a raid on 12 massage parlors in north Houston, the Harris County District Attorney's Office announced Wednesday. Each of the parlors is located along the Farm-to-Market 1960 corridor, according to a release by the Harris County Sheriff's Office. Some had been under the HSCO's watch since 2009. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate On March 1 this Tuesday astronaut Scott Kelly returns to Earth after a year spent aboard the International Space Station. Fans have seen his breathtaking pictures of the blue planet for the past year now, as well as watched him cope with being away from his friends and family. All things considered it appears that hes been having a ball. Back in August he wrote that one of the things he missed the most was weather, simply feeling the wind or the sun on his skin. Thats impossible to do in space. FRUIT JUGGLING & LONG-DISTANCE FLOWERS: Highlights from Scott Kelly's first six months "Something people don't recognize is that being on the space station is probably a lot like being in some kind of confinement like isolation," he said in a video interview with the Associated Press late last year. "Not having the ability to leave is ... an all-present feeling." THE BEAUTY BELOW: Scott Kelly's most beautiful photos of Earth Kellys 340-day mission and the studies that he has carried out will hopefully tell NASA scientists more about how the human body copes with long periods in space and inform protocol that future astronauts follow. His genetics are being compared with those of his twin brother Mark Kelly back here on Earth.Remember, science needs to figure out well send a group of astronauts into space for a 1,000-day mission to and from Mars. Kellys mission is beginning of what will be years of research. Kelly will land in Kazakhstan at 11:27 p.m. on March and he will arrive at Houstons Ellington Field on March 2, according to a NASA press release. After landing in Kazakhstan, Kelly will hold the record among American astronauts for cumulative time in space, with 520 days. But what should he do when he returns to gravity? We asked Houston Chronicle readers what they would do once they took that first breath of fresh air back home on Earth. Its not a surprise that most people would gain 20 pounds eating all of the foods that werent available in space. Kellys improvised burgers and tacos made a lot of us earth-bound eaters feel very fortunate. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate You may not have a lawyer, but you can kind of act like one should you be arrested during a coming round-up targeting thousands of Texans who have unpaid traffic tickets, fines and low-grade misdemeanors. The Houston-based American Civil Liberties Union of Texas, as well as other organizations are offering tips on how to weather the 2016 Great Texas Warrant Roundup, which will be carried out in more than 300 cities and counties around the state. The official kick off date is March 5, but a handful of law-enforcement agencies have already said they plan to start a bit sooner. The ACLU, along with Texas Appleseed, Texas Fair Defense Project and the University of Texas School of Law Civil Rights Clinic, are part of a coalition trying to inform people of their rights in advance of the round-up. The groups said they are concerned that lower income Texans will be unlawfully jailed. Trisha Trigilio, staff attorney for the ACLU, said anyone arrested during the round up has a right to a hearing in which they can tell a judge some basic information, such as whether or not they can afford to pay their fines. "A person can ask for options such as tailoring a fine to his or her income, creating a manageable payment plan or waiving the balance if they have already been punished enough," she said . "It is unconstitutional to jail anyone solely because they can't afford a fine." In late February, some jurisdictions are offering "amnesty" during which some courts may waive fees if a person pays an underlying fine or allow a debt to be settled for less than was originally owed. But if that doesn't work out, the coalition offers a few tips: 1. It is not legal for a judge to throw you in jail simply because you cannot pay a fine or fee. The law requires a judge to ask whether you have the ability to pay your debt before committing you to jail. 2. If you are arrested for unpaid fines and can't pay the total that is owed, you should tell the judge that and explain why. 3. You can ask the judge for alternatives, such as a lower fine tailored to your income. Judges can reduce the amount owed, including fines, fees and court costs based on income, resources and family obligations. 4. Payment plans allow for monthly installments. 5. Community service offers at least $50 of credit for every eight hours of work. A judge can increase that rate. Finally, they suggest that if you know you can't pay off your debt in full, be prepared to show the judge proof of your household income and monthly payment obligations. Trigilio explained that judges can jail people for not paying their court debts when they have the means to do so, but choose not to. Those persons should not be confused with people who simply can't afford to pay. "Judges absolutely have the power to jail people who have the money to pay and refuse," she said. "The problem is, without holding a fair hearing, judges can't separate the real scofflaws from people who are simply too poor to pay." If you want to check if there is a warrant for your arrest, call 311. The Harris County Sheriff's Office also offers a warrants check on its Web page. A University of North Texas student killed by campus police in December was not threatening the officer who shot him, an attorney for his family said. Ryan McMillan, 21, was holding a "Boy Scout hatchet in his hand in a nonthreatening manner" when University of North Texas Police Officer Stephen Bean shot him on Dec. 12, attorney Renee Higginbotham-Brooks said Tuesday in a statement. McMillan was celebrating his 21st birthday and committed vandalism in his state of "extreme intoxication," the attorney's statement said. As shown on dashcam video released in December by university police, McMillan walked in front of Bean's patrol car carrying a hatchet and repeatedly saying, "Shoot me." McMillan did not appear to raise the ax toward Bean but kept moving closer as the officer warned him to "back away," the video showed. Eyewitnesses reported that Bean shot the student, even though McMillan did not attack or threaten the officer and had his hands at his side, the attorney's statement said. In law enforcement, there is a use-of-force continuum that provides nonlethal forms of force to gain compliance, according to the statement. In McMillan's case, the officer jumped to the extreme end of the continuum, resulting in the student's death. The university should have provided chemical spray or stun guns to officers for situations like this one, the statement said. The officers' training was "grossly inadequate" because death should not have been chosen when chemical sprays or nonlethal force should have been the "obvious choice," according to the statement. McMillan's family was considering "all possibilities," including a civil lawsuit against the University of North Texas, Higginbotham-Brooks' office said Tuesday. No lawsuit had been filed at that point, she said. Less than a week before the Texas primary, new projections by a national, bipartisan Latino group estimate that a record 13.1 million Hispanics across the country and about 2 million in Texas will vote in the presidential election. That marks a 17 percent increase in national turnout and a gain of nearly 11 percent in Texas compared to the 2012 election, according to the report by the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials , a nonprofit in Los Angeles that advocates for more Latino voter involvement. In Texas, Latinos make up nearly one in four registered voters. Their share of the vote is expected to grow from 21.9 percent of Texas voters in 2012 to 22.3 percent in November, according to the report. Nationally, their part of the electorate is estimated to increase to 9.1 percent from 8.4 percent in 2012. While it's a significant boost, it's still less than half of all Hispanic voters who are eligible to vote. Across the country, 27.3 million Latinos would be able to vote in the fall and in Texas, it's 4.8 million. The increasing Latino share of the vote is a result of population growth and of more Hispanics becoming U.S. citizens. Texas has gained 600,000 eligible Hispanic voters since the 2012 presidential elections, second only to California, according to the Pew Research Center, a think tank in Washington, D.C. In Texas, the report noted that Latino partisan preferences in the presidential contests swung widely between 2004 and 2012. In 2004, the Latino vote was nearly evenly split between the Democratic nominee, U.S. Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts, and President George W. Bush. But by 2012, that gap had grown significantly, with 71 percent of Latinos supporting President Barack Obama compared to 27 percent who favored former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney. Latinos in Texas were crucial in the 2008 victory of then-U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton, allowing her to remain a viable candidate in the Democratic primary. The Lone Star state was her first win after 11 straight losses to Obama and according to exit poll data, Latino voters favored Clinton over Obama by 66 percent to 32 percent. Texas will again be key for Clinton next week as she struggles against U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont. And Hispanic Republicans could also help boost U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz in his home state as he battles billionaire entrepreneur Donald Trump. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Agents with the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission from across the state will going undercover in an attempt to prevent the sale of alcohol to minors during Spring Break, according to a news release issued Tuesday. The minor stings will take place March 1-15 at businesses that serve alcohol near major areas of travel between major Texas cities and the Gulf Coast, the release said. RELATED: Port Aransas bans visible drinking of alcohol on beaches after 6 p.m. during Spring Break During undercover operations in 2015, TABC agents inspected more than 900 retailers, with more than 90 percent of those retailers being in full compliance with the law, according to the release. "These undercover operations have proven to be a useful tool in ensuring our retailers are in voluntary compliance with the law," said Chief Robert Saenz, TABC chief of field operations. RELATED: These San Antonio bars were cited by TABC for serving drunk people in 2014, 2015 The TABCs Audit and Investigation Division will visit each retailer involved in the sting prior to the undercover operations. They will then provide training on ways to spot underage customers, according to the news release. During the operations, TABC agents work alongside a minor that volunteers for the sting, and the minor then attempts to purchase alcohol from various outlets that sell the products, according to a news release. RELATED: TABC: Many bars in Texas are duping customers ordering top-shelf liquors with low-grade spirits If a retailer sells alcohol to a minor, then the retailer could face repercussions from the TABC. Officials hope that compliance is even better this year. "While we were very pleased with the relatively low number of violations last year, when you're talking about an underage person getting behind the wheel while intoxicated, even one violation can result in loss of life, Saenz said. We're counting on Texas retailers to do the right thing and remain vigilant during this very busy time. twhite@mysa.com Twitter: @tylerlwhite On the CBS news program "60 Minutes," Elaine Weinstein shared her terrifying ordeal that involved her late husband, Warren, and his al-Qaeda kidnappers. Some background: Warren Weinstein was an American contractor in Pakistan and had been working there with a firm that specialized in increasing economic growth in developing countries. In August of 2011, several members of the Islamist militant group al-Qaeda kidnapped him and held him for ransom to the tune of $4 million. On "60 Minutes," Elaine recounted her dialogue with the kidnappers and the FBI's involvement in the case. She said the FBI advised her to counter with a reduced offer, despite existing federal law that prohibited monetary exchanges with known terrorist agencies. WAR ON TERROR: Hostage deaths represent two more 'deadly mistakes' Learn more about the Islamic State, an offshoot of al-Qaeda and their operations in the gallery above. "What do I know about negotiating with these people? I don't have a clue," Elaine said. "They told me this is what you should do. I thought $250 was insulting." The negotiations to release Warren went on for four years, until an American drone strike inadvertently killed him and an Italian man in the North Waziristan area. Elaine said she had previously warned the U.S. government about bombarding the area but to no avail. President Barack Obama would later apologize for the drone strikes and called Elaine personally to offer condolences. Warren's death, coupled with both James Foley and Kayla Mueller in 2015, have contributed to ongoing criticism of American policy regarding terrorist negotiations. In April 2015, the Weinstein family expressed disappointment and concern with the U.S.' handling of their case and insisted they do better in the future. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate The Beyonce backlash has moved into the presidential campaign. During a CNN town hall meeting in Columbia, S.C., Tuesday evening, moderator Chris Cuomo asked Hillary Clinton if she agreed with the mounting criticism targeting the Houston-born superstar after the singer's Super Bowl halftime performance. Tuesday was also the night of the Republicans' Nevada caucuses. The Democrats' South Carolina primary is set for Saturday. Beyonce has come under fire for what critics call her anti-police message in her new hit song, "Formation." A video for the song shows the entertainer draped across a New Orleans police car sinking into the water, and a graffiti sign speaking out against police brutality. MUSICAL CONTROVERSY: Police unions criticize Beyonce's video, call for boycott "We have to figure out how ... we're going to reform policing," Clinton said, adding that there should be instances for retraining police to help officers de-escalate situations and avoid shootings of unarmed individuals. As Clinton and her Democratic rival, Bernie Sanders, woo black voters, a group of black mothers whose unarmed children died in shootings appeared at the CNN town hall event to show their support for the former secretary of state. Clinton introduced the group of mothers to the audience. SUPPORT FOR CLINTON: Sandra Bland's death becomes topic on campaign trail Both Clinton and Sanders took questions from the audience at the town hall. So far, Beyonce has not released a response to the controversy about her song. Some police departments across the nation are calling for a boycott of her music and upcoming tour, which is set for her hometown of Houston on May 7. AUSTIN -- In his latest attempt to dismiss pending felony criminal charges against him. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton argues that state law is too vague for the case to proceed. In a 77-page legal brief filed Monday with the 5th Court of Appeals, Paxton's attorneys argued state law "unconstitutionally regulates free commercial speech," does not properly define the term "investment adviser representative" and how solicitations should be handled. Paxton was indicted last July on charges that he violated state securities laws by referring his legal clients to invest in a friend's investment firm without being registered with the state, that he committed fraud by encouraging two people to buy stock in a technology start-up, without disclosing that he was being compensated by the company. All three charges are felony crimes. Paxton's attorneys earlier unsuccessfully tried to convince a state district judge handling the case to dismiss the charges for similar reasons, and the new appeal is designed to convince a higher court to dismiss some or all of the charges. In their appeal, they are asking for a hearing before the Dallas-based appeals court. Court officials said Tuesday that no date has been set. In the filing, Paxton's attorneys reiterated their earlier claims that a Collin County judge who initially oversaw the investigation that resulted in Paxton's indictments improperly empaneled the grand jury that indicted him. Houston attorney Brian Wice, a special prosecutor appointed in the case, took issue with Paxton's appeal claims. "While the arguments in his appellate brief, that these prosecutions should end before a jury can pass upon his guilt or innocence, are creative, he has provided the Dallas Court of Appeals with no additional argument or authorities that creativity is a compelling or principled substitute for legal merit, " Wice said. "We will defend Judge (George) Gallagher's rulings in our reply brief and at oral argument." Gallagher is the trial court judge in the case, who earlier rejected Paxton's request to dismiss the indictments. Former Texas Gov. Rick Perry proved his troll game is on fleek Wednesday after a state appeals court dismissed abuse-of-power charges against him. Perry, fresh off what he called an "epic legal victory," visited the same Austin burger shack he posed in front of in 2014 after being booked into the Travis County Jail on the felony charges in connection with his veto of funding for a public corruption unit. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate When most people get sentenced to a small stretch of jail time for thievery they get three hot meals a day, the privilege of showering every other day, and might be out of pocket for a few years. When you are Quebec resident Stephanie Beaudoin you get modeling contract offers and can serve your 90-day sentence on weekends. Her lawyer even told her it would be a good way to catch up on her reading. She was sentenced this week to 90 days in prison by a Canadian judge. In a recent article for VICE, Beaudoin talked about her fortunes since heading up a bling ring of thieves who burglarized some 39 homes in Victoriaville, Quebec with a trio of minor aged accomplices over the summer of 2014. All told its said that the crew netted up to $80,000 in loot. RELATED: 'Cute mugshot girl' goes viral That would be $58,000 in American dollars. It was apparently the former nursing students Mitsubishi Lancer with custom pink rims at the crime scenes that tipped off police of her whereabouts. Thousands of dollars in cash were found in her car, when she was finally cornered. She wanted to delete some salacious photos from her Facebook page just after she was taken into custody but the police wouldnt let her. Her photos ended up propelling her into infamy and later, magazine covers after the press began to search for her. She looks a bit like Alison Brie from Mad Men and Community to some people. She later plead guilty in a plea deal to theft and gun charges. The deal reduced an initial 114 charges down to just 30. Shes been called the worlds sexiest or hottest criminal by some outlets, but were assuming the people who she and her accomplices plundered from might just think shes annoying and troublesome. Shes cleared to model but she cant play up the fact that she is a felon or glorify her crimes. Seems simple enough. Juvenile courts are handling the accomplices' punishments. It's not been announced if they will be getting modeling deals themselves. Much of the Republican presidential field is set to appear in the Bayou City on Wednesday, ahead of their debate the following day at the University of Houston. Texas Sen. Ted Cruz will hold a 1 p.m. rally at Mach Industrial Group, in the 6100 block of Fulton. 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. Braves advance to semis at Unity CHEROKEE - Cherokee's volleyball girls took down Harlan 3-0 on Monday and headed to Orange City this past Wednesday to... Wolverines end season at West Bend-Mallard WEST BEND - The South OBrien volleyball team traveled to face West Bend-Mallard in the first round of the regional... Warriors suffer 44-14 loss to Gehlen Catholic ALTA - The Alta-Aurelia football team hosted Gehlen Catholic on Friday evening, but lost the game 44-14. The Warriors struck... Warriors take down Raiders to finish regular season ALTA - The Alta-Aurelia volleyball team hosted East Sac County on Thursday evening and took down the Raiders 3-1 to... Braves go 3-6 at Heelan Invite SIOUX CITY - Cherokee's volleyball team, 23-9, worked on fine tuning its skills here Saturday in a 12-team Sioux City... The Hermit Kingdom is a nickname inspired by North Koreas secrecy and withdrawal from the wider world. The last remaining stronghold of Communism, it is a country reviled and lampooned in the West, where its mystery inspires ridicule and anxiety in equal measure. Last year, threats were made against cinemas intended to screen Seth Rogen and James Francos comedy in which they plot to assassinate the North Korean leader, Kim Jong-un. Barrack Obama responded by asking that if that was the reaction to satire, what would they do when they saw a documentary they didnt like? Which is an interesting question to bear in mind when watching, Spanish director Alva Longorias state-sanctioned video diary of his week in Pyongyang that is as fascinating as it is superficial.Its a highly regimented visit organised through the unexpected figure of Alejandro Cao, a forty-year-old Spaniard who is the governments only foreign employee; Special Delegate Foreign Relations DPRK. Over the course of Longorias stay, he goes from being an affable curiosity to revealing the depth of his devotion to the party line; he speaks to a group of school children and tells them how Kim Jong-un is revered across the globe and how North Korea is effectively the centre of the world. Another official, however, admits to Longorias quietly probing camera that the DPRKs understanding of how the world sees it is actually very limited. The aim is to highlight the propaganda wars being embarked upon both within the countrys borders and on the international stage. Needless to say, those two stories are shown in stark contrast as the two sides spin diametrically opposed narratives: North Korea began the Korean War vs the USA did; their military might is a threat vs US imperialism is a threat. This is done with talking head interviews with various experts, defectors, and officials outside the DPRK and various officials and citizens within it. Longoria manages not to take sides, but presents the conflicting nature of the accounts as well as exposing the odd fallacy such as the myth that Kim Jong-un fed his own uncle to the dogs. The problem is that his camera is ultimately too passive for a film interested in the party-line and the veracity of the truths being presented. The director is canny enough to juxtapose audio of a Western expert lamenting the horrific conditions of North Korean people with images of citizens skating on an ice rink, grinning happily. Hes also wary enough to make vague asides speculating as to the reality behind those smiles. There is a moment when he confesses that were he to be exposed to the internal national propaganda for much longer, he might even begin to believe it. As deeply engrossing as the directors travel diary may be it remains inert, concerned with surface and unable to get enough of an angle to see whats happening beneath it. Even via voiceover, the commentary on what hes being fed either by the DPRK or the West lacks punch. In the end, any glimpse inside North Korea is a boon for those interested in seeing it, and Longoria gets unprecedented access. However, this is a snapshot accompanied by counter-claims that lacks any real digging into either. It all means that The Propaganda Game feels strangely inconsequential and only of real note for the behind-the-scenes glimpse it proffers audiences of North Koreas global posturing. Ben Nicholson | @BRNicholson Cargo shipments of the rechargeable lithium batteries used in countless consumer products should no longer be allowed on passenger planes because they can create intense fires capable of destroying an aircraft, a U.N. aviation agency has concluded. The decision late Monday by the Montreal-based International Civil Aviation Organizations top-level governing council to ban the shipments isnt binding, but most countries follow the agencys standards. The ban is effective on April 1. This interim prohibition will continue to be in force as separate work continues through ICAO on a new lithium battery packaging performance standard, currently expected by 2018, said Olumuyiwa Benard Aliu, the ICAO councils president. Namrata Kolachalam, a U.S. Transportation Department spokeswoman, called the ban a necessary action to protect passengers, crews, and aircraft from the current risk to aviation safety. ICAOs decision frees the department to begin work on regulations to impose a ban. Airlines flying to and from the U.S. that accept lithium battery shipments carry 26 million passengers a year, the Federal Aviation Administration estimates. A law passed by Congress in 2012 at the behest of industry prohibits the Transportation Department from issuing any regulations regarding air shipments of lithium batteries that are more stringent than ICAO standards unless there is a crash that can be shown to have been started by batteries. Since most evidence in crashes is destroyed by fire, thats virtually impossible to do, critics of the provision say. Rep. John Mica, R-Fla., who authored the provision, has said that since batteries are an international industry there should be a single, international standard, otherwise it would be too confusing for shippers to follow multiple rules. Lithium-ion batteries are used in a vast array of products from cellphones and laptops to some electric cars. About 5.4 billion lithium-ion cells were manufactured worldwide in 2014. A battery is made up of two or more cells. A majority of batteries are transported on cargo ships, but about 30 percent are shipped by air. The ban doesnt apply to batteries packaged inside equipment like a laptop with a battery inside, for example. PRBA The Rechargeable Battery Association, which opposed the ban, said in a statement that the industry is preparing to comply with the ban, but there may be significant disruption in the logistics supply chain, especially for batteries used in medical devices. Aviation authorities have long known that the batteries can self-ignite, creating fires that are hotter than 1,100 degrees. Thats near the melting point of aluminum, which is used in aircraft construction. Safety concerns increased after FAA tests showed gases emitted by overheated batteries can build up in cargo containers, leading to explosions capable of disabling aircraft fire suppression systems and allowing fires to rage unchecked. As a result of the tests, an organization representing aircraft manufacturers including the worlds two largest, Boeing and Airbus said last year that airliners arent designed to withstand lithium battery fires and that continuing to accept battery shipments is an unacceptable risk. More than other types of batteries, li-ion batteries are susceptible to short-circuit if they are damaged, exposed to extreme temperatures, overcharged, packed too close to together or contain manufacturing defects. When they short-circuit, the batteries can experience uncontrolled temperature increases known as thermal runaway. That, in turn, can spread short-circuiting to nearby batteries until an entire shipment is overheating and emitting explosive gases. Its not unusual for tens of thousands of batteries to be shipped in a single cargo container. The U.S delegation to ICAO decided last October to back a ban, calling the risk immediate and urgent. Since 2006, three cargo jets have been destroyed and four pilots killed in in-flight fires that accident investigators say where either started by batteries or made more severe by their proximity. The International Federation of Air Line Pilots Associations lobbied the ICAO council unsuccessfully to extend the ban to cargo carriers. Dozens of airlines have already voluntarily stopped accepting battery shipments, but others oppose a ban. KLM, the royal Dutch airline, made a presentation to a lower-level ICAO panel arguing against a ban, according to an aviation official familiar with the presentation. KLM and Air France are owned by a Franco-Dutch holding company. Representatives from the Netherlands and France on the dangerous goods panel voted last fall against a ban. The official wasnt authorized to speak publicly and spoke on the condition that he not be named. KLM officials didnt respond to requests for comment. Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. 'Pitch Perfect 3': Justin Bieber Wants to Join the Cast and Work with Rebel Wilson? Pitch Perfect is one of the most successful franchises in Hollywood. If Rebel Wilson and Anna Kendrick are not enough to make the third film even more epic, another superstar wants to be a part of the acoustic team! Justin Bieber may have enjoyed his cameo in Zoolander 2 so much that he also wants to be casted in the musical comedy film. According to a HollywoodLife source, it is not far for the 21-year-old "Love Yourself" hitmaker to be a part of the movie since he had a little conversation with Wilson about it already. Rebel and Justin exchanged pleasantries at the [Jennifer Lopez] concert that consisted of talk about working together and she mentioned that he should do Pitch Perfect 3 since they are mutual friends with Adam DeVine, the source told the site exclusively. Unlike Zoolander 2, where he was assassinated for simply looking good, Bieber can actually use his musical background if he will indeed join the cast of PP3. Although there was no confirmation for Justin's role for the highly-anticipated movie, the idea of him joining Wilson and Kendrick is already good enough for Beliebers to go into a state of hysteria. Obviously this wasnt a business meeting but it seemed like something that could blossom into something fun and was highly considered, the source added. Justin was definitely [up] for it. A Los Angeles Times writer first broke the news that Pitch Perfect 3 is definitely going to happen back in April, tweeting that Wilson herself told her the good news. News: Rebel Wilson just told me there will be a 3rd @PitchPerfect and she recently signed on to be in it! (She doesn't know abt Kendrick.) Amy Kaufman (@AmyKinLA) April 11, 2015 Pop Sugar reports in October that Elizabeth Banks, who starred in and directed the second film, will return to direct Pitch Perfect 3. There's no recent update about the third installment, so let's just sit back and wait if Justin Bieber will be a part of the movie. 2016 The Classical Art, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. TagsJustin Bieber, Rebel Wilson, Pitch Perfect 3 Akron police 4 Akron police are still searching for a 27-year-old man who crashed his car in to the Cuyahoga River in Akron's Merriman Valley. (File photo) AKRON, Ohio -- Akron police are searching for a man who has been missing for more than two days after he crashed his car into the Cuyahoga River. Family and friends of La'Ron Harris, 27, have been searching the river in the Merriman Valley alongside Akron firefighters and police for two days. Some said they believe Harris is dead. Akron police said they still classified Harris as a missing person since he has not been found. Family members told investigators it would very unusual for Harris to go more than two days without contacting anyone. "I just can't give up on him," his live-in girlfriend Teylor Nurse said while searching on the banks of the river. "I told him I would have his back through everything. I know he'd be doing the same for me." Harris about 2:30 a.m. Sunday was at the Lazy Gator bar in the Merriman Valley's bar complex. A friend, 25-year-old Kaila Watkins, asked him for a ride home, according to police. The two got in the car and Harris drove out of the parking lot onto Weathervane Lane. Instead of going with the curve in Weathervane Lane towards Merriman Road, Harris drove into an apartment complex driveway and crashed through a wooden barrier. The car plummeted into the Cuyahoga River and sunk. Watkins told police they both escaped the car. She swam against the current to the riverbank and was unharmed. Watkins told police she saw Harris swimming with the current, but never saw him again. Nurse said she found it odd that Harris would have trouble swimming out of the water since he was always a strong swimmer. Family and friends called his cellphone repeatedly since the crash but it goes directly to voicemail. Firefighters used a tow truck to pull the car from the river on Monday. Family and friends returned to the river Tuesday. Harris was a manager at the Charley's Grilled Subs at the Beachwood Mall. David James Akron Schools David James, the Akron City Schools Superintendent, seen here during the Lebron James Family Foundation Hometown Hall Meeting at Buchtel Community Learning Center in Akron on Thursday October 23, 2014, told WKSU that he wants to pilot year-round school at two Akron Public Schools locations. (Kyle Lanzer, special to The Plain Dealer) AKRON, Ohio -- Akron Public Schools Superintendent David James blasted the Ohio state report card grading system, which gave his district a failing grade last year, during his State of the Schools speech this week. James called the system unfair and called for increased accountability in charter schools, which his district shares money with. "When we look at how very low performing charters schools can continue to get millions of dollars - that flows from us to lower performing schools - that's just not fair," James said, reported by WCPN. James told WKSU that he would like to pilot a couple Akron schools as "year-round schools," telling reporter M.L. Schultze that the district doesn't have enough time in a conventional school year to get students enrolled in internships and other college preparatory work. Two new restaurants join Montrose dining boom: In addition to Melt Bar and Grilled, which is expected to open next month in the former Friendly's on Ohio 18, two more chains have announced upcoming locations in busy Montrose, the Beacon Journal reports. PizzaFire, a fast casual pizza restaurant with locations nearby in downtown Akron and Cuyahoga Falls, is planning a Fairlawn store in a yet-to-be disclosed location. Hospitality Restaurants, the franchise known for its Rosewood Grill restaurant, is planning to open an upscale seafood restaurant in an existing building on Ohio 18. East Akron Community House reopens under EANDC: The patriarch of East Akron Neighborhood Development Corp. is enjoying a reunion with his former home. Grady Appleton, executive director of the development corporation, showed off a $200,000 renovation earlier this week at the East Akron Community House, which the development corporation acquired through a sheriff's sale last year. The new community house will feature mobile Akron General medical services, the Beacon Journal reports, and will resume many of the education and recreation programs that were formerly operated there. East Akron Neighborhood Development Corp. formerly operated out of the community house, where Appleton was deputy director before leaving in 2011. The community house's finances wound up in shambles a short time later, and the building was foreclosed on in 2014. Akron police 3 An Ellet High School student was arrested on Wednesday with a gun, police said. (File photo) AKRON, Ohio -- A 17-year-old high school student was arrested Wednesday with a loaded handgun at Ellet High School, police said. The student had the loaded semiautomatic handgun with him in class when he was arrested, according to Akron Police Capt. Daniel Zampelli. The school was on lockdown from about 10:30 a.m. to 11:20 p.m. A staff member told school officials and a resource office that they believed a student had a gun. The school was placed on lockdown and the gun was found and the student was taken into custody, according to school officials. The student was arrested on suspicion on of carrying a concealed weapon and bringing a gun to school. He will be taken to the Summit County Juvenile Detention Center, Zampelli said. Zampelli said the student was arrested without incident and handed over the gun as soon as police confronted him. STOW, Ohio-- An Alabama truck driver pleaded no contest Monday to charges in the death of a tow truck driver killed while changing someone's flat tire along the Ohio Turnpike. David Atkinson, 44, of Foley, Alabama, pleaded no contest to vehicular manslaughter, a second-degree misdemeanor and failing to safely approach a vehicle displaying emergency lights. Stow Municipal Court Judge Kim Hoover will sentence him April 26. Atkinson's semi hit Michael Kennedy, 56, of Ravenna, killing him on May 11. Atkinson about 8 a.m. was driving a 2015 International semi 65 miles per hour eastbound on Interstate 80 east of the Boston Heights entrance ramp when he saw Kennedy working on a car on the side of the road. A witness at the time said that Kennedy was wearing an emergency vest and that his emergency lights were on as he helped a 24-year-old man change a flat tire. Kennedy worked for Interstate Towing and Transport Specialists of Macedonia. Atkinson, who worked for Flowerwood Trucking of Loxley, Alabama told State Highway Patrol troopers that he tried to get over into the middle lane, as required by Ohio law, but was unable to do so because another vehicle was in the lane. The trailer Atkinson was towing clipped Kennedy. He died instantly. Ashok Bandi, the motorist Kennedy was helping, said at the time that Atkinson burst into tears when he saw what happened to Kennedy. Both men called 911. Atkinson had no drugs or alcohol in his system at the time of the crash, according to court records. Kennedy's wife, Vicki Kennedy, is suing both Atkinson and Flowerwood. The lawsui says that Atkinson negligently caused Kennedy's death by failing to obey traffic laws. Flowerwood is also responsible for Kennedy's death because the company employed Atkinson and because Atkinson was driving for the company at the time of the crash, the lawsuit says. Vicki Kennedy is seeking a minimum of $25,000, plus additional money for punitive damages. The case was initially brought in Summit County Common Pleas Court but has since moved to federal court at Flowerwood's request. Attorneys for Flowerwood and Atkinson wrote in court filings that Kennedy acted negligently and that his conduct was more to blame than Atkinson. They also argued that Atkinson and Flowerwood had no control over Kennedy's actions and can't be held liable. Atkinson's attorney in the civil case, William Kovach, declined comment on Wednesday. CLEVELAND, Ohio - A lending hub for nearly nine decades, the small but majestic Pearl Street Savings & Trust building has been sitting vacant for the last four years. Now the property, a Cleveland landmark and an Old Brooklyn neighborhood icon, could become a restaurant and apartments, under plans crafted through a city grant, shepherded by a nonprofit group and picked up by a local developer. On Feb. 16, a company led by investor Radhika Reddy paid $185,000 for the historic structure at Pearl and Broadview roads. Reddy said she hopes to tidy up the bank lobby as an event space, which she'll pitch as a potential after-hours venue during the Republican National Convention in July. Broader renovations could start in early 2017, after she pursues tax credits to assist with preservation and construction. At only 26,600 square feet, the Pearl Street sale is a modest real estate deal. But it has outsize potential for Old Brooklyn. Jeffrey Verespej, executive director of the nonprofit Old Brooklyn Community Development Corp., describes the building as the most important property in the neighborhood, which spans 6.2 square miles southwest of downtown. "This building, for a long time, signified the strength of the neighborhood - and then, for the five years it was closed, the concern about the neighborhood's future," Verespej said. "So our organization just made it a priority." A rendering shows the historic Pearl Street Savings & Trust Co. building in Cleveland's Old Brooklyn neighborhood, reimagined after renovations. Built in 1923, the Pearl Street Savings & Trust Co.'s Broadview branch opened the following year. It was designed by Hubbell & Benes, a prominent Cleveland architecture firm that worked on the West Side Market and the Cleveland Museum of Art. Pearl Street Savings merged with the Cleveland Trust Co. in 1929, during a wave of bank consolidation heading into the Great Depression. The original name and tall signs atop the building eventually disappeared. A photograph from the 1930s shows the Pearl Street Savings & Trust Co. branch at Pearl and Broadview roads as it used to appear, tall signs and all. But the property was home to a bank, with offices upstairs, until October 2011. That's when U.S. Bank, the most recent lender to occupy the ornate lobby, departed. And so did the remaining tenants. Real estate records show the building has changed hands three times during the last three years. Reddy purchased it from the owners of a neighboring dental practice, who bought the empty building in 2014 to gain control of its parking lot. Buckeye Family Dental is keeping that parking and has negotiated a deal to give Reddy partial access during the day and full access outside of business hours. "The dentists have been excellent partners with us," she said. "They fully understand that, after investing $1 million-plus in their own practice, it's important for [this building] to come online and make a really positive statement in the neighborhood." She estimates that the project, which could include a rooftop deck offering views of the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo, will cost $2 million to $3 million. While considering the purchase, Reddy looked at drawings prepared by Dimit Architects at the Old Brooklyn nonprofit's request. In its quest to land a developer, the neighborhood group secured a city grant for early design work, to show what might be possible. A rendering shows the former bank lobby at the Pearl Street Savings & Loan Co. building, refashioned as a restaurant. Reddy's plans call for commercial space, perhaps starting as banquet hall and evolving into a restaurant, on the first floor. Seven to 11 apartments or corporate suites might fit upstairs as part of the second phase of construction, she said. Steady bookings at the Ariel International Center, her combination events-space-and-office-incubator on East 40th Street, have Reddy looking for other places to host gatherings and house international travelers. "She certainly has the background and tenacity to make this development work," Cleveland City Councilman Tony Brancatelli, who represents the area, wrote in an email about Reddy. The building gained city landmark status - a protective designation - on Councilman Kevin Kelley's watch in 2012, before he became council president. If Old Brooklyn has a downtown, Kelley said, then the former bank is its commercial center. "I think this is the best result we could have hoped for," he said of Reddy's purchase. "I'm very optimistic about what she can do with this going forward." blackshaw hearing.jpeg Kenneth Blackshaw, second from left, sits with his attorneys Jacqueline Greene and Terry Gilbert Wednesday. He was freed from prison during a hearing. (Eric Heisig/cleveland.com) CLEVELAND, Ohio -- A Cleveland man was released from prison Wednesday after serving more than two years in a case built by three corrupt East Cleveland police officers. Kenneth Blackshaw, 50, was still clad in an orange prison jumpsuit during the hearing in front of Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Judge Maureen Clancy. He said little more than "thank you" during the five-minute hearing where the judge vacated his drug-trafficking conviction. Prosecutor Timothy J. McGinty noted that police found drugs when investigating the case but told the judge that the office "has no case at this point." Blackshaw's charges were dismissed with prejudice, which means they cannot re-try him for the same incident at a later date. "Our officers, our witnesses were in the wrong," McGinty said. "Our evidence is unusable and we seek justice which is the release of this individual." Attorney Terry Gilbert, who represented Blackshaw, praised the prosecutor's office and their willingness to work with him and defense attorneys to ensure that justice is done the right way. "I think this is hopefully the kind of effort that will continue in the future," said Gilbert, a noted local civil-rights lawyer. "Because we know that nobody is above the law, especially police officers." Blackshaw was arrested in 2013 based on a case built by East Cleveland police. Clancy in 2014 sentenced Blackshaw, who has numerous drug convictions, to five years in prison. Sgt. Torris Moore and officers Antonio Malone and Eric Jones worked on the case. During a search of Blackshaw's grandmother's house on East 85th Street, Malone also broke a padlock on Blackshaw's bedroom door. He then took about $100,000 in cash, and split about $30,000 of it between Moore Malone and himself. "The public knows that the officers actually targeted Mr. Blackshaw," McGinty said. The three officers have pleaded guilty to federal corruption charges for actions in investigating Blackshaw and other defendants., In several cases they filed search warrants with falsified information. They will be sentenced in April. Two other men, Hosea Lock and John Wallace, were also charged with drug trafficking based on the officers' corrupt actions. Their convictions are also expected to be overturned, though neither served prison time. McGinty said after the hearing that his office also stalled at least two cases once it found out about the federal investigation into the East Cleveland officers. Backstage at the Fabulous Food Show, it's all about the prep When he visited Cleveland in 2012 for the Fabulous Food Show, celebrity chef Bobby Flay talked to the audience about the wonders of chipotle peppers. He'll wow them with some of his creations when he returns to Cleveland August 6, when he'll co-host the Autism Speaks Gala and the Cleveland Convention Center. (Lisa DeJong, The Plain Dealer) CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Cleveland's Iron Chef Michael Symon will bring another Iron Chef onboard when he hosts the 2016 Autism Speaks benefit Saturday, August 6 at the Cleveland Convention Center. Bobby Flay, a good friend and fellow competitor on Food Network's "Iron Chef" shows, will join Symon as co-host at the fund raiser. "So happy to have one of my best friends and one of the nation's most recognizable and greatest chefs come to my hometown to help me with an even that is so near and dear to my heart," Symon said via text. He signed his message #forevergrateful. Symon and Flay will be joined by 25 of Cleveland's most popular chefs for the biennial event. The names of participating chefs have not yet been released - but expect a lineup to rival the 2014 fundraiser, when names like Douglas Katz, Jonathon Sawyer, Karen Small and others lent a hand. Two years ago the benefit took place in the soaring Atrium within the Cleveland Museum of Art. Fellow Iron Chef and "The Chew" co-host Mario Batali served as honorary chef. That year's event drew 700 guests, who generated about $250,000 to support the fight against autism, a spectrum of complex disorders affecting brain development. Trading Freedom in the Age of Heightened Market Protection: The U.S. CFTC's Expanding Interpretation of Price Manipulation 22 February 2016 The CFTC is taking a position in enforcement litigation that would lower the bar for proving unlawful price manipulation. By abandoning the requirement of proving that the accused had a specific intent to create an artificial price and replacing it with an intent to influence price, the CFTC would materially ease its burden of proof. While doubtlessly motivated by the desire to enhance price integrity, the CFTC's position is being strongly questioned from a legal and a policy point of view by the futures industry. A group representing the major futures industry institutions and trade associations is seeking to oppose the CFTC in an amicus brief on grounds that the CFTC's position deviates from decades of precedent and would blur the line between legitimate trading and manipulation to create inappropriate legal uncertainty, which would act to the detriment of well-functioning markets. Download PDF China has sent fighter jets to a disputed island in the South China Sea, where it deployed surface-to-air missiles earlier this month, U.S. government sources told Reuters on Tuesday. One U.S. official, however, noted that China regularly sent jets to Woody Island, part of the Paracel archipelago controlled by Beijing. The deployment was first reported by Fox News. This follows several "militarization" actions by China in the region, which it claims control of, in competition with several other Asian nations including Vietnam and the Philippines. The Philippines last October won the right to have its territorial claims over the disputed area heard by an arbitration court in the Hague, infuriating China. Control of the region is valuable because more than $5 trillion worth of global trade passes through the South China Sea each year, and China has been accused of ramping up tensions over control in recent years by building artificial islands on reefs, on which it has added airstrips and other military-style installations. The U.S. regularly exercises its right to "freedom of navigation" by sending naval vessels through the South China Sea, including within 12 nautical miles of islands claimed by China. Beijing has responded by calling these actions "provocations" that risked a military response. A U.S. think tank reported on Monday that China may be installing a high-frequency radar system on the Cuarteron Reef in the Spratly Islands that could significantly boost its ability to control the strategic sea. And last Thursday, the U.S. accused China of inflaming the issue by its apparent deployment of surface-to-air missiles on Woody Island. That is why Cramer turned to Robert Moreno, a chartist, publisher of RightViewTrading.com and a colleague of Cramer's at RealMoney.com . Specifically, Cramer was interested to know what the charts indicated for the large integrated oil and oil service plays if crude holds above $30. "I'm a big believer in the lower-longer thesis the idea that crude will stay down, likely for the rest of the year until he hedges expire at most of the American producers but there's a lot of emotion invested in which way oil is going to jump," the " Mad Money " host said. With the price of crude taking a nosedive after a tremendous run above $30, Jim Cramer wanted to get a sense about where major oil stocks could be headed. These charts may look good right now, but you need to remember that this can all change in the blink of an eye Moreno looked at the daily chart of Exxon-Mobil and pointed out that the stock broke down below its 50-day moving average in early December, which sent it plummeting. It then went through an erratic period before rallying dramatically in a straight line for the last month. Read more from Mad Money with Jim Cramer Cramer Remix: Honeywell triggered a major trend Cramer: Bernie Sanders 'buried alive', boosts stocks Cramer: Low $30s is the magic price for oil Moreno also noted that the Moving Average Convergence Divergence indicator, which helps technicians predict changes in a stocks trajectory, is tracking higher to reflect positive momentum. However, Moreno worried that because the stock has rallied so hard lately, the overall volume has been declining. He interpreted the weak volume as an indicator that this run could be deceptive. Overall, Moreno found that the technicals were sound for Exxon but is skeptical that the stock could continue to roar higher. Until the volume gets more positive, he suggested holding off. Next up was Chevron , which was much more compelling for Moreno. Last week, the stock finally broke above a key level of $85 and is only a few points away from another ceiling of resistance at $89. Moreno also found that the Chaikin Money Flow oscillator, an indicator technicians use to measure key levels of buying or selling pressure, was very positive for Chevron. He also liked that the stock has underperformed versus Exxon in recent months, and it could be poised to play catch up with Exxon. Additionally, Moreno found that oil plays like Schlumberger and a riskier production stock like Pioneer Natural Resources could be ready to roar higher. "We have to remember one key thing. These charts may look good right now, but you need to remember that this can all change in the blink of an eye if the price of oil keeps going down, which could ruin everything," Cramer said. If oil can hold above $30 a barrel, than the charts will remain bullish and Cramer thinks Moreno could turn out to be right even as he is skeptical that it could. Industrial stocks have been the big ugly ducklings of the stock market for ages. And if anyone would have told Jim Cramer 48 hours ago that a company would take a run at $75 billion United Technologies , he would have thought that was insane. But it happened, and it was a big wake-up call for Cramer. Stocks sank on Tuesday after JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon said the bank has $44 billion in direct loan exposure to oil and gas, which put a new spin on the negatives of lower oil and gas prices. "I didn't like anything about this discussion. JPMorgan reported a little more than a month ago. Why didn't they say something then? It's not like oil wasn't low in January," the "Mad Money" host said. With oil and bank stocks hated badly in the market, Cramer was intrigued by industrials. When CNBC's David Faber broke news of a possible merger between Honeywell and United Technologies on Monday, it prompted Cramer to take a fresh look at the cohort. Albert Chan (Center) is removed from the Legislative Council Chambers for interjecting during Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying 2016 Policy Address in the Admiralty district of Hong Kong on January 13, 2016. Hong Kong should sell the bricks hurled at police during the Mong Kok riots to democracy-loving tourists, like Germany did the Berlin Wall. That is the completely serious suggestion from Hong Kong lawmaker Albert Chan Wai-yi, who told the Legislative Council (Legco) on Monday that the site of the city's most violent protests since 2014's Umbrella Movement should be made into a tourist attraction. "I was in Berlin a couple of times after the wall fell and saw that the Berlin government used the wall as a major tourist attraction," Chan told CNBC. He likened the bricks thrown by Mong Kok rioters to pieces of the wall that separated East and West Berlin from 1961 to 1989, which were sold as souvenirs after the wall came down in 1989. "The Berlin wall pieces have become a symbol of democracy and liberty, the Mong Kok bricks are definitely a major symbol as well," said Chan, adding that buyers could use the bricks to "condemn political violence, or glorify them as symbol for the struggle of democracy." watch now watch now watch now watch now Saudi Arabia's oil minister declared Tuesday that he was not at war with shale oil drillers, but it's clear the U.S. industry is still under siege. At the annual IHS CERAWeek energy conference in Houston, the global energy industry has been meeting against a backdrop of the worst oil downturn in years. Industry executives at the 35th annual conference painted a picture of an industry cutting costs, trimming capital expenditure, holding off on long-term projects, shutting down less efficient operations and facing a tighter financing environment. "It's hard to predict where it's going to go. As companies we have to plan for the worst case," said Ryan Lance, CEO of ConocoPhillips . Conoco recently slashed its dividend for the first time in 25 years, the first big company to do so in an industry where the payout is sacrosanct, and others are expected to follow. Mark Papa, partner with Riverstone Holdings and a pioneer of the shale industry, predicted that the bloodshed would not stop any time soon, though he does expect a new, reorganized industry at the end of the crunch. Both men doubted the likelihood that a proposed production freeze led by Saudi Arabia and Russia would help rebalance the market. "In the next six to 12 months you're going to see a disintegration of the industrya lot of bankruptcies, bodies everywhere," said Papa. As chairman and chief executive of EOG Resources from 1999 to 2003, Papa helped create the unconventional oil business in the U.S. "Never in our wildest did we think we'd find enough oil or the industry would find enough oil that we would upset the global demand balance," he said. But the balance was upset with a new gusher of U.S. supply and , as Saudi Arabian oil minister Ali al-Naimi explained during his appearance at the conference, non OPEC producers refused to cooperate to hold back production, so in November 2014 OPEC adopted a new policy of letting the market set prices. Since that time, the price has fallen even further, hurting high-cost producers that OPEC targeted with its policy shale among them. Naimi also told the conference that he was "not banking" on production cuts. "There is less trust, why worry about cuts," he said. He said that hopes for a freeze had helped the market and that even a marginal cut would help prices more than no cut at all. But he emphasized that producers would not agree to cut production, a disappointment to an industry that was hopeful talks of a freeze were early signs that a real reduction in output could be close at hand. "Not many countries are going to deliver, even if they say they will cut production, they will not deliver. So there is no sense in wasting our time seeking production cuts," Naimi said. Naimi declined to comment to CNBC on whether he thought the freeze would continue to be supportive of oil prices. Oil fell sharply after the Saudi oil boss's remarks, with West Texas Intermediate settling down 4.5 percent at $31.87 per barrel. Naimi said there would be a meeting on the freeze in March, but cautioned that complete cooperation promised to be difficult. The oil minister from Iran, which is adding barrels to the market, called the freeze "a joke" shortly before Naimi spoke. But Naimi did have some positive words for shale, saying that the shale sector could provide additional barrels to the world market at a time of rising demand, and that he was pleased that the U.S. dropped am export ban on oil, allowing for more flexibility. But he also warned that high-cost producers would have to find ways to lower their costs or liquidate. watch now watch now watch now Donald Trump has won the Nevada Republican caucuses, the third-consecutive victory for the real estate mogul as the GOP presidential race rolls into Super Tuesday, NBC News projected. Trump, who has already won GOP contests in New Hampshire and in South Carolina, took 44 percent of the Nevada Republican vote, with Sen. Marco Rubio garnering 24 percent and Sen. Ted Cruz getting 21 percent, according to NBC projections from early results. "We love Nevada!" Trump told a victory rally. "We will be celebrating for a long time!" As of 2:45 a.m. ET, NBC News had allocated 22 of Nevada's 30 delegates with 12 going to Trump and 5 each for Rubio and Cruz. While Trump may be the projected winner, the percentages will matter in Nevada. As a proportional state caucus, a candidate gets the same portion of Nevada delegates as they do votes. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks during a campaign watch party on the day of the Nevada republican caucus at the Treasure Island Ballroom in Las Vegas, NV on Tuesday Feb. 23, 2016. Jabin Botsford | The Washington Post | Getty Images Although there are still many scheduled primaries and caucuses ahead, Trump's third- consecutive victory may force party leaders to begin to accept him as the party's likely standard-bearer. "We weren't expected to win this one, you know that right?" Trump said in his Nevada victory speech. "Of course if you listened to the pundits we weren't expected to win too much and now we're winning, winning, winning the country. And soon the country is going to start winning, winning, winning." Entrance polls indicated that Trump won with a broad swath of support: He captured the largest portions of caucus goers identifying as very conservative, somewhat conservative, and moderate. He also defeated his rivals among white evangelicals, those who graduated college, those who didn't, men, women and every age group over 30. Trump touted those results, proclaiming that "we won with highly educated, we won with poorly educated, I love the poorly educated: We're the smartest people, we're the most loyal people." Cruz was able to notch a victory over Trump in the first state to voice its opinion, Iowa, but he posted third-place finishes in the next two states. Rubio, who is averaging third place behind Trump and Cruz in recent national polls, was looking for his first outright win in Nevada: His camp had spun a third-place finish in Iowa and a second-place in South Carolina as signs of momentum. Additionally, Rubio supporters have expressed hope that Republicans who had been behind Jeb Bush would come to their side after the former Florida governor's exit. Early entrance poll data indicated that 32 percent of Republican caucus-goers identified as white evangelicals, and 38 percent said they were at least 65 years old, according to NBC News. That's fewer white evangelicals than this year's Iowa caucus and South Carolina primary, but the largest portion above 65 of any Republican test yet. Additionally, 40 percent of early entrance poll respondents identified as "very conservative," and 43 percent as "somewhat conservative," according to NBC News. Entrance polls also showed that only about 1 percent of Nevada GOP caucus goers said they were black with 86 percent identifying as white, and 8 percent as Hispanic, NBC News reported. On the education front, 49 percent of entrance poll respondents said they had at least graduated college, while only 12 percent reported high school or less as their education level. The NBC News entrance poll also found that 61 percent said they wanted the next president to be from outside the political establishment, with only 33 percent saying they prefer a candidate with political experience. Viacom took a step toward a strategic shift Tuesday, but "Fast Money" traders said they would still prefer other names in media. Viacom which has seen its shares fall 47 percent in the last year announced it is seeking a deal to sell a minority stake in Paramount Pictures. Shares popped more than 5 percent at one point in the session before closing only 0.4 percent higher. Trader Guy Adami argued that the reversal did not bode well for the stock. He believes Viacom has reached a short-term peak. InstaCart employees fulfill orders for delivery at a Whole Foods Market store in Los Angeles. Patrick T. Fallon | Bloomberg | Getty Images Whole Foods and Instacart are taking their relationship to the next level. The $10 billion national grocery store chain is making an investment in the four-year-old delivery startup, according to multiple sources. The size of the deal could not be learned, but sources say the deal is essentially done, barring an unforeseen last-minute change of heart. The two companies have also signed a five-year delivery partnership, these people said, making Instacart the exclusive delivery partner for Whole Foods' perishables business. Other terms of the deal could not be learned, but Instacart's commercial agreements with its grocery store partners typically include a revenue sharing component. Spokespeople for both companies said they had no information to share. Read more from Re/code: Google Express adds grocery delivery, taking on Amazon,Instacart, everybody on-demand Instacart, the $2 billion grocery delivery startup, lays off 12in-house recruiters Instacart confirms $220 million investment. Now comes the hardpart. The deals come as Whole Foods stock has dropped more than 45 percent over the past year amid increased competition from other grocers selling more and more natural and organic foods. But the company's existing relationship with Instacart has been a bright spot, company executives have said. In his first-quarter earnings report script earlier this month, Whole Foods co-CEO Walter Robb said "many" of its stores are "seeing [Instacart] sales as a percentage of total store in the mid-to-high single digits." The two companies, which have partnered on deliveries since 2014, work together in 16 cities. For Instacart, the deals provide the startup with some added stability and credibility after a bumpy December. The startup, whose workers deliver groceries from local stores in as little as an hour, laid off 12 in-house recruiters that month, signaling that its most rapid growth may have passed. Instacart, which has raised $275 million from investors at a valuation of about $2 billion, also raised its minimum delivery and annual subscription fees by 50 percent. Zurich Insurance is exploring a sale of its Hong Kong and Singapore operations as it reviews its non-core businesses outside Europe, sources familiar with the matter said. The Swiss insurer has discussed the plan with several investment banks but has yet to hire advisers, the sources said, cautioning that no deal was certain. A spokesman for Zurich, Europe's fifth-biggest insurer which is battling falling revenue in general insurance and sluggish growth at home, declined to comment on its plans. The Swiss insurer launched an in-depth review of its business in September after explosions at the Chinese port of Tianjin caused losses of around $275 million. It had also abandoned a 5.6 billion pound bid for Britain's RSA Insurance after a "deterioration" in its general insurance business. watch now watch now watch now watch now Six years ago, Brandon Jordan was a high school dropout, living on the streets of Atlanta. "There were times where I didn't know what I was going to eat, there were times where I didn't know where I was going to sleep, just not knowing if you're going to survive the next day," said Jordan, now 24 years old. At 18, he was homeless, but not hopeless. "I ended up realizing that I need to do what I need to do," he said. He got his GED, "and from there on I pretty much said I'm going to climb and do nothing but strive for the best." Jordan got an apartment with friends and tried college, but ran out of money. "I wanted more for myself but I didn't quite have the opportunity or anything going for myself to get where I wanted to be." He was working at Panera when he saw an ad on a train that changed his life. Jordan applied to Year Up, a nonprofit that offers low-income urban youths six months of intensive training and a six-month corporate internship in IT, financial operations, project management, quality assurance or customer service. Not only is it free, students get a stipend and college credit. If someone told me three years ago that I'd be doing what I'm doing today, I wouldn't believe it. I might even have laughed. Bryan Goodson Year Up graduate Bryan Goodson at Salesforce in San Francisco. Jodi Gralnick | CNBC Gerald Chertavian, who worked on Wall Street before attending Harvard Business School and co-founding a software company, started the program in 2000. But he'd been planning it for more than a decade. He was inspired when he participated in the Big Brother program. "I was matched with a young boy in New York City who lived in what was then the most heavily photographed crime scene in New York City," Chertavian said. "He was someone I spent all of my Saturdays with and he really taught me about the opportunity divide." There are currently 6.7 million 16- to 24-year-olds in the U.S. who are neither enrolled in school nor participating in the labor market, according to United We Serve, President Barack Obama's nationwide service initiative. This group is disproportionately male and from minority groups. Thirty-two percent are black, although that group makes up only 15 percent of that age segment. Year Up is aimed at these so-called opportunity youth, and is founded on the thesis that "talent is distributed evenly across this country yet opportunity is not," as Chertavian put it. "There are a significant number of young people who need opportunities to increase their education levels, gain access to the labor market," said Valerie Wilson, director of the program on race, ethnicity and the economy at the Economic Policy Institute. "They're important to the economy, to this country. Demographics are changing, people of color are making up a larger share of the population and labor force. We cannot afford to ignore or overlook this part of the population." Year Up applicants must be 18-24 years old and have a high school diploma or GED. Many have some college credit but often were forced to drop out for financial reasons. Almost all have faced some type of adversity, including homelessness, foster care, drug abuse and teen pregnancy. And all want something more for themselves, they just haven't found the path to achieve it. Year Up offers that path. But most prospective participants are skeptical at first. Graduate Bryan Goodson passed up his first opportunity to apply. "I thought it was too good to be true," he said. It's a sentiment Chertavian said he hears echoed again and again. But so many young people do apply, only 1 in 5 applicants makes the cut. The admissions committee looks for motivation above anything else. If getting in is tough, the program itself is tougher. Students sign a contract that lays out the expectations and consequences for not meeting those expectations. If you're one second late to class, you're docked money and points (which is why all the clocks at Year Up are digital). You can also be penalized for bad language, missing assignments or not dressing professionally, among other things. If you lose too many points, you're out of the program. Twenty-five percent of those who start, don't finish. Students learn the technical skills they'll need for their internship, but they also spend a lot of time learning soft skills. In addition to being on time and dressing for success, they practice such things as how to shake hands and make eye contact, writing a professional email and perfecting an elevator pitch. "Year Up fundamentally believes that you hire for skills but you fire for behavior," said Chertavian. "If you talk to many, many companies across the country today, they're not getting the professional skills and the customer service skills, and really the teamwork, reliability, problem solving, they're not getting those skills from many young adults coming out of even four-year college settings." Those who make it through the six-month classroom boot camp are awarded an internship at one of 250 companies that partner with Year Up, including Facebook , Google , Twitter , JPMorgan Chase , American Express , Macy's , Novartis , Biogen , AT&T and CNBC's parent company, Comcast . Year Up fundamentally believes that you hire for skills but you fire for behavior. Gerald Chertavian Year Up founder The companies pay Year Up $27,700 per intern, which covers the student's stipend and college credits and administrative costs of running Year Up. Some companies have scaled up to take 100 interns a year, paying more than $250,000 for what they have come to consider a pipeline instead of a charity. The organization's operating budget this year is $100 million. Salesforce.com , based in San Francisco, has hosted almost 200 interns in 15 classes since 2009. "The Year Up kids come in ready to work," said Suzanne DiBianca, president of Salesforce.org and the manager of Salesforce's partnership with Year Up. "They know what to wear, they know what to say, they have done their homework properly, they are gregarious in meeting other people, doing their research on other executives in that department. They are, I would say, a head above a lot of other intern programs in terms of readiness to work." Salesforce has hired 57 percent of its Year Up interns. That includes Goodson, who graduated from Year Up in 2013. Before enrolling in the program at age 21, he was working at a pizza concession at a Six Flags amusement park. Now, he's a full-time business solutions senior consultant. "If someone told me three years ago that I'd be doing what I'm doing today, I wouldn't believe it. I might even have laughed," Goodson said. "I'm proud to tell people about my job, I'm proud to tell people about Year Up and what I've gone through to get here, and really my hope is to be an inspiration to other people in that regard." Goodson's achievements are far from unique. In fact, Year Up's success rate is astounding. More than 13,000 young adults have gone through Year Up. Within four months of graduating, 85 percent of alumni have a full-time job or are enrolled full time in college. Their average starting salary is $36,000 a year, more than double the minimum wage. Many of them are still at the company at which they interned. Wilson says organizations like Year Up "are useful, because there's only so far we can go with macro-economic policies. They bring things down to a level where we can begin to look at individuals who have barriers," who don't have the opportunities to go to college, get an internship and create a network that can help them get a job, because of who is in their own sphere. watch now Year Up has gone from its first class of 22 students in Boston in 2002 to expectations of serving 3,200 students in 2016. It's in 13 metro areas, with plans to add Dallas and Los Angeles this year. Eventually, Chertavian wants to be in 30 metro areas, and have 100,000 students go through the program. His original goal was 10,000. "I guess it showed me that you should always think big, go to sleep, get up in the morning, and think even bigger, especially when you're trying to tackle such a tremendous opportunity that's resonant within our young adults in this country that's right now not being realized," he said. The Year Up experience doesn't end when a student finishes his or her internship. There is an extensive alumni network. Goodson sits on the alumni board, in addition to mentoring new Year Up interns at Salesforce. And many present students already talk about giving back. watch now Canadian crude has fallen near record lows, but Canada's minister of natural resources, Jim Carr, still sees investment opportunities in the country. "It's stable. It's got a long track record in the industry. I'm confident that, even within this transition period, we'll do as well as any other country in making the necessary adjustments," Carr told CNBC's "Squawk on the Street" on Wednesday. While much of the attention has been on the low prices of West Texas Intermediate and Brent , Canadian oil has been trading much lower. Western Canadian Select, the benchmark for Canadian crude, settled at $19.32 on Tuesday. Despite the protracted downturn in oil prices, Carr said Canadian producers are persevering. "There are many leaders in Canada's oil and gas sector who are being innovative in the ways in which we're extracting energy from the ground, ways in which we're seeking more reliably efficient and more environmentally sustainable ways of producing oil and gas," he said. Low demand and oversupply have been particularly hard on Canadian provinces. Alberta, which has the third-largest oil reserves in the world, has lost 63,000 jobs, according to Carr. "It's a tough time for the industry. But we believe we're resilient, that there are innovators and entrepreneurs across western Canada and the whole country that will adapt to the new reality," he said. watch now China now has the most billionaires despite the country's economic slowdown, stock market plunge and crackdown on corruption, according to a China-based wealth research firm. The Hurun Report said China now has 568 billionaires versus the United States' 535, giving it the largest population of billionaires in the world. The richest man in China is Wang Jianlin, the Chairman of the Dalian Wanda Group, with $26 billion. STR | AFP | Getty Images According to Hurun, China's billionaire population first surpassed the U.S. in August, and grew by a total of 90 last year. Granted Hurun's numbers are subject to some debate, as they differ from those of Forbes and other wealth research firms, which still put the U.S. far ahead of China when it comes to billionaires. According to Forbes' 2015 China report, China has 335 billionaires compared with 536 in the U.S. Worldwide, Hurun said there are now 2,188 billionaires, up 99 from 2014 and marking a new record. Yet it said billionaire growth globally is slowing along with the economy. The total wealth of the world's billionaires grew 9 percent in 2015 to $7.3 trillion more than the combined GDPs of Germany and the U.K. For the first time, Beijing has also passed New York as the billionaire capital of the world, 100 to 95, Hurun said. The make-or-break United Nations climate control talks in Paris has been a great success in galvanizing global action, the chief executive of Spanish utility Iberdrola told CNBC. At the end of last year, global leaders gathered in Paris to discuss how to rein in climate change. On December 13, they finally agreed to make sure global warming stayed "well below" 2 degrees Celsius and to "pursue efforts" to limit the temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius. Speaking to CNBC on Wednesday, Iberdrola's CEO Ignacio Galan hailed the landmark COP21 agreement: "I think the fact that 195 nations (have) already signed and agreed (that) the problem exists, and they have to do something to stop these emissions, that is a great, great, great success in my opinion." Galan added that his company was investing "heavily in renewables" and that it was "the world leaders in wind." Galan also stated that investment in "more intelligent, more smart grids" was also needed. Europe's biggest power company by market value posted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation of 7.3 billion euros ($8 billion), almost 5 percent above a year earlier but slightly missing analysts' forecasts in a Reuters poll. The company added that it would target investment in the United States and Britain as part of a new strategic plan, at the same time as its rivals in the energy business limit their expansion objectives. The company also said it aimed to invest 24 billion euros ($26 billion) between 2016 and 2020, mostly in networks and renewable energies. The Bilbao-based company, which completed a $3 billion takeover of U.S.-based UIL Holding last year, already owns fellow U.S. company Energy East and British utility ScottishPower. It is also growing its business in Brazil and Mexico. --Reuters contributed to this report U.S. Treasury Secretary Jack Lew framed the issue clearly in a recent letter to European Commission PresidentJean-Claude Juncker, writing, "While we recognize that state aid is a longstanding concept, pursuing civil investigations predominantly against U.S. companies under this new interpretation creates disturbing international tax policy precedents." The Europeans themselves should be wary, as the EU's actions could turn the region into an economic dead zone by depriving business of the certainty it needs to invest there. Illustrating how far afield these investigations have gone, the EU has now threatened to launch a state-aid investigation amid allegations that terms of a tax audit were too favorable. Their approach is brazen: First the member state assesses a tax the company didn't believe it owed, and then, the EU hauls the company in for a second bite by focusing on why the company paid only the amounts assessed. The U.S. government is not standing by idly nor can it as the EU goes after U.S. taxpayers in this unprincipled way. Leading members of the House Ways and Means Committee and the Senate Finance Committee have also expressed strong concerns with the EU's investigations. In fact, a bipartisan group of senators has asked the administration to consider using the president's authority to impose retaliatory taxes on taxpayers of European Union countries that discriminate against U.S. companies. watch now watch now watch now watch now watch now European equities were feeling the heat by Wednesday's close as oil prices and commodity stocks took a sharp tumble, while fresh earnings failed to elevate investor sentiment. The pan-European Stoxx 600 index closed 2.3 percent down provisionally, as weak trading in the U.S. added pressure to Europe's markets. All sectors finished sharply lower. London's FTSE 100 fell 1.6 percent, while its European counterparts slipped even further down. France's CAC closed 2 percent lower while Germany's DAX tumbled 2.6 percent. Oil in focus European markets Oil prices continued to send markets on a roller coaster, after hopes of an oil production cut were dashed on Tuesday when Saudi Arabia's oil minister, Ali bin Ibrahim Al-Naimi signaled no cuts would happen to tackle the global supply glut. U.S. crude fell as much as 5 percent on Tuesday after the remarks. On Wednesday, U.S. crude pared slightly, last trading some 3 percent down, at $31, after the Energy Information Administration announced that crude inventories showed a much smaller build, than a previous industry report suggested. International benchmark Brent crude was also in the red, standing around $33 a barrel at Europe's close. This sell-off caused oil stocks to tumble, with Tullow Oil off over 6 percent and Seadrill down 7.6 percent. One bright spark in the sector was oilfield services firm Petrofac , who announced on Wednesday that its full-year revenue had risen by 10 percent. Shares shot up 4.8 percent, making it one of Europe's top performer. Earnings weigh on sentiment Aside from oil, a slew of earnings reports kept investors on edge. Shares of Scottish oil services and engineering firm Weir Group were down as much as 4.2 percent before closing roughly flat, after the group posted a 46 percent fall in full-year pretax profit in 2015 on the back of its customers delaying spending amid low oil prices. The group's CEO told CNBC on Wednesday that 2016 would be a "challenging year." Meanwhile, aircraft maker Airbus saw its share price end in the red on Wednesday, despite the engineer posting a profit for 2015 in line with forecasts and announcing plans to reverse part of a planned production cut of A330 aircraft. Shares of Iberdrola slipped 1.5 percent after the utility company reported a 4 percent rise in 2015 net profit of 2.42 billion euros, slightly below forecasts made by analysts polled by Reuters. Wolters Kluwer was one of the best performers, closing up over 5 percent after the publisher reported a 17 percent rise in annual profit. PSA Peugeot Citroen ended up 1.5 percent, after the carmaker swung to a full-year net profit in 2015 of 899 million euros, following a loss in the previous year. Banking stocks drop Boston Dynamics' new "Atlas" robot is a game changer, not just for companies, but for society, Insider.com CEO Jason Calacanis said Wednesday. "This is really the end of manual labor. When you watch this video, he's walking through the snow; he's wobbly, but he gets back up," the tech investor told CNBC's "Squawk Alley." "Manual labor is going to end in our lifetime, and in this video you can see how close we really are. It's a huge societal issue with jobs, but it's going to be a huge lift in terms of efficiency of companies that nobody expected." Hong Kong has promised to use its multi-billion dollar budget warchest to smooth over social disputes that its financial chief warned could push the territory into "chaos." Financial secretary John Tsang Chun-wah revealed an estimated 2015 surplus of $3.8 billion and a 2016 surplus of $1.4 billion on Wednesday, followed by a slew of fiscal stimulus and social relief measures aimed at boosting local consumption and kickstarting the economy. But it remains to be seen whether the announcements will pacify rising social unrest over lifestyle issues. The special administrative region consistently ranks as one of the world's most expensive cities to live due to unaffordable housing and maintains some of the longest working hours in the developed world, factors that have seen protesters take to the streets with increasing frequency. This month, hundreds rioted against the government's clearing of illegal street vendors in the working class suburb of Mong Kok, injuring at least 90 police officers. Such protests were hurting the economy, Tsang said. Data released Wednesday showed that Hong Kong's gross domestic product grew 2.4 percent in 2015, and is expected to slow to 1-2 percent in 2016. "Politics and economics are closely intertwined. Political volatility will unavoidably impact on our economy," he said, warning that politics-inspired disputes were likely to intensify ahead of this year's Legislative Council general election. "Acute social conflicts will add uncertainties to the already adverse economic environment," Tsang stated, adding that if such conflicts went unresolved, Hong Kong risked "even greater chaos" and future generations growing up "in the midst of hatred and malice." Whether the sweeteners for residents, as set out below, will prove sufficient to calm this anger, remains to be seen. March could be 'make or break' for French mobile operator Orange, as its deputy CEO hopes a decision over a Bouygues Telecom merger will be made clear within a few weeks' time. "I think by March we need to know if we do it or if we don't. So March is the right time to decide 'go or no go'," Ramon Fernandez, Orange's deputy CEO, said about the potential deal with Bouygues to CNBC, on Wednesday. In January, Orange confirmed it had revived talks with Bouygues , over a potential merger with the French firm's telecoms business. If successful, this could create a telecom giant that would control over half of France's mobile and fixed-line markets, according to Reuters. The transaction to purchase Bouygues Telecom could amount to some 10 billion euros ($11 billion) in cash and shares. The deal itself would likely make Bouygues the second-biggest shareholder in Orange after the French government. watch now Sinking oil prices have only made Mexico's goal of rebuilding its energy industry with foreign investment and revamping Pemex its beleaguered national energy company more challenging. "We're submitting [cuts] to the board later this week, as every oil company in the world is doing, so we adjust to the new price of oil," said Pemex CEO Jose Antonio Gonzalez Anaya at this week's annual IHS CERAWeek energy conference. The plan assumes oil prices for Mexican crude of $25 per barrel, down from $50 last year, Gonzalez Anaya said. Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto with Gonzalez Anaya, who had headed the government's Social Security Institute before taking the helm of the national oil and gas company. Nieto announced at IHS CERAWeek an expedited schedule of December for a fourth round of investor bids on deep-water deposits in the Gulf of Mexico. Mexico Energy Secretary Pedro Joaquin Coldwell said the energy reform pushed by Nieto was long needed and is critical because of the decline in the energy sector. "It changes the hydrocarbon paradigm, and it changes the electrical sector paradigm as well," he said. Coldwell said Mexico's electric rates had been 75 percent more than those in the U.S., but it is bringing them down with cheaper natural gas from the U.S. It is also working to add new pipeline capacity to bring in additional natural gas. "We had lost 1 million barrels of daily production over 10 years," he said. According to the International Energy Agency, Mexico produces about 2.6 million barrels a day, and the future of its production will depend on whether it gets needed investment. "If they don't, we're going to anticipate a continued decline," said Neil Atkinson, head of the IEA's oil market division. "We're working with Pemex as fast as we can to present 'farm-outs.' This is part of the strategy to strengthen Pemex," said Lourdes Melgar, Deputy Secretary of Energy for Hydrocarbons, Mexico Ministry of Energy, at this week's IHS CERAWeek energy conference. Pemex is expected to remain focused on shallow water, where it is strongest. Production at Pemex's giant shallow-water Cantarell field, the second-largest in the world, has been falling since its peak in 2014. Gonzalez Anaya described the decline as occurring "fairly rapidly more rapidly than we would like." watch now watch now watch now Oil prices are likely to remain under pressure this year as Saudi Arabia and Iran compete for market share in weak or slowing Asian economies, the editor of The Schork Report said Wednesday. Stephen Schork said he does not necessarily agree with forecasts that oil will rebound into the $40s in the next 12 months, citing Saudi oil minister Ali Al-Naimi's comments on Tuesday that OPEC and non-OPEC members will not cut production. "If you are long oil, get it through your head. Saudi Arabia is not going to throw you a life preserver," he told CNBC's "Squawk Box." Al-Naimi's remarks at IHS CERAWeek in Houston sent oil prices spiraling on Tuesday after futures had risen in previous sessions, bolstered by a plan put forward by Saudi Arabia and Russia to cap output at January levels. That plan would be contingent on participation from OPEC and non-OPEC members. Saudi Arabia in November 2014 led OPEC's policy of letting the market determine the oil price, rather than cutting production to boost prices. Schork said it is simply unlikely that Saudi Arabia, the Middle East's dominant Sunni Muslim power, would take measures that would bolster its Shiite rival, Iran. Iran recently ramped up crude exports after sanctions related to its nuclear program were lifted. The two countries also support opposing combatants in conflicts in Yemen and Syria. "We are looking at the largest chasm between the Sunnis and the Shias within OPEC ever. Why would Saudi Arabia throw Iran a lifeline at this point?" he said. Schork said he arrived at his conclusion by juxtaposing geopolitics with economics. Saudi Arabia and Iran are competing for available market share in Asia at a time when China is exporting deflation and Japan appears to be on the cusp of recession, he said. In the more immediate term, Schork said he believes oil will test the $25 threshold once again as refineries enter their maintenance season and demand for crude falls. Executives from tech companies and Hollywood studios will meet with officials from the White House, the Justice Department and other parts of the U.S. government on Wednesday to develop strategies to beat back ISIS messaging online and in the media. According to a draft agenda for the meeting obtained by CNBC, the executives will hear from Assistant Attorney General for National Security John Carlin and U.S. Chief Technology Officer Megan Smith. Labeled as the "Madison Valleywood Project," the event will include a panel discussion led by a brand marketing expert on "ISIL's media strategy, including examples of ISIL recruiting materials," as well as "meeting the challenge of bringing to scale counter-narratives and optimistic messaging." The project name is meant to include Madison Avenue, Silicon Valley and Hollywood. The high-level meeting comes at a time when tech companies and U.S. law enforcement are deeply at odds over the FBI's demand for access to the iPhone used by San Bernardino terrorist Syed Rizwan Farook. That issue has split public opinion between those who favor broad protections for digital privacy and those who want more aggressive cooperation with government against terrorism. Would you be happy to view ads in exchange for free data? Well that's the business proposition from start-up Sliide which is set to launch next month in Nigeria. The British firm has created an app that turns your smartphone's lock screen into a place with curated content, as well as advertising. With more people coming online in Africa, Sliide decided that Nigeria would be its first market given the emerging number of consumers able to afford smartphones. "Emerging markets are going through the roof in terms of ad revenue. The typical ads per click in Nigeria was one cent. It's now between five and seven cents," Frankie Kearney, co-founder of Sliide, told CNBC in an interview at Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona on Wednesday. Sliide "In terms of the value, advertisers are seeing the emerging middle class is huge." The proposition is likely to stick in the emerging markets where data plans are still quite expensive, but smartphone penetration is on the rise. Sliide's model could be hard to transfer over to markets such as the U.S. and U.K. where data plans are often sold as part of a contract. Sliide is the latest start-up to try to tackle the mobile advertising space, an area that the industry has still not completely figured out. This has stoked the rise of ad blocking, a major concern for marketers and players such as Google and Yahoo. Start-ups are taking different approaches to make mobile adverts work for both consumers and marketers. For example, an app called Slidejoy pays customers to view the adverts every time they look at their phone's lock screen. But Sliide's approach is different, offering data instead of money to users. The British start-up has an interesting business model. It gains revenues from advertising and then uses some of that money to buy data off of operators at a discounted rate. It then gives that data to users. For the operators, the long-term strategy is getting more people online and therefore using their mobile internet services. "What they want to do is get people to start using data, understanding the value of asking a question on Google or being able to check if a product is cheaper, " Kearney told CNBC. Xiaomi's Mi5 will be available from March 1 in China and will roll out to the company's other markets such as India. The Chinese mobile company took the wraps off the 5.15 inch Mi5 smartphone which will cost 2,699 yuan ($354) for the top-end 120 gigabyte version and 1,999 yuan for the 32 GB handset. Xiaomi launched its Mi5 smartphone on Wednesday, using its first ever European launch event to take on Samsung and Apple handsets and build up its brand beyond its current markets. The smartphone maker, which is valued at around $45 billion, has seen huge growth due to its tactic of selling low-price, high-spec smartphones and using a mix of social media and selling direct to the consumer to build its brand. But as the smartphone market slows, particularly in China, Xiaomi is looking beyond its current markets and to the West where there is a big demand for its devices. Xiaomi has previously signaled its intent to break into the U.S. and European market but has always declined to give a specific timeframe. "We primarily focus on existing marketswe're beginning to work our way into other markets," Barra told CNBC in a TV interview on Wednesday. Analysts said that Xiaomi would be looking for growth elsewhere amid slower growth in China. "It's little surprise Xiaomi has gone for a big European launch. As the Chinese smartphone market plateaus, it is essential Xiaomi (and other Chinese phone makers) drive growth in international markets," Ben Wood, chief of research at CCS Insight, told CNBC by email. "The big questions for Xiaomi are whether it has overcome the intellectual property challenges it has faced to date and how it builds its brand to Western consumers who will never have heard of the brand?" Hugo Barra, international vice-president, addressed the patent issue at MWC, saying that the company filed 3,600 patents last year globally. Barra told CNBC in December that Xiaomi had filed over 6,000 patents with 40 percent of them in 2015 being filed outside of China. The Chinese upstart currently holds a 4.6 percent smartphone market share, according to IDC, and is hoping to increase that this year with the Mi5. During the event, Barra constantly compared the Mi5 to rivals Apple and Samsung, a feature that is often seen in Xiaomi's launches as it looks to position its brand alongside the world's biggest smartphone makers.Most of Xiaomi's success in China has been built on the ability to get users to spend money on its software and services. There are some doubts about whether Xiaomi can replicate this model abroad when it expands into western markets where Google and Apple's services dominate. But Barra said that the sales model would be transferable globally and Xiaomi was already starting to make moves in this space. "We'll bring this to other marketsso lot of exciting evolution ahead which will allow us to bring our internet content outside of China," Barra told CNBC. Crews from Fayettevillebased COR Development Company, LLC continue their work on the Starwood Hotels & Resorts Aloft in Syracuses Inner Harbor. A judge on Monday dismissed the City of Syracuses lawsuit against COR. The City of Syracuse had filed its lawsuit against the developer after the Onondaga County Industrial Development Agency approved a tax-deal request on Dec. 15. (Eric Reinhardt / BJNN file photo.) SYRACUSE, N.Y. A judge on Monday dismissed the City of Syracuse lawsuit against COR Development Company, LLC, which accused the Fayettevillebased developer of fraud in the development of the Inner Harbor. Both sides on Monday issued statements following the decision by New York State Supreme Court Justice James Murphy. We are grateful to the court for fully dismissing the City of Syracuses frivolous and politically motivated action against the Inner Harbor project, Steve Aiello, president of COR Development, said in the companys statement. Syracuse Mayor Stephanie Miner on Dec. 15 had filed the lawsuit after COR had secured a payment-in-lieu-of-taxes (PILOT) deal with the Onondaga County Industrial Development Agency (OCIDA). COR had sought the tax deal for its ongoing Inner Harbor development project. The city contends COR deliberately sought a tax-relief deal from OCIDA to allow the company to avoid a community-benefits agreement with the city that would have required COR to provide project-related jobs to Syracuse residents. CORs statement went on to say, In addition to dismissing the Citys lawsuit in its entirety, the court found that there is overwhelming proof that Mr. Aiello never stated that COR would not seek a PILOT agreement in the future... The City of Syracuse also released a statement late Monday afternoon. This afternoon, the City administration was notified of Judge Murphys decision in our lawsuit against COR Development, LLC. We are reviewing the decision with counsel and examining our options going forward. The administration continues its commitment to ensuring public benefits from any project of this scale receiving public dollars, Miners office said. Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com PHOTO CAPTION: Crews from Fayettevillebased COR Development Company, LLC continue their work on the Starwood Hotels & Resorts Aloft in Syracuses Inner Harbor. A judge on Monday dismissed the City of Syracuses lawsuit against COR. The City of Syracuse had filed its lawsuit against the developer after the Onondaga County Industrial Development Agency approved a tax-deal request on Dec. 15. (Eric Reinhardt / BJNN file photo.) ITHACA, N.Y Construction work continues on a 2.9 megawatt (MW) solar-electric project for Ithaca College (IC) at a site about 40 miles from campus. The project will provide enough electricity to meet about 10 percent of the schools energy needs, the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) said in a news release issued Monday. The project will produce clean, renewable and sustainable energy for the college, lower its energy costs, and reduce its greenhouse-gas emissions, NYSERDA contends. Construction started in December, and IC expects crews to finish the project by summer, according to a web page entitled Ithaca College Solar Project Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) on the colleges website. The Ithaca College project will feature a solar array of more than 9,000 panels on 15 acres of land in the town of Seneca in Ontario County, about 40 miles from IC. The school is using the remote net metering program, which allows organizations to install solar projects at an off-site location and receive credits for the energy fed onto the grid, according to the IC FAQ web page. The solar installation will generate an estimated 3.55 million kilowatt-hours of electricity in the first year of operation, the equivalent of powering 500 average-sized homes in New York. The solar panels will offset 888 metric tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) equivalents annually, which is comparable to taking 187cars off the road, NYSERDA said. Financing the project Ithaca College is financing the project through a power-purchase agreement, which covers all upfront costs and maintenance, according to the IC FAQ web page. Under the agreement, the school buys the clean energy produced from the system owner at a set price over the 25-year term of the agreement through virtual net metering. New York Citybased Greenwood Energy will provide project financing and will then own and operate the solar array once crews complete the project, the college says. In addition, NYSERDA provided Ithaca College a grant of $1.6 million awarded to Seattle, Washingtonbased OneEnergy Renewables, which co-developed the project with San Diego, Californiabased Borrego Solar Systems, Inc. The grant covers about roughly 25 percent of the total cost to develop and build the project, according to the IC FAQ page. The grant is part of Gov. Andrew Cuomos $1 billion NY-Sun initiative, a spokesman for Ithaca College said in an email response to a BJNN inquiry. The NY-Sun initiative is designed to build a self-sustaining solar industry in New York and help to achieve strategic energy goals under REV and the Clean Energy Standard. It requires 50 percent of electricity generated in New York come from renewable sources by 2030, according to NYSERDA. REV is short for Reforming the Energy Vision, which the NYSERDA news release describes as Gov. Cuomos strategy to build a clean, resilient and affordable energy system for all New Yorkers. Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com As I rolled over in the semi-reclined sleeper bus seat, I came face to face with a pair of feet. Big, slightly pungent feet, just inches from my face. With a sigh, I rolled onto my back. I stared up at the neon strip lighting , my long legs cocked to the side, and listened as 15 or so Vietnamese men snored. It was going to be a long night. A few days into vacation, my friend and I hopped onto the overnight bus to Ha Giang, a part of Northern Vietnam not very popular with tourists. Despite stunning mountains and lush valleys, most visitors opted for boat tours around the karsts in Halong Bay. Looking for a challenge, and reprieve from the beaten path, we were sure: Ha Giang it was. So after a few days touring the pulsing streets of Hanoi weaving through motorbikes and turning down cycle rickshaw drivers in the Old Quarter we boarded the bus for an 8-hour trip north. Hopping off just before sunrise sore, stiff and far from well-rested the stations parking lot was empty. We werent sure where to go. Equipped only with a nearby villages name and the hope wed stumble across the home stay advertised online, our whole trip had been built on an active choice to avoid planning. I smiled. This was so not me. I, the girl who diligently planned simple trips back to her parents house, had just arrived at the outskirts of an unknown town without so much as a hostel reservation. The girl whod pack an entire car with snacks and suitcases for a road trip to California was now traipsing across Northern Vietnam with little more than a backpack and a couple changes of clothes. Before living abroad, Id never stayed in a hostel nor navigated a foreign bus schedule. I planned ahead when I traveled, booking as nice of hotels as I could afford, toting more clothes than Id need in my bright-pink, wheeled suitcase. Now here I was, wandering through a quiet Vietnamese village, pointing at the word home stay in a phrase book to random passersby. Chickens clucked in front of stilt homes with thatched grass roofs. Early risers tended to the wide expanse of rice fields nearby. This was a first for me. In those few days, Id take on other firsts: sleeping on the floor under a mosquito net in a strangers home and touring mountains on the back of a motorcycle. More importantly, though, it was my first time traveling in a way that forced me to believe I was capable enough brave enough to handle something so unplanned. So foreign. I watched the sun rise over the jagged mountains, exhausted and exhilarated. This was all so not me, yet it was coming to me naturally. Maybe I was cut out for this whole living abroad in Asia thing after all. Follow Alexandra Siehs adventures overseas: coloradodaily.com/columnists. Stalk her: www.instagram.com/wildeyed_wandering. Santulli hazing unlikely to end binge drinking, says MU professor Professor Phil Wood discusses how difficult it is to curb binge drinking in fraternities and sororities, what MU is doing and what it's not doing. Feb 15, 2012 - In this file photo from 2012 Las Tortugas Mexican Deli tacos are seen with a variety of fillings including these with sausage and egg, as well as carne asada tacos made with flame broiled ribeye steak from Claybrook Farms and the sweet-and-savory combination of Newman Farms seasoned pork with pineapple. (Brandon Dill/Special to The Commercial Appeal) Go Eat If you want personality, you gotta #GoMemphis SHARE By Jennifer Biggs of The Commercial Appeal I told you a few months ago that Pepe Magallannes of Las Tortugas Deli Mexicana would be opening a new place around the first of the year that he would call El Pedregal DSA, after his neighborhood in Mexico City. Update time: We're almost to March, but it's easy to get delayed in the restaurant business and now Magallannes says that the opening will be sometime in the summer. Another change is that he's decided to keep the Las Tortugas Deli Mexicana brand, though he will stick to the simplified menu he originally envisioned for El Pedregal--it will still be a taqueria. The new place will be at 6300 Poplar in a strip center with Humdinger's and Julles Posh. You'll be able to get tacos and a few other items, such as the elote con mayo (corn on the cob with mayo, lime and cotija cheese), gaucamole and chicken soup. But the more time-intensive items, such as the tortas and tamales, won't be available at the new location. More to come as the opening date approaches. By Kevin McKenzie of The Commercial Appeal For Bensons Pharmacy in the Parkway Village area, Facebook as well as a website and AM radio have helped the new small business signal the customers that there's a new drugstore in town. Pharmacist Coby Benson, with two other pharmacists and his wife, Cynthia Benson, held a grand opening in September for the pharmacy targeting the underserved in Memphis, particularly Hispanic people. Getting an online presence was a key part of the pharmacy's' strategy, although 70 percent of small businesses in Tennessee haven't taken that digital plunge, according to Rory Thomas, executive director of the Tennessee Small Business Development Center at Southwest Tennessee Community College. Thomas, like many small business consultants nationwide, recommends a Google initiative, "Let's Put Our Cities on the Map," and Google's "Get Your Business Online" website as the place to start. "We know that 97 percent of people who use the Internet use it to find local goods and services," Thomas said. "So if you're not online, you're missing out on that 97 percent who are looking on the Internet to find that product or service that you offer." For more details, watch this week's Business Q&A video. Our weekly Business Q&A answers your questions about business and customer service in Memphis. Have a question? Submit it to Kevin.McKenzie@commercialappeal.com. Three-year-old Manuel Alejandro Martinez plays in the lobby at the FedExFamilyHouse Wednesday with mother Yaimara Silva as they wait for Manuels surgery date at Le Bonheur Childrens Hospital to have a heart valve replaced. A man and woman from Memphis visited family in Cuba in the summer of 1959, the same year Fidel Castro came to power there. The man, Bill Rodriguez, was a descendant of the Bacardi rum family, whose business soon would be nationalized by Castro. His wife, Madeline, was pregnant with their third son. They named him Bret, after the TV cowboy Bret Maverick. Bret Rodriguez was born in Memphis a few months after his first trip to Cuba. He grew up in Memphis, where his father worked at Buckeye Cellulose for more than 30 years. Last September, Bret went back to Cuba on behalf of the Memphis-based International Children's Heart Foundation, which he serves as president. Pope Francis was visiting Cuba at the same time. "Service is never ideological," Francis said during an outdoor Mass at Revolution Square, "for we do not serve ideas. We serve people." That's exactly why Bret was in Cuba. "This isn't about Cuba or politics or ideology," said Bret, who also works with the Bacardi Family Foundation. "This is about a sick child." That child, Manuel "Manolito" Alejandro Martinez, was born in Cuba a month after Pope Benedict's visit in 2012. Manuel's mother, Yaimara, is a physician. As soon as she saw her baby's blue arms and legs, she knew. Manolito was born with severe heart defects that eventually would require surgery. Cuba has surgeons who could repair Manolito's heart, but a U.S. trade embargo, in place since 1960, has kept it from acquiring necessary medical equipment. Yaimara spent the first year in shock, refusing to leave her baby's side. "I knew he could die at any moment," she said. "And if he was going to die, it was going to be in my arms." Manolito suffered heart failure at 3 months, then stabilized. Yaimara started writing letters to America. She wrote to children's hospitals in Boston, Baltimore, Miami, Atlanta, asking them if they would repair her child's heart. They all said no. Last June, Manolito took a turn for the worse. His defective heart couldn't keep pace with his growing body. Yaimara found a list of international organizations that helped children with medical problems. She kept writing. "I believe in God," she said. "I told God that if he wanted Manolito to live, give me a solution." Bret got Yaimara's letter last July, the same month Cuba and the U.S. reopened their embassies. He wanted to help the family, but he wasn't sure what the heart foundation would be allowed to do. President Barack Obama had agreed to normalize relations between the two countries, but Congress refused to end the trade embargo. Bret couldn't get the medical equipment that would save Manolito's life into Cuba. Travel restrictions between the two countries had eased, but Cuba was concerned about allowing professionals to leave. Bret wasn't sure Manolito's parents would be allowed to bring him to Memphis. Yaimara Hernandez is a neuro-ophthalmologist. Her husband, Luis Martinez, is an electrical engineer. Bret flew to Havana in September to visit two families Manolito's and his own. Bret is a sixth-generation Bacardi. His great-grandfather was Facundo Bacardi, an immigrant from Spain who started a small distillery in Santiago, Cuba. His grandfather was Emilio Bacardi, one of the heroes of Cuba's war of independence from Spain. He later was elected mayor of Santiago. His American mother was born in Pennsylvania. He calls himself "the blonde Cuban." When he walked into Manolito's home in September, he was wearing a white Panama hat. Manolito took one look at Bret and saw his favorite cowboy, the mythical blonde American cowboy he'd seen in TV cartoons. "Pecos Bill!" he shouted. As soon as the visit was over, Pecos Bret began rounding up people to help him bring Manolito to Memphis. Cuba's foreign minister and U.S. ambassador agreed to help. So did the U.S. State Department and Memphis congressman Steve Cohen. LeBonheur Children's Hospital is providing all medical services. Gift of Life Mid-South and local Rotary Clubs, which bring Third World children to Memphis for lifesaving heart surgery, is sponsoring the family. A Memphis surgeon is expected to repair Manolito's defective heart as soon as Monday. "Everyone has been so friendly, so helpful," Yaimara said. "We love this city." Last Saturday, Manolito and his parents checked into the FedExFamilyHouse. "Wow, es tan limpia (it's so clean)," Manolito told his mother. "'Wow' is his favorite English word now," Yaimara said. And Pecos Bret is his favorite Cuban-American cowboy. Alicia Norman (center, left), principal, Perea Preschool, and Larry Granderson (center, right), office coordinator of Perea Preschool, hang a 4 feet by 16 feet banner at the school that reads, Dont Shoot, Stray Bullets Kill, during a ceremony Tuesday afternoon. The Church Health Center provided the banner for the school located in the Klondike neighborhood. The banner condemns the recent string of gun violence some of which took place on school property. We felt that making a statement today would be a bigger message to all of Memphis that we need to come together with a plan to fight the senseless gun violence in our community, Norman said. SHARE Yetta Lewis (center) and Glenn Miles (right), both with Gestalt Schools, watch as a 16 feet long and 4 feet tall banner is hung at Perea Preschool that reads, Dont Shoot, Stray Bullets Kill, during a ceremony Tuesday afternoon. Church Health Center provided the banner for the school located in the Klondike neighborhood. The banner condemns the recent string of gun violence some of which took place on school property. By Kayleigh Skinner of The Commercial Appeal Members of the Klondike community huddled under umbrellas in the pouring rain Tuesday to watch staff at Perea Preschool unravel a 16-foot banner that read "Don't shoot. Stray bullets kill." The banner was hung on a fence outside the preschool as a reminder to the community that gun violence is not acceptable, especially not on a school property, said principal Alicia Norman. The preschool, which also neighbors Klondike Elementary and Northside High School, has been forced to go into lockdown four times since September because of shootings on the school property. No students or school staff were harmed. As of Feb. 22, 30 of the 34 homicides committed in Memphis to date were gun-related, according to the Memphis Police Department. "We want to send a message to the folks who are perpetrating these crimes to really just think about what they're doing, because you can't control where your stray bullets are going to land," Norman said. Norman has the dates of each of the lockdowns memorized Sept. 23, Nov. 17, Nov. 30 and Jan. 12, 2016. Norman and a teacher were heading to an afternoon meeting on Nov. 30 when they heard gunshots near her car in the school parking lot, she said. "We just start hearing these rounds of gunfire and my teacher noticed what was happening, they were shooting at each other right behind us," Norman said. "We dropped to the ground and stayed there until it stopped, and once it stopped we crawled. When we realized it was over we got up and ran, got in the building and put everybody on lockdown." The banner is 4 feet by 16 feet and features the school's colors, purple and gold. "I'm not naive enough to think that this sign will stop this," said Scott Morris, CEO and founder of the Church Health Center which runs the preschool. "But I do believe that we are speaking our minds and that hopefully those 20 people who may be all that we're really talking to might think twice and they're not going to run towards the school, they're not going to shoot their bullets towards the school." By Stephanie Norton of The Commercial Appeal A former Memphis police officer charged with stalking his ex-fiancee was arrested again after allegedly breaking the windshield of her car. Joshua Barnes, 28, was charged Tuesday with aggravated stalking, violating bail conditions, vandalism, violating an order of protection and contempt of court. He paid $2,000 bond and was released. According to Memphis police spokesman Louis Brownlee, Barnes resigned from the department on Jan. 15. He had been with MPD since January 2009. According to an affidavit, the woman went to the parking lot at her job and found the windshield of her 2010 Toyota Prius had been shattered. The woman told officers she noticed a man walking away from the lot and that it appeared to be her ex-fiance, Barnes. The woman cut through the parking lot and came face-to-face with Barnes, according to the affidavit. His clothing matched that of the man she saw leaving the parking lot where her car was damaged. The woman told Barnes he was violating the order of protection, police said. Barnes then walked away. The incident was captured on surveillance video, according to the affidavit. Barnes was charged last month with aggravated stalking and violating a protection order. He paid $1,000 bond and was released. The protection order from DeSoto County was served on Jan. 8, Memphis police said. He allegedly violated it on Jan. 13. According to an affidavit, the woman took her car to be serviced and a tracking device was found underneath her car. The woman then went to the department's internal affairs office to file a complaint and Barnes was there waiting on her, according to the affidavit. Barnes was instructed to leave, but parked his car across the street and waited, the affidavit said. February 23, 2016 - Inspector Thomas, with City of Memphis Code Enforcement, takes a photo of what remains of a home in the 400 block of Lucy following an overnight house fire. A family of 10 escaped the fire unharmed after a 14-year-old woke everyone and helped carry her younger siblings out of the house. (Mike Brown/The Commercial Appeal) SHARE By Kayleigh Skinner of The Commercial Appeal A Memphis mother and her 10 children are without a home after their South Memphis house burned down early Tuesday morning. Little Robinson said Andria Seawood, one of her twin 14 year-olds, ran into her room around 1:30 a.m. because the house was on fire. "The popping sound woke her up and she went to the hallway to see what it was," Robinson said. "She saw what it was and ran to wake us up." Robinson and the twins scooped the other children out of their beds and out of the house, and everyone made it out unharmed, she said. The Memphis Fire Department arrived at the scene at 2:10 a.m. to "heavy fire" visible from the two-story home in the 400 block of Lucy Avenue, according to spokesman Lt. Wayne Cooke. The flames were brought under control at 3:11 a.m., he said. "I'm relieved everyone made it out," Robinson said. "I'm just feeling kind of shocked because when it happened and I did get all the kids I counted them like 50 times to make sure." The fire department determined the fire was caused by a space heater in one of the bedrooms. The home had a working fire alarm. Damage to the house is estimated at more than $26,000 and $6,000 in contents were lost as well, Cooke said. "I've been struggling for the last past 3 years and I was just able to get us a place where we were all comfortable," Robinson said. "I just lost everything we struggled for. Now I don't know what we're going to do." For now, the family is staying at a hotel provided by Red Cross, she said. Cooke said one person has died this year in a house fire, but the total number of fires in 2016 was not immediately available. Donations A GoFundMe page has been set up to aid the Robinson family. Barrett M82 SHARE By Erik Schelzig, Associated Press NASHVILLE While Tennessee lawmakers last year balked at making the Holy Bible the official state book, they have shown little hesitance this year to designate an official state rifle. The Rutherford County-made .50-caliber Barrett sniper rifle now takes its place alongside state symbols like the tomato as Tennessee's official fruit, the cave salamander as the state amphibian and the square dance as the state folk dance. Democratic Sen. Jeff Yarbro of Nashville cast the lone vote against the resolution on Wednesday, arguing the state shouldn't make a state endorsement of a private company. He said lawmakers wouldn't want to choose between other Tennessee-made products like Jack Daniel's and George Dickel as the official whiskey, or Goo Goo Clusters and MoonPies as the state dessert. The House voted 74-9 to pass the resolution. SHARE Mark Luttrell By Michael Collins of The Commercial Appeal WASHINGTON Shelby County Mayor Mark Luttrell said Tuesday he is seriously considering running for the congressional seat being vacated by U.S. Rep. Stephen Fincher and will probably make up his mind within the next week. "I'm in the process now of talking to a number of people and touching base with them," said Luttrell, a Republican. "I've reached out to the other candidates to let them know what my thinking is. I'll make my decision very soon." If he jumps into the race, Luttrell will become the eighth Republican who has filed or announced their intentions to run for the 8th Congressional District seat. The others are Jackson businessman and political consultant Brad Greer, state Sen. Brian Kelsey, former U.S. Attorney David Kustoff, Shelby County Register of Deeds Tom Leatherwood, Shelby County Commissioner Steve Basar, Memphis radiologist George Flinn and Fayette County corrections officer Ken Atkins. Luttrell was elected to his second four-year term as county mayor in 2014. Fincher, a Crockett County Republican, announced on Feb. 1 that he would not seek a fourth term in office. Longtime civil rights activist Rev. Harold Middlebrook talks Tuesday about the importance of voting and stumps for Bernie Sanders during a meeting of the Memphis Baptist Ministerial Association at Mt Moriah Missionary Baptist Church. SHARE By Linda A. Moore of The Commercial Appeal A front-line soldier of the civil rights movement was in Memphis on Tuesday promoting the advantages of a Bernie Sanders presidency to members of the Memphis Baptist Ministerial Association. Knoxville minister Rev. Harold Middlebrook, a Memphis native and former lieutenant of Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., told the gathering of more than 50 black preachers at Greater Mt. Moriah Baptist Church in South Memphis that Sanders represented everything he had struggled for over the last 50 years, detailing the Vermont senator's plans to offer free college, reform the criminal justice system, raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour and provide universal health care for all Americans. "We've got to be concerned not just about popularity and names, but we've got to look at the issues and see who is going to really speak on our behalf," Middlebrook said. "And if we make a solid impression in Memphis, if Memphis wants to, Memphis can carry any election in this state." Middlebrook, a Booker T. Washington High School graduate, is the retired pastor of Canaan Baptist Church in Knoxville and has spent his life involved in the fight for civil rights. Locally, he helped organize marches and the Black Monday school boycotts in the 1960s. He was at the Lorraine Motel when King was killed in 1968. However, his support for Sanders deviates from many other civil rights icons like U.S. Rep. John Lewis, who has endorsed former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in the Democratic presidential primary elections. A survey released last week by Public Policy Polling showed Clinton with a wide advantage among black voters in Tennessee, with 74 percent saying they supported Clinton to Sanders' 15 percent. But Sanders, a self-described democratic socialist, is seen as the candidate of choice for many of the nation's young people, scoring an endorsement this week from director Spike Lee. "We need to elect a president who can bring young folk, middle-aged folk and us seasoned folk together to build a great nation again," Middlebrook said. Still, there were questions Tuesday about how liberal Sanders is and whether his positions on family values issues were in conflict with what is taught in Baptist churches. "My real concern has to do with family values, the things we try to promote and teach in our congregations, along with economics and education and those things that it takes to be a community," said Pastor Willie S. Williams with Ascension Baptist Church. "There is tension there." Even though Middlebrook asked the pastors to encourage their members to vote on Super Tuesday and support Sanders, many pastors said they wouldn't tell their parishioners about who to vote for from the pulpit. "I may tell them who I voted for," said Pastor Stanford Hunt with Salem-Gilfield Baptist Church. "But never ever would I tell a member who to vote for." Early voting in the presidential primary race ended Tuesday. Tennessee will join 11 other states for the Super Tuesday primary elections on March 1. Follow more politics and policy coverage from the InforMemphis team on Twitter and Facebook. By Richard Locker of The Commercial Appeal NASHVILLE Former Tennessee Board of Regents Chancellor John Morgan on Tuesday delivered his strongest criticism yet of Gov. Bill Haslam's plan to break up the TBR system and create new governing boards for each of the six TBR universities. Despite his remarks, the House Education Administration and Planning Committee recommended approval of the Haslam plan and sent it to its next committee review, the House Government Operations Committee. Morgan told the committee he believes the Haslam plan will destabilize the current balance between the TBR and University of Tennessee systems, hurt the smaller Board of Regents schools, create a new structure that is "less accountable, less efficient and less effective," and ultimately impede Tennessee's economic growth. Morgan said that final point, on the state's economy, is because the governor's "Drive to 55" initiative in which 55 percent of adult Tennesseans would have some form of post-high school credential by 2025 focuses on the state's community and technical colleges to supply 60 percent of those credentials, tied to current workforce needs. Mike Krouse, executive director of the governor's Drive to 55 initiative, told the committee that Drive to 55 is the catalyst for the higher education realignment. "Drive to 55 is important but I think it would be a significant mistake if we underestimate the importance of the state universities to the state's economic future," Morgan said. "If Tennessee and every other state achieve their (higher education attainment) goals ours was 55 percent three years ago Tennessee will rank 48th in educational attainment. Meeting the needs of the economy we have is important but I would submit that it's more important to create the economy we want and that's what universities do." Morgan retired in January, a year earlier than planned in protest of Haslam's surprise plan to restructure higher education. He summarized his opposition to the plan in his Jan. 7 resignation letter to the governor and the Board of Regents. The former chancellor was asked by House Democratic Leader Craig Fitzhugh of Ripley to speak to the committee Tuesday, and he elaborated on his concerns. Morgan said creating six new governing boards for the University of Memphis, Austin Peay State University, Tennessee State University, Middle Tennessee State University, Tennessee Tech University and East Tennessee State University will dilute their power and damage their collaboration for the state's overall interests. "I think it creates a competitive environment within which many of our institutions will not fare well," he said. "In Tennessee, our higher education system can be seen as a seesaw. There's the UT system on one end, there's the TBR on the other, with THEC (Tennessee Higher Education Commission) acting as a fulcrum in the middle. Over time we have achieved a pretty reasonable balance I think. "In this new structure it's like an eight-sided seesaw: six university boards, the Board of Regents still responsible for the colleges of applied technology and community colleges, and the University of Tennessee." But he said the biggest problem he sees is accountability and responsibility. "Right now if something is going on at one of our systems or one of our institutions that is incorrect, that is wrong, you need only look at the system to say this is wrong, it needs to be fixed," he said. "In this new world, that will not be true. ... I think over time we will find that that leads to a system that is less accountable, less efficient and less effective." Just to remind car owners here that theyll only need a rear 1954 state auto tag, Hickman Ewing, County Court Clerk, posed with Miss June Rodgers of 1890 Evelyn, an employee in the County Trustees office, with tag No. 1 on Feb. 23, 1954. The tags went on sale on a first come, first served basis at 8:30 on the morning of Feb. 26, at the Courthouse. Previously, Tennessee drivers had both a front and rear bumper tag. SHARE Feb. 24 25 years ago: 1991 The United States launched a massive ground war against Iraq Saturday just hours after Saddam Hussein defied a noon EST deadline to withdraw his forces from Kuwait. President Bush said he decided to move into the violent and complicated new phase of the Persian Gulf War after extensive consultations with coalition leaders who committed forces to reverse Iraq's Aug. 2 invasion of Kuwait. 50 years ago: 1966 Waymon H. Welch, Whitehaven land developer, yesterday signed contracts to pay 1.6 million dollars for Memphis' "most expensive farm" on Lamar between Winchester and Perkins. The 270-acre V.A. "Pat" Patterson farm lies between two industrial parks and is about one mile northwest of the site of the new Radio Corporation of America plant at Raines and Outland. The land is one of the larger undeveloped tracts within the city and was dubbed the city's "most expensive farm" by Mr. Patterson last year when he announced he was going out of the cattle business because the land was too valuable. 75 years ago: 1941 The survey to determine the location of the proposed bridge across the Mississippi is already under way, with Tennessee and Arkansas highway department engineers "tramping up and down both sides of the river," according to E.H. Crump, chairman of the Arkansas-Tennessee Bridge Commission. Meanwhile, a traffic count showed that 251,286 vehicles crossed the river on the Harahan Bridge between Jan. 17 and Feb. 15. 100 years ago: 1916 Girls of the domestic science department at the Juvenile Court yesterday tendered Judge William Stanton and his mother, Judge William Bacon and his wife, and former Judge Robert Stickley and his wife, as well as court officials, a Washington's Birthday dinner, all prepared by the girls. 125 years ago: 1891 Henry J. Lynn, secretary of the Memphis Taxing District, in reply to the mounting complaints about the muddy condition of the walkways in Court Square, proposes putting $1,000 worth of gravel on the paths, insisting that this would be much cheaper than laying granolith, He said that it costs the city $2,000 a year to maintain Court Square even in its present dilapidated condition, but admitted that most of this sum was for the salary of the keeper and for the lights. SHARE By Daniel Connolly of The Commercial Appeal The Collierville school system plans a comprehensive review of the fees it charges parents for items such as technology, tests, courses and extracurricular activities, Superintendent John S. Aitken said at a school board work session Tuesday. With the municipal district in its second academic year, Aitken and other leaders say it's time to review fees to make sure they comply with state law. They also said they want to create consistency from school to school, to inform parents about what fees are coming next and, when possible, to reduce their financial burden, Aitken said. Aitken said he'll lead the fee review effort along with other central office staff and school principals. The school district offers ambitious and expensive activities, many of which are backed by booster clubs and parents. One example is the school's technology study abroad program. This year, a small group will visit New Zealand, Australia and Fiji, where they'll do things like review the acoustics of the Sydney opera house and study low-tech water treatment solutions, said Shelli Brasher, a leader of the school's technology program. The total cost: about $5,000 per student. Families often pay for the trips over a two-year period, she said. She said the students live in a globalized world and real exposure to applied technology can help them get jobs later. "I think it's important," she said. Likewise, the high school band travels all over the country to perform, incurring significant costs. Aitken said he plans to meet with the band Friday to learn more about its fees, since it's a very large extracurricular activity and because band is also a course for credit. That matters because state law makes a distinction between fees charged for courses and those charged for "extra" activities, said school board attorney Mike Marshall. The school may request fees for anything related to required courses, but it can't mandate them, he said. For something that's outside school hours like participation in a musical, for instance the school system can mandate fees from those who want to participate, he said. Aitken said he hopes the school board will finalize general fee policies by April. A proposed schedule of actual fees would be brought to the board in July. February 24, 2016 -- Lisa Chambers, mother of Jessica Chambers, speaks to the media during a news conference in Batesville, Miss., Wednesday morning. Quinton Tellis has been indicted in the burning death of Jessica Chambers in December 2014. Jessica's father, Ben Chambers, is directly behind Lisa Chambers. SHARE February 24, 2016 - District Attorney John Champion addresses the media during a Wednesday news conference in Batesville. Quinton Tellis Feb. 24, 2016 Lisa Chambers (center, in hat), mother of Jessica Chambers, listens during a news conference Wednesday morning where a 27-year-old man, Quinton Verdell Tellis, was identified and indicted in the 19-year-olds burning death in December 2014. (Stan Carroll/The Commercial Appeal) This undated photograph released by the families of Jessica Chambers and her sister Amanda Prince shows Jessica Chambers taken in Courtland, Miss. Mississippi authorities have launched a homicide investigation into the death of the 19-year-old woman who was found badly burned on a road near her car that was on fire in Panola County, Miss. Chambers was doused with a flammable liquid and set on fire Saturday, Dec. 6, 2014, said Panola County Sheriff Dennis Darby. (AP Photo/Chambers-Prince Famili By Ron Maxey of The Commercial Appeal BATESVILLE, Miss. Quinton Verdell Tellis, a 27-year-old habitual criminal sitting in a Louisiana jail for crimes there, now faces a capital murder charge for the 2014 burning death of 19-year-old Jessica Chambers in the Panola County town where they both grew up. An army of local, state and federal investigators, led by District Attorney John Champion, announced the indictment charging Tellis on Wednesday at the Panola County Sheriff's Department. Champion said Louisiana will finish with its cases against Tellis before he returns to Mississippi, which "won't be anytime soon." "This is nothing but hurdle No. 1," Champion said. "We're nowhere near the end." The indictment, returned during a specially empaneled grand jury that met Monday and Tuesday in Batesville, does, however, close the 14-month investigation phase, which involved checking more than 20,000 phone numbers and interviewing more than 150 people. Champion said he's confident Tellis, who grew up in Courtland and knew Chambers, acted alone. He doesn't expect additional arrests. Champion would not elaborate on the nature of the relationship between Chambers and Tellis except to say they knew each other and were introduced by friends. Specifically, the indictment charges Tellis with murdering Chambers while in the commission of another crime, third-degree arson. Because of three previous felony charges against him, the indictment charges him as a habitual offender. Champion said the decision would be made "down the road" on whether to seek the death penalty, once Tellis is back in Mississippi and the family is consulted. In Louisiana, he is in the Ouachita Parish Jail in Monroe for marijuana charges and fraudulent use of a debit card that belonged to a murdered exchange student. He is not charged with that murder. Champion said Tellis emerged as a suspect early in the investigation, and he remained in the picture until enough evidence was collected to develop a case against him. "We then made the decision as a team to bring the case to the grand jury, which we did over the past couple of days," Champion said. The case horrified the tiny north Mississippi community where it occurred. Courtland, with a population of about 500, is 70 miles from Memphis. Chambers, who like Tellis attended South Panola High School, was found alongside a road not far from her Courtland home the evening of Dec. 6, 2014. She stumbled from her burned Kia Rio, where a passer-by found her. Chambers, with burns over 98 percent of her body, was taken to the Regional Medical Center at Memphis, but she died hours later. The nature of the crime, Champion said, made it one of the most unusual cases he has worked. It also sparked many rumors and much misinformation, he said. Despite reports that accelerant was poured down Chambers' throat, Champion said for the first time Wednesday that it did not happen. He also said despite widespread talk of the death being gang- or drug-related, "we never thought that was the case." "From the get-go, the facts that we looked at did not lead us to those conclusions," Champion said. Even though Tellis is a gang member, Champion said he always felt it was a personal crime directed at Chambers, and the public was never in danger from a killer on the loose. A roundup of 17 suspects for drug and gang activity sparked much of the speculation, but FBI agents said when announcing the indictments in December that it was merely a byproduct of the Chambers investigation. Panola County Sheriff Dennis Darby alluded to the roundup, saying the Chambers case uncovered "a lot of corruption" not connected to the slaying. Champion said given the circumstances of the crime, authorities expected more information than they received in the early stages of the investigation. He said he was "amazed by the total lack of information from street sources." "We hoped early on that some people would come forward," Champion said, "but we got nothing. Even after the reward went up to $54,000, we only got two calls." As a result, Champion said investigators determined the suspect acted alone and told no one, and that it would take forensics and data to solve the case. He said that approach is what ultimately led to the grand jury presentation. He did not provide details of the information investigators collected, but said it was a slow methodical process that took time. "We methodically plugged along, making sure that if we had some piece of information, we had something to back it up with," Chambers said. "The public wants these cases to be solved quickly. Television doesn't help us with that." Chambers' parents, Ben and Lisa Chambers, attended the news conference. They said afterward the arrest will bring some closure. Ben Chambers, a mechanic at the sheriff's department, said he always knew investigators were working diligently and would make an arrest. "They never gave up," he said. "I saw that firsthand. And I thank them for it. Whatever they decide is appropriate (punishment), I'll support them." Asked what he thought Jessica would think about the arrest, he said she would just be amazed at the attention. "She'd be wondering why all these people were paying so much attention to her." SHARE This undated photograph released by the families of Jessica Chambers and her sister Amanda Prince shows Jessica Chambers taken in Courtland, Miss. Mississippi authorities have launched a homicide investigation into the death of the 19-year-old woman who was found badly burned on a road near her car that was on fire in Panola County, Miss. Chambers was doused with a flammable liquid and set on fire Saturday, Dec. 6, 2014. said Panola County Sheriff Dennis Darby. (AP Photo/Chambers-Prince Famili Quinton Tellis By Ron Maxey of The Commercial Appeal A 27-year-old man from Jessica Chambers' hometown of Courtland, Mississippi, is expected to be identified Wednesday as an indicted suspect in the 19-year-old's burning death in December 2014. District Attorney John Champion would not confirm that Quinton Tellis would be named during a news conference scheduled for Wednesday morning at the Panola County Sheriff's Department. However, when asked about Tellis after his name began to circulate in media reports, Champion said by phone: "I can tell you that if you used the name that's out there, you would not be wrong." Tellis is being held in the Ouachita Parish Jail in Louisiana on a $200,000 bond, according to the sheriff's department there. He is being held on marijuana charges as well as three counts of unauthorized use of an access card. He was also charged Tuesday with being a fugitive from justice. Tellis is listed as a resident of Monroe, Louisiana. Like Chambers, Tellis attended South Panola High School. Earlier Tuesday, Champion announced a 10:30 a.m. news conference Wednesday at which he and Panola County investigators would discuss developments in the case. He would provide no details, however, and expressed frustration Tuesday night that details were being leaked. Investigators have been working to unravel the case since Chambers was found badly burned the evening of Dec. 6, 2014, in front of a private gate on property not far from her Courtland home. She had been doused with fuel and stumbled from her burning Kia Rio, where a passer-by found her. Chambers was taken to the Regional Medical Center at Memphis but died hours later. Chambers' father, Ben Chambers, said last month he was confident authorities were close to a resolution in the case. Chambers, a mechanic at the Panola County Sheriff's Department, did not return a phone call Tuesday. But in January, Chambers said he felt good about the status of the investigation. "I know (authorities) are working on some good stuff, and I think we're very, very close to having something," he said. "There's no doubt in my mind they know now who did it." Chambers' mother, Lisa Chambers, declined by text to discuss the case Tuesday, both before and after a suspect's identity emerged. The most significant action related to the case before now came in December, when 17 gang-related arrests were made as part of the investigation into Chambers' death. However, when announcing the indictments in Jackson, the FBI termed them a byproduct of the Chambers investigation and said there was no direction connection. Staff reporter Jody Callahan contributed to this story. SHARE By Francis Wilkinson You can't win the Republican presidential primary in South Carolina without religious voters. According to exit polls, "born-again or evangelical Christian" voters accounted for 72 percent of the GOP primary electorate last Saturday. In his thumping victory in the state, billionaire Donald Trump carried a 33 percent plurality of them. As Bloomberg View columnist Leonid Bershidsky reported, Trump did not fare especially well among conservative religious voters seeking someone who reflects their values. Indeed, for the 37 percent of voters who told exit pollsters that "shares my values" was the most important quality they sought in a candidate, Trump finished last in the field. Unfortunately for Texas Sen. Ted Cruz and Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, who are both competing for their votes, many conservative evangelical Christians have concluded they don't need someone who shares their values. They can tolerate, even embrace, a candidate who is profane, greedy, vain, shifty and thrice-married with a loud history of sexual conquest. (Winner of the South Carolina primary in 2012? Newt Gingrich. Hmm.) Speaking to MSNBC, Robert Jones, CEO of the Public Religion Research Institute, said South Carolina evangelicals had proved to be not values voters so much as "nostalgia voters," eager to Make America Great Again by returning to an idealized socially conservative and white-dominated past. But if this is nostalgia, it comes in a particularly anxious form. In 2013, Democratic pollster Stanley Greenberg conducted a series of focus groups with Republican voters, dividing them into distinct groups of evangelicals, tea partyers or moderates. The socially conservative evangelicals had little in common with the moderates, but they considered tea partyers to be vital allies. Like the tea party groups, evangelicals viewed President Barack Obama and his party not as wrong-headed domestic political opponents, but as an existential threat. Participants were asked to write down their private thoughts about Obama. Here are some responses from evangelicals in Virginia and Colorado: "Not a US citizen. Supports Terrorists." "I don't believe he's a Christian. He's a tyrant." "He is going to try to turn this into a communist country." The window for compromise with a terrorist-supporting communist tyrant is not vast. Which explains why Greenberg found that evangelicals valued tea partyers primarily for their aggressive attacks on Obama. "Evangelicals who feel most threatened by trends embrace the tea party because they are the ones who are fighting back," Greenberg's report states. Instead of seeing Washington as a site of gridlock and paralysis, these voters perceived national politics as a series of devastating losses endured by conservatives. Republicans, in their view, were prostrate before a liberal Democratic steamroller. Trump doesn't promise to conduct himself with faith, hope and charity. He promises to smite the enemies of cultural conservatives and make things the way they used to be politically incorrect, economically secure and traditionally hierarchical, with white men on top. (That's the essence of the Trump definition of "great.") In South Carolina, the less education a voter claimed, the more that message resonated. Trump dominated among voters with high school or less education. He did slightly less well among voters who had some college, and a little less well again among college graduates. He handily lost voters with postgraduate educations to Rubio. "Apparently Trump does best with non-college white evangelicals, while Cruz and Rubio do better with college educated," emailed Emory University political scientist Alan Abramowitz, who has analyzed religious polarization in U.S. politics. "It makes sense if you think of Trump's appeal to this group being based on fear of social change and a sense of being under threat by changing values and demographics." For conservative evangelicals who feel battered by the global economy and rapid cultural change, Trump's bombast and crude aggression may not appear very Christ-like. But many are not looking for a candidate to embody their values. They're looking for a warrior to protect them. Francis Wilkinson is a columnist for Bloomberg View. SHARE By Neal Ungerleider In the locked-iPhone battle between the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Apple, the feds may have the judiciary on their side, but the tech giant has the better argument. Last week, the FBI obtained a court order from the Federal District Court for Central California telling Apple to help unlock the iPhone 5C used by Syed Rizwan Farook, one of the attackers who killed 14 people in San Bernardino on Dec. 2. Specifically, the FBI wants Apple to create a custom operating system update that would give the FBI infinite tries at cracking the phone's passcode. Normally, after 10 failed attempts, an iPhone automatically deletes any encrypted data. Tim Cook, chief executive of Apple, responded with a strongly worded open letter saying the company would not comply. "The U.S. government has asked us for something we simply do not have, and something we consider too dangerous to create. ( ) In the wrong hands, this software which does not exist today would have the potential to unlock any iPhone in someone's physical possession." That's not hyperbole. And it's not just the "wrong hands" we need to worry about. We like to imagine that the law enforcement and government investigators tasked with preventing terrorist attacks are sober and dedicated, but the truth can be more sordid. In 2013, following disclosures that the National Security Agency had violated its own data collection rules more than 2,500 times in the course of a year, agency officials admitted that some of these incidents were personal in nature. A dozen or more cases involved NSA workers spying on their lovers and spouses. Abuse of surveillance technology by law enforcement is more common than we think, which surely must be on Cook's mind. As his letter points out, there is no way to guarantee that the government won't use the altered operating system in other cases in the future. Apple is also rightly worried that the case could establish a legal precedent to generate master keys to the encrypted data on any iPhone or iPad. Apple, Samsung, HTC, LG, Huawei and other smartphone manufacturers stake their business reputation on a tacit agreement: In exchange for a customer's money, the phone manufacturer does its best to ensure that his or her private information stays secure. With the creation of so-called backdoors or weakened encryption, they could face the loss of lucrative enterprise contracts from corporate clients who want to make sure proprietary information stays proprietary. Apple's compliance with this court order also would harm America's whole tech sector, putting billions of dollars in profits and tech industry jobs at risk. In foreign markets, a perception (right or wrong) that an American technology company is working hand-in-glove with U.S. intelligence and law enforcement is ruinous for business. That was the case when the tables were turned. Chinese smartphone maker Huawei found it nearly impossible to sell phones in the U.S. market for years because of fears here of surveillance by China. After it openly clashed with Beijing over cybersecurity, and entered into deals with Google, Deutsche Telekom and other Western companies, its Nexus 6P phone finally has a growing market share. In the European Union, meanwhile, merely storing European customers' data on U.S. servers has been a major policy concern. Here's the kicker: Law enforcement hardly needs to bend Apple to its will to surveille terrorism suspects. It could instead just catch up with the superior tracking and data mining capabilities of the private sector. To give one example of the sophisticated tracking tools in use, an advertising technology firm called Dstillery used location data to identify the smartphones of Iowa caucusgoers, and then scraped their online activities to find correlations between behaviors and voting patterns. (For instance, NASCAR fans correlated with caucuses supporting Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton.) Working within the law, the advertising tech industry has developed behavior monitoring and analysis techniques that are the government's envy. It's important to note that we don't know if backdoors for law enforcement and intelligence secretly have been developed for some other tech products already. But the FBI's request, which will surely now wind up back in court, is terrible for American business and Americans in general. Writing on Twitter, Christopher Soghoian, principal technologist at the American Civil Liberties Union, summed it up: The court order gives law enforcement a precedent they have been seeking for a long time, and clears the way to use software update mechanisms on mobile devices for surveillance. Giving those capabilities to the FBI won't prevent further terrorist attacks. What might? Old-fashioned police work and cutting-edge analysis of the vast amount of legally available data. The type of access the FBI wants, though, is a Pandora's box. Once it's developed, hackers, organized crime or foreign intelligence agencies stand to benefit as much as U.S. intelligence agencies and law enforcement. It is a cure, truly, that is worse than the disease. Neal Ungerleider is a reporter for Fast Company magazine and technology industry consultant who lives in Los Angeles. He wrote this for the Los Angeles Times. Select Commodity All Ajwan Alasande Gram Almond(Badam) Alsandikai Amaranthus Ambada Seed Amla(Nelli Kai) Amphophalus Antawala Anthorium Apple Apricot(Jardalu/Khumani) Arecanut(Betelnut/Supari) Arecanut(Betelnut/Supari) Arhar (Tur/Red Gram)(Whole) Arhar (Tur/Red Gram)(Whole) Arhar Dal(Tur Dal) Ashgourd Astera Avare Dal Bajra(Pearl Millet/Cumbu) Bajra(Pearl Millet/Cumbu) Balekai Bamboo Banana Banana - Green Barley (Jau) Bay leaf (Tejpatta) Beans Beaten Rice Beetroot Bengal Gram Dal (Chana Dal) Bengal Gram(Gram)(Whole) Ber(Zizyphus/Borehannu) Ber(Zizyphus/Borehannu) Betal Leaves Bhindi(Ladies Finger) Bitter gourd Black Gram (Urd Beans)(Whole) Black Gram Dal (Urd Dal) Black pepper BOP Bottle gourd Bran Brinjal Broken Rice Broomstick(Flower Broom) Bull Bunch Beans Cabbage Calf Capsicum Cardamoms Carnation Carrot Cashewnuts Castor Seed Cauliflower Chapparad Avare Chennangi Dal Cherry Chikoos(Sapota) Chili Red Chilly Capsicum Chow Chow Chrysanthemum Chrysanthemum(Loose) Cinamon(Dalchini) Cloves Cluster beans Cock Cocoa Coconut Coconut Oil Coconut Seed Coffee Colacasia Copra Coriander(Leaves) Corriander seed Cotton Cotton Seed Cow Cowpea (Lobia/Karamani) Cowpea (Lobia/Karamani) Cowpea(Veg) Cucumbar(Kheera) Cummin Seed(Jeera) Custard Apple (Sharifa) Dalda Dhaincha Drumstick Dry Chillies Dry Fodder Dry Grapes Duck Duster Beans Egg Elephant Yam (Suran) Field Pea Firewood Fish Foxtail Millet(Navane) French Beans (Frasbean) Galgal(Lemon) Garlic Ghee Gingelly Oil Ginger(Dry) Ginger(Green) Gladiolus Cut Flower Goat Gram Raw(Chholia) Gramflour Grapes Green Avare (W) Green Chilli Green Fodder Green Gram (Moong)(Whole) Green Gram Dal (Moong Dal) Green Peas Ground Nut Oil Ground Nut Seed Groundnut Groundnut (Split) Groundnut pods (raw) Guar Guar Seed(Cluster Beans Seed) Guava Gur(Jaggery) He Buffalo Hen Hippe Seed Honge seed Hybrid Cumbu Indian Beans (Seam) Indian Colza(Sarson) Isabgul (Psyllium) Jack Fruit Jaffri Jamun(Narale Hannu) Jarbara Jasmine Jowar(Sorghum) Jute Kabuli Chana(Chickpeas-White) Kacholam Kakada Kankambra Karamani Karbuja(Musk Melon) Kartali (Kantola) Khoya Kinnow Knool Khol Kodo Millet(Varagu) Kulthi(Horse Gram) Lak(Teora) Leafy Vegetable Lemon Lentil (Masur)(Whole) Lilly Lime Linseed Lint Litchi Little gourd (Kundru) Long Melon(Kakri) Lotus Lotus Sticks Lukad Mahedi Mahua Mahua Seed(Hippe seed) Maida Atta Maize Mango Mango (Raw-Ripe) Marasebu Marget Marigold(Calcutta) Marigold(loose) Mashrooms Masur Dal Mataki Methi Seeds Methi(Leaves) Millets Mint(Pudina) Moath Dal Mousambi(Sweet Lime) Mustard Mustard Oil Myrobolan(Harad) Neem Seed Niger Seed (Ramtil) Nutmeg Onion Onion Green Orange Orchid Ox Paddy(Dhan)(Basmati) Paddy(Dhan)(Common) Papaya Papaya (Raw) Patti Calcutta Peach Pear(Marasebu) Peas cod Peas Wet Peas(Dry) Pegeon Pea (Arhar Fali) Pepper garbled Pepper ungarbled Persimon(Japani Fal) Pigs Pineapple Plum Pointed gourd (Parval) Pomegranate Potato Pumpkin Raddish Ragi (Finger Millet) Raibel Rajgir Ram Rat Tail Radish (Mogari) Raya Resinwood Rice Ridge gourd(Tori) Ridgeguard(Tori) Rose(Local) Rose(Loose) Rose(Loose)) Round gourd Rubber Sabu Dan Sabu Dana Safflower Sajje Same/Savi Season Leaves Seemebadnekai Seetafal Seetapal Sesamum(Sesame,Gingelly,Til) Sesamum(Sesame,Gingelly,Til) She Buffalo She Goat Sheep Snake gourd Snakeguard Soanf Soapnut(Antawala/Retha) Soji Soyabean Spinach Sponge gourd Squash(Chappal Kadoo) Sugar Sugarcane Sunflower Sunhemp Suram Surat Beans (Papadi) Suva (Dill Seed) Suvarna Gadde Sweet Potato Sweet Pumpkin T.V. Cumbu T.V. Cumbu Tamarind Fruit Tamarind Seed Tapioca Taramira Tender Coconut Thinai (Italian Millet) Thogrikai Thondekai Tinda Tobacco Tomato Toria Tube Rose(Double) Tube Rose(Loose) Tube Rose(Single) Turmeric Turmeric (raw) Turnip Walnut Water Melon Wheat Wheat Atta White Peas White Pumpkin Wood Yam Yam (Ratalu) Select State Select Market Apple faces at least a dozen other demands by the Department of Justice (DOJ) to assist in accessing iPhones, according to a recent filing with a New York federal court. Those 12 cases are in addition to the one involving an iPhone used by Syed Rizwan Farook, who with his wife Tafsheen Malik, killed 14 in San Bernardino, Calif., on Dec. 2 before they died in a shootout with police. Apple is fighting a court order that compels it to help the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) conduct a brute-force passcode attack on Farook's iPhone by creating a modified version of iOS. In all 12 other cases, the government cited the 1789 All Writs Act as the basis for its demand, as it has with the San Bernardino iPhone. Eleven of those cases were laid out in a Feb. 17 letter to U.S. Magistrate Judge James Orenstein, who is hearing a case that also involves the All Writs Act. In that letter, Marc Zwillinger, an outside attorney for Apple, listed nine cases in which authorities asked for the company's assistance during the time when the New York case was pending a decision by Orenstein, from Oct. 8, 2015 to Feb. 9, 2016. Two other All Writs orders, said Zwillinger, were made shortly before that span, on Sept. 24 and Oct. 6. A twelfth order was pointed out by the government in its own letter to Orenstein Monday. Orenstein is overseeing a case where the DOJ has asked him to make Apple help in unlocking an alleged drug dealer's iPhone. Unlike the magistrate in California hearing the San Bernardino case, Orenstein has not yet made a ruling. Even after the defendant in Orenstein's case pleaded guilty, Apple argued that the matter was not moot, and that the issue about Apple's assistance should continue to be heard by the court. "Apple has also been advised that the government intends to continue to invoke the All Writs Act in this and other districts in an attempt to require Apple to assist in bypassing the security of other Apple devices in the government's possession," Zwillinger wrote in an earlier Feb. 12 letter to the court. The dozen instances of All Writs Act demands bolster Apple's contention that the government has, and will likely continue, to use the aged law to compel assistance. "Law enforcement agents around the country have already said they have hundreds of iPhones they want Apple to unlock if the FBI wins this case," Apple said in a FAQ published Monday, referring to the case involving Farook's iPhone. Last week, Apple CEO Tim Cook also made the point that the government's demand that Apple craft a special version of iOS that would allow FBI access to Farook's iPhone 5C would open the floodgates to other such orders. "The government suggests this tool could only be used once, on one phone. But that's simply not true," Cook contended. "Once created, the technique could be used over and over again, on any number of devices." The DOJ has argued that what it's asked Apple to do for Farook's iPhone is a one-time deal. "[This] order is tailored for and limited to this particular phone," government lawyers wrote in a motion submitted to the San Bernardino case's judge last Friday. "Apple's speculative policy concerns regarding possible consequences from compliance with the Order in this matter merit little weight," the DOJ added in the same motion. Some outside experts have viewed the government's choosing of the San Bernardino case as calculated. ""This was a very strategic decision by the FBI," said Robert Cattanach in an interview last week. Cattanach is a partner at the law firm Dorsey & Whitney who previously worked as a trial attorney for the DOJ. "I think it was very calculated on the part of the FBI: 'Let's get a win here.'" Cattanach also wondered how the use of the All Writs Act would play out if Apple was compelled to assist the FBI, and in fact, did so. "It is a slippery slope," Cattanach said. "No one can predict how this precedent will be used next." For the dozen other orders, Apple "has not agreed to perform any services on the devices to which those requests are directed," according to Zwillinger. The DOJ put it differently. "In most of the cases, rather than challenge the orders in court, Apple simply deferred complying with them, without seeking appropriate judicial relief," the government said in its Monday letter to Orenstein. "In one case, Apple indicated that it would assist the government in accessing a passcode-locked device once the government provided it with a new copy of the order's language in a different format. "Only more recently, in light of the public attention surrounding an All Writs Act order issued in connection with the investigation into the shootings in San Bernardino, California, has Apple indicated that it will seek judicial relief, in that matter," the DOJ added. "Apple's position has been inconsistent at best." China's top smartphone maker is thinking about launching its phones in the U.S., the head of its international business said Wednesday. "On the radar," Hugo Barra told IDG News Service, when asked about plans to launch its new flagship Mi 5 phone in the U.S. But Barra wouldn't be drawn on whether that would be in 2016. "Not sure, it would be hard to say." Barra's comments came on the sidelines of the launch of the Mi 5 at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. It was the first time the company used a high-profile international event to launch a flagship phone -- something that some had interpreted as signaling a wider international release. Xiaomi surpassed LG Electronics to became the number five smartphone company in the world in 2015, but most of its sales are concentrated in China, India and Brazil. Its entry into the U.S. and European markets has been long-awaited, but to date the company hasn't taken a step into those markets. "Historically, they've had issues with intellectual property," said Ian Fogg, an analyst with IHS Technology, voicing a common belief in the mobile industry that patent licensing issues are holding the company back. Martyn Williams Hugo Barra, vice president of international at Xiaomi, speaks at a Barcelona news conference on Feb. 24, 2016. Xiaomi has never confirmed that, but on Wednesday Barra sought to underline the 3,600 patents it has applied for over the last few years. And Barra brought on stage Qualcomm President Derek Aberle, with whom Xiaomi signed a patent licensing agreement last year. A sizable patent portfolio would make it easier for Xiaomi to enter major international markets because it could sign cross-licensing deals with other major patent holders, rather than have to get into specific agreements, Fogg said. The cooling Chinese economy might also be pushing Xiaomi to think about wider sales of its phones. Last year it missed its own sales forecast by about 7 million phones, largely because of declining growth in China. To western consumers, Xiaomi's main attraction will likely be the high-specs and low price. The Mi 5 that was launched on Wednesday has many of the same or similar features as the new Samsung Galaxy S7 and LG G5 phones, but it costs about half the price. But the company will also have to work on its software. Xiaomi is famous for releasing its own Android user interface, called MIUI, on a weekly basis. Each release includes features suggested by users, but a lot of those features and functions are aimed at consumers in China where Google services are not available, Fogg said. Internationally, that becomes less of a selling point, so the company will have to work on how to make MIUI attractive outside of China. "Everyone is expecting it," Fogg said of Xiaomi's global launch. "I think it will come." Microsoft last week said that the support rules for the Windows Server software would not change, even though the Redmond, Wash. company has said it will curtail support for Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 after mid-2017. "There is no change to our current policy," Microsoft said in a post to a company blog Feb. 19 that focused on Windows Server. A month before, Microsoft shortened support for Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 on the newest PCs -- those equipped with Intel's Skylake processors -- by 30 months, and laid down a new law that said next-generation processors would require the "latest Windows platform at that time for support." Older operating systems will be supported only until July 17, 2017 on the new silicon, and then only on specific PCs. At the time, Microsoft declined to comment on whether the same rule would apply to Windows Server, in other words, whether the newest version of Windows Server -- slated to be dubbed Windows Server 2016 when it debuts this year -- would, like Windows 10, be the company's only OS to be supported on Skylake and later silicon. Last week's notice answered those questions. Rather than limit customers' choices, Microsoft will continue to support Windows Server SKUs (stock-keeping units) on hardware powered by pre-Skylake and Skylake-and-later, as long as those servers are certified as such. Microsoft maintains a list of Windows Server-certified systems on its website. It's up to the server manufacturer to obtain certification. The caveat: Certification must be awarded before the Windows Server SKU shifts from "mainstream" to "extended" support, or within approximately five years of the SKU debuts. Windows Server 2012 and 2012 R2, for example, transition to extended support on Jan. 10, 2018. Thus a server maker must get hardware certified for those SKUs by that date. Servers relying on newer processors -- the server-aimed derivations of Skylake, specifically the Xeon E3 -- can be certified for the older Windows Server 2012 and 2012 R2 OSes. "Per our policy we would allow new system submissions for Windows Server 2012 and 2012 R2 to continue up to this date [of Jan 10, 2018], including the forthcoming Intel Xeon E3 (Skylake) family of processors," Microsoft said. Wes Miller, an analyst at Directions on Microsoft, applauded Microsoft's announcement. "I'm glad to see that if an OEM wants to work with Microsoft to insure the quality of the OS, [Microsoft will] work with them through the lifecycle," said Miller in an interview last week. "It's good that they've clarified this." Not everyone agreed with Miller. "You guys have lost your @#$% minds," wrote Bran Nunya, the only reader of Microsoft's no-change-here blog post to append a comment. "Running Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 8.1? Come July 2017 you are SOL because 'magic issues that could suddenly arise because of silicon changes that have previously existed in a supported fashion prior to Q3 2017.' Running a Server? 'Oh, yeah we know we can't get away with anything there and force people to a new scheme so we'll still support those.' "Everyone is already used to this type of treatment from Apple. If I'm not getting long-term support I might as well go there," Nunya added. Congress should allow an expert commission to recommend ways to resolve the contentious debate over police access to encrypted communications before passing "knee-jerk" legislation, one lawmaker said. Even as Apple and the FBI fight in court over access to a terrorist suspect's iPhone, a 9/11 Commission-style digital security panel should try to find a compromise between smartphone users' privacy and law enforcement access to encrypted devices, U.S. Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas) said Wednesday. "Given the complexities of this issue, there's no legislative, knee-jerk response that will solve this problem," McCaul, chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, said during a forum hosted by the Bipartisan Policy Center, a think tank. "This is an urgent issue, and I believe [a commission] is the best vehicle." McCaul declined to comment on a legislative proposal, not yet introduced as a bill, that would require Apple and other tech vendors to help law enforcement agencies break into encrypted devices. He hasn't yet seen the full plan from leaders of the Senate Intelligence Committee, he said. Still, any proposal to enforce police wiretap-style rules on encrypted devices wouldn't work, McCaul said, because such a regulation would introduce insecure "back doors." McCaul and Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.), a Senate Intelligence Committee member, plan to introduce a bill to establish their proposed digital security and encryption commission. The 16-member commission would include law enforcement leaders, privacy advocates, encryption experts, tech industry representatives and other groups, the two lawmakers said. The lawmakers would expect the commission to produce recommendations in about a year, they said. Both sides in the encryption debate are dug in, with the FBI, Obama administration and other law enforcement agencies pitted against many technology vendors, privacy groups and cybersecurity experts. In late 2014, FBI Director James Comey began raising concerns that investigations are "going dark" because of new encryption services on smartphones. A commission would give all sides room to look at the issue again and seek alternatives, the two lawmakers said. Even though many commissions don't produce work that leads to solutions, "this could be a case where we prove the pundits wrong," Warner said. It's a complex issue that needs more debate, Warner added. Many law enforcement and intelligence officials acknowledge that "encryption is here to stay, and it protects Americans' personal information, financial information, intellectual capital," he said. "This genie's not going to be put back into the bottle." Four cybersecurity experts speaking after Warner and McCaul agreed that a commission is a good idea. A commission debate could help separate hype from fact and educate the public about the issue, they said. A commission could offer a "more pragmatic approach" than the current encryption debate, said Susan Hennessey, a national security fellow at the Brookings Institution and former National Security Agency lawyer. "Getting people in a room who are willing to, as a matter of first principle, believe there might be a solution, represents a step forward." But a presidential panel already voiced strong support for end-to-end encryption in 2013, noted Michael German, a former FBI agent who's now a fellow in the Brennan Center for Justice's Liberty and National Security Program. The FBI and other government agencies have "not heeded these recommendations," he said. The government wants digital technologies to build in more access to information than it demands from other products, German added. "We don't require the people who manufacture paper shredders to have a chip that records and scans that document so it's recoverable," he said. "The piece of technology that has destroyed more evidence than any other ... is the flush toilet, and yet we realize the benefits of indoor plumbing to our society outweigh the fact that certain evidence is going to be beyond the government's reach." Polat Urundul is studying International Relations and European Studies at the University of Portsmouth and works for Conservative Friends of Turkey. The Turkish Community is one of the most important resident groups in London. Though they live in many different parts of the city, Turks created their neighbourhoods mostly in North London. In the London Mayoral Election 2016, Turks will play a crucial role for the future of the city. Even though they have been inclined to vote Labour in the past, Zac Goldsmith has a capability to change their decisions. Firstly, Zac Goldmisth has a big team consisting of people from many different ethnic origins, including Turks. It should be remembered that Zac does not like ethnic politics. He blamed his rival Sadiq Khan for playing the race card. He also mentioned in Ickenham that he wont propose policies for different ethnic groups in London because he sees Londoners as a whole. Turks voting inclination is changing. They are mostly first or second generation immigrants living with other immigrants in North London. However, they are becoming more and more integrated into London society and some of them are becoming even more Conservative than many life-long Tories. Why do some Turks think of voting Khan? Apart from Labours expedient policies on ethnic groups, Turks have nothing common with Sadiq Khan. Some Turks support Khan because of his background. Khan is a Muslim and he comes from an immigrant background like Turks do. Why they should not vote Khan Khan is a candidate of the party that invaded Iraq. Furthermore, religion can not be the decisive thing while voting. Most Turks who vote Labour are inclined to vote for Conservative or religious parties when they are in Turkey. Voting for a party which has a Marxist leader like Jeremy Corbyn can not be appropriate for Turks. Most Turkish people do not like extremism. It is certain that Corbyns new Labour Party will be a threat to Turkish values and beliefs. Corbyns ideas on security and his intentions to open channels for talks with ISIS is another risk for the Turkish electorate. Khans politics can not be considered regardless of his leader because he has proved to be excessively loyal to his party leader in the past. Why should Turks vote Tory? There is a common belief in Turkish politics. Once you lose Istanbul, you lose the country. It has always been so. I think the case of London is not different in Britain. Turks should not let Labour take over London. Because its policies may harm Turkish values in return. Corbyn is famous with his intimacy with radicals in the Middle East. Furthermore, his ideology may destroy the relations between Britain and Turkey. The PKK terrorist group is a far left, socialist organisation. In addition to Corbyns ties with radicals in the area, his far left ideology may bring PKK and the Labour Party together. Therefore, it may create a crisis between Turkey and United Kingdom. However, it is known that Tories have always backed Turkey in international politics. Whenever Tories are in charge, the relationship between the United Kingdom and Turkey is better. It is not only about the relations between two countries. Conservative politicians are also more friendly towards the Turkish community. Boris Johnsons background is Ottoman and he did a great job in London. He and MPs in London supported campaigns in favour of A-Level exams in Turkish. Boris Johnson always helped Turks and people from other backgrounds without any discrimination or bias. Finally, Conservatives nominated two Turkish candidates in the 2015 general election. Gonul Daniels and Isabel Sigmac were Conservatives parliamantary candidates in 2015. They are currently working on Zac Goldsmiths election campaign in the North London. How can Turks benefit from Zacs projects? Housing and security are the most important issues for Turkish Londoners. Turks have always suffered from security problems in their neighbourhoods. Drug trade and violence were big problems for North Londoners. Thanks to Boris Johnson, streets of the North London are safer now. But London needs more progress. Zacs plan is to make London safer by doubling the number of police officers and keeping them on the street. Home ownership is the most important thing for a Turkish person. Zacs plans for housing is doubling home building to 50,000 when he is in charge. He also wants to give Londoners priority to buy new homes built in London. Affordable, good-quality housing is key for Zac as well. The London Mayoral Election 2016 is a good chance for Turkish Londoners to live better and make their voice heard. Zac Goldsmith is the only man who can keep up what Boris Johnson did in the last 8 years and he is much more capable than Sadiq Khan. As he did in the last general election, Zac will increase Tories votes in London in May and provide a better life for all Londoners including Turks. Cameron supports Villiers as Ulster referendum campaign takes shape The Prime Minister has backed Theresa Villiers, the Northern Irish Secretary, after Irish nationalists called for her to resign, the News Letter reports. Nationalist and republican politicians led by Martin McGuinness, the Deputy First Minister, have made their demands after she became one of the six Cabinet ministers to call for Britain to leave the EU. David Cameron said that she is doing an excellent job, and defended her right to make a personal decision on the matter. He also indicated that he plans to visit Northern Ireland in the course of the referendum campaign after the Democratic Unionist Party, the provinces largest, came out for Brexit. Meanwhile GO!, a candidate for the official mantle of the Leave campaign, has announced a Belfast rally. Headlining are Nigel Farage, Kate Hoey of Labour Leave, and Jim Allister, leader and sole MLA for the hard-line Traditional Unionist Voice party. Mundell dismisses threat of Scottish independence if we Leave David Mundell, the Scottish Secretary and sole Tory MP north of the border, has spoken out against the widespread assumption that leaving the EU risks the break-up of the UK, according to Buzzfeed. He laments that other Conservatives, such as William Hague, have been drawn onto the SNPs turf. He added: Its also certainly not clear that Scotland would vote to leave [the UK]. Our status within the EU would be extremely uncertain and Scotlands ability to go into the EU without signing up to the euro is uncertain as well. Whether the doom-mongers are correct is crucially important to unionist voters, and the debate rages on. I have expressed scepticism, and Alex Massie has fiercely refuted me. Other pro-EU Scottish unionist writers, such as Stephen Daisley and Chris Deerin, share Massies pronounced pessimism. Meanwhile such improbable figures as Gordon Wilson, a former SNP leader, and Lallands Peat Worrier, an eminent nationalist blogger, seems more inclined to my view (although Worriers is a slightly despairing perspective) about the potential impact of Brexit on the separatist cause. The latter writes: If Britain does choose to depart from the European Union, the version of Scottish nationalism which has sustained the SNP these last decades takes a fundamental knock. Make no bones about it. and the leader of the Welsh Tories backs Brexit. The BBC reports that Andrew RT Davies, the leader of the Welsh Tories, has come out in favour of ending Britains EU membership. Whilst emphasising that the Conservatives would not allow the plebiscite to distract them from the most important Welsh Assembly election in a generation, he states his belief that Britain would be better served by a looser, economic relationship with Europe. This position puts him at odds with Stephen Crabb, the Welsh Secretary, although the countrys Tory MPs had split only six to four in favour of remain when the BBC went to print. Davies Assembly rivals are already trying to use his stance to drive a wedge between him and those sections of the Welsh electorate which benefit from EU subsidies efforts boosted by the Prime Ministers emphasis on EU grants in making his Welsh case for Remain. UKIP, who are set to break into the Assembly in May despite a serious outbreak of infighting, will provide Wales second pro-Brexit voice. Also this week, the Welsh Conservatives unveiled a plan to phase out the Assemblys tuition fee support in exchange for paying rent for students. Davidson hails devolution deal and challenges Labour on soft unionism The leader of the Scottish Conservatives has been a veritable one-woman unionist whirlwind this week, engaging energetically both with the SNP and her erstwhile pro-UK rivals alike. Most recently, she has praised the fiscal deal struck at the eleventh hour between Westminster and the intransigent Nationalist administration in Holyrood, praising it as devolution delivered and framing it as a challenge to the SNP. Some commentators are taking pains to stake her out a claim on the credit, too. Last week, Davidson took to the Daily Telegraph to remind UK readers of the SNPs ceaseless attempts to undermine the institutions that bind Britain together a timely reminder as MPs accuse the BBC of pandering to the SNP by breaking up the pan-UK Six OClock News. She also urged her former partners in Better Together, Labour and the Liberal Democrats, to reverse their decisions to permit open separatists into their ranks, according to The Scotsman. Jones pledges to distance Welsh Labour from Corbyn The First Minister of Wales has stated his intention to try to distance his re-election bid in this Mays Assembly elections from the infighting plaguing Labour at Westminster. The Guardian reports Carwyn Jones making his remarks at the partys Welsh conference which Jeremy Corbyn attended. Jones strategy is much as it ever is when his administration is in difficulty: to apply liberal doses of the national flag and try to otherise the British nature of his party as much as possible. Former NI21 leader joins the SDLP A another surreal twist in the drawn-out demise of NI21, the brand new, pro-Union party set up by UUP defectors Basic McCrea and John McCallister in 2014. Its former deputy leader and only elected councillor, who resigned his membership in December, has now joined the soft-nationalist Social Democratic and Labour Party. McCreas last chance to keep the dream alive (although to what purpose it isnt clear) will be holding his seat in Mays elections. Rebecca Coulson is a freelance classical musician and writer, and was Parliamentary Candidate for the City of Durham at the 2015 General Election. Religion cannot be separated from the religious. Although the Oxford English Dictionary defines religions as particular system[s] of faith and worship, these systems must surely be spectrums: how could they exist without the perspectives of their followers? Yes, a god could exist without followers, and a religion might depend on belief in and the worship of that god. But God isnt religion. From the foremost expert to the newest convert, each believers interpretation of his religion is just that an interpretation. I might think that I can no longer be a Christian because I dont believe in the doctrine of the Trinity, but for many Christians that wouldnt present an insurmountable problem. Some might disagree with my understanding of the doctrine; others might not have heard of it, at all. The exact wording of authoritative texts is, of course, often wielded in attempts to explicate these matters, but that exactness is paradoxical, owing to issues of authenticity, translation, and therefore again, interpretation. Some religions are traditionally disparate. Manifestations of others are continually shaped by the culture of their locations, or secular and political influence. But, frequently, there are over-lapping sets of tenets that mainstream followers of a religion feel to be fundamental to their faith. Those sets arent easily categorised into one neat package, however in much the same way that we struggle to define game, or opera. If we cant know what a religion definitively represents, and we allow that its followers espouse varying interpretations of what might be the case, then our thoughts both about religion and the religious become complicated. If uncertainty is hard for believers, it is, no doubt, harder for those who cant appreciate that the beauty of faith could be that it depends on belief in something that cannot be known. Treating people equally, regardless of their qualities over which they have no control race and gender, for instance seems almost indisputably good. Respecting their views seems an essential part of a good society. But, being born a certain way is usually deemed to be quite different from choosing to hold a certain view. Some followers of some religions do believe that religiosity is an inherent quality: something one cant attain, or abdicate from. That can lead both to the attractive idea of a God-given faith, and to menacing eugenics. And, again, it can only ever be a viewpoint. Nobody has yet provided a conclusive argument for a gods existence (sorry, Descartes and dad), so, to those who dont believe, the standpoint that God says so or God has done this is not just weak, it is irrelevant. But, to live together in successful society, we need to tolerate others. And, to many Britons today YouGov claims 50 per cent the religious are indeed others. As well as supporting peoples right to believe what they choose (of course, that right is thankfully somewhat difficult to suppress), we should also support their right to propagate their beliefs as long as doing so does not incite violence. Little of this feels relevant to the past weeks headlines about Israel and anti-semitism, however. In fact, Im convinced that the consideration of Jewish tenets has nothing to do with the aggrieved championing of the (insidious and counter-productive) Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement that followed Matthew Hancocks attempt to block this anti-Israeli behaviour within Britain. Similarly, religious enquiry seems unrelated to the anti-semitic attitudes reportedly afflicting Oxford Universitys Labour Club. Anti-semitism is not a considered argument against Judaism or its followers interpretations of their faith; it is base, unthinking hatred. Having some awareness of twentieth-century history, I am always surprised when I learn of instances of anti-semitism in our country. Having some awareness of twentieth-century history, I realise how stupid this is of me. If I were Jewish, had grown up in a more religiously mixed area, or had more British Jewish friends, my surprise might have subsided by now. I do have lots of left-wing friends, however. And many of them seem uncomfortable about Israel. Some support BDS, or anti-Israeli Christian charities. Some assume there were pernicious intentions behind the genesis of the Israeli state. Some probably agree with the messages of the Israeli Apartheid Week tube flyposters. And some might even have time for the extreme opinion that the Netanyahu governments approach is fascistic, and, therefore, somehow comparable to that of the Nazi regime. To respond to the vileness of that comparison would take more words than I have space to include, and fewer than I am sufficiently eloquent to write. And I wont try to outline the history of the Jewish people, or the land of Israel. But those who suggest that the current state simply should not exist are surely ignorant of what that would mean (and not just for Israelis). Ignorant also are those who fail to comprehend that its citizens including Jews, Muslims, Christians, those who dont wish to be described by their faith, and atheists all benefit from being democratically able to influence and denounce their governments decisions. And ignorant are those who cannot see that Israel is bonded by millennia of anti-semitism. In Britain, this ignorance comes mostly from those who havent seen the relaxed way in which men and women wander the old stone streets, and start-up scenes, of Jerusalem in all forms of religious dress. Or havent talked with recent French Israeli immigrants, who have left their families for a country where they cant speak the language, in order to feel at home practising their faith, without fear. Every nation state is man-made. OK, some Jews believe that Israel was given to them by God, but this, again, is not a sufficient argument to convince those who do not believe in such a god. Anti-semitism itself, however, is a reason to approve of Israel, and to understand the integration of Judaism and the freedom of all religious expression into its structures. To become anti-semitic through opposition to Israel is, at best, grossly ignorant. But it is not surprising. Contradictory fashions constantly clash in our bubbles of prescribed thought. This happens when groupthink limits an ability to discern complex nuance. It happens in the effort to work out how transgender politics fits into male-inclusive feminism. And when the wrongness of sexual assault seems at odds with positivity about immigration. It happens when Stop the War endorses Putins pugnaciousness, and Jeremy Corbyn maintains that making friends with Hamas is a necessary act of peace. And it happens when hatred of someone for their religious views has nothing to do with religious views at all. Close The Scottish-born nurse Pauline Cafferkey has been hospitalized for a third time since recovering from Ebola hemorrhagic fever last year. However, doctors found persisting traces of the virus in her brain causing her to suffer from life-threatening complications. "We can confirm that Pauline Cafferkey is being transferred to the Royal Free Hospital due to a late complication from her previous infection by the Ebola virus. She will now be treated by the hospital's infectious diseases team under nationally agreed guidelines," said the hospital in an official statement as quoted by Reuters. The 39-year-old nurse contracted the virus while being deployed in Sierra Leone to help the victims back in December 2014. She was admitted to Royal Free's isolation unit but was finally allowed to go home in January 2015. While in hospital, Cafferkey was treated with survivor's plasma and a new antiviral drug known as GS5734. However, the virus re-appeared causing an unprecedented brain meningitis in October last year- the first documented case of Ebola linked to life-threatening complications months after initial recovery as reported by The Guardian. Ebola Quick Facts In a BBC News report, Ebola is a viral disease that infects humans through close contact with infected animals or other humans either alive or deceased. Its signs and symptoms include high and sudden hemorrhagic fever, muscle pain, intense body weakness, and sore throat. In 2014, a big outbreak (the deadliest so far since the 1976 discovery of the illness) occurred in West Africa but has since spread into Central Africa as well especially in places close to tropical rain forests. See Now: What Republicans Don't Want You To Know About Obamacare Close New research suggests that migraines and tension headaches might be genetically linked to the gut disease, irritable bowl syndrome. For this study, the researchers recruited four groups of participants. The first group included 107 people with episodic migraines. The second group was composed of 107 people with IBS. The third group had 53 people with tension headaches and the fourth group had 53 people without any of the three conditions. Episodic migraines were defined as having zero to 14 headache days per month. The researchers found that 54 percent of the participants who have episodic migraines also suffered from IBS. The rate of IBS was significantly lower in participants with tension headaches (28 percent). In patients with IBS, 38 had migraines and 24 had tension headaches. To further analyze the link between the conditions, the researchers examined the participants' genes. The researchers found that in the participants with migraines, tension headaches or IBS had at least one gene that was different from the people who did not have any of the three conditions. The team had looked at the serotonin transporter gene and serotonin receptor 2A gene. "Since headache and irritable bowel syndrome are such common conditions, and causes for both are unknown, discovering a possible link that could shed light on shared genetics of the conditions is encouraging," study author Dr. Derya Uluduz at the Istanbul University in Turkey said in the American Academy of Neurology's news release. Dr. Uluduz added, "Further studies are needed to explore this possible link. Discovering shared genes may lead to more future treatment strategies for these chronic conditions." The study's findings will be presented at the American Academy of Neurology's 68th meeting held in Vancouver, Canada from April 15 to 21. See Now: What Republicans Don't Want You To Know About Obamacare Kanhaiya Kumar Refuses To Be Rohith Vemula By Daljit Ami 24 February, 2016 Countercurrents.org The President of the Jawaharlal Nehru University Students Union being arrested on sedition charges highlights the issues between educational institutions and the current government. JNU is well known for its varied activities and debates. This university is known to have asked tough questions of past governments and is known to have taken those questions from educational institutions to public forums. Over the past decades, the university has defined, examined and re-examined layer after layer of ideas such as socialism, equality and social justice. The institute have unequivocaly opposed the divisive politics, violence, development totaltarianism and caste-class exploitation. The openness of this institute has allowed space to air all kinds of thoughts and ideas and keeps open the possibility of questioning each of those ideas. The university has remained a platform from where one can observe, understand and examine society through all kinds of philosophical frameworks. The institute has time and again established that political and other philosophies are not the property of any one political party. In fact, understanding the society and state with reference of citizenryand environment is a constant endeavour. For a while now this institute has been on the radar of the current central government and the Rashtriya Swayam Sevak Sangh. On earlier instances too the government and the RSS has declared the university to be anti-national, den of terrorists, jihadis, naxalites and opposers of Hindus. There have been efforts to plant people from the Hindutva ideology at responsible posts and as the head of research and academic institutions and JNU is no exception. The same intention has led to the appointment of the Chairpersonof the Film and Television Institute of India, in the scraping the non-NET fellowships of the research scholars of central universities and the nominations and sackings of the heads of other research institutes. The current crisis is part of this sequence of events. We need to understand two aspects of this program: facts and ideologies. On the third anniversary of Afzal Guru's hanging, some students of JNU had given a call for a meeting at Sabarmati Dhabha. They had stuck posters regarding the meeting at important places in the university. The organizers of the meeting did not belong to any group so they printed their names on the posters. The university administration had given its permission for the meeting in writing but half an hour before the event the permission was withdrawan through an SMS. As per the tradition of openness in the university all the students organizations in the university agreed to lend their support to the meeting. The only student organization that objected to the meeting by holding its own meeting in parallel was the Bhartiya Janta Partys student wing the Akil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP). Both meeting could hear each other's slogans. When the original meeting concluded in a march the ABVP tried to stop the marching students. It led to a clash in which both groups shouted slogans against each other. A few facts bear attention. Jawaharlal Nehru Unuversity Student Union's (JNUSU) President neither made the call for the event nor was the organiser of the event. He participated in the event as an advocate of 'freedom of speech'. He belongs to the oldest organization in India's student politics - the All India Students Federation (AISF). The AISF played a leading role in India's freedom struggle and has shaped many important leaders. The organization is student wing of the Communist Party of India(CPI). The CPI functions within the limits drawn by the Indian Constitution. Kanhaiya Kumar follows the same line of argument in his February 10 speech against the events of the previous night. He made his speech in a meeting of various organizations and JNUSU where they were protesting against the BJP's vicious politics in student campuses. On the same February 10 the ABVP organized a protest in front of the Vice-Chancellor's office in which they demanded that the university take action against those indulging in sloganeering against the nation the previous night. Police have arrested Kanhaiya Kumar on sedition charges. When the police produced Kanhaiya Kumar in court, first plainclothes people threatened the students and the teachers who had gone there in his support and then goons wearing lawyer cloaks attacked them. They also attacked media and journalists. Earlier pictures of these attackers proximity with home minister and other leaders of the BJP are out in media. There has been no action against them. BJPs MLA OP Sharma was arrested and released on bail. On February 13 the police arrested seven artists and students who were on their way to the Indira Gandhi National Centre of Arts. The police said these people looked like students of JNU because they had beards and were carrying cloth bags on their shoulders. The home minister, Rajnath Singh claimed that Hafiz Sayeed had supported the program for Afzal Guru in JNU. Hafiz Sayeed later debunked the claim. Rajnath Singh reframed his statement factually but his intent remained same. The ABVP has been consistently calling the Left students activists as terrorists, Naxalites and jihadis. Now the BJP government has made JNU their target. They want to disrupt JNU's democratic traditions and open atmosphere. This is because they see a clash between their blind nationalism and such spaces of enquiry. The current fracas could have erupted in other ways too. The BJP was waiting for a chance since they changed the Vice-Chancellor of the university. There have been instances in the past where they have considered every complaint by their student group ABVP as the last word. The evidence of pressure on the Vice Chancellor of the Central University of Hyderabad by central ministers is in front of all of us. After Rohith Vemula's suicide that matter had gone out of BJP's control. The same way upon complaint by the ABVP the Panjab University had to struggle to get its grants released and found difficult to meet the salary budget. Normally the police cannot enter the JNU campus.This freedom is considered an integral part of the ethos of the institution. During Emergency the university had strongly resisted the police. Normally mattersare sorted through dialogue. The pitch of these dialogues is often very sharp yet the university has been one of the most peaceful and non-violent spaces in the nation. The current VC of JNU Jagadish Kumar has given the police permission to enter the premises if need be and as you may deem fit'. What does this unconditionalpermission mean? It is clear that the government has certain designs on the educational institutions - while ABVP continue to raise the pitch of ultra-nationalism by invoking the Indian armies, the BJP installed VC gives permission to police to enter the campuses. Is this not an attempt to turn the nation into a police state? Is this not an attempt for regimentationof an open and free space? This attack on freedoms links to the scrapping of fellowships to students. These fellowships were a major and only support to students - dalits, poor, tribals and of remote areas - who occupy the lowest rung of the socio-economic ladder. The fellowship is a chance for them to enter the portals of higher education and experience the openness of education and growth. The state supported capitalismand intolerant hindu jingoism cannot tolerate that someone questions them on issues of social justice. They cannot tolerate that some KanhaiyaKumar studies and calls for the end of brahminical culture and dreams of revolution. They cannot tolerate that a Rohith Vemula rises above indignity and injustices and seeks to love without getting hurt. That is why it is important to understand the character of attack on JNU. Isn't it an agression by intolerant brahminism and crony capitalism on openness and justices of educational institutes under the garb of development? It wont be wrong to assert that Kanhiaya Kumar has really been arrested for not agreeing to become reduced to his immediate identity and nearest possibility. To a vote. To a number. To a thing. Never was a man treated as a mind.' Bio: I am an independent filmmaker from Punjab and have made about a dozen documentary films on different issues of Punjab. I have worked as freelance journalist for about two decades. I have worked with Punjabi Tribune, Day and Night News and BBC Hindi. Recently I have translated Amandeep Sandhu's novel Roll of Honour from English to Punjabi as Gwah De Fanah Hon Toh Pehilan. Amandeep Sandhu has translated the article from Punjabi and is working on a non-fiction on Punjab. JNU Students Umar Khalid And Anirban Surrender By Countercurrents.org 24 February, 2016 Countercurrents.org Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) students Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya who were accused of organizing an event on February 9 to mark the anniversary of the hanging of Afzal Guru, in which anti-India slogans were allegedly raised surrendered at midnight before the Delhi Police. The two left the campus in a university vehicle escorted by guards around 11:45 p.m. and were take into custody by a police team waiting outside one of the exit gates of the varsity. They are accused of sedition. They are likely to be produced before a magistrate today. The students had moved the High Court but the court refused to give them any protection from arrest. Kanhaiya Kumar, JNUSU president, was arrested earlier this month for his alleged role in that event. He is in the Tihar Jail. His bail plea will also be heard by the high court today. On Sunday night, Umar Khalid, Anirban and three other students accused of sedition, missing for days, showed up on the JNU campus and challenged the police to arrest them. The police were not allowed to enter the campus and said the students must surrender. Israel's Ethnic Cleansing Of Its Parliament By Jonathan Cook 24 February, 2016 Countercurrents.org Nazareth: Benjamin Netanyhus government is drafting legislation that ought to resolve in observers minds the question of whether Israel is the democracy it proudly claims to be. The bill empowers a three-quarters majority of the parliament to oust a sitting MP. It breathes new life into the phrase tyranny of the majority. But in this case, the majority will be Jewish MPs oppressing their Palestinian colleagues. Netanyahu has presented the bill as a necessary response to the recent actions of three MPs from the Balad faction of the Joint List, a coalition of parties representing the often-overlooked fifth of Israels population who are Palestinian citizens. He claims the MPs sided with terror this month when they visited Palestinian families in occupied East Jerusalem who have been waiting many months for Israel to return relatives bodies. The 11 dead are among those alleged to have carried out what are termed lone-wolf attacks, part of a recent wave of Palestinian unrest. Fearful of more protests, Israel has demanded that the families bury the bodies in secret, without autopsies, and in plots outside Jerusalem. There is an urgent moral and political issue about Israel using bodies as bargaining chips to encourage Palestinian obedience towards its illegal occupation. But the three Palestinian MPs also believed they were under an obligation to help the families by adding to the pressure on the Netanyahu government to return the bodies. Israels Palestinian minority has a severely degraded form of citizenship, but it enjoys more rights than Palestinians living under occupation. When a video of their meeting the families was posted online, however, the Israeli right seized on the chance to defame the MPs. A parliamentary ethics committee comprising the main Jewish parties suspended the three MPs for several months. Now they face losing their seats. This is part of a clear trend. Late last year the government outlawed the northern Islamic Movement, a popular extra-parliamentary political, religious and welfare organisation. Despite Netanyahus statements that the movement was linked to terror, leaks to the Israeli media showed his intelligence chiefs had advised him weeks before the ban that there was no evidence to support such accusations. At the time many Palestinians in Israel suspected Netanyahu would soon turn his sights on the Palestinian parties in the parliament. And so he has. Balad, which decries Israels status as a Jewish state and noisily campaigns for democratic reform, was always likely to be top of his list. In every recent general election, an election committee dominated by the Jewish parties has banned Balad or its leaders from standing, only to see the Israeli courts reverse the decision. Now Netanyahu is legislating the expulsion of Balad and throwing down a gauntlet to the courts. It wont end there. If Balad is unseated, the participation of the other Joint List factions will be untenable. In effect, the Israeli right is seeking to ethnically cleanse the parliament. For those who doubt such intentions, consider that two years ago the government raised the electoral threshold for entry to the parliament specifically to exclude the Palestinian factions. The intention was to empty the parliament of its Palestinian representatives. But these factions put aside their historic differences to create the Joint List. Netanyahu, who had hoped to see the back of the Palestinian parties at last years general election, inadvertently transformed them into the third biggest party. That was the context for his now-infamous warning during the campaign that the Arabs are coming out in droves to vote. The current crackdown on Palestinian parties may finally burst the simplistic assumption widely accepted in the west that Israel is a democracy and not least because its Palestinian minority has the vote. This argument was always deeply misguided. After Israels creation in 1948, officials gave citizenship and the vote to the few Palestinians remaining inside the new borders precisely because they were a small and weak minority. In exiling 80 per cent of Palestinians from their homeland, Israel effectively rigged its national electoral constituency to ensure there would be a huge Jewish majority in perpetuity. A Palestinian MP, Ahmed Tibi, summed it up neatly. Israel, he said, was a democratic state for Jews, and a Jewish state for its Palestinian citizens. In truth, the vote of Palestinian citizens was only ever meant as window-dressing. David Ben Gurion, Israels first prime minister, assumed that the rump Palestinian population would be swamped by Jewish immigrants flooding into the new state. He miscalculated. The Palestinian minority had a far higher birth rate and maintained its 20 per cent proportion of the population. None of that would matter had the Palestinian representatives quietly accepted their position as shop-window mannequins. But in recent years, as Mahmoud Abbas Palestinian Authority has grown ever weaker, confined to small enclaves of the West Bank, the Palestinian MPs in Israel have taken up some of the slack. That was why the Balad MPs met the Jerusalem families. The PA, barred by Israel from East Jerusalem, has been looking on helplessly as the families have been desperately trying to get their loved ones bodies back. This month Mr Netanyahu said he would surround Israel with walls to keep out the neighbourhoods wild beasts. In his view, there are also wild beasts to be found in Israels parliament and he is ready to erect walls to keep them out too. A version of this article first appeared in the National, Abu Dhabi. Jonathan Cook won the Martha Gellhorn Special Prize for Journalism. His latest books are Israel and the Clash of Civilisations: Iraq, Iran and the Plan to Remake the Middle East (Pluto Press) and Disappearing Palestine: Israels Experiments in Human Despair (Zed Books). His website is www.jonathan-cook.net. Letter Of Solidarity For JNU From Members Of The IIT Madras Faculty By Concerned Members Of The IIT Madras Faculty 24 February, 2016 Countercurrents.org We, a group of people serving as faculty at IIT Madras, write to affirm our solidarity with the faculty and students of JNU and issue this statement in serious concern over recent events at JNU and in the national capital over the past week. These events indicate the imposition of a narrow definition of nationalism by the state that excludes the possibility of dissent. A democracy is nothing without the ability to both question and disagree. Our university spaces have always fostered this space for debate and disagreement, and always in a fashion that encourages respectful co-existence through difference. As we view these spaces being criminalized and violently curbed, we are concerned that we are no longer able to foster spaces for open democracy. This atmosphere of stark binaries, needing declaration of loyalties is a dangerous and demoralizing one, and will not lead to a vibrant state or nation. Our universities need to nurture critical thinking, as opposed to telling students and the polity how to think. Our nationalism is both contested, as well as open. Our willingness to critique must not be branded as either disloyalty or betrayal, and our understanding of state, nationalism, governance, and democracy must remain open to dialogue, dissent, and respectful debate, one that we argue will strengthen the nation. The nation cannot be one constantly threatened by any and all critique. We stand with all those who share this vision. [This statement is issued in our individual capacities, and does not necessarily represent the institutions opinion.) Tarun K. Chandrayadula Ocean Engineering Enakshi Bhattacharya, Electrical Engineering Binitha V Thampi, Humanities and Social Sciences Mathangi Krishnamurthy, Humanities and Social Sciences Sonika Gupta, Humanities and Social Sciences. Kalpana Karunakaran, Humanities and Social Sciences Dhiman Chatterjee, Mechanical Engineering Sourav Rakshit, Mechanical Engineering Suresh Govindarajan, Physics Murali Krishnan, Civil Engineering K.Srilata, Humanities and Social Sciences Merin Simi Raj, Humanities and Social Sciences Deepak Khemani, Computer Science and Engineering Deleep R. Nair, Electrical Engineering Nandita DasGupta, Electrical Engineering Amitava DasGupta, Electrical Engineering Nandan Sudarsanam, Management Studies Sandipan Bandyopadhyay, Engineering Design Hema A Murthy, Computer Science and Engineering Milind Brahme, Humanities and Social Sciences Shyama Prasad Das, Mechanical Engineering Anil Prabhakar, Electrical Engineering Roland Wittje, Humanities and Social Sciences Sayan Gupta, Applied Mechanics Joe Thomas Karackattu, Humanities and Social Sciences K. Murali, Ocean Engineering Solomon Benjamin, Humanities and Social Sciences Sunetra Sarkar, Aerospace Engineering. M Suresh Babu, Humanities and Social sciences BS Murty, Civil Engineering Ananth Krishnan, Electrical Engineering Sudhir Chella Rajan, Humanities and Social Sciences Devdas Menon, Civil Engineering Arul Lakshminarayan, Physics Tiju Thomas, Metallurgical and Materials Engineering Guhan Jayaraman, Biotechnology Arun Menon, Civil Engineering Anuradha Banerjee, Applied Mechanic Chakravarthy Mathiazhagan, Electrical Engineering R.Santhosh, Humanities and Social Sciences Parag Ravindran, Mechanical Engineering Arijit Dey, Mathematics Modi Vs Rest In Perpetuity- JNU Is Mordor By Mousumi Roy 24 February, 2016 Countercurrents.org Our patriotism has drifted over into nationalism. I am very patriotic, but not nationalistic. In fact, the whole mantra of "love it or leave it" I find repulsive. India has suddenly woken up to the fact many Indian are seditious and traitors nearly 70 years after Independence. There voices dissent and disagreement mean nothing more than that. Psuedo-Secularism, secularism did not work where's being labelled anti-national doing the trick. Teesta Seetalvad, for example, is equivalent to Satan in the right wing. JNU is Mordor. Complaints about JNU are very common in the right wing social media, building it upto some kind of sinister laboratory where people plot the breaking up of India. In Tamil Nadu, in the past 5 years so many wrong charges and false cases have been filed that people are frightened of the govt's false charges. This has had a chilling effect. That was Jayalalitha's goal and she achieved it. Now Modi is well on his way, probably, taking a leaf from Jayalalitha's book... I do not at all support anyone who raised slogans of "India Ki Barbadian". However there is no evidence who raised these slogans and definitely Kanhaiya did not. On the contrary every evidence shows he emphasizing protecting India's constitution. Slapping sedition charge against him, attacking him and the press in the premises of the court and torturing him in the cell suggests a sinister design. Expressing differences on Afzal's hanging is not anti India, raising slogans that were raised was provocative, unpatriotic but definitely not an act of sedition. If protesting the hanging of Afzal Guru is really anti-national then why did BJP agree to form the government with PDP which questions his hanging and calls him a martyr? It is obvious that BJP is running with the hares and hunting with the hounds. Dissent is not the same or equal to an expression of sedition or being a traitor. That kind of thinking is what ensured power to the Nazi Party in Germany. Is a repeat of history what we are looking for in India with the promotion and encouragement of Hindutva? Unless the officials (police) who file false charges are punished heavily, this will continue to happen. Nothing wrong in Hindu rashtra. But everything wrong with Hindutva Rashtra. Savarkar thus defined Hindutva ("Hindu-ness") or Hindu as different from Hinduism. This definition kept the Abrahamic religions (Judaism, Christianity and Islam) outside its ambit and considered only native religious denominations as Hindu. If in Hindu Rashtra everyone is to be treated equally then what is the sense of changing Democracy to Hindu Rashtra? When we talk about the country and the constitution I prefer Secularism. True secularism means allowing everyone the freedom and the space to practice their own beliefs. Some people to say my religion is better than yours or that your religion is a subset of mine. Leave people to make personal choices. Focus on universal values. Country may have any name. It doesn't matter. To change the name from India, Bharat to Hindusthan is not easy. it requires lot of exercises. If the majority supports no harm. But again we have remove fears in the mind of those who oppose. I think changing name of the country is a very trivial issue. Let's all work to tackle other issues like reducing poverty, education, employment, channelising youth power, providing clean drinking water, sanitation, healthcare and many more. Where are the results? Modi is a great PR person and a media manipulator. Like Hitler, he talks about development and promotes and protects fringe elements within the Sangh Parivar. Share market, Bullion Market, Rupee is down, prices of pulses and vegetables are up, investors' confidence shaky. For cleaning Ganga crores have been spent but no result is seen. Whatever cleaning is seen is done by volunteer organisation and not by the Govt. I don't blame Modi or BJP for all these. But he promised voters Sun and Moon. In the last One and a half years of his rule he ought to have done something. So far, he has indulged in travelling abroad and attending election rallies reiterating 'Jumlas.' He is a man of action. he has the required mandate. Why he is unable to deliver at least 25% of what he promised. A society drawn to capitalist consumption and Hindu nationalism has relatively less appreciation for egalitarian and secular values. However it is also clear that when anti corruption movement begins people do start looking for a new leader with egalitarian views. Delhi and Bihar are example. In Maharshtra in the last just One and a half months 123 Farmers committed suicides. This is a very good example of Governance . JNU is the latest example . People have a tainted view of the emergency days and of the fight against the corruption of the congress days. Habeus Corpus is a safeguard against illegal detention of people. Unfortunately due to emergency provisions the Habeus Corpus was defeated then, the Janata Government made sure through constitutional amendment that this will never happen again. Until the courts pass stricture on an adventure started by ABVP and aggravated by Smriti Irani and Rajnath Singh, right minded Indians will keep holding a candle vigil in front of the devil's workshop. Even during V. P. Singh government it brought down a non congress government in the issue of not allowing Mr Advani to reach the Ram Mandir and provoke communal division of India. So the bottom line is- BJP's commitment to follow the RSS dream of Hindu Rashtra got in the way of its commitment to fighting the congress in 1979 and again in 1989. The bottom line is congress resurfaced twice and both the times because of RSS's Agenda for establishing a Hindu Rashtra. It is just that now Modi has come out in open to consolidate the Hindu Nationalism. He is polarizing India. He is sowing seeds of hatred. He is letting fringe elements in the party play havoc with the plural character of India. I sometimes wonder what Must be going through Mr Modi's Mind when he bows his head in front of Gandhi Samadhi or statue as a part of protocol. I consider RSS ideology a virus of the mind with lethal consequences. That is why I do feel the same sense of urgency in eradicating this virus as any other life threatening virus. It was RSS which undertook Border duties when China invaded India in 1961 & RSS contingent was invited by Nehru to take part in Republic Day parade, Commies were jailed for sympathising with China. There are hundreds of times of natural calamities, where RSS has done selfless service for the nation while Armchair Intellectuals were busy sleeping. I have high respect for Nanaji Deshmukh. I don't hate RSS. I do however consider the Hindu Rashtra concept and the seeds of hatred against Minorities and Gandhi sowed by the RSS for decades dangerous. If we are honest, will not deny that. But even today we will find RSS workers' Facebook pages filled with venom for Muslims and Gandhi. Mousumi Roy is an Author, writer- and is a visiting professor of International Relations. Its A Shame That Umar Khalid Had To Surrender By Shubhda Chaudhary 24 February, 2016 Countercurrents.org Irrespective of the fact that student protests, ranging to thousands of participants called for a solidarity march on 18th February in large numbers, the reality of the ground has not changed. In spite of exposing how the fraudulent news channels had doctored the videos with Pakistan Zindabad slogans, the strong clutches of the police still ask for more evidence, trying to force the case of sedition against the students. Umar Khalid, one of the student leaders, who was also charged with draconian laws of criminal conspiracy and sedition, had to finally surrender on Tuesday night, in spite of the fact that theres no evidence against him. What does it mean? Within ten days, his identity was reduced to being a Muslim, not a student who got offer from Yale University or a free citizen of the country who had Right of Free Speech and Expression. Instead his family was threatened, his 12-year-old sister cannot attend school where she is being treated as a pariah. In the latest attacks, his family was threatened that if they want to have their son alive, he needs to leave India. What does it mean to our Indian democracy when vibrant student leaders have to surrender in this way? Does not it humiliate the idea of being an Indian who can voice his dissent? In a vibrant campus like JNU, where the slogan is If politics decides your future, you should decide what your politics should be, its a shame that in spite of massive solidarity, students like Umar Khaliad and Anirban Bhattacharya are still seen as criminals who need to be punished. The non-partisan and cursory comment on such student protests by those occupying the highest echelons in corporate offices state that universities are temples of education and students are just wasting their time in protesting. The students instead of marching on the streets should go back to their hostel rooms, study, graduate and do something concrete with their lives. This interpretation by those who themselves have never thought beyond their text-books is quite problematic. Firstly, they make a major portion of commentators who believe that studies cannot have discussions, arguments and debates, and should stay far apart from politics. Secondly, this kind of interpretation also evokes the understanding that protests do not serve any purpose, as it hardly gets concrete things done, problems resolved. It indeed is a problematic situation because this junta does not understand the efforts that students put in, to live for a cause that is beyond their own selves. Its definitely a shame that Umar Khalid had to surrender. It tramples down the voice of dissent, of questioning, of reframing the political discourse. Now, it would be scarier for students to question the government, to demand for changes, because they will fear arrest. So, how is India being different from the authoritarian dictatorships when our own democracy is being dominated with right-wing politics? Arent we then moving towards a police state, where police commissioners are not questioned, where lawyers can assault defenseless students and protest against bail pleas? Where is our voice? Why is it being silenced? Why is the Idea of India being made so fragile that a small questioning by students makes it vulnerable? Why cannot our country embrace the diversity of opinions, rather than haunting them down? Where are we moving, then? What is our direction? What will happen to Umar Khalid and several others who believe in his politics? Would be become the scape-goat of Indian right-wing politics, a lesson that you should never dissent? But most importantly, will he, after the surrender, remain safe? Shubhda Chaudhary is a PhD Scholar in JNU. She can be reached at shubhda.chaudhary@gmail.com Make Monsanto Pay By Vandana Shiva 24 February, 2016 Asianage.com Monsanto is in the news again. The Competition Commission of India (CCI), the countrys antitrust regulator, has recently said that it suspects a Monsanto joint venture abused its dominant position as a supplier of genetically modified (GM) cotton seeds in India and has issued an order citing prima facie violation of Sections 3(4) and 4 of the Competition Act, to be investigated by CCIs director-general. Monsanto also faces cases brought by state governments and domestic seed manufacturers, for the astronomical royalty it charges. In previous cases, Monsanto defended itself by saying that it was trait fees (for using its technology in cotton hybrids) and not royalty. Fact is that Monsanto has viewed the laws of our land as mere hurdles in its way to swindle India and our farmers. On March 10, 1995, Mahyco (Monsanto-Mahyco) brought 100 grams of cotton seeds, containing the MON531-Bt gene, into India without the approval of the Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC). Eager to establish a monopoly in India based on the smuggled MON531 gene, Monsanto-Mahyco started large scale, multi-centric, open field trials of Bt cotton in 40 locations spread across nine states, again without GEAC approval. Article (7) of the Environment Protection Act, 1986, states: No person shall import, export, transport, manufacture, process, use or sell any hazardous microorganisms or genetically engineered organisms/substances or cells except with the approval of the GEAC. GMO traits, once released into the environment, cannot be contained or recalled. Genetically engineered cotton from the trials was sold in open markets. In some states, the trial fields were replanted the very next season with wheat, turmeric and groundnut, violating Para-9 of the Biosafety Guidelines (1994) on post-harvest handling of the transgenic plants according to which the fields on which GMO trials were conducted should have been left fallow for at least one year. In face of these blatant violations of Indian laws and the risks of genetic pollution India faced, the Research Foundation for Science, Technology and Ecology (RFSTE) filed a petition in the Supreme Court of India against Monsanto and Mahyco in 1999, for their violations of the 1989 rules for the use of GMOs under the Environmental Protection Act. Indias laws, rightly, do not permit patents on seeds and in agriculture. This has always been a problem for Monsanto and, through the US administration, it has attempted to pressure India into changing her robust intellectual property regime since the World Trade Organisation came into existence, and continues to do so today. Monsanto-Mahyco Biotech (MMB) Ltd collected royalties for Bt cotton by going outside the law and charging technology fees and trait fee to the tune of $900 million from marginal Indian farmers, crushing them with debt. In 2006, out of the Rs 1,600 per 450 gram package of Bt cotton seed (Rs 3,555.55/kg), almost 80 per cent (Rs 1,250) was charged by MMB as trait fee. In stark contrast, before Monsanto destroyed alternative sources of seed (including local hybrid seed supply) through unfair business practices, local seeds used to cost farmers Rs 5-9/kg. In response to the unfair pricing, the government of Andhra Pradesh filed a complaint with the Monopolies and Restrictive Trade Practices Commission (MRTPC) against MMB, pointing out that Monsanto was charging Andhra Pradesh farmers nine times what it was charging US farmers for the same seeds. MMB said the royalty it charged reflected its research and development costs for Bt cotton, admitting that they were charging royalty to Indian farmers. Monsantos ruthlessness is central to the crisis Indian farmers are facing. Farmers leveraged their land holdings to buy Bt cotton seeds and the chemicals it demanded, but the golden promise of higher yield and reduced pesticide use failed to deliver. Of the 300,000 farmer suicides in India since Monsanto smuggled the Bt gene into India in 1995, 84 per cent, almost 252,000, are directly attributed to Monsantos Bt cotton. While the Government of India is suing Monsanto, the government of Maharashtra has signed an MoU with Monsanto to set up the biggest seed hub in the country in Buldana, announced at Make in India Week. How can a corporation breaking India, taking the lives of Indian farmers, destroying our agriculture and food security, and violating our laws be rewarded with the Make in India label? For arrogantly breaking Indian laws and corrupting our regulatory systems, Monsanto must be held accountable. For the failure of Bt cotton, Monsanto must be made to pay damages to the farmers and seed companies that have had to pay technology fees for a failed technology. The land that our farmers have lost to the agents selling Monsanto seeds and chemicals must be returned to the farmers families. All the illegal royalty collected from our farmers and Indias seed companies must be returned to India. With its flagship product failing across the country year after year, and the dimming prospects of the super-profits the company has become used to, why would Monsanto make a large investment in Vidarbha unless it is sure of continued monopoly? The technical expert committee has recommended that Herbicide Tolerance (Ht) and GM varieties of crops for which India is the centre of diversity, not be allowed in India. Is Monsanto counting on the GEAC approving Bayers herbicide-tolerant terminator mustard in contempt of the recommendations of the Technical Expert Committee? Allowing Bayers Ht terminator mustard will open the floodgates for herbicide tolerant crops, worsening Indias agrarian crisis and debilitating Indias food security. Herbicide tolerance, which goes hand in hand with Monsantos Glyphosate based RoundUp herbicide, has failed across the world at controlling weeds, creating super weeds. Glyphosate, classified by the World Health Organisation as a carcinogen, is already being used across India and we are seeing an explosion of cancers in villages where Glyphosate is used. If we allow another failed technology and its associated poisons to further destroy Indias rural economy, and allow extraction of profits from Indian farmers, we will fail our nation and Indias future generations. Vandana Shiva is a philosopher, environmental activist, and eco feminist.Shiva, currently based in Delhi, has authored more than 20 books and over 500 papers in leading scientific and technical journals.She was trained as a physicist and received her Ph.D. in physics from the University of Western Ontario, Canada. She was awarded the Right Livelihood Award in 1993. She is the founder of Navdanya http://www.navdanya.org/ UK Scholars Express Solidarity With JNU By Concerned UK Scholars 24 February, 2016 Countercurrents.org We, the undersigned, stand in solidarity with the students, faculty and staff of Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi, India in their ongoing struggle against the anti-democratic incursions of the Indian state. We appeal to the elected Prime Minister Narendra Modi to uphold the Indian constitution, cease the repression of democratic protest across university campuses in India, and withdraw the spurious charges of sedition against JNU Students Union President Kanhaiya Kumar. Kanhaiya Kumar was arrested for sedition along with several other JNU students on 9th February for questioning the actions of the Indian state in the disputed territory of Kashmirparticularly the controversial execution of Afzal Guru, the main accused in an attack on the Indian Parliament in 2001. The law of seditionsection 124A of the Indian Penal Codeis a nineteenth-century artefact designed to silence dissent against the colonial state. That this law is now being used by the government of democratic India to curtail peaceful protest is deeply disturbing, and recalls the authoritarian crackdown of student protest during the Emergency of 1975-77. The illegal detention of Kanhaiya Kumar is symptomatic of a growing intolerance of dissenting voices by the current Indian government. The students who were beaten and arrested on 9th February have been labelled anti-national for their peaceful political protest. The events at JNU follow the suicidewhich some have termed the institutional murderof Rohith Vemula, a dalit student at the University of Hyderabad, and concerted attacks on dalit students there, for questioning the states role in entrenching caste and class hegemony. Since the events of the 9th February, protesters and journalists in Delhi and elsewhere have been threatened and attacked, and police failed to protect Kanhaiya Kumar himself from vicious assault during his appearance in court at Patiala House on 17th February. We also condemn the affording of impunity to individuals and groups who have committed or threatened to commit outright breaches of the lawbyassaulting other individuals, by threatening violence, rape and murder to those that they deem 'anti-nationals'. Such is the magic of the claim of nationalism that while peaceful debate has merited police action, blatant criminality has not. JNU is a flagship institution and an important space of political and intellectual debate. We support the students, faculty and staff of JNU in their struggle, and stand in defence of academic and political freedom across India and elsewhere. We also strongly condemn the behaviour of those parts of the media which have targeted particular students on the basis of their religious background only. To deny individuals the right to be critical of the government of their own country on the basis of their personal affiliations, real or assumed, is an outright assault on citizenship rights. Signed in a personal capacity by the following UK-based scholars, together with their areas of specialisation: Dr. Rebecca Williams (History), Dr. Nandini Chatterjee (History), Dr. Gajendra Singh (History), Dr. Gillian Juleff (Archaeology), Dr. Ayesha Mukherjee (English), Dr. Andrew Rudd (English), Meg Kanazawa (History), Dr. Oliver Godsmark (History), Dr. Freyja Cox-Jensen (History), Dr. Becky Jinks (History), Dr. Jennifer Farrell (History), Professor Richard Toye (History), Professor Kate Fisher (History), Dr. Marc Palen (History), Dr. Tim Cooper (History), Dr. Alex Mallett (History), Dr. Gareth Curless (History), Dr. Tom Blaen (History), Dr. Levi Roach (History), Dr. Gemma Clark (History), Dr. Alex Fairfax-Cholmeley (History), Aparna Mahiyaria (Drama), Professor Regenia Gagnier (English), Professor Jeremy Black (History), Dr. Florian Stadtler (English), Dr. Tehyun Ma (History), Francesco Amoruso (Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies) Gallup Poll Shows Americans Prefer Terrorist Nations Over Iran. Why? By Eric Zuesse 24 February, 2016 Strategic-culture.org Americans are profoundly misinformed about international relations and there's a reason for this: the deep corruption within the American Establishment (the people who shape American political opinions). Fifteen of the nineteen 9/11 hijackers came from Saudi Arabia, and the bookkeeper/bagman who had collected, in cash, every one of the million-dollar-plus donations to Al Qaeda up till 9/11, said under oath, in U.S. court-testimony which Western news-media have hidden from the public: virtually all of the Saudi Princes, and many of their close friends (each of which individuals he identified by name) were $1M+ donors to the Al Qaeda organization; and, without those funds, any attacks such as 9/11 would have been simply impossible for them to do. who had personally picked up in cash each one of the million-dollar-plus donations to Al Qaeda, named many of the leading Saudi Princes and their closest friends as having been the people who had provided the funds. And he said: Without the money of the of the Saudi, you will have nothing of Al Qaeda. The bag-man and bookkeeper for Osama bin Laden was captured by the United States and was sent to a maximum-security U.S. prison where he is unable to speak to anyone, but the 9/11 families managed to get his testimony in a court case that they were bringing against Al Qaeda against the people behind it, the people who fund it, the people who enabled Osama bin Laden to hire and train the 9/11 hijackers and this man, named many of the leading Saudi Princes and their closest friends as having been the people who had provided the funds. And he said: Without the money of the of the Saudi, you will have nothing of Al Qaeda. Here's one exchange: Q: To clarify, you're saying that the al-Qaeda members received salaries? A: They do, absolutely. The royals' charity' that pays not only Al Qaeda but ISIS and other such organizations, is from the donors, to their warriors; the warriors are being paid by those charitable donations.' That's what pays their salaries. Jihadist organizations are religious charities whose aim is to spread the Islamic faith (which is why the mullahs or 'holy men,' who are also being paid by that same Saud family, approve of the Sauds to be the rulers). Here's another exchange: Q: What what was bin Laden's attitude towards the Saudi ulema [the religious scholars, the clerics]? A: It was of complete reverence and obedience. [It was like a Roman Catholic's attitude] toward the Pope. The bagman explained: The Saudi government is they have two heads of the snake, they have the Saudi, like Al Saud, and the Wahhabi [clerics] were in charge of the Islamic Code of the Islam [the lawmakers and judges] or Islamic power in Saudi Arabia, okay, and that's why they have the name Wahhabi,' okay, okay. So the Saudi [the Saud royal family] cannot keep [the Executive or ruling] power in Saudi Arabia without having the agreement, okay, of the Wahhab, the Wahhabi, the scholar [the clerics, who interpret the Quran, the nation's real , okay. [clerics][the lawmakers and judges][the Saud royal family][the Executive or ruling][the clerics, who interpret the Quran, the nation's real Constitution One might reasonably wonder, then: why do Americans hate and fear Iran, over and above even the nation the royal family and their clerics that were actually behind 9/11? Might it be, perhaps, because the Shia clerics of Iran are as fundamentalist as the Sunni ones in Saudi Arabia? Not at all; but, yet, Americans seem to assume that that's the case. The American public are duped by lying news' media, which don't let them know the reality the American people are kept in the dark. The U.S. aristocracy have been allied with the Saudi royal family for decades. When the fascist John Foster Dulles and Allen Dulles had Kim Roosevelt Teddy Roosevelt's fascist grandson organize the 1953 CIA overthrow of the progressive democratic secular freely elected Iranian Prime Minister Mohammed Mossadegh, and install there the barbaric Shah and his torture-chambers, it sparked the Iranian public to hate Americans, who had brought this hell to them. The Eisenhower Administration did this. Then, in 1979, came the Iranian revolution installing not a Mossadegh-type secular democracy such as America overthrew, but instead a Shiite clerical dictatorship, to replace the American fascist one, which had been entirely alien to Iran (though this alien regime used a local dictator, the Shah, as its figurehead who answered to Washington). In succession now, Mossadegh's two enemies first the U.S. aristocracy, and now the Shiite clergy have replaced an alien, U.S., dictatorship by a native one. But that native one (after 1979, the Shia clergy) has no international-jihadist ideology. Though Shia clerics hate the apartheid Israeli regime and fund Hezbollah to fight it, there is otherwise nothing that's even remotely comparable to jihadism, in the Shia branch of Islam. Jihad (global conquest) is strictly a Sunni phenomenon, and it centers around the Saudi government, which is owned by the Saud family, and whose laws are made by the Wahhabist (the Sauds' extremely fundamentalist Islamic) clergy, which is financed by the Sauds and by the subjects that the royal family own the citizens' of Saudi Arabia. This is why 92% of the Saudi public think that ISIS is good. (By contrast, in the multicultural nation of Syria, which is allied with Iran and Russia and is ruled by a decidedly non-sectarian and secular government that's composed mainly of Shia, and which has been invaded by Wahhabist-Salafist foreign fighters who are financed by America's jihadist allies, 78% of the population disapprove of ISIS, and 82% blame the U.S. as being the chief power behind ISIS .) The original sin that has shaped America's role in the Mideast (other than our siding with the apartheid nation of Israel and so being widely despised around the world by Muslims) occurred when America's aristocracy took over Iran in 1953, for their oil companies. But Americans hate Iranians as a result of that original sin, which was done by the Dulleses to Iranians on behalf of U.S. oil-company friends, which include the Sauds. The American people are getting the blowback from the American aristocracy's international crimes abroad. And, now, as Gallup is consistently finding, Americans hate the Iranians. That's because the Iranians have called America the great Satan because that's what America (our aristocracy and its agents) had actually been to them to the Iranian people. Iran's public are right, even though the clergy that rule over them are wrong but Americans don't know that distinction, and so condemn the Iranian nation. of the American aristocracy, which the American press don't even expose to the public: this country, after all, is ( Meanwhile, the Sauds, from whom the American public have suffered 9/11 and lots else, are American allies' according to the duplicitous U.S. press. They are not allies actually of the American public, but, which the American press don't even expose to the public: this country, after all, is ( not ) a democracy .' On February 22nd, Gallup headlined Four Nations Top U.S.'s Greatest Enemy List and reported that they were: North Korea, Russia, Iran, and China. Those were the four nations whose names had been volunteered by respondents in answer to What one country anywhere in the world do you consider to be the United States' greatest enemy today? (open-ended). The complete list of nations identified by one or more of the 1,021 respondents included 25 nations. Saudi Arabia came near the bottom of that list. (On 22 April 2015, CNN issued a poll finding that the same four nations came up as posing the biggest threat to the U.S.; but also finding that ISIS was considered by Americans to be a far bigger threat than any nation.) And our government won't prosecute, nor attempt to prosecute, the people who actually fund terrorism not even the terrorism that hits here, never mind in Europe etc. That refusal to prosecute the people who were behind the 9/11 attacks is also what the expurgated 28 pages in the U.S. Senate's 9/11 report are all about. (And, since the American public don't know, there's no pressure from the public on that, either.) vote for to serve in Congress and the Presidency. Americans are deluded by their aristocracy's constant lies. Instead, our lying politicians, who are empowered (in both Parties) by money from the same people, constantly call Iran the major backer of international terrorism, though they know that the allegation is rabidly false. Hillary Clinton says, We have a lot of other business to get done with Iran. Yes, they have to stop being the main state sponsor of terrorism . But, actually, she and the other agents of America's aristocracy are the ones who have to stop their constant lying, because plenty of American suckers believe their lies and it ends up showing in the Gallup and other opinion-polls, and ultimately in the people that the thus-deluded American publicto serve in Congress and the Presidency. Americans are deluded by their aristocracy's constant lies. After all: it's not hard for any authentic news-reporter to prove that Hillary herself is aware that what she said there was false that her remark was a lie, not merely a slip-up. When she was the U.S. Secretary of State, one of the first things she did (after assisting the fascist junta that had taken over in Honduras on 28 June 2009 to stay in power ) was to send a cable to the U.S. Ambassadors in all of the capitals where the donations to Al Qaeda, ISIS, and other terrorist groups, were coming from , requiring those Ambassadors to the local aristocracy to tell them to stop doing that; these were the Ambassadors only in fundamentalist-Sunni-run countries: Saudi Arabia (the center of it all), Qatar, UAE, Kuwait, and Pakistan. It's because Sunni-run countries are where almost all of the jihadists and especially the funding for jihadism come from. In that private cable, she even said things like: Donors in Saudi Arabia constitute the most significant source of funding to Sunni terrorist groups worldwide. Qatar's overall level of CT [Counter Terrorist] cooperation with the U.S. is considered the worst in the region. Kuwait has been less inclined to take action against Kuwait-based financiers and facilitators plotting attacks outside of Kuwait. Al-Qa'ida and other groups continue to exploit Kuwait both as a source of funds and as a key transit point. UAE-based donors have provided financial support to a variety of terrorist groups, including al-Qa'ida, the Taliban, LeT and other terrorist groups, including Hamas. represent Iran. (But the American public seem to be unaware of that reality.) Those are our allies'? She knows that Al Qaeda and ISIS received no money from Shia. She knows that Al Qaeda and ISIS are Sunni-only groups, which hate all Shia they want to defeat Iran, they don'tIran. (But the American public seem to be unaware of that reality.) Garbage like what Hillary said there against Iran makes it into Presidential candidates' debates; and none of the press' says the person was either lying or else incredibly ignorant for saying such a thing. A statement like that poisons the well of U.S.-Iranian relations, even more than a half-century after it had already been poisoned big-time, back in 1953. Why is this poisoning so persistent? This lie that Hillary Clinton and so many other American politicians spout, is one of many lies that our news' media can't expose, because to do that would also expose themselves that the media themselves have deceived the American public by not pointing out that the politicians are lying about these major, determinative, issues. In this regard, it's similar to the lie that Bush didn't lie but merely had been mistaken about Saddam's WMD : how could the press now acknowledge that Bush had lied, when they refused to even examine his lies while they were being made, which is when it counts? And that's why politicians such as Clinton can get away with their lies against Iran. possibility of restoring democracy to America. Without an honest press, democracy is impossible. Without an honest press, democracy won't be able to be restored in America. America is now piling up with lies, which the nation's news' media can't expose without exposing themselves as being part of the deception of the American public. (After they had stenographically reported George W. Bush's lies about Saddam's WMD,' they could never admit how rotten the U.S. press were and still are . They have to hide that, too.) This piling-on of lies is now becoming extremely dangerous, even to the veryof restoring democracy to America. Without an honest press, democracy is impossible. Without an honest press, democracy won't be able to be restored in America. as dishonest about as Russia and its traditional allies, such as New Yorker magazine, by Joshua Yaffa, headlining Putin's Dragon). There is no way to defeat jihadism without destroying the jihadist culture, itself. Instead, the U.S. has been and is allied to it. Not just in Saudi Arabia, but also in the other Arabic Sunni oil-kingdoms: Qatar, Kuwait, and UAE and, more recently, also in the resurgently-Sunni NATO ally': Turkey. So: our press' must lie big-time, and with only very few exceptions of honesty, about these matters. There is nothing that the U.S. press isdishonest about as Russia and its traditional allies, such as Ukraine Syria , and Libya . (And: Iran because America since 1953 has joined with the jihadist Sunni royal families on that, and virtually forces Iran to ally with Russia for protection against us.) And this nest of subjects includes the entire topic of jihadism, which America's aristocracy secretly back (and use as a tactic against Russia and its allies) but which Russia's aristocracy and public both oppose, consistently and not only by tokens such as killing Al Qaeda's leaders, but by getting done the entire ugly job that needs to be done (which was described there with a remarkable lack of bias, in a recent issue of themagazine, by Joshua Yaffa, headlining Putin's Dragon). There is no way to defeat jihadism without destroying the jihadist culture, itself. Instead, the U.S. has been and is. Not just in Saudi Arabia, but also in the other Arabic Sunni oil-kingdoms: Qatar, Kuwait, and UAE and, more recently, also in the resurgently-Sunni NATO ally': Turkey. So: our press' must lie big-time, and with only very few exceptions of honesty, about these matters. That's what is merely being reflected in Gallup's latest, and prior, polls about the opinions that Americans have regarding Iran. This is a severe, worsening, and dangerous, sickness of the American press.' And nobody seems to have any solution for it. How can the people of a nation boycott its corrupt press? How can they even know that they should? How can they ever know that they are being had that they are being governed by lies? That their government, politicians, and press, surround them with those lies? SHARE Jared Peach By Cole Claybourn of the Courier and Press A Boonville man was arrested Monday in the Wood Memorial High School parking lot and accused of driving under the influence of a controlled substance and reckless driving. Students noticed Jared Peach, 26, sitting in a blue pickup truck about noon and alerted a school resource officer who, along with another officer, approaced Peach, according to a news release from the Gibson County Sheriff's Office. One of the officers said Peach was unable to focus and follow simple directions, according to the release. Officers gave Peach a field sobriety test, after which he was taken to Gibson General Hospital for medical clearance. He was then taken to Gibson County jail, where he remained Wednesday morning in lieu of a $1,300 bond. SHARE By Zach Evans of the Courier and Press An Evansville water utility fee is in limbo as city officials check whether city code can supersede a state board's rate approvals. The City Council shot down a request Monday to include a new $50 service fee in the city code for Evansville Water & Sewer Utility workers to shut off or turn on water for a customer. The issue is, unlike the sewer utility, the City Council typically has no control over the city's water utility rates, which are instead overseen by the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission. That state board approved the fee hike, and other fees, in December 2015. The fee would apply to residents who have their water shut off or turned back on. Home inspectors or plumbers regularly need to have water shut off and turned on to work on homes. But during Monday's City Council meeting, Councilwoman Connie Robinson, D-4th Ward, took issue with the fee, calling it burdensome on low-income residents. Messages to Robinson seeking comment were not returned Tuesday. "($50) seems extremely high," Robinson said during Monday's meeting. " ... What about people on fixed incomes?" Jenny Collins, chief financial officer for the water utility, said the fee was determined by a cost of services study. Robinson continued her point on low-income residents couldn't afford the fee. "Jenny, what's your salary? It's public information. What's your salary? The taxpayer pays your salary. What's your salary," Robinson said during the meeting. "$87,000," Collins said. "$50 is nothing to you," Robinson said. City Attorney Ted Ziemer said Monday that the rate is reasonable considering the labor involved, but the council could choose to remove the fee from the ordinance. The City Council amended the ordinance to drop the $50 fee in a 9-0 vote. But Collins said Tuesday it's not clear whether that will affect whether the utility can charge customers the fee since it was approved by the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission. Previously, customers weren't charged anything to have water turned on or off. She said there is labor involved with shutting the water off or turning it on, and that the utility is trying to recoup the money spent for that service. Specifics weren't provided, but Collins said Tuesday the service fee would impact a small amount of water utility customers. Collins said most homes have shut off valves and that water can also be turned off at the meter by a hired contractor or by the customer. The fee also would not be charged in an emergency situation, such as a water main break, she said. SHARE By Len Wells of the Courier and Press A Carmi, Illinois, man was killed Tuesday morning when fire swept through his home. Greg Childers, 66, died as he tried to escape his home at 510 Montgomery Circle. A neighbor saw smoke coming from the structure about 10 a.m. and called for help. Childers' body was discovered after firemen extinguished the blaze. White County Coroner Chris Marsh said Childers was found near a side door, suggesting he was trying to escape the fire when he was overcome by smoke. Marsh said foul play is not suspected. Investigators with the Illinois State Fire Marshal's Office and Illinois State Police were brought in to examine the remains of the house. Marsh said it appeared careless smoking was likely the cause of the blaze. Childers was a retired businessman who formerly operated Triangle Wholesale, a Southern Illinois beer distributorship. SHARE By Zach Osowski, zach.osowski@courierpress.com INDIANAPOLIS -- After a controversial 2015 test and votes of no confidence from parents, teachers, school administrators and lawmakers, the ISTEP is on its way out of Indiana. The Indiana Senate passed House Bill 1395 on Tuesday, doing away with ISTEP after the 2017 test and setting up a panel to find a new statewide assessment for the 2017-18 school year. The bill passed 38-10 after receiving strong support in the Indiana House. The Democrats who voted against the bill are for the elimination of ISTEP, but have a quarrel with who will lead the new committee. Sen. Earline Rogers, D-Gary, said she was voting against the bill because the chair of the committee will be an appointee of Gov. Mike Pence. She said committee members should vote on who the chair or co-chairs of the committee would be, advocating for State Superintendent of Public Instruction Glenda Ritz to have a leadership position. "For us to have our state superintendent of instruction, where the buck basically stops, not have an opportunity to chair, that's my objection to this," Rogers said. "We certainly know there needs to be changes to the ISTEP." Indiana's contract with Pearson, who will administer the 2016 and 2017 tests, runs out after the 2017 test. The 22-member panel will choose a new test by the end of this year. The bill stipulates the new test can be an assessment currently used by Indiana schools or something new. The goals of the new test will be reduced testing time, reduced cost and increased transparency. Pence, Ritz, House Speaker Brian Bosma and Senate Leader David Long will all have a say in who sits on the committee. They will appoint teachers, principals, superintendents and testing experts. HB 1395 also mandates that ISTEP results get to teachers and schools no later than July 1 in the same year the test is administered. The 2015 ISTEP results weren't finalized until January 2016. Legislative leaders in both parties have been outspoken about the failings of ISTEP. Lawmakers hurriedly pushed through two bills protecting teachers and schools from poor scores resulting from the 2015 test. "ISTEP is a broken brand," Bosma said. "We need to move on." The bill was altered slightly from the version the House passed and those changes will need to be approved by author Rep. Robert Behning, R-Indianapolis, before the bill goes to Pence's desk. Continue Reading Below Advertisement "Dibs on his dessert rations." Luckily for Damon's character (not to mention the runtime of the movie), the blood that spouts from his puncture wound congeals around the damaged area of his suit and keeps it pressurized, allowing him to survive long enough to awaken and realize just how supremely fucked he is. The Real-Life Counterpart: This is the kind of gruesome detail that could have been dreamed up only by a truly sick bastard or, you know, reality. During a 1991 mission on Space Shuttle Atlantis, astronaut Jerome III "Jay" Apt, Ph.D. (just III to his friends) was on a routine spacewalk while trying out some not-so-routine gloves: He and his fellow spacewalker were both evaluating new 5000 series gloves, which we're guessing cost more than your car. After returning to the shuttle and removing the gloves, Apt found that he had a small puncture wound on his right index finger, which he hadn't even noticed while "so hopped" on adrenaline from, you know, walking in space. Continue Reading Below Advertisement "What harpoon?" As it turns out, the wound was a less deadly version of Damon's wound from The Martian. As Apt worked, the palm restraint bar in his glove had wiggled loose, punching a hole between his thumb and forefinger (in both the glove and the hand inside). Luckily, astronauts bleed much the same as mere mortal men, and Apt's wound bled out into space, the coagulating action gluing the loose bar into place and allowing his suit to stay pressurized. So there you go: If you get into a knife fight in space, that shit is not over with the first stab. Keep after him! Sussex News Story Saved You can find this story in My Bookmarks. Or by navigating to the user icon in the top right. Artis Group is one of only a dozen companies to join elevate61, a program designed to help high-growth Australian tech businesses break into the US market by connecting them with customers and investors. Artis Group's involvement in the elevate61 program, which runs in partnership with Advance and KPMG Australia, was announced alongside with 11 other companies at the Australia United States Business Week 2016 mission held in the US this week. The program has also helped Artis Group's US launch of its Business-Intelligence-Spatial (BIS) platform. The platform was developed with the Department of Primary Industries (DPI) Biosecurity has been recognised at Microsofts CityNext award in 2014 and featured at the Microsoft ISV showcase at Parliament House last year. The BIS product developed with Artis Group has provided a powerful tool for managing biosecurity events. Their agile approach and cooperative management style gave us confidence in the quality and capability of the end product, said DPI Biosecurity director of emergency operations, intelligence and programs Barry Kay. Events such as the avian flu outbreak in May 2015 throwing Nebraska, Wisconsin, Minnesota and Iowa into states of emergency provides an opening for such a solution. The declarations involved the culling of more than 33 million birds in 16 US states, said Artis Group chief executive Chris Greatrex. Sydney-based Artis Group is a Microsoft partner and application developer specialising in design, development, integration and support of critical business applications for enterprise and government organisations with offices in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Canberra and Adelaide. Oracle has acquired Ravello Systems in a move the company said will enhance the Oracle Public Cloud. Oracle did not say much about the acquisition other than a two-sentence statement on the company's website: "On February 22, 2016, Oracle signed an agreement to acquire Ravello Systems. All Ravello employees will be joining Oracle as part of Oracle Public Cloud." However, Ravi Tamir, CEO of Ravello Systems, wrote in a Monday blog post that after the transaction closes, his team will join the Oracle Public Cloud organisation and the company's products will become part of Oracle Cloud. "We believe this agreement will accelerate our ability to reach more customers, deliver more value, and enhance our technology at an accelerated pace in order to better serve you," Tamir wrote. "Ravello will join in Oracles infrastructure-as-a-service mission to allow customers to run any type of workload in the cloud, accelerating Oracles ability to help customers quickly and simply move complex applications to the cloud without costly and time-consuming application rewrites," he wrote. No mention was made of the selling price. However, online publication Venture Beat, citing an unnamed source close to the deal, reported that Oracle paid US$500 million for Ravello. Oracle declined to provide further information on the acquisition, while Ravello Systems did not respond to a CRN request for more information by publication time. Ravello Systems, founded by the team that introduced the KVM hypervisor, came to market in 2013 as a developer of virtualisation technology to make applications work with multiple cloud providers or platforms. The company last year developed nested virtualisation, a technology that allows a hypervisor to run inside a virtual machine, as a way to move workloads from VMware private clouds to Amazon Web Services and Google Cloud Platform public clouds, without requiring apps to be rebuilt. Ravello Systems joins a long list of acquisitions Oracle has made in its push to develop the Oracle Public Cloud and compete with the likes of Amazon Web Services and Microsoft Azure. They include the December 2015 acquisition of Docker container startup StackEngine; the September 2014 acquisition of content storage management solution developer Front Porch Digital; the September 2012 acquisition of SelectMinds for cloud-based talent management; and the April 2012 acquisition of Taleo for its cloud-based human capital management solutions. This article originally appeared at crn.com Microsoft partner Readify has launched a two-year graduate program specifically aimed at addressing the IT skills shortage in Australia. The program, which has been up and running since the start of this year, will see the company recruiting four university leavers - comprising of graduates and junior developers - to work in Readifys managed services team for three months, before moving on with a mentor and working from client sites. Solving the IT skills shortage was not as simple as just getting more students into STEM [science, technology, engineering and mathematics] courses. Firstly, not enough people enrol in tech degrees; secondly the courses dont deliver work-ready candidates, Readify managing director Graeme Strange said. One thing Australia cant afford to compromise on is skills. While Readify recruits candidates from around the world, we feel it is also our responsibility to invest in and grow local talent. Australians will always be strong consumers of technology but we need to encourage a new generation of creators of technology." As part of its strategy to increase the number of IT experts in Australia, Readify is also currently in talks with UTS and RMIT to help influence the curriculum and STEM course uptake. Students will get access to company-wide experts. Our people are superstars in the field: six of them are Microsoft MVPs. All of them are very passionate and love sharing new ideas," said Readify head of people, Michelle Ridsdale. "They will revel in the opportunity to train the new generation coming through. We also see it as a reverse-mentorship programme. Its a chance for our people to develop their leadership skills as well. Channel programs News CRN Exclusive: NGenx Boosts MSP Access By 100 With TeamLogic IT Deal Jimmy Sheridan Share this Chicago-based Desktop-as-a-Service vendor nGenx has added nearly 100 managed service providers with just one stroke of the pen. NGenx has launched a partnership with MSP franchisor TeamLogic IT that will allow nGenxs hosted workspace to be the default DaaS product for TeamLogics nearly 100 franchise locations throughout North America. "This is a significant initiative for us," said Frank Picarello, chief operating officer of TeamLogic IT "and it will go a long way to ensure year-over-year, double-digit growth." [Related: IndependenceIT Wins Major Partner Victory Over Citrix With nGenx] TeamLogic, based in Mission Viejo, Calif., provides managed IT services to local businesses throughout the continent through its franchises. With the deal, TeamLogic gains a solution that will open more opportunities for its franchise owners to discuss solutions such as cloud migration to generate more recurring revenue for their individual businesses, according to Picarello. And although he says the addition of new cloud business will not incrementally change revenue the way a traditional service would, the extra business will be significant. The monetary benefit for TeamLogic will be substantial, he said, and far from just a "rounding error." Individual franchises will not be obligated to use the nGenx platform, but will be supplied with it as a default DaaS platform through TeamLogic IT's corporate organization. That will allow them to deliver complete hosted desktops, applications and data, and migrate clients to a monitored cloud-based platform, keeping them up to date with the latest technology. "We tend to take the position of being on the edge," Picarello said, adding that with nGenx's solution, TeamLogic IT will be able to have conversations it never had with clients. Thanks to the training and assistance nGenx gives with its service, TeamLogic will be able to move toward that edge with confidence, he added. "Finding really good partners when you are taking a leading-edge position in the marketplace is essential and can be the difference between making it or not," Picarello said. "We are really ecstatic with [nGenx's] approach to us and the advancements they have made. we are ecstatic to be their partner." For nGenx, the deal will improve the company's push toward building up the MSP side of its channel, according to Max Pruger, the companys chief sales officer. Although nGenx has always been 100 percent channel-focused, it has always focused on the telco agent side of its channel. Eight months ago, nGenx brought on Pruger primarily to build the company's MSP channel, he said. At the time, nGenx had fewer than a dozen MSPs in its channel after 15 years in business. However, six months after he came on board, Pruger has grown that roster to nearly 600. "Team Logic IT really accelerated that sign-up process," he said. Pruger said that ramp up has been so quick that when the company made its pre-announcement of the deal at TeamLogic's headquarters, they were able to sign 30 new clients within three months. NGenx will continue to build its MSP channel, according to Pruger, who said the company is looking at other deals with companies similar to TeamLogic that are organized similarly. Currently, nGenx is generating about 50 percent of its net new sales in the MSP space, he said. He hopes that will rise to 70 percent by the end of 2016. Channel programs News Ingram Micro President Is Stepping Down, Days After Tianjin Tianhai Acquisition Announcement Michael Novinson Share this Just six days after Ingram Micro announced plans to become part of Hainan, China-based HNA Group, the distributor revealed in a filing that its second in command will leave his post. Paul Read will step down Friday as president and chief operating officer of the Irvine, Calif.-based company after 29 months on the job, according to a document filed Tuesday with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Read will remain employed by Ingram Micro until September to assist with the transition, the filing stated. Read was not immediately available for comment. "When Paul came to Ingram [in September 2013], he was looking at succession planning," Damon Wright, Ingram Micro's executive director of investor relations, told CRN. "With this deal now and HNA wanting [CEO Alain Monie] to lead the company for some time, it made Paul reevaluate what his future was at Ingram." [Related: Ingram Micro Exec: Proposed Chinese Ownership Won't Hurt Our U.S. Federal Business] Wright emphasized that Ingram Micro is not under any pressure to cut executive head count or payroll from Tianjin Tianhai, which Feb. 17 disclosed plans to acquire the distributor for $6 billion. HNA is Tianjin Tianhais largest stockholder. "This was Paul's decision based on Paul's career objectives," Wright said. "This was not HNA coming in and making changes to the management team." Wright said he doesn't see any reason for additional executives to leave Ingram Micro, adding that partners have no reason to be worried. "Executives recognize there's a fantastic opportunity with Ingram Micro," Wright said. But Wright acknowledged that individual leaders will make their own decisions about their post-HNA future with Ingram Micro based on their own career paths and trajectories. Wright said the company doesn't currently have a plan in place for replacing Read, who in his role has been responsible for Ingram Micro's worldwide IT distribution business and the associated logistics support organizations. The distributor's regional leaders, including U.S. chief exec Paul Bay, have reported to Read, while Read has reported directly to Monie. Even after officially relinquishing his title Friday, Read will be available to serve in whatever role Monie needs until September, said Wright, who declined to say whether conversations about Read's departure began before or after the HNA deal was announced. Dave DeCamillis said he's never interacted with Read in the eight years he's been with Denver-based Ingram Micro partner Platte River Networks, so he doesnt anticipate the departure will have much of an impact on his business. "If it was Paul Bay, it would be different," DeCamillis said. "I'd be surprised to see any major shakeup that affects me or the partners in the next six to 12 months." While DeCamillis said he hopes and expects that his company won't be harmed by the acquisition, he acknowledged that the company's overall leadership structure might change as it's folded into HNA. "You would think that it would make sense that they would do some type of consolidation, so yeah, I think it [could] happen," DeCamillis said. Guy Baroan, president of Elmwood Park, N.J.-based Baroan Technologies, has met Read once or twice and said he came away very impressed with him. Still, Baroan said Read's involvement is more on the back end and at higher levels of the operation, while Paul Bay is more involved in the direction and drive of Ingram Micro's partner community in the United States. "For us, it would be more troubling if Paul Bay were to be leaving," Baroan said. Bay told CRN on Friday that he will be remaining with Ingram Micro and continuing to lead the U.S. and Export businesses. Read will continue to receive his base salary (which was $747,115 in 2014), benefits and equity award vesting until he leaves the company in September. If Read signs a general release and departs within six months of a change in who controls Ingram Micro, he will be eligible to receive a severance payment equal to twice his salary and target bonus (which was $180,000 in 2013 and 2014), a prorated 2016 bonus, one year's worth of health insurance coverage payments, outplacement services and accelerated vesting of outstanding equity awards. Ingram Micros stock was up 0.1 percent in after-hours trading Tuesday, to $35.75 per share, more than 8 percent below Tianjin Tianhai's offering price of $38.90 per share. Read's departure was announced after the market closed. Channel programs News SHI Buys 18-Person Microsoft Services Maestro Michael Novinson Share this Solution provider superstar SHI International plans to turbocharge its fast-growing Microsoft practice by purchasing a boutique partner laser-focused on streamlining volume licensing deployments. The Somerset, N.J.-based company, No. 12 on the CRN 2015 Solution Provider 500, said its acquisition of Eastridge, an 18-person Microsoft shop based in Winston-Salem, N.C., will enable it to provide more support around technologies such as SharePoint, Office 365 and Azure. "Microsoft is in every environment," Ed McNamara, SHI's director of marketing and communications, told CRN. "We've seen tremendous growth in that area, and we needed reinforcements." [Related: SHI International CEO Thai Lee: 'It's A Great Time To Be In IT'] Terms of the deal, which closed Monday, were not disclosed. The acquisition does not encompass Eastridge's hosting arm and includes just its professional services employees. SHI began expanding from the enterprise to the corporate and SMB spaces in late 2008 and early 2009, McNamara said, but came to realize that -- unlike enterprise customers -- these clients needed support beyond acquiring volume licenses. SHI has the largest volume licensing practice in the world, but small and midsized customers often didn't have the resources in-house to deploy or utilize these licenses. "We needed to augment the post-sales support we could provide to customers of that size," McNamara said. Bringing Eastridge on board will allow SHI to standardize post-sales support for Microsoft customers across the country, McNamara said. SHI has been relying on a network of Microsoft partners -- including Eastridge -- to provide services around Microsoft licenses, McNamara said, but vetting and researching those partners across many geographic areas has been a heavy lift. "When you rely on a partner level, there is a level of maintenance that needs to happen," McNamara said. SHI hasn't yet addressed whether its clients outside of the United States will be able to take advantage of Eastridge's offerings, McNamara said, as the company operates only within the U.S. today. Eastridge President Travis Hargett will join SHI as part of the acquisition and continue to lead the Eastridge operation, reporting to Hal Jagger, SHIs vice president and general manager of corporate sales. Eastridge's offerings will eventually be rebranded under the SHI moniker, McNamara said, and its employees will be aligned with SHI's existing field sales force. A significant portion of Eastridge's existing customers already work with SHI, McNamara said. But for those Eastridge customers new to SHI, they will be able to tap into the solution provider's largest Microsoft support team and additional expertise on the program side. Eastridge was founded in 1998 and works with businesses of 250 to 10,000 employees. Although SHI is willing to listen to acquisition offers and consider the ones that make sense, McNamara said the company hadn't undertaken any significant M&A in recent years. "Historically, SHI has not experienced M&A," he said. And despite already being Microsoft's largest partner in the world, McNamara said, SHI delivered 12 percent sales around the Redmond, Wash.-based vendor in 2015. "If you're serving customers' IT needs, Microsoft has to be a big part of that conversation," McNamara said. Cloud News vCloud Where? VMware Forms New Hybrid Cloud Alliance With IBM SoftLayer Kevin McLaughlin Share this VMware and IBM unveiled a strategic partnership Monday that lets customers migrate workloads back and forth between VMware-based private clouds and the IBM SoftLayer public cloud. In the VMware channel, some partners see the IBM tie-up as a sign that VMware is de-emphasizing its vCloud Air service and will instead look to build its hybrid cloud business by partnering with more established cloud players. Under the partnership, organizations running VMware-based private clouds won't have to modify workloads in order to run them to the IBM SoftLayer public cloud. [Related: After Extended Period Of Turmoil, Can VMware Right The Ship With vCloud Air?] This capability -- one of the main selling points for vCloud Air -- lets customers skip the time-consuming process of converting workloads from one format to another when migrating workloads. Carl Eschenbach, VMware's president and chief operating officer, described the IBM alliance as a "new" strategic partnership that will help the Palo Alto, Calif.-based vendor accelerate its hybrid cloud business. "IBM is seeing high demand for existing VMware customers that want to deploy workloads on top of the IBM [SoftLayer] cloud," Eschenbach told CRN. VMware actually has a 14-year-old partnership with IBM, but much of it has been centered around IBM's System x server business, which Lenovo acquired in October 2014. Now, IBM will be using VMware's entire software-defined data center stack -- which includes vCloud Suite, NSX software-defined networking and VSAN storage virtualization -- on top of a bare metal offering on SoftLayer, according to Eschenbach. Mark Wyllie, CEO of Flagship Solutions Group, an IBM partner in Boca Raton, Fla., told CRN he's seeing high demand for hybrid cloud services within his customer base. He said he believes the VMware partnership "will open up huge market" for IBM's SoftLayer cloud business. Eric Roch, principal architect and practice director for IT modernization at Perficient, a St. Louis-based IBM partner, said being able to move virtual machines between on-premise and off-premise environments will speed hybrid cloud adoption. "This is a positive development for both parties," he said. Kevin Goodman, managing director at BlueBridge Networks, a Cleveland-based partner of both vendors, said he thinks VMware will benefit from IBM's data center reach, which includes 45 locations around the world, and by gaining access to IBM's customer base. "The IBM and VMware partnership is another way for these two offerings to compete for market share and customer retention," said Goodman. Although VMware has said it intends to continue operating vCloud Air, the vendor laid off a large portion of staff last month and said it won't be making additional investment in building out the service. CRN reported last September that VMware was planning to stop development of new features, and since then, several top ranking executives for the service have left the company. "VMware continues to own and operate VMware vCloud Air with a narrower and more specific focus to provide customers with specialized services, unique to VMware and distinct from other public cloud providers," a VMware spokesman said in an emailed statement in response to CRN's questions about the service's future. Cloud News ScienceLogic Launches Channel Program To Bring VARs Into The Mix Joseph Tsidulko Share this ScienceLogic launched a channel program Tuesday to enable VARs, a new class of partner for the hybrid cloud management vendor, to resell its platform directly to customers. To broaden its channel beyond the MSPs who use ScienceLogic's platform to manage customer clouds, the Reston, Va., vendor introduced a program called ChannelLogic, Steve Kazan, ScienceLogic's senior director of channel development, told CRN. "What we've discovered is that some of those managed services partners have been asked by their customers to buy ScienceLogic for them to set up on-premises or in their data centers," Kazan told CRN. "We are creating a channel program to give customers the ability to buy ScienceLogic either way." [Related: ScienceLogic, Driven By Surging Demand For Microsoft's Cloud, Integrates Deep Monitoring Capabilities For Azure] The program aims to empower both types of partners with the right tools, products and messaging to tap a $25 billion hybrid IT market, he said. ScienceLogic launched ChannelLogic with 10 inaugural VARs -- four of them existing MSPs and six new partners, Kazan said. He's looking at 30 others, and the goal is to sign 50 across North America by the end of the year. "We're not shot-gunning this out," Kazan told CRN. "We're being pretty careful about who we're signing up and who will commit." Previously, ScienceLogic only sold its platform direct to customers. But Kazan, when he joined the company in November, saw a large degree of crossover between the managed services and resale sides of the channel. "We've had a lot of success on the managed services side, but a whole section of the market was still open," Kazan said. "This is part of the growth strategy of the company." Some of the new partners are joint-selling ScienceLogic's product with cloud orchestration solutions or other cloud services. Integration with ServiceNow, SAP and Nutanix allows partners of those companies to add a greater level of visibility and automation to their management. "They get more out of their investments in those products with ScienceLogic," Kazan said. "I think we'll find folks who are reselling cloud today, partners who are selling hybrid cloud technologies -- they are good targets for us and are very interested," Kazan told CRN. While the goal was to add VARs to the mix, ChannelLogic also aims to facilitate the company's traditional MSP partners by providing them new tools to productize and monetize their offerings and manage their businesses better, he said. MSPs might sell some services to large customers, but they typically don't manage the entire network. Being able to resell the platform adds another avenue of engagement. Because ScienceLogic supports Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure and IBM SoftLayer, as well as OpenStack and CloudStack-powered private clouds, it gives partners the flexibility to offer different clouds to their clients. "What we find is there are clients out there hedging their bets, using multiple different cloud providers," Kazan said. "We want to be flexible in supporting all the different permutations of the cloud." Andy Schroepfer, chief strategy officer at Hosting, an inaugural ChannelLogic partner, told CRN via email that his company, the largest managed services provider using the ScienceLogic platform, sees great potential in also reselling the product. Because of its own success using the ScienceLogic platform to manage customer accounts, the cloud services provider based in Denver believes the platform offers value to businesses that would like to run it internally. "Our experience has prompted us to engage with ScienceLogic together in the field to give our customers more options to adapt their own platforms, which can include us remotely managing a clients IT environment," Schroepfer told CRN. Security News BlackBerry Buys British Security Consultancy, Underscoring Commitment To Mobile Security Gina Narcisi Share this BlackBerry has acquired British cybersecurity consultancy Encription -- another sign that the smartphone maker is serious about its newly sharpened focus on security services as opposed to its legacy hardware business. This latest acquisition, revealed Wednesday, will help the provider in its plans to secure mobile communications across all platforms, according to Robby Hill, founder and CEO of Florence, S.C.-based HillSouth, an IT solution provider and longtime BlackBerry partner. "Clearly, BlackBerry is showing they want to compete across all mobile platforms and be a mobile security company, so I applaud them in any acquisition that helps set them up for that," Hill said. "Continuing to gain knowledge and products that can go into a mobile security offering is really going to position BlackBerry against a lot of mobile security competitors." [Related: BlackBerry Lays Off 200 In Software And Service Transition ] BlackBerry, Waterloo, Ontario, has been vocal about the turnaround plan it has put in place to combat plunging hardware sales. The plan includes moving away from its waning smartphone business and focusing instead on security software and services, as well as Android smartphones for enterprise users. Kidderminster, England-based Encription is an IT security consultancy and forensic service provider that offers penetration testing, and security assessments and training. Encription's small staff of 40 security professionals has helped test network vulnerabilities for both government and large corporate clients, and its employees will now join BlackBerry's staff. The acquisition will give BlackBerry years of cybersecurity consulting experience, BlackBerry said. The Encription acquisition closed last Friday, but specific terms of the deal are not being disclosed yet, according to BlackBerry. BlackBerry said it will use its latest acquisition to launch its Professional Cybersecurity Services practice, which was also announced Wednesday. The practice will expand the mobile company's security portfolio by offering businesses new consulting services, tools and best practices aimed at addressing cybersecurity risks, Blackberry said in a news release. The enterprise mobile security market has been growing by leaps and bounds, and BlackBerry has made some good acquisitions in this area, according to HillSouth's Hill. However, the company hasn't done enough marketing to the partner community to get the word out on its growing security portfolio, he said. "I'm thinking they may need to make sure they are communicating their slate of offerings is evolving and meets the needs of the community around mobile device management and security," Hill said. "Honestly, I think a lot of people forget BlackBerry offers mobile device solutions." BlackBerry may continue to gobble up security-focused companies, but the company may also choose to focus on integrating some of its recent acquisitions and getting the word out on some of its new partnerships that haven't born products yet, Hill said. In September 2015, BlackBerry acquired mobile device management and security software company Good Technology for $425 million. This purchase, coupled with the latest acquisition of Encription, will help drive interest in pursuing a BlackBerry partnership from the channel, Hill said. Storage News Nimble Storage Takes On EMC, Pure Storage With First All-Flash Storage Array Joseph F. Kovar Share this Nimble Storage has expanded its storage line card with the introduction of its first-ever all-flash storage array, and is positioning its new solution against better-known all-flash arrays including EMC's XtremIO and Pure Storage's FlashArray//m. The San Jose, Calif.-based vendor, best-known for its series of high-performance hybrid flash arrays and for a series of challenges pitting those arrays against competitors' all-flash arrays, on Tuesday climbed aboard the all-flash storage train itself with the introduction of the Nimble AF series of all-flash arrays. The Nimble AF series comes with the technologies that have made Nimble Storage's hybrid flash arrays successful, including integration with the company's InfoSight predictive analysis technology, its Unified Flash Fabric to allow all-flash and hybrid arrays work together, and no need for future forklift upgrades, said Ajay Singh, Nimble's vice president of product management. [Related: All-Flash Storage Vs. Hybrid Storage: Weighing Workload Against Cost] "We are leapfrogging the competition," Singh told CRN. That may be true, said Dave Hiechel, president and CEO of Eagle Technologies, a Salina, Kan.-based solution provider whose storage business is split 50-50 between Nimble Storage and Dell. "We've been holding off on signing with all-flash storage vendors like Pure Storage, Tegile and SolidFire, because I think Nimble and its file system would do well with all-flash storage," Hiechel told CRN. "I think we're going to get some amazing numbers from Nimble." Nimble has an advantage over its smaller all-flash array competitors, thanks to its mature solution, Hiechel said. "Nimble tools work very well," he said. "The company has a very mature solution set. This new array will take off for us." Hiechel said he is not surprised to see Nimble Storage finally enter the all-flash array market. "We've seen Dell be successful with all-flash arrays," he said. "The Pure Storages and SolidFires of the world are doing well. Nimble has been offering hybrid arrays as a cost-effective alternative, so it will be interesting to see how the new dynamic works." Hiechel said Nimble Storage's entry into the all-flash storage array market could also help boost that company's hybrid flash array business. As an analogy, Hiechel cited the case of EqualLogic before it was acquired by Dell. At one time, Hiechel said, his company sold a lot of EqualLogic E-series arrays with 7200-rpm hard drives, but sales fell when competitors offered iSCSI arrays with 10,000-rpm hard drives. But when EqualLogic later introduced its own 10,000-rpm hard drive arrays, his sales of arrays with 7,200-rpm drives grew because customers suddenly discovered they didn't need 10,000-rpm speed, he said. "The new arrays validated what we were doing," Hiechel said. "Maybe the same will happen to Nimble Storage. Having all-flash arrays will validate their hybrid flash array strategy. In reality, most customers not need all-flash storage." The Nimble AF-series all-flash arrays are available in four versions. The entry level AF3000 provides up to 50,000 IOPS of performance with up to 92 TBs of raw capacity and 335 TBs of effective capacity after deduplication and compression. The AF5000 can be configured with up to 184 TBs of raw all-flash capacity or 680 TBs of effective capacity to provide up to 120,000 IOPS of performance. The AF7000 fits up to 323 TBs of raw all-flash capacity or 1.2 petabytes of effective capacity in a 12U rack to provide up to 230,000 IOPS of performance. At the high end, the AF9000 fits up to 553 TBs of raw capacity in a 12U rack, providing up to 2.0 petabytes of effective capacity and performance of up to 300,000 IOPs. In a scale-out cluster, that translates to up to 1.2 million IOPS, Singh said. Singh said EMC XtremIO also scales to up to 1.2 million IOPS, but with a maximum of 1.6 petabytes of clustered capacity, compared with 8.2 petabytes for the Nimble AF-series. In a single-array configuration, the Pure Storage FlashArray//m also provides 300,000 IOPS, but with a maximum of 400 TBs of effective capacity, compared with the AF series 1.2 petabytes of effective capacity, he said. Nimble Storage has built some key technologies into its AF series, Singh said. The first is the company's InfoSight Predictive Analytics technology, which collects telemetry data on a continuous basis from customers' arrays, with their permission, he said. "This lets us maintain great support for customers," he said. "We've maintained five nines [99.999 percent] uptime for three years, and are now creeping towards six nines." The second is Unified Flash Fabric, a new architecture that allows all-flash arrays to scale both performance and capacity separately, take advantage of the lowest-cost flash chips available, and replicate data between flash and hybrid arrays, Singh said. "We're using vertical NAND flash," he said. "Samsung is the leader here, with technology that stacks flash chips on top of each other to increase density. We're taking the lowest-duration flash, but still offering a seven-year warranty on the flash." The third is a new offering called Timeless Storage. Singh said that Nimble Storage has been providing an all-inclusive license for its software, and has ensured that support prices never increase during the life of the support contract. New to Timeless Storage is an option to let customers purchase a new storage controller upgrade with a guaranteed minimum performance boost of 25 percent after three years. Nimble Storage is also now offering storage on demand, a part of the Timeless Storage program that lets customers pay according to how many TBs of data they use in a month instead of based on total raw capacity purchased. "If use goes down, customers will pay less," he said. "We're making an accelerated bet. For most customers, use doesn't go down." Leonard Iventosch, Nimble Storage's vice president of worldwide channels, told CRN that his company has made a strong commitment to the channel with the introduction of its all-flash arrays, and with all of its solutions. Over the next 12 months, Nimble Storage plans to build out a program specific to large national partners, instead of treating such partners on a local basis like most startups do, Iventosch said. The company will also introduce a program to treat service provider partners like any channel partner, and will also introduce a program targeting systems integrators. "We are a 100 percent channel company," he said. "Not 99 percent. The channel culture here is not broken. Our channel commitment is rock-solid." Nimble's entry into the all-flash storage array market will make this a good time to take a second look at the vendor, Eagle's Hiechel said. "Nimble for a long time challenged competitors' all-flash arrays against its hybrid arrays," he said. "We participated with Nimble in and won several of those challenges. Now imagine Nimble with its own all-flash array in the market." The first piece of steel was cut at Meyer Werft in Papenburg, Germany for the construction of the World Dream, the second ship being built for Genting's new brand: Dream Cruises. Colin Au, Advisor, Founding President and Chief Executive, Genting Hong Kong; Thatcher Brown, President, Dream Cruises; and Bernard Meyer, Managing Partner of Meyer Werft; pushed the button to start the plasma torch to cut the steel. Delivery of the ship is planned for fall 2017. The sister ship will be delivered in fall 2016. A federal magistrate has issued an order granting the FBI permission to access the data on an Apple iPhone belonging Syed Rizwan Farook. He is a terrorist suspect in the San Bernadino shooting on Dec. 2, 2015, which claimed 14 lives. That should be the end of it, a simple legal document allowing a law enforcement agency to access evidence of a crime. This evidence may also lead to additional confederates or uncover further terrorist cells. [ COUNTERPOINT: Privacy at what cost? Apple vs the US government ] Unfortunately, the issue at hand is not as simple as the FBI or Apple would have us believe. The FBI has not asked for Apple to unlock the phone and give them the data. The FBI has asked according to a statement released by Apple to, make a new version of the iPhone operating system, circumventing several important security features, and install it on an iPhone recovered during the investigation. That sounds like a reasonable request until you think the implications through to their logical conclusion. The FBI has asked Apple to build an IPhone OS with the security features turned off. With a copy of this OS, the FBI would not be limited to accessing the data on just this phone, but to any phone. Should a copy of this operating system make it into the wild, into the hands of a rogue law enforcement officer or intelligence agency, it would have significant security and privacy concerns, globally. [ ALSO ON CSO: Most Americans support the FBI over Apple, Pew study finds ] Part of the problem with this issue is that neither side is viewing it from the other's perspective. Apple views this request as a significant security and privacy issue with wide ranging implications for its customers and society as a whole. The FBI views this request as having limited impact and being narrow in scope. The problem for the FBI is that they are now living is a post Edward Snowden world. Governments as a whole do not have the level of trust they once enjoyed, in particular, in the US. The FBI certainly has the resources and capability of writing the hacked IPhone OS on their own. The question becomes, Why isnt the FBI simply asking Apple for the data from the phone? From Apples point of view, does this begin to look like a slippery legal slope down the path toward reduced security functionality of any product a law enforcement or intelligence agency might wish to access? The US government has spoken often of its desire to see the reduction of encryption capability for electronic devices in the civilian market. If the FBI actually just wants the data, then Apple should provide them with it. If the end game for the FBI is the iPhone OS with the security features turned off or a legal precedent, then they should reconsider their options. When it comes to matters of privacy and security, I often remember the prophetic words of Benjamin Franklin, "Those who give up their liberty for more security neither deserve liberty nor security. A new report from PhishLabs shows that Phishing remains the easiest and the most productive attack vector used by criminals This is the first time PhishLabs has released a report of this type, and while the data shows what some might already know (namely that humans are soft target), the report highlights some interesting trends that have emerged over the years. [ Check out these 11 phishing prevention tips for best technology practices, employee education and social media smarts. | Get the latest from CSO by signing up for our newsletters. ] Before we get into the PhishLabs report, let's examine a recent data breach that was the direct result of a Phishing attack at Magnolia Health Corporation in California. On February 3, 2016 someone impersonated Magnolia's CEO (Kenny Moyle) by sending a spoofed email. The email appeared to have the proper address, naming scheme, and by all accounts looked legitimate. The forged email requested personal information for all active employees of Magnolia and each of the facilities managed by them, including Twin Oaks Assisted Living, Inc., Twin Oaks Rehabilitation And Nursing Center, Inc., Porterville Convalescent, Inc., Kaweah Manor, Inc. and Merritt Manor, Inc. The Phishing attack was successful, and the attacker walked away with an Excel spreadsheet containing employee number, full name, address (city, state, zip) sex, date of birth, Social Security Number, hire date, seniority date, salary/hourly status, salary/rate, department, job title, last date paid, and assigned facility. The attack wasn't discovered until February 10. The type of Phishing attack that targeted Magnolia would be classified as BEC, or Business Email Compromise / Correspondence. It's a more focused variant of Spear Phishing. The attacker will spoof the look of a legit company email (address, Outlook images, etc.) or they'll compromise a key email account and use it to launch their attack. Another key identifier is that more often than not, BEC attacks are personal; they're not something that's automated or generated via a crime kit. They can be, but in order to increase the odds of success, a human has to interact with the target. Unfortunately, the result of these types of attacks is that the use of business email led to a successful compromise. In their report, set for release on Thursday, PhishLabs said the number of organizations targeted with BEC Spear Phishing attacks grew tremendously in 2015 as attackers refined their techniques and sought new victims. In all, 22 percent of Spear Phishing attacks analyzed in 2015 were motivated by financial fraud or related crimes. "BEC attacks target smaller more nimble organizations, where exceptions to standard accounting processes are more likely to be made based on personal requests from members of the executive team. Analysis of attack indicators shows that in most cases, targeting requires very little effort. BEC attackers appear to glean the information they need from readily-available public sources and business networking sites," the report explains. On the consumer front, 90 percent of the consumer-focused Phishing attacks targeted financial institutions, cloud-based storage or file hosting, webmail, ecommerce, and payment systems. PhishLabs While financial institutions and payment services are the most highly targeted organizations on the consumer front, the share of overall Phishing volume declined some last year. PhishLabs Rounding out some of the basics, the US was the top target of Phishing attacks by a long shot in 2015, with 77 percent, followed by China (5%), France / Great Britain / Australia (3%), Germany (2%), and Canada / Brazil (1%). All other remaining countries rounded out to five percent. "Organizations today are spending far more on preventing, detecting, and responding to cyberattacks than ever before," the report noted. "But amid all of this change, the use of Phishing to exploit the people that use the technology continues to be the most effective way to attack organizations and individuals." ZwillGen, a law firm that has represented Apple many times in court over the years, has released a list of pending All Writs Act orders, where the government has gone to the courts in order to access locked devices. In all, there are 12 iOS devices waiting to be accessed, which would appear to contradict FBI Director James Comey's statements on Sunday. Invoking the emotional argument by playing off the fear of terrorism and the sympathy for its victims, FBI Director James Comey stated on Sunday that the San Bernardino litigation isnt about trying to set a precedent. "We dont want to break anyones encryption or set a master key loose on the land. I hope thoughtful people will take the time to understand that. Maybe the phone holds the clue to finding more terrorists. Maybe it doesnt. But we cant look the survivors in the eye, or ourselves in the mirror, if we dont follow this lead," Director Comey's statement said. His remarks come at a time when the public in general and technologists are split on the ramifications of a court order issued last week directing Apple to develop a backdoor for the FBI. From the start, the FBI has maintained that the case is just about this single device, and nothing more. However, those who were following the case noted that it was more about precedent, because if Apple does as the court demands (and it is technically possible to do so) the FBI would then go to the courts and force Apple to - as the order states - "render reasonable technical assistance" from now until such time as Apple goes out of business. The key element in the case is what Apple's been ordered to do. They're to create a "bypass or disable the auto-erase function" on an iPhone 5C. Or, to put it another way, Apple is being asked to defeat a security layer that is designed to prevent the exact type of attack the FBI wants to conduct. Apple does have the technical ability to do this, but doing so will create a backdoor that the government, as mentioned, will keep requesting access to. The FBI doesn't need a copy of the tool, nor does the FBI expect Apple to release it. All the FBI wants is for the tool to exist and the legal precedent for them to have it used whenever they wish. But the FBI disputes this line of thought, stating that this is a one-time thing. "We simply want the chance, with a search warrant, to try to guess the terrorists passcode without the phone essentially self-destructing and without it taking a decade to guess correctly. That's it," Director Comey said. But if that's the case, then why has the FBI loaded the courts with 12 other iOS devices waiting for similar reasonable technical assistance? The image below can be found in PACER ( case: 1:15-mc-01902 ) The list of iOS devices was released by ZwillGen PLLC, the law firm that is representing Apple in a number of cases, and has done so many times in the past. The reason the list exists is because the court in the Eastern District of New York asked them to explain references to cases similar to the one before the court, where Apple is being asked to bypass security features. The US Department of Justice responded to the list of pending devices with its own letter to the court. Blockchain for entrepreneurs in the agricultural sector: challenges and opportunities - May 15, 2020 4:00 PM CEST Blockchain for Agriculture webinar Are you an entrepreneur in African, the Caribbean and Pacific countries and interested in blockchain? Do you want to know if and in which conditions you can leverage on blockchain to offer meaningful services to potential clients in the agricultural sector and beyond? This webinar organised by the Technical Centre for Agriculture and Rural Cooperation (CTA) in the framework its AgriHack and Blockchain projects, and in partnership with Blockchain Workspace in the Netherlands will discuss these questions. Apart from insights from three invited experts, experiences of an ACP entrepreneur investing in Blockchain will be shared. Other entrepreneurs from the audience may have the opportunity to briefly share their experiences as well. The session will be held in English only. With George Maina, founder of Shamba Records & Once Sync Limited (Kenya); Henk van Cann and Erwin Overstegen, both co-founder of the training firm Blockchain Workspace (bcws.io); and Ken Lohento (CTA) Connecticut could find itself a late arrival to the legalization party. With more states looking at allowing marijuana for recreational use, some local experts are concerned that Connecticut will miss out on one of the fastest-growing industries in the country. Vermont, Massachusetts and Rhode Island are moving closer to legalizing marijuana use without a doctors prescription, and the industry topped $5 billion last year. Bringing the cannabis trade out of the shadows has resulted in the creation of thousands of jobs and added billions of dollars into state and federal coffers. Within the past 60 days, the state of Colorado has collected more taxes from marijuana sales than from alcohol, said Ed Keating, the co-founder of Cannabiz Media, a Killingworth-based company that provides data and research to the industry. As a state, I believe we should take a hard look at that. From an economic standpoint, its very hard to ignore. And if more states around us legalize, the decision may very well be decided for us. Colorado, the first state to adopt legalized adult use, earns nearly $14 million a month in taxes from marijuana sales, according to a study by ArcView Market Research in California. The strong growth in demand for legal cannabis over the past two years is expected to continue in the years ahead, states the executive summary of the report. With nearly a dozen states debating changes to their cannabis laws in the coming year, 2016 will be the tipping point in which a majority of U.S. states transition from cannabis prohibition to some form of regulated legal markets. Within the next week, state senators in Vermont are expected to vote on legislation that would legalize recreational use there. Vermont Gov. Peter Shumlin has indicated his support for the legislation moving forward. Proposals are moving forward in other New England states this year, including Massachusetts and Rhode Island. Economic impact As Connecticut Gov. Dannel P. Malloys administration has repeatedly rejected calls for the legalization of marijuana for adult use, several lawmakers continue to pursue the legislation. State Rep. Juan Candelaria, D-New Haven, said he hopes to get a public hearing this year on legislation to legalize marijuana, adding he believes full legalization in Connecticut could result in as much as $55 million in additional tax revenue in the first year of the program. We need to listen to our constituents and, at the very least, have the conversation, he said. The economic impact of this new industry could be very significant to our state. It could help close the holes in our state budget while also having a positive impact on the states workforce. According to Keating, the producers and dispensers already operating under Connecticuts medicinal marijuana program employ about 225 people, but that doesnt include the many other businesses in the state that also support the industry. Joseph Palmieri, founder of Bridgeport-based Envirogrow, which makes equipment for growing marijuana indoors, said he plans to add to his staff of eight to keep up with orders. With sales in the millions of dollars, Palmieri said the company is averaging about 20 to 30 percent revenue growth each month. Being an entrepreneur, I support full legalization, he said. It will put people back to work with high-paying jobs that you can use to support a family and build a life around. It would create literally thousands of jobs in Connecticut, and right now jobs is just about the only thing that we are exporting out of the state. Opiate alternative Palmieri, who has an office in Colorado, has received orders from marijuana producers as far away as Australia and Guam in recent weeks. Legalizing marijuana in Connecticut for recreational purposes would turn the states economy around, he said. If not, we are going to miss the boat and lose out on this market. Angela DAmico, of Trumbull, co-owner of the Compassionate Care Center in Bethel, said in addition to staffers who are licensed to work with medical marijuana, the dispensary employs a nutritionist, a yoga instructor and other professionals. We are also looking in the near future to bring a counselor on board, she said, noting the majority of the dispensarys clients suffer from chronic pain associated with nerve damage. Many people with spinal cord injuries can become addicted to opiates. It can take as little as two to three weeks to become addicted. What we are offering is a wellness center with an alternative to that. But not everyone agrees legalization would be good for the state. There are social costs, including the potential for lost worker productivity and other issues that need to be considered, according to state Sen. Toni Boucher, R-Wilton. The costs that are involved in legalizing an illicit drug far outweigh any potential tax benefit, said Boucher, who has long opposed legalization proposals. The increased costs for drug treatment centers, additional law enforcement, lost productivity, not to mention the misery it would cause parents and teachers in the states school systems, would outweigh any of the potential benefits. Local economist Nick Perna said, with a multiplier effect, the impact to the states economy from legalizing recreational marijuana sales could be significant, but the social costs will need to be analyzed. There have been lots of studies on the lost productivity due to alcohol, but Ive yet to see any studies on pot, he said. There is also the issue of how it will be regulated. I assume that the location of dispensaries would be regulated much like package stores. As a business, would I be happy to have a pot shop open next door, or would I be disturbed by it? I guess you could always open up a cafe next door and call it The Munchies. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Although Chris Ghaffari wasnt born to a family of actors, he was fortunate to be raised by theater-loving parents who instilled in him a passion for the stage and of 16th-17th century master wordsmith William Shakespeare. Apparently, being without a hereditary theater gene has harmed him not at all, said Ghaffari, laughing, during a recent chat. Born in New York and raised in Greenwich, Ghaffari is in a most unusual situation for a graduate student at the Yale School of Drama; he is now sharing the lead in Shakespeares most popular play, Romeo & Juliet, at the much-lauded Hartford Stage, now in its 52nd season. It runs through March 20. Directed by Darko Tresnjak, the play features Kaliswa Brewster as Juliet. (In 2014, Tresnjak won the Tony, Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle awards for Best Direction of a Musical for the Broadway production of A Gentlemans Guide to Love and Murder, which he debuted at Hartford Stage in 2012.) When we connected on an afternoon last week, Ghaffari, 26, had just completed classes for the day in New Haven and was in the process of driving to Hartford for that days preview performance. How does he keep up such a demanding pace? More Information Hartford Stage, 50 Church St. Performances generally on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Sundays at 7:30 p.m., Fridays and Saturdays at 8 and Sundays at 2. Weekly schedules vary. Tickets start at $25. 860-527-5151, hartfordstage.org. See More Collapse A love for the work ... thats first and foremost, he said. Ive been at Yale for 21/2 years, with the goal of becoming a working actor. That is my motivation. Since he is keeping up with his workload, he is expected to graduate in May with a masters degree. And there is a lot to relish in the role itself. Shakespeare (1564-1616) is one of my favorites, if not my favorite poet and playwright, considered by many as the best English-language writer of all time. I love Romeos great integrity ... wrestling with (issues of) love and beauty. And even in the face of death, he is optimistic, considering it simply as the next step. As Hartford Stage reminds us, in Romeo and Juliet, the intense feud between the Montague and Capulet families devastates the city of Verona and foreshadows tragic consequences for young Romeo and Juliet. Revenge, passion and a secret marriage lead the worlds most famous star-crossed lovers to a harrowing end. Ghaffari noted that hes at a good age to play Romeo, who starts out as a very young guy, and by the end of the play, is a man as reflected by his maturity. In addition to Brewster and Ghaffari, the cast includes Kandis Chappell (Hedda Gabler at Hartford Stage, Getting Away with Murder and Rumors on Broadway) as the Nurse; Bill Christ (An Opening in Time at Hartford Stage, Born Yesterday on Broadway) as Prince Escalus; and Celeste Ciulla (A Midsummer Nights Dream with Hartford Stage and Hartford Symphony, Hamlet at The Old Globe) as Lady Capulet. In Greenwich, Ghaffari attended Riverside Elementary School and Greenwich Country Day School, graduating from the Brunswick School, a private college preparatory institution. He received a bachelors degree in English literature from Princeton University. It was at his hometown schools that Ghaffari participated in truncated versions of the Shakespeare classics. And later, he worked on such productions as Julius Caesar and As You Like It with Shakespeare on the Sound, a free outdoor professional summer theater in Norwalks Rowayton section. After Yale graduation in spring, Ghaffari intends to move to New York and to pursue an acting career that combines stage and television roles. In addition to his relationship with a girlfriend, Ghaffari said his daily joy comes from making art on stage and in theater-related activities such as directing and writing. Its in the collaboration with others relationships through work that I find great satisfaction. pasboros@ctpost.com; Twitter: @PhyllisASBoros HARTFORD A convicted armed robber will spend 14 years behind bars for a weeklong crime spree in Fairfield County. The states top federal prosecutor, Deirdre Daly, announced Wednesday that U.S. District Judge Alvin Thompson sentenced 42-year-old Francis Manigault of New York to 168 months in prison followed by five years of supervised release. Manigault robbed four delis and shops in three days in Bridgeport in June 2015 before taking his show down the road to Stamford. But when he knocked over a grocery store on Stamfords West Side on July 1 of that year, a quick-thinking patrol commander immediately recognized his signature threat - pulling back the slide of his pistol with one hand before brandishing it sideways like television gangbangers - from a television report of one of his Bridgeport robberies. I knew immediately, because that was an unusual thing to do, Patrol Commander Beth Erickson told Hearst Connecticut Media at the time. It is unique. If someone was racking the gun back, they had to know there was no bullet in the chamber or the bullet would have ejected. Bridgeport and Stamford police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation put their heads together to nab Manigault. According to Dalys statement, Stamford police found Manigault on Virgil Street in Stamford shortly after the July 1 robbery while responding to 911 calls and observed him throwing a handgun on the ground. They arrested him and recovered a handgun that had been reported stolen out of North Carolina. Manigault pleaded guilty on Oct. 19, 2015 to two counts of interference with commerce by robbery and one of brandishing a firearm during a violent crime. A bakers dozen of felony firearm and robbery charges are also pending against Manigault in state courts, according to court records. WASHINGTON Senate Republicans shut the door Tuesday on consideration of a Supreme Court nominee until after the election, a move that Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., called a shameful abdication of constitutional responsibility. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, and other Republicans said the committee would not hold confirmation hearings until a new president is elected to ensure the American people are not deprived of the opportunity to engage in a full and robust debate over the type of jurist they wish to decide some of the most critical issues of our time. And Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said neither he nor any Senate Republican leaders would even meet with a nominee put forward by President Obama to replace Justice Antonin Scalia, who died abruptly in West Texas on Feb. 13. Presidents have a right to nominate just as the Senate has its constitutional right to provide or withhold consent, McConnell said. In this case, the Senate will withhold it. Blumenthal, a Judiciary Committee member, accused Republican senators of failing to do their jobs. The rejection of President Obamas ability to execute one of his constitutional duties for nearly a quarter of his term is unprecedented and unacceptable, Blumenthal said. Senate Republicans refusal to do their job is a shameful abdication of constitutional responsibility. Blumenthal and another Judiciary Committee Democrat, Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., had sounded an optimistic note last week as more and more Republican senators including Grassley suggested they would not oppose confirmation hearings for a nominee. But those hopes were dashed Tuesday as Republicans stood firm against considering a new nominee until the next president takes office on Jan. 20, 2017. Republicans say their position is little different from that taken by Vice President Biden, who in 1992 argued that then President George H.W. Bush should not get to pick a new justice before Election Day that year. Biden and the White House pushed back, saying Bidens words had been taken out of context. There was no actual vacancy that year. In parsing the long history of Supreme Court nominations, Republicans are careful to say that not since the election year of 1932 has the Senate confirmed a nominee to a vacancy arising in that year. With that wording, Republicans sidestep the events of 1988, an election year in which the Senate confirmed Justice Anthony Kennedy. The vacancy that Kennedy filled occurred the previous year, 1987. dan@hearstdc.com When journalist Kristen Green wrote her debut book, she found herself rewriting the accepted narrative of her hometown of Farmville, Va. Something Must Be Done About Prince Edward County represents a personal and challenging project, Green told Greenwich High School students Wednesday during her keynote address for the schools Diversity Awareness Week. She grew up with a cursory knowledge of her familys involvement in the resistance to desegregating schools in Prince Edward County, Va. But her perspective fundamentally changed after she got married in 2004 her husband is multiracial and she embarked on years of research. What I did in this book was confronting the history that I had been taught and figuring out the real history and going back as a journalist and then trying to tell the whole story I hadnt been told as a child, Green said in an interview with Greenwich Time. What happened in Prince Edward is so representative of the greater American story and how much of that history we dont know. As Green writes in Prince Edward County, her late grandfather helped to found a private school, Prince Edward Academy, in 1959 that was at the core of a five-year resistance in Prince Edward Countys complying with Brown v. Board of Education and subsequent court decisions that struck down the idea of a separate but equal education for black and white children. The countys leaders refused to integrate the schools, instead deciding to shut them all down. White students, including Greens parents, attended Prince Edward Academy, an all-white private school that was still publicly funded. Public officials denied some 1,700 black students an education. Some of them had relatives who helped them go to school in neighboring communities or went out of state to continue their education. But some missed all or part of their education for five years. One of those children was the daughter of the Green familys longtime housekeeper - a fact unbeknown to Green until she started her research. To the dismay of Green - an alumna of The Boston Globe and The San Diego Union-Tribune - the local press were also complicit. Farmvilles newspaper championed segregationist efforts. The fact that this was so premeditated thats what changed my thinking about what had happened, Green said. I didnt realize that they had plotted for more than four years to create this white academy and shut the schools. Even after Prince Edward County ended its rebellion in 1964 the U.S. Supreme Court that year outlawed Virginias tuition grants for public education significant change took decades to achieve. Prince Edward Academy was not integrated until 1986, when Green was in eighth grade. Green said that some in her family were unhappy about her chronicling their forerunners involvement in the areas defiant segregation. But she said she felt an obligation to write an honest account. I could no longer just blame the town for what had happened, Green said. My family was also responsible. I knew my grandfather had been involved with the academy, but it was so normalized for me. My mom worked there from when I was in middle school on, and I have a brother who works there now. Its so integral to my life. But I didnt know about this other thing. Greenwich High students and their counterparts around the country now go to school in an era that is both drastically different and stubbornly similar to the early days of Prince Edward Academy,she said. The diversity of schools like Greenwich High where minority students make up about one-third of the population would have been almost unthinkable 60 years ago. Integration has been much more difficult to sustain in other parts of the country. Some 23 percent of black students go to majority-white schools, slightly less than the percentage who did in 1968 and down from a 1988 high of about 44 percent, according to a 2014 report by the University of California, Los Angeles Civil Rights Project. And the recent history of communities including Greenwich where parents vehemently opposed redistricting in 2013 to comply with the states racial-balance mandate shows the persistent complexity and challenge of reaching agreement on efforts to increase school diversity. Now 42, Green has two elementary-school daughters who attend public-school classes in Richmond, Va. I made a point of putting my kids in super-diverse schools from the beginning, so they felt comfortable around people of all races, Green said. Their childhood experience is very different from mine. I hope to be able to put them in public schools all the way through because I value public education in a way that people in my hometown clearly didnt. Members of the schools Diversity Awareness Club said Greens message resonated with them. It was a very interesting experience to know how someone with family relations to such a tragic history was able to tell people about it and share how they felt and their experiences with something so powerful, said sophomore Felipe Sanches. I think it was a great learning experience for everybody. pschott@scni.com; 203-625-4439; twitter: @paulschott This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate A jaded Gov. Dannel P. Malloy cast doubts Wednesday about the political will of fellow Democrats and Republicans to stomach half-a-billion dollars in budget cuts in an election year for the Legislature. Unless lawmakers can identify realistic savings elsewhere in state government that are not tied to ironclad contracts or other obligations, Malloy said Connecticut will struggle to recover from its economic malaise. Malloy said theres no indication either party is willing to make those tough decisions and risk alienating their political base with control of the General Assembly on the line. Theres a crash coming, Malloy said. Now, hopefully, theyre going to get it and that lessens the crash. Malloy made the blunt assessment during a wide-ranging interview Wednesday with the editorial board of Hearst Connecticut Media in Bridgeport. The governor is trying to get buy-in for his $19.87 billion austerity budget, which relies on steep cuts to the states workforce of 45,700 employees and to the social safety net. There is a sense in state government, both amongst Republicans and Democrats, that fantasy will work, Malloy said. What Im saying is, fantasy wont work. State Senate Minority Leader Len Fasano, R-North Haven, said Republicans have put forward tangible solutions to the states fiscal woes such as pension reform, changes in benefits and a borrowing cap that have been dismissed by majority Democrats. Once again, the governor is going back to his playbook of old, which is very disappointing, Fasano said. People see it for the charade that it is. Adam Joseph, a spokesman for the Senate Democrats, termed Malloys criticism as counterproductive. Characterizations about what the General Assembly is or is not willing to do are premature and singularly unhelpful at this time, Joseph said. Gabe Rosenberg, a spokesman for the House Democrats and Speaker Brendan Sharkey, D-Hamden, disputed that Malloys own party has punted on the budget. The speaker has been consistent and vocal since last year on the need for structural change in how we budget in Connecticut, based on principles of efficiency and accountability, Rosenberg said. House Minority Leader Themis Klarides, R-Derby, said Republicans have made an honest effort to try to plug a projected billion-dollar deficit. "The governor can certainly comment on his own party's inability to make responsible decisions for this state," Klarides said. "But when we in the House and Senate Republicans have put forth budget after budget with real cuts and real structural changes, I would say it is delusional at best to question our ability to make the tough decisions we were elected to make." Malloy has yet to flesh out the details of his plan to cut the states workforce, which he has acknowledged will involve layoffs. He said Wednesday state employees arent to blame, but that it cant be business as usual. People want to give 5 percent pay increases to people when your revenue is growing at 1 or 2 percent, Malloy said. Anyone see a problem in that? Two weeks into a statewide listening tour on his budget, Malloy has faced enormous pressure from union workers to raise taxes on the states wealthiest residents. Stung by the recent announcement by General Electric that it is moving its headquarters from Fairfield to Boston, Malloy rebuffed calls for another tax hike. So whats next year? We raise them again? Then we raise them again? Malloy said. You cant go back to that same well at that depth again. The second-term incumbent, who is not up for re-election this year, has been widely criticized throughout his tenure for the states tax climate. But Malloy downplayed taxes as a factor in migration of wealthy residents to state income tax havens such as Florida. Im not denying its a factor, Malloy said. (But) if we had zero inheritance taxes, we would still lose population (of retirement age) to warm climates. neil.vigdor@scni.com; 203-625-4436; http://twitter.com/gettinviggy BRIDGEPORT -A city man is facing 36 years in prison after he pleaded guilty Tuesday to fatally shooting his long-time girlfriend. Jose Santiago, 38, pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter with a firearm and first-degree assault as the case was about to go on trial. STORY LINK Have we seen the End of Commodity Supercycle? CAD, AUD, NZD Forecast to Fall vs Pound Sterling AUD and NZD Predicted to Decline as Raw Materials Prices Fall Crude Oil may Come Under Increased Pressure as Commodities Slump, Canadian Dollar to Decline Like this piece? Please share with your friends and colleagues: Renowned hedge fund manager David Einhorn has had plenty to say about the slump in the global price of raw materials which has taken place in recent years. The closely-monitored Bloomberg Commodity Index peaked at well above the 160.00 threshold in March 2011 and reached a fresh multi-decade low of 72.88 in the third week of last month, harming commodity-correlated currencies.Observing this move, Einhorn noted that, bulls are assuming the current commodity environment is an ordinary cyclical downturn, before going on to state that, we believe it is the end of a commodity supercycle, and this will exert a long period of earnings headwinds for these companies.Einhorns words could have a pronounced effect on price action in the currency markets, particularly if his assertion that, market participants seem to be concerned about a global slowdown, and are losing faith in central bankers, looks to be coming true.Analysts forecast that the main losers if he is correct and raw material prices have has further Southwards to travel, will be the Commodity Dollars, with the Australian Dollar (currency : AUD) and New Zealand Dollar (currency : NZD) likely to be particularly hard-hit, although Australia is trying to diversify away from mining towards a service-based economy.With the asking price of virtually all raw materials moving in the same direction during recent months, the price of crude oil may also come under pressure an outcome which will hit the Canadian Dollar (currency : CAD). Analysts are therefore predicting strong gains for the Pound Sterling (currency : GBP) against this basked of export-driven tenders in the medium to long term.Todays session is relatively light on significant data releases, with nothing for CAD or NZD but a tier 3 New Zealand release, but given the current febrile mood amongst oil traders, this afternoons US Crude Oil Inventories data could prove to be market-moving.The price of a barrel of crude has shown signs of stabilising during recent weeks, but if this afternoons numbers hint that reserves of Black Gold continue to increase Stateside, then expect both the Canadian Dollar and Norwegian Krone (currency : NOK) to suffer near-term downside. International Money Transfer? Ask our resident FX expert a money transfer question or try John's new, free, no-obligation personal service! ,where he helps every step of the way, ensuring you get the best exchange rates on your currency requirements. TAGS: Australian Dollar Forecasts Canadian Dollar Forecasts New Zealand Do Forecasts 'Joe Biden can have them': Mastriano vows to bus migrants to Delaware Leesburg Electric: With prices soaring, late fees are being waived Prices are up, so Leesburg Electric has decided that, as of Oct. 1, late fees will be waived. Nelle Harper Lee, author of To Kill a Mockingbird and Go Set a Watchman, died in her sleep on Feb. 19. Lee was born on April 28, 1926, in Monroeville, Alabama, the same place she passed away. Her most famous novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, was published in 1960. In 1961, the novel won the Pulitzer Prize. The novel is loosely based on events regarding racial tensions in Alabama in the 1930s. I often suspected that Lee never wrote another novel because of the general recognition of the perfection of the first, Terry Ansbro, an instructor from the English department with a graduate degree in creative writing and literature, said. To Kill a Mockingbird struck such a chord with readers that their response must have been overwhelming to Lee. Go Set a Watchman was published in July 2015 as a sequel to To Kill a Mockingbird. Controversy surrounded the release due to reports of Lees mental and physical states, along with questions of whether she was aware of signing the publication. When Ansbro found out that Lees original draft of To Kill a Mockingbird would be released as Go Set a Watchman, she was thrilled, despite the controversy. I found it comforting that Lee was actually out there in real life, Ansbro said. I never met her but considered her my writing mentor and inspiration. In 1966, when Lee heard the school board in Richmond, Virginia, was trying to ban her book, she sent money to enroll the Hanover County School Board into first grade because they apparently could not read. In November of 2007, Lee was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom from George W. Bush. In 2010, she received the National Medal of Arts from President Barack Obama. Spring breakers crowd around a Luke Bryan concert for his last annual show at Spinnaker Beach Club in Panama City Beach last spring. WESLEY FUNK Spring breakers crowd around a Luke Bryan concert for his last annual show at Spinnaker Beach Club in Panama City Beach last spring. Funneling beer on a popular Gulf Coast beach during March may now be a thing of the past for spring breakers due to new laws passed by the Panama City Beach City Council. The city council voted unanimously to ban alcohol on the sandy beaches during March 2016, a popular season for college spring break. New laws end alcohol sales at 2 a.m., prohibit possession and consumption of alcohol in parking lots and ban climbing on hotel balconies. aWe had a lot of trouble last year, and that kind of sparked us and the county into changing some laws,a said Mike Gailfoil, desk sergeant at the Panama City Police Department. Around 250,000 college spring breakers come to Panama City Beach over a six-week period according to David Demarest, public relations manager at Visit Panama City Beach. Incidents last year included gun violations and student injuries, as well as a video of a gang rape recovered by police. Despite the problems, not everyone is pleased about the new rules. Businesses and others have filed a lawsuit against Panama City Beach in federal court asking for the new ordinances to be overturned. Popular spring break clubs such as Club La Vela and Spinnaker are among plaintiffs in the lawsuit, which alleges constitutional violations. Police and city officials will not comment on the lawsuit because of pending litigation. The new laws stem partially from worries by tourism officials that bad behavior by young people can damage the cityas year round reputation as a safe, family oriented place, said Dan Rowe, Panama City Beach Convention and Visitors Bureau CEO. aLocal officials are taking steps to curtail any bad behavior,a Rowe said. aWe are actively marketing our family-friendly offerings to young families on spring break, rather than the college market.a Despite the push by Panama City Beach officials to tone down spring break, some students at the University of Memphis still plan to travel to the popular destination and partake in their usual rowdy activities. Tristan Gresko, 19, said despite the new rules, he will do what heas always done: drink beer on the beach. aIam not worried,a Gresko said. aI donat think they will do a good job implementing the new laws this year because people will always find a way to get around rules.a Gresko said since many of the people who drink on spring break are underage, they already are breaking the law and making new laws wonat change student behavior. aI plan to chill on the beach, rent a pontoon to go to Shell Island and go to clubs,a Gresko said. aIt might not be as fun as in the past, but I donat think it will be dead.a However, not all students share the same attitude towards the legislation. Wesley Funk, 20, said he doesnat want to be the one to test the new rules. aI wouldnat drink on the beach because usually when something like this is done for the first time, they enforce it a lot harder,a Funk said. aIad rather wait until someone else does it and see what happens to them.a Funk isnat alone. Spencer Braden, a 19-year-old criminal justice student, said he agrees Panama City Beach officials will be stricter this year. aItas going to be boring in my opinion,a Braden said. aThere will be people there, but it wonat be the same party it has been in previous years.a The University of Memphis was listed on a report as one of five schools with successful programs that helped students re-enter college and graduate. The report, released Monday, outlined ways universities are helping students reach graduation. The report, compiled by the Association of Public and Land- Grant Universities and Urban Serving Universities, was titled Foiling the Drop-Out Trap, Completion Grant Practices for Retaining and Graduating Students. The report praised the U of Ms Finish Line program, which has been in place since the fall of 2013. The report said many students have spent their sum of financial aid, a financial burden that can cause many students to drop out short of graduation. Therefore, the report encouraged colleges and universities to implement ways to help students finish their education. Finish Line is overseen by the Universitys Center for Innovative Teaching and Learning. The program helps former U of M students who did not graduate attain their bachelors degree by providing grant funds. The staff can also help waive outdated program requirements in addition to academic and financial holds that students might have. Those looking to gain their degrees through Finish Line must have already earned at least 90 credit hours. They also cannot have more than 30 credit hours needed for graduation. Students must have at least a 2.0 GPA and must have been out of school for at least one semester. Every semester, the programs staff accumulates information to find eligible former students. Sometimes the information is three to five years old. Students may also be recommended to the program by people in both the campus and local community Former students who meet the requirements and are interested can apply through the programs website. The work we get to do every day is incredibly rewarding, Ashley Coffer, an academic advisor for Finish Line, said. We help students chart out a path to graduation and then walk alongside them on that path until they reach the finish line. It is pure joy to know a students story, guide them on the last leg of their journey and then see them in cap and gown. One hundred twenty-three students have gained their degree with Finish Line, and 150 more are on track, according to the report. Jonathan Capriel Director Spike Lee spoke to a packed house at the University of Memphis Michael D. Rose Theatre Tuesday. Award-winning film-director, actor, writer and producer, Spike Lee, spoke to a packed house on issues surrounding the importance of education, violence amongst African Americans and politics at the University of Memphis Tuesday. aWe come from a long line of educated people,a Lee said. aEducation will have to be the way for us to move forward.a The Morehouse College alumnus answered questions from the audience and addressed criticism surrounding his most recent film aChi-Raqa. aChi-Raqa caused controversy amongst viewers who perceived the film was making a mockery of the ongoing violence in Chicago. When asked by an audience member to directly respond to critics of the film Lee declined. Instead he explained the inspiration for the movie. aaChi-Raqa was inspired by an ancient Greek play written by Aristophanes in 411 B.C.,a Lee said. aThe play is about a heroin named Lysistrata who brought women together to refrain from intercourse until the war stopped.a Lee previously visited the U of M in March 2010, where he addressed similar topics including growing up in Brooklyn as a child. An Evening with Spike Lee is a part of a series of events taking place on campus in honor of Black History Month. The office of Multicultural Affairs has a similar event every year during Black History Month. Previous speakers included Alfre Woodard, Steven A. Smith, Lou Gossett Jr. and Debbie Allen. aSpike Lee is an important figure in black culture today,a said Erin A. Bailey, coordinator for the office of multicultural affairs. aWe know that he will inspire students in a way that only he can.a The heavy rain did not stop people from coming to see the director. Every seat in the Michael D. Rose Theatre, where Lee spoke, was filled, and not everyone who came to see the director speak was let into theatre. Fifteen minutes before the Lee was scheduled to be on stage, University officials turned away more than 40 students who were waiting in the rain. Other students, like Ashley Kee, 23, from Smyrna, Tennessee, said she was disappointed the University let non-students in to see Lee leaving less room for students who actually paid to bring him here. aItas not fair. They should have had priority for students,a Kee said. She said she waited in line 30 minutes in hopes to see Lee speak. aI basically came out here for nothing.a Only people who got free wristbands two hours before the event were allowed to enter. Lee made his directorial debut in 1983 when he directed his film aSheas Gotta Have It.a Since then, his production company, 40 Acres and a Mule, has produced more than 35 films including aSchool Daze,a aDo the Right Thinga and aJungle Fever.a The directoras recent remarks regarding the Oscars has gained much attention. Lee has vowed to boycott the award ceremony due to the lack of minority representation. aOver the past two years not one single person of color has been nominated for an Oscar,a Lee said. aThat is absolutely ridiculous.a Austin Cotton plodded home in the summer heat, exhausted. As a bead of sweat trickled down his cheek, the carpenter raised his coarse, blue-collar hands to his head, shielding his eyes from the suns unforgiving rays. It was May 1 of 1866 in Memphis, Tennessee, and Cotton, a former slave, struggled through his first year of freedom. As he passed Hollowells Grocery, Cotton heard a scream. Halt you damned n*****, someone cried. Or we will knock you on the head! Cotton didnt move. Within seconds he was seized by a stranger. Then, before the freed man could act, another man slammed him over the head with a pistol. The blow crippled Cotton, but in a daze, he noticed familiar symbols on the men. The symbols were stars. These men were police officers. Few know of the Memphis Massacre, a series of Mid-South atrocities committed against African Americans between May 1 and 3 of 1866. It was a dark time in the citys history. The massacre resulted in the raping of five black women, the burning of Memphiss black churches and schools, injuries to over 200 and the needless murders of at least 46 African Americans. But when asked about it, Memphians have next to no knowledge on the subject. University of Memphis freshman Michael Jordan certainly didnt have any. I might have heard of it, the 18-year old biomedical engineering major said. But I cant remember what it is. Ashley White, 21, was another U of M student unfamiliar with the 1866 massacre. The what? the nursing major said of the massacre. Yeah, I dont know what that is. Its this kind of unawareness several U of M employees are hoping to dispel. Professors Susan ODonovan and Beverly Bond of the history department, along with Professor Andre Johnson of the communications department, have teamed up to create the Memphis Massacre Commemoration Project, a venture they hope will bring knowledge to the horrific acts of 1866. Were trying to generate a discussion, ODonovan said. Were trying to help people learn about it. Its one of those stories where all the historians know it, but no one else knows it. To inform U of M students, ODonovan, Bond and Johnson have organized a series of events on the massacre. Johnson presented a lecture on Feb. 16, and ODonovan gave one on Feb. 19. There will be another one on March 17 at Rhodes College and an Academic Symposium on May 20 and 21 at U of M. ODonovan also hopes the project will force the city to recognize these tragedies. This was three days of concentrated intense race violence towards African Americans, she said. And Memphis has done a marvelous job of just completely erasing this history. Theres no plaque, no monument, nothing. Theyve made it disappear. The policemen continuously pounded Cotton on the head. Dazed and confused, he didnt understand what was happening. He hadnt done anything wrong. If you can bring a colored man or a white man that will say I have spoken a cross word in eight years, he later said to a special investigations committee, than you take me out and hang me today. I have not had any disturbances since Ive been in Memphis. Despite his innocence, Cotton knew he had to get away. He focused his energy and sprang from the police, dashing into Hollowells Grocery. The officers didnt follow. Instead they turned their attention to another African American in the area. It was Jackson Godell, an African American Civil War veteran who fought in the 55th U.S. infantry. The police pointed their pistols at him and fired. From inside, Cotton caught a glimpse of Godell, collapsed on the ground. The Memphis Massacre began when a unit of black Union soldiers were stationed at Fort Pickering. Many former slave owners held a particular disdain for black soldiers, as it showed a changing of the guard. The bottom rail was now on top, ODonovan said. These werent just free black men, these were armed free black men representing federal authority. It was their (slave owners) worst nightmare. But when the black soldiers were discharged, some southerners saw it as a window of opportunity. There were ramifications to shooting a soldier, even in the South. But shooting a freed slave, not so much. A mob was made in part by the Memphis City Police, and for three days, they terrorized the African Americans of South Memphis. They targeted African American soldiers, their families and anyone who got in their way, ODonovan said. But the Memphis Massacre had an impact the mob didnt expect. It served as a wake-up call for Congress, who took over post-Civil War reconstruction. The 14th Amendment was passed two months later, granting citizenship to former slaves. In March of the next year they passed the Reconstruction Acts, sending U.S. military back to the South. With the devastation it created and the effects it had, professors like ODonovan are often left wondering why the Memphis Massacre is left unacknowledged by the city. What does it mean that were not talking about this, she said. What do we lose by not recognizing this event? Godells wife Lavinia was at home when she heard the news. A member of her church had informed her. Sister Lavinia, Jackson is killed, the woman said. Lavinia raced to Hollowells Grocery where she found him dying on the ground. She rested his head in her hands, and for the last time, said goodbye to her husband Eric Abernathy, sophomore biology major, rides a hover board out of the University Center. Hover boards, Swagways, IO Hawks and similar devices have been banned from all University of Memphis residence halls. Austin Anderson Eric Abernathy, sophomore biology major, rides a hover board out of the University Center. Hover boards, Swagways, IO Hawks and similar devices have been banned from all University of Memphis residence halls. Hover boards are among a list of many two-wheeled vehicles banned inside University of Memphis dorms. Students living on campus were told by email Friday they were no longer allowed to ride or store hover boards in any residence halls. The two-wheeled scooters were banned because they are a asafety and fire hazard,a according to the email sent by the U of Mas Residence Life and Dining Services . The email stated the devices aendanger not only you but others that live in your community.a The University also put a ban on other small recreational vehicles such as skateboards and roller skates. There were 70 hospital trips nationwide last holiday season because of hover board accidents, according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. Hover board accidents have also claimed celebrities. University of Memphis graduate and current major leaguer Dan Uggla fell off a hover board while listening to Justin Bieber. His wife Janette posted a video of the accident on instagram. South Florida congressman Carlos Curbelo went to the emergency room and ended up with his arm in a sling after falling off his nephewas hover board. The congressman tweeted a photo of his injury Saturday. CNN reported a Deerwood mall in Humble, Texas, being evacuated because a hover board burst into flames when a shopper tried to return it. Aaron Canales, 21, was satisfied with the ban. The business and psychology junior finds hover boards aincredibly annoying and always in the way.a aI support the ban because those stupid things obstruct the flow of people walking in the dorms,a he said. aThey either move too fast or too slow. Itas not only a fire hazard but a hazard to my sanity.a However, some students were not happy about the news. Mario Crump, freshman psychology major, said the campus is adoing too much.a aIt ainat that serious if you ask me,a he said. aNo one riding a hover board or a skateboard has ever distracted me from doing my work or going to class. Since we banning stuff, why not ban student loans?a William Holt, 19, freshman civil engineering major, agreed the ban is an overreaction. aThis is kind of pointless,a he said. aI mean its not like we were riding them in our dorm rooms. I mean, yeah, itas a fire hazard but so is my laptop. Why not ban all computers on campus, so we donat have to turn in papers.a Lifestyle | Daily Life | News | The Sydney Morning Herald Were sorry, this feature is currently unavailable. Were working to restore it. Please try again later. Dismiss 'Sir Cover-Up' Jeremy Heywood has gone further than ever in compromising the precious political neutrality of the Civil Service he leads This paper has often raised concerns about 'Sir Cover-Up' Jeremy Heywood, the secrecy-obsessed Cabinet Secretary and political fixer the BBC used to call 'the most important person in the country that nobody has ever heard of'. But now this shadowy figure, never held to account, has gone further than ever in compromising the precious political neutrality of the Civil Service he leads. Indeed, his instructions to Whitehall mandarins on how they must skew the EU referendum debate in favour of the 'remain' camp appear to plumb new depths of constitutional impropriety. Astonishingly, he orders them to withhold papers on EU matters from eurosceptic ministers and go behind their backs to deliver them to No 10. This applies even to documents relating directly to departmental responsibilities for which their political bosses are answerable to Parliament. Meanwhile, special advisers to 'outers' are banned from campaigning for their employers except in their own time. This means they cannot work for withdrawal while on paid leave. Like the shameful gag on eurosceptics, which was supposed to have been lifted after David Cameron struck his phoney deal, Sir Cover-Up's guidelines amount to yet more censorship. But then what better could be expected of this enemy of open debate, who slid so smoothly from Tony Blair's sofa to the inner counsels of Gordon Brown and Mr Cameron, exercising sweeping powers beyond the spotlight of public scrutiny? After all, the charge sheet against him is long and depressing: campaigning to stop the Chilcot Inquiry publishing vital documents about the run-up to the Iraq War; demanding judicial status for the Leveson Inquiry, with hugely damaging consequences for Press freedom; and now fighting to restrict access to Freedom of Information laws. The whole point of calling this referendum was that the EU question was so important it should be decided directly by the people. Mobilising the Government machine to conceal facts from one side, while pumping out propaganda for the other, makes a tawdry mockery of democracy. How long before Sir Cover-Up is rewarded by being elevated to Lord Stitch-Up? Why trust them now? What a shower! Would you really want to take advice on Britain's best interests from the big business leaders who signed Downing Street's letter warning against leaving the EU? Leave aside that more than a dozen of the 36 (who pocketed 181million between them last year!) are not even British. Forget that most of the rest are a motley crew of slippery PR men, Cameron cronies and avaricious bankers, with a smattering of chancers who feathered their nests by selling UK firms to foreigners. David Cameron answers questions after delivering a speech on the European Union in Slough, Berkshire Isn't there one damning factor that unites them with all the most vociferous champions of our EU membership, including the Guardian, the Financial Times and the Economist? Almost to a man and woman, didn't they zealously urge Britain to join the catastrophic euro, which has spread misery and mass unemployment from the Atlantic coast of Spain to the Aegean shores of Greece? Thank God, this country didn't listen to them then. Why should we now? A new book by Emma Craigie and Jonathan Mayo suggests we were right about the well-known ditty about Hitler only having one ball At school in the late Sixties, we used to sing a well-known little ditty, to the tune of Colonel Bogey. Hitler it began, has only got one ball. The other is in the Albert Hall. A new book by Emma Craigie and Jonathan Mayo suggests we were right on at least one of these counts. Apparently, the Fuhrer may have suffered from discomfort in the trouser region, owing to an undescended testicle and a rare condition called penile hypo- spadias in which the urethra opens on the underside of the penis. Unconfirmed rumours about Adolf Hitler circulated in Britain throughout World War II, some of them more damaging than our schoolboy chant, others less so. Diaries written by ordinary people at the time repeat a recurrent rumour that Hitler had a secret son, aged 12. Meanwhile, the diary of the writer Caradoc Evans contained this entry: Mary Tycanol tells me that Hitler was in college in Aberystwyth. That much is certain. Miss Arnold corroborates: Oh yes, everyone knows that Hitler was in college in Aberystwyth. He gave special orders that, though London be razed, Aberystwyth must be saved. And, of course, similar rumours continue today. Last year, a book titled Hitler In Brazil His Life And His Death argued that, far from dying in his bunker in 1945, he had escaped to the small town of Nossa Senhora do Livramento in Brazil, where he had lived for 30 years, having first changed his name, a trifle clumsily, you may think, to Adolf Leipzig. Clearly, most of these conjectures were off target, but there are still plenty of little details about Hitler which are both interesting and true. For instance, the historian Andrew Roberts confirms that, though he was short-sighted, he was too vain to wear glasses in public. This meant that his secretaries had to type out all his speeches in an extra-large font. In her memoirs, his loyal secretary Christa Schroeder noted another area of vanity. Many people say I should shave off the moustache, but that is impossible, he once explained. My nose is much too big. I need the moustache to relieve the effect. Was he right? I suppose his silly little moustache might have distracted attention from his nose. But, then again, he could have achieved much the same effect by wearing a brightly coloured paper hat at all times or blowing a kazoo. Frau Schroeder thought that he would have been better off letting his moustache blossom into a bushy beard, which would then have hid his mouth. His teeth were yellow and he had bad breath, she recalled. Of course, none of this goes very far in answering the questions that continue to loom over the other end of his body. Schroeder came to believe that Hitler may well have lived and died a virgin. Adolf Hitler, here in 1944, is thought to have had the condition penile hypo- spadiasa Even his relationship with Eva Braun was a facade, she wrote in her memoirs, adding: Eva Braun confided to her hairdresser . . . that Hitler never had sexual intercourse with her. Schroeder also mentions that Hitler absolutely hated being seen in his swimming trunks. Might such sheepishness have had something to do with his offbeat private parts? His chauffeur also confirmed that, in romantic terms, Hitler was a little backward in coming forward. Whenever they went to a strange town before the war, he would have to search for girls to meet Hitler. He would sit down with them and converse. He paid them, but never requested services. In his memoir Inside The Third Reich, Hitlers architect, Albert Speer, wrote about the Fuhrers adolescent attitude towards women. He spoke more about their figures than their charm or cleverness, and always there was something in his tone of the schoolboy who is convinced that his wishes are unattainable. But what of our schoolboy claim as to what had gone missing in the Royal Albert Hall? Even though the hall has been regularly cleaned over the course of the past 70 years, with any number of ice-cream cartons, scrunched up tickets, concert programmes, paper tissues, plastic cups, etc, having been swept up, as far as I know not a single cleaner has reported finding anything resembling that most off-putting of items. On the other hand, it is a vast, cavernous venue, packed full of little nooks and crannies. Its perfectly possible that you could lose something in there and not find it again for decades. Cosmetics brand Maybelline has found itself embroiled in a racism row after a beauty blogger hit out at the brand for reducing the number of the darker shades of a new foundation in the UK. Nadia Gray, 26, from Luton, wrote an impassioned post after she noticed that the US ad for Dream Velvet foundation starring Jourdan Dunn advertised 12 colours but when she searched for the range on British websites she found that only six were being sold. The darker tones - including the one worn by the supermodel in her ad - were not available and instead of a brown 'Coconut' colour, the darkest shade is called 'Sun Beige'. US ads (above) for Maybelline's new Dream Velvet line featuring British model Jourdan Dunn, have the model wearing a shade called 'Caramel' which is not available in the UK In the American ads that feature the British model, Dunn is wearing the Caramel shade which also doesn't appear to be available in the UK. Nadia Gray, a photographer and lifestyle blogger, headlined her post, 'Why is Maybelline Ignoring Women of Colour?' to protest at the limited number of shades available to British women. She wrote that after seeing the advert featuring Dunn, she researched the Dream Velvet range and discovered that on Boots.com, the choice of shades includes Nude, Sun Beige, Ivory, Beige, Fawn and Natural Ivory - colours that she dubbed, 'all white people shades'. Feeling 'disheartened', Nadia then checked the official Maybelline site to confirm what shades really were being offered in the UK and saw that the same six hues were available, rather than the full 12 sold to US customers. Brazilian model Adriana Lima is the face of the foundation on both the US and UK sites. Nadia wrote: 'Even though I am annoyed by this I am not surprised, this is an issue that plagues any woman who is not white. Getting anything to suit your skin tone from global beauty brands is almost impossible.' Blogger Nadia Gray tweeted at Maybelline asking why the full range of Dream Velvet foundations was not available in the UK - including the Caramel shade worn by British model Jourdan Dunn in the US ad Maybelline's US website (left) sells a Dream Velvet foundation range with 12 shades from Warm Porcelain to Coconut; in the UK the same foundation line includes just six colours ranging from Ivory to Sun Beige She said that like many British black women, she is forced into buying high end foundations and concealer as mainstream beauty companies ignore their needs. 'They always make the same excuses saying there is no market for the product, which is just not true. 'There is a huge population of black women in the United Kingdom,' she said. She added: 'Maybelline has taken a black British woman and used her in their adverts to sell products but Jourdan couldn't walk into Boots or Superdrug and buy the same product she is advertising.' Nadia discovered that she touched a nerve after her blog post and she told FEMAIL: 'I have had very positive feedback both in the UK and the USA and lots of women of all skin colours have shared with me their frustrations with high street make-up companies. 'It is a widespread issue. The large cosmetic companies just do not offer shades for women of colour and if when they do its only one shade that is often times too light for most black women. On February 18 L'Oreal tweeted: 'Maybelline embraces diversity as Herieth Paul named global spokesmodel'. Above, the Tanzanian newcomer, left, with Dunn, who has been a spokesperson for L'Oreal since April 2014 'They do not research into tones and varieties of dark skinned women. So we have no choice but to buy expensive make-up but everyone should be able to buy affordable make-up, not just white women. 'I did not start wearing foundation until I was 20 years old because I could not afford to buy MAC and other expensive brands, I was always envious of my friends in school because they could walk into a shop and experiment with make-up and I could never do that.' She said that Maybelline has not responded to her but she noted that although she's pleased to hear that the cosmetics company will release the Caramel shade worn by Jourdan Dunn the others aren't slated for release, 'so theyre also not catering to a large selection of women such as Asian women. 'Also I would not be able to purchase the product because Jourdans shade is too light for me.' Nadia's allegations on her website that Maybelline is neglecting women with darker skin tones in the UK came just a day before Maybelline New York announced that a Tanzanian-born model Herieth Paul, 22, Ottowa, Canada, would be the new face of their brand. On February 18 L'Oreal, which owns Maybelline, tweeted: 'Maybelline embraces diversity as Herieth Paul names global spokesmodel'. The decision was heralded as a step forward for a beauty brand. Historically many UK-based beauty brands have been accused of not catering to darker skinned people. Nadia highlighted the decision to limit the UK selection of foundations to light via Twitter on February 16. She tweeted: 'Dear @Maybelline, explain to me how you can have the exact shade of foundation for sale in the US featuring black British model Jourdan Dunn and with shades of black women, yet in the UK you choose to yet again ignore women of colour?' Other Twitter users also raised their voices to criticise the move by L'Oreal. User ItzRahma said: 'How is Jourdan Dunn one of the faces of L'Oreal but they're only selling shades of foundation for white people?' Felicia Sullivan wrote: 'Can I throw major shade over Maybelline's lack of shades for women of colour in the UK?' A Maybelline UK spokesperson told MailOnline: 'We continually review our product ranges to ensure we are keeping up with and responding to demand from consumers in the UK. This includes, for example, introducing new shades of products into the market. While the majority of feelings around the words were painful, many of the interviewees expressed how they felt different about the post-recovery There are millions of people in America who suffer from eating disorders, but it's often a very secret struggle that sees most facing a lonely battle against their own warped logic and terrible compulsions. Because of this, many sufferers view certain terms and phrases in a different way from those who do not have first-hand experience with eating disorders, which is what Cut.com aims to expose with their latest word association videos as a part of the One Word series, where they ask people who have struggled with an eating disorder to respond to the word 'fat' and the phrase 'binge eating'. The clips see a series of men and women speaking frankly to the camera about their feelings, exposing their personal struggles as well as their frustration with public perception of the disease. Reacting: Men and women who have suffered from eating disorders respond to the phrases 'fat' and 'binge eating' in a powerful new word association series Unhappiness: The words bring out stories of personal struggles from the interviewees as well as painful feelings and memories For the first video, covering reactions to the phrase binge eating, the first woman opening the discussion responds with: 'Wonderful and guilty at the same time,' while another woman says: 'Lack of love. Self love.' 'When I binge, my brain blinks out and I have no control over what I'm doing, and it's hard to stop,' explains another young lady. A general reaction of the interviewees is to refer to binge eating as 'a coping mechanism', with one seeing the trigger as feeling 'a certain way about your body' while another woman says she learned to binge eat to deal with being in 'a traumatic state'. 'There's something underneath that makes you want to binge, it's not just a desire to eat,' echoes another interviewee. Putting it into words: This young man says that the phrase binge eating brings up feelings of 'shame' for him Scared: For many of the interviewees the words bring up feelings of fear, with many stressing the point that binge eating is not about just the desire to eat Brushing off: Several of the people in the clip express concern over the often flippant way some people use the word 'binge' One man says that the phrase brings up feelings of 'shame', adding that: 'You know those things that you remember forever as the thing you said wrong or the time you shouldn't have done something? I have a lot of memories that feel that way around eating something.' Others thought that it was a term that had not been taken seriously enough, whether that be by people using the term 'binge' in relation to eating in a dismissive way or simple just seeing it as 'messy and gross' but not particularly serious. As for the reactions to the word 'fat', the majority of the feelings brought out from those being interviewed by the Cut.com filmmakers, are negative ones. 'I don't like that word. I grew up hearing it a lot,' says one young woman. Others associate the word with a fear, with one woman saying she feels like her 'entire life I've been running away from the word fat'. Not the truth: In retrospect, some of the people featuring in the clip say that their negative associations with the words are in fact 'bulls***' The downturn: 'Body-shaming', 'hateful' and 'failure' are other words used by the interviewees 'Me,' replies one woman with a sad tone. 'That's pretty much what I've been all my life.' 'Afraid', 'body-shaming', 'hateful' and 'failure' are also prevalent words among the interviewees in the clips, with the latter term being a particular sticking point. 'Fat on me feels like a failure,' says one young man. 'I don't feel that way about other people and I'm sure that's not how other people feel.' Well, one woman certainly does, responding to the word fat with 'disgusting', adding that she associates 'weight gain or high BMI with just being lazy and not caring'. But things are different for some of the women who have recovered from their disorders, with one speaking about her feelings in the past tense. Loss of control: The compulsions that go along with eating disorders warp the meanings of the words for many of those that suffer from them Coming back: Several of the girls speaking to the camera reveal how their feelings have changed after recovering from their disorders Labels: The clip is the latest in a series from the filmmakers, who have also used their word associations with Native Americans, women and black men among others 'I associated skinniness with being happy and I associated being bigger with being unhappy,' she explains. 'Which is also bulls***! Because you're super unhappy when you have an eating disorder!' Another woman also had her feelings changed by recovery, telling the filmmakers: 'I guess now that I've been recovered for a little bit I see fat as not so negative anymore.' Seeing the word spoken to others as a tool of fear is also a trigger for many of the recovered people in the video, with a young woman recalling seeing the seeds of eating disorders being sown with the use of the word. 'I see a lot of mothers with their daughters saying "Don't eat that or you'll get fat"... It's like, is that really the one thing that you don't want your daughter to be?' she says. Kim Kardashian's longtime make-up artist Mario Dedivanovic recently posted a photo of the 35-year-old reality star's daughter North West on his Instagram account. The photo, captioned 'When #North steals your contour palette [sad face emojis] omg,' showed the 2-year-old with what looks like highlighter and bronzer smeared all over her face. In the picture, the toddler's make-up smudges look strikingly similar to some of the contouring-in-progress photos we've seen Kim post on her own Instagram account. The adorable mother-daughter moment made the FEMAIL team here at the Daily Mail Online stop and think about some of their first beauty memories with their mothers. Scroll down for video Like mother, like daughter: Kim K's make-up artist Mario Dedivanovic Instagrammed a pic of her daughter, North West, with make-up on her face. He captioned it 'When #North steals your contour palette [sad face emojis] omg' North's inspiration! Mom Kim, 35, has been known to post photos of her own face being contoured in the past FEMAIL WRITERS REVEAL THEIR MOMS' BEST BEAUTY TIPS North isn't the only tot to pick up a trick or two about hair, make-up and skin care from her mom. Our very own editors still stay true to some of the first bits of beauty wisdom they learned. Charlie Lankston, US Femail Editor My mom or mum as we would say in the UK, where Im from started urging me to use a neck cream about 15 years ago, after she received the same advice from a facialist. Essentially, she was told that the skin on your neck is totally different to the skin on your face, and therefore you cant just treat it with the same products and expect the same results. She was thrilled with the difference adding a neck cream into her own routine made and hasnt stopped singing its praises ever since. Shes even sent neck creams to a few of her friends in an attempt to make them follow her lead (which people usually end up doing whether they want to or not. Myself included!). Right now, I alternate between Tarte Maracuja Neck Treatment ($49, sephora.com) and Clarins Advanced Extra-Firming Neck Cream ($88, sephora.com). Lindsey Unterberger, Beauty Director For as far back as I can remember, I would watch my mom take off her make-up with Pond's Cold Cream ($7, drugstore.com). I vividly recall the lemon-fresh scent and the cool way it felt on her skin. I keep the lesson of using a gentle make-up remover with me, but I like a good oil-based cleanser instead. Two to try: Burt's Bees Face Cleansing Oil ($16,ulta.com) and L'Occitane Shea Butter Cleansing Oil ($24, usa.loccitane.com). Too cute! Pictured here as kids, US Femail Editor, Charlie Lankston (left) and Beauty Director, Lindsey Unterberger (right, with her mom) remember the beauty wisdom their mothers taught them as toddlers Erica Tempesta, Femail Reporter My mother has never been one for elaborate beauty treatments, but she always makes sure to moisturize her face and hands with Olay Active Hydrating Beauty Fluid Lotion ($6, target.com) before bed. After years of having her wipe the excess lotion on her hands on my face, it has become my own pre-bed ritual. And while I love to try new anti-aging serums and creams, I always have a bottle of Olay in my apartment. Sarah Ferguson, Femail Beauty Reporter My mothers medicine cabinet has always been stocked with more bottles of creams and lotions than tubes of foundation or lipstick. Much to her dismay, I used to rummage through her shelves and slather moisturizers and potions on my face far before I actually needed any. The takeaway has been that the best make-up is great skin - and shes got the age-defying complexion to prove it. As a teen, my mom got me started with Clinique Moisture Surge Intense Skin Fortifying Hydrator ($39,clinique.com), and I'm currently loving Drunk Elephant Virgin Marula Luxury Facial Oil ($72, drunkelephant.com). A family affair! Femail reporter Erica Tempesta as baby (left, with her mom and little sister) and beauty reporter Sarah Ferguson as a wee one with her mom (right) know the benefit of a good moisturizer Carly Stern, Femail Reporter Brand loyalty will get you bargains. My mom was always a Clinique and Lancome devotee, and shed chat up the ladies who worked at the make-up counters at Macys and Nordstrom. That way, theyd give her a heads-up if they were about to have a promotion. Shed find out all about the good sales and gifts-with-purchase before they started (and would usually pass down those gifts-with-purchase to me!). Rebecca Carhart, Femail Fashion Reporter From an early age, my mom instilled into me that skin care was super important. We spent a lot of time washing our faces and properly moisturizing afterward. But her most important lesson was to use sunblock every day to prevent sun spots and wrinkles. When I was younger, I got annoyed by the lengthy routine, but now that I realize she looks half her age - due to her preventative measures and hopefully passed-along good genes - I always make sure to stick to her routine. If you're looking for a new sunscreen, try Coppertone ClearlySheer Sunny Days Face Lotion SPF 30 ($5, bedbathandbeyond.com) or Skinceuticals Physical Matte UV Defense SPF 50 ($34, skinceuticals.com). Hair's the thing: Even as kiddos, Femail Style Director Pandora Amoratis (left) and Editorial Assistant Sarah Pottieger (right with her mom) asked for good-hair-day advice from their mothers Pandora Amoratis, Style Director I remember watching my mom do her hair and taking mental notes. From French braids to my ballerina buns and half-up half-down 'dos, my mom was my teacher. After watching her, I would run to my room and practice in the mirror. I finished the look with a spritz of aerosol hair spray just to feel a little fancier. Back in the day I think I used Aqua Net ($3,walgreens.com), but now I really like the lighter Blow Pro Blow Out Spray Serious Non-Stick Hairspray ($20, ulta.com). Sarah Pottieger, Editorial Assistant I was always fascinated watching my mom blow-dry her hair. When I was 3 I had my first (unsupervised) go with a round brush. After my mom kindly untangled the disaster, she taught me how to properly hold and use the brush (my first hair-dryer lesson would not come until much later). Advertisement A set of little siblings are celebrating the upcoming Academy Awards by paying tribute to the Best Picture nominees with a camera and an extensive collection of costumes. Maggie Storino of Chicago has once again enlisted the help of her kids to recreate the iconic images from the year's top acclaimed films in a series of adorable photos, and this year along with five-year-old Sophia and three-year-old Sadie, the project has a new recruit: eight-month-old newcomer Sloane. This year is the sixth in a row that the family have created their series of images, which previously saw the sisters take on the likes of Benedict Cumberbatch's Imitation Game and Eddie Redmayne's Theory of Everything. Way out there: Chicago mom Maggie Storino enlisted the help of her children for the sixth year in a row to recreate scenes from the Oscars' Best Picture nominees, including The Martian (pictured) - with eight-month-old daughter Sloane (left) making her first appearance Suited up: For the recreation of The Big Short, Sophia channeled her inner Gosling in a spiffy blue suit and over-sized tie Picking the look: The family have been making the recreations ever since oldest daughter Sophia was just four months old in 2011 Maggie first started the project, called Don't Call Me Oscar, when Sophia was just four months old back in 2011, eventually turning into a popular Tumblr page. 'When it stops being fun, well stop doing it. But the girls love dressing up, so it isnt a struggle. This isnt so different from our everyday routine except that the characters are more varied,' mom Maggie told Vanity Fair. 'Although if the Academy wanted to make my job easier, they could nominate more films with unicorns and mermaids,' she added. Sadly there are neither among this year's nominees, but that hasn't stopped the kids from engaging in their family tradition. Taking care: For nominee film Spotlight, which is about The Boston Globe's investigation of child abuse in the Roman Catholic church, the girls' mom decided to use an image of Stanley Tucci looking serious in the film, which Sophia perfectly recreated The next level: Maggie said that she has no plans in halting the annual tradition as 'the girls love dressing up, so it isnt a struggle' All glam: When recreating a still from romantic drama Brooklyn, three-year-old Sadie (left) perfectly pulled off Saoirse Ronan's character classic vintage look, courtesy of a chic white handbag and a pair of flamboyant sunglasses Nailed it: Despite the lengthy preparations, Maggie claims that they only take about five minutes to complete the photos - and there are no re-shoots allowed. Sophia (left) and Sadie (right) are pictured recreating a still from the hit motion picture Room Getting ready: Room stars Best Actress nominee Brie Larson (left) who is just one of the characters the family chose to recreate. Every year they take about a week on each photo going on a 'scavenger hunt' for props around their neighborhood As in every other year, the kids and their mom spent a week on each image - mostly on a sort of 'scavenger hunt' for props around their neighborhood and from friends and then spending just five minutes on the photo - no re-shoots required. For the version of The Martian featuring little Sloane as Matt Damon's character, mom glue-gunned socks to the little tyke's onesie and revealed that the shoot actually marked the first time the little girl had ever stood up. As she has almost every other year, eldest sister Sophia dons an adorable suit to play a business-like male character, this time take on the challenge of channeling Ryan Gosling in The Big Short - sporting the same blazer she has previously worn to recreate images from Wolf of Wall Street, Argo, Selma, and Twelve Years a Slave. Three-year-old Sadie took on the starring role in Brooklyn, posing in a stylish vintage outfit and cat eye sunglasses to mimic the pose of Saoirse Ronan. Quite the feat: For this Mad Max re-enactment, thirteen kids, including the sisters, were gathered with a variety of driving toys to pose on the banks of Lake Michigan Taking on the challenge: Maggie said that the Academy could help make their yearly task a bit easier by nominating 'more films with unicorns and mermaids', rather than the more aggressive options like this thriller starring Charlize Theron and Tom Hardy Casualty of art: Sophia had to climb into a de-stuffed Valentine's Day teddy bear and sit astride a toy horse to pull off her best Leonardo DiCaprio impression and recreate a scene from The Revenant Getting serious: The older sisters stared each other down in a pair of overcoats for their re-imagining of Bridge of Spies Head-to-head: Some of the scenes chosen by the family are slightly easier to execute than others, including this one which just sees two character standing facing each other across a table For Spotlight, a film about the The Boston Globe's investigation of child abuse in the Roman Catholic church, the siblings played things safe by recreating a simple image of Stanley Tucci's character looking serious at a desk. In order to recreate Leonardo DiCaprio's Hugh Glass from The Revenant, Maggie mangled a Valentine's Day teddy bear by unstuffing it to drape over Sophie while she sat astride a toy horse with a serious expression - 'I finally convinced her to put the bear over her head by telling her we could re-stuff it later and she could keep it forever. So, now we are the proud owners of one gigantic teddy bear,' she said. In 2014, a list of the best 'bogan' names in Australia went viral and was at the centre of heated and hilarious online debates for months. Now, the 2016 edition has been released with just 20 names taking out the not-so-esteemed title of 'best bogan baby names' for the year ahead. 'I believe we all have a bit of bogan in us that we should embrace and celebrate. In that spirit, I present to you the 2016 edition of my best bogan baby names list,' mother Sabrina Rogers-Anderson wrote on Kidspot. The best bogan names: The 2016 edition of the best bogan baby names has been released with just 20 names taking out the not-so-esteemed title of for the year ahead Creative adaptations: Unique adaptations included 'Izaak', more commonly spelt Isaac, 'Jathon', a 'bogan variation of Jason' and 'J'Zayden' as an alternative to the more popular names Braedon and Jayden Many of the names on the list are amusing and creative adaptations of more common names. The first appearance was 'Izaak', more commonly spelt Isaac, followed by 'Jathon', a 'bogan variation of Jason.' As an alternative to the more popular names Braedon and Jayden, 'J'Zayden' appeared on the list soon after. Perfection: 'Beautiful' made the list (instead of a more subtle Belle or Bella), followed by 'Younique' and 'Enivid' - Divine spelt backwards WHAT ARE THE BEST AUSTRALIAN BOGAN BABY NAMES OF 2016? BOY NAMES ARYAN BLADE BROGAN DAXON IZAAK JATHON JZAYDEN KHODII MACSEN ZABRYN GIRL NAMES BEAUTIFUL BRAELYN CHERYLDINE DNYELL EVER ENIVID KYLY McKYLA TRUELY YOUNIQUE Advertisement 'Jzayden puts all those wannabe bogans to shame. You forgot the apostrophe, you fools! Jzaydens mum just left you eating her boganic dust,' Ms Rogers-Anderson said. Others included 'Khodii', instead of 'boring old Cody', 'McKyla' as yet another alternative to 'Michaela' and, 'Kyly' as a unique spelling for Kylie - an unfortunate addition for Australian model and TV presenter, Kyly Clarke. 'While I was compiling this list, several friends and acquaintances suggested I include Mrs Michael Clarkes misspelt first name,' Ms Rogers-Anderson said. 'But lets not crucify the bearer it seems she was given her bungled epithet at birth. Shame on you, Mrs Boldy.' Why can't we have both? Cheryl and Geraldine appeared on the list in the form of 'Cheryldine', while other unique names included 'D'Nyell', 'Zabryn', 'Daxon' and 'Macsen' - a mix of Mackenzie and Jackson Some of the names were chosen by mothers who wanted to make sure their children knew how wonderful they were every time they signed their names. 'Beautiful' made the list (instead of a more subtle Belle or Bella), followed by 'Younique' and 'Enivid' - Divine spelt backwards. 'I have to give props to Younique's parents,' Ms Rogers-Anderson said, 'Youniques mum and dad didnt mess around they took the words YOU ARE UNIQUE, chewed them up and spat them out onto their kid.' Unique choice: Word names also were a popular choice with 'Truely' and 'Ever' the most notable choices - despite Truely being a misspelt version of the word Others included 'Khodii', instead of 'boring old Cody', 'McKyla' as yet another alternative to 'Michaela' and, 'Kyly' instead of Kylie - an unfortunate addition for Australian model and TV presenter, Kyly Clarke (pictured) WHAT IS A BOGAN? An uncouth or unsophisticated person regarded as being of low social status: 'some bogans yelled at us from their cars' 'my family are culinary bogans' Source: Oxford Dictionary Advertisement Word names also were a popular choice with 'Truely' and 'Ever' the most notable choices - despite Truely being a misspelt version of the word. Names beginning with B were common among the boys names - 'Blade', 'Brogan' and 'Braelyn' all making the list. 'I mentioned gloomy names such as 'Storm' and 'Blaze' on my last list, but I had yet to hear of Blade. Wow thats really taking it to the next level of hostility and aggressiveness,' Ms Rogers-Anderson said. Bold B's: Names beginning with B were common among the boys names - 'Blade', 'Brogan' and 'Braelyn' all making the list A mash-up of Cheryl and Geraldine appeared on the list in the form of 'Cheryldine', while other unique names included 'D'Nyell', 'Zabryn', 'Daxon' and 'Macsen' - a mix of Mackenzie and Jackson. 'Before all the Welshmen crucify me, let it be noted that this is a long-standing Welsh version of Maximus,' Ms Rogers-Anderson said about Macsen. 'Unfortunately, this doesnt apply to the lady who named her son Macsen because I couldnt decide between Mackenzie and Jackson so I put them together".' Boys name 'Aryan' was the final name on the list - although it is a common name for those living in Iran where it is a popular name meaning 'warrior.' The younger sister of Louis Tomlinson is set to join Selena Gomez on tour as her make-up artist after wowing the singer with her cosmetics skills. Lottie Tomlinson, from Doncaster, is only 17 years old but she convinced Selena, 23, of her talents after helping her touch up her make-up backstage at the X Factor. But despite her youth, Lottie is something of a pop veteran having earned her stripes working backstage with One Direction and is an Instagram sensation with 2.5 million followers. Scroll down for video Lottie Tomlinson (left) will jet off to join Selena Gomez (right) on tour as her make-up artist in May Lottie, the younger sister of Louis Tomlinson (left), assisted One Direction's hair stylist on tour Lottie first met Selena when she was backstage at the X Factor and asked One Direction's hair stylist Lou Teasdale for help. Lottie told Elle magazine: 'She came to Lou to ask her to do her hair. She had really long hair at the time, and it was getting all knotted up. 'So I was assisting Lou with her hair, and she asked for a make-up touch up. I said, "Sure, I can do that!" The Same Old Love singer and Lottie then stayed in touch and Selena asked her to join her Revival World Tour which kicks off on May 6 in Las Vegas and finishes at Los Angeles Staples Center on July 8 although the second part of the tour will then last for a year. Lottie has carved out a name for herself for her beauty looks with 2.5 million Instagram followers Lottie interned with Lou Teasdale (left) at the famous Bleach London salon and also assisted Lou on tour Lottie has established a name in her own right for her make-up prowess and regularly causes a stir on social media thanks for her fashion-forward looks. She sent social media into a frenzy when she debuted her newly dyed 'mermaid hair' on social media this month. After having her hair bleached a platinum blonde, Lottie had shades of blue and green added to her tresses to create the ethereal look which earned 140,000 likes from her devoted fans on Instagram. Lottie assisted make-up artists over London Fashion Week this year and his pictured here (right) applying products to a model's face backstage at the Charlotte Simone show Travelling around the US with Selena Gomez will probably be par for the course for the teenager who assisted Lou Teasdale at the Bleach London salon as well as on the One Direction world tour. She also assisted make-up artists over London Fashion Week this year and applied makeup looks to models for British brand Charlotte Simone's show. Although Lottie has the advantage of already having experienced tour-life, she is concerned about being on tour without her 24-year-old brother. She told Elle: 'It's different because I'll be on my own at first; I won't have my brother or Lou or anyone with me. So I'll have to meet people and make friends. Tiffany and Ross, who are both students at the Tiffany Trump's father Donald is closer than ever to being nominated as the Republican presidential candidate, but that isn't stopping her from getting cozy with her Democrat boyfriend as their relationship continues to flourish. The 22-year-old's boyfriend Ross Mechanic, 21, took to Instagram last week to share an endearing black and white snapshot of himself in New York City's East Village with his lady love. 'She puts up with me,' he captioned the photo, and one of the things the blonde beauty may be 'putting up' with his political affiliations as Daily Mail Online revealed exclusively in December that Ross is unlikely to be voting for Donald. Look of love: Tiffany Trump's boyfriend Ross Mechanic, 21, took to Instagram last week to share this photo of himself posed with his girlfriend in New York City's East Village Political family: Tiffany traveled to South Carolina with her half-siblings Donald Jr., Eric, and Ivanka, their spouses, and her step-mother Melania earlier this week to support her father Donald at the Republican primary The software engineering student is a registered, active Democrat whose Facebook 'likes' once included Hillary Clinton, NARAL Pro-Choice NYC, and the Penn Green Campus Partnership for environmental sustainability and policy development before he fell for his girlfriend. His parents are also registered Democrats, while his dad is a powerhouse of the New York real estate world - just like Tiffany's. And while the two University of Pennsylvania students may be on the opposite sides of the political spectrum, they look happier than ever in their latest photo together. In the sweet picture taken on February 15, Ross and Tiffany's heads are touching as they lean in as close to each other as they can get. Strut your stuff! Tiffany walked in the Just Drew show at New York Fashion Week on February 14 - the day before her date with Ross It's serious: The 21-year-old shared this photo of herself with Ross at One World Trade last month during an afternoon with her mom Marla Maples It's in her genes! Tiffany and her 52-year-old mom looked like twins in matching white tank tops and blonde hair The night before, Tiffany took a cue from her former model half-sister Ivanka, 34, and made her runway debut during New York Fashion Week. The leggy blonde blended right in with the other models at the Just Drew show, looking totally calm and confident on the catwalk at the Valentine's Day event, walking in a friend's fashion designs alongside her fellow socialite Kyra Kennedy. Its unclear if Ross was at the show to cheer her on, but it appears that he treated her to a celebratory date the next night. The couple have been since late 2015, and in January they crossed a crucial milestone in their relationship when she and her beau spent some time with her mother Marla Maples. The 52-year-old mom took to Instagram last month to share a sweet Instagram snap of herself and daughter posing together in white tank tops at the One World Observatory in New York City on January 10. Romantic getaway: Tiffany and Ross were at her dad's Mar-a-Lago club last month, suggesting Ross has now met both of Tiffany's parents In the news: The couple, both of whom attend the University of Pennsylvania, went public with their relationship in late 2015. Ross and Tiffany are pictured at the Winter Wonderland Ball in New York in December Different backgrounds: Ross is a registered Democrat, whose parents are also both Democrats Two weeks later Tiffany posted another picture from that day, this time showing her snuggling up to boyfriend Ross. When Marla first posted her own image - in which the mother-daughter duo look almost like twins with their matching blonde hair and tops - she cryptically wrote that she was spending time with Tiffany 'and friends' while enjoying the beautiful view. While back at school in Philadelphia, Tiffany revealed that one of those special 'friends' was actually her boyfriend - who posed for another picture in front of a Hudson River backdrop on the same day 'I NYC,' she captioned the loved-up photo, in which Ross has his arm around her back and she rests one of her hands on his chest. It seems that Tiffany introduced Ross to her mom just after the young man got the chance to meet her dad, Donald. Just after New Year's, the couple were together in Palm Beach, Florida, where Tiffany stayed at Donald's Mar-a-Lago club after getting back from a Christmas ski break with her mom. Trump dynasty: Tiffany, who is Donald's only child with Marla, flew to South Carolina earlier this week with her siblings and their spouses In good company: Although he has been on the campaign trail supporting Donald, Ivanka's husband Jared Kushner's family has made significant contributions to the Democratic Party over the past decade On January 4, Tiffany shared a poolside picture from Mar-a-Lago, followed by a beach snap of a beautiful sunset the next day. Ross shared his own poolside picture, though his was taken at the Biltmore Hotel in Coral Gables, Florida - suggesting he was either partying elsewhere, or wasn't actually invited to stay at the Donald's resort. However, Tiffany isn't the only Trump daughter who fell for a Democrat. Ivanka's husband Jared Kushner's family has made significant contributions to the Democratic Party over the past decade. And while it is unclear if Tiffany is busy with school or busy with love, she has been absent from her father's campaign for much of the race, although did travel to South Carolina with her half-siblings Donald Jr., Eric and Ivanka, and her step-mother Melania to stand on stage with her dad during his acceptance speech. Tiffany previously attended Donald's first major Republican debate in August and was on hand during his June announcement that he was running for the 2016 Presidency. Tiffany, who is Donald's only child from his five-year marriage to Marla, also joined her siblings in November to speak in support of her dad's political campaign on 20/20, telling Barbara Walters: 'He's true to himself. On Valentine's Day, Jan Noble's husband, Murray, didn't book a romantic dinner for two in a quiet restaurant. He's got more sense than that. A trip to the cinema was a much safer bet. And he definitely didn't order any popcorn. The reason? Jan cannot bear the sound of him chewing his food. It drives her into a violent rage. Emily Yarranton-Green, above, says the noise of eating burns her insides. She lives in Kidderminster, West Midlands, with her husband Paddy, 26, and 18-month-old son Reggie, has suffered misophonia since her teens For the record, poor Murray has impeccable manners and is no noisier when he eats than anyone else. But full-time mother Jan, 48, suffers from a crippling condition called misophonia. Meaning 'hatred of sound', it is a sensitivity disorder that causes sufferers to be driven to distraction by certain noises. For Jan it's just one sound that triggers an extreme response: that of her much-loved husband eating. Jan, who lives with Murray, 47, and their children Louise, six, and Cameron, four, in the Scottish borders, has suffered with misophonia for six years. 'Normally it takes something pretty extreme to get me angry,' she says. 'Yet I only have to think about the sound of Murray chewing his food and I feel absolutely furious. 'Hearing anyone else eat doesn't bother me at all, but with my husband it's like a terrible panic comes over me and I feel a frightening urge to physically attack him. Jan Noble, 48, lives with Murray, 47, and their children Louise, six, and Cameron, four, in the Scottish borders. When she hears her husband eat she feels a terrible panic and a frightening urge to physically attack him 'We need to have the radio on or the TV turned up during every meal to reduce the risk of me hearing him. 'If I do, then God help him. My face goes scarlet, my heart pounds in my chest and I feel a strong urge to launch myself at him. I've never got physical, but a big part of me desperately wants to. It's terrible.' Other sufferers can have a wider repertoire of trigger sounds that cause them to react with degrees of stress and anxiety, ranging from irritation to rage. Typically, offending noises include someone breathing, chewing gum, clicking a pen or typing. For some, the mere thought of hearing a sniff or a throat being cleared can make them sick with anxiety. Emily Yarranton-Green, who lives in Kidderminster, West Midlands, with her electrician husband Paddy, 26, and their 18-month-old son Reggie, has suffered misophonia since her teens. Emily can't bear to hear anyone eating - including Paddy, who she glares at so venomously at meals that he often ends up throwing his food into the bin She can't bear to hear anyone eating - including Paddy, who she glares at so venomously at meals that he often ends up throwing his food into the bin. 'I also can't stand hearing him breathing at night and the noise of him swallowing drives me crazy,' she says. 'It frightens me because I start to feel murderous towards him even though I know it's me being unreasonable and not him.' Care worker Emily, 28, also feels tense just thinking about the sound of someone eating crisps. 'I've come close to snatching them off complete strangers - I glare, fantasising about grabbing the bag and throwing it to the ground and then jumping up and down on it. It's as if the noise burns my insides. 'My heart pounds, my toes curl and my fists clench.' What Emily and Jan describe when they talk about their misophonia is the evolutionary 'fight or flight' response that is triggered in humans when we feel in danger. In misophonics, there is no threat yet the adrenalines-fuelled reaction is triggered when they hear certain, otherwise innocuous, sounds. No one knows what causes the condition, but experts suspect it is less about the problem sound and more about the context in which it became an issue. Clinical psychologist Dr David Holmes describes the disorder as an 'audiological over-response'. 'At some point, the sufferer made a strong negative association with a certain sound or sounds, which now trigger an extreme response every time they hear them,' he says. 'In terms of neurology, this has a lot to do with how the brain processes sound. When we register noise, the amygdala - a very old, primordial part of the brain that does a lot of the work in processing the feeling of fear - is stimulated. I start to feel murderous towards him even though I know it's me being unreasonable and not him 'This means you can sometimes end up tuning into a particular noise with an inappropriate fight or flight response, which then becomes your set reaction.' Sound signals are processed by the thalamus, a part of the brain that acts like a switchboard for sensory information. It sends the signals to the amygdala. There are two routes to this part of the brain: one is a direct path prompting an immediate emotional response to a sound. For example, a horn prompts fear and makes you jump out of the way. The other route goes via the medial prefrontal cortex, which is a more advanced part of the brain allowing for a considered interpretation of the sound. 'It seems that someone with misophonia processes certain non-threatening sounds without firing up the medial prefrontal cortex,' says Dr Holmes. 'Sufferers then feel a desperate urge to make the noise stop or run as far away from it as possible.' The first time Jan reacted badly to Murray, who fits prosthetic limbs for disabled people, was when their daughter was a newborn. Care worker Emily, 28, also feels tense just thinking about the sound of someone eating crisps 'She'd just gone to sleep and we sat down to our first meal alone together since having her,' she says. 'Murray started to eat and the sound of him chewing seemed so much louder than I'd ever noticed. 'I turned on him, furious, demanding to know why he was eating so horribly, convinced that he was doing it deliberately to upset me. 'With every mouthful I was asking 'What's wrong with you?' and 'Why are you doing this?' 'This red mist seemed to descend on me and I was so angry with him. He was shocked and upset. He couldn't understand what was happening.' Jan believes that as a new mother she was tired and emotional, which exaggerated her response. But, she says: 'From that day on it's been an enormous problem. It's as if I'm in the grip of road rage. 'The last time we went out for a meal we deliberately went to a restaurant we knew would have loud music playing - but I still made Murray stop chewing in the brief silence between the songs. We don't bother going to restaurants any more.' For Emily, the problem has become so acute that she's thinking about seeking medical help. 'It's coming between us, but I'm worried my GP will think I'm being ridiculous and laugh me out of the surgery,' she says. A fear of not being taken seriously by the medical profession is common, says Guy Fitzmaurice, founder of the support group Misophonia UK. 'We have more than 1,000 members, but those with an actual diagnosis are very much in the minority,' he says. In Britain, diagnosis can be made by a psychiatrist, an audiologist or an ENT (Ear, Nose and Throat) consultant. Sufferers are often prescribed Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) to help manage symptoms. This often means exposing them to the very sounds they struggle with, while helping them rationalise their response. 'I know some members have had success with noise-cancelling headphones, which are sometimes prescribed on the NHS,' says Guy. University communications officer Steph Maguire, 34, from Newcastle, has developed coping mechanisms, including wearing headphones in the office. 'At work I have to drown out the sound of people tapping on their keyboards with music, and that reduces the risk of me hearing anyone sniff or clear their throats or even breath in a certain way - all sounds guaranteed to make me feel completely insane,' she says. 'Another big problem for me is chewing gum. I once screamed in the face of a stranger who had been in a queue behind me repeatedly chewing and popping their gum. 'Afterwards, I felt terrible. I have to keep reminding myself that my misophonia is not other people's fault and I have no right to tell them how to eat and breathe.' Stress exacerbates Steph's condition, so she practises yoga and meditation to keep calm. She and her partner, Angelo Maracci, 28, a construction manager, had a son, Nicolo, a month ago. 'I know babies can make lots of grunting sounds, so I was worried how that might affect me,' she says. 'But thankfully I have no problem with any of the noises Nicolo makes.' Audiologist Jacqueline Sheldrake has diagnosed several patients with misophonia. Like Dr Holmes, she believes there is a strong psychological element to the condition. She says she can help with coping strategies, such as using another sound to cover the one that is causing the problem. Each week millions of us watch the BBCs popular, long-running series, Call The Midwife. Invariably, I am in tears at the moving storylines, while my husbands expression is a rictus of horror at the screams, the agony and danger of childbirth back in the Fifties and early Sixties. Last Sunday was a particularly harrowing episode. Trying to cover up her unmarried childs pregnancy, a mother delivered the baby secretly at home - and would probably have killed her own daughter had it not been for midwife Trixie, played by Helen George. I pointed out to my shocked husband that once home deliveries were the norm. Childbirth was a perilous business and there was precious little choice. Bel Mooney is horrified to learn the Government intends to encourage more women to have home births, earmarking a budget of 3,000 for each mother-to-be who opts to deliver at home. Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt has hailed the review as a significant moment for the NHS, giving women more choice' But since the mid-20th century there has been choice. Mothers have had the right to opt for a home birth - as long as their wish does not threaten the safety of their unborn child - but for the majority of women a hospital delivery has been the safer option. Home births cost the NHS less money than a hospital delivery. But if there are complications, what better place than being on the spot with medical equipment and expertise to hand? This is why I am horrified to learn the Government intends to encourage more women to have home births, earmarking a budget of 3,000 for each mother-to-be who opts to deliver at home. Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt has hailed the review as a significant moment for the NHS, giving women more choice, making services safer and helping to shape maternity care for years to come. More empty words. For while Im sure that young mums-to-be will be told they are being empowered, make no mistake: this exercise is about saving money and covering up the fact that our maternity services are virtually not fit for purpose. And I believe there is a massive deception at its heart that puts those under threat who are using maternity services stretched to breaking point. Is this a cynical conclusion to draw from the long-awaited review by NHS England? I dont think so. I am desperately anxious that mothers and babies lives will be put at risk because of another exercise in political spin and cover-up. The social conditions shown in Call The Midwife may have changed, but childbirth itself is still unpredictable and dangerous. New mothers are often just as frightened and (surprisingly) ill-informed as they were a generation ago. Have a cosy home birth, dear! But what if something goes wrong? I quail to think of the steady decline in ambulance services reaching their time targets for life- threatening calls. The review, led by Tory peer Baroness Julia Cumberlege, proposes giving mums-to-be vouchers of 3,000 that they can choose to spend on private one-to-one midwives delivering care at home or in birthing centres where there might be hypno-birthing, soothing music and (no doubt) scented candles. Bel is sure that young mums-to-be will be told they are being empowered, but warns that this exercise is about saving money and covering up the fact that our maternity services are virtually not fit for purpose It all sounds appealing. Why, then, do I suspect the enlightened words are a mask for a great con? If this country cant afford to deliver a safe, efficient maternity service today, how are all those 3,000 vouchers to be funded? And since there is a shortage of midwives, how are the extra ones going to be found and trained to deliver this one-to-one service? Last autumn, it was reported four out of ten maternity units were forced to close because of a staffing crisis among midwives. Hundreds of blunders occur on maternity wards every day because doctors and midwives are failing to communicate with each other. Staff are chronically over-stretched. Last year, more than 8,000 safety incidents were reported, in part due to staff shortages. Cathy Warwick, chief executive of the Royal College of Midwives, has been vociferous about the need for more staff. Last year, she said: Our maternity services are over-worked, understaffed, underfunded and struggling to meet the demands on them. But there is one unequivocal fact in all this that no one mentions: the UK population is the fastest growing in Europe. More recently, she warned that the service is teetering; the cracks are beginning to appear; maternity services are under assault and blamed the rising birth rate for the pressure. Obviously a key factor is that foreign-born women tend to have larger families - an average of 2.5 babies compared with 1.84 for UK nationals. Hundreds of blunders occur on maternity wards every day because doctors and midwives are failing to communicate One quarter of Britains babies are born to foreign mothers. Overall, in 2011, 56.7 per cent new mums originally came from outside the UK, with the figure rising to 77 per cent in the London borough of Newham. With immigration at current rates, that figure can only be rising. For example, the maternity unit at Ealing Hospital is under frightening pressure. There, the vast majority of mothers are from abroad and the unit has had to deal with women of 104 nationalities requiring a team of translators on call 24 hours a day. How wonderful that those women are taken care of. Yet how can we possibly continue to fund such care with dwindling resources? To make things worse, health tourism is thought to cost the taxpayer as much as 200 million a year. In 2014, one in 14 women giving birth in Britain were temporary migrants or visitors - and cost taxpayers 182 million. Meanwhile, maternity tourism - women from overseas coming to Britain purely to give birth - accounts for 7 per cent of NHS childbirth spending. It exposes the huge pressure put on already stretched services from those taking up free NHS care at a time when half of NHS trusts had to close their maternity units last year. But do we acknowledge the roots of this crisis? No. The general secretary of the Royal College of Midwives says: The issue here is not about immigration, it is about resourcing our maternity services to meet the needs of the women it serves. With respect to Cathy Warwicks distinguished career, doesnt this statement take us to the heart of the matter? Immigration is running at unsustainable levels and mothers born outside the UK are putting unprecedented pressure on our inadequate maternity services. Bel says that vouchers will encourage health tourism and make will make it even more appealing to have a baby in Britain, attracting migrants to the country. She also fears that they might also encourage new mums to decide to have a home birth, because they think it sounds pleasant, without considering the consequences Health tourism is allowed by default, with health trusts finding it almost impossible to recoup the costs. But the general secretary of the RCM states that the crisis in her profession has nothing to do with immigration, but is about providing more money to meet the needs of more and more women. In what dreamworld can this be achieved? Oh, perhaps by coming up with a plan to give expectant mums vouchers adding up to 3,000 to pay for choice in maternity care. Vouchers that will make it even more appealing to have a baby in Britain. Vouchers that might also encourage British new mothers to take the decision to have a home birth, because they think it sounds pleasant and dont understand the consequences. Encouraging more mothers-to-be to give birth at home is not only a retrograde step, but one that will misdirect much-needed funds away from maternity wards which, if properly invested in, should - and could - be so much safer. When I had my first child in 1974 (by the way, all three of my births were NHS), the only person I knew who fancied a home birth was an idealistic and alternative lady who believed that deep breathing, joss sticks and beautiful music would help ensure the perfect birth on her living room floor. Unfortunately, the birth did not go according to plan (as births often dont). After a protracted labour, the poor girl ended up hurtling to hospital in an ambulance for a forceps delivery. Every pregnant woman deserves the best of professional care. I cannot see how we can achieve this - spending money to attract and train new midwives, addressing our stillbirth statistics and ensuring the next generation is borne into the best possible circumstances - if more and more people are coming into this country to have their babies. Advertisement Forget the first dance, now it's all about the first swim. With unforgettable wedding photography becoming more and more of a priority for the bride and groom, couples are getting increasingly creative with how they capture their big day. Over the past year, newlyweds have captured the attention of thousands online after sharing stunning snaps of underwater pictures, where brides don their gowns and take the plunge - also known as a 'Trash the Dress' shoot. Scroll down for video Trash the dress: Over the past year, newlyweds have captured the attention of thousands online after sharing stunning snaps of their underwater pictures, where brides don their gowns and take the plunge Intimate: In 2015, bride Jordan Carter-Lynn and her new husband Shannon Carter (pictured), from Perth, Western Australia, decided to participate in an incredible underwater shoot shortly after their nuptials Raw: Their incredible, intimate snaps captured their playful personalities and allowed them to move away from the more poised and formal nature of traditional wedding photography In 2015, bride Jordan Carter-Lynn and her new husband Shannon Carter, from Perth, Western Australia, decided to participate in an incredible underwater shoot shortly after their nuptials. Their incredible, intimate snaps captured their playful personalities and allowed them to move away from the more poised and formal nature of traditional wedding photography. 'The reason we chose to do the shoot is because we just wanted something a little different for part of the wedding photos,' Mrs Carter-Lynn told Daily Mail Australia. Newlyweds: The adoring couple could be seen diving into the water, swimming together and holding each other's hands as they stood on the sand in the shallows Taking the plunge: The couple head to a secluded bay and held hands as they jumped into the water Intimate: Many of the couples choose to take the underwater snaps the day after their wedding HOW ARE THE UNDERWATER WEDDING SHOOTS CAPTURED? For tech info I photograph using Canon 5dmk3 and an Aquatech water housing. Generally for these types of shoots I would use my 16-35mm Lens but this varies on the day and conditions. Advertisement 'The shoot was the day after the wedding - we headed to a private cove (suggested by our photographer) with a bunch of friends and some beers- it was a wonderful afternoon.' The adoring couple could be seen diving into the water, swimming together and holding each other's hands as they stood on the sand in the shallows. Mrs Carter-Lynn was also captured gliding through the water in her dress before meeting her beau in an underwater embrace. They were also snapped in an intimate moment on the sand - Mrs Carter-Lynn's dress soaked and covered in sand. Scene from a movie: The same year, Natalie and Jesse Watts (pictured), from Dunsborough, Western Australia, got married on the beautiful Magnetic Island in far North Queensland Celebration: Mrs Watts' sister Lauren organised a 'trash the dress' shoot the day after the wedding - their photographer, Mark Pace, spending days on the island prior to scope idyllic locations for the shoot The same year, Natalie and Jesse Watts, from Dunsborough, Western Australia, got married on the beautiful Magnetic Island in far North Queensland. Mrs Watts' sister Lauren organised a 'trash the dress' shoot the day after the wedding - their photographer, Mark Pace, spending days on the island prior to scope idyllic locations for the shoot. The couple went to Radical Bay, a secluded part of the island for the shoot. 'I normally try to shoot in a secluded location so my clients can relax and interact with each other naturally without feeling pressure from a crowd,' Mr Pace told Daily Mail Australia. Raw moments: 'I normally try to shoot in a secluded location so my clients can relax and interact with each other naturally without feeling pressure from a crowd,' photographer Mark Pace told Daily Mail Australia Not a problem: 'As much as we call it a 'trash the dress' shoot, that isn't actually the case. The dresses normally end up completely fine, if not a little cleaner, saltier and sandier,' Mr Pace said 'This is normally a very enjoyable way for couples to be photographed (as long as the water is relatively warm). The photography session typically only goes for about an hour.' Mr and Mrs Watts were captured holding each other in the water and also lying by each other on the sand as the waves crashed around them. 'As much as we call it a 'trash the dress' shoot, that isn't actually the case. The dresses normally end up completely fine, if not a little cleaner, saltier and sandier,' Mr Pace said. 'After a dry clean Im told they are back to normal. When couples decide to use water colours and throw them at the dress that can be a little trickier to clean but gets a great result!' Summer wedding: Over the weekend Casey and Adam Lyall also decided to hit the water to celebrate their newly wed status Idyllic: The pair, married at Bunker Bay in Western Australia, participated in a shoot in a secluded bay not far from where they had their ceremony Over the weekend Casey and Adam Lyall also decided to hit the water to celebrate their newly wed status. The pair, married at Bunker Bay in Western Australia, participated in a shoot in a secluded bay not far from where they had their ceremony. 'In this case it was not practical to wear the original wedding dress in the water due to its size and layers, they often become far too heavy to move in,' Mr Pace said. New dress: The dress wasn't damaged at all and the happy couple were snapped holding hands in crystal clear water, surrounded by picturesque scenery Romantic: The pair also locked lips as they stood shoulder-deep in the water and took in the quiet, protected surroundings 'The bride purchased a separate (light weight) dress that would be more suited to the job.' The dress wasn't damaged at all and the happy couple were snapped holding hands in crystal clear water, surrounded by picturesque scenery. The pair also locked lips as they stood shoulder-deep in the water and took in the quiet, protected surroundings. Other couples have been known to take things a step further and actually tie the knot underwater. Next level: Crystal and Justin Reynolds, who met on the dating website Plenty Of Fish, enjoy diving together and visited the aquarium shortly after their engagement in December, where they married No regrets: 'We never thought we would get married in an aquarium, but it mixes our love for diving and for one another, it's something we love doing together,' Mrs Reynolds said A couple of avid divers from Georgia tied the know 30 feet underwater during a ceremony at Georgia Aquarium, in Atlanta. Crystal and Justin Reynolds, who met on the dating website Plenty Of Fish, enjoy diving together and visited the aquarium shortly after their engagement in December. Thousands of creatures, including four whale sharks and four manta rays, surrounded them in the aquarium and their wedding party even got their scuba certification to take the plunge with them on the big day. MPs are now set to debate the introduction of jabs for children under 11 More than 700,000 now signed petition which is largest on Government site Petition wants all children up to age 11 vaccinated against MPs are set to debate the introduction of meningitis jabs for children under 11 after more than 700,000 people signed a petition calling for action. The petition demands that all children up to the age of 11 should be given the Meningitis B vaccine - not just newborn babies - and is now the biggest to date on the Government's website. Public support for the campaign rocketed after parents shared heart-breaking photographs of two-year-old Faye Burdett, from Kent, and Mason Timmins, seven, from the West Midlands, who both died from the infection. Call for action: More than 700,000 people have signed a petition calling on the Government to provide the Meningitis B vaccine for all children following the tragic death of two-year-old Faye Burdett (pictured) Heartbreaking: Seven-year-old Mason Timmin's parents released harrowing images of him - he died from meningitis less than 24 hours after being taken ill by his mother Taking notice: MPs are set to debate the introduction of meningitis jabs for children under 11 The Petitions Committee has agreed to schedule a debate but said it would like the House of Commons to have the chance to hear from some of the families who have been affected by meningitis B as well as from relevant medical experts before setting a date. It said this will help to inform MPs taking part in the debate and more details will be announced in due course. Father-of-two Lee Both, 44, from Gateshead, Tyne and Wear, started the petition after his daughter Hannah was deemed too old to have the inoculation on the NHS. The petition had around 900 signatures until Faye's family released distressing images of her in hospital. She died on Valentine's Day, just 11 days after falling ill. Her parents, Jenny and Neil, said the response to the petition has been 'overwhelming'. Mr Both, also father to five-year-old Isabelle, said action was needed. 'I'd taken Hannah along to our local health centre for her inoculations and when I asked about Meningitis B, they told me she was too old, even though she was only six months at the time,' he said. 'I was amazed that we were being told 'no' when this is such a terrible and life-threatening condition that our daughter could be vulnerable to.' Clinics are reporting a rise the number of families contacting them who want their children vaccinated. This week the parents of Mason Timmins released photographs of their son, seven, shortly before he died of meningitis. He told his mother Claire he felt ill one morning. He died less than 24 hours later. Mrs Timmins warned parents to know what the symptoms of the illness are. Ex-England rugby player Matt Dawson tweeted images of his youngest son Sam at Great Ormond Street, who had been battling with meningitis. He is also pictured in the first photograph on the left with brother Alex The 37-year-old from the West Midlands, told The Times: 'It was very hard to deal with and still is. Mason was just seven years old and he was fit and healthy. He was always smiling and always had something to say. 'One Monday morning I heard him coughing and then he started to be sick I thought it was just a sickness bug as to be honest I had seen him a lot worse and it was nothing out of the ordinary. But by 3.30pm, he started to get a temperature. I gave him some Calpol but it didn't go down.' The plight of meningitis sufferers was raised further when ex-England rugby captain Matt Dawson told how his two-year-old son Sam battled Meningitis C. Although his son is now well and back home with his family, Mr Dawson said he felt 'absolutely helpless' as Sam, known as Sammy, lay hooked up to machines in hospital. He appeared earlier on ITV's This Morning where he called on parents to be aware of the warning signs. The former scrum half also admitted his own ignorance of the illness. Mr Dawson appearing on This Morning earlier today where he talked about his son's battle with Meningitis C 'A lot has been made about the petition that is out there at the moment and it is fantastic maybe for short-term, medium-term but what will always be [important] is parents awareness.' He said Sam's outcome could have been completely different if they had taken him to bed instead of hospital. 'Can you afford to take that risk [not taking a child to hospital]? And I have to again put my hands up - I was this close, or we were as parents saying do you know what, hell be absolutely fine. Lets put him to bed, hell be OK in the morning.' 'And if wed done that, Sammys not with us any more. End of story. Its so crucial, we [are] aware of the petition and Meningitis B and C.' A vaccine to protect against Meningitis B has been available on the NHS for babies aged two months, followed by a second dose at four months and a booster at 12 months since September. Babies under a year old are 12 times more likely than other children to be infected. But parents who wish to have older children vaccinated must pay privately, although a worldwide shortage of the vaccine Bexsero means stocks are very low. Manufacturer GlaxoSmithKline hopes to have increased stocks in the UK by the summer. The NHS programme is unaffected. The Meningitis Research Foundation maintains that there isn't sufficient evidence to offer the jab to all children. It wants more details of the vaccine's effectiveness to be known before they back it. A mother-of-three dying from skin cancer has left a heartbreaking message to family and friends telling them to 'live life to the fullest' once she has gone. Kellie Wheeler, 35, was diagnosed with advanced melanoma in November and says she is 'petrified' and heartbroken' at the prospect of leaving her children and husband. Despite never being a sun-worshipper - or sunbed user - she still contracted the deadly disease. Now she wants to warn others about the dangers of using sunbeds and unprotected sunbathing - as these increase the chances of getting it. The family, from Solihull, shunned holidays abroad in favour of so-called staycations in the UK and always wore sun cream. But tragically, the hospital receptionist discovered she had developed the most deadly form of skin cancer from a mole on her leg. Mother-of-three Kellie Wheeler, pictured here on her wedding day in 2013, has been diagnosed with a deadly skin cancer despite never being a sun worshipper. She wants to warn those who are about the dangers She wrote a poignant message on Facebook to family and friends and is sharing her story to raise awareness. 'None of us know what's in store in the precious time we are given,' she said. 'I'm not brave or strong or dealing with any of it. I'm absolutely petrified, heartbroken, frightened. You name it, I'm feeling it,' she said. 'It's a living hell of a nightmare. The fear of leaving my beautiful children, husband, family, friends is something I can't cope with. 'Please don't use sunbeds and please protect yourselves and your children from the sun - it's a matter of life and death.' Mrs Wheeler was first diagnosed with melanoma in 2010 when doctors removed the mass on her left leg and she went into remission. But she developed a pain in her chest in September last year and two months later she was given the devastating news the cancer had returned and was more advanced. The former barmaid was told she has several tumours in her left and right lung, as well as in her pancreas, kidney, breast and adrenal gland. Medics have told her the masses have grown considerably since her diagnosis in November. The brave mother-of-three says she is 'petrified' at the thought of leaving her husband Dean and children Louie, Lexi and Taylor. She has shared her story to warn people how devastating skin cancer can be Mrs Wheeler (third from left) with her children Lexi, six, Louie, 13, and Taylor, 17, and husband Dean, 48, at Weston-Super-Mare this weekend where she spent precious time with her family and friends Friends are now trying to raise money to help her husband Dean, 48, and children Taylor, 17, Louie, 13, and six-year-old Lexi. Lifelong friend Sarah Masters, 32, from Tamworth, said Mrs Wheeler wants to get the message across as 'people are so blase about skin cancer.' HER HEARTBREAKING MESSAGE Im not brave or strong or dealing with any of it. Im absolutely petrified, heartbroken, frightened. You name it, Im feeling it. Its a living hell of a nightmare that is unimaginable. The fear of leaving my beautiful children, husband, family, friends and life is something I cant cope with. But I just have to tell you all how eternally grateful I am for all the love and support. I hope this makes everyone live their lives to the fullest because none of us knows whats in store in the precious time we are given. PS. Please research melanoma, please dont use sunbeds and please protect yourselves and your children from the sun. Its a matter of life and death. Advertisement 'They think all doctors have to do is cut out a mole and everything's fine,' she said. 'But Kellie says it isn't just skin cancer when it affects all of the organs in your body.' Mrs Wheeler is in a lot of pain and has already undergone three rounds of immunotherapy, which uses the body's own immune system to help fight cancer. Doctors at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, in Edgbaston, where she is being treated, have suggested another course of the treatment but she admits the prognosis is bleak. Her story follows that of young teacher Katie Miller last week who religiously used sunbeds to get a pre-holiday tan was diagnosed with skin cancer at just 24. She is convinced that using sunbeds constantly for a month before every holiday in the past five years is to blame for her disease. Despite Mrs Wheeler never using tanning salons herself, she hopes her story will warn others just how deadly the disease is to stop them putting themselves in more danger. 'Kellie has never been a sun lover,' said Mrs Masters. 'She is quite pale and much prefers Weston-Super-Mare and Brean to anywhere abroad. 'Whenever she went out in the sun, she always wore protection. She wants people out there to know the dangers of skin cancer and what it can do. Katie Miller last week told how she religiously used sunbeds to get a pre-holiday tan was diagnosed with skin cancer at just 24. She has vowed to never use sunbeds ever again - and is warning of the dangers 'And she wants sunbeds banned in this country. 'My friend is in a wheelchair and she cannot do anything for her kids or family. 'Before this happened, Kellie would do anything for anyone and would turn up to your house with a bunch of flowers if you needed cheering up. She was a real supermum to her children. 'Everyone who knows her instantly loves her and she has a real connection with people.' Mrs Wheeler's fundraising page has so far raised more than 6,000. Today, singer Craig David sent a heartfelt message to Mrs Wheeler after being contacted by her friends. In it, he said: 'I just wanted to send you a message as I know you are going through a difficult time right now. 'I want to send you all of my love. There is a strength inside of you that you dont even know is there. 'And if you tap into that some miraculous things can happen. 'I want to send you my love. My positive thoughts are with you. You see so much love for you.' The pop star had invited Mrs Wheeler to meet him but she was too ill to travel Ms Masters told the Birmingham Mail. She said: 'When Kellie saw it she was so happy. She was on cloud nine and it was the pick-me-up she needed.' HOW TO TELL IF YOU HAVE SKIN CANCER While sun and UV exposure significantly raises the risk of skin cancer, anyone can get skin cancer. But some people are more likely to get it than others. According to Dr Amy Huber, a member of the American Academy of Dermatology, the relationship between UV exposure and the development of skin cancer depends on the type of exposure, the kind of skin cancer, and the person's skin type. People with lighter skin colour, light hair and light eyes are more at risk, because they have less melanin in their skin to protect them. Those who have long-term, unprotected sun exposure are also at an increased risk, she says. Melanoma - the most deadly type of skin cancer - is associated with blistering sunburn rather than repeated exposure to UV rays. A family history and having a large number of sizeable moles on the body are also factors. Like nonmelanoma skin cancer, melanoma can arise on any area of the body, regardless of whether or not a sunburn occurred in that location. MELANOMA Melanomas can appear anywhere on the body, but they most commonly appear on the back, legs, arms and face and even underneath a nail. Though less common, they often spread to other organs in the body, making them more deadly. The most common sign is the appearance of a new mole or a change in an existing mole. The most common sign of melanoma is the appearance of a new mole or a change in an existing mole Signs to look out for include a mole that is: getting bigger changing shape changing colour bleeding or becoming crusty itchy or painful A helpful way to tell the difference between a normal mole and a melanoma is the 'ABCDE' checklist: Asymmetrical melanomas have two very different halves and are an irregular shape. Border melanomas have a notched or ragged border. Colours melanomas will be a mix of two or more colours. Diameter melanomas are often larger than 6mm (1/4 inch) in diameter. Enlargement or elevation a mole that changes size over time is more likely to be a melanoma. BASAL CELL CANCERS Skin cancer can come in the form of a basal cell cancer (BCC), sometimes called a rodent ulcer. The disease affects the bottom of the epidermis, the outermost layers of cells in the skin. Around 75 per cent of all skin cancers are basal cell cancers - which are typically slow-growing and almost never spread to other parts of the body Signs and symptoms of BCCs, include a growth that: looks smooth and pearly appears waxy appears as a firm, red lump sometimes bleed develops a crust or scab begins to heal but never completely heal is itchy looks like a flat, red spot that is scaly and crusty develops into a painless ulcer Around 75 per cent of all skin cancers are BCCs, which are typically slow-growing and almost never spread to other parts of the body. If treated at an early stage, this form of skin cancer is usually completely cured. But, some BCCs are more aggressive, and if left to grow, they may spread into the deeper layers of the skin and into the bones, which can make treatment more difficult. SQUAMOUS CELL CARCINOMA Squamous cell carcinomas are mainly found on the face, neck, bald scalps, arms, hands and lower legs Another form of non-melanoma, skin cancer, squamous cell carcinoma is a cancer of the keratinocyte cells, in the outer layer of the skin. They are mainly found on the face, neck, bald scalps, arms, backs of hands and lower legs. Squamous cell cancers, the second most common type of skin cancer, may: Was turned away but took herself to A&E, sensing A young mother whose headaches were repeatedly dismissed by doctors was horrified to be told a huge cyst on her brain meant she was weeks from death. Sharnie Ludlam, 22, began suffering constant headaches and went to her GP three times in 10 days, only to be told nothing was wrong. Sensing something more serious was up, she called an ambulance, but was told paramedics would not take her to hospital as she wasn't a high priority. Desperate, she took herself to A&E where a scan revealed a large cyst on the front of her brain. She was rushed to St George's Hospital in London where doctors performed emergency surgery to remove it, and gave her the terrifying news she would have died within two weeks without treatment. Sharnie Ludlam, 22 (left, at a younger age), was horrified to find constant headaches that had been dismissed by doctors were actually due to a large cyst in her brain, which was causing her head to swell (right) Surgeons performed a craniotomy operation to remove the cyst, accessing her brain by cutting away a portion of her skull known as the' bone flap' (left). Days later this became infected and she was readmitted into hospital to have it removed - and now has a big dent in her head where the skull is missing (right) Miss Ludlam, of Lancing, West Sussex, was told her headaches were being caused by a large colloid cyst on the front of her brain This is a growth containing gelatinous material and can result in a life-threatening brain herniation, where high pressure causes the organ to be squashed against the skull. She said: 'The whole thing was so scary, I didn't know what to do - I just knew that something was very wrong with me. 'I thought I was going to die, and even the doctors told me I would only have lived another two weeks if I didn't do anything about it.' The mother-of-one then had an eight-hour surgery where the cyst was removed from her brain. Surgeons performed a craniotomy, a procedure where a section of the skull, called a 'bone flap' is removed to access the brain underneath. After the operation, it was replaced with tiny plates and screws. Three days after the procedure, Miss Ludlam was well enough to be sent home and believed her ordeal was over. But the wound began leaking, and she was forced to go back to hospital, where doctors discovered her 'bone flap' had become infected and was filled with fluid. Miss Ludlam, a barmaid, said: 'It's been an absolute nightmare. When the scan eventually revealed the brain cyst, doctors told Miss Ludlam she would have died within two weeks without treatment. She is pictured with two-year-old daughter Shinade Now, Miss Ludlam is at home recovering from the eight-hour procedure (her scar is pictured right). Pictured before treatment (left), she said: 'It's been one hell of a journey' 'When the fluid filled my head it looked like I had a massive egg on my forehead. I went back to hospital again because the bone flap got infected. 'I woke up one morning and my face and eyes were all swollen.' Doctors removed the 'bone flap', leaving a hole in Miss Ludlam's skull. She said: 'I have a bit of my skull missing, a bit of my head is just brain and there's just a big dent in my head.' Her partner Rhys Scott, 23, has had to support her and their two-year-old daughter Shinade. Miss Ludlam said: 'Ever since October I haven't been able to work. My partner has had to look after us, he's doing everything. 'It's been one hell of a journey.' The skullduggery of the defenders of free speech and dissent in JNU was summed up by @bwoyblunder in precisely 140 characters: Free Speech > Students didnt say>ABVP said (fake video)>We were provoked> Sedition law must go>Kanhaiyya video edited> Zero Evidence. From defending the principle of dissent to reducing the entire debate to an individual, the ability of the self-confessed and proudly #IamAntiNational brigade to constantly shift the goalposts of the sedition debate to suit their agenda was admirable. Deflection This was also apparent in the case of the absconding student, Umar Khalid. Demonstrators take part in a protest over the JNU 'free speech' row in Kolkata It started with it was Umar not Kanhaiya, then became Umar isnt a jihadist but a Maoist, then became Umar is an atheist - and finally, Umar is being targeted because he is a Muslim! The whole idea behind such deflection was to run away from fundamental questions that had arisen. These questions include: Are there any red lines to activism, or are universities completely free of any restraint whatsoever? At what point does dissent become disloyalty? Is the concept of disloyalty alien in a democracy? Is there any rationale to restrict freedom of speech and expression? What makes the #IamAntiNational hashtagers kowtow to those who bay for blood of an alleged blasphemer, but rise up in defence of those who have allegedly committed sedition? Will red lines be drawn on the basis of some principle, or only on the basis of political, ideological, economic exigencies? If jihadist sloganeering is okay in JNU, why should students not be allowed to endorse and open branches of outfits like ISIS and Al Qaeda? These questions have been asked for a long time, but the #IamAntiNational lot has never really joined the debate. As long as they were the High Priests of public opinion, and from their perch could issue pontificatory fatwas of shuddho and ashuddho to their readers and viewers, they never felt the need to climb down from their pulpit. But time, technology and temerity of a new generation have challenged the monopoly over public discourse of the supercilious Leftist/Liberal mafia. Ironically, the same mafia which went into raptures over the concept of The Argumentative Indian was unable to handle the Indian who became argumentative with them. Admittedly, once the expression of views and opinions became democratised and freed from the shackles of ideological censors sitting in newsrooms, some of the arguments (and slogans) that started being raised were jarring, obnoxious, hateful and inciteful. But for those who reject the #IamAntiNational hashtag, slogans calling for Bharat ki barbaadi are just as offensive and unacceptable. Argument The dissent argument doesnt really gel. For one, the moment the defenders of dissent latched onto the alleged doctoring of an implicating video as a defence of JNUSU president, their entire argument of dissent fell flat. After all, if it was dissent, it shouldnt matter at all whether or not the JNUSU president said what he is being accused of. For another, the very same people kept saying that while they found the sloganeering extremely offensive, cracking down on the sloganeers was curbing dissent and hence unacceptable. Clearly, there was a failure to distinguish dissent from disloyalty. The slogans in JNU were against the Indian nation, and if the defenders of such doctored dissent cant figure out the difference, or if they deliberately try and doctor the debate, it is clear they are either charlatans or cretins. Certificates The one silver lining to the entire JNU fracas was that people who have always been loath to terms like nationalism overnight started issuing certificates of nationalism. But it is quite a bizarre sense of nationalism which supports secessionism, that endorses jihadism and Islamism, a crazy sort of neurosis in which freedom of speech, expression and thought is only extended to Leftist academic mafia on Indian campuses. More serious, however, is the achievement of Marxist minions in carving support among a section of upper-caste middle-class folk who are needlessly guilt-ridden, selectively secular, pretentiously liberal and intellectually deracinated. This is a class which has been raising the decades-old failed slogans that have neither succeeded in getting them azaadi nor will succeed in their plans for Indias barbaadi. Although there is an age at which some of these slogans sound seductive, the people shouting these have absolutely no idea whatsoever on how to bring about social and economic transformation that they promise. Other than breaking up India, all these sloganeers have to offer is the mindless and failed communist model of thought and state control. In the past, sloganeering on campuses could be ignored as esoteric rants of a fringe. But this is no longer an option as some of the universities are becoming incubators of terrorism and radicalism. The government must, therefore, ensure it curbs all such nefarious activities on campuses without interfering in legitimate political activity and expressions of dissent. After students, some teachers from Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) could be the next to face police action. Highly-placed sources in the Delhi police told Mail Today on Tuesday that they were trying to zero-in on teachers and staff from the varsity who had harboured the five students accused of sedition over the events of February 9. Even the vice-chancellor of the varsity could be booked, it was claimed. Sedition suspects Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya were taken in a police vehicle to an undisclosed location before surrendering Umar Khalid (second from left) and Anirban Bhattacharya surrendered before police late on 23 February Police sources said several teachers were under the scanner as the sudden disappearance of the accused was as surprising as their reappearance, which suggested that they had been hiding in the varsity with inside help. Mail Today had been the first to report that local intelligence and technical surveillance showed the accused students were inside the university campus, though their locations kept changing at regular intervals. Sources told Mail Today that the special branch and district police personnel, present inside JNU in plain clothes, had also confirmed their presence. BSF personnel and police officers stand guard during protests outside the university The provisions of law are clear on the matter of harbouring a criminal. Since the stay of the accused, who were evading the police and the law, could not have been possible without inside help, we are looking at the possibility of some teachers having aided them. If it is found that the V-C created conditions to obstruct the arrest of the accused, we can book him too, said a top police official. Judicial opinion too seems to be weighing against teachers, as former Additional Solicitor General Vikas Singh said those who had been harbouring students could face punishment. These students are accused persons and if teachers are found to have harboured them, they will be liable to be booked, Singh said. Umar and Anirban surrender before police By Ankur Sharma in New Delhi Two JNU students, Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya, who are facing charges of sedition, surrendered before the police late on Tuesday night, hours after the Delhi High Court refused to grant them protection from arrest. According to the police, the two students reached Vasant Kunj police station in a private security van of G4S, escorted by JNU security. They were then taken to South Campus police station. Later, police took them to AIIMS for medical examination. Khalid and Bhattacharya are likely to be produced before a magistrate on Wednesday. The two are among the five students who, along with JNUSU President Kanhaiya Kumar, had allegedly shouted anti-national slogans at an event organised in the university campus to mark the death anniversary of parliament attack convict Afzal Guru on February 9. Besides Kumar, Khalid, and Bhattacharya, the other students are Rama Naga, Ashutosh Kumar, and Anant Prakash. Delhi Police had issued a look-out notice on February 20 against Khalid, Bhattacharya, Naga, Ashutosh and Prakash. According to some JNU students, it was decided from before that Khalid and Bhattacharya will surrender late at night to avoid the media. JNU students also made a human chain to stop the media from following the two students. "The plan was to skip media coverage so that these two can surrender safely. A human chain was made to restrict media from following the students to the police station," a JNU student told Mail Today. 'Sedition law isn't irrelevant, and must be made stronger' By Mail Today Bureau in New Delhi Delhi Police chief BS Bassi triggered a fresh debate with his comments Under fire over the sedition case against Kanhaiya Kumar and other JNU students, Delhi Police Commissioner BS Bassi on Monday said questioning the sedition charges levelled against anti-nationals was a blasphemous act. Sparking a major debate, Bassi also said there was an urgent need to expand the scope of the law of sedition. The final decision has to be taken by the legislature. But it would be wrong to suggest that because this is an old law it has become irrelevant... If we have to uphold our Constitution and the unity and integrity of our country, we must have such laws that deal with expressions that are a concern to the safety, security and integrity of the country, he said in an exclusive interview with India Today TV on Tuesday. Asked if he wants to expand the definition of sedition, the top cop said: We can refine the definition indeed, see Section 124 does not make for smooth reading as such only a legal person can decipher it - according to the SC ruling of 1962, any assertion has a tendency to incite violence even that is sedition. He further said: I want to request all those who are criticising the section to look at what is happening across the world. All over the world a realisation is dawning on the governments that developments in communication technology have not only made life of the ordinary people easier, it has also helped criminals and terrorists. On asked about the Supreme Courts 1984 ruling that raising slogans are not act of sedition but picking up a gun is, Bassi repiled: If you pick up a gun, it is treason against the country, there is a difference between sedition and treason... if an assertion incites it is abetment.... leave the legalities aside, have you seen those posters? They are questioning the Supreme Court of India. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has met the 2015 IAS probationers Continuing with the practice of addressing young bureaucrats, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has met the IAS probationers of the 2015 batch. His message to the new civil servants was to recall Mahatama Gandhis talisman of keeping in mind the welfare of the poorest. The PM underlined that most of the officers in the batch had some experience of working in the private sector. He said that they have left their job and taken up a service. HL Dattu is new NHRC chairperson National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) will finally have a chairperson after a gap of nine months. Former Chief Justice HL Dattu will be the new NHRC chairperson. A committee headed by PM Narendra Modi has cleared justice Dattus name for the post which has been lying vacant after the retirement of justice KG Balakrishnan, another ex-CJI, on May 11 last year. The appointment comes amidst a raging debate to fix a cooling period of two years before offering any post to retired judges. Rajnath to raise JNU issue in House Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh will make a statement in Parliament on the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) episode. Not taking any chances, officials have already prepared a draft statement explaining the events that led the arrest of JNU students union president Kanhaiya Kumar. The statement is likely to include a status update from the Delhi Police and the sequence of events in JNU. BJP woos allies on sedition case The BJP has uneasy relations with allies like the Shiv Sena, but ahead of the crucial debate on the JNU episode in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday, the government brought them on board by justifying the action against student leaders. Some allies are not comfortable with the government sending police onto the campus and felt the action was uncalled for. The government shared details of the case to convince them about the anti-national activities. RSS chief on Odisha tour The RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat today arrived in Bhubaneshwar on a two-day tour to Odisha. The protest march at Jantar Mantar by Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) students, supported by the political class, saw the youth marching for a different reason on Tuesday. The issue had shifted from JNUSU students Kanhaiya Kumar, Umar Khalid, and others to the death of Hyderabad University student Rohith Vemula. The JNU students were supported by those from other Indian varsities including Hyderabad University, as well as the Congress, AAP, and other Left parties. The JNU protest march on 23 February was focused on HCU student Rohith Vemulas death Vemulas mother was also present at the protest. Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi, and prominent Left leaders addressed the students. This was the second protest organised by students in less than a week. Sources said the change in strategy came after Umar Khalid and four others who have been evading arrest in the JNU sedition case resurfaced. The five JNU students reappeared on campus after being underground for over 10 days, said that they have nothing to hide, and are open to any questioning by the police. The students also maintained that they will not appear before the university probe panel as they have lost faith in the varsity administration. We have nothing to hide. We disappeared only because of security reasons as we were concerned about what happened to Kanhaiya could have happened to us as well. When we saw normalcy returning on campus, we came back. We have nothing to hide. If police wants to question us they can, we are open to it but since we have not been issued summons there is no point of surrendering, JNUSU General Secretary Rama Naga said. Congress V-P Rahul Gandhi (left) and Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal (right) addressed the students at the gathering. This is quite surprising how these students have suddenly diverted the attention back to the case of Rohith Vemula. Till now, they were only fighting for the release of Kanhaiya Kumar, one of the sources from JNU told Mail Today. As politicians assembled at the protest venue, they joined in the chorus to slam the Narendra Modi government, calling it anti-youth. The central government is running an ideology against the students. Our prime minister should mend his ways else students of the country will teach him a lesson. I have always said and requested the government to not to mess with the students, Kejriwal said. The youth who had supported Modi have risen against him today. Now they have started distributing certificates of patriotism. They are distributing certificates as to who is a patriot and who is a traitor. They will beat anyone up, or rape anyone and justify it by saying that they were raising slogans against India. This goondaism won't be tolerated, Kejriwal said. Attacking the government, Rahul Gandhi accused the Modi dispensation and RSS of stifling voices of dissent of college and university students across the country. We need a law to ensure that students in colleges and universities do not face discrimination and their voice is not stifled, Rahul said. Political analyst Ashish Nandy on Tuesday told the Supreme Court he was ready to tender an unconditional apology for a 2008 article written in a national daily. In the article, Nandy had made comments about the people of Gujarat over the outcome of the 2007 Assembly Polls, which led to an FIR being registered against him for allegedly portraying the state in a bad light. The statement by Nandy's lawyer was made before a bench of Justices V Gopala Gowda and Arun Mishra, which was hearing the appeal filed by him against the 2010 decision of the Delhi HC, refusing to quash criminal proceedings by Gujarat Police for allegedly promoting communal disharmony. Political analyst Ashish Nandy had an FIR lodged against him after an article he wrote in 2008 The FIR was lodged in January 2008 after a complaint by VK Saxena, currently chairman of Khadi and Village Industries Commission and president of Ahmedabad-based NGO National Council for Civil Liberties, for Nandy's remarks in the article. When the matter came up for hearing, Nandy's counsel said a letter has been circulated asking to adjourn the matter as the senior advocate, who was to argue, was not available. However, the bench said matters are generally adjourned when senior advocates are in personal difficulty, which is not the case here and wanted to proceed with it. At this point, the junior advocate said 79-year-old Nandy was ready to tender an unconditional apology which can be published in the same newspaper that had carried the article. Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi said: "I dont want to give any reason, and I have not given any reason why I have declined consent." In a new twist to the Jawaharlal Nehru sedition row, Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi, the Modi governments senior most law officer, declined to give consent to a plea in the Supreme Court to launch criminal contempt proceedings against JNUSU president Kanhaiya Kumar, student activist Umar Khalid, ex-DU professor SAR Geelani, and four others for labelling Afzal Gurus hanging as judicial killing. As per the Contempt of Courts Act 1971, the attorney generals consent has to be obtained before a plea seeking criminal contempt is listed before the apex court, if the petitioner is a third party. I have carefully gone through the contempt petition enclosed with your communication dated February 20, 2016 received today. I decline to give consent, said a letter dated February 22, 2016 and signed by Rohatgi. The letter was received at the office of advocate JP Dhanda, senior lawyer for the petitioner and advocate Vineet Dhanda. I dont want to give any reason and I have not given any reason why I have declined consent, Rohatgi said, refusing to elaborate further when specifically asked why he denied permission. As per an order on February 19, Chief Justice TS Thakur had directed that the criminal contempt petition be posted in the next week (this week) before an appropriate bench, subject to removal of office objection if any. On the future course of action, lawyer JP Dhanda said: This is not the end of the matter. I will again mention the petition before the bench of chief justice on Wednesday morning and persuade his lordship to list the matter for hearing on the ground that substantial issues of significance are involved. The contempt allegation was in connection with alleged distribution of pamphlets during events at the JNU campus and Delhi Press Club to mark the anniversary of the execution of terrorist Afzal Guru, during which anti-India slogans were allegedly raised. Afzals hanging had been termed as judicial killing in the pamphlets. The death sentence awarded to Guru by the sessions court was confirmed by the Delhi High Court and the Supreme Court. By calling the act as judicial killing, judges of the apex court have been projected as killers despite the free and fair trial of the convict and it clearly tantamount to criminal contempt. The Supreme Court needs to take stringent action against the offenders. The parties named in the petition have crossed every limit of the fundamental right to freedom of speech and expression, Vineet Dhanda said in the petition. Supreme Court of India has passed a detailed judgment after giving due consideration as per law and after going through the evidence. Afzal Guru was hanged to death after he had exhausted all legal remedies, the petition added. The JNUSU president was arrested by the Delhi Police on charges of sedition on February 12. The contempt plea against Kanhaiya Kumar (right) cited pamphlets which termed Afzal Gurus hanging as a judicial killing (left). JNU expands probe committee in Guru row Accepting the demand of teachers and students, JNU on Tuesday agreed to add more members to the high-level committee probing the Afzal Guru row. The move came as it said the release of student union president Kanhaiya Kumar and the dropping of sedition charges are beyond its control. The teachers and students had been raising four demands, including the expansion of the probe panel, disallowing the police on campus, approaching the police seeking Kanhaiyas release, and the revocation of sedition charges against students. While the varsity had earlier ruled out changing the composition of the high-level committee saying it had full faith in it, on Tuesday vice-chancellor M Jagadesh Kumar decided to add two more members to the probe panel. The vice-chancellor had also called a meeting of deans of all the schools and chairpersons of all the special centres to apprise them about steps being taken to restore normalcy on campus. It was decided that the three-member panel will co-opt two more members, including a woman, said JNU Registrar Bhupinder Zutshi. Rejecting the demand of approaching police for revoking of sedition charge, Zutshi maintained: We have not arrested Kanhaiya, we have also not charged anyone with sedition. It is for the police and court to take a call in this matter. Both these demands are beyond our control. The JNU authorities also said that they are receiving messages from across the country requesting firm action so that similar incidents dont happen in future. The Central Ground Water Board (CGWB) has got a unique solution to Delhis water dependency on neighbouring Haryana. As per the proposed remedy, water can be extracted from surplus pockets like Sukhdev Vihar, Siddhartha Nagar, Okhla Phase III, New Friends Colony and Mehrauli before being supplied to the rest of the city. Of the Delhi Jal Boards (DJB) assured supply of 850 million gallons per day, 130 MGD or about 15 per cent comes through groundwater extraction. Some of Delhis dry areas border the ones with surplus water CGWB scientists say that this can go up to 20 per cent if borewells are set up in these spots along the Yamuna river in southeast Delhi. Residences, hotels, malls and other such establishments in Okhla and adjoining areas have been reporting flooded basements for a year now. In fact, a resident, Mohan Lal Ahuja, filed a PIL in Delhi High Court in 2015 after noticing extensive seepage in the foundation of his building. A scientific report submitted to the court then revealed that 63,000 cubic meter of dewatering can be done in Siddhartha Nagar alone in just over 60 days, and this will be enough to deal with the water needs of 2.5 lakh Delhiites for the same period. A scientist at CGWB told Mail Today: This can be a good alternative on days when Delhi faces water crunch. Not just a political disruption in Haryana, it could be days when there is excess ammonia in the water coming from Munak Canal. It could be an engineering problem in our water treatment plants or, say, a terrorist attack in Delhi. The government could either pull out water from these spots before storing it in reservoirs for future use; or, borewells can be installed on emergencies and transferred through tankers to water-scarce areas, the scientist added. Ironically, Delhis parched areas are not too far away either. These include areas like Tughlakabad, Pushp Vihar, Aya Nagar and Sangam Vihar. The Delhi Jal Board (DJB) had earlier refused to utilise surplus water in these areas citing the presence of E. Coli bacteria. However, CGWB scientists said it could be easily treated with chlorine. Another option, a scientist said, could be the exploitation of the Yamuna floodplain. It definitely holds potential. The river replenishes itself through the flow from Haryana. And pollutants in the river can also be remedied in treatment plants, he said. Geology professor at Delhi University, Shashank Shekhar, explained the mystery behind overflowing groundwater in Okhla and Sukhdev Vihar. Earlier, these were slum areas which ruthlessly abused groundwater. But after the Sonia Vihar Treatment Plant was commissioned in 2006, dependency on borewells reduced. Eventually, the water table came up. Now, thanks to its proximity to Yamuna, it is above normal, said Shekhar. Demi Moore last appeared on the small screen in 2003 as a guest star on Will & Grace Demi Moore is poised to return to the small screen in a new drama titled 10 Days in the Valley. The actress has been tapped to play Jane Sadler, an overworked writer and single mother in the middle of a tense separation from her husband. However, she faces even more trouble when their five-year-old daughter is kidnapped and she must do anything to get her back. Tassie Cameron, co-creator and executive producer of police series Rookie Blue, penned the pilot script and will serve as showrunner. 10 Days in the Valley is currently being shopped to networks, and if it is picked up to series, the project will mark the first major TV role for Moore in 20 years. She became a breakout star in the 1980s on US soap opera General Hospital, before making a successful move into film. Moore last appeared on the small screen in 2003 as a guest star on Will & Grace. Demi made it to the news last time after her split with actor Ashton Kutcher. Her career has seen a downward spiral after the split. contactmusic.com Ted Cruz hits back at Trump Republican Ted Cruz is firing back at Donald Trump. On the eve of the Nevada GOP caucuses, the Republican rivals have continued their war of words. During a campaign rally in Sparks on Tuesday, Trump called the Texas senator the single biggest liar I have ever dealt with and a baby. Ive met much tougher people than Ted Cruz, the GOP frontrunner told his supporters. He is like a baby compared to some of the people I have to deal with. He is like a little baby: soft, weak, little baby by comparison. hollywoodreporter.com Rhino DNA in Chinese meds More should be done to stop the use of endangered species in traditional Chinese medicines, with snow leopard, tiger and rhinoceros DNA still being found in remedies, according to a leading University of Adelaide pathologist. In an article published in the journal Forensic Science Medicine and Pathology, Professor Roger Byard has shown that Chinese medicine has been identified as a significant driver in the illicit global wildlife trade. US Defence Secretary Ashton Carter is scheduled to visit New Delhi in April in the wake of Indias concerns over the sale of F-16 fighter jets to Pakistan. Sources claim that Carters visit will provide an opportunity to review the bilateral ties which have been on an upswing. He will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi and National Security Adviser Ajit Doval, as well as his counterpart Manohar Parrikar. US Defence Secretary Ashton Carter will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi and National Security Adviser Ajit Doval, as well as his counterpart Manohar Parrikar In 2015 India and the US signed a framework for defence cooperation over the next 10 years. The issues that are part of this framework will be reviewed by the two sides. It covers areas like cooperation in new projects, joint exercises between armed forces, and the strengthening of military ties. The Defence Technology and Trade Initiative (DTTI) will come up for extensive review during the talks. While the US is actively engaging India, its decision to supply advanced F16 fighter jets to Pakistan has impacted on the military balance in the sub-continent. The sale to Pakistan was approved despite Indias reservation. India has registered its protest, but also made it clear that Indo-US ties were dynamic and covered the cash area. The US also emerged as one of the biggest arms suppliers to India. It has cleared the long-pending sale of ultra light howitzers to India. When the gun deal is finalised it will be the first piece of artillery acquired by the army after the Bofor guns in the 80s. The two sides have identified new areas of cooperation as well. They are working on the joint development of jet engines and aircraft carrier design and construction. Following reports of Maoist links to the JNU sedition case, the Left-affiliated All India Students Association (AISA) has taken a different route and written to Delhi Police saying they are ready to cooperate with the probe. Differences began cropping up between the far-Left DSU and AISA after the arrest of Kanhaiya Kumar, over the surrender of five JNU students. We are still planning our next move. There are three students from our party - Ashutosh, Anant Prakash and Rama Naga. They have not received any lookout notice or summons from the police. They have written to the police and are ready to help them in the inquiry. The letter written by cops to the university did not have their names, Sandeep Saurav, general secretary, AISA said. While former DSU members Umar Khalid and Anirban have surrendered, three AISA members say they won't Former members of DSU, Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya surrendered before the police late on Tuesday after getting no relief from the High Court. The group of five students, which was allegedly involved in shouting anti-national slogans, seems to be divided. Sources in the university told Mail Today that three AISA students are planning to opt for anticipatory bail while Khalid and Anirban - both former DSU members - surrendered. This is raising questions. Sources say AISA is now focusing more on the three students rather than making it a group issue. There is sudden change in the course of the actions by AISA. There always have been differences in ideologies of both the parties. The incident (row) brought them together but now again they are on different routes, one of the students told Mail Today. Meanwhile, peace prevailed in the campus on Wednesday morning. The students who have been agitating at the varsity's administration block demanding Kanhaiyas release took a break from sloganeering. While the JNUSU office-bearers met to decide on further strategy, a group of students went to India Gate to participate in a candle light vigil demanding justice for Rohith Vemula. If the Maharashtra government has its way, only police will be able to watch performances in Mumbais dance bars, and not the patrons who come there shelling out big bucks. The state government, which was ordered to lift the ban on dance bars in October last year while being asked to crack down on obscene performances, was slammed by the Supreme Court on Tuesday for bringing out a licensing policy with several obnoxious, weird and irrational conditions. The Indian Hotel and Restaurants Association and Dance Bar Association who rushed to the court through senior lawyer Jayant Bhushan, were primarily up-in-arms over a condition which made it mandatory to construct a 3-feet permanent boundary wall around the 10 ft x 12 ft stage which has been permitted. In October last year, the Supreme Court lifted the ban on dance bars imposed by the Maharashtra government Terming the rule illogical, an association source said Indian women are around 5 feet or 5.5 feet. If they are going to cover up 3 feet, only the top halves of the women will be visible. Dance steps involve full body movements, how will patrons see them dancing? Further aimed at blocking the view of the customers is a condition which prescribes a non-transparent partition between the eating and drinking area and the dance stage. Also, only four bar girls can dance at a time. The other controversial condition was that the bars are to ensure adequate CCTV cameras which will live feed continuously to the nearest police control room. The cameras will be installed to cover the entire premises which will record the entire daily performance and the same will be monitored by a specially appointed person on a monitor/ display. The daily recording of performance of last 30 days would be preserved and will be made available to any competent authority as and when required for viewing, said the condition. Terming the rule for installing CCTV cameras as irrational and ordering its removal, a bench headed by Justice Dipak Misra said the majority of people would prefer privacy in such a place and would not like to be videographed. CCTV cameras invade a patrons right to privacy. We do not mind you installing the cameras at certain spots where there could be security issues, but we object to the entire place being under the cameras gaze, said the judges. Why should the stage be covered from all sides? Why should there be a non-transparent partition between dance area and restaurant area? Any art bereft of obscenity should be enjoyed, said the judges. The court asked Additional Solicitor General Pinky Anand, who appeared for Maharashtra Police to reexamine the contentious conditions pointed out to it and come back to the court on March 1, the next date of hearing. Bhushan told the court that despite the courts October 15 order to grant licences, the orders have not been complied. Letters have been issued to eligible applicants. While 155 persons applied, 101 of them have been entertained. But they are to fulfil these impractical condition and thats why we have come to the court, he told the court. The Bench agreed that it was difficult to follow them and they were also impermissible in the constitutional framework. It was on October 16, 2015 that the apex court lifted the ban which had driven a large number of women employed there into prostitution. However, it also gave the authorities full power to crack down on indecent and obscene performances. Investigators are aiming to put up a watertight case against the five JNU students who allegedly organised the Afzal Guru memorial on February 9. The Delhi Police on Wednesday opposed the bail plea of accused Kanhaiya Kumar, seeking further custody. The police want Kumar to face Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya inside the interrogation room to ascertain the exact role played by each of them. Khalid and Bhattacharya, suspected to be the main organisers of the JNU event that sparked the sedition row, surrendered late on Tuesday night. During interrogation, Kanhaiya Kumar (right) allegedly claimed that Umar Khalid (left) was the one who managed the Afzal Guru memorial event Delhi Police have found contradictions in the statements of Kumar and Khalid after the latters interrogation on Wednesday. Interrogators now plan to confront all three accused and quiz them jointly. A senior official said their joint interrogation was important to clear up confusions and establish the correct sequence of events leading up to the February 9 Afzal show. Sources said that during interrogation, Kanhaiya told police that Umar Khalid was the one who managed the event. However, Khalid reportedly said he was simply one of the members and did not decide the pro-Afzal slogans. He also reportedly said Bhattacharya and two female students at JNU played key roles in the event. Khalid has told interrogators that Bhattacharya was responsible for printing posters and other material for the event. On his part, Bhattacharya said he handed over the job to some other person who helped him in compiling the material. It is yet to be confirmed who decided, approved and prepared anti-India slogans as the three arrested students are passing the ball, said sources privy to the investigation. Earlier, the Delhi Police opposed Kumar's bail petition, saying his release at this juncture could hamper the investigation. Kanhaiya Kumar was produced in court on 24 February for his bail hearing As soon as arguments on Kanhaiyas bail commenced before Justice Pratibha Rani, Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Tushar Mehta said the police needed further custody of the accused to quiz him with other suspects. Mehta said police have a statutory right to take custody of an accused for 15 days and due to new developments Kanhaiyas custodial remand is necessary. After yesterdays (Tuesday) development, two of the accused have surrendered and are in safe custody. Their remand is yet to be taken. In the backdrop of the new developments and as per our statutory right of 15 days police custody of an accused, we will be seeking remand of Kanhaiya Kumar to confront him with Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya, Mehta submitted. The police expressed apprehension that if Kumar is released on bail, the investigation which is at an early stage would get severely affected. Also, his release on bail could send a signal to the student community across the country that such movements can be conducted with immunity. The bench has now fixed February 29 for further hearing on the bail plea. However, senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for Kanhaiya Kumar, said: I would like to tell the court that in the light of the status report filed by the police, there is no evidence of anti- India slogans raised by Kanhaiya. So he should be granted bail. Police had themselves sought to send Kanhaiya in judicial custody before the trial court. How can they seek fresh police custody? But the bench accepted the contentions of the Delhi Police, which said that as per the new circumstances and evidence that have emerged, Kanhaiya is required to be confronted with the two arrested accused. You have the statutory right and no one can deny this, the court said. Notably, Delhi Police have twice secured the custody of Kanhaiya since his arrest on February 12. He is currently remanded to judicial custody till March 2. On completion of his remand, Delhi Police will seek his custody again. With a view to avoiding any unpleasant incident in the legal proceedings of the JNU sedition case, the Delhi High Court wanted confidentiality to be maintained during the remand proceedings of Kumar and two other arrested in this case. At the same time, it directed the police to ensure no physical harm is suffered by the accused students and that law and order are maintained. ABVP marches against 'anti-nationals' By Mail Today Bureau in New Delhi The Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) members on Wednesday drew support from students of various universities against the alleged anti-national activities at Jawaharlal Nehru University. Amid cries of Afzal ka jo yaar hai, desh ka gaddar hai and Lal gulami chhodke bolo Vande Mataram, hundreds of students began a march from Ramlila Maidan. At Jantar Mantar, where a stage was set up, students demanded the immediate arrest of all culprits of the February 9 incident. They also condemned the silence of professors at JNU who allegedly shielded and encouraged the accused. ABVP members on a march demanding action against JNU students who allegedly raised anti-India slogans Students from JNU, Delhi University, Rajasthan University and a number of other educational institutions supported the march. A 150 m-long national flag was also carried by volunteers who joined in from areas like Baghpat and Sonepat. The protesters accused the Left of spoiling the atmosphere at JNU. Addressing the rally at Jantar Mantar, ABVPs national general secretary Vinay Bidre condemned the controversial event held against the hanging of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru. We cannot tolerate anyone raising slogans that threaten the unity of the country. ABVP shall not tolerate such anti-national forces, Vinay said. Senior ABVP leader Saket Bahuguna alleged: Anti-national activities led by the Left in JNU have vitiated the atmosphere of the university. This anti-national sloganeering should have been unanimously condemned in Parliament, but some parties are debating over it. We demand that it be condemned in Parliament. And, if not then we will take this protest to other parts of India and the streets will be filled with national flags, he said. Over issues of debate and dissent being raised over this episode, Bahuguna said: I myself have been a student of JNU, and we value debate and dissent. But, in the garb of debate and dissent, how can one allow anti-national activities? Special security for Kashmiri students Delhi Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung on Wednesday appointed a special nodal officer for addressing issues of Kashmiri students studying in the Capital. The move follows the questioning of several Kashmiri students by Delhi Police after a row over an event in JNU campus against the hanging of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru. Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung has appointed Delhi Polices Special Commissioner (Crime) Taj Hasan as the Special Nodal Officer for addressing Kashmiri students issues. In case, there is any apprehension or any misconduct towards them, they should contact Taj Hasan, Spl CP (Crime) who has been appointed as the Special Nodal Officer for addressing such issues, the L-G's office said in a statement. It further said that Hasan can be contacted via phone on 1093/100 or via email on splcpcrime- dl@nic.in. These numbers are manned round the clock. Agencies Umar says he raised pro-Afzal Guru slogans By Ankur Sharma in New Delhi Initial interrogation of Umar Khalid, the alleged main accused in JNU sedition case, has revealed that after Kanhaiya Kumars arrest, he and other co-accused went underground but were present on the campus. Mail Today had on February 17 reported that the five accused in the case were present on the premises of JNU. A senior Delhi Police officer told Mail Today that for the first few days he was hiding inside the campus but later shifted out. Khalid spent the initial few days inside the university campus but later took shelter with his friends in adjoining areas like Munirka, Ber Sarai and Katwaria Sarai. We are trying to identify the people who facilitated Khalid and others to go underground, officers said. Investigators also claimed that during interrogation, Khalid accepted that he was present during the event. Khalid reportedly admitted that he had raised slogans hailing Afzal Guru even as he maintained that the slogans he used were not anti-national. Meanwhile, a new video showing alleged outsiders raising anti-India slogans during a controversial February 9 event in JNU has given a fresh twist to the case, even as police informed the Delhi High Court about the presence of some foreign elements at the gathering. The youths, whose faces appear covered, are seen raising slogans against India in the video and police said they are examining the authenticity of the video. A PhD scholar Umar Khalid, one of the organisers of the event who had surrendered on Tuesday night, is seen in the video but is not seen raising slogans. Police said they have shortlisted photographs of eight persons who are suspected to be outsiders and allegedly involved in anti-national sloganeering at the event. But they are yet to be identified. Sources confirmed that Umar and Anirban could not identify them. Haryana Congress chief Ashok Tanwar has issued a show-cause notice to professor Virender Singh, a close aide of former chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, over a controversial audio tape which the adviser has dubbed a conspiracy to defame him. This is a conspiracy to defame me. It is a doctored tape. I will reply to the notice, Virender Singh told Mail Today. Professor Virender Singh was the political advisor to Hooda when the latter was chief minister of Haryana. The charred remains of vehicles line the streets in Sonepat after a night of protest In the audio clip, Singh is allegedly heard instigating Jat quota-related violence, which has rocked the state over the past few days. Sources said the notice was issued after the clip went viral on social media. Virender did not deny the existence of the audio tape but questioned the timing of its release. The conversation took place during the initial period of the agitation, when there was no violence. In the tape there is not a word inciting violence, said Singh. According to Virender, the conspiracy is evident from the fact that audio of the entire conversation has not been released and the time and date of the conversation has been concealed. When the date of the conversation is revealed, the entire truth will be out, he said. A close aide of former Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda (pictured) is alleged to have incited violence in a audio recording distributed on social media He further said he was speaking to one Captain Man Singh, a khap panchayat leader in Bahadurgarh, where no violence has taken place. He said he had also spoken to another person in Sirsa, which has also been violence-free. Noting that he was consulting legal experts to seek redressal in the matter, Singh blamed the Manohar Lal Khattar government for being behind the controversial audio tape. The notice served to Singh reads as follows: It has come to our notice through media and social media that an audio clipping circulated on the evening of February 21, 2016, it has alleged that you are responsible for instigating the protesters to start violent agitation in other districts of the state which were comparatively peaceful and that too with the support of our rival political party namely INLD and their student wing INSO. "As you are a member of the Congress party, such outright irresponsible behaviour is not expected from you, therefore, you are directed to reply within three days of receiving this letter. If no reply is received within three days from today then disciplinary action shall be initiated against you. Protesters wave black flags as violence over quotas for Jats continues The notice to Singh has brought to the fore the political rivalry between Hooda and Tanwar since the latter was made Haryana Congress chief in February 2014, months before the national elections in which the Congress was wiped out from the state. Hooda had recently staged a fast in Delhi to protest the violence over quotas for Jats and attacked the Khattar government for its inept handling of the crisis. Earlier, there had been reported differences of opinion between Hooda and Tanwar over distribution of tickets for the polls. Meanwhile, Tanwar said: CLP leader Kiran Choudhary and I briefed Sonia Gandhi and Rahul about the ongoing situation in the state. Sources said that the state leadership will go through the reply to be submitted by Virender but the question remains whether this explanation will be found satisfactory or not. Former CM asked to leave Rothak By Mail Today Bureau Former Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda was on Tuesday asked to leave Rohtak, the town worst-hit by Jat violence, by the district administration which cited maintenance of peace as the reason for the order. Hooda has been asked to leave Rohtak to ensure peace and harmony, official sources said. Hooda said he had received the order advising him to leave Rohtak and not stay here for the night by the district administration for the sake of law and order. As a law-abiding citizen I complied with the directions issued by the Principal Secretary AK Singh and left the town immediately, he said, adding that he was on his way to Delhi. Asked whether the administration could issue such a direction, he said it could do so keeping law and order in mind. Hoodas close aide and senior Congress leader BB Batra said two IPS officers first came to Hoodas residence and asked him to leave the town. Batra said that Hooda declined, saying he cannot leave on verbal instructions, and added that the former CM sought an administrative order. Batra said that an order was later issued by AK Singh, who has been appointed the Special Officers for Rohtak during the Jat agitation. Violence worries MNCs and foreign investors By Smita Sharma The violence that unfolded in parts of Haryana following the Jat protests has left several Multi National Companies and foreign investors worried. As protests intensified last week, those caught up in the violence included nearly 30 Japanese citizens from sectors including automobiles and logistics. A mob entered the Maruti Suzuki assembly line site, causing some physical damage to the factory. As some of the personnel, including Japanese executives, were evacuated in a bus from another company, the agitators pelted stones at the bus. This has led to some sleepless nights for Japanese embassy officials in New Delhi. Officials had to liaise with the Haryana government, local police, and Army troops on the ground for safe evacuations. They also sought the cooperation of the Infrastructure Development Cooperation Authority. Eventually foreign nationals, including Belgians, Swedes, and Japanese were evacuated in batches over the weekend using choppers. Speaking to Mail Today, minister and DCM at the Japanese Embassy in New Delhi, Yutaka Kikuta expressed his gratitude. We appreciate the cooperation by the state government, police and Army for the security provided to Japanese citizens in Rohtak. Japanese officials are unsure when their men could go back to work as the situation is still volatile and unsafe. The Maruti assembly line has now been closed for more than a week, leading to heavy losses. Kikuta hoped normalcy will be restored at the earliest and the events will not impact investor sentiments in headquarters in Japan. China astonished by India's bloody riots By Ananth Krishnan in Beijing The Jat protests serve as a lesson about the dangers of social unrest stemming from inequality, a Communist Party-run paper in China said on Tuesday. The editorial, published in the Global Times, a tabloid under the official Peoples Daily, said that although China was ahead of India in terms of economic development, it faces huge pressure to fix social unfairness. While Chinese were astonished by repeated bloody riots in India, they were also surprised by Indians ability to resist turmoil. If similar unrest happened in China, it would be earth-shattering, the newspaper warned. Titled A lesson from caste-triggered India unrest, the editorial argued that the wealth gap in India may become a tumour that India cannot overcome because India's democracy allows each group to seek maximum interests while people's understanding of justice is often polarising. The paper did not, however, reference authoritarian Chinas own wealth gap, which, according to many international Gini coefficient estimates - which reflect income distribution and inequality - is even greater than Indias. For the Communist Party, the income gap is a sensitive issue. The paper said through the protests, China can learn what the consequences of weak governance are. However, it also helps us understand the adaptability of society. There is general stability amid quite a chaotic situation in India. It defies a simple label. The newspaper, known for hardline views, said both countries could be each others development reference. Violeta Beaver has less than six months left to live. This is written down in black and white in a letter from her cancer specialist. Yet insurance giant Legal & General claimed it knew different, as its medical experts who had never met Violeta said she might live longer. And until the company was satisfied the 63year-old would not survive for longer than 12 months, it would not pay out the 130,000 she was owed under the terminal illness clause of her life insurance policy. Fight: Violeta and Perry Beaver had to battle cancer and their insurer Legal and General who refused to pay their life cover claim Just when she needed her insurer most, Violeta was left without the funds to fly relatives to the UK for a final visit. Her case is a harrowing example of how insurance firms are able to wriggle out of terminal illness claims by declaring that they know better than specialist consultants. Britains complaints watchdog says it will not tolerate this type of behaviour. The Financial Ombudsman has repeatedly told insurers they must have an exceptionally good reason for overruling the medical opinions of a customers own doctor. Yet Money Mail continues to hear distressing cases of insurers ignoring this and using the judgement of anonymous medical experts, hired to save money on claims. We can reveal that the back-office staff who determine whether you receive a payout for cancer or heart disease are often no more qualified than a family GP. And because insurers do not have to refer every case to a medical professional, they sometimes let unqualified claims handlers make the life-changing decisions. It was only after a week of repeated telephone calls and emails from Money Mail that Legal & General backed down. It agreed to pay Violetas claim just 48 hours before we went to press. A swift settlement was crucial because every day L&G dragged its feet, Violeta and her husband Perry were losing money. They have whats known as a decreasing-term life insurance policy, which means their cover reduces every month. Had Legal & General paid out when the couple first claimed in January they would have received 131,536. If the claim had been strung out until March theyd have got just 130,381 a 1,155 less. Perry, 56, from Surrey, says: My wife is dying. We want to enjoy the time we have left and fly her brothers over from the Philippines, where they live, to see her. You cant imagine what its like to keep saying, My wife has less than six months to live over and over again on the phone while she can hear. I then have to come off and try to be positive and encourage her to fight and beat the odds. I just cant believe their attitude. Violeta, a nurse for 40 years, has been battling breast cancer since 2012. She had a lump removed from her right breast that December, followed by a course of chemotherapy and radiotherapy. Callous: Legal & General's medical 'experts' - who had never met Violeta - said she might live longer But in December 2014 a scan revealed the cancer had spread to the lymph nodes under her right arm. She had major surgery to remove these, more chemotherapy and more radiotherapy. Last November the couple were hit with more bad news. The cancer had spread again. This time she needed a lump removed from her neck. Scans also revealed tumours in her lungs, ribs, spine and brain. Violetas cancer is terminal. She is currently taking chemotherapy in tablet form and waiting to see if brain surgery is an option. But any treatment cannot cure her only attempt to prolong her life. The diagnosis is just the kind of utterly unexpected and devastating event life insurance is designed for. The Beavers, who have two sons in their 30s, have paid into a joint life insurance policy with Legal & General since 2005. This would pay out a lump sum should one of them die or get a terminal illness. In 2010 theyd increased their cover to ensure the payout would be enough to clear their mortgage. They pay premiums of 122 a month. When they first made the claim Legal & General said it accepted Violetas condition was terminal but would not pay out as, in its own experts opinion, Violeta could still live longer than 12 months. She was still receiving treatment The couple complained to the Ombudsman, who fast-tracked the case. But the couple were worried Violeta could die before they received a penny and so contacted Money Mail. Perry, who shut the garage he ran last year to care for his wife, says: If I was making a claim for a car accident I wouldnt mind waiting a year or two for it to be sorted out, but were running out of time. We were just desperate for this to be sorted. Its been exhausting. We need all our energy to fight for as long as we can get together. Ive been with Violeta since I was 16 years old. I cant believe Legal & General wrangled over a few months. Diagnosis: Money Mail has heard of cases where insurers choose to override the views of a customer's doctor in favour of their own To claim a terminal illness payout, insurers typically state in their small print that you must have less than 12 months to live. But predicting when someone will die is an imperfect science. Doctors rely on averages and usually avoid specifying a number of months; this is both risky and detrimental to anyone fighting for their life. So when a doctor says a patient has less than six months left as Violetas did it is a big step. An Ombudsman spokesman says: A patients prognosis is rarely clear-cut. We expect insurers to act in the spirit of a contract and not look for reasons to avoid paying out. Terminal illness cases are tremendously sensitive and no insurer should look to drag out the process of paying a claim. There are no set rules on how an insurance firm must deal with a claim. Medical experts who review a case must be GPs. Insurers typically have a more qualified chief medical officer who oversees proceedings. Firms say they are cleaning up their act and pay out nine in ten terminal illness claims, but it is no consolation to Violeta and Perry. An Association of British Insurers spokesman says: Insurers regularly review their practices to ensure they take account of medical developments. It is an alarming sign of Britains chronic housing shortage if ever one were needed. One of the UK biggest insurance companies has invested around 50million in a factory which builds flat pack houses, it emerged yesterday. FTSE 100 insurance giant Legal & General has hatched plans to build a giant factory near Leeds, which it hopes will churn out 3,000 pre-fabricated homes a year. Flat-pack houses: FTSE 100 insurance giant Legal & General has hatched plans to build a giant factory near Leeds, which it hopes will churn out 3,000 pre-fabricated homes a year It has already bought a 500,000 square feet warehouse in Sherburn, just outside Leeds. This is believed to be the biggest commercial property available to rent in the UK. The vast factory will work much like a car plant with robots and machines carving big pieces of timber which are sent down the production line. The prefab homes will be completely built in the factory including white goods and interiors - before being driven to their destination on the back of lorries. The houses will be targeted at those on low to medium incomes and will cost in the low hundreds of thousands of pounds. They will also be energy efficient, and are expected to cost just 85 a year to heat. Homebuyers will be allowed to help design their own homes when they place an order. Robert Hall, head of business development at L&Gs housebuilding arm told magazine Inside Housing: What were doing is true off-site manufacturing. The process we use involves no tradesmen, zero. The homes will be built in the factory, carpets, curtains, white goods, television. L&G - which has nine million customers in the UK and runs almost 720billion of savers money - plans to build other factories across the UK if the project proves to be a success. Last night one MP welcomed L&Gs intervention but said that it highlighted deep-rooted problems in the housing market. John Mann, a Labour member of the Treasury Committee said: This clearly shows there is not enough building going on and people are not getting the houses they need. It begs the questions why housebuilders are not doing the job themselves. 'There is too much empty rhetoric from the government- We need more action. Property connundrum: L&G believes flat pack housing is the only way to build new homes quickly and cheaply enough to solve the housing shortage Currently around 120,000 homes are built in the UK every year less than half the 250,000 houses charity Shelter estimates are needed. The government has pledged to build more than 400,000 new affordable homes across England by 2020. Housing minister Brandon Lewis has called for the house building industry to consider new construction methods, including pre-fabricated houses built off site. L&G believes flat pack housing is the only way to build new homes quickly and cheaply enough to solve the housing shortage. But it is also convinced there are big profits from stepping into the breach. Prefab homes are far more common in continental Europe and Scandinavia. Hundreds of thousands of them were built in the UK as an emergency measure introduced by Winston Churchill to address a major shortage after the Second World War. They were only designed to last ten years but a number still survive. A post-war pre-fab in Peckham that is so dilapidated that it needs to be demolished sold for nearly 1million at auction in November. This is not L&Gs first foray into the housing market. It already owns 57 per cent of Scottish housebuilder Cala, and it recently announced it was investing in 3,000 homes in the private rental sector with a Dutch pension fund. Tax raid: The Chancellor is considering slashing pension tax breaks in next month's budget George Osbornes plans for a tax raid on pensions could backfire on millions of lower-paid workers he claims hes trying to help. The Chancellor is considering a bombshell move to slash pension tax breaks in the Budget in three weeks time. Hes been told the 34.3billion-a-year perk is an expensive and flawed way to encourage saving. Treasury officials are concerned that wealthier savers use the rebates to slash their overall tax bills, while basic-rate taxpayers get barely any benefit. But Money Mail analysis found all savers would suffer from the changes the Chancellor is considering not just the rich. As well as a squeeze on those earning just over 42,385, our research found basic-rate taxpayers could be left tens of thousands of pounds worse off. The principle under threat is called tax relief. It is effectively a refund of the income tax youve already paid and that helps your pension grow more quickly. It means that it costs a basic-rate taxpayer just 80 to put 100 into their pension the missing 20 is added by the Government as a tax refund. For a higher-rate taxpayer, it costs 60 to put 100 in. The tax is simply deferred until you withdraw the money in retirement. Then, your income is likely to be lower, and so your tax bill often falls, too. But this system could be torn up in just a few weeks time and replaced with something called a Pension Isa. Any money savers pay into pensions would be taxed like all other income. But withdrawals would be tax-free after the age of 55. This could deal a devastating blow to the lower paid. According to investment firm Hargreaves Lansdown, a basic-rate taxpayer who saved 250 a month into a pension today would have 183,042 after 25 years, at 5 per cent investment growth. If they saved this same amount into a Pension Isa theyd have 146,433 after 25 years a difference of 36,609. The Government might add a top-up of between 10 per cent and 33 per cent but there is no guarantee. If the top-up were 10 per cent, the same saver would build a pot worth 161,076. This would still be 21,966 less than under the current system. At a 20 per cent rate, the saver would build up 175,720 7,322 less than at present. Paul Johnson, director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies, says: There is a lot of misunderstanding about why we have tax relief on pensions. Its perfectly reasonable not to charge people tax when they put money in, and then to tax them when they withdraw it. This is not a subsidy its just making sure tax is paid only once. The hidden cost of a Pension Isa would be the death of the 25 per cent tax-free lump sum. This is a hugely popular windfall people use to pay off debts or reward a lifetime of graft with a holiday or home extension. It means you never pay any tax on a quarter of the money going into your fund. With a Pension Isa, youd already have paid tax when you saved so the Government would collect an extra 4 billion a year. Steve Webb, the former pensions minister whos now a director at Royal London, says: This is the real tax bombshell that seems to have gone almost completely unnoticed. It is easy to see why the Chancellor might like to get rid of it. The state pension of around 8,000 a year after April 6 leaves about 3,000 of tax-free personal allowance. A pensioner could take this sum from their retirement fund every year without incurring tax Mark Garnier, a Tory member of the Treasury Committee, said on Radio 4s Today programme: People need surety in their lives, especially when they come to retirement so please dont change it [Mr Osborne]. Moving to a Pension Isa would also stop the funds being used as a tax time machine. All savers benefit from the ability to defer tax on income until they are ready to spend that money. Firstly, because more goes into your pension initially, any investment growth has a bigger impact. Secondly, the time machine model helps basic-rate taxpayers manage bills. The state pension of around 8,000 a year after April 6 leaves about 3,000 of tax-free personal allowance. A pensioner could take this sum from their retirement fund every year without incurring tax. And there is no guarantee future politicians wont start taxing withdrawals, too which means savers would be taxed twice. Another option on the table is to keep pensions as they are but to move to a flat rate of tax relief of between 20 per cent and 33 per cent. Concerns: Former pensions minister Steve Webb On the face of it, this might seem like a boost for basic-rate taxpayers. With a flat rate of 25 per cent, instead of paying 80 to put 100 into a pension, it would cost 75. But in the long run, this could hurt more than it helps. According to Royal London, a flat rate of 25 per cent would be worth 2 a week extra for basic-rate taxpayers on average not enough for a cup of coffee at a High Street chain. The Institute for Fiscal Studies says a flat rate would set a dangerous precedent. Without a link to income tax, all cash-strapped future governments would be free to nibble away until it disappeared altogether. A 30 per cent rate would save the Treasury just 1.2 billion. So Mr Osborne will be tempted to set it nearer 20 per cent, which would save 12 billion a year. The Treasury would pocket most of these savings; only a small amount go to help basic-rate taxpayers. Experts also say that the Pension Isa and flat rate relief would act as a disincentive to senior staff. The Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association says big companies would strip back the generosity of the pensions they offer staff. Instead of a typical 10 per cent boost for every 5 per cent a worker puts in the pot, employers might offer just 1 per cent the minimum allowed by law. Workers are told to start saving for retirement in their early 20s. But many find theyve very little to put away at this stage of their careers. First, theres the struggle to clear student debt and find a house deposit. Then come mortgages and the cost of starting a family. Often its only when workers incomes rise in their late 30s and early 40s that they are able to put away meaningful sums for retirement. Under a flat rate, they would find the bonus for saving falls away just when they need it. With a 25 per cent flat rate a 35-year-old on 45,000 a year would have to save an extra 148 a month or work for another two and a half years to get the same as under the current system. With a 10 per cent Pension Isa top-up theyd have to find an extra 246 or work six years longer, says pension actuaries Barnett Waddingham. A flat rate would also hit those with workers whose earnings vary, such as the self-employed. Someone who saved in good years when they earned 60,000, rather than in bad years when only 20,000 came in, would struggle to build the same pot as an employee on a steady 40,000. In 2012-13 people with incomes over 50,000 made half of the pensions contributions that attracted tax relief despite only making up 10 per cent of the workforce. Warning: Education standards are 'going into reverse in and around Manchester and Liverpool, claimed Sir Michael Wilshaw, pictured Schools in northern English cities are failing to teach pupils the skills they need to get a long-term job in the region, their chief inspector said yesterday. Education standards are 'going into reverse in and around Manchester and Liverpool, claimed Sir Michael Wilshaw. The Ofsted head warned that Chancellor George Osborne's plans for a Northern Powerhouse will 'splutter and die' if schools cannot provide local youngsters with the right skills to sustain it. He challenged the Labour politicians who dominate most of the local authorities in and around Manchester and Liverpool, saying they did not know how to use their influence to improve schools. And he added that MPs, councillors and mayors must show more 'grit, imagination, faith and bloody mindedness' in acting to improve social mobility. In a speech for a seminar in Manchester hosted by the IPPR North think-tank, Sir Michael said three in ten of the city's secondary schools and four in ten in Liverpool were judged by his inspectors to require improvement, compared with one in ten in inner London. Ofsted's regional director in the North West, Christopher Russell, has published letters to local authority leaders and others in Greater Manchester and Knowsley, Merseyside, voicing serious concerns at low standards in many local secondary schools and demanding urgent improvement. Fewer than half of pupils left school with five 'good' GCSEs in Manchester, Salford and Rochdale, with results scarcely better in Oldham, Mr Russell wrote. In Knowsley almost two-thirds of teenagers failed to achieve C grades or higher in five or more GCSEs, including English and maths, and all of the town's secondary schools are rated substandard. Sir Michael said: 'I am calling on local politicians, be they mayors, council leaders or cabinet members, to stand up and be counted, to shoulder responsibility for their local schools, to challenge and support them regardless of whether they are academies or not. 'I'm calling on them to be visible, high-profile figures that people can recognise as education champions. 'I am asking them to better understand that unless there are high standards in the major cities of our country then good practice will not radiate out to the satellite towns and communities outside those cities. 'Unless they do, I fear Manchester and Liverpool will never become the economic powerhouses we want them to be. We cannot fight for social mobility with political immobility. Failing the next generation: Fewer than half of pupils left school with five 'good' GCSEs in Manchester, Salford (pictured in file image) and Rochdale, with results scarcely better in Oldham, wrote one Ofsted chief 'Politicians need to act. It requires grit, imagination, faith and bloody mindedness qualities that, fortunately, I really don't think are less common in the North than they are down South.' In his latest annual report, published in December, Sir Michael warned that England is 'a nation divided at age 11', with a performance gap between schools in the North and Midlands and those in the South. Sir Michael added yesterday: 'Yes, London has advantages that other cities lack, but what of Liverpool or Manchester? Are you really telling me that they lack swagger and dynamism? These are the cities that built Britain. 'At some point, politicians in Manchester and Liverpool will have to accept that the Northern Powerhouse will splutter and die if their youngsters lack the skills to sustain it. At some point, politicians in Manchester and Liverpool will have to accept that the Northern Powerhouse will splutter and die if their youngsters lack the skills to sustain it Sir Michael Wilshaw 'Manchester and Liverpool are at the core of our ambitions for a Northern Powerhouse. But as far as secondary education is concerned they are not firing on all cylinders. In fact, they seem to be going into reverse.' Nick Small, a Labour Liverpool city councillor, agreed with Sir Michael, adding: 'If we're going to balance the UK economy so that cities like Liverpool can contribute more to UK growth then we need more powers to influence the whole education and skills system to make sure we're delivering what Liverpool businesses want.' But Labour councillor Rosa Battle, from Manchester City Council, said: 'We've been working non-stop with our schools over the last few years to improve outcomes in the city, and indeed latest figures show the number of pupils now attending good or better schools in Manchester is the same as that nationally - with a rate of improvement on this measure over the last four years that far outstrips national improvement. 'Our results last year obviously saw a dip, but - far from ignoring this - we've taken a long, hard look at the issues involved and have put a series of measures in place to overcome these, because we're simply not prepared to sit back and watch our pupils fail.' A Department for Education spokeswoman said: 'Thanks to the hard work of teachers across the country and our ambitious programme of reforms, there are now 1.4 million more pupils being taught in good or outstanding schools since 2010 - including 610,000 more pupils in good or outstanding schools in the North. Warring factions have agreed to ceasefire to begin at midnight on Friday Lying lifeless on a hospital trolley, these twin baby brothers are apparently the latest, heart-breaking child victims of Syria's merciless civil war. Just hours before, Omar and Ammar Kandush had been sitting in the home they shared with their mother, father and four older siblings preparing to eat breakfast But as they lie motionless on the rusted trolley, the twins reportedly killed in a Russian airstrike last week are now a truly shocking symbol of 25,000 innocent children who have paid the ultimate price in this brutal conflict. The images were released by activists in Aleppo. Innocent victims: Omar, left, and Ammar, right, were enjoying breakfast with their family in Aleppo when a Russian bombing raid destroyed the home they shared with their mother, father and three brothers and sisters Merciless: The twins, thought to be as young as five months old, were killed in the attack - their tiny bodies unable to withstand the force of the bombs which reduced their home to rubble on Tuesday, February 16 Short lives: Both died still attached to the dummies which had been chosen for them - green for Omar, left, and orange for Ammar, right. They are among some 200 children dying in the Russian raids on Aleppo every month Ammar on the right is still dressed in the soft white socks, nappy, and a stripy baby-grow. An orange baby's dummy lies next him, his downy dark hair sticking up; He could almost be asleep. Omar, to the left, is wearing lovingly hand-knitted red booties, his nappy covered by navy blue trousers. Like his brother, he has a dummy - this time green - attached to his sweater, the same one he was wearing when his proud parents took a picture of their youngest son not long before. A bib is also tucked under his chin, a haunting reminder of the breakfast the family was enjoying when the bomb struck. But a closer look reveals a wound on the back of his forehead and the back of his head, and the blood which had streamed from his nose - just some of the terrible injuries which combined to kill the infant. It is impossible for western journalists to enter rebel-held territory of the war-torn town but MailOnline contacted the twins' surviving family through activists at the Aleppo media centre. Syrian photographer Aref Al Aref, who said he took the heart-stopping picture of the dead twins lying side by side on the hospital trolley, said he had tracked down the family from the ruins of their home in Aleppo's Al Sakkor district to the relatives nearby who had given them shelter. The twins father apparently told him how his family was decimated when a rocket hit the house as they were about to eat breakfast. He said: 'I was out of the house. When I came back I said "Hi" to the kids and their mother and asked her to prepare the food. 'After about three minutes the house was targeted by an air raid. I didn't exactly know what to do. 'All of them were under the rubble. White helmets [rescuers] were informed about the attacked place, we were evacuated. The twin's father, mother and older brothers were found alive but the infants and their six-year-old sister were killed. 'Born at the same time, died at the same time, will enter heaven at the same time,' wrote an activist who posted the first picture of the dead babies on to the internet. 'Martyrs from the Al Sakkor neighbourhood in a Russian raid this afternoon.' Later photographer Aref told MailOnline of his own anguish when he learned the dead boys whose picture he had taken were twins. He said: I was shocked when the father of the boys in my photo told me they were twins. The photographs cannot be independently verified although MailOnline has made every effort to do so. Happy family: The twins' sister Fatima was also killed in the bombing. She was just six (pictured left) Omar and Ammar were not the only ones who died last Tuesday, February 16, when their home in the Al Sakkor district of the rebel-held city was destroyed by a Russian bombing raid - one of 2,000 launched on the city and surrounding countryside this month. The twins, thought to be as young as five months old, lost their lives alongside their six-year-old sister Fatima - a smiling, curly-haired little girl who cuddled up to her beloved baby brothers in pictures taken before the raid. Grief: Fatima and the boys are among some 25,000 children who have died because of the five-year civil war Destruction: The family's home (pictured after it was destroyed) was in the rebel-held city of Aleppo, a target for the government-backed Russian missiles Survivors: The children's three older brothers survived the raid. Pictured: Twins Mohamad and Ahmad, 10 Smiling through the pain: Hussein, 12, also survived - pulled from the rubble by the city's residents Their older brothers, 10-year-old twins Mohamad and Ahmad, and Hussein, 12, were all pulled alive from the rubble by more than a dozen young men who sifted through the mangled remains for their home, the family revealed. Their heads are wrapped in bandages, but they seem otherwise unscathed - lucky survivors of a five-year conflict which has claimed the lives of some 25,000 children, according the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. The list of dead children from this month alone is heart-breaking. Among them, Bakr Al Bayrini, who died in an airstrike on his home in Kafr Naha, a town near Aleppo, last Friday. A little earlier this month, five-month-old Eman Al Hamad was killed during an aerial missile attack on the Anadan, a town north of the city. Yet there is hope among the hell of this roll call of the dead. Amid the deadly and frequent bombing raids children are among the hundreds of civilians to have been pulled alive from the rubble of their destroyed homes by Aleppo volunteer rescue teams from the Civil Defence Directorate (CDD). Rollcall of the dead: Bakr Al Bayrini killed in an airstrike on his home in Kafr Naha, a town near Aleppo, last Friday - another of February's young victims. Last month 220 children died, and activists say it stays largely the same each month Slaughtered: Eman Al Hamad, five months old, killed in bombing in Aleppo Province earlier in February Horror: It is not just children who die in the raids - 159 women and 468 men died in January alone Reduced to rubble: There are about 2,000 strikes on Aleppo a month since the Russians began their campaign Their 23 teams of volunteers working in the rebel-held areas of Aleppo and the surrounding area, using basic equipment, is the last hope for many. Deputy director Mustafa told MailOnline: 'Last month [January] we saved 398 people from the bombing 73 children, 59 women and 266 men. 'We also discovered 847 dead people in the rubble. This included 220 children, 159 women and 468 men. 'Every month the number of deaths are about the same.' Among the survivors were two girls pulled from the ruins of their home in Aleppo. The youngster's haunting screams led rescuers to rubble where they lay, their parents and two siblings lying dead next to them. Rescue leader Mustafa told MailOnline: 'One of the team heard the voice of a child crying from the rubble. We worked for a long time until we reached them. The work was very difficult. The search lasted more than an hour. 'At the beginning we found a dead man and a dead woman. When we got close to the sound of crying we found the two girls. They were both screaming. 'We had to remove very large rocks and building blocks. It was a long time before we could get the girls out. Last men standing: Aleppo's Civil Defence Directorate carry bombing victim to safety. President Assad denies that civilians are being hurt in these raids, which he says are aimed at rebels Heart-rending: Volunteers with the Civil Defence Directorate in Aleppo search a ruined building for survivors Rescued: There were 73 children, 59 women and 266 men saved from the rubble in January. Pictured: An injured boy rushed to hospital following aerial bombardment of Aleppo Losing battle: But the number is not much when compared to the almost 1,000 people found dead. Pictured: A little girl rescued from the rubble of a bombed building in Aleppo 'Unfortunately underneath them we found two dead children. 'Their girl's father's name is Mahmood Alhilw, he died with his wife and two other children.' But their statements from inside the city have been dismissed by the Syrian President, who denies the allegations that the Russian Air Force killed any civilians including Omar and Ammar in their bombing raids on 'terrorist targets' last week. Bashar Al Assad told Spain's El Pais newspaper: 'We don't have any evidence that the Russian attacked any civilian targets. 'They are very precise in their targets and they always attack, every day, the bases or the targets of the terrorists.' Assad blamed the United States for the air raids on Aleppo and the surrounding areas last week in which an estimated 250 civilians died. He told El Pais: 'Actually, it's the Americans who did this, who killed many civilians in the north-eastern part of Syria [Aleppo and the surrounding area], not the Russians. 'Not a single incident has happened regarding the civilians so far, because they don't attack in the cities; they attack mainly in the rural areas.' The president described civilian casualties as 'sad' but added 'this is a problem in every war'. 'Lies': Syrian President Bashar Al Assad, pictured, denies the Russian military - which is backing his attempt to keep control of the country - is responsible for civilian casualties in Aleppo, blaming the Americans instead 'Sad': The president acknowledged the casulaties were 'sad'. Pictured: A Russian Sukhoi Su-34 strike fighter jet takes off from Hmeimim military airbase in Latakia, Syria, last week President Assad said: 'Of course I feel very sad for every innocent civilian who dies in our conflict, but this is war. 'Every war is bad, you don't have a good war, because you always have civilians, and you have innocent people who are going to pay the price.' The Syrian president went on to say that he wants to be remembered as 'the one who saved his country' and said he would stay in power for the next ten years to achieve his goal. Asked by El Pais where he saw himself in ten years he replied: 'The most important thing is how I see my country, because I'm part of my country. 'So, in ten years, if I can save Syria as president but that doesn't mean I'm still going to be president in ten years. I'm just talking about my vision of the ten years. If Syria is safe and sound, and I'm the one who saved his country that's my job now, that's my duty.' President Assad urged the five million refugees who had fled Syria to return telling them they had nothing to fear unless they are terrorists. He said: 'Of course they can come. It is their right to come back, unless somebody is a terrorist or killer. 'Some of them, and I think a good number of them, are government supporters who didn't leave because they're afraid of the government, but because of the standards of living that have deteriorated drastically during the last few years. Saviour: Assad has said he believes he could 'save' Syria. Pictured: Russian serviceman prepares a Russian Sukhoi Su-30SM fighter jet at the Hmeimim military base in Latakia province, Syria Burnt to the ground: There is hope scenes like this could be a thing of the past, however, after the Government, main opposition and rebel groups agreed to a ceasefire, which will begin at midnight on Friday 'So of course they can come back without any action being taken against them by the government. We want people to come back to Syria.' The Syrian government and the main umbrella for Syrian opposition and rebel groups announced on Tuesday they both conditionally accept a proposed U.S.-Russian cease fire that the international community hopes will bring them back to the negotiating table in Geneva for talks to end the war. Had been arrested in Owasso, OK, for public intoxication and shoplifting He lived at home and was treated for drug abuse, family members say Officers ran inside house with breathing gear but g unman shot at them Gunman: Alex Buckner, 26, shot four of his family members before setting their Phoenix, Arizona home on fire before being killed by police This is the 26-year-old man who shot four of his family members and set their Phoenix, Arizona house on fire before he was killed by the police. Gunman Alex Arthur Buckner, pictured in an unrelated mugshot from Owasso police department in Oklahoma, then shot at authorities when they arrived at the blazing house and ran inside with breathing gear and fire hoses. Father Vic Buckner, 50, mother Kimberly Buckner, 49, died at the scene. The couple's two daughters, 18-year-old Kaitlin Buckner, and six-year-old Emma, were both rescued but later died in the hospital from gunshot wounds, police said. A tactical team stormed in after the gunfire died down and fatally shot Alex Arthur, police said. Kaitlin Buckner called 911 shortly before 5am, pleading for help and saying that her brother had shot her, Crump said, according to KTVK. The first officers on scene ran into the burning house because they felt they had to act quickly. 'You have people that need you to come and rescue them, and you now have not only a fire, but somebody who's also firing a gun in there,' the police sergeant said. Officers searched for the rest of the victims, but they had to leave because the fire reignited in the attic, sending flames through a ceiling. Family members told investigators that Alex Buckner, who lived in the home, had been in rehab for drug abuse, but the shooting was out of character for him. Scroll down for video Officers searched for the rest of the victims, but they had to leave because the fire reignited in the attic, sending flames through a ceiling Happy family: Kaitlin Buckner (front), 18, poses for a selfie alongside his six-year-old sister Emma, just behind her, her mother Kimberly and her dad Vic. Police believe Alex Buckner used their father's gun Quick-thinking: Kaitlin Buckner, 18, pictured, called 911 shortly before 5am on Tuesday, saying her brother had shot her; the first officers on the scene ran into the house because they felt they had to act quickly Gunman Alex Arthur Buckner shot at at authorities, who arrived at the blazing house and ran inside with breathing gear and fire hoses (pictured Kimberly and Kaitlin Buckner) Police believe Alex used a gun belonging to his father, who ran a car lubrication business out of their home. Vic Buckner, 50, (pictured) died at the scene with Kimberly Buckner, 49, along with their three children Police believe Alex used a gun belonging to his father, who ran a car lubrication business out of their home. Authorities found the other victims after the fire was extinguished. They all suffered gunshot wounds, but a medical examiner will determine their causes of death, authorities said. Investigators will continue gathering evidence at the house, Crump said. The police have no record of ever having been called to the house before. Next-door neighbor James Graham said the family had lived in the home for about two years, and previously lived in Oklahoma. He said he chatted with them occasionally but they never mentioned any problems. Sammie Evans, who lives across the street, said Emma Buckner was learning how to write and would show Evans notes she had written. They would chat a bit before the girl went back to her house. 'I used to call her Miss America. She was so sweet,' Evans said. Alex Arthur Buckner, 26, shot four of his family members before he set their Phoenix, Arizona, house on fire A tactical team stormed the house 45 minutes later after the gunfire died down, and fatally shot the gunman Family members told investigators that Alex Buckner, who lived in the home, had received treatment in Oklahoma for drug abuse, but the shooting was out of character for him Relatives told ABC15 that Alex Buckner had a history of mental health problems, believing that he may have been diagnosed with schizophrenia. Police in Owasso, Oklahoma, where the family had ties, told Newson6 that Buckner had been arrested for public intoxication and shoplifting in the city. 'How does a family talk about a grandson who had mental problems, yet not be angry for the grief that he caused?', asked Diana Buckner, Alex's grandmother. Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton was at the scene after crews tamped down the fire and praised the police and firefighters for their courage. He said: 'This is what heroes look like. Their professionalism and their heroism under the worst possible conditions has truly blown me away.' The chaos woke up residents in surrounding houses, forcing some to evacuate just before dawn. Yolanda Strayhand, who lives behind the burned home, said her elderly mother woke her up after hearing gunfire. Strayhand went outside and said her front yard looked like a movie scene, with lights and noise from several fire engines, SWAT officers and a helicopter. She said: 'We were approached by a lady firefighter who said: "There's a live shooter."' She got a glimpse of the back of the home engulfed in flames. 'Every room on the top floor was lit, and they were pointing guns toward the basement,' she said. An officer came by and told her to leave. Strayhand gathered clothes, medications and her mother's walker, and they both evacuated the scene. Three officers were treated for smoke inhalation. Sammie Evans, who lives across the street, said Emma Buckner was learning how to write and would show Evans notes she had written. Pictured, a police officer at the scene Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton (pictured, center) called it an 'unspeakable violence' but praised police (right) and firefighters for their courage. He said: 'This is what heroes look like' Constand claims Cosby drugged, then sexually assaulted her at his home in January 2004 Constand filed a federal lawsuit against Castor for defamation over what she calls an attempt to smear her name in the press Bruce Castor is the DA who made the decision not to press charges against Cosby in 2005 This comes after comedian tried to get a judge to order Constand not to hand over police reports to a former Montgomery County District Attorney The agreement is also preventing her from speaking out Andrea Constand, 42, wants 2005 confidentiality agreement with Bill Cosby to be thrown out and voided by judge Andrea Constand is headed back to court to battle Bill Cosby once again. Daily Mail Online has exclusively learned that she is asking a judge to throw out the 2005 confidentiality agreement the two reached following her claims he drugged, then sexually assaulted her at his home in January 2004. Constand, 42, wants it to be voided by a judge because she believes the disgraced comedian has abused the court system and is attempting to silence witnesses with knowledge of the alleged sexual abuse. The latest move stems back to October, when Constand filed a federal lawsuit for $150,000 in damages accusing the former Montgomery County Pennsylvania District Attorney Bruce Castor of defamation. SCROLL DOWN FOR VIDEO Back to court: Andrea Constand wants 2005 confidentiality agreement with Bill Cosby to be thrown out and voided by judge as Cosby tries to get judge to order Constand not to hand over police reports to a former Montgomery County District Attorney Castor is the prosecutor who made the decision not to press charges against Cosby in 2005. The lawsuit explained that Castor, who was running for re-election, made comments stating if he were re-elected he would not bring charges against Cosby because both parties could be portrayed in an unflattering light. He also said Constand included more details in her civil lawsuit than in her report to police about the alleged sex assault. Lawsuit: Constand accused former Montgomery County Pennsylvania District Attorney Bruce Castor (pictured) of defamation after he said she included more details in her civil lawsuit than in her report to police about the alleged sex assault Andrea accused Castor of knowingly lying when he made that statement in an attempt to smear her name in the press. Castor denied all of the allegations in the complain, said all statements he made about Constand were true and asked for the suit to be thrown out of court. Then earlier this month - Cosby, who is not part of the lawsuit, filed a motion to intervene also asking for a protective order. He asked that the judge order Constand not to hand over the police reports to Castor in the legal battle. The court documents said Castor requested numerous documents from Constand during the discovery phase of the suit. However, Cosby stated the politician should not be allowed to review the reports due to a clause in the civil lawsuit settlement. Cosby also argued that the release of any statements that Constand made to police back in 2005 would negatively impact the current criminal case he is facing over sexual assault allegations from dozens of women. Now, Constand is blasting Cosby in her opposition to the comedian's attempt to intervene in the case. She not only wants the judge to deny Cosby's motion but she also wants him to order the original settlement agreement null and void. Motion filed: Cosby argues the release of any statements that Constand made to police back in 2005 would negatively impact the current criminal case he is facing over sexual assault allegations from more than 50 women Constand accuses the comedian of using the agreement to mislead the court in this and other matters. Further she states, 'Cosby's abuses of the agreement merit its total abrogation.' She adds: 'Cosby has used the agreement as a means to intimidate witnesses, to conduct a media blitz in an attempt to sway public opinion while silencing those most knowledgeable about his claims, and to engage in conduct evidenced by this motion. 'By repeated filings 'under seal' Cosby has created a shadow court system in which he is free to make any inconsistent and opposing allegations he chooses without the deterrent of public scrutiny.' Cosby has also filed a lawsuit against Constand accusing her of breaching their 2005 settlement. The University of Oklahoma has agreed to return a painting to Leone Meyer (above), a French Holocaust survivor whose father owned the painting The University of Oklahoma has agreed to return a painting that the Nazis stole from a French family during the Second World War, ending a drawn-out dispute over the artwork's ownership. Under the settlement, the ownership of impressionist Camille Pissarro's 1886 painting 'Shepherdess Bringing in Sheep' will be transferred to Leone Meyer, a French Holocaust survivor whose father owned the painting when it was stolen, her New York attorney, Pierre Ciric said. Going forward, the painting - valued in its last appraisal at $1.5million - will split its time being displayed at the university's Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art in Norman and a museum in France. In a statement, University President David Boren said the school is pleased the painting will still be accessible in Oklahoma and available for educational purposes. He said the agreement also recognizes 'the good faith and generosity' of the Weitzenhoffer family, who bought the painting in 1956 from a New York gallery and donated it in 2000 to the university. Boren and the school had opposed the lawsuit on largely procedural grounds, saying prior to the settlement agreement that the school had sovereign immunity. They also argued that Meyer, who lives in Paris and is now in her 70s, hadn't been diligent in pursuing her claim and that she originally sued in New York rather than Oklahoma as a 'forum shopping strategy' to avoid Oklahoma's more restrictive statute of limitations. Scroll down for video Pissarro's 'Shepherdess Bringing in Sheep', pictured on display at the Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art, was stolen by Meyer's father from a bank in southern France. It was valued in its last appraisal at $1.5million But Oklahoma House Rep. Paul Wesselhoft, a Republican from Moore, had been an outspoken critic of the university's decision not to immediately return the painting. 'It's immoral,' Wesselhoft said. 'I love OU, and it's embarrassing when my school doesn't do the moral thing.' Two years ago, Wesselhoft stood outside of a movie theater in frigid temperatures in early February ahead of showings of 'The Monuments Men' to pass out flyers urging people to contact Boren's office about the issue. The movie told the story of architects, artists, curators and museum directors who worked to save works of art from the Nazis. Oklahoma House Rep. Paul Wesselhoft (pictured speaking at a news conference on Tuesday) has been an outspoken critic of the university's decision not to immediately return the painting Going forward, the painting will split its time being displayed at the university's Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art (pictured) in Norman and a museum in France Meyer maintained that she was entitled to the artwork because it belonged to her father when it was taken by the Nazis as German forces occupied France during the war. Swiss records show that Meyer's father had owned the painting, but a Swiss court ruled that its post-war owners had properly established ownership and rejected her claim. In a few months, the settlement will require the painting to be transferred to a museum in France for a period of five years. After that point, it will rotate between museums in Oklahoma and France bearing a label that explains the painting's history, including its seizure by the Nazis and restitution in court. 'She could have chosen to keep this painting in some type of private, closed-door type of situation,' Ciric said of his client. 'Instead, she said she thought it was important for the public to still see this painting.' The settlement also requires that after the title is transferred to Meyer, she will donate the painting to an art institution in France either during her lifetime or in her will. The painting was last appraised in 2008 at $1.5 million, according to university spokeswoman Catherine Bishop. Ciric said the painting will likely be appraised again for insurance purposes before it's shipped to France. The 22-year-old volunteer school aide with the blond streak in his Afro told students at a suburban Maryland elementary school that they were part of a special club, before he allegedly abused them. According to prosecutors, Deonte Carraway pulled kids out of classrooms in the middle of the day and made smartphone videos of them having sex with him and each other on school property. Carraway is facing child pornography charges that could put him in prison for the rest of his life, Maryland U.S. Attorney Rod Rosenstein said at a news conference Tuesday. The charges mark the latest development in a sex-abuse scandal that has shaken parents' faith in Prince George's County school administrators. Scroll down for video Busted: Deonte Carraway, 22, faces federal child pornography charges after he allegedly abused students while working as a teacher's aide at an elementary school in Maryland According to prosecutors, Deonte Carraway (pictured on a school trip) pulled kids out of classrooms in the middle of the day and made smartphone videos of them having sex with him and each other on school property. Police say he victimized at least 17 children According to police, Carraway is known to have victimized at least 17 children, ranging in age from 9 to 13. In addition to Judge Sylvania Woods Elementary School in Glenarden, where he stocked shelves in the library and directed an unofficial school choir, he also abused children at a church, a pool, a community center and several homes, Prince George's County police have said. Two lawsuits, including a class-action complaint, have already been filed against the school system. According to the complaints, the school's principal, Michelle Williams who was placed on leave after Carraway's arrest earlier this month didn't follow up on reports by parents and teachers of predatory behavior by Carraway. Carraway (pictured on Twitter), was arrested after police said he filmed 'vile sexual acts' between children aged nine to 13 When a relative showed an explicit video to Williams, she didn't call police, instead telling the relative to return to the school the next day, the lawsuits say. The relative called police on his own, and Carraway was quickly arrested. Williams hung up when a reporter from The Associated Press reached her by phone on Tuesday. Carraway, whose public defender declined to comment on Tuesday, admitted to investigators that he made the videos and told the kids they were part of a club he called 'AKA,' according to court documents. 'I know it was wrong. I'm a bad person. I'm no child of God for doing this,' Carraway told investigators. '... I know I'm older and I knew it was wrong because kids don't know better and I just lost it and now it don't look good on my part.' Prosecutors said Carraway communicated with his victims and shared the videos on Kik, a messaging app that allows users to hide their identities, and gave the victims usernames for the app. One of Carraway's cellphones was found at the home of a victim, the documents said. In one instance, Carraway asked a nine-year-old boy to take off his pants, and when the boy refused, Carraway threatened to contact the principal and police, prosecutors said. He then ordered another child to have sex with the boy and recorded the act on his phone, prosecutors said. Carraway has been charged with ten counts of felony child pornography, abuse of a minor and second-degree sexual offense 'I think that illustrates the evil, really, that we see in these sort of cases,' Rosenstein said. Carraway was charged with eight counts of producing child pornography, each of which carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in prison if a defendant is convicted. He was also indicted Tuesday in state court on child-sex-abuse charges. Although prosecutors believe Carraway acted alone in making the videos, they did not rule out the possibility that other adults could be charged as collaborators. Charges against Williams, the principal, appear unlikely, however: Maryland is the only state, besides Wyoming, that does not impose criminal penalties on authority figures who knowingly fail to report suspected child abuse to law enforcement. Prince George's County, a suburb of Washington, is the nation's wealthiest majority-black jurisdiction. The school where Carraway volunteered is 56 percent black and 39 percent Latino. Less than 20 percent of students were deemed proficient in reading and math on standardized tests last year. Bill Cosby is being accused of using secret court filings to bully and intimidate the accuser and other witnesses in his criminal sex-assault case, the woman's lawyers charged in a new court filing. Cosby filed a sealed lawsuit this month against Andrea Constand the day before a key pretrial hearing in the criminal case. He said the former Temple University employee had violated the settlement of their confidential 2005 civil suit when she talked to police, who reopened the criminal case last year. Cosby, 78, demanded that Constand repay the settlement money along with interest and damages. The amount of the 2006 settlement remains private. Bill Cosby is accused of intimidating alleged sexual assault victim Andrea Constand (right), as he filed a sealed lawsuit against her saying she violated the terms of their previous settlement The comedian also sued Constand's mother and lawyers, who were also bound by the confidential settlement. The February 1 suit was filed a day before lawyers Dolores Troiani and Bebe Kivitz testified against Cosby in his bid to have the criminal charges thrown out. 'By repeated filings "under seal," Cosby has created a shadow court system, in which he is free to make any inconsistent and opposing allegations he chooses without the deterrent of public scrutiny,' Troiani wrote in a response filed late Monday to the lawsuit. She asked a federal judge to void the confidentiality clause in the civil settlement because, she said, Cosby was abusing it. Troiani wrote: 'Cosby has used the agreement as a means to intimidate witnesses (and) to conduct a media blitz in an attempt to sway public opinion while silencing those most knowledgeable about his claims. 'Cosby's abuses of the agreement merits its total abrogation.' Cosby lawyer Monique Pressley declined to comment Tuesday on the bullying allegations. She said the defense would file a written response in court. Constand accused Cosby of drugging and molesting her at his suburban Philadelphia home in 2004. She filed a civil case against Cosby and the National Enquirer in 2005, which was settled. Part of the settlement included confidentiality clauses. Her complaint wasn't prosecuted at the time, but new prosecutors reopened it last year and arrested Cosby in December, just before the 12-year statute of limitations expired. Cosby has been fighting back against both Constand and seven women who are suing Cosby in a separate defamation case for refuting their sexual assault allegations and calling them liars. Camille, pictured, was forced to give a deposition on Monday in the defamation case As part of their investigation, they interviewed Constand and her mother and obtained files from her lawyer. Cosby's breach-of-contract lawsuit against Constand marks his latest effort to fight back against the dozens of accusations that he drugged and molested women. The statute of limitations has expired in most of the allegations against him, but Cosby faces a separate defamation lawsuit from seven women who claim he has defamed their reputations by calling them liars. He has deployed teams of lawyers across the country to countersue them for defamation. His wife, Camille, was forced to give a deposition in Springfield, Massachusetts on Monday in the defamation case. She has at times served as his business manager. Cosby has been married for 52 years. The accused leader of a Mexican drug trafficking cartel linked to Joaquin 'El Chapo' Guzman has pleaded guilty in an American court. Alfredo Beltran Leyva, who was captured in Mexico in 2008 and extradited to the U.S. two years ago, admitted on Tuesday that he helped ship tons of cocaine from South America to the States. It comes as El Chapo considers surrendering to an American extradition request weeks after he was recaptured by Mexican authorities following his prison break. Alfredo Beltran Leyva, who was captured in Mexico in 2008 (pictured) and extradited to the U.S. two years ago, admitted on Tuesday that he helped ship tons of cocaine from South America to the States Beltran Levya's plea means he has resolved the case without having to air all the evidence against him. However, prosecutors made a point of summarizing the allegations in court. They said they would have been prepared to show that Beltran Leyva sold drugs to U.S. gangs in exchange for weapons, commanded squads of hit men that tortured and murdered rivals, and paid bribes to Mexican government officials. One witness was preparing to testify that he saw Beltran Leyva return from a meeting in the mountains with Guzman, wearing a tactical vest containing grenades, court filings show. 'For decades, Alfredo Beltran Leyva helped to lead one of the world's most notorious drug cartels, causing widespread violence and disrupting lives,' Attorney General Loretta Lynch said in a statement. The arrest of Beltran Leyva was among the early take-downs of cartel bosses by Mexican authorities in their fight against the criminal syndicates that started in the early days of former President Felipe Calderon's term. The Beltran Leyva organization was led by Alfredo and his brothers as it grew to prominence as an arm of Guzman's Sinaloa Cartel. The Beltran Leyva group smuggled drugs and ran human trafficking operations, along with enforcement operations for the larger Sinaloa organization. That relationship soured, according to federal prosecutors, after Alfredo Beltran Leyva's 2008 arrest. His brothers blamed Sinaloa leaders for his arrest and the split eventually led to a bloody fight among the two groups at the same time the Sinaloa cartel was waging a war against the Juarez cartel for control of drug and human smuggling routes in northern Mexico. It comes as El Chapo (pictured) considers surrendering to an American extradition request weeks after he was recaptured by Mexican authorities following his prison break The Beltran Leyva gang started to split apart in late 2009, when one brother, Arturo, who took over for Alfredo, was shot dead by Mexican marines and another brother, Carlos, was detained two weeks later. Another brother, Hector, was arrested in San Miguel de Allende in October. Guzman is currently in Mexican custody, though the government has expressed willingness to extradite him to the U.S., where he faces multiple indictments. Beltran Leyva former position as a trusted ally almost certainly means he has a wealth of information about the inner workings of one of Mexico's most powerful drug cartels. But Beltran Leyva's guilty plea to the indictment does not entail cooperation with the government, a Justice Department spokesman said. Michael Vigil, a former chief of international operations for the Drug Enforcement Administration, said recently that at one time Beltran Leyva handled logistics and bribery payments to public officials for the Sinaloa Cartel and he and his brothers helped the cartel expand the territory it controlled. 'He was one of the architects for the construction of the Sinaloa Cartel,' Vigil said. He added that after his family's split with Guzman and the Sinaloa Cartel, they aligned themselves with former rivals from the Juarez Cartel and eventually Los Zetas, a ruthless gang that once served as the enforcement arm for the Gulf Cartel. Those relationships may also make him a valuable witness in other pending cases. 'He can definitely provide the blue print for significantly impacting a lot of the cartels, to include Sinaloa,' Vigil said. Hillary Clinton still isn't sweating over her email scandal, even after a federal judge warned today that the Democratic hopeful's entire email server could be subpoenaed. 'I know there are are challengers about what the State Department did or did not do - that will all be worked out,' she said tonight at a CNN town hall. 'It's just not something that is going to have a lasting effect. And I am not at all worried about it.' Earlier today, U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan ruled that U.S. State Department officials and aides to Clinton should be questioned under oath about whether the former secretary of state's use of a private email system was an effort to skirt open records laws. 'How on earth can the court conclude there is not at minimum a reasonable suspicion of bad faith,' Sullivan said. Scroll down for video Hillary Clinton still isn't sweating over her email scandal, even after a federal judge warned today that the Democratic hopeful's entire email server could be subpoenaed. 'I know there are are challengers about what the State Department did or did not do - that will all be worked out,' she said tonight at a CNN town hall moderated by Chris Cuomo. 'It's just not something that is going to have a lasting effect. And I am not at all worried about it' The ruling is likely to add to the uncertainty hovering over Clinton, the front-runner for the Democratic nomination for the November U.S. presidential election, about the legal consequences of her decision to exclusively use a private email server in her New York home for her government work. If she's nervous, she wasn't showing it tonight at CNN's forum in South Carolina, though. 'There just is no basis for that,' she told moderator Chris Cuomo after he asked her about anxious Democrats who are worried that suspicion over her secret server taint her in the November election if she's the party's nominee. Cuomo said they're worried about the 'drip, drip, drip' theory. 'I'm well aware of the drip, drip, drip,' she said, pointing to her 25 years in public service. Clinton said she has been the 'subject of a lot of ongoing attacks and misinformation and all the rest of it.' 'But I can only tell you what the facts are. And the facts are that every single time someone has hurled those charges against me...it's proved to be nothing and this is no different than that,' she said. Referencing her appearance before the House Benghazi Committee, she argued that after her 13 hours of testimony, 'They had to say there was nothing there.' Same goes for the State Department emails she kept on a private server in her home, Clinton said - 55,000 of which she turned over to the State Department a year ago in March. 'Nobody in any cabinet position has ever been as transparent or open,' she said. The State Department and Judicial Watch, the conservative watchdog group suing for records about the employment of a senior Clinton aide, are at the center of the current challenge over Clinton's emails. They must agree on a plan for the depositions by April, Sullivan said in his order today, according to court documents. Sullivan, a judge in federal court in Washington, D.C., said there was at least 'a reasonable suspicion' that open records laws were undermined, The Washington Post reported. The federal was appointed by Clinton's husband, former President Bill Clinton. He said he may order the department to subpoena Hillary Clinton to return all records connected to her private email server, the newspaper reported. The former cabinet official returned about 30,000 emails to the State Department in 2014, but said she deleted thousands of others her staff deemed not to be work-related. Judicial Watch told the court it wanted to get sworn testimony from several senior State Department officials and Clinton associates, both past and present, who set up or knew about the system or dealt with requests from the public for copies of Clinton's records, according to court documents. In court filings, the group mentioned Patrick Kennedy, the department's under secretary for management, and Cheryl Mills, Clinton's former chief of staff at the department, among others. In a statement to the media, the group said it may later seek to have Clinton testify under oath. A judge warned today that he could eventually issue a subpoena that would require the State Department to ask Hillary Clinton (left) for her entire clintonemail.com system, used by the former secretary of state and her top aide Huma Abedin (right) In granting discovery, Sullivan said he is 'inclined' to issue a subpoena in the future that would force the State Department to ask Clinton to turn over her entire clintonemail.com system, which she and top aide Huma Abedin both used, according to the Washington Times. But Sullivan said he wanted to see what the discovery process revealed first. The State Department said it was reviewing the order but could not comment further on ongoing litigation. The department may appeal the ruling. David Kendall, Clinton's lawyer, declined to comment. Last year, Clinton apologized for the setup, several months after it came to light in March 2015. She said she broke no rules. At least 1,700 of the emails from Clinton's unsecured server contain classified information, according to the State Department, including closely held secrets from the country's spy agencies. The arrangement is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the State Department's internal watchdog and several Republican-controlled congressional committees. Clinton's rival for the Democratic nomination, U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont, has declined to criticize Clinton's email arrangement while campaigning. A former New York Times journalist has been found dead in the Dominican Republic and police are investigating her husband over the alleged strangling. Sarah Kershaw, 49, from Massachusetts, was found on Monday at her beach apartment in Sosua, an area popular with expatriates on the Caribbean island, where she moved with her husband William Norton, in 2014. Norton, 50, was being questioned about her death, said Osvaldo Bonilla, a prosecutor for the province of Puerto Plata. Sarah Kershaw, 49, was found on Monday at her beach apartment in Sosua, an area popular with expatriates on the Caribbean island, where she moved with her husband William Norton, in 2014 (both pictured) This photo shows the entrance to the second floor apartment (top left) in Sosua, Dominica Republic, where journalist Sarah Kershaw was found dead at her home Police had initially said Kershaw appeared to have died from asphyxiation. They later posted on Facebook that Norton had been accused of causing the death of his wife by 'strangling'. The police statement said Kershaw had 'demanded he leave.' Norton's Facebook page describes him as a former senior editor of the Miami Herald's international edition. He is also a science news writer at ScienceRecorder.com, according to his LinkedIn profile. Norton did not have a lawyer in the Dominican Republic and could not be reached for comment. Police had initially said Kershaw (left) appeared to have died from asphyxiation. They later posted on Facebook that Norton (right) had been accused of causing the death of his wife by 'strangling' Kershaw worked as a reporter for The New York Times from 2000 to 2011 Kershaw worked as a reporter for The New York Times from 2000 to 2011. She previously worked for the newspaper Newsday on New York's Long Island, among other publications, and was a freelance writer at the time of her death. Her most recent articles were a series of stories about a disabled veteran and his war-dog-turned-service-dog published in the Washington Post. Her death shocked her former colleagues. Trish Hall, one of her editors at the New York Times, said: 'Talking with her was always one of the best parts of my day. She was curious about everything, and everything was fodder for a story.' A neighbor, Tony Cuevas, said Kershaw spent most mornings writing on the balcony of the Trade Winds apartments and the afternoons by the pool with her dog. 'They are very laid back,' he said of the couple. The father who disappeared from his daughters wedding in California while visiting from India has been found dead in a river. Prasad Moparti, 55, was found floating in a slough about five miles downstream from the wedding reception where he was last seen alive on February 13, the Sacramento County Coroner confirmed. The coroner has not yet determined a cause of death, but investigators say foul play is not suspected. Moparti had traveled from his Hyderabad home in central India to his daughter Durga's Los Angeles home in January. Scroll down for video Prasad Moparti (above) disappeared shortly after this photo was taken at his daughters wedding in California on February 13. His body was found in a slough about five miles from where he was last seen Dressed in traditional Indian attire and after posing for pictures with the beaming bride and groom, Moparti told his new son-in-law he was going for a stroll. Family members say he walked away about 4pm from his daughter's wedding reception at the Grand Island Mansion in Walnut Grove. The popular waterfront wedding resort in the region's delta region about 30 miles south of Sacramento. He was reported missing a few hours later. Moparti was unfamiliar with the area, Sacramento County Sheriff's Sgt. Tony Turnbull said. He was last seen walking toward a bridge spanning the slough. Moparti (right) had traveled from his Hyderabad home in central India to his daughter Durga's (left) Los Angeles home in January Family members further indicated Moparti suffered from depression, and that he showed indicators of his depression leading up to the wedding, Turnbull said. Authorities called off a land, water and air search for Moparti after three days. Moparti was considered a voluntary missing person. But because of Moparti's lack of knowledge of the area and his depression, the Sheriff's Department utilized all resources available in attempts to locate him, Turnbull said. His daughter, Durga Moparti, and new husband, Rajesh Gutta, could not be reached for comment on Tuesday. Family members say he walked away about 4pm from his daughter's wedding reception at the Grand Island Mansion (pictured) in Walnut Grove Authorities called off a land, water and air search for the 55-year-old Moparti after three days The newlyweds postponed their honeymoon to San Francisco and spent their first days as a married couple frantically searching for the brides father and handing out missing person posters. On Sunday, his daughter told the CBS Sacramento that it sounded like he was a little depressed and he wanted to go back to India. She added: My dad missing is the only thing going on in my head right now nothing else. Gutta added that in the days leading up to the wedding, it appeared that Moparti was not doing well. Investigators say they haven't determined whether Moparti's died accidentally. We may never know what happened, Turnbull said. The newlyweds postponed their honeymoon to San Francisco and spent their first days as a married couple frantically searching for the brides father. Pictured above, Durga Moparti Liberal senator Cory Bernardi has fired back at Bill Shorten, accusing the Opposition Leader of 'going into full homophobe mode' after the pair had a testy corridor exchange. The angry backbencher stumbled over his words on Wednesday afternoon as he accused Mr Shorten of having an 'unhinged.. Mark Latham moment' earlier that day. 'Rather than engage in the merit of the debate, he's gone into full homophobe mode, mo-, ahhh, homophobe mode,' Mr Bernardi said. The senator's fiery words came after he shared a testy corridor exchange with the Opposition Leader in Parliament House. Scroll down for video Liberal senator Cory Bernardi was not pleased after Labor leader Bill Shorten called him a 'homophobe' on Wednesday morning Mr Bernardi (left, right) said Mr Shorten had an 'unhinged... Mark Latham moment' Mr Bernardi interrupted Mr Shorten as he railed against Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull's decision to review the Safe Schools Program at a press conference. 'That'd be me,' a suited Mr Bernardi said as he strolled past. 'That'd be the chap,' Mr Shorten said. 'At least I'm honest, Bill. You're a fraud!' 'No, mate,' the Labor leader said. 'At least I'm not a homophobe either, mate.' Bill Shorten had been interrupted by Liberal Senator Cory Bernardi during a press conference, before the Opposition Leader called him a 'homophobe' Drive-by slanging match: Cory Bernardi walked past (pictured), and called Mr Shorten a 'fraud' and added, 'at least I'm honest' Earlier, Mr Bernardi had reportedly warned the Liberal party room the Safe Schools program should not be taxpayer funded. According to a Fairfax report, he said the program could 'indoctrinate children into a Marxist agenda of cultural relativism'. Labor supports the voluntary syllabus, which is aimed at helping lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex students. The Islamic prayer rooms at a prominent Australian university have been vandalised and flooded with racist notes accusing Muslims of being rapists and thieves. A student discovered the had been ransacked about 10am on Monday morning, and found a letter with ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi on it, Honi Soit reported. This is apparently the fifth time the room at the Old Teachers' College at Sydney University has been targeted in just three months. This hate mail was sent to the Sydney University Muslim Students' Association this week 'Five alleged break-ins over a period of three months is quite significant for an Islamic centre at a prominent university,' Mariam Veiszadeh, President of Islamophobia Register Australia told Daily Mail Australia. A letter left in the room following the break-in featured a photo of ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, with speech bubbles coming from his mouth that read: 'Allahu Akbar' (God is good) and 'Why did Allah give me such a tiny c**k'. The hate mail accused Muslims of 'genital mutilation, raping little girls, crucifying non-believers, stoning women (and) enslaving women'. The letter also claimed people who followed Islam were 'blowing up planes and trains, selling ice to our kids, (and) throwing gays off tall buildings'. The prayer room was trashed, in what is said to be the fifth targeted attack in just three months This is not the first time the prayer room has been broken in to, and it has allegedly happened four other times since December In a post to the Sydney University Muslim Students' Association, Shahad Nomani said that while no one had been hurt, 'Muslims have increasingly been abused and harmed in many spheres of their life'. 'Five times our place of prayer and solace has been ransacked. Five times these vandals wished to hurt the Muslims at the University of Sydney. Despite this, Mr Nomani encourages his fellow Muslims to 'continue to prosper in Australia despite the bigots and racists who want to throw us out'. 'May those who find hatred in their hearts against us find the ability to communicate with us,' he wrote. In a post to the Sydney University Muslim Students' Association, Shahad Nomani said that while no one had been hurt, 'Muslims have increasingly been abused' According to Honi Soit undergraduate student Samiha Elkheir was the first to discover Mondays break-in.President of the Sydney University Muslim Society, Nasreen Dean told the publication: 'Islamophobia is very real in Australia'. 'Its childish but it doesnt mean we dont take it seriously. Muslims on every university campus should have access to safe places without the need to feel like we are crying for crumbs.' NSW Police confirmed officers from Newtown had attended two incidents at the prayer room at Sydney University. 'In both incidents, unknown persons have accessed a room on campus and on one occasion a letter was also recovered in the area,' a spokesperson said. Esther Lee looks like any other cheeky two-year-old, but not many toddlers can name the capital of every city country in the world. Not only is she a walking atlas, the genius toddler, from Blacktown in western Sydney, can also speak Mandarin and English and understands Spanish. Appearing on Channel's Seven's breakfast show Sunrise on Wednesday morning, the child prodigy was expected to showcase her special talent live on air, accompanied by her father Shu. But the young girl appeared flustered as she attempted to slide off her seat, in which Sunrise host Samantha Armytage said: 'Esther, before you run away, can you do some capitals for us?' Scroll down for video Genius toddler Esther Lee refused to answer the capital cities after she was questioned by Sunrise host Samantha Armytage on Wednesday morning 'No, I wanna run away,' little Esther responded, prompting laughter from co-host David Koch. 'Can you tell us what the capital of Japan is?' Armytage continued to quiz the child, in which Esther insisted: 'I want to run away.' 'You want to run away? But before you run away, what's the capital of Japan?' Armytage said again. Esther then started to ramble over and over: 'I want to run away, I want to run away, I want to run away...' and then it dawned on Armytage that she planted the words in her head. 'I wish I hadn't said run away,' Armytage said as she laughed. The child prodigy was expected to showcase her special talent live on air but insisted she'd 'run away' instead Armytage and co-host David Koch had an awkward situation when young Esther refused to answer Armytage has shared an adorable photograph of herself with the genius toddler following the interview After a failed attempt to get an answer, Koch said: 'This is terrific, because it shows "yes, she's incredibly bright and we feel intimidated" but she's a normal little two-year-old.' Armytage started to throw out more country names to get Esther to respond with the capital cities but the young girl was still determined to 'run away'. 'You brainwashed her,' Koch said to Armytage after Esther failed to give the answer. 'I've just undone all your hard work,' Armytage said to Mr Lee as she laughed. The extraordinary girl was just 18 months old when her parents discovered her incredible ability to learn and memorise details of any country - and recite them in any order. Genius toddler Esther Lee can name every capital city of the world's 195 independent countries in any order Earlier on Wednesday, Esther's father Shu - a high school humanities and Mandarin casual teacher - told Channel Nine's Today Show his daughter's feat came as an 'accident'. 'It came about last year when we went on a family trip to Thailand... We went to Bangkok and we just happened to ask her what was the capital city of Thailand,' Mr Lee said. 'And we just taught her it was Bangkok. We started with one then we went to five, then we went to 10 and after I discovered she was interested in the capitals, I just kept on going.' 'It started kind of like an accident,' he said. 'We went on a family trip to Thailand, Bangkok about a year ago and we just decided to ask her what was the capital city of Thailand,' Mr Lee said. 'Obviously since we were in Bangkok.... we tell her and after a few days, we ask her again and we discovered that she knows.' 'And then from then on, I just throw in some of the other countries like where my family is from - Malaysia - and her mum is from China, where we live Australia and found that she could retain that.' The genius toddler, from western Sydney, can also speak Mandarin and English and understands Spanish Esther's father Shu - a high school humanities and Mandarin teacher - revealed her feat came as an 'accident' The extraordinary girl was just 18 months old when her parents discovered her incredible ability to recite The family were on a holiday when her parents discovered their two-year-old daughter is a child prodigy And the child prodigy knows the capital cities of Somaliland, Swaziland, Lesotho, Mauritania, Guinea-Bissau, Mauritius and Sierra Leone - places that some adults would never even heard of. When Today Show host Lisa Wilkinson asked 'what's the capital of Australia', the cheeky toddler was too excited about seeing herself on television to answer. And while most children of her age can only count to five, Esther has also learned her two, three, four, five, six, seven and eight times-tables. Single-use plastic shopping bags could be a thing of the past with Queensland and NSW weighing up a joint ban to follow in the footsteps of four other Australian states and territories. South Australia, Tasmania, the ACT and Northern Territory have already reduced the use of the bags with the common grey supermarket bag banned. Queensland Environment Minister Steven Miles will attend a round-table meeting with his interstate counterparts next week and is set to discuss how Queensland might follow in their footsteps. The Queensland and NSW governments are considering a joint back ban on single-use shopping bags to follow in the footsteps of four other Australian states and territories 'One of the messages we've heard from industry is that it makes it very difficult for them if there are lots of different policies in different states,' Dr Miles told the ABC on Wednesday. 'That probably means the most viable option is to look at something similar to what the other states have done.' Dr Miles said 40 per cent of turtles in Moreton Bay were found to have plastic inside them - which often led to slow and painful deaths - and the impact of plastic rubbish on marine life needed to be curbed. He said the 'sky hasn't fallen' in jurisdictions where plastic bags were outlawed. 'People have changed their habits a little bit, but life's gone on.' Queensland Environment Minister Steven Miles will attend a round-table meeting with his interstate counterparts next week and is set to discuss how Queensland might follow in their footsteps Dr Miles said 40 per cent of turtles in Moreton Bay were found to have plastic inside them - which often led to slow and painful deaths - and the impact of plastic rubbish on marine life needed to be curbed The country's environment ministers are set to discuss how to reduce the fatal impact of plastic bags on marine life and the impact on the environment Dr Miles said acting in conjunction with NSW on the ban would make it easier for businesses along the state's border so they didn't have to follow different rules, the Courier Mail reports. The country's environment ministers are set to discuss how to reduce the fatal impact of plastic bags on marine life and the impact on the environment. Dr Miles is pushing for a nationwide ban, but options up for discussion also include a voluntary industry scheme or a plastic bag levy, which the Queensland government don't want to adopt. Terrie-Ann Johnson, Managing Director of Clean Up Australia, said it would take time for people to adjust but the change would be good for community engagement. Queensland Environment Minister Steven Miles will attend a round-table meeting with his interstate counterparts next week and is set to discuss how Queensland might follow in their footsteps Dr Miles is pushing for a nationwide ban, but options up for discussion also include a voluntary industry scheme or a plastic bag levy, which the Queensland government don't want to adopt 'You've got to give people warning, and you've got to give people viable alternatives that are freely accessible,' she said. Ms Johnson welcomed the government's direction said any change could be enacted in relatively straight-forward legislation. The Queensland government will seek the input of residents in the middle of the year before deciding on what course to take. Mail Online columnist Katie Hopkins is stable, upbeat and tweeting away less than 24 hours after undergoing brain surgery in a bid to cure her epilepsy. Doctors spent 12 hours mining for the lesion in Katie's head on Monday in an operation that normally takes between four and eight hours. Though it was 'a little trickier than the surgeons expected', tests have come back positive and all her vital organs were unscathed, Katie's agent told Daily Mail Online on Tuesday night. Propped up in bed enjoying her first meal in two days, the 41-year-old mother-of-three took to Twitter on Tuesday to update her 650,000 followers. Scroll down for video Mail Online columnist Katie Hopkins is stable, upbeat and tweeting away less than 24 hours after undergoing brain surgery in a bid to cure her epilepsy. She is pictured here enjoying her first meal in two days on Tuesday Within minutes of waking up, Katie was asking for the WiFi code, her agent said 'A tweet from the High Dependency Unit to give you bad news. Even 12 hours in surgery and the removal of part of my brain has not shut me up,' she wrote. Katie was wheeled into the operating theater by a team of 10 surgeons at 9am on Monday, and didn't come to until 9pm, when she was transferred to the High Dependency Unit. It will be days until doctors can draw up a detailed diagnosis of their findings. For now, however, Katie and her husband Mark say they are simply relieved that she made it through the surgery without any major complications as it could have left her with impaired vision or speech deficiency. As one doctor told Katie before the operation, 'the price you pay to enter the casino of neuro-surgery is uncertainty'. 'Katie just wants to thank Mr [Andrew] McEvoy and his brilliant team of surgeons for doing such a great job,' her agent Sylvia Tidy-Harris told Daily Mail Online on Tuesday. With her head bandaged, she's yet to see the state of her hair, which was shaved for the operation. 'We're hoping she'll have one of those trendy shaved hairdos, that would be a laugh,' Ms Tidy-Harris joked. The 41-year-old Mail Online columnist initially hid the scale of her operation from her three children - India, 11, Poppy, 10, and seven-year-old Maximilian - telling them instead that she was going in for 'tests'. But after successful walking tests, speaking tests, and x-rays on Tuesday morning, Katie spoke to them on the phone and explained what happened in a little more detail. She hopes to be reunited with them by the weekend if she continues to recover at the same rapid rate. Though it was 'a little trickier than the surgeons expected', tests have come back positive and all her vital organs were unscathed, Katie's agent told Daily Mail Online on Tuesday night Katie had her head shaved then she was wheeled into the operating theater by a team of 10 surgeons at 9am on Monday, and didn't come to until 9pm, when she was transferred to the High Dependency Unit (pictured) So far she has been propped up in bed, gratefully eating her first meal in two days. The operation was an attempt to locate and possibly remove the lesion that has sent Katie into frequent epileptic fits since she was 19. In November, she revealed she has to have two teeth removed after falling in the street during a fit. It wasn't until 2014 that Katie first opened up about her struggle with epilepsy, when she revealed she had been hospitalized 26 times in just nine months. In an interview with The Guardian, she said: 'When I have a fit at night, my arms come out. They dislocate. So I have to go into hospital to have them relocated. 'That's happened 26 times in the last nine months. So we all have cr*p to deal with in our lives. I'm hard with myself. 'Get on with it. Move on. Get your arms put back in.' In January 2015, the mother-of-three opened up again while appearing as a contestant in Celebrity Big Brother. She told blogger Perez Hilton part of her brain is missing, and revealed she suffers an 'episode', 'every night or every other,' and takes 'lots of medication'. 'It just came on. There's a bit missing [in my brain],' she said. 'A lot of people get it from a bang to the head but mine's just missing a bit of brain, which might be quite apparent. 'I've seen the bit missing, I've seen the scan. It's really freaky.' Hours before going under the knife, Katie wrote about the impending surgery in her Mail Online column. Preparing for surgery: Katie Hopkins pictured on Monday morning before her brain operation 'The beautiful thing about brain surgery is it gives you hope and perspective,' she said. 'Hope that things may be better. Perspective that most things in life don't matter so much at all. 'Standing on the high wire suspended between life and death, in the hands of the surgical gods, the problems of the world actually look quite small. 'I have a team of four surgeons, a jolly anesthetist who tells me I will definitely be asleep until I need to be awake, and some nurses who are going to put a catheter in as I sleep. 'I give them my thanks in advance and I am sorry I was never one for a wax.....' She also admitted that epilepsy - or, 'the thing' in her brain - is something she has always seen as a weakness. It was, she wrote, 'the thing I hid because I never wanted to be judged as less than the rest (...) the thing which saw me slung out of the army after completing the Commissioning Course at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, and the reason why my arms have dislocated 42 times in three years. 'I always wanted to be the first female General. But I understand an epileptic with a rifle was never my finest idea. 'But I am grateful. Because so often in life, it is our weakness which make us tougher than the rest. Faye also claims that Nicole was a fan of the 'Brentwood hello,' which involved waking a sleeping man by going down on him Faye (played by Connie Britton), explains why she wrote the book, saying; 'I went to a psychic and she said, "Nicole wants you to write a book"' Nicole Brown Simpson: The Private Diary of a Life Interrupted detailed how the two women frequently did American Crime Store: The People V. OJ Simpson spent half of Tuesday's episode on the preparation by both the prosecution and defense prior to the start of the trial of the century, and the other half on the writing and release of Faye Resnick's now infamous book about Nicole Brown Simpson. In October 1994, just four months after Nicole was killed, Faye (played by Connie Britton) released Nicole Brown Simpson: The Private Diary of a Life Interrupted, which was co-written with National Enquirer columnist Mike Walker. The book alleged that the two women frequently used cocaine and that they even enjoyed a 'night of girlish passion' together shortly before Nicole's murder. Scroll down for video Faye Resnick (played by Connie Britton, pictured) was the focus of half the latest episode of American Crime Story: The People V. OJ Simpson In the show, Britton plays Resnick as she writes her explosive book telling her side of the case In October 1994, just four months after Nicole was killed, Faye released Nicole Brown Simpson: The Private Diary of a Life Interrupted, which was co-written with National Enquirer columnist Mike Walker Here, Britton's Faye describes how Nicole got a boob job at OJ's request and alleges her sexual appetite was insatiable, claiming she would have sex knowing that her estranged husband was outside watching her 'Nicole was my everything. You know she was my confidante, my spiritual sister,' says Faye during the episode as she meets with the publisher and her new co-writer. 'I went to a psychic and she said, "Nicole wants you to write a book."' She then talks about how the two went to parties and went clubbing and their drug use. Faye also claims that Nicole was a fan of the 'Brentwood hello,' which involved waking a sleeping man by going down on him. In their next meeting Faye goes further and discusses how Nicole got a boob job at OJ's request and alleges her sexual appetite was insatiable, claiming she would have sex knowing that her estranged husband was outside on her property stalking and watching her. She also talks about her struggle with sobriety, as she had just entered rehab for her problems with cocaine at the time of Nicole's death. 'I'm trying to mange it,' she says. 'There's no good time to find out your best friend's been murdered, but especially not three days into cocaine treatment.' Faye's 1994 book (left, Resnick in 1996 right) alleged that the two women frequently used cocaine and enjoyed a 'night of girlish passion' together before Nicole's murder Later in the episode the release of the book causes problems for both the prosecution and defense, who are unhappy with the portrayal of both Nicole and OJ, who Faye writes about as if he committed both murders. It also leads to a delay in the jury selection process while Judge Lance Ito (played by Kenneth Choi) tries to determine if it will have a negative impact on the pool or jurors given the salacious details. Faye, who received a six-figure advance for the book, also alleged that Nicole had been sleeping with Marcus Allen, despite the fact that he was married and one of her estranged husband's best friends. The allegation has come back to haunt her of recent as she is a frequent guest star of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills which this season also features Marcus' wife at the time, Kathryn Edwards. Resnick would go on to write another book after the trial in 1996 about her experiences with Jeanne V. Bell titled Shattered: In the Eye of the Storm. Conrad's lawyer in the case was Robert Shapiro, famed for being the lead attorney in the O.J. Simpson murder trial Conrad Hilton has been ordered into a residential treatment program for six months after a Federal Court Judge ruled the hotel heir's substance abuse and mental health condition requires medication and supervision, according to newly released court documents seen by Daily Mail Online. The hotel heir avoided jail time but has been ordered into substance abuse treatment after failing drug tests and violating his probation terms set after his meltdown on a British Airways flight from London to Los Angeles. The rehab is mandatory and his probation has been extended for another three years. Conrad's lawyer in the case was Robert Shapiro, famed for being the lead attorney in the O.J. Simpson murder trial and now being portrayed in the FX miniseries by John Travolta. Scroll down for video Conrad Hilton was ordered into a residential treatment facility for six months and was sentenced to three year's probation Famous family: Conrad joined sister Paris Hilton for a shopping trip in Aspen in 2011 In addition, the young Hilton has been prohibited from driving a car, 'due to evidence on the record he may have driven under the influence.' The brother of Paris and pregnant Nicky Hilton was sentenced to probation and community service in 2015 after an outburst on a British Airways flight from London to LA, where he threatened to kill the crew and called passengers 'peasants.' Authorities say the 21-year-old violated probation by trespassing, failing drug tests, failing to complete three treatment programs and traveling out of California without permission from his probation officer. He has also been accused of breaking into an ex-girlfriend's home after she took out a restraining order against him. On the flight, the heir threw an epic tantrum, screaming, threatening flight attendants and shouting, 'If you wanna square up to me bro, then bring it and I will f**king fight you.' He also yelled 'I will f**king own anyone on this flight; they are f**king peasants.' During the flight Hilton was accused of smoking weed in the bathroom of the plane. He became so erratic the flight crew had to restrain him to his seat after he had passed out. He was charged with a felony for threatening the flight attendants and interfering with the crew, but had that dropped to a misdemeanor assault charge after he entered a plea deal. The prosecution agreed to recommend to the judge Hilton get probation, not jail time. The initial felony charge carried a maximum jail time of 20 years but the misdemeanor charge only carried jail time up to six months. Restraining order: While on probation over the flight meltdown, Conrad was arrested for allegedly breaking into the home of his ex-girlfriend Hunter Salomon, who had taken out a restraining order against him Hilton was ordered to obey all laws per his plea deal until he was sentenced by the court. However, according to documents filed on April 30, Hilton violated the terms of his plea deal by failing a drug test. He admitted to smoking marijuana, and was ordered to enroll in outpatient substance abuse treatment. He was also slapped with a curfew requiring him to stay home between the hours of 10pm and 5am. Conrad was ultimately sentenced to 750 hours of community service for the outburst, and was ordered to pay a $5,000 fine along with undergo mental and substance abuse treatment and be put on probation for 3 years, and was ordered to avoid alcohol or drug use. However, he violated the terms of his parole when he was arrested back in June for allegedly breaking into the home of his ex-girlfriend, Hunter Salomon, after she broke off their relationship. Hunter is the daughter Rick Salomon - Conrad's sister Paris' co-star in her infamous sex tape, and of actress E.G. Daily. Prior to Hilton allegedly breaking into her home, Hunter filed for a restraining order against him, explaining she had dated Conrad for several years but they broke up. She claimed Hilton became obsessive, calling her the love of his life, and threatened to commit suicide. Heir: Conrad Hilton, seen with parents Kathy and Rick Hilton at the 2009 People's Choice Awards in LA She said 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. Iyana Sade Llanos, 25, (pictured) was arrested after she got naked in front of police officers A Florida woman kicked out a police car window after being arrested for disorderly conduct and getting naked in front of police officers. Iyana Sade Llanos, 25, was taken into custody after police responded to a call of two women arguing at The Office Gentleman's Club in Miami. Officers arrived at the club to find Llanos outside the strip club screaming profanities, NBC6 reported. When the officers confronted her, she began taking off her clothes and continued shouting at them. The officers told Llanos several times to put her clothes back on but she refused, NBC6 reported. Llanos, who is listed in the report as a dancer, smelled of alcohol, the report said. She then began telling the officers: 'Take me to jail.' Llanos was placed in hand restraints and put in the back of the car, wrapped in a yellow blanket. While she was en route to jail, she kicked out a police car window and had to be taken to Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami to be treated for minor injuries, officers said. Llanos will likely be charged with criminal mischief. She will go to jail after she's released from the hospital. After being placed in custody, Llanos kicked out a police car window (pictured) while en route to jail A young woman was left in disgust after discovering mouldy tampons in a newly-bought pack. Paula Stechman, from New Zealand, posted a disturbing photograph on social media in an attempt to warn other women to think twice about what's inside their tampon applicators. The image, which was shared on Facebook on Friday night, shows what appears to be large spots of mould covering up to five U by Kotex tampons. 'To all my female friends that use U by Kotex tampons triple check them before usingvthem [sic] as this is a pack I brought today! All of them were moldy... [sic]' she wrote. Ms Stechman told Daily Mail Australia she is in the 'process of sorting the issue with the company'. A young New Zealand woman was left in disgust after discovering mouldy tampons in a newly-bought pack Kimberly-Clark - who manufactures the range of feminine hygiene products - has confirmed they are aware of the situation and will be launching an investigation into the cause of the faulty product. 'We are aware of the situation with a consumer who found mould on her tampons and are working with her to understand as much as we can about what happened and why,' a Kimberly-Clark spokeswoman told Daily Mail Australia in a statement. 'Nothing is more important to Kotex than the safety and wellbeing of the women that use our products. Kotex products undergoing a number of rigorous quality inspections, and all Kotex tampons must pass strict microbiological standards before leaving our facilities. We encourage all consumers to carefully store their tampons in a moisture free environment. 'We have asked the consumer to return the tampons in question so we can understand what could cause this situation. We will take all appropriate steps to investigate this situation so we can understand what occurred and if it occurred while the product was in our chain of control.' The woman wanted warn other women to think twice about what's inside the tampon applicators (stock image) Paula Stechman posted a disturbing photograph on social media in an attempt to warn other women The Facebook post has sent an alarming warning to several women, with nearly 400 shares since it was uploaded online. One woman said: 'Think this may have just put me off buying them again!!' Another wrote: 'Ewww yuk [sic].' While another posted: 'Oh my f*****g god they are the only brand I use ewwww [sic] so checking mine now.' A Florida teen who is accused of pretending to be a doctor is also being sued by a car dealership. Grieco Mazda in Delray Beach is seeking $7,200 in damages plus interest from 18-year-old Malachi Love-Robinson, who also went by the name Dr Love, after he tried to buy a new car with a bad check. The latest claim comes a week after the teenager who charged patients up to $3,000 for procedures was arrested and accused of practicing medicine without a license. Scroll down for video Malachi Love-Robinson, the teenager accused of masquerading as a doctor, is also being sued by a car dealership for trying to buy a new set of wheels with a bad check. The 18-year-old is pictured left on his 'clinic's' website and right in his mug shot) A lawsuit, seen by the Palm Beach Post, claims that in June, Love-Robinson gave a salesman a Wells Fargo check for $1,800 as a down payment for a 2016 red Mazda 6 costing more than $27,000. The bank refused to cash the check, saying the account was closed. Records show Love-Robinson responded to the suit in writing in August. He claimed the bad check was a mistake, and that the dealership didn't give him enough time to fix it. Love-Robinson, of West Palm Beach, Florida faces several charges, including practicing medicine without a license, fraud and grand theft. He was released on $21,000 bail last Wednesday morning and later sat down for a remote interview with ABC Los Angeles correspondent Matt Gutman. Showing up to the interview with his grandfather, the teen admitted he never graduated from medical school but insists he did nothing wrong and that the allegations against him are 'merely accusations'. When asked if he is any kind of doctor at all, Love-Robinson claimed he does hold a PhD but refused to say in what field 'because that is not the issue here'. 'The issue I face now is accusations,' he said. He added: 'There are many types of degrees out there that hold the title of doctor - whether they are physicists or engineers. Just because someone has the title of doctor in front of their name does not necessarily imply "MD".' During the clip, ABC showed footage that affiliate WBPF took last month in which Love-Robinson showed reporters around his new clinic. In the clip, a reporter can be seen peeling away tape covering an 'MD' typed after Love-Robinson's nameplate in the clinic - suggesting he did in fact lie about being a graduate of a medical school. Grieco Mazda in Delray Beach is seeking $7,200 in damages plus interest from Love-Robinson after the down payment he used to buy a 2016 red Mazda 6 (similar pictured) bounced Love-Robinson (pictured being detained) was arrested and charged with practicing medicine without a license When confronted with the footage, Love-Robinson said the sign on the door was 'due to be changed'. Gutman then pushed Love-Robinson on whether he had any training whatsoever in the medical field. 'I have shadowed many doctors,' Love-Robinson responded, while refusing to go into specifics. 'Among the many patients who have allegedly been conned by Love-Robinson is an 86-year-old woman who says she paid the teen more than $3,000 for treatment of severe stomach pains. Love-Robinson tried his best to dodge responsibility for stealing money from someone old enough to be his grandmother, saying 'I can tell you these accusations are merely accusations.' While he denied the $3,000 charge, Love-Robinson also said 'whether she paid for me to just show up - that's up to her'. At the end of the interview, things got tense between Love-Robinson as the reporter asked whether he was a fraud. 'I don't appreciate your tone,' Love-Robinson said. 'I don't appreciate the way you are portraying this interview to actually be.' Gutman responded: 'Are you in big trouble? I mean it seems like you've spoken to a lawyer whose prepared you to talk not only to the media but the police as well.' That's when Love-Robinson snapped, pulling out his ear piece and storming off the set. A body has been found in a desperate search for a British man who was swept away by a powerful current at a popular Australian waterfall. The 25-year-old man, from the United Kingdom, was found dead about 1,800 metres downstream of Josephine Falls, near Cairns, in north Queensland. He had been swimming with a Canadian woman in 'treacherous conditions' when he disappeared on Tuesday about 5.30pm local time. A body has been found in desperate searchat Josephine Falls (above is a stock image), in north Queensland, after a British man was swept away in a powerful current A search was mounted after the alarm was raised with a helicopter with night vision and heat-seeking capabilities scouring the area in darkness. But there was no sign of the man, who has yet to be named, and the search resumed on Wednesday morning. Hours later, the man's body was found and a report would be prepared for the coroner. There are no suspicious circumstances surrounding his death. Police said the tourist and a woman had jumped into the water at Josephine Falls, south of Cairns, when they became separated. 'There's quite a strong current running with the current wet weather,' Senior Constable Russell Parker told the ABC earlier on Wednesday. The officer said the woman was able to swim to the river bank and although the man resurfaced he vanished shortly afterwards. 'He attempted to make it to land but it seems that he was swept downstream by the current and no-one has seen him since,' Snr Const Parker said. Thousands of cancer patients are being diagnosed late because hospitals are refusing to carry out urgent tests. A third of GPs say patients they have referred to specialists for vital X-rays or scans have been sent back or downgraded in importance and made to wait weeks longer. Hospital staff are suspected of trying to ration tests as they are under pressure to meet waiting time targets and cut costs. GPs who suspect a patient has cancer are meant to refer them directly to a consultant, who arranges an urgent X-ray, scan or ultrasound within two weeks The NHS is struggling to cope with the soaring numbers of cancer patients and the latest figures show there are now 800 new cases a day. Britain's cancer survival rates are also among the worst in Western Europe, and experts say tumours are not being detected early enough. At least one unidentified hospital has already banned GPs from sending patients for urgent tests within two weeks to 'ease pressure' on busy clinics. And managers at two health trusts have resorted to bribing doctors with cash rewards if they reduce the number of referrals. GPs who suspect a patient has cancer are meant to refer them directly to a consultant, who arranges an urgent X-ray, scan or ultrasound within two weeks. But 31 per cent of 484 family doctors surveyed by GP magazine said their patients had been 'bounced back' or 'downgraded' to have a routine test with a much longer wait. A fifth of GPs said their patients were later found to have cancer, raising concerns the diagnosis was delayed by hospital staff. A third of GPs say patients they have referred to specialists for vital X-rays or scans have been sent back or downgraded in importance and made to wait weeks longer Some were told by consultants or managers that a patient had been sent 'inappropriately' because they did not have the correct symptoms. One GP said at least two of his patients had died because they were 'bounced back' and the cancer detected too late. Another said a patient with suspected bowel cancer had been refused a scan, given a routine outpatient appointment and sent away with iron tablets. Hospitals must ensure that 93 per cent of patients with suspected cancer are offered an urgent scan within two weeks. If they miss this target they are fined thousands of pounds per patient. But some GPs said hospitals were gaming the system by offering patients appointments with nurses to ensure they still met the two-week target. However, these nurses do not carry out the scans requested by the family doctor. Instead, they carry out other procedures before sending the patient back to the GP, saying they are 'normal'. Hospital staff are suspected of trying to ration tests as they are under pressure to meet waiting time targets and cut costs One GP said hospital staff frequently denied receiving urgent referral letters in a ruse to avoid patients clogging up clinics. Another family doctor said he had been sent a letter from managers at his local hospital telling him not to refer any patients for urgent cancer tests. A Freedom of Information request in October revealed that at least two NHS trusts were paying GPs to slash referrals including for urgent cancer tests. In the North East Lincolnshire Clinical Commissioning Group, practices were offered an extra 6,000 for reducing the number of outpatient appointments. And surgeries in the Lambeth Clinical Commissioning Group in South London were also told they would receive extra funding for slashing referrals. Dr Rosie Loftus, of Macmillan Cancer Support, said: 'It is extremely worrying that cancer patients are potentially being diagnosed late because of urgent GP referrals being downgraded. 'GPs need to be supported to trust their clinical judgment. If this isn't the case it's a clear sign of the pressures within the NHS.' The boards have caused 52 fires in 24 states since December 1, 2015 Major retailers such as Amazon, Toys 'R' Us and Target have pulled the plug on hoverboards following a government crackdown. The US Consumer Product Safety Commission released a letter last week calling hoverboards 'defective' since they failed to comply with new safety regulations and posed an 'unreasonable risk of fire'. The popular toys have been the subject of much controversy after they 52 fires were started across 24 states since December 1, 2015, causing more than $2million in damage. The US Consumer Product Safety Commission released a letter on Thursday to manufacturers, distributors, importers and retailers of hoverboards to ensure their products are safe. (Pictured, a hoverboard that set alight in Alameda) The director of the independent testing firm UL said: 'No hoverboard has passed the certification process at this time.' (Pictured, a hoverboard that set on fire in Los Angeles) An independent testing firm, Underwriters Laboratory, released new safety regulations earlier this month. While testing can take up to two weeks, none of the self-balancing boards have yet to be cleared. UL safety director John Drengenberg said: 'No hoverboard has passed the certification process at this time.' Target released a statement that read: 'We take product safety very seriously at Target and are proactively working with our vendors to ensure they are compliant with these new safety standards and certification protocol.' A Toys 'R' Us spokesperson told Mashable: 'Out of an abundance of caution, we have decided to stop selling Hovertrax on our website, and are working closely with Razor, the manufacturer, to test the item against the latest safety standards.' Toys 'R' Us specified the make, and alluded to the possibility of a comeback if they are later deemed safe. Amazon stopped offering hoverboards in December, but the products later reappeared. The online retailer has once again pulled all of the gadgets from its website last night, leaving just wheels, cases, decals and other accessories for sale. Michelle Greenwald, a professor at Columbia Business School told Mashable: 'If everyone else is pulling [the products] off the shelf and you don't, it could be hurtful. You don't want to be singled out for not caring about consumer safety.' Hoverboards that don't comply to the UL safety standards pose 'an unreasonable risk of fire.' (Pictured, firefighters attending to a house fire in Alameda, California, that may have been caused by a hoverboard) The CPSC's letter stated they have the power to seize or recall any defective hoverboards, and threatened to slap 'civil and criminal penalties' on retailers, manufacturers, importers and distributors who do not comply. Elliot F. Kaye, chairman of the independent regulatory agency, told Mashable: 'This is us drawing a line in the sand. 'From our perspective, a smart retailer will put in place a stop sale to found out if their inventory complies with the UL standard.' According to Mashable, the CPSC ran its own tests during the investigation. While several scooters overheated and melted, none of the toys burst into flames, as several posts on social media have captured. Kaye also said the agency will target importers, blocking hoverboards before they even have an opportunity to enter the country. The new crackdown applies to all self-balancing boards across manufacturers, brands and price points. Single-wheeled designs are included as well. WHY ARE HOVERBOARDS A SAFETY RISK? THE CAUSE MAY LIE WITH POORLY MANUFACTURED LITHIUM ION BATTERIES Customers have reported that their hoverboards have caught fire after being put on charge or while being ridden. Hoverboards are powered by lithium ion batteries, like many consumer goods such as laptop computers, power tools and mobile phones. The batteries are very popular with electronics companies because they are very powerful, keep their charge and do not develop a 'memory', unlike older nickel-cadmium units. Good quality devices have special circuits that prevent the batteries from overheating or being overcharged, dramatically reducing the chance of catastrophic failure. However, poorly manufactured, non-branded units, often from China, usually do not have these additional safety systems. In Britain, safety watchdogs have inspected 17,000 hoverboards that have been imported into the country since October. Of those, 15,000 - or 88 per cent - have been found to be defective. Many of these were destined to be sold as Christmas presents and contained low-quality batteries. Advertisement Shanna Abraham, 13, from Orland Park near Chicago (pictured), received a hoverboard as a Christmas gift but it exploded when she plugged it in to charge This past weekend, Shanna Abraham, 13, from Orland Park near Chicago, tested her new hoverboard, which arrived late for Christmas after the South Korean manufacturers stated they were having problems with the battery. When she charged the board in the living room of her home, it suddenly caught fire and exploded several times, shooting burning pieces of plastic across the room. Her mother suffered minor burns on her hand, and luckily the damage was limited. In recent months, there have been eight reported injuries involving hoverboards and people falling that required a trip to the emergency room, according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission. In the UK, National Trading Standards said 15,000 of the 17,000 - or nine in ten - of the gadgets it has examined since October have been detained, mainly for having non-compliant electrical components that could explode or catch fire. Several airlines and college campuses have already banned hoverboards, due to fears that the lithium ion batteries pose a fire hazard. Sir Jeremy Heywood has instructed civil servants across Whitehall to produce reams of propaganda on why the UK must remain inside the Brussels club Britain's top civil servant is orchestrating the Government's Project Fear EU referendum campaign, it emerged last night. Sir Jeremy Heywood nicknamed Sir Cover-Up has instructed civil servants across Whitehall to produce reams of propaganda on why the UK must remain inside the Brussels club. Most explosively, publicly-paid officials have been told they must formally by-pass any minister who wishes to campaign for Britain to quit the EU. Normal rules which require ministerial approval have been suspended with the civil service told to report straight to the Number Ten machine. At the same time, the civil service has been banned by Sir Jeremy from giving any help to Eurosceptic ministers, who will not even be allowed to see papers relating to the work of their own department. The instructions were last night described by senior Tory MPs as improper, unacceptable and an affront to democracy. The diktats hand a huge advantage to the In campaign and the Prime Minister who can call on the full might of the Whitehall machine. Leave campaigners said the contest was being rigged and the 200,000-a-year Cabinet Secretary was behaving like 'Sir Stitch-Up'. Bernard Jenkin, chairman of Westminster's Public Administration Committee, said he was writing to Sir Jeremy for an urgent explanation. And in a reference to TV comedy Yes Minister, Douglas Carswell MP tweeted last night: 'Governed by Sir Humphrey. Kick 'em hard on June 23rd!' The revelations came as: It emerged the signatories of a Government-orchestrated letter supporting EU membership had received 120million euros from Brussels; David Cameron took another swipe at Boris Johnson but is still planning to give him a senior Cabinet job after the referendum; A Tory MP who is an ally of Mr Johnson said the PM would have to immediately quit if he loses the referendum; The wife of Michael Gove writes in the Mail of her husband's torture choosing between his principles on wanting to leave the EU and friendship with the PM. Bernard Jenkin (right), chairman of Westminster's Public Administration Committee, said he was writing to Sir Jeremy for an explanation, while Douglas Carswell MP tweeted: 'Governed by Sir Humphrey. Kick 'em hard' In his edict Sir Jeremy banned civil servants from giving official documents and briefings on the EU to ministers who are campaigning to quit. He will decide if any of his rules have been broken. Ultimately, civil servants could be sacked. FARMERS 'WANT TO KEEP EU CASH' The majority of British farmers strongly want to stay in the EU, their trade union leadership suggested yesterday. Officially, the 55,000strong National Farmers' Union is undecided on whether to leave the European Union. But NFU leader Meurig Raymond said he believes '60 per cent' of his members want to stay, while 20 per cent want to leave and the rest undecided. The comments may come as a surprise to many as the union has been a scathing critic of Brussels, particularly over red tape and a ban on British beef after the BSE outbreak. But yesterday Mr Raymond, president of the union, said the EU referendum was a 'man-made difficulty' on top of problems faced by farmers such as flooding. He told the NFU's annual conference in Birmingham: 'There is no denying that this is a huge area of uncertainty for farming. And if the vote is to leave the EU there will be at least another two years of uncertainty.' He said, on average, farmers received 53 per cent of their income from the EU in the form of payments from the Common Agricultural Policy subsidy that amounted to 3billion euros (2.34billion) last year. Advertisement Separately, three senior government sources told the Mail how Sir Jeremy had sent out instructions for Whitehall to begin working on a pro-EU propaganda blitz on behalf of Number Ten. In cases where the information relates to a minister campaigning for Out, they will not be told or required to sign-off the document. Senior Tory MP Mr Jenkin, whose committee keeps check on civil service neutrality, said: 'It is highly unorthodox for No 10 to be grabbing data from a department behind the back of the responsible minister.' Downing Street sources said the Prime Minister had made it clear the Government would be producing information on the case for remaining inside the EU. Sir Jeremy was acting upon this instruction. Aides said it would be 'absurd' for the taxpayer-funded civil service to be providing advice which went against the wishes of the PM and elected Government. Sir Jeremy was nicknamed 'Sir Cover-Up' for his role in blocking the Chilcot inquiry into the Iraq war from seeing letters between Tony Blair and George Bush. Yesterday former Tory foreign secretary William Hague said ministers who argue against Mr Cameron in the referendum campaign should know they will be kept on as long as they don't criticise colleagues directly. David Cameron took another swipe at Boris Johnson but is still planning to give him a senior Cabinet job Voters have declared David Camerons EU referendum deal an overwhelming flop when it comes to curbing mass immigration. In an exclusive Daily Mail poll, three-quarters of the public say the Prime Ministers so-called emergency brake on tax credits and his curbs on the payment of child benefit to EU workers will either fail to reduce migration or could even allow it rise further. The poll also shows that, among those groups most passionate about voting in the referendum, the contest is now neck and neck. Almost 70 per cent of people polled said they were passionate about the issue of Britain's EU membership Three quarters of voters polled by the Daily Mail said they did not believe David Cameron, pictured here in Slough at the O2 headquarters, when he said his deal will reduce the migration of EU citizens to Britain The decision of Mayor of London Boris Johnson, pictured here at the Bond Street Crossrail Station to join the Brexit campaign has given the EU's opponents a massive boost, electrifying the campaign Currently, migration from within the EU is adding 180,000 to our population every year a figure six in ten voters say is too high. The verdict on the PMs reforms was given by voters over the weekend, as Mr Cameron took to the TV screens to declare his renegotiation a huge triumph that would make Britain safer and more secure. He claimed he had done better on securing measures to control immigration than most had expected. But a majority of voters said levels of immigration to Britain and the strength of British democracy will be better off if the country leaves the EU than if it remains. Some 21 per cent say net migration from the EU will increase in the wake of the deal, while 53 per cent said it would not change a total of 74 per cent. Only 22 per cent feel it will decrease. Overall, the Remain lead over the Leave camp has fallen by six points since the last ComRes/Daily Mail poll in January. Some 51 per cent now say they would vote for Britain to stay inside the EU. Some 39 per cent would vote to leave. Most people were questioned before London Mayor Boris Johnson joined the Out camp, electrifying the contest. The poll also asked how passionate people were about the referendum. Of those who said they were very passionate and therefore most likely to vote the contest was neck-and-neck. Remain is on 48 per cent only one point ahead of Leave on 47. Three quarters of those polled said politicians should campaign on the basis of the views of their constituents Fewer than half of voters felt that Mr Cameron had got a good deal overall in last weeks negotiations. Some 45 per cent said he had succeeded and 42 per cent that he had failed. Some 13 per cent did not know. More than a fifth said the PM had failed to a great extent. The public also rejected his instruction to MPs that they should ignore the views of their constituency parties when deciding which side to take in the referendum. An overwhelming 74 per cent said MPs should base their decision on the views of their constituents compared to only 5 per cent who said their party leadership. The public was also scathing about his decision to gag Eurosceptic ministers until his renegotiation was complete 61 per cent said the gag was wrong. Private school pupils are still disproportionately represented among Britains top actors and pop stars, according to a study. Researchers from the Sutton Trust found that around 42 per cent of British Bafta winners went to an independent school, as well as 19 per cent of winners at the Brit Awards which is taking place tonight. The study also found that 67 per cent of British Oscar winners were privately educated including Eddie Redmayne, a former Eton pupil, and Kate Winslet, who studied at Redroofs Theatre School. Stars: Eddie Redmayne (left) and Kate Winslet (right) are among the 67 per cent of British Oscar winners who were privately educated Concern: The findings come after Dame Helen Mirren warned that acting is becoming the preserve of rich youngsters whose parents will fund them through drama school This dwarfs the 7 per cent of pupils who attend private schools across the UK population as a whole. The research names Harrow-educated Benedict Cumberbatch as well as former Etonian Damian Lewis as among the successful British actors who have attended top fee-paying schools. Other privately educated actors include Carey Mulligan, Rachel Weisz, Hugh Grant, Emma Watson and Daniel Radcliffe. Among pop stars, Lily Allen, Chris Martin and Florence Welch all attended private schools. The findings come after Dame Helen Mirren warned that acting is becoming the preserve of rich youngsters whose parents will fund them through drama school. The study, which examined the educational backgrounds of more than 1,200 people working in high-level jobs, also shows the UK is still overwhelmingly run by privately educated graduates. Just a sixth of senior doctors and one in ten leading barristers were educated at comprehensive schools figures which have hardly changed for more than 30 years. These medical and legal professions are generally accessed through competitive university courses and postgraduate study. They also require work experience often arranged through family connections. Half of senior Anglican bishops were educated privately, including the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Rev Justin Welby, who went to Eton. Elite: The research names Harrow-educated Benedict Cumberbatch (left) as well as former Etonian Damian Lewis (right) as among the successful British actors who have attended top fee-paying schools Paid: The study, which examined the educational backgrounds of more than 1,200 people working in high-level jobs, shows the UK is still overwhelmingly run by privately educated graduates. Pictured, file image of Eton Only 13 per cent were educated at comprehensives, while 36 per cent went to grammar schools. Business, however, was one of the few sectors to have seen significant changes over time with the chairmen or chief executives of the FTSE 100 companies coming equally from private, selective and comprehensive schools. In 1987, 70 per cent of FTSE chief executives were privately educated. Nationally, 88 per cent of Brits went to comprehensive schools, 5 per cent to grammars and 7 per cent to independent schools. Around 75 per cent of the UKs top judges went to a fee-paying school, and among senior military personnel, 71 per cent were educated in the private sector. About half of leading print journalists and solicitors were taught at fee-paying schools. Just over half of these journalists attended Oxford or Cambridge, along with 55 per cent of solicitors and 51 per cent of the senior civil servants included in the study. Money: Other privately educated actors include Carey Mulligan, Rachel Weisz, Hugh Grant, Emma Watson (pictured) and Daniel Radcliffe Lucky: Actor Carey Mulligan is also among those who were privately educated. Among pop stars, Lily Allen, Chris Martin and Florence Welch all attended private schools And in politics, half of the Cabinet were privately educated including old Etonian Prime Minister David Cameron compared with 13 per cent of the shadow cabinet, and around 32 per cent of MPs overall. The current Cabinet does have fewer former independent school pupils than the coalition governments Cabinet of 2010, the report notes, but slightly more than Tony Blairs post-election Cabinet in 2005. Yesterday Sir Peter Lampl, chairman of the Sutton Trust, said: Our research shows that your chances of reaching the top in so many areas of British life are very much greater if you went to an independent school. As well as academic achievement an independent education tends to develop essential skills such as confidence, articulacy and team work which are vital to career success. Two years ago, Dame Helen Mirren said the work of the National Youth Theatre was crucial to stop rich people completely taking over the acting profession. She said: The way my business is going, its the prerogative only of kids who have got money. Only kids who have got wealthy parents can go into the acting profession. Its very difficult for working class kids to get into the theatre, so the National Youth Theatre is incredibly important. The scandal of a predatory Bishop who escaped prosecution for child abuse for two decades deepened last night as it was claimed that the Church of England knew he was a serial abuser of young men. Peter Ball who was eventually jailed after admitting the abuse last year benefited from a deeply sinister cover-up. Secret documents claimed that he had been let off 23 years ago to prevent a scandal in the press despite the Church of England being told he was a serial abuser. Ball resigned as Bishop of Gloucester in 1993, but returned to work within two years. The former Bishop of Gloucester, Peter Ball, pictured here with Prince Charles in 1992 had benefited from a 'deeply sinister cover-up' after the Church of England was told the clergyman was a serial abuser The report was compiled at the time by a private detective working for Balls legal team. It warned senior figures that Ball had been abusing not only his office but many young men and had confessed to his behaviour. Its existence was reported by the BBC and it was described as being for the information solely of the Bishop of Chichester, the late Eric Kemp, and the then Archbishop of Canterbury, George Carey. The documents also indicate the private investigator frequently got to his victims before police did. They also made it clear that Ball had confessed to abusing boys. However the documents alleged the bishop was let off with only a caution after his lawyers spoke with a sympathetic police officer, Wayne Murdock. He returned to work within two years and moved to the Bath and Wells diocese until 2010. Ball who counted the Prince of Wales as a loyal friend was eventually jailed for 32 months in October after admitting to abusing 18 teenagers and young men. Ball, who counted the Prince of Wales as a 'loyal friend' was jailed for 32 months in October after admitting abusing 18 teenagers and young men It was reported last night that a new inquiry is to investigate how much senior figures in the Church including Lord Carey knew about his actions. Dame Moira Gibb, a former council chief executive, is to chair an independent review, first ordered last year by the current Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Rev Justin Welby, into how the Church responded to the case. Last night Archbishop Welby said the case was a matter of deep shame for the organisation. I am hugely grateful to Dame Moira for agreeing to take up this vital role, he said. We have offered an unreserved apology to all the survivors and commend the bravery of those who brought these allegations forward. It is a matter of deep shame that a bishop committed these offences. Ball, now 83, was first arrested in 1992 for allegedly molesting novice monk Neil Todd at his house at Litlington, East Sussex. However he only received a caution after admitting one count of gross indecency, and detectives dropped investigations into other victims. Now details have emerged for the first time of a secret report by a private detective to help Balls defence. According to the BBC, the documents showed that Mr Murdock had discussed with Balls legal team the need to prevent a scandal, especially as Peter was a frequent visitor to Sandringham and is friendly with Prince Charles. A source, who has seen some of the secret documents, told the Daily Mail: After Ball was arrested the Church hired a private detective to aide his defence. The documents indicate the investigator frequently got to his victims before police did. They also made it clear that Ball had confessed to abusing boys. Victims of the disgraced former Bishop of Lewes and of Gloucester yesterday said the new revelations showed there had been a sinister cover-up in the case for two decades. Prosecutors have already conceded that the decision not to prosecute Ball in 1993 was wrong as there was enough evidence to bring charges. But it emerged last month that at the time of his arrest, leading Establishment figures including two Archbishops of Canterbury, Tory MPs, a senior judge and public school headmasters mounted an extraordinary campaign to protect him. In letters to police chiefs and the Director of Public Prosecutions they variously described Ball as a saint and claimed it was literally inconceivable that he could have committed the offences. During Balls sentencing, prosecutor Bobbie Cheema QC had also told the Old Bailey that in 1993 his lawyers had claimed to have a letter of support from a member of the Royal Family, but the CPS said it had not seen this correspondence. Last month it emerged that leading members of the establishment mounted a campaign to defend Ball Phil Johnson, who said he was indecently assaulted by Ball when he was a 13-year-old choirboy, said the latest revelations were an outrage. He said: The only concern to the Church appears to be protect its own reputation. It is appalling to think that they knew there were other victims out there but did nothing to try to help them. The Church has extremely serious questions to answer surrounding this. Mr Murdock said in a statement to the BBC that his investigation was conducted with the highest standards of integrity, transparency and impartiality. He denied that any deal was done, stating the decision as to how the case was disposed of in 1993 was ultimately taken by the Director of Public Prosecutions. Gloucestershire Constabulary told the BBC they reviewed their original handling of the case in 2012. The original investigation was of a thorough standard and there is no reason to believe that anything was overlooked, a spokesman said. Ball was jailed last year after pleading guilty to abusing 18 young men in the 1970s and 1980s during his time as Bishop of Lewes. Lord Carey has previously told the BBC he knew nothing about the investigation nor of its author. Doctors and nurses are still being bullied and harassed by managers if they dare to raise concerns, the NHS's own survey of its staff reveals. More than a quarter say their hospital is not doing enough to learn from previous serious mistakes or near misses. And one in five said they had been bullied by a manager or colleague in the previous 12 months some because they raised concerns about safety. Doctors and nurses are still being bullied and harassed by managers if they dare to raise concerns, the NHS's own survey of its staff reveals Ministers have repeatedly promised to overhaul the culture of secrecy in the NHS to make it easier for whistleblowers to speak up. Last year a major review commissioned in the wake of the Mid Staffordshire scandal called for better training for all staff and 'safety' guardians to be installed in every hospital. But the NHS's latest annual survey of 299,000 frontline and back office employees suggests these pledges have had little effect. A total of 11 per cent said they would not feel 'secure' raising concerns about unsafe care, and another 11 per cent said they weren't encouraged to report mistakes. A further 11 per cent said care of patients was not the hospital's top priority, raising concerns that managers are more obsessed with meeting targets and cutting costs. Gary Walker, who was sacked as chief executive of United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust after raising concerns that patients were dying, said: 'Nothing practical has been done to make if safe for staff to raise concerns without fear of reprisal. 'Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt promised to re-employ sacked whistleblowers and not one has been. 'This culture is unsafe for staff and patients and it's time Jeremy Hunt kept his promises.' But Simon Stevens, chief executive of NHS England, claimed the health service was gradually becoming a 'more supportive employer'. British taxpayers could face a bill of millions of pounds under a plan to fund the EUs response to the migrant crisis. The EU yesterday said it was taking steps to deal with a possible humanitarian crisis as figures showed that more than 102,000 migrants have crossed the Mediterranean to Europe so far this year. The International Organization for Migration said that last year it took from January until July to reach that figure. EU migration commissioner Dimitris Avramopoulos, pictured right with Rob Wainwright, director of Europol, said he was concerned about the potential 'Balkan route humanitarian crisis' that could affect Greece The International Organisation for Migration said more than 100,000 migrants, such as these mostly Afghans pictured on the Greek/Macedonian border yesterday, have arrived in Europe so far this year EU migration commissioner Dimitris Avramopoulos said: We are concerned about the developments along the Balkan route and the humanitarian crisis that might unfold in certain countries, especially in Greece. Now Brussels bureaucrats are examining a proposal from Italian prime minister Matteo Renzi to create a refugee bailout fund backed by EU cash. As part of his renegotiation of Britains EU membership, David Cameron secured a guarantee that Britain would not be dragged into eurozone bailout funds. But this new scheme would get around that, potentially creating a fresh headache for the Prime Minister in the run up to the referendum. Brussels officials said yesterday that they were studying Mr Renzis plan to raise funds by issuing EU bonds that are guaranteed using its budget as collateral. Significant sums could be raised to help Italy and Greece with the costs they are facing because of the migrant crisis. However, there would probably be strong objections to the financing proposal from Mr Cameron because taxpayers could be left out of pocket if the money was not repaid. Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi has called for the creation of a bailout fund for refugees to help cope with the growing crisis caused by migrants such as these approaching the Greek-Macedonian border yesterday Governments and companies raise money by issuing bonds. These are a form of IOU sold to banks, institutional investors such as pension funds and ordinary savers. In return for buying a bond, investors are paid interest and receive their money back at the end of the term. Britain contributes around 12 per cent of the EU budget. Leaders last month agreed to hand over 2.4billion to help Turkey with the crisis. If they used EU bonds to raise a similar sum for other countries such as Italy or Greece, it would leave the UK exposed to the tune of around 288million payable if countries default on the bond. Italy put forward the proposal after European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker called on countries to come up with imaginative ideas on how to finance the crisis. His office yesterday said it was too early to say if it would attempt to go ahead with the plan. Last October, Mr Juncker said: The European budget is too small by itself to deal with the problems we face. A nine-page paper issued by the Italian government called for a common European response to the crisis and suggested issuing bonds to pay for it. Using the EU budget as collateral to raise funds is a sore subject for Mr Cameron. He had to fight hard to stop a similar Brussels plan in July to provide financing to Greece during its debt crisis. Chancellor George Osborne eventually secured an agreement that British money would be ring-fenced and fully protected because Britain is not in the eurozone. Leader of the House Chris Grayling, who wants Britain to leave the EU, said: It appears that the UK is on the hook to bail out the EUs failing open borders policy. The safer option is to take back control of our asylum policy from the European Court and to spend the 350million we send to Brussels each week on our priorities. The chaos caused by the migrant crisis has become worse in the past days as countries have stepped up controls between each other after Austria introduced a daily cap letting only 80 people claim asylum there each day. Advertisement Marco Rubio predicted for the first time on Wednesday that he will win the Republican primary election next month in his home state of Florida and said he can still snatch the presidential nomination from Donald Trump despite finishing far behind the real estate mogul in Tuesday's Nevada caucuses. The Florida senator's promise came despite polls that show him running a distant third place in the Sunshine State, and failing to lead anywhere except Utah. 'We'll win in Florida. Now that Gov. Bush is no longer in the race, and him and I split up a lot of the support in Florida. That will help us,' he boasted on 'CBS This Morning.' Jeb Bush, Florida's former governor, dropped out of the race on Saturday after posting a disappointing finish in South Carolina. Trump claimed in his Tuesday night victory speech following a strong victory in Nevada's GOP caucuses that he could have the Republican presidential nomination sewn up in under two months. He won with 45.9 per cent of the vote, ahead of Rubio's 23.8 per cent and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz's 21.3 per cent. Trump is also far ahead in the most recent Florida poll, a CBS News/YouGov survey that put him in first place with 41 per cent of the vote. Texas Sen. Ted Cruz is in second place there with 22 per cent, and Rubio has just 18 per cent. Scroll down for video Whistling past the graveyard? Marco Rubio says he can catch Donald Trump in the Republican presidential race Your browser does not support the iframe HTML tag. Try viewing this in a modern browser like Chrome, Safari, Firefox or Internet Explorer 9 or later. Trump (center, flanked by sons Don Jr. and Eric) delivered his victory speech after he secured the Nevada caucuses with a huge plurality 'We weren't expected to win this one, we weren't expected to win too much at all and now we're winning the whole country,' Trump roared Specifics, please: 'Anger alone is not going to solve our problems. You also have to know what you're going to do about it,' Rubio told ABC's morning audience about Trump Bush was far back in the pack with 4 per cent before his exit. Even if all of his support were to swing to Rubio in Florida, Trump would still win in a landslide if no one else gets out of the race. 'I've spoken to Gov. Bush,' Rubio said on CBS. 'We haven't discussed an endorsement. We're friends, and I look forward to visiting with him soon.' But 'this race needs to continue to narrow,' he insisted after a campaign stop in Grand Rapids, Michigan. 'Because Donald Trump for example, he underperformed Mitt Romney yesterday in Nevada. Four years ago Mitt Romney got over 50 per cent of the vote there.' That's almost accurate. In 2012 Romney won the Nevada caucuses with 16,486 votes. Trump prevailed on Tuesday with 34,531. But Rubio insisted that the result 'shows there's a significant number of Republicans, even in Nevada, who do not want Donald Trump to be their nominee. But right now it's divided up among four people.' He said ultimately he will catch up to the billionaire real estate magnate on March 15 and beyond, when primary elections become winner-take-all affairs instead of awarding Republican National Convention delegates on a percentage basis. 'I think it's important to take a deep breath here,' Rubio said. 'First of all, the Republican nomination is decided by delegates. It's over 1200 delegates you need to have. We're nowhere even near that number of people that have yet even been involved, much less being able to win them.' Trump's three victories in New Hampshire, South Carolina and Nevada, combined with his second-place finish in Iowa, have netted him 81 delegates so far. Rubio and Cruz each have 17. 'He does have a delegate advantage, but it's not overwhelming,' Rubio explained. 'In fact there are plenty of states out there in the winner-take-all category, that if you win 'em, you more than catch up.' The last optimist: Rubio says he'll collect Jeb Bush's support in Florida all 4 per cent of the vote On 'Fox & Friends,' Rubio said that 'the majority of Republican voters in this country do not want Donald Trump to be the nominee. I think that is pretty clear now.' 'I'm as conservative as everyone in this race, but I am the conservative that can unify the Republican Party,' he insisted. 'We feel good about our showing' in Nevada, Rubio said on ABC's 'Good Morning America,' pledging that he won't go negative against Trump unless he's provoked. 'I know that there's this craving in the media for people to attack each other, but I've never been a campaign that attacks people,' he said. But he criticized the billionaire for being long on promises and short on substance. 'Anger alone is not going to solve our problems. You also have to know what you're going to do about it,' Rubio told ABC's morning audience. 'And I think if you're running for president voters deserve to know exactly what you're going to do, and Donald hasn't outlined what he's going to do on any issue. He tells us what the result is going to be, but he refuses to tell us how it's going to happen.' Tuesday's convincing majority is a huge boost for Trump, who is looking increasingly unstoppable in the race to secure the Republican presidential nomination. 'Well, I hope so. We certainly have an advantage,' he said Wednesday on ABC. 'It was a great night. It was a great day. We're looking pretty good, by any standard.' The triumphant tycoon wasn't ready to declare himself the winner of the GOP contest and announce a running mate, though. 'Too early ... you'll be one of the first to know,' he said. Trump has impressive poll numbers in primary states approaching over the next two weeks. At a victory rally on Tuesday night, with his sons Donald Jr. and Eric by his side, he told a cheering crowd: 'We weren't expected to win this one, we weren't expected to win too much at all and now we're winning the whole country.' Victorious: Such a large majority is a huge boost for Trump, who is looking increasingly unstoppable in the race to secure the Republican presidential nomination A family affair: In his victory speech, Trump thanked his family for their support and gave a special shout to Eric (right) and his 'elegant speeches' Trump has dominated: Supporters celebrate as television networks declare him the winner of the Nevada Republican caucuses The latest national poll puts him 17 points ahead of Ted Cruz, and The Donald promised: 'Soon the country will start winning, winning, winning.' 'Some great numbers It's going to be an amazing two months. We might not even need the two months.' 'When people drop out, we get a lot of votes,' he said, referring to how the Republican candidates have dwindled down to five. Trump also boasted about being ahead of Ohio Gov. John Kasich in polls for that state's March 15 primary. 'And we've had some great numbers coming out of Texas, and amazing numbers coming out of Tennessee and Georgia and Arkansas and then in a couple of weeks later Florida. We're going to do very well in Ohio. We're beating the governor. It's always nice to be beating the governor.' Trump continued: 'I grab, I am greedy, I want money. But now I'm going to be greedy for the U.S. I'm going to grab and grab for the U.S. and make America great again.' He also noted how he is managing to clinch a wide demographic of voters: 'Evangelicals, the young, the old, the highly educated, the poorly educated.' 'I love the poorly educated.' 'And I got 46 per cent of the Hispanic voters I'm really happy about that,' he said. Trump reprised his well-worn refrain about 'building a wall' on America's southern border with Mexico. He has campaigned on a hard-line immigration platform, and got into trouble with the Pope last week as the Pontiff suggested his views made him 'not a Christian.' His opponents have also dinged him over a lack of specifics for several of his policy proposals, including how he'd build the wall and reform the system. 'I've been very specific,' he said this morning on GMA. 'I'm a very specific person.' Say cheese: The republican presidential candidate takes a selfie earlier in the night with a supporter at a Las Vegas caucus site A long wait: Ballot shortages had been reported across a number of sites as turn out far exceeded what was predicted. Voters described the scenes as 'overwhelming' and 'very disorganized' Trump's victory in Nevada is his third consecutive win following successes in the New Hampshire and South Carolina primaries. It's also his first win in a caucus state. Political commentators note that the Nevada win reflects how Trump is managing to clinch every demographic of voter, including even the Hispanic population, who comprise a far larger proportion of voters there than in Iowa and New Hampshire. Cruz and Rubio, being of Cuban descent, were expected to perform better than Trump in that demographic. Cruz said Tuesday night that his lone victory in Iowa still puts him in the nomination picture. 'History teaches us that nobody has ever won the nomination without winning the at least one of the first three primaries and there are only two people who have done this: Donald Trump and us,' he said. 'The only campaign that can beat Donald Trump is this one. And anyone the other 65 per cent who doesn't think Donald is best candidate to go head to head with Hillary should vote for us.' Thumbs up: Trump looks confident on the night of voting as he mingles with voters at Palo Verde High School in Las Vegas Adoring fan: Trump signs the hand of a female supporter on caucus night as he won 45.91 per cent of the Republican vote in Nevada The result comes after an unexpectedly high turnout caused voting chaos across the state, as reports came in of ballot shortages and identifications going unchecked. Jeremy Hughes, a Nevada strategist for Marco Rubio, told CNN that at his site many volunteers had failed to check voters' IDs, and some individuals were reported to be casting multiple ballots. Elsewhere, Nevada reporter Karen Castro tweeted that one site had ran out of ballots, which left caucus-goers waiting for a resupply. Ballot shortages had been reported across a number of sites as turnout far exceeded what was predicted. Voters at Valley High School in Las Vegas described the scenes as 'overwhelming' and 'very disorganized.' One GOP official told veteran Nevada reporter Jon Ralston: 'We take reports of double voting very seriously. There is a master sign sheet and that we will be checking very closely.' Nevada has a history of poor caucus turnouts. In 2012 only seven per cent of the state's population came to party caucuses. The state is the fourth to elect delegates to the Republican National Convention so far. The GOP field now sits at five candidates after former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush suspended his campaign after Saturday night's South Carolina primary amid weak support. Ted Cruz kept making his case, telling supporters that 'history teaches us that nobody has ever won the nomination without winning the first three primaries, and there are only two people who have done this' He's got the young vote: A Trump fan poses for a photo following a rally at the Nugget casino on Tuesday Let the voting begin: People stood and rolled in line waiting for the doors to open for the Nevada Republican presidential caucus at Western High School in Las Vegas Caucuses are neighborhood meetings where voters come together to discuss candidates. There were more than 130 locations across the 17 counties around Nevada on Tuesday. A caucus chair is elected and then a representative for each candidate briefly explains why their candidates should win. Residents then cast secret ballots. Ivanka Trump released a 'how to caucus' video on Monday, explaining to Nevada Republicans how the process was 'super quick' and 'super easy.' Nevada was the first state that indicated the candidates' standing among a racially diverse electorate including large numbers of Hispanic voters. Iowa and New Hampshire are comparatively lily-white, and South Carolina's minority population is almost entirely African-American. There are more than 130 locations across the 17 counties across Nevada - here people stand in line waiting for doors to open at Western High School in Las Vegas Popular: A Rubio supporter manages to get a selfie with the presidential hopeful as he campaigns in Michigan on the night of the Nevada caucus All smiles: Marco Rubio gives a thumbs up at a rally held tonight as he campaigned for victory With Trump, a blunt-spoken political outsider, commanding a convincing lead, political strategists in the state said ahead of Tuesday's voting that Rubio and Cruz had a modest goal: a clear second place, which could propel them through the busy voting month of March. 'They're playing for second,' said Ralston. Lagging behind were retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson, who on Tuesday stoked controversy by suggesting that President Barack Obama, the first African-American U.S. president, was 'raised white,' and Ohio Governor John Kasich. Kasich, who finished second to Trump in the February 9 New Hampshire primary, kept his focus on bigger states, including Michigan and Virginia. Rubio left the state before voting began, preferring to campaign in Minnesota and Michigan instead. After finishes of third in Iowa, fifth in New Hampshire and second in South Carolina, Rubio now needs a win soon to support his theory that he is the primary beneficiary of Bush's departure. Indeed, Republican establishment heavyweights have been flooding to Rubio in recent days, including Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson, North Carolina Sen. Thom Tillis and Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch. South Florida's three Cuban-American members of Congress announced their support for him in the hours before the Nevada contest. The endorsements weren't enough to push him over the top, though, and Trump once again came out the victor. This morning the GOP's leading candidate said that while he will have 'very many' endorsements to announce soon, he's not seeking them out because they are a 'waste of time.' Trump said on GMA, 'Endorsements mean very little....it's a lot of work.' Lagging behind was retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson, who on Tuesday stoked controversy by suggesting that President Barack Obama, the first African-American U.S. president, was 'raised white' Cruzing for victory: Ted Cruz posed for a selfie with a supporter, before his defeat to The Donald 'We have incredible room to grow,' Rubio told reporters during a Monday night news conference on his campaign plane. After accusing Cruz of leading a campaign culture of 'lies,' the Florida senator asserted that Trump's support is capped at roughly one-third of the Republican electorate. 'That means 65 percent of the party is against him,' Rubio said. 'The problem is that 65 percent has been divided up among a lot of people. As long as that continues, he'll succeed. But once it consolidates against an alternative he'll lose.' Rubio has picked up endorsements from several Nevada party leaders, including U.S. Senator Dean Heller and Nevada Lieutenant Governor Mark Hutchison. His campaign staff was due to be joined by Marc Short, a senior political adviser to the billionaire industrialist brothers Charles and David Koch, Politico reported on Tuesday. The influential brothers, who have not endorsed any candidates, spend tens of millions to advance their libertarian brand of politics, which would sharply limit the role of government. On Tuesday night, the Florida senator spoke during a rally at a western Michigan auto supplier, two weeks before the state's primary. He says he can unify Republicans before the November election and appeal to Democrats who 'never' vote for GOP candidates. John Kasich, who finished second to Trump in the February 9 New Hampshire primary, has kept his focus on bigger states, including Michigan and Virginia The Cruz campaign, meanwhile, lost a key staffer on Monday when the candidate fired his main spokesman, Rick Tyler, for posting a video that falsely showed Rubio dismissing the Bible. Complicating the already bumpy path to victory for Cruz, lingering questions over the Texan's birthplace continue to dog his campaign. He was born in Canada, in the western city of Calgary, to a Cuban father and U.S. citizen mother. Trump, known to verbally savage rivals, including fueling questions over Cruz's birthplace eligibility, appeared to continue to focus his venom on Cruz. Speaking on Tuesday, Cruz said he is facing the same sort of opposition from the Washington establishment that tried to take Ronald Reagan out before he unseated Jimmy Carter. Representing: Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump exits The Trump Store inside the Trump Hotel as voters caucus in Las Vegas, Nevada A grandmother who had been searching for her sister for 35 years was shocked to discover they had been playing online bingo together for nearly a decade. Elaine Walker, 59, grew up with her adoptive parents in Billingham, Teesside, and only found out she had a biological sister at the age of 25. With very little information she began a desperate search but faced disappointment for more than 30 years until an heir-hunting agency was able to find her sister's surname. Reunited at last: Elaine Walker, 59, left, spent more than 30 years searching for Jackie Green, 65, right Mrs Walker, a keen online bingo player, eventually defied the odds and tracked down her sister, Jackie Green, 65, on Facebook last year. It was only then she realised the pair had a number of mutual friends from gambling site BingoPort - and that they had spent the last eight years playing and chatting with each other online. Mrs Walker said: 'We had been talking on BingoPort every other day for around eight years absolutely unaware that we were sisters. 'The chat manager actually named us "the terrible twins" because we were always online together and would have the whole chat room laughing.' Determined: Grandmother Elaine Walker Mrs Walker, who grew up with four brothers, said her journey to find her older sister was filled with setbacks, but did lead her to another biological sister and two biological brothers whom she didn't know existed. Despite the disappointment she persevered, determined to find the sister she knew only as 'Jackie'. As her hope began to dwindle, heir-hunting organisation Finders contacted Mrs Walker to give her Jackie's surname. She was also told she had another lost brother who had died. A week of searching for 'Jacqueline Green' on Facebook finally led Mrs Walker to her sister, who she noticed had several mutual friends from BingoPort. The sisters had grown up hundreds of miles apart, with Mrs Green being raised by her father in Croydon, south London. But they had known each other as users 'Dukie11' and 'Whiskey666' on the popular bingo site for years. Mrs Walker said: 'Whilst the first meeting was certainly emotional, it was as if we had known each other for years. 'The connection we had online was even stronger over the phone and then in person. 'I spent three nights in London with Jackie and we were never apart, I can't believe I've been without her for this long.' Mrs Walker believes she has 14 siblings and said she 'does not know' how her mother could have put her up for adoption. 'Family is so important to me and I'm just glad Jackie is now a part of it,' she added. Missing her sister: Mrs Walker, pictured as a child and as a young woman, grew up with four brothers Hidden connection: Mrs Walker, pictured as a young girl, had spent years playing online bingo with her sister Mrs Green said: 'When Elaine messaged me to say that we had been speaking for all those years on BingoPort I just stared at the screen. 'It's unbelievable how we were speaking for all those years and had no idea we were related. Me and Elaine are so close, I just wish I had known about her years ago.' Lord Chief Justice Lord Thomas (pictured) appeared to agree that some cases, notably family and civil hearings, could also be held in local hostelries in a bid to save money Court cases could be held in pubs and hotels in a bid to save money, the countrys most senior judge indicated yesterday. Ministers are looking at alternative venues for trials and other legal hearings under controversial plans to close nearly a fifth of courts. Justice Secretary Michael Gove is already considering setting up magistrates courts in universities, community centres and civic buildings such as town halls. But yesterday, Lord Chief Justice Lord Thomas appeared to agree that some cases, notably family and civil hearings, could also be held in local hostelries. Earlier this month, the Ministry of Justice announced that 86 courts in England and Wales about 20 per cent will be closed and sold-off to free up 700million for new technology to modernise the justice system. Giving evidence to the Commons Justice Select Committee, Lord Thomas welcomed the review and said many court houses were under-used. Conservative MP Victoria Prentis asked him: Would it be possible to have courts in other places, possibly that come to us once a week or once a fortnight and hold it in a local civic building or hotel or pub? Is that something you are keen on? Lord Thomas replied: Yes. I looked yesterday at reports and pictures of a judge who was experimenting doing family and civil cases and he was sitting behind trestle tables in a public room to which the public had access. His account of it was that it went very well. Civic buildings are not used to the full extent and we are actively looking how we can address that issue. Lord Thomas said two issues that would have to be resolved would be access to IT and security, but suggested in local venues recently-retired police officers could be given part-time contracts to help with security. But he said the plan could benefit remote parts of the country, such as Wales, Cumbria and Cornwall. The judge told the MPs: Having cases dealt with locally and having people locally knowing what is going on is very important. Judicial sources pointed out that any hearings in pubs or hotels would have to take place in rooms away from bars serving alcohol or at times when the premises were closed to customers. Work is already under way to test hearing cases in non-court buildings, officials said. Ministers have pointed out that each courtroom is typically used for less than two days a week. Critics have warned that such venues would pose significant security challenges because some defendants are in custody and may even be violent. But it is not envisaged that criminal trials would take place in public buildings. New investment is also earmarked to pay for video conference facilities, allowing up to 90,000 cases to be heard from prisons instead of in court. It would mean remand prisoners no longer need to be transported between their cells and courtrooms for simple administrative hearings. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Justice would no longer have to hold on to expensive, ageing courthouses in towns and cities, allowing them to be sold to developers for millions of pounds. Officials say the reforms would reduce the cost of driving prisoners to court, crack down on organised crime within prisons and stem the prospect of drugs and other illicit substances getting into jail.Justice Secretary Michael Gove is already considering setting up magistrates courts in universities, community centres and civic buildings such as town halls Justice Secretary Michael Gove (pictured) is already considering setting up magistrates courts in universities, community centres and civic buildings such as town halls A spokesman for the Bar Council, which represents barristers in England and Wales, said: Holding court hearings in pubs and restaurants might well raise a few eyebrows. In a response to the court closure proposals, the organisation added: The suggestion of using other civic or public buildings for hearings as demand requires inevitably raises questions as to the appropriateness of these buildings for use as a courtroom. It is likely that all the functions a courtroom can provide will not always be easily substituted by another civic or public building. Justice Minister Shailesh Vara said: Our courts and tribunal system is in need of urgent reform. Maintaining our underused and dilapidated court buildings costs the taxpayer 500million a year but some courts sit for less than half the time available. This is simply unsustainable. Lord Thomas, 68, was born in Wales and educated at Trinity Hall, Cambridge. He was appointed a High Court judge in 1996. He was one of the judges who presided over the final hearings in 2012 that sent hook-handed hate preacher Abu Hamza for trial in the US. In 2014 he also condemned an attempt to hold a completely secret trial, saying it should never happen again. Lord Thomas said defendants should never, ever be anonymous in criminal trials because justice must be open. Student Erol Incedal was later cleared after a retrial of plotting an attack in Britain but jailed for possessing a bomb-making manual. Lord Thomas became the most senior judge in England and Wales in 2013. Chantal-Aimee Doerries, chairman of the Bar Council, said: The suggestion of using other civic or public buildings for hearings as demand requires inevitably raises questions as to the appropriateness of these buildings for use as a courtroom. A New York art curator accused of biting another woman during a disagreement on a transatlantic flight says that she is the victim and that the tiara she was wearing at the time likely caused 'class envy'. Stacey Engman, 38, a National Arts Club member based in Manhattan, is accused of sinking her teeth into fellow passenger Christina Tyler while on a flight from Istanbul back to JFK last July. Tyler, 33, of Brooklyn had complained that Engman was almost resting her head in her lap when she objected and a dispute ensued. Stacey Engman, 38, , is accused of sinking her teeth into Christina Tyler, while wearing a tiara on a flight from Istanbul back to JFK last July (the flight is not pictured) The Manhattan socialite told The New York Post on Tuesday that she is the victim. She is pictured left at the Brooklyn Museum's 4th annual Brooklyn Artists Ball in April 2014 and right in Miami in December 2014 But Engman, who has been dubbed 'the Lady Gaga of the art world', said the woman hit her. 'I had fallen asleep. The next thing I know, she's whacking me over the head with the armrest. This girl was extremely aggressive,' Engman told The New York Post. After the disagreement escalated, Engman is accused of biting the victim on the backside, which she says is not true. She alleged I bit her, which is absurd,' Engman said. The flight continued peacefully According to court papers seen by The Post, Engman had been wearing the tiara and had been telling fellow passengers how she had been on a yacht for the past five days. She later fell asleep and it is alleged that she ended up sprawled out across Tyler, who eventually objected. 'I was deathly ill with a combination of seasickness and food poisoning, and I had to leave the boat early,' Engman told the newspaper. 'I had just come from a photo shoot. The tiara was pinned to my hair.' Engman is accused of raising and lowering the arm rest on the victim's leg and launching into a tirade of insults. The art curator is known for her eccentric taste in fashion and has also worked at the Salvador Dali Museum and the Museum of Modern Art Eccentric: Stacey Engman attends the Alon Livne fashion show during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Spring 2014 at The Studio at Lincoln Center in September 2013 in New York City Tyler then told Engman to calm down but claims it was then had she bit her on the backside, leaving teeth marks. When the plane landed in New York City, Port Authority police interviewed both women and witnesses of the dispute. According to the complaint, one witness told a Port Authority officer that Engman was 'aggressive from the beginning of the flight'. Engman said: 'At baggage claim, a guy comes up he wasnt in uniform and hands me a piece of paper.' It was a summons for assault, which was returnable to Brooklyn Federal Court. When the plane landed in New York City, at JFK airport, pictured, Port Authority police interviewed both women and witnesses of the dispute 'I need to speak to my lawyer about how we move forward. This is like bullying,' Engman added. Engman described Tyler as a 'total granola girl' - which is slang for hippie - and said she suspects her tiara may have caused some kind of class envy. The art curator is known for her eccentric taste in fashion and has also worked at the Salvador Dali Museum and the Museum of Modern Art. A controversial Canadian cultural commentator has taken aim at NSW's lock-out laws claiming the 'nanny state' measures are akin to Australia bowing to the values of Islamic State terrorists. Tyler Brule has previously criticised Australia for being the 'dumbest nation on Earth', while speaking at Vivid Ideas Festival in 2015. This week at the launch of a special edition of his magazine 'Moncole', Mr Brule told the Sydney Morning Herald the lock-out laws were 'curbing fun', much like the Islamic State. Cultural commentator Tyler Brule has likened the NSW lock-out laws to tough measures imposed by ISIS It comes after 15,000 marched at the weekend at the Keep Sydney Open rally 'Oftentimes I look at the things that are being approved and they look not unlike the sort of measures, i.e. curbing fun, that ISIS is known for,' he told the publication. Mr Brule went on to say that Australians are being forced to 'fight for their way of life', arguing that people are forced to sacrifice their freedoms, much like what ISIS wants. He said that the tourism industry could suffer as a result, and Australians should instead draw on the cultures of many of their migrants. 'It's curious that some of the most important immigrant communities - the Greeks, the Lebanese, the Italians - they have the most enviable lifestyles when it comes to indoor/outdoor living,' he said. Mr Brule previously said Australia is the 'dumbest nation on Earth' Argues the case for Sydney to have a 'night mayor' like other international cities such as Amsterdam Mr Brule then went on to make the argument for having a 'night mayor' as seen in international cities such as Amsterdam and Berlin, and suggested anyone who wasn't happy could simply move to the 'countryside'. Last year the self-styled culture guru, whose most recent edition of Monocle is based solely on Australia, called the nation the 'dumbest on Earth'. Mr Brule made the bold statement after he was reprimanded for drinking a glass of wine of the footpath outside his Monocle pop-up shop in Sydney, Pedestrian reported. Bernie Sanders said at tonight's CNN Democratic Presidential Town Hall that he still is uncomfortable with the Central Intelligence Agency. 'I do have some concerns about past activities of the CIA,' Sanders told host Chris Cuomo. 'Which, continues, by the way, to the present,' the Vermont senator added. While the question came seemingly out of left field, Politico wrote a story yesterday detailing Sanders' adversity to the CIA as a radical activist in the 1970s. Back then a 33-year-old Sanders called the agency, 'a dangerous institution that has got to go,' adding that it was accountable to nobody 'except right-wing lunatics who use it to prop up fascist dictatorships.' In the 1970s Bernie Sanders wanted the CIA gone. At tonight's Democratic town hall the candidate said he still had concerns about the agency Bernie Sanders (left), being quizzed by CNN's Chris Cuomo (right), explained why 40 years later he still had reservations about the Central Intelligence Agency At the time, Sanders was a socialist who was running for the U.S. Senate on the ticket of the Liberty Union Party, an anti-war group that compared the draft to 'a modern form of slavery,' the Politico article explained. Tonight in South Carolina, four days before the state's primary, in which Sanders is badly trailing Democratic rival Hillary Clinton, the Vermont senator reminded the audience of his long record in government as he explained his position on the CIA today. 'That was 40 years ago,' he said of the time period that has lapsed since his remarks. 'Since then I've served eight years as mayo of the city of Burlington, 16 years in the House and nine years in the United States Senate.' Sanders explained then why he still had his reservations. 'CIA was involved in the overthrow of a gentleman named Mohammad Mosaddegh way back when in Iran,' Sanders explained. 'Overthrew him on behalf of British oil.' 'And you know what happened,' Sanders added. 'That led to the Iranian revolution and we are where we are today.' Sanders also pointed fingers at the CIA when it came to the overthrow of Salvador Allende of Chile. 'A democratic candidate, he won a fair election, the CIA overthrew him,' Sanders said. But the Sanders of 2016 wouldn't go as far as the Sanders in 1974, by saying the entire agency should be abolished. Tory PR whizz: Baroness Rock, the Conservative peer behind the letter, is a former PR guru The speed with which Tory PR whizz Baroness Rock assembled a list of 198 business people to fall in behind David Camerons Remain in the EU campaign may look, at first blush, like a masterstroke. But closer examination of a roll call which includes dozens of executives from overseas, luminaries who have received or are chasing government honours, overpaid investment bankers, as well as a man dubbed the Businessman who sold Britain, can only fill one with despair. This group might like to regard themselves as the cream of the FTSE100 and the corporate elite, but they are as divorced from the lives of ordinary workers as it is possible to be. The average income of ordinary employees in Britain has only just caught up with levels achieved before the financial crisis hit in 2007-09. The panjandrums in Britains boardrooms have demonstrated no such restraint, and research shows that pay, bonuses and rewards among the most senior directors has reached an all-time high of 150 times that of the average worker. Yet these very same pampered and overpaid executives seem to think they have the moral right to speak out in favour of staying in the European Union when it is the employees, customers, suppliers and shareholders who must in the end decide at the referendum ballot box and then live with the legacy of that decision. The threat made to workers, that jobs might be in danger if they dare to vote Out, is scaremongering on a grand scale from bosses who hold the lives of more than 1.2 million workers in their hands. Exported brands across the Atlantic: Included among the signatories are the Citys two dominant public relations chiefs, Sir Alan Parker (left) of Brunswick and Roland Rudd (right) of Finsbury Wouldnt it have been far more sensible if the company chieftains had followed the lead of Tesco, Barclays and others and insisted it is up to their own huge workforces and millions of customers to make up their own minds? What can be seen in this list is the discreet power of the Establishment public relations machine that seeks to frame and manipulate opinion in Britain. Kate Rock, the Tory peer behind the letter, is a former PR guru, having spent 12 years at City firm College Hill. Also included among the signatories are the Citys two dominant public relations chiefs, Sir Alan Parker of Brunswick and Roland Rudd of Finsbury, who have successfully exported their brands across the Atlantic. The fingerprints of these two financial guns-for-hire can be seen all over the list of names attached to the letter, which includes their most prestigious clients plus old personal friends, such as Lady (Ruth) Rogers of the famed River Cafe restaurant in West London. One of the aspects of the list most insulting to the ordinary people of Briton is the large number of overseas executives who think they have a right to tell people in Britain how best to vote in a referendum that will have such a profound effect on the nations future. It is only proper that good British companies attract the best executives to run their affairs and if that means they are from overseas then so be it. Dutch: The soon-to-retire boss of Marks & Spencer, Marc Bolland (pictured), signed the letter. Remarkably, Britains most emblematic retailer says he did so in a personal capacity, not on behalf of the company After all, our wealth has been created on the strength of Britains openness to trade and investment from around the world. We must, however, question whether the Dutch chief executive of Shell, Ben Van Beurden, who lives in the Rotterdam suburbs, Ivorian Tidjane Thiam, who runs Credit Suisse from Geneva, or Goldman Sachss South African London-based chief executive Richard Gnodde, have the right to interfere in our domestic politics. Certainly, their home nations would not welcome overseas meddling. Support: A motley bunch of Tory supporters and Cameron cronies have chosen to fall into line The soon-to-retire Dutch boss of Marks & Spencer, Marc Bolland, signed the letter, too. Remarkably, Britains most emblematic retailer says he did so in a personal capacity, not on behalf of the company. Among the names on the list that have the least right to speak out in favour of Britain remaining in the European Union are those who have been instrumental in sacrificing our industrial heritage. As a young executive, Sir Nigel Rudd built his own manufacturing powerhouse, Williams Holdings. But in recent years, as a non-executive chairman, he has taken a delight in selling off some of the most iconic companies in Britain to foreigners. The sales spree of the Businessman who sold Britain began with St Helens-based glassmaker Pilkington operating since 1826 which was sold to Nippon Sheet Glass of Japan for 1.8 billion in 2006. A year later, Rudd was responsible for the sale of Alliance Boots, owner of Boots the Chemist, for 12 billion. That company has now ended up as an offshoot of the American giant Walgreen. Latterly, Sir Nigel was involved in the sale of Invensys, a maker of railway signalling in Britain since 1856, to the German industrial giant Siemens. Each of these sales has significantly denuded Britains control over its own commercial future, led to the closure of corporate headquarters in this country and, in the case of Boots, undermined the UKs corporation tax revenues. Rudds former colleague at Williams Holdings, Sir Roger Carr, is another signatory to the letter. Having been chairman of Cadbury, when it was disastrously sold to the American giant Kraft, he has now become a great advocate of keeping British companies British, and looks to the wider world for trading partners to secure the future of BAE (formerly British Aerospace), which he now chairs. Through their forceful intervention, they are seeking to steamroller the electorate into a Remain vote long before the official referendum campaign has begun It is a huge surprise, therefore given that 40 per cent of BAEs business is handled via the Pentagon in America, and 20 per cent with Saudi Arabia that he felt the need to be so enthusiastic about staying in the EU, at a time when BAE is battling it out with the French to secure new markets for fighter planes in faraway countries such as India. It is interesting to note he once headed the Confederation of British Industry which benefits greatly from Brussels largesse. Among the rest of the list is a motley bunch of Tory supporters and Cameron cronies who have chosen to fall into line. What is most unconscionable about the behaviour of the FTSE chiefs and the rest is that through their forceful intervention, they are seeking to steamroller the electorate into a Remain vote long before the official referendum campaign has begun, or arguments have been properly marshalled. Both Michael Gove and Boris Johnson face accusations of betrayal following their decision to join the Leave campaign. Mr Gove is accused of abandoning his friends. Meanwhile, in a bruising assault masterminded personally by David Cameron and his unscrupulous Downing Street attack machine, Boris Johnson is accused of selling out his principles. Probably some of these charges are justified. I have no doubt at all that personal ambition helps to explain Boris Johnsons decision. Scroll down for videos William Hague made his reputation exposing the expansionism of the European Union, which he now supports, while Home Secretary Theresa May is 'an empty politician without beliefs', writes Peter Oborne Equally Michael Gove, to his credit, found it personally very hard to break from the Prime Minister, almost his oldest friend in politics. But the minor treacheries of Johnson or Gove pale into insignificance compared to the serial, scheming, unprincipled betrayals by the majority of the Cameron Cabinet. Almost without exception, Mr Cameron and his ministers crawled their way up the greasy poll by pretending to be Eurosceptic. This was certainly the case with the Prime Minister himself. When he stood for the nomination in his safe seat at Witney 15 years ago, he courted, and was helped by, the Eurosceptics. Whenever asked about Europe, he highlighted his doubts and alarm about the direction it was taking. Were those doubts genuine? Or was Mr Cameron simply swinging in the political breeze in order to advance his career? One thing is certain. The Prime Minister was displaying grotesque hypocrisy when he brutally laid into Boris Johnson in Parliament on Monday, suggesting it was ambition rather than principle that motivated him. Camerons own lack of principle on the subject should not be forgotten. The Prime Minister promised fundamental reform to Britains relationship with Europe. Then, after four months of fake negotiation, he delivered nothing more than a handful of cosmetic changes. Last year, Sajid Javid said Leaving Europe isnt something Id be afraid of' His Cabinet ministers are worse. Lets deal first with Home Secretary Theresa May. We are talking here of an empty politician without beliefs. Perhaps I should rephrase that. She does hold beliefs. But they change regularly according to political convenience. In the Nineties, hunting for a safe seat, she claimed to share many of Margaret Thatchers doubts about the direction of the EU. A decade later and the modernisers, who despised Mrs Thatcher, were in charge of the party. At that point, Mrs May turned her back on her supporters and marched to the political centre, from where at the Party conference in 2002 she shamelessly attacked her former allies for being too narrow-minded and making the Tories the nasty party. Once in power it was time for another reinvention. Mrs May converted herself back into the voice of the Conservative Right, making a series of pledges to bring net migration into Britain down to just tens of thousands a year. When she failed, she unhesitatingly blamed Europe. This is what she told the Tory Party conference last year: When it was first enshrined, free movement meant the freedom to move to a job, not the freedom to cross borders to look for work or claim benefits. Yet last year, four out of ten EU migrants 63,000 people came here with no definite job whatsoever. We must take some big decisions, face down powerful interests . . . the numbers coming from Europe are unsustainable and the rules have to change. The rules have not changed in any meaningful way as a result of David Camerons negotiations. No big decisions have been made, while not a single one of Mrs Mays powerful interests has been faced down. Hundreds of thousands of migrants will continue to enter Britain if, as expected, existing trends continue. Yet amazingly Mrs May wants to stay in! By expressing support for the European Union now, she is surely revealing that her heartfelt speech at the Tory conference last year was actually synthetic something she did not believe in. If she meant what she said she would be in the Leave camp. I have news for Mrs May. There were people who listened to what she said in the conference hall who believed she meant what she said, and now feel baffled and betrayed. They are right to feel that way. Oliver Letwin, Minister for Government Policy, and Robert Halfon, Deputy Chairman of the Conservative Party, have both taken Oborne by surprise on their current EU stance They placed their trust in the Home Secretary. They now realise that was a mistake. I wonder if Mrs May has the intellect to grasp how dangerous her conduct has become. There is a giant deficit of trust at the heart of British public life, and it is precisely because of politicians like her. The British people are sick and tired of those in power who say one thing and do another, and whose decisions are based around their personal advancement not principle. They are fed up with politicians who dont mind if they lie and cheat because its all part of some Westminster game. Mrs May has, however, done something even more contemptible over the past few weeks. Desperate to cover up her serial failure over immigration, the Home Secretary has been thrashing around for an excuse for her unprincipled decision to back the EU. Security is the reason, so she says, for backing Britain to stay in Europe. Her reasoning has already been destroyed by Iain Duncan Smith from the Leave camp. He points out that the lack of control of our borders as a result of EU membership means fanatics can slip into this country unseen, which makes us more at risk of terror attacks. This former soldier, who has always stuck by what he believes, is a genuine man of principle. Sadly there are too few politicians like Mr Duncan Smith in David Camerons Cabinet and far too many like Mrs May. Philip Hammond, Foreign Secretary, once signalled Eurosceptic sympathies, but is nowhere to be seen Lets turn to the case of Business Secretary Sajid Javid, another politician whose meteoric rise has been greatly helped by anti-EU views. Heres Sajid Javid late last year: Leaving Europe isnt something Id be afraid of . . . currently costs outweigh benefits. Unless we get major reform, nothings off the table. Mr Javid, like so many senior Tories, has long been an ostentatious Brussels basher. Indeed, when it was just words, he was as Eurosceptic as you like. But when it came to the whiff of grapeshot, Sajid Javid was nowhere to be seen. The same applies, I say with regret, to Robert Halfon, Deputy Chairman of the Conservative Party. I genuinely thought that Mr Halfon a man of principle, but he too has shown himself to be a straw man. Philip Hammond, Foreign Secretary, falls into the same category. Throughout his long, unnoticed ascent through the Tory Party ranks, he signalled Eurosceptic sympathies. Now that hes in power, deference to power has taken over. The list of ministers goes on. Where Oliver Letwin, Minister for Government Policy is concerned, I cannot begin to explain what has happened. I know him well and have always considered him one of the most honourable men in politics. He has been averse to the European Union ever since I came across him in the Eighties. And take William Hague, the former Tory leader who made his reputation exposing the expansionism of the European Union, which he now, in a simply astonishing volte face, supports. 'The stench of hypocrisy is insufferable. That is why, for all their faults, Michael Gove and Boris Johnson are so admirable,' writes Oborne In doing so hes turned into a cleverer version of Neil Kinnock: windy and meaningless. Both men have become members of a political class which has done very well indeed out of selling their principles down the river. Theres a collective failure here, and it tells us something ugly about the people who conduct politics in this country. Tory Eurosceptics such as May and Hammond scored easy political points by attacking the European Union in the past. But theyre either running scared now the battle has begun, or they actually supported the unelected bureaucrats of the EU all along. The stench of hypocrisy is insufferable. That is why, for all their faults, Michael Gove and Boris Johnson are so admirable. As a young British journalist in Brussels 25 years ago, Mr Johnson won a reputation by exposing EU corruption. He regularly attended meetings of the Thatcherite Bruges Group, where he made plain that he supported Mrs Thatchers vision of a Europe of nation states. Michael Gove, with formidable intellectual integrity, has been equally consistent. Earlier this month the man who gave us Blue Steel broke the Guinness World Record for the world's longest selfie stick at the Zoolander 2 premiere in Leicester Square. But less than three weeks after Hollywood A-lister Ben Stiller received the title, it has been snatched from him by London-based YouTuber and Oxford graduate James Ware. Actor Mr Stiller, with help from co-stars Owen Wilson and Penelope Cruz, posed for the picture on the red carpet on February 5 using a selfie stick measuring 8.56m. Less than three weeks after Hollywood A-lister Ben Stiller received the Guinness World Record for the longest selfie stick, it has been snatched from him by London-based YouTuber James Ware (pictured with the stick) Ben Stiller and the cast of Zoolander 2 pose on the red carpet on February 5 as they attempt the world record But now Mr Ware has constructed his own contraption with the help of his local DIY store and a lot of gaffer tape, and beaten the world record - unofficially, at least. In the video Mr Ware said: 'A few weeks ago Ben Stiller showed he's still got it and there is more to life than being really, really ridiculously good looking by breaking the Guinness World Record attempt for the longest selfie stick. 'In honour of London Fashion Week I intend to bring that title back to our great city and show models the world over that size really does matter.' After spending 44.51 on the metal poles needed for his creation and deciding it was too big for an Uber taxi he transported it around central London by Boris Bike. Mr Ware has constructed his own contraption with the help of his local DIY store and a lot of gaffer tape After deciding it was too big for an Uber taxi he transported the stick around central London by Boris Bike It wasn't all smooth sailing for Mr Ware - he had originally planned to unveil his masterpiece in central London's tourist hotspot Trafalgar Square as he wanted to take the picture with bemused passers-by. But after being asked to vacate the square by an irate security guard because the selfie stick was 'too large', he was forced to move elsewhere. He said: 'I'm a bit nervous this will be my debut arrest. I'm not sure how Health and Safety will feel about this.' 'Zoolander did not have to deal with that kind of security in Trafalgar Square.' After struggling to lift the contraptions and with a little help from his friends he finally managed to take the money shot. He was asked to vacate Trafalgar Square by an irate security guard because the selfie stick was 'too large' After struggling to lift the contraptions and with a little help from his friends he finally managed to lift the stick Mr Ware said: 'I'm a bit nervous this will be my debut arrest. I'm not sure how Health and Safety feel about this' However the attempt is classed as unofficial as there was no Guinness World Records official present. He said: 'This is one of the weirdest photos of all time. I wouldn't say I'm looking my absolute best.' When they then measured the stick they discovered it was 9.57m - comfortably beating Mr Stiller's more modest 8.56m and making Mr Ware the proud new unofficial title holder. To celebrate he then immediately went to the pub had a Guinness. The prankster made headlines in October when he boasted that he conned his way into the star-studded Spectre premiere by copying a guest's 200 ticket from Instagram - but was later exposed as a fake. The winning shot: He said 'This is one of the weirdest photos of all time. I wouldn't say I'm looking my best' When they then measured the stick they discovered it was 9.57m - making Mr Ware the proud new unofficial title holder - so he went to the pub and had a Guinness to celebrate Mr Ware told how he 'crashed' the glitzy screening of the James Bond blockbuster at the Albert Hall by blagging his way past security with the forged ticket. Mr Ware, who works as a part-time DJ, said he found photographs of genuine tickets that Bond fans had posted on social media and took them to a professional printer to make copies. But the YouTuber, who describes himself as a 'Rockstar Living on a Budget', actually bought the ticket through the official channels, the Royal Albert Hall confirmed. A former Australian university student who has been accused of lacing a friend's ice coffee with cyanide should be released immediately, her lawyers say. Jessica Kumala Wongso, 27, has been charged with the premeditated murder of her friend, Wayan Mirna Salihin, who died in Olivier restaurant in Central Jakarta, Indonesia, on January 6. If found guilty, she could face the death penalty. Jessica Kumala Wongso (pictured) has been charged with premeditated murder and could face the death penalty Wongso, who studied in Australia, is pictured at the scene of the crime in Jakarta, Indonesia In a pretrial hearing at Central Jakarta Court on Tuesday, Wongso's lawyers argued there was a lack of evidence to link her to the crime and her continued detention was a 'gross violation' of human rights. '[Police] cannot prove the concrete actions of my client, which means they have made a gross human rights violation by detaining her without strong evidence,' Wongso's lawyer Hidayat Bustam said 'There has been an abuse of power, with police forgetting Indonesia is a country based on law, not power.' Hidayat alleged police had conducted a search of Wongso's home without the required legal documentation and had on one occasion subjected his client to almost 12 hours of interrogation. He denied his client had anything to do with poisoning Mirna's coffee and questioned why the pair's friend Hani and a staff member at the cafe, who had also tasted the coffee, had not died as well. Yudi Wibowo, the lawyer for Jessica Kumala, said there was a lack of concrete evidence incriminating his client The prosecution team defended the handling of the investigation on Wednesday, saying police had ample authority to charge her. Prosecution lawyers admitted police did not have a permit when they searched Wondgso's home, but Jakarta Police lawyer Adj. Sr. Comr. Aminullah said the 'urgency' of the investigation meant it was necessary, the Jakarta Post reported. Mr Aminullah said in light of this, police had not violated procedures. A decision on Wongso's suspect status will be made by the court by March 2. Wongso and Ms Salihin reportedly studied together at Billy Blue College of Design in Sydney and Swinburne University of Technology. Ms Salihin died on January 6 at a Jakarta hospital after suffering convulsions moments after she sipped an iced coffee ordered by her friend. Police said Ms Wongso arrived at the cafe around an hour before her two friends and ordered three drinks, including the Vietnamese iced coffee that is believed to have killed Ms Salihin. Testing by a police laboratory found a deadly dose of cyanide in Ms Salihin's body. Wongso has maintained her innocence since her former study partner's death, telling reporters that she 'does not know where the cyanide came from'. Wayan Mirna Salihin died after consuming a cup of iced coffee that was laced with cyanide on January 6 Ms Salihin took a sip and said her drink tasted bitter before dropping to the floor, convulsing and foaming at the mouth The incident happened at Olivier restaurant in Central Jakarta (pictured) on January 6, 2016 CCTV video shows her walking away from husband into maid's closet to Las Vegas with husband and friends to celebrate her birthday A 26-year-old legal secretary from California who was found at the bottom of a laundry chute in a Las Vegas hotel fell 15 floors to her death, police said. Kalli Medina-Brown of Citrus Heights, California, was celebrating her upcoming 27th birthday with her husband and friends when her body was found at the D Las Vegas on Sunday. Her death was initially deemed suspicious when she was found at 2.30am, but homicide detectives found no indication that she was murdered. Police said surveillance video showed Medina-Brown walking away from her husband, Weslee Brown, and toward a housekeeping closet according to KTNV, where it is believed she fell from the 18th floor to the laundry room on the third floor. Scroll down for video Kalli Medina-Brown (pictured, with husband Weslee Brown), was found dead at the bottom of a laundry chute in the D Las Vegas hotel-casino Wedding Day: The 26-year-old legal secretary (left) was in Las Vegas with her husband (right) and a small group of friends to celebrate her upcoming 27th birthday Surveillance video shows Brown (left) and Medina-Brown (right) walking in opposite directions, before she enters a maid's closet. The video goes dark shortly after Her grandfather Tony Fratis said the detectives told Medina-Brown's mother that the surveillance video showed the couple walking in opposite directions. Medina-Brown can be seen entering the maid's closet, but the video goes dark shortly after. Fratis cried as he told KTNV there were still too many questions left unanswered. 'Everybody goes to Vegas to have fun,' he said. 'There's no way it was suicide. There's no way in the world. 'We've all consumed too much [alcohol] so that's a strong possibility. Could they have gotten into an argument? Sure. Would that have caused her to jump down a chute? No.' Fratis also ruled out the possibility that Weslee would have harmed his wife, saying he is not a violent person. An official cause of death has not yet been established, and a toxicology report won't be available for another few weeks. It is also unclear whether the 26-year-old was a guest at the hotel-casino. The husband is believed to still be in Las Vegas as the investigation continues. Medina-Brown was a legal secretary who worked at a firm specializing in family law, and took classes in anthropology at the California State University in Sacramento. She previously attended Sierra College with her husband, a 29-year-old software engineer. A cause of death has not yet been determined, and a toxicology report won't be released for a few weeks Her grandfather said: 'Everybody goes to Vegas to have fun. There's no way it was suicide. There's no way in the world. Medina-Brown is pictured with friends in these two photos Sierra Roraback, a childhood friend who was unable to make the trip, told CBS about their last conversation, in which she told Medina-Brown to have fun and to be safe. She added: 'There has to be justice. In order to have closure on the situation and sleep a little better or something - we have to figure out who did this, we have to figure out what happened.' Another friend of 16 years, Carl Worrell spoke about the 26-year-old's personality. Worrell said: 'She was the responsible one. She wasn't the wild one. She was calm, she was mature.' A spokeswoman for the hotel-casino said: 'We are saddened by the unfortunate incident that took place at the D Las Vegas. We are cooperating with the authorities and cannot comment on the ongoing investigation.' The D Hotel has 629 rooms across 34 floors in downtown Las Vegas. Sydney Roosters NRL player Shaun Kenny-Dowall sarcastically told his mother 'I bashed her' when she noticed a bruise on the arm of his former girlfriend, a court has heard. The 27-year-old Kiwi international has pleaded not guilty to 11 charges relating to the alleged assault and stalking of Jessica Peris, the daughter of Olympian and senator Nova Peris. At the Downing Centre Local Court in Sydney on Wednesday, the court heard Kenny-Dowall placed Ms Peris in a 'head lock,' kicked her and pinned her against the wall yelling: 'You are a f***ing sl**, a waste of my time.' Scroll down for video Sydney Roosters NRL player Shaun Kenny-Dowall (pictured) fronted the first day of his trial at the Downing Centre Local Court in Sydney on Wednesday The 27-year-old Kiwi international has pleaded not guilty to 11 charges relating to the alleged assault and stalking of Jessica Peris (pictured right with Kenny-Dowall) Sydney Roosters NRL player Shaun Kenny-Dowall (centre) leaves the Downing Centre Local Court in Sydney. He is accused of assaulting, stalking and destroying the phone of his former girlfriend Jessica Peris Jessica Peris (right), and her mother Senator Nova Peris (left), leave the Downing Centre Local Court Jessica Peris leaves court in Sydney on Wednesday after the court heard Kenny-Dowall placed Ms Peris in a 'head lock,' kicked her and pinned her against the wall While giving evidence about the assaults, which are alleged to have occurred between October 2014 and last June, Ms Peris said Kenny-Dowall had tightly grabbed her arm when she tried to leave the bedroom of their eastern Sydney home. The court heard Ms Peris told police she was an occasional cocaine user and had used the drug on two dates Kenny-Dowall allegedly assaulted her,The Daily Telegraph reported. 'I read a lot of text messages. I knew there was cocaine use,' Detective Laine Martyr told the court. Ms Peris gave further evidence about their relationship, which began after they met at a bar in Bali in 2012. At the Downing Centre Local Court in Sydney on Wednesday, the court heard Kenny-Dowall placed Ms Peris in a 'head lock,' kicked her and pinned her against the wall on separate occasions Kenny-Dowall and Ms Peris had lived together in Sydney from May 2014 to June 2015 after meeting overseas, the court heard Kenny-Dowall and Ms Peris had lived together in Sydney from May 2014 to June 2015 after meeting overseas, the court heard. Their relationship deteriorated in mid-2015 but by the end of 2014 it was 'a little rocky,' Ms Peris said. 'He was extremely angry,' she said. At a birthday lunch for Kenny-Dowall's mother held at a seafood restaurant, the Kiwi international jokingly said 'I bashed her' when his mother saw a bruise on Ms Peris' arm. In one incident detailed to the court, Kenny-Dowall allegedly snatched Ms Peris' phone and locked himself in her bathroom. Another alleged incident detailed in court was when Ms Peris returned home with some bottles of Bacardi Breezer, he grabbed them from her, drank one and the tipped the contents of another over her In one incident detailed to the court, Kenny-Dowall (pictured with Ms Peris) allegedly snatched her phone and locked himself in her bathroom Another alleged incident detailed in court was when Ms Peris returned home with some bottles of Bacardi Breezer, he grabbed them from her, drank one and the tipped the contents of another over her. They had been arguing about previous partners and after emerging from the bathroom, he hurled Ms Peris' phone at a brick wall, which caused it to shatter, the court heard. In another incident Ms Peris alleges Kenny-Dowall pinned her against a wall with his left forearm and clenched his raised right fist. 'You are a f***ing sl**, a waste of my time,' Ms Peris says he yelled at her. 'He then punched a wall frame which had a quote written on it which was next to my head,' she said, adding that the force of the punch split the decoration and cut Kenny-Dowall's hand. Earlier on Wednesday defence barrister Ian Temby QC said his client admitted hitting a painting, but disputed Ms Peris' proximity, saying she was on the other side of the room. The 27-year-old Kiwi international (centre) has pleaded not guilty to 11 charges relating to the alleged assault and stalking of Jessica Peris At a birthday lunch for Kenny-Dowall's (right) mother held at a seafood restaurant, the Kiwi international jokingly said 'I bashed her' when his mother saw a bruise on Ms Peris' (pictured left) arm Kenny-Dowall is also accused of tightly grabbing Ms Peris' left bicep when she tried to leave the bedroom of their Maroubra home and pushing her down the hallway a few months later. He also allegedly sprayed a Cruiser drink on Ms Peris after an argument in May, when he's also said to have sent offensive text messages, according to The Daily Telegraph. When Ms Peris returned to a dark home after going out for a night in April, Kenny-Dowall is accused of flicking on the lights, pushing Ms Peris and accusing her of being drunk, the court heard. It's alleged things escalated in June when Ms Peris was put in a 'position similar to a headlock', Senior Sergeant Assadd said. The hearing continues before Magistrate Greg Grogin. In one incident detailed to the court, Kenny-Dowall (centre) allegedly snatched Ms Peris' phone and locked himself in her bathroom The hearing involving Kenny-Dowall (centre) continues before Magistrate Greg Grogin The mother of a 'loving, caring' little girl who baffled doctors when she stopped growing says she's relieved she now has a name for her daughter's mystery condition. Isabella Blomey, 7, left doctors stumped and her parents worried sick when they realised she wasn't growing at the normal rate. Her speech was delayed, her facial features barely changed and she wasn't growing anywhere near the rate of other kids her age. 'It was like she was frozen in time,' mother Michelle Blomey told Daily Mail Australia. She never even needed a haircut, because her hair stayed short. But Mrs Blomey broke down in tears recently when a complete stranger contacted her to put a name to Isabella's mystery condition - Trichorhinophalangeal Syndrome. Isabella Blomey, 7, is a 'caring and loving' little girl who, like so many others her age, loves the Disney film Frozen, princesses and painting. She also has the rare condition Trichorhinophalangeal Syndrome Little Isabella (left, right) left her mother Michelle and doctors mystified when she failed to grow at the same rate as kids her age With doctors stumped, Michelle Blomey (left) turned to Facebook to find answers about her daughter's condition, penning a passionate Facebook post The landmark Facebook post: Michelle's plea was answered in less than 24 hours when another parent reached out The concerned mother was so tired of doctors in Darwin, the Northern Territory, failing to come up with an explanation she had taken her search for answers to Facebook, where she penned a desperate plea. 'Does anyone know anyone who knows anyone that could help us find out what's 'wrong' with Isabella?' she wrote. WHAT IS TRICHORHINOPHALANGEAL SYNDROME? Trichorhinophalangeal syndrome is an extremely rare inherited disorder. It is characterised by thin scalp hair, unusual facial features, abnormalities of the fingers and/or toes, and multiple other abnormalities. Characteristic facial features may include a rounded, bulbous 'pear-shaped' nose, an abnormally small jaw, dental anomalies, and unusually large ears. In most cases, the person's fingers and toes may be abnormally short and curved. In addition, affected individuals may exhibit short stature. The range and severity of symptoms may vary from case to case. The gene carrying the disorder can be passed from family. Treatment requires the coordinated efforts of a team of specialists. Advertisement Out of the blue, a West Australian woman messaged her a picture of her little boy who has the same syndrome. I knew instantly Isabella had it, Mrs Blomley said. Finally putting a name to the syndrome was a huge relief for Mrs Blomley and her family. I knew she had it straight away I teared up. She had been so concerned about her daughter and was constantly having to explain why Isabella was so little to friends and acquaintances. Everytime someone pulled me over theyd say, shes so cute, so tiny. Id literally have to stand there and tell them the five minute story of what weve gone through. (Now I know) shes got this. Isabella's day-to-day life is a little different to her siblings she is now enrolled in a special centre class, where she has progressed in leaps and bounds. Sometimes she wears a wig to school, although Mrs Blomey encourages her not to wear it because it can be very hot, buying her headbands instead from Arch N Ollie. Her parents rarely need to buy her new clothes because of her slow growth. I've got a lot of use out of her clothes, said Mrs Blomey. When theyre newborn, you normally have to upsize every couple of months. 'She was in newborn clothing until she was four months old. Isabella . She sometimes wears wig to school (right), although her mother advises against it because it can be very hot And little Isabella is still yet to a visit a hairdresser. But Isabella is just like other kids in so many ways, her mother said. 'She's like any normal child, loves school, loves her friends and teachers. 'She's the eldest child between my husband and myself so... actually the protective one standing up for her younger siblings'. Pink is her favourite colour and she adores anything Disney, especially Frozen. Her favourite characters being Princess Elsa and Anna - and any princess character in general. 'She's artistic, loves to draw, colour, paint,' her proud mother said. It has been a year since the little girl's diagnosis was confirmed, but now the family are seeking more answers. Barely changing: Pictured ages 2 (left), 3 (centre) and 4 (right), Isabella's mother Michelle became worried when she only grew a tiny bit and her facial features remained static 'It was like she was frozen in time': Pictured here at ages 5 (left) and 6 (right), mother Michelle Blomley was so concerned pediatricians could not help her she turned to Facebook Mrs Blomley has set up a Go Fund Me page so that she can fly Isabella to the Mayo Clinic in the United States. Through DNA blood testing, the family are hoping doctors there will be able to figure out what type of the syndrome Isabella has. That way, theyll be able to plan for her future. Mrs Blomley said there are only three other cases of the syndrome in Australia in her online support group. A Liberal MP has claimed the 'lifestyle choices' of 'noble savages' living in remote Indigenous communities should not be supported by welfare. Dennis Jensen said on Monday he agreed with former Prime Minister Tony Abbotts controversial statement that taxpayers shouldnt fund the lifestyle choices of remote Indigenous communities. The MP for Western Australia, born in South-Africa, has been slammed on social media, with many on Twitter calling him racist for the comments on Monday. Scroll down for video Liberal MP in Western Australia Dennis Jensen said he agreed with former Prime Minister Tony Abbott that taxpayers shouldn't fund the 'noble savages' and 'lifestyle choices' of remote Indigenous communities Addressing parliament on bills to release funds for government programs, Mr Jensen said if the noble savage ideal was true, Indigenous Australians could pursue it without any taxpayer funding. There is nothing stopping any Indigenous men or women from pursuing such an existence on their own, Mr Jensen said. Just dont expect the taxpayers to subsidise it. We allow our Aboriginal Australians to live in situations, and support situations financially, that we would support with nobody else, he said. Liberal party values were to seek equality of opportunity, not of outcome, he said. There is nothing stopping any Indigenous men or women from pursuing such an existence on their own, Mr Jensen said. Just dont expect the taxpayers to subsidise it' I will be blunt. In my view, there should be no specific Indigenous policy. Mr Jensen said he believes the gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous outcomes will never close with government dependency. He said he believes Indigenous Australians must participate in the real economy and policies must move away from government dependency and welfare centricity. The Member for Tangney, in south Perth, even criticised his government's own Empowered Communities program, saying Indigenous people were not empowered when they depend on the government for everything. Recalling a trip to Broome, Mr Jensen told of a local chamber of commerce tour when he was driven past sections of land dotted with smashed alcohol bottles and litter. Despite the indigenous elders being disgusted by the situation, the groups causing the mess could only be moved on every three days because the land was Native Title, he said. If the Indigenous elders are disgusted by this and it's their land, why aren't they doing something about it? he asked. Mr Jensen was widely criticised online. He was called a 'racist dog whistler', 'out of touch' and 'slime'. Dave Donovan, editor of Independent Aus, wrote on Twitter: 'You can take the white supremacist out of South Africa, but...' Mr Jensen responded that he had stood against apartheid in South Africa, and that he'd been a member of the Progressive Federal Party before he left for Australia in 1982. During his Prime Ministership, Mr Abbott said the government should not endlessly subsidise lifestyle choices. Opposition Leader Bill Shorten responded that Mr Jensen was away with the pixies, ABC reported. Downing Street was forced to admit a mistake today after wrongly naming a decorated military general as a supporter of the campaign to keep Britain in the EU. General Sir Michael Rose was one of 13 former military commanders apparently signed up to a letter to the Daily Telegraph which warned a Brexit would open Britain to 'grave security threats' from Russia and Islamic State. But it emerged today Sir Michael had not backed the letter and in a briefing, a No 10 spokesman admitted a 'mistake was made' in his inclusion. General Sir Michael Rose, pictured left at the Cenotaph in 2003 and right in 2007, made clear today he had not backed a letter endorsing the Government's EU membership recommendation The former special forces commander told Sky News he had been aware of a draft circulating but had decided not to endorse it. Among those who did sign the letter are Field Marshal Lord Bramall, a former Chief of Defence Staff who took part in the Normandy landing in the Second World War. Another signatory is Field Marshal Lord Charles Guthrie, former Chief of Defence Staff, who served in Aden, the Persian Gulf, Malaysia and East Africa and Northern Ireland. The intervention will be controversial and will be seen by some Leave campaigners as an example of 'Project Fear'. David Cameron has put national security at the heart of his campaign for Britain to remain in the European Union. He has been criticised for warning that Britain is safer from terrorists and rogue nuclear states by being a member of the bloc. The military letter was last night said to be in part coordinated by Downing Street. The former military commanders say: 'We have served around the world and in almost every conflict in which Britain has been engaged since the Second World War. Taking a stand: Among those signing the letter is Field Marshal Lord Charles Guthrie, former Chief of Defence Staff, pictured left, and Field Marshal Lord Bramall, a former Chief of Defence Staff, pictured right Support: Mr Cameron yesterday. The military letter was said to be in part coordinated by Downing Street 'We are proud to have served our country, and to have played our part in keeping Britain safe. In the forthcoming referendum, therefore, we are particularly concerned with one central question: will Britain be safer inside the EU or outside it? When we look at the world today, there seems to us only one answer.' The signatories also include Marshal of the RAF, Jock Stirrup; former Chief of Defence Staff, Admiral of the Fleet Lord Michael Boyce: former Chief of Defence Staff. General Sir Mike Jackson, the former Chief of the General Staff, and Lieutenant General Sir Rob Fry, former deputy chief of defence staff also signed. The letter goes on: 'Europe today is facing a series of grave security challenges, from instability in the Middle East and the rise of Daesh, to resurgent Russian nationalism and aggression. Staff in Houston told to avoid sensitive topics and cut down visiting hours Guns will be permitted in all Texas universities under new law in August University of Houston faculty senate has told staff how to deal with guns The University of Houston has advised staff to wipe controversial issues from their classes, avoid 'that' student, and cut down visiting hours once students are allowed to carry concealed weapons on campus. Guns will be permitted at all public universities in Texas as of August 1 this year under a new law. With most professors opposing the new rule, faculty members are now racing to draw up guidelines that could ban guns from classrooms and dorms. In the meantime, staff in Houston have been shown a slideshow with advice on how to adjust their teaching methods to avoid violent outbursts. Staff in Houston have been shown a slideshow with advice on how to adjust their teaching methods to avoid violent outbursts once guns are permitted in public universities across Texas on August 1 this year Private universities are permitted to ban guns. So far, every private university in Texas plans to ban guns 'Be careful discussing sensitive topics,' is the first suggestion from the UH faculty senate. They also say: 'Drop certain topics from your curriculum', '[Do] not "go there" if you sense anger', and 'Limit student access off hours'. The advice garnered attention online after Twitter user Jeff tweeted a photo during the presentation. An original copy of the PowerPoint presentation included other suggestions, such as 'do NOT confront a student' and 'tell students "Guns have no place in the academic life of the University"'. Teachers should only meet 'that' student in a controlled situation and should not make provocative statements, the guidelines continue. It also says: 'It's in your interest and the University's interest to be very guarded and careful about this issue.' The presentation includes a list of 'poor', 'good' and 'excellent' anti-guns arguments for teachers to be aware of. The three excellent argument, according to the document, are as follows: 'Most parents don't want their underage children to attend a gun-enabled campus'; 'The MILITARY doesn't allow guns in barracks and classrooms (outside of weapons training), why should there be guns in dorms and classrooms?'; 'Vigilante Justice has no place in a University'. This is an original copy of the PowerPoint presentation, which included other suggestions, such as 'do NOT confront a student' and 'tell students "Guns have no place in the academic life of the University"' With most professors at the University of Houston (pictured) opposing the new rule, faculty members are now racing to draw up guidelines that could ban guns from classrooms and dorms It comes weeks after the faculty senate passed a resolution against the new law, according to the Houston Chronicle. 'The diverse academic communities and free academic discourse are especially threatened by the presence of deadly weapons in teaching, research and living spaces,' the resolution stated. Private universities are permitted to ban guns if they choose. According to the Chronicle, every private university in Texas plans to ban guns. Texas is the latest state to allow concealed weapons on campus. Colorado legalized guns in colleges in 2003, followed by Utah in 2004. In 2011, Mississippi, Oregon and Wisconsin all legalized concealed weapons on campus. Kansas followed suit in 2013, Idaho in 2014, and now Texas in 2016. Twenty-two states leave it up to the discretion of the college. At least 50 people are set to lose their jobs at Foxtel as the PAY-TV giant makes cuts across the business following a multi-billion dollar outlay on AFL and NRL rights and the success of Netflix. It's understood some staff members have already been called into meetings to be told they will be offered redundancies in the latest restructure. The revelation came on the same day it was announced that music Channel [V] will be closing its doors after 21 years on the air, as of Friday. Scroll down for video Foxtel's Executive Director of Television, Brian Walsh sent an email to staff telling them of changes being made by the PAY-TV operator in an 'increasingly competitive landscape' Further job losses are expected at Foxtel after up to 100 positions were lost in January More than 100 Foxtel staff lost their jobs less than a month ago after sweeping changes to the technical and installation teams. Foxtel wouldn't be drawn on the amount of redundancies but denied some claims that another 100 people would be let go. 'Like every business, we regularly review our cost base and structure to make sure we are operating in the most efficient manner,' a Foxtel spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia. 'By doing this we can free up resources to invest in content and innovative technology. 'To achieve this we have recently undertaken a review and are in the process implementing the resulting changes, which unfortunately do involve some redundancies. 'We have managed this issue where possible through not filling vacant roles over the last few months.' Insiders revealed to Daily Mail Australia that there was a 'terrible atmosphere at North Ryde, there are lots of mates without gigs'. 'There's an overall push for the platform to cut promos across channels and all creative areas to make up the deficit of purchasing sport and funding local productions.' There were even rumours at the company's north-western Sydney headquarters that the workforce could ultimately be reduced by 10 per cent. In its company profile, Foxtel state that it directly employs 'more than 2,800 people'. FOXTEL MANAGEMENT EMAIL SENT TO STAFF ABOUT CHANGES 'Dear Colleagues, As foreshadowed in my presentation yesterday, we are making changes across our organisation in order to be match fit in an increasingly competitive landscape. One area I discussed with you was channel rationalisation. Over the past several years music clips have become ubiquitous with availability on services like YouTube, whilst linear broadcast audiences for music channels have been in steady decline. An email was circulated to Foxtel staff by management on Tuesday outlining some changes In order to run the Foxtel music services more efficiently we have decided to merge Channel [V] and [V] Hits. The new service will be called [V] Hits and we will create a +2 of this channel. [V] Hits will continue to be a clip based channel with no long form content. This change will begin to take place this Saturday, with the channel branding completed by late March. I would like to thank the music team for their hard work and dedication in making Channel [V] an integral part of the Australian music landscape throughout the years. I would also like to thank those team members leaving us today. You leave with our best wishes for your onward journey.' Brian Walsh (Executive Director of Television) & Stephen Baldwin (Head of Channels & Operations for the Foxtel Networks) thevine.com.au Advertisement Most jobs will go in promotions and production staff but middle management roles are also set to be shed. Among those offered a payout are employees with up to 15 years experience. The shock of the cuts made worse by the decision to wind up the music channel. A Foxtel spokesperson also confirmed to Daily Mail Australia that: 'From March 25 we will no longer use the Channel [V] brand, which will change to V Hits and V Hits +2.' Sad news: It's understood the channel responsible for launching the presenting careers of Osher Gunsberg decided its fate on Tuesday afternoon Sites like thevine.com.au and Pedestrian.tv claim to have received the email that was sent to staff by Head of Channels & Operations for the Foxtel Networks, Stephen Baldwin, and Executive Director of Television, Brian Walsh. 'As foreshadowed in my presentation yesterday, we are making changes across our organisation in order to be match fit in an increasingly competitive landscape,' they said. 'One area I discussed with you was channel rationalisation. 'Music clips have become ubiquitous with availability on services like YouTube, whilst linear broadcast audiences for music channels have been in steady decline.' Foxtel declined to comment on the content of the email. Osher, who began his media career as Andrew G on the channel, shared a sad Tweet upon hearing the news, describing it as 'cutting edge' TV. The Bachelor host had to take a call about the closure during his broadcast of breakfast radio in Brisbane with HIT105's Stav and Abby. 'It was a bit of an emotional phone call,' he said. 'Presenter at Channel V, he just told me Channel V was closing... It's a very sad day for Australian music,' he said. Channel [V] Australia commenced broadcasting in April 1995 and although it shares its name with international stations, it is not associated with them. 'Music channels have been in steady decline': Foxtel announced on Wednesday that Channel [V] is set to close after 21 years on the air The victim is not being named until his relatives are notified Alex Mark Demetro was arrested on suspicion of vehicular manslaughter and driving while under the influence of drugs The salesman was killed when his customer hit a tree at around 70mph A salesman at an Ontario CarMax was killed when a customer test-driving a Corvette smashed into a tree at high speed Tuesday. The customer, 28-year-old Alex Mark Demetro of Union City, may have been on drugs at the time, police said. The accident happened at around 12.45pm, when the driver lost control of the car, and slammed into a tree. The vehicle had reached speeds at least of 70mph, witnesses told KTLA 5. The 43-year-old salesman, who is not being named by police until his relatives have been notified, was taken to hospital in critical condition and later pronounced dead. He was said to be from Montclair. Scroll down for video Crash: A CarMax salesman was killed Tuesday when a test-driving customer hit a tree at speeds of at least 70mph, witnesses said Arrested: The customer, Alex Mark Demetro (pictured, right), was arrested on suspicion of vehicular manslaughter and driving under the influence of drugs. He has been placed on a $100,000 bail Footage shot on a bystander's cellphone and obtained by KTLA 5 shows paramedics lifting the salesman out of the vehicle while the driver sits by the side of the car, talking to a police officer. That driver, Alex Demetro, was arrested on suspicion of vehicular manslaughter and driving while under the influence of drugs. He was placed in a San Bernardino County jail on a $100,000 bail and is set to appear before court on Thursday. Broken glass and debris were still at the scene on Tuesday evening, and the tree, though gouged of bark on one side, was still standing. In a statement, a spokesperson for CarMax called the loss 'an incredibly sad day for the CarMax family. 'Our hearts and prayers go out to our associate's family. CarMax is working closely with the authorities on the investigation.' Protesters assembled in more than 30 cities on Tuesday night to lash out at the FBI for obtaining a court order that requires Apple to make it easier to unlock an encrypted iPhone used by a gunman in December's mass murders in California. Apple Inc. will tell a federal judge this week in legal papers that its fight with the FBI over accessing a locked and encrypted iPhone should be kicked to Congress, rather than decided by courts. Apple will also argue that the Obama administration's request to help it hack into an iPhone in a terrorism case is improper under an 18th century law, the 1789 All Writs Act, which has been used to compel companies to provide assistance to law enforcement in investigations. A planned 50-state protest supporting Apple's stance drew small but fervent crowds in over 30 cities on Tuesday, with supporters carrying signs saying 'Don't Turn Your Phones Into FBI Drones' and 'Secure Phones Save Lives'. 'Hands off my iPhone': A planned 50-state protest drew small but fervent crowds in over 30 cities on Tuesday, including this one in Washington DC, with Apple supporters carrying signs saying 'Secure Phones Save Lives' 'Don't Turn Your Phones Into FBI Drones': About a dozen protestors gathered outside the Federal Bureau of Investigation's J. Edgar Hoover headquarters in support of Apple in Washington D.C. Rally: A man holds a sign outside the FBI headquarters in D.C. as people expressed support for Apple's decision to fight an effort by the FBI to compel the company to create a so-called 'backdoor' into Apple devices Last week a federal judge ordered Apple to write software that would allow law enforcement agencies investigating the December 2, 2015 terrorist attack in San Bernardino, California The rallies were held at Apple stores across the country, with the biggest crowds forming in San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York and Washington D.C., protesting that their civil liberties are at stake if the tech giant gives in to authorities. Other protests - organized by Boston-based Fight for the Future - also took place in the U.K., Germany and Hong Kong, USA Today reported. 'People are rallying at Apple stores because what the FBI is demanding of Apple is going to make all of us less safe, not more safe,' said Evan Greer, campaign director of activist hive Fight for the Future. 'Encryption and security technology is what protects our hospitals, our airports, our water treatment facilities. If we allow the government to start forcing private companies to punch holes in these critical defenses, it's not a question of if those backdoors will be exploited by those wishing to do harm, but when.' Families of the victims killed in the San Bernardino massacre have instead chosen to speak out in support of the FBI. In San Francisco, about 50 protesters gathered with signs and boards, with Bonnie Lockhart, 68, saying it was a cause worth standing up for. 'We dont believe that our security is achieved by breaking into peoples phones,' Lockhart told USA Today. 'I don't even have a smart phone': Tom Wolff holds a sign at a small rally in support of Apple's refusal to help the FBI access the cell phone of a gunman at a protest in Santa Monica, California Apple said the hack would be akin to 'a master key, capable of opening hundreds of millions of locks - from restaurants and banks to stores and homes'. Pictured here is Apple CEO Tim Cook Clues to who Syed Farook and his wife Tashfeen Malik (pictured) communicated with, and potentially other extremists living in America, could be named on an iPhone 5c found in their car A lead attorney for Apple, Theodore J. Boutrous Jr., previewed for the AP some of the company's upcoming arguments in the case. Apple's chief executive, Tim Cook, has also hinted at the company's courtroom strategy. Apple's effort would move the contentious policy debate between digital privacy rights and national security interests to Congress, where Apple -- one of the world's most respected technology companies -- wields considerably more influence. Apple spent nearly $5 million lobbying Congress last year, mostly on tax and copyright issues. Key lawmakers have been openly divided about whether the government's demands in the case go too far. Magistrate Judge Sheri Pym in California ordered Apple last week to create specialized software to help the FBI hack into a locked, county-issued iPhone used by a gunman in the mass shootings last December in San Bernardino, California. Syed Farook and his wife, Tashfeen Malik, killed 14 people at an office holiday party in an attack at least partly inspired by the Islamic State group. 'The government is really seeking to push the courts to do what they haven't been able to persuade Congress to do,' Boutrous said in an AP interview. 'That's to give it more broad, sweeping authority to help the Department of Justice hack into devices, to have a backdoor into devices, and the law simply does not provide that authority.' The White House spokesman, Josh Earnest, this week disputed that Congress should settle the issue and called the government's request narrow. Earnest said the magistrate judge 'came down in favor of our law enforcement' after evaluating arguments by Apple and the FBI. Apple hasn't yet made any filings in the case because the Justice Department asked the magistrate to rule before Apple had an opportunity to object. 'Sending complicated things to Congress is often not the surest way to get a quick answer,' Earnest said. 'In fact, even asking some of the most basic questions of Congress sometimes does not ensure a quick answer.' Harsh conditions: Demonstrators stand outside the Apple store on Fifth Avenue with flyers to hand out to pedestrians on Tuesday in New York. Protesters assembled in more than 30 cities around the world A protestor holds up an iPhone that reads 'No Entry' outside the Apple store on 5th Avenue on February 23, 2016 in New York City Protestors gathered to support Apple's decision to resist the FBI's pressure to build a 'backdoor' to the iPhone of Syed Farook, one of the two San Bernardino shooters Apple intends to argue that the 1789 law has never been used to compel a company to write software to help the government. Michael Zweiback, the former chief of the cybercrimes section of the U.S. Attorney's Office in Los Angeles, said it was highly unusual for the U.S. to ask Apple to give the FBI specialized software that would weaken the digital locks on the iPhone. 'There's a significant legal question as to whether the All Writs Act can be used to order a company to create something that may not presently exist,' Zweiback said. He said as a former prosecutor he was sympathetic to the government's case, but he described Apple's arguments as strong and said the issue has broad implications. 'We are not the only ones who are asking for encryption keys,' he said. 'The Chinese government has made similar demands upon them, the European Union has made similar demands upon them, so the implications are really not even national. They're international in scope.' Another expert, Mark Bartholomew, a professor specializing in cyberlaw at SUNY Buffalo, said Apple may have a compelling case arguing that it would be unfair to force it to make its devices less secure, though it's not clear whether courts would agree that Congress should decide the matter. 'When you're requiring a private entity not just to unlock something, or not just to show you something, but to actually change their design -- then you start getting into different grounds,' Bartholomew said. 'It makes the stakes higher. It makes us, I think, more sympathetic to what Apple is arguing for. It seems more violative of Apple's independence.' Protesters hold up signs and their phones during a rally in support of data privacy outside the Apple store Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016, in San Francisco Protesters assembled in more than 30 cities to lash out at the FBI for obtaining a court order that requires Apple to unlock an encrypted iPhone used by a gunman in December's mass murders in California People hold up signs during a rally in support of data privacy outside the Apple store Tuesday in San Francisco 'FBI, Don't Break Our Phones!': A man holds out his iPhone during a rally in support of data privacy outside the Apple store Tuesday February 23, 2016, in San Francisco The U.S. has used the All Writs Act at least three times -- most recently in 1980 -- to compel a phone company to provide a list of dialed numbers, but in those cases the technology and tools already existed, said Jennifer Granick, an attorney and director of civil liberties and the Stanford Center for Internet and Society. 'This is a terrorism investigation that's solved. We know who did it,' Granick said. 'What happens so often is we do something that's justified for terrorism, but it's going to get used in regular, run-of-the-mill cases.' Apple is challenging government efforts to overcome encryption on at least 14 electronic devices nationwide in addition to the iPhone in California, according to court papers filed Tuesday in a similar case in New York. Lawyers told U.S. Magistrate Judge James Orenstein in Brooklyn that Apple is opposed to relinquishing information on at least 15 devices in a dozen court cases in California, Illinois, Massachusetts and New York. A 105-year-old Aboriginal artist who paints 'footwalking' from the perspective of an eagle and only picked up a paintbrush when she was in her 90s is showcasing her art internationally for the first time in Washington, DC. Loongkoonan, an elder, the oldest-living Nyikina speaker and one of the worlds oldest practising artists, has taken just 10 years to become a celebrated and innovative artist across Australia. Now, at the age of 105, Loongkoonan will be part of her first international exhibitions at the Australian Embassy in Washington, just around the corner from the White House, New York Times reported. Loongkoonan, 105, first picked up a paintbrush only 10-years-ago aged 95. She is exhibiting for the first time internationally at the Australian Embassy in Washington, DC Before she first picked up the paintbrush just 10-years-ago, Loongkoonan had been a cattle and sheep musterer like many displaced Indigenous Australians, and has been married three times 'I like to travel about looking at Country, she said in an artist statement The 105-year-old said she paints from her experiences footwalking the Nyikina country along the Fitzroy River, from the perspective of an eagle. Footwalking is the only proper way to learn about country, and remember it. That is how I got to know all of the bush tucker and medicine, she wrote in an artist statement. In my paintings I show all types of bush tucker good tucker, that we lived off in the bush. I paint Nyikina country the same way eagles see country when they are high up in the sky. Her work is described by Mossenson Galleries as defiant statements of the continuation of Indigenous culture'. Before she first picked up the paintbrush just 10-years-ago, Loongkoonan had been a cattle and sheep musterer like many displaced Indigenous Australians, and has been married three times. Loongkoonan is doing work that is deeply contemporary and that has no obvious precedent, curator Henry Skerritt, an Aboriginal art expert and doctoral candidate in art history at the University of Pittsburgh told Women in the World in Darwin. Today I am a single woman, and I like to travel about looking at Country, she said in an artist statement. Though not long ago she said she was still very lively, Loongkoonan is too frail to make the journey to Washington DC, but will instead see her art exhibited at the 2016 Adelaide Biennal. However, she said no one worried much about recording the births and deaths of Indigenous people when she was born but believes she was born in 1910, at Mount Anderson, thanks to research by her niece. Loongkoonans exhibition is on display at the Australian Embassy in Washington, DC, until April 26. It will then be showcased at the University of Virginias Kluge-Ruhe Aboriginal Art Collection in Charlottesville. I paint Nyikina country the same way eagles see country when they are high up in the sky,' she said in an artist statement (pictured: Bush Tucker in Nyikina Country) Before she first picked up the paintbrush just 10-years-ago, Loongkoonan had been a cattle and sheep musterer like many displaced Indigenous Australians, and has been married three times Her work is described by Mossenson Galleries as defiant statements of the continuation of Indigenous culture (pictured: Bush Tucker in Nyikina Country) Reward for his death: Sir Salman Rushdie Iranian media outlets have added 430,000 to a multi-million pound bounty for the killing of Sir Salman Rushdie 27 years after a death fatwa was issued over his 'blasphemous' The Satanic Verses. On February 14, 1989, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the leader of the county's Islamic revolution, called on all Muslims to murder the author and anyone involved in the publication of his work. Iranian hardliners say Khomeini's decree is irrevocable and eternal after his death. And this month 40 state-run news organisations announced they are adding money to the reward. A wealthy Iranian religious organisation initially offered 1.9million ($2.7 million) reward to anyone carrying out the fatwa and in 2012 it increased the amount to 2.4million ($3.3 million). Now the semi-official Fars news agency has published a list of news outlets adding to the pot. Fars itself earmarked 21,400 ($30,000). 'These media outlets have set the 430,000 ($600,000) bounty on the 27th anniversary of the historical fatwa to show it is still alive,' Mansour Amiri, organiser of a digital technology exhibition at which the money was announced. Amiri is the head of the Seraj Cyberspace Organisation, which is affiliated to the Basij volunteer militia, allied to the elite Revolutionary Guards established to defend the values of the revolution. The religious ruling forced the award-winning writer into hiding, and Britain's ties with the Islamic republic were severely damaged. Hitoshi Igarashi, the Japanese translator of the book, was stabbed to death in the face at work. A Norwegian publisher was shot and an Italian publisher was knifed. Thousands took to the streets to burn copies of the book and thirty-seven people were massacred in Sivas, Turkey, in a 1993 attack intended to target Aziz Nesin, the book's Turkish translator. 'Blasphemous': The death fatwa was issued over the publication of Rushdie's The Satanic Verses, pictured Backlash: Pakistani activists shout slogans in front of a burning effigy of Sir Salman in Multan, 2007 In 1998, Iran's pro-reform government of President Mohammad Khatami distanced itself from the fatwa, saying the threat against Rushdie was over after he had lived in hiding for nine years. But Khomeini's successor as Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said in 2005 that the fatwa was still valid and three hardline clerics called on followers to kill Rushdie. Six young children and a female teacher have suffered minor injuries after a tree branch collapsed and hit a number of people at a primary school during lunch-time. The pupils, who are aged between seven and nine-years-old, were playing and eating underneath the tree in the playground of St Michael's Catholic Primary School in Sydney when the branch fell. Paramedics rushed to the primary school in Lane Cove, Sydney, shortly before 2pm to treat the 'experienced' teacher and youngsters who were left 'shaken' after the incident. Six young children and a female teacher have suffered minor injuries after a tree branch collapsed at St Michael's Catholic Primary School (pictured) in Sydney The pupils, who are aged between seven and nine-years-old, were playing and eating underneath the tree in the playground A spokesman for NSW Ambulance said that the patients were assessed, but no one was taken to hospital. Mark Rix from Sydney Catholic Schools said they are now investigating the incident. He pointed out that the trees at the school are audited every year and said that the tree in question was 'large and very healthy'. 'The children were all playing or sitting under the tree having their lunch when the branch fell,' Mr Rix told Daily Mail Australia. Paramedics rushed to the primary school in Lane Cove, Sydney, shortly before 2pm to treat the 'experienced' teacher and youngsters who were left 'shaken' after the incident Mark Rix from Sydney Catholic Schools said they are now investigating the incident at the primary school 'They were obviously left shaken. When anything like this happens our priority is to ensure that the children are looked after. 'In this case the children and staff member were ok, but as it was a distressing incident a councillor will be on site tomorrow should anyone be upset.' ISIS fighters have decapitated 12 members of staff in a Libyan city used as a hub by migrants heading for Europe. Extremists took over a security headquarters in the western city of Sabratha and killed the security officers before they were driven out of the area this morning. Officials say the gunmen 'exploited a security vacuum' by deploying in the city centre as the military was occupied conducting raids elsewhere. ISIS fighters have decapitated 12 members of staff in Sabratha. Libyans are pictured at the site of a US air strike in the city on February 19 Extremists took over a security headquarters in the western city of Sabratha and killed the security officers before they were driven out of the area this morning. One security official said that the militants used the headless bodies of the officers they killed to block the roads leading to the security headquarters - which they occupied for about three hours. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak to the press, said the total number of officers killed in the occupation and ensuing clashes reached 19. The incident highlighted the enduring presence and unpredictable striking power of the local ISIS militants in the strategic city which serves as a hub for migrants heading to Europe. Sabratha has become the latest Libyan power centre for the local ISIS affiliate. Last week, U.S. airstrikes killed dozens of suspected militants in the city along with two Serbian hostages kidnapped last year. Libya's chaos, five years after the uprising that led to the ouster and killing of longtime autocrat Moammar Gadhafi in 2011, has paved the way for the ISIS affiliate to take control of several cities. Officials say the gunmen 'exploited a security vacuum' by deploying in the city centre as the military was occupied conducting raids elsewhere (file picture) The divided country is ruled by two parliaments - an internationally recognised body based in the eastern city of Tobruk and a rival government, backed by Islamist-allied militias, that controls the capital, Tripoli. The United Nations brokered a deal last year to unite the country's various factions. A new unity government is awaiting endorsement by the eastern parliament. The unity government could pave the way for an international military intervention against ISIS. A 29-year-old screenwriter has doubled down on her criticism of a former Yelp employee who complained that she couldnt afford to eat on the salary she earned from the company based in expensive San Francisco. Stefanie Williams blasted the work of ethic of Talia Jane, 25, who was fired hours after she publicly slammed Yelp CEO Jeremy Stoppelman over her entry-level salary in an open letter that went viral. Jane, who describes herself as an aspiring comedy writer on her website, insisted she could barely afford groceries on her salary of $733.24 every two weeks while paying a hefty $1,245 per month in rent. But Williams, who was born in New York but now lives in Charleston, South Carolina, has stood by her now viral post on Medium titled An Open Letter to Millennials Like Talia. Scroll down for the open letter in full and video Stefanie Williams (above) blasted Talia Jane, the Yelp employee who was fired hours after she publicly slammed CEO Jeremy Stoppelman over her entry-level salary in an open letter In a follow-up post responding to a message that said Williams was showing utter disdain towards Jane and millennials in general, she said her lack of compassion for Janes plight had nothing to do with her losing her job but her poor decisions and begging. She added that there is no reason Jane should be asking for donations from strangers online when she could have another job within a week if she tried. Williams insists that Jane would have no problem securing employment considering she is healthy, capable, white, degree holding and fluent in English. She is asking for handouts from complete strangers like a virtual pan handler. There is not one reason this girl should not have a job within five days time and absolutely no reason she needs handouts from strangers. I have no respect for someone who cant take responsibility for themselves. A GoFundMe page for Jane, set up by chef Apple-Elgatha Ethel Lee, from Miami Beach, has raised more than $2,000 in donations just two days. Jeremy Stoppelman (left) turned the blame on San Francisco city leaders after one of his ex-employees Talia Jane (right) penned an open letter to him, slamming the company's low wages, saying she can't afford to eat Meanwhile, Jane has also written a follow-up post, writing: 'A lot of people have sent their support, thanking me for speaking out. A lot of people have sent their criticism, calling me an entitled millennial in every way possible. 'Some people have even offered me a job or donated money to me would you imagine that? I certainly never expected even a fraction of the response my letter created.' She added: 'On Saturday, I bought myself some groceries and made myself a sandwich. It wasnt until after that sandwich that I realized how accustomed I had become to my hands shaking because all of a sudden, they werent.' But Williams maintains that Jane could have avoided her current situation if she had taken on roommates or a second job but she wanted to do the bare minimum and be rewarded with the 'maximum to live a life she wanted and felt she deserved at the ripe old age of 25.' She added: Her poor decisions lead [sic] to an immediate self pity party. She openly accepted the salary promised, chose to live alone in the Bay Area without a roommate, and the hyperbole of her poverty is easily debunked by a quickly glance through her Instagram account. While Janes Instagram account is now private, her Twitter page shows her indulging in bourbon, baking cupcakes and creating lavish meals with not a bowl of rice in sight. Williams added: The great deal of distress she faced was brought on entirely by her own misplanning and over achieving expectations [sic]. Try being 35 with a family and getting fired in a recession. Thats distress. Jane responded to Williams' open letter on Twitter, saying 'it takes balls and skills to write that rebuttal' In the original post, Williams addressed several points that Jane attempted to make in her criticism of Yelp and her salary. She explained that despite their five year age difference, the two women seem to be 'worlds apart in the concept of work ethic' and that she's not surprised about it. 'It sounds like you've hit some real post Haitian earthquake style hard times, so maybe some advice will help while you drink the incredibly expensive bourbon you posted on your Instagram account and eat that bag of rice, which was the only other thing you could afford!' Williams wrote on Medium. In her comeback to the ex-Yelp employee, Williams explained that she worked extremely hard at a restaurant after she lost her first job in an office at 22. She said that she worked her way up from being a restaurant hostess to eventually landing her current position as a television screenwriter, but along the way she was belittled by old classmates who came into the restaurant to dine. In addition, she missed celebrating several holidays with her family and friends because of working at the restaurant. 'Long hours, lots of stress, I smelled like bad citrus and stale beer most of the time, I had to miss Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and New Years Eve with my family and friends, but I jumped at the opportunity,' she wrote on Medium. 'And all of a sudden, after about a year, I was making enough money to live. And after several years, I was making enough money to live well. 'A year later, I was making enough money to move into the City with my best friend. I worked four days a week making anywhere between $50,000 and $60,000 a year more than many of my former classmates with much more flexibility and far better hours. 'I was able to travel three times a year, go out with my friends, pay rent, pay for groceries.' In her open letter, Talia Jane claimed she could not afford to buy groceries, but earlier this month, she took to Twitter to show off cupcakes she said she had baked herself Talia Jane called bread a 'luxury' and said her meals consisted largely of rice, but here, she shows off a meal of coconut soup and 'prosciutto-brie-cilantro-garlic' biscuits Williams said Jane's 'hyperbole of poverty is easily debunked by a quickly glance through her social media, including the posts from just a few weeks ago showing she was drinking bourbon and Diet Coke Williams details how at age 26 she was able to sign with the United Talent Agency in Los Angeles to start her journey into television screenplay writing. 'All of this was afforded to me not in the first month I was working at a restaurant, but after I put in the hours, made the sacrifices and sucked up my pride in order to make ends meet and figure out what I wanted to do and how to do it,' Williams wrote on Medium. 'I was gracious and thankful and worked as hard as I could even if it was a job that sometimes made me question my worth. And I was successful because of that. 'Had you ended your whole whining disdain about full health coverage and expensive copays by saying you had taken a job at Starbucks, or a waitressing job in order to make money while you were on the search for a new job that requires the basic knowledge most teenagers with a Twitter account hold these days, I'd have maybe given you credit.' Williams then continues to blast Jane, adding that her letter to Yelp's CEO complaining about 'wage issues is utter bulls***' and that instead it should be about her personal responsibility to get a job or two to be an adult. 'Work ethic is not something that develops from entitlement. Quite the opposite, in fact. It develops when you realize there are a million other people who could perform your job and you are lucky to have one,' Williams wrote on Medium. 'It comes from sucking up the bad aspects and focusing on the good and above all it comes from humility. 'It comes from modesty. And those are two things, based on your article that you clearly do not possess.' Williams concluded the post on Medium addressing Jane and wrote: 'There are far more embarrassing things in life than working at a restaurant, washing dishes, or serving burgers at a fast food window. 'And one of them, without one shred of doubt, is displaying your complete lack of work ethic in public by asking for handouts because you refuse to actually do work that at the ripe old age of 25 that you think is unworthy of your witty tweet creating time.' After publishing the blog post on Medium, Jane posted an update to say she had been fired - and added an appeal for donations to help fund her unemployed job hunt. In her letter to Stoppelman, she wrote: I havent bought groceries since I started this job. Not because Im lazy, but because I got this ten pound bag of rice before I moved here and my meals at home (including the one Im having as I write this) consist, by and large, of that. Because I cant afford to buy groceries. Bread is a luxury to me.' She later added: 'Have you ever drank a liter of water before going to bed so you could fall asleep without waking up a few hours later with stomach pains because the last time you ate was at work? 'I woke up today with stomach pains. I made myself a bowl of rice.' Stoppelman called on the city of San Francisco to lower the cost of housing in America's most expensive city in response to Jane's open letter. This was the Yelp CEO's response to an employee's complaint that her wage doesn't cover San Francisco rent Stoppelman responded to Kane's viral open letter with a five-part Twitter message on Saturday In a series of tweets, Stoppelman acknowledged her distress - but blamed San Francisco for her plight, not the company. He also insisted he knew nothing about the saga or her being let go. Jane's searing critique of the company's pay distribution soon made their way around social media, sparking a buzz in the West Coast's tech hub. Stoppelman responded with a Twitter message on Saturday agreeing that cost of living in San Francisco is too high. 'I've not been personally involved in Talia being let go and it was not because she posted a Medium letter directed at me,' he wrote. 'Two sides to every HR story so Twitter army please put down the pitchforks. The reality of such a high Bay Area cost of living is... entry level jobs migrate to where costs of living are lower. Have already announced we are growing EAT24 support in AZ for this reason.' Twitter users seemed to have mixed feelings about Stoppelman's response. Some accused the CEO of shifting the blame. Many, however, joined his rallying cry against extortionate house prices in San Francisco which have become something of a running joke on social media. A recent report by Zumper revealed that San Francisco is the most expensive city in the US when it comes to renting homes. The average cost for a one-bedroom apartment reached a record $3,530 in the city in August, compared with $3,160 in New York, $2,270 in Boston and $2,110 in Washington DC. 'AN OPEN LETTER TO MILLENNIALS LIKE TALIA': STEPHANIE WILLIAMS' POST Dear Talia Jane, After reading your article detailing the absolute struggle you dealt with while working for a Bay Area based corporation (see here), I felt it imperative to address your concerns and above all, your obvious need for financial assistance. It sounds like youve hit some real post Haitian earthquake style hard times, so maybe some advice will help while you drink the incredibly expensive bourbon you posted on your Instagram account and eat that bag of rice, which was the only other thing you could afford! My name is Stefanie. Im not much older than you. I will be turning the big 30 in three weeks time. It seems like a lifetime ago I sat in my sophomore year apartment crying about how I would never again be able to relate to Baba ORiley or Scenes from an Italian Restaurant. But here I am, having survived my 20s with some grace and a lot of humility. However, despite our less-than-a-decade difference in age, it seems we are worlds apart in the concept of work ethic. But somehow, Im not surprised. Those five little years are incredibly important. When I was 22, I was let go from an office job. My first post college job. I was sent out into the employment-seeking word three weeks after Lehmann Brothers crashed and two months before the economy went into absolute free fall. But on that Halloween when I was let go, young and confused and scared, I wandered into a bar where the old Irish bartender was a family friend, hoping hed give me a drink and some advice about my plight. I, too, was an English major. I wasnt sure what I wanted to do with that. Work in marketing? Try my hand at journalism again? PR? No clue. All I knew was my dreams of being able to move out and live in the City with my friends had just been dashed. Listening to my problems, like most bartenders do, Mike walked away and came back with the General Manager of the restaurant. After coming in for an interview several days later, I was offered a hostessing shift two days a week that paid fifteen an hour (which worked out to a weekly paycheck, after taxes, of $168.00). I agreed to it. It would be temporary, but it would be better than making nothing at all. Id do that while looking for another job that was more my speed, something my mother could be proud of, something worthy of my English Language and Literature degree and my Chaucer reciting mind. Little did I know that in just about a months time, I would be looking for a job alongside thousands of men and women who had been in the industry for ten, fifteen, thirty years. And the positions Id be offered would all be unpaid internships. Something I simply could not afford. Sure, itd be great to tell people I was working for Conde Nast or Vogue, but what wouldnt be great would be the fact that I couldnt afford to be slave labor, even if it helped my resume. Reality had to take over and I accepted that. So I worked in a restaurant. Nine months later, after living at home with my mom and commuting on the LIRR each day to stand at a hostess desk and bring patrons to their tables, running into old high school classmates who were working in finance or PR and eating my pride when they detailed (and usually lied about) their amazing jobs, I was offered a cocktail waitressing shift at my restaurant. Sure, it was on the worst night of the week. Sure, I had never made a drink before. But it would potentially be an extra $200 to $400 increase a week. I jumped at it. And the extra money I was making did in fact make dealing with the high school classmate I served (who worked for Barclays Capital), who made rude comments about how I seemed to being doing great in life, worth it. Even if I went and cried in our private party room after and questioned how I had ended up clearing the plates of people I went to high school with. Six months later, I was offered the weekend bartending shifts for the month of December. Long hours, lots of stress, I smelled like bad citrus and stale beer most of the time, I had to miss Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and New Years Eve with my family and friends, but I jumped at the opportunity. And all of a sudden, after about a year, I was making enough money to live. And after several years, I was making enough money to live well. A year later, I was making enough money to move into the City with my best friend. I worked four days a week making anywhere between $50,000 and $60,000 a year more than many of my former classmates with much more flexibility and far better hours. I was able to travel three times a year, go out with my friends, pay rent, pay for groceries. Above all, I was able to write. And at 26, I signed to United Talent Agency in LA and began my journey into television screenplay writing. All of this was afforded to me not in the first month I was working at a restaurant, but after I put in the hours, made the sacrifices and sucked up my pride in order to make ends meet and figure out what I wanted to do and how to do it. I gave up holidays with my family in order to work extra shifts and make the good tips. I put up with people making rude comments, assuming I was just a wanna-be actress, assuming I didnt go to college, all to make money. I lived with my mother, my first roommate, and then moved in with two others soon after because living in New York by yourself is a luxury, not an affordable option. I commuted 40 minutes each way each day at first, sometimes missing the late night train and having to sit in Penn Station for an extra hour or two waiting to get home. I dealt with the pitying looks of my former classmates or their parents when they would see me at the hostess stand or walking into the service station in my heels, laughing to myself knowing their child was addicted to coke and hating their amazing job. I paid my dues. I did what I had to do in order to survive, with the help of my family. I was gracious and thankful and worked as hard as I could even if it was a job that sometimes made me question my worth. And I was successful because of that. Had you ended your whole whining disdain about full health coverage and expensive copays by saying you had taken a job at Starbucks, or a waitressing job in order to make money while you were on the search for a new job that requires the basic knowledge most teenagers with a Twitter account hold these days, Id have maybe given you credit. Saying you moved in with several roommates to cut costs, tried to budget in a way that was more practical, and applied for jobs that were more about salary and growth than bragging rights and trends, Id say hey, shes making an effort. But you are a young, white, English speaking woman with a degree and a family who I would assume is helping you out at the moment, and you are asking for handouts from strangers while you sit on your ass looking for cushy jobs you are not entitled to while you complain about the establishment, probably from a nice laptop. To you, that is more acceptable than taking a job in a restaurant, or a coffee shop, or a fast food place. And thats the trouble with not just your outlook, but the outlook of so many people your age. You think it is somehow more impressive to ask strangers for money by writing some witty open letter than it is to put on your big girl pants and take a job you might be embarrassed by in order to make ends meet. And as someone who not only took the embarrassing job, but thrived at it, made bank from it and found a career path through it, I am utterly disgusted by your attitude. Being an English major isnt the problem. Minimum wage isnt the problem (in this case). Do I like Yelp? Not particularly. Do I like that CEOs make pathetic amounts of money? Not particularly. But turning this girls inability to work for what she wants into a conversation about poverty (Poverty! She lives in the Bay Area alone and has a corporate job and can afford fancy bourbon! Not exactly the picture of a third world crisis!) and wage issues, its utter bullshit. This is about this girls personal responsibility to be an adult and find a job, or two (God forbid she have to give up a weekend day to be a waitress), an an affordable living situation and an affordable city in which to work. Yelp, as bad as they are and as much as I hate the assholes who use it to pretend they are New York Times food critics about the Applebees on Walnut St., is not the issue in this moment. The issue is that this girl doesnt think working a second job or getting roommates should be something she has to do in order to get ahead after three months of an entry level job in the most expensive city in the country. She believes Yelp should cover the cost of the financial decisions shes made which include living alone and accepting that salary, two options that any sane person would never make. She believes she deserves these things that most of us would call luxuries. You expected to get what you thought you deserved rather than expected to work for what you had to earn. And thats the problem entirely. Work ethic is not something that develops from entitlement. Quite the opposite, in fact. It develops when you realize there are a million other people who could perform your job and you are lucky to have one. It comes from sucking up the bad aspects and focusing on the good and above all it comes from humility. It comes from modesty. And those are two things, based on your article, that you clearly do not possess. Trust me when I say, there are far more embarrassing things in life than working at a restaurant, washing dishes, or serving burgers at a fast food window. And one of them, without one shred of doubt, is displaying your complete lack of work ethic in public by asking for handouts because you refuse to actually do work that at the ripe old age of 25 that you think is unworthy of your witty tweet creating time. You wanted to write memes? Darling, you just became one. Advertisement A federal judge sentenced former California state senator Leland Yee on Wednesday to five years in prison after he acknowledged accepting thousands of dollars in bribes and discussing helping an undercover FBI agent buy automatic weapons from the Philippines. Prosecutors had recommended that Senior District Court Judge Charles Breyer impose an eight-year sentence, saying that would reflect the extent of Yee's crimes. Yee's attorneys had called for no more than five years and three months behind bars, saying Yee had a history of public service and his wife was ill. Former California state senator Leland Yee to five years in prison after he acknowledged accepting thousands of dollars in bribes and discussing helping an undercover FBI agent buy automatic weapons from the Philippines (July 2014 photo) 'I don't feel I should be lenient,' Breyer said during the hearing. 'The crimes that you committed have resulted in essentially an attack on democratic institutions.' Yee, 67, is a long-time politician who also served in the state Assembly and on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors. 'Nothing will ever take away the pain I have caused to my friends, family, constituents and the institution I represented,' he told Breyer, according to SF Gate. 'In the 67 years of my life, I've devoted most of it to the people here in San Francisco and in California.' Yee was also slapped with a $20,000 fine, the newspaper reported. 'Today, Yee is a 67-year-old man who has accepted responsibility for his conduct and pleaded guilty before this court,' his lawyer said, according to the Los Angeles Times. 'Yee has led an otherwise exemplary life as a family man, an active voice for the betterment of society, and volunteer.' Yee pleaded guilty in July to one count of conspiracy to engage in racketeering. The charge was filed as part of an organized crime investigation in San Francisco's Chinatown that led to charges against more than two dozen people. The probe also snared Raymond 'Shrimp Boy' Chow, a flamboyant leader of a Chinese fraternal organization the Ghee Kung Tong. Federal agents say one of Chow's associates was Keith Jackson, a former San Francisco school board president and well-known political consultant who raised money for Yee's unsuccessful mayoral run in 2011 and his bid for secretary of state. Yee was trying to pay off the debt from his mayoral campaign with the money he solicited, prosecutors said. The probe also snared Raymond 'Shrimp Boy' Chow (pictured), a flamboyant leader of a Chinese fraternal organization the Ghee Kung Tong Yee pleaded guilty in July to one count of conspiracy to engage in racketeering. The charge was filed as part of an organized crime investigation in San Francisco's Chinatown that led to charges against more than two dozen people (file photo) Jackson led authorities to Yee and pleaded guilty to a racketeering charge. He was also expected to be sentenced Wednesday. Yee has remained free while awaiting sentencing. He acknowledged accepting $11,000 in exchange for setting up a meeting with another state senator, $10,000 for recommending someone for a grant, and $6,800 for providing a certificate on California State Senate letterhead honoring the Ghee Kung Tong. He also acknowledged that he discussed helping an undercover FBI agent buy automatic weapons from the Philippines that were intended to be brought to the U.S. for distribution. Prosecutors say Chow and some other members of the fraternal group engaged in drug trafficking, money laundering and the sale of stolen cigarettes and top-shelf liquors. The case against Chow was largely the work of an undercover FBI agent who posed for years as a foul-mouthed East Coast businessman with mafia ties. The crew of missing MH370 deliberately altered the aircrafts flight path, resulting in its loss, the widow of one of the passengers is claiming in legal action she has started against the airline. It is the first time that a court will be asked to decide whether the actions of the crew brought down the aircraft. Jennifer Chong, 48, from Melbourne, has launched a claim for compensation in the Victorian Supreme Court over the death of her husband of 23 years, Chong Ling Tan, who was sitting in business class seat 1C when the aircraft disappeared on March 8 2014. Loss: Jennifer Chong, 48, from Melbourne, is suing Malaysia Airline over the death of her husband Chong Ling Tan, pictured in a tribute photo on Instagram, who was on missing flight MH370 Suing: Mrs Chong claims Malaysia Airlines and the crew onboard deliberately alerted the aircrafts flight path, making them responsible for the loss of MH370 (pictured is a Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777) In her claim for undisclosed compensation, Mrs Chong is asking the court to confirm her insistence that the airline and its crew were responsible for the loss of the Boeing 777. In papers acquired by Melbournes The Age newspaper, Mrs Chong said Malaysia Airlines was vicariously responsible for the actions of its crew who failed to ensure the aircraft safely reached its destination and/or who deliberately altered the course of the aircraft resulting in its loss at sea. The airline, says Mrs Chong, breached its duty of care to her husband and could not prove his death was not due to their negligence or other wrongful act. In her compensation claim, Mrs Chong notes that in late January 2015, the Malaysian Department of Civil Aviation declared that the aircrafts disappearance had been an accident and there were no survivors. Claiming that the airline was liable for damages over the crash, Mrs Chong said she and her two sons, aged 19 and 15 had suffered nervous shock over her husbands death. Blame: A Malaysia Airlines employee writes a message for passengers of the missing MH370 plane at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport mosque shortly after the plane's disappearance Search: Ocean Shield, part of the search mission for flight MH370, which is due to end in June this year Further the defendant (Malaysia Airlines) owed a duty of care to the deceased and other passengers and crew on the flight in relation to their safety and wellbeing, she says in her writ. In a list of complaints against Malaysia Airlines, she claims it had been negligent in failing to ensure the flight was safe for her husband and the other passengers and had failed to ensure that reasonable and adequate precautions were taken on the flight. She also says the airline failed to monitor and track the flight at all times and ensure that its crew followed all proper procedures. If the airline had not been so negligent, Mrs Chong says in her claim, the plane would not have disappeared. A Torres Strait Islander flag has been stolen from the same place as many as three times recently and it's thought it because people believe it is an Arabic flag. The distinctive blue, green, white and black flag, which flies at Malahang Reserve in north-west Melbourne, has been stolen after a woman called the area's mayor and complained about an 'Arabic' flag last year. Bernard Namok Jnr, whose father designed the flag, told Daily Mail Australia his deceased father would have been angry at its theft. Bernard Namok Jnr with the Torres Strait Islander flag, which his father designed. The flag was officially recognised in 1995 The different components of the Torres Strait Islander flag represent the land, sea, people and other important symbols for the people from Torres Strait 'I think he would be disappointed and sad because of the lack of knowledge of Australians who don't know about the flag,' he said. It had been flying alongside an Aboriginal and an Australian flag at the reserve. The Banyule Mayor, Craig Langdon, said he had received a call from a woman who asked him he was proud of them, the Heidelberg Leader reported. He told her 'of course', to which she responded: 'we don't like the Arabic flag'. The Torres Strait Islander flag is an official flag of Australia, alongside the country's two other flags, the Australian National flag and the Aboriginal flag Banyule Mayor, Craig Langdon received a call from a woman who said she and others in the community believed the Torres Strait Islander flag was 'Arabic' Although he explained the flag was an official flag of Australia, the woman was steadfast in her - and others - belief it was Arabic, Cr Langdon said. It was taken once at the end of 2015 and twice in January, and cost about $80 to replace each time. Because the flag has been stolen so many times, a sign is to be installed explaining its origins, the Heidelberg Leader reported. Mr Namok, from Darwin, said his father designed the flag in 1992, but because he died in 1993, did not live to see it become an officially recognised flag of Australia in 1995. He believed people needed to be more educated about the Torres Strait Islander flag, he told Daily Mail Australia. 'I'm using using [this] as motivation to tell the story. I'm working on a documentary about the flag and the design of the flag'. Mr Namok said the belief it was an Arabic flag showed ignorance and a lack of understanding. The flag's green section represents the land and the blue, the sea. Its black lines represent the Torres Strait Islander people and the white symbol in the centre is a dhari - a dancer's headdress. The star, a symbol of sea navigation, has five points, for the island group in Torres Strait. The white is for peace. It is unclear if the call to Cr Langdon is linked to the thefts. as images of the area were being taken Google technicians explained that the plane must have been caught by a It was a startling visual that eventually lead to an investigation. A Google Earth image of Lake Harriet in Minneapolis that showed what appeared to be a passenger plane submerged in the water. However the supposed picture of the twin-engine aircraft worried the officials who oversee Minneapolis parks, who had no information of a plane crash and began looking into the situation when conspiracy theories began to surface. Undiscovered plane crash?: This image of a twin-engine aircraft apparently submerged in Lake Hariet started officials who oversaw the Minneapolis parks, until Google Earth were able to explain what had happened Google technicians explained that, because each image is a compilation of several satellite photos, sometimes fast-moving objects like planes can get caught in an area shot As it turned out, the picture was just a slight problem with the Google Earth imaging, and not an actual undiscovered wreck. Google technicians actually looked into the issue and were able to explain what had happened. 'In short: each satellite image you see on the map is actually a compilation of several images,' Susan Cadrecha, a spokeswoman for Google maps, told The Minneapolis Star-Tribune. 'Fast-moving objects like planes often show up in only one of the many images we use for a given area. 'When this happens, faint remnants of the fast-moving object can sometimes be seen.' Lake Harriet is a popular lake in the southwest part of Minneapolis that does not have a plane at the bottom of it A similar image was also found nearby, at Lake Nokomis, even though both lakes are more than five miles from the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport. The newspaper reported that more than 400,000 planes take off and land each year at the airport. A man has been charged with murdering Mississippi teenager Jessica Chambers more than a year after she was doused in gasoline and burned to death. Quinton Tellis,27, is suspected of setting fire to 19-year-old Chambers' car in Courtland, Mississippi, and leaving her there to die on December 7, 2014. The pair were allegedly in a relationship, having both attended South Panola High School in Panola County, according to the Clarion Ledger. He is believed to be the last person that saw her before she was burned. Tellis was indicted by a special grand jury for the case in Louisiana on Tuesday where he was already in custody in connection with the stabbing murder of a Taiwanese exchange student. Scroll down for video Quinton Tellis, 27, (left) has been charged with capital murder as he is suspected of setting fire to 19-year-old Jessica Chambers' car and leaving the Mississippi teen (right) there to die on December 7, 2014 Chambers was found lying barely alive on the side of the road next to her Kia Rio sedan (pictured days after the attack in Mississippi) by a passing driver at 8.15pm on the night of her death Chambers was found lying barely alive on the side of the road next to her Kia Rio sedan by a passing driver at 8.15pm on the night of her death. The teen was then taken to hospital where her parents rushed to see her before she succumbed to the burns, which covered 98 per cent of her body. Lisa Daugherty told the channel WJTV she heard from one of the firefighters and from a nurse that her daughter said a man named Eric did this to her. She allegedly said that she did not know her attacker's last name but repeated the first name about 15 times. According to his Facebook page, Tellis got married in August 2015. He is currently facing charges for allegedly using credit cards belonging to murdered Taiwanese student Meing-chen Hsiao, 34, who was found stabbed to death in her apartment in Monroe, Louisiana, in August 2015 Tellis posted this photo (left) just days after he allegedly murdered Chambers. Right, another photo on his Facebook page She had spoken to her mother on the phone little over an hour earlier, at 7pm, to say: 'I'm cleaning my car and getting something to eat and I'll be home.' Police have spent more than a year scouring the area and interviewing locals to identify a suspect, interviewing hundreds of people. Finally, on Tuesday, Tellis was charged with capital murder. He is currently facing charges for allegedly using credit cards belonging to murdered Taiwanese student Meing-chen Hsiao, 34, who was found stabbed to death in her apartment in Monroe, Louisiana, in August 2015. According to his Facebook page, Tellis got married in August 2015. The teen was then taken to hospital where her parents rushed to see her before she succumbed to the burns, which covered 98 per cent of her body She had spoken to her mother (pictured) on the phone little over an hour earlier, at 7pm, to say: 'I'm cleaning my car and getting something to eat and I'll be home' He was detained on three counts of unauthorized use of a card as well as marijuana possession 14 days Hsiaos body was found. According to an affidavit, he spent $1,000 with the card. A press conference is due to be held in Panola County on Wednesday afternoon detailing both cases Tellis is linked to. Chambers' mother Lisa has refused to discuss the case until the press conference. Tellis was last known to be living in Monroe. The Clarion Ledger reports he married his fiancee on August 8, 2015 - the day Meing-chen Hsiao was found dead. Jessica's father, Ben Chambers, said he and the rest of the family are desperate for closure and want to see his daughter's killer brought to justice, reported the station WMC Action News5. The young migrant alleged to have stabbed a Swedish social worker to death is believed to be seriously mentally disturbed - and the housing centre were aware of his issues. Youssaf Khaliif Nuur has been charged with the murder of Alexandra Mezher, 22, who was killed at an adolescent migrant centre where she worked in Gothenburg, Sweden last month. According to reports, management at the centre knew of Nuur's mental illness and had pledged extra resources, but the new staff had not started yet at the time of Miss Mezher's murder. The adolescent asylum centre in Gothenburg, Sweden where Alexandra Mezher, 22, was stabbed to death, knew of the alleged murderer's mental issues, but still let her work alone on a night shift Somalian Nuur, who has been charged with murder and attempted murder, had originally claimed to be 15 years old, but is now believed to be 'at least' three years older. Last month, the Sweden's Migration Agency said it was 'not probable that he was under 18', which would see Nuur, who arrived from Somalia in 2015, tried in an adult court. Miss Mezher was killed after she tried to break up a knife fight between several migrant youths at an housing centre for underaged refugees where she worked in Molndal, Gothenburg. Police say she had intervened when Nuur launched an unprovoked attack on another resident at the centre, suffering fatal knife wounds to the back and thigh. An evaluation made by Swedish authorities shows Nuur may be suffering from a severe psychological disturbance, and he claims he has no memory of the attack,Aftonbladet reports. An evaluation made by Swedish authorities shows Youssaf Khaliif Nuur, who has been charged with the murder of Miss Mezher, is believed to be suffering from a severe psychological disturbance, The housing centre' managed had pledged extra resources to care for Nuur, who arrived from Somalia in 2015, but the new staff had not started yet at the time of Miss Mezher's murder It has also emerged that Nuur had been refused housing at by a large care corporation 'due to his serious psychological problems', but that Miss Mezher's housing facility took him in. The company, HVB Living Nordic, had asked the local authorities for compensation to care for Nuur, but the extra staff promised had reportedly not started yet at the time of the attack. This despite the fact that Nuur had lived at the centre in Molndal, home to ten migrants and refugees aged 14-17, for a whole month before the murder. After her death it emerged that the young psychology graduate had been working the night shift all by herself. Last month a source at Gothenburg Police told MailOnline HVB Living Nordic should not have let her work on her own if they knew one of the residents was suffering a mental health breakdown. He told MailOnline: If the management of the centre knew that one of the residents was not [mentally] well should have got in extra staff to help her that night. The source added that Nuur had had complained of feeling 'unwell' the night before and had not slept at all in the hours before the alleged attack. The source revealed: 'The knifeman may have had some kind of breakdown. He may have suffered some trauma previously in his life.' Miss Mezher was killed after she tried to break up a knife fight between several migrant youths at an housing centre for underaged refugees where she worked The source said he was heard pacing around the his bedroom for most of the night before the attack at 8am on January 25. The Gothenburg Police source told MailOnline: This lady tried to separate them and told him to stop but he stabbed her. The suspect had been up all night. He had said he was not feeling well the night before. The horrific murder of Miss Mezher came over a year after staff at the housing centre in Molndal warned that due to lack of staff, something serious will happen here. The warning came from a therapist in December 2014 - despite the fact that the facility had been open less than four months at the time HVB Living Nordic is now under investigation by Swedens Work Environment Administration to see if they broke work environment laws for allowing Miss Mezher to work on her own with ten teenage boys. HVB Living Nordic is a private company paid by the local authority to provide housing and care for unaccompanied minors, which has been operating since late 2013. In 2014, Molndal received 22.6million to provide housing for unaccompanied minors the most state funding per capita than any town or city in Sweden. That same year, HVB Living Nordic reported a profit margin of 21.9 per cent. This is the shocking moment a man tried to rob a post office only to be chased off by a supply delivery man wielding his helmet. The hooded thief, whose black coat is done all the way up obscuring part of his face, burst into the Post Office on Hampstead High Street, Hampstead, on Tuesday, February 16, at about 1.40pm. CCTV filmed him striding purposefully into the spacious branch store before standing shiftily to one side. Shifty: The hooded thief, whose black coat is done all the way up obscuring part of his face, entered the Post Office on Hampstead High Street, Hampstead, on Tuesday, February 16, at about 1.40pm Injured: One of the post office supply delivery team is seen charging forward as he removes his helmet He suddenly runs forwards and disappears from view of the security camera. However, seconds later a member of the post office supply delivery team is seen charging forward as he removes his helmet. He resourcefully uses it to swing at the robber and hits him on his second lunge. The suspect dashes out of the post office and the footage ends as the fluorescent jacketed delivery man tries to climb over a red chair to get to him. Detectives are now searching for the thief. A spokesman for the Metropolitan Police revealed what occurred when the pair were out of the CCTV camera's frame: 'The suspect attacked the man from behind, pushing him and punching him in the face. 'The victim suffered head and shoulder injuries and was taken by London Ambulance Service to a north London hospital. He was released later that day.' Police have described the suspect as a tall white man wearing a black padded coat with a hood. They ask anyone with any information to contact the Flying Squad on 020 8785 8655 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111. Thinking on his feet: He resourcefully uses it to swing at the robber and hits him on his second lunge Police said: 'The suspect attacked the man from behind, pushing him and punching him in the face. The victim suffered head and shoulder injuries and was taken to a north London hospital. He was released later that day' Outrage erupted on Twitter and Facebook this morning after it was claimed that a mother was imposing a 50 minimum for gifts at a children's birthday party. Hundreds of people shared a report claiming Karen De Noosh was 'tired of buying nice presents' for her son's friends and getting sub-standard gifts in return. One reader, who said he was 'absolutely appalled', went as far as texting the number on the invitation to tell Mrs De Noosh what he thought of her. But the invitation was in fact a spoof created by a satirical news website, Southend News Network, which makes up spoof articles about the Essex town. Outrage: This letter supposedly shows a mother demanding 50 presents at her son's birthday party - but it was actually made up by a spoof website The site describes how Mrs De Noosh handed out invitations to her son Alfie's seventh birthday party outside the gates of his school in Leigh-on-Sea. The invitations supposedly included the message, 'Please note: For Alfie's birthday gifts, we have imposed a 50 minimum spend - thanks for your understanding.' 'Upset': Southend News Network published this picture supposedly showing disappointed schoolboy Harry Lyon - who is actually the editor's nephew - with a copy of the letter Another mother, Claire Lyon, was quoted by the site saying: 'That greedy b**** will be the one explaining to her poor little boy when nobody turns up to his party.' A photograph of a boy holding up the letter is captioned as her son Harry - who is actually the nephew of the spoof's anonymous author. Mrs De Noosh, said to be a 'tanning salon entrepreneur' whose husband Jeremiah Leviathan De Noosh works in the City, was quoted defending her decision. She apparently said: 'I am tired of buying nice presents for all of Alfie's friends and then getting gifts in return that one would expect to uncover in a happy meal! 'I don't think that a 50 minimum gift value is unreasonable, and there are some real bargains to be had out there. 'Also, I think that the parents can use this as an opportunity to take their kids to the shops and teach them all about the value of money and getting a bargain. 'I was considering just making a gift list that you could find at a wedding or engagement party, but I didn't want people to think that we are a pretentious family.' Last year the issue of pricey birthday parties became widely debated when a five-year-old boy was charged 16 after he missed a classmate's celebration. TV personality Myleene Klass added to the controversy when she revealed that a mother had asked her to pay 10 towards the cost of a Kindle in lieu of a party gift. After such widespread controversy over the issue the joke article struck a chord with many parents who believed it to be true. A number of readers took to social media to express their disgust, believing the report to be authentic. Tracy Curtis said on Facebook: 'Absolutely disgusting, some parents can't even afford to spend that on their own kids let alone somebody else's.' Sofie Dyer added: 'That is so greedy! I generally spend 10 on a present for a party child, if it's a better friend maybe a little more.' Hoax: Hundreds of web users took the report seriously and took to social media to express their fury Satire: Other stories published on Southend News Network show clearly that it is meant to be a joke OTHER STORIES FROM THE SITE Essex says 'OUI' to FRANCE SWITCH if Britain leaves the EU Delays on c2c line this morning due to HUNGOVER TRAINS Nursery school bans THE VERY HUNGRY CATERPILLAR over child obesity fears Basildon teen jailed for impersonating OAP on SENIOR DATING SITES CATASTROPHIC admin error reveals that half-term holiday is actually NEXT WEEK Advertisement And Mandy Campbell wrote: 'And what lesson is she teaching her child? Shocking!' A Twitter user said: 'Another day, another "WTAF is wrong with people". Hoping no one lets their child go, how sad for the boy.' Southend News Network, which published the hoax story, has become so popular that local council leaders recently met with its editor in a bid to improve engagement with the public. Holly Scott-Gardner, pictured outside the Italian restaurant with guide dog Isla, said the decision to refuse the dog's entry was 'ridiculous' A blind student's birthday meal was ruined when staff at a restaurant said her guide dog would not be allowed inside the premises. Holly Scott-Gardner, 22, criticised the 'ridiculous and disrespectful' decision by staff at PGR restaurant in Coventry, West Midlands, who said her guide dog Isla needed to be tied up outside. The first-year Coventry University student filmed part of her argument with staff at the Italian restaurant and uploaded the footage to Facebook, where the video has been shared thousands of times. She said: 'I just think it's ridiculous and really disrespectful. Most people are receptive. They've probably got away with it in the past. 'The argument went on for about five minutes. I only filmed about two minutes of it. It makes no difference if it's a franchise or not. 'If you have a business, you have to oblige by all the law.' The footage shows Ms Scott-Gardner talking to two members of staff, a man believed to be the owner of the business and a woman, who explained it is against the restaurant's policy to allow Isla inside. In the video, Ms Scott-Gardner said: 'You have to let me in, it is illegal to not let me in your business.' The video shows two staff members, a man and a woman, who explain Isla is not allowed in the premises THE ARGUMENT Holly Scott-Gardner: 'So you're actually saying I can't bring my dog in?' Waitress: 'I'm just calling the owner, you know, the manager.' HSG: 'Because I'm sorry, because it is a guide dog and I can't refuse it.' Waitress: 'I understand that and I'm so sorry.' HSG: 'We've been asked to leave because I've got a guide dog.' Owner: 'We do not allow the dog.' HSG: 'You have to let me in, it is illegal to not let me in your business, I've got a service dog.' Owner: 'Ok, you can put... (points outside) Woman (out of shot): 'We're not sitting outside.' HSG: 'No, it's illegal to not let me in.' Owner: 'No we can't.' HSG: ''You've just broken the law, you do realise you could get fined several thousand pounds, right?' Owner: 'Ok, you can leave your dog out.' HSG: 'No, I'm not leaving my dog outside, it's a guide dog.' Waitress: 'Darling this is a private business, it is not a franchise.' HSG: 'It doesn't matter, if it is a business and if you're open to the public, you can not refuse my guide dog.' Waitress: 'You can go to other restaurants because we don't accept, unfortunately.' HSG: 'I'm sorry, I'm going to have to report you.' Advertisement Later in the exchange, she said: 'You have just broken the law.' The man, thought to be the owner, said: 'You can leave your dog out.' The female staff member then said: 'It's a private business, not a franchise. You can go to other restaurants because we don't accept, unfortunately.' After the incident, a friend of Ms Scott-Gardner phoned the restaurant and was allegedly told guide dogs were not allowed in due to the open kitchen plan. However, PGR has since released a statement which read: 'PGR deeply regret what has happened and that this was as a result of a lack of understanding of what a guide dog is and the legal rights the owner has for them and their dog.' The statement also claimed that the restaurant would be working alongside Guide Dogs for the Blind to 'promote awareness with positive outcomes'. Emily Zorish, restaurant manager at PGR, said: 'We do accept guide dogs. One member of staff was not informed. We explained that we do accept guide dogs.' Meanwhile, Ms Scott-Gardner has been flooded with support on social media since she posted the video on Facebook. Commenting on the video posted by Ms Scott-Gardner, one Facebook user said: 'What part of 'this is illegal' do people not get?' Another wrote: 'So sorry that this happened at all, but especially for your birthday lunch.' After the incident, a friend of Ms Scott-Gardner phoned the restaurant and was allegedly told guide dogs were not allowed in due to the open kitchen plan. Dozens of people commented on Ms Scott-Gardner's Facebook page to show their support for the student In a statement, PGR said: 'PGR deeply regret what has happened and that this was as a result of a lack of understanding of what a guide dog is and the legal rights the owner has for them and their dog.' And Guide Dogs for the Blind said they would be working alongside the restaurant to 'promote awareness with positive outcomes'. Emily Zorish, restaurant manager at PGR, said: 'We do accept guide dogs. One member of staff was not informed. We explained that we do accept guide dogs.' PGR restaurant insisted they 'deeply regret' the incident at the diner in Coventry Guide Dogs for the Blind said the charity will work alongside the charity to promote awareness of guide dogs Under the Equalities Act, disabled people have the same right to services supplied by shops, banks, hotels, libraries, pubs, taxis and restaurants as everyone else. Holly spent the rest of her birthday speaking to advisers at the Guide Dogs charity. Ms Scott-Gardner received a number of supportive messages on Twitter, including from strangers Many social media users expressed their anger that she and her guide dog could be treated this way Others directed their anger at PGR - who said the incident was as a result of a 'lack of understanding' Only two weeks ago he had attended a course on how to treat women A Red Cross spokesperson claimed he 'had an eye on her for some time' Police say he followed her down into the basement of the migrant camp A teenage migrant accused of raping a female worker at an asylum seekers' centre two weeks after attending a course on how to treat women 'had an eye on her for some time', it is claimed. Police say the 16-year-old followed the catering firm worker into the basement of the centre in Menen, Belgium, and attacked her. A spokesperson for the Red Cross has now claimed the teenager was thought to have been watching the girl some time prior to the attack. The teenager is accused of attacking the woman at a migrant centre in Belgium. Many right-wing protesters (pictured) took to the streets after the Cologne sex attacks, which they blamed on the influx of migrants An Luyten, from Red Cross Flanders, told RT the Afghan teenager had been staying on the centre for five months and 'already had an eye on her for quite some time'. The attack allegedly occurred just two weeks after the teenager had attended a course held at the migrant centre on how to treat women. Ms Luyten added: 'When a minor comes to Belgium and when a minor comes to a center of the Red Cross Flanders, we teach them two things: first thing is sexual education. 'Sometimes we are talking about children who are 14, 15, 16 years old. We also have to explain what the normal ways of treating women here in Flanders [are].' Earlier this week, the judge ordered the teenager to be detained in youth custody until his next hearing. At the time, a spokeswoman for the Red Cross said it was the first time in 25 years such an alleged incident had occurred at one of the organisation's asylum seeker centres in the country. 'Two weeks ago we gave a course about how to treat women in Flanders and the boy was present there.' The allegation feeds into to a highly charged debate over immigration in Europe, particularly since authorities in neighbouring Germany accused gangs of migrants of sexually assaulting women in Cologne on New Year's Eve. 'I repeat: people who need a course on how to treat women should not be there in the first place,' Tom Van Grieken, leader of anti-immigrant party Vlaams Belang said on Twitter. Belgium received 35,476 asylum requests in 2015, more than twice the level of 2014. The incident echoes that of Swedish social worker Alexandra Mezher, who it is alleged was stabbed to death by Somalian migrant Youssaf Khaliif Nuur at an adolescent migrant centre where she worked in Gothenberg, Sweden last month. It also follows the Cologne sex attacks on New Year's Eve, in which hundreds of women filed sexual assault complaints after wave of attacks in the German city. A mob of men - believed to be of North African and Arab origin - were said to have molested and robbed women after congregating at the city's central station. Meanwhile an Iraqi migrant raped a 10-year-old boy at a swimming pool in Vienna earlier this month. The gunman accused of shooting dead a gay man in New York's Greenwich Village launched into a tirade against his victim's friend during his trial blaming him for the death. Elliot Morales, 36, is accused of the murder of Mark Carson, 32, in a gay hate crime in 2013 after accosting him and friend Danny Robinson and hurling homophobic insults. Morales is currently on trial charged with second degree murder as a hate crime along with other charges and is representing himself during the case. Scroll down for video Elliot Morales, 36, who is accused of the murder of Mark Carson, 32, in a gay hate crime in 2013 after accosting him and friend Danny Robinson and hurling homophobic insults Yesterday, Mr Robinson was called to the stand, while Morales cross-examined him and tried to blame him for the attack. According to the New York Post, Morales first asked Mr Robinson: 'You could have avoided all of this from escalating to the level it did, if you and Mr Carson just went along with your own business?' But Mr Robinson replied saying the question was 'so offensive' and began shaking his head at the prosecution. Morales then went on to ask: 'Wouldnt you agree, seeing this firearm and telling me to put it down, wouldnt you consider that to be more instigating the whole situation?' Mark Carson, who was shot dead in the attack. The bullet struck Carson in the cheek. He was taken to Beth Israel Hospital, where he died To which Robinson replied incredulously: 'Instigating? Not at all.' Later Morales also suggested that he only pulled the trigger because he thought Mr Robinson was reaching inside his pocket for a gun, when he was only trying to get to his phone. At the end of the cross-examination as Robinson left the courtroom and could be seen wiping tears from his eyes. Earlier in the trial, Michael Cherry, the manager of the Annisa restaurant on Sixth Avenue, told the court Morales had been standing hurling homophobic insults at random passers-by. Police said victim Mr Carson and his companion Mr Robinson were walking down Sixth Avenue near West 8th Street, when Morales approached them. He allegedly called Mr Carson a 'f*****' and a 'queer'. According to the police who arrested Morales in May 2013, the ex-convict sat on the street in handcuffs laughing and boasting about the killing minutes later Morales is currently on trial charged with second degree murder as a hate crime along with other charges and is representing himself during the case The pair then walked off but Morales allegedly followed them. 'Do you want to die here?' Morales asked Carson, according to police, then demanded to know: 'Is he your boy?' Carson responded without hesitation: 'Yes.' Then Morales allegedly shot him in the head at point-blank range with a silver Taurus .38-caliber revolver. The bullet struck Carson in the cheek. He was taken to Beth Israel Hospital, where he died. According to the police who arrested Morales in May 2013, the ex-convict sat on the street in handcuffs laughing and boasting about the killing minutes later. The group chief executive of consumer champion Which?, Peter Vicary-Smith, is set to become the highest paid charity boss when he receives 819,000 later this year The group chief executive of consumer champion Which? is set to become the highest paid charity boss when he receives 819,000 later this year. Peter Vicary-Smith, who joined Which? in 2004, is on track to get six times more than the Prime Minister as he is rewarded for expanding the organisation by nearly 70 per cent in the last four years. His generous remuneration package will include a 235,000 salary, 56,000 bonus, 35,000 in allowances and 493,000 from an incentive scheme. It will be a 135 per cent increase on last year's pay and will be split into two parts - 70 per cent for running Which?'s magazine business and 30 per cent for the work he completes with its charitable parent The Consumers' Association. Tim Gardham, the new chair for the association, told The Times that the package was 'very big indeed' as he commended Mr Vicary-Smith's 'absolutely exceptional' performance. He added: 'Which? continues to see strong, sustained commercial growth, which has enabled us to spend 33million on promoting consumer interests in the last three years. 'Our commercial success has enabled us to launch new free advice services, helping millions of people with our free content, and securing change for all consumers through our campaigns. 'We want to do more to be transparent about how we work as a self-funding social enterprise that receives no donations or public funding.' He added that the mid-year review, which details Mr Vicary-Smith's salary, explains how Which?'s commercial and charitable activities are entwined. Mr Vicary-Smith joined Proctor & Gamble as a brand assistant in 1984 before leaving to help Mars launch the Tracker cereal bar. Peter Vicary-Smith, who joined Which? in 2004, is on track to get six times more than the Prime Minister as he is rewarded for rapidly expanding the organisation in the last four years. Above, the charity's London headquarters WHICH?: A CHARITY WITH A COMMERCIAL ARM Which?'s commercial and charitable activities are entwined. The Consumers' Association is a registered charity, which sits at the top of the Which? group. It is involved in policy as well as being responsible for all Which? campaigns. The charity also has a commercial arm -a magazine business, which reviews consumer goods. Tim Gardham, the new chair for the association, said the mid-year review, which details Mr Vicary-Smith's salary, explains how the relationship between the two works. Advertisement He then worked at Oxfam for five years before joining the Imperial Cancer Research Fund while it merged with the Cancer Research Campaign to form Cancer Research UK. In his spare time, the keen businessman is a Crystal Palace fan who has two daughters. He moved from Oxfordshire to Devon last year, where his wife was looking forward to keeping a flock of angora goats. Details of Mr Vicary-Smith's salary comes after reports revealed a number of charity bosses receiving large pay packages. Philip Sugarman, the former chief executive of St Andrew's Healthcare, received 751,000 in the year of his departure. The package, which was detailed in the charity's accounts for the year ending March 2014, included a 285,000 salary, 76,000 for compensation for loss of office and 1,000 as 'other benefits'. Meanwhile, it was revealed in February last year that Nuffield Health regularly paid between 770,000 and 780,000 a year - including redundancy payments - to staff, according to The Telegraph. North Korean tyrant Kim Jong-un has threatened to bomb his South Korean counterpart's home just days after labelling her an 'insane bitch destined for a violent death'. Kim Jong-un launched his withering attacks on the south's first female president, Park Geun-hye, in response to the U.S.-led military drills currently underway south of Pyongyang. He reportedly declared he was ready to launch a pre-emptive strike on the Blue House, the official residence of the president of South Korea. North Korean tyrant Kim Jong-un has labelled his South Korean counterpart an 'insane bitch' and threatened to bomb her home. Here he is pictured attending a military concert The tyrant has frequently used sexist and derogatory language when attacking the south's first female president Although the two countries have for years engaged in very public propaganda battles, the north's colourful invective in the past few days has elevated their hatred to a new level. Today the Supreme Command of the Korean People's Army said in a statement: 'All our strategic and tactical means of striking will be mobilised to carry out pre-emptive, just operations. 'The primary targets of the strikes will be the [Blue House] and the reactionary ruling agencies, which are dens of plotters of confrontation,' The Daily Telegraph reported. Earlier this week, Rodong Sinmun newspaper, a mouthpiece of the North's ruling communist party, launched its abusive attack against Park for seeking stronger sanctions against Pyongyang. A full-page coverage on the conservative leader described her as a 'murderous devil' and 'senile old woman' whose only purpose is to topple the North's government. 'This tailless crazy old bitch called Park Geun-Hye is heaping further misery on our people, already suffering from the tragedy of division,' one article said. Earlier, Park warned that North Korea must either change its ways or face the collapse of its regime, adding Kim Jong-un's authoritarian government is an 'extreme reign of terror'. Carved in two by the Soviets and U.S. at the end of the Second World War, the halves of the Korean Peninsula fought a vicious war in the early 1950s. However, they have spent much of the years since then promising, and sometimes trying very hard to engineer, each other's destruction. South Korean President Park Geun-hye delivers a speech at the National Assembly in Seoul, South Korea. The abusive invectives delivered to the south in recent days elevates the two countries' hatred even higher North Korea, even as it builds a nuclear arsenal, has in recent decades been outgunned diplomatically, economically and militarily by the richer South; it has therefore relied more on words as a weapon. Robert Kelly, a political scientist at Pusan National University in the South, said the north's attacks may be meant to 'reduce hopes for unification, which the North Korean elite really doesn't want, because there's no way they'd keep their privileges on the other side.' North Korea's overwhelmingly male-dominated culture may have something to do with it as well. Kelly said Pyongyang may not understand that sexist language - of which Park has been subjected to repeatedly - disgusts many. KCNA wrote that Park complains about North Korean nukes, but 'takes much pleasure and even throws out her underwear in welcoming the murderous nuclear war devices brought in by the American Yankees'. North Korea previously called Park a 'prostitute' and said she lives on the 'groin of her American boss'. It has frequently questioned her womanhood because she has no children, which the North labels as an 'obligation' for women. North Korea also frequently refers to the 'swish of her skirts,' a Korean phrase used to describe women seen as overly aggressive. The attacks were a response to the army drills currently underway in South Korea. Pictured are soldiers undergoing the annual exercises in Yeoncheon, near the border with the north A group of South Korea soldiers move through the region near the border where the drills are underway 'The swishes of Park Geun-hye's skirt, created by her American boss, are so unpredictable they're dumbfounding,' a spokesman of the North's Joint National Organization of Working People said last year. 'This is all because the United States' black, hairy hands reach deep into Park Geun-hye's skirt.' The North's propaganda writers spent years attacking Lee, Park's predecessor, by saying he looked like a rat. In a statement against Lee during his final days as president in January 2013, the North's Committee for Peaceful Reunification of Korea compared Lee and his 'treacherous group' to rats five different times, saying that they should be 'beaten [to death] in time' and 'completely exterminated.' In July 2012, KCNA said the 'death-bed frenzy' of Lee's 'group of traitors reminds one of the rat-like hoodlums being dragged to gallows.' Lee drew Pyongyang's anger by departing from the rapprochement policies of his two liberal predecessors and slapping the North with broad trade sanctions in 2010 following the sinking of a South Korean warship that killed 46 sailors and which Seoul blamed on a North Korean torpedo attack. North Korea has described Park Geun-hye as a worse 'traitor' than her dictator father, Park Chung-hee, who ruled South Korea for 18 years until his assassination by his spy chief in 1979. The North attempted to assassinate the elder Park by sending a team of 31 commandos across the border in 1968, but they were stopped near Park's presidential mansion in Seoul. North Korean defectors shout slogans during a rally to denounce Jong-un's criticism of South Korea The rally was prompted by the claim the country's leader was an 'insane bitch' earlier this week Shortly after his death, the North's official Rodong Sinmun newspaper called Park a 'a truculent fascist dictator' who 'plunged South Korea into a sea of blood, arresting, imprisoning and brutally murdering (those) ... who called for the democratization of society and the reunification of the country.' North Korea also extends its insults to the presidents and other key officials of the U.S., which Pyongyang labels as an imperialist aggressor and puppet master of the Seoul government. The North hurled racist insults at U.S. President Barack Obama more than once. Its state media has called U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry a wolf with a 'hideous' lantern jaw, and his predecessor, Hillary Clinton, as a 'funny lady' who sometimes 'looks like a primary schoolgirl and sometimes a pensioner going shopping.' Former U.S. President George W. Bush, who in 2002 bracketed North Korea with Iran and pre-war Iraq as part of an 'axis of evil,' was labeled as a 'world dictator,' and a 'hooligan bereft of any personality as a human being.' The body of Ademola Owolana, 26, from Grays, in Essex, was found on top of a commuter train in southern Chicago The body of a missing British tourist who was visiting relatives in the US has been found on top of a decomissioned commuter train in Chicago. Ademola Owolana, 26, was last seen around 4.30am on Saturday morning outside a night club in the city's southerly West Pullman neighbourhood. One of his relatives, Sheriff Akinoso, said he became aggressive at the club and demanded his car keys, but refused to hand them over as he had been drinking and could not legally drive. As such, he jogged off east on 117th street in the dead of night. His family searched desperately for the missing tourist, who did not have a phone or passport, until a body matching his description was discovered on top of a Metra train in a storage yard yesterday. A spokesman for the family confirmed the body was Owolana's. The storage yard, situated next to train tracks, is about a mile away from the Club Low Key where he disappeared, the New York Daily News reported. His family searched desperately for the missing tourist, who did not have a phone or passport, until a body matching his description was discovered on top of a Metra train (pictured) in a storage yard yesterday Owolana was visiting family in southwest suburban Plainfield for a few weeks, according to his mother Bolanle who was also on the trip. He was supposed to return to his home in Grays, in Essex, on Thursday. The 26-year-old had studied at William Morris Sixth Form in Hammersmith. Owolana was visiting family in southwest suburban Plainfield for a few weeks, according to his mother Bolanle (pictured) who was also on the trip. So far only 14 people are facing charges despite hundreds of sex assaults Juergen Mathies has claimed this is due to poor quality CCTV cameras The city's police chief says most of the sex attackers will not be identified Dozens of women in Cologne were attacked at New Year's Eve celebrations Cologne's city's police chief Juergen Mathies (pictured) has admitted most attackers will not be identified due to bad CCTV footage Most of the New Year's Eve sex attackers in Cologne will never be caught because of poor CCTV camera footage, the city's police chief has revealed. Juergen Mathies has admitted police are able to pinpoint some thefts, but are relying on sex attack victims - many of whom were overwhelmed by dozens of men at once - to identify their assailants. Police say the attacks were mostly carried out by foreigners, fueling debate in Germany about the country's ability to cope with the huge number of migrants that have arrived over the past year. Mr Mathies told the BBC: 'The CCTV footage is not good enough to clearly identify sexual assaults. 'We can see some thefts but that is all. We're relying on witness accounts and victims identifying their attackers.' Today three men - two Moroccans and a Tunisian man - are due to appear in court charged with theft. They are the first to appear in court on charges stemming from the incident. The attacks occurred in Cologne during out-of-control celebrations on New Year's Eve in the city's main square. More than 800 women filed police complaints in the following weeks. Police at the scene took notes describing being overwhelmed by drunken mobs of men and dozens of emotional victims claiming they had been assaulted. Most accused men of 'North African or Arab' appearance as having carried out the attacks, and described being forced to run a 'gauntlet' of men groping them. So far only 14 people have been charged by police. One faced a sexual assault charge, the rest are accused of theft. Meanwhile, prosecutors in Cologne have confirmed they are investigating the source of a series of embarrassing leaks from within the city's police force. They included an internal document that detailed the extent of the crimes, as well as an interview with a senior officer who revealed how they were receiving hundreds of requests for help and were completely powerless to do anything. Prosecutors confirmed police were gathering material which will then be examined for evidence as to the source of the leaks that resulted in complaints from the region's interior minister Ralf Jager. It also led to the previous Cologne police president Wolfgang Albers going into retirement. Two men charged with theft on the evening cover their faces with folders during a court appearance today The pair and one other man - all from Morocco and Tunisia - are alleged to have been among the disorder that evening Neither man showed his face during the court appearance, instead opting to hide behind the folders Hundreds of women say they were sexually assaulted at Cologne's New Year's Eve celebrations (pictured) A parole board is now deciding if the inmate, 55, can finally go free He has attempted escape 13 times, making it out of the jail on seven occasions, only to later be recaptured DeFriest, believed to be an autistic savant, can memorize a prison key simply by seeing it on a guard's belt before reproducing an exact copy DeFriest, then aged 19, was initially sentenced to four years behind bars but has been in jail for 36 years thanks to multiple escape attempts He is every prison guard's worst nightmare - an autistic savant able to memorize the design of a key hanging on an officer's belt just by looking at it before producing an exact replica in his cell. Mark DeFriest, dubbed 'prison Houdini' for his 13 escape attempts, was jailed for just four years in 1979 for stealing tools but has since spent 39 years behind bars - 27 in solitary confinement. However, DeFriest, now 55, could soon be getting a taste of legitimate freedom as the Florida parole commission reviews his case. Scroll down for video Mark DeFriest (right, in jail) who was just 19 (left, on arrest in 1979) when he was jailed in 1979 for 'stealing' mechanic tools left to him in his father's will, may finally escape jail legally after 36 years Notorious for his escapes, the inmate was able to memorize at a glance, a key dangling from a guard's belt, and replicate its intricate pattern to make his own out of almost anything (pictured are his hand crafted keys) DeFriest, who suffers from undiagnosed mental issues, was just 19 when he was jailed for 'stealing' mechanic tools left to him in his father's will - before probate was granted. While he would have been allowed out aged 23, DeFriest's poor behavior and multiple escapes saw years added to his sentence that would have made him well over 100 on release. DeFriest has attempted escape 13 times, making it out of jail on seven of those occasions, only to later be recaptured. During one incident he drugged prison guards with LSD to distract them while he made his escape. In another, he hot wired a car and broke into a friend's home. However, filmmaker Gabriel London's part-animated 2014 documentary The Life and Mind of Mark DeFriest has started to change opinions around his case. The film focuses on claims that DeFriest is a high functioning autistic which contributed to his inability to follow prison rules. Even DeFriest's original arrest could be traced back to his mental health issues, London argues. DeFriest's four year sentence spiraled into almost decades behind bars - 27 of those in solitary confinement - after the genius escape artist's multiple break outs (pictured with a black eye while in prison) His family was living in Gadsden County in 1979 when his father, who served in the OSS in the Second World War, died, the Charlotte County Florida Weekly reported. His father, who believed the Communists were coming to America, had trained his son in survival, avoidance tactics, guns and mechanics. After he passed away, DeFriest - whose autism meant he struggled to understand the complexities of inheritance law and probate - went to collect the tools his father had bequeathed him, only to have his stepmother call the police. When officers arrived, the teenager panicked and ran. When the cops finally caught up with him they discovered he had a gun on him - that had never been taken out during the incident. Four out of five psychiatrists testified that he was mentally ill and should not be sent to jail. The fifth has since recounted his statement. Despite the testimonies, he was jailed for four years - a sentence that would turn into a life term. 'We're punishing him for being mentally ill. That's what's happening here,' DeFriest's attorney John Middleton told the Miami Herald in 2014. 'Mark is not a violent person, has never hurt anybody. He's been his own worst enemy in jail by escaping and committing some crimes,' Middleton told the Commission on Offender Review. DeFriest was originally jailed for stealing mechanic tools left to him in his father's will - before probate was granted (pictured as a child with his father) Attorney Middleton had been working with DeFriest's wife Bonnie, 85, whom he met through a pen pal scheme and married in jail, for the past 15 years to get the Florida parole board to reconsider the inmate's case Things snowballed from there and during his first escape he climbed over razor wire and ran. In all, he had seven successful escapes in 13 attempts. He was also charged with stealing a car at gunpoint and breaking into a friend's home after one escape. Each offense added more time to his sentence, and behavior problems gave the parole commission no reason to move up his release date. He has nearly 400 disciplinary reports on file, including 65 from 1983 alone. Middleton said that in one incident, DeFriest duplicated the master key at Florida State Prison, the toughest in the state's system, and let out fellow inmates to roam around. 'He has a meticulous, disciplined, incredibly skilled mechanical mind that can pick up anything,' London said. After glancing at keys, London said DeFriest was able to memorize the patterns and fabricate his own. But he also used his skills to create intricate art out of materials like paper chip bag foil and Popsicle sticks. After a 1981 escape, Bay County prison authorities placed DeFriest in total darkness with no clothes, no blankets, no toilet paper and no human contact for 11 days. He was often kept in a straight jacket - which he was able to free himself from - and claims he was regularly attacked with pepper spray. Bonnie has been lining up mechanical work for her husband for when, she hopes, he is finally freed from jail A judge later compared the incarceration to conditions in a North Vietnamese prisoner-of-war camp. Middleton said DeFriest has been assaulted several times in prisons and at one point spent years without being allowed yard time. That's why he kept trying to escape not because he wasn't willing to complete his sentence, the lawyer said. DeFriest claims that in a nightmareish ten-year stint, he went without seeing the sun once. He was being kept on Florida State Prison's now-infamous X-wing - which was based one floor above the room which housed the electric chair and was home to the jail's most terrifying inmates. At one point DeFriest even agreed to become a 'prison wife' for one of the wing's most feared inmates to try and survive. The rest of the time, he spent in his 7-by 8-foot windowless cell - built specifically for him - without access to the prison yard. The inmate has been kept in out-of-state prisons for his own protection since 1999 after witnessing guards beat another prisoner to death during his time at Florida State. State prison officials won't disclose where he is. 'We are committed to ensuring the safety of our staff and inmates by providing them appropriate security, supervision and care,' said Department of Corrections spokesman McKinley Lewis. The department declined to say anything else about DeFriest. Middleton had been working with DeFriest's wife Bonnie, 85, whom he met through a pen pal scheme and married in jail, for the past 15 years to get the Florida parole board to reconsider the inmate's case. Following the award-nominated documentary, a parole board in Tallahassee finally agreed to reduce DeFriest's release date from 2085 to March 2015 - cutting a record 70 years from his sentence. The 55-year-old still has outstanding sentences for contraband possession but a parole board will meet today to decide whether it is finally time for him to be released. Middleton is confident he will succeed outside of prison. 'Mark is not going to go out there and rob stores,' he said. 'This man is not stupid. He's extremely intelligent, and very talented.' Mystery surrounds the discover by construction workers in China of a giant piece of rock engraved with the word Glenturret - the name of a Scottish whisky distillery 5,500 miles away. The discovery came during a recent excavation for a resort at Moganshan, a holiday destination in China two hours from Shanghai. Developers of the Chinese resort and staff at the historic Glenturret distillery in Crieff in Perthshire, Scotland, remain baffled over the link between the two sites. Mystery surrounds the discover by construction workers in China of a giant piece of rock engraved with the word Glenturret - the name of a Scottish whisky distillery 5,500 miles away One avenue of investigation has emerged after it was revealed some of the China property used to belong to Dr. Duncan Main, a Scottish missionary doctor who dedicated 45 years of his life to working in China in the late 1800s and early 1900s. But developers are still puzzled about the connection to Glenturret. Staff at the distillery are baffled too and called on the public to help them solve the last pieces of an intriguing mystery, one that gives a new twist to UK-China trade relations. Grant Horsfield, founder of 'naked Retreats', which operates a luxury eco-resort in the area and is working on opening more properties, said: 'We know Dr. Duncan Main, one of the most famous missionaries in China at the time, had a castle on the property and that it was used as a summer retreat by him and his hospital staff. 'It was built in 1910 as a sanitorium and known simply as 1 Moganshan. We also know it passed into the hands of the government of Zhejiang for a short time during China's nationalisation and then was handed back to Dr. Main's son, S. Duncan Main. The discovery came during a recent excavation for a resort at Moganshan, a hilly vacation destination of China two hours from Shanghai 'It was then sold to the Jiangnan Auto Company and opened as the Green Shade Inn. However, it was not well maintained and was torn down in the 1960s.' Mr Horsfield got in touch with Glenturret Distillery, home of The Famous Grouse and The Glenturret Single Malt, after he and his workers found the name engraved in bold letters into a piece of rock. With the help of researchers on both sides of the world, including the local history officer at the AK Bell Library in Perth, the two parties have filled in some of the blanks. Stuart Cassells, General Manager of Glenturret Distillery, said: 'At first it might seem not seem like a surprise that a Scottish missionary doctor would be linked to a Scottish whisky distillery. 'But the fact is that Dr. Duncan Main was born and brought up in Ayrshire and was educated in Glasgow and Edinburgh. One avenue of investigation has emerged after it was revealed some of the China property used to belong to Dr. Duncan Main, a Scottish missionary doctor who dedicated 45 years of his life to working in China in the late 1800s and early 1900s 'We have yet to find a link between Dr. Main and our own region of Crieff, which is some distance away at the foot of the Scottish Highlands. 'We're wondering if perhaps Dr. Main was such a fan of his native drink that he was one of the first importers of Glenturret whisky to China. Another possibility is that the rock has uncovered a link not to Glenturret Distillery but to a British steamship called Glenturret that we also know existed. 'What is clear is that Glenturret made its mark, literally, halfway around the world. We'd love to have someone come forward to shed some more light on what is truly a fascinating story and a very colourful cast of characters. Jeremy Clarkson today officially apologised to the Top Gear producer he punched in a row about a steak after settling a six-figure claim for personal injury and racial discrimination. Oisin Tymon launched the lawsuit against both Clarkson and the BBC after the presenter gave him a bloody lip in a fight which led to him being sacked from the motoring show. Clarkson flew into a rage after being told he could not order a sirloin steak after a day of filming in March last year, calling Mr Tymon a 'lazy, Irish ****' during a confrontation at a hotel in North Yorkshire. Today it emerged that the presenter and his former employers have agreed to pay out more than 100,000 to the sacked producer - in a move which will allow the BBC to dodge the embarrassment of a full tribunal hearing. Apology: Jeremy Clarkson, left, today officially apologised to producer Oisin Tymon, right, for punching him Colleagues: Mr Tymon (left) and Clarkson (right) pictured filming together in China in December 2011 Clarkson and BBC bosses had been set to give evidence in an open hearing which would have laid bare the internal working of the Corporation. In an apology issued through Mr Tymon's lawyers Slater & Gordon today - nearly a year after the fight - Clarkson said: 'I would like to say sorry, once again, to Oisin Tymon for the incident and its regrettable aftermath. 'I want to reiterate that none of this was in any way his fault. 'I would also like to make it clear that the abuse he has suffered since the incident is unwarranted and I am sorry too that he has had to go through that. 'I am pleased that this matter is now resolved. Oisin was always a creatively exciting part of Top Gear and I wish him every success with his future projects.' Sacked: Clarkson was fired by the BBC over the incident and co-stars James May, left, and Richard Hammon, right, both quit; they have now joined Amazon CLARKSON'S FULL APOLOGY TO TOP GEAR PRODUCER HE PUNCHED AND CALLED A 'LAZY IRISH ****' I would like to say sorry, once again, to Oisin Tymon for the incident and its regrettable aftermath. I want to reiterate that none of this was in any way his fault. I would also like to make it clear that the abuse he has suffered since the incident is unwarranted and I am sorry too that he has had to go through that. I am pleased that this matter is now resolved. Oisin was always a creatively exciting part of Top Gear and I wish him every success with his future projects. Advertisement No details of the settlement were given, but it is understood to be in excess of 100,000. Clarkson and the BBC both contributed to the compensation fund. The BBC sacked Clarkson, 55, from Top Gear following the outburst, and his co-presenters, James May and Richard Hammond, also left. The star has tried to apologise to Mr Tymon several times before, and last June he tweeted that he was 'so sad and sorry it's ended like this' after his last Top Gear show with Hammond and May was aired. He also called on online trolls to stop abusing the producer after a number of Clarkson fans called for Mr Tymon to be sacked and said that he had a 'punchable face'. However, today's statement is the first time that Clarkson has issued a full, public apology to his victim over the incident. Mr Tymon's lawyer, Paul Daniels, said: 'The action involving Mr Tymon has been concluded. Oisin is keen to put the matter behind him now that it has been brought to a close. 'Oisin greatly appreciates all of the support he has received, including from the BBC. He remains focused on the creative work he loves at the BBC.' Replacements: Chris Evans is the new presenter of Top Gear alongside sidekick Matt LeBlanc A spokesman for the BBC said: 'The action involving Mr Tymon and the BBC has been resolved. 'Oisin is a valued member of the BBC who behaved with huge integrity in dealing with the very difficult circumstances last year - a situation in which, as Tony Hall has stated, he was completely blameless. 'We are pleased that matters have now been resolved. Oisin has made an important contribution to the BBC in his 12 years with us, and we hope to see him continue to realise his potential in his role as a development executive. 'We believe Oisin has a very exciting future at the BBC.' Clarkson, May and Hammond have signed up to launch a rival motoring show on Amazon's TV service, after they were replaced as Top Gear hosts by presenter Chris Evans and a host of sidekicks including Friends actor Matt LeBlanc. The sacked star is currently believed to be filming his new show in the Caribbean. Jeremy Corbyn (pictured at a previous Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament rally) will join SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon and Plaid Cymru's Leanne Wood at the 'Stop Trident' march on Saturday Jeremy Corbyn has sparked fresh infighting in the Labour Party by confirming today that he will speak at an anti-nuclear weapons rally in London this weekend. The long-standing unilateralist will join SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon, Plaid Cymru leader Leanne Wood and the Green party's Caroline Lucas at the 'Stop Trident' rally on Saturday. The decision has caused anger from Labour MPs, who said it will further highlight the party's divisions at a time when it should be focussing on making the case for staying in the EU. Mr Corbyn will rush back from the Yorkshire and Humber regional Labour conference to speak at the rally, which is being organised by the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament. More than 9,000 people are expected to attend the event, which starts at midday from Hyde Park and will end in Trafalgar Square. The Labour party is deeply split over whether to renew Trident, Britain's nuclear deterrent. Responding to criticism from Labour MPs to the decision to attend Saturday's rally, Mr Corbyn's spokesman said this afternoon: 'Part of his mandate in the leadership election was his stance against Trident. 'He got an overwhelming mandate for that and he's entitled to express his views.' Last month Mr Corbyn replaced the pro-Trident Maria Eagle with the firm unilateralist Emily Thornberry as Shadow Defence Secretary, putting her in charge of the review of the party's defence policy. It has led to accusations that the 'open minded' review will be prejudiced in favour of backing an anti-Trident policy. John Woodcock, the Labour MP for Barrow and Furness, where much of the work for the new submarines will take place if MPs give the go ahead for the renewal, said Mr Corbyn's decision to attend Saturday's anti-Trident rally was an unnecessary distraction for the Labour party. He told MailOnline: 'Aside from being another sign that the 'open minded' review of defence policy is nothing of the sort, Jeremy's choice to speak at the CND rally just ensures another weekend of public focus on Labour's divisions over a policy we can't change when we should be holding the government to account and making the case to remain in the European Union.' Jeremy Corbyn wants to change Labour's pro-Trident policy in time for the upcoming vote in the House of Commons on renewing the four submarines that carry the Trident warheads (one of which is pictured docked in Faslane, Scotland Earlier this week Ms Thornberry caused jitters in her party and army chiefs by refusing to commit Labour to spend 2 per cent of GDP on defence. She backed a future defence policy increasingly based on capabilities dubbed 'geeks, spooks and thugs' - cyber experts, spies and special forces - as she questioned whether nuclear submarines would provide long-term value for money. Ms Thornberry condemned cuts to the Army as a result of the 2010 Strategic Defence and Security Review (SDSR), claiming it was now 'at its smallest size since the Napoleonic wars', while the Royal Navy's fleet had been reduced and the RAF was relying on 40-year-old Tornados. Shadow Defence Secretary Emily Thornberry (pictured) caused further anger among Labour MPs earlier this week after refusing to commit to spending 2 per cent of GDP on defence But asked whether her policy review would include the commitment to meeting the Nato target of spending 2% of GDP on defence, she said: 'I can't say at the moment, I'm afraid. Also, a big question is what do you include in the 2 per cent?' Ms Thornberry also outraged MPs in her party earlier this month when she compared Britain's state-of-the-art nuclear deterrent to World War Two spitfires. It led to warnings by Shadow Home Secretary Andy Burnham that the party may never be able to resolve its differences on Trident as he urged his party to move on from its constant infighting on the issue. Currently the party's policy is officially to support the renewal of Britain's nuclear deterrent and it survived an attempt by the leader to change the policy at the Labour party conference last autumn. The leadership wants to change the party's policy in time for the upcoming vote in the House of Commons on renewing the four submarines that carry the Trident warheads, which is estimated to cost 31billion. Mr Corbyn caused more fury last month when he recommended a middle-way option that would put Britain's nuclear submarines at sea without them carrying any nuclear warheads, arguing that this would avoid thousands of job losses. It emerged last week that Labour is to consider replacing Trident submarines with a cheaper, aircraft-based nuclear deterrent. The proposals, drafted originally for a Liberal Democrat think tank, will be considered by Ms Thornberry. The plan would see nuclear submarines ditched and replaced with a new system of air-dropped nuclear weapons, a type of deterrent last relied on by Britain in the 1950s and 1960s. Its supporters say it would save the taxpayer up to 13billion while taking Britain 'a step down the nuclear ladder'. Backbench Labour MPs reacted with disbelief to the proposal, which comes just weeks after Jeremy Corbyn said he would like to deploy 'submarines without nuclear weapons'. Defence analyst and former RAF intelligence reservist Toby Fenwick will brief Miss Thornberry as part of her comprehensive review of Labour defence policy, it was reported last night. His ideas were first published by the CentreForum think tank ahead of the 2015 general election and are set to be looked at by the Lib Dems' own ongoing review of Trident. It would see 135 new F35C Joint Strike Fighter 'stealth' planes adapted for 'dual use' to deliver B61-12 nuclear bombs, and operate from air bases and the UK's two new aircraft carriers. The planes could not provide round-the-clock capability but could mobilise rapidly in the event of nuclear crisis. Under his plan, four new submarines to replace Trident would not be ordered. Emily Thornberry refuses to commit Labour to 2 per cent GDP spending on defence Russian sabre-rattling may not justify renewing the nuclear deterrent, Emily Thornberry said as she refused to commit Labour to spend 2 per cent of GDP on defence. The shadow defence secretary is carrying out a wholesale review of Labour's policy, including the contentious issue of retaining the Trident nuclear system. She backed a future defence policy increasingly based on capabilities dubbed 'geeks, spooks and thugs' - cyber experts, spies and special forces - as she questioned whether nuclear submarines would provide long-term value for money. Emily Thornberry backed a future defence policy increasingly based on capabilities dubbed 'geeks, spooks and thugs' - cyber experts, spies and special forces Ms Thornberry condemned cuts to the Army as a result of the 2010 Strategic Defence and Security Review (SDSR), claiming it was now 'at its smallest size since the Napoleonic wars', while the Royal Navy's fleet had been reduced and the RAF was relying on 40-year-old Tornados. But asked whether her policy review would include the commitment to meeting the Nato target of spending 2 per cent of GDP on defence, she said: 'I can't say at the moment, I'm afraid. Also, a big question is what do you include in the 2 per cent?' In a speech at defence think tank the Royal United Services Institute, she acknowledged the concerns caused by Russian president Vladimir Putin's actions. 'Events in Georgia and in Crimea have shown Putin's interest in expanding Russia's sphere of influence, and his willingness to use military force in order to do so,' she said. Russian submarines in the North Sea and bombers flying off the coast of Cornwall 'can be deeply unsettling' and 'against this background, it is perhaps understandable that some would not even contemplate a rethink of our current strategy on nuclear weapons'. 'But it is incumbent on all of us, I think, to try to look at this issue from a pragmatic point of view rather than an ideological one. 'We must ask ourselves whether the cost of four new submarines - which is more than an entire year's defence budget - will prove sufficient value for money in the long term, especially if it has to come at the expense of other crucial investments in our defences. 'Moreover, we also need to consider the scope of the technological advances we are likely to see over the next 20 or 30 years, and we must ask whether, if we are going to commit ourselves to the current platform for the next three decades, we can really be sure that it is future-proof.' Ms Thornberry has insisted that Labour's policy must take account of the fact that technological advances - such as underwater drones - may mean the submarines which carry the nuclear missiles will soon no longer be undetectable, undermining the effectiveness of the deterrent. She said: 'When I talk to people who tell me that they're worried about Russia, I can completely understand where they're coming from. But I also believe that we need to ask ourselves whether it is right to place our trust in one single weapons system to deter all threats and to protect us in all circumstances, and if we do, whether the platform we currently have is necessarily the right one.' She quoted the military historian Sir Michael Howard, who said 'there are three things we are going to need for future wars: geeks, spooks and thugs', adding: 'While his description of special forces as 'thugs' is not one I would use, the overarching point is well taken. 'So, while maintaining the conventional forces at our disposal and ensuring that they are properly resourced, we will also need to focus more on those vital specialisms - cyber experts, intelligence operatives and special forces - in the years to come.' Former Royal Navy chief and ex-security minister Admiral Lord West, a Labour peer, said the party should commit to the 2 per cent target. 'I would hope that at the very minimum we would make a commitment to maintain that 2 per cent,' he said. For people to 'take Labour seriously on defence, that is absolutely what we need to commit to, I have no doubt about it'. Armed forces minister Penny Mordaunt said: 'We already know the Labour leader wants to scrap our nuclear deterrent and negotiate with Argentina over the Falklands. Now Labour's admitted they might slash defence spending too. It is another reminder that Labour are a threat to our national security.' A spokesman for the shadow defence secretary said: 'No one listening to Emily's speech would think Labour wants to cut spending on our armed forces, given that she took the Tories to task for doing exactly that over the last five years. It is wilful mischief to say otherwise. Could be made homeless if judge gives green light to raze the Jungle camp The pair still have a caravan in camp where they have lived for six months Currently living in flat in central Calais but not allowed to stay permanently She is the little child whose father's desperate quest to get her into the UK almost saw a former British soldier jailed for a 'crime of compassion'. Four-year-old Bahar Ahmadi captured the world's attention after Rob Lawrie, 49, was caught trying to smuggle her away from the Jungle refugee camp in Calais last year. Mr Lawrie was cleared during a high-profile court case in January, and was allowed to resume his life in Leeds. MailOnline tracked down Bahar and her father Reza Ahmadi, 33, both from Afghanistan, who are still living in the Jungle and 'absolutely determined to get to England as soon as possible'. Desperate: Bahar Ahmadi (right) and her father Reza (left), 33, could be thrown out on the streets if - as expected - a judge gives the green light to raze the camp Confusion: Bahar (pictured, four, should be starting school next autumn but with no guarantee she will be in a a permanent home, that may not be possible Adorable: Rob Lawrie (left), 49, was caught trying to smuggle Bahar Ahmadi (right), four, away from the Jungle refugee camp in Calais for a better life in the UK Mr Ahmadi agreed to speak as the French authorities prepared to tear down the illegal camp they have called home for six months. He said: 'We are in a very bad way. We have appealed to everyone we can, but don't seem to be any closer getting across the Channel.' The pair now has a caravan at their disposal in the Jungle, but they are currently living in temporary accommodation in central Calais itself. 'We have a proper flat, provided by an aid organisation, but only for a short period,' said Mr Ahmadi, who recently broke his leg, and is on crutches. 'The flat is for people in a particularly bad situation. I've had trouble moving since I slipped and fell in the jungle. 'The flat has a bedroom and kitchen, but we know we will soon have to return to the caravan. There is a great deal of insecurity in our lives.' Determined: 'We just want to get across to England, and then I can find work, and get the rest of the family over,' said Mr Ahmadi (pictured, playing with Bahar) Alone: Leaving behind his wife Gollbas, 27, at home with their son, Baran, 21 months, Mr Ahmadi decided to make the journey to the UK with Bahar - and they arrived in Calais in September. The caravan is currently parked in the southern section of the Jungle, and if as expected a judge gives the green light to raze the camp, then they will have to find somewhere else to park the caravan. They have to share it with at least two other male Afghani refugees as it is, and Mr Ahmadi is only too well aware that Bahar needs something more stable. 'She has no friends of her own age,' said Mr Ahmadi, who said the little girl spends a lot of time drawing and colouring in. Bahar speaks a few words of English. She can says 'Hello' and 'Goodbye' - and continually asks her father if she can play the 'Angry Birds' mobile phone game. She should be starting school next autumn but without a guarantee of a permanent home, they do not know if that will be possible. 'We just want to get across to England, and then I can find work, and get the rest of the family over,' said Mr Ahmadi, a farmer originally from Deykandi province in central Afghanistan. The pair's journey from Afghanistan began early last year when they set off from their rural smallholding. Destitute: MailOnline tracked down Bahar (right, with Mr Lawrie) and her father to discover they are still in the jungle and are 'absolutely determined to get to England as soon as possible' Tragedy: Bahar and Reza (both pictured) now have a caravan at their disposal in the Jungle, but they are currently living in temporary accommodation in central Calais itself Their journey of some 3,500 miles was made overland, mainly travelling in buses and in the back of trucks. Mr Ahmadi was being threatened by the Taliban, the extremist religious group who accused him of being sympathetic to the western powers including Britain, whom they had fought for fifteen years. I just couldn't leave Bahar to spend one more night in that horrendous place. When you have seen what I have seen in the Jungle, then all rational thought goes out of your head Rob Lawrie Leaving his wife Gollbas, 27, at home with their son, Baran, 21 months, Mr Ahmadi decided to make the journey to the UK along with Bahar, and they arrived in Calais in September. 'We are not even able to speak to Gollbas and Baran,' said Mr Ahmadi, showing pictures of the rest of his family on his phone. 'The cost of communication is too much.' Mr Ahmadi and Bahar are, however, still in touch with relations in Leeds, and with Rob Lawrie. He faced a five-year prison sentence and a fine of 21,400 for trying to get Bahar to the UK. Mr Lawrie was stopped by Calais border guards on October 27th after being asked by Mr Ahmadi to take the vivacious child to England from the Jungle. Mr Lawrie, who is a father-of-four, said at the time: 'I just couldn't leave Bahar to spend one more night in that horrendous place. 'When you have seen what I have seen in the Jungle, then all rational thought goes out of your head.' Escape: Mr Ahmadi left Afghanistan and eventually settled in the Jungle after the Taliban threatened him for being sympathetic to the western powers including Britain Innocence lost: Bahar (pictured) continually asks her father if she can play the 'Angry Birds' mobile phone game Homeless: Mr Ahmadi agreed to speak because French authorities are preparing to tear down the illegal camp (pictured) they have called home for six months Bahar was hidden in a storage compartment above Mr Lawrie's seat in a van. The court in Boulogne-sur-Mer cleared Mr Lawrie of people smuggling, but he admitted illegally trying to get Bahar into the UK hidden in his van. Two senior judges have allowed a 60-year-old woman to continue to fight an extraordinary legal battle that may allow her to give birth to her dead daughters baby. The woman, who would be at least 61 by the time the child is conceived, has been given the right to appeal against a High Court decision that there was not enough evidence to suggest that the daughter would have wanted her mother to give birth to the baby. The case has dragged through the courts for five years and in a judgment statement read out by Lord Justice Treacy at the Court of Appeal yesterday judges said the woman had an arguable case with a real prospect of success. Victory: A woman who wants to use her dead daughter's frozen eggs to give birth to her own grandchild has persuaded judges at the Court of Appeal in London to allow her to continue her legal battle If she and her 59-year-old husband are granted permission to use the frozen eggs, which are stored in a London clinic, it is believed that it will be the first time in the world that a grandmother would give birth to her dead childs baby. No date has been set for the Appeal Court hearing. Once that is held it is possible that the losing party could then take the matter to the Supreme Court, further lengthening the already prolonged legal wrangling. The couples daughter, who cannot be named for legal reasons and was referred to as AM in court proceedings, died aged 28 in 2011 but had frozen her eggs five years previously when she was diagnosed with bowel cancer. Her parents, referred to as Mr and Mrs M, say their daughter wanted her mother to carry a child in the event that she did not survive. However, the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) refused to release the eggs because she had not provided full written permission. Lord Justice Treacy and Lord Justice Floyd today ruled at the Court of Appeal in London (pictured) that the woman and her 59-year-old husband should have permission to challenge a decision to dismiss their case In their judgment Lord Justice Treacy and Lord Justice Floyd both admitted they had been doubtful that the mother would have any prospect of winning the case but said they were swayed following clear and persuasive arguments from the familys barrister. The lawyer told the judges that all available evidence indicated that AM had wanted her mother to carry the grandchild. But Simon Calvert, a spokesman for the Christian Institute, said: The UK has some of the most liberal laws on fertility and embryology in the world so it must tell you something that even under our incredibly liberal regime this has not been allowed. You have to ask yourself what about the child? What impact would it have on any child born to know that they were conceived in this way using a dead womans eggs carried by their own grandmother? What would be the psychological effects on the child? Is it really fair on the child? Those are the questions we should be asking ourselves. Lord Justice Treacy said the grandmother had a chance of success in the case In previous hearings, it was claimed that AM had told her mother on her death bed: I want you to carry my babies. I want you and dad to bring them up. They will be safe with you. I could not have had better parents. Mrs M said her daughter had wanted her genes to be carried forward after her death and had regarded the eggs as living entities in limbo waiting to be born. The matter came to court because of the HFEAs insistence on needing written permission from the daughter. In a High Court hearing last year Mr Justice Ouseley was told that AM, who was single at the time of her death, would have been devastated if she had known the eggs would never be used but he supported the HFEAs decision, adding that it was not in breach of the familys human rights. The judge said: I must dismiss this claim, though I do so conscious of the additional distress which this will bring to the claimants, whose aim has been to honour their daughters dying wish for something of her to live on after her untimely death. The court heard that the familys plan had been to take AMs eggs to a treatment centre in New York so that they could be fertilised using sperm from a donor and implanted into Mrs M at a cost of 60,000. An HFEA spokesman said: We understand why Mr and Mrs M would wish to carry out what they see as their daughters wish. However, we considered their application on three separate occasions, concluding each time that the consent given did not satisfy the requirements of the law. Our decisions were then reviewed by a High Court judge, who supported our view. We will read todays decision to grant appeal carefully. Out of respect for Mrs M and her family, and for the ongoing legal process, it would be inappropriate for us to comment further at this time. The 15-year-old Swedish girl who was rescued from ISIS in Iraq, has spoken about her 'hard life' as a jihadi bride after running away with her boyfriend to join the terrorist group last year. Marilyn Stefanie Nevalainen from Boras, Sweden claims she only agreed to travel to the 'caliphate' with 19-year-old Moqtar Mohammed Ahmed because she 'didn't know what ISIS or Islam was'. Despite claiming to have no clue of Islam or ISIS, she travelled with her partner through eight countries, via Germany, Serbia and Turkey and Syria, while pregnant with her son, to reach Iraq. Scroll down for video Clueless: Marilyn Stefanie Nevalainen from Boras, western Sweden claims she only agreed to travel to the 'caliphate' with her jihadist partner because she 'didn't know what ISIS or Islam was' Miss Nevalainen was rescued from ISIS by Kurdish forces in late October, but escaped from her saviours to go back to her partner, and gave birth days later, Swedish media reports. She was speaking for the first time since her rescue from an ISIS enclave near Mosul by Kurdish special forces last week. Miss Nevalainen told a Kurdish TV channel how she had met her boyfriend in mid-2014 after dropping out of school in Sweden. 'First we were good together, but then he started to look at ISIS videos and speak about them and stuff like that,' she told Kurdistan 24. 'And I didn't know anything about ISIS or Islam or anything like that, so I didn't know what he meant, you know, Speaking to a Kurdish TV channel, Miss Nevalainen tells of how she travelled via train, bus and hitch-hiking through eight countries, including Germany, Serbia and Turkey and Syria, to reach Iraq Telling her story: Miss Nevalainen has spoken for the first time since her rescue from an ISIS enclave near Mosul by Kurdish special forces last week 'Then he said he wanted to go to ISIS and I said "ok, no problem", because I didn't know what ISIS means, what Islam is - nothing.' Miss Nevalainen was first reported missing in June by both her biological parents and her foster family, after tricking the latter that the former had allowed her to go to Stockholm for a few days. She was last seen at a train station on May 31, where she and her 19-year-old boyfriend were dropped off by her foster family, where she had been living since February. According to Swedish media, the couple had married in a Muslim ceremony in Stockholm in early 2015. In the interview, she reveals exactly how the she managed to get to Syria without a passport - by crossing borders on trains. She reveals how they took trains from Sweden, via Denmark, Germany, Hungary, Slovakia and Serbia where they hitch-hiked to Bulgaria before taking a bus to the Turkish border. After taking the bus across Turkey, the young couple managed to cross the Syrian border. Miss Nevalainen was pregnant when she ran away from her foster home in April last year, along with her 19-year-old ISIS-supporter boyfriend 'After that ISIS took us in a bus with some other women and men to Mosul in Iraq, and after that I got my house.' 'In that house we didn't have anything, no electricity no water, nothing and it was totally different to my life in Sweden. 'In Sweden I have everything and when I was there I didn't have anything. I didn't have any money either and it was a really hard life... So when I had a phone I started to contact my mum, and I said to her that I want to go home.' Her interview comes as a video has emerged believed to have been recorded by Mr Ahmed in August last year. In the video, recorded in Arabic and Swedish, he gives Miss Nevalainen's family a chilling message, telling the camera that they are never getting their 'little girl' back. He also launches into a rant against Sweden, claiming he and Miss Nevalainen left the country because it is full of 'racists'. Back to ISIS: The teenager was rescued from ISIS by Kurdish forces in late October, but escaped from her saviours to go back to her partner, and gave birth to a son You have said that ISIS are holding some girl her, and that they dont want to let her go and blablabla, and all that stuff, I don't know what you have said in the papers but.. I just want to reply to the papers, because they lie so much. Every time she speaks to her mother, she is fine and she has everything. So... you can forget this little girl. She is never coming back to you kuffar country And all the racists who live there [in Sweden] - you have made me run away from there, because you don't want to allow us to live together in peace. I can't live there. Because they are racist and I can't live with racists. F*** all the racists. Inshallah, the fighting has just begun.' At the time of the recording both Swedish and international media had highlighted Miss Nevalainen's case and her parent's plight to save her from ISIS. TALES OF A TROUBLED TEEN: MARILYN NEVALAINEN'S BLOG Ms Nevalainen appears to have been an avid blogger in her pre- and early teens, and her musings tell the tale of a troubled young girl. In one post written at the tender age of 13, she writes about having meetings with social services, before announcing that she is going out for a smoke. In another, she appears to have been in trouble with the law, as she blogs ahead of a police interview. On Sunday, 22 December, 2013 she writes: 'Haha, gonna totally flip on these cop w****s tomorrow, I can feel it already. Dont give a s*** about the s*** I'm gonna get, dont regret anything of what I have done Haha, kisses And in one post written just one year before her marriage to a strict Muslim ISIS fighter, she offers her opinions on drugs. 'As far as Im concerned, I dont think drugs are that bad. Not that Ive tested everything there is, but still. In my opinon, the drugs you can smoke shouldnt be called drugs! Because what do those drugs do exactly? Nothing! They just make you dopey as fuck at least for me! 'I stick to dope if Im doing drugs, so according to me, theres nothing bad about drugs, as long as you know what youre doing, its chill!' Advertisement A few weeks later, in October, the first attempt to free Miss Nevalainen was carried out by Kurdish forces. Miss Nevalainen was heavily pregnant at the time, but the teenager somehow managed to return to Mr Ahmed and the ISIS enclave near Mosul. A few days later, she gave birth to a son, whose whereabouts are not yet known, Aftonbladet reports Ms Nevalainen has now claimed that she was 'misled' into running away from home by her boyfriend, an ISIS jihadist fighter who has since reportedly been killed in a Russian air strike. The teenager was rescued in a raid by Kurdish special forces last week, the autonomous region's security council said in a statement on Tuesday. The 16-year-old travelled from Sweden to Syria last year and then crossed the border into Iraq, where she was rescued near the Islamic State stronghold of Mosul on February 17 by forces from the Kurdish counterterrorism department, the statement added. The Kurdish security council identified the rescued teenager as coming from the town of Boras and said she had been misled into making the journey to Syria by an Islamic State member in Sweden. 'The Kurdistan Region Security Council was called upon by Swedish authorities and members of her family to assist in locating and rescuing her from ISIS,' the statement read. Ms Nevalainen, is currently in the Kurdistan region and will be handed over to Swedish authorities so she can return home once necessary arrangements are put place, it added. A primary school has hired a hypnotherapist to help children as young as four cope with 'stress and depression'. St Mary's CE School in Rawtenstall, in Lancashire, has hired Anne Cartridge, 48, to run workshops with staff so they can pass on their anti-stress tips to the 194-primary school pupils. The mother-of-two, who runs a course called 'In Mind Therapies', has already run workshops with youth volunteers at the school. Ms Cartridge said her courses reduce stress, anxiety and depression in children as young as four. St Mary's CE School in Rawtenstall, in Lancashire, has hired Anne Cartridge, 48, to run workshops with staff so they can pass on their anti-stress tips to the 194-primary school pupils The NHS does not currently recommend hypnotherapy for clinical practice, and while it is practised by some doctors, dentists, psychologists and counsellors, it's also offered by non-professionals with little training. This is because in the UK, hypnotherapists don't have to join any organisation or have any specific training by law. Ms Cartridge explained: 'A lot of my work is dealing with anxiety, stress and depression. 'If those issues are dealt with in primary school, young people can cope better in high school and it helps them feel more in control as an adult. 'Recently I have had a number of young clients with depression and anxiety and they have been able to significantly improve their wellbeing after just a few sessions. 'I would like to see the time when all schools are forward thinking and provide proactive ways of supporting pupils' health and wellbeing. 'Too often the link between learning behaviour and emotional wellbeing is not understood. 'Schools are often not equipped to give pupils specialised help and that is where my programme offers solutions.' Ms Cartridge describes herself as a 'fully insured hypnotherapist registered with the General Hypnotherapy Register and a General Hypnotherapy Standards Council Accredited Practitioner.' According to her CV she trained with the Northern College of Creative Hypnotherapy and gained an Advanced Diploma in Hypnotherapy - as well as a BA (Hons) degree from Reading University. Ms Cartridge said: 'Education is more than just exams and lessons. 'We teach children about healthy eating, we make PE compulsory, but we don't teach them how to manage life and how to have a healthy mind. 'My sessions give children the skills to manage their own thoughts and feelings so that they feel better and improve their health and wellbeing. 'We know that children who are happy and healthy learn better. 'If pupils feel in control of their thoughts and emotions, they are better able to cope with stressful situations like exam pressures. 'They are more able to learn and behaviour in the classroom improves.' Kate Crane of St Mary's, said: 'The young volunteers came out of the session buoyant, feeling really happy. 'School is arranging for Anne to come in to work with staff so that they realise problems and can support children of primary age.' St Mary's describes itself on its website as promoting its youngsters' 'spiritual, moral, cultural, mental and physical development'. It states: 'Based upon our belief in Jesus Christ as the Son of God and Saviour of the world, we will give all children a positive experience of Christianity and learning, whilst retaining a respect for other faiths. 'We will promote the spiritual, moral, cultural, mental and physical development of all pupils within a caring, loving, stimulating and nurturing environment, which is firmly based upon Christian values. 'All children will receive a wealth of high quality educational experiences through the positive involvement of school, home and St. Mary's Church.' Last summer the school went from 'requires improvement' to 'good' following its latest Ofsted inspection. Lead inspector Shirley Gornall said headteacher Ian Holden was committed to making the school as good as it could possibly be. She said: 'The headteacher provides robust and rigorous leadership. Top Gear bosses have been criticised after the show's first woman presenter in 15 years arrived at the launch in a Bavarian barmaid outfit. Sabine Schmitz, a professional racing driver from Germany, posed for BBC publicity shots while wearing a racy off-the-shoulder top and tight corset more commonly associated with German barmaids and fancy dress. The BBC - which found itself at the centre of several contorversies with former host Jeremy Clarkson - has now been slammed for failing to take the female host 'seriously'. Top Gear bosses have been criticised after the show's first woman presenter in 15 years, Sabine Schmitz, arrived at the launch event in a Bavarian barmaid-style outfit (pictured) The professional racing driver from Germany (second from left) joined co-presenters Matt LeBlanc, motoring journalist Rory Reid, YouTube star Chris Harris and Chris Evans (left to right) at the launch event Ms Schmitz, 46, was the first woman to win Germanys famous Nurburgring 24-hour race and drives for BMW and Porsche. Sam Smethers, chief executive at the Fawcett Society, a women's equality group, said: 'Sabine Schmitz is a professional motor racing driver who will run rings round the rest of the Top Gear crew, whatever shes wearing. 'It would pay for the BBC, and the men shes working with, to take her seriously.' One of the guests also took to Twitter to criticise the outfit, writing: 'Sabine Schmitz and I need to have a talk about outfits... in German so she gets it.' A Top Gear source said that Ms Schmitz picked her own outfit for the event to celebrate her German roots and 'inject some fun' into the event. The new series, due to return to screens in May, was launched in Liverpool on Monday where some 700 bosses from around the world were shown a sneak preview of the show Ms Schmitz, 46 (pictured with Chris Evans), was the first woman to win Germanys famous Nurburgring 24-hour race and drives for BMW and Porsche. The BBC has been criticised for not taking her seriously They said: 'All new Top Gear is truly an international affair so Sabine wanted to inject some fun into proceedings in front of an audience of global TV Executives. 'She is very proud of her German roots and chose to surprise the crowd with a outfit of her own choosing.' The promotional event took place last night at Liverpool Echo arena, where 700 TV buyers gathered to catch a glimpse of the new series. It was hosted by BBC Worldwide, the corporations commercial arm, which unveiled a 100 second-long teaser, showing lead presenter Chris Evans being sick after going for a spin with Ms Schmitz. The pair gave each other a big hug as they talked about plans for the upcoming series. The divorced ex-racing driver has appeared on Top Gear before, roaring around the Nurburgring track The pair had been taking part in a race against a fighter jet at the US Topgun base in Nevada when the Radio 2 DJ had to step out of the 134,500 luxury spots car. He was then seen doubling over and appeared to retch, before the camera cut away. There were also clips of Formula 1 driver Jenson Button cruising around the Top Gear track in Surrey. Ms Schmitz, who currently presents on German television, will join Chris Evans, Friends star Matt LeBlanc, former F1 boss Eddie Jordan, YouTube star Chris Harris, public audition winner Rory Reid and The Stig on the new show. The divorced ex-racing driver has appeared on Top Gear before, roaring around the Nurburgring track. She follows in the footsteps of Kate Humble, Angela Rippon and Vicki Butler-Henderson, who were presenters for the original Top Gear before its 2002 revival. Six of the seven new presenters were at the event, driving into the arena in a series of flash cars, including the Aston Martin DB10 from the James Bond film Spectre. Jordan, who already presents for the BBC, recorded a video clip from South Africa, where he is attending a charity event. Speaking about the event, one TV boss said: 'It went down a storm.' The new series is due to air in May. Google's 130million 'sweetheart' tax deal that was settled with HMRC last month has been described as 'disproportionately small' by an influential committee of MPs. The report by the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) also revealed today that HMRC did not charge Google any penalty fee despite the internet giant paying its tax bill ten years late - not even the 100 fixed-penalty fee that UK taxpayers are charged for submitting their tax returns late. Today's report came after the committee ridiculed Google's Europe boss Matt Brittin earlier this month after he admitted he had no idea how much he gets paid. And he sparked widespread anger for defending his firm's controversial tax arrangements, which saw it paying a tax bill of just 130million for 10 years of back taxes in the UK despite estimated sales of 5billion. Scroll down for video Google's 130million 'sweetheart' tax deal that was settled with HMRC last month has been described as 'disproportionately small' by an influential committee of MPs The investigation ruled that tax rules for multinationals 'do not produce a fair outcome' but said it was impossible to judge whether the Google deal itself was fair for the taxpayer because of the lack of transparency over the details of the settlement. The PAC report called on HMRC to conduct a wide-ranging consultation on the case for changing tax rules to ensure the tax system is more 'open to public scrutiny'. It said HMRC should be 'prepared to go it alone' if the Treasury failed to secure an international commitment to improve tax transparency around the world. MPs were scathing of Google's admission that its complex tax arrangement will not change following its deal with HMRC. And it expressed concern that the UK taxman settled for less corporation tax from Google than other countries are 'willing to accept'. The report states: 'The sum paid by Google seems disproportionately small when compared with the size of Google's business in the UK, reinforcing our concerns that the rules governing where corporation tax is paid by multinational companies do not produce a fair outcome. Meg Hillier, chair of the Public Accounts Committee (pictured left) told Google's Europe president Matt Brittin (right) last week that he 'lives in a different world' after he admitted he did not know how much he gets paid 'Google's stated desire for greater tax simplicity and transparency is at odds with the complex operational structure it has created which appears to be directed at minimising its tax liabilities. 'Google admits that this structure will not change as a result of this settlement.' Last month George Osborne was heavily criticised after declaring last month that the deal struck with Google for its tax bill between 2005 and 2015 was a 'major success' for the taxpayer. The 130million it paid in tax was less than 3 per cent of the 5billion in revenue it declared in 2015. Google's UK sales accounted for 10 per cent of its worldwide revenue, with Britain making up its second largest market, HMRC evidence shows. HMRC 'PROUD' OF GOOGLE DEAL Dame Lin Homer, chief executive and permanent secretary of HMRC pictured leaving Parliament earlier this month, defended the tax deal her organisation reached with Google last month The HMRC chief in charge of agreeing the tax deal reached with Google last month boasted earlier this month that she was 'proud' of the agreement. The internet giant agreed to pay 130million to cover ten years of back taxes despite turning an annual revenue of more than 5billion. But appearing before the Public Accounts Committee earlier this month Dame Lin Homer said:'We feel the work we have done ... is bringing about a change in behaviour. 'We are rather proud of that. If the Chancellor thinks that as well, that's a good thing.' Denying the suggestion that companies like Google were given preferential treatment by the taxman, Dame Lin added: 'It is exactly the same system we apply to everyone.' Advertisement The UK taxman's audit into Google's tax affairs took six years to settle and admitted it was 'a very expensive and resource-intensive process'. Publishing the report today, PAC chair Meg Hillier said: 'Public anger has been palpable ever since this settlement was announced and we still don't know the full details. 'Whether you call it secrecy or confidentiality, this lack of transparency does nothing to build confidence that big corporations are paying their fair share of tax. 'Google has been keen to parade its enthusiasm for simplicity in the tax system but the fact remains the company has chosen to set up a complicated tax strategy specifically designed to minimise its tax bill.' The report found that Google was not require to pay any penalty fee as part of the 130million settlement because current legislation is insufficient to force large businesses to pay the fines. Evidence passed to the PAC committee from HMRC revealed that 18 of the settlement accounted for interest on the tax due. Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell claimed today's PAC report exposes George Osborne's relaxed approach to tackling corporate tax avoidance. 'This is a damning report on a tax deal that George Osborne initially called a 'major success', when we all know that this deal really demonstrates the Chancellor's laid back approach to tackling tax avoidance and evasion,' he said. 'It also leaves serious questions about why the deal with HMRC took so long to agree. 'This report further shows that it's far too easy for big multinationals like Google to set up a merry-go-round of tax loop holes to deliberately pay the least amount of tax as possible. 'It is vital that George Osborne gets a grip as these companies have been getting away with paying very little for way too long'. Ms Hillier told Mr Brittin during his public appearance in front of the PAC committee earlier this month that he 'lives in a different world' after he made the remarkable admission that he did not know his own salary. He was asked five times how much he earns before admitting: 'I don't have a figure,' drawing laughter from MPs. Ms Hillier took over as chair of the PAC committee after the election and has lived up to the combatant style of taxpayers champion Margerat Hodge, her predecessor in the role. Grilling Mr Brittin over the 130million tax deal despite revenues of more than 5billion, she asked: 'Do you hear the anger and frustration out there that with those huge figures, you settled for a figure of 130million?' The Google boss replied: 'Absolutely and I welcome the chance to come and talk to you about this. I understand the anger.' Google's annual revenue in the UK is believed to be around 3billion. Accounts disclosed last month revealed a total UK wage bill of 562million over an 18-month period, including 148million in share-based bonuses. This amounts to an average salary of 160,000 per employee. Google employs 1,075 marketing staff, 799 staff in research and development and 455 managers and administrators. Anti-poverty charity ActionAid said the Government must immediately take the PAC's advice on reforming the 'broken' international tax system. Action Aid's Charlie Matthews said: 'The UK loses billions to tax avoidance but it is the world's poorest countries that are hit hardest as multinational companies artificially move money around the world to avoid paying their fair share of tax. 'Developing countries are estimated to lose $200billion (144billion) a year to corporate tax avoidance - money that would be much better spent on schools and hospitals. 'Ministers should focus on delivering a fair deal for the UK and a fair deal for developing countries. A good place to start would be to review the UK's tax treaty network, to ensure it supports the fight against poverty and does not facilitate tax avoidance in the UK or in developing countries.' OTHER GIANTS IN THE DOCK: MAJOR FIRMS AND CORPORATION TAX Mark Zuckerberg's Facebook, pictured, paid just 4,327 in corporation tax in 2014 and is challenging HMRC's tax audit Facebook: The social media titan paid just 4,327 in corporation tax in 2014, despite reporting UK revenues of 105million. Apple: The US-based technology firm behind the iPad and the iPhone made 34billion in profit during the year to September 2014. Experts estimate that the UK accounted for 1.9billion of that profit, but the firm only paid 11.8million in British corporation tax. Amazon: The online shopping giant took 5.3billion in sales from British shoppers in 2014 but paid just 11.9million in tax after announcing profits of 34.4million. Starbucks: The coffee chain paid just 8.6million of tax over 14 years between 1998 and 2012 when sales totalled 3billion. But latest company filings show it paid 8.1million in corporation tax for last year on profits of 34.2million. Advertisement 'Some people live in a different world': MP's shock as Google's UK boss admits he has no idea what he gets paid Google's Europe boss was told he lives in 'a different world' after admitting earlier this month that he has no idea how much he gets paid. Matt Brittin faced angry MPs as he defended Google's controversial tax arrangements but insisted he 'absolutely' understood public outrage at the firm's 130million 'sweetheart' tax deal with the UK taxman last month. And he was asked five times how much he earns before admitting: 'I don't have a figure,' drawing laughter from MPs on the Public Accounts Committee (PAC). Matt Brittin was ridiculed earlier this month after admitting he had no idea how much he gets paid by Google It drew a frustrated response from Meg Hillier, the committee's chair, who said: 'Frankly you are taxing already my patience and the patience of the hard-working taxpayer out there.' 'Some people are living in a different world,' she added later. He was one of two Google bosses who appeared before the Public Accounts Committee following last month's 'sweetheart' deal with HMRC, which saw the internet giant paying just 130million to cover 10 years of back taxes. Google Vice President Tom Hutchinson, pictured left alongside Google Europe President Matt Brittin, faced an angry reception in front of MPs as he failed to disclose how much of Google's global revenue was liable to tax. Mr Brittin insisted he understood the public's anger over the deal but failed to declare how much he earns from Google himself. Mr Brittin also claimed Google could not pay more tax even if it wanted to. CONTENT REMOVED FROM GOOGLE UNDER 'RIGHT TO BE FORGOTTEN' RULE WILL NOW BE HIDDEN FROM ALL ITS VERSIONS Content blocked from Google under the 'right to be forgotten' rules will be removed from all versions of the internet giant's search engine, it was announced today. The current rules only apply to versions of Google in the EU, where citizens can request information to be removed from search results. Users can still find the full list of unedited results by using international versions, such as Google.com. But Google said today that it will apply the rules universally, meaning removed results will not appear on any version of the search engine when they are being viewed from countries where the removal was approved. The European Court of Justice made the landmark ruling in 2014 and since then Google has received more than 380,000 removal requests, with around four in ten requests accepted. The technology giant has been under pressure from the French data protection authority to remove data from its sites globally and threatened to fine the company if it did not do so. Google had fought off the attempts, claiming it would have a chilling effect on freedom of information. It has now given in and said the changes will apply in the near future, but did not set a date for the change. The new rules will be applied when a European IP address is detected - regardless of the version of Google being used - and remove approved items. Advertisement 'We can't legally pay more tax in the UK,' he said, sparking a furious response from Tory MP Richard Bacon, who shot back: 'That's simply not true. You can hand in more any time you like.' Crucially, Mr Brittin revealed to MPs that Google's tax arrangements had been discussed during meetings with government ministers, although he insisted the firm had never sought or held a meeting about the tax audit that was concluded last month. Instead the meetings were dominated by issues such as child safety online, counter-terrorism and security, he said. But he added: 'I'm sure, given the scrutiny we have had, tax will have come up from time to time as a question. 'The main thing we would have been saying is that we would support simplification and want to be paying the right amount of tax and to be seen to pay it.' Mr Brittin was appearing alongside his colleague Tom Hutchinson, vice president of Google, who failed to disclose how much of Google's global revenue was liable to tax. He told MPs that Google's global tax rate amounted to 19 per cent over the last five years but asked what the overall taxable figure was, Mr Hutchinson said: 'I can't provide those numbers now... I don't have it in front of me.' Ms Hillier asked him five times to declare his salary, but Mr Brittin finally admitted: 'I don't have the figure but I'll provide the figure privately, if it's relevant to the committee to understand my salary.' Ms Hillier later hit out at Mr Brittin's failure to disclose his salary, telling the BBC: 'Some people are living in a different world.' Accounts disclosed last month revealed a total UK wage bill of 562million over an 18-month period, including 148million in share-based bonuses. This amounts to an average salary of 160,000 per employee. Google employs 1,075 marketing staff, 799 staff in research and development and 455 managers and administrators. MATT BRITTIN: THE FORMER GB OLYMPIC ROWER WHO WAS TOLD HE WAS 'EVIL' BY TAXPAYER CHAMPION The Google Europe boss Matt Brittin, pictured with his wife and two sons on his birthday last year, represented GB in rowing at the 1988 Seoul Olympics but since moving to Google he has been in the headlines for the wrong reasons. He was told he was 'evil' by taxpayer champion Margaret Hodge in 2012 Married father of two Matt Brittin is a keen rower and represented Great Britain at the 1988 Seoul Olympics. He won a bronze medal at the World Rowing Championships in the same year and keeps up his interest in rowing by umpiring at the annual Henley Royal Regatta. And four years ago he completed John O'Groats to Lands End by bike in nine days, raising 6,000 for the British Paralympic Association. But since he joined Google in 2007 - arriving from his previous job as head of strategy at the Mirror newspaper - Brittin has been in the media spotlight for the wrong reasons and has become accustomed to battling angry MPs at committee hearings. He was humiliated by taxpayer champion Margaret Hodge in 2012, when she told him: 'I think that you do evil'. She accused him of being 'calculated and unethical' when he was hauled in front of MPs over Google's 'opaque' network of tax arrangements. Brittin now heads up Google's European operations. MailOnline has asked Google to clarify whether he is a UK taxpayer. The internet giant said he 'lives, works and pays his taxes in the UK' but refused to give any further details about how much he earns or how much tax he pays in Britain. Advertisement Ms Hillier took over as chair of the PAC committee after the election and has lived up to the combatant style of taxpayers champion Margerat Hodge, her predecessor in the role. Grilling Mr Brittin over the 130million tax deal despite revenues of more than 5billion, she asked: 'Do you hear the anger and frustration out there that with those huge figures, you settled for a figure of 130million?' GOOGLE'S UK BOSS CALLS FOR REFORM OF TAX LAWS - AND BLAMES GOVERNMENTS AROUND THE GLOBE FOR FAILING TO TIGHTEN UP RULES The UK boss of Google says tax laws should be rewritten blaming world governments for failing to tighten up the rules. Matt Brittin, who is the firm's European president, called for 'simpler, clearer rules, because it is important not only to pay the right amount of tax, but to be seen to be paying the right amount'. In a letter to The Daily Telegraph, he said Britain's tax rules required that Google's corporation tax bill is based on the value contributed by its UK arm, not on the sales Google makes to UK customers. He said HMRC had conducted an 'intensive review' of Google's tax arrangements, interviewing him and other bosses to determine the amount of profit attributed to Google's UK operation. The CEO also denied Google had won a 'sweetheart deal' from the UK and claimed the company paid 2.3billion in corporation tax last year, albeit in the United States. Google and the UK Government have been criticised for agreeing a 130million bill for back taxes. Defending the tax bill, Mr Brittin wrote: 'Some have suggested the settlement which concluded the audit was a sweetheart deal, a cut-price tax rate. It was not. And let's be absolutely clear: politicians play no part in deciding and settling tax audits. 'We agree that the international tax system needs reform. But changes to the tax system are not Google's call. Reform must come from governments, not from the companies who are subject to their rules'. Although Mr Brittin said most of Google's $3.3bn corporation tax was paid in the United States , he failed to address accusations that it funnels revenue through countries such as Ireland and Bermuda which have low or no corporation tax rates. 'Some here in Britain have argued we should be paying much more tax given the sales we make in the UK', he wrote. 'But that is just not how the tax system works'. Advertisement The Google boss replied: 'Absolutely and I welcome the chance to come and talk to you about this. I understand the anger.' Despite widespread public anger over the deal reached with Google last month, HMRC's chief executive Dame Lin Homer insisted today that she was 'proud' of the agreement. Also appearing before the PAC committee, she denied HMRC had been involved in Mr Osborne's declaration that the deal represented a victory for the taxpayer, but said: 'We feel the work we have done ... is bringing about a change in behaviour. We are rather proud of that. If the Chancellor thinks that as well, that's a good thing.' Writing in the Daily Telegraph this morning Mr Brittin called for tax laws to be rewritten blaming world governments for failing to tighten up the rules. He called for 'simpler, clearer rules, because it is important not only to pay the right amount of tax, but to be seen to be paying the right amount'. Britain's tax rules required that Google's corporation tax bill is based on the value contributed by its UK arm, not on the sales Google makes to UK customers, Mr Brittin added. George Osborne was heavily criticised last month for hailing the deal as a 'major success'. The internet giant faced further anger this week when it emerged it had paid its chief executive 140million - 10million more than it paid the UK taxman over 10 years. Sundar Pichai was given shares in the company worth nearly 140million, making him one of the highest-paid directors of any public company in the world. It comes a week after Google's parent company Alphabet overtook Apple to become the world's biggest company after it declared a market value of 392billion. Mr Pichai, the 43-year-old Indian chief executive whose family did not own a telephone until he was 12, came to prominence last year after Google's co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin handed him day-to-day control of Alphabet's core businesses. The Chancellor came under fire from his party's own leader in Scotland earlier this week over the deal, with Ruth Davidson declaring: 'There is one rule for those at the top and one rule for the rest of us'. Ms Davidson, who has been tipped as a future leader of the Conservatives, said the 130million Google paid to cover 10 years of back taxes 'doesn't feel right' and accused HMRC of incompetence. And she warned that failure to take more radical action on tax avoidance could 'erode trust in government,' suggesting that injustice in the tax system turns voters to 'extremists' such as Donald Trump. 'It further adds to the sense of simmering indignation that many people feel at a system that often seems rigged against them,' she said in a speech in Edinburgh last night. 'And that further helps the populists, the demagogues and the extremists the Trumps and the Le Pens who are hoping to exploit that resentment for their own narrow purposes.' She added: 'It feels too often that there is one rule for those at the top, and one rule for the rest of us,' she said. 'We ignore this growing sense of resentment at our peril.' A salesman who accidentally killed his lover while using a cucumber as a sex toy has gone on trial for negligent homicide in Germany (file picture) A salesman who accidentally killed his lover while using a cucumber as a sex toy has gone on trial for negligent homicide in Germany. Oliver Dietmann, 46, could be jailed for five years for the bedroom death of his lover Rica Varna, also 46. The court in Mannheim where he is on trial had members of his victim's family including her father and sister in the public gallery hearing the sordid details of the episode, which also featured a bunch of carrots and some courgettes. He told the court he and his lover 'often used vegetables' as a substitute for sex toys. He said he had met Rica in 2004, their relationship turning sexual five years later. on July 19 2014 he invited her around to his place where the cucumber was used 'to pleasure her.' He admitted that they had drunk four bottles of wine between them and several glasses of schnapps. A post mortem later showed that she was nearly four times over the legal limit to drive a car. He told the court how after the cucumber had served its purpose 'I put it it in her mouth. But suddenly I saw there was smoke coming from the kitchen. I forgot that I had put a piece of meat on the stove for my dog. 'I ran to the kitchen, fed my dog and then went on to the balcony to smoke a cigarette.' He said when he returned to the bedroom, Rica was unconscious. 'I tried to get the cucumber pieces out of her mouth,' he said, 'but they were so mushy I couldn't get any purchase at all.' Oliver Dietmann told the court how after the cucumber had served its purpose 'I put it it in her mouth' (file picture) Medical experts later said that the cucumber got wedged in her throat, cut off her air supply and plunged her into a coma. 'The defendant must have known that he should not have left her for so long on her own, said prosecutor Reinhard Hoffmann. The son persuaded the victim to go to the police, sparking an investigation A man has pleaded not guilty to raping a 16-year-old girl in 1967 after the son born from the alleged assault was reunited with his mother. John Thomas O'Connell, now 69, from Moama on the border of Victoria and New South Wales, was only recently charged after the son conceived through the alleged rape tracked down his mother and persuaded her to go to the police, the Bendigo Advertiser reported. An investigation began in 2013 to 2014 after the son, who was given up for adoption when he was six months old, encouraged her to report it to police, Crown Prosecutor Tim Hoare said in his opening statement in the Bendigo County Court on Wednesday. This led to DNA being taken from Mr O'Connell, the son and his mother which proved the son was in fact Mr O'Connell's. John Thomas O'Connell leaves the Bendigo County Court after a hearing in October. He has pleaded not guilty to the rape of a 16-year-old girl in 1967 Mr Hoare, in his opening to the jury, said the son was 33 when he found his birth mother in 2000 and she told him how he was conceived, WA Today reported. While the DNA was not in dispute, defence barrister Michael Pena-Rees told the jury that what needed to be proven was whether consensual sexual intercourse happened, as well as details of how and where it took place. Defence barrister Michael Pena-Rees told the jury that the real issue was whether the sexual intercourse was consensual, and the details surrounding that. The prosecution alleges that the woman did not consent to the act in January 1967, during which Mr O'Connell - aged 20 at the time and living in Echuca - allegedly dragged the then 16-year-old into bush land and raped her. The woman was living in Rochester with her mother and siblings at the time. Mr Hoare told the court that at 8pm in late January in 1967, the victim was walking with friend Valda Grogan across Campaspe Bridge when Mr O'Connell and another man approached them in a big black car. Despite a nearby dairy worker cautioning the pair to not get into the car, Miss Grogan jumped into the back seat against the victim's wishes. She was eventually convinced to climb in when the driver allegedly said, 'Look, just get in, jump in the front seat. We're going to see a mate around the corner and we'll drop you home.' Bendigo County Court where Mr O'Connell is currently standing trial for an alleged rape 49 years ago Mr Hoare said she did not know the make or model of the car, but remembers a white doll on a lace cushion sitting in the back window. They drove out of Rochester and stopped after the victim started yelling that they were going in the wrong direction as they began to travel out of town. The prosecution alleges Mr O'Connell dragged the victim from the car as she struggled to escape, then pushed her underwear to the side and had sex with her. 'She'll say she was fighting him, trying to get away from him, but he was too strong for her,' Mr Hoare said. 'She'll certainly say she was not consenting,' Mr Hoare said. After the alleged rape 100 metres away from where he dragged her, the victim and Miss Grogan were dropped home. The victim confided in only one friend, Jacqueline Sinclair, who then urged her to tell police. Ms Sinclair, who at the time was married with two children, told the victim's mother, but no report was made until the victim moved to Melbourne soon afterwards to find work. The victim was unaware she was pregnant until five months later when her mother arranged for her to stay at 'The Good Shepherd' convent in St Kilda, where a compulsory medical assessment revealed she was expecting. She initially denied she had ever had sexual intercourse. Nuns, however, took the matter to the police but it was not investigated and they allegedly called her a 'liar'. The woman later saw Mr O'Connell at a dance in Moama and spoke about him with a friend who was with her. The friend made a statement - which cannot be found - to police years later and will give evidence in the trial. The alleged victim gave birth in Bendigo on October 12, 1967 and gave her son up for adoption at six months. Her son tracked her down in 2000, when he was aged 33, and heard the story of his conception. The alleged victim gave evidence on Wednesday. An Argentinian woman is claiming to be the world's oldest female after celebrating her 119th birthday this month. Celina Del Carmen Olea, from Buenos Aires, says she was born on February 15, 1897 - the same year Queen Victoria celebrated her Diamond Jubilee. The 119-year-old says her secret to a long life is making sure she eats properly, and surrounding herself with loved ones. Old and proud: Celina Del Carmen Olea, from Buenos Aires, claims she was born on February 15, 1897 Ms Del Carmen Olea celebrates her 119 birthday on February 15th, surrounded by her extended family Ms Del Carmen Olea's birth certificate and hand-written ID appear to show she was indeed born in 1897. The elderly lady celebrated the incredible milestone surrounded by her proud family earlier this month. Ms Del Carmen Olea lives in the slums of Buenos Aires with her son Alberto, and receives a pension of just 105. She grew up on a rural farm and moved to the capital city in the 1960s with her husband, Jose Inocencio Segovia, who died shortly after. The 119-year-old, who lives with her only surviving son Alberto, says her secret to a long life is making sure she 'always eats well' and puts her astonishing longevity down to long walks and a life filled with love Proud son: Alberto claims his elderly mother requires no medicine apart from skin cream for cysts Long life: Ms Del Carmen Olea is pictured surrounded by grandchildren at a younger age According to Alberto, the senior woman is increasingly blind and deaf but requires no medicine apart from skin cream for cysts. He claims his amazing mother never smoked, always ate well and puts her astonishing longevity down to long walks and a life filled with love. Alberto told Argentine newspaper Clarin: 'Her weapons were steady work, going walking everywhere and love, always love.' He added that sadly all of his 11 brothers and sisters had died, but that his mother spent most of her adult life adopting and fostering children, One of them, Gladys, 48, was adopted as a baby by Ms Del Carmen Olea when she was 70 years old, and still lives nearby. Ms Del Carmen Olea, pictured at another birthday, adopted and fostered children throughout her life Cheers for Celina: The OAP is surrounded by the younger generations of her family at another birthday It came just hours after he ridiculed Jeremy Corbyn over his outfit choices David Cameron ditched his suit jacket and tie as he addressed a Tory EU referendum rally this evening just hours after ridiculing Jeremy Corbyn over his outfit choices. The Prime Minister attended the rally at the ICA in central London in a relaxed shirt just hours after claiming that his mother Mary would tell Mr Corbyn to 'put on a proper suit, do up your tie and sing the national anthem'. Realising the irony of his advice with his latest attire, Mr Cameron told activists tonight: 'I have to say, as you can see, I have tonight ignored my mother's own advice.' Scroll down for video Prime Minister David Cameron ditched his suit jacket and tie (left) as he addressed a Tory EU referendum rally this evening just hours after claiming that his mother Mary would tell Jeremy Corbyn (right) to 'put on a proper suit, do up your tie and sing the national anthem' as Prime Minister's Questions descended into chaos David Cameron had earlier worn a smart suit jacket and tie for Prime Minister's Questions (pictured), which descended into a 'playground-style' row as the two rival party leaders exchanged jibes over their mothers He had earlier worn a smart suit jacket and tie for Prime Minister's Questions, which descended into a 'playground-style' row as the rival party leaders exchanged jibes over their mothers. Mr Cameron claimed his mother Mary would tell Jeremy Corbyn to 'put on a proper suit', to which Mr Corbyn retaliated that his late mother would tell the Prime Minister to stop undermining the NHS. The Prime Minister faced further embarrassment when it emerged he had similarly dressed down for a video chat with a smartly dressed Barack Obama just hours before he tore into the Labour leader. The ugly exchanges came as Mr Corbyn demanded the government settle with junior doctors a day after the British Medical Association announced a new wave of strikes in protest at the imposition of a new contract. The row began as Mr Cameron claimed the data actually showed the number of excess weekend deaths was much worse than thought - at 11,000 a year rather than 6,000. The Prime Minster then claimed the Government was building an NHS for patients, prompting Mr Corbyn to highlight a campaign against cuts in Mr Cameron's Oxfordshire constituency. The remark prompted a heckle from the Labour benches about Mary Cameron signing a petition against local authority cuts. Mr Cameron responded: 'I think I know what my mother would say, I think she'd look across the Despatch Box say 'put on a proper suit, do up your tie and sing the national anthem!' The furious Labour leader hit back: 'If we're talking of motherly advice, my late mother would have said: 'stand up for the principle of a health service free at the point of use for everybody' because that's what she dedicated her life to, as did many of her generation.' After the exchanges, Mr Corbyn quoted Albert Einstein on Twitter in a fresh dig at the PM. He said: 'If most of us are ashamed of shabby clothes & shoddy furniture let us be more ashamed of shabby ideas & shoddy philosophies.' Mr Cameron had launched a strident defence of the Government's health policy, insisting: 'I have to say - I think if Nye Bevan was here today, he'd want a seven-day NHS because he knew the NHS was for patients up and down our country.' The Prime Minister attended the rally in London in a relaxed shirt just hours after claiming that his mother Mary (pictured together) would tell Mr Corbyn to 'put on a proper suit, do up your tie and sing the national anthem' BUT WHAT ABOUT YOU DAVE? THE PRIME MINISTER IS EXPOSED BY THE WHITE HOUSE FOR BEING TIELESS ON A VIDEO CALL WITH OBAMA David Cameron appeared without a jacket or tie in a video call with US President Barack Obama in a tweet from the White House A tieless David Cameron took part in an international video call with US President Barack Obama, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Hollande. An image of the dressed down PM emerged shortly after he battered Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn for his loose tie and scruffy suit at Prime Minister's Questions. Mr Cameron had the high powered talks last night and discussed the migrant crisis and the on-going war in Syria. A White House briefing underlined the importance of the talks. It said: 'President Obama spoke today by video conference with Prime Minister David Cameron of the United Kingdom, President Francois Hollande of France, and Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany to discuss the current situation in Syria and the ongoing refugee and migration crisis facing Europe.' Advertisement Mr Corbyn hit back: 'Nye Bevan would be turning in his grave if he could hear your attitude towards the NHS. 'He was a man with vision, who wanted a health service for the good of all.' The Labour leader accused Mr Cameron of being 'rash and misleading' with weekend death statistics, but the PM hit back, claiming the British Medical Association (BMA), which represents junior doctors, has been guilty of scaremongering. Mr Cameron claimed the controversial new contract which is to be imposed on junior doctors as part of the Government's drive for 'seven day services' represents a 'good deal'. The BMA yesterday announced three 48 hour strikes, beginning at 8am on Wednesday March 8. The strikes will lead to the cancellation of tens of thousands of operations on top of the 7,000 already disrupted by the last two walkouts. The move comes after Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt said after the last strike on February 10 that the new contract would be imposed after years of negotiations ended in deadlock. The Department of Health and NHS Employers, who were involved in negotiations with the BMA, described the decision as 'disappointing' and 'unnecessary'. The British Medical Association also plans to take Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt to court on the grounds that he acted illegally in imposing a new contract on doctors. Jeremy Corbyn continued the row on Twitter after the PMQs exchanges ended in the House of Commons today by quoting Albert Einstein Europe's refugee crisis shows no signs of abating with the head of the EU border agency Frontex predicting a further one million migrants headed to the continent this year. Fabrice Leggeri warned that walls and wire were no match for determined people and added; 'Fences will stop no-one.' His prediction comes as new figures yesterday revealed more than 110,000 migrants have already reached the EU this year. Scroll down for video The head of the EU's border agency has warned fences will not stop the influx of migrants into Europe. Pictured are refugees being helped ashore on Lesbos, Greece, after making the trip from Turkey An Afghan woman breaks down in tears after arriving on the island having poverty and conflict abroad A Pakistani couple hug after arriving in Greece today. More than 110,000 people have reached Europe already this year 'It would be a success if the refugee numbers for this year remained stable in comparison to 2015', he said. 'We are confronting a situation in Syria this year which will result in another million refugees.' Currently, he said, it was important to bring migrants from the Greek-Macedonian border into the so-called hotspots for processing. He went on: 'Experience has shown that fences and patrols at sea do not stop the refugees. 'We think it likely that more migrants are trying to get to Italy via Libya. Also routes through Ukraine and Russia or Greece are a new possibility.' Most of the refugees succeeded reaching Germany in the first two months of 2016 came without documents - 77 percent of them in January alone, according to the German interior ministry. Refugees do not want to present papers for fear that entry stamps will show up the route they took, meaning Germany could send them back to the first place they entered on the continent. Leggeri criticized the border closures within the EU, adding; 'If individual states close their borders, that doesn't help. 'When Hungary has sealed off the border with a fence, the people used the Balkan route to get to the west. 'There can be only one European solution: a distribution of people in Europe and the protection of the Schengen free movement zone.' Meanwhile, EU leaders will hold a special summit with Turkey in Brussels on March 7 to push forward a deal aimed at stemming the flow of migrants into Europe, a European source said. Afghani families wait in the port of Piraeus, after their arrival from the islands of Lesbos and Chios today Greece is currently grappling with a blockade of refugees after Macedonia closed its borders to Afghans A NGO serves food to migrant families waiting in Greece today. The boss of the EU's border agency has said closing border control gates and erecting fences does little to help address the crisis A summit will be held next month in Brussels in order to push through a deal with Turkey that will help stem the flow of migrants entering Europe via the country A young girl holds fruits collected at a food stand while she waits in the port town of Piraeus, Greece Ankara and Brussels signed a deal in November under which Turkey agreed to curb the number of refugees crossing to Greece in return for three billion euros in aid and the speeding up of its EU membership bid. But pressure to enforce the plan is growing as EU officials say thousands of migrants are still crossing the Aegean daily, after more than one million people made the perilous journey to Europe last year. Speaking at an EU summit today, Tusk said the Turkey joint action plan 'remains a priority, and we must do all we can to succeed - this is why we have the intention to organise a special meeting with Turkey in the beginning of March'. European Commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker had suggested on Monday that the summit was likely to be on March 7. Today it was also revealed Hungary's longstanding opposition to mandatory EU refugee quotas would be put to its citizens in a vote. For more on the jihadi fighters in Syria visit www.dailymail.co.uk/syria Documentary provides rare insight into shadowy lives of fighters in Syria But at one point, his voice falters and he expresses doubts about having agreed to blow himself up after his young wife falls pregnant Appears in new film that follows lives of three would-be suicide bombers Lucas Kinney, 26, has said his 'dream is to make a martyrdom operation' The British jihadist who is the son of a film director has revealed how his 'dream is to make a martyrdom operation'. Lucas Kinney, 26, whose father Patrick, 59, worked closely with Steven Spielberg on movies such as Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, is a member of the Syrian al-Qaeda-linked group Jabhat al-Nusra. He has become a figurehead for the jihadis and has now appeared in a new documentary that follows the lives of three would-be suicide bombers. In the programme, Kinney tells Norwegian journalist Pal Refsdal: 'The physical action [of martyrdom] is very easy. You go, you drive, you press the button. 'But how many can actually press the button knowing that that you're departing to the meeting with Allah? This is something very heavy.' But at one point, the bespectacled Home Counties schoolboy expresses doubts about having agreed to blow himself up after his young wife falls pregnant. Lucas Kinney, 26, is now a figurehead of the Syrian al-Qaeda-linked group Jabhat al-Nusra and appears in a documentary that follows the warped lives of three would-be suicide bombers The 26-year-old, born in Hammersmith, reveals how his 'dream' is to embark on a martyrdom operation The 58-minute documentary, called 'Dugma, the Button' will premiere in Oslo on March 10 and provides a rare glimpse into the shadowy lives of terrorists in Syria. Kinney was born Catholic to a British mother, Deborah Phipps, but converted to Islam in 2013 after dropping out of Leeds University. He now goes by the name 'Abu Basir al-Britani' ('the Briton'). He played in a series of rock bands then went to live with his father in Vienna. It was there that he is believed to have been radicalised. His mother, who receives occasional emails from her son, is at a loss to explain how he went from a bright, normal teenager to a Muslim fanatic. She fears her son will be the next Briton killed by a RAF drone strike, by ISIS or in a Russian bombardment. Mrs Phipps, who now lives with her second husband in a honey stone executive home in the West Country, previously told the Mail her jihadi son faces continual danger. She said: 'Lucas is a target. I'm glad he's associated with al-Qaeda rather than ISIS, but obviously I worry. 'I don't get anything for months and months and then all of a sudden I get an email and every time I think, "Well, at least he's still alive". That's the relief. 'He's married out there. I don't know anything about her. 'We just want him to come home. If he's done something wrong I'd like him to accept the consequences. He's still young and at least he's still alive.' Kinney, who goes by the name Abu Basir al-Britani, sees his convictions falter when his wife falls pregnant The wait for volunteers wanting to blow themselves up to take out a Syrian army position is usually between one and two years, it is revealed in the documentary The 26-year-old British fighter has previously 'starred' in two al-Qaeda propaganda videos in Syria The film also follows Abu Qaswara al-Maki, 32, a Saudi Arabian national and the father of a young daughter he has never seen. He said: 'When I get close to the target, I'll pull the safety switch, the first one...and I'll keep driving until I'm a few metres away from the target, and then I'll pull the other safety switch. 'This is the button. This is Dugma. I'll press it... and with Allah's permission I'll send them all to hell.' The wait for volunteers wanting to blow themselves up to take out a Syrian army position is usually between one and two years, according to Refsdal, who spent more than six weeks with the men at the end of 2014 and in mid-2015 in northwestern Syria. He noted: 'They're not like ISIS (another group they are fighting) which sends car bombs one after the other with very young drivers dying en masse.' His mother, Deborah Phipps, revealed Lucas wanted to be a Catholic priest when he was 13-years-old Pictured in his teens, Lucas was educated in Cairo before briefly attending the University of Leeds. He dropped out of his course in Arabic and Middle Eastern studies at the end of first year During his school days in Cairo, Lucas (pictured left) grew his hair long, dyeing it red, and played electric guitar in a series of rock bands, one called 'Hannah's Got Herpes' The British jihadi has been filmed urging Muslims to join the fight against the Assad regime and ISIS Surprisingly, there are also moments of humour within the documentary, such as when the Syrian national who also features (he goes by the pseudonym 'Abu Ljaman') asks where the speedometer is on the armoured vehicle that Abu Qaswara is teaching him to drive. 'You're on your way to martyrdom. Are you really going to worry about speeding?,' the Saudi asks him incredulously. Abu Ljaman also gets gently chided when he makes a second reference to the 72 virgins promised in the afterlife. The Norwegian intelligence service PST had no problem with Refsdal's time spent with the suicide bombers. He said: 'The film isn't trying to tell people what to think, it's just depicting their daily lives and then it's up to people to think what they want after having seen it.' Sold to at least four television channels, 'Dugma, the Button' will be shown on TV in March. Karen MacGregor, described in court as a 'mother figure', took in girls from children's homes purporting to give them a safe haven and support - only to then have them abused A female carer who offered her 'Hansel and Gretel house' to vulnerable young girls in Rotherham made them repay her by prostituting them out to a violent family of paedophiles. Brothers Arshid, 40, Basharat, 39, and Bannaras Hussain, 36, were today found guilty of carrying out a catalogue of sickening sexual offences in the first case following revelations of mass grooming in the south Yorkshire town. They were given access to their victims by local women Karen MacGregor, 58, and Shelley Davies, 40. MacGregor, described in court as a 'mother figure', took in girls - all of whom were white - from children's homes, purporting to give them a safe haven and support. But she allowed them to be abused and kept captive, telling them they needed to 'earn their keep' by having sex with a succession of visiting men. She even set up a support group - KinKids - for family members looking after children whose parents could no longer cope - recruiting the support of her local Labour MP who took her to Westminster to discuss the issue. Yet with the women's help, the Hussain brothers - known as Mad Ash, Bash and Bono - were able to rape multiple girls, many of whom were also indecently assaulted. The group targeted 15 vulnerable girls, one aged only 11, and forced them to perform horrific sex acts over a sixteen year period. All five now face jail. The convictions are the first following investigations into allegations of sex abuse in Rotherham. Over the course of the two month trial - and with its conclusion today - it was revealed: How MacGregor used her status as a trusted foster parent to lure vulnerable girls into her care only to pimp them out to men often double their age who hung around her home That she ran a support network for carers who had taken on the care of children for family members who could no longer cope The Hussain brothers were violent, gun wielding thugs who believed that they 'owned' Rotherham As many as 15 teenage girls were targeted by the ring, with at least 12 sexually abused There are more than 190 allegations about the conduct of officers relating to child sexual exploitation in Rotherham currently being examined by the police watchdog. It follows claims made during the trial that police knew what was happening but failed to act Victim considered the trial 'one of the hardest things' she had ever had to go through Police believe without the women - most of whom are now in their 30s - it would have been impossible to convict anyone for their roles in the heinous crimes. Arshid and Basharat Hussain were found guilty of dozens of attacks between them. Bannaras Hussain admitted ten charges - including rape, indecent assault and assault occasioning actual bodily harm - at the beginning of the trial. The brothers' uncle, Qurban Ali, 53, appeared alongside them in court. He too was found guilty of conspiracy to rape. Scroll down for video Brothers Arshid (left), 40, and Basharat Hussain (middle), 39, committed multiple rapes and indecent assaults on teenagers in the South Yorkshire town. Their younger brother, Bannaras Hussain (right), 36, admitted ten charges - including rape, indecent assault and assault occasioning actual bodily harm MacGregor and Davies were found guilty of conspiracy to procure prostitutes and false imprisonment. Two other men, Majid Bostan, 37 and Sajid Bostan, 38, also brothers, were cleared of all charges. In a trial that lasted two months, Sheffield Crown Court heard how teenage girls in the town were repeatedly raped and beaten by men who passed them around and forced some to work as prostitutes. A jury of six women and six men deliberated on a total of 51 counts, involving 12 alleged victims, from Wednesday last week. Their verdicts were announced this morning. During the trial the court heard women describe how they were were targeted in their young teens and subjected to brutal treatment as they were passed around men who raped and beat them. Some described how they were trafficked, locked up, physically assaulted and threatened with death. Several of the 15 victims watched today's verdicts from the public gallery, overlooking the packed court, holding hands with each other. Arshid Hussain, who claims to be paraplegic, appeared from his bed at home via video link looking as if he was asleep. The Hussain brothers' uncle, Qurban Ali (left), 53, was also found guilty of conspiracy to rape. Shelley Davies, (right) 40, was found guilty of conspiracy to procure prostitutes and false imprisonment His brother Basharat was surrounded by prison officers in the dock. He was taken away with MacGregor and Davies after the verdict was announced. Judge Sarah Wright said they will be sentenced on Friday. The convictions of the Hussain brothers and their associates is the first successful prosecution of a grooming gang in Rotherham since the child sexual exploitation scandal engulfed the town 18 months ago. Rotherham became a byword for the exploitation of teenage girls and the failure of police and social workers to stop it happening with the publication of the Jay Report in August 2014. Professor Alexis Jay said she had found 'utterly appalling' examples of 'children who had been doused in petrol and threatened with being set alight, threatened with guns, made to witness brutally-violent rapes and threatened they would be next if they told anyone'. MacGregor (circled) set up a support group - KinKids - for family members looking after children whose parents could no longer cope - recruiting the support of her local Labour MP (middle) who took her to Westminster to discuss the issue Professor Jay's report shocked the nation partly due to the scale of exploitation it described, finding that at least 1,400 children had been raped, trafficked and groomed in the town over a 16-year period. But its impact was so far reaching because it also laid bare the extend to which police and council officials failed to act on what they knew, and explicitly questioned whether this neglect was related to the perpetrators largely being adult men of a Pakistani heritage Although the Jay Report resulted in the Rotherham exploitation becoming a national scandal, it was the previous major prosecution of a grooming gang in the town that kick-started this process. In 2010, five men - Umar Razaq, Razwan Razaq, Zafran Ramzan, Adil Hussain, Mohsin Khan - were found guilty of a string of sex offences against girls aged between 12 and 16. This case provoked some media attention but did not gain nationwide coverage. Arshid Hussain (pictured) raped his young victims and subjected them to a catalogue of indecent assaults Hussain, who claims to be paraplegic, appeared from his bed at home via video link looking as if he was asleep But it was followed by a growing number of prosecutions of a similar nature around the UK, including in Derby, Oxford and Rochdale. Times reporter Andrew Norfolk exposed a pattern of mainly white teenage girls being groomed by gangs of adult men of a Pakistani heritage. When Mr Norfolk began to disclose in detail the stories of girls who had been exploited in Rotherham, it started a chain of events that led to Rotherham Council asking Professor Jay to look into what was happening. Waves of criticism followed, aimed mainly at Rotherham Council and South Yorkshire Police. Resignations included the leader and chief executive of the council as well as its director of children's services. Professor Alexis Jay (pictured) found 'utterly appalling' examples of abuse in her investigation into Rotherham child sex rings The most high-profile casualty was South Yorkshire's Police and Crime Commissioner, Shaun Wright, who was the councillor in charge of Rotherham's children's services between 2005 and 2010. A further review of Rotherham Council by the Government's Troubled Families chief, Louise Casey, heaped more criticism on an authority she labelled as 'not fit for purpose' and 'in denial'. That led to the then communities and local government secretary Eric Pickles handing over its powers to a panel of appointed commissioners. South Yorkshire Police says it now has a team of more than 60 officers working on child sexual exploitation (CSE). Its joint operation with the council and Crown Prosecution Service - Operation Clover - has resulted in the current prosecution and others currently moving through the criminal justice system. The National Crime Agency has also been brought in to investigate historical crimes and last year announced it was looking at 300 potential suspects. The police and the NCA have said that successful prosecutions are the key to building trust with the survivors of child sexual exploitation in Rotherham. But, also last year, David Greenwood, a lawyer who represents 58 women who were subjected to sexual abuse by gangs of men in Rotherham between 1996 and 2012, said he was aware of fewer than 100 victims who had come forward. Lesley McLean, Manager for the independent charity Victim Support in Rotherham, today paid tribute to the woman who relived their horrific experiences in the dock. She said: 'These convictions are testament to the bravery of the vulnerable girls who came forward to give evidence in court this can be extremely stressful, especially in a high profile trial. 'As a charity which supported many of these victims through our Vulnerable Victims Programme, and thousands of victims of sexual assault every year, we know that this harrowing crime can have a long-lasting, devastating impact on people's lives. It's vital that victims are aware of the support available to them.' VICTIM: TRIAL 'ONE OF THE HARDEST THINGS EVER...BUT SO WORTH IT' One victim of the Rotherham gang said going through with the investigation was one of the hardest things she had ever done - but concluded that it was 'so worth it'. The woman hoped her experience would give others the resolve to come forward and put more child abusers behind bars. She was just 14 when she was groomed and came to fear for her life at the hands of controlling and violent Arshid Hussain. He preyed on the teenager after meeting her at a party in the late 1990s, and would wait for her outside school. Soon he was having sex with her, despite knowing her age and being a decade older. The woman hoped her experience would give others the resolve to come forward and put more child abusers behind bars The victim, who cannot be identified but who is referred to as 'Jessica', said: 'It has been 16 years we have waited for this. It has not sunk in yet. This can give me some closure, for me my life starts now. It has been such a mess, I can finally move on. 'The investigation started two-and-a-half years ago and it has been one of the hardest things I have had to do, but it is so worth it. It's an emotional rollercoaster. 'I think a lot of people will come forward now, and think 'if they can get justice after nearly two decades, so can I'.' Earlier, Jessica told the BBC: 'Very quickly he started being controlling. I wasn't allowed to do anything without his permission. 'He isolated me from friends and family and it became the only person in my world was him. 'He was very violent towards me. There were times when I thought he was going to kill me.' Advertisement The mother figure who pimped out girls she put up at her 'Hansel and Gretel house' had set up support group for troubled children that was on its way to charitable status when she was arrested One of the women facing jail for her role in the sex ring was a foster parent who forced vulnerable young girls in her care to pleasure men double their age as a means of recompense. Karen MacGregor offered what appeared to be a safe haven for helpless teenagers in Rotherham. As a carer, the 58-year-old championed better rights for those who looked after children that were not their own. She met with her local MP to discuss the issue, set up a support group, and was a trusted face with children's homes across South Yorkshire, from whom she adopted the abandoned teens. Karen MacGregor offered what appeared to be a safe haven for helpless teenagers in Rotherham but behind closed doors she was prostituting the terrified schoolgirls out to violent paedophiles Yet behind closed doors she was prostituting the terrified schoolgirls out to violent paedophiles. Described in court as a 'mother figure', MacGregor took in girls from children's homes, purporting to give them haven and support. The jury heard how she lured the vulnerable girls to stay at her 'Hansel and Gretel' house in Rotherham, promising them safety and refuge. But she allowed them to be abused and kept captive, telling them they needed to 'earn their keep' by having sex with a succession of visiting men. By doing so, she paved the way for as many as 12 girls to suffer years of grotesque abuse. With her help, the Hussain brothers - known as Mad Ash, Bash and Bono - were all able to rape and indecently assault multiple girls. On the outside, however, she continued to appear as a force for local good, even years after her role in the child sex ring. In 2014 she helped set up the Grimsby branch of Kinkids - a support group for family members looking after children whose parents could no longer cope. It gathered the support of Wentworth and Dearne MP John Healey - and was even due to be given charitable status when MacGregor was arrested last year. Speaking in January 2015, she said: 'People need to realise we are saving councils thousands and thousands of pounds. 'I'm not saying we should get the same money as foster carers, but we need the same rights, support and access to social services. 'We don't get anything. I know people who have lost their homes and their relationships because they're a kin carer. Some look after several children. 'Some have to fight social services to keep the children to start off with.' MailOnline have contacted Mr Healey for comment. In a post on his website, he today said: 'It has taken 18 months since Alexis Jay exposed the extent of child sexual exploitation in Rotherham, but some of the worst offenders have now been brought to justice. In 2009, she helped set up the Grimsby branch of Kinkids - a support group for family members looking after children whose parents could no longer cope. It gathered the support of Wentworth and Dearne MP John Healey (pictured) - and was even due to be given charitable status when MacGregor was arrested last year 'There is no doubt the police did not properly investigate allegations in the past and these were totally unacceptable failings, as I've said from the start. But through renewed investigations, more resources and thorough work South Yorkshire Police have secured major convictions today and I hope this case will be the first of many. 'There can be no hiding place for those who've committed these evil crimes no matter how long ago. 'These convictions are a significant step forward in reassuring victims and in rebuilding public confidence that abusers will be brought to justice. I want to see more brought before the courts as quickly as possible.' But incredibly the MP's website still contains a blog post from July 2014 in which Mr Healey backs MacGregor's campaign for carers to be provided better support. It refers to how the pair worked together to promote the work of kinship carers - family members who step in when a parent can no longer cope with their child. MacGregor even attended an event at Westminster. Police watchdog now probing almost 200 allegations of officers 'ignoring' sex abuse claims More than 190 allegations about the conduct of officers relating to child sexual exploitation in Rotherham are now being examined by the police watchdog following a trial peppered with familiar claims that agencies knew what was happening but failed to act. Some of the women who took to the witness box recounted a now well-known story of how they were not believed or simply ignored. One police officer was even named by a victim who said he was actually having sex with girls involved in the exploitation. South Yorkshire's former Police and Crime Commissioner Shaun Wright (left) lost his job in the wake of the scandal. Pc Hassan Ali (right) was under investigation following complaints about his dealings with alleged child sexual exploitation victims when he died in a road accident last year The Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) it is now involved in 55 ongoing investigations into 'allegations about how South Yorkshire Police dealt with child sexual exploitation in Rotherham'. The commission said these cover a range of allegations, from a failure to act on reported child sexual exploitation to corruption. POLICE CHIEF PRAISES VICTIMS Authorities clamoured outside Sheffield Crown Court this afternoon to praise victims for their 'incredible bravery' in giving evidence. Temporary detective chief inspector Martin Tait, from South Yorkshire Police, called the verdicts a 'crucial milestone for those victims and survivors who endured years of violence and horrific sexual abuse at the hands of these vile individuals'. He said: 'They have shown incredible bravery reliving vicious traumatic events for the courts. 'For their courage and support of this investigation I am eternally thankful, and can't really express how pleased I am for them. DCI Martin Tait (left) and Ian Thomas, Strategic Director Children and Young People's Services (right), speak outside court today 'I'm pleased that their voices have finally been heard, believed and that those responsible been publicly held to account for their crimes.' Looking forward, he added: 'If victims of sexual abuse come to the police we will help then, we will support them, and do everything we can to put these criminals responsible in prison where they belong.' Ian Thomas, strategic director, Children and Young People's Services, at Rotherham Council, made an impassioned plea for former and current victims of abuse to step forward. He acknowledged that 'some justice has been served today, for the few' but said that there was much more to do. He said: 'My message to them today is clear. 'If you have suffered abuse in the past, or indeed are suffering from abuse or exploitation now, step forward. 'I urge you - I implore you - to have confidence in a new Rotherham partnership today.' Advertisement The IPCC said it is undertaking 'ongoing research and analysis work' into more than 194 allegations made by 41 complainants to date - 92 of the allegations relate to police officers who have been identified, but 102 involve as yet unidentified officers. It said 54 officers have been named so far - 26 of these have been advised they are the subject of an investigation that, if proven, would amount to misconduct ,and the remaining 28 are subject to ongoing assessment. During the trial, one woman who spent three days describing how she was repeatedly abused and assaulted from the age of 11, told the jury how she told a detective called Kenneth Dawes about what happened but no action was taken. She said: 'He used to have sex with girls and he used to take drugs from people and pass them on to Ash.' The jury was told Pc Dawes was arrested last year and is currently under investigation. Another police officer who was mentioned in the trial - Pc Hassan Ali - died last year following a collision on a road in Sheffield. Pc Ali was under investigation by the IPCC at the time of his death following complaints about his dealings with alleged child sexual exploitation victims. Claims of failures by Rotherham Council representatives were also made in the trial. One woman took to the witness box to describe how a councillor was involved in a deal for Arshid Hussain to return her when she went missing with him. She said the councillor had rung Hussain and arranged for her to be dropped off at a petrol station on the understanding 'he wouldn't get done'. And many victims told how they were spirited away from children's homes by their abusers with the knowledge of those in charge. One said Basharat Hussain picked her up with friend from a care home when she was 12 years old, saying: 'Is it OK to bring them back at 11?' One of the charges of abduction faced by Arshid Hussain was dropped halfway through the trial because it was accepted by the judge that a council-approved foster carer allowed the 15-year-old girl involved to go off with the defendant. Another victim, who said she was made to work as a teenage prostitute, told the jury she had proof police and social workers knew that she was being abused by Arshid Hussain in 2000. She said: 'Why did they leave it 15 years before knocking on my door and saying they knew?' The tearful mother of one of the victims told the trial how she found an exercise book in which her daughter had recorded heartbreaking details of the abuse to which she was subject. The woman said the police and social services were not interested in the book and she later burned it. Some of the women cited distrust of the police as they told the court why they went to the media to tell their stories - especially to The Times - before they went to the authorities. During the trial at Sheffield crow court (pictured), one woman who spent three days describing how she was repeatedly abused and assaulted from the age of 11, told the jury how she told a detective called Kenneth Dawes about what happened but no action was taken One said: 'The only reason the police started this investigation was because The Times printed my story.' IPCC deputy chair Rachel Cerfontyne said: 'Our investigative work examining allegations about how South Yorkshire Police responded to reported child sexual exploitation in Rotherham continues to expand. Self-styled Reverend Howard Curtis is charged with a number of sex offences over spankings he handed out at the church he 'ran like a cult' A evangelical pastor administered 'spiritual discipline' by spanking female members of his congregation's bare bottoms with his hand, a court has heard. Self-styled Reverend Howard Curtis, 73, is accused of dishing out the spankings at his Coulsdon Christian Fellowship for his own 'sexual satisfaction. Prosecutor Toby Fitzgerald told Croydon Crown Court that father-of-three Curtis, of Wallington, south London, ran the church as a cult. He ordered one woman to strip naked before putting her over his knee and slapping her until she collapsed on the floor. Mr Fitzgerald said: 'She trusted him completely as a man of God. 'She pulled down her trousers and underwear and lay across his lap. He hit her hard about twelve times until she ended up on the floor. 'She'd become, in effect, a rag doll in the defendant's hands.' Curtis also took naked pictures of her on his mobile phone and fondled the woman between her legs, the jury were told. When arrested he did not deny the spankings but insisted they were consensual, the court heard. The court heard that another woman was told it was 'God's will' she be punished and agreed to his form of discipline. Mr Fitzgerald said: 'She leaned over a bannister in a hallway and took her trousers and knickers down so he could spank her bare bottom. 'She was told it was important not to tell him when to stop, he would decide when it was time to stop and he continued to beat her forcefully. 'There were twenty to thirty strikes with his bare hand and she felt it was going on forever and was crying. She was black and blue and told all these actions were in God's name.' Curtis has pleaded not guilty to two sample counts of sexually assaulting the first victim between January 2009 and July 2013. He also denies two counts of sexual assault against the second woman woman between January 2007 and December 2009. He also denies one count of child cruelty between March 2007 and February 2008 in relation to the second woman's nine year-old daughter. Curtis, who denies the charges, ran the Coulsdon Christian Fellowship from this building in south London She was put over his knee and beaten 'very hard' until she started crying, the court was told. He also denies two counts of child cruelty in relation to a young boy, aged approximately eight years-old who is said to have spanked up to five times. Curtis has also pleaded not guilty to causing actual bodily harm to a thirteen year-old girl who he allegedly spanked a dozen times with a slipper for disobedience between January 1969 and January 1971. Curtis was ordained in 1988 under the umbrella of the Elim Pentecostal church. 'He presented himself as an inspirational man of God,' said Mr Fitzgerald. 'The Crown say the church was run for this defendant and he cloaked himself in the trappings of a religious leader. 'In reality he was nothing of the sort. He deceived his congregation, including children. 'He said he was going to cast out evil spirits from people and that discipline had to be administered by striking bare flesh with the bare hand.' The trial, which is expected to last four weeks, continues. For more of the latest on Donald Trump visit www.dailymail.co.uk/trump On Tuesday, Donald won the Nevada caucuses with 45.9%, ahead of Marco Rubio's 23.7% and Ted Cruz's 21.4% given that she came from another country she said she followed the law getting a green card Melania Trump sat down for her first one-on-one interview Wednesday morning, eight months after her husband Donald first announced he was running for president. The former model and potential future first lady spoke about everything from the constant attacks on her husband, his polarizing policy points and growing up in Slovenia before coming to America as an immigrant in the interview with Mika Brzezinski on Morning Joe. She also brushed aside those who call her husband everything from a 'demagogue' and 'vulgarian' to a 'racist,' saying that the couple has 'thick skin' and attacking her husband's critics for not giving him enough credit. 'We have thick skin, and we know that people will judge him and people will call names,' said Melania, who gave the interview inside her lavish and very golden New York City penthouse. 'They dont give him enough credit. From June that he announced, they dont give him enough credit.' Scroll down for videos Big moment: Melania Trump sat down for her first one-on-one interview since husband Donald announced he was running for president eight months ago Topics: She spoke with Mika Brzezinski on Morning Joe about her husband's critics, growing up in Slovenia, and coming to the US as an immigrant Power couple: Melania said criticism of her husband does not bother the couple because the two have 'thick skin' Mom first: Melania said that she has not spent that much time on the campaign trail because she wanted her son with Donald, 9-year-old Barron (above in January 2015), to have a normal life Mika asked Melania, 45, how she felt about her husband's stance on building a wall to keep out illegal immigrants and his potential ban on Muslims given the fact that she herself is an immigrant who came to the country from Slovenia. I never thought to stay here without papers. I had a visa, I traveled every few months back to the country to Slovenia to stamp the visa. I came back, I applied for the green card, I applied for the citizenship later on after many years of green card 'I followed the law,' said Melania. 'I never thought to stay here without papers. I had a visa, I traveled every few months back to the country to Slovenia to stamp the visa. I came back, I applied for the green card, I applied for the citizenship later on after many years of green card. 'So I went by system, I went by the law. And you should do that, you should not just say let me stay here and whatever happens, happens.' She also said that her husband only wanted a 'temporary ban' on Muslims, adding that it was because he wanted to keep the country safe. 'We need to screen who's coming to the country. He wants to protect America,' she said. 'He wants to protect people of America so we have a country and keep the country safe. That's very important to him.' As for the wall Donald, 69, plans to build, Melania said; 'I don't feel he insulted the Mexicans.' 'He said illegal immigrants. He didnt talk about everybody. He talked about illegal immigrants. He opened a conversation that nobody did. I see him in life. He treats women the same as men. he will tell you whats in his heart, what he thinks. He will not hold it back if youre a woman. youre human, a woman or a man, its no different. 'And after a few weeks, like two weeks giving him a hard time and bashing him in the media, they turned around. 'They said, "you know what, hes right. Hes right what hes talking about." And he opened conversation that nobody did. Shortly after she noted; 'Whats going on in the world is very dangerous. You have people who you dont know what they will do.' Melania was next asked how women were treated in the Trump Organization given her husband's comments about women during the campaign, specifically Fox news host Megyn Kelly. 'They're treated equal,' said Melania. 'I see him in life. He treats women the same as men. he will tell you whats in his heart, what he thinks. 'He will not hold it back if youre a woman. youre human, a woman or a man, its no different.' Golden residence: When asked about Donald's strong feelings on immigration given that she came over from another country she said; 'I followed the law' Back in the day: Melania shared a photo of herself with her parents from back when they lived in Yugoslavia (now Slovenia) When Mika asked again about how vulgar Donald can be at times, Melania responded; 'Well do I agree all the time with him? No, I dont, and I tell him that, I tell him my opinions, I tell him what I think. 'Sometimes he listens, sometimes he dont. I follow the news from A-Z. I know whats going on. Im on the phone with my husband a few times a day.' She told the host it was Donald's 'amazing mind,' that first attracted her to him, but was quick to add that she is her 'own person.' Said the former model; 'We are own people. Im my own person. Hes his own person. I dont want to change him, he doesnt want to change me.' Melania said, as she has in every previous interview, that she has not spent that much time on the campaign trail because she wanted her son with Donald, 9-year-old Barron, to have a normal life. Well do I agree all the time with him? No, I dont, and I tell him that, I tell him my opinions, I tell him what I think. Sometimes he listens, sometimes he dont. I follow the news from A-Z. I know whats going on. Im on the phone with my husband a few times a day. She stays with him in New York City, and when she is away her mother watches the boy. Melania, who said she speaks English, Italian, German and French in addition to her native Slovene, praised her parents, her mother in particular, for the way they raised her back in Slovenia. She would not however reveal what her cause might be if she became first lady, but did tell Mika she had a few ideas. That is looking like more and more of a possibility, especially after Donald's massive win in Tuesday's Nevada caucus. Donald heavily promoted his wife's appearance on Wednesday morning to his over 6million Twitter followers, writing about it repeatedly the day before. He also said Tuesday night that he believes he could secure the nomination for president in two more months. After the interview was finished, Mika said back in the studio that Melania was 'cultured and articulate,' though the host came under fire on social media from people who claimed she was too soft and that Melania must have been given the questions before her appearance. Many of the questions were ones Melania had also already been asked in the few print interviews she has done and her sit down with Donald and the couple's close friend Barbara Walters. Morning Joe has always been kind to Donald, and in an interview earlier this month he thanked the panel during an interview, saying; 'You guys have been supporters, and I really appreciate it.' Joe and Mika immediately tried to backtrack on what he had said, with Mika saying; 'But let me clarify what supporters mean, Joe. This is kind of important. Because from the get-go, Donald and I have not agreed on things ever since we started talking about pageants on Morning Joe, so its not like Donald and I have the same worldview. 'You guys might in some ways. But we knew that he could do this from the get-go. So I think the sense is that we believed that his talents actually could follow through and translate into something, while everyone else underestimated him.' By wide margins, Americans of all ideologies say they have no interest in voting former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg into the White House, suggesting that the billionaire media mogul would have significant headwinds should he mount a third-party bid for president. Just 7 percent of registered voters say they'd definitely vote for him, while 29 percent say they'd consider it, according to a new Associated Press-GfK poll. 'Isn't he the one who wanted to restrict the size of soda drinks?' asked Patricia Kowal, a 66-year-old Democrat who works on an assembly line and lives in Lublin, Wisconsin. 'I think that's intruding on people's personal choices. It's none of the government's business.' A court blocked Bloomberg's attempt to ban supersize takeout soda in 2014. Not popular: Six in 10 Democrats and Republicans alike say they would not consider voting for Bloomberg in a general election, according to the poll. Six in 10 Democrats and Republicans alike say they would not consider voting for Bloomberg in a general election, according to the poll. The total saying they wouldn't vote for him is the highest level for any candidate in the field. But the survey also suggests that a Bloomberg candidacy could not be merely shrugged off by the two parties. With more than one-third at least open to backing him even before he's started, Bloomberg may have the potential to become a spoiler in a close fall election. But a President Bloomberg? Opposition to Bloomberg's possible candidacy is nearly uniform across the political spectrum, as 61 percent of Democratic and Democratic-leaning voters and 63 percent of Republican and Republican-leaning voters say they wouldn't vote for him. Bloomberg has indicated that he'll decide next month whether to jump in the race. His aides say the rise of the parties' fringes has opened a centrist, pragmatic path that the fiscal conservative and social liberal could fill, but that he would only try if he saw a reasonable chance to win. One of the richest people in the United States, Bloomberg has decried the 2016 campaign as 'a race to the extremes' and suggested he might run if Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders led the Democratic field and either Donald Trump or Texas Sen. Ted Cruz led the Republicans. But more than half of the self-identified moderates in each party and half of independents who don't lean toward either party won't consider backing Bloomberg, the poll found. Some surveyed were quick to rule him out despite only knowing about a few of his signature policy initiatives. 'I like the fact that he's not a rabble-rouser,' said Hal Daume, 29, a Republican from Watchung, New Jersey, who admired Bloomberg's 12 years as mayor and said he would support him. 'He's a quiet guy who gets the job done. I trust him and respect his principles.' Bloomberg, a Democrat-turned-Republican-turned-independent, oversaw a renaissance in New York, as crime plummeted and property values soared, and he's become a leading advocate on climate change and gun control. His critics condemn his ties to Wall Street. Possible rivals? Bloomberg would be running against his fellow New York billionaire Donald Trump if he ran but today's poll findings do not suggest he starts with momentum Mark Corbin, who describes himself as a moderate Democrat and lives in suburban Philadelphia, seems to fit the profile of a potential Bloomberg voter. But he said he's 'not a big fan of third-party candidates because they are a waste of time.' 'I'd be afraid he'd take away enough votes from the Democrats to let the Republicans win,' said Corbin, a 58-year-old business administrator. Just 16 percent of voters polled say that Bloomberg represents their positions on the issues they care about very or even somewhat well. But Bloomberg's own pollster said he believes the findings 'would be a good starting point' for a possible campaign. 'This says that 36 percent of voters would consider voting for him before he has announced as a candidate or done anything resembling campaigning,' said Douglas Schoen. 'That seems like a very reasonable place to begin.' The AP poll found that 44 percent of voters still say they don't know much about Bloomberg, which Schoen believes shows room for his support to grow. But those voters who do say they know him aren't enamored with him, according to the poll. Just 20 percent say they have a favorable opinion of him, while 34 percent have an unfavorable opinion. Democratic voters look at him more favorably (25 percent do) than Republicans do (16 percent). Bloomberg has instructed aides to research previous third-party runs and is said to be willing to spend up to $1 billion of his own fortune, estimated to be about $37 billion, to finance his campaign and potentially blanket the airwaves with ads that could boost his numbers. The AP-GfK Poll of 1,033 adults was conducted online Feb. 11-15, using a sample drawn from GfK's probability-based KnowledgePanel, which is designed to be representative of the U.S. population. The margin of sampling error for all respondents is plus or minus 3.4 percentage points. An investigator sent to dig up dirt on a pedophile Christian Brother's victims told lawyers the witnesses could be easily 'torn down' in court, an inquiry has heard. The Catholic religious order paid for Br Edward Dowlan's solicitors, who hired the private investigator to track down his victims in 1995. One victim became visibly upset when approached and said he was seeing a 'shrink' for all the problems Dowlan had caused him, the child abuse royal commission heard. Investigator Glynis McNeight told Geelong-based firm Doyle Considine the victim was a nervous, excitable type who would very easily reduce to tears and resort to bad language, the inquiry heard. 'As a witness, his credibility can be very easily destroyed as he has had enormous emotional problems all his life with his mother and her subsequent husbands,' she wrote. Christian Brother Edward Dowlan pictured leaving the City Watchhouse in 1994 Of another witness, Ms McNeight wrote: 'She would be very easily torn apart in the witness box.' Police refused to give Ms McNeight the victims' details but she managed to locate some of them. She also approached some family members and investigated victims' advocacy group Broken Rites, the commission heard on Wednesday. After being contacted by a victim, the investigating police officer told Ms McNeight she had no business harassing victims and she should not go near any witnesses. Br Brian Brandon, the St Patrick's Province bursar and legal affairs manager, approved paying $10,000 for the investigator but said it was the lawyers' strategy. 'The solicitors ran the show. The Christian Brothers funded it,' he said. Br Brandon said the lawyers' strategy was to find any information that could be used in defence of Dowlan, who maintained he was innocent. 'I didn't actually imagine they were going to front up ... and knock on the door and say `can I come in and talk to you and sit in your dining room' or be confrontational or anything of that sort.' He said the strategy was used in Dowlan's 1995 case and in one other matter involving a Christian Brother. 'I was not happy, in time, with the way that the survivors, victims, seemed to be put under stress by this process,' Br Brandon said. 'I'm sorry that such a strategy was adopted.' Br Brandon said the leadership team of the Victorian and Tasmanian province only had suggestions and innuendo about Dowlan's inappropriate sexual behaviour before police became involved in 1993. Commission chair Justice Peter McClellan asked how Dowlan was allowed to be anywhere near children given the leadership's suspicions. Br Brandon replied: 'In retrospect, I would simply have to say that I couldn't now support the action that was taken then.' But Br Brandon said that did not mean the leadership turned a blind eye. 'It means that we were not alert enough to the possibility of things going wrong.' The commission heard there were at least four matters involving Dowlan raised with the Brothers before 1993, including a complaint about him taking photos of boys in showers in 1971. The order spent $77,000 defending Dowlan, the commission has previously heard. A woman who could not call an ambulance for her fiancee as she watched her have a seizure on Skype from over 13,000 kilometres away used Reddit to make a desperate plea for help. Anna Messner was at home in Tennessee on Tuesday afternoon when she saw her transgender fiancee Melody McClelland, from Dunedin, on New Zealand's South Island, having a violent epileptic seizure on Skype. Ms Messner said the couple met online and had grown close after she supported Ms McClelland through her transition. Ms Messner said she helplessly watched on - unable to call a local ambulance for assistance from the other side of the world - as her partner's lips turned blue and her body started to violently shake. Scroll down for video Anna Messner (L) was at home in Tennessee when she saw her fiancee Melody McClelland(R), from Dunedin having a violent epileptic seizure on Skype Fearing for Ms McClelland's life, she turned to her brother who posted a 'mayday' call on the New-Zealand sub Reddit, asking for someone to contact 111 and send help to her fiancee's flat Fearing for Ms McClelland's life, she turned to her brother who posted a 'mayday' call on the New-Zealand sub Reddit, asking for someone to contact 111 and send help to her fiancee's flat. Jana Hayes from Christchurch, around 300 kilometres from Ms McClelland's home, initially thought the post may be a prank but decided to call the ambulance after seeing the Reddit account was well-established and legitimate. 'At first I sat there for a while, wondering if it was real. I didn't want to get a fine from the ambo for calling in something fake,' she told Stuff.co.nz. Ms Hayes was concerned emergency services would think the call was fake so she told the operator that a friend had alerted her to Ms McClelland's condition and an ambulance showed up at her door a short time later. Ms Messner could see paramedics knocking on her partner's window and started shouting through her computer to bring their attention towards Ms McClelland Luckily Ms McClelland started to regain consciousness and got up to let the paramedics in. She was taken to hospital and 'checked out fine', citing that she had suffered from epilepsy in the past At that point, Ms Messner could see paramedics knocking on her partner's window and started shouting through her computer to bring their attention towards Ms McClelland. 'She was unresponsive so I started yelling as loud as I could that she was in her study,' Messner told Stuff.co.nz. Luckily Ms McClelland started to regain consciousness and got up to let the paramedics in. She was taken to hospital and 'checked out fine', citing that she had suffered from epilepsy in the past. Ms Messner said she was terrified at the thought of losing Ms McClelland and was immensely grateful that her calls for help had been answered. 'The entire time I was terrified, I've never felt that terrified before,' she told the New Zealand Herald. 'Sitting there watching her lips turn blue, frothing from the mouth, and twitching violently was the worst moment of my life.' 'Sitting there watching her lips turn blue, frothing from the mouth, and twitching violently was the worst moment of my life,' Ms Messner said Ms Messner said the couple, who often chat through Skype, met online and had grown close after she supported Ms McClelland through her transition Ms Messner has started a Go Fund Me Page to raise money to help Ms McClelland move to New Zealand. 'When she figured out that she had been assigned the wrong gender at birth, she was terrified. However, she tells me every day that I was one of her biggest supporters,' Ms Messner said. She said the pair spend a lot of time together interacting on Skype and they want to get married and start a family. The recall of some of the world's most popular chocolate bars across the globe is set to cost U.S. confectionery giant Mars Inc 'tens of millions of dollars'. Mars Inc has ordered a full recall of a number of chocolates, including all Mars and Snickers bars as well as Milky Ways and Celebration boxes, in the UK, and more than 50 other countries. The drastic action was caused by a customer finding a piece of plastic in a Snickers bar, and is set to lead to serious economic losses for the chocolate maker, according to a retail analyst. Now, stop, choc: All Mars and Snickers bars with best before dates from June 2016 to January 2017 have been recalled in 55 countries, including Britain, Germany, France, Netherlands, Belgium, Italy and Spain While it's a precautionary measure it will have a significant financial cost attached, certainly running into tens of millions of dollars,' Neil Saunders, an analyst at the Conlumino retail consultancy, told the Guardian. 'The cost comes directly from the recall process, the loss of writing off products, and from lost sales.' 'People will be more reluctant to buy the affected Mars products while this remains fresh in their memories. Customers are warned not to eat any Mars or Snickers bars or Celebration boxes with best before dates from June 2016 to January 2017, as they may contain plastic. The massive recall covers millions of products sold in 55 countries, including the UK, Germany, Spain and France, which are all made at Mars Inc's factory in the Netherlands. The recall initially covered products sold in Germany and the Netherlands, before being extended to Britain, Italy, Spain and France on Tuesday afternoon, as well as dozens of other countries The recall only involves products made at the Mars factory in Veghel, The Netherlands (pictured) The recall initially covered products sold in Germany and the Netherlands, before being extended to Britain, Italy, Spain and France on Tuesday afternoon, as well as dozens of other countries. The recall affected all Mars and Snickers products, Milky Way Minis and Miniatures as well as certain kinds of Celebrations confectionery boxes. The concerned products will have best-before dates ranging from June 19, 2016 to January 8, 2017. 'As far as we know there are 55 countries involved,' Eline Bijveld, Mars corporate affairs coordinator for the Netherlands said Tuesday. The recall 'only involves the products that are made in the Netherlands', at the Mars factory in the southern town of Veghel. The move comes after a customer found a red piece of plastic in a Snickers bar bought on January 8 in Germany. After he complained to Mars, the plastic was traced back to Veghel which determined that it came from a protective cover used in the plant's manufacturing process. One way to diet: Mars Inc said the recall affected all Mars and Snickers products, Milky Way Minis and Miniatures as well as certain kinds of Celebrations confectionery boxes. 'We are currently investigating exactly what's happened, but we cannot be sure that this red piece of plastic isn't in any other of our products from the same production line,' Bijveld said. So the food giant has decided in a 'voluntary' fashion and 'out of precaution' to issue the recall which covers mostly European nations including Holland, Germany, France and Britain. It also spreads further abroad to some countries like Sri Lanka and Vietnam, but does not extend to the United States, she said. It is the first time that Mars has had to recall products made at its Veghel factory, opened in 1963, which employs some 1,200 people. However, it is not the first time Mars has recalled products over customers finding pieces of plastic in their chocolate. In 2007, Mars UK recalled packs of Maltesers and Revels after some customers found small pieces of rubber in the sweets. At the time, Mars said 'an isolated incident' on the production line at their factory in Slough, Berkshire, was to blame for the contamination. A spokeswoman said: 'Five consumers contacted us about the problem, which resulted from an isolated maintenance incident on one of the production lines, which was identified and repaired.' A freed Yazidi sex slave has told of how she was raped by ISIS fighters high on drugs and forced to abort her own baby after a 60-year-old terrorist impregnated her. Shirin, whose name has been changed, was 17 with dreams of becoming a lawyer when she was abducted by the terror group and subjected to nine months of unimaginable torture. 'Every rape felt like I was being cut up from the inside, every organ in my body felt wounded, it was such pain, such humiliation,' said Shirin, who has since moved to Germany. She added: 'My lower abdomen burned as if someone had pressed broken glass between my legs.' One woman begged Shirin's attackers to take her to the hospital because she would not stop bleeding, but the rapist ignored her pleas. Scroll down for videos A Yazidi sex slave known only as 'Shirin', has told of how she was raped by ISIS fighters high on drugs in a revealing new book entitled, 'I remain a daughter of the light' Shirin, now 19, added: 'My friend bathed me and rubbed cream into my body, she tried to heal my wounds. She put me in a bath of salt water. 'There I realised the water was turning dark until it was so red that I was bathing in a bath full of blood.' Shortly after, she was taken to a new, undisclosed ISIS hideout where there were many other Yazidi women and girls, and sold on to another man. She said they were all 'hit, attacked, raped by men high on drugs, we were left to starve and not given anything to drink'. Shirin, who was forced to marry as many as nine ISIS thugs, was impregnated by a 60-year-old man. She aborted the baby herself. She has told of her torturous ordeal in a new book written in German, entitled: 'I remain a daughter of the light.' In it, the young woman talks of how she tried to kill herself when she was about to be raped for the first time. She said: 'I put a scarf round my neck and pulled on both ends. I pulled with all the strength I had, until the veins in my eyes exploded, my eyes were burning and I felt dizzy. Shirin, whose name has been changed, was 17 with dreams of becoming a lawyer when she was abducted by the terror group and subjected to nine months of unimaginable torture (file photo of freed Yazidi slave) 'The man came into the room, ripped of the scarf and hit me repeatedly until I fell to the floor.' In August 2014, the teenager was torn from her home in the remote village of Hardan in northern Iraq and sold off as a sex slave to ISIS fighters. ISIS abducted hundreds of women and girls - and massacred thousands of men - during the siege of several Yazidi villages in the area that month. She said: 'It was 7am when they arrived a convoy of white pickup trucks and beige jeeps, probably former SUVs belonging to the Americans. We were still in our night dresses. My father was away in northern Kurdistan on business. That was what saved his life. 'We realised immediately that this was an invasion, but we couldn't fully process the thoughts. My mother sat there shaking her head from side to side and said: 'Nothing bad will happen.' We were not Shi'ites who they hated. We were just Yazidis who they wanted to have control over. 'We quickly put long dresses over our night dresses. We then ran out onto the street to see the fighters who were approaching. They waved their black flags with white Arabic writing on them in the air. 'The first faces we saw from the passing vehicles were known to us. Regardless what jobs they did before, whether they were craftsmen, teachers or doctors, all of our Arab neighbours seemed to have joined up with ISIS. 'There were also men we didn't know. They openly looked us girls up and down and laughed dirtily amongst each other. Their looks made us frightened and disgusted, their beards were long and unkempt. One woman begged Shirin's attackers to take her to the hospital because she would not stop bleeding, but the rapist ignored her pleas. 'We quickly ran back into the safety of our own homes. No women then dared go back outside. Over loud speakers in the village our neighbours assured us villagers that we had nothing to fear as long as we kept calm. 'We believed what the said. Only my nine-year-old sister Leyla was smarter. She packed all her favourite dresses into a bag and said: "I am not leaving these here, with these men. These are my things".' 'The next minute my phone rang. It was my friend Telim. He sounded out of breath. The ISIS members were in his village, they had claimed they did not want to do any harm. My friend spoke without taking a breath. He and his family had managed to escape to the mountains. 'He told me, "They are lying to you. They are killing all the men and taking away all the women and girls. Run away! They are on the way to you. Please run away".' She went on: 'We were so blind. We didn't recognise the danger. Then at around 16:00 ISIS fighters told our village head, "We will not do anything to you as long as all of your daughters are brought to us by 18:00".' 'In two hours they wanted all of the girls outside. The news spread like wild fire. Our village head told us all, "Take your daughters and try to flee. Otherwise they will take your daughters and your wives". 'The news spread from house to house, from mouth to mouth. People were fleeing to their cars. As my mother found out, she immediately telephoned and told my father. In August 2014, Shirin was torn from her home in the remote village of Hardan in northern Iraq and sold off as a sex slave to ISIS fighters (file photo of freed Yazidi slave) 'He told her he believed it, adding 'if you don't flee, you will be next. The whole village was in uproar, my mother was screaming, she was saying that no matter what the cost she was not daughters up in their hands. 'Half of the village was trying to take the road towards Dohuk. I felt blood was rushing to my head and just wanted to get my phone, so we could reach our father at any time. We didn't even take our passports. Nothing. Only our youngest sister had packed her bag the night before. 'The first cars fled past us. Shoulder to shoulder we forced our way out of the open door. ISIS abducted hundreds of Yazidi women and girls from towns in northern Iraq in August 2014 (pictured, a freed Yazidi sex slave) 'The next minute our uncle wanted to drive forward. Two cars of our relatives would follow. 'Go! We were pushed to the back of the car, Felek, Leyla and me on the back seat with my aunt and cousin. My brothers Kemal and Dishad got in the car behind us. I took a deep breath. Nobody realised how pointless the attempt was. 'Behind us we heard cries from the ISIS fighters. 'Stop them' Most of them didn't appear to react too much. They seemed to know exactly that we would not get too far.' She said that what followed was a nightmare, as hundreds of villagers were stopped just outside the village, and the women including herself, her mother, her younger brother and two sisters were separated. She said: 'On this day in August I later learned that ISIS took numerous villages in the Sinjar region, including the capital Sinjar where there were 40,000 people. I was 17-years-old.' She was sold as a sex slave, and was repeatedly abused and raped, shared out among ISIS fighters as a reward for their bravery. She said: 'I was not so scared of these men who kept me captive then, perhaps it was a survival mechanism which was the only thing that kept me going, but now I'm safe I no longer have the courage I had then. 'When a man with a beard comes near me in Germany I get panicked and scared. When I see a bus, it reminds me of how I was trafficked away each time to a new location. I don't like to go by bus. I was taken away in a bus, it was horrific, I nearly suffocated and was packed in with many people. 'I am no longer the person I once was. People who know me say I have changed 180 degrees. I didn't know that I was such a fearful person. Sometimes I am scared when a car drives past.' She said that the men that would have sex with her had their faces covered with masks when they raped her, and that after a few months some of them had stopped bothering to wear the masks. She said: 'When I saw their faces for the first time it was only then that I realised I was looking at the faces of my former neighbours.' ISIS abducted hundreds of women and girls - and massacred thousands of men - during the siege of several Yazidi villages in northern Iraq in August 2014 (pictured, Yazidi women fleeing the attack) Her ordeal only ended when she was married to her ninth husband, and he had ended up taking pity on her and helping her to flee to Germany. She said: 'I was in captivity for nine months. I was freed by a Sunni Muslim, one of my "husbands". He told me I should trust him, he wanted to help me flee. 'At first I refused, but the others told me it was my only choice, so I married him according to Islamic law. It was a marriage of convenience. He never touched me. We fled together from the IS controlled area into a Kurdish area. It was a long, scary, dangerous escape.' She now lives in southern Germany, and her dreams are smaller. She no longer dreams of studying law for example. She said: 'I don't think I can do it. But I would like to have a driving license and be able to drive a car. ' When I saw their faces [of men raping her] for the first time, it was only then that I realised I was looking at the faces of my former neighbours... I am no longer the person I once was... Sometimes I am scared when a car drives past Shirin, freed Yazidi slave She said writing her story was an attempt to come to terms with what happened and an attempt to warn the world about what was happening with ISIS. She said: 'I am telling my story for my people. So people never forget what ISIS did to our people. Many more are still fleeing, many are in camps. I also wrote the book to show that it is IS that is evil, not Islam.' And she added: 'If all countries do not act together to stop this, then the fight will come to Europe. 'I never thought something so bad could happen. I was split from my mother, and then I was beaten. I tried to kill myself. I always thought it could not get any worse and then it did. 'I was raped. It was not just what the men did to me, it was so totally humiliating. I felt so dirty, so terribly dirty. 'I ask myself if I am still the old Shirin? I don't think I will ever forget the faces of these men when I finally saw them. But the worst thing was I was always scared about what was happening to my mother, my father and my siblings. Shirin talks with her father nearly every day. He is in a refugee camp. He always says to me: 'As long as you are well, then I am well.' Her mother is alive but in IS captivity in Syria. Her brothers and sisters, she has not heard from them since they were separated. Speaking of the day ISIS invaded her village, Shirin said: They openly looked us girls up and down and laughed dirtily amongst each other. Their looks made us frightened and disgusted' (pictured, Yazidis fleeing the attack) She said: 'Even in my suffering I realised that their lives were more important to me than mine. They were my family. They were all I had.' Shirin's fate is not an isolated case. According to the Kurdish government over 7,000 women and children have been advised in IS-hostage. Less than 500 have so far fled or were ransomed. The psychiatrist and trauma expert January Kizilhan, who also supervised Shirin, believes that about 200 abducted yazidi girls have been committed suicide. 'They have cut his wrists, swallowed rat poison, killed himself with electricity or to tried to drown themselves,' he said. The ISIS terrorists want to wipe out the religious minority of Yazidis and break the will of the victim. Rape and the consequent degradation of women and their families set the militias targeted to a psychological warfare. Eight people lifted the 185kg feline to allow When the king of Perth Zoo was gingerly removed from his enclosure, the rest of his pride were understandably concerned, unaware the majestic beast was about to undergo a trip to the dentist. Mandela the African lion wasn't showing any signs of pain but during an annual check-up, it was discovered the big cat had a dental infection and some broken teeth. The 13-year-old had one tooth extracted on Wednesday, will eventually need another one taken out and is being given antibiotics for his abscess. Mandela the African lion is placed under anesthetics as he undergoes an annual check-up at the Perth Zoo It was discovered during the checkup that the 185kg cat had a dental infection and some broken teeth It took eight people to lift the 185kg feline, who was cared for by three veterinarians, two veterinary nurses and a dental veterinary consultant. Mandela will recover in his night quarters under the watch of his keepers before being reunited with his brother Nelson and lioness Shinyanga. 'She was definitely keeping an eye on us - they're quite protective of their boss,' zookeeper Leonie Perovic said. 'They were wondering what we were up to but obviously it's all in his best interests.' Mandela will recover in his night quarters being reunited with his brother Nelson and lioness Shinyanga The 13-year-old had one tooth extracted on Wednesday and he will eventually need another one taken out The life expectancy for African lions in captivity can be up to 30 years due to veterinary care - over twice their 14-year life expectancy in the wild Ms Perovic said Nelson provided back-up to Mandela in his role as the leader and was also fully aware Shinyanga was his brother's girlfriend. 'So everybody's happy.' The life expectancy for African lions in the wild is 10 to 14 years, but in zoos, they can live for 30 years due to the high-quality diet and veterinary care. Hungary is planning a referendum on migrant quotas it fears could 'redraw Hungary and Europe's ethnic, cultural and religious identity' for generations to come. The country's prime minister Viktor Orban called for a national vote on the EU's plan for a mandatory quota for the resettlement of migrants and refugees. Analysts said the proposal was an attempt by the leader to establish himself as a leader of those opposed to the EU scheme, and demonstrate his growing influence on the European stage. Hungary's prime minister Viktor Orban called for a national vote on the EU's plan for a mandatory quota for the resettlement of migrants and refugees The EU has set up a scheme to share 160,000 migrants arriving in overburdened Greece and Italy. Refugees are pictured arriving on in Greece today Orban said that the referendum question would be: 'Do you want the European Union to prescribe the mandatory settlement of non-Hungarian citizens in Hungary even without the consent of Parliament?' He said a 'no' vote would be 'in favour of Hungary's independence and rejecting the mandatory settlement plan.' The EU has set up a scheme to share 160,000 migrants arriving in overburdened Greece and Italy. But so far, barely 600 people have been relocated, and only some EU partners have offered places for them - fewer than 5,000 spots in all. For Hungary, the plan would gravely impact people's lives and 'redraw Hungary and Europe's ethnic, cultural and religious identity' for generations to come, Orban said. For Hungary, the quota plan would gravely impact people's lives and 'redraw Hungary and Europe's ethnic, cultural and religious identity' for generations to come, prime minister Orban said 'The Hungarian government believes that neither the union nor Brussels nor the European leaders nor any European body has the authority to do this,' he said. 'We feel that introducing a settlement quota without the consent of the people is nothing but abuse of power.' He said the referendum question had already been submitted for approval to the National Election Office. Analysts said that Orban was trying to become the leader of the movement opposed to the German and EU position on quotas. 'It is not a wider anti-EU initiative but Orban wants to show strength on the migrant issue,' said Tamas Boros, analyst at Policy Solutions, a political research and consultancy firm. 'He wants to show Europe what an influential politician he is.' Boros said that with the referendum idea Orban was also trying to give leaders of other countries in the region opposed to the quota plan, like Poland, the Czech Republic and Slovakia, a resource that could be used to put pressure on EU leaders. A young woman claims she woke up at 3am feeling a cold hand on her inner thigh rubbing her genitals after a stranger broke into her room at a university campus. Sri Lankan refugee Daxchan Selvarajah, 24, admits he broke into the locked unit on campus the night of the alleged assault, but denies indecently assaulting the 20-year-old female, whose identity cannot be revealed, according to theDaily Telegraph. Selvarajah is on trial over the February 21, 2013 incident which took place at 3.30am at Macquarie University in Sydneys north. He is pleading not guilty to aggravated break and enter with indecent assault and attempted break and enter with intent to commit indecent assault . The woman, who was 20 at the time, allegedly screamed who the hell are you? Get the f*** out of my house and chased him away from the premises, according to Daily Telegraph reports. Sri Lankan refugee Daxchan Selvarajah, 24, admits he broke into the locked unit on campus at Sydney's Macquarie University (pictured) the night of the alleged assault The woman, who was 20 at the time, allegedly screamed who the hell are you? Get the f*** out of my house. He admits he did break into the locked unit by breaking the fly screen (stock photo) The then 21-year-old was in Australia on a bridging visa and was not living on the university campus. He was arrested at Central Station and placed in police custody. The man is accused of trying to break into another unit before he successfully found his way into the then 20-year-olds residence. He admits he broke into the locked unit by breaking the flyscreen which covered one of the windows to reach in and unlock the door. However, Selvarajah denies indecently assaulting the university student while she slept. The trial will continue on Thursday morning with the alleged victim set to give evidence at Downings Centre District Court in Sydneys city. A house with possibly the rudest street address in Britain has been put on the market for nearly 500,000. The three-bedroom semi-detached house in Fetcham, Surrey, can be found at 69 Cock Lane. The listing has prompted a number of jokes on social media with the advert reposted dozens of times by amused locals. A 500,000 semi-detached house at 69 Cock Lane may be the rudest property currently on the market The agent hoping to sell the property, Gascoigne Pees, has since described it as an 'attractive' buy. The house boasts a double reception room and a garden, which includes a patio and decked area, they said. A description on the agent's website adds: 'This attractive semi-detached house is ideally located in Fetcham, opposite playing fields and close to the village. 'On the ground floor there is a decent extension making a dining area off the kitchen. There is a further double reception room. 'There are three bedrooms on the first floor serviced by a modern family bathroom. 'There is a private and well planned rear garden with patio and decked areas as well as a grassed lawn. To the front there is off street parking for a number of cars.' The property has three bedrooms, a double reception room and a garden, which includes a patio and decked area News of the property's sale has prompted a number of jokes on Twitter. Mike Philpott posted a link to the house and wrote: 'This has everything. A semi at 69 Cock Lane is for sale. Estate agent? Gascoigne Pees.' Louis-Roy Cahalane added: 'Finding it hard to penetrate the housing market, I have found a semi which will get you excited.' The listing has prompted a number of jokes on social media with the advert reposted dozens of times by amused locals While Mike Scanlan uploaded a number of laughing emojis and a picture of the property, clearly showing his enjoyment. The sale comes after a survey in February 2014 found that properties on streets with innuendo-laden names were found to be around one fifth cheaper on average than other homes situated nearby. Complex case had seen Perry hit with two felony charges that he abused his power when he was The felony prosecution of former Texas governor Rick Perry ended Wednesday when the state's highest criminal court dismissed an abuse-of-power indictment that the Republican says hampered his short-lived 2016 presidential bid. The 6-2 decision by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, which is dominated by elected Republican judges, frees Perry from a long-running criminal case that blemished the exit of one of the most powerful Texas governors in history and hung over his second failed run for the White House. A grand jury in liberal Austin had indicted Perry in 2014 for vetoing funding for a public corruption unit that Republicans have long accused of wielding a partisan ax. The unit worked under Travis County District Attorney Rosemary Lehmberg, an elected Democrat. Perry wanted her to resign after she was convicted of drunken driving. Out of the running: Perry supporters contended that the prosecution overshadowed his short-lived bid for the White House Perry was accused of using his veto power to threaten a public official and overstepping his authority, but the judges ruled that courts can't undermine the veto power of a governor. 'Come at the king, you best not miss,' Republican Judge David Newell wrote in his concurring opinion, quoting a popular line from the HBO series 'The Wire.' Perry has been campaigning for Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz since becoming the first major GOP candidate to drop out of the race last year. He conceded to reporters in Austin on Wednesday that the indictments hurt his candidacy but didn't dwell on the impact, and said he would veto the same funding again if given the chance. 'I've always known the actions I took were not only lawful and legal, they were right,' said Perry, who spoke at the headquarters of an influential Texas conservative think tank, which has previously christened its balcony overlooking downtown as the 'Gov. Rick Perry Liberty Balcony.' The court said veto power can't be restricted by the courts and the prosecution of a veto 'violates separations of powers.' A lower appeals court had dismissed the other charge, coercion by a public servant, in July. Perry had rebuked the charges as a partisan attack from the start, calling it a 'political witch hunt,' but the dismissal brought accusations of Republican judges doing a favor for a party stalwart. Texans for Public Justice, a left-leaning watchdog group that filed the original criminal complaint that led to the indictment, said Perry was handed a 'gift' based on his stature. Even a Republican judge who dissented in the ruling said the decision could leave the public with an uneasy perception that the system went out of its way to clear a famous politician with deep connections. Glad that's over: Perry spoke about being cleared at a not-for-profit associated with him and said: 'I've always known the actions I took were not only lawful and legal, they were right.' 'The constant references to "Governor Perry" could well be seen by the public as an inference that appellant's position in life entitles him to special privileges and special treatment by this court that others might be denied,' wrote Republican Judge Cheryl Johnson, referring to how judges addressed Perry during deliberations. Perry, the longest-serving governor in Texas history, made just one court appearance in the case and was defiant from the start - he went out for ice cream after turning himself in for booking at an Austin jail, and smiled wide for his mug shot. Legal scholars across the political spectrum raised objections about the case. Still, the Republican judge overseeing it repeatedly refused to throw it out on constitutional grounds, prompting Perry's appeals. Michael McCrum, the special prosecutor who secured Perry's indictment, maintained that the matter was built on evidence - not politics - and deserved to go to trial. He can appeal, but that would be a lengthy process. Combined, the original charges carried a potential maximum of 109 years in prison. Despite his legal problems, Perry had formally announced he was running for president in June, hoping to convince GOP primary voters he deserved another chance after his 2012 bid was undone by a series of public gaffes. But his second campaign lasted barely three months, and he dropped out of the race in September. The former governor spent more than $2 million on top defense lawyers. His latest White House campaign raised barely half that much in its first month, and Perry blamed the indictment for his sluggish fundraising. This works out at 23,400 per squirrel, but mayor says it's not a waste Since then, only five squirrels have used it to The mayor of The Hague has refuted claims that a 120,000 'squirrel bridge' built to help the animals cross a motorway near the Dutch city - despite it only being used five times in four years. The flyover bridge was built in 2012, to give squirrels a safe passage from one forestry area to another in the western Netherlands. However, in the past four years, only five squirrels have used the bridge to cross the road - working out at a neat 23,400 per squirrel. Expensive travel: The 120,000 bridge was built in 2012, to give squirrels a safe passage over a highway near the Hague, however, in the past four years, only five have used it During a local council meeting in The Hague, the mayor's office was forced to answer to questions from councillors as to whether the bridge had been a waste of money. The bridge, built at tree level, cost 150,000 euros to build four years ago, and the local authorities has been monitoring it using security cameras. In the first two years of the bridge, not a single squirrel walked over it, councillors were told. 'In 2014 three squirrels, and in 2015 two squirrels, were spotted on the bridge,' the mayor's office said according to The Times. 'This is evidenced by monitoring using CCTV cameras on the bridge.' Not popular: In the first two years of the bridge's existence, not a single squirrel walked over it, followed by three in 2014 and two last year As only five animals have used the bridge in four years, the cost-per-squirrel works out at 23,400 However, The Hague's mayor's office argued that it had not been a waste of money, as the cash had not come out of the city's finances. Instead, the money had come from national environmental funding, believed to still be tax funded. The mayor of The Hague reportedly refused to discuss the issue further, according to The Times. 'Private taxis for the squirrels would have been cheaper,' The Hague councillor Arjen Dubbelaar told local radio. 'As taxpayers we should be able to assume that the government is economical with our money. The program will offer full tuition and board to 100 students annually to solving issues such as poverty and climate change The scholarship is aimed at attracting graduate students around the world Big spender: Nike co-founder and chairman Philip H. Knight is donating $400 million to Stanford Nike co-founder and chairman Philip H. Knight is donating $400 million to a scholarship program at Stanford University aimed at attracting graduate students dedicated to addressing the world's most harrowing problems. Knight, a Stanford Alumni who graduated in 1962 with an MBA, is giving the largest gift ever given by an individual to the prestigious university in California. He and Stanford's president John L. Hennessy have teamed up to create the Knight-Hennessy Scholars Program, Stanford announced Tuesday. Starting in 2018, the program will offer full tuition and board to 100 students annually, according to the New York Times. One third of those accepted will be from the United States and two-thirds will come from abroad. Those accepted will be admitted to one of Stanfords seven graduate schools and will commit to working on important issues such as global poverty and climate change. Graduate school tuition can surpass $21,000 per year, according to the school's website. The sum surpasses the $100 million given by website investor Robert King and his wife Dorothy in 2011, according to NBC. Stanford has a total endowment of $750 million, making it the largest fully-endowed scholarship program across the globe. 'John and I dream of a future 20, 30 or 50 years from now, when thousands of graduates who can think outside the box as skilled problem-solvers will be working together for a more peaceful, habitable world,' Knight said in a statement. The program will accept 'high-achieving students from a wide range of backgrounds and nationalities' each year. They will pursue graduate, masters or doctorate degrees, or 'professional programs designed to develop scholars' capacity to lead ambitious change in a complex world.' he added. This is not the business leader's first donation to Stanford. In 2006, Mr.Knight gave Stanford's Business School $105 million in 2006. He has also donated hundreds of millions to the University of Oregon where he got his undergraduate degree, according to The New York Times. The large sum matches the $400 million given to Harvard from Wall Street billionaire John Paulson last year. David Cameron has defended his decision to ban pro-Brexit ministers from accessing government material or resources to back the case for leaving the EU. And he claimed that while civil servants will be banned from helping anti-EU ministers, it was 'good for democracy' that the Government machine will instead be used to produce reams of propaganda on why the UK must remain inside the Brussels club. The Prime Minister came under fire from his own Tory MPs today over a letter sent out by Britain's top mandarin yesterday telling civil servants they are banned from giving any help to Eurosceptic ministers, who will not even be allowed to see papers relating to the work of their own department. Former Cabinet minister Owen Paterson (left) accused the Government of breaching rules governing impartiality by blocking access to civil service help for Eurosceptic ministers. But David Cameron (right) defended the decision, claiming it was 'good for democracy' that the Government machine will be used instead to produce reams of propaganda on why the UK must remain inside the Brussels club Former Cabinet minister Owen Paterson, who is one of the leading Tory figures campaigning for Britain to leave the EU, accused the Government of breaching rules governing impartiality with the strict new rules. In an angry exchange in the House of Commons he demanded to know whether the letter was compatible with rules guaranteeing 'equality of opportunity' for supporters and opponents of staying in the EU. Mr Cameron replied: 'I'm very happy with the letter that was sent out for this reason and that is the Government has a position on this issue. 'The Government's position is that we will be better off in a reformed European Union. 'Ministers are free to part from that position and campaign in a personal capacity, that is, I think, a very important statement, it's right in terms of how we go about it, but it does not mean the Government is neutral, it doesn't mean the civil service is neutral, the Government has a policy from which people can depart.' Justice Secretary Michael Gove, left, arrived at Cabinet this morning for the first time since it emerged he would defy David Cameron to back the Out campaign. Employment Minister Priti Patel, also pictured arriving at Cabinet, is also backing Brexit. The pair are banned from using the civil service to support their EU arguments The letter, sent by Cabinet Secretary Jeremy Heywood to all civil servants, sets out strict rules on their behaviour in the run up to June's EU referendum. It stated that government resources, from briefing notes, speech preparation and research, must only be used in the referendum campaign if it supports the Government's official stance in support of Britain's membership of the EU. Other Brexit rebels, including Iain Duncan Smith, left, John Whittingdale, centre, and Theresa Villiers, right, all appeared in Downing Street this morning. Under the Civil Service guidance on the EU referendum sent by the Cabinet Secretary Jeremy Heywood today, they will all be at a disadvantage against their pro-EU colleagues It means Michael Gove, Iain Duncan Smith, Priti Patel, Theresa Villiers, Chris Grayling, John Whittingdale and around 15 junior ministers are barred from accessing official department papers that support their case for Britain to leave the EU - even papers relating to the work of their own department. The rules will also apply to their advisers, who must only campaign for Britain to leave the EU in their spare time. They will be unable to provide their ministers with briefing notes or speech preparation to make the case for leaving the EU but can use the same kind of resources to help ministers on the opposite side of the argument. But at the same time ministers and advisers who back Britain staying in the EU are free to use government papers and other resources to support their case. Jeremy Heywood, the Cabinet Secretary, sent a letter (pictured) to all civil servants this morning telling them that government resources must only be used in the referendum campaign if it supports the Government's official stance in support of Britain's membership of the EU The key paragraph announcing the ban on the use of government material for pro-Brexit arguments (pictured) rules that civil servants must not provide pro-Brexit ministers with information that supports their case to quit the EU because it goes against the Government's official position to remain a member of the 28-state bloc The guidance sent to civil servants yesterday sought to ensure that ministers and civil servants abide by David Cameron's decision that the Government's official position will be to stay in the EU and ministers who 'take a different personal position' may argue against that position only outside of their official government role. The key paragraph announcing the ban on the use of material for pro-Brexit arguments stated: 'As set out in the Prime Minister's letter it will not be appropriate or permissible for the Civil Service to support Ministers who oppose the Government's official position by providing briefing or speech material on this matter. Home Secretary Theresa May, seen arriving for today's Cabinet meeting, boosted Mr Cameron by backing his campaign to keep Britain in the EU. She will be able to access official government material to make the case for staying in the EU - unlike her anti-EU colleagues 'This includes access to official departmental papers, excepting papers that Ministers have previously seen on issues relating to the referendum question prior to the suspension of collective agreement. These rules will apply also to their special advisers.' Civil servants and ministers who breach the rules are likely to face disciplinary action. Asked what the consequences of breaking the code would be, the Prime Minister's official spokeswoman said: 'Let's cross that bridge when it happens.' Sir Jeremy also said that special advisers who want to work for a campaign team must seek the Prime Minister's approval. If they want to work full-time on a campaign they will have to resign their positions for the duration of the referendum, and their Government salary will be cut to reflect any part-time work for a campaign. The instructions came after David Cameron suspended the principle of collective responsibility on Saturday to allow ministers to campaign against the Government position of supporting continued UK membership of the EU. Clarifying the reasoning behind the strict code of practice governing the civil service during the EU referendum, the letter states: 'As previously agreed, and confirmed at Cabinet, individual Ministers will be able to take a different personal position from that of the Government on the issue of the EU Referendum. 'This wholly exceptional arrangement applies only to the question of whether the UK should remain in a reformed EU or leave.' The five-page letter also warns civil servants that government publications will be 'scrutinised even more closely than usual' in the run up to the referendum and tells employees to take extra care to ensure publications are accurate. Mr Heywood wrote: 'We can expect government publications to be scrutinised even more closely than usual and so it is especially important that the usual propriety principles of good administration are applied to ensure that material for publication is accurate, with facts and evidence clearly sourced wherever possible.' THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN: WHAT THE TOP TORIES BACKING BREXIT SAY ABOUT BRITAIN'S MEMBERSHIP OF THE EU By dramatically backing Brexit last night, Boris Johnson has joined six Cabinet rebels, who were finally free to speak their mind on the EU at the weekend. The - 'freedom fighters' - as they have been dubbed by admirers - are: BORIS JOHNSON The London Mayor finally came off the fence last night, ending months of speculation over which side of the referendum campaign he would join. Mr Johnson invoked the glories of the British Empire and the leadership of Winston Churchill to say the country which gave the world parliamentary democracy should not subject itself to 'legal colonisation' from the EU. 'This is a once in a lifetime chance to vote for real change in Britain's relations with Europe. This is the only opportunity we will ever have to show that we care about self-rule. 'A vote to Remain will be taken in Brussels as a green light for more federalism, and for the erosion of democracy.' MICHAEL GOVE The Justice Secretary is one of David Cameron's closest friends - he was part of the 'kitchen cabinet' who encouraged him to run for the Tory leadership - and his decision to join the Out campaign on Saturday was the first major blow for the PM. In a 1,500-word essay explaining his decision to leave the EU, which he described as 'mired in the past,' Mr Gove wrote: 'Far from providing security in an uncertain world, the EU's policies have become a source of instability and insecurity.' IAIN DUNCAN SMITH Few people were surprised by Iain Duncan Smith's decision to back the Out campaign: the Work and Pensions Secretary has been a long-standing critic of the EU and supporter of tighter immigration controls. But yesterday he directly contradicted David Cameron's claim that Britain was 'safer and stronger' in the EU by claiming staying in the EU would make Britain more vulnerable to a Paris-style terror attack. And savaging the PM's EU deal, Mr Duncan Smith wrote in today's Daily Mail: 'The truth is that there is nothing proposed in last Friday's agreement that reduces or returns the enormous powers that the Commission and the Court of Justice have over our national government.' Priti Patel The employment minister is regarded as the up-and-coming poster girl for Cabinet Eurosceptics. Her decision to join the Out camp was no surprise but her popularity with Tory grassroots will deal a blow to the PM. She has railed against the 'democratic deficit' of the EU's institutions, adding: 'My experience in business is that organisations are only successful and efficient when they are accountable and flexible and the EU is neither.' JOHN WHITTINGDALE The Culture Secretary is the last authentic Thatcherite in the Cabinet: in the 1980s he worked as her private secretary and has remained loyal to her ideology including her Euroscepticism since. At the weekend he called for Britain to 'recover the powers we have lost' and said Cameron's pledge to reduce net immigration to the tens of thousands would be 'impossible' while remaining a member of the EU. CHRIS GRAYLING Mr Gove's predecessor as Justice Secretary, Chris Grayling is a long-term Eurosceptic. The Manchester United fanatic was deployed by the Tories as an energetic 'attack dog' during their long period in Opposition, harrying Labour including the Blairs over their personal business affairs. The 6ft 5in Leader of the House has a cool relationship with Gove, who has reversed many of his justice reforms. THERESA VILLIERS The Northern Ireland Secretary has long backed quitting the EU and made her views clear straight after Saturday's Cabinet meeting. She said she will vote to leave the EU 'to take back control over our country and making our laws and controlling our borders'. The six Cabinet ministers - who make up a sixth of David Cameron's top team, are joined by around 15 junior ministers, some of whom will play a prominent role in the Conservative party's future. Among the most high profile of the pro-Brexit junior ministers are: Penny Mordaunt Armed Forces minister Penny Mordaunt, pictured at Downing Street after being given a promotion last May, said she was backing Brexit because it was the only way to guarantee national security The Armed Forces minister shot to prominence after she starred on the primetime TIV diving show Splash with Tom Daley two years ago. She will be arguing against her direct boss - the Defence Secretary Michael Fallon, who has set out his firm belief that staying in the EU is the best way to guarantee national security. Julian Brazier He is another defence minister who has come out in favour of Brexit. He is in charge of the Reserves and said three things had persuaded him to campaign for Britain to leave the EU: the financial crisis in the eurozone, the 'torrent of people in Europe' who could be heading to the UK and his desire to regain sovereignty for the British Parliament. James Wharton The 32-year-old minister in charge of the Northern Powerhouse was tasked with the original effort by Tory MPs to secure an EU referendum by introducing a Private Member's Bill to Parliament as earlier as 2013. Mr Wharton, who surprised pollsters by extending his majority in the north east seat of Stock-on Tees in last year's election, announced on Facebook he was backing Brexit, saying: 'We should look to the world, not just the EU'. Andrea Leadsom The energy and climate change minister announced she will be campaigning for Britain to leave the EU. She wrote on her website: 'I want to be absolutely clear I will be voting to leave the EU. 'This is not a decision that I have made quickly or easily, as I have been a strong advocate for reform within Europe for many years.' George Eustice The farming, food and marine environment minister is one of the founding members of the EU Fresh Start group - made up of 2010 and 2015 intake MPs today to campaign for Brexit. Mr Eustice campaigned against the UK joining the euro and in 1999 he stood as a Ukip candidate for the European Parliament elections. James Duddridge The foreign office minister is another government figure defying his departmental chief - the Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond. Advertisement Also claimed one of the girls she adopted from Ukraine was dying Parker claimed in 2013 her son Joshua, then 7, was dying, but doctors found the boy was not terminally ill doctors into heavily medicating and even operating on her son and two adopted daughters A mother-of-eight from Oregon who had faced up to 30 years in prison for allegedly fooling doctors into performing dozens of medically unnecessary procedures on her children has been sentenced to probation as part of a plea deal. Katherine 'Kate' Parker, 45, of Grants Pass, on Monday pleaded no contest to five counts of fourth-degree assault, reckless endangerment and first-degree mistreatment involving three of her children, among them two special-needs girls she had adopted from the Ukraine. As part of the agreement between the prosecution and defense, which was reached less than a week before Parker had been scheduled to go to trial, the Oregon woman was sentenced to five years' probation and 180 days in jail, which she had already served. Scroll down for video Slap on the wrist: Katherine Parker, 45, has recieved probation after pleading no contest to five counts of fourth-degree assault, reckless endangerment and first-degree mistreatment involving three of her children Rare condition: Prosecutors had argued that Parker was suffering from Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy a disorder in which parents fabricate illness in a child to draw attention to themselves. The image above shows photos of the woman's kids Alive and well: According to prosecutors, the stay-at-home mom had tricked doctors into heavily medicating her son, Joshua (pictured), and convinced hospital staff he was dying The plea deal stipulates that Parker must undergo a psychological evaluation to make sure she is not a danger to her children, make no medical decision for her kids and have no unsupervised contact with the three victims, who are now aged six, eight and nine, reported OregonLive.com. Ms Parker was arrested in 2014 on suspicion of medical child abuse targeting her biological son Joshua and two adopted daughters. Prosecutors had argued that the church-going stay-at-home mom 'knowingly caused physical injury' to the three children by tricking doctors into performing dozens of medical procedures, including brain surgery, and giving them powerful prescription drugs they did not need. Officials had contended that Parker was suffering from Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy (MSBP) a well-documented disorder in which parents fabricate illness in a child to draw attention to themselves. But Parker's defense attorney, Lisa Ludwig, placed all the blame on the medical professionals whose help her client had sought for her children. 'There are two possibilities here: One is that a high-school educated, stay-at-home mom tricked literally dozens of medical professionals into doing literally dozens of unnecessary medical procedures -- including brain surgery -- on three different children, Ludwig said. The other possibility is the doctors made errors. Special-needs kids: Parker had allegedly claimed that one of the two Down syndrome-stricken Ukrainian girls (pictured left and right) she adopted in 2010 was also dying Parker's extremely complicated case, which had been slowly winding its way through the court system for the past two years, in December became the subject of an in-depth investigation carried out by Northwestern Universitys Medill Justice Project. According to the Medill report and court filings, Katherine Parker's troubles began in 2013 when her son Joshua, who was seven years old at the time, was taken to Randall Children's Hospital for pain medication management ahead of being placed in a hospice facility. The child had been diagnosed with spina bifida and other medical conditions, and appeared to be dying, prosecutor Susan OConnor wrote in 2014. A pediatrician at the hospital reviewed Joshua's medical records and concluded that the seven-year-old 'was subjected to major and minor surgical procedures that were medically unnecessary,' reported the station KOIN6. The doctor claimed that Katherine Parker misrepresented what physicians had told her and that she provided inaccurate history' about her son. Mrs Parker (left) was arrested in 2014 on suspicion of medical child abuse. Her husband Charley (right) has not been charged with any crime The physician's report also stated that contrary to Parker's assertions regarding Joshuas grave physical state, the boy was not terminally ill or dying. During the childs hospital stay, staff noted concerning behaviors by the mother, who often talked about her son's impending death and once told a doctor the best outcome for him would be death. Hospital staff also caught Parker instructing her son to 'push his button' which would deliver painkillers, even when he was not in pain. On another occasion, the mother allegedly asked the boy to pretend he had a headache so he could get a higher dosage of pain meds. These actions eventually got Parker banned from the hospital and set in motion a lengthy investigation, which led to her arrest in April 2014. When police search the Parker residence in Grants Pass, they discovered an urn that the mother-of-eight had purchased to store the ashes of her child, who was not dying. In the course of the probe, police had learned that Parker and her husband in 2010 adopted two Ukrainian girls, named Bethany and Hannah, suffering from Down syndrome. Although they were both able to feed by mouth when they were living in the Ukrainian orphanage, within a relatively short period of time of coming into [Parkers] care, both girls had G-Tubes installed and failed to thrive, prosecutor Susan OConnor wrote. Who's to blame? Parker's attorney had blamed doctors for making errors and argued that her client, who has only high school-level education, could not have deceived medical experts By 2012, Parker began saying that one of the girls was dying. A medical review later found that both children 'had undergone surgical procedure that were medically unnecessary.' In the wake of Parker's arrest, one of the daughters was adopted by another family and the other wound up in the foster care system. Her son Joshua will be living in her household, but under the plea deal Parker will not be able to interact with him without another adult present. A Pennsylvania nurse has been charged with showing up drunk during an emergency appendectomy after forgetting he was on call and drinking multiple beers at the casino. Richard Pieri, 59, of the VA Medical Center near Wilkes-Barre, was caught by surveillance cameras stumbling through the hospital's parking lot as he came in to work, WNEP reported. A coworker reported him anonymously as Pieri struggled to log into the computer system, didn't register the time of the surgery properly and acted unusually. The nurse later told the police he had drunk four or five beers at a nearby casino while playing slots. He had just gone home when the hospital paged him for the appendectomy. Scroll down for video Richard Pieri, a nurse at the VA Medical Center (pictured) near Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, was caught by cameras stumbling through the parking lot as he showed up to assist during an emergency appendectomy Pieri also said he knew it was wrong to show up drunk at work but had forgotten he was on call. He was responsible for prepping the patient and setting up the materials in the operating room, as well as monitoring vitals during the surgery. 'Patient safety is paramount. We want to be sure our patients are safe, VA Medical Center executive told representative William Klaips told WNEP. 'As soon as we were notified of the event, we made sure there were no unsafe situations for our patients and then we did the further investigations,' . Pieri has been charged with recklessly endangering another person, DUI, and public drunkenness. He has been barred from direct patient care during the investigation. John Cooper, a spokesman for Concerned Veterans for America, told Dailymail.com: The persistent lack of accountability at the VA is enabling this inexcusable behavior. 'Veterans have the right to expect only the highest quality of care, but the VAs refusal to hold employees accountable, even when they engage in clear misconduct, has made a mockery of that expectation. 'We hope the VA takes this situation seriously and finally demonstrates a commitment to accountability. A disturbing video exposes the moment a nine-year-old mentally disabled Syrian boy is tied to railings outside his home like a dog by his family. The distressing footage of the child shouting and trying to escape is captured in the Turkish town of Siverek after the family had fled there from the Syrian civil war. Sickened neighbours complain to his parents who eventually untie the boy, named Salih, but he has since ran off and is reportedly still missing according to Turkish government sources. His family, who found accommodation in the south-eastern province of Sanliurfa, claim they were finding it impossible to keep the child under control. Tied to the wall: Salih, 9, from Syria, is seen wickedly tied to the railings outside his home on the street of the Turkish town of Siverek A form of torture? At the start of the video Salih is seen desperately tugging at the rope which is tied tightly around his ankles At the start of the video Salih is seen desperately tugging at the rope which is tied tightly around his ankles. The cameraman, whose identity is currently unknown, passively stands and films the boy as he endures the 'torture.' Angry neighbours disgusted by the wicked act complain to the family who then begrudgingly untie Salih before carrying him back inside the house. After the video cuts out the neighbours then inform the police, but before officers arrive Salih escapes and runs away. According to reports his family stated that he had tried to run off before, which is why they were forced to tie him up with the rope. The Turkish Ministry of Family and Social Policies has said that they are on the hunt for the 'mentally disabled child exposed to torture by his family'. Shockingly it is the boy's own family who have tied him to the railings because he was too difficult to control Salih, who suffers from learning difficulties, had tried to escape according to the family who resorted to the drastic measure to stop him They added that if he is found he will be placed in an appropriate institution. Shockingly such incidents are not unprecedented. MailOnline reported last year that another mentally disabled Syrian boy, six-year-old Cuma Ibrahim, was found abandoned in Turkey when his family tied him up and left him to die. He was discovered starving and suffering from hypothermia in a coalfield bunker in the Yakutiye district of the city of Erzurum, eastern Turkey. Angry neighbours: The neighbours complain to his parents who eventually come out and untie the boy Where are the police? By the time the authorities had shown up Salih had escaped and ran away Turkish authorities established that Cuma's father died in Syria and his mother was missing, possibly somewhere in Europe. Other members of his family left him to die and his grandmother refused to have anything to do with him. According to her, the young boy suffered from learning difficulties and was a 'liability she cannot cope with'. Not for the first time: Another Syrian, six-year-old Cuma Ibrahim, was found with his legs tied together in a coal bunker last year in Erzurum, Turkey All alone: Social services were able to track down his grandmother in Syria who wanted nothing to do with him because of his mental disability She said he was with his parents and had no idea how he ended up with his legs tied and left to die in the bunker. A Brazilian supermodel was forced to sleep in Bucharest airport's transit lounge for three nights after authorities insisted she was not allowed in the country. Despite being married to a Romanian, Brazilian citizen Eloisa Birleanu was barred entry by border police on her return from London Fashion Week. The model, who has a child with her husband, was told she did not have the right documents - and was left stranded in the transit area of Henri Coanda Airport in Bucharest. Scroll down for video Brazilian supermodel Eloisa Birleanu was forced to sleep in a Bucharest airport for three nights after authorities insisted she was not allowed in the country She stayed there for three days and three nights after flying in on Friday. According to Airlive, border police said she was not allowed to enter the country as she had already stayed 90 days within a 180 day period. Authorities told the Brazilian citizen that she no longer fulfils conditions of entry to the country. Romania-Insider says the Brazilian was given the option of taking another flight to leave the country but opted to stay at the airport. But after three days at the terminal, she flew to Milan. The model, who has a child with her husband, was told she did not have the right documents - and was left stranded in the transit area of Henri Coanda Airport in Bucharest (file picture) Despite being married to a Romanian, Brazilian citizen Eloisa Birleanu was barred entry by border police on her return from London Fashion Week The model was reportedly fined Romanian leu (105) for exceeding her allotted stay in the country. Fabian Badila, a spokesperson for the Border Police, is quoted by Mediafax as saying: 'She has been staying in Romania as a tourists and the law says that you can only stay 90 consecutive days without a visa within 180 days. Tony Blair has admitted he is baffled at the popularity of Jeremy Corbyn in the UK and Bernie Sanders in the United States. But despite admitting he does not 'fully understand politics right now' he warned the US Democrats not to elect the left-wing outsider as their presidential candidate because like Mr Corbyn in Britain he would fail to win a General Election. Attempting to explain the rise in popularity of the maverick politicians on both sides of the Atlantic, Mr Blair suggested it was partly caused by an anger at elites and a desire to elect people who would 'rattle the cage'. Tony Blair, pictured on US TV this morning, admitted he did not 'fully understand' the rise in popularity of political mavericks on both sides of the Atlantic, such as Bernie Sanders and Jeremy Corbyn Tony Blair attempted to explain the rise of Bernie Sanders (pictured in South Carolina today) Jeremy Corbyn (pictured at today's Prime Minister's Questions) on the rising anger at elites and the desire to elect people who would 'rattle the cage' He also attributed their rise in popularity on the 'flatlining' in living standards for lower and middle income households. The former Labour prime minister, who won three successive elections in the UK, accused Mr Sanders and Mr Corbyn of making unrealistic pledges and suggested this was also behind the sharp rise in mavericks, including Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump. 'It's very similar to the pitch of Jeremy Corbyn,' Mr Blair said of Mr Sander's popularity. 'Free tuition fees: well, that's great, but someone's going to have pay for it. An end to war, but there are wars. 'In the end it is about getting the support to win in order to do things for the people who desperately need help,' he added in an interview with the Guardian and Financial Times on a visit to the US. Mr Blair is supporting Mr Sander's rival Hilary Clinton in the US presidential race - an unsurprising endorsement since he worked closely with Bill Clinton during their time in office. The former Labour prime minister was speaking on a visit to the United States, where he told Fox TV (pictured) that leaving the EU could trigger the break up of the UK because Scotland would demand a second independence referendum Admitting he struggled to comprehend the forces of modern politics, Mr Blair said: 'One of the strangest things about politics at the moment and I really mean it when I say I'm not sure I fully understand politics right now, which is an odd thing to say, having spent my life in it is when you put the question of electability as a factor in your decision to nominate a leader, it's how small the numbers are that this is the decisive factor. That sounds curious to me.' And in an interview with Fox TV this morning, he added: 'I've got such a long experience in politics but looking in politics today - whether on the left or the right - maybe I just don't understand it anymore.' 'IT WOULD BE CRAZY NOT TO JOIN THE EURO': HOW TONY BLAIR NEARLY TOOK US INTO THE EURO Tony Blair, pictured at an EU summit in 2004, once said he would recommend Britain joins the euro even if the British public disagreed June 1998: 'The decision to launch the single currency is the first step and marks the turning point for Europe, marks stability and growth and is crucial to high levels of growth and employment.' June 2001: 'Even if it [taking Britain into the euro] is unpopular, I will recommend it if it is the right thing to do.' November 2001: 'The tragedy for British politics - for Britain - has been that politicians of both parties have consistently failed, not just in the 1950s but on up to the present day, to appreciate the emerging reality of European integration. And in doing so they have failed Britain's interests.' December 2001: 'The new year sees the introduction of the European single currency. With so much of our trade and so many of our jobs tied up in business with the rest of Europe, it is massively in our interests that the euro succeeds. 'It remains the government's policy to join the euro provided that the five economic tests we have laid down are met and the British people give their consent in a referendum.' May 2002: 'I certainly believe passionately that this country and its destiny lies in Europe. 'Should we stand apart from the alliance right on our doorstep as a country? It would be crazy to do that. 'It is an economic union. We shouldn't, for political reasons, stand aside. I don't believe that would be a fulfilment of our national interest. I believe it would be a betrayal of our national interest.' Advertisement 'This is partly to do with great waves of emotion which are partisan, but then you've got a big centre ground in politics as well and that tends to reassert itself at election times.' Mr Blair also warned that leaving the EU would trigger the break up of the United Kingdom. In his first intervention on the EU referendum campaign since David Cameron called the vote for June 23, Mr Blair predicted that the SNP's demands for a second referendum would be impossible to ignore if Scottish voters are taken out of the EU against their will. 'I hope and believe that we will vote to stay,' he said. 'If we don't, by the way, I think Scotland would almost certainly vote to leave Britain, so this is a double test in a sense.' He brushed aside the significance of Boris Johnson backing Brexit, saying the vote is about more than one individual. Asked what role he would like to play in the run up to the referendum, Mr Blair said he would do whatever the In campaign wanted him to do. But opponents of Britain's membership of the EU are likely to point to Mr Blair's strong support for joining the euro as proof that he has little credibility when it comes to deciding whether to stay in the 28-state bloc. At the time of the euro's introduction in 2002 Mr Blair said it would be 'crazy' for Britain not to join the single currency. Speaking on a visit to the United States today, Mr Blair said quitting the would have consequences for the 'future of the UK itself' because it would 'completely change the dynamic around Scottish independence.' Asked by the BBC which way he saw the referendum result going, Mr Blair said today: 'I think in the end the British people, because they are sensible, will not take this risk,' adding that he 'desperately hopes' the UK will stay in the EU. Mr Blair praised David Cameron for achieving a 'significant amount' in his EU renegotiation and have him his full backing in the campaign to stay in the EU, saying: 'Those of us who share that perspective will give him the support we can'. Speaking in Washington earlier in the day, Mr Blair also hit out at the 'populist' responses to the terror threat from both the far right and far left, which he said had delivered 'solutions that make a tweet but not a policy'. In comments which may be seen as directed both at Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn and at US Republican presidential contenders like Donald Trump, Mr Blair lamented a 'polarisation' of debate on both sides of the Atlantic which he said had undermined serious policy making. Mr Blair warned that Europe faces 'not the possibility but the probability of serious terrorist attacks', which could have a fundamental impact on the continent's politics. And he warned that extremist ideologies hostile to peaceful co-existence with other faiths were not the preserve of a 'fringe of fanatics' measured in the tens of thousands, but were accepted by tens of millions of Muslims. The former prime minister was speaking at the launch in Washington DC of a new Commission on Countering Violent Extremism which he will co-chair with the aim of developing a 'muscular centrist' policy approach to jihadist ideology and violence. Mr Blair told the Centre for Strategic and International Studies thinktank: 'There are those on the left who want us to dis-engage, who believe that our policies are largely the cause of this extremism and that if we leave well alone, it will resolve itself. There are those on the right who believe Islam itself is the problem, thus in a strange way affirming the position of the extremists that the West and Islam are in immutable conflict with each other. 'This polarisation of the debate is mirrored both sides of the Atlantic and the casualty is serious policy making. Both far left and far right come together in advocating solutions that make a tweet but not a policy. 'We need a new approach - what I might term a more muscular centrist one - which in a sense is a synthesis of the lessons of the whole period since 9/11 and can unify our people behind it. We require a combination of military and security capability to counter the violence; together with a deep strategy to counter the ideology of extremism which breeds it.' Mr Blair said that the fight against radical Islamism cannot be won without the leadership of the West, but that current policy responses were 'inadequate' to the threat. 'There is a justified anxiety that we do not, as of now, despite all the experience and some progress, have a fully effective strategy to counter it,' he said. 'Populist solutions, which are not solutions at all, are gaining ground on both sides of the Atlantic. But the reality is this. There is no safety in isolation. This is a struggle with no borders, no zones of immunity, and no volition whether to participate.' Mr Blair said the new Commission, which he is co-chairing with former CIA director Leon Panetta, would analyse issues including radicalisation, military methods for confronting jihadis and proposals for a systematic international response to extremist threats. He warned: 'I believe - but of course this is something the Commission should test - that the problem is not a fringe of fanatics but a spectrum with an ideology; that this ideology has its roots in a perversion of religion - the religion of Islam - and a world view derived from it which is innately hostile to the West and to peaceful co-existence between those of different faiths; and that if we do not challenge and defeat this ideology we will never eradicate the violence which is the product of it.' Tony Blair claims the UK would break up if Britain leaves the EU as the former prime minister makes first referendum intervention The passionately pro-EU Tony Blair warned that leaving the EU would trigger the break up of the UK as it would be impossible to ignore demands for a second Scottish independence referendum Tony Blair has warned that leaving the EU would trigger the break up of the United Kingdom. In his first intervention on the EU referendum campaign since David Cameron called the vote for June 23, the former Prime Minister predicted that the SNP's demands for a second referendum would be impossible to ignore if Scottish voters are taken out of the EU against their will. 'I hope and believe that we will vote to stay,' he said. 'If we don't, by the way, I think Scotland would almost certainly vote to leave Britain, so this is a double test in a sense.' He also brushed aside the significance of Boris Johnson backing Brexit, saying the vote is about more than one individual. Asked what role he would like to play in the run up to the referendum, Mr Blair said he would do whatever the In campaign wanted him to do. But opponents of Britain's membership of the EU are likely to point to Mr Blair's strong support for joining the euro as proof that he has little credibility when it comes to deciding whether to stay in the 28-state bloc. At the time of the euro's introduction in 2002 Mr Blair said it would be 'crazy' for Britain not to join the single currency. Speaking on a visit to the United States today, Mr Blair said quitting the would have consequences for the 'future of the UK itself' because it would 'completely change the dynamic around Scottish independence.' Asked by the BBC which way he saw the referendum result going, Mr Blair said today: 'I think in the end the British people, because they are sensible, will not take this risk,' adding that he 'desperately hopes' the UK will stay in the EU. Mr Blair praised David Cameron for achieving a 'significant amount' in his EU renegotiation and have him his full backing in the campaign to stay in the EU, saying: 'Those of us who share that perspective will give him the support we can'. Speaking in Washington earlier in the day, Mr Blair also hit out at the 'populist' responses to the terror threat from both the far right and far left, which he said had delivered 'solutions that make a tweet but not a policy'. In comments which may be seen as directed both at Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn and at US Republican presidential contenders like Donald Trump, Mr Blair lamented a 'polarisation' of debate on both sides of the Atlantic which he said had undermined serious policy making. Mr Blair warned that Europe faces 'not the possibility but the probability of serious terrorist attacks', which could have a fundamental impact on the continent's politics. Muslim convert Lorna Moore (pictured), who was training to teach maths, has been found guilty of not telling police her husband left to join ISIS after being accused of planning to take her three children to Syria A Muslim convert who was training to teach maths has been found guilty of not telling police her husband left to join ISIS after being accused of planning to take her three children to Syria. Lorna Moore was convicted after it emerged her supply teacher husband Sajid Aslam, 34, left the country to try and join the terror group in August 2014. The 33-year-old, who had a Protestant upbringing in Northern Ireland, had been one of a number of British Muslims from Walsall, West Midlands - including two pregnant women - accused of wanting to travel to the war zone. She was found guilty of failing to tell authorities Aslam left to fight for ISIS today after a trial at the Old Bailey. The court heard that at the time of Aslam's departure Moore, who met her husband at Manchester Metropolitan University, had taken the rest of the family on a Butlins holiday in Skegness. She then booked flights to Palma, Majorca, and was due to travel in November last year. She also started to make plans to rent out her home. The prosecution alleged the tickets were a plan to get her children - including one who was just 11 months old at the time - to Syria. It was claimed her final destination was given away in a text from another Muslim convert's wife in Turkey, who said 'see you there'. Julian Christopher, prosecuting, said of the message: [This] suggests the journey that has been planned is not simply a two-week holiday to Majorca. In fact, the plan was to take the children, via an innocuous-looking destination, to be reunited with their father.' But Moore, who had recently enrolled on a 4,500 PGCE course, insisted she would 'never' put her children's lives in danger, adding: 'They mean the world to me.' She claimed she had been planning to take them back to her family's Protestant farm in Omagh, Northern Ireland, after finishing her teacher training. Her mother backed up her claim. She also told the court that her relationship with Aslam had ended after he became abusive and said they only lived together for the sake of the children, the court heard. She said: He would grab me by the hair and put my face in the toilet and say "does that look clean to you". [He said] if it was not for him I would be a "Gori [offensive name for a white person] on a council estate with a can of Carling and a cigarette and with five kids by five different fathers".' She added: He was controlling, he always wanted to be in the lead, he would have made sure that this is mealtime he has his meal on time. The 33-year-old, pictured outside court at the beginning of the month, was convicted after it emerged her supply teacher husband Sajid Aslam (right), 34, left the country to join the terror group in August 2014 Moore, who was said to have lived a 'typical student life' until converting in 2002, claimed when she turned to a Muslim cleric for a divorce, he told her that a 'white Muslim is not a special Muslim' and she must take her husband back. She said Aslam should 'grow a pair' and come back to Britain and explain himself 'if he is innocent and got nothing to hide'. Aslam's sister Sarwat told jurors her brother had been in touch with her during the course of the trial to say he wanted to 'start a dialogue with police about coming home'. Meanwhile, Moore's co-defendant, Ayman Shaukat, 27, was also found guilty of helping Aslam and another Muslim convert, 22-year-old Alex Nash. Jurors were also told about other members of the West Midlands group who allegedly set off for Syria between July and December 2014. Kerry Thomason (pictured) pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing to assisting her husband, Isaiah Siadatan, to travel to Syria and engage in acts of terrorism Shaukat, from Walsall, had denied helping his friends join IS by dropping Aslam and Nash off at airports. The court heard the day after dropping Aslam off at the airport Shaukat sent a photograph of himself posing with the IS flag. Aslam sent a triumphant coded message - a video link to a song called Made It by Cash Money Heroes - back to reveal he had made it to his destination. Shaukat, who started a law degree at Manchester Metropolitan University after dropping out of a building course, described IS as 'evil' and said that he had told MI5 he would 'assist in any way I could' after agents contacted him as treasurer of the community group Islam Walsall. He had several meetings and phone calls with security services before their association 'fizzled out', he said. Jurors were also told about other members of the West Midlands group who allegedly set off for Syria between July and December 2014. The first to join ISIS was Muslim convert, Jake Petty, 25, also known as Abu Yaqoob Britany. His Christian minister mother Sue Boyce wept as she told jurors how she begged him not to go. In a message sent on October 26 last year to his parents, twin brother Tom and two sisters, Petty insisted we are not a load of backward, bloodthirsty terrorists and claimed nobody has been brainwashed or tricked. His mother was later forced to identify his body from video footage on social media after he was killed in December 2014. Petty was swiftly followed by former schoolmate Isaiah Siadatan, 24, whose pregnant wife Kerry Thomason, 24, was supposed to fly out with their two children but was stopped by police. The court heard that he had sent her an email in December 2014 insisting that she should bring their children to him in ISIS. It read: If you dont bring my kids to the Islamic State I will send someone to kill you and I will send someone to kill your mum and dad. You have two weeks from today. Look I love you but if you think I will let you bring up my kids in a kafir country youre mistaken. Siadatan is believed to have been killed in the summer of 2015, although his death is unconfirmed. Thomason has previously pleaded guilty to assisting her husband in preparation of his terrorist acts. Moore's co-defendant, Ayman Shaukat, 27, was also found guilty of helping Aslam and another Muslim convert, 22-year-old Alex Nash. Shaukat (pictured) took the above selfie after dropping Aslam at the airport Shaukat (left) described IS as 'evil' and told the court he had told MI5 he would 'assist in any way I could'. Nash (right) admitted preparing acts of terrorism, while a charge against his wife - who was allegedly the one to text Moore 'see you there' - was discontinued Meanwhile, Nash, 22, and his pregnant wife Yousma Jan, 20, were arrested by Turkish authorities and sent back to the UK. He took sole responsibility for the plan and admitted preparing acts of terrorism, while a charge against his wife was discontinued. Prosecutor Mark Dawson had previously claimed Jan's 'aim was to give birth in the Islamic State not Walsall. Prosecutors also confirmed it was believed pregnancy was a key driver in some of the womens attempts to get to Syria Speaking after the verdict, West Midlands Police's Assistant Chief Constable Marcus Beale said the case showed that Moore was 'just as criminal and just as dangerous' as her husband. He said: 'ISIS is a really dangerous organisation and the criminal courts will be interested in hearing those cases. 'Another important part of this case is where you have got people who have knowledge of travel and the intent when they get there who have not come forward, and that's committing a crime. If they are helping ISIS, then that's a danger to the UK.' Moore, Shaukat and Nash will be sentenced alongside Thomason at a later date. Trump spokesman said claims in the dismissed lawsuit were 'nonsensical' A woman who accused Donald Trump of trying to rape her has said she would vote for him. Jill Harth filed a $125million lawsuit against Trump in 1997, claiming he repeatedly sexually assaulted her and once attempted to rape her in 1993. Ms Harth, who was in her early 30s at the time, withdrew the lawsuit just weeks after filing it - almost exactly coinciding with her former husband and Trump settling a legal dispute. The businesswoman, who runs a beauty company, now says she only has praises for The Donald and would vote for him in the presidential election if he wins the Republican nomination. Jill Harth (pictured with Donald Trump in 1992) once accused Donald Trump of raping her but now says she would vote for him Jill Harth (pictured) filed a $125million lawsuit against Trump in 1997, claiming he repeatedly sexually assaulted her and once attempted to rape her in 1993 Ms Harth told Law Newz, which obtained the dropped 12-page lawsuit against Trump, that voting for the man she once accused of raping her was simply 'supporting a friend'. 'I saw him recently, and he said I looked good,' she said. 'I have nothing but good things to say about Donald.' Trump and Ms Harth met in 1992 when her ex-husband George Houraney and Trump were working together on beauty pageants. She claimed in her lawsuit that he repeatedly 'groped' her and on one occasion 'forcibly kissed' and 'fondled' her in Ivanka Trump's bedroom. Ms Harth also alleged in the court documents that Trump wanted to turn her into his 'sex object and slave', and that on one occasion she was so disgusted by Trump's 'Svengali-type proclamations of '"love"' that she vomited. She claimed Trump told her husband of his hopes to have sex with her before the first time he was alleged to have touched her inappropriately. Ms Harth withdrew the lawsuit just weeks after filing it - almost exactly coinciding with her former husband and Trump settling a legal dispute Ms Harth said the first time he 'violated' her was on December 12, 1992, at a business dinner at the Plaza Hotel in New York. She claimed 'Trump repeatedly put his hands on [her] legs and thighs' in an attempt to touch her 'intimate parts'. He then made 'repeated personal sexual demands' of Ms Harth, she claimed, which included trying to 'lure' her to Trump Tower for a drink. However, she said he was really interested in turning her into a 'sex object and slave to satisfy [his] sexual appetite as a self-described "stud"'. Ms Harth said his alleged campaign to sleep with her continued in 1993, when he called her on numerous occasions demanding that she sleep with him. On January 9 that year, Trump was entertaining Ms Harth and other business associated at his estate in Palm Beach, Florida, when he was accused of 'maneuvering his hand up [her] thigh in an attempt to touch [her] private parts'. That same night, Trump was alleged to have 'forced' the then married woman into his daughter Ivanka's bedroom and 'forcibly kissed, fondled and restrained [Ms Harth] from leaving'. Six days later, according to the lawsuit, Trump called Ms Harth to say he 'wished he was curled up in bed with her'. He was alleged to have asked what she 'was like in bed' before saying if she had sex with him she 'would be an awakened woman' and that he 'was the best lover you'll ever have'. A spokesman for the Trump Campaign said the claims in the dismissed lawsuit were 'nonsensical speculation' Later in January 1993, Trump was alleged to have 'forcibly removed [Ms Harth] to a bedroom' at his Mar-a-Lago estate, where he was holding a business meeting. Ms Harth claimed that she was subjected to 'unwanted sexual advances, which included touching of [her] private parts in an act constituting attempted "rape"'. On the same night as she tried to leave, Trump 'again became sexually abusive by intimately touching' Ms Harth, the lawsuit states. Ms Harth said Trump was uttering Svengali-type proclamations of 'love' and she immediately vomited. Ms Harth also claimed that later that year, when Trump's then girlfriend Marla Maples was pregnant with Tiffany Trump, Trump told her he would have sex with her 'whenever I was ready'. Asking for $125million in compensation, Ms Harth claimed Trump made her feel 'degraded and humiliated as a female human being'. Ms Harth willingly dropped the lawsuit just weeks later, at around the same time Mr Houraney and Trump settled a contractual dispute over the beauty pageants they were both working on. Michael Cohen, from the Trump Campaign, said the claims in the dismissed lawsuit were 'nonsensical speculation'. 'There is no truth to the story at all,' he said. The plaintiff in the matter, Jill Harth, would acknowledge the same. Syrian rebel fighters are using Facebook to trade 'CIA-supplied' weapons such as rocket launchers, heavy machine guns and missiles. The social media page shows multiple types of weaponry being bought and sold among members - despite some traders' profiles appearing to show sympathies towards ISIS. Named 'The First Weapons Market in Idlib Countryside', the page has items for sale for as much as 48,000, The Mirror reported. Pictured is a Soviet Union-era grenade launcher in an image posted on the Facebook page's wall The page also has a surface-to-air missile launcher available for 48,000 and a 2,900 thermal camera on offer The Facebook page has 3,600 'likes' and claims to be the 'first weapons market in Idlib countryside' Among the items listed as for sale on the page were a Soviet grenade launcher 2,700, a TOW missile launcher that its buyer said was from 'the U.S. Pentagon', and 105mm cannon shells. For 2,900, anyone could purchase a thermal camera and for a whopping 48,000, viewers could personally own a MANPAD - a surface to air missile launcher capable of downing aircraft. With a large number of countries involved in the Syrian conflict, the region has become riddled with small arms. Weapons from the old Soviet Union, Russia, China, Eastern Europe and the U.S. are all found scattered throughout the region. The U.S. is also supplying rebel groups fighting the terrorists in Syria, raising fears their weapons may fall into the wrong hands. Researchers have also found instances of ISIS militants using Iraqi equipment - originally supplied by the U.S. - after over-running local forces. In April last year researchers from Conflict Armament Research published details of the weapons ISIS had used in the four-month battle for Kobane. Anti-tank rockets, shoulder-launched surface-to-air missiles, Western assault rifles and crude IED 'daisy chains' have all been discovered in the city's ruins after their defeat to Kurdish forces. The study showed how ISIS commandeered vast swathes of advanced weaponry from Iraqi troops when it overran cities such as Mosul during the conflict's early stages. It also revealed the jihadis were fighting with ammunition manufactured abroad as recently as four months ago. European Parliament president Martin Schulz has left the door open for a second referendum if the UK votes to leave the EU. The German socialist refused to rule out the idea floated by Boris Johnson that Britain could go back to Brussels to try and get further concessions before voting again. However, European Council president Tusk insisted there would be no second chance. He said: 'If the majority votes to leave, that is what will happen.' European Parliament president Martin Schulz, pictured in Brussls today, has suggested a Brexit vote could after all result in fresh talks and a second referendum. In an interview with the BBC's Hardtalk, Mr Schulz four time dodged the question, before finally admitting that it was possible. 'The only thing I rule out is that I participate in any debate not to defend the deal we agreed,' he said. Mr Schulz poured cold water on the idea that the deal given to David Cameron would lead to a long term reduction in the numbers of migrants coming to the country. Asked if the changes to welfare rules would deter EU migrants from going to the UK, he said: 'I don't so believe so. The whole exercise was to protect the welfare system of the UK for the time being.' Mr Schulz noted that Britain would only be allowed to use an 'emergency brake' restricting access to benefits for seven years. 'For a temporary limited time it is admissible to accept some differences between UK and non-UK citizens because other countries did the same after eastern European countries joined the EU. 'Some of the member states had a seven year period for free access to the labour market, it's the UK that did not participate in this.' MEPs yesterday continued to threaten to derail Mr Cameron's deal when the legislation needed to introduce the migrant benefit curbs are brought before the European Parliament after the referendum. Gianni Pittella, who leads the socialist MEPS, said: 'Imagine two young people, Europeans, same job, same work, there is a danger one would have less rights than the other. That is discrimination. 'Parliaments are free to come to their conclusions and we cannot pre-empt or second guess those proposals.' Guy Verhofstadt, leader of the alliance for liberals and democrats, said it was 'totally bonkers' for people in Britain to want to leave the EU. Donald Tusk, pictured left with commission president Jean-Claude Juncker at the European Parliament today, backed the Prime Minister's suggestion that a vote to leave would be final. The former Belgian prime minister said the referendum was 'a glorified cockfight... with Boris Johnson challenging David Cameron'. He added: 'It is pathetic for Britain...Those who stand to lose the most from this referendum are ordinary British citizens. 'They see their currency endangered, their country alienated from the U.S., their Great Britain transformed into nothing more than little England.' German MEP Gabriele Zimmer, a former member of the communist party, said the deal should be commemorated with a statue to Thatcher She said: 'We're on rout to the European Union coming closer to the radical market Anglo-Saxon model. You could erect a monument saying on 18 February 2016, the spirit of Margaret Thatcher was resurrected. You could put up a monument in Brussels to that effect.' The Prime Minister has dismissed the idea of a second referendum, saying the decision on 23 June will be 'final'. Manfred Weber, leader of the largest group in the European Parliament, the EPP, yesterday told MEPs: 'The offer is on the table, if it is a not there we will no follow-up negotiation.' Ukip leader Nigel Farage was asked whether he would 'call it a day' and give up politics if he lost the referendum or he would prefer to stay in the company of Europeans in Brussels. He refused to answer. Released footage of the test track which was described as 'spine jarring' Their craters have been replicated at Ford's 1.2 mile test track in Belgium Ford named Dunton Road and part of Stock Road in Essex as 'worst in UK' Motoring giant Ford has recreated an Essex road dubbed 'the worst in the world for potholes' to test their cars' suspensions. The company identified two stretches of road - Dunton Road in Herongate and a part of Stock Road in Stock - as among the most run down in the UK. The worst craters have been replicated on a 1.2 mile long test track known as the Lommel Proving Ground at Ford's facility in Belgium. Drivers in the UK claimed more than 3million worth of compensation for pothole damage in Britain last year, an RAC Foundation survey found last month. Motoring giant Ford has recreated an Essex road dubbed 'the worst in the world for potholes' at its test track in Belgium (pictured) Ford identified two stretches of road - Dunton Road (pictured) in Herongate and part of Stock Road in Stock - as among the most run down in the UK Ford hopes the 'damaged' test track, described as 'spine jarring', will help design the next generation of Ford motors. Brian O'Reilly, 61, who has successfully campaigned for improvements to the potholed roads, said he was not surprised they were chosen by Ford. He said: 'They vary enormously from ones that are not heavily used that are in a very good condition to others that are allowed to degenerate. 'It does seem to be a case of a lottery. I suspect it depends on the residents - if the residents kick up enough fuss then something is done. 'A lot of the problems in the roads come from utility companies who have the right to dig holes without permission and they don't repair them properly. 'They don't coordinate their efforts with other companies so it is dug up again the next year by another utility.' Ford hopes the 'damaged' test track (pictured), described as 'spine jarring', will help design the next generation of Ford motors For many years Dunton Road, a quiet country lane in Herongate, Essex, was notorious for being riddled with deep pot-holes Brian O'Reilly, 61, who has successfully campaigned for improvements to the potholed roads, said he was not surprised Dunton Road (pictured) was chosen by Ford Drivers in the UK claimed more than 3million worth of compensation for pothole damage in Britain last year, an RAC Foundation survey found last month Terrence Gandy, who has also been at the centre of many pothole complaints in Billericay, Essex, was also unsurprised to learn these roads were considered some of the world's worst. 'Nothing surprises me as far as potholes are concerned. I very rarely drive that section of the road now so I have no recent ideas of that but I'm certainly sympathetic with any idea that gets pot holes repaired.' Simon Mooney, test engineer at Ford's Dunton technical centre, said: 'The challenge for the suspension system comes when it exits the pothole - it can be like hitting a kerbstone. 'We test all the wheel and tyre sizes that are fitted to the production cars so we know they can cope. We use specially instrumented wheels on the car that measure the load in three directions. 'On some vehicles there are various sensors totalling some 200 extra channels through which to get the data.' An Essex Highways spokesperson said the road has been repaired since the measurements were taken and is now free from potholes. The spokesperson said: 'Since these roads were modelled for this track a number of years ago, we have pumped funding into repairing priority routes across the county. An Essex Highways spokesperson said Dunton Road (pictured) has been repaired since the measurements were taken and is now free from potholes 'Both Stock Road and Dunton Road are priority routes and are therefore inspected monthly using high-tech surface scanners. 'Dunton Road was inspected on 2 February with no outstanding carriageway defects found. Stock Road was inspected on 16 February with similar findings. Panel determined she was flattered by his 'increasing sexual ambition' The assistant headteacher has now been banned from the profession She described her 'proper boobs' and told schoolboy she loved him A 35-year-old assistant headmistress has been banned from the classroom after she sent a string of flirtatious emails to a 16-year-old pupil. Catherine Towey told the boy at the school in West Norwood, South London, that she loved him, that a kiss between them 'would be weirdly natural and just lovely', and spoke of her 'proper boobs'. The teacher also asked him whether a dress had been 'too little and too low cut', as well as stating 'it's not too ambitious to get a kiss by Christmas', and that 'she might faint' if it ever happened. Exchanges: The teacher told the boy at The Elmgreen School (above) in West Norwood, South London, that she loved him, that a kiss between them 'would be weirdly natural and just lovely', and spoke of her 'proper boobs' Towey encouraged the pupil's crush on her while she worked at the school and a series of meetings took place between the pair, a National College for Teaching and Leadership panel heard. The conduct panel determined that her actions were sexually motivated - and she was found guilty of unacceptable professional conduct and conduct that may bring the profession into disrepute. Concerns were raised when a sixth form student at The Elmgreen School informed a staff member that they had concerns about Towey's close relationship with the 16-year-old. The student provided screenshots showing emails between the pair, in which Towey, who worked at the school between September 2013 and January 2015, mentioned her 'proper boobs'. She offered to wear lipstick more because the pupil liked it. Towey responded to his request of a kiss by saying she felt 'properly close' to him - and a kiss 'would be weirdly natural and just lovely'. She also called him a tease and asked 'Why d'ya think I'm always trying to hold your hand?'. After one meeting, the pupil emailed Towey to blame 'gate-crashers' who caused the liaison to end early. Towey responded with an email that read: 'Think they assume we're close and they know we're doing work and school stuff... which we are usually!' She also asked whether a dress had been 'too little and too low cut', stated 'it's not too ambitious to get a kiss by Christmas', and that 'she might faint' if it ever happened. Hearing: A panel at the National College for Teaching and Leadership (based in Nottingham, above) determined that Towey was flattered by the pupil's 'growing infatuation and increasing sexual ambition' When the pupil stated he likes girls 'short and slim like Miss Towey' - with a wink emoticon - she replied 'too cute!'. She stated she 'just want to lie' with Pupil A and 'I heart you... maybe it'd be easier if I didn't. But would I change that now? Simple... no. never. Can't turn it off now.' Towey also described their relationship as a 'shared crush'. She resigned after the relationship was exposed. Michael Lesser, chair of the panel, said: 'In spite of Ms Towey's vociferous denial of sexual motivation, the panel is clear that Ms Towey was flattered by Pupil A's growing infatuation and increasing sexual ambition. Think they assume we're close and they know we're doing work and school stuff... which we are usually! Email from Catherine Towey 'The attention and personal interest he was expressing in her physical appearance, clothes, and make up, fed her emotional needs at that time following the break-up of a previous relationship. 'Ms Towey's conduct was both seriously inappropriate and related to a vulnerable and relatively young pupil. 'Her actions towards Pupil A were clearly deliberate, and the panel does not consider that she was acting under any form of external duress. He added: 'The panel accepts that Ms Towey was in emotional turmoil at that time and so acted in a selfish and thoughtless manner. 'The panel accepts Ms Towey's evidence that she never wanted nor would have let the relationship between her and Pupil A become physical. 'Nevertheless, the panel is of the view that prohibition is both proportionate and appropriate.' Jason Dalton, the Uber gunman accused of killing six people during a terrifying shooting spree from his taxi The Uber gunman accused of killing six people during a terrifying shooting spree from his taxi went to school with two classmates charged with murder, it has been revealed. Jason Dalton, 45, from Kalamazoo, Michigan has been charged with the deaths of the victims who died during the rampage on the streets of the city on Saturday night. The married 45-year-old admitted carrying out the five-hour shooting rampage, where he randomly shot at people at an apartment complex, a car dealership and a restaurant. Now it has been revealed that during his teenage years when he attended Comstock High School in Kalamazoo, his classmates included a man who murdered his wife and a woman accused of gunning down another female. According to the New York Daily News, Dalton was in the same class as John Kovach, who in 2013 was sentenced to 18 to 30 years in prison for the murder of his wife Nancy. Meanwhile another classmate was Theresa Pretto, who is charged with the murder of 25-year-old Rachel Drafta. Police believe that Pretto carried out the killing because she was angry with Drafta who was dating her ex-boyfriend, Brent Kirk. In January, a judge ruled Pretto was competent to stand trial after she was examined by a psychiatrist. It now means that out of a class of 150 students, three have faced serious charges. One classmate, Jonathan Hay said: 'Its kind of disturbing to think about.' Dalton's terrifying attacks on Saturday began outside the Meadows apartment complex on the eastern edge of Kalamazoo County, where a woman was shot multiple times. She was expected to survive. Dalton was arrested in a car he had been using to drop off and pick up passengers in between the attacks at three different locations - a restaurant parking lot, a car dealership and an apartment complex. Now it has been revealed that during his teenage years when he attended Comstock High School, pictured, in Kalamazoo, his classmates included a man who murdered his wife and a woman accused of gunning down another female Some who got in his car to use his service said he was driving erratically and one even called 911 to report his bizarre behavior when they got out. Dalton was apprehended and taken into custody without a struggle and police found a semi-automatic handgun inside his car, according to reports. Michigan State police identified four casualties who were shot in the parking lot of a Cracker Barrel Mary Lou Nye, 63, Mary Jo Nye, 60, Dorothy Brown, 74, and Barbara Hawthorne, 68. High school senior Tyler Smith, 17, was killed in the parking lot of Seelye Kia, along with his father, Rich, while they were looking at cars, multiple reports suggest. It emerged that Dalton strolled the aisles of a gun store - with a smile on his face and hands in his pockets - just hours before he allegedly killed six people Dalton was apprehended and taken into custody without a struggle and police found a semi-automatic handgun inside his car, according to reports One of those wounded was a 14-year-old girl who was even pronounced dead at the hospital, but showed she was still alive by squeezing her mother's hand. Dalton's neighbor said he knew the man had a pistol because the two of them 'talked about it'. Today it also emerged that Dalton strolled the aisles of a gun store - with a smile on his face and hands in his pockets - just hours before he allegedly killed six people. The shop owner says he walked in with a friend, looked around and bought a jacket with a pocket designed to conceal a handgun. Jonathan Southwick, who runs Southwick's gun store, said the father-of-two was in a great mood and was 'laughing and joking' with staff on Saturday during his visit. A judge has ruled that four San Antonio women deserve a new trial, saying they should have their convictions overturned for the alleged sexual assault of two young girls. Texas District Judge Pat Priest's ordered a new trial for Elizabeth Ramirez, Kristie Mayhugh, Cassandra Rivera, and Anna Vasquez on Tuesday. His ruling paves the way for the so-called San Antonio 4 to have their records cleared in a case that criminal justice advocates have long championed. However, Priest refused to declare the women innocent. A judge has ruled that four San Antonio women deserve a new trial Pictured, Elizabeth Ramirez, center, is greeted by family after she was released from the Bexar County Jail in November 2013 That could prevent them from having their records expunged or asking for potentially millions of dollars in compensation that Texas gives to the wrongfully imprisoned, according to their attorney, Mike Ware. When you are innocent of a crime, a horrendous crime that you are accused of, you want the whole world to know that you didn't do it, Ware said on Wednesday. The best message for that is a judicial finding of actual innocence. Ramirez, Mayhugh, Rivera, and Vasquez were accused by two of Ramirez's nieces, aged seven and nine at the time, of attacking them in 1994. The girls alleged the women held them by their wrists and ankles, sexually assaulting them and threatening to kill them. Ramirez was given a 37-year prison sentence. Mayhugh, Vasquez and Rivera each got 15-year sentences. Elizabeth Ramirez (left) was given a 37-year prison sentence in 1998. She and Cassandra Rivera, who was given 15 years, were 20 at the time of their arrest Kristie Mayhugh (pictured left) and Anna Vasquez (right) were also handed 15-year sentences in 1998 The case was taken up more than a decade later by the Innocence Project of Texas, a non-profit group that investigates possible wrongful convictions. One key area of criticism was the testimony of a forensic expert, who told jurors that the nine-year-old girl had a scar in her vaginal area caused by the tearing of her hymen that could have been caused only by an attack that occurred around the time of the assaults. A petition filed by Ware argued that testimony would not hold up under scientific scrutiny today. One of the nieces has also recanted her story, and testified last year at a two-day hearing reviewing the convictions. The girl, now in her 20s, came forward in 2012 to say the ordeal she had described to authorities was false 16 years into her aunts sentence. I want my aunt and her friends out of prison, she told the San Antonio Express-News. Pictured from right, Anna Vasquez Elizabeth Ramirez, Kristie Mayhugh and Cassandra Rivera appear at a hearing in San Antonio, Texas, in April last year Whatever it takes to get them out, Im going to do. I cant live myself knowing that four women are sleeping in a cage because of me. Stephanie had told police that her aunt and her friends had violently turned on her when she and her sister were visiting Ramirez's one-bedroom apartment The girls described a debauched orgy to police and later, to jurors, claiming the women called them into the apartment, where they were getting drunk and smoking pot, and repeatedly violated them. But when she recanted, Stephanie conceded the visit was uneventful, even 'boring.' In 2013, Ramirez along with Mayhugh and Rivera was freed from Bexar County Jail in San Antonio after an appeals court ruled the convictions were tainted by faulty witness testimony. Vasquez had already been paroled at the time. Cassandra Rivera, center, followed by Elizabeth Ramirez and Kristie Mayhugh were freed in 2013 after a judge agreed that their convictions were tainted by faulty witness testimony Elizabeth Ramirez, right, 38, and Cassandra Rivera, 37, in the Hobby Unit in Marlin, Texas, in September 2012 Ramirez and Rivera were just 20 when they were arrested and friends Vasquez and Mayhugh were 19 and 22 respectively. None of the women had ever been in trouble with the law and the women have always vehemently denied the claims. In his ruling on Tuesday, Priest cited the lack of hard scientific evidence and the victim's recantation in saying the four women's convictions should no longer stand. But since the other niece has not recanted her testimony, Priest said the cases do not reach a standard where "no reasonable juror" could vote to convict them. Though all four deserve new trials, "their assertion of proof of actual innocence falls short of the mark," Priest wrote. The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, the state's highest criminal court, will review Priest's findings and issue a final order on the women's convictions. It's unclear when the court will rule. San Antonio prosecutors did not return phone messages seeking comment Tuesday. Police are investigating and the dogs' vomit and blood will be tested Scarano later found a container with remnants of dog food that didn't belong to her in the backyard A Virginia family has been left heartbroken after their three beloved dogs died from what veterinarians believe was food intentionally laced with antifreeze. Maggie Scarano woke up last Friday to find her dogs Spoot, Puppy Moo Moo and Dude violently vomiting everywhere and unable to walk straight. Their condition only got worse as the day progressed, as the dogs began to show neurological issues and became unbalanced, uncoordinated and unable to stand on their own. Scroll down for video Maggie Scarano (pictured) and her family have been left devastated after three of their dogs (including seven-year-old Spoot, also pictured) were killed by what veterinarians believe was food laced with antifreeze Scarano woke up last Friday to find her Spoot, Puppy Moo Moo and Dude (pictured here with her daughter) violently vomiting everywhere and unable to walk straight. 'They couldn't respond to us at all by the end of the day,' Dr Brandy Ashman with Lunenburg Vet Hospital told WTVR. 'Two of the dogs became comatose within a few hours of presenting and they were non-responsive without some sort of stimuli.' Within 24 hours, all three dogs were euthanized. After calling her veterinarian Scarano went to the backyard, where her dogs had been Thursday night before she brought them inside around midnight. That was where Scarano found remnants of canned dog food on a plastic container she knew didn't belong to her, as she doesn't feed canned food to her pets. The container has since been turned over to the Blackstone Police Department for testing and fingerprints. Their condition only got worse as the day progressed, as the dogs began to show neurological issues and became unbalanced, uncoordinated and unable to stand on their own (Pictured is Puppy Moo Moo) Within 24 hours Dude (pictured left with another dog), Spoot (right) and Puppy Moo Moo all had to be euthanized Two of Scarano's dogs will undergo necropsies at Virginia Tech and their vomit and blood will also be tested. Ashman believes the three pups were intentionally poisoned, and said they suffered pain so excruciating it brought her to tears as she watched them suffer. 'Antifreeze poisoning is extremely painful, it causes a dog to go into kidney failure,' she said. 'These dogs were suffering and had no idea why. They looked at us with this helpless horrifying face.' Scarano said the three dogs had never harmed anyone and had been family 'in every way'. 'They each had their own personality and role in the house,' she said. 'My daughter was very attached to all three dogs.' Scarano's daughter named Puppy Moo Moo after cows, because of the dog's black and white spots. The seven-year-old Spoot had been adopted by Scarano at six weeks. Dude had only been rescued a month ago, when his owners left him behind after they moved. Scarano's family has seen set up a GoFundMe page. Donations will be used towards a reward for information about the three dogs' deaths, as well as for more than $5,000 in veterinarian bills. A mother has been left outraged after her daughter's school refused to reveal the pupil who was bullying her 11-year-old due to data protection laws. Sarah Willett, 47, said a pupil at Halsford Park Primary School in East Grinstead, West Sussex, set up a fake Instagram account in her daughter Bella's name and began insulting other students. The concerned mother informed the school but claims she was told the name of the bully could not be disclosed due to data protection laws. Instead, teachers made the pupil send an anonymous apology letter to Bella but the bully said in the note 'I consider you a friend' leading her victim to worry that it may be someone she trusted. Mother Sarah Willett, 47, said a pupil at Halsford Park Primary School in East Grinstead, West Sussex, set up a fake Instagram account in her daughter Bella's (pictured together) name and began insulting other students Mrs Willett, who first alerted Halsford Park Primary School to the fact her daughter was being bullied at the beginning of the month, is now calling on the parents of the bully to own up to their actions. She said: 'The fake Bella was saying silly, hurtful things about her friends, like 'your drawings are yuck'. 'They're only childish but it has really upset Bella and she got texts from some other students saying things like 'you won't know what hits you when you get to school tomorrow'.' Mrs Willett said she still has no idea who sent the nasty messages, but believes it to be a girl. The apology letter was typed up and sent to Bella after teachers spoke to pupils about the bullying and one of them owned up. However, the online bully but did not put their name on the letter. Mrs Willett said: 'The teachers spoke to pupils and one of them did own up. 'I heard from the teachers that there was going to be a letter of apology, but when we received it, it was typed with no name. 'It said 'I consider you a friend', which is really worrying as it means it's someone within her friendship group. Bella received an anonymous apology letter from the bully but it said 'I consider you friend' in it, which has led the youngster to worry about their identity 'Now Bella is looking at all her friends thinking 'who did it? Who can I trust'? She's scared of talking to them. It's been really upsetting.' Mrs Willett even said she contacted the police about the incident but officers said it was not a police matter. She also penned a letter to the parents of the bully, which she gave to the school to pass on, pleading for them to look at the issue from her perspective. She added: 'The parents are refusing to let the girl apologise in person, which is so stupid. I even wrote a letter to them, one parent to another, asking them to teach their child about responsibility. 'They're sending the message to their child that they don't have to deal with the consequences of their actions. 'If that had been my child I would have been mortified. I would have marched them into school and made them apologise to the other person.' Sue Turk, head teacher at the East Grinstead school, said they would not discuss individual cases, but said it had recently reviewed its anti-bullying policy. She said: 'We take cyber bullying very seriously. The experience of being cyber bullied, as with any bullying, can be very painful for those who are targeted. 'What might seem like harmless fun can have a devastating effect on a young person. 'We recently reviewed our anti-bullying policy, which clearly outlines what our teachers must do to tackle any forms of bullying, and our pupils had a great deal of input on this. 'We regularly run assemblies and talk with each year group about how to stay safe and behave online towards others. We recently had the school police liaison officer in to speak about these issues. The bullying incident occurred at Halsford Park Primary School in East Grinstead, accessed by this lane 'We are unable to discuss individual cases but would like to reassure parents and pupils that we do our utmost to help support and protect our children.' Anti-bullying charity boss Liam Hackett said that Mrs Willett has a right to be asking questions over the school's decision. Mr Hackett, CEO of Ditch the Label, said: 'It's a good thing that they have apologised, and they obviously feel ashamed about it because they chose to remain anonymous. 'Bella's mum has a right to be asking questions but the school should take more ownership and launch an investigation. Ben Carson says he's not giving up on his presidential hopes. His campaign adviser reportedly responsible for the campaign's big shake-up late last year is saying Carson's not giving up. For another week. 'I think Super Tuesday, March 1, is going to be a moment of truth,' Armstrong Williams told Politico, hinting that if Carson didn't turn things around when a slew of Southern states vote next week he'd throw in the towel. 'You cannot ignore the fact that our predictions of what would happen and what could turn this around have not come to fruition yet,' Williams said. 'Unless that happens, it is obvious what the outcome will be.' Scroll down for video Ben Carson is hanging in there - despite the fact that he has racked up two fourth place finishes and two last place finishes in Republican contests thus far Ben Carson will bring up the Tortoise and the Hare when asked whether he plans to drop out. He posits himself as the tortoise and perhaps frontrunner Donald Trump as the hare Carson only briefly saw success in his presidential bid, but then hopes of his outsider candidacy taking hold tumbled down. Around Halloween, Carson was polling ahead of frontrunner Donald Trump in Iowa, where the countrys first contest is held. But as the polls peaked for the retired neurosurgeon, the media started poking holes in some of the colorful anecdotes the doctor would tell on the campaign trail. One story - involving a young, brooding Ben Carson stabbing someone - was revised several times. Was it a close relative? A best friend? Carson changed the script, while associates of the Detroit native came forward and said they never remembered this type of anger coming from a young Ben. Trump capitalized on it, releasing an Instagram video on Friday the 13th, which described Carson as a violent criminal or a pathological liar. We dont need either as president, the Trump ad boasted. Losing ground thanks to some sluggish debate performances, pronouncing Hamas like hummus, the chickpea-based spread, when talking foreign policy and suggesting the pyramids in Egypt were built to store grain, Carsons 2015 holiday season consisted of a pretty big staff shake-up. Ben Carson's campaign was at a high point in November, but has been plagued by negative news stories, about the candidate and the inner-workings of the campaign, ever since Carson called two batches of reporters, from the Associated Press and the Washington Post, to his home unbeknownst to his campaign manager Barry Bennett. To those reporters he hinted that he might make some changes in staffing to his campaign. The retired neurosurgeon then immediately went on CNN and told Don Lemon that he wasnt firing anyone. That was over Christmas. Before the ball dropped to mark 2016 Carsons campaign announced enhancements, with Bennett and Communications Director Doug Watts resigning effective immediately. More than 20 other staffers followed the duo out the door. The campaign moved retired general Bob Dees, who was Carson's foreign policy adviser, into the role of campaign chairman. A senior strategist for Carson, Ed Brookover, became the campaign manager. 'As we enter a new phase of the campaign cycle, it is necessary to invigorate my campaign with a strategy that more aggressively shares my vision and world-view with the American people,' Carson said in the statement. 'I commend Barry Bennett and Doug Watts for their efforts to help me share my vision for America,' Carson said. Parting words aside, NBC News sources suggested the split was, in part, because of Bennett and Watts' inability to get along with Armstrong, a longtime business adviser of the candidate. After the shake-up the campaign, again, never gained back its footing. When CNN reported that Carson planned to head to Florida - to pick up more clothes for the campaign trail - just a day after the Iowa caucuses, Ted Cruzs volunteers spread the misinformation that Carson was on the cusp of dropping out, trying to recruit his voters to choose Cruz, another evangelical favorite, on their Iowa ballot instead. The move may have helped Cruz, who won the Iowa caucuses in a somewhat surprising victory over Donald Trump, who had led there since Carsons November fall and had only been neck-and-neck with the Texas senator in recent weeks. The gossip didnt do any favors to Carson who came in fourth. In the next two contests, New Hampshire and South Carolina, Carson came in last. Carson made another controversial comment, that President Obama was 'raised white' and didn't embody the typical black American experience, in the run-up to yesterday's caucuses. He returned to the fourth place position last night in Nevada, though this time in a field of just five candidates, and again pledged to stay in the race. If you remember the story of the tortoise and the hare, Carson said during several media appearances Tuesday before the caucus results came in. If you give up on the tortoise too early, youre only going to have the hare who is exhausted and not very effective, he said on Fox & Friends. Jeb Bush had used a similar line to explain to reporters his style of campaigning. A Jewish teacher in France who claimed he was attacked by ISIS jihadists was taken into custody today, accused of lying to police. Tzion Saadon, 45, invited the press to his house in Marseille the day after the supposed attack in November, saying he had been beaten by three men claiming to represent the jihadist group. But police today said the teacher had been arrested for allegedly fabricating the story. He is not the only French teacher to be accused of lying about an IS attack. In January, a nursery school teacher was sent for psychiatric tests after admitting he lied about an attack in his classroom. Both now face prison. Tzion Saadon, 45, invited the press to his house in Marseille the day after the supposed attack in November, saying he had been beaten by men claiming to represent ISIS - he has been arrested for making the story up Saadoun reported the attack last November, soon after 130 people were murdered by ISIS terrorists during the Paris terror attacks. He claimed a 'determined gang' of three men confronted him in the 13th district of Marseille, shouting in support of the murderous group. The teacher, who worked at the Yavne Jewish schoolin the southern city, claimed two knives were used to slash him in the arms, legs and stomach. Saadoun alleged one of the youths wore 'an ISIS T-shirt' and used his mobile phone to show him a photo of Mohamed Merah, the Al-Qaeda gunman who murdered Jews and Muslims near Toulouse four years ago. The teacher spent a night in hospital, and insisted that he was a victim of rising anti-Semitism in the country. His vivid description of the attack, included the assailants shouting insults about Jews, initially meant he was taken seriously as a victim. However, there were no independent witnesses, and forensic examinations later suggested Saadoun had caused the knifes lashes himself. After a three month investigation, police have now decided to charge him with lying to police and disrupting an inquiry. The case came with France still on edge in the wake of the November attacks in Paris, claimed by ISIS, that left 130 people dead The teacher, who worked at the Yavne Jewish schoolin the southern city, claimed two knives were used to slash him in the arms, legs and stomach In December, another pro-Israel teacher was taken into custody after saying he was attacked by an 'ISIS aggressor'. Stephane Aroule, 45, is also said to have tried to spread hatred against Muslims by fabricating the stabbing. He sparked a full-scale terrorist alert when he said a man wearing a balaclava and brandishing a box cutter and scissors had entered the Jean-Perrin nursery school in the Paris suburb of Aubervilliers. The area has a large Muslim population, many of whom have complained of stigmatisation in the wake of the terrorist attacks last November. Police took Aroule to hospital, but he only had self-inflicted scratches on his body and was quickly released. Following questioning, he confessed to making the story up to try and spread mistrust and suspicion of Muslims. She also said she is not sure if she will try and have more children Wilkins said she still thinks of her unborn daughter, whom she named Aurora, every day Just before the attack, Lane's boyfriend informed her he would leave her unless he got definitive proof she was pregnant At the time of the attack, Lane had been claiming to be pregnant for 14 months and even held a baby shower Dynel Lane was convicted of attempted murder by a jury in Boulder, Colorado after luring Wilkins to her home and cutting out the unborn child Michelle Wilkins revealed in an interview on Tuesday that she got to hold, dress and read to her baby's lifeless body after she was killed last March The Colorado woman whose unborn baby died after she was sliced from her body by a stranger has revealed in a new interview that she got to spend time with her daughter's lifeless body after the death. 'I did all the things that a mom would want to do,' said Michelle Wilkins just hours after her attacker Dynel Lane was found guilty of attempted murder. That included holding the baby, dressing her and even taking time to read her some books. She then added; 'But knowing that she was only present in spirit and not physically was a really painful thing to grasp.' Wilkins did not learn until the morning after she was attacked by Lane that she had lost her daughter, whom she had already decided to name Aurora. Scroll down for video Difficult time: Michelle Wilkins revealed in an interview on Tuesday (above) that she got to hold, dress and read to her baby's lifeless body after she was killed last March Happier times: Dynel Lane was convicted of attempted murder by a jury in Boulder, Colorado after luring Wilkins to her home and cutting out the unborn child (Wilkins above just before the attack) 'This trial has allowed me to be more in touch with some of my grittier emotions, like anger,' Wilkins told The Denver Post. 'Knowing today, going into that courtroom and seeing her, I finally felt like I'd reached a comfortable place in myself where I felt like my anger was valid. 'It's hard to make a plan for where things go from here.' She then said of her tragedy; 'I think it's probably a fear of any parent who's lost a child that they will forget and that they won't think of them daily. 'But as the days and weeks and months have gone by, it's effortless for her to come into my thoughts. And I know she will be with me forever. 'Dan and I were both taken by surprise when she decided to come into our lives. She changed both of our perspectives about what we thought we wanted - who we thought we were - and continues to do so. 'But she definitely opened up an aspect of myself that I didn't know was there, which is the aspect of motherhood.' Wilkins also said she does not know if she will try and have more children. Lane was found guilty on Tuesday of attempted first-degree murder, assault and unlawful termination of a pregnancy in the attack, which happened last March. Prosecutors said during the trial that Lane went to great lengths to convince others she was expecting a baby before luring Wilkins to her home with a Craigslist ad for maternity clothes. She then hit and choked Wilkins before using two kitchen knives to cut out the unborn girl. Wilkins, who was 7-months pregnant, survived, but her baby died. Just before the attack, Lane's boyfriend informed her he would leave her unless he got definitive proof she was pregnant due to the fact that she had been claiming she was with child for 14 months at that point. Lane will be sentenced on April 29, and on her way out of court an emotional Wilkins said she will be there and 'speak then.' She then added of Lane; 'It had just never entered my world view that someone could be so cruel and value life so little.' 'There is nothing ever in any shape or form that can remotely prepare you for something like this,' Wilkins said Tuesday afternoon. 'What has dominated my perspective consistently is disbelief. Words are not sufficient to describe it.' Despite all this though, Wilkins somehow managed to stay calm and collected while she spoke about the woman who took away her unborn baby. 'Many have asked me how I feel about Dynel Lane. Early on I said I have forgiven her. It's part of who I am as a human being and Martin Luther King said it brilliantly. "We must develop and maintain the capacity to forgive. He who is devoid of the power to forgive is devoid of the power to love,"' said Wilkins. 'There is some good in the worst of us and some evil in the best of us. 'I do not hate Dynel. But I am angry for all the pain she has caused. The deceit and all her selfishness.' Wilkins later thanked the public for the outpouring of support she received after the tragedt. 'I wish to thank everyone for their attention, and the continuing messages, donations and expressions of love and encouragement. Your continued support allows me not only to survive this but also to thrive in the midst of a dark and trying time,,' she said. 'And yes, every dollar, every smile, every message, every prayer has been a comfort and a hug to me. 'Resolution doesnt end with the case. There is still a lot of personal healing to do.' Not right: At the time of the attack, Lane had been claiming to be pregnant for 14 months and even held a baby shower Tough spot: Just before the attack, Lane's boyfriend informed her he would leave her unless he got definitive proof she was pregnant (Lane above as the verdict was read on Tuesday) Last week, the jury in Boulder heard the grisly and grim details of the moment Wilkins awoke to find herself in the home of Lane after being hit over the head and stabbed in the neck with glass before she was cut open from 'hip to hip' and her fetus was removed from her body. Prosecutors in the case also showed the jury the bloody pillow and bedding from the crime scene. Wilkins, 27, testified on the first day of the trial that she went to Lane's home after she posted an Craigslist ad saying that she was selling maternity clothes. She said that after an hour she went to leave, but Lane, 35, convinced her to look at some baby clothes she had in the basement. That is when Wilkins said that Lane hit her over the head and attacked her, while she told the woman; 'I love you.' Wilkins had said she believed that might get Lane to stop the attack, but instead she responded by saying; If you love me, you'll let me do this.' When she awoke some time later, Wilkins said that she immediately noticed 'a really big cut across my stomach.' She said that she tried to stand up but immediately fell down, too weak from the attack and loss of blood. 'I just felt the blood seeping through my pants and I could feel my intestines outside of my body,' she said. Wilkins somehow managed to call 911, where an operator kept her on the phone and urged her to hold a towel to her stomach in hopes of stopping the blood that was pouring out of her body. She also locked the door, not knowing at the time that Lane was no longer in the house but at the hospital with the baby she had just cut out of Wilkins, having told her boyfriend Ridley that it was her child and she had suffered a miscarriage. Prosecutors said they couldn't charge Lane with murder because a coroner found no evidence the fetus lived outside the womb. Prosecutors showed the jury the pillow and mattress from the crime scene on Thursday, both soaked in blood. They also presented the blood-caked knife that was found at the scene and two bloody shirts that were found in Lane's trash. Early testimony seemed to suggest that Lane - who had been claiming to be pregnant for around 14 months at that time - may have attacked Wilkins because of an ultimatum that was given to her by her boyfriend at the time. Ridley testified that Lane's due date kept shifting and she refused to see a doctor with him. Ridley says Lane told him in April 2014 she was expecting a boy. But when 10 months passed and she hadn't given birth, he told her he needed answers from a doctor about the baby or he would leave her. He had planned to meet her for a pre-natal appointment the day of the attack. But when he came to pick her up, she told him she had delivered the baby at home. He says he found the baby in a bathtub. Ridley also said during this time Lane had been sending him ultrasound images and photos of her distended belly. On Thursday social media messages Lane sent were also shared, and showed that she had told some people she gave birth to a baby boy and others that she was still pregnant. Matthew Hamlen (pictured) has been found guilty of murder after torturing Georgina Edmonds at her home in Brambridge, Hampshire, on January 11, 2008 in a bid to get her debit card's PIN number A killer, who was initially cleared of killing a pensioner with her own marble rolling pin was today jailed for life. Matthew Hamlen killed Georgina Edmonds at her Hampshire home in 2008. Hamlen, who was an electrician, was initially cleared of the all charges, but was found guilty following the determination of one police officer. Detective Inspector Martin Chudley had a nagging doubt when Matthew Hamlen, 37, walked free from court in 2012 following his acquittal for bludgeoning an elderly lady to death with a marble rolling pin. He was the crime scene manager for the brutal killing on on January 11, 2008, and his forensics team spent two weeks there afterwards hoping for a DNA breakthrough. Some of the samples from the clothing of victim and widowed grandmother Georgina Edmonds, 77, were put on file because other areas of her body were more likely to yield DNA results. But when Hamlen was cleared in 2012 and with no other suspects, the case was about to be effectively shelved in 2013 when Det Insp Chudley led a final review of the evidence. He was desperate for one final piece of DNA testing to be done from police tapings on a tiny section of Mrs Edmonds blouse showing skin cells and hair follicles - which he was originally told would not yield a result. Hamplen was found guilty of murder yesterday at Winchester Crown Court. Today he was told he will serve a minimum of 30 years of a life sentence. The court heard that she was stabbed 37 times with a knife on her chest, neck and upper back before being beaten with such force the marble rolling pin broke into three pieces. Mrs Edmonds was found in the kitchen of her riverside cottage in a pool of blood by her son, Harry, who lives in a larger house on the same estate. Experts originally told him there was too much of Mrs Edmonds blood on her blouse to identify another individuals DNA. Yet, results from the laboratory the second time round in March 2014 unearthed a clear profile, which found that the DNA was that of a man, with a match probability of 26 million to one. The DNA was that of Hamlen, and when Det Insp Chudley told his colleagues in Hampshire Constabularys Major Crime Team he said: 'You better sit down.' He refuses to take all the credit, but following a six week trial Hamlen was yesterday convicted of Mrs Edmonds murder some eight years after it happened. Mrs Edmonds was described as a woman with restricted mobility but an 'independent character who walked her two cocker spaniel dogs, drove her own car and did her shopping locally' Mrs Edmonds was stabbed 37 times with a knife on her chest, neck and upper back before being beaten with such force the marble rolling pin broke into three pieces. Above, a piece of the rolling pin It used to be law that defendants could not be tried twice for the same offence under double jeopardy. But yesterdays conviction, which was brought about after the DNA breakthrough, was the seventh in the UK for double jeopardy following the changes to the law in 2005. The change applies retrospectively so someone can face a second trial if evidence, such as DNA material, new witnesses or a confession come to light. Mrs Edmonds family labelled Det Insp Chudley a hero and called for him to be publically recognised for his efforts in eventually nailing Hamlen. Son Harry, 60, praising the police, said: 'Our most heartfelt thanks go to probably the most self-effacing and modest member of the team, the man most deserving of recognition and without whose skill and sheer dogged determination I would not be standing here today. 'In the eyes of my family Detective Inspector Martin Chudley is a hero and should be treated as one.' He added: 'It has contained almost as many twists and turns as an Agatha Christie thriller.' Hamlen, of Eastleigh, Hampshire, stabbed Mrs Edmonds at her home in Bishopstoke, Hampshire, 37 times in the chest, neck and upper back before bludgeoning her with the marble rolling pin that broke into three pieces. A mixed DNA profile was also found on the rolling pin, which was 800 times more likely to have come from Georgina Edmonds, Matthew Hamlen and an unknown individual than two unknown individuals - one of them male. Her debit card, handbag and mobile phone were all stolen - and the card was used later the same day by an unidentifiable person at an ATM machine close to her home (CCTV above) The prosecution said Hamlen, who must serve a minimum of 30 years, tortured her in a bid to get her PIN number and her debit card, handbag, and mobile phone were all stolen. Her body was found in the kitchen of her riverside cottage near Eastleigh, Hants in a pool of blood by Harry, who lives in a larger house on the same estate. Michael Bowes QC, prosecuting, described Hamlens conduct in carrying out the murder as sadistic, adding: 'She was a lady who loved life and was devoted to her family. He continued: 'Det Insp Chudley was always of the opinion there must be something there, and he pressed scientists for further examinations to see if any cellular material could be recovered and analysed. DOUBLE JEOPARDY: A TRIAL WHERE THE DEFENDANT HAS PREVIOUSLY BEEN TRIED Double jeopardy trials - when the defendant has previously been tried for the same offence - have been permitted in England and Wales since 2005. It used to be the law that people could not be tried twice - but the circumstances changed following the murder of Stephen Lawrence. The law now applies retrospectively with murder suspects facing a second trial if evidence, such as DNA material, new witnesses or a confession, come to light. Today's conviction was the seventh in the UK for double jeopardy following the changes to the law. The judge is said to have explained to jurors about the change in the law at the beginning of the six-week trial as well as telling them to try and forget Hamlen had been tried before. Advertisement 'Following an exchange of emails and his nagging doubt about the matter, they reviewed the position.' Mr Justice Saunders, sentencing, said it was a murder committed for gain that shocked the community Georgina Edmonds lived in. He said: 'He was acquitted in early 2012. The acquittal could not have come as a great surprise to any objective observer of the original trial in the light of the relative lack of evidence at the time. 'Despite the acquittal the case was not closed and in 2013 the police conducted a review of the scientific evidence and looked for DNA on exhibits which it had been thought were unlikely to provide a positive result. 'DNA evidence was recovered from a tape lift taken from the back of Mrs Edmonds blouse. It revealed DNA which matched with the defendants.' In mitigation, William Mouseley QC said the murder was not premeditated, but opportunistic conduct which was followed by increasing levels of violence. He added the Hamlen is now a very different man, and that he is now a married father of one with a home, a steady job and whose conduct was good over the past eight years. Afterwards, Det Insp Chudley said on discovering the DNA match: 'I didnt really know how to react. 'I didnt really know at that time all about double jeopardy cases and how high the threshold is that you have to reach to get someone back before a court. 'It was an exciting moment, but at the same time youre not quite sure what it will mean. He continued: 'You are thinking naturally of the family and what on earth they will make of this. 'I would say it was simply my job. I was the crime scene manager and if anyone was going to push that, it was me. 'It was a long, prolonged attack, he was there for quite some considerable time - I just couldnt conceive there wasnt a part of him there somewhere.' Hamlen, who will be a pensioner when hes up for release, raised his eyebrows and sighed as he was jailed today in front of a packed out public gallery. Mrs Edmonds was found in the kitchen of her riverside cottage (pictured) in a pool of blood by her son, Harry, who lives in a larger house on the same estate The court heard that DNA found on a piece of sticky tape from Mrs Edmonds' blouse matched the DNA profile of Hamlen. Above, Mrs Edmonds' house Ian Harris, from the CPS, said Alison Saunders, the Director of Public Prosecutions, gave her consent for the re-arrest of Matthew Hamlen. The court heard that her debit card, handbag and mobile phone were all missing - and the card was used later the same day at an ATM machine close to her home. CCTV footage showing a man dressed in high-visibility clothing trying - and failing - to get money out was shown to the jurors. Michael Bowes, prosecuting, described the moment Mr Edmonds found his mother. He revealed he first saw her legs as the rest of her body was shielded behind a door and believed she had fallen. Mr Bowes said: 'He turned on the light and saw his mother lying flat on her face with a significant pool of blood. 'He saw that her trousers had been pulled down slightly and on the back of her head was a significant pinkish dent. 'It was obvious to him she was dead and obvious really that she had been murdered.' Hamlen, from Eastleigh, Hampshire, pictured outside the court showed no emotion as he was sentenced Mrs Edmonds was described as a woman with restricted mobility but an 'independent character who walked her two cocker spaniel dogs, drove her own car and did her shopping locally'. Recordings of Hamlen in custody showed how he tried to fix an alibi by saying he was with friends that day. He told his mum Linda Manning from custody in 2010: 'I haven't done anything, Mum. You know I could not do it. It's a witch hunt. They are trying to fit me up. They have nothing.' He also told police in interviews he could not be 100 per cent sure if he had any sexual involvement with Mrs Edmonds and said that he did not touch the rolling pin 'to the best of his knowledge'. The judge told jurors: 'I'm very grateful to you for the trouble you have taken over the case. 'It's been a distressing and extremely difficult case for anyone to do and we are grateful for what you have done. 'I'm sure the experience will live with you for the rest of your life.' An Uber driver who allegedly shot dead six people at random 'may have been aiming at kids' during his shooting spree, law enforcement revealed to Daily Mail Online. Jason Dalton, 45, is suspected of killing six strangers and seriously injuring two others in three separate attacks on Saturday night in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Neighbors told Daily Mail Online this week that Dalton, who is married with two children, had become increasingly paranoid in recent months. He had been firing warning shots at his rural home when he suspected people were trying to break into the house or were on the property. James Block, a neighbor of 17 years who described himself as a 'good, good friend', revealed on Monday that Dalton had installed extra security measures at his home recently. 'There's been a few times he told me someone broke into his backyard and his garage,' Block said. SCROLL DOWN FOR VIDEO Paranoid: Neighbor James Block told how Jason Dalton thought he was being broken into, while another neighbor said he fired warning shots into the air or ground. Police said there were no records of intruders Family home: This is where Jason Dalton lived with his family in Kalamazoo before starting his alleged killing spree. His wife and children were not at home when police arrived early on Sunday morning Longtime friend: Neighbor James Block had known Dalton for 'He put up a fence a few months ago and got a trained guard dog.' Another neighbor, Sally Pardo, described Dalton as a 'nice guy' but said he also mentioned break-ins to her husband. She said: 'One night he told Gary that someone was trying to get in the back door of his house. 'It didn't happen very often but he would sometimes shoot his gun in the air or into the ground to warn people off.' Paul Matyas, of the Kalamazoo County Sheriff's Office, told Daily Mail Online that he was not aware of any break-ins at Dalton's home. Dalton bought a new pistol after the suspected burglary attempts but never mentioned the stockpile of weapons and ammunition that police announced they had discovered at his home this week. 'If it's true, he kept it a secret,' Block said. 'He's never talked about any other guns except pistols to me. 'I'm a hunter and I've talked about my AK-47, my hunting guns, so he could easily have said, 'oh I've got this and I've got this.' 'I knew he had a pistol and after he got broken into, he purchased another pistol. But he never showed me them. I've never once seen him with a gun.' Both neighbors told Daily Mail Online they heard Dalton firing shots at his home on Saturday night around 11.30pm after the fatal shootings had taken place. 'We heard the four gunshots. He came back after he killed everybody,' Block said. When police surrounded the home in the early hours of Sunday, Block was concerned for Dalton's wife, Carole, and their two children. 'When I realized what was going on at three o'clock in the morning, I started thinking - dog, wife, two kids. 'My mind was just going, oh my god, I hope they don't find no bodies in there.' Sally Pardo also heard the shots being fired from across the street. 'I heard three or four gunshots about 11.30pm on Saturday,' she said. 'I knew it was Jason, I thought he must be scaring someone off. But I was uneasy.' Dalton's family were not home on Saturday during the shooting spree. It is believed they are staying with other family members. The suspected killer's parents refused to answer the door when contacted at their Kalamazoo home. Block said Carole called and asked him to keep a close watch over their home. 'Her dad came over and picked up some clothes. I don't think they're ever going to come back.' He added: 'I can't say he's not my friend anymore but what he did, I just feel for the victims.' The neighbors last spoke on Thursday afternoon when Dalton inquired how his friend's shoulder was following a recent surgery. The following day, they waved at each other in passing. Block said he never saw Dalton on Saturday. 'I get emotional because he's my friend and then all of a sudden, it was like a switch,' he said. On Saturday evening, Block's niece witnessed some strange behavior from Dalton. Held: Dalton is in a cell at the Kalamazoo County Sheriff's Office but has barely spoken Baffling: Undersheriff Paul Matyas tells Daily Mail Online: 'He's very even-tempered. He's not upset about anything, he doesn't display any noticeable emotions' 'He stopped about seven o'clock,' Block said. 'My niece saw him pull into his driveway, and back over, so the car lights shone into my house. 'Then he pulled down the driveway, sat for a while and then reversed up the driveway and sat there for a little bit more. Then he flew out of here. 'He didn't go back in the house.' Block has been turning over conversations in his mind to see if he had missed any warning signs. The pair spoke almost every day in the summertime but their chats were less frequent in the cold weather. 'He'd see me outside, he'd come over here; I'd see him outside and I'd go over there,' Block said. Block said they would crack jokes about his new security fence. 'We called it his 'wife wall' - she'd call for him when he was over here talking for too long,' he said. 'His wife wasn't really sociable, she wouldn't come and have a conversation.' Block said that Dalton would 'over-conversate', adding: 'It would be a ten-minute discussion and the next thing, both of us would have been out for 45 minutes, freezing.' The couple never threw parties and Block did not believe that he drank alcohol. 'He didn't drink as far as I know. He never had a beer outside in the yard, he never asked to go to a bar and I've never seen him at a bar.' Block also did not believe that his friend belonged to any clubs or organizations. Their conversations were generally light-hearted. 'We talked about politics but he wasn't affiliated with Democrats or Republicans. We just laughed about Trump, we laughed about Hillary,' the neighbor told Daily Mail Online. 'We talked about hunting I hunt but he had never hunted. 'I've been off work for six months because I had shoulder surgery so he would ask me about that. 'We talked about me getting ripped off when my tree was cut down, and the moles in his yard.' Occasionally, the conversation would take a more serious tone. About five or six years ago, he had seemed depressed when talking about a veteran friend who was suffering from PTSD. Block said: 'He told me he was really worried that his buddy had a whole bunch of guns, ammunition and would freak out. 'I think his friend either overdosed on drugs or killed himself. He was all depressed about his buddy, it was his childhood friend. But he used to talk about the PTSD. Remembered: Mattawan High School in Mattawan, MI, held a vigil on Tuesday night to remember Tyler and Richard Smith, two of the victims of the shooting No response: Jason Dalton's parents, who also live in Kalamazoo, have not spoken since their son's alleged mass murder He added: 'That was five years ago, I don't think that ever occurred to him now.' Following the shootings, Block had learned new information about his friend that appeared to indicate all was not well. 'I never knew he lost his job at the insurance place and he never told me he was an Uber driver,' Block said. 'I would always ask him, 'How's work going?' and he'd say, 'Good, good.' 'That's what's so shocking about it, he never told me that he lost his job. He'd leave every morning at 8 o'clock like he was going to work.' Dalton also appeared to have lost his passion for fixing up cars in recent months. 'He loved working on cars but in the last year, I really didn't see him doing that anymore.' Block believed that his neighbor had taught an auto-body repair class at Kellogg Community College in Battle Creek. However Kellogg Community College told Daily Mail Online that Dalton had never been a teacher or a student at the school. Nearby Kalamazoo Valley Community College also denied that Dalton had ever taught or been a student there. WDIV-TV reported that Dalton graduated from Kalamazoo Valley Community College in 1992 with an associate's degree in law enforcement and criminal justice but did not enrol at the school's police academy. A motive for the killings remained elusive, Kalamazoo County Sheriff's Department told Daily Mail Online on Tuesday. Undersheriff Paul Matyas said Dalton had asked for no one and said very little else since he was arrested. He was eating and sleeping normally, and sitting in his jail cell 'like he was watching TV'. 'He's very even-tempered. He's not upset about anything, he doesn't display any noticeable emotions,' Matyas said. Dalton was being held separately from the rest of the inmate population at Kalamazoo County Jail because of the nature of his crime. The 45-year-old, who has no history of mental illness, was not on suicide watch. 'We watch all our inmates,' the sheriff's deputy said. 'But he's given us no indication that he's suicidal.' In a chilling, new revelation, Matyas said investigators had reason to believe that the shooter was aiming at young children when he opened fire at 6pm on Saturday near an apartment complex in Kalamazoo County. Tiana Carruthers, 25, was shot multiple times from five feet away but survived and was able to give an account of what happened. The suspect drove up to her and asked if her name was Maya or Mara and she said no. He drove away but circled around the parking lot of the complex until he was about five feet away and then drew a gun. 'From inside his car he started shooting at her. He shot all over the place and hit her several times,' the officer said. 'She had thought something wasn't right when he circled back. There were some kids she was babysitting and she told them to go into the house. Abigail Kopf, 14, (left) was still fighting for her life in hospital on Tuesday after she was shot in the head. Tiana Carruthers (right) was shot after she jumped in front of children when the gunman arrived at her apartment Tyler Smith, 17 (right), was killed in the parking lot of Seelye Kia, along with his father, Rich (left), while they were looking at cars, multiple reports suggest Sisters-in-law Mary Jo Nye, 60, (left) and Mary Lou Nye, 63, (right) were killed during the shooting spree Barbara Hawthorne (left), 68, and Dorothy Brown (right), 70, were also identified as victims of the rampage. None of those shot and killed are believed to have known Dalton 'A bunch of them headed that way but there were three or four kids that stayed. 'We think he may have been trying to hit the kids based on the spray that the shots took.' Matyas described the children as 'little bitty tykes'. He added: 'The suspect fired a tremendous amount of shots everywhere he went'. Investigators had interviewed the suspect's family to see if they could offer any clues as to what sparked the shooting rampage. 'They are just shocked. They didn't see it either. They've not indicated to us any recent bizarre behavior,' Matyas said. 'We've spoken to the wife and they weren't home that day. The two kids were with the mom. 'The family was never at risk at any point in time in this whole episode.' Dalton appeared to have no extreme views and no alcohol or drugs were involved in the incident, police said. Matyas said: 'He had no affiliations with anybody for anything.' Investigators focused on a 9mm semi-automatic handgun and a cellphone seized from Dalton, as well as the fact that he picked up fares for the Uber car-hailing service between or after the shooting episodes. 'This person was not on our radar at all. He had no prior police contact, no criminal record. He was just an average guy with a family. He was an average guy. 'That's what's scary. If there was something that had alerted you, that's one thing. But there's nothing, just nothing. 'Here we are almost three days in and we don't know why any more than ten minutes after it happened. Matyas added: 'We're probably weeks away from finding out, but in the end, the final analysis might be: This was a guy who just cracked up.' He said the town was reeling from the mass shooting. 'This is something that we've seen happen in Oregon, in Connecticut and in Columbine. 'And on Saturday night, it visited Kalamazoo.' FROM HIS FIRST FARE TO HIS SURRENDER: HOW THE KALAMAZOO SHOOTING SPREE UNFOLDED SATURDAY - Around 4:30 p.m.: Dalton picks up a fare, Matt Mellen, who tells WWMT-TV that after ending a phone call, Dalton began speeding, sideswiping cars and driving over lawns and medians. He says he jumped out and ran when the car stopped, and that he called police and tried to warn Uber. - 5:42 p.m.: The Kalamazoo County Sheriff's Office is called to the scene of the first attack, an apartment complex on the eastern edge of Kalamazoo County where a woman had been shot multiple times. She is expected to survive. - Around 7 p.m.: Dalton is seen at his home, according to a neighbor. James Block, who has lived next door to Dalton for 17 years, says his niece saw Dalton pull out of his driveway, rapidly back up toward his garage, then drive off. - 10:08 p.m.: A father and his 17-year-old son are fatally shot while looking at cars at Seelye Kia of Kalamazoo. - 10:24 p.m.: Five people including a 14-year-old girl are gunned down in the parking lot of a Cracker Barrel restaurant. Four are killed, and the teenager is critically wounded. SUNDAY - 12:40 a.m.: Dalton is arrested without incident after a deputy spotted his vehicle driving through downtown Kalamazoo after leaving a bar parking lot. Advertisement A husband has described how he cradled his dying wife in his arms after she was shot by terrorists who targeted a museum while she was on holiday in Tunisia. Sally Adey was hit in the abdomen when gunmen opened fire in the Bardo National Museum in Tunis in March last year. The 57-year-old turned to her husband Robert, saying, 'Oh God Rob, I'm hit'. Mr Adey then cradled his wife in his arms for an hour as she struggled to breathe before he was forced to make the heartbreaking decision to leave her to find safety. The tragic final moments of Mrs Adey's life were revealed as an inquest into her death was shown chilling footage of the two gunmen prowling the museum as they prepared their rampage. Scroll down for videos Sally Adey's husband Robert (with whom she is pictured left) was shot in the abdomen when gunmen invaded the Bardo National Museum in Tunis in March. Ms Adey (right) died from a rifle gunshot to the abdomen The couple (pictured), from Caynton in Shropshire, had been on a dream cruise together when they were caught up in the Bardo massacre, one of two major terror attacks to hit Tunisia last year The CCTV showed the first moments of panic as gunfire and explosions echoed through the museum's white stone corridors, sparking terror and confusion among dozens of tourists. They were recorded calmly moving through the museum, and were later heard firing single shots and controlled bursts of gunfire at fleeing tourists. It is not clear in the footage whether the terrorists are pictured in Carthage Hall, one of the rooms which the terrorists stormed and where Mrs Adey was shot as she tried to flee. Mr and Mrs Adey, from Caynton in Shropshire, had been on a dream cruise together when they were caught up in the Bardo massacre, one of two major terror attacks to hit Tunisia last year. Mrs Adey, a mother-of-two, was one of 22 people killed in the atrocity. She died from a single rifle gunshot to the abdomen which 'fragmented' inside her after it passed through her handbag. The hearing was told that the two gunmen, Yassine Laabidi and Jabeur Khachnaoui, were not searched when they entered the museum before the attack. Graphic photographs from the scene pictured the attackers after they were shot dead by security forces in a stairwell. Images were also shown of the arsenal they brought, including AK47 assault rifles, hundreds of rounds of ammunition and grenades. Nine tourists were shot dead in the car park before the gunmen entered the museum, firing and making their way upstairs to the Carthage Hall, where Mr and Mrs Adey had been taking photos minutes before. The hearing was told that the two gunmen, Yassine Laabidi and Jabeur Khachnaoui (left and right), were not searched when they entered the museum before the attack CCTV was shown of the first moments of panic as gunfire and explosions echoed through the museum's white stone corridors as the gunmen entered the building The two men sparked terror among tourists as they went on a rampage through the museum, killing 22 tourists Mr Adey's statement, which was read by coroner's officer Julie Hartridge, told how he had been 'faffing about with his camera' trying to clear space on the memory card when they first heard gunshots. The couple were part of a group of more than a dozen tourists looking around a hall on the first floor of the museum when Khachnaoui and Laabidi came in and started shooting. Detective Inspector Simon Harding, of the Metropolitan Police, described how retired solicitor Mrs Adey and her husband ran for the doorway of the room and were only able to get through 'when those in front started to drop'. Mr Adey, 52, recounted the couple 'looking at each other, not moving' as they could not believe what was happening. His account was read aloud: 'A couple of people were hit to Mr Adey's left and a bullet hit the wall above his head but as people were falling down, he managed to get through [the doorway]. 'He shoved Sally into the bay window balcony and pushed her in. Just as he grabbed Sally to pull her towards him, she was hit. 'Sally said something to him... it was words to the effect of, 'Oh God Rob, I'm hit.' As she slid down, he slid with her and just held her. She never said anything else and her breathing went funny, it was shallower. Rob could hear shouting, shooting and screaming outside.' Another video showed the tourists having a guided tour of the museum, seconds before the sound of gunfire ripped through the building CCTV shown at the inquest showed the tourists reacting to the gunshots during the incident in March last year Mr Adey described how he sheltered with his dying wife and other tourists for more than an hour, daubing himself in blood in an attempt to dupe the gunmen. His account continued: 'An armed police officer eventually came and asked if anyone could walk. He said anyone who could walk had to get out now. 'Rob shouted, 'My wife is injured,' but he was told to leave and had to be helped down the stairs to safety.' Neither Mr Adey nor the couple's children, Molly, 21 and Harry, 24, attended the inquest. Describing the background to the attack and the response by Tunisian police, Detective Inspector Harding told the hearing: 'The two terrorists who carried out the attack are believed to have been trained at the same terrorist camp. Nine tourists were shot dead in the car park before the gunmen entered the museum, making their way upstairs to the Carthage Hall (pictured), where Mrs Adey was shot as she tried to escape Mr Adey described how he sheltered with his dying wife and other tourists for more than an hour, daubing himself in blood in an attempt to dupe the gunmen. The aftermath is pictured above 'The Tunisian authorities say Khachnaoui was radicalised from age of 16 to 18 and in 2014 travelled to Libya where he attended a camp for 20 days. 'Once finished he returned to Tunisia. He wasn't known to the Tunisian authorities and hadn't been arrested for any terrorist offences. 'Laabidi began circulating at a local mosque when he was 14 and became radicalised. He was also not known to the police and had not been arrested for any terrorist-related offences. 'It is known the attackers met near a children's playground near the museum on March 18 and they are thought to have walked there for about five to six minutes. 'Although there's a security presence at the main gate they weren't searched and they carried their weapons in bags through the gate undetected.' Images were also shown of the arsenal they brought, including AK47 assault rifles (pictured), hundreds of rounds of ammunition and grenades The two men were killed by local security forces after massacring 22 victims, 17 of whom had been on the same cruise liner as Mr and Mrs Adey. The officer continued: 'The initial investigation by local police hadn't been held to a satisfactory level in terms of their treatment of the crime scene and taking witness statements. 'The lack of information remained until after the attack on Sousse. It was then that the National Guard launched an investigation into the Bardo National Museum attack. 'The investigation is live and ongoing and the two attacks are being linked. We are working in full co-operation with the Tunisian authorities.' After coroner John Ellery recorded a verdict of unlawful killing, Mrs Adey's family said in a statement: 'Sally Adey was a very much-loved mother, wife and daughter. Those who knew her appreciated her strength and kindness. She is missed by all.' One of the terrorists is pictured after being shot dead by security forces. The two terrorists who carried out the attack are believed to have been trained at the same terrorist camp Down nearly 30 points to Hillary Clinton in South Carolina, Bernie Sanders is leaving the state and turning his attention elsewhere ahead of Saturday's primary. The Vermont senator heads to Kansas City, Missouri, today for a rally and goes to Tulsa, Oklahoma, after that. Tomorrow his campaign says he'll be in Ohio's Cuyahoga County, near Cleveland, and Chicago, Illinois. Clinton, on the other hand, plans to stay in South Carolina - part of her southern 'firewall' - most of the week. Scroll down for video Down nearly 30 points to Hillary Clinton in two recent surveys of South Carolina Democrats, Bernie Sanders is leaving the state and turning his attention elsewhere ahead of Saturday's primary The Vermont senator is headed to Kansas City, Missouri, for a rally and goes to Tulsa, Oklahoma, after that. Clinton, on the other hand, plans to stay in South Carolina - part of her southern 'firewall' - most of the week. She spent the morning in Charleston at a facility for former offenders and substance abusers She spent the morning in Charleston at a facility for former offenders and substance abusers. 'I'm looking for models that work,' she said, referencing her quest to reduce mass incarceration in America. 'Then we need programs like this one all over the country.' She and Bill are splitting up the must-win state, with the former president primarily in the northwest and the ex-secretary of state stumping in the east and the south. After closer than expected races in Iowa and Nevada and a big victory for Sanders in New Hampshire, she has just one more pledged delegate than the U.S. senator. They are virtually tied, 52-51, leaving no room for error in other states Clinton is supposed to win. She's 28 points ahead in South Carolina according to two polls from last week - a seemingly insurmountable lead - but she's aggressively working to seal the deal this week at more than a half dozen events inside the state. Whoever wins the African-American voting bloc in South Carolina is likely to win the state, as 55 percent of Democrats who voted in the 2008 primary were black. Yesterday Clinton campaigned with Sybrina Fulton, the mother of Trayvon Martin, Geneva Reed-Veal, the mother of Sandra Bland, Gwen Carr, mother to Eric Garner, Maria Hamilton, mother to Dontre Hamilton and Lucy McBath, mother to Jordan Davis. Garner's sister, Erica, has meanwhile endorsed Sanders and has cut a campaign video and campaigned in person for him. Sanders isn't abandoning South Carolina entirely despite his slim odds there. He showed up at a luncheon for Brookland Baptist church on Sunday in Columbia with former NAACP head Ben Jealous. 'Im here to ask for your help to lead this country to a political revolution in which ordinary people will be represented in Washington, not just a handful of wealthy campaign contributors,' Sanders said at the event. 'I'm looking for models that work,' she said, referencing her quest to reduce mass incarceration in America. 'Then we need programs like this one all over the country' CAREFUL: Clinton loses her balance briefly as she arrives for a tour of SC STRONG, a home for ex-offenders and substance abusers on the grounds of the former Charleston Navy Yard in North Charleston, South Carolina today Monday and Tuesday Sanders campaigned Massachusetts, where he's tied with Clinton in the newest Emerson poll and Virginia, which shows Clinton with a large double-digit lead. Both states vote on March 1, Super Tuesday. His wife Jane stayed behind to host an education forum in Columbia, and Monday Sanders sent actor Danny Glover out to campaign for him in Charleston. Speaking last Saturday in Nevada after his six-point loss to Clinton there, Sanders said, 'I am also proud of the fact that we have brought many working people and young people into the political process and believe that we have the wind at our back as we head toward Super Tuesday.' In the speech Sanders also said, 'In a short while I'll be on a plane to South Carolina and then we're going to be competing in 11 states all across this country on super Tuesday.' The Sanders campaign did not respond to requests for comment from DailyMail.com on the senator's future travel and what it indicates about his prospects in South Carolina. This morning Sanders came back to South Carolina for a speech on poverty - an affliction he says has increased since Bill Clinton signed a 1996 welfare reform bill into law. He's flanked by two South Carolina state representatives This morning Sanders came back to South Carolina for a speech on poverty - an affliction he says has increased since Bill Clinton signed a 1996 welfare reform bill into law. Sanders says he was against the legislation because he thought it was 'scapegoating people who were helpless, people who were very, very vulnerable.' 'Secretary Clinton at that time had a very different position on welfare reform. She strongly supported it and worked hard to round up votes for its passage,' he stated. Appealing to the state's low-income, black and Hispanic residents, Sanders said, 'The United States today has the highest poverty rate of nearly any major country on earth because almost all of the new wealth and income is going to the people on top.' 'The poor remain invisible, powerless, not heard from. Most dont even vote.' South Carolina has a 27 percent poverty rate, including 138,000 black children and 34,000 Hispanic children, he said. He then left the state for his swing through, Missouri and Oklahoma, and Ohio and Illinois, which vote March 15. On Tuesday Sanders campaigned in Virginia, which shows Clinton with a large double-digit lead. Virginia votes on March 1, Super Tuesday Clinton is not taking upcoming states for granted, either, though her focus this week remains on South Carolina. She's sent her husband and daughter in her stead over the past month to states that vote in March as part of a triple threat strategy that's seen all three Clintons at separate events on the trail some days. Bill Clinton will rally his wife's supporters this afternoon just outside Washington, D.C. in Alexandria, Virginia. He's due 100 miles south at an event in the state's capitol, Richmond, later in the day. The former first daughter and president have also joined Clinton on stage at stops in states with contests imminent contests. Bill has stood by her side, win or lose, and will return to South Carolina after his Virginia trip today to continue campaigning for her in the Palmetto state. Two Florida firefighters have been suspended for having sex while they were meant to be protecting local citizens. Lieutenant William 'Spike' Fry, who is married and has children, and Fire Medic Tiffany Seabolt, who is divorced, are accused of engaging inappropriately with one another while on duty at Station 49 in Clearwater. Fry was suspended on Monday for 30 days without pay, and Seabolt, who is his subordinate, will be suspended without pay for 15 days on Friday. Fry is currently going through a divorce, according to Bay News 9. Illicit affair: Lieutenant William 'Spike' Fry (pictured left) and Fire Medic Tiffany Seabolt (pictured right in uniform) are accused of engaging inappropriately with one another while on duty Breaking his vow: William Fry, pictured with his wife, is currently getting a divorce. Both he and Tiffany Seabolt have been suspended without pay following an interoffice investigation Employees described their experience working at Station 49 'like living with a married couple,' not just because of the couple's alleged sexual relationship but also because of their arguing. Driver Operator Brian Swartz first reported the inappropriate relationship between Fry and Seabolt on August 4, according to an interoffice report. Investigators say that in order to detract attention away from their alleged sexual relationship, Fry and Seabolt made counter accusations against Swartz. Seabolt also allegedly sent threatening text messages to Swartz saying, 'you seriously need to stop avoiding me and call me back asap!' and 'if you don't call me back, I will be going to human resources about your accusation!' Investigators spoke with Swartz who said that he isn't surprised his co-worker made a separate accusation against him. The accusation against him was found to be unsupported by evidence. Station drama: Fry (pictured left in uniform) was reported by Driver Operator Brian Swartz. Fry and Seabolt made a counter accusation against Swartz that was found to be false Family man: Fry, pictured here with his family, was suspended for 30 days without pay. Cameras will be installed in the building's common areas to make sure this type of fraternization doesn't happen again 'Deny, lie and make counter accusations. Thats his motto,' Swartz said. 'Knowing Spike and what hes trying to do is show a trend. So... if he gets two people doing it, then Im trending doing it.' Further investigation into the alleged relationship uncovered more evidence that could indicate the pair were playing while on duty instead of working. Two shirtless photos of Fry were found on Seabolts personal electronics. Investigators took a photo of Seabolt's car parked outside of Fry's home at 12.12 a.m. on a Saturday, according to Bay News 9. A parking pass from the Treasure Island Ocean Club, a beach front hotel, indicates that Seabolt checked out a day after she called out sick from work at the fire station. 'Were looking at putting cameras on the outside of the buildings. Which is a good idea anyway from a homeland security perspective, said City manager Bill Horne. 'But also cameras inside the building, in the common areas and we have requested that our assistant chiefs conduct recurring visits to the fire stations during their tours of duty, since they cover the city 24-7.' In order to make sure this type of relationship does not happen again, Horne said the city will establish strict written protocols to ensure a proper code of conduct. 'Im confident that you arent going to see this sort of incident happen in the future,' he said. These are the first pictures of the suspected 'ivory poachers' accused of shooting down a hero British helicopter pilot as he tried to save elephants in Tanzania. Roger Gower was fatally shot down by a rifle while taking part in a helicopter operation to catch a gang in a game reserve next to Serengeti National Park. Niles Gunga, 28, is alleged to have fired a bullet through the bottom of the pilot's helicopter on Friday, January 29, bringing the aircraft crashing down. Accused: Njile Gunga (pictured) is alleged to have shot the bullet which pierced the bottom of Roger Gower's helicopter and fatally struck the British conservationist, before exiting the roof of the helicopter in January 'Poaching gang': Gunga, 28, appeared alongside eight other suspected poachers alleged to have been hunting in land next to the Serengeti National Park. All nine are charged with murder Killed: Mr Gower, who trained as an accountant, died a hero as he managed to bring the aircraft down in such a way that he saved his passenger who escaped the crash Gunga appeared alongside eight others who had also been accused of murder. He denied the charges along with co-defendants Shija Mjika, 38, Dotto Pangali, 42, Moses Mandago, 28, Iddi Abdullah, 50, Dotto Huya, 44, Mwigulu Kanga, 40, Mapolu Gabida, 50 and Mange Buluma, 47. Prosecutors say that the men were an experienced poaching gang, with known insiders such as Iddi Abdullah, who had worked for the Ngorongoro Conservation Authority as a Wildlife official. They were also charged with possessing $15,000 (10,765) worth of ivory. Gunga is also is accused of making a career out of killing elephants, and working with other poachers to sell to bigger gangs. If the men are found guilty, they could face the death penalty. Tanzanian authorities are still investigating the killing, but the case could be heard in the country's highest court. Shot from the sky: On the day of Mr Gower's death, the Friedkin Conservation Fund - the organisation he was working for - found two dead elephants, and had sent him out in a helicopter Senior State Attorney Yamiko Mlekano said: 'We are still looking for DNA evidence and ballistic evidence as well. Plus other pieces of evidence that I'm not ready to disclose. But once we are finished, we will prosecute the case in the high court. 'The case will not be difficult. We are confident that we will get a conviction.' However, the atmosphere was tense in the courtroom, with prosecutors asking not to be filmed or photographed to protect their identity from the gangs, who make millions from poaching. Fifteen armed soldiers were also standing guard outside the magistrates court as proceedings began - another sign of how seriously Tanzania takes the threat of those allegedly involved in poaching gangs. Outside the court, community leader Masunga Liyabuyenze expressed his frustration with poachers. He said: 'The community cares about the animals. Other people come in and kill them, but most people care. 'I feel bad, as a human being, about someone being killed. Here in Tanzania we value a person's life. So when I heard of someone being killed, I felt sad.' On the day of Mr Gower's death, the Friedkin Conservation Fund - the organisation the trained accountant was working for - had found two dead elephants, and had sent him out in a helicopter. The organisation's director Pratik Patel, who was working on the same anti-poaching operation, said: 'He saw a third dead elephant which had only very recently been killed and flew back to investigate, which was when a man appeared and shot straight at the helicopter.' The shot went up through the floor, going through Mr Gower's leg, shoulder and eye before exiting through the roof. But before the helicopter crashed into the ground, Mr Gower managed to save his colleague, South African spotter Nick Bester, who was able to jump to safety after the Brit manoeuvred out of the way of a tree. Fear: Fifteen soldiers were on guard outside the courtroom - a mark of how seriously the Tanzanian authorities take the threat from poaching gangs Hero:The shot went up through the floor, going through Mr Gower's leg, shoulder and eye before exiting through the roof Horror: Shocking pictures were posted on Facebook, including this one of the pilot's blood-stained chair The nine men face a number of other charges, including committing economic crimes - poaching - and possessing weapons. A woman was charged with working as one of their accomplices. Advertisement Belgium has abandoned free movement as armed guards patrol road checkpoints with France and mounted officers keep watch at rural crossing points. The country set up the huge operation to monitor three border crossings and surrounding seaside dunes in the De Panne region bordering France. It involves about 300 officers, a helicopter and mounted police. Police carrying out car-by-car checks turned back 80 mainly Afghan migrants today. The border checks were last put in place in Belgium in November, following the Paris attacks that left 130 people dead. However, this is the first time border controls have been used outside a time of crisis since March 1995, when the Schengen agreement was brought into force, allowing free movement across an agreed European zone. Today's checks came a day after Belgium began reinstating controls to stop people coming from the Jungle camp in Calais. Mounted officers: Police on horses patrol the dunes today on the French-Belgian border in Adinkerke, Belgium Taking a look: Police officers check the passports of two men today as they try to cross the French-Belgian border in Adinkerke, Belgium Checks: Belgium is reinforcing borders with France close to Calais to avoid a flood of people crossing the border if the 'Jungle' is closed 'Currently over the past 24 hours we have prevented 80 people, mainly Afghans, from coming into Belgium,' police spokesman Peter Dewaele said. A further 25 people - Syrians, Iranians and Afghans - have been intercepted on Belgian territory. After having been interrogated by the Foreigners' Office, they were immediately driven back to the French border. Belgium is setting up border checks along its frontier with France to avoid migrants bound for Britain choosing the country as a transit point. The country has deployed police officers to make checks at crossings with France, especially near the coast, as well as near Zeebrugge. Investigations: Police carrying out car-by-car checks on the border turned back 80 mainly Afghan migrants today (file image from today) Inspection: A huge operation was set up to monitor three border crossings and surrounding seaside dunes in the De Panne region Flagged down: A police man stops a freight truck on the French-Belgian border in Adinkerke today during the operation The locations where the checks would be carried out would be chosen by police and evaluated daily, the country said. We already see movement of migrants from Calais towards our country, Interior Minister Jan Jambon said yesterday in Brussels. Once the camps in France are cleared we could potentially see thousands. Authorities near the Belgian coast intercepted 950 UK-bound migrants in January, up from 360 in November, according to West Flanders officials. Three quarters of those intercepted were either of Iraqi or Iranian origin. Migrants caught by the checks would be told to immediately leave the country. Police: Belgium is setting up border checks along its frontier with France to avoid migrants bound for Britain choosing it as a transit point Leaving the cab: Belgium has deployed police officers to make checks at crossings with France, especially near the coast Huge numbers: Authorities near the Belgian coast intercepted 950 Britain-bound migrants in January, up from 360 in November The minister stressed that the border checks were targeted at the coastal region and would not have consequences for other crossings. Belgium is not closing its borders, that's not what this is about, we are making targeted checks against a specific phenomenon, Mr Jambon said. An rising number of EU states, most recently Austria, are tightening national borders, threatening to undermine Europe's free-travel Schengen zone. At the Jungle site in Calais, aid workers fear migrants and refugees will head to other squalid camps in France if mass evictions go ahead. There was no sign this morning of anyone making attempts to pack up their belongings as people waited for news on a court ruling. Fighting eviction: Migrants watch French officials tour the 'Jungle' migrant camp in Calais yesterday Praying for good news: Aid workers fear migrants and refugees will head to other squalid camps in France if mass evictions go ahead Uncertain times: There is no sign of anyone making attempts to pack up their belongings as people waited for news on a court ruling What happens next? Save the Children said that if evictions do go ahead, people will simply move to other camps in the region A decision on whether those in the southern part of the camp should be forced from their makeshift homes may not come from Lille until tomorrow. Save the Children said that if evictions do go ahead, people will simply move to other camps in the region, including the Grande-Synthe site in Dunkirk. Meanwhile, in the Jungle, some said they would be forced to leave behind close-knit communities forged after fleeing war in their homelands. An 'outstanding' Cambridge university undergraduate has been found not guilty of raping a fellow student in her room following a night out. Prithvi Sridhar, 21, moved to the UK from India for a better education but was forced to 'put his life on hold' for a year after being accused of assaulting the alleged victim in November 2014. He took a gap year from the prestigious Queens' College, where he was on course to achieve a first in engineering, to prepare his desperate bid to prove his innocence. Prithvi Sridhar, pictured, was found not guilty of raping a fellow student by a jury at Cambridge Crown Court Sridhar, pictured, denied the allegations told the court he would never have sex without the proper consent Sridhar was reading engineering at Queens' College in Cambridge when the rape allegation was made He now plans to return to his lectures and complete his engineering degree, with the support of the university. Sridhar's alleged victim, who cannot be named for legal reasons, told a court that he forced himself upon her after returning to her room, leaving huge love bites on her neck. She claimed she tried to get away but he kept pulling her back and raped her as tears ran down her face. But the jury at Cambridge Crown Court dismissed her claims and this afternoon found Sridhar not guilty of rape. The complainant was studying at a different Cambridge college. Speaking outside course shortly after the verdict, his father Mr Sridhar said: 'We are all extremely relieved and we are very, very happy.' A statement released by the family added: 'Prithvi Sridhar and his family are grateful today for the Jury's verdict clearing his name of these false allegations. 'Prithvi would like to thank the jury for their careful consideration of the evidence and fair deliberation in this trial; his family and friends who have supported him throughout these difficult times; Queens College who have supported him throughout the proceedings and his defence team from MPR Solicitors and Joe Stone QC. 'Since he was first interviewed on the January 16, 2015, when these allegations were first put to him his life has been devastated. Sridhar said it was his intention to return to Queens' College, pictured, in order to complete his degree in engineering where he is on course for a First. 'He has had to take a gap year from Queens' College where he had achieved a first in his first two years and put his life on hold in order to prepare for his trial. 'Prithvi looks forward now to moving on with his life and completing his degree and studies at Queens College.' Sridhar received the highest marks in the world for economics in the Cambridge-affiliated Outstanding Cambridge Learner award, while a student at Mallya Aditi International School in Bangalore, India, in 2012. He also received awards for the highest marks in India in chemistry, mathematics and physics in the Cambridge International Examinations. The exams are run by Cambridge Assessment, a non-teaching department of the University of Cambridge. Sridhar, who is of Indian nationality, first arrived in the UK in October 2013. The allegations came after a night out in November 4, when 'there was a fair amount of drinking involved'. Prosecutor David Matthew told how the pair moved on to a club where Sridhar 'persistently wanted to dance with her and they were hugging and kissing.' He then offered to walk the girl home because 'she was nervous about walking home alone' before the pair shared a taxi back to her halls of residence where Sridhar began kissing her. Mr Matthew told the jury: 'They got into bed both fully dressed but she says she felt pushed along. 'Up to this stage they both agreed to the physical contact.' The alleged victim added: 'I told him I did not want anything to happen. He kissed my neck and left huge hickies. 'He decided he wanted to have sex but I told him to stop and I tried to push him off. 'I started crying because it was really hurting. I tried to get up to go to the toilet but he was pulling me down.' Cambridge Crown Court, pictured, heard the allegation followed a drunken night out in November 4, 2014 Mr Matthew told the court how Sridhar then allegedly forced himself upon the woman, causing her pain. But his barrister Joe Stone told the jury how the woman had got back in bed with Sridhar after the alleged rape. He said: 'Surely if she was raped, the last place on earth she would want to return to would be that room.' Giving evidence, Sridhar's godfather Sian Gopinath, 48, said: 'Nothing has ever caused me concern in regards to his interaction with women. He went to the same school as my daughter.' Coursemate Mark Jerjain, 20, said Sridhar was 'kind and good natured'. 'He knew it was wrong and understood how I felt. This made me think he had a good moral compass.' Sridhar was visibly emotional and hugged his family and friends as he left the courtroom. His mother and father were crying in the public gallery after the 'not guilty' verdict was read out. His father Mr Sridhar added: 'His life could have been ruined by this allegation but we're glad he can now get back on track.' Advertisement Snaking for miles through residential streets, this is the 'river of rubbish' which is blighting the landscape of the Lebanese capital. Huge mountains of waste bags line the streets of Jdeideh, north west of Beirut, with the crisis growing worse and worse in recent months. Problems began when authorities shut the main landfill site in the city in July, but failed to provide an alternative outlet for the thousands of tonnes of rubbish produced. Residents have been left up in arms about the growing waste problem, with violent protests even breaking out over the situation. Jawanah, a local resident, told CNN: 'This used to be such a beautiful place, but look at it now. We can't even walk by it.' Plans had been in place to export the rubbish to Russia but they fell through on Friday when the firm transporting the waste failed to submit the correct paperwork on time, according to a government agency. Mona Kalot, a spokesman for Lebanon's Council for Development and Reconstruction, said the country was now back to square one. 'We don't have a solution, but they're working on something else,' she said. 'I don't think it will be transferring outside Lebanon.' Huge mountains of waste bags line the streets of Jdeideh, north west of Beirut, with the rubbish crisis growing worse in recent months A truck drives past packed waste bags in Jdeideh, Beirut, as they line either side of the street as the rubbish crisis continues to worsen The 'rubbish river' emerged months ago when a makeshift dump began in a yard near residential buildings. It has since spread to roads Huge piles of packed waste are stacked high in the harbour of the Lebanese capital, Beirut, as the country continues to deal with the crisis The waste has been packed together in white garbage bags and dumped on a piece of land at the harbour of the Lebanese capital, Beirut Hundreds of bags of wrapped rubbish is seen piled up high at a temporary dump in the town of Jdeideh, north east of Beirut, this week Scrap collectors race with their karts next to a temporary rubbish dump in the town of Jdeideh, just north east of the Lebanese capital Two women walk past garbage piling up at a temporary dump in the town of Jdeideh, north east of the Lebanese capital Beirut, this week Lebanon cancelled a plan to export its waste to Russia, sending its six-month crisis back to square one as piles of trash choke the city air Jail records show Eide has been arrested 17 times since 2002 on a variety of charges, inclduing DUI, A Nebraska woman who made headlines three months ago when she was bitten by a tiger at a local zoo has now shown that she too got some teeth. Jacqueline Eide, 33, was arrested in Omaha on Saturday afternoon after police say she was seen 'staggering in the street' and 'harassing young children.' According to an incident report, Eide was carrying a large plastic cup with an orange liquid inside. When questioned by officers, Ms Eide, who was described as being 'very intoxicated and irrational,' said she was drinking vodka and orange juice. Tiger lady behind bars: Jacqueline Eide, 33, was arrested on February 20 (pictured left in mugshot) after she allegedly tried to bite a police officer. Three months prior, she landed behind bars for on a trespassing charge after sneaking inside a zoo and getting bitten by a tiger (pictured right in booking photo from November) Big cat: On Halloween night, Eide stayed inside the Henry Doory Zoo in Omaha after hours and tried to pet this 18-year-old three-legged tiger named Mai The animal nipped Eide on her fingers, causing severe trauma that required surgery Video courtesy WOWT Witnesses said the woman approached two teenage boys who were painting an apartment complex near 31st and Mason streets and began grabbing them from behind and trying to give them a bear hug, reported KETV. According to the report, Eide turned aggressive after being told to leave the boys alone and began yelling at them. After police arrived on the scene and placed the belligerent woman in the back of a cruiser, she allegedly became 'verbally abusive,' threatened to kill the family of one of the officers and then tried to bite at least one cop. Eide was arrested on suspicion of disorderly conduct and having an open container of liquor in a public place. On Monday, a judge ordered her held on $25,000 bond. Ms Eide, who according to court records has a very long history of run-ins with the law resulting in nearly a dozen-and-a-half arrests, appeared in court earlier this month in connection to the October 31 incident in which she snuck into the Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium and tried to pet a tiger. When she reached into a cage housing an 18-year-old three-legged Malayan tiger named Mai, the big cat clamped down on her fingers with its sharp fangs, causing severe trauma. The incident took place on Halloween night and Eide was accompanied at the zoo by a teenager, according to officials. Eide was hospitalized for her injury and was later charged with criminal trespass, contributing to the delinquency of a child and criminal mischief. During her initial court appearance in December, Eide's attorney, James Martin Davis, argued that his client was not trying to pet the tiger after all, according to KMTV. The lawyer said in court that the 33-year-old animal lover told him she had her hands on the bars of the animals cage when a lion housed next door roared and possibly spooked Mai the tiger, causing her to nip her. Jail records show Eide has been in and out of jail more than 16 times since 2002. These are some of the 33-year-old's booking photos The lawyer also explained that his client had visited the big cat in the past since she has a zoo pass. Eide and Davis were back in court on February 12 to try and work out a plea agreement with the prosecution in the zoo incident. Under the proposed deal, Eide will plead guilty to the criminal trespassing charge, a misdemeanor, and in exchange prosecutors will drop the two other charges against her. Her lawyer told the channel KCCI at the time he expected Eide to be ordered to pay a fine and restitution of $1,200 to cover the zoo's clean-up costs. A judge was set to approve the plea agreement in that case in April, but now Eide's lawyer says he is not sure about the outcome of that case, what with his client's latest arrest. 'All I can say is she's got a lot in common with that tiger at the zoo,' Davis told KETV. 'They're both behind bars and they both apparently like to bit.' The queen of clean: According to her now-defunct LinkedIn page, the Omaha resident owns a cleaning business called Simply Organized Animal lover: Eide, pictured left getting a smooch from her pit bull mix pooch and right posing with a snake wrapped around her neck, has a pass to to the Henry Doorly Zoo in Omaha Douglas County Jail records show Ms Eide has been arrested 17 times since 2002 on a wide variety of charges, inclduing obstruction of justice, shoplifting, graffiti and disturbing the peace. Her vast rap sheet also includes three DUI convictions, most recently in 2011, which resulted in jail time for Eide. Donald Trump will barnstorm through seven southern states in just four days after Thursday night's Republican primary debate in Houston, Texas setting the stage for what could be an election blowout on 'Super Tuesday,' March 1. On Friday he will stump at the Fort Worth Convention Center in Fort Worth, Texas before boarding his private Boeing 757 en route to a second convention center rally in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Saturday will see The Donald in Bentonville, Arkansas, the home of Wal-Mart, rallying supporters at the airport there. Then it's off to Millington, Tennessee, a suburb of Memphis, for another airport hangar speech. Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Tennessee, Alabama, Virginia and Georgia and that's just in three days! Donald Trump will saturate the American south with his stump speeches leading up to Super Tuesday, March 1 ALWAYS BE CLOSING: Trump was trying to seal a deal with Virginia Republicans on Wednesday at Regent University in Virginia Beach, where college founder and evangelist Pat Robertson (right) hosted him onstage Shades of things to come: Wild crowds greeted Trump like a conquering hero when he claimed victory Tuesday night in Nevada On Sunday Trump will be in Huntsville, Alabama inside an aviation engineering company's hangar again at a regional airport. He'll next turn up at Radford University in Radford, Viginia and Valdosta State University in Valdosta, Georgia both on Monday. Trump also spoke Wednesday at Regent University, a Christian college, in Virginia Beach, Virginia, talking onstage with evangelist Pat Robertson and Christian Broadcasting Network host David Brody. His rapid-fire schedule is so tightly orchestrated that only Trump's private jet can make all the stops. There is no commercial airline service, for instance, that can take journalists in between Monday's two university stops quickly enough to make it to George in time for Secret Service screening. And unlike the two presidential candidates on the Democratic side of the 2016 White House contest, Team Trump isn't helping news outlets with chartered flights. 'We are not providing a charter,' Trump press secretary Hope Hicks confirmed on Wednesday. Texas Sen. Ted Cruz and Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, Trump's main competition for the GOP's presidential nomination, haven't published schedules that are nearly ambitious as his. Trump has the leading poll position in nearly every state set to hold elections on Tuesday the exceptions being Texas and Arkansas, where Cruz holds slim leads. Rubio will be in Oklahoma City and Dallas on Friday, and in Kennesaw, Georgia on Saturday at lunchtime, according to his published schedule. A few hours later he's scheduled to be in Birmingham, Alabama for a presidential forum hosted by Yellowhammer News. Rubio also has stops scheduled in Arkansas and Virginia, and he will visit more places than The Donald but in smaller venues than the ones Trump is accustomed to packing. Cruz is also committed to be at the Yellowhammer event, according to organizers. But he hasn't released the rest of his pre-Super Tuesday schedule yet. Cruz is thought to be embracing an all-in Texas strategy, campaigning in few other places in advance of Tuesday. Losing his home state to Trump would be a devastating and possible campaign-ending embarrassment. Cruz's wife Heidi is scheduled to make 10 separate Texas stops on her own between Friday and Sunday. In addition to the seven states Trump will visit in the run-up to Super Tuesday, there will be Republican contests on that day in Alaska, Arkansas, Colorado, Massachusetts, Minnesota, North Dakota, Vermont and Wyoming. Trump is leading the race with 81 delegates to the Republican National Convention following victories in New Hampshire, South Carolina and Nevada. Cruz and Rubio each have just 17. LOCKING IT UP? Trump and his omnipresent sons Don Jr. (left) and Eric (right) expect to do well Tuesday but the Republican presidential front-runner isn't coasting or resting on his laurels On Tuesday there will be a whopping 595 delegates at stake for Republicans. That's 24 per cent of the 2,472 distributed throughout the country. It will take 1,237 to secure the nomination in July when the party meets in Cleveland, Ohio. But the stakes will get even higher on March 15 when Republican contests can be 'winner-take-all,' meaning that even a slim plurality win for a candidate will net him all the delegates at stake. Elections and caucuses so far this year, including those scheduled for Tuesday, award delegates proportionately, usually with a minimum requirement for getting any delegates at all. Texas has its own unusual rule befitting the gun-happy Lone star State: a 50 per cent 'trigger.' If any candidate wins an outright majority of votes there on Tuesday, Texas will become winner-take-all. Trump said Tuesday night after his caucus victory in Nevada that 'we've had some great numbers coming out of Texas, and amazing numbers coming out of Tennessee and Georgia and Arkansas and then in a couple of weeks later Florida.' 'We love Florida so. We're going to do very well in Ohio. We're beating the governor. It's always nice to be beating the governor. And Michigan the whole thing. It's going to be an amazing two months.' A man dressed as a boy scout allegedly sexually harassed University of Arizona students while his friend wore a T-shirt saying: 'You deserve rape.' Ali Cummings was walking through campus when she spotted the two unidentified men shouting at women, calling them 'w*****' and telling them to 'close their legs', as police officers allegedly stood and watched. She captured the sickening incident from Snapchat and then uploaded the photo of the man to Facebook. She criticized campus officers for not intervening, but department officials say students stood along that stretch of a footpath are allowed to exercise their right to freedom of speech without interference. They were there to police the crowd and keep the demonstrators safe - as they have been assaulted in the past. A man dressed as a boy scout allegedly sexually harassed University of Arizona students as they walked to classes by telling them to close their legs as they walked passed He walked alongside a cameraman wearing a t-shirt saying: 'You deserve rape' Her post has since gone viral, being shared 800 times by fellow students, and has prompted some students to stay away from campus. On Facebook, she wrote: 'Walking to class with two of my friends and a grown man dressed as a boy scout yells, "close your legs and stop dressing like a whore".' Ali Cummings was walking through campus when she spotted the two men who were shouting at women, while police allegedly stood and watched She added that she was wearing leggings and a big t-shirt at the time time. '(He) then proceeded to tell us we are poisoning the world and murdering children,' she went on. 'Alongside this guy was a camera man wearing a t-shirt that says "YOU DESERVE RAPE". 'For some odd reason, this is allowed and several police officers stood by while we were sexually harassed. 'I have never felt so offended and unsafe in my life.' Sergeant Filbert Barrera, the public information officer for the University of Arizona Police told Daily Mail Online the area where the boy scout was stood is referred to as the 'Mall Of Preachers'. All students are allowed to stand there and exercise their right to freedom of speech. It avoids them going into buildings and posing safety concerns. He added that the police try and find a balance between these 'preachers' overstepping the boundaries and practicing their rights. Some of them, he admits, do say vulgar things to passing students, but he implores those who are offended to simply ignore them. Sergeant Barrera also revealed that he has arrested bystanders for assaulting the preachers in the past. Daily Mail Online has also contacted the University of Arizona and their campus police department for comment. Officials have been under fire in the past for allowing students with misogynistic views to protest on campus. In 2013, student Dean Saxton IV was spotted holding up the sign saying: You deserve rape. It is not known if he was the man seen wearing the t-shirt. Dean does this every week, but his sign this week stirred up quite the commotion, begins the student who helped catch the commotion on video. Known on campus as Brother Dean, Saxton began what his blog calls open air preaching, likely as an answer to the Take Back the Night anti-rape vigil scheduled for later Tuesday night. She uploaded pictures to social media and recounted the sickening incident in a Facebook post The footage starts slowly, with only Dean and his friend, Sinless Sarah, sitting in the shade of a tree with their sign and bantering with the people taking the video. We as Christians uphold one of the highest standards of purity, Saxton said. Never had sex, never kissed each other or kissed anybody else. Thats the standard you guys should be living up to.' On his blog and Twitter account, Saxton often condemns homosexuality, Islam, and feminists, according to U of A campus newspaper The Daily Wildcat. The bible, Saxton said, says I have the right to judge righteously. Doctors now know it is triggered by A schoolgirl was left gutted after a surprise trip to Disneyland made her vomit 50 times a day because of a rare condition triggered by excitement. Mia Gleeson, 11, suffered from an undiagnosed vomiting condition for years and doctors were baffled as to why she would have episodes where she was sick for days at a time. But it was only when mother Sarah, 41, from Feltham, Middlesex, planned a surprise trip to Disneyland when she realised her daughter's sickness was triggered by excitement. The girl was eventually diagnosed with Cyclical Vomiting Syndrome. Mia and her mother Sarah - who only realised her daughter's sickness was triggered by excitement when she planned the Disney trip Mia Gleeson, 11, suffered from an undiagnosed vomiting condition for years and doctors were baffled as to why she would have episodes where she was sick for days at a time Mia Gleeson, 11, suffered from an undiagnosed vomiting condition for years and doctors were baffled as to why she would have episodes where she was sick for days at a time And after her diagnosis, medics have now been able to give Mia medication to control her CVS meaning she can live a normal life again. Sarah, who is a full-time carer for Mia, said: 'The first Mia and her twin brother Michael knew they were going to Disneyland was when they spotted my sister-in-law, Tina, in St Pancras station with a poster telling them, just before Christmas. 'You could see the excitement on their faces, but we hadn't even got off the Eurostar when Mia started vomiting. 'It was such a shame because Mia only managed to go on one rollercoaster the entire time that we were there and we had to cancel seeing the Disney princesses. I even had to hire a buggy to wheel her around as she was so weak. 'Michael had loads of energy and wanted to see all of the attractions in the park, but Mia was unable to keep up. Mia and her mother Sarah with toys from their trip to Disneyland where Mia was sick due to excitement Mia with her mother Sarah and brother Michael in Disneyland Paris - the girl was eventually diagnosed with Cyclical Vomiting Syndrome 'I realised after that holiday that Mia's vomiting episodes would be triggered by excitement. There was always a pattern that she would become really ill in anticipation of her birthday as well.' Mia was born with an unrelated heart condition which meant doctors struggled to diagnose her with CVS because they always though her vomiting was related to operations she had had on her heart. But after Sarah's brainwave on holiday, she was soon diagnosed and was put on treatment for the condition shortly after her holiday in December 2015. Sarah said: 'In December, we made an emergency appointment with Mia's gastroenterologist who diagnosed her with Cyclical Vomiting Syndrome. HOW DOES CYCLICAL VOMITING SYNDROME AFFECT SUFFERERS? The NHS describes Cyclical Vomiting Syndrome (CVS) as a 'rare vomiting disorder most commonly seen in children, although it can affect adults too'. Someone with CVS will frequently feel very sick and will vomit for hours, or even days, at a time. They will then recover from the episode and feel perfectly well, before experiencing another episode perhaps a month or so later. These vomiting attacks are not explained by an infection or other illness. CVS can affect a person for months, years or even decades. Symptoms can be so severe that some sufferers may need to stay in bed and be treated in hospital during an episode. It can be a frightening condition that affects everyday life, but the cycle is possible to manage with lifestyle changes and medication. Advertisement 'Mia is too young to be able to take anti-sickness tablets, but the doctor put her on Dioralyte which has really helped to prevent the weight loss that used to accompany her sickness. 'We've managed to cut down how often Mia has episodes of sickness now and we feed her as regularly as possible to keep her weight up, including a high calorie milk that she has in the evenings. 'While Mia doesn't have as much energy as other children her age, she's a very intelligent girl and easily keeps up in her studies despite having to take time off from school when she is ill. 'She loves school especially art and drama, and has a real no nonsense attitude in the playground. She's even a school councillor. 'Mia's a pretty tough cookie despite everything she has had to endure over the years.' Amanda O'Dwyer, from CVS UK, said: 'At the moment there is no diagnostic test for CVS, which is one of the reasons it is so hard to diagnose. 'It is mainly symptomatic and many other things have to be ruled out first. This can include numerous urine and blood tests, faecal tests, kidney scans, and an MRI on the brain before a diagnosis can be made. 'CVS UK is there to support and inform sufferers, we fundraise in order to fund more research and work with other associations across the world to share any information. 'We also run a family day once a year where members can meet other sufferers and we have guest lecturers to give us information on the latest developments. Killed: Corporal Nate Carrigan, a 13-year veteran, was shot dead Wednesday in Bailey, Colorado A man who spent years fighting the foreclosure of his Colorado home and ranted online about police and corporate corruption shot three law enforcement officers trying to serve an eviction notice Wednesday, killing one and wounding the others, authorities said. The officer killed at the scene has been identified as Corporal Nate Carrigan, a 13-year veteran of the Park County Sheriff's Office. The officers fired back in this forested mountain community, killing the gunman, who was identified by police as 58-year-old Martin Wirth and has been pictured lying dead in the snow outside his house. Eight officers went to the snow-covered two-story home in a hillside neighborhood north of the town of Bailey to serve what authorities described as a 'high-risk' eviction notice. The well-maintained houses sit on big lots, with room for horses to graze in an area popular with hunters and anglers. Wirth appeared on the deck of his home when the officers arrived, then went back inside, according to the sheriff's office account of the shooting. Officers followed him in, and Wirth fired on them, prompting them to return fire, sheriff's officials said. The shooting killed Carrigan. One of the wounded officers underwent surgery for life-threatening injuries and was in critical condition at a Denver hospital. The body of the shooting suspect, identified as activist Martin Wirth, is visible outside the Denver property where he was killed after he shot dead a sheriff's deputy on Wednesday The other was treated and released from a hospital after a bullet grazed his ear, Colorado Bureau of Investigation spokeswoman Susan Medina said. Scores of people attended a vigil Wednesday night for Carrigan at Platte Canyon Community Church. Some wrote remembrances and prayers on sheets of paper lining the church walls. Wirth owned the home until March 2014, when Fannie Mae, the government-controlled mortgage company, took ownership after he lost a court battle over his foreclosure. according to The Denver Post. Wirth also once ran for Senate. A picture of the property this evening from Denver7 News shows the body of Wirth lying in the snow outside, with armed officers standing guard close by. After Wirth lost his case in state court, he sued Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper, the state attorney general and a judge in 2013. The federal lawsuit claimed that state foreclosure laws were unconstitutional and that Wirth and his unnamed guests were 'in imminent danger of being wrongfully deprived of home and property while also being threatened with an armed and forcible entry onto the property and into the home.' Property owner: Occupy Denver activist Martin Wirth (pictured at a protest) was shot dead during the shooting He asked a federal judge to block Park County from selling his home, evicting him or forcibly entering the house and to strike down several state laws. A federal judge dismissed the lawsuit last September. A website by a group called the Colorado Foreclosure Resistance Coalition includes undated posts that called for supporters to join Wirth in 'non-violent eviction resistance.' The website includes a video of a man identified as Wirth railing against mortgage companies as criminals. A call to the group, whose website says it is part of the Occupy movement, was not immediately returned. Tim Holland, who was involved in the Occupy Denver movement with Wirth, struggled to reconcile the shooting with his memories of Wirth as a 'sweet, quirky, kindhearted guy.' 'It seems to me that he was just pushed to the end of his rope, and he tried every single approach to addressing his grievances, and at the end, he chose to not let them take his house away from him,' Holland said. 'It's the middle of winter in the mountains. Where was he going to go?' Wirth ran for the state Senate in 2014 as a Green Party candidate, but he lost to an incumbent Republican. In a candidate questionnaire he completed for The Denver Post, Wirth wrote of corruption in the political system, his support for Colorado's marijuana laws and the plight of the poor. The home: The suspect at the home at 36 Iris Drive in Bailey (pictured) , 50 miles from Denver, opened fire on the deputies with a rifle. One deputy died and two others are wounded. The suspect also died When asked whether he supported the death penalty, Wirth wrote, 'Killing people to show that killing people is wrong is a piece of idiotic hypocrisy.' He wrote disparagingly of police, the federal government and corporations on his candidate page on Facebook and praised former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden, who leaked millions of documents about government surveillance. He made regular posts criticizing leading presidential candidates from both parties. Neighbor Terry Rogers, a counselor and pastor at Platte Canyon Community Church, said he did not know Wirth well and believes no one in the area did. 'He was pretty reclusive,' said Rogers, who could see law enforcement vehicles responding to the shooting across a snow-covered pasture from his driveway. Martin Wirth (pictured) also once ran for Senate. Wirth had supporters fighting for him to stay at the home prior to being served an eviction notice The area of rocky, pine-covered hills is about 45 miles southwest of Denver where several camps host Girl Scouts and other youth during the summer. The neighborhood is several miles outside Bailey, a hamlet of just a few restaurants and shops. Sam Lung, who lives nearby, said he often hears gunshots in the area, which has a target practice site. He said people often shoot in their backyards, 'practicing their Second Amendment rights.' He said he did not hear the gunshots Wednesday. 'It is a dark day,' Medina said. The male suspect died after opening fire on the deputies. The picturesque town is no stranger to tragedy. It is where a gunman took several girls hostage in a high school classroom a decade ago, killing one of them before himself. Duane Morrison, a 53-year-old drifter, held the girls for nearly four hours and sexually assaulted them in September 2006. The father of the 19-year-old woman who was burned alive in her car says his daughter had known her attacker 'less than two weeks' and that his criminal record means he should have never been 'out on the street'. Quintin Tellis, 27, was officially charged with capital murder on Wednesday in the grisly 2014 murder of Jessica Chambers. In an interview with People magazine, Chambers' father Ben said that he's 'tickled' to see his daughter's alleged killer finally face justice. Scroll down for video Quinton Tellis, 27, (left) has been charged with capital murder as he is suspected of setting fire to 19-year-old Jessica Chambers' car and leaving the Mississippi teen (right) there to die on December 7, 2014 Ben Chambers, left, makes remarks at the conclusion of a press conference in Batesville, Mississippi, on Wednesday, where law enforcement officials announced the indictment of Quinton Verdell Tellis in the 2014 killing of Chambers' daughter, Jessica At the same time, the trial won't bring his daughter back and he laments the broken system that let a man with a criminal record like Tellis out from behind bars. Tellis has been behind bars in Louisiana since the end of August, when he was arrested on three counts of unauthorized use of a debit card. He is also suspected in the stabbing death of a Taiwanese exchange student. 'I don't know [Tellis],' Chambers said. 'I know by his record or whatever that he never should've been out on the street. The system failed, I know that.' The victim's father also revealed more about the nature of his daughter and Tellis' relationship, saying they had only know each other 'less than two weeks'. That complicates a report from the Clarion Ledger, that the two had been in a relationship at the time of Chambers' murder. It was also reported that the two grew up in the same neighborhood and went to the same high school. Authorities previously said that the nature of the crime appeared 'very, very personal'. 'Someone meant to cause her great pain,' District Attorney John Champion said at the time. Chambers was found lying barely alive on the side of the road next to her Kia Rio sedan (pictured days after the attack in Mississippi) by a passing driver at 8.15pm on the night of her death Chambers was found lying barely alive on the side of the road next to her Kia Rio sedan by a passing driver at 8.15pm on the night of her death. The teen was then taken to hospital where her parents rushed to see her before she succumbed to the burns, which covered 98 per cent of her body. Lisa Daugherty told the channel WJTV she heard from one of the firefighters and from a nurse that her daughter said a man named Eric did this to her. She allegedly said that she did not know her attacker's last name but repeated the first name about 15 times. According to his Facebook page, Tellis got married in August 2015. He is currently facing charges for allegedly using credit cards belonging to murdered Taiwanese student Meing-chen Hsiao, 34, who was found stabbed to death in her apartment in Monroe, Louisiana, in August 2015 Tellis posted this photo (left) just days after he allegedly murdered Chambers. Right, another photo on his Facebook page She had spoken to her mother on the phone little over an hour earlier, at 7pm, to say: 'I'm cleaning my car and getting something to eat and I'll be home.' Police have spent more than a year scouring the area and interviewing locals to identify a suspect, interviewing hundreds of people. He is currently facing charges for allegedly using credit cards belonging to murdered Taiwanese student Meing-chen Hsiao, 34, who was found stabbed to death in her apartment in Monroe, Louisiana, in August 2015. According to his Facebook page, Tellis got married in August 2015. The teen was then taken to hospital where her parents rushed to see her before she succumbed to the burns, which covered 98 per cent of her body She had spoken to her mother (pictured) on the phone little over an hour earlier, at 7pm, to say: 'I'm cleaning my car and getting something to eat and I'll be home' He was detained on three counts of unauthorized use of a card as well as marijuana possession 14 days Hsiaos body was found. According to an affidavit, he spent $1,000 with the card. A press conference is due to be held in Panola County on Wednesday afternoon detailing both cases Tellis is linked to. Chambers' mother Lisa has refused to discuss the case until the press conference. Tellis was last known to be living in Monroe. The Clarion Ledger reports he married his fiancee on August 8, 2015 - the day Meing-chen Hsiao was found dead. Jessica's father, Ben Chambers, said he and the rest of the family are desperate for closure and want to see his daughter's killer brought to justice, reported the station WMC Action News5. He is the one American citizen known to be detained in Iran who wasn't included in January's high-profile prisoner Siamak Namazi, an oil and gas company executive, was arrested in October and sent to Evin prison Secretary of State John Kerry said at a Senate panel meeting he was aware of the arrest Iranian authorities have arrested a US citizen whose son has been detained in Iran for the last four months, friends and family announced Wednesday. Baquer Namazi, whose son Siamak has been held since October, was arrested on Monday, his wife wrote in a Facebook post. She said she was told he is now in Tehran's Evin prison. 'I must share the shocking and sad news that Baquer was arrested,' Effie Namazi posted. 'Now both my innocent son Siamak and my Baquer are in prison for no reason. This is a nightmare I can't describe.' Father-son detainees: Iranian authorities have arrested Baquer Namazi (left), a US citizen whose businessman son, Siamak (right) has been detained in Tehran for the last four months Namazi's wife, Effie, wrote on Facerbook she was told her ailing octogenrian husband is now in Tehran's notorious Evin prison (pictured) She said she and a lawyer have been unable to get more information or see her octogenarian husband, who suffers from 'serious heart and other conditions' that require medication. Appearing at a Senate panel hearing Wednesday, Secretary of State John Kerry said he was engaged on the matter but couldn't comment because of privacy considerations. 'We are aware of reports that a US citizen was detained in Iran,' State Department spokesman Mark Toner said. 'The US Department of State has no higher priority than the protection of US citizens overseas. We take our obligation to assist US citizens abroad seriously.' Haleh Esfandiari, a friend of the family and a Mideast expert at the Wilson Center, said Namazi is more than 80 years old and a dual US-Iranian national. 'I'm in a state of shock,' said Esfandiari, who was detained herself in Iran for more than three months in 2007. Her take: 'They want Siamak to make concessions that he wasn't willing to make.' Namazi, she said, worked for the United Nations and at one point as a World Bank consultant, while also being a civil society activist. She described him as a 'not at all political' person who consistently spoke out against US-led economic sanctions against the Islamic Republic. The family lived outside New York for a period after the Islamic Revolution that toppled the US-backed shah in 1979, though later returned to Iran, she said. Iranian-American businessman Siamak Namazi, pictured in San Francisco in 2006, was detained by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in October while visiting family According to the Daily Beast last year, the family has played a key role in trying to bridge ties between the long-time foes. It said Namazi was a governor of the oil-rich province of Khuzestan under the shah who was allowed to emigrate to the US in 1983. Siamak Namazi, an Iranian-American businessman who similarly advocated a warmer US-Iranian relationship, is thought to have been arrested in October. Effie Namazi, Siamak's mother, wrote in a Facebook post from Iran on Saturday that she had been unable to meet with her son for some time and had heard through his cellmate's family that he had undertaken a hunger strike. She asked Iranian officials to allow her and Namazi's father to meet with Namazi to convince him to call off his strike. Left behind: Namazi is the one American citizen known to be detained in Iran who wasn't included in January's prisoner exchange On Monday, Mrs Namazi wrote in another Facebook post that her son called her home and said he had broken his strike. It was unclear how long the strike had lasted. 'We thank God and we also count the seconds to when we can see Siamak and embrace him, and more importantly, for our innocent son to be freed,' Effie Namazi wrote. Namazi most recently worked for Crescent Petroleum, an oil and gas company in the United Arab Emirates. Previously, he headed a consulting firm in Iran. Born in Iran, he was educated in the United States and was named a 'Young Global Leader' by the World Economic Forum in 2007. He is the one American citizen known to be detained in Iran who wasn't included in January's prisoner exchange that saw five American freed from Iranian prison and US sentences, charges or warrants dropped against 21 Iranians. Those allowed to leave Iran included Washington Post journalist Jason Rezaian. Iran denies having any knowledge of the whereabouts of Robert Levinson, a former FBI investigator who disappeared in the country in 2007. The younger Namazi had been specifically criticized in hardline commentary ahead of his arrest as Iranian conservatives warned against easing hostilities with the US. With all the 'winning, winning, winning,' Donald Trump has been doing in the last three states that held Republican contests, pollsters have looked more closely at the Trump voting bloc. YouGov and Public Policy Polling data, assembled since the beginning of the year, has the New York Times suggesting that Trump has 'built a significant part of his coalition of voters on people who are responsive to religious, social and racial intolerance.' One example that sticks out is a YouGov poll, which found that nearly 20 percent of Trump's voters said the slaves should not have been freed after the Civil War. Even more, when P.P.P. asked voters if they thought white people represented the superior race, while a majority of Republican primary voters in South Carolina 78 percent said no, that number decreased to 69 percent among Trump voters. Scroll down for video A YouGov poll found that nearly 20 percent of Donald Trump's voters said slaves shouldn't have been freed after the Civil War Donald Trump's supporters in South Carolina were more likely than those of other candidates to approve of the confederate flag flying above the state capitol In both these surveys, comparison with the other candidates' supporters are important. For instance, only 5 percent of Sen. Marco Rubio's supporters believed that the slaves shouldn't have been freed. On the question of the white race, the Times noted, 99 percent of Ben Carson's supporters, who were clearly on board with a black candidate, said they disagreed with the idea that whites represented the No.1 race. Following Carson's people were supporters of Ohio Gov. John Kasich, 92 percent who said no, and Sen. Ted Cruz, with 89 percent saying no. Rubio's supporters were in line with the average at 76 percent. In another battle that ties in race and the Civil War, 70 percent of Trump supporters in South Carolina, according to P.P.P. would prefer it if the confederate flag was still flying over the state capitol. Gov. Nikki Haley, who put her weight behind Rubio just days before Saturday's South Carolina primary, and other South Carolina officials, retired the flag last summer after the mass shooting at the Charleston Emanuel A.M.E. Church. Additionally, 38 percent of those supporters wish the South would have won the Civil War. In comparison, a quarter of Rubio's supporters believe the same thing. The numbers for Kasich and Carson are way down. Moving a few decades forward, a third of Trump, and Cruz's supporters too, say they believe that Japanese internment was a good thing to do. About 10 percent of Kasich and Rubio's supporters feel that way too. After World War II concluded, President Harry Truman ordered the military desegregated, something that Trump supporters said they were against in more robust numbers than the rest of the current crop of GOP candidates. Turning to more current issues, a third of Trump's backers in South Carolina believe that gays and lesbians should be banned from entering the United States. A Hispanic police officer claims he was denied service in a fast-food restaurant while dressed in uniform. Pedro Urresta pulled his patrol car into the drive thru at a Krystal in Irondale, Alabama, on Sunday and was ignored by staff. He then walked inside and saw two employees talking in clear sight of customers, but he was still made to wait another 20 minutes for food that never arrived. One of the employees did walk up to the counter, but didn't serve him and said she was going to the bathroom instead. Urresta eventually left the restaurant, prompting his wife Brittany to complain about how he was treated on Facebook. Pedro Urresta (pictured with his wife Brittany and daughter) claims he was denied service in a fast-food restaurant in Irondale, Alabama, while dressed in uniform He also emailed the company with a complaint, but they didn't reply, so he called their headquarters in Georgia. They apologized and said they would be investigating the matter. After reviewing surveillance footage, the company agreed that the service was 'unacceptable' and are looking into why it was so bad. Spokesman Kim Miller told AL.com that three other guests in the restaurant at the same time also received poor service. They have now invited all of the officers in the Irondale Police Department for a free meal. The backlash began when Urresta's wife Brittany wrote a scathing message on Facebook. 'It's a shame that police officers that protect and serve their communities are denied service,' she wrote. 'After waiting in the drive thru in his patrol car they never acknowledged my husbands order. He went inside in his uniform and every worker walked away from the counter to the back of the store.' Urresta eventually left the restaurant, prompting his wife Brittany to complain about how he was treated in a scating posy on Facebook Police Chief Ken Atkinson added: 'After talking with him (the officer) this morning, he feels like he was denied service and that's certainly what it sounds like. 'In this day and age when police officers are being killed, this is a restaurant in our city. If they have to call for an emergency, we're the ones responding. 'We're professional and we'll answer regardless of how we're treated,'' he said. "I want to know what happened and get an explanation, but as far as we're concerned, we'll move on and continue to do our job.' The officer went and got a meal someplace else and later emailed Krystal but, as of this morning, had not gotten a reply. Atkinson said he called the company in Georgia this morning and spoke with a customer service manager who said they had received his complaint and apologized for what may have happened. There have been multiple incidents nationwide over the past year where police officers have been denied service because of their chosen profession. After reviewing surveillance footage from inside the Irondale restaurant (pictured), the company agreed that the service was 'unacceptable' and are looking into what happened A former model who tried to hire a hitman to kill her husband's ex-wife has been jailed for seven years. Tara Lambert, 33, gave an undercover sheriff's deputy $125 as a down payment to kill Kellie Cooke, who is the mother of Lambert's two stepdaughters. Lambert, from Circleville, Ohio, suggested the officer - who she thought was an assassin - use a wood chipper to dispose of Mrs Cooke's corpse. Today she was jailed for seven years - four years less than the maximum sentence. Scroll down for video Former model Tara Lambert (pictured in court today), who tried to hire a hitman to kill her husband's ex-wife, has been jailed for seven years Lambert, 33, gave an undercover sheriff's deputy $125 as a down payment to kill Kellie Cooke (pictured with her husband, Shawn) Lambert (pictured in court today) was jailed for seven years - four years less than the maximum sentence Lambert apologized for the trauma she caused Mrs Cooke, her husband, Shawn, and their family, the Columbus Dispatch reported. She insisted she was not a 'monster', adding: 'If I had a time machine and could go back this wouldn't happen.' However, she shook her head and appeared to mouth the word 'bulls***' as Mr Cooke read out an emotional victim statement, saying his children had lost their innocence because of her. Weeping as he spoke, Mr Cooke said: 'This demon wanted to take innocent children's mommy away from them, punishing children who had never done anything wrong to this horrible person. 'Their loss of innocence can never be restored,' he added. Lambert had insisted during her trial that she had been joking about having Mrs Cooke killed, but a jury took just 45 minute to find her guilty. Her ankles were chained and her feet in orange prison issued imitation crocs for the court appearance Lambert's mother Lee Ann Caterina reacts after Lambert is sentenced to seven years in prison for attempting to hire a hitman to kill her husband's ex-wife Lambert was cleared of conspiring to murder Mrs Cooke's husband, Shawn, if he was at home when the hitman came to kill his wife. The ex-model, who is married to Brandon Lambert, the father of Mrs Cooke's children, was arrested on July 28 last year after giving the undercover police officer a photograph of Kellie Cooke and a $125 payment to have her killed. The court was told that she also gave the deputy Mrs Cooke's address and a description of her car. Lambert and Mrs Cooke had been in the midst of a custody battle, the Circleville Herald reported. A psychologist told the jury that Lambert was 'developmentally challenged' and said she had drink and drug problems. The 33-year-old also suffers from eating disorders and has issues with her body image, leading to her more than two dozen cosmetic surgeries, the jury was told. Lambert (pictured in court at a previous hearing) had drink and drug problems, as well as eating disorders and issues with her body image, a psychologist said The former model (left, in court during a previous hearing, and right, in a police mugshot) insisted in court that she had been joking. Her former, glamorous appearances were a far cry from her attire at sentencing The psychologist, Jolie Brams, added that on one occasion, Lambert was told her sweater did not fit so she immediately went to her plastic surgeon for an operation. Ms Brams said the accused was brought up around violence and was abandoned by her parents as a child. Lambert's defense attorney James Kingsley said: 'Tara Lambert doesn't know what's appropriate for a situation. She's childlike. Life's a fantasy to her.' But Judge P. Randall Knece had little sympathy for the former model, jailing her for seven years. 'Youve been out of control since the eighth grade,' he said. The number of electors has dropped from 45.3 mi llion to 44.7 million More than 600,000 voters vanished from the electoral roll last year following botched reform of the way people are registered. The drop in numbers of people able to voted in parliamentary amounted to 1.3 per cent across the United Kingdom, the second year running that the roll shrank by hundreds of thousands. Among the missing voters are large numbers of teenagers who should have been winning the right to vote for the first time. Canterbury, pictured, recorded the largest percentage reduction in the number of registered electors Middlesbrough, pictured, saw a 10 per cent drop in the number of registered electors, it has been revealed The number of registered new voters who, in England, have recently passed their 18th birthday fell by 40 per cent last year, the figures from the Office for National Statistics said. The collapse in numbers of voters on the rolls follows a switch in the registration system introduced by the Coalition in 2014 at a cost of 200 million. Masterminded by former Deputy Prime Minister and LibDem leader Nick Clegg, and intended to help eliminate fraud and intimidation from elections, it replaced the traditional registration method with a new computerised individual electoral registration system. The change is thought to have lost the registrations of many thousands of students, who in the past would have been registered by their parents at their home address, but many of whom appear to have ignored pleas to register for themselves under the new regime. However the latest figures suggest there may be a lack of interest in voting in some areas which are not influenced by heavy student numbers. Among the 10 parliamentary constituencies with the biggest fall in numbers of voters in 2015 were Labour-held Middlesbrough; Glasgow North East, won from Labour by the SNP last year, and Amber Valley, currently a Tory-held marginal. None of these are considered major student areas. The changes in electoral registration were designed to prevent fraud by former Deputy PM Nick Clegg Labour accused David Cameron of fiddling the voter roll for party advantage. Shadow Voter Registration Minister Gloria de Piero said: This is due to the Tory Governments rushed changes to electoral registration, against the advice of the independent Electoral Commission who warned it would result in thousands of people falling off the electoral register. What is worse is that the Government are shamelessly taking this as an opportunity to redraw constituency boundaries based on an electorate that is far lower than it should be. This is another example of David Cameron and the Conservative Party trying to rig the system for their own political ends. WESTMINSTER CONSTITUENCIES WITH BIGGEST FALL IN ELECTOR NUMBERS Canterbury (Con) -12.9 per cent Ilford South (Lab Co-op) -11.3 Middlesbrough (Lab) -10.3 Cambridge (Lab) -9.9 Slough (Lab) -8.7 Glasgow North East (SNP) -7.5 Amber Valley (Con) -7.3 Hayes and Harlington (Lab) -7.2 Yeovil (Con) -7.1 North East Fife (SNP) -6.9 Advertisement The Electoral Commission, run by former Equal Opportunities Commission chief Jenny Watson, admitted that numbers of registered voters have fallen since heads of households used to register everyone in the home. There has been a reduction in the number of entries since the last registers were published under the household system, she said. But she added that a lot more has been done since then and promised fresh voter publicity campaigns to encourage quick and easy online registration. The Commission will continue to work hard to make sure electors know this given the significant elections taking place across the UK. The EU referendum on 23 June will involve voters on parliamentary rather than local government electoral rolls. This means EU immigrants will not be allowed to take part, as they can in local elections. The ONS counted 44,722,000 electors on the UK rolls in December last year, down from 45,325,078 at the end of 2014. The 1.3 per cent fall followed a two per cent drop between 2013 and 2014. Until 2012 numbers on the rolls had been gradually rising. The row over the falling electoral roll follows a series of election fiascos in recent years. At the 2010 general election scenes as voters queued to cast their ballots in the hour before polls closed were described as Third World. Last year there were also complaints about difficulties encoutered by voters living abroad in getting their postal vote forms in time. John Penrose, Minister for Constitutional Reform, said: Councils have only removed ghost electors people who have moved, died or never existed in the first place so keeping them on the register when we know they shouldnt be there, and then sending them all poll cards on election day, would be wrong, expensive and increase the risk of fraud. Mars chocolates at the centre of a global safety recall are still on sale in corner shops. Boxes of Celebrations chocolates that may contain pieces of plastic were bought at stores in London, Bristol and Leeds yesterday. It comes as the confectionery giant faced searching questions over why it apparently took 11 weeks to realise millions of chocolate bars may have been contaminated with sharp pieces of plastic, a potential choking hazard. Recall failure: Boxes of Celebrations chocolates that may contain pieces of plastic were bought at stores in London, Bristol and Leeds yesterday US-owned Mars is recalling all products made at a Dutch factory between December 5 and January 18, which runs to tens of millions. This suggests the contamination, which has been linked to maintenance work on the production line, may have occurred well before Christmas. Millions of the Mars bars, Snickers, Milky Ways and other smaller fun-size versions of the chocolates have already been eaten. All major supermarkets in Britain have cleared their shelves of the suspect products, and changed their tills software to stop purchases. But corner shops do not have the same technology, which means the chocolate bars and packs are likely to remain on sale for some time. The confectionery giant faced searching questions over why it apparently took 11 weeks to realise millions of chocolate bars may have been contaminated with sharp pieces of plastic The recall only involves products made at the Mars factory in Veghel, The Netherlands (pictured) The UK recall relates to 250g packs of Mars Fun-size, which are miniature versions of the bars; 227g packs of Milky Way Fun-size, two of the companys large Variety Fun-size packs and two of its Celebrations boxes, weighing 388g and 245g. However, Daily Mail reporters bought boxes of Celebrations at shops in Bristol, London and Bramley and Armley in Leeds. Staff on the companys helpline confirmed the products were part of the recall and should not have been on sale. About a dozen 388g Celebrations boxes were on sale at Baryahs newsagent in Fishponds, Bristol. Co-owner Gurdip Baryah said: I didnt know about the recall. Those chocolates are new stock. They came in last week. The suppliers will usually send a letter if something needs recalled but I havent had a letter from them or Mars. CHOCOLATE SNACKS BEING RECALLED IN THE UK BRAND PRODUCT BEST BEFORE DATE MARS Funsize Fun size bag 250g (product code AV39F) 11/09/16 - 02/10/16 MILKY WAY Funsize Fun size bag 227g (product code AV39J) 02/10/16 Variety Funsize Family Favourites (product code AV33W) 29/05/16 - 14/08/16 Variety Funsize Party Mix (product code AV33T) 15/05/16 - 07/08/16 Celebrations 338g box (product code AJ46N) 08/05/16 - 28/08/16 Celebrations 245g box (product code AJ46R) 08/05/16 - 28/08/16 Celebrations 2.5kg catering case (product code YF413) 07/08/16 - 14/08/16 The owners of the other shops said they were also unaware of the recall. The owner of a shop in Bramley said she thought the recall involved full-size Mars bars, which is not the case in the UK. Yesterday, a senior Mars executive at the factory in Veghel admitted the company had discovered the problem too late. In fact, Mars staff did not realise its popular products posed a health threat until after they were told by a customer. It appears a woman in Germany found a small piece of red plastic in a Snickers bar on February 8. She reported it to the company immediately, but executives did not issue a formal recall until yesterday two weeks later. Jack Tabbers, general director of Mars Netherlands, said a plastic pipe lid about 6ins in diameter fell into the equipment and was cut and crushed into small pieces. He said the small piece of plastic had sharp edges, adding: This creates the possibility they could hurt small children or even choke them. Mars initially said the recall applied to 55 countries, but it could be many more because consignments were sent to distributors who deal with duty-free shops around the world. Millions of the Mars bars, Snickers, Milky Ways and other smaller fun-size versions of the chocolates have already been eaten THE ULTRA-SECRETIVE BILLIONAIRES WHO MAKE OUR MARS BARS For multi-billionaires, members of the Mars family live very much in the shadows. The company was founded by Franklin Clarence Mars, who started making butter cream sweets in his kitchen and opened a factory in Washington in 1911. In 1923, his son Forrest developed the Milky Way, and in 1932, he opened a factory in Slough, where he created and launched the Mars bar. Forrests children, John, Forrest Jr and Jacqueline, now own the company which has annual global sales of 25billion but despite an estimated fortune of 10billion each, the siblings spend much of their time on a remote ranch in Wyoming. Mars will not reveal how many members of the family occupy management positions. When Forrest Mars died in 1999 at the age of 95, the company did not publicly acknowledge his death. Jan Pottker, author of Crisis in Candyland about the family, said: The company is based in a dark, hidden building in Virginia. Its simply incredible rather than being proud of their company, they dont want to be noticed. Miss Pottker said the secrecy dated back to the Second World War when Forrest Mars patented a method of parboiling rice to give it a longer shelf life. The product was later launched as Uncle Bens rice, but not before US military chiefs tried to overturn the patent. Advertisement The customer helpline set up by Mars in the UK was inundated with calls yesterday morning, with some customers taking more than half an hour to get through. People who want to get a refund are being given a Freepost address where they can send the products. Rather than being given their money back, they are being offered Mars vouchers. Consumers have criticised the red tape and say it will put many people off claiming the refund they are entitled to. Mars said: We are working with our direct customers to remove recalled packs from shelves as quickly as possible. In the case of retailers who are not supplied by us directly, we are working to make them aware of the recall via wholesale channels and trade media. One of Britain's most respected military generals spoke of his fury last night after Number Ten admitted it had mistakenly added his name to a letter promoting membership of the EU. The open letter, orchestrated by Downing Street and signed by 13 senior military figures, claimed Brexit would leave us facing 'grave security threats'. But yesterday one of its supposed signatories, General Sir Michael Rose, revealed he had never put his name to it forcing Number Ten to issue a humiliating apology. Scroll down for video General Sir Michael Rose (pictured left at the Cenotaph in 2003 and right in 2007) spoke of his fury after Downing Street admitted it had mistakenly added his name to a letter promoting membership of the EU Sir Michael said he has 'doubts about the wisdom of using military officers for a political campaign', adding that 'sovereignty and security are intrinsically linked and in recent years we've seen the EU erode our sovereignty'. The general, who led UN troops in Bosnia in 1994-95 and was in charge of the 1980 SAS siege of the Iranian embassy, was in New Zealand when the letter was put together. He said yesterday: 'Has the world gone mad? I did not sign up to the PM's campaign I merely asked to see a draft of a letter which I was about to contest! A bit difficult to do so from the Great Barrier Island where I am. About as far from Europe as it is possible to be!' The mistake is a disaster for David Cameron, who has been accused of 'project fear' for claims about risks to security if we leave the EU. The Mail understands another former general was told his name was going to be on the letter. But it was only after he expressed his outrage that he was removed from it. Another, General Sir Mike Jackson, former head of the Army, said yesterday he had not been 'happy entirely' with the thrust of the letter, but added: 'I was content to put my name on it.' Earlier this week, No 10 was caught orchestrating a letter from business leaders which claimed Brexit would put jobs at risk. The 13 military commanders' letter, published in The Daily Telegraph, said they believe 'strongly' that it is in our 'national interest to remain an EU member'. Sir Michael said he has 'doubts about the wisdom of using military officers for a political campaign', adding that 'sovereignty and security are intrinsically linked and in recent years we've seen the EU erode our sovereignty' Among those signing the letter promoting membership of the EU is Field Marshal Lord Charles Guthrie, former Chief of Defence Staff (pictured left) and Field Marshal Lord Bramall, a former Chief of Defence Staff (right) Among the signatories was Field Marshal Lord Edwin Bramall, a former chief of the defence staff who took part in the Normandy landings. Others included Field Marshal Lord Charles Guthrie, Marshal of the RAF Jock Stirrup, and Admiral of the Fleet Lord Michael Boyce. They said: 'We have served around the world and in almost every conflict in which Britain has been engaged since the Second World War therefore, we are particularly concerned with one central question: will Britain be safer inside the EU or outside it?' The letter adds: 'Europe today is facing a series of grave security challenges Britain will have to confront these challenges whether it is inside or outside the EU. But within the EU, we are stronger.' Lord Alan West, in charge of the Royal Navy during the Iraq war, was also a signatory. He said: 'Me and one or two others believed it should reinforce the importance of Nato to our defence, not just the EU. That was done and I was happy to have my name added.' Last night No 10 said all other signatories had been contacted yesterday and had said they were happy to have their names on the letter. A spokesman said: 'Due to an administrative error on our part, General Sir Michael Rose hadn't signed the letter which appeared in the Telegraph this morning.' Prime Minister Mr Cameron yesterday. The military letter was said to be in part coordinated by Downing Street Former defence secretary Liam Fox told Sky News the inclusion of Sir Michael was 'inexcusable'. He also said he disagreed with the letter, telling Forces TV: 'I think Iain Duncan Smith put it very well, that there are actually security risks attached to being in the European Union the public will see that you've got the elite and the Establishment using taxpayers' money to push their case.' A Vote Leave spokesman said: 'No 10 civil servants are trying to bully people into backing the EU The Government should be giving people impartial information, not using respected figures for propaganda purposes.' Internet pranksters the Jalal Brothers have been arrested by counter terrorism police after sparking outrage with a suicide bomber hoax video and 'drive by shooting' stunt targeting a young girl. Law student Max, 20, Arman, 18, and Rebeen Jalal, 16, are currently being questioned by police in custody following a month-long investigation into their controversial fake terror attack videos. Daily Mail Australia understands that counter terrorism command detectives raided the home in South Morang, Melbourne, where the trio live with their parents, at 6.30am on Thursday. The brothers, who dress up in traditional Arab robes and try to scare unsuspecting bystanders in dozens of prank videos, surrendered themselves to police two hours later and they were arrested. Scroll down for video Infamous pranksters - the Jalal brothers - have been arrested by Victoria Police over controversial videos Max, 20, Rebeen, 16, and Arman Jalal, 18, (l-r) attended a police station on Thursday shortly after counter terrorism detectives executed a warrant at their Melbourne home Assistant Commissioner Ross Guenther from Victoria Police confirmed that police had been investigating the brothers for the past month - but said they have not yet been charged Assistant Commissioner Ross Guenther from Victoria Police told media: 'Our response has been driven by the changing nature of these posts and the escalation in terms of content. 'We believe the tipping point has been reached where the content is completely unacceptable and it is in fact criminal. And that is how we will be proceeding with it. 'They have caused some significant alarm in our community when we already have heightened security. 'The videos portray terrorists in a certain way and it causes anxiety and problematic behaviours within the community. 'It is problematic for police attending incidents like this as there is potential for serious injury and that is of concern to us. This behaviour is not okay.' He confirmed that police had been investigating the brothers for the past month - but said they have not yet been charged. Police searched their home for imitation guns, costumes and computers and seized a number of items. They are considering firearms charges, assault charges, and also recovering any money the brothers may have made from posting the videos, according to the ABC. AC Guenther also told the press conference that there had been some 'parental involvement' in the arrests today. He said police are now now looking at taking the videos down, but pointed out that they are held offshore, so there could be some complications. The brothers were slammed for their latest video which showed them firing a fake AK-47 at a five-year-old girl and her father while they were standing by a phone box The pair can then be seen running for their life from the phone box, with the phone left swinging on its cord The trio were slammed for the video, which saw them dressing in Arab robes and brandishing fake guns The brothers revealed that they tried to make amends after the 'drive by shooting' video and gave the little girl some sweets Police said they did not see the videos as 'childhood pranks' and revealed that there had been a number of complaints to Crimestoppers. He said the counter terrorism unit is involved because the videos create fear in the community and promote criminal behaviour. 'I quite deliberately chose to bring this matter and pursue it within my command. 'The counter terrorism command has a preventative aspect, so it looks at high risk members as well as those that provide an environment where that could happen.' Victoria Police Commissioner Graham Ashton told 3AW their behaviour was 'deplorable' and revealed that they were looking to charge the three brothers. 'We have the three in our custody at the moment for interview,' he said. 'We'll look to charge them with whatever they can be charged with. 'This behaviour is just a ridiculous display. We don't want to encourage it in any way because of the obvious dangers involved.' The trio first came under fire in December last year with a 'public bomb scare' stunt that showed a man in a white robe thrusting a bag into a man's lap Another part of the video showed one of the 'pranksters' launching the backpack into the open window of someone's car The brothers were slammed for their latest video which showed them firing a fake AK-47 at a five-year-old girl and her father while they were standing by a phone box. The girl was seen running for her life in the disturbing footage which attracted thousands of damning comments. 'What happens if there was a police officer there who witnessed that?' Commissioner Ashton said. 'It could be a very deadly situation very quickly.' Some of the more shocking moments in their videos include hurling suspicious parcels at random strangers before sprinting off and staging the kidnap of a woman on a busy Gold Coast street. One of the 'entertainers' is also seen appearing to simulate a sex act with a chicken in a spoof version of an MTV Cribs video which also shows a number of the animals being kept in a fridge. In an interview with Daily Mail Australia the day before their arrest, the Muslim brothers defended their antics, claiming that they never wanted to spread fear and that it was all supposed to be 'funny'. 'You shouldn't take life too seriously. Everyone should laugh more, it helps you live longer,' Max said. 'We get a lot of negative comments and even death threats with people saying they are going to shoot us. But we just try to ignore it and laugh it off.' Speaking on Wednesday, Max said that the brothers were 'aware' of an ongoing police investigation, but at that point they had not heard anything from police. The brothers even claimed that Arman was shot during filming for a suicide bombing prank (shown) They posted pictures of him in hospital, saying: 'It's been a hard 2 weeks filming without you little Jalal' The 20-year-old Law student, who has started his degree at Victoria University, said he had thought about how the extreme videos might affect his career. 'It has crossed my mind, but I want to concentrate on the videos,' he said. The trio first came under fire in December last year with a 'public bomb scare' stunt that showed a man in a white robe thrusting a bag into a man's lap. The man immediately tossed the bag away from him and jumped into a nearby lake in the clip which has more than 85 million views. Another part of the video showed one of the 'pranksters' launching the backpack into the open window of someone's car. The driver quickly abandoned the vehicle leaving the door flung wide open. Despite an outpouring of negative comments, the brothers amassed legions of followers with their official Facebook page attracting over a million likes just days after they released the video. The eldest brother, Max (pictured), whose Facebook pages states: 'I do bomb pranks for a living', attended Mill Park Secondary College with Arman The entertainers, who have more than 1.8 million likes on their Facebook page, have defended their antics, pictured (left) is Arman and (right) is Rebeen Despite an outpouring of negative comments, the brothers amassed legions of followers with their official Facebook page attracting over a million likes just days after they released the video Max Jalal is pictured (left) with his brother Arman (second right) posing in front of sports cars 'In just one week we managed to achieve 1 million likes on this page, that's crazy,' they wrote on Facebook. 'We couldn't of done it without you guys, so we would like to personally thank each and every one of you for all the support and feedback you've given us! P.s f*** the haters.' Max revealed that they first started filming prank videos around six months ago after seeing some videos on YouTube. 'We stumbled across some pranks online and we thought that we wanted to do something controversial that would get people talking. 'It has just exploded from there with a few of our videos. Now we have lawyers telling us whether we can or can't do something, so we go right up to the limit. His younger brother Rebeen said the trio started getting paid for their videos around two months ago and that it was 'big business'. 'We are monetising through Facebook and YouTube and we get money from sponsors and brands.' The drive by shooting prank, which has more than 3.2million views, also shows the pranksters firing fake shots at two men standing by their parked car during the day One of the men is seen diving for cover behind the car after hearing multiple gun shot sounds The Jalal brothers, who are from Melbourne, then fire fake shot at three men waiting by a bus stop The three men can all be seen sprinting from the scene after hearing multiple gun shots The trio has received at least $4,500 for their latest 'drive by shooting' prank through Facebook views alone. And the brothers revealed that they have been approached by companies saying they are willing to pay them up to $100,000 per month. It has recently been claimed that the trio 'faked' their prank videos with one man saying he was approached by the brothers and that there were six takes before they were 'happy. Liam from Knoxfield told Triple M's Merrick and Australia that he believed many of the stunts were faked, or at the very least set up. He claimed that he appeared in one bomb scare video after being approached to take part. 'They came and approached us and asked if we wanted to be on YouTube,' he told drivetime host Merrick Watts. 'We did six takes before they were happy.' The brothers all still live at home together with father, who owns several businesses, and their mother. Rebeen, 16, recently dropped out of Lalor Secondary College and is considering studying for a plumbing or real estate course. 'I was doing alright at school, but it wasn't really for me. I would much rather be doing the videos.' Arman, 18, who attended Mill Park Secondary College with Max, said: 'I want to do bomb pranks for a living.' The Jalals teamed up with up with another comedian Shammi (left) to stage the prank on his girlfriend Sarah Reay-Young (right) Shocked families and children can be seen watching the pranksters stage the public kidnapping (right) on a busy street The brothers also sparked outrage with a video in January which showed them running up behind a woman, tossing a garbage bag over her head and bundling her into a van. In the video, the brothers teamed up with up with Shammi another controversial prankster who came under fire for his cruel pranks againts his girlfriend Sarah Reay-Young. While Shammi was on a date with his girlfriend, the brothers ambushed her and staged the public kidnapping as she screamed out for help. But the comedian has now spoken out, saying he believes the trio are becoming 'too extreme'. 'My girlfriend wasn't impressed at all, she was pretty upset at the time and I think we may have taken it a bit too far,' he told Daily Mail Australia. 'When she watched it back she felt better about it all. She didn't know anything about it before it happened, I told her we were going to get lunch. 'It was all over in about five seconds, but she wasn't impressed. Even though she's prepared for pranks, you still wouldn't think about it straight away. 'I have watched their most recently video and I think they are getting really extreme now, personally I think it's going a bit too far.' returned the dog after public outcry with a note saying 'we beg your pardon' A guide dog snatched by callous thieves in Beijing has been returned to its blind owner, accompanied by a heavily apologetic note, after pressure from social media. The missing seven-year-old Qiaoqiao, a black Labrador was stolen on the street during a routine walk with her masseur owner Tian on Monday afternoon this week, according to People's Daily Online. Qiaoqiao arrived on Tian's doorstep yesterday with a plastic bag around her neck, and a note saying 'We were wrong, and we really beg your pardon', most likely penned by the criminals. Cruel: The missing 7-year-old Labrador guide dog, called Qiaoqiao was taken from her owner Tian on Monday Little solace: She ran home the next day with a note attached to her from the thieves saying 'We were wrong' Callous act: Qiaoqiao was snatched into a silver minivan during a walk with Tian in the street in Shunyi, Beijing CCTV video revealed Qiaoqiao was bundled off by several men into a silver minivan in the Beijing suburb of Shunyi, with several employees of Tian's massage business trying to halt the abduction. Tian confirmed that the dog had been removed right outside his massage parlour, and that Qiaoqiao had helped him through day-to-day tasks for the past five years. The official Weibo account of China Central Television published information about the theft searching for tips which was retweeted more than 10,000 times, with many users lashing out at the cruelty of the act against a blind man. Amidst a social media furore, one furious Weibo user wrote: 'A guide dog is the eyes of the blind people. How could this differ from robbing people of their eyes?' As a puppy, Qiaoqiao graduated from the China Guide Dog Training Center in Dalian, Liaoning Province, China's first non-profit guide dog training facility. Constant friend: Tian needs Qiaoqiao by his side at all times as he goes to work as a masseur at his parlour Costly: It is expensive to train a guide dog in China, costing 120,000-150,000 yuan (13,000 to 16,500 a year) It is particularly expensive to train a guide dog in China, costing between 120,000 and 150,000 yuan (13,000 to 16,500) a year and around 40% of candidate dogs actually fail the rigorous final tests. China enacted a law to permit guide dogs in public places in 2012 but its enforcement has been far from universal throughout the country, with many disabled users banned from a variety of public places. Meanwhile high-profile cases of dog stealing throughout China continue to mount up, with Tian's neighbours confirming to The Beijing Morning News that there had been a spate of canine thefts in recent weeks. If found guilty, the thief could face a maximum three-year jail term and considerable fines. A man from central China made a very clear promise of his financial security to his future bride by proposing to her using a bouquet of flowers made entirely out of banknotes. 32-year-old Ma Caojun, who is employed by a snack company and describes himself as a workaholic, proposed to his girlfriend of three years Qin Jiaojiao in front of 600 of his co-workers at an industry awards ceremony, according to People's Daily Online. Alongside a mandatory bunch of red roses, Ma prepared a unique bouquet to give Qin to mark the occasion on February 21, hand-made from 100 rolled banknotes worth 100 yuan (11) each. In the money: Ma Caojun, 32, proposed to his girlfriend with the elaborate cash note bouquet, pictured middle Charmer: Ma asked Qin Jiaojiao to join him on stage before getting down on one knee and handing over gifts After being selected to receive an award from his peers, Ma asked for his girlfriend to join him on stage before getting down on one knee and handing over the elaborate gifts. An ecstatic Qin said yes and Ma confirmed that they had initially decided to wed last month before work plans forced him to reschedule. In his speech, Ma said: 'From now on, all you need to worry about is staying beautiful and I will be the breadwinner and provide everything else Will you marry me?' At last: Ma had confirmed that they had decided to wed last month, before work plans forced him to reschedule 'I wanted to show my heart to her in front of my hundreds of work colleagues.' Romantic pictures of the couple together were then shown up on the large screen behind the stage. It takes just 16 days to sell a home in Dartford. Properties in Dartford are in hot demand this year with homes selling around six times faster than the national average, a new study reveals. Latest figures suggest it is the fastest place in Britain to sell a home as it attracts increasing numbers of buyers priced out of London. It takes just 16 days to sell a home in the Kent borough, according to the data compiled by property website Rightmove. It compares to almost three months on average for the country as a whole. It is a sharp turnaround for Dartford, where homes were on the market for 49 days before being sold this time last year. Robert Browning, of Dartford estate agent Robinson-Jackson, said: 'In the past, the majority of buyers were people moving within Dartford, now there are a lot more people moving from London as well as investors.' It compares to an average of 79 days to sell a home nationally, down from 87 days a year ago. It is not the only commuter destination that is hot on the property map. In fact, the top 10 fastest selling locations are all London commuter towns and include Essex and Hertfordshire as well as Kent. Demand in these areas has led to average property asking prices rising by more than 10 per cent. Bristol was the most searched for place on Rightmove in January and also makes an appearance in the list of top 10 locations, with properties selling in an average of 31 days, down from 47 days in January 2015. It's not just the Southern commuter areas where sales are speeding up. The northern towns of Warrington, Crewe, Middlesbrough and Bury have all cut their selling time by 30 days or more, putting them all in the top ten areas where sales have sped up most. The biggest difference in an 'up and coming' area is in Clacton-on-Sea where homes are now selling 45 days quicker than this time last year, down from 95 days to 50. Kevin Shaw, of Leaders estate agents, said: 'As London prices continue to rise, many people make the conscious choice to add to their commute rather than their mortgage, making areas like Clacton-on-Sea a popular place for buyers.' At the slower end of the market, the locations where properties that took longer than 100 days to sell in January included Darlington, St Helens, Wakefield and Bradford. Dartford is perhaps best known for its major road crossing but is now being highlighed as a property hotspot. Miles Shipside, Rightmove director and housing market analyst, said: 'This analysis mirrors what agents have been telling us for the past few months, that properties in the right area at the right price are in high demand and selling really quickly. 'Homes in Dartford selling in just over two weeks shows just how in-demand the places within easy commuting distance to London have become over the past year. The average asking price of a property in Dartford is under 300,000, so it's not hard to see why it's so sought after compared to average prices being more than double that in London.' He went on to explain that further out from the capital, Bristol could be becoming the new Cambridge, which was the quickest place to sell a property two years ago.' Bristol also makes an appearance in the list of top 10 locations, with properties selling in an average of 31 days. TOP TEN FASTEST SELLING UK LOCATIONS Town/City Days to Sell (Jan-16) Days to Sell (Jan-15) Average asking price (Jan-16) Annual change Dartford, Kent 16 49 285,782 16.60% Grays, Essex 26 52 270,224 13.20% Benfleet, Essex 28 50 333,056 8.20% Crawley, West Sussex 30 47 299,595 10.90% Leigh-On-Sea, Essex 30 62 358,440 13.30% Stevenage, Hertfordshire 31 56 280,691 13.50% Bristol 31 47 294,851 9.10% Watford, Hertfordshire 32 48 433,679 19.70% Rochester, Kent 33 59 250,334 10.10% Reading, Berkshire 33 44 367,495 15.40% Source: Rightmove LOCATIONS WITH THE BIGGEST DROP IN TIME TO SELL Town/City Days to Sell (Jan-16) Days to Sell (Jan-15) Av. asking price (Jan-16) Annual change Clacton-on-Sea, Essex 50 95 184,905 4.20% Ramsgate, Kent 42 84 212,948 12.40% Warrington, Cheshire 66 104 221,657 0.80% Crewe, Cheshire 72 109 144,013 6.60% Dudley, West Midlands 73 109 143,884 4.80% Dartford, Kent 16 49 285,782 16.60% Leigh-on-Sea, Essex 30 62 358,440 13.30% Middlesbrough, Cleveland 94 125 134,657 1.10% Margate, Kent 63 93 205,821 16.80% Bury, Greater Manchester 76 106 180,804 1.70% Source: Rightmove Advertisement Unknown star forming regions near the heart of the Milky Way have been revealed for the first time in a map of the galaxy's cold dense gas. The map, produced by the Atlasgal project covers an area of sky measuring 140 degrees long and three degrees wide. It contains a staggering 167 million pixels, making it four times the coverage of the first Atlasgal map, and includes the southern part of the Milky Way which contains the galactic centre for the first time. Explore the full image on the European Space Observatory website The Atlasgal survey took advantage of the unique characteristics of the telescope to provide a detailed view of the distribution of cold dense gas along the galactic plane - where the majority of a galaxy's mass lies - of the Milky Way. A selection of the super high-resolution image is shown. Explore the full-size image on the European Space Observatory website This region is of particular interest for astronomers as it includes many areas of star formation. The latest map was built up from 47 separate images, or tiles, taken with the Apex telescope located high on the Chajnantor Plateau in Chile, South America. Data from the European Space Agency's Planck observatory, in orbit, added an extra level of detail to this high-resolution image of the heavens. WHAT IS THE ATLASGAL PROJECT? Atlasgal, or Apex Telescope Large Area Survey of the Galaxy is a radio telescope situated at 5,100 metres above sea level. It is located at the Llano de Chajnantor plateau in the Atacama desert in northern Chile. The altitude and dry atmosphere make it a prime site for astronomers. Alongside Apex on the plateau is Alma, the Atacama Large Millimetre/submillimeter Array, a state-of-the-art telescope to study light from some of the coldest objects in the universe. Alma will be used for follow-up studies of targets identified by Atlasgal. Both are operated by Eso, the European Southern Observatory. Advertisement While the Planck observatory can image the whole sky, with relatively poor spatial resolution, Atlasgal covers only the plane of the galaxy but at high angular resolution. Combining information from both provides what the astronomers call excellent spatial dynamic range. Together the telescopes have created the first map of the full area of the galactic plane at submillimetre wavelengths - between infrared light and radio waves. The three-year project covers 420 square degrees of the sky, with each image tile having a resolution of over 3.5MP. Eso Apex programme scientist Carlos De Breuck told MailOnline the most important aspect of the project was the four-times better sky coverage and the more uniform depth of information obtained. The result of combining the tiles is an image of 167 megapixels, tracing the cold dense gas and dust of the Milky Way. 'Atlasgal maps the dust, which traces the hydrogen, but there are many other elements out there, which is why we are following up with other observations using Apex and other telescopes,' said Carlos De Breuck. The survey focused on radiation with a wavelength of 870 m (0.87 millimetres). Atlasgal is the Apex Telescope Large Area Survey of the Galaxy, but Apex is itself an abbreviation of Atacama Pathfinder Experiment. This is a radio telescope situated at 5,100 metres above sea level, at the Llano de Chajnantor plateau in the Atacama desert in northern Chile. This comparison shows the central regions of the Milky Way observed at different wavelengths. The top panel shows submillimetre radiation, between infrared light and radio waves. The second shows the same part of the galaxy in infrared, the third shows near-infrared and the bottom is the view in visible light The Apex data, at a wavelength of 0.87 millimetres, shows up in red and the background blue image was imaged at shorter infrared wavelengths by the NASA Spitzer Space Telescope as part of the Glimpse survey. The fainter extended red structures come from observations made by ESA's Planck satellite. The right-hand sections reveal the location of each of the horizontal strips within the galaxy The altitude and dry atmosphere make it a prime site for astronomers. Alongside Apex on the plateau is Alma, the Atacama Large Millimetre/submillimeter Array, a state-of-the-art telescope to study light from some of the coldest objects in the universe. Alma will be used for follow-up studies of targets identified by Atlasgal. Previous work experience, best qualities and failures are some things future employers will ask about during most job interviews but Facebook runs their process a little different. The social media giant has a favourite question that they say 'helps them find employees who are perfect fits'. Miranda Kalinowshi, Facebook's global head of recruiting, told Business Insider that the million dollar question during interviews is: 'On your very best day at work the day you come home and think you have the best job in the world what did you do that day?' Scroll down for video The social media giant has a favorite question that they say 'helps them find employees who are perfect fits'. And the correct answer coincides with Facebook's mission 'to give people the power to share and make the world more open and connected' And the correct answer coincides with Facebook's mission 'to give people the power to share and make the world more open and connected'. This may seem like a trick question or even a question that can be danced around, but Facebook uses this as a way to find out what someone is truly passionate about. Also, your answer will tell them if you will be a good fit for the the best company in America. Just like most firms, Facebook has candidates attend a few rounds of phone interviews and then will invite them for a tour and an in-person interview one of their many campus. HOW TO GET HIRED AT FACEBOOK, ACCORDING TO LORI GOLER FACEBOOK'S HEAD OF PEOPLE 1. Forget about comfort zones: Lori Goler, Facebooks head of people, got her start when she cold-called Sheryl Sandberg, Facebook COO, and said: "I want to help Facebook achieve its mission. Whatever that means for Facebook is what I'm happy to do." Sandberg told her the company needed help recruiting tech talent, and Goler had no experience with that -- but she made it work. 2. Learn to code: Not every job on Facebook requires you to be a coding master, but knowing Javascript can really open a lot of doors. 3. Be bold: The company isn't just looking for skilled programmers -- it wants "hackers." That's Facebook-speak for someone who uses the tools of the trade in clever and unexpected ways. 4. Be a master of self-management: At Facebook, don't expect to be handed a daily to-do list. Goler said minimal supervision and flexible hours are the norm -- but employees are expected to have something to show in return for that creative freedom. 5. Bring something new to the table: Diversity is a popular word in the tech world, as women and miniroties are not filling up the seats at these companies. In June 2015, Facebooks said its employees are 68% male and 91% Asian or white, and Goler said it's "crucial" those numbers change. Source:CNN Money Advertisement Kalinowski knows every candidate that walks in for an interview isn't going to get the top question correct, but suggests applicants prepare for interviews by thinking about how they manage their work when they lose track of time during the day, which she says 'is another way to gauge what they inherently enjoy' and what they are likely to be good at. Facebook has 13,000 employees on more than 64 campuses around the world and its market value is about $245 billion. WOULD YOU MOVE FOR FACEBOOK? Facebook is offering employees at its Silicon Valley headquarters at least $10,000 to move closer to the office. The new benefit is a reflection of the challenges many tech companies face in the increasingly expensive and congested San Francisco Bay area. To qualify for the payment, employees must buy or rent a home within ten miles of the Facebook campus at One Hacker Way, in Menlo Park, a desolate strip of road overlooking a marsh about 30 miles south of San Francisco. The social networking firm started offering the benefit in the last 12 months, according to current and former Facebook workers. Advertisement The also pay their employees very generous, as last years figures showed the firm pays about $172,705 per year to their researcher scientists. And the average network engineer makes around $160,172. 'We want to make sure that we approach recruiting in the same way that we approach the design of the product and the services that we deliver to the world,' said Kalinowski. 'And that's with the focus on connection. We want to connect to our candidates in the recruiting or interviewing process pretty deeply.' Kalinowski also mentioned that Facebook employees are never satisfied with the status quo and will work hard to improve it. The social media tycoon likes to consider their firm a 'strength-based organization, which is a firm that can create employees who are emotionally engaged and connected to their work. The goal is to increase productivity, have a low turnover rate with employees and understand that each person brings their own strengths and skills to the table. Miranda Kalinowshi, Facebook's global head of recruiting, said that the million dollar question during interviews is: 'One your very best day at work the day you come home and think you have the best job in the world what did you that day' 'Anyone who listens to Mark will hear him say that we've still got 5 billion people to connect,' Kalinowski said. 'No one should be resting on their laurels. That sense of urgency and the energy around it are infectious.' Last year, CEO Mark Zuckerberg did let the world in on a little secret about acing an interview at Facebook. Speaking at the Mobile World Congress this week - the world's biggest wireless phone fair in Barcelona - the 30-year-old Facebook founder was asked the main thing he looks for in a potential employee. And his answer was as simple as it was significant. 'I will only hire someone to work directly for me if I would work for that person,' Zuckerberg told the gathering at a town hall meeting. 'It's a pretty good test.' Reports of meteors striking Earth are relatively rare nowadays, but almost 800,000 years ago the planet was battered by multiple strikes from space. By studying so-called tektites, or rock glasses, across Asia, Australia, Canada and Central America, the researchers discovered they had an almost identical age, but were chemically different. This suggests that separate impacts must have occurred globally at around the same time, which dating revealed to be approximately 790,000 years ago. By studying so-called tektites, or rock glasses, across Asia, Australia, Canada and Central America, the researchers discovered they had an almost identical age, but were chemically different. This suggests separate impacts (illustrated) must have occurred globally at around the same time, around 790,000 years ago The research was carried out by geoscientists from Heidelberg University, led by Professor Dr Mario Trieloff. Tektite comes from the Greek word for 'molten'. They are rocks made up of natural glass that formed following meteorite impacts. The rocks can be black, brown or grey in colour and range from millimetres to centimetres in size. The Heidelberg scientists employed a dating method based on naturally occurring isotopes that allowed them to date these tektites more accurately than ever. WHAT ARE TEKITES? Tektite comes from the Greek word for 'molten'. They are rocks made up of natural glass that formed following meteorite impacts. The rocks can be black, brown or grey in colour and range from millimetres to centimetres in size. Advertisement In particular, the research group at the Institute of Earth Sciences and the Klaus Tschira Laboratory for Cosmochemistry used isotope measurements to determine the age of craters caused by the impact of extraterrestrial rocks. They concentrated on the 40Ar-39Ar dating method, which analyses the decay of the naturally occurring 40K isotope. This analysis revealed that the samples from Asia, Australia, Canada and Central America are virtually identical in age, although in some cases their chemistry differs markedly. This points to separate impacts that must have occurred around the same time. 'That's how we know when, where and how often projectiles struck the earth, and how big they were,' said Dr Trieloff. There have long been signs that a major event of this type took place on earth about a million years ago, according to Professor Trieloff. This is evidenced by tektites, so-called rock glasses that arise during impact, whereby terrestrial material melts, is hurled up to several hundred kilometres and then hardens into glass. 'We have known about such tektites for some time from the Australasian region,' explained co-author Dr Winfried Schwarz. These rock glasses form a strewn field that stretches from Indochina to the southernmost tip of Australia. Smaller tektites, known as microtektites, were also discovered in deep-sea drill cores off the coast of Madagascar and in the Antarctic. The rock glasses had been strewn over 6,210 miles (10,000km), with some of them even leaving the Earth's atmosphere. 'Our data analysis indicates that there must have been a cosmic impact about 793,000 years ago, give or take 8,000 years,' explained Winfried Schwarz. Tektite comes from the Greek word for 'molten'. They are rocks made up of natural glass that formed following meteorite impacts. The rocks can be black, brown or grey in colour and range from millimetres to centimetres in size. A selection of the samples studied as part of the research is shown According to the scientists, the consequences of the multiple impacts were dire. At the local level, there was fire and earthquakes surrounding the impact site and an ocean impact would have caused tsunamis. At the global level, dust and gases were ejected into the atmosphere, blocking sunlight and lowering temperatures In addition to the events in the Australasian and Central American regions, a smaller collision around the same time created the Darwin crater in Tasmania (pictured) The Heidelberg scientists also studied samples from Canada and Central America. The Canadian rock glasses had the same chemical composition and age as the Australasian tektites and could have covered similar 'flight routes' as objects found in southern Australia or the Antarctic. HOW STRIKES AFFECTED EARTH According to the scientists, the consequences of the multiple impacts were dire. At the local level, there was fire and earthquakes for hundreds of kilometres surrounding the impact site; an ocean impact would have caused tsunamis hundreds of metres high. At the global level, dust and gases were ejected into the upper levels of the atmosphere, blocking sunlight and lowering surface temperatures. Biomass production was also affected, although according to the scientists it did not result in global mass extinction as in the case of the dinosaurs approximately 65 million years ago. Advertisement The rock glasses from Central America are also tektites - the first specimens were found at Mayan sites of worship. In the meantime, hundreds of other finds have been made in Central America. 'These tektites are clearly different in their chemical composition, and their geographical distribution also shows that they come from separate impacts,' added Dr Schwarz. 'Surprisingly our age estimates prove that they originated 777,000 years ago with a deviation of 16,000 years. 'Within the error margin, this matches the age of the Australasian tektites.' These findings led the Heidelberg researchers to conclude that there were multiple cosmic impacts approximately 790,000 years ago. In addition to the events in the Australasian and Central American regions, a smaller collision around the same time created the Darwin crater in Tasmania. The results of their research funded by the Klaus Tschira Foundation were published in the journal 'Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta'. A huge fireball crashed into the Atlantic earlier this month and went almost unseen. It released energy equivalent to 13,000 tons of TNT - the same as the energy used in the first atomic weapon in Hiroshima in 1945. This was the largest event of its type since the February 2013 fireball over Chelyabinsk (pictured) The space rock exploded in the air 620 miles (1,000km) off the coast of Brazil. It was the largest event of its type since the February 2013 fireball that exploded over Chelyabinsk, Russia A huge fireball crashed into the Atlantic earlier this month - and went almost unseen. The event took place on February 6 at 14:00 UTC when a meteor exploded in the air 620 miles (1,000km) off the coast of Brazil. It released energy equivalent to 13,000 tons of TNT, which is the same as the energy used in the first atomic weapon that leveled Hiroshima in 1945. This was the largest event of its type since the February 2013 fireball that exploded over Chelyabinsk, Russia, leaving more than 1,600 people injured. It started in the Middle East around 1,400 years ago as small religious community but within a hundred years had spread across a vast empire. Now the remains of three people discovered in medieval graves dating from the 8th Century have provided new clues as to just how far Islam spread in its early days. Archaeologists have used genetic testing on three skeletons found in Nimes in the south of France to reveal they belonged to Muslims from North Africa. The skeletons of three individuals found in graves dating back to the 7th Century AD (pictured) were found to have been buried in a way that followed Islamic rights, orientating their bodies and heads towards Mecca. DNA testing also revealed the trio were from North Africa, which had fallen into the hands of the Muslim Umayyads Each of the bodies had been buried in a way that appeared to follow Islamic rites, with their bodies and heads orientated towards Mecca. The DNA revealed their father's families had come from North Africa, which as the time would have been part of the huge Umayyad Islamic empire that emerged by that time. While the Umayyad Empire is known to have spread as far as the south of Spain, the researchers say this is the first evidence of the Muslim faith in France during the early Middle Ages. HOW DID THEY KNOW THE SKELETONS WERE MUSLIMS? The three graves were discovered in a Medieval cemetery in the town of Nimes in an area of that had been the Roman quarter. They were found amidst 20 other graves. However, unlike the others, the bodies appear to have been buried with a specific orientation. In particular, each of the bodies had been buried in a way that appeared to follow Islamic rites, with their bodies and heads orientated towards Mecca. The DNA revealed their father's families had come from North Africa, which as the time would have been part of the huge Umayyad Islamic empire that emerged by that time. While the Umayyad Empire is known to have spread as far as the south of Spain, the researchers say this is the first evidence of the Muslim faith in France during the early Middle Ages. Advertisement The region, known as Septmimania, had been part of the Visigothic Empire before being conquered by the Umayyads. Writing in the journal Public Library of Sciences One, Yves Gleize, an archaeologist at the French National Institute for Preventive Archaeological Research, and his colleagues said three skeletons may have been members of the Berbers tribes who were integrated into the Umayyad army. They said: 'Our study provides the first archaeo-anthropological testimony of the Muslim establishment in South of France. 'Notably, the analyses confirm the Berber origin of some of the first Muslim troops spreading through Europe and also indicate the co-existence of communities in Nimes practicing Christian and Muslim funerary customs without any clear partition of their respective funerary spaces. 'These results clearly highlight the complexity of the relationship between communities during this period, far from the cliche depiction still found in some history books.' The three graves were discovered in a Medieval cemetery in the town of Nimes in an area of that had been the Roman quarter. They were found amidst 20 other graves. The three graves were discovered in the Medieval city of Nimes in the south of France (illustrated). The discovery shows just how far the Muslim faith had spread in little over a century since the faith was founded Genetic testing on the three skeletons revealed they were Berbers, the indigenous group that lived across North Africa. They had been conquered only shortly before by the Islamic Umayyad empire and it appears quickly integrated into their armies after converting to the Islamic faith (Berber camel riders pictured) AN EARLY TIMELINE OF ISLAM 570AD Islamic prophet Muhammad is born in Mecca. 610AD At the age of 40 Muhammad is visited by the angel Gabriel while on retreat in a cave near Mecca. The angel recites to him the first revelations of the Quran and informs him that he is God's prophet. He begins winning a small group of followers. 622AD After the death of his influencial uncle, Muhammad loses his protection and begins enduring persecution in Mecca. He and his followers flee to the city of Yathrib, which later becomes known as Medina, establishing the first new Islamic society. 633AD Muhammad dies after a prolonged illness. The first Caliphate is established under his father-in-law Abu Bakr. 638AD Muslims spread into the area north of Arabia including Syria, Palestine, Lebanon and Iraq. 641AD Muslims enter Egypt and rout the Byzantine army. 655AD Islam begins to spread throughout North Africa. 661AD Imam Ali is killed ending the rule of the Rashidun, or rightly guided, Caliphs. Rule passes to the Umayyad dynasty. 711AD Muslims enter Spain in the west and India in the east. Eventually almost the entire Iberian Peninsula is under Islamic control. 732AD Muslims are defeated at Potiers in France by Charles Martel. Advertisement However, unlike the others, the bodies appear to have been buried with a specific orientation so they were pointing towards Mecca, the most sacred site in the Islamic faith. The archaeologists say the bodies appear to have been wrapped before they had been buried in a pit closed off by stone slabs or stones. Using five bone fragments from the graves, the researchers used radiocarbon dating and found they were clustered between the 7th and 8th centuries AD. The oldest Islamic graves discovered in France previously were thought to date 12 and 13th centuries AD. Academics have long suspected Muslims had begun venturing into France far earlier, however, from ancient Islamic texts which make mention of Nimes between 719 and 752AD. While it is known the Umayyads had conquered much of Septimania by around 725AD, the new findings suggest they had integrated into the community far more than had been believed. The discovery of the graves alongside Christian graves rather than being segregated particularly points to this, the researchers said. Speaking to MailOnline, Dr Gleize said the Muslim troops may have forged alliances and agreements with the local populations around Nimes against the Franks. He said: 'Historians knew the presence of Muslim in the region around Narbonne (Septimania), but this is the first time that "material" data has been found. 'It suggests that a community which knows the Muslim practices lived in Nimes. It indicates the co-existence of communities in Nimes practicing Christian and Muslim funerary customs.' The researchers say the presence of members of the Berbers in France at this time also provides an insight into the rapid religious and political changes that were taking place as Islam spread. While Muslim armies were known to have stretched as far as the south of France, the discovery of the graves mingled with Christian graves suggest they had also integrated into the community. The area around Nimes had formed part of a vast Islamic empire by the 8th Century (illustrated) The Berbers were the indigenous North African group who were integrated into the Muslim world as the Arab arms spread out across the region. The researchers said: 'Despite the low number of Muslim graves discovered, we believe that these observations provide strong evidence for either the establishment of a garrison or a more long-term establishment of Muslim communities in Nimes. 'Moreover, the results we discuss demonstrate that a few years after their integration into the Muslim world, North African populations were interred according to Islamic customs. The findings give new insight to lives of the early semi-nomadic Edomites Team found thousands of seeds, along with leather and other rare artefacts For the first time, researchers find fabrics of Kings David and Solomon era An excavation team has uncovered 3000-year-old textiles in Israel's Arava Valley, dating back to the era of Kings David and Solomon. The archaeologists from Tel Aviv University found the ancient organic materials preserved within the Timna copper mines, a site which some believe was once linked to King Solomon. These fabrics are the first textiles discovered from the era, and provide new insight on the fashions of the Holy Land. Along with fabric, the team found seeds, leather, and other rare artefacts. An excavation team has uncovered 3000-year-old textiles in Israel's Arava Valley, dating back to the era of Kings David and Solomon. The researchers from Tel Aviv University found the ancient organic materials preserved within the Timna copper mines, a site believed by some to that of King Solomon NEW INSIGHT ON ANCIENT SOCIETY For the first time, archaeologists have uncovered textiles dating back to the reign of Kings David and Solomon. The findings also offer clues about the semi-nomadic Edomites, who were thought to operate the copper mines. Copper was the most valuable resource of the time, according to the research, and required many levels of expertise to produce. It was used to make tools and weapons, and though miners may have been slaves or prisoners, copper smelters would have had a high degree of skill. Such an operation required the transport of goods including food, water, and textiles across the desert to operate. Many of the fabrics found at the site were made in specialized workshops far from Timna, the researchers say. Along with the fabrics, the team also recently found thousands of seeds of the Biblical 'Seven Species.' These seeds, from two grains and five fruits, were used to confirm the age of the findings through radiocarbon dating. Advertisement The artefacts discovered at the Timna copper mines also offer clues about the early Edomites, a semi-nomadic people who are thought to have operated the mines. This is the first time researchers have had the opportunity to observe textiles from this period, and the fabrics are physical evidence of a complex society. The pieces are tiny, some just 5 x 5 centimetres, but show differences in colour, weaving, and ornamentation techniques. Elaborate fabrics may have been worn by copper craftsmen, who held a highly respected position in society. 'No textiles have ever been found at excavation sites like Jerusalem, Megiddo and Hazor, so this provides a unique window into an entire aspect of life from which we've never had physical evidence before,' said Dr. Erez Ben-Yosef, who led the study. 'We found fragments of textiles that originated from bags, clothing, tents, ropes and cords. 'The wide variety of fabrics also provides new and important information about the Edomites, who, according to the Bible, warred with the Kingdom of Israel. 'We found simply woven, elaborately decorated fabrics worn by the upper echelon of their stratified society. 'Luxury grade fabric adorned the highly skilled, highly respected craftsmen managing the copper furnaces. They were responsible for smelting the copper, which was a very complicated process.' The research explains that copper was the most valuable resource of the time, and required many levels of expertise to produce. Copper was used to make tools and weapons, and though miners may have been slaves or prisoners, copper smelters would have had a high degree of skill. These copper workers would have worked with upwards of 30 or 40 variables to create copper blocks. 'The possession of copper was a source of great power, much as oil is today,' said Dr. Ben-Yosef. 'If a person had the exceptional knowledge to 'create copper,' he was considered well-versed in an extremely sophisticated technology. He would have been considered magical or supernatural, and his social status would have reflected this.' The researchers have dubbed this the 'silicon valley' of copper production, which required the transport of goods including food, water, and textiles across the desert to operate. These fabrics are the first textiles discovered from the era, and provide new insight on the fashions of the Holy Land. Along with fabric, the team found seeds, leather, and other rare artefacts The pieces are tiny, some just 5 x 5 centimetres, but show differences in colour, weaving, and ornamentation techniques. Elaborate fabrics may have been worn by copper craftsmen, who held a highly respected position in society Many of the fabrics found at the site were made in specialized workshops far from Timna, the researchers say. 'We found linen, which was not produced locally. It was most likely from the Jordan valley or Northern Israel,' said TAU masters student Vanessa Workman. 'The majority of the fabrics were made of sheep's wool, a cloth that is seldom found in this ancient period. This tells us how developed and sophisticated both their textile craft and trade networks must have been.' Along with the fabrics, the team also recently found thousands of seeds of the Biblical 'Seven Species.' Archaeologists discovered the ancient artefacts at the Timna copper mines, in Israel's Arava Valley These seeds, from two grains and five fruits, were used to confirm the age of the findings through radiocarbon dating. 'This is the first time seeds from the period have been found uncharred and in such large quantities,' said Dr. Ben-Yosef. 'With the advancement of modern science, we now enjoy research options that were unthinkable a few decades ago. 'We can reconstruct wine typical of King David's era, for example, and understand the cultivation and domestication processes that have been preserved in the DNA of the seed.' The Edomites operated within a complex social structure, and the findings reveal new clues on the economy and trade. 'Nomad' does not mean 'simple,' said Dr. Ben-Yosef. 'This discovery strengthens our understanding of the Edomites as an important geopolitical presence. The fabrics are of a very high quality, with complex designs and beautiful dyes.' Advertisement Stunning footage captured by a drone has revealed the shocking decay of a once-thriving beach resort that has been transformed into a ghost town. In its heyday, Varosha, a suburb of Famagusta, Cyprus, was a glamorous retreat that lured the rich and famous, including Elizabeth Taylor and Brigitte Bardot, thanks to its idyllic beach and modern amenities. But it was abandoned by its 40,000 inhabitants after the Mediterranean island country was invaded by Turkish troops, who continue to occupy Varosha to this day, following a Greek Cypriot coup in 1974. High-rise hotels are crumbling and the land has been reclaimed by overgrown vegetation in Varosha, a suburb of Famagusta, Cyprus Stunning drone footage is providing a rare look at the deserted suburb, which has become one of the world's most famous ghost towns Varosha has been uninhabited since 1974, when it was seized by Turkish troops who invaded the island following a Greek Cypriot coup Varosha's untouched beach and crystal-clear waters of the Mediterranean Sea look as inviting as ever in the rare drone footage In the early 1970s, the Varosha quarter of Famagusta was a top tourist destination, with golden sands, hotels and shopping precincts Now in ruins, former residents and visitors are barred from entering the eerie resort, which is surrounded by a fence that extends into the sea to keep people out. After decades of neglect, high-rise hotels and apartments, restaurants and residences are crumbling, and the land has been reclaimed by overgrown vegetation, although the untouched beach and crystal-clear water look as inviting as ever. Hotels with broken windows line the beach, streets are deserted, signs forbid photographs and video footage, and Turkish soldiers stand guard. Almost trapped in time, the deserted suburb has become one of the worlds most famous ghost towns, attracting photographers from around the world. Some have managed to get behind the fence and snap photos of the abandoned buildings, while many others have been stopped. Almost trapped in time, the deserted suburb has become one of the worlds most famous ghost towns, attracting many photographers There have been a number of proposals to rebuild the ghost town and reopen it to the world, but so far none have been approved The 1974 war divided the island, which has a buffer zone, and peace talks between Cyprus Greek and Turkish communities are ongoing The abandoned buildings (right) look faded and worn compared to those that are still occupied by residents or businesses After the war ended, Varosha residents and business owners were not allowed to return to the occupied suburb Haunting aerial footage recorded earlier this month offers a rare look at the rundown resort, and has been viewed more than 50,000 times on YouTube. The camera-equipped drone hovers over the abandoned suburb, with viewers getting a glimpse of dilapidated high-rises and the fence that separates them from a modern neighbourhood that is still occupied by residents. The abandoned buildings look faded and worn compared to those on the other side of the fence. The 1974 war divided the island and peace talks between Cyprus Greek and Turkish communities are ongoing, with both sides expressing a desire to return Varosha to its former glory. There have been a number of proposals to rebuild the ghost town and reopen it to the world, but no work has begun. Last year, both sides agreed to reopen two checkpoints linking the Greek and Turkish Cypriot halves, including one near Varosha. The glitz! The glamor! The tears! The tantrums! When it comes to awards season, it doesn't get any bigger or better than the Oscars. And over the years, this star-studded event has quite possibly provided us with more memorable moments than all the other awards ceremonies put together. From the touching and the historic to the downright hilarious, the Academy Awards has seen it all. We've had over-emotional movie stars, bizarre outfit choices and acceptance speeches that have made us laugh, cry and cringe in equal measure. And all of this has been caught on camera to be preserved in the annals of Oscars history. So ahead of the 88th Academy Awards, we take a look at the most memorable Oscars moments of all time. Jennifer Lawrence trips on her gown, 2013 As she climbed the steps to accept the award for Best Actress at the 2013 Oscars, Jennifer Lawrence stumbled in her full-skirted, strapless Dior haute couture gown, producing the stand-out moment from the 85th Academy Awards. The star, who was being honored for her role in Silver Linings Playbook, momentarily held her head in her hands, before ascending the stairs to a standing ovation from the audience. 'Thank you so much,' she told them. 'This is nuts. You guys are only standing up because I fell and you feel bad. That was embarrassing.' Adrien Brody steals a kiss from Halle Berry, 2003 In one of the more controversial moments in Oscars history, actor Adrien Brody was so overwhelmed with joy to receive the award for Best Actor for his role in The Pianist in 2003 that he clasped presenter Halle Berry to him in a passionate embrace and planted a kiss on her lips. After being handed the statuette, he then turned to Berry and said: 'I bet they didn't tell you that [kiss] was in the gift bag.' Berry, who looked a little stunned by the encounter, was seen wiping her lips on stage, and later described the smooch as 'wet'. Sally Field's 'You like me!' speech, 1985 In 1985, a clearly emotional Sally Field accepted the award for Best Actress for her role in Places in the Heart with one of the most memorable acceptance speeches in Oscars history. Clutching the golden statuette, the actress, who was accepting her second award in five years, told the audience: 'I haven't had an orthodox career and I've wanted more than anything to have your respect. The first time I didn't feel it, but this time I feel it. And I can't deny the fact that you like me. Right now, you like me!' The speech is not just one of the most famous, but it is also one of the most frequently misquoted - it is often remembered as: 'You like me, you really like me'. Whoopi Goldberg dresses up as Queen Elizabeth, 1999 Host of the 71st Academy Awards Whoopi Goldberg opened the 1999 ceremony dressed as England's Queen Elizabeth I, in homage to the monarch's appearance in Elizabeth and Shakespeare in Love, which were both up for numerous awards on the night. Goldberg, who hosted the awards a total of four times, opened with the line: 'Good evening loyal subjects. I am the African Queen, some of you may know me as the virgin queen, but I can't imagine who'. THAT selfie, 2014 The 2014 Oscars became the setting for the most famous selfie in the world when Ellen DeGeneres whipped out her Smartphone and hustled some of the most famous names in Hollywood into the frame to take the star-filled snap. The actors included, front row from left: Jared Leto, Jennifer Lawrence, Meryl Streep, Ellen DeGeneres, Bradley Cooper, Peter Nyong'o Jr. (Lupita Nyong'o's brother and the only non-celebrity in the photo), and, second row, from left, Channing Tatum, Julia Roberts, Kevin Spacey, Brad Pitt, Lupita Nyongio and Angelina Jolie. Audrey Hepburn wins Best Actress, 1954 Hollywood starlet Audrey Hepburn went on to become one of the world's most successful actresses and an international style icon. So the moment she won the Oscar for Best Actress at the 26th Academy Awards in 1954 for her role in Roman Holiday - the film she credits with making her a star - has become cemented in history. This was also the first time the waif-like Hepburn was seen in Givenchy - she wore a white floral dress with a lace bodice, full skirt and delicate belt - putting the designer (who went on to become her lifelong friend) firmly on the map Angelina Jolie shows some leg, 2012 It was the image that dominated the 2012 Oscars coverage, sparking thousands of internet memes and even a parody Twitter account. At the 84th Academy Awards, Angelina Jolie posed on the red carpet alongside husband Brad Pitt in a daring thigh-high slit Atelier Versace gown with her right leg jutting out at a distinctly unnatural angle. The limb in question went viral, quickly becoming a trending topic on Twitter, with users debating over her enviably trim thigh, the awkward and over-enthusiastic pose, and joking about the emphasis on her right leg. Robin Williams performs Blame Canada, 2000 At the 72nd Academy Awards in 2000, much-loved actor and comedian Robin Williams treated the audience to a raucous performance of the controversial song Blame Canada from the movie South Park: Bigger, Longer Uncut, which was nominated for Best Original Song. It initially seemed like a recipe for disaster - the song contained everything from toilet humor and expletives to political satire - but Williams, who died in 2014, pulled off the number in style. The song didn't actually clinch the award - it was won by Phil Collins' You'll be in My Heart from Tarzan - but Williams' performance has gone down in Oscars history. Christopher Reeve's touching speech, 1996 In what is possibly the most touching Oscars moment of all time, at the 68th Academy Awards in 1996 actor Christopher Reeve took to the stage and gave a moving speech about Hollywood's duty to address social issues in films. Reeve, who played Superman in the original movies, received a standing ovation in what was his first public appearance before the Hollywood community since an equestrian accident in Virginia the previous year left him paralyzed. Roberto Benigni becomes a double Oscar winner, 1999 Italian actor-director Roberto Benigni stole the show with his exuberance at the 71st Academy Awards in 1999 when he won the award for Best Foreign Film for Holocaust drama Life Is Beautiful. Despite sitting in an aisle seat, Benigni kicked his feet in the air and jumped onto the seat backs in front of him, applauding the audience, before bouncing onto the stage. After embracing presenter Sophia Loren, Benigni exclaimed in breathless and broken English: 'This is the moment of joy, and I want to kiss everybody because you are the major of the joy, and he who kisses the joy as it flies lives in eternity's sunrise, say the poet.' He then went on to receive Best Actor for his role in Life is Beautiful and the film also won the Oscar for Best Original Score. South Park turns up in drag, 2000 South Park's Trey Parker, Matt Stone and Marc Shaiman stole the limelight on the red carpet at the 72nd Academy Awards in 2000 when they turned up in full drag, after musical sequence Blame Canada was nominated for Best Original Song. Parker (left) wore a copy of Jennifer Lopez's green Versace Grammy Award dress, while Stone (right) was decked out in a dress that looked very similar to Gwyneth Paltrow's pink Ralph Lauren gown from the 1999 Oscars, and Shaiman (center) was adorned in a furry blue jacket and fedora. Elizabeth Taylor is upstaged by a streaker, 1974 You might have thought it was a tough call to steal the limelight from an actress like Elizabeth Taylor, but streaker Robert Opel managed to do just that. Just as British actor David Niven was about to introduce Taylor to present Best Picture at the 46th Academy Awards in 1974, a naked Opel darted across the stage. As the audience erupted into laughter, Niven quipped: 'Well, ladies and gentlemen, that was almost bound to happen. But isn't it fascinating to think that probably the only laugh that man will ever get in his life is by stripping off and showing his shortcomings?' Taylor laughed the incident off as she remarked that she had been upstaged by a streaker. Jack Nicholson and Louise Fletcher win Best Actor and Best Actress, 1976 Jack Nicholson and Louise Fletcher became the talking point at the 48th Academy Awards in 1976, after winning Best Actor and Best Actress for their roles in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. The couple, who were in a relationship at the time, gave iconic performances as Randle Patrick McMurphy and Nurse Ratched in the movie, which also won the Oscars for Best Picture, Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay in 1976, becoming one of only three films to win all five major Academy Awards (the other two were 1934's It Happened One Night and 1991's The Silence of the Lambs). Gwyneth Paltrow's tears as she wins Best Actress, 1999 The emotion of the moment got all too much for a clearly overwhelmed Gwyneth Paltrow at the 1999 Oscars when she won Best Actress for her role in Shakespeare in Love. Dressed in a pink Ralph Lauren gown and clasping her golden statuette, the actress gave a tear-drenched acceptance speech that has gone down in history as one of the most famous ever. Paltrow just about managed to hold it together as she was handed the statuette by Jack Nicholson, but the tears started to roll as she thanked her cast and crew and turned into full-blown sobs when she expressed her gratitude to her family. Melissa Leo drops the F-bomb, 2011 If there's one time you shouldn't swear, it's probably on stage at the Academy Awards. But actress Melissa Leo appeared to forget herself in the emotion of the moment and let out some expletives during her acceptance speech when she won the trophy for Best Supporting Actress at the 2011 Oscars for her role in The Fighter. While accepting the honor from actor Kirk Douglas (left), Leo let slip the first F-bomb in Oscars history. 'Yeah, I am kind of speechless; golly sakes, there's people up there too,' she said. Then, referencing Kate Winslet, she added: 'When I watched Kate two years ago, it looked so f***ing easy!' Fortunately, there was enough broadcast time for the word to be bleeped out, but this didn't stop the speech from going down as one of the most comical ever. Lupita Nyong'o's emotional speech, 2014 One of the most powerful Oscars speeches ever came from Lupita Nyong'o, who won Best Actress in 2014 for her moving portrayal of tortured slave Patsey in 12 Years a Slave. Her heartfelt acceptance speech was dedicated to Patsey and the film's protagonist Solomon. 'It doesn't escape me for one moment that so much joy in my life is thanks to so much pain in someone else's,' she said. 'And so I want to salute the spirit of Patsey for her guidance. And for Solomon, thank you for telling her story and your own'. Woody Allen attends his first-ever Oscars in the wake of 9/11, 2002 Despite constant recognition at the Oscars, director Woody Allen never attended the awards. But in 2002 he broke his self-imposed ban and made his first and last Oscars appearance to introduce a movie clip about film-making in New York to salute the city that he loved in the wake of the September 11 tragedy. An emotional Allen received a standing ovation as he thanked Hollywood for its support of his hometown. Halle Berry becomes first African-American woman to win Best Actress, 2002 Halle Berry made history at the 74th Academy Awards in 2002 when she became the first African-American woman to win Best Actress, thanks to her performance in Monster's Ball. And the significance of the award was not lost on Berry, who gave an emotional and tear-filled acceptance speech, stating: 'This moment is so much bigger than me. This is for every nameless, faceless woman of color that now has a chance because this door has opened.' At the same awards, Denzel Washington became the first African-American actor to win the Best Actor Oscar since 1963 and the first African-American actor ever to win two Oscars for his role in Training Day. Sacheen Littlefeather accepts Marlon Brando's award, 1973 In 1973, Marlon Brando won Best Actor for playing Vito Corleone in The Godfather, but he boycotted the ceremony and sent along Sacheen Littlefeather (little-known Native American actress Maria Cruz) in his place. When the Oscar was announced, the actress read from a written statement from Brando declaring that he would be refusing the award in protest against the unfair 'treatment of American Indians today by the film industry'. Heath Ledger's family accept his award, 2009 Hollywood was still grieving the tragic death of Australian actor Heath Ledger when he was awarded the Oscar for Best Supporting actor for his portrayal of The Joker in The Dark Knight at the 81st Academy Awards in 2009. The actor's family, including his father Kim and mother Sally (left) and sister Kate (center) accepted the honor on his behalf, in one of the most moving moments of Oscars history. In an emotional speech, his father said: 'This award tonight would have humbly validated Heath's quiet determination to be truly accepted by you all here - his peers within an industry he so loved'. Eleven-year-old Anna Paquin wins an Oscar, 1994 Actress Anna Paquin was just 11 years old when she won the Oscar for best supporting actress during the 66th annual Academy Awards in 1994 for her role as the daughter of a mute pianist in The Piano. Gasping with emotion, the pint-sized star thanked her manager and her father in her acceptance speech, as she became the second-youngest winner ever of an Academy Award. Shes finally revealed the name of her third album. Ariana Grande took to her Snapchat account on Tuesday to share Dangerous Woman is the name of her upcoming album. The 22-year-old hitmaker was seen wearing a plain white shirt with the album title spelled across her chest in black font. Scroll down for video Finally! After much anticipation Ariana Grande took to her Snapchat account on Tuesday to reveal Dangerous Woman is the name of her upcoming third album Hitmaker! Dangerous Woman will be the singer's third album, which follows her chart-topping previous albums My Everything and Yours Truly The black and white filtered selfie cut out her eyes but it did capture a large necklace that sparkled around her neck. A preceding Snapchat photo of a whiteboard showed the text Dangerous Woman in large black font. Underneath in smaller font appeared to be the start of a track list - with Moonlight listed in the number one spot. The rest of the list was out of shot. Sorry Moonlight! Dangerous Woman appears in another Snapchat photo that preceded the shot of Grande in a white shirt with the name; Moonlight had been previously thought to be the name of the upcoming album Moonlight was previously thought to be the anticipated name of the upcoming album. Grande had mentioned on her Twitter account last month that she was debating whether to use Moonlight or another name. 'They're my 2 favorite titles and songs. it's v hard.' she Tweeted. Big debate! In January the singer said she had been debating between Moonlight and another name for her new album title The day has come! Grande's fans were desperate to find out the new name of her song on January 11 after she shared that she was unsure about Moonlight at the title However, the pop singer has since changed her Twitter profile biography to read Dangerous Woman - it previously read Moonlight. Her previous chart-topping albums were My Everything (released in August 2014) and her debut studio album Yours Truly (released in August 2013). Grande was the star of the Nickelodeon sitcoms Victorious and Sam & Cat. Her 2013 debut single was the Top 10 hit The Way. They revealed their son's unusual name earlier this month within weeks of his birth. And now proud father Bobby Cannavale has shared further details about the newborn, revealing the traditional middle name he and Rose Byrne chose for the baby. Robin is Rocco's middle name, he revealed, in honour of Rose's father who goes by the same moniker. Scroll down for video Keeping it in the family: Bobby Canavale has revealed he and Rose Byrne chose Robin as their son's middle name after her father Speaking to People Magazine on Monday, the Boardwalk Empire star said he and his actress partner liked the way the two names sounded together. 'We just love the name. His middle name is her dads name, Robin, and we liked the way it rang together,' he said. Gushing over his partner, he described her as an 'incredible' mother. New role: Rose, 36, gave birth to Rocco on February 1. The actress has since been seen walking the newborn in his pram around New York 'Shes incredible shes what youd think shed be. Shes beautiful and wonderful and hes a beautiful boy.' Rose, 36, gave birth to Rocco on February 1, with her proud partner later sharing the news during an interview. It is the couple's first child together. The Australian actress managed to keep her pregnancy quiet for months, with the news only confirmed by Bobby in November. Proud: Gushing over his partner, Bobby said she was an 'incredible' mother. The couple are seen above in November 'We havent talked about it to anyone, but its pretty obvious if you see her that Rose is pregnant - and I will tell you that I am the dad!' he excitedly told TV Week. In January the couple appeared together on the red carpet in New York and Rose confirmed her excitement. '[I'm] Very excited for the year ahead on lots of fronts!' she told The Daily Telegraph. Bobby and Rose have been dating since 2012, with the actor describing her as the 'love of his life' at the 2013 Emmy Awards. Tyra Banks won't host the revival of America's Next Top Model. The long-running show was dropped last year by The CW Network after a 22-season run but has been recently picked up by VH1. Although Tyra, 42, will remain involved as an executive producer, she has decided not to present the show. Scroll down for video New face needed: Tyra Banks, 42, announced that she will not return as host of the new edition of America's Next Top Model, which has been picked up by VHI. She is pictured on December 9, 2015 Tyra said in a statement: 'After creating an incredible, global brand, I am beyond excited to have the show reborn. 'I will continue as executive producer, but must turn my attention to new business endeavors, so I want to find a new host. I'm pumped to identify that person and bring back the show,' she began. 'Top Model fans, you demanded that the show come back, and VH1 answered the call. Get ready for a fierce-a-fied rebirth!' The show will kick off with a 14-episode series and Chris McCarthy, General Manager of VH1 said: 'We're thrilled to bring America's Next Top Model back to VH1 and partner with CBS Television Distribution and Tyra Banks to reinvent this franchise for a whole new generation.' 'This is a homecoming for the series, as VH1 helped catapult the show to cultural icon status as the first cable network to air the show after it launched,' he pointed out. A new host and panel will be announced in the next few months. On February 12, a lawsuit was filed in New York claiming The Honest Co. 'falsely' labeled their products. And on Tuesday, Jessica Alba was seen making her way to the company's offices in Santa Monica, CA, less than two weeks following the news. Despite the allegations, the business maintains its innocence, citing the accusations as 'without merit.' On Tuesday, Jessica Alba, 34, was seen making her way to The Honest Co. headquarters in Santa Monica The 34-year-old mother-of-two was appropriately dressed in a simple and chic ensemble for her day of work. Jessica layered a navy sweater over a thinly striped dress, complete with a side slit. The actress and businesswoman accessorized her look with a necklace bearing her name, a set of earrings, shades and a Maiyet handbag. She later attended Kate Hudson's book launch in a long black dress, matching boots and grey jacket. Office attire: The actress and businesswoman accessorized her look with a necklace bearing her name, a set of earrings, shades and a Maiyet handbag Under fire: Jessica's Honest Co., which is currently valued at over a billion dollars, is the recipient of a second lawsuit, since coming under attack in September for alleged negative effects of sunscreen produced by the business Jessica's Honest Company, which is currently valued at over a billion dollars, is the recipient of a second lawsuit, since coming under attack in September for alleged negative effects of sunscreen produced by the business. According to Reuters, Brad and Manon Buonasera are suing the company for damages up to $5 million, and possibly more, citing that the products are labeled 'natural' or 'all natural' yet contain 'a spectacular array of synthetic and toxic ingredients.' They are hoping to seek a class-action suit on behalf of New Yorkers who purchased products from the actress' company. Legal terms: According to Reuters, Brad and Manon Buonasera are suing the company for damages up to $5 million, and possibly more for alleged false labeling of their products Off the hook? Jessica herself was reportedly not listed as a defendant in the lawsuit The couple, who sued Honest following products they purchased at Costco, claimed that they reached out the company last fall in regards to it's alleged false advertising. When no action was supposedly taken, they took legal action upon themselves. Jessica herself was reportedly not listed as a defendant in the lawsuit. In a statement to Retuers, the business said: 'The Honest Company takes its responsibility to our consumers seriously and strongly stands behind our products. These allegations are without merit and we will vigorously defend this baseless lawsuit.' He introduced himself on Wednesday night's episode of First Dates as a party boy from New South Wales who likes nothing more than going out and getting drunk with his mates. And after detailing that he would like a girl who can 'keep up and drink with me,' it appears 26-year-old Joel may have found his perfect match in Loaan Smith. The New Zealand-born beauty happily enjoyed drinking tequila shots and vodka all night long with her heavily tattooed date, even skipping out on ordering a meal, leading to her being so inebriated she eventually had to be carried out of the venue by Joel. Scroll down for video She can keep up! First Dates Loaan revealed she has had sex with over 40 guys before being carried out by tattooed party boy Joel after getting intoxicated off tequila shots and vodka during Wednesday night's episode During the date, the intoxicated New South Wales resident also revealed that she has had sex with over 40 guys she didn't even like. 'I need to be attracted to the person I am having sex with or I cry,' the 29-year-old admitted. Leading to Joel asking: 'How many times have you cried?' Loaan responded, saying: 'I counted and it was like 40, but then the other day I was like: "Ohh I forgot about those ones!"' She then paused, before quipping: 'That's not bad! I'm almost 30!' Loaan later also admitted that has 'had sex with a lot of people on the first date.' Drinking to get drunk? Joel revealed he would like a girl who can 'keep up and drink with me,' it appears the 26-year-old may have found his perfect match in Loaan Such a gentleman! Loaan became so intoxicated she had to ask Joel to carry her home after the date, to which he didn't hesitate picking her up and carrying her out of the restaurant on his back 'That's not bad! I'm almost 30!' During the date, Loaan also revealed that she has had sex with over 40 guys she didn't even like The brunette, who also had a generous amount of body ink, then asked Joel if he would lie down with her on the floor of the restaurant, to which he cheekily replied: 'Later... Not here.' Loaan then refused to order a meal during the date, explaining: 'If I eat and drink I fall asleep.' She went on: 'I don't do dinner dates, I don't like eating in front of people, especially a first date - how awkward!' No beating around the bush: The brunette, who also had a generous amount of body ink, then asked Joel if he would life down with her on the floor of the restaurant, to which he cheekily replied: 'Later... Not here' Cheers! Upon her arrival at dinner, the pair immediately shared a shot of tequila together, before ordering two more vodka beverages 'If I eat and drink I'll fall asleep': The thirsty duo continued ordering shots throughout the meal, and Loaan was seen on many occasions taking big gulps of her vodka soda after she refused to order a meal Celebrating: The thirsty duo continued ordering shots throughout the meal Upon her arrival at dinner, the pair immediately shared a shot of tequila together, before ordering two more vodka beverages. The thirsty duo continued ordering shots throughout the meal, and Loaan was seen on many occasions taking big gulps of her vodka soda. Despite hitting it off, the pair shared a rather awkward moment, when Loaan confessed she hated children, before Joel revealed he actually already had a child of his own. 'Children are evil and I don't need them in my life!' she said, adding: 'No babies are going to be breeding in this belly!' 'I think I must be one of the only females in the world who doesn't want kids,' she noted, before asking Joel if he wanted them. The coal miner then replied by revealing he actually already had a five-year-old son, before Loaan joked they should call their first child 'Tequila.' 'Children are evil': Despite hitting it off, the pair shared a rather awkward moment, when Loaan confessed she hated children, before Joel revealed he actually already had a child of his own Before meeting Loaan, Joel had revealed he was looking for someone to 'go out and have a drink with and a good time with,' as well as someone who could easily get along with his mates. 'If she can keep up and drink with me and party as hard as we do then that's awesome! Good on her - that's a good girl!' he stated. Joel revealed that most of his drinking takes place abroad in Bali, Indonesia. 'Most nights we tend to drink in Bali, we start drinking during the day and we pretty much go to a tattoo shop and we end up tattooing each other,' he admitted. He then showed off his impressive collection of body ink which included a 'drunk taco,' the words 'f*** the police,' as well as autographs on his leg from all of his mates. Party boy: Joel had revealed he was looking for someone to 'go out and have a drink with and a good time with,' as well as someone who could easily get along with his mates 'If she can keep up and drink with me and party as hard as we do then that's awesome! Good on her - that's a good girl!' he stated Meanwhile, Loaan detailed that she was looking for a 'masculine guy.' 'My last boyfriend was really in touch with his feelings and into mediation and stuff and that ended up being a complete turn off,' she confessed. She then admitted that she wasn't looking for someone to marry or have children with, bluntly stating: 'I just want someone who is like a best friend and we only have sex with each other.' Expressive: During the episode Joel showed off his impressive collection of body ink Unique: One tattoo included a picture of a 'drunk taco' while another read 'F*** the police' How bizarre! He also had the autographs of all his mates etched on his leg Meanwhile, during the date in a piece-to-camera, Loaan broke down in tears as she revealed she had been kicked out of home at just 15-years of age, after swapping between 13 different schools. 'I just had to learn to grow up really fast - I didn't have anything,' she said as her eyes welled up with tears. 'So many people worry about stupid things and it's like well at least you have a roof over your head and you can eat and you have people who love you,' she sobbed. 'I just had to learn to grow up really fast': Loaan also broke down in tears as she revealed she had been kicked out of home at just 15-years of age, after swapping between 13 different schools At the conclusion of the date, both parties mutually agreed that they were indeed each other's type and made arrangements to catch up together in Bali over the next few weeks. 'She's definitely my type - she likes to party and she's down for a good time and she likes vodka and tequila,' Joel said. As they left the venue, Loan then gestured for Joel to carry her home, to which he didn't hesitate picking her up and carrying her out of the restaurant on his back. Match made in heaven: At the conclusion of the date, both parties mutually agreed that they were indeed each other's type, with Joel saying:'She's definitely my type - she likes to party and she likes vodka and tequila' Who's The Boss? (BBC2) Rating: First Contact (C4) Rating: Youve heard the saying about turkeys voting for Christmas, but suppose poultry really did get a democratic say in how we celebrate the festive season. Bird-brains they might be, but no turkey is going to vote for plucking, basting and a fistful of Paxo. By a sweeping majority, the vegetarian option would win the ballot, and wed all be eating nut roast next December 25. Thats a daft notion, but no more stupid than what the Beeb was proposing in Whos The Boss? (BBC2), a three-part documentary series that invites workforces to choose their own managers by popular vote a process dubbed collaborative hire. Whos The Boss? (BBC2), is a three-part documentary series that invites workforces to choose their own managers by popular vote a process dubbed collaborative hire. Pictured, a driver from Reynolds with candidate Andrew Walker Its an idea pinched from Californias Silicon Valley, where the geeks of Google, Apple and Facebook assess and appoint new colleagues. The idea is that, if youre going to be working alongside these recruits, youll want to select the best. This is naive, arrogant and entirely devoid of any understanding about how normal people think exactly what youd expect of technology companies, most of whose staff havent made social contact with the real world since they were nine years old. The truth is that nobody sane wants to bring in competition which is better qualified, or more efficient. Thats just asking to be made redundant. Every managing director knows this is how the workers think, from the team leaders down to the toilet cleaners. Its human nature. Thats why we have bosses. All the flaws and drawbacks were instantly apparent on Whos The Boss? as the 900 staff at Reynoldss fruit and veg suppliers in Hertfordshire were invited to select a new operations manager. Im picking whoevers best-looking, declared one woman. Everyone laughed, but she wasnt joking. At least her method made some sort of sense: 15 per cent of people meet their partners at work. Why make yourself miserable by hiring plug-uglies? JOBSWORTHS OF THE WEEK Brandishing booklets of FPNs or fixed penalty notices, wardens swooped on smokers in Dumfries shopping centre, handing out 80 fines for dropping a fag-end, on The Inspectors Are Coming (ITV). That's not law enforcement, it's legalised mugging. Advertisement One of the candidates, 48-year-old Andrew, immediately scuppered his chances of a job by declaring: Im a hard taskmaster. Across the company, where staff were watching his interview on monitors, an alarmed clucking went up, like turkeys who had just caught sight of the gravy browning. Andrews rival was the chatty, extroverted Jill, who got all teary at the mere thought of being rejected. She won the job, of course: we werent told the exact result, but it was probably a landslide. What sort of brute would vote to make lovely, unthreatening Jill cry especially when the alternative was tubby tyrant Andrew? The fact that Andrew was far better qualified, with a lifetime of experience in similar jobs, was neither here nor there. Every other show on telly, from Strictly to X Factor to Im A Celebrity, is subject to the public vote, the lowest common denominator. If the Beeb really thinks thats how Britains businesses should be run, lets see them start at New Broadcasting House. They can copy the geeks, by getting rid of all job titles, for instance, and living off pizza. And then they can vote in the new director-general. That should be interesting. A different sort of social experiment was unfolding in First Contact (C4), as Amazon tribes that had never ventured out of the jungle before emerged nervously into the wider world. A different sort of social experiment was unfolding in First Contact (C4), as Amazon tribes that had never ventured out of the jungle before emerged nervously into the wider world. Pictured, Xina, the leader of the Sapanahua tribe They jabbered and expostulated as they waded across the river to meet waiting anthropologists. It seemed profound and exciting, until the subtitles appeared and we realised that what these Indians in their loincloths were actually saying was fuelled by frustration and greed: Ive always wanted clothes, but its really hard to get them off you! The tribesmen then went on a rampage, stealing food and tools, and lifes little essentials like plastic flip-flops. The scientists were in despair to see the disintegration of a hunter-gatherer culture that supposedly had remained unchanged since the Stone Age... 10,000 years of history, destroyed by a flip-flop. However, this fascinating but scrappy programme, much of it filmed on out-of-focus on phones and cheap camcorders, concealed a major surprise. Far from being relics of a prehistoric era, the tribes turned out to be descendants of refugees who fled into the forests around 100 years ago, to escape the slave gangs on rubber plantations. Vanessa Hudgens can certainly rock a form-fitting gown, and with The Oscars and the parties mere days away she was wise to plan ahead. The 27-year-old Grease: Live star was pretty and practically minded as she headed to a dress fitting in Beverly Hills on Monday. Vanessa was wearing a burgundy backless sundress with halter neckline and flaring below-the-knee skirt as she arrived to the posh location. Scroll down for video Perfect fit: Vanessa Hudgens stood still while a dress stylist took measurements for a few necessary alternations to an outfit in Beverly Hills on Tuesday As fittings can take a while, Vanessa also made sure she took out plenty of money for the meter from her large tote bag. The star wore her hair in a simple chic bob and, once inside, placed her dark shades on top of her head. Vanessa was the picture of patience as she stood still while the stylist took her measurements with cloth tape for the necessary alternations. Practical: The 28-year-old actress made sure she put plenty of money in the meter as fittings can take a while Chic: Vanessa looked fashionable in a burgundy dress with halter top and carried a stylish handbag Her make-up was heavy on the eye-liner and shadows, and lipstick in a dark and dramatic red tied in with the dress' colour. While Vanessa has yet to disclose her plans for this year's Oscars night, the Spring Breakers star did attend Elton John's post Oscars bash in 2014 - and she looked fabulous in a metallic gold strapless gown. Vanessa, who earned rave reviews for her performance as Rizzo in the live television production of Grease on January 31, lost her father to stage 4 cancer the night before she went on stage. The former Disney star took to Twitter to reveal the sad news. Rear view: The star's dress was backless with a skirt that flared below the knee 'I am so sad to say that last night my daddy, Greg passed away from stage 4 cancer. Thank you to everyone who kept him in your prayers,' Vanessa wrote. Her Grease: Live cast mate, Jordan Fisher, told People recently how Vanessa went on with the show 'like a champ' so soon after her dad's death. 'She handled it like a champ. We're all very proud of her,' Jordan said. He added: 'It's never going to be easy and that's the kind of thing that you can't really prepare for regardless of how long the process it. But she's great.' The sudden death of former Disney actor Michael Galeota is still a mystery to his family. The Jersey actor died suddenly at his home in Glendale, California on January 10 at the age of 31, days after leaving hospital with stomach pains. 'We don't know exactly what happened. It's a lot of confusion,' his brother Jimmy Galeota told People. Child star: Actor Michael Galeota, seen at a premiere in 2000, was found dead at his Los Angeles home at the age of 31 on January 10 Michael's death was declared to be of natural causes by the coroner, but the family still doesn't have any information beyond that, his brother said. 'The police immediately were looking for suicides notes but there was no indication of anything like that,' Jimmy told People. 'They went through the apartment, they looked for suicide notes, they looked for pills, but there was nothing. 'They couldn't find anything. Which is why we've all got a big question mark. We don't know what to think.' Family puzzled: His death was ruled to be from natural causes, but the family are still waiting for answers, his brother Jimmy has said However, Jimmy said his brother seemed fine while in touch with friends the night before his death. Michael also made plans, and had goals for the future, including children and marriage, Jimmy told People. The family are now looking into Michael's medical history, although they say he gave no hint anything was wrong. 'My family and I are concerned that he was not getting diagnosed properly,' he said. 'He never said anything like, 'I've got this problem', he never spoke of anything like that. So that's why we're all just... we're all still puzzled,' said Jimmy. Mystery: Michael was best known for Disney show The Jersey Michael went to the hospital with stomach pains just days before his death, and the family are still awaiting the toxicology report. The Los Angeles County Coroner's office told E! News that the actor suffered health problems including hypertension, and high cholesterol. Writing about Michael on a GoFundMe page that raised more than $25,000 for his funeral, the family wrote. 'He was a precious gift - loving, giving, compassionate, joyful and intelligent.' 'His humble nature hid a great compassionate and loving human being, with a huge heart. He cared profoundly for his family and friends. Mike was a great giver, always ready and able to care for others.' She's certainly not shy of putting her figure on display. And on Wednesday Zilda Williams took the opportunity to put her ample curves out there again as she stocked up on groceries. The former Bachelor contestant gave fellow shoppers a glimpse of her DD chest as she browsed the aisles at a Rose Bay supermarket wearing nothing but a tiny bikini top and denim mini-skirt. Spilling out: Zilda Wiliams showed off her ample curves in a tiny string bikini as she stocked up on groceries in Rose Bay on Wednesday With her peroxide locks swept into an up-do, Zilda strove for a casual look as she made her way around the store. Shunning make-up and wearing some large sunglasses perched on top of her head, the 32-year-old seemed eager to make the most of the sweltering summer heat. She slipped into a small, red and black triangle bikini top, showing off her torso and spilling cleavage as shop. Pairing the top with a thigh-skimming denim mini-skirt, the former dental assistant seemed eager to show off her lithe legs too. Some shopping outfit: The 32-year-old felt no need to cover up while browsing the frozen aisle despite wearing minimal clothing Summer fun: Zilda appeared eager to make the most of Sydney's soaring temperatures as she stripped off Cooling down: The former reality TV star picked up a fresh juice to refresh herself with in the afternoon sun Relaxing: Zilda appeared happy and in high spirits as she spent time on her own in Rose Bay on Wednesday She finished her look with some flip flops and draped a multi-coloured towel over her shoulder for the outing. It's likely the one-time reality TV star had been at the beach, soaking up the sun as Sydney enjoyed yet another day of soaring temperatures. Zilda recently returned to Sydney after spending time in Melbourne with her new boyfriend, Paul Spry. The pair have been loved-up ever since Zilda returned from a raucous girls' holiday in Bali with former playmate Sarah Robertson. Sun seeker: Zilda appeared to show off a healthy tan as she went about her low-key day Loved up: Zilda recently opened up about her new romance with boyfriend Paul Spry who lives in Melbourne Catching up: Zilda had stocked up on gossip magazines and seemed eager to make the most of the day On Valentine's Day the duo partied up a storm at Club 23, owned by cricketer Shane Warne, posing for snaps as they celebrated their blossoming romance. The pair met just last month on Australia Day and have since visited one another in their hometowns. Speaking to Daily Mail Australia about their relationship, she said: 'We've been talking and he came up to visit me. 'It's early days, at the moment we're just getting to know each other.' Low-key: Zilda had shunned make-up for the outing, instead opting for a more natural look for the day Former My Kitchen Rules contestants and runners-up Chloe James and Kelly Ramsay have been sacked by The Sunday Times after their negative review of a Perth eatery. In a statement published to the Western Australian newspaper's website on Wednesday, Editor Rod Savage said the duo 'did not meet' editorial standards in their scathing critique of West End Deli. The news comes after the restaurateur in question accused the reality duo of 'fabrication', as well as continuing to duck a $260 bill for seven weeks after dining there. Sacked: My Kitchen Rules contestants and runners-up Chloe James and Kelly Ramsay have been sacked by The Sunday Times after their negative review of a Perth eatery 'The Sunday Times has clear editorial standards which demand accuracy and transparency,' the statement read. 'Regrettably a recent food review by Chloe James and Kelly Ramsay did not meet those standards, so we will no longer be using them as contributors to our publications.' West End Deli shared a lengthy post online on Sunday, slamming the women after their review made it to print that day. The venue: The deli in question shared a lengthy post online slamming the girls after their review made it to print 'Finally the icing on this cake is the exchange that took place as the spotless plates were cleared and the bill was handed over to Kelly. Kelly's credit card was declined,' part of it read. 'She was obviously quite embarrassed and promised to come back the next day and settle the $260 bill. 'That's the last we heard of Kelly for close to 7 [sic] weeks. We rang, left voicemails and texted Kelly numerous times but were ignored completely until late December.' Speaking out: Chloe and Kelly's review was titled 'Hipster Deli Should Stick To Brekkie' and said dishes didn't live up to their expectations. The venue's reply is seen here Keeping positive: The deli added they wanted Perth locals to 'make up your own mind on our offering' rather than listening to the review Short of change? According to the deli, Kelly didn't cough up the cash after eating there and Chloe later 'begrudgingly' sorted out the bill According to the deli, Chloe emailed the eatery in December and 'begrudgingly' sorted out the outstanding bill. 'We also made our concerns clear to the STM editor after we were made aware that we were being reviewed months after the dinner took place.' The owner went on: 'Call us crazy but being reviewed by someone who deliberately avoided payment and had to be tracked down almost 2 months after the event led us to believe that their review may be loaded with negative bias. At the very least a conflict of interest.' Did you even go together? The deli claims it wasn't Chloe and Kelly who dined there as stated in the review, but Kelly and her fiancee The restaurant also claimed in part of their post that they are open to 'constructive criticism', but felt the need to 'share our side.' It also claimed Kelly dined there with her fiance and not Chloe. 'Only Kelly Ramsay was in attendance on this evening. She dined with her fiance, seems like a nice bloke actually,' the restaurant wrote. 'We would love to know how Chloe can fairly put her name to a review of a restaurant and food that she has not actually experienced?' The deli also claimed the review took place in October, and having been printed at the weekend, meant some seasonal dishes weren't available. Chloe and Kelly's review was titled 'Hipster Deli Should Stick To Brekkie' and claimed dishes didn't live up to their expectations and the dishes were not seasonal. They also told customers to 'consider takeaway pizza instead' and gave it a score of nine out of 20. Chloe and Kelly were painted as the villains on My Kitchen Rules and almost won when they appeared on the show in 2014, but were placed runners-up instead. They say the apple doesn't fall far from the tree and for Kate Ritchie and her one-year-old daughter Mae Webb, the saying couldn't be more accurate. The stylish mother and daughter duo were spotted both wearing playsuits as they ran errands in Sydney recently. The 37-year-old radio host opted for a light blue shade, while dressing her young daughter in a pretty shade of pink, as they strolled along the pavement. Scroll down for video Like mother, like daughter! Kate Ritchie and her one-year-old daughter Mae Webb were spotted both wearing cute play suits as they ran errands in Sydney earlier this month Keeping it casual, the mother-of-one teamed her chic outfit with a pair of comfortable white Converse sneakers whilst shielding her face with a pair of dark sunglasses. The former Home And Away star appeared to be makeup free for the jaunt, as she showed off her glowing complexion. Meanwhile, an adorable Mae, whom Kate shares with her husband former Rugby League player Stuart Webb, looked super cute as she accessorised her pink romper with matching shoes and a hat. Kate appeared to have her hands full as she juggled the tiny tot on one hip whilst managing her wallet and keys in another. Flashing her sparkling diamond engagement ring on her left hand, the Nova radio star wore her brunette tresses in loose waves as she strutted along the streets. Just like her mother! The 37-year-old radio host opted for a light blue shade, while dressing her young daughter in a pretty pink ensemble as they strolled along the pavement towards their car Kate is currently in Las Vegas, where she is live broadcasting her Nova radio show, Kate, Tim and Marty, with her co-hosts Tim Blackwell and Marty Sheargold. And it appears the brunette beauty is excited to be away from home, as she celebrated with a relaxing glass of champagne on the plane trip over. 'Yep, we are really doin' it..' she captioned the snap on Instagram of her flute filled almost to the brim. Once in America, Kate took a fun selfie with Tim outside the McCarren International airport's gleaming sign, as she advised fans they had finally arrived at their destination, writing: 'Look out Vegas!' Kate will be in Las Vegas until the end of next week, with the Nova team broadcasting the programme from the iconic location daily from 4pm. Stylish mama: Keeping it casual, the mother-of-one teamed her chic outfit with a pair of comfortable white Converse sneakers whilst shielding her face with a pair of dark sunglasses Mini-me: An adorable Mae looked super cute as she accessorised her pink romper with matching shoes and hat perched on top of her tiny head Laid back style: The Nova radio star wore her brunette tresses down in loose waves for the jaunt He plays the charismatic Dr Nate Cooper on Channel Seven's Home And Away. But Kyle Pryor has stripped off his uniform hospital scrubs to reveal a completely different side to what viewers are use to. The 31-year-old actor showed off his muscular physique as he filmed a scene at Sydney's popular Palm Beach - the backdrop for the long-running Australian drama. Scroll down for video Summer Bay six-pack! Kyle Pryor, 31, shows off his washboard abs in a pair of boardshort while filming a beachside scene for Home and Away Wearing a pair of low-slung tropical patterned boardshorts, Kyle left very little to the imagination as he pulled a sultry stare while exposing those well-defined abs. Sporting a small amount of facial hair for a rugged vibe, Kyle's caramel light-tipped locks were styled into messy but ultra stylish do. His well-defined six pack was also clearly on display as the genetically blessed stud showed off his attractive qualities which have made him a small screen heartthrob. Tanned to perfection, the hunky star flexed his muscular arms, allowing his bulging biceps to be on show for all to see as he walked barefoot towards fellow castmate, Penny McNamee. Absolutely! The 31-years-olds well-defined six pack was also clearly visible as the genetically blessed stud showed off his attractive qualities which have made him a small screen heartthrob Hair perfection: Kyle's caramel light-tipped locks have been styled into messy but stylish do The 32-year-old, who plays Dr. Tori Morgan, is seen talking to a shirtless Kyle while carrying a blue yoga mat and an oversized gym bag. Penny flaunted her trim and toned figure in a pair of three-quarter length yoga pants and a tight-fitting tie dye shirt. Her luscious mousy blonde locks were styled into a fishtail braid, while wearing minimal makeup for the sporty scene. Penny looked to be in good spirits while talking to her fellow Home and Away actor, who continued to show off his glossy physique. Sporty scene: Penny McNamee, who plays Dr. Tori Morgan, is seen talking to a shirtless Kyle while carrying a blue yoga mat and a tropical patterned beach bag A good day: Penny looked to be in good spirits while filming talking to her fellow Home and Away actor Apart from showing his six pack on the Australian drama, Kyle flaunts his toned body in a number of fitness inspiration pictures shared to his Instagram. He also featured on the November edition of Men's Health Magazine. In the monthly publication, the actor showed off his muscular torso in a number of fitted T-shirts and jeans in an outside setting, including using his muscular physique to jump over a fence as well as posing beside a motorbike. Inside the soap actor, who shot to fame on Australian screens when he made his debut on Home And Away in 2013, speaks about the secret to achieving those washboard abs. Absolutely: He also featured on the November edition of Men's Health Magazine, flaunting his rock hard abs Kyle proudly shared a shot of the cover, writing: 'A huge thank you to the whole team @menshealthau for the November 'Transformation Issue' front cover. I couldn't have achieved this without my amazing trainer @gregjoujonroche.' 'You'll find a great ab workout routine inside which keeps me in shape for @officialhomeandaway,' he added. They were recently reunited on the small screen for a TV special honouring their Friends director James Burrows. But on Tuesday evening Jennifer Aniston and her tinsel town BFF Courteney Cox joined forces for a different cause, when they attended Jennifer's charitable even for St Jude's Children's Hospital. The 47-year-old actress hosted the event in conjunction with Smartwater at the W hotel in Los Angeles, and managed to attract a bevy of stylish talent from around Hollywood - including her former co-star, 51. Scroll down for video For a good cause: On Tuesday evening Jennifer Aniston and her tinsel town BFF Courteney Cox joined forces for a different cause, when they attended Jennifer's charitable even for St Jude's Children's Hospital Jennifer a long-time supporter of St Judes - a health care charity, which strives to pioneer procedures to help seriously ill children - was in fine form as the event's host. And it appeared that she'd been highly successful in ensuring her friends and an array of former co-stars all turned out for the bash - with the most prominent being Courteney and Scream Queen's Emma Roberts. Looking radiant in an understated patterned dress, the Cake actress put her best-foot forward in the fashion stakes. Slipping into a demure black and red dress, Jen ensured that she stuck to a sensible style code whilst supporting the children's charity. Rallying the troops: Jen , 47, hosted the event in conjunction with Smartwater at the W hotel in Los Angeles, and managed to attract a bevy of stylish talent from around Hollywood - including her former co-star, 51 Famous friends: Jennifer a supporter of St Judes - a health care charity pioneering procedures to help seriously ill children - managed to draft in some support from her We're The Millers co-star, Emma Roberts Keeping to her subtle dress-code, the star kept her look uncluttered with accessories, and only wore a brace of bangles. Wearing her trademark blonde locks in a centre-parting, the award-winning actress allowed her hair to fall in slight waves down past her shoulders. Opting for a natural and understated palette of make-up, the Horrible Bosses actress let her naturally striking looks shine through. A gracious host: Jennifer (pictured with Sarah and Jennifer Meyer) was in fine form as the event's host, and made sure she greeted all of her guests with a smile Keeping it casually chic: Courteney matched her Friends co-star and BFF sartorially by dressing down in a chic yet casual combo Courteney matched her Friends co-star and BFF sartorially by dressing down in a chic yet casual combo. The Scream star paired a lightweight cream jumper with a pair of fitted black trousers, finishing her outfit off with a pair of understated yet towering black stiletto heels. Courteney kept to her casually chic theme, and like Jennifer, kept her accessories to a minimum - only wearing a brace of gold jewellery and a pair of black-framed spectacles. With her dark locks falling arrow-straight down to her shoulders, the actress also opted for a minimal make-up palette. Screen siren: Emma - who is the niece of Hollywood heavyweight Julia Roberts - channelled a demure look, whilst subtly highlighting her lithe and enviable figure in a form-fitting floral dress Jen's We're The Millers co-star Emma, 25, stunned sartorially in a figure-hugging floral maxi dress. The rising screen siren - who is the niece of Hollywood heavyweight Julia Roberts - channelled a demure look, whilst subtly highlighting her lithe and enviable figure. Rounding her look off with a pair of black stiletto heels, the actress added further definition to her frame. Wearing her blonde locks in a sweeping fringe and flicked bob, the stunning actress made sure her pretty features were firmly in the limelight. Only using a hint of eyeliner and a flash of pink lipstick, the celluloid beauty showcased her naturally striking features in all their glory. Lithe beauty: Rounding her look off with a pair of black stiletto heels, the actress (pictured with JoAnna Garcia) added further definition to her frame A good time for a good cause: Jen worked the room like a pro, sharing laughs and anecdotes with her guests More screen stars: Actresses Jamie-Lynn Sigler and JoAnna Garcia also turned out for the even in stylish yet understated ensembles Former My Kitchen Rules star Kelly Ramsay has apologised for her and teammate Chloe James' scathing and 'fabricated' restaurant review that led to them being sacked by The Sunday Times. Kelly penned an opinion piece for WA Today addressing the controversy, writing: 'You have to laugh, it seems once cast as the bad guys you are stuck with it.' It was revealed on Wednesday that she and Chloe - who were portrayed as villains on the series - were fired. Scroll down for video Apologising: My Kitchen Rules star Kelly Ramsay (R) has opened up about her and teammate Chloe James' (L) scathing and 'fabricated' restaurant review that led to them being sacked by The Sunday Times Kelly in her piece for WA Today said despite their 'bad guy portrayal' on the series, they have gone on to have success in the industry, including writing their reviews and doing their own business. She explained the pair had received countless emails from other restaurants being thanked for their reviews and feedback. 'Sure, not everybody is happy, but that's not how restaurant reviews work is it?,' she wrote. Chloe said she and her fiance didn't visit the West End Deli in October - as the eatery claimed in it's Facebook post - as they were overseas at the time. See MKR updates as Kelly Ramsay apologises for 'fabricated' restaurant review Having her say: Kelly penned an opinion piece for WA Today addressing the controversy, writing: 'You have to laugh, it seems once cast as the bad guys you are stuck with it' She said her card used to pay the bill was declined because her card was cancelled as payments were apparently being made in the US and the girls tried to settle bill less than two weeks after that particular visit. Kelly also appeared on Today Tonight on Wednesday and said she and Chloe were 'extremely disappointed' about the sacking. ''Im sorry people feel misled and I believe that with a bit more guidance this wouldnt have happened... We're not journalists, we are really passionate foodies,' she said. The restaurant claimed Chloe was not there for the sitting and hence questioned why her name was on the review. Kelly explained about going with her fiance: 'Chloe and I are a brand, we're a partnership. We don't work as individuals. If it was an individual review, it would still be branded as Chloe and Kelly,' she said. She said the review was written after a 'combination of those visits,' referring to going once with her fiance and with Chloe. She added the pair have 'had to endure a lot of trolling, abuse and threats' as a result of the backlash. In a statement published to the Western Australian newspaper's website on Wednesday, Editor Rod Savage said the duo 'did not meet' editorial standards in their scathing critique of West End Deli. The sacking news comes after the restaurateur in question accused the reality duo of 'fabrication', as well as continuing to duck a $260 bill for seven weeks after dining there. Sacked: The women have been sacked by The Sunday Times after their negative review of a Perth eatery 'The Sunday Times has clear editorial standards which demand accuracy and transparency,' the statement read. 'Regrettably a recent food review by Chloe James and Kelly Ramsay did not meet those standards, so we will no longer be using them as contributors to our publications.' West End Deli shared a lengthy post online on Sunday, slamming the women after their review made it to print that day. The venue: The deli in question shared a lengthy post online slamming the girls after their review made it to print 'Finally the icing on this cake is the exchange that took place as the spotless plates were cleared and the bill was handed over to Kelly. Kelly's credit card was declined,' part of it read. 'She was obviously quite embarrassed and promised to come back the next day and settle the $260 bill. 'That's the last we heard of Kelly for close to 7 [sic] weeks. We rang, left voicemails and texted Kelly numerous times but were ignored completely until late December.' Speaking out: Chloe and Kelly's review was titled 'Hipster Deli Should Stick To Brekkie' and said dishes didn't live up to their expectations. The venue's reply is seen here Keeping positive: The deli added they wanted Perth locals to 'make up your own mind on our offering' rather than listening to the review According to the deli, Chloe emailed the eatery in December and 'begrudgingly' sorted out the outstanding bill. 'We also made our concerns clear to the STM editor after we were made aware that we were being reviewed months after the dinner took place.' The owner went on: 'Call us crazy but being reviewed by someone who deliberately avoided payment and had to be tracked down almost 2 months after the event led us to believe that their review may be loaded with negative bias. At the very least a conflict of interest.' The restaurant also claimed in part of their post that they are open to 'constructive criticism', but felt the need to 'share our side.' It also claimed Kelly dined there with her fiance and not Chloe. 'Only Kelly Ramsay was in attendance on this evening. She dined with her fiance, seems like a nice bloke actually,' the restaurant wrote. 'We would love to know how Chloe can fairly put her name to a review of a restaurant and food that she has not actually experienced?' The deli also claimed the review took place in October, and having been printed at the weekend, meant some seasonal dishes weren't available. Chloe and Kelly's review was titled 'Hipster Deli Should Stick To Brekkie' and claimed dishes didn't live up to their expectations and the dishes were not seasonal. They also told customers to 'consider takeaway pizza instead' and gave it a score of nine out of 20. Chloe and Kelly were painted as the villains on My Kitchen Rules and almost won when they appeared on the show in 2014, but were placed runners-up instead. After months of speculation about a wedding Jodhi Meares has finally confirmed she has tied the knot with her photographer boyfriend Nicholas Finn. The Australian activewear designer was reported by the Daily Telegraph to have introduced her much younger as her 'husband' at an intimate event in Sydney's Darling Point on Tuesday. 'This is my husband, Nick,' she told guests. Scroll down for video Confirmed: Jodhi Meares, 44, introduces her much younger beau Nicholas Finn, 28, as her 'husband' to guests at an intimate Sydney event Nice way to confirm it: Nicholas also confirmed the nuptials on his own Instagram account, sharing a picture of himself, Jodhi and a guest, all giving the camera the finger Nicholas also confirmed the nuptials on his own Instagram account, sharing a picture of himself, Jodhi and a guest, all giving the camera the finger. 'Ummm...my wife's party's better than your,' he wrote in the caption, the pair flashing their gold wedding bands. The confirmation comes weeks after the 44-year-old changed her name to Jodhi Tsindos on her social media, though her handle remains 'jodhimeares'. While her now husband goes by the name Nicholas Finn, he cites his full name as 'Nicholas (Finn) Tsindos' on his own Instagram page. Speculation over the fashionable duo tying the knot began in December when Nick left fans confused after he hashtagged an image of himself and Jodhi as 'The Finns'. Changing names: The confirmation come just days after the 44-year-old changed her name to Jodhi Tsindos on her social media, though her handle remained as 'jodhimeares' In the loved-up snap the pair flashed large grins as they sat comfortably on the floor with the Pacific coastline providing a picturesque backdrop. Jodhi is seen leaning her head towards her muscular beau's shoulder as she gave it an affectionate kiss. The 28-year-old captioned the photo: 'Happy, healthy, Hawaii with my girl Jodhi Meares #happy #holidays #thefinns'. A source close to Jodhi told Woman's Day that the designer and former model has indeed said 'I do' to her much younger love. 'Yes, they got married in Hawaii,' the source said. Broken romance: Hawaii is a destination close to Jodhi's heart and the place she sought refuge in March last year following her split with former fiance Jon Stevens They added that the pair said their vows by the beach surrounded by a small group of family members and close friends. Hawaii is a destination close to Jodhi's heart and the place she sought refuge in March last year following her split with former fiance Jon Stevens. 'To me its the most peaceful place on Earth - thats where Ill retire,' she told Harper's Bazaar Australia in February 2015. Reports at the time alleged the TV personality and former model called police who arrived after she complained of suffering a minor wrist injury and arrested the 52-year-old musician at their Point Piper home in Sydney. Famous marriage: Jodhi was also briefly married to Billionaire James Packer who is now engaged to Mariah Carey Jodhi was also briefly married to Billionaire James Packer, who is now engaged to songstress Mariah Carey. The pair divorced in June 2002, almost three years after their lavish $10 million wedding in Sydney. Despite one failed marriage and an engagement, it seems Jodhi and Nick are going strong. The smitten couple moved the designer's belongings out of her home Point Piper, an apartment she received in the settlement following her divorce from the Crown casino mogul. The pair were later seen shifting several items into a terrace house in the leafy eastern suburb of Paddington. They have also enjoyed a romantic trip to Paris in January. Husband and wife: Nick shares a selfie of he and his wife enjoying the sun and the sand Mandy Moores alleged stalker is behind bars after showing up to her house on Friday morning the third time in two weeks. TMZ reported that Salahudin Moultaali, 42, was arrested at the 31-year-old actress' Hollywood Hills doorstep after ranting and raving. Now comes word that the Los Angeles City Attorney has filed three misdemeanor charges against Moultaali including stalking, violating a restraining order and trespassing, according to TMZ. Friday's arrest came just two days after the DA refused to pursue the case, saying there was a 'lack of evidence' the first two times Moultaali had showed up her doorstep. Scroll down for video Tough times: Mandy Moore's alleged stalker was arrested on Friday when he returned to her Hollywood Hills home and now the LA City Attorney has filed three misdemeanor charges against him including stalking, violating a restraining order and trespassing; she's seen here in November 2015 As previously reported, Moultaali was arrested at Moore's Hollywood Hills home on Friday, February 12. The L.A. County Sheriff's Department website listed the arrest time as 8:30 am. He was 'screaming and trying to leave a note at her doorstep the first time and was arrested the second time for doing the same thing,' TMZ claimed. It was also reported he was using profanity. The Tangled star filed a police report and authorities said they would assign more patrol cars to the area. Brave face: The 31-year-old's alleged stalker has been identified as Salahudin Moultaali. Not photo has been released of the 42-year-old suspect According to the L.A. County Sheriff's Department website, Moultaali was arrested at 10am Friday, February 19, with bail set at $150,000. He was charged with violating a restraining order and felony stalking, according to TMZ. The actress appeared to take an escape from the stress of her stalker on Tuesday, sharing photos while she was at Disneyland. In a group photo with the Disney princess Rapunzel she captioned: The #Tangled tv crew w Raps.' Keeping in high spirits: The actress posted this photo to her Instagram account on Tuesday, showing herself and the crew of Tangled: Before Ever After posing with Rapunzel According IMDb, the animated TV series Tangled: Before Ever After will air in 2017, but no further details have been released except that Moore will voice Rapunzel and Zachary Levi will voice Flynn Rider. In another Disneyland shot, she posted a black and white photo with Cinderella. 'Nerdily excited about my selfie with Cindy,' she wrote in the caption. Disney fan: Moore took a selfe with Cinderella at Disneyland on Tuesday as she tries to put her alleged stalker out of her mind Meanwhile, Mandy is still in the middle of a messy divorce battle with her ex-husband, Ryan Adams. TMZ has reported that Mandy has been unable to reach a divorce settlement with her ex because the musician refuses to pay spousal support. The website reported in early December that she has filed new legal documents asking for Adams, 41, to be ordered to pay her $37,000 a month while they finalize an agreement. It was added the Red Band Society alum also wants him to take four of the couple's six cats. ' Former couple: Mandy is still in the middle of a messy divorce battle with her ex-husband, Ryan Adams; they're seen here in February 2012 Although I love our pets, it is overwhelming for me to take care of eight of them all of the time,' the actress states in court papers. She added that she has not been able to work as much as she would like because of her duties as caretaker of the pets. The two wed in March 2009 after dating on and off for a year. They have no children. He was by Kim Kardashian's side last week as they partied and filmed her show Keeping Up With The Kardashians. But on Tuesday it was all about his girlfriend Anat Popovsky as Jonathan Cheban took the beauty on a shopping spree. The couple was spotted strolling through LA's upscale outdoor shopping mall The Grove. The Big Brother vet was wearing the same green Jaded London velour bomber jacket that he had on when he went out with Mrs Kanye West in Beverly Hills on Friday. Scroll down for video My girl: On Tuesday Jonathan Cheban took girlfriend Anat Popovsky on a shopping spree at LA's upscale outdoor shopping mall The Grove Deja vu: The Big Brother vet was wearing the same green Jaded London jacket that he had on when he went out with Mrs Kanye West in Beverly Hills on Friday Though his jacket was identical, the rest of his look was different. Instead of green ripped slacks, the former pr wizard pulled off what appeared to be a pair of black shorts over leggings, along with a black T-shirt. The Spin Crowd star also sported light beige Yeezy sneakers, no doubt a gift from Kim's husband West. So on trend: The Spin Crowd star also sported light beige Yeezy sneakers, no doubt a gift from Kim's husband Kanye West Ready for a workout? Jonathan's girlfriend Anat was more colorful in a smart blue and white camouflage hoodie that was zipped low enough to make it seem as if she did not have a shirt underneath Where's the loot? The two did not have any shopping bags in their hands meaning their trip to the Grove was not a success, but the lovebirds could have been at the mall for simply lunch and a movie Jonathan's girlfriend Anat was more colorful in a smart blue and white camouflage hoodie that was zipped low enough to make it seem as if she did not have a shirt underneath. Black capri leggings and light trainers finished off her look. The two did not have any shopping bags in their hands meaning their trip to the Grove was not a success, but the lovebirds could have been at the mall for simply lunch and a movie. He gave his green jacket a day off! Cameras were also along when he celebrated his birthday with Kim and Khloe at Nobu Malibu, where he was seen carrying a large Gucci bag Anat and Jonathan rekindled their romance in November after taking a break for several months. She has been seen with the E! star nonstop since then, traveling to Florida and also Israel. Cheban flew into LA last week to film several scenes for Keeping Up With The Kardashians. He has appeared on the show more regularly this season as he helps Kim deal with her second pregnancy. Cameras were also along when he celebrated his birthday with Kim and Khloe at Nobu Malibu, where he was seen carrying a large Gucci bag. Their relationship has stood the test of time with their marriage spanning three decades. And Yasmin Le Bon and her husband Simon proved that they were still as loved-up as ever as they put on an amorous display at the 2016 BRIT Awards on Wednesday evening. Walking arm in arm as they headed into London's O2 Arena for the music bash, the couple ignored the star-studded guests that surrounded them and only had eyes for each other. Scroll down for video Going strong: Yasmin Le Bon, 51, and her husband Simon, 57, proved that they were still as loved-up as ever as they put on an amorous display at the 2016 BRIT Awards at the O2 arena on Wednesday evening Looking far younger than her 51 years, Yasmin proved she was still every inch the supermodel as she turned heads in her dazzling ensemble. Slipping her lithe frame into a billowing black gown, the Vogue covergirl looked effortlessly glamorous. Adorned with splashes of glitter, the boho-style dress nipped in to show off her tiny waist before flaring out and falling just above the ankle. See more BRIT Awards 2016 updates as Yasmin Le Bon hits the red carpet in style The look of love: Walking arm in arm as they headed into London's O2 Arena for the music bash, the couple ignored the star-studded guests that surrounded them and only had eyes for each other Featuring a peasant blouse style top, the mum-of-three dressed sensibly for the bitter chill of the evening, sheathing her toned arms and legs. Adding some height to her model frame, she wore a pair of black court heels with cut out detailing on the toe that helped her perfect her supermodel strut on the carpet. Upping the glamour on the evening she clutched a faux fur stole in her hand which was adorned with a dazzling diamond ring. Meanwhile, her husband Simon proved he still had his rockstar credentials in an electric blue suit. Wrapping a silver leopard print scarf around his neck, the 57-year-old cut a dapper figure on the red carpet, finishing off his ensemble with a black slogan top and patent pointed boots. Model moment: Looking far younger than her 51 years, Yasmin proved she was still every inch the supermodel as she turned heads in her dazzling ensemble that nipped in at her tiny waist to show off her hourglass figure Once inside Yasmin and Simon can expect to see the biggest event of the year in the British music industry's calendar being hosted for the last time by Ant and Dec, after they revealed last week that they will be stepping down as its presenters: this will be their third time hosting, as they also presented in 2015 and 2001. But fans will no doubt be expecting their unique brand of giddy and cheeky hosting of the famously raucous show. The night will see perhaps one of its best musical line-ups in recent years, with homegrown stars Adele, Little Mix, Coldplay, James Bay and Jess Glynne being joined on stage by international hitmakers Rihanna, The Weeknd and Justin Bieber. While there were initially fears that Rihanna, 28, wouldn't be able to perform at the BRITs after cancelling her Grammys performance last Monday at the last minute due to illness, it seems as though the star will be taking to the stage. Cute couple: The mum-of-three dressed sensibly for the bitter chill of the evening, sheathing her toned arms and legs. Meanwhile, her husband Simon proved he still had his rockstar credentials in an electric blue suit Hot hopeful Adele leads this year's nods with four BRIT nominations. She is also one of the favourites for the BRITs Global Success Award, which is based on international sales success and would mean she could walk away with five awards on the night something no artist has yet managed in one fell swoop. Joining Adele with four nominations is James Bay (Best British Male Solo Artist, British Breakthrough Act, British Single and MasterCard British Album of the Year) and Years & Years (British Group, British Breakthrough, British Single and British Artist Video of the Year). Calvin Harris (British Male Solo Artist, British Single and British Artist Video of the Year) and Jess Glynne (British Female Solo Artist, British Breakthrough Act and British Single) are both nominated for three awards. While Coldplay, Jamie xx, Mark Ronson, Florence + The Machine, Ed Sheeran and Ellie Goulding have all earned two nominations. The BRIT Awards 2016 with MasterCard will be broadcast live on ITV at 8pm. He welcomed his first child, Freddie Reign Tomlinson, into the world last month. But as Louis Tomlinson attended the 2016 BRIT Awards in London on Wednesday he revealed that he finds fatherhood both 'intense' and 'exciting'. The 24-year-old singer also admitted that it was tough leaving his newborn son in Los Angeles. Scroll Down For Video It's intense. It's really exciting': New dad Louis Tomlinson has admitted he finds fatherhood overwhelming 'It's tough': The 24-year-old also revealed that he is finding his time away from son Freddie difficult During an interview with Laura Whitmore for ITV2, Louis said: '[Fatherhood] is good. It's intense. It's really exciting.' The doting dad continued: 'This is my first time away from Freddie so it's tough.' Meanwhile at the annual award show, Tomlinson was joined by bandmate Liam Payne as One Direction are nominated for British Group and Video of the Year at 2016 Brit Awards. It's just You & I buddy! Louis was reunited with Liam Payne on the BRIT Awards 2016 red carpet on Wednesday night in London but their One Direction bandmates Harry Styles and Niall Horan were no-shows Good to see you! Liam Payne, 22, and Louis Tomlinson, 24, couldn't have looked happier as they hit the show at London's O2 arena together But with both Harry Styles and Niall Horan absent Louis joked that if they won an award, he would sell Harry and Niall's. He quipped: 'If we win who gets their awards, we could sell them.' The red carpet event at the BRITs saw a mini 1D reunion as Liam and Louis couldn't have looked happier as they hit the show at London's O2 arena together. See full BRIT Awards coverage as Louis Tomlinson and Liam Payne hit the red carpet Time for a selfie: Louis looked like he needed something to pep him up after spending time with his newborn son, coupled with a long flight home, posing for a selfie with Liam while clutching a can of Red Bull Reunited: Liam got up close and personal with his bandmate as they messed around for the cameras Take that! And Louis had a cheeky response ready and waiting for Liam The boys suited up for their big night, with Liam rocking a classic black suit over a white tee, showing off his new hand tattoos as he posed. Louis meanwhile chose a smart grey jacket teamed with a buttoned-up black shirt and slim-fit trousers for his first appearance in his home country since the birth of Freddie Reign on January 21. The singer has been spending all of his time in Los Angeles, where he has set up home to be closer to his son and Freddie's mother, his ex Briana Jungwurth. Louis looked like he needed something to pep him up after spending time with his newborn, coupled with a long flight home, posing for a selfie with Liam while clutching a can of Red Bull. 'Tommo and Payno .. Brits,' the singer captioned the cute pic. Dapper pair: The boys suited up for their big night, with Liam rocking a classic black suit over a white tee, showing off his new hand tattoos as he posed All dressed up: Louis meanwhile chose a smart grey jacket teamed with a buttoned-up black shirt and slim-fit trousers Liam meanwhile has spent the first few weeks of One Direction's hiatus making the most of time with his family in the UK. And the hunky star made sure he stayed in the hearts of his admirers as he shared an incredibly sexy selfie on Instagram ahead of Wednesday night's BRITs. The 22-year-old showed off his sensational six pack - the result of his pre-party workout session - as he geared up for one of the biggest night in the showbiz calendar. Back on home soil:Louis has been spending all of his time in Los Angeles recently, following the birth of his son Freddie last month Plenty to catch up on! The boys couldn't hide their smiles as they posed for the cameras Liam opted for a black and white filter on the shot which helped exhibit every contour on his incredibly taut stomach. A smattering of chest hair gave his look a grisly, rugged look - no doubt set to send his 'Directioner' fans into a frenzy. The handsome star, who is on an indefinite hiatus with One Direction, added the caption: 'Workout done off to party!!! #britawards2016' The group are up for British Artist Video of the Year prize for their single Drag Me Down. Big night: 1D are up for British Artist Video of the Year prize for their single Drag Me Down Wow! Liam made sure he stayed in the hearts of his admirers as he shared an incredibly sexy selfie on Instagram ahead of Wednesday night's BRIT Awards Harry and Niall, who is on holiday in Thailand, will not be attending - although Louis has flown into London for the show. A source told The Sun newspaper: 'This could have been one last hurrah for the boys at what could be their last BRIT Awards as a band. 'But Harry has shown no interest in attending and Niall is away on his holidays in Thailand. Louis and Liam want to be there as a thank you for all the fans voting for them in the Best Video category - which is the big audience vote of the night. 'The band still have a massive fanbase and they should clean up in the public vote so they're hoping it won't be a wasted trip.' Absentees: His pre-BRIT workout comes as news surfaced that the hunky star's bandmates Niall Horan (second right) and Harry Styles (left) will not be attending the event 2016 BRIT AWARDS: THE NOMINATIONS BRITISH MALE SOLO ARTIST Aphex Twin Calvin Harris James Bay Jamie XX Mark Ronson BRITISH FEMALE SOLO ARTIST Adele Amy Winehouse Florence + the Machine Jess Glynne Laura Marling BRITISH GROUP Blur Coldplay Foals One Direction Years & Years BRITISH BREAKTHROUGH ACT Catfish and the Bottlemen James Bay Jess Glynne Wolf Alice Years & Years BRITISH SINGLE Adele Hello Calvin Harris & Disciples How Deep Is Your Love Ed Sheeran & Rudimental Bloodstream Ellie Goulding Love Me Like You Do James Bay Hold Back The River Jess Glynne Hold My Hand Little Mix Black Magic Olly Murs ft. Demi Lovato Up Philip George Wish You Were Mine Years & Years King MASTERCARD BRITISH ALBUM OF THE YEAR Adele 25 Coldplay A Head Full of Dreams Florence + the Machine How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful James Bay Chaos and the Calm Jamie XX In Colour BRITISH PRODUCER OF THE YEAR Charlie Andrew Mark Ronson Mike Crossey Tom Dalgety BRITISH ARTIST VIDEO OF THE YEAR Adele Hello Calvin Harris & Disciples How Deep Is Your Love Ed Sheeran Photograph Ellie Goulding Love Me Like You Do Jessie J Flashlight Little Mix Black Magic Naughty Boy ft. Beyonce & Arrow Benjamin Runnin' (Lose It All) One Direction Drag Me Down Sam Smith Writing's On The Wall Years & Years King INTERNATIONAL MALE SOLO ARTIST Drake Father John Misty Justin Bieber Kendrick Lamar The Weeknd INTERNATIONAL FEMALE SOLO ARTIST Ariana Grande Bjork Courtney Barnett Lana Del Rey Meghan Trainor INTERNATIONAL GROUP Alabama Shakes Eagles of Death Metal Major Lazer Tame Impala U2 CRITICS' CHOICE Winner Jack Garratt BRITs GLOBAL SUCCESS AWARD Identified by the global sales success of British Acts of their latest project/album. Sales achieved in the period 1st January 2015 to 31st December2015 will be counted. Advertisement Ellen DeGeneres has a very specific way about her that would seem almost impossible to mimic. But on Wednesday, 32-year-old comedienne Kate McKinnon did an excellent job of pretending to be the talk show queen while stopping by The Ellen DeGeneres Show. Not only did she manage to dress exactly like the 58-year-old TV star, but she also had her speech pattern and style of humor down pat. SCROLL DOWN FOR VIDEO 'I've got this blondie, step aside': Kate McKinnon gently pushed Ellen DeGeneres away from the spotlight as she started her monologue on Wednesday's episode of The Ellen DeGeneres Show It comes as little surprise that Kate won over the audience with her impression, as the actress has impersonated a variety of stars including Keith Urban, Martha Stewart, and even Ellen on Saturday Night Live. Ellen had just announced in her monologue that Kate would be appearing on the show when she was explaining to the audience how odd it was to watch an exaggerated version of herself. 'I mean, it's funny but it doesn't sound like me at all. Then, the next day your friends call you up and they're like, "Did you see Kate on SNL? She sounded exactly like you!" 'But she does exaggerate, she always says "I'm Ellen! I'm Ellen!" I don't know what that is!' Meeting her match! DeGeneres found herself competing for the spotlight during her monologue on the latest episode of her talk show when Kate arrived, impersonating the talk show host Once Kate hit the stage, it was clear that the comedienne had the audience in the palm of her hand as began impersonating the talk show host. 'That feels nice,' Kate said, referring to the applause that erupted once she arrived onto the scene. 'I'm Ellen,' she said. Ellen marveled at Kate's impersonation and replied, 'Oh that's how you say it, "I'm Ellen."' 'You're gonna do the monologue?' The talk show icon was clearly amused that Kate was going to take a stab at her signature monologue piece Kate didn't hold back from claiming ownership over the identity of Ellen, which was when she instructed the host, 'I've got this blondie, step aside.' The talk show host asked the actress if she had plans to do the monologue, to which Kate replied, 'That's right 'cause I'm Ellen, so scoot!' Kate then began delivering the monologue, which saw Ellen cut in several times to correct her. Twins! Both Kate and DeGeneres sported identical outfits and hairdos 'So anyways, I'm up at the house, and all of the sudden one of the kitty kitty kitty cats,' Kate said after dismissing one of her corrections. Ellen stepped in, 'I don't say kitty kitty kitty cats!' 'Yes you do you little beauty!' Kate said, before displaying a reel of herself in character as Ellen saying the feline nickname. 'That's not a true story': The 58-year-old cut into Kate's monologue to correct her The actress clearly impressed the audience with her impression of Ellen, as she had the crowd cheering in delight at the conclusion of her monologue. Kate admitted during the show that she felt a lot of pressure whenever she was impersonating somebody. 'It is a lot of pressure because all of my impressions come out of absolute love for whoever I am impersonating,' she admitted. Not her first go! McKinnon also appeared on a 2013 episode of Ellen DeGeneres 'You most of all, of course!' Kate added. 'It is sort of like being caught playing dress up in your mom's closet and you just want to be like, "Mommy am I pretty? Do I look good in your clothes? Am I doing alright?"' she said. The actress echoed these statements during an interview with the New York Times, when she was asked why she found it stressful to impersonate a celebrity. 'Its a source of tremendous stress. You dont want it to be toothless, because then its not funny. But I always try to make it empathetic. Particularly with Justin Bieber. Im very worried about him being upset,' she said. Having fun: Kate impersonated Ellen on an episode of Saturday Night Live, in which she interviewed Jim Parsons Aside from Ellen, Kate has also impersonated presidential candidate Hillary Clinton and Shakira on Saturday Night Live. Kate hails from Sea Cliff, New York and first got her start on Saturday Night Live in 2012. She has lent her voice to The Awesomes, Nature Cat, and even an episode of The Simpsons. Next up in the pipeline for the SNL star is a number of films including the reboot of Ghostbusters, scheduled for release on July 15, 2016. Kim Richards legal woes are not over with yet, it seems. Prosecutors went before a judge to argue that while the reality star claims a foot injury prevents her from completing court-ordered community labor following her drunken arrest a year ago, she was still able to wear high heels to a celebrity event in November. The judge agreed that the red carpet photo raised some questions, according to TMZ, and ordered the 51-year-old back to court on June 1. At that time, she must either prove she's enrolled on a community labor program or submit a doctor's note explaining why she is unable to do so, the website reported. Scroll down for video Caught on camera: Kim Richards posed for photos wearing stiletto heels on a red carpet with her sisters Kathy Hilton and Kyle Richards at a holiday event in Beverly Hills on November 28, 2015 Prosecutors want to know why she is able to wear heels for cial events but unable to perform community labor ordered as part of her plea deal stemming from her drunken arrest a year ago at the Beverly Hills Hotel Richards was given three years probation and 30 days community labor in a plea deal stemming from her late night drunken altercation with police after being asked to leave the Polo Lounge at the Beverly Hills Hotel in February 2015. She was also ordered to attend 52 AA meetings. In October, she received an almost identical sentence after pleading no contest to shoplifting from a Los Angeles Target store. She was sentenced at that time to three years probation, attend 52 Alcoholics Anonymous meetings and perform 300 hours of community labor. What happened? Richards's plea deal was agreed August 31 last year. On September 19 she was seen with her right foot bandaged as she celebrated her 51st birthday with younger sister Kyle Richards Injury: The reality star's foot was bandaged both on her birthday and in another photo taken in September and posted that same month to her Instagram No heels: This Instagram photo posted on social media in September shows Richards with her now late ex-husband Monty Brinson. She's wearing flip flops and has a large crepe bandage on her right foot The former child actress has been battling an addiction to alcohol and prescription painkillers and been in and out of rehab in what proved to be a tough year. In 2015, she was let go from Bravo's Real Housewives Of Beverly Hills (although she's now been invited back for guest appearances); walked out of an interview with TV's Dr. Phil; got drunk at her daughter Brooke's destination wedding in Mexico after checking out of rehab to attend; and at one point she was reportedly living in her car. It had seemed more recently though that the mother-of-four was getting back in control of her life. Better? The former child star appeared to be wearing heels again in this holidays photo with her four children that was posted on her Instagram in late December But clearly issues remain. Richards decided to be part of Lifetime's The Mother/Daughter Experiment: Celebrity Edition with her youngest child Kimberly Jackson. In a show promo, Jackson told therapist Debbie Magids that she feels more like her mother's caretaker than her daughter. 'She's fragile, physically and emotionally. And it does overwhelm me,' the 21-year-old said. Jackson is the reality star's daughter from her past relationship with John Jackson. She also has a daughter Brooke from her marriage to the late Monty Brinson, and a daughter Whitney and a son Chad from her second marriage to Gregg Davis. UN aid convoys head to two Syrian besieged towns UN aid convoys headed to two Syrian towns besieged by government forces on Tuesday to deliver life-saving food and medicine to some 30,000 people, a UN spokesman said. The deliveries to the towns of Moadamiyeh and Kafr Batna, near Damascus, came after aid reached five besieged towns last week, part of a major push to reach civilians facing starvation. "These are the first of what we hope to be a series of deliveries to meet the needs of people that humanitarian workers have not been able to reach for a long time," said UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric. A Red Crescent convoy carrying humanitarian aid arrives in Kafr Batna, in the rebel-held Eastern Ghouta area, on the outskirts of Damascus on February 23, 2016 during an operation with the UN to deliver aid to thousands of besieged Syrians Amer Almohibany (AFP) The convoys carried enough food and medical supplies to help some 20,000 people in Moadamiyeh and 10,000 in Kafr Batna, he said. The humanitarian aid came a day after the United States and Russia agreed on a cessation of hostilities as of Saturday that could pave the way to more deliveries. The United Nations is calling on all sides to lift starvation sieges across Syria, where it estimates that 487,000 people live, although some non-governmental organizations say the figure is much higher. Last week, 114 trucks loaded with food and other basic goods reached 80,000 people in five besieged areas. The United Nations is calling for "unconditional, unimpeded and sustained access" to all hard-to-reach areas, said Dujarric. New York police makes crime data more accessible The New York Police Department announced Tuesday they were making crime data more accessible, offering online access to what goes on in neighborhoods down to a specific date, time and location. CompStat 2.0 -- accessible at https://compstat.nypdonline.org -- makes it possible to look up murders, rapes, robberies and other crimes in the largest US city. Other details that can be culled include the number of shooting incidents and victims. New York Police Department Commissioner Bill Bratton speaks on December 29, 2015 in New York Andrew Burton (Getty/AFP/File) Updated every week, the NYPD site makes it possible to select a specific New York City borough and precinct and to see the location, date and even time a particular crime took place. Users can also compare data. For example, 36 murders were committed since the start of the year in the city of over eight million, compared to 52 for the same period last year, representing a drop of 30.8 percent. A map shows that they mostly took place in Brooklyn. Users can zoom in and see the spots where the murders occurred. By clicking on them, they can find out the date and time they were committed. "The transparency we are attempting ... is in many respects unprecedented," Police Commissioner Bill Bratton said at a news conference. "CompStat 2.0 changes the way crime data is reported." "It provides the ability for anyone to search what matters to them: their street, their neighborhood, their borough. This sort of clarity is not merely about useful information, it also builds relationships between the police and the community." Mayor Bill de Blasio lauded the New York Police Department as the "most technologically advanced in the country." In a related initiative, some 25,000 smartphones have been distributed to police officers, with a goal of expanding that number to 36,000. These efforts are part of an ongoing modernization of the police, a technological revolution that according to Bratton is just starting. By the end of the year, the goal is to be able to see in real time where police cars are located in the city to allow for a quicker deployment. Up until now, the public could consult NYPD statistics on the force's website where the data was listed in a weekly chart split up into major categories without any specific data on location, date or time. S.Korea military warns of 'stern punishment' for Pyongyang South Korea's military warned North Korea on Wednesday to halt all "provocations", saying its reckless actions would only speed up the "collapse of its dictatorial system." The verbal volley comes a day after North Korea's military supreme command, angry over upcoming joint US-South Korean exercises, threatened to attack Seoul's presidential Blue House. "We strongly urge North Korea to immediately halt provocative actions that are propelling it to destruction," the South's Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement. South Korea's military has warned North Korea that it will face punishment if it continues "provocative actions" North Korea will face "stern punishment" if it ignored Seoul's warning, it said. "North Korea must keep in mind that it will be responsible for all situations arising from its reckless provocations and we warn it will only speed up the collapse of its dictatorial system," it said. Seoul and Washington will next month hold their largest-ever annual exercise in response to the North's recent nuclear test and long-range rocket launch. Pyongyang habitually claims that the annual Key Resolve/Foal Eagle exercise is a rehearsal for invasion while Seoul and Washington say it is purely defensive. Tensions are high on the peninsula, with the United Nations considering tougher sanctions against the North to punish it for January's nuclear test and this month's rocket launch. That came a step closer on Tuesday, when the US and China -- Pyongyang's chief protector and only major ally -- said they had made progress in talks. US warns will not wait long to see if Syria truce sticks Syria's warring parties agreed to a ceasefire deal, but the US warned it would not wait long to see if the truce sticks while some rebels on the ground rejected it as a "waste of time". The US and Russia-brokered deal calls for a "cessation of hostilities" between forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad and opposition groups, and is due to take effect at midnight on Friday Damascus time. But the truce agreement, clinched Monday, does not apply to jihadists such as the Islamic State group and Al-Nusra Front, which analysts said could be a major hurdle to enforcing it on Syria's complex battlefield. The US and Russia-brokered ceasefire deal calls for a "cessation of hostilities" between forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad and opposition groups, but does not apply to jihadists Louai Beshara (AFP) Syria's government said it would continue to fight both those groups as well as other "terrorists", while agreeing to stop other military operations "in accordance with the Russian-American announcement". The leading umbrella opposition group, the High Negotiations Committee (HNC), accepted the deal Monday on the condition the regime and its backers lift sieges, release prisoners, stop bombing citizens and allow humanitarian aid. US Secretary of State John Kerry, a key figure in brokering the agreement, said Washington was considering an unspecified "Plan B" if Damascus and Moscow prove not serious about negotiating a political transition in Syria. "The test is not going to be proven in six months or a year and a half, when the election is supposedly scheduled," Kerry told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. "We're going to know in a month or two whether or not this transition process is really serious." Analysts say the splintered state of play of the conflict -- in particular the complicated make-up of Syria's opposition forces and frequently shifting frontlines -- means the ceasefire may be doomed to fail. Abu Ibrahim, a commander in the 10th Brigade opposition force in northwestern Latakia province, predicted "numerous rebel groups" would reject the agreement, which was formed "without consulting any factions on the ground". "It's a waste of time and it's difficult to implement on the ground," he said. - 'A fragile deal' - More than 270,000 people have been killed in Syria's five-year civil war, Britain-based monitor the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Tuesday, more than 10,000 higher than its previous toll in December. Residents in Damascus, tired after years of war, were sceptical the new deal would take hold. "It's a fragile deal," said Rana, a 54-year old pharmacist. "Ceasefires have been announced repeatedly in the past and we didn't see any results on the ground because they were violated," she said. Turkey, a key backer of the rebel groups fighting in its war-ravaged neighbour, also expressed scepticism and said it would keep shelling Kurdish groups in northern Syria "if necessary". Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmus told reporters in Ankara that he was "not very optimistic (the truce) will be respected by all the parties". Jihadists carried out their deadliest attack in the war on Sunday, when 134 people -- most civilians -- were killed in a series of blasts near Damascus claimed by the Islamic State group. IS and allied jihadists wrested control of the key town of Khanasser from regime forces in the northern province of Aleppo, the Observatory said Tuesday. Noah Bonsey, a senior analyst at the International Crisis Group, said on Twitter the fact Al-Qaeda affiliate Nusra was except from the deal "likely dooms it, since Russia/regime tend to hit others & call em Nusra (or IS)". The ceasefire plan was announced by top diplomats in Munich earlier this month, but failed to take hold last week as initially planned. - UN delivers aid - As well as reducing violence and expanding humanitarian access, it aims to pave the way for a resumption of peace talks that collapsed earlier this month in Geneva. UN convoys with food and medicine for 30,000 people set out for two more besieged towns on Tuesday, part of a major push to help civilians facing starvation that began last week. "These are the first of what we hope to be a series of deliveries to meet the needs of people that humanitarian workers have not been able to reach for a long time," said UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric. French President Francois Hollande called on all sides to respect the truce, "the sooner, the better". "Pressure must be exerted on the Syrian regime and its supporters, in this case Russia, so that the bombings cease." Despite being on opposing sides of the conflict, Moscow and Washington have been leading the latest diplomatic push to try to resolve the brutal conflict. Both powers are pursuing separate air wars in Syria, with a US-led coalition targeting IS and occasionally other jihadist groups. Russia says it is targeting "terrorists" in its strikes but has been accused of hitting non-jihadist groups in support of Assad, a longtime ally. Syria ceasefire plan Adrian Leung/John Saeki (AFP) Fighters from the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF)), an alliance dominated by the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG), gather on the outskirts of the town of al-Shadadi in the northeastern Syrian province of Hasakeh Delil souleiman (AFP/File) Syrian children react as a Red Crescent convoy carrying humanitarian aid arrives in Kafr Batna, in the rebel-held Eastern Ghouta area, on the outskirts of the capital Damascus Amer Almohibany (AFP) Philippine bishops say Madonna concert is devil's work Philippine Catholic bishops called Wednesday on the faithful to boycott pop diva Madonna's sexually charged concerts in the nation's capital, calling them the devil's work. The 57-year-old "Like A Virgin" and "Erotica" hit-maker is scheduled to cavort on a giant cross-shaped stage during two concerts on Wednesday and Thursday as part of her global "Rebel Heart" tour. "Pinoys (Filipinos) and all God-loving people should avoid sin and occasions of sin," Archbishop Ramon Arguelles said in a statement posted on the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines' official website. Shoppers walk near the Asia Arena mall where Madonna's concert will be held in Manila on February 24, 2016 Noel Celis (AFP) Arguelles said the concerts, Madonna's first in the Philippines, were among "subtle attacks of the evil one". "Why is the Catholic Philippines the favourite venue for blasphemy against God and the Holy Mother?" said Arguelles. Arguelles had previously campaigned against provocative pop diva Lady Gaga, saying her 2012 Manila concert was the work of Satan. Conservative bishops are famously outspoken in the Philippines, where 80 percent of its 100 million people are Catholic. Ahead of her concerts, Madonna visited a shelter for abused children and a Catholic orphanage in Manila on Tuesday. "Chillin' with my homies," Madonna said in a caption to an Instagram selfie with three children, as they lay on cardboard mats on the floor of Bahay Tuluyan, home to about 500 abused or abandoned children. Wearing head-to-toe black and oversized shades, Madonna came with an entourage of 20 dancers and burly bodyguards, Bahay Tuluyan executive director Lily Flordelis told AFP. "The children were very happy to see her. She played with them, danced with them and chatted with them," Flordelis said. Tipping her maroon hat in another Instagram post, Madonna said: "Hats off to the Bahay Tuluyan Foundation in Manila for taking so many kids off the street and providing food and shelter." Madonna also visited the Hospicio de San Jose, one of Manila's oldest orphanages. She posted a picture of herself carrying a baby in pink overalls while holding the hand of an emaciated girl, also in pink, whom she identified as Celeste. Madonna is touring the world to support her 13th studio album, Rebel Heart, which combines her trademark sexually charged lyrics and imagery with an array of musical genres. Madonna has courted controversy since bringing her tour to Asia this month. A Catholic bishop in Singapore called for a boycott of her concert for insulting religion. She also drew Chinese anger for draping herself with the Taiwanese flag during a concert in Taipei. In Sudan's Darfur, displaced children battle to learn Abuobeida Ali was a toddler when militiamen stormed his village in Sudan's Darfur in 2003, murdering his father and driving his family out, ending his hopes for a normal childhood and education. Now aged 17 and out of school for nine years, he is one of the more than 870,000 Darfuri children living in camps for the displaced who struggle to balance their studies with the need to survive. "When we came here, I left school after four years to help my mother support my sisters who are studying," Ali said, sitting in the yard behind the hut he shares with his family in the Abuzar camp near West Darfur state capital Geneina. Darfuri children living in camps for the displaced struggle to balance their studies with the need to survive Ashraf Shazly (AFP) Since leaving school, he has worked in a restaurant at the small marketplace set up in the winding, dusty alleys of the camp. He works serving cheap meals and scrubbing plates from morning until sunset bringing in a daily salary of 15 Sudanese pounds ($2.50, 2.20 euros). In West Darfur, where 30 percent of children are out of primary school, Ali's meagre salary helps to allow his four younger sisters to attend two government-run primary schools that serve the camp. "I want to go back to school, but circumstances..." he said, his voice trailing off. - 'Lost childhood' - Ali's home village of Nuri -- dominated by the Masalit ethnic group he hails from -- was one of the first attacked in the 13-year Darfur conflict. Ethnic minority insurgents rebelled against the Arab-dominated government of Omar al-Bashir in 2003, saying their region was being marginalised. The Arab-dominated government unleashed ground forces and allied militia to crush the rebels, with villages like Ali's torched and 2.5 million people driven from their land in the ensuing fighting. Now 1.4 million live in camps for the displaced, more than half of them children. They risk a "lost childhood," a spokesperson for the United Nations' children's agency (UNICEF) told AFP. Clashes in Jebel Marra in the heart of Darfur that erupted on January 15 have displaced another 82,000 people, 60 percent of them children. Sudan's conflict-stricken peripheries "have amongst the highest levels of malnutrition, lowest vaccination coverage, highest percentage of children out of school and highest levels of child mortality," according to UNICEF. UNICEF said under-18s "unfortunately continue to bear the biggest burden of one of the most protracted man-made disasters." In a bid to persuade children like Ali to stay in education, the UN's World Food Programme provides nearly 600,000 Darfuri children with meal assistance. The plates of lentils or fava beans are provided in schools so parents do not have to cover the costs of meals and pull children out to work. - 'Most stop studying' - Two thousand children in Abuzar -- one of Darfur's smaller camps with about 17,000 residents -- receive this support, among them 10-year-old Darussalam Abdel Gadoos. Her family fled an attack on their village three years before she was born. Dressed in a bright blue dress and gleaming white headscarf, Abdel Gadoos was keen to show off what she had learned in school, laughing and chanting her times tables in a lilting voice in a courtyard among the camp's densely packed shacks. She has already seen many of her classmates leave the government-run school she attends next to the camp. "Our class is full of boys and girls, there are about 115 of them but most stop studying," she said. She has been receiving the food assistance in class from the WFP and her father -- a community leader in the camp -- said it has helped her. "Lots of children don't go to school because of their circumstances, the father doesn't work, like me -- I work one day and then wait a few more without any job," Abdel Gadoos Atim said. With nine other children to feed, Atim said conditions are difficult for his family, but he wants Abdel Gadoos to stay in school. His daughter helps the family outside school hours, tending to the goat they keep on a patch of dirt near their home. But she is determined to continue her studies, and has already decided on a career. "I want to become a teacher," she smiled. Sudanese girl Darussalam Abdel Gadoos, 10, milks a goat at the Abuzar camp near West Darfur state capital Geneina Ashraf Shazly (AFP) Comoros VP wins first round of presidential vote The vice president of the Indian Ocean archipelago of the Comoros, Mohamed Ali Soilihi, won the first round of the country's presidential elections with 17.61 percent of the vote, preliminary results released late Tuesday showed. Soilihi edged ahead of Mouigni Baraka, the governor of Grande Comore island, who garnered 15.09 percent, ahead of Colonel Azali Assoumani, who placed third with 14.96 percent. The three candidates will now face off in a second-round of voting on April 10, with the winner succeeding outgoing President Ikililou Dhoinine. Mohamed Ali Soilihi votes at a polling station in Mbeni on January 25, 2015 during legislative elections Ibrahim Youssouf (AFP) Some supporters of Fahmi Said Ibrahim, who had been one of the favourites but trailed in fourth place, alleged his low count had been due to fraud. Police dispersed a small group of Ibrahim supporters who gathered at the party's headquarters on Grande Comore. An African Union observer mission led by former Tunisian president Mohamed Moncef Marzouki said "apart from few isolated incidents, the entire election took place in an orderly and peaceful" manner. The first round of voting on Sunday only took place on Grande Comore, in accordance with electoral rules that ensure the president is chosen on a rotating basis from one of the country's three main islands. The system was established in 2001 after more than 20 coups or attempted coups in the years following independence from France in 1975. Syria ceasefire must exclude Kurdish militia: Erdogan Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday said Syrian Kurdish militia forces must remain outside the scope of a ceasefire agreed between Syria's warring parties, in a blow to the deal days before it is due to be enforced. Lashing out at Western policy in Syria, he said the Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD) and its People's Protection Units (YPG) militia were a "terror group" just like Islamic State (IS) jihadists and the Al-Qaeda affiliated Al-Nusra Front. The issue has already provoked a rare rift between Ankara and its chief NATO ally Washington, which works closely with the YPG as an effective fighting force against IS in Syria. Turkey has been alarmed by the advances of the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) in northern Syria Uygar Onder Simsek (AFP) "If Daesh (IS) and Al-Nusra are kept outside the ceasefire, then the PYD-YPG must similarly be excluded from the ceasefire for it is a terrorist group just as they are," Erdogan told local officials in Ankara. The United States and Russia-brokered ceasefire calls for a "cessation of hostilities" between forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad and opposition groups, and is due to take effect at midnight on Friday Damascus time. But the truce agreement, clinched Monday, does not apply to jihadists such as the Islamic State group and Al-Nusra Front or other groups deemed terror outfits by the UN. Erdogan said Turkey welcomed the Syria ceasefire as "positive in principle" and said: "We support a ceasefire that will help our Syrian brothers breathe." - 'Matter of survival' - But he warned that Turkey would be "on alert" against any steps that threaten its national security and would continue to closely monitor the ceasefire process. Turkey says the YPG is a branch of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which which has waged a three-decade insurgency against the Turkish state and is recognised as a terror group by the United States and EU. Ankara blames the YPG for last week's suicide car bomb attack in the Turkish capital that killed 29 people and fears the creation of a Kurdish stronghold along its southern border. A militant Kurdish group claimed the suicide car bombing of a convoy of military buses in Ankara but Turkish officials said the bomber was a Syrian Kurdish national working on behalf of the PYD. The PYD has denied any involvement in the attack. On successive days last week, Turkish artillery shelled YPG targets inside Syria, defying US calls to cease firing. The president said its key ally Washington's approach towards the PYD did not bode well with the "alliance spirit." "This is a matter of survival for Turkey," Erdogan said. "Believe me, I barely understand how clearly we can explain for our allies to understand that they are at a crossroads on this issue." He quipped that if fighting IS was the only criteria, then the West should cooperate the Al-Nusra front which often battles the even more extremist IS jihadists. Erdogan said the PYD and the YPG must be designated as "a terrorist organisation" by Turkey's allies "To accept it as a terrorist organisation, will it require that the PKK and PYD explode their bombs not in Ankara but in other (foreign) capitals?" he said. Endangered monkey-eating eagle shot and wounded in Philippines An endangered monkey-eating eagle which was released into the wild under a conservation programme is now fighting for survival after being shot, a Philippine conservation group said Wednesday. The metre-long (3.3-foot) raptor, which preys on macaques and other small animals sharing its forest habitat, was shot at the weekend. One man surrendered to the Philippine Eagle Foundation in Davao city on Mindanao island on Sunday and also handed over the injured bird, the Philippine Eagle Foundation said in a statement. An endangered monkey-eating eagle which was released into the wild is fighting for survival after being shot He, along with a second man, was turned over to the police. Both are under arrest. "The wounded eagle is under observation but I cannot assess its survival chances at this time," the foundation's curator Anna Mae Sumaya told AFP. The foundation said the shooting shattered the birds right wing. It was unclear if the six-year-old male would ever fly again. Killing monkey-eating eagles is punishable by a 12-year prison term and a one million-peso ($21,000) fine, while wounding the species incurs a four-year prison term and a half million-peso fine. The bird is famed for its elongated nape feathers that form into a shaggy crest. Its two-metre wingspan makes it one of the world's largest eagles. It is found nowhere except the Philippines, where it is the country's national bird. About 600 of them are thought to be left in the wild. Coca-Cola can't trademark new bottle, EU court rules An EU court on Wednesday threw out an attempt by US drinks giant Coca-Cola to get trade mark status for a new design of its iconic fluted bottle throughout the 28-nation bloc. Invented in the United States as a tonic drink in the late 19th century, Coca-Cola is a triumph of modern-day marketing, with its contoured bottle one of the most widely recognised global brands. In 2011, the company introduced a flat surfaced bottle but European Union authorities rejected its trade mark request because they said the new design lacked any "distinctive character." Coca-Cola has redesigned its iconic fluted bottle Todd Williamson (Getty/AFP) The General Court of the EU, the bloc's second highest court, ruling on a company appeal, said there was no reason to change that view, with the new design simply a variant of its predecessor. "The General Court finds that the sign at issue is devoid of the distinctive character required for registration under the Community trade mark regulation," it said. "In those circumstances, the General Court dismisses in its entirety the action brought by Coca-Cola." The judgment features drawings of the new Coke bottle from the side, the top, and at a forward-leaning angle. Coca-Cola can in theory appeal to the European Court of Justice, the EU's highest court. Egypt says still probing Italian student death Egypt's interior ministry said on Wednesday it was still investigating the brutal killing of an Italian graduate student in Cairo, and suggested he may have fallen victim to criminals. Giulio Regeni, a Cambridge University PhD student who was researching Egyptian labour movements, disappeared on January 25 and his badly mutilated body was found a week later. Italian media have suggested he may have been detained by Egyptian security forces, something the interior ministry has strongly denied. People carry the coffin of Giulio Regeni during his funeral in Fiumicello on February 12, 2016 Diego Petrussi (AFP) The ministry said it had not yet determined who abducted Regeni, but "available information suggests all possibilities." "These include a criminal motive or personal revenge," the statement said, adding the ministry was cooperating with Italian investigators in Cairo. Regeni went missing on the fifth anniversary of the start of the uprising which overthrew longtime autocrat Hosni Mubark. Police had been deployed across the city to prevent demonstrations. Jumbo row over Sri Lanka's elephant gift to NZ PM Sri Lanka gave visiting New Zealand Prime Minister John Key a baby elephant on Wednesday, sparking anger from animal rights activists who said it was cruel to separate her from her family. President Maithripala Sirisena presented a deed of ownership for five-year-old "Nandi" during a red-carpet welcome in Colombo for Key, who arrived for a two-day official visit. Nandi, born at Sri Lanka's oldest elephant sanctuary, is the second bequeathed to New Zealand in the last 12 months after baby "Anjalee" was also gifted to the Auckland Zoo. President Maithripala Sirisena presented a deed of ownership for five-year-old "Nandi" during a red-carpet welcome in Colombo for Key, who arrived for a two-day official visit Ishara S.Kodikara (AFP/File) "The first elephant has gained 700 kilos (1,540 pounds) in one year," Key told Sirisena at the ceremony. "So, it is loving its life in New Zealand and I am sure its friend will have such a good time as well in New Zealand." Sri Lanka has a long history of giving elephants as presents, with China gifted three over the years, and two each for Japan, South Korea, the Czech Republic and the United States. But activists urged the government to halt the practice, saying some of the animals had found it difficult to adapt to their new climates and without their families. "We are very disappointed," Sagarika Rajakarunanayake, head of the Sathva Mithra (Friends of Animals) group, told AFP. "We wrote three weeks ago asking the government to stop this practice. I think they don't even read our letters." Nandi has been raised in a herd of 93 elephants in a coconut grove at Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage, about 80 kilometres (50 miles) east of Colombo. Local environmental lawyer Jagath Gunawardana said the government had given away too many, describing the animals as sacred in the mainly Buddhist nation. "There should be a stop to these knee-jerk gifts of baby elephants," Gunawardana said. The government said the elephant was given in recognition of "excellent bilateral relations". Nandi is soon set to be flown to Auckland, where mean annual temperatures of around 15 degrees Celsius (59 Fahrenheit) may come as a shock to a calf more used to the tropical 27 degree average in Sri Lanka. New Zealand vets visited her recently to prepare her for the journey, a top local zoological official said. Telecoms giant MTN pays $250 mn in Nigeria fine dispute South African telecoms giant MTN said Wednesday it had paid $250 million to the Nigerian government in a dispute over a $3.9-billion fine imposed last year for failing to disconnect unregistered users. The company also said it had agreed to withdraw its legal challenge over the huge fine in a case that was adjourned in Lagos High Court to enable the two parties to try to negotiate a settlement. "Pursuant to the ongoing engagement with the Nigerian Authorities, MTN Nigeria has today made a... good faith payment of 50 billion naira ($250 million)," Johannesburg-based MTN said in a statement. A man walks past a MTN notice board in Lagos, on October 27, 2015 Pius Utomi Ekpei (AFP/File) The money was paid "on the basis that this will be applied towards a settlement, where one is eventually, hopefully arrived at," the statement added. "In an effort to achieve an amicable settlement, MTN has agreed to withdraw the matter from the Federal High Court in Lagos." Nigeria, Africa's most populous country, is the MTN group's largest market, where it had more than 62.8 million subscribers by the second quarter of 2015. MTN was slapped with the penalty in October 2015 after it missed a deadline to disconnect 5.1 million unregistered SIM cards. The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), the country's telecoms regulator, at the time cited security concerns over the inability to trace users in a country plagued by frequent kidnappings and an extremist Islamist insurgency, Boko Haram. It imposed a $5.2-billion fine that was later reduced to $3.9 billion (3.6 billion euros) following an appeal by MTN. The company issued a profit warning last week and said the Nigerian dispute was a factor in falling earnings. The fine also led to the resignation of chief executive Sifiso Dabengwa and some Nigerian executives. Nigeria's four major phone companies have routinely been fined in the past for regulatory infractions but none has received as big a punishment as MTN. The initial fine of $5.2 billion was more than MTN's total sales in Nigeria in 2014 and the equivalent of about 37 percent of the group's total revenue, according to Bloomberg News. Analysts fear Nigeria's decision to fine MTN will deter investors at a time when the country is reeling from plunging oil prices. MTN will announce its full-year financial results on March 3. Nigeria's communications ministry spokesman Victor Oluwadamilare suggested that MTN was "tired of staying in court and now they want to face the reality of the fine". But he told AFP that as yet "no one can confirm that payment" of 50 billion naira. "I'm sure before the week runs out, if we are able to confirm that the MTN has paid a particular sum of money, the next step will be to look at what was paid vis-a-vis what is expected of them to pay as per the fine," he added. Egypt's Sisi says Russian plane downed by 'terrorism' Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi acknowledged for the first time on Wednesday that "terrorism" caused a Russian plane crash in the Sinai Peninsula in October that killed 224 people. "Has terrorism ended? No... Whoever downed that plane, what did he want? Just to hit tourism? No. To hit relations. To hit relations with Russia," Sisi said in a speech. Sisi had previously dismissed as "propaganda" a claim by the Islamic State (IS) jihadist group that it downed the airliner on October 31. Russian officials visit the crash site of a A321 Russian airliner in Wadi al-Zolomat, a mountainous area of Egypt's Sinai Peninsula on November 1, 2015 Maxim Grigoryev (Russia Emergency Ministry/AFP/File) The jihadist group said it smuggled a bomb on board the plane in the airport of Sharm el-Sheikh, a Sinai resort popular with Russian holidaymakers. Russia had quickly concluded that a bomb brought down the airliner, and suspended flights to Egypt. Britain also stopped flights to Sharm el-Sheikh. The attack dealt a major setback to Sisi, who had been at pains to revive the country's tourism industry and impose control over the restive Sinai Peninsula. Jihadists there have killed hundreds of policemen and soldiers since Sisi, a former army chief, overthrew Islamist president Mohamed Morsi in 2013. Egypt has set up a committee to investigate the attack, and previously insisted it be allowed to finish its probe before any conclusions were made. Egyptian media outlets have dismissed suggestions that a bomb was the cause as part of a Western "conspiracy" aimed at harming the country's tourism sector. The A321 airliner, operated by Russia's Metrojet and bound for Saint Petersburg, broke up mid-air over the Sinai, minutes after take-off. The wreckage fell several kilometres (miles) across North Sinai -- the bastion of the Egyptian branch of IS. The group said it bombed the plane in revenge for Russian air strikes in Syria. On November 17, Russia's President Vladimir Putin announced that Russian investigators had found evidence of a bomb on board, and vowed to punish the attackers. "We will search for them anywhere they might hide. We will find them in any part of the world and punish them," he said. Russian security chief Alexander Bortnikov said the passenger jet was brought down by a bomb with a force equivalent to one kilogram (two pounds) of TNT. Egypt has since hired a British firm to review security at airports, including procedures to check passengers and baggage, and security equipment in the airport. Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has acknowledged for the first time that "terrorism" caused a Russian plane crash in the Sinai Peninsula that killed 224 people Mohamed el-Shahed (AFP) Chad opposition shuts down city in protest against president Chad's opposition successfully locked down the capital and other cities Wednesday, closing markets, shops and slowing traffic in a countrywide protest at President Idriss Deby Itno's bid for a fresh fifth term in office. The protest emptied N'Djamena's two big markets of shoppers and school classrooms remained empty following the call for a nationwide shutdown under the slogan "That's Enough". Banks and private companies remained open for business along with some ministries, but there was far less traffic than usual in the city. The President of Chad Idriss Deby Itno, who has been in office for 25 years, is running for re-election on April 10 Miguel Medina (AFP/File) Deby, who has been in office for 25 years, is running for re-election on April 10. The morning to lunchtime shutdown "was total" in Chad's second biggest city Moundou, a resident told AFP by telephone. "Not even the motorbike taxis are running," he said. In Mao in the northwest trade at the weekly market too was disrupted, a resident said. The spokesman for the "That's Enough" opposition grouping, Mahamat Nour Ibedou, said the cities of Sarh in the south, Abeche in the east and central Mongo were also locked down. "This shows people have realised they can exercise their democratic rights," said the spokesman for the score of civil society groups involved, including the Chadian Human Rights League and the Union of Chadian Trade Unions. - 'People are fed up' - "It also highlights that people are fed up, it's proof they reject Deby's candidacy" for president," he added. The nation is facing a wave of unrest, with students boycotting class and taking to the streets in recent days in protest over a girl's brutal rape. A Chadian student was shot dead and five others wounded Monday when soldiers broke up a protest as demonstrations showed no sign of abating ahead of April's presidential vote. The death was the second in a week of protests by students enraged over the gang rape of a girl named Zouhoura, which has been blamed on the sons of senior officials. The girl was allegedly kidnapped and gang-raped by five young men who then posted a video online showing the victim naked and in tears. The video has since been taken down. The footage sparked widespread public anger, with police arresting five suspected rapists -- three of them the sons of generals -- and four alleged accomplices, including a son of Foreign Minister Moussa Faki Mahamat. Zouhoura's father, who filed a complaint over the attack, is a candidate in the April 10 elections. Last week the Chadian government slapped a ban on unauthorised demonstrations with the minister for security and immigration accusing students of "sowing disorder" and saying they were "being manipulated by politicking groups." UN carries out first humanitarian airdrop in Syria The United Nations on Wednesday carried out its first humanitarian airdrop in Syria to reach thousands of people facing severe food shortages in a city besieged by Islamic State jihadists. "Earlier this morning, a WFP plane dropped the first cargo of 21 tonnes of items into Deir Ezzor," in eastern Syria, UN aid chief Stephen O'Brien said. Reports from aid teams on the ground confirm that "pallets have landed in the target area as planned", he told a UN Security Council called to discuss the humanitarian crisis. Debris of a building in Deir Ezzor reportedly hit by a missile on September 26, 2013 Ahmad Aboud (AFP) UN agencies are working to scale up aid deliveries to Syria before a cessation of hostilities enters into force at midnight Friday to shore up peace efforts. Last month, Russia said it had dropped aid into Deir Ezzor, where some 200,000 people are in dire need of food and medicine since IS fighters surrounded the city about a year ago. The air drops carried out by the World Food Programme are considered less efficient than land deliveries, but O'Brien argued that there were "benefits to this approach as a last resort." The UN aid chief said some 110,000 people living in besieged towns had received aid and that deliveries to a further 230,000 people in cut-off areas including through air drops had been approved. "We are still waiting for approval for an additional 170,000 people. We expect those approvals to happen immediately," he said. - Syria 'doing its best' - Syrian Ambassador Bashar Jaafari accused the United Nations of using the humanitarian crisis as a political tool and argued that no such attention was directed to Yemen, which he argued was in a much worse state. "It is clear that our government is doing its best to deliver assistance," he told the council. The ambassador blamed armed groups for civilian suffering and said delays in approving aid deliveries were due to concerns for the safety of humanitarian workers. "We have not witnessed any humanitarian crisis other than in the areas where these terrorist groups entered," he said. The United Nations is calling on all sides to lift starvation sieges across Syria, where it estimates that 487,000 people live, although some non-governmental organizations say the figure is much higher. The council has approved several resolutions demanding full access for humanitarian workers, but these have been largely ignored. O'Brien stressed that the ceasefire deal agreed by the United States and Russia must produce an "immediate end" to attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure such as hospitals, schools and markets. "Enough is enough. This brutality must be brought to an end," he said. More than 260,000 people have died in Syria's conflict, which began in March 2011 with anti-government protests but has since imploded into a multi-sided proxy war. A rebel fighter loads a rocket onto a home-made launcher in Deir Ezzor on February 16, 2014 Ahmad Aboud (Ahmad Aboud/AFP) France demands 1.6 bn euros in tax from Google French authorities have demanded that US Internet giant Google pay 1.6 billion euros ($1.7 billion) in back taxes, a source close to the matter said Wednesday, as controversy mounts over the tax arrangements of multinational corporations. Google is one of several companies that have come under fire in Europe for paying extremely low taxes by shifting revenue across borders in an often complex web of financial arrangements. "In regards to France, a 1.6 billion euro adjustment has been imposed on the company," the source told AFP, speaking as Google's CEO was in Paris. France has demanded 1.6 bn euros in tax from Google, a source tells AFP Leon Neal (AFP) Google declined to comment and the French finance ministry told AFP the amount the company would have to pay was subject to "fiscal confidentiality". The figure emerged as Google CEO Sundar Pichai was in Paris, where he was set to meet Wednesday night with France's economy minister, Emmanuel Macron. Speaking at the elite Sciences Po university in Paris before the tax demand hit the press, Pichai defended in general terms Google's tax practices. "We're a global company. We have to abide by tax laws everywhere, we do abide by local tax laws in every single country," he said. "We're advocating strongly for a simpler global tax system," he added. France has previously refused to negotiate the amount of back taxes it would request. However, a source inside France's tax authority said bargaining may still be possible. "This does not mean that Google will ultimately pay 1.6 billion," the source told AFP. "There will be appeals, and perhaps a negotiation in the end, in particular on penalties." A deal last month between British tax authorities and Google was meanwhile criticised by a panel of British lawmakers who described the settlement reached as "disproportionately small" given Google's size and earnings. Under the agreement, Google will pay 130 million ($185 million, 170 million euros) for a decade of Google business in Britain, where it makes 11 percent of its global sales. - Billions in fines - The company made profits of 106 million on revenues of 1.18 billion in Britain in the last 18 months alone and the Labour opposition party claimed the giant was paying only "three percent tax". French Finance Minister Michel Sapin earlier this month said Google would not get a deal of that type on his side of the Channel. "In France we would like to avoid an exceptional situation where there would be some type of flat-rate tax," he said. Italy is also demanding Google pay over 200 million euros in back taxes following an inquiry by the financial police. The European Commission has cracked down hard on companies, including US icons such as Apple, Starbucks and Amazon, who have worked out arrangements with countries allowing them to slash their tax bills. Swedish furniture giant Ikea has also been accused of underpaying taxes by one billion euros by using aggressive tax strategies in certain European countries. Fights over tax bills are not the only trouble Google is contending with in Europe. European competition officials have been investigating the US tech giant for years over alleged monopolistic practices involving its search engines, but any resolution has been elusive. Three successive proposals by Google for an amicable settlement have been rejected. If no agreement is reached and the group is found to have broken the EU's antitrust rules, it could face fines amounting to billions of dollars. Israel razes Bedouin school despite concern over demolitions Israeli authorities have demolished a newly built school for a Bedouin community near Jerusalem, saying it had been illegally constructed. The move comes with the UN and the European Union raising concern over a sharp increase in demolitions by Israel in recent weeks. Many of the structures targeted have been financed by the international community. A Palestinian teacher leads a class of Bedouin children near the Jewish settlement of Maale Adumim (background), in the West Bank city of al-Azariya, east of Jerusalem on February 23, 2016 Ahmad Gharabli (AFP/File) The Bedouin school, which was demolished early Sunday before it could be used, was funded by France. The 25 students aged between seven and eight held their Arabic and English classes on Wednesday while seated on the ground in the area where pre-fabricated buildings previously stood. School director Asma Sheha said that the Israeli military had also taken away benches and tables. On Tuesday, children ran for shelter as it began to rain. The Bedouin community, Abu Nawwar, is located in a sensitive area of the occupied West Bank seen as key to any future settlement of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The European Union expressed "deep concern at an unprecedented number of demolitions and confiscations of Palestinian structures" in the part of the West Bank under complete Israeli control. "These include the dismantlement and confiscation of the school in Abu Nawwar on 21st February, which was funded by France and is the only school in a Bedouin community severely threatened in its existence," it said in a statement. France also condemned the demolition of the school, installed last week. Israel says such demolitions occur because the structures have not been granted permits. Asked about the school, the Israeli defence ministry unit in charge of civilian affairs in the West Bank, known as COGAT, said it had removed four pre-fabricated buildings that had been illegally installed. Palestinians and their supporters say it is extremely difficult for them to obtain permits in areas of the West Bank under full Israeli control, known as Area C and which accounts for about 60 percent of the territory. Nickolay Mladenov, UN special coordinator for the Middle East peace process, said last week that the number of such demolitions had tripled on average since the start of the year. "During the past few weeks alone, Israeli authorities in Area C and east Jerusalem demolished 201 Palestinian-owned structures, including 79 which were donor-funded," he said in a briefing to the UN Security Council. Anti-IS gains in Syria clear way for Raqa assault: US Recent gains by US-backed fighters battling the Islamic State group in northeastern Syria are paving the way for an assault on Raqa, the jihadists' de facto Syrian capital, a US official said Wednesday. A Kurdish-led alliance called the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) have encircled the town of Al-Shadadi in Hasakeh province in recent days. The fighters have enjoyed broad support from a US-led coalition conducting air strikes on IS targets. "There's still work to be done and we expect ISIL fighters to put up a fight, but we expect Shadadi to be liberated in the very near future," Pentagon spokesman Captain Jeff Davis said, using an alternative acronym for the IS group. Fighters from the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) gather on the outskirts of the town of al-Shadadi in the northeastern Syrian province of Hasakeh, on February 19, 2016 Delil Souleiman (AFP/File) Davis said the recapture of Al-Shadadi would be followed "in the very near future" by anti-IS forces encircling Raqa, ahead of an assault on the city. "The momentum is moving (to Raqa), and the momentum currently is in Shadadi," Davis said. He declined to speculate on a timeline for a Raqa push. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group said last week that the SDF were in control of Al-Shadadi, but were still engaged in "mopping up" operations outside the town. The United States has highlighted Raqa, and the Iraqi city of Mosul, as key targets in the anti-IS fight. IS forces seized Raqa in early 2014 and declared it the capital of their so-called caliphate. In June the same year, the jihadists seized Mosul. Rather than sending large deployments of US forces into Iraq and Syria to fight the IS group, the United States has focused on training and assisting local fighters, saying they are best able to sustain a lasting defeat of the jihadist group. Metallica to release Bataclan live album for attack victims Heavy metal giants Metallica on Wednesday announced a live album recorded at the Bataclan in Paris, with proceeds going to victims of the November 13 attacks at the club. The CD -- entitled, in reference to France's national motto, "Liberte, Egalite, Fraternite, Metallica! - Live at Le Bataclan. Paris, France - June 11th, 2003" -- will come out on April 16 for Record Store Day, a growing annual event that promotes independent music stores. The album features a recording of nine songs performed at the Bataclan by Metallica, who had played three gigs in Paris in one night at clubs much smaller than the band was accustomed to as part of a promotion for its album "St. Anger." Musician James Hetfield of Metallica performs on May 8, 2015 in Las Vegas, Nevada Christopher Polk (Getty/AFP/File) Metallica said all profits from the album would go to Give for France, an initiative under the Fondation de France philanthropic group that raises funds for survivors and families of people who lost their lives in the tragedy. Ninety people were killed on November 13 when Islamist extremists opened fire at a Bataclan concert of California rockers Eagles of Death Metal, the deadliest of a series of coordinated attacks around the French capital. Organizers of Record Store Day, a US-based initiative that has gone global and is known as "Disquaire Day" in France, said they planned to highlight the connections between US and French "music-loving humans" for the 2016 edition. While Metallica's live album will be out on CD, Record Store Day has largely tried to highlight the resurgence of vinyl, with many bands releasing special records to be sold at independent stores for the occasion. Metallica -- named 2016 Record Store Day "ambassadors" -- also plans to put out boxed set reissues of the band's 1983 debut album "Kill 'Em All" and follow-up "Ride the Lightning." The boxed sets will each include vinyl, CDs, a DVD and a hardcover book from the band, considered the pioneers of the dark and aggressive subgenre of thrash metal. Lars Ulrich, 52, the California-based band's Danish-born drummer, said he spent his formative years browsing records at the Bristol Music Center in Copenhagen. "As music becomes available either through only the Internet or in gigantic airport-size retail stores, it is more important than ever -- actually vital -- that all us fanatics continue to bring to light the importance of records, and to support to the maximum of our abilities the independent record store outlet," he said. Father charged with killing missing toddler found in harbor SYRACUSE, N.Y. (AP) A toddler who disappeared over the weekend was found dead in a harbor on Tuesday, and her father, who had been picked up a day earlier wearing a disguise, was charged with her murder, police said. An emergency call late Saturday night from the mother of 21-month-old Maddox Lawrence led to an Amber Alert and a search for her, Syracuse police Chief Frank Fowler said. Maddox was believed to have been with her father, Ryan Lawrence. Maddox's mother, Morgan Lawrence, told police that Ryan Lawrence was supposed to pick her up from her job at the Destiny USA shopping mall but instead left the car and keys for her in a parking lot. This booking photo provided by the Syracuse, N.Y., Police Department shows Ryan Lawrence, who is charged in the death of his 21-month-old daughter Maddox Lawrence. Police in Syracuse say divers have recovered the body of the toddler who disappeared over the weekend with her father, who is being charged with murder. Police Chief Frank Fowler says the body was found Tuesday in Syracuse's Inner Harbor. Details of her death weren't disclosed. (Syracuse Police Department via AP) When the mother returned home, she said, she found a message from him that indicated he might harm Maddox and himself. She called police, touching off Sunday's Amber Alert, a massive search and pleas for tips from the public. On Monday, police got a call from a thrift shop employee who recognized Ryan Lawrence when he went into the shop in Baldwinsville, 10 miles northwest of Syracuse, authorities said. Police found Lawrence walking on a nearby street, wearing a disguise, and took him into custody, they said. "The person making that phone call was instrumental in bringing this case to where we are today," Fowler said Tuesday. After interviewing Lawrence, police focused their search for Maddox on Syracuse's Inner Harbor, an inlet off the end of Onondaga Lake. State police divers found her body underwater along the Creekwalk, a biking and hiking pathway. Investigators were awaiting the results of DNA testing but were confident the body was Maddox's, Fowler said. Lawrence was sent to the Onondaga County jail to await arraignment Wednesday morning on second-degree murder charges, Fowler said. He couldn't be reached for comment by telephone in jail, and police said they didn't know if he had a lawyer who could comment for him. Fowler said the investigation into Maddox's disappearance and death was continuing, and few details were released. Gas facility that had blowout will have to play by new rules LOS ANGELES (AP) The gas storage facility that spewed methane uncontrollably for almost four months, driving thousands of families from their homes, won't resume operations until it has undergone tougher tests than ever required before, a process that will take months and perhaps even longer. The massive leak drew attention to the Southern California Gas Co. facility and the larger subject of old energy infrastructure nationwide. It also put heat on the state to speed up tougher new regulations that will outlaw a risky practice that put the well in jeopardy of a blowout. "I wouldn't say it was a wake-up call. I'd say it was a 'You need to accelerate that process,'" said Jason Marshall, chief deputy director of the state Department of Conservation. "We've moved it to the top of the pile." In this Thursday, Feb. 18, 2016, file photo, SoCalGas Chief Executive Officer Dennis Arreola, second from right at podium, takes questions from the media during the announcement that the Porter Ranch gas leak has been permanently sealed during a news conference in Chatsworth, Calif. The gas-storage facility that spewed methane uncontrollably for almost four months, driving thousands of families from their homes, won't resume operations until it has undergone tougher tests than ever required before, a process that will take months and perhaps even longer. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes, File) In addition to passing emergency regulations, the department's oil and gas division directed the Aliso Canyon facility to undergo tests expected to last months and operate in a safer manner changes that could be expanded to statewide regulations, Marshall said. Environmentalists and residents sickened by the foul smell and chemicals have called for the facility to be permanently shut down. The facility is a major source of energy for Southern California and state utility overseers are figuring out how to provide power while it's largely out of commission, as well as exploring what would happen if it never reopens. During a legislative hearing Monday on a bill that would prevent the facility from storing additional gas while undergoing tests of its 114 wells, state lawmakers were concerned about power outages during a shutdown. The situation is similar to when the San Onofre nuclear plant shut down in 2013 after a radiation leak, said Michael Picker, the president of the California Public Utility Commission. "It wasn't just the power, but it was the ability to support power flows north and south and getting power to certain specific parts of the state," Picker said. "A transmission line in Northern California isn't effective in San Diego, for example." Unlike electricity that moves rapidly, natural gas flows about 35 mph and comes from out-of-state pipelines, so plans need to be made before it's needed. In addition to residential and business customers, Aliso Canyon serves dozens of gas-fired power plants. "They built a system where Aliso Canyon was too big to fail. And it failed," said Rep. Brad Sherman, a Democrat who owns a home in Porter Ranch near the facility. "They say, 'We won't prove to you it's safe, we'll just prove to you it's necessary.'" If the facility were closed, getting new storage permitted would be unlikely because of community opposition and geologic concerns, said Jay Apt, co-director of the Carnegie Mellon Electricity Industry Center "Taking something offline is probably forever," Apt said. SoCalGas Chief Executive Officer Dennis Arreola said the company planned to comply with new requirements and accelerate inspections at the facility that has had leaks and failures from corrosion and heavy use. The new requirements will put a crimp in the speed at which gas is injected deep underground for storage when demand is low and withdrawn in colder weather or during demand spikes. Tests will measure the thickness of protective steel casings, corrosion and make sure wells can withstand intense pressures. The company will now be required to inject and withdraw the gas through narrow metal tubing that runs from the mountain-top facility to abandoned oil wells below. SoCalGas had been using both the tubing and a much wider steel casing surrounding it to deliver larger volumes of gas. Experts said that was risky because the casing was a safety barrier if the tubing failed. In the case of the blown-out well, the casing is believed to have failed under high pressure, allowing the gas to escape. Marshall said the practice, which is fairly common, is forever over at Aliso Canyon and will be banned statewide once new regulations are drafted. He said that change is "arguably more important" than requiring subsurface safety valves. The well that failed had its safety valve removed in 1979. It wasn't required and was never replaced. Anthony Ingraffea, a Cornell University engineering professor who identified the dual injection and withdrawal practice as a fatal flaw after studying the well's records, applauded the new rules and test requirements. He questioned, however, how regulators had been lax for so long. The agency has been criticized for a lack of industry oversight and acknowledged problems just weeks before the Aliso Canyon leak was reported Oct. 23. The promise of additional funding for new hires is not likely to appease critics. "The rules don't fix the problems at California's broken oil regulatory agency, which has a scandalous track record of failing to enforce even basic regulations," said attorney Maya Golden-Krasner of the Center for Biological Diversity. FILE - In this Thursday, Feb. 18, 2016, file photo, SoCalGas Chief Executive Officer Dennis Arreola takes questions from the media during the announcement that the Porter Ranch gas leak has been permanently sealed during a news conference in Chatsworth, Calif. The gas-storage facility that spewed methane uncontrollably for almost four months, driving thousands of families from their homes, won't resume operations until it has undergone tougher tests than ever required before, a process that will take months and perhaps even longer. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes, File) UN chief: Number of displaced people has never been higher KINSHASA, Congo (AP) The number of displaced people around the world has never been higher, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said Tuesday, urging the international community to improve the way humanitarian assistance and development support is provided. Ban spoke during a visit to a camp for internally displaced people near Goma in Congo's eastern North Kivu province. He was expected to meet with President Joseph Kabila on Wednesday. "We have 60 million people around the world, that is the largest number of IDP's (internally displaced people) and refugees since the end of the Korean war," Ban said. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, right, is greeted by Congo minister of foreign affairs Raymond Tshibanda upon his arrival in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo, Tuesday Feb. 23, 2016. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will meet with Congo government officials and preside at the opening session of the Great Lakes Private Sector Investment Conference held in Kinshasa. (AP Photo/John Bompengo) He said visits to such camps remind him of his own experience of internal displacement, "when I was 6 years old in Korea, 1950." He said the U.N. at that time stood as a beacon of hope. "They supported our security, they supported our textbooks and they gave us water, sanitation, food," he said. Chaotic eastern Congo is home to multiple rebel groups, many vying for control of the region's vast mineral resources. Ban said he was humbled by the women he met at the camp and said hope must be restored. "We have to do much more to protect human dignity and human rights of women and girls to save them, to protect them from sexual violence," he said. The Latest: Judge says enough evidence for teens to be tried TULSA, Okla. (AP) The Latest on the case of two Oklahoma brothers accused of fatally stabbing their parents and three siblings (all times local): 5:50 p.m. A judge says there's enough evidence for two Oklahoma teenagers to stand trial on first-degree murder charges in the stabbings of their parents and three siblings. FILE - This combination of July 2015 file photos provided by the Tulsa County, Oklahoma, Jail shows Michael Bever, left, and his brother Robert Beaver. Prosecutors will begin laying out Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016, what they believe happened during a middle-of-the night rampage in which the two Oklahoma teenage brothers are charged with fatally stabbing their parents and three of their younger siblings. (Tulsa County Sheriff's Office via AP, File) Nineteen-year-old Robert Bever (BEH-vuhr) and 17-year-old Michael Bever have both pleaded not guilty in the July killings of their parents, David and April Bever, and siblings 12-year-old Daniel, 7-year-old Christopher and 5-year-old Victoria. The bodies were discovered at the family's home in the Tulsa suburb of Broken Arrow. Two siblings survived. The judge on Tuesday also set a district court arraignment for Feb. 29. Autopsy reports show the family members were stabbed dozens of times and died of multiple, sharp-force injuries. David Bever had at least 28 total wounds and April Bever had at least 48. ___ 5 p.m. A detective has testified that one of two Oklahoma teenagers charged with fatally stabbing their parents and three siblings indicated that he and his brother wanted to outdo known killers and hoped for publicity. Detective Rhianna Russell of the Broken Arrow Police Department testified during a hearing Tuesday that Michael Bever mentioned the Columbine school and Aurora movie theater killings in Colorado in particular. Nineteen-year-old Robert Bever and 17-year-old Michael Bever have pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder. Tuesday's hearing is for the judge to determine if there is enough evidence to proceed with a trial. Two siblings survived the rampage Detective Eric Bentz testified that Robert Bever lamented that the plan didn't go as they were supposed to and "everyone didn't die like they were supposed to." ___ 3:35 p.m. A detective says an Oklahoma teenager occasionally laughed while confessing that he and his brother repeatedly stabbed their parents and siblings, and planned to make videos of the scene before shooting other people. Broken Arrow Police Detective Eric Bentz testified during a hearing Tuesday that Robert Bever seemed "mildly excited" to discuss the July attack at the family's home in the Tulsa suburb. Bentz says Bever explained how he and his 17-year-old brother, Michael, planned to kill their family, stuff their bodies into bins, make a video showing the bodies and put the bins in the attic. Bever told the detective they then planned to take the family vehicle, along with guns and ammunition, to randomly attack other locations and kill 10 people at each place. Prosecutors say their father was stabbed 28 times and their mother had at least 48 wounds. Three of their siblings also were killed. Prosecutors plan to call a teenage sister who survived the attack to testify at the hearing. ___ 6:40 a.m. Two Oklahoma teenagers are due in court to face accusations they stabbed their parents and three siblings to death in a rampage last summer. Nineteen-year-old Robert Bever (BEH-vuhr) and 17-year-old Michael Bever have pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder. Tuesday's hearing is for the judge to determine if there is enough evidence to proceed with a trial. Prosecutors say the brothers planned the attack at the family's home in the Tulsa suburb of Broken Arrow. Their father was stabbed 28 times and their mother had at least 48 wounds. Prosecutors plan to call a teenage sister who survived the attack to testify at the hearing. A judge rejected Michael Bever's request to be tried as a juvenile. Robert Bever, second from left, and Michael Bever, third from left, are escorted into a courtroom for a hearing in Tulsa, Okla., Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016. The two Oklahoma teenage brothers are charged with fatally stabbing their parents and three of their younger siblings. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki) Judge says Oklahoma brothers can stand trial for killings TULSA, Okla. (AP) Two Oklahoma brothers charged with fatally stabbing their parents and three of their younger siblings in a middle-of-the-night rampage that detectives say was part of a plot to carry out more mass killings can stand trial on first-degree murder charges, a judge decided Tuesday. Special Judge Martha Rupp Carter said there's enough evidence for 19-year-old Robert Bever and 17-year-old Michael Bever to be tried. She set arraignment for Feb. 29 in Tulsa County District Court. The Bevers both have pleaded not guilty in the July killings of their parents, David Bever, 52, and April Bever, 44, and their siblings Daniel, 12, Christopher, 7, and Victoria, 5. Two siblings survived. Robert Bever, second from left, and Michael Bever, third from left, are escorted into a courtroom for a hearing in Tulsa, Okla., Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016. The two Oklahoma teenage brothers are charged with fatally stabbing their parents and three of their younger siblings. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki) Detectives who testified during a hearing Tuesday said the brothers detailed to officers a gruesome plot to carry out further mass killings. Detective Eric Bentz of the Broken Arrow Police Department said Robert Bever expressed a desire for notoriety for being a serial killer. Bentz said the teen told of a plan to kill their family, cut up the bodies, and store them in bins in the attic before heading west in the family SUV armed with guns, ammunition and makeshift bombs to randomly attack other locations and kill 10 people at each place. "They wanted to kill at least 50 people, they wanted to be famous. They wanted a Wikipedia page. They wanted media coverage," said Detective Rhianna Russell, who had interviewed Michael Bever. She said he indicated that they wanted to outdo known killers, and had mentioned the Columbine school and Aurora movie theater killings in Colorado in particular. Authorities had previously said the brothers conspired to kill their family and that one brother had kept plans for a "mass homicide" stored on a computer drive inside the home, but had not before given details. Bentz said if the brothers had been killed in the rampage, Robert Bever left behind a notebook that included plans for the killings, diagrams, the items used and an explanation for why they committed the crimes. "The book was going to tell his story," Bentz testified. Autopsy reports show the family members were stabbed dozens of times and died of multiple, sharp-force injuries. David Bever had at least 28 total wounds and April Bever had at least 48. Bentz testified that Robert Bever lamented that the plan didn't go as it was supposed to and "everyone didn't die like they were supposed to." After the bodies were discovered at the family's home in the Tulsa suburb of Broken Arrow, a police dog tracked the two teens, then 16 and 18, into a wooded area behind the house. Bentz said Robert Bever talked about a plan to make two videos from the midnight rampage one showing the bodies that they believed would only be seen by police and prosecutors because it would be too graphic, as well as another version without the bodies that could be posted online. "If he killed one person he was one person, that evened it out," Bentz said the teen indicated, perhaps offering an explanation for Robert Bever's thought process. "If he killed one more than one person, that would make him like a god." In addition to the electronic device, investigators removed from the home knives, swords, machetes, cellphones, gloves, darts, a black mask, an atlas, computers, Kevlar knit sleeves and wireless cameras, according to police affidavits. By many neighbors' accounts, the Bevers kept to themselves the siblings played alone in the backyard, walked down neighborhood streets bunched together and their parents didn't socialize much. David Bever's former co-workers at a local IT department described him as a quiet man. Before their hearing, the teens, shackled at their legs and waists and seated a few feet apart at a table, made casual conversation and occasionally laughed. A judge earlier had rejected Michael Bever's request to be tried as a juvenile. Prosecutors haven't decided whether to seek the death penalty against Robert Bever. ___ This story has been corrected to reflect that Robert Bever is now 19 years old and Michael Bever is 17, and to correct attribution of quote in 12th paragraph to Bentz. FILE - This combination of July 2015 file photos provided by the Tulsa County, Oklahoma, Jail shows Michael Bever, left, and his brother Robert Beaver. Prosecutors will begin laying out Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016, what they believe happened during a middle-of-the night rampage in which the two Oklahoma teenage brothers are charged with fatally stabbing their parents and three of their younger siblings. (Tulsa County Sheriff's Office via AP, File) What We Know: Truce in Syria agreed, but with conditions Syria's government has accepted a proposed cease-fire but reserved the right to respond to any violations. The main opposition and rebel umbrella group also approved the deal but set its own conditions. Here's what we know about the agreement: The truce, engineered by the U.S. and Russia, is set to take effect at midnight Friday local time. It does not cover the Islamic State group, Syria's al-Qaida branch known as the Nusra Front, or any other militia designated as a terrorist organization by the U.N. Security Council. Secretary of State John Kerry testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016, before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing of the State Department's fiscal 2017 budget request. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh) It's not clear exactly where along Syria's complicated front lines the fighting would stop and where counterterrorism operations could continue. Also unresolved are how breaches in the truce would be dealt with. Police charge 7 with homicide over dam burst that killed 17 RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) Brazilian police have charged the president of the Samarco mining company and six other people with aggravated homicide over the deaths of at least 17 people after a dam burst in November. In a news release Tuesday, police in the state of Minas Gerais said they have requested that Samarco President Ricardo Vescovi, five other company executives and one contractor be held in preventative detention while awaiting trial. The men are charged with homicide, causing a flood and polluting drinking water. A mammoth wave of debris from a Samarco iron-ore mine broke through the Fundao dam Nov. 5. The mud and water swept over nearby towns and polluted hundreds of miles of waterways in two states in southeastern Brazil. In Tech: Asus security, ABC on Sling, Samsung playground The Federal Trade Commission says Asus has agreed to settle complaints that its routers lacked needed security, which led to the exposure of the personal information of thousands of people. The FTC says Asus marketed the routers as having significant security features that would protect users from hackers and malware, but in reality the devices had serious security flaws. As part of the settlement announced Tuesday, the Taiwanese computer company will be required to maintain a security program that will be subject to audit for the next 20 years. The company must also notify customers of security updates and steps they can take to protect themselves from security flaws. The exterior of Samsung's flagship store, Samsung 837, is shown on a video wall during a media preview of the facility, in New York's Meatpacking District, Monday, Feb 22, 2016. Samsung is opening what it calls a "technology playground" in New York for customers to check out its latest gadgets. The center opens Tuesday, the day Samsung starts taking orders for its upcoming Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge phones. (AP Photo/Richard Drew) Asus officials didn't immediately return an email seeking comment. Bree Fowler, AP Technology Writer ___ Sling TV, the online TV service from satellite provider Dish, has added ABC stations in some cities. Sling is aimed at "cord cutters," people who don't want to pay $70 and up for hundreds of channels. It offers 23 live cable channels, including ESPN, AMC and TBS, for $20 a month. You can add HBO and other mini-packs of channels focused on sports, Spanish-language TV or kids' programming for an extra fee. ABC is now available in a pack with two other over-the-air networks Spanish-language broadcasters Univision and UniMas. The three stations will cost an extra $5 a month. While the Sling TV service is available nationwide, the broadcast package is limited to eight cities Chicago; Fresno-Visalia, California; Houston; Los Angeles; New York; Philadelphia; Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina; and San Francisco. You can also watch these broadcasters on a TV for free with an antenna. Adding channels like ABC, CBS, Fox and NBC to online TV alternatives has been complicated because not all the local stations are owned by the networks. Some are owned by separate broadcasting companies and may require additional deals to get the streaming rights. Sony's TV service, called PlayStation Vue, has CBS, Fox and NBC as well as dozens of cable channels, but it starts at $50 a month for the cheapest package and is only available in seven cities. Sony said in November that it would be adding ABC for some markets as well as ESPN and other Disney-owned channels, but that hasn't happened yet. Tali Arbel, AP Technology Writer ___ Samsung is opening what it calls a "technology playground" in New York for customers to check out its latest gadgets. Samsung 837 named for the center's building number opened Tuesday, the day Samsung started taking orders for its upcoming Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge phones. Consumers can hold and try out the devices before ordering. The phones ship on March 11. Samsung is also showcasing a range of other products, including its virtual-reality headset, components for home automation and a smart refrigerator that displays what's inside and keeps track of food expiration. Unlike Apple and Microsoft retail stores, however, people can't buy the products at Samsung 837. They'll be directed to third-party stores or online. But Samsung 837 will handle basic repairs, such as replacements of cracked screens, and hold workshops and one-on-one tutorials. Anick Jesdanun, AP Technology Writer Samsung Gear VR 4D chairs are demonstrated during a preview of Samsung's flagship store, Samsung 837, in New York's Meatpacking District, Monday, Feb 22, 2016. Samsung is opening what it calls a "technology playground" in New York for customers to check out its latest gadgets. The center opens Tuesday, the day Samsung starts taking orders for its upcoming Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge phones. (AP Photo/Richard Drew) Media members listen to a presentation during a preview of Samsung's flagship store, Samsung 837, in New York's Meatpacking District, Monday, Feb 22, 2016. Samsung is opening what it calls a "technology playground" in New York for customers to check out its latest gadgets. The center opens Tuesday, the day Samsung starts taking orders for its upcoming Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge phones. (AP Photo/Richard Drew) Rosalynn Frazier photographs her selfie as its shown on a video wall during a preview of Samsung's flagship store, Samsung 837, in New York's Meatpacking District, Monday, Feb 22, 2016. Samsung is opening what it calls a "technology playground" in New York for customers to check out its latest gadgets. The center opens Tuesday, the day Samsung starts taking orders for its upcoming Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge phones. (AP Photo/Richard Drew) A Samsung Gear VR oculus is demonstrated during a preview of Samsung's flagship store, Samsung 837, in New York's Meatpacking District, Monday, Feb 22, 2016. Samsung is opening what it calls a "technology playground" in New York for customers to check out its latest gadgets. The center opens Tuesday, the day Samsung starts taking orders for its upcoming Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge phones. (AP Photo/Richard Drew) A waterproof Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge mobile phone is submersed in water during a preview of Samsung's flagship store, Samsung 837, in New York's Meatpacking District, Monday, Feb 22, 2016. Samsung is opening what it calls a "technology playground" in New York for customers to check out its latest gadgets. The center opens Tuesday, the day Samsung starts taking orders for its upcoming Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge phones. (AP Photo/Richard Drew) A Samsung Family Hub refrigerator, featuring a Wi-Fi-enabled 21.5" LED touchscreen, is demonstrated during a preview of Samsung's flagship store, Samsung 837, in New York's Meatpacking District, Monday, Feb 22, 2016. Samsung is opening what it calls a "technology playground" in New York for customers to check out its latest gadgets. The center opens Tuesday, the day Samsung starts taking orders for its upcoming Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge phones. (AP Photo/Richard Drew) Samsung North America's Chief Marketing Officer Marc Mathieu, left, and Zach Overton, general manager of Samsung 837, Samsung's new flagship store, make their presentation during a preview of the facility, in New York's Meatpacking District, Monday, Feb 22, 2016. Samsung is opening what it calls a "technology playground" in New York for customers to check out its latest gadgets. The center opens Tuesday, the day Samsung starts taking orders for its upcoming Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge phones. (AP Photo/Richard Drew) A table of Samsung Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge mobile phones and smartwatches line a table in Samsung's flagship store, Samsung 837, in New York's Meatpacking District, Monday, Feb 22, 2016. Samsung is opening what it calls a "technology playground" in New York for customers to check out its latest gadgets. The center opens Tuesday, the day Samsung starts taking orders for its upcoming Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge phones. (AP Photo/Richard Drew) A Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge mobile phone is displayed during a preview of Samsung's flagship store, Samsung 837, in New York's Meatpacking District, Monday, Feb 22, 2016. Samsung is opening what it calls a "technology playground" in New York for customers to check out its latest gadgets. The center opens Tuesday, the day Samsung starts taking orders for its upcoming Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge phones. (AP Photo/Richard Drew) Scalia suffered from many health problems DALLAS (AP) Antonin Scalia suffered from coronary artery disease, obesity and diabetes, among other ailments that probably contributed to the justice's sudden death, according to a letter from the Supreme Court's doctor. Presidio County District Attorney Rod Ponton cited the letter Tuesday when he told The Associated Press there was nothing suspicious about the Feb. 13 death of the 79-year-old jurist. He said the long list of health problems made an autopsy unnecessary. Ponton had a copy of the letter from Rear Adm. Brian P. Monahan, the attending physician for members of Congress and the Supreme Court. The letter was to Presidio County Judge Cinderela Guevara, who conducted a death inquiry by phone and certified Scalia's death. FILE - In this Oct. 18, 2011 file photo, U.S. Supreme Court justice Antonin Scalia looks into the balcony before addressing the Chicago-Kent College Law justice in Chicago. A letter from the Supreme Court's doctor says Scalia suffered from coronary artery disease, obesity and diabetes, among other ailments that probably contributed to the justice's sudden death. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast, File) The letter dated Feb. 16 said Scalia's many "significant medical conditions led to his death," Ponton said. In the letter, Monahan listed more than a half-dozen ailments, including sleep apnea, degenerative joint disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and high blood pressure. Scalia also was a smoker, the letter said. Ponton declined to provide a copy of the letter, saying an open-records request must be made to Guevara. The AP filed a records request with the judge last week, but she did not provide the letter or respond to a reporter's phone message Tuesday. The Texas Department of State Health Services has declined to release a copy of the death certificate. Scalia was found dead in his bed at the Cibolo Creek Ranch, not far from the Mexico border, where he had gone on a hunting trip. Dr. Mark Hlatky, professor of cardiovascular medicine at Stanford University, said a 79-year-old man with those conditions, especially coronary artery disease and sleep apnea, would be at risk for a potentially fatal heart arrhythmia. "A lot of people do die in their sleep, and they're found the next day." The conditions are also associated with pulmonary embolism and stroke, which could also "kill somebody very suddenly." Scalia's death, he said, was unexpected, "but it sounds like it wasn't suspicious." The justice's many ailments, taken together, were "quite dangerous," said Dr. David Zich, a physician of internal and emergency medicine at Northwestern Memorial Hospital. Zich said he would advise a patient with those conditions who was still smoking to stop smoking first and then lose weight. "Those are the main two things someone in his position can do himself," Zich said. "The rest falls on the physician to medically manage blood pressure and make sure their blood sugar levels are controlled well." Zich said he would also want such a patient to use a continuous positive airway pressure machine, or CPAP, at night for sleep apnea "to make sure the heart and body aren't stressed while sleeping." A breathing apparatus was found on the night stand next to Scalia's bed when his body was found, but he was not hooked up to it and it was not turned on when he died, according to a Presidio County Sheriff's Office incident report obtained late Tuesday by The Washington Post. Nothing appeared out of place around Scalia's bed, according to the report. Three pillows were stacked to elevate Scalia's head. A top pillow appeared to have toppled onto his eyes and forehead but didn't appear positioned to impede his breathing, the report stated. His arms were at his side atop the bed covers, which were pulled up to his chin. The bed covers were smooth and creased and showed no sign of a struggle, according to the report. His suitcase was open and contained neatly folded clothing. On the kitchen counter rested a blue stretch exercise band. Guevara, who as county judge is the top administrator in the area, previously said she conferred by phone with Sheriff Danny Dominguez and a U.S. marshal before certifying the death. On the day Scalia died, she also conferred with Monahan by phone before determining the cause of death. Scalia's death "was handled in a similar fashion as the cases of other elderly people who have died in Presidio County," Ponton said. In rural Texas, justices of the peace investigate deaths, among other duties, but the two justices in the region were out of town and unavailable. Guevara was also out of town, more than 60 miles away, but agreed to conduct the death inquiry by phone. The Supreme Court does not provide regular reports about the justices' health. It is left to each court member to decide how much to make public about medical conditions. Some justices, including Ruth Bader Ginsburg, have released detailed reports of hospital stays and surgeries. The Supreme Court's press office could find just one release in 29 years pertaining to Scalia's health, a report of surgery in 2003 to repair a torn rotator cuff in his right shoulder. ___ Associated Press writers Carla K. Johnson in Chicago and Mark Sherman in Washington contributed to this report. Leaders of polygamous sect arrested in Utah food stamp fraud SALT LAKE CITY (AP) Several top leaders from Warren Jeffs' polygamous sect were arrested Tuesday on federal accusations of food stamp fraud and money laundering marking one of the biggest crackdowns on the group in years. The charges are the government's latest move targeting the sect based on the Utah-Arizona border, coinciding with legal battles in two states over child labor and discrimination against nonbelievers. Prosecutors accuse church leaders of orchestrating a yearslong fraud scheme instructing members how to use food-stamp benefits illegally for the benefit of the faith and avoid getting caught, according to an indictment from the U.S. Attorney's Office in Utah. FILE - In this Jan. 21, 2015 file photo, Lyle Jeffs leaves the federal courthouse in Salt Lake City. On Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016, several top leaders from Warren Jeffs' polygamous sect, including Lyle Jeffs, were arrested on federal accusations of food stamp fraud and money laundering marking one of the biggest blows to the group in years. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer, File) One common tactic was buying groceries with the food stamps and giving the supplies to the church's communal storehouse for leaders to choose how to divvy up. Other times, members would give their cards to others who weren't supposed to use them, prosecutors said. They also would swipe the cards at church-run stores without walking away with foods or goods, leaving the money to the store owners. Some of those funds were then used to pay thousands for a tractor and a truck, the indictment shows. Eleven people were charged in the scheme, including Lyle Jeffs and Seth Jeffs, top-ranking leaders of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and brothers of imprisoned sect leader Warren Jeffs. Lyle Jeffs runs the day-to-day operations in the polygamous community of Hildale, Utah, while Seth Jeffs leads a branch of the group in South Dakota. Their brother is serving a life sentence in Texas for sexually assaulting girls he considered brides at a secretive church compound in that state. "This indictment is not about religion. This indictment is about fraud," U.S. Attorney John Huber said. The bust goes well beyond fraud putting in doubt who will lead the group and how members will respond to a decisive message from government officials they have historically despised, said Amos Guiora, a University of Utah law professor who has studied the church. "This is a clear drawing of that magical line in that sand that government will not tolerate crimes committed in the name of religion," Guiora said. The sect does not have a spokesman or a phone listing where leaders can be contacted. The Associated Press could not verify if the defendants had attorneys yet. Blake Hamilton, an attorney representing Hildale, said none of those indicted was serving in a government position and that it had nothing to do with the city government. The arrests come amid a civil rights trial in Phoenix against the twin polygamous towns of Hildale and Colorado City, Arizona, in which prosecutors say the communities discriminated against people who were not members of the church by denying them housing, water services and police protection. Federal labor lawyers also are going after the group on allegations that leaders ordered parents to put their kids to work for long hours for little pay on a southern Utah pecan farm. The communities deny the allegations. Prosecutors said the actions in this new case weren't coordinated. But private investigator Sam Brower, who has spent years investigating the group, said authorities seemed to have gotten help from large numbers of people who have been kicked out or left amid a series of increasingly bizarre orders from Jeffs and leaders loyal to him. "This is huge blow," Brower said. "Combined with everything else, it's incredible." The indictment doesn't provide a total dollar figure for the amount of food stamp fraud allegedly committed, but prosecutors said a large percentage of people in the group receive food-stamp benefits amounting to millions of dollars each year. The indictment says the food-stamp proceeds would be deposited into the accounts of two church-controlled companies, and managers of both stores transferred the money to three additional companies that acted as fronts for the sect's storehouse and concealed the nature of the proceeds. Guiora said group members refer to the practice as "bleeding the beast," taking money from a government they disdain and using as they see fit. Federal, state and local police served search warrants and made arrests Tuesday in Salt Lake City; Custer County, South Dakota; and Hildale and Colorado City. Most of the defendants who face up to five years in prison for food stamp fraud and up to 20 years for money laundering are expected to make initial court appearances Wednesday. Federal prosecutors are asking the judge to keep them behind bars, arguing in court documents that they are flight risks. They contend that if allowed out on bail, the polygamists are likely to flee and seek to hide in the group's elaborate network of houses throughout North and South America, using aliases, disguises, false identification documents and pre-paid cellphones to avoid being caught. If the leaders remain jailed and get convicted, "there are clear questions about who is going to lead a flock that is very leadership dependent," Guiora said. ___ Associated Press writers Jacques Billeaud in Phoenix and Felicia Fonseca in Flagstaff, Arizona, contributed to this report. This photo provided by Andrew Chatwin shows law enforcement officers conducting a search at the Wedgewood Development construction company in Hildale, Utah on Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016. Police are searching businesses in the polygamous town on the Utah-Arizona border. The U.S. Attorney's Office in Utah said in statement Tuesday that federal, state and local authorities are carrying out actions approved by a court. Officials didn't elaborate, saying court documents are sealed. (Andrew Chatwin via AP) Utah Senate panel OKs longshot death penalty repeal SALT LAKE CITY (AP) A longshot proposal for conservative Utah to join 19 states and the District of Columbia in abolishing the death penalty cleared its first test at the state Legislature on Tuesday evening. A bipartisan group of senators on a judiciary committee voted 5-2 to advance the measure to Utah's Senate for debate, but one Republican voting for the measure said he was conflicted and may not support it later. That debate could happen as soon as this week. Steve Urquhart, the Republican senator running the proposal, acknowledges that there's strong support for capital punishment with Utah's GOP-controlled Legislature and Republican governor. But Urquhart hopes arguments about the cost of capital punishment after years of court appeals and the chance of wrongful convictions may sway some of his colleagues. "Government shouldn't be in the business of killing. It's not our place. It's wrong for us to assume that because we aren't infallible," Urquhart said. His fellow Republican, Sen. Mark Madsen, agreed. "If I knew they were guilty, I have no moral compunction whatsoever pulling the trigger, pulling the switch, whatever it is, but I don't have that level of confidence in government," he said. "It's an irreversible error." That same mix of practical concerns and broader moral and philosophical questions has led conservatives in other red states to re-examine longstanding support for capital punishment in recent years. Last year, Nebraska's Republican-controlled Legislature voted to abolish the death penalty over a veto from that state's GOP governor. It became the first traditionally conservative state to eliminate the punishment since North Dakota dropped the practice in 1973. But death penalty supporters quickly launched a petition drive, leaving Nebraska voters to decide the issue this November. Lawmakers in Missouri debated earlier this month whether they should repeal that state's death penalty, but a Republican leading the effort said he doesn't think there's enough support to move the issue forward. In at least seven other states, legislators have introduced similar measures over the last year and many have attracted Republican backers. But it remains unclear how many of the proposals will gain enough support to pass anytime soon. More conservatives are echoing concerns that Urquhart has raised in Utah, said Robert Dunham, executive director of the Washington, D.C.-based Death Penalty Information Center, which opposes capital punishment. "There is significant evolution that is taking place before our eyes in the views of conservatives about the death penalty," he said Tuesday. He said states like Utah and Missouri are unlikely to move away from executions in the next year or so. But as more libertarians and those espousing a conservative, anti-abortion philosophy join traditional opponents of the death penalty on the left, Dunham said, "it's that coalescing that creates the sense of inevitability." In Utah, Urquhart said his proposal is a longshot, but a strong libertarian streak among lawmakers could lead to some surprises. His proposal would allow executions to go forward for the nine people on Utah's death row now, but remove it as an option for any new convictions. Sen. Daniel Thatcher, a Republican, said he voted to move the bill forward Tuesday because it's an important discussion for lawmakers to have. But he said he's not sure if he'll support the bill when it comes before the full Senate for a vote. "There are cases the most extreme, the most gruesome, the most horrific cases that I believe there should be a more significant punishment," he said. Two Republicans voting against the measure said they think Utah needs to keep the option out of respect of the family members of victims and as an added measure of justice against horrific crimes. In the unlikely event Urquhart's plan gets enough bipartisan support to pass this year, it's unclear if Utah's Republican Gov. Gary Herbert would approve it. Herbert said in October that he's a strong supporter of capital punishment but it should only be used for "the most heinous of crimes." Herbert signed a law last year that bolstered the state's execution policy by ordering that a firing squad be used if lethal injection drugs cannot be obtained. Urquhart voted for the firing squad bill, saying that if Utah has a death penalty law on the books, it should have an efficient way to carry out the practice. ___ Judge: Police recordings not given to killer's lawyers NEW HAVEN, Conn. (AP) A Connecticut judge ruled Tuesday that three police recordings were not given to lawyers for convicted killer Joshua Komisarjevsky before his trial, bolstering his pending appeal before the state Supreme Court. Komisarjevsky and Steven Hayes were convicted of murdering a woman and her two daughters during a 2007 home invasion in Cheshire, after terrorizing the family for hours. Both are appealing their convictions. The police recordings are of calls between Cheshire police officers during the response to the home invasion. Komisarjevsky's appeal lawyers said the recordings would have helped his trial attorneys because they boost the defense claim that the police response was inadequate, which they said casts doubt on the credibility of officers who testified for the prosecution. This undated inmate identification photo released Monday, Feb. 22, 2016, by the Connecticut Department of Correction shows Joshua Komisarjevsky, convicted of murder and other crimes during a 2007 home invasion in Cheshire, Conn. Killed were Jennifer Hawke-Petit and her two daughters, ages 11 and 17. Her husband William Petit was severely beaten but survived. Appellate lawyers for Komisarjevsky are expected to argue Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016 in New Haven Superior Court that his trial lawyers werent provided with police phone call recordings crucial to the defense. (Connecticut Department of Correction via AP) Prosecutors say nothing on the recordings warrants a new trial. New Haven Superior Court Judge Jon Blue said the failure to provide the recordings to Komisarjevsky's lawyers was the result of human error and not deliberate. Prosecutors and Komisarjevsky's appeal lawyers, John Holdridge and Moira Buckley, agreed that some recordings were not turned over to Komisarjevsky's trial lawyers because they were found in a town hall vault in 2014. Police said the original recordings were destroyed in a lightning strike at the police station in 2010 before Komisarjevsky's trial. The recordings found at town hall were backups. On one of the three recordings a SWAT team member is told to stand down and not report to the police department; on another, a hostage negotiator is told not to respond to the scene. On the third recording, an officer is heard questioning whether victim Jennifer Hawke-Petit's comments to a bank teller that her family is being held hostage were legitimate. Prosecutors said on the morning of the killings, Hayes drove Hawke-Petit to the bank, where she withdrew $15,000. They then returned to the Petit house, where police say Hayes sexually assaulted and strangled Hawke-Petit. Hawke-Petit's two daughters, 11-year-old Michaela and 17-year-old Hayley, died of smoke inhalation in a fire set before Hayes and Komisarjevsky fled the home in the family's car, crashed into police cruisers and were arrested. Authorities said Komisarjevsky also sexually assaulted Michaela. Hawke-Petit's husband, Dr. William Petit, was severely beaten but survived. Komisarjevsky and Hayes were sentenced to death, but the state Supreme Court last year abolished the death penalty for the men on Connecticut's death row. Alaska regulators to take applications for pot businesses JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) A regulatory board in Alaska on Wednesday will begin accepting applications for marijuana business licenses the next step in setting up the state's legal pot industry. Leif Abel has the date marked on his calendar. He and his partners have been building a facility on the Kenai Peninsula for their company, Greatland Ganja. To apply for a license, prospective business operators need to have secured a site. That has proven to be a challenge in some parts of the state due to location and zoning restrictions, local community bans or wary property owners. Giono Barrett, left, and James Barrett stand outside of the shop that will be a downtown retail storefront for their marijuana business, Rainforest Farms, Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016, in Juneau, Alaska. A state board tasked with regulating Alaska's nascent legal pot industry will begin taking business license applications Wednesday, setting the stage for legal sales set to occur later this year. (AP Photo/Rashah McChesney) Abel, who is with the Coalition for Responsible Cannabis Legislation, said there's a lot of risk for would-be business owners. "I would say that your average business person would look at it and turn around and do something that was much less risky," said Abel, who also farms and has a building company. But he and others say they're passionate about the industry and want to be a part of it. It will still be months before pot can legally be purchased in Alaska by those 21 and older. While the state's Marijuana Control Board will start accepting business applications Wednesday, it will be three weeks before any applications initiated then are deemed complete due to noticing requirements under state regulations. Once an application is considered complete, the board has 90 days to decide whether to accept or deny it. Under a tentative timeline laid out by the board's director, the board would consider the first cultivation and testing licenses in June with approval of the first retail and product manufacturing facility licenses sometime in September. The board is seeking a legislative fix that will allow it to conduct national criminal history check for applicants. A state Senate committee plans to hear a bill that would address that issue Wednesday. Many prospective owners have been deeply involved in the rule-making process and in work at the community level, attending meetings, providing public testimony and trying to educate state and local leaders about marijuana. James Barrett, who with his brother, Giono Barrett, envisions a retail, processing and cultivation business in Juneau, said they know so much about cannabis, they feel a responsibility to be a part of the process. After voters in 2014 approved legalizing recreational use of marijuana, James Barrett said they quickly had to learn how government works, when to talk, who to talk to and how to read laws. He said he probably learned more in the last year than in the years he went to college. Kim Kole of Anchorage said people she's talked to are having trouble keeping investors on board and finding property. Over the last year, a number of investors Kole had lined up fell through. But Kole, a teacher, has remained optimistic and had meetings lined up this week. On Tuesday, she said she had received an offer she couldn't refuse. She plans to initiate an application soon. Sara Williams said she has her investment money. She's just looking for a location. Williams, the CEO of Midnight Greenery, lives in Wasilla. But there are local prohibitions there and a local ballot initiative has created uncertainty. If approved, it would ban marijuana businesses in areas of the Matanuska-Susitna Borough outside of cities. She is looking for shop space about 45 miles away in Anchorage. She has found limited options. She plans to fight the borough initiative and keep looking for places in Anchorage. She said she may end up having to find more money to purchase a building. "By no means do we feel like it's hopeless," she said. "It's just hard." She noted there was once a prohibition on alcohol, which is now legal and regulated. "Somebody has to start the movement and be a part of it," she said. ___ Online: Alaska Alcohol and Marijuana Control Office: http://1.usa.gov/1LF5pSJ Kim Kole, a teacher, is seenTuesday, Feb. 23, 2016 in Anchorage, Alaska, a day before the state of Alaska begins accepting applications for marijuana business licenses. Kole said she plans to apply for a business license to operate a retail marijuana store in midtown Anchorage. (AP Photo/Mark Thiessen) Carson, in fading campaign, says Obama was 'raised white' WASHINGTON (AP) Ben Carson is trying to reinvigorate his campaign for the Republican presidential nomination by becoming the latest to question Barack Obama's blackness ahead of critical upcoming votes. Carson, the only black candidate among the Republicans and Democrats, said in a series of recent interviews that Obama was "raised white" and doesn't represent the "black experience" in the United States. "He didn't grow up like I grew up," Carson said on MSNBC. "Many of his formative years were spent in Indonesia. So, for him to, you know, claim that, you know, he identifies with the experience of black Americans, I think, is a bit of a stretch." In this Feb. 21, 2016, photo, Republican presidential candidate Ben Carson smiles as he is introduced during a town hall meeting in Reno, Nev. Carson is trying to reinvigorate his fading chances at the Republican presidential nomination by questioning Barack Obamas blackness, the latest in a line of racially-tinged attacks aimed at the countrys first black president by his critics. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez) He told a Politico podcast released Tuesday that the president was "raised white." Carson's comments helped him break through the cacophony of speeches and interviews by front-runner Donald Trump and rivals Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio and John Kasich. Carson came in near the bottom in last week's Republican primary in South Carolina and faces a struggle in the Super Tuesday primaries March 1. Carson's "lashing out. His campaign is on its last leg," said Leah Wright Rigueur, a professor of public policy at Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government. "His comments are not geared toward black audiences; they're geared toward white conservatives." Carson has made race-based attacks before, saying in 2013 that Obama's signature health care overhaul "is the worst thing that has happened in this nation since slavery." And he's suggested he is still waiting to see evidence of racial bias by U.S. law enforcement agencies. Obama, once a curiosity because his mother was white and his father was black, has been fully embraced by many black Americans as one of their own. Carson, however, has lost some admiration that many blacks held for his life story and medical accomplishments as a neurosurgeon with his conservative views that have won praise in heavily white Republican circles. "They assume because you're black, you have to think a certain way," Carson said in the Politico interview. Angela Johnson Meadows, who worked for Diversity Best Practices, an organization that promotes diversity, says that view combined with Carson's comments on Obama are "ironic and a bit hypocritical." Meadows defined a black experience as something that can happen to a black person or to someone who identifies as black. For example, she said, many blacks have roots in the South, are church-going, love soul food, and other things that make up a "black experience" but those things alone do not define blackness, she said. Carson not the first to level "blackness" criticism at Obama. In a 2011 interview on MSNBC, longtime critic Cornel West said Obama "always had to fear being a white man with black skin. ... All he has known culturally is white." Media magnate Rupert Murdoch said on Twitter in October: "Ben and Candy Carson terrific. What about a real black president who can properly address the racial divide?" Murdoch tweeted. He later apologized. ___ Jesse J. Holland covers race, ethnicity and demographics and Errin Haines Whack covers urban affairs for The Associated Press. US military leader says Okinawa base move delayed 2 years TOKYO (AP) A controversial plan to move a U.S. Marine Corps base within Okinawa in southern Japan has been pushed back by two years, America's top military official in the Pacific said. Adm. Harry Harris, head of the U.S. Pacific Command, said Tuesday that the shift of the Futenma air station to a less congested part of Okinawa island would not happen until 2025 because work on a new facility has been delayed. "It's slowed," he told a congressional committee in Washington. "It's a little over two years late. ... Now we're looking at 2025 before that's done." FILE - In this March 23, 2015, file photo, a child looks at the U.S. Marine Corps Futenma Air Station and the surrounding area from an observation deck at a park in Ginowan, Okinawa Prefecture on southern Japan. U.S. Adm. Harry Harris told a congressional committee in Washington on Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016 that the shift of the Futenma air station to the town of Henoko would not happen until 2025 because construction has slowed. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko, File) The project faces stiff opposition from both protesters and the Okinawan prefectural government. The Japanese government is building the air station, which will extend over the water from another Marine Corps base near the town of Henoko. Survey work for the new facility is underway, but Japan suspended it for about two months last year in an unsuccessful attempt to work out a compromise with the Okinawan government. The U.S. and Japan agreed to move the air station from crowded Ginowan city to reduce the burden of the heavy U.S. military presence on Okinawa residents. Opponents want the base moved off Okinawa entirely. The U.S. has agreed to shift 8,000 to 10,000 Marines off Okinawa in the 2020s, mainly to Guam and Hawaii, but Harris said that would happen as "a follow-on" to the move from Futenma to Henoko. Latest: Report says nothing amiss in suite where Scalia died DALLAS (AP) The Latest on the death of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia at the Cibolo Creek Ranch in West Texas (all times local): 9:50 p.m. A sheriff's incident report shows nothing appeared out of place around the bed where Justice Antonin Scalia was found dead in his West Texas resort suite. FILE - In this Oct. 18, 2011 file photo, U.S. Supreme Court justice Antonin Scalia looks into the balcony before addressing the Chicago-Kent College Law justice in Chicago. A letter from the Supreme Court's doctor says Scalia suffered from coronary artery disease, obesity and diabetes, among other ailments that probably contributed to the justice's sudden death. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast, File) The Presidio County Sheriff's Department report obtained by The Washington Post late Tuesday shows that three pillows were stacked to elevate Scalia's head. A top pillow appeared to have toppled onto his eyes and forehead but didn't appear positioned to impede his breathing. His arms were at his side atop the bed covers, which were pulled up to his chin. A breathing apparatus was on the nightstand, but it wasn't hooked up to Scalia. The bed covers were smooth and creased and showed no sign of a struggle. His suitcase was open and contained neatly folded clothing. On the kitchen counter rested a blue stretch exercise band. ___ 4:15 p.m. A letter from the Supreme Court's doctor says Antonin Scalia suffered from coronary artery disease, obesity and diabetes, among other ailments that probably contributed to the justice's sudden death. Presidio County District Attorney Rod Ponton cited the letter Tuesday, when he told The Associated Press there was nothing suspicious about the Feb. 13 death of the 79-year-old jurist. He said the long list of health problems made an autopsy unnecessary. Ponton had a copy of a letter from Rear Adm. Brian P. Monahan, the attending physician for members of Congress and the Supreme Court. The letter was to county Judge Cinderela Guevara, who conducted a death inquiry by phone and certified Scalia's death. Scalia's body was returned the next day to Virginia. Trump momentum grows ahead of Super Tuesday next week WASHINGTON (AP) Donald Trump's campaign for the Republican presidential nomination is building a momentum that may sweep away challenges by Florida Sen. Marco Rubio and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, with his crushing win in the Nevada caucuses marking a third straight victory in state contests. Rubio captured second place with fewer than 2,000 more votes than Cruz as final vote totals were reported Wednesday morning. Trump, the billionaire New York businessman, now can claim victories in the West, the South and Northeast a testament to his broad appeal among voters frustrated with the political establishment. His rivals are running out of time to stop him. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, accompanied by Rev. Pat Robertson, gestures as he speaks at Regent University in Virginia Beach, Va., Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. (AP Photo/Steve Helber) On Wednesday, Trump won his first endorsements from sitting members of Congress, with Reps. Duncan Hunter of California and Chris Collins of New York announcing they are backing him for the Republican presidential nomination. "We're winning, winning, winning the country," Trump declared Tuesday. "Soon, the country is going to start winning, winning, winning." Listing the upcoming primary states where he's leading in preference polls, Trump predicted he'll soon be able to claim the nomination. "It's going to be an amazing two months," he told a raucous crowd at a Las Vegas casino. "We might not even need the two months, folks, to be honest." A candidate must have 1,237 state delegates to win the Republican nomination at the National Convention this summer. Trump won 14 delegates in Nevada. Rubio won seven, and Ted got six. Overall, Trump has 82 delegates so far. Cruz has 17 and Rubio 16. Rubio and Cruz are battling to emerge as the clear alternative to Trump. Lagging behind in the Republican race are Ohio Gov. John Kasich and retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson. The race for the nomination in both major political parties has produced candidates who reflect a deepening anger among American voters with the gridlock during much of the Obama administration. Trump and Cruz in particular have found strong support among such voters. Entrance polls in Nevada captured the sentiment propelling Trump's insurgent campaign: Six in 10 caucus goers said they were angry with the way the government is working, and Trump got about half of them. After winning in New Hampshire, South Carolina and Nevada, Trump has momentum heading into March 1, or Super Tuesday. It is the biggest single-day delegate haul of the nomination contests. Republicans will vote in 11 states, with 595 delegates at stake. Democrats will vote in 11 states and American Samoa, with 865 delegates up for grabs. On Wednesday, Cruz won the endorsement of the governor in his home state of Texas, the largest of the Super Tuesday states. On the Democrat side, impatient voters have rallied around Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, a democratic socialist, who has put up a strong challenge to front-runner and former secretary of state Hillary Clinton. Clinton was looking for a commanding victory over Sanders in Saturday's South Carolina primary to give her a boost heading into Super Tuesday. Polls show the former first lady with a huge advantage among African-Americans, which bodes well for her prospects in the Southern states that vote next week. Adding to her momentum on Wednesday, the Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid endorsed Clinton for the presidential nomination. ___ AP writers Nancy Benac and Chad Day in Washington and Steve Peoples and Nicholas Riccardi in Las Vegas contributed to this report. Republican presidential candidate, Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., speaks during a campaign event, Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016, in Kentwood, Mich. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya) Democratic presidential candidate, Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt. drinks coffee while boarding a plane in Columbia, S.C., Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016, en route to campaign events in Missouri and Oklahoma. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin) In this photo taken Feb. 23, 2016, Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid of Nev. speaks to reporters on Capitol Hill in Washington. Reid endorsed Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton on Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) Democratic presidential candidate, Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt. and his wife Jane Sanders board a plane in Columbia, S.C., Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016, en route to campaign events in Missouri and Oklahoma. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin) Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton greets supporters after participating in a CNN town hall style televised event at the University of South Carolina School of Law, in Columbia, S.C., Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert) Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton gestures during a commercial break at a CNN town hall style televised event at the University of South Carolina School of Law, in Columbia, S.C., Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert) Supporters cheer during a caucus night rally for Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong) Republican presidential candidate, Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., speaks during campaign event, Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016 in Kentwood, Mich. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya) Republican presidential candidate, Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, speaks during a caucus night rally, Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher) Republican presidential candidate, Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, speaks during a caucus night rally Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher) Republican presidential candidate, Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, speaks during a caucus night rally Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher) Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump takes pictures with supporters during a rally Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016, in Reno, Nev. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez) Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks during a caucus night rally Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong) Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, center, greets voters while visiting a caucus site Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong) Republican presidential candidate, Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., speaks during a campaign event, Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016, in Kentwood, Mich. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya) AP NewsBreak: Scalia suffered from many health problems DALLAS (AP) Antonin Scalia suffered from coronary artery disease, obesity and diabetes, among other ailments that probably contributed to the justice's sudden death, according to a letter from the Supreme Court's doctor. Presidio County District Attorney Rod Ponton cited the letter Tuesday when he told The Associated Press there was nothing suspicious about the Feb. 13 death of the 79-year-old Scalia. He said the long list of health problems made an autopsy unnecessary. Ponton had a copy of a letter from Rear Adm. Brian P. Monahan, the attending physician for members of Congress and the Supreme Court. The letter was to Presidio County Judge Cinderela Guevara, who conducted a death inquiry by phone and certified Scalia's death. FILE - In this Feb. 19, 2016 file photo, people line up to pay their respect to the late Justice Antonin Scalia in the Great Hall of the Supreme Court in Washington, where Scalia's body lies in repose. A letter from the Supreme Court's doctor said Scalia suffered from coronary artery disease, obesity and diabetes, among other ailments that probably contributed to the justice's sudden death. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta, File) The letter dated Feb. 16 said Scalia's many "significant medical conditions led to his death," Ponton said. In the letter, Monahan listed more than a half-dozen ailments, including sleep apnea, degenerative joint disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and high blood pressure. Scalia also was a smoker, the letter said. Ponton declined to provide a copy of the letter, saying an open records request must be made to Guevara, who did not respond to a phone message Tuesday. The AP filed a records request with the judge last week, but she did not provide the letter or respond to a reporter's phone message Tuesday. The Texas Department of State Health Services has declined to release a copy of the death certificate. Scalia was found dead in his bed at a ranch not far from the Mexico border, where he had gone on a hunting trip. A breathing apparatus was found on the night stand next to Scalia's bed when his body was found, but he was not hooked up to it and it was not turned on when he died, according to a Presidio County Sheriff's Office incident report obtained late Tuesday by The Washington Post. Nothing appeared out of place around Scalia's bed, according to the report. Three pillows were stacked to elevate Scalia's head. A top pillow appeared to have toppled onto his eyes and forehead but didn't appear positioned to impede his breathing, the report stated. His arms were at his side atop the bed covers, which were pulled up to his chin. The bed covers were smooth and creased and showed no sign of a struggle, according to the report. Guevara, who as county judge is the top administrator in the area, previously said she conferred by phone with Sheriff Danny Dominguez and a U.S. marshal before certifying the death. On the day Scalia died, she also conferred with Monahan by phone before determining the cause of death. Scalia's death "was handled in a similar fashion as the cases of other elderly people who have died in Presidio County," Ponton said. In rural Texas, justices of the peace investigate deaths, among other duties, but the two justices in the region were out of town and unavailable. Guevara was also out of town but agreed to conduct the death inquiry by phone. The Supreme Court does not provide regular reports about the justices' health. It is left to each court member to decide how much to make public about medical conditions. The Supreme Court's press office could find just one release in 29 years pertaining to Scalia's health, a report of surgery in 2003 to repair a torn rotator cuff in his right shoulder. ___ Associated Press Writer Mark Sherman in Washington contributed to this report. 10-month-old baby among those presumed dead in Fiji cyclone WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) A 10-month-old baby is among those missing and presumed dead Wednesday from the massive cyclone that hit Fiji after the boy's parents told a local television station they lost hold of him amid ferocious winds and floodwaters that rose to their necks. The death toll from Cyclone Winston has risen to 42. Another four people are listed as missing, including the infant on Koro Island, where at least 10 people have died. The cyclone tore through the Pacific Island chain over the weekend with winds that reached 177 miles (285 kilometers) per hour, making it the strongest storm in Fiji's recorded history. Two boys are under a bus shelter that is supporting a fallen tree in the village of Talecake, Fiji, Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016, after cyclone Winston ripped through the island nation. The cyclone tore through Fiji over the weekend with winds that reached 177 miles (285 kilometers) per hour, making it the strongest storm in Fiji's recorded history. (Brett Phibbs/New Zealand Herald via AP) NEW ZEALAND OUT, AUSTRALIA OUT The boy's father Alifereti Samu told Fiji One Television that they ran from the coastal home where they were sheltering and were expecting the winds but not the huge seas. "When the winds began to rise, we then ran for safety," he said, adding they tried to keep their son above water. "The water level was up to my neck," Samu said. "The house began to fall and waves began to pound on us." He said their son was their firstborn. "We still haven't found him. We believe he has been taken out to sea," he told the network. "We are at peace with the thought that he has found eternal life." Government spokesman Ewan Perrin confirmed the parents' account. "Basically the baby was lost during the flooding," Perrin said. "One of the parents was unable to hold onto the child and it was washed away." Perrin said authorities have a good grasp now on the extent of the destruction from Cyclone Winston after getting aerial images from the Royal New Zealand Air Force. He said they hope to begin distributing 20 satellite phones soon to places still without communication links. He said that within a few days of flooding, mosquitoes start to breed so authorities are urging people not to leave standing water anywhere in order to prevent an increase in illnesses such as dengue fever. Fiji's Disaster Management Minister Inia Seruiratu said in a briefing that the government was working to restore electricity and running water to many areas. He said a lack of reliable communications had proved to be a serious challenge. "Fiji has suffered a terrible blow, and this rebuilding process won't happen overnight," he said. Karen Allen, the head of UNICEF in the Pacific, said the priority was to get food, water and kerosene for cooking to the thousands of people staying in emergency shelters. She said many people in the shelters are devastated. "They're crying, they're stressed, they're upset, they don't know what tomorrow will bring," she said. Sanjogeeta Kiran, right, with her sister Sulva Kiran, second left, and her children Shivendera, left, and Raajeen, sit amid the debris of their home in RakiRaki, Fiji, Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016, after cyclone Winston ripped through the island nation. The cyclone tore through Fiji over the weekend with winds that reached 177 miles (285 kilometers) per hour, making it the strongest storm in Fiji's recorded history. (Brett Phibbs/New Zealand Herald via AP) NEW ZEALAND OUT, AUSTRALIA OUT A car drives along Kings Road near Lautoka, Fiji, Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016, where power poles lean over after cyclone Winston ripped through the island nation. The cyclone tore through Fiji over the weekend with winds that reached 177 miles (285 kilometers) per hour, making it the strongest storm in Fiji's recorded history. (Brett Phibbs/New Zealand Herald via AP) NEW ZEALAND OUT, AUSTRALIA OUT A man makes repairs to his home in RakiRaki, Fiji, Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016, after cyclone Winston ripped through the island nation. The cyclone tore through Fiji over the weekend with winds that reached 177 miles (285 kilometers) per hour, making it the strongest storm in Fiji's recorded history. (Brett Phibbs/New Zealand Herald via AP) NEW ZEALAND OUT, AUSTRALIA OUT As drought hammers countryside, many in Haiti go hungry ORIANI, Haiti (AP) Only shriveled carrots and potatoes grow in Carole Joseph's small vegetable plot. The family's chickens are long gone. She sold her only tools to buy food, then the wooden bed she shared with her children. The family now sleeps on the floor of their shack. All that's left to sell are the pots she uses to cook over a fire pit, when there's something to eat. The 28-year-old mother of four is among roughly 1.5 million Haitians who can't get nearly enough nutrition because of a years-long drought that has spoiled harvests in her small mountain village and across large sections of the countryside. This Feb. 20, 2016 photo shows the dry, cracked lakebed of Trou Caiman, in Croix-des-Bouquets, Haiti. A drought worsened by the El Nino weather phenomenon has driven Haitians who were already barely getting by on marginal farmland deeper into misery. An estimated 1.5 million people are going hungry as crop yields fall to lowest levels in 35 years in a country where two-thirds of people eke out a living from agriculture. (AP Photo/Dieu Nalio Chery) "We get a little bit to eat and drink each day, but it's never enough to get our strength back. I don't know what to do anymore," she said, her voice hoarse as she cradled her toddler twins, their hair brittle and taking on a yellowish tinge, a sign of malnutrition. For the last three years, a punishing drought has driven Haitians who were already barely getting by on marginal farmland even deeper into misery. Last year's crop yields were the worst in 35 years in a country where more than two-thirds of people eke out a living from agriculture, many using archaic hand tools. Many Haitians routinely go to bed hungry, and are heartbreakingly accustomed to privation and natural disasters. But the cumulative impact of this drought is so severe that Haiti is facing "unprecedented food insecurity," according to the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Over the last year, it's worsened significantly with a strong El Nino weather phenomenon that's been disrupting weather patterns across the globe, leaving many places in Latin America and the Caribbean stricken by drought. Cuba suffered its worst drought in over a century in 2015 and water rationing was ordered in Puerto Rico and elsewhere. But few places are more vulnerable than Haiti, where 3.6 million of its 10.4 million people can't afford the minimum daily calories, according to the U.N. World Food Program. Of those, 1.5 million are in urgent need of assistance, meaning they're getting significantly less nutrition than what they need and are so underfed they become weak. That category of "severely food insecure" people has doubled in Haiti over the last six months, the agency said. "This drought is a very dangerous situation. The pressures on people keep increasing," said Haitian economist Kesner Pharel, noting that buying food makes up more than half of an average Haitian family's budget. Pharel said local agricultural production has contracted so severely over the last two years that 70 percent of the crops consumed in Haiti are now imported, up from roughly 50 percent in the past. With the local currency losing value, the cost of imports is rising, making everything pricier. Officials say more rural families are being forced to join the decades-long exodus to cities. And diminishing calories means more children are vulnerable to infections like measles and any number of other diseases. Wendy Bigham, country director of the U.N. World Food Program, said a growing number of farming families have been eating seed stock, seeking loans and selling items such as livestock and tools to get cash for food. But "coping mechanisms such as reducing food consumption, selling assets and borrowing money are more and more difficult to sustain as the drought continues year after year," she said. In the wind-swept mountain town of Oriani in southeast Haiti, Joseph knows this all too well. About a year ago, her husband left to seek work in the neighboring Dominican Republic and he hasn't returned since. She was forced to sell off her chickens and then her other meager possessions to buy food. On a recent afternoon, Associated Press reporters met her at a town health clinic crowded with other women cradling children and waiting their turn to be seen. Her 2-year-old twins, Angelo and Angela, have missed developmental milestones such as taking their first steps or uttering their first words. On this day, she left with only deworming tablets because the facility was again out of nutrient-dense peanut butter. At her family's stone-and-timber shack, Joseph's two older children, 10-year-old daughter Junel and 12-year-old son Stevenson, sprawled listlessly on a straw mat as her hungry twins tried to breastfeed. Joseph is so underfed and dehydrated that she can't produce milk. "I only nurse them to comfort them," she said. To get emergency aid to people like Joseph and her children, the World Food Program is seeking $84 million in donations to distribute cash and food to roughly 1 million drought-affected Haitians. The U.S. has boosted its emergency aid to Haiti, awarding $11.6 million to nonprofits to address nutritional deficiencies for over 135,000 people. The challenges of getting emergency food aid to struggling communities, even those accessible only by foot or donkey, is easier than finding elusive solutions to Haiti's chronic hunger problems. Abnel Desarmours, acting director of the government's National Coordination of Food Security Unit, said more sustained efforts must be made to escape the seemingly endless cycles of disaster and rescue. The recent rise in food insecurity underscores just how vulnerable many of Haiti's people remain despite decades of global aid. "It is very difficult, but we have to figure this out. Irrigation systems must be built or fixed and our food production has to be strengthened," he said. Haiti has long struggled with malnutrition as a result of widespread poverty, political dysfunction and corruption, and a fragile agricultural sector repeatedly set back by severe weather and environmental degradation. Punishing weather is only expected to intensify as a result of global climate change. Recently, sustained rains from a cold front came to northern Haiti. But they arrived in the form of a deluge that flooded streets and fields, doing little to help the current planting season. The crisis in the countryside has also reached the cities, causing the price of plantains and tomatoes to triple, according to vendors in the capital, Port-au-Prince. "The prices keep going up even as the crops get punier," vendor Junior Edraud said as he worked a bustling corner. "Something's got to give because the Haitian people can't keep going like this." Even if the rainfall during the spring rainy season is steady, farming families in Oriani and other towns will have to struggle to get by until the summer harvest. Last week, the U.N. weather agency said the ongoing El Nino has passed its peak, but its "humanitarian and economic impacts will continue for many months to come." For now, Joseph is doing what she can to feed her family two meager meals a day. "It's very hard because when they get up crying in the night I can't answer them," she said. ___ David McFadden on Twitter: www.twitter.com/dmcfadd In this Feb. 15, 2016 photo, Carole Joseph holds her toddler twins, Angelo, left, and Angela, after visiting a local health center to examine her children for signs of malnutrition, in Oriani, Haiti. The 28-year-old mother of four, is among roughly 1.5 million Haitians who can't get nearly enough nutrition because of a yearslong drought that has spoiled harvests in her small mountain village and across large sections of the countryside. (AP Photo/Dieu Nalio Chery) In this Feb. 15, 2016 photo, vendors cull through bunches of carrots, to sell at a local street market in Oriani, Haiti. A drought worsened by the El Nino weather phenomenon has driven Haitians who were already barely getting by on marginal farmland deeper into misery. (AP Photo/Dieu Nalio Chery) In this Feb. 15, 2016 photo, a man pours water he collected from a nearby river, pictured in background, into a larger receptacle, in Fonds Verrettes, Haiti. For the last three years, a punishing drought has driven Haitians who were already barely getting by on marginal farmland even deeper into misery. Last year's crop yields were the worst in 35 years in a country where more than two-thirds of people eke out a living from agriculture, many using archaic hand tools. (AP Photo/Dieu Nalio Chery) In this Feb. 15, 2016 photo, Angelo, left and his twin sister Angela, crawl on the earthen floor of their front porch in Oriani, Haiti. A drought worsened by the El Nino weather phenomenon has driven Haitians who were already barely getting by on marginal farmland deeper into misery. Only shriveled carrots and potatoes grow in their mother's small vegetable plot. (AP Photo/Dieu Nalio Chery) In this Feb. 15, 2016 photo, Carole Joseph sits next to her four-year-old niece Jana as she nurses her toddler twins, on the front porch of their home, in Oraiani, Haiti. A drought worsened by the El Nino weather phenomenon has driven Haitians who were already barely getting by on marginal farmland deeper into misery. Her 2-year-old twins have missed developmental milestones such as taking their first steps or uttering their first words. (AP Photo/Dieu Nalio Chery) In this Feb. 15, 2016 photo, Carole Joseph nurses her twins at her home in Oriani, Haiti. The 28-year-old mother of four, is among roughly 1.5 million Haitians who can't get nearly enough nutrition because of a yearslong drought. "We get a little bit to eat and drink each day, but it's never enough to get our strength back. I don't know what to do anymore," she said, as she cradled her toddler twins, their hair brittle and taking on a yellowish tinge, signs of malnutrition. (AP Photo/Dieu Nalio Chery) In this Feb. 20, 2016 photo, residents siphon water from a waterhole in the lakebed of Lastique lake, in Fonds Parisiens, Haiti. For the last three years, a punishing drought has driven Haitians who were already barely getting by on marginal farmland even deeper into misery. (AP Photo/Dieu Nalio Chery) In this Feb. 15, 2016 photo, residents carry buckets filled with water they collected from the Soliette river, to irrigate their vegetable plots, in Fonds Verrettes, Haiti. Economist Kesner Pharel says local agricultural production has contracted so severely over the last two years that 70 percent of the crops consumed in Haiti are now imported, up from roughly 50 percent in the past. (AP Photo/Dieu Nalio Chery) In this Feb. 15, 2016 photo, community health volunteer Sylvio Fils-Aime examines a child for signs of malnutrition, in Oriani, Haiti. Many Haitians routinely go to bed hungry. But the impact of a yearlong drought is so severe that Haiti is facing "unprecedented food insecurity," according to the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. (AP Photo/Dieu Nalio Chery) In this Feb. 15, 2016 photo, community health volunteer Sylvio Fils-Aime examines a child for signs of malnutrition, in Oriani, Haiti. For the last three years, a punishing drought has driven Haitians who were already barely getting by on marginal farmland even deeper into misery. Diminishing calories means more children are vulnerable to infections like measles and any number of other diseases. (AP Photo/Dieu Nalio Chery) In this Feb. 15, 2016 photo, Roodymanche Lomane plants potatoes in his small vegetable plot, in Oriani, Haiti. A strong El Nino weather phenomenon that's been disrupting weather patterns across the globe, is leaving many places in Latin America and the Caribbean stricken by drought. (AP Photo/Dieu Nalio Chery) Jordan's King Abdullah set to visit White House WASHINGTON (AP) The White House says President Barack Obama and Jordan's King Abdullah II will focus their talks on resolving the conflict in Syrian and meeting the needs of war-stricken refugees. The two leaders are meeting at the White House during an important moment in the 5-year-old civil war in Syria as Washington and Moscow will work to put in a place a fragile cease-fire designed to help end the conflict. The truce does not cover the Islamic State group. Jordan shares a border with Syria and Iraq, and Abdullah's visit to the White House takes place as his country struggles to accommodate more than 630,000 Syrian refugees. Australian Ladies Masters fighting to survive after 27 years GOLD COAST, Australia (AP) Australian Ladies Masters promoter Bob Tuohy says he's struggling to keep the tournament afloat after 27 years. The tournament, which has been played at Royal Pines since 1992 and has a list of former champions that includes Karrie Webb and Annika Sorenstam, begins Thursday with No. 11 Brooke Henderson as its top-ranked player. It is sanctioned by the Australian and Ladies European Tour. The LPGA's Honda Classic in Thailand clashes with the Australian event and has attracted most of the top players. Bedouin coming-of-age drama vying for Oscar nod AL-SHAKRIYEH, Jordan (AP) A coming-of-age drama set among Bedouin tribesmen roaming the desert is the first Oscar contender produced by Jordan's nascent film industry. "Theeb" (Wolf), set in 1916, tells the story of a playful 11-year-old Bedouin boy of the same name who gets caught up in his tribe's alliance with the British against Ottoman rulers during the era's Arab Revolt. Billed as a "Bedouin Western" and an authentic portrayal of Bedouin culture, Theeb is one of five movies nominated for best foreign language film. The decision will be announced at Sunday's awards ceremony. FILE - In this Saturday, Jan. 9, 2016 file photo, Jacir Eid Al-Hwietat, 15, poses for a photo in Wadi Rum, a scenic desert area of southern Jordan. Jacir and his cousin, both from a Bedouin clan, acted in the film "Theeb" (Wolf), a coming-of-age drama set in 1916, that has emerged as the first Oscar contender of Jordans nascent film industry. (AP Photo/Raad Adayleh, File) For the amateur cast from a Bedouin clan and for two young Jordanians writing and directing their first feature film, making Theeb has already been a wild ride, climaxing in the 2014 world premiere at the Venice Film Festival. That marked the first time the actors left Jordan or saw the entire film. "They got a 10-minute standing ovation," said director Naji Abu Nowar, who won for best director in the "Orrizonti" (Horizons) category in Venice. "The Bedouins, it's a very macho culture, and you never see anyone cry, even the children ... and to see tears coming out of some of their eyes (during the premiere) was a really powerful moment," he said, speaking from the Palm Springs International Film Festival, a last pre-Oscar opportunity to promote foreign films. Earlier this year, Abu Nowar and producer Rupert Lloyd won an award from the British Academy of Film and Television, or BAFTA, for Theeb for an outstanding debut by a director or producer. Abu Nowar is also British. The actors have since resumed their lives in al-Shakriyeh, a small Bedouin village nestled among striking rock formations rising from the desert floor of Wadi Rum, a protected landscape just north of the Red Sea and one of Jordan's main tourist attractions. Jacir Eid Al-Hwietat, who played Theeb, is now 15, attends 10th grade and has revised his career plans, from police officer to actor. "I'm a celebrity among my friends now," said Jacir, who has morphed from a boy with a sweet smile into a guarded teen. His cousin, Hussein Salameh al-Sweilhiyeen, who played Theeb's brother Hussein, is back to racing camels and working as a tourist guide. Since Theeb, he has appeared in a German TV documentary about Wadi Rum and a Jordanian tourism commercial, and said he would like to do more acting. Al-Sweilhiyeen said being involved in Theeb made him aware of the need to protect traditions. Bedouin lifestyles in the area have changed dramatically in the last few decades, with nomads settling down, trading their camels for pickup trucks and living off tourists instead of goat herds. "Sometimes I say the old life was better," said al-Sweilhiyeen, sitting on the floor of the carpeted family diwan, or traditional reception area for guests. "The desert teaches you how to depend on yourself. Now we have good services, but we need to protect some old customs." Jacir's father, 42-year-old Eid, still remembers the old ways. He was born in a tent and as a boy rode camels over long distances as his family wandered the desert before settling down about 30 years ago. He dropped out of school as a 15-year-old, taught himself English, began guiding tourists and recently sold his last camels, saying he doesn't have the time and space to care for them properly. Al-Hwietat became the local point man for the filmmakers, Abu Nowar and Bassel Ghandour, who produced the film and co-wrote the script. The pair lived in al-Shakriyeh for most of 2012, soaking up Bedouin culture, rewriting the script and holding acting workshops for the local cast. Theeb was filmed over five weeks by veteran Austrian cinematographer Wolfgang Thaler, the most experienced crew member and praised by all involved as the bedrock of the production. Ghandour said Thaler used super-16mm film in part because it captures the desert's harsh sun and deep shadows more naturally. Theeb, also released commercially, was "definitely low-budget," Ghandour said, but wouldn't reveal how much it cost to make. Half a century before Theeb, scenes of the Oscar-winning epic "Lawrence of Arabia," about maverick British army officer T. E. Lawrence, were filmed in Wadi Rum, just minutes from where Jacir and his family live. Jacir's grandfather was part of the local support staff for "Lawrence," also set during the Arab Revolt, and the tradition continues. Jacir's father, Eid, has worked on international productions, most recently as a location manager for "The Martian," a 2015 science fiction film starring Matt Damon. Damon was unpretentious during the shoot, greeting everyone at the start of each day, said al-Hwietat. Providing locations and crew for foreign films remains an important part of Jordan's film work, said George David, general manager of the Royal Film Commission. Major films shot in Jordan also include "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade" (1989) and "The Hurt Locker" (2008). At a time of growing conflict in the region, urban centers in Jordan, seen as relatively safe, are standing in for Baghdad or Beirut, he said, adding that "we have also become the go-to location for Mars and the moon." Over the past decade, the commission has offered workshops on all aspects of film-making, including an annual screenwriters' lab in consultation with the Sundance Institute. However, budget cuts have forced the closure of a film school, and the commission had to reduce training. "If we, as an industry, tackle the funding issue, I think we will be seeing more Theebs," said David. "Whether it wins or not, we are already very proud of what it has already achieved." Jacir and local resident Hassan Mutlaq al-Maraiyeh, who plays the film's villain, will be attending Sunday's ceremony, along with the director, producers and cinematographer. Jacir will be wearing a traditional Bedouin robe on the red carpet, albeit one made by a Jordanian fashion designer, said Ghandour. "We want the star to get all the attention because he deserves it," he said of Jacir's planned attire. ___ Note: This is an updated version of a story that originally moved on Jan. 12. FILE - In this Saturday, Jan. 9, 2016, file photo, Jacir Eid Al-Hwietat, right, and his cousin, Hussein Salameh al-Sweilhiyeen, pose for a photo in Wadi Rum, a scenic desert area of southern Jordan. Jacir and al-Sweilhiyeen, both from a Bedouin clan, acted in the film "Theeb" (Wolf), a coming-of-age drama set in 1916, that has emerged as the first Oscar contender of Jordans nascent film industry. (AP Photo/Raad Adayleh) FILE - In this Saturday, Jan. 9, 2016, file photo, Hussein Salameh al-Sweilhiyeen poses for a photo in Wadi Rum, a scenic desert area of southern Jordan. Al-Sweilhiyeen, from a Bedouin clan, acted in the film "Theeb" (Wolf), a coming-of-age drama set in 1916, that has emerged as the first Oscar contender of Jordans nascent film industry. (AP Photo/Raad Adayleh) FILE - In this Saturday, Jan. 9, 2016 file photo, Jacir Eid Al-Hwietat, 15, poses for a photo in Wadi Rum, a scenic desert area of southern Jordan. Jacir and his cousin, both from a Bedouin clan, acted in the film "Theeb" (Wolf), a coming-of-age drama set in 1916, that has emerged as the first Oscar contender of Jordans nascent film industry. (AP Photo/Raad Adayleh, File) FILE - In this Saturday, Jan. 9, 2016 file photo, Jacir Eid Al-Hwietat, 15, poses for a photo in Wadi Rum, a scenic desert area of southern Jordan. Jacir and his cousin, both from a Bedouin clan, acted in the film "Theeb" (Wolf), a coming-of-age drama set in 1916, that has emerged as the first Oscar contender of Jordans nascent film industry. (AP Photo/Raad Adayleh, File) FILE - In this Saturday, Jan. 9, 2016 file photo, Jacir Eid Al-Hwietat, right, and his cousin, Hussein Salameh al-Sweilhiyeen, pose for a photo in Wadi Rum, a scenic desert area of southern Jordan. Jacir and al-Sweilhiyeen, both from a Bedouin clan, acted in the film "Theeb" (Wolf), a coming-of-age drama set in 1916, that has emerged as the first Oscar contender of Jordans nascent film industry. (AP Photo/Raad Adayleh, File) FILE - In this Thursday, Jan. 7, 2016 file photo, George David, general manager of the Royal Film Commission, speaks during an interview with The Associated Press, in Amman, Jordan. Providing locations and crew for foreign films remains an important part of Jordan's film work, said David. "Theeb" (Wolf), set in 1916, a coming-of-age drama set among Bedouin tribesmen roaming the desert emerged as the first Oscar contender produced by Jordan's nascent film industry. (AP Photo/Raad Adayleh, File) FILE - In this Thursday, Jan. 7, 2016 file photo, George David, general manager of the Royal Film Commission speaks during an interview with The Associated Press in Amman, Jordan. Providing locations and crew for foreign films remains an important part of Jordan's film work, said David. "Theeb" (Wolf), set in 1916, a coming-of-age drama set among Bedouin tribesmen roaming the desert emerged as the first Oscar contender produced by Jordan's nascent film industry. (AP Photo/Raad Adayleh, File) Israel rights groups: Dozens of Palestinians detained abused JERUSALEM (AP) Dozens of Palestinian detainees at an Israeli detention facility have been subjected to mistreatment, and in some cases torture, two Israeli human rights groups alleged on Wednesday. The report was released at a time of heightened violence. In new bloodshed Wednesday, Israeli troops accidentally shot and killed a fellow soldier as they thwarted a Palestinian stabber in the West Bank, the military said. The report by the B'Tselem and HaMoked rights groups presented accounts by 116 Palestinian detainees on conditions at the Shikma interrogation facility, run by the Israeli Shin Bet internal security agency. It said detainees have been incarcerated in small, rank cells, often in isolation. Palestinian detainees told the Israeli rights groups that they were at times exposed to extreme heat or cold, bound to a chair and denied access to a shower for days or weeks. The detainees said they were shouted at and spat on, deprived of sleep and provided little, substandard food, the report found. "Conditions at the Shikma facility are an inherent part of interrogations there: they serve to weaken both mind and body, complementing the actual interrogation of detainees in the interrogation room," the report said. "The combination of conditions both in and outside the interrogation room constitutes abuse and inhuman, degrading treatment, at times even amounting to torture." Israeli agencies are bound by a Supreme Court's 1999 prohibition on torture and work under legal supervision. Far more serious abuses of detainees are rampant in other countries across the region. The report comes as Israel struggles to cope with months of near-daily Palestinian attacks on civilians and security forces. In Wednesday's incident, the army said a Palestinian assailant attempted to stab a soldier at the Gush Etzion junction, a spot near Jerusalem that has experienced numerous attacks in recent months. It said nearby soldiers opened fire, hitting the soldier and the alleged attacker. The soldier, identified as Capt. Eliav Gelman, later died of his wounds, while the assailant was wounded and taken to a hospital. Since September, a total of 28 people have been killed on the Israeli side in a series of Palestinian stabbings, shootings and car-ramming attacks, while at least 166 Palestinians have been killed, including 119 people said by Israel to be attackers. Israeli leaders have said the Palestinian attacks are fueled by incitement by Palestinian leaders and social media. The Palestinians say the violence is the result of nearly five decades of Israeli military rule, years of failed peace efforts and lack of hope among Palestinian youth. The rights groups' report was based on affidavits and personal accounts from Palestinians held for security reasons at the facility between August 2013 and March 2014. The prisoners interviewed spent a maximum of 58 days in detention. In their report, the groups said at least 14 of the Palestinian detainees endured torture during interrogations by Palestinian Authority security services before being arrested by Israeli security forces. Daniel Shenhar, a HaMoked lawyer, said the report shows interrogators have violated the Supreme Court ruling with the use of intentional sleep deprivation and prolonged stress positions. Polygamous sect expected to survive food stamp fraud charges SALT LAKE CITY (AP) The takedown of top leaders in a secretive polygamous group on the Utah-Arizona border in a food stamp fraud case is a major blow that will hurt in the short term. But former members and experts don't expect it to dismantle the sect. Mid-ranking leaders who have been closely involved in business and religious dealings will likely step up and fill the vacated roles, even it takes time to find their footing. Thomas Jeffs, the son of Lyle Jeffs, foreground, and Roy Jeffs, son of jailed polygamous leader Warren Jeffs, leave the federal courthouse Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016, in Salt Lake City. Lyle Jeffs and another polygamous sect leader in Utah are pleading not guilty to orchestrating what prosecutors call a wide-ranging food-stamp fraud scheme. The two men are former members of the sect. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) And imprisoned leader Warren Jeffs will likely spin the arrests by telling his flock that the Tuesday raids are more evidence that the government is an evil entity out to attack their way of life, former sect members say. It's a tactic that has helped the group known as the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints stay afloat since Jeffs was convicted in 2011 and sentenced to life in prison for sexually assaulting girls he considered brides. The sect is a radical offshoot of mainstream Mormonism, which disavowed polygamy more than 100 years ago. "Sometimes these things can backfire on you because it strengthens their devoutness and faithfulness because they can say to themselves: 'This just proves how much government hates us,'" said Amos Guiora, a University of Utah law professor who has studied the church. It's a deep-rooted disdain with roots in previous government raids, in 1953 on the Utah-Arizona line, and in 2008 at a ranch in Texas in what led to Jeffs' conviction. Eleven people now face food stamp fraud and money laundering charges. Food stamp debit cards were scanned, but shoppers got nothing in return, prosecutors say. Group leaders then funneled money to front companies. The volume of food stamp purchases was so large it rivaled stores the size of Wal-Mart and Costco, prosecutors say, with the total amount of money diverted and laundered estimated at $12 million. Devout followers will only know what leaders tell them about the arrests because of a standing rule not to watch TV, browse the internet or read newspapers, said Thomas Jeffs, a former member of the sect and son of the highest-ranking leader arrested: Lyle Jeffs, Warren Jeffs' brother. "They're most likely being told that the government drummed up some evidence to try and put them away and it's the fault of us apostates," said Thomas Jeffs, 28. He and his cousin Roy Jeffs, son of Warren Jeffs, were in the court gallery Wednesday in Salt Lake City as Lyle Jeffs pleaded not guilty to the charges, wearing a prison jumpsuit and looking somber. Roy Jeffs, who also left the sect, said his father will harken back to a prediction he made years ago when he said things will get so bad it will seem like the religion is crushed, calling that a prophecy. Outsiders have been predicting that sect leaders' power would crumble since Warren Jeffs was first arrested in 2006, but he and his loyal lieutenants still hold sway. After the Texas raid, that also sent Warren Jeffs' trusted deputies to prison, Lyle Jeffs eventually stepped into the power vacuum. In the years that followed, Lyle Jeffs relayed a series of bizarre edicts from his imprisoned brother that forbade children's toys, Internet access, new marriages and sexual relations between spouses without Warren Jeffs' permission. As the rules became more restrictive, the number of people who have left or are being kicked has swelled. That's given authorities a much larger pool of potential witnesses, opening up access to closely guarded secrets they're now sharing with police. That's bolstered a series of new actions from police and prosecutors, including an ongoing civil rights trial in Phoenix and child labor proceedings in Utah. Thomas Jeffs said he is among the group that has cooperated with investigators. "I told them exactly what they needed to do to put the church in a spiral," Thomas Jeffs said. "I'm hoping this will wake up some of my brothers and sisters." ___ Associated Press writer Lindsay Whitehurst contributed to this report. Roy Jeffs, son of jailed polygamous leader Warren Jeffs, talks with reporters outside the federal courthouse Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016, in Salt Lake City. Lyle Jeffs and another polygamous sect leader in Utah are pleading not guilty to orchestrating what prosecutors call a wide-ranging food-stamp fraud scheme. Roy Jeffs is former member of the sect. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) This photo provided by Andrew Chatwin shows law enforcement officers conducting a search at Reliance Electric in Hildale, Utah, Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016. Police are searching businesses in a polygamous town on the Utah-Arizona border. The U.S. Attorney's Office in Utah said in statement Tuesday that federal, state and local authorities are carrying out actions approved by a court. Officials didn't elaborate, saying court documents are sealed. (Andrew Chatwin via AP) This Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016 booking photo released by the Davis County, Utah Jail shows Lyle Jeffs. On Tuesday, several top leaders from Warren Jeffs' polygamous sect, including Lyle Jeffs, were arrested on federal accusations of food stamp fraud and money laundering marking one of the biggest blows to the group in years. (Davis County Jail via AP) This photo provided by Andrew Chatwin shows law enforcement officers, left, conducting a search at Reliance Electric in Hildale, Utah, Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016. Police are searching businesses in a polygamous town on the Utah-Arizona border. The U.S. Attorney's Office in Utah said in statement Tuesday that federal, state and local authorities are carrying out actions approved by a court. Officials didn't elaborate, saying court documents are sealed. (Andrew Chatwin via AP) This photo provided by Andrew Chatwin shows law enforcement officers conducting a search at the Wedgewood Development construction company in Hildale, Utah on Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016. Police are searching businesses in the polygamous town on the Utah-Arizona border. The U.S. Attorney's Office in Utah said in statement Tuesday that federal, state and local authorities are carrying out actions approved by a court. Officials didn't elaborate, saying court documents are sealed. (Andrew Chatwin via AP) FILE - In this Jan. 21, 2015 file photo, Lyle Jeffs leaves the federal courthouse in Salt Lake City. On Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016, several top leaders from Warren Jeffs' polygamous sect, including Lyle Jeffs, were arrested on federal accusations of food stamp fraud and money laundering marking one of the biggest blows to the group in years. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer, File) This July 8, 2015, aerial photo shows a view of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints compound near Pringle, S.D. Several top leaders from Warren Jeffs' polygamous sect were arrested Tuesday on federal accusations of food stamp fraud and money laundering marking one of the biggest blows to the group in years. Over 10 people were charged in the scheme, including Lyle Jeffs and Seth Jeffs. Seth Jeffs leads a branch of the group in South Dakota. (Chris Huber/Rapid City Journal via AP) TV OUT; MANDATORY CREDIT Roy Jeffs, son of jailed polygamous leader Warren Jeffs, leaves the federal courthouse Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016, in Salt Lake City. Lyle Jeffs and another polygamous sect leader in Utah are pleading not guilty to orchestrating what prosecutors call a wide-ranging food-stamp fraud scheme. Roy Jeffs is former member of the sect. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) Prosecutor Robert Lund speaks with the media outside the federal courthouse Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016, in Salt Lake City. Lyle Jeffs and another polygamous sect leader in Utah are pleading not guilty to orchestrating what prosecutors call a wide-ranging food-stamp fraud scheme. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) Obama urges quick high court confirmation; GOP says no votes WASHINGTON (AP) President Barack Obama urged the Republican-run Senate on Wednesday to fulfill its "constitutional responsibility" and consider his Supreme Court nominee, pushing back on GOP leaders who insist there will be no hearing or vote when he names a successor to the late Justice Antonin Scalia. Obama, in a post on the legal blog SCOTUSblog, offered his most expansive description of the qualities he is seeking in a nominee: a sterling record, a deep respect for the judiciary's role and an understanding of how the law affects real people. He emphasized his duty under the Constitution to select justices for the high court, a message aimed squarely at Senate Republicans. "I hope they'll move quickly to debate and then confirm this nominee so that the Court can continue to serve the American people at full strength," Obama said. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Ky., center, joined by, from second for left are, Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., and Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn of Texas, speaks with reporters on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016, following a closed-door policy meeting. Senate Republicans, most vocally McConnell, are facing a high-stakes political showdown with President Barack Obama sparked by the recent death of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia. Republicans controlling the Senate which must confirm any Obama appointee before the individual is seated on the court say that the decision is too important to be determined by a lame-duck president. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) Obama's rebuttal, headlined "A responsibility I take seriously," came a day after Senate Republicans delivered an extraordinary election-year rebuff by insisting that voters November's election and the next president hold the authority to replace Scalia. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said Tuesday that his 54-member GOP caucus was united against taking any step in the Senate's "advise and consent" process. The Judiciary Committee will not hold confirmation hearings for the nominee. The committee and the full Senate will not vote. A few Republicans, including McConnell, said they would not even meet with the nominee when that person makes introductions on Capitol Hill. "Why would I? We've made the decision," said Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, a committee member. In a statement, Democratic presidential contender Hillary Clinton said the Republicans' refusal to consider any appointee is "shameful and indefensible." She said it is offensive to Obama and the American people. "It's time for the Senate to put statesmanship over partisanship, and live up to our constitutional principles," Clinton said. In his post Wednesday, Obama tried to quell conservative concerns that he would choose an unabashedly liberal who would upend the court's balance. He said he would pick someone who recognized the court's limits and knows that a judge's job is to interpret law, not make it. "I seek judges who approach decisions without any particular ideology or agenda, but rather a commitment to impartial justice, a respect for precedent, and a determination to faithfully apply the law to the facts at hand," Obama said. The president also said the law isn't clear in all cases that reach the high court. He said he was looking for someone whose "life experience" outside the court would allow that person to understand how decisions affect "the daily reality of people's lives in a big, complicated democracy." "There will be cases in which a judge's analysis necessarily will be shaped by his or her own perspective, ethics, and judgment," he wrote. Republicans are adamant they will not budge. McConnell won unanimous public backing from the 11 Republicans on the committee, and he told reporters, "In short, there will not be action taken." Still, Obama said he would announce a nominee in the next few weeks. Filling the vacancy left by Scalia's unexpected death on Feb. 13 is crucial because the Supreme Court now has a 4-4 ideological split between justices who are usually conservative and its liberal wing. The battle has invigorated both sides' interest groups and voters who focus on abortion, immigration and other issues before the court. "He hasn't seen the pressure that's going to build," Sen. Democratic leader Harry Reid of Nevada said when asked if he thinks McConnell might relent. "It's going to build in all facets of the political constituency and the country." After meeting privately with GOP senators for the first time since Scalia's death, McConnell and other leaders said rank-and-file Republicans were overwhelmingly behind the decision to quickly halt the nomination process. "Why even put that ball on the field?" Sen. Pat Roberts, R-Kan., said of hearings. "All you're going to do is fumble it. Let the people decide." Moderate Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Sen. Mark Kirk, R-Ill., who faces a tough re-election race this fall, are among the few who've voiced support for at least holding hearings on an Obama nominee. Democrats are hoping that other Republican senators facing re-election in states Obama won twice New Hampshire, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin will relent over time or face retribution from voters. Since the Senate started routinely referring presidential nominations to committees for action in 1955, every Supreme Court nominee not later withdrawn has received a Judiciary Committee hearing, according to the Senate Historical Office. In remarks Tuesday at Georgetown University law school, Justice Samuel Alito sounded resigned to spending the rest of this year in a court whose members are locked in a 4-4 tie. "We will deal with it," Alito answered when asked about Republicans' resolve to oppose anyone Obama nominates. ___ Associated Press writers Alan Fram, Andrew Taylor and Mark Sherman contributed to this report. ___ Follow Mary Clare Jalonick on Twitter at http://twitter.com/mcjalonick Sheriff was told he had no authority in Scalia death DALLAS (AP) A sheriff's report offers a detailed account of the hours after Antonin Scalia's body was found in Texas, describing how the owner of the luxury resort where the Supreme Court justice died told the sheriff he had no authority in the matter. The report also includes a reference to a pillow that spawned conspiracy theories. A look at the sheriff's account: ___ RELUCTANCE TO USE SCALIA'S NAME FILE - In this Oct. 18, 2011 file photo, U.S. Supreme Court justice Antonin Scalia looks into the balcony before addressing the Chicago-Kent College Law justice in Chicago. A letter from the Supreme Court's doctor says Scalia suffered from coronary artery disease, obesity and diabetes, among other ailments that probably contributed to the justice's sudden death. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast, File) When the body of the 79-year-old Scalia was found Feb. 13 in his bed at the Cibolo Creek Ranch, ranch owner John Poindexter was initially vague when reporting the death to authorities, the report said. Presidio County Sheriff Danny Dominguez complained that he was delayed in responding because Poindexter would not reveal during a phone call who had died. "I then advised Poindexter that a death reported in Presidio County was under my jurisdiction and that it should be reported to my office," Dominguez wrote. "He then stated to me that this death was way beyond my authority and that it should go to the Feds." After a series of phone calls, Dominguez met U.S. marshals at the ranch near Marfa, about 190 miles southeast of El Paso, where they were taken to Scalia's room. They found the jurist face-up in his bed, with sheets pulled to his chin and his hands at his side. ___ A SHIFTING PILLOW Scalia was lying against three pillows stacked to elevate his head, and Dominguez said he "appeared to have fallen asleep in that position, indicating he died in that position as well." At some point, the top pillow shifted under the weight of Scalia's head, causing part of it to slide down and cover his eyes, Dominguez wrote in the report, which was first obtained by The Washington Post. "The position of the pillow did not seem to have inhibited Scalia's breathing," the sheriff said. "The sheets and pillows that were being used by Scalia were still in the creased position from that day's room service, indicating that there was no struggle involved." ___ CONSPIRACY THEORIES BEGIN Poindexter told the San Antonio Express-News that Scalia was found in his bed with "a pillow over his head," a comment that seems to have generated theories that Scalia was attacked and possibly suffocated. The theories were abetted by leading Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump. "They say they found the pillow on his face, which is a pretty unusual place to find a pillow," Trump told a talk radio host Feb. 15. Speculation was also fanned by the decisions not to do an autopsy the Scalia family asked that one not be performed in order to speed the body's return to Virginia and to conduct a death inquiry over the phone. The inquiry was done by county Judge Cinderela Guevara, the county's top administrator. Texas officials have said certifying a death by phone is not typical but occasionally occurs in rural areas when an official is unable to travel a long distance and must rely on investigators at the scene. ___ A NEAT ROOM The sheriff's report reveals an orderly bedroom at the ranch, with Scalia's clothes neatly folded in his suitcase, other clothing hanging in the closet and his watch, keys and a pen laid out on a work table. Next to his bed was a "breathing apparatus," the sheriff said, with the hose for the machine resting on the edge of the bed. It was not clear why Scalia needed the machine, but he had a series of health ailments that included sleep apnea. Scalia had more than a half-dozen illnesses and complications, according to a letter from Rear Adm. Brian P. Monahan, the attending physician for members of Congress and the Supreme Court, to Guevara, who determined that the jurist died of natural causes. Scalia's ailments included coronary artery disease, diabetes, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and obesity. ___ TRAVELING WITH A FRIEND Poindexter has previously said Scalia traveled to the ranch with a friend but declined to name the companion. Dominguez's report identifies him as Allen Foster. The report provides no details on Foster's background, but C. Allen Foster is a Washington, D.C., lawyer who has previously represented clients in cases before the Supreme Court. When contacted Wednesday at his law firm, a secretary said he was traveling out of the country and unavailable until his return on Thursday. He did not respond to an email seeking comment. In 1993, Foster argued a case before the Supreme Court in which he represented Hispanic Republicans challenging Florida's state redistricting plan. According to his firm's website, Foster has served as special litigation counsel to the Republican Party. ___ Associated Press Writer Sam Hananel in Washington contributed to this report. Fire damage poses challenge as police probe 5 Phoenix deaths PHOENIX (AP) Investigators were back at a burned Phoenix home Wednesday to try to uncover evidence from the charred debris and reconstruct what happened when a 26-year-old gunman killed four family members, torched the house and got shot by authorities. Homicide detectives face toppled walls and other damage that will make it difficult to collect shell casings and trace the path of bullets, police Sgt. Trent Crump said. "The scene is a mess," he said. This image made from video provided by KNXV ABC-15 Arizona shows firefighters atop a house engulfed in flames in Phoenix on Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016. Police and firefighters braved bullets and flames as they responded to the fatal shooting and house fire. (KNXV ABC-15.com via AP) Alex Arthur Buckner killed his parents and two younger sisters Tuesday, then shot at officers who tried to rescue the victims, authorities said. His 18-year-old sister called 911 shortly before 5 a.m., pleading for help and saying her brother had shot her. The first officers on scene ran into the burning house because they felt they had to act quickly, but they faced gunfire and smoke and were able to pull out only two victims. A tactical team stormed in nearly an hour later when the shots stopped, killing Buckner as he raised his weapon. He killed his father, Vic Buckner, 50, mother Kimberly Buckner, 49, and sisters Kaitlin Buckner, 18, and Emma, 6. All the victims had gunshot wounds, but a medical examiner will determine how they died. Police said they had never been called to the house before Tuesday. A next-door neighbor said the family had lived in the home for about two years after moving from Oklahoma. James Graham said he was not close to the Buckners, but they chatted occasionally and never mentioned any problems. Aside from what can be found in the house, investigators will process statements from officers, firefighters and neighbors as well as 911 calls from victims, Crump said. It likely will be weeks before any excerpts from the 911 calls are released. Investigators collected evidence until late Tuesday and returned Wednesday. Crump didn't know how long the inquiry would take. This image made from video provided by KNXV ABC-15 Arizona shows firefighters atop a house engulfed in flames in Phoenix on Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016. Police and firefighters braved bullets and flames as they responded to the fatal shooting and house fire. (KNXV ABC-15.com via AP) TV OUT Police officer Steve Blasko walks near police tape at the scene of a fatal house fire and shooting Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016, in Phoenix. Officers dodged bullets fired by the shooter and donned breathing gear to enter the burning home to help the victims. (AP Photo/Morry Gash) A police officer puts up some tape at the scene of a fatal house fire and shooting Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016, in Phoenix. Officers dodged bullets fired by the shooter and donned breathing gear to enter the burning home to help the victims. (AP Photo/Morry Gash) Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton walks through the scene of a house fire and shooting, Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016, in Phoenix, Ariz. Phoenix police and firefighters braved bullets and flames as they responded to a shooting and house fire Tuesday, authorities said. Stanton called it "unspeakable violence" but that the first responders' heroism gave residents reasons to take heart. (Danny Miller/The Arizona Republic via AP) MARICOPA COUNTY OUT; MAGS OUT; NO SALES; MANDATORY CREDIT Officers investigate the scene of a fatal house fire and shooting Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016, in Phoenix. Officers dodged bullets fired by the shooter and donned breathing gear to enter the burning home to help the victims. (AP Photo/Morry Gash) Phoenix police gather at scene of a house fire and shooting Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016, in Phoenix, Ariz. Phoenix police and firefighters braved bullets and flames as they responded to a shooting and house fire Tuesday, authorities said. (Danny Miller/The Arizona Republic via AP) MARICOPA COUNTY OUT; MAGS OUT; NO SALES; MANDATORY CREDIT Apple: Congress, not courts, must decide WASHINGTON (AP) Apple Inc. will tell a federal judge this week in legal papers that its fight with the FBI over accessing a locked and encrypted iPhone should be kicked to Congress, rather than decided by courts, The Associated Press has learned. Apple will also argue that the Obama administration's request to help it hack into an iPhone in the federal investigation of the San Bernardino attack is improper under an 18th century law, the 1789 All Writs Act, which has been used to compel companies to provide assistance to law enforcement. A lead attorney for Apple, Theodore J. Boutrous Jr., previewed for the AP some of the company's upcoming arguments in the case. Apple's chief executive, Tim Cook, has also hinted at the company's courtroom strategy. An iPhone is seen in Washington, Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2016. The San Bernardino County-owned iPhone at the center of an unfolding high-profile legal battle between Apple Inc. and the U.S. government lacked a device management feature bought by the county that, if installed, would have allowed investigators easy and immediate access. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster) Apple's effort would move the contentious policy debate between digital privacy rights and national security interests to Congress, where Apple one of the world's most respected technology companies wields considerably more influence. Apple spent nearly $5 million lobbying Congress last year, mostly on tax and copyright issues. Key lawmakers have been openly divided about whether the government's demands in the case go too far. Magistrate Judge Sheri Pym in California ordered Apple last week to create specialized software to help the FBI hack into a locked, county-issued iPhone used by a gunman in the mass shootings last December in San Bernardino, California. Syed Farook and his wife, Tashfeen Malik, killed 14 people at an office holiday party in an attack at least partly inspired by the Islamic State group. "The government is really seeking to push the courts to do what they haven't been able to persuade Congress to do," Boutrous said in an AP interview. "That's to give it more broad, sweeping authority to help the Department of Justice hack into devices, to have a backdoor into devices, and the law simply does not provide that authority." The White House spokesman, Josh Earnest, this week disputed that Congress should settle the issue and called the government's request narrow. Earnest said the magistrate judge "came down in favor of our law enforcement" after evaluating arguments by Apple and the FBI. Apple hasn't yet made any filings in the case because the Justice Department asked the magistrate to rule before Apple had an opportunity to object. "Sending complicated things to Congress is often not the surest way to get a quick answer," Earnest said. "In fact, even asking some of the most basic questions of Congress sometimes does not ensure a quick answer." Apple intends to argue that the 1789 law has never been used to compel a company to write software to help the government. Michael Zweiback, the former chief of the cybercrimes section of the U.S. Attorney's Office in Los Angeles, said it was highly unusual for the U.S. to ask Apple to give the FBI specialized software that would weaken the digital locks on the iPhone. "There's a significant legal question as to whether the All Writs Act can be used to order a company to create something that may not presently exist," Zweiback said. He said as a former prosecutor he was sympathetic to the government's case, but he described Apple's arguments as strong and said the issue has broad implications. "We are not the only ones who are asking for encryption keys," he said. "The Chinese government has made similar demands upon them, the European Union has made similar demands upon them, so the implications are really not even national. They're international in scope." Another expert, Mark Bartholomew, a professor specializing in cyberlaw at the University at Buffalo in New York, said Apple may have a compelling case arguing that it would be unfair to force it to make its devices less secure, though it's not clear whether courts would agree that Congress should decide the matter. "When you're requiring a private entity not just to unlock something, or not just to show you something, but to actually change their design then you start getting into different grounds," Bartholomew said. "It makes the stakes higher. It makes us, I think, more sympathetic to what Apple is arguing for. It seems more violative of Apple's independence." The U.S. has used the All Writs Act at least three times most recently in 1980 to compel a phone company to provide a list of dialed numbers despite the company's initial refusal to do so. But in those cases the technology and tools already existed, said Jennifer Granick, an attorney and director of civil liberties and the Stanford Center for Internet and Society. "This is a terrorism investigation that's solved. We know who did it," Granick said. "What happens so often is we do something that's justified for terrorism, but it's going to get used in regular, run-of-the-mill cases." ___ Associated Press writers Eric Tucker in Washington and Larry Neumeister in New York contributed to this report. ___ Follow Tami Abdollah on Twitter at https://twitter.com/latams This undated photo provided by George Velasco shows his niece, Yvette Velasco, one of the victims of the Dec. 2, 2015 mass shooting at a social service facility in San Bernardino, Calif. On Monday, Feb. 22, 2016, a lawyer said some victims and their families, including George Velasco, will file documents in support of a U.S. magistrate judge's order that Apple Inc. must help the FBI hack into a locked iPhone as part of the terrorism investigation. (Courtesy of George Velasco via AP) FILE - In a Monday, Dec. 21, 2015 file photo, FBI Director James Comey attends the 27th Annual Remembrance Ceremony for the victims of Pan Am Flight 103, at Arlington National Cemetery, in Arlington, Va. Comey said in a message posed Sunday, Feb. 21, 2016, on the Lawfare blog that the the agency owes it to the victims of the San Bernardino terror attacks to try to gain access to a cellphone used by one of the gunmen. Comey said the court case "isn't about trying to set a precedent" but is instead about doing justice for the victims. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File) Austria, Balkan nations, want full stop to migrant influx VIENNA (AP) Overwhelmed by a wave of refugees and what they call indecision in the European Union, Austria and its southern neighbors along the Balkan migrant route agreed to tighter border controls at a meeting Wednesday and warned that sooner or later they will have to shut their doors entirely. Greece, the first point of landing for most of the migrants arriving by boat from Turkey, was not invited to the meeting and responded angrily by threatening to block decisions at a forthcoming EU migration summit if sharing of the refugee burden is not made obligatory for member states. The EU has set up a scheme to share 160,000 migrants arriving in Greece and Italy. Even that would be only a fraction of the total numbers, but so far, barely 600 people have been relocated, and only some EU partners have offered places for them - fewer than 5,000 spots in all. An Afghan woman holding her son reacts as they arrive with other refugees and migrants from the Turkish coast to Mytilene, Lesbos island, Greece, on Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. The International Organization for Migration said more than 102,500 people had crossed into Greece since Jan. 1 and another 7,500 had streamed into Italy numbers that weren't reached last year until June. (AP Photo/Manu Brabo) Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said that from now on Greece "will not assent to agreements" unless all its partners in the EU are forced to participate proportionately in the relocation and resettlement of refugees. A senior government official, who spoke on customary condition of anonymity, clarified that Tsipras was specifically referring to a March 7 summit on immigration. Tsipras lashed out at EU member states that "not only erect fences on their borders but at the same time do not accept to take in a single refugee." Austria has recently capped the number of asylum-seekers it will accept daily at its borders to 80, and limited the number of refugees it will let pass through the country. That has led to more border restrictions being introduced further south, hurting countries along the route, including Greece. Playing off warnings that the restrictions will lead to disastrous accumulations of refugees on borders along the route, Austrian Interior Minister Johanna Mikl-Leitner called for "a chain reaction of reason." "We need measures that lead to a ... a domino effect. We must reduce the flow of migrants now," she said. "Because the refugee question can become a question of survival for the European Union." At the meeting in Vienna Wednesday, interior and foreign ministers from EU members Austria, Slovenia, Croatia and Bulgaria, as well as Albania, Bosnia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia issued a declaration that struck the same tone. It cited "limited resources and reception capacities, potential consequences for internal security and social cohesion as well as challenges with regard to integration." "It is not possible to process unlimited numbers of migrants and applicants for asylum," it said, suggesting that a full stop in the future was inevitable. Noting that the right to asylum does not include choosing "a country of preference," Wednesday's declaration called for common standards of registration and entry criteria for those with realistic chances for asylum. "The migration flow along the Western Balkans route needs to be substantially reduced," said the 19-point document. It declared that all nations at the conference will refuse entry to all "without travel documents, with forged or falsified documents or migrants making wrongful statements about their nationality or identity." It urged all EU nations that have signed on to the Schengen agreement on open borders to refuse entry both to those who do not satisfy the entry conditions and to those who do but do not use the opportunity to apply for asylum. Athens objects to what it sees as Austrian-led attempts to leave it to handle the burden of those arriving alone. "Our country's non-invitation to this meeting is perceived as a non-friendly act, as it creates the impression that some, in our absence, want to initiate decisions that affect us directly," Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias said. "(This is) yet another extra-institutional initiative that violates the letter and the spirit of the treaties of the European Union and international law on refugees." But Austrian Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz told reporters that a meeting of EU foreign ministers three weeks ago showed that the Greeks were "not in the slightest ready to reduce the (refugee) influx." Instead, he said, they "are only interested in transporting the refugees as fast as possible to central Europe." The EU says Austrian caps on refugee numbers are illegal, while Germany - the economic powerhouse of the 28-nation EU and the destination for many of the people crossing Europe - is sending conflicting signals on the subject. Indirectly criticizing German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Mikl-Leitner, said that on the one hand German politicians "support the policy of the open door, while on the other they demand from Austria to stop all who want to go to Germany." She said Austria would not hesitate to impose its cap of 37,500 asylum-seekers this year. While Austria is still in favor of a common EU solution to the migrant problem, the EU needs interim short-term "national measures" to staunch the flow, said Mikl-Leitner. Austria has been dealing with more than 90,000 applications for asylum since the start of the influx of people last year - the second highest number in the EU proportionate to the country's population. Its immigration problems are minor, however, compared to those of Greece, which has seen more than 102,500 people cross the sea to its islands so far this year. More than 1 million people reached Europe last year - over 80 percent of them landing in Greece first. As a result of the stricter transit rules introduced this week, Greek migration minister Ioannis Mouzalas said he expects the number of stranded immigrants in his country to reach "tens of thousands." Thousands of people have been waiting at the Idomeni area of the border with Macedonia to cross northwards. Macedonian authorities have been allowing only Syrians and Iraqis to cross, and those at a very slow pace. But the influx of people reaching eastern Aegean Greek islands from the Turkish mainland continues unabated. In central Athens, several hundred Afghan migrants, who have been barred from crossing into Macedonia, camped out in an inner city square, lying on blankets or pieces of cardboard. "I got here yesterday, but we haven't tried to go to the border," said Aman Golestani, a 22-year-old psychology student. "I don't know what I'll do now ... We just hope the border will open." Golestani, wearing a tracksuit top of the German soccer champions Bayern Munich, said he was afraid to return home. "The Taliban are killing people like us, young people who are trying to get an education," he said. ___ Elena Becatoros, Derek Gatopoulos and Nicholas Paphitis in Athens, Pablo Gorondi in Budapest and AP video journalist Philipp Jenne in Vienna contributed. Refugees and migrants are helped by volunteers as they arrive on a dinghy from the Turkish coast to Mytilene, Lesbos island, Greece, on Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. The International Organization for Migration said more than 102,500 people had crossed into Greece since Jan. 1 and another 7,500 had streamed into Italy numbers that weren't reached last year until June. (AP Photo/Manu Brabo) Refugees with a food package walk in the rain through the transit center for refugees near the northern Macedonian village of Tabanovce, as all are waiting for permission to cross the border into Serbia, Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. Hundreds of refugees and migrants from Afghanistan and other nations remain stranded on borders of Macedonia with Serbia, unable to cross, and some of them forced backward toward Greece. (AP Photo/Boris Grdanoski) A refugee with balaclava hat walks in the rain through the transit center for refugees near the northern Macedonian village of Tabanovce, while waiting for permission to cross the border into Serbia, Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. Hundreds of refugees and migrants from Afghanistan and other nations remain stranded on borders of Macedonia with Serbia, unable to cross, and some of them forced backward toward Greece. (AP Photo/Boris Grdanoski) Austrian Interior Minister Johanna Mikl-Leitner and Austrian Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz, from left, speak to press while waiting for the participants of the western Balkans conference in Vienna, Austria, Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. (AP Photo/Ronald Zak) A Pakistani couple hug after their arrival with other refugees and migrants from the Turkish coast to Mytilene, Lesbos island, Greece, on Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. The International Organization for Migration said more than 102,500 people had crossed into Greece since Jan. 1 and another 7,500 had streamed into Italy numbers that weren't reached last year until June. (AP Photo/Manu Brabo) A volunteer doctor helps an Afghan woman after her arrival on a dinghy with other refugees and migrants from the Turkish coast to Mytilene, Lesbos island, Greece, on Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. The International Organization for Migration said more than 102,500 people had crossed into Greece since Jan. 1 and another 7,500 had streamed into Italy numbers that weren't reached last year until June. (AP Photo/Manu Brabo) An Afghan man sits on the floor looking at his mobile phone, while others sleep on the floor and on benches in a tent at the transit center for refugees near the northern Macedonian village of Tabanovce, as all are waiting for permission to cross the border into Serbia, Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. Hundreds of migrants from Afghanistan and other nations remain stranded on borders of Macedonia with Serbia, unable to cross, and some of them forced backward toward Greece. (AP Photo/Boris Grdanoski) Austrian Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz, right, and Austrian Interior Minister Johanna Mikl-Leitner, center, welcomes Minister of Security of Bosnia and Herzegovina Dragan Mektic, left, before the start of the western Balkans conference in Vienna, Austria, Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. (AP Photo/Ronald Zak) A woman reacts after her arrival on a dinghy with other refugees and migrants from the Turkish coast to Mytilene, Lesbos island, Greece, on Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. The International Organization for Migration said more than 102,500 people had crossed into Greece since Jan. 1 and another 7,500 had streamed into Italy numbers that weren't reached last year until June. (AP Photo/Manu Brabo) A refugee walks in the rain carrying bags of food, between the tents, at the transit center for refugees near the northern Macedonian village of Tabanovce, while waiting with other refugees for a permission to cross the border into Serbia, Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. Hundreds of refugees and migrants from Afghanistan and other nations remain stranded on borders of Macedonia with Serbia, unable to cross, and some of them forced backward toward Greece. (AP Photo/Boris Grdanoski) A refugee boy looks out of a window of a tent covered in raindrops, at the transit center for refugees near the northern Macedonian village of Tabanovce, while he waits with his family for permission to cross the border into Serbia, Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. Hundreds of migrants from Afghanistan and other nations remain stranded on borders of Macedonia with Serbia, unable to cross, and some of them forced backward toward Greece. (AP Photo/Boris Grdanoski) An Afghan man sits on a bench in a tent at the transit center for refugees near the northern Macedonian village of Tabanovce, while waiting for permission to cross the border into Serbia, Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. Hundreds of migrants from Afghanistan and other nations remain stranded on borders of Macedonia with Serbia, unable to cross, and some of them forced backward toward Greece. (AP Photo/Boris Grdanoski) Refugees sleep on benches and tables in a dining tent at the transit center for refugees near the northern Macedonian village of Tabanovce, while waiting for permission to cross the border into Serbia, Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. Hundreds of migrants from Afghanistan and other nations remain stranded on borders of Macedonia with Serbia, unable to cross, and some of them forced backward toward Greece. (AP Photo/Boris Grdanoski) Refugees stand in queue to receive food distributed by a non-governmental organization at a refugee camp at the Greek-Macedonian border near the northern Greek village of Idomeni , Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. The Greek interior ministry said about 12,000 people have been stranded in Greece since neighbor Macedonia began turning Afghan immigrants away at the border and slowing the number of crossings for others heading to central and northern Europe. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris) Clothes are hanged on a fence by refugees as children play soccer while they wait to cross the border from the northern Greek village of Idomeni to southern Macedonia, Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. The Greek interior ministry said about 12,000 people have been stranded in Greece since neighbor Macedonia began turning Afghan immigrants away at the border and slowing the number of crossings for others heading to central and northern Europe. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris) Refugees stand in queue to receive food distributed by a non-governmental organization at a refugee camp at the Greek-Macedonian border near the northern Greek village of Idomeni , Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. The Greek interior ministry said about 12,000 people have been stranded in Greece since neighbor Macedonia began turning Afghan immigrants away at the border and slowing the number of crossings for others heading to central and northern Europe. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris) A Syrian child stands outside a tent at a refugee camp at the Greek-Macedonian border near the northern Greek village of Idomeni, Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. The Greek interior ministry said about 12,000 people have been stranded in Greece since neighbor Macedonia began turning Afghan immigrants away at the border and slowing the number of crossings for others heading to central and northern Europe. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris) Refugees sleep around fire near a refugee camp at the Greek-Macedonian border near the northern Greek village of Idomeni, Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. The Greek interior ministry said about 12,000 people have been stranded in Greece since neighbor Macedonia began turning Afghan immigrants away at the border and slowing the number of crossings for others heading to central and northern Europe. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris) Austrian Interior Minister Johanna Mikl-Leitner informs the press during the western Balkans conference in Vienna, Austria, Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. Austria wants not only to crimp the influx of migrants pouring into Europe but to fully stop it, its interior minister declared Wednesday as she convened a meeting of ministers from Western Balkan nations. Greece which was not invited blasted the gathering as "hostile." (AP Photo/Ronald Zak) A general view shows participants of the western Balkans conference in Vienna, Austria, Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. (AP Photo/Ronald Zak) Austrian Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz informs the press during the western Balkans conference in Vienna, Austria, Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. Austria wants not only to crimp the influx of migrants pouring into Europe but to fully stop it, its interior minister declared Wednesday as she convened a meeting of ministers from Western Balkan nations. Greece which was not invited blasted the gathering as "hostile." Interior Minister Johanna Mikl-Leitner's comments reflect Austria's defiance of EU criticism and concern about the thousands of asylum-seekers that have pushed daily against the country's southern border. (AP Photo/Ronald Zak) Greece's Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, left, welcomes United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi before their meeting at Maximos Mansion in Athens, Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. The wave of asylum-seekers has grown in pace even compared to last year's massive influx of more than 1 million people. The International Organization for Migration said more than 102,500 people had crossed into Greece since Jan. 1 and another 7,500 had streamed into Italy numbers that weren't reached last year until June. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis) Greece's Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, left, listens to United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi during their meeting at Maximos Mansion in Athens, Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. The wave of asylum-seekers has grown in pace even compared to last year's massive influx of more than 1 million people. The International Organization for Migration said more than 102,500 people had crossed into Greece since Jan. 1 and another 7,500 had streamed into Italy numbers that weren't reached last year until June. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis) Kosovo government: 'anarchists' burnt minister's car PRISTINA, Kosovo (AP) Kosovo's government is blaming what it calls "paramilitary anarchists" for setting fire to a car owned by a minister's family as part of a series of anti-government activities by the opposition. The government issued a statement Wednesday denouncing what it called "an unprecedented criminal attack ... aiming at creating an atmosphere of violence and fear." The car, which was burned overnight in Pristina, belonged to Agriculture Minister Memli Krasniqi's spouse. Later Wednesday, another car belonging to a public official was also burnt in Pristina. A child plays inside a tent set up by Kosovo opposition supporters in front of the main governing building in Kosovo's capital Pristina on Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016, asking for the governments resignation and fresh elections following their political confrontation on deals with Serbia and Montenegro. (AP Photo/Visar Kryeziu) The opposition has disrupted Parliament since September with tear gas, pepper spray, whistles and water bottles to reject a deal between Kosovo and Serbia, reached last year, which gives more powers to ethnic Serbs in Kosovo. In December, the Constitutional Court ruled that the agreement needed to be amended to conform to the constitution. The opposition also rejects a border demarcation pact with Montenegro. Since Tuesday, it has pitched tents in downtown Pristina calling for the government's resignation and fresh elections, or they won't move from the place. The government accuses the opposition of trying to take power through violence. The Parliament held a session Wednesday without opposition lawmakers, most of whom were suspended after violence in the previous session. The opposition said they didn't go because they didn't want to be confronted by police. The opposition is also protesting against Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Hashim Thaci of the Democratic Party of Kosovo, the only declared candidate for the post of president so far. The Latest: WFP food airdrop faced difficulties BEIRUT (AP) The Latest on the conflict in Syria and the provisional cease-fire proposed by the U.S. and Russia (all times local): 0:33 a.m. The World Food Program says its first high-altitude airdrop over the Syrian city of Deir el-Zour, which is under siege from the radical Islamic State group, may have been off-target. Samantha Power, the United States Ambassador to the United Nations, departs a Security Council meeting on the Middle East, Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016, at UN headquarters. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan) WFP spokeswoman Bettina Luescher said in an email late Wednesday that 21 metric tons of "assistance" were dropped, but that the overall operation had faced "technical difficulties." It was not immediately clear if that meant that the airdrop had missed its target, but Luescher said: "High altitude drops are extremely challenging to carry out and take more than one trial to develop full accuracy." ___ 8:10 p.m. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and his Russian counterpart, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, have held a telephone conversation to discuss issues connected with the proposed upcoming cease-fire in Syria. A Russian Foreign Ministry statement on Wednesday said the two top diplomats "continued discussion of the modalities of this process, demanding close coordination of efforts between our countries, including in the military sphere." The statement says the two stressed the importance of "renewing the intra-Syrian talks about" the situation in the war-ravaged country and ways to resolve five years of violence that has killed more than 250,000 people and displaced another 11 million from their homes. ___ 7:45 p.m. Russia's deputy foreign minister says the United States and Russia are discussing a new U.N. resolution that would strongly back the cessation of hostilities in Syria. The truce, proposed by Russia and U.S. is to go into effect at midnight local time on Friday. Gennady Gatilov told reporters on Wednesday that "it would be good" if Moscow and Washington agreed on the text of the Russian-proposed resolution by Thursday. That would enable the U.N. Security Council to vote on the resolution on Friday. U.S. officials point out that a cessation of hostilities is already enshrined in a U.N. resolution adopted unanimously in December and endorsing a peace process for Syria. However, they say they are not necessarily opposed to another one. A new resolution would also reportedly ask the 18 key nations on both sides of the five-year-old Syrian conflict that agreed on the peace process to support implementation of the new cessation of hostilities. Edith M. Lederer at the United Nations. ___ 6.40 p.m. Syria's U.N. ambassador says his government is working with close ally Russia to identify the groups and areas to be covered by the cessation of hostilities that is scheduled to take effect at midnight local time on Friday. Bashar Ja'afari told the U.N. Security Council on Wednesday it is very important to "control the boundaries," especially the Syria-Turkish border. Ja'afari, who is the chief Syrian government negotiator at peace talks, said this is essential to halt support by some countries for "terrorist organizations" that are escalating the conflict and undermining a political solution. Syria's government considers all armed opposition groups as "terrorists." The proposed truce will not include the Islamic State group or the Nusra Front, but the 18 nations that have agreed on a roadmap to peace in Syria have not yet agreed on a list of other "terrorist organizations" that will also continue to be targeted. ___ 6.30 p.m. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov have held a telephone conversation to discuss issues connected with the proposed Syrian cease-fire. A Russian Foreign Ministry statement on Wednesday said the two top diplomats "continued discussion of the modalities of this process, demanding close coordination of efforts between our countries, including in the military sphere. The task of renewing the intra-Syrian talks about political regulation of the situation was considered, as well as questions of joint work in the framework of the International Syria Support Group and the UN Security Council." ___ 6: 10 p.m. The U.N. humanitarian chief says a World Food Program plane has dropped the first cargo of desperately needed aid to the Syrian city of Deir el-Zour which is surrounded by the extremist Islamic State group. Stephen O'Brien told the U.N. Security Council that 21 tons of aid were dropped early on Wednesday. He says initial reports from Syrian Arab Red Crescent teams on the ground say the pallets landed in the target area. O'Brien says the U.N. and its partners have reached 110,000 people in besieged areas and have approval to reach a further 230,000 people, including through air drops in Deir el-Zour. But he says the U.N. is still waiting for approval to reach 170,000 additional people in besieged areas and "we expect those approvals to happen immediately." ___ 5:30 p.m. The Russian military says its coordination center in Syria has helped negotiate the cessation of hostilities in some areas as part of efforts to implement a U.S.-Russia cease-fire deal. Russian Defense Ministry spokesman, Maj.-Gen. Igor Konashenkov, said Wednesday that the center, located at Syria's Hemeimeem air base hosting Russian warplanes, has received several requests for assistance from various opposition groups. Konashenkov says cease-fire declarations already have been signed by the government and opposition representatives in several areas in the provinces of Homs and Latakia. As part of a U.S.-Russian agreement on a cease-fire set to take effect Saturday, Russia has agreed to halt its air campaign against groups that respect the truce. The cease-fire will not cover the Islamic State group, al-Qaida's Syria branch known as the Nusra Front and other militant groups. ___ 4:20 p.m. Syria's government has blasted U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry for comments made a day earlier during testimony before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. The Syrian Foreign Ministry says Kerry's remarks "run counter to reality" and attempt to "conceal his country's responsibility for the terrorist crimes that Syria has been subjected to." The ministry statement was carried by the official SANA news agency on Wednesday. Kerry on Tuesday said that the war cannot stop in Syria as long as President Bashar Assad was in power. Kerry also said he would not vouch for the success of the cease-fire agreement but that it is the best pathway for ending five years of violence in Syria. ___ 4:00 p.m. Turkey's president says his country supports the cease-fire agreement for Syria "in principle" but has serious concerns that the proposed truce will strengthen Syrian President Bashar Assad and lead to "new tragedies." Addressing dozens of local administrators in Ankara on Wednesday, Recep Tayyip Erdogan also said a U.S.-backed Syrian Kurdish militia group which Turkey regards as a terror organization should be kept outside of the scope of the agreement. The agreement, drawn up by the U.S. and Russia, is set to come into effect later this week. It does not cover the Islamic State group, Syria's al-Qaida branch known as the Nusra Front, or any other militia designated as a terrorist group by the U.N. Security Council. Erdogan says that Turkey supports a "cease-fire that will allow our Syrian brothers to breathe." But he added that "this cease-fire agreement provides clear support to the Assad regime." ___ 2:40 p.m. Syria's state-run news agency SANA says 18 people have been killed in shelling by insurgents of government-held neighborhoods of Aleppo in the past 24 hours. It says eight people died on Wednesday when shells fired by Saudi and Turkey-backed "terrorists" struck the Jamilieh district in Aleppo city. President Bashar Assad's government uses the term "terrorists" to refer to all rebels, militants and armed opposition against Damascus. SANA says most of the casualties were pensioners as the shells slammed near the post building were they come to pick up their pension. The agency also reported that on Tuesday night, 10 people were killed in shells that hit the Zahraa and Sheikh Maksoud residential areas of Aleppo. The shelling comes days before a "temporary cessation of hostilities" engineered by the U.S. and Russia is set to take effect. ___ 2:20 p.m. The Kremlin says Russian President Vladimir Putin has had several telephone conversations with key players in the Syrian conflict to discuss the provisional cease-fire deal proposed by Russia and the United States. The Kremlin said on Wednesday that after a morning call with Syrian President Bashar Assad, Putin had a chat with the leaders of Iran and Saudi Arabia. The statement says Putin and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani talked about the cease-fire in Syria and both "stressed the importance of a further cooperation between Russia and Iran on Syrian peace settlement, including a continuation of a resolute fight against the IS, Jabhat al-Nusra and other terrorist groups from the UN Security sanctions list." In a terse statement on Putin's conversation with the king of Saudi Arabia, the Kremlin said King Salman "welcomed the agreement that was reached and expressed his willingness to work with Russia to implement them." Saudi Arabia is a key backer of rebels against President Assad while Iran like Russia is supporting the Syrian government. ___ 12:30 p.m. A spokesman for a Saudi-backed alliance of Syrian opposition and rebel factions says the group has "major concerns" that Russia and the Syrian government will continue to strike at mainstream rebels under the pretext of hitting "terrorist groups" during the truce that is to go into effect later this week. Salem Al Meslet says the alliance known as the High Negotiations Committee is holding open meetings in the Saudi capital of Riyadh and is seeking guarantees and clarifications from the United States about the mechanism for the implementation of the agreement. He says however that the opposition wants to stop the bloodshed and would abide by the truce. Al Meslet spoke Wednesday in a phone interview with The Associated Press. The agreement, engineered by the U.S. and Russia, is set to take effect at midnight Friday local time. ___ 11:50 a.m. Syria's state-run news agency says Syrian President Bashar Assad has received a phone call from Russian leader Vladimir Putin. SANA says that during the call with Putin on Wednesday, the Syrian president confirmed Damascus' readiness to support the implementation of the agreement for a "cessation of hostilities" in Syria. The agreement, engineered by the U.S. and Russia, is set to take effect at midnight Friday local time. It does not cover the Islamic State group, Syria's al-Qaida branch known as the Nusra Front, or any other militia designated as a terrorist group by the U.N. Security Council. SANA says the two leaders stressed the importance of continuing to fight the Islamic State, the Nusra Front "and other terrorist organizations." Bashar Ja'afari, right, Syria's United Nations Ambassador, speaks to the Security Council during a meeting on the Middle East, Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016, at UN headquarters. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan) Samantha Power, the United States Ambassador to the United Nations, attends a Security Council meeting on the Middle East, Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016, at UN headquarters. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan) The Latest: Virginia State Police confirm 4th fatality WAVERLY, Va. (AP) The Latest on a deadly storm system that spawned tornadoes along the Gulf Coast and damage along the East Coast (all times local): 1 a.m. Virginia State Police say a man who had been missing since a funnel cloud destroyed his home has been found dead, bringing to four the number of deaths in the state amid severe weather. Wreckage of the Sugar Hill RV Park is scattered in Convent, La., Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. Tornadoes and severe weather ripped through the Gulf Coast on Tuesday, mangling trailers at an RV park, ripping off roofs from buildings in Louisiana and Mississippi, authorities said. (AP Photo/Max Becherer) State Police spokeswoman Corinne Geller said in a statement Wednesday night that the Appomattox County man's body will be taken to a medical examiner's office for identification. Seven others were injured in the county. Geller also says at least 15 structures were destroyed and 25 injuries were reported when the storm passed through Essex County and the town of Tappahannock, about 45 miles northeast of Richmond. At least fifteen other structures were damaged. Geller says the injuries ranged from minor to serious. There were no confirmed fatalities. ___ 11 p.m. A line of thunderstorms moved across the New York City area, bringing strong winds and heavy rains that knocked down trees and caused scattered power outages. Mayor Bill de Blasio issued a travel advisory for Wednesday evening through early Thursday morning. The National Weather Service said the region could be hit with 50-mile-per-hour wind gusts. Authorities are investigating the possibility that high winds caused a vacant three-story building in the Bronx to collapse. There were no reports of injuries. In Westchester, the storm may have caused a tree to fall onto train tracks just south of Irvington. A Metro-North official says the train suffered minor damage when it struck the tree. The train continued to Irvington where it let passengers off. There were no injuries. ___ 9:30 p.m. Strong storms have moved through Pennsylvania, causing multiple building collapses, tearing roofs off homes and downing trees and power lines. Most of the damage Wednesday evening was reported in Lancaster County, which the National Weather Service says was under a tornado warning at the time. LNP (http://bit.ly/21srUTY ) reports fire officials there are calling it a "major" weather event. In Salisbury Township, two 600-foot chicken houses collapsed and a roof was blown off a nearby house. Another building collapse was reported in West Donegal Township. The storms knocked out power to thousands in Lancaster County. There was no word on any injuries. ___ 8:30 p.m. The National Weather Service says the risk of severe thunderstorms and tornadoes has ended in North Carolina. But meteorologists say wind gusts of up to 30 mph are expected to affect the state through Wednesday night, possibly bringing down trees whose roots were weakened by the earlier storm. Power outages continue to plague much of the Carolinas, without thousands of residents lacking power. ___ 8:30 p.m. Storms brought heavy rains and strong winds through Maryland and Washington, leaving thousands without power and motorists stranded by flooded roads. Fire officials in Montgomery County in Maryland say a man was rescued after a basement wall collapsed on him in a Silver Spring home Wednesday night. Roads in several areas, including an exit from Interstate 95 in Baltimore and Interstate 495 in Columbia, Maryland, were closed because of high water. Utility companies in Maryland and Washington reported that thousands of customers were without power Wednesday night. ___ 7:20 p.m. Authorities have identified the victims of a powerful storm that battered the town of Waverly, Virginia, as a 2-year-old child and two men. Virginia State Police spokeswoman Corinne Geller says in a statement that the adults killed Wednesday were 50 and 26 years old. They were found about 300 yards from their mobile home. Geller says the bodies were taken to the medical examiner's office in Norfolk for positive identification. The National Weather Service says the Waverly tornado was the only confirmed twister in the state but several others are suspected tornadoes. ___ 7 p.m. At the University of Richmond, fans arriving early for a men's basketball game were forced to move to a lower level of the Robins Center when a tornado warning was issued for the area around the campus. Several hundred people were led down staircases to the lower floor, filling the hallway. They remained there for about 15 minutes before the warning expired and they were allowed to return to the arena. ___ 4:45 p.m. Virginia State Police are now confirming three deaths in the tiny town of Waverly, which appears to be taking the brunt of a fast-moving storm sweeping across the East Coast. Television newscasts showed shattered windows, splintered wood and shocked residents sizing up the aftermath of the storm. Virginia State Police say at least five structures within the town limits have been damaged. The names of the victims and the circumstances of their deaths were not released. Roads leading into the town had to be closed because of downed trees and debris tossed by winds gusting to 60 mph. The severe weather spawned several suspected twisters in Waverly and in the greater Richmond area. Waverly is about 50 miles south of Richmond. ___ 3:30 p.m. Residents in LaPlace, Louisiana, are cleaning up after a tornado ripped through the area. The hum of chain saws could be heard as people got to work Wednesday cutting trees and fixing damaged roofs. Eighty-year-old Rose Fuselier was in her house when the twister hit. She hid in a closet but then thinking the danger had passed, she came out. That's when the door burst open. As she was struggling to push the door closed, the windows in the front of the house shattered. Down the street, Darren Miller was in front of his parents' house Tuesday when he heard a roaring noise. At one point, as the tornado swept through, he said he couldn't even see across the street. The windows in the house exploded and a 57-year-old oak tree went through the roof. As many as 200 homes in the area were damaged Tuesday. ___ 3:15 p.m. Authorities say two people have died after powerful storms ripped through eastern Virginia, raising the death toll from the tornadoes and severe weather to five. Ron Messina, a spokesman for the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, said the two people were killed in the town of Waverly on Wednesday. Messina could not provide the victims' identities or details about how they died. Three people were killed in Louisiana and Mississippi when tornadoes hit there Tuesday. Dozens of other people were injured. The National Weather Service had issued a tornado warning for an area in southeastern Virginia, with radar indicating a twister in Waverly. ___ 2:30 p.m. Police are reporting storm damage in Sussex County in southeastern Virginia from a system that has ravaged the South. State Police Sgt. Michele Anaya says troopers were called to assist local authorities Wednesday afternoon. She did not know the extent of the damage, exactly where it occurred or whether there were any injuries. Anaya said she could not confirm a twister, although the county was under a tornado warning when the damage occurred. Workers who answered the phone at the Sussex County Sheriff's Office and the Waverly Fire Department said all first responders were out and nobody was available to provide information. The storms killed three people in Louisiana and Mississippi on Tuesday. ___ 10 a.m. Florida Gov. Rick Scott says an apparent tornado significantly damaged more than 70 homes and 24 apartments in the Pensacola area, leaving three people with minor injuries. The rough weather ripped through Pensacola on Tuesday evening and Scott toured the affected areas on Wednesday morning. He stopped at The Moorings apartment complex, where winds whipped the roof off of at least two buildings. Escambia County Sheriff David Morgan says crews are working to restore power to more than 2,700 homes that are still without power. Scott says that he plans to meet with victims of a tornado that left widespread damage in nearby Century last week. The governor says they're working to allocate money from the state budget to help victims of both storms. Destroyed trailers and vehicles are all that remain of the Sugar Hill RV Park after a suspected tornado hit in Convent, La., Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016. Tornadoes and severe weather ripped through southern Louisiana and Mississippi on Tuesday. (AP Photo/Max Becherer) Destroyed trailers and vehicles are all that remain of the Sugar Hill RV Park after a suspected tornado hit in Convent, La., Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016. Authorities were still looking for people possibly trapped under the debris, St. James Parish Sheriff Willy Martin said. (AP Photo/Max Becherer) First responders search the remains of trailers and vehicles after a suspected tornado hit the Sugar Hill RV Park in Convent, La., Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016. St. James Parish Sheriff Willy Martin says authorities are using dogs to search piles of rubble left in the wake of the storm to find anyone else still missing under the debris. (AP Photo/Max Becherer) First responders search the remains of trailers and vehicles after a suspected tornado hit the Sugar Hill RV Park in Convent, La., Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016. St. James Parish Sheriff Willy Martin says authorities are using dogs to search piles of rubble left in the wake of the storm to find anyone else still missing under the debris. (AP Photo/Max Becherer) Search and rescue teams slog through the remains of a RV park after a suspected tornado hit the Sugar Hill RV Park in Convent, La., Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016. St. James Parish Sheriff Willy Martin says authorities are using dogs to search piles of rubble left in the wake of the storm to find anyone else still missing under the debris. (AP Photo/Max Becherer) Debris is removed on Greenwood Dr., Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016 in LaPlace, La. A suspected tornado ripped through a Louisiana recreational vehicle park Tuesday, leaving a mangled mess of smashed trailers and killing at least one person, officials said. In neighboring Mississippi, authorities said one person died when a possible tornado hit a mobile home. (David Grunfeld/NOLA.com The Times-Picayune via AP) MAGS OUT; NO SALES; USA TODAY OUT; THE BATON ROUGE ADVOCATE OUT; THE NEW ORLEANS ADVOCATE OUT; MANDATORY CREDIT Enoch Kinard looks through his destroyed house at 1604 Ellerslie Ave., Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016 in LaPlace, La. A suspected tornado ripped through a Louisiana recreational vehicle park Tuesday, leaving a mangled mess of smashed trailers and killing at least one person, officials said. In neighboring Mississippi, authorities said one person died when a possible tornado hit a mobile home. (David Grunfeld/NOLA.com The Times-Picayune via AP) MAGS OUT; NO SALES; USA TODAY OUT; THE BATON ROUGE ADVOCATE OUT; THE NEW ORLEANS ADVOCATE OUT; MANDATORY CREDIT Enoch Kinard looks through his destroyed house at 1604 Ellerslie Ave., Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016 in LaPlace, La. A suspected tornado ripped through a Louisiana recreational vehicle park Tuesday, leaving a mangled mess of smashed trailers and killing at least one person, officials said. In neighboring Mississippi, authorities said one person died when a possible tornado hit a mobile home. (David Grunfeld/NOLA.com The Times-Picayune via AP) MAGS OUT; NO SALES; USA TODAY OUT; THE BATON ROUGE ADVOCATE OUT; THE NEW ORLEANS ADVOCATE OUT; MANDATORY CREDIT Enoch Kinard looks through his destroyed house at 1604 Ellerslie Ave., Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016 in LaPlace, La. A suspected tornado ripped through a Louisiana recreational vehicle park Tuesday, leaving a mangled mess of smashed trailers and killing at least one person, officials said. In neighboring Mississippi, authorities said one person died when a possible tornado hit a mobile home. (David Grunfeld/NOLA.com The Times-Picayune via AP) MAGS OUT; NO SALES; USA TODAY OUT; THE BATON ROUGE ADVOCATE OUT; THE NEW ORLEANS ADVOCATE OUT; MANDATORY CREDIT Damage from a tornado is seen, Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016 near Convent, La. A suspected tornado ripped through a Louisiana recreational vehicle park Tuesday, leaving a mangled mess of smashed trailers and killing at least one person, officials said. In neighboring Mississippi, authorities said one person died when a possible tornado hit a mobile home. (Bill Feig/The Advocate via AP) MAGS OUT; INTERNET OUT; NO SALES; TV OUT; NO FORNS; LOUISIANA BUSINESS INC. OUT (INCLUDING GREATER BATON ROUGE BUSINESS REPORT, 225, 10/12, INREGISTER, LBI CUSTOM); MANDATORY CREDIT A hardware store is destroyed near the intersection of Routes 70 and 1 Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016, in Paincourtville, La. A suspected tornado ripped through a Louisiana recreational vehicle park Tuesday, leaving a mangled mess of smashed trailers and killing at least one person, officials said. In neighboring Mississippi, authorities said one person died when a possible tornado hit a mobile home. (Michael DeMocker/NOLA.com The Times-Picayune via AP) MAGS OUT; NO SALES; USA TODAY OUT; THE BATON ROUGE ADVOCATE OUT; THE NEW ORLEANS ADVOCATE OUT; MANDATORY CREDIT People search a destroyed trailer at a business near the intersection of Routes 70 and 1 Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016, in Paincourtville, La. A suspected tornado ripped through a Louisiana recreational vehicle park Tuesday, leaving a mangled mess of smashed trailers and killing at least one person, officials said. In neighboring Mississippi, authorities said one person died when a possible tornado hit a mobile home. (Michael DeMocker/NOLA.com The Times-Picayune via AP) MAGS OUT; NO SALES; USA TODAY OUT; THE BATON ROUGE ADVOCATE OUT; THE NEW ORLEANS ADVOCATE OUT; MANDATORY CREDIT South African president to withdraw troops from Darfur JOHANNESBURG (AP) South Africa's president has ordered the withdrawal of the country's peacekeeping troops from Sudan's troubled Darfur region. In a statement Wednesday, President Jacob Zuma said the deployment of the South African National Defense Force to the joint United Nations and African Union mission in Darfur will end on April 1. South African troops have been there since 2008. The U.N. says the hybrid operation in Darfur is the largest peacekeeping operation in the world. Last year, it had 14,413 troops and more than 3,100 police officers. It was not immediately clear how many South African troops are there. Mental exam focus of hearing in clinic shooting case COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (AP) Attorneys for a man who admitted to killing three people at a Colorado Planned Parenthood clinic will return to court to discuss his mental competency exam. The Wednesday hearing will likely focus on whether the evaluation of 57-year-old Robert Dear is finished. A judge ordered the exam after Dear announced that he wanted to fire his public defenders and represent himself. The exam will show whether he is mentally capable of making that decision. Prosecutors charged Dear with 179 counts including murder, attempted murder and assault for the Nov. 27 shooting that also left nine injured. During courtroom outbursts, he declared himself a "warrior for the babies" and said he was guilty. Defense attorneys raised doubts about his competency. Obama urges quick confirmation for Supreme Court nominee WASHINGTON (AP) President Barack Obama urged the Republican-run Senate on Wednesday to fulfill its "constitutional responsibility" and consider his Supreme Court nominee, pushing back against Republican leaders who insist there will be no hearing or vote when he names a successor to the late Justice Antonin Scalia. Obama, in a post on the legal blog SCOTUSblog, offered his most expansive description of the qualities he is seeking in a nominee: a sterling record, a deep respect for the judiciary's role and an understanding of how the law affects real people. He emphasized his duty under the Constitution to select justices for the high court, a message aimed squarely at Senate Republicans. "I hope they'll move quickly to debate and then confirm this nominee so that the Court can continue to serve the American people at full strength," Obama said. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Ky., center, joined by, from second for left are, Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., and Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn of Texas, speaks with reporters on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016, following a closed-door policy meeting. Senate Republicans, most vocally McConnell, are facing a high-stakes political showdown with President Barack Obama sparked by the recent death of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia. Republicans controlling the Senate which must confirm any Obama appointee before the individual is seated on the court say that the decision is too important to be determined by a lame-duck president. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) Obama's rebuttal came a day after Senate Republicans delivered an extraordinary election-year rebuff by insisting that voters in November's election, and the next president, hold the authority to replace Scalia. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Tuesday that his 54-member Republican caucus was united against taking any step in the Senate's "advise and consent" process. The Judiciary Committee will not hold confirmation hearings for the nominee. The committee and the full Senate will not vote. A few Republicans, including McConnell, said they would not even meet with the nominee when that person makes introductions on Capitol Hill. "Why would I? We've made the decision," said Sen. Orrin Hatch, a committee member. In his post Wednesday, Obama tried to calm conservative concerns that he would choose an unabashedly liberal who would upend the court's balance. He said he would pick someone who recognized the court's limits and knows that a judge's job is to interpret law, not make it. "I seek judges who approach decisions without any particular ideology or agenda, but rather a commitment to impartial justice, a respect for precedent, and a determination to faithfully apply the law to the facts at hand," Obama said. The president also said the law isn't clear in all cases that reach the high court. He said he was looking for someone whose "life experience" outside the court would allow that person to understand how decisions affect "the daily reality of people's lives in a big, complicated democracy." "There will be cases in which a judge's analysis necessarily will be shaped by his or her own perspective, ethics, and judgment," he wrote. Republicans are adamant they will not budge. Still, Obama said he would announce a nominee in the next few weeks. Filling the vacancy left by Scalia's unexpected death on Feb. 13 is crucial because the Supreme Court now has a 4-4 ideological split between justices who are usually conservative and its liberal wing. The battle has invigorated both sides' interest groups and voters who focus on abortion, immigration and other issues before the court. Since the Senate started routinely referring presidential nominations to committees for action in 1955, every Supreme Court nominee not later withdrawn has received a Judiciary Committee hearing, according to the Senate Historical Office. ___ Associated Press writers Alan Fram, Andrew Taylor and Mark Sherman contributed to this report. In Iran elections, getting votes means going to social media DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) In Tehran, pedestrians walk by, staring transfixed at their mobile phones like in any other major city, though what's being shared now more often than not are campaign promises and candidate lists for Iran's upcoming elections. Using messaging apps like Telegram and other social media platforms, Iranians and political aspirants of all kinds are preparing for Friday's vote for parliament and the Assembly of Experts, trading lists of names for those backing their views. Some are worried about online interference ahead of the poll, though many praise the freedom that such access to information has given them. An Iranian man shows text messages from President Hassan Rouhani on his mobile phone, encouraging citizens to vote in the upcoming parliamentary and Experts Assembly elections, in Tehran, Iran, Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. Using messaging apps like Telegram and other social media platforms, Iranians and political aspirants of all kinds are preparing for Fridays vote for parliament and the Assembly of Experts, trading lists of names for those backing their views. The text in Persian reads, "dear people of Iran, the country needs your vote today," and "lets decide on a hopeful future for Iran on Friday." (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi) "It is with us everywhere at home, in the taxi," Hamid Farid, a Tehran resident supporting reformists in the coming poll, said of social networks. "It is an attractive way of campaigning that one cannot easily pass up. It is a perfect idea for having an excellent campaign with very low costs," he added. Nearly 40 percent of Iran's 77 million people can reach the web, though the U.S.-based watchdog Freedom House describes Internet access as "not free" in the Islamic Republic due to censorship and filtering. Iran blocked access to Facebook and Twitter after the country's disputed 2009 presidential election, when footage of the shooting death of a young woman, Neda Agha Soltan, at a protest circulated on social media. Her slaying quickly became a rallying point for demonstrators and intensified international outrage at Iran's attempts to crush dissent during the worst internal unrest since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Today, Iranians still can access the Facebook-owned photo app Instagram and Telegram, which many Iranians use to send text messages, pictures and videos over the Internet due to its perceived security. Others use virtual private networks which allow users to bypass Internet filters to access blocked social media sites. Even supporters of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the country's supreme leader, have Twitter accounts in multiple languages for spreading his messages. As for candidates in Friday's election, especially lesser-known politicians, Telegram messages offer a free outlet to spread their campaign promises. Telegram is "much easier and reachable to many voters than fliers," said Ali Alemi, a politically active 26-year-old student at Tehran's Azad University. "I have used Telegram over the past week to attract voters." Such social media messages also help voters keep track of the politicians' names, which they have to write down on the ballot, unlike the fill-in-the-bubble ballots common in the West. Some 6,200 candidates are running in the parliamentary elections alone. "I have already chosen my favorite candidates based on posts received on mobile messaging," said Masoumeh Kameli, a kindergarten teacher. "It is a very nice service for those who are busy with their work." Even President Hassan Rouhani took to text messages Wednesday to drum up support. "Dear people of Iran, the country needs your vote," the message read. "Let's decide on a hopeful future for Iran on Friday." Soroush Farhadian, a Tehran-based political analyst, said such social media messaging allow candidates to reach voters in a country that does not allow private radio stations or television networks. "The instrument has lower cost and wider influence for ordinary people in their political campaigns," Farhadian said. However, the government has raised concerns about messages being spread by social media and Telegram. It formed a committee on Sunday to investigate possible illegal activity in the social messaging campaigns, without elaborating on what it considers illegal. Wednesday marked the last day of campaigning in the elections. Telegram itself also has been targeted by Iranian officials in the past. In October, Telegram CEO Pavel Durov wrote on Twitter that Iranian officials demanded the company provide them with "spying and censorship tools." Durov said his company ignored the demand, leading to a week of government interference and two hours of full blocking. Iran later denied "filtering" Telegram. Durov and Telegram did not respond to requests for comment ahead of the Friday's elections. Cuba throws soldiers into battle against Zika virus HAVANA (AP) Olive-clad soldiers are going door-to-door across Cuba, filling houses with mosquito-killing fog in a nationwide mobilization to keep the Zika virus out of one of the last countries in the hemisphere without it. President Raul Castro announced this week that he was throwing 9,000 military personnel and hundreds of police into what he called Cuba's "inadequate" fight against the mosquito that carries the virus linked to birth defects and paralysis elsewhere in Latin America. "Our people will know how to demonstrate their ability to organize and maintain the public health achievements of the revolution and prevent our families from suffering," Castro declared. "We must be more disciplined and demanding than ever before." Soldiers carrying a fumigating machine and gas masks cross a street in Havana, Cuba, Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016. Cuban President Raul Castro announced Monday that he is dispatching soldiers to help keep the Zika virus out of Cuba, calling on the entire country to help kill the mosquito that carries the disease. Castro says Cuba has yet to report a case of Zika. (AP Photo/Desmond Boylan) Castro's call to action included an unusual admission of deficiencies in Cuba's vaunted free neighborhood-level health-care system, which has suffered in recent years from lack of equipment, short-staffing and low morale among poorly paid state health workers. It was also a test of the communist government's once-legendary ability to marshal the entire country behind efforts ranging from civil defense to bigger sugar harvests to disease prevention. The government announced Tuesday that it was activating the Committees for the Defense of the Revolution, a neighborhood watch organization that enforced government dictates for decades but has lost importance in recent years. The government said that committees across the country would distribute anti-Zika information to every Cuban and inspect at-risk sites for mosquitoes in coming days. Gaps have been increasingly obvious in the effort to spray homes and businesses for the Aedes aegypti mosquito, which has infected thousands of Cubans with the dengue virus and dozens with chikungunya, a disease that causes fever and severe joint pain. Cubans frequently claim allergies or asthma to put off fumigation crews composed of public health workers and teenagers completing obligatory military service. Unwilling to force homeowners to let them in, the crews often mark the residence as fumigated and move on to the next house or apartment. Those days appear to be ending as troops deployed across the country with hand-held foggers are now armed with the threat of fines for anyone who resists fumigation. "Cuba has a series of advantages: It's an island, it has a homogenous population and a health infrastructure that generally reaches every street corner," said Jaime Torres, director of tropical medicine at the Central University of Venezuela. "And its political system allows it to take measures, including imposing punishments, that are harder to impose in other places." In Cuba's airports and cruise ship terminals, crews of white-clad doctors are monitoring incoming travelers for high temperatures or other signs of illness. Medical officials said the fight against Zika had taken on increasing urgency as Cuba's hot, humid spring and summer draw near. "The objective is to diminish the adult mosquito population ahead of the coming critical months," said Reinaldo Garcia, head of anti-mosquito efforts for a neighborhood health clinic in Havana. As soldiers fumigated Wednesday, medical students were knocking on doors alerting homeowners to watch for symptoms such as fever and conjunctivitis. State-run television and radio featured a constant stream of educational messages about Zika, which has been linked to the birth defect microcephaly. "Although there is no sign of that disease, we want to eliminate the transmitter, eliminate the chain, so if it enters the country there is no way to transmit it," Dr. Osvaldo Mendoza of the Public Health Ministry said as he supervised a crew of military fumigators. Medical workers were ready to move into any area where a possible Zika case is detected, quarantining and testing anyone who lives within 500 meters, said public health official Dr. Lorenzo Somarriba. "Everyone's talking about it," said Suset Valdes, a 19-year-old Havana resident who is six months pregnant. She said pregnant women in her maternity ward were protecting themselves with repellent-soaked mosquito nets. Carlos Espinal, director of the global health program at Florida International University in Miami, said that while it was virtually certain that Zika would arrive in Cuba, he was hopeful the island's health system would prevent the virus spreading as it has elsewhere in Latin America. "It's inevitable, but the Cuban disease-monitoring system is sure to greatly mitigate the negative impact in the community," he said. Valdes' mother, Dolores Hernandez, 51, said she felt better with her daughter off the streets of their Old Havana neighborhood, where garbage had been piling up for weeks or months without any government reaction. "It's horrible how people threw trash in Old Havana," she said. But now "they're picking it up, running around, unclogging their drains. Now, they're really getting going." ___ Michael Weissenstein contributed to this report from Havana. ___ Andrea Rodriguez on Twitter: www.twitter.com/ARodriguezAP Michael Weissenstein on Twitter: www.twitter.com/mweissenstein 4 students sue Providence for ban on renting house together PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) Four college students are suing the city of Providence, Rhode Island, over an ordinance that bans them from living together in a single-family home. The Johnson & Wales University students are joined in the suit filed Tuesday by their landlord, and backed by the American Civil Liberties Union. The city council passed the rule in September after complaints about chronic, out-of-control partying by students in neighborhoods near the Roman Catholic school Providence College and the public Rhode Island College. There have also been complaints over the years about student behavior in other sections of the city around the Ivy league Brown University and the prestigious art school the Rhode Island School of Design. Democratic Councilwoman Jo-Ann Ryan, who pushed the rule, complained that renting single-family homes to students was eroding the character of the neighborhoods. The lawsuit argues that there is no reason to believe that restricting the number of students who live in a single-family home will lead to safer, quieter and cleaner neighborhoods. "On the contrary, the ordinance is an unconstitutional intrusion into the rights of college and graduate students to choose with whom they wish to live, and the rights of property owners to rent their homes to tenants of their choice," lawyers Jeffrey Levy and Charles Blackmun wrote. A spokeswoman for Democratic Mayor Jorge Elorza said the city does not comment on ongoing legal proceedings. Other college towns have passed such rules in the past, and some of those have been struck down, Levy said. A similar ordinance in Narragansett, Rhode Island, was held unconstitutional by a state superior court in 1994, as was one in Prince George's County, Maryland, in 1993. He said Boston enacted a similar ordinance in 2008, but to his knowledge it has not been enforced or challenged. Levy said his clients have not yet been the target of any enforcement action, and he is not aware of any actions against other student renters. Columbine shooter's mother, years later, cringes at copycats DENVER (AP) Sue Klebold doesn't break down in tears anymore when she learns about another mass shooting. The attacks have become too common in the 17 years since her son killed 12 of his classmates and a teacher at Columbine High School in Colorado. Now she is analytical, wondering if the gunman hid weapons at home the way her son Dylan did. Whether there were warning signs like the ones she missed. Most painfully, Klebold wonders if the shooter used images of her son and details of his crime, still widely available online, as a model to gain fame through the slaughter of innocent people. Sue Klebold, mother of one of the two students involved in the massacre at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colo., talks to the Associated Press about her memoir, "A Mother's Reckoning: Living in the Aftermath of Tragedy," during an interview Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski) "Every time I see a photograph of Dylan on the surveillance tapes, I cringe," Klebold said. "Because every time that occurs somewhere there is a disenfranchised individual that is using that as a blueprint." Klebold spoke to The Associated Press on Tuesday, a week after the release of her memoir, "A Mother's Reckoning: Living in the Aftermath of Tragedy," exploring the causes of her son's violence and ways to prevent future attacks through mental health awareness. Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris opened fire at the school on April 20, 1999, killing 13 people before taking their own lives. Another 24 people were injured. Sue Klebold knew her son had some problems but wrote in her book that she dismissed them as teenage angst while he quietly plotted the killings and detailed the depths of his pain in journals she only discovered after his death. "I wish I had learned how to communicate differently with him and how to listen better," Klebold said. "I wish I had realized that things can seem perfectly fine when they are not, and the other lesson I wish I had learned is to shut up and listen." With the book, Klebold said she tried to commemorate his life without glamorizing his troubled final years. In the years after the Columbine attack, she and her ex-husband Tom Klebold vigorously fought the release of videos that her son and Harris filmed in her basement that offered glimpses of their methods and motives. The parents worried that the details would offer a roadmap for future violence. Other mass killers have been obsessed with the Columbine attack, drawing on a wealth of information in books and movies, fan websites dedicated the shooters and even a Broadway show. Klebold said she still receives mail from young women across the country professing their love for her son. To Klebold, conversations in the media and elsewhere that followed other mass shootings have been frustrating. They seemed to dwell on the gory, voyeuristic details of a shooter's life while avoiding the larger problems that made the person want to kill and allowed it to happen. She said she published her book after finally mustering the courage at a time when the public seemed eager to talk about violence and mental health. "People who engage in acts such as this are not well, they are having significant malfunction going on," she said. "This is the result of a mental or brain health condition that escalated to a stage-four lethal condition." She is donating any profits from the book to mental health charities and research, hoping for solutions that will help parents and professionals spot and thwart signs of trouble. That could be as simple as doctors' offices requiring mental health screenings during routine checkups or having school officials undergo suicide awareness training, she said. Speaking out has been cathartic, she said. And some victims found it helpful to hear from her. Coni Sanders, whose father, Dave Sanders, a Columbine teacher, was killed in the attack, said it's a relief to hear a less sensational conversation about the shooting. "We seek answers, and she doesn't have a magic answer for what happened, and people needed to know that," Sanders said. Cuba gives well-known dissidents permission to travel abroad HAVANA (AP) The Cuban government has loosened travel restrictions on some of the island's best-known dissidents, granting them one-time permission to travel abroad ahead of President Barack Obama's trip to the island, activists said Wednesday. Obama has said his March 21-22 trip to Havana is designed to push the Cuban government to improve conditions for its people. Critics say Obama is rewarding the Cuban government despite its refusal to give citizens the ability to freely vote for their leaders and exercise their rights to free speech and assembly. Members of a group of 11 dissidents imprisoned during the 2003 crackdown known as the Black Spring said Wednesday that officials have told seven of them that they will be free to travel one time as a reward for good behavior. Four more-politically active members of the group remain unable to travel, the dissidents said. Activist Marta Beatriz Roque said that she and six other former prisoners were contacted by Cuban immigration officials on Sunday and told to report to state offices the following day. There, they were told that they would be able to travel overseas once and return to Cuba. She said she intended to travel to the United States to see family as soon as she was able. She credited the Cuban government decision to Obama's upcoming trip but criticized the one-off nature of the permits and the fact that four of the more active former Black Spring prisoners remained under travel bans. "It's a concession for Obama's visit," she said. "But I also think that Cuba's doing it so that some of us say, 'OK, if I can't travel again, I'm going to stay." Dissident Jorge Olivera, a former state television editor, said he was assessing whether he could now accept a yearlong fellowship at a U.S. university that he was granted while under the travel ban. In Washington, a White House spokesman welcomed the decision to let the seven dissidents travel outside Cuba, and encouraged Cuban officials to allow the same for the other four dissidents. "While we support positive steps forward on this issue, we will continue to urge the Cuba government to respect the rights of all Cuban citizens," White House spokesman Peter Boogaard said. The Cuban government did not respond to a request for comment. Olivera also complained about ongoing restrictions on fellow former prisoners, including Jose Daniel Ferrer, head of the Patriotic Union of Cuba dissident group that is active in eastern Cuba. "They told some of us that this was because of good behavior," he said. "In reality, it's totally arbitrary." ___ Associated Press writers Andrea Rodriguez in Havana and Josh Lederman in Washington contributed to this report. ___ The Latest: Ex-Gov. Perry says indictment proved 'baseless' AUSTIN, Texas (AP) The latest on Texas' highest criminal court dropping a felony abuse-of-power charge against former Gov. Rick Perry (all times local): 2:20 p.m. Former Texas Gov. Rick Perry says the dismissal of the criminal case against him shows the indictments were a "baseless political attack." But Perry also conceded again Wednesday that the charges hurt his short-lived 2016 Republican presidential bid. He said the indictment from by an Austin grand jury shortly before he left office in 2015 clearly had a negative effect on his White House run. Texas' highest criminal court dismissed an abuse-of-power indictment against the former governor. Perry has been campaigning for Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz since abandoning his own bid. Perry spoke at the headquarters of an influential Texas conservative think tank, which has previously named its downtown balcony the "Gov. Rick Perry Liberty Balcony." ___ 10:30 a.m. A left-leaning watchdog whose criminal complaint against former Texas Gov. Rick Perry led to the Republican getting indicted says a "highly partisan court" handed down a gift in dismissing the charges. Craig McDonald said Wednesday the ruling by Texas' highest criminal court was based on Perry's political stature instead of the evidence. McDonald heads the group Texans for Public Justice, which filed a formal complaint after Perry vetoed funding for Austin prosecutors in 2013. Perry had called for the resignation of the Travis County District Attorney Rosemary Lehmberg, an elected Democrat, after she was convicted of drunken driving. He then pulled state money for public corruption prosecutors in Lehmberg's office when she refused to step down. McDonald accused Perry of abusing his power. The nine-member Texas Court of Criminal Appeals is dominated by elected Republicans. ___ 9:55 a.m. An attorney for former Texas Gov. Rick Perry says the onetime Republican presidential candidate is pleased that criminal charges against him have been finally dismissed. Attorney Tony Buzbee said Wednesday he spoke with Perry shortly after the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals threw out the last of two indictments against the longest-serving governor in state history. Perry was indicted in 2014, before leaving office. Buzbee calls it a "shame that it took that long to get something as weak and misguided as this to be dismissed." Perry was indicted for threatening and then carrying out a 2013 veto of state funding for public corruption prosecutors after the Democratic head of the unit refused to resign. Perry has been campaigning for Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz since abandoning his own bid. ___ 9:40 a.m. Texas' highest criminal court says that veto power can't be restricted by the courts in tossing a felony indictment against former Gov. Rick Perry. The 6-2 ruling Wednesday by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals likely ends the criminal case that Perry has partly blamed for sinking his short-lived 2016 presidential run. He was indicted before leaving office and has rebuked the charges as a partisan attack. An abuse-of-power charge was the only indictment remaining, but the court ruled that the prosecution of a veto "violates separations of powers." A lower appeals court dismissed a coercion charge in July. Perry was indicted for threatening and then carrying out a 2013 veto of state funding for public corruption prosecutors after the Democratic head of the unit refused to resign. ___ 9:05 a.m. Texas' highest criminal court has dismissed the second and final felony charge against former Gov. Rick Perry, likely ending a case the Republican says helped sink his short-lived 2016 presidential run. The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals on Wednesday voided an abuse-of-power charge. A lower appeals court dismissed a coercion charge against Perry in July. Perry was indicted by an Austin grand jury in 2014. He called the case politically motivated, but the Republican trial judge refused to dismiss it on constitutional grounds, prompting Perry's appeals. Protesters block statue unveiling of anti-Semitic official BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) Protesters have prevented the official unveiling of a statue commemorating a Holocaust-era, anti-Semitic Hungarian politician. The bust of Gyorgy Donath was to be unveiled in Budapest Wednesday by former Prime Minister Peter Boross and other officials, but a crowd of some 300 protesters surrounded the memorial and blocked the ceremony from taking place. Despite the canceled unveiling, which was also attended by around 100 Donath supporters, the life-size bust remained in place some 2 meters (6.5 feet) above street level on a corner just a block away from the Holocaust Memorial Center. Demonstrators protest against the installation of a statue of Gyorgy Donath, a Hungarian wartime politician executed in 1947, prior to the unveiling ceremony is to be held as part of commemorations for the victims of communism in Budapest, Hungary, Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. The placard reads: 'We don't want racists!'. Protesters have prevented the official unveiling of a statue commemorating a Holocaust-era, anti-Semitic Hungarian politician. (Tamas Kovacs/MTI via AP) Hungarian Jewish groups said Donath's racist views made him unworthy of a statue even though he was executed by the communists in 1947 after a show trial on false charges. Public workers strike in Argentina to protest firings BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) Tens of thousands of public workers across Argentina are striking to protest widespread layoffs by the administration of President Mauricio Macri. The 24-hour shutdown is the first national strike since Macri began his presidency in December. In Buenos Aires, several groups held rallies in major streets such as 9 de Julio, snarling traffic. Government workers protest against recent layoffs during the current administration of President Mauricio Macri, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. In the first strike against Macri's government, workers blocked streets in Buenos Aires and around the country. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko) Unions representing public workers are demanding that Macri cease the trimming of payrolls and hire back thousands who have been fired. Macri ran on promises to cut spending, and accused former President Cristina Fernandez of over-hiring for the sake of political patronage. Macri's administration has said it has cut 6,200 workers across agencies, and that more layoffs may be coming. Unions say around 20,000 have been cut. A man walks by a banner that reads in Spanish "Stop the layoffs, immediate re-hiring," as Government workers demonstrate against recent layoffs during the current administration of President Mauricio Macri, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. In the first strike against Macri's government, workers blocked streets in Buenos Aires and around the country. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko) A man walks by leaflets strewn on the street that read in Spanish "Stop the layoffs, immediate re-hiring," as Government workers demonstrate against recent layoffs during the current administration of President Mauricio Macri, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. In the first strike against Macri's government, workers blocked streets in Buenos Aires and around the country. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko) Government workers sit outside the Labor Ministry during a protest against recent layoffs during the current administration of President Mauricio Macri, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. The sign above their heads reads in Spanish "Not one layoff at the Labor Ministry." In the first strike against Macri's government, workers blocked streets in Buenos Aires and around the country. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko) Government workers demonstrate against recent layoffs during the current administration of President Mauricio Macri, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. In the first strike against Macri's government, workers blocked streets in Buenos Aires and around the country. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko) Morales grudgingly accepts referendum defeat in Bolivia LA PAZ, Bolivia (AP) President Evo Morales grudgingly accepted on Wednesday his first direct electoral defeat in a decade in power, the narrow rejection of a constitutional amendment that would have let him run again in 2019. "We lost a democratic battle but not the war," he told a news conference. "Evo's work is not done." He blamed the loss on a "dirty war" by the opposition and an "external conspiracy." Asked if the process of choosing a successor would begin in the governing party, Morales reminded the questioner that he still has four years left in office. Bolivia's President Evo Morales speaks during a press conference at the government palace in La Paz, Bolivia, Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. Bolivian voters have handed Evo Morales his first electoral defeat as president, rejecting by a slim margin a constitutional amendment that would have let him run for a fourth consecutive term in 2019. Morales in recognizing his defeat said "That he has lost a battle but not the war." (AP Photo/Juan Karita) "It's not the moment to speak of a successor. There is a lot of time for that." Previously, Morales had averaged 61.5 percent of the vote in electoral wins, including a 2009 constitutional rewrite. But corruption scandals, a weakening economy and the growing unpopularity of his movement stung this time. After the outcome became clear Tuesday night, celebrants poured into the streets in the eastern city of Santa Cruz, where opposition to Morales is strong. But fireworks also sounded in La Paz, where there is weariness of official corruption. Sunday's ballot question lost by 51 percent to 49 percent. The outcome also blocks Vice President Alvaro Garcia from running again. A native Aymara, Morales is Bolivia's first indigenous president and changed the ethnic complexion of the landlocked nation's politics in three terms in office. He helped lift millions from of poverty by more equitably distributing natural gas revenues, spurring the creation of an indigenous middle class. He built airports, highways and the pride of La Paz, an Austrian-built aerial tramway system. He also put a Chinese-built satellite into space But Bolivians have been losing patience with his now-entrenched Movement Toward Socialism. And many natives initially enamored of Morales for granting them autonomy on paper lost faith when he pushed natural gas and oil projects on their lands. The referendum also closely followed a revelation that Morales, previously unscathed by scandal, may have been personally involved in influence-peddling. While the setback was yet another blow to South America's populist left which last year lost Argentina's presidency and saw the opposition win control of Venezuela's parliament it did not signify a right turn in Bolivia. "Evo's traditional opposition among the affluent and middle class was joined by a wide swath of voters who have long been a part of his political support," said Jim Shultz, director of the left-leaning Democracy Center advocacy group. "Their turnaround isn't about moving rightward," but rather a rejection of corruption and an assertion that "20 years is too long for one person to be president," he added. Jose Luis Choque, a 24-year-old accounting student, said Morales has been duly warned. "I think that if he wants to finish his term in peace he should understand that he needs to return to who he was when he became president, when he had ideals and was dear to the people for them and made us feel proud," he said. Early in his presidency, Morales crushed the right-wing opposition by championing Bolivia's long-downtrodden native majority. He expelled the DEA and a U.S. ambassador, thriving on anti-Yankee rhetoric. The coca-growers union leader also upset Washington drug warriors with a less violent coca-eradication program in the world's No. 3 producer of cocaine. But formidable opposition eventually emerged from inside his movement and it stung in March 2015 municipal and regional elections, when opposition mayors won in eight of Bolivia's 10 biggest cities. Political scientist Marcelo Silva of the Universidad Mayor de San Andres said infighting in the governing party over a successor could now weaken it even further. An unprecedented economic boom in which gross domestic product per capita rose by nearly a third during Morales' rule has now waned. Bolivia's revenues from natural gas and minerals, making up three-fourths of its exports, were down 32 percent last year. The vote's timing could not have been worse for Morales. An influence-peddling scandal that broke this month cost him dearly. A former girlfriend nearly half Morales' 56 years was named sales manager of a Chinese company in 2013 that has obtained nearly $500 million in mostly no-bid state contracts. Photos of her neoclassical mansion in a wealthy southern La Paz enclave spread online. Morales denied any impropriety and claimed he last saw the woman in 2007. But a picture of the two together last year emerged, casting doubts. The most harmful scandal plaguing the ruling elite was the skimming of millions from the government-managed Fondo Indigena, which runs agricultural and public works in the countryside. Judicial corruption has also been rampant, and freedom of expression suffered under Morales, with critical media and environmentalists complaining of harassment by an overbearing state. As Morales left the presidential palace on Wednesday, a small group of people booed him, shouting "Bolivia said 'No!" Minutes later, another group showed up to confront it, shouting, "Bolivia said Yes!" Police separated the two groups. ___ Associated Press writer Carlos Valdez reported this story in La Paz and AP writer Frank Bajak reported from Lima, Peru. AP writer Paola Flores in La Paz contributed. Bolivia's President Evo Morales arrives for a press conference at the government palace in La Paz, Bolivia, Wednesday Feb. 24, 2016. Bolivian voters have handed Evo Morales his first electoral defeat as president, rejecting by a slim margin a constitutional amendment that would have let him run for a fourth consecutive term in 2019. Morales in recognizing his defeat said "That he has lost a battle but not the war." (AP Photo/Juan Karita) Bolivia's President Evo Morales speaks during a press conference at the government palace in La Paz, Bolivia, Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. Bolivian voters have handed Evo Morales his first electoral defeat as president, rejecting by a slim margin a constitutional amendment that would have let him run for a fourth consecutive term in 2019. Morales in recognizing his defeat said "That he has lost a battle but not the war." (AP Photo/Juan Karita) Demonstrators shout slogans against Bolivian President Evo Morales, demanding he concede, while waiting for the official results of a constitutional referendum outside a vote counting center in La Paz, Bolivia, Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016. With 95 percent of the vote counted Tuesday, results showed 52 percent of voters rejecting Morales' bid to change the constitution so he can run for a fourth consecutive term in 2019. Morales said Monday he was not abandoning hope despite indications Bolivians had rejected the referendum by a slim margin. (AP Photo/Juan Karita) A demonstrator shout slogans against Bolivian President Evo Morales, demanding he concede, while waiting for the official results of a constitutional referendum outside a vote counting center in La Paz, Bolivia, Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016. With 95 percent of the vote counted Tuesday, results showed 52 percent of voters rejecting Morales' bid to change the constitution so he can run for a fourth consecutive term in 2019. Morales said Monday he was not abandoning hope despite indications Bolivians had rejected the referendum by a slim margin. (AP Photo/Juan Karita) Ruling raises objections to release of personal student data LOS ANGELES (AP) A recent federal court ruling ordering the release of personal data on more than 10 million California students highlights the growing amount of information schools now collect and the loopholes that allow it to be released. The order involves a lawsuit filed in 2011 in which plaintiffs are requesting data kept by the California Department of Education to determine whether the state is fulfilling its federal obligations for disabled students. Judge Kimberly Mueller issued the order in late January directing state officials to release student information stored in Department of Education databases. The data includes everything from grades, test scores and specialized education plans for disabled students to more personal information such as names, Social Security numbers, addresses, and health records. FILE - In this May 15, 2012 file photo, Ritter Elementary School elementary students practice their math skills in Los Angeles. A recent federal court ruling ordering the release of personal data on more than 10 million California students highlights the growing amount of information schools now collect, and the loopholes that allow it to be released. The order involves a lawsuit filed in 2011 in which plaintiffs are requesting data kept by the California Department of Education to determine whether the state is fulfilling its federal obligations for disabled students. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes, File) The data can only be viewed by the plaintiffs and must be destroyed or returned at the end of the lawsuit. Nonetheless, parents across the state are expressing concern and filing objections to stop their child's information from being released. "Some of the things they are asking for are very personal and can be very detrimental in the wrong hands," said Justine Fischer, president of the California State Parent Teacher Association. The federal Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act was created in 1974 to protect the privacy of student records, but it was written at a time when test scores and addresses were kept on paper and locked in a filing cabinet. The law also includes specific exemptions allowing student data to be released, including when mandated by court order. Schools now collect significantly more information on students a result of recent pushes to track and improve individual student performance using data, new federal reporting requirements, and apps and devices in classrooms. More than 35 states have passed bills in the past three years to protect student privacy, but updates to federal law have lagged. Most of the federal law's exemptions involve sharing information for educational purposes, such as when a student transfers schools or applies for financial aid. The law also allows schools, without a student's permission, to release data to organizations conducting studies and "directory" information like names and addresses. "The ability to collect information and store information and analyze it has greatly improved," said Matt Johnson, an associate with the Cooley firm in Washington, D.C. "There's a lot of good that can be done with that. But it can get to a point where you get past that and people can get uncomfortable. " As a result of the court order in California, three members of the state Assembly are drafting a bill that would prohibit school districts from gathering Social Security numbers and other sensitive information unless required by federal law. California already has one of the nation's more conservative student data privacy laws, which prohibits online services and apps from selling student information. "As a mom, I've seen my kids' schools over the years request Social Security numbers, medical information and other private information they don't need or have a right to," Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez, D-San Diego, said in a statement. Keric Ashley, a deputy superintendent with the California Department of Education, said 90 percent of the data the agency collects is to meet federal reporting requirements. Much of that data is required for statewide data systems created by the U.S. Department of Education a decade ago to capture student performance. Ashley said the number of people with access to student-level data is extremely limited. "I don't have access to it," he said. Parents who don't want their children's information shared as part of the court order can file an objection by April 1, though it remains unclear if that means their information will automatically be withheld. Both sides will appear before the judge again on Friday. Christine English, vice president of the California Concerned Parents Association, which is supporting the Morgan Hill parent group that filed the lawsuit, said plaintiffs have tried to get student data in an anonymous form but the state Department of Education has refused. She said the groups are not interested in personal information such as Social Security numbers. English said getting the datasets will help determine patterns such as whether African-American students are disproportionately placed in special education classes. The Department of Education denies systemic non-compliance with the Individuals with Disabilities Act. Jose Zambrano, 37, a father of two in Los Angeles, said he was surprised by the order and filed an objection in hope of preventing the court from releasing information on his daughter and son, ages 10 and 6. "We have our rights," he said. "And our kids have a right to their own privacy." ___ Follow Christine Armario on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/cearmario FILE - In this April 30, 2015 file photo, Leticia Fonseca, left, and her twin sister, Sylvia Fonseca, right, work in the computer lab at Cuyama Valley High School after taking the new Common Core-aligned standardized tests in New Cuyama, Calif. A recent federal court ruling ordering the release of personal data on more than 10 million California students highlights the growing amount of information schools now collect, and the loopholes that allow it to be released. The order involves a lawsuit filed in 2011 in which plaintiffs are requesting data kept by the California Department of Education to determine whether the state is fulfilling its federal obligations for disabled students. (AP Photo/Christine Armario, File) Religion news in brief IS gets millions in ransom for abducted Christians BEIRUT (AP) The Islamic State group has collected millions of dollars in ransom for a group of Assyrian Christians it kidnapped in Syria a year ago. That's according to Christian officials and an opposition group. The last of the 230 hostages are just being freed. The release ended a yearlong saga for the Christians many of them women and children during which families had no news from their loved ones. Republican presidential candidate, Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, speaks during a caucus night rally Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher) Younan Talia, of the Assyrian Democratic Organization, told The Associated Press that about 40 remaining captives were released early Monday and arrived in the northeastern town of Tal Tamr. He said the release came after mediation led by a top Assyrian priest in northern Syria. The extremists captured the Assyrians, members of an ancient Christian sect, last February after overrunning several communities. ___ Shakeup over Bible tweet LAS VEGAS (AP) Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz has asked his campaign spokesman to resign for tweeting a story that falsely alleged Marco Rubio insulted the Bible. Cruz told reporters in Las Vegas that he asked for Rick Tyler's resignation. The Texas senator says Tyler is "a good man" and deleted the tweet once he found it was false. But Cruz says the resignation was necessary because campaign standards were clear to all staffers. He said the tweet was wrong even if the story had been true. Cruz says he won't question the faith of another candidate. The shakeup came after Rubio questioned if there would be accountability for the incident. Rubio also said he wonders if the Cruz policy was "Go out and do anything you want and if you get caught we'll just apologize, but we'll keep doing it." ___ Georgia governor says changes in works on religious exemptions bill ATLANTA (AP) Georgia's governor says changes are coming to a bill allowing faith-based organizations to refuse service to gay couples without repercussion. Supporters say it's intended to prevent religious adoption agencies, schools and other organizations from losing licenses, state grants, or other government benefits for their religious beliefs about same-sex marriage. The state's business community continued to marshal opposition to the proposal, wary of the type of economic backlash Indiana experienced following 2015 passage of a broader "religious freedom" law. At an event touting the state's booming film and television industry, Gov. Nathan Deal said his office is working with legislative leaders and declined to say whether he supports the Senate-approved version. ___ Child sex abuse victims to hear cardinal's testimony in Rome BALLARAT, Australia (AP) Victims of clergy abuse have won permission to be present next week when Pope Francis's finance minister testifies from Rome to an Australian inquiry into child sex offenses within the Roman Catholic Church. Child abuse victims angry that Cardinal George Pell will not return to Australia to testify at the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse had requested that they be allowed to hear in person Pell's testimony by video conference. The head of the inquiry says the request was reasonable. A crowd funding website set up last week to raise $39,000 to send 15 abuse victims and their supporters to Rome had raised more than $144,000 so far. The excess money will be spent on mental health services at Pell's hometown of Ballarat. Pell, whom the pope placed in charge of the Vatican's finances in 2014, was to testify next Monday for a third time at the royal commission. He is accused of creating a victims' compensation program mainly to protect the church's assets and of using aggressive tactics to discourage victims' lawsuits, all while he was a bishop in Australia. He has denied any wrongdoing. ___ Polygamous leaders arrested in food stamp fraud SALT LAKE CITY (AP) Several top leaders from Warren Jeffs' polygamous sect have been arrested on federal accusations of food stamp fraud and money laundering marking one of the biggest blows to the group in years. Prosecutors say the sect based on the Utah-Arizona border diverted funds from Utah's nutrition assistance program for inappropriate use by its leaders. A total of 11 people were charged in the scheme, including Lyle Jeffs and Seth Jeffs, top-ranking leaders of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and brothers of imprisoned sect leader Warren Jeffs. Warren Jeffs is serving a life sentence in Texas for sexually assaulting his 12- and 15-year-old child brides at a secretive church compound in that state. A federal prosecutor says the case has nothing to do with religion, but fraud. University of Utah law professor Amos Guiora (gee-OH'-ruh), who has studied the church, says the government is sending a message that it "will not tolerate crimes committed in the name of religion." He says FLDS leaders carried out anti-government practice known as "bleed the beast." ___ Minnesota officer on leave over alleged Facebook posts ROCHESTER, Minn. (AP) A Minnesota police department has put an officer on leave while it investigates allegations he posted an image on his Facebook page of a car running over protesters and another that talked about shooting Muslims in the face. Rochester Police Chief Roger Peterson says officer Ben Schlag was put on paid administrative leave after the police department was contacted about the posts. The Post-Bulletin (http://bit.ly/1oy4tu2 ) reports a group called Me to We Racial Healing sent a letter to Peterson and Rochester Mayor Ardell Brede calling for an investigation of Schlag. That letter included screenshots of Facebook posts on Schlag's page. One image, posted Nov. 17, showed a car running over protesters and the words, "Nobody cares about your protest." ___ For some Republican voters, grudging acceptance of Trump MIDLOTHIAN, Virginia (AP) Sheila Covert is worried about Donald Trump. The loyal Republican voter from Virginia calls the businessman "bombastic" and says there's "just no substance" in his campaign rhetoric. But if Trump does become the Republican presidential nominee? "Well, I'd definitely vote for him," said the 81-year-old Covert. After a pause, she added, "But I hope and pray it doesn't come to that." FILE - In this Feb. 23, 2016 file photo, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks in Las Vegas. Legions of Republican voters are coming to grips with the idea that Donald Trump may be their partys best chance for retaking the White House. Some love the idea. For many others, theres shock, confusion and anxiousness, but also a feeling that hed be better than another four years with a Democrat in the White House. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File) Covert is part of a legion of skeptical Republican voters across the United States coming to terms with the prospect that Trump, a candidate whose appeal they simply can't understand, may become their party's best chance for retaking the White House. The real estate mogul has three commanding primary victories in a row, including Tuesday in Nevada, and enters next week's Super Tuesday elections in a strong position. Interviews with about two dozen frequent Republican voters in Virginia, one of several states with a primary next week, reveal the complex mix of emotions Trump evokes within his own party. Among those who don't plan to vote for Trump in the primary, there's shock, confusion and anxiousness over his candidacy. But there's also a grudging acceptance of the billionaire's political staying power and a feeling that despite his many flaws, he'd be better than another four years with a Democrat in the White House, particularly if that Democrat is Hillary Clinton. "He says things you cannot imagine a president saying," said Michael Glunt. But if Trump faces off against Clinton in November, the 42-year-old will cast his ballot for the Republican nominee. "Hillary Clinton, I don't trust her," Glunt said. Democratic officials are betting that Trump's over-the-top rhetoric, particularly about women and immigrants, will turn off independents and some Republicans in battleground states like Virginia. Some anxious Republican leaders share that concern, contributing to the rush of lawmakers and other party officials rallying around Florida Sen. Marco Rubio as an alternative. While some voters joke about moving to Canada if Trump becomes president, Nancy Bradner is looking at that possibility with some seriousness. A supporter of past Republican nominees including Mitt Romney and George W. Bush, she's now researching Canadian politics, as well as the country's health care system and housing market. "This is the first time in my 68 years that I have truly been scared of what is going to happen in this election," she said. Rubio pushed for land deal as he backed law limiting critics WASHINGTON (AP) Marco Rubio stood before Miami-Dade County officials in May 2002 and pushed them to permit a multimillion-dollar industrial development to be built on restricted land near the Florida Everglades. Two months earlier, Rubio a rising Republican star in the state Legislature backed a law that made it harder for people to challenge the kinds of developments he advocated for as a private attorney. Around the same period, Rubio also requested state money to be earmarked to benefit a flood-prone area around the development project. Those efforts by Rubio, now a U.S. senator and the leading establishment alternative to GOP presidential rivals Donald Trump and Ted Cruz, provide a glimpse into how he handled the intersection of his public role as a young lawmaker and his private representation of a company that stood to benefit from his political connections. In this image made from video, the sun sets near an industrial park next to the Florida Everglades, Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016, in Miami. Years before his Republican presidential bid, Marco Rubio pushed Miami-Dade County officials to allow a major industrial development to be built on restricted land near the Florida Everglades. That was two months after he backed a law as a member of the Florida Legislature that made it harder for people to challenge the kinds of developments he advocated for as a private attorney. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee) There's no evidence Rubio violated Florida ethics rules. But his seat in Tallahassee, the state capital, put him in the position of advocating before a county commission that relied on lawmakers like him to fight for state money. "I always had a problem when legislators would lobby at the county commission, because you always felt like if you didn't vote their way, does this mean we'll lose funds in Tallahassee?" said Katy Sorenson, a former county commissioner and Democrat. The commission approved the application for the plan near the Everglades, though Sorenson voted against it because it would have required moving the so-called urban development boundary, an important safeguard that protected agriculture and the local water supply. That boundary was established in the 1970s, and the county considers periodic requests to move it. Todd Harris, a senior adviser for Rubio's presidential campaign, told The Associated Press on Wednesday that Rubio never lobbied in the traditional sense because that was illegal under state law. But Harris said the part-time nature of Florida's Legislature meant that "virtually every legislator makes their living from outside employment." "Marco did not gain personally from this, or any other, vote because his compensation was not tied to any other specific project," Harris wrote in response to detailed questions from the AP, noting the law firm Rubio worked for was paid a standard retainer for its work. Rubio's 2002 request to the county involved Pan American, a Miami company owned by well-known real estate developer Carlos C. Lopez-Cantera. He wanted to build a project then known as Shoppyland west of the city, but environmental critics said it was too close to an important water source. Lopez-Cantera did not respond to detailed phone messages left with his staff at Pan American's offices on Monday and Tuesday. His son, Carlos, is Florida's lieutenant governor, among Rubio's closest political allies and running for Rubio's seat in the U.S. Senate. Rubio's campaign told the AP the younger Lopez-Cantera worked for his father's company and recommended hiring Rubio to do the legal work "because of his experience in land use and zoning." At the time, Rubio was a young lawyer earning $96,000 a year at the politically connected firm Becker & Poliakoff. He asked county commissioners on May 30, 2002, to consider the Shoppyland proposal while mentioning his legislative responsibilities which had required the commission to reschedule the hearing. "I do want to begin by thanking you for your continuance the last time I was before you," Rubio said, according to archived recordings of county meetings obtained by The Associated Press. "When I signed up for the job of the Legislature, they told me it was part-time, but it hasn't worked out that way." Rubio's opponent during his 2010 U.S. Senate run raised his Miami lobbying registration. Rubio's campaign then acknowledged he registered as a lobbyist in a non-traditional sense to work on county issues, mostly local zoning matters. But they said in a statement at the time that he "never met with elected officials to influence them on behalf of clients." At the May 2002 meeting, Rubio won approval of the application right after commissioners green-lit a nearby development known as Beacon Lakes. That project was pushed by Armando Codina, the former business partner of then-Gov. Jeb Bush, who recently dropped out of the 2016 GOP presidential race. Both projects had required the commission to move the development boundary and provoked opposition from environmental groups. A Sierra Club representative argued to commissioners that the business park would cost taxpayers money and threaten the water supply of more than 1 million people. Before voting against Rubio's proposal, commissioner Dennis Moss also noted the presence of Florida's political heavyweights at the hearing. "There are a lot of state and ex-state folks around here these days," Moss said. "I'm not going to say anything further," he deadpanned. Years later, Moss, currently a Democrat, gave $250 in March 2009 to the campaign of Kendrick Meek, who ran unsuccessfully against Rubio in the 2010 U.S. Senate campaign. Land use and zoning laws were Rubio's specialties, his firm's website once stated. It also touted Rubio's role in Tallahassee as House majority whip. While in that leadership role in March 2002, Rubio was one of 73 co-sponsors of a bill that sought to fund cleanup efforts in the Everglades. The bill included language that limited who could challenge development projects based on their environmental impact. Certain nonprofits that might want to object also had to be in existence for a year and have at least 25 of members from the county, the bill said. The bill's supporters, meanwhile, said it still allowed challenges from citizens if a project affected their "use or enjoyment of air, water, or natural resources." But opponents like the Sierra Club had told the AP the legislation could leave them vulnerable to interpretations by the courts. A month after voting for the bill, Rubio registered with Miami-Dade County as a lobbyist for Pan American on the development. It was the seventh time Rubio registered as a lobbyist with the county. Further details of his efforts recorded in government documents were destroyed in 2007, a normal practice under county policy. In January 2002, he requested an earmark for $750,000 in state funds for an early phase of a flood mitigation project in an 83-square-mile area called the C-4 basin, documents show. Except for a small portion of land around Miami's airport an area that generally doesn't suffer flooding problems most of the C-4 basin was outside of Rubio's district at the time, according to an AP mapping analysis. The business park was near both the center of the basin and canals important to the improvement plan. After the boundary changes and Pan American's sale of a portion of the property for $23 million in 2008, the land has since transformed into an industrial park with a Goya Foods Inc. operation and commercial warehouses. "When I was at the county, we knew that he was influencing the process, that he was in the mix," said Cynthia Guerra, a former Miami-Dade environmental official who opposed development boundary expansions as head of the Tropical Audubon Society. She said, "We never really appreciated the unwelcome influence of the state Legislature." ___ Associated Press writers Curt Anderson and David Fischer in Miami contributed to this report. ___ Follow on Twitter: Chad Day at https://twitter.com/chadsday and Jack Gillum at https://twitter.com/jackgillum In this image made from video, an industrial park, including a Goya food building, left, is seen across from a canal near the the Florida Everglades, Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016, in Miami. Years before his Republican presidential bid, Marco Rubio pushed Miami-Dade County officials to allow a major industrial development to be built on restricted land near the Florida Everglades. That was two months after he backed a law as a member of the Florida Legislature that made it harder for people to challenge the kinds of developments he advocated for as a private attorney. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee) This frame grab made from standard definition video from a Miami-Dade County Commission meeting on May 30, 2002, shows Marco Rubio, left, pushing for approval of a development project backed by Carlos C. Lopez-Cantera, seated at right. Rubio was in the Florida House Republican leadership at the time. Years before his Republican presidential bid, Rubio pushed Miami-Dade County officials to allow a major industrial development to be built on restricted land near the Florida Everglades. That was two months after he backed a law as a member of the Florida Legislature that made it harder for people to challenge the kinds of developments he advocated for as a private attorney. (Miami-Dade Board of County Commissioners via AP) In this image made from video, cars exit the parking lot of a Goya food building in an industrial park near the the Florida Everglades, Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016, in Miami. Years before his Republican presidential bid, Marco Rubio pushed Miami-Dade County officials to allow a major industrial development to be built on restricted land near the Florida Everglades. That was two months after he backed a law as a member of the Florida Legislature that made it harder for people to challenge the kinds of developments he advocated for as a private attorney. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee) Senators reach tentative deal on Flint water crisis aid WASHINGTON (AP) Senators from both parties reached a tentative deal Wednesday to address a water crisis in Flint, Michigan, and allow a long-stalled energy bill to move forward. A proposal by Sens. Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., James Inhofe, R-Okla., would authorize $100 million in emergency aid to fix and replace the city's lead-contaminated pipes, as well as $70 million in loans to improve its water infrastructure. The deal also authorizes $50 million nationwide to bolster lead-prevention programs and improve children's health. Stabenow and Inhofe declined to comment Wednesday, but Texas Sen. John Cornyn, the No. 2 Republican in the Senate, said a deal was being finalized. A copy of the Stabenow-Inhofe proposal was being circulated Wednesday at the Capitol. Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder addresses the media, Thursday, Feb. 18, 2016, in Flint, Mich. The Michigan House approved $30 million on Thursday to help pay Flint residents water bills in the aftermath of the citys lead-contamination crisis. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio) The apparent agreement follows weeks of negotiations on how to provide emergency aid to Flint, where drinking water became tainted when the city switched from the Detroit water system and began drawing from the Flint River in 2014 to save money. Water was not properly treated, and lead from aging pipes leached into the supply. Stabenow and Sen. Gary Peters, D-Mich., proposed a $600 million aid package for Flint last month, but Cornyn and other Republicans said it was too early to provide funds. The impasse over Flint has blocked a bipartisan energy bill that had been moving forward in the Senate. The bill, the first comprehensive energy legislation in nearly a decade, promotes a wide range of energy, from renewables such as solar and wind power to natural gas and hydropower. The legislation also would speed federal approval of projects to export liquefied natural gas to Europe and Asia and boost energy efficiency. Under the tentative agreement, the Senate would vote on the energy bill before taking up the Flint legislation as a separate bill. An agreement would resolve for now an increasingly partisan response to the water crisis in Flint, as Democrats press for swift help for a majority African-American city of 100,000 and point to the past, rapid response of Republicans to natural disasters in Texas and Florida. Democrats blame Michigan's Republican governor, Rick Snyder, and other state officials for a cost-cutting move that resulted in a public health emergency caused by lead-contaminated water. Flint was under state control when water supply was switched. Republicans have acknowledged state errors, but also have pointed to a slow response by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. "Embrace of the Serpent", an Amazonian sight at the Oscars LOS ANGELES (AP) In a scene from "Embrace of the Serpent," a native Amazonian called Karamakate tells the white explorer he's forging through the jungle to feel his surroundings with all of his senses. He scolds him after the explorer begins to check out his map and stops listening to a classical tune about the creation of the world played on an old portable turntable. "What do you see? The world is like this, huge. But you choose to see just this," the shaman tells him after snatching the map away from his hands and tossing it into the river. "The world speaks ... Hear the song of your ancestors. This is the way you are looking for. Listen for real. Not only with your ears." That cosmic vision of the Amazon world is shown through the natives' eyes in this movie nominated for a best foreign film Oscar. FILE - In this Jan. 14, 2016 file photo, Colombian director Ciro Guerra, a first-time Oscar finalist, stands in front of a movie poster featuring Antonio Bolivar Salvador as old Karamakate during promotion of his film, "Embrace of the Serpent," at a press conference in Bogota, Colombia, "Embrace of the Serpent" is among five nominees competing for the best foreign-language film at the 88th Academy Awards to be presented Feb. 28, 2016 in Los Angeles. Shot in black and white the movie tells the story of the relationship between an Amazonian shaman and two scientists who work together to search the Amazon for a sacred healing plant. (AP Photo/Santiago Cortez, File) "It's an experience that forces you to face yourself deeply. It brings you face to face with the concepts you have about the world, about life and the relationship you have with yourself and others," said director Ciro Guerra in a recent interview conducted in Spanish. It's the first time that a movie from Colombia is competing for an Academy Award. In 2005, the South American country celebrated the nod to Colombian actress Catalina Sandino for her leading role in "Maria Full of Grace," but it was largely a U.S. production. At Sunday night's awards, Guerra's film will compete with "Mustang" (France), "Theeb" (Jordan), "A War" (Denmark), and "Son of Saul" (Hungary), which is considered the favorite. Regardless of the results, the nomination has opened doors to the movie, which was re-released in Colombia and has been shown in Asian and European countries and now in the United States, with English subtitles. The nomination is also opening doors for Guerra, who has signed to direct the English-language dystopian adventure "The Detainee," described as a "Hunger Games" for adults. "It's been a big surprise to us. We thought the movie with Amazonian languages would not appeal to the Academy but the film has appealed to so many people around the world. It keeps surprising us. It's a big honor," Guerra said of the nomination. "Embrace of the Serpent" tells the story through Karamakate, the last survivor of his tribe, who as a young man, led a German explorer through the Colombian jungle and four decades later, in the twilight of his life, does the same for an American explorer. Inspired by the diaries of the first explorers of the Colombian Amazon German ethnologist Theodor Koch-Grunberg and American biologist Richard Evan Schultes the film shows the philosophical contrast between the Western world and the native's concept of harmony. "Indigenous knowledge has a different way of understanding everything and makes you see that the concepts of the world that we believe are fixed are not. That's what we wanted to convey to the audience, so they can envision a world where it's possible to live in a different way," he said. Guerra, 35, said he chose to do the film from the natives' perspective because the story of the jungle had only been told in cinema through the eyes of foreigners. For instance, one of the classics about the Amazon, Werner Herzog's "Fitzcarraldo" (1982), has a white leading actor, Klaus Kinski. This gave the project freshness and originality, Guerra said. "Then it was a very difficult process for me because this movie demanded that I stopped seeing the world, and understanding storytelling, the same way. To transport the viewers to this different frame of mind, I would have to do it myself," he added. "Embrace of the Serpent" was filmed in black and white, which gives the Amazon a peaceful and timeless feel without diminishing its grandeur. It is mostly spoken in native languages and also includes some ___ Follow E.J. Tamara on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/EJTamara FILE - In this Feb. 8, 2016 file photo, Colombian filmmaker Ciro Guerra poses for a portrait at the 88th Academy Awards Nominees Luncheon at The Beverly Hilton hotel in Beverly Hills, Calif. Guerra's film, "Embrace of the Serpent" is nominated for an Academy Award for best foreign language film. The Oscars will be presented on Sunday, Feb. 28, 2016, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP, File) This image provided by courtesy of Oscilloscope Laboratories shows Antonio Bolivar Salvador, center, as old Karamakate, and Brionne Davis as the young explorer Evan in a scene from the film, "Embrace the Serpent," directed by Ciro Guerra. The Colombian movie is nominated for an Academy Award for best foreign language film. The Oscars will be presented on Sunday, Feb. 28, 2016, in Los Angeles. (Andres Barrientos/Oscilloscope Laboratories via AP) With choice words, US commander criticizes China WASHINGTON (AP) The commander of U.S. forces in the Pacific has delivered some choice put-downs of China as tensions rise over Beijing's build-up in the disputed South China Sea. While U.S. and Chinese diplomats tend to cushion their barbs over who is to blame for militarizing the region, there was little mistaking the meaning of Adm. Harry Harris, Jr., when he testified to Congress this week. On Wednesday before a House panel, he described Chinese militarization as being "as certain as a traffic jam" in Washington D.C. On Tuesday, he told senators that to believe otherwise, "you have to believe in a flat Earth." FILE - In this Sept. 17, 2015 file photo, Adm. Harry Harris, Jr., US Navy Commander, U.S. Pacific Command, testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington. Harris delivered some choice put-downs of China as tensions rise over Beijings build-up in the disputed South China Sea. On Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016, before a House panel, he described Chinese militarization as being as certain as a traffic jam. (AP Photo/Cliff Owen, File) He has also dismissed as "tone deaf" the Chinese government official who had compared China's deployment of defense facilities on land features in the South China Sea to what the U.S. does in undisputed Hawaii. China has reclaimed more than 3,000 acres of land and installed airstrips, radar and other facilities on land features in the South China Sea as it looks to assert what it contends is its historical right to sovereignty over most of those waters. Five other Asian governments have territorial claims there. Harris told lawmakers that China is changing the operational landscape of the South China Sea and seeks "hegemony" of East Asia. He also said it was "preposterous" that China would try to "wedge itself" between South Korea and the U.S. to oppose the potential deployment of a defensive missile defense system against North Korea. Critics say the system's radar range could extend into China. Harris' comments would have ruffled Chinese feathers, coming hours before Beijing's top diplomat met Tuesday with Secretary of State John Kerry in Washington, where the two sides publicly aired their differences, but it less stark terms. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said Beijing had shown restraint in the South China Sea. He implied that other nations, including the United States, were to blame for militarization, but said both China and the U.S. hope to maintain peace and stability there. Experts to probe death of Chilean poet Pablo Neruda SANTIAGO, Chile (AP) An international team of genomics experts and forensic specialists said Wednesday it will study the remains of Nobel Prize-winning poet Pablo Neruda to try to solve the cause of his death. The leftist poet died in the chaos following Chile's 1973 military coup led by Gen. Augusto Pinochet. Some people have speculated he was poisoned by agents of the right-wing dictatorship. Neruda's body was exhumed in 2013, but tests showed no toxic agents in his bones. Even so, Chile's government said in 2015 that "it's clearly possible and highly probable that a third party" was involved in his death, although it warned that more tests needed to be carried out. FILE - In this Oct. 21, 1971 file photo, Nobel Prize winning poet Pablo Neruda appears in Paris. I was announced Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016, that an international team of genomics experts and forensic investigators will investigate the remains of the Nobel Prize-winning poet. Neruda died in the chaos following Chile's 1973 military coup, and his body was exhumed in 2013 to determine the cause of his death, which some people speculated was from poisoning. (AP Photo/Michel Lipchitz, File) The remains of Neruda's bones and teeth will be analyzed by a lab at Canada's McMaster University's Ancient DNA Center and the University of Copenhagen's Department of Forensic Medicine. The panel of experts will focus on identifying pathogenic bacteria that might have caused Neruda's death. The researchers say they will use techniques to "extract, purify and enrich fragments of the bacterial DNA," which they hope will yield genomic data that will help solve the nearly 43-year old mystery surrounding his death. "The search for the truth of the death of the poet, Pablo Neruda, is a forensic challenge. We hope that the work of the Chilean Human Rights Program and the scientists will contribute to the reconciliation between the various groups in Chile," forensic geneticist Niels Morling, director of the Department of Forensic Medicine at the University of Copenhagen, said in a statement. Neruda was best known for his love poems. But he was also a Communist Party politician and friend of Marxist President Salvador Allende, who killed himself rather than surrender to troops during the Sept. 11, 1973, coup led Pinochet. Neruda, who was 69 and had prostate cancer, was traumatized by the coup and the persecution and killing of his friends. He planned to go into exile, where he would have been an influential voice against the dictatorship. But a day before his planned departure, he was taken by ambulance to a clinic in Santiago where he had been treated for cancer and other ailments. Neruda officially died there Sept. 23 from natural causes. But suspicions that the dictatorship had a hand in the death remained long after Chile returned to democracy in 1990. Although the tests carried out after the exhumation of Neruda's remains showed no signs that he was poisoned, his family and driver demanded further investigation. The judge investigating the case has asked for testing for substances that were not looked for in the first round of tests. __ Kerry advises against hitting Iran with more sanctions now WASHINGTON (AP) Secretary of State John Kerry told lawmakers Wednesday that slapping Iran with additional sanctions right now would not be helpful. In testimony before a Senate panel, Kerry advised waiting to see how the landmark nuclear deal proceeds before making a decision on imposing additional measures to punish Tehran for belligerent behavior. Lawmakers are considering legislation that would address Iran's ballistic missile tests, human rights violations and a reauthorization of the Iran Sanctions Act, which expires at the end of the year. Republicans are especially incensed over Iran's detention of U.S. sailors in January. But Kerry counseled a go-slow approach. "I don't think there's a need to rush here," he told members of the Senate appropriations state and foreign operations subcommittee. "I'd like to see how the implementation goes so we can do whatever we're doing advised by that process." Director of National Intelligence James R. Clapper told lawmakers during testimony earlier this month that since 2010 Iran has fired about 140 missiles in violation of a U.N. resolution. About half of the launches occurred during negotiations over the nuclear deal. The two most recent firings took place last fall, according to Clapper, who said Iranian officials were sending a message "that they are still going to continue to develop what is already a very robust missile force." The Obama administration imposed new sanctions against 11 individuals and entities involved in Iran's ballistic missile program a day after the nuclear deal went into effect. But Republicans derided the new sanctions as weak and have urged a more forceful response. "I have a list a mile long," said Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., the subcommittee's chairman. Kerry cited the nuclear deal with Iran as key to the speedy release of the 10 American sailors apprehended in Iranian waters. "If we hadn't done this agreement and I didn't have a relationship with (Iran's) foreign minister, then they probably would have been hostages and they might still be there," Kerry said of the sailors. Graham shot back that if Barack Obama were not president, the Iranians wouldn't have dared detain the sailors. "I'm really tired of this, being walked all over," he said. ___ Lockdown: Apple could make it even tougher to hack Phones SAN FRANCISCO (AP) Suppose the FBI wins its court battle and forces Apple to help unlock an iPhone used by one of the San Bernardino killers. That could open all iPhones up to potential government scrutiny but it's not the end of the story. Turns out there's a fair bit both individuals and Apple could do to FBI-proof their phones and shield private information from investigators and cybercriminals alike. Those measures include multiple passcodes and longer, more complex ones. Of course, increased security typically comes at the expense of convenience. Most efforts to improve phone security would make the devices harder to use, perhaps by requiring you to remember more passwords. Protesters carry placards outside an Apple store Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016, in Boston. Demonstrators are expected to gather in a number of cities Tuesday to protest the FBI obtaining a court order that requires Apple to make it easier to unlock an encrypted iPhone used by a gunman in December's shooting in San Bernardino, Calif. (AP Photo/Steven Senne) Making it more difficult for law enforcement to crack open iPhones could also spur legal restrictions on phone security, something that neither Apple nor other technology companies want to see. "They are walking a tightrope," says Mark Bartholomew, a law professor at the State University of New York at Buffalo who specializes in privacy and encryption issues. Requiring longer passcodes might annoy most Apple users, he says, while boosting phone security "sort of amplifies the whole argument that Apple is making things too difficult and frustrating law enforcement officials." Apple had no comment on any future security measures. In a recent letter to customers, it noted that it has routinely built "progressively stronger protections" into its products because "cyberattacks have only become more frequent and more sophisticated." In the current fight, the FBI aims to make Apple help it guess the passcode on the work phone used by Syed Farook before he and his wife killed 14 people at an office party in December. The FBI wants Apple to create special software to disable security features that, among other things, render the iPhone unreadable after 10 incorrect guesses. Apple has resisted, maintaining that software that opens a single iPhone could be exploited to hack into millions of other devices. The government insists that its precautions would prevent that, though security experts are doubtful. Should the FBI prevail, it would take computers less than a day to guess a six-digit passcode consisting solely of numbers, the default type of passcode in the latest version of the iPhone operating system. Even with security features disabled, each passcode guess takes 80 milliseconds to process, limiting the FBI to 12.5 guesses per second. For security-conscious individuals, the simplest protective move would be to use a passcode consisting of letters and numbers. Doing so would vastly increase the amount of time required to guess even short passcodes. Apple estimates it would take more than five years to try all combinations of a six-character passcode with numbers and lowercase letters. Adding capital letters to the mix would extend that further. Changing to an alphanumeric code is as simple as going into the phone settings and choosing "Touch ID & Passcode," then "Passcode options." Another option is simply to pick a much longer numeric code. An 11-character code consisting of randomly selected numbers that means no references to birthdays or anniversaries that could be easily guessed could take as long as 253 years to unlock. But longer, more complex codes are harder to remember, and that's probably why Apple hasn't yet required their use. It could, however, easily do so. In fact, iPhones moved to six-digit passcodes from four last September. Apple may have other tricks up its sleeve. For instance, the company could add additional layers of authentication that would thwart the security-bypassing software the FBI wants it to make, says computer security expert Jonathan Zdziarski. Apple phones rely on a feature known as the "secure enclave" to manage all passcode operations. The software demanded by the FBI would alter the secure enclave, Zdziarski says. But the software couldn't do so if the secure enclave required the user passcode to approve any such changes. "This is probably the best way to lock down a device," Zdziarski says. Apple could also require a second passcode whenever the phone boots up; without it, the phone wouldn't run any software, including the tool the FBI is requesting. "It would be like putting a steel door on the phone," Zdziarski says. Currently, iPhones automatically load the operating system before asking for a passcode. For now, Apple CEO Tim Cook is focusing on winning the current battle with the FBI in a Southern California federal court while also trying to sway public opinion in the company's favor. The skirmish could go all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court. In the meantime, Apple is probably already working on security improvements for the next version of the iPhone operating system that it will probably announce in June and release in September. A man holds out his iPhone during a rally in support of data privacy outside the Apple store Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016, in San Francisco. Protesters assembled in more than 30 cities to lash out at the FBI for obtaining a court order that requires Apple to make it easier to unlock an encrypted iPhone used by a gunman in December's mass murders in California. (AP Photo/Eric Risberg) A New York police officer stands outside the Apple Store on Fifth Avenue while monitoring a demonstration, Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016, in New York. Protesters assembled in more than 30 cities around the world to lash out at the FBI for obtaining a court order that requires Apple to make it easier to unlock an encrypted iPhone used by a gunman in December's mass murders in California. (AP Photo/Julie Jacobson) White House considers Nevada Gov. Sandoval for Supreme Court WASHINGTON (AP) The White House is considering Republican Gov. Brian Sandoval of Nevada as a possible nominee to the Supreme Court, two people familiar with the process said Wednesday. The nomination of a Republican would be seen as an attempt by President Barack Obama to break the Senate GOP blockade of any of his choices. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., has said his 54-member GOP caucus is opposed to holding confirmation hearings or vote on Obama's pick, insisting that the choice rests with the next president. The officials declined to be named because they weren't authorized to speak publicly. FILE - In this Feb. 20, 2016 file photo, Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval participates in the National Governors Association Winter Meeting in Washington. Two people familiar with the process say the White House is considering Sandoval as one of several potential nominees to the Supreme Court. (AP Photo/Cliff Owen, File) Mari St. Martin, Sandoval's communications director, said Wednesday that the governor hasn't been contacted by the White House. "Neither Gov. Sandoval nor his staff has been contacted by or talked to the Obama administration regarding any potential vetting for the vacancy on the U.S. Supreme Court," she said. Sandoval met with Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid on Monday in Washington while he was in town for a meeting of the National Governors Association. At the governors' meeting over the weekend, Sandoval said he was honored his name was mentioned as a potential successor for the late Justice Antonin Scalia, but had heard nothing to think the Democratic president is considering him. Before Sandoval, 52, became the state's first Hispanic governor, he was the state's first Hispanic federal judge. He supports abortion rights, a position that might assuage some Democrats nervous about the nomination of a Republican. But liberal groups swiftly came out against the idea. "Nominating Sandoval to the Supreme Court would not only prevent grassroots organizations like Democracy for America from supporting the president in this nomination fight, it could lead us to actively encouraging Senate Democrats to oppose his appointment," said Democracy for America. Limited to two terms, Sandoval's final term as governor expires in early 2019. He announced last year that he would not seek the seat of retiring Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., the Senate minority leader, in this November's election, a race in which Sandoval would have been a strong favorite. "My heart is here. My heart is in my job," Sandoval said at the time. Sandoval's consideration immediately reverberated in the Nevada Senate race, where candidates are vying to replace Reid, who is retiring. Democratic Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto urged her Republican competitors to call for hearings if Sandoval is the pick. "Voting on nominees is part of the job of being a senator, and if politicians in Washington have a problem with that they should find a new line of work," she said. In Washington, few GOP senators have shown any willingness to buck party leaders and consider an Obama nominee. Before McConnell announced his party's position, Nevada Sen. Dean Heller, a Republican, said Nevadans should have a voice in approving a selection which his aides said meant the next president, not Obama, should fill the vacancy. Heller's written statement concluded, "But should he decide to nominate someone to the Supreme Court, who knows, maybe it'll be a Nevadan." McConnell spokesman Don Stewart said Wednesday that the leader's office is working with the White House to schedule a meeting with the president, but noted that his position wasn't likely to change much. White House spokesman Josh Earnest said the president is also hoping to meet with Senate Judiciary Chairman Charles Grassley of Iowa. Sandoval's consideration was first reported by The Washington Post. ___ Milestone LNG export shipment set to leave US for Brazil NEW ORLEANS (AP) The first international shipment of liquefied natural gas in decades from the Lower 48 states is poised to leave for Brazil from Louisiana. Cheniere Energy Partners L.P. announced Wednesday that a ship bound for Brazil was being loaded with LNG at its Sabine Pass facility in southwest Louisiana. The shipment is significant because it highlights the strength of U.S. natural gas production, which has surged because of advancements in fracking and shale gas extraction. Cheniere is among several companies developing natural gas exporting facilities. In statements, the company characterized the shipment as a "historic event" opening "a new chapter for the country in energy trade." Still, it's far from clear if the market for exports will be robust now that international natural gas prices have been dragged down by low oil prices. "The milestone of delivering the first cargo is a nice PR milestone, but it doesn't mean very much in the grand scheme of things in terms of the business," said Pavel Molchanov, an energy market analyst with Raymond James & Associates. "What will ultimately matter for the business is what is the pace at which the Sabine Pass is ramping up operations." The Houston-based company did not immediately reply to questions about how much it expects to ship out this year. Molchanov said the outlook for natural gas exports was uncertain. "Look, the economics of the LNG market leave much to be desired," he said. Eric Smith, the associate director of Tulane University's Energy Institute, said he expects the Cheniere facility to be a success because it has long-term contracts for more shipments and U.S. natural gas production remains strong. "We have all the natural gas that we need or want," he said. "There's plenty of gas in the ground." Smith said LNG has been shipped from Alaska to Japan since 1969. In the Lower 48 states, he said natural gas was exported in the 1950s. Natural gas production has surged in recent years and led to the possibility of exports. Texas court tosses criminal case against former Gov. Perry AUSTIN, Texas (AP) The felony prosecution of former Texas Gov. Rick Perry ended Wednesday when the state's highest criminal court dismissed an abuse-of-power indictment that the Republican says hampered his short-lived 2016 presidential bid. The 6-2 decision by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, which is dominated by elected Republican judges, frees Perry from a long-running criminal case that blemished the exit of one of the most powerful Texas governors in history and hung over his second failed run for the White House. A grand jury in liberal Austin had indicted Perry in 2014 for vetoing funding for a public corruption unit that Republicans have long accused of wielding a partisan ax. The unit worked under Travis County District Attorney Rosemary Lehmberg, an elected Democrat. Perry wanted her to resign after she was convicted of drunken driving. Former Texas Gov. Rick Perry speaks during a news conference Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016, in Austin, Texas. The felony prosecution against Perry ended Wednesday when the state's highest criminal court dismissed an abuse-of-power indictment that the Republican says hampered his short-lived 2016 presidential bid. (AP Photo/Eric Gay) Perry was accused of using his veto power to threaten a public official and overstepping his authority, but the judges ruled that courts can't undermine the veto power of a governor. "Come at the king, you best not miss," Republican Judge David Newell wrote in his concurring opinion, quoting a popular line from the HBO series "The Wire." Perry has been campaigning for Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz since becoming the first major GOP candidate to drop out of the race last year. He conceded to reporters in Austin on Wednesday that the indictments hurt his candidacy but didn't dwell on the impact, and said he would veto the same funding again if given the chance. "I've always known the actions I took were not only lawful and legal, they were right," said Perry, who spoke at the headquarters of an influential Texas conservative think tank, which has previously christened its balcony overlooking downtown as the "Gov. Rick Perry Liberty Balcony." The court said veto power can't be restricted by the courts and the prosecution of a veto "violates separations of powers." A lower appeals court had dismissed the other charge, coercion by a public servant, in July. Perry had rebuked the charges as a partisan attack from the start, calling it a "political witch hunt," but the dismissal brought accusations of Republican judges doing a favor for a party stalwart. Texans for Public Justice, a left-leaning watchdog group that filed the original criminal complaint that led to the indictment, said Perry was handed a "gift" based on his stature. Even a Republican judge who dissented in the ruling said the decision could leave the public with an uneasy perception that the system went out of its way to clear a famous politician with deep connections. "The constant references to 'Governor Perry' could well be seen by the public as an inference that appellant's position in life entitles him to special privileges and special treatment by this court that others might be denied," wrote Republican Judge Cheryl Johnson, referring to how judges addressed Perry during deliberations. Perry, the longest-serving governor in Texas history, made just one court appearance in the case and was defiant from the start he went out for ice cream after turning himself in for booking at an Austin jail, and smiled wide for his mug shot. Legal scholars across the political spectrum raised objections about the case. Still, the Republican judge overseeing it repeatedly refused to throw it out on constitutional grounds, prompting Perry's appeals. Michael McCrum, the special prosecutor who secured Perry's indictment, maintained that the matter was built on evidence not politics and deserved to go to trial. He can appeal, but that would be a lengthy process. Combined, the original charges carried a potential maximum of 109 years in prison. Despite his legal problems, Perry had formally announced he was running for president in June, hoping to convince GOP primary voters he deserved another chance after his 2012 bid was undone by a series of public gaffes. But his second campaign lasted barely three months, and he dropped out of the race in September. The former governor spent more than $2 million on top defense lawyers. His latest White House campaign raised barely half that much in its first month, and Perry blamed the indictment for his sluggish fundraising. But polls showed he was badly trailing despite visits to Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina. He was the first candidate to leave a GOP field jammed with 17 presidential hopefuls at the time. ___ Associated Press writers Will Weissert and Jim Vertuno in Austin contributed to this report. Former Texas Gov. Rick Perry speaks during a news conference Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016, in Austin, Texas. The felony prosecution against Perry ended Wednesday when the state's highest criminal court dismissed an abuse-of-power indictment that the Republican says hampered his short-lived 2016 presidential bid. (AP Photo/Eric Gay) Former Texas Gov. Rick Perry speaks during a news conference Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016, in Austin, Texas. The felony prosecution against Perry ended Wednesday when the state's highest criminal court dismissed an abuse-of-power indictment that the Republican says hampered his short-lived 2016 presidential bid. (AP Photo/Eric Gay) Former Texas Gov. Rick Perry arrives for a news conference Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016, in Austin, Texas. The felony prosecution against Perry ended Wednesday when the state's highest criminal court dismissed an abuse-of-power indictment that the Republican says hampered his short-lived 2016 presidential bid. (AP Photo/Eric Gay) Former Texas Gov. Rick Perry speaks during a news conference Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016, in Austin, Texas. The felony prosecution against Perry ended Wednesday when the state's highest criminal court dismissed an abuse-of-power indictment that the Republican says hampered his short-lived 2016 presidential bid. (AP Photo/Eric Gay) Indianapolis man convicted of murder in home explosion FORT WAYNE, Ind. (AP) An Indianapolis man was convicted of murder, arson and insurance fraud on Wednesday for his role in a 2012 house explosion that killed two neighbors and devastated a subdivision in the southern part of the city. A northern Indiana jury found Bob Leonard, 57, guilty on all 51 counts he faced. Prosecutors said surveillance video, witness testimony and DNA evidence proved he was involved in the plot with his half brother and others to use natural gas and a microwave to blow up the house for $300,000 in insurance. The judge later ruled that aggravating factors were sufficient for Leonard to face a maximum sentence of life in prison without parole. His sentencing hearing is set for March 18. FILE - In this July 10, 2013 file photo, Bob Leonard walks to a pretrial hearing in Indianapolis. On Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016, jurors convicted Leonard of murder, arson and insurance fraud for his role in a 2012 house explosion that killed two neighbors and devastated a subdivision in the southern part of the city. He was convicted on all of the more than 50 counts he was facing. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings, File) "It closes one more piece in the tragedy. It helps with putting the nightmare behind us some," said John Longworth, whose son and daughter-in-law lived next door and were killed in the explosion. Longworth said he was pleased Leonard wouldn't be able to hurt anyone else. He said the verdict was a relief, but "there's nothing for us to be happy about. It's all sad." Defense attorney Ted Minch said the "enormity" of the explosion and the case against his client had been a concern. "I think what we were always concerned about, and we tried to tell the jury this, that it's just the enormity of the case. And can you get beyond the enormity of the case, the amount of destruction, the death, the description that you hear it's like a war zone? That was always our concern, and I don't think we were ever able to overcome that," Minch told reporters. The verdict came seven months after Leonard's half brother, Mark Leonard, was convicted of being the mastermind behind the Nov. 10, 2012, explosion that also damaged or destroyed more than 80 homes. He was sentenced in August to two life sentences, along with 75 years in prison. The home was owned by his girlfriend at the time, Monserrate Shirley, who testified earlier this month that Bob Leonard was brought into the plot after a first attempt to burn down her house failed in October 2012. Prosecutors allege the suspects planned to destroy the house by filling it with natural gas. A microwave apparently set to start on a timer sparked the blast. The explosion destroyed the home and the house next door, killing Jennifer and John "Dion" Longworth. Shirley told jurors that when she asked Bob Leonard about the explosion that killed her next-door neighbors, he replied: "Oh, well, they died. You were in it. You talk, we talk." Prosecutors presented 16 days of testimony during Bob Leonard's more than month-long trial in Fort Wayne, where the trial was moved because of high publicity of the case in Indianapolis. Mark Leonard's trial was held in South Bend. Bob Leonard didn't testify in his defense, and his attorneys called just two witnesses who were on the stand for about a half hour. Jurors began deliberating Tuesday. Deputy Prosecutor Denise Robinson said she was glad to see the verdict for the victims. "There's not a lot of celebration, just more of a recognition that justice was served in this case," she said. Shirley, who testified against both men, has pleaded guilty to two conspiracy charges. She faces 20 years to 50 years in prison when sentenced. Her cooperation also led to charges against two alleged co-conspirators, Glenn Hults and Gary Thompson, who face a joint June trial. Thompson faces two counts of murder and 47 arson-related counts, while Hults faces a charge of conspiracy to commit arson. John Longworth said he was looking forward to the final trial in the case. "They've really hurt our family," he said. "It's easier now to think of Dion and Jennifer, and smile sometimes because you remember something that they did. At family gatherings, we'll talk about things that they did and laugh." FILE - In this Nov. 11, 2012 file aerial photo, two homes that were leveled and the numerous neighboring homes that were damaged from a massive explosion that sparked a huge fire and killed two people are shown in Indianapolis. On Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016, a jury convicted Bob Leonard, of Indianapolis, of murder, arson and insurance fraud for his role in the explosion. Leonard was convicted on all of the more than 50 counts he was facing. (Matt Kryger/The Indianapolis Star via AP, File) WHO's Chan praises Brazilian government response to Zika RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) The head of the World Health Organization said Wednesday that she has been impressed by the Brazilian government's handling of the Zika virus outbreak. Speaking at a news conference, Dr. Margaret Chan praised the government's commitment to tackling the disease, its transparency and its willingness to collaborate at both national and international levels. But she also warned that the situation could get worse before it gets better. Chan's comments came at the end of a two-day visit to Brazil during which she met with President Dilma Rousseff and senior Cabinet ministers to discuss the government's strategy for handling the Zika outbreak. Director General of the World Health Organization Margaret Chan, center, listens to Paulo Gadelha, President of the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation, Brazils premier state-run research institute for tropical diseases, left, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. Chan is on a two-day visit to Brazil. (AP Photo/Silvia Izquierdo) Earlier in the day, Chan visited a hospital and clinical research center in Recife, a city at the epicenter of the Zika surge, which Brazilian researchers suspect is linked to an apparent increase in a rare birth defect. In response to a question over the link between Zika and microcephaly, which causes babies to be born with unusually small heads and brain damage, Chan said the evidence in Brazil pointed to the disease as a possible cause. Chan also said the government and the International Olympic Committee are working to ensure the safety of spectators and athletes at the Olympic Games, which will be held in Rio in August. She added that Brazilian scientists told her the mosquito population is much lower at that time of year. Asked whether she agreed with the advice given in some Latin American countries for women to consider delaying pregnancy, Chan said she thinks it is important for governments to set out all available information so people can make informed decisions. Director General of the World Health Organization Margaret Chan, center, arrives to Oswaldo Cruz Foundation, Brazils premier state-run research institute for tropical diseases, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. Chan is on a two-day visit to Brazil. (AP Photo/Silvia Izquierdo) Chances of reaching the top 'very much greater' if you go to independent school Top British actors are more than twice as likely to have attended private school than stars in the music industry, a study has found. It also reveals that the UK is still overwhelmingly run by privately-educated Oxbridge graduates, who dominate professions including politics, journalism, the military and the law. The Sutton Trust, which published the research, said the findings show that a child's chances of reaching the top in British life still depend heavily on their schooling and their family's contacts and called for more to be done to open up fee-paying schools to all youngsters, rather than just those whose parents can afford to pay. Two thirds of British Oscar winners were privately educated - such as Eddie Redmayne, a former Eton pupil Researchers looked at the educational backgrounds of more than 1,200 people, working in high-level jobs in medicine, the law, the military, journalism, politics, the civil service, business, film and pop music, as well as Nobel Prize winners. It found that more than two in five (42%) of British Bafta winners went to an independent school, compared to around a fifth (19%) of those who have won a Brit music award. In addition, two thirds (67%) of British Oscar winners were privately educated - such as Eddie Redmayne, a former Eton pupil, and Kate Winslet, who studied at Redroofs Theatre School. The successful state-funded BRIT school in Croydon, which counts Adele and Jessie J among its former pupils, may be one reason why the proportion of state-educated top music stars is higher, the Sutton Trust said. The study also found that three quarters (74%) of the UK's top judges went to a fee-paying school, and nearly eight in 10 (78%) went on to Oxford or Cambridge. Among top military personnel, seven in 10 (71%) came from the private sector, although just 14% were Oxbridge educated, while around half of leading print journalists and solicitors (51% each) were taught at fee-paying schools. Just over half (54%) of these journalists attended Oxford or Cambridge, along with 55% of solicitors and 51% of the senior civil servants included in the study. In politics, half of the Cabinet were privately educated, - including old Etonian Prime Minister David Cameron - compared to 13% of the shadow cabinet, and around a third (32%) of MPs. The current Cabinet does have fewer former independent school pupils than the coalition government Cabinet of 2010, the report notes, but slightly higher than Tony Blair's post-election Cabinet in 2005. Just under half (47%) of the current Cabinet are Oxbridge graduates, along with 32% of the shadow cabinet. "The top of many of the UK's most prestigious professions remain disproportionately constituted by those with elite educational and socio-economic backgrounds," the study concluded. Sutton Trust research fellow Dr Philip Kirby, who conducted the study, said: " Young people from more advantaged backgrounds often have broader professional social networks, which can be used to access certain jobs, as well as parents who might be more able to support them through unpaid internships, which are increasingly important for career development." Trust chairman Sir Peter Lampl said: "Our research shows that your chances of reaching the top in so many areas of British life are very much greater if you went to an independent school. As well as academic achievement an independent education tends to develop essential skills such as confidence, articulacy and team work which are vital to career success. "The key to improving social mobility at the top is to open up independent schools to all pupils based on merit not money as demonstrated by our successful Open Access scheme, as well as support for highly able students in state schools." A Department for Education spokesman said 1.4 million more children are being taught in good or outstanding state schools compared to 2010 and that university entrants are at an all-time high, with more disadvantaged youngsters going on to study for a degree. "We are determined to spread this educational excellence everywhere, extending true social mobility for all," he said. UK setting 'dangerous precedent' on human rights - Amnesty International Britain is setting a "dangerous precedent" to the world by "undermining" human rights, Amnesty International has claimed. The organisation criticised plans to scrap the Human Rights Act, the UK's absence from EU refugee resettlement schemes and proposed new spying laws. Amnesty International UK director Kate Allen said: "The UK is setting a dangerous precedent to the world on human rights. Amnesty said concerns have been raised that the Bill does not contain adequate human rights "There's no doubt that the downgrading of human rights by this government is a gift to dictators the world over and fatally undermines our ability to call on other countries to uphold rights and laws." Ministers are planning to replace the Human Rights Act 1998, which was brought in by Labour, with a British Bill of Rights. The draft Investigatory Powers Bill unveiled last year is an attempt to bring surveillance tactics used by police and intelligence agencies under one legal umbrella. Non-governmental organisations have raised concerns that the Bill does not contain adequate human rights, Amnesty said. Its annual report on the state of the world's human rights also referred to "continued opposition" to participating in EU efforts to "share responsibility for the increasing number of refugees arriving in Europe". The Government last year opted out of plans to relocate 160,000 people from Italy, Hungary and Greece amid the international migration crisis. Britain has committed to taking in 20,000 Syrian refugees from camps bordering the country and allocated more than 1 billion in aid. Amnesty's report cited concerns raised last year about repealing the Human Rights Act. Referring to the plans, Justice Minister Dominic Raab said: "It is irresponsible for any campaign group to criticise our proposals before they've seen them. "Amnesty have already been told our plans involve the UK remaining in the European Convention, so this scaremongering undermines their own credibility." A Government spokeswoman said it is "absolutely committed" to " promoting and protecting universal human rights". She added: "The Foreign and Commonwealth Office's departmental report is clear that human rights, democratic values and strengthening the rules-based international system are vital and integral parts of the FCO's work. "The FCO has also doubled funding for global human rights and democracy projects to its highest ever level of 10.6 million." "Far from undermining human rights, the Investigatory Powers Bill will promote freedoms and rights by protecting both the privacy and security of the public while ensuring world-leading oversight and safeguards. "A comprehensive solution is needed to deal with the causes of the migrant crisis, not just its consequences. Inquest to resume into death of British mother killed in Tunisia terror attack An inquest into the death of a British tourist killed in a terror attack in Tunisia is due to resume today. Mother-of-two Sally Adey, of Caynton, near Shifnal, Shropshire, died in the shooting at the Bardo National Museum in Tunis on March 18 2015. She had been on a Mediterranean cruise with her husband Robert, who survived the attack. Sally Adey was killed in a terror attack in Tunisia (Metropolitan Police/PA) The opening of the inquest last March heard Mrs Adey, 57, died of gunshot wounds to her abdomen and pelvis. Coroner's officer Julie Hartridge said retired solicitor Mrs Adey and her husband had "disembarked from the MSC Splendida in Tunis on March 18" before going to the museum. "It is reported the museum came under fire from gunmen and she received fatal gunshot wounds," she added. Ms Hartridge said a post-mortem examination carried out in the UK by a Home Office pathologist on March 25 last year had established the provisional cause of death as "consistent with gunshot wounds to the abdomen and pelvis". The inquest is due to resume this morning at Shropshire Coroners Court in Shrewsbury. More than 20 people were killed in the attack, including 17 cruise ship tourists, with Mrs Adey among them. Google tax deal 'disproportionately small' says Public Accounts Committee Google's 130 million tax settlement "seems disproportionately small", an influential Commons committee investigating the deal has said. Public anger at the agreement with HM Revenue & Customs to cover taxes due over the past 10 years has been "palpable", MPs said. The internet giant insisted that it pays a "fair" amount of tax and Chancellor George Osborne hailed the deal a "victory". Google's 130m tax settlement "seems disproportionately small", says the Public Accounts Committee But the Public Accounts Committee said it "seems disproportionately small when compared with the size of Google's business in the UK, reinforcing our concerns that the rules governing where corporation tax is paid by multinational companies do not produce a fair outcome". Meg Hillier, who chairs the PAC, said: "Public anger has been palpable ever since this settlement was announced and we still don't know the full details. "Whether you call it secrecy or confidentiality, this lack of transparency does nothing to build confidence that big corporations are paying their fair share of tax. "Google has been keen to parade its enthusiasm for simplicity in the tax system but the fact remains the company has chosen to set up a complicated tax strategy specifically designed to minimise its tax bill." MPs said they were concerned that the taxman "appears to have settled for less" corporation tax from Google than other countries are willing to accept. The committee pointed to French and Italian investigations into the company, which are expected to lead to larger payments. It called for HMRC to reopen the deal if new evidence becomes available as a result of the probes by European authorities. MPs said the lack of transparency over the details of the settlement and how it was reached meant they could not judge whether it is fair to taxpayers. They criticised HMRC for taking six years to carry out "a very expensive and resource-intensive" investigation into the company's tax affairs before finalising the settlement. The taxman " seems unable to collect a fair share" of corporation tax from global companies in the UK because international rules are not working, the PAC said. Google did not pay a penalty as part of its settlement and complex rules make it easier for large businesses to avoid being fined than the average taxpayer, it added. MPs called for reforms punishing businesses for failing to pay tax to be introduced swiftly. Ms Hillier said: " HMRC itself has identified that the current penalty regime treats corporations differently from individual taxpayers. "That is why we are calling on HMRC to take a lead in reforming international tax rules. The bigger prize after a costly six-year investigation would have been to develop a new approach to the activities of internet-based companies. "We are not convinced HMRC has achieved this and it must work with overseas tax authorities if we are to see lasting and effective change in the international tax system." Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell said the report showed it was "far too easy" for companies like Google to use loopholes to "pay the least amount of tax as possible". "This is a damning report on a tax deal that George Osborne initially called a 'major success', when we all know that this deal really demonstrates the Chancellor's laid-back approach to tackling tax avoidance and evasion. "The Public Accounts Committee is right to point out, as Labour have, that we urgently need to see transparency around the deal that was done as we still have no details so we cannot tell if this was fair for taxpayers. It also leaves serious questions about why the deal with HMRC took so long to agree. "This report further shows that it's far too easy for big multinationals like Google to set up a merry-go-round of tax loopholes to deliberately pay the least amount of tax as possible. "It is vital that George Osborne gets a grip as these companies have been getting away with paying very little for way too long." An HMRC spokesman said: "HMRC does not settle for a penny less than is due under the law from multinationals. Last year we brought in an additional 7 billion by rigorously enforcing the tax rules that apply to large businesses. "We completely understand that there is a real appetite for as much information and insight as possible into how we pursue the tax payable by multinationals. "We are committed to being as open and transparent as we can within the constraints of our statutory duty of taxpayer confidentiality." He added: "The penalty rules will change this year to better support those who play by the rules and the PAC has welcomed that." PM backs Jeremy Hunt over weekend death figures study 'cover-up' claims David Cameron has defended Jeremy Hunt after it emerged there was an apparent attempt to cover up the Health Secretary's knowledge of a study on NHS weekend death figures. The Prime Minister said the only thing Mr Hunt had been guilty of was an "underestimate", as he clashed with Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn during Prime Minister's Questions. An investigation by the BBC using the Freedom of Information Act shows Mr Hunt knew details of a sensitive study of weekend deaths at least two months before it was published in the British Medical Journal (BMJ). Emails seen by the BBC show that officials at Whitehall and NHS England backtracked following Mr Hunt's claims In July, he said: "Around 6,000 people lose their lives every year because we do not have a proper seven-day service in hospitals." NHS England said at the time it could not provide the source for the figures. But an email from NHS England's Seven Day Services Forum project manager Deborah Williams to one of the BMJ study authors has now been revealed, which says: "We were challenged to cite the source of the 6,000 figure and attempted to offer up the most bland statement possible, that would neither confirm nor contradict (Mr Hunt's) statement." The study author, Domenico Pagano, refused to corroborate Mr Hunt's use of the figures, saying: "It will be inaccurate and counter-productive to quote that our analysis is due to be published in the BMJ shortly, as this is not the case and may seem to interfere with the peer review process." When published in September 2015, the research actually found that around 11,000 more people die every year within 30 days of admission to hospital on Friday, Saturday, Sunday or Monday compared with other days of the week. Researchers behind the study said a lack of consultant cover and "reduced" services could be contributing to higher death rates. But they said it would be "rash and misleading" to conclude that an exact number of deaths could have been avoided. Mr Corbyn told the Prime Minister he and Mr Hunt had been " rash and misleading" with the figures. Mr Cameron replied: "The 6,000 figure for excess deaths was based on a question asked by the Health Secretary to Sir Bruce Keogh, the medical director of the NHS. "Now we have had time to go into these figures in more detail, I can tell you this - that the Health Secretary was indeed guilty. He was guilty of an understatement. "The true figures for excess deaths at the weekend are 11,000, not 6,000, so perhaps you will now withdraw your totally unjustified attack on the Health Secretary." Emails seen by the BBC show that officials at Whitehall and NHS England backtracked after Mr Hunt's initial "6,000 deaths" claim, using a combination of figures already in the public domain from 2009 and 2012 to attempt to provide an explanation for it. NHS England then published this in a "low-key fashion" on their website on August 6. One official at the Department of Health wrote to another at NHS England, saying: "I am keen to avoid undue criticism of either (the Department of Health) or NHS England." NHS England has now told the BBC Mr Hunt had advance sight of "headline figures" of the BMJ study prior to it being accepted for publication. This is despite NHS England's Freedom of Information Officer saying in October last year: "Sir Bruce Keogh did not discuss the study's findings with anyone at the Department of Health at any point before or after the publication of this article." NHS England told the BBC this October statement was "clearly a mistake, and absurd" and Sir Bruce is "devastated" the focus has now shifted from "the issues of patient safety". Dr Mark Porter, the British Medical Association's council chairman, said: "This yet again calls into question figures used by the Health Secretary in his bid to push through more seven-day services across the UK, without extra funding or staffing. "His misleading use of figures has scared patients and the public, and angered NHS staff by misrepresenting the care that's already provided at weekends. "The fact is, doctors work around the clock, seven days a week, and they do so under their existing contracts. China gearing up for East Asia dominance -U.S. commander By David Brunnstrom and Arshad Mohammed WASHINGTON, Feb 23 (Reuters) - China is "changing the operational landscape" in the South China Sea by deploying missiles and radar as part of an effort to militarily dominate East Asia, a senior U.S. military official said on Tuesday. China is "clearly militarizing the South China (Sea)," said Admiral Harry Harris, head of the U.S. Pacific Command, adding: "You'd have to believe in a flat Earth to think otherwise." Harris said he believed China's deployment of surface-to-air missiles on Woody Island in the South China Sea's Paracel chain, new radars on Cuarteron Reef in the Spratlys and its building of airstrips were "actions that are changing in my opinion the operational landscape in the South China Sea." Soon after he spoke, U.S. government sources confirmed that China recently deployed fighter jets to Woody Island. It was not the first time Beijing sent jets there but it raised new questions about its intentions. U.S. Navy Captain Darryn James, spokesman for U.S. Pacific Command, said China's repeated deployment of advanced fighter aircraft to Woody Island continued a disturbing trend. "These destabilizing actions are inconsistent with the commitment by China and all claimants to exercise restraint from actions that could escalate disputes," he said. "That's why we've called for all claimants to stop land reclamation, stop construction and stop militarization in the South China Sea." But U.S. and Chinese foreign ministers signaled that despite disagreements over the South China Sea, they were near agreement on a U.N. resolution against North Korea for its recent nuclear and missile tests and stressed their cooperation on economic and other issues. 'HEGEMONY IN EAST ASIA' Speaking before the meeting in Washington between Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, Harris said China was escalating the situation in the South China Sea with new deployments. Asked about its aims, he said: "I believe China seeks hegemony in East Asia." Responding to another question, Harris said Chinese DF-21 and DF-26 anti-ship missiles could pose a threat to U.S. aircraft carriers, but added the vessels were resilient and that the United States had "the capability to do what has to be done if it comes to that." Harris also said he supported regular U.S. air and naval patrols to assert freedom of navigation in the South China Sea, a vital waterway through which more than $5 trillion in global trade passes every year. At a news conference with Kerry, Wang said there had been no problems with freedom of navigation and China and countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations - several of which have competing claims with China - "have the capability to maintain stability in the South China Sea." He said militarization was not the responsibility of one party alone and added in apparent reference to U.S. patrols: "We don't hope to see any more close-up military reconnaissance, or the dispatch of missile destroyers or strategic bombers to the South China Sea." 'ESCALATORY CYCLE' Kerry said steps by China, Vietnam and others had created an "escalatory cycle." "What we are trying to do it break that cycle," he said. "Regrettably there are missiles and fighter aircraft and guns and other things that have been placed into the South China Sea and this is of great concern to everyone who transits and relies on the South China Sea for peaceful trade," he added. A U.S. think tank reported on Monday that China may be installing a high-frequency radar system on the Cuarteron Reef in the Spratly Islands that could significantly boost its ability to control the strategic sea. Last Thursday, the United States accused China of raising tensions by its apparent deployment of surface-to-air missiles on Woody Island. China has also built military-length airstrips on artificial islands in the South China Sea. China's Foreign Ministry said ahead of Wang's visit that Beijing's military deployments in the South China Sea were no different from U.S. deployments on Hawaii. Polish president backs communist spy allegations against Lech Walesa By Marcin Goclowski WARSAW, Feb 23 (Reuters) - President Andrzej Duda, an ally of Poland's new eurosceptic government, accused Lech Walesa on Tuesday of collaborating with the communist-era secret services, further stoking a revived debate about the former pro-democracy leader's past. Poland's state history institute said this month it had confirmed as genuine some documents offered to it by the widow of a communist interior minister suggesting Walesa, ex-leader of the Solidarity trade union movement that toppled communism in 1989, had been an informant for the regime in the 1970s. Walesa, 72, has said he will defend himself in court against the allegations. "I am sorry that Mr. President Lech Walesa was not able at the right time to bring himself to make a gesture to Poles ... Just speak out and tell the truth," Duda told reporters from the Polish online news website wp.pl. "I can express my personal sadness as a person who in the past definitely supported Lech Walesa and who respects Lech Walesa as a president," he added. Walesa, who served as Poland's first post-communist president from 1990 to 1995 and retains influence in Poland, acknowledged years ago he had signed a commitment to be an informant for the communist security organs but insisted he never did anything to carry it out. A special court exonerated him in 2000, saying it found no proof of collaboration. While insisting the new documents are authentic, the Institute of National Remembrance (IPN) has not been able to confirm that Walesa signed them or whether any signatures were forged, as was sometimes the case in secret service files. OLD FEUD WITH KACZYNSKI The IPN is close to Poland's new ruling party, Law and Justice (PiS), and the new allegations against Walesa have surfaced two months after he accused PiS of seeking to undermine Polish democracy since it won a parliamentary majority in an election last October. Walesa's relations with the leader of PiS, Jaroslaw Kaczynski, have long been acrimonious. Kaczynski and his twin brother Lech, who died in a plane crash in 2010 when he was president of Poland, had been Solidarity members but fell out with Walesa in the 1990s over jobs. Critics accuse Kaczynski and his party of waging a vendetta against Walesa, a man still revered by many Poles as a national hero, and say this is in keeping with what they see as an intolerant and divisive mindset in the new government. PiS rejects such charges and says it is upholding democracy and transparency. Polish Foreign Minister Witold Waszczykowski said the documents authenticated by the IPN raised the possibility that the communists had guided Poland's transition to democracy. Syrian opposition says Russia steps up bombing despite truce deal BEIRUT, Feb 23 (Reuters) - The main Syrian opposition council said Russia had stepped up air strikes since a U.S.-Russian ceasefire plan was announced on Monday and that it feared worse was to come in the days before the agreement is due to take effect on Saturday. Salem al-Muslet, a spokesman for the High Negotiations Committee (HNC), also reiterated opposition fears that Russia will use the agreement to target Free Syrian Army rebel groups fighting to topple President Bashar al-Assad. He said some terms of the deal indicated that it was heavily influenced by Russia and were obscure. "We fear that Russia will use this agreement to target the moderate factions in Syria," Muslet said in a telephone interview with Reuters. The plan excludes militant groups such as Islamic State and the al Qaeda-linked Nusra Front. But this, rebels say, will give the government a pretext to keep attacking them because militant combatants are widely positioned in opposition-held areas. The Russian air force has been mounting air strikes in support of Assad since Sept. 30, shifting the momentum in his favour in a five-year-old conflict that has mostly reduced his control to the big cities of Syria's west and the coast. Islamic State fighters were reported to have tightened their grip on a Syrian government supply route to Aleppo on Tuesday as the army battled to retake the road as part of its campaign to seize the city. As Damascus accepted a U.S.-Russian plan for a "cessation of hostilities" between the government and rebels due to take effect on Saturday, heavy Russian air strikes were also said to be targeting one of the last roads into opposition-held parts of Aleppo. "The escalation in the bombing is targeting areas in Aleppo, in Homs and in Daraya," Muslet said, referring to the town of Daraya southwest of Damascus. "We expect more than that from the regime and from the Russian raids." Muslet was speaking during a meeting of the Saudi-backed HNC in Riyadh. The HNC groups political and armed opponents of Assad. The HNC said on Monday it "consented to" the international efforts but that acceptance of a truce hinged on an end to blockades of rebel-held areas, free access for humanitarian aid, release of detainees, and a halt to air strikes on civilians. It also said it did not expect Assad, Russia, or Iran to cease hostilities. "We are studying this truce and we are worried about the obscure points. There is no objection to the truce if it is implemented precisely, without Russia taking it as an excuse to target the moderate revolutionary factions," Muslet said. Asaad al Zoubi, chief negotiator of the HNC, told pan-Arab Al Arabiya TV news channel that he expected the HNC meeting to spell out on Wednesday its concerns to Washington about the terms of the agreement before it came into effect. Syrians suffer as anti-terror laws squeeze charities - survey By Tom Esslemont LONDON, Feb 24 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Western anti-terror laws are forcing aid agencies in Syria to avoid communities controlled by extremist groups, making it harder to deliver vital supplies and leaving people vulnerable to radicalisation, a Thomson Reuters Foundation investigation found. A survey of 21 international and national non-governmental organisations (NGOs) found government donors and banks were also demanding more in-depth audits in the two years since jihadi group Islamic State (ISIS) took root, sending costs spiralling. Successive terror attacks in the United States and Europe have put governments under pressure to enact laws and impose controls to track the financing of extremist groups, including through SWIFT, the most widely used platform for bank transactions. While acknowledging the need for tougher laws, NGOs surveyed said operating in jihadi-run areas in Syria made them vulnerable to being blacklisted in the United States and European Union countries where the groups are branded "terrorists". One international NGO which responded to the confidential survey said it had had to move some of its assistance programmes to other areas in Syria "because of difficulties dealing with armed groups and fears of running afoul of anti-terrorism laws". The NGO's country director for Syria said demands for additional compliance were also hampering its activities in the areas most affected by conflict. "Anti-terrorism legislation and licensing requirements reduce our nimbleness and slow down our effectiveness in reaching vulnerable people because of onerous reporting," the country director said. The Syrian NGO Alliance (SNA), a consortium of 90 NGOs working in the country, said its members were having to cancel projects because they could not keep up with the paperwork required by donors. "This is really bad for Syrian people, who end up being more vulnerable to joining the terrorist groups because they do not get the humanitarian assistance," said SNA coordinator Fadi Hakim. "The other option for many of them is to then join the exodus of Syrian refugees." The Thomson Reuters Foundation was unable to calculate how many civilians were affected by aid agencies' decision to steer clear of certain areas in Syria. But the survey data revealed that the bureaucratic workload had risen by an average of 7,000 extra man hours per charity in the two years since ISIS had taken root, the equivalent of three full-time staff. Seven NGOs, whose Syria aid budgets ranged from $500,000 to $75 million, reported that additional audit costs had risen substantially to a total of $7.5 million. One charity said the cost of compliance reporting had doubled since March 2014. COUNTER-TERROR LAWS Affected charities said action taken by banks and money transfer companies in Britain, the United States and Turkey was excessively "risk averse", and time and money diverted to compliance work would be better spent on getting food, water and medicines into Syria. After the Sept 11, 2001 attacks on New York and Washington, the U.S. government moved quickly to target the finance networks that allowed militant groups to funnel money around the world to fund their operations. Congress enacted the USA PATRIOT Act of 2001 to stifle these clandestine money flows. This affected financial flows to agencies in some places where conflicts were rife with militant activity, including Somalia after regulators around the world tightened procedures to stop funds reaching al Shabaab Islamists. "Banking problems are only increasing for humanitarian agencies, with millions of dollars of donations to charities working in war zones being blocked with no detailed explanation," said Sara Pantuliano, humanitarian director at the Overseas Development Institute, a British think tank. "The interconnected international banking system means no major financial body is immune from U.S. anti-terror laws." The United States provides an exemption for humanitarian aid to flow to sanctioned countries. It clarified in November 2014 that banks and money agents can do business in high-risk environments if they have proper controls in place. But a quarter of survey respondents said at least one bank had frozen their account, while three quarters said payments had been delayed or blocked in the five years since the Syrian war began. One NGO said British-based bank HSBC had closed its account. Another said its account had been frozen by Turkish Garanti Bank. NGOs said these banks did not give an official reason for the closures, but said it was implicit they were to do with their work in Syria and concern about anti-terror laws. HSBC said it was working with the British government and industry bodies to help charity customers manage risk in their operations. "Although we can't always be specific about why we decide to close an account, a decision of this kind is never taken lightly and is never due to the customer's race or religion," an HSBC spokesman said. Garanti Bank said it "does not intermediate any transactions which may be against international sanctions" such as those imposed by the United States, the European Union and the United Nations. "Banks are most concerned about adhering to U.S. legislation, which criminalises any material support for illegal militant groups," said Pantuliano. Pantuliano also said aid convoys heading to Syria might be used by potential fighters posing as aid workers, even if this risk had been overplayed by banks. Britain's charity watchdog said earlier this month it had reopened an investigation into how a British man convicted of helping a teenager travel to Syria to fight with ISIS diverted charitable funds he raised through social media. SYSTEM FAILURE All 21 NGOs responding to the Thomson Reuters Foundation survey operate their northern Syria programmes from Turkey, where tens of thousands of people have recently sought sanctuary from an intensifying offensive by Russian and Syrian government forces. Moving money into Syria is complicated. NGOs typically withdraw cash from Turkish banks and transfer it across the border using hawala, an informal trading system based on trust and personal ties. Charities said Syrian drivers, doctors, trainers and logistical staff often require salaries to be paid through money transfer systems, such as Western Union, in Turkey. But three of the NGOs surveyed said Western Union had delayed or blocked payments when they had tried to wire cash to staff living close to the Syrian border. Western Union is "unable to share details relating to a specific country", a company spokeswoman said in a statement. It maintains "very strict controls to prevent the abuse of services, particularly in designated high-risk areas," she said. Mohammed, a Syrian who works for a European charity, said his attempts to withdraw his salary from branches of Western Union on the Turkish side of the Syrian border were met with a shrug from a clerk. "She never gives an explanation, but when I tell her I am Syrian she simply says there's no money or that the system is down," the 33-year-old said in a phone interview. Mohammed, whose name has been changed to protect his identity, said the money transfer company had repeatedly blocked salary payments to him and other Syrians. Western Union said it did not withold money on the grounds of nationality. Mohammed, who fled Syria in April 2011, said the banking delays had affected his elderly parents in Damascus who depended on remittances. Fadi Hakim of the Syrian NGO Alliance said there was little the aid agencies could do to change the system. Air New Zealand to use 3D printing to create aircraft cocktail trays WELLINGTON, Feb 24 (Reuters) - Air New Zealand said it has created cocktail trays for its business class section using 3D printers and is looking at employing the technology further as it seeks to better control replacement stock and cut manufacturing costs. The airline aims to install the trays in the coming weeks once it receives regulatory approval. "A big advantage of 3D printing is that it allows us to make cost-effective lightweight parts ourselves, and to do so quickly without compromising on safety," Air New Zealand Chief Operations Officer Bruce Parton said in a statement. Additive manufacturing, or 3D printing, is used to build objects by adding layer-upon-layer of material, such as plastic or metal. The technology poses a threat to traditional manufacturers who may increasingly see clients build their own parts or products. Parton said Air New Zealand was looking to use 3D printing more as sourcing aircraft parts from manufacturers was costly and caused storage problems. "We often only require a small number of units which can be really expensive to produce using traditional manufacturing methods and can involve frustrating delays while a replacement part is delivered," he said. Aircraft and aerospace companies are increasingly looking to addititive manufactuing to produce engine parts. Aerojet won a U.S. air force contract last month to work on standards to create 3D printed rocket engines. Rescued Swedish girl says life under Islamic State "really hard" ERBIL, Iraq, Feb 24 (Reuters) - A Swedish teenager rescued from Islamic State militants in Iraq has said life in the so-called caliphate was "really hard" and that she was duped into going there by her boyfriend. In her first interview since Kurdish special forces recovered her in northern Iraq, the 16-year old told a Kurdish TV channel she had met her boyfriend in mid-2014 after dropping out of school in Sweden. "First we were good but then he started to look at ISIS videos and speak about them and stuff like that," she told Kurdistan 24 in a brief interview, using another name for the Islamic State group. "Then he said he wanted to go to ISIS and I said ok, no problem, because I didn't know what ISIS means, what Islam is -- nothing," said the girl. The couple set off from Sweden in late May 2015 and made their way across Europe by bus and train until reaching the Turkish border province of Gaziantep, from which they crossed into Syria. From there, Islamic State militants ferried them by bus with other men and women to the city of Mosul in neighboring Iraq and provided them with a house. There was no electricity or running water. "I didn't have any money either - it was a really hard life," she said, looking relaxed and healthy. "When I had a phone I started to contact my mum and I said 'I want to go home'." The teenager, who was rescued on Feb. 17, is currently in Iraq's Kurdistan region and will be handed over to Swedish authorities. Security services estimate that hundreds of Western men and women have left home to join Islamic State since the group overran large parts of Iraq and Syria in June 2014. A mother who took her 14-month-old son to Syria to join Islamic State fighters was jailed for six years by a British court earlier this month. Poland - Factors to Watch Feb 24 Following are news stories, press reports and events to watch that may affect Poland's financial markets on Wednesday. ALL TIMES GMT (Poland: GMT + 1 hour): BUDIMEX The Polish Ferrovial unit beat analysts' expectations with 23-percent net profit growth to 236 million zlotys ($59.27 million) in 2015 thanks to growth at its real estate business, the group said on Wednesday. PLAY Polish mobile operator Play, which covers one fourth of the market's SIM cards signalled it does not plan to float in the coming months, its Chief Executive Joergen Bang-Jensen told daily Rzeczpospolita. TAX FREE INCOME Increasing tax free allowance could be "strongly progressive", so poorer people would benefit more, Deputy Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki told Polityka weekly. ****Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.**** PRESS DIGEST - RUSSIA - Feb 24 MOSCOW, Feb 24 (Reuters) - The following are some stories in Russia's newspapers on Wednesday. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy. VEDOMOSTI www.vedomosti.ru - The Russian and U.S. presidents have agreed on a ceasefire plan in Syria, but there is no guarantee there will be peace. - Russian lawmakers could consider amendments to the law on elections to bar independent observers from polling tations. - Russia's transport ministry suggests that regional authorities should find up to 70 billion roubles ($916.30 million) from "their own sources" to spend on building local roads. - Russia's budget hypermarket chain Lenta is considering plans to expand its low-cost stores to regional centres from Moscow and St. Petersburg, says Lenta CEO Jan Dunning. - Russia's industry ministry wants to allow selling strong drinks near schools and policlinics as a measure to support businesses, the daily reports. KOMMERSANT www.kommersant.ru - An agreement on ceasefire in Syria has become Moscow's diplomatic victory, and after five months of Russian military operations in the region the United States has started treating Russia as a true partner, the daily writes. - The finance ministry says 130 billion roubles could be taken from the funds of the presidency to help finance the government's anti-crisis programme. - Russia's railways monopoly RZhD is considering purchasing of a railway linking the Baikal-Amur mainline to Mechel's Elga coal deposit. Mechel is said to have spent 70 billion roubles to build the 321-km (200-mile) stretch which might be sold to RZhD, the daily adds. - The head of Karat fishing holding, Vitaly Orlov, suggests that the state should take part in launching container shipments of frozen fish products from the Far East to central Russia. Orlov and his partners already invested $600 million in the past 9 years in boosting fish output in Russia, the daily writes. RBC www.rbc.ru - The ministry of labour wants to increase tax burden on employers to help the government to raise its budget revenues by 234 billion roubles by 2021. - The head of the Chechen Republic, Ramzan Kadyrov, has expressed his gratitude to the Russians whose "sympathy and respect" for him had doubled in the past 8 years, according to the latest survey by VTsIOM pollsters. PRESS DIGEST - Bulgaria - Feb 24 SOFIA, Feb 24 (Reuters) - These are some of the main stories in Bulgarian newspapers on Wednesday. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy. -- The report of forensic accountants AlixPartners on the funds of collapsed Corporate Commercial Bank has been sent to parliament, but deputies are banned from making the report public, the finance ministry said. (Capital Daily, 24 Chasa, Trud, Sega, Monitor, Duma) CAPITAL DAILY - Bulgarian bank Postbank, controlled by Greek EFG Eurobank plans to raise its capital by 55 million euro to finalise the acquisition of the Bulgarian branch of Greek Alpha Bank. -- Bulgarian men between 18 and 32 years of age will be put on military accountancy and be mobilised if needed, changes in the defence law envision. (Sega, Trud) Philippines still seeks $1 bln in Marcos wealth 30 years after his ouster By Manuel Mogato MANILA, Feb 24 (Reuters) - The Philippines is still seeking to recover about $1 billion worth of assets accumulated by the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos through 100 court cases at home and overseas, a government official said on Wednesday. "The task is not easy," said Richard Amurao, head of an agency created in 1986 to recover funds from Marcos. "The people holding these assets have been slowing us down. They have been using all sorts of delaying tactics to thwart our efforts." Marcos, who ruled the Southeast Asian country for about two decades, fled to Hawaii 30 years ago this week after a near bloodless popular revolt. He died in exile three years later. Reuters' efforts on Wednesday to contact his wife, Imelda, and son Ferdinand Junior, to seek a response to the comments were unsuccessful. Imelda has repeatedly said the family did not steal from the people and its wealth was acquired legally. Amurao said that since the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) was created, it has recovered and given the treasury about $4 billion. In line with Philippine law, funds have been used mostly for land reform. Based on a Hawaii court ruling, 10 billion pesos ($210.04 million) was used to compensate about 10,000 victims of human rights abuses. The government hoped to raise $17.7 million from an auction of some confiscated Marcos jewelry, property and stocks, sources said this month. By unofficial estimates, Marcos had $10 billion of assets. 'BEHEST' LOANS "We don't really know if the $10-billion estimate is accurate but what we can tell you (about the $1 billion now sought) is based from estimates of the court cases and from what we already recovered," Amurao said. More than half of the court cases are civil lawsuits to recover shares, real estate, cash and jewellery, he said. A quarter of the cases involve "behest loans" state-owned banks gave individuals with political connections to Marcos, he said. Andres Bautista, a former PCGG chairman, said most of the cases under litigation are complicated and difficult because government prosecutors could no longer locate witnesses and find documentary evidence. "Some of the key players are also back in power," Bautista said. Members of Marcos's family remain active in politics. His wife Imelda is a congresswoman from Ilocos Norte, the political base of the family where her eldest daughter is governor. Her only son, Ferdinand Junior, is a senator and running for vice president in the May election. In independent polls, he is tied with another senator who's the son of a former Marcos era minister. South Sudan opposition forces allowed back into capital -monitor By Denis Dumo JUBA, Feb 24 (Reuters) - Troops allied with South Sudan's Riek Machar, the former rebel leader and rival to President Salva Kiir, will deploy to the capital in March, a regional peace observer said, bolstering a fragile peace accord that ended two years of fighting. It will be the first time Machar-allied troops will be deployed in Juba since December 2013, when a row between Kiir and his sacked deputy quickly descended into a civil war that often ran along ethnic lines. Both sides, under pressure from Washington, the United Nations and other powers, signed an initial peace deal in August, and agreed to share out ministerial positions in January. But that deal has broken down repeatedly, and a U.N. report last month said both leaders qualified for sanctions over atrocities in the conflict. However, earlier this month, Kiir gave Machar his old job back as deputy leader, raising hopes of a breakthrough after months of troubled negotiations and failed ceasefire agreements. In a meeting late on Tuesday, signatories of the deal agreed that 1,370 troops from Machar's SPLM-IO group will be deployed in Juba starting March 1, according to Festus Mogae, chairman of the Joint Monitoring and Evolution Commission (JMEC). "It was agreed that we will bring first and second stages together and therefore bring 1,370, including 700 of the police, to Juba... as a compromise," Mogae told reporters in Juba. A spokesman for Machar confirmed he is expected to return to Juba during "the first week of March." Kiir sacked Machar as vice president in 2013, exacerbating a political feud that erupted into fighting between soldiers loyal to both men in Juba. The fighting has so far killed thousands and displaced 2.3 million people since late 2013. The war has also devastated South Sudan's economy, slashing the oil production that funds most public spending. Turkish air force hits PKK targets in the southeast, Iraq; kill 12 By Seyhmus Cakan DIYARBAKIR, Turkey, Feb 24 (Reuters) - Turkish military helicopters killed 12 Kurdish militants in strikes near the southeastern border with Syria on Wednesday, security sources said, in a conflict becoming increasingly intertwined with developments in Turkey's war-torn neighbour. The Cobra attack helicopters launched the assault at around 6 a.m. (0400 GMT) as a group of Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) fighters travelled through a mountainous area near the Idil district of Turkey's Sirnak province, the sources said. Parts of Idil were placed under 24-hour curfew last week as the security forces carried out an operation against the militants. That was part of a wider military campaign which began last December in towns in the mostly Kurdish southeast following the collapse in July of a ceasefire with the PKK. Late on Wednesday, Turkish warplanes carried out an air bombardment on PKK camps in Qandil, the group's centre in northern Iraq, sources said, hitting ammunition depots, shelters and logistical centres. The violence in Turkey's southeast is at its worst since the 1990s, turning parts of the region into a war zone. PKK militants have dug trenches and erected barricades in towns and cities, and the death toll has climbed into the hundreds as the security forces try to flush them out. It has also complicated international efforts to end the war in Syria. Ankara sees the PKK as closely linked to the Syrian Kurdish YPG militia, which has enjoyed U.S. support in the fight against Islamic State insurgents but which Ankara sees as a hostile force bent on seizing Syrian territory abutting Turkey. Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu has blamed a member of the YPG, working with Kurdish militants inside Turkey, for a suicide bombing that killed 29 people in the capital Ankara last week, most of them soldiers. The Turkish armed forces shelled YPG positions in northern Syria in the days after the attack and bombed PKK camps in northern Iraq, as the government vowed that those responsible would pay the price. Clashes inside Turkey have also continued. On Tuesday, security forces killed six PKK militants in Idil and two others in the Sur district of the region's largest city Diyarbakir, the armed forces said in a statement. One soldier died of his wounds after coming under attack from PKK fighters in Sur on Wednesday, it said. Another was lightly wounded. The statement also said security forces had detained four members of the PKK and PYD, the political arm of the Syrian YPG, on Tuesday in the Akcakale district of Sanliurfa province, two of whom had sought to cross the border from Syria illegally. Iranians convicted of Kenya bombing plan have life sentences cut to 15 yrs NAIROBI, Feb 24 (Reuters) - A Kenyan judge reduced the life sentences given to two Iranians convicted of planning bomb attacks to 15 years on Wednesday, the men's lawyer said, a case that raised concerns about possible Iranian plans to strike targets in the east African nation. The two were arrested in June 2012 and convicted a year later of planning attacks and possessing 15 kg of military-grade RDX explosives. But the sentence was reduced on appeal. "My clients Ahmad Mohammad and Sayed Mansour Mousavi are happy with the reduction of the life sentence," Karaithe Wandugi, their lawyer, told Reuters by telephone. "Judge Luka Kimaru ordered the two Iranian men to serve 15 years jail sentence." Kenya has suffered several deadly attacks from al Qaida-linked Somalia militants, but investigators later said it appeared that the men were not connected to those groups. Instead, they may have had links to the Quds Force, the elite extra-territorial special forces arm of Iran's Revolutionary Guards, investigators said. Last year, Kenyan authorities arrested two Kenyans with links to Iran on suspicion of plotting attacks on hotels frequented by Western diplomats and tourists. Turkey's Erdogan says U.S.-Russian Syria plan could benefit Assad By Humeyra Pamuk and Tulay Karadeniz ISTANBUL/ANKARA, Feb 24 (Reuters) - Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Wednesday he feared a U.S.-Russian ceasefire plan would do little more than benefit Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and accused the West, Russia and Iran of only seeking to further their own interests. The United States and Russia have announced plans for a cessation of hostilities in Syria to take effect starting on Saturday. But rebels backed by Saudi Arabia and Turkey have expressed doubts about the proposal, which excludes attacks by the Syrian army and its Russian backers on the jihadist groups Islamic State and the al Qaeda-linked Nusra Front. "The West, the United States, Russia, Iran, the European Union and United Nations have unfortunately not managed to stand tall by the honor of humanity," Erdogan said in a speech in Ankara broadcast live on television. "On the contrary, all these countries, because of their own calculations, have permitted, directly or indirectly, the killing of nearly half a million innocent people by the regime and its backers," he said. NATO member Turkey has grown increasingly frustrated by the international response to Syria's five-year-old war, incensed by a Russian intervention which has tipped the balance of power in favour of Ankara's arch-enemy Assad and by U.S. support for a Kurdish militia it sees as a hostile insurgent force. Relations with Moscow hit a nadir after Turkey shot down a Russian jet near the Syrian border last November, while ties with Washington are at their most strained for years. The rebels fear Russia will use the exclusion of attacks on jihadists like Islamic State as a pretext to bomb them. Erdogan said the ceasefire should also exclude attacks on the Kurdish YPG militia, which Ankara views as a terrorist group. "If the identification of who is from which opposition group in the region will be carried out by Russia, the Assad regime and structures like the YPG, then that is a grave situation," Erdogan said. Syria's opposition High Negotiations Committee (HNC), which groups Assad's political and armed opponents, said on Monday it accepted "international efforts for a cessation of hostilities", but only on the condition that previous demands including an end to blockades and the bombardment of civilians were fulfilled. The grouping's chief negotiator said on Wednesday it had yet to commit to the U.S.-Russian plan. KURDISH CONFLICT Turkey's stance on the Syrian war is becoming increasingly intertwined with the battle it is waging in its own southeast against militants from the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which has fought a three-decade insurgency for Kurdish autonomy. Ankara views the YPG militia and its PYD political wing, which have enjoyed U.S. backing in the fight against Islamic State in Syria, as a hostile insurgent force with deep logistical and operational ties to the PKK. Like Ankara and the European Union, the United States lists the PKK as a terrorist group. But it sees the YPG as a useful ally and has indicated it will continue to work with them. "What are they saying? The PYD and YPG, they fight against Islamic State and that's why support them? That is a great lie," Erdogan said. He has repeatedly called on Washington to decide who its allies are - Turkey or the Kurdish militia. Erdogan and Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu have both said the YPG, working with Kurdish militants in Turkey, were responsible for a suicide bombing that killed 29 people, most of them soldiers, in the capital Ankara last week. A DNA report suggested the main perpetrator was Turkish, not a Syrian Kurdish YPG fighter as initially claimed by the government, but two security sources told Reuters on Wednesday that he had entered Turkey from Syria in July 2014 using a fake ID. The Turkish armed forces shelled YPG positions in northern Syria in the days after the Ankara bombing and launched air strikes on PKK camps in northern Iraq, as the government vowed that those responsible would pay the price. Washington urged Ankara to stop shelling the YPG. Clashes have also continued inside Turkey, where violence in the southeast is at its worst since the 1990s. Military helicopters killed nine PKK militants near the border with Syria on Wednesday, security sources said. Hungary to hold referendum on EU's plan for migrant quotas By Marton Dunai and Krisztina Than BUDAPEST, Feb 24 (Reuters) - Hungary will hold a referendum on European Union plans to create a system of mandatory quotas for migrants, an initiative that Hungary's government has rejected, Prime Minister Viktor Orban said on Wednesday. Orban has used harsh anti-migrant rhetoric since the migrant crisis escalated last year and gained notoriety for erecting a steel fence along Hungary's southern border to keep out migrants - a policy now adopted by other Balkan countries. He said the plebiscite, the first of its kind in Europe, would be a major test of European democracy. The EU declined official comment, saying it was were trying to clarify what Orban was proposing. Orban, who did not say when the vote might be held, has said the quotas would redraw the ethnic, cultural and religious map of Hungary and Europe. Under the plan, most EU nation would be obliged to accept a certain number of immigrants. "Nobody has asked the European people so far whether they support, accept, or reject the mandatory migrant quotas," he said at a news conference. "The government is responding to public sentiment now: we Hungarians think introducing resettlement quotas for migrants without the backing of the people equals an abuse of power." Orban said he was aware of potential wider ramifications of such a referendum, especially if Hungarians say "No" to quotas. "We had to think about the potential impact on European politics of such a proposal, but that was a secondary consideration," he said. "To us this is a fundamental, unavoidable, essential question of Hungarian politics: can anyone else decide for Hungarians who we Hungarians should or should not live with?" EU officials noted no date had been set for a vote and suggested Orban may be more concerned with heading off talks on future plans for a permanent EU system of asylum relocation. Holding a referendum to undo a temporary scheme agreed by EU ministers last year would disrupt those EU plans. European Council President Donald Tusk warned in the EU parliament on Wednesday that any leader who blocked joint efforts to resolve the migration crisis could make it more likely Britons would vote to quit the bloc in a June referendum. Political Capital Institute analyst Peter Kreko said: "All in all, we can see that Orban is in a winning position as long as he speaks about the migration issues, as it allows him to play the role of the defender of the nation. Beetles attack Poland's ancient forest, leaving the humans divided By Agnieszka Barteczko BIALOWIEZA, Poland, Feb 23 (Reuters) - Bialowieza Forest sprawls across the border between Poland and Belarus, occupying almost 580 square miles of woodland and providing a home to bison, boars, beavers - and beetles. The beetles are a problem. The bark beetle, or Ips typgraphus, eats spruce trees, which make up a fair amount of the forest. Quite a few beetles showed up in 2012, and they're still in the forest, gnawing on the spruces. Polish foresters who live and work in Bialowieza say they have a solution: let them cut down more spruce trees than they're currently allotted, to save the rest. They hope Poland's environmental minister will agree. Environmental campaigners are furious, the European Commission is displeased and UNESCO is unhappy, since it has listed Bialowieza - the last primeval forest in Europe - as a World Heritage site. But previous decisions by the environmental minister, Jan Szyszko, suggest he will side with the foresters. Around a sixth of the forest in Poland is a national park, where trees cannot be cut. The rest is operated by three forest units, supervised by the state-owned National Forest Holding, which takes an economic view of trees. "The minister sees the forest as a wood depot," said Robert Cyglicki, the head of Greenpeace Polska. The environmentalists say any interference with nature in Bialowieza will do irreparable damage. They also say cutting down the trees wouldn't do much to control the beetles. Those opposed to more cutting point out Ips typgraphus shows up regularly - there have been eight infestations since the end of the nineteen century. By killing spruces, they let in more sunlight, so other trees can grow. The dead trees also provide food and nesting sites for various insects and plants. "The forest is not dying because of the beetles, as some believe," Bogdan Jaroszewicz, a biologist at Warsaw University, and Jerzy Gutowski from the Forest Research Institute, said in a joint report. "The recent outbreak, just as the previous ones, corrects the unnaturally high share of spruce in the treestands." Some in the local communities agree with that. A growing number oppose expanding the logging, and they plan to send a letter, signed by 400 people, to the prime minister calling for the forest protection. NASTY INFESTATION On the other hand, many in the local communities say the environmentalists are attacking their way of life and the source of their livelihood. And it's true the latest infestation is the worst in decades. Almost half a million trees are affected over 4,000 hectares, out of the 52,000 looked after by foresters. "My heart hurts when I look at the forest as it is now," said Krystyna Cieslak, a Bialowieza resident. "I don't think I have seen anything like that before." Besides losing the forest, the foresters fear losing their jobs. About 140 of them work in the three forest units in the area, earning an average 5,100 zlotys ($1,285) a month. They have already harvested almost all the 63,000 cubic metres they were granted for 2012-21. They want that increased threefold, to 188,000 cubic metres. "We are obliged by law to protect the forest from the beetle," said Krzysztof Zamojski, a Bialowieza councillor and a forester. Szyszko, the environmental minister, is no stranger to environmental controversy. He has expressed doubts that global warming is man-made, and he backed building a motorway across the protected area of the Rospuda River in northeastern Poland when he was last minister. But Brussels has told Poland "substantial harvesting is likely to be problematic under EU nature protection legislation". UNESCO has said, "Only two sites have ever been removed from the World Heritage List and it is premature, from our point of view, to discuss such an extreme measure in the case of Bialowieza." Scientists also point out Bialowieza is 8,000 years old. It has survived two world wars, the German occupation and communist rule. It has always survived Ips typgraphus. Syrian opposition supports idea of two-week ceasefire By John Davison and Jeff Mason BEIRUT/WASHINGTON, Feb 24 (Reuters) - Syria's opposition indicated on Wednesday it was ready for a two-week truce in Syria, saying it was a chance to test the seriousness of the other side's commitment to a U.S.-Russian plan for a cessation of hostilities. Combatants are required to say whether they will agree to the "cessation of hostilities" in the five-year war by noon on Friday (1000 GMT), and to halt fighting on Saturday. The United Nations hopes the planned halt will provide a breathing space for Syrian peace talks to resume. A statement seen by Reuters from the Saudi-backed High Negotiations Committee, which groups political and armed opponents of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, said it "views a temporary two-week truce as a chance to establish how serious the other side is in committing to the points of the agreement." But it objected to Russia being a guarantor of the truce alongside the United States, saying Russia was a direct party to the conflict, and that the plan ignored the role Assad allies Russia and Iran were playing. Russia intervened in the conflict on the side of Assad in September, and Iranian fighters have provided crucial support to the Syrian army in its fight against insurgents. In Washington, U.S. President Barack Obama expressed caution about a plan to stop the fighting in Syria, which has killed 250,000 people and created a refugee crisis in Europe. The last round of peace talks in Geneva broke up earlier this month without progress after the Syrian government launched a Russian-backed offensive on the city of Aleppo, where more fighting was reported on Wednesday. Obama told reporters that if some progress was made in Syria, that would lead to a political process to end the war there. "We are very cautious about raising expectations on this," he said. Although U.S officials have raised the question of a political transition in Damascus, Assad, backed by Russia, shows no sign of stepping aside. The cessation of hostilities plan does not include Islamic State or the Nusra Front, an al Qaeda affiliate that is widely deployed in opposition-held areas. The opposition has expressed fears government forces backed by the Russian air force will continue to attack rebels under the pretext of targeting the Nusra Front. The Syrian government, its war effort buoyed since September by the Russian air force, has accepted the cessation of hostilities agreement announced on Monday. Assad told Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday his government was ready to help implement the deal. Putin and Assad, who held a telephone conversation, stressed the importance of a continued "uncompromising" fight against Islamic State, the Nusra Front and other militant groups. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said he had spoken to Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and their teams would meet in the next day or so to discuss the planned ceasefire. "I am not here to vouch that it's absolutely going to work," Kerry said in Washington. While there had to be a diplomatic solution at some point, the question was whether the time is ripe, he added. TELEPHONE DIPLOMACY Putin has embarked on a round of telephone diplomacy, speaking to Assad, the Saudi king, the Iranian president and the Israeli prime minister. The Kremlin described the calls as an effort to explain the substance of the U.S.-Russia-brokered ceasefire. The Russian Defence Ministry said it had significantly reduced the intensity of its air strikes in Syria in the past two days in areas where armed groups had expressed their readiness to join the ceasefire. Russian state media have presented the fact that Moscow helped broker the potential ceasefire as a sign that Russia matters again on the world stage and has shrugged off what it has cast as U.S.-led efforts to isolate it over the Ukraine crisis. Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said he feared the ceasefire plan would do little more than benefit Assad. Turkey has grown increasingly frustrated by the international response to the Syrian war, in particular U.S. support for a Kurdish militia it sees as a hostile insurgent force. The Syrian Kurdish YPG militia told Reuters on Wednesday it would abide by the plan to halt the fighting but reserved the right to respond if attacked. The YPG is an important partner in the U.S-led coalition fighting Islamic State in Syria, but has also been fighting Syrian insurgent groups in northwestern Syria near Aleppo. Ankara is also incensed by a Russian intervention that has tipped the balance of power in favour of its arch-enemy Assad. "If this is a ceasefire that is up to the mercy of Russia, which has brutally attacked the moderate opposition and aligned with Assad under the pretext of fighting Islamic State, we fear that the fire pouring over innocent people will never stop," Erdogan said in a televised speech. The United Nations said it was ready for a huge aid effort if the fighting stops. The war has left 4.5 million hard-to reach people in need of humanitarian aid, the United Nations says. The world body carried out its first airdrop of humanitarian aid to the Syrian city of Deir al-Zor on Wednesday, delivering 21 tons of relief to civilians besieged by Islamic State. The Syrian army and Islamic State fought fierce battles on Wednesday near Aleppo, where an attack by the jihadist group has cut the main land route to the city. Argentina trade chief says weaker peso to keep imports flat By David Lawder WASHINGTON, Feb 24 (Reuters) - Argentina's imports in 2016 are expected to be about unchanged from last year as a devalued peso offsets the lifting of most import restrictions imposed by the country's previous leftist government, Buenos Aires' top trade official said. Argentina has removed currency controls, eliminated export taxes on a number of key commodities and done away with many import licensing measures since President Mauricio Macri took office in December on a pledge to jumpstart the economy and rekindle foreign investment. "We expect imports to be at a comparable level with last year because there are countervailing forces," Commerce Secretary Miguel Braun told Reuters in an interview late on Tuesday at Argentina's embassy in Washington. "On the one hand, we've opened the economy significantly. But on the other hand, the exchange rate is now more competitive." Braun said Argentina's current account deficit is likely to shrink this year due to higher exports and the boost from increased foreign investment into an economy that he said is once again open for business. Argentina could experience "spectacular growth" should neighboring Brazil's economy recover from a deep recession and prices of commodities rebound, he said. Braun declined to offer specific forecasts for imports or the current account, but added that he did not expect any balance-of-payments problems for the next year. Argentina, a top exporter of soy and grains, posted an international trade deficit of $3.035 billion for 2015, the new government's revamped statistics agency said last week. The figure sharply differed from the surpluses reported by former President Cristina Fernandez's government through last year. Import licensing restrictions imposed in 2012 to shield local industries prompted shortages of goods ranging from tampons to automotive and electronics parts, while alienating the United States and other trading partners. The World Trade Organization had ruled against the restrictions, ordering Argentina to revise its trade laws, but the changes were not made until Macri's government took power. Argentina posted a trade deficit of $740 million in November and a deficit of $1.1 billion in December, the revised government statistics showed. In dollar terms, exports fell 17 percent last year compared to 2014, while imports fell 8 percent. Braun said a lack of imported components would no longer be a constraint on Argentina's manufacturing sector, but added that a rebound in global demand was needed for it to grow again. Argentina should still manage "reasonable" economic growth in 2016 and "strong" growth in 2017 as foreign investors return to the country after years of being scared away by Fernandez's policies. Macri's government has offered to settle with creditors suing Argentina over defaulted bonds, a bid to end a festering 14-year legal battle that transformed the country into a pariah on financial markets. Braun said he expected a "reasonable solution" to the dispute to be announced soon and that it would reduce private sector credit costs and allow the government greater access to financing. Signs grow of new Western urgency to stop Islamic State in Libya By Aidan Lewis WADI BEY, Libya, Feb 24 (Reuters) - An hour's drive from the Libyan city of Sirte, a few dozen troops man outposts along a desert road. They are hoping the West will soon be giving them more help to fight a common enemy: Islamic State. Armed with little more than gun-mounted pick-up trucks, they are a last line of defence against the Sunni Islamist group which controls swathes of Syria and Iraq and which has now taken advantage of chaos in the north African state to seize territory there. Sirte is its stronghold. "They're getting stronger because no one is fighting them," said Misrata forces commander Mahmoud Gazwan at the Wadi Bey checkpoint, a dusty outpost serving as a mobile base for his brigade of fighters. There are signs of a growing Western urgency to stop Islamic State (IS), and Libyan commanders say Western weapons and air strikes will make a vital difference in the coming battle against their better-armed enemy. But Western officials say just as important is the need for a united Libya government to request more aid and for the Libyan forces ranged against IS to bridge their own deep divisions. Five years after Muammar Gaddafi's overthrow and death, Libya is caught in a slow-burn civil war between two rival governments, one in Tripoli and one in the east. Each is backed by competing alliances of former rebel brigades whose loyalties are often more to tribe, region or local commander. Forces from the port city of Misrata - one of the most powerful military factions - have been on the front line of the battle against Islamic State since it took over Sirte a year ago and drew more foreign fighters to its ranks there. Islamic State militants are also fighting in Benghazi to the east, shelling the oil ports of Ras Lanuf and Es Sider. On Tuesday they attacked further west in Sabratha city. U.S. special forces have been holding meetings with potential Libyan allies. U.S. and French drones and British RAF jets are flying reconnaissance missions in preparation for action to help the local forces fighting Islamic State. An air raid by U.S. special forces on Sabratha killed more than 40 Islamic State fighters last week, but there are no international plans to send combat ground troops into Libya. Western governments are wary of large-scale military intervention but fear inaction may allow Islamic State to take deeper root. A U.S. government source said the Obama Administration was pursuing a two-track policy. One is to try to knit competing factions into an effective government. The other track involves air strikes. "When you see an ISIL training camp and we see them doing push-ups and calisthenics every day, they're not there to lose weight," Brett McGurk, the U.S. envoy to the international coalition fighting Islamic State, also known as ISIL or Daesh, told White House reporters. "They're there to train for something, and we're not going to let them do that." CONVERGENCE OF FORCES? U.S. and European officials say infighting between the rival administrations is blocking U.N. efforts to cajole them into a national government capable of rebuilding Libya's army. Tripoli is held by a faction of Islamist-leaning brigades and Misrata fighters who took over the city in 2014 and drove out rivals. Misrata now backs the U.N. deal while some of the Tripoli political leadership is against it. Libya's eastern government is backed by an alliance including the Libyan National Army led by former Gaddafi ally-turned rebel Gen. Khalifa Haftar, and a brigade controlling oil ports. Its ranks are split, including federalists looking for more autonomy for their eastern region. The United Nations-backed presidential council is waiting for approval of its new government from the elected House of Representatives in the east. Frustration is growing in Western capitals after repeated failures of the House to vote or reach a quorum to hold a ballot on the new government. "We have always made clear the intention of providing assistance in fighting Daesh. We need to take action where we can, that requires forces on the ground that we can help and train," said one Western diplomat. "Patience is very short with the House of Representatives." Italy said on Monday it would let U.S. armed drones take off from its soil to defend U.S.-led forces against Islamic State. French special forces and intelligence commandos are engaged in covert operations against IS in Libya in conjunction with the United States and Britain, the French newspaper Le Monde reported on Wednesday. The French defence ministry declined to comment. During the recent fighting in Sabratha, there were signs of cooperation among forces from Zintan and Sabratha brigades who back opposing sides in the wider national conflict. Mattia Toaldo, a Libya expert with the European Council on Foreign Relations, sees a convergence of forces who may agree on little but can work together against IS. Misratan forces backed the new U.N.-supported government and could potentially work with rivals from Haftar's Libyan National Army and the oil guards, who are both aligned with the eastern government, Toaldo said. Defiant Austria, Balkan states agree further steps to turn away migrants By Francois Murphy and Maja Zuvela VIENNA, Feb 24 (Reuters) - Austria, defying criticism from Greek and U.N. refugee officials, took further steps on Wednesday to coordinate a slew of border restrictions spanning the Balkans that have caused a worsening logjam of migrants in Greece. As Vienna pursued measures to stem a continuing migrant influx, neighbouring Hungary's anti-immigrant government announced it would hold a referendum on European Union plans for mandatory migrant quotas that it has already rejected. The moves appeared to deal further blows to a German-led quest for an EU-wide solution to a crisis threatening the bloc's cohesion, though Austria has argued that what it is doing will spur others to eventually agree a common European strategy. As migrants cradling young children blocked a motorway in central Greece demanding onward passage to Macedonia, Greece's migration minister said the border crackdown was causing a "mini humanitarian crisis" on its soil. Hosting a meeting with Balkan states straddling the main migrant route into the heart of Europe, to which Greece was not invited, Austria said national controls were necessary in the absence of measures embraced by all 28 EU members to stem the tide of people into Europe from the Middle East and Africa. A joint statement issued on Wednesday by the 10 countries in attendance in Vienna said participants had agreed to improve cooperation and turn away "migrants not in need of international protection", though that term was not defined. "The migration flow along the Western Balkans route needs to be substantially reduced," said the statement by Austria and countries along the migrant corridor between it and Greece, such as Serbia and Macedonia. Austria, last stop en route to Germany for hundreds of thousands of migrants who have fled war and deprivation in the last year, has set off what it calls a "domino effect" of national border controls limiting the flow of people northwards. The small Alpine republic says it is overwhelmed by the influx, but the United Nations refugee agency said the barriers to movement imposed by Western Balkan states fly in the face of basic refugee protection rights. "(These) restrictions probably go against even European rules and regulations and certainly against basic refugee protection laws," Filippo Grandi, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, told reporters in Athens. Austria was unrepentant, despite rebukes from Germany which is pushing for a much-delayed European response to the crisis, including processing of migrants as they reach Greece and an agreement with Turkey to slow the exodus of people from there. "There is still no European solution in sight," Austrian Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz told reporters in Vienna. "For that reason, it is necessary for us to take national measures." EU leaders will hold a special migration summit with Turkey on March 7, European Council President Donald Tusk and European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said on Wednesday. HUNGARY SETS REFERENDUM In Budapest, Prime Minister Viktor Orban said Hungary would hold a referendum on European Commission plans for mandatory migrant quotas applied to each member state, an initiative his government has rebuffed. He gave no date for the vote. Orban has engaged in harsh anti-migrant rhetoric since the migrant crisis escalated last year and gained notoriety for erecting a steel fence along Hungary's southern border to keep out migrants streaming in from Balkan neighbours to the south. Orban has said migrant quotas would redraw the ethnic, cultural and religious map of Hungary and Europe. "(We are) responding to public sentiment now: we Hungarians think introducing resettlement quotas for migrants without the backing of the people equals an abuse of power," he said on Wednesday. Greece filed a rare diplomatic protest with Austria for excluding it from Wednesday's meeting of foreign and interior ministers in Vienna, held a day before an EU interior ministers' gathering in Brussels. An air of mutual recrimination has come to dog EU debate on how to end the crisis and Austria added to it on Wednesday, accusing Germany of sending mixed messages on immigration. It said Berlin should decide between backing Greece in letting migrants continue their journeys into Europe and telling other countries not to let too many people through. Austria has mainly served as a conduit into Germany for migrants but has absorbed a similar number of asylum seekers relative to its much smaller population. Public anxiety about the influx has contributed to a rise in support for the far-right opposition, and Vienna's coalition government has taken an increasingly hard line on immigration despite initially throwing open the country's borders. Austria said last week that it would limit the number of asylum claims at its southern border, on the main migrant route, to 3,200 and introduce a daily cap on asylum claims there of 80, prompting criticism from the European Commission. Kurz complained that Greece had failed to stop migrants from travelling on towards Austria and Germany and said a lack of political will within the EU had prevented the introduction of coordinated bloc-wide measures to deter migrants from coming. "There is no readiness (in Greece) to reduce the flow," Kurz said, describing a recent meeting of EU foreign ministers. "The interest on the Greek side is only in transporting refugees as quickly as possible towards central Europe." PRESS DIGEST-New Zealand newspapers - Feb 25 WELLINGTON, Feb 25 (Reuters) - Following are some of the lead stories from New Zealand media. Stories may be taken from papers or Internet editions. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy. DOMINION POST(www.stuff.co.nz) Australian government approves sale of Van Diemen's Land Company to Moon Lake:http://bit.ly/1oBfv1F PGW profit back by $3.7m from a tough year:http://bit.ly/1oHBG6Z Vote leaves Auckland out of hearings on its own residential zoning:http://bit.ly/1TziKCu NEW ZEALAND HERALD (www.nzherald.co.nz) Italy's Renzi calls confidence vote on gay unions bill By Gavin Jones ROME, Feb 24 (Reuters) - The Italian government on Wednesday called a confidence vote over hotly contested legislation on gay civil unions after Prime Minister Matteo Renzi watered down the bill to reach an accord in his ruling coalition. Italy is the only major Western country that has not yet recognised civil unions for same-sex or heterosexual couples, continuing to withhold from them legal protections such as inheritance rights. Constitutional Reforms Minister Maria Elena Boschi told the Senate the government was calling a vote of confidence over the amended legislation which strips out all provisions on adoption rights for unmarried gay and heterosexual couples. The clause giving unmarried couples limited opportunities to adopt their partner's children was the most fiercely contested aspect of the bill and had been opposed by Renzi's main coalition partner and many members of his own Democratic Party. Critics say the so-called "stepchild adoption" provision would encourage surrogacy parenting, which is illegal in Italy. The confidence vote will be held in the Senate on Thursday. If the government wins, as expected, the bill will pass to the Chamber of Deputies where Renzi has a more comfortable majority. "The accord on civil unions is a historic event for Italy," the 41-year-old prime minister tweeted. However, gay rights movements were angered by the decision to strip out adoption rights and protested outside the Senate. In another concession to centre-right and Catholic members of the coalition, the amended bill also removes any reference to a need for faithfulness in civil unions, to avoid them too closely resembling traditional marriage vows. Renzi called the confidence vote to hasten the bill's passage and ensure coalition discipline. If the government loses a confidence vote it is obliged to resign. Until coalition divisions over the bill widened, Renzi had said the issue of civil unions was a question of personal conscience and should not be subject to party discipline. Renzi, who took office in 2014, promised to enact the civil unions law last year but has faced implacable opposition both within parliament and from the Roman Catholic Church, which continues to wield great influence in Italy. The rights granted by the bill fall far short of the marriage status allowed for same-sex couples in the United States, Britain and many other countries. Peru electoral board keeps Guzman in April presidential elections LIMA, Feb 24 (Reuters) - A special electoral board in Peru on Wednesday opted not to bar "outsider" Julio Guzman from April elections for president, setting the stage for a likely tight battle between him and longtime front-runner Keiko Fujimori. The country's National Jury of Elections had blocked Guzman's centrist party from this year's elections because it broke a series of technical rules, which threatened to disqualify him. But the Special Jury of Elections, tasked with approving candidates, said Guzman's party amended the errors and was now enrolled. It also cited Guzman's constitutional right to participate in elections. Guzman, a 45-year-old economist who climbed rapidly to second place on pledges to take the country back from a corrupt political elite, celebrated the decision from the highland region of Cusco where he campaigned for the coveted rural vote. "It's amazing I got the news in Anta, where my grandmother was born," Guzman said amid cheering supporters dressed in his party's signature purple. "It's beautiful, very exciting." Guzman, unknown to most voters months ago, has tapped a well of support from Peruvians looking for someone new in a race dominated by well-known but unpopular politicians. He was the only candidate seen as virtually tying Fujimori in a likely June runoff, an Ipsos poll showed Sunday. Fujimori's backing in a first-round vote slipped three points. Fujimori, the rightwing daughter of jailed ex-President Alberto Fujimori, enjoys a double-digit lead over Guzman but is not expected to garner enough votes to win outright April 10. The legal dispute over Guzman's candidacy, which dragged on for nearly a month, likely boosted his bid. He used the ample media coverage to rail against the "status quo" that he said was pulling strings to keep him from office. However, his critics will likely cite the electoral board's qualms with his party to argue Guzman was given unfair advantage. The board had said his party changed its statutes in an assembly without enough advance notice and necessary party members. Guzman had said he would summon mass protests if needed to ensure a place in elections. Guzman worked for the Inter-American Development Bank in Washington for a decade and was briefly an official in President Ollanta Humala's government. Humala cannot run for a second straight term and his candidate is trailing in polls. Guzman has proposed ramping up infrastructure spending and changing the mandate of the central bank to make jobs a priority. Nepal prime minister KP Sharma Oli's six-day visit to India took place at a time when bilateral ties between the two countries have reached a low point on account of the Madhesis' agitation against the newly promulgated Constitution. The agitation took the lives of more than 50 people, leading the Madhesis to block all the crucial entry points on borders with India. This, in turn, resulted in shortage of essential commodities in Nepal. Unfortunately, the Nepali government felt that it was at the behest of the Indian government that the entry points were blocked, causing serious strain in bilateral ties. It was primarily in this context that the visit of prime minister Oli is being seen as an attempt to dispel recent misunderstandings in the historical relationship. Since the Narendra Modi government came to power in May 2014, New Delhi has reoriented its foreign policy to boost bilateral ties with Nepal. Relations between New Delhi and Kathmandu during the ten years of the UPA government had reached an all-time low. So much so that all mainstream political parties doubted India's commitment towards facilitating the Constitution-making process in Nepal, despite the fact that India had played a crucial role in ensuring the success of Jan Andolan-II (2006 democracy movement in Nepal) . Another reason for Modi government to engage Kathmandu at the highest political level is China's increasing investment in the infrastructure, energy and other sectors of Nepal. There is a consensus among Indian strategists and experts that as Pakistan already enjoys goodwill with some sections of Nepali people, China's involvement in the Himalayan country could facilitate the emergence of the China-Nepal nexus against India. Modi government has also rightly realised the need to sustain the dialogue process with Nepal to ensure that the interests of people of the Madhesi region, who have close cultural and family ties with the people of Bihar and UP, should be reflected in its new Constitution. The first signal of the new Union government's desire to deepen bilateral ties with Nepal appeared at the time when Prime Minister Modi invited all the heads of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) countries for his swearing-in ceremony. Since then, New Delhi has taken many steps towards renewing relations with Kathmandu. In July 2014 external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj visited Nepal, setting in the dialogue process between the two countries. Later, Modi became the first India prime minister in the last 17 years to visit Nepal twice - in August and November 2014. His visit was viewed as historic in elevating India-Nepal relations to a new height, with India making an announcement of providing a soft credit line of USD 1 billion for purposes of infrastructure development, irrigation and energy project. When Nepal faced a deadly earthquake in April 2015, India immediately sent its forces to join the rescue efforts in the country. Indian media also went to cover the rescue operation. However, Nepal did not like the presence and coverage of Indian media on its soil, charging the Indian government with indulging in a cheap public relations exercise. Nepal described coverage of the earthquake by India media as "insensitive" and "intrusive." What is more, Indian search-and-rescue teams were asked to leave Nepal. Indeed, Nepal's reaction embarrassed India. Yet, the Indian government acted in a mature manner by not openly expressing its disappointment over Nepal's unexpected conduct. Even before bilateral ties could have recovered from Kathmandu's mishandling of the earthquake episode, Nepal faced an unprecedented political turmoil. People of Madhesi region - the southern part of Nepal - began an agitation against the new Constitution promulgated by the constituent assembly in September 2015. Despite claims that the Constitution, which was in the making for last seven years, has not only transformed Nepal from an officially Hindu monarchy to a secular and federal state composed of seven states, but also protects the interests and rights of all the communities of Nepali society, agitating people argued that their rights and interests have been completely ignored. In particular, the Madhesi and Tharus felt sidelined in the entire Constitution-making process. They argued that the boundaries of the states have been demarked in the Constitution in such a way that their voice would be neglected because they find themselves in a minority in every state. This is evident from the fact that despite their share being more than 50 per cent in Nepal's population, the Madhesi region got only 65 seats in a 165-member Parliament, while the hill and mountain region got 100, with its share being less than 50 per cent. The new Constitution says that only citizens by descent will be entitled to hold the posts of president, vice-president, prime minister, chief justice, speaker of Parliament, and some other important political posts. This clause is seen as discriminatory for the large number of Madhesis who have acquired citizenship both by birth or naturalisation. Unlike in the interim constitution, the new one does not accord equal citizenship rights to Nepali women marrying foreigners, in comparison to Nepali men marrying foreigners. Soon, the political unrest in Nepal engulfed India also, as the Madhesi people blocked all the major entry points from India to Nepal, bringing a complete stop of goods movement. Nepali media misinformed its people that India had its invisible hand in the blockage of the entry points. In fact, rumours were spread that the Indian government was helping the Madhesi people, believing that a pro-Madhesi stand would help the BJP in the Bihar assembly elections. Nepali prime minister Oli himself accused India of "unofficial blockade" in Nepal and raised the issue with UN secretary general Ban Ki-moon. India strongly rejected Nepal's allegations that it had blockaded the checkpoints, arguing that it was on the Nepali side that entry had been blocked, not on its side. A month-long agitation led to a huge scarcity of essential goods and petroleum products in Nepal. Political parties also started criticising prime minister Oli for not acting effectively to end the Madhesi agitation. In addition, Nepal also realised the limitation of China in providing fuel and essential goods on account of poor road connectivity between the two countries. Keeping in mind these factors, prime minister Oli agreed to amend the Constitution. Consequently, in January three articles of the new constitution - Article 42, Article 84 and Article 286 - were amended to facilitate higher representation in government bodies on the basis of proportional inclusion of the Madhesis. India described these as "welcome developments," hoping that other outstanding issues are similarly addressed in a constructive spirit. The agitating groups also removed the blockage at the checkpoints, leading to resumption of goods movements. At the same time, India sent a high-level all-party delegation led by external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj to pay homage to former Nepalese PM Sushil Koirala. This gesture further helped in easing the tension between the two countries. On its side, within hours of the end of the blockade, Nepal announced the visit of prime minister KP Sharma Oli to India. The visit of PM Oli has witnessed significant progress between the two countries. While Modi called Nepal's Constitution a "major achievement," Oli said that the main mission behind the bilateral visit to India was to "clear the misunderstanding." He also said that his country is and will remain a "reliable" friend of India and that he wanted to "move forward in the relationship, which is not man-made but entirely natural and civilisational." The two leaders reviewed bilateral ties and signed seven agreements. These agreements include utilisation of Indian grant of USD 250 million to Nepal for post-earthquake reconstruction in four sectors - housing, health, education and cultural heritage. The two leaders also expressed their commitment to not allow the open border between the two nations to be misused by terrorists and criminals. Last week, I was hosting a group of guests who were in India for the Make in India week. Those of Indian origin, who attempted to understand the politics behind the JNU episode, were flummoxed. Why on earth would the prime minister allow JNU to make headlines in a week when his prestigious event was underway? In fact, the only headline that the "Make in India" event made was the fire on the stage. Everything else about the event, including the MoUs, was relegated to crawlers on television and buried in business pages of newspapers. The hashtags did not trend. Prime time debates understandably gave a miss to the event. After all, the nation had to be saved first. For a prime minister who has made a successful career through high-profile events, seeing such a major event die unsung must not have been easy. No attempt was made, by either action or word, to change the headlines and push them back to Mumbai. On the contrary, ministers goofed up; lawyers went about lawlessly bashing up journalists and students; cops kept making conflicting statements; international media was merciless in its commentary on state "attack on dissent" in India. In short, the drift we witnessed during the last two years of UPA-2 is panning out even before the second year of NDA-2. None of us had answers. But the speculations offered on the table were quite interesting in their range of insight and also the perception these guests have of this government and its deep state in Nagpur. Is the prime minister losing his grip? Is the remote control from Nagpur completely in charge? Is this a result of internal sabotage? Does all of this have the prime minister's nod? Is the government trying to shift our attention from something else and JNU provided it a perfect opportunity to change the headlines? "This is a decisive round of fight between the Lutyens' Liberals and Modi", claimed a man from London, sounding very pleased with his choice of words. Failing to defend the government on economic parameters and Pathankot, troll armies that had started to go back to their barracks are back with armouries full of patriotic-flavoured abuse. If the whispers within top circles are to be believed, from controlling the response of the police to the appointment of special prosecutors, the party leadership is micro-managing the JNU issue. It sees in this hyped patriotic fervour traces of what we witnessed during the Mandir movement. The optimism of the RSS/BJP leadership is pegged on the theory that Lutyens' Delhi had under-estimated the mass support that the movement received then just as it is misreading the patriotic debate through an elitist prism. Friendly channels have swung into action and are stopping at nothing. Look at the deviousness in the topics of debates - #IndiaWithForces. Those who question the government automatically get slotted as those against the forces. The fact that Parkash Singh Badal had once burnt the copy of the Indian Constitution and is now an ally of the BJP; that Mehbooba Mufti's PDP has spoken out against the hanging of Afzal Guru and the BJP is now desperately waiting for her nod for the renewal of an alliance to form a government in Jammu and Kashmir do not have to figure in any of these debates. The prime time footsoldiers of this pseudo-patriotic army will not question the government's flip-flop Pakistan policy when our brave jawans die in Kashmir or Pathankot, but will question the patriotism of those who talk about upholding rule of law and the right of our campuses to dissent and debate and, through some convoluted logic, hold those of us who question the high-handed approach of the government in dealing with student unrest responsible for the killing of jawans. This government has run out of excuses on the abysmal state of the economy. The allegations of corruption in land allotment to companies close to the daughter of the chief minister of Gujarat came to the doorstep of the prime minister as he was the chief minister at the time of these dubious allotments. The bombastic rhetoric of the prime minister on UPA's alleged failure in dealing with the neighbours is now haunting him with a vengeance. JNU-type debates are excellent hideouts for a beleaguered government. But only for the time being. A pracharak prime minister with 282 seats under his belt was one of those impossible dreams for the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). The cadres who helped whip up votes for Narendra Modi as the Hindu Hriday Samrat of the 2002 fame are desperate for the abrogation of Article 370, a grand temple at Ayodhya, Uniform Civil Code, and of course a Hindu Rashtra. Those who voted for Narendra Modi - the so-called Vikas Purush of the much touted "Gujarat model" fame - are waiting for the promised Midas touch. Eastern View High School tenth grade English students are researching, writing about and discussing a hot topic Should marijuana be legalized in Virginia for recreational use? At least one local parent has chosen to not let her son do the assignment that school administration is supporting, even as discussion about the topic of legalized marijuana continues to burn out in the statehouse and police step up enforcement efforts. Eastern View High School English teacher Sharon Fitzgerald feels its a multi-faceted discussion worth having with the younger generation. Assignment She developed the assignment, in part, in preparation for next years SOL writing test, and recently sent home a letter to parents and guardians asking permission for their children to discuss the topic of marijuana legalization for personal use after students expressed interest in the nationwide debate. As teachers, we are challenged to engage students while teaching required lessons, Fitzgerald said. I believe the legal use of marijuana is a topic of interest among high school students and one that could possibly teach them things about the issue while keeping them engaged in English instruction. Participating students will read articles, watch news clips and discuss the opinions of different segments of the American population non-parent adults, parents, teenagers, law enforcement and politicians before choosing a side and defending their position in a five-paragraph persuasive essay. It certainly is a topic relevant to our time as states are grappling with this issue, Fitzgerald said. At no time would students who opted out of the assignment be forced to participate in the discussion. Mom: students are too young The mother of one of Fitzgeralds students does not want her 16-year-old son participating in the conversation because she feels the topic is better left for adults. The mom, Christine, asked that her full name not be used in the article for fear of retribution against her child. They are too young to be talking about this as a class assignment, she said. This is a college thing. Christine, part of a military family, moved to Culpeper from a station in Colorado, where marijuana is legal. She said some parents supported legalization and owned dispensaries there while others opposed it, but that it was never a discussion encouraged as schoolwork for minors. My thing is I am not really for or against the conversation, but they are way too young, said Christine. The parent felt Mrs. Fitzgerald should have put the assignment in the class syllabus so parents would have known about it beforehand. Its really scary, she said. School system reaction School Board Chairman Nate Clancy did not respond to requests from the Star-Exponent for comment on the matter, while Stevensburg member Elizabeth Hutchins referred what she characterized as a curriculum question to Tony Brads, Culpeper County Public Schools Superintendent. He stood behind the coursework request. I am in support of the position of the English teacher and the principal at EVHS regarding the assignment, Brads said. We believe this topic is relevant for our youth due to what is happening in other states. Our students would be afforded an opportunity to research this current issue and be able to use appropriate articles and documentaries to support their positions, both pro and con. The superintendent noted those who objected to the subject could pick another one. Fitzgerald said her students next year would have to take the 11th grade SOL Writing Test, composing a five-paragraph persuasive essay on a prompt they dont get to choose and may not like. My hope is to engage students early in the process so I can teach them the skills to be successful in passing this test, the teacher said. In Colorado and Washington State, recreational marijuana use is legal for those 21 and older. A recent article for the American Psychological Association warned against marijuana use by adolescents for its potential adverse effects, such as disrupted brain development, according to W. Alex Mason, director of research at the Boys Town National Research Institute for Child and Family Studies, in an article Recreational marijuana legalization: What parents and adolescents should know and discuss. Prior research has shown that parents can help their adolescent children delay substance use by communicating clear expectations for nonuse (until legal age), monitoring behavior (finding out who their childrens friends are) and providing consistent and appropriate discipline (lack of privileges) within a warm and supportive relationship, Mason wrote in the article. Statehouse reluctance Virginia law in support of marijuana legalization has been slow to develop, with many in the GOP-led legislature unwilling to even discuss decriminalization of the federally-banned substance now legal in some form in 23 states and Washington, D.C. Monday in Richmond, the House Courts of Justice Committee defeated a bill without much discussion that would have established a legal defense against prosecution for possession with a doctors certification of non-intoxicating marijuana derivatives, cannabidiol and THC oils, used in cancer treatments. Committee Chairman Dave Albo, of Fairfax County, was the only Republican on the committee to support the measure. He said Tuesday he backed it because proponents provided him with studies from the National Institutes of Health showing that the oils can, in fact, reduce cancer tumors. A person cannot get high on CBD and THC oil, so I dont have a problem allowing people who have medical conditions that can be helped by these oils where there is actually respected medical studies and evidence, he said. I am not for marijuana legalization, by the way, Albo added. A bill he sponsored last year which was signed into law did not legalize it, he said. It said that if you are a parent or child with epilepsy and you have a doctor who says that the oil will help you, the prosecutor will be required to drop the case, Albo said. The new law did not provide a way for people to get the oils, which are sold legally in Colorado, where makers are wary of shipping it across state lines in violation of federal law, and parents also risk prosecution for travelling to the state and transporting the medicine themselves. NORML continues fight Culpeper County resident Pam Novy, executive director of the Virginia chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, or NORML, felt the discussion at Eastern View High School was appropriate, noting that people of all ages are talking about it. This is a topic young people discuss regularly when the adults are not around, so I think this particular teacher is very astute to tap into that, Novy said Tuesday. This is a current event that will influence the upcoming elections, and high school sophomores are on the precipice of becoming voters, so this is an excellent time to teach them the value of dissecting issues relevant to our country and community. Wednesday in the statehouse, legislators will consider modifications to a bill that would allow for production of CBD and THC oils in Virginia. The fact that the House Courts of Justice Committee on Monday set aside related legislation does not hinder the cause of NORML, Novy said. It only fuels our fight, she said. Each time the General Assembly makes these unfortunate decisions, people get angry, and many of them are people who have no personal investment in marijuana they just know that criminal penalties for marijuana possession are an example of government overreach and should be stopped. Drug enforcement and polls In a related story, the Virginia State Police on Tuesday announced the arrest of Kevin Riley, of Winchester, for distribution of marijuana. Agents with the Northwest Virginia Regional Drug & Gang Task Force executed a warrant Friday on the mans car and seized 12 pounds of marijuana and $18,000 in cash. Riley is being held in the Northwestern Regional Adult Detention Center. A recent Virginia Commonwealth University Poll reported that 62 percent of 931 adult Virginians interviewed strongly or somewhat agreed that recreational use of marijuana should be legalized. At the same time, law enforcement in Virginia continues to wage its war on weed. From 2003 to 2014, marijuana possession arrests in the state increased 76 percent, according to the Drug Policy Alliance. Note: Sharon Fitzgerald of Greene County is the wife of Greene County Record editor Pat Fitzgerald. The Greene County record is owned by BH Media, which also owns the Culpeper Star-Exponent. In the summer of 2015, Dal English professors Leonard Diepeveen and Jason Haslam sent out a handful of memos to faculty in their department a classic wouldnt it be cool if...? message. The if was the opportunity to launch a grassroots bursary fund in the department to provide financial aid to Aboriginal and Black Canadian students attending Dalhousie. This upcoming academic year, their idea will come to life. Last Thursday, the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences and the Office of Advancement hosted an event in the McCain Building to publicly announce the new bursary fund for Black Canadian and Aboriginal students who have declared themselves as English majors setting an example that others departments are looking to follow. Addressing financial need Drs. Diepeveen and Haslam are the two faculty members leading the effort. Considering how to increase and sustain diversity on campus, the duo decided to gauge the interest among their colleagues in establishing a bursary fund through ongoing payroll deductions. The positive response prompted them to launch a targeted bursary that is based solely on financial need and directed to historically marginalized groups in Nova Scotia. Part of this came about as a realization: both in awareness of the lack of diversity among our own student body and in awareness that if youre the first generation and youre having financial difficulties getting to university, needs-based bursaries are incredibly important, says Dr. Diepeveen (above). Diversity should not be hampered or lessened because students dont have the financial ability to be here. Dr. Haslam says that with with tuition costs increasing and student debt where it is, bursaries are essential to providing initial opportunities to students of marginalized groups and keeping them at the university to complete their degrees. He highlights the recent Truth and Reconciliation Commission report for emphasizing the role universities and other educational institutions can play in fostering diversity, especially when it comes to reconciliation between Canada and its Aboriginal communities. I think that were responding to local conditions with a global problem in mind, he says. We talk the talk, but we really want to put our money where our mouth is and try to make this a more inclusive, welcoming and diverse place. Once plans are finalized, the English Department hopes to award multiple bursaries, possibly one or two at $3,000 or $4,000 along with some smaller bursaries. Stephen Harding (right), Dalhousies acting assistant vice-president development in the Office of Advancement, spoke at the announcement, and is a keen supporter of the new bursary fund. I think what Im most impressed with is the fact that this is a grassroots initiative, and its really the members of the department stepping up to support diversity, he says. This is exactly in line with that strategic priority of making the university option available for those students. Bursaries like this offer students the opportunity to spend more time on their studies rather than worrying about buying books or rent, so it fills the gap for students to complete their degree. Inspiring similar efforts During his speech at Thursdays event, Dr. Diepeveen also invited other faculty and staff to take part in establishing their own bursary initiatives than can target the needs and culture of their own departments. So far, representatives from History, Sociology and Social Anthropology, Philosophy, Physics and Atmospheric Science, Computer Science, ITS, and Nursing have expressed their intentions to create similar bursary funds. Harding says the team at the Office of Advancement will be there to support any other units or departments at the university who want to undertake the same type of grassroots initiative among their faculty. From the impact their initiative has already made on other faculties, the efforts of the Department of English are not going unnoticed. Norma Williams, executive director of diversity and inclusiveness at Dal, applauds the new bursary fund and the department for taking the initiative to meaningfully support the open doors of post-secondary education. Bursaries such as this provide an important bridge between what is and the future, says Williams (left), who also spoke at the event. We have identified in the Belong and other reports that Dalhousie is underrepresented as regards students, faculty and staff from Aboriginal and African Canadian communities. Bursaries can mean the difference between continuing on or leaving school." She adds that Dals goal of a representative workforce is also linked to increasing Aboriginal and African Canadian student entrance and graduation numbers, and to supporting student movement to faculty and staff positions within higher education, at Dalhousie or elsewhere. Its my belief that faculty and staff across Dalhousie are working hard to demonstrate who belongs here, she says. This article was written by Kalkidan Gebre, outreach assistant with Dal's Global Health. It has been repurposed from the Global Health Office's blog. This month marks the 90 anniversary of the celebration of African Heritage Month. African Heritage Month dates back to 1926 when historian Carter G. Woodson established the second week of February to be Negro History Week" to recognize the achievements of African Americans. Over the years, the occasion has evolved into a month in which the Western world is challenged to contemplate on the study and celebration of the journey and achievements of its African-descended residents: a journey filled with obstacles and triumph, from denied freedom, equality, and justice to compromise, sacrifice, opportunity, and community. This history is complex as it is embedded with sadness, pain, promise, and hope. It is filled with lessons of leadership, community, and love that are still applicable to our lives today. Earlier this month, I connected with several Dalhousie students to ask them what African Heritage Month still sometimes referred to as Black History Month means to them and why it should be celebrated on campus. Mana Gebreyohannes, Masters of Social Work student Black History Month is a beneficial period where many can gain awareness of the contributions and accomplishments of, often, unrecognized people of African ancestry. Its a period when the younger generation can learn about a comprehensive history of Canada and abroad. For me, Black History Month is not confined to the shortest month of the year, its every month! I celebrate and learn about my history and culture in every aspect of my life and illustrate that pride in everything that I do. Cinera States, third-year Medicine student Black History month means taking time to pay tribute to those who broke down barriers for me. Although every day I am conscious of and proud of my roots, black history month is like an active reminder to celebrate out loud. To bring the roots of my being to the forefront for once in a society where they often take the back seat. It is important that we celebrate Black History Month on campus because it is a way to bring people of all races together. Recognizing that we all have an important history to share and we all can play a role in celebrating how far weve come while also remaining aware of where we have yet to go. Desiree Jones, fourth-year Sociology student To me, Black History Month means celebrating and appreciating a history that is often extenuated. It means letting the world know that Black people have made significant contributions to society, as well as reminding the younger generations of the barriers cleared for them by those who challenged extremely unequal conditions of the past. It should be celebrated at Dalhousie because when the community is not aware of different perspectives on events in history, attitudes of racism and discrimination have room to arise in peoples opinions and thoughts. This negatively impacts students of African descent, and perpetuates situations that lead to disadvantages that people have worked so hard to eradicate over generations. Amina Abawajy, fourth-year Informatics and International Development Studies student Black History Month is an opportunity for communities to learn about and honour the cultures, histories, and legacies of people of Afrikan descent. Not only should Black History Month be celebrated at Dalhousie but the legacy of people of Afrikan descent should be meaningfully reflected and integrated in academic curriculums and policies. Vicky Atiol, fourth-year Economics student To me Black History Month is the recognition of the adversities and liberation of the African people throughout history. I believe that Black History Month symbolizes the movement to change injustices that we currently live in. Black History Month is important to acknowledge at Dalhousie so that students are aware of the substantial contributions that we have made to society. In a world that is run by white privilege, we need to continue to motivate the black people to strive for the greatest so that they may emulate their ancestors great work of changing society to be better. Read also: Celebrating African Heritage Month at Dal (Feb 3) Archive Reader Comments About DarkeJournal Thanks to your wonderful for sale and garage sale section. I have used both successfully. Keep up the great reporting. From someone who used the unclassifieds: "Thanks to DJ we rented [out] the house!" We understand your site really has the best coverage for our county. Darke Journal is a great website. We kept up with the weather and all the local news on a recent trip. Keep up the GREAT WORK. Keep up the excellent work with the site. Its refreshing to have such a glowing forum for thought and info in the area! I'm a huge fan of Darke Journal - thanks for providing this website/email information for the community. I think we can all agree, this is the best site of its kind for Darke County by far. Your web site has been a great advertising place for our programs ... we always receive lots of calls. Thanks for all you do. Must say I think you have done a really great job with the site. Your web site is such a benefit to the community. ......the journal ROCKS!!!!! Thanks for all your help. Darke Journal is the number one source for Darke County community news. I have truly enjoyed keeping up with the Darke County news, but the constant reporting on conservative causes is totally inappropriate. Darke Journal is sure on top of everything. I really appreciate you running and bumping the garage sale ad over the last few days. My son and I had a really successful sale, and your site was a big help in making that happen (many people told us that they heard about it through DJ). I am a huge fan of your website. It brings more useful information than the newspaper does and even though I am attending college and am away from home, I still check out your website about once a day to keep up on local events. I just love your website. It's better than any newspaper or TV program. Keep up the good work. I like the DJ because it just gives the facts pure and simple. I also like to read what the readers think. You keep up the good work & you will grow! I am so glad that I found this site. It is so nice to have such an upbeat & unbiased Darke County news. I look forward to checking it each day. I just found it this month. Plus, I can feel free to voice my concerns on issues. Great web site! When I turn on my computer in the morning, I check the weather and Darke Journal before anything else. Thank you for the pix & info on this site. It's nice to know what's going on in our great Darke County. You are doing a great service and this is a great media outlet! It just gets better and better! Truly, the 'mix' is what makes it so good for all readers. DJ = nice guy, but should relinquish his website duties. This is a wonderful site! I am so glad there is a place in this community where people can voice their opinion about issues. In the past for many years this community seems to be run by so called political people with others hiding in the brush waiting to inform their leaders of those who disagree with an issue on hand, just so they can point them out and try to ruin their life. Again I am so glad finally, an average Joe can make an Anonymous posted opinion and not fear that they will be pointed at or looked down for stating how they feel. Thank you D. J. Its better than most of the media available in and around Darke County. The web site has had steadily increasing viewership over the last year or two and, at least in my opinion, has become a major player in getting news and commentary to Darke Countians. Your site is not a freaking jungle. The funds would go towards shoring up production at San Cristobal. Caracas: Venezuela's state oil company PDVSA is about to clinch a deal for India's Oil and Natural Gas Corp to invest some $500 million in their San Cristobal joint venture, the South American company's president said on Tuesday. "We're about to firm up ONGC's financing to the joint venture we have in the San Cristobal field," Eulogio Del Pino, who is also Venezuela's Oil Minister, told Reuters. He said the deal, which has been under negotiation for months, would be signed "soon." The funds would go towards shoring up production at San Cristobal, which has fallen from a peak of over 40,000 barrels per day to around 28,000 bpd. The deal is expected to ensure state-owned ONGC gradually receives around $530 million of unpaid dividends, though it could take years for the entire amount to be repaid. The investment is also likely to involve the creation of an offshore account, probably in Asia, to receive the export income. It was not immediately possible to get a comment from ONGC, India's largest oil and gas explorer. The deal would come on the heels of last week's announcement that Russia's top oil producer, Rosneft, will invest $500 million as it raises its stake in the Petromonagas joint venture in Venezuela's Orinoco Belt region to 40 percent. Fresh investment could help Venezuela, home of the world's largest crude reserves, shore up oil output. ONGC Videsh, ONGC's overseas investment arm, has a 40 percent stake in the San Cristobal oilfield. PDVSA subsidiary CVP has the rest. Hyderabad: Prominent Muslim scholars across the country and abroad who had gathered in the city to participate in an international conference on the life and teachings of Prophet Mohammed, on Tuesday unanimously resolved and declared terror outfits like the ISIS as not even remotely associated with the idea of Islam. Their deeds and actions were absolutely un-Islamic and against humanity, they said. The three-day conference held by Al Mahad al Aali Isalmi, an Islamic institution founded by noted Islamic scholar Maulana Khalid Saifullah Rahmani, concluded on Tuesday night with a public meeting. Earlier in the day, Islamic scholars Maulana Syed Wali Rahmani, Maulana Sajjad Noumani, Khalid Saifullah Rahmani members of the All India Mus-lim Personal Law Board and Maulana Khaled Hussain Siddiqui, secretary, Jamiat-ul-Ulema (Nepal) addressed a seminar on the determined stand of Muslims against the ISIS and its threat to humanity. The scholars made it clear that the Shariah forbade the murder or killing of innocent people. According to Quranic teachings, whoever kills a person (unjustly) it is as though he has killed all mankind. And whoever saves a life it is as though he has saved all mankind. The scholars urged people, particularly Muslim youth, to refrain from extremism and unjust use of power as Islam teaches Muslims to respect and protect the life, wealth, assets and dignity of people irrespective of their beliefs. The conference resolved to seek a global law that mandates respect of all religions from the UN. The scholars said: When the sentiments of a particular group are hurt, no one condemns it and instead the same strata condemn the reaction of the affected groups This brews the feelings of hatred, enmity and violence among the affected people. Use of force is not the solution. An Iraqi man arrested in Austraia for raping a 10-year-old boy in a swimming pool said that he did it because it was a sexual emergency as he had not had sex in four months. His wife and children are in Iraq, as reported by The Daily Mail. The accused, identified only as 20-year-old Amir A, is kept under tight security in Vienna's Josefstadt jail in order to protect him from other prisoners. A source told the local media that he was hated for what he was alleged to have done and he had now become a target among the other prisoners. Amir raped the boy in cubicle of Theresienbad pool. The Iraqi accused is a migrant and had entered Austria through the Balkans on September 5, official records stated. He said that he could not help himself as he had an 'excess of sexual energy'. The 10-year-old boys mother said to Amirs explanation for the rape, It's like me saying I'm going to go to a bank tomorrow and rob it because I don't have enough money for my five children.' The Al-Nusra Front is parsimonious with its use of suicide bombers (Representational image: AFP) Oslo, Norway: One is a devout and cheery Saudi, the other a British convert overcome by doubt, the third a Syrian fascinated by the promise of 72 virgins: a new documentary unveils the shadowy world of Syria's would-be suicide bombers. In a rare, in-depth look at the Al-Nusra Front, Al-Qaeda's affiliate in Syria, the 58-minute documentary "Dugma, the Button" reveals the convictions and doubts of those ready to become martyrs -- "the precision weaponry of the poor," in the words of the filmmaker, Norwegian journalist Pal Refsdal. The film follows the three future suicide bombers as they wait for their missions, without any commentary. "When I get close to the target, I'll pull the safety switch, the first one... and I'll keep driving until I'm a few metres away from the target, and then I'll pull the other safety switch," says Abu Qaswara, sitting at the wheel of a lorry loaded with explosives, covered in makeshift armour so it looks like something out of road movie "Mad Max". "This is the button. This is Dugma. I'll press it... and with Allah's permission I'll send them all to hell," he says with a disconcerting smile. Aged 32 when the documentary was shot and father of a little girl he's never seen, the Saudi national arrived in Syria two years earlier. He's on "the list" of volunteers ready to blow themselves up to take out a Syrian army position. The wait is usually a long one, between one and two years, according to Refsdal who spent more than six weeks with the men at the end of 2014 and in mid-2015 in north-western Syria. The Al-Nusra Front is parsimonious with its use of suicide bombers, according to Refsdal. "Several weeks can go by in between two operations," he told AFP in an interview in Oslo. "They're not like ISIS which sends car bombs one after the other with very young drivers dying en masse," he added. While waiting for a target to be selected -- always strictly military, according to Refsdal -- the candidates for martyrdom go about the daily routines that are part of a messy and never-ending war. At the risk of being overcome by doubt. 'Relaxed Kamikazes' Born Catholic to a British mother and an American father who worked in Hollywood -- Patrick Kinney worked on "Braveheart", "Indiana Jones" and "Rambo II" -- Lucas Kinney, who goes by the name Abu Basir al-Britani ("the Briton"), sees his convictions falter after his young wife gets pregnant. "Now I can't do that to my family," he admits, his voice cracking with emotion. There are also moments of levity and humour, such as when the Syrian, who goes by the pseudonym "Abu Ljaman", asks where the speedometer is on the armoured vehicle that Abu Qaswara is teaching him to drive. "You're on your way to martyrdom. Are you really going to worry about speeding?," the Saudi asks him incredulously. Abu Ljaman also gets gently chided when he makes a second reference to the 72 virgins promised in the afterlife. "I was surprised by the ease of relations with them, by their relaxed side," said Refsdal, who converted to Islam while being held by Afghanistan's Taliban in 2009. "If I hadn't known they were Al-Qaeda, I would never have guessed based on my gut feeling alone," he said. But does his documentary, filmed after the Al-Nusra Front gave him free access, not risk giving a grandstand to members of what many countries consider to be a "terrorist" organisation? "I understand that there may be people who disagree with it in principle and argue that Al-Qaeda attacked New York in 2001, Madrid in 2004, London in 2005, Paris and Charlie Hebdo," he said. "But the film isn't trying to tell people what to think, it's just depicting their daily lives and then it's up to people to think what they want after having seen it," he added. The Norwegian intelligence service PST had no problem with his time spent with the suicide bombers. "What's illegal is to support and participate in the Al-Nusra Front or IS," PST spokesman Martin Bernsen said. "Making a documentary about them can not be considered as providing support or participation," he said. Sold to at least four television channels, "Dugma, the Button" will air on Norwegian television in early March. Islamabad: Pakistan President Mamnoon Hussain's security has been stepped up in the wake of a decision pending with him on the mercy petition filed by former Punjab governor Salman Taseer's killer last month, officials said on Monday. Former police commando Mumtaz Qadri, deputed on the security of Taseer, had killed him in Islamabad in 2011 for allegedly criticising blasphemy laws. The self-confessed killer was arrested and was handed down death sentence the same year by an anti-terrorism court. His appeal against the sentence was successively rejected by the Islamabad High Court and the Supreme Court last year. The final review petition was also thrown out by the Supreme Court in December, 2015, leaving the killer with the last option of filing a mercy appeal with the President who in certain cases can condone the death sentence. Qadri filed mercy petition last month. It is under process, said an official of the interior ministry, which handles such petitions. With the decision on the mercy petition pending with the President, the security of his family has been strengthened fearing a backlash if he rejects the petition. The President has three sons. Some members of his immediate family live in Karachi, his home city, but they have been moved to the President's house in the capital, officials said. Hussain's own security has also been heightened, they said. Only family of the victim can forgive a killer but in crimes against state like the killing of a governor, the head of the state can also intervene. However, observers say the chances of Qadri being saved from the gallows are slim with the government declaring zero tolerance against militancy. Qadri was convicted on terror charges. Radical religious groups have been demanding that Qadri should be forgiven as he killed a "blasphemer". Taseer, who died aged 66, had termed the blasphemy regulations as "black laws" drawing the ire of extremists. The laws were introduced by Pakistan's military ruler Zia-ul-Haq in 1980s. Sharif expressed hope that through an Afghan-owned and Afghan-led peace process would bring lasting peace in Afghanistan. (Photo: AFP) Islamabad: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Wednesday said that Pakistan and Afghanistan should work together to get rid of terrorism, underlining that the talks between Afghan government and Taliban is a positive signal for the peace process. He was talking to Speaker Wolesi Jirga of Afghanistan Abdul Raouf Ibrahimi who called on him in Islamabad here. "Pakistan believes that terrorism is a common enemy and Pakistan and Afghanistan need to work together to rid the two countries of this menace," Sharif said. Sharif expressed hope that Pakistan's engagement in sincere and consistent efforts for promoting peace and reconciliation through an Afghan-owned and Afghan-led peace process would bring lasting peace in Afghanistan. The Quadrilateral Coordination Group has been making good progress in right direction, he said. Sharif said that the decision to hold talks next week between Afghan government and Taliban is a "positive signal for the peace process". He said that Afghanistan must have an environment where Afghan migrants return back to their country with respect, honour and dignity on the right time. The Prime Minister offered help to Afghanistan in its infrastructure development. Sharif said that he has a vision of comprehensive and enduring partnership with Afghanistan that contributes to the security and prosperity of our two nations and reinforces efforts for peace and development in the region. Recalling President Ashraf Ghani's visit to Pakistan in December last year, the Prime Minister said that Pakistan's focus is on enhancement in mutual trust that paves way for deeper engagement in diverse areas of cooperation including security and counter-terrorism, peace and reconciliation in Afghanistan and trade and economic development to the benefit of both the countries. The Speaker said that Pakistan was the only nation, which supported Afghanistan against external aggression in 1979. "We appreciate and applaud the role of Pakistani nation for hosting Afghan migrants for 30 years despite difficulties. They have hosted their Afghan brothers in an affectionate andcaring manner," he said. "Pakistan is second home for its Afghan brothers and we must remain steadfast friends in every situation," he said. The Speaker said that friends of Afghanistan are friends of Pakistan and enemies of Afghanistan are enemies of Pakistan. Sharks, which are historically seen as solitary animals, may have complex social networks that are typically seen in mammals but rarely observed in fish, a new study has found. Using tracking devices to trace the movements of individual animals in the open ocean, researchers found that Sand Tiger sharks form more complex social structure than previously thought. "Higher-order decision-making processes are often associated with mammals, or species that we think of as really smart dolphins, elephants, or chimpanzees," said Danielle Haulsee, a PhD candidate at the University of Delaware in UK. Sand Tiger sharks, top predators that live in coastal waters off the Eastern US, have experienced drastic population declines over the past several decades. They are important regulators of marine food webs but have been historically understudied, Haulsee said. Researchers used acoustic tags to track the movements of over 300 individual Sand Tiger sharks and record shark-shark interactions over the course of a year. Previous studies have looked at shark interactions in laboratories or species contained in pens, but this the first study to record interactions for almost a year in free-swimming sharks, Haulsee said. Initial data from two individual sharks show they encountered nearly 200 other Sand Tigers throughout the year, as well as several individuals from other shark species. The sharks show fission-fusion social behaviour, meaning that the number of sharks in a group and the individuals that are part of the group change by location and time of year. Researchers found that groups of Sand Tigers stay together for certain times of the year and fall apart during other times. They also found that Sand Tigers re-encounter the same sharks throughout the year. One surprise was a sudden lack of encounters with other Sand Tigers in the late winter and early spring, Haulsee said. Up until that point, both Sand Tigers were encountering other sharks regularly, but in the late winter, both seemed to enter a dispersal phase where they encountered very few other sharks. This could be related to other aspects of the sharks' lives, such as mating and searching for food, which suggests that they could be performing a kind of social cost-benefit analysis, researchers said. "If you're living with a group, there could be some kind of protection or information sharing that comes with being in that group," Haulsee said. "But if there's a lot of competition for food resources or mating resources, then it's not beneficial anymore to be in a group, and you might swim away from your group and go off on your own," she said. The researchers hope to use their results to answer questions about whether Sand Tigers form family groups or whether sharks of similar size and sex form distinct groupings. A month after the government asked the CID to inquire into the multi-crore advertisement scam in the BBMP, it has emerged that the Lokayukta could still continue and complete the ongoing investigation into the scam. Based on a report by K Mathai, BBMP assistant commissioner (advertisements), the government (on January 22, 2016) ordered a CID inquiry into the Rs 2,000-crore scam. The government asked the CID to just inquire and report, a senior police officer said, pointing out that nowhere had the government asked the Lokayukta to stop the probe. The government has no power to ask the Lokayukta to stop investigation into the scam. Such a directive has to come from the court, the official explained. Even if the CID goes ahead and conducts an inquiry into the scam, the Lokayukta police can simultaneously continue the investigation. Inquiry implies just reporting the facts to the government, while investigation includes filing charge sheet and a trial by the court. A senior police official said that the government wanted just an inquiry and not investigation into the scam. Had the government asked for a CID investigation, it would have become a tricky issue as no two parallel investigations can be held into the same case, he pointed out. Earlier, there was a view that no two First Investigation Reports (FIRs) could be registered for the same case or no two parallel investigations could be done by two agencies into the scam. There is no need to file an FIR for just an inquiry. It, however, is a must to register an FIR to investigate the scam, the officer clarified. DH News Service AIADMK General Secretary and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa today turned 68, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi greeting the leader on her birthday. Modi wished Jayalalithaa over phone and the latter thanked the Prime Minister for his greetings, an official release said. In a tweet, the Prime Minister said, "Birthday wishes to Jayalalithaa ji. May Almighty bless her with a long life, filled with good health". Party workers across the state celebrated the birthday of 'Amma' with fervour. Songs from films featuring AIADMK founder M G Ramachandran and Jayalalithaa, both yesteryear stars, were being played out even as distribution of welfare measures and special prayers marked the occasion. A massive sapling plantation drive would be taken up in 6,868 temples across the state by the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Department besides other programmes. Amid large number of complaints by parents of schools asking for donations and not following other DoE guidelines on nursery admissions, the department is likely to take action against such schools. After the first list of selected candidates in several schools was out, many parents started complaining about schools openly asking for donations ranging from Rs 3,200 to Rs 2 lakh. The Directorate of Education (DoE) received several such complaints over the past one week. Currently, it is planning to issue show cause notices to such schools. We will be asking the Deputy Directors of Education (DDE) to prepare a list of such schools in their areas and issue show cause notices and take action, an official of the education department said. Parents have complained that schools are openly asking donations despite the name of their child appearing in the admission list. The schools against which the complaints have been made include Maxfort, Indraprastha World School, BGS International, St Andrews, among others. According to the complaints that parents have submitted with the education department, the parents were called to the schools and allowed entry only after handing over their mobile phones to the security staff, following which they were asked for donation over and above the school fee. A letter in this connection was sent to Education Minister Manish Sisodia by activist and founder of admissionsnursery.com, Sumit Vohra. He had requested the department to take action against the unaccounted cash component being asked by the schools. Shouting slogans against the institutional killing of Rohith Vemula, the Hyderabad student who recently committed suicide, and denouncing the high-handedness of the BJP government at the Centre, thousands of students and teachers from various universities marched from Ambedkar Bhawan to Jantar Mantar here on Tuesday. The JNU case in which student leader Kanhaiya Kumar was arrested on charges of sedition also figured on posters and slogans. The father of Umar Khalid, the JNU student wanted by police, shared the dais at Jantar Mantar, where Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi also put in an appearance. As protesters passed Gole Market, schoolchildren and passers-by cheered. The marchers spoke of a range of issues during the protest. Apart from Rahul Gandhi, politicians like D Raja, Brinda Karat and Arvind Kejriwal aloso joined the protest. Rohith Vemulas mother was also there. Demanding a laws to ensure that college and university students dont face discrimination on campus, the Rahul Gandhi accused the BJP government for crushing the voice of the youth. Rohit Vemula was a symbol of India's future and his voice was crushed and buried. This is happening in universities across the country and students voices are being muted, he said. Khalids father present Umar Khalid, wanted by police for questioning in a sedition case, stayed put on the Jawaharlal Nehru University campus. His father shared the dais with student leaders. Khalids father joined the march today because he felt empathy with Rohiths mother. Like Rohiths family, his family is also being targeted. He is branded as the father of an anti-national. He came today to register his protest against the witch-hunting which is going on these days, said Mohit, a JNU student and an activist of the All India Students Association (AISA). Students from JNU, members of the National Students Union of India (NSUI), Bahujan Samaj Party and the Aam Aadmi Party students wing Chhatra Yuva Sangharsh Samiti (CYSS) participated in the march, along with students from Delhi University and Jamia Milia Islamia. The march is just not about Rohith or Kanhaiya. The situation today is such that tomorrow it can happen with me also. They talk about making the country a superpower, but the way the present government is going against all the free-thinkers and intellectuals, I wonder how can India become a superpower, said Imraan, a student from Jamia Milia Islamia. Some protesters said they were appalled by the anti-intellectual atmosphere under which educational institutions like FTII, Hyderabad University and JNU are being targeted by the current government. The associates of the BJP, like RSS, ABVP, Delhi Police and some media organisations are working like the IB chief, qualifying someone as national and some as anti-nationals. On one hand, they are talking about restoring the glory of the Bharat Mata, and on the other they are threatening to rape the mother and sister of Umar Khalid. What hypocrisy is this? said Imraan. Rohith committed suicide on January 17, triggering widespread protests. Five Dalit students, including Vemula, were suspended in September following a clash with a leader of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP). Delhiites got some relief from water crisis on Tuesday as partial supply was restored in areas like North and West which were reeling from acute water shortage since last three days. Water has started to flow from Haryana and the capital received 120 MGD water till Tuesday evening, due to which the government was successfully able to start the functioning of its seven plants either in full or partial capacity which were shut due to Jat agitation in the neighbouring state. With this development, the government said that morning supply will be restored in areas like Rohini, Paschim Vihar, and some pockets of West Delhi, and that more tankers will be diverted from areas where piped water can be supplied to areas like Dwarka. However, in the western part of Delhi, water availability is much less than the desired level because of the damage to the Carrier Lined Channel. The government had already started the operations of Wazirabad, Chandrawal and Okhla plants on Monday evening due to which parts of North, Central, and West Delhi received water supply on Tuesday morning. As repair work at the canal, which has been damaged at various locations, is still on, Haryana has been able to release only 120 MGD of water, a far cry from the required 580 MGD. Hence water scarcity is likely to persist for few more days. Water Minister Kapil Mishra led a delegation of Delhi Jal Board (DJB) to Munak Canal for site assessment, fast-track repair work, and for technical repair feasibility, a statement by the Delhi government said. Two large earth-moving equipment called poclain and excavators provided by DJB to Haryana government, it said. On Tuesday, DJB water tankers had made 1,205 trips by 1 pm in West Delhi where some pockets have still received water. There is very low pendency of complaints on the DJB helpline and the officials are working overtime to ensure timely disposal of water complaints, an official said. Gupta added that important decisions approved by the House were not referred to Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung for statutory approval and are therefore vulnerable to judicial scrutiny and subsequent annulment. The Delhi Assembly has sent a project report to Union Ministry of Information and Technology for e-Vidhan Sabha, said Assembly Speaker Ram Niwas Goel to mark the first anniversary of the current Vidhan Sabha on Tuesday.To ensure transparency, improve efficiency, reduce cost and adopt eco-friendly mechanism, the Assembly is moving towards a paperless set-up, he said.A project report has already been submitted to the Ministry of Information and Technology. Officers of the Assembly had a first-hand experience of the working with Himachal Assembly which has already started work on this project.As decided in the meeting of the General Purposes Committee, the Assembly has formally applied to the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting seeking permission to launch an independent television channel on the lines of RSTV and Lok Sabha Television, he added.An expert consultant has been appointed for this purpose who will assist in this project besides suggesting alternative means to provide quality feed to the media as well as general public.The Speaker added that AAP MLAs will also attend a workshop on the procedures involved in formulation of the Delhi Budget for smooth House proceedings.Leader of Opposition in Vidhan Sabha Vijender Gupta termed the period as black year and worst since the formation of the Delhi Assembly.The Speaker didnt act as an independent authority but continued to function as part of the ruling party. BJP MLAs were forcibly removed and their democratic rights were violated. The Opposition was not allowed to raise issues of public interests, said Gupta.The democratic values, constitutional authorities and provisions as well as rules and regulation of the Delhi government were thrown to wind during this period in the Vidhan Sabha. The municipal workers unions are again mulling to go on a city-wide protest demanding clearance of arrears, cashless health facilities and regularisation of contractual posts. The unions of workers said they are looking forward to the High Court hearing on March 16. If the courts order does not hold anything positive for us then we will be left with no choice. We will have to resort to an indefinite strike to get what we deserve, said Sanjay Gehlot, Swatantra Majdoor Vikas Sanyukt Morcha, an umbrella organisation with nearly 28 unions under its banner. We ended our last protest on the 15-day after the courts assurance that our demands will be looked into. The court was kept in the dark (by municipal corporations and the AAP government). We have been given salaries but we want other benefits. We have still not paid Diwali bonus, added Gehlot. Fund-starved North and East corporations employees, including sanitation workers, teachers and engineers, went on strike on January 27 demanding timely payment of salaries and clearance of arrears. Two days later, doctors, nurses and paramedic staff also joined the agitation. Even South Corporations sanitation workers had struck work showing solidarity with their coworkers. The AAP government offered a bailout package of Rs 693 crore to the East and North Corporations, of which Rs 551 crore was in the from of loan. Even, the Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung offered Rs 300 crore loan from Delhi Development Aagency (DDA) to make the municipalities call off their agitation. The municipal employees unions had said the amount offered was not enough to clear the arrears of the employees. We had demanded Rs 5,000 crore from the LG and all we got was around Rs 1,000 crore which will be used to pay our salaries only, said Gehlot. The East Delhi Municipal Corporation requires over Rs 100 crore a month to pay salaries and other benefits to its over 32,000 employees. Even the North Corporation is in the red and it needs Rs 171 crore to pay salaries and other benefits to its over 70,000 employees every month. BSP members today forced two adjournments of the Rajya Sabha till noon, creating an uproar over the suicide of Dalit student, Rohith Vemula, and demanding resignation of Union Ministers alleging they were linked with the incident. Even though a discussion on the issue was listed for today, Mayawati (BSP) wanted a response from the government to her demand for resignation of the union ministers allegedly linked to the suicide, sacking of the Vice Chancellor of University of Hyderabad and inclusion of a Dalit member in the judicial committee probing the suicide. The government said it was ready for an immediate discussion followed by a reply by the concerned minister. But the BSP members were not satisfied and shouted slogans after trooping into the Well, forcing Deputy Chairman P J Kurien to first adjourn the House for 10 minutes and then till noon. Raising the issue, Mayawati (BSP) said the suicide by the Vemula, a Dalit student of the Hyderabad University, was a matter of grave concern. "Since the time BJP came to power at the Centre, nefarious means are being used to impose RSS ideology," she said adding that prestigious institutions like Hyderabad University, Aligarh Muslim University, Jamia Milia and Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) are interfered with. Suicide by Rohith is not the first and many Dalit students have committed suicide in past including when Congress-led UPA was in power at the Centre, she claimed. She said the Dalit students had formed a Babasaheb Ambedkar Students Union after their exploitation was not addressed by the unions affiliated to the BJP and Congress. This was not liked by RSS and the exploitation continued, driving Rohith to commit suicide, she alleged. Without taking names, she demanded that two Union ministers linked with interfering with the affairs of the Hyderabad University should resign and the VC of the University be sacked. She also demanded the inclusion of a Dalit member in the judicial committee probing into the issue. She insisted that the government must respond to her demands before the discussion listed is taken up. With government insisting that a response will be given after the discussion, BSP members trooped into the Well of the House shouting anti-government, anti-RSS slogans. "Dalit virodhi yeh sarkar nahi chalegi, nahi chalegi (anti-Dalit government will not be tolerated)", "BJP-RSS murdabad, murdabad (down with BJP-RSS)", they shouted. Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said if the House agrees, a discussion on the issue can be taken up immediately. Kurien too agreed that a discussion can be taken up immediately if the House agrees. But Mayawati insisted on a response to her demands first, with Naqvi saying "We are not running away from debate." Kurien said subject raised by Mayawati is already included in list of business and can be taken up now and the government will reply to it. But BSP members were unrelenting, forcing him to adjourn the House for 10 minutes. After the brief adjournment when the House met again, Mayawati wanted to know from the government if there would be a Dalit member in the inquiry committee. To this, Deputy Chairman Kurien said "don't take the House to ransom". As BSP members trooped in to the Well, Naqvi said a discussion would take place on the issue and the government cannot reply to questions in bits and pieces. "After the debate the Minister will intervene and reply. (It is) not possible to answer each member," he said. As BSP members kept shouting anti-government slogans, Naqvi said "(this is) is a frustrated agenda". He also said the government was ready to start the debate immediately. CPI(M) leader Sitaram Yechury said Mayawati has raised a simple question and the government should reply to it. Leader of Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad said his party too demands inclusion of a dalit member in the probe panel. Amid sloganeering by BSP, HRD Minister Smriti Irani said the opposition was using a "dead child" (Rohith) as "a political tool and strategy." She too said asked the opposition to start the discussion on the issue "right now". As the Minister was speaking, Mayawati too joined her party colleagues in the Well. Kurien then adjourned the House till noon. In his petition, Kanhaiya has claimed he was "falsely implicated" and he had not raised any anti-national slogan. The JNUSU leader has claimed that he was wrongly arrested on the basis of an FIR which was devoid of evidence to book him under such a serious charge. He has said that no case is made out against him as there is no evidence as he had never raised any anti-national slogan during the event organised in JNU on February 9. Kanhaiya had approached the SC directly for bail claiming threat to his life in Tihar Jail. Delhi Police today told the Delhi High Court that further custodial interrogation of JNUSU President Kanhaiya Kumar is required in the wake of the arrest of two other accused students Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya in the sedition case.As soon as the hearing on Kanhaiya's bail plea commenced before Justice Pratibha Rani, Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Tushar Mehta told the court that police have a statutory right to take police custody of an accused for 15 days and due to new developments Kanhaiya's custodial remand is necessary."After yesterday's development, two of the accused have surrendered and are in safe custody. Their remand is yet to be taken. In the backdrop of the new development and as per our statutory right of 15 days police custody of an accused, we will be seeking remand of Kanhaiya Kumar to confront him with Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya," Mehta submitted.The ASG said, "Our right cannot be curtailed and the present bail petition be deferred." However, during the hearing, when the court was informed about violence at Patiala House court complex during Kanhaiya's remand proceedings, the bench observed, "We have to ensure that no one suffers even a scratch this time. The Registrar of the Delhi High Court and the police should ensure that no ruckus, as happened in the past, should take place while the accused are being produced."Then Mehta told the court to defer the bail petition in wake of the new development.The bench has now fixed February 29 for further hearing on the bail plea. Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for Kanhaiya, contended that as per the status report filed by Delhi Police, in pursuance to the court's direction yesterday, there was no evidence of any anti-India slogans being raised by his client."I would like to tell the court that in the light of the status report filed by the police, there is no evidence of anti-India slogans raised by Kanhaiya. So he should be granted bail," Sibal said.Mehta, however, said that as per the new circumstances and evidence which have emerged, Kanhaiya is required to be confronted with the two arrested accused.Kanhaiya, who was arrested on February 12, was in police custody till February 17 when he was remanded in judicial custody till March 2 amidst violence at the court premises during the remand proceedings.During the proceedings, the bench said this time only the counsel for the accused, the lawyers representing the investigating agency and police officials will remain present in the court room during the remand proceedings which have to be done secretly so that no untoward incident takes place.The Delhi government's senior standing counsel Rahul Mehra told the bench that he should also be heard in this matter.The bench, however, observed, "This inside fight should not be carried on. Let the court proceed with the matter."Yesterday, when the hearing on Kanhaiya's bail plea had commenced, Mehra had opposed the appearance of Additional Solicitors General (ASGs) Tushar Mehta and Sanjay Jain and Special Public Prosecutors of Delhi Police Anil Soni.Mehra had said that he has been appointed as senior standing counsel by the full court reference of the high court and if there was no notification empowering the ASGs to appear in the matter, they cannot represent the State.Besides Mehta, Jain and Soni, another Special Public Prosecutor of Delhi Police Shailendra Babbar appeared before the court today.During the day's proceedings, when ASG Mehta told the court that police has a statutory right to take 15 days police custody of an accused, the bench said, "You have the statutory right and no one can deny this."At this juncture, Sibal contended that police had themselves sought to send Kanhaiya in judicial custody before the trial court."How can they seek fresh police custody. However, if they are going to do so permit us to oppose the remand and keep this bail plea pending subject to the outcome of the trial court's decision as to whether Kanhaiya will be remanded in police custody or judicial custody," he said.Sibal also appealed to the court that he should be informed in advance about the content of the remand application so that he can oppose it, saying that it was his statutory right.To this, Justice Rani said, "I will ask them to inform you in advance about such application. This right cannot be denied."She said, "You (police) will have to perform this religiously. I don't want to hear anything in future that you have not followed the order of this court. It has to be followed in black and white."When the bench said it will hear Kanhaiya's bail plea on February 29 at 2:15 PM, some of the office bearers of the Delhi High Court Bar Association, who were present in the court room, said that in the post-lunch session there might be a security issue as most of the lawyers are free by then.Rahul Mehra, however, said that police should ensure safety and security and even the lawyers should not indulge in such kind of activity which was witnessed at the Patiala House court premises.Sibal told the bench that he should also be allowed inside the court room during the remand proceedings of Kanhaiya."If the police will pray for your remand, the you will be there. The remand proceedings should be done secretly. How it will be conducted, I will discuss with the police and lawyers of the accused in my chamber and will pass an order accordingly," it said.At this stage, Mehta assured the bench that police will comply with the court's direction and will ensure safety and security of the accused."It is the requirement of the law that the proceedings should be conducted in a peaceful manner," the court said.In pursuance ot the court's direction yesterday, Delhi Police filed a status report of its investigation in the sedition case.In its status report, police have said that besides the video footage in which the accused are allegedly raising anti-india slogans, they have other evidence against Kanhaiya as well.In the status report, police opposed Kanhaiya's bail plea, saying if released at this stage, he may influence witnesses as the investigation is at an initial stage and statements of witnesses are being recorded.It said that problem may arise with regard to law and order situation if the accused is granted bail.Besides these, the police mentioned 30 anti-India slogans which were allegedly raised by the accused and said that these slogans were against the country.Delhi Police Commissioner B S Bassi, who had last week said that police would not object if Kanhaiya applied for bail, had yesterday justified changing its stand of opposing the bail plea in the high court, saying the circumstances have changed.Bassi had said Kanhaiya showed repentance on his part when he issued an appeal on the day he was produced before a court but later denied having issued any such appeal and made certain allegations which were "false"."We have reasonable apprehension that if he (Kanhaiya) comes out on bail, he is bound to impact the investigation and influence witnesses. He is also likely to indulge in activities that are violative of penal laws. That is why we have opposed grant of bail to Kanhaiya and shall oppose it further too," Bassi had said.The high court had yesterday posted the matter for today while asking the police to submit a status report of the probe in the case limited to the extent of bail only.Kanhaiya had moved his bail plea in the high court following a direction of the Supreme Court which had refused to hear it, saying it will set a "dangerous precedent". A combined opposition today targeted the government on the issue of call drops saying the problem continued unabated despite efforts, as the government maintained that "stringent measures" have been put in place to check the problem at the earliest. Responding to a volley of questions in the Lok Sabha, Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said nearly 65,000 BTS (Base Transceiver Stations) have been set up across country, including Delhi, in four months time. He said during Question Hour that telecom regulator TRAI has also proposed "punitive provisions" which have been challenged in the courts. Responding to a question on poor 3G services in Parliament House complex, he said while extending facilities in and around the complex, the heritage nature of the main building has to be kept in mind, along with security considerations. Speaker Sumitra Mahajan told the Minister that he was free not to answer questions on the subject as the main question was regarding 4G services. Responding to posers on the state of BSNL and MTNL, Prasad said a debate should be held in the House on how the two state-owned operators became loss-making entities under the the previous UPA government. He said things are changing now and the two companies are on the verge of a turnaround. Prasad also said by March 2016, wi-fi facility will be provided at 2,500 spots in the country. Sugata Bose (TMC) said his official residence here has been provided with a new internet connection which lacks security. When he raised the issue of an unsecure connection with MTNL, he was told that an Ahmedabad-based company, Sangvi, has been sub-contracted to provide net facilities. He claimed the company lacked credentials. Prasad promised to look into the matter. Republican US presidential front- runner Donald Trump has said if elected he would prosecute his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton for using a private email server when she was the secretary of state. "Well look, you have no choice. I mean we have to solve all sorts of problems, and fairness is you have to look into that. Now, maybe she can prove her innocence, but it just seems to me I think the public knows everything that they're going to know," Trump told Fox News in an interview. "You know; the emails have come out. And she seems to be guilty. But you know what, I wouldn't even say that. But certainly it has to be looked at if a Republican win, if I'm winning. Certainly you will look at that as being fair to everyone else," Trump said in response to a question. "It's so unfair to the people that have been prosecuted over the years for doing much less than she did. So she's being protected. But if I win, certainly it's something we'll want," the New York billionaire said. Clinton, however, fired back quickly claiming nothing has been proved so far against her. "I can only tell you what the facts are, and the facts are that every single time somebody has hurled these charges against me, which they have done, it's proved to be nothing. And, this is no different than that, Clinton said at a CNN-organised town hall in Columbia, South Carolina, which goes for the Democratic presidential primary over the weekend. The former Secretary of State was responding to questions on a ruling by a federal judge on a motion that could pave the way for the possibility that you could be subpoenaed in order to obtain any information. Criticised widely for saying last week that "she did not believe she ever lied", Clinton said she would "just say no" if asked again if she had ever lied to the American people. She rued she is being put to different standard than any other candidate."Why is there one standard for me and not for everybody else?" Clinton asked. The former Secretary of State is leading South Carolina by a huge margin and is expected to win the Democratic party primary over the weekend. Clinton argued that the allegations by the opposition that just because she has taken donations from the Wall Street so she will not take action against them, does not hold good. "I am on record...I went to Wall Street before the Great Recession. I called them out. I said what they were doing in the mortgage market was going to cause serious problems," she asserted. Raising the pitch on the JNU issue, BJP chief Amit Shah today said Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi and other opposition leaders should clarify in Parliament if "anti-national" slogans should be tolerated in the name of freedom of speech. Attacking Rahul Gandhi, who had joined the agitating JNU students, Shah alleged that he was supporting the forces dividing the country for "votebank politics". "Today debate is being held in the Parliament whether raising anti-national slogans should be tolerated in the name of freedom of speech or not. "I specially want to ask Congress and its workers whether those raising slogans like 'Afzal Guru tere hatrayre zinda hain' and 'Bharat ke tukde honge' were traitors or not," Shah said at a public meeting at the unveiling of the statue of 11th century king of Shravasti, Raja Suheldeo. "I want that members of all parties sitting in the biggest panchayat of the country which is Parliament should clarify whether raising anti-national slogans was freedom of speech or sedition. This also has to be decided by the people of the country," he said. Targeting Rahul, Shah said, "I want to ask him to clarify before the people whether he supports the anti-national slogans...if not then he should condemn it." "Rahulji don't stoop so low for votebank politics. The country got freedom due to the sacrifice of thousands of martyrs. You are supporting the forces dividing the country in the name of freedom of speech," he said. Rahul has come out in support of JNU students, who are protesting the arrest of JNU Students' Union leader Kanhaiya Kumar on sedition charge, and has accused the RSS and BJP of imposing their ideology. Describing the contribution of Raja Suheldeo, Shah said his name is taken with pride not only in Uttar Pradesh but the entire country. Shah said when a foreign mercenary, Salar Gazi (Ghaznavid general and nephew of Mahmud of Ghazni), came to destroy Surajkund, Suheldeo thwarted his mission and destroyed Ghazi's entire army. The BJP president said if those, who participated in the freedom struggle remembered Suheldeo, then young generation should take inspiration from him. He said those who do not remember their brave ancestors cannot create history. He said by unveiling Suheldeo's statue a message would be sent to every village and coming generations about how mercernaries can be defeated. Suheldeo is mentioned in Mirat-i-Masudi, a 17th-century Persian-language historical romance. Twentieth century onwards, various Hindu nationalist groups have characterized him as a Dalit Hindu king who defeated a Muslim invader. Pakistan's former Army Chief Gen (Retd) Gen Ashfaq Pervez Kayani has been accused by another senior officer of being involved in a major land scam in a defence housing scheme to benefit a real estate company. A former official of the Defence Housing Authority (DHA), Lt Col (Retd) Tariq Kamal on February 22 approached the anti-corruption watchdog National Accountability Bureau (NAB) to investigate whether Kayani was involved in irregularities or misappropriation related to DHA Valley contracts or whether his name was used by the decision makers to benefit real-estate developers Bahria Town. The DHA Valley scam is one of 50 mega land scams the NAB has listed before the Supreme Court and the anti-corruption watchdog is already investigating alleged embezzlement in sale, development and purchase of land, the Dawn reported. The NAB has estimated that the scam involves 1,310,000 kanals of land.According to the application, Bahria Town failed to fulfil its commitment and caused losses to DHA. All DHA big deals should be approved by the army's top command and it is where Kayani may be probed for overlooking a joint venture which resulted in losses. Kayani was appointed army chief in December 2007, while DHA and Bahria Town signed a joint venture contract for DHA Valley in 2008. Kayani's two brothers, including a retired brigadier are already under scanner of the NAB for alleged corruption in the development projects of DHA. Kamal's application, however, may not be processed as NAB cannot take up matters related to armed forces personnel who are not working in the civil administration, the daily said. NAB Rawalpindi Director General Zahir Shah told the paper that the bureau cannot initiate inquiries against army officials. However, NAB recently arrested former DHA administrator Brig (Retd) Javed Iqbal and former DHA project director Col (Retd) Sabahat Qadeer Butt for misusing their authority and violating the contract by selling DHA Islamabad allotment certificates illegally and in violation of the agreement between DHA and Elysium Holdings Pakistan. According to Shah, since Iqbal and Butt were working for DHA which was created through an act of parliament the bureau can take action against them.But army can initiate cases against any former officer if there is evidence of his involvement in any wrongdoing. This is what family planning in India often looks like: Women in their 20s, mostly farmers wives, gather at dawn on the stairs of a district hospital. Hours later, a surgeon arrives. His time is short. He asks the women to sit in a row on the floor of the operating room and then, in surgeries lasting a few minutes apiece, uses a laparoscope to sever their fallopian tubes, ensuring they will never again bear a child. For decades, India has relied on female sterilisation as its primary mode of contraception, funding about 4 million tubal ligations every year, more than any other country. This year, the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi will take a major step toward modernising that system, introducing injectable contraceptives free of charge in government facilities. The World Health Organisation recommends their use without restriction for women of childbearing age. New birth control options have long been advocated by international organisations, among them the US Agency for International Development and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. They say Indian women often worn out, anaemic and at higher risk of death because they bear children young and often urgently need methods to delay or space pregnancies. The number of lives touched by such policies is enormous and growing. India will soon surpass China as the worlds most populous nation, and by 2050 it is expected to gain 400 million new citizens, more than the population of the United States. Paradoxically, here in India, the keenest opposition to these newer methods of birth control ones seen in the West as empowering women to control their fertility has come from some womens activist groups that distrust the safety of these methods and believe that profit-hungry Western pharmaceutical companies are pushing them. Despite growing evidence of the safety of the injectables and their increasingly widespread use across South Asia, these groups have continued to oppose them. And it is Modis socially conservative BJP that has broken with decades of resistance to injectables. The shift in policy has come in part because the government is less concerned about opposition from civil society groups, most of them more closely aligned with the previous ruling party, the Congress. Officials were also spurred by a medical disaster in Chhattisgarh where 13 women died in 2014 after undergoing tubal ligation at a high-volume government sterilisation camp. I thought it was incumbent on the government to provide it as a choice, C K Mishra, additional secretary in the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, said of the contraceptive Depot medroxyprogesterone acetate or DMPA, which has been used in the private sector since 1993. Still, the method will be introduced gingerly, limited at first to select district hospitals and medical colleges and then expanded next year to hospitals throughout the country. Implanted contraceptives may follow. We want to be very careful, Mishra said. We dont want to put a single step wrong. In the context of Indias recent history, it is no wonder officials have been risk-averse and advocates mistrustful. In 1975, the government of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi led an aggressive campaign, in some cases forcing young or childless men to undergo vasectomies to meet quotas. More than 6 million sterilisations were performed, igniting a widespread protest movement. More than a decade later, when India began exploring the public use of injectable contraceptives, activist groups filed cases with the Supreme Court seeking to ban the drugs, contending that they had not been proved safe and could be used coercively. The court forwarded the matter to the Drug Technical Advisory Board, which in 1995 allowed private use to continue but recommended against offering them in government clinics. The decision was not revisited for 20 years, even as use of the method became widespread in neighbouring Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Nepal. The atmosphere around injectable contraceptives began to shift after Modis party took over in May 2014, and it gained momentum after the Chhattisgarh catastrophe, about six months later. Last year, All the stars aligned, said Dr Jyoti Vajpayee, a gynaecologist who oversees family planning programmes for the Gates Foundation. This government has come back in a majority, so they can afford to take risks, she said. She and others had long sought to convince officials that existing options male and female sterilisation, the pill, IUDs and condoms were insufficient for millions of women who marry in their late teens and spend years carrying back-to-back pregnancies. Research has shown that, globally, 30 per cent of maternal deaths and 10 per cent of child deaths could be prevented if women spaced their pregnancies two years apart. Bold stepAt a meeting in August, the Drug Technical Advisory Board recommended that DMPA be included in the family planning programme, saying 20 years of private use and studies of similar drugs by the Indian Council for Medical Research had established that they were safe to introduce without a pilot programme. Dr C N Purandare, past president of the Federation of Obstetric and Gynaecological Societies of India and a proponent of the drugs, praised the government for what he called a bold step. Not that the traditional method is being phased out. At a recent sterilisation camp about 90 miles west of Delhi, a time-honoured system was chugging along. The women here, many of whom had travelled from their villages, said they were eager to go for the operation, and that the cash incentive of Rs 1,400 had not affected their decision. They had been urged on by outreach workers who had accompanied them to the camp, older women from their own villages. These women are paid Rs 1,000 for each patient with two or fewer children who comes in for sterilisation and Rs 240 for each patient with three or more. They admitted that there were drawbacks to sterilisation, especially for young women who might someday want to have another child. We have to tell them a lot of things to convince them, said Sudesh Wati. Young women often listen to the outreach workers. After she spoke to me, I made up my mind that in todays times, nobody wants more than two children, Krishna Yadav, 35, said, gesturing at an amiable gray-haired woman standing nearby. She has been telling me this for the last two months. Asked about injectable contraceptives, the women mostly looked blank. They had never heard of them. In any case, said Lalit Sharma, a nurse who trains outreach workers, when a new method comes online, women will almost certainly accept it. Whatever method it might be, he said, if the government implements it, they blindly trust it. The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday gave its approval for signing of an agreement between India and Maldives for the avoidance of double taxation of income from international air transport. The agreement provides for relief from double taxation for airline enterprises of India and Maldives by way of exemption of income derived by the enterprise of India from the operation of aircraft in international traffic, from Maldivian tax and vice versa. Under the agreement, profits from the operation of aircraft in international traffic will be taxed in one country alone. Accordingly the taxing right is conferred upon the country to which the enterprise belongs. The Japanese government is ready to incentivise Indian companies, who are ready to invest in the country, especially in the areas of healthcare, Internet of Things (IoT)and knowledge-based industries. In an interaction with Deccan Herald on Wednesday, as part of the Invest Japan Seminar 2016, organised by BCIC, Japanese External Trade Organisation (JETRO) Executive Vice President Shigeki Maeda said the country is looking forward to enhance investments from India. India has made substantial progress in healthcare, especially in generic medicine, and IoT and knowledge-based information and communication technology (ICT). We want companies in these sectors to invest in Japan so that they can tap the growing business opportunities, he said. Maeda said Japan is ready to associate with generic pharma industries and ICT companies. We have already acquired a few companies, and some of them have invested in our country. We also want Indian investment to come into the mineral, biotechnology, textiles, gems and jewellery, aerospace and food processing sectors, he said. We are making Japan an attractive destination for investments from India. While the FDI from Japan in 2014, touched $13.6 billion, Indian investments in Japan reached merely $10 million. We are expecting an overseas investment of nearly $300 billion in our country by 2020, he said. When asked about attracting talent from India, he said that Japan is ready to ease visa norms for Indians. We are looking forward to more Indians in Japan as we are faced with an ageing workforce. We already have more than 3,000 Indians, and plan to increase it manifold in the healthcare and ICT sectors, he said. Close on the heels of Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra announcing their retail policy, Karnataka is also gearing up to announce the same in March. In an interaction with Deccan Herald, Karnataka Industries Minister R V Deshpande said the policy will get the cabinet clearance soon, and that it will make Karnataka the retail hub of India. We want the retail industry to flourish in the State so that it would generate more employment opportunities. Recently, we got some suggestions from various retail organisations, including Retailers Association of India (RAI), he said. Deshpande said the government is going through the policy framework brought out by Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra, and will incorporate those elements that will boost the investment. National Secretary General of Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) Praveen Khandelwal recently said that the retail policy unveiled by Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra will flourish mall culture in trading. It is a fact that retailors contribute Rs 6,000 lakh crore to the GDP and employs about 40 million people in the country. India is one of the top five of the retail markets of the world, and the sector has only one per cent of NPAs compared with the huge money incurred by corporates in the country, he said. The Federation of Retail Traders Welfare Association (FRTWA) president Viren Shah criticised the policies as the government prepared the policy only by taking into confidence the Retail Association of India, which is a body represented by 6 per cent of traders, a majority of them are mall owners. According to sources familiar with the development, the Karnataka government is likely to give more concession to unorganised traders who are part of the retail segment. The policy will also have forward looking initiatives like food and grocery enterprises to be brought under the Karnataka Essential Services Maintenance Act as Essential Services to dissuade strikes, sources said, adding that the distribution centres and warehouses for the retail sector will be declared to be a public utility under the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947, in order to prevent flash strikes. The government on Wednesday told the Rajya Sabha that handlers and co-conspirators send terrorists belonging to Jaish-e- Mohammad, to attack Pathankot airbase from Pakistan. Minister of State for Home Haribhai Parathibhai Chaudhary said in written replies to several MPs the matter has been taken up by India with Pakistan to take action against the masterminds of the terrorist attack. The attack on Pathankot airbase appeared to be weighing highly on MPs as seven lawmakers posed questions to the government on the terror strike. The handlers and co-conspirators operating from outside the territorial borders of India sent trained terrorists with arms, ammunition and other logistics from Pakistan, Chaudhary said. Various industry associations on Wednesday urged Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to take measures to ensure efficient power supply to industries in the State. Representatives of the associations, including the Federation of Karnataka Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FKCCI) and the Karnataka Small Scale Industries Association (Kassia), met the chief minister at Vidhana Soudha and submitted their memorandum for the State budget 2016-17. Siddaramaiah, who also holds the Finance portfolio, has been holding pre-budget meetings. The Kassia, in its memorandum, said that erratic power supply in rural areas had hit industries hard. The government should ensure uninterrupted power supply power to industries through a separate feeder line. The FKCCI suggested that the government to initiate the demand side management measures to bring in efficiency in power supply. FKCCI president Tallam R Dwarakanath said the government should ensure early commissioning of 350 Mega Watt combined cycle gas power plant at Yelahanka, Bengaluru, to augment power supply. He also urged the chief minister to give exemption from payment of electricity tax of 10 paise per unit for captive consumption above 250 kVA and 5 paise per unit for auxiliary consumption above 50 kWh. Kassia president V K Dikshit urged the chief minister to provide better infrastructure like good roads, air connectivity and ports. Besides, basic amenities at all industrial areas should be upgraded. He also urged Siddaramaiah to reduce VAT rate on defence sector procurement. Later, speaking to reporters, Siddaramaiah said the industry associations have asked for number of tax exemptions and that he will take an appropriate decision at the time of drafting the budget document. Patel quota leader Hardik Patels father was offered Rs 15 crore-Rs 20 crore to stop his son from attending the Mahakranti Rally that was held in Ahmedabad on August 25, 2015. The Patels had held a massive rally in Ahmedabad on August 25, 2015, which saw almost a million people at the event to press for quota. The developments after this rally led to violence in the state with 11 deaths and the Army called in to control violence. The revelation was made by Bharat Patel, Hardiks father, at a rally in Jam Jodhpur in Saurashtra, to mark the beginning of Patidaar Ekta Yatra across the Saurashtra region. They said that take this money and just see that your son does not attend the rally. I spoke to my son Hardik and he also said that we do not want such money, he told a massive gathering of Patels. He, however, did not reveal who had offered the money. The Patels in Saurashtra region on Wednesday kick-started a Patidar Ekta Yatra, that would travel across the region in the coming month to press for reservation. Earlier in February, Hardik wrote a letter claiming that he was offered Rs 1,200 crore by a senior bureaucrat working in the Anandiben Patels government and considered close to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP President Amit Shah to give up his agitation. An ugly caste divide, a largely agriculture caste believing that it is losing out to other reserved castes in government jobs and seats in educational institutions and competitive political brinkmanship are seen at the root of circumstances that had Haryana on the boil. Jats, who are an agricultural caste group in Haryana (and in Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan), are demanding reservation in government jobs and educational institutions under the OBC category. Jats comprise 27 per cent of the electorate in Haryana. At least, they dominate a third of the 90 Assembly constituencies in the state. The trouble goes back to 1991 when the Gurnam Singh Commission report included Jats in the backward classes category along with seven other groups. But the Bhajan Lal government withdrew the notification for implementing the panels recommendation. Subsequently, two more backward classes commissions set up in the state did not include the Jats. In April 2011, Congress chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, who was in power between 2004 and 2014, set up the K C Gupta Commission which recommended the inclusion of Jats and four other castesJat Sikhs, Ror, Tyagi and Bishnoi in the category Special Backward Classes (SBC). The Hooda government accepted the report and 10 per cent quota was granted to the Jats. In 2014, just before the Lok Sabha polls, the UPA government had included Jats in the Centres OBC list after overruling objections from the National Commission for Backward Classes. But on March 17, 2015, the Supreme Court quashed the UPA governments decision to extend the OBC quota in central government jobs to the Jats, refusing to accept that the Jats were a backward community. The court said the National Commission for Backward Classes set up in 1993 after SC verdict in Indira Sawhney (Mandal case) had rejected the idea after examining the issue. Consequently, the reservation introduced for the Jats in Haryana and eight other states Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar Himachal Pradesh, Delhi, Bharatpur and Dholpur districts of Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand was set aside. In April 2015, a review petition filed by the NDA government was also dismissed. This upset the Jats who have been assertive about their right to dominate the political landscape. They were livid that, of the 80 castes, only their caste and 15 smaller group do not find mention in the lists of Scheduled Castes and Backward Classes notified by the Haryana government. Enjoying clout under several Jat chief ministers, they were upset that the BJP government led by Manohar Lal Khattar, a Punjabi, took charge in 2014. Khattar sought to restore the balance in favour of non Jats, who supported the BJP to come to power for the first time on its own strength in the state. That added gunpowder to the boiling pot. Unlike last non Jat chief minister Bhajan Lal who understood the Jat politics and also ensured the non Jats did well, Khattar was a novice in this regard. The Jats alienation was unstoppable. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah is likely to visit New Delhi on February 26 to apprise the Congress high command of the poor performance of the party in the recently held bypolls to three Assembly constituencies and elections to zilla and taluk panchayats. Sources in the State Congress said the chief minister was likely to meet All India Congress Committee general secretary in charge of Karnataka, Digvijaya Singh, in Delhi and discuss the reasons for the party not performing up to the expectations in the polls. The Congress managed to win only one of the three Assembly seats in the byelections. In the panchayat polls, the party secured a majority in only 10 of the total 30 zilla panchayats. Sources said the party might undertake an exercise to fix the responsibility for the setback in the elections. The chief minister has already said he would conduct the long-pending reshuffle of the Cabinet in April after the budget session of the State Legislature. Pressure has been mounting on Siddaram-aiah to drop non-performing ministers from the Cabinet. Cong chief visit DelhiCongress State president G Parameshwara visited New Delhi on Wednesday. Though his close aides said it was a private visit, sources said he was planning to meet the party leaders to explain the election results. There was no official confirmation on Parameshwara meeting any senior party leader in the national capital. On seeking his reaction to Parameshwaras visit to Delhi, Siddaramaiah said the State party president need not take his permission to visit any place. He might have visited Delhi. I am not aware why he has gone there. He need not take my permission to visit any place, he said. A team of the central government on Wednesday commenced its tour of the State to study the drought conditions and to assess the crop losses suffered by farmers because of scanty rainfall during the Rabi season. The 10-member team comprising officials of various central ministries - divided into three sub-groups - began the tour of Belagavi and Kalaburagi revenue divisions to study the extent of crop losses. The team in Belagavi is headed by K K Mishra, deputy secretary in the ministry of power and comprises Brajesh Srivastava, consultant to the ministry of drinking water and sanitation and Ramakrishna, under secretary to the ministry of rural development. The team, accompanied by Deputy Commissioner N Jayaram, visited various villages including Mohare, Hanabarhatti and Gajamanal in Nesargi hobli of Bailhongal taluk in Belagavi district. It interacted with farmers who explained their plight as they only managed a yield of only 30-40 kg of jowar per acre. During their visit to Gajamanal village, the team inquired workers over the availability of employment under MGNREGS. The team also visited Chachadi, Tadasalurum and other villages in Savadatti and Ramdurg taluks before heading to Vijayapura district. Mishra told reporters, after taking stock of the drought, that the team would hold a high-level meeting with officials in Bengaluru on February 26 to discuss the drought. He said the situation was alarming. Another team in Dharwad A three-member central team visited Dharwad on Wednesday to assess the impact of drought and Rabi crop loss in the region, reports DHNS from Hubballi. The team members visited villages in Hubballi, Navalgund and Kundgol taluks, which are among the worst-affected areas. The central team inspected jowar, wheat, bengal gram, safflower, sunflower, cotton, maize and other crops. They took stock of the drinking water crisis in the district where 16 villages of Kundgol and Hubballi taluks are being provided drinking water through tankers. The district administration has sought Rs 126.32 crore to address the effects of drought, including Rs 111.5 crore as compensation for crop loss and Rs two crore for providing drinking water through tankers. Members of Kalasa-Banduri agitation committee blocked the path of the central team at Navalgund, demanding implementation of the Mahadayi project. The protestors let the members go after the intervention of Deputy Commissioner Rajendra Cholan. Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Wednesday said no one involved in the attack on journalists and JNU student leader Kanhaiya Kumar in a court here will be spared. Intervening in a debate on the incidents with reference to Jawaharlal Nehru University and Hyderabad Central University, Singh said the government will also ensure that no innocent student is harassed. However, he reminded that individual freedom has its limit. On the unruly behaviour of lawyers in Patiala House court complex, he said the police is investigating the matter. No one will be spared, he said. Speaking after a spirited defence of the government by HRD Minister Smriti Irani, he said the NDA government does not consider the JNU as a centre of anti-nationals as some have alleged. He remembered the university has gifted so many illustrious students to politics, education sector and government. On the row over charging students with sedition, he said there was no need for them to discuss the issue. The government is not intervening in the investigations by the police, he said. Vikram Chauhan, the most aggressive lawyer involved in incidents of violence at a court last week, was arrested after he appeared before the police on Wednesday, six days after he was summoned. He was released on bail after over six hours of questioning at Tilak Marg police station, the police said. It is alleged that Chauhan led a group of lawyers who attacked journalists and JNU students at Patiala House Courts Complex on February 15 and February 17. The attacks occurred when JNUSU president Kanhaiya Kumar was produced before the court. Despite being caught on camera, Chauhan claims that he was responding to provocations by anti-national elements. I am a true Indian, not affiliated to any party. The media is trying to portray me as a goon. If praising Mother India and saying Vande Matram makes me a goon then so be it, Chauhan told media outside Tilak Marg police station. He added that footage shown on TV channels were fabricated. I have full faith in the law and order or else I would not have showed up here, Chauhan added. Chauhan, who hails from Haryanas Rewari district, did his LLB degree from Rohtak. Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday launched a pre-emptive strike against the Modi government claiming that he would not be allowed to speak in Parliament on the JNU row and the suicide of a Dalit student in University of Hyderabad. I will speak, but they will not let me speak because they are scared. They are scared of what I am going to say in Parliament, so they will not let me speak, Rahul said in a brief remark to the media while exiting Parliament around noon. However, when the Lok Sabha took up discussion on the JNU row, Vemulas suicide and issues at other institutes of higher education, it was Congress leader Jyotiraditya Scindia who initiated the debate. Congress member K Suresh also participated in the discussion. Rahul walked in after Scindia had begun his speech and was seen thumping his desk encouraging the former minister. Rahul was seen exiting the Lok Sabha as BJP member Anurag Thakur went hammer and tongs after the Congress leaders for joining the protests at the JNU. Answer me, was Afzal Guru a terrorist? If not why did your government hang him, Thakur said in the Lok Sabha only to find that Rahul had already left the House. He has left. Who will I pose my questions to now, wondered Thakur. Under attack from the BJP for supporting anti-national elements, the Congress was seen doing a balancing act. An aggressive Human Resource Development Minister Smriti Irani on Wednesday accused the Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi of politicising the suicide of Dalit student Rohith Vemula in Hyderabad University. She countered the opposition parties allegations that the government sought to stifle freedom of expression in the Jawaharlal Nehru University. The Lok Sabha witnessed a heated debate on the suicide of Vemula and the current turmoil in JNU in Delhi, with the Congress criticizing the government of stifling freedom of expression and crushing dissent. The ruling BJP accused Rahul Gandhi, of sharing dais with anti-national elements in the varsity. Congress chief whip in the Lok Sabha, Jyotiraditya Scindia, slammed the BJP-led government for growing intolerance in the country as well as for crushing views opposed to its own. Anurag Thakur, BJP MP from Himachal Pradesh, turned the table on the Congress, asking the opposition party to first decide if it was with 2001 parliament attack conspirator Afzal Guru or with people who fight against the terrorists and lay down their lives to protect the sovereignty of the nation. Replying to the debate, Irani went on offensive and targeted Rahul Gandhi, accusing him of resorting to political opportunism over the suicide of Vemula. She dismissed the allegations of opposition parties about purported attempt by her in particular and the BJP-led government in general to saffronize the education system of the nation. She also quoted from records of JNU authorities to drive home the point that it was the varsity administration and not the police that initiated actions against the student leaders for raising anti-national slogans in the campus. The Congress MPs, who objected to some of her initial comments and trooped into the well of the House, later staged a walkout before she stepped up her offensive against the opposition parties. I am anguished today because the one who gives birth (to children) is now being held responsible for the suicide of a youngster, a visibly emotional HRD minister said, dismissing allegations that her ministry repeatedly wrote to Hyderabad University acting on letters she received from Union labour minister Bandaru Dattatreya to act against Vemula and other students in the varsity. In an unprecedented decision, the 3rd Additional District Judge P V Rambabu in Tirupathi on Wednesday quashed the murder case on 287 red sander smugglers who were incarcerated in Chittoor district jail since 2013 for the murder of two Andhra Pradesh Forest Officers. All the 287 are from Tamil Nadu, while 64 other accused are from Chittoor who were already released on bail. In all, 351 accused were presented before the court in connection with the gruesome murder. The judge has asked the authorities to release all 287 accused if there are no other pending ongoing cases. The judge felt that the prosecution has failed to present evidence to prove that the 287 were involved in the murder of Deputy Range Officer L Sridhar, Assistant Beat Officer David Kumar Karunakar in Seshachalam forests on the foothills of Tirumala on December 15, 2013, while they were on patrol. The prosecution has argued that Sridhar and Karunakar were ambushed by a group of 60-100 men armed with sickles, knives and daggers. The smugglers surrounded the forest patrol party and started pelting stones. Sridhar and Karunakar, who were leading the team, bore the brunt of the attack and suffered fatal head injuries. Another eight of the patrol party had escaped. Post-mortem reports later have revealed that the two officers did not die on the spot, but were later axed by the smugglers. Sridhar, 49, had been working with the forest department for 22 years, while David, 47, had given 20 years of service. Sridhar is survived by his wife and two sons, while Karunakar is survived by his wife and two daughters. The Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) has forwarded a proposal to the State government seeking 3,500 more buses. The most important aspect of a bus service is the passenger load. The BMTC now carries around 51 lakh passengers every day on 6,418 buses and many more are needed to cater to the increasing passenger load. According to our assessment, the demand for buses is high from the south and east areas of the City. The new buses will mainly cater to these two regions, though the north and west will not be ignored. The general feeling is that the demand for buses in Bengaluru is fractured - some regions want more compared to others. We have placed a request for new buses taking into account the population growth over the next two years and the need to weed out old buses. We are waiting for the State governments response, B C Renukeshwar, Chief Traffic Manager (Operations) told Deccan Herald. The south and east regions include Jayanagar, JP Nagar, BTM Layout, Central Silk Board, Sarjapur, Whitefield, Mahadevapura and parts of Krishnarajapuram. Senior BMTC officials say that the mushrooming of new offices on the ring road and the increase and spread of technology hubs have fuelled the demand in these regions. Many people travel from Jayanagar and JP Nagar to Sarjapur and Whitefield and to Electronics City too. BMTC has also tied up with many companies in ITPB and Infosys in Electronics City and Manyata Tech Park near Hebbal to ferry employees to and from work. The demand for buses is also high because autorickshaws, with a fare of Rs 13/km and a minimum fare of Rs 25, are expensive. Taxis also charge in the range of Rs 150-200 a trip. BMTC fares are around Rs 25 at the higher end and around Rs 17 and Rs 12 at the middle and lower ends respectively. Travelling by bus seldom costs more than Rs 60 or Rs 70 a day and works out cheaper if one buys a pass. Renukeshwar also said BMTCs ageing buses have exceeded their mileage and their maintenance has become a burden. A frequent BMTC commuter, Pratap J says, Old buses ply slowly, causing traffic jams and take longer to reach destinations. The journey becomes tedious, especially when the bus is crowded. Many of us acutely feel the need for new buses, but we have to wait for the governments nod. Two robbers died after they rammed their motorcycle into a stationary water tanker near Iskcon temple in the early hours of Wednesday. The police said the robbers Santosh, 20 and Abhilash, 19, residents of Manjunathnagar near Shivanahalli, had robbed a man of his mobile phones and wallet near Big Bazaar in Rajajinagar and were fleeing when they hit the tanker. Around 1 am, Santosh and Abhilash with two other men on another motorcycle, snatched two mobile phones and a wallet containing Rs 1,500 cash from Ikhlaq Pasha and fled. As they reached Iskcon Temple, they failed to notice a water tanker parked near the temple and rammed into it. Head injuries Santosh, who was riding the motorcycle, suffered head injuries and died on the spot while Abhilash, the pillion rider, was rushed to KC General Hospital and was declared brought dead. The Malleswaram traffic police visited the spot and said the driver of the tanker, which was unloading water at the temple, may have fled after noticing the youth ramming into his vehicle. They are on the look out for the driver, police said. Pasha, a resident of Kurubarahalli in JC Nagar and a private company employee, lodged a complaint with the Subramanyanagar police stating that four youths came on two motorcycles and snatched his mobile phones and wallet after threatening him. From Gujarat He told the police he had arrived from Gujarat in a bus and had alighted near Rajajinagar. He was walking near Big Bazaar looking for a taxi or an autorickhsaw, to go home, when he was robbed, said a senior police officer. The Subramanyanagar police registered an FIR at around 3.15 am and got information that two youths had died in an accident and a mobile phone was found on spot. They checked the phone and found that it belonged to Pasha. It was then that it came to light that the dead youths were involved in the robbery. Police are on the lookout for the two other robbers who will be caught soon, the police officer said. Case of dacoity Santosh and Abhilash were facing a case of dacoity and assault in Nandini Layout police station, added the officer. Bengaluru Development Minister K J George on Wednesday promised shelter for transgenders at Jana Mana, an interaction programme with beneficiaries of welfare schemes of the government, organised by the Department of Information and district administration in the City. The minister said this while replying to a query raised by a transgender. The State government has come up with Anna Bhagya and Maitri schemes which provide rice and Rs 500 a month for the persons belonging to third gender. But, nobody is willing to rent out a space to stay only because we are transgenders. Hence, the government should provide us the shelter, Prabhula, a transgender told the minister. There are 600 transgenders in the City. We are faced with social boycott. Nobody offers us a job. Hence, begging has become the only option for transgenders to survive, she added. In reply, George said that the district administration is working on a blueprint to construct shelter for the poor on 50 acres of land on the outskirts of the City. We will provide space for the transgenders too, he said. Jayamma, a senior citizen, urged the minister to increase pension from Rs 500 to Rs 1,000 per month under Manasvini scheme. A group of students asked the government to provide milk or fruits on six days. While, a few others sought increase in stipend under Vidya Siri scheme. The Information department made an audio-visual presentation on welfare schemes launched by Siddaramaiah-led government. 4.69 lakh BPL cardholders According to the facts and figures furnished by the government, there are 4.69 lakh BPL cardholders in Bengaluru Urban district alone. Further, there are 3,094 beneficiaries under Manasvini scheme and 679 beneficiaries under Maitri scheme in Bengaluru Urban district. Apart from this, 840 beneficiaries under Krishi Bhagya have received assistance of Rs 13.51 crore. Under Ksheera Bhagya scheme, the State has spent Rs 86.37 crore to provide milk to 1.17 lakh schoolchildren. The administration in Karnataka did not show any insensitiveness in the case relating to a mob attack on a Tanzanian girl following a road accident, the Union Home Ministry informed the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday. However, Minister of State for Home, Haribhai Parathibhai Chaudhary, said six police officers had been suspended pending disciplinary enquiry due to the delay in apprehending the suspects in the attack. The Tanzanian girl, a BBM student, and three friends were attacked by a mob at Soladevanahalli in Bengaluru on January 31 after a car belonging to a Sudanese student knocked down a woman. The issue had snowballed into a controversy with Tanzanian Ambassador John W H Kijazi visiting Bengaluru along with a team of officials from the Ministry of External Affairs. The local administration has not shown any insensitiveness in the case, but due to delay in apprehending the suspects, six police officers have been suspended pending disciplinary enquiry, Chaudhary said. Adequate security arrangements have been made in the surrounding areas and police patrolling has been arranged to prevent untoward incidents and to instil confidence in foreigners staying in the area, he said. The Karnataka government has ordered an enquiry by the Additional Commissioner of Police, Bengaluru (West), into the incident and investigation is under progress. Based on preliminary inquiry, 11 people have been arrested so far. The summer is just making its presence felt, but Bengalureans already have a not-to-be-missed opportunity to fill their fruit baskets. On Wednesday, the inaugural of the Grape and Watermelon Mela-2016, Lalbagh (the venue) seemed to ooze with varieties of the juicy wonders for visitors to relish. Yellow Flesh Watermelon, Shiraz, Australian Red Globe and Flame Seedless grapes were all there, the cynosure of all eyes and the teaser of all tongues. The crowd was thin on Day One of the fair - set to conclude on March 28 - but no visitor missed the opportunity to taste and buy the Yellow Flesh Watermelon from Andhra Pradesh. Hopcoms Managing Director B Krishna told mediapersons on the sidelines of the inauguration that there would also be an exhibition of rare fruits. The mela will continue till March-end at the 275 Hopcoms stalls in the State where fruits will be sold at 10 per cent discount. The rates at the stalls will remain stable for 10 days, after which they will vary as per the market prices. Twelve varieties of grapes are on display at the fair Australian Red Globe, Indian Red (Black) Globe, Krishna Sharad, Sharad, Flame (seedless), Crimson, Sonaka, Tas-e-Ganesh, Thomson (seedless), Manik Chaman, Manjri Naveen, Grenache Blanc, Bianca, Medika, Shiraz and Bangalore Blue. Three varieties of watermelon on display and sale are Namadhari, Kiran and Yellow Flesh. Rare fruits on display and sale are Mangosteen, Rambutan, Dragon Fruit, Blueberry, Raspberry, Mini Orange, Fig, Litchi, Sweet Tamarind, Kamarakh, Passion Fruit, Jamun, Wood Apple, Barbaden Cherry, Phalsa, Butterfruit, Nanjangud Rasabale, Nendrabale, Chandrabale, Sweet Banana, Jambo Grapes, Ramphala, Mullu Ramphala, Pomellow and Citron. Most varieties of grapes exhibited were not on sale, except Black Globe and Sharad. Same was the case with rare fruits. Also, the ones on sale were expensive, said visitors. At the inaugural, Shamanur Shivashankarappa, Horticulture Minister said that the Mela was being held to help farmers. He said Hopcoms was running under loss because rates of items were not standardised and there were many complaints which needed to be addressed. Ramalinga Reddy, Transport Minister, said that the proposal to reduce stall rentals at bus stands by 10 per cent was before the department for consideration. He promised to discuss the matter with the officials. Tom Sullivan, whose 27-year-old son, Alex, was killed in the 2012 Aurora theater shooting, announced Tuesday he will run for a seat in the state Senate in Arapahoe County. Sullivan is the first Democrat to enter the race to face Jack Tate, who was picked by Republican leaders to fill the seat vacated by David Balmer last year after one session in the state House. Sullivan made no direct mention of gun-control legislation in his announcement, but on Tuesday he was one of four relatives of mass-shooting victims to endorse Hillary Clinton for president, citing her position on gun violence. He stated in his announcement that his candidacy is based on his personal experiences with the issues, citing his advocacy for justice, victims rights, raising the minimum wage, equal pay for women and paid parental leave. Im running for middle- class families, Sullivan said in a statement. Today, you can work hard and not get ahead. We need an economy that works for everyone not just the very wealthy and well-connected. Sullivan is an Air Force veteran and a recently retired postal worker. As of Feb. 2, the Senate district had 25,205 registered Democrats, 34,076 Republicans and 29,790 unaffiliated voters, according to the secretary of states office. Joey Bunch: 303-954-1174, jbunch@denverpost.com or @joeybunch Four family members of Colorado mass-shooting victims announced Tuesday they are endorsing Hillary Clinton for president ahead of next Tuesdays state caucus. Those endorsing the former Democratic U.S. secretary of state are: Jane Dougherty, a Colorado resident whose sister, Mary Sherlach, was a school psychologist killed at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut; Coni Sanders, the daughter of Dave Sanders, a teacher killed at Columbine; Tom Mauser, whose 15-year-old son, Daniel, was killed at Columbine; Tom Sullivan, whose 27-year-old son, Alex, was killed at the Century Aurora 16 movie theater in 2012. For us, this is personal, the four said in a statement. We know all too well the chaos, suffering, and pain that gun violence has sown on our community. We have received that frantic phone call no family member ever wants to receive; we have had to bury loved ones. They stated that Clinton is the only candidate with a proven track record of standing up to the gun lobby, the only one with the ability and the plan to enact common-sense measures to keep guns out of the wrong hands. The Clinton campaign has criticized her opponent, Sen. Bernie Sanders, for his lack of a detailed policy on guns. They point to his record of voting against gun-control legislation. Sanders has said he seeks out a middle ground between both sides of the gun debate. The Sanders campaign did not immediately respond to a request for a comment. A Quinnipiac University poll last year indicated that Coloradans, overall, oppose tougher gun laws, but Democrats supported tougher laws 76 percent to 19 percent. Independent voters, who will be key in the general election, oppose tougher gun laws by a 59 percent to 35 percent margin, the poll last July found. Joey Bunch: 303-954-1174, jbunch@denverpost.com or @joeybunch MOSHAV UDIM, Israel The death of 93-year-old Holocaust survivor Samuel Willenberg marks the passing of the last known link to the notorious death camp of Treblinka, perhaps the most vivid example of Nazi Germanys attempt to destroy European Jewry. The death of Willenberg, who was buried Monday, also symbolizes a transition in the field of Holocaust commemoration, as historians and educators prepare for a world without survivors and the challenge of maintaining the memory of the Nazi genocide without the aid of those who witnessed it. Willenberg, one of just 67 men known to have survived Treblinka after a revolt, devoted his final years to preserving the memory of more than 875,000 people systematically murdered in a one-year killing spree there at the height of World War II. He was a frequent public speaker, wrote a book that was translated into eight languages and led dozens of youth missions to the remnants of the destroyed camp in Poland. Later in life, he took to sculpting to describe his experiences. It was his lifes mission. He saw himself as the echo of the murdered, as their loudspeaker. He lived it daily, and in many ways he never left Treblinka, said Gideon Greif, chief historian of the Shem Olam Institute, who knew Willenberg well. Hundreds paid homage at Willenbergs funeral in central Israel, including dignitaries from Israel and abroad who recognized the watershed moment of his death. In his eulogy, Israeli President Reuven Rivlin called him a symbol for an entire generation of heroic Holocaust survivors. More than 70 years after the war, the window is rapidly closing on the survivors ability to relay their stories. About 180,000 elderly survivors remain in Israel, with a similar number worldwide, but more than 1,000 die each month, and experts predict that within seven years none will be well enough to share anything of significance. That prospect has become the central challenge of Holocaust institutes around the world. An oral history of testimonies has been collected and filmed, original items have been restored and exhibited, and descendants are receiving training on how to carry on their parents stories. There is a huge added value to hearing survivor testimony firsthand, said Naama Egozi, a trainer of teachers at the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorials International School of Holocaust Studies. You can read a book or watch a movie, but there is just no substitute to someone who can say I was there. Along with the lesser-known Belzec and Sobibor camps, Treblinka was designed with the sole intention of exterminating Jews, as opposed to others that had at least a facade of being prison or labor camps. Treblinkas victims were transported there in cattle cars and gassed to death almost immediately upon arrival. Only a select few mostly young, strong men such as Willenberg, who was 20 at the time were assigned to maintenance work instead. In all, the Nazis and their collaborators killed about 6 million Jews during the Holocaust. The death toll at Treblinka was second only to Auschwitz a prison camp where more than a million Jews died in gas chambers or from starvation, disease and forced labor. BOULDER Dynel Lane, suspected of luring an expectant mother to her Longmont home last week and cutting out her unborn child, was charged Friday with eight felony counts in the attack, including first-degree unlawful termination of pregnancy. Because the Boulder County coroners office found there were no signs Michelle Wilkins fetus which died in the March 18 stabbing ever lived outside of the womb, Lane could not be charged with murder, according to District Attorney Stan Garnett. I understand that many people in the community, and heaven knows Ive heard from a lot of them, would like me to have filed homicide charges, Garnett said at a news conference Friday. However, that is not possible under Colorado law without proof of a live birth. Lane, 34, also faces a charge of first-degree attempted murder, two counts of first-degree assault and two counts of second-degree assault. Prosecutors also filed two counts of a crime of violence against Lane, which are sentence enhancers. DOCUMENT: Read the list of charges against Dynel Lane Colorado criminal law defines homicide as the killing of a person by another, Garnett said. It defines a person, when referring to the victim of a homicide, as a human being who had been born and was alive at the time of the homicidal act. Garnett said the counts filed are ones they believe they can prove beyond a reasonable doubt. She could get a very long sentence and very well die in prison, Garnett said of Lane. Garnett said he met with the Wilkins family Friday morning to explain the charges he filed and that he has talked with them several times since the attack. He would not go into specifics of what they discussed, saying the family asked for privacy. They understand the legal process and are focused on her recovery and her healing, Garnett said. Michelle Wilkins family released a statement Friday afternoon acknowledging the charges and said the 26-year-old is resting and recovering. Garnett said during the briefing that authorities believe Lane strangled Wilkins and used a knife during the attack. It remained unclear Friday how Wilkins fetus whom she planned to name Aurora died. DOCUMENT: Read the Boulder coroners statement At this time neither the autopsy or the investigation have provided any evidence that the baby exhibited any signs of life outside of the womb, therefore the circumstance is not being considered a live birth, Boulder County Coroner Emma Hall said in a statement. The autopsy, officials say, showed the fetus lungs had not expanded, indicating it hadnt taken a breath. Hall said there was no evidence of trauma or injuries found on the fetus. Final autopsy results will be released once all testing and studies are completed, which authorities say will be in six to eight weeks. Lane appeared in court Friday afternoon at the county jail where her public defender waived a formal reading of the charges she faces. Lane was not brought into the main courtroom but stayed in a side holding cell out of the view of the gallery. A preliminary hearing has been scheduled for May 5, and Lane remains jailed on $2 million bail. State Senate President Bill Cadman, R-Colorado Springs, said Friday that legislation is being prepared to address attacks such as the one on Wilkins. It initially appeared Wilkins fetus had taken a breath, because court records said Lanes husband, David Ridley, who came home to the gory scene, told investigators that after finding the fetus he rubbed the baby slightly then rolled it over to hear and see it take a gasping breath. Garnett said Friday that upon further discussion with Ridley it appears the baby was not breathing but rather had her mouth open. A lot of the initial burst of information is a little chaotic, Garnett said of Ridleys initial statement to police. Wilkins, who was admitted to medical care in critical condition, was released from a Longmont hospital Tuesday. Doctors who first examined her noted the incisions on her belly appeared to be well performed and completed by someone who would have to have researched the subject of cesarean births, court records show. Dr. Clyde Wright, a neonatologist who works out of University of Colorado Hospital and Childrens Hospital Colorado, said a fetus as far along as Wilkins 34 weeks has about a 98 percent chance of survival if born with proper medical care. I think its safe to say for any indication, if a mom comes in at 34 weeks we are very confident with the prognosis of that baby, he said. It would be shocking to have a routine 34-week baby not survive. Babies are considered full term at 37 weeks, Wright said, and a delivery is considered full term at 40 weeks. He said that a 34-week-old fetus likely would survive even if delivered in a developing country. Wright struggled to find the words to say how dangerous a cesarean section completed at home as authorities allege Lane essentially did to Wilkins would be. Theres just no words to describe how risky that would be to do it at home without access to ready medical care, he said. Its unfathomable. Jesse Paul: 303-954-1733, jpaul@denverpost.com or twitter.com/JesseAPaul A legislative hearing on state regulation of surgical technologists has been postponed to consider stronger oversight. Colorado enacted regulatory standards for surgical techs in 2010 after Kristen Parker infected at least 18 people with hepatitis by stealing liquid painkillers and leaving behind dirty needles. That law is set to expire this year unless legislators vote to extend or amend it. A hearing was scheduled Wednesday before the House Health, Insurance and Environment Committee, but it was called off. The state Department of Regulatory Agencies favored sunsetting the law as duplicative of hospital and federal oversight. But that was before another surgical tech, Rocky Allen, was fired by Swedish Medical Center last month and charged with fentanyl theft. Rep. Beth McCann, D-Denver, who leads the committee, said members want to consider legislation that would improve oversight of hospital workers with access to narcotic drugs. That could include background checks, better sharing of data, she said. Why isnt there more information available? Why arent hospitals sharing information when someone is let go for this kind of behavior? McCann expects the hearing to be scheduled in about two weeks. In the meantime, were going to be talking to health care facilities about some amendments whose goal would be to prevent another such occurrence, said Diana Protopapa, a lobbyist for surgical technologists and surgical assistants. She said those facilities include hospitals and surgery centers. Swedish and three hospitals in California and Arizona where Allen previously worked have offered free blood tests to nearly 5,000 surgery patients for HIV and hepatitis. Allen also worked in Washington state. A federal court hearing Friday disclosed that Allen carries an unspecified bloodborne pathogen. Colorados association of surgical technologists favors stronger state regulation. In the current program, the state does not perform background checks or verify applicants information, and disciplinary actions have been rare. David Olinger: 303-954-1498, dolinger@denverpost.com or @dolingerdp BAILEY A political activist opened fire on Park County sheriffs deputies trying to evict him from his mountain home Wednesday, killing one deputy and wounding two others. The gunman also died. The shooting happened around 9:30 a.m. at the secluded Friendship Ranch subdivision, said Susan Medina, a Colorado Bureau of Investigation spokeswoman. It is a dark day, Medina said. The deputy who died, Cpl. Nate Carrigan, was a 13-year veteran of the Park County Sheriffs Office and a beloved high school baseball and football coach. Carrigan became the first deputy killed in the line of duty at the sheriffs office, officials said. Master Patrol Deputy Kolby Martin, an 11-year veteran of the office, was shot multiple times in the lower extremities and was in critical condition at St. Anthony Hospital in Lakewood. Capt. Mark Hancock, a 21-year veteran of the office, was shot in the ear but was treated and released. READ: Slain deputy was a beloved high school coach. Eight members of the sheriffs office including Sheriff Fred Wegener converged on the snow-covered, three-acre property on Iris Drive Wednesday morning for what they termed a high-risk writ of restitution. They were seeking to evict Martin Wirth, a 58-year-old Occupy Denver activist and former Green Party candidate for state Senate who had complained previously about law enforcement harassment. Property records show Wirth defaulted on the property in 2013 and has been battling foreclosure and eviction. Wirth came out on his deck paused and then went back inside, the sheriffs office said in a statement. Officers quickly followed Wirth inside the residence. As they entered Wirth fired upon them. Officers returned fire. Wirth was armed with a rifle, the sheriffs office said. Neighbors in the heavily wooded, quiet subdivision said they heard a volley of quick shots. Susana Gibsons dogs were barking, and then she heard shots. It was, Pop! Pop! Pop!' she said. And then a few minutes later I heard, Boom! Boom!' READ: Martin Wirth was an Occupy Denver activist In a Facebook posting in January, Wirth said he had clashed with police before and one cop repeatedly punched my face and knocked out two of my teeth after others piled on. This was after aiming loaded pistols while screaming threats at me. Wirth also said: Because I ran for State Senate, I am a high value target they want me dead. A website for the Colorado Foreclosure Resistance Coalition had posted a notice in 2014 that Wirth faced eviction and urged people to go to the home to support him. We are now calling for a non-violent eviction resistance at Martins, said a statement on the groups website. (Wirth) has been an invaluable part of Occupy Denver from the very early days, he has sheltered people on several occasions as well as hosting the Occupy retreat. His property is an amazing mountain escape with lots of room for tents and camping. Later, Occupy Denver revoked its support for Wirth, saying in a Facebook posting that it cannot in good conscience as an organization support the tactics he is proposing. Occupy Denver posted a Facebook statement Wednesday that said: We are sorry to share that Martin Wirth, so long active working to end fraudulent foreclosures and evictions, is reported to have died in a shootout with police this morning in Bailey Colorado. Martin recently shared with friends that he was experiencing harassment by the police. Wirth had several run-ins with the law. In 1994 he was arrested in the shooting death of another man after becoming upset during a chess game. He was later acquitted. Terry Rogers, Wirths neighbor and a pastor in Bailey, said people knew Wirth as having strong anti-government views. He heard about Wirths involvement in groups that supported that cause. Sheriffs deputies would periodically be at Wirths house, Rogers said, and one time he fought with the county about code violations for the number of animals he had on his property. He was kind of a loner a recluse, Rogers said. Rogers said he interacted only occasionally with Wirth, like once when Wirths goats got loose. Federal, state and law enforcement officials from other counties came to Bailey to assist in the investigation. Officers in body armor and carrying long guns were behind police tape near the shooting scene. Right now what we can do as a community is come together, Medina said Residents brought food and water to law enforcement officers at the scene. At about 4 p.m., an ambulance escorted by several sheriffs vehicles left Bailey and headed toward Jefferson. Jeff Scott owns the Crow Hill Cafe in Bailey and lives in Friendship Ranch. The neighborhood is typically quiet, he said. I usually hear horses making noise and livestock, Scott said. Certainly not gunshots other than people doing target practice. At about 6 p.m., people began congregating at the Platte Canyon Community Church in Bailey for a vigil. When youre from a small mountain community, you care, Chris Whetzel said, tears running down his face, before walking into the chapel. When you live in the mountains, you have to take care of each other. Inside the small church, community members some of them in high school letter jackets and others in cowboy hats packed in and gathered in hushed circles to mourn and remember. There was no planned service, but rather just a need to be with each other. Mourners hugged and whispered words of encouragement. Well be here as long as we need to be, Pastor Rogers told the group. Elizabeth Hernandez: 303-954-1223, ehernandez@denverpost.com or twitter.com/ehernandez Staff researcher Vickie Makings contributed to this report. A mumps outbreak has prompted alerts to healthcare providers across Colorado, with at least four cases confirmed in Denver and two other probable cases under investigation, authorities said Wednesday. We usually see about 2.5 cases per year (in the city), said Dr. Heather Young, an infectious disease physician at Denver Health Medical Center who serves as the hospitals epidemiologist. This is certainly an increase over what we would usually see. The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment on Tuesday issued a warning to doctors and nurses to keep an eye out for more potential patients. While most mumps cases are mild, some can have serious complications. Investigators believe the Colorado cases are linked to a mumps outbreak in Iowa. The source of the infection is thought to be a person who recently moved to Colorado from Iowa and reported symptoms of fever and bilateral swelling under his ears that extended under his mandibles during early January, CDPHE said in its bulletin. State health officials say while infectious, the person socialized with a group of three friends who all came down with mumps symptoms in late January. The group went together to the Denver Health Adult Urgent Care Clinic on Feb. 2 where they were evaluated and tested for mumps. As of Monday, CDPHE says three health care personnel who treated the cases at the clinic developed mumps symptoms despite reporting being vaccinated against the disease. Denver Health is contacting other health care personnel and patients who may have also have been exposed, CDPHEs bulletin said. The outbreak may not be related to a lack of vaccinations. Dr. Lisa Miller, chief of the communicable disease branch at the state health department, said childhood vaccinations for mumps are not foolproof for life, and an adults immunity can diminish with age. Even though the mumps vaccine is a very good one, and provides protection for 88 percent of people who get 2 doses, that leaves a small number of individuals who are susceptible even when the vast majority of people are fully vaccinated, Miller said in an e-mail. Young says to prevent spreading mumps or being infected, people should get vaccinated and stay home if sick. Call your healthcare provide if you think have mumps, she added. Its spread by droplets so its something that if you are coughing or sneezing you could spread it that way. Mumps is a contagious disease caused by a virus, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It typically starts with a few days of fever, headache, muscle aches, tiredness and loss of appetite, followed by swollen salivary glands. Symptoms can appear between 12-25 days after someone is infected. The illness lasts from three to ten days. In the most serious cases, mumps can cause brain inflammation, sterility, orchitis, spontaneous abortion or deafness. The CDC says while mumps cases in the United States are rare, there are occasional outbreaks. Colorado typically has several cases each year. The Associated Press reports several mumps cases have been reported at two Indiana University campuses within the past several days. In November, according to the AP, the University of Iowa reported more than 100 cases of the disease for 2015. CDPHE says Iowas mumps outbreak has been ongoing since July 2015. Among the 49 states and the District of Columbia reporting kindergartner vaccination coverage for measles, mumps and rubella, or MMR, for the 2013-14 school year, Colorado stood dead last, according to the CDC. Data wasnt available for Wyoming. The MMR vaccine is recommended for all children and Young says it is 90 percent effective. Jesse Paul: 303-954-1733, jpaul@denverpost.com or @JesseAPaul Staff writer David Olinger contributed to this report. Mumps cases in the U.S.: 2010 2,612 2011 370 2012 229 2013 584 2014 1,223 2015 1,057 2016 so far 69 Source: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention The fight over whether Apple should write new software to unlock the iPhone used by the San Bernardino, California, killer may be poised to go to Congress and thats the first good news Ive heard about the confrontation. The case raises profound matters of public policy with constitutional, domestic and international ramifications. A magistrate judge working for the federal district court isnt the right person to decide these issues, nor would higher courts be in a good position to make wise judgments on appeal. What we need here is a law one that reflects, to the extent possible, the legitimate competing values in play. The reason the magistrate is even involved derives from the misleadingly simple nature of the problem. When a federal criminal investigation is under way, magistrates are deputed by federal district judges to issue warrants. In this instance, the Department of Justice asked the magistrate to issue an order to Apple to enable it to unlock Syed Rizwan Farooks iPhone. The magistrate, Sheri Pym, complied, ordering Apple to offer reasonable technical assistance in the form of a workaround that would bypass or disable the auto-erase function; allow the Federal Bureau of Investigation to submit passcodes to the phone electronically; and ensure that software running on the device will not purposefully introduce any additional delay between passcode attempts. Then the magistrate got technical about the technical assistance. She specified that Apple could give the FBI a signed iPhone Software file, recovery bundle, or other Software Image File (SIF) that will load and run from Random Access Memory and will not modify the iOS on the actual phone. The SIF would be coded by Apple with a unique identifier of the phone and loaded via Device Firmware Upgrade (DFU) mode. You dont need to know what SIF or DFU mean to understand that the magistrate was directing Apple to code, if necessary, and provide the software to achieve the governments goal of opening the iPhone. Apple is thus correct when it says that it isnt being ordered to use some existing, proprietary mechanism to open the phone. Its being required to code a new system that could then be used in the future to open other iPhones subject to court order. And theres no reason to think that only American court orders would apply. Every other country where Apple phones are used which is to say, everywhere on earth could then require Apple to comply and open phones under its own laws. The standards for government access to secrets are pretty different in different countries. By complying, Apple would be assuring that it will be in the business of helping governments, including autocratic ones, access users phones and the data thats kept on them. Theres also the risk that Apples new code could leak. No matter how closely that secret might be guarded, its very possible that it could be stolen by others, including foreign governments interested in espionage. Given these significant domestic and international implications, why didnt the magistrate think twice? The answer is that magistrates are used to following standard legal protocols. When the government lawfully asks for a warrant with probable cause, the magistrate grants it. The governments request was lawful here, measured by the ordinary yardstick of suspicion. So the magistrate gave the government what it wanted. As written, the laws governing the granting of warrants dont provide sufficient latitude for a court to weigh the dangers of requiring Apple to write new code against the corresponding gains for policing and national security. Sure, the federal district court or the court of appeals could construct such a balancing test and work through it. Even the U.S. Supreme Court might be capable of such an analysis. However, courts that are pretty good at interpreting statutes or applying the Constitution generally arent very good at identifying and weighing major domestic and international public policy consequences. At stake is not only the FBIs interest in justice but also users privacy interests and, yes, Apples business interests, which despite a denial from Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook are a legitimate concern. In the U.S. system, Congress is supposed to make difficult public policy decisions. Before you laugh and dismiss Congress as incompetent, remember that it doesnt have to be great at deciding contested policy questions. It just has to be better than the executive branch or the courts. Yes, lobbying Congress is easier than lobbying a court. But thats part of the structure of democracy, or at least its supposed to be. Congress should do more than hold hearings on this particular iPhone. It should take action to clarify the law and decide once and for all whether the American people want courts to be able to order private companies to code workarounds to give law enforcement access to private material. If our democracy cant decide that, were in serious trouble. To send a letter to the editor about this article, submit online or check out our guidelines for how to submit by e-mail or mail. WASHINGTON President Barack Obamas plan to close the detention center at Guantanamo Bay slammed into a wall of Republican opposition Tuesday, stopping cold Obamas hope for a bipartisan effort to close a chapter that began in the aftermath of 9/11. The long-awaited proposal, which was requested by Congress, is Obamas last attempt to make good on an unfulfilled campaign promise by persuading Congress to change the law that prohibits moving detainees accused of violent terrorist acts to U.S. soil. U.S. officials say the plan considers, but does not name, 13 locations in the U.S., including seven existing prison facilities in Colorado, South Carolina and Kansas, as well as six other locations on military bases. They say the plan doesnt state a preferred site and the cost estimates are meant to provide a starting point for a conversation with Congress. Colorado lawmakers reacted swiftly to the plans release. Its illegal for the president to move these detainees, and (administration officials) know it, said U.S. Sen. Cory Gardner, R-Colo., told The Denver Post in an interview. The president cannot overturn single-handedly the law of this country. He vowed to fight the effort and warned that moving detainees to Colorado could put local communities at risk. It could draw unwanted attention from people around the globe, Gardner said. U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet, D-Colo., who supports closing the base, also bluntly said that these detainees should not be transferred to Colorado. Fourteen years after the facility opened and seven years after Obama took office, the president argued it was finally time to shutter a facility that has sparked persistent legal battles, become a recruitment tool for Islamic terrorists and garnered strong opposition from some allies abroad. I dont want to pass this problem on to the next president, whoever it is, Obama said at the White House. If we dont do whats required now, I think future generations are going to look back and ask why we failed to act when the right course, the right side of history, and justice and our best American traditions was clear. The plan makes a financial argument for closing the controversial detention center. U.S. officials say it calls for up to $475 million in construction costs that ultimately would be offset by as much as $180 million per year in operating cost savings. The seven facilities reviewed by a Pentagon assessment team last year were the U.S. Disciplinary Barracks and Midwest Joint Regional Corrections Facility at Leavenworth, Kan.; the Consolidated Naval Brig, Charleston, S.C.; the Federal Correctional Complex, which includes the medium, maximum and supermax facilities in Florence; and the Colorado State Penitentiary II in Canon City, also known as the Centennial Correctional Facility. The focus on Colorado has put additional pressure on Bennet, who is up for re-election this year. Bennet supports the closure of Guantanamo Bay saying in December that it is a symbol all over the world for our not living up to our own values but he has been skeptical about the process in which the administration has tried to shutter the facility. In a statement released Tuesday, he spoke out against the White House plan in some of the strongest language he has used. Ive voted to close the prison, but I believe military detainees should be held in military prisons. Colorado does not have that type of facility, he said. There are 91 detainees at Guantanamo Bay. Of those, 35 are expected to be transferred out by this summer. At its peak in 2003, Guantanamo held nearly 680 detainees, and there were about 245 when Obama took office. Staff writer Mark K. Matthews contributed to this report. SANTA CATARINA PALOPO, GUATEMALA The man grinned a wide smile at me and simply asked, Pana? He was referring to Panajachel, one of several towns and villages surrounding Guatemalas magnificent Lake Atitlan. Panajachel is the lakes economic hub and jumping-off point for many tourists visiting the area. Its about 2 miles from Santa Catarina Palopo, the village I was in as I encountered the man. He, like many others, was waiting for a flete, a pickup truck that transports villagers to and from Panajachel several times each day. I smiled and responded in Spanish that I preferred to walk. During a six-week stay in Guatemala, I traversed the path between the main town and the tiny village numerous times. In fact, it was often the highlight of my day. During my walks, I was able to take in spectacular views of the lake and watch as the sun slipped behind volcanoes. Joining me along the way were other fitness enthusiasts young and old running alone or in pairs; young lovers holding hands and stopping to kiss at various lookout points; and men and women walking home after a day of work chopping trees in the verdant countryside or selling handmade crafts to tourists in Panajachel. My favorite part of the walk was encountering women dressed in the traditional Mayan huipil (blouse) and corte (skirt) and expertly balancing bundles atop their heads. Occasionally I encountered young children in traditional dress skipping down the road or kicking rocks. The walk between villages includes several steep inclines, and a decent level of fitness is required. Although the U.S. State Department warns American travelers that crime and violence in Guatemala are serious problems, I can honestly say that I never felt unsafe in the Lake Atitlan region. I made sure, however, to always complete the journey before darkness fell. If you go The Lake Atitlan region is about 70 miles from Guatemala City, home to the nearest major airport. Visitors can rent cars or take a bus from Guatemala City to Lake Atitlan. Note that Guatemala is listed on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention list of countries where mosquitoes carry the Zika virus. Feet propped on a balcony rail, Im gazing through a small vineyard lined with palms, then out over the edge of a 1,000-foot sea cliff. And on the far Atlantic horizon, a sudden apparition: probing forelegs, followed by a colossal spider. That was just optics. The spider a small and ordinary one had suddenly crawled out on the top rail at eye level, a few inches away. But here on the island of Madeira, west of North Africa and Europe and hundreds of miles from either, the travelers musing question applies to both me and the spider: How did we get here? Each of the hundreds of species of birds, plants and insects within the rich mantle of rain forest that greens Madeira is a miraculous wanderer. They have drifted in on the wind, or on floating debris, over epic spans of time and ocean, since volcanic convulsions pushed this land a mile above the surface 5 million years ago. I got here more conventionally, looking for an easy but unfamiliar destination to explore. Madeira, though part of Portugal and only a 90-minute flight from Lisbon, qualifies. It offers some options that may sound zany a narrated tour in a motorcycle sidecar, for example, and a slaloming ride in an upholstered toboggan, sans snow. The best reason to visit, though, was a week of inn-to-inn hiking on remote, high-elevation rain-forest paths. We carried only daypacks with lunches supplied by the inns, occasionally clambering but usually strolling, for five or six hours on each outing. Then, a long soak in a hot tub and maybe a glass of the namesake fortified wine. There are a quarter-million permanent residents here, but Madeira is still in the process of being discovered, at least by Americans. The United States accounts for a very small fraction of tourism most visitors are Europeans. We may figure that with the Caribbean and Hawaii closer by, another tropical island destination would be redundant. But in its venturesome recreations, history and stunning landscape, Madeira is a place quite apart. Its even climate invites travelers year-round. We had come through Madrid and its string of sweltering days in the high 90s prior to our arrival here in late July. Madeira stayed in the high 70s and occasionally low 80s. This was among the first encounters of the agile Portuguese when their Age of Discovery gathered conquests in the 1400s. It was a rarity: a big green fertile island, completely uninhabited. Madeira was set on fire to clear land for farming and the southern districts burned for years. The steep, wet, lush north was spared, and its water was coveted for the drier south. But from the rugged shore up through hanging forests to a skyline of tall, barren crags, most of this island is a landscape of near-vertical rock. So slaves were suspended by ropes to etch a tracery of hundreds of miles of narrow levadas, or canals, onto cliffs and canyon walls to move the water. That often-sacrificial form of labor lasted centuries. Today, hikers are the beneficiaries. You can stroll along the easy gradients of the network of levadas for days at a time, much of it through a globally rare native laurel forest a UNESCO World Heritage natural feature. The paths lead to shreds of cloud at the edge of yawning canyons, occasional tunnels, spectacular waterfalls and views out to the breakers battering distant coastal cliffs. These narrow watercourses were of vital importance, the British traveler W.H. Koebel wrote in 1909. They are the arteries that nourish the land. Its true now, too: They still supply water to Funchal, the capital, for instance. That port city, a cruise ship destination during the October-to-May season, accounts for more than half of the islands population. The rest of the Madeirans inhabit a thin scatter of villages, with centuries-old churches and tiny cafes. They are blissfully free of high-rise hotels and blaring traffic. We were ready to descend from our final day of hiking along the levadas and into Funchal. One conveyance for that part of the trip is available nowhere else on the planet that I know of: You can slide down the high, curvy, cobbled streets into town on the runners of a big wicker toboggan. These popular rigs were invented more than a century ago for the citizens of the hilltop suburb of Monte to commute. Each is steered by two men in vintage white uniforms and boaters. They hop on for the ride down the fast, straight portions and nimbly alight to run alongside and nudge you around corners or over slower spots. We opted to come down from the mountains instead via a long, exquisite glide in a teleferico an overhead cable car. Inn-to-inn hiking This was our third inn-to-inn hiking trip in as many years. The tour operator supplies maps, directions, lodging, breakfast and dinner, and moves our luggage when we change hotels. Several companies offer a Madeira package. We planned to use a tour company that had given us good results before. We were told, though, that the Madeira trip was now offered by another U.S. packager instead. So we booked through that outfit, which is really only a pass-through marketer for a British company that has recently been sold to a German firm that in reality handed us off to a Madeira-based operator that took custody, more or less, as soon as we landed. We would have saved money just using the Madeirans to begin with. Ask your prospective inn-to-inn hiking planner for references you can talk with by phone, people who have used the same tour operator for the same trip in the past year. Youll want to know how well the transfers were handled, the quality of the hotels and meals, and, crucially, that the point-by-point hiking instructions were perfect, or nearly so. Also, English is spoken widely. If you have time to do your own planning, several good guidebooks are available for hiking the levadas (some of them are not safe). The hotels you choose can routinely arrange for luggage to be transported to your next destination. Many of them know the trailheads and pickup locations well. Madeira has surprisingly good cellphone service, and many hotels can easily get you to and from the hikes by cab. 10 Quotes From Steve Jobs That You Will Remember For Life! You can leave a response , or trackback from your own site. 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) Sign up below to have the hottest Catholic news delivered to your email daily! Close Sign up below to have the hottest Catholic news delivered to your email daily! Church Militant, we need to band together to protect our religious liberties and win the culture war! Responses found on Sony Deutschland's Facebook page suggest that contrary to five Xperia Z6 phones expected this year, Sony is replacing the Z series with its lineup of Xperia X devices Sony Mobile is discontinuing its flagship Xperia Z lineup of smartphones, replacing them with the Xperia X series. While an official statement from Sony regarding the same is pending as of now, Sony Mobile DACH has stated that Sonys focus has shifted from waterproofing on devices to innovating around camera, battery and design. The Sony Xperia Z lineup had a different technological and design philosophies, and Sony is looking to branch away from what the Xperia Z lineup stood for, with pure metal and curved glass builds, predictive hybrid autofocus cameras and intelligent charging on the new Xperia X smartphones. Last year, at IFA 2015, Sony became the first company to introduce a smartphone with 4K resolution display. While it was indeed rich and sharp to look at, the Sony Xperia Z5 Premium failed to invoke massive interest, as a 4K resolution display panel on a 5.5-inch device can be easily deemed as overkill. With the new Xperia X lineup, Sonys focus seems to have shifted to improving existing technology on its lineup of smartphones, thereby pitting the new devices as its latest flagship range. The Sony Xperia X Performance will lead Sonys lineup for now, powered by the new Qualcomm Snapdragon 820, 3GB of RAM, and a 23MP Exmor RS Mobile primary camera. The Xperia X, priced at 599, will serve as the bridge between the X Performance and the Xperia XA, Sonys mid-range device powered by a MediaTek MT6755 chipset and priced at 299. UPDATE: We had reached out to Sony Mobile India, and this is what Sony's spokesperson stated: Although we can never confirm about the future possibilities of our product line-up, we can share with you that we have no plan to launch Xperia Z6 at this stage. As announced, we have entered a new chapter of our Xperia brand by launching the new X series at MWC. The Xiaomi Mi 4S comes with a 5-inch FHD display, Snapdragon 808 SoC, 3GB RAM, 13MP/5MP cameras, and a fingerprint sensor at the back Xiaomi has unveiled the Mi 4S smartphone ahead of the announcement of its flagship phone, the Mi 5. The Xiaomi Mi 4S comes with a 5-inch Full HD IPS display and is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 808 processor with 3GB of RAM. The device is equipped with 64GB of onboard storage. At the back is a 13MP primary camera with dual-tone flash and phase detection autofocus, while at the front is a 5MP camera. There is also a fingerprint sensor located below the rear camera. In addition, the phone comes with 4G, VoLTE, USB-C port, and a 3260mAh battery with support for Qualcomm Quick Charge 2.0 technology. The device is priced at CNY 1,699 (approx. Rs. 17,800) and will be available in China from March 1 in black, gold, purple, and white colour variants. Xiaomi will also be unveiling its new flagship smartphone, the Mi 5, at MWC 2016 today. The price and specifications of the phone was listed by an online retailer earlier and also showed a new version of the device called the Xiaomi Mi 5 Plus. This version may come with a larger display as compared to the standard version. Oh well I don't mind, if you don't mind 'Cause I don't shine if you don't shine. Before you go, can you read my mind? I was reminded of these lyrics from The Killers popular track - Read my mind, while wearing the Neurosky Mindwave EEG Headset. Yes, the Mindwave is a headset that can literally read your mind. As I visited the Tech Lab at the annual WPP Stream Unconference in Jaipur; a congregation of media barons, tech startups and journalists, I saw a man sitting with this headset clipped on to his earlobe at one end and his forehead, on the other. He was simply looking a tiny ball, housed inside a long plastic tube, and the ball was moving from one end to the other, without any human intervention. Is Magneto from X Men real? I thought to myself. Alas! I came back to reality (and my senses) and realised what I was looking at. Now thats a Brain Wearable, I said to myself and darted in Magnetos direction. What I was looking at, was The Neurosky Mindwave EEG Headset. A brain wearable that measures raw brainwaves using a single EEG electrode. These brainwaves can then be interpreted in a number of ways. The NeuroSky eSense meters also measure attention, meditation and eyeblinks to literally convert thoughts into actions. The headset consists of an ear clip and a sensor arm that sticks to ones forehead. For connectivity, it uses Bluetooth v2.1 to pair with various devices within a 10 meter range. Electroencephalography or EEG has for long been used in hospitals where its function is to detect electrical activity in the brain. Our brains cells talk to each other using electrical impulses and EEG tests are a way of listening into them. Most EEG measurement instruments cost upwards of a Rs. 5-6 lakhs. The Neurosky Mindwave EEG headset costs $99 or Rs. 6787 approximately. In India, headsets like these are used for general marketing purposes, or in other words, to capture eyeballs, just like the demonstration I witnessed at the Stream unconference. Let me tell you, it wasnt easy using the Mindwave. It actually requires you to concentrate hard on the action you want to perform. In my case, when I tried moving a tiny plastic ball from one end to the other, I realised my powers of concentration are nothing compared to the man who initially caught my eye at the demo zone. Yes, I failed Magneto! It took me a few tries to get the ball to move and even then, rather than making a beeline from one end to the other, the ball jittered inside the plastic tube like an object possessed by a menacing poltergeist (Yes, I have witnessed poltergeists but thats a story for another time). Coming back to my woes of working a mind wearable, let me tell you how brainwaves function. When neurons in our brains communicate with each other, they produce different frequencies namely - Beta, Alpha, Theta & Delta. The Beta frequency is produced when we are fully alert and agitated. The Alpha frequency is produced when we are physically and mentally relaxed as well as aware of our surroundings, The Theta and Delta waves range from a state of reduced consciousness to being completely unconscious. Clearly and embarrassingly, my brain must have been producing Theta frequencies while wearing the Mindwave. In my defence, I had been awake since 4 AM. Nevertheless, the point of brain wearables is to help you improve concentration, and in some cases, Zen out. There are also a bunch of apps available for the Mindwave on Neuroskys store which help you perform a range of brain related tasks, that is, If you can actually put your mind to them. A cool implementation of Neuroskys brainwave reading technology was also seen on a Star Wars Force Trainer, a toy with which players could levitate a ball using their powers of concentration. Neuroskys tech was also used in Googles MindRDR, which connects to the Google Glass to monitor brain activity. Bluetooth button on top left, ear clip on top right, head mount bottom left, forehead clip bottom right So, while brain wearables may seem incredible and the applications uncountable, there are still a lot of pertinent questions that remain unanswered when it comes to these mind readers. For once, the consumer applications of these wearables also opens up our brains to security risks. In a day and age where everything from smartphones to fitness trackers to IoT device are hackable, brain wearables are an easy target for cyber terrorists. Theres also a question of meaningful implementation of these devices. So far, very little has been said about using brain wearables for medical conditions such as epilepsy or panic attacks, but even those solutions are not that far way in the future. So, lets wait and watch where brain wearables are headed. Till then, below is are some image of me struggling to use the Neurosky Mindwave. Hope you have a good laugh! UBSs upbeat view on luxury-goods maker Burberry was unmarred by a profit-warning from rival Hugo Boss in the previous session. The iconic British brands pricing was not as stretched and it was better-positioned in the US market, the Swiss broker said. At the start of the second half of 2015, Hugo Bosss prices on mainland China were at a level of 200 versus those for its goods in France at 100, analyst Helen Brand said citing evidence from the UBS Evidence Lab, and was now at 165 and attempting to move towards a price differential of 150. Burberry on the other hand was already at a 150 premium to France which was already more or less in line with the rest of its sector at 148. "Whilst we continue to see pricing power as limited for the [luxury] space given these stretched regional gaps we do not see Burberry following as dramatic route as Boss," Brand said. Furthermore, the FTSE 100-listed firms brand positioning was more luxury than Bosss, UBS added. That was true both in China and in the States. Bosss profit warning was also linked to its attempts to move upscale in the US wholesale market against a promotional pricing environment. Lastly, UBS also thought it detected an opportunity for Burberyy in the handbag space given the 15% price discount versus peers and in its view share buybacks remained an option. Bran stuck to her 1,500p target price and 'buy' recommendation on the shares. The European chief executive of Tata Steel , Karl Koehler, will step down from his role to take up a senior leadership position with a large privately-owned industrial company in Germany. The steel producer said Koehler will remain available to the company for a short period in an advisory capacity. Koushik Chatterjee, group executive director and member of the boards of Tata Steel and Tata Steel Europe, will take on the role of executive director for Europe in addition to his current responsibilities. Meanwhile, current chief technical officer for Europe Hans Fischer, will be appointed CEO and will join the board of Tata Steel Europe with effect from 1 March. Karl Koehler said: I am pleased that an individual with the experience and caliber of Hans Fischer will be taking over the role of chief executive officer. I believe the new leadership of Tata Steel Europe will continue the journey of making the company stronger in the challenging times the European steel industry is facing. The news comes a month after the company said it would cut up to 1,050 jobs at its UK operations, which included around 750 at its plant in Wales, as it looks to combat the flood of cheap Chinese imports. Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Hua Chunying said on Wednesday that as far as his country was concerned, it was free to deploy what it wanted to a geo-politically sensitive region in the South China Sea because it believed their ownership was not under dispute. "I suggest to the media that, in your reports, you not selectively pump up or ignore things," Hua told a daily news briefing on Wednesday, Reuters reported. "Because when you pay attention to what China is deploying, do you also pay attention to other countries which have over the years, on Chinese islands they have occupied, deployed many radars and advanced weaponry? I hope friends in the media can objectively, justly, rationally and calmly make their reports," he added. Reports on 17 February revealed Beijing was installing two batteries of surface-to-air missiles on Woody Island, located in the Paracels archipelago. That followed remarks by Chunying on Monday, 22 February drawing a comparison between what China was doing and what the US does in Hawaii. "China deploying necessary national defence facilities on its own territory is no different from the US deploying defence facilities on Hawaii," he said. The day afterwards, White House spokesman John Earnest replied to his counterpart by pointing out that no other countries have claims on Hawaii, where as the same could not be said of the South China Sea. Earnest also emphasised that the US had urged all parties - among which the US was not included - to resolve those disputes peacefully and avoid escalating tensions. America wanted to insure that freedom of navigation and the free flow of commerce were protected in the South China Sea. Also on Wednesday, images published by the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies hinted at the possible construction of a radar tower on Gaven Reef in another South China Sea archipelago, known as the Spratlys. "Two probable radar towers have been built on the northern portion of the feature, and a number of 65-foot (20-meter) poles have been erected across a large section of the southern portion. "These poles could be a high-frequency radar installation, which would significantly bolster China's ability to monitor surface and air traffic across the southern portion of the South China Sea," CSIS reportedly said. Vietnam was rumoured to have placed less-advanced defensive systems on some of the Spratly islands, CSISs Michael J Green, Bonnie S.Glaser and Zack Cooper said in an article posted to the CSIS website and dated 19 February. "What additional steps might one expect to see in the months ahead? Woody Island has served as a model for Chinese development in the Spratly Islands, particularly at Fiery Cross, Mischief, and Subi reefs. The placement of SAMs at Woody Island suggests that surface-to-air systems may follow on these three reefs as well," CSIS said in the same article. In remarks to Reuters on 23 February, Admiral Harry Harris, the head of US Pacific Command, said China was "clearly militarising" the South China Sea. European stocks fell again on Wednesday, taking their cue from mostly negative sessions in the US and Asia, with commodities and energy issues under pressure as oil slid. At 0900 GMT, the benchmark Stoxx Europe 600 index was down 0.9%, Germanys DAX was down 0.8% and Frances CAC 40 was 0.7% weaker. The prospect of an oil output freeze and a rebound in the mining sector had been providing impetus for higher markets, but as energy and metal prices slip once again, momentum has slowed and equities have fallen, said Rebecca OKeeffe at Interactive Investor. Basic resources were among the worst performers, with the Stoxx 600 index for the sector down 2.8%. Energy issues were also in the red, with the sub-index for that sector down 1.3% amid weaker oil prices, as Saudi Arabia ruled out any production cuts and data showed a build-up in US crude stockpiles. Data from the American Petroleum Institute showed crude inventories rose 7.1m barrels last week to 506.2m, surpassing expectations for a 3.4m increase. Comments from Iran also weighed, after it said proposals to cap output were laughable. West Texas Intermediate was down 2.2% at $31.16 a barrel and Brent crude was 1.2% lower at $32.87. In corporate news, Wolters Kluwer rallied after the Dutch business information and publishing companys 2015 results came in better than expected. London-listed housebuilder Barratt Developments was also on the front foot as it reported a 40% rise in first half profit. German healthcare provider Fresenius advanced after saying it intends to lift 2016 net income by between 8% and 12%. French car maker Peugeot raced ahead after it announced a return to profit in 2015, while Bouygues nudged higher after the companys full year net profit beat analysts expectations. There are no major Eurozone data releases due so eyes will be on the US, where the Markit services PMI is at 1445 GMT and new home sales are at 1500 GMT. Despite an increase in customers and the amount of credit issued, International Personal Finances revenue and profit before tax has dipped. The FTSE 250 credit business reported revenue dropped from 783.2m to 735.4m for the calendar year, however it rose 4.1% on a constant currency basis. That in turn made profit before tax and exceptional items dip from 123.5m to 116.1m. That was despite an increase in customers from 2.64m to 2.81m, and a small rise in credit issued from 1.022bn to 1.043bn. Chief executive Gerard Ryan said it was a robust performance considering a number of significant regulatory matters impacting the business. It was an excellent year for IPF Digital and Mexico and we intend to increase our investment and accelerate expansion plans in these businesses. Our European home credit businesses, with the exception of the Czech-Slovakia market, increased underlying profit growth in challenging trading conditions. However, Ryan warned that new legislation in Poland and Slovakia will impact the groups profitability in 2016 and beyond, with regulatory headwinds to continue. We are, nevertheless, committed to delivering sustainable returns to our shareholders and have evolved our strategy to reflect the changing market environment in order to underpin this commitment." The results came as the company announced it had made chief commercial officer David Broadbent redundant. It followed a review of the cost base of the company's head office as part of a broader collective consultation. He has been a director of the company since July 2007, following the demerger from Provident Financial Group that he joined in August 1999. "Dave has given great service to the business over the last 16 years, said Ryan. I would like to thank him for everything that he has done in that time and wish him well for the future." Broadbent resigned from the board on Tuesday and will leave the company on March 7. Apple and Samsung 's stranglehold on the global smartphone market was fired a warning shot on Wednesday, as Xiaomi took the wraps off its next flagship - the Mi5. The company - the world's fourth-largest smartphone maker after Apple, Samsung and Huawei - used its first ever European launch event to show off the product, which sported a 5.15 inch screen, a 16 megapixel back camera, a four megapixel selfie camera, a fingerprint sensor and a curved back. It would cost just CNY 2699 - about 297 - for the top-end 120 GB-capacity version, and CNY 1,999 for the 32 GB handset. List prices for Apple's flagship iPhone 6S began at 539 on Wednesday, and Samsung's just-announced Galaxy S7 was on pre-order for 569. The smartphone maker was now valued at around 32bn, and had seen huge growth thanks to its tactic of selling low-price, high-spec smartphones, primarily in mainland China. But the company was now being forced to look beyond the People's Republic, as the market there became saturated. "We primarily focus on existing markets. We're beginning to work our way into other markets," international vice-president Hugo Barra told CNBC. During the launch event, Barra was constantly comparing the Mi5 to Apple and Samsung, which was something seen in previous Xiaomi launches as well. Much of the company's success in China had come from its ability to sell the handsets at a lower price, and getting users to sign up for ongoing software and services, something analysts doubted Xiaomi could replicate overseas. But Barra was adamant, saying: "We'll bring this to other marketsso lot of exciting evolution ahead which will allow us to bring our internet content outside of China." Pro Global Insurance Solutions was looking at a sizeable expansion of its operations and revenue on Wednesday, announcing it had entered into a multi-year contract with a leading global reinsurer and a leading UK insurer to provide long-tail claims management services relating to UK liability. The AIM-traded firm said the services related to both the insurer's claims reinsured by the leading global reinsurer, as well as its retained long-tail claims. Shares in Minoan Group were up by a large margin on Wednesday afternoon, after rumours circulated in Greek media that the requisite signatories required Presidential Decree for its Crete Project had been delivered. The AIM-traded company said that, while it had not received a formal confirmation of the news, it had received verbal confirmation from sources within the Greek government. Bankers Petroleum was pointing towards a solution for its ongoing tax battle with the Government of Albania on Wednesday, announcing it had signed a formal agreement with the country's minister of energy and industry. An international expert audit team would review Bankers' 2011 expenditures and assess whether any of them were certifiable petroleum costs according to the agreements in place between the parties, it was agreed. Plutus PowerGen was preparing to launch a number of listed bonds on Wednesday in a bid to raise cash for its next tranche of power generating projects. The AIM-traded power company focused on the development, construction and operation of flexible stand-by generation in the UK had previously stated it was committed to raising the total funding of 5.4m required for each 20MW project. Wey Education has appointed Barrie Whipp as a non-executive director of the company. The AIM-listed education group, which operates an online independent secondary school in the UK, among other undertakings, announced the move on Wednesday. Ascent Resources was heading towards production at its Slovenian asset on Wednesday, with the board updating the market on its three possible routes to first gas. The AIM-traded oil and gas exploration and production company said its long-term goal was to clean the gas from the Petisovci field to supply into the country's national grid. Summit Therapeutics has reported that pre-clinical research into its treatment for the Clostridium difficile hospital superbug has found it to be a "novel and potent antibiotic". A peer-reviewed paper has been produced based on a study of Summit's ridinilazole versus current standards of care, vancomycin and metronidazole, at the Houston College of Pharmacy, funded by the AIM-listed company. Grafenia has warned that full year results will be much worse than expected but that Peter Gunning has been appointed as chief executive on a permanent basis after making progress in the turnaround of printing and graphic design software company. The AIM-listed group, which has been undergoing restructuring under Gunning after selling off its Dutch arm for 2.35m last October, said the full effects of staff cuts, renegotiated supplier contracts and closure of underperforming stores would not be realised until the first half of the next financial year. Sareum Holdings was still running on the smell of an oily rag in its interim report on Wednesday, but the company was confident it was heading towards a breakthrough in its durgs under development. The AIM-traded cancer drug discovery and development business saw no revenue during the six month period, though it had 45,000 of other operating income. AIM-listed Tristel lifted its dividend and reported a rise in first half profit and revenue as the companys international expansion continues. For the six months ended 31 December, pre-tax profit was up 36% from 2014 to 1.5m on revenue of 8m, up 8%. SCISYS was celebrating a multi-million pound contract win on Wednesday, revealing an unnamed major UK broadcaster was selecting its dira! system for radio production and playout. It was full steam ahead at Scotgold Resources on Wednesday, as the firm announced plans to begin a bulk processing trial at Cononish, Scotland's only gold mine. The AIM-traded company said it would process 2,400 tonnes of its stockpile over a six-month trial period. Scotgold said the stockpile was believed to contain 7,000 tonnes, at grades of 7.9 grams per tonne of gold, and 39 grams per tonne of silver. Escher Group Holdings has given a helping hand to financial technology start up Deposify. The AIM-listed point of service software provider said on Wednesday it had invested 125,000 (98,583) in the Dublin-based companys initial raise. Columbus teachers union investigating if members worked during strike The Columbus Education Association will investigate whether members crossed the picket line during the union's three-day strike in August. JNU row: students surrender, grilled for 5 hours Jawaharlal Nehru University students Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya, accused of sedition, surrendered at midnight and were driven around for almost two hours by policemen who wanted to dodge the media. The students' request to surrender at a secret location was rejected by the Delhi High Court on Tuesday. At around 11.40 pm, the two drove to the JNU campus gates in a university security van. Scores of students formed a chain around Khalid and Bhattacharya as they left. The police drove around for almost 10 km to avoid the media before taking the students to a police station less than a kilometre from the university. The students reached the police station after 2 am. Sources say the students were questioned for five hours before being arrested. "Umar and Anirban have faith in the judiciary," JNU Students Union vice president Shehla Rashid told NDTV. The two students have been charged with sedition for allegedly organizing an event on 9 February to mark the anniversary of the hanging of terrorist Afzal Guru, in which anti-India slogans were raised. They had been missing since 12 February, along with three other accused students. All five surfaced on campus on Sunday night. On Tuesday, Khalid and Bhattacharya went to the high court for permission to surrender at a secret location. They cited the attack on their comrade Kanhaiya Kumar by lawyers when he was being taken to court for a bail hearing last week. The court, however, said: "You can't use your whim and fancy. You have to follow the procedure, surrender or arrest." (See: Delhi high court asks two JNU students to surrender). For their safety, a magistrate may come to the police station so that they can be produced before him, the bench said. Kanhaiya Kumar, the JNU student's union president, was arrested earlier this month over the controversial event. He is in Tihar Jail. (Also see: JNU row: Kanhaiya's bail plea to be heard on 29 Feb) Oil prices fall as producers waver on output cuts Saudi Arabia has ruled out chances of any cut in oil production by members of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) or outside the grouping to lift prices of crude oil and avert catastrophe in the oil market, with oil producers agreeing more to cheat on agreements than implement them. "It's not going to happen," said the country's oil minister, Ali Al-Naimi, dashing hopes of a quick reprieve for the growing supply glut. "They will not deliver, so there is no point wasting time," he said, speaking at the IHS CeraWeek forum of energy leaders in Texas. Naimi's statement comes after Saudi Arabia, Russia, Qatar and Venezuela proposed last week a production freeze at January levels in response to the global glut and sustained low prices of crude (See: Russia, Saudi agree to oil output freeze ). Brent crude fell by almost $2 to $33.25 a barrel within minutes of Naimi's comments. His words were clearly aimed at Russia and Iran, Saudi Arabia's bitter adversaries in the war in Syria and the larger Shia-Sunni battle for dominance in the Middle East. The Saudis suspect that the Kremlin cynically violated an informal deal in 2001 to cut output, leaving the Gulf states to bear the full brunt. It is unclear whether last week's deal between Saudi Arabia and Russia to freeze output at current levels has any meaning after Iran's oil minister, Bijan Namdar Zanganeh, described the freeze as a "ridiculous" ploy to put pressure on Tehran as sanctions are lifted and Iran prepares to boost exports by 500,000 barrels a day. Naimi, however, struck a positive note, saying the freeze is the beginning of a process that will lead to a fresh meeting in March and may ultimately include a broader group of countries within Opec and the rest of the world. Alluding to Iran, he said that "common sense and the need for more money" would eventually force it to the table. Naimi denied that Saudi had any intention of flooding global markets with excess crude in order to wean away investors from costly shale oil production. "Let me say for the record, we have not declared war on shale or on production from any given country or company. It is a simple case of letting the market work," he said, adding that old-fashioned discipline will flush out the weakest and force them into bankruptcy. "It sounds harsh, but it is the most efficient way to rebalance markets. Cutting low-cost production to subsidise higher cost supplies only delays an inevitable reckoning," he said. Saudi Arabia will shift gear only if there is a "market failure" or a bout of "extreme volatility", Naimi said, without clarifying where this threshold lies. Naimi insisted that US shale will ultimately be needed to meet demand growing by 1.2m barrels a day once the current glut is cleared. dpa ElectionsData With dpa ElectionsData you get access to a unique collection of data. Via a programming interface (Rest-API), your developers can access detailed information, candidate profiles and live results for all national elections in the European Union and important international elections, like the US Midterm elections etc. The data pool also includes all heads of state and government as well as about 20,000 elected members of parliament throughout the EU. In addition to their data (name, party, constituency or list position), we collect social media profiles and official websites of individuals and parties. The dilemma Alex has a 2005 Mercedes-Benz A170. It works a treat for his light urban requirements but he has a hankering it's time for something newer. However, he can't find a replacement the new A-Class doesn't have the height, airy vision and manual gearbox he wants, and while its B-Class sibling has the former assets it misses out on the latter, too. What are his options? The budget Not provided The shortlist The question of just which cars could fill an A170's shoes is a tough one. As Alex has discovered, the new A-Class isn't a tall hatch anymore; the B-Class is but doesn't have the right gearbox. His manual-gearbox requirement also puts a question mark over two other possibilities, BMW's 2-Series Active Tourer (a B-Class rival) and Kia's Soul. That leaves just a single new-hatch candidate we can think of that lives up to all of his criteria. If it doesn't work, he might have to pick a compromise an auto gearbox, maybe even an SUV and try to live with it. BMW 218i Active Tourer, from $44,400 This BMW is noticeably more spacious and functional than a regular hatch, and has our desired lofty driving position and good vision. Its generous specification includes toys like automated parking and autonomous emergency braking. Its three-cylinder turbo petrol/six-speed auto drivetrain is a strong, flexible charmer with great economy, and it rides and steers well. In these respects it's rather better than a B-Class, which is why it gets the gig here. But its mandatory auto gearbox issue here and it's not an especially cheap way to get a small, tall-sized serve of kicks, even if it's not bad value in its domain. While BMW has packages that allow you to fix service costs like its mainstream rivals here, you need to pay up front for the privilege. Read Drive's BMW 2 Series Active Tourer reviews: BMW 218i Active Tourer vs Citroen Picasso head to head BMW 225i Active Tourer road test Honda Jazz, from $14,990 This Honda hatch is small and kinda tall, with a high seating position and good vision. And it can be had with a manual gearbox. The cabin also rates for its outstanding space and user-friendliness, and it has no serious spec deficiencies in light of its low price (even the cheapest model has a reversing camera, for example). It's quite frugal and service costs are capped for five years/100,000km. But the Jazz's ride and handling leave something to be desired, and its petrol engine can be a bit sleepy at low revs. Whether it's upmarket enough is up for debate here, all the more when the upper level models are auto-only deals. Safety connoisseurs will find better returns (i.e. autonomous emergency braking) elsewhere. Read Drive's Honda Jazz reviews: Honda Jazz VTi road test Light hatch road-test comparison Suzuki Vitara, from $21,990 What's the difference between a tall, small hatch and a small SUV? Really not much, so the latter are certainly worth a look in this context. Which ones? Mazda's CX-3 is city-friendly and has the kind of visual and driving appeal Alex might appreciate but it isn't that roomy or easy to see out of. This Suzuki, contrastingly, has good space and vision for a baby SUV while keeping the Mazda more than honest for on-road nous. Its petrol/manual drivetrain is willing, frugal and refined. It's sharp value (all models have a reversing camera and sat-nav), easy to own (service costs are capped for five years/100,000km) and can be personalised with two-tone paint and other details. But the Vitara's cabin isn't a benchmark for lush and similar to the Honda the range-topping model is auto-only. The lack of to-the-minute safety tech (i.e. autonomous emergency braking) is a potentially brow-furrowing point. Read Drive's Suzuki Vitara reviews: Suzuki Vitara first drive Drive 2015 Car of the Year Best City SUV Drive recommends The BMW is this group's best contender in too many key ways, from its drivetrain to its safety technology, not to win. But Alex will need to be looking to spend this kind of dough on a small car. His current ride and shortlist suggest that's probably the case, but that's not certain either. And there is the question of it having the wrong gearbox. So Honda and Suzuki mightn't be so easy to count out, despite their relative dearth of upmarket appeal. Which one? The Jazz is a clever light car but also a bit bland and unsatisfying. The Vitara, while hardly a night at the Ritz, takes everyday nous and adds a bit of colour and appeal. The story I wrote some weeks ago about the fire in the belfry of the St. Joseph's Redemptorist Church at St. Alphonsus Road, in February 1920 seems to have struck a chord with many readers, both in Dundalk and among exiles living abroad. Not only because it was something that older people used speak about for many years but also because of its connection with the War of Independence, the centenary which will be celebrated when the 1916 Rising centenary has been passed. The reason for this is that the beautiful church was probably saved from destruction by the actions of a detachment of the British Army from the Dundalk Military Barrack. The significance may be understood in the long held belief in Dundalk that many of the Redemptorist Fathers of the time had a sympathy with the national cause that was not shared by other Catholic clergy. Indeed, when I was a young altar boy serving in the church some twenty years later, there was a wildly held belief that republicans, who under threat of excommunication for their activities during both the War of Independence and Civil War, could get absolution from priests hearing confessions in St. Joseph's and not in other churches in town. A sequel to the report of the fire in the belfry in February 1920 appeared in the Centenary souvenir album of the Redemptorists Fathers setting up house in Dundalk in 1876; about an event which occurred almost exactly one year later on February 11, 1921. It states 'The Monastery is raided and thoroughly searched by the British Military between 2.00 pm and 4.30 pm.' The report does not state if the searches were carried out by soldiers from the Military Barracks on this occasion but I suspect that it was carried out by either the Black and Tans or the Auxiliary police forces. This was some five months before the Truce which temporarily halted the fighting and it is clear that the British authorities suspected that there might be arms hidden in the building. The album also notes, in the same year 1921: 'August 21st The peal of bells, now only ten, recast from the original 12, is placed in position today.' A further entry in the Centenary album in relation to events during the Civil War says: '1922 August 14. Attack on Dundalk Barracks by Irregulars was made. Frs. Kilbride and Coyle helped to attend the 17 who were wounded.' The report refers to the capture of the Dundalk Military Barracks from National Army forces by Anti-Treaty republicans led by General Frank Aiken. In relation to the fire in the belfry of St. Joseph's, I was a little surprised to read 'April 25. Installation and switching on of the Electric lighting in the Church, which was paid for by the local people.' My surprise relates to the belief, current some 25 years after the event, that the fire was caused by an electrical fault which was a common cause of fires in empty buildings in those days, due to faulty wiring. This was also believed to have been the cause of the fire in the old Marist Chapel in 1932 when that building was completely destroyed. Of course, there might have been electric wiring already installed in the belfry of St. Joseph's more than two months before the switch-on in the church! This same factor seems to have been the case in relation to St. Nicholas' Church of Ireland, Green Church, where an entry in Harry Tempest booklet about this church, published in 1955, states that this church was not wired for electricity until 1933. Yet, in 1927 it says that the Organ was reconstructed, re-voiced, fitted with key-board, pneumatic action and electric blower. Which means that there must have been an electricty supply fitted in this church before 1933. Incidentally the same booklet states that in 1932 'Spire Struck by Lightning, August 4th. Porch roof damage. The new spire was erected 'on steel framework', later in the same year, at a total cost of 850. Interestingly, in relation to St. Nicholas, a further entry, indicates that the local name 'Green Church' derived, not from green spire which was erected 1932, but from the fact that it had been covered in ivy for centuries. This entry for 1952, states --- ''Church Tower battlements rebuilt, Ivy stripped off and Tower pointed.' Correction In my previous article about the Redemptorist fire in 1920, I had incorrectly written that Fr. James McCann who celebrated Mass in the Church at the unusual time of 4.30 am., in celebration of the fire being extinguished, was the Rector of the Monastery. In fact, at that date, the Rector was Fr. James Collier, C.Ss.R. A solitary figure trudged through the pristine snow towards the makeshift hut, with an inevitable sense of foreboding. Stopping only for a moment, he then flung open the tattered door and stood as the last vestige of an unholy odour escaped past him out into the relentless Arctic wind. Mc Clintock knew he had no right to expect otherwise at this point, as he solemnly surveyed the skeletal figures within. For the Siren-like lure of the Arctic had enticed and deceived many men, for beneath the virginal beauty of this enchanting land, slumbered mother-nature at her very cruellest. Born in Seatown, Dundalk, on July 8th 1819, Francis Leopold Mc Clintock appeared focused on his calling from a very early age, leaving for Portsmouth at the tender age of twelve to enlist as a Cadet on a 25 - gun frigate, the Samarang. McClintock went on to spend three years on this vessel, quickly becoming a firm favourite with the crew, who affectionately named him Wee Paddy. McClintock finally left the Samarang to serve on various other vessels, and after a year on the Hercules, returned to his mothers new house in Dublin, his father, a former Head Official at Dundalk Customs House, having died while Francis was still at sea. After some months at home waiting for a ship, McClintock was appointed second Lieutenant on the Enterprise of Sir John Rosss expedition, which was to set out in search of the missing Franklin expedition. Although the search itself ended in failure, it nonetheless provided McClintock with invaluable experience on the rigours and methods of Arctic travel, experience which would in time, stand him in very good stead. In 1850 the British Admiralty sent out a fleet of rescue ships to search for the forlorn Franklin; McClintock at this stage, having earned promotion to first Lieutenant on the barge Assistance. Reaching Lancaster Sound, McClintock sent out fifteen sledges to cover a vast area, he himself setting a record unequalled in history, by covering 1,400 sea miles in 104 days. It was an extraordinary feat of endurance, but alas there was still no sign of Franklins vanished expedition. Shortly after returning home, disregarding the previous lack of success, the intrepid Mc Clintock sailed once more to the Arctic. Passing through Lancaster Sound to reach Melville Island on May 14th 1853, he crossed the strait to a new and unknown island, which he named Prince Patrick Island. Pressing on still further, several days later he encountered another uncharted Isle, which he named in honour of his native land, Emerald Isle. In all, McClintock covered another 1,030 miles through pack ice and snow drifts in his perilous search for Franklin. Despondent at his failure, he returned to England and then to Ireland. In Dublin he was received like a true hero and was greatly praised for his heroic efforts, receiving honour after honour, while he himself gave vivid lectures on the rigors of Arctic life to the Royal Dublin Society. McClintock was far from satisfied that everything possible had been done to locate the Franklin expedition, whatever its condition. So when Lady Franklin fitted out a steam yacht at her own expense to determine the fate of her lost husband, it seemed only fitting that the command e should fall to the tenacious McClintock. On July 1st the Fox set sail for King William Island, where the capricious hostility of the Arctic climate kept the expedition in pack ice for almost a year. Eventually two sledges, one under McClintocks command and the other under Lieutenant Hobsons, left on their mercy mission. Several days later in April 1859, Hobson located Franklins written record of their sorry fate, while McClintock had the dubious honour of finding Franklins abandoned boats and several skeletons on the west coast of King William Island, thus poignantly completing his eleven year quest. McClintock returned to England and a heros welcome. A knighthood was conferred on him by Queen Victoria. Later he received the freedom of Derry, and in Dublin he was given an honorary degree at Dublin University. In 1860 McClintock, now a rear-Admiral was back at sea in command of a survey ship, The Bulldog. Later he became Admiral Super-Intendant of Portsmouth Dockyard, transferring then to a West Indian station where he retired in 1884, receiving his final orders in 1907 when he died at the age of eighty eight . Mc Clintock maintained throughout his adventurous life that indomitable code of all great explorers, To strive, to seek, to find and not to yield. (Tennysons Ulysses). Small business failure rates are alarming or so we are told. Along every avenue of research an enthusiastic entrepreneur will take, their spark, at some point, will be doused by bold assertions: 8 Out of 10 entrepreneurs who start businesses fail within the first 18 months (www.forbes.com). For anyone in the throes of a new business plan it can be a bit of a party pooper. However, while these statements indeed catch our eye, theres enough rationale to suggest that your chances of success are not as slim as some might have you believe: It is frequently claimed that a very large share of all start-ups fail within the first few years. These claims are usually exaggerated (www.treasury.gov.au). Sometimes things do go better than expected Dynamic Business revisited one small business that has not only cleared the start-up phase, but also claims to have exceeded expectations, after only two years operation. While there are risks aplenty going into business, its rarely said that sometimes, things can go better than expected. In 2014, the financial tech start-up, Timelio (then called InvoiceBid), launched to assist SMEs with one of their biggest challenges: cash flow. Using Timelios platform, businesses are able to bridge the cash flow gap between supply spending and receipt of payments by auctioning off outstanding invoices to investors. In February 2015, co-founder, Charlotte Petris, told Dynamic Business: we are passionate about supporting SMEs because these are the businesses that lead innovation and growth in the economy. The working capital we provide helps the business to accelerate its growth, by hiring new staff or buying new equipment to increase distribution and production, for example. It has been an impressive 12 months for the business Since then, it has been an impressive 12 months for the business. Timelio has funded $10m of invoices to businesses across Australia by investors around the world, closed a $500k capital raise to support growth, and has welcomed Glenn Smith, Director of StartupAUS and CEO of Spotjobs, to the board as Chairman. All eyes are on this emerging industry high-flier. Timelio has recently been commended by the Minister for Small Business, Innovation and Trade for the creation of jobs and has collected two awards: Game Changer of the Year sponsored by Visa and Overall Award for Outstanding Excellence, sponsored by Optus. Commenting on Timelios achievements, Charlotte said weve exceeded expectations, not only in terms of the volume of funding and the number of businesses we have helped, but also the overwhelming positive feedback that we have received. A true focus on customer experience At a time when traditional finance providers and banks are leaving the door wide open for disruption, Charlotte believes that a true focus on customer experience has been a key driver of their accelerated growth. Charlotte said Timelio was established because financial services firms arent serving customers very well. Our focus on the customer experience means that we have been able to create a solution that is better and more efficient than one offered by banks and traditional finance providers. Our customer focused approach has allowed us to disrupt the market and create a platform that is more agile and supports rapid innovation. Our customers are calling us just to say thank you for such a pleasant experience. This is unheard of in the financial services sector and so this feedback has been better than we could have imagined. And their customers have even been prepared to put their money where their mouth is. While they have found investors who share their vision and passion for fintech and disruption, part of their raised capital has been crowdfunded from their own customer base. We feel this is a huge endorsement for our business, said Charlotte. We plan to be the first Australian fintech to fund $1bn to Australian SMEs Timelio has surpassed expectations, but while Charlotte and her co-founder husband, Andrew Petris, might have had to up the ante to match, she asserts that nothing has changed in terms of their vision and goals. What has changed however, is merely reflective of the stage of growth they are at. Our product and processes have adapted as we have moved from the startup phase to enabling growth and scale, said Charlotte. With a breadth of experience guiding businesses through the explosive growth stage, Glenn Smiths position on the board is anticipated to help them along their current trajectory. An enormous amount of Australian SMEs who are currently underserved by traditional finance providers There is an enormous amount of Australian SMEs who are currently underserved by traditional finance providers according to Charlotte. Timelios long term objective will be to achieve a size and scale which enables the platform to be used by thousands of businesses across the country. Justifiably confident, Charlotte stated we plan to be the first Australian fintech to fund $1bn to Australian SMEs. And what would life be if it was all work and no play with no extra-curricular activities to boot. Selected as a participant in the US founded Springboard Enterprises Program, Charlotte became a member of a community driven accelerator program for high-growth technology companies led by women. The Springboard network has helped in many different ways recruitment of key people, introduction of customers and equity investors and also invaluable training on pitching and presentation skills, said Charlotte. Weve heard it many times before, but perhaps this simple message of advice carries more weight coming from Charlottes experience with Timelio: Put your customer first. Focus on your customer. Differentiate with a superior customer experience and product and put your customer at the core of your decision making, she said. Afterall The true measure of success lies with the only people who really determine your companys future: your customers, (John Joseph, www.entrepreneur.com). "We must be ready to dare all for our country. For history does not long entrust the care of freedom to the weak or the timid. We must acquire proficiency in defense and display stamina in purpose." - President Eisenhower, First Inaugural Address Foods of fall: Sweet potatoes There are many great foods that we enjoy in the fall. Apples, leafy greens, and of course, one of my favorites, sweet potatoes. Best known... Planning for Santas visit Here at the Early County Museum, weve jotted down our wish list for Santa, and we all wished for the same thing snow! We... A visit to Lake Kolomoki Ranger Lauren Bryant couldnt help but notice young Khalil's casting skills while making rounds Saturday morning. When visiting from Atlanta his grandparents say this is... Fall weather brings unwanted guests We welcome the cooler temperatures of fall, but the unwanted house guests that often appear are not so welcomed. Insects including roaches and other types... Rob Ortt Check out East Niagara Post videos on YouTube, Vine and Periscope. ALBANY -- State Sen. Rob Ortt has introduced legislation that would change the states funding formula for the Seneca Niagara Casino, allowing Niagara Falls to keep a greater percentage of the net drop from slot machine revenue.The current funding formula, known as the 99-h law, which determines the percentage of slot profits municipal governments and the state receive, is set to expire at the end of this year.Ortt's amended bill would flip the current casino formula, so that of the negotiated net drop of slot machine revenue, the City of Niagara Falls would receive 75 percent and the state would receive 25 percent. As it stands now, the state receives 75 percent (of the negotiated 25 percent net drop) and the city receives 25 percent to divvy up among the local stakeholders.The 99-h law was negotiated 10 years ago and since then, gaming competition across New York State has increased causing Seneca Niagara Casino revenue to dip, said Senator Ortt. Without adjustments to the formula, stakeholders would receive a smaller piece of the pie over the next several years. And, as the state secures its estimated billion dollar surplus from windfall cash, the time to act is now.Senator Ortt first proposed the idea in November when he unveiled his "Revitalize Niagara Plan." In addition, a letter, which can be viewed here, was sent to the governor that same month outlining the plan and proposed amendments to the 99-h law.If passed, the amended law would set aside 40 percent specifically for economic development and job creation. A nine-member economic development advisory group would be appointed to allocate funds and incentives to current and new businesses in downtown Niagara Falls. The focus would be to create jobs.The current formula has failed to develop downtown or create jobs, said Senator Ortt. By being proactive and appointing an advisory group, we will increase strict accountability to ensure funds are dedicated to economic development, and used transparently, effectively and efficiently.Additionally, 41.5 percent would be allocated to current and new entities. Current entities include the following: the Niagara Falls City School District; Niagara Falls Memorial Medical Center; the Niagara Tourism and Convention Corp. (NTCC); the Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority (NFTA); and city programs. New entities would include: the Niagara Falls Housing Authority; the Aquarium of Niagara; Mount St. Marys Neighborhood Health Center; and the WNY First Response & Preparedness Center. Money will no longer be allocated for the Niagara Falls Underground Railroad Heritage Area Commission, which was established in 2008. Theres a court case lingering over the presidential election that could explode in the next few months, and its probably not the one youre thinking of. Yahoos Michael Isikoff reports: This spring, just as the GOP nomination battle enters its final phase, frontrunner Donald Trump could be forced to take time out for some unwanted personal business: Hes due to take the witness stand in a federal courtroom in San Diego, where he is being accused of running a financial fraud. From 2005 to 2010, Trump sold about 10,000 students on the promise that Trump University could teach them better than the best business schools even better than Wharton, the Ivy Trump brags about attending whenever he feels his intelligence is being questioned, which is all the time. In 2013, New Yorks Attorney General Eric Schneiderman charged the billion-dollar baby with running a classic bait-and-switch scheme. Trump was deposed in a case related to the University last year and faces civil cases from his former students, one of whom accused Trump of threatening to financially ruin her for pursuing a lawsuit. Its a bit odd that none of Trumps Republican opponents have mentioned this scandal, which according to Isikoff could lead to a civil trial at the exact worst time for Trumps campaign: If it takes place in May, that would put it in the middle of the final phase of the GOP primary schedule: Nebraska and West Virginia vote on May 10, Oregon on May 17, and Washington state on May 24. Then on June 7, the biggest prize of all: the California primary (with 172 delegates at stake). New Jersey, Montana, New Mexico and South Dakota vote the same day. You may remember than in early summer of 2012, Democrats began their attack on Mitt Romneys key asset as a candidate his business record. This ad, which was created with industrial states like Ohio in mind, was a classic of the genre: Remember how I told you yesterday that the AFL-CIO and others are ringing an alarm that Trump will likely be very successful in winning over working-class white men who want to build walls and make their neighbors pay for them? After his monster victory in the Nevada caucus, Donald Trump scored his first endorsements from members of Congress. Both Rep. Chris Collins and Duncan Hunter are from upstate New York, which is part of the Rust Belt, which fits right into that narrative. Will Trump University be the basis of a Bain like campaign against Trump? Below is a hint of how this might look: Now imagine this material in the hands of the experts who created Stage. Does it have the same bite of forcing workers to build the stage from which you laid them off? No, sir. But its the beginning of the narrative: When given the chance to make Americans lives better, he just took Americans. And youd definitely want to spice it up with a splash of this: We dont win anymore. All we do is lose to Mexico and China. pic.twitter.com/6qzhfUo4Ut Patrick Ruffini (@PatrickRuffini) February 13, 2016 Is it fool-proof? Nope. Maybe Republicans have stayed away from it because theres no there there. Or maybe Trump University is just too similar to the scammy for-profit universities they love. Theres no doubt that Trumps persona is already much more defined than Romneys ever was. But theres definitely a story to be told to working-class voters who are justifiably angry but may hate the idea of a rich fortunate son toying with their emotions. NOTE: Big tip o the Eclectahat to Eclectablog reader D. Harvey D. who provided much of the background research and perspective for this post. Ive already written about the scandal involving the mistreatment of elderly disabled veterans at the Grand Rapids Home for Veterans. A report released by the State Office of the Auditor General detailed a scathing laundry list of abuses and infractions, some of which resulted in veterans being injured and many complaints which were handled inappropriately or simply ignored. These horrific revelations are due to the privatization of nursing care to the company J2S Group, Inc. First incorporated in Michigan in 2005 under the name CSS Healthforce, Inc., the group was started by brothers Chris and Timothy Frain. The Frain brothers have no background in healthcare. In fact, after they both dropped out of Calvin College, they went on to form Corporate Security Solutions note the acronym CSS a group setup to provide security services. In 2007, the two college drop outs secured a contract with the U.S military: In the wake of Hurricane Katrina in 2005, the firm contracted with the Federal Emergency Management Agency to protect commercial buildings and trailer parks. At its peak, it had 600 employees in the New Orleans area. Some of the contractors there Blackwater included had considerable business in Iraq. That gave the Frains an idea: Why not us? In 2007, the firm won a Department of Defense contract to provide personal security and convoy security, and the firm set up a compound about a mile outside the heavily fortified Green Zone. They later won contracts to build and transport cement barriers and modular housing used by the military. Their corporate advantage: They can both build these products and then provide the security and ability to ship anywhere in the country. Its otherwise known as vertical integration. Their cement plant and housing assembly operation sit on several acres, next to the compound of Iraqi President Jalal Talabani. In 2009, they were hired by the country of Somalia. In 2011, Chris Frain teamed up with another of the original founders of CSS Healthforce (aka J2S Group) Andy Shaffer to form a holding group called Tyton Holdings to buy and sell businesses for a profit. So the Frain brothers, along with various relatives, were doing security services under government contract while simultaneously developing a separate business to provide healthcare services and yet another to buy and sell other companies and even found time to start a dumpster and portable toilet business, as well. During this time, J2S Group secured a state contract to privatize some of the healthcare services provided at the Grand Rapids Home for Veterans and, in 2011, further privatization plans were unveiled to replace unionized nurses aides at the home with employees provided by J2S Group, as well. The cost savings to the state were estimated to be $4 million a year. In 2013, Gov. Snyder laid off over 170 nurses aides and J2S replaced them with workers making a fraction of the wages earned by the men and women they replaced. It was this move that led to the issues we have today. Reports of the terrible treatment of these retired military veterans began to emerge as early as 2014: New information sheds light on what seems to be a deteriorating relationship between the State of Michigan and the company that helps provide care at the Grand Rapids Home for Veterans. This new information comes a day after the 13 Watchdog Team confirmed from several state leaders the facility is often not at full staffing. Many employees, we are told, are forced to work double shifts to make sure minimum staffing is met. Weve already gone on record to say its a problem, interim Home For Veterans CEO Jim Dunn has said. Were not satisfied with the shortages. Those shortages are spelled out in two complaints the 13 Watchdog Team received, one from March 2014 and one from this past March. Both have similar language. In 2014, Kimberly Graham from the Michigan Department of Military & Veterans Affairs wrote, Please be reminded, should you continue to neglect correction of these poor services to the GRHV, I will recommend cancellation of the contract, by default of contractor. Thats a warning she repeated a year later. The staffing shortages were brushed off by Michigan Veterans Affairs Agency Deputy Director of Service Administration Jim Dunn who is in charge of running the home. He said as late as last October that things were getting consistently better. J2S Group representatives blamed the shortages on people calling in sick or showing up for work late and claimed they had a 97% fill rate which is at or above industry standard. Tim Frain was also assured the state that everything was just fine: The admission by J2S that the company is not meeting minimum standards is quite different then the companys written response to the state in April. J2S Group CEO Tim Frain wrote that his company was performing the correct duties and hired enough staff to cover this contracts shift requirement many times over. After a federal audit released last October showed numerous violations at the home, J2S Group spokesperson John Truscott naturally blamed the unions: Most of these allegations are either false, or not directed at J2S, company spokesman John Truscott said Thursday. This is nothing more than a union attempt to try to overturn a state policy of privatizing some of the work. The recently released audit proves all three men were wrong and possibly lying. The fact is that the Snyder administration attempted to carve $4 million of annual costs out of a single healthcare facility for military veterans and, in the process of awarding the work to a company with no background in providing healthcare, the veterans suffered. Not surprisingly, J2S Group has high turnover and trouble maintaining a full staff. Thats what happens when you pay people poorly and overwork them, all in the name of corporate profits. J2S Group claims they never run short staffed and are passionate about not only supplying the right number of staff but providing a quality of staff that result in an exceptional work environment. They may be passionate about that but they have clearly proven to be incapable of achieving it. The real question here is how J2S Group secured the contract in the first place. How did a company founded by two college drop outs with no background whatsoever in providing healthcare services end up with a lucrative state government contract to care for elderly, disable military veterans? And how is it that, after years and years of proven malfeasance and inadequacy, they have kept their contract and continue to profit from taxpayer dollars? Ill be following this story as more information comes to light. [CC photo credit: DVIDSHUB | Flickr] Facebook has been using artificial intelligence to sharpen its focus on the roughly 10 percent of the world that has been overlooked by the Internet revolution, the company announced Sunday at the Mobile World Congress. The work has been led by the Connectivity Lab, Facebooks research and development wing, which is tasked with making the breakthroughs needed to connect the world to the Internet. The research was done in collaboration with the Core Data Science, FAIR and Applied Machine Learning teams. Coding Cartography Before building the backbone necessary to support Internet delivery in the most remote areas of the world, Facebook set its AI loose on 350 TB of satellite imagery. Its neural network analyzed about 13.4 million square miles of terrain in search of the telltale signs of settlements. The group started by discarding imagery that appeared to consist of little more than deserts, water and forests. About 99 percent of the landmasses it scanned were devoid of human habitation, according to the Connectivity Lab. After discarding the satellite imagery of clearly uninhabited areas, the researchers tweaked their neural network to look for signs of settlements. Facebooks DigitalGlobe satellite image of Naivasha, Kenya (left) and the results of the population density analysis of the same area (right). The effort comes down to maximizing the productivity of Facebooks drone-based wireless service, said Charles King, principal analyst for Pund-IT. The Earth is a huge place, and blanketing the entire planet with wireless would be enormously expensive and unproductive, he told the E-Commerce Times. Instead, Facebook has used AI to identify the location of human settlements, thus significantly improving the overall efficiency of its wireless provisioning efforts. That effort will speed up deployment of Internet services to areas that need it, while saving Facebook money and other resources. Theres no sense blanketing a region with wireless if no one lives there, said King. Access for All Facebook will make its data public later this year, but it shared one finding about how far the world has progressed: In 2015, the number of people using the Internet grew from 2.9 billion to 3.2 billion, according to a report titled State of Connectivity 2015: A Report on Global Internet Access. While Internet availability has hit the 90 percent mark globally, about 4.1 billion people werent using it in 2015, Facebook said. The company has taken heat, especially inIndia, for attempting to deliver its brand of free Internet services to those without access. Still, the extension of the Internet to all populations is sure to have a positive impact on world peace, said Susan Eustis, senior researcherWinterGreen Research. Enterprise globalization has brought common patterns of commerce to every country where marketing is conducted, she told the E-Commerce Times. Even the extension to Facebook will likely be a good thing, according to Eustis. Facebook messaging provides free texting that people love, she said. Facebook will begin to support e-commerce through its free messaging, further stimulating small business in communities worldwide. Development and deployment arent the only issues standing in the way of Facebooks vision of a fully connected world. Roughly 1 billion people in the world are illiterate, and it could be hard to engage them with a platform thats largely reliant on text, according to Pund-ITs King. Nearly half the worlds 6 billion people live on $2.50 or less per day. How will they connect to a universally available Internet? he noted. Around 1.8 billion people dont have access to safe drinking water many would say thats a greater concern than Internet access. Microsoft founder Bill Gates on Tuesday attempted to clarify his position regarding Apples conflict with the FBI, telling Bloomberg he was disappointed that his earlier comments had been construed as taking sides with the government. Apple has sparked a public debate through itsresistance to a court order to unscramble the data on the iPhone used by one of the San Bernardino terrorists. The FBI has sought to access the data in the course of its investigation, but Apple has argued that unlocking it could jeopardize the privacy of millions of people. Gates on Monday appeared to discount Apples position in an interview with the Financial Times, noting that the governments request was specific to one case, and that it was not seeking a means for general access. He compared it to obtaining phone or bank records to aid specific investigations. However, Gates had more to say on the subject a day later, when he acknowledged that the government had a history of overstepping its bounds. Still, with the right safeguards in place, he told Bloomberg, government should be able to access information to perform valuable services for citizens, such as fighting terrorism. The government shouldnt have to be completely blind, Gates said. Dubious Privacy Issue Gates is absolutely right, maintained Al Berman, president ofDRI International. Its a very specific case. It doesnt extend beyond this phone in the possession of the FBI, he told the E-Commerce Times. Its a one-off, and its such a specific one-off that I think were trying to make it bigger than it is, Berman added. Apple should cooperate with the FBI, said Darren Oved, a partner inOved & Oved. The facts of this case are very favorable to the government, he told the E-Commerce Times. What we have is a dead murderers alleged right to privacy versus a very real right to protect the citizens of San Bernardino, the state of California and the United States from any potential real harm, Oved contended. When you weigh those two against each other, he reasoned, I think Apple should do what the FBI wants it to do. Further, the data on the iPhone doesnt need Apples protection to ensure the privacy of the phones operator, Oved maintained. The device in question here belongs to San Bernardino County. The law is undisputed that any information on a device that belongs to an employer is the employers, he explained. Since San Bernardino County is a public organization, the government can make a very compelling argument that the information contained on the phone is part of the public record, and we should be allowed to see it, Oved added. Need to Hunt Terror Cells Apple should help the FBI find more terrorists, noted Nitsana Darshan-Leitner, founder of the Israel Law Center. The FBI needs Apples help because there are other terrorist cells that the FBI needs to hunt down before [those cells] harm others, she told the E-Commerce Times. Theres no reason to believe that the FBI will reuse this one-time case to create a broad precedent for more and more subpoenas, Darshan-Leitner said. Bill Gates realized that, and thats why he said what he said, she added. Slippery Slope Gates is out of touch with the industry he helped create, opined Michael Harris, chief marketing officer withGuidance Software. Gates doesnt understand the real issue. He sounds like a guy who hasnt moved forward in 20 years in terms of what technology can do and how it works, he told the E-Commerce Times. The analogy between what the FBI was asking of Apple and searching bank records is misguided, Harris contended. They want Apple to write custom code, he said. Once you do that, thats not at all the same as supplying records from a database. If Apple does what the FBI wants done, it will set a dangerous precedent, maintained Nathan Leamer, policy analyst at theR Street Institute. Youre compelling a company to create out of thin air an FBI OS to enable access to a phone. Im not sure how you limit that, he told the E-Commerce Times. Upsetting Delicate Balance The San Bernardino case however its resolved could have a significant ripple effect. There are 15 other cases where the FBI wants Apples help to break into other iPhones, observed Amit Sethi, principal consultant for mobile security atCigital. If Apple helps in this one case, it will have to help in those 15 cases as well. Then what about other law enforcement agencies and foreign governments? he asked. Its a bad precedent, Sethi told the E-Commerce Times, because while it may seem like a one-off case, its really not. Forcing Apple to cooperate with the FBI could upset a delicate balance in society, noted Suzanne Nossel, executive director of thePEN American Center. Were concerned that the careful balance between security and liberty plays out differently when a counterterrorism investigation is involved, she told the E-Commerce Times.Our concern is that by complying with this request, Apple is going to compromise the privacy not just of these individuals who are associated with this terrible crime but the privacy of millions of others. Intel this week released a new report showing some major improvements and continued challenges in its effort to achieve workforce diversity, and challenged rival companies to show their cards. The report comes a year after Intel CEO Brian Krzanich pledged to make improvements amid a sea of criticism about the industrys domination by young white males. He announced a plan to spend US$300 million to achieve certain goals in making Intels workforce more diverse, including reaching full representation in hiring by the year 2020. For Intel, that meant reaching 40 percent in diverse hiring, among other changes. Intel exceeded its hiring goal by achieving 43.1 percent in diverse hiring, achieving 100 percent gender pay parity across the country, and reaching parity in retention of diverse employees, this weeks report shows. The company also made improvements in creating a diverse level of corporate management. Unwavering Conviction First, and critically, we are absolutely resolute in our belief that diversity and inclusion are key to Intels evolution and driving forces for our continued relevancy and growth as a company, noted Danielle Brown, chief diversity officer at Intel. Although Intel made progress in some areas, the needle failed to move very far in others, according to the report. Intel increased hiring of underrepresented minorities by 31 percent to a total of 11.8 percent in 2015. The company ended the year with a workforce that was 24.8 percent female, an increase of 5.4 percent over 2014. It also increased hiring of women by 43 percent to a total of 35 percent during the year. Praise for Leadership Mandate Intel has created a top-down mandate to improve diversity at the company and challenged the rest of the technology industry not only to demonstrate some improvement, but also to increase the level of transparency about their efforts, noted Elizabeth Ames, vice president of strategic marketing and alliances at the Anita Borg Institute. However, much work remains to be done to achieve equal representation. Intel certainly is walking the walk in terms of increasing diversity at the company, observed Susan Schreiner, an analyst at C4 Trends. It looks like its investment of $300 million towards that end is showing promise, based on the narrowing of it workforce male-to-female representation, improved supply chain diversity, and efforts to deter harassment of female gamers, she told the E-Commerce Times. Not So Fast However, awarding Intel any pats on the back for its efforts may be premature. The diversity problem is deeply rooted in Silicon Valley culture, suggested independent technology analyst Craig Settles. Many of todays technology leaders came from the same inner circle of elite schools and networks, he told the E-Commerce Times. Many Silicon Valley companies in the 70s and 80s were birthed by entrepreneurs from a limited number of colleges, Settles pointed out. They recruited their good friends to be part of their respective inner circles, and those deemed worthy of venture capital funds had VCs fill out their inner circle ranks. The old boy force was strong. As the industry evolved, it reflected the fact that the leadership in many of those companies was cut from the same cloth, he said, and without changing the culture of C-level executives and high-level managers, the industry will continue to face the same issues going forward. (Jeep) The Jeep Brand has launched the 2016 Jeep Renegade 'Dawn of Justice' Special Edition as part of its partnership with Warner Bros. to promote the upcoming movie "Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice." The partnership between the two brands will also include branded television spots. "Our partnership with Warner Bros. and the highly anticipated 'Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice' film allows us to expose the Jeep Renegade and its best-in-class capability to an incredibly vast audience. The new Jeep Renegade 'Dawn of Justice' Special Edition boasts a uqniue, dark appearance package for the most capable small SUV that we're confident consumers including millions of moviegoers will love," said Mike Manley, Head of Jeep Brand FCA Global. The 2016 Jeep Renegade 'Dawn of Justice' Special Edition comes with two exterior color choices Granite Crystal or the new Carbon Black. The Carbon Black-painted crossover comes with gloss black exterior accents and 18-inch gloss black wheels. Meanwhile, the Granite Crystal-painted crossover also comes with a two-tone gloss black roof. The special edition Jeep Renegade also comes with blacked-out interiors. The cabin comes with black cloth seats and high gloss black interior accents. There are also metal diamond accents found on the shifter knob and door handles. The 'Dawn of Justice' Special Edition was based on the Jeep Renegade Latitude 4x4. It is powered by a 2.4-liter Tigershark engine mated with a nine-speed automatic transmission. The 2016 Jeep Renegade 'Dawn of Justice' Special Edition also comes with the Active Drive 4x4 system, Selec-Terrain drive modes and the ParkSense rear backup camera. Other standard features include remote start, a power driver's seat and dual-zone automatic climate control. The 2016 Jeep Renegade 'Dawn of Justice' Special Edition is now available to purchase at authorized dealers nationwide for $26,250. Meanwhile, "Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice" will arrive at theaters nationwide on March 25, 2016. Also, be sure to check out the first television spot titled "Into the Storm" which features Bruce Wayne (Ben Affleck) driving the special edition Jeep Renegade. (Bentley) Bentley has introduced the 2017 Mulsanne Extended Wheelbase, the newest luxury model joining the Mulsanne and Mulsanne Speed models. The newly updated range will make its global debut at the 2016 Geneva Motor Show. Bentley describes is Muslanne lineup as "the ultimate expression of British automotive luxury." "The Mulsanne is the epitome of Bentley's DNA exquisite, individual and powerful. It defines luxury in the automotive world and offers a uniquely Bentley blend of luxury and performance. The three distinct handcrafted models now available each offer customers something different," said Wolfgang Durheimer, chairman and chief executive of Bentley Motors. The Extended Wheelbase model is meant for those who are being driven. The new model was designed to provide rear seat passengers with optimal levels of comfort. The wheelbase has been extended by 250 mm to give rear passengers more legroom. With more space available, Bentley has given the Extended Wheelbase airline-style rear seats with electronic leg rests. Passengers will be able to relax whether they are sitting upright or in a reclined position. (Bentley) The two rear seats are separated by a luxurious but functional console. It comes with USB ports, cup holders, pen holders and a glass-covered compartment area. There is also a folding table that can be set up for passengers who wish to do some work while traveling. Electric curtains are also available to provide passengers with some privacy. Finally, there is a sliding sunroof at the rear cabin. In comparison, the 2017 Mulsanne Speed was designed more for drivers. The luxury car comes with 537 horsepower and 811 lb-ft. of torque. It can go from 0 to 60 mph in just 4.9 seconds and attain a top speed of 190 mph. Finally, the updated Mulsanne luxury car comes with elegant styling and a redesigned front fascia. The grille, lights, fenders, hood and bumpers were all upgraded to look more modern. Inside, the cabin uses only the finest wood, leather and metal materials. The new 2017 Bentley Mulsanne range will be showcased at the 2016 Geneva Motor Show taking place from March 1 to 13. The luxury models are now available to order and first deliveries are expected to begin by summer. A decades-old trend that Christianity is irrelevant is increasingly giving way to the notion that it is bad for society, a new study by the Barna Group in the United States has found. The study found that U.S. society is undergoing a change of mind about the way religion and people of faith intersect with public life. That is, there are intensifying perceptions that faith is at the root of a vast number of societal ills. "Though it remains the nation's most dominant religion, Christianity faces significant headwind in the court of public opinion," says the study in it finding that Christianity is increasingly seen as bad for society. The new major study conducted by Barna Group, is explored in the new book Good Faith, co-authored by its president David Kinnaman and released Feb. 23. It examines society's current perceptions of faith and Christianity. "In sum, faith and religion and Christianity are viewed by millions of adults to be extremist," the study says. It finds the following notions that explain an emerging reality: Adults and especially non-believers are concerned about religious extremism. (The report note that following religiously motivated terrorism such as the recent incidents in San Bernardino and Paris - it is no wonder that a backlash against extremism is reaching a boiling point. Currently, a strong majority of adults believe "being religiously extreme is a threat to society." Three-quarters of all Americans - and nine out of ten Americans with no faith affiliation - agree with this statement.) Nearly half of non-religious adults perceive Christianity to be extremist. (The perception that the Christian faith is extreme is now firmly entrenched among non-Christians in the United States. A full 45 percent of atheists, agnostics, and religiously unaffiliated in America agree with the statement "Christianity is extremist." Almost as troubling is the fact that only 14 percent of atheists and agnostics strongly disagree that Christianity is extremist. The remaining four in ten (41 percent) disagree only somewhat. So even non-Christians who are reluctant to fully label Christianity as extremist, still harbor some hesitations and negative perceptions toward the religion. The range of what constitutes extremism is broad, ranging from behaviors that are almost universally condemned to more narrowly defined extremism. (What actions and beliefs, exactly, come to mind when people think about religious extremism? The researchers examined more than 20 different activities and beliefs, asking a random, representative sample of U.S. adults to identify the degree to which each of those activities appeared extreme. Evangelicals stand out from the norm in terms of their attitudes on religious extremism and they exhibit major differences from the skeptics. The research points out a massive gap between two "super segments" in American life today: evangelicals and skeptics (those who self-identify as atheist, agnostic and religiously unaffiliated). On virtually all of the extremist factors assessed in the research, evangelicals and skeptics maintain widely divergent points of view. For example, only 1 percent of evangelicals believe it is religiously extreme for a person to teach his or her children that same-sex relationships are morally wrong. However, three-quarters of skeptics (75 percent) believe this is extremist. Kinnaman comments that, "These gaps show the challenges practicing Christians and especially evangelicals are facing. "In a religiously plural and divisive society, various 'tribes' - ranging from faithful to skeptic - are vying to decide how faith should work. "The most contentious issues are the ways in which religious conviction gets expressed publicly, but the findings illustrate that a wide range of actions, even beliefs, are now viewed as extremist by large chunks of the population." Kinnaman notes, "The research starkly demonstrates the ways in which evangelicals and many practicing Catholics are out of the cultural mainstream. "In fact, skeptics and religiously unaffiliated are now much closer to the cultural 'norm' than are religious conservatives. In other words, the secular point of view, which says faith should be kept out of the public domain, is much closer to the mainstream in U.S. life." The Barna president says this explains why millions of devout Christians are undergoing such frustration and concern as they feel out of step with social norms and the cultural momentum. "This is most significantly felt when it comes to social views, such as evangelicals' convictions on same-sex relationships. However, the perception of 'social extremism' also applies to many other beliefs and practices, including personal evangelism and missions work." (Photo: Reuters / Andrew Biraj)Activists of Islami Andolan Bangladesh shout slogans as they take part in a grand rally in Dhaka March 29, 2013. Islami Andolan Bangladesh organised the grand rally to demand the introduction of a blasphemy law and the restoration of a caretaker government system to conduct the upcoming general elections, among the other issues, local media reported. GENEVA Two U.N. special experts, one on freedom of expression and the other on extrajudicial executions, are alarmed at the recent killing in Bangladesh of three secular bloggers writing against extremism in the name of religion. "The recent killing of three bloggers in Bangladesh is an alarming signal of the deterioration of the space for freedom of expression in the country," the United Nations Special Rapporteurs on freedom of expression, David Kaye, and on extrajudicial executions, Christof Heyns, warned May 13. The three journalists had strongly promoted free expression and were critical of fundamentalism of all kinds, they said. They cited reports on Ananta Bijoy Das, who wrote for a website promoting "science, rationalism, secularism, freethinking, human rights, religious tolerance, and harmony amongst all people in the globe." He was hacked to death in the city of Sylhet on May 12. In February, the blogger Avijit Roy, A U.S. citizen who was killed and his wife seriously injured in a similar attack while in Dhaka. A month later, another blogger, Washiqur Rahman, was also killed in the Bangladeshi capital. The UN Special Rapporteurs called for a prompt and thorough investigation of these cases. They stressed that "it is vital to ensure the identification of those responsible for these horrendous crimes, as well as those who may have masterminded the attacks." "These recurrent murders are reprehensible in and of themselves, and they exert a chilling effect with impact far beyond the direct victims," noted Kaye, an American law professor. "Attacks against writers like Mr. Bijoy Das affect the society as a whole." He noted, "Given the very public nature of these horrendous crimes targeting voices critical of extremism, it is very important that authorities publicly condemn the crimes and emphasize the importance of free speech online and offline." Nations are under the obligations to provide, through judicial or other means, effective protection of individuals and groups who may be subject to extra-legal, arbitrary or summary executions, Heyns, a South African human rights law professor, noted. The Special Rapporteurs urged the Bangladeshi authorities to consider specific initiatives to prevent the recurrence of attacks against writers and activists. This should include not only the provision of particular physical protections to those who are potential targets for violence, but also open public debate challenging extremist views of all kinds. Last week, Al Qaeda's affiliate in South Asia claimed responsibility for several killings of "blasphemers" in the region, including Roy and Haider, the Los Angeles Times reported. A local militant group, Ansar al-Islam Bangladesh, said that Al Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent had also claimed responsibility for the attack on Das, according to the SITE Intelligence Group, which monitors such groups online. But there was no immediate statement to that effect from Al Qaeda. Considered to be the Ten Best UFO Photos Ever Taken I am sure that we could add more pictures to this list but these are considered ten o... An elite Sydney school has rejected claims that its entire governing council has been dismissed.Today, Fairfax Media reported that the Presbyterian Church of Australia in NSW had taken over The Scots College, located in Bellevue Hill.In a statement attained by The Educator, the general manager of the Presbyterian Church of Australia, Jeoffrey Falls, said: to be clear, there are no plans to change the ownership or governance by the trustees or the operations of the college.A recent media story has incorrectly suggested that the Presbyterian Church of Australia in NSW has taken over The Scots College, Sydney. This inference is incorrect.The Presbyterian Church has always owned, governed and operated The Scots College, read the statement.Last week, the trustees of the Presbyterian Church made a change to the internal governance arrangements, which prompted the latest media report.Falls said that while an interim management committee had been appointed by the trustees until the churchs next general assembly in July, the schools council had not been dismissed as the Fairfax article claimed.The trustees believed that the governance model being pursued by the council was resulting in corporate objectives outweighing the educational mission of the school.Staff, parents and Old Boys were informed of the change last Friday after a staff meeting. However, day-to-day operations at the school remain unaffected.Falls also denied the trustees decision was connected to disquiet over fee increases.Regardless the fee increase for this year has been held to just 2.5% while the education CPI is 5.5%, he said. A draft version of a purportedly independent report summarizing an investigation into Indianas new state standardized tests showed signs of possible political interference, setting off a war of words among state education leaders. The changes, made to alter language that reflected poorly on Republicans decision to replace an exam based on the Common Core State Standards with the locally developed iSTEP exam, were made by a state administrator hired by Gov. Mike Pences state board of education. In response, John Zody, the chairman of Indianas Democratic Party, called for the official, state board of education Executive Director John Snethen, to be fired. The changes were discovered by the Associated Press, which obtained through a public-records request a Microsoft Word file containing multiple edits and drafts of the report. The document shows Snethen helped shape the content through 92 deletions, revisions, and coments, raising questions about how independent the investigation into the iSTEP program was. For example, he objected to strong language in an early version that stated: It is safe to say that the 2015 iSTEP+ program is a work in progress, put in place quickly and without the usual procedures (e.g., field testing) used with most new assessment programs. Why is it safe to say this? Snethen asked in notes typed into the draft, adding: This is an example of a statement that could raise concern. The phrase was not included in the final version of the report. The changes made by Snethen also suggest the Pence administration is cautious of possible backlash to the new academic standards, which were put in place after Indiana became the first state to withdraw from the common-core standards in 2014. A spokesman for the state board said that any changes were done for clarity. Overall, the report found that the test was still a highly reliable measure of students abilities. Maine Gov. Paul LePage says he plans to forgo the process of selecting a new commissioner for the state education department and will instead take on the role himself. The governor will retain acting Commissioner William Beardsley for the remainder of the governors term in office, which ends in 2018. LePage told one schools superintendent that Beardsley will become a deputy commissioner after his six-month term as acting commissioner expires. LePage said earlier this month that he was temporarily withdrawing Beardsleys nomination before the legislature because he believed it was going to be defeated by Democratic lawmakers. As the state testing landscape changes in the wake of the Every Student Succeeds Act, the U.S. military hopes there may be an opening to expand its optional aptitude exam and career-exploration program in high schools. The Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery, known in military and counselor circles as ASVAB , was administered in 48 percent of high schools nationwide last year, with about 650,000 students taking the exam, according to Shannon Salyer, the national program manager for the ASVAB Career Exploration Program, which is under the U.S. Department of Defense. Participation fluctuates with unemployment, with more students typically taking the ASVAB when the jobless rate is high. But the military test was crowded out in some schools after the No Child Left Behind Act ushered in more standardized testing, although the number of high schools offering it increased in the past five years, Salyer said. One of the biggest problems we have when we go into schools is they say, We love this program or We want to do this program but because we have this state-mandated testing, all our testing days are taken, she said. With the rollback of some of that pressure on the schools, I think well have some return schools and maybe some new schools that really understand the benefits of the program. Educators are combing the accountability requirements with the new version of the main federal K-12 law, which gives states considerable new flexibility over on-the-ground education decisions, including the details of how they go about meeting its testing requirements. Recruiters hope if that flexibility leads to less time spent on required tests, that could free up space for ASVAB. Some decisions to participate in these Defense Department tests are made at the state level, but it is generally left up to individual schools. The tests are a recruiting tool masked as career exploration, some critics contend, and the military should be more transparent about their purpose. The conversation about the program comes at a time when military leadersand some GOP presidential candidateshave suggested women should be required to register for the draft alongside men. Updates on the Way The military, which has given a version of the vocational assessment since 1968, with the career exploration added in 1992, is in the process of rolling out a new computer-adapted version that will reduce the test from three hours to 1. The change, along with a modernized website and the potential for less time on standardized testing, creates a perfect storm that Salyer said she hopes will open doors in schools. The issue isnt on the radar of many educators yet, said David Hawkins, the director of policy for the National Association for College Admission Counseling, in Arlington, Va. However, U.S. Army officials are reaching out to the association, he noted, looking for more ways to connect with school counselors and potential recruits. The military has long had legal access to high school directories. Both the NCLB law and Section 8025 of the new law, known as ESSA , say schools shall provide military recruiters access to the name, address, and telephone listing of each high school student, male or female, unless the parent submits a written request to the school that the childs information not be released. Military training also has had a presence in many high schools since 1916 with the establishment of the Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps, or JROTC, programs, which now have 3,750 units and 552,000 cadets. While college is a good option for many students, its not for everyone, said Salyer. The ASVAB career-exploration program is free and more than an aptitude test, she said, including an inventory of the students interest, detailed training requirements, and a workshop to help students interpret their test results. We want high school students to see every pathway they can take to their careerwhether college or vo-tech school or the military, said Salyer. In Missouri, the assessment is used as one of many measures of college and career readiness in the states accountability system. Last year, 416 of Missouris 520 school districts participated in ASVABmost administering the test during the day to a junior classfor a total of about 31,000 assessments. State education officials say they dont yet know what impact the new education law will have on that picture. Multiple Uses In some states, such as New Jersey, the test is one of the assessments students can use to meet the states high school graduation requirements if they attain a certain score on the test. Offering the military exam during the school day in New Jersey is a local decision, and the state does not track the volume year to year, according to Michael Yaple, a spokesman for the state education department. Hawkins of the college-admission counselors group expressed concern about tests being used for purposes other than for which they were designed. The Defense Departments Salyer said the ASVAB was not intended to be used as a measure of career readiness, and she encourages states to do the research necessary if it is being used as an exit exam. Pat Elder, the executive director of the National Coalition to Protect Student Privacy , said the assessments primary purpose is to provide leads for recruiters, and that should be clear in the outreach. They will do anything they can to get into schools and spin it any way that they want, said Elder of the military marketing of the exam as career exploration. Always Voluntary The coalition, which lists the administration of the test by state on its website indicates the test is required in about 1,000 high schools. Elder maintains parents arent always aware of the test, choices to opt out, or use of the results. In schools where the test is given schoolwide, Salyer said students may be required to sit for the test, but they are not forced to complete it. It is always voluntary, she said. Parents or students can opt out of the exam at any time, and schools can chose whether to have test results shared with recruiters. Of the 650,000 tests last year, results from about 400,000 were provided to recruiters as leads, according to Salyer. Hawaii, Maryland, New Hampshire, and 2,000 districts bar public high schools from automatically sending student-assessment scores to recruiters . Even if changes in a states overall testing regime do free up additional time in the school day, theres no guarantee it will open a door for the Defense Department assessment. Competing for Time Chris Reeves, a counselor at Beechwood High School in Fort Mitchell, Ky., said his school has not offered the ASVAB to students for several years, despite a hard push annually from area military personnel. I feel really bad saying no, said Reeves. Ive always felt it was a good test. Its one of those things. As a school, you are so busy all year, and class time is highly protected. We are looking for any way to gain more class time. If testing time decreases under ESSAs newfound flexibility, Reeves said he anticipates the school will just be happy to have more time for instruction. Washington, Feb 24 (EFE).- China has deployed fighter jets to one of the disputed islands in the South China Sea, which other Southeast Asian nations also claim, reported US broadcaster Fox News. The broadcaster considered that this move will increase the tensions in an already very unstable region. According to two senior US official sources, cited by Fox on Tuesday, China has deployed J-11 and JH-7 aircraft to Woody Island, part of the Paracel islands, on which China, Taiwan and Vietnam claim sovereignty of. A military vessel of the United States also sailed in the waters of this same archipelago in late January, an act that the Chinese government described as "deliberate provocation". Moreover, it is the same island where last week China has installed a surface-to-air missile launching system. Fox then referred to satellite images of ImageSat International that show two batteries of eight air missiles launchers and a radar system installed on Woody Island. Just today, chief diplomats, US foreign secretary John Kerry, and Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi, were meeting in Washington on issues relating to the territorial disputes in the South China Sea. "We want to halt the expansion and the militarization of occupied features. We think everybody benefits by true demilitarization," said Kerry. Without openly blaming China, Kerry said "Regrettably, there are missiles, fighter aircraft, guns, artillery and other things that have been placed in the South China Sea, and this is of great concern to everyone who transits and relies on the South China Sea for peaceful trade". 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 UK man pleads guilty to Class A drug crimes Douglas Courthouse A Blackburn man has pleaded guilty to trying to import over 11,000 worth of cocaine to the Isle of Man. At Douglas Courthouse yesterday Liam Mcglinn admitted being unlawfully concerned in the production of the Class A drug and possession of it with intent to supply from January 29th. The 28-year-old had concealed four ounces of the drug internally - the court was told it had such a high purity its street value was between 11,200 and 15,600. Mcglinn will be sentenced at the Court of General Gaol Delivery - he's been remanded at the Isle of Man Prison until his next appearance on March 4th. Rights of way disputed around St Ninian's Lower School St Ninian's Lower School Efforts are underway to establish the rights of way surrounding St Ninian's Lower School after students were deemed to be trespassing on private property. They've been blocked from using a gated footpath on Lhon Dhoon Close to access the school - Andrew Shipley is from the Department of Education and Children. Concerns have been raised that this is leading to potentially dangerous congestion around the main entrance to the school - in addition pupils are said to be turning up late. Andrew says whilst the diversions are not ideal they are trying to find a fix: Media Andrew Shipley The best places in Switzerland to avoid peeing in public The relevant department in Geneva states: "Yes, we are very strict and will continue to be so, because this behaviour is unacceptable and will not be tolerated" The Geneva officials are also very efficient: in January alone, they caught 55 wild willy wavers within the city limits. Unfortunately for the cook, Geneva distributes the highest fines for openly urinating. Only Bern also requires 200 francs, all other cities significantly less. In Basel and Solothurn the charges are 50 francs. In St. Gallen, Weinfelden and Zurich 60 francs. In Neuchatel they (don't) get away with 80 francs, in Lucerne, Fribourg, Delemont and Biel expect 100 francs. Lausanne fines 120 francs, and Sion 150 francs. It might be worth keeping that last empty bottle and avoid any accidents on the way home! Source in German only, Geneva has fined an unemployed cook 200 francs (plus SFr 150 administration charges) for "carefully" peeing in a park, but some other cities are less expensive (If you can hold it that long...)The relevant department in Geneva states: "Yes, we are very strict and will continue to be so, because this behaviour is unacceptable and will not be tolerated" The Geneva officials are also very efficient: in January alone, they caught 55 wild willy wavers within the city limits. Unfortunately for the cook, Geneva distributes the highest fines for openly urinating. Only Bern also requires 200 francs, all other cities significantly less.In Basel and Solothurn the charges are 50 francs. In St. Gallen, Weinfelden and Zurich 60 francs. In Neuchatel they (don't) get away with 80 francs, in Lucerne, Fribourg, Delemont and Biel expect 100 francs. Lausanne fines 120 francs, and Sion 150 francs.It might be worth keeping that last empty bottle and avoid any accidents on the way home!Source in German only, http://www.blick.ch/news/schweiz/arb...id4719887.html Re: mailing medication from Canada to Switzerland? Your initial question - I know that it is possible to have medication mailed from the US to Switzerland, direct from the pharmacy, so Canada should be ok. I don't know the limits, but 90 days is ok, and probably 6 months. Not sure about a year. The pharmacy has to state that the medication is for personal use. Something like birth control would not likely be an issue, but I don't know for sure. If your dad sends them, perhaps the pharmacy should put them in an envelope and mark "for personal use". However, if you are living in Switzerland, there is a requirement that you carry health insurance accepted here. You may still be covered in Canada, but does that cover you in Switzerland? Your post seems to imply that you will be covered by your father's policy while in Switzerland. Re: Legal insurance attending in English? Quote: joancomasfdz Hi Forum, We recently contacted our legal insurance CAP to ask a question about temporary contracts, via email written in English. We received a very long answer in german, arguing that the language switch was in order to answer as quickly as possible. We replied that there was no need to rush and we could wait some days if that gets us an answer in English. After that, the lawyer replied that they can only guarantee that the legal information given is accurate if its written in german. After complaining, the long german email became a 3 sentences long English one. Is there any legal insurance in Switzerland that can attend expats who dont read "legal german" yet? Thanks in advance. It's quite common that legal stuff is only in one of the national languages for the reason you were given. its why if you don't speak German the RAV insist you take and interpreter... it's your responsibility to understand the information give and if they make a mistake in the translation they can be held liable, was how it was explained to me. I think you need legal insurance to take on the problem you are having with your legal insurance.... just kiddingIt's quite common that legal stuff is only in one of the national languages for the reason you were given. its why if you don't speak German the RAV insist you take and interpreter... it's your responsibility to understand the information give and if they make a mistake in the translation they can be held liable, was how it was explained to me. It looks like Amal Clooney is following in reality television star Kim Kardashian's footsteps - but it's not exactly what you think. There's a new report that says George Clooney's wife is planning on visiting Armenia, just like Kim did last year when she brought her television camera crew to tape her visiting her relatives' homeland. Why Is Amal Clooney So Hated In America? According to News.Az on Monday, the British-born Human Rights laywer will be visiting the Southern European country in April along with her Hollywood husband George. Apparently, the couple plan on participating in activities in connection with the anniversary of the Armenian genocide. The site also says that Amal will take part in the ceremony of "Aurora" award in the framework of the project "100 Lives" arranged by the Russian businessman of Armenian origin Ruben Vardanyan. Amal Clooney Baby Bump News: New Report Sets The Record Straight About Pregnancy What's more, Amal - who has sparked controversy quite a few times in the last several months for being a "celebrity" lawyer who only picks up high-profile cases - will represent the interests of Armenia in the European Court of Human Rights over the trial on "Perincek v Switzerland" case. So far Amal herself has not made any comments about her upcoming trip. The Kardashian family also haven't made any announcements on whether they plan on visiting Armenia for the anniversary of the Armenian genocide either. Keep up with Enstars for all the latest news on George and Amal Clooney and all of your favorite celebrity couples right here. It looks like Jamie Dornan is getting a little on screen competition here. Rumor has it that the Hollywood actor is feeling a little intimidated by another good-looking star who has joined the cast for the upcoming 50 Shades Freed. Jamie Dornan Says He's Nothing Like One Of The Characters He Plays According to Deadline on Friday, blue-eyed hunk Brant Daugherty has signed on to play the character of Sawyer in the mega-hit franchise. He will be appearing in 50 Shades Freed, which is the third installment of the 50 Shades films that won't be making its debut in theaters until 2018. For those who aren't familiar with the actor, Daugherty played Noel Kahn on ABC Family's Pretty Little Liars and was a 2013 regular on Lifetime Network's Army Wives. What's more, he also starred on Lifetime's based-on-a-true-murder tale Ungodly Acts, and even put on his dancing shoes Dancing with the Stars. Unfortunately, he only lasted eight weeks. Jamie Dornan, Amelia Warner News 2015: Couple Upgrade To A Multi-Million Dollar Mansion In England The actor will be joining Dornan, who plays sex addict Christian Grey in the series, along with actress Dakota Johnson, who plays Anastasia Steele. So far Dornan himself has not made any comments about the new casting. Dornan and Johnson are scheduled to start filming 50 Shades Darker this month in Vancouver. The film is set to be released next year. Keep up with Enstars for all the latest news on Jamie Dornan and the 50 Shades cast right here. The Green Building Council South Africa (GBCSA) has urged the country to focus on electricity demand side management rather than just supply management, to consider a total energy debate. On the eve of the national budget speech where one of the focus areas is likely to be on energy supply projects, GBCSA Chief Executive Officer, Brian Wilkinson, observes: Decreasing the demand for power should be a major theme in South Africas total energy narrative. Wilkinson says: We acknowledge it is terribly important to have an energy supply-side debate around electricity generation, however, demand-side management that emphasises reducing consumption is an opportunity that is being completely underemphasised. He adds: The more electricity we save, the more we ease supply constraints. In its simplest form, demand management starts with saving energy at home by switching off lights, turning down geysers, turning off pool pumps and using renewable energy resources. However, it extends well beyond this to using green building technology. Green building is already playing a major role in reducing electricity demand. The average green building is proven to save 30% of energy consumption. This illustrates the substantial impact demand management plays in the total energy debate, notes Wilkinson. South Africas green building movement is making significant headway in reducing the demand for energy. The country now has 167 Green Star SA certified projects. Research recently announced by the World Green Building Council (World GBC) reveals South Africa is the country with the highest proportion of green building projects currently being undertaken. At this pace, South Africa is set to be the world leader in green building in the next three years. Besides gaining momentum in commercial property, green building is also expanding into new arenas. GBCSA recently announced it will play a bigger part in creating greener homes using the EDGE (Excellence in Design for Greater Efficiencies) residential green building certification scheme. Less than 18 months since the GBCSA launched the tool, it expects around 5,000 homes to be registered for certification. At the COP21 Climate Change Summit in Paris late last year, the GBCSA made an ambitious commitment to drive residential green building certifications, targeting 10 000 residential certifications by 2020. In addition, the council aims to introduce a Net Zero/Positive building certification scheme by 2020. The Net Zero/Positive building certification will cover energy and carbon emissions, and possibly also water and waste. The association is also working with the South African Local Government Association (SALGA) to train officials at municipalities across the country. In this way, the green building conversation can be raised at an early stage of land use and building approval, says Wilkinson. Efforts are being stepped up to alleviate electricity supply constraints, with government preparing to expand the Independent Power Producer (IPP) initiative, said National Treasury. Government is stepping up initiatives that will alleviate the electricity supply constraint over the medium term, government said in the Budget Review, as Finance Minister tabled the 2016 budget. Co-investment with the private sector has already added 2 045MW of renewable energy to the electricity grid. Contracts have been awarded for projects that will add another 6 377MW over the medium term. Government is preparing a major expansion of the IPP initiative to contribute base-load energy capacity, said the Budget Review. Later this year, the Minister of Energy will announce preferred bidders for 1 000MW of coal projects. Private investment of about R45 billion is anticipated and a second round of coal projects is expected to add 1 500MW to the grid. Meanwhile, a gas-to-power IPP programme is also under preparation, with a view to contributing 3 126MW of electricity generation through investment in liquefied natural gas facilities and power plants in the ports of Richards Bay, Coega and Saldanha Bay. This initiative will draw on investment by state-owned companies and the private sector. It will also create opportunities for upstream investment. Over the longer term, government has identified the need to expand production of nuclear power within South Africas overall energy mix. Nuclear power involves substantial upfront costs, and government will only expand such capacity at a scale and pace that is affordable after a thorough and transparent tender process, it said. Over the past year, electricity availability was bolstered with the completion of the first unit of the Medupi power station and the Sere wind farm. Further projected capital investment by Eskom totals R155.3 billion over the medium term. This includes continuing work on the Medupi and Kusile power stations, and strengthening of transmission and distribution grids. Additional units from the Ingula power station will be connected in 2017. Western Cape provincial government is due to embark on an ambitious multimillion-rand construction project of a mixed-use neighbourhood. The Western Cape provincial government is due to embark on an ambitious multimillion-rand construction project of a mixed-use neighbourhood, which it says will contribute towards addressing the spatial legacies of apartheid. The project, which forms part of the Western Capes Better Living Model Game Changer, proposes the construction of more than 3,000 residential units, as well as business premises, schools, and safe, green public spaces on a 22ha site in Pinelands, where the Conradie Hospital used to be. Western Cape Premier Helen Zille first provided an update on the project in her state of the province address on Friday. She said the provincial Human Settlements Department would deliver 104,000 housing opportunities by the end of her term in 2019. Yesterday, transport and public works MEC Donald Grant and human settlements MEC Bonginkosi Madikizela announced more details of the project, set to commence in 2018. The MECs said the project would see the Western Cape government, City of Cape Town, and private sector partners plan, design, fund, and develop the site into a sustainable and affordable mixed-use, mixed-income, and mixed-tenure neighbourhood. The development will offer about 10,000m of retail space and 14,500m of commercial space, which will stimulate small business growth in the area. The Department of Human Settlements has indicated that of the more than 3,000 residential units, 49% of the residential development must be allocated to grant-funded housing, comprising social housing, Finance Linked Individual Subsidy Programme and rent-to-buy units. The remaining 51% of residential units will be made available to the open market. As we know, there are thousands of people living in the province who earn too much to receive a free house, but who do not qualify for a bond to buy one. We believe this development will make a major contribution towards providing this group of people a meaningful housing opportunity and will help reduce the current housing backlog, Mr Grant and Mr Madikizela said in a joint statement. A public participation process is planned. Source: Business Day Younited Italia, Nicola Manzari e il nuovo Coo, Luca Faccini e Head of Growth e Domenico Petraroli e General Counsel The ancient copper mines in Timna are located deep in Israel's Arava Valley and are believed by some to be the site of King Solomon's mines. The arid conditions of the mines have seen the remarkable preservation of 3,000-year-old organic materials, including seeds, leather and fabric, and other extremely rare artifacts that provide a unique window into the culture and practices of this period. A Timna excavation team from Tel Aviv University led by Dr. Erez Ben-Yosef has uncovered an extensive fabric collection of diverse color, design and origin. This is the first discovery of textiles dating from the era of David and Solomon, and sheds new light on the historical fashions of the Holy Land. The textiles also offer insight into the complex society of the early Edomites, the semi-nomadic people believed to have operated the mines at Timna. The tiny pieces of fabric, some only 5 x 5 centimeters in size, vary in color, weaving technique and ornamentation. "Some of these fabrics resemble textiles only known from the Roman era," said Dr. Orit Shamir, a senior researcher at the Israel Antiquities Authority, who led the study of the fabrics themselves. "No textiles have ever been found at excavation sites like Jerusalem, Megiddo and Hazor, so this provides a unique window into an entire aspect of life from which we've never had physical evidence before," Dr. Ben-Yosef said. "We found fragments of textiles that originated from bags, clothing, tents, ropes and cords. "The wide variety of fabrics also provides new and important information about the Edomites, who, according to the Bible, warred with the Kingdom of Israel. We found simply woven, elaborately decorated fabrics worn by the upper echelon of their stratified society. Luxury grade fabric adorned the highly skilled, highly respected craftsmen managing the copper furnaces. They were responsible for smelting the copper, which was a very complicated process." A trove of the "Seven Species" The archaeologists also recently discovered thousands of seeds of the Biblical "Seven Species" at the site -- the two grains and five fruits considered unique products of the Land of Israel. Some of the seeds were subjected to radiocarbon dating, providing robust confirmation for the age of the site. "This is the first time seeds from this period have been found uncharred and in such large quantities," said Dr. Ben-Yosef. "With the advancement of modern science, we now enjoy research options that were unthinkable a few decades ago. We can reconstruct wine typical of King David's era, for example, and understand the cultivation and domestication processes that have been preserved in the DNA of the seed." The power of copper Copper was used to produce tools and weapons and was the most valuable resource in ancient societies. Its production required many levels of expertise. Miners in ancient Timna may have been slaves or prisoners -- theirs was a simple task performed under difficult conditions. But the act of smelting, of turning stone into metal, required an enormous amount of skill and organization. The smelter had to manage some 30 to 40 variables in order to produce the coveted copper ingots. "The possession of copper was a source of great power, much as oil is today," Dr. Ben-Yosef said. "If a person had the exceptional knowledge to 'create copper,' he was considered well-versed in an extremely sophisticated technology. He would have been considered magical or supernatural, and his social status would have reflected this." To support this "silicon valley" of copper production in the middle of the desert, food, water and textiles had to be transported long distances through the unforgiving desert climate and into the valley. The latest discovery of fabrics, many of which were made far from Timna in specialized textile workshops, provides a glimpse into the trade practices and regional economy of the day. "We found linen, which was not produced locally. It was most likely from the Jordan Valley or Northern Israel. The majority of the fabrics were made of sheep's wool, a cloth that is seldom found in this ancient period," said TAU masters student Vanessa Workman. "This tells us how developed and sophisticated both their textile craft and trade networks must have been." "'Nomad' does not mean 'simple,'" said Dr. Ben-Yosef. "This discovery strengthens our understanding of the Edomites as an important geopolitical presence. The fabrics are of a very high quality, with complex designs and beautiful dyes." ### Tel Aviv University (TAU) is inherently linked to the cultural, scientific and entrepreneurial mecca it represents. It is one of the world's most dynamic research centers and Israel's most distinguished learning environment. Its unique-in-Israel multidisciplinary environment is highly coveted by young researchers and scholars returning to Israel from post-docs and junior faculty positions in the US. American Friends of Tel Aviv University (AFTAU) enthusiastically and industriously pursues the advancement of TAU in the US, raising money, awareness and influence through international alliances that are vital to the future of this already impressive institution. Cancer Research UK's Centre for Drug Development (CDD), in partnership with Amgen Inc., has launched a new clinical trial to test a drug that could stop a patient's immune system from protecting tumours. Cancer Research UK scientists are studying Amgen's experimental cancer drug , called AMG319, to find out if it removes the defence shield that hides cancer cells from the immune system. It targets a protein called PI3K delta leading to destruction of the cancer cells when tested in the laboratory. The Phase II trial, taking place at Poole Hospital, Southampton General Hospital, and the Clatterbridge Cancer Centre/Aintree University Hospital, looks at the effects of giving this drug to patients with a type of head and neck cancer known as squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC), to determine whether it affects their immune response. There will be around 54 patients with HPV-negative* HNSCC of the lower and upper parts of the throat (hypopharynx and oropharynx) or mouth in the study. Patients will be randomly assigned to receive either AMG319 or a placebo, during the regular break from treatment to avoid disruption to a patient's care. It is the 10th treatment to enter Cancer Research UK's Clinical Development Partnerships (CDP) scheme. CDP is a joint initiative between Cancer Research UK's CDD and Cancer Research Technology, aiming to increase the number of cancer clinical trials and to progress promising anti-cancer agents by working in partnership with pharmaceutical companies. Professor Christian Ottensmeier, trial lead from the University of Southampton and the Southampton Experimental Cancer Medicine Centre, said: "This is a really exciting trial because we're using this drug in solid tumours for the first time. It also tries a whole new concept of cancer therapy in solid cancers for the first time. We hope that after taking the drug, patients will have more cancer fighting immune cells in their tumour. We will study in detail how the immune cells behave before and after AMG319 and whether they have become more effective." Dr Emma King, clinical lead at the Poole Hospital, said: "I am really pleased that this trial gives our head and neck cancer patients and opportunity to get this new drug." Tony Hoos, Vice president of Medical, Europe at Amgen, said: "The intersection of immunology and oncology represents one of the most promising approaches which may have a significant impact for patients with cancer today. "We value the work that Cancer Research UK has done to make it possible to develop this promising drug to the next stage. This new trial will give us a better understanding of how AMG319 works, helping us learn more about its potential in patients who might benefit." Dr Nigel Blackburn, Cancer Research UK's director of drug development, said: "We're delighted that the collaboration between Amgen and our Centre for Drug Development is moving into Phase II trials. It means we're getting closer to providing a new treatment for cancer patients. "Teaching the body's immune system to fight cancer is a promising area of cancer research and we're excited to see how this drug may help." ### For media enquiries please contact the press office on 020 3469 8300 or, out-of-hours, the duty press officer on 07050 264 059. Notes to editors: *Some types of head and neck cancer are caused by a virus called human papillomavirus (HPV) but most are not. This study is including only people whose cancer has not been caused by the virus - those who are HPV negative. About Cancer Research UK's Centre for Drug Development Cancer Research UK has an impressive record of developing novel treatments for cancer. It currently has a portfolio of around 30 new anti-cancer agents in preclinical development, phase I or early phase II clinical trials. Having supported drug development since the 1980s, the Cancer Research UK Centre for Drug Development, formerly the Drug Development Office was established in 1992. It has taken over 120 potential new anti-cancer agents into clinical trials in patients, five of which have made it to market and many others are still in development. These include temozolomide, a drug discovered by Cancer Research UK scientists, that is an effective treatment for brain cancer and abiraterone, which is used to treat prostate cancer. This rate of success is comparable to that of any pharmaceutical company. About Cancer Research Technology Cancer Research Technology (CRT) is a specialist commercialisation and development company, which aims to develop new discoveries in cancer research for the benefit of cancer patients. CRT works closely with leading international cancer scientists and their institutes to protect intellectual property arising from their research and to establish links with commercial partners. CRT facilitates the discovery, development and marketing of new cancer therapeutics, vaccines, diagnostics and enabling technologies. CRT is a wholly owned subsidiary of Cancer Research UK, the world's leading cancer charity dedicated to saving lives through research. For more information visit http://www.cancertechnology.com/. About the ECMC network The Experimental Cancer Medicine Centres (ECMC) Network is an initiative funded in partnership between Cancer Research UK and the four Health Departments of England, Scotland, Northern Ireland, and Wales. Launched in 2007, this 35 million infrastructure award supports a network of 18 adult and 9 paediatric Centres of Excellence distributed throughout the UK. The ECMC Network strives to push the boundaries of cancer care, by bringing together world-class pockets of scientific and clinical expertise in each of its adult and paediatric ECMCs whilst providing industry partners with the opportunity to obtain access to cutting-edge, early-stage innovation. In 2014-15 alone, ECMCs leveraged over 73,000,000 from commercial partnerships, with over 2,500 patients recruited onto the 389 ECMC-supported clinical trials. Find out more at http://www.ecmcnetwork.org.uk or @ECMC_UK About Cancer Research UK Cancer Research UK is the world's leading cancer charity dedicated to saving lives through research. Cancer Research UK's pioneering work into the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of cancer has helped save millions of lives. Cancer Research UK receives no government funding for its life-saving research. Every step it makes towards beating cancer relies on every pound donated. Cancer Research UK has been at the heart of the progress that has already seen survival in the UK double in the last forty years. Today, 2 in 4 people survive their cancer for at least 10 years. Cancer Research UK's ambition is to accelerate progress so that 3 in 4 people will survive their cancer for at least 10 years within the next 20 years. Cancer Research UK supports research into all aspects of cancer through the work of over 4,000 scientists, doctors and nurses. Together with its partners and supporters, Cancer Research UK's vision is to bring forward the day when all cancers are cured. For further information about Cancer Research UK's work or to find out how to support the charity, please call 0300 123 1022 or visit http://www.cancerresearchuk.org. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook. This news release is available in French. Montreal, February 23, 2016 -- About two per cent of Canadians have an intellectual disability (ID). These individuals face substantial challenges -- some related to the stigma of their condition, others because of their difficulty with living autonomously. New research from Concordia University in Montreal shows that mobile technologies like tablets and smartphones can go a long way in helping people with ID face these challenges. By using these tools to create videos that explain their life experiences and successes, they can become more self-empowered while demonstrating and teaching their skills to peers. For a study recently published in Social Inclusion, Ann-Louise Davidson, an associate professor in Concordia's Department of Education, worked with eight individuals with ID to co-create moving personal video testimonials. Using iPads, participants wrote and directed short videos that highlight important aspects of their lives. They then shared rough cuts of the videos with a focus group, receiving feedback as well as praise, prior to uploading the videos to a shared YouTube channel, accessible to the public. "The collective message we see in these videos is clearly one of people with ID being able to lead satisfying lives and feel good about living, working and playing on a daily basis," says Davidson. "And when people with ID see their peers succeed, it inspires them." Davidson says video production can be extremely empowering, but videos for people with ID are almost never made by them or with them in collaboration. "People with ID have very few positive models of people with ID who are successful in society, and most of these models can be criticized as tokenizations -- people with ID who are misleadingly high functioning." She turned that model on its head by conducting her study with the eight participants as co-researchers, having them produce and edit their own videos. "The distinction between doing research 'with,' and doing research 'on' is really important," she says, noting that, according to a study, her research is among only 17 existing projects worldwide that have adopted a collaborative approach with this population, and is the only one of its kind in Canada. Davidson used what's called the capability approach to help participants make decisions about what aspects to highlight in their videos. "Using that approach meant having the possibility to choose what one can do as opposed to doing only what one can do," she says. "That's a fundamental freedom that researchers should focus on in future studies on disability." Results were encouraging: all participants provided enough information about their capabilities and no one was intimidated by the technology. What's more, while the capabilities the participants shared fell into various categories -- receiving an award, being involved in various organizations, living independently, making art or having a paid job -- there was nothing unusual about these capabilities compared to what brings satisfaction to people living in the broader community. "With powerful mobile technologies so readily available and accessible, people with ID can and should produce their own educational resources," says Davidson. ### Partners in research: This study was carried out thanks to the support of Concordia and the Petro-Canada Young Innovator Award. Related links: Cited study: http://www.cogitatiopress.com/ojs/index.php/socialinclusion/issue/view/34 Capability videos: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLb47ALpQNvfGbr1YBS0c9A Department of Education: http://doe.concordia.ca/ Ann-Louise Davidson: http://doe.concordia.ca/faculty-and-research/Davidson_AL.php LiveWorkPlay http://liveworkplay.ca/ Media contact: Clea Desjardins Senior advisor, media relations University Communications Services Concordia University Phone: 514-848-2424, ext. 5068 Email: clea.desjardins@concordia.ca Web: http://www.concordia.ca/now/media-relations Twitter: @CleaDesjardins Washington D.C., February 24, 2016 - A study to be published in the March 2016 issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (JAACAP) reports that adolescents with major depression who performed a computer-based task designed to shift attention from sad to neutral to positive word associations showed reductions in negative attention biases and clinician-rated depressive symptoms. 11% of American adolescents suffer from Major Depressive Disorder (MDD). Facing a broad range of psychosocial and health problems, these youths are five times more at risk to attempt suicide than peers without psychiatric illness. A novel computer-based task, attention bias modification (ABM), designed to shift attention away from negative stimuli, was found to reduce depressive symptoms in adults. A group of researchers led by Dr. Wenhui Yang of Hunan Normal University, examined the short- and long-term effects of ABM tasks in 45 adolescents with MDD, selected from a school population (n=2731). The authors hypothesized that adolescents who engaged in active ABM training would report greater reductions in depressive symptoms compared with adolescents in the control group, who did a placebo training. Adolescents in the active ABM group completed eight sessions (22 minutes each) over a period of two weeks to shift their attention from sad to neutral words. Nine weeks later, they completed four more sessions (30 minutes each) to shift their attention from neutral to positive words, again spread over two weeks. The placebo training had the same tasks, but shifted attention towards neutral and sad words equally often. The researchers found greater reductions in attention bias score and clinician-rated depressive symptoms for the active ABM group compared with the placebo after the initial two-week training. Moreover, a higher number of participants in active ABM group no longer met diagnostic criteria for MDD compared to participants in the placebo group. After 12 months, the participants in the active ABM group reported even greater reductions in self-reported depressive and anxious feelings. Based on these findings, the authors concluded that ABM may be a potential treatment tool for mild to moderate adolescent major depression. As most adult depression begins during adolescence, training for adolescents with depression may have far-reaching effects across their entire life. ### The article "Attention Bias Modification Treatment for Adolescents With Major Depression: A Randomized Controlled Trial" by Wenhui Yang, PhD, John X. Zhang, PhD, Zhirui Ding, MS, Lihui Xiao, MS, (http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jaac.2015.12.005) appears in the Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Volume 55, Issue 3 (March 2016), published by Elsevier. Notes for editors Full text of the article is available to credentialed journalists upon request; contact Mary Billingsley at +1 202 587 9672 or mbillingsley@jaacap.org. Journalists wishing to interview the authors may contact Dr. Wenhui Yang at yangwh110@163.com or +86 138 7487 9837. All articles published in JAACAP are embargoed until the day they are published as in-press corrected proofs online at http://jaacap.org/inpress. Articles cannot be publicized as in-press accepted manuscripts. Contents of the publication should not be released to or by the media or government agencies prior to the embargo date. About JAACAP Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (JAACAP) is the official publication of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. JAACAP is the leading journal focusing exclusively on today's psychiatric research and treatment of the child and adolescent. Published twelve times per year, each issue is committed to its mission of advancing the science of pediatric mental health and promoting the care of youth and their families. http://www.jaacap.com The journal's purpose is to advance research, clinical practice, and theory in child and adolescent psychiatry. It is interested in manuscripts from diverse viewpoints, including genetic, epidemiological, neurobiological, cognitive, behavioral, psychodynamic, social, cultural, and economic. Studies of diagnostic reliability and validity, psychotherapeutic and psychopharmacological treatment efficacy, and mental health services effectiveness are encouraged. The journal also seeks to promote the well-being of children and families by publishing scholarly papers on such subjects as health policy, legislation, advocacy, culture and society, and service provision as they pertain to the mental health of children and families. About Elsevier Elsevier is a world-leading provider of information solutions that enhance the performance of science, health, and technology professionals, empowering them to make better decisions, deliver better care, and sometimes make groundbreaking discoveries that advance the boundaries of knowledge and human progress. Elsevier provides web-based, digital solutions -- among them ScienceDirect, Scopus, Elsevier Research Intelligence and ClinicalKey-- and publishes over 2,500 journals, including The Lancet and Cell, and more than 33,000 book titles, including a number of iconic reference works. Elsevier is part of RELX Group plc, a world-leading provider of information solutions for professional customers across industries. http://www.elsevier.com Media contact Mary Billingsley JAACAP Editorial Office +1 202 587 9672 mbillingsley@jaacap.org APEX, the Atacama Pathfinder EXperiment telescope, is located at 5100 metres above sea level on the Chajnantor Plateau in Chile's Atacama region. The ATLASGAL survey took advantage of the unique characteristics of the telescope to provide a detailed view of the distribution of cold dense gas along the plane of the Milky Way galaxy [1]. The new image includes most of the regions of star formation in the southern Milky Way [2]. The new ATLASGAL maps cover an area of sky 140 degrees long and 3 degrees wide, more than four times larger than the first ATLASGAL release [3]. The new maps are also of higher quality, as some areas were re-observed to obtain a more uniform data quality over the whole survey area. The ATLASGAL survey is the single most successful APEX large programme with nearly 70 associated science papers already published, and its legacy will expand much further with all the reduced data products now available to the full astronomical community [4]. At the heart of APEX are its sensitive instruments. One of these, LABOCA (the LArge BOlometer Camera) was used for the ATLASGAL survey. LABOCA measures incoming radiation by registering the tiny rise in temperature it causes on its detectors and can detect emission from the cold dark dust bands obscuring the stellar light. The new release of ATLASGAL complements observations from ESA's Planck satellite [5]. The combination of the Planck and APEX data allowed astronomers to detect emission spread over a larger area of sky and to estimate from it the fraction of dense gas in the inner Galaxy. The ATLASGAL data were also used to create a complete census of cold and massive clouds where new generations of stars are forming. "ATLASGAL provides exciting insights into where the next generationof high-mass stars and clusters form. By combining these with observations from Planck, we can now obtain a link to the large-scale structures of giant molecular clouds," remarks Timea Csengeri from the Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy (MPIfR), Bonn, Germany, who led the work of combining the APEX and Planck data. The APEX telescope recently celebrated ten years of successful research on the cold Universe. It plays an important role not only as pathfinder, but also as a complementary facility to ALMA, the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array, which is also located on the Chajnantor Plateau. APEX is based on a prototype antenna constructed for the ALMA project, and it has found many targets that ALMA can study in great detail. Leonardo Testi from ESO, who is a member of the ATLASGAL team and the European Project Scientist for the ALMA project, concludes: "ATLASGAL has allowed us to have a new and transformational look at the dense interstellar medium of our own galaxy, the Milky Way. The new release of the full survey opens up the possibility to mine this marvellous dataset for new discoveries. Many teams of scientists are already using the ATLASGAL data to plan for detailed ALMA follow-up." ### Notes [1] The map was constructed from individual APEX observations of radiation with a wavelength of 870 m (0.87 millimetres). [2] The northern part of the Milky Way had already been mapped by the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope (JCMT - http://www.eaobservatory.org/jcmt/) and other telescopes, but the southern sky is particularly important as it includes the Galactic Centre, and because it is accessible for detailed follow-up observations with ALMA. [3] The first data release covered an area of approximately 95 square degrees, a very long and narrow strip along the Galactic Plane two degrees wide and over 40 degrees long. The final maps now cover 420 square degrees, more than four times larger. [4] The data products are available through the ESO archive. [5] The Planck data coverhe full sky, but with poor spatial resolution. ATLASGAL covers only the Galactic plane, but with high angular resolution. Combining both provides excellent spatial dynamic range. More information ATLASGAL is a collaboration between the Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy (MPIfR), the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy (MPIA), ESO, and the University of Chile. APEX is a collaboration between the Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy (MPIfR), the Onsala Space Observatory (OSO) and ESO. Operation of APEX at Chajnantor is carried out by ESO. ALMA is a partnership of the ESO, the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) and the National Institutes of Natural Sciences (NINS) of Japan in cooperation with the Republic of Chile. ALMA is funded by ESO on behalf of its Member States, by NSF in cooperation with the National Research Council of Canada (NRC) and the National Science Council of Taiwan (NSC) and by NINS in cooperation with the Academia Sinica (AS) in Taiwan and the Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute (KASI). ESO is the foremost intergovernmental astronomy organisation in Europe and the world's most productive ground-based astronomical observatory by far. It is supported by 16 countries: Austria, Belgium, Brazil, the Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Finland, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom, along with the host state of Chile. ESO carries out an ambitious programme focused on the design, construction and operation of powerful ground-based observing facilities enabling astronomers to make important scientific discoveries. ESO also plays a leading role in promoting and organising cooperation in astronomical research. ESO operates three unique world-class observing sites in Chile: La Silla, Paranal and Chajnantor. At Paranal, ESO operates the Very Large Telescope, the world's most advanced visible-light astronomical observatory and two survey telescopes. VISTA works in the infrared and is the world's largest survey telescope and the VLT Survey Telescope is the largest telescope designed to exclusively survey the skies in visible light. ESO is a major partner in ALMA, the largest astronomical project in existence. And on Cerro Armazones, close to Paranal, ESO is building the 39-metre European Extremely Large Telescope, the E-ELT, which will become "the world's biggest eye on the sky". Links * Max-Planck-Institute for Radio Astronomy (MPIfR) - http://www.mpifr-bonn.mpg.de/2169/en * Onsala Space Observatory (OSO) - http://www.chalmers.se/en/centres/oso/Pages/default.aspx * ATLASGAL information at MPIfR - http://www3.mpifr-bonn.mpg.de/div/atlasgal/index.html * The Csengeri et al. 2016 paper on the combination with Planck data - http://esoads.eso.org/abs/2016A%26A...585A.104C * ATLASGAL papers linked in the ESO Telescope Bibliography - http://telbib.eso.org/?q=atlasgal&boolany=or&boolaut=or&boolti=or&yearto=2016&boolins=or&booltel=or&search=Search Contacts Carlos De Breuck ESO APEX Programme Scientist Garching bei Munchen, Germany Tel: +49 89 3200 6613 Email: cdebreuc@eso.org Frederic Schuller ATLASGAL Principal Investigator - Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy Bonn, Germany Email: fschulle@apex-telescope.org Friedrich Wyrowski APEX Project Scientist - Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy Bonn, Germany Tel: +49 228 525 383 Email: fwyrowski@mpifr-bonn.mpg.de Norbert Junkes Press and Public Outreach - Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy Bonn, Germany Tel: +49 228 525 399 Email: njunkes@mpifr-bonn.mpg.de Richard Hook ESO Public Information Officer Garching bei Munchen, Germany Tel: +49 89 3200 6655 Cell: +49 151 1537 3591 Email: rhook@eso.org Amsterdam, The Netherlands, February 24, 2016 - Elsevier, a world-leading provider of scientific, technical, and medical information products and services, is pleased to announce that from 2016 it is now the co-publisher of The Professional Animal Scientist, marking a new publishing partnership with the American Registry of Professional Animal Scientists (ARPAS), and FASS Inc. In continuous publication since 1985, The Professional Animal Scientist (PAS) is an international, peer-reviewed scientific journal that is a leading outlet for animal science research. The journal welcomes novel manuscripts on applied technology, reviews on the use or application of research-based information on animal agriculture, commentaries on contemporary issues, case studies, and technical notes. Topics considered for publication include: feed science, farm animal management and production, dairy science, meat science, animal nutrition, reproduction, animal physiology and behavior, disease control and prevention, microbiology, agricultural economics, and environmental issues related to agriculture. Beginning in 2016, themed special issues will be featured. Under the editorial guidance of Editor-in-Chief Wayne Kellogg, PhD, Department of Animal Science at the University of Arkansas, and Associate Editors Andy Cole, PhD, USDA ARS, TX, and Stacey A. Gunter, PhD, USDA ARS Southern Plains Range Research Station, OK, PAS continues to be one of the premier sources of trusted, validated information for animal scientists and caters to a wide and comprehensive audience. "The Professional Animal Scientist (PAS) began in 1985 with a single issue of articles providing information to members and later expanded to provide documented reviews, research articles, technical notes, and case studies. The goal remains to provide information that can be applied readily by professionals in the animal sciences, including beef, dairy, swine, sheep, goats, and companion animals. With Elsevier as publisher, PAS is available internationally and welcomes appropriate manuscripts from scientists throughout the world," commented Professor Kellogg. PAS readers are typically university, extension, and government staff; members of professional societies and related organizations; producers, commodity organizations, and related food industries; researchers and students; and consultants and companies providing products and services. "We are extremely proud to have the opportunity to work directly with ARPAS and to be able to add this important publication to Elsevier's portfolio of animal science journals," commented Emma Bruun, Publisher for veterinary and animal sciences at Elsevier. "As a service to the journal's readership Elsevier has provided online access to the entire journal archive, which dates back to 1985, for the very first time and, for a limited time, all PAS content will be freely available to readers." PAS supports open access publication and offers authors the option to pay an open access fee in order to make their individual paper freely available to all readers. ### Monash University-led research has shown that the evolution of human teeth is much simpler than previously thought, and that we can predict the sizes of teeth missing from human fossils and those of our extinct close relatives (hominins). A new study published today in the journal Nature, led by evolutionary biologist Dr Alistair Evans from Monash University, took a fresh look at the teeth of humans and fossil hominins. The research confirms that molars, including wisdom teeth, do follow the sizes predicted by what is called 'the inhibitory cascade' - a rule that shows how the size of one tooth affects the size of the tooth next to it. This is important because it indicates that human evolution was a lot simpler than scientists had previously thought. Dr Alistair Evans explains how our fascination with where we come from, and what our fossil ancestors were like, has fuelled our search for new fossils and how we can interpret them. "Teeth can tell us a lot about the lives of our ancestors, and how they evolved over the last seven million years. What makes modern humans different from our fossil relatives? Palaeontologists have worked for decades to interpret these fossils, and looked for new ways to extract more information from teeth," Dr Evans said. Dr Evans, a research associate at Museum Victoria, discussed how this new research has challenged the accepted view that there was a lot of variation in how teeth evolved in our closest relatives. "Our new study shows that the pattern is a lot simpler than we first thought - human evolution was much more limited," Dr Evans said. Dr Evans led an international team of anthropologists and developmental biologists from Finland, USA, UK and Germany, using a new extensive database on fossil hominins and modern humans collected over several decades, as well as high resolution 3D imaging to see inside the fossil teeth. The team then took the research a step further by applying the findings to two main groups of hominins: the species in the genus Homo (like us and Neanderthals), and australopiths, including specimens like Lucy, the famous fossil hominin from Africa. Dr Evans explained that while it was discovered that both groups follow the inhibitory cascade, they do so slightly differently. "There seems to be a key difference between the two groups of hominins - perhaps one of the things that defines our genus, Homo," Dr Evans said. "What's really exciting is that we can then use this inhibitory cascade rule to help us predict the size of missing fossil teeth. Sometimes we find only a few teeth in a fossil. With our new insight, we can reliably estimate how big the missing teeth were. The early hominin Ardipithecus is a good example - the second milk molar has never been found, but we can now predict how big it was." Another author on the Nature paper was Professor Grant Townsend from the University of Adelaide's School of Dentistry. The study examined teeth of modern humans, including those in one of the world's largest collections of dental casts housed at the Adelaide Dental Hospital. "These collections of dental casts are critical to finding our place in the hominin evolutionary tree, and advancing knowledge in the oral health of Australians," said Professor Townsend. The findings of the study will be very useful in interpreting new hominin fossil finds, and looking at what the real drivers of human evolution were. As well as shedding new light on our evolutionary past, this simple rule provides clues about how we may evolve into the future. ### Archaeological and genetic analysis may indicate that three skeletons buried in medieval graves in France may have been Muslim, according to a study published February 24, 2016 in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by Yves Gleize from the French National Institute for Preventive Archaeological Research (Inrap) and University of Bordeaux, France, Fanny Mendisco from University of Bordeaux, France, and colleagues. The rapid Arab-Islamic conquest during the early Middle Ages led to major political and cultural changes in the Mediterranean. Although the early medieval Muslim presence in the Iberian Peninsula is well documented, scientists have less evidence of the Muslim expansion north of the Pyrenees. The authors of this study aimed to determine if the skeletons in three graves from a medieval site at Nimes, France are related to the Muslim presence in France in the 8th century. Specifically, they analyzed the funerary practices at the site, analyzed the skeleton's DNA, and determined the sex and age of the skeletons. The authors found that the burials appear to follow Islamic rites, including the position of the body and the head orientation towards mecca. They also found genetic evidence indicating their paternal lineage may show North African ancestry. Radiocarbon dating shows that the skeletons were likely from the 7th-9th centuries. Given all of these data, the authors propose that the skeletons from the Nimes burials belonged to Berbers integrated into the Umayyad army during the Arab expansion in North Africa in the 8th century. Despite the low number of Muslim graves discovered, the authors believe that these observations provide some of the first archeological and anthropological evidence for Muslim communities in the South of France. Dr. Gleize added, "The joint archaeological, anthropological and genetic analysis of three early medieval graves at Nimes provides evidence of burials linked with Muslim occupation during the 8th c. in south of France." ### In your coverage please use this URL to provide access to the freely available paper: http://dx.plos.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0148583 Citation: Gleize Y, Mendisco F, Pemonge M-H, Hubert C, Groppi A, Houix B, et al. (2016) Early Medieval Muslim Graves in France: First Archaeological, Anthropological and Palaeogenomic Evidence. PLoS ONE 11(2): e0148583. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0148583 Funding: This study benefitted from excavation grant support from the city of Nimes, France (INRAP; FB11045601). The paleogenomic analyses were made possible by funding from the CNRS (Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique; PEPS APEGE) and from the Research National Agency as a program of prospects investments ANR-10-LABX-52 (CAP project; dir. MFD; University of Bordeaux, LaScArBx-ANR; 2012-2014). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript. Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist. HOUSTON - (Feb. 24, 2016) - When a multinational company is a state-owned enterprise, the choice of where to expand may hinge on more than just economic considerations, according to a new paper by strategic management experts at Rice University's Jones Graduate School of Business. "A Geopolitical Perspective Into the Opposition of State-Owned Enterprises in Target States" argues that potential opposition from target countries can also play a role. Most notably, the authors said, these countries may see the foreign enterprises as agents of their home countries and the enterprises' expansion onto their soil as a threat to their national security. The United States, for example, in 2005 blocked a Chinese state-owned oil company, China National Offshore Oil Corp., from acquiring the U.S. firm Unocal on the grounds that the company represented the interests of the Chinese Communist Party, according to the paper. The paper was co-authored by Wei Shi, a doctoral candidate in strategic management at the Jones School; Robert Hoskisson, the George R. Brown Professor of Management; and Yan "Anthea" Zhang, the Fayez Sarofim Vanguard Professor of Management. It was published in Global Strategy Journal. "Our foundational argument in this paper is that the geopolitical perspective can provide new insights into understanding the level of opposition faced by globalizing state-owned enterprises as well as their location choices," the authors wrote. "Such a perspective is important because global financial turmoil has spurred governments throughout the world to take ownership in what previously were private businesses and more and more traditional state-owned enterprises are expanding beyond their national borders." The authors created a conceptual model to analyze the level of potential opposition from target countries. Their model proposed five geopolitical factors that can shape the level of welcome a state-owned enterprise can expect from its potential new home: Geographic distance From a geopolitical standpoint, close neighbors may pose greater threats to each other's national sovereignty than countries that are comfortably far apart. Neighbors may also have a track record of conflict. For a state-owned enterprise, moving into a nearby neighborhood may threaten the target country's sense of sovereignty or even national security and thus spark opposition. Similarity of religious beliefs Shared religious beliefs can boost levels of trust, and dissimilar belief systems can sow distrust and conflict, the authors said. When a state-owned-enterprise's home country and its target destination share religious beliefs, the path to expansion may be smoother. Similarity of governments In today's world, government types range from full autocracies to full democracies, with a variety of models in between. Countries with similar government forms, however, are more likely to identify with each other and agree upon how governments should work. That mutual identification and acceptance can lower opposition to a foreign state-owned enterprise's investment. Resource complementarity Resource complementarity refers to the degree to which a target country needs resources that a foreign state-owned enterprise can offer. They might be natural resources, such as sources of energy; they might be technological savvy or financial strength. If the state-owned enterprise has resources that the target country wants, a welcome is more likely, the authors said. Nationalist politics in the target country A target country's political leaders can muffle or amplify the other four factors to influence their country's reception of the foreign state-owned enterprise. For example, if a state-owned enterprise is seen as a threat, the target country's political leaders might urge official visits or foster economic cooperation. If they can calm nationalistic friction, these leaders can help open the doors to the state-owned enterprise. Political leaders can also use the nationalistic feelings to stoke opposition. "Increasing global expansion by state-owned enterprises suggests the need for a more systematic framework to examine these enterprises' location choices in international business," the authors said. They believe that their geopolitical model focused on state-owned enterprises' global expansions and potential opposition from target states "not only adds value to understanding the global distribution of state-owned enterprises' business activities, but also can shed light on private multinational companies' global location choices." ### For a copy of the study, go to http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/gsj.1105/abstract. For more information about Jones School faculty research, visit the school's Business Wisdom at Rice website, http://ricebusinesswisdom.com. Follow the Jones School via Twitter @RiceMBA. Follow Rice News and Media Relations via Twitter @RiceUNews. Related materials: Zhang bio: http://business.rice.edu/Anthea_Zhang Hoskisson bio: http://business.rice.edu/Robert_Hoskisson Shi bio: http://business.rice.edu/Shi_Wei Located on a 300-acre forested campus in Houston, Rice University is consistently ranked among the nation's top 20 universities by U.S. News & World Report. Rice has highly respected schools of Architecture, Business, Continuing Studies, Engineering, Humanities, Music, Natural Sciences and Social Sciences and is home to the Baker Institute for Public Policy. With 3,910 undergraduates and 2,809 graduate students, Rice's undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio is 6-to-1. Its residential college system builds close-knit communities and lifelong friendships, just one reason why Rice is ranked No. 1 for best quality of life and for lots of race/class interaction by the Princeton Review. Rice is also rated as a best value among private universities by Kiplinger's Personal Finance. To read "What they're saying about Rice," go to http://tinyurl.com/AboutRiceUniversity. Young children will spontaneously invent tool behaviours to solve novel problems, without the help of adults, much as non-human great apes have been observed to do. The findings, from the University of Birmingham, are contrary to the popular belief that basic tool use in humans requires social learning. Lev Vygotsky, one of psychology's most influential representatives, claimed that humans only learn how to use tools by learning from others, including parents, and that children's spontaneous tool use is "practically zero". However, this study has proven said theory wrong. The findings, publishing in Proceedings of the Royal Society B, are the first to investigate children's tool-use abilities with great ape tasks. The researchers based the tasks on tool behaviours observed in wild chimpanzees and orangutans, and mirrored them for 50 children aged between 2.5-3-years-old. The findings also suggest that the cognitive abilities underlying these tool behaviours are shared by both humans and their closest living relatives. The team found that in 11 of the 12 tasks children spontaneously invented the correct tool behaviour. They also found that those behaviours which occur frequently in wild great apes were also invented more frequently by the children, which indicates a large overlap in the physical cognition abilities of humans and great apes. Eva Reindl, PhD student at the University of Birmingham's School of Psychology, said, "We chose great ape tasks for three reasons: Firstly, they are unfamiliar to children. This ensures that children will have to invent the correct behaviour instead of using socially acquired, previous knowledge. Second, they are ecologically relevant and third, they allow us to make species comparisons with regard to the cognitive abilities involved." In one of the twelve tasks, children needed to use a stick as a lever to retrieve pom poms from a small box. Similarly, great apes use twigs to remove kernels from nuts or seeds from stingy fruits. The tasks could only be solved by using a tool, but children were not told that. Dr Claudio Tennie, Birmingham Fellow, explained, "The idea was to provide children with the raw material necessary to solve the task. We told children the goal of the task, for example to get the pom poms out of the box, but we never mentioned using the tool to them. We would then investigate whether children spontaneously came up with the correct tool behaviour on their own." Miss Reindl noted, "While it is true that more sophisticated forms of human tool use indeed require social learning, we have identified a range of basic tool behaviors which seem not to. Using great ape tasks, we could show that these roots of human tool culture are shared by great apes, including humans, and potentially also their last common ancestor." In the future, the researchers will try to extend their findings by presenting children and great apes with tool tasks that are completely novel to any of these species, e.g. tasks based on tool behaviors observed in non-primate animals but not shown spontaneously by children or great apes. ### Irvine, Calif., Feb. 24, 2016 - Hundreds of methane-emitting hot spots have been identified across the Los Angeles Basin, including a "clean ports" truck refueling facility near the Port of Long Beach, power plants, water treatment facilities, and cattle in Chino, according to new findings by the University of California, Irvine. Atmospheric scientists conducted a mobile survey across Los Angeles, Orange and Riverside counties, and their results, published this week in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres, identify the region's highest emitters. Methane is the second-largest known contributor to global climate change, behind carbon dioxide. The survey was done before the Aliso Canyon gas well leak temporarily displaced thousands from their Porter Ranch homes. The findings could be used by the Southern California Gas Co. to meet orders by Gov. Jerry Brown and the state Air Resources Board to offset the gas leak by removing as much of the fast-acting greenhouse gas from the air as was emitted from the Aliso Canyon site, the researchers said. Lead author Francesca Hopkins said the survey "identified numerous methane hot spots that could be targets for these mitigation activities." The researchers drove a specially equipped cargo van for hundreds of miles throughout the Los Angeles region, taking readings with instruments designed to measure methane, ethane, carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide. They observed heightened methane levels across the basin and pinpointed 213 hot spots. "Our surveys demonstrate the prevalence of unwanted methane emissions across the Los Angeles urban landscape and show that two-thirds of the gas comes from fossil fuel origins," said Hopkins, who began the work as a postdoctoral scholar at UCI. "Known sources of methane include cattle, geologic seeps, landfills and compressed natural gas fueling stations." Now an environmental scientist at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, she said that while the recent leak in Aliso Canyon drew a lot of media and public attention, the leaks her team detected during the survey contribute to an ever-present dome of methane that hovers over the region. A key factor in the scientists' ability to create such a detailed map of emissions was their decision to collect surface samples from a roving vehicle. Equipped with a modified electrical system, a GPS, a rooftop sampling mast and spectrometers, the cargo van enabled them to continuously sample and analyze air wherever they went. "Mobile measurements are really important because you can examine the fine-scale structure of variations in methane within neighborhoods and begin to identify the origins," said Jim Randerson, UCI Chancellor's Professor of Earth system science and principal investigator on the study. "It's often not possible to pinpoint individual sources with aircraft observations." He added: "This work shows that small natural gas leaks are ubiquitous throughout the Los Angeles Basin. A critical next step is to develop a regional partnership with stakeholders to identify the source of these leaks and make a plan for fixing them." "I'm often asked about the prevalence of major methane point sources in cities," said Riley Duren of JPL's Megacities Carbon Project. "The answer is [that] we really don't know at the moment, except in a handful of places where direct measurements are being made. Studies like this are helping us gain a much clearer understanding of the problem." ### The survey was a collaboration among UCI, the University of Utah and San Diego State University and was funded by the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science. About the University of California, Irvine: Currently celebrating its 50th anniversary, UCI is the youngest member of the prestigious Association of American Universities. The campus has produced three Nobel laureates and is known for its academic achievement, premier research, innovation and anteater mascot. Led by Chancellor Howard Gillman, UCI has more than 30,000 students and offers 192 degree programs. It's located in one of the world's safest and most economically vibrant communities and is Orange County's second-largest employer, contributing $4.8 billion annually to the local economy. For more on UCI, visit http://www.uci.edu. Media access: Radio programs/stations may, for a fee, use an on-campus ISDN line to interview UC Irvine faculty and experts, subject to availability and university approval. For more UC Irvine news, visit news.uci.edu. Additional resources for journalists may be found at communications.uci.edu/for-journalists. Researchers from the University of Exeter are leading a pioneering international research project to deliver new guidance for governments to safeguard long-term provision of crucial natural resources. Experts from Exeter's Centre for Water Systems and Energy Policy Group are collaborating on the key research project, which aims to investigate how policy makers can develop strategies to meet the challenges that climate change could have on water, food and energy provision. The team have been awarded a substantial grant worth 700k by the European Commission for the H2020 project SIM4NEXUS (Sustainable Integrated Management FOR the NEXUS of water-land-food-energy-climate for a resource-efficient Europe) - a four-year, 7.9m consortium of 26 partners from 16 European countries. The project will aim to utilise a variety of different methods, including a Serious Game - a decision-based platform that allows policy makers to play out different scenarios to see what would bring the best outcome - to test and evaluate potential policy decisions. This Serious Game would cover a vast array of scenarios, from regional to global scale situations over the short, medium and long term. Professor Dragan Savic, Professor Ed Keedwell and Dr Lydia Vamvakeridou-Lyroudia from the Centre for Water Systems, and Professor Catherine Mitchell from the Energy Policy Group are the University of Exeter's representatives on the project. The University research team will also lead the UK Case Study (Devon and Cornwall at regional level), together with fellow project partners South West Water The collaboration established in this consortium is a continuation of previous engagement in other EU projects (WASSERMED, WIDEST, PREPARED). Professor Savic said: "The first step in 'Nexus' policy making is to understand the relationships between water, food and energy in order to be able not only to identify and manage risks more effectively, but also uncover potential opportunities for how to learn to thrive on the resources that are available. "However as yet, it appears that no comprehensive study in the UK not in Europe has assessed the interaction between the water, food, energy sectors, and it is therefore unclear of the extent of imbalances within the Nexus. "I'm delighted that we have been given this opportunity not only to work with our European partners, but also to investigate the Nexus and practical implications for a large UK Water Company, such as South West Water." Lewis Jones, from South West Water added: "We are delighted to be a partner in this multinational, collaborative project. Understanding the water, land, food and energy nexus in the face of climate change and a growing population is a significant challenge for the Westcountry where our unique environment supports both a thriving tourism industry and an extensive agriculture industry. Protecting this environment and providing resilient water and wastewater services for the region will be crucial to a sustainable future." ### Children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders are affected by a range of problems, including anxiety, depression, aggression, delinquency and diminished learning capacity a new review of evidence reveals. Published today in the journal Pediatrics, the research is the first to comprehensively describe behaviours in children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) observed by teachers and parents using an empirically based assessment system. "The finding highlights the need for strategies for early intervention, both to help children with self-regulation and to support teachers and caregivers in managing behaviour at school and at home," said the University of Sydney's Professor Elizabeth Elliott, a study co-author. Researchers noted three main kinds of behavioural problems in children with FASD: "Internalizing" behaviours such as, anxiety, withdrawal or depression "Externalizing" behaviour, such as aggression, delinquency Other problems, such as problems with social skills, thought processing and attention. "FASD is the tragic result of alcohol use in pregnancy and is characterised by birth defects and neurodevelopmental problems," said Professor Elliott. "Worldwide, including in Australia, FASD is increasingly recognised by health professionals, teachers and the criminal justice system as a cause of difficult behaviour, learning problems, and contact with the justice system." "Behaviours seen in FASD impair social interactions, academic performance, and mental health. Without appropriate assessment and treatment, these children experience lifelong difficulties with mental ill health, substance abuse and unemployment and many are unable to live independently." Academics from the Discipline of Paediatrics and Child Health at The University of Sydney (Sydney Medical School), undertook an exhaustive review of published literature reporting behaviours in children with FASD and prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE). All studies using the Achenbach System of Empirically Based Assessment (ASEBA): School-Age Forms were included. This widely used and validated assessment tool includes the Child Behaviour Checklist, the Teacher Report Form and the Youth Self-Report form. The study's lead author, Dr Tracey Tsang, said, "Our findings allow us to create a behavioural profile for FASD based on multiple studies from around the world and will inform the assessment and treatment of FASD." ### Given how long it has taken, any news is good news. Italy finally reached agreement with the EU in late January on steps to deal with the hundreds of billions of euros of bad debts that have weighed down its banking system for the last decade. Much of the delay was caused by debate as to whether or not the plan would constitute state aid. Those not familiar with European legalism might question the point of the Italian government doing anything, if it is not state aid. Still, the EU has approved a plan it deems not to be state aid. The result is a necessarily watered-down version of a hoped-for bad bank. It is so watered down, in fact, that it is not a bad bank at all. It comes in stark contrast to the Irish and Spanish plans, which helped those countries rebound so much sooner and more decisively than Italy. As research from Citi points out, Irish and Spanish banks were obliged to transfer loans to a state asset management vehicle at a set price. Italy, on the other hand, is merely offering a paid-for guarantee for the safest portion of funding for a special purpose vehicle that will buy some of the banks loans. The government may be a more readily available guarantor than banks might otherwise find. But it is nowhere near as radical a solution understandably so, notes CreditSights, given the absence of the kind of EU-funded bank recapitalization programme that Spain had. In Italy, the guarantees also have to be set at what the EU decides are market rates. Italian banks have already started setting up bad debt securitization platforms. Italys third biggest bank, Monte dei Paschi di Siena (MPS), sold a 1 billion portfolio of NPLs into a securitization vehicle financed by affiliates of Deutsche Bank in December. The state will now guarantee the senior debt of such operations. It is unlikely ever to have to honour the guarantee, as equity and subordinated debt tranches will take the first hit from any shortfall to the price the SPV paid for the loans. The guarantee should attract a much broader array of investors to bonds issued by such vehicles, even if the banks still have to hold onto most of the riskiest tranches. However, the price could put off all but those banks with the highest funding costs. The states fee for the guarantee will be based on CDS of issuers with similar ratings to the SPV tranche. To make sure the banks are not tempted to sit back and forget about the underlying loans, the price will rise over time initially being based on three-year CDS, then five-year, then seven. As research from Milan-based Banca Akros points out, thats hardly encouraging, given the time it takes to realise collateral in Italy. The banks that will benefit most are those that need it most, like MPS. In the short term, the lack of any forced sales is a relief for bondholders too, as there will be no immediate shock. The transfer of NPLs to a bad bank for four bailed-in Italian lenders in November came with an 80% loan loss reserve, raising the question of whether a wider bad bank scheme might require similar write-downs. Yet there were already signs of Italys NPL market picking up, with schemes such as KKR Credits Pillarstone platform, last year. That is partly due to investors hunt for yield and partly because the ECB is fed up with Italian banks doing nothing about the problem. Now the Italian government and the EU can say they acted; unsurprisingly, investors remain unenthusiastic. It makes consolidation even more vital. John Cryan has deliberately set out to talk less grandiloquently and less often than his predecessors as CEOs of Deutsche Bank used to about the banks strategy. Asked to explain his vision at the banks annual press conference in late January perhaps the only interesting question in two and a half hours he shrugged. We are a bank. We are a regulated entity. We dont have much latitude in what we do. Weve organized in four divisions. We think they all work well together; they have a logic in being together. Its understandable, laudable even, that Cryan would rather stick to executing the plan in hand in a determined and disciplined way. But failure to articulate a vision, at a press conference in which he returned time and again to low morale among employees, felt like a mistake. Cryans advisers perhaps told him as much. A week later a memo to employees, from which most observers concentrated on his assertion that Deutsche remained rock solid amid concerns that it might not be able to meet coupon payments on its AT1 debt, sought to address what Deutsche might be in the longer term. Cryan said: We want to be the most-respected financial services provider across all customer segments in Germany, our vital and strong home market; the number-one bank for our corporate, institutional and fiduciary clients in Europe; and the best foreign bank in the United States and Asia. Its early days, but its becoming apparent that even that worthy aim of just executing the strategy that his predecessors set out last April and that he himself approved from his seat on the board, might be harder than Cryan realized. Net revenues Deutsche Bank Source: Deutsche Bank Deutsche Bank is coming late to this task. It is finding, as others have before it, that as it cuts costs, revenues disappear and there is no neat and linear improvement in the cost/income ratio. The bank is now talking about investing in areas where it has already lost too much market share and where it wants to rebuild revenues: areas such as cash equities, where it is now recruiting in research and sales, and in advisory, which is a capital-light business but in most years a lousy cost/income one. The bank is determined to get risk-weighted assets down, but weak earnings in its core operating business and poor capital generation dont give it much capacity to take the hit of dumping assets at a big loss, so progress is slow. It can deleverage and shed high-capital-consuming assets that at least earn revenue, but almost as fast as it does so, regulators hit it with higher operational risk-weighted assets (RWAs) in recognition of past regulatory and compliance failures. Seven months into a five-year plan, with the two toughest years ahead, and Deutsche appears to be running full pelt only to stand still. CET 1 ratio vs SREP requirements CRR/CRD IV CET1 ratio Source: Deutsche Bank It needs to get its CET1 capital ratio up to 12.5% in 2018, just to be marginally above the 12.25% demanded by regulators. That would leave it with a much thinner buffer than most banks aim to work with. Today it stands at 11.1% and it might be down to close to 10.5% by the time Deutsche Bank next reports first-quarter 2016 earnings. It wants to reshape the retail bank by listing or selling Postbank, improving the leverage ratio and deconsolidating 40 billion of RWAs in one shot. Deutsche Bank shareholders shouldnt hold their breath as equity prices, particularly those of European banks, collapse. Deutsche Bank wants to grow transaction banking and asset management, in which it is strong in no-growth Europe, by picking up market share in the US and Asia where competition is most fierce. And it has to do that while fixing the investment bank that still dominates the group. This is the business on which Deutsche grew, from a fading European commercial bank in the mid-1980s into a global giant, over the 20 years leading up to the financial crisis. The still unfolding regulatory response since the financial crisis has set out to crush investment banking. Cryans predecessor, Anshu Jain, gambled that as others got out, Deutsche Bank could both grow market share and benefit from fatter margins and he resisted voices on his own board urging him to cut back investment banking. It is easy to say he got that call badly wrong, not quite so easy to say what he should have done instead. James Chappell, analyst at Berenberg, sums up the dilemma neatly: A successful transformation of any banking franchise requires a core business to fall back on and enough capital to change. In Deutsche Banks case, its core business is investment banking, which represents 50% of equity, 75% of leverage assets and 50% of profits. However, investment banking is in structural decline. The most worrying aspect of Deutsches results announcement at the end of January was not the reduced store of ADIs from which to service AT1 coupons, or the fines or restructuring costs it took last year. It was the shuddering drop-off in underlying investment banking revenues in the last two quarters. At a time when it needs its core business to produce profit and generate the capital buffer to shrink its balance sheet, the trajectory suggests that revenues might fall faster than costs, producing not profits but losses. And heres where Deutsches biggest problem lies. Well intentioned though Cryans determination is to focus on execution rather than strategizing, at the moment, when the morale of the banks staff is close to rock bottom, there is a big, existential unanswered question hanging over the bank. Say it does get through the next two years without another huge fine or another big loss, say it manages to work through the restructuring, simplify the bank, get out of the bad markets, cut costs. What then? What is Deutsche Bank for? Who needs it? What does it do and which customers does it serve that no other banks can reach as easily and serve better? Rivals scent blood. US investment banks are almost in a re-run of the early 1990s using the profits from their high-margin oligopoly at home to win out globally in investment banking. European rivals are suddenly ready to pounce as well. The head of investment banking at a leading European competitor to Deutsche Bank tells Euromoney: The biggest change for me came in the second half of last year, when German corporates actively began to engage with us in a way they hadn't before. Deutsche has lost that cachet of being the bank you had to deal with if you were a big German client. Some clients almost express shame at the state the bank finds itself in. There is a feeling in certain quarters in Germany, especially among public-sector financiers, that the bank that bears the countrys name long ago sold its soul to the Anglo-Saxon locusts that have ruined it. Cryan at least speaks German. His name elicits almost universal respect among senior executives at rival banks; Deutsche Banks name, not so much. A board director of another large European bank tells Euromoney: I think for many years up to the crisis its German clients could always tell themselves that Deutsche Bank was the Mercedes-Benz S-Class of European banking. Its now dawning on them that it may be more Volkswagen Polo. Little known outside the banking industry, Cryan has such a high standing within it that almost none of his peers question the new chief executive's ability to stick to the plan and restructure Deutsche Bank, something that his more renowned predecessors could not achieve. A former UBS colleague assures Euromoney: Not only is John very smart, clear thinking and determined, even more importantly he is absolutely straight, honourable and honest. It is perhaps characteristic of the man that while Deutsche bankers, like most of their peers, have traditionally boasted about their wonderful technology as they built platforms that truly altered markets, such as Autobahn, Cryan has come clean about the awful muddle of its legacy IT systems and dependence on end-of-life software. Soft spoken and with a subtle British sense of humour that his audience doesnt always pick up on trust us, he doesnt really want to run Wells Fargo Cryan might need to take a lesson or two in how to bullshit. At the analyst call on January 28, he almost audibly shifted tone as he went from the tell-it-to-the-analysts-like-it-is part of his formal remarks to the dont-forget-to-give-the-troops-something-to-cheer closing section. The core strength is Deutsche Banks brand and client engagement that continues to be extremely strong. I have been very impressed with the depth of client relationship, Cryan said, rather going through the motions. But later, during the gruelling two-and-a-half hour annual press conference that always follows the full-year results, Cryan let slip his observation that: The Deutsche Bank brand isnt resonating with clients, quite so readily. Litigation reserves Source: Deutsche Bank Matthew Westerman, the senior Goldman Sachs investment banker, is leaving the firm to join HSBC as part of a restructured global banking management team. Matthew Westerman HSBC is re-merging its global banking and capital financing units split by the bank a couple of years ago. Westerman will join as co-head of the renamed global banking division alongside Robin Phillips, who has held the position of head of global banking since the split. The management of the global markets division, previously the third arm of HSBCs global banking and markets group, remains unchanged. The rejig will see Spencer Lake, previously global head of capital financing, assume a vice-chairman role across the global banking and markets division. The announcement was made by Samir Assaf, HSBCs CEO of global banking and markets, earlier today, in a memo seen by Euromoney. Westerman has long had ties to his new firm, especially given Goldmans role as corporate broker to HSBC, and is known to be close to HSBCs CEO Stuart Gulliver. Westerman relocated to London just under a year ago, leaving his Hong Kong based position as head of investment banking in Asia to take up a role as chairman of Goldmans EMEA investment banking business. Euromoney understands that part of his role while in London was to help HSBC in its discussions over the potential relocation to Hong Kong of its corporate headquarters. Most inside HSBC see the era of the capital financing division as having successfully brought all of the banks previously diverse primary financing capabilities under one roof, creating a clear product offering between the global investment bank and the commercial bank in particular. The new move aims to bring client coverage into line with that simplified product structure. Surprise Given the success of the capital financing group, it will surprise some that Lake appears to have lost out to Phillips in the internal battle to be co-head of the expanded division. Lake will now report directly to Assaf and be responsible for a number of key client relationships, as well strategic initiatives around areas such as sustainable financing and RMB globalization, although HSBC insiders speculate he might look for a senior management role elsewhere. Hiring Westerman is clearly a coup for HSBC. Assaf says: Im delighted that Matthew is joining HSBC. His hire reflects the confidence that people have in our GBM strategy and potential. Longer term, Westerman will be regarded as the prime long-term candidate to replace Assaf as CEO of GBM, a role he has held since 2011. European cities offer some of the highest quality of living in the world despite recent security issues, social unrest, and concern about the region's economic outlook, according to an annual survey.Vienna is ranked top overall in Mercer's 18th annual Quality of Living survey, followed by Zurich in Switzerland, then Auckland in New Zealand, Munich and Vancouver. Dusseldorf is ranked six, then Frankfurt, Geneva and Copenhagen.But some cities, such as Paris, have suffered as a result of recent terrorist attacks and the French capital falling to 71, London at 72, Madrid at 84 and Athens at 124. The safest UK cities are Aberdeen, Edinburgh, and Glasgow, all ranked in 44th place.The survey, which is carried out to give multinational companies posting expats to countries around the world an idea of the issues they are likely to face in specific locations, has safety as a key area as it can have a significant impact on the cost of global compensation programmes."Heightened domestic and global security threats, population displacement resulting from violence, and social unrest in key business centres around the world are all elements adding to the complex challenge facing multinational companies when analysing the safety and health of their expatriate workforces," said Ilya Bonic, president of Mercer's Talent business."Multinational companies need accurate data and objective methods to determine the cost implications of deteriorating living standards and personal safety issues when compensating expatriates," added Bonic.The personal safety ranking is based on internal stability, crime figures, performance of local law enforcement, and the home country's relationship with other countries. Luxembourg tops the personal safety list and is followed by Bern, Helsinki, and Zurich, all tied in second place. Baghdad at 230 and Damascus at 229 are the world's least safe cities."Ensuring that the needs of expatriates and their families are met wherever work takes them is an essential part of talent retention and recruitment strategies for most multinationals," explained Slagin Parakatil, principal at Mercer and responsible for the quality of living research."Other elements that add to safety costs in the host location are obtaining suitable and well secured accommodations; having an in-house comprehensive expatriate security programme and providing access to reputable professional evacuation services and medical support firms, and finally, providing security training and guarded office premises," he added.Canadian cities all rank high for personal safety, with Calgary, Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto, and Vancouver sharing 16th place, whereas no US cities make the top 50. Most North American cities remain fairly safe for expatriates. But Mexican cities are ranked relatively low, mainly because of drug-related violence.The survey report also says that the recent increase of unemployment in Latin America and Caribbean countries, along with the economic downturn and political instability in some of these countries, explains relatively low rankings in personal safety across the region.For personal safety, the rankings for Asian cities again vary greatly with Singapore at eight the highest overall and is followed by the five Japanese cities of Kobe, Nagoya, Osaka, Tokyo, and Yokohama that are tied for 32nd place.New Zealand and Australia have some of the highest quality of living worldwide. Auckland ranks third globally, Sydney 10th, Wellington 12th, and Melbourne 15th. For personal safety, Pacific cities also rank high, with Auckland and Wellington sharing 9th place. Canberra, Melbourne, Perth, and Sydney share 25th place.Dubai continues to rank highest for quality of living across Africa and the Middle East at 75, followed by Abu Dhabi at 81 and Port Louis in Mauritius at 83. The South African cities of Durban, Cape Town, and Johannesburg rank 85th, 92nd, and 95th respectively.Only a handful of cities in this region place in the top 100 for personal safety with Abu Dhabi ranking highest in 23rd place, followed by Muscat at 29, Dubai at 40, and Port Louis at 59. Hump Daaaaayyyyy!! Its Wednesday, kids! My circle of friends and I call it, Margarita Wednesday. Guess why? There was a conversation about where we could get the best margarita a few weeks ago. Ever since weve been going to different restaurants and gathering research so to speak. This effort made me think about food critics and judges in general. I want to be the one who judges the baking contests at the fairs this summer. Oh, snap! Thats how we came up with this weeks Around The Table theme: Contest Winning Recipes. Have you ever entered any of your creations into a contest? Pies, cakes, cookies, breads theres a category for just about anything you want to make. Ive never entered anything, but if I did, Id enter the Sour Cherry Pie that I shared with yall last week. If youre thinking about which recipe youd enter into competition, check out the rules and regulations, and different categories available for competition at The Ohio State Fair http://ohiostatefair.com/ or the Pennsylvania State Association of County Fairs http://www.pafairs.org/ Since I love cookies with all of my heart and soul, I feel like you should make some. Check out these winning cookie recipes from the 2015 Ohio State Fair. Go make something awesome, Jen OBERLIN, Ohio Firelands High School students spend their downtime between classes a little differently than most high school teenagers. They are not bent over their phones, texting or snapping. Instead, with a skein of yarn and hook in hand, they crochet blanket squares. These high school students boys and girls alike have taken up the lost art that is crocheting. Katys idea The idea to launch Crocheting for a Cause through the Firelands FFA chapter came to senior and current chapter Vice President Katy Tuggle while she was talking with her mom one evening. Her mom, an avid crocheter herself, had taught Tuggle. I started thinking, we could teach other students how to make these, and they make great gifts, said Tuggle. When you hear Crocheting for a Cause it makes you ask, what is that all about? said Ohio FFA President Matthew Klopfenstein, who visited with the chapter earlier in the year. But they are really thinking outside the box, he said. It may not be a typical FFA community development project, but it earned their chapter the National Model of Innovation in Community Development at the 2015 National FFA Convention. A little skeptical When (Katy) approached us last year, I was very skeptical, said Shanna Finnegan, chapter adviser. How many high school students are really going to be interested in crocheting? she said. The idea was presented to the officer team who also expressed a similar skepticism. You often think of the stereotypical grandma (when you think about crocheting), said Mike Anadell, senior and current chapter president, who had actually learned to crochet from his grandmother. But its more than that when you look at the big picture. So the chapter decided to give it a shot. But as Finnegan suspected, when the sign-up sheet was posted in the hallway, only a handful of girls had added their names to the list. Then one senior boy who Finnegan described as being a popular student walked up and added his name to the list. And just like that, crocheting became the cool thing to do. Crocheting class It was a huge surprise to see (students) get involved, said Finnegan. The participants were evenly split between girls and boys. The chapter ran announcements in the local paper and sent emails to community members about the project and received an outpouring of donations, from skeins of yarn to hooks and even money to purchase supplies. For three months, we would walk into the ag room and (our adviser) would say, we have another bag of yarn, said Tuggle. The only thing they had to purchase were some hooks to get started, which they were able to purchase from monetary donations toward the project. A couple days a week for four weeks, FFA members, students and community members gathered in the agriculture education room to learn to crochet, explained Anadell. For the duration of a Christmas movie, people crocheted and enjoyed each others company. Anadells grandmother and mother, Tuggles mother and other students parents who knew how to crochet helped new crocheters get started. Both Anadell and Tuggle said it is very easy to get started. Catching on Students carried plastic bags of yarn with them from class to class and would crochet in their downtime. Some would even pull out their hooks and yarn during class. As long as they were paying attention during class, they could crochet, said Finnegan. Teachers would even send students down to the ag room to pick up yarn and hooks before they served their detention. It caught on like wildfire, said Tuggle. After four weeks, the chapter had 71 handmade items including blankets, scarves, hats and headbands. They gave some of the items to three families they were sponsoring and donated the rest to the Genesis House in Lorain. I like the idea that a family is enjoying a blanket that I made, said Macey Butchko, a Firelands FFA member. Butchko learned how to crochet with the group from the beginning of the project and found it to be fun and addicting. I sit at home and think about it I need to get this done, she said. Chapter to chapter In December, Firelands FFA held a leadership night where they presented Crocheting for a Cause to 111 FFA members from five local chapters. They gave each attendee starter packets and taught them how to crochet. We encouraged them to learn it and take it back to their schools and communities, said Tuggle. When they invited Klopfenstein to learn how to crochet, he thought to himself, I dont know about this thats not for me. But I found that it is really not that hard at all, he said, adding he actually enjoyed the experience. He was given his own set of crocheting starter packets and was challenged to teach other schools how to get started. A new cause Recently, the chapter has taken on a challenge from a fellow classmate who wants to donate blankets for a cause of her own. Sophia Pohorence and her sister, Grace, are identical twins, but Sophia appears a little smaller than her sister. They were born with twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome, which Sophia explained is where one twin receives more nutrients in the womb than the other. Sophia wants to donate handmade blankets to newborns with the syndrome. Crocheting for a Cause is helping Sophia make the blankets for her care packages, and they have already completed 40 of the 100-blanket goal. Be a part of the cause If you are interested in donating supplies or making a monetary donation, email chapter adviser Shanna Finnegan, sfinnegan@firelandsschools.org. If your chapter is interested in getting crochet starter packs and learning to crochet, contact Finnegan or Ohio State FFA President Matthew Klopfenstein, mklopfenstein@ohioffa.org. By Jaime Chenevey FFA Alumna and West Holmes High School Agriculture Education Teacher Twenty-five years ago, I was introduced to quite possibly the most important organization in my life. I was sitting in eighth grade English when several members of the Hillsdale FFA Chapter walked into the room for recruitment. They talked to us for a while, and showed a video called America, We Are The FFA. I was slightly intrigued, but unsure about joining, however, my friend Kathy Bartter was a member and many of my friends were joining, so I decided why not. I have always loved animals, especially horses, and I grew up wanting to be a vet. Little did I know that this organization was quickly going to lead me down a new career path. My first day in ag class opened my eyes to a whole new world of opportunities. I wanted to do everything I could possibly do. Thankfully, my ag teacher, Mark Hoffman, let me do pretty much that. Some of my favorite memories in high school came from freezing cold van rides in the Blue Goose, singing Dead Skunk in the Middle of the Road, practicing for contests at all hours of the day, and experiencing the joys of success in all levels of competition. I traveled the country, learned how to be a leader, and further developed my passion for agriculture. I was an FFA officer, a member of multiple state-winning CDE teams, I was third in the nation in Ag Sales, and I was a State and American Degree recipient. Heck, we might have been more successful as an FFA chapter at Hillsdale than we were as a softball program, and that is something to reckon with. Agricultural education and FFA shaped who I am today, and made me decide to become an ag teacher myself, so I could give my own students the opportunities I was given. Being an ag teacher It takes a special person to be an ag teacher most people I know call me crazy. It involves long hours, more time with your students than your own family, and a need to know a little about everything from agronomy to welding. I learned from one of the best and I am very proud of that. I often tell my own students, your ag teacher is like another parent, in fact, I often called Mr. Hoffman dad. It wouldnt take you long to determine where I came from, his influence plays a major role in what I do today. But I have added a little of my own flair as well. I am unbelievably proud of my kids; I push them hard every day, harder than some of them like. I have goals and expectations for them sometimes that makes me mean. I push them outside of their comfort zones, I help them grow. I expose them to cultural experiences and views that do not match their own, which makes me weird. I spend time with them in school, after school, on the weekends, and sometimes all night at lock-ins that makes me crazy, but I love every minute of it. There is nothing more satisfying than seeing a student succeed or see the light come on for them in class, that is what keeps me coming back day after day. A busy life and countless memories So what has your week entailed? Thanks to FFA, mine has been very busy. In class we are creating corn hole boards, welding, studying hydraulics and swine production. We are also raising tilapia in the aquaculture unit, trying our hand at hydroponic and aquaponic production of vegetables, and starting initial preparations for the 50th anniversary banquet and FFA week. This week, after school we have had Ag Power Diagnostics (tractor troubleshooting), dairy judging, and ag sales practices, district speaking, went snow tubing at Snow Trails, and hosted the Ag Power contest for 12 schools. This weekend we are sending teams to the Mount Gilead judging invitational and students to the Union Local Leadership Lock-In. Then there are the people. My high school buddies who were a part of countless memories. My ag teacher who shaped me and kept me sane in the early years of teaching. My teaching counterparts who give me advice, resources, and who I do not ever get to spend enough time with. My former students who are now my friends, have succeeded in life, and a have a deep passion for agriculture. My current students, who are the reason I do what I do, who frustrate me and motivate me to become better every day. The community, especially the agriculturalists who support our organization and keep our country running. And the friendships people who have accepted me for who I am, a crazy lady who loves agriculture, animals, the outdoors, interacting with people, and pushing students beyond their comfort zones. Why do I say thank you to the FFA... Its really simple: feeding the world, pride, technology, driven, passionate, loyal, dedicated, hard working, unstoppable, motivating, forceful, impactful, organization, career, lifestyle, family, friends, memories, future. More than you could ever imagine, something everyone should try, my life, #thankyouFFA. Read why Ohio FFA President Matthew Klopfenstein says #ThankstoFFA REYNOLDSBURG, Ohio The next round of funding is now available through the Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP), as part of a tri-state, five-year, $17.5 million program funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The goal of the program is to reduce nutrients and harmful algal blooms in Lake Erie by assisting farmers in installing conservation practices that benefit water quality in the western basin of Lake Erie. This year, applications received from Ohio livestock farmers will receive priority for funding. Nutrient management practices that allow for proper storage, timing and placement of nutrients will help livestock producers comply with Ohios new nutrient management laws. Get in touch Ohio livestock farmers located in the western Lake Erie basin watershed interested in applying for technical and financial assistance to implement these practices should contact their local USDA Service Center as soon as possible. The Tri-State Western Lake Erie Basin Phosphorus Reduction Initiative is a partnership effort that includes public, private and non-profit organizations and is led in Ohio by the Ohio Department of Agriculture. These partner organizations assist with promoting conservation opportunities and monitor the impact of these practices implemented through the initiative. For more information about conservation assistance available through the Tri-State Western Lake Erie Basin Phosphorus Reduction Initiative, visit Ohios USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service website at www.oh.nrcs.usda.gov. Related Coverage: Groups propose Ohio water quality bond issue (Oct. 27, 2015) Ohio legislature approves new nutrient bill (March 25) Ohio Senate passes water quality bill (Feb. 19) Governors budget includes water quality plans. "I believe our farmers are the best in the world and this government will continue to work hard to create opportunities for the sector, including by delivering the best possible access to global markets and building the infrastructure of the future. "It was a time when the government of the day was opposed to it, the other farm organisation was opposed to it and there was only a small group in the scientific community and ourselves in the farm lobby group sector that advocated for this technology to be used in WA. "The DAFWA model proposes a contractual commitment from DAFWA of five years of funding, but in our view that is a red flag and by the critical year two to three stage, staff will be more focused on the next round of funding than the research tasks at hand," he said. "They are there for certain people, for the growers of this State, and they've done it well in the past and I'm sure they'll do it well in the future." War in Syria. Conflict with Russia. Is Saudi-Arabia still a stable monarchy? And will there be a Brexit? Eurasia Group-president Ian Bremmer tells FAZ.NET about the big issues in international policy. Ian Bremmer ist Grunder und Chef des unabhangigen Analysehauses Eurasia Group, das auf Politikanalysen spezialisiert ist zum Beispiel fur Kunden in der Finanzbranche. Bild: Eurasia Group Mr Bremmer, French president Hollande recently warned Turkey of a war with Russia if it proceeds with its military action in Syria. Do you think that is a real danger? Alexander Armbruster Verantwortlicher Redakteur fur Wirtschaft Online. Folgen Ich folge I think that risk is overstated. Yes, Turkeys Erdogan is unpredictable, and weve already seen tensions flare between the two when Turkey shot down a Russian plane that strayed briefly into Turkish airspace. But NATO has made clear to Erdogan that other governments will not support more such deliberately provocative actions. At the same time, Europeans, who hoped in the beginning that Russian military action might help stabilize Syria and slow the flow of refugees, are clearly unnerved by Russias recent actions in Syria. Putin knows that an oil price rebound of any magnitude is unlikely and wants EU sanctions lifted. He has no incentive to provoke Europe/NATO right now. Erdogan and Putin are proud and impulsive leaders. But neither is stupid or crazy. Will there be a solution for the war in Syria this year and if so, how will it look like? No, no true solution is possible, because ISIS and militant groups like al-Nusra wont be party to any ceasefire. Even if the US, Europeans and Russia agree on a path forward, there are too many forces they cant control and too many militants for whom compromise in unthinkable. That means more refugees for Europe, perhaps even more in 2016 than the 1.8 million total migrants who arrived in 2015. Could the tensions between Saudi-Arabia and Iran lead to an open war and is that a scenario investors should confront themselves with? A direct war between Iran and Saudi Arabia is highly unlikely, because neither side believes it can afford such a costly confrontation without risking serious political and economic fallout. That said, we should expect intensifying proxy conflicts in Syria, Iraq, Yemen, and elsewhere. How stable is the Saudi monarchy? Less stable than in many years. The low oil price has already taken a heavy toll on Saudi reserves and has the Saudi economy headed toward real trouble over the medium term. Iran, out from under sanctions, is rising, and the shift in oil market share ensures a shift in the Middle Easts balance of power that does not favor the Saudis. Add Saudi fears that its allies (including Washington) are completely unreliable and that only its clients remain. Finally, if King Salman dies before his 30-year old son, Deputy Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman, has built alliances within the family, we could see open confrontation over the succession process. In short, Saudi Arabia, once the most predictable of players, has become the regions #1 wildcard. And thats a sigh of serious underlying weakness, not strength. Looking at the relations between Europe and Russia: Could there be a point in time, when Realpolitik European (and even the US) leaders will kind of accept Russias annex of the Crimea and the status quo in Eastern Ukraine in return for Russian help for stabilizing the Middle East, because it is the lesser evil? Many Europeans are already in that frame of mind. Italy, Hungary, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic have a very different view of relations with Russia than do Poland and the Baltic states. As with so many other European questions, Angela Merkel is the crucial actor, and there is a risk that the migrant crisis might so damage her politically that shes unable to build (or force) a European consensus on the Russia question. The problem for Putin, however, is that Russian action in Syria appears to be doing more harm than good, at least as far as the flow of refugees is concerned. When you talk to your clients in the financial sector, which topics are they most concerned about at the moment? Europe is a crucial question. The direction of the migrant crisis, the Brexit referendum, and the weakness of leaders on all sides. But there are also many questions about China and the potential for a hard landing of its economy; Im much less concerned about that. There is much uncertainty about the equilibrium oil price and the global damage done by volatility in those markets. Longer term, there are many questions on the political and economic fallout from inequality, weak labor markets, and social instability. What do you expect from the upcoming G20-meeting in Shanghai? Not much of substance, and certainly no big agreement on currency coordination. But there will probably be a welcoming of China into the SDR, damage control from the Chinese side on poor policy messaging, and promises for more structural reform and a limited devaluation. The Chinese will project confidence, but without the triumphalism of years past. And last not least: How do you think of the deal between British Prime Minister Cameron and the EU and will that result in a Brexit or not? And if Brexit, will Boris Johnson soon replace David Cameron? I dont think the outcome of the deal will be determined by anything Cameron agrees with EU leaders or anything Boris Johnson says. Its likely to be decided ultimately by the risk tolerance of British voters on the day. I still think the British will vote to remain within the EU, but a surge of new trouble with migrants--or a terrorist attack--could change that quickly and dramatically. As for Boris Johnson, he has to hope that voters prefer Camerons message over his--in order to keep Britain on solid economic ground and the Scots in the UK--but that Camerons win becomes a political Pyrrhic victory, and that Tories then turn to him for new leadership. Political gambles are rarely as cynical as that. HSBC Holdings said in an earnings release Monday that the SEC is investigating the banks hiring practices in Asia. London-based HSBC said it has received various requests for information and is cooperating with the SECs investigation. HSBC said the investigation relates to hiring practices of candidates referred by or related to government officials or employees of state-owned enterprises in Asia-Pacific. Hiring a family member or friend of a government official isnt always a violation of the FCPA. But a hiring decision intended to reward or induce an official to award work can be an offense. HSBC said the SEC is investigating hiring practices at multiple financial institutions, including HSBC. In August last year, BNY Mellon paid $14.8 million to settle SEC charges that its hiring practices violated the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. The SEC said the bank provided valuable student internships to family members of foreign government officials affiliated with a Middle Eastern sovereign wealth fund. Without admitting or denying the SECs findings, BNY Mellon agreed to pay $8.3 million in disgorgement, $1.5 million in prejudgment interest, and a $5 million penalty. In March last year, the SEC reportedly sent letters to five banks asking for details about their hiring practices in Asia. The banks were Credit Suisse, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Citigroup, and UBS. The DOJ and SEC are also investigating whether hiring decisions at JPMorgan were made to win business from Chinese companies in violation of the FCPA, according to reports. HSBC said Monday it cannot predict the resolution of this matter, including the timing or any possible impact on HSBC, which could be significant. HSBC Holdings plc trades on the NYSE under the symbol HSBC. ______ Richard L. Cassin is the publisher and editor of the FCPA Blog. He can be contacted here. Presidential hopeful Donald Trump continues to act the moron of the race for the White House as he spoke to crowds in Charleston about a story he claimed they could read about "in the history books". Unfortunately for Trump (and for those cheering), fact-checking site Snopes.com says that the story is actually an urban legend which originated online during 2001. Explaining the fake story of how one man dealt with terrorism, he said of General Pershing: "He took 50 bullets, and he dipped them in pigs' blood, and he had his men load rifles and he lined up 50 people, and they shot 49 of those people. And the 50th person he said, 'You go back to your people and you tell them what happened.' And for 25 years there wasn't a problem." Trump used the false tale to show how willing he was to go after terrorists and terrorism, but for those with more than a single brain cell in their heads it further cemented him as a man who shows huge disdain for Muslims in order to please his racist fans. "We better start getting tough, and we better start getting vigilant, and we better start using our heads, or we're not gonna have a country folks" he continued. Would Americans be better off living in a country led by a man who cannot fact-check his own stories? According to Snopes, the incident he cites isn't mentioned in a single biography of General Pershing, with his actions actually being described as a man wanting to minimise the number of casualties, only threatening to use the pig blood punishment and never actually going through with it. The story itself is a hoax spread via chain email forwards - one person who started it all must be feeling very strange about their fantastical story making it into a candidate for POTUS's pleas. This isn't the first lie Trump has told his supporters. At the back-end of last year he claimed he saw "thousands and thousands of people" cheering in New Jersey when the twin towers fell, a state he claimed had a large Arab population. Police in the local area have since dismissed those rumours and there isn't a single shred of footage or evidence existing to prove that thousands of people were celebrating the attack. He also says that his entire campaign is self-funded, but fails to mention that donors have played a huge part in his campaign. He's still, to-date, accepting donations on his official campaign website. Speaking about accepting Syrian refugees into the States, he said that those coming in are "mostly strong men", despite Buzzfeed News learning from a State Department spokesperson that "Military-aged males unattached to families comprise only approximately 2% of Syrian refugee admissions to-date" (November 2015). The fantasist claimed that US economic growth had "never" been below zero until the third quarter of 2015, failing to mention that it had in fact been below zero a whopping 42 times since 1946. Though his inconsistencies have been pointed out time and time again, Trump holds firm in his refusals to admit error whenever proof is given to show how wrong he is. He's a fantasist using fear to further his own gain and the thought of him becoming President of the United States is more terrifying than anything that's come before. It's impossible to know Trump's true feelings on certain matters because he's been incredibly contradictory in his position. He's a hideous competitor for presidency and I for one hope that America doesn't do the unthinkable and allow him into such a great position of power. by Daniel Falconer for www.femalefirst.co.uk find me on and follow me on Britain's Duchess of Cornwall returned to her old school yesterday (23.02.16). Britain's Duchess of Cornwall The 68-year-old royal - who is married to the Prince of Wales - attended an assembly at her former school, Queen's Gate School in South Kensington, London, to mark its 125th anniversary. Speaking to pupils at the school, she said: "I cannot believe that Queen's Gate has been going for 125 years; I feel like it's 125 years since I was here. I wish I could say I was a head girl, or even a prefect or captain of games - I was none of those, I might have been in the swimming team. "But I do remember I was a boarder here, which I hear now is abolished. I was a weekly boarder and lived right at the top of the school, quite cold, I think we were always made to have the windows open - fresh air." And Duchess Camilla also spoke to students about the "university of life," revealing her and her friends went travelling instead of university. She added: "I did leave when I was 16, I didn't go on to the sixth form. I think in those days we weren't encouraged to go to university. I think the very, very clever girls went on but nobody seemed to give us much inspiration to go on. "So we went off and explored the university of life, and Paris and Florence and London." Britain's Duchess of Cornwall was left visibly moved as she heard stories from survivors of the Holocaust. Britain's Duchess of Cornwall The 68-year-old royal visited the Jewish Care's Holocaust Survivors Centre in north west London, where she met with a number of people who were imprisoned by the Nazis between 1933 and 1945. In a speech, she said: "[These stories need to be passed] to my generation and to the next generation. I just hope these stories will continue so people know just how incredible you've all been. I'm also very proud this country has looked after you so well." Meanwhile, at the event, Duchess Camilla met with Henrietta Kelly, who she remembered after sitting next to her at a dinner to mark 70th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz last year. She told Jewish News: "She remembered me and another lady on my table - and even recalled what I'd told her that my parents didn't recognise each other when they met on the street in Paris after the War. "She really is so interested and chatty and made sure everybody had a chance to speak. I could never have imagined in a million years that I would meet a member of the Royal Family." 'Death in Paradise' is set to return for its sixth series. Kris Marshall as DI Humphrey Goodman The light-hearted crime drama has been given the go-ahead for another sun-soaked season next year following a ratings success of over six million throughout its fifth run. Tim Key, executive producer at the BBC, said: "I'm delighted that the fifth series of 'Death In Paradise' has proved so popular. We've got more ambitious plans for series six, with a whole host of intriguing puzzles as well as the joy of working with our amazing cast and guest stars. We can't wait to get back to Guadeloupe and start shooting." The next installment will consist of eight hour-long episodes as goofy DI Humphrey Goodman, played by Kris Marshall, attempts to solve murders alongside his Honore police team. But it's not just his impressive talent at solving mind-boggling crimes on the fictional island of Saint Marie that keep viewers tuned in every week as DI Humphrey's clumsy habits and disastrous love life also keeps fans gripped. Meanwhile, series five's finale is set to be an explosive one as it'll see the wedding of the hapless hunk's colleague JP Hooper (Tobi Bakare) as he reminisces on his own love life. But, although he's struggling to snap up a companion on the warm sandy island, series six could see the DI fall in love. 'Death in Paradise' is set to hit screens next year. Jeremy Clarkson has apologised to the former 'Top Gear' producer he punched and has agreed to pay damages. Jeremy Clarkson The 55-year-old presenter has been forced to folk out around 100,000 in order to settle a personal injury and racial discrimination claim after he left Oisin Tymon with a bloody lip and referred to him as a "lazy, Irish c***" last year. In a statement released today (24.02.16), Jeremy said: "I would like to say sorry, once again, to Oisin Tymon for the incident and its regrettable aftermath. I want to reiterate that none of this was in any way his fault. I would also like to make it clear that the abuse he has suffered since the incident is unwarranted and I am sorry too that he has had to go through that. I am pleased that this matter is now resolved. Oisin was always a creatively exciting part of 'Top Gear' and I wish him every success with his future projects." Oisin took legal action against Jeremy after the host smacked him in the face in March following a heated row over steak at a hotel in North Yorkshire following filming. The producer was forced to take months off work in order to recuperate but is now back working at the BBC. A spokesperson for the broadcaster said: "We are pleased that matters have now been resolved. Oisin has made an important contribution to the BBC in his 12 years with us, and we hope to see him continue to realise his potential in his role as a development executive." Jeremy, on the other hand, was sacked following the scuffle and is now hosting a new car show for Amazon Prime, alongside his co-stars James May and Richard Hammond. 'Top Gear' has been given a revamp since the incident and will return to screens in May with a new presenting line-up including; Chris Evans, Matt LeBlanc, Sabine Schmitz, Chris Harris, Eddie Jordan, Rory Reid and The Stig. Dubai-based retail and hospitality conglomerate Landmark Group's Value fashion brand Max, is targeting a revenue of Rs 3,000 crore by 2017-18 and plans to add around 100 stores in India in the next three years, a top company official said."We are growing at 35 per cent CAGR. This year we will be crossing Rs 1,800 crore. We are planning to become Rs 3,000 crore company in the next two years (FY18)," Max Fashion India Executive Director Vasanth Kumar told PTI. Dubai-based retail and hospitality conglomerate Landmark Group's Value fashion brand Max, is targeting a revenue of Rs 3,000 crore by 2017-18 and# Max, mostly a family-format store, is a $1.6 billion brand across 17 countries. It operates 140 stores across 50 cities in India and plans to take the total to 250 stores by 2018-19."We are expanding at the rate of one every two week, around 25 to 30 stores per year. We added 30 stores this year. We should be around 250 stores in the next three years," he said.The average size of a Max store is 10,000-12,000 sq ft and each store entails an investment of around Rs 5 crore. Max operates in a mid-market industry which is estimated to be around Rs 80,000 crore, largely dominated by organised players.This is the fastest growing segment in the apparel industry, growing at 10-12 per cent.In Bengaluru, Max is opening 60 per cent of the stores in high-street and 40 per cent in malls. High-street stores account for a third of the brand's business, Kumar said.Twenty five per cent of the revenue comes from men's wear, 20 per cent western wear (women), 18 per cent ethnic women's wear, 25 per cent kids wear and 12 per cent footwear and accessories.The brand gets 30 per cent of business from the youth in its regular store format. (SH) Fibre2Fashion News Desk India Bangladesh Commerce Minister Tofail Ahmed said the government has decided in principle to lower corporate tax on the readymade garment (RMG) sector from the current rate of 35 per cent.He also said the Seventh Five Year Plan targeted to raise the textile industry's contribution to gross domestic product to 33 per cent from the present 29 per cent. The textiles industry is Bangladesh's biggest industry. Bangladesh Commerce Minister Tofail Ahmed said the government has decided in principle to lower corporate tax on the readymade garment (RMG) sector# Ahmed's comment came at a function in Dhaka where he gave away certificates and employment letters to 29 people from Indian enclaves that are now part of Bangladesh. They had received training under the Skills for Employment Investment Programme (SEIP) and have been given jobs in three garment factories.As a business-friendly government, we are providing all cooperation to the business community so that they can do business and contribute to the national development and the economy, Ahmed said.Earlier, at a meeting at the Commerce Ministry, Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association had demanded corporate tax be slashed for the apparel sector.Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) President Siddiqur Rahman said the RMG industry would need three million skilled workers to increase annual export revenue from the current level of $25 billion to $50 billion in next five years.According to Rahman, BGMEA has plans to train 43,000 workers to help the apparel sector overcome a worker shortage of around 25 per cent. The BGMEA is collaborating with the SEIP in training workers. (SH) Fibre2Fashion News Desk India Sanjay Dutt, is being released from Pune's Yerawada Jail on February 25 and the actor is planning to take a chartered flight from Pune to Mumbai to avoid issues with the law and order, owing to the huge media that will gather outside the jail. The actor was first arrested in 19 April, 1993 for illegal possession of arms under the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities Act (TADA). In between he was let off on bail and again re-arrested. 1993 FLASHBACK PICS! When Sanjay Dutt Got Jailed For Mumbai Bomb Blast! After spending 16 months in jail, he was granted bail in October 1995 by the Supreme Court. During his confession to the police, which he later retracted, he had revealed that don Abu Salem visited his house in January 1993 with Samir Hingora and Hanif Kadawala who are close associates of Dawood Ibrahim. He even revealed that he had brought three AK-56 rifles, out of which he kept one to protect his family, who was receiving threats following the Babri Masjid demolition. REVEALED! Why Priyanka Chopra Is Not Meeting Deepika Padukone In Toronto? After blasts, Dutt claimed to have panicked and asked his friend, Yusuf Nulwalla, to destroy the rifle. 13 serial explosions took place in Mumbai on Friday, March 12, 1993 that killed over 250 people, leaving 700 injured. This terror attack was said to be the brain child of Pakistani ISI supported by underworld dons and smugglers. In March 2006, Abu Salem confessed to have delivered AK-56 rifles to Sanjay Dutt. Actor Sanjay Dutt got convicted for possessing illegal weapons and destruction of evidence under the Arms Act. He was given a clean chit when it came to involvement in planning or executing the Mumbai blasts. Out of 100 people who got convicted, Dawood Ibrahim, Tiger Memon and Ayub Memon are still absconding. This 1993 Bombay bombings is an unfortunate incident that no Indian will ever forget. Let's take a look at that year's pictures when Sanjay Dutt was arrested and jailed for his involvement. Varun Dhawan, who is working out day and night, making his body more and more ripped is one of those Bollywood hunks, who is obsessed with Instagram. Out of the many selfies, on the sets pics etc he posts, most hot ones would be his half-naked, shirtless pictures that can turn on any female fan. These HALF-NAKED Selfies Of Varun Dhawan That Will Arouse You! The actor is seen working out half-naked, waking up half-naked, surfing half-naked and even posing for photoshoots half-naked. Basically, Varun Dhawan is a die-hard fan of Salman Khan who doesn't like to wear shirts and is often seen taking topless selfies. 1993 FLASHBACK PICS! When Sanjay Dutt Got Jailed For Mumbai Bomb Blast! The actor has a crazy hot body with six-pack abs which he often shows off in his movies, be it in his debut, Student Of The Year or in Main Tera Hero, Varun shows off his hot body at the drop of the hat and why not, we love it baby! The actor who is now shooting for Dishoom along with John Abraham, Jacqueline Fernandez, Nargis Fakhri and Saquib Saleem posted a topless picture of himself surfing in Abu Dhabi. He worn just his swimming trunks and showed off his 6-pack abs. FINALLY Priyanka Chopra Opens Up About Her Boyfriend! He is one of those Bollywood actors, obsessed with working out in the gym as much as he is obsessed with Instagram and why not, his idol is THE ROCK, Dwayne Johnson who himself is a fitness freak. So... Much like his idol, Dwayne, Varun likes to workout in the gym as much as possible. Take a look at his half-naked Instagram selfies and you'll know just how hot he is. These hot pics will surely arouse his fans. Two of Asia's rarest quasi-sovereign credits choose the same day to launch landmark bond deals on Tuesday, with a $750 million global sukuk issue from Malaysian sovereign wealth fund Khazanah Nasional Berhad and a 1.1 billion deal from its Singaporean counterpart Temasek. Both deals were ground breaking transactions in their own right given that Khazanah was bringing its first straight dollar sukuk and Temasek has never issued in euros before. However, some market participants queried why Temasek decided to press the button on its deal knowing that Khazanah was already in the market. "I know they're targeting different investor bases but comparisons will be inevitable so you have to wonder whether Temasek wanted to steal Khazanah's thunder," one fund manager told FinanceAsia. Syndicate bankers replied that the timing was pure coincidence. "These are both thoughtful borrowers," said one. "They've each been preparing to come to market for a while. It's just one of those things." And indeed, the two deals turned out to be very different beasts with a stark difference in their respective order books - a tale of fire and ice. Khazanah struggled to build up a meaningful demand compared to previous sovereign sukuk deals from Malaysia and ended up with a club-like deal and significant allocations to Malaysia. Temasek, by contrast, executed a true institutional offering that attracted a 2.15 billion final order book. One thing in common the two sovereign wealth funds do share is a reputation for punchy pricing and the two new transactions showed both acting true to form, according to fund managers. Khazanah prices through fair value Bankers estimated that Khazanah priced about 2bp through the tightest end of fair value estimates spanning 180bp to 188bp over Treasuries. The sovereign rated group was only able to build up a peak order book of $850 million at the time price guidance was revised from 190bp over Treasuries to between 178bp and 180bp. Bankers said a few orders dropped off at this point, but there was still enough of a margin to complete a $750 million deal. Final pricing for the unrated Reg S Wakalah trust certificate was fixed at par with a distribution yield of 3.035%. The issuance vehicle was Danga Capital Berhad, which acted as issuer and trustee - in line with many shariah-compliant transactions where interest payments are structured as profit sharing arrangements. Distribution stats show that 50% went to Malaysia, 39% rest of Asia and 11% Europe. By investor type banks took 81%, central banks 13% and fund managers 6%. Syndicate bankers said they opted against using Khazanah's 3.725% August 2020 paper as a benchmark since it is denominated in Singapore dollars and trades with a different dynamic to Malaysian sovereign entities' dollar-denominated debt. Instead, most accounts focused on the Federation of Malaysia's 4.646% July 2021 global sukuk. This was trading on a G-spread of 138bp on Tuesday, which means Khazanah has offered a 40bp premium on a like-for-like basis. However, bankers said a number of accounts had argued for a 50bp pick up. This was partly based on the new transaction's lack of rating, which barred some accounts from participating. It was also based on the fact that Khazanah's original debut sukuk, issued in 2006, carries an explicit sovereign guarantee. This M$2 billion ($474 million) deal matures in December 2016 but is being redeemed next month. Another comparable was Petronas' 2.707% 2020 bond, which was trading on a G-spread of 174bp on Tuesday. Historically, Petronas has always traded through the Federation based on a two notch higher rating of A1 from Moody's compared to the sovereign's A3 rating. Falling oil prices have put paid to that, however, and it now trades up to 40bp wider. "Khazanah's new sukuk offers a little bit of a pick up to the sovereign sukuk and is relatively generous compared to Petronas," one banker commented. The banker added that the syndicate expects very few loose bonds when the deal opens for trading on Wednesday. "I can see how pricing looks from the outside given the size of the order book," the banker added. "But about half this deal has gone to buy-and-hold investors in Malaysia and the order book was very clean. These are very sticky accounts." Khazanah needed to rely on its home market because Malaysia is hardly flavour of the month with international investors right now given its oil-dependent economy and the ongoing Swiss investigation into Malaysia's state investment fund 1MDB. In an Instagram post earlier this month, CIMB chairman Nazir Razak compared his country's situation to George RR Martin's Game of Thrones. The brother of prime minister Najib Razak said, "So what lies ahead? The parallels with GoT continue. The future terrifies me: I just can't see how our institutions can recover, how our political atmosphere can become less toxic, how our international reputation can be repaired." The impact of this was clearly demonstrated by the difference between Khazanah's $850 million order book and the $9 billion in demand the Federation attracted last April when it priced its fourth international sukuk - a $1.5 billion split 10- and 3-year global deal. Some four years earlier, it had also been able to build up a similar $9 billion order book for a $2 billion split five- and 10-year sukuk. Both tranches of the April 2015 deal are trading below issue price, with the 2025 tranche quoted at 98.76% on a yield of 3.2% during Asian trading on Tuesday and the 2045 tranche at 98.02% on a yield of 4.356%. At the same time, there have been some signs of spread stability since the beginning of the year, with the 10-year yielding 3.67% at the end of December and the 30-year at 4.8%. Where Khazanah's own credit is concerned, some investors were also probably focused on its falling profitability thanks to its restructuring efforts with Malaysian Airlines and the likelihood it will need to pay additional dividends to the government because of the shortfall in oil revenues. In its ratings release, Rating Agency Malaysia (RAM) said that Khazanah's debt had spiked to M$38.8 billion last May, up from M$35.8 billion in December. Over the course of 2014, the group's interest coverage ratios also weakened from 5.54 times at the end of 2013 to 3.87 times one year later. Joint global bookrunners for its new deal were CIMB, DBS and Standard Chartered. This is a different line up to the banks, which took Khazanah on a roadshow for a sukuk deal in mid-January before volatile global markets made the deal impossible to execute. Then the group had mandated Barclays, CIMB, Morgan Stanley and UBS. The only bank to make it through to the final cut is CIMB, which is not that surprising given Khazanah is its single largest shareholder. Temasek makes euro entry While Khazanah was struggling to attract investor interest, its much larger counterpart made a successful euro debut on Tuesday, taking advantage of recent spread performance along its dollar curve. Temasek is almost five times larger than Khazanah in terms of assets with $193.73 billion in March 2015, according to RAM, compared to Khazanah's $44.44 billion at the end of December 2014. The triple-A rated credit raised 1.1 billion from a split six- and 12-year deal in the name of Temasek Financial after building up a combined order book of 2.15 billion, split 1.25 bilion for the six-year tranche and 900 million for the 12-year. This was not overly large relative to the kind of demand other triple-A rated European entities attract, but was still a reasonable enough coverage ratio given the tight pricing and lack of name recognition. Final pricing for the 600 million six-year tranche came at 99.336% on a coupon of 0.5% to yield 0.613% or 48bp over mid-swaps. It wsa initially marketed at 55bp to 60bp over. Deal stats show that by geography Germany took 23.5%, other Europe 17.5%, the UK 14.3%, Switzerland 9.1%, France 8.9%, Netherlands 6.6%, Portugal 3.7%, Asia 12.5%, Middle East 2.5%, offshore 1.3%. By investor type fund managers took 47.6%, other 15.8%, central banks and agencies 15.4%, insurers and pension funds 12%, banks 6.2% and private banks 3%. The 500 million 12-year tranche was priced at 99.913% on a coupon of 1.5% to yield 1.508% or 80bp over mid-swaps. It was initially marketed at 80bp to 83bp over. By geography 48.9% went to Germany, 18.6% to France, 7.4% to Switzerland, 6.5% to other Europe, 16% to the UK and 1.6% to Asia. By investor type insurers and pension funds took 58.6%, fund managers 35.2%, banks 2.9%, private banks 1.6% and other 1.7%. Temasek's closest foray in European waters came in 2010 when it raised $1.07 billion in sterling bonds. This was trading Tuesday on a mid-price of 117.88% to yield 62.4bp on a G-spread basis and 54.2bp on a Z-spread basis. The remainder of its international bond portfolio is in dollars. Two key comps were its 4.3% 2019 bonds and 2.375% 2023 bonds. The former was yielding around the 1.82% level on Tuesday, equating to a Z-spread of 83bp, and the latter at 2.25% on a Z-spread of 91bp. Both have been on a tightening bias since the end of December when the 2023 was quoted around the 2.75%. According to its website, Temasek currently has $9.75 billion outstanding. Joint bookrunners for the deal were Barclays, Citi, Deutsche Bank and HSBC. This story has been updated since first publication with final deal statistics. * FinanceAsia's 7th Annual Borrowers and Investors Forum takes place in Hong Kong on March 2. For registration and more details click here. US law firm Latham & Watkins has hired three new partners to join its Hong Kong unit to fortify its private equity and leveraged finance advisory business, the company said in a statement on Wednesday. The firm, which rose to 31st last year on the Dealogic Asia ex-Japan mergers and acquisitions league table from 53rd the year before, wooed Simon Cooke from Clifford Chance, a London-headquartered law firm. Cooke specialised in private and public M&A and corporate finance with a focus on pan-Asian private equity transactions and also advised on growth capital, pre-IPO investments and private investment in public equity, the firm said in a statement. According to Cookes LinkedIn profile, he worked at Clifford Chance for about 20 years. Meanwhile, Amy Beckingham joined the company from Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer where she spent about 12 years in its London and Hong Kong offices. She provides advice to private equity and financial investors in public and private M&A as well as joint ventures. Gary Hamp joined the company from Hogan Lovells, where he focused on acquisition and leveraged finance and worked with a number of investment and commercial banks in London and Hong Kong, the statement said. Hamp spent more than 11 years at Hogan Lovells, according to his LinkedIn profile. Strong growth Latham & Watkins advised on $14.5 billion worth of M&A transactions in Asia ex-Japan last year, according to data-tracking firm Dealogic. Bryant Edwards, chairman of the law firm's Asia practice, said he saw a strong growth in private equity and related business in Asia, in particular where high yield has grown to become a significant part of leverage finance. Over the years, Latham has been deeply involved in the development of private equity and leveraged finance markets in the United States and Europe, and there are clear signs that those markets are growing and evolving in Asia, Bill Voge, managing partner of Latham & Watkins, said in the statement. The firm separately also said that it plans to open an office in Seoul after signing a property lease in the capital city of South Korea. The Seoul office will be the firms sixth base in Asia, adding to Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Singapore, and Tokyo. Seoul is a vibrant business and financial hub with strong and growing importance across the region and globally. We have more than two decades of experience working with a number of key South Korean market players and we are committed to supporting our South Korean clients. Voge told FinanceAsia. One advisor stole from clients who cleaned homes for a living. Another embezzled from a nonprofit. A third siphoned money out of client accounts via ATM transactions. That's according to FINRA, which has permanently barred all three former advisors from the industry for allegedly stealing nearly identical sums from clients through, or while, working for large firms in different parts of the country. The regulator announced the cases in its monthly report of disciplinary actions. Read More: FINRA Erases Many Broker Disciplinary Records None of the accused former advisors could be reached for comment. SELF-EMPLOYED HOUSEKEEPERS Between August 2011 and June 2013, Primerica Financial Services advisor Nahuel Rodriguez allegedly told three clients and one outside investor he would invest their money. Instead he took $26,144 from them for himself. Three of the clients were self-employed housekeepers. "Rodriguez convinced one of the customers to liquidate her IRA by falsely telling her that he would transfer the money to a new account that would produce greater returns," according to the FINRA case. "Rodriguez also impersonated one of the customers when he directed his firm to liquidate the customers joint account at the firm. Once the firm transferred the funds, he told the joint account customers that the firm mistakenly had wired money from his account into theirs. Through this misrepresentation Rodriguez was able to get the customers to turn the money over to him." Primerica returned $14,844 of the nearly $20,000 Rodriguez took from two of the married housekeepers. A spokesman for the firm did not immediately return a message inquiring as to why it did not recoup the housekeepers' full loss. The firm repaid the entire sum lost by another client, $1,300. A fourth victim, an outside investor, gave Rodriguez $5,000, thinking he or she was opening a client with Primerica after signing a falsified "new account form," according to FINRA. In that case, Rodriguez repaid the client $800 and Primerica returned the $4,200 balance. ALLEGED NONPROFIT EMBEZZLEMENT A contract broker with Transamerica Financial Advisors, Lori Hermanson, worked as a treasurer for a nonprofit, from which she took about $26,000 for her personal expenses between January 2012 and November 2015, the regulator says. Hermanson, based in Denver, wrote $20,000 in checks and took $6,000 in cash withdrawals from the nonprofit's checking account, according to BrokerCheck. The nonprofit filed a police report about the missing funds. Transamerica "did not approve or have any connection to Ms. Hermansons outside business activity, nor does it appear that any of TFAs customers were impacted by her actions," a Transamerica spokesman said, adding that the firm terminated its relationship with Hermanson. THEFT ALLEGED VIA ATM JPMorgan Chase bank employee William Roldan, based in Clifton, N.J., stole $26,000 from clients via ATM withdrawals between July and November of last year, the regulator says. A spokesman for the firm said the bank immediately notified authorities after discovering Roldan's theft. "The employee was fired and we will continue to ensure that any impacted customers are reimbursed," the spokesman said. Read more: Wealthfront's Adam Nash rejects industry analyst consensus about the threat of digital startups. A number now insist that robo advice has been co-opted by stalwart financial firms and they say the threat of industry disruption has faded. Nash, however, says that digital advice platforms have plenty of fight left. "Young companies only have two advantages over incumbents: their pace of innovation and focus," he writes. "Schwab rolled out an automated service in 2015 that looks a lot like our service looked in 2012." Nash's comments were posted on the Silicon Valley-based Q&A website, Quora. The question, from a French research assistant: "How can Wealthfront retaliate against the Schwabs, Fidelities and even BlackRocks entering the robo-advising space?" Nash's answer sought to address the rapid growth of the digital offerings of incumbents, and put into context the future potential of digital-first platforms. The biggest names have made big strides. Vanguard's Personal Advisor Services alone had approximately $31 billion in total assets under management, with $21 billion from new money by the end of 2015. Schwab's Intelligent Portfolios service has a reported $5 billion. BlackRock, the largest U.S. asset manager with approximately $4.5 trillion, acquired robo firm FutureAdvisor last year, and this year inked deals to provide platforms to RBC Wealth Management and BBVA Compass, one of the country's largest banks. Meanwhile, Wealthfront, Betterment and Personal Capital, considered the three top independents, have a current total $7.6 billion reported AUM. Analysts such as Chip Roame, manager partner at Tiburon, view the AUM gap as a sign of a coming mass extinction of independent robo platforms. "Discount brokerage firms will predominantly win the robo race," Roame says. "A few of the VC-backed firms may also survive but the larger AUM will flow to the former." Nash acknowledges the challenge brought by large financial firms, recounting the lessons he learned studying under noted disruption theorist Clayton Christensen. "Charles Schwab, Fidelity and other incumbents have huge budgets and advantages over a small startup like Wealthfront," he writes. But the growth of their online products comes from gathering the assets of a baby boomer market already invested in them, he argues, whereas Wealthfront is focused on the future. "If you are a multi-trillion dollar incumbent looking to grow, the next decade has to be about aggressively pursuing the baby boom generation as they navigate retirement," he says. "Wealthfront has the opportunity to target a newer, smaller market of investors with a new service and new technology, and grow up with this generation of investors the way that Schwab, Fidelity and others did with the baby boom generation." In the past, Nash and Schwab have traded barbs over their respective digital advice offerings. "Our job is to make sure that the gap in capabilities and value we deliver grows over time, Nash writes. Over the coming months and years youll see these inevitable dynamics play out. A response from Schwab wasn't immediately available. Read more: OTTAWA, ONTARIO -- (Marketwired) -- 02/23/16 -- Itinerary for the Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, for Wednesday, February 24, 2016: Ottawa 10:00 a.m. The Prime Minister will attend the National Caucus meeting. 2:00 p.m. The Prime Minister will attend Question Period. 4:00 p.m. The Prime Minister will meet with Prince Edward Island Premier Wade MacLauchlan. Centre Block, Office of the Prime Minister Parliament Hill Ottawa, Ontario Notes for media: - Photo opportunity only 5:15 p.m. The Prime Minister will attend a reception to mark the 20th Anniversary of Black History Month in Canada. Room 237-C Centre Block Parliament Hill Ottawa, Ontario Notes for media: - Photo opportunity only - Media should arrive no later than 5 p.m. Contacts: PMO Media Relations: 613-957-5555 BARCELONA, Spain, Feb. 24, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- China Mobile launched its 5G Joint Innovation Center project at the GTISummit 2016, which was held during the World Mobile Congress (WMC) in Barcelona, Spain on Feb. 23, 2016. The world's largest telecom company also announced its business targets of reaching 1.40 million TD-LTE base stations, selling 330 million 4G devices and expanding the 4G subscriber base to over 500 million by the end of 2016. According to Mr. Shang Bing, Chairman of China Mobile, the company has deployed 1.10 million TD-LTE base stations as of the end of 2015, covering over 1.2 billion population and has achieved 4G roaming with 114 countries and regions; China Mobile sold 300 million TD-LTE devices in 2015, indicating the addition of more than 400 TD-LTE users every minute; China Mobile's 4G subscriber base reached 340 million, accounting for about 30% of global number. Moreover, China Mobile has completed the deployment of carrier aggregation (CA) in over 300 cities and has commercialized VoLTE services in 100 cities. Speaking of the goal for next year, Shang Bing said that China Mobile will speed up 4G deployment by increasing the number of TD-LTE base stations to 1.40 million and deploy CA technologies in central and hot-spot areas of all cities by the end of 2016; to commercialize VoLTE services in over 260 cities in the first half of 2016; to commercialize the Rich Communication Service (RCS) in the second half of the year; to accelerate the uptake of VoLTE/CA-enabled devices, sell 330 million 4G devices and expand the 4G user base to over 500 million in 2016. China Mobile supports GTI in driving the global deployment of TD-LTE and the converged development of FDD/TDD and will actively promote roaming of 4G and VoLTE. It will develop dedicated networks for the Internet of Things and aims to develop 100 million IoT connections in 2016. Moreover, Shang Bing pointed out that the company expects to increase the maturity of narrow-band IoT (NB-IOT) and strives to commercialize it in 2017. Mr. Li Zhengmao, Vice President of China Mobile, together with the representatives of the first 11 partners, jointly launched the China Mobile 5G Joint Innovation Center at the summit. The Center aims to conduct joint innovation on applications and products with industry partners in such areas as basic communications, IoT, telematics, industrial Internet, cloud robotics and virtual/augmented reality, through open labs, and thus build an integrated cross-industry ecosystem and achieve win-win cooperation in the process of migrating from 4G to 5G. Earlypartners include Huawei, ZTE, Ericsson, Nokia, Qualcomm, Datang, Intel, Keysight, Beijing Shougang Automation Information Technology Co., Ltd., Haier, and Hisense. China Mobile also introduced cost-effective VoLTE/CA devices and chip solutions during the summit, including its self-branded VoLTE/CA devices such as A1s, A2 and N2. Together with Samsung, China Mobile introduced 5 new customized VoLTE devices; in partnership with Qualcomm and MTK, China Mobile launched VoLTE+ down-link and up-link CA chip solutions at the price point of $100; jointly with Spreadtrum and Leadcore, China Mobile released VoLTE chip solutions at the price point of $50. The summit marks the 5th anniversary of GTI. Over 700 representatives from the ITU, the Chinese government, GSMA, China Mobile, India's Bharti, Japan's Softbank, Korea's KT participated to share their views and insights on such topics as the converged development of TD-LTE and TDD/FDD across the world, TD-LTE evolution, trends of 3.5GHz industry, 5G strategies and visions, and cross-industry applications. Having released the next five-year strategic plan, GTI is committed to promoting the commercialization of TD-LTE on a wider scale in the world and the deeper integration between TD-LTE and FDD, enabling TDD technology to play a more important role in the 5G era, and building up an eco-system for win-win cross-industry cooperation. A.M. Best is an associate sponsor of Multaqa Qatar 2016, to be held 13-15 March in Doha, Qatar. A.M. Best will host a briefing on forthcoming revisions to the structure of Best's Credit Rating Methodology at 15:00 on Monday 14 March at the conference venue, The St. Regis Doha Hotel. Nick Charteris-Black, managing director, market development, EMEA; Greg Carter, managing director, analytics, EMEA; and Vasilis Katsipis, general manager, market development, MENA South Central Asia, will attend the conference and be available for meetings. To arrange a meeting, please email Bouchra.AbouNader@ambest.com. More information about the conference is available at http://www.multaqa.com.qa/multaqa/. A.M. Best rates more than 50 (re)insurance companies in the GCC and broader MENA region, and in 2012, opened a representative office in the Dubai International Financial Centre to support its growing presence in the region. To learn more about Best's Credit Ratings, please visit http://www.ambest.com/ratings. A.M. Best is the world's oldest and most authoritative insurance rating and information source. For more information, visit www.ambest.com. Copyright 2016 by A.M. Best Company, Inc. and/or its affiliates. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160223006834/en/ Contacts: A.M. Best Company Charlotte Jackson, +(44) 20 7626 6264 charlotte.jackson@ambest.com CANBERA (dpa-AFX) - The New Zealand dollar weakened against the other major currencies in the Asian session on Wednesday. The NZ dollar fell to more than a 3-week low of 1.0874 against the Australian dollar and nearly a 2-week low of 73.84 against the yen, from yesterday's closing quotes of 1.0836 and 74.42, respectively. Against the euro and the U.S. dollar, the kiwi dropped to a 2-day low of 1.6686 and a 5-day low of 0.6606 from yesterday's closing quotes of 1.6576 and 0.6637, respectively. If the kiwi extends its downtrend, it is likely to find support around 1.09 against the aussie, 73.00 against the yen, 1.70 against the euro and 0.65 against the greenback. 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. BRUSSELS (dpa-AFX) - The Swiss franc weakened against most major currencies in the Asian session on Wednesday. The Swiss franc fell to 0.9932 against the U.S. dollar and 112.44 against the yen, from yesterday's closing quotes of 0.9911 and 113.06, respectively. Against the euro, the franc edged down to 1.0941 from yesterday's closing value of 1.0919. If the Swiss franc extends its downtrend, it is likely to find support around 1.02 against the greenback, 111.00 against the yen and 1.10 against the euro. 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) - Independent energy company Apache Corp. (APA) remains focused on driving the expansion of its North American portfolio, as it is the company's primary growth engine for the future. However, Apache's international businesses have a demonstrated track record of delivering very high rates of return, along with the ability to sustain production volumes through time and provide significant free cash flow back to the corporation. In order to build its overall financial strength further, the company has significantly streamlined and high graded its portfolio; strengthened its balance sheet and liquidity; and has relentlessly pursued cost reductions. Apache is set to release its fourth-quarter numbers before the bell on Thursday, February 25, with analysts polled by Thomson Reuters estimating a loss of $0.47 per share on revenue of $1.42 billion. Analysts' estimate typically exclude certain special items. In the last quarter, the company delivered on its operational and financial guidance, made excellent progress on its cost reduction initiatives, and had tremendous success with the drill bit, most notably in the Permian Basin, Egypt and in the North Sea. Apache raised its full-year 2015 North American onshore production guidance to a range of 307,000 - 309,000 boe per day, from prior guidance of 305,000 - 308,000 boe per day. John Christmann, IV, Apache's chief executive officer and president, said, 'As we turn to 2016, prudent capital allocation will continue to be our primary focus as we strive to spend within cash flows, enhance our returns and grow value for our shareholders.' 'Longer-term, we have great confidence in the potential inherent in our portfolio. Our extensive, high-quality position in North American resource plays will continue to be the driver of our long-term growth,' he added. Q3 Overview The company's third-quarter net loss totaled $5.7 billion or $14.95 per share, wider than $1.33 billion or $3.50 incurred last year. The latest results included a ceiling test write down of $3.7 billion resulting from current low commodity price levels and a $1.5 billion charge related to an increase in the valuation allowance on deferred tax assets. Adjusted net loss totaled $0.05 per share, while it was earnings per share of $1.27 last year. Analysts expected a loss of $0.36 per share. Revenues plunged to $1.496 billion from $3.441 billion in the prior year. Analysts expected revenues of $1.58 billion. The company's global production in the quarter was 542,000 barrels of oil equivalent or boe per day. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Kostenloser Wertpapierhandel auf Smartbroker.de BARCELONA, SPAIN -- (Marketwired) -- 02/24/16 -- Airspan Networks Inc., a leading provider of LTE-Advanced Compact and Small Cells and innovative small cell backhaul and front haul solutions announced today a partnership with P.I. Works, a leading provider of mobile network performance improvement solutions, for interworking, marketing, and launch of products. The core value proposition to Mobile Network Operators delivered by this partnership, aims to bring savings in OPEX and CAPEX as well as significant improvements in subscriber experience, network quality, efficiency and performance. With the AirRAN product line, Airspan is driving innovation and cost efficiency into LTE-Advanced Small Cells Mobile Network deployments with an expansive product portfolio, which includes indoor and outdoor small cells, all-outdoor compact Micro and Mini-Macro base stations, a wide variety of user devices, and advanced core network products. These connectivity solutions operate in LTE access bands up to 5 GHz. Airspan supports a range of deployment use cases and has full "plug and play" capabilities. P.I. Works is a leading supplier of centralized Self-Organizing Network (SON) solutions, providing fully-automated SON products combined with SON-powered Managed Services to improve the mobile subscriber experience and network quality, efficiency, and performance. P.I. Works' products are already deployed and being utilized by 38 leading operators, in 27 countries. Numerous studies have shown that more than 80% of network performance problems are due to RF resource overload conditions, interference, and poor RF signal coverage. P.I. Works uSON products identify areas of weak performance, related to capacity issues, coverage gaps, and high interference areas in the radio access networks, and apply configuration changes automatically to ensure the best network performance. In addition to the go-to-market collaboration, the companies also announced today a technology partnership. This partnership will allow deeper integration of P.I. Works centralized uSON to orchestrate the optimal fit of Airspan's LTE-Advanced Small Cell products into an Operator's network. The arrangement includes the exchange of technical information, pre-integration, and interoperability conformity with Airspan network elements. Paul Senior, CTO Airspan Networks said "We are extremely pleased to be in this strategic partnership with P.I. Works. It's a great fit and dovetails neatly into to our cutting edge Small Cells ecosystem. Airspan and P.I. Works together will empower our common Mobile Network Operator customers by delivering a true HETNET Architecture which results in increased Network Quality, Performance, Capacity, Coverage as well as significant OPEX and CAPEX savings." Basar Akpinar CEO of P.I. Works said "P.I. Works is very pleased to provide a vertically-integrated solution with Airspan to address Operator's pressing needs to manage HETNETs. Airspan's small cell solutions in combination with P.I. Works uSON solutions will bring significant improvements in quality and reductions in cost to the bottom line of Mobile Network Operators worldwide. This shows again our commitment to delivering strong value to our customers." P.I. Works is showcasing uSON product line at Mobile World Congress 2016 in Barcelona, in Hall 1, at Booth #1G20. Airspan is demonstrating live its LTE Relay Product lines at MWC 2016 in Barcelona in Hall 6 Stand J30. About Airspan Networks Inc. Airspan (OTC PINK: AIRO) is a leading LTE RAN solution provider, with over 1000 customers in over 100 countries. Airspan is regularly recognized as a leader and pioneer in LTE Access and innovative Backhaul solutions. Airspan has an expansive product portfolio, which includes indoor and outdoor small cells, and all-outdoor, compact Micro and Macro base stations, a wide variety of user devices, and advanced core network products. These connectivity solutions operate in bands from 400 MHz up to 6.4 GHz. www.airspan.com. Oak Investment Partners XI, Limited Partnership holds a controlling interest in Airspan. Airspan is not subject to the informational reporting requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and, accordingly, does not file reports, financial statements, proxy statements, information statements or other information with the Securities and Exchange Commission. This press release contains forward-looking statements. All statements, other than statements of historical facts, including statements regarding our strategy, future operations, financial position, future revenues, projected costs, prospects, plans and objectives of management, may be deemed to be forward-looking statements. The words "anticipates," "believes," "estimates," "expects," "intends," "may," "plans," "projects," "will," "would" and similar expressions or negative variations thereof are intended to identify forward-looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements contain these identifying words. We may not actually achieve the plans, intentions or expectations disclosed in our forward-looking statements and you should not place undue reliance on our forward-looking statements. There are a number of important factors that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from the plans, intentions and expectations disclosed in the forward-looking statements we make. Investors and others are therefore cautioned that a variety of factors, including certain risks, may affect our business and cause actual results to differ materially from those set forth in the forward-looking statements. We do not assume any obligation to update any forward-looking statements. About P.I. Works. P.I. Works is a leading provider in the area of network performance management and Self-Organizing Network solutions. These products and services enable mobile operators to improve their network quality and end user quality of experience. P.I. Works has deployed solutions to 38 operators in 27 countries. P.I Works is a member of the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI), playing an important role in the standardization process as an independent software solution provider in the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) SON (Self Organizing Networks) forum. For more information visit http://www.piworks.net/ For Media Inquiries, contact: Paul Senior Chief Technical Officer and SVP of Product Strategy Airspan Networks Inc. Tel. +44 1895 467100 Email: psenior@airspan.com Lara Handan Elbirlik Director, Marketing P.I. Works Tel. +90 216 999 1099 Email: marketing@piworks.net Neste Jacobs Oy Press release 24 February, 2016 at 9.00 (EET) Neste Jacobs awarded a framework agreement for engineering and project implementation services with Gasum Neste Jacobs has signed a five-year framework agreement with Gasum for engineering and project implementation services. The agreement covers engineering, project management, procurement, HSE and documentation services for Gasum's gas network and biogas projects in Finland. Neste Jacobs has a long-standing relationship with Gasum. "We are very pleased to continue our cooperation with Gasum and provide our services in these engineering and implementation projects", says Jarmo Suominen, CEO of Neste Jacobs. "This agreement is significant in our extensive and wide-ranged cooperation with Gasum which includes also active development of Finland's LNG infrastructure." "We are convinced of Neste Jacobs' capabilities to carry out the assignments within the agreement and have been pleased with the services provided by Neste Jacobs so far", says Mika Simola, Head of Project Management, Gasum Ltd. For more information, please contact: Jarmo Suominen, CEO, Neste Jacobs Oy, tel. +358 50458 3399 Outi Ervasti, Head of Consulting, Neste Jacobs Oy, tel. +358 50 458 9741 Mika Simola, Head of Project Management, Gasum Ltd, tel. +358 40 559 34 27 Neste Jacobs is a preferred solution provider of high-quality technology, engineering and project services for a wide range of industries in the fields of oil and gas, petrochemicals, chemicals, bio-refining, bio-chemicals, biopharma and industrial infrastructure. We have 60 years of experience in technology development and industrial investment projects as well as maintenance and performance improvement in Europe, North and South America, Asia and the Middle East. In addition to our home market Nordic countries we are looking to grow in the global expanding markets. We employ 1300 professionals globally. www.nestejacobs.com (http://www.nestejacobs.com) Gasum is a Finnish gas sector (natural gas and biogas) expert that is building a bridge to a carbon-neutral society on land and at sea. Gasum contributes to the creation of a sustainable energy economy by increasing the supply of Finnish biogas, developing the Nordic gas ecosystem and ensuring the price competitiveness of gas. Gasum imports natural gas to Finland, upgrades biogas and transmits and delivers these for a broad range of uses in energy production, industry, homes, and land and maritime transport. Gasum is the leading supplier of biogas in Finland. It injects biogas into the gas network from Espoo, Kouvola and Lahti, and from 2016 onwards also from Riihimaki. The Gasum subsidiary Skangas is a Nordic liquefied natural gas (LNG) specialist that continues to strengthen the position of LNG and the broader utilization of new solutions in Finland, Sweden and Norway. Skangas has LNG terminals in ra, Norway, and Lysekil, Sweden. Finland's first LNG import terminal will be completed in Pori in 2016. The Gasum Group has around 300 employees in Finland, Norway and Sweden. The company's revenue for 2014 totaled 1.1 billion. 'CLEANLY WITH NATURAL ENERGY GASES' - GASUM.COM 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: Neste Oyj via Globenewswire HUG#1988605 BRUSSELS (dpa-AFX) - Swiss UBS consumption indicator for January is due in the pre-European session on Wednesday at 2:00 am ET. The consumption indicator rose to 1.62 points in December from 1.55 in the previous month. Ahead of the data, the Swiss franc showed mixed trading against its major rivals. While the Swiss franc fell against the U.S. dollar, it held steady against the pound, the yen and the euro. As of 1:55 am ET, the Swiss franc was trading at 1.0936 against the euro, 1.3884 against the pound, 0.9931 against the U.S. dollar and 112.63 against the yen. 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. HELSINKI (dpa-AFX) - Finland's producer prices continued to decline at the start of the year, but at a slower pace than in the previous two months, figures from Statistics Finland showed Wednesday. The producer price index for manufactured products fell 2.3 percent year-over-year in January, following a 2.6 percent decrease in December. Producer prices have been falling since August 2013. The annual decline in January was largely caused by reductions in the prices of oil products, manufacturing of basic metals and chemicals and chemical products from January 2015, the agency said. Domestic market producer prices slid 2.8 percent annually in January and prices in the foreign market dropped by 2.8 percent. On a monthly basis, producer prices slipped 0.6 percent in January, after a 1.0 percent decline in the preceding month. It was the sixth month of fall in a row. Export prices dipped 2.8 percent in January from a year ago and import prices decreased by 5.7 percent. 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. BRUSSELS (dpa-AFX) - The British pound continued to be weak against the other major currencies in the Asian session on Wednesday, amid uncertainty about the potential outcome of the Brexit referendum. U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron has set a June 23 date for referendum on Britain's membership in the EU. The Bank of England is not making a judgment about the potential outcome of the Brexit referendum, Governor Mark Carney told lawmakers on Tuesday. Carney said the monetary policy committee has room for additional stimulus. If the economy needs more stimulus, the bank will make asset purchases, including a variety of assets, he said at the Treasury Select Committee hearing. Cameron struck a reform deal at a European Union summit on Friday that would give the UK 'special status' in the EU. Meanwhile, London Mayor Boris Johnson announced over the weekend that he would campaign for a British exit from the EU. Meanwhile, the Asian stock markets fell due to falling crude oil prices and worries about China's economy. The GBP has been witnessing a spelling spree in recent sessions amid Brexit concerns. Since February 18th, the pound has lost 2.14 percent against the U.S. dollar and 2.29 percent against the Swiss franc. The pound also lost 4.93 percent against the yen from April 15th and 1.73 percent against the euro from April 19th. In the Asian trading, the pound dropped to nearly a 7-year low of 1.3964 against the U.S. dollar and more than a 2-1/2-year low of 155.99 against the yen, from yesterday's closing quotes of 1.4022 and 157.16, respectively. If the pound extends its downtrend, it is likely to find support around 1.35 against the greenback and 148.00 against the yen. Against the Swiss franc, the pound dropped to a 9-month low of 1.3856 from yesterday's closing value of 1.3895. On the downside, 1.35 is seen as the next support level for the pound. The pound fell to nearly a 2-week low of 0.7887 against the euro, from yesterday's closing value of 0.7859. The pound may test support near the 0.80 area. Looking ahead, U.K. BBA mortgage approvals for January is slated for release later in the day. In the New York session, U.S. new home sales data for January, Markit's flash service PMI report for February and U.S. crude oil inventories data set to e announced. German Bundesbank Chief Jens Weidmann holds a news conference in Frankfurt at 8:00 am ET. At the same time, Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond President Jeffrey Lacker speak on 'Can Monetary Policy Affect Economic Growth?' before the 'Leaders + Legends' lecture series sponsored by the Johns Hopkins Carey Business School, in Baltimore, U.S. At 12:50 pm ET, Bank of Canada Deputy Governor Lawrence Schembri is expected to speak at the Guelph Chamber of Commerce, in Ontario. Subsequently, at 1:10 pm ET, Bank of England Deputy Governor Jon Cunliffe will deliver a speech at London South Bank University. Five minutes later, Dallas Federal Reserve Bank President Robert Kaplan is scheduled to speak at an engagement where he will likely comment on the outlook for the U.S. economy and monetary policy, in Dallas. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Kostenloser Wertpapierhandel auf Smartbroker.de ZTE Corporation (0763.HK 000063.SZ), a major international provider of telecommunications, enterprise and consumer technology solutions for the mobile internet, today announced its joint demonstration with Korea Telecom at Mobile World Congress 2016. The companies will exhibit a Pre5G Massive multiple input multiple output (MIMO) base station demonstrating their latest cooperative achievements in the 5G field. For the Pre5G Massive MIMO base station, ZTE utilises the multi-antenna space division multiple access (SDMA) technology to improve existing 4G wireless frequency spectrum efficiency by four to six times. In a commercial network, the average single-carrier peak rate of Pre5G Massive MIMO exceeds 400 Mbps. ZTE has produced this solution to meet sharply increased capacity expansion requirements and to address the difficulty of finding site locations. Pre5G Massive MIMO uses a beam forming technology to extend coverage from 2D to 3D space to achieve seamless coverage and significantly improve the quality of the network end-to-end. In 2015, ZTE continued its strategic investment into 5G. As a pioneer in this field, the company will continue to develop its cooperation in high-frequency communications, IoT, multi-user shared access (MUSA), and other fields to jointly promote global standardisation and the development of the 5G ecosystem. About ZTE ZTE is a provider of advanced telecommunications systems, mobile devices, and enterprise technology solutions to consumers, carriers, companies and public sector customers. As part of ZTE's M-ICT strategy, the company is committed to provide customers with integrated end-to-end innovations to deliver excellence and value as the telecommunications and information technology sectors converge. Listed in the stock exchanges of Hong Kong and Shenzhen (H share stock code: 0763.HK A share stock code: 000063.SZ), ZTE's products and services are sold to over 500 operators in more than 160 countries. ZTE commits 10 per cent of its annual revenue to research and development and has leadership roles in international standard-setting organizations. ZTE is committed to corporate social responsibility and is a member of the UN Global Compact. For more information, please visit www.zte.com.cn. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160223007201/en/ Contacts: ZTE Corporation Margrete Ma, +86 755 26775207 ma.gaili@zte.com.cn or AxiCom Daniel Beattie, +44 2083928071 daniel.beattie@axicom.com HONG KONG, CHINA -- (Marketwired) -- 02/24/16 --UC RUSAL (HKSE: 486) (EURONEXT PARIS: RUSAL) (EURONEXT PARIS: RUAL) (MCX: RUAL) (MCX: RUALR), a leading global aluminium producer, is pleased to announce the formation of a new representative office in Seoul, South Korea. The office will be led by Dong Chan Huh, who has joined RUSAL from Asia Pacific Aluminium Company. Dong Chan Huh brings more than 30 years of experience in the Korean aluminium industry in various commercial roles. Today RUSAL's sales account for approximately 15% of all aluminium imported to South Korea with the potential for significant growth based on the company's current investments in casting alloy and billet capacity. Steve Hodgson, RUSAL's Director for Sales and Marketing, commented: 'South Korea has always been an important and natural market for RUSAL and we are logistically ideally situated to service this region via our eastern Russian ports.' RUSAL will continue to work closely with its existing counterparts in South Korea to further develop the customer base and enhance the service through the supply chain. Company Logo http://release.media-outreach.com/i/Download/4371 About UC RUSAL UC RUSAL (www.rusal.com) is a leading, global producer of aluminium, in 2014 accounting for approximately 7% of global production of aluminium and 7% of alumina. UC RUSAL employs over 61,000 people in 19 countries, across 5 continents. UC RUSAL markets and sells its products primarily in the European, Japanese, Korean, Chinese, South East Asian and North American markets. UC RUSAL's ordinary shares are listed on The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited (HKSE: 486), global depositary shares representing UC RUSAL's ordinary shares are listed on the professional compartment of Euronext Paris (RUSAL for Reg S GDSs and RUAL for Rule 144A GDSs). UC RUSAL's ordinary shares and Russian depositary receipts that are issued on common shares of the Company are listed on Moscow Exchange (RUAL/RUALR). Disclaimer The information contained in this press release is for media advice only. The contents are true and accurate at the time of publishing, however, may change over time. Contacts: Elena Morenko +7 (495) 720-51-70 Email Contact LONDON, Feb. 24, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Egencia TripNavigator app now solves "last mile" hassles for business travelers with personalized information and choice for selecting the best route and ground transportation options throughout their journey. Logo- http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130916/CG79319LOGO-a The most recent Egencia Business and Travel Technology Studyrevealed that travelers are wasting time grappling with ground transport and don't always have the information they need to choose wisely. For 45 per cent of business travelers around the globe, arranging ground transportation is the most frustrating part of booking their own travel. Frustrated, unaware of other options or pressed for time, 70 per cent of these business travelers choose to default to the taxi line at the airport as the easiest way to find their way around an unfamiliar city. To make this part of the journey better, Egencia TripNavigator is now connecting with Uber and Citymapper to surface personalized journeys directly to the traveler. At every stage of the trip, the traveler sees an in-app summary of ground transportation options. Whether by car, walking or public transportation, these options automatically use the address or location of the traveler's next step in the trip. Without having to enter details, the traveler gets the time to destination and estimated costs and is seamlessly delivered the information they need to get them on their way. Michael Gulmann, Vice President of Global Product and Marketing at Egencia explains, "Business travelers turn to Egencia for end-to-end booking solutions. By partnering with trusted mobile apps we provide personalized options for getting around, right within Egencia TripNavigator. We are committed to exploring technology solutions to help travelers with the challenges they face: busy schedules, complying with corporate policy and staying efficient without wasting time wandering around or waiting in lines." "Traveling for work can be stressful and often business travelers can feel 'lost in transit' when they arrive in a new city. Now with the Uber and Egencia TripNavigator integration, they can easily navigate a new destination and have the peace of mind that a reliable ride is just a tap away," says Max Crowley, Uber for Business. To see how the new Ground Transportation options work on Egencia TripNavigator for iPhone, download the app here, available globally. For more information and a live demo visit the Egencia booth B435 at the Business Travel Show in London, February 24-25. About Egencia Egencia makes business travel better by making it more connected and complete. Egencia puts travelers at the heart of business travel, continuously supporting them with solutions that are more engaging and effective. Driven by consumer insights and technology investments from parent company, the Expedia group, Egencia connects everything travelers need - content, technology, service and reporting - in one place. Egencia provides services in 65 countries. To connect with Egencia, visit www.egencia.comor @Egencia; and visit the Egencia Blog for more. 2016 Egencia, LLC. All rights reserved. Egencia, and the Egencia logo are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Expedia, Inc. in the U.S. and/or other countries. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. CST # 2029030-50; CST # 2083922-50. About the Egencia Business and Travel Technology Study This study was conducted on behalf of Egencia by Northstar, a globally integrated strategic insights consulting firm. The study was conducted among 6,072 international business travellers who travelled at least 2 times in the past year. The survey was conducted in 12 markets: UK, France, Germany, Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Finland, China, Australia, India, USA and Canada. Surveys were completed online from January 7-22, 2016. STOCKHOLM (dpa-AFX) - Electrolux AB (0MDT.L, 0GQ1.L, ELUXY.PK) said, a status update on the Group's strategy to be presented at the Electrolux Capital Markets Day today will reflect the fact that its core strategy remains unchanged. During 2016, the company expects positive market trends to continue for its two largest segments Major Appliances EMEA and Major Appliances North America. The company reiterated its outlook saying the Western European market is expected to grow by 2-3 percent and the North American market by 3-4 percent. Electrolux said a weak macro-economic development in Brazil could hurt market volumes and on Electrolux operations in the region. The group also said, 'For 2016, at current currency rates, a negative transaction impact for the Group of SEK 2bn is expected.' 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. LOS ANGELES, CA -- (Marketwired) -- 02/24/16 -- Lieberman Software Corporation today announced significant new cloud security capabilities incorporated in its Privileged Access Management (PAM) product, Enterprise Random Password Manager (ERPM). The product now protects critical privileged identities for sensitive IT assets in large cloud environments. ERPM can enumerate and manage cloud platform accounts for Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure Active Directory, IBM SoftLayer, Rackspace Public Cloud and Force.com. It is the first product on the market capable of managing and securing the privileged identities on all of these cloud platforms. "We're especially excited about the expansion of our cloud support in this release," said Jonathan Sander, Vice President of Product Strategy for Lieberman Software. "Not only can we be in the cloud securing the infrastructure, platforms, and applications there, but now we can discover and secure the accounts and systems that run the underlying cloud platforms themselves. We're securing the cloud inside and out." ERPM has secured privileged identities in on-premises enterprises for years by automatically discovering, securing and auditing privileged accounts on endpoints throughout the IT infrastructure -- including physical and virtual operating systems, applications, databases, web services, tasks and more. ERPM now extends these same capabilities to the cloud. By continuously rotating privileged credentials, ERPM blocks intruders who penetrate the network from moving laterally throughout the environment. It does so by time-limiting how long a captured credential can be exploited. Even if an attacker compromises a credential, it cannot be leveraged to leapfrog from system to system, and anonymously steal sensitive data along the way. Privileged Access Management for the Cloud Effectively managing privileged credentials is especially crucial in large cloud environments. As dynamic cloud infrastructures grow, so does the presence of privileged identities. These identities must be secured and audited because they hold elevated permission to access data, run programs, and change system configuration settings. According to Gartner, "It is a security best practice to frequently scan your infrastructure to discover any new accounts introduced with excess privileges. This becomes even more important for dynamic environments that change rapidly, such as those using virtualization on a large scale, or hybrid IT environments that include cloud infrastructure. Organizations should consider using autodiscovery features offered by many PAM tools to enable automated discovery of unmanaged systems and accounts across the range of infrastructure."(1) ERPM customers can now connect to their cloud environment and discover the user accounts defined in the cloud account settings. They can then protect those accounts with frequent credential randomization -- just like they do for on-premises systems. By providing a cloud, on-premises and hybrid solution, ERPM allows the flexibility that organizations need to meet their operational and financial needs. For more information see http://liebsoft.com/lieberman-software-announces/. About Lieberman Software Corporation Lieberman Software proactively stops cyber attacks that bypass conventional enterprise defenses and penetrate the network perimeter. The company provides award-winning privileged identity management and security management products to more than 1,400 customers worldwide, including nearly half of the US Fortune 50. By automatically securing privileged identities -- both on-premises and in the cloud - Lieberman Software controls access to systems with sensitive data, and defends against malicious insiders, zero day attacks and other advanced cyber threats. Lieberman Software is headquartered in Los Angeles, CA, with offices and channel partners located around the world. For more information, visit www.liebsoft.com. (1) Anmol Singh and Felix Gaehtgens, Twelve Best Practices for Privileged Access Management, Gartner, Oct. 8 2015 Product and company names herein may be trademarks of their registered owners. Media Contact Dan Chmielewski Madison Alexander PR 1-714-832-8716 1-949-231-2965 dchm@cox.net OTTAWA (dpa-AFX) - The euro came under pressure in European deals on Wednesday, as risk sentiment soured amid relentless slide in oil after the Saudi oil minister dashed hopes for production cut to curb supply glut. Oil prices extended losses after declining as much as 5 percent yesterday, as both Iran and Saudi Arabia ruled out a deal by major producers to cut oil output. Investors continued to fret about the uncertainty on the possible outcome of the historic EU referendum vote and its possible contagion effects in rest of the EU. German bond yields also fell, with the benchmark 10-year yield falling 0.15 percent, while that of 2-year equivalents were lower by 0.53 percent. The gradual economic recovery in the euro area is set to continue, but it will be too dangerous for the central bank to ignore the long-terms risks of more stimulus, European Central Bank Governing Council member Jens Weidmann said. 'The euro area's gradual economic recovery is likely to continue in the rest of this year and in 2017,' Weidmann, who heads the German Bundesbank, said at the bank's annual press conference. In economic news, survey results from the statistical office Insee showed that French consumer confidence weakened to a 6-month low in February largely due to heightened concerns about unemployment and standard of living. The consumer confidence index fell to 95 in February from 97 in January. This was the lowest reading since August, when the score stood at 94. The currency showed mixed performance in Asian deals. While the euro held steady against the greenback and the franc, it declined against the yen. Against the pound, it was modestly higher. In European trading, the euro slipped to 1.0976 against the greenback, a level not seen since February 3. The euro is likely to challenge support around the 1.08 zone. The single currency weakened to 122.72 against the Japanese yen for the first time since April 2013. Continuation of the euro-yen pair's downtrend may lead it to a support around the 120.00 region. The 19-nation currency declined to a 6-week low of 1.0894 against the Swiss franc, after having advanced to 1.0943 at 3:00 am ET. The euro-franc pair is seen finding support around the 1.075 mark. Survey data from the UBS investment bank showed that a measure of Swiss consumption climbed further at the start of the year, mainly led by improved consumer sentiment amid low oil prices and a marked increase in car registration. The UBS Consumption Indicator rose to 1.66 points from 1.61 in December, revised from 1.62 reported earlier. The index thus extended its upward trend into the new year. Reversing from an early high of 1.5231 against the loonie, the euro edged down to 1.5145. On the downside, 1.50 is possibly seen as the next support level for the euro-loonie pair. On the flip side, the euro strengthened to nearly a 2-week high of 0.7895 against the pound, compared to 0.7859 hit late New York Tuesday. The next possible resistance for the euro is seen around the 0.80 region. Data from British Bankers' Association showed that U.K. mortgage approvals increased to the highest level in nearly two years in January. The number of mortgages approved for house purchases increased to 47,509 in January from 43,660 in December. This was the highest since February 2014 and well above the expected level of 45,000. Meanwhile, the safe-haven dollar rose on risk aversion. The greenback appreciated to a 7-year high of 1.3909 against the pound, reversing from a low of 1.4027 hit at 5:00 pm ET. The greenback is poised to challenge resistance around the 1.37 mark. The greenback advanced to 0.9953 against the Swiss franc and held steady thereafter. If the greenback extends rise, 1.02 is possibly seen as its next resistance level. Although the greenback appreciated to 112.26 against the yen at 2:30 am ET, it fell back in a short while. The greenback is heading to violate its early nearly 2-week low of 111.63. Looking ahead, U.S. new home sales data for January, Markit's flash service PMI report for February and U.S. crude oil inventories data are set to be announced in the New York session. German Bundesbank Chief Jens Weidmann holds a news conference in Frankfurt at 8:00 am ET. At the same time, Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond President Jeffrey Lacker speak on 'Can Monetary Policy Affect Economic Growth?' before the 'Leaders + Legends' lecture series sponsored by the Johns Hopkins Carey Business School, in Baltimore, U.S. At 12:50 pm ET, Bank of Canada Deputy Governor Lawrence Schembri is expected to speak at the Guelph Chamber of Commerce, in Ontario. Subsequently, at 1:10 pm ET, Bank of England Deputy Governor Jon Cunliffe will deliver a speech at London South Bank University. Five minutes later, Dallas Federal Reserve Bank President Robert Kaplan is scheduled to speak at an engagement where he will likely comment on the outlook for the U.S. economy and monetary policy, in Dallas. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Kostenloser Wertpapierhandel auf Smartbroker.de Leading New ICT, Making Cities Safer BARCELONA, Spain, Feb. 24, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Together with its industry partners, Huawei unveiled its Safe City Solution Experience Center at Mobile World Congress 2016, held in Barcelona, Spain, from February 22 to 25. Under the theme "Leading New ICT, Making Cities Safer", the experience center showcases leading new Information and Communications Technologies (ICT), including the Internet of Things (IoT), Mobile Broadband, Video and Big Data, which are reshaping traditional urban safety management. The center also includes Safe City Solutions that enable cities to build multidimensional and intelligent security systems featuring awareness, visualization, and collaboration, helping governments improve crisis prevention and emergency handling capabilities while reducing crime rates. Leading New ICT Enables Visualized and Collaborative Safe City Solution With the increased frequency of serious public safety incidents, building a safe city has become a priority for city administrators. Safe city development has shifted from an incubation period focused on video surveillance deployment to a rapid growth stage embracing comprehensive public safety management. To help cities become safer, Huawei launched an agile and innovative Safe City Solution leveraging new ICT to enable "visualization" and "collaboration", two elements that Huawei believes will be critical to building safe cities. At MWC 2016, Huawei partnered with Hexagon to demonstrate the industry's first Visualized Converged Command Solution. Huawei's command solution supports the visualization of accident scenes and emergency handling resources (e.g. police force and emergency supplies) to allow unified commands based on a geographical information system (GIS) map. In addition, the solution enables collaborative management across different departments through cross-terminal seamless interconnection of video, audio, and data. To better support the solution, Huawei also provides an industry-leading cross-regional, multi-level video sharing cloud platform. Leveraging distributed cache technology, the platform is capable of responding to vital evidence discovered in seconds and supporting up to ten thousand users watching videos simultaneously. The broadband trunking system is another key component of building a Safe City. Huawei eLTE Broadband Trunking Solution adopts one single eLTE network with a base station which supports up to 27-channel video uploads and distribution to enable professional trunking and real-time video dispatching. The solution also allows mobile incident management on multiple platforms anytime and anywhere. Huawei Safe City Solutions have been widely deployed across the globe. For example, Huawei helped Kenya improve public safety by establishing safe city systems consisting of a Computer-Aided Dispatch (CAD) system, broadband trunking eLTE, video surveillance, and intelligent analysis (license plate recognition and traffic violation detection). According to Kenya's annual police report, the crime rate in the regions covered by the system declined by 46 percent in 2015 compared to the previous year. In particular, the solution played a vital role in ensuring the safety of Pope Francis during his visit to Kenya on November 26, 2015. Industry Cooperation to Build Open and Win-Win Safe City Ecosystem Huawei is committed to working with leading industry partners to build an open, win-win Safe City ecosystem. As a one-stop ICT infrastructure provider, Huawei partnered with Hexagon, a global leader in Safe City application software with a leading global market share of Intergraph and CAD systems, to provide users with a comprehensive Safe City Solution. The Safe City ecosystem is being driven by Huawei and a wide range of partners, including consulting firms (BGS and Accenture), system integrators (Safaricom, Tyco, and NCS), and software vendors (Hexagon, Milestone, SAP, iOmniscient, Promad, and AgentVi). To date, Huawei Safe City Solutions have served more than 400 million people in over 100 cities across over 30 countries. About Huawei Huawei is a leading global information and communications technology (ICT) solutions provider. Our aim is to build a better connected world, acting as a responsible corporate citizen, innovative enabler for the information society, and collaborative contributor to the industry. Driven by customer-centric innovation and open partnerships, Huawei has established an end-to-end ICT solutions portfolio that gives customers competitive advantages in telecom and enterprise networks, devices and cloud computing. For more information, please visit Huawei online at www.huawei.com. 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. SHANGHAI, Feb. 24, 2016 /PRNewswire/--JinkoSolar Holding Co., Ltd.("JinkoSolar" or the "Company") (NYSE: JKS), a global leader in the solar PV industry, today announced thatit has been awarded the "Top Brand PV UK 2016" seal in the module category. Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160224/336793 The "Top Brand PV UK, 2016" seal is exclusively awarded to leading solar PV manufacturers. Each year the German-based solar market researcher, EuPD Research, conducts an independent survey among PV installers in the United Kingdom where a manufacturer is graded based on its brand management, customer perception and market impact. Only a few brands qualify each year. "JinkoSolar is honored to receive this independent accreditation seal," said Frank Niendorf, General Manager of Jinko Europe. "As we enter the 10th Anniversary year of JinkoSolar, I am proud to say that the 'Top Brand PV' award is a result of 10 years of continuous improvement, a financially healthy and quality-driven global company, with anexceptionally customer service-driven local sales organization in Europe, and the UK market in particular." WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Owens Corning (OC), a manufacturer of insulation, roofing, and fiberglass composites, announced Wednesday that it has signed an agreement to acquire InterWrap, a manufacturer of roofing underlayment and packaging materials, for $450 million. The transaction, which is subject to regulatory clearance, is anticipated to close in the first half of 2016. Privately held InterWrap operates facilities in the United States, Canada, India and China. They primarily produce synthetic roofing underlayment, including the Titanium and RhinoRoof brands, and lumber and metal packaging products, including the Duramet and WeatherPro brands. InterWrap reported 2015 sales of $250 million. Brian Chambers, president of Owens Corning's Roofing and Asphalt Business, said, 'The acquisition of InterWrap's products, brands, and technology will significantly expand Owens Corning's position in the Roofing Components segment.' 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. BARCELONA, Spain, February 24, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- 55 UK companies showcasing innovation at Mobile World Congress UK Trade & Investment is proud to host one of the largest country delegations of exhibitors and visitors attending Mobile World Congress in 2016, with 55 UK companies exhibiting at the GREAT Britain Pavilion. Providing an exciting insight into the UK's world-leading technology capabilities and innovations, the GREAT Britain Pavilion will help UK companies develop international links and encourage companies from overseas to invest in the UK. Companies at the UKTI stand will have 121 meetings with overseas buyers, hear thought leadership presentations from those at the cutting edge of mobile, and be able to network with influential stakeholders at one of the premier events in the technology calendar. The UK is the biggest ICT market in Europe, with a communications sector that contains around 8,000 companies and employs over 270,000 people. London specifically is the largest and fastest-growing tech cluster in Europe. Over the four days, there will be talks and seminars from some of the most influential voices from across the UK mobile communications industry, showcasing the 'Best of British'. Included in the line-up is: NquiringMinds which will be revealing two products they are launching at MWC; NQUIRE TDX, a data platform designed for integrating, analysing and securely sharing complex data sets, and INTERLINQ, their Secure Internet of Things Hub (IoT) hardware device which will be revealing two products they are launching at MWC; NQUIRE TDX, a data platform designed for integrating, analysing and securely sharing complex data sets, and INTERLINQ, their Secure Internet of Things Hub (IoT) hardware device Providing further insight into IoT is security company Copper Horse Solutions , which will be showcasing a device which can turn any door into an intelligent door; it enables monitoring of motion data while allowing users full control of their privacy , which will be showcasing a device which can turn any door into an intelligent door; it enables monitoring of motion data while allowing users full control of their privacy Tech business The Digital Catapult will be discussing how they spark pioneering collaborations and marketplaces to accelerate economic growth and productivity Digital Economy Minister Ed Vaizey said, "It's brilliant to see so many of the UK's most innovative mobile tech companies at Mobile World Congress 2016. The UK has one of the world's strongest and most advanced communications sectors, and is home to a wide range of expert designers, innovators, entrepreneurs and technicians. "The Government is fully committed to helping UK businesses fulfil their potential in world markets, and UKTI are doing a GREAT job at showcasing the contribution UK businesses nationwide have made to the mobile tech industry at home and abroad." The GREAT Britain Pavilion at MWC 2016 is supported by UK Trade and Investment, which helps UK companies develop international links and international companies invest in the UK. Exporting is GREAT, the government-led initiative which was launched in November, enables ambitious UK businesses to register for live global export opportunities, as well as access expert advice, trade services, training and events at http://www.exportingisgreat.gov.uk. The UKTI booth at Mobile World Congress is Hall and Stand 7C40. For a full list of UK companies at Mobile World Congress please click here or download the UK Technology Today app from the App store here or from Google Play here. Visit the GREAT Britain Pavilion to find out more, at the one of the world's most important technology events. To find out more, visit http://www.exportingisgreat.gov.uk For further information please contact: UKTI press team for MWC: Engine Group T: +44-(0)203-128-8569 E: UKTIMWC@enginegroup.com Kirkland Lake, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - May 31, 2016) - RJK Explorations Ltd. (TSXV: RJX.A), ("RJK") is pleased to announce that it has entered into a property option agreement with Globex Mining Enterprises Inc. ("GMX") to acquire a 100% beneficial interest in the mineral property referred to as the Ramp Property ("Ramp") located in the Beatty, Carr, Coulson and Wilkie Townships, Province of Ontario, comprised of 66 unpatented mining claims, 16 patented mining claims, 3 mining leases and certain related patented and leased surface rights. For the sum of $10,000, paid on signing, RJK is entitled to exercise the option to earn a beneficial 100% interest in the "Ramp" property, paying the sum of $250,000 on or before July 15, 2016 and granting a 2.5% GMR (Gross Metal Royalty) to GMX, which can be reduced by 1% with the payment of $2 million. The agreement also provides RJK will be required to pay a minimum annual payment under the GMR of $250,000 on every Anniversary of the Effective Date thereafter. The Property is also subject to a 1.5% NSR in favor of a party related to GMX which can be reduced by 0.5% with the payment of $500,000. A 1.5% NSR is also payable to an unrelated party on two separate patented land parcels can be reduced by 1% with the payment of $300,000. History of the Ramp Property Cautionary Note on Historic Estimates: The following description is based on information provided by GMX which, although thought to be accurate, has not been independently verified by RJK. Included in the description are references to mineralization classified as a "reserve" or a "resource" which were prepared prior to implementation of National Instrument 43-101 ("NI 43-101"). RJK has not independently verified these results and considers them to be "Historical Estimates" under NI 43-101 since a qualified person has not done sufficient work to classify the historical estimates as a current mineral resource and RJK is not treating them as current mineral reserves. GMX records indicate that work was first initiated on the property in 1915 when gold was discovered on the Beatty Township claims. Between 1915 and the 1960s, Hill Gold and Premier Gold Mining, Argyll Gold Mines, Sylvanite, Rio Rupununi Mines and Lake Osu Mines conducted numerous exploration and drilling programs on the property. In 1973, the property was sold to a numbered company which became Maude Lake Gold Mines Limited ("Maude"). In 1982, Maude stripped, mapped, channel sampled and drilled 1,473 m of closely spaced percussion holes in 78 drill holes on the 5 Zone. The 5 Zone is a multi-vein zone consisting of the No. 1, 2, 3 and 4 veins which has potential for a bulk open pit or mining by individual veins. Detailed drilling on the 5 Zone was undertaken in 1984 to test the zone to the 350 ft (107 m) level and to explore beneath this level. 36 drill holes totalling 5,767 m were undertaken at 30 m centres, testing down to the 350 ft (107 m) level increasing the reported 5 Zone mineralization to 448,040 tons grading 0.205 oz/ton Au. (Non 43-101 compliant classification - See Cautionary Note on Historic Estimates) In 1985, the entire exposed 5 Zone was bulk sampled for detailed metallurgical testing and mill flow sheet development. Deep drilling under the 5 Zone was also undertaken. A 15 ft (4.6 m) mining bench of most of the 5 Zones was drilled, blasted and crushed. The fully diluted sample graded 0.13 oz/ton Au (approx. 6,000 tons) and metallurgical test work at Lakefield Research indicated gold extraction of a least 92.6% from a typical Porcupine Gold camp type float/cyanide mill. In October 1987, Equinox Resources Limited joint ventured the property and by December 1987 started the portal for a ramp on the 5 Zone. The following underground work was undertaken: 956.7 m of decline and muck bays, 1,008 m of cross-cuts and drifts, 207.9 m of raises and ventilation, and 4,800 m of underground AX diamond drilling. In January, 1994, Robert A. Bennett was engaged to perform a property compilation and ore reserve. Mr. Bennett calculated a proven, probable, possible and drill indicated reserve to the 220 m level of 510,116 tons grading 0.248 oz/ton and a deep reserve of 283,358 tons grading 0.22 oz/t for a total Geological Ore Reserve in all categories of 793,474 tons grading 0.235 oz/t (191,284 contained ounces). ( See Cautionary Note on Historic Estimates) In August 2001, 100% interest in the main property was acquired by Globex Mining Enterprises Inc. Globex subsequently acquired other contiguous mining and surface rights. The Ramp Property has been the subject of a considerable amount of prior work which requires technical evaluation. RJK does not at present have a defined work program for the property nor is it subject to any share issuances or work commitments under the Option. Rather, RJK management and consultants intend to focus their efforts on reviewing and evaluating existing data on the property to generate a proposed development plan for the property prior to exercising the Option, following which RJK expects to develop a proposed work program and budget for the project. Fred Sharpley, PGeo., the qualified person for RJK Explorations Ltd., has reviewed and approved the technical information contained in this release. Forward Looking Statements: includes statements contained in this news release regarding discussions in respect of a potential acquisition and funding arrangement and RJK's expectations regarding same and the trading of its shares on the TSX Venture Exchange. This forward-looking information reflects the current expectations or beliefs of RJK based on information currently available to it. Forward-looking information is subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that may cause the actual results of RJK to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking information, and even if such actual results are realized or substantially realized, there can be no assurance that they will have the expected consequences to, or effects on, RJK. Factors that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from current expectations include, but are not limited to: the failure of RJK to enter into an agreement in respect of such arrangement; delays in obtaining or failure to obtain any required regulatory and/or shareholder approval; and other factors. Any forward-looking information speaks only as of the date on which it is made. Although RJK believes that the assumptions inherent in the forward-looking information are reasonable, forward-looking information is not a guarantee of future performance and accordingly undue reliance should not be put on such statements due to the inherent uncertainty therein. For further information, please contact: Glenn Kasner, President Telephone: (705) 567-5351 Mobile: (705) 568-7567 kasner1@ntl.aibn.com Web site: www.rjkexplorations.com New research forecasts initial costs will exceed $15 million, with additional expenditures of $2 million annually for compliance Regulation Automated Trading ("Reg AT") is the Commodity Futures Trading Commission's (CFTC) attempt to provide rules around the ever-changing and growing automated trading environment on the U.S. Futures Exchanges. Many of the proposed regulations and safeguards are already in place and have been for years, but through Reg AT the CFTC is taking the opportunity to update and define some of the registration requirements that have come to the forefront in the age of automated and algorithmic trading. In TABB Group's latest research, "Big Brother Is Watching: The Implications of CFTC Reg AT for the Futures Industry," TABB senior analyst Tom Lehrkinder takes an in-depth look at what mandates the CFTC has in store and what the costs to the industry will be. One of the most important components of the regulation, according to TABB, is the formalization and automation of pre-trade risk management. The research also discusses the CFTC proposal to expand registration requirements to now include a new category of traders under the AT Person moniker, though formal supervision at the AT Person level will put a strain on the smaller firms. Lehrkinder explains that though the CFTC is cognizant of the expenditure related to Reg AT and wants to ensure that the costs are appropriate versus the benefit, it has not fully grasped what the financial impact will be. Based on industry estimates for 100 firms, TABB expects the cost to the industry for initial implementation of Reg AT to be $15 million and to surpass $2 million annually for ongoing compliance, exceeding CFTC estimates. "The CFTC is putting the futures community on notice that transparency has become the status quo, and the long arm of regulation is reaching further. What remains to be seen is whether the mandates will create a benefit to the markets versus the overall compliance price once Reg AT is implemented," continues Lehrkinder. The 21-page, 5-exhibit report is now available for download by TABB derivatives clients and pre-qualified media at https://research.tabbgroup.com/search/grid. For more information or to purchase the reports, contact info@tabbgroup.com. About TABB Group With offices in New York and London, TABB Group is the international research and consulting firm focused exclusively on capital markets, based on the interview-based, "first-person knowledge" research methodology developed by Larry Tabb. For more information, visit www.tabbgroup.com. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160224005423/en/ Contacts: TABB Group Casey Sheets, +1 646-747-3207 csheets@tabbgroup.com TORONTO, ONTARIO -- (Marketwired) -- 02/24/16 -- UpSnap Inc. (CSE: UP) ("UpSnap" or the "Company"), a leading provider of mobile advertising solutions, has signed an agreement with a major U.S. retailer to provide its proprietary mobile advertising product for a total contract value of over $110,000 CAD. "This major appliance company was interested in finding an advertising platform that would allow them to effectively target consumers in the market for appliance repairs," said Bruce Howard, CEO of UpSnap Inc. "After determining that many consumers use their mobile devices to make every day purchases, such as purchases of new appliances, it was a logical choice for this major appliance company to use an advertising channel that provides data and analytics on the spending patterns of millions of every day consumers." UpSnap will target and serve ads via mobile app inventory across phone and tablet devices. Consumers will be exposed to ads while reading news, playing games, checking the weather, and other similar activities. UpSnap's proprietary customer profile tool will track responses and optimize the campaign to target look-alike customers, keeping the client's cost per lead continually in check. About UpSnap UpSnap provides highly-targeted, data-driven mobile advertising to attract the ideal audience for brands big and small. Combining first-party proprietary data and real-time analytics, UpSnap goes beyond location to deliver app agnostic and results-driven campaigns that produce qualified and engaged customers. Caution Regarding Forward Looking Information Certain information set out in this News Release constitutes forward-looking information. Forward-looking information is often, but not always, identified by the use of words such as "seek," "anticipate," "hope," "plan," "continue," "estimate," "expect," "may," "will," "intend," "could," "might," "should," "scheduled," "believe" and similar expressions. The forward- looking information set out in this News Release relates to future events or our future performance and includes: (i) information concerning the positive effect of new leadership on revenue growth; (ii) the effect of broadening the Company's revenue streams on revenue growth and predictability; (iii) the Company's ability to succeed in the mobile advertising market by focusing on the underserved small and medium sized business market. Although the forward-looking statements contained in this news release are based upon what management of the Company believes are reasonable assumptions on the date of this news release, the Company cannot assure investors that actual results will be consistent with these forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve substantial known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which cause actual results to vary from those express or implied by such forward looking statements. These statements should not be read as guarantees of future performance or results, and they will not necessarily be accurate indications of whether or not such results will be achieved. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are made as of the date hereof and based on what management of the company believes are reasonable assumptions. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or publicly revise any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required under applicable securities laws. Furthermore, the Company does not assume responsibility for the accuracy and completeness of the forward looking statements set out in this news release. The Company's forward looking statements are expressly qualified in their entirety by the foregoing cautionary statements. The CSE has not reviewed, approved or disapproved the content of this press release. Contacts: UpSnap Inc. Alex Pekurar, CPA, CA Chief Financial Officer 416-619-3903 apekurar@upsnap.com Virtus Advisory Group Inc. Babak Pedram Investor Relations 416-644-5081 bpedram@virtusadvisory.com REGINA, SASKATCHEWAN -- (Marketwired) -- 02/24/16 -- With striking workers at the Best Western Seven Oaks Inn now entering the second month of their effort to achieve fairness at work, the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW Canada) is releasing a series of full-page newspaper ads slamming the hotel for refusing to treat its employees fairly. The Best Western employees, who are members of UFCW Canada Local 1400, work at the company's Seven Oaks location in Regina, Saskatchewan, and were forced out on strike by their employer last December. They have been braving the freezing winter cold for more than eight weeks to secure a fair contract that provides a living wage, fair benefits, and back pay. The newspaper ads, launched today in the Regina Leader-Post, inform readers that UFCW Canada members have "serious reservations about Best Western Seven Oaks," and ask readers to find out more about the hotel workers' fight for fairness at ufcw.ca/bestwestern. The newspaper ads follow a series of radio advertisements that UFCW Canada ran in Regina earlier this month, which called on the public to support the employees at Seven Oaks by respecting their picket line and avoiding the hotel until the strike is over. The print ads are being accompanied by a comprehensive online ad campaign on Facebook and Google, demanding fairness for the hard-working men and women at Best Western Seven Oaks. Despite the union's willingness to negotiate, Best Western refuses to get back to the bargaining table, and the workers' requests for a living wage, fair benefits, and back pay have been flatly rejected by the company. "We're willing to sit down at the table at any time, as the members are eager to negotiate a fair contract," says Norm Neault, President of UFCW Canada Local 1400. "But the company refuses to budge on several key issues, and so our fight for fairness continues," he adds. To advance the call for a fair contract, the workers and their families are asking consumers, supporters, and friends to join the campaign for fairness at Best Western Seven Oaks by sending a letter to Best Western's President and CEO, David Kong. With the full backing of the UFCW Canada National Office and its Local Unions, the Seven Oaks workers have received strong support from local residents, the federal New Democratic Party (NDP), the Regina & District Labour Council, and a number of other unions. The striking workers' fight for fairness has also garnered local and national media coverage from CBC News, The Regina Leader-Post, Rabble, and RankAndFile.ca, among several other media outlets. On Monday, the Best Western employees were joined by community members, local activists, and labour allies from across Regina and Saskatchewan in a march of solidarity outside the Seven Oaks Inn, where participants called on the company to return to the bargaining table to negotiate a fair contract. You can lend your support to the campaign for fairness at Best Western Seven Oaks by visiting ufcw.ca/bestwestern and sending a message to the company today. Contacts: Norm Neault President UFCW Canada Local 1400 306-384-5787 norm@ufcw1400.ca www.ufcw1400.ca BOUCHERVILLE, QUEBEC -- (Marketwired) -- 02/24/16 -- Strateco Resources Inc. ("Strateco") announced today that it amended its motion to institute proceedings with the Superior Court of Quebec on February 23, 2016 in order to claim $10 million in punitive damages from the Attorney General of Quebec. This amount is in addition to the $189,987,663 Strateco claimed from the Quebec government on December 11, 2014 for the loss of its investment in the Matoush project. New evidence in the case shows that the Quebec government's refusal to grant Strateco the advanced exploration permit needed to develop the Matoush project was based on a political calculation outside the existing legal framework, and that the government made a deliberate decision to sacrifice Strateco and the investment of each of its shareholders, knowing full well that the political decision would effectively put Strateco out of business. In its amended motion, Strateco submits that the Quebec government thus intentionally and deliberately undermined the right to the peaceful enjoyment and free disposition of Strateco's property protected under Article 6 of the Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms, which justifies the punitive damage claim. Among other things, Strateco is basing itself on the summary of a meeting of December 18, 2012, which was attended by the Deputy Minister of Sustainable Development, Environment, Wildlife and Parks ("MDDEFP"), Diane Jean, the Assistant Deputy Minister of the MDDEFP, Jacques Dupont, the Secretary General of the Government of Quebec, Jean St-Gelais, and other Deputy Ministers and Associate Deputy Ministers, which sets out the true rationale behind this political calculation: "(unofficial translation) The Government faces two possible scenarios for the Matoush advanced exploration project, namely to authorized the project subject to certain conditions, or to refuse it. There will be a negative implications regardless of the decision. Authorization of the Matoush advanced exploration project: It should be noted that if authorized, the Matoush project will have little impact on the environment. The project would be governed by very strict provisions imposed by the CNSC and the conditions of the certificates of authorization from the provincial and federal government. Advantages: -- Strateco would be satisfied and could start the advanced exploration project. -- This decision would satisfy the James Bay area elected representatives and a large part of the population. -- The project would generate significant economic benefits for the Chibougamau and Mistissini region. -- It would send a clear signal that Quebec is serious about developing the North for all. This signal would be good for the mining industry in general. Disadvantages: -- The Cree community of Mistissini and the Grand Council of the Crees would be unhappy and may take legal action to block the project. They may also make representations internationally to show that Quebec does not meet its obligations under the Paix des Braves. -- Interest groups like "Quebec a meilleure mine" or the Sept-Iles doctors would join forces to criticize the Government's decision. These groups would likely use a media campaign to condemn the project. -- The impact of this decision on the Cree communities could lead to systematic opposition to other development projects in Eeyou-Ischtee territory. The use of protest methods such as roadblocks would be likely. Refusal of the project Advantages: -- This decision would satisfy the Cree communities, who would see it as a signal of respect from the Government. The decision could facilitate future projects in the James Bay area. -- This decision would please interest groups opposed to uranium exploration in Quebec. -- The refusal of the project could send a clear signal to the effect that the Quebec government is serious about its opposition to nuclear power. Disadvantages: -- A negative decision would jeopardize the survival of Strateco Resources. -- Strateco Resources is almost certain to file an action in Superior Court to contest the decision or to claim compensation for the loss of the $120 million invested in the project to date. -- The refusal of this project could send a negative signal to the mining industry. -- The refusal of the project could strengthen the power of the Grand Council of the Crees, giving it a de facto veto over the northern projects in Eeyou-Ischtee territory. This would set a potentially harmful precedent for Quebec. Such a situation could affect the rest of Quebec to the extent that other Aboriginal communities could demand similar rights." "These revelations are troubling", said Guy Hebert, President and Chief Executive Officer of Strateco. "This clearly demonstrates that, contrary to the position put forward by the government in its defense, this was a political decision." This news release contains "forward-looking statements" subject to certain risks and uncertainties. There can be no assurance that these statements will prove to be correct. Actual results and future events could differ significantly from those implied by such statements. These risks and uncertainties are discussed in Strateco's annual information form filed with the securities commissions of British Colombia, Alberta, Ontario and Quebec. Contacts: STRATECO RESOURCES INC. Guy Hebert President and Chief Executive Officer 450.641.0775 / 1.866.774.7722 450.641.1601 (FAX) ghebert@strateco.ca Jean-Pierre Lachance Executive Vice President 450.641.0775 / 1.866.774.7722 450.641.1601 (FAX) jplachance@strateco.ca www.strateco.ca BARCELONA, Spain, Feb. 24, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- With the support and guidance of 5 Chairman/CEO from top operators, Sunil Bharti Mittal (founder and chairman of Bharti Enterprises), Mr. Shang Bing (chairman of China Mobile), Mr. Masayoshi Son (chairman & CEO of SoftBank Group Corp), Mr. Chang-Gyu Hwang (chairman and CEO of KT) and Mr. Vittorio Colao (CEO of Vodafone Group Plc), GTI 2.0 was officially launched during the GTI summit 2016 held on Feb. 23rd at theMobile World Congress in Barcelona. Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160224/336804 With a new 5-year strategic plan and mission, GTI 2.0 aims to continue to promote the global development of TD-LTE (delivering LTE by creating a time delay between the uplink and downlink signals), encouraging convergence with FDD (frequency division duplex, which requires two channels), and to foster a cross-industry innovative and a synergistic 5G ecosystem. Founded in 2011, GTI has been dedicated to constructing a robust ecosystem of TD-LTE, speeding up the commercialization of TD-LTE and promoting the convergence of LTE TDD and FDD. Today, GTI has become an influential cooperation platform with 122 operator members and 103 industrial partners, and has completed the GTI 1.0 mission by building an end-to-end TD-LTE ecosystem and achieving global commercialization of TD-LTE and converged LTE TDD/FDD. By the end of Dec. 2015, there were 76 TD-LTE commercial networks in 43 countries, and 91 TD-LTE networks in progress, with a total of 1.4 million TD-LTE base stations serving 470 million subscribers globally. With the success in making TD-LTE a global standard and the convergence of TDD/FDD, GTI 2.0 will continue to help the whole industry benefit from the evolution of TD-LTE, TDD/FDD converged networks and global smartphones, and promote a unified 5G standard and mature end-to-end ecosystem, as well as explore cross-industry markets and opportunities. GTI will continue its good cooperation with industry partners and international organizations. Sunil Bharti Mittal, Chairman of Bharti Airtel, said, "Bharti Airtel is delighted to be a part of GTI 2.0. We have led the roll-out of TD-LTE in India and are confident that it will emerge as the preferred standard for evolving mobile technologies. We look forward to collaborating with the consortium partners towards developing technology ecosystem for the future and help build a digitally inclusive world." Shang Bing, Chairman of China Mobile said, "China Mobile will fully support GTI 2.0 objectives. We will work closely with GTI partners to further promote TD-LTE evolution, global deployment and propel 5G development and joint innovation to embrace the new era of 'Everything Connected'." Masayoshi Son, Chairman of Softbank Group said "Since 2011, GTI has made great achievements through its 5 years' effort. TD-LTE has become a global standard that so huge number of people are using. Today, I also expect GTI 2.0 continues to promote the evolution of technology to meet the requirements of 1 million times growth of mobile data traffic in next 30 years. In specific, I believe Band 41 HP UE will benefit both operator and customer, which I really want GTI 2.0 to make it happen as soon as possible." Chang-Gyu Hwang, Chief Executive Officer of KT, said "KT anticipate crucial role of GTI 2.0 in various areas, especially early expansion of 5G and related vertical industry. As member of GTI 2.0, KT will cooperate with other GTI 2.0 members on various business areas and make meaningful contribution in GTI 2.0." Vittorio Colao, Chief Executive Officer of Vodafone Group, said: "It is important for the industry to continue developing 4G and to work together to develop the standards for 5G technology ahead of its expected commercial introduction from 2020 onwards. GTI 2.0 will provide Vodafone with a useful forum to work closely with a number of major operators towards that goal." VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA -- (Marketwired) -- 02/24/16 -- Trevali Mining Corporation ("Trevali" or the "Company") (TSX: TV)(LMA: TV)(OTCQX: TREVF)(FRANKFURT: 4TI) provides a January and February month-to-date ("MTD") mine and mill commissioning update for its Caribou Zinc Mine in the Bathurst Mining Camp of northern New Brunswick. A detailed description and discussion is provided below and progress highlights are as follows (Table 1): Table 1: Caribou Mill - key commissioning & preliminary production statistics (figures rounded) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Feb 2016 Q3-2015 Q4-2015 Jan 2016 (MTD(i)) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tonnes Mined 114,386 165,797 64,280 49,480 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tonnes Milled 203,401 165,605 69,833 42,972 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Average Mill Tonnes-per-day (TPD) 2,210 2,020 2,671(ii) 2,707(ii) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Average Head Grades % Zinc 4.8% 5.9% 6.0% 6.3% Lead 1.8% 2.2% 2.3% 2.7% Silver - Oz (ounces)/ton 1.6 oz/t 1.9 oz/t 2.1 oz/t 2.2 oz/t ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Average Recoveries % Zinc 61% 71% 69% 73% Lead 41% 57% 54% 60% Silver (in Lead concentrate) 21% 29% 30% 43% ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Concentrate Produced DMT (dry metric tonnes): Zinc 12,464 14,616 6,287 4,086 Lead 4,240 5,230 2,349 1,687 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Concentrate Grades % Zinc 48.8% 47.6% 47.8% 47.7% Silver - Oz (ounces)/ton 3.9 oz/t 4.4 oz/t 4.7 oz/t 3.7 oz/t ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Lead 35.7% 39.8% 37.8% 41.0% Silver - Oz (ounces)/ton 16.1 oz/t 17.7 oz/t 18.7 oz/t 23.5 oz/t ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- (i) Feb MTD as of February 21, 2016 (ii) exclusive of downtime for scheduled mill servicing and maintenance cycle days Summary Following the Caribou mill zinc circuit modifications undertaken in late-December and early-January, year-to-date performance is exhibiting improved availability, utilization, throughput and stability on a daily basis to achieve an average throughput of approximately 2,707 tonnes-per-day ("tpd") in February MTD. Importantly, overall process variability continues to decrease on a month-to-month basis. Additional detail and current metallurgical improvement initiatives are provided below. Mill Circuit Modifications The Caribou metallurgical team and partner Glencore continue to develop and focus on the metallurgical performance improvement plan. Ongoing work includes mineralogical sampling and analyses, the data from which may also help identify opportunities to increase metallurgical "entitlement" going forward. The lead circuit has performed well with respect to feed grades versus expected recoveries, and silver recoveries continue to rise above the design range. Zinc circuit recoveries have improved year-to-date and ongoing work programs targeting grinding efficiency, density and thickener optimization are all anticipated to further increase recoveries moving towards the targeted entitlement recovery at the 6% Zn feed grade. Current work continues to improve cell mixing and retention times with additional modifications scheduled during plant maintenance periods. A key identified opportunity is a slightly-finer primary grind size and as such, the Company is instituting modifications to decrease the current 35-micron primary grind to an approximately 30-micron grind. These modifications will be implemented during regular, scheduled maintenance periods. The Company cautions that its production plan at the Caribou Zinc Mine is based only on measured, indicated and inferred resources, and not mineral reserves, and as such does not have demonstrated economic viability. Inferred mineral resources are considered too speculative geologically to have the economic considerations applied to them that would enable them to be categorized as mineral reserves, and there is therefore no certainty that the conclusions of the Preliminary Economic Assessment will be realized. Warrant Price Adjustment The Company also announces that as a result of a recent issuance of 4,410,700 flow-through common shares of the Company, issued on a private placement basis at a price of $0.34 per share (the "Flow Through Shares"), the exercise price of 7,502,880 previously issued warrants to purchase common shares of the Company ("Common Shares") with an expiry date of December 30, 2020 (the "Warrants") has been adjusted from $0.475 to $0.391 (the "Exercise Price Adjustment"). The Exercise Price Adjustment represents a new warrant exercise price equal to 115% of the $0.34 subscription price of the Flow-Through Shares. Pursuant to the terms of the Company's warrant indenture dated May 30, 2014, as supplemented by the first and second supplemental warrant indentures, each dated December 30, 2015 (together, the "Indenture"), the Company is required to adjust the exercise price of the Warrants if and whenever, at any time on or after December 30, 2015 and on or prior to June 30, 2016, the Company issues Common Shares, or securities convertible into or exchangeable for Common Shares, at a price lower than $0.413. In accordance with the terms of the Indenture, the Exercise Price Adjustment in relation to the issuance of the Flow-Through Shares is effective as of February 19, 2016. The Flow Through Shares are subject to a four-month hold period, in accordance with applicable Canadian securities laws, which expires on June 20, 2016. The Company additionally confirms that the warrant holders are all arm's length. In accordance with the Indenture, a copy of which has been filed on SEDAR, the Company will be required to make further adjustments to the Warrant exercise price if the Company raises additional equity at prices below $0.413 - the effect of such adjustment mechanism being that the Warrants will be repriced to a 115% or, in some cases, a 110% premium to any subsequent equity issuance price in question. Qualified Person and Quality Control/Quality Assurance EurGeol Dr. Mark D. Cruise, Trevali's President and CEO, Paul Keller, P.Eng, Trevali's Chief Operating Officer are qualified persons as defined by NI 43-101, have supervised the preparation of the scientific and technical information that forms the basis for this news release. Dr. Cruise is not independent of the Company as he is an officer, director and shareholder. Mr. Keller is not independent of the Company as he is an officer and shareholder. ABOUT TREVALI MINING CORPORATION Trevali is a zinc-focused, base metals mining company with one producing operation in Peru and another currently undergoing commissioning in Canada. In Peru, the Company is actively producing zinc and lead-silver concentrates from its 2,000-tonne-per-day Santander mine. In Canada, Trevali owns the Caribou mine and mill, Halfmile mine and Stratmat deposit all located in the Bathurst Mining Camp of northern New Brunswick. The Company is currently commissioning its 3,000-tonne-per-day Caribou mine. The common shares of Trevali are listed on the TSX (symbol TV), the OTCQX (symbol TREVF), the Lima Stock Exchange (symbol TV), and the Frankfurt Exchange (symbol 4TI). For further details on Trevali, readers are referred to the Company's website (www.trevali.com) and to Canadian regulatory filings on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. On Behalf of the Board of Directors of TREVALI MINING CORPORATION, Mark D. Cruise, President This news release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the United States private securities litigation reform act of 1995 and "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. Statements containing forward-looking information express, as at the date of this news release, the Company's plans, estimates, forecasts, projections, expectations, or beliefs as to future events or results and the Company does not intend, and does not assume any obligation to, update such statements containing the forward-looking information. Such forward-looking statements and information include, but are not limited to statements as to: the Company's plan to prepare a new PEA for its Halfmile and Stratmat properties, the accuracy of estimated mineral resources, anticipated results of future exploration, and forecast future metal prices, expectations that environmental, permitting, legal, title, taxation, socio-economic, political, marketing or other issues will not materially affect estimates of mineral resources. These statements reflect the Company's current views with respect to future events and are necessarily based upon a number of assumptions and estimates that, while considered reasonable by the Company, are inherently subject to significant business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties and contingencies. These statements reflect the Company's current views with respect to future events and are necessarily based upon a number of assumptions and estimates that, while considered reasonable by the company, are inherently subject to significant business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties and contingencies. Many factors, both known and unknown, could cause actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from the results, performance or achievements that are or may be expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements contained in this news release and the company has made assumptions and estimates based on or related to many of these factors. Such factors include, without limitation: fluctuations in spot and forward markets for silver, zinc, base metals and certain other commodities (such as natural gas, fuel oil and electricity); fluctuations in currency markets (such as the Canadian dollar and Peruvian sol versus the U.S. dollar); risks related to the technological and operational nature of the Company's business; changes in national and local government, legislation, taxation, controls or regulations and political or economic developments in Canada, the United States, Peru or other countries where the Company may carry on business in the future; risks and hazards associated with the business of mineral exploration, development and mining (including environmental hazards, industrial accidents, unusual or unexpected geological or structural formations, pressures, cave-ins and flooding); risks relating to the credit worthiness or financial condition of suppliers, refiners and other parties with whom the Company does business; inadequate insurance, or inability to obtain insurance, to cover these risks and hazards; employee relations; relationships with and claims by local communities and indigenous populations; availability and increasing costs associated with mining inputs and labour; the speculative nature of mineral exploration and development, including the risks of obtaining necessary licenses and permits and the presence of laws and regulations that may impose restrictions on mining,; diminishing quantities or grades of mineral resources as properties are mined; global financial conditions; business opportunities that may be presented to, or pursued by, the Company; the Company's ability to complete and successfully integrate acquisitions and to mitigate other business combination risks; challenges to, or difficulty in maintaining, the Company's title to properties and continued ownership thereof; the actual results of current exploration activities, conclusions of economic evaluations, and changes in project parameters to deal with unanticipated economic or other factors; increased competition in the mining industry for properties, equipment, qualified personnel, and their costs. Investors are cautioned against attributing undue certainty or reliance on forward-looking statements. Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated, described or intended. The Company does not intend, and does not assume any obligation, to update these forward-looking statements or information to reflect changes in assumptions or changes in circumstances or any other events affecting such statements or information, other than as required by applicable law. Trevali's production plan at the Caribou Mine is based only on measured, indicated and inferred resources, and not mineral reserves, and does not have demonstrated economic viability. Trevali's production plan at the Santander Mine is based only on indicated and inferred mineral resources, and not mineral reserves, and does not have demonstrated economic viability. Inferred mineral resources are considered too speculative geologically to have the economic considerations applied to them that would enable them to be categorized as mineral reserves, and there is therefore no certainty that the conclusions of the production plans and Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) will be realized. Additionally, where Trevali discusses exploration/expansion potential, any potential quantity and grade is conceptual in nature and there has been insufficient exploration to define a mineral resource and it is uncertain if further exploration will result in the target being delineated as a mineral resource. We advise US investors that while the terms "measured resources", "indicated resources" and "inferred resources" are recognized and required by Canadian regulations, the US Securities and Exchange Commission does not recognize these terms. US investors are cautioned not to assume that any part or all of the material in these categories will ever be converted into reserves. This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any of the securities in the United States. The securities described herein have not been and will not be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the securities laws of any state and may not be offered or sold within the United States, absent such registration or an applicable exemption from such registration requirements. The TSX has not approved or disapproved of the contents of this news release. Contacts: Trevali Mining Corporation Steve Stakiw, Vice President Investor Relations and Corporate Communications (604) 488-1661 / Direct: (604) 638-5623 sstakiw@trevali.com www.trevali.com Prop 12 was put on the ballot by the state legislature to issue $900 million in bonds to fund the Cal-Vet program to assist veterans to buy ... DUBLIN, February 24, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The global instant messaging market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 19.42% for consumer IM over the period 2015-2019, according to a report published on Research and Markets. Low cost data packages, free installation of apps, and high-speed internet access is boosting the growth of the IM market globally. This growth is evidenced by the news that mobile messaging application Telegram has surpassed 100 million users. (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130307/600769 ) Telegram co-founder Pavel Durov told the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona that 15 billion messages a day are being sent daily using the service. While this is still well short of the 45 billion sent on rival Whatsapp, it marks a significant increase from the 12 billion figure registered in September. Telegram has become popular for its security features. All messaging traffic on the service is encrypted end-to-end and users also have the ability to set messages to delete themselves after being viewed. A recent report on the mobile application security market expects it to be worth $2.5 billion by 2020, due to a growing demand from consumers and enterprises for end-to-end security solutions. One of the other major factors driving this market is the adoption of standards and privacy regulations. With the growth in the mobile device usage, the risk of data theft, phishing has also increased. This has encouraged organizations to roll out regulations to boost the demand for this market. Telegram is currently a free service, with Durov funding the business using the estimated $300 million he received from the sale of VKontakte, a Russian social networking site, in 2014. The market for mobile applications is prosperous one, with growth expected at a rate of 31.05%. Mobile applications are dependent on expanding smartphone and tablet usage, which are becoming an integral part of urban and semi-urban lifestyles across the globe. For further information on this topic, and a full list of all related documentation, please visit the Software section at http://www.researchandmarkets.com/rm/MIKO. 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. Source: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-02-23/telegram-surpasses-100-million-users-backs-apple-on-encryption Contact: Research and Markets Laura Wood,Senior Manager press@researchandmarkets.com For E.S.T Office Hours Call +1-917-300-0470 For U.S./CAN Toll Free Call +1-800-526-8630 For GMT Office Hours Call +353-1-416-8900 U.S. Fax: 646-607-1907 Fax (outside U.S.): +353-1-481-1716 Ubiquigent Limited, a company specialising in providing ubiquitin cell-signalling system drug discovery services and research tools, announced today that it has significantly enhanced its drug discovery service capabilities by strengthening its commercial and chemistry teams to deliver an even more comprehensive range of services to the global life science research community. Jason Mundin has joined the board as Commercial Director to drive the growth of Ubiquigent along with Jason Brown, founder and now Scientific Director and Mark Treherne, Executive Chairman. Laurence Ede also joins as a non-executive director to support the development of the company. John Harris has joined the Scientific Advisory Board to lead Ubiquigent's new chemistry strategy. Ubiquigent also announced the launch of a new website (www.ubiquigent.com) to provide improved access to the Drug Discovery Services, Research Tools, Chemistry and expertise to support ubiquitin system-focused drug discovery and basic research programmes. John Harris founded BioFocus, a highly successful preclinical stage contract research organisation (now part of Charles River). As interest in kinase inhibitors took off, he conceived the focused library as a fast track to clinical development candidates and designed a portfolio of small molecule libraries for screening, leading to many patents in the kinase and subsequently other areas. Now it is becoming increasingly clear that the small molecule modulation of other major cell signalling processes, such as protein ubiquitylation and deubiquitylation, possess the potential for further breakthroughs of similar therapeutic magnitude to kinase inhibition. Along with the major advances in the high-quality biological assays being developed by Ubiquigent, John believes that the stage is now set for a similar impact of focused medicinal chemistry targeting ubiquitin system proteins; starting at Ubiquigent with targeting deubiquitylase enzymes. Laurence Ede is the former Managing Director and co-owner of Tocris Bioscience, where he gained significant experience within the life science industry. Following a Management Buyout in late 2006, Laurence focused on developing Tocris to be an increasingly significant player within the life science arena, which in turn led to the successful trade sale of the business to US buyer R&D Systems (Techne) in April 2011. Jason Mundin began his career as a research scientist at GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), before joining the team that founded Pharmagene Laboratories, which focused on drug discovery through the application of human-tissue-based approaches. While at Pharmagene, he transitioned to a commercial role, taking responsibility for business development activities in the UK, US and Japan. Following his time at Pharmagene Jason held a number of commercial positions within small and medium-sized biotech companies and latterly headed strategic alliances for the European Bioinformatics Institute, an outstation of the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL). Ubiquigent's Executive Chairman, Dr Mark Treherne commented: "I look forward to working closely with the strengthened Ubiquigent team that will drive the execution of the company's strategy in this rapidly growing market. I particularly welcome the opportunity to work again alongside both John Harris, as a highly experienced medical chemist, and Jason Mundin, as commercial director. I also value Laurence Ede's commercial acumen and drive, which will provide a new impetus to the board." About Ubiquigent (www.ubiquigent.com) Ubiquigent is a unique enabler of ubiquitin-system targeted drug discovery providing access to the expertise, Drug Discovery Services, high quality Research Tools and Chemistry required to support its commercial and academic partners in pursuing ubiquitin system-focused drug discovery programmes, and in undertaking basic research. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160224005654/en/ Contacts: At Ubiquigent Ltd Jason Mundin Commercial Director E-mail: jason.mundin@ubiquigent.com Phone: +44 (0) 7976 000683 Synechron, one of the fastest-growing digital, business consulting and technology services firms, unveiled its new brand identity, representing the significant steps the firm has taken to increase the depth and breadth of its services. The rebranding signifies the evolution of the company and its vision for the future as it aims for $1 billion of revenue by the year 2020. Along with the brand modernization, Synechron has launched a new website that communicates the firm's new 'Power of 3' strategy and value proposition: Digital, Business Consulting and Technology. Within this strategy, the company will offer its clients a 360 degree business approach, including digital transformation services, business consulting and best-in-class technology services. The brand modernization marks a key milestone and this move is in congruence with Synechron's strategic acquisitions made in 2015 wherein it welcomed to its family specialist firms in the digital and the business consulting space. Driving it further in the last quarter, Synechron opened a first-of-its-kind digital innovation center. The Synechron Digital Innovation Center (SDIC) is an innovation hub for clients committed to investing in digital transformation, translating those assets into greater potential business success for the future. The firms acquired in 2015 were: usable, a US-based boutique UI/UX design firm, strengthening and expanding Synechron's digital design and user interface/user experience capabilities. Crossbridge, a specialist financial services consulting firm based in London, to expand Synechron's offerings in business and IT transformation, regulatory services, data and financial crime. Team Trade, a Paris-based firm specializing in software integration and business consulting to enhance Synechron's consulting and systems integration expertise as well as grow its footprint in the European market. "Synechron has grown from a startup to an established niche firm over the last 15 years," said Faisal Husain, Synechron's Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer. "We have been fortunate to work with a brilliant set of clients as well as employees, the two foremost factors in our success. We now have our sights set on becoming a $1 billion firm by the end of the decade. An ambitious goal, for sure, but we are well positioned and have already begun bringing in new clients under the 'Power of 3' strategy. We have the best talent in the industry, world-class infrastructure and newly acquired firms which add depth to our value proposition and reinforce our expertise as well as leadership teams. The launch of our new brand identity kicks off an era of corporate evolution wherein our strategy to build three distinct but complementary service lines -- Digital, Business Consulting and Technology -- allows us to pursue untapped market opportunities." The launch of this new brand identity is aimed at further strengthening the ambition and commitment toward the top-tier clients which Synechron has served over the years. About Synechron Synechron, one of the fastest-growing digital, business consulting technology services providers for the financial services industry is a $350-million firm based in New York. Since inception in 2001, Synechron has been on a steep growth trajectory. With 5,000+ professionals operating in 16 countries across the world, it has presence across US, Australia, Canada, UK, Japan, The Netherlands, Hong Kong, Singapore, UAE, Ireland, Germany, Switzerland, Luxembourg, Italy, France, and Development Centers in India. For more details, visit us at www.synechron.com View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160224005793/en/ Contacts: Synechron Atul Tajave Manager Global Marketing Communication synechron-mediarelations@synechron.com OAK HAMMOCK MARSH, MANITOBA -- (Marketwired) -- 02/24/16 -- Ducks Unlimited Canada (DUC) is pleased to announce Trevor Tennant of Bobcaygeon, Ont. as the 2016 MBNA-sponsored Artist of the Year for his moose-themed painting, "Shoreline Retreat". The painting was chosen from more than 1,500 pieces submitted by artists who hoped to be selected for DUC's prestigious annual National Art Portfolio. "I support DUC because they conserve the landscapes and wildlife that inspire me to paint," says Tennant, who has been critically acclaimed for his wildlife art for more than two decades. "Their National Art Portfolio is great exposure for artists and provides great fundraising for conservation. It's a perfect pairing." Tennant's art is part of private and corporate collections around the world. His wildlife art has been selected for the Ontario Outdoors Card (2005-2007), the Salmon Stamp (2007) and the Trout Unlimited Artist of the Year (2001). He has also designed DUC's 75th anniversary coins, as well as several coins for the Royal Canadian Mint. Tennant is just one of a talented lineup of 15 artists who have been selected for the 2016 National Art Portfolio - a signature DUC art program which raises essential funds for wetland conservation. These paintings will be made into high-quality, limited edition prints which will receive national exposure through DUC fundraising initiatives. The money raised through the portfolio supports DUC's habitat conservation projects, research and education programs. "For more than 30 years, our National Art Portfolio has grown into an amazing fundraising program. We promote outstanding artists who understand how essential wetland conservation is to the health of our water, wildlife and environment," says Scott Baker, DUC's national manager of retail programs. "We are excited to celebrate Trevor Tennant's work as the 2016 Artist of the Year, and we are grateful to have the support of some Canada's most talented artists - as well as a of couple premiere artists from the United States." Artists selected for the 2016 National Art Portfolio include: - Trevor Tennant - Bobcaygeon, Ont. - Kevin Johnson - Quathiaski Cove, B.C. (MBNA-sponsored Artist of the - Joseph Koensgen - Winnipeg, Man. Year) - Peter Steuart - Summerland, B.C. - Denis Mayer Jr. - Burnaby, B.C. (Waterfowl Stamp and Print - Geoff Musseau - Channel-Port aux Artist) Basques, N.L. - Laurene Spino - Montreal, Que. - Patricia Pepin - Bromont, Que. (National Sponsor Print) - Dave Rheaume - Toronto, Ont. - Guy Hobbs - Creston, B.C. - Tammy Taylor - Onoway, Alta. - Terry Isaac - Penticton, B.C. - John Zacharias - Sherwood Park, Alta. Throughout 2016, their art prints will be auctioned at fundraising events and sealed bid auction easels across the country. Prints are also available online through DUC's online sealed bid auction. To view this year's Portfolio or bid on some artwork, visit www.ducks.ca/nap. Artists who wish to submit for the 2017 Portfolio can apply at www.ducks.ca/artists. Ducks Unlimited Canada (DUC) is the leader in wetland conservation. A registered charity, DUC partners with government, industry, other non-profit organizations and landowners to conserve wetlands that are critical to waterfowl, wildlife and the environment. A high-quality image of Tennant's Shoreline Retreat is available at http://bit.ly/shoreline-retreat. Contacts: Ducks Unlimited Canada Mitch Kruse Communications Coordinator 204-467-3225 m_kruse@ducks.ca www.ducks.ca LAS VEGAS, NV -- (Marketwired) -- 02/24/16 -- Pure Hospitality Solutions, Inc. (OTC PINK: PNOW), parent Company of the Central American-Caribbean online travel Agency (OTA) Oveedia (www.Oveedia.com), announced today that the Company is entering the second phase of its Debt Repurchase Program, prepping to repay and retire an additional block of its toxic debt. "Similar to the initial round of debt buybacks, we will further reduce our derivative liability and save shareholders from unfair dilution," stated Melvin Pereira, President and CEO of Pure Hospitality Solutions, Inc. "We are working diligently to repair our balance sheet, in preparation of our anticipated upgrade to the OTCQB or OTCQX. This next round of debt buybacks only proves our resolve to build a real Company, and solidifies our strengthening financial position." Management indicated that the Company remains on track to eliminate nearly all of its toxic legacy debt, as planned. All told, management believes that $3 Million of toxic debt held by the primary noteholder will be eliminated, the Company's derivative liability will be reduced by nearly $2.5 Million and the possibility of over 6 Billion additional shares of dilution will be nullified. It should be noted, in an effort to become fully reporting with the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Company needs to be as compliant as possible at every level; including its contractual obligations to debtholders. In remaining compliant, prior to initiating the Debt Repurchase Program, management could have been forced to possibly increase the authorized shares to nearly 15 Billion, or more. However, now an increase of that size is no longer needed to remain compliant because "focusing on debt buybacks was an extremely intelligent move by Mr. Pereira," suggested a member of the Board of Directors. " The new, long-term debt could be viewed as an 'accretive' transaction," continued the Director. "Not to mention, now, we'd only be made to consider a much smaller, six to seven billion share increase to the authorized, in order to remain compliant with a new long-term capital obligation; an obligation that does not begin to come due until 2017. For the first time in a very long time, the Company is in a good position and gaining excellent traction." Pereira concluded, "I am aiming to eliminate up to an additional 14% of toxic legacy debt by the close of this month and ensure that the Company remains responsibly compliant with its contractual debt obligations. This will bring us closer to having a 'cleaner,' much stronger balance sheet. Once again, this for the first time in several years, giving PNOW shareholders something exciting to look forward to." About Pure Hospitality Solutions, Inc. PURE provides proprietary technology, marketing solutions and branding services to hotel operators and condominium owners. The Company's vision is to build competitive operations in the areas of (i) online marketing and hotel internet booking engine services, (ii) hotel branding and, (iii) own, operate and in some instances develop, boutique hotels under the new, "by PURE" brand. PURE is the creator of Oveedia, the Central American-Caribbean online travel hub. Related Links: Pure Hospitality Solutions, Inc. Pinterest Pure Hospitality Solutions, Inc. Facebook Pure Hospitality Solutions, Inc. Twitter Pure Hospitality Solutions, Inc. Google + Pure Hospitality Solutions, Inc. LinkedIn Oveedia Google + Safe Harbor Statements in this news release that are not historical facts, including statements about plans and expectations regarding products and opportunities, demand and acceptance of new or existing products, capital resources and future financial results are forward-looking. Forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties which may cause the Company's actual results in future periods to differ materially from those expressed. These uncertainties and risks include changing consumer preferences, lack of success of new products, loss of the Company's customers, competition and other factors discussed from time to time in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Contact: Team PURE IR Div. (800) 889-9509 VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA -- (Marketwired) -- 02/24/16 -- Mawson Resources Limited ("Mawson") or (the "Company") (TSX: MAW)(FRANKFURT: MXR)(OTC PINK: MWSNF) provides an update on the 4,000 metre winter drill program at Palokas in Finland. Key Points: -- Drill results from the first four holes from the Palokas prospect and one hole from Hirvimaa are now available; -- All holes at Palokas have intersected the mineralized sequence. Only lower tenor gold mineralization has been discovered down dip and along strike from previous drilling, where marginal-style talc alteration predominates; -- Results from Palokas include 4 metres @ 1.2 g/t gold from 152.0 metres in PAL0009, drilled 65 metres down dip from PRAJ0110 (9.2 metres @ 3.2 g/t gold from 82 meters) - refer to Mawson New Release Sept 24 2015 and 3.1 metres at 1.4g/t gold from 150.6 metres in PAL0012, drilled 90 metres down dip from PRAJ0117 (2.0 metres @ 2.8 g/t gold from 66.4 meters, 3.0 metres @ 1.6g/t gold from 65.6 metres and 3.0 metres @ 1.9g/t gold from 109.9 metres) - refer to Mawson New Release Dec 18 2015. -- Results from the first deep drill hole drilled at Hirvimaa, PAL0008, located 680 metres north of Palokas, include 3.0m @ 1.4g/t gold from 31 metres; -- Mineralization remains open down plunge to the north and appears to be truncated down-dip and to the south by these new results; -- The broad mineralized and altered zone has been confirmed with these drill holes, which continues over 1,000 metres along strike and 250 metres down dip. Distribution of higher gold grades is yet to be understood outside the main Palokas mineralized zone; -- The Company continues to drill test the immediate extensions of Palokas, as well as the broader mineralized trend that extends over at least 3 kilometres; -- The three dimensional induced polarization and resistivity survey ("3D IP/resistivity") is now complete and extends coverage over Palokas to 2.7 kilometres. Mr. Hudson, President & CEO states, "While we would have preferred a stronger start to the winter drill program at Palokas, we remain mindful these holes are only the start of the first deeper drilling program that tests an extensive gold-bearing system. Our targeting methods using the low resistivity IP and VTEM geophysics are working and clearly define the mineralized host horizon, which we have now drilled over 1,000 metres of strike and intersected in every drill hole. Further away from Palokas, we see broad intervals of lower grade gold, within a 40 metre wide zone (ie drill hole PAL0009) of prospective rocks. As always, high-grade gold distribution is complex, and our drilling continues to help build up a picture of this extensive gold system." To date six holes have been completed at the Hirvimaa and Palokas prospects for 1,260 metres. Drilling has been slower than anticipated due to longer ramp up and cold conditions during January, however the program is now on track to complete 4,000 metres as planned, should winter conditions last until mid-April. The first five holes from the program as reported here are PAL0008, PAL0009, PAL0010, PAL0012 and PAL0013 (Table 2). PAL0008 was drilled at Hirvimaa (Figure 5). PAL0009-PAL0013 were drilled at Palokas (Figures 1-4). PAL0011 was a short test hole of 11.8 metres to commission a drill rig outside the Natura 2000 areas and PAL0014 was abandoned at 19.9 metres due to drilling issues. PAL0015 has yet to be cut and assayed.PAL0016 and PAL0017 remain in progress (Table 1). Tables 1 and 2 include collar and assay results to date from the winter drill program. The true thickness of mineralized intervals is interpreted to be approximately 90% of the sampled thickness. A plan map of drilling at Palokas is shown in Figure 1, with representative cross sections shown in Figures 2-4. Figure 5 shows a plan map of the Rajapalot project area which shows the drill plan over the broader prospect area. The remainder of the winter drill program (Figure 5) will target: -- The down plunge and open northerly extensions of the Palokas mineralization below drillholes PRAJ0113 and PRAJ0114 which respectively intersected 20.6 metres @ 2.7g/t gold from 56.8 metres and 7.0 metres @ 7.2 g/t gold from 61.1 metres; -- The two largest low resistivity IP anomalies 350 metres south of Palokas; -- The undrilled 600-metre-long mineralized trend between Palokas and Hirvimaa; -- The area located 1,000 to 1,200 metres south of Palokas, to follow up geophysical targets, gold mineralized boulder fields and shallow drilling results which include 0.3 metres @ 49.6 g/t gold from 17.7 metres in PRAJ0097 and 3.9 metres @ 3.3 g/t gold from 24.1 metres in PRA0076 - refer to Mawson News Release Dec 16 2014; -- A series of drill hole fences through the 400-metre-long by 100-metre- wide Rumajarvi boulder field, located 1,500 metres south of Palokas, where 68 boulders assay greater than 0.1g/t gold with an average of 149g/t gold and range from 0.11g/t gold to 3,870g/t gold - refer to Mawson News Release Feb 18 2014. Mawson, in conjunction with all environmental authorities, are ensuring that all parts of the exploration programs are undertaken with minimal environmental impact. Baseline mapping of habitats and vegetation were completed during the summer and autumn. Mapping and identifying the nature values of the area ensures that threatened and endangered species are not negatively affected by exploration activities. In other news on August 24 2015, the Company announced that it had requested a police investigation into certain accusations made by an NGO about the Company in their re-appeal to the Supreme Administrative Court. On December 18 2015, Mawson was informed by the Rovaniemi police that it will not proceed with the case. The Rovaniemi police have subsequently informed the Company that they have reassessed the case and have commenced interviewing members of the NGO. Technical and Environmental Background The qualified person for Mawson's Finnish projects, Mr Michael Hudson, President & CEO for Mawson and Fellow of the Australasian Institute of Mining Metallurgy has reviewed and verified the contents of this release. Two Energold Group ("Energold) EGD Series III rigs which have been modified to meet environmental requirements and climate conditions were used for the drill program. Core diameter is NTW (56 mm) diameter core. Core recoveries were excellent and average close to 100% in fresh rock. After photographing and logging, core intervals averaging 1 metre in length for mineralized samples and 2 metres for barren samples were cut in half at the Geological Survey of Finland (GTK) core facilities in Rovaniemi, Finland. The remaining half core is retained on site for verification and reference purposes. Analytical samples were transported by Mawson personnel from site to the CRS Limited facility in Kempele, Finland. Samples were prepared at Kempele and analyzed for gold at Raahe using the PAL1000 technique which involves grinding the sample in steel pots with abrasive media in the presence of cyanide, followed by measuring the gold in solution with flame AAS equipment. The QA/QC program of Mawson consists of the systematic insertion of certified standards of known gold content, and blanks at the within interpreted mineralized rock. In addition, CRS inserts a number of blanks and standards into the analytical process. About Mawson Resources Limited (TSX: MAW)(FRANKFURT: MXR)(OTC PINK: MWSNF) Mawson Resources Limited is an exploration and development company. Mawson has distinguished itself as a leading Nordic Arctic exploration company with a focus on the flagship Rompas and Rajapalot gold projects in Finland. Forward-Looking Statement This news release contains forward-looking statements or forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities laws (collectively, "forward-looking statements"). All statements herein, other than statements of historical fact, are forward-looking statements. Although Mawson believes that such statements are reasonable, it can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. Forward-looking statements are typically identified by words such as: aim, believe, expect, anticipate, intend, estimate, postulate, and similar expressions, or are those, which, by their nature, refer to future events. Mawson cautions investors that any forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future results or performance, and that actual results may differ materially from those in forward-looking statements as a result of various factors, including, but not limited to, capital and other costs varying significantly from estimates, receipt of shareholder approval of the Placement, successful completion of the Placement, timing and the successful completion of an initial mineral resource estimate at the Rompas-Rajapalot prospect in Finland, changes in world metal markets, changes in equity markets, planned drill programs and results varying from expectations, delays in obtaining results, equipment failure, unexpected geological conditions, local community relations, dealings with non-governmental organizations, delays in operations due to permit grants, environmental and safety risks, and other risks and uncertainties disclosed under the heading "Risk Factors" in Mawson's most recent Annual Information Form filed on www.sedar.com. Any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which it is made and, except as may be required by applicable securities laws, Mawson disclaims any intent or obligation to update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or results or otherwise. Table 1: Collar Information from Energold drill program to date at the Palokas and Hirvimaa Prospects ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Azim Overburden Depth Hole id UTME UTMN RL Dip UTM Depth (m) (m) Comment ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- PAL0008 3409235 7374248 175 -60 130 4 158.4 Assay reported here ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- PAL0009 3408550.6 7373912 174 -60 116 5.7 201.5 Assay reported here ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- PAL0010 3408460.7 7373955.6 173.9 -60 116 5.3 285.95 Assay reported here ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- PAL0011 3409405.7 7374222 176.143 -60 130 6.5 11.8 Short test hole ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- PAL0012 3408515.6 7373837.4 173.983 -60 116 4.9 233.55 Assay reported here ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- PAL0013 3408415.7 7373634.4 174.104 -60 116 4 196.8 Assays not yet available ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- PAL0014 3408333.1 7373666.1 173.955 -60 116 0.8 19.9 Abandoned ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- PAL0015 3408570.6 7373725.4 174.6 -60 116 4.05 151.9 Assays not yet available ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- PAL0016 3408322 7373670 173.955 -60 116 In progress ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- PAL0017 3408480 7373768 173.9861 -60 116 In progress ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Table 2: Bulk weighted assay data from the Palokas Prospect for Aug-Nov 2015 drill program A lower cut of 0.5 g/t over 2 metres was applied except hole PAL0013 where no lower cut was applied for 131.0-140.8m. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- From To Au Hole_id (m) (m) Width g/t Comments ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- PAL0008 31.0 34.0 3.0 1.4 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- PAL0009 135.0 136.0 1.0 0.7 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- PAL0009 148.0 149.0 1.0 0.7 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- PAL0009 152.0 156.0 4.0 1.2 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- PAL0009 157.0 158.0 1.0 0.5 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- PAL0009 173.0 174.0 1.0 1.1 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- No significant PAL0010 mineralization ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- PAL0011 Shallow test hole ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- PAL0012 150.6 153.7 3.1 1.4 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- PAL0013 138.5 139.5 1.0 0.6 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- PAL0013 131.0 140.8 9.8 0.3(i) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- To view Figure 1, please visit the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/1044305-F1.pdf To view Figure 2, please visit the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/1044305-F2.pdf To view Figure 3, please visit the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/1044305-F3.pdf To view Figure 4, please visit the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/1044305-F4.pdf To view Figure 5, please visit the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/1044305-F5.pdf Contacts: Mawson Resources Limited Mariana Bermudez (Canada) Corporate Secretary +1 (604) 685 9316 info@mawsonresources.com www.mawsonresources.com "A milestone for the global psoriasis community" - IFPA welcomes the Global report on Psoriasis issued by the World Health Organization In 2014, the WHO Member States recognized psoriasis as a serious NCD in resolution WHA67.9. The resolution underscored that too many people in the world suffer needlessly from psoriasis due to incorrect or delayed diagnosis, inadequate treatment options, insufficient access to care and because of social stigmatization. The Global report on Psoriasis brings the public health impact of psoriasis into focus. The report also recognizes the urgent need to pursue multilateral efforts to raise awareness regarding psoriasis and to fight stigmatization suffered by those with psoriasis. The report is written to help raise awareness of the range of ways that psoriasis can impact on people's lives. It aims at empowering policymakers with practical solutions to improve the healthcare and the social inclusion of individuals with psoriasis and other NCDs in society. Lars Ettarp, President of IFPA, comments: "The Global report on Psoriasis prepared by the World Health Organization in which IFPA contributed with comments and expert technical review, is a milestone for the global psoriasis community. IFPA together with its members, representing more than 125 million people living with psoriasis around the world, wishes to express its greatest gratitude to all stakeholders involved in the formation of this highly important report, especially the World Health Organization" Recommended actions by the WHO As stated in the Global report on Psoriasis the control of psoriasis and prevention of its complications require action by governments and policy makers. Furthermore, scientists, health professional and the associations uniting them have an important role to play in improving the QoL (Quality of Life) of people suffering from psoriasis. Patients' organizations, civil society and the media are crucial in advocating for change and helping fight stigma and ignorance. IFPA welcomes and supports the recommended actions by the WHO as they are of utmost importance and a prerequisite for improving the lives of people with psoriasis. This will only be achieved by joint forces from all stakeholders by together raising public awareness about psoriasis holistically (covering all conditions of the disease, including psycho-social) and emphasizing the need for global incidence on psoriasis. Facts about prevalence is needed According to the Global report on Psoriasis a key area of healthcare research is epidemiology of psoriasis and its incidence and prevalence on the global level. This determines what the consortium formed by IFPA together with the International League of Dermatology Society, ILDS, and International Psoriasis Council, IPC, also have identified. Despite of the contribution of existing published epidemiological studies to the understanding of the occurrence of psoriasis, further international research is needed to better define the global burden of the disease. Lars Ettarp, President of IFPA, comments: "The Global Psoriasis Atlas, GPA, has been established as an international long-term research programme with vision to be the leading epidemiological web-based resource on psoriasis globally; thus informing research, policy and healthcare provision for the disease worldwide. IFPA is proud to be part of the governance of this prominent programme that will be a useful tool in the successful implementation of the recommended actions by the WHO" Acknowledgements IFPA would like to take this opportunity to especially thank the WHO Secretariat for preparing the Global report on Psoriasis, to the IFPA Executive Committee and the IFPA Secretariat for their excellent work as well as to all other contributors for their comments and expert technical reviews. Link to the Global report on Psoriasis Global report on Psoriasis (http://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/10665/204417/1/9789241565189_eng.pdf) About IFPA The International Federation of Psoriasis Associations, IFPA, is a nonprofit umbrella organization for the majority of psoriasis associations from around the world. Today IFPA has 53 member associations, covering all regions of the world. IFPA unites psoriasis associations so that their global campaign for improved medical care, greater public understanding and increases research will improve the lives of the more than 125 million people who live psoriasis and/or psoriatic arthritis. You can read more about IFPA, our members and our activities on our website: www.ifpa-pso.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/20160224005875/en/ Contacts: International Federation of Psoriasis Associations Sophie Andersson Head of Operations +46 738 702 252 TEL AVIV, ISRAEL and SINGAPORE -- (Marketwired) -- 02/24/16 -- gridComm, a provider of the world's most reliable and robust narrow-band power line communications (PLC) solutions that enable the transformation of traditional power grid into a smart grid, and Virtual Extension, a leader in high-performance wireless mesh networks for IoT/M2M and DALI (Digital Addressable Lighting Interfaces), today announced a partnership for providing the industry with the most advanced hybrid connectivity solution of high-performance wireless mesh and narrow-band PLC networks. The joint R&D is supported and co-funded via the Singapore-Israel Industrial Research and Development Foundation (SIIRD). Virtual Extension and gridComm's partnership leverages each company's best solutions to compensate for technology limitations. The solution will synergistically increase cost efficiency, reduce time to market and even enable a whole new range of IoT/M2M projects that may not have been possible without it. Applications that will benefit from the solution include smart lighting control, smart metering, smart agriculture, smart city, smart water management, environmental monitoring, medical, security and safety, and more. Providing long-term smart solutions to businesses, both small and large, have always been of importance to both gridComm and Virtual Extension, and the partnership makes good business sense as well as it helps both companies to engage users at new levels. "Our wireless extensions for DALI and IoT networks have already proven to be extremely successful in citywide streetlight deployments and industrial lighting controls, as well as in smart metering and a large variety of applications that need to be high-performance and yet cost-effective," said Yariv Oren, CEO of Virtual Extension. "Adding PLC connectivity further increases their usefulness for our customers, and helps us expand into new markets." With three families of products that enable replacing the wiring in DALI by wireless, integrating DALI with IoT or using pure IoT, Virtual Extension offers the largest variety of high-performance solutions for lighting control to be used in highway, street and professional lighting control available. These solutions are based on Virtual Extension's wireless mesh technology -- VEmesh. VEmesh employs space, time and frequency diversity to offer the highest available performance in terms of robustness and resiliency, a practically unlimited number of nodes per network, low and deterministic latency, ease of deployment, and maintenance and cost-effectiveness. The same VEmesh technology is also used in a wide range of products in smart metering and applications in need of such high-performance, with most of these applications capable of benefiting from the additional connectivity offered by gridComm's PLC technology. Leveraging its multi-channel frequency technologies in its GC2200 PHY transceiver IC, gridComm has developed a fully adaptable, self-configuring network solution, GC-Net, that enables the world's most reliable power line communications solution. With an additional wireless PHY channel enabled by Virtual Extension's market proven VEmesh technology, the combination can now provide a truly hybrid network solution that enables seamless and reliable communications amongst wired, wireless and hybrid wired-wireless nodes within a unified network. Managing different networks separately with different communication technologies contributes to complexities and increases overhead in the systems. Virtual Extension and gridComm have changed that. The hybrid connectivity solution brings huge benefits such as a common set of commands and network IDs that can now be used to address and control wired, wireless and hybrid wired-wireless nodes. "We are very encouraged and thankful to SIIRD for enabling gridComm and Virtual Extension to develop this cutting-edge hybrid PLC and wireless technology," noted Mike Holt, CEO of gridComm. "We foresee that this technology will tremendously reduce meter installation and maintenance costs through automatic configuration of PLC and wireless channels, enabling robust and reliable sustained communications in noisy environments. This technology will also enable our customers to connect wireless sensors, such as weather sensors, light sensors and motion sensors to our smart street light system effortlessly. This will truly enable the realization of a Smart City." "SIIRD is happy to support the collaboration between Virtual Extension and gridComm," said Chan Eng Chye, GM of SIIRD. "SIIRD's main role is to identify and help promising technology companies from Israel and Singapore to jointly develop industrial projects that can be commercialized and are beneficial to the industry." About Virtual Extension Operating since 2000 and with a team of experts with a total wireless experience hundreds of years, Virtual Extension has become one of the world leaders in Wireless Lighting Control. It's VEmesh wireless mesh technology enables it to address practically unlimited number of luminaires and input devices per network, with unmatched throughput of bi-directional communication for most robust, resilient and ultimately cost effective lighting control solutions. Focusing on high-performance solutions for lighting control in the outdoor, professional and industrial markets, and following the recent trend of retrofit to LED, Virtual Extension has managed to become the renowned world leader in wireless extension to DALI and IoT interoperability, with products certified for CE and ISO9001 and massive successful deployments in the field. VEmesh is the wireless underlying technology that enables Virtual Extension to be a front-runner in seamlessly replaces wires by wireless. Combined with its commitment to provide the best wireless mesh network solutions for today's smart systems challenge, it enables its customers to benefit from all wireless advantages, such as convenience in use, user experience, as well as fast and easy deployment. About SIIRD The Singapore-Israel Industrial R&D Foundation (SIIRD) is a co-operation between the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB) and the Office of the Chief Scientist (OCS) in Israel to promote, facilitate and support joint industrial R&D projects, between companies from Israel and Singapore, which would lead to successful commercialization. To date, SIIRD has co-funded 146 joint R&D projects between companies from Singapore and Israel. About gridComm gridComm provides power line communications semiconductors, devices and systems that enable the transformation of the electricity grid into a smart grid. By connecting utilities to their customers, gridComm's semiconductors, modules and DIN Rail PLC modems help to transform meters, streetlights, homes and industrial buildings and other appliances into energy-aware "smart devices" that react to conditions on the grid, thus implementing a worldwide communications network or Internet of Things (IoT) based on the existing power grid. gridComm is headquartered in Singapore. Image Available: http://www2.marketwire.com/mw/frame_mw?attachid=2968828 gridComm Media Contact: Kevin Mayberry Lages & Associates (949) 453-8080 Email Contact Virtual Extension Media Contact Marius Gafen +972-54-5955427 Email Contact MONTREAL, QUEBEC -- (Marketwired) -- 02/24/16 -- On Wednesday, March 9, 2016, Transcontinental Inc. (TSX: TCL.A)(TSX: TCL.B) will hold its Annual General Meeting of shareholders at 2:00 PM at the Centre Mont-Royal, 2200 Mansfield Street, Montreal. For those who are unable to attend in person, the Corporation will webcast the meeting (audio only) and post it on its website at www.tc.tc on March 10. In addition, Transcontinental Inc. will release its first quarter 2016 results and host a conference call for the financial community at 4:15 PM. The conference call will be broadcast live (audio only) on the Investors homepage of the Corporation's Internet site at www.tc.tc, and will be archived for 30 days. The financial results will be made public in a press release that will be issued on the newswire prior to the conference call as well as in the Management's Discussion and Analysis that will be posted on the Corporation's website. Q1'2016 Results Conference Call Date: Wednesday, March 9, 2016 Time: 4:15 PM Dial-in numbers: 1 647 788-4922 or 1 877 223-4471 Live audio webcast: www.tc.tc/investors Conference Recording Playback Availability dates: March 9 (7:15 PM) to March 16 (11:59 PM) Access telephone numbers: 1 416 621-4642 or 1 800 585-8367 Access code: 30759125 The following is the conference call calendar for the 2016 fiscal year, for your information: 2016 Calendar 2nd quarter: Friday, June 10 3rd quarter: Thursday, September 8 4th quarter: Tuesday, December 6 Contacts: Jennifer F. McCaughey Vice President, Communications 514 954-4000 jennifer.mccaughey@tc.tc MONTREAL, QUEBEC -- (Marketwired) -- 02/24/16 -- Valener Inc. ("Valener") (TSX: VNR)(TSX: VNR.PR.A), the public investment vehicle in Gaz Metro Limited Partnership ("Gaz Metro"), will hold its annual meeting of shareholders on March 22, 2016 at 10:00 a.m. (Eastern Time) at the Centre Sheraton Montreal, 1201 Boulevard Rene-Levesque West, Room ABC, Montreal (Quebec). The annual meeting agenda includes the election of directors and appointment of the independent external auditor. Shareholders, media and other interested parties who are unable to attend the meeting are invited to listen to a live webcast on Valener's website in the "Investors" section under "Events and presentations". The webcast will be available on Valener's website for 365 days following the meeting. Overview of Valener Valener is a widely held public company that serves as the investment vehicle in Gaz Metro. Through its investment in Gaz Metro, Valener offers its shareholders a solid investment in a diversified and largely regulated energy portfolio in Quebec and Vermont. As a strategic partner, Valener, on the one hand, contributes to Gaz Metro's growth, and on the other, invests in wind power production in Quebec alongside Gaz Metro. Valener favours energy sources and uses that are innovative, clean, competitive and profitable. Valener's common and preferred shares are listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the "VNR" symbol for common shares and under the "VNR.PR.A" symbol for Series A preferred shares. www.valener.com Overview of Gaz Metro With nearly $7 billion in assets, Gaz Metro is a leading energy provider. It is the largest natural gas distribution company in Quebec, where its network of over 10,000 km of underground pipelines serves more than 300 municipalities and over 195,000 customers. Gaz Metro is also present in Vermont, producing and transporting electricity and distributing electricity and natural gas to meet the needs of more than 310,000 customers. Gaz Metro is actively involved in the development and operation of innovative, promising energy projects, including natural gas as fuel and liquefied natural gas as a replacement for higher emission-producing energies, the production of wind power, and the development of biomethane. Gaz Metro is a major energy sector player that takes the lead in responding to the needs of its customers, regions and municipalities, local organizations and communities while also satisfying the expectations of its Partners (Gaz Metro inc. and Valener) and employees. www.gazmetro.com Photos, videos (b-roll) and logos are available in Gaz Metro's Multimedia library. Contacts: Investors and analysts Mariem Elsayed 514-598-3253 investors@valener.com Media Marie-Christine Demers 514-598-3449 www.twitter.com/gazmetro www.gazmetro.com/pressroom VALCARTIER, QUEBEC -- (Marketwired) -- 02/24/16 -- A second group of military members from Valcartier returned to the country yesterday evening at the end of a six-month deployment to Central and Eastern Europe as part of the fourth rotation of Operation REASSURANCE. Coming primarily from 3rd Battalion, Royal 22e Regiment, this group of about 55 soldiers joins the group that returned on an earlier flight on 12 February. Quick Facts -- Operation REASSURANCE demonstrates Canada's unshakeable commitment to its allies in Central and Eastern Europe. The operation refers to the activities undertaken by the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) in support of NATO assurance measures, including military capabilities for training, exercises, demonstrations and assigned NATO tasks. -- During the fourth rotation of Operation REASSURANCE, the soldiers participated in various training activities - notably Exercise SILVER ARROW, in Lithuania, and Exercise MAPLE DETACHMENT, in Poland - to develop and enhance interoperability, readiness, joint operations capabilities and multinational responses to potential crises. -- The Canadian Army benefits from these training opportunities in Europe, which help our military members improve interoperability with their NATO Allies, showcase their capabilities and demonstrate once again their leadership abilities. -- CAF members have been in Central and Eastern Europe since May of 2014, taking part in collective training exercises and in partnership commitments with our allies. Quotations "Over the past several months, the soldiers from Valcartier who have returned once again proved to their allies, who are their colleagues, that they are highly professional. The joint training exercises such as those that they performed in Europe perpetuate the excellent reputation of Canadian soldiers internationally, which, in my opinion, is very much deserved." Colonel Michel-Henri St-Louis, Commander of 5 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group "Over the past seven months, our courageous military members in the Land Task Force OP REASSURANCE proudly represented the Canadian Armed Forces during numerous exercises in Eastern Europe. It is with a sense of accomplishment that we are returning to Canada to be reunited with our families and to share the unique experience that we have had." Major Simon Cote, Commander of the Land Task Force, OP REASSURANCE, ROTO 4 Related links -- Information concerning Operation REASSURANCE: www.forces.gc.ca/en/operations-abroad/nato-ee.page -- Photos of Operation REASSURANCE: www.forcesimages.ca Contacts: Second Lieutenant Dominique Tremblay Assistant Public Affairs Officer, 5 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group 418 955-2216 mathieu.dufour@forces.gc.ca DUBLIN, February 24, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Research and Markets(http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/g7t5qt/vascular_closure) has announced the addition of the"Vascular Closure Devices (VCD) Global Market - Forecast to 2022"report to their offering. (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130307/600769) Among the vascular closure products, the active approximators market dominated the products market by occupying a largest share in 2015. At the same time, the passive approximators market is also expected to grow at a high single digit CAGR from 2015 to 2022. Geographical wise North America is the largest market, followed by Europe and Asia Pacific. The North America regions suggest an array of opportunities for growth and are likely to be getting into the eyes of new investors in the vascular closure market. Growth is attributed to rising prevalence of lifestyle diseases and government initiatives in establishing innovative technologies and demand for sophisticated medical services. The Vascular closure market is expected to grow steadily in the forecast period. The factors driving the growth of this market are increasing catheterization related procedures (PCI), preference for minimally-invasive solutions & rise in vascular procedures. Ease in usage and quick hemostatic properties of VCDs and increased utilization of transradial arterial access are some of the opportunities that are propelling the growth of the market. High price of products, complications associated with VCD, less adoption of novel technologies in emerging countries are hampering the market of vascular closure. Reduced reimbursement, usage of animal related sources and lower revenue potential of VCD are threats for the market growth. Some of the key players of the vascular closure market are Abbott Laboratories (U.S.), Advanced Vascular Dynamics (U.S.), B Braun Melsungen AG (Germany), Biotronik Corpotation (Germany), C R Bard International (U.S.), Cardinal Health (U.S.), Cardiva medical (U.S.), Morris Innovative (U.S.), Scion Biomedical (U.S.), St Jude Medical (U.S.), Terumo Corporation (Japan) and Vascular Solutions, Inc (U.S.) Key Topics Covered: 1 Executive Summary 2 Introduction 3 Market Analysis 4 Vascular Closure Devices Global Market, By Type 5 Vascular Closure Devices Global Market, By Intervention 6 Vascular Closure Devices Global Market, By Access 7 Vascular Closure Devices Global Market, By Geography 8 Company Developments 9 Company Profiles Companies Mentioned - Abbott Laboratories U.S. - Advanced Vascular Dynamica U.S. - Arstasis U.S. - B. Braun Melsungen AG Germany - Beijing PuYi Medical Technology Co., Ltd China - Benrikal Services Canada - Biotronik Corporation Germany - C.R. Bard International U.S. - CP Medical U.S. - Cardinal Health U.S. - CardioDex Israel - Cardiva Medical U.S. - Creganna Medical Ireland - Endocor GmbH Germany - Essential Medical Supplies U.S. - Gambro Germany - Hem Con medical technologies U.S. - Hemoband corporation U.S. - Inseal Medical Israel - Liaoning Aimu Medical Science & Technology Co., Ltd China - Maquet Holding B.V. & Co.KG Germany - Marine Polymer Technologies U.S. - Medeon Biodesign, Inc China - Morris Innovative Inc U.S. - Pressure product Inc U.S. - Scion biomedical U.S. - Sealantis Israel - St Judes Medical Inc U.S. - TZ Medical Inc U.S. - Terumo Japan - Transluminal Technologies, Inc U.S. - Vascular Innovations Co Ltd Thailand - Vivasure Medical Ireland - W.L.Gore & Associates U.S. - Z Medical For more information visithttp://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/g7t5qt/vascular_closure Media Contact: Research and Markets Laura Wood, Senior Manager press@researchandmarkets.com For E.S.T Office Hours Call +1-917-300-0470 For U.S./CAN Toll Free Call +1-800-526-8630 For GMT Office Hours Call +353-1-416-8900 U.S. Fax: 646-607-1907 Fax (outside U.S.): +353-1-481-1716 BURBANK, CA -- (Marketwired) -- 02/24/16 -- Logix Federal Credit Union is returning $5 million to more than 50,000 members in the form of a Loyalty Dividend. The dividend was deposited directly into member accounts today. "We are pleased to once again pay a Loyalty Dividend to the members who helped make our success possible," President and CEO Dave Styler said. "This is the fourth consecutive year we've paid a bonus dividend, which is a powerful way to demonstrate the unique advantage of membership in Logix." Logix has reported positive net income every year since its inception in 1937, and is currently rated five-stars for financial strength by Bauer Financial. "A record number of new members joined Logix in 2015, taking advantage of low auto and mortgage loan rates and generating a record $1.6 billion in funded loans. Thousands of members also deepened their savings relationships and opened checking accounts," said John Roemer, Senior Vice President of Marketing, Payments and Strategy. "More than 96 percent of our members say they would recommend Logix to a friend. We take great pride in that result." The Loyalty Dividend was based on the combined deposit and loan balances each member had with Logix in the month of December. Visit www.lfcu.com/logixdividend for more information. About Logix Logix Federal Credit Union is rated "superior" for financial strength and currently has $4.3 billion in assets and 160,000 members. Chartered in 1937, Logix offers preferred rates on savings and loan accounts, surcharge-free access to 35,000 ATMs and access to a nationwide network of branches. Logix is the largest financial institution headquartered in the San Fernando Valley. The credit union operates 15 branches in the Northern Los Angeles County and Eastern Ventura County. Logix was voted "Best Credit Union/Bank" in the Los Angeles Times Readers' Choice awards. The credit union was named one of the best places to work by the Los Angeles Business Journal in 2015 and Consumer Reports rated Logix 93 out of 100 in its January 2016 issue. Southern California residents are eligible to open an account. Savings are federally insured by the National Credit Union Administration, a U.S. Government Agency. Logix is an equal housing lender. For more information, visit www.lfcu.com or call (800) 328-5328. Media Contact: Cynthia Wagner Email Contact 818.800.9084 (cell) VAUDREUIL-DORION, QUEBEC -- (Marketwired) -- 02/24/16 -- Immunotec Inc. (TSX VENTURE: IMM), a direct-to-consumer company and a leader in the nutritional industry (the "Company" or "Immunotec"), launched an innovative new skin care collection, Elasense, at their Convention in February. "As authorities on inner health and wellness, Immunotec's decision to develop a skin care collection based on natural science, focusing on outer health with beauty benefits, seemed a logical extension to our product line," said CEO, Charlie Orr. "This line extension allows our Independent Consultants to expand into new markets and increase their earning opportunities." Elasense is a glutathione skin care innovation supported by science and research which provides both short-term and long-term benefits. All products contain SynerG4, an exclusive antioxidant complex comprised of four powerful natural ingredients; the master antioxidant glutathione, extracts of green tea, acai berry and cactus that work synergistically to produce amazing results. "Our company has a rich history of research, science and natural products-this is true for our nutritional supplements, and is now true for our skin care line," said Immunotec's Vice President of Research and Development, John Molson. "With the incorporation of glutathione in our Elasense skin care collection, Immunotec proudly offers products addressing both intrinsic and extrinsic aspects of health, aging and beauty." About Elasense The Elasense collection consists of five products; three Daily Basics and two targeted anti-aging products. The Daily Basics include a 3-in-1 Facial Wash that gently cleanses, tones and removes impurities, a Protective Day Moisturizer infused with powerful antioxidants to hydrate and moisturize the skin, and a Rejuvenating Night Cream that works overnight to diminish and reduce visible signs of aging. The targeted anti-aging products include a peptide-rich Age Defying Serum formulated to help reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, and a Triple Action Eye Cream that softens the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles while reducing the appearance of puffiness and dark circles. Developed in collaboration with Dr. Ronald Prussick MD, FRCP a renowned Dermatologist, Elasense safely and effectively helps make skin look and feel more beautiful and healthy. Elasense is now available for purchase through Immunotec's Independent Consultants.To learn more about the Elasense skin care collection, please visit the Immunotec website. About Immunotec Inc. Immunotec is a Canadian-based company that develops, manufactures, markets and sells research-driven nutritional products through direct to consumer sales channels in Canada, the U.S., Mexico, Dominican Republic, United Kingdom and Ireland. The company offers an extensive line of nutritional, skin care and wellness products targeting health, weight management, energy and physical performance. Please visit us at www.immunotec.com for additional information. The company files its continuous disclosure documents, inclusive of its year end results, on the SEDAR database at www.sedar.com and on the Company's website at www.immunotec.com. The common shares of the Company are listed on the TSX Venture Exchange under the ticker symbol IMM. Neither 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. Contacts: John Molson Vice-President of Research and Development (450) 510-4450 Patrick Montpetit, CPA:CA, CF Vice-President and Chief Financial Officer (450) 510-4527 WASHINGTON, DC--(Marketwired - February 24, 2016) - The American Medical Association (AMA) honored Former House Speaker John Boehner with the Dr. Nathan Davis Award for Outstanding Government Service. The award ceremony occurred last night as part of the AMA National Advocacy Conference. "The AMA is proud to recognize Speaker Boehner's timely and invaluable service in improving health care," said AMA Board Chair Stephen R. Permut, M.D. "Speaker Boehner cobbled together a rare bipartisan coalition that resulted in the permanent repeal of Medicare's flawed physician payment formula, an impediment to health care, and left his successors a much improved budgeting and health care landscape." A replacement to Medicare's payment formula -- known as the sustainable growth rate (SGR) -- had long been on top of the AMA's legislative agenda, and Boehner worked with the AMA to replace it with a new policy framework to reward physicians for improving care for seniors. Boehner was one of eight honorees chosen this year to receive the Dr. Nathan Davis Award for Outstanding Government Service. The award, named after the founder of the AMA, recognizes elected and career officials in federal, state and municipal service whose outstanding contributions have promoted the art and science of medicine and the betterment of public health. "For more than a quarter century of the Nathan Davis Awards, the AMA has sought to salute government officials who go above and beyond the call of duty to improve public health," said Dr. Permut. "Award winners have come from every branch of government service and confirm the important role public officials can have creating and implementing health policies that benefit Americans." About the AMA The American Medical Association is the premier national organization dedicated to empowering the nation's physicians to continually provide safer, higher quality, and more efficient care to patients and communities. For more than 165 years the AMA has been unwavering in its commitment to using its unique position and knowledge to shape a healthier future for America. For more information, visit ama-assn.org. Media Contact: Jack Deutsch AMA Media and Editorial (202) 789-7442 Jack.Deutsch@ama-assn.org WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - In spite of staunch opposition from Senate Republicans, President Barack Obama is moving ahead with the process of selecting a replacement for the late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia. In a post on the SCOTUSblog website on Wednesday, Obama outlined the qualities he is looking for in his third nominee to the nation's highest court. 'First and foremost, the person I appoint will be eminently qualified,' Obama wrote. 'He or she will have an independent mind, rigorous intellect, impeccable credentials, and a record of excellence and integrity.' He added, 'I'm looking for a mastery of the law, with an ability to hone in on the key issues before the Court, and provide clear answers to complex legal questions.' Obama said the nominee must recognize the limits of the judiciary's role but also understand that justice is not about abstract legal theory. The president said a potential nominee must also have the life experience necessary to grasp the way the law affects the daily reality of people's lives. 'A sterling record. A deep respect for the judiciary's role. An understanding of the way the world really works,' Obama wrote. 'That's what I'm considering as I fulfill my constitutional duty to appoint a judge to our highest court.' He added, 'And as Senators prepare to fulfill their constitutional responsibility to consider the person I appoint, I hope they'll move quickly to debate and then confirm this nominee so that the Court can continue to serve the American people at full strength.' Despite the president's optimistic tone, Senate Republicans have repeatedly stated they will not consider any Obama nominee to the Supreme Court. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ken., said Tuesday virtually every member of the Senate GOP Conference agrees the nomination should be made by the next president. 'The overwhelming view of the Republican Conference in the Senate is that this vacancy should not be filled by this lame duck president,' McConnell said. All eleven Republican members of the Senate Judiciary Committee sent a letter to McConnell on Tuesday declaring they will not hold hearings on any Supreme Court nomination made by Obama. According to the Des Moines Register, Judiciary Committee Chairman Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, has not even responded to a White House invitation to discuss the Supreme Court vacancy with the president. A Grassley spokeswoman told the Register the invitation is 'under consideration' and that the senator previously spoke with Obama as well as ranking member Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., and White House Counsel W. Neil Eggleston. Meanwhile, Democrats continue to urge their Republican colleagues to allow the Senate to fulfill its constitutional duty and have vowed to make the GOP obstruction a campaign issue. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Kostenloser Wertpapierhandel auf Smartbroker.de Technavio's latest report on thechildren's footwear market in China, provides an analysis of the key trends expected to impact the children's footwear market in China through 2015-2019. Technavio defines an emerging trend as a factor that has the potential to significantly impact the market and contribute to its growth or decline. The children's footwear market in China is expected to exceed USD 11 billion by 2019, growing at a CAGR of over 11%. The footwear market is diversified in China, and can broadly be divided into three major groups which are high-end, medium-end and low-end footwear. "China's annual per capita shoe consumption is much less than the US and some countries of Europe like France and Germany, so the potential market for China's footwear market is considerable," says Brijesh Kumar Choubey, a lead analyst for toys and baby products at Technavio. The top five emerging trends influencing the children's footwear market in China according to Technavio's consumer and retail research analysts are: Growing e-commerce in China The total online retail market in China is expected to grow at a CAGR of more than 24% during the forecast period. The increase in internet penetration has resulted in a rise in shopping through mobile and tablets which is fueling the growth of online retailing in the country, which includes growth in sales of various consumer goods including footwear. In addition, aggressive marketing, pricing, and customer acquisition tactics are driving sales through e-commerce in China. Many footwear manufacturers, as well as retailers, have thus entered this segment offering a variety of brands and designs through online portals. As a result, sales of footwear through online stores is also increasing, influencing a positive growth for the market during the forecast period. Increasing demand for leather footwear Vendors are focusing more on design and style of leather shoes. Corporate employees and school going children are the major consumers of formal leather shoes, however demand is growing from the children shoes category also. In 2014, Fujian Province was the leader in the production of leather shoes in China and accounted for 38% of China's production of leather shoes, followed by Guangdong and Zhejiang provinces Increasing organized retail space There has been tremendous growth in organized retailing in China over the past few years. The need for convenience in shopping has led to increased purchase of footwear from organized multi-brand retail stores. It is expected that China's retail market will become one of the leading retail markets in the world by 2018. "As barriers between physical and virtual channels blur, retailers are exploring multichannel solutions such as click-and-collect stores, pop-up shops, or using beacon technology to send notifications of offers to nearby smartphones in order to drive engagement and influence consumer behavior," says Brijesh. Technological innovations There have been technological innovations in the footwear industry which address parents' concerns. For instance, Xtep International, one of the major vendors of children's footwear in China, signed a deal with Qihoo 360 Technology Company in June 2015, to design shoes for children which will enable parents to track their child's location through a mobile app that can transmit real-time tracking information. Also in 2014, "Chinese Children's Foot Health Research Center" was established to study growth of children's feet; it has set up a relevant database, ensuring safety services for children's smart products, which have proven popular in the market. Increasing preference for American and European brands With the increase in income, growing urbanization, and internet penetration, demand for foreign brands of footwear, especially European and American brands, has increased in China. The rising middle-class population in the country is also influencing the demand for foreign brands. Teenagers are more inclined toward international brands than people from other age groups. Catalog, owned by Swire Resources Ltd., which is a famous retail chain in Hong Kong and Beijing, imports and sells a wide range of footwear from brands such as Adidas, Champion, Nike, Lacoste, Reebok, Puma, Columbia, Rockport, and Vans to target middle-class population. China imports approximately 40-50 million pairs per year from the Americas and Europe. Although local footwear brands have a higher market penetration rate, international brands dominate the middle- and high-end consumer segment. Some of the top vendors in the children's footwear market in China, as researched by Technavio analysts are: 361 Degrees International ANTA Sports Products Limited Feike AG Li Ning Company Limited Nike Sports (China) Xtep International Holdings Limited Browse Related Reports: Athletic Footwear Market in the US 2015-2019 Global Running Apparel and Footwear Market 2015-2019 Global Foot Protective Equipment 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 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/20160224005057/en/ Contacts: Technavio Research Jesse Maida Media Marketing Executive US: +1 630 333 9501 UK: +44 208 123 1770 www.technavio.com BASINGSTOKE, UNITED KINGDOM and SAUSALITO, CA -- (Marketwired) -- 02/24/16 --CensorNet, the complete cloud security company, protecting over 4000 customers with more than 1.3 million users in 47 countries, has been invited to present at the first day of America's Growth Capital (AGC) 12th annual West Coast Information Security and Technology Growth Conference at 9:45 AM on Monday, February 29, 2016. During the presentation entitled, "Complete Cloud Security", CensorNet Chief Executive Officer, Ed Macnair, will discuss the need for a unified approach to cloud security. CensorNet helps organizations meet the challenge of benefiting from all the advantages of cloud applications while minimizing security risks by giving them greater visibility and control over internet access and the use of cloud applications across all devices, regardless of whether users are in-office or mobile. The company recently acquired SMS PASSCODE, a multi-factor authentication vendor, to integrate SMS PASSCODE's adaptive multi-factor authentication technology into its cloud-based Unified Security Solution, which brings together email and web security with Cloud Application Control. "With the growth of cloud applications use and an increasingly mobile workforce using multiple devices, CIOs are under immense pressure to encourage productivity and protect sensitive data at the same time. Enterprises need visibility of the complete, bigger security picture. Our unified security platform combines email, web and cloud application control, and soon to include integrated adaptive multifactor authentication, will give enterprises complete control and visibility over its security environment through one single pane of glass", said Ed Macnair, CEO of CensorNet. The AGC Conference comprises keynotes, panel sessions and private and public company presentations. It is hosted by America's Growth Capital (AGC), a full-service, partner-owned boutique investment bank with offices in Silicon Valley, Boston and Israel, which provides private capital, mergers and acquisitions and capital market advisory services. The conference annually attracts more than 1,600 attendees, including entrepreneurs, investors and buyers. Ed Macnair was formerly CEO of Marshal, a UK web and email security company acquired through a management buyout from NetiQ. In November 2008 he merged Marshal with US-based 8e6 Technologies to create M86 Security (now Trustwave). He founded SaaSID, a UK application security provider in 2011 which was subsequently acquired by Intermedia Inc. in September 2013. Macnair acquired CensorNet in October 2014 with three other industry-leading experts to accelerate the development of web security solutions that bridge the gap between traditional web security and cloud application control solutions. The company acquired SMS PASSCODE, a multi-factor authentication vendor in February 2016. If you would like to meet Ed Macnair, CEO of CensorNet, at the AGC conference or during the RSA conference, please contact: Ed Macnair at ed.macnair@censornet.com. About CensorNet CensorNet, the complete cloud security company, helps organization s step up to the challenge of managing the rise of cloud applications in an increasingly mobile work environment. Its solutions give greater visibility to senior management and much better control to IT in the supervision of company-wide internet access and the use of cloud applications across all devices, regardless of whether users are in-office or mobile. It gives organizations the power to address the security, audit, compliance and productivity issues associated with the growing use of cloud applications and mobile devices in today's digital workplace. CensorNet's cloud security solutions also enable organization s to control Shadow IT and safely implement BYOD initiatives. The company is headquartered in Basingstoke, UK. For more information, please visit www.censornet.com TORONTO, ONTARIO -- (Marketwired) -- 02/24/16 -- Toronto-based digital creative agency Fourth Dimension was honoured with no less than three (3) North American Excellence Awards for their NoHairSelfie cancer awareness and fundraising campaign. NoHairSelfie, which was developed for the Princess Margaret Cancer Foundation (PMCF), won for: -- Multi-Market Communication -- Website -- Mobile Communication and Social Apps In addition to the North American Excellence Awards, Fourth Dimension was earlier singled out as a 2016 AVA Platinum Digital Award Winner for Best Digital Marketing Campaign for NoHairSelfie. The innovative campaign also caught the attention of the Canadian Association of Marketing Professionals (CAMP), which presented PMCF with the award for Marketer of the Year - Not for Profit/Government due to its success. Fourth Dimension was credited as the agency behind the campaign. NoHairSelfie addressed PMCF's desire for an entirely new and innovative approach to cancer fundraising by launching the first-ever socially driven digital fundraising event. The social media-based campaign invited "hair-ticipants" to raise money and show solidarity with cancer patients by shaving their heads actually or virtually via the NoHairSelfie app on World Cancer Day, an annual event that takes place every February 4. As PMCF's first-ever socially driven digital fundraising event, NoHairSelfie would be promoted through a custom website and app. Participants could register to shave their heads actually or virtually (via the app) on WCD and were invited to: -- Fundraise for donations to their head shaving campaign -- Post a NoHairSelfie on the NoHairSelfie website -- Do a virtual shave with the NoHairSelfie app and share across social media -- Donate online or via text The NoHairSelfie campaign launched on January 7, 2015 with a custom designed, fully responsive website optimized for social media, and an innovative virtual head-shaving app for smartphones. Participants and visitors were kept engaged through a variety of entertaining, features including: -- Sharing NoHairSelfies via social media -- Fun content like shaving tips, campaign promotion, etc. -- Custom personal campaign pages -- Ability to challenge friends to shave via social media Donations could be made via both app and website. The website: -- Featured videos of cancer survivors telling their stories. -- Testimonies by local celebrities about joining the NoHairSelfie campaign. -- Encouraged participants and visitors to share photos and challenge friends to shave. -- Both app and website were easy to use and navigate, and provided an entertaining user experience. -- YouTube videos expanded reach and maximized awareness. NoHairSelfie exceeded all its targets, and succeeded in raising $1.8M in gross revenue. -- Both the NoHairSelfie app and website were singled out for praise, with Apple selecting the NoHairSelfie app as one of their best new apps for 2015. -- There were over 110,000 visitors to the website, of which 71,000 were unique. -- Significant media attention and local celebrity participation ensured maximum awareness of the NoHairSelfie campaign, and its establishment as a cancer fundraising and awareness brand. -- Corporate Canada support: 20 organizations promoted NoHairSelfie through their own social media channels About Fourth Dimension Fourth Dimension is a full-service, digital agency where creative brilliance is combined with cutting-edge technology to focus on one goal: providing clients with pioneering solutions that are engineered to maximize return on investment. Since 2005, Fourth Dimension has been building and managing complex web-based applications and implementing creative strategies for clients across the globe. Bringing together a diverse group of talent and expertise, we specialize in creating and managing brand equity for clients across all media platforms, and have built a solid reputation for providing innovative design and technology solutions for our B2B and B2C clients. About Princess Margaret Cancer Foundation The Princess Margaret Cancer Foundation began raising funds for cancer research at Princess Margaret Cancer Centre in 1982, and since then has raised well over $1 billion for this world-leading centre. The Foundation has pioneered many successful types of fundraising including mega lotteries and large-scale events recruiting thousands of participants/fundraisers such as our Shoppers Drug Mart OneWalk to Conquer Cancer and Enbridge Ride to Conquer Cancer. The Foundation was one of Canada's 10 Most Admired Cultures for the Broader Public Sector (2013). About North American Excellence Awards The Excellence Awards are hosted by Communication Director, a magazine for global decision makers in corporate communications, PR and public affairs. Distributed around the world, Communication Director features articles by and interviews with the very top in the international communication profession as well as high-ranking academics and other established thought-leaders. For real insights into today's multinational communications profession, Communication Director is at the forefront. Website: http://na.excellence-awards.com Contacts: Fourth Dimension 416.850.9944 info@fourthdimensioninc.com www.fourthdimensioninc.com Princess Margaret Cancer Foundation 416-946-6560 Toll Free: 1-866-224-6560 416-946-6563 (FAX) info@thepmcf.ca www.thepmcf.ca/Contact-Us SES S.A. (NYSE Paris:SESG) (LuxX:SESG) announced today that its SES-9 satellite is ready to be launched tonight on a Falcon 9 rocket from the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida. The launch window opens today at 6:46:14 pm East Coast time (0:46:14 am on 25 February Central European Time). The spacecraft will be deployed approximately 31 minutes after lift-off. SES-9 will use a chemical bi-propellant thruster to complete major post- launch maneuvers. An electric propulsion system will complete the journey to its orbit at 36,000 kilometers above the Equator. The on-orbit maneuvering throughout the 15 year nominal lifetime of the satellite will be done by electric propulsion. This Smart News Release features multimedia. View the full release here: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160224006141/en/ Credit: SpaceX (Photo: Business Wire) SES-9 is SES's largest satellite to serve the Asia-Pacific region. It will provide unrivalled and significant expansion capacity to serve the buoyant and fast-growing video, enterprise, mobility and government sectors across Northeast Asia, South Asia, India, Indonesia and the Philippines. SES-9 will be co-located with another SES satellite, SES-7, at the prime orbital location of 108.2 degrees East, and will replace the NSS-11 spacecraft at that position. SES-9 was built by Boeing Satellite Systems International. Watch the launch live: http://www.spacex.com/webcast More information on the launch and the spacecraft: SES factsheet: www.ses.com/ses-9-factsheet (not yet live) SpaceX factsheet: http://www.spacex.com/sites/spacex/files/spacex_ses9_press_kit_final.pdf Follow us on: Twitter: https://twitter.com/SES_Satellites Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SES.YourSatelliteCompany YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/SESVideoChannel Blog: http://www.ses.com/blog SES Pictures are available under http://www.ses.com/21472913/Our_Pictures SES White papers are available under http://www.ses.com/18681915/white-papers About SES SES (NYSE Paris:SESG) (LuxX:SESG) is the world-leading satellite operator with a fleet of more than 50 geostationary satellites. The company provides satellite communications services to broadcasters, content and internet service providers, mobile and fixed network operators and business and governmental organisations worldwide. SES stands for long-lasting business relationships, high-quality service and excellence in the satellite industry. The culturally diverse regional teams of SES are located around the globe and work closely with customers to meet their specific satellite bandwidth and service requirements. SES holds a participation in O3b Networks, a next generation satellite network combining the reach of satellite with the speed of fibre. Further information available at: www.ses.com. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160224006141/en/ Contacts: SES Markus Payer Corporate Communications Tel. +352 710 725 500 Markus.Payer@ses.com DEERFIELD, IL -- (Marketwired) -- 02/24/16 -- More than 100 companies representing converter-manufacturers, equipment, supplies and related services will showcase their latest products and services at the 9th annual Converters Expo, set to take place April 14, 2016 in Green Bay, Wisconsin, at the Lambeau Field Atrium. The opening night reception will be held on Wednesday, April 13th at the new Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame. The event is produced by the Packaging Strategies group, part of BNP Media. "Over the last nine years we have seen tremendous support for this event, which focuses on the converting industry and gives attendees a chance to meet with contract manufacturers who can assist in all aspects of production and processing finished products," said Randy Green, group publisher of the Packaging Strategies, Flexible Packaging, and Brand Packaging magazines, and the Packaging Strategies News subscription newsletter. "This day and a half event will showcase the newest products for the industry and provide exciting networking events for our exhibitors and attendees to share ideas." The agenda for the event includes: Wednesday, April 13 - Welcome Reception, 6:30 - 8:00 pm - Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame. Thursday, April 14 - Expo Floor Open - 9:30 am - 3:30 pm Lunch Buffet - 11:30 am - 1:30 pm - Club 1919 - sponsored by Bank First National and Appvion Happy Hour - 2:00 - 3:30 pm - Legends Pre-Function Room on Show Floor - sponsored by Air Motion Systems (AMS) The fee to attend Converters Expo is $55 until April 4, and $90 for all registrations after April 5 and onsite. Registration includes the welcome reception on April 13th, plus full access to the exhibits, lunch, and two Happy Hour drink tickets on April 14th. To register for the Expo, visit ConvertersExpo.com. Among the participating companies will be Platinum Happy Hour Sponsor Air Motion Systems; Gold Lunch Sponsors Bank First National and Appvion; and Bronze Sponsors AccuWeb, Inc., and Valley Grinding. Hundreds of industry professionals will have the opportunity to meet with exhibitors including Siemens Industry Inc., Schlumpf USA, APIRO Inc, Pinnacle Systems, and many others who will showcase machinery, materials and services including printing and inks, folding and finishing, slitters and winders, coating, laminating and adhesives, warehousing, shipping and logistics and much more. Since 2014, The Converters Expo has been produced by the Packaging Strategies group, (www.packstrat.com) which has delivered up-to-the minute, unbiased packaging industry news, information and analysis to audiences across multiple platforms since 1983. The event is owned by BNP Media, www.bnpmedia.com. For further information, Contact: Amy Riemer Media Relations Contact 978-475-4441 (office) 978-502-4895 (cell) Email Contact DUBLIN, Feb. 24, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/dvwwfr/south_korea) has announced the addition of the "South Korea Temperature Sensors Market - Growth, Trends & Forecasts (2015-2020)" report to their offering. The South Korea temperature sensors market is expected to increase to $0.22 billion by 2018 at a CAGR of 4.82% over the period 2015-2020 Temperature sensing has been gaining importance, particularly in R&D and industrial settings, giving rise to high demand for temperature sensors. Companies operating in the market have been investing heavily in research and development activities in order to develop and enhance temperature sensor functionality. Increasing adoption of HVAC modules is expected to favorably impact the South Korea industry. Even the technological advancements and reduced prices have resulted in Introduction of new applications in the HVAC space. Growing demand for consumer electronics such as smartphones, cameras and media players make use of microprocessors, which is expected to boost market growth, as they have temperature sensing ICs. Temperature controls are essential for manufacturing, handling and storing of medical equipment and drugs. They are increasingly used in communication industry with growth in handheld communication devices. Intense competition and significant price cuts may restrain the temperature sensors market over the forecast period. South Korea is estimated to account for a share of 14% in the Asia Pacific Temperature Sensor Market in 2014. In South Korea, consumer electronics industry is contributing substantially to the demand for temperature sensors. As technical innovation in sensor technologies is low, product differentiation has remained challenging for manufacturers The South Korea Temperature Sensors Market is segmented on the basis of Type (Bimetallic Sensor, Thermistor Sensors, RTD, Thermocouple Sensors, IR Sensors, Fiber Optic Sensors, and Others) Industry (Consumer Electronics, Power Generation, Automotive, Petrochemical, Aerospace & Defense, Healthcare, Industrial, and Others) Key Topics Covered: 1. Introduction 2. Key Findings 3. Market Overview & Dynamics 4. Introduction 5. Porter's Five Forces Analysis 6. Market Segmentation 7. Company Profiles 8. Investment Analysis 9. Future Of Temperature Sensors Market Companies Featured Texas Insturments Stmicroelectronics Mo US er Electronics Microchip Technology Keyence Freescale Danfoss Honeywell Festo Infineon Technologies Maxim Integrated Products Sick Ag Dwyer Instruments Ifm Electronic Gmbh For more information visit http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/dvwwfr/south_korea Media Contact: Research and Markets Laura Wood, Senior Manager press@researchandmarkets.com For E.S.T Office Hours Call +1-917-300-0470 For U.S./CAN Toll Free Call +1-800-526-8630 For GMT Office Hours Call +353-1-416-8900 U.S. Fax: 646-607-1907 Fax (outside U.S.): +353-1-481-1716 NEW YORK, NY -- (Marketwired) -- 02/24/16 -- The Boston Consulting Group (BCG) announced today that Laila Worrell has joined the firm as a Partner and Managing Director in its fast-growing Principal Investors & Private Equity (PIPE) practice. She will be based in New York. Worrell brings more than two decades of experience advising senior business leaders in both the private equity and corporate sectors. She joins BCG from Accenture, where she served as Managing Director and head of the New York Metro region and led the firm's private equity work. While at Accenture, she also served on the North America Leadership Team, comprising the business leaders responsible for the performance of the company's largest geography globally, and the CEO Advisory Council, a team of high-performing senior executives who provide strategic counsel to the firm's chief executive. As a senior member of the PIPE practice, Worrell will advise global investment firms on due diligence and post-close transformation. BCG's clients include some of the world's largest private equity investors, hedge funds, pension plans, sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and real estate and infrastructure funds. In addition to the investment industry, Worrell will advise clients in financial services on a broad range of issues, including growth, corporate strategy, innovation, and transformation. She has held several senior roles leading strategy and corporate development for multibillion-dollar businesses in technology and media. She also has served in leadership roles in Accenture's mergers and acquisitions practice, where she helped clients execute complex transactions and integration programs. "I'm delighted to be joining BCG, one of the world's most respected management consulting firms. I have long admired the company's exceptional work helping clients compete and win in their respective markets. I look forward to helping our clients accelerate growth and achieve market-leading performance," Worrell said. Tom Reichert, BCG's chairman of North America, commented, "Laila has had a distinguished track record of leadership and deep experience driving innovation and transformation across industries. We are thrilled to have her, and our clients will be, too." Tawfik Hammoud, the global leader of BCG's PIPE practice, added, "We are very excited to have Laila join our fast-growing practice. She brings an incredibly valuable skill set for our private equity clients at a time when, more than ever, the focus is on operational transformation to generate returns." Worrell has had a longstanding focus on innovation as a driver of growth and competitive advantage. For example, she was instrumental in launching -- together with the Partnership for New York City -- the FinTech Innovation Lab, designed to catalyze innovation in areas including data, analytics, and mobility. She also helped pioneer new approaches to building talent. Her recent work with Harvard Business School was published in the report, Bridge the Gap: Rebuilding America's Middle Skills. Outside of her corporate roles, Worrell has contributed actively to civic and philanthropic causes. She has chaired the board of Susan G. Komen Greater New York and serves on the boards of the Harvard Business School Club of New York, the Women's Leadership Board of the Women in Public Policy Program at Harvard University, the Advisory Committee of the American Museum of Natural History, and the Corporate Fund Leadership Committee at Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. She was elected a David Rockefeller Fellow by the Partnership for New York City and remains active in helping to evaluate investments that drive economic competitiveness. Worrell received her Master of Business Administration from Harvard Business School and her undergraduate degree from the University of Texas at Austin. For more information or to request an interview, please contact Alexandra Corriveau at +1 212 446 3261 or corriveau.alexandra@bcg.com. About The Boston Consulting Group The Boston Consulting Group (BCG) is a global management consulting firm and the world's leading advisor on business strategy. We partner with clients from the private, public, and not-for-profit sectors in all regions to identify their highest-value opportunities, address their most critical challenges, and transform their enterprises. Our customized approach combines deep insight into the dynamics of companies and markets with close collaboration at all levels of the client organization. This ensures that our clients achieve sustainable competitive advantage, build more capable organizations, and secure lasting results. Founded in 1963, BCG is a private company with 85 offices in 48 countries. For more information, please visit bcg.com. Image Available: http://www2.marketwire.com/mw/frame_mw?attachid=2969365 The Boston Consulting Group Alexandra Corriveau Head of Media Relations, The Americas Tel +1 212 446 3257 Corriveau.alexandra@bcg.com Technavio has announced the top five leading vendors in their recent global m-education market 2016-2020report. This research report also lists numerous prominent vendors that are expected to impact the market during the forecast period. Competitive vendor landscape The digitization of education has increased the demand and sustained the growth of the global m-education market. Educational institutes are automating their processes to create a conducive environment for the deployment of m-education. A significant number of players in the market have been providing m-education products and services for many years. The price of m-education products varies widely, depending upon the development costs of the application or mobile website and the costs incurred while creating mobile-based content. "The high cost of creating an m-education infrastructure is indeed an impediment to market growth, especially for small organizations. However, with the onset of cloud computing, the costs are expected to reduce substantially, which is a positive sign for the market," says Jhansi Mary, a lead research analyst at Technavio, for education technology Request sample report: http://goo.gl/jfN9BS Adobe Systems Adobe Systems was founded in 1982 and is headquartered in San Jose, California, US. It is a diversified software company that focuses on digital marketing and digital media solutions. It offers a range of products and services used by creative professionals for creating, compelling content throughout multiple operating systems, devices, and media. The company offers many of its products through a SaaS model or a managed services model (both are hosted or cloud-based model) and through term subscription and pay-per-use models. In the area of education, the company ignites creativity in the next generation of digital media makers and coders to innovate, grow its economies, and make a real social impact. Blackboard Blackboard was founded in 1997 and is headquartered in Washington, DC, US. The company provides enterprise technology and solutions to the educational industry globally. Its offices are located in Europe, North America, Asia, and Australia. In the education technology sector, the company offers a variety of solutions through latest technologies for government, business, and higher education. Its product offerings include Blackboard Mobile Learn, Blackboard ParentLink, Blackboard Schoolwires, Blackboard Analytics, Blackboard Transact, Mosaic by Blackboard, Blackboard Collaborate, Blackboard Connect, Blackboard Learn, Blackboard Sociability, MyEdu, and Moodlerooms. D2L D2L was founded in 1999 and is headquartered in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada. The company provides an online integrated learning platform for clients and individual learners. It offers Brightspace, an integrated learning platform to offer tools and resources for learning. In the education sector, the company offers various options such as online and blended learning, content management, curriculum library and advanced analytics to promote communication, organize content and monitor progress in the online learning platform. LearnCast LearnCast was founded in 1987 and is headquartered in Idaho, US. The company deploys a mobile publishing platform. It offers content experts, professional trainers, and educators and delivers content via mobile devices like BlackBerry, Android, Windows Mobile and net-books, tablets, laptops, and desktops. LearnCast offers education through mobile technology and provides web-based mobile learning software for 50 schools. LearnCast requires no programming and software skills for signing in to the web service and creating mobile content. It develops online tools that help teachers to organize and deliver the content via mobile phones like BlackBerry, Samsung, Droid, and Apple, and net-books, desktops, and laptops. Wiz IQ Wiz IQ was founded in 2005 and is headquartered in Massachusetts, US. The company offers a unique digital education platform with the use of virtual classroom software and courses for universities and colleges, high schools, and training centers. It provides digital courses on SaaS-based software platform. Wiz IQ is a virtual classroom platform that offers SaaS-based virtual classroom and provides live online classes and virtual classroom software for teachers and trainers at schools and universities. The Wiz IQ software is being used by various colleges and universities including IIT Delhi, India; Des Moines Area Community Colleges, US; and Atlantic University Beach, US. Its other customers include educators in the massive open online course sector and tutorial companies Browse related reports: Global Education Apps Market- Market Study 2015-2019 Global Digital Education Content Market 2015-2019 Global E-learning 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 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/20160224005103/en/ Contacts: Technavio Research Jesse Maida Media Marketing Executive US: +1-630-333-9501 UK: +44 208 123 1770 www.technavio.com Britain's newest global youth charity, the World Youth Organization, has announced it will hold its first ever International Women's Day summit on 8th March. With several guest speakers ranging from businesswomen from BT to an Afghan refugee, the charity has been accepting videos from young women around the world, explaining what International Women's Day means to them. Mhairi Black, the youngest MP for a generation, has also announced her support the World Youth Organization Summit to celebrate International Women's Day after tweeting a photo of her with the World Youth Organization logo earlier this week. Hundreds of videos have been submitted and compiled into a compilation by CEO Kieran Goodwin and the WYO media team. The charity's true global reach was shown when the initiative was announced via Twitter and videos from Turkey, Russia, Germany, Britain, United States, Pakistan, UAE, New Zealand, Lebanon, Sweden, Canada and Denmark were received within days. The theme of the event is accelerating gender parity and will include several speakers, workshops and films throughout the day with registration available for free at www.worldyo.org/IWD. After launching the charity last month in the Houses of Parliament, Kieran Goodwin, the youngest global charity CEO in Britain at just 17 years of age, is making remarkable progress with the charity. The International Women's Day event is one of many international programmes set to take place in 2016. The World Youth Organization have confirmed they will be travelling to the Middle East in the summer of this year, with the aim of providing educational opportunities for children in schools. The launch of the WYO app has received thousands of downloads after it was released on Android on 1st February, and will be soon be available on the iTunes App Store. While the World Youth Organization will be celebrating the political, social, cultural and economic achievements of women on the 8th March in London, the fight against the stereotypes of young people will continue with so many initiatives already announced and many more in the pipeline. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160224006291/en/ Contacts: World Youth Organization Head of Media Relations Tom Hinchcliffe 07719663481 VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA -- (Marketwired) -- 02/24/16 -- Anfield Nickel Corp. ("Anfield") (TSX VENTURE: ANF) announces that it has received a loan of Cdn $500,000 from Kestrel Holdings Ltd. ("Kestrel"), a company wholly owned by Ross J. Beaty. The loan accrues interest at a rate of 12% per annum, and is compounded yearly and not in advance. The loan is repayable on or before the earlier of June 30, 2016, or two business days after the date on which Anfield undertakes any equity financing by way of private placement of shares. The loan cannot be converted into, exchanged for or otherwise modified to create any obligation on Anfield to issue, directly or indirectly, any equity or voting securities of Anfield or any subsidiary of Anfield, including with respect to the repayment of either principal or interest accruing in respect of the loan. The loan will be used to fund Anfield's subscription for a $500,000 secured convertible debenture from Magellan Minerals Ltd. (as announced on February 16, 2016). As the loan is not convertible into equity or voting securities of Anfield, there will be no effect on the percentage of securities of Anfield held by Kestrel or Ross J. Beaty as a result of the loan. Anfield Nickel Corp. Marshall Koval, President & CEO 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 news release. Contacts: Anfield Nickel Corp. Martin Rip tel: + 604 646-1884 fax: + 604 687-7041 WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Senate lawmakers overwhelmingly voted Wednesday to confirm Dr. Robert Califf as Food and Drug Administration Commissioner. The Senate voted 89 to 4 in favor of Califf's nomination, which was announced by President Barack Obama last September. Califf's confirmation was held up in part by opposition from Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt. Sanders placed a hold on Califf's nomination last month, citing concerns about the prominent cardiologist's close ties to the pharmaceutical industry. However, Sanders was not among the four Senators that voted against Califf, as he is campaigning in Missouri and Oklahoma and did not vote. Sens. Kelly Ayotte, R-N.H., Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., Joe Manchin, D-W.V., and Ed Markey, D-Mass., were the only Senators to vote against Califf's confirmation. Califf, who currently serves as FDA Deputy Commissioner for Medical Products and Tobacco, was long seen as the likely successor to former FDA Commissioner Dr. Margaret Hamburg. Dr. Stephen Ostroff, previously the FDA's chief scientist, has served as acting commissioner since Hamburg stepped down last March after almost six years on the job. Following the vote, Senate Health Committee Chairman Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., said Califf is now in place to lead an agency that regulates over $4 trillion annually and affects the lives of nearly every single American. Alexander said Califf will be a good partner in the committee's efforts to pass legislation that helps get safe and effective drugs and medical devices into doctors' offices and medicine cabinets more quickly. 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. Gecina is benefiting from its strategic repositioning Recurrent net income (Group share) up +12.2%, restated for Beaugrenelle's sale EPRA triple net NAV up +21.2% year-on-year to 122.7 euros supported by its active portfolio rotation and its realignment around offices 1.9 billion euros of investments and 579 million euros of sales completed or secured Exit from the healthcare sector for 1.35 billion euros in 2016 and dynamic management of its debt Cost of debt down -90bp to 2.7% (2.2% for drawn debt) and average maturity up to 5.7 years Regulatory News: Gecina (Paris:GFC): Key figures* In million euros Dec 31, 14 Dec 31, 15 Change (%) Gross rentals 571.0 574.6 +0.6% (-0.2% like-for-like) EBITDA 467.6 472.4 +1.0% Recurrent net income (Group share) 316.6 349.2 +10.3% (+12.2% restated for Beaugrenelle's sale**) Per share (in euros) 5.17 5.61 +8.6% (+10.5% restated for Beaugrenelle's sale**) Diluted EPRA triple net NAV (block) 101.2 122.7 +21.2% Dividend per share 4.65 5.00 *** +7.5% * All the figures presented in this document (including appendices) exclude any impact for IFRS 5 relating to the recognition of discontinued operations and operations held for sale, applied to the healthcare portfolio, for which a sales process was underway at year-end 2015 ** Excluding the impact of the sale of Beaugrenelle in 2014, assumption for an LTV of 40% *** Subject to approval by the General Meeting In 2015, recurrent net income (Group share) climbed +12.2%, restated for the impact of Beaugrenelle's sale in 2014 (+10.3% for recurrent net income (Group share) on a reported basis). This strong performance partly reflects the impact of the acquisitions made during the year (including the T1&B towers in La Defense, and the PSA Group's current headquarters in Paris' central business district), as well as a further significant reduction in the average cost of debt over the year, down -90bp to 2.7% (2.2% for drawn debt), and the effective control over operating expenditure. In line with the strategic ambitions announced at the start of 2015, Gecina achieved a particularly dynamic year in terms of its portfolio's rotation. Since the beginning of 2015, Gecina has completed or secured around 1.9 billion euros of investments and 1.9 billion euros of sales (including the Group's healthcare portfolio, with its sale expected to be finalized mid-2016). Gecina has significantly strengthened its leadership for urban offices in Paris, ramping up its office portfolio to represent nearly 77% of its total portfolio (excluding the healthcare portfolio), compared with 63% one year ago. The committed project pipeline was increased to 0.9 billion euros at end-2015 (of which 353 million euros still to be invested), with 43% of projects located in Inner Paris and 28% in the Southern Loop, delivering an expected yield of 6.8%. This committed pipeline represented 7% of the Group's portfolio at end-2015. In addition, after reviewing all the assets in its portfolio, Gecina's teams have identified major value reserves, taking the controlled pipeline for development and redevelopment projects up to 2.55 billion euros (with 1 billion euros of potential outlays, to be added to the current asset value of 1.55 billion euros), with 80% of these projects located in Paris. These committed and controlled projects will help drive the Group's future growth and value extraction. The strong growth in triple net NAV (+21.2% to 122.7 euros per share) partly reflects the compression of real estate yields on the investment market, combined with the significant capital gains recorded on sales, as well as the increase in the value of assets acquired recently and programs that are being developed. These various elements confirm the relevance of Gecina's strategic choices in the current market environment, further strengthening the Group's confidence in its total return positioning, adopted at the start of 2015. Strategic repositioning and promising market for future Gecina, more than ever, intends to maintain its extremely selective and opportunistic approach for both acquisitions and disposals, in a very competitive investment market, with the ambition to build on its momentum from 2015. The market environment is expected to be positive for Gecina over the coming years. While take-up increased slightly in 2015 for the Paris Region in general (+1%), it has picked up again significantly for the Paris CBD (+18%) and the Western Crescent's Southern Loop (+92%), where Gecina has a very strong presence, showing the first concrete signs of a rental upturn for the central sectors where available supply is still limited, despite the upturn in demand. Excluding the impact of the process underway to sell the healthcare portfolio, underlying growth in recurrent net income (Group share) is expected to represent over +5% for 2016. Bernard Michel, Gecina's Chairman: "2015 was a particularly active year for Gecina. Supported by a stabilized shareholding structure and a renewed Board of Directors, we announced an ambitious strategic realignment at the start of the year aiming to further strengthen our leadership for offices in Paris, building on four main pillars for creating value. As we can see, the Group achieved major successes throughout the year, in terms of investments and sales, as well as lettings. The Group has continued to move forward with an ambitious corporate social responsibility project, while making rapid progress with real estate innovation, supporting the company's performance. However, our ambition is to go even further, and we are preparing for the future with confidence". Philippe Depoux, Gecina's Chief Executive Officer: "The very good trends seen on the investment market and the significant improvement taking shape on rental markets in the most central sectors are further strengthening our confidence in the strategy that we have rolled out with support from our Directors. With the rental market picking up again in certain sectors and our development and redevelopment projects progressing, we are very confident about this new year. In 2016, we will not be forced to sell or buy assets, because our strong balance sheet and the flexibility it offers will enable us to be opportunistic in terms of sales and highly selective in terms of investments. In 2016, we will be agile, flexible, proactive and responsive, as required, ready to capitalize on the opportunities that arise, while maintaining our high standards for profitability". Rental income up +0.6% to 574.6 million euros Gross rental income came to 574.6 million euros in 2015. Like-for-like, rental income is down very slightly (-0.2%), continuing to be affected by low indexation (+0.2%) and a slightly negative level of reversion. However, the quarter-on-quarter performance shows that growth has continued to improve on a like-for-like basis, with -1.9% at March 31, 2015, then -1.1% at June 30 and -0.8% at September 30. On a current basis, rental income is up +0.6%, despite the loss of rent resulting in particular from the commercial and residential assets sold in 2014 and 2015 (Beaugrenelle in 2014 and BMW-Madrid, Mazagran-Gentilly, L'Angle-Boulogne and, to a lesser extent, Newside-La Garenne-Colombes and Brune-Paris, in 2015). The loss of rent linked to these sales (-28.1 million euros) and strategic redevelopment operations (-3.2 million euros) has been fully offset by the additional rent generated by acquisitions and project deliveries (+35.9 million euros), primarily with the PSA Group's current headquarters in Paris and the T1&B towers in La Defense, as well as the delivery of four new student residences and two healthcare facilities. The loss of rent resulting from strategic redevelopments represents -3.2 million euros and primarily concerns the 55 Amsterdam and Guersant buildings, both located in Paris, bordering the Central Business District, in the 8th and 17th arrondissements. These operations, creating future value, are scheduled to be delivered in 2017 and 2018 respectively, in a market with a shortfall of quality premises at the heart of Paris. Gross rental income Dec 31, 14 Dec 31, 15 Change (%) In million euros Current basis Like-for-like Group total 571.0 574.6 +0.6% -0.2% Offices 348.9 364.2 +4.4% -0.5% Traditional residential 126.1 121.3 -3.8% -0.1% Student residences 9.1 12.0 +30.9% +0.1% Healthcare 73.4 76.4 +4.1% +0.5% Other (incl. Beaugrenelle) 13.4 0.7 NA NA Offices: rental income up thanks to the Group's growing specialization Rental income from offices is up +4.4% on a current basis, thanks in particular to the impact of the acquisition of the T1&B towers in La Defense and PSA's current headquarters in Paris' CBD at the start of the second half of the year, offsetting the impact of sales and redevelopments. Like-for-like, rental income is down slightly (-0.5%), primarily as a result of the space vacated during the year (-0.3%), although part of this space has already been relet. This like-for-like change moderately outperformed the Group's expectations from the start of the year (by -1%). Nearly two thirds of the space vacated in 2015 in the CBD was already relet during the year, with a slightly positive level of reversion. This was a particularly active year in terms of rental management and Gecina had let nearly 133,000 sq.m of offices by the end of 2015, factoring in new lettings, relettings, renegotiations and renewals, representing around 52 million euros of annualized economic rent. Gecina has already anticipated the majority of its letting maturity milestones for 2016. Rental incentives in 2015 were significantly lower than those awarded by Gecina in 2014. On all the leases covered by relettings across the Group's portfolio in 2015, the level of reversion is still negative, but shows a clear improvement compared with previous years, confirming the gradual upturn in the market for the region as a whole, but above all the most central sectors. Gross rental income Offices Dec 31, 14 Dec 31, 15 Change (%) In million euros Current basis Like-for-like Offices 348.9 364.2 +4.4% -0.5% Inner Paris 181.2 186.3 +2.8% -1.3% Paris CBD Offices 92.7 98.7 +6.4% Paris CBD Retail units 35.0 35.0 +0.1% Paris excl. CBD 53.5 52.6 -1.6% Western Crescent La Defense 120.8 137.0 +13.4% +0.8% Other 47.0 41.0 -12.8% +0.2% 2016 is expected to show contrasting trends, benefiting from the signs of a rental market upturn for the most central sectors, as well as the latest adjustments for certain assets renegotiated at the end of 2014 and early 2015 and taking effect in 2015 and 2016. Like-for-like, office rental income could therefore contract slightly. Diversification portfolios: rental resilience and impact of sales programs Rental income from traditional residential assets is virtually stable like-for-like (-0.1%). On a current basis, the -3.8% contraction factors in the program to sell apartments on a unit basis when they become vacant as tenants naturally free up assets (Hopper program). The student residence portfolio achieved strong growth in rental income (+30.9%) in 2015, driven by the major deliveries seen in the third quarter of 2015 in Paris, Bagnolet, Palaiseau-Saclay and Bordeaux. Like-for-like, rental income is up very slightly (+0.1%), in line with indexation. Healthcare rental income is up +0.5% like-for-like, slightly outperforming the low level of indexation seen for 2015 (+0.1%). On a current basis, growth is more significant (+4.1%), benefiting from the delivery of two facilities in Bayonne and Orange in the third quarter of 2015. Further reduction in the vacancy rate for 2015 The average financial occupancy rate for 2015 was 96.6%, an improvement compared with the already high levels from 2014 (96.4%) and 2013 (95.5%). This increase is consistent with the Group's objectives for 2015. This improvement can be seen primarily on the Group's office portfolio, with its financial occupancy rate rising from 95.3% in 2014 to 95.8% in 2015, notably reflecting the Henner Group's arrival in Neuilly during the year. This figure does not include the impact of the letting of the Pointe Metro 2 building in Gennevilliers, for which two leases were signed on February 19, 2016, but has benefited from the inclusion of fully-let assets in the scope, such as the T1&B buildings in La Defense and the PSA Group's current headquarters in Paris' Central Business District. For Inner Paris, the financial occupancy rate climbed to 98.5%, a year-on-year increase of +70bp. In the Western Crescent, it is up +120bp year-on-year to 94.1%. In addition, the financial occupancy rate for the student residence portfolio has increased by 200bp since the third quarter of 2015 (to 91.7%, versus 89.7%), thanks to the improvement in the fill rate for the residence halls delivered in the third quarter of 2015. On this portfolio, the spot occupancy rate was up to 95.1% at the end of 2015. Average financial occupancy rate Dec 31, 14 Jun 30, 15 Sep 30, 15 Dec 31, 15 Offices 95.3% 95.3% 95.6% 95.8% Diversification 98.3% 98.2% 98.1% 98.2% Traditional residential 97.7% 97.8% 97.7% 97.7% Student residences 92.0% 90.6% 89.7% 91.7% Healthcare 100.0% 100.0% 100.0% 100.0% Group total 96.4% 96.3% 96.4% 96.6% Recurrent net income (Group share) up +10.3% (+12.2% restated for Beaugrenelle's sale Recurrent net income (Group share) shows strong growth for 2015, up +10.3% to 349.2 million euros. This performance reflects not only Gecina's achievements on the investment market, but also its rigorous management of financial expenses and operating expenditure, as well as its highly effective letting management. Restated for the impact of Beaugrenelle's sale in April 2014, recurrent net income (Group share) growth comes out at +12.2%. Recurrent net income (Group share) per share came to 5.61 euros for 2015, compared with 5.17 euros per share in 2014, up +8.6% (+10.5% restated for Beaugrenelle's sale). The recurrent net income (Group share) growth per share includes the effect of the early redemption of the ORNANE convertible bonds in the first half of 2015, buying back and cancelling 19% of the issue, then converting the remaining bonds. 922,591 shares previously held as treasury stock were put back into circulation. The rental margin came to 91.6% at end-2015, down slightly from December 31, 2014 (-20bp), following a slight drop in the rental margin on the residential portfolio, linked primarily to various non-recurring costs recorded mainly over the second half of 2015. On the other segments, the rental margins are stable overall. Group Offices Residential Healthcare Rental margin at Dec 31, 14 91.8% 94.1% 83.0% 99.2% Rental margin at Dec 31, 15 91.6% 94.0% 81.1% 99.4% Salaries and management costs are down -4.6%, thanks to the effective management of staff costs and the reduction in overheads. Net financial expenses are down -18.2% or -26.7 million euros year-on-year to 119.8 million euros, thanks to a significant reduction in the average cost of debt (-90bp for 2015 versus 2014), whereas the average volume of debt increased by around 400 million euros. Gross financial expenses are down -16.8% for the year, excluding the impact of capitalized financial expenses (which totaled 5.9 million euros, up +1.4 million euros linked to the increase in the volume of projects under development). The average cost of drawn debt came to 2.2% for 2015 (2.7% including undrawn credit lines), compared with 3.0% in 2014 (3.6% including undrawn credit lines). In million euros Dec 31, 14 Dec 31, 15 Change (%) Gross rental income 571.0 574.6 +0.6% Net rental income 524.3 526.2 +0.4% Services and other income (net) 8.4 8.3 -2.0% Salaries and management costs (65.1) (62.1) -4.6% EBITDA 467.6 472.4 +1.0% Net financial expenses (146.6) (119.8) -18.2% Recurrent gross income 321.0 352.5 +9.8% Recurrent minority interests (1.2) 0.2 NA Recurrent tax (3.3) (3.5) +7.0% Recurrent net income (Group share) 316.6 349.2 +10.3% Cost of debt reduced, while extending its maturity and hedging Gecina has continued to optimize its liabilities, capitalizing on a particularly positive environment to make progress on all its financial indicators. Over the year, Gecina issued, renewed or renegotiated nearly 2.4 billion euros of long-term financing, making it possible to not only reduce the cost of its debt, but also to increase its maturity while extending its hedging timeframes. The average cost of debt including undrawn credit lines dropped -90bp in one year to 2.7% in 2015, versus 3.6% in 2014, notably benefiting from bond issues (1 billion euros, with an average coupon of 1.75% and an average maturity of 9.5 years), as well as renegotiations and renewals of undrawn credit lines. including undrawn credit lines dropped -90bp in one year to 2.7% in 2015, versus 3.6% in 2014, notably benefiting from bond issues (1 billion euros, with an average coupon of 1.75% and an average maturity of 9.5 years), as well as renegotiations and renewals of undrawn credit lines. Alongside this, the average maturity of debt increased by 0.7 years to 5.7 years at end-2015, compared with 5.0 years at end-2014 increased by 0.7 years to 5.7 years at end-2015, compared with 5.0 years at end-2014 Lastly, the average maturity of hedging was also extended, by 1.5 years, up from 4.3 years at end-2014 to 5.8 years at end-2015. At the end of December 2015, the hedging rate represented 73% of estimated average debt for 2016. All of these measures have consolidated the Standard Poor's and Moody's ratings at BBB+ outlook stable and Baa1 outlook stable Net debt represented4,717 million euros at end-2015, with an increase of 836 million euros for the year, resulting from a predominantly net buyer profile in 2015. At end-2015, Gecina's LTV came to 36.4% excluding duties, down -30bp from the end of 2014, despite the high level of investments during the year, primarily thanks to the significant increase in the portfolio value. However, this level does not include the impact of the healthcare portfolio's sale, which is expected to be finalized mid-2016, under the firm agreement signed with Primonial Reim on February 8, 2016. Adjusted for the healthcare portfolio's sale and the payment to come in 2016 for certain operations from 2015, the pro forma LTV represents around 31% excluding duties. In addition, Gecina had 1.7 billion euros in available liquidity at end-2015, making it possible to cover all the credit maturities for 2016 and 2017. Thanks to the Group's balance sheet, Gecina has a particularly high level of financial headroom, enabling it to be extremely opportunistic, flexible and responsive on the investment market in 2016. Gecina is forecasting a slight reduction in the average cost of its debt over 2016, dropping to less than 2.7% including undrawn credit lines. Ratios Covenant Dec 31, 15 Loan to value (block, excl. duties) < 55% 36.4% EBITDA (excluding disposals) net financial expenses > 2.0x 3.9x Outstanding secured debt net asset value of portfolio (block, excl. duties) < 25% 7.7% Net asset value of portfolio (block, excl. duties) in million euros > 6,000 8,000 12,971 1.9 billion euros of investments completed or secured in 2015 Gecina led the market in 2015, completing or securing a total of 1.9 billion euros of investments over the year. These operations cover a wide range of investment profiles, but always in premium locations. This amount includes: Operations directly generating rental income for 1.24 billion euros (T1&B buildings in La Defense, and PSA's current Grande Armee headquarters in the Paris CBD, which will benefit from extensive redevelopment work) for 1.24 billion euros (T1&B buildings in La Defense, and PSA's current Grande Armee headquarters in the Paris CBD, which will benefit from extensive redevelopment work) One operation secured for 188 million euros generating rental income from 2016 (City 2-Boulogne-Billancourt) for 188 million euros generating rental income from 2016 (City 2-Boulogne-Billancourt) Operations with a rental risk for nearly 295 million euros, with the Tour Van Gogh-Sunflower in Paris-Gare de Lyon and the Sky 56 asset in Lyon Part-Dieu, which will be delivered in 2018 for nearly 295 million euros, with the Tour Van Gogh-Sunflower in Paris-Gare de Lyon and the Sky 56 asset in Lyon Part-Dieu, which will be delivered in 2018 The balance primarily concerns progress with other operations that were under development or delivered in 2015, including the "Le Cristallin" building in Boulogne-Billancourt, delivered in January 2016. and 1.9 billion euros of sales secured, with a 19% premium versus the appraisals In line with the Group's ambition to accelerate its portfolio rotation, Gecina completed and secured 579 million euros of sales (excluding duties, Group share) in 2015, with an average net exit yield of 4.4%. Since February 8, 2016, this amount has been increased to more than 1.9 billion euros, including the firm sales agreement signed with Primonial Reim for the companies holding the Group's healthcare assets, based on a net yield of around 5.9%. 374 million euros of office sales, with a premium of over 27% versus the appraisal values In 2015, Gecina completed almost 374 million euros of sales of office buildings, with the BMW (Madrid), Le Mazagran (Gentilly), L'Angle (Boulogne-Billancourt), Newside (La Garenne-Colombes) and Brune (Paris) buildings, achieving an average premium of 27% versus their end-2014 appraisals. Agreement to sell the healthcare portfolio for 1.35 billion euros, with a premium of around 16% On February 8, 2016, Gecina signed a preliminary sales agreement with Primonial Reim, representing a club deal involving various institutional investors, for its subsidiaries holding its entire healthcare real estate portfolio. The transaction represents a total of 1.35 billion euros including commissions and fees, with a net yield of 5.9% and a premium of around 16% compared with the appraisal values. 191 million euros of residential sales, with premiums of over 25% versus the appraisal values By the end of 2015, Gecina had secured 191 million euros of residential sales, including 155 million euros on a unit-by-unit basis, achieving an average premium of over 30% compared with the appraisal values. At end-December, 30 million euros of sales were subject to preliminary agreements, while preliminary agreements are currently being prepared for other sales that are not indicated here. The unit-based program to sell properties as they are naturally vacated by tenants ("Hopper" program, covering 18% of the residential portfolio) is progressing more quickly than initially expected by Gecina, thanks to a rotation rate of over 20% on this portfolio, compared with around 15.6% on average for the total residential portfolio. On the Hopper program, the premium compared with the appraisal values for residential assets is averaging out at around +34%. Development pipeline up significantly At end-2015, Gecina's development project pipeline committed and controlled had significantly increased. The vast majority of these projects are located at the heart of the Paris Region's most central sectors, where levels of supply of quality products are structurally low. Indeed, 72% of these projects are located in Paris, 18% in the Western Crescent (particularly the Southern Loop), 5% in Lyon and just 4% in Paris' Inner or Outer Rim. This strong growth is primarily linked to the finalization of a comprehensive analysis of the Group's portfolio, asset by asset, launched in early 2014 by Gecina's Asset Management teams, as well as various projects that are being considered on assets acquired during the year (PSA-Grande Armee and Tour Van Gogh-Sunflower). At December 31, the committed pipeline represented 910 million euros of investments, compared with 440 million euros at end-2014, with 353 million euros still to be invested. The delivery of the projects underway will be staggered from now to 2018. Despite the delivery of four student residences and two healthcare facilities in the second half of the year (representing 135 million euros), the committed pipeline is up +470 million euros. This increase factors in the inclusion of a new project in Paris' 17th arrondissement for 125 million euros (Guersant), which is scheduled to be delivered in 2018, as well as the Tour Van Gogh-Sunflower (Paris), Sky 56 (Lyon Part-Dieu) and City 2 (Boulogne-Billancourt) projects. The assets from the committed project pipeline are scheduled to be delivered between 2016 and 2018, with 28% in 2016, 21% in 2017 and 51% in 2018. Following the process to analyze the Group's portfolio asset by asset, the controlled pipeline was increased to 2.55 billion euros (with 1 billion euros of potential outlays, to be added to the current asset value of 1.55 billion euros), up from 1.27 billion euros at end-2014. Nearly half of these projects concern assets that are considered certain or likely to be vacated, while 82% of the controlled projects are focused on Inner Paris. These projects could be integrated into the committed pipeline when their current tenants leave, depending on market conditions. Year-on-year portfolio value growth of +10.8% like-for-like The portfolio value (block) climbed to 12,875 million euros, up +24.5% on a current basis and +10.8% like-for-like compared with December 31, 2014. Like-for-like, the office portfolio value increased by +14.4% over the year, reflecting a +19.2% increase in value for the Paris portfolio (+21.6% for the CBD). All the other sectors recorded lower although significant increases, with +10.1% growth for the Western Crescent and +2.5% for the other sectors (Paris Inner and Outer Rim and Lyon). These appraisals factor in a significant compression of capitalization rates over 2015, by 80bp for offices to 5.17%. The valuation retained at end-2015 for the Group's healthcare portfolio reflects the agreement signed between Gecina and Primonial Reim, with the portfolio's sale expected mid-2016. As a result, the like-for-like value adjustment corresponds to the +16% premium achieved compared with the appraisal values on this operation. The valuation retained for Gecina's residential portfolio is stable like-for-like (+0.4% year-on-year). The average yield rate on Gecina's portfolio, notably including the residential portfolio on a block value basis and the healthcare portfolio, came to 5.13% (4.99% excluding healthcare), contracting -60bp year-on-year (-58bp excluding healthcare). Breakdown by segment Appraised values Net capitalization rates Like-for-like change In million euros 2015 2014 2015 2014 Dec 2015 vs. Dec 2014 Dec 2015 vs. Jun 2015 Offices 8,892 6,482 5.17% 5.97% +14.4% +10.8% Inner Paris 4,710 3,535 4.58% 5.46% +19.2% +13.6% - Paris CBD 3,675 2,697 4.09% 4.98% +21.6% +15.1% Paris CBD Offices 2,576 1,803 4.64% 5.36% +15.5% +11.4% Paris CBD Retail units 1,098 894 3.04% 4.12% +35.3% +22.8% - Paris excl. CBD 1,036 838 6.71% 7.37% +9.8% +7.7% Western Crescent La Defense 3,392 2,130 5.90% 6.65% +10.1% +8.8% Other 790 817 6.32% 6.57% +2.5% +1.8% Residential (block) 2,667 2,750 4.43% 4.43% +0.4% +0.5% Healthcare 1,316 1,106 6.05% 6.96% NA NA Other 0 4 NA NA NA NA Group total 12,875 10,341 5.13% (4.99% excl. healthcare) 5.73% (5.57% excl. healthcare) +10.8% +8.2% Total value: unit appraisals 13,531 10,913 Except for the Healthcare portfolio, which is valued based on the price from the sales agreement NAV up +21.2%, benefiting from the strategy and market trends Diluted EPRA triple net NAV (block) came to 122.7 euros per share, with strong growth of +21.2% year-on-year and +19.7% over six months. Diluted EPRA NAV represents 124.1 euros per share, up +19.4% year-on-year. This performance reflects not only the impact of a significant market effect, with a strong compression of capitalization rates for offices in Paris in particular, as well as the impacts of Gecina's total return strategy, through high levels of capital gains on sales, combined with the increase in the value of assets acquired recently and the portfolio under development. NAV growth can be broken down as follows: 2014 dividend payment: 4.65 Impact of recurrent net income 5.61 Net capital gains on sales (including healthcare): 4.10 Net value increase for 2015 acquisitions and pipeline: 4.00 Value adjustment on other assets: +13.60 Value adjustment on financial instruments and debt: 1.10 Other: 0.10 As indicated above, the strong year-on-year growth in triple net NAV is partly attributable to a compression of capitalization rates, as well as the deployment of a total return strategy, with its success benefiting from the high volumes of sales and investments secured, as well as positive market trends. On a unit value basis, diluted EPRA NAV represented 132.9 euros per share at December 31, 2015, compared with 112.8 euros per share at December 31, 2014. Dec 31, 14 Jun 30, 15 Dec 31, 15 In million euros Amount number of shares share Amount number of shares share Amount number of shares share Fully diluted number of shares 61,967,103 63,423,273 63,327,690 Shareholders' equity under IFRS 6,269 6,428 7,736 + Impact of exercising stock options 49.7 71.9 57.5 Diluted NAV 6,318 102.0 6,500 102.5 7,793 123.1 + Fair value reporting of properties, if amortized cost option is adopted 44.5 51.6 86.6 - Increase in transfer duties (72.9) + Transfer duties adjustment 20.0 74.3 - Fair value of financial instruments 73.6 20.4 (26.8) - Deferred tax linked to impacts of entry into SIIC system 3.4 1.8 = Diluted EPRA NAV 6,440 103.9 6,592 103.9 7,856 124.1 + Fair value of financial instruments (73.6) (20.4) 26.8 + Fair value of liabilities (93.5) (70.2) (113.4) + Deferred tax linked to impacts of entry into SIIC system (3.4) (1.8) = Diluted EPRA triple net NAV 6,269 101.2 6,501 102.5 7,768 122.7 Other significant events since the beginning of 2015 Pointe Metro 2 building let to CREDIPAR and the Peugeot PSA Citroen Group On February 19, 2016, Gecina signed two leases with CREDIPAR and the PSA Peugeot Citroen Group, covering 10,000 sqm, hence 77% of the total space in the Pointe Metro 2 building in Gennevilliers. For reference, the vacancy rate on Gecina's office portfolio was 4.2% at December 31, 2015, and this could therefore be reduced to less than 4%. Under these leases, the space will be made available from March 2016. Preliminary off-plan agreement signed to buy the Be Issy building in Issy-les-Moulineaux Gecina has signed a preliminary agreement with the developer PRD Office for its speculative off-plan acquisition of the BE ISSY office building. This asset is located in the Issy-les-Moulineaux business district which, along with Boulogne-Billancourt, makes up the bulk of the Southern Loop of Paris' Western Crescent, which Gecina has in-depth knowledge of. The building, which will be delivered in 2018, will offer a gross leasable area of around 25,000 sq.m and 258 parking spaces. The transaction represents a total of 157.8 million euros including commissions and fees, with around 6,100 euros per sq.m excluding parking spaces. Based on current market rents, Gecina expects this operation to deliver a potential net yield of nearly 7%. Gecina's float increased to over 50% following Blackstone's exit from its capital Gecina acknowledged Blackstone's gradual withdrawal from the company's capital between June 2015 and February 2016. Blackstone sold 2% of the capital to Ivanhoe Cambridge, before selling its remaining interest through two placements with an accelerated book-building process on October 22, 2015 and February 1, 2016. This increased the float to 55% of the market capitalization according to the criteria applied by Euronext, and 64% based on the EPRA criteria. Last buildings outside of France sold Gecina sold its last two buildings outside of France in 2015. More specifically, the Group sold the building let to BMW in Madrid for 41 million euros, as well as a logistics platform in Poland for 5 million euros. Gecina is driving progress with real estate innovation At the start of 2016, Gecina joined forces with Indigo to set up the shared management of 1,300 parking spaces in 37 buildings across its portfolio in Paris. This initiative aims to share unused spaces with drivers, offering them a flexible solution aligned with their needs (parking per hour, per week, overnight or at weekends for professionals and residents). Alongside this, Gecina has rolled out various innovative solutions to support startups, developing a new 2,000 sq.m incubator with Paris Co in the Gamma towers. This operation follows the coworking space opened recently in Neuilly-sur-Seine, in partnership with Bureaux A Partager. Interim dividends introduced The Board of Directors has decided to set up interim dividend payments from 2016, for the payment of the 2015 dividend. These new conditions will enable shareholders to benefit from regular payments, aligned more closely with the company's financial flows. Once the dividend for 2015, increased to 5.0 euros per share (up +7.5%), has been released for payment, a 50% interim payment (2.5 euros) will be made on March 9, 2016, followed by the balance on July 6, 2016. Outlook for 2016 The market environment is expected to be positive for Gecina in 2016. While take-up increased slightly in 2015 for the Paris Region in general (+1%), it has picked up again significantly for the Paris CBD (+18%) and the Western Crescent's Southern Loop (+92%), where Gecina has a very strong presence and where one-year supply levels are down, showing the first concrete signs of a rental upturn for the central sectors where available supply will remain limited, despite the upturn in demand. 2016 is expected to show contrasting trends, benefiting from the first signs of an upturn on certain rental markets, particularly in the most central sectors, as well as the latest adjustments for certain assets in peripheral areas renegotiated at the end of 2014 and early 2015 and taking effect in 2015 and 2016 in certain cases. Like-for-like, office rental income could therefore contract slightly. In a very competitive investment market, Gecina, more than ever, intends to maintain its selective and opportunistic approach for both acquisitions and potential sales, while maintaining its high standards for profitability. Excluding the effect of the process underway to sell the healthcare portfolio, underlying growth in recurrent net income is expected to represent over +5% for 2016. Gecina, a leading real estate group Gecina owns, manages and develops property holdings worth 12.9 billion euros at December 31, 2015, with 90% located in the Paris Region. The Group is building its business around France's leading office portfolio and a diversification division with residential assets, student residences and healthcare facilities. Gecina has put sustainable innovation at the heart of its strategy to create value, anticipate its customers' expectations and invest while respecting the environment, thanks to the dedication and expertise of its staff. Gecina is a French real estate investment trust (SIIC) listed on Euronext Paris, and is part of the SBF 120, Euronext 100, FTSE4Good, DJSI Europe and World, Stoxx Global ESG Leaders and Vigeo indices. In line with its commitments to the community, Gecina has created a company foundation, which is focused on protecting the environment and supporting all forms of disability. www.gecina.fr 2015 earnings APPENDIX 1- FINANCIAL STATEMENTS CONSOLIDATED INCOME STATEMENT At the Board meeting on February 24, 2016, chaired by Bernard Michel, Gecina's Directors approved the financial statements at December 31, 2015. The audit procedures have been performed on these accounts, and the certification reports have been issued after verifying the information contained in the annual report, included in the reference document. All the figures presented in this document exclude any impact for IFRS 5 relating to the recognition of discontinued operations and operations held for sale, applied to the healthcare portfolio, for which a sales process was underway at year-end 2015. This standard, which requires a specific presentation of the financial statements and isolates all the balance sheet and income statement items for discontinued operations, is not applied to the data presented below in order to improve legibility. In million euros 2014 2015 Change (%) Gross rental income 571.0 574.6 +0.6% Expenses not billed to tenants (46.7) (48.4) Net rental income 524.3 526.2 +0.4% Services and other income (net) 8.4 8.3 -2.0% Salaries and management costs (65.1) (62.1) -4.6% EBITDA 467.6 472.4 +1.0% Gains from disposals 14.0 91.0 +548.7% Change in fair value of properties 21.1 1,238.7 NA Depreciation (5.3) (5.0) -6.1% Net impairments and provisions 0.7 (0.5) NA Operating income 498.0 1,796.5 +260.7% Net financial expenses (146.6) (119.8) -18.2% Financial impairment and depreciation 0.0 (4.5) NA Change in value of financial instruments and debt (68.3) (51.6) NA Net income from associates 0.1 0.1 -52.2% Pre-tax income 283.3 1,620.7 +472.1% Current tax (3.3) (3.5) +7.0% Non-current tax 0.2 (0.2) NA Exit tax (2.7) 0.0 NA Deferred tax 3.4 1.8 NA Non-recurrent minority interests 1.6 (9.7) NA Recurrent minority interests (1.2) 0.2 NA Consolidated net income (Group share) 281.4 1,609.3 +472.0% Recurrent net income total share 317.8 349.0 +9.8% Recurrent net income Group share 316.6 349.2 +10.3% Average number of shares over the period 61,260,603 62,216,325 +1.6% Undiluted recurrent net income per share Group share 5.17 5.61 +8.6% CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEET ASSETS Dec 31, 14 Dec 31, 15 LIABILITIES Dec 31, 14 Dec 31, 15 In million euros In million euros Non-current assets 10,201.4 11,049.1 Capital and reserves 6,280.0 7,751.4 Investment properties 9,827.2 10,188.3 Share capital 473.3 474.5 Buildings under reconstruction 276.0 766.6 Additional paid-in capital 1,890.7 1,897.1 Buildings in operation 62.7 61.9 Consolidated reserves 3,624.3 3,755.0 Other property, plant and equipment 5.5 7.2 Consolidated net profit 281.4 1,609.3 Intangible assets 3.3 5.6 Capital and reserves attributable to owners of the parent 6,269.6 7,735.8 Long-term financial investments 11.8 6.8 Non-controlling interests 10.4 15.6 Investments in associates 3.5 3.6 Non-current financial instruments 11.0 9.2 Non-current liabilities 3,614.7 3,564.2 Deferred tax assets 0.4 0.0 Non-current financial debt 3,501.1 3,501.4 Non-current financial instruments 84.6 35.2 Current assets 344.8 2,186.3 Deferred tax liabilities 2.1 0.0 Properties for sale 169.1 1,842.7 Non-current provisions 26.8 27.6 Inventories 6.4 0.0 Non-current taxes due other employee-related liabilities 0.0 0.0 Trade receivables and related 84.8 82.5 Other receivables 48.6 91.1 Current liabilities 651.6 1,919.9 Prepaid expenses 22.6 23.6 Current financial debt 393.5 1,362.3 Current financial instruments 0.0 0.0 Current financial instruments 0.0 0.8 Cash and cash equivalents 13.3 146.4 Security deposits 58.6 54.2 Trade payables and related 109.6 383.6 Current taxes due other employee-related liabilities 36.9 37.8 Other current liabilities 53.0 81.2 TOTAL ASSETS 10,546.2 13,235.4 TOTAL LIABILITIES 10,546.2 13,235.4 2- FACTORS FOR LIKE-FOR-LIKE RENTAL INCOME CHANGES IN 2015 VS 2014 Offices (63% of Group rental income excluding Beaugrenelle) Like-for-like change Indices Business effect Vacancy Other -0.5% +0.1% -0.7% -0.3% +0.5% Residential (23% of Group rental income) Like-for-like change Indices Business effect Vacancy Other -0.1% +0.4% -0.1% -0.3% 0.0% 3- RENTAL RISKS Gecina's tenants operate across a very wide range of sectors responding to various macroeconomic factors. Services, which account for 40% of office rents, are themselves split between several sectors. Breakdown of tenants by sector (offices based on annualized rents): 2015 Services 40% Industry 17% Luxury goods retail 13% Local government 9% Technology and telecoms 6% Banking 4% IT 3% Insurance 3% Other 2% Real estate 3% Media television 0% Volume of rental income by three-year maturity for leases: In million euros 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 > 2022 Offices 85 42 80 62 12 33 11 70 Healthcare 3 0 9 9 4 4 6 43 Total 87 42 90 70 17 38 18 113 Volume of rental income by maturity for end of leases: In million euros 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 > 2022 Offices 45 12 42 46 51 58 18 123 Healthcare 3 0 9 3 4 1 11 48 Total 47 12 51 49 55 59 29 171 4- FINANCING 4.1 Debt structure Gecina's gross financial debt represented 4,863 million euros at December 31, 2015, compared with 3,895 million euros at end-2014; net financial debt came to 4,717 million euros at end-2015, up 836 million euros, primarily linked to investments for the year. The main characteristics of the debt are as follows: Dec 31, 15 Dec 31, 14 Gross financial debt (in million euros)(1) 4,863 3,895 Net financial debt (in million euros) 4,717 3,881 Gross nominal debt (in million euros) (1) 4,814 3,778 Unused credit lines (in million euros) 2,410 2,090 Average maturity of debt (in years, restated for available credit lines) 5.7 5.0 LTV 36.4% 36.7% LTV (including transfer taxes) 34.7% 34.7% ICR 3.9x 3.2x Secured debt portfolio value 7.7% 11.2% (1) Gross financial debt Gross nominal debt impact of the recognition of bonds at amortized cost accrued interest not due Breakdown of gross nominal debt: Dec 31, 15 Bonds 61% Corporate loans 1% Mortgage loans 18% Financial leases 3% Short-term resources 17% 4.2 Debt schedule The following table presents the schedule for Gecina's financing facilities at December 31, 2015, with 2,410 million euros of unused credit lines: Maturities 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 In million euros 592 630 485 1,001 888 2,816 All the credit maturities for the next two years were covered by unused credit lines at December 31, 2015. In addition, 100% of drawn debt (after factoring in undrawn credit lines) has a maturity of over three years and nearly 60% has a maturity of over five years. In line with the bond issues carried out in 2015 for 1 billion euros, which Gecina kept at a fixed rate, the company has adapted its short-term hedging portfolio, with break-up costs of 37 million euros. 4.3 Bank covenants Gecina's financial position at December 31, 2015 is compliant with the various limits likely to affect the conditions for repayment or early repayment clauses in the various credit agreements. The following table presents the position for the main financial ratios covered under the agreements: Ratios Benchmark standard Position at Dec 31, 15 Loan to value (block) < 55% 36.4% EBITDA (excluding disposals) net financial expenses > 2.0x 3.9x Outstanding secured debt net asset value of portfolio (block) < 25% 7.7% Net asset value of portfolio (block), in million euros > 6,000 8,000 12,971 5- ANNUALIZED GROSS RENTAL INCOME In million euros IFRS Offices (excl. Beaugrenelle) 376 Traditional residential 117 Student residences 14 Healthcare 79 Total 586 6- PAYOUT A proposal will be submitted at the general meeting on April 21, 2016 to approve a cash payout of 5.00 euros per share for 2015. This payout corresponds to 89% of recurrent net income for 2015. Once the 2015 dividend has been released for payment, a 50% interim payment (2.50 euros) will be made on March 9, 2016, followed by the balance on July 6, 2016. This document does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy Gecina securities and has not been independently verified. If you would like to obtain further information concerning Gecina, please refer to the public documents filed with the French securities regulator (Autorite des marches financiers, AMF), which are also available on our internet site. This document may contain certain forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes that such statements are based on reasonable assumptions on the date on which this document was published, they are by their very nature subject to various risks and uncertainties which may result in differences. However, Gecina assumes no obligation and makes no commitment to update or revise such statements. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160224006344/en/ Contacts: Gecina Financial communications Samuel Henry-Diesbach samuelhenry-diesbach@gecina.fr or Virginie Sterling, +33 (0)1 40 40 62 48 virginiesterling@gecina.fr or Press relations Tel: +33 (0)1 40 40 62 45 brigittecachon@gecina.fr or Armelle Miclo, +33 (0)1 40 40 51 98 armellemiclo@gecina.fr MIAMI, FL--(Marketwired - February 24, 2016) - The winners of the Clinical Informatics News Best Practices Awards were announced on Wednesday at the Summit for Clinical Ops Executives, SCOPE, in Miami, Fla. Prizes were awarded to Science 37 with LA BioMed, Massachusetts General Hospital and Prize4Life, and Clincierge. The Clinical Informatics News Best Practices awards recognize outstanding examples of applied strategic innovation-partnerships, deployments, and collaborations that manifestly improve the clinical trial process. An expert panel of judges assessed entries looking for solutions that are innovative, and needed in the industry. "This year's entries again raised the bar on innovation in clinical trials," said Allison Proffitt, Clinical Informatics News' editorial director. "The clinical trials community and industry are so dedicated to improving the clinical trials process for the patients while upholding standards of excellence in drug development. It's an exciting time." The judges named ten finalists, and from that pool chose winning entries in three categories: Clinical Data Intelligence; Study Startup and Design; and Patient Data Management. Clinical Data Intelligence: Neurological Clinical Research Institute @ Massachusetts General Hospital and Prize4Life The Pooled Resource Open-access ALS Clinical Trials (PRO-ACT) platform -- Using Big Data to drive innovation in ALS Research The vision of the Pooled Resource Open-access ALS Clinical Trials (PRO-ACT) platform project was to design and build an open access database that would contain the data from recent large ALS trials, and use them to drive innovation in ALS quantitative research a field hardly addressed before. Since its launch in 2012, the PRO-ACT platform had allowed the integration of 23 clinical trials with data from over 10,700 ALS patients, the largest in the world harmonized dataset from completed clinical trials in ALS with 11 diverse data types. The database has been successful in attracting over 1,000 researchers worldwide including several crucial collaborations and high impact publications. The database had enabled the running of two crowd-sourcing initiatives, bringing together over 13,000 participants and was part of several educational initiatives in several countries spanning over 500 students in Universities like Stanford University, Hebrew University and University of Zurich, and was "responsible" for several start-ups in bioinformatics. All these initiatives served to bring together two disciplines that had limited intersection before -- research on the biology of ALS and informatics research. This novel interdisciplinary field is now paving the ways to better understanding of ALS mechanisms, better ALS clinical trial and improved clinical care. Study Startup and Design: Clincierge Patient Recruitment, Support and Retention for Rare Disease Trial Clincierge provided individual patient support services for a rare disease clinical trial, handling the logistics of travel, lodging, transportation and rapid reimbursement of patient out-of-pocket expenses. This included upfront payments of all costs associated with each clinical visit, at an average per-patient cost of $8,400, as well as managing all of the logistics, saving a total of 3500 hours or approximately 32 hours per patient. In order to support this global trial, Clincierge employed 17 Clincierges ("clinical concierge") who collectively speak 20 Languages and support 18 countries. Patient Data Management: Science 37 with LA BioMed PEMPHIX Trial -- Science 37 technology powering the LA Biomed telemedicine substudy site Science 37 creates comfortable, convenient and connected clinical trial participation. On the PEMPHIX trial in partnership with LA BioMed, the nonprofit scientific research organization affiliated with the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Science 37's demonstrated how its metasite model can fundamentally accelerate research. The PEMPHIX trial is being conducted at more than 60 sites worldwide, one of which is a telemedicine substudy site at LA BioMed powered by Science 37 technology. The Science 37 approach to this study was designed to accelerate the enrollment of patients with a rare disease by removing the geographic barriers to their participation in the research, and improving their experience of the research process by offering real-time access to the research team through our NORA technology. Judges for the 2016 awards included Joe Kim, Eli Lilly; Nancy Mulligan, UBC; Beth Harper, Clinical Performance Partners; Craig Lipset, Pfizer; Stephen Fogelson, Develotron, LLC; and Jerry Schindler, Merck. About Clinical Informatics News (www.ClinicalInformaticNews.com) Part of the Cambridge Healthtech Publishing (www.HealthtechPublishing.com), Clinical Informatics News reports on innovative technologies from clinical trials to medical informatics. Technology continues to permeate all aspects of clinical trials and the patient experience, and the tools to support these efforts are maturing rapidly. ClinicalInformaticsNews.com, the Clinical Informatics News Newsletter and News Bulletins provide authoritative news, views and insights on the vast landscape of innovation between clinical trial management and delivery of care. About Cambridge Healthtech Institute (www.healthtech.com) Cambridge Healthtech Institute (CHI), a division of Cambridge Innovation Institute, is the preeminent life science network for leading researchers and business experts from top pharmaceutical, biotech, CROs, academia, and niche service providers. CHI is renowned for its vast conference portfolio held worldwide including PepTalk, Molecular Medicine Tri-Conference, SCOPE Summit, Bio-IT World Conference & Expo, PEGS Summit, Drug Discovery Chemistry, Biomarker World Congress, World Pharmaceutical Congress, Next Generation Dx Summit and Discovery on Target. CHI's portfolio of products include Cambridge Healthtech Institute Conferences, Barnett International, Insight Pharma Reports, Cambridge Marketing Consultants, Cambridge Meeting Planners, Knowledge Foundation Bio-IT World Clinical Informatics News and Diagnostics World. Contact: Lisa Scimemi Publisher, Clinical Informatics News lscimemi@clinicalinformaticsnews.com SAN FRANCISCO, CA -- (Marketwired) -- 02/25/16 -- Today CloudPassage announced it has achieved Amazon Web Services (AWS) Security Competency for CloudPassage Halo. The AWS Competency Program is designed to provide AWS customers with qualified AWS Partner Network (APN) partners who have demonstrated technical proficiency and proven success in specialized solution and vertical areas. CloudPassage attained security competency based on an in-depth AWS technical evaluation of Halo. The CloudPassage Halo security and compliance automation platform is purpose-built to deliver a broad range of controls in any application-hosting environment, at any scale, on-demand. While AWS has been architected to be one of the most flexible and secure cloud computing environments available for users to develop and run their applications, security is a collaborative effort between AWS and the AWS Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) customer. CloudPassage Halo complements AWS security by providing an additional layer of enhanced security directly at the Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (Amazon EC2) instance, protecting the applications and data on that instance. "CloudPassage Halo was built with the cloud in mind, but is environment agnostic," said John Janetos, director of business development, CloudPassage. "With Halo, AWS customers can secure and monitor their public cloud instances, virtual private cloud, hybrid, or any combination of environments including the traditional data center. This gives information security professionals complete visibility and a consistent security posture across their entire infrastructure with a single platform. In addition, Halo's portability means as customers migrate more applications to AWS from traditional environments, their workloads stay protected without any additional work." About CloudPassage CloudPassage Halo is the world's leading agile security platform providing instant visibility and continuous protection for servers in any combination of data centers, private clouds, and public clouds. The Halo platform is delivered as a service, so it deploys in minutes and scales on-demand. Halo uses minimal system resources; so layered security can be deployed where it counts, right at every workload -- servers, instances and containers. Leading enterprises like Citrix, Salesforce.com and Adobe use CloudPassage today to enhance their security and compliance posture, while at the same time enabling business agility. Headquartered in San Francisco, California, CloudPassage is backed by Benchmark Capital, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Meritech Capital Partners, Tenaya Capital, Shasta Ventures, Musea Ventures and other leading investors. For more information, visit www.cloudpassage.com. CloudPassage and Halo are registered trademarks of CloudPassage, Inc. TORONTO, ONTARIO -- (Marketwired) -- 02/24/16 -- Peat Resources Limited (the "Company") (TSX VENTURE: PET) announces the evaluation of technology-based initiatives in the mobility space, including gesture recognition, image and motion sensing technology, with the advice of Dr. Samuel Peralta. Previously, the Board announced that it is working with Dr. Peralta to evaluate potential new lines of business and the acquisition of intellectual property, and pursue related initiatives. Dr. Peralta has extensive experience in pivot situations, most recently supporting POET Technologies Inc.'s successful pivot from a photovoltaic company to a fabless semiconductor company. "We are pleased to investigate gesture recognition, image and motion sensing as a new line of business," said Ms. Patricia Mannard, Chairman and CEO of Peat Resources. "It's an area with enormous potential, and could serve as the foundation for a new direction for the company." "The gesture recognition and touchless sensing market alone is estimated to reach over $23 billion by 2020," said Dr. Peralta. "This industry provides ample room for new technologies." Peat will be further assessing the market segmentation of the mobility space, with intent to deliver recommendations to shareholders as required, and an overview at its upcoming Annual General Meeting. Market Reference: http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/touchless-sensing-gesturing-market-369.html Forward-Looking Information This release includes certain statements that may be deemed "forward-looking statements". All statements in this release, other than statements of historical facts, that address future production, reserve potential, exploration drilling, exploitation activities and events or developments that the Company expects are forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes the expectations expressed in such statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those in the statements. There are certain factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements. These include market prices, exploitation and exploration successes, continued availability of capital and financing, and general economic, market or business conditions. Investors are cautioned that any such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. For more information on the Company, investors should review registered filings at www.sedar.com. Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. Contacts: Peat Resources Limited Patricia Mannard (416) 862-7885 pmannard@peatresources.com www.peatresources.com WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has sought to downplay the importance of endorsements, but the real estate tycoon now has the official support of his first sitting members of Congress. Rep. Chris Collins, R-N.Y., announced his support for Trump in a statement to The Buffalo News and was followed by Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Calif., in an interview with Politico. In his statement to The Buffalo News, Collins said Trump has clearly demonstrated he has the guts and the fortitude to return jobs stolen by China, take on the nation's enemies, and re-establish the opportunity for future generations to attain the American Dream. Collins previously supported former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, who dropped out of the presidential race after a disappointing showing in Saturday's South Carolina primary. Hunter also praised Trump's strength in a telephone interview with Politico, arguing that America needs a leader and not a policy wonk as president. The California congressman claimed he's liked Trump since the beginning and suggested other members of Congress also secretly support the billionaire. 'I think you have more Trump supporters in Congress,' Hunter said. 'They just have to come out of the closet, so to speak.' The endorsements from Collins and Hunter come after Trump's landslide victory in the Nevada Republican caucuses on Tuesday. (Photo Credit: Michael Vadon) 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) - Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., officially endorsed Hillary Clinton's run for the Democratic presidential nomination on Wednesday, becoming the highest ranking Democrat to support the former Secretary of State. In an interview with CNN, Reid claimed the middle class would be better served by Clinton than her Democratic rival Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt. 'I think that my work with her over the years has been something that I have looked upon with awe,' Reid said. 'She was the first lady. She started the trend toward looking to do something about health care,' he added. 'She understood the issue well, she was the front on the health care during that administration.' Reid was widely expected to throw his support behind Clinton and was reportedly holding off on making an official announcement in an effort to boost Democratic registration during the Nevada caucuses. The Nevada Senator said he informed Sanders of the news on Tuesday, describing his Senate colleague as magnanimous, kind and courteous. Clinton now has the public support of at least 40 Democratic Senators, while Sanders has yet to receive an endorsement from any of his fellow Senators. 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. Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/wslskx/global_mobile) has announced the addition of the "Global Mobile Payment Methods: Second Half 2015" report to their offering. Mobile payments are evolving in multiple forms across the world, including payments for purchases made over mobile devices, in-store mobile payments and peer-to-peer mobile transfers. The general trend across these categories is their continuing growth, reaching triple-digit figures on the global level. While data privacy and security remain the primary concerns of consumers when it comes to the adoption of innovative payment types, as this new report shows, factors such as convenience and special promotions are among the main drivers for wider mobile payments penetration. Asia-Pacific is projected to lead global mobile payments growth, driven by various new initiatives and rapid growth of mobile commerce across the region, according to the report findings. For example, in China, nearly 50% of all mobile Internet users already take advantage of the mobile payment offerings, and in South Korea an emerging trend is making mobile payments through popular instant mobile messengers. Also in Africa, where access to banking services is limited, mobile payments are on the rise, led by Kenya. The advanced regions of Europe and North America are no exception to the growing mobile payments penetration. In countries such as the UK and France, contactless mobile payments are gaining ground, while in the USA peer-to-peer mobile payments are predicted to be used by almost half of all mobile device owners through 2018. Moreover, in Germany peer-to-peer payment was the most known type of mobile payment in 2015. Competition in global mobile payments remains intense. Last year, Google re-formatted its Google Wallet into a peer-to-peer payment app, while also launching its Android Pay mobile payments solution. At the same time, Samsung Pay went live in the USA following its initial launch in South Korea. Further, Apple Pay is attempting to challenge Alipay's dominance in mobile payments in Asia, having cooperated with China UnionPay for the local launch expected in early 2016. Key Topics Covered: 1. Management Summary 2. Global 3. Asia-Pacific 4. North America 5. Europe 6. Latin America Companies Mentioned ASDA Alipay AmEx Express Amazon American Express Apple BlackBerry CaixaBank China UnionPay Deutsche Telekom Diners Discover Google Hitachi Capital Consumer Finance JPMorgan Chase MFS Africa MasterCard Mercury National Australia Bank Network International Otto Group PagBrasil PayFort PayPal Samsung Souq.com Square Tenpay Visa For more information visit http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/wslskx/global_mobile. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160224006502/en/ Contacts: Research and Markets Laura Wood, Senior Manager press@researchandmarkets.com For EST Office Hours Call 1-917-300-0470 For U.S./CAN Toll Free Call 1-800-526-8630 For GMT Office Hours Call +353-1-416-8900 U.S. Fax: 646-607-1907 Fax (outside U.S.): +353-1-481-1716 Technavio has announced the top six leading vendors for the global hot drinks marketin their latest research report. This report also lists 17 other prominent vendors who are expected to contribute to this market's growth over the forecast period. To identify the top vendors, Technavio's market research analysts have considered the top contributors to the overall revenue of this market. To calculate the market size, Technavio researchers have included the global sales of hot drinks through retail stores. Request sample report: http://bit.ly/20Vrt82 "The global hot drinks market is witnessing a growing shift in consumer preference towards plastic coffee pods. In developed markets, coffee pods have become a mainstream product, enabling consumers to experience a luxury food service at home. This trend is expected to influence the overall hot drinks sales by boosting hot coffee consumption," said Vijay Sarathi, one of Technavio's lead analysts for food and beverages research. "Market vendors are modifying their offering to capitalize on this trend. The Nespresso CitiZ automatic espresso machine, for instance, stands apart from the competition by using a unique extraction process. In 2014, McDonald's launched new coffee products for coffee brewing systems, including the Tassimo and Keurig. Many similar developments are anticipated to drive this market until 2020," added Vijay. Six leading vendors in the global hot drinks market: ABF ABF was founded in 1935 and is headquartered in London, UK. They are a diversified international group involved in food, ingredients, and retail businesses. They manufacture and market food and ingredients. The company operates as a subsidiary of Wittington Investments. They have operations across 47 countries located in Europe, the Americas, Southern Africa, Asia, and Australia. As of December 31, 2014, the company's revenue was close to 21.49 billion and R&D investments were close to 63.1 million. The company employs close to 118,209 people. Some of its key subsidiaries include AB Agri, AB Calsa, AB Enzymes, AB Food Beverages Australia, AB Mauri (Canada), AB Mauri Vietnam, ABNA Feed (Liaoning), and AB (Harbin) Food Ingredients. JDE JDE was founded in 2015 and is headquartered in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. JDE is a coffee and tea company that caters to consumers in over 80 countries. On July 2, 2015, Mondelez International (a snacks manufacturing company) and D.E. Master Blenders 1753 (a tea and coffee company) combined their respective coffee businesses to form JDE. Mondelez International has 44% share, and D.E. Master Blenders 1753 has 56% share in JDE. As of 2015, the company's revenue was more than USD 5.58 billion. The company provides a broad range of coffee machines including espresso machines, instant coffee machines, and Cafitesse brewing systems. It also provides solutions (specialist equipment) for traditional filter coffee brewing. Some of the other brands that the company offers include Bach, Cafe Do Ponto, Chat Noir, Caboclo, Damasco, Grand Mere, Harris, Jacques Varbe, Maison Du Cafe, Marcilla, Maxwell House, Natreen, Palheta, Pickwick, and Saimaza. Nestle The company was established in 1866 and is headquartered in Vevey, Switzerland. Nestle, along with its subsidiaries, develops, produces, markets, and sells food and beverages globally. The company operates in 197 countries worldwide. As of December 2014, they employed close to 339,000 people and their net revenue for FY2014 was close to USD 100.2 billion. The company sells its products under numerous brands globally, including Nescafe, Nestea, Milo, Boosts, Maggi, Nestum, Cerelac, Lactogen, KitKat, Herta, Nido, Vittel, Dreyers, and Nesquick. Strauss Group Strauss Group was incorporated in 1933 and is headquartered in Petach Tikva, Israel. They are a food and beverage company who offer dairy, coffee, water, chocolate and confectionery, olive oil, pasta, dips and spreads, honey, salty snacks, fresh vegetables, and cereals. Strauss operates through 30 production facilities in over 20 countries. As of December 2014, the company had close to 13,957 employees. The coffee segment of the company operates through the company's subsidiary, Strauss Coffee that procures green coffee. The coffee is available in different forms roast and ground, instant, RTD, espresso, cappuccino, and ice coffee. These are prepared in different ways such as filtered, pressed, percolated, and boiled. It also offers hot beverage powders such as cappuccino and chocolate powders, pudding powders, and cocoa powders for baking. Tata Global Beverages Tata Global Beverage (TGB) was established in 1962 and is headquartered in West Bengal, India. It is an integrated beverage business that offers tea, coffee, and water. They sell their products under Tata Tea, Eight O'Clock Coffee, Tetley, Jemca, Vitax, Himalayan, Grand Coffee, and Joekels brand names. As of March 2015, TGB had more than 3,000 employees worldwide. Approximately 50 new blends are produced every year; in FY2015, the new Tetley Super Green range (new green range for the US) and a Tata Tea black tea (a range for Canada) were introduced. Unilever Group The Unilever Group was established in 1929 and is headquartered in London, UK. They provide food, beverages, cleaning agents, and personal care products. In FY2014, there were 172,471 employees and the total revenue was close to USD 64.39 billion. In FY2014, the food segment accounted for 25.52% of market share. They offer soups, bouillons, mayonnaise, sauces, snacks, salad dressings, margarines, and spreads. The company provides products under the brands Knorr, Hellmann's, and Family Goodness (Rama/Blue Band). In FY2014, the company's refreshment segment accounted for close to18.94% of market share. Browse related reports: Hot Drinks Market in the US 2015-2019 Hot Drinks Market in APAC 2015-2019 Global Beauty Drinks Market 2015-2019 Global Soft Drinks Market 2015-2019 Purchase three reports from our library 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/20160224005140/en/ Contacts: Technavio Research Jesse Maida Media Marketing Executive US: +1-630-333-9501 UK: +44 208 123 1770 www.technavio.com media@technavio.com TORONTO, ONTARIO -- (Marketwired) -- 02/24/16 -- Pele Mountain Resources Inc. (TSX VENTURE: GEM)(OTCQX: GOLDF) ("Pele" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has entered into a shares-for-debt settlement agreement with certain creditors. Upon approval of requisite filings, Pele will issue 2,785,001 common shares, at a deemed price of $0.05 per common share, to satisfy total debts of $139,250.05. The shares-for debt transaction is subject to approval of the TSX Venture Exchange and the common shares will be subject to a four (4) month hold. About Pele Pele Mountain Resources is focused on the sustainable development of its Eco Ridge property in Elliot Lake, Ontario. The Eco Ridge property has unique characteristics that make it an attractive development site, including excellent regional infrastructure, strong local support, and its strategic location within Canada's only historic rare earth mining camp. Pele is focused on advancing Eco Ridge as host to Canada's first rare earth processing centre and is assessing its potential to host a large-scale renewable energy project. The NI 43-101 mineral resources at Eco Ridge also provide Pele shareholders with exposure and leverage to the growing global demand for rare earths and uranium. Pele shares are listed on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol "GEM" and on the OTCQX under the symbol "GOLDF". 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. Shares Outstanding: 209,396,930 Contacts: Pele Mountain Resources Inc. Al Shefsky President (800) 315-7353 www.pelemountain.com Weekly net asset value ("NAV") is calculated as of the close of business on each Tuesday and posted on the following business day. In the event that Tuesday is not a business day, the Company will calculate the close-of-business NAV as of the business day immediately preceding that Tuesday. The end-of-month NAV is calculated as of the close of business on the last day of the month and posted on the following business day. For weeks that include a month-end NAV report, PSH will provide only the month-end NAV and not report the Tuesday NAV. Monthly NAVs are published in accordance with the Decree on Conduct of Business Supervision of Financial Undertakings under the Wft (Besluit Gedragstoezicht financiele ondernemingen Wft). 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. OTTAWA, ONTARIO -- (Marketwired) -- 02/24/16 -- Itinerary for the Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, for Thursday, February 25, 2016: Ottawa 10:30 a.m. The Prime Minister will attend the Cabinet meeting. Notes for media: -- Ministers will be available to media in the House of Commons Foyer as of 12:30 p.m. Montreal 3:30 p.m. The Prime Minister will tour Ubisoft. 5455 Avenue de Gaspe (10th floor) Montreal, QC Notes for media: -- Photo opportunity only -- Media should arrive no later than 3 p.m. for accreditation Contacts: PMO Media Relations: 613-957-5555 OTTAWA, ONTARIO -- (Marketwired) -- 02/24/16 -- The Honourable Hunter Tootoo, Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard, today issued the following statement: As Minister responsible for the Canadian Coast Guard, I am proud of the actions taken by the Joint Rescue and Coordination Centres in Halifax and Greenland. The Canadian Coast Guard, Canadian Armed Forces, and the Royal Danish Navy worked with the crew of the Saputi to stabilize the vessel and ensure safe arrival to Greenland. This successful rescue operation shows the importance collaboration and dedication make to our families and communities. Internet: http://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca For more information about the Canadian Coast Guard, visit www.ccg-gcc.gc.ca. Follow us on Twitter! www.Twitter.com/DFO_MPO Follow CCG on Twitter! www.Twitter.com/CCG_GCC Contacts: Media Relations Fisheries and Oceans Canada 613-990-7537 Media.xncr@dfo-mpo.gc.ca Mike Murphy Director of Communications Office of the Minister Fisheries and Oceans Canada 613-992-3474 TORONTO, ONTARIO -- (Marketwired) -- 02/24/16 -- (TSX: CSD)(TSX: CSD.A) - BlackRock Asset Management Canada Limited ("BlackRock Canada"), an indirect, wholly-owned subsidiary of BlackRock, Inc. ("BlackRock"), has announced the change of investment objective and name of CSD in connection with the expiry of the legacy equity forward agreement (the "Forward") of CSD, effective today. Given the expiry of the Forward, as disclosed in the fund's prospectus, BlackRock Canada has determined that it is necessary to change CSD's investment objective as it is no longer possible for CSD to provide tax-advantaged returns. Accordingly, the investment objective of CSD has been changed to the new investment objective set out below: "CSD has been created to maximize total returns for Unitholders consisting of both monthly distributions and capital appreciation, and to preserve capital, by investing in or obtaining economic exposure to a diversified high-yield debt portfolio consisting primarily of below investment grade debt securities. CSD will, to the extent possible, hedge its U.S. dollar currency exposure back to Canadian dollars." CSD has obtained exemptive relief from the securities regulatory authorities to effect this change of investment objective without obtaining prior approval of Unitholders of CSD. As previously announced, in response to taxation rules that target certain financial arrangements that would deem gains on the settlement of certain forward agreements to be included in ordinary income rather than treated as capital gains (the "DFA rules") and in accordance with the grandfathering provided for when the DFA Rules were enacted in 2013, CSD implemented an interim hybrid investment strategy. Through this strategy, CSD continued to maintain exposure to an actively managed diversified high yield debt portfolio (the "High Income Portfolio") indirectly through the use of the Forward, and invested the proceeds from the sale of new Units of CSD in a portfolio of directly-held securities selected from the eligible universe of securities in which the High Income Portfolio was permitted to invest. Given the expiry of the Forward and the implementation of the new investment objective, CSD will now be fully invested in a portfolio of directly-held securities in accordance with the new investment objective and does not intend to enter into any forward agreements that would be subject to the DFA Rules. Unitholders will accordingly no longer benefit from the tax-advantaged (i.e. capital gain) character of the portion of CSD's distributions that were funded through the partial settlement of the Forward. The investment mandate of CSD will remain unchanged in all other respects. In order to reflect the expiry of the Forward and the new investment objective, CSD's fund name has been changed to iShares Short Duration High Income ETF (CAD-Hedged) effective as of February 24, 2016. About BlackRock BlackRock is a global leader in investment management, risk management and advisory services for institutional and retail clients. At December 31, 2015, BlackRock's AUM was US$4.645 trillion. BlackRock helps clients around the world meet their goals and overcome challenges with a range of products that include separate accounts, mutual funds, iShares (exchange-traded funds), and other pooled investment vehicles. BlackRock also offers risk management, advisory and enterprise investment system services to a broad base of institutional investors through BlackRock Solutions. As of December 31, 2015, the firm had approximately 13,000 employees in more than 30 countries and a major presence in global markets, including North and South America, Europe, Asia, Australia and the Middle East and Africa. For additional information, please visit the Company's website at www.blackrock.com/ca / Twitter: @BlackRockCA / Blog: www.blackrockblog.com/can About iShares iShares is a global leader in exchange-traded funds (ETFs), with more than a decade of expertise and commitment to individual and institutional investors of all sizes. With over 700 funds globally across multiple asset classes and strategies and more than US$1 trillion in assets under management as of December 31, 2015, iShares helps clients around the world build the core of their portfolios, meet specific investment goals and implement market views. iShares funds are powered by the expert portfolio and risk management of BlackRock, trusted to manage more money than any other investment firm(1). iShares Funds are managed by BlackRock Asset Management Canada Limited. Commissions, trailing commissions, management fees and expenses all may be associated with investing in iShares Funds. Please read the relevant prospectus before investing. The funds are not guaranteed, their values change frequently and past performance may not be repeated. Tax, investment and all other decisions should be made, as appropriate, only with guidance from a qualified professional. Commissions, trailing commissions, management fees and expenses all may be associated with investing in iShares ETFs. Please read the relevant prospectus before investing. The funds are not guaranteed, their values change frequently and past performance may not be repeated. Tax, investment and all other decisions should be made, as appropriate, only with guidance from a qualified professional. (1) Based on US$4.645 trillion in AUM as of 12/31/15. Contacts: Maeve Hannigan T - 416-643-4058 C - 416-564-1540 Maeve.Hannigan@blackrock.com Routific, a Vancouver, Canada based provider of a route optimization solution, raised a seed funding round of undisclosed amount. The round, which was led by Pallasite Ventures, brought total funding to $1.2m. Other backers in the company include Firestarter Fund. The company will use the funds to continue to expand operations. Led by Founder Marc Kuo, Routific provides a route optimization solution for last-mile delivery fleets which leverages a proprietary algorithm. The company, which was accelerated within Techstars Chicago, experienced revenue growth of 890%, doubled its number of employees and optimized 5,227,526 routes around the world expanding from 5 cities to 256 cities in 2015. It also signed its first major enterprise deal with a $600 million e-commerce company. FinSMEs 24/02/2016 Los Altos, California-based venture capital firm 1955 Capital has officially launched with an initial close at $200m. Founded and managed by Andrew Chung*, a former partner at Khosla Ventures, the firm will invest in technologies developed in the Americas and Europe that can help solve the developing worlds greatest challenges in underserved areas like energy, food, agriculture, health, education and sustainable manufacturing. According to Chung, the name for 1955 Capital is related to the year 1955, which marked the passing of Albert Einstein, biologist, Alexander Fleming and jazz legend, Charlie Parker and the birth of innovators including Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, Eric Schmidt, and Vinod Khosla Chungs former partner. The firm will take a cross-border investing approach. The technologies 1955 Capital will invest in 1) may have already achieved some success in the developed world, but may not yet have been introduced to developing countries, or 2) may be new and have a strong initial fit outside of North America due to intense demand, strong regulatory support, or great availability of capital and resources for such products or services abroad. 1955 Capital will work closely with portfolio companies to build productive relationships with strategic partners in China, Southeast Asia and Africa, to give entrepreneurs a chance to commercialize technologies in these markets first, and then take their innovations to the rest of the world. *Andrew Chung joined Khosla Ventures in 2011 as one of six partners who managed the firm. He led China activities for the firm, and worked with many portfolio companies to develop successful models for U.S.-China collaboration. A fluent Mandarin and Cantonese speaker, Chung served as a board member on many of Khosla Ventures portfolio companies, including LanzaTech, Ecomotors, BioConsortia, Cogenra, Pellion, and Wattpad. Prior to Khosla Ventures, he was at Lightspeed Ventures, where he represented the firm on the boards of Solazyme, Natera, LS9, Orbis Education, and Personalis. FinSMEs 24/02/2016 The fourth edition of the JK Tyre Himalayan Drive TSD rally, is set to be held from February 27 to March 3, 2016. This is the first time that the event will take participants across an international border. The event will see 100 participants which include drivers, navigators and their service crews from across the nation. The route chalked out for this rally will take participants from Siliguri to Bhutan and back. Participating teams will drive from Siliguri in Darjeeling district to Paro in Bhutan during the first leg of the race. The... By Deba R Mohanty The budget for defence seldom gets the scrutiny or attention that other budget areas receive, although together with the budget for homeland security and other categories (like atomic energy and space, which have security dimensions), it accounts for a quarter of Central government expenditure. Four fundamental questions pop up when it comes to budgeting for defence: a) How much in terms of resources needs to be devoted toward national defence? b) How much should go toward military equipment and services (capital expenditure)? c) How much should be spent on the revenue side (salaries, pensions, welfare for the armed forces etc)? d) How much should be devoted toward military research and development? The complexities of national military dynamics suggest that definitive amounts cannot be assigned to each category. However, reasonable assessments can always be arrived at. Lets begin with capital expenditure (other areas will be discussed in separate articles). This essentially consists of military procurement contracts already signed in the previous year/s and factored into the budget. These are called committed liabilities, which as indicative trends suggest for the past decade, hover between 80 and 90 percent of capital expenditure. This leaves between 10 and 20 percent (depending on the spending pattern) for fresh military equipment acquisitions. At times, the Ministry of Defence has to return the money already budgeted for, because of its inability to spend the allocated money in the same year, primarily because of the non-fruition of contracts. Called unspent syndrome, this used to be rampant in the past. Indicative trends again suggest a curious curve in the last decade while there are years when actual capital expenditure met targets, there were bouts of unspent syndrome creeping in as well. For example, the year 2015-16 (budget estimates, announced in FY 2015) may witness unspent syndrome of the previous year to the tune of almost 40 percent, as reported recently. Latest expenditure data, as claimed by a prominent newspaper, shows that over Rs 37,000 crore of the defence ministry's modernisation budget remained unutilised as of December-end, with the Army struggling the most having spent only 45 percent of its capital allocation. According to the same report, the MoD could not spend 22 percent of the initially allocated Rs 80,545-crore capital budget for the three armed forces. It is assumed that the 'unspent syndrome' could get worse and the ministry could fall short of its target of signing deals worth over Rs 1 lakh crore this year. Unspent money normally goes back to the Centre or some of it is adjusted in revenue expenditure. If one looks at acquisition approvals announced by the current government, we are looking at more than Rs 3,20,000-crore worth of acquisitions that need to be budgeted from this year onwards although none of the projects have been factored in thus far. With another set of approvals, as mentioned by Defence Minister Arun Jaitley a month ago, worth about Rs 80,000 crore, we could be looking at an amount greater than Rs 4,00,000 crore. Making matters worse, a bulk of these project approvals have been pending for years. If new acquisitions are to be planned, then the buying cost could further escalate. A larger acquisition scenario for equipment modernisation from a long-term perspective (between 2015 and 2027, which marks the end of approved 15-Year Long Term Integrated Perspective Plan) would suggest at least 10 times that of what has been approved in the last 18 months. In sum, it will be a gigantic challenge for the government to deploy its financial resources for force modernisation. Even if revised capital expenditure falls short of budgeted expenditure for last year (Rs 95,000 crore), some money could be allocated this year along with an expected 15 percent increase in budget estimates for the coming year. Even if we are looking at an assumed figure of Rs 1,10,000 crore or a little more, it may not be enough to meet expectations. It will be a Herculean task for the MoD to balance resources for committed liabilities, approved and new projects with an eye on long-term equipment modernisation. Capital purchases thus need to be carefully planned in order to make a fine balance between available resources, which can not be stretched beyond a point, and necessities. The shopping list looks too big as all services require to not only replenish, but also enhance fighting capabilities through advanced systems. From fighters, land-based systems to warships and submarines you name it, we require dozens of them. It will really be a task for the planners to manage aspirations by committing resources. The forthcoming defence budget could provide us some clues to how the Indian military power will look in future. The author is a New Delhi-based defence analyst and head of a defence research firm The Sensex and the rupee recovered today after the Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee announced that the General-Anti Avoidance rules have been deferred for a year. The finance minister said proposed retrospective amendment of income tax laws will not override tax break treaties."Retrospective amendments to Income-tax Act not to override DTAAs with 82 countries" said Mukherjee in the Lok Sabha today. He added that the government has set up a special committee to give recommendations for formulating rules and guidelines so that provisions will not be provided indiscriminately to all. The committee will submit its recommendations by 31 May 2012. He also said that the government is going to introduce an independent member to the GAAR panel. This may spell good news for market investors as most of them were hoping for a one-year delay for more clarity in guidelines and implementation. Moreover, the Finance bill removes the onus of proof from the tax payer to the tax department. . As a result the rupee has pulled back to 53 from the mornings high of 53.70 on hopes that FIIs will not withdraw their investments from the market. He said that the Government has withdrawn the levy on all precious metals, branded or unbranded On branded jewellery, Mukherjee said there will be no excise duty on purchase of jewellery valued at Rs 5 lakh against earlier threshold of Rs 2 lakh. He also removed the levy of 0.3% excise duty on unbranded jewellery. The earlier proposal was for an April 2012 rollout for GAAR. However, the Standing Committee has recommended that the GAAR be implemented, along with the Direct Tax Code (DTC), in April 2013. The finance minister also announced the withdrawal of TDS on immovable property as proposed in the Budget. Moving the Finance Bill, 2012 for consideration and passage in the Lok Sabha, Mukherjee halved the capital gains tax for private equity investors to 10 per cent and relaxed the norms for arrest of persons involved in violation of Customs Act. Mukherjee further announced a 0.2 percent securities transaction tax on deals involving unlisted companies instead of a withholding tax. The imposition of a withholding tax hurt private equity or venture capital companies that are looking to exit their early stage investments in private firms. The value of international investors' holdings in the Indian market has already eroded by $9 billion in the past month when the rupee slid 4 percent against the US dollar, an Economic Times article pointed out earlier. Had GAAR been implemented in the current year Indian markets could have lost close to $ 10 billion. Mukherjee's comments are sure to provide short-term relief to the markets, which have already begun cheering the clarity on the provisions and deferment of the implementation date. Moreover, a lot of fund flows had begun to dry up because of this confusion over GAAR and clarity on the issue is likely to renew investor faith in the markets. "At a time when our current account deficit is so high we can't scare away foreign capital. Now that GAAR is deferred, India will stop underperforming global peers at least," Sandip Sabhawal, CEO, Portfolio Management, Prabhudas Liladher, told Reuters. However even though the sentiment has improved,one has to wait and watch till the finance bill is cleared in Parliament after two days. New Delhi: We have suffered, so should others. This seems to be the guiding principle of incumbent airlines like SpiecJet, Jet Airways, IndiGo and GoAir which made various dire pronouncements to select media yesterday about the fate of the Indian aviation industry in case the 5/20 restriction is lifted. Some of theses predictions are plain silly, others seem to be part of a tactic to divert attention from key issues. The 5/20 restriction bars Indian airlines from flying on lucrative overseas routes before completing five years of domestic flying and having a fleet of 20 aircraft. All incumbent airlines have been constrained by this restriction which came into force during UPA I and now cant bear to see the two new airlines, Vistara and AirAsia India, get permission to fly overseas without the mandatory five-year domestic grind. Tata Sons is an equity investor in both the airlines and the 5/20 fracas has pitted the incumbents against the Tatas. Ratan Tata set the cat among the pigeons by becoming vocal, for the first time, on 5/20 removal with his tweets this Sunday. This lead incumbent airlines to step up attacks against Vistara and AirAsia India. Media reports this morning quoted one airline promoter speaking of dragging the entire matter to the court, another wanted a link between 5/20 removal and existing norms on providing domestic connectivity to remote areas whereas a third spoke of imminent rise in air fares, under-utilisation of airport infrastructure if the 5/20 restriction were indeed to be abolished. Last week, incumbent airlines knocked several doors including the PMO's, with allegations that the norms of substantial ownership and effective control were being violated by both the Tata airlines. Singapore Airlines owns 49% of Vistara whereas AirAsia BhD owns 49% in AirAsia India. In this entire controversy, the mandarins of the ministry of civil aviation have maintained a deafening silence - it is the ministry which is piloting the Civil Aviation Policy, which is expected to take a call on whether to remove 5/20 completely or replace it with a milder version. But now, Tata Sons has tried to set the record straight with some forthright comments on the entire 5/20 controversy and implications for India's aviation industry in case the restriction is removed. The Tata Sons' statement makes several points: 1) There are no global parallels to this rule, with no other country except India barring its own airlines from flying overseas by placing such restrictions 2) The statement alleges that this rule is discriminatory to Indian airlines as foreign airlines that do not meet these criteria are allowed to operate in Indian skies, but Indian airlines cannot enjoy reciprocal rights. 3) The 5/20 rule has thus far principally benefited only foreign airlines, who have captured 70% of the international traffic with India, taking Indian jobs and revenue with them. 4) The removal of this rule is estimated to boost international traffic to and from India to over 100 million passengers by FY2021 against 43 million in FY2014 (no source is cited for these figures). 5) The statement alleges that claim (by incumbents) that air fares in India will go if 5/20 rule is removed are "specious and unfounded. Not protectionism, but increased competition within the country will further contribute to lower prices and greater accessibility of air travel to common people." 6) On allegations of violating substantial ownership and effective control norms, the statement says Tata Sons would like to emphasis that both its joint ventures with Air Asia and Singapore Airlines are fully compliant with the requirements of Indian regulation. Majority ownership and effective control of both airlines are with the Indian parties as per the requirements of press note 6. " 7) The statement also says that all the important decisions concerning the day-to-day operations of the airlines are taken by the management teams of these airlines under the overall supervision, control, and direction of the respective boards of directors (which include a majority of Indian nationals). Bringing in a false sense of nationalism into every argument has become rather fashionable these days, as we noted in earlier this week. How is an airline set up in India, under India's rules and regulations, going to hurt national interest by flying overseas without being restricted to domestic flying for years together? Has either Vistara or AirAsia India said they will not comply with norms which stipulate that some portion of an airline's seats should be deployed on unviable domestic routes? Why is there any need for airlines set up in India to first prove their commitment to serving the country when existing rules anyway mandate connectivity to remote areas? Analysts predict Indias domestic aviation market to expand to about 300 million passengers by 2022 from just over 80 million in 2015. There is enough room for incumbents and new comers to generate business here. New Delhi: Government on Wednesday said there has not been any meeting between National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and his Pakistani counterpart Lt Gen (retd) Naseer Khan Janjua in Paris after the Pathankot attack in January. "We denied it then and we deny it now," External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Vikas Swarup tweeted. He was replying to a query on a media report that Doval and his Pak counterpart met in Paris in second week of January after Pathankot attack. Though the Spokesperson has been maintaining that the two NSAs are in touch over the probe into the Pathankot terror attack, he has always denied that there was any meeting between the two. According to a report in a national daily, Doval had a second secret meeting with Janjua in Paris in the second week of January when he was there to meet French President Francois Hollande who came to India as chief guest for the Republic Day parade. The meeting in Paris with Janjua came soon after the Pathankot airbase attack on January 2 carried out by terrorists belonging to the Jaish-e-Mohammad, it added. PTI Tata Steel Ltd said on Wednesday its Europe unit's chief executive, Karl Koehler, is stepping down to take up a senior leadership position with a large, privately owned industrial company in Germany. Koehler would be replaced by Hans Fischer, chief technical officer at Tata Steel Europe, effective March 1, the company said in a statement. Koehler, who will also resign from the Tata Steel board, will remain available to Tata Steel for a short period in an advisory capacity, the steelmaker said. Koushik Chatterjee, group executive director and a board member, will become Tata Steel's executive director for Europe in addition to his current responsibilities, the company said. The change in the top ranks of Britain's largest steelmaker comes at a time when the steel industry has been reeling from falling prices and cheap imports. The European Commission is scheduled to propose later this year whether to grant China market economy status, a move that critics say would give the country a license to dump unfairly cheap products in Europe and cost jobs. Tata Steel announced last month that it would axe 1,050 jobs in the United Kingdom soon after European Union steel prices touched their lowest since 2004. That was the second round of job cuts for the company in six months. (Reporting by Devidutta Tripathy in Mumbai and Vidya L Nathan in Bengaluru; Editing by Jason Neely and Savio D'Souza) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. By Vice Admiral Suresh Bangara (Retd) Those of us who were born just prior to Independence have lived with optimism and hope. Hope that India will soon overcome complex problems of governance given the plurality, non-homogeneity and diversity of cultural and religious milieu of our people and optimism that we will get our act together sooner than those in the immediate neighbourhood. Both the hope and the optimism appear to have been belied despite some notable achievements. Compulsions of coalition politics and inability to pass legislations of crying need even when the people of India elect a majority government further accentuates frustrations among well-meaning citizens. What is increasingly clear to many is that the present form of governing structures has been found wanting. An option that has been examined for many years now has been the Presidential form of government. The pros and cons of this proposal have been debated among experts but has not found sufficient traction among budding young politicians in the making, for fear of enormous challenges of amending the Constitution of India. That the Constitution has been amended about 98 times in 68 years is often left unsaid. There is a second option which may find traction. That of directly electing a Prime Minister who then has a stable tenure of five years or more. Before commenting on this option, it is prudent to analyse some bitter truth about the citizens who elect the politician and the quality of politicians who populate the Lok Sabha, the Rajya Sabha and the State Assemblies. In the corporate world,"the Stockdale Syndrome" is often quoted to train a manager to face the brutal realities on the ground while remaining optimistic about his vision and plans. The brutal realities of politics in India need to be faced if optimism is to be the goal. In brief, they are: The voter base also consists of semi-literate or illiterate citizens who are often described as very perceptive voters by candidates who talk down to them during campaigning. A vast majority are still up for sale for goodies ranging from liquor, sari, TV to computers. Non-implementation of electoral reforms which are stymied by all shades of parties, continues to ensure that money and muscle power play a vital role during elections. Given the very limited options of qualified candidates with a clean reputation, the voter continues to punish those who do not deliver but the quality of tainted candidates remain the same. Well- meaning and qualified citizens shun politics. They neither contest due to lack of funds nor even vote to neutralise the votes garnered by illegitimate means. The end result is that the same scamster reappears with a range of promises that cannot be delivered. The alienated and poor voter is ready to clutch at any straw in the wind. National priorities or interests are often sacrificed at the altar of personal or party priorities. Our current democratic processes have failed to keep up with the rapid reforms required to implement lessons repeatedly learnt by successive Election Commissions. No political party has shown any resolve to implement electoral reforms, administrative reforms, police reforms or judicial reforms. A strong desire to cling to power and the added incentive to dramatically increase the financial status of incumbent politicians, as revealed by recent surveys, have resulted in a strange convergence of interests among otherwise squabbling political parties. Politicians all over the world irrespective of their ideologies display preference to overlook national interests over political expediency. This may be morally despicable to many not in power, but, it is not alien to human behaviour. The above is just a representative sample of what a sincere, clean, aspiring politician should be ready to face. Hence, in the current format no individual, no matter how sincere or capable can deliver within his/her tenure. If a Prime Minister could be directly elected as the Chief Executive, with powers to use domain experts as executives of his cabinet and the parliamentarians function to pass legislations to enable good governance, that model may be an option to consider. Elected representatives cannot possibly fulfill the role of a domain expert in the rapidly globalised environment when decisions are required to be taken expeditiously by experts with more than adequate experience and knowledge in the concerned sphere of activity. What is implicit in this model is that only a politician who has national exposure and acceptance can contest a direct election. All the regional satraps would need to give way to a statesman of repute. All the experts would hasten to bury this concept by pointing out the enormity of obtaining necessary consensus for such a change. But maintaining status quo is an even more dangerous option if India has to discharge her responsibilities at a global or even a regional arena. Strangely people outside India expect us to assume a global role while we continue to self-destruct with glee. The author is a former Flag Officer Commanding-in-chief of the Southern Naval Command. He remains an optimist. Some commentators have tried to put a gloss on the anti-national sloganeering at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) by provocatively labelling themselves anti-national. The intention is to say the opposite that those who think anti-national slogans in JNU need condemnation should themselves stand condemned for making such accusations. These commentators have effectively used a verbal trick to paint themselves as anti-national in the best sense of the term. This is the trick: use positive virtues to define the term anti-national and then accuse the others as being narrow-minded and bigoted for calling this anti-national. Example: I am for freedom of speech. If this is anti-national, then call me anti-national. This is a clever distortion, an attempt to narrow down the argument by painting positive things everybody can agree on as what the others are calling anti-national, when that may not be the case. Few of those opposing the JNU sloganeers are against free speech, but that is the tar used to rebrand them while claiming victimhood by calling oneself fashionably anti-national. Now, consider the following 10 statements I make and see how I can use the same arguments to make communalism acceptable. I am for a uniform civil code, and if that makes me communal, I am communal. The subtle point is I may be insisting on the code only to put Muslims in the dock, or I may be genuinely for it as a secular Indian. The statement is communal or secular depending on the context, and this nuance is what is lost in making fashionable statements about being anti-national. It is like wrapping yourself in the flag of a radical free thinker to blame the other side for being jingoist. Here are nine more statements that can make you fashionably communal. I am concerned about jihadi terrorism, and if this makes me communal, so be it. The demography of the eastern states is being changed by illegal immigration. India needs to stop or regulate these illegal flows. If this makes me communal, yes, I am communal. Hindus do not have the same rights to manage their educational or religious institutions as minorities. The purpose of protecting minority rights is not to deny Hindus the same rights just because they are in a majority. If this statement makes me communal, so be it. The plight of Hindu minorities in Pakistan and Bangladesh is frightening. India must do something about this and give them political asylum. If this makes me communal, I am communal. The ethnic cleansing of the Kashmiri pandits is the only instance in any country where a so-called majority community was pushed out of its home state with force and threats. If this statement makes me communal, I am communal. The Sangh parivar has as much right to propagate their religion as evangelists or Muslims organisations. Ghar Wapsi is legitimate if conversions are legal. If this makes me communal, so be it. I am against reservations based on caste or religion, and would prefer reservations based on socio-economic backwardness alone. If this makes me communal, I am communal. I dont want Supreme Court judges to quote the Gita or the Koran to justify their judgments, which should be based on the Constitution. If this makes me communal, I am communal. I have often supported Modi, and, on occasion, criticised him. If this makes me a bhakt or, by definition, communal, I am communal. You may be getting the drift. In these sentences above, I have tried to make the idea of being communal acceptable by making strong arguments that would stand the scrutiny of fair judgments. Whether you are actually communal or not depends on your motives in making these statements, and the context in which they are made. So dont fall for the verbal trick when commentators seek to be fashionably anti-national. One can be fashionably communal too. The larger lesson to learn is this: both secularism and nationalism can become meaningless if used to justify purely political positions. We should use them sparingly. Secularism can be debased to become Sickularism, and nationalism can degenerate into Nazionalism. So beware. New Delhi: India and the US have engaged multiple times to settle the long-running solar power trade dispute through mutually agreed solution at the World Trade Organization (WTO), Parliament was informed on Wednesday. The US in 2015 filed a dispute in the WTO on India's domestic content requirement in the procurement of solar cells and modules under Phase I and Phase II of the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission. "India has defended its claims in WTO as per the provisions...," Commerce and Industry Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said in a written reply to the Rajya Sabha. "WTO Dispute Settlement Mechanism also allows parties to the dispute to settle such issues through mutually agreed solution. Under this provision, India and the US have engaged on a number of occasions," she said. She said this in a reply to four questions related with solar power trade dispute with the US including whether India has now sought to reach an out-of-the court settlement with the US on this issue. According to a top government source India and the US are talking over this issue. In its interim report, WTOs dispute settlement panel in 2015 ruled that India's domestic content requirements under its solar power programme were inconsistent with the international norms. India has appealed the ruling. The US has alleged that India's solar programme discriminates against the American solar equipment players by requiring energy producers in India to use locally manufactured cells and by offering subsidies to those who use domestic equipment. The government has ambitious plans for deployment of 175 GW renewable power capacities by 2022, including 100 GW of solar and 60 GW of wind, which may require investment of around USD 150 billion in the next six years. Replying to a separate question on WTO, the minister said developed countries have so far not made any proposals identifying the new issues that they intend to take up. "It was agreed in Nairobi that any decision to launch negotiations multilaterally on such issues would have to be taken by consensus," she added. PTI The Delhi High Court on Wednesday postponed the bail plea hearing of JNU Student Union president Kanhaiya Kumar, arrested on sedition charges to Monday. The Delhi Police told Justice Pratibha Rani that they are moving remand application to seek Kanhaiya's police remand which is required to confront him with JNU students Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya, who surrendered on Tuesday night. Meanwhile, Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman PJ Kurien on adjourned the house for till 12 pm following an uproar over Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula's suicide issue. As soon as House proceedings started, Bahujan Samaj Party MP Mayawati raised Rohith Vemula issue and demanded the resignation of HRD minister Smriti Irani. Sitaram Yechury also stepped in saying that Mayawati was only asking whether the inquiry committee (to probe the Rohith Vemula suicide case) will include a Dalit member or not. Other BSP MPs started sloganeering against the Central government and demanded justice for Vemula's family. Responding to the disruption, Irani shot back saying that the government was ready for a debate. She also alleged that the Opposition is using "a dead child to play politics". The Delhi High Court deferred Kanhaiya's hearing till Monday after his advocates Kapil Sibal and Rebecca John asked the court to postpone the hearing, as they will oppose the police remand application. The police said that Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya surrendered on Tuesday night, following which they were taken into custody safely. They added that following the duo's surrender, the cops needed to get Kanhaiya in police custody. Kanhaiya is in judicial custody that will expire on 2 March. Khalid and Bhattacharya were arrested in the wee hours of Wednesday after being questioned for five hours. "Before being arrested they were questioned for at least five hours in which the police enquired about their whereabouts and hideouts during the phase when police was looking out for them in connection with the sedition case which led to arrest of JNUSU president Kanhaiya Kumar," a senior police official said. The police also enquired whether two of them were the main organisers of the 9 February event against the hanging of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru, and whether they were involved in anti-India sloganeering which allegedly took place. The police official, added, that the force is waiting for three more students to surrender. The duo, who returned to the JNU campus last Sunday after having gone missing since 12 February, drove from the administrative block to the main gate of the university, got into a Delhi Police vehicle and were taken to an undisclosed destination last night. With inputs from agencies The Delhi Police on Wednesday, in its 13-page status report on bail plea of JNUSU president Kanhaiya Kumar, revealed that Kumar, who was arrested on sedition charges, had not only participated in the pro-Afzal Guru event at the university campus on February 9 but had actually organized them in connivance with the other accused persons. The status report also mentioned that the incident records the presence of foreign elements covering their faces to hide their identity, apart from the accused Kanhaiya Kumar and co-accused in the case Umar Khalid, Anirban Bhattacharya, Aswathi and Komal. It further said that the investigation agency is looking for the linkage between the petitioner, his co-accused, and the said foreign elements. However, the foreign elements described by the Delhi Police were actually Kashmiris, who were shouting pro-Kashmir slogans of Azadi. Also, the majority of protesters who were raising the anti-national slogans at the event were Kashmiris. Delhi Police Commissioner BS Bassi, who had last week said that the police would not object if Kanhaiya applied for bail, on Tuesday, justified the change in their stand by saying that the circumstances have changed and that Kanhaiya is bound to impact the investigation and influence witnesses. They had also mentioned that the video of the incident procured from a private news channel was also counted as evidence against Kanhaiya. The status report clarified that the unedited video footage was not the footage which is being argued as doctored in various sections, including petitioner as alleged by the media. But it is a totally different and contemporaneously recorded unedited video footage. However, the video is not the sole evidence on the basis of which the investigation is proceeding with, it said. The Delhi Police had said that they also had other substantial evidence to back their allegations against Kanhaiya and his comrades. However, there is no mention of any such other evidence in the status report apart from the video. The statements of students, including JNU Students' Union Joint Secretary, Saurabh Kumar Sharma, who is the sole ABVP member among office-bearers, have also been recorded and considered while gathering evidence against Kanhaiya. Following are some of the images of the status report reviewed by Firstpost: Kanhaiya Kumar Bail Application The shouting of anti-national slogans continued unabated which was countered by another group of students, with a strength of around 60 students, by raising slogans in support of the nation, said the report. However, there is no video evidence to substantiate the presence of the group which was raising pro-India slogans. It is an open secret that aforesaid conduct of holding an event does not only has ramifications within India but has an international impact as well, the report said. Stating that the present case is still at a primitive stage, the Delhi Police are seeking additional time to strengthen their case and it would seek Kanhaiyas fresh remand from a trial court as the investigation agency intends to unearth larger conspiracy behind the aforesaid seditious act of the accused persons and in case of liberty of bail granted to the petitioner, the very line of investigation would get adversely affected. Additional Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told the Delhi High Court, during the hearing of Kanhaiyas bail plea on Wednesday before Justice Pratibha Rani, to defer the bail petition in the wake of the new development in the case. The bench has now fixed February 29 for further hearing on the bail plea. New Delhi: The country witnessed a 17 per cent increase in communal violence incidents in 2015 as compared to last year with Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Maharashtra registering the most number of such incidents and deaths, Parliament was informed on Wednesday. Data on this was given in a written reply by Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju in the Rajya Sabha. While last year, there were a total of 751 such incidents across the country up from 644 in 2014, 97 people lost their lives as compared to 95 during the previous year. The injuries to people in these incidents rose to 2,264 during the last year as compared 1,921 in 2014. As per the data for communal incidents for 2015, a maximum of 155 such incidents took place in Uttar Pradesh in which 22 people were killed and 419 injured. In Bihar, 20 people were killed and 282 injured in 71 such incidents followed by 14 deaths in Maharashtra in 105 such incidents. In Maharashtra, 323 people were injured. The data said nine people were killed in 92 communal violence incidents in Madhya Pradesh and 177 injured. Eight people each were killed in Gujarat and Karnataka in these incidents. While 105 incidents took place in Karnataka injuring 337 people during 2015, 55 took place in Gujarat injuring 163 people. PTI New Delhi: The Haryana Police has registered an F.I.R. (No. 0101) in Rohtak Civil Lines Police Station against former Haryana Chief Minister BS Hoodas key accomplice and former political advisor, Professor Virender and others for sedition under IPC Sections 109, 120B, 124A, 153A, 153B, 427 and Section 3 of the Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act 1984. The move follows an expose first on Twitter on 20 February, 2016, and through a Firstpost article a day later pointing to Hoodas role in inciting loot, arson and settling of personal scores in Haryana in the guise of a Jat reservation agitation. The F.I.R is based on a complaint filed on Wednesday by Capt. Pawan Kumar Anchal and the occurrence of offense has been listed as 14.2.2016 to 21.2.2016. Capt. Anchal had asked for a case to be registered against Prof Virender and others for abetting and hatching a criminal conspiracy of seditious activities leading to large-scale destruction, arson, looting and vandalizing of public and private property, as well as loss of money and innocent lives. According to the F.I.R, a copy of which is with Firstpost, from 12 February an unlawful assembly in the name of demand of reservation to Jat community was started by a section of Jat community at Mayyar (Hisar) by blocking of a railway track. Two days later, another unlawful assembly was started at Sampla Rohtak by blocking national highway connecting Rohtak to Delhi. After this, the unlawful agitation spread to Jhajhar, Sonipat, Bhiwani, Jind, Hisar, Fatehbad, Panipat, Kaithal, Palwal, Gurgaon, Faridabad and other districts of Haryana. Roads and railways tracks at many places were blocked by agitators and protestors. These protests were being run and organized mostly by nears and dears and close party leaders and workers of Sh. Bhupender Singh Hooda, Ex Chief Minister of Haryana. On 18.2.16, violence erupted in Rohtak city which continued on 19, 20, 21.2.16 during which more than 500 shops, petrol pumps, schools, shopping malls, car show rooms, banks and houses of the public have been looted by agitators, vandalized and set on fire in an organized manner, reads the F.I.R. Such type of looting, vandalism and arson was done in other cities of Haryana also. Due to large-scale arson, looting and vandalism the state of Haryana was forced to call paramilitary forces and the Army for controlling the law and order situation in the state, it reads. During arson many persons were injured by the protestors and even killing of person were done in Rohtak. Public and private properties were damaged. During controlling the situation of law and order many protestors of Jat community have also been killed in police and military action in Rohtak and other parts of the state. As per reports published in media, public and private property worth more than Rs 20,000 crore has been vandalized in Rohtak and parts of the state under the influence of high profile politicians, says the F.I.R. Even the Munak Canal supplying water to Delhi was damaged and taken over by protestors/miscreants. Intensity, spread and force of unlawful movement was so strong and organized that even government machinery failed in all manner to save public property in Rohtak city and parts of Rohtak district and Haryana military also had a tough time controlling these miscreants claiming to be protestors of the Jat reservation movement, it reads. Audio evidence The FIR further quotes the contents of the audio clip that surfaced on 21 February. In the clip, the Professor is heard provoking Captain Man Singh Dalal (Retd) to stir up trouble in Sirsa, while commending the work achieved in the Deshwal belt which comprises parts of Rohtak, Jind and Sonepat. Professor Virender, who had earlier admitted on a local Haryana news channel that it is his voice in the tape, later stated that his words were twisted out of context. He has also claimed that the Captain he was speaking to was a random caller and he does not know his name. Unfortunately for him, Captain Maan Singh, president of the Dalal Khap Chaurasi, admitted that he had been conversing with Prof Virender in the clip. Widespread destruction Rohtak, Hoodas political constituency and hometown, faced the worst of the mob arson and plunder. About 33 army columns in 9 districts of Haryana were deployed with maximum deployment in Rohtak. Additional columns are on standby. The violence on display in the ongoing agitation has taken 19 lives so far while injuring another 183. Around 127 persons have been arrested and 535 cases have been registered. There has been widespread damage to public and private property with torching of homes, schools, offices, shops and public and private transport. Around 1,337 trains in the northern states were impacted and 527 trains were cancelled, besides serious damage inflicted on rail property. The overall damage is estimated at over Rs 34,000 crore. Curfew has been imposed in Rohtak, Bhiwani, Jhajjar and Hisar. According to the FIR, innocent citizens have been killed due to criminal conspiracy and acts of Prof Virender and others. The Congress was also forced to admit to its role in the violent twist to Jat quota stir in Haryana from 20 February. It issued a show cause notice to Prof Virender on 23 February. In so doing, Congress made clear its intent to deflect political fire from his boss Hooda despite the fact that it is abundantly clear that Virender could not have acted alone. This is also reflected in the F.I.R. Hooda's attempt to hold BJP-ruled Haryana to ransom comes at a time when he faces a CBI enquiry for the illegal allotment of a plot in Panchkula. His role in the allotment of a plot to National Herald is also under scrutiny, with an F.I.R. set to be lodged against him at any time. The more dangerous long term social impact of this planned violence is the deliberate planting of a seed of enmity between Jats and non-Jats in Haryana. Interestingly, like Hooda, Rohtak is also Haryana Chief Minister ML Khattars hometown except that Hooda is a Jat and Khattar is not. The politically sponsored violent quota stir is strategically timed to sabotage the states Happening Haryana Global Investors Summit in collaboration with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) which was scheduled to be held on 7-9 March, 2016. It has succeeded in achieving this objective by putting a burning, lawless Haryana in the global spotlight. The Punjab and Haryana High Court on Wednesday took cognizance of reports of alleged incidents of rape at Murthal in Haryana during the protests seeking OBC status for Jats in the state. Justice NK Sanghi of the Punjab & Haryana HC wrote to the acting Chief Justice for further proceedings. According to a report Hindustan Times, the judge criticised the police for advising the victims and their families to return home instead of reporting the matter. The judge also reportedly stated that court should not sit idle, and that an independent probe was required in this case. Meanwhile, The Tribune quoted a senior IPS officer as saying that reports of such incidents off are 'rumours'. The officer also reportedly advised the media "to refrain from writing anything that could create tension in the society." There were others who also denied the occurrence of the alleged incidents. "There were a few women who took shelter at a local dhaba in order to escape the violence, but there were no incidents of rapes around in here," a source said. According to the report in The Tribune, as many as 10 women were said to have been sexually assaulted by goons near the Amrik Sukhdev Dhaba in Murthal on the National Highway 1. As many as 30 people allegedly pelted stones at vehicles headed towards the National Capital Region (NCR), with the most of the occupants of the vehicles fleeing for shelter. Several women were said to have been left behind in the vehicles, who were then dragged to the nearby fields, mercilessly raped and left in a nude condition. The Jat community is demanding reservations in government jobs and educational institutions. Political developments in the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) shifted to Delhi where all its Haryana MPs were called to meet Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu. Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar and some other ministers and legislators are also camping in Delhi. With inputs from IANS New Delhi: JNUSU President Kanhaiya Kumar, arrested on sedition charge, had not only participated in the event where anti-national slogans were allegedly raised in the JNU campus but had "actually organised" the programme, Delhi Police on Wednesday told the Delhi High Court. In its 13-page status report filed before Justice Pratibha Rani, the police claimed that besides Kanahiya and other accused persons, some "foreign elements" were also present during the event on 9 February in JNU and they had covered their faces to hide their identity. "During the course of the investigation, statements of various eye-witnesses, who were found present on the spot, were recorded. It has come during the course of investigation that accused Kanhaiya, the petitioner herein (for bail), not only participated in the said event but actually organised the same in connivance with other accused persons," the police said in its status report. It said, "It is pertinent to mention here that shockingly the incident dated February 9 records the presence of foreign (elements) with their mouths covered which sufficiently came during the course of investigation. "The investigation agency is looking for linkage between the petitioner (Kanhaiya), his co-accused and the said foreign elements who were hiding their identity by covering their faces," it said. While opposing Kanhaiya's bail plea, the police said that it was "an open secret" that the event has ramification not only within India but has "an international impact" as well. The investigation of the present case is at a stage and in case the liberty of bail is granted to the petitioner, the very line of investigation will be adversely affected, it said. The status report, which was filed in pursuance to the court's direction, said that the unedited video footage of the incident, which was procured from a private news channel, was "not the footage which is being debated as 'doctored' in various sections including petitioner as alleged by the media". "But it is a totally different and contemporaneously recorded raw unedited video footage. However, video is not the sole evidence on the basis of which the investigation is proceeding with," it said. The status report was filed in the court during the hearing on Kanhaiya's bail plea which has now been posted for 29 February. Police alleged that Kanhaiya had not cooperated during the interrogation and he is "likely to commit same/similar offences if released on bail". It said that the probe regarding source of finance for all the activities which resulted into the alleged incident was going on and police is also examining the CCTV footage of the cameras which were provided by the university. "After the seditious act of the petitioner (Kanhaiya) and the co-accused, the said anti-national perception has percolated in other parts of the country and there are stray instances wherein processions were taken out 'honouring' the 'martyrdom' of Afzal Guru, Maqbool Bhat etc. "If the petitioner is released on bail, he can become a relying point to encourage such anti-India movements which would not only spread disaffection but would also be contemptuous since the conviction recorded by the competent courts including the Supreme Court is termed as 'judicial killing' which according to the petitioner and co-accused persons is the result of 'Brahminical collective conscience," it said. Police said they were analysing CCTV footage provided by JNU authorities and were probing as to whether "any person with a possible anti-national background entered and or stayed in the complex which may have a direct nexus with commencement of a possible anti-national movement in the country since some persons hiding their faces are found to be present". It contended that if Kanhaiya is granted bail, it would send a "very wrong signal" to the students community across the country that such alleged anti-India activities can be conducted with immunity and eventually one comes out after imprisonment of couple of weeks or days. The report also said that police have identified the students who were leading the procession and were found shouting slogans which were "anti-national, anti-constitutional, against the organs of the government and against the sovereignty and integrity of the nation". Police said they were conducting a probe regarding the persons and organisations which were behind such "non-educational activities in the campus and the object behind it in larger national perspective". PTI By Tarique Anwar and Shishir Tripathi An old Planning Commission report talking about backward districts categorically states that Kalahandi, Bolangir and Koraput districts of the highland region in Odisha are "found to be chronically backward and highly underdeveloped and have become vulnerable to recurring droughts and famine-like situations, which lead to distress migration of the poor during non-agricultural season". They are also considered very backward districts in the country and are popularly known as KBK districts. The report further states that The economic development of the state cannot be brought to the takeoff stage, unless this region gets the special attention of the planners and policymakers in terms of sector-specific investments and family-centred poverty intervention measures From this highly backward district of Koraput came a pimpled-faced lad to Delhi some four years ago, brimming with excitement and loads of apprehensions. Now this 24-year-old son of a Bengal salesman is one of the five anti-national elements adjudged by our insanely hyper-nationalist media. He is the first in his family to attain higher education with an elder brother who studied only till Class VIII and a sister the eldest among the three who works at an anganwadi centre. It is an old story, as crore of students like Rama Naga a tribal from Ramgiri village in one of the most backward districts of India have to walk miles to get their basic education and have to struggle. For many like Rama, the pull of a free meal is worth more than the law of gravity taught in one of those Physics classes. Naga too has a long story of struggle to narrate. But on many occasions while we spoke, he insisted he want to 'cut a long story short'. He does not want to play the victim. Naga is one of five JNU students accused of sedition for raising anti-India slogans at the campus on 9 February. It is not about how much I struggled; millions like me face the same hardships. The point is whether we can question the State for what we think it is doing wrong and causing the hardships we face, said Naga. Naga, who completed his schooling till Class VIII from his hometown and had to walk four kilometres everyday to reach his school, never complained or glorified the struggle, rather felt that it made him what he is today. Learning more about his journey to JNU, one thing became clear; the choices he made on most occasions were dictated by financial constraints. He added that he had never heard of JNU until the final semester of his graduation. It was after a suggestion from one his teachers that he dared to think of coming to Delhi. The centre for the entrance test was at the state capital in Bhubneshwar. I was not sure whether I woud be able to go there as I would need money for travelling to the National Capital, recounted Naga. But then with the help of his teacher, he went there and appeared for the exam. Before the JNU result was declared, he cleared the entrance test to Puducherry University. I would have taken admission there, but admission fees were Rs 13,000, which I could not have afforded. The best choice was JNU as I found out that the fee was very affordable, said Naga. But getting to JNU was not easy. The fee of Rs 7,000 that Ramas father took from a self-help group (SHG) in his village, was spent to clear the mess (dining hall) dues to the college from which he graduated. While the tuition fees of JNU were around Rs 300, hostel fees were Rs 3,500 and I did not have that much money. Once again, a senior from my area helped me with the amount and he continues to help me, said Naga. While doing his graduation, he had to stay in the campus hostel which did not have a mess or electricity as he could not afford the private hostel. We had to arrange for our own food and even take electricity illegally, he said. Naga could have gone for engineering or even the civil services which if he had cleared could have changed the fortunes of his family. So why did he choose left politics instead? You know finances were always the biggest consideration. I knew that preparing for these exams would have required lots of money that I did not have, so I thought I would opt to study humanities, he said, adding, This is a place where students like me can survive. The MCM scholarship of Rs 2,000 takes care of our mess bill. With plans to write his MPhil dissertation on 'agrarian relations and the role of the corporate sector' in his state, Naga said he has no regrets about joining politics. On his attraction to left politics, he said, When I came to JNU, I felt that it was the All-India Students Association that took up the issue of suppressed sections of society. It raised its voice against any sort of wrongdoing, whether the oppression of Scheduled Castes and Tribes, or of women. He added, This place gives us space to think and question what is wrong. Speaking about the whole 9 February controversy, he said, "We never raised any anti-national slogans. I just went there as a representative of students because the organisers of the event that day called me after the permission was cancelled. We never raise any political slogans to divide the country. That has never been our politics. When asked how his parents reacted to all this, Naga replied with a smile, They are worried, but they have trust in me and the judicial process of the country. Mumbai: Providing a ray of hope to the acid attack and burn victims, several organisations have come together to carry out 100 plastic surgeries free-of-cost through 'Project Revive', which will be conducted in Delhi-NCR from March 1 to March 12. The victims from remote and distant areas like Nagaland, Mizoram and Kashmir have already reached out to avail the treatment, said a statement issued by Acid Survivors Foundation India (ASFI). ASFI is a leading NGO for prevention of acid burn violence across the country, which is leading the outreach and acid attack victim identification under the project. The project has been conceptualised by an Indian doctor and would be monitored and assisted by a specialist from an international organisation of plastic surgeons and associated professionals."The campaign has garnered great response from Kenya, UAE, America, Australia and Germany. It is heart-warming to see that Indians living abroad have been calling to cross-check the authenticity of the message and have been referring people," Megha Mishra, manager, north India of ASFI, told PTI. "A lot of doctors, army officials, housewives have reached out to us. It is so good to see the society come out and help each other," she said. According to a report, India accounts for one-third of reported acid violence cases in the world. As per Acid Survivors Trust International, of the 1,500 cases that were registered in 2014, about 500 cases were from India. About the project, Mishra said, "Pre-screening will be done based on photos received on Whatsapp or email. The patients identified would be requested to report to the hospital starting February 29." "Surgeries will be conducted in a planned manner. Post-operative care will be provided at the hospital.Accommodation is being worked out in case the patients require out-of-hospital stay for a longer time," she said. The team of doctors includes experienced surgeons from Europe and specialist nurses, who have worked extensively in the area of acid violence in the past. "We don't end it at just doing surgeries, we go ahead in bringing awareness about the issue at hand. There will be workshops and presentations at various night shelters and slums," Mishra said. In past three years, the acid violence has gone three times higher in the country, and the recent Soni Sori case only reaffirms the menace that plagues the society, AFSI said. On February 20, three unidentified motorcycle-borne youths attacked tribal rights activist and AAP leader Soni Sori with an acid-like black chemical near a village in Chhattisgarh's Dantewada district. PTI Mumbai: Chief Minister of Maharashtra Devendra Fadnavis has appointed eight external aides as officers on special duty (OSDs) in the Chief Minister's Office (CMO), an RTI query has revealed. What is shocking is the fact that the Governor Of Maharashtra, the chief secretary, additional chief secretary, principal secretary and Fadnavis himself earn less than some of the OSDs. In the history of state, there has never been any instance of an OSD earning more than his boss, said a General Administration Department (GAD) senior official. An RTI query filed by activist Anil Galgali has revealed that the CMO spends Rs 7.7 lakh monthly to pay these OSDs whose performance Galgali feels must be evaluated considering the salaries paid. The reply to RTI activist Galgali, furnished by undersecretary, state GAD, revealed that eight OSDs who were externally appointed by Fadnavis are collectively drawing Rs 7,69,108 per month (including salaries and perks). Seven of these staffers are being paid an additional lump sum amount of Rs 15,000 per month, the reply further said. As a point of comparison, under the previous Congress-NCP government, 19 OSDs were paid a salary ranging between Rs 30,000 and Rs 35,000. Firstpost discovered that the wages of MLAs, MoS's, cabinet ministers, the chief minister, the chief secretary, municipal commissioner are nearly half that of the sum paid out to the CMO's OSD. An interesting discovery was the fact that cabinet ministers and the chief minister received almost the same monthly salary of Rs 57,000 per month. This excludes the HRA, said the GAD senior official. The chief minister's basic salary is Rs 10,000, telephone expenses are Rs 12,000, travel allowance is Rs 20,000 and the daily meeting allowance is Rs 500 (around Rs 15,000 per month). Meanwhile, those holding an MoS profile receive monthly remuneration worth Rs 56,200 (around Rs 800 less than the chief minister), while MLAs receive a monthly salary of Rs 70,000. The table below provides a clearer picture: In addition, all OSDs receive a vehicle from the government and accomodation in the South Mumbai area. However, according to the CMO, these OSDs are doing important work. "All these officers have contributed immensely in various projects and flagship programmes of the government, and the chief minister monitors their performances personally," the CMO stated in a response to the RTI filed by Galgali. It mentioned that governance programmes, such as Aaple Sarkar, Right to Services Act and War Room that led to "good and speedy governance" were handled by these OSDs. "The state is also using modern communication platforms like Twitter, Facebook and WhatsApp. These candidates are handling it for the government to make the state schemes and decisions reach out to people. The OSDs have played an important role in the recent Make In India Week." The CMO clarified that the decision about the salaries of OSDs had been taken as per the government resolution issued on 10 December, 2010 by the previous government and was being followed. Speaking to Firstpost, chief spokesperson for the Congress Sachin Sawant launched a stinging attack on the Fadnavis government saying that OSDs were getting more than the CM and CS, and questioned why the government needed any IAS officers in the CMO. He also claimed that in the name of good governance, the government was doing illegal things and putting important data in the hands of these OSDs. Finally, he alleged that of the eight OSDs, four were RSS members from Nagpur Fadnavis' hometown. By Srilata K Editors note: A set of 38 faculty members from IIT-Madras wrote to the President, stressing the urgent need for free speech at educational institutions. Firstpost invited one of the signatories of this petition, K Srilata, professor of English, Department of Humanities and Social sciences, IIT Madras, to write a short note explaining why her colleagues dispatched a letter to Mukherjee. A different group of 56 faculty members from IIT-Madras has also written to President Pranab Mukherjee on Tuesday, voicing a different concern that institutions of higher learning in India had been turned into warzones. Universities must foster a culture of debate and dissent. This ought to be the foremost of their goals. That is more important than textbook learning and passing exams. The reason I value my years at Hyderabad Central University is precisely that. Those years forced me to think in ways I had never thought before. Not all of it was comfortable. But changes in perspective are never comfortable. I learnt that it wasnt alright to put up with the world such as it was. It was important to engage with it, wrestle with it, to change it in some ways if one could. I think there is an increasing narrowness in our public culture these days. We tell our young people, often young people tell themselves that they must focus on their studies and not poke their noses into others business. And studies or academics seem to have become the be-all and the end-all of everything. I think this is absurd and certainly not the way to function in an educational space whether it is a school or a university. Divisive politics arises from this sort of narrowness and fragmentation of ideas and people. Telling people to mind their own business and work only for their own betterment is the worlds way of driving people apart. I strongly believe that what happened in JNU charging students with sedition is untenable. There is no way you can defend that action. The scale of recent events has had no precedent and I think it hurts and shocks all of us. It worries us as educators, as parents of young people who will now be afraid to speak their minds. Curbing freedom of speech and the culture of debate is simply not on not in the university, not anywhere at all. And to accuse those who are raising their voices in support of JNU of creating hatred and playing politics is to miss the point entirely. For politics is never outside any of us. The extent to which we may be aware of it, the extent to which we publicly engage with it may vary. But to bury our faces in the sand is not the answer. New Delhi: Karnataka government on Wednesday raised questions in the Supreme Court about crores of rupees allegedly received as gifts by AIADMK Chief and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa from party cadres on her birthdays, saying these earnings cannot be said to be from "lawful source of income". Continuing his arguments, senior advocate Dushyant Dave, who is appearing for Karnataka in the disproportionate assets case, questioned the methodology adopted by the High Court in computing assets of Jayalalithaa. "Can the Rs 1.5 crore received from (party) cadres as gifts on birthdays be said to be lawful source of income. It can't be. Then tomorrow every politician will go and do the same thing. All the politicians are revered by their cadres," Dave told the bench of justices PC Ghose and Amitava Roy. The Karnataka government is arguing its appeal in the case as the trial was shifted from Tamil Nadu and a Bangalore court had convicted the accused including Jayalalithaa who had succeeded in her challenge before the High Court there. "These leaders are like demi gods. They command enormous power. They have the capacity to subvert the system to their advantage. It is a reality," Dave said. He said that the High Court had accepted the contention of the accused that the gifts received by Jayalalitha on her birthday and also for her sons wedding have to be included in the income and has concluded that the income from gifts would be estimated as Rs 1.5 crore. Dave also questioned the loan of Rs 15 crore taken by Jaya Publication in which the AIADMK chief and her close aide were partners and said no authority was intimated during the check period between 1991 and 1996. "Here loan was taken but no authority was intimated about it during the check period. Each of these defence taken by the accused were clear cut after thought and a carefully crafted legal advice," Dave said. He added that no one can tell the Income Tax department five years later that you had taken so much loan and acquired properties from that amount. "The intimation has to be done at that time. Being a public servant you need to intimate the authorities concerned about any loan taken or acquiring properties," Dave said. To this the bench said, is there any rule or law in Karnataka which mandates the public authority to disclose his or her assets while holding the office. The senior advocate further said that under civil service conduct rules government servants have to disclose their assets and income but they are unaware of any law in Tamil Nadu as the state has not rendered any cooperation. The bench said it is not the question of cooperation given or not and if there exists any rule or law, the court can order for it. The hearing remained inconclusive and will continue on Thursday. The apex court had on Tuesday commenced final hearing on various appeals including the one filed by Karnataka against the acquittal of AIADMK supremo Jayalalithaa and others in the case. Karnataka had said that the High Court's order acquitting Jayalalithaa and others needs to be set aside as there were glaring mistakes. On 27 July, 2015 the apex court had issued notices on Karnataka government's appeal seeking stay of the High Court judgement to Jayalalithaa, Sasikala and her relatives VN Sudhakaran and Elavarasi, asking them to file their replies within eight weeks. The apex court had earlier allowed an intervention application by BJP leader Subramanian Swamy in the matter and asked him to file the issues he wished to press before it. The Karnataka HC had on 11 May, 2015 ruled that the 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. The Karnataka government, in its plea against the 11 May, 2015 order, claimed that the HC had 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 10 percent. 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. PTI Rohtak: Haryana saw a tense calm for the first time in nine days on Tuesday as Jats seeking job quotas withdrew from the streets or were chased away. Highway and rail traffic was restored even as security forces were on alert to foil clashes between Jats and non-Jats. In a sign of people's anger over the mindless violence that rocked the state, Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar faced angry traders and residents in Rohtak town and was forced to retreat and leave for Delhi. Khattar, who reached Rohtak for the first time after widespread violence during the Jat agitation devastated many parts of the town, vowed not to spare those guilty of rioting and arson that crippled Haryana. "A high-level probe will be conducted into the (violence) and strict action taken against officers and employees of police and administration involved in this," Khattar told the media in Rohtak. In a fine balancing act, he said the Jat community will get job quotas under a special provision and the OBC quota of 27 percent won't be disturbed. The OBC communities don't want Jats to be included in the OBC bracket. "The government will make a separate provision for (Jats) reservation," said a stern-looking Khattar, whose government has drawn widespread flak for failing to contain the frenzy on the streets. In New Delhi, Khattar attended a meeting with union Parliamentary Affairs Minister M. Venkiaih Naidu and other ministers who are part of a high-powered panel studying the issue of reservation for Jats in other states. Nineteen people were killed and nearly 200 injured in the nine days when Jats held Haryana to ransom, and in the process disrupted life in large parts of northern India. As Monday was a holiday on account of Sant Ravidas Jayanti, Tuesday was the first working day after the Jat agitation. Most schools were, however, shut. Traffic was restored on the busy Delhi-Ambala national highway (NH-1) after three days. Three people were killed when Jat protesters blocked the highway on Monday, forcing security forces to open fire. Traffic was also restored on the Delhi-Hisar NH-10, especially near Sampla town, police said. Curfew was relaxed in Rohtak town and some other places. Some villages and towns were tense as some members of Jat and non-Jat communities headed for a clash on Monday. The worst affected districts in the Jat agitation were Rohtak, Bhiwani, Hisar, Sonipat, Jhajjar, Jind, Panipat and Kaithal. The government has an ex-gratia of Rs.10 lakh to the next of kin of the innocents killed in the agitation and employment to a member of the family of the deceased. The PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry has pegged the loss to Haryana and other states due to the violence at Rs.34,000 crore. The India-Pakistan train and bus services, which pass through Haryana, are expected to resume operations on Thursday. Referring to an audio clip in which a close aide of a Congress leader is heard inciting people to indulge in violence, Khattar said those who damaged property would be identified and strict action taken against them. The government has promised to compensate those who lost property in the agitation. The chief minister said 'dharnas' across the state had been lifted and blockades on all roads cleared. Earlier, Khattar was shown black flags by a section of traders and residents who raised slogans against him and questioned his government's failure to deal with the Jat agitation. The Punjab and Haryana High Court on Tuesday directed the Haryana government to submit a status report on the Jat agitation by next Monday. The Jat community wants reservation under the OBC category in government jobs and educational institutions. IANS By the time Human Resource Development Minister Smriti Irani finished with her speech in Lok Sabha on Rohith Vemula's suicide and the JNU issue, she impressively justified her aggressive posturing throughout the day including her face off with Bahujan Samaj Party supremo Mayawati in Rajya Sabha. In her response to over four-hour-long discussion, Smriti nonchalantly combined the role of a scriptwriter, producer, director, minister, actor, orator and a hurt woman into one -- all to perfection. Her speech was a mix of emotions, rhetoric, substance and melodrama (anger, loaded pause, tears rolling and occasional choking with emotions). Thanks to her fiery delivery, the minister succeeded in convincing her political bosses and all in BJP's rank and file that she was competent enough to take on the high and mighty from the opposition ranks. This, at a time, when the entire opposition stood united against her, her government and the ideological stream she belonged to. Irani's speech on the floor of Lok Sabha was clearly an embodiment of the nationalist Hindutava thought process. For those belonging to this school of thought, her speech would serve as a document helping them in the indoctrination process of generations that would choose this stream of ideology in future. The effect of her speech was such that Home Minister Rajnath Singh complimented her on floor of the House. After today's speech in Parliament, Irani's detractors may have reasons to feel even more bitter about her but she did hike her importance both in the RSS-BJP hierarchy. Irani appeared well-prepared to deliver a shock and awe counter strike on the Opposition benches as she was armed with loads of documents to supplement her claims. From official notes, books to radical left literature she was equipped with all weapons that were needed to prove her point. From the point go she made it apparent who was on her radar for offence -- Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, Trinamool Congress and the Left. It seemed she was waiting for this moment for quite some time -- to clear her name, her role as HRD minister, her government's position and to take on the opposition particularly the Congress and the Left. Anyone from the opposition benches who ever wrote to her seeking her's or her ministry's favour on different matters were at their wits end as Irani named everyone and asserted how effectively she addressed their issues. Most of these requests were either related to admissions or appointments in differnt Central-government aided institutions. Irani made it clear that she did not do any extra favour by sending repeated reminders to the Hyderabad Central University when her ministerial colleague Bandaru Dattatreya wrote multiple letters to her on different incidents happening in that university. She went on to quote letters written by Hanumantha Rao, Oommen Chandy, Shashi Tharoor (all Congress), Asaduddin Owasi, Pappu Yadav, Saugat Roy, Pradip Bhattacharya among others. Hitting out at the Congress where it could hurt most, she targeted its vice president Rahul Gandhi by first talking about how Atal Bihari Vajpayee had called former prime minister Indira Gandhi "Durga" after 1971 war victory against Pakistan and the following liberation of Bangladesh. "Chunao toh Indira Gandhi bhi hari thi lekin unke beton ne kabhi Bharat ki Barbadi ka nara lagane walon ka saath nahi diya (Indira Gandhi too had lost elections but her sons never supported those who shouted slogans for the destruction of India)," Irani said in an obvious reference to Rahul's father and former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi and his uncle Sanjay Gandhi. Responding to the Congress's charge against her, Irani asked what her crime was. Was she being consistently targeted because she contested elections from Amethi (against Rahul Gandhi)? "Mera naam Smriti Irani hai meri jaat bata kar dikhao (My name is Smriti Irani, I challenge you to tell my caste). I am angry today because the mother who gives birth is accused of murder," said the minister in a voice that quivered with emotions. She vehemently denied that she allowed Rohit Vemula's suicide to become a Dalit versus non-Dalit battle. Contrary to that she charged Rahul and other opposition leaders of playing politics over Rohit Vemula's dead body. "Have you ever seen Rahul Gandhi go to a place twice? Six hundred young boys died in the Telangana agitation. Did Rahul Gandhi visited even once? He went to Hyderabad twice. In his suicide note Rohit says nobody is responsible for his death. That report is from the Telangana Police, not mine," Irani said. Smriti revealed that no doctor was allowed near Rohit for long when he was found hanging in a hostel room. "Who was competent to certify his death? Why did they not allow the doctors to revive his life, to take him to the hospital? Not one attempt was made to revive him. Those who were shouting slogans were not the once who wanted justice but they wanted to do politics. No police was allowed to go near him till 6.30 next morning. His body was used as a political tool," the minister said. She even cited that if the vertebrae in the neck does not get snapped and even if pulse falls down to a 30-40 beat, there is still a possibility that the victim could be revived if timely medical intervention is available. Irani said that all members of the executive council of the Hyderabad Central University on whose report action was taken against Rohit were UPA appointees and not NDA's. She also responded to Rahul's charge that all VC's in Central universities were RSS members. "Twenty Chancellors and 16 Vice-Chancellors in office are UPA appointees and if anyone among them with evidence could say that she had saffronised the university she would quit politics," Irani said. In course of her speech, she didn't even spare Telangana Chief Minister KC Rao either as she felt that the response by the state government was not adequate. The minister even quoted extensively from a book prepared by Teesta Setalvad, which was commissioned to her by Irani's predecessor in the UPA government -- Kapil Sibal. The minister presented a gamut of evidences how school textbooks from different classes were toeing Pakistan's line on Jammu and Kashmir. The entire history in these textbooks was lopsided as it was in stark contrast to reality and to what India believes on the issue. Shockingly, these were being taught to the students of class IV and VI. There is no indication that the national versus anti-national debate triggered by the JNU row would go away soon as she referred to the university's report that anti-India slogans were indeed shouted on 9 February in the campus. Irani pointed out that a leaflet distributed by Umar Khalid, Anirban Bhattacharya and Kanhaiya Kumar on 10 February called India a "murderous republic" (because of Afzal Guru and Yakub Memom's hanging). The minister also quoted from another poster Mahisasur Martyrdom which went on to the extent of calling Goddess Durga as a "sex worker" for tricking Mahisasur into marriage and slaying him later. "Is this freedom of speech? I want to know if Rahul Gandhi, Saugata Roy or Saugata Bose would like to discuss this freedom of speech. I fail to understand the depravity of these so-called students," Irani said pointing to the empty Congress benches as the largest party staged a walkout. Perhaps this was the best available option for the Congress MPs to save their faces. In the latest report by Association for Democratic Reforms, the NGO has found that electoral trusts play an important role in the funding of national and regional political parties which use funds received through this avenue for their election campaigns. While many of the regional parties prefer to get individual donors who give less than Rs 20,000 in the form of donations, so that the party does not have to disclose the names of the donors, the bigger parties like the Congress and BJP receive funds from the electoral trusts that are invariably funded by corporate houses in order to maintain transparency in the distribution of funds. Why do corporates and politicians prefer electoral trusts When companies donate to electoral trusts they do not reportedly have the compulsion of disclosing the parties to which they have made contributions, something which could land them in trouble, particularly if the party they're backing does not win, says a report in the Hindu Business Line. Aditya Birla Group's General Electoral Trust Little is known about the trust which is bankrolled by the Aditya Birla group, that has interests in a wide range of industries that are operational across states. "No group wants to be seen to be aligned with any political party for fear, if it has backed the wrong one, of getting the short end of the stick," Haribhakti, trustee of the General Electoral Trust was quoted as saying in an Economic Times report. It is however known that the group started their electoral trust soon after the Tatas in 1996 and is one of the biggest electoral trusts in the country and is the biggest contributor to the two big national parties. The trust contributed Rs 36 crore to the Congress and Rs 26 crore to the BJP when measured between FY 2003-2004 to FY 2010-11, according to the ADR report. Tata Sons' Electoral Trust The trust, formed in 1996, may not be one of the biggest electoral trusts making donations to political parties and elected representatives across the board but it is one of the most famous, with contributions coming from all the Tata group companies, a Times of India report said. During the 2004 elections the trust is reported to have distributed Rs seven crore and the corpus for the next elections is built over the next five years with contributions. However, an Indian Express report said that the trust accepted contributions from other corporates as well as individuals. The money is distributed to parties in two tranches of 50 percent each, with half given to parties on the basis of their strength in the Lok Sabha before the general elections and the other half depending on their performance in the elections, according to the report. Parties qualify to receive funds only if they get at least a minimum of 16 of the total 543 seats in the Lok Sabha. "We didn't want to dirty our hands and get into this game," Dinesh Vyas, senior Supreme Court advocate and trustee of the Tatas' Electoral Trust was quoted as saying in a Economic Times report. However, some like Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee have famously turned down the money offered by the electoral trust. After winning the 2009 elections on the back of a campaign against the Tatas over their factory in Singur, Banerjee refused to accept a cheque of Rs 27 lakh from the trust. Bharati group's Bharati Electoral Trust Funded by the Bharati Group, that has interests in telecom and is diversifying into other sectors like retail, it has also been one of the bigger contributors to the national parties, Congress and BJP. Between FY 2003-2004 to FY 2010-11, it continued to be one of the biggest donors to the Congress party, donating Rs 11 crore to the party. It has also made contributions to the LJP headed by Ram Vilas Paswan, the Telugu Desam Party and the Shiromani Akali Dal among the regional parties and ranks among the parties' largest contributors. However, it also has made a contribution of Rs one crore to the Satya Electoral trust which is one of the largest contributors to the Nationalist Congress Party, according to the company's annual report. While these are the three biggest electoral trusts that are known of, scant data has been made available about them even online and it is only through the Election Commission that the data regarding them was obtained. With most parties still preferring opaque means of raising funds, electoral trusts may offer the way forward for other corporates to donate in a somewhat transparent manner. Here's the complete ADR report released today Report Donations WASHINGTON China is "changing the operational landscape" in the South China Sea by deploying missiles and radar as part of an effort to dominate East Asia, a senior U.S. military official said on Tuesday. China is "clearly militarising the South China (Sea)," said Admiral Harry Harris, head of the U.S. Pacific Command, adding: "You'd have to believe in a flat Earth to think otherwise." Soon after he spoke, the U.S. and Chinese foreign ministers signalled that despite disagreements over the South China Sea, they were near agreement on a U.N. resolution against North Korea for its recent nuclear and missile tests and stressed their cooperation on economic and other issues. Speaking ahead of the meeting in Washington between China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, Harris said China was escalating the situation in the South China Sea with new deployments. Asked about its aims, he said: "I believe China seeks hegemony in East Asia." Harris said he believed China's deployment of surface-to-air missiles on Woody Island in the South China Sea's Paracel chain, new radars on Cuarteron Reef in Spratlys and its building of airstrips were "actions that are changing in my opinion the operational landscape in the South China Sea." Responding to another question, Harris said Chinese DF-21 and DF-26 anti-ship missiles could pose a threat to U.S. aircraft carriers, but said the vessels were resilient and that the United States had "the capability to do what has to be done if it comes to that." Harris also said he supported regular U.S. air and naval patrols to assert freedom of navigation in the South China Sea, a vital waterway through which more than $5 trillion in global trade passes every year. At a joint news conference with Kerry, Wang said there had been no problems with freedom of navigation and China and countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations - several of which have competing claims with China - "have the capability to maintain stability in the South China Sea." He said militarization was not the responsibility of one party alone and added in apparent reference to U.S. patrols: "We dont hope to see any more close-up military reconnaissance, or the dispatch of missile destroyers or strategic bombers to the South China Sea." Kerry said steps by China, Vietnam and others that had created an "escalatory cycle." "What we are trying to do it break that cycle," he said. "Regrettably there are missiles and fighter aircraft and guns and other things that have been placed into the South China Sea and this if of great concern to everyone who transits and relies on the South China Sea for peaceful trade," he added. After the news conference, Fox News reported that China had deployed fighter aircraft to Woody island. The broadcaster said U.S. intelligence had seen the planes in the past few days. A U.S. think tank reported on Monday that China may be installing a high-frequency radar system on the Cuarteron Reef in the Spratly Islands that could significantly boost its ability to control the strategic sea. On Thursday, the United States accused China of raising tensions by its apparent deployment of surface-to-air missiles on Woody Island. China's has also built military-length airstrips on artificial islands in the South China Sea. China's Foreign Ministry said ahead of Wang's visit Beijing's military deployments in the South China Sea were no different from U.S. deployments on Hawaii. China's Ministry of Defence said on its microblog on Tuesday China had established "necessary defensive facilities" that were "legal and appropriate." (Reporting by David Brunnstrom; Editing by and Frances Kerry and Tom Brown) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. United Nations: Thousands of refugees and migrants were left abandoned at sea by their smugglers in 2015 as they crossed the Bay of Bengal, said a report published by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). Some 370 refugees and migrants died while crossing the sea, Xinhua cited the report as saying on Tuesday. "An estimated 33,600 refugees and migrants of various nationalities took smugglers' boats (in Southeast Asia) in 2015," UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said. "The passengers were Rohingya and Bangladeshi nationals in the Bay of Bengal and the Andaman Sea," he said, citing information from the UN refugee agency. Hundreds of refugees died primarily from starvation, dehydration, disease, and cruelty at the hands of human smugglers, rather than drowning, before they could reach land, the UNHCR report found. However, Dujarric said the number of refugees making the dangerous journey dropped sharply in the second-half of 2015. The report found that the huge movement of refugees in the first months of 2016 "all but disappeared" after approximately 5,000 refugees and migrants were left abandoned at sea in May 2015. The sharp decrease can also be attributed to "the discovery of mass graves along the Thailand-Malaysia land border and government crackdowns on smuggling networks," said Dujarric. The report showed that the Mediterranean was not the only deadly sea crossing for refugees in 2015, mentioned Dujarric. Despite the European refugee crisis receiving significant attention, Dujarric noted that the "vast majority of refugees are being hosted in developing countries, in countries in Africa, in Asia and in the Middle East." He added that the responsibility to help the refugees is global. IANS AUSTIN, Texas Republican Ted Cruz asked a federal court in Houston to throw out a lawsuit questioning whether he is eligible to be president of the United States because he was born in Canada, saying the case against him "suffers from fatal deficiencies." Lawyers for Cruz contend in the filing made on Monday that the U.S. senator from Texas meets the constitutional requirements to serve as president and that the Houston lawyer trying to have the court block his bid does not have standing to bring the case. "Senator Cruz is a 'natural-born citizen' eligible to serve as President of the United States," the motion to dismiss said, adding, the "plaintiff is essentially implicating the Court in a political dispute that it lacks authority to adjudicate." The lawsuit brought in January by Newton Schwartz, an 85-year-old self-described liberal, also cited Cruz's stance on issues such as abortion rights, gay marriage and the Bible in a 27-page argument against the senator's eligibility. The lawsuit filed in the Southern District of Texas is a class action, meaning others can join. It requests a ruling before the Nov. 8 presidential election. Lawyers for Cruz also argue he has yet to be the Republican Party's nominee and it would be premature for a court to address the issue. "Nowhere does Plaintiff, who acknowledges that he is a Democrat ... explain how he is harmed by Senator Cruzs presence on the Republican primary ballot," the Cruz filing said. Billionaire Donald Trump, the front-runner in the race for the Republican presidential nomination, has repeatedly questioned whether Cruz is eligible and warned that his winning the nomination could throw the party into chaos and hand the election to the Democrats. Cruz was born in Calgary, Alberta in 1970. At the time, his mother was a U.S. citizen and his father was Cuban. He has dismissed attacks on his eligibility and noted in the filing that 2008 Republican presidential nominee John McCain and 1968 Republican candidate George Romney also were born outside the United States but were considered eligible to be president. The U.S. Constitution says a president or vice president must be a "natural-born citizen" but does not say whether the term means the candidate must be born on U.S. soil or just be a citizen at birth. According to legal experts, any child born to an American mother or father, no matter where, is considered a U.S. citizen. The case is Schwartz v. Cruz, 4:16-cv-00106, U.S. District Court, Southern District of Texas (Houston). (Reporting by Jon Herskovitz; Editing by Jonathan Oatis) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. Suva, Fiji: The death toll from the Fiji super-cyclone hit 42 on Wednesday, officials said, with fears it will rise further as relief teams reach isolated communities. "42 Fijians now confirmed dead disaster officials continue to deploy team to help those affected across Fiji," government spokesman Dan Gavidi tweeted. The acting head of the Red Cross's Pacific office Ahmad Sami said more fatalities were coming to light as data came in from remote communities. "The numbers will continue to change as we have better access to information and establish communications," he told. Severe tropical cyclone Winston lashed the Pacific nation overnight Saturday, packing wind gusts of 325 kilometres (202 miles) per hour and leaving a trail of destruction. While humanitarian aid is pouring into the main island Viti Levu, some of the worst-hit villages were on remote islands that relief workers have not yet been able to access. Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama on Tuesday acknowledged the problem and asked for patience from affected communities. "We realise the desperate position that you are in, how traumatic this is for you and your families... but as prime minister, I want you to know that we will not rest until we have reached you." Former prime minister Laisenia Qarase said he held grave fears for his home island Vanua Balavu, which had not yet been heard from. Suva-based Qarase said aerial photographs showed there were "probably a thousand houses destroyed" on the island. "I'm 75-years old and the damage I've seen, the extent of the damage, this must be the worst thing in living memory for Fiji," he told Radio New Zealand. AFP Ankara: A DNA report from a suicide bombing that killed 29 people in the Turkish capital Ankara last week suggests the main perpetrator was Turkish-born, not Syrian as initially stated by the government, a senior Turkish security official said on Tuesday. A car laden with explosives detonated next to military buses as they waited at traffic lights near Turkey's armed forces' headquarters, parliament and government buildings in the administrative heart of Ankara last Wednesday. The next day, Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu blamed a Syrian Kurdish YPG militia fighter working with Kurdish militants inside Turkey for the attack, naming him as Salih Necar, born in 1992, and from the Hasakah region of northern Syria. But the DNA report suggested the attack was carried out by Abdulbaki Somer, born in the eastern Turkish city of Van, said the security official and the state-run Anadolu news agency, which cited prosecution sources. That matches the name given by the Kurdistan Freedom Hawks (TAK), a Kurdish militant group, when it claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement on its website on Friday. "The DNA report has been published. We saw that it was not Necar," the security official told Reuters, speaking on condition of anonymity because the results of the investigation have not yet been made public. "The bomber's DNA matches that of Abdulbaki's father. It looks like the bomber was Abdulbaki Somer, that's what the report is saying," the official said. The political wing of the YPG, which has benefited from U.S. support in northern Syria as it fights Islamic State militants, has said the Turkish government has tried to pin the blame for the Ankara attack on it as a pretext for shelling its positions in Syria. Ankara views the YPG as a hostile insurgent force with deep links to the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), a militant group which has fought a three-decade insurgency for Kurdish autonomy in Turkey's southeast. The Turkish armed forces shelled YPG positions in northern Syria in the days after the Ankara bombing and launched air strikes on PKK camps in northern Iraq, as the government vowed that those responsible would pay the price. Davutoglu said earlier on Tuesday that TAK's claim of responsibility for the Ankara bombing was a diversionary tactic, and that the various militant groups were all part of the same "terrorist structure". "As a result of rapid work by our security units, it has been clearly understood that this attack was planned and carried out through a cooperation between the YPG and the PKK," Davutoglu said, speaking in parliament. "The claim of responsibility by TAK, a PKK offshoot, aims to divert attention from the YPG. Whether it's KCK, YPG, PKK, TAK or PJAK, they are all part of the same terrorist structure," he said, referring to a series of Kurdish militant groups. "Their owners and puppeteers are known to us." Reuters BUDAPEST Hungary will hold a referendum on European Union plans to create a system of mandatory quotas for migrants, an initiative that Hungary's government has rejected, Prime Minister Viktor Orban said on Wednesday. Orban has used harsh anti-migrant rhetoric since the migrant crisis escalated last year and gained notoriety for erecting a steel fence along Hungary's southern border to keep out migrants - a policy now adopted by other Balkan countries. He said the plebiscite, the first of its kind in Europe, would be a major test of European democracy. The EU declined official comment, saying it was were trying to clarify what Orban was proposing. Orban, who did not say when the vote might be held, has said the quotas would redraw the ethnic, cultural and religious map of Hungary and Europe. Under the plan, most EU nation would be obliged to accept a certain number of immigrants. "Nobody has asked the European people so far whether they support, accept, or reject the mandatory migrant quotas," he said at a news conference. "The government is responding to public sentiment now: we Hungarians think introducing resettlement quotas for migrants without the backing of the people equals an abuse of power." Orban said he was aware of potential wider ramifications of such a referendum, especially if Hungarians say "No" to quotas. "We had to think about the potential impact on European politics of such a proposal, but that was a secondary consideration," he said. "To us this is a fundamental, unavoidable, essential question of Hungarian politics: can anyone else decide for Hungarians who we Hungarians should or should not live with?" EU officials noted no date had been set for a vote and suggested Orban may be more concerned with heading off talks on future plans for a permanent EU system of asylum relocation. Holding a referendum to undo a temporary scheme agreed by EU ministers last year would disrupt those EU plans. European Council President Donald Tusk warned in the EU parliament on Wednesday that any leader who blocked joint efforts to resolve the migration crisis could make it more likely Britons would vote to quit the bloc in a June referendum. Political Capital Institute analyst Peter Kreko said: "All in all, we can see that Orban is in a winning position as long as he speaks about the migration issues, as it allows him to play the role of the defender of the nation. "It is his interest to keep this issue on the agenda even until (elections in) 2018," Kreko said. That way, the referendum would eclipse such issues as education and healthcare. It would also pre-empt a political defeat for Orban if the European court rejects Hungary's suit against the quotas. (Additional reporting by Alastair Macdonald; Editing by Larry King) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. New York: A 33-year-old Indian-origin techie has been sentenced to more than two years in jail and ordered to pay over USD 300,000 in fine for sending a malware to his former employer's servers that caused financial losses. Nikhil Nilesh Shah, of New Jersey, was sentenced to 30 months in prison by US District Judge Louise Flanagan in North Carolina and ordered to pay USD 324,462 in restitution. According to the plea agreement, from 2007 to 2012, Shah was an information technology manager at a company in North Carolina that developed platforms for the creation of mobile applications. Shah admitted that in March 2012, he left the company to work for another technology firm and in June that year he sent malicious computer code to his former company's computer servers in Durham and Raleigh, North Carolina, deleting much of its intellectual property. PTI BENGHAZI, Libya Military forces loyal to Libya's eastern government said on Tuesday they had taken control of two key neighbourhoods in Benghazi, building on gains made against Islamist fighters over the previous three days. The military said it had full control of the districts of Boatni and Laithi and claimed advances in several other areas. A hospital source said 20 people had been killed and 45 wounded in the latest clashes. The eastern city of Benghazi has seen some of the worst violence in the conflict that has plagued Libya since Muammar Gaddafi was toppled in an uprising five years ago. The violence escalated when military commander Khalifa Haftar launched a campaign in 2014 against Islamists and other armed groups, with the factions taking up entrenched positions in Benghazi's streets. On Tuesday residents celebrated the army's advances by sounding car horns and setting off fireworks. Some returned to their homes for the first time in months to check for damage. Haftar's Libyan National Army is loyal to Libya's eastern government, which has received international recognition but is opposed by a rival government based in Tripoli. A unity government nominated under a United Nations-backed plan is trying to win support within Libya, but its progress has been hindered by political arguments including what role Haftar could have in a future national army. Libya's eastern parliament rejected an initial unity government line-up last month and has repeatedly delayed voting on a revised proposal, pushing back a vote once again on Tuesday. Islamist fighters have exploited a security vacuum to expand their presence in Libya, with militants loyal to Islamic State establishing control in the coastal city of Sirte and a presence in several other cities, including Benghazi. In a separate development on Tuesday, the mayor of the western city of Sabratha said military brigades there had attacked several buildings housing suspected Islamic State militants. Hussein al-Thwadi said militants at one of the sites had fought back, and that four brigade members had been killed and five injured. On Friday a U.S. air strike against a suspected Islamic State training camp in Sabratha killed nearly 50 people. Serbia's government said two of its diplomats who were kidnapped in Libya in Benghazi in November also died in the strike. (Writing by Aidan Lewis; Editing by James Dalgleish) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. Washington: Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee has ruled out any hearing for President Barack Obama's nominee to the Supreme Court, insisting that the choice rests with the president's successor. "Because our decision is based on constitutional principle and born of a necessity to protect the will of the American people, this committee will not hold hearings on any Supreme Court nominee until after our next president is sworn in on January 20, 2017," they said in a letter to Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. "I agree with the Judiciary Committee's recommendation to not have hearings. In short, there will not be action taken," McConnell told reporters yesterday. Even the most divisive nominees for the high court have received a hearing before the Judiciary Committee, and the election-year decision to deny such a session is a sharp break with the Senate's traditional "advise and consent" role. A committee review and a hearing is the first step in the process. Antonin Scalia's 13 February death ignited a major fight in Washington over whether Obama should be able to replace him in a presidential election year. He had been dead only for a few hours when McConnell announced that he would oppose replacing him before the election. The Republicans' action is certain to have repercussions, not only in the presidential race but in congressional contests where vulnerable Senate incumbents in Illinois, Wisconsin, Ohio, Pennsylvania and New Hampshire face tough Democratic challengers. At least one of those senators, Republican Mark Kirk of Illinois, has suggested holding hearings. But Republican members of the committee met with McConnell and emerged with a simple message: "No hearing, no vote," said Senator Lindsey Graham. Confirmation hearings for a Supreme Court nominee are the most high-profile in the Senate, and any session is certain to be a spectacle. Among the members of the panel is Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz, and the Texas senator has vowed to block any nominee. White House spokesman Josh Earnest said it was "absolutely" still possible the Senate would hold hearings, pointing to a handful of Republicans who he said had expressed a willingness, including Kirk, Susan Collins of Maine, Dan Coats of Indiana and Roy Blunt of Missouri. Earnest said in the last day, Obama has spoken to Republican lawmakers, including some on the committee. Republicans pointed to a 1992 speech by Vice President Joe Biden, then the chairman of the Judiciary Committee, in which he said that in a presidential election year the Senate should "not consider holding hearings until after the election." As it turned out, there was no opening on the court that year. AP NEW YORK/LONDON Donald Trump's chances of winning the Republican nomination for the White House shot to a record high at online betting sites around the world on Wednesday after his latest victory in voting in Nevada. Betting venues in Britain, Ireland and New Zealand show the online wagering community coalescing around Trump, once considered a rank outsider attracting long-shot odds of 200/1. Following his double-digit margin win in Nevada's Republican caucuses on Tuesday, his third victory in the first four early nominating contests, odds have tightened all the way to 1/2 in some cases. "Mr Trump has triumphed yet again, despite political analysts almost unanimously writing him off as a serious presidential contender," said Graham Sharpe from William Hill, adding one customer stood to collect at least $100,000 if Trump was elected to the White House on Nov. 8. William Hill and Betway make Trump 1/2 favourite to get the Republican nod, while Ladbrokes cut his odds to 4/9, the same as those shown on Ireland's PaddyPower. His nearest rival, U.S. Senator Marco Rubio from Florida, featured odds of 6/1 on Ladbrokes. U.S. Senator Ted Cruz of Texas, who has been battling with Rubio for the No. 2 spot in the early voting states, has sunk to a deep longshot. Paddy Power gives Cruz odds of 33/1, its site shows. Bettors also markedly cut the odds on Trump becoming president, although he still trails Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton, who won Nevada's Democratic caucuses on Saturday. Jessica Bridge from Ladbrokes said Trump was on a roll heading into Super Tuesday on March 1, when several U.S. states hold nominating contests. On PredictIt, a site operated by Victoria University in Wellington, New Zealand, Trump's chances of winning the Republican nod were the highest since it started tracking the race in October 2015. A Trump bet there, on a scale of $0.00 to $1, stood at 72 cents, up 4 cents, while Rubio tumbled 7 cents to 24 cents and Cruz sank a penny to 4 cents, matching a record low. (Reporting by Michael Holden in London and Dan Burns in New York; Editing by Guy Faulconbridge and Howard Goller) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. Islamabad: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Wednesday said Pakistan wants to have good ties with all neighbours, including India, and asserted that mutual cooperation was vital for the socio-economic uplift of both the countries. Sharif made the remarks during a meeting with India's newly appointed High Commissioner in Pakistan Gautam Bambawale who called on him at the PM House in Islamabad. An official source said that the two discussed various aspects of Pakistan-India relations and also agreed on the importance of improving the relations. "Pakistan was pursuing good relations with all its neighbours including India as mutual cooperation was vital for the socio-economic uplift of both the countries," Sharif was quoted as saying by the state-run APP news agency. Sharif also extended a very warm welcome to the new High Commissioner and hoped that he will work to bring the two countries closer. Bambawale, who arrived in Pakistan last month to assume the charge of the High Commission, thanked the Prime Minister for warm welcome and expressed the hope that his role will be beneficial in strengthening relations between the two nations. "High Commissioner Gautam Bambawale had a meeting with H.E. the Prime Minister of Pakistan today @ PM House," the Indian mission tweeted along with a picture of their meeting. An official of Indian mission refused to share what was discussed. "It just a courtesy call only," he said. Bambawale, an IFS officer of 1984-batch, replaced TCA Raghavan. He has worked in Germany, US and China. In 2007, he became the first Consul General of India in Guangzhou, China. PTI New Delhi: India on Wednesday said it was awaiting a visit by Pakistan's Special Investigation Team and other details in connection with the Pathankot terror attack, days after Pakistani authorities registered an FIR in the case. "The government awaits details from Pakistan and also awaits visit by Pakistan's SIT," Minister of State for External Affairs VK Singh, replying to a question in Lok Sabha said. Pakistan Prime Minister's Foreign Affairs Advisor Sartaj Aziz on Monday had that the SIT from Pakistan may visit Pathankot in the first few days of March and that his country was pursuing the investigation seriously. In first official confirmation, he had also said Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar, named by India as the mastermind of the Pathankot attack, has been under "protective custody" since 14 January. Singh said NSAs and Foreign Secretaries of the two countries are in regular touch and that Pakistan conveyed to India that leads provided to it about the attack are being investigated. "The government of India is committed to addressing all outstanding issues with Pakistan through bilateral peaceful dialogue, as envisaged in the Simla Agreement and the Lahore Declaration," he said. He said after the Pathankot attack, it was conveyed to Pakistan that it must take firm and immediate action against the organisations and individuals in Pakistan responsible for and linked to the attack. "This was done at the highest level when Prime Minister received a call from Prime Minister of Pakistan Nawaz Sharif on 5 January" he said. Pakistani authorities had lodged an FIR in connection with the Pathankot attack on 18 February, without naming Azhar. Referring to a press release issued by Pakistan on 13 January, he said it mentioned about apprehending several individuals belonging to Jaish-e-Mohammad and sealing of the outfit's offices. Replying to a separate question on attack on Indian Consulate in Mazar-e-Sharif in Afghanistan in January, Singh said government was awaiting detailed information from Afghan authorities regarding "result" of their investigation into the attack. He said in view of the attack, government has undertaken further review of security measures in the Embassy and four consulates in coordination with Afghan authorities. PTI Republican presidential candidate Marco Rubio aimed to outpoll rival Ted Cruz in Nevada's caucus on Tuesday to bolster his position as the establishment favourite for his party's nomination for the Nov. 8 election. Looming over the tight race between the two first-term Cuban-American U.S. senators is Republican front-runner Donald Trump, the billionaire businessman who has won two of the first three state nominating contests and is expected to dominate the field in Nevada. With Trump, a blunt-spoken political outsider, commanding a double-digit lead in a handful of Nevada opinion polls, political strategists in the state said Rubio and Cruz had a more modest goal: a clear win over the other, which could propel them through the busy voting month of March. "They're playing for second," said Nevada political analyst Jon Ralston. A recent CNN/ORC poll put Trump ahead by 26 percentage points in Nevada, at 45 percent, followed by Rubio, from Florida, at 19 percent, and Cruz, from Texas, at 17 percent. Lagging behind were retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson, who on Tuesday stoked controversy by suggesting that President Barack Obama, the first African-American U.S. president, was "raised white," and Ohio Governor John Kasich. Carson was at 7 percent and Kasich was at 5 percent. Kasich, who finished second to Trump in the Feb. 9 New Hampshire primary, kept his focus on bigger states, including Michigan and Virginia. The rivalry between Rubio and Cruz, who won the first-in-the-nation Iowa caucuses on Feb. 1, has intensified as both seek a boost going into the nominating contests in a dozen states on March 1, known as Super Tuesday. On Saturday, Rubio beat Cruz by fewer than 1,000 votes for second place in South Carolina's Republican primary. Strategists said Rubio is benefiting from the withdrawal from the race of one-time establishment favourite Jeb Bush, some of whose donors were preparing to shift to Rubio immediately after Bush dropped out on Saturday night. TRUMP BLASTS CRUZ Rubio has picked up endorsements from several Nevada party leaders, including U.S. Senator Dean Heller and Nevada Lieutenant Governor Mark Hutchison. His campaign staff was due to be joined by Marc Short, a senior political adviser to the billionaire industrialist brothers Charles and David Koch, Politico reported on Tuesday. The influential brothers, who have not endorsed any candidates, spend tens of millions to advance their libertarian brand of politics, which would sharply limit the role of government. The Cruz campaign, meanwhile, lost a key staffer on Monday when the candidate fired his main spokesman, Rick Tyler, for posting a video that falsely showed Rubio dismissing the Bible. Complicating the already bumpy path to victory for Cruz, lingering questions over the Texan's birthplace continue to dog his campaign. He was born in Canada, in the western city of Calgary, to a Cuban father and U.S. citizen mother. Cruz on Tuesday asked a federal court in Houston to throw out a class-action lawsuit questioning his eligibility to be president. Trump, known to verbally savage rivals, including fuelling questions over Cruz's birthplace eligibility, appeared to continue to focus his venom on Cruz. Cruz "lies like a dog," Trump wrote on his Twitter account, saying in a separate message that Cruz fired his spokesman "like a dog." "Ted panicked," Trump wrote. Rubio, the son of former casino workers who spent six years in Nevada as an adolescent, is playing up his ties to the region. "He's not pushing it hard, like, 'I'm really a Nevadan,'" said Eric Herzik, a political science professor at the University of Nevada-Reno. "But both he and his surrogates have highlighted he has the best understanding of Nevada because he actually lived here." Ralston estimated only 8 percent to 10 percent of eligible voters may turn up to caucus on Tuesday - or somewhere between 33,000 and 42,000 people, according to data from the Nevada secretary of state on registered Republican voters. (Reporting by Megan Cassella in Washington; Additional reporting by Alana Wise; Editing by Peter Cooney, Jonathan Oatis and Leslie Adler) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. Cairo: Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi acknowledged for the first time on Wednesday that "terrorism" caused a Russian plane crash in the Sinai Peninsula in October that killed 224 people. "Has terrorism ended? No... Whoever downed that plane, what did he want? Just to hit tourism? No. To hit relations. To hit relations with Russia," Sisi said in a speech. Sisi had previously dismissed as "propaganda" a claim by the Islamic State (IS) jihadist group that it downed the airliner on 31 October. The group said it smuggled a bomb on board the plane in the airport of Sharm el-Sheikh, a Sinai resort popular with Russian holidaymakers. Russia had quickly concluded that a bomb brought down the airliner, and suspended flights to Egypt. Britain also stopped flights to Sharm el-Sheikh. The attack dealt a major setback to Sisi, who had been at pains to revive the country's tourism industry and impose control over the restive Sinai Peninsula. Jihadists there have killed hundreds of policemen and soldiers since Sisi, then army chief, overthrew Islamist president Mohamed Morsi in 2013. Egypt has set up a committee to investigate the attack, and previously insisted it be allowed to finish its probe before any conclusions were made. Egyptian media outlets have dismissed suggestions that a bomb was the cause as part of a Western "conspiracy" aimed at harming the country's tourism sector. The A321 airliner, operated by Russia's Metrojet and bound for Saint Petersburg, broke up mid-air over the Sinai, minutes after take-off. The wreckage fell several kilometres (miles) across North Sinai the bastion of the Egyptian branch of IS. The group said it bombed the plane in revenge for Russian air strikes in Syria. Tourism battered On 17 November, Russia's President Vladimir Putin announced that Russian investigators had found evidence of a bomb on board, and vowed to punish the attackers. "We will search for them anywhere they might hide. We will find them in any part of the world and punish them," he said. Russian security chief Alexander Bortnikov said the passenger jet was brought down by a bomb with a force equivalent to one kilogram (two pounds) of TNT. Egypt has since hired a British firm to review security at airports, including procedures to check passengers and baggage, and security equipment in the airport. Millions of tourists, mostly Britons and Russians, flock to Sharm el-Sheikh and other Egyptian resorts attracted by its beaches, warm weather and diving sites. In November and December, the tourism sector lost 2.2 billion Egyptian pounds ($280 million) a month primarily due to the Russian and British flight bans. Overall tourist arrivals fell sharply in 2015 to about 9.3 million, from 15 million in 2010. Revenues from tourism slumped 15 percent year-on-year to $6.1 billion in 2015. Tourism had never recovered after an 18-day uprising unseated veteran president Hosni Mubarak in early 2011, setting off months of unrest. Following Mubarak's overthrow, Morsi won a presidential election in 2012, but lasted only a year in office before the military toppled him as millions protested against the Islamist. His overthrow unleashed a police crackdown on Islamists that left hundreds dead and thousands in prison. AFP WASHINGTON China and the United States signalled on Tuesday they were near agreement on a U.N. resolution against North Korea for its Jan. 6 nuclear test. "Important progress has been made in the consultations and we are looking at the possibility of reaching agreement on a draft resolution and passing it in the near future," Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said at a joint news conference with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry. China and the United States have not entirely seen eye to eye on how strong the response should be to North Korea since the nuclear test, Pyongyang's fourth, with Washington urging harsh punitive measures and Beijing emphasizing dialogue. Neither man was willing to describe what the potential U.N. Security Council resolution might say and both emphasized a willingness to resume so-called six-party talks on reining in the North's nuclear programme. China, North Korea's most important ally and largest trading partner, has historically been reluctant to put undue pressure on its southern neighbour for fear of destabilising the country and unleashing a flood of refugees across their border. "We have made significant progress. It has been very constructive in the last days," Kerry told reporters. "We both hope that this can move forward very soon." He also stressed U.S. openness on an eventual peace agreement to conclude the 1950-53 Korean War, which ended with an armistice rather than a peace treaty, if the North were willing to "come to the table and negotiate the denuclearisation." (Reporting By Arshad Mohammed; Editing by Chris Reese) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. United Nations: Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is backing the concerns of international observers about shortcomings and irregularities in Uganda's elections and is urging all parties to settle any disputes peacefully. UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said on Monday that Ban calls on Ugandan authorities to ensure that all election-related claims and concerns "are handled in a fair, expeditious and transparent manner." Neutral observers criticized Uganda's government for using security forces against opposition candidates and supporters. Tensions rose Monday when police arrested President Yoweri Museveni's main challenger, Kizza Besigye. The UN human rights office expressed concern yesterday at reports of at least two people killed, heavy military and police forces deployed in the streets of the capital Kampala, and the arrest of four opposition leaders since Thursday's elections. AP Las Vegas: Donald Trump decisively won Nevada's Republican caucuses on Tuesday as his main rivals battled for second place in an increasingly urgent effort to slam the brakes on the Trump juggernaut. Trump now has three straight victories in the West, the South and Northeast a testament to his broad appeal among the mad-as-hell voters making their voices heard in the 2016 presidential race. Six in 10 caucus goers said they were angry with the way the government is working, and Trump got about half of those angry voters, according to preliminary results of an entrance poll. Nevada was a critical test for Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz, the two senators battling to emerge as the clear alternative to the Republican front-runner. Rubio was out to prove he can build on recent momentum, while Cruz was looking for a spark to recover from a particularly rocky stretch in his campaign. Rubio, already campaigning in Michigan as caucus results rolled in, was projecting confidence that he can consolidate the non-Trump voters who have been splintering among an assortment of Republican candidates, saying, "we have incredible room to grow." Cruz, a fiery conservative popular among voters on the Republicans' right, finished a disappointing third in South Carolina after spending much of the past two weeks denying charges of dishonest campaign tactics and defending his integrity. Another disappointing finish in Nevada would raise new questions about his viability heading into a crucial batch of Super Tuesday states on 1 March, including his home state of Texas. "There's something wrong with this guy," Trump said of Cruz in his typically blunt manner during a massive Las Vegas rally Monday night. The former reality television star tweeted on Tuesday, The former reality television star called Cruz "sick." Nevada's caucusing played out in schools, community centers and places of worship across the state a process that's been chaotic in the past. Preliminary results of the entrance poll found that about 3 in 10 early caucus goers said the quality that mattered most to them in choosing a candidate was that he shares their values, slightly more than the quarter who said they want a candidate who can win in November. About a quarter said they want a candidate who can bring change. About 2 in 10 want one who "tells it like it is." Trump is on a roll after winning primaries in New Hampshire and South Carolina. Cruz won the lead-off Iowa caucuses. Nevada marks the first Republican nominating contest in the West and the fourth of the campaign as the candidates try to collect enough delegates to win the party's nomination at the national convention in July. Although Nevada has relatively few delegates, it is the first measure of voter sentiment in the vast western region, much as South Carolina was the first glimpse at the South's preferences last weekend. Nevada is 28 percent Latino, 9 percent Asian-American and leads the nation with the highest rate of people living in the country illegally, according to the Pew Hispanic Center. Its immigrant communities 19 percent of its population was born outside the United States have helped turn a once reliably Republican state into one that backed Obama twice. Many analysts attribute that to hardline Republican positions on immigration. A Republican field that included a dozen candidates a month ago has been reduced to five, with former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush the latest to drop out after a disappointing finish in South Carolina. Ohio Gov. John Kasich and retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson remain in the race and could play spoilers as the trio of leading candidates, Trump, Cruz and Rubio, battle for delegates with an increasing sense of urgency. Trump's rivals concede they are running out of time to stop him. The election calendar suggests that if the New York billionaire's rivals don't slow him by mid-March, they may not ever. Trump swept all of South Carolina's 50 delegates, giving him a total of 67 compared to Cruz and Rubio who have 11 and 10, respectively. There are 30 delegates at stake in Nevada, awarded to candidates in proportion to their share of the statewide vote so long as they earn at least 3.33 percent. Rubio and Cruz have been attacking each other viciously in recent days, an indication they know Trump can be stopped only if one of them is eliminated. But neither of the first-term Hispanic senators is predicting victory in Nevada. After finishing third in Iowa, fifth in New Hampshire and second in South Carolina, Rubio needs a win soon to support his theory that he is the primary beneficiary of Bush's recent departure from the race. Rubio told supporters Tuesday before heading out to campaign in Minnesota and Michigan that he was the candidate who could best grow the Republican Party here. The entrance poll survey was conducted for The Associated Press and the television networks by Edison Research as Republican voters arrived at 25 randomly selected caucus sites in Nevada. AP The country's largest food corporations are under fire for not divulging the ingredients in their products. They are also criticized for using very few healthy ingredients and too much glucose and financing a campaign against the government's food labelling initiative. The Grocery Manufacturer's Association (GMA) allegedly covered up approximately $11 million worth of payouts that defeated state labelling ballot initiative. Washington State attorney, Bob Ferguson, states that the GMA covered up the names of donors financing the campaign against Initiative 522. The Washington State legislature uncovered and made public documents from the GMA that contained plans intended for their contributors to go against the campaign in the movement called "No on 522". A report from Fortune.com listed down 10 of the biggest contributors along with the amount they shelled out: PepsiCo - $1.7 million Nestle USA - $1.1 million General Mills - $646,000 Coca-Cola - $565,000 ConAgra - $308,000 Campbell Soup - $268,000 The Hershey Company - $268,000 J.M. Smucker - $260,000 Kellog - $239,000 Mondelez - $156,000 Aside from going against the initiative, the Washington State also alleges that the GMA has shielded the identity of other contributors. A separate analysis from the EWG revealed that within the past three years, these companies have spent over $143 million to combat the GMO-labelling movement. While the attorney general states that these activities are unlawful, the GMA says that their actions were legal and has filed motions for lawsuits against them to be dismissed. Initiative 522 is the move by the Washington State Legislature which stipulates that genetically-engineered foods should be included in labels. The initiative generated enough signatures that it was forwarded tp the legislature for consideration during 2013. However, 51 percent of the members opposed the initiative. Aside from mandatory labelling, other information that would be revealed through the initiative include allergens, animal welfare, and environmental policies. The Food Safety Authority of Ireland recorded 14 percent increase in consumer complaints regarding food hygiene, premises and labeling of food. The complaints were received by FSAI's Advice Line amounting to 2,739 cases which has roughly changed from a recorded 2,738 cases in 2014. As reported in the FoodSafetyNews website, these various cases comprise of complaints about food contamination of foreign objects including an alleged presence of dead beetle in a burger bun, a worm in a chicken nugget and a cake with a screw. There are also complaints about undercooked food being served in food premises; bread with molds is still being used to make sandwiches and the unusual odd taste of foods. Although there is a decrease of 12 percent in the unfit food complaints andfour percent in food poisoning, there is also an increase of 10 percent in complaints about incorrect information on food labeling. As an example of which; is the selling of foods in retail outlets even they have exceeded their expiration dates and the lack of displaying allergen information. The 2,739 complaints include; 1,052 complaints on unfit food 643 complaints on hygiene standards 510 complaints on suspect food poisoning 192 complaints on incorrect information on food labeling 42 complaints on non-display of allergen information 342 other FSAI said that all complaints were followed up after being reported and is investigated by enforcement officers throughout Ireland. In addition to their report, out of 11,832 requests received by their Advice Line, 49 percent of it came from business asking advice about the different areas related to food. "In recent years, consumers have become much more conscious about the food they consume and are increasingly vigilant about food safety issues. There is now a low level of tolerance around poor hygiene standards and food that is unfit to eat in particular. This is a welcome development and is reflected in the level of complaints we receive directly from consumers. We continue to encourage anyone who has had a bad food safety experience to report the matter to the FSAI so that the issue can be dealt with." Edel Smyth, FSAI Information Manager, said in their press release. He also added, "Our Advice Line is an important resource for the food industry where our experts are available to assist food business owners and managers understand their legal requirements. This is supported by our comprehensive website and online publication ordering system which allows food businesses to download publications directly from the FSAI website. We urge food businesses to take full advantage of the information and support provided to ensure they reach their food safety legal requirements." FSAI's information executive, Clodagh Crehan said the increase of complaints about hygiene standards rooted from the awareness of consumers of their rights saying, "If they do go back all the steps and they realize there is an issue in a particular premise, they may have to serve a prohibition order or close the premises down straight away," A family-run cafe in Burbank, California named Porto's Bakery and Cafe took the top spot in the recently released list of Top 100 Places to Eat in the U.S., according to online business review site Yelp. According to USA Today Experience, the chain restaurant, established by immigrants from Cuba, leads a whopping 46 entries from California, including Cheese Board Pizza (Berkeley, CA), TKB Bakery & Deli (Indio, CA) and Gary Danko (San Francisco, CA). New York, with the highest density in New York City, follows with eight entries and Nevada, particularly in the Las Vegas area, has four entries. Based on the results, one might also argue that more Americans are evolving into barbecue lovers instead of the usual dominance of steakhouses in the previous lists. The list was compiled from the user reviews taken from Yelp.com and the Yelp mobile application with emphasis on the most popular ad well-reviewed businesses over the course of 2015. Three new restaurants have been branded Hot and New as they appear on the list for the first time despite being newly-established. These restaurants are Lakewood, California's Adobo Taco Grill (No. 25), Fullerton, California's Mr. BBQ (No. 27) and Mission Viejo, California's Rockfire Grill (No. 60). The list "honors businesses that rank so highly in the Yelp community's opinion that they have earned the status of "must try within this lifetime." From fancy to casual, long time favorite to new up-and-comer, barbecue to udon, this list runs the gamut of gastronomical experiences. And that's the way we like it; a list as quirky and interesting and unique as the Yelp Community itself. Sometimes you want a white tablecloth experience, and sometimes a sandwich on the run hits the spot." You may view the names of the restaurants and diners that made it to the list here. Car investors take note: There's big news on Wall Street this morning, as Swiss megabanker Credit Suisse takes out its big red pen and marks down shares of Ford Motor (F 3.14%) to underperform. The news In a terse note reported on StreetInsider.com this morning, investment bank Credit Suisse announced that it's cutting its rating on Ford stock from neutral to underperform. At the same time as it did so, however, Credit Suisse left its price target on the stock unchanged at $13 per share (nearly 12% higher than where the shares sit today). Why the disconnect, and why doesn't Credit Suisse think Ford is a buy, despite the shares being undervalued (and should you even care)? Read on to find out. Fact 1: Ford can't make its guidance As the Fool's own John Rosevear reported last month, Ford earned a "record" profit last year: $7.4 billion worth of greenbacks, and generated operating cash flow nearly as strong -- $7.3 billion. Performance in the all-important North American market looked particularly strong, with pre-tax profits leaping 26%. And yet, according to Credit Suisse, North America (or NA, as it says) is precisely the problem. With Americans buying light trucks hand over fist, Ford is predicting that 2016 profits will be "equal to or greater" than what we saw in 2015. But Credit Suisse warns that "NA EBIT guidance is ... overly optimistic." Says the analyst: "Pricing/mix gains from new product launches in NA have been fully offset by material cost increases." Translation: Ford is going to miss guidance. Fact 2: It's not just North America Continuing to bang the gong of worry, Credit Suisse says that even outside of North America, "global inventories ... have fallen meaningfully out of step with demand." So even if Ford sold nearly $150 billion in wares last year, Credit Suisse sees this not as an indicator of sales strength -- but of channel stuffing. Were we to stuff this banker's theory into a nutshell, crack it open and read what it says, the answer would go like this: Ford has pushed too much inventory into the market, and paid too-high costs to build it. Since demand isn't there, Ford will be forced to cut prices and boost incentives to move inventory this year -- and profits will fall. Fact 3: General Motors is a better bargain right now In a side note, Credit Suisse observed that it thinks General Motors (GM 2.69%) stock offers a better bargain than Ford today -- and they may be right. At 4.7 times earnings, General Motors stock certainly looks cheaper than Ford and its 6.4 P/E ratio. Similarly, GM's 5.3% dividend yield beats out the 5% divvy that Ford pays its investors. The $45 billion debt load that General Motors carries also looks easier to bear than the $112 billion in debt tottering atop Ford's balance sheet (albeit admittedly, much of this debt is loans to Ford car buyers). And one more thing... The one piece missing out of this puzzle so far -- and the one that should perhaps interest investors who've seen Credit Suisse's downgrade most -- is this: How good of an analyst is Credit Suisse? Do these guys even known what they're talking about? The answer is yes, unfortunately -- they do. According to our data here at Motley Fool CAPS, where we've been tracking Credit Suisse's performance as an analyst for nearly a decade, this Swiss investment banker is one of the best analysts of American stocks you'll find. Our stats confirm that over the past 10 years, Credit Suisse has outperformed 88% of the investors we track, and scored an average outperformance of the S&P 500 of better than 11 percentage points per pick. Credit Suisse has been especially good at picking automotive winners, where 62% of its recommendations have beat the market -- including two past sell recommendations on Ford. Which as you might have noticed...is exactly what Credit Suisse is telling investors to do today. What happened? The benchmark S&P 500 index has a new member. Say hello to oil and gas company Concho Resources (CXO), which has stepped in to replace specialty real estate investment trust Plum Creek Timber (PCL.DL) as an index component. Plum Creek Timber got the chop because it has been acquired by fellow REIT Weyerhaeuser (WY 2.73%), in a deal worth over $8 billion. Plum Creek Timber owns a swath of timberland across the U.S.; those holdings will complement the acreage controlled by Weyerhaeuser. The switch took effect on Feb. 19. Concho Resources, which is headquartered in Texas and has assets in the Permian Basin mostly located in that state, will also be included in the S&P 500's oil and gas exploration and production sub-industry index. Does it matter? Almost certainly. Now that Concho Resources is slotted into the S&P 500, it'll find its way into exchange-traded funds that dip into the index for their portfolios. The increased demand from these sorts of funds (plus others that like to sniff around high-profile indexes) should help lift and support the stock price. Although times are tough for oil and gas concerns given the dramatic slide in crude prices since last year, Concho Resources' fundamentals and stock price have actually held up relatively well. The company is still profitable, not very heavily leveraged, and operates in a very attractive region with much potential. Exiting the index won't have much of an effect on Plum Creek Timber, of course, as it's going to be folded into Weyerhaeuser. The latter company, by the way, is already an S&P 500 component. Last week, the world's two largest oil-producing countries, Russia and Saudi Arabia, agreed to freeze their oil production levels -- albeit at record-high levels, and with a few major caveats. The price of oil popped 5% as a result, but how much will the agreement affect the broader industry in the long term? In this clip, Sean O'Reilly, Tyler Crowe, and Taylor Muckerman talk about why Russia instituted the freeze, and how this should affect oil prices going forward. A transcript follows the video. This podcast was recorded on Feb. 18, 2016. Sean O'Reilly: The other day, this seems like a half-hearted thing that they're doing, but everyone was like, OK, OPEC needs to cut production in order to get oil prices up, dadadadada, and I didn't think this was an option, but apparently it is. So, Saudi Arabia called up Russia, and they agreed to a production freeze at elevated production levels or something. Can somebody explain that to me? (laughs) Tyler Crowe: Yeah, that's basically it. Saudi Arabia and Russia, the two largest oil producers in the world -- O'Reilly: They're both [each] at just over 10 million barrels or something like that. Crowe: Yeah, somewhere right around there. They've said they're willing to freeze their current output at their levels in order to help spur along the recovery. However, it's also contingent that everybody else plays along. So, they're saying, "Hey, we'll do it as long as Iran and Iraq and everybody else gets on board with it." O'Reilly: Which seems unlikely to me. Crowe: Yeah, seems like most of them are saying, "Hey, we love the idea of you guys freezing output!" O'Reilly: "Why don't you do it?" Crowe: "But you know what? We still want to bring on more production because we want more money." So, it always just seems like kind of a non-starter, at least from a long-term investor's perspective. These are just kind of those things that, when they happen, we have a 5% jump in oil prices immediately following -- O'Reilly: Yeah. Crowe: -- because everybody got excited. "Oh, oil's back, baby!" Well, guess what? Next day, it happens, and it doesn't happen because people want to keep producing. O'Reilly: Really quick, before we move on, it just seems weird that they were willing to freeze production at current levels. If memory serves, Saudi Arabia is over 10 million barrels per day, like 10.1 or 10.2. And even in summer 2014, before all this happened, they were at like 9.6. Taylor Muckerman: Well, that's the thing. Why care about freezing when you're producing at record levels? Russia produced an all-time high in 2015. So, they're like, "Sure, we'll freeze, because we probably can't produce that much more anyways." O'Reilly: "We can't go much higher." Like ... (laughs) Muckerman: Right. Their currency is down over 30% just over the year, the government is strapped for cash. So these companies have no backing right now. O'Reilly: It's kind of absurd. Muckerman: And they raised debt in 2015 just to stay afloat and keep producing oil. So, Russia, I think, instituted this freeze out of ... because there's nothing else they can do. O'Reilly: Yeah. Muckerman: It's like, "Hey, maybe if we say we're going to freeze it, prices will jump, because we're freezing it anyways out of necessity, not out of desire." O'Reilly: So, Iran came out and said they liked this idea, like Tyler was mentioning, but they were basically like, "Yeah, we're not going to freeze production." But don't they kind of have a point? Because they're trying desperately this year to get to 500,000 barrels a day. But before, in 2011 or 2012 or whatever, before all the embargo stuff and those niceties, they were at 3 or 4 million barrels a day or something. Crowe: Yeah, they're a little ways off from where they used to be. O'Reilly: Yeah. And that's their goal, and they kind of ... I'm not saying I like them or anything, but don't they kind of have a point there? Crowe: They might, but at the same time, do you really want to ramp up and spend a whole lot of money when oil's at $30 a barrel? O'Reilly: They need tens of billions of dollars to ramp up production again! I mean, they need a lot of investments. The domain forgetthelabel.com may be for sale. Please click here to inquire Angry protesters shut down a major investor conference on Wednesday that boasted former president George W. Bush and a host of Wall Street heavyweights including hedge fund manager Dan Loeb as top guests the FOX Business Network has learned. Taking credit for the melee is the activist group the Hedge Clippers, which has targeted several hedge funds over the past year, protesting both the exorbitant pay such investors pull down, as well as some of causes championed by prominent hedge fund executives, such as charter schools. The FOX Business Network confirmed the incident with conference attendees and the protesters. The conference was hosted by EnTrust Capital, which has $12 billion in assets, at the famed Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York City. Hedge Clippers was launched in early 2015 as an offshoot of the Occupy Wall Street movement. It has targeted hedge funds and their roles in a number of issues including Puerto Ricos ongoing debt crisis, education reform and university endowments. The group is backed by the Strong Economy for All, a collection of labor unions and community groups, and has the support of Zephyr Teachout, a candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives and a former New York gubernatorial candidate. The protesters barged through hotel security lines and began shouting hedge funds, billionaires pay your fair share. According to a press release on Monday, the Hedge Clippers detailed Wednesday's protest calling for higher taxes on the wealthy elite, and closing the carried interest loophole. Approximately 30 protesters swarmed past security and into the main ballroom as EnTrusts president Gregg Hymowitz was about to start a panel that featured several hedge fund executives, including Marc Lasry, the co-founder of Avenue Capital. Aside from his role as an investor, Lasry is a prolific fundraiser for Democratic political candidates as well as Hillary Clintons 2016 presidential run. The conference was disrupted for about 20 minutes as Hymowitz herded the panel off the stage to safer confines, according to attendees. Security escorted the protesters, some carrying signs that read Hedge funds = Inequality, outside the ballroom and out of the hotel. A spokeswoman for EnTrust had no immediate comment and Dan Loeb declined to comment through a spokeswoman. In a statement provided to FOXBusiness.com, Michael Kink Executive Director of the Strong Economy for All Coalition and a leader of the Hedge Clippers said: "We crashed this ritzy investor party today at the Waldorf-Astoria hotel to make it clear to hedge fund managers and greedy speculators that they have to pay their fair share of taxes. These are the guys who collectively owe billions in unpaid taxes. The most vulnerable communities across our country will benefit greatly from the increased revenue that can be raised by taxing hedge fund billionaires. It's basic fairness and economic common sense." Some hedge fund executives who attended the conference criticized the lack of security at the Waldorf. A spokesman for the Waldorf had no immediate comment on the apparent security lapse. Former President Bush spoke during a reception on Tuesday night. Also appearing on the panels were activist fund manager Nelson Peltz, and hedge fund manager Dan Loeb, who has been attacked by the activist group in the past particularly over his staunch support of charter schools. The group protested outside of Loebs Hamptons house in July while he held a fundraiser for New York Governor Cuomo, a supporter of charter schools. Loeb is chairman of the board of Success Academy Charter Schools. The panel that the Hedge Clippers disrupted was scheduled to discuss the inefficiencies in the debt market, which has exploded in part due to massive government spending. Many Wall Street executives believe the market is at risk for a potential meltdown that could squeeze deficit spending and force cutbacks to social programs since most banks have caps on how much debt they can keep in inventory under banking regulations pushed by Democrats in Congress and signed by President Obama. The irony is the hedge fund guys were looking for solutions to keep governments from cutting back the social programs these jerks want, said one Wall Street executive who attended and spoke under the condition of anonymity. Hardware manufacturer HP Inc. reports results for its fiscal first quarter, which ended Jan. 31, after Wednesday's market close. This is the first full quarter during which HP has operated independently of its enterprise business, which it spun off into Hewlett-Packard Enterprise Co. on Nov. 2. In other words, there are no more sexy enterprise activities to distract analysts and investors from what remains a good franchise but one that operates in a very difficult market. A stabilization in printing systems revenue could be a catalyst for share gains. HP must prove itselfThe market already seems to have cast its vote: The graph below shows how the shares have performed versus those of Hewlett-Packard Enterprise since the spin-off date. (The orange line represents the Technology Select SPDR Fund ETF , which tracks the S&P 500 Technology sector.) HPE data by YCharts. What to watch: Revenue growthThe top line will be critical, and, more specifically, top-line growth. When one speaks to HP, one is forced to use the term "growth" algebraically (i.e., growth can be positive or negative); indeed, HP has managed to produce positive year-over-year growth in just two of the last 16 quarters. That weighs mightily on sentiment. It is always going to be more difficult to convince investors to bet on a declining business, regardless of the price. (This same issue has been weighing on the shares of another technology institution, International Business Machines Corp.) On the current consensus estimate of $12.163 billion, revenue is expected to decline 11.5% year over year. The company has not provided any guidance on revenue whatsoever, neither for the first quarter nor for fiscal 2016, but the full-year consensus estimate of $47.842 billion implies a 9.2% contraction. As I argued in this article, the printing segment -- which has recorded 17 consecutive quarters with declining revenue -- will bear particular scrutiny. A new CEO but hardly untestedThis is HP CEO Dion Weisler's first opportunity to lead a conference call without sharing the spotlight with former HP and current Hewlett-Packard Enterprise CEO Meg Whitman, who is well-known in Silicon Valley and on Wall Street. As such, this is Weisler's opportunity to present his vision for the company he now leads, as well as a narrative for Wall Street. My review of his background and accomplishments for this short profile left me with a very favorable impression of this highly capable proven operator. Weisler is a chief executive and an Australian, to boot, so you should expect a sunny outlook for HP's prospects (in relative terms, at least) -- but not one that is completely out of touch with the reality of the marketplace. By all accounts, this is not a "helicopter view" executive. Weisler likes to remain well-grounded in the business. Speaking at the company's analyst day last September, he commented that "executing on our strategy will produce reliable returns and cash flows while also having the opportunity for long-term growth." The first part of the sentence suggests Weisler understands HP's investor appeal, but I'll certainly be curious to hear more about the "opportunity for long-term growth." Specifically, what are his plans for developing the 3D printing business? The article HP First-Quarter Earnings Preview: Streamlined and Seeking Growth originally appeared on Fool.com. Alex Dumortier, CFA has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Copyright 1995 - 2016 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Airline jetliner cancellations are below historical levels, new data issued by Europe's Airbus showed on Wednesday. The rate of annual cancellations fell to 0.9 percent of the order backlog in 2015, from 3.8 percent in 2014 and 1.5 percent in 2013, Airbus Group Finance Director Harald Wilhelm said in slides released during an investor meeting. The figures exclude conversions between different versions of A320-family jets. Airbus Group Chief Executive Tom Enders told investors the company did not share concerns about a downturn in the commercial aerospace cycle, which have rattled stocks in the sector lately. But he said even if aircraft markets turned softer, Airbus would be "resilient" because of its record order book. Wilhelm told investors Airbus was "anything but complacent" about growing economic concerns and financial volatility but pointed to gross domestic product and airline traffic numbers which he said illustrated robust fundamentals. Airlines meeting in Singapore last week were divided about economic trends, with some carriers reporting full cabins but Qatar Airways and others warning of a dip in premium traffic. Wilhelm said Airbus was using the benefits of a stronger dollar to improve its bottom line rather than offer bigger discounts. Boeing officials have been quoted recently as saying the U.S. planemaker faces fiercer price competition from Airbus. Enders reiterated interest in buying out partners in European missiles maker MBDA, which Airbus Group controls together with BAE Systems and Finmeccanica. (Reporting by Tim Hepher, Cyril Altmeyer; editing by Alexander Smith and David Clarke) Vale has been hit hard by falling commodity prices. It's been working to adjust, but that job never seems to be complete. And now things are looking even more grim. Here's why you aren't likely to find much to like about Vale's earnings when it releases them on Feb. 25. Commodity painThe most obvious issue for Vale has been falling commodity prices, particularly for iron ore. That segment of the company's business accounts for roughly two thirds of revenues. But, even more concerning, it accounted for nearly 90% of the company's EBITDA in the third quarter. In other words, as iron ore goes, so goes Vale. Vale logo. Source: Vale Iron ore hasn't been a great business. To get an early read on just how bad things could be for Vale, take a quick read of Rio Tinto's (NYSE: RIO) recently released earnings. The company's iron ore price realizations in 2015 declined roughly 42% year over year. That price drop led to a 45% EBITDA decline in Rio's iron ore business. While you can't blame Vale's dim outlook on Rio (Micheal Caine in the movie Blame it on Rio? Anyone?), it certainly sheds some light on what to expect when one of the world's other giant iron ore miner reports. How bad is China?No matter what else gets said, iron ore prices are going to be the headline driving factor in Vale's weak 2015 results. But there's more to attend to than just that. For example, Asia accounts for a little over 50% of Vale's revenues. China alone was nearly 40% of the total in the third quarter. This heavy exposure drove results upward when commodity prices where high and demand from Asia was robust. But it's not a good thing right now. China's economy has been slowing down, and it looks as if things are continuing to get worse despite the country's efforts to support the economy. So when you look at Vale's earnings, pay particular attention to Asia and, specifically, China. Don't expect good news; The real question is, how bad is it now? The mine disasterAs if these two issues weren't enough, Vale is half owner of the Samarco mine in Brazil. Late last year a storage facility for mine waste at Samarco ruptured, causing material damage to several towns and taking lives. Vale and 50/50 co-owner BHP Billiton have been taking steps to help resolve the crisis as best they can. However, that won't stave off the lawsuits. Brazil has started that process already, looking for around $5 billion in compensation. However, it's probably better to think of that number as a starting point in what is sure to be a long and drawn out process. Vale and BHP are trying to limit the damage by saying that Samarco is a separate company, which it is, so they aren't directly liable. That's not going to stop anyone from suing and probably won't afford too much financial protection when all is said and done. However, to get an update here you'll want to pay attention to management's comments during the conference call. That's because the nature of the issue means management will try to say as little as possible about Samarco. Thus, answers to analyst questions are where the real update is likely to come from. VALE data by YCharts Is it all bad?Trying to turn a frown upside down, you'll also want to look at Vale's achievements on the cost side of the equation. Because of the deep commodity downturn, Vale, like all of its mining peers, has been pushed to make drastic cuts to spending. Rio, for example, trimmed its capital budget over 40% last year. Look to see how deep Vale was able to cut. But that's not the end of the story on expenses. Vale has continued spending money to increase low-cost production, with its most notable project being S11D. That project was roughly 75% complete at the end of the third quarter. Listen for the progress being made because, once complete, Vale could displace production from higher cost mines and move further down the cost curve. That would be good news, particularly since iron ore prices remain in the doldrums. Then there's the not so subtle issue of finances. Vale, like many of its peers, is trying to shore up its balance sheet. So pay attention to asset sales and other similar transactions, like the nearly billion-dollar steaming deal it inked in early 2015 with Silver Wheaton . It's hard to describe selling core assets like cargo ships and the future gold it produces from a key mine as a positive, but Vale is doing the right things in a bad market to ensure it survives. Listen closely for updates here and the impact its efforts are having on the balance sheet. Yeah, it's uglySo when Vale reports earnings on Feb. 25, don't expect much good news. But pay close attention to how ugly things are getting. That spans the company's large iron ore business, its heavy exposure to China, and the mine disaster at Samarco. Look for silver linings on the spending, finance, and expansion front, but these are really just small positives. Indeed, the company's earnings results are likely to show that Vale is currently in full-on survival mode. The article What to Expect When Vale SA Reports Earnings originally appeared on Fool.com. Reuben Brewer has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool owns shares of Companhia Vale Ads and Silver Wheaton. (USA). Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Copyright 1995 - 2016 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. During an interview with the FOX Business Networks Maria Bartiromo, California Republican lawmaker Darryl Issa provided detailed analysis of Hillary Clintons email probe. It is a crime to release source and methods. Scooter Libby went to jail just for saying he didnt remember something related to sources and methods that he actually didnt have anything to do with. David Petreaus is now a convicted criminal because he released information to his biographer, he said. It is serious business to release information that may be classified or to deal with in a way that is wrongIts not a punishable crime to have an email server. It is a punishable crime to use that in a way that is reckless to American secrets. Issa shared his views on FBI director James Comey in particular and how the Justice Department has handled the case so far. I hear you say hes [Comey] a solid citizen. What I would say is this Justice Department, so far, including the FBI director havent found the ability to indict any members of the administration, including Lois Lerner The fact is Lois Lerner was not presented to a Grand Jury -- that was a failure to enforce a statute. We have a similar situation in that no matter what we send to the FBI, they dont seem to find much and the case is closed, he said. He also discussed whats next for the email investigation. If he [Comey] brings it [charges] against nobody, then in fact, he clearly has not done his job. If he brings it against her key staff who originated some of these emails, who obviously didnt make up classified information-- it had to be shown to them, then he begins a process in which they may take the wrap if you will, or they may admit that it wasnt an accident that they didnt just violate the law but in fact Hillary Clinton knew it, Issa noted. Depending on whether staffers plead to felonies, Issa says the case could end without even getting to Clinton. Maybe her followers can say she badly represented and it was bad judgment I think [Huma] and other key staffers did what she wanted to do and now that it looks bad shes pretending she doesnt understand Millennials, new technology, Blackberries She suddenly doesnt understand technology or government rules, he said. Issa also discussed Comeys legacy. Right now hes betting his reputation on demanding that employees of Apple Corporation develop something so that he can spy on Americans likely without our permission. In the face of the UKs decision to keep its membership in the European Union, former Prime Minister Tony Blair admits the decision will be close. We should vote to stay. I think we will vote to stay but its going to be close. As you know from here, politics at the moment is pretty unpredictable. Its the same on both sides of the Atlantic, and theres some referendums in or out, very simple choice. There are real risks obviously, but I think in the end the British people are sensible enough that they would take the risk of leaving and breakup, he said during an interview with the FOX Business Networks Maria Bartiromo. Blair says one implication of breaking away would be its impact on trade. Itll look painful and itll be painful because well need then to negotiate a whole lot of trade agreements with the EU. Over half of our trade is with the European Union at the moment, with part of the single market there. You break that up, obviously its a big penalty for the country. He also believes it will determine Scotlands future as well. Look, people are angry, theyre frustrated, they want in a sense to rattle the cage of people in power. All of which I completely understand, but at a certain point you need answers as well as anger, and you need to take level headed decisions. I hope and believe they will vote to stay, if we dont by the way, I think Scotland would almost certainly vote to leave Britain as well. As for the race to the White House, Blair declined to endorse a candidate, but did discuss what the next President needs to do. More on this... Blair: Islamist extremism is the single biggest security threat we face Who you elect is up to you. Its the choice of the American people so I dont want to get into who should be president and so on, thats an American decision. I think what people want obviously is people want an America that is strong, and clear and can build alliances in the world. When it comes to how the British feel about GOP front runner Donald Trump, Blair said: I dont know how they feel, but theyre probably like most people and like most of you here -- somewhat surprised. Lets put it in diplomatic and neutral way. Getting expensive radioactive imaging tests to see if a cancer of the lung or esophagus has recurred is not linked to better survival, according to a new study. The likelihood that people with those cancers would be alive two years after their diagnosis was the same whether they went to a hospital that frequently used so-called PET scans or one that used the imaging test less often. "I think if you're doing well and you've been treated, there is no reason to seek out these scans," said lead author Dr. Mark Healy, of the University of Michigan Center for Healthcare Outcomes and Policy in Ann Arbor. During positron emission tomography (PET) scans, radioactive liquid is injected into a vein to show how organs are functioning. Sometimes PET scans are partnered with computed tomography (CT) scans. "PET is a great resource and can have benefits for people," Healy told Reuters Health. But some experts believe PET scans should not be used to check for cancer recurrence before other imaging tests have been done. Using PET scans without good reason can lead to anxiety, wrong diagnoses, false alarms, unnecessary procedures and higher costs, according to the Choosing Wisely campaign from the ABIM Foundation, created by the American Board of Internal Medicine. Choosing Wisely aims to help doctors and patients choose treatments that are supported by evidence. For the new study, reported in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, the researchers used U.S. cancer data to see how often PET scans are used to monitor for cancer recurrence and whether those scans are tied to longer survival after a diagnosis of lung or esophageal cancer. Overall, they had information on 97,152 lung cancer patients at 859 hospitals and 4,446 esophageal cancer patients at 215 hospitals. All were diagnosed between 2005 and 2009 and followed through 2011. Overall, about 78 percent of lung cancer survivors and about 70 percent of esophageal cancer survivors never had a PET scan. The researchers found wide variations in how often hospitals were using PET scans on these patients. Yet, about 30 percent of cancer survivors were alive two years after their diagnosis regardless of whether their hospitals performed few or many PET scans. "It does not seem there is any difference in survival for these patients at two years," said Healy. The findings agree with recommendations the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) made to Choosing Wisely in 2013. "PET and PET-CT are used to diagnose, stage and monitor how well treatment is working," ASCO said. "Available evidence from clinical studies suggests that using these tests to monitor for recurrence does not improve outcomes and therefore generally is not recommended for this purpose." The researchers also note that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, which oversees U.S. public insurance programs, limited payments in 2013 to three PET scans following initial cancer treatment. Healy cautioned that PET scans may be necessary if doctors need to investigate something they find on another imaging test. "I think it's a great technology if their doctor is following up on an initial study," he said. A set of newborn triplets are now being tended to in a California hospital, unaware of their place at the center of a complex legal battle that could have huge implications for surrogacy and parental rights. The babies were delivered several weeks premature Monday night, according to a lawyer for Melissa Cook, the 47-year-old surrogate mother from Woodland Hills who refused the biological fathers demands that she have an abortion. That man, a deaf, 50-year-old postal worker from Georgia identified in court papers as C.M., paid Cook to carry anonymously donated eggs he fertilized in the hopes of having children. But Cook, who describes herself as pro-life, refused to have an abortion, and is seeking parental rights. "I'm healthy, I'm 28 weeks pregnant, the babies are doing great, the three little boys I have inside me," Cook told Fox News outside court earlier this month before they were born. "You can doctor this up, you can play word games with it, but this is simply and purely the sale of a child." Harold Cassidy, attorney for surrogate mom In California, a gestational surrogate a woman who carries a donors eggs - has no parental rights, but Cook is challenging the state's surrogacy law in federal court, claiming it is unconstitutional. "It's an attempt to reduce women to an object, or a breeding animal," charges Cook's lawyer, Harold Cassidy, a nationally prominent pro-life and anti-surrogacy lawyer who is calling for a moratorium on surrogacy. "You can doctor this up, you can play word games with it, but this is simply and purely the sale of a child," he added. Cassidy told Fox News that the minute the babies were born, they were immediately taken from Cook because a state court judge had granted the father parental rights, a ruling Cassidy is appealing. "The hospital personnel refused to let Melissa see the children, allow her to know what their condition is, refused to tell her their exact weights, and she is not being permitted to see the children at all," Cassidy said. "We have a mother who loves them, who fought for them, who defended their life, who stands ready to take care of them. You can't tell a mother who gives birth to children that what happens to the children is none of her business." Court documents reveal correspondence involving Cook and C.M., including a Sept. 18, 2015 message the father wrote to his attorney to say visits to a fertility clinic by Cook, whose pregnancy was deemed high-risk due to her age, were "draining my finances." "I do not want to abort twin babies, but I felt that is such possible (sic) to seek aborting all three babies, he wrote. I do not want to affect Melissas health. I do not have any more money in the bank, and my job does not pay great bi-weekly." Cooks lawsuit says that, C.M. depleted his life savings paying for the infertility doctors, paying the surrogacy broker, paying the anonymous ova donor, paying the lawyers and putting money into trust for the surrogate," prompting his demand that Melissa have an abortion because he could not financially afford the children and was otherwise incapable of raising the children." Surrogacy contracts typically allow for what is known selective reduction, where an embryo or fetus can be aborted, usually for medical reasons. The contract in this case was not made available to Fox News. Last Nov. 24, according to the lawsuit, C.M. wrote: "My decision made is, requires a selection reduction (sic). I am so sorry." Cook, who was hired through Santa Barbara-based Surrogacy International, claims that she was threatened with legal and financial damages if she refused to undergo the procedure. Robert Walmsley, co-owner of Surrogacy International, which is not named in the federal lawsuit, has reportedly said that Cook was asked to only abort one fetus because doctors were concerned about possible abnormalities. Walmsley, who is also C.M.s lawyer, declined an interview request from Fox News, citing his client's and Cook's privacy. He issued a statement on behalf of C.M. in which the biological father vowed not to discuss the case publicly out of concern for parties involved, including the three children. C.M. said in the statement he thinks it would be inappropriate to discuss the issues outside the judicial process. "There have been many misrepresentations made about this matter, the statement read in part. I have addressed those misrepresentations in the appropriate forum -the judicial system -and the appropriate Court has heard both sides and issued a correct ruling based on California law and any constitutional issues that there may be. I stand by the Court's ruling. "My interest is in protecting my three children, the statement added. I continue to have concern for the health and welfare of the surrogate and wish to avoid her having unnecessary stress through a public presentation. I have no interest in sensationalizing the situation." Cassidy has spent decades challenging abortion and surrogacy laws across the country. He represented surrogate mother Mary Beth Whitehead, in the landmark 1987 New Jersey court case known as "Baby M," which ultimately invalidated surrogacy laws in that state. Whitehead had been inseminated with the sperm of the intended father, but then refused to give up the infant. The parents, William and Elizabeth Stern, were given custody of the baby girl and Whitehead was granted visiting rights. "Baby M" grew up to be the now 29-year-old Melissa Stern, who is married with her own children. According to the Creative Family Connections law firm in Maryland, 33 states allow some form of surrogacy, and the practice has given countless parents children. The American Society for Reproductive Medicine estimates that about 1,600 babies are born each year in the United States through gestational surrogacy, such as Cook's. But Cassidy notes that surrogacy has been outlawed in most of Europe and Canada. While he acknowledges the blessings of the results for many desperate parents, he believes that "the focus is wrong" and belongs on the children. "Some man who donates sperm on the other side of the country is a stranger to that child, so much so that it is nothing for him to demand that the mother who loves the children he's carrying has to kill one of them, he said. So his focus was not on the children, his focus was on what he wanted, what he could do, what he was capable of without any regard for what's best for the children. And quite frankly, for a state to pass a statute that says the children should be turned over to someone who admits that he cannot care for the children is not good at all, and by the way, the way it's written, it is not constitutional." This is the second time that Cook served as a surrogate mother, she did so three years ago. She is seeking in court to be declared the legal mother of the infants, and Cassidy says that she is prepared to care for one or all of the babies if C.M., the father, cannot. "I want what's best for them," Cook said outside court on Feb. 8. "These court proceedings are for them, to determine what is going to be in their best interest." The Los Angeles County Health Department, which is named in the federal suit, did not respond to Fox News' request for comment. Follow Eric Shawn on Twitter, @EricShawnTV Jen Oliva contributed to this report. We heard a lot from President Obama today about wanting to close down Gitmo -- but one thing we didn't hear was bringing Gitmo detainees to United States' prisons to be tried here on American soil is not a popular stance with Republicans or Democrats. While many issues are partisan on Capitol Hill -- turns out this one -- not so much. In November 2015 the Senate voted 91 to 3 on a defense spending bill making it illegal for the President to bring the detainees. The President signed the bill because he knew there would be enough votes in Congress to override a presidential veto. He also executed something called a "signing statement" declaring a narrow provision of the law unconstitutional. Will this be what the President tries to use as an excuse to defy Congress and bring prisoners here under executive order? Either way, the president's actions will put more pressure on the democrats running for president than the republicans. so far Bernie Sanders has said he agrees with the President on closing Gitmo, but offered no comment about bringing prisoners here. As of right now, there has been no response from Hillary Clinton. Gobsmacked! British moms and dads were fuming after a school instructed students to write an essay explaining why they had converted to Islam. Gemma Gough posted the assignment on Facebook and said her child would not be completing the assignment. Click here to listen to Todds podcast on The Rise of Islam in American Public Schools. This is not acceptable, she wrote. Kids are too impressionable and imagine if these letters got in the wrong hands in years to come. The 12 and 13-year-old kids at Beaucamps High School in Guernsey were told to consider what it would be like to become a Muslim. They also had to write a letter to their loved ones explaining their decision to become a Muslim. Can you imagine when the students returned home? Mummy, Mummy! I converted to Islam! Cheerio! The controversial lesson was part of a creative writing exercise as part of a religious education lesson, The Daily Mail reports. The school pointed out that it was a make-believe scenario and no child was actually forced to convert to the Islamic faith. Local residents were not convinced. In this day and age when easily-led youngsters are being radicalized, it is a dangerous road to be taking, wrote one observer on the Guernsey Press website. Teach pupils about religion by all means but be very careful when you ask them to be Muslim, another wrote. The school said they plan to expose the students to other religions like Christianity and Judaism. But lets be honest do you really think theyre going to have the kids write about how Jesus Christ changed their lives? Brigette Gabriel, the founder of Act for America, told me whats happening in Great Britain is already happening in American public schools. She discusses that subject in my most recent podcast. America needs a new 21st Century tax code that is built for growth -- the growth of families paychecks, the growth of local businesses, and the growth of our economy. Ways and Means Republicans believe we have a responsibility to work on this challenge now. Thats why were holding a hearing at our committee Wednesday about international tax reform a critical component of our comprehensive plan to overhaul our tax system from top to bottom. Since January, three major American companies have decided to move their headquarters, and many American jobs, overseas. To put this in perspective, in the two decades leading up to 2004, we averaged two inversions of substantial American businesses per year. In the decade through 2014, we averaged four per year. In 2015, there were six more. And if the pace so far this year continues, the three in January might become 30 by the end of the year. When American workers are losing their jobs to people in other countries, Washington cannot afford to ignore this disturbing trend any longer. While Democratic presidential candidates want to just blame U.S. corporations, the reality is that their strategy wont help protect American workers or save their jobs. We must address the real root of the problem our broken tax code that discourages investment and growth. Our hearing Wednesday will examine the driving forces behind inversions and foreign mergers and how we can develop policies that will prevent more American jobs from moving overseas. The policies we develop will also be designed to attract more foreign firms and jobs to locate to the U.S. Our sky-high 35 percent corporate tax rate bears much of the blame. After all, when a company can move to Ireland and pay a 12.5 percent tax rate, it makes it harder to choose to stay in the United States and pay over three times as much. We will also examine how other countries are taking actions with their tax systems that disproportionally burden American global businesses and ultimately, our workers. The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in its Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) project has advanced ideas that will make it harder for our companies to compete and grow. Worldwide American companies are rightly concerned that the BEPS project will result in higher foreign taxes, higher compliance costs, and double taxation. As countries around the world incorporate the BEPS ideas into their tax systems, many more companies could be forced to restructure their business operations and move U.S. activities, such as research and development, overseas. The European Union state-aid investigations also threaten to impose retroactive taxes going back ten years on American businesses. We cannot allow American taxpayers to foot the bill for tax revenue grabs in Europe and elsewhere. A direct result of these global developments is the loss of jobs for hardworking Americans. The loss of an American global business to a foreign merger or foreign takeover means many of its headquarters jobs will move to the foreign jurisdiction. Because these companies currently have American suppliers and other local businesses that support their operations, the negative impact will ripple throughout our economy. When business decisions are made in the new foreign headquarters, foreign vendors will replace many of these American small businesses. This downward spiral will continue until we deliver pro-growth tax reform that includes changes to our international tax system. Its time to permanently lower Americas tax gate so that the $2 trillion in stranded U.S. profits can flow back into America to be invested in new jobs, research and growth. To deliver the simpler, fairer and flatter tax system Americans deserve, members of our Committee will think fresh and boldly. We will examine the whole range of tax ideas consumption tax, reformed income tax, and any other approach that will be pro-growth. There is no perfect way to tax, but there are proven ways to grow investment and thats what we will focus on. Our hearing Wednesday is another step in our plan to bring our tax code into the 21st Century and protect American workers and their jobs. The American people want leadership on this issue and the Ways and Means Committee will deliver it. A federal court ruled on Tuesday that a watchdog group could request testimony from Hillary Clintons State Department aides in connection with her private email server, a decision that could eventually lead to a subpoena for Hillary Clinton. D.C. District Court Judge Emmet G. Sullivan granted a motion for discovery filed by Judicial Watch, a conservative watchdog group that is suing the U.S. State Department for records related to Clintons time as secretary of state. Judicial Watch is seeking information about whether Clinton and her aides intentionally dodged public records laws by using a private email server. The organization said it would ask to depose former State Department officials as part of the discovery process. Tom Fitton, president of Judicial Watch, called the judges decision a major victory for the publics right to know the truth about Hillary Clintons email system. He also said it may eventually be necessary for Clinton to testify. Our proposed discovery, which will require court approval, will include testimony of current and former officials of the State Department, said Fitton. While Mrs. Clintons testimony may not be required initially, it may happen that her testimony is necessary for the Court to resolve the legal issues about her unprecedented email practices. Click for more from The Washington Free Beacon. Donald Trump scored a convincing victory Tuesday night in the Nevada Republican Caucus a third straight win that builds upon his momentum heading into next week's Super Tuesday and delivers a sharp warning to his rivals and the party establishment that time may be running out to slow his march to the nomination. Florida Sen. Marco Rubio also was projected to beat Texas Sen. Ted Cruz in the battle for second place. With 96 percent of precincts reporting, Trump led with 46 percent, followed by Rubio at 24 percent and Cruz at 21 percent. Far behind were retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson and Ohio Gov. John Kasich, who earned 5 percent and 4 percent of votes, respectively. Before a cheering crowd of supporters in Las Vegas, Trump teased those who predicted he wouldnt do well in this contest and others. Now were winning, winning, winning, Trump said. Soon, the country is going to start winning, winning, winning. This is the third win in a row for Trump, who earlier this month won South Carolina and New Hampshire after placing second in Iowa. His winning streak gives him significant momentum as he heads into next week's Super Tuesday contests, the biggest prize of the campaign so far. More than a dozen states hold primaries or caucuses that day, awarding nearly 600 delegates or more than four times the number that have been awarded in the first four states combined. Entrance polls in Nevada showed Trump was buoyed by support from a range of groups, including Hispanics and evangelicals. And he dominated among caucus-goers who said they prefered an outsider. While Trump builds his base, Rubio and Cruz are still fighting to cut into his lead, with diminishing opportunities to do so. Rubio has enjoyed some momentum after his second-place finish Saturday in the South Carolina primary. But even as he wins over endorsements from "establishment" figures, the Florida senator has yet to notch his first election victory, raising continuing doubts over whether he could be a successful Trump alternative. He did get one high-powered vote on Tuesday, though -- a spokeswoman said Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval cast his ballot for Rubio. Cruz, meanwhile, is trying to shake doubts about his campaign and recover after a tough stretch during which his campaign repeatedly was accused of "dirty tricks" -- leading him to fire his top spokesman over one incident. At Cruz's watch party in Vegas, he maintained hes still the best candidate to go up against Trump and the Democratic nominee. In a knock at Rubio, he noted only two candidates, him and Trump, have won one of the first three contests and said voters will have a clear choice next Tuesday. One week from today will be the most important night of this campaign, Cruz said. Cruz won the Iowa caucuses, but has struggled to follow that up since. He finished third in South Carolina, despite an electorate full of the kind of evangelical voters who thus far have carried his campaign. Trump charged into Nevada with unrelenting attacks on Cruzs character. "There's something wrong with this guy," Trump said at a Las Vegas rally Monday night. On Tuesday, he called Cruz a "soft, weak, little baby" who lies. Polls had shown Trump leading in Nevada, but polling in The Silver State is sparse and the contest is often unpredictable. Mitt Romney won the last two GOP caucuses in 2008 and 2012. Nevadas voting took place in schools, community centers and places of worship across the state. There were reports of long lines and even caucus volunteers wearing campaign attire specifically pro-Trump. But state Republican officials said it was not against the rules for volunteers to wear candidate gear. One GOP official told reporters looking at complaints on Twitter to take a deep breath, saying the state was looking at high turnout and enthusiasm. Early Wednesday, the Nevada Republican Party announced that over 75,000 voters had cast ballots, a new turnout record for the caucus. The caucus marked the first Republican election in the West, and the fourth of the campaign. Trump's rivals concede they are running out of time to take him on. The election calendar suggests that if the New York billionaire's rivals don't slow him by mid-March, they may not ever. Trump swept all of South Carolina's 50 delegates, giving him a total of 67 compared to Cruz and Rubio who had 11 and 10, respectively, heading into Nevada. An Associated Press tally early Wednesday showed Trump with 12 of Nevada's 30 delegates, while Cruz and Rubio each received five with another eight delegates yet to be allocated. Rubio and Cruz have been laying into each other viciously in recent days, an indication they know Trump can be slowed only if one of them is eliminated. Rubio -- who finished third in Iowa and fifth in New Hampshire -- had already left Nevada, preferring to campaign in Minnesota and Michigan. In recent days, he has also picked up support from such Republican establishment heavyweights as Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson, North Carolina Sen. Thom Tillis and Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch. "We have incredible room to grow," Rubio told reporters during a Monday night news conference on his campaign plane. The Associated Press contributed to this report. Antonin Scalia suffered from coronary artery disease, obesity and diabetes, among other ailments that probably contributed to the justice's sudden death, according to a letter from the Supreme Court's doctor. Presidio County District Attorney Rod Ponton cited the letter Tuesday when he told The Associated Press there was nothing suspicious about the Feb. 13 death of the 79-year-old jurist. He said the long list of health problems made an autopsy unnecessary. Ponton had a copy of a letter from Rear Adm. Brian P. Monahan, the attending physician for members of Congress and the Supreme Court. The letter was to county Judge Cinderela Guevara, who conducted a death inquiry by phone and certified Scalia's death. The letter dated Feb. 16 said Scalia's many "significant medical conditions led to his death," Ponton said. In the letter, Monahan listed more than a half-dozen ailments, including sleep apnea, degenerative joint disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and high blood pressure. Scalia also was a smoker, the letter said. Ponton declined to provide a copy of the letter, saying an open-records request must be made to Guevara, who did not respond to a phone message Tuesday. Scalia was found dead in his bed at a Texas ranch, where he had gone on a hunting trip. Guevara, who as county judge is the top administrator in the area, previously told the AP that she conferred by phone with Presidio County Sheriff Danny Dominguez and a U.S. marshal before certifying his death. On the day he died, she also conferred with Monahan by phone before determining the cause of death. In rural Texas, justices of the peace investigate deaths, among other duties, but the two justices in the region were out of town and unavailable. Guevara was also out of town, more than 60 miles away, but agreed to conduct the death inquiry by phone. The Supreme Court does not provide regular reports about the justices' health. It is left to each court member to decide how much to make public about medical conditions. Some justices, including Ruth Bader Ginsburg, have released detailed reports of hospital stays and surgeries. The Supreme Court's press office could find just one release in 29 years pertaining to Scalia's health, a report of surgery in 2003 to repair a torn rotator cuff in his right shoulder. Attorney General Loretta Lynch on Wednesday defended the FBIs push to access a locked and encrypted iPhone in its investigation of the San Bernardino attack, saying judges at all levels have held such companies must assist if it is reasonably within their power to do so and suggesting Congress does not need to get involved as Apple wants. Lynchs comments come as Apple prepares to tell a federal judge this week in legal papers that its fight with the FBI over accessing the iPhone should be kicked to Congress, rather than decided by courts. But Lynch used testimony Wednesday before a House appropriations subcommittee to lay out the DOJ position that courts already have found companies must assist in opening devices. If the government needs the assistance of third parties to ensure that the search is actually conducted, judges all over the country and on the Supreme Court have said that those parties must assist if it is reasonably within their power to do so," she said, without mentioning Apple by name. "And that is what we have been asking, and we owe it to the victims and to the public whose safety we must protect to ensure that we have done everything under the law to fully investigate terrorist attacks on American soil. Lynchs testimony Wednesday suggested she did not feel Congress needs to weigh in. Apple also is expected to argue that the Obama administration's request to help it hack into an iPhone in the federal investigation of the San Bernardino attack is improper under an 18th century law, the 1789 All Writs Act, which has been used to compel companies to provide assistance to law enforcement. A lead attorney for Apple, Theodore J. Boutrous Jr., previewed for the Associated Press some of the company's upcoming arguments in the case. Apple's chief executive, Tim Cook, has also hinted at the company's courtroom strategy. Apple's effort would move the contentious policy debate between digital privacy rights and national security interests to Congress, where Apple -- one of the world's most respected technology companies -- wields considerably more influence. Apple spent nearly $5 million lobbying Congress last year, mostly on tax and copyright issues. Key lawmakers have been openly divided about whether the government's demands in the case go too far. Magistrate Judge Sheri Pym in California ordered Apple last week to create specialized software to help the FBI hack into a locked, county-issued iPhone used by a gunman in the mass shootings last December in San Bernardino, California. Syed Farook and his wife, Tashfeen Malik, killed 14 people at an office holiday party in an attack at least partly inspired by the Islamic State group. "The government is really seeking to push the courts to do what they haven't been able to persuade Congress to do," Boutrous said in an AP interview. "That's to give it more broad, sweeping authority to help the Department of Justice hack into devices, to have a backdoor into devices, and the law simply does not provide that authority." White House spokesman Josh Earnest this week also disputed that Congress should settle the issue and called the government's request narrow. Earnest said the magistrate judge "came down in favor of our law enforcement" after evaluating arguments by Apple and the FBI. Apple hasn't yet made any filings in the case because the Justice Department asked the magistrate to rule before Apple had an opportunity to object. "Sending complicated things to Congress is often not the surest way to get a quick answer," Earnest said. "In fact, even asking some of the most basic questions of Congress sometimes does not ensure a quick answer." Apple intends to argue that the 1789 law has never been used to compel a company to write software to help the government. Michael Zweiback, the former chief of the cybercrimes section of the U.S. Attorney's Office in Los Angeles, said it was highly unusual for the U.S. to ask Apple to give the FBI specialized software that would weaken the digital locks on the iPhone. "There's a significant legal question as to whether the All Writs Act can be used to order a company to create something that may not presently exist," Zweiback said. He said as a former prosecutor he was sympathetic to the government's case, but he described Apple's arguments as strong and said the issue has broad implications. "We are not the only ones who are asking for encryption keys," he said. "The Chinese government has made similar demands upon them, the European Union has made similar demands upon them, so the implications are really not even national. They're international in scope." The Associated Press contributed to this report. Hispanic voters solidly backed Donald Trump in Tuesday night's Nevada Republican caucuses, according to Fox News entrance polls. Despite Trump's hardline stance on immigration, especially illegal immigration, the entrance polls found that the billionaire real estate developer was supported by 45 percent of Hispanic voters. Florida Sen. Marco Rubio was backed by 28 percent of Hispanic voters, while Texas Sen. Ted Cruz garnered 18 percent of the Hispanic vote. Ohio Gov. John Kasich earned 4 percent of the Hispanic vote, while retired neurosurgeon Dr. Ben Carson received 3 percent. "You know what I really am happy about, because I've been saying it for a long time," Trump told supporters in his victory speech early Wednesday. "46 percent with the Hispanics ... number one with Hispanics!" Despite the apparently impressive result, Hispanic voters only made up 8 percent of Republican caucus-goers in Nevada. By contrast, 19 percent of caucus-goers in Saturday's Democratic contest were Hispanic. The Fox News Republican caucuses entrance poll was comprised of surveys of 1,573 voters at 25 precincts across Nevada. Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid on Wednesday announced his endorsement of fellow Democrat Hillary Clinton for president. Reid is now the highest-ranking Democrat to endorse the front-running Clinton, who is trying to fend off Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders. CNN first reported the endorsement. "I think the middle class would be better served by Hillary," Reid said. Reid, who is retiring as the Senates top Democrat, cited Clintons experience as first lady, particulary her early efforts to improve Americas health care system. He did not mention Clinton's work as secretary of state, which has most recently been in the news over her use of a private email server for official communication. But he said he thinks Clinton is the right person to be the countrys first female president, according to the CNN report. His endorsement comes after Clinton, also a former U.S. senator from New York, won the caucus vote this past weekend in Reids home state of Nevada. Sanders, who is an Independent in the Senate who aligns with the Democrats, has yet to win an endorsement from any Senate member, while Clinton has the backing of 40 of the upper chambers 44 Democrats. The only other Independent, Maine Sen. Angus King, has yet to make an endorsement. He and Sanders vote, or caucus, with Senate Democrats. Former Texas Gov. Rick Perry was cleared Wednesday of all criminal charges against him related to allegations he misused his power while in office. In a 6-2 ruling, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals dismissed the abuse-of-power charge that had loomed over the former Republican governor -- including during his short-lived presidential campaign, which ended last September. The charge was filed after Perry threatened and then carried out a veto of state funding for a group of public corruption prosecutors after the Democratic head of the unit refused to resign. In the ruling , the court said veto power cannot be restricted by the courts and that prosecution of a veto violates separations of powers. Perrys lawyer, Tony Buzbee, told The Associated Press it is a shame that it took that long to get something as weak and misguided as this to be dismissed. In July, a lower appeals court dismissed another charge -- coercion by a public servant against Perry. Perry, the longest-serving governor in Texas history, left office in January 2015 while facing the felony indictment handed down the previous summer by a grand jury in Austin, a liberal bastion in otherwise mostly deeply conservative Texas. The former governor made just one court appearance in the case, which stems from 2013, when he publicly threatened to veto the $7.5 million in state funding for Public Integrity Unit prosecutors. Travis County District Attorney Rosemary Lehmberg, who headed the investigative group, had rebuffed Perry's calls to resign after she was convicted and jailed for drunken driving. Perry dismissed the case as a "political witch hunt," while legal scholars from across the political spectrum raised objections about it. Still, the Republican judge overseeing the case repeatedly refused to throw it out on constitutional grounds, prompting Perry's appeals. One of the judges who dissented in Wednesday's ruling, Republican Cheryl Johnson, said the decision could leave the public with an uneasy perception that the system went out of its way to clear one of the most powerful governors in Texas history. "The constant references to 'Governor Perry' could well be seen by the public as an inference that appellant's position in life entitles him to special privileges and special treatment by this court that others might be denied," wrote Johnson, referring to how judges addressed Perry during deliberations. Michael McCrum, the San Antonio-based special prosecutor who secured Perry's indictment, long maintained that the matter was built on evidence not politics and deserved to go to trial. He can appeal, but that would be a lengthy process. Combined, the original charges carried a potential maximum penalty of 109 years in prison. Despite his legal problems, Perry formally announced he was running for president in early June, hoping to convince GOP primary voters he deserved a second chance after his 2012 bid was undone by a series of public gaffes. But his second White House campaign lasted barely three months, and Perry formally dropped out of the race in September. The former governor spent more than $2 million on top defense lawyers. His latest White House campaign raised barely half that much in its first month, and it quickly became so cash-strapped that it could no longer afford to pay staffers in key states with early presidential primaries or caucuses. Perry blamed the criminal indictment for his sluggish fundraising. But polls showed he was badly trailing in the race despite numerous visits to Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina. He was the first candidate leave a GOP field jammed with 17 presidential hopefuls at the time. The Associated Press contributed to this report. THE WEEK THAT WILL DECIDE THE REPUBLICAN NOMINATION Nevada is Trump Country. So are New Hampshire and South Carolina. The question now is out of the 11 states that will make their Republican presidential picks next week representing a quarter of all the delegates available for the nomination how many of them will be Trump Country too. A quick look at the map and at exit polls from the first four contests suggests that the dozen states on March 1 are shaping up as fertile territory for the GOP frontrunner. From Massachusetts to Texas and from Georgia to Alaska, opportunities abound for Trump. And if he won the way that he has already shown he can in the North, South, East and West, he could easily be sitting on more than a third of the 1,237 delegates he would need to win outright. In Nevada, Trump demonstrated that he had addressed his lone deficiency exposed in his Iowa loss and can win the organizational and turnout battle in a low-turnout caucus. So theres no question anymore that Donald Trump can be the Republican nominee, after nearly a year in which the broad assumption in the Republican Party was that somehow he could not. After Nevada, the question is whether Trump can be stopped? And that depends on the answer to another query: Will anyone really try? As it turns out, the Republican nominating process will depend almost entirely on what happens in the next seven days. If the state of the race is the same as it is today, Trump would be nearly impossible to stop. And every sign so far is that the forecast is for more of the same. The candidates with no chance are hitting the candidate with some chance. The field is the same size. The donor class is still mostly refusing to fund attacks on Trump. Sen. Ted Cruz has had a rough February since his Iowa victory and hes now facing a potential defeat in his home state. Rather than March 1 being the beginning of Cruzs stretch run, it looks like it could be the beginning of the end. Gov. John Kasich is threatening to hang in until his home state of Ohio votes, which the most recent poll in the state shows would be a boon to Trump. Hes out of the running for the nomination and can at best claim the chance to win on a late ballot at the first contested convention in 40 years. Meantime, party elders, including former presidents and nominees remain on the sidelines. With less than a week before D-Day, 2012 nominee Mitt Romney, former President George W. Bush and many others have at most offered modest reproofs of Trump even as Republicans have grown increasingly alarmed by Trumps rhetoric. And while endorsements have begun to flow in for second-place Sen. Marco Rubio, the kind of large-scale show of party unity in support that could signal to voters the urgency of the moment still seems beyond the horizon. In a year in which we were told about the power of super PACs and outside money, tens of millions have been squandered to no great effect other than helping Trump. The relative pittance that has been spent against him is so small as to be meaningless. And there is no sign that the cash cavalry is coming in the week ahead. What would have to be different for Trump to be denied? Focused attacks on Trump from candidates and outside groups as well as fewer candidates. Not all of those things would have to be accomplished in full before March 1, but the party would have to show significant movement in that direction for claims of Rubios viability and Trumps vulnerability to be credible. Thats a big to-do list for six days, especially for a party that has mostly stood mouth-agape and motionless for most of this cycle. [GOP delegate count: Trump 79; Cruz 16; Rubio 15; Kasich 5; Carson 3 (1,237 needed to win)] Up next, SEC states - Megyn Kelly travels to Houston, Texas today for a special forum with the GOP candidates including Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz, John Kasich and Ben Carson, where they will take questions from voters in next Tuesdays most important delegate state. Watch a special The Kelly File tonight at 9 p.m. ET. POWER PLAY IN 60 SECONDS: WHATS UP NEXT FOR DEMS All eyes may be on the Republicans today, but the Democratic race is just as contentious. Saturdays South Carolina Primary will be a major test for Sen. Bernie Sanders campaign in whether they can challenge Hillary Clinton on the partys most defining voter sect: black voters. Chris Stirewalt explains whats ahead for the Democrats in 60 seconds. WATCH HERE. Chris Stirewalt is digital politics editor for Fox News. Want FOX News First in your inbox every day? Sign up here. Coming off three straight primary and caucus victories, Donald Trump's ability to attract a variety of voters from across the Republican Party is sparking talk about whether hes building a new kind of Republican coalition -- and, a new brand of Republican -- and whether GOP congressional candidates can ride the wave. Trump, in racking up convincing wins in New Hampshire, South Carolina and Nevada, is dominating in almost every voter demographic, according to Fox News exit and entrance polls. The New York billionaire businessman won among women, among evangelicals, among self-described conservatives and even among the few Hispanics who voted in Nevada. We won with evangelicals, we won with young, we won with old, we won with highly educated, we won with poorly educated, Trump said in Las Vegas after his win Tuesday night in Nevada. So, what is a "Trump Republican?" In terms of the political establishment, Trump's base is conflicting and a far cry from the conservative archetype, hailing from all reaches of the party -- even drawing in Libertarian and some Democratic support. Hes pro-business, hes anti-illegal immigration, hes pro-military. But he also favors eminent domain and used to be pro-choice and hes arguably tougher than Democrats on the George W. Bush administration. Perhaps most importantly, though, one label a "Trump Republican" can claim is that of outsider and that may be the most unifying factor of all. South Carolina and Nevada exit/entrance polls showed Trump outright dominating among voters who want the next president to be from outside the establishment and among voters angry with the federal government. If theres a Trump Republican coalition being formed, that dissatisfaction is playing a galvanizing role, Republican strategist Rob Burgess said. Policy issues likely are not the driving force behind the phenomenon, Burgess said. Rather, those supporters are disillusioned with the current Washington political class, which is driving them to seek out an alternative candidate. Burgess also doubts whether Trumps political coattails will be long enough for many down-ticket GOP candidates to ride. The majority of candidates will not see a boost from a Trump candidacy, he said. Chrys Kefalas, a Republican and first-time congressional candidate running for the open Senate seat in Maryland, told FoxNews.com that voters indeed are not looking for a politician this year. Hes not yet ready to hitch his horse to the Trump wagon, but gave the billionaire credit for uniting voters. Hes embracing his business leadership, Kefalas told FoxNews.com. Hes turning out working-class voters. Thats how you run a Republican primary. Whether candidates like Kefalas ultimately could benefit from a coalition of sick-of-Washington Trump Republicans, though, is an open question. If Trump is the nominee, he remains such a controversial figure that some doubt whether the GOP front-runner has any real coattails. Robert Jackson, a Florida State University political science professor, thinks nobody in the 2016 race, especially the Republicans, will have strong enough coattails for others to reap the benefits from their candidacy He also argued that Trump winning the nomination would be so personality based that any benefit probably wouldnt translate down to those lower-level races -- raising the question of whether a "Trump Republican" is simply ... Trump. Few if any Republican congressional candidates are trying to mimic his signature anti-establishment and irreverant campaign style that attacks -- even openly denegrates -- rivals while touting huge but as-yet undefined promises, not the least of which is a Mexico-financed border wall. A GOP member of Congress, who is familiar with the 2016 congressional field, recently told Fox News hes yet to see an emerging Trump-style Republican in the House and Senate races. Trumps South Carolina victory, where he won roughly 32 percent of the vote, follows a first-place finish in the New Hampshire primary and second-place in the Iowa GOP caucuses. And his Nevada vote percentages were better than those of Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz, combined. The field of rivals, however, isn't ready to yield. Until Nevada, Trump in any of the first three contests had yet to win more than roughly 30 percent of the vote, even as the GOP field has winnowed from 17 to five candidates, fueling the argument that his support has reached a ceiling. On Sunday, Cruz, who won in Iowa, appeared to zero in on those percentages and argued that only a conservative can win the primary, then the general election. Seventy percent of Republicans don't believe Donald Trump is the right candidate to go head-to-head with Hillary Clinton and beat her in November, he told ABC. The only way to beat Trump is with a strong, proven, constitutional conservative. If Trump is building a new Republican coalition but one that doesnt translate to success for congressional candidates it would mark a departure from the last major Republican movement candidate, Ronald Reagan. In the 1980 race between Reagan and Jimmy Carter, the California governor played a vital role in helping fellow Republicans win 34 House seats and 12 Senate seats. Some would argue Republicans have been riding Reagans coattails ever since. Several candidates in the 2016 race still are vying for those voters. What we are seeing is the old Reagan coalition coming together, Cruz told a NBC-TV affiliate in South Carolina. We won conservatives We also won evangelicals and we won Reagan Democrats, and we also won young people. Trump suggested that his coalition would draw on Reagans and then some. We're going to bring over a lot of Democrats, Trump told CNN. We're going to bring over a lot of independents. We're talking about the Reagan Democrats. We're going to bring over tremendous numbers. We're going to bring over youth. FoxNews.com's Joseph Weber, Daniel Jativa and Adam Shaw contributed to this report. A fireball meteor shot across the sky over the Atlantic ocean earlier this month, according to NASA, which describes the fiery object as the largest since the Chelyabinsk meteor over Russia in 2013. The space agencys Near Earth Object program identified the unseen Feb. 6 fireball, which reached peak brightness at 8:55 a.m. ET. Related: NASA will tackle asteroids with new Planetary Defense Office NASA Astronomer Ron Baalke explained that the large fireball the largest since the Chelyabinsk incident, was detected 19.2 miles over the South Atlantic. A large fireball - the largest since Cheylabinsk - was detected 31km over the South Atlantic on Feb 6@BadAstronomer pic.twitter.com/auCZYlsxz3 Ron Baalke (@RonBaalke) February 18, 2016 In February 2013 a meteor blazed across Russias southern Urals that scientists said was the largest recorded strike in more than a century. More than 1,600 people were injured by the shock wave that followed the meteors mid-air explosion and property damage was widespread in the Siberian city of Chelyabinsk. Related: Meteorite probably didn't kill man in India, NASA says Astronomer Phil Plait described the Feb. 6 object as a solid piece of space debris, or meteoroid, which likely exploded. In a Slate blog post Plait estimates that it may have been 16.4 to 30 feet across if made of rock like its Chelyabinsk predecessor, which was 62 feet across. Earlier this year NASA opened its new Planetary Defense Coordination Office (PDCO), which formalizes the agencys existing program for detecting and tracking near-Earth Objects (NEOs). The office is located within NASAs Planetary Science Division, which is in the agency's Science Mission Directorate in Washington. NASA also has an ambitious plan to capture and redirect an asteroid. A mysterious religious artifact has surfaced during renovations at Bethlehems famous Church of the Nativity, officials say. According to the Times of Israel, the artifact is made of brass, silver, shells and stones. It was covered in plaster and found near a window in the church that reportedly was built by Emperor Constantine and his mother Helena in the fourth century. Although officials confirmed that the artifact has been cleaned up, it is not on display, and there are no images of it as yet. Related: Archaeologists in the UK unearth 3,000-year-old wheel Ziad al-Bandak, a Palestinian presidential adviser for Christian Affairs, said the artifact is, of great religious and historical value. The church itself is built over the cave where the birth of Jesus is said to have taken place. Considered to be one of Christianitys holiest sites, the present day building is listed as endangered by UNESCO, the United Nations cultural agency. Over the centuries, the building fell into disrepair and is undergoing a vast and costly renovation in order to save it. Until two years ago, water leaked in through a broken roof that has been replaced, according to the AP, which also noted that mosaic tiles within the building are being retouched for the first time in nearly a thousand years. The AP also wrote that funding for the first phase drew interest from a variety of parties, including the Palestinian private sector, Roman Catholic, Greek Orthodox and Armenian churches and donations from other countries. Related: Amateur archaeologist discovers lost Spanish settlement in Florida Panhandle Al-Bandak said $8 million has already been spent and an additional $11 million will be needed for further updates. The AP added that the project is expected to take at least another three years, and will include work on stone capitals and columns as well as on the ancient floor mosaics currently covered by stone flooring. Al-Bandak told the AP that the completed first phase is already a source of pride. "We are very proud of it because when we protect our national heritage, our history, we protect our future." A spectacular map of the Milky Way has been produced that is allowing astronomers to study the cold universe, which is the gas and dust that are only a few tens of degrees above absolute zero. Dubbed the APEX Telescope Large Area Survey after the telescope used in Chile, the survey includes most of the regions of star formation in the Milky Way. The Chilean telescope has mapped the full area of the Galactic Plane visible from the southern hemisphere for the first time at submillimetre wavelengths between infrared light and radio waves and in finer detail than recent space-based surveys. Related: New star puts on a show in stunning image The APEX data shows up in red and the background blue image was imaged at shorter infrared wavelengths by the NASA Spitzer Space Telescope as part of the GLIMPSE survey. ATLASGAL has allowed us to have a new and transformational look at the dense interstellar medium of our own Milky Way, European Southern Observatorys Leonardo Testi, who is a member of the ATLASGAL team and the European Project Scientist for the ALMA project, said in a statement. The new release of the full survey opens up the possibility to mine this marvelous dataset for new discoveries. Many teams of scientists are already using the ATLASGAL data to plan for detailed ALMA follow-up. APEX, the Atacama Pathfinder Experiment telescope, is located at 16,732 feet altitude on the Chajnantor Plateau in Chiles Atacama region. Related: Hundreds of hidden galaxies glimpsed behind Milky Way At the heart of APEX are its sensitive instruments. One of these, LABOCA (the Large Bolometer Camera), the largest such detector in the southern hemisphere, was used for the ATLASGAL survey. LABOCA, built at the Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy (MPIfR ) in Bonn, Germany, measures incoming radiation by registering the tiny rise in temperature it causes and can detect emission from the cold dark dust bands obscuring the stellar light. This allows astronomers to detect emissions spread over a larger area of sky and to estimate the fraction of dense gas in the inner galaxy. If we combine the high spatial resolution ATLASGAL data with observations from ESAs Planck satellite, the resulting data reach space quality with a 20 times higher resolution, MPIfRs Axel Weiss, who was responsible for the merging of the data, said in a statement. As economic and political instability rocked Egypt, looters increasingly plundered the country's archaeological sites, leaving holes across the nation's ancient landscapes. That's the trend reported today in the journal Antiquity by archaeologists who used satellite images to monitor sites in Egypt from 2002 to 2013. For the last several years, "space archaeologist" Sarah Parcak, an associate professor of anthropology at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, has pored over satellite images to discover lost pyramids, tombs and cities buried in Egypt. (She's even detected the network of streets and houses of ancient Tanis, the city featured in the Indiana Jones movie "Raiders of the Lost Ark.") In her latest study, Parcak didn't analyze ancient features, but rather looked at modern ones in Egypt: the holes in the ground left by tomb robbers and antiquities thieves. [Reclaimed History: 9 Repatriated Egyptian Antiquities] "Simply staggering" pits Parcak and her colleagues looked at satellite images for 1,100 archaeological sites in Egypt's Nile Valley and Delta between 2002 and 2013. The researchers found that the first spike in looting actually came before the political uncertainty of the Arab Spring, the wave of uprisings that began the Middle East and North Africa in 2011. Looting levels at least doubled from 2009 to 2010, in connection with the global economic crisis, and then doubled again from 2011 to 2013, following the revolution that began in Egypt in January 2011. If looting rates continue at their current rate, all 1,100 sites examined in the study will be looted by 2040, Parcak and her colleagues wrote in the new study. "The number of looting pits dug during 2009 and 2010 is, in our opinion, simply staggering," Parcak and her colleagues wrote. They counted 15,889 looting pits in their 2009 satellite data, and 18,634 in the 2010 data. For comparison, just 3,247 pits were visible in the satellite data from 2008. Looting thengrew even worse after the onset of the Arab Spring. On average, the researchers counted 38,000 annual looting pits from 2011 to 2013. Nearly three-quarters of the total damage the archaeologists documented in the study took place during this three-year period. This trend was borne out at individual sites, such as the area around the crumbling Middle Kingdom pyramid of Amenemhet III at Dahshur, south of Cairo. The site showed no signs of looting in 2009. But by May 2011, satellite images of the same area show a dozen or so looting pits. By September 2012, the site was pockmarked with holes, and by May 2013, the situation was even worse. When Parcak and her colleagues went to examine the site on foot in December 2014, they saw the looting pits up close. Some of holes were up to 30 feet deep, the researchers said. What happens after looters find treasure? Parcak and her colleagues aren't the only ones tracking looting from space; other researchers have applied the same technique to sites in Syria and Iraq, where conflict has left archaeological sites vulnerable to destruction. "What satellite imagery has done is show us the scale of the problem," said David Gill, a professor of archaeological heritage at the U.K.'s University Campus Suffolk. Gill, who was not involved in the study, noted that the striking images of looting holes should prompt some further questions: How much material must be coming out of these sites, and what's happening to these objects? Are they being stored in warehouses? Or are they entering the market? [In Photos: Amazing Egyptian Artifacts] Auction data compiled by Gill shows that the total value of Egyptian antiquities sold at Sotheby's in 2002 was about $3 million, but then during the 2009-2010 period, this value was more than $13 million. Parcak and her colleagues noted that the increase in the market mirrors the increase in looting evidenced by the satellite data, which suggests there might be a connection. "My hunch is that what we need to do is more analysis of what's coming onto the market," Gill said, adding that auction houses and galleries need to have more rigorous "due diligence" tests to authenticate Egyptian antiquities and make sure these objects have legitimate collecting histories. A stricter market might also discourage looters. "If you can't sell it, it's not worth looting." Satellite imagery could also play a role in the search for illicit antiquities on the art market, Parcak and her colleagues wrote. For instance, if the data from space show that an Egyptian New Kingdom site has been heavily looted, a generalized international watch list could be created to make dealers and auction houses aware of the kinds of mummy masks and other antiquities that should raise suspicion. The researchers mentioned another needed area of study: on-the-ground ethnographic work to understand who is looting these ancient sites and why. (For instance, are the looters desperate locals or members of opportunistic crime cartels?) Citizen space-archaeologists Parcak also wants to enlist members of the public in her fight against art crimes and her quest for undiscovered monuments. She was awarded the 2016 TED Prize, and at the TED Conference in Vancouver earlier this month, she announced what she plans to do with her $1 million award: turn citizens into space archaeologists with a platform called Global Xplorer. "I believe there are millions of archaeological sites left to find," Parcak said, according to TED. But searching vast areas with satellite data takes a long time. Parcak said she hopes to tackle this problem with a citizen-science platform. Her plan for Global Xplorer is to give citizen archaeologists an online tutorial on how to look for never-before-studied ancient features as well as signs of looting. Then, these participants would be sent a series of satellite images to analyze. "We'll be treating sites like human patient data, and not revealing GPS points or showing you where your image is on a map," Parcak said. "The data will only be shared with vetted authorities, to create a global alarm system to help protect sites around the world." The model sounds similar to other crowdsourced projects that have emerged in recent years that ask citizen scientists to do things like count craters on the moon, identify features on Mars, transcribe British war diaries and categorize animals in camera trap photos from the Serengeti. (Those are just some examples from the dozens of projects that can be found on the citizen science portal Zooniverse.) "A hundred years ago, archaeology was for the rich. Fifty years ago, it was mainly for men. Now, it is primarily for academics," Parcak said in her talk. "Our goal is to democratize the process of archeological discovery and allow anyone to participate." Copyright 2016 LiveScience, a Purch company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. SpaceX will attempt another audacious Falcon 9 rocket landing Wednesday after launching the SES-9 communications satellite into orbit. However, the company is downplaying expectations of a successful landing. The launch window at Cape Canaveral, Florida opens at 6:46 p.m. ET. Space.com reports that, if everything goes perfectly, the rockets first stage will separate about 2.5 minutes into flight, with the second stage carrying SES-9 into geostationary orbit. SpaceX will attempt to the first stage rocket on one of its two drone ships- a floating ocean platform off the Florida coast. Related: SpaceX CEO Elon Musk eyes city on Mars after successful rocket landing The private space company pulled off a stunning vertical rocket landing at Cape Canaveral on Dec. 21, but has not yet succeeded in its attempts to repeat the feat on a floating platform. Last month the first stage of a SpaceX rocket that delivered an ocean-monitoring satellite into orbit made a hard landing on a drone ship and broke a support leg. This is the companys fourth attempt at a drone ship landing. Related: SpaceX botches rocket landing on California barge SpaceX CEO Elon Musk maintains that recovering and reusing rockets is essential for bringing down launch costs and speeding up operations. On Tuesday SpaceX tweeted that the weather was at 60 percent for Wednesdays launch attempt. Weather remains 60% go for tomorrow's launch attempt. Window opens at 6:46pm ET. Webcast https://t.co/tdni53IviI pic.twitter.com/nPgm32vwA9 SpaceX (@SpaceX) February 23, 2016 Related: SpaceX deserves praise for audacious rocket landing attempt, say experts SpaceX, however, does not expect a successful rocket recovery on this attempt, citing the unique nature of the mission's geostationary orbit. The Verge reports that, with the SES-9 launch delayed from September, SpaceX has changed the flight path to get the satellite into its orbit quicker. With the heavy satellite going into a very high orbit, Falcon 9 will need more fuel to go faster, leaving less space for fuel to perform the landing. The Associated Press contributed to this report. Federal prosecutors announced charges Tuesday against a school volunteer in a widening child pornography investigation at a suburban Maryland elementary school that involves students ranging from 9 to 11 years old. United States Attorney Rod Rosenstein said 22-year-old Deonte Carraway is charged with eight counts of federal violations for the production of child pornography, in addition to state charges. The new charges detail allegations that Carraway engaged in sex acts with children, and also directed them to perform sex acts he recorded on video. The incidents allegedly took place at Judge Sylvania Woods Elementary School in Glenarden, Md., at a church, a pool, a community center and several homes, Fox 5 DC reported. Rosenstein said Tuesday that the diligence of one family member alerted authorities when they discovered a photo on a child's phone, and immediately reported it to police. Rosenstein told reporters that within 24 hours of that report, Carraway was in custody. Rosenstein added the incidents involved the children either having sex with the defendant, or with each other, after being prompted or encouraged by Carraway. The maximum sentence for each of those eight counts is life in prison, but the minimum, mandatory sentence was 15 years for each count, up to 120 total years in prison. Prince George's County State's Attorney Angela Alsobrooks also announced six counts filed against Carraway by the state, and those charges relate to the crimes against one alleged victim, Fox 5 DC reported. "I think it is an understatement to say how absolutely reprehensible the actions are in this case Mr. Carraway's actions, Alsobrooks said. These charges have kept many of us up at night, quite literally. We have heard from this community. They are suffering greatly. This is devastating case." Prince George's County Police have identified 17 victims, and say there may be more. Carraway, whose public defender declined to comment on Tuesday, admitted to investigators that he made the videos and told the kids they were part of a club he called "AKA," according to court documents obtained by the Associated Press. "I know it was wrong. I'm a bad person. I'm no child of God for doing this," Carraway told investigators. "... I know I'm older and I knew it was wrong because kids don't know better and I just lost it and now it don't look good on my part." Prosecutors said Carraway communicated with his victims and shared the videos on Kik, a messaging app that allows users to hide their identities, and gave the victims usernames for the app. More than 40 child porn videos have been discovered in the case to date, officials said. FBI Special Agent Kevin Perkins said at Tuesdays press conference the agency is still searching for additional victims, and asked anyone with information to call them at 1-800-CALL-FBI (1-800-225-5324). Carraway, 22, had already been charged with multiple counts of sex offenses and child pornography in Prince George's County, where he is currently being held on $1 million bond. The allegations against Carraway have already prompted lawsuits and shaken parents' faith in county school administrators. Two lawsuits, including a class-action complaint, have already been filed against the school system. According to the complaints, the school's principal, Michelle Williams who was placed on leave after Carraway's arrest earlier this month didn't follow up on reports by parents and teachers of predatory behavior by Carraway. When a relative showed an explicit video to Williams, she didn't call police, instead telling the relative to return to the school the next day, the lawsuits say. Prince George's County, a suburb of Washington, is the nation's wealthiest majority-black jurisdiction. The school where Carraway volunteered is 56 percent black and 39 percent Latino. Less than 20 percent of students were deemed proficient in reading and math on standardized tests last year. Click for more from Fox5DC.com. The Associated Press contributed to this report. A former firefighter turned arsonist who admitted to setting more than 30 fires in the summers of 2006 and 2007 in El Dorado and Amador Counties, including two on federal land, will spend the next five years in prison. Benjamin Cunha, 33, of Placerville, who was sentenced Tuesday, also will pay $246,862 in restitution to Cal Fire. In his plea agreement finalized Oct. 6 with the U.S. Attorney, Cunha admitted to setting one of the two fires he started on federal land, specifically the July 6, 2007 fire, which burned 80 acres of federal property. Prosecutors requested the judge sentence Cunha to 7.5 years behind bars, because he acknowledged that he is a serial arsonist and there is a high need to protect the community from Cunha. As he admitted in his plea agreement, this defendant set a multitude of fires with a callous disregard for the danger to life and property that he was inflicting, U.S. Attorney Benjamin Wagner said in a statement. Cunha started the fires, court records show, because he was bored, he wanted to boost his overtime pay with the fire department, and he sought to impress his peers. Cunha had no consideration for CAL FIRE fighters safety when he set the fires, placing them in grave danger during the fire suppression efforts, FBI Special Agent in Charge Jill Snyder said in a statement. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and CAL FIRE assisted in the investigation while Assistant United States Attorneys William S. Wong and Audrey B. Hemesath prosecuted the case. In a separate action, Cunha was sentenced by the state of California for the fires he set in El Dorado County. As part of his plea agreement, he admitted to the details of the 30 fires he set. He had disclosed to local law enforcement that because of his firefighter experience, he was able to build a time delay device to create fires big enough that significant fire-fighting resources would be required to extinguish the fires. Cunha was allowed leave the jail facility daily for work. He also was sentenced to 72 months of probation, which included GPS monitoring during the fire season through the summer of 2012. He might have escaped without federal charges, but in July and August of 2013, there were two new fires in the El Dorado and Amador areas, which appeared to be the work of an arsonist. Law enforcement determined that at least one of the fires was started using a time-delay incendiary device similar to the time-delay incendiary devices Cunha had admitted to using in the 2007-2008 series of El Dorado/Amador county fires, court records said. Cunha was a primary suspect in the 2013 fires, but as part of the agreement will not be charged with setting them. A Mississippi man already suspected in a murder has been charged in the December 2014 burning death of a 19-year-old woman. District Attorney John Champion announced Wednesday that Quinton Verdell Tellis, 27, has been charged with capital murder in the death of 19-year-old Jessica Chambers. She was found along a road, badly burned, on Dec. 6, 2014. Her vehicle was on fire. She suffered burns over 98 percent of her body and died hours later at a hospital in Memphis, Tennessee. "This has been the most unusual case that I've ever dealt with," Champion said. "Obviously, the nature of how she died was very brutal, very horrendous." Champion told reporters that Tellis and Chambers knew each other and were friends, but he would not describe a motive. Champion did say he believed it was a "personal crime" and not related to drug or gang activity. The prosecutor also said he would not reveal to reporters what Chambers had told firefighters who had arrived at the scene. The horrific circumstances surrounding the young woman's death garnered national attention and cast light on concerns about violent crime in rural towns like Courtland, where Chambers and Tellis lived. Investigators were initially stymied because they were receiving no information from their "street sources," leading authorities to theorize that the killing was done by one person who told no one about what happened, Champion said. After she died, relatives described Chambers as an athletic and outgoing person who, at various times, had expressed interest in becoming a nurse, a dentist and a writer. She was friendly and trusting of others, relatives and friends said. She had been a cheerleader and softball player at South Panola High School. Ben Chambers, the victim's father, said Wednesday that he never gave up hope that someone would be charged. "She'll be at peace now," he said. "Whatever the law allows ... that's what I hope happens to" Tellis, he said. About 20,000 telephone numbers were analyzed, more than 150 people were questioned, and investigators traveled to Iowa and Chattanooga, Tennessee, as part of the probe, officials said. Tellis has three prior convictions in Panola County two for burglary and one for fleeing from police. He was released from prison in October 2014, two months before Chambers' killing. Tellis was questioned after Chambers' death but was not named as a suspect at that time, Champion said. Tellis moved to Louisiana in the summer of 2015, and Mississippi investigators traveled there to interview him again, the district attorney said. Tellis was arrested in Louisiana on Aug. 20 on three counts of unauthorized use of a debit card. Tellis is currently being held in the Ouachita Parish Jail in Monroe, La. on charges connected to the August 2015 death of a University of Louisiana Monroe exchange student, The Clarion-Ledger reported. The Clarion-Ledger reported that he has admitted to using a debit card belonging to ULM student Meing-Chen Hsiao, 34, of Taiwan. Hsiao was found stabbed to death in her apartment on Aug. 8 of last year, more than a week after she was reported missing. Tellis has not been formally charged in connection with Hsiao's murder. Tellis also had simple assault and domestic violence charges against him dismissed in May 2011 after the complainants failed to show up to court. M. Randall Donald, a lawyer for Tellis in Louisiana, did not immediately return a call Wednesday to the Associated Press. Tellis will be transferred to Mississippi after the case against him in Louisiana is completed, Champion said. It is not clear how long that process will take. "This is nothing but hurdle No. 1," Champion said. "We're nowhere near the end." Click for more from The Clarion-Ledger. Click for more from Fox13Memphis.com. Highly decorated Army combat veteran John Marshall traces his terminal cancer to hours spent over burn pits in Iraq, where everything from disabled IEDs to lithium batteries was reduced to cinder and smoke. Now back home in the Phoenix suburb of Surprise, Ariz., the 31-year-old former sergeant is facing death and is claiming the VA is AWOL. Its all just a big slap in the face, Marshall told FoxNews.com. I tried to be the perfect soldier. I did everything I was told, and now they just forced my claim through and denied coverage and my benefits. I tried to be the perfect soldier. I did everything I was told, and now they just forced my claim through and denied coverage..." Sgt. John Marshall VA officials did not immediately return requests for comment. Marshall said agency officials don't believe his cancer has anything to do with his service to the nation, and that he missed mandatory appointments last year while he was hospitalized with pneumonia and battling post-traumatic stress disorder. Terrified of leaving his wife and two young children destitute because of the cost of treatment that can only delay the inevitable, Marshall and his supporters are raising money online to cover the growing cost of his medical bills. "My prayers are with you and your family," wrote one donor who pledged $25. Another donation, for $250, came with no name or message. "The support for my husband is so heartwarming and beyond what I ever thought would happen when this journey started," Ashley Marshall wrote on the site. Marshall believes he could have provided evidence VA doctors needed to link his illness to his time in Iraq if he hadn't been laid up with pneumonia in January 2015. He still could, he said, but now they won't listen. They said I was denied because I didnt have enough evidence, he said. They forced my claims through. They denied everything. They even told me that there was no service-connected reason for my illness, he said. A Veterans Affairs spokesperson contacted by FoxNews.com said the agency could take a fresh look at Marshall's case, and hopes to speak with him soon. "Foremost, we would want to look into what happened to understand the details in this particular case and see how we can help," said VA spokeswoman Ndidi Mojay. Marshall has no doubt that the soft tissue sarcoma he was diagnosed with 14 months ago is a result of his work on Improvised Explosive Device Disposal (IEDD) units. During my second tour, we were providing security for the EOD [Explosive Ordnance Disposal] guys, he said. We didnt know what we were blowing up, so its possible that there we were exposed to something toxic. We stood over open burn pits. An October 2013 report from the United States Government Accountability Office identified open burn pits as the likely cause of long-term health issues for many veterans returning from service in the Middle East. The U.S. military returning from Iraq and Afghanistan may be suffering chronic, long-term health issues as a result of exposure to toxic fumes from open burn pits, reads the report. Defense contractors have used burn pits at the majority of U.S. military bases in the Middle East as a method of military waste disposal. All kinds of toxic waste have been incinerated in these open burn pits, including human waste, plastics, hazardous medical waste, lithium batteries, tires, hydraulic fluids and vehicles -- often using jet fuel as an accelerant. Marshall and his wife Ashley, who also served in the Army, have turned to private health care. Thanks to the support of friends and strangers, they have successfully raised about $24,000 toward their estimated cost of $30,000. He is stressing out, Ashley Marshall said. Hes more worried about me and our kids. There are good days and bad days for us, but I worry about his mental state. Ashley Marshall, who fell in love with her husband while serving with him, said he is not the type of man a proud nation should turn its back on. Hes the all-American soldier, she said. An Alabama police officer said he was denied service at a fast food restaurant and the chains spokesperson agreed that the service he experienced was unacceptable. The officer, who hasnt been identified, allegedly waited at a Krystal drive-thru window for 10 minutes without being served or even acknowledged, Irondale Police Chief Kevin Atkinson told FOX11. When the officer went inside the establishment, two workers at the counter allegedly walked to the back of the restaurant in clear view of the officer for several minutes, Atkinson said to AL.com. Eventually, one of the employees allegedly walked up to the counter still without acknowledging the officer and yelled that she had to use the bathroom. After waiting for several more minutes, the officer left. The bottom line is, without the partnership of the community, we cant do our job, Atkinson said. You know they need us and we need them. A Krystal spokeswoman said video surveillance largely backed up the officers claims. We can also verify that the service he experienced was unacceptable, but it was also unacceptable for the other three guests in front of him at the counter and at the drive-thru, spokeswoman Kim Miller told AL.com. The service levels were unacceptable for all of our guests during that time period. The officer was not targeted, but neither he nor our other guests received the level of service they should. Storms systems brought tornadoes to the East Coast -- killing four in Virginia -- heavy snow that canceled hundreds of flights in the Midwest and power outages that left hundreds of thousands across several states in the dark. Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe declared a state of emergency Wednesday night after tornadoes damaged homes and left thousands without power across the state. Elsewhere, officials in South Carolina said a man was killed Wednesday when a tree fell on him. In Virginia, the tiny town of Waverly took the brunt of the storm. The Virginia State Police spokeswoman Corinne Geller said a 2-year-old child and two men, ages 50 and 26, were killed there during the storm. Their bodies were found about 300 yards from their mobile home. At least five structures were damaged in the town of approximately 2,000 and roads leading into town had to be closed because of downed trees and debris tossed by winds gusting to 60 mph, Geller said. In Appomattox County, a funnel cloud left an 8- to 10-mile path of destruction, injuring seven people and killing one man, state police said. At least 15 structures were destroyed and 25 injuries were reported when the storm passed through Essex County and the town of Tappahannock, about 45 miles northeast of Richmond, state police said. The injuries ranged from minor to serious, but there were no confirmed fatalities. Data curated by WeatherDB In Waverly, witnesses said the storm swept through with little warning. Timothy Williams said a friend had just come by to take his new car for a drive when the storm hit. "It picked the car right off the ground, and put it right back on the ground," said Williams, 44. He said they remained in the car until the storm passed. The storm blew down electrical wires "in a big ball of fire, thrashing all about each other," Williams said. He said they both escaped shaken but uninjured. In South Carolina, Darlington County Corner Todd Hardee said in a statement that Michael Gaines Sr., 58, had stopped on a road near his home Wednesday to remove debris from the road when a pine tree fell on him. Sheriff Wayne Byrd said the victim was being a good Samaritan when he was killed. The line of storms moved across Pennsylvania and the New York City area Wednesday night, bringing strong winds and heavy rains that knocked down trees and caused scattered power outages. In the Midwest, a powerful storm brought heavy snow and biting winds, leading to mass flight cancellations at Chicago airports and school closings in several states. The Chicago Department of Aviation reported more than 1,100 flights had been canceled at the city's two major airports by Wednesday evening. Bill Bunting with National Weather Service's Storm Prediction Center estimated 20 to 24 tornados hit from Louisiana to Florida on Tuesday. On Tuesday, one of the hardest-hit areas along the Gulf Coast was a recreational vehicle park in the town of Convent, in southern Louisiana. RVs were tossed about and lay on top of wrecked cars and pickup trucks. Two people were killed there, and 31 injured people were taken to area hospitals, St. James Parish Sheriff Willy Martin said. In Mississippi, 73-year-old Dale Purvis died of blunt-force trauma in a mobile home west of Purvis, Lamar County Coroner Cody Creel said. Florida Gov. Rick Scott said an apparent tornado in the Pensacola area significantly damaged more than 70 homes and 24 apartments, leaving three people with minor injuries. He stopped at The Moorings apartment complex, where winds ripped the roof off of at least two buildings. Residents in LaPlace, Louisiana, were cleaning up Wednesday after a tornado ripped up trees, tore roofs from houses and terrified local residents. Nearly 200 homes were damaged. Rose Fuselier, 80, had a gaping hole where her home's front window once stood. "The whole backyard is covered with trees, and then my shed is torn up, too. The roof is gone, and the siding is partially gone," she said. Still, she said others suffered damage even worse than hers: "I lucked out. I lucked out." The frightening wave of slashing attacks terrorizing New York since the year began has gripped both hardened city folks and tourists with fear and left experts searching for an explanation. Through Sunday, the NYPD had recorded 567 slashing attacks, some 20 percent above the pace set in early 2015. Police and criminologists have identified no single pattern for the slashings, which have plagued the citys subway system as well as both trendy and tough neighborhoods. New York has been shocked by a spate of stabbings and slashings in the subway system, the Manhattan Institute noted in a new report. After two decades of lower crime, New Yorkers have gotten used to safe subways, but riders are now being warned to exercise a level of caution that harks back to an earlier era. You may simply have a copycat effect. John Lott, Crime Prevention Research Center. Twelve people have died in stabbings or slashings in the nation's largest city to date in 2016, but most of the slashings have been random attacks that have left victims with facial cuts. Late Tuesday night and into Wednesday morning, police said three slashing attacks happened around the city. A homeless man was arrested in a Brooklyn attack that caused minor injuries to a victim, while an unsolved attack in the Bronx left a man with cuts to the face, police said. In another Brooklyn slashing early Wednesday, an 18-year-old man was slashed by two people. After a woman distracted him, the man attacked him from behind. He was in stable condition. Some of the attacks have been accompanied by racial epithets, including ones allegedly committed by career criminal Kari Bazemore. He was arrested after allegedly slashing a woman on her way to work at Whole Foods and has since been linked to several prior attacks dating back to September. NYPD Commissioner William Bratton has downplayed the attacks, maintaining the city is safer than ever. While that claim is borne out by some figures, the puzzling rise in slashing attacks now averaging roughly 10 per day, defies explanation. Police officials do not believe the blade attacks are a grim trend similar to the the so-called "knockout game, but acknowledge that the threat of random violence at tourist attractions and in the close quarters of subway cars is troubling. New Yorkers have a right to be alarmed or concerned, particularly those riding the subways, Bratton said in a recent interview, adding that there is no indication this was a pattern. Attackers have wielded every type of blade -- from boxcutter to machete -- and victims range from a 71-year-old woman commuting to work who was slashed across the cheek with a razor to a tourist who needed 150 stitches after being slashed across the face. Given that other metropolitan areas around the country have seen no major increase in slashing attacks, several experts believe New York is in the throes of a bloody copycat phenomenon. Its possible criminals just realized that it was easier to commit crimes on the subways than they had previously realized, said John Lott, president of the Crime Prevention Research Center. You may simply have a copycat effect. Last month, Bratton and top aides took a publicized ride on the subway and then ventured into the Times Square station where three recent slashings had occurred. Bratton proclaimed the subway system very safe, but drew immediate criticism for conducting his tour with armed police officers in tow. The NYPD also launched a campaign to rouse slumbering subway riders, because at least 50 percent of all reported crimes on the subway have targeted sleeping passengers. But so far, none of the measures have stemmed the tide of slashings. The rise may have begun before the New Year began. Tony Award-winning playwright David Henry Hwang, who authored M. Butterfly, was slashed last November as he carried his groceries through his Brooklyn neighborhood. His attacker remains at large, and although Hwang has recovered, his sense of safety in the city has not. "I like to think that, as a New Yorker, I'm fairly aware -- conscious of people around me," Hwang told the London Telegraph. "But this happened on a dark corner of my block. This was a random attack, and the number of recent random attacks surprises me. Is this a new phenomenon?" Gun rights activists say the solution is to allow New Yorkers to protect themselves with firearms. Random violence is up all across the country, but in New York City, where gun control is overly restrictive, it is an epidemic with sharp blades, said Alan Gottlieb, president of the Second Amendment Foundation. This is proof positive that demonizing guns does not solve the problem of violence. I bet some of those victims wish that they had a gun for self-defense. The body of a man who traveled to California from India to watch his daughter get married was found in a waterway more than a week after he vanished from the wedding reception, authorities said Monday. The Sacramento County coroner confirmed that authorities had found the body of Prasad Moparti, 55, in a slough about five miles downstream from where he was last seen alive Feb. 13. Moparti had traveled from his home in central India to his daughters Los Angeles home in January. Family members say he walked away from the wedding reception in Walnut Grove, 30 miles south of Sacramento, at about 4 p.m. He was reported missing a few hours later. The coroner hasnt determined a cause of death, but investigators say foul play is not suspected. Sacramento County Sherifs Sgt. Tony Turnbull said Moparti was unfamiliar with the area and was last seen walking toward a bridge spanning the slough. "Family members further indicated Moparti suffered from depression, and that he showed indicators of his depression leading up to the wedding," Turnbull said. Durga Moparti, Prasad's daughter, told Fox 40 that he wasnt doing well, may have been depressed and wanted to return to India. "I believe that he was just walking and he fell unconscious, and he just tripped or something like that, but I'm really not sure what happened, and this seems like a total mystery," Moparti said. Authorities called off a land, water and air search for Moparti three days after he disappeared. Investigators say they haven't determined whether Moparti's died accidentally. "We may never know what happened," Turnbull said. The Associated Press contributed to this report. A Colorado woman who prosecutors said was obsessed with having a baby and concocted elaborate lies to convince those close to her that she was pregnant was convicted Tuesday of cutting a nearly 8-month-old fetus from a stranger's womb. The case against Dynel Lane, 36, who lured Michelle Wilkins to her home with a Craigslist ad for maternity clothes, attracted international attention and reignited a national debate over the legal rights of fetuses. Jurors convicted Lane of attempted first-degree murder, assault and unlawful termination of a pregnancy in the March 2015 attack on Michelle Wilkins. Prosecutors say they were not able to charge her with murder in the death of the unborn girl because a coroner found no evidence the fetus lived outside the womb. Wilkins, 27, said she thought of the child she had planned to name Aurora as she sat in the courtroom, clasping the hand of her father, Mark Wilkins. The verdict "felt like a triumph for justice, for Aurora, for myself and the community," Wilkins said, who was composed in court but had to pause to gather herself several times while talking to reporters. "I do not hate Dynel," Wilkins said. "But I am angry for all the pain she has caused, the deceit and for her selfishness." Lane sat straight and quiet next to her public defenders as the judge read the verdict from the jury of seven women and five men who deliberated for about seven hours over two days. Judge Maria Berkenkotter ordered her held until sentencing, set for April 29. She could face a prison sentence between 16 and 120 years, District Attorney Stan Garnett said after the verdict. He said he had not yet decided what sentence to seek. Garnett said he could not charge Lane with murder for the death of a fetus, which led Colorado Republicans to introduce legislation that would have allowed him to do so. But Democrats rejected the measure. It was the third time such a proposal failed in Colorado, setting it apart from 38 states that have made the killing of a fetus a homicide over the objection of many abortion-rights supporters. Lane's attorneys left court without commenting. During the trial, they did not dispute that she attacked Wilkins but argued there was no evidence it was a calculated murder attempt. They said the assault was haphazard and impulsive and urged jurors to convict Lane of the lesser charge of attempted manslaughter. Lane had posted online photos of herself with a distended belly and sent the man she said was the father of her child ultrasound images downloaded from the Internet. David Ridley, who lived with Lane and her two daughters, testified at trial that Lane claimed for more than a year that she was expecting a boy, whom they planned to name James. Friends even threw a baby shower. Ridley had grown suspicious by the time Lane lured Wilkins to her Longmont home. Wilkins testified that they chatted for about an hour before Lane hit, pushed and tried to choke her, then used two kitchen knives to cut the baby from her womb. When Ridley came home early from work that day to meet Lane for a doctor's appointment, he said he found the fetus in a bathtub and drove the child and Lane to a hospital, where she begged staff to save her baby. Lane said nothing to Ridley about Wilkins, who was unconscious at her home. Wilkins regained consciousness and called police. In 2002, Lane's 19-month-old son drowned in what investigators ruled was an accident. The Latest on the arrests of several leaders from Warren Jeffs' polygamous sect (all times local): 11 a.m. Two polygamous sect leaders in Utah are pleading not guilty to orchestrating what prosecutors call a wide-ranging food-stamp fraud scheme. Lyle Jeffs entered the plea Wednesday during his first court appearance in Salt Lake City, wearing a jail jumpsuit and looking somber. A judge ordered him to stay in jail and scheduled a hearing for March 7 to discuss whether he'll be released as the case plays out. Jeffs is one of 11 charged in a crackdown that marked a serious blow for the group based on the Utah-Arizona border. Another defendant, John Wayman, also pleaded not guilty. He will remain in custody until at least a hearing Friday. Prosecutors want all 11 people kept behind bars. Other defendants are scheduled to make appearances in St. George, Utah, and Custer County, South Dakota. ___ 2 a.m. Several leaders from Warren Jeffs' polygamous sect are expected to make their initial court appearances Wednesday after their arrests on federal allegations of food stamp fraud and money laundering. The suspects were arrested Tuesday on accusations of orchestrating a yearslong fraud scheme instructing members how to use food-stamp benefits illegally for the benefit of the faith and avoid getting caught. U.S. attorneys say 11 people were charged, including Lyle Jeffs and Seth Jeffs. They are top-ranking leaders of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and brothers of imprisoned sect leader Warren Jeffs. The charges are the government's latest move targeting the sect based on the Utah-Arizona border, coinciding with legal battles over child labor and discrimination against nonbelievers. U.S. Attorney John Huber says: "This indictment is not about religion. This indictment is about fraud." The Minnesota Department of Public Safety said Tuesday a license plate that read FMUSLMS should never have been issued and the plates would be revoked immediately. According to Fox 9, a Snapchat photo of the license plate was shared over the weekend on the Facebook page of Somali community activist Haji Yusuf. Yusuf told Fox 9 the photo was taken by a St. Cloud high school student. Fox 9 confirmed the plates were ordered by a man from Foley, northeast of St. Cloud. Yusuf is a member of Unite Cloud, an advocacy group that seeks to eliminate discrimination against Muslims and other groups. Photo taken in St. Cloud and sent to @Masalani. This is allowed? Message the DMV: https://t.co/ApXEHNsEns pic.twitter.com/EsnMQ3Bira #UNITECLOUD (@UniteCloudMN) February 21, 2016 The Department of Public Safety said the license plates were issued in June 2015 and the custom license plate application was processed in Foley and reviewed by the states Driver and Vehicle Services. This personalized license plate should never have been issued; it is offensive and distasteful, DPS said in a statement. We are in the process of revoking and taking possession of the plates today. The Department of Public Safety apologizes for this error. The Driver and Vehicle Services Division is reviewing its process for approving personalized license plates today and will immediately provide additional review and oversight of applications. Gov. Mark Dayton expressed his displeasure that the plates were allowed. I am appalled that this license plate was issued by the State of Minnesota, he said in a statement. It is offensive, and the person who requested it should be ashamed. That prejudice has no place in Minnesota. I have instructed the Commissioner of Public Safety to retrieve this plate as soon as possible and re-review agency procedures to ensure it does not occur again, he added. Click for more from Fox 9. A Minnesota man with a concealed carry license shot and killed a would-be robber Tuesday night. Authorities have not released full details of the incident, but Brooklyn Park Police said in a Facebook post that early indications are that the shooting stems from an attempted robbery. At some point guns were drawn and both men fired at each other. Upon arrival, officers located one adult male in the area who was deceased from an apparent gunshot wound, police said. Officers recovered both guns at the scene. They have not released the identity of the deceased man or the man who shot him. Deputy Police Chief Mark Bruley told The Minneapolis Star Tribune that the man who died goes back and forth between Brooklyn Park and Minneapolis. Hes an individual weve known from previous contact. He certainly hangs out around here. Police said no arrests have been made and authorities are not seeking additional suspects. There are more than 221,000 active gun-permit holders in Minnesota, including 20,000 whove registered in the past six months, according to The Star Tribune, citing state data. A loss of life is a tragedy, State Rep. Pat Garofalo, R-Farmington, wrote to The Star Tribune. But when a criminal pulls a gun, they risk ending their life. Concealed carry works. A Pennsylvania nurse was under the influence of alcohol while assisting with an emergency surgery at the Wilkes-Barre VA Medical Center earlier this month, police said. Asked during a police interview why he thought he was being questioned, 59-year-old registered nurse Richard J. Pieri allegedly answered, I guess it has something to do with me being drunk on call, according to The Times Leader. Pieri was charged with reckless endangerment, driving under the influence and public drunkenness stemming from the Feb. 4 incident. Pieri allegedly forgot he was on call on the evening of the surgery and reportedly told police that he drank four or five beers while playing slot machines at the Mohegan Sun casino in the Poconos. He was called to the hospital just before midnight, according to WNEP. Surveillance video reportedly shows Pieri get out of his truck and bump into a concrete barrier on his way into the medical center. He nearly falls and stumbles numerous times, according to an affidavit viewed by The Times Leader. His duties during the appendectomy procedure included prepping and retrieving the patient, preparing surgical materials, documenting the surgery and monitoring the patients vital signs, the affidavit stated. But Pieri allegedly struggled to complete these tasks, finding it difficult to log in to a hospital computer and incorrectly logging times, The Morning Call reported. A coworker anonymously reported Pieri, according to WNEP. The patient, who is not being identified, was re-admitted following the procedure for stomach pain. Its not clear if that admission was linked to the first surgery in any way. Pieris status at the hospital also is unclear. A spokesperson told The Times Leader he was unable to comment on personnel matters. Pieri has been a licensed registered nurse since March 1979 and had no previous disciplinary issues, The Times Leader reported, citing the Pennsylvania Department of State. A man charged in the slaying of his 21-month-old daughter likely killed the toddler on New York state-owned forestland outside Syracuse before returning to the city and dumping her body in a creek, a prosecutor said Tuesday. Onondaga County District Attorney William Fitzpatrick said it's believed 24-year-old Ryan Lawrence killed his daughter Maddox last weekend at the Labrador Hollow Unique Area on the Onondaga-Cortland county line, 15 miles south of Syracuse. State police divers found the child's body Tuesday in Onondaga Creek, which flows into Onondaga Lake through Syracuse's Inner Harbor. Lawrence was charged Tuesday with second-degree murder. Police sad they didn't have a motive for the slaying. Authorities issued an Amber Alert for Maddox on Sunday, after Lawrence disappeared with the girl. Lawrence is being held in jail. Information on his lawyer wasn't immediately available. A sheriffs deputy was killed and two others were injured Wednesday in a shootout shortly after serving an eviction notice in a rural area about 45 miles southwest of Denver, Colorado. The suspect, who was reportedly identified as 58-year-old Martin Wirth, was pronounced dead at the scene. It was unclear if he was killed in the gunfire or if he took his own life, Jefferson County Sheriffs Office spokesperson Jacki Kelley told the Denver Post. The notice was served at around 9:30 a.m. local time. The three deputies approached the home when the suspect fired a rifle at them. The shooting killed Corporal Nate Carrigan, a 13-year veteran of the sheriff's office. One of the wounded officers underwent surgery for life-threatening injuries and was in critical condition at a Denver hospital. The injured deputies were identifed as an 11-year veteran who suffered life-threatening injuries and the other was a 21-year veteran. He suffered nonlife-threatening injures. The incident occurred in the Park County mountain town of Bailey. Law enforcement officers are investigating the property with the assistance of a bomb squad that was dispatched out of an "abundance of caution." "It's a dark day," Susan Medina, a police spokeswoman said. Wirth owned the home until March 2014, when Fannie Mae took ownership, according to the Park County Assessor's Office. After Wirth lost a court battle over his foreclosure, he sued Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper, the state attorney general and a judge in 2013. The federal lawsuit claimed that state foreclosure laws were unconstitutional and that Wirth and his unnamed guests were "in imminent danger of being wrongfully deprived of home and property while also being threatened with an armed and forcible entry onto the property and into the home." He asked a federal judge to block Park County from selling his home, evicting him or forcibly entering the house and to strike down several state laws. A federal judge dismissed the lawsuit last September. A website by a group called the Colorado Foreclosure Resistance Coalition includes undated posts that called for supporters to join Wirth in "non-violent eviction resistance." The website includes a video of a man identified as Wirth railing against mortgage companies as criminals. A call to the group, whose website says it is part of the Occupy movement, was not immediately returned to the Associated Press. Wirth ran for the state Senate in 2014 as a Green Party candidate but lost to an incumbent Republican. In a questionnaire to candidates by The Denver Post, Wirth wrote of corruption in the political system, his support for Colorado's marijuana laws and the plight of the poor. When asked whether he supported the death penalty, Wirth wrote, "Killing people to show that killing people is wrong is a piece of idiotic hypocrisy." He wrote disparagingly of police, the federal government and corporations on his candidate page on Facebook and praised former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden, who leaked millions of documents about government surveillance. He made regular posts criticizing leading presidential candidates from both parties. Neighbor Terry Rogers, a counselor and pastor at Platte Canyon Community Church, told the AP he did not know Wirth well and believes no one in the area did. "He was pretty reclusive," said Rogers, who could see law enforcement vehicles responding to the shooting across a snow-covered pasture from his driveway. Park County is a smaller, largely rural county and sometimes gets assistance from larger outside agencies. Neither the circumstances of the shooting nor the conditions of the wounded deputies were immediately clear. The picturesque town is where a gunman took several girls hostage in a high school classroom a decade ago, killing one of them before himself. Duane Morrison, a 53-year-old drifter, held the girls for nearly four hours and sexually assaulted them in September 2006. He fatally shot 16-year-old Emily Keyes and then killed himself as SWAT team members stormed the classroom at Platte Canyon High School. One cafe owner in town told the Post that the town in typically quiet. "I usually hear horses making noise and livestock," he said. "Certainly not gunshots other than people doing target practice." The Associated Press contributed to this report. A Texas man is in custody after police say he abandoned his three children on the side of the road, and then stole the truck of a man who stopped to help. Anthony Alfredo Chavez, 32, told police he was driving his 2006 Chevy Uplander from El Paso to Dallas early Tuesday to find the mother of his three children, ages 3, 4 and 7, according to KXXV. But Chavezs vehicle got a flat tire in Salado and he allegedly bolted from the scene leaving the kids behind. Rudolph Martinez noticed the minivan around 2:30 a.m., with its doors flung open and children still inside. Martinez pulled over and called police. An officer soon arrived and began loading the kids into a police car. But Chavez also appeared and jumped into Martinezs truck. The suspect took off, stopped down the road, turned around and came back, Bell County Sheriff Eddy Lange told KXXV. [He] stopped again and came several different times. Drove up, turned around and came back. Eventually Chavez sped off, but the officer at the scene was prevented from pursuing Chavez because he had the children in his squad car, officials said. The truck was located about six hours later, however, and Chavez was found around 11:30 a.m. and arrested without incident. Why in the world would anybody leave their small children? Lange said. We dont have the answers to that and perhaps we will never know the exact answers. Unless he wants to come forward and open up and tell us. Police said there was no sign of drugs or alcohol found on Chavez or in his vehicle. All charges against Chavez are pending. More unanswered questions; we dont know exactly why it happened, Lange told KCEN. The only thing is it turned out good, the kids are safe, the dad is now safe in our custody, my officers safe, and Mr. Martinez is safe. So everything turned out great. Third time another charm for Donald Trump who won his third state in a row last night in the GOP Nevada caucus. Fox still hasnt declared whether Marco Rubio or Ted Cruz came in second, but most outlets are reporting Rubio beat Cruz for #2 by a few percentage points. Philip Rucker and David Weigel write in the Washington Post write, An angry electorate hungry for a political outsider in the White House handed Trump his third straight win in the GOP primary race as the billionaire mogul used visceral rhetoric to tap into anxieties about the economy, terrorism and illegal immigration. A couple of campaign events to watch today. 1200EST -- OH Gov Kasich holds a town hall meeting. Cafe Climb, Gulfport, MS. TBA COVER 1200EST -- Donald Trump speaks to Regent University, Virginia Beach, VA. LIVE Hillary Clinton is in South Carolina which holds its Dem primary on Saturday. Bernie Sanders campaigning today in Missouri and Oklahoma. Sanders may be throwing in the towel on South Carolina.. hes not in the state.. and may be focusing on states that vote on Super Tuesday that are more competitive. Clinton has a strong lead in SC especially among the large proportion of African-American voters. Some tough news for Hillary Clinton. A judge ruled her top aides can be questioned in the email server controversy. Spencer S. Hsu and Rosalind S. Helderman write in the Washington Post today: A federal judge ruled Tuesday that top aides to Democratic presidential front-runner Hillary Clinton should be questioned under oath about her use of a private email server as secretary of state, raising new political and legal complications for Clinton as she tries to maintain momentum for her campaign. The ruling granted a request from the conservative group Judicial Watch, which sought testimony from State Department officials and members of Clinton's inner circle to determine whether Clinton's email arrangement thwarted federal open-records laws. A Hispanic Group says at least 13 million Latinos will vote in 2016.. a 17% increase over 2012. Republican Senators literally through President Obamas plan to close Gitmo in the garbage yesterday. The President proposing to shut down the military prison the U.S. base on Cuba. Republicans say its a non-starter. Republican Senators also refusing to even consider an Obama nominee to replace Justice Scalia who died earlier this month. The GOP wants the next president to fill the vacancy on the high court. That would be 11 months with no replacement. 1000EST -- Sens Graham and McCain, and possibly Ayotte, hold a press conference to discuss Guantanamo Bay. LIVE 1000EST -- House Appropriations Subcmte on State, Foreign Affairs, & Related Programs holds a "Budget Hearing - Dept of State & Foreign Assistance. Secy Kerry testifies. LIVE 1000EST -- House Armed Services Cmte holds hearing on "The Challenge of Conventional and Hybrid Warfare in the Asia-Pacific Region: The Changing the Nature of the Security Environment and its Effect on Military Planning". US Pacom Cmnder Adm Harry Harris, Jr, and US Forces Korea cmnder Army Gen Curtis Scaparrotti testify. LIVE WEBCAST 1030EST -- Senate Appropriations Defense Subcmte holds a hearing to review the FY2017 budget request and funding justification for the US Army. Army Secy Patrick Murphy and Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Milley testify. LIVE 1200EST -- House Armed Services Cmte Chair McCaul and Sen. Warner speak at the Bipartisan Policy Center about the challenges of terrorists "going dark" and other issues of digital security. LIVE via LiveU President Obama set to meet with the King of Jordan today to discuss Syria and the 1.4 million Syrian refugees in Jordan. 1035EST -- POTUS meets with King Abdullah II of Jordan. VPOTUS attends. Oval Office. POOL TAPE SPRAY New Zika virus fears. The CDC now says that the disease spreads via sexual contact more often that once thought. Twisters tore through parts of the South yesterday. Severe weather hit the Gulf Coast hard. At least three are dead in Louisiana and Mississippi. In Alabama and Georgia there are flash flood watches in effect for today. 42 are dead after a major cyclone hit Fiji. The extent of the damage is unknown at this time. China flew jets to disputed islands in disputed islands in the South China Sea just days after setting up radar stations. Its seen as a major escalation. Gordon Chang will join us. Bolivian voters rejected a four term for the socialist President Evo Morales.. its another step away from socialism in South America. Stocks are set to open lower as oil prices continue to fall. U.S. stocks fell more than 1% yesterday. The British pound is falling on rising fears it could leave the EU. 1000EST -- New Home Sales for Jan, 2016. 1030EST -- EIA Petroleum Status Report for wk2/19, 2016. Airbus reported strong profits. Honda wants two-thirds of its cars to be electric by 2030. A new report in the WSJ shows the pay of S&P companies boards of directors rose a shocking 50% between 2006 and 2014.. during the great recession. Takata in trouble again today. It continued to fake crash test results more than a year after a major recall according the U.S. Senate. Chinas capital of Beijing now has more billionaires than New York City. For more news, follow me on Twitter: @ClintPHenderson The University of Oklahoma has agreed to return a painting that the Nazis stole from a French family during World War II, a lawyer and school officials said Tuesday in announcing a settlement of a drawn-out dispute over the artwork's ownership. Under the settlement, the ownership of impressionist Camille Pissarro's 1886 "Shepherdess Bringing in Sheep" will be transferred to Leone Meyer, a French Holocaust survivor whose father owned the painting when it was stolen, her New York attorney, Pierre Ciric, told The Associated Press. Going forward, the painting valued in its last appraisal at $1.5 million will split its time being displayed at the university's Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art in Norman and a museum in France. University President David Boren said in a statement that the school is pleased the painting will still be accessible in Oklahoma and available for educational purposes. He said the agreement also recognizes "the good faith and generosity" of the Weitzenhoffer family, who bought the painting in 1956 from a New York gallery and donated it in 2000 to the university. Boren and the school had opposed the lawsuit on largely procedural grounds, saying prior to the settlement agreement that the school had sovereign immunity. They also argued that Meyer hadn't been diligent in pursuing her claim and that she originally sued in New York rather than Oklahoma as a "forum shopping strategy" to avoid Oklahoma's more restrictive statute of limitations. Oklahoma House Rep. Paul Wesselhoft, a Republican from Moore, had been an outspoken critic of the university's decision not to immediately return the painting. "It's immoral," Wesselhoft said. "I love OU, and it's embarrassing when my school doesn't do the moral thing." Meyer maintained that she was entitled to the artwork because it belonged to her father when it was taken by the Nazis as German forces occupied France during World War II. Swiss records show that Meyer's father had owned the painting, but a Swiss court ruled that its post-war owners had properly established ownership and rejected her claim. In a few months, the settlement will require the painting to be transferred to a museum in France for a period of five years. After that point, it will rotate between museums in Oklahoma and France bearing a label that explains the painting's history, including its seizure by the Nazis and restitution in court. "She could have chosen to keep this painting in some type of private, closed-door type of situation," Ciric said of his client. "Instead, she said she thought it was important for the public to still see this painting." The settlement also requires that after the title is transferred to Meyer, she will donate the painting to an art institution in France either during her lifetime or in her will. The painting was last appraised in 2008 at $1.5 million, according to university spokeswoman Catherine Bishop. Ciric said the painting will likely be appraised again for insurance purposes before it's shipped to France. Iraqi Kurdish authorities said Tuesday their troops rescued a Swedish teenager from ISIS near the extremist-controlled city of Mosul earlier this month, while a local TV station broadcast an interview with the girl in which she described how she came with her boyfriend to Iraq last year. A statement from the regional government said the rescue operation by the Kurdish anti-terrorist forces took place on Feb. 17 near Mosul, 225 miles northwest of the Iraqi capital, Baghdad. The statement identified the young woman by name, saying the 16-year-old from the Swedish town of Boras "was misled" by an ISIS member in Sweden to travel to Syria and later to Mosul. Swedish authorities and the teenager's family had contacted the Iraqi Kurdish government and asked for help in locating and rescuing the girl from the ISIS, the statement also said. It added that the young woman was currently in Iraqi Kurdish territory and was being "provided the care afforded to her under international law," adding that she will be "transferred to Swedish authorities to return home once necessary arrangements" are made. The statement provided no details on the rescue and did not say whether the teen was mistreated while with ISIS. The Associated Press does not identify minors who may have been victims of abuse or may be accused of crimes. Iraqi Kurdish officials contacted by the AP in Irbil, the capital of the Kurdish semi-autonomous region in northern Iraq, declined to provide more details on the case. But a local TV station, K24, described the rescue as a "unique military operation" and late Tuesday night broadcast an exclusive interview with the teen in which she describes what had happened to her in the last two years. The girl recounts how she stopped going to school at the age of 14 and met her boyfriend that year. At first all was fine, she says, but then he started speaking more and more about "ISIS videos." "I didn't know what ISIS means, or Islam," she said. The boyfriend convinced her to "go to ISIS in Syria" and the pair left Sweden by train on May 31, 2015, she said, recounting their subsequent journey across Europe until they reached Turkey and crossed into Syria and from there, they ended up in the Iraqi city of Mosul. They were given a house but it was without electricity or water, she said, adding that it was "totally different" from Sweden. After a while, she got a mobile phone and contacted her mother, saying she wanted to come back to Sweden. In the end, the girl thanks the Iraqi Kurdish government and asks them to send her back to Sweden. Seemingly unharmed by her experience, she did not say what happened to her boyfriend or offer other details about her life in ISIS territory. Iraq's second-largest city of Mosul was the first major city to fall into the hands of ISIS militants during their blitz in June 2014, when the group swept across vast areas in the country's north and west. To this day, Mosul remains under ISIS control as Iraqi forces, aided by airstrikes carried out by the U.S.-led international coalition, are battling to reclaim ground lost to the militants. Iraqi troops are also assisted by Shiite militiamen and Sunni pro-government fighters in the battle, while Iraqi Kurdish peshmerga forces are fighting ISIS militants to the north and east of Mosul. A young Australian boy was left bloody after being attacked by a python in his bed in an incident that his mother is describing as a real-life nightmare." The mother of 6-year-old Tyler, identified only as Tamara, told the Nambucca Guardian News that she woke up to her son's screams last Friday at their home near Macksville in New South Wales. It was like a nightmare, she said Wednesday. It was a terrifying scream and I didnt know what had happened -- I certainly didnt think it involved a snake. I have no idea how it even got into the house. The mother rushed into the bedroom to find Tyler bitten several times in the face by a python around 10 feet in length. She told the newspaper that she found the snake wrapped around her sons stomach and was able to pull it off. Following the attack, Tamaras cousins arrived at the property and killed the snake while she took Tyler to the hospital. A hospital official said a boy had been brought to the hospital on the night of the attack and was discharged the next day. Tyler doesnt remember anything -- which is the best part, she told the Nambucca Guardian News. He was only complaining about his finger hurting. A photo posted on Facebook, purportedly showing one of the cousins holding up the dead snake, has been shared more than 5,000 times, according to the newspaper. Facebook user Hollie van Es, who claimed in a post that Tyler was her nephew, wrote Thank God Brady came to save the day and got rid of it. Click for more from the Nambucca Guardian News. The Vatican is calling for a complete investigation after the Popes pregnant receptionist was found dead in her apartment last week on the outskirts of the city. Mariam Wuolou, a 34-year-old from Eritrea who worked at Pope Francis home and a priests' guesthouse called Santa Marta, was seven months pregnant when she was discovered dead on Friday, The Mirror reports. An initial review of the body showed no signs of violence, and Woulou had been absent from work for weeks due to complications from diabetes, according to the ANSA news agency. She was found in the Pisana area south of Rome after her brother told police that he had not heard from her for days. "Pope Francis had been informed of the death, said Vatican spokesman Father Federico Lombardi, according to The Mirror. We are all pained by this news." Woulou would greet the Pope daily and hand him his personal messages. The Vatican is asking authorities for a complete autopsy and criminal investigation, The Daily Beast reported, citing the local Il Messaggero newspaper, which broke the story on Tuesday. The newspaper said police are interviewing family members, including Woulou's husband, her brother and a man who reportedly is a recent boyfriend believed to be a policeman at the Vatican. DNA tests also will be carried out on the fetus as authorities work to determine who might be the father of her unborn child. Woulou had Italian citizenship through marriage, and police sources told The Daily Beast that they suspect she may have married her husband as part of a business arrangement. CARSTAR Auto Body Repair Experts Announces Promotion Of Marybeth Mack New Director of Strategic Initiatives to Lead Immersion Process for New CARSTAR Franchisees February 24, 2016 // Franchising.com // LEAWOOD, KS CARSTAR Auto Body Repair Experts announced today the promotion of Marybeth Mack, formerly Operations Project Manager, to Director of Strategic Initiatives for North Americas largest collision repair network. Mack, a CARSTAR team member since 2011, will oversee the immersion process for CARSTAR franchisees joining the network, managing their integration into the CARSTAR EDGE platform, store branding, implementation of the CARSTAR standard operating procedures, new purchasing programs and marketing resources. She also will manage franchisee renewals. Mack joined CARSTAR as part of the Insurance Relations team, and moved to the Operations team in 2015. Marybeth brings tremendous experience and understanding of the CARSTAR network to our new CARSTAR franchisees, said Dan Young, president of CARSTAR U.S. When franchisees join CARSTAR, they want to quickly be able to realize all the benefits of being part of North Americas largest collision repair network, and with Marybeths leadership, we can deliver that more effectively and efficiently. About CARSTAR CARSTAR Auto Body Repair Experts - a part of the Driven Brands, Inc. family of automotive aftermarket franchise brands - is North Americas largest Multi-Shop Operator Network of independently owned collision repair facilities with more than 450 locations in 30 states and 10 Canadian provinces. CARSTAR delivers national scale, consistently high-quality vehicle repairs, repeatable outcomes and the industrys highest customer satisfaction ratings; all repairs are backed by a national warranty and service guarantee. It was ranked 106th on Franchise Times annual Top 200 ranking of the largest franchise systems in North America and was named 18th on the Kansas City Business Journals Top 150 Private Companies list. The Romans Group LLC ranked CARSTAR the No. 1 largest MSO in North America. For more information visit www.carstar.com and follow us on Facebook and twitter . SOURCE CARSTAR Auto Body Repair Experts Contact: Deborah Robinson President Victory Management Group PR 312.505.4336 drobinson@vmg1.com ### Comments: Please enable JavaScript to view the comments powered by Disqus. Disqus Express Employment Professionals Released New Survey Results Most Employable College Majors; Engineering Tops the List; Education and Finance at Bottom; 22% Say Major "Doesn't Matter" TORONTO, ONTARIO - (Marketwired - Feb. 24, 2016) - Express Employment Professionals released new survey results today revealing the most employable university and college majors. The findings come from a survey of 134 Express franchisees across the nation. Respondents were asked, "Which university or college major makes someone the most employable?" Engineering was the most popular response at 17 per cent, followed by accounting (15 per cent), business (14 per cent) and computer and information services (nine per cent). No respondent chose education or finance. In a similar 2014 Express survey, business topped the list, followed by engineering. Not all respondents felt strongly about a single major, though. The most popular response, at 22 per cent, was "doesn't matter," indicating that they may place greater value on "soft skills" like work ethic, attitude, and accountability than on degrees and certifications alone. To view the survey results, please visit the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/expressemploymentfeb23.jpg "We've often said there's a mismatch between the skills people have and the skills that employers are looking for, and this survey indicates which degrees confer the skills that are most in demand," said Bob Funk, CEO of Express. "While we always need a workforce with diverse educational backgrounds, university and college students would always be wise to consider which degrees will offer them the greatest chance of employment after graduation. Guidance counselors, parents, and educators would also be well advised to pay attention to the demands of the modern job market." The survey of 134 Express Employment Professionals franchisees was conducted in July 2015. If you would like to arrange for an interview with Bob Funk to discuss this topic, please contact Kellie Major at (613) 222-7488. About Robert A. Funk Robert A. "Bob" Funk is chairman and chief executive officer of Express Employment Professionals. Headquartered in Oklahoma City, the international staffing company has franchises in the U.S., Canada and South Africa. Under his leadership, Express has put more than 5 million people to work worldwide. Funk served as the Chairman of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City and was also the Chairman of the Conference of Chairmen of the Federal Reserve. About Express Employment Professionals and Express in Canada Express Employment Professionals puts people to work. It generated $3.02 billion in sales and employed a record 500,002 people in 2015. Its long-term goal is to put a million people to work annually. Express launched in Canada in July 1996, with a franchise in London, Ontario, and since then, has expanded and grown across Canada significantly. There are currently 37 Express franchises in Canada - six in British Columbia, five in Alberta, two in Saskatchewan, 23 in Ontario and one in Nova Scotia. SOURCE Express Employment Professionals Media Contacts: Kellie Major 613.222.7488 kellie@mapleleafstrategies.com Sherry Kast 405.717.5966 sherry.kast@expresspros.com ### Comments: Please enable JavaScript to view the comments powered by Disqus. Disqus Home Care Assistance Receives 2016 Best of Home Care Awards Home Care Assistance of Annapolis is recognized for the second consecutive year as one of the top home care agencies in the country based on client and employee satisfaction ratings. February 24, 2016 // Franchising.com // Annapolis, MD Home Care Assistance of Annapolis, a leading provider of in-home care for seniors, is honored to be recognized as a 2016 Best of Home Care Provider of Choice and a 2016 Best of Home Care Employer of Choice by Home Care Pulse. These prestigious awards are granted only to the top ranking home care providers, based on client and employee satisfaction scores gathered by Home Care Pulse, an independent quality satisfaction benchmarking firm. Home Care Assistance of Annapolis is ranked among a select few home care providers across the country who have proven their ability to provide outstanding care to their clients as well as be a top employer in the home care industry. We want to congratulate Home Care Assistance of Annapolis on receiving both the Best of Home Care Provider of Choice Award and the Best of Home Care Employer of Choice Award, said Aaron Marcum, CEO and founder of Home Care Pulse. Since these awards are based on client and employee feedback, it demonstrates their dedication to providing the highest quality of care with a focus on client and employee satisfaction. We are pleased to recognize Home Care Assistance of Annapoliss dedication to quality, professionalism and expertise in home care. Home Care Pulse created these awards to identify the top in-home care agencies that demonstrate a passion for client and employee satisfaction and thereby help families make better care decisions for their aging loved ones. Companies are evaluated based on the following categories: Work Ethic, Timeliness of Caregivers, Knowledge of Caregivers, Compassion of Caregivers, Caregivers Appropriate Appearance, Confidence Level in Agency Management, Effective Communication from Agency, Coordination of Schedules, Agencys Response to Solving Problems, Receiving the Service as Promised, Recommendation of Agency to Others and Overall Quality of Service. Our goal is to provide each client with exceptional customer service and treat each employee as a valued member of our team, said Nancy Blethen, Owner of Home Care Assistance of Annapolis. It is truly an honor to be recognized by Home Care Pulse with these prestigious awards because it demonstrates our dedication to our clients and caregivers. At Home Care Assistance, care plans are tailored to clients individual needs and preferences. Clients are also expertly matched with thoroughly trained, screened and conscientious caregivers. With a mission to change the way the world ages, Home Care Assistance helps seniors live well at home through innovative offerings such as their proprietary Balanced Care Method, a holistic approach to healthy longevity based on scientific studies of the longest living people on Earth, and theCognitive Therapeutics Method, an activities-based program designed to promote brain health and improve quality of life. Home Care Assistance of Annapolis is located at 2642 Brandermill Blvd. in Gambrills, MD. To learn more about Home Care Assistance and how they are changing the way the world ages, please visit http://www.HomeCareAssistanceAnnapolis.com or call (443) 302-2771. About Home Care Assistance Home Care Assistance is the leading provider of home care for seniors across the United States and Canada. Our mission is to change the way the world ages. We provide older adults with quality care that enables them to live happier, healthier lives at home. Our services are distinguished by the caliber of our caregivers, the responsiveness of our staff and our expertise in home care. We embrace a positive, balanced approach to aging centered on the evolving needs of older adults. A 2016 Franchise500 and Inc. 5000 Company, Home Care Assistance has received numerous industry awards including Entrepreneurs Fastest-Growing Franchises and Franchise Business Reviews Top 50. For more information about Home Care Assistance, our services and franchise opportunities, visithomecareassistance.com or franchise.homecareassistance.com. SOURCE Home Care Assistance Media Contact: Kathryn Zakskorn Director of Franchise Marketing 650-462-9501 kzakskorn@homecareassistance.com ### Comments: Please enable JavaScript to view the comments powered by Disqus. Disqus Home Instead Senior Care Named Top Senior Care Franchise of the Year Franchise Business Review Ranks Home Instead in Top 5 of Overall Franchise Opportunities OMAHA, Neb. - Feb. 24, 2016 // PRNewswire // - Home Instead Senior Care, the leading global provider of in-home, nonmedical care services for seniors, was named the Top Senior Care Franchise of the Year byFranchise Business Review. In addition, Home Instead ranked in the top-five list of best overall franchises. Home Instead has ranked in the top-five list for best franchise opportunities in four out of the last five years. This prestigious award comes from the only program to rank companies based solely on actual franchisee satisfaction. "Our network of locally owned franchise offices is central to our mission of enhancing the lives of aging adults and their families around the world," said Jeff Huber, president and CEO of Home Instead, Inc., the franchisor of the Home Instead Senior Care network. "This award is the result of the consistent passion and commitment that exists within every corner of our organization." "As a long-time small business owner, I believe strongly in providing excellent service to our community," saidJim Pitzner, owner of the Home Instead Senior Care office serving St. Paul and the surrounding suburbs. "Becoming a Home Instead franchise owner helped me fulfill my passion for serving seniors and their families, positively impact the community around me, and become a leader in my industry through ongoing education and training." Home Instead was selected for the Top Senior Care Franchise award based on a survey of more than 26,000 franchise owners, representing 350 brands. Participants rated, reviewed and ranked their satisfaction with top performing franchise systems across a range of benchmarks, including their franchise experience, market area and business lifestyle. Support offered to Home Instead franchise owners contributing to high satisfaction rankings includes: Education and training, including industry-leading training programs for CAREGivers and family members; a new-owner training program at Home Instead headquarters; onsite visits from business performance coaches; e-learning; and Web-based resources Local marketing and public relations support Professionally created marketing tools, programs and how-to guidelines Collaboration opportunities and discussion boards for sharing experiences and insights with other franchise owners Access to the annual Home Instead international convention, local meetings and other networking or learning events 24-7 business and technical support One of Home Instead's most in-demand services is its Alzheimer's and Other Dementias CARE: Changing Aging Through Research and Education program. This first-of-its-kind Alzheimer's care training is offered to Home Instead CAREGivers and is also made available free of charge for family caregivers. The training encourages mental engagement to help older adults remain safely at home and in familiar surroundings as long as possible. Most recently, Home Instead developed a program aimed at helping business owners better identify patrons with Alzheimer's Disease. Designed to help a business' employees understand the disease, the Alzheimer's Friendly Business program provides simple techniques to ensure customers with Alzheimer's are treated with compassion and respect. Beyond setting standards in professional training and family support training, Home Instead Senior Care is actively engaged with The Global CEO Initiative on Alzheimer's Disease, The Global Coalition on Aging, the World Economic Forum Global Agenda Council on Ageing and the first G8 summit dedicated to coordinating a global response to Alzheimer's to meet the challenges of a global aging population. In addition to the list of award-winners, Franchise Business Review publishes this research in an annual resource guide for prospective franchisees. About Home Instead Senior Care Founded in 1994 in Omaha, Nebraska, by Lori and Paul Hogan, the Home Instead Senior Care network provides personalized care, support and education to help enhance the lives of aging adults and their families. Today this network is the world's leading provider of in-home care services for seniors, with more than 1,000 independently owned and operated franchises that are estimated to annually provide more than 50 million hours of care throughout the United States and 13 other countries. Local Home Instead Senior Care offices employ approximately 65,000 CAREGiversSM worldwide who provide basic support services that enable seniors to live safely and comfortably in their own homes for as long as possible. The Home Instead Senior Care network strives to partner with each client and his or her family members to help meet that individual's needs. Services span the care continuum from providing companionship and personal care to specialized Alzheimer's care and hospice support. Also available are family caregiver education and support resources. At Home Instead Senior Care, it's relationship before task, while striving to provide superior quality service. About Franchise Business Review Franchise Business Review is a national franchise market research firm that performs independent surveys of franchisee satisfaction and franchise buyer experiences. The firm's services include commissioned franchise research projects, as well as industry wide studies of franchisee satisfaction. Franchise Business Review is headquartered in Portsmouth, N.H., and can be reached at 603.433.2270. Visit www.FBR50.com orwww.FranchiseBusinessReview.com for more information. SOURCE Home Instead Senior Care ### Comments: Please enable JavaScript to view the comments powered by Disqus. Disqus Hurricane Grill & Wings Welcomes William Richardson As Chief Operating Officer Rapidly Expanding Restaurant Franchise Appoints New Chief Operating Officer To Propel Brands Success February 24, 2016 // Franchising.com // WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. Hurricane Grill & Wings, a beach-themed full service restaurant franchise, announced today that William Bill Richardson will be joining the executive team as Chief Operating Officer. With more than 30 years of experience in the restaurant industry, Richardson will oversee daily operations of all Hurricane Grill & Wings locations. Prior to joining Hurricane Grill & Wings, Richardson served as Vice President of Company Operations at McAlisters Deli, where he significantly improved operations, profits and sales results in struggling units, propelling a 18% sales growth for each store in 2014. He also served as Vice President of Operations for TGI Fridays Northeastern region where he was responsible for the growth and profitability of 75 locations. Other leadership roles he has held include Vice President of Operations at Abuelos Mexican Food Embassy and Regional Vice President of Operations at Romanos Macaroni Grill. William joins Hurricane Grill & Wings at an exciting time, having recently opened its first international location in Italy, and has plans to open an additional 15 units this year. As the concepts new Chief Operating Officer, Richardson will oversee the continued expansion of the brand as well as ensure its continued operational excellence by maintaining its superior product and service. Williams experience paired with his strategic thinking and proven track record make him the right person to execute Hurricane Grill & Wings operational goals and priorities, said John Metz, chairman and CEO of Hurricane Grill & Wings. We know that with his natural leadership and vast knowledge of the full-service restaurant industry, he will help drive the Hurricane Grill & Wings brand to the next level. It is a great honor to join the Hurricane Grill & Wings executive team at such a pivotal time of growth and achievement, said William Richardson, chief operating officer of Hurricane Grill & Wings. With a powerful business model, exceptional management team and incredible growth opportunity, Hurricane Grill & Wings was the ideal fit, and I look forward to helping the brand reach its full potential. For additional information about Hurricane Grill & Wings, please visit www.hurricanewings.com. For Franchising Opportunities contact Kevin Kruse at (609) 731 2485, or visit our website at http://www.hurricanefranchising.com/ About Hurricane Grill & Wings With over 80 restaurants open or under construction in 16 states and 5 European countries that include Austria, Germany, Italy, Poland and Switzerland, Florida-based Hurricane Grill & Wings is known for its jumbo, fresh wings, more than 35 signature sauces and rubs and tropical, laid-back vibe. Named by USA Today as one of 10 Great Places to Wing It, selected as one of the Future 50 by Restaurant Business and as one of Franchise Times Top 40 Fast and Serious, Hurricane Grill & Wings menu includes crave-able Hurricanes Garlic & Parm fries, tasty salads, seafood entrees and fresh pound burgers. The brands signature Rum Bar with over 21 premium rums leads its tropical drinks menu, along with a wide selection of craft beers and wines. The original Hurricane Grill & Wings opened in Fort Pierce, Fla., in 1995 and has expanded to locations in Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, Georgia, Iowa, Louisiana, Maryland, Minnesota, New York, North Carolina, Tennessee and Texas, as well as an international restaurant in Italy. There are additional restaurants planned both domestically and internationally. For more information, visit www.hurricanewings.com. SOURCE Hurricane Grill & Wings Media Contacts: Shelby Lopaty slopaty@konnect-pr.com Kayla Hockman khockman@konnect-pr.com ### Comments: Please enable JavaScript to view the comments powered by Disqus. Disqus Pollo Tropical Continues San Antonio Expansion February 24, 2016 // Franchising.com // Pollo Tropical, the fast casual restaurant known for its citrus-marinated, flame-grilled chicken a comfort food gone Caribbean sides like corn souffle and balsamic tomatoes, will open its sixth and seventh San Antonio-area locations in February. The company will bring its signature bright tropical blue Caribbean-style restaurants to New Braunfels and Castle Hills. Castle Hills: Saturday, Feb. 27 at 6007 West Avenue The grand opening celebration kicks off at 10:00 a.m. with the local chambers of commerce and Pollo Tropical representatives. Doors open at 10:30 a.m. and the first 100 guests in line will receive a free quarter chicken meal with rice and beans and will be entered into a raffle for the grand prize of Free Chicken for a Year drawing at 11:00 a.m.* At 5:30 p.m. on opening day, guests will be eligible to win free meal giveaways, and a drawing for a $300 Visa gift card will take place at 6 p.m. Weve opened seven restaurants in the San Antonio-area in 18 months, and we plan to open several more in 2016 to serve this community that has embraced our island-style food, said Pollo Tropical Chief Operating Officer Danny Meisenheimer. We invite all of our new neighbors in New Braunfels and Castle Hills to join us at the grand opening celebrations for free food and fun. The 3,700-square-foot restaurants will be open from 10:30 a.m. to midnight daily, and will feature indoor and outdoor seating for more than 90 guests, with limited table service and a convenient drive-thru. Guests can receive a coupon for either a buy one, get one free small TropiChop or $3 off a family meal by signing up for the Pollo Reward$ loyalty program. Both restaurants are actively recruiting for all positions and plan to hire more than 40 hourly team members. Applications are being accepted at http://pollotropical.com/careers/job-postings/. *Complete details, including contest rules, odds of winning and eligibility can be found at: www.pollotropical.com. About Pollo Tropical Pollo Tropical, a subsidiary of Fiesta Restaurant Group, Inc. is a Caribbean-inspired fast casual concept known for its fresh, flame-grilled chicken marinated in a proprietary blend of tropical fruit juices and spices. Other craveable island favorites include Mojo Roast Pork and made-from-scratch sides including rice, beans, yuca with garlic sauce, sweet plantains and more. Menu items like the Tropical Citrus Chicken Salad, Guava BBQ Pork Sandwich and Create Your Own TropiChops can be customized with 10 zesty tropical signature sauces on Pollo Tropicals famous Saucing Island. Founded in 1988, the Miami-based company currently owns and operates more than 150 locations in Florida, Georgia, Tennessee and Texas, plus licensed restaurants on college campuses and franchised locations throughout the Caribbean, Central America, South America and Puerto Rico. For more information, visit Pollo Tropicals website at www.pollotropical.com. About Fiesta Restaurant Group, Inc. Fiesta Restaurant Group, Inc., owns, operates and franchises Pollo Tropical and Taco Cabana restaurant brands. The brands specialize in the operation of fast casual, ethnic restaurants that offer distinct and unique flavors with broad appeal at a compelling value. The brands feature made-from-scratch cooking, fresh salsa bars, drive-thru service and catering. For more information about Fiesta Restaurant Group, Inc., visit the corporate website at www.frgi.com. SOURCE Pollo Tropical Contacts: Lainie Harber Lainie@spmcommunications.com 214-379-7000 Kerrie Sparks Kerrie@spmcommunications.com 214-379-7000 ### Comments: Please enable JavaScript to view the comments powered by Disqus. Disqus Valpak Seeks Entrepreneur To Strengthen Its Presence In Nashville, Tennessee February 24, 2016 // Franchising.com // ST. PETERSBURG, FL. Valpak, a leader in local print and digital coupons, announced today it is looking to further grow its brand in Nashville, Tennessee. The company is seeking an entrepreneur to invest in this franchise opportunity and continue to strengthen its market presence. There are as many as 500,000 households in Nashville, Murfreesboro, Franklin, Antioch, Brentwood and other nearby cities that are receiving the consumer savings Valpak brings to the area. Nashville continues to earn national recognition for its business growth, such as with a spot on Business Insider's list of the hottest American cities for 2016. Couple that with the recent report from the International Franchise Association showing that the total number of U.S. franchise businesses is expected to be close to 800,000 by the end of the year. Valpak knows this is the right time to grow in Nashville. "Nashville is a highly creative city, but it isnt just known for music anymore. It has the job and population growth to support small business entrepreneurs in many industries, plus that 'coolness' factor that attracts residents and visitors alike," said Greg Courchane, Valpaks director of franchise sales. "Valpak helps businesses and consumers connect in innovative ways, and we look forward to bringing a new franchisee on board to put our suite of digital and print marketing tools to work for Nashville communities." A leader in cooperative direct mail, Valpak mails coupons to nearly 39 million demographically targeted households per month in 45 states and four Canadian provinces. Today, in addition to its flagship Blue Envelope, Valpak offers its business customers an impressive portfolio of digital advertising products including Smartphone apps, Google partnerships, website development, mobile web optimization and reputation management. With more than 25 million Americans using couponing apps each month, Valpaks digital offerings have been a big draw for new franchisees. Digital coupon use is on the rise, and ample gains are projected in2016. In the past year, Valpak's print offerings have also expanded with on-pack advertising and circulars. Ideal candidates for Valpak franchise ownership should possess a desire to join a trusted, industry-leading brand, work within a proven franchise system, develop relationships with local businesses and have a comfort level with selling new, digital technologies. Franchisees should also possess a minimum liquidity of $75,000, and a minimum net worth of $150,000. For more information on Valpak franchise opportunities, please contact Greg Courchane at greg_courchane@valpak.com or 727-399-3091 or visit www.valpakfranchising.com. Discover more about Valpak Valpak is at the heart of communities across North America, helping people save, businesses grow and neighborhoods thrive through a network of local franchises in the U.S. and Canada. Valpak marketing consultants live and work in your neighborhood. We know what your customers want (we are them!) and can help you take the guesswork out of advertising with real-world marketing solutions that drive measurable results. From the mailbox to online to mobile devices, Valpak continues to find innovative ways to connect businesses with consumers. Monthly, close to 39 million homes receive our Blue Envelope of savings and traffic on valpak.com and our syndication partner sites exceeds 110 million. Backed by the muscle of Cox Target Media, your local Valpak office has the means and know-how to custom build a marketing campaign that meets your needs and budget. Let us introduce you to the neighborhood. Call Valpak at 1-800-676-6878. SOURCE Valpak Media Contact: Sloane Fistel Account Executive Fish Consulting, LLC O: (954) 893-9150 C: (954) 789-0432 ### Comments: Please enable JavaScript to view the comments powered by Disqus. Disqus Regal Innovations Completes Transformation of The Exterior and Interior Landscapes Of The Barangaroo South Tower Regal Innovations has created a new approach to harmonizing urban development with Australias natural world, with stunning interior and exterior landscaping of the Barangaroo South Tower. San Francisco, CA -- February 24, 2016 (FPRC) -- Bondi Beach is getting face lift, and Regal Innovations has successfully completed a facelift of area 1 ahead of schedule, and is now undertaking construction of Area 2 of Bondi Park, which will help create beautiful new spaces for one of Australias most famous beaches. Their high profile work also continues in residential spaces, where the company has just completed work creating an impressive interior and exterior landscaping job in The Barangaroo South Tower, on the site of the new Sydney Casino. The tower is a major development in the heart of Sydney which will dramatically change the landscape of the city, and Regal Innovations has worked tirelessly to generate designs that will marry the urban space with homages to Australias unique natural habitats. Construction is scheduled to begin on the podium level of the Tower in the next month, and Regal Innovations will landscape the area to create a breath taking space in keeping with the established aesthetic. Images of the work can be found on the companys website under their current projects, which will help people get excited about these beautifully public spaces, designed by Robert Stanton. These projects are helping to define the look of Sydney for the next generation. A spokesperson for Regal Innovations explained, We have worked tirelessly to ensure that both Bondi Beach and the Barangaroo South Tower works have been completed to the highest possible standards as well as being finished ahead of schedule. That success has led our existing clients to recommission us to work on further developments in the same locations, seeing the potential ways in which our designs can be extended to provide even better experiences for the public who interact with these spaces. We cannot wait to get started, and look forward to seeing how people interact with our finished spaces. About Regal Innovations: Regal Innovations was established in 1971 and has developed into one of the leaders in commercial and industrial landscape construction in New South Wales. They offer a complete and detailed range of services which includes both soft and hard landscape works, civil works, maintenance and bush regeneration. Regal Innovations are a 2014 Award Winner for the Landscape Excellence Association. For more information please visit: http://regalinnovations.com.au/ Send an email to Joe Bragg of r (415) 632 1664 Recent Press Releases By The Same User ShapeHost Launches New Spring Sale Offering Savings Of Up To 35% On VPS Packages (Tue 8th Mar 16) Paypro Finance Launches their Consumer Financing for Small Business Program (Mon 7th Mar 16) Kuber Ventures Publishes New Infographic To Show Difference Between EIS for Pensions and SIPP (Thu 3rd Mar 16) Pregnancy Exercise Publishes New Guide Into Training For Fitness While Pregnant (Thu 3rd Mar 16) Centex Hosting Launches Newly Redesigned Website To Herald Expansion Into VPS Hosting (Thu 3rd Mar 16) Royal Cliff Receives ISO 22000 Food Safety Management Certification (Wed 2nd Mar 16) Frux Home And Yard Announces Free Bonus Luminary Candle Bags For All Customers Customers can receive the free bonus luminary candle bags when they purchase a set of Frux Home and Yard's flameless tea lights, reports http://fruxhomeandyard.com. Petaluma, CA -- February 24, 2016 (FPRC) -- Frux Home and Yard, a premier provider of high-quality, value-priced home products, is announcing the free bonus that they are providing for their customers. Each customer who purchases a set of 24 of the companys yellow flameless tealight candles will receive 12 free luminary candle bags included with their order. Those who would like to learn more about what Frux Home and Yard has to offer or place an order for the flameless tealight candles should visit fruxhomeandyard.com . Mike McDonald, a spokesperson for Frux Home and Yard, stated Our tealights are perfect for just about any home or building because they provide worry-free lighting. With their LED bulbs, these tealight candles are flameless, dripless, smoke free, child and pet friendly, and safe to use at any venue or event. They are a must-have item for anyone who owns a boat or RV and cannot use standard candles. Every LED tealight candle we produce has a realistic amber flickering flame, which means they wont take away from the design or the decor of the home or venue. We also include long life batteries in every candle that will last an average of 200,000 hours. The free bonus luminary candle bags that are included with the purchase of the tealight candle set are a beautiful bright white with whimsical stars that line the top half of the bag. These bonus bags feature amazing detail, yet their simplicity in design allows them to fit in with just about any decor. In addition to the free bonus luminary bags, Frux Home and Yard also provides customers with a 100 percent lifetime satisfaction guarantee. If a customer is not satisfied with their purchase, they can simply let Frux Home and Yard know and their customer service team will make things right. McDonald goes on to say, We are thrilled to be offering this bonus to our customers. Its just another way that we can show them we care and go above and beyond to meet their needs. We hope that every customer who orders one of our LED tealight sets enjoys the product they receive and the joy and whimsy that the luminary candle bags will bring to their homes as well as their everyday lives. Customers can order Frux Home and Yards LED tealight set or inquire further about the free bonus candle bags at Fruxhomeandyard.com. About Frux Home and Yard: Established in 2013, Frux Home and Yard is a family-owned brand of home products that offers useful, interesting and value priced home products. Currently, they offer high quality decorative lighting for personal and commercial use. Send an email to Mike McDonald of r (250) 465-2784 Recent Press Releases By The Same User ShapeHost Launches New Spring Sale Offering Savings Of Up To 35% On VPS Packages (Tue 8th Mar 16) Paypro Finance Launches their Consumer Financing for Small Business Program (Mon 7th Mar 16) Kuber Ventures Publishes New Infographic To Show Difference Between EIS for Pensions and SIPP (Thu 3rd Mar 16) Pregnancy Exercise Publishes New Guide Into Training For Fitness While Pregnant (Thu 3rd Mar 16) Centex Hosting Launches Newly Redesigned Website To Herald Expansion Into VPS Hosting (Thu 3rd Mar 16) Royal Cliff Receives ISO 22000 Food Safety Management Certification (Wed 2nd Mar 16) Miles Real Estate Announces Inspection And Auction Dates For North East Homes Now is a great time to purchase a property in Melbourne's North East, and Miles Real Estate has the perfect auction and sale listings for those looking to buy a home, reports http://milesre.com.au. Melbourne, Victoria -- February 24, 2016 (FPRC) -- Miles Real Estate, the premier firm serving Banyule and surrounding municipalities for over 85 years, has posted upcoming inspection and auction dates for the North East area homes that are listed on their website. For those looking for houses for sale ivanhoe or a place in Rosanna, this is a great time to search the Miles Real Estate website or get in contact with one of their highly-experienced agents. Those interested in learning more about the listings they have available should visit their website at http://milesre.com.au. Brad Carter, a member of the Miles Real Estate staff team, stated Right now is the perfect time to buy a home in North East Melbourne. Areas like Ivanhoe offer people the perks of an established, family-oriented area with impressive school options thats still fun and exciting for people of all ages. While the area is known for its historic homes, real estate ivanhoe has a great mix of townhouses and luxury apartments as well. Its North East living at its finest, and right now we have a number of listings that are currently open for inspection. We have both apartments and homes listed that will match a variety of buyer tastes and preferences. Potential buyers can stop by the Miles Real Estate website to see beautiful full-color photographs of every home or apartment listing. In addition, theyll find a convenient list of inspection dates and specific times. If the property is up for auction, the listing will also include the date that the auction is currently set to take place. Having all of this pertinent information in one place makes it easy to see what North East Melbourne has to offer those who are looking to buy a home in the near future. As Carter goes on to say, Whether its houses for sale rosanna or an Ivanhoe property that someones after, Miles Real Estate can help them find the perfect one. Lovely, beautiful, and friendly are all adjectives frequently used to describe the North East. With the help of our knowledgeable, hard-working, and caring agents, well help people take advantage of all that these areas have to offer. About Miles Real Estate: By providing a powerful combination of local knowledge, contemporary insights, vast experience and a long-standing reputation for excellence, Miles Real Estate has remained a market leader in Banyule and surrounding municipalities for over 85 years. Results are one of the keys to Miles Real Estate's success, and their experienced team of caring, friendly, and attentive real estate professionals strive to achieve impressive outcomes for every property, from multi-million dollar mansions to a studio apartments. Together with an established, prominent presence, Miles Real Estates strong historical links with the community have enabled them to build an intimate and practical understanding of the local real estate market, and Miles also utilizes this knowledge to lead the way in providing exceptional Commercial Sales and both Commercial & Residential Property Management services. Send an email to Brad Carter of r 03 9497 3223 Recent Press Releases By The Same User ShapeHost Launches New Spring Sale Offering Savings Of Up To 35% On VPS Packages (Tue 8th Mar 16) Paypro Finance Launches their Consumer Financing for Small Business Program (Mon 7th Mar 16) Kuber Ventures Publishes New Infographic To Show Difference Between EIS for Pensions and SIPP (Thu 3rd Mar 16) Pregnancy Exercise Publishes New Guide Into Training For Fitness While Pregnant (Thu 3rd Mar 16) Centex Hosting Launches Newly Redesigned Website To Herald Expansion Into VPS Hosting (Thu 3rd Mar 16) Royal Cliff Receives ISO 22000 Food Safety Management Certification (Wed 2nd Mar 16) Pura Salute, Launch Essential Oils and Aromatherapy Accessories Company Pura Salute launches new Natural Health and Wellbeing Company to bring consumers a range of pure, therapeutic grade Essential Oils and Aromatherapy Accessories online. -- Aromatherapy is the art and practice of using volatile plant oils extracted from flowers, bark, stems, leaves and roots to help treat and prevent physical and emotional illness and disease. The use of Essential Oils can be traced back over 6000 years to ancient China, India, Egypt, Greece and The Roman Empire. Modern Aromatherapy treatments are well researched and the healing attributes and benefits of essential oils are wildly recognized across the globe. "Millions of Americans wish to take control of their health holistically. The trend is growing and consumers are demanding safe, natural, side effect free alternatives to pharmacy medications." Company Founder, Mark Earle explains. "Pura Salute Essential oil products are designed to bridge the gap between ancient practice and modern, researched plant based medicine to bring consumers what they want, easily available, high quality products at an affordable and competitive price." Pura Salute product lines include: Essential Oil Diffusing Necklaces and Pendants Adults and children can receive the healing, energizing, and calming benefits of therapeutic Essential Oils and personalized Aromatherapy blends throughout the day. The pendants are stainless steel and hypoallergenic and have a 24 inch chain. Included are 5 highly absorbent different colored pads which easily absorb essential oils and release the fragrance and therapeutic benefits over time whilst also being an attractive fashion accessory. Electric Vaporisers Electric vaporisers and diffusers offer a clean, convenient and effective way of bringing pure fragrance to the environment without the concern of synthetic chemicals found in off the shelf aerosol and odour elimination products. When asked if Electric vaporisers are safe, Customer service agent Marion Smith said "Electric vaporisers are a reliable and safe alternative to tea-light Aromatherapy oil burners because there is no naked flame. They can be left unattended all day and throughout the night even whilst you are sleeping." Premium Aromatherapy Essential Oils Gift Set Individually, and blended together, Pura Salute's Top Six Essential Oils Kit brings beginners in aromatherapy and professional aromatherapists an ideal aromatherapy starter set to use for natural healing, massage and pleasure. The set consists of 6 x 10ml bottles of pure therapeutic grade oils which include: Eucalyptus Peppermint Teatree Lavender Lemongrass Orange All Pura Salute essential oils are packaged in dark amber glass bottle with a dropper and cap to preserve their potency. Pura Salute oils are 100% pure, and distilled from organic and wild crafted plants. They are completely free from synthetic fragrances, preservatives, alcohol, mineral oil, and parabens. "Customer care and satisfaction, is at the heart of our philosophy" says Earle. "We are proud to offer a powerful, no question asked, risk free 100% satisfaction, money-back guarantee on each of our products." Interested parties can learn more about the qualities and uses of Essential Oils, and purchase the products on the Pura Salute website and via Amazon.com For more information about us, please visit http://www.PuraSalute.com Contact Info: Name: Jon Rathe Email: support@PuraSalute.com Organization: Pura Salute Address: Suite K166245 13820 NE Airport Way Portland, Oregon, 97230 Phone: Free Phone: (866)-PSalute Release ID: 104779 For more information visit r Recent Press Releases By The Same User Agarwood Essential Oil Market Expected to Grow at CAGR 4.2% During 2016 to 2022"> (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Cyber Weapon Market by Type, Product, Application, Region, Outlook and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Landscaping and Gardening Expert Trevor McClintock Launches New Locally Optimized Website (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Sleep apnea devices Market is Evolving At A CAGR of 7.5% by 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Agriculture Technology Market 2017 Global Analysis, Opportunities and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Global VR Helmet Market by Manufacturers, Technology, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) My Local Broker Launches Fully Redesigned Website With 15,000 Broker Pages My Local Broker has created a brand new website to help people find local mortgage brokers throughout the whole of Australia, with listings for more than 15,000 suburbs. San Francisco, CA -- February 24, 2016 (FPRC) -- Mortgage brokers are an essential gatekeeper in the process of getting a house, and can be responsible for the size of mortgage individuals can afford and the scale of their monthly repayments. As such, individuals understand the importance of getting a great mortgage broker, but too often overlook those right under their nose, instead going with national brokerages that offer uncompetitive rates. The My Local Broker website helps people find full listings of local mortgage brokers, and has just redesigned its website with over 15,000 new pages for every suburb. My Local Broker has created a fully responsive website architecture that will load seamlessly on any device, together with a design that incorporates stunning imagery and a seamless navigation experience. To ensure people can quickly and effectively find their local listings, they can enter their postcode direct on the homepage to be taken straight to the individuals or local brokers who can help. The site is free of charge, easy to use and offers an average of 30 providers per location, so people will always have choices available to them. From there, individuals can get full contact details for the brokers and make initial inquiries. A spokesperson for My Local Broker explained, We have aimed to be the ultimate money saving resource when it comes to sourcing a mortgage, and the mortgage broker is the most important person in defining an individual or couples success or failure when it comes to securing the biggest loan of their life. The website being easy to use and transparent is of course important, but we also wanted to make the site exciting to use and attractive to brokers who want to list their services, so both sides of the industry can use the site as a way to connect with one another. About My Local Broker: My Local Broker is inspired by community and the attitude keeping it local, My Local Broker aims to facilitate lasting relationships between clients and local mortgage brokers. My Local Broker offers customers the opportunity to find a broker from their local community by reviewing hundreds of profiles that contain photos, videos, live twitter feeds and testimonials. For more information please visit: http://www.mylocalbroker.com.au/ Send an email to Joe Bragg of r (415) 632 1664 Recent Press Releases By The Same User ShapeHost Launches New Spring Sale Offering Savings Of Up To 35% On VPS Packages (Tue 8th Mar 16) Paypro Finance Launches their Consumer Financing for Small Business Program (Mon 7th Mar 16) Kuber Ventures Publishes New Infographic To Show Difference Between EIS for Pensions and SIPP (Thu 3rd Mar 16) Pregnancy Exercise Publishes New Guide Into Training For Fitness While Pregnant (Thu 3rd Mar 16) Centex Hosting Launches Newly Redesigned Website To Herald Expansion Into VPS Hosting (Thu 3rd Mar 16) Royal Cliff Receives ISO 22000 Food Safety Management Certification (Wed 2nd Mar 16) Photoplay Studios Adelaide Launches New Maternity Package To Capture The Beauty of Pregnancy Photoplay Studios Adelaide has created a new package to help mothers-to-be capture their special time in beautiful and timeless natural and studio settings. San Francisco, CA -- February 24, 2016 (FPRC) -- Becoming pregnant is a miracle for all women, and the experience of being pregnant can change their outlook on life. This special time lasts for just a few short months in comparison to the years of motherhood ahead, and as such many women look to commemorate this special time. Photography is doubtless the best way to do so, capturing a moment in time that can be shared for eternity. Photoplay Studios is offering new maternity photography in Adelaide to help women get the best possible images to remember their maternity. The packages can be shot outdoors, in their custom studio, or in a combination of locations to help women get a beautifully captured impression of the natural wonder of pregnancy. The session takes around an hour, and consultation on clothing choices and accessories will be given, together with a range of high quality maternity shawls and drapes to add tasteful accents and artistic detail to the shots. The images themselves are characterised by the same natural charm as their newborn and family photography in Adelaide, capturing the moments of fun, joy and love that take place during the course of the session, as the friendly and professional photographers. A spokesperson for Photoplay Studios Adelaide explained, We are thrilled to be able to offer maternity packages to new mothers who want to capture all the magic of their pregnancy. We recommend mothers book a session between 20-25 weeks into their pregnancy to have their photos taken at around 36 weeks, when their bump will look wonderful but there is still time for the little one to decide to arrive a little earlier than expected. We can then capture the unique relationship between the mother and the unborn child, and the radiance that mothers get as they move toward giving birth. Visit our website to see some of our stunning results. About Photoplay Studios Adelaide: Photoplay Studios Adelaide offer family photography, maternity, newborn baby portraits & wedding packages as well as their very popular kindergarten and pre-school photography services. They offer both outdoor and studio portraiture of the highest quality, in a wide range of packages to suit every budget. Their experienced, friendly and professional photographers specialize in capturing candid moments of love and beauty. For more information please visit: http://photoplaystudios.com.au/ Send an email to Joe Bragg of r (415) 632 1664 Recent Press Releases By The Same User ShapeHost Launches New Spring Sale Offering Savings Of Up To 35% On VPS Packages (Tue 8th Mar 16) Paypro Finance Launches their Consumer Financing for Small Business Program (Mon 7th Mar 16) Kuber Ventures Publishes New Infographic To Show Difference Between EIS for Pensions and SIPP (Thu 3rd Mar 16) Pregnancy Exercise Publishes New Guide Into Training For Fitness While Pregnant (Thu 3rd Mar 16) Centex Hosting Launches Newly Redesigned Website To Herald Expansion Into VPS Hosting (Thu 3rd Mar 16) Royal Cliff Receives ISO 22000 Food Safety Management Certification (Wed 2nd Mar 16) Accrue Real Estates Jeff Grochowski Publishes New Report On Future Of Negative Gearing Jeff Grochowski has published new information on negative gearing and its effect on the real estate market after a key development in the House of Representatives. Melbourne, VIC -- February 24, 2016 (FPRC) -- Negative gearing is a huge part of Australian investment culture, and describes situations where individuals take out loans to invest in properties that do not generate as much income as the cost of the interest and maintenance on the property. The practice is controversial but widespread, and often used as a tax reduction strategy. As a result, Parliament in Australia has debated negative gearing multiple times. Accrue Real Estate s Jeff Grochowski has been keeping a close eye on the developments, and has published new insights into the latest state of play for investors. Grochowski reports that the The Prime Minister, Malcolm Turnbull, in answer to a question from Labor, told the House of Representatives that negative gearing will remain. 35% of property buyers nationwide, and more in Sydney and Melbourne, were using negative gearing to reduce their taxes. As property is the main driver of personal wealth, changing policy of negative gearing could eliminate 35% of the market overnight. Grochowski goes on to analyse and cut through the media spin attempts by various parties in the coalition and uses historical context to justify why investors have little reason to be concerned, after Labors disastrous elimination of negative gearing in the 90s. He points out that scary policy announcements are a part of Labor trying to rehabilitate Shorten's image by getting media coverage for "thought bubbles". The property expert and licensed real estate agent said yesterday in a media conference, "Negative gearing will remain in some form. It is too important for the economy to be eliminated." The message that Jeff wanted is one of confidence, with a recommendation that investments made now will not be affected retroactively, Buyers can look at reducing their tax with an investment property under the current rules before the federal Budget. They can be confident that the Prime Minister will not make changes that will harm the property market. Australia's immigration policy is bringing record numbers of new residents to Melbourne and property investors will be the people who provide their homes. One thing is for sure, if you secure a property for negative gearing purposes today there is comfort in knowing that its likely the full benefits of negative gearing will remain in place for those who dont procrastinate. About Accrue Real Estate: Accrue Real Estate tailor direct property transactions to match the specific needs and objectives of individual clients. They provide a safe and tested buyers acquisition service, working side by side with members to ensure they get the best result possible when introduced to property they have sourced, helping members avoid common property mistakes and pitfalls in order to maximise their potential. For more information please visit: http://accruerealestate.com.au/ Accrue Real Estate 92 York Street South Melbourne VIC 3205 Send an email to Jeff Grochowski of r (03) 9696 0085 Recent Press Releases By The Same User ShapeHost Launches New Spring Sale Offering Savings Of Up To 35% On VPS Packages (Tue 8th Mar 16) Paypro Finance Launches their Consumer Financing for Small Business Program (Mon 7th Mar 16) Kuber Ventures Publishes New Infographic To Show Difference Between EIS for Pensions and SIPP (Thu 3rd Mar 16) Pregnancy Exercise Publishes New Guide Into Training For Fitness While Pregnant (Thu 3rd Mar 16) Centex Hosting Launches Newly Redesigned Website To Herald Expansion Into VPS Hosting (Thu 3rd Mar 16) Royal Cliff Receives ISO 22000 Food Safety Management Certification (Wed 2nd Mar 16) ESFS Expands Coverage of South Carolina Flat Roof Quotes Today marked the beginning of a new quote service for South Carolina from ESFS, a home improvement website. -- Today marked the beginning of a new quote service for South Carolina from ESFS, a home improvement website. The new service is for Flat Roof construction and replacement, with a wide variety of options available from local contractors. The choice between a flat or slanted roof is partly aesthetic, and partly a consideration of the climate. Winters without heavy snow or rain eliminate the need for a heavily sloped roof, while a flat roof, with the correct coatings, can lower absorption of heat into the home interior. The cost of a flat roof can vary dramatically depending on what materials are chosen to construct it, but each type also requires different skills to install. Replacing an existing roof due to age or damage roof is also a distinct consideration from a new installation. Choosing the right roofing contractors for a specific flat roof requirement can be time-consuming and confusing, but ESFS helps take a large portion of the legwork out by allowing users to enter their project requirements just once, matching up users project requirements to several local businesses in their area. The quotes produced from ESFS are all obligation-free, and from pre-approved contractors that have partnered with the site. The uniformity of information presented to different contractors helps ensure quotes are easily comparable, and are designed to make choosing an appropriate company much easier. At the present time, 16 locations across South Carolina were available for Flat Roof quotes, with more planned for future expansions. Some of the popular areas whose inhabitants can utilise the new quote service are Charleston, Greenville and Summerville. About ESFS.org ESFS stands for Easy Simple Fast Service and is an online service dedicated to providing customers with no obligation quotes for a variety of services including home repair and additions, interior design and decoration, cleaning, roofing and construction from pre-screened local contractors. For more information about us, please visit http://www.esfs.org Contact Info: Name: Matt Aird Organization: Easy Simple Fast Service Address: www.esfs.org Release ID: 104738 For more information visit r Recent Press Releases By The Same User Agarwood Essential Oil Market Expected to Grow at CAGR 4.2% During 2016 to 2022"> (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Cyber Weapon Market by Type, Product, Application, Region, Outlook and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Landscaping and Gardening Expert Trevor McClintock Launches New Locally Optimized Website (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Sleep apnea devices Market is Evolving At A CAGR of 7.5% by 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Agriculture Technology Market 2017 Global Analysis, Opportunities and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Global VR Helmet Market by Manufacturers, Technology, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) TheHosting.review Launches a New A2Hosting Review in 2016 Based on the feedbacks of hundreds of real customers and the personal hosting experiences of reviewers, TheHosting.review today launches a newly updated A2Hosting review in the year of 2016. -- TheHosting.review is a professional hosting review site that releases a lot of objective reviews for almost all the popular web hosts. Today, this site launches a new A2Hosting review after making an in-depth analysis for the cost-effectiveness of their hosting plans, the overall speed and hosting uptime of the service and the quality of their technical support. To figure out whether A2Hosting is worth trying or not, the reviewers of this professional site have done the following tasks. o Monitor the online availability and the page loading speed of the sample site that is hosted by A2Hosting. o Search for the customer reviews, opinions and feedbacks of the hosting service offered by this provider. o Contact their support representatives via all the support channels. o Consider the information showcased from many other A2Hosting reviews. o Evaluate the cost-effectiveness of their hosting plans by analyzing the hosting charges and features. According to the A2Hosting review released by TheHosting.review, this web host is an experienced hosting provider that offers the shared web hosting, VPS hosting, dedicated hosting, cloud hosting and reseller hosting. The shared hosting is charged starting at $7.99/mo regularly. But now, the price is down to $3.92/mo effectively with this special promotion link that achieves a 51% discount. As tested since the year of 2015, A2Hosting succeeds in achieving a 99.99% uptime for the sample site, along with the short time used for the response of each server request that is around 397 ms. 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For more information about us, please visit https://thehosting.review/a2hosting-review/ Contact Info: Name: Eunge Email: founder@eunge.com Organization: Eunge Media and Technology Group Ltd Source: http://marketersmedia.com/thehosting-review-launches-a-new-a2hosting-review-in-2016/104862 Release ID: 104862 For more information visit r Recent Press Releases By The Same User Agarwood Essential Oil Market Expected to Grow at CAGR 4.2% During 2016 to 2022"> (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Cyber Weapon Market by Type, Product, Application, Region, Outlook and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Landscaping and Gardening Expert Trevor McClintock Launches New Locally Optimized Website (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Sleep apnea devices Market is Evolving At A CAGR of 7.5% by 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Agriculture Technology Market 2017 Global Analysis, Opportunities and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Global VR Helmet Market by Manufacturers, Technology, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Scottish Widows has returned to the intermediary protection market and has completed a series of roadshows in Birmingham, Bristol, London and Manchester. The events were by led by Alun Beynon, the companys head of intermediary distribution, protection and Johnny Timpson, technical and industry affairs managers, protection. They showcased the firms new purpose-built digital platform which gives advisers access to a comprehensive range of tools, including calculators and a risk analyser to help them write protection business. Emma Thomson, life office relations director at LifeSearch, said: Scottish Widows return to the intermediary protection market has been very welcome, offering good solutions to our customers and delivering the high levels of service we are looking for. Alan Lakey, senior partner at Hertfordshire-based Highclere Financial Services, said: I attended the recent London roadshow and it was very informative. It is good that the protection market has been revitalized by the re-emergence of Scottish Widows and Canada Life as competition ensures that quality products are designed to differentiate the various propositions. Claire Walsh, chartered financial planner at Aspect 8 said: I think its always good to see greater competition in the protection market, which should give advisers and clients more choice and help drive down rates. ruth.gillbe@ft.com Jupiter Asset Management will launch an Asian Income fund next week that aims to generate income and capital growth over the long-term. The fund will invest primarily in equities and securities of companies listed or located in the Asia Pacific region, excluding Japan. Managed by Jason Pidcock, who ran Newtons Asian Income fund from 2004 to 2015, this product is expected to be overweight on Australia and New Zealand. Exposure to Asian emerging markets such as Philippines is also expected. The Asian Income fund will be benchmarked against the FTSE All World Asia Pacific ex-Japan index and will involve a bottom-up stock picking approach. The fund will have a tighter holding with 40-50 large-cap holdings. While at the beginning, the fund will have more exposure to developed markets, it plans to gradually introduce emerging economies into its portfolio after a careful research of their economic and political situation. The fund has an estimated gross yield of 4.25 per cent pa. Even though the fund will have exposure to non-sterling markets, the manager has said no gearing, derivatives or hedging will be involved. He expects companies to have a natural hedging in place. www.jupiteram.com Comment: UK investors often find themselves looking outside the region for better yields. Asian markets have often been an attractive option, especially now that the concerns over a Chinese slowdown have started to calm down. Jupiters Asian Income fund provides a diversified portfolio to investors by investing in a mix of developed and developing markets within the Asia Pacific region. Despite the crash in commodities markets, the fund is optimistic on the Australian market and aims to have a higher exposure to this market in the beginning. The funds manager believes Australia is much more stable than other commodity-driven countries like Russia. The Australian dollar has performed well since September and is up against the US dollar, while most are down. The fund will have exposure to general insurance, telecoms, property and infrastructure in Australia. The manager is also very optimistic on the Philippines due to its stable economy and a sound political system at the moment. Mr Pidcock has a solid, but unspectacular record at Newton, slightly underperfoming his benchmark. However, FEs profile highlights his stock picking and a tendency to outperform peers in falling markets. While investments will be underpinned by a research process, the biggest risk for the fund is market events. Emerging markets are dependent on both domestic and external factors such as oil prices and monetary policy tightening from the US Federal Reserve. This puts the fund at a greater risk of volatility. A High Court ruling about a pension transfer has been labelled arbitrary by the Pensions Ombudsman, who has more than 200 similar cases to consider. Pensions Ombudsman Anthony Arter was speaking after the High Courts ruling in favour of Donna-Marie Hughes right to transfer her pension into a new scheme. Mr Arter had ruled against Ms Hughes and in favour of her provider Royal London, which had vetoed the transfer because of concerns about the scheme she would transfer to. Since this decision and Ms Hughess subsequent appeal to the High Court, more than 200 similar cases before the Pensions Ombudsman have been put on hold. Mr Arter had ruled that Ms Hughes did not have a statutory right to transfer because the receiving scheme needed to be an occupational or personal pension scheme, and as she had no relevant earnings her request for a cash equivalent transfer value was not for securing transfer credits. Since Ms Hughes had no statutory right, Royal London had discretion over whether to allow the transfer, which Mr Arter said the provider had legitimate concerns about. Mr Arter said: Fridays [19 February] High Court ruling provides clarity for more than 200 pension liberation cases we currently have on hold. However, the judgement means there will be disparity between those who have other earnings, however little they may be, and those who have none. This seems an arbitrary distinction. It is now unnecessary for an individual who wishes to transfer their benefits to an occupational pension scheme to be in receipt of earnings from a scheme employer. In fact the scheme employer may not even be trading. It is important that a balance is struck between allowing people to invest as they wish and preventing fraudulent transfers taking place. Last weeks High Court ruling centred on a pension transfer request made in 2014 to a new scheme. Royal London refused the request because of concerns about the status of the scheme and Ms Hughes right to transfer her pension into it. Ms Hughes contested the decision by complaining to the Pensions Ombudsman who found in favour of Royal London. She had wanted to transfer her 8,359.71 Royal London personal pension to the Babbacombe Road 1973 Limited Ssas, through which she could invest in places such as Cape Verde. Royal London said it had been following regulatory guidance in refusing the transfer after looking out for warning signs. There are an estimated 13 similar cases the Ombudsman has already ruled on which providers may have to reexamine if the individual requests it The FCA declined to comment. A spokesman for The Pensions Regulator said: We want all pension professionals to be aware of the threat of pension scams and to carry out due diligence when processing transfer requests. A spokesman for the DWP said: We cant comment on individual cases. The Pensions Regulator, DWP and the pensions industry continue to consider whether there are any practical solutions to the issue of pension liberation or scams that can be put in legislation but which do not inhibit legitimate transfers. Small businesses may be terrified of appearing to provide financial advice to their employees as part of auto-enrolment so are choosing Nest, a committee of MPs has been told. Appearing before the Work and Pensions select committee, small business groups expressed concerns about the liabilities their members could face if they find themselves accidentally giving advice through the auto-enrolment process. James Lowman, the chief executive of the Association of Convenience Stores, said: Our experience is that most people in our sector are going with Nest. I think it is about firstly the trust and the fact that it is the governments scheme and the path of least resistance. People are terrified about being seen to provide advice and if they do provide advice the rules around that and what they are able to do. People are terrified about being seen to provide advice. It (choosing Nest) also helps say to the staff we are not making money from this, there is no kick-back, no advantage we are just making available the simplest government scheme and that is quite attractive for small businesses. When questioned by the committees chairman, Labour MP Frank Field, Mr Lowman said the research required when choosing an auto-enrolment provider would be one reason for selecting Nest. He said: It takes away a choice in a way and they are less of an agent in that choice in a way. They are not saying they have done extensive research on all sorts of schemes that are available and come up with this one. They recognise that to do that well is a large task and is one that comes with all sorts of responsibilities about choosing the right scheme. Unless you happen to have a lot of financial expertise why would you do that? The cross-party committee is looking into auto-enrolment to find out how the process has been going so far. During the last hearing Craig Mackinlay, the Conservative MP for South Thanet, said IFAs might laugh at smaller employers because they offer so few workers. He also expressed concern that some employers might accidentally cross a line into providing advice. Mr Mackinley reiterated this issue today and said: If a payroll service said were going with Nest, is there a liability there for almost suggesting some form of financial advice? But if a micro-employer went to an IFA they would say a scheme of one, no thank you very much and turn their noses up. It is a very difficult situation and liability is something I am worried about for both the employer and advisers. Responding to that question Mike Cherry, the policy director of the Federation of Small Businesses, also expressed concerns about liability. He said: In answer to that question we are all worried about whether that is the right choice. We will have to wait and see. There is no guarantee around that and that is a concern for most people. A farm in the Scottish Borders has been fined 45,000 after a young farmworker was killed while trying to clear a blockage in a grain bin. Jedburgh Sheriff Court heard how Zach Dean Fox, 19, was working for Seamore Farming at their premises at Deanfoot farm in Hawick when the incident happened in 2014. The court was told that large metal bins were used on the farm for storing grain during harvest time and there was an exit space at the bottom of the bin to allow the grain to escape on to a chain conveyor belt. See also: Win a pair of boots by submitting top farm safety tip It was not uncommon for blockages to occur in the exit holes at the bottom of the bin and Mr Fox was trying to clear such a blockage on 1 August 2014 from within the bin while it still contained a quantity of grain. He became immersed in the free-flowing grain and died as a result of asphyxiation. An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) into the incident found the system of work in place to clear blockages in the grain bin was inherently and obviously unsafe. Seamore Farming pleaded guilty to breaching Section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and was fined 45,000. HSE inspector Allison Aitken said: This was an entirely avoidable tragedy which resulted in the death of a young man. The dangers associated with working within the confined space of grain silos and clearing blockages in grain silos are well known within the farming industry and well documented in HSE guidance. Farmers should ensure that they have a safe system of work in place for clearing blockages in grain silos which avoids the need for anyone to enter inside them. This can be easily achieved, where necessary, by making some minor modifications to working practices to enable the task to be completed safely from outside the grain silo. A spring tsunami of milk is threatening further downward pressure on prices with no sign of any recovery in dairying, a leading analyst has warned. Chris Walkland, of the Walkland Partnership, said the spring flush would add further pain to dairy farmers and inflict horrendous pain on the industry this year. Milk prices, which have plunged by about one-third since mid-2014, would likely drop further this spring piling on the misery for struggling dairy farmers, he added. See also: Milk price pain hurting efficient dairy producers Its going to be pretty horrendous over the next three months, he told delegates at a dairy update session at NFU Conference in Birmingham on Tuesday (23 February). If you take past history, what dairy farmers have produced over the past decade, and apply it to the past three or four months, the flush will be about 4bn litres from April, May and June. We will peak higher than we did last year. There will be 30 days when milk [production] is higher than 44.5m litres. There will be 77 days consecutive days when it is higher than what the processors have normally been used to processing. There wont be a home for some of it [milk]. I estimate the spot price will be about 10p/litre and you can look forward to a B price of milk of between 6 and 10p/litre. Figures based on the estimated UK milk production from April to June showed dairy farmers would make 790m during this period, down 37% from 1,250m during the same peak period in 2014. Cost of production Dairy farmers need to be paid 28-30p/litre to cover the cost of production. On average farmers are being paid 23p/litre with some being paid as little as 19p/litre. But Mr Walkland said all the indications were that the milk price would drop further this spring by an additional 1.5p/litre and it could stay there at least until the end of the year. Global factors adding to the crisis in dairying included reduced demand for dairy products in China equivalent to a USD2.89bn (2.07bn) fall since January 2014 and hardly any demand from Russia since its president Vladimir Putin banned EU agri-food imports, including dairy, in August 2014. Frightening futures markets Mr Walkland described figures for EU and New Zealand futures markets as frightening. By August, he predicted UK dairy farmers would receive average milk prices of 20.5p/litre and non-aligned prices could fall to 19.2p/litre on average. Production is massively out of kilter with demand, he said. The market is at 60-70% of where you need it to be, probably 50-60%. There is not enough money coming in to the supply chain at the top of the hopper. Non-aligned farmers are subsidising the aligned and the rich are getting richer at the expense of the poor. Production obsessed Mr Walkland described the UK dairy industry as production obsessed and not focused enough on the consumer. He added: It is often forgotten that you are paying the price of the politics between the EU and Putin. We need to keep banging on to the politicians about this fact. They are saying: There is too much milk out there, thats the problem. Well, one of the reason the price has crashed is because of politics. Mr Walkland urged the dairy industry not to forget the value of dairy products, especially at a time when alternatives, such as almond and soya-based drinks, were being heavily promoted. Global situation Outgoing NFU dairy board chairman Rob Harrison said: This is not a UK-only situation. This isnt SOS Dairy like it was a few years ago. Dairy farmers across the world are in the same conundrum and facing the same challenges as you and I. Global milk supply has been growing at a steady 2-3% and this has been hit by a number of demand shocks that are completely out of the control of those of us in this room. Im not going to repeat the story of the perfect storm, other than to say the storm has got a lot worse. Mr Harrison urged farmers to seek out better-than-ever relations with their milk buyers to understand each others needs. He said: We have got a crisis based on supply and demand and the only way I can see us managing to align supply better with markets is by mature producer organisations. Story Highlights 45% of Americans say Barack Obama is respected internationally GOP no more likely than last year to say Obama is respected Obama's approval on handling foreign affairs up slightly WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Forty-five percent of Americans believe world leaders respect President Barack Obama, up from 37% a year ago. Still, the percentage who say international leaders respect Obama falls short of the 51% to 67% who held this view from 2009 to 2013. The latest world-respect figure, from Gallup's Feb. 3-7 World Affairs poll, represents the first time in Gallup's eight-year trend that Americans' perceptions of Obama's world standing have improved. When Obama first took office in 2009, 67% of Americans believed he was respected by leaders of other countries. Within two years, the percentage holding this view dropped to 52%, and by 2014 it fell to 41%. Perceptions that Obama is respected on the world stage bottomed out last year after the Islamic State group emerged as a serious threat to the U.S., and as Russia-U.S. relations became increasingly tense over Russia's involvement in Ukraine. Obama was also grappling with the fallout of Edward Snowden's leaks of classified information. In the past year, U.S.-Russia tensions over Ukraine eased after a ceasefire helped slow hostilities in the region. Additionally, Obama succeeded in reaching a major international agreement with Iran to limit that country's ability to develop nuclear weapons, although that agreement remains controversial. Americans' views of Obama's international standing are divided across party lines. While about four in five Democrats say foreign leaders respect the president, only about one in seven Republicans agree. And a majority of independents say leaders of other countries do not respect Obama. The rise in Americans' belief that Obama is respected on the world stage stems from increased percentages of Democrats and independents holding this view today compared with a year ago. Republicans are essentially unchanged. Obama's Approval Rating on Handling Foreign Affairs Up Slightly Americans' approval of Obama's handling of foreign affairs has also edged up compared with last February's measure. Thirty-nine percent of Americans approve of Obama's work on the issue, up slightly from 36% in February 2015. Obama's overall job approval rating was 50% in this year's Feb. 3-7 survey, compared with 46% last February -- so the uptick in approval on foreign affairs partly reflects a more positive view of the president overall. In addition to the annual February updates, Gallup has measured Obama's approval rating on foreign affairs numerous other times during the years since he first took office. Overall, his foreign affairs approval rating has generally waned over the course of his presidency but has spiked a few times. His approval rating on handling foreign affairs was highest in his first year in office, at 61% in March 2009. It fell below 50% for most of 2010 and 2011, but rose to 51% after the killing of Osama bin Laden in May 2011. Bottom Line Obama's securing of an Iran nuclear deal may have increased Democrats' faith that the president is respected by international leaders, which boosted Americans' views overall. But while perceptions of the respect Obama receives from foreign leaders has improved, a majority of Americans still feel he is not respected, and Republicans' views have not improved. Americans' political views, which are especially polarized in an election year, likely affect their opinions of Obama's standing among world leaders. Obama's approval rating on handling foreign affairs is not the lowest recorded for him, but it is substantially lower than earlier in his presidency. Over the course of his time in office, Obama's shift in focus moved from killing bin Laden and exiting Iraq to arguably more complicated matters such as the rise of the Islamic State group, tensions with Russia and civil war in Syria. While the Iran nuclear deal may have boosted Americans' perception of Obama as a president who can negotiate with other leaders, the unpopularity of the deal itself among Americans may have been a factor in why his approval rating on foreign affairs didn't receive a similarly sized increase. Historical data are available in Gallup Analytics. Survey Methods Results for this Gallup poll are based on telephone interviews conducted Feb. 3-7, 2016, with a random sample of 1,021 adults, aged 18 and older, living in all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia. For results based on the total sample of national adults, the margin of sampling error is 4 percentage points at the 95% confidence level. All reported margins of sampling error include computed design effects for weighting. Each sample of national adults includes a minimum quota of 60% cellphone respondents and 40% landline respondents, with additional minimum quotas by time zone within region. Landline and cellular telephone numbers are selected using random-digit-dial methods. View complete question responses and trends. Learn more about how the Gallup Poll Social Series works. About 180 union workers from ATIs Oremet facility on 34th Avenue have been locked out of their jobs for nearly three months, since Aug. 15. And at the end of November, they will face a loss of workplace health benefits if a new contract isnt agreed upon and the lockout continues at ATI Albany Operations. That seems likely, said Ron Rodgers, staff representative for United Steelworkers Local 7150. Talks havent been going well. They are trying to get back to the table and have some discussions. At this point, theres been no movement, he added. Oremet electrician Mike Hyre, who has been with ATI for 37 years, acknowledged that the loss of health benefits would be a setback. But I believe what doesnt kill you makes you stronger. I think well stand strong, he added, as coworkers and others continued to picket on 34th Avenue. The health benefits are expiring as part of the previous contract that the United Steelworkers agreed to. That contract ended June 30. There should be no surprise, nothing new here, said Dan Greenfield, vice president of investor relations and corporate communications for ATI, speaking from his office in Pittsburgh. Rodgers said local Oremet workers are taking the development in stride, partly because the union has a program where they can sign up for temporary health care. Hyre is one of the workers who would use that program. That temporary health insurance isnt as strong as their work insurance, however, as it lacks prescription coverage, for example. We are working to help people with especially expensive prescriptions, Rodgers added. Justin Rosenbaum, the melting departments lead millwright at Oremet, said he will be covered by his wifes health insurance. As he cooked chili for picketing workers, he added that he and his wife have downsized their spending since the lockout began. Id be lying if I said it didnt affect my family, he added. ATI has 2,200 workers locked out at 12 sites throughout the nation in its Flat Rolled Products division. Two other ATI Albany sites are not impacted by the lockout. Contract negotiations with the union representing the Flat Rolled Products workers started in May, but stalled over reductions to health care, lack of pensions for new hires and specific job cuts. ATI has maintained that its contract proposal includes affordable solutions for continued family health care at about half the cost the average American pays. The companys employees at Oremet and other facilities went to work without a contract for July and the first half of August. According to the United Steelworkers, those workers were willing to continue to report for the jobs without a contract until one could be agreed upon. People want to go back to work. The unemployment helps, but that will be out in another three months, Rodgers said. An assistance program is available to help workers pay their bills and the goal is to make sure union members dont lose cars and houses, Rodgers added. A toy drive also is planned so Oremet workers on the picket line can give their children and other loved ones presents. We recognize its going to be a tough time for our workers, Rodgers said. In mid-October, ATI laid off about 25 salaried employees at its three Albany-area locations, including managers, supervisors and office technicians. The move came as the company announced losses of about $145 million in the third quarter of 2015. The company also was dealt a blow locally in the November election. A measure that would have led to the creation of a municipal electric utility in Millersburg and which potentially could have saved ATI millions of dollars on power bills at its Wah Chang facility in that city was trounced by voters by a 2-1 margin. The body that was recovered from the Long Tom River near Monroe on Feb. 10 has been identified as a 21-year-old Junction City man whose car was found in the river in December. The Lane County Medical Examiner positively identified the body as Edgar Velez-Daran, Lane County Deputy District Attorney Erik Hasselman confirmed Tuesday. Hasselman noted that the Lane County Sheriffs Office is conducting a non-criminal investigation into the circumstances that led to Velez-Daran being in the river. Velez-Daran was reported missing after his car was found in the Long Tom River on Dec. 16. According to the Lane County Sheriffs Office, Velez-Daran left work from the Seneca Sawmill in Noti at around 2 a.m. on Dec. 16 and was traveling to his home in Junction City, but he never arrived. Family members located evidence of a crash the next night and Lane County Search and Rescue Team later pulled Velez-Darans car from the river. Rescue workers searched the area for several days before calling off the search. Authorities said in December there was no evidence of criminal activity associated with that case. Workers at Stroda Brothers Farm were tending hazelnut trees on the west bank of the river on Feb. 10 when they spotted the body caught in some brush along the east bank. Lane County Search and Rescue Dive Team members responded and pulled the body out of the river that same day. One of our workers noticed something in the bushes that had a safety vest on it, said Kirk Stroda, co-owner of Stroda Brothers Farm, previously. Stroda added that he used a pair of binoculars to scan the river and saw what appeared to be a man wearing a yellow safety vest. Representatives with Lane County Search and Rescue were not immediately available for comment Tuesday. ALBANY Linn-Benton Community College added extra security guards to campus Tuesday morning after receiving a bomb threat via Albany police. Dale Stowell, executive director of institutional advancement, said campus was searched and no threat to safety was found. Classes and activities went on as usual, with the addition of security and police personnel. Stowell said campus officials spoke with both police and the FBI about the threat, which a computer-generated voice message received at the Albany Police Department about the community colleges Albany campus. We did what they recommended that we do and determined that it wasnt credible, he said. Stowell said attendance Tuesday appeared to be about usual levels. No changes are planned to Wednesdays schedule. Lt. Alan Lynn at the Albany Police Department said the call specified a bomb threat. The computer-generated voice stymies voice identification, he said, and so far the number has not been able to be traced. Lynn said no link can be conclusively established, but the call was similar to anonymous computer-generated calls received last month at more than two dozen schools in New Jersey, all warning of bombs or shootings. All appear to have been hoaxes. In the mid-valley, similar anonymous calls were received last October by Santiam Christian School in Adair and by Central School and the National Energy Technology Laboratory in Albany. Those calls were traced to a high school student in Maryland who was later charged with telephone misuse, disturbing school activities and making a threat of mass violence. LBCC sent out emails and texts to students and staff about the threat shortly before 8 a.m. Tuesday: LBCC security received a report from the Albany Police Department which said they received a computer generated message that included a safety threat to the Albany campus. With the full support and involvement of Albany Police Department, FBI, and Corvallis Police Department, this report has been investigated and deemed to be not credible. Still, safety is a top concern, so if you notice the police officers that will be on campus today and the greater security presence, please know this is only an effort to take every precaution to ensure a safe campus environment. We have also alerted and prepared other key staff to be vigilant. PHILOMATH Tension between the Philomath School District and Kings Valley Charter School escalated a few notches last week as board members recommended a state agency investigation. Paul Dakopolos, the school districts attorney, reported to the Philomath School Board various concerns based on Kings Valley Charter School (KVCS) documents that had been shared upon the boards request. The attorneys report included recommendations for suggested steps to take, including having a state agency review to get a clear definition of the relationship between the charter school and the nonprofit organization, People Sustaining Kings Valley (PSKV). The Secretary of States office and Department of Justice were two entities mentioned as possible sources of an investigation. Dakopolos put together a detailed timeline going back more than two years and as recent as December that showed concern from independent auditors over the relationship between the charter school and PSKV. There are conflicting statements from KVCS as to whether theyre separate from PSKV, who actually directs the employees who is really in charge of finances, who is really calling the shots for either organization, I dont know, it depends on what document you look at and whos talking, Dakopolos told the board. I think the only reliable information that we can point to is the independent auditor who was in the books who said there was a material deficiency and that KVCS is involved in management override and there has to be a rather major separation between these entities. In response to last weeks meeting, Kings Valley Charter School Executive Director Jamon Ellingson said, The district and their attorney are making decisions without having all the information needed or a clear understanding of the roles of the organizations involved. The district and their attorney presented a one-sided view of a complicated situation. The report contained inaccurate and misleading information. The Philomath School Board had requested accountability, financial and academic information from the charter school under provisions of the charter contract. The question really is, are they independent contractors? Dakopolos said about the KVCS-PSKV connection. Who really directs the employees? Thats the important question because whos responsible for student safety, ultimately? Student safety became a serious concern last year when news of an inappropriate sexual relationship between an 18-year-old KVCS/PSKV employee and a 13-year-old girl surfaced. The man, now 19, faces four felony sexual abuse charges. The charter school and school district were named in an intent-to-sue notice. Student safety is of highest priority, Ellingson said. Ultimately, the KVCS board and executive director have this responsibility, however the school staff all have significant training to ensure student safety and welfare. Adding to the situation was news that assistant executive director Mark Hazelton and others from Kings Valley Charter School had talked to the Falls City School Board. Minutes from that boards December meeting show that Hazelton had contacted board member Bob Young about an opportunity to present to the board regarding Kings Valley Charter being sponsored by Falls City School District. The timing of the request occurred at about the same time as the Philomath School Boards request for documentation. The visit to their board meeting was to determine interest and gather information, Ellingson said last weekend. At some point, there might be a proposal brought to both boards, but really the most critical piece is to improve relationships with Philomath School District. This will require better communication from both KVCS and PSD. In January, the boards minutes show that the presentation occurred with KVCSs desire to move Falls City School Districts boundaries to incorporate Kings Valley Charter School. They are unhappy with their current school district sponsor, which is Philomath. Hazelton, Ellingson and two other KVCS-associated officials were at the meeting. I know theres been discussion more recently that indicates that KVCS would rather not be scrutinized by you, Dakopolos told the board. They are unhappy with you as a district sponsor because of that. School board chair Tom Klipfel and school board member Jim Kildea commented on the charter schools meeting with Falls City. Kildea noted the 2012 charter contract renegotiation between the school and the district. We have a contract, which is a two-way commitment, Kildea said. When the charter renewal came up, at Kings Valleys request , actually their insistence was a 10-year-extension. Thats not what we wanted, but what you (KVCS) wanted. And here we are a few years into the 10-year extension and youre shopping around for a new sponsor. Ellingson said KVCS has had many successful partnerships with Falls City in the past. We also have a lot in common as we are both small rural schools working through similar challenges, he said. A sponsorship through Falls City might mean working together to make programs happen that wouldnt otherwise. Other recommendations The board approved a motion to move forward on three other recommendations. First, missing from the documents were email communications between KVCS and PSKV. These are clearly public records and youre entitled to them and they will tell you information that you may not know at this point, Dakopolos said. This request could involve thousands of email messages that would have to be located and reviewed so legally protected information is not accidentally disclosed, Ellingson said when asked by the newspaper to comment. We are not staffed in a way to dedicate someone to this task. If we were to dedicate someone, it would mean that student-related programs could suffer. Other recommendations involve pursuing board meeting minutes from a Feb. 16 executive session meeting of the KVCS board and to continue to review documents on other issues of concern. Kildea also asked for PSKVs annual report to be presented at next months school board meeting, something outlined in the charter agreement. The United Steelworkers union has reached a tentative contract agreement with ATI, which could end a lockout that has lasted more than six months at ATI Albany Operations, the former Oremet plant. About 180 workers have been on the picket line along 34th Avenue since mid-August. Local workers knew few details about the four-year contract on Tuesday. The agreement still must be ratified by local unions, which could take two to three weeks, according to an ATI news release. A union news release states that the agreement also must be approved by the National Labor Relations Board. Its got to be something worth looking at if theyre going to come back and present it to us, because they know what we want. Theres a lot to look forward to at this point, said Ron Davis, a locked-out ATI Albany Operations steelworker. Just three weeks ago, Davis said he was skeptical that a solution would be reached soon. The lockout impacts 2,200 steelworkers at 12 facilities across the country. This is a tremendous victory for a very brave group of workers. They should be proud of this agreement, and of the resolve they demonstrated throughout this six-month ordeal, said United Steelworkers International President Leo W. Gerard, in a union news release. Garry Steffy, state coordinator for the Steelworkers Organization of Active Retirees, said that he believed the contract would be presented to local ATI Albany Operations workers on Saturday. This will be nice after six months. They want to go to work. Were all working creatures, he added. Unemployment benefits for local locked-out ATI workers expired in mid-February. The Oregon Legislatures Ways and Means Committee will hold a hearing on Wednesday morning about a bill that would extend unemployment benefits for up to an additional six months for workers who have been locked out, and thanks to an emergency clause, that would take impact immediately. Contract talks between ATI and United Steelworkers stalled last year because of reductions to health care benefits, changes to pensions and work rules. Cologne A 23-year-old Moroccan man was given a suspended sentence and a fine for his crimes on New Years Eve in Cologne. A 23-year-old man from Morocco is the first to be sentenced in the massive assault and theft crimes that took place on New Years Eve in Cologne. The man, an asylum seeker in Germany stole the cell phone from a woman just as she was about to take a picture of the Cologne Cathedral. She was able to catch up to the thief and police arrested him. They found on him 0.1 grams of amphetamines. 75-year-old Pensioner Collapsed And Died While Waiting For Screening In Benin (Photos) bohlah at 24-02-2016 06:36 AM (6 years ago) (m) There was commotion today as a 75-year-old pensioner who is being owed for 9 months by Edo state government, collapsed and died while waiting on queue alongside others for screening. There was commotion today as a 75-year-old pensioner who is being owed for 9 months by Edo state government, collapsed and died while waiting on queue alongside others for screening. There was pandemonium and confusion in the premises of Oredo local council secretariat in Benin, the Edo state capital, as a 75-year-old pensioner, Sunday Oboite collapsed and died on Tuesday afternoon, February 23rd, while waiting on a queue to be screened. The unfortunate incident occurred at about 1:38pm as other pensioners in the local government council who were invited for screening by authorities because they are being owed nine months arrears, reportedly scampered in confusion. It was gathered that the frail-looking man was said to have collapsed and fell to the ground. All efforts to revive him made by other male pensioners who mustered up boldness however failed as he gave up the ghost. 75-year-old pensioner, Sunday Oboitewho collapsed and died Sunday Erumwunse, the Secretary of Nigerian Union of Pensioners (NUP), Oredo chapter, blamed the death of the pensioner on starvation as a result of delay in the payment of the pension arrears. He called on the government to expedite action to pay the pensioners their money. One of the pensioners, John Eweka, who spoke to journalists, said: I believe the man died of hunger. Many of us can no longer afford to eat. They should pay us our money. Other pensioners struggling to get screened He called on the government to assist the family of the late pensioner with the burial expenses. Efforts made to get comments from the substantive chairman of Oredo local government council, Ms Sweet Ikpomwosa, failed as she refused to speak to journalists. Ambulance waiting to convey the corpse of Oboite to the mortuary For more scintillating and juicy stories, follow the official Naijapals accounts On Twitter - https://twitter.com/Naijapals and Facebook - www.facebook.com/naijapals There was pandemonium and confusion in the premises of Oredo local council secretariat in Benin, the Edo state capital, as a 75-year-old pensioner, Sunday Oboite collapsed and died on Tuesday afternoon, February 23rd, while waiting on a queue to be screened.The unfortunate incident occurred at about 1:38pm as other pensioners in the local government council who were invited for screening by authorities because they are being owed nine months arrears, reportedly scampered in confusion.It was gathered that the frail-looking man was said to have collapsed and fell to the ground. All efforts to revive him made by other male pensioners who mustered up boldness however failed as he gave up the ghost.Sunday Erumwunse, the Secretary of Nigerian Union of Pensioners (NUP), Oredo chapter, blamed the death of the pensioner on starvation as a result of delay in the payment of the pension arrears. He called on the government to expedite action to pay the pensioners their money.One of the pensioners, John Eweka, who spoke to journalists, said: I believe the man died of hunger. Many of us can no longer afford to eat. They should pay us our money.He called on the government to assist the family of the late pensioner with the burial expenses.Efforts made to get comments from the substantive chairman of Oredo local government council, Ms Sweet Ikpomwosa, failed as she refused to speak to journalists. 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 24-02-2016 06:36 AM (6 years ago) | Addicted Hero charisVEC at 24-02-2016 07:18 AM (6 years ago) (m) I see..NawaOOoo.RIp...issokay Posted: at 24-02-2016 07:18 AM (6 years ago) | Gistmaniac I see..NawaOOoo.RIp...issokay Reply Otikadinje at 24-02-2016 07:27 AM (6 years ago) (m) Oshomhole sey you dey see wetin una cause for this man now, how do you expectsomeone to survive after refusing to pay him for nine months haba,too bad i like to say .Baba rest in peace, na so we see Nigerian government reach ooo . Oscardeejay Posted: at 24-02-2016 07:27 AM (6 years ago) | Gistmaniac Oshomhole sey you dey see wetin una cause for this man now, how do you expectsomeone to survive after refusing to pay him for nine months haba,too bad i like to say .Baba rest in peace, na so we see Nigerian government reach ooo . Reply emma4love3 at 24-02-2016 08:20 AM (6 years ago) (m) i just pity our old papa and mama dem....after serving this state....this how they wil pay them back abi....God is watching oooh.... Posted: at 24-02-2016 08:20 AM (6 years ago) | Hero i just pity our old papa and mama dem....afterserving this state....this how they wil pay themback abi....God is watching oooh.... Reply zezprincess at 24-02-2016 08:29 AM (6 years ago) (f) Chaaii,RIP,but government I suggest you stop this queue screening exercise&pay in direct to all those men&women pensioner accounts rather than standing till all day&later some will collapse,this people are no longer youth so their strength could no longer carry them all that longer. Posted: at 24-02-2016 08:29 AM (6 years ago) | Hero Chaaii,RIP,but government I suggest you stop this queue screening exercise&pay in direct to all those men&women pensioner accounts rather than standing till all day&later some will collapse,this people are no longer youth so their strength could no longer carry them all that longer. Reply Haso112 at 24-02-2016 08:32 AM (6 years ago) (m) Hmmm, maybe this will turn out to be a blessing in disguise for the others, they'll attend to them quicker to avoid another occurrence like this... As usual, for my country Naija, na until matter enter RED before e dey get attention.... Posted: at 24-02-2016 08:32 AM (6 years ago) | Gistmaniac Hmmm, maybe this will turn out to be a blessing in disguise for the others, they'll attend to them quicker to avoid another occurrence like this... As usual, for my country Naija, na until matter enter RED before e dey get attention.... Reply winace at 24-02-2016 08:34 AM (6 years ago) (f) Oshiomole thank u. Dis is a very good way to pay those who serve ur state actively b4 thieves like u came on board. GOD go judge all of una. Posted: at 24-02-2016 08:34 AM (6 years ago) | Addicted Hero Oshiomole thank u. Dis is a very good way to pay those who serve ur state actively b4 thieves like u came on board. GOD go judge all of una. Reply kison at 24-02-2016 08:53 AM (6 years ago) (m) NEXT TIME PAPA PLS be careful,be very very careful, CAREFULLLLLLLLL...... ......... Posted: at 24-02-2016 08:53 AM (6 years ago) | Hero NEXT TIME PAPA PLS be careful,be very very careful, CAREFULLLLLLLLL...... ......... Reply Trueyarn at 24-02-2016 09:18 AM (6 years ago) (m) Naija leaders don't in any way value the life of her citizens,they're just too cold to understand that people are suffering and dying everyday because of their greediness..I will love to see a nigeria where big men are treated like every other citizen in the nearest future. Posted: at 24-02-2016 09:18 AM (6 years ago) | Hero Naija leaders don't in any way value the life of her citizens,they're just too cold to understand that people are suffering and dying everyday because of their greediness..I will love to see a nigeria where big men are treated like every other citizen in the nearest future. Reply Trueyarn at 24-02-2016 09:18 AM (6 years ago) (m) R.I.P old man,Naija leaders don't in any way value the life of her citizens,they're just too cold to understand that people are suffering and dying everyday because of their greediness..I will love to see a nigeria where big men are treated like every other citizen in the nearest future. Posted: at 24-02-2016 09:18 AM (6 years ago) | Hero R.I.P old man,Naija leaders don't in any way value the life of her citizens,they're just too cold to understand that people are suffering and dying everyday because of their greediness..I will love to see a nigeria where big men are treated like every other citizen in the nearest future. Reply lilchuks28 at 24-02-2016 09:25 AM (6 years ago) (m) Stupid government, you are owing an old man 9 months pension, yet you called him for irrelevant screening....YeYe people.....Que Sera Sera... Posted: at 24-02-2016 09:25 AM (6 years ago) | Upcoming Stupid government, you are owing an old man 9 months pension, yet you called him for irrelevant screening....YeYe people.....Que Sera Sera... Reply gogoman at 24-02-2016 10:38 AM (6 years ago) (m) RIP Posted: at 24-02-2016 10:38 AM (6 years ago) | Addicted Hero RIP Reply ujmaria at 24-02-2016 11:30 AM (6 years ago) (f) Dis one na serious wahala, rip sir Posted: at 24-02-2016 11:30 AM (6 years ago) | Gistmaniac Dis one na serious wahala, rip sir Reply christianity at 24-02-2016 01:23 PM (6 years ago) (m) rip to him Posted: at 24-02-2016 01:23 PM (6 years ago) | Gistmaniac rip to him Reply Linconblack at 24-02-2016 04:16 PM (6 years ago) (m) Naija na bad country with terrible leaders. Here in the usa, pensioners don't have to worry about nonsense screening, the gov't have already their data's stores, all wot u need is just enter your ssn on their website. Me I.no go fit live in naija ooo Posted: at 24-02-2016 04:16 PM (6 years ago) | Upcoming Naija na bad country with terrible leaders. Here in the usa, pensioners don't have to worry about nonsense screening, the gov't have already their data's stores, all wot u need is just enter your ssn on their website. Me I.no go fit live in naija ooo Reply diezo at 24-02-2016 04:28 PM (6 years ago) (m) SO WETIN BE D BENEFIT OF BECOMING A CIVIL SERVANT AS I DEY HERE SO I DON DISCOURAGE TO WORK FOR GOVT, BUT MAKE DEM NO FORGET SAY PERSON NO WELL ANOTHER PERSON WEY WELL COME DEY TAKE TABLET FOR PERSON WEY NO WELL NA WHO NO COME WELL !!! Posted: at 24-02-2016 04:28 PM (6 years ago) | Gistmaniac SO WETIN BE D BENEFIT OF BECOMING A CIVIL SERVANT AS I DEY HERE SO I DON DISCOURAGE TO WORK FOR GOVT, BUT MAKE DEM NO FORGET SAY PERSON NO WELL ANOTHER PERSON WEY WELL COME DEY TAKE TABLET FOR PERSON WEY NO WELL NA WHO NO COME WELL !!! Reply AmazingMarie at 24-02-2016 04:45 PM (6 years ago) (f) see the kind of government we have. to pay its a big deal mind you they collect all their pay including proceeds of corruption without going through physical stress and huddles. Posted: at 24-02-2016 04:45 PM (6 years ago) | Hero see the kind of government we have. to pay its a big deal mind you they collect all their pay including proceeds of corruption without going through physical stress and huddles. Reply evilgenius at 24-02-2016 05:54 PM (6 years ago) (f) NO NEWS, OLD STORY Posted: at 24-02-2016 05:54 PM (6 years ago) | Upcoming NO NEWS, OLD STORY Reply osarobo62 at 24-02-2016 06:11 PM (6 years ago) (m) why can't these govt start processing these pension screenings 60 days before their last day in service Posted: at 24-02-2016 06:11 PM (6 years ago) | Hero why can't these govt start processing these pension screenings 60 days before their last day in service Reply 13 Edo State Indigenes With Fake Passports, Arrested In Kano - Photos clarajancita at 24-02-2016 10:00 AM (6 years ago) (f) The Kano state Police command have arrested 13 Edo State indigenes in Kano for carrying fake Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) passports as they tried traveling to Libya from Nigeria through illegal routes. Those arrested included 4 women and 9 men. The State police commissioner, Musa Katsina paraded the men and women at the state police command during a visit by the state governor, Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, yesterday February 23rd... The Kano state Police command have arrested 13 Edo State indigenes in Kano for carrying fake Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) passports as they tried traveling to Libya from Nigeria through illegal routes. Those arrested included 4 women and 9 men. The State police commissioner, Musa Katsina paraded the men and women at the state police command during a visit by the state governor, Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, yesterday February 23rd... Post Reply I am a metro reporter on Gistmania, I have been publishing news materials for over 5 years Posted: at 24-02-2016 10:00 AM (6 years ago) | Hero Donchijoz at 24-02-2016 10:10 AM (6 years ago) (m) Who to blame? They are looking for greener pastures. Posted: at 24-02-2016 10:10 AM (6 years ago) | Upcoming Who to blame? They are looking for greener pastures. Reply Haso112 at 24-02-2016 10:22 AM (6 years ago) (m) Why are those goats so perfectly aligned? Is that supposed to be a barricade? loool The authorities should be after the people who sold these passports to them.... Posted: at 24-02-2016 10:22 AM (6 years ago) | Gistmaniac Why are those goats so perfectly aligned? Is that supposed to be a barricade? looolThe authorities should be after the people who sold these passports to them.... Reply christ96 at 24-02-2016 10:23 AM (6 years ago) (m) who no like better thing make u see. 9ja don spoil finish Posted: at 24-02-2016 10:23 AM (6 years ago) | Newbie who no like better thing make u see. 9ja don spoil finish Reply gogoman at 24-02-2016 10:26 AM (6 years ago) (m) them won pass thru libya to europe lol Posted: at 24-02-2016 10:26 AM (6 years ago) | Addicted Hero them won pass thru libya to europe lol Reply okatee at 24-02-2016 10:35 AM (6 years ago) (m) NO HURRY IN LIFE OOO, GOD'S TIME IS DA BEST Posted: at 24-02-2016 10:35 AM (6 years ago) | Gistmaniac NO HURRY IN LIFE OOO, GOD'S TIME IS DA BEST Reply dynasty4all at 24-02-2016 10:35 AM (6 years ago) (m) FROM LIBYA TO EUROPE TO DO WHAT THEY ARE GOOD @ Posted: at 24-02-2016 10:35 AM (6 years ago) | Gistmaniac FROM LIBYA TO EUROPE TO DO WHAT THEY ARE GOOD @ Reply zezprincess at 24-02-2016 10:37 AM (6 years ago) (f) Abeg make una no blame them much,Na naija economy dey cause am,make una tamper justice with mercy.Naija jaga jaga. Posted: at 24-02-2016 10:37 AM (6 years ago) | Hero Abeg make una no blame them much,Na naija economy dey cause am,make una tamper justice with mercy.Naija jaga jaga. Reply Barluty at 24-02-2016 10:39 AM (6 years ago) (m) Edo pple no dey carry last Posted: at 24-02-2016 10:39 AM (6 years ago) | Upcoming Edo pple no dey carry last Reply akinmanchy at 24-02-2016 11:18 AM (6 years ago) (m) Intended destination: Italy enroute Libya but unfortunately halted and busted in Kano. What a life! Life na jeje so just try to take am softly Posted: at 24-02-2016 11:18 AM (6 years ago) | Hero Intended destination: Italy enroute Libya but unfortunately halted and busted in Kano. What a life! Reply ujmaria at 24-02-2016 11:19 AM (6 years ago) (f) Na Easter money dey dey find Posted: at 24-02-2016 11:19 AM (6 years ago) | Gistmaniac Na Easter money dey dey find Reply emma4love3 at 24-02-2016 11:29 AM (6 years ago) (m) Quote from: Haso on 24-02-2016 10:22 AM Why are those goats so perfectly aligned? Is that supposed to be a barricade? loool The authorities should be after the people who sold these passports to them.... .....my brother the goats first catch my eyes i tot they were police dogs....on guard..... Posted: at 24-02-2016 11:29 AM (6 years ago) | Hero .....my brother the goats first catchmy eyes i tot they were police dogs....on guard..... Reply emma4love3 at 24-02-2016 11:32 AM (6 years ago) (m) b for nko.....the problem on ground makes them to embark on such trip....meanwhile to tell how serious kano state securty men are on top of the situation they have goats on guard.....lined up...no escape route....lol.. Posted: at 24-02-2016 11:32 AM (6 years ago) | Hero b for nko.....the problem on ground makesthem to embark on such trip....meanwhileto tell how serious kano state securty menare on top of the situation they have goatson guard.....lined up...no escape route....lol.. Reply Trueyarn at 24-02-2016 11:39 AM (6 years ago) (m) Hmmm,these people self no even consider the deadly risk attached to their journey,I feel for them sha. Posted: at 24-02-2016 11:39 AM (6 years ago) | Hero Hmmm,these people self no even consider the deadly risk attached to their journey,I feel for them sha. Reply princedafe at 24-02-2016 12:28 PM (6 years ago) (m) Another senseless act Posted: at 24-02-2016 12:28 PM (6 years ago) | Gistmaniac Another senseless act Reply victorstic1 at 24-02-2016 12:45 PM (6 years ago) (m) NAIJA NO DEY USE DGS LIKE OYIBO NA GOATS NAIJA DEY USE TO CATCH PEOPLE Posted: at 24-02-2016 12:45 PM (6 years ago) | Gistmaniac NAIJA NO DEY USE DGS LIKE OYIBO NA GOATS NAIJA DEY USE TO CATCH PEOPLE Reply charisVEC at 24-02-2016 12:47 PM (6 years ago) (m) Chai...I see..issokay Posted: at 24-02-2016 12:47 PM (6 years ago) | Gistmaniac Chai...I see..issokay Reply christianity at 24-02-2016 01:19 PM (6 years ago) (m) dats dickieponga's brodas and sisters on their way to desert to do what they knows how best to do Posted: at 24-02-2016 01:19 PM (6 years ago) | Gistmaniac dats dickieponga's brodas and sisters on their way to desert to do what they knows how best to do Reply Eazyatumeyi at 24-02-2016 01:43 PM (6 years ago) (m) Aboki don track una abi, una own don finish. Posted: at 24-02-2016 01:43 PM (6 years ago) | Hero Aboki don track una abi, una own don finish. Reply 5G, IoT and cloud will disrupt every industry in 2016: Ericsson CEO News oi -GizBot Bureau Digital disruption will come to every industry in 2016, Ericsson president and CEO Hans Vestberg said at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) here on Monday and made announcements regarding 5G, Internet of Things (IoT) and cloud computing. "Digital disruption will come to every industry in 2016. Today's announcements -- together with the hundreds of demonstrations we will show at MWC -- clearly demonstrate the strength of our portfolio and our capabilities as an Information And Communications Technology (ICT) transformation partner," Vestberg said in a statement. SEE ALSO: Can Sony beat Samsung, LG with Newly Launched Xperia X Series: 10 Interesting Things to Know! "Our portfolio is constantly evolving to keep pace with customer demands. Now, with industries and even whole societies being disrupted by mobility, broadband and cloud, we are accelerating our own transformation," he added. At the event, Vestberg identified 5G, IoT and cloud as the hottest topics in the ICT industry -- and made major announcements in each area. He said that Ericsson, being a leading researcher for 5G pre-standardisation, has agreements with 20 major operators around the world to work together on 5G -- more than any other vendor. 5G radio test-bed field trials will start in 2016 and Ericsson is active in aligning industry time plans to assure the commercial launch of 5G in 2020. Vestberg announced that Ericsson is collaborating with AT&T to bring the operator's Digital Life solution -- which uses IoT technology to transform home security and automation -- to service providers outside the US. SEE ALSO: ZTE Launches An Android Projector which is actually a tablet! 10 Reasons it's the Next Best Thing! IoT, for a laymen, is a futuristic system where you can control almost everything -- from TV to refrigerator, from air-cooling to coffee machine -- with your smartphone. Ericsson also announced plans to form a global business, technology and services alliance with Amazon Web Services (AWS) to accelerate cloud transformation for telecom service providers. Source IANS Best Mobiles in India Facebook, To stay updated with latest technology news & gadget reviews, follow GizBot on Twitter YouTube and also subscribe to our notification. Allow Notifications Vivo XPlay 5: 8 Things You Need to Know about Worlds First 6GB RAM smartphone Features oi -Sayan Vivo is a brand which mayn't ring bells in India, but the Chinese smartphone brand indeed makes some solid devices. Well, the Vivo XPlay 5 is their upcoming flagship device down the pipeline and the company has confirmed that it will be launching the smartphone on March 1. Unlike the much hyped Xiaomi Mi5, the Vivo XPlay 5 launch mayn't be receiving an equal spotlight but it surely has a number of surprises in its kitty. Rather Vivo recently posted a teaser on Weibo confirming the presence of not 4 but 6GB of RAM on the XPlay 5. So it would be safe to assume that the Vivo XPlay 5 will be the first phone with 6GB RAM. SEE ALSO: Can Sony beat Samsung, LG with Newly Launched Xperia X Series: 10 Interesting Things to Know! Just in case you were unaware of this fledging Chinese smartphone brand then it's time you took a note. Well, wondering why? The answer is waiting below in the form of the specs of the upcoming flagship smartphone. Can China 'Edge' out Korea? Vivo has officially confirmed that their flagship XPlay 5 smartphone will come with a dual edged display. Just to recall, the Korean electronics giants namely Samsung was the first smartphone maker to introduce an edged display onto the market in the form of their Galaxy S6 Edge. Well, it seems that Vivo has taken a leaf from the designers sitting down there in South Korea. In terms of dimensions the Vivo XPlay 5 is reported to come with a 6-inch panel with a resolution of 2560x1440p which is popularly referred to as QHD or 2K. It would however be interesting to see how Vivo makes use of the dual edged display. The company needs to play around with their Fun Touch OS to come out with something useful. All new Dragon on the inside Vivo XPlay 5S will come with the all new quad core Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 SoC. It will make use of Qualcomm's very own custom Koryo cores to deliver an impeccable performance. The expectation surrounding the latest chip from Qualcomm which debuted with the LeEco Le Max Pro at the CES 2016 is quite high. Touts more RAM than an average laptop As mentioned before the main talking point of the Vivo XPlay 5 is the 6GB LPDDR4 RAM on the inside and why shouldn't it be so? After all it packs more RAM than an average laptop. In fact, a few older gen MacBooks still use only 4GB of RAM. However, whether or not the extra RAM will come of use in day to day performance is still a matter of debate. Vivo may be required to fine tune the software to make the RAM useful and not a gimmick. Time for some Hi-Fi Vivo has today posted a teaser yet again on Weibo confirming that the XPlay 5 smartphone comes with a HiFi 3.0 audio support. This will definitely drive the audiophiles happy. 8MP front camera to suffice your Selfie needs Selfie craze is on its peak. Vivo doesn't want to leave any stone unturned in that department as they have reportedly incorporated an 8MP camera on the front. 16MP rear camera with dual LED Flash According to reports the Vivo XPlay 5 will come with a 16MP rear camera. This will be further equipped with dual LED Flash. It is also high likely that the rear camera will be supported by an Optical Image Stabilisation (OIS). Fingerprint Sensor Going by the leaked renders it can be confirmed that the Vivo XPlay 5 feature a Fingerprint Sensor on the back just below the camera module. Large 4300mAh battery The main drawback of modern smartphones is their battery life. Thanks to the ever increasing display estate and the super high resolution the smartphone of present date stutter to even run through a day of heavy to moderate usage. Well, Vivo recognizes the fact and has reportedly incorporated a 4300mAh battery on the inside. Best Mobiles in India Facebook, To stay updated with latest technology news & gadget reviews, follow GizBot on Twitter YouTube and also subscribe to our notification. Allow Notifications Here is the worlds first MBA that Indians can study on their smartphone! News oi -Sudhiir The London School of Marketing has launched the world's first ever MBA that students in India can study on their smart phones. London School of Marketing has launched its smart phone MBAs in response to the growing demand from its students who want to study on the move.It's employed the latest technology to make their studies easier and fit around their busy lives.The school, which attracts many international participants, particularly from developing countries, has seen the e-learning market boom in recent years. SEE ALSO: Timex Metropolitan+ is an analog activity tracker with Night Glow: 10 interesting things to know The UK based educator has invested in a unique interactive online learning platform. It allows its learners direct access to course tutors, all the essential books and learning materials they'll need, via their mobile phone. There's also a community forum where students can chat directly with other students studying on their course and thereby learn from each other.This innovative approach to education means its learners can study when and where they want without being tied to a time or location. Since its launch, hundreds of students have already signed up to use the technology with more expected to follow. The courses it offers via smart phone include an MBA in business studies, a Masters and two undergraduate courses in the same subject. Its professional marketing course can also be accessed via smart phones. In the last 18 months the school has set up 48 Local Access Points (LAPs), locations in towns and cities where students can meet to study and prepare their coursework.It also has 61 Recognised International Business Development Partners (RIBDs) across the globe.Since setting up the LAPs it's seen keen learners from as far afield as the United Arab Emirates, Ghana, India and South Africa enrol on its courses. CFO of London School of Marketing, Anton Dominique explains: "Our blended learning approach to higher education gives the student the best of both worlds. SEE ALSO: 6 important things to know about Ringxiety ! "They can study at a time and place to suit them and we've adapted the technology we use to make that happen. Everyone has a smartphone now, so it makes sense to run courses which our students can access while they're on the move. "This works well for our international students in particular. They have the kudos of achieving a UK degree, socialise and study with other people on the same course and all without the expense of living and learning in the UK." "Our students, mainly from developing countries, tend to be professional people, in good jobs who don't want to give up what they're doing to take time out to study.They also don't want the expense associated with moving to and attending a UK university to achieve the qualification they want. That cost can be in excess of 30,000." "The whole point of developing the technology for our student to study on the go was about making it easier for them. Education is for everyone and this is another step towards making that possible." Best Mobiles in India 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. NSA eavesdropped on Netanyahu, Berlusconi: WikiLeaks Iran Press TV Tue Feb 23, 2016 3:1PM The US National Security Agency (NSA) tapped a phone conversation between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Italian counterpart Silvio Berlusconi, the whistle-blower website WikiLeaks has revealed. In their phone call which took place on March 13, 2010, the two leaders discussed US-Israel relations on an international line, meaning that they failed to follow required instructions to keep the call confidential. This raises the possible scenario that both or at least one of them knew that the conversation is prone to espionage. Following the leak by the WikiLeaks on Tuesday, Italy's Foreign Ministry summoned the US ambassador to Rome. According to NSA's report of the conversation, during the call Netanyahu asked for Berlusconi's assistance amid an "absence of contact" between him and US President Barack Obama. In response Berlusconi "promised to put Italy at Israel's disposal in helping mend [Israel's] ties with Washington." The call took place after US-Israel relations went cold following the Tel Aviv regime's authorization of constructing 1,600 new units in Ramat Shlomo settlements in eastern al-Quds (Jerusalem), which was deemed illegal by the majority of the international community including the US. The leaked NSA report noted that "Israel has reached out to Europe, including Italy, for help in smoothing out the current rift in its relations with the United States." The document further revealed that the wiretapping was done on Berlusconi's office and not the Israeli end. Other cables released by WikiLeaks on Tuesday also revealed that the NSA has spied on United National Secretary General Ban Ki-moon's private meetings to save American oil companies. Ban was apparently attending a meeting with German Chancellor Angela Merkel to discuss ways on how to tackle climate change. 'Today, we showed that UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon's private meetings over how to save the planet from climate change were bugged by a country intent on protecting its largest oil companies," WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange said on Tuesday. Some of the new documents are classified TOP-SECRET / COMINT-GAMMA and are the most highly classified documents ever published by a media outlet. The new leak puts Italy and Israel beside all the other major countries that are angered by the NSA surveillance programs carried out against them, including Japan, Brazil, France, Britain and Germany. The NSA spying scandal was first exposed in 2013 by former CIA employee and government contractor Edward Snowden. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address New documents expose widespread US espionage on Merkel Iran Press TV Tue Feb 23, 2016 1:30PM A German newspaper has cited new classified documents by the online whistleblower WikiLeaks showing that the United States spied extensively on German Chancellor Angela Merkel. The Sueddeutsche Zeitung reported on Tuesday that the US National Security Agency (NSA), which was once criticized in Germany for tapping Merkel's phone, spied on talks Merkel held with the UN chief and key European leaders. The report said NSA gathered information on a 2008 conversation about climate change between Merkel and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon. It said during the meeting, Merkel said she had urged European heads of states to take a leading role on the climate issues while Ban hailed Merkel's personal involvement in tackling climate change. The founder of WikiLeaks, who is locked up in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London, also issued an online statement on the fresh documents, saying, "Today we showed that UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon's private meetings over how to save the planet from climate change were bugged by a country intent on protecting its largest oil companies." WikiLeaks also released documents about Markel's meeting in 2011 with then French President Nicolas Sarkozy and then Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, the Sueddeutsche said. During the meeting, which was reported to be tense and unfriendly, Merkel and Sarkozy called on Berlusconi to reduce public debt and strengthen Italy's banking sector. The revelations by the WikiLeaks add to previous information released in 2013 by American intelligence contractor and whistleblower Edward Snowden, who showed how the US intelligence tapped Merkel's mobile phone. That sparked an unprecedented row between Berlin and Washington. Since WikiLeaks was founded in 2006 by Julian Assange, some 500,000 secret military files on US wars in Afghanistan and Iraq along with 250,000 diplomatic cables have been released. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Estonia Jails Three Men For Spying For Russia February 23, 2016 Estonian authorities say they have jailed three men convicted of spying for Russia. The state prosecutor's office announced on February 23 that the three men, described as smugglers, were sentenced in trials between October 2015 and February 2016. They received sentences ranging from two years to four years and ten months for supplying information to Russian security services on the movements and operations of Estonia's security service, defense forces, and border guards. The group includes Estonians Aleksandr Rudnev and Maksim Gruzdev, and stateless Pavel Romanov. All are ethnic Russian. Estonia, a former Soviet republic who became a member of the European Union and NATO, has expressed growing concern over Russia's actions in Ukraine and an apparent increase in Russian military activities close to its borders. Based on reporting by AFP and Reuters Source: http://www.rferl.org/content/estonia-jails- three-spying-for-russia/27569671.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. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Mildenhall KC-135s support French operation By Capt. Lauren Ott, U.S. Air Forces in Europe Air Forces Africa Public Affairs / Published February 23, 2016 RAMSTEIN AIR BASE, Germany (AFNS) -- Three KC-135 Stratotankers, along with 50 Airmen from the 100th Air Refueling Wing at Royal Air Force Mildenhall, England, temporarily deployed to Istres-Le Tube Air Base, France, in support of Operation Juniper Micron. The U.S. has been supporting the French government in Operation Juniper Micron at their request since 2013, providing air refueling and airlift support of French operations in Mali and North Africa. Since December 2015 alone, the 100th ARW has flown more than 750 sorties, refueled more than 2,900 French aircraft, and off-loaded nearly 28 million pounds of fuel while supporting French operations. The strategic decision to temporarily deploy the KC-135s to Istres is the result of the continual evaluation of how to best support French ally forces in the air and on the ground. The long-standing relationship between the U.S. and France enables operational success by allowing a forward-based presence of U.S. Air Forces in Europe Air Forces Africa assets and the ability to move forward quickly in support of French operations. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Pacific partners practice humanitarian assistance during Cope North By Staff Sgt. Alexander Riedel, Headquarters Pacific Air Forces Public Affairs / Published February 23, 2016 NORTHERN MARIANA ISLANDS (AFNS) -- Military members from six nations joined together for a humanitarian assistance and disaster relief deployment throughout the region of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands Feb. 14-18. The deployment is part of Cope North 16, a multilateral exercise, including the U.S. Air Force and air forces from across the Indo-Asia-Pacific region. Col. Brian Toth, the CN16 lead for the U.S. Air Force, said the HA/DR portion enhances regional capabilities to respond to crises and lays the foundation for the expansion of regional cooperation in the face of real-world contingencies. "Humanitarian assistance and disaster response is an awesome capability we can provide," Toth said. "The ability to have our forces train together allows us to understand what each part brings to the response and what we can provide together to provide the aid any country in the region may ask for. "It demonstrates our commitment to working together with our coalition partner countries across the Pacific," he continued. "We work well together and provide a strong presence and we know we can rely on each other in a time of need." Members from the U.S. Air Force, Navy and Coast Guard -- partnered with the Japan Air Self-Defense Force, Royal Australian Air Force, South Korean air force, Royal New Zealand Air Force and Philippine Air Force -- reacted to a fictional, yet realistic, disaster scenario that was said to affect the Marianas region. "What we're focusing on is interoperability, learning from one another how to better respond to disaster situations," said Sharon Rohde, the CN16 HA/DR lead planner. "It's about overcoming not only language barriers but differences to how we do business, whether that's regulatory in nature or based on our understanding of the situation. We open up communication and derive lessons learned to be better prepared in response to disaster." The exercise scenario posed a severe impact from a typhoon traversing between the islands of Tinian and Rota, prompting Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands to issue a simulated request for immediate assistance to Guam's neighboring islands. During the HA/DR response, Guam acted as the hub for all aid efforts. From Guam, crews traveled to two deployed operation centers on "spoke" locations on Rota and Tinian. Upon notification of the emergency, coalition units responded in a phased approach based on real-world response plans by deploying Royal Australian Air Force combat controllers and Andersen AFB's 36th Contingency Response Group teams to the islands to survey airfield conditions and establish security for incoming aid flights. The notional disaster tested the main training objectives of airfield assessment team insertion and substandard airfield operation. Bringing together Airmen from varying Air Force specialties, multilateral contingency teams demonstrated their ability to assess and operate previously inaccessible airfields within 12 hours of notification. "Contingency response of this type is one of our major functions," said Lt. Col. Glenn Rineheart, the 36th Mobility Response Squadron commander and exercise mission commander on Rota. "Cope North provides the ability for our Airmen to respond to a foreign location and operate only with those assets which were brought in order to surmount challenges with equipment and personnel and the environment. There is a lot to be gained from operating away from main base." After declaring the airfields as safe, contingency teams provided continued communications and aerial port support to allow aircrews to deliver aid. Within hours of the airfield opening, coalition teams began set up of an expeditionary medical support health response team mobile hospital, which stands ready on Guam to deploy to real-world disasters. Expeditionary medical teams deploy to save lives From emergency resuscitation to life-preserving surgery, the teams are well-equipped and trained to handle a large variety of possible ailments, yet the priority for medics and nurses lies with triage and initial stabilization of patients. "The EMEDS-HRT is the first-line response package in the region," said Staff Sgt. Carlos Rance, a 36th Medical Group medical logistics contracting officer. "We set up the ER tent first, and within a 12-hour period we have a fully operational medical facility that allows our teams to treat more than 300 patients. During this exercise we get the opportunity to not only complete a full setup, from the box up, but doctors and medics also get valuable hands-on experience on what it's like to operate exclusive with the equipment we carry." Receiving a steady stream of typhoon victims who were hypothetically transported from Tinian for medical care, medical technicians and military doctors practiced real-time care procedures on simulated injuries ranging from burn wounds and open fractures to psychological distress and child delivery. Focused on the patient When patient condition required a higher echelon of care, a team or flight nurses and medical administrators ensured expedient aeromedical evacuation to a location with a fully functioning hospital. "The focus of this whole exercise is the patient," said Australian Flight Lt. Emma J. Dingle, a Royal Australian Air Force flight nurse and CN16 aeromedical evacuation liaison. "It is really important for us to understand how each country functions, so that when we do have to come together for joint disaster responses, we can do it smoothly and effectively and have the best outcome for the people who are in need of help." The aeromedical evacuation exercises culminated with a joint rescue event Feb. 17. Coalition search and rescue aviators located simulated downed aircrew in open waters off the coast of Guam and performed a subsequent rotary wing evacuation by U.S. Navy's Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 25. Planning success through past lessons learned For the first time, international HA/DR mission planners gathered during a two-day subject matter exchange and tabletop exercise before kickoff. Airmen from three nations shared their experiences, failures and successes during responses as far ranging as the 2011 tsunami in Japan and the 2015 earthquakes in Nepal. "This year we added a tabletop exercise, which allowed participants to collaborate before exercising," Rhode said. "This facilitated discussion about actual disasters that occurred in the Pacific and to hear that firsthand experience from somebody who was actually there and could speak to specific issues that occurred." Experts also discussed the integration with civilian agencies that would take important roles in real disaster response situations, such as international civic aviation authorities and USAID coordinators. "Typically the civilian response agencies can handle most emergencies, even large once," said Scott Aronson, the senior USAID humanitarian assistance adviser to U.S. Pacific Command. "But the U.S. military has unique abilities that either no one else has or nobody can deploy as quickly. We know, for instance, the CRGs capabilities during an HA/DR event are likely one of the unique abilities we might call on. "As the lead federal agency for disaster response, we participated to make sure the exercise is realistic from our perspective and to have that face-to-face time with the people and agencies we will see in the field," Aronson continued. "The biggest challenge is understanding each other's capabilities and Cope North allows both sides to see what the other brings to the table and how those things work together. Maintaining those relationships is essential." Following the tabletop exchange, the teams practiced multinational interoperability during the stressful team building required during mission planning. "The planning group this year was incredible to see," said Royal Australian Air Force Squadron Leader Chris O'Byrne, the Australian HA/DR scenario planning lead and exercise mission commander on Tinian. "When you see service members come together and realize that they're talking about the same thing, while calling it by a different name, and we notice that all the time; it's an amazing thing to see." International interest rises Because of the resounding successes of HA/DR exercises in the past, an increased number of medical subject matter experts from Bangladesh, Canada, India, Indonesia, Malasia and Thailand visited the HA/DR portion as observers this year to witness operations firsthand and gather information on how to improve or establish their own contingency programs. "Natural disasters are the 'when' not the 'if' of contingency scenarios and HA/DR is becoming more and more important and recognized as a critical capability, which is why our partner nations have sent their observers to the tabletop and field training exercises," O'Byrne said. "During the conduct of the field training, the observers saw the U.S.-led CRG in Rota and the Australian Contingency Response Squadron on Tinian, which will allow them to see how different agencies would react." Success in numbers and increased interoperability Through effective use of its hub-and-spoke relief plan, the coalition teams successfully evacuated approximately 40 patients, moving more than 180 passengers, conducting 30 airdrops and transporting more than 438,600 pounds of cargo from island to island, Rhode said. "Each year, this exercise has been getting more advanced," she said. "We are learning more about what types of cargo can go on what types of aircraft or what type of communication capability each country uses. We learn it in the exercise and then when things really kick off, we are not starting from square one. We're working in the interest of saving lives and no one country can do it all themselves, so it's a lot easier to get on board and figure out the problem together." Currently ongoing, this year marks the 87th iteration of exercise Cope North, which includes a long-standing, multinational HA/DR event designed to increase interoperability and develop a synergistic disaster response capability between the U.S. Air Force, Japan Air-Self Defense Force and Royal Australian Air Force. The second half of Cope North will shift the focus to air combat training, which will include air-to-air and air-to-ground combat and large force employment training. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Officials Provide Details of Latest Counter-ISIL Strikes From a Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve News Release SOUTHWEST ASIA, February 23, 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. Strikes in Syria Ground-attack, attack and fighter aircraft conducted 11 strikes in Syria: -- Near Hasakah, five strikes struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed six ISIL buildings, suppressed two ISIL sniper positions and two ISIL fighting positions, and damaged an ISIL building. -- Near Dayr Az Zawr, five strikes struck six ISIL gas and oil separation plant wellheads. -- Near Manbij, one strike destroyed two ISIL buildings. Strikes in Iraq Fighter aircraft conducted 15 strikes in Iraq, coordinated with and in support of Iraq's government: -- Near Baghdadi, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL supply cache and an ISIL staging area. -- Near Kisik, seven strikes struck an ISIL tactical unit, three ISIL staging areas, an ISIL headquarters, an ISIL bed down location, and suppressed an ISIL rocket position. -- Near Makhmur, one strike destroyed an ISIL assembly area. -- Near Mosul, two strikes struck an ISIL tactical unit and suppressed an ISIL mortar position. -- Near Ramadi, two strikes struck two separate ISIL tactical units. -- Near Sinjar, one strike suppressed an ISIL light machine gun position. -- Near Tal Afar, one strike suppressed an ISIL light machine gun position. 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. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address U.S. General Reports Iraqi Forces' Successes, Progress By Cheryl Pellerin DoD News, Defense Media Activity WASHINGTON, February 23, 2016 Over the past nine months, Iraqi security forces have had significant successes and have made noticeable progress that will lead to the eventual defeat of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, the commanding general of the Combined Joint Forces Land Component Command for Operation Inherent Resolve said today. Army Maj. Gen. Richard D. Clarke, with responsibilities only in Iraq, briefed Pentagon reporters by video teleconference from Baghdad. Clarke said that about 400 paratroopers from the 82nd Airborne Division have formed the nucleus of the ground effort in Iraq for more than nine months from their headquarters in Baghdad. Marines, Air Force, Navy and 20 different coalition nations also are helping with the mission, with more than 4,100 personnel, he added. Three Main Missions When he and members of his division head back to Fort Bragg, North Carolina, in a couple of weeks, the general said, members of the 101st Airborne will take over three primarily missions: to train and equip the Iraqi security forces, to provide advice and assistance to Iraqi forces mainly at leadership levels, and to coordinate airstrikes in direct support of the Iraqi government. "The enemy is under simultaneous pressure here in Iraq as well as in Syria, and what we've seen are great victories in Sinjar and Ramadi and Beiji," Clarke said. In addition to taking back those key towns, he added, there have been at least three significant attacks by ISIL -- two in Haditha, and one in Mosul in December -- where the enemy put concentrated forces against Iraqi security forces, who held their ground. Clarke noted that the Iraqi forces have not lost any ground since May 19, when Ramadi fell to ISIL. Destroying ISIL Iraqi security forces and coalition airstrikes continue to destroy ISIL fighters, Clarke said. "For example, in the past two days we've had horrendous weather here, lots of rain, lots of clouds. Usually that's an opportunity for [ISIL] to attack," the general said. "We've seen nothing. [ISIL] right now is pressurized to prioritize against over-extended resources in money, equipment and manpower. In a summary of mission accomplishments, Clarke said the coalition has trained more than 16,000 Iraqi security forces and 4,000 Kurdish peshmerga forces. As part of the train-and-equip mission, he said, the Iraqi fighters receive advanced equipment, such as Humvees and mine rollers, which helps them defeat ISIL and boosts their confidence and will. "Two of the Iraqi army brigades that we've trained were directly involved in the fight in Ramadi," the general said. "That's the 73rd and the 76th brigades. As I talk to the Iraqi generals, [they] will say those are the two best Iraqi brigades in their army." Police Training The coalition has taken on training for the local and federal police, and Clarke said they have trained more than 2,000 police, with 1,000 more in training right now. "I want to give a big thanks to Task Force Carabinieri, who answered the call when we needed trainers back in June and continue to uptick the amount of trainers and trainees that they can put through," Clarke said. The Italian Carabinieri Corps has a dual role as the nation's police and armed forces, according to the organization's website. The coalition advises and assists at multiple levels, the general said, including for the three-star Iraqi Ground Forces Command at command and joint operations command levels. Advise and Assist The coalition also advises five operations commands, including the Anbar operations command, a corps-level three-star command that was responsible for Ramadi, Clarke said. The coalition has advisors in five Iraqi divisions, and with an army colonel they advise the Combined Joint Coordination Center in Irbil. Kurds and Iraqis who are beginning future operations planning man the center, he said. "Throughout our advise-and-assist mission and with the full support of the Iraqi security forces, we show that this is one fight by one team," Clarke noted. ISR and Airstrikes To date, the general said, the coalition has flown more than 20,000 hours of intelligence surveillance and reconnaissance unmanned aircraft flights that helped to develop the intelligence picture as the Iraqi forces planned and then recaptured Ramadi. In Irbil, the general said, the coalition helped peshmerga forces liberate Sinjar through airstrikes, cutting the vital Highway 47 between Raqqa and Mosul. "This [Iraqi forces have] enabled about 4,000 Iraqi-approved airstrikes that have been done in direct support of the Iraqi security forces providing direct assistance to those in the fight," Clarke added. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Rebalance to Pacific Needs to Continue, Pacom Commander Says By Jim Garamone DoD News, Defense Media Activity WASHINGTON, February 23, 2016 It is important for the U.S. military to continue its rebalance to the Asia-Pacific region, the commander of U.S. Pacific Command told the Senate Armed Services Committee today. Navy Adm. Harry Harris Jr. noted that four of the five strategic problem sets that Defense Secretary Ash Carter has stressed -- China, North Korea, Russia and the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant -- are in Pacom's area of operation. "I'd say that we can't rebalance fast enough," Harris told the committee. "But there is more work to do, and we must not lose the momentum. Asia-Pacific Regional Issues The South China Sea is an international waterway that's vital to world trade, Harris said. Disputes between China and some other Asia-Pacific nations over ownership of some islands in the area, he said, threaten to disrupt that trade as well as regional peace. Also, North Korea has been disturbing the peace with its nuclear program and effort to build ballistic missiles, Harris said. Earlier this month, Director of National Intelligence James Clapper said North Korea is the world's most unpredictable nuclear threat. Pacom is focused on the threat North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un poses, and Harris said he is working with regional allies to contain North Korea. But other areas also concern the Pacom commander. Russia is "revitalizing its ability to execute long-range strategic patrols in the Pacific to include the basing of its newest strategic ballistic missile submarine," he said. The Russians have also increased bomber flights around Japan. Terrorism also presents a threat in the region, as demonstrated by recent terrorist attacks in Bangladesh and Indonesia, Harris said. The attacks "underscore the fact that violent Islamic extremism is a global concern that must be crushed," he added. There have been changes in the region that will change the strategic landscape, Harris said. "We've continued to strengthen our alliances and partnerships," he told the senators. "Japan's peace and security legislation authorizing limited collective self-defense will take affect this year. This legislation and the revised guidelines for U.S.-Japan defense cooperation will significantly increase Japan's ability to work with us." Important Relationships The same is true with the U.S.-Philippines alliance, Harris said. The Philippines is a treaty ally of the United States, and in January the Philippine Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement between the two countries. This should provide significant partnership and access benefits, the admiral said. Harris told the panel he is particularly pleased about the burgeoning U.S. relationship with India. "As the world's two largest democracies, we are uniquely poised to help bring greater security and prosperity to the entire region," he said. "Two visionary policies are now coinciding as the United States rebalances west to the Indo-Asia-Pacific and India implements its Act East policy." Harris also praised the close and continuing cooperation with Australia. "I rely heavily on Australia, not only for its advanced military capabilities across all domains, but importantly for Australia's warfighting experience and leadership in operations around the world," he said. Harris said he needs continued investment in future capabilities. "I need weapons systems of increased lethality that go faster, go further, and are more survivable," he said. "If funding uncertainties continues, the U.S. will experience reduced warfighting capabilities, so I urge Congress to repeal sequestration." NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address General Cites High Level of Tension on Korean Peninsula By Jim Garamone DoD News, Defense Media Activity WASHINGTON, February 23, 2016 Tensions on the Korean Peninsula are the highest he has seen in his time in command of the Combined Forces Command, Army Gen. Curtis M. Scaparrotti told the Senate Armed Services Committee today. Scaparrotti added that the "semi-war status" in August "was highest tension that we have seen probably since 1994." In August, North Korea placed mines that wounded two soldiers on the South Korean side of the Demilitarized Zone. The incident escalated to an exchange of artillery before North Korea took responsibility for the incident. The general, who also commands U.S. Forces Korea and the United Nations Command, said he is concerned that "in a provocation, much like we had in August, both sides had very high alert status, and that there could be a miscalculation. And then with a response, it would be hard to control that situation." In August, the United States and South Korea "stood shoulder-to-shoulder and de-escalated the situation," he said. Still, he added, "it could have spiraled out of control, and [this] demonstrates why we must be ready to 'fight tonight' on the peninsula." Supports THAAD The general also told the Senate committee that he supports stationing the Theater High Altitude Area Defense system in South Korea. North Korea tested a nuclear weapon in January and launched a satellite into orbit Feb. 7. The launch is seen as a way to test intercontinental ballistic missiles. It is clear, the general told the committee, that North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un wants his country to be accepted as a nuclear nation, with a valid missile capability to deliver those assets. "[Kim] said that despite the international sanctions, that he will continue to develop his nuclear and his missile capabilities, and despite our deterrence, as you have seen, he has continued to do so," Scaparrotti said. Scaparrotti said he worries that Kim's risk calculation will be wrong at some point, and "that is what I worry most about." Alliance Getting Stronger The U.S.-South Korean alliance is strong now and is getting stronger, the general said. The two countries have emphasized combined capabilities, which include establishing the first U.S.-South Korean combined division, the rotation of additional U.S. forces to the peninsula, the execution of annual combined training exercises and steady progress on the $10.7 billion plan to relocate U.S. forces in Korea. "Furthermore, the Republic of Korea has improved its capabilities with the recent establishment of the Korean Air Missile Defense System Center and the Allied Korea Joint Command and Control System," Scaparrotti said. South Korea has invested in modern military equipment, such as purchasing the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, Global Hawk, Patriot advanced capable capability, three missile upgrades as well as AH-64 Apache helicopters. "These alliance advances help counter the real and proximate the North Korean threat," Scaparrotti said. "North Korea continues to conduct provocations and to resource its large conventional force. And of greater significance, North Korea continues to aggressively develop nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles, in direct violation of the U.N. Security Council resolutions." Needs ISR Assets Scaparrotti said intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance assets remain his top readiness challenge. It is also imperative, he added, for the alliance to establish a layered and interoperable ballistic missile defense. "We must maintain an adequate quantity of critical munitions to ensure alliance supremacy in the early days of any conflict on the peninsula," Scaparrotti said. "This requirement is further amplified by the approaching loss of cluster munitions, due to the shelf-life expiration and the impending ban." The alliance also must focus on command, control, communications, computers, and intelligence, the general said. "Both the United States and the Republic of Korea are investing in new tactical equipment that will comprise a reliable C4I architecture, but much more is required," he said. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address U.S. Department of Defense Press Operations News Transcript Presenter: Major General Richard Clarke, commanding general, Combined Joint Forces Land Component Command-Operation Inherent Resolve February 23, 2016 Department of Defense Press Briefing by Maj. Gen. Clarke via teleconference from Baghdad, Iraq CAPTAIN JEFF DAVIS: Good morning, General Clarke. And good morning, everybody. We're pleased to be joined this morning, this evening in Baghdad, by Major General Clarke, who is the outgoing CJFLCC I, that's the commander, land forces component commander in Baghdad, 82nd Airborne, and getting ready to head home in a couple of weeks, and give you an update on some of the things that have been going on on the ground in Iraq, and some highlights from his time over there. General, we're very pleased to have you here. Good morning, and we'll turn it over to you for some opening comments. MAJOR GENERAL RICHARD CLARKE: Hey, Jeff, good morning, and thanks. And thanks to the team. I know you have a lot going on there. I was just watching Lindsay Graham and others in testimony, and I heard you -- some of you were just with the president. So thanks for coming out. As Jeff just talked about, I'm the joint forces land component commander and been here for slightly over eight months. I know you just talked to General MacFarland a few weeks ago. He's the CJTF commander and has responsibilities for Syria and Iraq. In my job, I have responsibilities for just Iraq. And we have three primary missions. Number one is to train and equip the Iraqi security forces. Number two is to provide advice and assistance to those forces, primarily at the leadership levels. And third is to coordinate airstrikes in direct support of the government of Iraq. The 82nd has formed the nucleus of Iraq for over nine months now, some of our forces getting here in May of last year and our headquarters here in Baghdad. There's about 400 paratroopers from the 82nd. We look forward to getting back to Fort Bragg and jumping out of airplanes. But I would note that we have Marines, Air Force, Navy and 20 different coalition nations that are helping with those missions I describe, with over 4,100 personnel. The 101st has some initial forces here, but they're taking over the same mission as we have here right now. Over the last nine months, we've seen Iraqi security forces have significant successes and we've seen noticeable progress to lead to the eventual defeat of Daesh. The enemy are under simultaneous pressure here in Iraq, as well in Syria, and what we've seen are great victories in Sinjar and Ramadi and Baiji. But in addition to taking back those key towns, what we've also seen is at least three significant attacks by Daesh, two in Haditha, and one up in Mosul in December, where the enemy put concentrated forces against Iraqi security forces and they held their ground. The other thing I'd note is that since May 19th of last year, when Ramadi fell, the Iraqi security forces have not lost any ground since then. Daesh fighters remain -- continue to be destroyed by the Iraqi security forces and by our coalition airstrikes. For example, in the past two days, we've had -- we've had horrendous weather here, lots of rain, lots of clouds, usually, that's an opportunity for Daesh to attack. We've seen nothing. Daesh right now is pressurized to prioritize against over-extended resources in money, equipment and manpower. A quick summary of some of the things we've done in those three missions. First, on the training and equipping, we've done -- we have trained over 16,000 Iraqi security forces and 4,000 peshmerga, and that is also giving them advanced weaponry, things like Humvees and mine-rollers that helps them with the defeat of Daesh and gives them more confidence and will. Two of the Iraqi army brigades that we've trained were directly involved in the fight in Ramadi. That's the 73rd and the 76th Brigades, and those two brigades, as I talked to the Iraqi generals will say they are the two best Iraqi brigades in their army. We've also taken on police training, you know, both the local and federal police, and to date have trained over 2,000 police. We have 1,000 in training right now. I want to give a big thanks to Task Force Carabinieri who answered the call when we needed trainers back in June and continue to uptick the amount of trainers and the amount of trainees that they can put through. In addition to training, we're advising and assisting at multiple levels. First, we're advising and assisting the Iraqi Ground Forces Command, which is a three-star command, we're advising and assisting at both command and joint operations commands. That's one in Erbil, which is really a three-star level command, and one here in Baghdad in vicinity of my headquarters. In addition to that, you know, we are advising five Anbar -- five operations command to include the Anbar operations command that was responsible for Ramadi. That's like a core level three-star command and we're also doing five Iraqi divisions that we're -- where we have advisers. In addition -- in addition, we advise with an army colonel the combined joint coordination center, which is up in Erbil, which is manned by both Kurds and Iraqis as they begin future operations planning for Ninawa. Throughout our advise and assist mission that really show the full support of the Iraqi security forces we show that this is one fight by one team. I think one highlight that I would bring out is our advising of the Ninawa Operations Command that moved up in the vicinity of Makhmour that we've recently built a tactical assembly area there that is pushing Iraqi security forces into that position where we have our advisers. And finally, you know, we coordinate airstrikes in support of the government of Iraq. To date, we've flown over 20,000 hours of intelligence surveillance and reconnaissance unmanned aircraft as they've helped develop the intelligence picture that allows us to lethal strikes and as they planned and captured back Ramadi. In Erbil, we've helped -- we've helped the peshmerga forces to liberate Sinjar through airstrikes, cutting that vital Highway 47 between Raqqah and Mosul. This -- this ISR has enabled about 4000 Iraqi-approved airstrikes that have been done in direct support of the Iraqi security forces providing direct assistance to those in the fight. With that, Jeff, I'll turn it back over to you to help facilitate this and I welcome your questions. CAPT. DAVIS: Sure, thanks. We'll start with Bob Burns from the Associated Press. Q: General, hello. Thanks for doing the briefing. Question: You mentioned the preparations for the Ninawa fight and what is your view of the necessity, whether it will be necessary to bring in additional U.S. forces to support the Iraqis for that operation and to put these U.S. troops closer to the fight than they are currently? GEN. CLARKE: Jeff -- thanks for the question. Everything that we do will be through the -- with the approval of the government of Iraq. We are making plans for Mosul; I met with some Iraqi generals today to discuss what their plans are for Mosul, and we're doing that each and every day. But I think that still remains to be seen, what exact capabilities will -- will be needed. It really goes to what the Iraqis need and when. I hope that answers your question. Q: Well, could I just follow by asking, what is your personal view? I mean, you've been there for the past eight or nine months. What's your assessment, from your vantage point, whether it would be necessary? GEN. CLARKE: I use Ramadi as a great backdrop when I look at what they need for Mosul. They did Ramadi with the capabilities with our airstrikes, with our ISR and with our advice. And they didn't need it then. And I'll tell you, the confidence that was built during Ramadi by the Iraqi Security Forces in the aftermath has been fantastic. And I think we all know that if they do this on their own, it will be a more longer lasting, you know, win for the future of Iraq. Q: Thank you. CAPT. DAVIS: Next, to Cami McCormick of CBS. Q: Hi, sir. Thank you for doing this. This is Cami McCormick from CBS Radio. I wanted to follow up on Bob's question on Ninawa. First of all, when we were there recently with Secretary Carter, another brigade-size worth of equipment was moving into the Peshmerga MRAP, so a lot of equipment coming. I was wondering if that was there already? And secondly, can you tell us how the training at Makhmour is different from the training that these Iraqi soldiers have already been through with U.S. forces? GEN. CLARKE: Cathy (sic), the part on the first question. That equipment is moving up. And that equipment was specifically designated for the two Peshmerga brigades that we agreed to train as part of our strategy towards, you know, the defeat of Daesh. And so the -- those have been planned since almost the onset. And so, that equipment is arriving now, and we will be equipping the Pesh brigades in the future. As far as the operation and the training in Makhmour for the Iraq Security Forces, they're there not as much for training, but to posture for future operations. They'll do training as they prepare for that, but they're really there for future operations south of Mosul. Q: Indication how many Iraqi soldiers are now in place in that area? GEN. CLARKE: I'm sorry, we get this pause going. Can you repeat the question, please? Q: Can you tell us about how many Iraqi soldiers are now in that region to prepare for Mosul? GEN. CLARKE: Cathy (sic), I can't. Really, for operational security reasons, I'd rather -- I'd rather not say the specifics. But they have a division level headquarters and are moving some brigades up there. CAPT. DAVIS: Next to Tolga Tanis. Q: Thanks a lot, general. It's Tolga Tanis with Hurriyet. I have two questions, one on Makhmour and the second one on Bashiqa. Could you give us more details about the structure of Makhmour in terms of the forces stations in Makhmour, and the train and equipment program in terms of the Peshmerga, et cetera. You mentioned about one fight and one team on the upcoming Mosul operation. What -- what is the level of cooperation between Peshmerga forces and Iraqi Security Forces in Makhmour. And secondly, can you give us an update about the situation in Bashiqa, in terms of the Turkish forces deployment there? What is the consequence of this deployment, and did you overcome the difficulties arise because of this deployment between Baghdad and Ankara? GEN. CLARKE: Yeah. First, on the level of coordination between the Iraqis and the Kurds in Makhmour, what I've seen thus far has been -- it has been outstanding. They're -- at both the ground level, as we've worked -- as we have helped with Iraqi Security Forces coordinating their efforts of moving into Makhmour, into the Kurdish region, we have seen no issues and seen the assistance by the Kurdish, you know, regional forces and helping, you know, move them in there. And that both at a local level. But then, at the -- as I mentioned earlier, the Joint Coalition Coordination Center, where we have Iraqis and Kurds co-located in Erbil, they have coordinated those efforts. They had to coordinate these elements to move, you know, from -- in the vicinity of Baghdad through the Kurdish region. And we -- thus far, we've seen those soldiers move up there without any problems. In terms of Bashiqa and the presence there, the -- and I think you're -- I think you're talking about the Turkish forces. First, they are not part of the -- the coalition, they're not here at all. And really, that -- that, in coordination in what with they're doing there has nothing to do with the Combined Joint Forces Land Component Commander. So, I really don't have a lot to tell you about what is going on in Bashiqa. CAPT. DAVIS: Next to Thomas (inaudible) Express. Q: Hi, general. We're getting some reports -- Kurdish forces in Mosul are claiming that they rescued, on February 17th, a Swedish hostage. Do you know anything about that? GEN. CLARKE: Honestly, I don't. I first heard about it about an hour ago. But I -- I'm sorry. I don't have any specific details about it, or have any -- any knowledge about, more than you do or what you just asked. CAPT. DAVIS: Next to Joe Tabet from Al Hurra. Q: General Clarke, could you elaborate more on the readiness and capabilities of the Iraqi forces? Do you think they have enough equipment to -- to get ready for the Mosul operation? GEN. CLARKE: Sure. And again, I use Ramadi as illustrative for what we could see in the future for Mosul. The -- the Iraqis have realized the importance, as I highlighted, the use in the 73rd and the 76th brigades that are coming through our training sites, giving them equipment, training them on that equipment to make them better and building up their confidence. And truthfully, when you get the confidence up, then it makes the will, you know, more ready -- more readily apparent. And I think it -- that will -- you know, helps them with their ability to fight. As I was just talking to some Iraqi general officers today about the future planning for Mosul, the first thing they talked about was getting the Iraqi security forces for Mosul through our training sites first because they know -- they know that we will give them some -- some equipment and then train them on it, but it also -- they realize the training is -- is -- beneficial. Q: General Clarke, to follow-up on the Mosul operation, based on your experience, sir, how many Iraqi soldiers do you think should be involved in retaking Mosul? GEN. CLARKE: (off-mic.) CAPT. DAVIS: I'm not sure if you can hear, but we've gone blank. Checking here. We hear you just fine. Check again. Can you hear us? GEN. CLARKE: Jeff, can you hear me? CAPT. DAVIS: We hear you just fine if -- I'm not sure if you can hear us. We do hear you. Okay. We'll stay on the mic here in case you hear us. Testing one, two, three. We do hear -- we do hear you. Sorry guys. We could sing some karaoke here while we pass the mic around just to keep it live so they know that they -- that we're -- we're here. Q: (off-mic.) CAPT. DAVIS: Right. Testing one, two, three. Three, two, one. General, we've got you. We can see you. Can you hear us? We -- GEN. CLARKE: I see your thumb up. CAPT. DAVIS: Okay. We hear you. I don't know if you can hear us. We do hear you. We're -- we're working through it right now. Can you hear us at all? Hello? Hello? Can you say something? Sorry folks. And we're not hearing you now. Hello? Hello? Can you hear us? Okay. Sorry, folks. Bear with us. We're trying. GEN. CLARKE: Hey, Jeff. Can you hear me? CAPT. DAVIS: Can you hear us? GEN. CLARKE: You got me? I can't -- CAPT. DAVIS: Sir, we hear you. We hear you loud and clear. GEN. CLARKE: I can't hear -- I cannot hear you. CAPT. DAVIS: Okay. That's a problem. That's a -- that's a problem. GEN. CLARKE: I see you talking. You -- hey, Jeff, if you would, if you can hear me, please give me a thumbs up? Q: (off-mic.) CAPT. DAVIS: Yes. We hear him, he can't hear us. Q: Now we can't hear him. (CROSSTALK) CAPT. DAVIS: Okay. Yes. Sorry, folks. We'll keep trying, here. (CROSSTALK) CAPT. DAVIS: We paused for civilian casualty risk. General, we're still working it here. (AUDIO GAP) CAPT. DAVIS: He's asking about Mosul, I think. Q: Yes. I had a follow-up. Based on your assessment, how many Iraqi soldiers do you think there should be involved in retaking Mosul? Do you have a number you could share it with us? GEN. CLARKE: I don't have a number, and that would be to operational security. What I can tell you is we're -- we're involved with the Iraqi security forces everyday in planning the -- not just the numbers, Joe, but actually the capabilities -- not just the numbers, Joe, but actually the capabilities that they will require. CAPT. DAVIS: Very good. Next, we'll go to Nancy Youssef of The Daily Beast. Q: Hi, general. I had a question on two issues. One was Mosul and the other was detainees. Can you tell us if the U.S. either -- any force, whether it be special forces or general force, is holding any Iraqi detainees? And if so, how many? And also, can we get an update on what is happening with Umm Sayyaf? Is there concern from your perspective that she hasn't been charged a year after she was detained? Do you have any sense as to why she hasn't been charged? And then I have a follow-up on -- on Mosul. GEN. CLARKE: Nancy, I don't. I can't talk to either one of those for operational security reasons and I don't know about Umm Sayyaf's exact status right now, so sorry. But go ahead with your follow-up. Q: You've said several times now that Ramadi is a model for Mosul and I'm having a hard time understanding why because Mosul was held the least amount of time by ISIS, where Mosul has been held -- the most. Ramadi depended a lot on Iraqi special forces where presumably, there aren't enough of those to take on a city as big and complex as Mosul. And also, because you've had so many operations in places like Tikrit and Ramadi, you have a lot of Iraqi army forces tasked with holding areas. So I'm having a hard time understanding how it's, like, Ramadi, when to me, it seems quite different. Can you help me understand what you see as similar to Ramadi and what would be different about -- than Ramadi? GEN. CLARKE: Number one, I'd say the geography of -- of Ramadi and Mosul are pretty similar. Look at the bridge that goes -- you know, the river that goes right through the middle and there's five key bridges in Mosul. And there's probably six key bridges in -- around Ramadi. So in terms of the model, the actual isolation and the terrain, if you almost flip Mosul to Ramadi, you'll see something very similar in nature. I -- so terrain, even though Mosul is probably five times larger than Ramadi, the model in terms of I think how the Iraqi security forces plan on the eventual liberation of Mosul goes to how they plan on isolating it; how they plan on using those special forces to actually do some of the clearance; how they plan on using tribal forces and police forces to eventually hold the city. Much of that planning and much of the operational construct with that I think is that model. And the other piece, if I could go back to Joe's question on the training that I think is also helpful, is much of the lessons learned from Ramadi in terms of combined arms breaching and engineer efforts, actually having to put in a bridge like they did in Mosul -- or excuse me -- like they did in Ramadi, they will clearly have to do for Mosul, where they put in the pontoon bridges. And as they repair bridges that have been damaged, I think those are some of the pertinent lessons that I would take for Mosul. But Mosul is going to be -- no doubt, Mosul is going to be hard. It's further away from Baghdad where the majority of these forces will come from. And it is clearly a much larger city that has many different sects that are part of it, where obviously Ramadi is clearly and mainly a Sunni town. I hope that got to some of your questions. Q: Just one follow-up. Ramadi, as I recall, it took somewhere between four and five months. Do you think the Iraqi security forces and Iraqi special forces could sustain potentially seven, eight, nine months, maybe a year of fighting for someplace like Mosul, given the distance and the challenges that Mosul would present just in terms of size? GEN. CLARKE: Do I think they can? Yes. Do I think it's going to be easy? No. It's going to be a tough -- it's going to be tough to maintain those lines of communication and that logistics effort all the way up there. But that's clearly where some of our advising-assisting, some of our logistics support can help them. But I do see that they can do it. Q: Thanks. CAPT. DAVIS: Next, we'll got Andrew Tillman with Military Times. Q: Hi, general. I -- you mentioned that the Iraqi brigades, the 73rd and the 76th, are known to be some of the best brigades in the Iraqi force. I wonder if you could tell us, is there a number of how many Iraqi brigades that you all have determined are potential partners for advise and assist? As the secretary said a couple months ago, there's discussion of extending the advise and assist down to the brigade level. How many brigades do you think are, you know, potentially available for that? And also, I'd like to ask you a little bit about the space between, in the Tigris valley, between Baiji and Mosul. How does -- how do you get from Baiji to Mosul? What do you think that part of the operation will look like? And how important is that -- securing that supply line to ultimately moving into the city? GEN. CLARKE: Andrew, let me go to the first question that you asked about the -- about the brigades. The Iraqis clearly are seeing, you know, somewhere in the neighborhood I would estimate between eight and 12 brigades that could be part of the Mosul counterattack. Don't know -- don't know, and as they continue to do their estimates, we're going right along with them. And we see that as they are asking us to put brigades through the training sites. And we are -- we're facilitating that training on all efforts to make sure they get the right equipment; to make sure they get the right training to prepare them for future operations. In terms of the space between Baiji and Mosul, it is important, but it goes to the operational construct of how the Iraqis may do this. Because they could go completely to the Kurdistan region and be right on the footsteps of Mosul, or they could go up through what you're describing as Baiji up what we call highway one, almost due north. And what this gives them are multiple options. You know, in working with the Kurdish regional government, they could go through that. Or they could -- or they could go up through the highway one, or they could use a combination of both. So it is important terrain. Daesh controls the area north of Baiji right now, but it's clearly, you know, something that we're looking at in the operational planning and construct. CAPT. DAVIS: Anybody else? Q: And General, I had a follow up on Makhmour. Are you using Makhmour Operational Center to coordinate the entire ISIL efforts in Syria as well, especially in terms of the cooperation with YPG? GEN. CLARKE: No. Easy answer. Makhmour has nothing to do with Syria. That coordination is clearly just with the Kurdish regional government there and up in Erbil. Q: Did you coordinate with YPG in the liberation of Sinjar? GEN. CLARKE: No, we did not coordinate with YPG at all with the liberation of Sinjar. Q: Hi, general. Paul McLeary with Foreign Policy. How -- how effectively do you think you've been able to shut down the lines of communication between Raqqah and Mosul? I know the highway near Sinjar, when that was cut, you talked about that. And I think the fighting near Shadadi in Syria also cut another line just recently. Correct? GEN. CLARKE: That's how we see it. And obviously, I watch Syria as it affects Iraq, and I haven't seen the direct effect of Shadadi yet. But illustrative to cutting off Sinjar is prior to Sinjar being cut, along that highway 47 from Raqqah to Mosul, we would watch trucks and vehicles move 60 miles an hour down that highway in between those two key Daesh cities. Today, we see evidence of movement that has to go through the desert on second and tertiary roads that is moving at 25 mile an hour south of Sinjar to try to resupply. So the resupply -- not only is it -- not only is it cut off, but it's cut off and made slower through -- through that key operation in Sinjar. I -- I hope that got your question, Paul. Q: Thank you. CAPT. DAVIS: We're going to Nancy Youssef. Q: I'm sorry. Could you give us an update on Shadadi? Because I know the Kurds had claimed that they had taken it on February 19 and then yesterday, there was some fighting happening there. Is it your assessment that Shadadi's now firmly under Kurdish control? And how dependent was Mosul on that supply line from -- from Syria -- through Shadadi, through Hasakah Province? GEN. CLARKE: Nancy, I wish I could give you more on Syria. I am not looking at Shadadi as -- that closely to give you -- to give you a firm answer on that. Sorry. Q: Relevance to Mosul in terms of the supply route? GEN. CLARKE: I'm sorry, Nancy. I -- I didn't catch the beginning of your answer because of the -- this delay. Sorry. Q: Is Shadadi to Mosul or Hasakah province at large, how important is that to Mosul in terms of providing a supply route? GEN. CLARKE: I think it's -- it's moderately important, but not -- it is not that significant. CAPT. DAVIS: Any another questions? We're good? All right. Well, General, thank you very much for your time, coming to us live today. We appreciate it and wish you Godspeed here for the rest of your tour and your return home, and we'll see you back on this side of the pond soon. GEN. CLARKE: All right. Hey Jeff, thanks. And thanks to the folks who came in today. I know a lot going on. And apologies to everybody, I'm not sure what happened with the -- with the audio and video, but I appreciate y'all, you know, being there today. Thanks. CAPT. DAVIS: Thank you, sir. http://www.defense.gov/News/News-Transcripts/Transcript-View/Article/671869/ NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Secretary General: NATO and the EU working closer together than ever before NATO - North Atlantic Treaty Organisation 23 Feb. 2016 Calling the European Union "an essential partner for NATO," Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has welcomed closer cooperation between the European Union and NATO. Addressing the European Parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee and Sub-Committee on Security and Defence on Tuesday (23 February 2016), he noted that 90% of the European Union's citizens are also citizens of NATO Allies, which underscores the importance of the relationship. Mr. Stoltenberg stressed that close dialogue between the European Union and NATO is important to Allies on both sides of the Atlantic. He noted that NATO is working to enhance cooperation with the EU to address hybrid threats, and welcomed EU plans for a stronger defence industry. Calling 2016 "a big year" for the NATO-EU relationship, Mr. Stoltenberg said that June's European Council and the NATO Summit in July would be key opportunities to strengthen our unity and practical cooperation even further. "By working together, NATO and the European Union can add real value," he concluded. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Freedom of navigation in South China Sea not U.S. vessels' 'muscle show': China People's Daily Online (Xinhua) 19:55, February 23, 2016 BEIJING, Feb. 23 -- China on Tuesday refuted once again the United States' claim that China has threatened the freedom of navigation in the South China Sea, urging it to stop sowing dissension among South China Sea littoral countries. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying made the remarks at a daily press briefing in response to a senior U.S. naval officer's recent call for more naval operations in the region. 'I must point out that the freedom of navigation in the South China Sea entitled under international law does not mean U.S. naval vessels or airplanes' freedom to flex their muscle,' Hua said. Vice Adm. Joseph Aucoin, the commander of the U.S. Navy's Seventh Fleet, said on Monday that Australia and other countries should follow the U.S. lead and conduct 'freedom-of-navigation' naval operations within 12 nautical miles of contested islands in the South China Sea, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) reported. As the world's largest trade in goods nation and the largest South China Sea littoral state, China 'cares more about navigation safety and freedom in the South China Sea than any other country,' said Hua. In fact, there has never been any problem with navigational freedom in the South China Sea, said Hua, adding it was unfair to 'put such a label on China.' She urged the United States to stop sowing dissension and deliberately stirring up tension, and stop deeds and actions that undermine peace and stability in the region. When asked to comment on some U.S. media saying that China is creating a 'great wall of sand' in the South China Sea, Hua said China's sovereignty and claims in the South China Sea are grounded in history and upheld by successive Chinese governments. The position has adequate historical and legal basis, Hua said. 'We have no intention to expand (the sovereignty), nor allow it to shrink,' she said. 'If the word 'great wall' must be used, we suggest those media pay more attention to Chinese people's 'great wall of will' to firmly safeguard territorial sovereignty and legal rights,' Hua said. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address U.S. close-in reconnaissance the main source of militarization in South China Sea, spokesperson says People's Daily Online By Yuan Can (People's Daily Online) 14:33, February 23, 2016 The U.S., which has sent military vessels and planes to areas in the South China Sea to conduct close-in reconnaissance, is the source of tension and militarization of the South China Sea, a China's Foreign Ministry spokesperson said at a press conference Monday. The U.S. last week accused China of raising tensions in the South China Sea by its deployment of surface-to-air missiles on Yongxing Dao which raised tensions there especially at the current time and stage. However, at the same time, U.S. media questioned U.S. navy's so-called freedom of navigation operation because a U.S. Navy destroyer sailed within 12 nautical miles of Zhongjian Island in the Xisha Islands chain in the South China Sea on Jan. 30, 2016. In response to this issue, China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs' spokesperson Hua Chunying said that there is no difference between China's deployment of necessary national defense facilities on its own territory and the defense installation by the U.S. in Hawaii. Hua said that the frequency of the U.S. sending vessels and planes to the South China Sea increases year by year. It has intensified tensions in the region, and is most likely to cause regional militarization. China hopes that the U.S. would not confuse right and wrong on this issue, still less play up and create tensions in the region, said Hua. China urges the U.S. to play a constructive role for regional peace and stability. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Countries with fewer military links to Western countries potential clients for China's FC-20, military expert says People's Daily Online By Yuan Can (People's Daily Online) 16:59, February 23, 2016 Developing countries that do not have close military attachments with Western countries will be potential buyers of China's FC-20 fighter jet, an expert said in an interview with People's Daily Online. According to the report on Britain IHS Jane's Defense Weekly, Pakistan had shown willingness to buy FC-20 fighters, but this bill did not take effect. It is reported that Iran is also in favor of this type of fighter vehicle. Du Wenlong, a military expert, stated that the export of FC-20 fighters is constrained by various conditions. First of all, member countries of NATO will not only pass on the fighter jet but will also go against it since China's fighter jet export takes market shares from U.S. F-16 fighters. Secondly, extremely wealthy countries will prefer more expensive and comprehensive fighters to the FC-20. However, it is undeniable that countries that do not have access to American fighters or look down on Russian ones will be potential buyers of China's FC-20. State-owned Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC) has confirmed that it is actively seeking international sales for the Chengdu FC-20 multirole fighter aircraft, the export version of the Chengdu J-10, according to the report on Jane's Defense Weekly. According to the report, an AVIC official said the corporation only received official approval to export the FC-20 'in the past few years.' He confirmed that the aircraft is being targeted for sale to customers in Asia, Africa, the Middle East, and South America, but did not disclose details. Speaking about the differences between the FC-20 and its prototype, J-10, Du stated that the two versions mainly differ from each other not in appearance and basic performance but in functions. The J-10 fighter is a combat aircraft designed for the People's Liberation Army Air Force, while the export version of the fighter can adjust its configuration and performance to the demands of potential clients. As for the advantages of the FC-20, Du stated that the aircraft is cheaper than its American and Russian counterparts. China is good at cost control when it comes to weapons manufacturing. Furthermore, China's export of weaponry will not be hampered at all by political pretexts. The U.S. regards arms export and military cooperation as important diplomatic indicators for friends and enemies; China, on the other hand, conducts military and technological cooperation with other countries as equals. What's more, if China sells an aircraft to another country, that country will provide technological or personnel support for application and maintenance. Du also said that China's export of fighters still falls behind that of the U.S., Russia and other European countries, especially when it comes to main force fighters. The American F-16 and Russian Mikoyan MiG-29 are superior to China's FC-20 in terms of market shares. At present, the export of advanced Chinese weaponry is struggling to expand its market share in the face of established patterns. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Afghanistan, Taliban to hold peace talks next month Iran Press TV Tue Feb 23, 2016 6:57PM The first round of direct peace talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban militant group are expected to take place in neighboring Pakistan by March. The so-called Quadrilateral Coordination Group (QCG), made up of delegates from Pakistan, Afghanistan, China and the US, set the date after meeting for a fourth round of talks. According to a joint statement by the Quadrilateral Coordination Group, Pakistan has agreed to host the talks in Islamabad in the first week of March. The group also 'expressed strong support for the upcoming direct talks between the Government of Afghanistan and authorized representatives of the Taliban and other groups.' Tuesday's four-way talks in Kabul came against a backdrop of continuing violence and increasing military pressure from the Taliban militant group. Meanwhile, Afghan Foreign Minister Salahuddin Rabbani called for a detailed draft of direct talks between the Kabul government and the Taliban before the end of February. Pakistan hosted a first round of peace talks between Taliban and Afghan leaders in July 2015. The talks were halted after the militants belatedly announced the death of their longtime leader Mullah Omar. The legitimacy of Omar's former deputy Mullah Akhtar Mansour, who assumed the leadership last July, has been rejected by some Taliban factions. The rival factions have accused Mansour of being affiliated to Pakistani spy agency, Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI). Kabul has long accused Islamabad of continuing to covertly back the Taliban militant group. Relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan have been tense in recent years over the ongoing militancy. Senior Afghan officials have frequently blamed elements inside the ISI for harboring the Taliban and sponsoring the militancy, while Islamabad blames the Afghan government for giving shelter to the militants on its side of the border. The Taliban have been operating in both Afghanistan and neighboring Pakistan. Senior Afghan and Pakistani officials have agreed during a series of high-level meetings to stop accusing each other over Taliban-led violence that has been plaguing both countries. The United States and its allies invaded Afghanistan in 2001 as part of Washington's so-called war on terror. The offensive removed Taliban from power, but insecurity still remains in some provinces. The violence has also spilled over into Pakistan. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Vucic Says EU Membership Has 'Lost Magic Power' For Balkans February 23, 2016 by RFE/RL The European Union has lost some of its allure for Balkan countries seeking to join, thanks to the migrant crisis and concerns about Britain leaving the bloc, Serbia's prime minister has said. Aleksandar Vucic told reporters in London that Serbia still hopes to join the EU after beginning formal accession talks last year. But the bloc 'has lost its magic power' for Balkan countries aspiring to join, he said at a European Bank for Reconstruction and Development conference. 'Yes, we all want to join, but it is no longer the big dream it was in the past.' Balkan countries have been caught in the middle of the European migrant crisis, with hundreds of thousands of people who have fled war and poverty in the Middle East crossing through the Balkans in the desperate hope of finding refuge in the EU. The so-called 'Balkan route' for migrants from Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, and other countries runs through Macedonia, Serbia, and Croatia. Vucic told Reuters the Balkan public was also disillusioned by the threat of Britain, a long-standing EU member, leaving the union. 'When you see that in Britain at least 50 percent of the people say they want to leave, that has an effect on the public,' he said. British Prime Minister David Cameron last week negotiated changes to the terms of Britain's EU membership and hopes to persuade voters to back them in a referendum set for June 23. But opinion polls show the outcome could be close. Despite being less attractive than before, joining the EU would still be a smart move for Serbia, Vucic said. 'I have told them openly the EU is not as attractive as it used to be, but we are rational people and we know this is the best for our country,' he told the conference. Vucic added that Serbia is not prepared to abandon its close relations with Moscow to join the EU, despite the economic sanctions the EU has imposed on Russia. 'I have told them unambiguously that we continue our cooperation with the Russian Federation," he said. 'We would like to preserve good relations with Russia.' Serbia sells a lot of agricultural goods to Russia, having stepped recently into the void created by Moscow's ban on Ukainian agricultural goods. Among Serbia's neighbors in the Balkans, Bulgaria, Romania, and Croatia are already in the EU. Countries hoping to join like Serbia include Macedonia, Montenegro, Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Kosovo, and Turkey. The EU encouraged Serbia in December by opening talks in two new policy areas. But Belgrade's continued refusal to recognize the independence of its former province of Kosovo likely remains a hurdle. With reporting by Reuters and InSerbia Network Foundation Source: http://www.rferl.org/content/vucic-says- eu-membership-has-lost-magic-power-for- balkans-migrant-crisis-brexit/27568380.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. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Georgian President Remains A Divisive Figure February 23, 2016 by Liz Fuller The unexplained resignation in late December of Irakli Gharibashvili from the post of Georgian prime minister put an end to two years of friction between him and the country's president, Giorgi Margvelashvili. In certain respects Margvelashvili remains a divisive figure, however, whose stances on crucial political questions such as electoral reform differ from those of some other members of the ruling, five-party Georgian Dream coalition. Gharibashvili's successor, Giorgi Kvirikashvili, has gone out of his way to present a united front with Margvelashvili. He made a point of attending a session of the National Security Council that Margvelashvili convened in late January, whereas Gharibashvili had participated in only one of three such sessions under Margvelashvili's chairmanship. In a statement confirming that Kvirikashvili would attend the January 29 session, his office stressed that 'the head of the government believes that it is important to respect institutions and that such issues [whether or not he will attend meetings of the National Security Council] should no longer become a topic of discussion, especially when the authorities have much more important issues to tackle.' Days later, Kvirikashvili was similarly present when Margvelashvili delivered his annual state-of-the-nation address to parliament. Republican Party leader David Berdzenishvili hailed Kvirikashvili's presence as symbolizing 'the restoration of political order.' That 'new political reality' was also reflected in what Margvelashvili did and did not say. In his 2015 address, he had complained about the multiplicity of 'commissions, councils, and agencies' whose functions duplicate each other and thus raise the question 'Who exactly is in charge?' In that context, he mentioned specifically the Council for Security and Crisis Management set up by Gharibashvili in late 2013, the functions of which overlap with those of the National Security Council, and the Inter-Agency Council on Foreign Policy that partially duplicates the work of the Foreign Ministry. Margvelashvili said that lack of clarity weakens the institutions in question and detracts from their efficiency, and also 'creates confusion' among potential investors and Georgia's international partners. He praised the government for 'listening to the people' but went on to criticize its handling of the economy, in particular the slowdown in economic growth and the steady depreciation of the national currency. This year, Margvelashvili eschewed such criticism, instead praising Kvirikashvili's stated intentions of expediting infrastructure projects, stepping up engagement with business, and reforming the education system. Challenges Ahead Margvelashvili went on to review in general terms all the major problems and challenges the country faces, including strengthening democracy; ensuring the parliamentary election due in October is acknowledged as free and fair; weathering the global economic downturn; Georgia's uneasy relationship with Russia; and its stalled bid for NATO membership. Parliament speaker Davit Usupashvili expressed 'satisfaction that we have seen shared approaches, [and a shared] vision of the country's long-term and short-term priorities.' Other Georgian Dream parliamentarians, however, took issue with specific proposals. Giorgi Volsky, leader of the Georgian Dream faction, criticized Margvelashvili's commitment to the electoral reform advocated by extraparliamentary parties and supported by the formerly ruling United National Movement (ENM) that would replace the current 75 single-mandate constituencies with a regional-proportional system. Other Georgian Dream members (including Gharibashvili) have consistently argued that it is not feasible to do so in the time span remaining. Opposition parliamentarians, especially two from the ENM, were harsher. Sergo Ratiani criticized Margvelashvili for being too vague in his approach to some key issues and for avoiding any mention of others, including 'systemic corruption' and the role and influence of Georgian Dream's founder, billionaire philanthropist Bidzina Ivanishvili, who the ENM is convinced influences, or even dictates, government policy. Giorgi Gabashvili was more specific, arguing that Margvelashvili's assertion that Georgia should be a country where law reigns supreme was cynical insofar as the country is ruled by a person -- Ivanishvili -- who has no formal authority and is guided solely by his own interests. Controversial Criticism But it was a member of the Georgian Dream majority faction who came out with the most controversial criticism of Margvelashvili. Gogi Topadze, whose Industry Will Save Georgia party has been represented in most parliaments since 1995, accused Margvelashvili of showing 'ingratitude' by criticizing Ivanishvili and the government that had selected him as its presidential candidate. Topadze criticized Margvelashvili's refusal to vacate the presidential palace in Tbilisi constructed at huge expense by former President Mikheil Saakashvili. And he claimed that Margvelashvili had compared the Georgian nation to people suffering from Down syndrome. In an essay published several years earlier in the journal Dro Mshvidobisa (Time of Peace), Margvelashvili, a former philosophy professor, had reportedly compared the Georgian nation to 'a mentally defective child that doesn't want to grow up,' apparently meaning a reluctance to shoulder responsibility. On the other hand, Margvelashvili and his wife hosted a party at the presidential palace in March 2015 for children with Down syndrome. Two members of the cabinet, Justice Minister Tea Tsulukiani and Labor, Health, and Social Security Minister David Sergeenko, publicly apologized for the imputed slur, and Topadze himself subsequently retracted his comment. But the public criticism by parliamentarians of Margvelashvili's refusal to vacate the presidential palace inspired a sparsely attended protest on February 12. Participants argued that at a time of economic hardship, the country cannot afford the upkeep of two official presidential residences. Some even demanded Margvelashvili's resignation. True, only some 30 people attended that protest. But if the economic situation continues to deteriorate, Margvelashvili may, rightly or wrongly, come to be more widely perceived as a symbol of the authorities' apparent indifference to the plight of the population at large. And as the debate over the timing of electoral reform becomes more heated, Margvelashvili may also find himself in direct confrontation with the Georgian Dream parliament majority that insists on implementing that reform only after the October 2016 parliamentary ballot. Meanwhile, Topadze's industrialists now risk expulsion from the Georgian Dream coalition after he publicly implicated Defense Minister Tinatin Khidasheli in the falsification of a recent by-election and accused two other parliamentarians from the 10 member Republican Party faction (the second-largest within Georgian Dream) of having collaborated with the Soviet-era KGB. Prime Minister Kvirikashvili said the allegations against Khidasheli 'cast a shadow not only over the Republican Party but over the entire coalition.' Source: http://www.rferl.org/content/caucasus- report-georgian-president- gharibashvili-divisive/27569306.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. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address China Builds Radar on Islands to Boost Surveillance - US Think Tank Sputnik News 12:09 23.02.2016(updated 12:11 23.02.2016) China is allegedly constructing radar installations on disputed Cuarteron Reef in the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea, which is expected to boost the country's surveillance capabilities, US Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) said in a statement. MOSCOW (Sputnik) The South China Sea dispute between China and a number of regional states centers around the Spratly Islands, which is a group of over 750 islands and reefs that are believed to hold significant oil and gas reserves. Countries laying claim to the islands say they serve as an important commercial shipping route. 'Two probable radar towers have been built on the northern portion of the feature, and a number of 65-foot (20-meter) poles have been erected across a large section of the southern portion. These poles could be a high-frequency radar installation, which would significantly bolster China's ability to monitor surface and air traffic across the southern portion of the South China Sea,' the statement published Monday reads. Beijing has claimed sovereignty over the Spratly Islands and a 12-nautical-mile zone that surrounds them, but Washington has persistently challenged its claims by conducting patrols near the islands citing freedom of navigation. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Update: air strikes against Daesh 23 February 2016 British forces have continued to conduct air operations in the fight against Daesh Latest update Daesh terrorists continue to take serious losses from Royal Air Force strikes in support of Syrian opposition fighters and Iraqi security forces. RAF Tornado GR4s and a Reaper remotely piloted aircraft conducted counter-Daesh missions over Syria on Thursday 18 February. North of Abu Kamal, a Tornado patrol used a pair of Brimstone missiles to strike a large engineering vehicle being used for wellhead repair and maintenance in a Daesh-controlled oilfield. Meanwhile, north-west of Raqqa, a Reaper worked closely with coalition jets to prosecute a group of Daesh extremists who were attacking members of the moderate Syrian armed opposition. The Reaper provided targeting and surveillance support to three successful coalition air attacks, then conducted a fourth attack using its own Hellfire missile. Over Iraq, other Tornados continued to support Iraqi army operations around Ramadi, in the course of which they used Paveway IVs to bomb three Daesh-held buildings. On Friday 19 February, Typhoon FGR4s and Tornados patrolled over western Iraq. North-east of Ramadi, an Iraqi helicopter reported coming under fire from an anti-aircraft gun concealed beneath a carport. A Paveway IV delivered by a Typhoon removed the threat. The Typhoons then dropped two Paveways on a large building where a group of terrorists, armed with rocket-propelled grenades, were holding out against the advancing Iraqi troops. North-east of Al Asad airbase, a coalition surveillance aircraft identified a set of five rocket launchers and an ammunition stockpile set up in a palm grove, and was able to guide in a Tornado flight which destroyed both targets with Paveways, then used a third Paveway to eliminate a group of terrorists caught in the open. Later in the day, a second Tornado patrol used Paveways to destroy four Daesh-held buildings north-east of Ramadi, including two used to prepare truck-bombs. In northern Iraq, a Typhoon mission operated north-east of Mosul, supporting the Kurdish peshmerga, and destroyed two buildings from which the terrorists had been fighting. Over Syria, a Reaper and other coalition aircraft supported moderate Syrian opposition forces north-west of Raqqa; our Reaper assisted in one coalition air strike, then used a Hellfire to destroy an Daesh improvised armoured vehicle. The following day saw RAF Reapers in action over both Syria and Iraq again. North-west of Raqqa, a Reaper tracked a Daesh machine-gun team that had been firing on Syrian opposition fighters. The terrorists retreated to a small building, where they were joined by other extremists. The Reaper then successfully attacked the group with a Hellfire missile. In Iraq, again north-east of Ramadi, another Reaper worked closely with another coalition remotely piloted aircraft to provide close air support to the Iraqi ground forces. The Reaper assisted its coalition partner in an attack, then conducted two attacks with its own Hellfires on two Daesh groups engaged in close combat with the Iraqi troops. A Typhoon flight patrolled east of Mosul on Monday 22 February, and was able to identify a Daesh team that was planting improvised explosive devices, they hit with a Paveway. Previous air strikes 1 February: Two Tornados flew reconnaissance and close air support for the Kurdish peshmerga in northern Iraq. Near Kisik Junction, they used a Brimstone missile and three Paveways to attack three rocket launchers and a Daesh vehicle, then over Qayyarah, a further Brimstone and Paveway destroyed an ammunition truck and a mortar position. Typhoons operated in the area of Ramadi, where they conducted successful attacks on three terrorist strongpoints. 2 February: Typhoons worked closely with other coalition aircraft to target a group of terrorists manoeuvring in the open near Ramadi, hitting them with a Paveway IV guided bomb. The Typhoons then flew to the area north of Habbaniyah, where they conducted a Paveway attack on a terrorist-held building. Further north, a pair of Tornado GR4s bombed a Daesh mortar team that was firing on Iraqi troops near Bayji. 3 February: Typhoons and Tornados providing close air support to Iraqi forces clearing Daesh positions in the area around Ramadi. The Typhoons destroyed a terrorist building with a Paveway, then used two more Paveways to engage a pair of Daesh groups, armed with heavy machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades, which were engaged in close combat with Iraqi troops. Despite the proximity of the friendly forces, the precision of the Paveways and careful planning by the aircrew allowed both targets to be struck successfully. The Tornados similarly had to attack a series of Daesh positions close to Iraqi forces, and these were also highly successful: Paveway attacks accounted for four groups of terrorist fighters, including one heavy machine-gun and two mortar teams, and when machine-gunners opened fire on the Iraqis from the windows of a single storey building, the Tornados launched a pair of Brimstone missiles which accurately struck both windows. Later in the day, Typhoons used a Paveway to destroy a mechanical excavator which had been converted into a large booby-trap, positioned amongst trees next to a road east of Ramadi. 4 February: RAF patrols over the countryside around Ramadi and Fallujah. Typhoons bombed three Daesh positions, as well as a group of terrorists caught moving in the open, whilst Tornado GR4s again attacked extremists engaged in very close combat with Iraqi forces; Paveways were used to destroy a heavy machine-gun team and a strongpoint, but in one instance, the terrorists were so close to the Iraqi troops that even a Paveway could not be used safely. Fortunately, the Brimstone missile's precision and small warhead allowed one to be fired into the midst of the Daesh fighters to significant effect. The following day, Typhoons operated around Habbaniyah and Ramadi, using eight Paveways to destroy an armed truck, a recoilless gun, two Daesh-held buildings, a command and control position, two weapons caches and a workshop producing truck-bombs. 7 February: Tornados used a Brimstone missile to destroy a truck-bomb near Habbaniyah, while Typhoon missions near Ramadi successfully attacked a garage containing an armed pick-up truck which was firing through the doorway at advancing Iraqi soldiers, and a terrorist-held building. Throughout all these missions, the Typhoons and Tornados were supported by a Voyager air refuelling tanker, with Sentinel aircraft providing essential strategic surveillance support to the coalition. 9 February: A pair of Typhoon FGR4s, supported by an RAF Voyager air refuelling tanker, destroyed an armoured vehicle, converted into a large truck-bomb, blocking a road with a Paveway IV guided bomb south-west of Kirkuk. 10 February: Typhoons provided close air support to Iraqi troops engaged in close combat with Daesh extremists north of Habbaniyah. The Typhoons struck the terrorists with a pair of Paveway IVs. 11 February: As Iraqi ground forces clear the remaining pockets of Daesh within Ramadi city they are also turning their efforts to Daesh strongpoints to the north and east of the city, supported by coalition aircraft. A pair of Typhoons, working in close cooperation with a coalition surveillance aircraft, successfully conducted two Paveway attacks on groups of terrorist fighters. Later that day, a second Typhoon mission over the area used Paveways to destroy a heavy machine-gun position and an accommodation block used by Daesh. 12 February: Typhoons were also active east of Ramadi, bombing two groups of terrorists, as well as a team planting improvised explosive devices. 14 February: A Tornado mission successfully targeted a compound north of Habbaniyah, where around 16 Daesh extremists had been observed, striking it with a pair of Paveway IVs. 15 February: Two Tornado GR4s conducted an armed reconnaissance patrol over northern Iraq in support of Kurdish security forces. A group of Daesh extremists were identified in a pair of buildings south-west of Kirkuk and were able to attack both at the same time with Paveway IV bombs. A Brimstone missile destroyed a terrorist vehicle and before the Tornados returned to base a Paveway was used to attack a weapons cache. Meanwhile, RAF Typhoons alongside other coalition aircraft conducted a series of coordinated attacks on Daesh facilities. The targets included a large weapons store at Abu Kamal, on the Syrian bank of the Euphrates which was destroyed with four Paveway IVs. An RAF Reaper provided surveillance support to several of the other coalition attacks. 16 February: Tornados patrolled over northern Iraq and came to the assistance of advancing Kurdish forces who were under fire from Daesh heavy machine-gun and mortar teams south-east of Mosul. Paveway attacks successfully dealt with the threat. 17 February: A Tornado mission interrupted a Daesh team preparing to fire nine artillery rockets, hitting them with Paveway to impact the middle of the line of launch rails. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address UN refugee agency calls on Nigeria to heed wishes of internally displaced 23 February 2016 The Nigerian authorities should heed the concerns of internally displaced people (IDP) in the north-east of the country, the United Nations refugee agency's to protection official said following his visit to Borno, the north-eastern state hardest hit by the Boko Haram insurgency. "We all need to listen to the IDPs, their aspirations and sense of dignity and safety" when organizing their returns to areas taken back by the Government but still considered risky, Volker Turk, Assistant High Commissioner for Protection at the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), said during a visit to Maiduguri, capital of Borno, over the weekend. The insurgency has affected about five million people, including more than 2.2 million Nigerians who are internally displaced and almost 180,000 who have fled to neighbouring countries. Earlier this month, suicide bombers killed more than 50 people and injured dozens in attacks on a site holding some 50,000 IDPs at Dikwa in Borno. Many of the IDPs in Borno come from towns and villages that have been practically razed over the past two years, lacking infrastructure, basic services and security. Mr. Turk arrived in Nigeria Thursday last week to review the refugee agency's emergency operations in the northeast. He has also met Nigeria's Vice President Yemi Osinbajo in Abuja and Government partners to discuss the challenges and areas of cooperation. During these meetings, he urged the Government to take advantage of UNHCR's experience in voluntary repatriation and work closely to ensure the welfare of people of concern while offering to help neighbouring countries organize voluntary repatriation where and when the conditions were right. While encouraging Government institutions and civil society organizations to lead the response to forced displacement, he said: "UNHCR, as part of the international community, will continue to support local initiatives." Mr. Turk also met IDPs in Borno and Yola states, listening to harrowing tales of violence and destruction and the continuing suffering and challenges facing people unable to return home. On Same Footing with Syria The needs are great and increasing in Borno, including Maiduguri's 17 organized and 13 informal IDP camps hosting some 125,000 people. Alhadji Usman Didda Shua, a senior local government official, said that Borno, where social and health infrastructures are virtually non-existent, should be treated "on the same footing with Syria." In Borno alone, 16 out of 38 hospitals have been destroyed or looted, and 214 primary health care centres shut. Bama, the second largest city in Borno until 2014 with a population of 600,000, lies in ruins and is deserted. State authorities say it will require millions of dollars to reconstruct. Hapsatu Amadu, a 47-year-old community leader in Malkohi on the outskirts of Yola told him they needed clothing, food and shelter. "We are exposed to the vagaries of the weather in these grass thatched huts," she explained. "In each crisis, there is an opportunity, which we need to seize, hopefully in the form of a new social contract," Mr. Turk concluded. He will next visit Cameroon to discuss the situation of Nigerian refugees there and to visit the Minawao refugee camp in the Far North Region before wrapping up his regional visit on Wednesday. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Burundi: Ban welcomes promise of 'inclusive dialogue,' release of detainees 23 February 2016 United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has welcomed the decision today by the President of Burundi to withdraw some media bans, cancel arrest warrants and release detainees as goodwill gestures to try to end months of violence in the crisis-torn country. Speaking at a press conference in Burundi, Mr. Ban said that President Pierre Nkurunziza told him this morning that, among other measures, he will release a list of 1,200 detainees. "This is an encouraging step," the UN chief said, emphasizing that he would expect that additional measures should be taken. Mr. Ban said that at his invitation yesterday evening, representatives of the political actors, from both the Government ruling party and opposition party, sat down together to discuss Burundi's future, and promised to engage in inclusive dialogue. "Nothing prevents them from continuing on this course," the Secretary-General stressed, adding that President Nkurunziza also confirmed that he will be engaging in an inclusive dialogue. Noting that he was last in Burundi in June 2010, only weeks before the general elections, Mr. Ban said that at the time, he spoke about the peace dividends of the Arusha Peace and Reconciliation Agreement and the Global Ceasefire Agreement, which put the country on a path to economic recovery and national reconciliation. "The effort that ended the civil war hinged on the willingness of former battlefield enemies to sit at the same table and become partners in Burundi's common future," the UN chief said. Mr. Ban also underscored that it is necessary to shift from a focus on crisis response to a culture of early action what he called a "preventive diplomacy." "That is one of the main reasons I am in Burundi today and it is one of the main calls to action when I am convening world leaders at the World Humanitarian Summit in Istanbul in May 2016," he said. Mr. Ban added that his Special Adviser on Yemen, Jamal Benomar, has deployed his team in Burundi and is working with the Government to support a "credible and inclusive political dialogue" and advise the authorities on addressing security concerns. "I have full confidence and trust in Mr. Benomar and I hope that the Government of Burundi will work closely with him," Mr. Ban said. "Burundi's political leaders must be willing to summon the courage and confidence that will make a credible political process possible and ensure that the people of this beautiful nation can once again live in peace and enjoy human rights," the UN chief concluded. Burundi was thrown into crisis this past April when President Nkurunziza decided to run for a controversial third term that he went on to win in July. To date, it has been reported that more than 400 people have been killed, more than 240,000 have fled the nation, and thousands more have been arrested and possibly subjected to human rights violations. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Pakistan Plans to Host Afghan Peace Talks by First Week of March by Ayaz Gul February 23, 2016 Direct peace talks between the Afghan government and Taliban-led insurgent groups are expected to start "by the first week of March" and Pakistan has offered to host the negotiations. The announcement followed a meeting Tuesday in Kabul of diplomats from Afghanistan, Pakistan, China and the United States as part of efforts to promote the Afghan peace process. "The QCG [Quadrilateral Coordination Group] member states invite all Taliban and other groups to participate through their authorized representatives in the first round of direct peace talks with the Afghan government expected to take place by the first week of March 2016," the QCG said. The announcement added the next QCG meeting will take place in Islamabad 'immediately after the first direct peace talks." Earlier, in a speech to the delegates, Afghan Foreign Minister Salahuddin Rabbani reiterated a call for the Taliban, the Hizb-e-Islami, and other armed factions to join the peace process. The head of Hizb-e-Islami's political wing, Ghairat Baheer, told VOA his group is considering Rabbani's invitation. "We are seriously discussing it and considering it. Our preference is that Afghans should be allowed to settle their own problems by themselves without foreign intervention and foreign mediation. But since the new situation emerged, so we will be considering it again," Baheer said. Hizb-e-Islami is the country's second largest insurgent group. Taliban reaction The Taliban has not indicated whether it intends to join the peace process. Instead, the Taliban has intensified its insurgent activities and extended its control or influence to an estimated 30 percent of Afghan territory during the past year. Rabbani emphasized the need for a "considerable reduction' in insurgent violence, among other confidence-building measures, saying it will help 'our peace efforts to succeed." He again warned that Afghan security forces are ready to deal with Taliban factions that refuse to join the peace talks and continue to commit bloodshed in the country. A Taliban spokesman, when contacted by VOA, would not directly comment on Rabbani's call for the group to join the peace process and referred to its stated public position that calls for withdrawal of all international forces from Afghanistan before starting any peace process. The United Nations says the Afghan conflict continues to hurt civilians and documented more than 11,000 civilian casualties, including dead and wounded in 2015. U.N. Afghan mission chief Nicholas Haysom emphasized the need for a political settlement to bring an end to suffering for non-combatants in Afghanistan. "Without peace there is very low prospect of dealing not only with civilian casualties, but an improvement in the quality of life and in the economic opportunities of the nation," said Haysom. Persuade arms groups Separately, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani appointed and introduced the new head of the High Peace Council in charge of persuading armed groups to end violence and join the national political reconciliation process. The council's new chief, Pir Sayed Ahmad Gilani, is a prominent Afghan jihadi leader who is respected by tribes across Afghanistan. Former president Hamid Karzai set up the council in 2010 to assist the government in promoting peace and reconciliation with armed opposition groups. But the panel, which consists of prominent Afghan religious and political as well as jihadi personalities, has failed to achieve a significant breakthrough amid growing demands for the council's dissolution to save critical state financial resources. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Saudi Decision to Cut Arms Funding to Lebanon Puzzling by John Owens February 23, 2016 Saudi Arabia's decision to drop a multibillion-dollar arms deal with Lebanon is likely to play into the hands of Iran and Hezbollah, analysts warn. A charm offensive was launched by sections of the Lebanese government this week amid the fallout from the decision to halt $4 billion in financial grants to the country's army and security forces. Lebanese politician Saad Hariri urged Saudi King Salman 'not to abandon Lebanon', while Prime Minister Tammam Salam is set to visit Gulf countries in a belated effort to repair the damage. But amid the scrambling, many have been left scratching their heads over a move that may harm efforts to contain overspill from the Syrian war and could well hand further momentum to Iran in the escalating battle for influence over the region. Not in harmony Announced Friday, the cut halted a $3 billion program for the Lebanese army to buy military equipment from France, and a separate $1 billion package for Lebanon's security forces, though some of this money has already been spent. Lebanon's failure to back recent pan-Arab statements condemning support for terrorism by Iran and a recent ramping up of anti-Saudi rhetoric coming from Iran-backed Lebanese militia group Hezbollah are being seen as short-term causes. Saudi Arabia's troubling economic situation, fueled by plunging oil prices, may have also been a factor claimed Bilal Saab, an analyst for the Atlantic Council. "But the main trigger," he claimed, "is this feeling in Riyadh, this realization that with all the investments made in Lebanon there is little to show for it." Losing battle Saudi Arabia, which is largely Sunni, and Iran, mainly Shia, competed for influence in Lebanon long before the Syrian war ratcheted up tensions. Money has been pumped by Saudi Arabia into the largely-Sunni Lebanese Future Movement group. Iran, meanwhile, has funded the largely Shia Hezbollah group, which has played a crucial military role in supporting Iranian ally and Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad. The wording of the Lebanese Cabinet response to Saudi Arabia reflects the delicate balance of power and is mainly "cosmetic," claims Sami Baroudi. "No one group dominates in Lebanon," said Baroudi, a professor of political science at the Lebanese American University. "But for the last few months, with developments in Syria, and the Russian offensive, the tide is shifting towards Hezbollah." This growth of clout for Hezbollah reflects a broader expansion in the region for Iran, which has stung Saudi Arabia. There are signs Saudi Arabia is not yet done. Tuesday, it issued a warning to its citizens travelling to Lebanon. Counterproductive Analysts who spoke to VOA thought taking revenge on Lebanon would backfire. Unlike other institutions within the country, the popularity of the Lebanese Armed Forces has long crossed sectarian divides, with relatively strong support among Lebanon's Sunni community, an important demographic to Saudi Arabia. The army and security forces are battling efforts by Islamist groups like the so-called Islamic State militant group to sow discord through a campaign of bombing, the most recent of which killed more than 40 people in Lebanon's southern suburbs in November. Claims from Saudi figures that the decision to cut the aid was "something beneficial" that would help release Lebanon from Iranian control were "pure rubbish" said Saab. "To hurt the only non-sectarian institution in Lebanon which is working to preserve the stability of Lebanon is counterproductive," he added. It was a view echoed by Aram Nerguizian, an expert on Lebanon's defense capabilities and senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, who nonetheless cautioned the decision may not be final. According to Nerguizian, moves to undermine an institution that has been backed by the United States, a key ally of Saudi Arabia, has left a lot of Beirut-based diplomats "dumbstruck". The army has found itself "the collateral in a much bigger set of decisions" made by Saudi Arabia as it tried to shape events in the wider region, he said. But he warned the move was a misstep that 'plays to Hezbollah interests," because the army's weakness was a continued justification for the military power of Hezbollah, and thus Iran. Left to defend itself Meanwhile, as Middle East watchers try to understand the move and its motivations, Lebanon will have to continue to try to cope with the impact of the Syrian war with or without Saudi backing. And with well over one million refugees in the country, resources are stretched. For Hisham Jaber, a retired Lebanese Major General and analyst, it is one more hurdle for a country whose capabilities are being severely tested. "The country is facing terrorism in the form of Nusra Front (an al-Qaida affiliate fighting in Syria) and ISIS. Their numbers are increasing and they present a real danger to Lebanon. Lebanon is in a critical situation already," he added, "it doesn't need this problem." NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Contest Over South China Sea Spurred in Part by Resources by Shannon Van Sant February 23, 2016 With tensions mounting over maritime disputes in the South China Sea, the cause of the problem, at least in part, is believed to lie at the bottom of the water. But it is still unclear exactly how much oil and natural gas lurk beneath the surface. Along with fishing and lucrative shipping routes, oil and gas reserves are often cited as a major reason for the disagreements over which country owns which patch of water, including China, which claims nearly all of the South China Sea. But how much oil and gas really exist is still a question mark, according to Carl Thayer, a Professor Emeritas at Australia's National Defense Academy. "No one has done the really hard work scientifically. These are estimates, because there has been an interruption to oil exploration efforts in the past, the cable cutting incidents in the past, ships have been forced out of water by the Philippines that have been contested by China," he said. China has said that the sea holds 130 billion barrels of oil. U.S. estimates are more conservative. The U.S. Energy Information Administration says the sea likely holds just 11 billion barrels of oil, and 190 trillion cubic meters of natural gas. Most of the oil and gas reserves are in undisputed waters, and are close to the shoreline of Malaysia, which has an estimated 5 billion barrels of oil in its waters. Vietnam is believed to have 3 billion barrels and China has 1.3 billion barrels. "There are reserves, and there are commercial grade reserves, meaning if they can be recovered profitably, or if they can be recovered and then transported at a reasonable price to be profitable. They are unproven because they are deep in the sea, and there are a lot of technical barriers for surveillance," said Yanmei Xie, a Beijing-based security analyst with the International Crisis Group. But, he added, surveillance comes with real political risk, since many areas are disputed. While territorial disputes have scared some oil companies away, China is seemingly undeterred. Beijing last month placed an oil rig in waters also claimed by Vietnam. The last time China placed a rig in disputed waters, it prompted mass, public protests in Vietnam. While the vast resources in the sea are unproven, and so far inaccessible, the strategic value of the waterway is certain. More than $5 trillion in goods pass through the waterway every year. Two thirds of South Korea's energy supplies, nearly 60 per cent of Japan and Taiwan's energy supplies and 80 percent of China's oil imports are shipped through the South China Sea. Wang Dong, a Professor of International Relations at Peking University, said "I think first and foremost it is a matter of territorial integrity for China, and of course China has made clear it is for the defense of the security of freedom of navigation." News last week that China had deployed missiles on an island in the waterway prompted criticism from several countries, including the United States. In an editorial last week China's state-run Global Times newspaper said the missiles are 'a typical type of defensive weapon', and warned that the government might deploy more weapons in the future. The U.S. has said that it does not take sides in the territorial disputes, but says it strongly backs freedom of navigation under international law. Washington has sailed its naval vessels past islands claimed by Beijing to promote the idea that the waters should be open for safe transit for all. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address UN Chief: Burundi President, Opponents Agree to Hold Talks by VOA News February 23, 2016 United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon says Burundian President Pierre Nkurunziza has agreed to begin talks with the opposition to bring an end to a nearly year-long political crisis. Ban announced the breakthrough Tuesday after meetings with Nkurunziza, opposition leaders and civil society groups in the capital Bujumbura. The U.N. chief said that all sides had promised to engage in 'inclusive dialogue.' 'Burundi's political leaders must be ready to summon the courage and the confidence that will make a credible political process possible,' Ban said during a joint news conference with Nkurunziza. The Burundian president said in his statement that he is ready to meet with his opponents and said he is releasing political prisoners as a demonstration of good will. 'Everyone knows that Burundians always come together when it comes to talks,' Nkurunziza said. 'We have shown our commitment with the announcement to free 2,000 prisoners, excluding those accused of disturbing the peace.' The Burundian leader also called on the United Nations to help persuade Rwanda to end its support of Burundian rebels. Rwanda has denied allegations that it is training and arming rebels opposed to Nkurunziza. Ban's visit comes a month after a U.N. Security Council delegation traveled to Burundi to press for negotiations among Nkurunziza and his opponents. Burundi has been mired in a sometimes violent political crisis since April of last year, when Nkurunziza sought and won what is widely seen as an unconstitutional third term. Observers fear the violence which has killed more than 400 people and caused 230,000 more to flee the country could tip into another civil war or worse in the ethnically mixed Hutu-Tutsi nation. After leaving Burundi Tuesday, Ban headed to the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo for the second part of an Africa tour that will also take him to South Sudan. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address China Redeploys Fighter Jets on Disputed Island by Steve Herman February 24, 2016 China has again sent fighter jets to a disputed island where earlier this month it redeployed surface-to-air missiles and appears to be building a sophisticated radar system, according to U.S. officials. Fewer than 10 jets a combination of Shenyan J-11 and Xian JH-7 aircraft have been spotted on Woody Island in the Paracel chain in the South China Sea, officials in Washington, who spoke on condition they not be named, told reporters late Tuesday. On Wednesday, Nina Hachigian, the U.S. ambassador to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, told reporters, "We are very concerned that these actions are increasing tensions in the region and are counterproductive." The fighter jet sightings follow the placement of HQ-9 surface-to-air missiles on the 210-hectare island, known in Chinese as Yongxing and called Phu Lam by Vietnam, which also claims it. Analysts express more alarm about the construction of a high frequency radar facility on the island, 400 kilometers southeast of China's Hainan island. Radar advantages The radar would bolster Beijing's ability to monitor surface and air traffic in the tense waters and "along with the development of new runways and air defense capabilities, they speak to a long-term anti-access strategy by China one that would see it establish effective control over the sea and airspace throughout the South China Sea," according to the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington. After Chinese state media last November published images of J-11 fighter jets on Woody Island, the U.S. Navy sailed a guided-missile destroyer past another contested island in the South China Sea and flew B-52 bombers and sailed another warship in the region for a "freedom of navigation" exercise. "Our freedom of navigation operations are routine, they are lawful," said Ambassador Hachigian, speaking from Jakarta on a conference call. "They're conducted in accordance with international law. We've conducted these operations around the globe since 1979, including in the South China Sea and the South China Sea cannot be an exception." Such activities have prompted Chinese officials to blame the United States for increasing tensions. Diplomats meet China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi, visiting the U.S. State Department on Tuesday, said he hoped that such flights and patrols by U.S. forces near the contested islands would cease. "Regrettably, there are missiles, fighter aircraft, guns, artillery and other things that have been placed in the South China Sea, and this is of great concern to everyone who transits and relies on the South China Sea for peaceful trade, commerce and use," U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, standing alongside Yi, told reporters. Kerry said, however, not only China but Vietnam and others were also responsible for creating an "escalatory cycle" of reclamation and militarization in the disputed waters. Earlier Tuesday, the head of the U.S. military's Pacific Command, in testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee, was less diplomatic, bluntly blaming Beijing for "clearly militarizing" the South China Sea. "You'd have to believe in a flat Earth to believe otherwise," Admiral Harry Harris told senators. Asked by lawmakers about the strategic goal of China's military buildup in the region, Harris replied: "I believe China seeks hegemony in East Asia." NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address U.S. Department of Defense Press Operations News Release Release No: NR-062-16 February 23, 2016 Statement by Pentagon Press Secretary Peter Cook on Submission of Guantanamo Closure Plan The Department of Defense formally submitted the administration's plan for closing the Guantanamo Bay detention facility to Congress today. As the president has stated, responsibly closing the Guantanamo detention facility is a national security imperative. For this reason, among others, Secretary Carter supports the president's commitment to bringing a responsible end to detention at Guantanamo. Implementing this plan will enhance our national security by denying terrorists a powerful propaganda symbol, strengthening relationships with key allies and counterterrorism partners, and reducing costs. As the president has said, it 'makes no sense' to keep open a facility that 'the world condemns and terrorists use to recruit.' The plan provides a way ahead for closing the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, which will markedly enhance our national security, while continuing to treat all detainees in U.S. custody in a manner that is consistent with international and domestic law. The plan has four primary tenets: 1. Securely and responsibly transferring to foreign countries detainees who have been designated for transfer by the president's national security team; 2. Continuing to review the threat posed by those detainees who are not currently eligible for transfer through the Periodic Review Board (PRB); 3. Identifying individualized dispositions for those who remain designated for continued law of war detention, including possible Article III, military commission, or foreign prosecutions; 4. Working with the Congress to establish a location in the United States to securely hold detainees whom we cannot at this time transfer to foreign countries or who are subject to military commission proceedings. The plan does not endorse a specific facility to house Guantanamo detainees who cannot be safely transferred to other countries at this time. The administration seeks an active dialogue with Congress on this issue and looks forward to working with Congress to identify the most appropriate location as soon as possible. The plan does include ranges of costs for closure, including low-end and high-end potential one-time costs and recurring costs. It also discusses savings that would be achieved by closure. The savings range reflects differing variables, like location selected and differing options in detention models. Recurring costs at Guantanamo would be between $65 million and $85 million higher annually than at a U.S. facility. The one-time transition costs would be offset within three to five years due to the lower operating costs of a U.S. facility with fewer detainees. Closing Guantanamo could therefore generate at least $335 million in net savings over 10 years and up to $1.7 billion in net savings over 20 years. Secretary Carter remains firmly committed to responsibly ending detention operations at Guantanamo Bay, and this plan gives the department an opportunity to do so in a way that is consistent with our interests, laws, and values. He looks forward to working with Congress on this effort. The administration recognizes that there are currently statutory provisions restricting the transfer of Guantanamo detainees to the United States and the use of funds to build or modify facilities for such transfers. The administration looks forward to working with Congress to lift those restrictions. The plan is available here . http://www.defense.gov/News/News-Releases/News-Release-View/Article/671225/ NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address U.S. Department of Defense Press Operations News Transcript Presenter: Pentagon Press Secretary Peter Cook February 23, 2016 Department of Defense Press Briefing by Pentagon Press Secretary Peter Cook in the Pentagon Briefing Room MR. COOK: Good afternoon, everybody. Busy day here at the Pentagon. As you saw in the statement this morning, you heard directly from the president, the Department of Defense today formally submitted the administration's plan for closing the detention facilities at Guantanamo Bay to Congress. As the president and Secretary Carter have made clear, responsibly and securely closing the detention facilities at Guantanamo Bay is a national security imperative. The successful closure of these facilities will enhance our security by eliminating a rallying point for jihadi propaganda and strengthening our relationship with allies, key allies, and counterterrorism partners. It'll also save the American people money. At least $335 million in net savings over 10 years and up to $1.7 billion in net savings over 20 years. The plan has four primary tenets: securely and responsibly transfer to foreign countries detainees who have been designated for transfer by the president's national security team after a thorough review; continue to review the threat posed by those detainees who are not currently eligible for transfer through the periodic review board, or PRB; identify individualized dispositions for those who remain designated for continued law of war detention, including possible Article III, military commission, or foreign prosecutions; four, work with Congress to establish a location in the United States to securely hold detainees whom we cannot at this time transfer to foreign countries or who are subject to military commission proceedings. Secretary Carter remains firmly committed to ending detention operations at Guantanamo Bay, and strongly supports the administration's plan to do so in a way that is consistent with our interests, laws and values. He also believes it is important to resolve this issue before the next administration takes over. He looks forward to engaging with Congress and believes this plan provides a path forward for Congress. Finally, Secretary Carter expresses his deep gratitude to all of the service members who have contributed to and carried out the exceedingly difficult mission at Guantanamo Bay for so long with professionalism and dedication, including those service members who are there even today. With that I'd be happy to take your questions. Lucas, you're in the front row today all by yourself. Q: Thank you, Peter. It is a little lonely up here. Will the Pentagon close Guantanamo Bay if Congress doesn't pass a law? MR. COOK: We are beginning a conversation here, continuing a conversation with Congress, Lucas. We see this as an opportunity to work directly with Congress to try and resolve these issues. It will take Congressional action for these detention facilities to close in a responsible way and to find a location here in the United States to house those detainees who the secretary and -- feels are not appropriate and the national security review shows are not appropriate to be transferred to other countries. Q: Is the Pentagon prepared to follow an illegal order? MR. COOK: The Pentagon is prepared to work with Congress to resolve this issue, responding to a request specifically from Congress for a plan, a request we've honored today. And we will continue to work collaboratively with Congress to try and resolve these issues and, again, move this process forward. This gives Congress a path to achieve the responsible closure of these facilities and once again do something that will bolster American national security, at the same time save taxpayers money. We think that's -- it's a conversation that Congress would like to engage in going forward. Q: Peter, the majority of Congress has rejected the Pentagon's plan. MR. COOK: We just submit it up there, Lucas. We look forward to hearing what Congress has to say as we begin this process with them, this deliberative process. We believe there are members of Congress who share the secretary's view, the president's view that responsibly closing Guantanamo Bay is an appropriate thing to do, particularly before the next administration takes over. And we'll begin that conversation with the submission of this plan today. Q: Peter, it's just a fact that a majority of Congress rejects the plan. And is the Pentagon prepared to go forward with a -- with a plan to close Guantanamo Bay when Congress has not signed off on it? MR. COOK: Lucas, again, we have submitted a plan today to Congress. We look forward to getting the feedback from Congress. We'll be briefing members of Congress on the plan. We look forward to engaging with Congress going forward. This is what we're focused on, is getting this plan moving forward and, again, getting input from members of Congress so we can shape this plan and move this process along. Q: If the president -- MR. COOK: I'm going to have to go to someone else. I'll come back. Yes. Q: Peter, the -- what -- the focus is on the detention facility at GTMO, but Guantanamo Bay is a long-existing Naval facility that we use for logistics and other purposes. Is there any -- I didn't see anything in your plan that covered the overall Guantanamo Bay Naval Base. MR. COOK: This plan covers the detention facilities at Guantanamo Bay. There is no plan to change the status of the naval base at Guantanamo. Yes. Q: Peter, can you give us some more information about -- between the U.S. and South Korea postpone -- (inaudible) -- of THAAD missile? MR. COOK: I'll take that question for you. I'm not aware of a delay. As we've discussed, there are going to be ongoing conversations between the United States and our South Korean allies with regard to the deployment of the THAAD system, and have every expectation that we'll have those conversations. But we'll take that question. If there's a -- been a delay that I'm unaware of for some reason. Yes. Q: The Turkish prime minister accuses Russia and Syria along with Daesh and U.S.-backed Syrian Kurdish fighters of attempting to form a quote-unquote 'terror belt' along its border with Syria and says Turkey won't let it happen. First of all, do you agree that all these forces that were mentioned, minus Daesh of course, are trying to create a terror belt along Turkey's borders? MR. COOK: We've talked at length about Turkey's a NATO ally, close friend of the United States. We'll continue to work closely with the Turks in the fight against ISIL and, of course, their own security situation. It remains an ongoing topic of conversation. And again, we -- our focus is on the fight against ISIL right now, and Turkey is part of that fight. And that's where our focus remains. And so I'm not sure exactly of the comments you're referring to specifically. But we remain engaged with Turkey about these issues. I understand the sensitivities of the border situation there. And -- but our focus remains ISIL and that remains the focus of the coalition. Q: But what do you -- what do you think about this statement in light of coming from -- this is not the first statement. Turkey indicated that it's going to continue going after Syrian Kurds in Syria, despite the U.S. saying stop. What do you think about this in light of the U.S. and Russia now working to stop hostilities in Syria? MR. COOK: Again, the cessation of hostilities has nothing to do with our fight against ISIL, first of all, and we have had conversations with Turkey at length about the situation in Syria specific with the Kurds, and again, we've expressed our support for groups on the ground that are taking the fight to ISIL. That includes some Kurdish groups, and on this issue, we will continue to disagree with -- with Turkey with regard to -- to that particular issue and -- and our support for those particular groups that are taking the fight to ISIL, understanding their concerns about terrorist activities. And so we will continue to work with the Kurds on this issue and make clear our views on this as we continue to work with the Kurds. Q: But with those -- Turkey is attacking in Syria are not terrorists in view of the U.S. and the international community. If Turkey continues military action in Syria, would this undermine the efforts that the U.S. and Russia are now making to achieve cessation of hostilities? MR. COOK: Again, we -- the cessation of hostilities focuses specifically -- does not include ISIL. That is what is most important to us right now in terms of the effort. I understandwe're going to continue working closely with -- with our Turkish partners. They are coalition partners. We will continue to work with them and have a dialogue with Turkey about these issues. And again, we will -- we're confident we can continue to work closely with the -- with the Turks with regard to these issues. Jim? Q: The United States and Russia set up this committee to monitor the cessation of hostilities. Do you foresee how this might potentially lead to a broader cooperation between the United States and Russia over combating the Islamic state in Syria? MR. COOK: Right now, this is -- our military-to-military cooperation has been limited to the Memorandum of Understanding. We are playing a supportive role to the State Department in these ongoing negotiations, but I would not anticipate that there's going to be further military-to-military cooperation. We obviously are supporting what Secretary Kerry is doing, the effort to try and bring some ease to the suffering of the Syrian people. But we do not anticipate further military-to-military cooperation with the -- with the Russians. Cami? Q: Can we switch to Ukraine? MR. COOK: Sure. Q: There's been an uptick in violence in Ukraine. By one report, some of the fiercest hostilities since last summer. This comes at the same time that the U.S. had just graduated the first class of Ukrainian soldiers that troops were training in western Ukraine. Is this building tracking that increase in hostilities? And do you have anything on that? MR. COOK: Yeah, we -- I mean, I know the secretary continues to closely monitor what's happening in Ukraine. Obviously, we have concerns as others in the international community do about the level of violence there. We have not taken our eye off the ball in Ukraine and I think the training being conducted of Ukrainian forces is an indication of our commitment to -- to Ukraine, and we'll continue to follow this very, very closely. So beyond that, Cami, again, it's a situation that remains an area of focus for the Department of Defense, for the secretary and has been for some time. Q: Has this building been watching the border area? Has -- have you seen any sort of build up on the other side or anything that you could independently confirm? MR. COOK: Nothing I can from this podium. I can't get into intelligence matters here. I'll just convey to you that we're watching the situation very closely. Q: Are you concerned that you're training Ukrainian soldiers, sending them immediately back out to the front, and perhaps they're being attacked because of that training? MR. COOK: Again, we're doing this -- working with the Ukrainian government, so we will continue to work closely with the government of Ukraine as to what support we can provide to them in this effort. So I can't speak directly that that's the case, that these trainees are going into this particular situation. You -- I know you were there recently. We will just continue to work closely with the Ukrainian government, provide the support we can. This training was requested by the Ukrainian government, so in that sense, again, we'll just continue to partner with them and provide the kind of assistance that we feel is appropriate at this time. Yes, Louie? Q: Back on Guantanamo real briefly, why did it take so long to come up with this document? MR. COOK: This is a complicated situation for a variety of reasons. You know the secretary's been engaged since he started here, but this predates his arrival. There are complicated matters of both law and cost. There are some restrictions put in place by Congress that make this a more difficult challenge. This is not easy. This has been an ongoing debate in this country for sometime. And this represents what we think is the best opportunity, the best pathway forward at this moment in time to try and resolve this issue in a way that maintains U.S. national security, saves taxpayers some money in the process, removes a propaganda tool for jihadists around the world and also takes a step that we believe will be welcomed by our partners and allies around the globe. Q: There were indications last fall that this document was going to be produced at that time. Why the delay since then? MR. COOK: There are a number of factors. Again, some of them I just detailed. Legal questions, budget questions about making sure the numbers that we're able to provide are as accurate as possible. So -- but in the bigger sense, we were asked by Congress to -- to meet this deadline. We've met this deadline today. We believe this plan offers a pathway forward. And -- and again, if this was easy, this would have been solved a long time back. This is a complicated, difficult situation and it's clearly something where not everyone is going to agree on the best path forward. We believe this creates a starting point for conversation for members of Congress, both parties, people with different views on this issue where maybe there could be some middle ground solution that allows this to move forward. Q: Will you be releasing the names of the additional facilities -- the military facilities that were surveyed as possible site alternatives? MR. COOK: We did not disclose those in the plan. Through the course of our conversations with Congress it's possible those names could come out. But that will be, again, to some extent a decision for Congress because these are conversations -- some of the information might be classified and so these are conversations Congress is going to have to decide on the path forward and that could open up the number of locations that could be considered. We don't preclude the notion that one -- it could be a location beyond the 13 that are identified specifically in this plan. At this point, we don't anticipate releasing those names publicly, in part because this conversation has just begun with Congress, but it could be something that comes up during the course of those conversations. Q: Switching to South China Sea, there's new satellite imagery -- commercial satellite imagery showing that there's been construction of long-range radars in one of the Chinese -- (inaudible). What's your viewpoint on that? (inaudible) -- that you're seeing there? MR. COOK: I understand Admiral Harris may have been asked about this today. Again it represents another step, we think, by the Chinese that is only escalating tensions in the region and isn't helping stability in the -- in the Asia Pacific. We have urged all claimants to halt reclamation, to halt militarization in the South China Sea and we would reiterate that now. This is inconsistent, we think, with the aspirations for peace and stability in the region that the Chinese themselves have suggested they'd like to pursue. Gordon? Q: (inaudible) -- two questions. One is, given the late arrival of this plan on closing GTMO, is -- is there even time -- MR. COOK: The deadline was today. Q: Correct. However, is there even time to do the necessary construction that would be required to transfer these particular kind of detainees into a facility in the U.S. if you add the -- got the permission to do that from the law at this late date, A? And B, on South China Sea, our two -- it's been reported that the Pentagon's planning to conduct roughly two FONOPs a quarter in the South China Sea. Is that enough? MR. COOK: I'm not going to get into the specific operational details of the U.S. Navy's operations in the South China Sea or anywhere else. We will continue to fly, sail and operate wherever international law allows and we've demonstrated that and we will continue to demonstrate that. On your other question about GTMO, we think it is possible that you could, this year, move this process forward. We -- it's certainly going to be challenging given the calendar, given the situation right now in Congress and the debate over this issue, but we think it is possible that you could, in fact, move forward before the end of this year. Challenging? Absolutely. But yes, we do think it's physically possible. Q: Move forward or move forward to the point where you've clear out GTMO and actually closed it by the end of the year? MR. COOK: This is -- this depends in large measure on Congress and how quickly they want to act based on the plan we've now presented. But the folks at the DOD who have assessed this situation think it is -- it is possible to be able to achieve this goal, but certainly challenging given the calendar, challenging given the debate over this issue, but now we think we've presented a plan that would at least open that door. Q: Let me just -- let me just try one more -- but let me just try one more time because had this plan been presented earlier, months earlier, potentially, you know, this effort on the part of lobbying Congress and getting them onboard could have begun months earlier and potentially maybe change the calculus and allowed enough time for the construction and all the logistics that would need to occur. MR. COOK: We can -- we can only present this plan when we had a level of detail and understanding about these issues that we were comfortable with, that the president was comfortable with in terms of cost and other issues. We've presented this plan now, we've met this Congressional deadline and we believe there is an opportunity to sit down and work these issues out, to negotiate with Congress, hear Congress' input, hear their input about the best location, for example, some other aspect of this. It's really important. There are details here that matter, and we want Congress' input on issues about whether a remote location or locating a facility like this on an existing DOD property, whether or not there's a preference there. These are things that adjust everything that happens here, decisions on how you house inmates specifically, could we do things differently. These are things we want Congressional feedback on because they affect not only location but they affect the price, they affect the design dynamics. There's still specific questions that we need to try and answer from members of Congress. We want to hear their input, and to some extent on some of these issues, given the limitations put in place on the Department of Defense, those are things we haven't been able to get to the granular detail that we'd like to be able to get to for members of Congress. Jacqueline. Q: Following up on that, given that the report doesn't recommend a specific site, that's a decision that you would expect lawmakers to make, that would be left to Congress? MR. COOK: We expect this -- Congress is going to have to decide ultimately how this -- whether this plan moves forward and in what shape, but we think we've presented with them a pathway, a range of options, if you will, cost options based on a DOD facility, a greenfield facility, a facility perhaps that's not at a DOD location. We've given them a range here, but until we get some of these other detail design questions answered and we get input from members of Congress, that's, you know, prevented us to some extent from being able to provide a specific recommendation. Those input points will now allow the Department, working with Congress, to advance this further. But absolutely, Congress will have to have a -- will have the ultimate say in this, and we look forward to that. We look forward to engaging, and I think the secretary feels like this will get a fair shake up on the Hill now that it's been presented. Q: Do you think it's problematic to leave that decision to Congress, given that no lawmaker seems to want it in their home state? MR. COOK: This is a difficult issue. That's been clear from the start. But ultimately, this requires congressional say. And so we think the input that we're going to get from members of Congress on these issues is critically important. And we'll decide whether or not this moves forward. So we look forward to working with Congress on that front. Q: (off-mic.) MR. COOK: Lucas, you left and came back. Quick. Q: When you say that Congress has the ultimate say on this, since the majority of Congress has rejected the Pentagon's plan and these congressmen represent -- MR. COOK: You keep saying that, Lucas, but we just presented the plan. Did they vote this afternoon and I missed? Q: Well, a number of congressional staffers have said that the plan did not, as you've heard, say give one location. Why did the Defense Department not provide Congress with a concrete plan, a specific plan? You've been accused of keeping the plans purposefully vague. MR. COOK: Again, Lucas, as I pointed out, there are design criteria that we still need to get detail on that we need the input of Congress to be able to move forward. This will present Congress with the opportunity to weigh in on these critical issues. I mentioned a couple of the factors here before, remote location on site at an existing DOD facility. These are critical issues that until we get that level of detail, it's hard for us to present a final recommendation, if you will. This is going to be an ongoing process. This is an ongoing process. We have come back with a plan we think represents a path forward, a chance for Congress to move this forward, to take this off the plate of the next administration, which we think is something both Republicans and Democrats up on Capitol Hill would support. And this gives them a fair shot to be able to do that and the secretary feels confident that the department has presented something that Congress can work with. Q: Two more. The -- MR. COOK: I'm keeping a tally here. Q: There's nobody in the front row, so I'm asking -- MR. COOK: I know. Apparently, they've got other things to do today, so. Q: The Chinese foreign minister was supposed to come to the Pentagon today. Can you ask (sic) us why that visit did not take place? Was it the Chinese or the United States government who canceled the visit? MR. COOK: I understand there was a schedule issue. I'm not aware of anything beyond that. Q: A schedule issue? MR. COOK: Yes. Q: (inaudible), Chinese foreign minister visit the State Department and talked with Secretary Kerry, and then he suggested a peace treaty with the United States between U.S. and North Korea. What is the U.S. position of -- (inaudible) -- North Korea? MR. COOK: I would -- if it's a treaty question, I would strongly recommend you check with my colleagues at the State Department who handle treaty -- treaty matters. So I'm going to defer you to the State Department on that. Q: Any -- any answer can answer that -- MR. COOK: I'm going to defer that to the State Department, given that engagement was -- was at the State Department. Barbara, welcome. Q: Yes, thanks. What is the secretary's level of confidence right now that the Russians will comply with the agreement for the cessation of hostilities? And the Russians have announced they're going to establish a -- essentially what appears to be a command and control center in Syria to monitor it. How will the U.S. military communicate with the Russians on that? But what's his -- starting with what's his level of confidence that the Russians will comply? MR. COOK: I think from the start, the secretary has judged Russia by their actions, not their words, and nothing has changed. He will wait to see whether not they comply with the agreement that they have signed up with, here. And -- so I think there's a certain dose of skepticism, and again, the secretary will be watching like every one else to see what -- whether or not Russia complies with this agreement, whether others comply as well. So I don't think his view on that has changed. Q: So the secretary is skeptical of Russian compliance going into this? MR. COOK: Again, the secretary will judge Russia on their words -- Q: (inaudible) -- dose of skepticism. MR. COOK: Okay -- yes, based on -- based on past history, based on what Russia has said it would do in Syria previously. But again, the secretary will be watching like everyone else. There's an opportunity here for Russia to abide by its agreement. We certainly hope they do. Q: And what is the secretary's thinking about -- since he's already skeptical, realistically skeptical perhaps -- about follow-on steps that he is considering to further support the opposition in Syria against the regime and against the Russians. What other thoughts does he have? He has talked about accelerants. Does he have any accelerants that he can suggest to bolster the opposition further at this point? MR. COOK: The secretary is always looking to accelerate the campaign against ISIL, and we're going to continue to do that. That -- the fight against ISIL does not stop with the cessation of hostilities, and I think we'll continue to look at every opportunity we have, both in Iraq and Syria, to do that. And that has not stopped and it's not altered by the cessation of hostilities. Q: So I guess what I'm really asking, though, in his -- in his view, or in the Pentagon's view, is there a Plan B, if you will, to the cessation of hostilities agreement or is it all or nothing with the agreement? Or do you have a Plan B? MR. COOK: This is -- we -- Barbara, you and I have talked about this before, this is a planning institution. We're always looking at contingencies. We will evaluate the cessation of hostilities as it plays out to see if it's being complied with, and will adjust if need be. Right now, we are looking to Russia and the other signers onto this agreement to abide by it, and that's where we are right now. We're not going to get into hypotheticals about the future. Q: My last question then. Again, the Russians said today that they're going to set up a center to monitor all of this on their side. What communications capabilities or links are you setting up with the Russians to communicate on the agreement as it goes into effect and is implemented and carried out over the future? What are the mechanisms of coordination and communication with the Russians on this? MR. COOK: I'm not aware of any communication we're going to have with the Russians in this particular cell that you're talking about. And this agreement itself is -- falls under the U.N. umbrella. The negotiators who put this together, as I understand it, have spelled out the compliance and how it's going to be monitored. And so I'll leave it to the negotiators, the State Department in particular, to walk you through those. It's in conjunction with the U.N., and so we don't have a particular role in that. Q: Did the Pentagon come close to withdrawing its military advisers at the negotiations? MR. COOK: We support Secretary Kerry and have in his efforts here. And we'll continue to support him. Q: (off-mic.) to withdrawing them? MR. COOK: We -- our folks were there at the side of the State Department the entire time, and we'll continue to support the State Department in whatever way we can. Secretary Kerry is trying to resolve this, trying to end and ease the suffering of the Syrian people, and that is something this department will continue to support. Q: Thank you. MR. COOK: Louie and then one in the back and then I might pull the plug at that point. Q: Peter, just following up on Lucas' line of questioning from earlier and the other -- MR. COOK: Which one? Q: Well, actually, this is going to encapsulate a couple of them. Secretary -- Senator McCain seems upset that the 13 locations were not named publicly in the report. He was -- he's quoted as saying that now the president sends over what he described as a Chinese menu, '13 different possible sites, that's a recommendation?' he asked rhetorically. He was -- when asked if that was a starting point, he said, 'Of course not.' What is your reaction, given that everything you said today is counter to what he has just said? MR. COOK: Again, we believe that this plan presents a pathway and opportunity for members of Congress, including Senator McCain, to -- to move this process forward. We know that the detail in this plan does give insight to members of Congress as to what the options might be going forward. And with regard to a specific recommendation, we think there is the opportunity to engage with Congress now, consider what these options are, what the costs are, what the benefits are, what the potential negatives might be with regard to each and every one of these potential locations and that that will present an opportunity to -- to be able to advance this. And we think that there are members of Congress who are willing to have a conversation. The secretary certainly believes that and that has been even the sense he's gotten today in his engagements. In the back, you had a question? Q: Hi. I'm -- (inaudible) -- for Kyodo News from Japan. I have -- I have a question about Okinawa issue. So PACOM Commander Harris said at a hearing today the (appraisement ?) of -- (inaudible) -- will come out 2025. So do you have same view with him? MR. COOK: I didn't hear Admiral Harris' -- all of Admiral Harris' testimony today, but we continue to believe and support the idea of opening that facility as quickly as possible, working closely with the government of Japan, and that remains our view. Okay. Thanks, everyone. http://www.defense.gov/News/News-Transcripts/Transcript-View/Article/671860/ NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Pentagon to submit plan for Guantanamo closure Iran Press TV Tue Feb 23, 2016 1:12AM The United States Defense Department is set to submit a plan to the Congress to close the Guantanamo prison, a spokesman says. The plan to be delivered to Congress on Tuesday will lay out several options on how to close the facility. 'We understand the deadline is tomorrow and it's our intent to meet it,' Pentagon spokesman Captain Jeff Davis told a press briefing on Monday. 'We're working on it and intend to submit it soon.' 'The plan is to submit to Congress what our thoughts are on the issue and what we see is a way ahead necessary to achieve the closure of Guantanamo and to specifically point out the need for legislative relief,' Davis said. On January 10, White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough said President Barack Obama would keep his promise to close the American military prison in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, before his presidency ends in 2017. 'He feels an obligation to the next president. He will fix this so that they don't have to be confronted with the same set of challenges,' McDonough told Fox News. The plan, however, would trigger a battle with Republican lawmakers who oppose Obama's long-awaited scheme. Davis said Monday, 'We've always been very clear about what needs to happen,' adding, 'So I think you're going to find as you read it, when you see it, that many of these things you already know." Obama had promised to close the Guantanamo Bay prison during the 2008 presidential election campaign, citing its damage to the US reputation abroad. However, the president backed away on his campaign promise later on due to stiff opposition from Congress. As many as 775 detainees were brought to the prison, which was set up after the September 11, 2001 attacks. There are 91 detainees left at the prison. Washington says the prisoners are terror suspects, but has not pressed charges against most of them in any court. Many detainees have been on hunger strike for months to draw attention to their deteriorating conditions. The Obama administration has transferred most detainees to other countries, but there is a small number of detainees who the administration says it would like to detain in a US facility for national security reasons. According to US officials, the Pentagon plan would call for sending detainees, who have been cleared for transfer, to their homelands or third countries and bringing the other detainees to US soil. The Pentagon has already sent assessment teams to some facilities to see if they could be used as maximum-security prisons to house detainees. These facilities include a high-security federal prison in Florence, Colorado, a military jail at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, and the Naval Consolidated Brig at Charleston, South Carolina. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Obama: Guantanamo Prison Undermines National Security by Carla Babb February 23, 2016 U.S. President Barack Obama outlined his administration's plan for closing the military detention center at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, saying the facility "does not advance our national security, it undermines it." "If, as a nation, we don't deal with this now, when will we deal with it?" Obama asked at the White House, after the U.S. Defense Department delivered the plan Tuesday to Congress. He appealed to Congress to be "on the right side of history" and asked that the nation act on the "lessons" learned over the past 15 years. Republicans already have criticized the Pentagon's proposal. "Congress has left no room for confusion. It is against the lawand it will stay against the lawto transfer terrorist detainees to American soil," Speaker of the House Paul Ryan said. "We will not jeopardize our national security over a campaign promise." We are at war, yet incredibly the president is more focused on relocating and releasing enemy combatants than on detaining new ones, House Homeland Security Chairman Michael McCaul added. However, a senior administration official said closing the prison is a national security priority, adding that the facility has inspired jihadists and served as a recruiting tool for terrorists. The President stressed the importance of closing the facility when he took office in 2009, but with less than a year left in his presidency, some 91 detainees remain. Obama said that when he took office there had been bipartisan support for closing the prison, but that over time lawmakers had become "worried about the politics" of it. Its purely politically driven, Gary Solis, a law of war professor at Georgetown University, told VOA. There are individuals who are so opposed to the Obama Administration, and I believe Obama personally, that they are simply unwilling to participate in any activity that might further his goals. The Pentagon plan to close the facility includes discussion of 13 potential sites within the United States where the military could transfer a group of about 30 to 60 detainees. However, it does not recommend which U.S. site should be chosen. Potential sites include federal prisons in Kansas, Colorado and South Carolina, as well as military facilities. A senior administration official said moving the prisoners from Cuba to the U.S. will save the Pentagon between $65 million and $85 million per year, and would offset the initial cost needed to move the prisoners within three-five years. As the detainee population goes down, the per-person/per-man cost goes up dramatically, of course. So, its well over a million dollars a year per person at Guantanamo now, Solis told VOA. Obama added Tuesday that the overall savings from the move would amount to $1.7 billion over the next 20 years. The proposal does not include an exact cost or location for the replacement facility, which Republicans, including Speaker of the House Ryan, used to slam the plan. Senior administration officials, however, pointed to the restrictions made by Congress as to why they were unable to provide more specific costs and locations. Of the 91 detainees, a U.S. official told VOA that 35 have been approved for transfer, and they are expected to be transferred to other countries by this summer. Another 10 are somewhere within the military commissions process, the official said. Current U.S. law bans the transfer of Guantanamo Bay detainees to locations within the United States. Some say those transfers could bring security concerns. The White House has left open the possibility Obama could use an executive order to close Guantanamo. Detention center The Guantanamo facility opened in 2002 under the administration of former President George W. Bush following the September 11 terror attacks in New York and Washington. Nearly 800 detainees have been held there at some point since then, many for long periods without being charged or put on trial. Most of the detainees have been transferred back to their respective home countries or other nations willing to take them in. Mary Alice Salinas contributed to this report from the White House. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address US Shifts Focus to Fate of 91 Terror Suspects at Guantanamo by Ken Bredemeier February 23, 2016 The United States has held 779 suspected terrorists at its military prison in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, since the 2001 al-Qaida attacks on New York and Washington. Now, however, the focus is on what to do with the remaining 91 people detained there, including 35 who have been cleared for release but are still being held as the U.S. searches for countries willing to accept them. With U.S. President Barack Obama offering a plan Tuesday to close the prison, advocates who have long lobbied for the closure cataloged the status of the remaining prisoners. A group called Close Guantanamo - a collection of lawyers, journalists and retired military personnel - says there currently are 46 Yemeni nationals at Guantanamo, 12 Saudi Arabians and eight Afghans. There are smaller numbers from Tunisia, Libya, Tajikistan, Morocco, the United Arab Emirates, Pakistan, Algeria, Russia, Mauritania, Malaysia, Indonesia, Kenya and Somalia. Hundreds of others once held at Guantanamo after being captured while fighting U.S. forces in Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan and elsewhere have been released over the years to other countries, including 147 by Obama. Aside from the 35 who have been cleared for release but are still being detained, U.S. officials have recommended that the others be transferred to a prison in the U.S. or prosecuted before U.S. military commissions. In announcing his base closure plan, Obama said some of the Guantanamo prisoners also could be tried in U.S. federal courts, where government prosecutors have won several high-profile convictions against terrorists and lengthy prison terms. Interrogation techniques U.S. legal analysts say the prosecution of some of the Guantanamo suspects is legally problematical since some were subjected to enhanced interrogation techniques, either overseas when they were captured or at Guantanamo. They included waterboarding that simulated drowning. The administration of former president George W. Bush authorized the use of waterboarding, but Obama concluded it was torture and banned its use. The detention of the suspected terrorists at Guantanamo is but one chapter in the history of the oldest existing U.S. base outside its own territory. The U.S. has controlled the 118-square-kilometer site on the southeastern tip of Cuba since 1898, when Spain ceded control of Cuba to the United States at the end of the Spanish-American War. In subsequent treaties in 1903 and 1934, the U.S. recognized Cuba's 'ultimate sovereignty' over the land, while maintaining 'complete jurisdiction and control' for Washington, a perpetual lease that can be voided only by mutual agreement. The U.S. naval presence at the site has endured for more than a century, even as Cuban revolutionary Fidel Castro demanded that the U.S. return the land to the communist nation after seizing power from the U.S.-supported dictator Fulgencio Batista in 1959. Now, even as Obama has renewed diplomatic and trade links with Havana and Castro's brother, President Raul Castro, after more than five decades of hostilities borne of the Cold War, the U.S. has not signaled any intention of giving up the site along the Caribbean coast. In 1903, U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt leased the site for the annual payment of 2,000 gold coins, less than $3,400; but, since 1959, Cuba has never cashed the check for the lease payments. In his early years as the Cuban ruler, Fidel Castro threatened to kick the U.S. Navy off the Guantanamo compound if Washington continued to interfere with the Cuban economy, but also acknowledged that if he took military action, the U.S. would use it as a pretext to invade and overthrow him. In 1964, Castro shut off water to the base, but the U.S. responded by building its own water and power plants. By the 1990's, the Guantanamo base was used as a refugee camp, housing 20,000 Haitians fleeing a 1991 coup in the Port-au-Prince government and 30,000 Cubans intercepted at sea as they fled the Castro regime. Many of them eventually returned to their homelands or were allowed to emigrate to the United States, where a large Cuban exile community emerged in the southeastern state of Florida, 145 kilometers off the coast of Cuba. As al-Qaida terrorists flew commercial jetliners into the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon just outside Washington on September 11, 2001, Washington quickly looked again to Guantanamo. The U.S. needed a place to detain the hundreds of terrorism suspects and battlefield combatants it was capturing in Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan and elsewhere in the Middle East as it embarked on what Bush described as a global war on terrorism. Bush declared in 2002 that the detention center was not subject to the legal constraints of the Geneva Conventions, but photos and accounts from the facility surfaced that suggested the detainees were being interrogated in ways that critics said was tantamount to torture. Eventually, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the detainees were entitled to minimal legal protections under the international conventions covering the legalities of the conduct of war. Bush, like Obama, eventually called for closing the Guantanamo prison, but Congress enacted legislation banning the transfer of the detainees to prisons in the U.S., which Obama now hopes to negotiate a way around to be able to close the facility before he leaves office in January 2017. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Clinton, Sanders Support Plans to Close Guantanamo by VOA News February 23, 2016 Democratic presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders voice their support Tuesday for President Obama's push to close the military detention center in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. At a CNN town hall forum in the southeastern state of South Carolina, former Secretary of State Clinton said there is no reason for the United States to still use the facility, calling it a continuing recruitment ad for terrorists. She said the decision on where to transfer the remaining detainees 'should be a matter of negotiation.' Sanders, a senator from Vermont, said locking up people in Guantanamo has had repercussions around the world for the U.S., making the country 'look like hypocrites and fools.' Democrats vote Saturday in South Carolina's presidential primary with Clinton leading by more than 20 points in a number of polls in the state. The contest is the last before next Tuesday's so-called Super Tuesday when about a dozen states will vote at the same time. Sanders also weighed in on the situation with the U.S. Supreme Court, which has a vacancy due to the death of Justice Antonin Scalia. Republicans say President Barack Obama should not be allowed to appoint a new justice in his final year in office, while Democrats insist it is the president's duty to do so. Sanders called the Republican position an example of the 'continuous and unprecedented obstructionism' that Obama has faced during his term. He mentioned questions about Obama's heritage, saying that despite having a Polish father nobody has ever asked to see his own birth certificate. Clinton responded to criticism of her paid speeches to companies, particularly those on Wall Street, by saying she is open to releasing transcripts of those remarks, but only if all the other candidates do so. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Background Press Call on the Closing of the Prison at Guantanamo Bay The White House Office of the Press Secretary For Immediate Release February 23, 2016 BACKGROUND PRESS CALL BY SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIALS ON THE CLOSING OF THE PRISON AT GUANTANAMO BAY Via Conference Call 9:09 A.M. EST MR. PRICE: Good morning, everyone, and thanks for joining the call. We wanted to take an opportunity this morning to discuss with you the plan that will be presented today to close the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay. Before we get into the substance, just a moment on ground rules. This call will be on background. You can attribute what you hear this morning to senior administration officials. And the call will be embargoed until its conclusion. Again, however, this call is on background so we ask that you refer to them as senior administration officials. And the call is embargoed until its conclusion. So with that, I will turn it over to our first senior administration official. SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Good morning. At 10:00 a.m. today, we'll be submitting to the Congress the plan required by the National Defense Authorization Act of fiscal '15, which asked for a plan on the future detention and on Guantanamo by today. So we're hitting the deadline. As the President and Secretary Carter have made clear, responsibly and securely closing the detention facility at Guantanamo is a national security imperative. The report provides a way ahead for responsibly closing the facility while continuing to treat detainees in our custody in a manner consistent with international and domestic law. It's got four main elements. First, continuing to responsibly and securely transfer to other countries detainees who have been designated for transfer. Currently, we have 91 people at Guantanamo. Thirty-five are eligible to be transferred. We are optimistic that all the 35 will be transferred in the next several months. So we anticipate getting the population down below 60 later this year. The second element is continuing to conduct what we call the Periodic Review Board. These are periodic -- as the term implies, periodic reviews of our authority to detain an individual and whether they continue to pose a threat to the United States. And if they don't, then we make them eligible for transfer. That process continues on a regular basis; there was even a meeting of the board today to consider a detainee. Third, continuing to identify individuals' dispositions for those who remain designated for law of war detention, including possible prosecution either in Article 3 court, military commissions, or foreign prosecutions. And fourth and finally, an important focus of this plan, working with the Congress on a location in the United States to securely hold detainees that we cannot transfer at this time to foreign countries, or who are subject to the military commission proceedings. So you've probably read, back in the last several months, the Department of Defense has conducted some site surveys of facilities. We looked at state prisons, we looked at federal prisons, we looked at DOD detention facilities. Altogether, we didn't survey 13 sites, but the plan references 13 facilities. We put together cost estimates, but I want to underscore that these are somewhat rough and notional insofar as Congress has prevented us from doing precise design and planning work on a facility in the continental United States. That prevented us from coming up with the fidelity needed for either a budget estimate to ask Congress for the authority, or even precise estimates of what the sites would cost. So we did a lot of work within the constraints of the current law, but they're not the kind of precise estimates that we would ultimately need and expect to have in asking Congress for the funds to do this. We want to engage with Congress on a conversation on how to do this. The plan does not endorse a specific facility in the United States at this time; rather, as I suggested, it describes essentially a prototype for a detention facility in the United States based on the work that I just described. Based on the estimates that we have generated, our current estimate is that we can do this more cheaply in the United States than on Guantanamo Bay. The one figure I would give you -- there's some other numbers in the plan, you'll see it in when it comes out -- but the one figure I would highlight is we estimate that in our annual recurring cost, in the United States, we could do it for between $65 million and $85 million cheaper at a U.S. facility. And we could therefore offset the one-time transition cost within three to five years. The last thing I'll say is just to summarize -- well, I'll say two things. One, to summarize the population so we you have figures: 91 people; 35 eligible for transfer; 10 are in some phase of the military commission process; and the remainder, which is 46, are subject to law of war detention but are going through the periodic review board process. And the last thing I'd say is the reason the President is doing this, finish what we began, which is Guantanamo is a symbol, it's a negative symbol for our national security. The President has said this, the prior President has said this, many of our generals have told us this. It hurts us with our allies, it inspires jihadists, and it's time to bring this chapter of American history to a close. The President strongly believes we can safely hold the small remaining population of between 30 to 60, which is their current estimate and what we based our estimates on, that we can safely do so in the United States. SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: And to pick up on that note, as you heard, there are some key elements articulated in the plan to be presented today that haven't been set out quite before in that manner. There's a comprehensiveness to the plan, to the report, that we think is important. And at the same time, we regard the plan as consistent with really seven years of effort to move towards the President's objective of closing this detention facility. As you heard from him in the past, he regards its operation as inconsistent with our values. He regards it as a providing propaganda for terrorists. He regards it as continuing to cause friction with foreign partners. And he regards it as a cost drain on the U.S. taxpayer. And so this plan picks up on what has been a consistent effort to move towards closure for all of those reasons. And as the plan lays out, some efforts are continuing, such as to review those potentially eligible for transfer and to transfer those who have been deemed eligible, and we'll continue doing those. Other elements of the plan involve a conversation with Congress, and we hope that the presentation of this report sparks that conversation and allows us to move forward on other aspects of what we need to achieve closure. MR. PRICE: Operator, we'll go ahead and move to questions. Q I'd just like to register my objection upfront to doing this on background. I don't see any reason why this can't be on the record with named attribution. Having said that, my question is, even if you started construction today, does this plan foresee that construction would be over soon enough that this is within the realm of possible, putting aside the legal issues, before January 20 of next year? Or because, I take it, over $100 million of construction is going to be necessary to any of these sites, is that an acknowledgement that no matter what happens with Congress, Guantanamo will be open when the next President is inaugurated? Thank you. SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Let me just start with your first objection. As you know, we always, whenever possible, do these calls on the record. We're doing this one on background because the plan will be released in full at 10:00 a.m. So we're speaking before the plan is officially released, and then of course the President will speak at 10:30 a.m. So we didn't want to get ahead of the President. So those undergird the necessity of doing this on background. But certainly appreciate your perspective. SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: In answer to the question, in looking at sites, we looked for options that could be ready in 2016. Ultimately, timing would depend on which site is selected and how quickly Congress engages with us and gives us the authority that we would require. So I don't want to acknowledge the premise that you put on the table at the end. Time is of the essence and we want to work with Congress quickly to get the authority required. Q I wonder if you could just point to, just briefly, some recent evidence of the detention center being used as a recruitment tool. And what would you say to folks who say that moving the center essentially to the U.S. doesn't eliminate its use as a recruitment tool in any way; that you're just sort of changing the zip codes but keeping it open? SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: So one piece of evidence that we continue to see is the infamous orange jumpsuit. We see it appearing in videos and other forms of propaganda by ISIL in particular, though not exclusively by them. And we see that recurrence as indicative of this facility continuing to spark recruitment and provide messaging material to terrorists. And we regard the facility as having a history associated with that image, among others, that gives us particular resonance among the populations from which terrorists are seeking to recruit and radicalize. And so we think that turning the corner on this particular facility and its legacy is important towards trying to dry up that source of recruitment and propaganda material. Q Hi. Thanks for doing this. The White House has been careful in not ruling out executive action. How long are you willing to wait for Congress to act on this proposal before a decision is made on whether it is possible to take executive action to close the prison before the end of the Obama administration? SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: So we start, as you heard before, with the premise that time is of the essence here. Our focus today is on presenting this plan and using it to work with Congress to identify a path to changing current law and proceeding towards closure. So we are really urging legislators to work with us, to lift unnecessary restrictions and support this closure plan. And that's our focus, especially today in presenting this and hoping that it's a key step in changing and moving forward that dialogue with legislators. Q Just a couple of quick housekeeping questions. Does the plan ID the nine facilities that weren't sites surveyed? And does it include language on whether he can do this without Congress? And does it contain language on whether new legal rights would attach to detainees on U.S. soil? Thank you very much. SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: On the first question, no, it does not identify the other facilities. It just gives the number of 13. We didn't survey all of those specifically. Some of the others were other federal prisons. And after we had seen a federal prison in Colorado, I think we had a good sense of the layout. As I said, we were doing a prototype. And I didn't write down the other two questions, Carol, I'm sorry. SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: In terms of language on some of the other legal issues, one thing that the report does do is reference and include as an appendix the report that was submitted to Congress previously under Section 1039 of a previous NDAA that speaks to some of the legal issues associated with relocating detainees to the United States. And so what the report aims to do is incorporate by reference some of that previous legal work that the administration did, and present it to Congress already. Q Hi, thanks for doing this call. I have two questions. Can you just talk a little bit about what you plan to do in terms of trying to overcome the political opposition on Capitol Hill to bringing the detainees to the United States? And if there's anything else you can say about the executive action and whether or not -- what might be required in order to take steps without congressional support, that might be helpful. Thanks. SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: So, on the first question, in terms of what we recognize to be some political opposition, the hope is that a series of engagements around the presentation of this plan will help move this conversation forward. So in addition to actually presenting the plan today, we hope that this will be the beginning of a more sustained conversation in which we articulate some of the thinking behind it and which we are able to figure out a way that would be amenable to Congress but that would also fulfill the President's longstanding objective here. And so we're not entirely clear on how that conversation will play out, but we're committed to moving it forward, and we hope that meeting the deadline of presenting this plan itself will be a key step in Congress to ask for this plan. And we take that, in a sense, as a willingness at least to initiate the conversation. And so we're delivering on what they ask for, and we hope that they'll continue the conversation from that point forward. In terms of executive actions, I'm not sure that there's much more to say at this point other than to emphasize that our focus right now, consistent with the points I just made, is really on using this as an opportunity to have the conversation with Congress and to take the opening that they provided by seeking this plan, and our delivery that's responsive to that as a way to move the conversation forward with that. Q I was hoping you could talk a little bit about why this plan was delayed for so long and what the cost struggles were in terms of nailing down the cost. And then secondly, I was hoping you could talk about whether or not the plan accounts for how to handle future detainees, if there are future detainees that would normally be sent to Guantanamo, what would happen to them under this plan. SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: So Congress asked for the report by today, and we're delivering it by today. I can tell, from DOD, we're late with a lot of reports, so this is actually unusual that we're on time. We engaged in a conversation between the Department and OMB and the NSC staff on what undergirded the cost. It's not really unusual. I regard that as due diligence that the President and his team were undertaking. In terms of future detentions, there is a section on the plan that was requested in the congressional legislation, and it walks through our current policy, essentially. And it's a case-by-case policy with a range of options -- prosecution in military commissions or Article 3 Court, transfer to other countries, or law of war detention as appropriate. The President has made clear before now, he's not going to add to the population at Guantanamo. Q Linking back on Carol's question, because I didn't really understand nor am I especially familiar with previous reports in the Congress. Does the administration take the position that transferring Gitmo detainees to U.S. soil does or does not alter their legal rights? And then, at this point, how many of the 46 can neither be tried nor transferred in your estimation? And finally, did the White House -- did the administration brief any of the 2016 presidential campaigns before this call? SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: On your last question, consistent with our usual policy, we briefed relevant congressional parties, but I think we'll leave it at that. SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Just to speak briefly to the legal questions, and I'll leave the full analysis to the text itself, which, as I mentioned, is appended to the report and is worth a close look. But what the 1039 report previously indicated is that the 2001 Authorization for Use of Military Force provides authority to detain individuals in the United States until the end of hostilities, and then to transfer them out, assuming they are appropriately subject to the law of war detention. And so consistent with that, and assuming that detainees would be held by the Department of Defense on U.S. soil pursuant to the AUMF, and assuming immigration laws would not apply to their detention or subsequent transfer abroad, what the 1039 report concludes is that detainees relocated would not have a right to the type of relief that that report analyzed, which is relief largely arriving from some of the immigration laws that Congress asked about at the time. So there's a lot more to that report and there's some legal nuance there, but that's sort of the top line of what Congress previously asked for on the legal front and what we are re-upping and appending that report today. SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: And then on your other question -- of the 46, 22 were initially referred by the executive order review task force back in 2009. They were referred for prosecution either before a military commission or an Article 3 court. DOJ hasn't been looking at Article 3 options for these folks for a while for the simple reason that Congress has prevented us from bringing them to United States soil. So they'd probably have to do another look and see if those cases could still be pursued, but that's the breakdown of the population that you asked for. Q You mentioned that the cost savings are $65 to $80 million doing it in the United States. How much does this prototype cost? How much money would we spend on a prison for 30 to 45 people? SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: So the estimate looked at 30 to 60, and the cost savings range was $65 to $85 million. I confess, I'm sorry I don't have that number in front of me of what it actually costs. The current cost of Gitmo in fiscal '15 was $445 million. That's at a higher population, so the cost will be lower. We can circle back and get you that number. Q I just wanted to talk to you about the high-value detainees, specifically Khalid Sheikh Mohammed. What's happening with the pretrial of 9/11 at -- in Guantanamo? Does the plan mention something regarding those high-value detainees? SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: I can't comment on an ongoing case. As you said, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed is on trial in the military commission process. What we have done, as we've done this review, was looked at the military commission's act, and we may be seeking some legislative changes from the Congress to approve the efficiency and fiscal accountability of the commission process. As part of the cost, the $445 million I referenced in response to the last question, it's almost a quarter of the cost is military commissions. It's about $90 million per year. So we've taken a hard look at what are the cost drivers there, and are working on some possible ideas that we would propose to Congress to address those. Q Yes, on the subject of unilateral action, I mean, have you gotten any indication from Congress that they're going to be willing to go along? And will you have to end up using unilateral action? And does the White House believe that the transfer bans included in those two defense bills are unconstitutional because they impede the President's ability to make decisions as Commander-in-Chief? SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: So we've seen over time work for the closure of Guantanamo from individuals in both houses of Congress from both parties. We think that there's room for a conversation to continue to explain why we think this is a responsible and secure path towards closure, and we're prepared to make that case. There have been drafts, including versions of the most recent NDAA for which the restrictions on, for example, foreign transfers were worse, and the conversations within Congress and between Congress and the executive branch led to those being less bad, which seems to suggest at least room for conversation. And that's what we're focused on with meeting Congress's request for this plan, which is to push that conversation forward to provide some of the information that Congress sought, and to hope that that allows this to be a productive dialogue that picks up on some of that earlier support for closure and expands it. Q Yes, I'm wondering if you can outline the countries to which some of the 35 might be transferred, and whether or not the protocols for those are going to veer in any different direction than we saw in the case of the Taliban Five, the Doha, and the kind of one-year observation requirements of the host country that takes the detainees. Has any of that changed? Do we put any further requirements than those that we've done in the past on any of these transfers? Or have we lightened the process so that we can move some of them out? SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: I'm not really in a position to talk about which countries we're talking to for the 35. We've obviously transferred previous people to places in many parts of the world -- Europe, Middle East, Africa, Western Hemisphere. In terms of what would be the arrangement, the Taliban Five were a little unusual, but some of the measures that have been in place there are consistent with some of the security assurances that we have obtained. The Secretary of Defense, under the statute, has to determine that he can substantially mitigate the risk of reengagement. And so some of these assurances generally cover restrictions on travel for some period of time or taking away travel documents, monitoring the detainee, sharing their information between our two governments, other measures essentially to support their reintegration into the country they're going to so they're not interested in going back into the fight and they start to develop a life that's worth having in the country where they've been resettled. So some of those are similar to what we've done with the Taliban Five who are still in Qatar, by the way, in case anybody is wondering. They're still under monitoring and still there, even though a lot of people in Congress said they'd be back in the fight. Q Hi, guys. I just wanted to get some clarification on some of these numbers. So as far as the construction costs for the plan and the number of detainees, how many are you hoping to move? And realistically, do you think that moving them will change their situation in any way other than changing the location? SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: The estimates that we've built were for a population of 30 to 60. The one-time cost of those closing the facility on the island and the moving costs and the construction costs are a range of about $290 million to $475 million. On the last part of your question, I'm not sure exactly what you're asking. The conditions of confinement I don't think would change substantially. We're governed by our Common Article 3 of the Geneva Convention, which provides for humane treatment. But we really do more than that. You may recall in the first order the President issued in 2009 to close Guantanamo, he also ordered the Department of Defense to conduct a review of the conditions on the island. And the vice chief of naval operations at the time, Vice Admiral Walsh, did that report, which is still available on the Internet if you want to consult it. But we set the bar higher than Common Article 3, and I don't imagine we're going to change that. Q Thanks. Two quick clarifications. Does the plan have any sort of final date by which Congress would have to indicate it was going to work on this? Actually that's it. Thanks. SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: So as noted before, we regard time as of the essence here. And while there isn't a particular date specified, the cost estimates, which were a key part of developing this plan, this report, are for -- they're for now. They're for what it would cost here in 2016 to move forward right away with this type of work. And so the planning assumptions would be that this sparks a conversation that happens quickly and leads to the type of legislative change that would facilitate, first, as mentioned before, really refining and digging into the cost and planning, and then moving forward with actually implementing what the plan calls for. Q Hi there. Thanks so much for having this call. A few questions. One is, some members of Congress have pointed to the recidivism numbers as sort of evidence of some detainees returning to the fight. I know there's been some disagreements over those numbers, but it's also my understanding that there's going to be a new report from the Director of National Intelligence; it's coming out in a couple of weeks. I'm wondering if you guys have addressed that, or have looked at those recent numbers. And the second question is, in terms of holding detainees in the U.S., and questions about whether it's legal, would it have to be -- would they be held in DOD facilities? And obviously I would assume only that would apply to the AUMF. What about the legalities if they were to be held in Bureau of Prisons facilities? Lastly, the four main elements of this plan sound as if -- or sound exactly like what the administration, what the President has been saying for the past eight years in terms of how to shutter Guantanamo. So I'm trying to figure out what exactly is new, unique, and different about this plan that stands out now in comparison to what has been discussed for the past eight years. Thank you. SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: On the first question, I don't have the recidivism numbers at my fingertips. I would say that in terms of our administration, because of the rigor of our process and security assurances, the return to engagement in the fight has been far lower of those that we have transferred. I think it's around 10 percent, or a little bit lower of those either engaged or suspected of engagement. The percentage of those who were transferred by the previous administration, the re-engagement rate is significantly higher; I think it's in the 20 percent. But we can get your those precise numbers. And yes, I think there is a new report coming out shortly. On the second question, they would be held in law of war detention and be guarded by DOD personnel in the same way that they are now. We looked at state prison facilities, we looked at some federal facilities. But even if we were to use them, they would be guarded by DOD personnel. And then the last question, Congress asked us for this plan. We are providing this plan. I think what is new is talking about the size of the population of 30 to 60, and giving a better sense of the cost than we've done in a while. And there was some work in the first term on a specific site in Illinois. But this is the first time we've really taken a hard look at this in several years. Q Hey, thanks. Sorry if this has already been discussed. But does the report actually name the 13 facilities that you're considering? And just taking a step back, why do you actually need a new facility? I mean, why spend half a billion dollars for those 60 or so inmates? Why not just use existing prisons? SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: The report does not name the 13. We did make it known at the time that some of the sites surveys -- some of the site survey teams went. We looked at both existing facilities. For example, we did survey the Brig at Charleston, South Carolina. We looked at Fort Leavenworth. We looked at prisons in Colorado. So it is an option to modify an existing facility, but we also looked at the possibility of new construction, or what we would call a greenfield site within a DOD base. Q Thank you for doing this call. I don't know if this has been answered before. But you're saying that you're releasing this report to Congress, but Republicans have made it clear, even on the campaign trail, that they are not going to go ahead in support of this plan. So how realistic are you being in that this plan will go forward eventually so that President Obama can fulfill his promise to shut down Guantanamo? SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: I worked for the Vice President for over 20 years, and I think it's an occupational requirement to be optimistic in this business. And I think the President thinks it's both the responsible thing to do, but also to take it off the plate of the next President. This has been an issue of concern with our foreign partners. Consistently, we continue to believe that it inspires jihadists. It's time to turn the page, and we think we've got a chance to do that in the last year of the President's term -- again, to take it off the plate of the next President. Q To your mind, as someone who has toured these facilities in the U.S., how much is the congressional opposition to moving the detainees to U.S. soil based on legitimate security concerns, and much is based on politics? SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: I don't do politics anymore. On the security concerns, we don't have any doubt that the Department of Defense can securely hold between 30 to 60 people on a U.S. facility. We currently hold many convicted terrorists in the Bureau of Prisons without any security concerns or breakouts. And to think that we can't hold 30 to 60 people in a DOD facility securely, we don't accept that premise. We think we certainly can. MR. PRICE: Thanks very much, everyone. As a reminder, the full plan will be available on the DOD website at 10:00 a.m. this morning. The President will speak at 10:30 a.m. this morning. And we will be around to take your questions after that. Thanks very much. END 9:55 A.M. EST NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address China says US missiles due in South Kroea will harm its security Iran Press TV Tue Feb 23, 2016 11:46AM China has warned that a United States missile system planned to be set up on South Korea's soil would harm its security. Chinese Ambassador to South Korea Qiu Guohong (seen below) made the remarks while speaking with the head of the social liberal Minjoo Party of Korea, Kim Jong-in, at the South Korean parliament on Tuesday. The envoy said the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system that has been cleared for deployment to South Korea would "greatly undermine" China's security interests, besides causing instability and a regional arms race. South Korea "should consider whether its own security, under these circumstances, could be guaranteed," Qiu said. Seoul and Washington have announced a plan to install the missile system as a means of countering North Korea's nuclear arms and missile capabilities. Qiu, meanwhile, warned that the potential deployment of the system would inflict potential irreparable damage to Sino-Korean ties. "It has taken much effort to develop China-South Korea ties to this degree. But these efforts could be destroyed in an instant because of one issue," he said. South Korea's Defense Ministry said Washington and Seoul had postponed the signing of an accord on setting up a joint working group to discuss the details of the deployment. The delay came as Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi was set to visit Washington on Tuesday to meet his US counterpart John Kerry for possible talks on the controversial missile system. US President Barack Obama has introduced a 'Pivot' to his Asia strategy, under which Washington has been expanding its sphere of political and economic influence in the Asia-Pacific region to counter Beijing's clout. Washington has also been challenging Beijing's ownership of disputed islands in the South China Sea, keeping an eye over Chinese movements on and around the territories. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Crucial Statement of KPA Supreme Command Korean Central News Agency of DPRK via Korea News Service (KNS) Pyongyang, February 23 (KCNA) -- The Supreme Command of the Korean People's Army (KPA) issued the following crucial statement on Tuesday: The U.S. imperialists and the south Korean puppet forces are making desperate efforts after being taken aback by the first successful H-bomb test of Juche Korea and its successful launch of earth observation satellite Kwangmyongsong-4. As the hysteric farce for adopting resolutions on 'sanctions' at the UN, madcap military moves for stifling the DPRK with all type nuclear weapons and all unprecedented 'options' against the DPRK could not break the will of the DPRK, the U.S. and the south Korean puppet forces have now turned to their last gambling. That is the 'collapse of social system' through 'beheading operation' targeting the supreme headquarters of the DPRK. The U.S. imperialist aggression forces' nuclear-powered submarine North Carolina has already entered Pusan Port, F-22A Stealth fighter-bombers have been deployed in the Osan air force base and special operation troops of the U.S. imperialist aggressor forces are finding their way to south Korea one after another to get involved in the operation. The first special warfare corps of the U.S. Army, 75th commando regiment, special commando regiment of the U.S. marines, 720th special tactics corps of the U.S. air force, special warfare team Seal and other special operation troops have already been deployed in fields. Their operation missions are to strike major strategic targets including the supreme headquarters and nuclear and strategic rocket force bases of the DPRK in wartime. Never has there been such a time as now when almost all the special operation troops of the ground force, navy, marines and air force of the U.S. that earned an ill fame in the past overseas aggression wars, and the aggression troops that go operational for the so-called 'high-density strike' have found their way to south Korea all at once. The U.S. and the south Korean puppet forces openly bluster that they will examine the feasibility of the combined 'beheading operation', a key program of new OPLAN 5015, and the 'removal operation' of nuclear and strategic rocket forces of the DPRK at the upcoming Key Resolve, Foal Eagle 16 joint military exercises. The 'beheading operation' touted by the enemies means a preemptive strike for 'removing in advance the one empowered with the mandate of order' to deter the 'use' of the nuclear and strategic rockets of the DPRK. Gravity of the situation is that the south Korean puppet forces are frantically joining the gangster-like U.S. in the implementation of 'beheading operation,' not content with introducing nuclear war means of the U.S. into south Korea to kill the compatriots in the north. The above-said 'beheading operation' and the moves to 'bring down the social system in the DPRK' are the height of hostile acts against it. The service personnel and people of the DPRK regard the supreme headquarters of our revolution as dearer than their own lives. All the service personnel and people of the DPRK are ready to immediately and mercilessly punish without slightest leniency, tolerance and patience anyone provoking the dignified supreme headquarters even a bit. The Supreme Command of the Korean People's Army clarifies the following principled stand reflecting the will of all the angry service personnel and people to take a thousand-fold revenge upon the enemies in view of the situation that has reached the dangerous phase which can never be overlooked any longer: From this moment all the powerful strategic and tactical strike means of our revolutionary armed forces will go into preemptive and just operation to beat back the enemy forces to the last man if there is a slight sign of their special operation forces and equipment moving to carry out the so-called 'beheading operation' and 'high-density strike.' Our primary target is the Chongwadae, the centre for hatching plots for confrontation with the fellow countrymen in the north, and reactionary ruling machines. The Park Geun Hye group of traitors has long been disqualified to live in this land as it has recklessly introduced nuclear war means of its U.S. master to bring a nuclear disaster to this land, desperately decrying the DPRK's nuclear deterrent and successes made in space development, treasures common to the Korean nation. The group will have to pay a very high price for its high treason to get the sun eclipsed and destroy the cradle of our life. If the enemies persist in their foolish military action, failing to come to their senses despite the DPRK's crucial warnings, the DPRK will stage the second striking operation to totally eliminate its very source. The U.S. imperialist aggressor forces' bases for invading the DPRK in the Asia-Pacific region and the U.S. mainland are its second striking target. The Korean-style striking operation which has been in the making for several decades for the final battle against the U.S. imperialists, robbers, will be an unimaginable retaliation war and reduce the cesspool of all evils to ashes never to rise again on our planet. They should bear this in mind. The DPRK is possessed of the most powerful and ultra-modern strike means in the world which are capable of dealing fatal blows at the U.S. mainland any moment and in any place. There is no need for the DPRK to keep secret about its military capabilities for which it has exerted all efforts to fight decisive battles with the U.S. for more than half a century. The U.S. is fated to be punished and perish in the flames due to the DPRK's deadly strikes. The doom of the U.S. has been sealed. Its strongholds for aggression are within the range of the DPRK's strikes and its weaponry is ready to open fire. The U.S. and south Korean puppet forces would be well advised to make the final choice: Whether they are to face merciless punishment or opt for making apology, though belatedly, and putting the situation under control. Nothing is more foolish and reckless than trying to make the sun sink. The DPRK's service personnel and people who are like manifold fortresses protecting the supreme headquarters of the revolution will mercilessly frustrate any provocation of the hostile forces and dash forward more dynamically for the final victory of the great Paektusan nation. -0- NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address US, China Report Progress on N. Korea Sanctions by Nike Ching February 23, 2016 Top diplomats of the U.S. and China said Tuesday that they had made 'significant progress" and were hopeful of reaching an agreement "in the near future" on a new U.N. Security Council resolution for tougher measures against North Korea after its recent nuclear and missile tests. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi at the State Department, their third meeting in the last month. 'We have made significant progress. It has been very constructive in the last days, and there is no question that if the resolution is approved, it will go beyond anything that we have previously passed,' Kerry said in response to a question by a VOA reporter. Kerry added that the draft was "in the appropriate evaluative stage." He did not elaborate on the specific language in the new Security Council resolution. "We are looking at the possibility of reaching agreement on the draft resolution and passing it in the near future," Wang said, adding that the two countries shared the goal of bringing North Korea back to the negotiating table. Six-party talks Launched in 2003, the so-called six-party talks are aimed at ending North Korea's nuclear program through negotiations involving China, the United States, North and South Korea, Japan and Russia. The talks have been stalled for years after multiple nuclear tests by the North Koreans. Pyongyang is already under strict U.N. sanctions that limit its imports and exports and measures that ban top leaders from traveling. Wang said China has put forward a proposal that will pursue "in parallel tracks the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and the replacement of the Korean armistice with a peace agreement." The 1950-53 Korean War ended with an armistice rather than a peace treaty. Kerry expressed openness to an eventual peace agreement to bring the Korean War to a conclusion. "What we need is for the DPRK to understand that it can rejoin the community of nations, it can actually ultimately have a peace agreement with the United States of America that resolves the unresolved issues of the Korean Peninsula, if it will come to the table and negotiate the denuclearization," he said. Pyongyang's nuclear test on January 6 and missile test on February 7 drew international condemnation. China has criticized North Korea's nuclear and missile tests but has been reluctant to back tougher punitive measures, fearing they could lead to the collapse of Pyongyang's regime and a flood of refugees across the border. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Indian First Nuclear Submarine Arihant Successfully Passes Tests Sputnik News 10:32 23.02.2016(updated 10:37 23.02.2016) Over the last six months, the Arihant nuclear submarine has passed all the tests, including deep sea dive and missile firing, according to a source. NEW DELHI (Sputnik) India's first nuclear submarine Arihant has been successfully tested and is ready for operations, media reported Tuesday. 'It has passed all tests and in many things has surpassed our expectations. Technically the submarine can now be commissioned at any time,' a senior official was quoted as saying by The Economic Times. The tests took place off Vishakhapatnam port on the eastern coast of India. The Arihant was accompanied by the Russian rescue ship Epron. The Arihant submarine will become India's first nuclear submarine of its own production. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address IRGC set to launch rotary-wing segment: Senior commander Iran Press TV Mon Feb 22, 2016 11:54PM Iran's Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) is introducing a helicopter segment, says a senior military commander. The division is currently being set up by IRGC's Ground Forces upon an order by the Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, the deputy head of IRGC's Ground Forces was quoted by the Fars News Agency as saying on Monday. Abdollah Araghi noted that rotary-wing segments are one of the most important military units in ground forces all over the world. The Sepah commander added that some of the IRGC's choppers, which were in use by the Aerospace Force division, are being handed over to the ground forces. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Iraq sends reinforcements to liberate key areas in Anbar Iran Press TV Tue Feb 23, 2016 5:53AM The Iraqi army has sent reinforcements to a military base in the western province of Anbar in preparation for an operation aimed at retaking a key city from Daesh Takfiri terrorists. "Major military reinforcements... arrived today to the Ain al-Asad base," located in the Hit district of Anbar Province, Iraqi Major General Ali Ibrahim Daboun said Monday. The military official further said forces from the counter-terrorism service and police will participate in the liberation operation of the city of Hit, situated northwest of the provincial capital Ramadi, as well as the nearby Kubaisa area in the coming days. Ramadi was liberated last December almost a year after coming under Daesh's control, marking one of the most significant victories of Iraqi armed forces since the terror group's rise in the country in early 2014. In recent days, Iraqi forces have regained control of a number of areas east of Ramadi, where they are engaged in clean-up operations. They are now focusing on militant-held areas north of the city. Meanwhile, Anbar Operations Command chief Major General Ismail al-Mahlawi said the Iraqi forces thwarted a Daesh attack on a military base in the recently-liberated al-Hamidiyah town east of Ramadi on Monday, killing 46 terrorists. Violence has plagued the northern and western parts of Iraq ever since Daesh Takfiris launched an offensive in June 2014, and took control of portions of Iraqi territory. The militants have been committing crimes against all ethnic and religious communities in Iraq, including Shias, Sunnis, Kurds and Christians. The Iraqi army and fighters from Popular Mobilization units are engaged in joint military operations to win back militant-held regions. In an interview with Press TV on Sunday, Iraqi Defense Minister Khaled al-Obaidi said government troops and allied fighters have undertaken a decisive battle to wrest back control of the northern city of Mosul, the major Daesh stronghold, by the yearend. He added that the government has deployed thousands of additional troops to the Makhmour district, east of Mosul, ahead of a final push to flush the terrorists out of the city. Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi has also vowed that the country will bring an end to Daesh existence in the country this year. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Victory Over Daesh in Ramadi Provides Strategy for Bigger Battle in Mosul Sputnik News 21:08 23.02.2016(updated 21:37 23.02.2016) The upcoming battle to retake Iraq's second largest city of Mosul from the terror group Daesh will rely on strategy and skills developed in an earlier successful campaign from the smaller city of Ramadi, Commander the Combined Joint Forces Land Component Major General Richard Clarke said on Tuesday. WASHINGTON (Sputnik) Mosul has been the de facto capital of the territory controlled by Daesh in Iraq. Its recapture would limit the terror group's ability to establish centralized civilian government structures as part of its self-proclaimed Caliphate, according to the Defense Department. "The geography of Ramadi and Mosul are pretty similar," Clarke told reporters at the US Department of Defense by video link from Iraq. "In terms of the model, the actual isolation and the terrain, you can almost flip Mosul and Ramadi and you will see something very similar." As in Ramadi, Clarke explained, the battle in Mosul will probably require construction of temporary "pontoon bridges" to cross a river running through the middle of the city. Daesh terrorists blew up the bridges in Ramadi when retreating from the advancing Iraqi forces who were supported by the US-led coalition's air support. In addition, Clarke said Iraqi ground forces were able to retake Ramadi without a significant presence of US forces on the ground. "The confidence that was built in Ramadi by the Iraqi Security Forces and in the aftermath has been fantastic," he added. If they do this [retake Mosul] on their own, it will be a longer lasting win." Nevertheless, Clarke warned that Mosul is about five times larger than Ramadi so the upcoming battle will be much more difficult. Mosul has been the de facto capital of the territory controlled by Daesh in Iraq. Its recapture would limit the terror group's ability to establish centralized civilian government structures as part of its self-proclaimed Caliphate, according to the Defense Department. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Armed US drones to use Sicily base for Libya operations Iran Press TV Mon Feb 22, 2016 11:50PM Italy has agreed to allow American armed drones to use an airbase in its southern island of Sicily for military operations against alleged positions of Daesh Takfiri terrorists in Libya and across North Africa. Rome and Washington reached the agreement last month after over a year of negotiations, an Italian Defense Ministry official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said on Monday. The drones had only been used for surveillance purposes until last month. According to the deal, the unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) based at Naval Air Station Sigonella in Sicily should be used only for defensive purposes to protect US special forces, the official said. Permission will have to be sought from the Italian government each time the drones want to take off from the airbase to protect US army personnel. "It's fair to say that the Italians had to go through a complex approval process on their side in order to grant us approval to fly these missions," a senior US defense official said. Reports say the Pentagon is attempting to persuade the Italians to allow the drones to be used for offensive operations, too. US officials are also seeking to establish a drone base in North Africa to put aircraft even closer to the area of operations and boost the efficiency and speed of drone raids, according to officials familiar with the matter. However, negotiations with other North African countries have not yielded any results yet. Libya has been struggling with instability since 2011, when the country's long-time dictator Muammar Gaddafi was overthrown. Various militant groups have been fighting one another since then. The capital Tripoli is controlled by a political faction called Libya Dawn, allied with powerful armed forces based in the city of Misrata. The faction has reinstated the old parliament, known as the General National Congress (GNC). The internationally-recognized government of Prime Minister Abdullah al-Thinni is based in the eastern city of Bayda, with its elected House of Representatives in Tobruk. A UN-backed government of national unity is awaiting parliamentary approval. It has yet to establish itself in Tripoli. Daesh, which has been engaged in heinous crimes in different parts of Iraq and Syria, has exploited the situation in the North African country to set up strongholds. According to the Pentagon, the notorious terror group has now an estimated 6,000 members in Libya, mostly concentrated in the northern coastal city of Sirte. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Libya delays confidence vote over lack of quorum Iran Press TV Tue Feb 23, 2016 3:25PM The internationally recognized parliament of Libya has failed to hold a vote of confidence in the UN-backed unity government over a lack of quorum. Lawmaker Mohamed al-Abbani said on Tuesday that the session was adjourned as the required quorum that needs 89 members of parliament was not reached. Another lawmaker, Ali Al-Qaidi, said the session for the vote was postponed until next week, pointing to differences between lawmakers on the proposed new government's program. Disagreements over the order of the day were mentioned as another bone of contention. Oil-rich Libya currently has two rival governments and parliaments. In the summer of 2014, Libya's recognized government escaped the capital, Tripoli, after a militia alliance captured the city. The internationally recognized legislature is now based in the eastern city of Tobruk. That militia alliance, meanwhile, formed its own administration and parliament called the General National Congress (GNC). The unity government was announced on January 19 to bridge a political divide that has undermined the fight against terrorist groups in Libya. Militants affiliated with the Takfiri Daesh terrorists are present in the country, making efforts to gather local support. Libya's Presidency Council, established after an agreement reached in December under UN auspices between representatives of the rival parliaments, recently proposed a new 18-minister cabinet headed by premier-designate Fayez al-Sarraj. Many hope that Libya's new administration, if endorsed by the legislature, would end the chaos gripping the country. Libya has been grappling with violence and political uncertainty since the North African nation's former dictator, Muammar Gaddafi, was deposed and later killed in 2011. Daesh took control of Libya's northern port city of Sirte in June 2015, almost four months after it announced its presence in the city, and made it the first city to be ruled by the militant group outside of Iraq and Syria. Since then, the group has been boosting its presence in the violence-wracked country, particularly after the Iraqi and Syrian army advances against militants. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address European Court Rules Russia Violated Navalny's Right To Fair Trial February 23, 2016 by RFE/RL The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has ruled that Russia violated opposition leader Aleksei Navalny's right to a fair trial, and has ordered the government to pay him 56,000 euros (61,700) in legal costs and damages. A leading foe of President Vladimir Putin, Navalny was convicted of embezzlement in 2013 in a trial he called politically motivated. He and a former associate in Kirov, Pyotr Ofitserov, were found guilty of organizing the theft of 16 million rubles ($500,000) from a timber firm in 2009 and handed prison terms of five years and four years, respectively, which an appeals court later commuted to suspended sentences. 'The trial court convicting the co-accused had worded its judgement in a manner that could only be considered prejudicial as regards [their] alleged involvement in the crime,' the ECHR ruling said, noting that the Russian courts had found them 'guilty of acts indistinguishable from regular commercial activities.' Navalny, 39, welcomed the February 23 ruling, in which Ofitserov was a co-complainant. 'The time will come when we can obtain justice in a Russian court, and not only in the ECHR," Navalny said in a statement. 'The truth is on our side, and we will win, because we are doing precisely what we are celebrating today: defending the fatherland from the thieves and scoundrels that have seized power in Russia,' Navalny said, referring to the February 23 holiday honoring past and present military personnel. Navalny said the ruling would oblige Russia's Supreme Court to overturn his conviction. But Russia passed a law last year claiming the right to disregard ECHR rulings if they conflict with the national constitution. There was no immediate reaction from officials in Russia, where it was a national holiday on February 23. Navalny rose to prominence by publishing details of what he alleges are corrupt dealings by Russian officials and executives at state-owned companies. He became a driving force behind antigovernment street protests in Moscow in 2011-12 and garnered some 27 percent of the vote in the 2013 Moscow mayoral election, losing to Kremlin-backed incumbent Sergei Sobyanin in a ballot he called rife with fraud. Navalny's conviction in the Kirovles timber-company case was the first of two that he and his critics say are part of a Kremlin campaign of retribution for his opposition activities. He received a second suspended sentence after he and his brother Oleg were convicted in December 2014 of large-scale theft from two Russian firms between 2008 and 2012. Oleg Navalny was handed a 3 1/2-year prison term that the opposition leader says authorities are using to pressure him into halting his anticorruption crusade. With reporting by AP, AFP, and Reuters Source: http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-european-court- navalny-rights-violated/27569325.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. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address News Analysis: Russian Buildup Focuses Concerns Around The Black Sea February 23, 2016 by Robert Coalson Nowhere in the world has Russia reconfigured the balance of power over the last decade as effectively as it has in the strategic Black Sea region. The militarization of the breakaway Georgian region of Abkhazia following the war with Georgia in 2008 and the annexation of Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula in 2014, in conjunction with an aggressive military modernization that is now bringing new capabilities online, have given Russia powerful new tools to wield influence in the former Soviet Union and to exert pressure against NATO and the European Union. Russia plans to spend $2.4 billion on the Black Sea Fleet by 2020, including the most modern surface ships and submarines, as well as integrated air-defense and amphibious-landing capacities. By the time the upgrade is completed, the Interfax news agency reported on February 16, the fleet will be able to strike 200 targets with Kalibr cruise missiles in a single salvo. 'The threat to the Caucasus, the Middle East, and to Europe as a result of Russian aggression against Georgia [in 2008] and Ukraine in 2014 and the overturning of the European status quo and the ensuing militarization of the entire area are matters of the utmost concern to [Western] security planners,' says Stephen Blank, a senior fellow at the American Foreign Policy Council and a longtime expert on security issues. Littoral Danger Moscow's domination of the Black Sea casts a shadow over the littoral states. The pro-Western economic and political course of both Ukraine and Georgia has been stymied, and their ability to develop independently of Russia is seriously compromised. Earlier this month, Georgia announced plans to build a $2.5 billion cargo port at Batumi in hopes of creating a trade link between China and Europe. But whether that project will attract investors or function smoothly is now at least partially under Moscow's control. Mere sabre rattling can be enough to make investors pull out. The military doctrine adopted in July 2015 asserts Russia's policy of resisting attempts 'to overturn legitimate governments' in its region. 'In effect, Moscow reserves for itself the right and obligation to defend governments that are amenable to Russian influence, even against the democratic choices of their own populations,' says Black Sea Rising, a new report by the Center for European Policy Analysis (CEPA). Combined with the Kremlin's active use of hybrid warfare and 'little green men' actions, the Black Sea military buildup is worrisome in capitals from Moldova to Azerbaijan. In addition, Russia's new muscle in the region has NATO members Romania and Bulgaria concerned as well. 'These trends have allowed Russia to essentially make it extremely difficult, if not impossible, for NATO to get into the Black Sea to defend NATO allies and partners without substantial losses of ships, planes, and men,' analyst Blank says. Judy Dempsey, editor in chief of Carnegie Europe's newsletter Strategic Europe, says Romania is 'acutely aware of the situation' and has been working with NATO to create a rapid-deployment capacity in the Black Sea that is similar to what NATO already has planned for the Baltic region and Poland. Through the use of political and economic pressure on Sofia and Bucharest, Russia is able to sow public doubts about the unity and resolve of the European Union and NATO. Syria And The Mediterranean In a speech at the Russian Black Sea Fleet headquarters in Sevastopol, Ukraine, in 2007, then-commander of the Russian Navy Admiral Vladimir Masorin said: 'The operational zone of the fleet extends across the Black Sea and the Mediterranean all the way to the Atlantic Ocean. It is at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa, and here we must reestablish the permanent presence of the Russian Navy.' Just over a year after the Crimean annexation, the Black Sea Fleet has already been turned from a 'green-water' to a 'blue-water' force, one capable of carrying out extensive operations in open waters. It has played an essential role in facilitating Russia's military action in Syria. Without this preparation, 'they might have been able to airlift things into Syria and do some sealift, but nothing on the scale of what they have been able to do,' says analyst Blank. In addition, Blank says, after Russia completes the upgrade of its military base at Tartus, Syria, its dominance of the Black Sea will enable Moscow 'to sustain a much larger force in the Mediterranean' over the long term. The CEPA report notes that the Black Sea is already 'the main logistical platform' for Russian actions in the Middle East, already enabling Moscow to maintain 10 ships in the eastern Mediterranean. And Then There Was Turkey Russia's buildup in the Black Sea occurred during a time of good relations between Moscow and the other major regional power, Turkey. The warm personal relationship between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, meant that Turkey was largely silent as Russia pushed forward in the region. 'We went into Syria without understanding that we were entering into a conflict with Turkey,' says Russian military analyst Pavel Felgenhauer. 'It seems clear that Putin was sure that the Turks would be amenable and somehow we'd divide things up with Erdogan. This was a fundamental mistake.' But Russia's action in Syria has now brought the two countries to the brink of open conflict. On November 24, Turkey shot down a Russian military jet that Ankara said had entered Turkish airspace from Syria. The two countries have had virtually no diplomatic contacts since then. With both countries prominently present in the Black Sea, the possibilities for more dangerous incidents are high, analysts say. NATO officials are 'very worried' about the possibility of a Turkish-Russian incident in the Black Sea, says Carnegie analyst Dempsey. 'In retrospect it is quite remarkable that there haven't been accidents given so many different aircraft in the skies over Syria and, now, in parts of the Black Sea,' she adds. Source: http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-black-sea- military-buildup-turkey/27569877.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. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Russian Black Sea Fleet to Get New Submarines, Patrol Boats in 2016 Sputnik News 17:49 23.02.2016(updated 17:52 23.02.2016) The Russian Black Sea Fleet will receive two new diesel submarines and two patrol boats this year. SEVASTOPOL (Sputnik) Two new diesel submarines and two patrol boats will be commissioned to the Russian Black Sea Fleet later this year, the Fleet's Commander Admiral Alexander Vitko said Tuesday. 'This year, we will get two submarines and two patrol boats,' Adm. Vitko told reporters at the Fleet's home port of Sevastopol. 'We used to talk about getting new hardware as a distant future, but it is a reality now,' he added. Black Sea Fleet senior spokesman Vyacheslav Trukhachyov told RIA Novosti that crews for the new Oskol and Krasnodar submarines had already begun their training. The Admiral Grigorovich and the Admiral Essen patrol boats will be commissioned to the Black Sea Fleet in 2016, while a third boat, the Admiral Makarov, has almost been completed. Its crew has already been assembled, Trukhachyov said. Earlier this year, the Fleet received two corvettes armed with Kalibr (SS-N-27) anti-ship missiles, the Serpukhov and the Zeleny Dol. The latter is currently on a mission in the Mediterranean. Last week, it called on Syria's second largest port of Tartus. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Syria gov't conditionally agrees to ceasefire on humanitarian ground IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency Damascus, Feb 23, IRNA -- Syrian government has accepted truce on humanitarian ground provided to continue with military campaign against terrorist groups including Daesh, al-Nusra and other al-Qaeda-linked terrorists, Syrian Arab News Agency said on Tuesday. Syrian Foreign Ministry said that for ensuring the success of the truce on humanitarian ground scheduled to take effect on February 27 the Syrian government affirms readiness to continue with coordination with the international campaign against terrorism. SANA said that the Syrian government said that certain countries providing the terrorist groups fighting with the government troops in Syria must stop arms supplies to Daesh, al-Nusra and al-Qaeda. 'Otherwise, military campaign against the terrorist groups will resume.' It asserted that the Syrian government is adherent to the right of its armed forces to retaliate any violation committed by these groups against the Syrian citizens or its armed forces as well. The Syrian government said is keen on halting the bloodshed of the Syrians, restoring security and stability to the country in fulfillment of the Syrian people's will of the territorial integrity of Syria, for which sacrifices of civilians and military personnel have been provided. On Monday, Russian President Vladimir Putin affirmed that he agreed with his US counterpart Barack Obama on a joint statement in the framework of International Syria Support Group to stop the military operations in the country. US Department of State announced a Russian-US agreement on a statement that includes "plans to stop the military operations in Syria which exclude Daesh and al-Nusra and al-Qaeda terrorist groups." 2222**1416 NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address U.S., Russia announce Syria ceasefire plan, questions unresolved People's Daily Online (Xinhua) 10:11, February 23, 2016 WASHINGTON, Feb. 22 -- The United States and Russia on Monday announced a plan for a cessation of hostilities in Syria starting from Saturday, which the UN described as 'a signal of hope' for an end to the nearly five-year-old conflict. Yet, the agreement, which excludes the Islamic State (IS), the Nusra Front or other terror organizations designated by the UN Security Council, still awaits commitment from Syria's warring government and armed opposition groups. It also leaves questions open on how to respond to breaches of the ceasefire. The United States and Russia said in a joint statement that any party engaged in conflicts in Syria will indicate to Russia or the U.S. their commitment to the cessation of hostilities by no later than 12:00 (Damascus time) on Saturday. The cessation of hostilities was largely envisaged in Munich on Feb. 12 during a meeting of the International Syrian Support Group(ISSG), which comprises the Arab League, the European Union, the United Nations, and 17 countries including China. However, the ceasefire failed to take effect within a week as planned, given deep rifts between the United States and Russia, which are the main backers of the opposite warring sides in the Syrian conflict that has killed more than 250,000 people and displaced several million. Further complicating the situation, the United States has had a hard time persuading Turkey and Saudi Arabia, two major allies in the region, to come to the negotiating table. Saudi Arabia have been threatening to send combat troops to Syria, while Turkey has started shelling IS-fighting Kurdish positions in northern Syria. Ankara has called on coalition partners to launch joint ground operations in Syria, insisting it is the only way to end the neighboring country's civil war. The Monday announcement of the truce deal capped weeks of intense diplomatic efforts to end the violence. But it left major unresolved questions over where the fighting must stop and where counterterrorism operations can continue. The joint U.S.-Russian statement said the two countries and others would work together to delineate the territory held by the Islamic State, Nusra Front and the other militant groups excluded from the truce. UN Secretary-general Ban Ki-moon welcomed the agreement. 'It is a long-awaited signal of hope to the Syrian people that after five years of conflict there may be an end to their suffering in sight,' he said in a statement. The UN chief cautioned that 'much work now lies ahead to ensure its implementation,' calling on the the international community, the ISSG and the Syrian parties to 'remain steadfast in their resolve.' Ban strongly urged the parties to abide by the agreement, which, if respected, would constitute 'a significant step forward in the implementation of Security Council resolution 2254 (2015).' In a televised speech on Monday, Russian President Vladimir Putin called the ceasefire agreement 'a real step' towards ending five years of bloodshed in Syria. 'It is essential that Russia and the United States, co-chairs of the International Syrian Support Group, are ready to run an effective mechanism for the implementation and monitoring of the ceasefire by both the Syrian government and armed opposition groups,' Putin said in the address posted on the Kremlin's website. Moscow and Washington will establish a hotline and, if necessary, a working group to exchange information after the cessation of hostilities has gone into effect, he said. Putin said Russia will do whatever necessary to influence the Syrian leadership, adding that 'We are counting on the United States to do the same with its allies and groups it supported.' U.S. President Barack Obama, in a telephone call with Putin on Monday, emphasized that the priority now was to ensure positive responses by the Syrian government and armed opposition as well as faithful implementation by all parties, the White House said. While hailing the announcement of the agreement as 'a moment of promise,' U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said the fulfillment of the promise depends on actions, admitting that 'we are all aware of the significant challenges ahead.' The announcement of the ceasefire agreement came a day after five deadly bombings killed at least 150 people in central and southern Syria, marking one of the highest death tolls in a single day during the years of conflict. Both the United States and Russia condemned the Sunday bombings for which the Islamic State has claimed responsibility. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address U.S., Russia agree to Syrian ceasefire to begin Saturday People's Daily Online (Xinhua) 08:20, February 23, 2016 WASHINGTON, Feb. 22 -- The United States and Russia announced Monday the plan for a cessation of hostilities in Syriathat will begin on Feb. 27, the U.S. State Department said. In a joint statement, the two countries said the ceasefire agreement will not apply to 'Daesh', also known as the Islamic State (IS), 'Jabhat al-Nusra', or other terrorist organizations designated by the UN Security Council. Any party engaged in conflicts in Syria will indicate to Russia or the United States their commitment to and acceptance of the terms for the cessation of hostilities by no later than 12:00 (Damascus time) on Feb. 27, said the joint statement issued by the State Department. 'I am gratified to see the final arrangements concluded today for a cessation of hostilities in Syria and call on all parties to accept and fully comply with its terms,' U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said. If implemented and adhered to, Kerry said, this cessation will not only lead to a decline in violence, but also continue to expand the delivery of urgently needed humanitarian supplies to besieged areas and support a political transition to a government that is responsive to the desires of the Syrian people. Russia and the U.S. are prepared to work together to exchange information and develop procedures necessary for preventing parties participating in the ceasefire from being attacked by Russia, the U.S.-led anti-IS coalition, and the Syrian government, said the joint statement. Russian and U.S. military actions, including airstrikes, will continue against IS, 'Jabhat al-Nusra,' and other terrorist organizations. Moscow and Washington will also establish a communication hotline and, if necessary and appropriate, a working group to exchange relevant information after the cessation of hostilities has gone into effect. 'This is a moment of promise, but the fulfillment of that promise depends on actions,' Kerry said. 'We are all aware of the significant challenges ahead.' NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Elements in foreign-backed FSA militants oppose Syria truce Iran Press TV Tue Feb 23, 2016 6:55PM Elements inside the so-called Free Syrian Army, which has been designated by the United States and allies as moderate opposition in Syria, have threatened to ignore an imminent lull in the fighting agreed by warring sides in the Arab country. The Lebanese-based al-Mayadeen TV on Tuesday quoted a commander of Ahrar ash-Sham militants as saying that his group will not participate in the ceasefire deal planned for the end of February unless the al-Nusra Front terrorist group is included in the deal. "Several FSA brigades announced of the refusal to join the ceasefire in Syria if it does not apply to the Nusra Front," said the commander, whose name was not mentioned. The United States and Russia announced on Monday that they had reached a deal for ceasefire in Syria beginning on February 27. The agreement has excluded groups such as Nusra and Daesh. The FSA, which has been labeled as moderate by the US, has enjoyed extensive support by Washington and other members of the so-called coalition that has been conducting airstrikes against purported positions of the Daesh terrorists. The US government has provided the FSA with training and weapons in the hope that it could counter Daesh. The assistance program was officially discontinued in October 2015 with US government reportedly spending USD 500 million in aid to the FSA. Syria is in the midst of deadly turmoil with government forces and allies, backed by Russia's air cover, battling terrorist groups across the Arab country. Forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad have managed over the past few weeks to recapture major positions from Daesh and al-Nusra in the north. More than 470,000 people have reportedly been killed and millions displaced in Syria since March 2011. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Russia opens coordination center at Latakia airbase Iran Press TV Tue Feb 23, 2016 6:2PM Russia says it has opened a coordination center at its Hmeymim airbase in the Syrian province of Latakia in an attempt to facilitate talks between Damascus and different opposing parties. Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov made the announcement on Tuesday. "In accordance with the Russian-American agreements from Feb. 22 on the cessation of hostilities in Syria, to implement a monitoring mechanism for the ceasefire a coordination centre has been opened for the reconciliation of warring parties," Russian news agencies quoted him as saying. Konashenkov, meanwhile, added that the opposition representatives do not include the Takfiri Daesh terror group and the al-Qaeda-linked al-Nusra Front. The announcement came after the Syrian government said it accepted the terms of a ceasefire deal announced by the United States and Russia on Monday. According to a statement released by the Syrian Foreign Ministry on Tuesday, the government accepts the agreement on the basis that military efforts against Daesh and al-Nusra continue. Damascus would coordinate with Moscow to decide which groups and areas would be included in the 'cessation of hostilities' plan, which is due to take effect on February 27 according to the US-Russian plan, it said. The Syrian military, however, reserves the right to 'respond to any breach by these groups against Syrian citizens or against its armed forces,' the statement added. The government emphasized the importance of sealing the borders and halting foreign support to armed groups. Over the past few weeks, Syrian government forces have managed to gain major positions from the foreign-backed militants in Syria. Nearly five years of deadly turmoil have left more than 470,000 people killed and millions displaced, according to reports. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address CIA, Pentagon chiefs say Russia will breach Syria truce Iran Press TV Tue Feb 23, 2016 5:15PM US President Barack Obama's top military and intelligence advisers have expressed doubt on Russia's willingness to abide by the recently-announced ceasefire in Syria, saying they want Moscow to feel "real pain," according to a US government official. In their recent meetings in the White House, US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Marine General Joseph Dunford, and Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Director John Brennan have voiced increasingly hawkish views towards Russia, the Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday, citing a senior administration official. Carter, Dunford and Brennan have even unanimously called for new measures to "inflict real pain on the Russians,' the official added. The comments came shortly after a draft deal was reached between Russia and the US on Monday, calling for a ceasefire to start in Syria in late February. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said on Saturday that he was ready for a ceasefire in case the terrorists did not use it to advance their ambitions and that countries backing them stop their support. Russia has been conducting airstrikes in the Arab country since late September upon a request from Damascus. Washington accuses Moscow of targeting militants the Pentagon has specifically trained to fight against Assad's government in Syria. US officials say they doubt if stepped-up support for the militants would make much of a difference at this stage, given the amount how much ground they have lost in the wake of Russia's attacks. According to the WSJ report, Carter and Gen. Dunford have yet to make formal recommendations to Obama on possible "Plan B" options should the ceasefire collapse, although discussions are ongoing in Washington. US intelligence agencies have warned Obama that if the US leaves so-called "moderate" militants at Russia's mercy, then the Saudis or some other group could break ranks with America and send portable anti-aircraft weapons to Syria to down Russian warplanes. Syria has been gripped by a foreign-backed militancy since March 2011. According to a new report by the Syrian Center for Policy Research, the conflict has claimed the lives of over 470,000 people. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Ministry: Syria accepts ceasefire deal Iran Press TV Tue Feb 23, 2016 10:5AM The Syrian government says it accepts the terms of a ceasefire deal announced by the United States and Russia on Monday. According to a statement released by the Syrian Foreign Ministry on Tuesday, the government accepts the deal on the basis that military efforts against terrorist Daesh and Nusra Front groups continue. The statement said the government will stop armed operations but will 'continue counter-terrorism efforts' against Daesh, al-Qaeda and affiliated groups. Syria will coordinate with Russia to decide which groups and areas will be included in the 'cessation of hostilities' plan which is due to take effect on Saturday according to the US-Russian plan, it said. The Syrian military, however, reserves the right to 'respond to any breach by these groups against Syrian citizens or against its armed forces,' the statement added. The government also stressed the importance of sealing the borders and halting foreign support to armed groups. It warned that third parties must prevent 'these organisations from strengthening their capabilities or changing their positions, in order to avoid what may lead to wrecking this agreement.' Turkish PM insists Syrian Kurds linked to PKK Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu insisted that Syrian Kurdish GYP militia was taking orders from PKK militants after the group rejected any links to a deadly bombing in Ankara last week. Speaking in parliament, Davutoglu said blaming the PKK for the car bomb attack which killed 28 people in the Turkish capital was an attempt to exonerate the YPG. The Syrian Kurdish group is fighting militants based near the Turkish border. It has made significant advances in recent weeks against the foreign-backed groups which seek to topple President Bashar al-Assad. The YPG has denied any role in the bombing, but Davutoglu said the group and PKK worked together in carrying out the attack. Turkey-based the Kurdistan Freedom Falcons (TAK) has claimed responsibility for the car bombing, saying it carried out the attack in response to the policies of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address FSA Partly Refuses to Participate in Ceasefire Deal Without al-Nusra Front Sputnik News 20:31 23.02.2016(updated 21:42 23.02.2016) A part of the Free Syrian Army (FSA) will not participate in the ceasefire deal unless al-Nusra Front is involved, a commander of Ahrar ash-Sham militants said Tuesday. MOSCOW (Sputnik) On Monday, Russia and the United States announced an agreement on cessation of hostilities between the Syrian government of President Bashar Assad and the armed opposition factions had been reached. The agreement will come into force on February 27. According to the deal, military action, including airstrikes conducted by Syria, Russia and the US-led coalition will continue against Daesh, al-Nusra Front, as well as other UN-designated terrorist groups. 'Several FSA brigades announced of the refusal to join the ceasefire in Syria, if it does not apply to the Nusra Front,' the commander was quoted as saying by Al Mayadeen television channel. 'There will be no ceasefire without Nusra Front,' the commander said. The FSA is one of the groups labeled a 'moderate' opposition faction in the Syrian civil war, which broke out in 2011. Washington trained and equipped the FSA fighters in the hope that they would counter Daesh terrorists, but subsequently shut down this program in October after spending almost $500 million dollars without any tangible results. On Monday, the Kremlin released details of the Syrian ceasefire plan the US and Russia agreed upon. The two countries had to conduct several rounds of secret negotiations before settling all details and making them public. According to Russian President Vladimir Putin, the plan of ceasing hostilities presents a 'real step that can stop the bloodshed.' Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Russia Launches Syria Reconciliation Center at Hmeymim Airbase Sputnik News 18:42 23.02.2016(updated 18:55 23.02.2016) A coordination center for reconciliation of opposing sides in the Syrian conflict has begun operations at the Russian Hmeymim airbase in the Latakia province, the Russian Defense Ministry said Tuesday. MOSCOW (Sputnik) On Monday, Russia and the United States announced an agreement on cessation of hostilities between the Syrian government of President Bashar Assad and the armed opposition factions had been reached. The agreement will come into force on February 27. According to the deal, military action, including airstrikes conducted by Syria, Russia and the US-led coalition will continue against Daesh, al-Nusra Front, as well as other UN-designated terrorist groups. 'In accordance with the Russian-US February 22 agreement on the cessation of hostilities in Syria, for the implementation of mechanism to monitor compliance with the ceasefire regime, a coordination center for reconciliation of the warring parties was created and started operations at the Russian airbase Hmeymim on the territory of the Syrian Arab Republic,' spokesman Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov said. According to Konashenkov, Syrian opposition groups willing to start peace talks may address the center and get help in establishing contact with the Syrian government. The Hmeymim base is the centerpiece of the Russian aerial campaign in Syria against terrorists which started on September 30, 2015 at the request of Syrian President Bashar Assad. The Russian Defense Ministry gave the US contacts for the hotline on the Syrian ceasefire. 'In accordance with the instructions of the Russian and US presidents, and as a result of their telephone conversation on February 22, Russian contact information for hotline connection (primary and backup) were transferred to the Americans, as it was also envisaged by the joint statement of the Russian Federation and the United States as co-chairs of the International Syrian Support Group on cessation of hostilities in Syria,' the ministry's press service said. According to the press service, the Russian Defense Ministry is expecting same data from the US side. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Syrian Army, Allies Gain More Ground Amid Major Offensive in Latakia Sputnik News 09:43 23.02.2016(updated 13:24 23.02.2016) The Syrian army killed scores of Daesh and al-Nusra terrorists and destroyed much of their grid as part of an ongoing offensive in the north of the country, Syria's official news agency SANA reported on Monday. In Homs province Syrian jets destroyed two positions of al-Nusra Front militants in Teir Ma'ale and raided Daesh gathering centers at Teloul al-Soud and Palmyra. Meanwhile, in Aleppo the government forces, backed by popular defense units, battled with Daesh terrorists destroying 14 machinegun trucks and leaving scores of militants dead and wounded, SANA reported. In Latakia province the Syrian army and popular defense forces seized two villages in the province's northern countryside and secured a number of strategic points in the northeast part of the region. In Deir ez-Zor, a city in northeastern Syria 120 kilometers away from Raqqa, government forces killed 65 Daesh militants in a series of fierce battles fought over the past 24 hours, the agency reported citing military sources on the ground. Earlier, Syrian army units blew up a 40-meter-long tunnel in the city's al-Sinaa district, which Daesh terrorists used to store weapons and ammunition. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Syria Agrees to US-Russia Cease-fire Plan by Pamela Dockins February 23, 2016 Syria said Tuesday it accepts a cease-fire plan proposed by the United States and Russia that would begin Saturday. A Syrian government statement said the military will continue its operations against Islamic State and al-Qaida-linked groups. The U.S.-Russia plan also does not apply to those militants, and any other groups have until Friday to confirm their participation. The main Syrian opposition High Negotiations Committee said late Monday it agrees to the cease-fire as long as its demands for the lifting of sieges, delivery of humanitarian aid, and an end of bombings of civilians are met. Cease-fire deal In a joint statement Monday, the U.S. and Russia said that under the plan parties involved in the conflict would limit any use of force to situations such as responding in self defense. The parties would also agree to provide unhindered access to humanitarian groups delivering aid to besieged areas. The U.S. and Russia are co-chairs of a cease-fire task force that is part of the 17-nation International Syria Support Group. The group met in Munich earlier this month and had hoped to implement an initial cease-fire plan by last Friday. Some of the issues linked to the cessation still appear to be unresolved. U.S. State Department spokesman Mark Toner said over the next few days, the task force will work out standard operating procedures. He also said the group may rely in part on non-government organizations and journalists in Syria for reports on possible cease-fire violations. "No one is denying that this is going to be a challenging environment to monitor," said Toner. The group is also seeking assurances from the Syrian government, the opposition and other parties involved in the conflict. 'Over the coming days, we will be working to secure commitments from key parties that they will abide by the terms of this cessation,' said U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry. In an interview with Al Arabiya, Syrian opposition leader Khaled Khoja expressed concern that the Syrian government could use the presence of al-Nusra terrorists as a pretext to continue hitting rebel targets in areas near the terrorist group. Earlier, the White House said President Barack Obama and Russian Leader Vladimir Putin spoke by phone Monday to discuss the plan. The White House said Obama emphasized that the priority was to ensure "positive responses" by the Syrian regime and the armed opposition. "Russian and American military will jointly define the territories on the map where such groups are active," said Putin. IS attacks Word of the potential truce comes a day after Islamic State militants claimed responsibility for a series of attacks in Damascus and Homs that left over 100 people dead. Toner, of the State Department, condemned the attacks and said it would take a 'united and global effort to destroy this terrorist organization.' Russia's Foreign Ministry said in a statement the terror attacks need an adequate reaction from the international community. A U.N. spokesman said Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon welcomed the cease-fire plan and 'strongly urges' all parties to abide by terms of the agreement. U.N.-facilitated talks between the Syrian government and opposition broke off earlier this month, partly due to opposition concerns about the Russian-backed Syrian government's continued bombings around Aleppo. U.N. envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura initially planned to resume talks by February 25, but last week, the U.N. announced the talks would be further delayed. Russia's airstrikes have been blamed for increasing the war's toll on Syrian civilians, prompting more of them to leave their homes as refugees and try to flee across the border into Turkey. UNICEF welcomed word of a cease-fire plan Monday, which could allow relief organizations to expand deliveries of aid. "If implemented, a cessation of hostilities represents an opportunity to begin the work of repairing a country that has suffered far too much for far too long," said Anthony Lake, the agency's executive director. VOA White House correspondent Mary Alice Salinas and Chris Hannas in Washington contributed to this report. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Kerry Uncertain Whether Syrian Cease-fire Will Work by VOA News February 23, 2016 U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry told Congress Tuesday he is uncertain whether a joint U.S.-Russia cease-fire set to take effect in Syria on Saturday will work or lead to a negotiated peace settlement in the war-torn country. But the top American diplomat said the cease-fire agreed to by U.S. President Barack Obama and Russian President Vladimir Putin is the best way to try to end the five-year conflict that has left as many as 470,000 dead according to some estimates. It calls for a halt to fighting, except for continued attacks on Islamic State and Al-Nusra Front fighters . "If humanitarian assistance flows, if the guns do silence with the exception of the effort against Daesh and Al Nusra on Saturday, if they do, and lives are saved, then that is to the benefit,' Kerry told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. But he added, 'It doesn't mean that it's automatically going to have a positive outcome in the political process.' Some Senate lawmakers voiced skepticism that Russia would honor the truce, with Senator Barbara Boxer of California questioning whether the Washington-Moscow pact might turn out to be a 'rope-a-dope deal' with frequent cease-fire violations. 'It may be,' Kerry said. But he warned, 'Anybody who thinks that there is impunity for violating this... is making a grave mistake. There is a significant discussion taking place now about Plan B if we don't succeed at the table.' Kerry said that in the last two weeks 114 truckloads of humanitarian aid have been dispatched into areas of Syria that have been cut off by the fighting between Syrian government troops loyal to President Bashar al-Assad and rebel forces trying to overthrow him. 'At least 80,000 people who haven't had supplies in years now have supplies for the next month at least and we have resulted in food in medicine to places that have been under siege for months,' Kerry said. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Reversal of Fortunes Written on Syrian Map by Jamie Dettmer February 23, 2016 Syrian rebel commanders acknowledge they are in an existential, make-or-break moment of the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad. The five-year civil war has seen plenty of tortuous battlefield ups and downs. Between May and August last year, the Assad government looked almost defeated after suffering some stunning military reversals, losing Idlib to an alliance consisting mainly of al-Qaida affiliate Jabhat al-Nusra and the hardline Islamists of Ahrar al-Sham, and then Palmyra to the Islamic State. Rebel commanders talked of marching to the coast and grabbing Latakia or heading south to Homs, where they thought they might be confronting an advancing IS before storming into the Syrian capital, Damascus. In August, a growing number of soldiers and civilians in government-controlled areas of Syria were expressing rare public disaffection with the Assad regime. In traditionally loyal coastal regions, noncombatants as well as the military were complaining that not enough was being done to relieve enclaves besieged by rebels. Now the battlefield map has been turned upside down and no thanks to the Syrian army, which has not been doing most of the heavy lifting. "Eighty percent of the regime's ground forces in offensive are not Syrian they are Iranian, Lebanese, Iraqi and Afghan Shi'ites," says Gen. Salem Idris, former chief of staff of the Western-backed Free Syrian Army. Outside Influence And the strategic brains behind the offensive that has swept the northern Aleppo countryside, tightening the noose around rebels in the districts they hold in the city of Aleppo, have not been Syrian either. Most Syria watchers and Western military analysts believe the offensive was planned in July 2015 by Iranian military commanders led by Major General Qasem Soleimani, head of the Quds Force, the special forces of Iran's Revolutionary Guards, and Russian generals experienced in the counter-insurgency operations in Chechnya. The overall strategy to crush the more moderate armed factions in the opposition, leaving the extremists is straight out of the Chechnya playbook, say military analysts. So too are the scorched-earth indiscriminate tactics of the airstrikes that are meant to sow panic and force civilians to flee. According to local eyewitnesses, civilians have stampeded out of villages and towns in the northern Aleppo countryside such as Tell Rifaat and Mare', once the headquarters of the FSA in northern Syria. The build-up for this month's blistering offensive was done patiently, says a European diplomat. "First the Russians slipped a few warplanes into the Khmeimim airbase in Latakia to see if they would get a Western reaction. And when they didn't, they dispatched more, and we still reacted in just a muted way as evidence mounted of ground forces, tanks and mechanized units being sent in," he says. "Then they focused on pressing offensives around Latakia, ensuring the safety of their bases and creating a buffer zone running north to south, sealing off the northern Hama border with Idlib," he says. The Syrian government-Russian offensive was then extended to the al-Ghab plains between northwest Hama and southwest Idlib. The objective was to cut off Idlib and by extension the province of Aleppo from the center, west and southwest of the country. As the government pressed offensives in Hama and Idlib, it also launched a large-scale campaign in the northern Latakia countryside, seizing 200 square kilometers of rebel-held territory bordering Turkey. "By then," says the diplomat, "they had the bulk of rebel forces boxed in the provinces of Idlib and Aleppo with no chance of them forcing their way to Homs or trying to link up with rebels around Damascus or insurgents trying to come up from the south of the country." And then, in late October and November, the government launched a large-scale offensive in the southern Aleppo countryside, with the main objective of the operation being to secure the Azzan Mountains and to establish a buffer zone around the Syrian government's only highway leading to the parts of Aleppo city it controls. The rebels made a strong stand, destroying dozens of tanks. But they were unable to deny government forces - including the 4th Mechanized Division - Hezbollah and Iraqi Shi'ite militias, as well as Afghan volunteers and Iranian Revolutionary Guardsmen, from accomplishing their objectives. Aleppo Offensive The even stronger offensive this month in northern Aleppo has three objectives: to sever supply lines from Turkey to rebels in the city of Aleppo and to prepare a siege; to expel anti-Assad insurgents from their long-standing stronghold in the north of the countryside; and to take back control of the border around Bab al-Samah. Western intelligence and military officials tell VOA that with the help of Kurdish fighters from the People's Protection Units (YPG), those goals have now nearly been reached. "I think Moscow will halt most airstrikes in the northern Aleppo countryside by March 1 they won't need to maintain them with the intensity they have the past week," says a British military official. "And if they need to pop off a few missiles they will claim they are hitting 'terrorists' therefore abiding by the Munich cessation of hostilities agreement," he added. That agreement will allow them to turn their focus on Idlib, the stronghold of Jabhat al-Nusra and Ahrar al-Sham, he says. Gen. Idris agrees, the focus will now swing to Idlib. "They want to close down Bab al-Hawa," he said, referring to the border crossing west of Bab al-Samah. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Germany Urges Kyiv To Implement Reforms Under Minsk Accord February 23, 2016 German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier has said that infighting among political parties in Ukraine's governing coalition cannot be allowed to prevent the government from carrying out its reform obligations under the Minsk accords. Speaking at a joint press conference on February 23 with the Ukrainian and French foreign ministers after talks in Kyiv, Steinmeier said the key steps on implementing the Minsk agreement still must be taken. He said Russia also must be ready to implement the Minsk deal. He said Germany and France will continue to support Ukraine's reform efforts but expect Kyiv to continue with reforms in return to help revive the economy and carry out the Minsk deal, which was reached in the Belarusian capital a year ago. Steinmeier warned Kyiv that the International Monetary Fund was looking for political 'stability' before offering further loans to Ukraine. Kyiv claims Russia is violating the Minsk agreement by sending troops and weapons to back up pro-Russia separatists in the east. But Ukraine has so far failed on its pledge to enact reforms that would increase autonomy for Ukraine's eastern regions and allow local elections there. Based on reporting by Reuters, AP, and AFP Source: http://www.rferl.org/content/ukraine-germany- urges-implement-minsk-reforms/27568645.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. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address France, Germany Urge Kyiv To Overcome Turmoil, Enact Reforms February 23, 2016 by RFE/RL The foreign ministers of Germany and France have urged Ukraine to overcome its political turmoil and move ahead with reforms needed to revive the economy and carry out the Minsk peace agreement. Upon arriving in Kyiv on February 22, German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said he and his French counterpart, Jean-Marc Ayrault, saw no alternative to the Minsk agreement for ending the fighting in eastern Ukraine between government troops and Russian-backed separatists. 'We need a readiness from the Russian side to implement the Minsk deal.... But we also need Ukraine,' Steinmeier said, urging Ukrainian leaders to set aside domestic political battles and push ahead with needed reforms. Ukraine has so far failed to enact measures to increase autonomy for the eastern regions and allow local elections there, while Ukraine claims that Russia violates the peace agreement by sending troops and weapons to back up the separatists. Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk told Steinmeier and Ayrault that he hoped they would help force Russia to keep its side of the agreement, which was drafted with the participation of France and Germany in the Belarusian capital a year ago. Separately, U.S. President Barack Obama in a phone call on February 22 told Russian President Vladimir Putin that Moscow needs to honor the cease-fire in Ukraine and allow a special monitoring mission from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe to have full access to the conflict zone, including the border with Russia, the White House said. The European diplomats' visit to Kyiv was meant to pave the way for another round of talks on carrying out the Minsk agreement on March 3 in Paris. The French and German ministers also used the visit to urge Ukraine to stick with economic reforms prescribed by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to ensure the fund does not suspend its $17.5 billion bailout program for Kyiv. The IMF put the loan program on hold after the resignation of Ukraine's economy minister amid charges of corruption within the ruling coaliation earlier this month, in a development that sparked a political crisis. Seeking to quell the crisis, President Petro Poroshenko last week urged Yatsenyuk to resign along with his government, but the prime minister survived a confidence vote in parliament. Steinmeier told Yatsenyuk that European leaders 'were following -- especially the last week -- with great interest and some concern.' He warned that the IMF is looking for political 'stability' before offering further loans to Ukraine. Kyiv has also received loans of over $30 billion from the European Union and the United States that are linked to the IMF funding. Ayrault praised Yatsenyuk for pushing through parliament some unpopular belt-tightening measures that are meant to reform Ukraine's economy and revive growth. 'But we are also assessing all the work that remains to be done and it is considerable,' Ayrault said. 'I would even say that time is running out.' Ukraine has been in a severe recession, with output falling by 10 percent, and experts say further funding from the IMF will be needed to refloat the economy. With reporting by AFP and AP Source: http://www.rferl.org/content/france-germany-urge- kyiv-overcome-turmoil-enact-reforms/27568236.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. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address MARTINSVILLE Using more than 20 years of professional experience with community and project development, Tiffani Underwood is set to begin a new career helping Patrick Henry Community College create a unique entrepreneurial hub in Martinsville and Henry County. Currently the executive director of United Way of Henry County and Martinsville, Underwood recently announced her resignation effective March 9 to become Coordinator of Community Development Programs at PHCC. In her new duties, which she assumes March 10, she will lead the initiative to develop the Thomas P. Dalton IDEA Center in Uptown Martinsville, along with providing direction to economic and community development programs and services offered by the college. I am really excited to join the PHCC team and to use my skills to help support the economic growth and viability of our area, Underwood said. I look forward to being able to continue to work closely with the community in this new role. Prior to joining United Way, Underwood served as community planner and executive director of the West Piedmont Business Development Center; director of business operations for Athena Innovative Solutions (formerly MZM, Inc.); and marketing and research specialist for the Martinsville Economic Development Corporation. Tiffani is a wonderful addition to the PHCC team, said Rhonda Hodges, PHCC vice president of workforce, economic, and community development. Her unique combination of community leadership and small business development experience make her the ideal person to lead our community development programs, especially the colleges new Thomas P. Dalton IDEA Center. The IDEA Center, which stands for Innovate. Design. Engineer. Accelerate., is located in the former Solid Stone Fabrics building and will house the Fab Lab and community development programs. The focus will be on entrepreneurial education, workforce training, continuing education, outreach, and community partnerships. Underwood holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics degree from the University of Mary Washington and an Associate of Arts in Communication Design from Virginia Western Community College. She is a Class of 2015 LEAD Virginia graduate and a Virginia Institute for Economic Development graduate, and earned the Duke University Nonprofit Management certification. She has served as marketing chair for West Piedmont Workforce Investment Board; president of the Martinsville Henry County Chamber Education Foundation; agency relations chair, campaign chair, strategic planning chair, and president for the United Way Board of Directors; and president of the Charity League of Martinsville Henry County. Hole-in-the-wall: Toby Wilson, owner of Ghostboy Cantina, has moved on from making coffee. Photo: Daniel Munoz Address Dixon House Food Court; Little Hay Street Haymarket, New South Wales 2000 View map Opening hours Noon-sold out; 5.30-8.30pm Features Cheap Eats Prices Cheap (mains under $20) Payments Cash Toby Wilson, the man, the myth, the guy that used to make coffee, has exchanged group heads for grill stations, leaving his gig as star barista at the St Peters branch of Sample Coffee to open a taco stand in Chinatown. So Wilson has gone from Whitest Guy Alive in the inner west, to Whitest Guy Alive in Dixon Food Court, to become jefe de la plancha at Ghostboy Cantina. ("I'm merging from barista to taquero I get bored easily.") His latest project is a shoebox-sized food stall which you'll find next door to Pondok Selera Indo-Malaysian and just a few stalls up from Ramen o San home of that excellent black garlic tonkotsu. Taco topped with beef and a Mexican-Thai salad mash-up. Photo: Daniel Munoz Cue this little cash-only Mexican-ish hole-in-the wall surrounded by a rich and varied world of Asian snacking, from lurid sweet-and-sour pork, gummy lemon chicken and mountains of special fried rice to properly excellent ramen and grills. But you can't accuse Wilson of not at least semi-trying to blend in (emphasis here, then, on the massive sign that would look more in keeping with a Las Vegas truckstop taqueria than a Sydney Chinatown food court). His taco menu (which simply states "beef", "pork" and "cauli") translates as a fair bit more than that. What looks like soft white corn tortilla, slightly blistered, is actually a Chinese pancake. It's topped with shredded beef, Thai basil, bean shoots and chilli sauce it's a little like a Mexi-Thai beef salad (Thaixican?) only all wrapped up in a carb cocoon. Pork and peach taco. Photo: Daniel Munoz Pork gets a similar treatment to the beef shredded roughly and cooked on the hotplate, only here, that pancake is topped with slices of fresh peach, Thai basil and two types of chilli sauce. Golden fried cauliflower florets sit on an almost astringent green chilli sauce and creamy blobs of queso fresco. It's probably the least exciting of the choices on offer, but at least there's a legitimate vego taco on the menu that doesn't suck. There's also a menu of sides, if you can't get enough of the Ghostboy vibes. The loosely labelled "salad" translates once again to that MexiThai mash up (and really, they're natural pals when you think about the flavour crossovers of pork, chilli, lime and coriander). Here, it's a shred-up of pickled carrot, cabbage, green papaya, Thai basil deep-fried shallot and coriander, dressed deftly on the citrus front. Corn cobs rubbed with chipotle. Photo: Daniel Munoz And if all that hasn't stopped you in your tracks, there are buttered cobs of corn rubbed in chipotle, sprinkled with sesame and refreshed with a squeeze of lime. Early days means slow queues for the Ghostboy, but it's not going to stay that way. Get in before the rest of Sydney does. THE LOWDOWN Pro tip: This is good, cheap, quick fun - perfect pre-gig fodder. Try this: The pork and peach taco is a flavour bomb, gift-wrapped in carbs. Like this? Continue the taco party at El Loco, 64 Foveaux Street, Surry Hills, 02 9211 4945. https://www.facebook.com/ghostboycantina/ The Enlighten Night Noodle Markets are back for another year. After last year's debut, in which 156,000 people thronged the lawns beside Questacon and the Portrait Gallery, they are going to be bigger - organisers have doubled the market area, leaving plenty of room to sit and chill. There are also more stalls, including 10 new Canberra stalls. Here's your insider's guide. Japanese Peruvian bites Peruvian street food: Brothers Carlos Ramirez and Moncho Ramirez with their van Mr Papa. Photo: Jeffrey Chan You might raise an eyebrow to see popular Peruvian street food truck Mr Papa at the Night Noodle Markets. But you're in for a treat. Carlos Ramirez is bringing one of the most interesting cuisines in the world to the markets. He's doing Nikkei dishes - a fusion cuisine created by the large Japanese population in Peru, which blends traditional Asian flavours with South American food. These include lomo saltado, a Latino take on Asian beef salad, and salchipapa. "It's a very street dish that's pretty much hot dogs and french fries. We get Nikkei style sausages to combine with South American sauces," he says. Ramirez wanted to be involved in the Night Noodle Markets and was keen to showcase the Japanese-Peruvian hybrid dishes. "I was doing a bit of research, saying what can we come up with it. But there's nothing that shows greater influence on Peruvian food than Nikkei cuisine," he says. Hot pick: Pork belly cooked in sake and mirin on a rice pancake with South American chillies. The cult bao Bao Stop Trifecta for the Night Noodle Markets in Canberra. Photo: Supplied Matt Forwood and his partners have won a loyal following in Sydney with Bao Stop, their pop up bao shop. Now they're heading to Canberra for the first time with their Chinese buns stuffed with pork belly, peking duck and tofu. Forwood says he considers his team part of the "noodle markets mafia" alongside the team from Hoy Pinoy, Black Star and N2 Extreme Gelato. "We want to cook our bao for a lot of people who haven't had it yet." Hot pick: Peking duck fries Street boodle Street boodle from Kusina Filipino restaurant in Canberra. Photo: Natasha Rudra Canberra's own Filipino restaurant will be representing at the markets this year. Leilani Fox and her brother Jonathan Ora are on a mission to showcase their home cuisine to the capital. They've already turned heads with their monthly boodle feasts - a traditional meal where rice, chicken adobo, pork belly, fish and more are piled onto banana leaves in the middle of a table and people eat with their hands. Now, they're doing a "street boodle", a mini version of this feast, for the noodle markets. You can have individual serves of rice and beef brisket adobo, banana ketchup chicken wings, or sizzling thrice-cooked pork. Hot pick: Street boodle platter for two - it's got a bit of everything. Extreme dessert Watermelon, rose and strawberry cake from Black Star Pastry. Photo: Jennifer Soo Last year the folk at N2 Extreme Gelato brought their nitrogen ice-cream to Canberra and this year they're collaborating with hit Sydney bakery Black Star Pastry to create an extravagant dessert that combines one of Black Star's signature dishes - the strawberry watermelon cake - with nitrogen gelato. You'll also be able to get slices of the strawberry cake itself, and cups of N2's Ferrero Reveal gelato. Hot pick: Cake smash - a combination of strawberry cake and gelato. Lilotang lobster Lilotang head chef Shunsuke Ota prepares for the Night Noodle Markets Photo: Jay Cronan Sister restaurants The Chairman & Yip and Lilotang are two of the city's most upmarket Asian eateries and they're joining forces to serve up some decadent offerings at the Night Noodle Markets - lobster rolls, slow cooked pork buns and a pho noodle dish. Co-owner Raymond Poon says the group is organising a special guest chef from Melbourne to put together the pho. Hot pick: Lobster roll Donburi date An array of Japanese rice bowls are on offer from Canberra's own Donburi Station. The rice bowls are topped with a variety of meats, fish and vegetables. Owner Rob Whalan also runs Kiyamachi Tei, which will offer Japanese noodles at the markets last year. Whalan and his partner were so impressed with the markets last year they're back again and have added the new stall, Donburi Station. "The Night Noodle Markets surprised us, we had a great time. It really added to Enlighten," he says. At Kiyamachi Tei there will be yakisoba, or Japanese fried noodles, and they'll be doing rice bowls at Donburi Station. "It's going to be Japanese stews on rice, really fresh ingredients, it's not something you see here often," he says. Hot pick: Donburi Filipino skewers Chef 'Budz' leads the Hoy Pinoy cooking crew. Photo: Simon Schluter The other Filipino offering at the Noodle Markets are Hoy Pinoy, who are back again for another year with racks of barbecued skewers. They'll be offering up chicken skewers with a traditional glaze and pork belly skewers with banana ketchup. Hot pick: Pork belly skewers Ramen love Sakura burger from Everybody Loves Ramen. Photo: Instagram/@littlemissburger The wonderfully puntastic Everybody Loves Ramen is another Melbourne street food truck that's grown out of Hoy Pinoy's success. Owner James Meehan says he created Everybody Loves Ramen to play with Japanese fusion flavours. You can expect to try the sakura burger - an eye popping pink burger with chicken that's been fried in ramen ("yep, it's dipped in a noodle batter," Meehan confirms) and served in a bun glazed with cherry-blossom sake. There will also be miso butter popcorn, and cups of ramen fried chicken, which have been coated with ramen and served with kewpie mayo. Hot pick: Hot pink sakura burger Miss Van's Miss Van's chef Andrew Duong will be selling noodles at the Night Noodle Markets in March. Photo: Rohan Thomson Andrew Duong has been turning out pho, pork rolls and other delights from Miss Van's at the shipping container village at Westside Acton Park. Now he's coming to the Night Noodle Markets. He's making a Vietnamese chicken curry noodle soup and is teaming with Owen Saddler from Dream Cuisine to do freshly baked custard tarts. "We would have loved to do our pho out there but it's impossible, you need to have your kitchen. But this chicken curry noodle is Nan's recipe from 40 years ago, it's untouched, it's incredible," he says. Hot pick: Curry noodle soup Thirst snacks Thirst restaurant chef Jeff Piper will be serving up quick and easy snacks. Photo: Graham Tidy Fine-dining chef Jeff Piper and Justin Kavanagh brought casual but elegant Thai food to Civic with their restaurant Thirst. They're back at the Night Noodle Markets this year and will be serving up quick and easy snacks. "We'll be doing a curry puff, a spring roll, a chicken skewer and a beef noodle salad," he says. "It's all easy food that you can get on a plate and eat without mess." Hot pick: Thai beef noodle salad East Street Pink Pham started her street food truck East Street Canberra in July last year, taking a modern Vietnamese menu to festivals and events. She'll be at the noodle markets for the first time. "We'll be bringing some family recipes to showcase some of the other side of Vietnamese street eats - I'm hoping to bring out the younger and funkier side of Vietnamese street food," she says. There'll be vegetarian spring rolls and a "fresh" noodle dish. Hot pick: Pho spring roll Soi Noodle Bar Karaage chicken. Photo: Rohan Thomson This hip little takeaway on Bunda Street actually grew out of the Night Noodle Markets last year, when owner Adam Elchakak brought his Thainabox stall from Sydney to Canberra. He was so impressed by Canberra that he opened a restaurant here. Soi will appear at the markets with a range of little bites - entrees from the menu - and a noodle dish and refreshing dessert. Hot pick: Lamb bun Insider's tips Organisers have doubled the market area this year - both wings of Reconciliation Place will be used. Divide and conquer - come with a group, split up and join all the different queues. Send someone else to hold down a nice spot to eat, and meet there with your bounty. Or meet at the person in the longest queue (it's probably going to be N2). If you don't have alcohol, you can take your food out of the designated market area. Stroll around the Enlighten art installations, take the food down to the lake, or sit on the grass. Take a picnic blanket and make your own dining area Bring a jumper. It's Canberra - there's always the chance of the temperature plummeting once the sun goes down. Where to park There's parking all around the area. Questacon and the National Library, off Parkes Place West. On the street at Parkes Place East and West (between Old Parliament House and King Edward Terrace) The National Portrait Gallery and the National Gallery, off King Edward Terrace Treasury, off Langton Crescent, Newlands Street and Parkes Place West. Department of the Environment, off Dorothy Tangney Place and Parkes Place East List of stalls Bao Stop Black Star Pastry Chairman & Yip Lilotang Everybody Loves Ramen Hoy Pinoy Korean Twist Potato Donburi Station East Street Canberra Kiyamachi Tei Kusina Let's Do Yum Cha Mini Pancakes Miss Van's Mr Papa Soi Noodle Bar Spanthai Teppanyaki Noodles Thirst Wine Bar Waffles on a Stick Thai in a Box The Enlighten Night Noodle Markets run from March 4-13 at Reconciliation Place on the lawns between Questacon and the National Portrait Gallery. Free entry. See canberra.goodfoodmonth.com SHARE The family of shooting victim Yvette Velasco want Apple to help hack Farooks iPhone. Why San Bernardino attack survivors are divided on Apples stand against FBI By Brittny Mejia, Sarah Parvini And Corina Knoll, Los Angeles Times (TNS) LOS ANGELES Among those debating Apples stance against the Justice Department are a handful of people who know from experience what it is like to have a terrorists gun aimed at them or their loved ones. For some, Syed Rizwan Farooks iPhone and what it could reveal beyond its locked passcode is a valuable puzzle piece in the FBIs investigation. A failure to pursue that data, they say, could hinder their chance at closure. Lets see how you feel when it affects you, Ryan Reyes, whose boyfriend was killed in the San Bernardino massacre at the Inland Regional Center, said Monday. Reyes went nearly 24 hours with conflicting reports about the fate of Daniel Kaufman. When the truth emerged about his companion of three years, Reyes wept in his kitchen while news of the mass shooting flashed across his television. He now finds it disrespectful that the shooting has been folded into discussions of consumer privacy and believes that Apple has dished out what feels like an insult to the victims. Supportive of Apples resistance at first, Reyes believes the federal court order should have ended the dispute. Those who disagree do so, he said, because theyve never had something like this happen to them. But as a fellow human being, you should be more focused on Are my bookmarked cat videos more important than finding out what it is that could keep myself or a family member safe? If another similar attack happened, he wonders whether people would still put privacy above justice. The director of the FBI contends that the agency has simply requested a chance at guessing Farooks passcode without the phone essentially self-destructing and without it taking a decade to guess correctly and has no intention of setting a master key loose on the land. James Comey also said in a statement late Sunday that he hoped the public remembered what terrorists had done to innocent Americans. Fourteen people were slaughtered and many more had their lives and bodies ruined. We owe them a thorough and professional investigation under law, Comey said. Maybe the phone holds the clue to finding more terrorists. Maybe it doesnt. But we cant look the survivors in the eye, or ourselves in the mirror, if we dont follow this lead. Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook appeared to volley back Monday morning in a letter to employees. This case is about much more than a single phone or a single investigation. At stake is the data security of hundreds of millions of law-abiding people, and setting a dangerous precedent that threatens everyones civil liberties, Cook said in the letter provided to news outlets. He mentioned an email he received from a 13-year-old app developer who thanked the company for standing up for all future generations. And a 30-year Army veteran told me, Like my freedom, I will always consider my privacy as a treasure, Cook said. Company attorney Ted Olson had said that fulfilling the FBIs request would be akin to unlatching Pandoras box. But a lawyer representing some families of the San Bernardino victims, as well as survivors, said that assertion was wildly overstated. Attorney Stephen Larson said Apples compliance could shed light on the shooting and help lead to his clients peace of mind. The law enforcement interest is in terms of their criminal investigation and potential prosecution. The victims interest goes beyond that, Larson said Monday. It goes to the bigger questions: How this could have happened. Why were these victims targeted? Is there any continued issue or concern? A former federal judge, Larson said he was approached by the Justice Department and local prosecutors about a week ago and asked if he would consider representing victims and family members interests. He said he plans to file a friend-of-the-court brief in early March. John Ramos, who had been seated at Farooks table but stepped away shortly before the shooting began, said investigating the Dec. 2 attack should take precedence over any perceived risk to privacy. The owner is the county, and the user is dead, he said. There is no privacy issue here. Not everyone affected by the attack, however, is behind the FBI. Salihin Kondoker said he and his wife Farooks co-worker who was wounded in the shooting dont believe the agency should be focusing on the phone, which was issued by the county. Kondoker, who works in information technology, said that his wifes work iPhone comes with GPS so it can be tracked and that employees are instructed not to use it for personal matters. The company has a very high restriction on these phones, he said. My wife didnt use hers for personal purposes even I was not allowed to call her on her company phone. I dont know why we have to put Apple in the spotlight on this. I think were going the wrong direction. We need to focus on his personal phone and the phone carriers. Jenni Kosse, who lost four friends in the shooting, said she has come to understand Apples dilemma. Initially I thought, Just open it. Why is this persons privacy more important than the lives that they took and the people that were injured? she said. Now Kosse sees it as a more complex issue. But mostly, she worries that the battle between the federal agency and the tech giant will get tied up in the courts and only bog down the investigation. For Kosse, who has suffered panic attacks since the shooting, any holdups to answers and possible protection is just a waste of time. Dr. Argye Elizabeth Hillis of Johns Hopkins Hospital, talks to her patient Robert Voogt (left) as she speaks to The Associated Press during an interview. SHARE Aphasia, often confused with Alzheimers, steals language By Lauran Neergaard, Associated Press WASHINGTON A mysterious brain disorder can be confused with early Alzheimer's disease although it isn't robbing patients of their memories but of the words to talk about them. It's called primary progressive aphasia, and researchers said Sunday they're finding better ways to diagnose the little-known syndrome. That will help people whose thoughts are lucid but who are verbally locked in to get the right kind of care. "I'm using a speech device to talk to you," Robert Voogt of Virginia Beach, Virginia, said by playing a recording from a phone-sized assistive device at a meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. "I have trouble speaking, but I can understand you." Even many doctors know little about this rare kind of aphasia, abbreviated PPA, but raising awareness is key to improve care and because a new study is underway to try to slow the disease by electrically stimulating the affected brain region. PPA wasn't identified as a separate disorder until the 1980s, and while specialists estimate thousands of Americans may have it, there's no good count. Families may not even seek care because they assume a loved one's increasingly garbled attempts to communicate are because of age-related dementia, said Dr. Argye Elizabeth Hillis of Johns Hopkins University. Often, it's when those people reach neurologists who realize they aren't repeating questions or forgetting instructions that the diagnosis emerges. "Nobody's talking to them, nobody's involving them. It's very sad," said Dr. Margaret Rogers of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. Yet for many, "they can handle their own finances, they can drive, they can appreciate music. There's a lot that still works for them." Standard language therapy has patients match pictures to the correct word, to keep the wiring involved as active as possible. Now, Hillis' team is testing if a kind of brain stimulation that sends electrical signals through the skull can rev up the effects of that treatment. In the first 19 patients tested, people did better retrieving the right words for about two months after receiving the electrical stimulation than when they received sham zaps with their regular therapy, Hillis reported Sunday. They were more able to name objects they hadn't practiced, and brain scans showed better connectivity in the affected region. But it will take far more study to prove if the treatment produces lasting effects, she cautioned. Until there's better medical treatment, Voogt, the Virginia patient, illustrates how assistive communication devices can help patients' quality of life. Now 66, Voogt was diagnosed 10 years ago, with a form of PPA that makes him unable to say words even though he can understand and type them via email, text or his assistive device. He owns a brain-injury rehabilitation center, and knew how to track down a specialist for diagnosis when he first had trouble retrieving words. Sunday, Voogt patiently answered Hillis' questions by typing into a device called the MiniTalk, or calling up verbal phrases he'd preprogrammed into it. Voogt typed that he started relying on the device in 2012, but lives independently and travels internationally. But asked how difficult the loss of language is to live with, he typed out a pretty bad rating 70 percent. Associated Press file Constipation caused by use of narcotics such as OxyContin became a hot topic during this years Super Bowl. SHARE Commercial never mentions addiction issue By Matt Pearce, Los Angeles Times (TNS) Even by Super Bowl standards, the constipation ad shown Sunday was an eye-grabber. The main character glances sadly at another middle-aged man who has just come out of a bathroom looking triumphant. If you need an opioid to manage your chronic pain, you may be so constipated it feels like everyone can go except you, a narrator says. The black-and-white ad was promoting awareness of a condition known as opioid-induced constipation, a formidable and extremely common side effect of pain medications such as OxyContin. What many viewers didnt know is that the pharmaceutical companies that funded the ad, AstraZeneca and Daiichi Sankyo, are hoping to profit from a controversial market that has arisen alongside the nations opioid addiction crisis. The companies have spent hundreds of millions of dollars to purchase the rights to make and sell Movantik, a first-of-its-kind constipation drug for painkiller users that reached the market last year. The ad did not mention the drug. AstraZeneca also gave hundreds of thousands of dollars last year to pain advocacy nonprofits that promote awareness of the condition, according to its most recent financial disclosures from the first half of 2015. Four of those groups put their names on the ad. With pain pill use booming across the country, the U.S. market for treating opioid constipation is projected to reach at least $500 million a year by 2019, according to recent estimates by the market research company GlobalData. The ad, which has gotten 1.7 million views on YouTube as of Wednesday, has drawn criticism from federal and local officials for not mentioning the issue of opioid addiction. Next year, how about fewer ads that fuel opioid addiction and more on access to treatment, White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough complained on Twitter. The police chief of Burlington, Vt., Brandon del Pozo, called the ad extraordinarily tone-deaf. The side effect that big pharmaceutical companies need to be warning Americans about is addiction, not constipation, said Del Pozo, who said the number of overdoses in his city had more than doubled last year compared with the previous three years. If Big Pharma was going to spend millions of dollars to talk about opioids during the Super Bowl, Del Pozo said, The only thing it should be saying is, Watch out, weve created something addictive, were here to help, were all in this together, we need to get you guys off of this drug. Some public figures jumped on the ad as well. Was that really an ad for junkies who cant (poop)? America, I luv ya but I just cant keep up, TV host Bill Maher tweeted. But advocacy groups for pain patients dismissed the criticism and the suggestion that all painkiller users are addicts. I dont know that many people who become addicted who say, Im going to pick and choose what Im going to be addicted to based on the side effect of that drug, said Paul Gileno, the president and founder of the advocacy nonprofit U.S. Pain Foundation, whose group has received grant money from AstraZeneca. Opioid-induced constipation is so unmanageable that many legitimate opioid users quit the drugs and choose to live in pain instead, research suggests. Its scary and really uncomfortable, said Cynthia Toussaint, founder of the Los Angeles-based pain advocacy nonprofit For Grace, who suffers from chronic pain and whose group also received financial sponsorship last year from AstraZeneca. In past treatment, Toussaint said, sometimes she had to choose between being in pain or taking a painkiller and being constipated. Its not fun, Toussaint said. Its a balance whether you take the opioid or you dont . I take as few as I can mostly because the constipation is so awful. She and other advocates said they backed the ad because doctors and patients dont often discuss opioid-induced constipation, because the condition is embarrassing or not widely known. Pharmaceutical companies have long promoted not only the drugs they sell but also the conditions they are intended to treat. AstraZeneca said the campaign is designed to lift opioid-induced constipation out of the realm of taboo and make it a widely recognized problem among doctors and patients. The reality is there are millions of Americans that suffer with this condition, and there has been little dialogue around this, said Dave Fredrickson, vice president of specialty care at AstraZeneca. Fredrickson acknowledged that raising awareness of the condition would inevitably raise awareness of the new drug that treats it. The Super Bowl ad directed viewers to a website, OICisDifferent.com, that in turn offers visitors a link to discover a prescription treatment option Movantik. Fredrickson said traffic to the website had jumped 400 percent after the Super Bowl. Last year, the drug companies signed up Olympian Jackie Joyner-Kersee to give personal testimonials about her experience with opioid-induced constipation. Advocacy groups that put their names on the Super Bowl ad said the grants they received from AstraZeneca did not require them to do so and were for other educational projects. They wanted our perspective Is it good for people with pain, is it sensitive enough, does it raise the awareness that were all trying to raise together? Gileno said. Penney Cowan, head of the American Chronic Pain Association, of Rocklin, Calif., said her group which received at least $175,000 in grant money from AstraZeneca in 2015 for promoting awareness of opioid-induced constipation would not have endorsed the ad if it directly promoted the drug. It really was an educational piece to help people understand its OK to talk about it, talk to your health provider, Cowan said. Opioids work by dampening pain receptors in the brain. But the same chemical also dampens similar receptors in the stomach, making bowel movements more difficult. Some studies suggest that 40 percent to 90 percent of painkiller users suffer constipation as a side effect. Prescriptions for pain drugs have jumped at least 300 percent since 1999, with U.S. doctors now writing more than 240 million opioid prescriptions a year. In 2014, officials linked 28,648 deaths to opioid overdoses, and last week the White House proposed $1.1 billion in new funding to expand treatment for what it calls an epidemic. SHARE By Staff Report Angelo State University's "Latino Americans: 500 Years of History" series will feature Kathryn Ostrofsky of ASU's history faculty presenting "A Latino History of 'Sesame Street' con cuentos y canciones" at 2 p.m. March 5 in the Sugg Community Room of Stephens Central Library, 33 W. Beauregard Ave. Ostrofsky, who is not affiliated with the show, will tell the story of Latino contributions to the popular children's television program "Sesame Street" from its launch in 1969 to the present. The family-friendly event will include videos, songs, dancing, storybook reading, games and coloring for the youngsters as well as music and animations for their big brothers and sisters, according to a news release. For more information, call 325-942-2324 or visit angelo.edu/latinoamericans. SHARE By Rashda Khan, Rashda.Khan@gosanangelo.com / @Rashda_SAST The Tom Green County Commissioners Court approved an economic development rebate of $44,868.96 to Select Energy Services on Tuesday. SES and the county had signed an agreement March 25, 2014, stating that if SES and its subsidiaries made a capital investment in property of a guaranteed $30 million assessed value in the county, the county would give the company a 50 percent rebate on its property taxes. While the company paid $89,737.92 in county property taxes, it didn't meet the assessed value requirement. Similarly, in January the court approved a $12,416.13 economic development rebate to Energy Service Co. The county and ESCO signed an agreement in December 2014 agreeing to a 50 percent county property tax rebate in return for the company making capital investment in property with a minimum of $10 million assessed value. Again, the company paid $24,832.26 in county property taxes, but failed to meet the requirement. "The decision the court has to make basically comes down to: 'Are we better off taking what they (the companies) can render or (doing) totally without any of it,' " said Tom Green County Judge Steve Floyd, adding that "we are in a very different place (economically) than when we made the agreement." When it comes to economic incentives, many times companies can't afford to pursue projects without the incentives, and there are others competing for the business, he said. "Companies shop around for where they can get the best deal to do business." While the county definitely benefits from such deals, the school district benefits more fully, Floyd said. "The school district can't offer economic development incentives," he said. "But because of Tom Green County agreeing to this, the SAISD received more than $181,000 from SES Holdings, LLC and its subsidiaries in 2015." "We all have to somewhat work in concert with each other," Floyd said. "Economic development is a moving target every year, but I'm going to continue to look for opportunities to grow and broaden our tax base. The more industrial type of things we can get, the more we can try and take pressure off the homeowner side of things." In other business, the Commissioners Court also: Lifted the countywide burn ban starting 7 a.m. Wednesday because of recent rains. Approved a request by Millersview-Doole Water Supply Corp. for a 4-inch water line bore under Arrington Road about 800 feet east of Mullins Crossing east of San Angelo. Moved to keep the same personnel classifications (S13) for Chanda Hight and Ann Bailey, court administrators in Court at Law 2, but raised the base salary to $31,461.04, effective with the next pay period, to decrease salary disparities. Tabled a request authorizing the library to apply for a $75,000 Texas State Library and Archives Commission grant. Approved the treasurer's monthly report for January. SHARE Harris By Staff Report A San Angelo man was arrested and charged with burglary and unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon after an incident at a 7-Eleven convenience store Monday evening. San Angelo police arrested Jeremy Harris, 39, after Angelo State University police detained him for allegedly opening and consuming various food items inside the store, at 1719 Kenwood St., and carrying an unloaded handgun in his waistband, according to an SAPD news release. Before the 7-Eleven incident, Harris reportedly ate an ice cream cone from the Stripes Convenience Store at 1802 S. Bryant Blvd. and left without paying. He was issued a criminal trespass warning from Stripes, the release stated. Burglary is a state jail felony punishable by 180 days to two years in a state jail and a fine up to $10,000. Possession of a firearm by a felon is a third-degree felony punishable by 2 to 10 years in prison and a fine up to $10,000. SHARE By Staff Report The San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts will host Family Day Tall Tales from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. March 12 at the museum, 1 Love St. Family Day allows children to create art, hear and write their own stories. Texas and American Tall Tales is scheduled for 11 a.m. and 2 p.m., String Stories is at noon in SAMFA's galleries, and a special Storytelling Tour at 1 p.m. will explore the museum's two exhibits on display. Visitors are encouraged bring a book for donation to Give More HUGS, a nonprofit organization that provides students in need with tools that inspire a love for learning, reading and creativity. For more information, call 325-653-3333 or visit samfa.org. Judge Penny Roberts looks back at career on bench Long-time County Court-at-Law No. 2 judge said she's looking forward to life's next chapters but remembered a circuitous journey to the bench FILE - In this March 19, 1991 file photo, a Kuwait City street sign with the name Baghdad Street crossed out and the misspelled name of U.S. President George Bush painted in is a sign of the times in the recently liberated city. The oil-rich, tiny country of Kuwait is still shaped by the 1991 Gulf War. Twenty-five years later, there is a freely elected parliament in place but problems persist and many fear Kuwait could be gripped by the same regional tensions at play across the greater Middle East. (AP Photo/Greg Gibson, File) SHARE FILE - In this Feb. 27, 1991 file photo, an American Special Forces soldier is mobbed by jubilant Kuwait City residents Tuesday night, as the city was liberated from Iraq forces. The oil-rich, tiny country of Kuwait is still shaped by the 1991 Gulf War. Twenty-five years later, there is a freely elected parliament in place but problems persist and many fear Kuwait could be gripped by the same regional tensions at play across the greater Middle East. (AP Photo/Lauren Rebours, File) FILE - In this March 2, 1991 file photo, Kuwait's oil wells burn after the defeated Iraqi troops were expelled from Kuwait. The oil-rich, tiny country of Kuwait is still shaped by the 1991 Gulf War. Twenty-five years later, there is a freely elected parliament in place but problems persist and many fear Kuwait could be gripped by the same regional tensions at play across the greater Middle East. (AP Photo, File) FILE - In this Nov. 4, 2012 file photo, opposition demonstrators gather in Mishref, Kuwait. The oil-rich, tiny country of Kuwait is still shaped by the 1991 Gulf War. Twenty-five years later, there is a freely elected parliament in place but problems persist and many fear Kuwait could be gripped by the same regional tensions at play across the greater Middle East. (AP Photo, File) FILE - In this Wednesday, Feb. 29, 2012 file photo, Kuwaiti Islamist-Shiite MP Hussein Al Qallaf, left, gesture towards opponent MPs, as liberal-shiite MP Abdulhameed Dashti gestures at right, during a heated debate over the situation in Syria at the Kuwait's National Assembly's session. The oil-rich, tiny country of Kuwait is still shaped by the 1991 Gulf War. Twenty-five years later, there is a freely elected parliament in place but problems persist and many fear Kuwait could be gripped by the same regional tensions at play across the greater Middle East. (AP Photo, File) By HUSSAIN AL-QATARI and JON GAMBRELL, Associated Press KUWAIT CITY (AP) The scene U.S. forces encountered as they pushed into Kuwait in 1991 to end the Iraqi occupation could only be described as a hellscape. Hundreds of burning oil wells set ablaze by Iraq's army had left sand sodden in an oily sludge and the skies overhead choked with thick black smoke. As they fled, Saddam Hussein's troops took what they had looted from homes, private property and state buildings. As many as 5,000 Kuwaitis were dead. Twenty-five years later, the Iraqi occupation and its aftermath still shapes life in this tiny emirate at the tip of the Persian Gulf, now challenged by power struggles, a failure to diversify its oil-dependent economy and the growing disillusionment of its youth in the wake of the 2011 Arab Spring uprisings. "After the liberation, Kuwait was supposed to bring about a very promising dynamic to its society," said Shafeeq Ghabra, a political science professor at Kuwait University. "Sadly, 25 years later, Kuwait is navigating its way in a very troubled region that reflects its problems on the feelings and temperament of Kuwait's citizens." Many in the West were unfamiliar with Kuwait prior to the Aug. 2, 1990, Iraqi invasion. With just 6,880 square miles (17,820 square kilometers) of territory, Kuwait is smaller than New Jersey. But within its confines lie massive oil reserves the world's sixth-largest that have allowed Kuwaitis to enjoy cradle-to-grave subsidies and drawn a large expatriate population, including many Palestinians who came to fill technical jobs. Before the invasion, the country's population of 1.6 million was 60 percent foreign. It proved to be too tempting of a target for Saddam as his troops, hardened by the 1980s war with Iran, rushed into the country and pushed aside Kuwaiti forces. Kuwait's emir, Sheikh Jaber Al Ahmed Al Sabah, and his royal court fled to Saudi Arabia, where they directed an armed resistance from their temporary abode in the luxury penthouses of a Saudi hotel in the western mountain city of Taif. By the time the U.S.-led coalition retook the country following a ground war that lasted only 100 hours, much damage had been done. It took months for firefighters to cap and stop the oil well blazes set by the retreating Iraqi army. Iraqi troops also had flooded the Persian Gulf with as much as 336 million gallons (1.3 billion liters) of oil, the biggest offshore spill in history. For four months after the Iraqis were pushed out, Kuwait was ruled under martial law. Kuwait's security forces, angered by Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat's support for Saddam's invasion of Kuwait, targeted Palestinian expatriates and other foreigners. Many Palestinians fled, while Kuwaiti officials arrested thousands. Dozens were killed, while activists at the time said hundreds were tortured. Today, Kuwait is home to 4.2 million people, some 70 percent of them foreigners. It has a freely elected parliament, though recent elections have seen largely pro-government lawmakers gain seats. A new skyscraper-studded skyline has risen in its capital, fueled by high oil prices. The Al Sabah family still rules the country, with Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Sabah now serving as emir. The monarchy controls all key government positions, yet nowhere else in the Gulf can elected lawmakers block initiatives or question officials, calling in Cabinet ministers for grilling over allegations of mismanagement and other issues. But there is widespread frustration over government policies and corruption. Though Arab Spring-inspired protesters stormed parliament in 2011, Kuwait largely escaped the unrest that swept the region. "After the liberation, we hoped that Kuwait would be rebuilt to its days of glory, the golden '70s and '80s, when it was at the forefront in terms of development in the region," said Nadia Sager, a writer whose book on the Iraqi invasion was turned into a popular television drama. "I wouldn't be exaggerating if I say that no one is that optimistic anymore." Though some Gulf countries have diversified, oil remains the driver of Kuwait's economy, leaving it vulnerable to low global prices. Lawmakers are looking at making unpopular budget cuts in response. Another pressing concern is terrorism. Kuwait, home to both Sunnis and a minority of Shiites, largely has avoided the unrest gripping the rest of the Mideast following al-Qaida attacks and the 2003 U.S.-led invasion of Iraq. However, the rise of the Islamic State group has worried the country, especially after a June suicide bombing at a Shiite mosque in Kuwait City claimed by the extremists killed 26 people and wounded 227. Soon after the attack, Sheikh Sabah visited the bomb site in a sign of support. There are also other sectarian and domestic issues. Over 100,000 people live in Kuwait without citizenship. Known by the Arabic word "bidoon," they are pressing for government recognition. Kuwait's youth population is growing increasingly disenchanted over corruption, poor governance and lack of reforms. "The government's failures to bring about progressive change, in infrastructure and development projects especially, is undeniable and is affecting the new generation," Sager said. ___ Gambrell reported from Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/jongambrellap . Government workers, like the rest of us, are getting older. Now that the Great Recession is behind us, the long-predicted "brain drain" of Baby Boomers retiring from the public workforce may finally be upon us. Governments will need a strategy for replacing these workers. That strategy -- for budgetary reasons if nothing else -- must involve appealing to the millennial generation, and particularly those currently in college and graduate school.Unfortunately, government is falling short in its efforts to recruit millennials at the precise moment when recruiting them might be most important. A November 2015 study from Deloitte Consulting cites figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics that put the percentage of millennials working for the public sector at less than one-fourth, compared to one-third of this age group in private-sector jobs.This is not because the idea of public service is inherently unattractive to this group. As a university professor and administrator, I spend a lot of time with millennials, and I can report that many are highly motivated to "do good." In fact, I see no difference in the level of this motivation from what I saw among my peers 40 years ago or from my previous students 20 years ago. There are, however, a lot more options for doing good than there were 20 or 40 years ago, and increasingly millennials looking to scratch their altruistic itch are going to work for consulting firms and nonprofits.Given these options, the question is whether they see government as a force for good and as a venue for them to take their passion for good and translate it into making a difference in people's lives. Older workers -- those now or soon to be eligible to retire -- were motivated by public service, but they also chose government employment for other reasons, including job security and more attractive and reliable pensions than the private sector provided. This is less of a motivation for today's younger workers, partially because public-sector jobs are less secure and benefits are less generous than they were 30 (or even 10) years ago.The key question, then, is what governments can do to make public service more attractive to this age group, and to encourage them to stay once they arrive. Here are five things that might be done to promote these goals:In a recent Governing article , Katherine Barrett and Richard Greene described many traditional government hiring systems as being in the "stone age," while outlining more flexible, modern systems being adopted by some states and localities. If, because of rigid civil-service rules, it takes six months to a year to make a decision on hiring, some potential workers will never apply, while many others will not be able to afford to wait.Government can be its own best advertisement. Students who end up with government internships often find the reality of government work attractive, and many end up working for the same or similar institutions after graduation. In many places, however, the paid internship, rather than being seen as a good investment in future workers, is viewed as an extravagance.News reports about the dysfunction of some governments do little to make it look like an attractive employer. Why would anyone, right now, want to work for the states of Illinois or Pennsylvania? These governments cannot even adopt budgets or pay employees and government beneficiaries in a timely and reliable way. And this kind of uncertainty encourages the people with options to leave government. There is evidence, for example, that the federal-government shutdown of 2013 resulted in the departure of some young employees from public service When politicians, such as Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, make political hay by attacking their own governments' workers and work to destroy their civil-service and union rights, it makes government less attractive to potential hires, especially the ones with other options.One of the byproducts of rigid personnel systems is that they fail to create incentives that motivate employees. A culture where performance is rewarded will likely attract and retain those who are motivated by government service. On the other hand, systems that are overly protective of poor performers (whether because of union-contract provisions, civil-service rules or other reasons) send a signal that performance doesn't matter.If government is to be effective, it cannot afford to ignore the need to make government service appealing to those who represent the future. Unless concerted efforts are made to attract these future workers and retain them, avoidable performance failures will be the inevitable result. That's a bad deal not only for governments and their workforces but also for the citizens they serve. Pennsylvania's April 26 Democratic primary election for president is nine weeks away but the campaign is coming to Philadelphia this week.Mayor Kenney endorsed former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton early Tuesday morning, saying he trusts her "with our nation's future.""Hillary Clinton has the heart, strength and depth of knowledge and experience to unite our nation and lead us during these troubled times," Kenney said in a statement announcing the endorsement. "She will build on the accomplishments of President Obama and continue the economic growth and expansion he successfully initiated."Clinton called Kenney in May to congratulate him on his victory in the Democratic primary election for mayor.She also counts former Mayor Michael Nutter and former Gov. Ed Rendell as supporters in Pennsylvania."Hillary Clinton is proud to have the mayor's support because they share a common belief that government should break down barriers for people so they can achieve their full potential," Jesse Ferguson, Clinton's deputy national press secretary, said in response to Kenney's endorsement.Local campaign volunteers for Clinton's rival, U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, plan a rally at City Hall on Saturday at noon. The organizers say it will involve "a coalition of socialists, union members, students and progressive clergy" who back his call for a $15-per-hour minimum wage, free college tuition and a single-payer heath care system.Clinton won a narrow victory in the Iowa Caucuses on Feb. 1, lost to Sanders in the New Hampshire primary on Feb. 9 and then won the Nevada Caucuses on Saturday.The next contest between the two Democrats is the South Carolina primary this Saturday. Gov. Greg Abbott has endorsed Ted Cruz for president, becoming the highest-ranking elected official in Cruz's home state and the country to support the U.S. senator's campaign.Abbott made his endorsement in a video that was released Wednesday morning."Conservative values are at his core," Abbott said of Cruz in the video, adding that Cruz is a "constitutionalist whose judgment I trust to appoint the right judges to the United States Supreme Court."Abbott and Cruz were scheduled to appear to a rally Wednesday afternoon in Cruz's hometown of Houston.Cruz now has the support of the two most powerful elected officials in Texas: Abbott and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, as well as former Gov. Rick Perry. Cruz has also been endorsed by roughly a quarter of the Republicans representing Texas in Congress and nearly half of the GOP members of the state Legislature.Abbott's endorsement comes as Cruz faces serious competition on his home turf from billionaire Donald Trump, who continues to rack up wins as Cruz promises a strong showing on March 1. As results came in that showed him finishing third Tuesday night in the Nevada caucuses, Cruz said Super Tuesday would mark the "most important night of this campaign."Abbott, the former attorney general, is a mentor of sorts to Cruz, who served as solicitor general under Abbott from 2003 to 2008. On the campaign trail, Cruz regularly recalls the nine trips he took the U.S. Supreme Court as Texas' top lawyer. He also cites the wisdom Abbott imparted as an attorney general determined to put his office on the front lines of conservative battles.Abbott's endorsement comes after months of uncertainty about whether he would formally support any candidate in a race that started out with several participants with strong ties to Texas. Abbott had hoped to capitalize on Texas' expanded influence in the nominating process by luring White House hopefuls here to discuss issues important to the state, such as border security. Abbott met with at least two candidates: Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, who in March toured the border with Abbott, and retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson, who visited the Governor's Mansion in October.It was not until the end of January that Abbott suggested he could make an endorsement, saying he could "weigh in" on the race before March 1. In recent weeks, his silence had become more noticeable to Cruz supporters eager to see the senator shore up his home-state support with the clock ticking until its nominating contest.Abbott and Cruz are set to speak separately Wednesday night at the Harris County GOP's Lincoln-Reagan Dinner in Houston. One other presidential candidate, Carson, is also scheduled to appear at the event, which is being held on the eve on the Republican debate in Houston. The Texas primary is Tuesday. Three people have died of tuberculosis (TB) in Marion, Ala., since 2011. With a population of a little over 3,500, it is an outbreak that is worse than in many developing countries, said Eric Goosby, special envoy on tuberculosis for the United Nations.But when Alabamas health department started to investigate the cases, it faced unprecedented resistance from patients."These people would just not tell us who they had been around," said Pam Barrett, TB controller for the Alabama Department of Public Health. "We tried several different approaches and got nothing but I dont want nobody knowing my business.'"Wanting to entice people to get tested, Barrett and her team held a health fair with free food and drinks. All that followed, however, was disappointment -- and even some violence.Turnout was horrible," she said. "We got glass beer bottles thrown at us. Most of the people who did come just ate pizza and left."The case in this rural Alabama town may seem extreme, but it holds important lessons. There are pockets of the country that are vulnerable to outbreaks of once-eradicated diseases. Homeless shelters and prisons are particularly at risk. Even worse, tuberculosis is one of the easiest diseases to transmit to other people -- a fact that health-care decisionmakers seem to have lost sight of, said Donna Hope Wegener, executive director of the National Tuberculosis Controllers Association.Its not like HIV, where you need intimate contact with someone to come down with it," she said. "You just need to be with them in a confined space with poor air flow. And its not uncommon for people living with the disease to be misdiagnosed for years.Tuberculosis was largely erased after World War II, in part thanks to creation of a vaccine. But in recent years, rates among immigrants, black people and the homeless have become troubling. Because TB is considered to be a mostly eradicated disease and the vaccine's effectiveness is variable, it isn't widely used in the U.S. today. That's a mistake, according to Wegener, who said there needs to be more resources put into improving the vaccine and immunizing the most vulnerable populations.In Marion, health officials exhausted traditional approaches to combat the outbreak and got nowhere. As it continued to spread, they decided to do something no other jurisdiction has done: pay people to get tested.Anyone who came in for a blood test got $20, then $20 more for coming back to get their results. Another $20 was awarded for x-ray follow-ups, with $100 for finishing medication treatment, if deemed necessary. The project was funded by a grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.During the pay-for-testing period, more than 2,000 people came in. Of these, 151 tested positive for the germ and three active cases were caught. The latent TB infection found in 151 people is asymptomatic and not infectious, but it does make them more likely to get infected if they're exposed to someone with an active case of the disease.About 13 million people in the U.S. are living with a latent TB infection, according to a 2015 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. But we dont know who those people are or where they are, according to Wegener, who cautions that "without more access to resources, were only going to see more instances like what happened in Marion.Last month, Alabama stopped paying people to get tested for TB, but the public health department still offers free testing to anyone who makes an appointment. The priority has shifted to making sure people with active and latent TB are maintaining their medication regimes. But that's no easy task when you have an understaffed department.Were going to have to be creative in our staffing for awhile," said Karen Landers, Alabama's assistant state health officer, noting that her team had to pull employees from other programs to help out in Marion."TB is a disease we know how to prevent and how to treat," she said. "But yet its still here. After Charlotte's City Council voted to expand its protection of gay and transgender people Monday night, North Carolina House Speaker Tim Moore said Tuesday that lawmakers will take steps "to correct this radical course."Starting in April, the expanded nondiscrimination ordinance will extend legal protections to gays, lesbians, bisexuals and transgender individuals _ the first such ordinance in the state.The most controversial part of the ordinance would allow transgender people to use either a men's or women's bathroom, depending on the gender with which they identify.The state's leading Republicans have not discussed the issue in detail publicly, though there are indications that legislators and Gov. Pat McCrory might allow much of the ordinance to stand and only target the bathroom provision.The House majority leader, Republican Mike Hager, said in a news release that the General Assembly would act, but only to "eliminate this provision in the ordinance.""Restrooms and locker rooms," he said, "should remain distinctly private."Moore spokesperson Mollie Young said the House speaker's "focus is on the bathroom piece.""That's the part that's been alarming to people in Raleigh," she said.In an email to Republican City Council members Sunday, McCrory singled out the bathroom provision as the most problematic part of the ordinance.North Carolina is not a "home rule" state, which means cities and towns are creations of the legislature. The General Assembly has the power to nullify all or parts of the ordinance if it chooses.The city's existing nondiscrimination ordinance covers race, age, gender and religion, among other characteristics. It covers places of public accommodation, such as stores, restaurants and hotels, as well as taxi cabs and limousines.When the ordinance goes into effect, a baker would no longer be able to refuse to bake a cake for a gay wedding. Other vendors would have to cater LGBT events, even if it was against their religious beliefs.The city couldn't revoke a business license if someone violated the ordinance. But the city could seek an injunction that would force a business to comply.If only the bathroom provision were removed, the other protections would stay, including those for transgender individuals.But there is a strong belief in the LGBT community that it's important for transgender individuals to be able to use the bathroom of the gender with which they identify.A year ago, council members voted to remove the bathroom provision from the ordinance. But two council members, John Autry and LaWana Mayfield, voted against the ordinance out of principle. They said they wouldn't leave some members of the LGBT community behind.An effort to repeal all of the LGBT protections could provoke a backlash, similar to the controversy last year from Indiana's proposed Religious Freedom Restoration Act. Business leaders criticized that measure as a way to allow discrimination against gays. The Indiana legislature later modified the bill.A similar religious freedom bill died in the North Carolina legislature last year.House member Dan Bishop, a Republican, co-sponsored the N.C. religious freedom bill last year. He said the council's vote Monday was "intentionally provocative."He said it's too early to know how the General Assembly will proceed.Scott Bishop of MeckPAC, an LGBT lobbying organization, said he wants to meet with local legislators to persuade them not to nullify any part of the ordinance."We want to make sure we have conversations at least with the local delegation so that they are up to speed on the issue," Scott Bishop said. "It's a matter of making sure they are as educated as the City Council."The General Assembly could also pass legislation to put the issue on a citywide ballot. That happened in Houston, after its elected officials passed LGBT protections. The entire ordinance was defeated, with 61 percent of the city voting no.Charlotte City Council members approved the full ordinance in a 7-4 vote.Republican council member Ed Driggs, who voted against the expanded ordinance, said Tuesday a referendum might not be the best solution. He said people have long-standing cultural norms that men and women should use different bathrooms, and those beliefs need to be protected.A citywide vote might not protect those beliefs, he said.At Monday's meeting, Driggs said he believes the LGBT community shouldn't face discrimination, but that he couldn't vote for the ordinance because of the bathroom flexibility.A year ago, however, Driggs voted against a version of the ordinance that had the bathroom provision removed.Driggs said Tuesday he thought the ordinance still needed more input from the community, and needed to ensure that people's religious beliefs wouldn't be violated. Texas' highest criminal court on Wednesday dismissed the remaining felony charge against former Gov. Rick Perry in the abuse-of-power case that he blamed for his early exit from the Republican presidential race.The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals tossed a charge of misuse of office that stemmed from Perry's 2013 effort to force out the Travis County district attorney. And it upheld the decision of a lower court to dismiss a charge of coercion of a public official.The 6-2 decision appears to mark the end of Perry's 18-month legal saga -- one that outlasted the end of his record-setting 14-year tenure as governor and his short-lived second bid for the White House.Perry had already signaled that resolution in the case would be, in some ways, too little, too late. He said in September that the indictment -- which he blamed on the "drunk DA" -- had a "corrosive" effect on his presidential campaign's fundraising."The political opponents, they did their damage," he said.The case centered on Perry's threat in 2013 to veto $7.5 million budgeted for the Travis County district attorney's office if District Attorney Rosemary Lehmberg, a Democrat, didn't resign after her drunken driving arrest.The funds were earmarked for the office's public integrity unit, which investigates and prosecutes public corruption cases. The office, based in the Democratic stronghold of Travis County, has been criticized by Republicans as being partisan in its pursuits.Lehmberg didn't resign. Perry vetoed the money. He was indicted in 2014.The case has churned forward since then, culminating in arguments last November before the court. There, Perry's attorneys clashed with the state prosecuting attorney over complex constitutional questions involving the First Amendment and gubernatorial powers.On Wednesday, Perry foes were quick to bash the ruling. Glenn Smith of the liberal Progress Texas PAC said that the appeals court "tossed out decades of precedent to grant a special privilege to Rick Perry.""It's a black day for the law in Texas," he said. Its a scene repeated often in Texas towns along the Rio Grande: a white U.S. Border Patrol van sporting the agency's trademark green stripe competing with a Laredo Police Department car at a busy Stripes convenience store.Just two miles away, a nondescript orange building tucked between a bus stop and the Mariscos El Pescador restaurant houses divisions of the FBI and the Drug Enforcement Agency. Across the street, dozens of Border Patrol SUVS and trucks fill a block-long parking lot.If nothing else, the money and manpower being deployed to keep unauthorized immigrants, terrorists and drugs out of the country have flooded Texas border counties with law enforcement. Crime has dropped, and the Texas side of the border apparently is now safer than the state's larger cities. But a political tug-of-war about the security needs of the region remains full of fiery rhetoric and competing views about how safe border communities really are."Its much safer than say San Antonio, Houston or Dallas, said Democratic state Sen. Juan "Chuy" Hinojosa, who represents a McAllen-based district. Its certainly much safer than Washington D.C. or Chicago.State and federal crime data backs those claims: Violent crime rates have remained the same or dropped in many border cities in the last five years for which data is available.In 2014, Houston's violent crime rate counting murder, non-negligent manslaughter, rape, robbery and aggravated assault stood at 991 crimes for every 100,000 residents, according to the FBIs annual Uniform Crime Report. The violent crime rate in Dallas was 665 crimes for every 100,000 residents.Border communities like Laredo, El Paso, Edinburg and Brownsville all saw fewer than 400 crimes for every 100,000 residents.Brownsville is one of the few cities where crime rates, though relatively low, have increased recently, rising from 253 crimes for every 100,000 residents in 2009 to 304 in 2014.Seen is an aerial photo of the Rio Grande between El Paso and Ciudad Juarez on Monday, February 8, 2016, in Juarez, Chihuahua.Enlargephoto by: Ivan Pierre AguirreSeen is an aerial photo of the Rio Grande between El Paso and Ciudad Juarez on Monday, February 8, 2016, in Juarez, Chihuahua.Meanwhile, the violent crime in El Paso, the most populous border town, has dropped from 457 crimes for every 100,000 residents in 2009 to 393 in 2014. For years, the West Texas city has been declared the safest of its size, according to Congressional Quarterly.The FBI report includes crimes voluntarily reported by local law enforcement agencies across the country, and the agency warns against using the data to directly compare cities. Rankings of cities by crime rates ignore the uniqueness of each locale and the local factors that influence crime, the bureau says.But to some on the ground, the influx of agents, troopers, deputies and guardsmen to the border has had a noticeable impact.You've got to understand, we're a border city so we have a lot of local law enforcement, said Ponce Trevino, Webb County Jail commander. You have Laredo [Police Department]. You have Webb County Sheriff's Office. You've got the constables. Then you have the federal government here. You've got customs. You've got border patrol. You've got ICE. You have a big influx of law enforcement and there's officer presence, so that makes the crime rate a lot lower.And it's quite a law enforcement stew local police and sheriffs departments, Border Patrol agents, DPS troopers, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials, the FBI, DEA and the Texas National Guard, among others.Border Patrol staffing in the Southwest Border section which includes Arizona,California, New Mexico and Texas grew from 17,408 in federal fiscal year 2009 to 18,127 in fiscal year 2014. The count of agents in the region has more than doubled since 2001.At least 100 more DPS troopers have been sent recently to patrol the Rio Grande Valley after graduating from an abbreviated trooper academy part of an effort to permanently add 250 more troopers to the area by the end of the year.Approximately 5,600 peace officers work at county sheriff and constable offices and local police departments along the border. More than half of those officers work for police departments in four counties: Hidalgo, El Paso, Cameron and Webb.Home to Edinburg and McAllen, Hidalgo County alone has 1,566 pairs of boots on the ground even without federal and state law enforcement assigned to patrol the area. There are also about 100 Texas National Guard soldiers that remain as part of Texas 2014 deployment. And federal agencies ICE, DEA and the FBI have long had their own agents sprinkled along the border.Much of the recent law enforcement surge has been pushed by Republicans and opposed by Democrats, prompting some curious political anomalies. Republicans have fought for and largely succeeded in obtaining record expenditures for border security, but they continue to argue the border is unsafe.Democrats argue against "militarizing" the border but acknowledge the influx of law enforcement has made it a safer place.When you have more and more visibility, theres obviously a deterrent for those who commit crimes, Hinojosa said. Were dealing with some serious problems on the border ... thats why this last [legislative] session we focused on law enforcement that will be effective.Border Patrol agent Phillip Westerman, 42, inspects a female driver's face to make sure it matches with her identification. Ilegal women are wary of trying to cross to the other side to access a second trimester abortion.Enlargephoto by: Reynaldo LealBorder Patrol agent Phillip Westerman inspects a female driver's identification at a vehicle checkpoint in Falfurrias, TX. Border Patrol staffing in the Southwest Border section has more than doubled since 2001.Despite the crime statistics, border officials say they must continually push back against widespread perceptions that their communities are caught up in the violence wracking towns across the Rio Grande in Mexico.Republicans don't help when they argue for more resources by portraying the area as a hotbed of narco terrorism and immigrant crime. But they contend the border is an entry point from which crime spreads throughout the state.Gov. Greg Abbott signed a sweeping, multimillion-dollar border security measure last June flanked by Republican lawmakers at a Texas DPS office in Houston. Abbott said the ceremony's location was appropriate because a porous border means the entire state not just the stretch of cities hugging the Rio Grande is in peril.For others, perceptions of unsafe conditions in border communities are driven by the incorrect assumption that undocumented immigrants are more likely to commit crimes than the general population.If people connect undocumented immigration with safety, they would be wrong saying that because they pass through the border the border communities are less safe, said Guadalupe Correa-Cabrera, a public affairs and security studies professor at the University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley.A Texas Tribune analysis of incarceration and immigration records found there is little evidence that undocumented immigrants commit crimes at higher rates than the general population and they appear to be underrepresented in both Texas prisons and Texas death row.I really believe that the people that make it to our community from other countries including Mexico and in El Pasos case primarily Mexico are here to get ahead, to work hard, to do well, said Congressman Robert "Beto" O'Rourke, D-El Paso. They want to see their kids succeed, they want to integrate. Part and parcel with that is staying out of trouble.For many border residents, concerns in Austin about the area's safety don't reflect their daily reality. But many accept that perceptions weigh heavily into the rhetoric condemning the area.Jim Ward, a fifth-generation El Pasoan and local business owner, said that he thinks his hometown is safe. But he fears what would happen if one person entered the United States through Mexico with the intent of doing serious and widespread harm.I think everybody can see how quickly our border would change if one person comes through and does something, Ward said. Then its not going to be about farm workers anymore, its not going to be about maids. Its going to be about terrorists. I have a real fear that this will turn into a police state pretty quickly. On Tuesday, in the afternoon, His Excellency the Honourable Paul de Jersey AC and Mrs Kaye de Jersey departed Brisbane for official travel to the Scenic Rim region. Following, at Beaudesert State High School, the Governor and Mrs de Jersey attended Parade, where His Excellency addressed staff and students, and then toured classrooms. Following, at the Beaudesert Fire and Rescue Station, the Governor and Mrs de Jersey toured operations and met and thanked personnel for their dedication and service. Following, at Scenic Rim Regional Council, Beaudesert, the Governor and Mrs de Jersey received a briefing on local issues from the Mayor, Councillors and Council staff, and attended an afternoon tea in support of the Beaudesert community and local industry before touring Beaudesert. In the evening, at The Centre, Beaudesert, the Governor and Mrs de Jersey attended the official launch of War Stories and Our Town An Anthology from the Scenic Rim at which His Excellency launched the publication and addressed guests, before returning to Brisbane. (TNS) -- When people in the Kansas City area need emergency help, they can now send a text message to 911.Text-to-911 service has been growing more common among cities across the country in recent years and is now fully operational at all emergency dispatch centers in the Kansas City metro area, the Mid-America Regional Council Sending a text to 911 instead of calling could be a lifesaving option for people in situations where they cant speak safely, such as home invasions or active shooter incidents, according to MARC.It could also benefit people who are deaf, hard of hearing or have difficulty speaking, said Keith Faddis, public safety program director for MARC.Voice calls are still the best way to contact 911, but having the ability to text 911 could be the difference that saves a life, Faddis said in a statement. There will no doubt be a learning curve for people who use this new service, but weve already seen numerous situations across the country where texting to 911 has played a critical role.Emergency dispatch centers can respond to 911 texts in Cass, Clay, Jackson, Platte and Ray counties in Missouri and Johnson, Leavenworth, Miami and Wyandotte counties in Kansas. All of the major cellphone companies in the area will carry the 911 text messages.FCC rules require all wireless carriers to deliver text messages to 911 dispatchers. But most public safety agencies across the country have not adapted their technology to handle the text messages. Only a handful of agencies in 18 states provided 911 texting, according to the FCCs latest data. Kansas City follows several other metro areas that provide 911 texting, including Denver, Houston, Indianapolis and San Antonio.Faddis said the Kansas City area was able to make the move at little cost because all of the call centers in the region use the same equipment and software.It makes sense in a region where many people travel from one county to another or across the state line on a daily basis, he said.Still, texting has limitations. Texts to 911 cannot include photos, video, emoticons or other multimedia elements. And texts sent to more than one recipient will not go through.Voice calls allow dispatchers to gather more information. Unlike phone calls, text messages do not transmit the senders location, and 911 texting is not available when the sender is roaming.If 911 texting is not available, callers will receive a bounce-back text message telling them to make a voice call to 911. (TNS) -- Red-light cameras have taken a beating in headlines across the state in recent days.In Tallahassee, a bill to repeal the law authorizing the cameras is heading to the floor of the Florida House . In Orlando, a panel of judges ruled that, at least in one case, the city's ticketing system was illegal.But suggestions of the cameras' demise in Florida appear to be premature.Despite its progress in the House, the repeal bill appears to have stalled in the Senate . And Orlando and other Central Florida cities say the ruling won't change the way they use the controversial technology."We don't think that the ruling is going to have a big impact on our program," said police Capt. Randy Fernandez of Apopka, where cameras at 11 intersections detected more than 30,000 red light violations last year.The ruling, by three Orange County circuit court judges, centered on a ticket written to Orlando attorney Kelli Hastings in December 2014. Hastings argued, and the judges agreed, that the city unlawfully delegated police powers to camera contractor American Traffic Solutions, which sent potential red light violations to Orlando traffic officers.The city disagrees with the ruling and says its considering an appeal, but according to spokeswoman Cassandra Lafser, the case also was based on procedures Orlando no longer uses.Lafser said the city decreased the involvement of ATS in the ticketing process in June, reacting to another successful red-light camera appeal out of South Florida last February. That was after Hastings received her ticket."Rather than having the contractor pre-screen and send us those cases which it felt met the criteria for violations, the city receives and reviews all events recorded by the cameras," Lafser said.Fernandez said Apopka is reviewing the new ruling but also believes its program is already in compliance. ATS is Apopka's camera vendor, too, and turns over all data to the city for review, Fernandez said.Orange County spokeswoman Doreen Overstreet said its legal department was "still reviewing the case."Robert Azcano, an attorney for The Ticket Clinic, expressed skepticism that Apopka and Orlando have changed their processes enough to steer clear of the ruling, the impact of which he said the cities are downplaying.The judges and hearing officers who hear ticket appeals in the Orange-Osceola circuit will treat the panel's ruling as precedent, he said, giving potent ammunition local residents who fight camera-issued citations. But only those who fight will see the benefit, he said."If you're going to pay it, this has no effect on you, whatsoever," Azcano said. He predicted Orlando won't appeal the Hastings case because it would be wary of losing again at a higher court, which could expand the ruling's impact.The city reaffirmed its commitment to the technology in November, when the City Council approved a new five-year contract that allows ATS to more than double the number of cameras in Orlando.Orlando issued more than 24,000 red light camera tickets in the 2014-2015 fiscal year, bringing the city more than $1.2 million in revenue.The state's coffers reaped more than $45 million over the same period from red-light cameras throughout the state.Questions remain about whether the cameras are accomplishing their stated goal of improving driver safety, especially after a December report from the state Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles.That report, which tracked 276 camera-monitored intersections, said crashes actually increased by about 15 percent after the cameras were installed, though it cautioned that the jump followed a broader statewide trend.A measure to repeal the 2010 statute that authorized the cameras' use has since picked up steam in the House, but the Senate's version remains stalled in committee, as the session's end looms March 11.Sen. Jeff Brandes, the Senate bill's sponsor, put his confidence at "less than 50 percent" that the legislation will pass both chambers this session but pledged to continue pushing for repeal in future sessions."I think there's a broad understanding that red light cameras are more about revenue than safety," Brandes said. Deficiency defined Issues of scale What's next? Will it work, though? (TNS) -- Iowa overtook Pennsylvania last year in a ranking it doesn't really want.The American Road & Transportation Builders Association uses federal data each year to issue an annual bridge report. The 2016 version showed Iowa with more structurally deficient bridges than any other state.There are more than 5,000 structurally deficient bridges statewide. Slightly more than one in five bridges fits into the category. Iowa ranked second behind Pennsylvania for the previous two years, but they swapped places in the 2016 report.Iowa held steady at third by another measure, the number of deficient bridges as a percentage of all bridges. Rhode Island topped that ranking.Most area counties have a higher percentage of structurally deficient bridges than the state's 20.7 percent. More than 43 percent of Davis County's bridges are structurally deficient, the highest percentage in the area. In Wapello County the figure was 27 percent. Only Mahaska County, where 20.4 percent of the bridges are structurally deficient, beat the state's figure.Jim Armstrong, the area's district engineer for the Iowa Department of Transportation, said a designation of structural deficiency involves assessment of three bridge components. There's the deck, where cars drive, and the superstructure, which supports the deck. The substructure includes foundations and bridge piers that ensure the bridge stays above the obstacle it crosses."When any one of those three elements ... due to age there's deterioration, we rate those and that's what counts as structurally deficient," he said. "We work very hard to repair, replace those bridges."The bridge on Highway 34 over Bear Creek is an example of what happens as bridges age. The deck had problems requiring frequent repairs. "We were patching the deck a lot," Armstrong said.Replacement work began in 2015. A temporary bridge is in place just south of the highway, though it's not yet completed. Traffic will be shunted along the temporary bridge while a new span is constructed.Armstrong said the state planned for the work and knew the bridge was getting close to needing a replacement. Federal law requires agencies with responsibility for bridges to keep a close eye on them."We are required to inspect them every two years, and depending on the condition of the bridge we may step that up to every year," he said. "There might be one particular issue we're watching."So structurally deficient involves safety issues. But there's a second figure that can come into play: functional obsolescence. Those bridges are considered deficient but not because of damage or wear.Imagine a stone bridge built 100 years ago, when most of the traffic was composed of Model T cars and the occasional truck. The requirements were different then. Narrower lanes, or even one-lane bridges, were much more common.That same bridge might be perfectly fine today. You could take the family car over it without concern, but you wouldn't want to try to drive a semi over it. The bridge is obsolete, but not dangerous.That issue came into play with the Bear Creek as well. The bridge was built in 1963, but it was considered functionally obsolete because of the narrow width.Despite falling into both categories of deficiency, the bridge did not pose undue risk for drivers. That's the case for the vast majority of deficient bridges and nearly all of the functionally obsolete ones. If you're allowed to drive over a bridge, officials say you can do so confidently."All of them are safe," Armstrong said.Comparatively few of the deficient bridges belong to the federal and state highway system. Far more are part of county or city networks. That, said Wapello County Engineer Brian Moore, is largely a function of scale.It's easy to underestimate just how big city and county road networks are. Of the 203 bridges the federal government lists in Wapello County, 120 are the county's responsibility. Another 19 or so bridges belong to Ottumwa.Moore's office covers 565 miles of "granular surfaced" (rock or gravel) roads. County crews are responsible for another 138 miles of paved roads. How much is that? By comparison, Iowa's section of I-80 is only 306 miles long.Local bridges follow the same, two-year inspection requirement as those under state care. Moore said structural deficiencies are most often addressed by placing weight restrictions on the spans.The county's website indicates restrictions are posted when the bridges' capacities fall below 40 tons. That's far more than what people drive unless they're in construction or agriculture. So long as those larger vehicles respect the weight limits, normal vehicles are perfectly safe."Just because they're structurally obsolete or structurally deficient, that doesn't mean they're not safe," Moore said. "Structurally deficient has just reached the point where we have to put a load rating on it."The county's road network is considerably larger than Ottumwa's city roads. But Ottumwa still has 170 miles of streets and another 60 miles' worth of alleys. City Engineer Dwight Dohlman said he generally agrees with Moore's assessment that there is a difference between deficient and dangerous.The most recent major project, replacement of the Market Street Bridge, means several things to the city. It eliminates concerns about a bridge with obvious wear, which cuts maintenance costs. But even when the new bridge needs work it should be cheaper than the old version.Advances in technology and technique mean newer bridges can be built to facilitate maintenance. That doesn't matter when you already have older bridges built, but can make a big difference after replacement."New is always better," said Dohlman. "Take the Market Street Bridge for example. It's a new bridge and it's going to be easier to maintain."Unless some version of the Jetson's flying car goes into common use within the next couple of decades, bridges will remain a key element of transportation networks. And, as they age, maintenance costs will be considerable.Both Dohlman and Moore said funding is a major part of the challenge for maintaining transportation networks. Steps like Iowa's hike in the state's gas tax help, but that falls far short of solving the problem.Most governments spend a very large percentage of their budgets on public safety. That's necessary. But it means the remaining departments, including transportation, have to figure out how to divide a much smaller piece of the pie chart."Funding would be the obvious answer," Dohlman said. "But the city receives enormous pressures on where the funding comes from. It's going to continue to be a challenge unless more funding becomes available."One partial solution might be new materials and construction techniques. Wapello County has experimented with that approach. Back in 2012 the new bridge over Little Cedar Creek won an award for its innovations. The bridge doesn't absorb water, a major factor in deterioration."Concrete is a porous material. It has voids in it that allow water to get into it," Moore said. "You have the natural freeze and thaw. And then in winter, what's used to clear snow and ice? Salt."Salt clears the bridge's deck of snow and ice, making it safer for drivers. But it creates a new problem."Typically, bridges are very heavily salted, so they go through more freeze-thaw cycles," said Dohlman.Salty water freezes, just at lower temperatures than fresh water. So it's entirely possible to have the water in the bridge freeze when a storm starts, thaw when it's salted, the re-freeze overnight before starting the entire cycle over again the next day.When water freezes, the ice pushes out in all directions. That can break up the concrete. If the Little Cedar bridge doesn't absorb water, that process should be interrupted, preventing damage."It's too early to tell at this point," said Moore. "But the technologies that we used are being expanded across the state and across the nation."In other words, we'll have to cross that bridge when we get to it. To help steer local IT projects in the right direction, the U.S. General Services Administrations (GSA's) team of ex-Silicon Valley technologists at 18F have unveiled a program to assist cities, counties and states with federally funded IT projects.GSA officials believe the development, announced Feb. 23, has potential to save thousands, if not millions, of dollars in IT project costs through 18Fs arsenal of agile development and lean procurement strategies. In 2015, the GSA experimented with the idea in a pilot project to upgrade the Californias outdated child welfare system. 18F helped the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the California Department of Social Services tackle the $400 million dollar project. This was done by breaking up a massive procurement contract into a collection of smaller contracts. According to all three organizations, the tactic led to better solutions and therefore better care for vulnerable children.This is one of many projects that have benefited from 18Fs influence. At the federal level, 18F has enabled agencies to realize savings of up to 50 percent for certain projects. Since it was founded in March 2014, the agency has grown from 15 to 165 people as it and its sister organization the U.S. Digital Service have tasked their teams of designers, engineers and policy experts on a variety of federal projects. Likewise, success has delivered additional funding for the group until 2018.The GSA has called on former Missouri Secretary of State Robin Carnahan to lead the initiative as the groups first program director for state and local government. Carnahan said shes eager to start, and feels well suited considering her experience in state government. She spoke toabout the initiative on Tuesday, Feb. 23.What do 18Fs new services for local governments entail?The first thing to understand is that we're going to be continuing to work with federal agencies that are funding these digital upgrades. So that's the first step, it's not just on any project, it's those that are using federal funds. But we'll be asking them about what their primary pain points are and where they need help in the same way we do with our federal customers.Well we'll see what develops. I think this first step will be primarily looking at consulting projects, not unlike what we worked on in California last year, to help people understand different approaches to design and procurement.What we've seen through the federal projects so far is it's gotten better results for the public and saved money for taxpayers, and reduced the number of failed projects while speeding up the [project completion] time. So we expect those same results to happen on these federally funded state and local projects.We're going to wait and see what's going to make the most sense; there's a large amount of federal grant money that flows to states, counties and cities that included federal technology upgrades. For example, we saw in California that HHS provides 50 percent of the money to do the upgrades on the child welfare systems, and that's not just in California, but around the country. HHS is also very involved in upgrades to Medicaid systems. The U.S. Department of Labor is involved with various systems that have to do with workforce development. And in the U.S. Department of Transportation, there is a lot of money that flows there to state and local governments. Almost every agency has grants to local governments, so we'll just be exploring which ones are key and could use some help right now ... we're talking to all kinds of cities and states, so we're excited to get started.I understand the pain points local governments are going through having to reinvent the wheel on their own with all these technology projects. The public's expectations have changed about what service should be like because we all walk around every day with smartphones in our hands that can do so much, and we expect that government can keep up with that. So there's a real challenge in government to try to keep up with what's happening in the private sector, and it's just fabulous to have a resource like the digital experts at 18F to help these officials provide more services to more people. It's a terrific opportunity and I ... wish I'd had something like 18F to help when I was in office.This is just about common sense there's nothing that's partisan or something that we should be fighting about. This is just about providing better service to the public and cutting costs to taxpayers. (TNS) -- Microsoft founder Bill Gates has said the US government should be allowed to hack into an Apple iPhone belonging to a gunman who carried out a deadly shooting in California.Gates' view sets him at odds with those of bosses at technology firms Google, WhatsApp and Facebook who have expressed support for Apple's refusal to create a new way -- referred to by some as a "back door" -- into the iPhone's security system.In an interview with the Financial Times published Tuesday, Gates denied that the request would set a precedent."No one's talking about a back door," Gates said. "They [the FBI] are not asking for some general thing, they are asking for a particular case," Gates said, echoing an argument put forward by the US authorities.A federal judge last week ordered Apple to help the FBI crack the encryption on the iPhone belonging to Syed Rizwan Farook, who along with his wife killed 14 people in San Bernardino, California.The FBI believes there may be data encrypted on the device that could help their investigation into the December shootings.Apple boss Tim Cook refused the order, and has received support from bosses at fellow internet firms.Google chief executive Sundar Pichai agreed that "forcing companies to enable hacking could compromise users' privacy.""Could be a troubling precedent," he wrote on Twitter.WhatsApp chief executive Jan Koum agreed that "we must not allow this dangerous precedent to be set. Today our freedom and our liberty is at stake."Speaking at a technology conference on Monday, Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg said he was "pretty sympathetic" to Apple's concerns. "I don't think building back doors is the way to go," he was quoted as saying in the New York Times.The Wall Street Journal reported Monday that the FBI is trying to force Apple to give it access to about a dozen iPhones in unrelated cases. The cases do not involve terrorism charges, the newspaper quoted unnamed sources as saying. Map timeline of Kalamazoo, Michigan shootings Good/TNS (TNS) -- As an Uber driver was charged Monday in a Michigan mass shooting that left six dead, the ride-hailing service went on the defensive and said its driver-vetting standards would not change.Uber confirmed that the man named in the deaths, 45-year-old Jason Dalton, was driving for the company the day of the shootings. Several passengers contacted Uber to complain about his driving that violent Saturday, including one who called Daltons behavior dangerous and erratic, and reported it to 911, Uber chief security officer Joe Sullivan said during a Monday afternoon media call. But the San Francisco-based company said Dalton had passed Ubers background check and had done nothing before then to cause alarm.The media call, organized to deal with the bombardment of questions Uber has faced since six people were gunned down and two others injured Saturday night in Kalamazoo, illustrates that for Uber, this is about more than one driver and the tragic aftermath of his rampage. The controversial ride-hailing service, which at $51 billion is listed as the worlds most valuable private company by CB Insights, has long faced attacks over its safety policies. Uber agreed to pay $28.5 million less than two weeks ago to settle claims that it misled customers about the adequacy of its background checks, and the company faces several lawsuits by women who claim they were assaulted by Uber drivers.Its every corporations worst nightmare, Margaret Richardson, an attorney at Covington & Burling who serves on Ubers Safety Advisory Board, said of Saturdays shootings. She spoke during Mondays call.Authorities are investigating claims that Dalton picked up and dropped off passengers between the shootings at an apartment complex, a car dealership and a Cracker Barrel restaurant, 1st Lt. Dale Hinz of the Michigan State Police said in an interview with the San Jose Mercury News.Sullivan wouldnt divulge how many riders complained about Dalton, when Uber received those complaints, or how the company responded. But rider Matt Mellen told WWMT-TV in Kalamazoo that Dalton picked him up before the rampage and was driving erratically and running stop signs until Mellen jumped out of the car and ran.We are horrified and heartbroken at the senseless violence in Kalamazoo, Michigan, Sullivan wrote in a statement the day after the attacks. We have reached out to the police to help with their investigation in any way that we can.Dalton had no prior criminal history, and there appears to be nothing Uber could have done to keep him off the road or prevent Saturdays attacks, Hinz said. Sullivan echoed that sentiment, stressing that Dalton had passed Ubers driver background check without raising red flags. Dalton had been an Uber driver for about a month, Sullivan said, and had given more than 100 rides. He had a good passenger rating 4.73 stars out of 5. But in the wake of the shooting, Uber critics have attacked the company for being lax on passenger safety.Uber uses private San Francisco-based company Checkr to conduct background checks on its drivers, which Sullivan says includes checking the county courthouses in every place the driver has lived for the past seven years. If the records arent online, Uber dispatches someone to the courthouse in person, he said.As it stands right now, the system that Uber has is extremely safe, said retired Boston Police Commissioner Ed Davis, a member of Ubers Safety Advisory Board who was on Mondays call.But unlike most California taxi drivers, Uber drivers arent subject to government fingerprint checks, which Dave Sutton of taxi industry-backed campaign Whos Driving You views as a problem. Ubers checks cant catch someone who is signing up for the platform under a false name, he said, and they dont reveal as much information as a government check. Uber also doesnt meet its potential drivers face to face during the screening process, a step Sutton says is important.You get a chance to say whether youre getting kind of an off vibe or not, he said, whether the person seems normal or whether there seems something off about them.Richardson said fingerprint screenings are no more accurate than Ubers checks and can wrongly disqualify drivers who were arrested but didnt have charges filed.I dont think that we will be changing our screening processes for on-boarding our driver partners as a result of this incident, Sullivan said, adding that Uber continues to improve its safety technology, such as its GPS tracking system that lets passengers share their location in real time.For Harry Campbell, an Uber driver and blogger on http://therideshareguy.com, the fact that passengers complained about Dalton was disconcerting.I think it kind of speaks to the larger aspect that its very difficult to get a hold of Uber in person, he said. And when you do get a hold of someone over email or over chat, theyre often not very well-trained and not very helpful. Not just a physical invasion: Russias dispute with Ukraine extended beyond sending soldiers to Crimea, as pictured here. Digital attacks believed to be from Russia disabled parts of Ukraines electricity grid. Vasily Fedosenko/Reuters Built-in vulnerabilities A new definition of war Disrupts the stock exchanges for two days, preventing any trading; Uses a digital attack to take offline a radar system intended to provide early warning of an aerial attack on America; Steals the plans to the F-35 fighter; Disrupts the Pentagons communication system; Introduces a latent piece of malware (a piece of malicious software that can be activated at a later date, sometimes called a logic bomb) into a radar station that can disable the station when triggered, but doesnt trigger it just yet; Makes a nuclear centrifuge run poorly in a nuclear production plant, eventually causing physical damage to the centrifuge; or Implants a worm that slowly corrupts and degrades data on which certain military applications rely (such as GPS location data). Introducing uncertainty Last week, revealed that the Obama administration had prepared a cyberattack plan to be carried out against Iran in the event diplomatic negotiations failed to limit that countrys nuclear weapons development.The plan, code-named Nitro Zeus , was said to be capable of disabling Irans air defenses, communications system and parts of its electric grid. It also included an option to introduce a computer worm into the Iranian uranium enrichment facility at Fordow, to disrupt the creation of nuclear weapons. In anticipation of the need, U.S. Cyber Command placed hidden computer code in Iranian computer networks. According to, President Obama saw Nitro Zeus as an option for confronting Iran that was short of a full-scale war.The reports, if true (to be fair, they have not been confirmed by any official sources), reflect a growing trend in the use of computers and networks to conduct military activity.The United States is not, of course, the only practitioner. One notable example from recent history involves the apparent Russian assault on the transportation and electric grid in Ukraine . That attack, which happened late in 2015, was a first of its kind cyberassault that severely disrupted Ukraines power system, affecting many innocent Ukrainian civilians. It bears noting that the vulnerabilities in Ukraines power system are not unique they exist in power grids across the globe, including the U.S. power grid and other major industrial facilities.The vulnerability of digital networks is, in many ways, an inevitable consequence of how the Internet was built. As then-Deputy Secretary of Defense William Lynn put it in a 2011 speech announcing our military strategy for operating in cyberspace : The Internet was designed to be open, transparent and interoperable. Security and identity management were secondary objectives in system design. This lower emphasis on security in the internets initial design gives attackers a built-in advantage.Among many factors, two in particular contribute to the growing sense of unease.One is the problem of anonymity. Those who seek to do harm can easily do so at a distance, cloaked in the veil of anonymity behind false or shielded identities in the vastness of the web. With no built-in identity verification, pretending to be someone else is as easy as getting a new email address or registering a pseudonymous Facebook account.Unmasking attackers is possible, but requires a significant investment of time and resources. It also often requires the good guys to use bad guy techniques to track the malefactors, because they need to hack the hackers to find out who they are. It took a Canadian company, using hacker techniques , more than a year to find out who had hacked the Dalai Lamas official computers it was the Chinese.In effect, this prevents targets from retaliating against attackers. Though most observers think Russia is behind the Ukrainian assault, there is no truly conclusive proof. It is very difficult to deter an unknown attacker. In addition, international coordination to respond to attacks that threaten global stability can be stymied without solid proof of the source of an assault.Second, and perhaps more significantly, the online world changes the boundaries of war. President Obama seems to think that cyberattacks are less than full-scale war (or so thereports). Is that realistic? Consider the following hypotheticals all of which are reasonably plausible.An adversary of the United States (known or unknown):Some acts, like stealing the plans for a new fighter jet, wont be considered acts of war. Others, like disrupting our military command and control systems, look just like what we have always thought of as acts of war.But what about the middle ground? Is leaving a logic bomb behind in a radar station like espionage, or is it similar to planting a mine in another countrys harbor as a preparation for war? What about the computer code Nitro Zeus allegedly placed in the Iranian electric grid? And what if that code is still there?These are hard questions. And they will endure. The very structures that make the Internet such a powerful engine for social activity and that have allowed its explosive, world-altering growth are also the factors that give rise to the vulnerabilities in the network. We could eliminate anonymity and restrict the potential for digital attacks, but only at the price of changing the ease with which peaceful people can use the Internet for novel commercial and social functions.Those who want both ubiquity and security are asking to have their cake and eat it, too. So long as this Internet is The Internet, vulnerability is here to stay. It can be managed, but it cant be eliminated. And that means that those who bear responsibility for defending the network have a persistent challenge of great complexity. Hachigo said that Honda will will position plug-in hybrids at the core of electrification in the future and will introduce an all-new plug-in hybrid model in North America by 2018. After that, Honda will make a plug-in hybrid type available for the major models and increase the number of models sequentially. At a press event in Tokyo to lay out his future vision and direction for the company, Honda Motor President & CEO Takahiro Hachigo said that the company will strive to make two-thirds of its overall unit sales from plug-in hybrid/hybrid vehicles and zero-emissions vehicles such as fuel cell vehicles and battery EVs by around 2030. Honda will begin sales in Japan of the Clarity Fuel Cell in March 2016. The next-generation fuel cell system which is being developed jointly with General Motors will move on to the next stage that includes production and purchasing, aiming at a product launch around 2020. On the motorcycle front, Honda will introduce the EV-CUB, a mass-production model developed based on the EV-CUB Concept electric motorcycle (earlier post), to the Japanese market about 2 years from now, and then subsequently in main ASEAN countries, which has been the largest market for the Honda Cub Series. Hachigo said that Honda will start a project that will further advance the S-E-D (sales, production (engineering) and development) system to the next level. At the same time, it will introduce a new approach to automobile manufacturing which requires consideration of electrification beyond the concept of a platform. Hachigo is initiating a major organizational change in April. He said that Honda will establish a structure where development teams at the spot can concentrate on creating automobiles and focus on the development of one whole vehicle as one product under a consistent concept. Honda will add some new positions, including new positions in charge of the area of product development, a new position in charge of conducting evaluations from the standpoint of the entire vehicle consistently for all models and new positions in charge of supervising design creation of Honda and Acura models, respectively, on a global basis. The roles and responsibilities of each area such as production, purchasing, quality, service and sales will be further clarified, he said. At the same time, Honda will establish a new structure enabling simple and speedy decisions. In addition to leveraging global models and production, Honda will strengthen production and sales of regional models in each region to accommodate local needs. In North America, in addition to the Pilot, the all-new Ridgeline, and the next CR-V and Odyssey are scheduled to be launched. In order to accommodate these new model introductions and high demand for light truck products in North America, production of large-sized SUVs which have been concentrated at the plant in Alabama will be expanded to another plant. The East Liberty Auto Plant in Ohio will start producing the Acura MDX in 2017 as the second plant to produce light truck models in North America. In China, production will be expanded along with the introduction of key new models such as a large-sized SUV which is scheduled to be announced this year under the Honda brand and an all-new Acura compact SUV. Seeking to alleviate losses amounting to $10,000 a month, Mission Health Services seeks to take ownership of The Villa and change its care model. Last night, the first step towards that move was signed in a lease amendment between Mission Health and Castle Rock Hospital District. Gary Kelso, president of Mission, said while the company is a nonprofit entity, it has lost $120,000 in the last year in operating The Villa, a longterm-care facility that is part of the Mission at Castle Rock Rehabilitation Center building. Mission Health, based in Utah, took managerial control of the former Castl... Arctic Circle was my first job. I started while at Green River High School and continued on while attending college at Western Wyoming for a while. When I moved away for school, I would come back to work there for the summer or even on my winter breaks. When relatives from out of town would visit, we would make a trip down to the Arctic Circle with them, or they would visit me while I was working. My Arctic Circle memories made while working there are numerous, as well as the shake and sundae flavor combinations my coworkers and I would come up with that were not on the menu. The best fl... Both the Green River and Rock Springs communities came together to raise money for the Make-A-Wish Foundation this year. Amanda Santhuff, Green River High School student council sponsor, said for the second year in a row, the communities were able to reach $48,000. Our communities chose to divide the money two ways. First, we had one grand total that included the money from businesses; and our second total we competed based on what each school raised within the schools, excluding business checks, Santhuff said. Green River raised just more than $21,000, including the $1,000, which was... Updated at 11:46 a.m. PENSACOLA, Fla. Tornadoes ripped through an RV park in Louisiana and significantly damaged nearly 100 homes and apartments in Florida as a deadly storm system rolled across the South, and forecasters warned that more twisters were possible Wednesday along the East Coast. At least three people were killed and dozens of people were injured, some critically. One of the hardest-hit areas along the Gulf Coast on Tuesday was a recreational vehicle park in the town of Convent, in southern Louisiana. RVs were tossed about and lay on top of wrecked cars and pickup trucks that had become twisted metal. Rescue workers searched through the night to make sure no one was buried in the rubble. Two people were killed there and more than 30 were taken to hospitals. Jerome Picou, who lives near the RV park, said the skies grew dark just before the tornado hit. "Then all of a sudden all kinds of wind and rain started. It was so bad, I had to go inside the house or I would have been blown away with it," Picou said. Thousands of people across the Gulf Coast region were without power and the threat of more tornadoes remained. At least 88 million people along the East Coast were at some sort of risk of severe weather Wednesday, the Storm Prediction Center said. Forecaster Jaret Rogers said some of the larger metro areas included the North Carolina cities of Raleigh and Wake Forest. Straight-line wind gusts may be particularly strong, reaching 70 mph or greater. Forecasters with the National Weather Service had to take cover Tuesday in a shelter in Slidell, Louisiana, because a tornado was nearby. Lightning took out the office's radar, forcing them to use backups. "We felt the shockwave go through the building," said Ken Graham of the National Weather Service. The storms dumped several inches of rain on Georgia, where forecasters had issued a flash flood watch ahead of the storm. By 7 a.m. Wednesday, Albany, Georgia, had recorded 3.58 inches of rain in a 24-hour period. In Atlanta, the two-day total was approaching 3 inches before dawn Wednesday. Schools were closed in parts of Georgia, Florida and South Carolina ahead of the storms. At least seven tornadoes hit Louisiana and Mississippi, said Ken Graham of the National Weather Service. In Mississippi, one person, 73-year-old Dale Purvis, died of blunt-force trauma in a mobile home west of Purvis, Lamar County Coroner Cody Creel said. Florida Gov. Rick Scott said an apparent tornado in the Pensacola area significantly damaged more than 70 homes and 24 apartments, leaving three people with minor injuries. He stopped at The Moorings apartment complex, where winds whipped the roof off of at least two buildings. Apartment resident Milan Smith told the Pensacola News Journal (http://on.pnj.com/1XMegZY) that he heard the storm approaching and ran to the bathroom. He says the door was heaving and he could hear tree limbs beating on it. "The upstairs walls were ripped off and you could see right into the kitchen," he said. KENNER, La. A deadly storm system that spawned tornadoes in Gulf Coast states Tuesday and killed at least three people in Louisiana and Mississippi was expected to bring severe weather to the Carolinas by Wednesday afternoon. Meteorologists at the national Storm Prediction Center warned of the potential for more tornadoes including some possibly strong twisters along parts of the Atlantic coast, including the Carolinas and Virginia. In a Wednesday morning briefing, forecaster Jaret Rogers said large hail and a few tornadoes were expected to develop over the region later Wednesday and Wednesday night. Rogers said some of the larger metro areas at risk of severe weather included the North Carolina cities of Raleigh and Wake Forest. Tuesday's storms mangled trailers at an RV park, ripped roofs from buildings and killed at least three people in Louisiana and Mississippi, authorities said. One of the hardest-hit areas in the Gulf Coast appeared to be a recreational vehicle park in the town of Convent, in southern Louisiana. Two people were killed there, said St. James Parish Sheriff Willy Martin, speaking on local television. Authorities were working into the early morning to look for people possibly trapped under the debris, Martin said. Thirty-one people were taken to area hospitals and seven of them were in critical condition, he said. "We never had anything like this; we never had this many people injured in one event, and so much destruction in one event," Martin told WVUE-TV. "We won't stop searching until we're satisfied we've searched every pile." Wednesday morning, Martin said an all-night search of the RV park found no additional injuries or fatalities. Three people were still missing and Martin said he hoped to locate them Wednesday. Jerome Picou, who lives near the park, said just before the tornado hit that it was raining and the skies grew dark. Then he heard what sounded like a freight train. "The wind was blowing a little bit, but then it stopped. Then all of a sudden all kinds of wind and rain started. It was so bad, I had to go inside the house or I would have been blown away with it," Picou said. In Alabama and Georgia, forecasters issued flash flood watches ahead of the storm system, which was expected to drop 1 to 2 inches of rain. The warnings were expected to be in effect through Wednesday afternoon. The northern part of Georgia was also under a wind advisory. The Wednesday forecast for the Carolinas calls for possible flash flooding and severe thunderstorms, including damaging winds, hail and isolated tornadoes. Raleigh forecasters said straight-line wind gusts may be particularly strong, reaching 70 mph or greater. News outlets in Georgia, South Carolina and Florida reported that schools in those states canceled Wednesday classes ahead of the storm threat. In Mississippi, officials Tuesday night were sorting through reports of damage to some buildings, but Vann Byrd of the Lamar County Emergency Management Agency said one person died in a mobile home west of Purvis. Lamar County Coroner Cody Creel said that Dale Purvis, 73, died of blunt-force trauma. The reported tornadoes are part of a line of severe weather and storms that ripped through the region. At least seven tornadoes hit southeast Louisiana and southwest Mississippi, said Ken Graham, the meteorologist in charge for the National Weather Service's southeast Louisiana office. That number includes the one in Convent and near Purvis, Mississippi, he said. Teams will be sent out in the morning to document the damage and rate the tornadoes, he said. The harsh weather even affected the National Weather Service, Graham said. At one point the staff in the Slidell office took shelter because a tornado was nearby, and lightning took out the office's radar, forcing them to use backups, he said. "We felt the shockwave go through the building," Graham said. A possible tornado ripped through Pensacola, Florida, on Tuesday evening, destroying an apartment complex and downing trees and power lines. National Weather Service meteorologist Eric Esbensen in Mobile, Alabama, told The Associated Press a team will survey the damage beginning at sunrise Wednesday to determine whether the storm was a tornado. Twenty-four units at The Moorings apartment complex were destroyed, the Pensacola News Journal (http://on.pnj.com/1XMegZY) reported. No major injuries were reported. Apartment resident Milan Smith told the newspaper two buildings lost their roofs. "The upstairs walls were ripped off and you could see right into the kitchen," he said. Smith said he heard the storm approaching and ran to the bathroom. He says the door was heaving and he could hear tree limbs beating on it. Residents there were being bused to a nearby shelter operated by the American Red Cross. A reported tornado caused some damage but no injuries near New Orleans' main airport, while high winds ripped off roofs and downed trees around the greater New Orleans area. Other suspected tornadoes were reported north of Lake Pontchartrain and west of the city in St. Charles, St. John the Baptist and Ascension parishes. Ronald Myers lives across the street from New Mount Bethel Baptist Church in Kenner, Louisiana, just outside of New Orleans. He recalled the sky darkening and high winds he believes it was a tornado. He and his wife came outside when they heard the church's alarm go off. High winds sheared the brick and mortar from the rear wall of the church. "My wife came over to turn the alarm off and she came back home and said, 'Baby, the wall behind the church has done fell down,'" said Myers. He said he struggled to keep his footing in the wind, and it nearly knocked his wife down. Whole Foods has surged in popularity over the years thanks to a formidable reputation. The chain offers an upscale grocery store where shoppers can buy products of the highest and healthiest quality. That reputation extends to hiring, where the Austin-based chain is often named one of the top companies to work for in the U.S. But the ritzy supermarkets founded by a particular Libertarian also has a tendency to court controversy. Or at least more than the average grocery chain. Never without a side of controversy. Photo: Chick-Fil-A It looks like Americans favorite chicken chain to protest has lost another battle with college students who want their campus kept Chick-fil-Afree. The University of NebraskaKearney is trying to add a new dining option to the student union, and to make sure administrators dont pick some off-brand knockoff, the student government emailed everybody a list of chains and asked students to pick their top choice. As it happens, Chick-fil-A won by a mile, getting 722 out of 1,222 votes although its not surprising the chain offering juicy chicken sandwiches destroyed the competition when that competition included IHOP, Sbarro, and A&W.; Regardless, Chick-fil-As victory was extremely short-lived because pushback from campus groups like the Queer Straight Alliance came so fast and furious that the student government decided to disqualify Chick-fil-A and have everyone vote again. Student-body president Evan Calhoun explained what had happened in a campus-wide email: When we learned more about Chick-fil-A and its corporate values and discriminatory policies, and after hearing these concerns raised by a section of our student body, we concluded that these corporate values are not aligned with our values as a student body, and it is not in the best interest of our UNK community to pursue Chick-fil-A right now. For the second poll, they swapped out Chick-fil-A for another chicken chain, Raising Cains, which also proceeded to win more than two-thirds of this vote. Still, a number of students, along with the usual conservative media suspects, are dismayed all the same. One student has argued that taking CEO Dan Cathys opinion about same-sex marriage and construing it to supposedly encompass his entire companys corporate values is simply asinine. For those curious what Fox News thinks, it says university officials shouldve told the anti-chicken mob to retreat to their finger-lickin safe spaces. [Kearney Hub, Fox News] The Samsung Galaxy S6 edge smartphone - which is the predecessor to the South Korean company's newest Galaxy S7 edge flagship - has won the "Best Smartphone 2015" at this year's Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. Not only this, the tech giant's Gear S2 smartwatch - which comes in standard, 3G, Classic, and now Classic 3G variants - was named "Best Connected Consumer Electronic Device" in the Best Mobile Handsets & Devices category. "We are honored to be recognized for our industry-leading technology," said DJ Koh, President of Mobile Communications at Samsung Electronics. "At Samsung we remain committed to providing mobile devices that are inspired by consumers and always underpinned by a focus on progress and innovation." Source Sony has sent out press invites for a PlayStation VR event which will be held next month - March 15 to be precise. The invitation says the event will begin with a presentation on the headset followed by hands-on demo of the device. There's still no information on when the headset will go on sale. If you recall, GameStop CEO Paul Raines, said in a recent interview that they "will launch the Sony product this fall." However, we expect the launch to be inline with the "first half of 2016" release time-frame already promised by Sony. As for the price, the PlayStation VR was spotted listed on the websites of three different Swiss online retailers last month, carrying price tags in the range of CHF 499 - CHF 552.45, or $500 - $555 at current exchange rates. Via The ZOPO Speed 8 is now official, the first with Helio X20 Today at the Barcelona venue we made sure to make some time for a quick visit to ZOPO's booth. We had a very good reason for doing so too, and it is called the Speed 8. Now, we won't go into praising nor dismissing the not particularly famous Chinese manufacturer, but an ambitious slogan, such as "the first deca-core smartphone in the world" definitely deserves some attention. As promised, the Speed 8 was unveiled today by the MotoGP World Champion Jorge Lorenzo. The handset is powered by Mediatek's Helio X20 SoC - the first deca-core mobile chip in production and the Speed 8 is the first product to utilize it. Other than that, the ZOPO Speed 8 comes with a 5.5-inch FullHD display, 4GB of RAM and 32GB of storage, all powered by a quite spacious 3600 mAh battery. Its camera setup consists of a 21MP main camera with a Sony IMX230 sensor, a dual-tone LED flash, and an 8MP selfie shooter. There is also a round fingerprint scanner on the back, and the USB port is of the new Type-C variety. It is also worth noting that the ZOPO Speed 8 is a Dual-SIM handset with 4G LTE connectivity on board and boots Android 6.0 Marshmallow. Source A week after the promise-filled installation of the Senates ex-president in the National Palace as Haitis provisional president, Jocelerme Privert has taken no initiatives and is integrating reactionaries into key posts in his government. Does Privert have the political will to bring a solution to the political crisis that has torn Haitian societys fabric since the kidnapping-coup of Feb. 29, 2004? Can he withstand the pressure of the U.S.-led Core Group, of the reactionary oligarchy and its civil society collaborators, of the neo-Duvalierists and neo-putschist to provide a viable solution to the Haitian peoples demands for justice and democracy? After more than ten days in the National Palace, Privert has passed each day in meetings, just passing time, without having taken any concrete steps to win the peoples trust. He still has not appointed a new Prime Minister, which should be his top priority. He reported on his work during his first five days at the National Palace in a press briefing on Fri., Feb. 19, during which he told of the governments dire economic situation. He took more than a week to talk to political leaders, businessmen, civil society, human rights groups, and even some from Haitis popular organizations. But nothing concrete has been done. No changes have yet been made in the government. The criminals of the neo-Duvalierist Martelly regime and all those who squander state funds have become increasingly arrogant in front of everyone. They continue to kill, steal, loot, and empty the states coffers. One of the interim presidents most controversial acts has been to appoint two arch-reactionary general secretaries at the National Palace: Anthony Barbier, a notorious supporter of the 2004 coup and third highest ranking leader of businessman Andre Apaids Group 184," and Rony Gilot, an infamous official in and ideologue of the Duvalier dictatorship. Anthony Barbier was one of the most vocal champions of an international boycott against Haitis 2004 bicentennial celebrations. The Group of 184" was a political destabilization force, fabricated with support of the U.S., France, and Canada in the lead-up to the 2004 coup. It was financed by international mafia networks, including the CIA. Rony Gilot was a former spy at the State Universitys Faculty of Medicine with his colleague Roger Lafontant, who later became the Tonton Macoute paramilitary forces chief. They and others infiltrated, undermined, coopted, and dispersed the students democratic struggle. Gilot is deeply responsible for and identified with many of the crimes committed during the bloody Duvalier dictatorship. He has even asked his colleagues, Duvalierist torturers and assassins like former police chief Franck Romain, to attend meetings under the label of a business group called "Haiti Cherie." These meetings with notorious Duvalierist criminals are a strategy to facilitate the return of reactionary and retrograde forces into the political arena once more. Meanwhile, the people of the upper Artibonite Valley, particularly in Estere, are demonstrating for water and fertilizer so they can farm. Ravaged by cholera, over 2,000 Haitians and Dominicans of Haitian descent expelled from the Dominican Republic have been abandoned and ignored in the southern border town of Anse-a-Pitres, without shelter, food, or water. Crime is in full swing around the country. Nothing has been done to respond to the Haitian peoples demands, whether political, economic, or social. The Haitian people have called for the annulment of the Aug. 9 and Oct. 25 elections, while opposition parties are still demanding an independent commission of inquiry to review the results from those pollings. The people also want an independent audit of how the Martelly regime conducted its finances during its five years in power, given the many reports and signs of widespread corruption. Furthermore, the people demand an improvement in the conditions of everyday life, a lowering of the cost of living, and other measures to create a safer environment as a crime wave terrorizes the nation. Faced with this situation, the Haitian people will not stand idly by and will not obey the neo-cons. They are ready to repeat the uprising of Jan. 22, which brought the cancellation of the Jan. 24 elections. On Mon., Feb. 29, 2016, the 12th anniversary of the kidnapping-coup against former President Jean-Bertrand Aristide, there will be major demonstrations demanding a transition that meets the peoples demands. Will the sluggish response of Privert, the intransigence of the leftover Martelly officials, the re-emergence of Duvalierist and putschist leaders in the government, push the masses to carry out a more thorough uprooting than has already occurred? Haiti - FLASH : Meetings at the National Palace around the CEP and the new PM This Wednesday, February 24 at 9:00 am at the National Palace, the President a.i. Jocelerme Privert will host two important meetings: one with the sectors represented in the Provisional Electoral Council (CEP) and the other with the Presidents of both Houses of Parliament about the appointment of a new Prime Minister. Regarding the choice of the members of the CEP, the situation is the following a few hours from the expiry of 72 hours granted by the President a.i. to the different sectors for the designation of their representatives : Sectors who have indicated their proposed candidates : The sector of the press: Leopold Berlanger ; the union sector : Joseph Dorcely or Jean Philipe Marcelin ; the protestant sector : Pastor Frinel Joseph and the voodoo sector : Jean Richard Joseph or Lamercie Charles Pierre. Situation of other sectors : The business sector should send the name of its representative on Wednesday ; the National Union of Normaliens and Educators of Haiti (UNNOEH) indicates that a letter will be sent to the presidency without further details ; Jean Maxime Rony, Coordinator of the Platform of Haitian Organizations for the Defense of Human Rights (POHDH) states wanting to continue discussions with other human rights organizations ; the Board of the State University of Haiti (CU/UEH) and the Episcopal Conference of Haiti (CEH) did not provide any names. The National Confederation of Haitian Educators (CNEH) confirms the maintenance of its representative : Lourdes Edith Joseph. SL/ HaitiLibre Haiti - News : Zapping politics... Site visit of the First Lady Tuesday, the First Lady of the Republic, Dr. Ginette Michaud Privert, accompanied by Dr. Max Rudolph St-Albin, Director General of the Insurance, Occupational Accident, Sickness and Maternity Office (OFATMA), visited the reconstruction site of the Faculty of Medicine. The construction managers explained to the First Lady the steps already crossed and the quality of the construction. Warning of Group Haiti Cherie Monday, during their meeting with the President a.i. Privert, the leaders Group Haiti Cheriehave stressed the need for urgent measures be taken to deal with the economic crisis. Jean Lucien Ligonde, one of the members of the delegation warned the Head of State stressing that food insecurity can, just like the elections, causing political instability. The leaders of Haiti Cherie, proposes a joint strategy between the executive and the private sector to deal with the crisis. On the agenda of Privert Tuesday... Tuesday at the National Palace, President a.i. Jocelerme Privert, met with Reginald Boulos; the Board of Directors of the BRH and some parliamentarians (majority bloc in the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate minority bloc) on the issue of elections. Between agreement and disagreement in the Senate Members of the majority bloc in the Senate (G15) have shown in favor of the request of the minority group (G9) headed Youri Latortue, in regard to the organization of elections for the presidency of the office. However, Senator Nenel Cassy, leader of the majority bloc argued that until the election, the interim president may start consultations for the appointment of the Prime Minister with the Deputy President, Senator Ronald Lareche, what refuses Youri Latortue. Kettly Julien would be the choice of Fanm Yo La for the CEP Lisa Francois Executive Director of the Women's Collective for the political participation of women (Fanm Yo La) indicated she had not received etter from the Executive asking her to coordinate the choice of the sector, informing also that "Fanm Yo La" has already sent its proposal to "Solidarite Fanm Ayisyen" (SOFA), which coordinates the selection of women's sector, it would be according to our information Kettly Julien, of the Mobile Institute for Democratic Education (IMED). HL/ HaitiLibre Published on 2016/02/23 | Source Song Ji-hyo who is starring in the Chinese version of "We Just Got Married" spoke honestly in an interview with a Chinese media. Advertisement She said, "I'll take this as a chance to show China what they don't know about me yet". "Because of my job as a public figure, I have never been on a proper date. Doing something with my lover feels wrong. So on this show, I want to pretend I am normal and go on regular dates". Song Ji-hyo couples up with Chinese star Bolin Chan. She said, "I have never met a foreigner before. As long as we get along mentally and understand each other, I don't see a problem with that". Regarding his age, she said, "Age is only a number". Song Ji-hyo continued, "I am 36 years old now. I was in France recently and it was cold. I felt lonely because it was cold and at the thought of having been single for so long. I have a policy for myself that I will never meet someone in the same career as me. However, everyone around me is involved in this business somehow so I might not have a choice". Meanwhile, the Chinese version of "We Just Got Married" is airing in China at the end of February. Published on 2016/02/24 | Source On the 11th episode of MBC's Wednesday & Thursday drama, "One More Happy Ending", Han Mi-mo (Jang Nara) realized that she was in love with Song Soo-hyeok (Jung Kyung-ho) and broke down into tears. Advertisement On this day, Han Mi-mo acknowledged to herself that her heart was with Song Soo-hyeok. Han Mi-mo went to Baek Da-jeong (Yoo Da-in) and told her, "I just walked and I'm here. I hope my heart won't be able to feel anything. I hate this. This here found out. And it's too late". And then she broke down into tears. Han Mi-mo said, "I hate this here. What should I do now" and Baek Da-jeong told her, "Stop hating it. It must be tough for your heart too" and tried to comfort her. Watch on Viki 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. 15:19, 20 OCT 2022 A death in the workplace is a traumatic event for everyone involved and HR professionals should play a key role in managing the psychological fallout of a workplace death on colleagues and co-workers. Aside from the trauma of losing a colleague, additional distress to co-workers can be avoided if HR steps up to the mark in the aftermath of a workplace death, says a leading clinical and organisational psychologist. Dr Peter Cotton says a death in the workplace can have a devastating effect on the workforce and impact greatly on overall productivity and performance. There is a lot of angst and stress in the wake of a workplace death, Cotton told HC Online. He says this angst can be severely aggravated if employees feel that their employer was somehow to blame for the death of their colleague and this has a direct impact on productivity and performance. In their own minds, people tend to go through some sort of assessment of whether the organization had adequately supported workplace health and safety practices, Cotton says. People often say afterwards that there were complaints about particular work issues, but they were ignored, he says. If staff feel that the organisation had failed to put in place adequate protective measures to prevent workplace injuries, then their reactions and subsequent emotional trauma can magnify, Cotton says. People can become quite bitter and angry if they feel the issue was known and nothing was done about it, and therefore someone has died. He says workplace productivity depends how employee perceptions of how supportive their employer is of safety and safety practices. If people believe their employer is genuine and serious about safety, then it tends to have a positive effect on productivity. But if their judgement is low, then that does tend to have a negative impact, Cotton says. In a hearing earlier this month into the death of a Tasmanian construction worker, a court heard the deceased worker raised safety concerns only moments before being fatally struck by a one-tonne steel piling beam. His employer told the court that 32 year-old Benjamin Wicks, who died in the McRobies Gully tip incident in January 2013 was one of the best in the business. A witness told the court that the deceased was concerned about the safety of the operation. However, the main contractor at the site, construction firm J Hutchinson, has pleaded not guilty to failing to provide safe systems of work. As of 17 February, 15 Australian workers have been killed at work in 2016, according to statistics from Safe Work Australia. Last year, 192 people were killed in workplace accidents, an increase from 187 in 2914. A spokesperson from Safe Work Australia said there is no simple answer to the question of why people are still dying at work, despite work health and safety legislation and activities reducing the number and rate of work-related fatalities. Organizational culture can play a key role in determining the safety of a workplace and workplaces tend to fall short on proactive approaches to work health and safety, the spokesperson told HC Online. One avenue that Safe Work Australia has explored is the role of workplace culture in driving work health and safety behaviour at both the individual and organisational levels, the spokesperson said. There are still workers and employers who are prepared to take risks at work, Safe Work Australia said. Greater acceptance of risk-taking is more common among certain groups of workers, e.g. sole traders, and in specific industries such as transport, postal and warehousing, the spokesperson said. Offering counselling services to employees via an Employee Assistance Program can assist workplaces to recover in the wake of a workplace death, Cotton says. But while it is important for grieving staff to be made aware that there are support services available to them, HR should be wary of pressuring employees to access these services, he says. Research shows that people cope differently in response to traumatic events, Cotton says. Some people cope by putting it on the back-burner and gradually coming to terms with it, so HR should make them aware of available services but not force them to take part in it, he says. Workplaces can also be proactive and ensure that they have a mentally healthy workplace that has strategies in place to protect workers mental health before an incident occurs, says Safe Work Australia. Ensuring that managers and supervisors have mental health first aid training is essential, as is having established procedures for dealing with a crisis or serious incident, the spokesperson says. Negative workplace culture can have a detrimental impact on the tone or quality of the work environment, as well as the effectiveness of the EAP services, Cotton says. Therefore HR should be on the front-foot to monitor and identify work areas or team environments to help lift up workplace morale, he says. Tough new changes to South Australias workplace safety legislation proposing to hold employers criminally liable for the death of their employees should prompt HR professionals to review their workplace safety procedures. The proposed industrial manslaughter bill would see employers who cause the death of a worker fined up to $1 million or jailed for a maximum of 20 years, says Patricia Ryan, principal at The Workplace Lawyers. Ryan says numerous parties may share liability and it will be up to the courts to determine which party is responsible in the unfortunate event of a workplace death Multiple parties may be on site and potentially responsible, so a court will need to ascertain where liability exists, she says. However, HR professionals should be aware that they and other managers could potentially be held personally liable if it is found their conduct caused the death of a worker. The key changes under the proposed bill would be to boost the penalties for an individual who causes a workplace death from $300,000 or five years imprisonment, or a combination of both to 20 years imprisonment. Under the new law the penalty rate for officers or business owners would be raised from $600,000 and five years prison to $1 million and a sentence of 20 years. A person can only be liable if they have responsibility for health and safety (decision making power), such as an Operations Manager or Health and Safety Manager, Ryan says. Any responsible employee needs to ensure they have support of the employer/board for their recommendations, sufficient manpower and other resources to ensure safety. She says the Bill proposes to increase penalties and changes the basis for prosecutions for workplace death. Under the bill, an employer will be guilty of an offence if he or she breaches the duty of care, knew or was recklessly indifferent that the act or omission constituting the violation would result in a substantial risk of serious harm to a person, and if the breach resulted in death. Ryan says some prime examples of cases involving fatal workplace negligence include Frankipile Australia Pty Ltd and Vibro-pile (Australia) Pty Ltd, where the employer was found of failing to maintain systems of work that were so far as reasonably practicable, safe and without risks to health. The two companies were fined a total of $450,000 over death of a worker who fell 40 metres when a piling rig collapsed on a Melbourne construction site in 2011. The court also found the companies failed to provide necessary training and supervision to allow employees to perform their work in a safe way after hearing that the Vibro-pile employee who was given the job of preparing the rig for work was unfamiliar with its controls and had never installed or been trained in how to install the mast extension. In a separate case, the Victorian Court of Appeal doubled the fine against a company that pleaded guilty to failing to provide a safe working environment for employees. Coates Hire Operations Pty Ltd was fined $500,000 for failing to provide a safe work environment in circumstances where the company was well aware of a hazard that ultimately resulted in the death of a contractor. Ryan says the proposed changes to South Australias workplace safety legislation should serve as an essential reminder for HR to conduct health and safety audits for continuous improvement and review. The introduction of the industrial manslaughter bill would see tougher laws for employers who engage in fatal workplace negligence, in a bid to improve workplace safety in South Australia. The industrial manslaughter bill, which seeks to make corporations criminally liable for the death of their employees, covers the situation where that individual or corporations recklessness or negligence caused a workplace death, Ryan says. Caldwell Community College and Technical Institutes President, Dr. Kenneth A. Boham, will lead the Foundations 2016 Annual Fund Drive Campaign. Boham was on hand for the Foundations Annual Fund Drives Faculty/Staff kickoff on Feb. 3 where Foundation Board Chair Peg Broyhill announced that he will serve as Chairman of this years campaign. We are especially honored this year to have Dr. Boham chair our campaign because of his excellent leadership to the college and his tremendous support of the Foundation over the last 21 years, said Broyhill. His first-hand knowledge of college needs has been invaluable in guiding the Foundation and ensuring student success. We look forward to the 2016 Annual Fund under Dr. Bohams leadership. Boham expressed to those in attendance both his passion for the institution and his excitement to lead the campaign. CCC&TI is a great institution of its own merit but it is the work of the Foundation that makes CCC&TI an excellent institution, said Boham. We need to continue to set the bar high and continue our tradition of excellence for our students and the community. I am honored to lead this campaign and help provide more opportunities for more students. Boham, who announced his retirement from CCC&TI earlier this year, will step down from his role at president of the college in June, a post he has held since 1995. During his tenure, he has seen phenomenal growth in both student population, as well as facilities. Boham is a graduate of North Carolina State University with an undergraduate degree from East Carolina University. Prior to his appointment as president at CCC&TI, Boham served as Vice President for Continuing Education at Wake Technical Community College and as interim president for Mayland Community College. Boham was named Community College System President of the Year in 2003 and won the I.E. Ready Distinguished Graduate Award from N.C. State in 1998. Other honors include: CCBs Golden Apple Award in 2002, the Caldwell Economic Development Commissions Herman Anderson Award and the Caldwell Chamber Visionary Award in 2006. Originally from Northampton County, Dr. Boham and his wife Betty are long-term residents of Lenoir and have two children, Stephen and Chelsea. For more information on the Foundation of Caldwell Community College and Technical Institute or to make a donation to the Annual Fund Drive, go to www.cccti.edu/foundation or call 828-726-2260. Share this: Twitter Facebook LinkedIn Reddit Pocket By Jessica Isaacs | [email protected] Photos by Ken Ketchie. Did Someone Say Party? Are you ready to say I do to the bridal gown of your dreams? Searching for the perfect dress for next big formal event or special occasion? If youre in the High Country, youre in luck. For more than two decades now, downtown Boone has been home to one of the best formalwear shopping experiences in the Carolinas. Wedding parties, prom goers and shoppers from all walks of life have on countless occasions found happily ever after in this one-of-a-kind specialty store. Then again, with access to exclusive designers, a vast array of options and matchless customer service, how could they not? Did Someone Say Party? Donna Cook first joined the local wedding industry working with a rental company in the 1980s. After several years spent making all those other details happen, the entrepreneur, wedding planner and seamstress extraordinaire took a leap of faith and chose to focus on her favorite aspect of the business. I had the candelabras and the tents and the dishes and the table cloths and the party goods and all that stuff. Eventually we brought in prom dresses, and prom dresses led to wedding dresses, she said. We donated the cups, the plates, the tablecloths and all of those things to the churches and we went with the dresses. It just sort of evolved that way. In 1989, she opened her own store, Did Someone Say Party?, in the heart of downtown Boone at 685 West King St., which today offers 5,000 square feet of retail space and three floors packed with more dresses than you can count. The shop boasts two decades of positive working relationships with some of the industrys most coveted designers, which translates into reliable, personal and special access to some of the most sought-after gowns. We work with designers that are exclusive to us that they cant get online or at 100 different places. Weve worked with our designers for more than 20 years and they protect our rights to the lines, Cook said. We respect them and represent them as designers. My designers take care of me, too. Weve got their lines in here for people to try on. A girl needs to put the dress on and know that she feels beautiful in it. When you buy something online, you dont know what youre getting. The variety of options for premier, high-quality products makes DSSP stand out from many bridal and prom shops, but thats only part of the reason Cooks customers keep coming back for every special occasion in their lives. A Sweet Process Nearly every girl who walks through the front door as a customer walks out as part of the DSSP family, and the exceptional customer service they receive as a shopper quickly translates into the foundation for a lifelong friendship. Dont believe it? Just check out the dozens of scrapbooks that Cook keeps in the shop of the brides shes helped over the years, and the photos of their growing families that the keep sending back to her. Its just a sweet process. We encourage our brides to come back to us and show us pictures of their babies when they start their families, she said. Im still getting postcards from girls that I married 20 something years ago. They send me pictures of their babies and we put them with their wedding pictures. Many of Cooks regular customers return to the shop every time they need a new dress, and some travel from out of state just to enjoy shopping at DSSP. Now were on our second generation, said Cook. The girls that I married off when I first started doing wedding gowns, their daughters have grown up and weve done their prom dresses. Now were doing their wedding dresses and theres a big bond there. Theyre family. Hayden Porter, soon to be Hayden Bradford, turned to DSSP to find the perfect dress for her big day and, in the process, made some new friends for life. Theyre very personal and they know who I am when I call. The experience is very individualized, so much more so than you would get at a chain, she said. Theyve been able to take whatever questions or concerns that Ive had and fix them and reassure me. Its just so much more fun to come to a place where you have a relationship with the people who work here than it is to go somewhere else. This is the fourth place I came to find a dress, but I knew I didnt need to look anymore once I got here. Youll find so much more than the perfect gown when you shop at DSSP. Not only will Cook and consultant Laura Lewis pull unique and handpicked options for you, theyll help you understand which size you need and learn which shapes work best for your figure. If you feel pretty you look beautiful. So many girls dont know what size they are, and the sizing is so much different, Cook said. When you try on an 8 because you wear an 8 in normal sizes, its really a 4. With weddings happening all the time and prom season picking up right after Christmas, DSSP stays busy just about all year long. However, even when the store is packed, you dont need an appointment to walk right in and feel at home. Just show up, said Cook. I think the person who is in my store is just as important as that person who made an appointment. More of the Same Hard work and the courage to follow her dreams allowed Cook to enjoy her life as both an entrepreneur and a mother. I was able to raise my children in this store. When the kids were little, they played on the third floor, said Cook. When they were teenagers, they hung out on the third floor. Weve lived in this building and Ive raised children here. Now, 26 years after she set out to create the best specialty shopping experience in the High Country, Cook says she looks forward to more of the same at DSSP. Ive had many offers to open a franchise, but I spend 24/7 in here just about, she said. Ive got great girls, but if Im not here then Im not included, and I dont want to be an owner thats not here. Cook said plans for the future include creating a private upstairs showroom on the third floor for brides who bring guests along for advice, and working day in and day out to continue providing the best experience possible for local and visiting shoppers. Bridal and prom is just such an emotional time. Its fun, she said. Sometimes it can be nerve-racking and it can make you want to run out the back door; but if I ran out, Id turn around and Id come right back. DSSP is a member of the High South Event Professionals network a community of like-minded industry pros who work together to promote the mountains of western North Carolina, eastern Tennessee and southwestern Virginia as the premier special events destination in the Southeast. Meet preferred local HSEP vendors at the High South Wedding Expo at the Boone Mall on Sunday, March 20. Need some more information? Check out DSSP online or call the shop at 828-264-7307. Share this: Twitter Facebook LinkedIn Reddit Pocket The Longmont Times-Call and select media sat down with Michelle Wilkins after the verdict in the People V. Dynel Lane. By Jesse Wood The 35-year-old Colorado woman who cut an unborn baby from the womb of a former Appalachian State University student was convicted of attempted first-degree murder, among other charges, on Tuesday. In March of last year, Michelle Wilkins, who was 26 years old at the time of the attack, responded to a Craigslist ad to buy baby clothes at Dynel Lanes home in Longmont, Colo. Her visit turned into a horror story as Lane attacked Wilkins and cut out Wilkins unborn child, a girl who didnt survive. After the attacking Wilkins, Lane told her boyfriend, David Ridley, who had already been tricked into believing that Lane was pregnant and didnt know of the attack, that she had a miscarriage, according to a police report of the incident. The couple drove to the hospital with the 7-month-old fetus, where hospital staff noticed that Lane didnt show signs of recently giving birth. She admitted to detectives that she cut Wilkins abdomen and removed the fetus. After the attack, Wilkins was able to lock herself in a room of Lanes home and call 911. She told authorities where she was and they picked her up, bringing her to the same hospital that Lane was at, the Longmont United Hospital. According to the Longmont Times-Call, Lane could be sentenced to as much as 120 years in prison. She will be sentenced on April 29 by District Court Chief Judge Maria Berkenkotter. Following the verdict, Wilkins spoke to a small group of reporters in the Boulder County Justice Center. She had named her daughter Aurora. As the days and weeks and months have gone by, its effortless for her to come into my thoughts. I know she will be with me forever in spirit, Wilkins said. The Longmont Times-Call reported that Wilkins had obtained a balance between the anger she felt toward Lane and her compassion, saying that it is healthy to have both in light of this senseless tragedy. The compassion and forgiveness is incomplete without feeling disbelief at such horrific acts, Wilkins told the reporters. Without it, you are not able to address forgiveness and compassion in a whole and complete way. Read more Longmont Times-Call coverage of this tragedy here. Share this: Twitter Facebook LinkedIn Reddit Pocket Foxx Statement on Presidents Plan to Close Guantanamo Bay Prison WASHINGTON Rep. Virginia Foxx, R-N.C., today released the following statement regarding President Obamas plan to close the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay and transfer up to 60 prisoners to the United States mainland: Bringing dangerous terrorists to the American homeland has been consistently rejected by bipartisan majorities in Congress. President Obamas stubborn insistence on fulfilling an ill-advised campaign promise to close the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay distracts from ongoing threats to American national security and highlights the failures of his foreign policy agenda. Rep. Meadows Statement on President Obamas Gitmo Closure Plans Washington, D.C. President Obama announced from the White House Tuesday his plans to close the Guantanamo Bay military base. Congressman Mark Meadows (R-NC), a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, released the following statement: President Obamas plan to close Guantanamo Bay is woefully misguided and poses a grave security threat to both the homeland as well as our armed forces serving abroad. Weve already seen cases in which Gitmo detainees return to terrorism upon release. Most notably, Ibrahim Qosi, also known as Sheikh Khubayb al Sudani, is now an al Qaeda leader in Yemen. Releasing Guantanamo terrorists abroad amounts to granting amnesty to terrorists. Further, transferring Gitmo prisoners to U.S. facilities violates the National Defense Authorization Act of 2015, which specifically barred relocating Gitmo prisoners to U.S. soil. The majority of Americans continue to oppose closing Guantanamo Bay because they understand the security threat posed by housing convicted terrorists on American soil. I strongly urge the President to rethink this flawed and dangerous plan. Our national security is more important than the Presidents attempts to make good on 2008 campaign promises. Share this: Twitter Facebook LinkedIn Reddit Pocket Evaluations of candidates seeking election in North Carolina to District and Superior Court judgeships in 2016 have been completed in time for the March 15 primary. The survey reports, generated by the North Carolina Bar Association and its Judicial Performance Evaluation Committee, are available at electNCjudges.org. The special website currently contains three resources for use in conjunction with the 2016 election cycle. There is a Primary Report devoted to candidates involved in the March 15 primary, the Phase I report covering most judges who were up for election this year, and the Phase II report devoted primarily to candidates who filed in December and judges appointed after March 31. Upon completion of the primary, a final report will be compiled showing side-by-side comparisons of candidates whose names will appear in the November 8 general election. This is the third election cycle in which the North Carolina Bar Association has provided this information as a public service for voters and media members. The evaluations are not intended as a recommendation or endorsement of any candidate; the NCBA does not endorse candidates for any office. For both reports, North Carolina lawyers were asked to evaluate the qualifications of incumbent judges and non-incumbent candidates about whom they had sufficient professional interaction to be able to evaluate the candidates performance in six categories: Integrity and Impartiality; Legal Ability; Professionalism; Communication; Administrative Skills; and Overall Performance. Pages of the Primary Report and subsequent General Election Report may be republished with attribution to the North Carolina Bar Association. A copyright statement is provided on each page of the report. Questions should be directed to David Bohm at [email protected]. Share this: Twitter Facebook LinkedIn Reddit Pocket The human rights system is being questioned around the world more fiercely than ever before. Statements that call into question international agreements and human rights have been heard increasingly also in Finland, Niina Laajapuro, the executive director of Amnesty Finland, states in a press release . Human rights and the institutions safeguarding them are in danger, Amnesty International warns in its latest report on the state of human rights in 160 countries . The human rights watchdog estimates that the absence of principled leadership has eroded the status of human rights as a cornerstone of democratic countries in Europe. The European Union, despite being the wealthiest economic area in the world, has failed to respond to the emergency of refugees in a way that is humane, cohesive and respectful of human rights. Finland is singled out for criticism in the report due to its failure to provide support services for women who have experienced violence, to comply with recommendations on the detention of under-age asylum seekers and migrants, and to recognise the rights of trans-gender people. I continue to be astounded by how slowly the efforts to combat violence against women have progressed in Finland. The extent of the problem and the measures required to tackle it have been recognised for a long time, but these efforts are utterly under-funded, says Laajapuro. Sufficient funding and concrete measures are finally needed. Amnesty International points out that although the detention of under 15-year-old unaccompanied migrants was prohibited under all circumstances in Finland in 2015, 1517-year-old migrants can be detained for up to 72 hours to await for their removal from the country. Aleksi Teivainen HT Photo: Markku Ulander Lehtikuva A bilateral treaty hasn't been ruled out. The co-operation between Finland and Sweden is concrete, but we have a long road ahead of us, he told the Oulu-based newspaper on Tuesday. Jussi Niinisto (PS), the Minister of Defence, has echoed the sentiments of ex-Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen (Centre) by floating the idea of a defence union between Finland and Sweden in an interview with Kaleva . Niinisto also estimated that the partnership between Finland and Nato is close but clearly delineated. Ukraine, for example, is in a peace partnership with Nato, but the Ukraine crisis has shown that partner countries have no security guarantees, he pointed out. Finland, he believes, should leave no stone unturned with respect to its possible membership in the defence alliance. Vanhanen proposed in his recently published book, Ulkopolitiikka, (Eng. Foreign Policy) that Finland and Sweden develop their co-operation towards a defence union or even a union of two nation states. I represent the school of thought that one should be very precise in regards to questions of war and peace. We can never be sure whether the resources of our neighbour are at our disposal in time of need if our co-operation with Sweden is established on a voluntary basis. A bilateral agreement on a defence union would solve this problem and establish the automation required for the use of joint resources, he writes. I am of the opinion that a defence union between two countries cannot be functional, or even possible, without a joint foreign policy. The union should therefore be a genuine union between two nation states, he continues. Both Niinisto and Vanhanen estimate that it is necessary to increase co-operation with Sweden. Aleksi Teivainen HT Photo: Petteri Paalasmaa Uusi Suomi Source: Uusi Suomi Padget was apologetic and admitted everything when gardai questioned him. Stock Picture A concert-goer punched his ex-girlfriend in the eye in a pub after the gig, smashed her phone and then went to her mother's house and put a plank of wood through the window. Paul Padget (24) also broke a window in his ex's car, which was parked outside the house, a court heard. Judge Ann Ryan adjourned the case to give Padget time to pay compensation. He pleaded guilty at Dublin District Court to assault and three counts of criminal damage. The court heard the pair had been to see The Script in Croke Park last June 20. Afterwards, Padget and his ex were at The Liquor Rooms on Wellington Quay when he punched her in the eye. When she fell to the ground, he threw her phone to the floor, smashing it. Bloodshot Later, he went to her mother's house at Cromcastle Green, Kilmore, put a plank of wood through a window and smashed a window in his ex's car. She suffered bruising and a bloodshot eye from the assault. Padget, of Millbrook Drive, Kilbarrack, was apologetic and admitted everything when gardai questioned him. There was "alcohol involved after the concert" and Padget acted "completely out of character", his barrister said. He worked as a courier and had no history of violence. Businessman Jim Mansfield Jnr and his younger brother PJ did not know their gun and ammunition licences had been cancelled by gardai, their solicitor has claimed. Gardai never told Jim Mansfield or his younger brother PJ that their licences had been revoked, their solicitor Yvonne Bambury told a court. Jim Mansfield (48), who had a relationship with the late model Katy French, is accused of having a pump-action shotgun, shotgun cartridges and ammunition without a firearms certificate. The unlicensed gun and ammunition were allegedly found in the master bedroom after detectives searched Mr Mansfield's Saggart home in January 2015. His brother PJ Mansfield (38), who was previously married to former Miss Ireland Andrea Roche, is accused of having over 1,000 rounds of ammunition without a licence at his home. Judge David McHugh adjourned the matters for six weeks after their solicitor asked him to defer jurisdiction pending the full disclosure of documentation by gardai. Jim Mansfield Jnr, with an address at Tassaggart House, Garter Lane in Saggart, appeared before Blanchardstown District Court charged with possession of a Fabarm pump-action shotgun without a firearm certificate at his home on January 29, 2015. He is also accused of possession of 180 rounds of .22 Walther ammunition and 19 rounds of 12-gauge shotgun cartridges without a certificate. PJ Mansfield is facing a single charge of possession of 1,252 rounds of Walther ammunition without a firearms licence at his former home at Coldwinters Lake in Saggart. The court heard that the DPP has directed summary trial in the District Court. Defence solicitor Yvonne Bambury said her clients would say they both had a firearms licence. Ms Bambury said the men would say the licences were cancelled by gardai without notifying them. Ms Bambury said she required more information about the revocation of the gun licences by gardai, prior to jurisdiction being considered. A State solicitor agreed that some disclosure was outstanding and said gardai would be asked to address a number of matters raised by Ms Bambury. Detective Garda Ian Pemberton previously alleged gardai searched Jim Mansfield's home in January 2015 and found a shotgun in the master bedroom. Ammunition Gda Pemberton claimed 19 rounds were found in close proximity, and the accused had no licence for the gun or the ammunition. The garda said officers also seized a Walther pistol, which was a licensed gun. However, he claimed Jim Mansfield had a licence for 300 rounds of ammunition, but gardai found 480, which was 180 in excess of the licence. In relation to PJ Mansfield, Gda Pemberton said his former home at Coldwinter Lakes in Saggart was also searched under warrant on January 29, 2015. Gda Pemberton alleged gardai found a licensed Walter pistol and 1,552 rounds of ammunition, which was 1,252 more than the 300 rounds that PJ Mansfield was licensed to hold. From left: Gemma Bradley, Aishling Kenny and Carol McNulty, who are being made homeless with their families Several mothers have spoken of their families' upset at being given just seven days' notice by Dublin City Council to move out of their accommodation. Seven families with children, three couples and two single women were all informed by council officials last Thursday they must vacate their accommodation in the building on Mountjoy Street by February 26. Some of the people have been living in the hostel for up to two years. They were all living there under emergency accommodation provisions. The council informed them a contract agreement between the private owner and the council was ending on Friday next. The officials said they would seek to arrange alternative accommodation for them. Four of the mothers claimed they had been promised when they moved in that they would not have to move again until a permanent home was found for them. But a number of them were offered accommodation in hotels once more. Mother-of-two Rachel McGuinness said she turned down an offer this week to be moved into the Regency Hotel with her children. The 24-year-old was then offered accommodation in a bed and breakfast in Clontarf, which was the same place that she and her father stayed in when they were homeless when she was 14. "I don't want to go back there and hope another place can be found," she said. Carol McNulty (31) told the Herald the building was "a home from home" for her and her daughter Molly (4) for more than six months. "This place was known as the best of the best of accommodation for homeless people. We grew to love it here. "I cried and sobbed when the council staff told me we all had to leave. I don't know where the council will put us. Investing "The council had put us into a hotel before, but I suffer from asthma and I can't live in one bedroom accommodation anymore," said Carol, who works as a carer on a "zero-hour" contract. "At the end of the day, all we want is affordable housing. Why can't the politicians provide social housing and invest in the future by investing in our children," she said. Aisling Kenny (32) said she and her partner Mark and three young children lived at Mountjoy Street since having to leave their three-bedroom rented house in Coolock last May, when the landlord sold the property. "One of my sons and my daughter go to school in Coolock, yet the council offered us accommodation in Harold's Cross way over on the southside," she said. "It was already taking a long time for the children to get to school, but now they wanted us to make them travel to Coolock from Harold's Cross. "The kids are under enough pressure as it is and we want somewhere closer to the school. "My daughter is very upset at having to move again." Rebecca Tierney (32), who is unemployed, said seven days notice was insufficient and would not be acceptable in the private sector. She was paying 16 a week there and had now been placed by the council in a building in Clanbrassil Street with other women. Agreement A council spokeswoman said "emergency homeless accommodation on Mountjoy Street is provided by a private landlord" and that a contractual agreement between the council and the landlord will cease at the end of the month. "We are trying to provide as much stability for the families as possible in light of the fact that the commercial arrangement has ceased," she said. "This has been a challenge for Dublin City Council, in light of the level of presentation we have to homeless services, with 125 new families presenting to homeless services in the Dublin region in January 2016. "Dublin City Council are currently in the process of putting alternative arrangements in place for all households concerned and will ensure that there is emergency accommodation provided for them by the end of February. "We may have to provide brief temporary placements for families until more suitable accommodation is available to us in the vicinity of schools." Dubliner Ibrahim Halawa has been awaiting trial in Egypt since August 2013 Ibrahim Halawa, the Dublin student imprisoned in Egypt, has lost nearly five stone in weight since beginning a semi-hunger strike last year, according to his sister. He is also suffering from severe back pain and chest problems, but his family claim that he has received no medical treatment since being arrested two-and-a-half years ago. Ibrahim's sister, Somaia, said he had lost 30kg (4st 10lbs) since beginning a phased hunger strike 150 days ago. "He's been living on fruit and water," said Somaia, adding that Ibrahim (20) sees his mother through the bars of the prison when she visits each week. She also claimed that prison authorities took Mr Halawa's belongings when he refused to sign a document stating he had been treated well in prison. "They are mentally torturing him," she said. "When he looks at himself in the mirror and his parents look at him, they are being mentally tortured." Detail Ms Halawa also called on the next Irish government to "look at Ibrahim's case in more detail" and "support it more than the current Government have". Mr Halawa, from Tallaght, was arrested at a Muslim Brotherhood demonstration in Cairo in August 2013. He was later charged along with 493 others, and has yet to face trial. His 13th trial date is set for March 6, but his family say they believe it will be postponed again. Campaigners plan to mark Ibrahim's 150 days of hunger strike with a silent protest outside the Egyptian Embassy in Dublin on Thursday at 5pm. When students use brains in chemistry class, theyre not usually using brain-puree like finger paint. I need to forewarn you that if you are queasy with fleshing hides, you dont like blended up brains you may want to quit, said Jessica Anderson, a science teacher at Powell County High School. But none of the teachers in Andersons training session at the Indian Education for All Best Practices Conference at the Crowne Plaza on Tuesday backed out of learning about how to use traditional Native American hide tanning methods in the classroom. Anderson arrived armed with pieces of washed deer hide, which educators stretched and applied brains to. My classroom was covered in hair. Were still finding hair, Anderson said. She also brought a portable vacuum. Anderson, who is teaching chemistry for the first time this year, collected the hide from a deer her husband shot. But she accidentally threw out the brain. Its a mistake thats easy enough to get away with in Montana. Another student had recently shot an elk and brought the animals entire head into the science lab where they cut out the brain. Tanning typically involves suspending and stretching out a hide on a rack, but Anderson parceled out the hide among students who nailed it to pieces of plywood. It took longer to dry, but allowed for more participation. Chris Bausch, a Park High School history teacher, has done a similar lesson with a full hide. Its so big, it kind of overwhelms the kids, he said. With the smaller hides, everybody gets a chance to do all of the steps. Making sure that each kid is involved is essential during hands-on projects, he said. Its that learning process. You can take ownership of being part of it, Bausch said. Its going to stimulate some kids to go to the next level. What about kids who think that marinating animal skin with brain soup is gross? Steady encouragement is key, said Jessica Schultz, a fourth-grade teacher at Irving Elementary in Bozeman, citing her own experience with owl pellets. By the end of it, they are the ones with no gloves on taking it home, she said. The session was part of a conference geared toward equipping educators with tools to implement Indian Education for All, a Montana law that requires districts to incorporate aspects of Native American culture into their curriculum. Sessions discussed topics like history, biology and cultural awareness for all students, not just Native Americans. Students at Powell County also chemically tanned hides and compared the process to brain tanning. They wrote a research paper on historical and industrial uses for hides. Anderson, who was named 2016 Montana Teacher of the Year, emphasized that her methods are unconventional she omitted some steps and changed others in the usual process and that educators should be flexible. You just have to adapt to the environment that you have, she said. ABINGDON, Va. A former BVU contractor testified Tuesday that he paid for parties and other gifts sought by the utilities provider because he feared losing lucrative multi-million-dollar contracts. Brian Edwards, executive vice president of Edwards Telecommunications of Columbia, South Carolina, said the company complied every time BVU executives specifically former Vice President of Field Operations David Copeland asked it to pay for Christmas parties, purchase gifts or join the Bristol Chamber of Commerce. His testimony came during the sixth day of the corruption trial of BVU Chief Financial Officer Stacey Pomrenke, who is charged with 15 criminal counts, including extortion, conspiracy to commit tax fraud, making false statements, program theft, conspiracy to commit wire fraud and wire fraud. Both Copeland and Edwards brother, Todd Edwards, previously pleaded guilty to a conspiracy to submit false bills to BVU and pocketing the money. Both men were sentenced to prison. ETI once paid $15,000 for a BVU Christmas party and another time paid more than $5,000 for alcohol for a party for BVU vendors. It was our opinion that if we didnt it would rub them the wrong way and we would be without a job, Brian Edwards testified in U.S. District Court. In each case, Edwards said, it was Copeland who was involved in the illegal scheme with ETI who contacted them for the donations. Edwards said BVU represented about 30 percent of ETIs business for many years, especially in 2011, when the firm secured a $17 million, four-year contract to help extend fiber-optic telecommunications services across Southwest Virginia. ETI provided gift cards to some BVU officials and Edwards testified that, more than once, Pomrenke requested something different. We gave the gift cards as appreciation to senior management. We started with food cards. In 2010, Mr. Copeland said Ms. Pomrenke wanted a Martha Washington Inn spa card instead of a food card, Edwards testified, adding that it made him mad. You give somebody a gift and they tell you where they want the gift from. Edwards called Pomrenke the boss because she had to sign off on all ETI invoices so the firm could be paid. Copeland also took the stand in the afternoon and described a series of emails from former CEO Wes Rosenbalm directing him to pressure ETI to fund Christmas parties and join the Bristol Chamber, when Rosenbalm was involved on its board of directors. BVU was also attempting to rescue its image following a series of electricity rate increases. It goes without saying and I am going to say it, we have been good to these contractors and they need to return the favor to us, Rosenbalm wrote in the email directing Copeland, Pomrenke and others to contact businesses about joining the chamber. Rosenbalm previously pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to defraud the Internal Revenue Service and conspiracy to commit federal program fraud. Copeland testified that Pomrenke and others were present in the room when the decision was made to ask ETI to pay $15,000 for the Christmas party. Copeland also testified he asked ETI to pay for a sports scoreboard at Tri-Cities Christian School in Blountville when Rosenbalm was chairman of the private schools board of directors. While Copeland testified that Pomrenke was responsible for signing off on all invoices from ETI legitimate and illegitimate he said she had no way of knowing which was which and depended on Copeland. He added that he had no knowledge that Todd Edwards had engaged in a similar scheme to falsify invoices with Copelands former boss, Robert James Kelley Jr., who also pleaded guilty to federal charges last spring. Leslie Check, an IRS employment tax specialist, testified Tuesday morning that BVU owes thousands of dollars in unreported employee income through gift cards, cash awards, personal use of BVU-supplied vehicles and use of the Bristol Country Club on BVU-funded membership accounts. BVU underreported employee compensation, specifically fringe benefits, Check said. Between 2003 and 2013, BVU failed to correctly report more than $246,500 in fringe benefits subject to Medicare withholding and about $110,500 subject to Social Security withholding, Check testified. According to Checks calculations BVUs tax liability is more than $82,000 and Pomrenkes tax liability is more than $15,000, based on BVU records, payroll information and other documents. During cross-examination, defense attorney Joel Miller contested many of Checks assertions, introducing a series of IRS documents that seemed to indicate non-cash achievement awards up to $1,600 and Christmas gift cards of minimal amounts of $100 or less were exempt from taxation. Miller also challenged Checks estimates for some years of Pomrenkes personal use of her BVU-supplied vehicle. Prosecutors said they expect to conclude their case today. Among witnesses expected to testify are Rosenbalm and Todd Edwards, who are both in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service. Judge James P. Jones repeatedly reminded attorneys on both sides Tuesday that the case is scheduled to conclude Friday and warned them with the jury out of the room they may finish Saturday. On a given night, the regulars will sidle up to the table at one of Billings six live poker rooms. Theyll exchange some small talk and hold their cards close, and many stay for hours on end. Its an industry that thrives on familiar faces. One card room supervisor said that 90 percent of his players are regulars. Over the past few years, those customers have become increasingly important. The number of registered card dealers in Montana has been careening downward at roughly 100 per year since 2012 as establishments abandon their tables. Now there are 321. The business managers who gave up on the live poker game say that there just werent enough people coming to play. For those still running a card room the decline has been real, but they say business is steady. I think poker has probably hit its boom, said Beau Burrington, supervisor at The Poker Parlor. Obviously Id like to see it get better, but we can maintain. Burrington has been at The Poker Parlor for eight years, since back when it was the Big Dawgs Card Room. He oversees three poker tables inside a well-lit room at the Gold Dust Casino. When asked about what pushed live poker in Montana to its peak, his first reply was a name: Chris Moneymaker. Moneymaker became something of a poker folk hero when he slid into the 2003 World Series of Poker as a relative unknown and won the tournament. The Average Joe player from Tennessee took home $2.5 million and became a star. The fame of Moneymaker brought more interest to televised poker tournaments, Burrington said. In 2002 before Moneymaker won, 220 dealers were licensed in Montana. By 2004, that number had begun to grow to 375; by 2006 licensed dealers numbered 901 in the state. Burrington said when he began at The Poker Parlor, there would be lines outside regularly before the doors opened. Another Billings poker contractor, Kathy Ludlum, also said that televised poker tournaments helped to draw interest to local tables. Ludlum and her partner, Cathy Olson, have run poker tables for 23 years. Today they operate at Montana Chads. Decades ago, there were plenty of live poker establishments in Billings; There used to be one on every corner, Ludlum said. The reasons they have for live pokers decline are a bit more nebulous. Ludlum talked about the rise of online poker keeping people at home and an uncertain national economy making them uneasy about gambling. Burrington said that the Moneymaker effect on the industry has worn off and hasnt returned. Live poker tables are licensed and regulated by a division of the Montana Department of Justice. Establishments pay $250 per year to permit a single table and $500 per year for each additional table. In 2003, 163 tables were licensed. That grew to 491 in 2006. By comparison, taxes collected by the state from autonomous video gaming machines has been on a gradual but steady rise since the declines of the recession years. And, of course, most establishments that have or used to have live poker tables also house video gaming. George Frank, owner of the Doc and Eddys chain of liquor stores and bars, ran a live poker room with multiple tables for a long time. But he said that he knew when to fold 'em and shut it down a couple years ago. When we opened we had five tables, he said. And it was very good for a while, and it just petered out. He said that there just werent enough people coming in to play. Now hes trying to sell the tables and says that live poker won't happen again at his businesses. It was the same story over on the Crow Reservation. Lane Simpson is the general manager of the Apsaalooke Nights Casino, which had live poker for about four months before shutting the tables down last April. Casinos on Native American reservations operate under federal oversight, but many tribes like the Crow enter into gaming compacts with states that set some regulations. Like other establishments, Simpson said that they didnt have enough players coming in to play poker. It wasnt feasible for him to keep the tables with the personnel cost to run them. Simpson directed a soft drink server to the area, and they had a dealer. He also said that regulations require them to have a cashier on hand for poker chips. Another factor is that the Crow is a dry reservation. Simpson said that may have contributed to the low turnout, and he knows people who drive to Billings just to play. Still, Simpson said he would like to bring live poker back to his casino. We know that theres players in the area, we just have to figure out how to entice them in, he said. In 2013, the Montana Legislature raised the pot limits on poker games from $300 to $800. Burrington said that this helped to maintain the state of the industry, but it certainly didnt foster a boom. In the still-running card rooms, the supervisors said that they keep going because they have loyal customers who enjoy coming back. That keeps the current state of business on an even keel. Even on a slow Wednesday, The Poker Parlor had one full table and a few more players waiting in reserve. The card room has little customer perks, like $2 kickbacks to players and free food. On one day last week, there was a small buffet with beef sausage pasta and veggie rolls. Everything is customer service, Burrington said. One hundred percent. Throughout 23 years, Ludlum said that theyve kept a group of players whove followed them around to various locations. In a few weeks, theyll move again from Montana Chads to the Red Door Lounge. Ludlum likes the people in the poker business. She said they come from all walks of life. Another thing Ludlum likes about her job is that it's anything but monotonous. You dont have to do that same thing over and over, Ludlum said. Every hand is different, and you may not see a straight flush for months and months. Picture this: You have a good job. You go in and announce, "Boss, just wanted to let you know I will be taking two years off. I expect to receive my full pay plus any raises, bonuses and benefits. And, oh, by the way, I will be looking for another job." How long do you think it would take him to fire you--after he got through laughing? Well "my fellow Americans that is precisely what you and I--the forgotten, ignored, naive and gullible taxpayers -- are subsidizing. None of these members of Congress who are looking for another job are doing anything to earn what we are paying them to do. Add to them the dozens of their cronies in Congress who have sided with one candidate and are traveling around the country to stump for them. Who do you think is footing the bill? Our "leader" is the worst offender. Witness his recent Democratic fundraising trip to Los Angeles on Air Force One to the tune of $179,000 per hour! Official business? These politicians should forfeit their salary and pay their own expenses when on the stump. To do otherwise is to take money under false pretenses. Same goes for the candidates, only they should resign so that they can campaign full time on their own time and own dime. At the very least, they should forfeit their salary, travel expenses and fringe benefits. The system is broken and corrupt! We owe this, in large measure, to the lack of term limits, which breeds complacency and puts an emphasis on attaining power rather than service. Being a politician was never intended as a career. A politician is a public servant. It was intended they go to Washington and SERVE the people and then go home and go to work. Our founding fathers would never recognize what the "career politicians" have created. Chip Smith | Abingdon, Virginia WASHINGTON The Clinton political dynasty is still alive. The Bush dynasty has been routed. Their contrasting fates, to this point at least, tell us much about our two parties, the nature of this year's presidential election, and the dueling legacies themselves. The Republican and Democratic contests are very different, beginning with the fact that Hillary Clinton did not have to deal with Donald Trump, who targeted Jeb Bush with a viciousness rarely seen in contemporary politics. For months, the self-contained former Florida governor responded ineffectually to an opponent who flouted all the norms. This only made it easier for Trump to mock him as "low energy" and "weak." Bush was also entitled to a certain bitterness as he watched Marco Rubio, his ambitious and impatient protege, seize his natural base in the party: voters who loathe both Trump and Ted Cruz. Rubio's definition of loyalty did not include yielding to his one-time mentor. Bush finally found his voice toward the end of his campaign, and he often stood alone in denouncing Trump's brutal Islamophobia. He thereby bravely upheld the most estimable parts of his family's public service tradition. But his efforts came too late, and were, in any event, out of tune with so many in a party eager to respond to angry and exclusionary rhetoric. Clinton now faces only one opponent, and Bernie Sanders, especially in contrast to the often thuggish behavior of Republican candidates toward each other, has been positively courtly. Building a durable progressive wing of the Democratic Party clearly matters more to him than scoring points off Clinton. Courting young voters Still, Sanders has exposed real weaknesses in Clinton's long-term position. The issues he has used against her particularly her ties to Wall Street and her acceptance of large speaking fees from financial firms are matters Republicans will surely bring up again should she secure the Democratic nomination. In a party whose election victories are increasingly dependent on heavy turnout among younger voters (when they don't show up, the Democrats lose, as they did in 2010 and 2014), Sanders has overwhelmed Clinton among those under 45. He did it again in Nevada's caucuses on Saturday. Clinton's "trust deficit" is a cliche. But, like her weakness among the young, it remains part of her own ongoing legacy problem. According to the entrance poll reported by CNN, a quarter of Nevada caucus-goers listed honesty and trustworthiness as the most important qualities they were seeking in a candidate; they backed Sanders by about 6-to-1. Clinton prevailed anyway and her Nevada victory dealt Sanders a serious blow. The state's caucus system gave Sanders' energetic followers a real chance at victory. He fell short. Endurance under trial Endurance under trial is a defining characteristic of a Clinton brand that also has the benefit of being less established than the Bush trademark. The Clintons have been in the public consciousness since 1992. Bushes have been in presidential politics since 1980 and on the national stage since 1952, when Prescott Bush, Jeb's grandfather, entered the U.S. Senate. If the Clintons aren't exactly Facebook, neither are they General Motors or Studebaker. And while frustration on the Democratic left with Bill Clinton's pro-business policies has fed support for Sanders, the antipathy to both Bush presidencies on the Republican right runs far deeper. As Laura Ingraham, the conservative talk radio host, told The Washington Post in 2015: "The Bushes have always underestimated the depth of the base's dissatisfaction with their policies." Moreover, even some of Bush's natural allies among Republican professionals worried that public memories of the peaceful and prosperous Bill Clinton years were much fonder than those of a George W. Bush presidency characterized by an unpopular war and a financial meltdown. When Prescott Bush successfully sought re-election to the Senate in 1956, his biographer Mickey Herskowitz recounts, some in the party hoped he'd lose because of his stands in favor of immigration and higher taxes. "I was amazed," Prescott Bush said, "that they would take so small a view as that of a man who was trying to do his damnedest for the Republican Party." Jeb can relate. Last summer, Gov. Steve Bullock appointed us, along with several other Montanans, to serve on the Montana Developmental Center Transition Planning Advisory Council. The Montana Legislature created this council through Senate Bill 411, the bill that seeks to close the Montana Developmental Center in Boulder. Through seven council meetings and nearly eight months of work, we have been immersed in studying and analyzing Montanas system of care for our developmentally disabled citizens. The more we learn, the more obvious it is that the legislatures decision to close MDC was severely short-sighted and based on false premises. We believe it is critical to correct these false premises so Montana can truly consider all options in serving developmentally disabled Montanans, their families and their communities. False Premise 1: MDC is fraught with abuse that can only be addressed through closure. Abuse is not acceptable in any care facility. But reports of abuse at MDC have been drastically overblown. MDC is held to a far greater standard of reporting and investigation than any private community provider. As such, many abuse incidents are very minor, such as patients yelling at each other. Most patients served at MDC are there because they have a tendency toward violence and aggression. They have mental illness as well as developmental disabilities. They present a danger to themselves and others. Many of them will assault, bite, kick and punch others. False Premise 2: Serving patients in the private sector will cost less. In fact, private providers, many who lobbied to close MDC, have testified at nearly all our council meetings. Most say the private sector cant serve MDC patients without major increases in the rates they receive from the state. This would raise costs far beyond estimates suggested in legislative testimony. Private providers have also testified that it would be impossible for them to serve all clients currently at MDC. Thats why our council unanimously passed a motion last summer saying the state should maintain a placement of last resort for MDC clients. Building and maintaining new housing for just a fraction of the population needing a provider of last resort would cost the state nearly $10 million, according to official estimates. This is nearly five times what it would cost to maintain and upgrade MDC facilities for the same purpose. Staff training plus new investments in safety, policing and crisis treatment must be factored into the costs of providing services in private facilities. When considering these costs, keeping MDC open actually presents significant cost savings compared to private placements. False Premise 3: Private community placements are preferable because they provide a less restrictive environment. In fact, several parents and guardians of MDC patients who testified before our council suggest the opposite is true. Private placements can be even more restrictive and isolating for their sons or daughters. Many parents are extremely worried that if MDC closes, one violent outburst in a community setting could land their son or daughter in jail or a hospital incapable of providing appropriate care. This heartbreaking scenario has already occurred since MDC has been unable to accept new patients in light of SB 411. One private provider told us a patient in Missoula recently was jailed after a violent outburst. We have concluded that every major legislative argument in favor of closing MDC was false. But it is not too late. We recommend that the Bullock administration and Montana Legislature reconsider the closure of MDC. We urge them to bring legislation to the 2017 legislature repealing SB 411 and maintaining MDC as a provider for patients who cannot be served successfully elsewhere. Closing MDC is a premature, simplistic, dangerously wrong answer to a much more complex problem. HELENA A former Garfield County attorney who battled the anti-government Freemen in the 1990s has been named the new judge for Montana's 16th Judicial District, based in Forsyth. Gov. Steve Bullock announced Wednesday that Valley County Attorney Nick Murnion of Glasgow will take over for District Judge George W. Huss, who resigned on Jan. 1. Murnion received the Kennedy Profile in Courage Award in 1998 for his stand against the Freemen, who harassed and threatened public officials, filed frivolous claims in court and refused to abide by local laws or pay taxes. In September 2014, Huss reached a $744,000 settlement in a sexual harassment complaint filed by his former court reporter if she agreed to seek the money from the state. Another judge has ruled the state is not obligated to pay the settlement. Nobel Prize winner, IU grad fondly remembers his time in Bloomington Philip H. Dybvig said he loves Bloomington and thought it was a great place to be an undergraduate. A federal judge has continued sentencing and appointed a new lawyer for a Fishtail man convicted of trafficking at least 178 pounds of methamphetamine. Merrill Clark Gardner, 61, was to have been sentenced in U.S. District Court in Billings on March 3 for his guilty plea to conspiracy to possess meth for distribution. But Gardner has since indicated he wants to withdraw his plea. But District Judge Susan Watters on Monday reset Gardners sentencing for March 23 and appointed a new attorney, Brian Fay of Bozeman, to represent him. Watters approved a request by Gardners previous attorneys, Sandy Selvey and Paula Saye, to be removed from the case after Gardner told his lawyers he wanted to withdraw his guilty plea. Selvey said in court records that Gardner wanted to withdraw his plea based on misrepresentations by the attorneys as to the quantity of drugs that he would ultimately be held responsible for. Selvey said that he and Saye did not believe that they could in good faith file a motion to withdraw Gardners plea because it would place them in conflict with him. Gardner pleaded guilty to a conspiracy count in November. A plea deal calls for a second count of possession with intent to distribute to be dismissed and for Gardner to forfeit his residence, $103,340 in currency, and miscellaneous gold and silver coins as property prosecutors say was used in or helped with the commission of the crimes. The judge ordered the property forfeited in December. Prosecutors said Gardner stored meth in packages on nearby property and shipped hundreds of thousands of dollars in drug proceeds stashed in a truck back to his Arizona supplier. Gardner faces a minimum mandatory 10 years to life in prison and a $10 million fine. Wyoming regulators are once again defending their oversight of a bankrupt coal company to federal officials, saying the state has taken steps to ensure a financially strapped mining firm meets its cleanup obligations. The Monday letter from the state Department of Environmental Quality to the U.S. Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement centered around Arch Coal's $485 million in unsecured cleanup costs. The correspondence mirrored an earlier interaction this month between Cheyenne and Washington over a second bankrupt coal company, Alpha Natural Resources, and hinted at the growing tension between the two agencies. State regulators noted they had repeatedly sought guidance from their federal counterparts on how to address Arch's deteriorating financial condition, only to be met with silence. "While no longer willing to work collaboratively on questions related to self-bonding," an August 2015 OSMRE review found Wyoming had acted in accordance with mining laws, DEQ Land Quality Division Administrator Kyle Wendtland wrote. The increasingly confrontational tone reflects the growing debate over mine reclamation. Coal companies have long used their assets as collateral on future cleanup costs, a practice known as self-bonding. But a downturn in the coal market has seen a sharp erosion of miners' balance sheets, creating worries about companies' ability to pay for future cleanup. It was against that backdrop Wyoming regulators struck a deal with Arch for a $75 million priority claim on the company's $485 million cleanup bill. The deal also calls for Arch to post $17 million in guaranteed finances for several closed mines in the state. State officials have argued the deal ensures reclamation continues while keeping the company in business. Federal officials have raised questions over the agreement, noting companies are required to be fully covered for their cleanup costs in order to maintain a permit. OSMRE reserved its rights to object to the agreement in bankruptcy court last week. A judge must still approve the deal. In Arch's case, many of the questions concern a subsidiary of the Missouri-based miner, Arch Western Resources LLC, which held the company's self-bonds. Federal officials have questioned whether the subsidiary continued to qualify for self-bonding status. The stakes are especially high because a loss of self-bonding status would result in Arch posting alternative financial guarantees, like surety bonds, letters of credit or cash, to cover its cleanup liabilities. The company, in court filings, has said that would greatly reduce its remaining liquidity and hinder its ability to emerge from bankruptcy. The Powder River Basin Resource Council, a landowners group critical of self-bonding, blasted Wyoming's response, saying it left taxpayers liable for mine cleanup. We are concerned that the State of Wyoming is favoring the wishes of a declining industry, rather than negotiating toward the best interests of taxpayers, workers, landowners and other Wyoming citizens," said Bob LeResche, who chairs the Sheridan-based organization. This domain has expired. If you owned this domain, contact your domain registration service provider for further assistance. If you need help identifying your provider, visit https://www.tucowsdomains.com/ In 2013, finance minister Arun Jaitley, who was then in the Opposition, said: The most pre-eminent out of the freedoms enshrined in ... the Constitution is the right of free speech and expression. He was right. The right to express differing and even offensive opinions, as long as they are not accompanied by an incitement to violence, is legal in India. Simply on these grounds, the central governments decision to arrest Kanhaiya Kumar, the president of the Jawaharlal Nehru University Students Union, for his presence at an event to commemorate Afzal Gurus death anniversary, deserves to be condemned as a misuse of State authority. Kanhaiyas case is particularly egregious since he was not even an organiser of this event and his own political position, which he explained in a speech the next day, is hardly controversial. But many of the other views articulated at the event, including those of the organisers, are already part of mainstream political discourse. For example, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has always maintained that Afzal Gurus hanging was [a] travesty of justice. In 2009, its leader Mehbooba Mufti stated that she had no hesitation in saying that the people of Kashmir are for Azadi. Obviously, these views must be debated and discussed; they cannot be silenced by force. The BJPs alliance with the PDP in Jammu and Kashmir shows the hypocrisy of the governments outrage. In fact, its current attempts to ferret out anti-national students are the latest step in a cynical campaign. In January last year, the government prevented a Greenpeace activist Priya Pillai from going abroad because she might indulge in anti-national activities. A few months later, the Gujarat government complained to the Union home ministry that Teesta Setalvad, who has worked tirelessly for the victims of the Gujarat riots, was carrying out anti-national propaganda through her organisation. More recently, Union labour minister Bandaru Dattatreya alleged that the Hyderabad Central University had become a den of anti-national politics, initiating a sequence of events that led to the tragic suicide of the Dalit activist Rohit Vemula last month. What is common to all these allegations, including the one against Kanhaiya, is that they were directed at progressive activists who happened to cross the path of communal or corporate groups that have the governments ear. It is only appropriate, given this history, to ask about the governments own record in protecting the national interest. For example, earlier this month, the government succumbed to pressure from American corporations and ratified an international treaty called the Convention on Supplementary Compensation that will exempt multinational nuclear suppliers from facing civil or criminal charges if they cause a nuclear disaster in India. Although past governments have been rightly criticised for allowing Union Carbide to escape without punishment for the Bhopal disaster, the current government has committed in advance that it will not hold foreign companies to account in a nuclear accident, which could cause even more damage than Bhopal. Moreover, since this promise of indemnity contradicts Indias domestic nuclear liability law, the governments acquiescence to this US-backed treaty compromises the countrys sovereign rights. While it is easy to pick on university students, the real question is whether the aggressive imposition of communal ideas, and the suppression of political dissent, combined with a weak surrender to corporate interests, is what constitute nationalism. (Suvrat Raju is with the International Centre for Theoretical Sciences, Bangalore. MV Ramana is with Princeton University. The views expressed are personal) CHEYENNE, Wyo. Some members of the State Board of Education are criticizing Superintendent of Public Instruction Jillian Balow over proposed budget cuts being discussed by lawmakers. Board Chairman Pete Gosar said it is his understanding that Balow recommended that the Legislature's Joint Appropriations Committee cut funding for the State Board's coordinator position in the last round of cuts before the legislative session. Balow's Chief of Staff, Dicky Shanor, said Tuesday that Balow never recommended eliminating the job but pointed out to legislators that the coordinator position duplicated the work of other jobs associated with the board. Paige Fenton Hughes is the board's coordinator. She said her job was created in 2012 because the board was having a hard time meeting legislative requirements without more help. That's because most of the members work full time in addition to their volunteered effort. Some board members took issue with Balow apparently recommending that lawmakers eliminate the position without consulting the board first. As superintendent, Balow is a member of the State Board of Education. "And certainly as a board member she can do that," board member Scotty Ratliff said. "But I think usually if somebody is going to speak for the board, they would involve the board in what they were doing." Ratliff said he felt betrayed by Balow. Gosar said if the board had "known before doing budgeting that this was on the table, we would have made some other decisions. This position is that important." Shanor said Balow did recommend eliminating two other unrelated positions within the agency but the board's coordinator job was not among them. The board coordinator is under the purview of the board, not the Wyoming Department of Education, which Balow administers, he said. "For the board, this position is one position that's very important to them, but for us we're looking at funding students, funding teachers, funding our department and this is one that we had identified as being a duplication of effort," Shanor said. Education Department spokeswoman Kari Eakins said the board coordinator is among a number of jobs that may be cut "without a recommendation from us." "Obviously there's a disconnect with how the State Board sees that as having happened," Eakins said. Gosar said lawmakers were still discussing what to do with the job during their budget negotiations. Manoj Bajpayees Aligarh, based on the life of gay professor Ramchandra Siras, is releasing this Friday. Aligarh comes at a time when the country is witnessing a strong surge in support of radical right-wing voices. Other voices are confronting their fundamentalist approach with everything they have got. In such a scenario, it is very likely that Aligarh will attract the wrath of people who still dont believe that the LGBTs even exist. Even in Bollywood, the acceptance of gays has been slow to come. In fact, it is still a long way before they will be featured as normal characters. Thanks to filmmakers such as Onir and Hansal Mehta, Bollywood has come to accept homosexuality as a serious mainstream theme. Some of the well-known filmmakers in the industry were otherwise interested only in the funny portrayal of gay people. They never realised the magnitude of damage they caused through such films and characters. Read: Heres why its ok to show Aligarh to your teenage children Read: The makers of Aligarh talk about creating films with a conscience Hollywood woke up to this idea in films such as Manhattan Parade and Morocco in the beginning of the 30s, but here, in India, we were mostly recreating the mythological texts, and that ensured a backseat for homosexuality as a subject for many more years to come. It was indeed a slow process in Hollywood but homosexual as a term was in use since 1887 and, in fact, gay was already there in the 1939 film Bringing Up Baby. In Bollywood, some film scholars have read films like Dosti (1964) and Sangam (1964) in a completely different light. They did bring out the possibility of an intimate relationship between two male leads, but the presence of a heroine dramatically diluted the idea for the common viewers. It was an expected reaction for a country which viewed same-sex couples as culprits, and they do so even now,. Even the law of the land said so. Aligarh trailer has been given the A certificate by the Censor Board. (YouTube) The situation remained the same till Deepa Mehtas Fire (1996) even though some filmmakers kept featuring gay characters in between, but no serious intentions were shown to make it a notice-worthy plot point. Despite Fires wide distribution, for the majority of the Indian cine-goers homosexuality was still a taboo subject. Interestingly, Raja Hindustani, which released in the same year as Fire, had a queer character. Like their predecessors, these characters were expected to evoke laughter. It was a trend that directors kept repeating year after year with the same formula: having a gay character with weird sexual fantasies and whos attracted towards the hero. So much so that it became a complete joke with the release of Tarun Mansukhanis Dostana (2008). Read: I proudly demand my script in Hindi, says Manoj Bajpayee Read: The brilliance of Manoj Bajpayee: With Aligarh, hell redefine himself Thanks to Onir, who understood the need for a serious debate, that we saw films like My Brother Nikhil (2005) and I Am (2010). It was already more than 90 years after Raja Harischandra, Indias first full-length feature film. Things began to change a little, and social movements started to influence people outside the community in the first decade of the new millennium. However, there was still a lot to be done. Watch: Manoj Bajpayee in the trailer of Aligarh Surprisingly, the likes of Student Of The Year, Girlfriend and Dunno Y Naa Jaane Kyun are in the public memory than better films made on the same subject. On the social front, the lack of empathy kept killing people: Siras died in 2010. Its been five years since Sirass death, but has Bollywood, and for that matter have we as a society, changed much? Have we become more understanding of the needs and aspirations of the sexual minorities? It is hard to say as the Censor Board still seems to have a lot of problems with films based on homosexuality. Follow @htshowbiz for more. Bollywood actor Vidyut Jamwal, who is gearing up for the release of his upcoming action film Commando 2, recently said that he doesnt regret rejecting Salman Khans hit Prem Ratan Dhan Payo. He, however, expressed his desire to work with the Dabangg actor. I dont regret not doing Prem Ratan Dhan Payo but I wanted to work with Salman Khan. I would have done the film if I would not have been preparing for Commando 2, the 35-year-old actor said while addressing the media on the location of his film. Read: Vidyut Jamwal ready to be typecast as an action hero Read: Prem Ratan Dhan Payo review Commenting on the ongoing protests by members of the Jat community demanding reservation in government jobs, Vidyut urges them not to get influenced by emotions. I think that more than emotions, our Jat brothers should apply their mind. We can be provoked too. They should use their heart and brain, he added. Vote for #HTOscars The literary arena in Pakistan is witnessing a change. With packed festivals attracting tens of thousands in a rock concert-like atmosphere that defies security threats in a growing cultural renaissance. Events such as the raucous Lahore Literary Festival, held over the weekend, are reclaiming the cultural space that has shrunk significantly in the conservative Muslim nation in recent years amid a raging Islamist insurgency. The festivals -- platforms for all forms of cultural expression, from architecture to film to food writing and feminism, as well as poetry and a recital by Central Asian musicians -- are becoming a forum for exchange of liberal thought across the Muslim world. Its great -- one of the saddest things when you keep talking about Islam, the Muslims, the Ummah (the brotherhood of Muslim countries) is we dont know what their writers are, we dont know what their stories are, said Mohammed Hanif, whose internationally renowned 2008 novel A Case of Exploding Mangoes weaves a dark comedic narrative around the death of dictator Zia ul Haq. And there is very little that gets translated from these languages. So its great to have Palestinian writers, Egyptian writers, he told AFP at the Lahore festival. The event began with an interview with veteran Indian actress Sharmila Tagore, who received a standing ovation after discussing her storied career in Bengali and Bollywood cinema. She hailed the cross-pollination of artists across the two rival countries borders as an important part of cultural diplomacy. Other top-billed speakers included outspoken Egyptian-American feminist Mona Eltahawy -- whose vociferous denunciations of patriarchy and the politics of the hijab gave the festival some of its most energetic and controversial moments. The Lahore festivals fourth edition glossed over a last-minute change of venue due to security fears and brought together writers and artists from across the region. (AFP) When we talk about the Global South, when we talk about women of colour, the issues that we talk about... its very important for me to be able to come to Lahore and say, Look, the issues that I have written about in my book are very similar to issues in Pakistan that feminists are fighting over, she told AFP. I want to talk about how as Muslim women we are reduced to whats on our heads and whats in between our legs and I want to talk about the sexual revolution. Pakistan opens its doors Critics say successive Pakistani governments, influenced by the religious right, have done little to encourage artistic expression or have even curtailed it -- including banning Lahores spring kite-festival of Basant in 2007, which Islamists accuse of propagating Hindu thought. Read: Permission for Lahore Lit Fest withdrawn over security concerns But overall levels of violence have fallen in the past two years as the army has stepped up its campaign in the Talibans border tribal regions. The Lahore festivals fourth edition glossed over a last-minute change of venue due to security fears and brought together writers and artists from across the region. It came hard on the heels of a similar festival in Karachi and ahead of one in Islamabad. Organisers estimated around 100,000 people attended in an almost Glastonbury-like atmosphere. Sharmila Tagore at the Lahore Literary Festival in Lahore. (AFP) The show must go on in spite of all the odds, the festivals CEO and founder Razi Ahmed told AFP. Its important to reflect to the wider world that were not a country which is closing its doors but were opening space that is going to allow us avenues for free thought and critical inquiry. Pakistani authors have garnered increasing international attention in recent years, particularly those writing in English like Hanif and Mohsin Hamid. His novel The Reluctant Fundamentalist -- the fictional story of a disaffected Pakistani-Americans journey towards extremism -- became a hit film in 2012. Closer to home are newer works like Saba Imtiazs Karachi, Youre Killing Me! about a tenacious reporter looking for love as she works her beat covering extremist attacks -- a sort of Pakistani Bridget Jones. Despite the cultural revival, the Islamist insurgency that has racked the country for more than a decade is still underway. But Lahore has long captured the imagination of writers -- from Britains Rudyard Kipling to revolutionary poets like Habib Jalib. Festival founder Ahmed said he hoped it would continue to do so. Lahore is a global site of ideas, he told AFP. We are trying to reclaim that. The only evidence against JNU students union leader Kanhaiya Kumar, according to the DCPs report accessed by HT, is the Zee News video clipping and statements of eyewitnesses who claim to have seen him during the protest. The authenticity of the footage is under scrutiny, given that a journalist from the channel resigned accusing it of running the clipping where neither the words Pakistan Zindabad were audible, nor Kanhaiyas face was visible. In one section of the report section titled Evidence so far against Kanhaiya Kumar, DCP (South) Prem Nath said the first evidence against Kanhaiya was a TV clip from Zee News. Presence of Kanhaiya has been found along with the group shouting anti-national/constitutional slogans in the video footage obtained from Zee news channel, reads the report. Evidence number 2 in the report, the DCP mentions, is the statement of eyewitnesses, who have claimed to have seen Kanhaiya at the Sabarmati hostel and the Ganga dhaba from where the protest rally was organised. Evidence number 3, according to the officer, is the statement of eyewitnesses who have claimed to have seen Kanhaiya asking security personnel to remove students from the front and allow the procession to march ahead which was followed by jostling and heckling, thus creating a law and order problem. The final evidence mentioned in the report is the prima facie report of JNUs internal inquiry committee following which Kanhaiya and eight others have been suspended. Quoting the report, the officer has said that the organisers had lied to the university authorities by claiming that they were organising a cultural meet while the objective was to hold a political rally. Slogans raised In the report, the students have been accused of shouting anti-India and inflammatory slogans but the slogans mentioned in police report do not include the words Pakistan Zindabad. The students were booked for sedition on the basis of a news channel footage where they were supposedly heard shouting Pakistan Zindabad, among other slogans. The police report does not match with the footage shown by the channel. In the FIR, police on the basis of the footage had accused students of shouting Pakistan Zindabad. Legal experts believe that the case against the students could fall apart if the footage was found to be doctored. A journalist who resigned from Zee News had alleged in his resignation letter that when they first saw the footage of the clipping in office, the newsroom was divided and unsure if the footage had the slogan Pakistan Zindabad. According to the contents of the report, the students have been accused of shouting 28 slogans such as Afzal Guru, Maqbool Bhatt Zindabad, Kashmir ki Azaadi tak jung rahegi, Bharat ki Barbadi tak jung rahegi, Go India go back, Indian Army Murdabad, Kitne Afzal marogey har ghar se Afzal niklega, Bandook ke dum pe lengay azadi. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON A 60-year-old man has been arrested for making two hoax calls, threatening to blow up the New Delhi railway station and the IGI airport. The accused, Mohrram Ali, had threatened that he would trigger the bombs if the police did not release JNU students union leader Kanhaiya Kumar. Investigations revealed that Mohrram had tried to frame one of his relatives in the case. Police said that on Friday morning they received a call threatening to blow up the airport. A police team assigned to probe the identity of the caller was alarmed when they traced the location of the caller to the airport itself. Police said that the top brass was informed after which a high level meeting was held. We activated our security drills swiftly. The bomb detection team also conducted checks and a meeting of the Bomb Threat Assessment Committee was held. The caller had switched off his phone. After all the standard checks, the call was declared as a hoax and a case was registered at the IGI police station, said DCP (Airport) DK Gupta. During investigation police found that a call had been made from the same number threatening to blow the New Delhi railway station two hours before the airport threat call. DCP Gupta said that the police team traced the owner of the SIM card to one Mujahid Ali who denied making the calls. Police then contacted the shopkeeper from whom the SIM card had been purchased. The shopkeeper told police that Mohrram had purchased the SIM in Alis name after claiming that Ali was unwell. Mohraam was then arrested. During interrogation, Mohrram confessed that his daughter had married Alis son and the couple had a strained relationship. He believed that Ali was the reason for the problems in his daughters marriage. He had also had a scuffle with Ali because of which he had to serve time in prison. He, hence, wanted to frame Ali and made the two hoax calls, DCP DK Gupta said. A 30-year-old man was allegedly shot dead by a gym instructor in south Delhis Vasant Kunj following an argument over loud music played by the accused, police said on Wednesday. Police said the victim, identified only as Hardeep, was shot dead inside his rented apartment on Tuesday night by the gym instructor. He was hit by one bullet on his stomach. The accused, identified as 27-year-old Rinku, and two of his friends are absconding. Hardeep was working as the editor of a journal published by the Inter-University Accelerator Center, a research institute run by the University Grants Commission (UGC). He was earlier associated with a private TV channel, a police official said. Rinku was reportedly drinking with his friends and playing loud music. When Hardeep went to the gym asking them to end the party or at least lower the volume, Rinku got angry and started abusing Hardeep, the official said. Hardeep left after threatening to report the matter to the residents welfare society. Police added that Rinku and two of his friends went to Hardeeps room and asked him to come out and settle the matter. Rinku started kicking the door, threatening to break in. When Hardeep opened the door, the two had an argument followed by a scuffle. Hardeep was pushed to the ground, kicked and punched several times. Rinku then whipped out a pistol and fired at Hardeep, the officer said. Hardeeps friend tried to overpower Rinku and his friends but they escaped after threatening to shoot him too. Police said the friend took Hardeep to a hospital on an auto-rickshaw after police allegedly did not respond to a call. Authorities at the hospital informed us about the bullet injury and our team then went to the hospital to examine the case. On the statement of Hardeeps friend, a case of murder has been registered and a hunt to nab the accused is on, an investigator said. A separate inquiry will be initiated to see why the PCR did not reach the spot despite a call from Hardeeps friend, he added. :Stray dogs can be used by terrorists to launch fidayeen attacks on the Delhi airport, authorities have said. In a communication to the South Delhi Municipal Corporation, the Delhi International Airport Limited has asked the civic body to relocate all stray dogs that roam around near terminal areas of the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport. The letter comes in the wake of a terror attack on the air force base in Pathankot. a trend wherein dogs have been used to explode the explosive devices at public areas, the letter says, referring to the potential danger posed by canines. The airport authorities, however, could not be contacted for comments despite repeated attempts. As per the policy, the civic body only sterilises stray dogs and then releases them back in the areas they are picked up from. Though the total number of strays in the Capital is not known, a conservative estimate puts their numbers at around 400,000, sources said. The IGI airport has been battling the problem of stray dogs for the past some time. DIAL had written to the SDMC earlier too, complaining of a group of stray dogs that target passengers as soon as they step out of Terminal 3 or Terminal 1. The airport officials had said it not only posed a threat to passenger safety but also tarnished the image of the airport. When a passenger is bitten by a dog, we cannot tell him/her that dog is sterilised or not. The passengers blame the airport staff and some even threaten to sue us, said an airport official. Municipal officials said they had received the letter from the department of landside operations for DIAL and they sought suggestions from the Animal Welfare Board of India. The Animal Birth Control (Dogs) rules 2001 dont allow us to relocate dogs in any circumstances. The law only permits us to sterilise dogs, keep them till they heal and then release in the same locality from where they were picked up. Since the matter concerns national security we have sought advice from the Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI) in the matter, said a senior municipal official. The AWBI officials said they are bound by the law and relocation of the strays may not be possible at this juncture. They said the authority was trying to a scientific way out of the problem. In the context of security threats, the dogs on airport premises have to be removed. Although at the same time, those outside cant be removed or relocated. The only permitted way to deal with them is to sterilise them, which would bring down the population over a period of time and hence solve the problem systematically, said Major General (Retd) RM Kharb, AVSM, chairman, Animal Welfare Board of India. Just when Delhi was slowly beginning to tide over a crippling water shortage triggered by the damage to the Munak canal by Jat protestors in Haryana, the rising pollution level in one of the water reservoirs is threatening to aggravate the crisis in the capital. After a day of decent water supply, the Delhi Jal Board fears the crisis may return with ammonia levels in the Wazirabad pond expected to rise. It appealed to residents of north and central Delhi to save water for Thursday. The board suspects that Drain 8, which supplies water to the Wazirabad pond, is being contaminated by sewer water because of which the pollution level is rising. The Wazirabad pond supplies water to the Wazirabad, Chandrawal and Okhla water treatment plants, which have an output of 340 million gallons every day. The Capital has been grappling with a severe water crisis for the last four days, ever since Jat protesters demanding quota in government jobs, damaged the Munak Canal in Haryana. Read: Water crisis: Delhiites drink dirty water, sometimes steal for survival The DJB said the damage to the canal was extensive and would take at least 15 days to repair. Debris was cleared from the damaged part on Wednesday. Delhi gets 60% of its water from Haryana. Dwarka, which has been surviving on water tankers for the past three days, is likely to see piped water supply in the morning. Tankers diverted from different areas will now supply water to Dwarka. From Wednesday, Dwarka will get water every alternate day, said DJB chairperson, Kapil Mishra. Water tankers made 900 trips across the city on Wednesday. All, but one, of Delhis nine water treatment plants were working on Wednesday evening. The Dwarka Water Treatment Plant, with a capacity of 80 MGD, was the only one not functional. On Wednesday, water was supplied to several parts of the Capital for the first time in three days. Though Dwarka continued to be serviced only by tankers, other parts of west Delhi received some water on Wednesday evening. In the morning, residents of west Delhi claimed that water had been supplied for around 15 minutes. The water, however, was very dirty and could not be used. Central and north Delhi got water for around 30 minutes in the morning. On a normal day, Delhi distributes 900 million gallons of water daily. On Wednesday, more than 700 MGD was made available in the evening. Wednesday continued to witness long lines wherever the tankers went, with residents of Dwarka and west Delhi queuing up and filling water in any utensil they could find. The worst affected areas - Bindapur, Kerala, Janakpuri, Dwarka and Rohini are expected to see some relief in the form of piped supply and tankers on Thursday. While the Centre is grappling with a crisis in JNU, which it brought on itself through bad handling, and earlier had to tackle violent protests by Jats in Haryana, newer challenges are on the horizon. Jihadi groups are ramping up their anti-Indian rhetoric; these are usually construed as a portent of more violence or an indication that the Pakistani establishment is unwilling or unable to confront terrorist organisations that target India. The Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) chief, Hafiz Saeed, praised the Pathankot attack this month and warned there could be more. Perhaps in line with this, Indian security forces battled terrorists at Pampore in Kashmir in a gun battle lasting nearly 50 hours. Three army commandos, including two captains, and two CRPF personnel were killed during the assault operation. The JuD, which calls itself a charitable organisation and disavows any links with the Lashkar-e-Taiba, has notably praised the Pampore attack and castigated Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif for his promise to act on terrorists targeting India. India and Pakistan will be treading in delicate terrain in the days ahead. PM Sharifs advisor Sartaj Aziz indicated in an interview that national security advisors of both countries were in regular touch about the way forward. The future depends on how both sides handle bureaucratic reservations and charged public opinion. As a confidence-building measure, Islamabad has put Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Maulana Masood Azhar under protective custody since January 14, but a first information report filed on the Pathankot attack does not name any individual and it fails to mention a terrorist organisation. Islamabad plans to send a special investigation team to India by early March, according to Aziz, to assemble evidence and build the case against the perpetrators. There is no agreement yet on the terms of reference for the SIT and both sides may yet bicker on the access that visitors will get here. It remains to be seen if New Delhi has the appetite to engage Pakistan without discernible progress on the Pathankot investigation, particularly when the BJPs constituency and a section of urban audiences are caught up in hypernationalist fervour following the sedition row at Jawaharlal Nehru University. The Centre needs to find a way to balance its domestic political calculation with the imperatives of making bilateral progress, by taking the opportunities that Sharif affords. It also needs to factor in the costs of Kashmiri alienation, expressed through instances of popular support to militants. What if the medical college you have been admitted to fails to pass inspections by the Medical Council of India? What happens to the students pursuing the tough MBBS courses in such institutes? The attempt by Harsukhdeep Singh to take his life outside the home of the Punjab medical education minister in 2014 went largely unnoticed by the media. He wanted to highlight his problems as well as that of 149 other MBBS batchmates, in Chintpurni Medical College, Pathankot, which was started in 2011. The college failed to get MCIs permission to admit a fresh batch in 2012 because of lack of faculty and clinical facilities. When the college failed the subsequent inspections as well, Singh and other students grew increasingly worried about the status of their degrees. Worried that their qualifications would not be recognised on the right platforms, Singh and his batchmates had filed a petition in the Punjab and Haryana High Court in January 2014 for a valid degree. We came to know that the state government had the power to shift us to other approved colleges. On our plea, court ordered the state government to do so and outline a plan. When the state government came out with the plan, MCI said the state government should first close down the college. Upset with MCIs stand, in January 2016, the high court fined the MCI Rs1 lakh and asked it to clear its stand. The MCI is yet to approve the states plan to shift students and matter is still pending, says a parent of one of the students. Read more: Medical Council makes doctors of those it once rejected And instead of tackling the tough MBBS course the students have been kept busy with court litigation for the last two years. We have skipped our final exam in December 2015 because the degree status is not clear. Most of the students have taken education loans. While the MCI, the state government and Centre are locked in their own battles and the matter is lingering in the court, we are the real sufferers. We got admission after clearing state pre-medical test. Who should I blame for shattering my dreams of becoming a doctor?, asks Singh. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON CHEYENNE, Wyo. Wyoming residents could carry concealed guns into legislative hearings and other meetings of public bodies around the state under a bill that cleared the state House of Representatives on Tuesday. Sponsor Rep. Kendell Kroeker, R-Evansville, has said he wants lawmakers and others who attend public meetings to be able to defend themselves if an armed criminal comes in seeking to do them harm. The House voted down an amendment sponsored by Rep. Charles Pelkey, D-Laramie, that would have allowed local governments to decide not to allow concealed weapons at their meetings. "This is a simple change, it simply moves the decision as to whether or not folks can bring guns into public meetings and government buildings to the local community," Pelkey said. A lawyer, Pelkey noted the state has invested in recent years to enhance courtroom security. Although the bill wouldn't allow people to carry guns into courtrooms, Pelkey said that many courtrooms are in the same buildings as other government offices. Kroeker urged people to vote down Pelkey's proposed amendment. "This is really a huge step backward for gun rights if this amendment passes," he said. Kroeker said it's vital that gun laws remain consistent throughout the state. It would be confusing, he said, to permit a patchwork throughout the state where concealed carry is allowed at some public meetings and prohibited at others. He said people who inadvertently violated prohibitions could find themselves guilty of a felony. Rep. Mark Baker, R-Rock Springs, said he supports local control with the exception of infringing on fundamental rights. "Do the local municipalities want control, and pre-emption, over our First Amendment rights as well?" he asked. The House adopted an amendment proposed by Baker that would allow the owner to forbid the carrying of concealed weapons on their property. House Minority Floor Leader Mary Throne, D-Cheyenne, said cities and towns have had a variety of local ordinances restricting the carrying of guns since statehood. Throne, a lawyer, said she's not aware of any Wyoming Supreme Court case invalidating any of those local ordinances. Said that maintaining local control is constitutional "until someone tells us it's not." The House passed the bill by a vote of 50-to-10. It now goes to the Senate. The House last year approved a bill that would have allowed concealed carry of guns on school campuses and other public buildings, including legislative hearings. The billed died in the Senate. The provisions of opening and running a medical college in India need to be re-examined urgently if the future and careers of thousands of students are to be saved. Whenever a private medical college is opened in India, it has to fulfil first the essentiality criteria which means the area in which it will be set up should require a medical college. The parties wanting to open the college then make an application to the Central government to allow it to admit its first batch. The Central government asks the MCI to conduct inspections and if the college fulfils all norms, MCI recommends that the Central government allow the college to admit its first batch. Annual inspections are then conducted by MCI for four years before it makes a recommendation to award recognition to that college to the Central government. Unfortunately, if the college fails the second and third inspection but passes the fourth, MCI has to recommend to the Centre that the college be recognised and the students be granted valid degrees. So whats the solution for students of a college which fails all fours inspections? According to section 10A of the Indian Medical Council Act, 1956, if a college has admitted one batch and it fails to have facilities for the second batch, the state government will take over the college. Besides this provision in the act, the state government gives an undertaking while issuing essentiality certificate that in case the college fails to create infrastructure as per MCI norms and fresh admissions are stopped by the Centre, the state government shall take over the responsibility of the students already admitted in the college with the permission of the Centre. This is the crux of the whole problem, says a senior doctor and one of the members of MCI. The question is: what will the state do by taking over the college? Ideally it should get the caution money from the MCI which the college has deposited and create its own facilities in the college. Unfortunately, that does not happen. If the state cant create facilities then it can shift students from the college in question to recognised colleges but for that the state has to first close down the college. If thats not done MCI will not allow transfer of students to other colleges, says a medical expert on conditions of anonymity. Read more: My dreams are shattered... who should I blame? Medical experts agree that due to a nexus between promoters of medical colleges and state governments the latter doesnt take a call on closing down the college and the ultimate losers are the students. Why is closing down the college a pre-requisite for shifting students to other colleges? A senior lawyer, who used to appear for MCIs admission matters in the Supreme Court, answers: Lets say that X college has failed to get permission to admit its third batch. Now you want all the students of the first and second batches to be shifted to other colleges and also keep college X running and admitting fresh batches. One should understand that shifting students to other colleges is a big challenge as those colleges will then have to stretch their facilities which impacts studies and training of their own students. And whats the guarantee that X college will improve in the future? By shifting students from X college to other colleges, not only will X college become a liability for other colleges, we will in fact negatively affect the education of the other students. Read more: Medical Council makes doctors of those it once rejected The promoters of these colleges, however, have a different take on the issue. According to them, barring a college from admitting fresh batches actually aggravates the whole situation. Once a college is not granted permission for new batches, its physical strength and manpower deteriorates. Doctors and other employees become insecure and start quitting. Even students get stressed due to uncertainty and their studies go for a toss, says a promoter whose college was not granted permission to admit fresh batch in 2015-16. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON You know what is more scary than winning an award? Giving the perfect thank you speech that follows the exhilaration. And considering how big the Oscars are, the winners speech gets proportionately more important. This year, with Leonardo DiCaprio leading the list of favourites to take home the golden trophy, we cannot wait to hear that perfect speech from him. Its been coming for many years now, and hopefully the wait will end in 2016. Also, the Academy will now have a ticker or a card that will be shown on TV screens that will flash when the artist comes on stage to accept the award. The card will carry the names of the people he wants to thanks, hence cutting out incredibly on the boring part of the speeches. But sure, the pressure is mounting on Leo. So we thought of making his life a little easier, with our list of 10 best, and most important, Oscar speeches over the years. How many have you heard? 1. Ben Affleck and Matt Damon (1998) The two, without doubt among Hollywoods biggest stars, were childhood buddies too. Ben Affleck and Matt Damon sealed their friendship with a joint Oscar for the Best Original Screenplay award for Good Will Hunting in 1998. The 20-somethings, in their youthful enthusiasm, didnt know where to stop in their acceptance speech: They had a tough time recalling all the people they wanted to thank. Just look at them ask each other whos left? whos left like any two regular friends. All the best speeches are ones where the emotions go overboard, and the actors we adore show signs of being regular people like us. 2. Cuba Gooding Jr (1997) Cuba Gooding Jrs is generally accepted as the happiest Oscar speech ever. The Bet Supporting Actor award winner for Jerry McGuire in 1997 begins his act on a calm note. Towards the end, however, he lets go of his emotions, and starts rambling. He keeps chanting on and on about how much he loves everybody. Its amazing how the audience too joins in, and gives him a standing ovation for his honesty. 3. Adrien Brody (2003) Adrien Brody won the Oscar for the Best Actor in 2003 for The Pianist, a heart-wrenching movie. His speech, however, was quite the opposite. As soon as he climbed the stage, Brody gave presenter Halle Berry a big, long kiss and said to her Bet you didnt know that was in the gift bag and later quipped There comes a time where everything seems to make sense. This is not one of those moments and Beside the insomnia and the panic attacks, this has been an amazing, amazing journey. Of course the audience kept rolling with laughter but not for long. They all gave him a standing ovation for his plea to the world to keep peace and end wars. Read: Oscars nominations 2016. Is this finally Leonardo DiCaprios year? 4. Roberto Benigni (1999) He got two awards at the 1999 Oscars. One for Best Foreign Language Film in Italian film Life is Beautiful and another for the Best Actor for the same film. As the former was announced first, he got so incredibly excited, he started jumping off chairs, over the heads of people sitting in the audience and no one seemed to mind it all. He was so ecstatic, he literally couldnt find enough words to express himself. You thought Cuba Gooding Jr was too happy? What do you say now? 5. Marlon Brando (1973) While this one may not be as happy as the ones listed so far, it is definitely the most important. Marlon Brando won the Best Actor Award for The Godfather in 1973 but didnt come to the event to accept it. He instead sent an American Indian woman who let everyone know that Brando is very regretfully rejecting the award to protest how unfairly her community was treated in movies and showbiz. While a lot of booing was heard from the audience, she gave a very gracious speech. We hope Leonardo doesnt have to resort to anything like this. 6. Matthew McConaghuey (2014) McConaghuey won his first Oscar for Dallas Buyers Club in 2014. Yes, Leo too was nominated that night for The Wolf of Wall Street. McConaghueys speech was so well written it seemed like he got a professional to write it for him. It was so eaily flowing and motivated, it could very well be used in confidence building workshops. The best part is how he ends it: With a popular phrase alright, alright, alright and everyone in the audience loses it. 7. Jared Leto (2014) Sometimes, winners are faced with the dilemma whether to thank their loved ones or give more time to talk of the causes they support. Jared Leto managed to strike a perfect balance in his speech when he won the Best Supporting Actor Award for Dallas Buyers Club in 2014. He told the audience about his beautiful mother who went through a lot of struggle very early in life and still managed to raise two great, successful kids. He also mentioned his support to the Ukraine crisis and told them that they are in his thoughts. Well done. 8. Lupita Nyongo (2014) 2014 was a great year for speeches. In this list itself, three out of 10 speeches are from this year. Lupita won the award for Best Supporting Actress for 12 Years A Slave and accepted it so graciously. The best part of her speech was when she said, It doesnt escape me for one moment that so much joy in my life is thanks to so much pain in someone elses. Those words are enough to shed some tears. 9. Meryl Streep (2012) Doesnt she hold a record for this? Yes, Meryl Streep has been nominated as many as 16 times! Meryl is known as a very graceful, contained actor but when she wins the award for Best Actress for The Iron Lady in 2012, she begins her speech with a lot of fake cribbing. She says that everyone must be so pissed that she has won again. She then does something so romantic. She thanks her husband first because when you thank your husband at the end, they play it out with the music. She thanks him as he hold his heart, visibly too emotional at her words. 10. Halle Berry (2002) This one speech is just pure, unbridled emotion. Halle Berry is to date the only black woman to win the Best Actress Oscar and her reaction to the win is just fitting. She won the award in 2002 for her movie Monsters Ball. Tears rolled down her face as she struggled to utter her words of thanks. Maybe we want something similar from Leo as well. Vote for #HTOscars here. Follow @htshowbiz for more. The writer tweets @soumya1405 SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Too many incidents of arson are happening. We need more force to reach spots that have been blocked by rioters. DDPO (District Development and Panchayat officer) sahib said they didnt have manpower. Therefore, we are unable to send fire tenders, reads an entry made on Saturday, February 19 at 5.45pm in the rojnamcha or daily diary kept at the Rohtak fire station. HT reviewed entries made in the daily diary kept at the Rohtak fire station and spoke to firemen deployed at the station to get a glimpse of what exactly happened between February 18 and February 20, when a mob of Jat agitators went on the rampage. The entries made clearly show that the city was at the mercy of rioters on Friday and Saturday when hundreds of shops, showrooms, schools and houses were burnt down. The entries give us a peep into the courage of 72 firemen 44 of who are employed on a contract basis who made optimum use of the 11 fire tenders at their disposal to keep the city safe from more damage. The first entry of fire due to rioting is made in the evening of February 18 when three to four bikes were burnt at Ashoka Chowk. But, all the major incidents of arson took place from February 19 beginning at 4.10pm. For the next one hour, entries show, firemen tried to reach spots from where calls of fire were made but were blocked by protestors. An entry made at 5.40pm mentions that reports of fire from various places in the city are coming. At all places protesters are not allowing any vehicle to pass. Therefore, fire tenders are unable to reach there. Protestors have damaged fire trucks and assaulted firemen. The next entry says aagjani bahut jyada hai (major incidents of fire). We need force but DDPO sahib said they didnt have any force, so we cant send vehicles. At 7.15pm, the sub-divisional officer told them not to send fire tenders without security. At around 10pm, a call was made stating that Hotel Rivoli had been set on fire. But the next entry says that the fire tenders had to come back from midway as protestors blocked their path again. At midnight, a call was made claiming that Haryana cabinet minister Captain Abhimanyus house had been set on to fire. The firemen, however, could get to the spot only by 6.45am as protesters kept pelting stones at them. The next day, as Central forces finally reached the town, the firemen found it easy to reach more areas. Protestors had tried to burn down the Vita milk plant in the city. Ammonia is used in its cooling plant. If fire had reached there, there would have been a explosion. But, we managed to extinguish the fire on time Seven people three females, three kids and a male - were trapped inside a burning house at D Park locality in the city. We managed to bring them out safely too, a fire officer said. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Militant outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba has claimed that the three militants who died in the Pampore gunfight avenged the death of two Kakapora civilians by killing army captain Pawan Kumar. Asif Farooq (20) and Shaista Hameed (22), both students and residents of south Kashmirs Pulwama district, were killed when security forces allegedly fired on a group of protesters near an encounter site in the districts Kakapora area on February 14. One militant died while the other two had escaped. In a statement issued to a Srinagar-based news agency on Tuesday, LeT chief Mehmood Shah said captain Pawan Kumar was responsible for the killings of the two Kakapora residents. Militants have paid back by avenging their deaths, he said In the 48 hour Pampore gunfight that ended on February 22, three militants, three army men, two CRPF personnel and one civilian had died, including Captain Pawan Kumar who was an elite para commando. Shah also paid tributes to the three slain militants. Due to precious sacrifices of these militants the sun of freedom will definitely rise in Kashmir. Frustration (has) dawned upon thousands of Indian troopers due to valiant show displayed by three militants, he said. During Pampore gun fight it seemed that whole Kashmir nation was up in arms against India, said Shah. A BJP legislator who claimed to have found 3,000 used condoms on the Jawaharlal Nehru University campus may land in further controversy after purported photographs emerged on Wednesday showing him dancing with women and showering them with money. HT couldnt independently verify the authenticity of the photos -- sourced from local politicians -- but the Congress attacked Gyan Dev Ahuja over the images that appeared to have been taken during Lohri celebrations in 2015. Some photos also showed him wearing a garland made up of 500 notes. Watch | #BJPcountscondoms MLA caught in controversy Hundreds of social media users ridiculed Ahuja after the Ramgarh MLA accused JNU students of misdeeds with our sisters and daughters, saying more than 10,000 cigarette butts, 4,000 beedis, 50,000 bone pieces, 2,000 wrappers and 3,000 used condoms were found on the campus. The ensuing Twitter storm, where several hashtags critical of the BJP trended for hours, prompted BJP chief Amit Shah to summon the 65-year-old to Delhi. But Ahuja rejected the reports and said he had no information of being called to Delhi, even as more purported videos and photos of his past flooded social media. He said it was a pity the media had forgotten the traitors of the country and was focusing too much on his comment without understanding its basic spirit. The Opposition wasnt impressed with Congress leader Shafia Zubair former Zila Pramukh of Alwar district where Ramgarh is located leading party workers in burning Ahujas effigy. If effigy burning doesnt mend his mind, we will call him to a stage and set him on fire, she said. She also plans to file a writ petition against Ahuja in a Rajasthan court for his comment demeaning the student community at JNU, where her elder student had studied. Ahuja has been associated with the RSS since 1958 and has been a member of the ABVP, Hindu Jagran Manch and Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh. According to the Rajasthan assembly website, his educational qualification is BA (Ist year) and occupation is journalism. The two-term MLA won from Ramgarh for the first time in 1998, lost in 2003 but hasnt been defeated since. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON A day after the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Soni Sori was shifted to Delhi for treatment after being attacked by unidentified men in strife-torn Dantewada district, south Chhattisgarh, the government decided to provide her Y category security blanket. However Sori, who has been admitted in the intensive care unit (ICU) in Delhi hospital, has refused to accept Chattisgarh governments offer. The press statement issued by the state police headquarter on Tuesday said keeping in view the incident encountered by Soni Sori and to ensure her security, the state government has taken a decision to provide her with a Y category security. Soon she will given the full component of the Y - category security cover, the release added. Policemen went to her place at Geedam (Dantewada) today to inform the family about the security. But Soni Sori has out-rightly rejected the security blanket offered. She is in ICU. This is an attempt by the state to put her under surveillance through the security, the Chhattisgarh AAP convener Sanket Thakur told Hindustan Times. Soris only concern remains the safety of her three school going children the eldest daughter is appearing in the board exam of Class 10, Thakur said. According to the doctors attending her, the Haemoglobin count has gone down and single unit of blood was donated to her on Tuesday. She will be in the ICU for another four days. I donated the blood to her, Thakur said. On a day when human rights lawyers were evicted from Jagdalpur, unidentified men smeared black chemical liquid on Soris face on Saturday night. The incident took place at Geedam when the tribal leader was returning to Dantewada from Jagdalpur. Following the incident, Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal demanded the immediate arrest of culprits. AAP in Chhattisgarh cited that the attack was an attempt to terrorise and force her (Soni Sori) to leave Bastar. She has raised the issue of fake encounters and the high-handedness of the forces. The Supreme Court has said it will lay down guidelines for action against people damaging public property during protests, saying rioters cannot hold the country to ransom. The courts observation comes at a time when large-scale violence in Haryana during the Jat agitation for reservation has left 28 people dead, destroyed businesses, ruined livelihoods and damaged property. Delhi is still reeling under a crisis brought on by the protesters damaging the Munak canal, one of the main sources of water for the Capital. The country cannot be held to ransom. You cannot burn the countrys or its citizens property, a bench headed by justice JS Khehar said on Wednesday. The court was hearing the bail plea of Gujarats Patidar leader Hardik Patel, spearheading an agitation for his community of Patels to be given the Other Backward Classes status that would get them reservation in jobs and colleges. Patel has been charged with sedition for allegedly egging on the members of his community to kill policemen during the agitation marred by rioting and violence. We must take a call on the issue and we would frame guidelines for taking action against people indulging in such acts, the bench said. Whether it is BJP or Congress or any other organisation, they must realise that they can be held accountable for the damage to the public property. Fixing Thursday for the hearing, the court asked the governments top legal officer attorney general Mukul Rohatgi to appear in the matter. Rohatgi opposed the plea for quashing sedition case against the 22-year-old Patidar leader. Taking note of large scale violence during a Gujjar agitation for affirmative action, the court in 2009 issued a set of norms including making rioters pay for damage to property, holding protest leaders responsible for such losses and laying down stringent condition for bail to rioters. The court had left it to appropriate authorities to implement the norms. It, however, did ask the government to take into consideration suggestions made by its two panels while framing laws. The courts Wednesdays decision also mirrors the concern of industry. According to industry body ASSOCHAM, Haryana suffered a loss of about R20,000 crore due to the quota stir called off recently after the government gave into the Jat communitys demand. Apart from destruction of property, industrial production also took a hit. Rail and road traffic was paralysed for days, leaving thousands of people stranded. Buses, trucks, cars and railways stations were set on fire during the two-week agitation, which, according to the states top police officer, left 28 people dead and 200 injured. The court did not make a reference to the Jat protest but expressed concern over the breakdown of law and order during such agitations. The country must know what the consequences are, it said. During the brief hearing, Rohtagi told the court that the Gujarat Police had already filed a charge sheet in the case. They have accused Patel of instigating the community members to kill policemen and adopt violent ways to wage war against Gujarat government. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON The Samajwadi Party (SP) the ruling party in Uttar Pradesh has decided to raise the issues of protecting cows and cleaning up the Ganga prominently in its bid to counterbalance the Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) in the Hindi heartland. To begin with Shivpal Yadav, UP irrigation minister and party president Mulayam Singh Yadavs younger brother, met Hindu saints in Haridwar in Uttarakhand on Monday and later discussed strategy with party leaders in Dehradun on Wednesday. Gai aur Ganga koi unkee akele ke hain kya? (Does the cow and the Ganga belong to them alone (BJP)? Shivpal Yadav said while replying to Hindustan Times query. The powerful state minister said his party will soon start mobilising people on protecting cows and the Ganga, which originates from Gangotri in Uttarakhand and flows till the Bay of Bengal and is considered sacred by millions of Hindus in the country. The party has a following among minorities in UP. However, in the last few months as the debate on banning beef was raging, some of the SP leaders including cabinet minister Azam Khan, Rajya Sabha MP Munnavar Salim and Mulayams daughter-in-law Aparna spoke against cow killing. Cow is treated as the mother in many parts of the country and we are no different, Shivpal said. He claimed during his two-day visit to Uttarakhand he met several saints and they have given him blessings. The saints are with us in our mission (to clean Ganga and save cows), he added. The SP seems to be working on a similar direction, considering the fact that UP goes to polls next year, as the Narendra Modi government whose ambitious Namami Ganga project is also aimed at cleaning the Ganga. On Tuesday, Yadav laid the foundation stone for developing Shiv-Ki-Pauri on the banks of Ganga in Haridwar. Some of the Ganga canals in Uttarakhand are still under the control of UP irrigation department and the upcoming project will come up on the states property. During the programme, Yadav was joined by some saints including Chidanand Muni, head of Rishikesh-based Parmarth Niketan. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON As the tempers soar between the NDA and the Opposition over the death of a Dalit scholar in Hyderabad University and the Jawaharlal Nehru University row, there has been intense debate over what should be the text of the motion to discuss these issues. The Lok Sabha is yet to finalize the motion of the debate, sources told HT. While Left and some other parties have demanded discussions on the JNU and Rohith Vemula issue in the context of ultra-nationalism or fake nationalism, a section of the BJP wants the debate to focus on the rise of anti-national forces. Meanwhile, the government has also accepted the Oppositions demand that not only the human resource minister Smriti Irani, but home minister Rajnath Singh too, must reply to the debate. The JNU controversy, where the Opposition had slammed the government over the controversial sedition charges against some students, will come up for discussions in the Lower House on Wednesday. The Rajya Sabha, on Wednesday, will debate the JNU and Hyderabad university issue under the motion to raise a discussion on the situation arising in the Central Institutions of higher education with specific reference to Jawaharlal Nehru University and University of Hyderabad. While the different parties are keeping their powders dry for the debate in the afternoon, Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati may move a separate motion on Tuesday morning to specifically focus on the death of Dalit scholar Rohith Vemulla in Hyderabad University. Mayawati, with an eye on her core vote base, want to use the opportunity to consolidate her position in the Dalit vote bank. The aftermath of the violent Jat agitation left people in Rohtak counting their losses on Tuesday the loss of trust perhaps outweighing any other as the town hesitantly inched towards normalcy. Rohtak, the epicentre of the agitation, witnessed hundreds of incidents of arson and looting during the protests, hurting ordinary victims livelihood and leaving them emotionally scarred. We want weapon licences as we now know the administration will not come to our help. We have to defend ourselves, Gulshan Dang, president of the district traders union, said. Dang and fellow traders have been on a dharna for the past two days asking the state government to immediately compensate them for losses suffered during the agitation. According to our estimates, in Rohtak alone 400 shops were looted and then set on fire. Around half a dozen schools were also burnt down. In some cases, their buses as well. Four car showrooms were also targeted with more than 3,000 new and old vehicles in them burnt down. The city is shut for the past five days, Dang told HT. Read: Jat stir damage to Munak canal highlights Delhis water vulnerability Monica Narang, who works with a local news channel, said she was scared at night even within the confines of her house. She lives in the Camp area of the town which saw heavy arson and looting. Our boys were keeping a watch on the rioters at night, Narang said. Rohtak, the epicentre of the agitation, witnessed hundreds of incidents of arson and looting during the protests, hurting ordinary victims livelihood and leaving them emotionally scarred. (Ravi Choudhary/ Hindustan Times) Not far from where Dang and fellow traders sat on a dharna, a sit-in protest of Jats was on in front of Maharishi Dayanand University. Jats didnt burn down shops. There were a few bad elements from outside who did all this, Ram Rishi, a Jat from a nearby village, said. Rishi and a fellow protester showed a list of names of those dead or injured in the protest. Eight people were already dead of gunshots when brought here. One person died in hospital. We will sit here till all the dead are cremated and the injured discharged, Rishi said. In the list of the dead and the injured, the names of Jats were marked. Asked about the trust deficit between Jats and other communities due to their protest, Rishi said with time the spirit of brotherhood would come back. At the moment, that appears difficult. Jat protesters targeted properties of Punjabis, Banias and Sainis only. It will be difficult for us to trust them again, Rakesh Saini, a Rohtak native, said standing in front of one of the burnt schools. Read: Burnt your own home! Chess champ-writers video on Jat stir viral SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON The NDA government appointed three retired civil servants as information commissioners on Wednesday, making it the first time that the transparency watchdog will have the full complement of the chief and 10 information commissioners. This will also be the first time that all the information commissioners except a law professor are from the government or the public sector. An official announcement on Thursday named former IAS officers, Bimal Julka and Amitava Bhattacharyya and a retired IPS officer Divya Prakash Sinha. Julka had retired as information & broadcasting secretary, Bhattacharyya was chairman of the Staff Selection Commission and Sinha, a counter-terror veteran was secretary (security) at the Cabinet Secretariat. The three information commissioners will hold the posts till they turn 65. Right from 2005 when the commission was set up under the right to information law, the CIC has lived with vacancies as part of an unwritten, and unspoken strategy within the civil service to bring about a situation where the panel was overburdened. This ensured that appeals over a period of time take a long time to be heard... reducing the commissions effectiveness, and nuisance value, a government officer who was closely associated with the appointment process in the past told Hindustan Times. The vacancy also gave the government elbow room to accommodate an influential official after retirement. For instance, the CIC had started out with five commissioners in 2005. By 2008, it had eight. In 2011, there were as few as five and in 2012, there were only seven of them. But the credit for this record does not entirely go to the government; it was RTI activists such as Lokesh Batra and RK Jain, who had moved the court against the vacancies. At its last hearing, the court gave the government six weeks to complete the selection process. Last weeks meeting of the selection committee that rejected Delhi Police Commissioner Bhim Sain Bassis claim was timed to enable the government to comply with the apex courts deadline that ends this week. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON An emotionally charged war of words between an assertive BSP supremo Mayawati and an unrelenting HRD minister Smriti Irani marked the washout of proceedings in the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday. The trigger was the suicide of Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula, with BSP members accusing the government of being anti-Dalit and anti-Ambedkar and Mayawati dubbing the incident an insult to 25 crore Dalits. The BSP leader sought the governments response on her demand for the resignation of two Union ministers allegedly linked to the suicide and on whether the inquiry commission probing Vemulas suicide would have a Dalit member. A sharp exchange of words between the BSP leader and Irani followed, but Mayawati was unyielding. She pinned the blame for Vemulas suicide on the governments anti-Dalit outlook and said the death was a consequence of the BJP at the Centre forcing the right-wing ideology of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) on students. Read: Budget Session Day 2: Are you with Afzal Guru? BJP asks Rahul Even when Irani accused the BSP of politicising Vemulas death and retorted who uses a child as a political tool who uses a child for their own political profit who uses a dead child to play as a political strategy? Mayawati remained steadfast that the discussion would commence only when she got her answer. The BSP leader demanded the dismissal of Irani and Bandaru Dattatreya, accusing them of abetting the suicide. Her persistence led Irani to say, I am ready to reply to all questions. First you allow the discussion... You are senior to me. You are a woman. If you want, I am ready to reply. If you are not satisfied with my reply, I am ready to behead myself and lay my head at your feet. Read: Govt will not let me speak because they are scared: Rahul Gandhi Mayawati, preparing to fight a difficult electoral battle in the upcoming UP state assembly elections, was unsparing of the Congress-led UPA as well, accusing them of being no better than the RSS-BJP combine when it came to oppression of Dalits. BSP members forced several adjournments in the pre-lunch session. The JDUs KC Tyagi set off an uproar with a reference to Irani that was later expunged. The CPI(M)s Sitaram Yechury echoed Mayawatis views on the RSS making inroads into campuses and took potshots at the government for not responding to Opposition queries on Vemulas death. The House was adjourned for the day after assurances from deputy chairman PJ Kurien and minister of state for parliamentary affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi that Irani would respond to Mayawatis question after the conclusion of the discussion on Thursday. The violent quota stir by Jats that kept Haryana on the boil for a week has cast a shadow on the first mega investment summit planned by the state next month. With chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar busy dealing with the agitation with the help of army and paramilitary forces, investor-wooing has taken a back seat. The CM was scheduled to hold a roadshow in Bengaluru, known as the Silicon Valley of India, on Tuesday to reach out to business honchos of the city and promote his state as an investment destination before the three-day summit, but he pulled out of the event to deal with the unprecedented crisisalso, his first serious political challenge that has singed the state. Khattar chose to travel to Rohtak, the Jat agitations epicentre, where he had to face heckling and was shown black flags by traders and businessmen whose properties were set ablaze by rampaging mobs in the past week. While principal secretary, industries, Devender Singh is stationed in the stir-hit Sonepat as special officer for ensuring peace and order in the area, a team of officers, including Haryana State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation (HSIIDC) managing director Sudhir Rajpal, was sent for the last of the five roadshows held by the state government to interact with heads of domestic and foreign companies. Khattar, his ministers, chief secretary and several top bureaucrats had attended similar roadshows org anised by the state government in Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata in the run-up to Happening Haryana-Global Investors Summit-2016 to be held in Gurgaon on March 7-8. On March 9, Pravasi Haryana Divas will also be organised in the city. Summit to be put off? While the CM is promoting Haryana with peace and order as the calling card, a violent stir that saw attacks on shops and businesses, besides forcing Indias biggest car-maker halt production at one stage due to disruption in the supply of components, was the last thing his government needed at this time. The state, which has been running a high-visibility campaign on both social and traditional media to promote its efforts, could not have got worse publicity with just two weeks to go for the mega event. While government officials are still to fully assess the fallout of the mishappenings in the state on participation in the global investors summit and the pravasi meet, there is already talk that the state government may postpone the three-day event due to the sudden turn of events, depending on how the situation develops from here. There have been suggestions to put off the summit due to the prevailing circumstances. The matter is under discussion. The chief minister will take the final decision on this, a CM aide told Hindustan Times. However, Devender Singh said preparations were on for holding the summit. What happened was a one-off incident. It was not a regular law and order problem. The solution has been found, both politically and administratively, and things sorted out. There should not be any cause of concern for the investors, he said. The state government has requested Prime Minister Narendra Modi to inaugurate the summit, but he is yet to accept it. However, Union minister for roads and transport minister Nitin Gadkari has given his confirmation for the valedictory session. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON The violent Jat quota agitation has revived painful memories of Partition for many people caught in the two conflicts separated by seven decades. At Rohtak, the epicentre of the nine-day-long agitation by Jats demanding reservation in government jobs and educational institutions, people from other communities narrated how agitators unleashed violence and terror in the city, one of the most cosmopolitan urban centres in Haryana. Before the agitation was called off on Monday night, at least 19 people were killed across several district, most of them in firing by security forces trying to quell mobs of protesters running amok. Saanu to ae jaativad hi maar gaya (We have been the victims of casteism, 80-year-old Santosh Chopra said, recalling the bloody days of 1947 when she lost her relative and comparing the Partition with the recent Jat stir, where her kin lost his shop. We were helpless at that time as we watched our neighbours harassing us and we are helpless again as people of our own city robbed our shop and set it ablaze, she added. Santosh is not the only one who sees a similarity between the two. As allegations of selective targeting, violence, fire, robbery and forceful invasions by Jat protesters emerge, Partition survivors said the recent events have revived terrifying memories they have tried to forget. Many said that business establishments of Punjabi and Saini communities were robbed and burned in the past few days. My family stays awake all night. They are traumatised and react to every noise they hear. This reminds me of life after Partition when we stayed awake all night in a vulnerable condition, said Aatam Prakash Soni, 85, who was a zamindar in Multan when India and Pakistan were one country. Soni said his grandsons shop was partially burnt by protesters in Rohtaks Gandhi Camp area, where most of the Punjabi refugees from Pakistan have settled. According to 86-year-old Saindas Lulla, a farmer who migrated to India in 1947, both the incidents robbed people of their source of livelihood. During the Partition, our home in Lahore was snatched before we even realised it. Here, people who lost their shops, their bread and butter, had no clue that their lifetime of effort would be burnt to ashes without any warning. Ramjas Kumar, an 84-year-old retired telephone exchange serviceman, said the recent events once again exposed the lack of unity in his community. The incidents remind us that we lack unity. During Partition we got killed and robbed because we did not unite to fight against the perpetrators. Again, here too we did not unite to fight the people who were robbing our shops and setting them on fire. If we had unity, we could have stopped the bad elements from destructing our city and country. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Two Jawaharlal Nehru University students Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya, facing the charge of sedition, surrendered before the police late on Tuesday night, hours after the Delhi High Court refused to grant them protection from arrest. The duo, who returned to the JNU campus last Sunday after having gone missing since February 12, drove from the administrative bloc to the main gate of the university, got into a Delhi Police vehicle and were taken to an undisclosed destination. According to ANI, Khalid and Bhattacharya were interrogated for five hours. Read more: Umar Khalid, Anirban Bhattacharya surrender to Delhi Police Before interrogation Police should at least verify authenticity of the video clips, Kamini Jaiswal, Umars counsel was quoted as saying by the news agency. NDTV reported that the police drove around for almost 10 km to avoid the media before taking the students to a police station less than a kilometre from the university. The students reached the police station after 2 am. Khalid and Bhattacharya are likely to be produced before a magistrate on Wednesday. Read more: Umar, Anirban placed faith in law, hope will be released soon: JNUSU Khalid and Bhattacharya are among the five students who, along with JNUSU President Kanhaiya Kumar, had allegedly shouted anti-national slogans at an event organized in the university campus to mark the death anniversary of parliament attack convict Afzal Guru on February 9. Read more: Wont hesitate to use options if 5 JNU students dont cooperate: Bassi Besides Kumar, Khalid and Bhattacharya, the other students are Rama Naga, Ashutosh Kumar and Anant Prakash. Delhi Police had issued a look-out notice on February 20 against Khalid, Bhattacharya, Naga, Ashutosh and Prakash. Earlier, Khalid and Bhattacharya left the JNU campus at around 1150 pm tonight for the surrender. The university students formed a human chain to prevent the media from following Khalid and Bhattacharya when they were leaving the campus on Tuesday evening. A leader of the ultra-Leftist Democratic Students Union (DSU), Banojyotsna Lahiri, said they will return soon. There is no need for anyone to be sad as the comrades will come back, she said as DSU members stopped mediapersons from speaking to the Khalid and Bhattacharya. The Delhi Police interrogated Jawaharlal Nehru University students Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya, who have been booked on charges of sedition, in the wee hours on Wednesday and asked them about the sequence of events that took place on February 9. In an interrogation that lasted for almost five hours, the police asked the two about their whereabouts during the incident and also on their alleged raising anti-national sloganeering. Read more: JNU row: Delhi cops interrogate Umar Khalid, Anirban for 5 hours The police also asked Umar about his call detail records. Both Umar and Anirban revealed to the police about their location when they were absconding and also assisted the police in the interrogation. The Delhi Police have made a plan based on which the two would be presented before the Magistrate, ensuring their safety. Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya, who have been booked on charges of sedition, surrendered before the Delhi Police late last night following which they were questioned for at least five hours. Watch | Umar Khalids message just before he surrendered to police Earlier on Tuesday, the Delhi High Court had refused to grant them protection from arrest and told them that they will have to surrender and face the law. The two have been placed under police custody at South Campus police station. A medical check was conducted on both the students in the police station and they were questioned for around five hours. The duo returned to the JNU campus last Sunday after remaining underground since February 12. Khalid and Bhattacharya are among the five students who, along with JNUSU President Kanhaiya Kumar, had allegedly shouted anti-national slogans at an event organized in the university campus on February 9. Besides Kumar, Khalid and Bhattacharya, the other students are Rama Naga, Ashutosh Kumar and Anant Prakash. Delhi Police had issued a look-out notice on February 20 against Khalid, Bhattacharya, Naga, Ashutosh and Prakash. Vikram Chauhan, who led a brazen attack on journalist, JNU students, teachers and JNUSU president Kanhaiya Kumar on two separate occasions inside the Patiala House Court complex within a span of 72 hours, was arrested on Wednesday evening. Chauhan was later let off on bail from the police station itself. Chauhan, the third lawyer to be arrested in the case, had gone to the Tilak Marg police station in the afternoon. He had not responded to the first two summonses. Chauhan, who had been bragging about being patriotic on his Facebook page, urging more to join him to teach the traitors a lesson, had been ignoring repeated summons by the Delhi Police. He is the last to join the investigation into the two cases of violence reported on February 15 and February 17 inside Patiala House court complex. The other two lawyers Om Sharma, arrested on Saturday and Yashpal Singh arrested on Tuesday, were released on bail just hours later. Chauhan came to Tilak Marg police station on Wednesday morning to join the probe. He is being questioned about the two incidents. He has been involved in two cases of rioting, unlawful assembly and voluntarily causing hurt and we are questioning him on the sequence of events of both days. He was asked why he indulged in violence on the two days and why did he mobilise the crowd using his Facebook page if at all, a senior police officer said. Chauhan had issued a statement after his colleague Yashpal Singhs arrest on Tuesday, saying that he would join the probe soon and he was exploring the legal possibilities. Just two days after Chauhan led an attack on Kanhaiya, he was felicitated and garlanded outside by fellow lawyers. He even led a march with 200 lawyers from the Patiala House courts complex to India Gate to condemn anyone who was anti-national. In a sting operation conducted by the India Today news channel, the three have been heard claiming they thrashed Kanhaiya till he wet his pants. The Medical Council of India (MCI) is certifying even those MBBS students who pass out from colleges that have been declared unfit to impart medical education. There are dozens of such newly-opened colleges across the country in which about 10,000 medical students are studying for their MBBS degree despite an acute shortage even the basic facilities. For example, the MCI found that there was a 99% shortage of resident doctors, 57% deficiency of teaching faculty, an absence of major operation on the day of the assessment, bed occupancy of only 10.36%, no patients in the ICU of the NRI Institute of Medical Sciences in Visakhapatnam. The MCI conducts such inspections to check whether it can renew the persmission to institutes to admit fresh batches of students. And the system to recognise medical colleges is very skewed. A newly-opened institute is granted recognition after it has been inspected by MCI for the fourth time and its facilities are found up to the mark even if it failed in the first three inspections. If an institute is declared unfit by the medical education regulator, the state government, as per legal provisions, should take over the institute. It should either create facilities for the students or ensure that they are shifted to other recognised colleges. We are strictly following the provisions of the Indian Medical Council Act, 1956. Unless the state governments close down the colleges which have been declined renewal of permission to admit fresh batches, MCI cant allow shifting of students to other colleges. State governments must take quick steps in the interest of students, MCI secretary Dr Reena Nayyar said. The quality of the medical education and training imparted by such institutes to its students is open to questions. Legal provisions in India make the opening and running of such medical colleges possible. And, the nexus between promoters of private medical colleges and some state governments adds to the problem. However, though the MCI has always recommended to the central government that admissions to such colleges should be stopped and despite the Centre accepting their suggestions, state governments are slow to act and shut down the institutes. The medical education regulator, ie MCI, is fully aware of the deficiencies in the colleges. Not only that, it officially informs the central and state governments that a particular college is completely unfit for medical education. Despite that, lack of timely action in the matter is not only producing half-baked doctors for the society but also causing grave injustice to the students, a medical expert said. Read more: My dreams are shattered... who should I blame? What complicates the matter further is the MCIs insistence to first shut down the college which failed in its inspection and then give an approval for shifting its students to other colleges. More than 40 to 50 batches of students are studying medicine in colleges which have failed to get the MCI nod for admitting students for the second, third and fourth batches. According to an MCI figure, there 29 medical colleges were refused renewal of permission to admit fresh batches in 2015-2016. Some of them have only one batch of students while others have two or three batches. In 2014-15, the number of such colleges was 21. Read more: What should govt do to save careers many medical students? For instance, Government Medical College, Bettiah, West Champaran, Bihar, which already has three batches of students (100 in each batch), was not granted permission to admit students for the next batch in 2015-16 due to lack of even the bare minimum requirements of infrastructure and facilities. The other such colleges are Viswabharathi Medical College (Kurnool), Lord Buddha Koshi Medical College and Hospital (Saharsa), Gold Field Institute of Medical Sciences & Research, (Faridabad), Srinivas Institute of Medical Research Centre (Srinivasnagar), The Oxford Medical College, Hospital & Research Centre, (Bengaluru). The situation is equally grim in many recognised colleges in which extension of seats was allowed for the initial batches, but which failed to create faculty, residents and clinical materials for the successive years as the batch progressed. If a student passes out from a recognised college, we have to register him as a doctor. These unfit colleges get their students shifted in other recognised colleges in the fourth year. Ideally, it should happen in the same year when the college fails to get permission for renewal, a senior MCI official, who did not wish to be named, said. Even though the MCI has refused to allow them to increase their intake, it will have to register all the candidates who will graduate from these colleges. MCI cannot refuse to register them because ultimately they are passing out from a recognised college. It doesnt matter in which colleges and under what facilities students have completed their second or third year, the official added. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Rescuers found the wreckage of a small plane carrying 23 people that crashed in bad weather Wednesday into a mountain in Nepal, police said. All those aboard, including two foreigners, were confirmed dead. Police official Harihari Yogi said the wreckage of the plane, which was on a scheduled 18-minute flight, was still burning and all the bodies were charred. He said the aircraft appeared to have flown directly into the mountain. The foreigners were from China and Kuwait. All others on the plane were Nepali citizens, including two children. 20 passengers were on board :Pokhara to Jomsom With Captain Roshan Manandhar, f/o Dikesh Nemkul and Crew Rama Raut pic.twitter.com/ncgoza3kWz Yeti Airlines (@FlyYeti) February 24, 2016 The Twin Otter aircraft operated by domestic Tara airlines had taken off from Pokhara, a resort town 200 kilometers (125 miles) west of Kathmandu, and was heading north to Jomsom, the starting point for trekkers going into mountainous areas. Airport official Yogendra Kuwar said it lost contact shortly after takeoff. Only small planes can fly the route, which goes between mountains. Helicopters searched the route for hours after the plane was reported missing, but were hampered by poor weather conditions, Kuwar said. Searchers were finally able to locate the wreckage after residents of Rupshe, a small village, reported having heard a loud explosion. Jomson is popular among foreign tourists visiting the Mount Annapurna and Mustang region for trekking, and also among Hindu pilgrims visiting the Muktinath temple. President Pranab Mukherjees address to the joint session of Parliament steered clear of the controversies that have dogged the NDA government in recent times. As he was speaking, scores of students from across the country were gathered at Jantar Mantar, barely a kilometer away, seeking justice for Rohith Vemula, the Hyderabad university dalit research scholar who committed suicide. Among them were many students from Jawaharlal Nehru University, who have been agitating against the arrest of their students union president Kanhaiya Kumar on sedition charges. These incidents have triggered a national-versus-anti-national debate in the country. The Presidential speech, which is drafted and vetted by the government, made no direct or indirect reference to it. Read: Debate rages over how to discuss JNU row in Parliament Mukherjee ended his speech saying how the nation owes a great debt to freedom fighters. He quoted Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose as saying that nationalism is inspired by the highest ideals of the human race, Satyam, Shivam, Sundaram. Let us embrace those ideals as we stake our claim on the future, he said. The sudden citation of Netajis words on nationalism, however, left his audience guessing about the context. There was no reference either to the raging controversy over the issue of reservation or discrimination against dalits, though Mukherjee did speak of the governments focus on the poor and the backward and how it was celebrating Dr BR Ambedkars birth anniversary. Referring to the NDA governments motto of sabka vikas, he stressed that backward sections of the society are equally valued and are genuine stakeholders in the countrys progress. Read: Govt will allow women in all fighter streams, says Prez The President urged lawmakers to adopt the spirit of cooperation and accommodation but his speech skipped any mention of contentious legislations such as the Constitution (Amendment) Bill to enable the rollout of the goods and services tax (GST). In his address to the joint session of Parliament last year, Mukherjee had referred to the introduction of this bill stating that it would simplify the indirect tax regime and broaden the tax base. The NDA government is expected to make a renewed thrust on reforms-related legislations in the Budget session, but the Presidential address was silent on this issue. Read: President calls for debate, not disruption in House U.S. Rep. Ryan Zinke, R-Mont., has partnered with American Sniper author Scott McEwen on a book that will arrive in bookstores in September, 49 days before the general election. American Commander: Serving a Country Worth Fighting For and Training the Brave Soldiers Who Lead the Way, is a book Zinke said hes been planning with McEwen for some time. The two met through Chris Kyle, whose book American Sniper: The Autobiography of the Most Lethal Sniper in U.S. Military History, was a best-selling collaboration with McEwen. The book later became a major motion picture that ended with Kyles tragic shooting death by a troubled veteran. The book is not about me personally, Zinke said Its about American exceptionalism, and its about how we get guys to do what they do. Zinke was a SEAL Team Six commander, who earned two bronze stars as the acting commander of Joint Special Forces in Iraq. He mentored Chris Kyle, as well as SEALs who rescued Capt. Richard Phillips of the MV Maersk Alabama, whose cargo ship was taken by Somali pirates in 2009. The Maersk rescue was the subject of the movie Captain Phillips. Zinke is also credited with mentoring SEAL Marcus Luttrell, the subject of the movie and book Lone Survivor. Zinke said the timing of the books release was more determined by getting the House Rules Committee to vet his contract with publisher Thomas Nelson. The U.S. Navy also received a copy of the final draft to make sure the contents didnt reveal sensitive information about operations. The book does cover subjects like advanced interrogation methods, which Zinke said will be part of the political discussion about President Barack Obamas proposed closure of the Guantanamo Bay detention facility. Specifically, the book discusses sleep deprivation of terrorist suspects. McEwen said Zinke was a good subject to tell the SEALs story through a different perspective, but one with a common thread to McEwens other collaborations with SEALs. The story is Zinkes, he said. The editing was McEwens. The common thread is that theyre all patriots. All of them believe in this country, believe in the United States and that its an exceptional nation, McEwen said. They have an attitude of never quit, and thats refreshing. You see a lot of quitting in society nowadays, and everybody gets a trophy and thats not what makes SEALs who they are. Zinke isnt the first Montana incumbent to have a book published during an election year. In 2008, then-Gov. Brian Schweitzer was the subject of Blue Man in a Red State: Montanas Governor Brian Schweitzer and the New Western Populism. The book was authored by Greg Lemon, a former Helena Independent Record editor and current spokesman for Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks. Schweitzers book was released shortly after the 2008 June primary election. Tuesday, it had received one review on Amazon, where the hardcover edition sells for $17.86. The directorate general of civil aviation (DGCA) has suspended an air traffic controller and two pilots of Air India, who were operating a Boeing that hit a light pole at the Mumbai airport. Although the collision, that took place early on Tuesday, did not hurt anyone or cause any serious damage to the Boeing 777-300ER, the aviation safety regulator took serious note of the matter as the Newark-bound plane had 447 people on board. According to airport sources, pilots accused the air traffic control (ATC) official on duty of assigning a smaller taxiway which caused the collision. There are designated taxiways for single-aisle and twin-aisle planes. While narrow body type aircraft are assigned Taxiway Y, Taxiway H is reserved for the big birds. But the regulator said the pilots operating a jumbo should be versed with the right taxiing lanes. Even if the ATC assigns a wrong taxiway, a seasoned pilot should stop the aircraft if he or she feels that taxi clearance is not available, a senior DGCA official requesting anonymity said. An AI spokesperson confirmed the incident. The incident delayed the flight by about two and a half hours, airport officials added. Placing his feet carefully on shards of broken glass and broken flower pots, as Entrepreneurship Development Institute (EDI) employee Saeem Khan enters the building on the outskirts of Srinagar a day after the encounter, he steps on a crumpled poster Start your business @0% hassle. More photos of the ruined interiors of the EDI building in Pampore on the outskirts of Srinagar. @htTweets pic.twitter.com/2V6IALidpL Abhishek Saha (@saha_abhi1990) February 23, 2016 Constructed in 2006, the main building of the 15-acre EDI complex where budding entrepreneurs are trained and incubated was the spectator to what is said to be one of the longest gunbattles ever in Srinagar. The turquoise glass on the fourth storey of the building lay shattered and there was an overpowering smell of burnt objects all around. The EDI building in Pampore, Kashmir where a 50 hour long gun battle raged till last evening. @htTweets pic.twitter.com/W1ZgDayZWc Abhishek Saha (@saha_abhi1990) February 23, 2016 Khan, who was trapped as three militants stormed the EDI building, returned on Tuesday afternoon to collect his bags and documents that he had left behind. He said, I dont know what to tell you. I was so scared that I basically dont remember how badly I ran for protection. Gaping bullet holes adorned the graphic cover images of the magazines resting on the stand. The ground floor walls stood fractured, hit by rocket launchers and grenades, and on the floor were glass pieces and broken doors. Scenes from inside EDI building where encounter raged on for more than 50 hrs. @htTweets pic.twitter.com/EnCrMiV0AO Abhishek Saha (@saha_abhi1990) February 23, 2016 On Tuesday afternoon, media professionals were allowed to enter the first floor of the EDI building as the search and sanitising operations came to an end. A top police officer said it was essential to check the site after an encounter as there may be non-blasted ammunitions that could create fatal explosions. Apart from security personnel and mediapersons, the only people seen on campus were EDI employees like Khan who were trapped and later evacuated on Saturday evening when three militants, supposedly of the Lashkar-e-Taiba, stormed into the building. The militants, EDI employees said, had told them to leave behind their mobile phones while they fled. Speaking on the loss to the building, EDI director MI Parray said the exact figure will be ascertained by engineers in the coming days, but accepted there had been major damage to data since many computers were destroyed in the firing. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON BJP president Amit Shah brought the JNU row to Bahraich on Wednesday by asking his largely Dalit audience if anti-India slogans could be justified in the garb of freedom of speech. Addressing the Dalit community as sarv samaj a term he seems to have borrowed from BSP chief Mayawati he urged them to vote for the BJP in the upcoming 2017 assembly polls. Training guns at the Congress, Shah said, Congress chief Sonia Gandhi and vice-president Rahul Gandhi should clarify their partys stand on whether raising anti-India slogans was justified or it was anti-national (deshdroh). Please dont stoop so low for vote bank politics. Accusing the Opposition of attempting to create hurdles in the working of the Modi government, he said, All parties must clarify their position on the JNU row. So far the BJP is concerned, let me make it clear that we dont support anti-India slogans. Shah promised to electrify all UP villages by 2019 and urged chief minister Akhilesh Yadav to support the Modi governments policies. We hope to electrify all UP villages by 2019. In fact, by that time we hope to electrify all the villages in the country. But for UP to benefit, it is important that CM Akhilesh Yadav extends support to Modi governments schemes. If he does that, UP will benefit. If he doesnt do that, he will face the consequences, he said. Meanwhile, Shahs rally was not accident free. Minutes before he arrived, a portion of the stage collapsed but no one was injured. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Nalini Sriharan, undergoing life imprisonment in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case, has sought parole to enable her to attend the funeral of her father, jail sources said on Tuesday. Nalinis father Sankaranarayan died on Monday and cremation is likely to take place in Chennai on Wednesday, the sources said. They said the request of Nalini, currently in the central prison in Vellore, for parole is being considered as per jail rules. Arrested about a month after the assassination which shook the country on May 21, 1991, Nalini was sentenced to death by hanging after being convicted on 16 counts of murder. However, her sentence was later commuted to life imprisonment at the intervention of Congress President Sonia Gandhi who pleaded for clemency to her. The Supreme Court on Tuesday termed Maharashtra governments move to make it mandatory for dance bar owners to provide a live feed to the nearest police station through a CCTV recording as absurd and said it not only impinged ones right to privacy but also violated the fundamental right to carry out a profession. We cannot expect a CCTV in a bar. It is highly embarrassing for anybody to be seen drinking. Some people even object to be being photographed while eating in restaurants. There is a right to privacy everywhere, a bench of justice Dipak Misra and justice Shiva Kirti Singh observed when it was informed about the clause in the new licence conditions for dance bars issued by the state. Referring to the SCs 2014 verdict that revived dance bars in the state after the top court quashed an executive order that banned it, the bench said: There are many women who feel that this is an avenue for them as they may not be able to do other professions. They have a right to profession. That right has to be respected. We have to respect that right. It is possible that this is also source of livelihood for transgenders. The judges told additional solicitor general Pinky Anand that the administration should clamp down on obscenity, if there is any, and not view dance as a form of vulgarity. Its an art and has to be understood as an art bereft of obscenity. If it ceases to be an art, then you can regulate. It seems you havent recognized them as artists, the bench told Anand, who insisted one loses the right to privacy at a public place. Justice Misra observed every individual has his own taste, style of eating or drinking and certainly would not like to be photographed or videographed. The bench finally prevailed upon Anand, who agreed to review the conditions and come back to the court by March 1, the next date of hearing. The judges were also amused to learn that the administration had also stipulated an opaque partition around the stage where the performers will dance. They also ridiculed certain other restrictions imposed by the Devendra Fadnavis government such as a four-feet partition between the dance stage area and eating enclosure within the bar and police verification of every employee working in these dance bars. Anand defended the stipulations, contending these conditions were brought in to prevent soliciting (of women for prostitution). They have been exploited, she argued. But, the bench said the SC verdict had laid down the constitutional parameters on the issue. Its very difficult to remove the basis of the judgement. You must regulate it and not interfere, it said. The court pointed out the new conditions appeared to have been brought in only to circumvent the judgment of the SC. The bench then told Anand if the government was unable to remove the conditions, the court shall be forced to stay it. Who is this public for whom you are making a regulation. If a lady does not want to go to the bar let her not go to the bar. If people dont want to go to bar let them not go it told the law officer. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON A belligerent Smriti Irani on Wednesday targeted the Congress, especially Rahul Gandhi, and the Left after a debate on Rohith Vemulas suicide and the JNU sedition row in the Lok Sabha turned into a no-holds-barred battle between the Narendra Modi-led government and the Opposition. In a hard-hitting reply, laced with emotion and anger, the HRD minister defended the action against students of the Jawaharlal Nehru University, saying students union president Kanhaiya Kumar and others had been found indulging in anti-national activities by the varsity authorities. She also made an emotional pitch over Hyderabad university scholar Vemulas suicide, insisting that her ministry had no role in his death and the deceased himself had said in his suicide note that nobody should be held responsible for his action. Replying to the charged day-long debate on recent incidents in the Jawaharlal Nehru University and the Hyderabad university, a combative Irani said she was being targeted by the Congress for contesting against Rahul Gandhi in Amethi. I will not seek forgiveness for doing my duty...you (Congress members) never wanted to listen to my reply, she said, as the Congress members, Left parties and Trinamool Congress staged a walkout while she was speaking. Rejecting the charge of saffronising education, Irani said she would quit politics if it was established she made any attempt to do so. Most of the vice-chancellors are Congress appointees, Irani said, adding she had asked them to listen to the students who come from different backgrounds and address their issues. Help me build the nation, not destroy it from within, she said. Read: BJP targets Rahul Gandhi in Lok Sabha Strongly refuting allegations that letters by her ministry to Hyderabad university had pressured Vemula, she cited examples of how her ministry follows up on issues raised by elected representatives. She also refuted allegations of any bias in the working of the government. My name is Smriti Irani. I challenge you to tell me my caste, she said. Irani said that the unfortunate suicide was being used for political ends. Have you ever seen Rahul Gandhi go to one spot twice. Never. But in this, he saw political opportunity, Irani said. Prime Minister Modi later tweeted a link to Iranis speech. Do hear this speech by @smritiirani. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v3PlGs8...Satyamev Jayate, Modi tweeted from his personal handle on Wednesday. The inscription Satyamev Jayate (truth alone prevails) is contained in Indias state emblem. Earlier, initiating the discussion, the Congress leader Jyotiradiya Scindia hit out at the central government, saying: Inside parliament, the ministers of this government take oath of constitution and outside they crush it. Using government machinery they are crushing the voices of those who oppose the ideology of RSS. They targeted Kanhaiya Kumar just because he was opposed to the ideology of RSS and had defeated an ABVP candidate in JNU election, he added. What we have seen in the last two years is an atmosphere of intolerance in the country. There is every possible attempt to crush opposing viewpoint, Scindia said. He said party had been demanding action against Irani and labour minister Bandaru Dattatreya over the suicide of Vemula. Read: In Rajya Sabha, Mayawati, Irani face off over Vemula suicide issue BJP leader Anurag Thakur, meanwhile, accused Gandhi of standing with anti-nationals and said the Congress would have to decide whether you are with those who attacked our parliament or those who protect it? You will have to decide whether you are with ideology of Gandhiji or Maoists. Your leader goes and sympathises with those who were celebrating Afzal Guru as a martyr, he alleged. Naidu also hit out at the Congress, saying no one was terming JNU as anti-national. He said it was duty of entire parliament to speak with one voice against those who had raised anti-national slogans. Home minister Rajnath Singh assured the Lok Sabha that no innocent student will be harassed in JNU row. Singh said the government had not intervened in the row concerning the Jawaharlal Nehru University and police had acted following alleged shouting of anti-national slogans at an event on the campus on February 9 to mark the anniversaries of executions of parliament attack convict Guru. The minister said there could be a debate whether sedition charge should have been applied to JNU students union leader Kanhaiya Kumar and the issue will be decided by the court. I want to assure the house that no innocent will be harassed, he said. Referring to the violence in the Patiala House court ahead of court proceedings concerning Kanhaiya Kumar, he said the guilty will not be spared. Tribal rights activist Soni Sori was attacked with a mild acid mixed with a chemical in the Dantewada district in Chhattisgarh, doctors treating her at the Indraprastha Apollo Hospitals in New Delhi said on Wednesday. She washed her face a couple of times after the attack so there are no traces of the acid and chemical left. She is being treated for chemical burns and will be kept in Intensive Care Unit under observation for about two weeks till her skin heals, said a doctor who is part of the team treating her. Read: Activist Soni Sori attacked with acid-like substance in Chhattisgarh Soni, who was brought to the hospital on the night of February 22 with chemical burns on her face, was admitted to the ICU. She had chemical burns and orbital and conjunctival oedema -- swelling in the eye -- that caused eye irritation and made it difficult for her to open her eyes but she has no vision loss. Sori is being treated by a team led by reconstructive and cosmetic surgeon Dr IP Singh. She is stable but is likely to be kept under observation for two weeks, said a doctor who is part of the team but did not want to be named. We are hopeful that she will recover within the next few weeks and are carefully monitoring the situation on an hourly basis. She has some orbital and conjunctival oedema as per the ophthalmologists evaluation however no compromise to her eyesight is seen. Her clinical parameters are stable as of now, said the hospital in a statement. Read: Soni Sori i n Delhi hospital after attack in Chhattisgarh Three unidentified men threw acid and chemicals on Sori in the Maoist-hit Dantewada district while she and two others were on their way to Geedam from Jagdalpur on a motorcycle. The attack on the tribal activist came two days after a legal-aid group of woman lawyers and a journalist were evicted from their homes and offices, allegedly at the behest of Bastar Police. Sori, who had unsuccessfully contested the 2014 Lok Sabha polls on an Aam Aadmi Party ticket, was brought to the capital for treatment by the AAP after the doctors in Chattisgarh could not identify the chemical she was attacked with. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Harvard University Professor Arthur Kleinman has adviced JNU vice chancellor M Jagadesh Kumar to stand up against government pressure, warning him failure to do so will redound on JNU in the most negative way. I am deeply sad and shocked about the gross infringement of freedom of speech among your students. The charge of sedition lodged with a student leader and the police action at JNU are violations of basic academic rights, freedoms which I have always associated with JNU, Arthur Kleinman said in an email to the V-C. Read: JNU row: Umar Khalid, Anirban Bhattacharya surrender to Delhi Police You must stand up to governmental and public pressure and protect the sacred academic right of students to speak out critically in protest. Failure to do so will redound on JNU in the most negative way internationally. Now is the time to act, he added. Jawaharlal Nehru University is caught in a row over an event in the campus against the hanging of parliament attack convict Afzal Guru, where anti-national slogans were alleged to have been raised. The varsitys students union president Kanhaiya Kumar, is in judicial custody in a sedition case in connection with the February 9 event. Various foreign scholars have been conveying to the VC their disappointment at shock at the turn of events at the varsity. Read: We fear lynching and witch-hunt: JNU student charged with sedition After days of highpitched protests and speeches, Jawaharlal Nehru University was relatively calmer through the day on Tuesday. JNU students Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya, however, surrendered in the night. Friends, this is to inform you that comrade Umar and comrade Anirban have surrendered. Its a moment of sadness for the campus because we have seen these activists for years standing with the students. However, they have placed their faith in the law and we hope that they will be released soon. We also hope that comrade Kanhaiya gets bail tomorrow, said JNUSU vice-president Shehla Rashid in a statement. Khalid and Bhattacharya remained missing from the administrative block on Tuesday where they had been camping since Sunday, while retired Army personnel visited the campus to express concern over the recent events. All India Students Association (AISA) students Ashutosh, Rama Naga and Anant Prakash too were not seen at the admin block throughout the day. Union leaders, however, said the three had informed the police that they were on campus earlier in the day. We have given the details of the students and informed the DCP concerned that we are here on the campus and we will cooperate, said Sucheta De, national president of AISA. After rumours emerged that some people were planning to attack Khalid, the university administration took precautions and tightened security on the campus. Sources said the calm at the university could be because there werent many students on the campus on Tuesday as they had gone to Jantar Mantar to join the protest demanding justice for Rohith Vemula the University of Hyderabad student who allegedly committed suicide. It was the teachers, however, who stayed constantly in the admin block as vice chancellor M Jagadesh Kumar held a meeting with the deans of all schools and chairperson of all the centres. The meeting took stock of the steps that are being taken to restore normalcy on the campus. There are two lawyers who are handling the students case. We want everything to be done legally and constitutionally, said Neeladri Bhattacharya, faculty at the Centre for Historical Studies School of Social Sciences. Ex-servicemen also met the V-C to express concern. We did not come here with any demand. We just came to express our concern as Armed forces have a long relation with JNU, said retired Lt. General Ranjan Singh Mallik. On being asked about whether they would return the degrees to JNU one of the officers said, Why should we return our degree? SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Actor Sanjay Dutt, who has been serving prison term in Pune in connection with the 1993 Bombay blasts, will be a free man tomorrow morning. And one person who is most eagerly awaiting his return is his New York-based daughter Trishala Dutt. Yes, my lion comes home! A lot of things are going on in my mind right now. Im so excited for him to come back, start working, and live a happy, healthy new life. Its a new beginning for him and Im thrilled, she says. The 26-year-old wont be able to come to Mumbai to welcome him, as she is doing her masters and cannot leave school right now. I will 100% come to Mumbai and meet him this year. However, I have my own business at the moment and I decided to go back to school to obtain my masters degree, so currently Im unable to leave the states as I do not have vacation. But as soon as I get my vacation, first stop is Mumbai! she says. Read: Sanjay Dutt release: Trishala shares videos in celebration Read: Chicken Sanju Baba for free: Restaurant to celebrate actors freedom The last three years were undoubtedly tough, but Trishala shares that their relationship strengthened during this time. I knew he was gone but I still felt he was there because we kept in contact all these years. He would tell me about his day, I would tell him about mine. I told him about all my problems, issues, anything and everything that was going on in my life. Our relationship grew even closer. He became my best friend, my confidant. I would write to him and gossip about so many girly things. He knows the latest slang words, I taught him about selfies, Instagram, I taught him a lot of youthful things and about people my age and the things we do. He even knows a little bit about makeup now ... contouring to be exact (laughs). He taught me a lot too. In three years, he has given me so much knowledge and wisdom by telling me his life experiences and what it taught him. I cant wait to see him and give him the biggest hug and squeeze, she says. Read: Bollywood actor Sanjay Dutt to walk free on Thursday Read: Sanjay Dutt granted 30-day parole for daughters nose surgery About the mood at the Dutt residence, she says everyone is thrilled. All of us are extremely happy that he wont have to go through any more pain. I believe my buas and all his friends are planning on doing something special for him. There is going to be lots of food, laughter and happy tears. Protests over the JNU row reached the campus of University of Lucknow on Wednesday as activists of the ABVP sat on a dharna outside the sociology department, protesting against an objectionable Facebook post by varsity professor Rajesh Mishra. Raising slogans against Mishra, ABVP activists alleged that in his post, Mishra had claimed that JNU student Umar Khalid was his son. His Facebook post read; Umar is my son, I want to say. I have never met him. I do not know him. Yet I want to claim him as my son. They forced suspension of classes in the sociology department and demanded that the LU authorities take action against Mishra. The article that professor Rajesh Mishra shared. When contacted, Mishra said: I had only shared an article that appeared in an English daily that ABVP activists mistook as my post. I have already edited the post and clarified my position. Soon after receiving information about the dharna, chief proctor Nishi Pandey and other members of the proctorial board rushed to the spot to pacify the agitating activists. To prevent the situation from turning violent, police forces were deployed on the campus. The activists also took out Mishras mock funeral procession amid tight security and raised slogans like Jo Afzal ki chaal chalega, wo Afzal ki maut marega and Jitne Afzal laoge utne Afzal marenge. The protesters also demanded that the vice-chancellor receive their memorandum in this regard. Receiving the memorandum, vice-chancellor of LU SB Nimse said an inquiry will conducted into the professors FB post and action will be taken against him if found guilty. Meanwhile, the campus witnessed low turnout of students on Wednesday as some of the students had given a call for a tiranga peace march from outside Kailash hostel to Gate 1 of the university. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Two American doctors have argued that certain procedures to alter female genitals ought to be tolerated by liberal societies amid a campaign by Dawoodi Bohra women to stop the practice of female genital mutilation (FGM). Kavita Shah Arora and Allan J Jacobs in their paper have compared FGM, which is considered a violation of child rights by UNICEF, with male circumcision. Jacobs is the director of gynecologic oncology at Coney Island Hospital and teaches bioethics at Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, New York. Arora is an assistant professor of reproductive biology and bioethics at Case Western Reserve University. In liberal societies that accept male circumcision, room for discussion surrounding the acceptability of FGA exists, the paper, published in the Journal of Medical Ethics by British Medical Journal, says. The authors say that a small surgical nick or a minimalistic procedure that alters the appearance of a girls genitalia should be allowed as a compromise to the issue of FGM. Arora, in an email response, told HT, Despite over thirty years of advocacy, the prevalence of female genital alteration (FGA) remains high and is largely unchanged in regions where it is largely practiced. The current strategy of labeling FGA a human rights violation is flawed medically, ethically, and from a policy perspective. They have classified five different types of FGM which they call female genital alteration or FGA. The classification is based on the invasiveness and the impact of the procedure on the womans private parts. We advocate for a novel categorization system for FGA that groups procedures by effect on the female child and not on the process. In this way, we can accept some FGA procedures that have minimal impact on the child (as a compromise position with the potential for improved success versus the current strategy), while continuing to oppose the more deleterious procedures, Arora said. Arora said that both male circumcision and FGA are procedures performed upon the genitalia of minors without their consent and for primarily non-therapeutic reasons. While male circumcision does decrease the incidence of penile cancer and transmission of sexually-transmitted infections, the main reason for its practice is not for medical benefit but for these religious and or cultural reasons. Therefore, requiring FGA to have medical benefit is an unfair standard since we do not require that of male circumcision. We re-emphasise that we do not support the more severe FGA procedures, nor would we diminish the international efforts to end the practice of these procedures, authors, however, said. They have been criticised for their views. In her response to the paper, Ruth Macklin of the Albert Einstein College of Medicine has said that not all cultural traditions deserve respect. There are many procedures people use to change the natural body, like piercing ears and noses, and having cosmetic surgery, which are done with consent. However, the ears of baby girls are pierced without their consent. It is a minor procedure and not designed to control women, as is the case with FGA, she said in an email response. Macklin added that no compromise is ethically acceptable. The only proper response would be for the authorities to enforce a law prohibiting FGA, she said. Delhi-based publisher Masooma Ranalvi, an anti-FGM activist who was also subjected to the procedure, said that any form of FGM is unacceptable. There are no medical benefits of FGM; it is a strong cultural practice which is steeped in a patriarchal foundation that a womans sexual desire has to be curbed for ensuring sanctity of a marriage, Ranalvi said. Ranalvi is one of the 17 women in India who have appealed to Union minister of women and child development Maneka Gandhi in an online petition against the practice which is gathering steam with over 45,000 signatures. Dr Arianne Shahvisi, of the department of ethics at the University of Sussex, has also said a minimalist approach to FGA is unlikely to fulfill the intentions of the procedure. According to UNICEF, at least 200 million women in 30 countries in the world have been subjected to the procedure. While India does not have a law banning the procedure some countries, including Australia, have banned the custom. It is believed that the procedure is performed to control womens sexual appetite. Two men in Murad Nagar town of Ghaziabad were allegedly shot dead by a man they had lent Rs 45,000 after an altercation over returning the money. The incident took place at an isolated dairy at Bhikhanpur on Tuesday evening, the police said. Mohammed Wasim, 24, and his uncle Mohammed Naeem, 26, both cattle traders at Mohalla Vyaparian were allegedly gunned down by Vijay Chaudhary and his accomplices at his dairy in Bhikhanpur, the police said. Following an investigation that continued till early Wednesday morning, police arrested Chaudhary and four others Ashu Prakash, Deepak Singh, Amit Sharma and Billu. During the investigation, it came to light that the victims and Chaudhary had a previous altercation over Rs 45,000 which Chaudhary had not returned. On Tuesday evening, he phoned the two men and asked them to meet him at the dairy. Chaudhary also got his accomplices to come there. Later, they got into an argument with the two men and Chaudhary shot them, said Amar Singh, superintendent of police (traffic), who is officiating as SP (rural). The murder took place on Tuesday evening (between 4pm and 5pm) and the prime accused (Chaudhary) himself informed the police around 11.30pm. He said that he had shot two robbers at his dairy, Singh said. According to the victims family, both Wasim and Naeem left on a bike around 4pm on Tuesday and could not be traced till 2am on Wednesday. Thereafter, some local residents told the family that an ID card on one of two dead bodies, found by the police, was Wasims. Vijay had to return Rs 45,000 and he has been delaying it for the past several months. Previously,too, there were altercations over the issue. When the two did not return home (on Tuesday), we called on their mobiles phones, but there was no response and were later switched off, Vakeel Ahmed, the victims relative, said. The two had left without telling us. Had I known they were going to meet Vijay, I would have told them not to go to his dairy, which is in an isolated area. Their bodies were recovered from the dairy and sent for a post-mortem examination, Ahmed said. As news of the double murder spread, the police deployed a large posse of personnel in Murad Nagar town since it is a communally-sensitive area. Three companies and one platoon of provincial armed constabulary and rapid response force are also camping in the area. The chief minister has announced a sum of Rs 5 lakh each from his relief fund to the families of the two victims, said Vimal Kumar Sharma, district magistrate at Ghaziabad. Following the incident, the SHO of Murad Nagar has also been shifted to Police Lines on the orders of SSP Dharmendra Singh. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Taking a serious note of mass copying during the class XII Punjab School Education Board (PSEB) English exam at Sant Baba Jagat Singh Senior Secondary School in Harsha Chhina on February 20, the education department has suspended the centre superintendent and the deputy superintendent with immediate effect. Five teachers, who were part of supervisory team, have also been suspended. The education department has also recommended the cancellation of the affiliation of the school concerned as well as disciplinary action against the principal. Balbir Singh Dhol, director public instructions (secondary education), said the education department has suspended centre superintendent Balwan Singh and deputy superintendent Harjit Singh and issued a chargesheet under section 8 of the Punjab Civil Services (penalties and appeal). The supervisory staff at the centre, including Kulwinder Kaur, Vikaramjit Singh, Baljinder Kaur, Ramanjit Kaur , and Kamaljit Kaur, have also been chargesheeted, said the DPI. Dhol added that the education department has recommended de- affiliation of the school concerned apart from initiating disciplinary action against the school principal Monica Sharma and PSEB assistant superintendent Sumanpreet Kaur. Notably, the flying squad that reached the centre for checking was made to wait at the gate and allowed entry after 10 minutes. During the check, the team came across objectionable content following which the PSEB cancelled the exam. The UT education department has decided to shut down unrecognised schools operating in city over the next few months. Confirming the same, the education secretary said only once the kids studying in these schools were shifted to the government schools in surrounding areas, such schools will be closed. The development comes in the wake of the committee formed by the education department, comprising four members as well as principals of the government schools located in these areas, was directed to look into the agenda that mandated the committee to file a report after the issue had come up in November 2015. The committee was formed after HT had highlighted the plight of students studying in over 80 unrecognised schools in UT. Issues like unsafe infrastructure, lack of qualified teachers, lack of affiliation certificate are some of the major concerns at these schools, which impacts the academic qualification of students enrolled here. According to sources, the report was forwarded to the UT adviser to look into the same and it is with the consent of the senior most administration officials, that a decision to shut these schools is taken, but only once the kids are sent to local government schools. Education secretary, Sarvjit Singh, said, Keeping in mind the sensitivity of the issue and the fact that these institutes have been in place for almost 20 years, the transition of these students from the unrecognised schools to government schools has to be smooth. However, the decision had been taken with consent of the UT officials at the highest level, in order to ensure that the kids education does not suffer. Giving more details, director, school education, Rubinderjit Singh Brar, said the same committee who had earlier prepared a report on the number of kids studying in these schools and the number of government schools located in this area and their capacity would now work out how many kids from which unrecognised school can be adjusted in which government school to kick-start the process. The orders, in this regard, will be issued by Friday. Furthermore, the department officials will also be issuing a public notice to parents of students enrolled in these schools to make them aware about the purpose behind the transition. The process would be completed in March so that kids can be shifted to the surrounding government schools, before the next session begins, added Brar. The committee members earlier included: Saroj Mittal, deputy director vocational education; Suman Shar ma, deputy director adult education; Prem Joshi, deputy district education officer and circle auditor (private schools) Raghu, who had prepared a report on the basis of student-staff ratio in these schools, locality, whether teachers training in the schools are trained or not, state of infrastructure and also the strength of the government schools in the surrounding areas to see if students studying in the unrecognised schools can be shifted here or not. The same committee will now be looking into the exact transition process to note students from which unrecognised institutes could be shifted to which government school. WHATS THE SCHOOLS STATUS A total of 22 schools had applied for recognition, of which two schools withdrew the request. Five others including Bhavan Vidyalaya, Sector 33; Tender Heart School, Sector 33; Adarsh Public School, Sector 20; and DAV Public School, Sector 39 were given recognition while others are under process of being granted the same. The schools who were denied recognition include : Shaheen Public School, Maloya; Saint Hari Public School, Dehra Sahib, Manimajra; Manimajra Model School, Manimajra; Adarsh Vidya Mandir School, Manimajra; Paradise Public School, Manimajra; Alpha Public School, Manimajra; Goodwill Public School, Manimajra. These seven schools were issued notice under Section 15.6 of RTE Rules 2010, according to which the schools that do not conform to the norms, standards and conditions mentioned in sub-rule (1) within three years from the commencement of the Act, shall cease to function. RTE STIPULATION Under Section 18.5 of The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009, any person who establishes or runs a school without obtaining certificate of recognition, or continues to run a school after withdrawal of recognition, shall be liable to fine that may extend to ` 1 lakh and in case of continuing contravention, to a fine of Rs 10,000 for each day. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Guilty of killing Australia-born six-year-old Mehram Sandhu for easy money, cabbie Tejinder Singh, alias Ganju (26), will spend rest of his life in jail. Jado tak tu marega nahi tu jail ch rahega (till the time you are alive, you will remain in jail), said additional district and sessions judge Tarsem Mangla on Wednesday, while awarding life term to convict Ganju. Turning down the plea of the prosecution seeking death penalty, the court said, No doubt convict has committed the offence that was most unexpected of him. He destroyed every hope of Harinder Kaur (Mehrams mother) as she had already suffered in her matrimony. He killed a hapless child after kidnapping him, but at the same time the facts and circumstances leading to his kidnapping and killing do not make out as if the offence was committed in gruesome manner. The court also imposed a fine of Rs 17,000 on the convict, who stood remorseless as the court pronounced the quantum of sentence and ruled, after kidnapping he strangulated the child and to make the evidence disappear he buried the body in a pit at an uninhabited place. What nailed Ganju In his extra judicial statement, Ganju had told Joginder Singh, a Phase 9 resident, that when he (Ganju) came to know that a missing report of the child had been lodged, he got frightened. Out of fear, he strangulated the child using a piece of cloth after taking him in near an open ground in front of a gurdwara in Sector 69 SAS Nagar. As a result of which, the child died. He hid his body underneath the vegetation and again visited that site after a few days, dug a pit and dumped the body by covering it with earth. This statement was corroborated by a shopkeeper, Kewal Krishan, from whose shop Ganju had bought chocolates, and municipal councillor Rajinder Parshad, who had seen Mehram on scooter with Ganju. It was the hair strands found on the shovel used by Ganju to bury the childs body that helped nail him. The DNA report confirming that the hair stands found on the shovel matched with those found from Mehrams body also strengthened the police case. Cops failed to preserve crime scene The court pointed out instead of preserving the scene of crime, Inspector Kulbir Singh did not prevent the public from trampling it. He did not collect any fingerprints or footprints from the site. Mehrams family stayed away from court Mehrams family stayed away from attending the court proceeding and had gone to gurdwara to pay obeisance. Mehrams family for last more than one year have been attending each and every hearing but did not turn up to witness Ganju convicted. Ganjus family claims false implication, to move HC My son was falsely implicated in the case. I will appeal against the order in the high court, said Sher Singh, Ganjus father, who was present in the court. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON A protest was organised by the Plastic Manufacturers and Traders Association (PMTA) in Jalandhar on Wednesday against the notification issued by the state government to ban plastic carry bags from April 1. The protest march was started from the BMC Chowk and concluded at the district administrative office, where protestors handed over a memorandum to the deputy commissioner. In the memorandum, they stated that the main reason behind the pollution by plastic bags was negligence and unorganised disposal by the local bodies. As for the non-recyclability of plastic bags below 40-micron thickness, the association has already agreed to pass a resolution to ban their manufacturing. Gurdeep Singh Batra, president of PMTA, claimed that he had taken up the matter with the government time and again that the pollution was caused by polythene below 40 microns which are not being manufactured in Punjab and are coming from other states like Delhi and Himachal Pradesh. He said that till date no action had been taken by the government. He further stated that instead of curbing the influx of polluting polythene from other states, the government is trying to kill the local industry of 6,000 units which annually deposit a whopping amount of revenue to the government and on which 15-16 lakh people are dependent directly or indirectly. Batra said that the local industry was ready to cooperate with the government but the government too should come up with a positive solution. The Punjab and Haryana high court on Tuesday directed the Union ministry of civil aviation to file a status report by March 10 on the action taken by it on requests made by various airlines to commence international operations from Chandigarh International Airport. During the resumed hearing of a public interest litigation (PIL) filed seeking directions to authorities to commence international operations from the airport, the high court bench of justice SK Mittal and justice HS Sidhu was told that some airlines have already made requests while others have surveyed the facilities at the airport and have shown interest to commence international operations. We hope that respondent No. 1 (ministry of civil aviation) will immediately consider the requests of various airlines as per the existing policy. The counsel for respondent No. 1 is directed to submit the status report in this regard by way of an affidavit of a senior official within two weeks, the high court directed further recording the statement of CEO, Chandigarh International Airport Limited (CHIAL) Suneel Dutt that efforts would be made to get requisite facilities from the ministry, without loss of time. Earlier, the Punjab government told the high court that it had received proposals from Bulgarian carrier, BH Air and Flydubai, a Saudi Arabian airlines, seeking permission to start flights between Chandigarh and their countries and same had been forwarded to the ministry for consideration. Appearing for the Government of India, assistant solicitor general Chetan Mittal told the high court that the ministry had written a letter to Air India as well to consider an international flight from the city airport. DELHI AIRPORT AUTHORITIES TO BLAME? Petitioners counsel Puneet Bali alleged before the high court bench that there could be a hand of Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) behind the delay in start of international flights from the city airport. There is a draft 2015 civil aviation policy pending, wherein the government is contemplating that there will be no new international flights within 5,000km area of Indira Gandhi International Airport, New Delhi, till 2020. The condition has been imposed to benefit operations of DIAL. This may be the reason behind delay in start of operations from here, Bali told the high court. However, Mittal told the court that it was a draft policy and had not been notified. Later, the high court also directed the ministry to decide on applications of airlines as per existing policy. READY FOR AIRBUS 320, BOEING 737-900 The CHIAL told the high court that it was ready to commence international operations and submitted that there were only four airlines in India out of total seven which carry out international operations. And six of them were already carrying out domestic operations from the city airport. Many airlines who are interested in starting international flights have also inspected the airport, CHIAL told the court. There is no dif ference between a domestic or an international flight except the facility of immigration and custom area. The staff is to be provided by the customs department as soon as any flight is declared international, CHIAL said, elaborating that the airport comes under the 4d category as per the categorisation by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), an international aviation watchdog. The city airport was ready for big aircraft such as Airbus 320 and Boeing 737-900. With regard to CATIIIB facility, increase in watch hours and length of runway, the court was told that a proposal was pending for expansion of the runway so that bigger size aircraft could land and CATIIB facility for operations during dense fog hours was also under active consideration. As of watch hours, the court was told that permission in this regard was to be given by defence ministry. Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) chief Avtar Singh Makkar has condemned the forced removal of Indo-Canadian Sikh comedian Jasmeet Singhs (known by stage name Jus Reign) turban at the San Francisco airport in the US. In a statement issued here on Wednesday, Makkar regretted that despite protests by the Sikh community worldwide, there was no end to incidents of harassment of Sikhs at international airports in the US and European countries. He appealed to US President Barack Obama to issue strict orders to end humiliation of Sikhs at airports. The SGPC chief also condemned a recent incident in the Italian city of Verona where a baptised Sikh, Jaspreet Singh, was asked by police officials to remove his kirpan when he met them for getting his work permit renewed. A protest by Congress workers outside the deputy commissioners office on Tuesday morning turned ugly when at least 60 protesting youth Congress workers were detained by the police from the spot. They were taken in buses and later released on the outskirts of the city. in a police bus; and (right) police trying to stop protesters from entering the mini-secretariat premises in Ludhiana on Tuesday. The workers were protesting against the policies of state government. Some workers also suffered minor injuries as the police resorted to cane-charge to disperse them. It all started when over 60 workers under the leadership of youth Congress vice-president Sunny Kainth gathered in front of the minisecretariat, where the offices of deputy commissioner, police commissioner, besides others are located, to protest. The police detained them as they staged a protest when Section 144 (prohibiting gathering or assembly of more than five persons) of the CrPC has been imposed in the area. The detained workers were taken to the Meharbaan police station area and were released later. The utter chaos prevailed in the area left the people visiting government offices harassed due to the protest. Police had also installed barricades on the premises of mini-secretariat to prevent any mob from entering the deputy commissioners office. Two additional deputy commissioners of police (ADCP), three assistant commissioners of police (ACP), and five station house officers (SHO) were deputed at the spot. Youth Cong ress had on Monday announced to stage protest outside the DC office demanding the release of pending old age pensions, funds of Shagun scheme, unemployment, round-the-clock electricity, free laptops to students among other issues. Congress leaders had also planned to lock up the DC office. Senior Congress leaders, including former district chief of party Pawan Dewan and member of legislative assembly Rakesh Pandey were also present during the protest. Sunny Kainth said, Punjab government has severely failed to deliver its promises and now people have come to know about their real face. Congress party has always worked for the people of the state and Punjab can have faith in the party even during this time when everywhere there is loot at the hands of state government. ACP Prithipal Singh said, Police detained workers protesting in front of the DC office because their protest was turning violent. The detained Congressmen in a police bus; and (right) police trying to stop protesters from entering the mini-secretariat premises in Ludhiana on Tuesday. Sikander Singh Chopra/Ht Surgery services come to Watford As a result of a Rural Surgery Support Program created by the University of North Dakota Medical School, surgical services will become available at the McKenzie County Hospital in March. Mary Aaland, a surgeon who is board-certified in trauma and critical care, administers the UND program, the first of its kind in the country. Two years ago, I started looking at the states critical access hospitals, like the McKenzie County Hospital, and came to the realization that these facilities could support surgical services, Aaland said. The trouble was that they didnt have surgeons. Providing surgical services and backup for existing surgeons in rural hospitals is the role the UND program offers. CEO Dan Kelly said McKenzie County Healthcare Systems said that, with a new hospital opening in two years, surgical services are important. We dont want county residents having to travel out of town for the surgical procedures that we will be able to provide, he said. McKenzie County Farmer, Watford City Capital Lodge clears out Capital Lodge was once a town of its own, with about 1,500 residents on its campus near Tioga. Now the facility has shut its power and water, and the owner, Mike Boudreaux, is moving the modular units. Boudreaux said the contraction of the oil industry has greatly dried up demand for temporary housing. We dont see any more opportunity there, so were looking to repurpose the modular units, said Boudreaux, explaining he looking at opportunities in Louisiana and on the East Coast, where demand for temporary housing is growing. Boudreaux said hes proud of what he accomplished. We deemed ourselves to be the best around, and we tried really hard to provide a good product for the demand, he said. He said most of the structures on the site can be moved but there are a few permanent buildings that will remain. He is looking to sell the land, which is zoned industrial. Tioga Tribune McKenzie leads in highway deaths With 19 motor vehicle fatalities occurring on U.S. 85 from Watford City to Williston in 2015, McKenzie County is continuing to lead the state in motor vehicle fatalities. To improve safety on the busy, 50-mile stretch of highway, the North Dakota Department of Transportation spent more than $300 million to turn it into a four-lane thoroughfare. But McKenzie County Emergency Services Manager Karolin Jappe said she wonders whether it has sufficiently improved conditions. We lost 19 people last year on our highways, she said. And Im still not happy with U.S. Highway 85. You cant put asphalt down from shoulder to shoulder with the extreme winters here and not expect these accidents to not happen. Jappe adds that, though the DOT has taken steps to make the roadway safer, a huge problem remains: There is no barrier in the middle of the bypass to keep motorists from crossing over into oncoming traffic. The NDDOT counters Jappes concerns by saying that the highways design is safe. There is a reason it was designed the way it was, said DOT spokesman Jamie Olson. And so far, its functioning well and meeting the needs it was designed for. McKenzie County Farmer, Watford City New Town gets supermarket It has been a long wait, but New Town has a new, full-service supermarket. Jasons SuperValue opened the 30,000-square-foot store Feb. 10. We had hoped for kind of a soft opening because we are still working the bugs out of a few things, said Ted Tracy, chief operation officer of the five-store Jasons chain. But people started pouring in right away. Tracy said the early feedback has been positive. The new store features a deli, a bakery and a meat department with a smokehouse. The increased area also means the new store can carry more merchandise than the old store in downtown New Town. We want people to walk in here and say, Wow, I dont have to go to Minot to buy groceries anymore, Tracy said. New Town News State official cites drug epidemic Dunn County States Attorney Pat Merriman has laid out a plan to deal with what he characterizes as a drug epidemic. Speaking at the county Drug Task Force meeting, Merriman suggested creating three committees to help in the efforts to address and reduce the drug activity in Dunn County. The suggested committees included a committee led by local employers to implement voluntary pre-employment background checks and drug testing, as well as random drug testing at their businesses. He said a legislative action committee would help get a treatment center in or around Dunn County and foster a mindset that drug abuse needs treatment rather than incarceration. The third committee would help Dunn County Social Services meet the need for foster homes for children caught in the middle of an unfortunate situation. Merriman said forming the committees would help the community get in front of the drug issue while it still can. Dunn County Herald Businesses in and out of Tioga The Bakken has become a mixture of good and bad business news in Tioga. In addition to a shrinking oil industry, Bucking Buffalo, which opened to great fanfare in August, ceased operations last week. Solar Flare closed its doors in December, largely due to decreased business. Unable to find a buyer, Hegstad Furniture will close in the next few months as its owner retires, and Crafty Hands is also shutting its doors. Yet last week, one new business opened and another long-time business changed hands. Chris and Jenny Norgaard opened an automated car wash the only one in the area. Im not too worried about traffic through the area .... Theres still lots of traffic, Chris Norgaard said. The system is fully automated, and Norgaard can monitor it from a computer or cell phone. Jessica Nygaard purchased Shear Image from its owner of 35 years, Christie Eide. Nygaard said shes always had it in the back of her mind she wanted to run a salon, but a lack of day care kept her from doing so. With day care spots now available for her three children, she took the plunge. Tioga Tribune Austrias capital Vienna is the best place in the world to live, according to an international survey on quality of life that has no Indian city in the top 100. According to the 18th Mercer Quality of Life study which examined socioeconomic conditions of 230 global cities, Vienna, a city of nearly 1.8 million people, is the worlds best city, followed by Zurich, Auckland, Munich and Vancouver. A decorated Austrian state opera before the opening ceremony of the Opera Ball in the Austrian capital. (REUTERS) The Riesenrad (giant wheel) landmark in the city. (REUTERS) The St. Stephen's cathedral (Stephansdom) at the centre of this aerial picture of Vienna. (REUTERS) The Schoenbrunn Palace, the former summer residence of the imperial Habsburg family, in Vienna. (REUTERS) While famous cities like London, Paris and New York failed to make a cut even in the top 30s, Baghdad was named as the worst city in the world. Among Indian cities, Hyderabad topped the rankings at 139th position, followed by Pune at 144, Bangalore 145, Chennai 150, Mumbai 152, Kolkata 160 and national capital Delhi at 161. The study examined social and economic conditions, health, education, housing and the environment and is used by big companies to assess where they should locate and how much they should pay staff, the Guardian reported today. Watch: Vienna top 10 tourist attractions German-speaking cities dominate the rankings with Vienna joined by Zurich, Munich, Dusseldorf and Frankfurt in the top seven. I live in a 100 sqm turn-of-the-century apartment in the city centre. But my rent is just 800 euros (625 pounds) a month, Viennese-born Helena Hartlauer said, adding that she was not surprised at her citys top position. She said the social democratic government has a long tradition of investing in high-quality social housing, making Vienna almost uniquely affordable among major cities. According to the World Bank, Austria has one of the highest figures for GDP per head in the world, just behind the US and ahead of Germany and Britain, the report said. There are more students in Vienna than any other German-speaking city. Its a very fast growing, young and lively city...You dont realise how safe Vienna is until you head abroad, Hartlauer said. Men smoke shisha at a cafe in Baghdad. The city was named as the Worst City in the World. (Reuters) The European migrant crisis, which has seen large numbers of refugees and asylum seekers pass through Vienna en route to Germany, has had little impact on the city. War and political unrest are behind all the worst-ranked cities in the world. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has assured Russias Vladimir Putin of his governments willingness to respect a ceasefire deal brokered by Moscow and Washington, the Kremlin said on Wednesday. The Kremlin said the two leaders discussed the deal in a phone call and that Assad noted that the proposals laid out in the agreement were an important step in the direction of a political settlement. In particular, (Assad) confirmed the readiness of the Syrian government to facilitate the establishment of a ceasefire, it said in a statement. The ceasefire agreement, which does not apply to jihadists like the Islamic State group and Al-Nusra Front, calls for a cessation of hostilities between regime forces and opposition groups from midnight Friday Damascus time (2200 GMT). Putin and Assad stressed the importance of continuing an uncompromising fight against the IS group, Al-Nusra Front and other terrorist groups included in the relevant UN Security Council list, the Kremlin said. Putin, whose air force is conducting a bombing campaign to support Assads troops on the ground, on Monday pledged to do whatever is necessary to get Damascus to uphold the deal after sealing the agreement with US President Barack Obama. But some Washington officials have expressed doubt over whether Russia will respect the ceasefire. Secretary of State John Kerry said Tuesday that the United States was considering a Plan B over Syria if Damascus and Moscow do not keep their end of the bargain. Plan B premature Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, however, insisted it was premature to speak of any other plans. We are fully and completely focused on the task defined by the two presidents, he said. The most pressing task right now is to achieve a ceasefire when it comes to the groups who support the initiative of the two presidents. The foreign ministry struck a similar note, saying Moscow was not aware of any Plan B and that it was important to stick to the current deal. We are proceeding from the fact that so many efforts have been put into the preparation of a joint communique that its necessary now to implement it and not work out some additional plan Bs, spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said. This may end up contravening the agreements that have been reached because the opposition may get the wrong impression that there is an alternative to the joint communique. Putin also spoke to Saudi Arabias King Salman, with the Kremlin chief explaining to him in detail the essence of the US-Russian proposals. The Saudi king welcomed the concluded agreements and expressed his readiness to work together with Russia to implement them, Moscow said. Peskov said Putin was set to have a series of phone calls on Syria on Wednesday. Very intense contacts are underway, he said. Amid the flurry of diplomatic activity, a senior Assad political adviser, Busseina Shaaban, has arrived in Moscow, a spokesman for Vitaly Naumkin, a Russian academic who has taken part in talks on the Syrian crisis told AFP. China dispatched fighter jets to a disputed island in the South China Sea on Tuesday, soon after foreign minister Wang Yi met US secretary of state John Kerry in Washington to discuss, among other issues, the tense situation in the region. US media reports from Washington said the aircraft were deployed on Woody Island known in China as Yongxing Island and said to be the largest in the region that is part of the Paracel or Xisha chain in the South China Sea. China controls the islands but Taiwan and Vietnam have claimed them. The specifics of a recent deployment of fighter aircraft to Woody Island would be less an issue than the signal it sends of how far out of step Chinas actions are with the aspirations of the region, said a Pentagon statement. Taiwans defence ministry too confirmed the deployment of the jets, which came days after China set up a battery of surface-to-air missiles on the same island, triggering accusation of militarising the region. China is embroiled in disputes in the South China Sea with other countries such as Malaysia, the Philippines and Brunei. Chinas response to the latest reports was on the same lines as its earlier stand. The Xisha islands are undisputed Chinese territory and thus deployment of any kind by China is justified and beyond reproach, a foreign ministry spokesperson said on Wednesday. Without directly confirming or denying the reports about the combat jets, spokesperson Hua Chunying told a news briefing that China has indisputable sovereignty over the Xisha islands. I would advise the media to not selectively exaggerate or ignore issues, as this will not help your audience understand the bigger picture, she said. Hua asked foreign media to take note of the deployment of radars and advanced weapons by other countries on Chinas islands in the South China Sea, and make objective, fair and calm reports. In the lead-up to Chinese foreign minister Wang Yis visit to the US, some US media organisations played up Chinas deployment of a surface-to-air missile system on Yongxing Island, depicting the move as escalating tension in the South China Sea, said an opinion piece by official news agency Xinhua on Wednesday. And right after Wangs joint press conference with his US counterpart John Kerry on Tuesday, Fox News reported that the US intelligence had seen activities of fighter jets on the same island. The hype about so-called militarisation of the South China Sea by China may sound alarming since those reports often cite hawkish military officials, but it fails to give due attention to the fact that deployment of defence measures has been going on for decades on the island, home to the municipal government of Chinas southernmost city of Sansha. Xinhua contended the US was the troublemaker in the region. Washington, which presents itself as an upholder of justice in the South China Sea issue, as in other issues across the world, has in the past few months wrongly accused China of being the sole troublemaker in the region, while conniving at Chinas rival claimants in the South China Sea territorial disputes to take bolder moves. Donald Trump won the Republican caucuses in Nevada handily on Tuesday, making it his third nominating contest victory in a row, further securing his position as the clear frontrunner. Trump won with 45.9% votes while Marco Rubio beat Ted Cruz 23.9% to 21.4% for the second slot. Ben Carson finished a distant fourth with 4.8% and John Kasich was last with 3.6%. We won with young, we won with old, we won with highly educated, we won with poorly educated, Trump told cheering supporters. I love the poorly educated. This resounding victory will give Trump a major boost going into Super Tuesday on March 1, when 12 states and one territory (like a UT in India) hold their primaries or caucuses. Trump told supporters he intends to take on his remaining rivals in their home-states Cruz in Texas, Rubio in Florida and Kasich in Ohio and wrap up the nominations quickly. Donald Trump's book is seen for sale at a shop inside the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada . (AFP) Its going to be an amazing two months, Trump said, referring to the remaining contests on the path to nomination. We might not even need the two months, to be honest. Nevada was his third straight win following New Hampshire and South Carolina he finished second in Iowa behind Cruz and will further solidify his claim on the nomination. Nevada caucuses, like Iowa, are a process that proceeds through grouping and re-grouping of voters in meetings, following stump speeches by representatives of candidates. Trump brand gold chocolate bars are seen inside the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada. (AFP) The tussle being watched most closely in the Republican race is for the second slot, between Rubio and Cruz. The winner will emerge as the candidate to take on Trump in a two-man contest. Many experts and those opposed to the frontrunner argue he will be extremely vulnerable against anyone backed by consolidated anti-Trump voters and donors, who are currently splintered. The Democrats are on to their next primary, which is in South Carolina on Saturday. Hillary Clinton leads Bernie Sanders, her only rival in the race, 57.4% to 33.3% in polls. Israels defence minister has accused Palestinians of not mourning their dead as much as the Jews, wading into a debate on Palestinian grief amid a wave of violence that has left more than 200 dead on both sides. The controversy erupted two weeks ago when a presenter on Israeli army radio compared the grief of Israeli parents of soldiers killed in action to that of Palestinians whose loved ones died while seeking to kill Israelis. In a speech on Tuesday night to the Israeli relatives of fallen soldiers, defence minister Moshe Yaalon said there was a difference between us and our neighbours. There is no place for any comparison between bereavement on our side and on theirs, a statement from his office quoted him as saying. We are a society that sanctifies life and unfortunately many of them sanctify death. A society that chooses death achieves nothing, has no future. Israeli soldiers stand guard in the West Bank. The defence ministers comments come after a wave of violence on both sides. (AP Photo) His remarks followed similar claims from Israels police chief, who spoke to an organisation of bereaved Israeli families on Monday. One cannot ignore the fact that the mourning we share with you is starkly different from the kind of bereavement we find that is increasingly prevalent among our enemies, he reportedly said. They ascribe no value to life. Two weeks ago veteran Israeli army radio broadcaster Razi Barkai interviewed Internal Security Minister Gilad Erdan, who has refused to allow the bodies of some Palestinian attackers to be released to their families for burial saying he wants to avoid funerals becoming political rallies. Palestinian mourners carry the body of Khaled Takatka, 21, who was killed during clashes with Israeli troops Friday, during his funeral in the West Bank village of Beit Fajjar, near Bethlehem. (AP Photo) Barkai suggested that this caused the Palestinian families no less distress than that suffered by families of Israeli soldiers killed in the 2014 Gaza war and whose remains are still held by the strips Hamas rulers. Bereavement is bereavement both here and on the other side of the fence, Barkai was quoted as saying in later comments. The feelings of bereaved families - both here and there - are immeasurable. That interview came in the wake of a visit in early February by three Arab Israeli lawmakers to relatives of killed Palestinian assailants who were seeking to retrieve their bodies. The visit prompted Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to lend his support to a draft bill which would suspend lawmakers for inappropriate conduct. A wave of Palestinian knife, gun and car-ramming assaults that erupted in October has claimed the lives of 27 Israelis, as well as an American and an Eritrean. The violence has also seen 176 Palestinians killed by Israeli forces, most while carrying out attacks but others during clashes and demonstrations. Thank you! You've reported this item as a violation of our terms of use. This content was contributed by a user of the site. If you believe this content may be in violation of the terms of use, you may report it. A controversial "ghetto-themed" party has led to officials at Connecticut's Fairfield University to launch a forum to discuss racial issues on campus, according to the Associated Press. The student-organized event, which took place Feb. 20 in off-campus housing, allegedly included instances of blackface and costumes mocking racial minorities. Those criticizing the party claimed that the students covered their faces in brown makeup and dressed as caricatures of offensive racial stereotypes. One photo allegedly taken at the party and captioned "who's the daddy??? Anyone's guess," showed a student dressed up as a pregnant woman smoking a cigarette, according to the New York Daily News. A private Roman Catholic institution, Fairfield University has a largely white student body. Discussions are now taking place regarding the university's lack of diversity. In an email to the student body, university president Rev. Jeffrey P. von Arx concluded that the issues go further than just the party itself after speaking to students and "[hearing] the personal accounts of how this incident has impacted them," according to the New York Times. "To some within our community, this incident is symptomatic of conditions on campus that inhibit our many positive efforts to build a more inclusive, respectful and safer community," he told students in the email. "I ask again that you join me in personal accountability and meaningful action to make us a better institution." University authorities have roundly condemned the party, saying in a statement that they "expect that our students, faculty and staff maintain the highest level of respect for one another," according to USA Today. Fairfield University also stated that it would be investigating the matter immediately and will "take appropriate actions as soon as the facts have been determined." @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. An entrepreneurial Girl Scout found a quick way to keep her cookies flying off shelves by setting up shop outside a marijuana dispensary, according to KATU News. The young businesswoman set up outside Foster Buds in Portland, Ore., following in the footsteps of other Scouts that have used the legalization of the drug to their advantage. The unnamed girl was accompanied by her aunt, who told KATU News that "the Girl Scouts organization said they don't condone this, but it's not against the rules." Foster Buds has been enthusiastic about the partnership, with a Facebook post from the shop stating that it is "proud to have the Girl Scouts selling their cookies on our corner." The dispensary even ran a tongue-in-cheek promotion in conjunction with the cookie sales, offering a strain of marijuana called Girl Scout Cookies at a reduced price if a box of the actual Girl Scout cookies were brought into the store. When asked for comment, a spokesperson for the Girl Scouts of Oregon and Southwest Washington told KATU News that a minor should not be selling cookies outside of a business if they cannot legally go inside it. Ken Martin, the manager at Foster Buds, told Oregon Live that minors are allowed in the lobby of the shop, but not on the showroom floor. Martin also said that he had been approached by people wanting to set up outside the shop before, although this is the first collaboration with the Girl Scouts. "The marijuana industry has such a black eye," Martin told Oregon Live. "I want to try and lift that stigma and black eye and try to help out in any way that we can." The Girl Scout was aiming to sell about 35 boxes of cookies, but expected to go past that number by the time she was finished. Her aunt told reporters that the proceeds of the sales will go towards funding her trip to horse camp. @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Toronto's gay pride parade organizers announced that Justin Trudeau will become the first Canadian prime minister in history to participate in the annual festivities. Organized by nonprofit organization Pride Toronto, the annual festival has become a major Canadian cultural event, and is recognized as being one of the largest pride celebrations in North America. Earlier today, Trudeau tweeted: "Very much looking forward to being there again, this time as PM. #PrideTO." "[It's] big news in Canada but big news around the world," Pride Toronto's executive director Mathieu Chantelois told Buzzfeed Canada. "Not only because he is probably the sexiest politician alive, but also because there has never been a leader of a country to walk in a parade, at least not that we know of. It's a nice way to make history." Leading up to the parade, Toronto's first-ever Pride Month will launch June 1 with the theme of belonging and inclusion. Trudeau is expected to march in the parade July 3 alongside Toronto mayor John Tory and Ontario premier Kathleen Wynne, the first lesbian premier in Canada. Since taking power in October, with a Liberal majority in the Canadian government, having ousted Conservative Stephen Harper after nearly 10 years in office, Trudeau has made equality a major feature of his tenure. He established a gender-balanced cabinet for the first time in the country's history, and his government is on track to welcome 25,000 Syrian refugees by the end of the month. @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Bolivians voted against a constitutional amendment which would permit President Evo Morales to run for a fourth office term in 2019. The election authority said 51.52 percent of people voted against the amendment while 48.48 percent voted in favor with 98.43 percent of the ballots counted, according to Elcomercio. Bolivia's Constitution allows the president to hold office for three terms of five years, including two consecutive terms and third term after a gap of one term. The 56-year-old Morales has been in office since 2006. He was re-elected in 2009 and 2014, as HNGN previously reported. A constitutional court allowed Morales to run for third consecutive term in 2014 despite a two-term limit. His present term expires in 2020. Morales, who is country's' first indigenous president, has vowed to respect the results of the referendum. "We are going to respect the results, whether it be a 'No' or a 'Yes.' We always have respected them. That is democracy," he said on Monday, according to Russia Today. Vice President Alvaro Garcia Linera accused the right wing opposition parties of electoral fraud in rural areas. "It's election bullying and right-win opposition forces are attempting electoral fraud...against the campesino [farmer] vote and indigenous vote, which is the vote that still needs to be considered," he said at a press conference on Tuesday, according to Telesur TV. @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Kurdish forces have rescued a teenage Swedish girl from the Islamic State terror group near the Iraqi city of Mosul, the Kurdistan regional government said on Tuesday. The Kurdistan Regional Security Council, in a statement, said the counter-terrorism department (CTD) forces rescued the Swedish national - identified as 16-year-old Marlin Stivani Nivarlain from Boras - from a place near ISIS-occupied Mosul city on Feb. 17. Counter-Terrorism Forces (CTD) rescued a young Swedish National, Ms Marlin Stivani Nivarlain, from #ISIL near Mosul. pic.twitter.com/WRBM0tRK0Y KR Security Council (@KRSCPress) February 23, 2016 "The Kurdistan Region Security Council was called upon by Swedish authorities and members of her family to assist in locating and rescuing her from ISIL," the statement said, according to Middle East Online. Nivarlain reportedly reached Iraq through the Syrian border last year after being radicalized by an Islamic State member in Sweden. She fled Sweden along with her 19-year-old boyfriend, who was reported to be an ISIS supporter, in May last year. She also gave birth to a child in November, according to Guardian. The information about her infant child has been not revealed. The teenage girl, who is currently in Iraq's Kurdistan region, will be handed over to Swedish authorities, the Kurdistan regional government further said. "Swedish authorities were in continuous contact with the girl and organized the operation to rescue her in cooperation with regional authorities," a Kurdish official told AFP news agency. @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. A report by the Center for Strategic and International Studies, released on Monday, says that China might be in the process of installing a high-frequency radar system on the Spratly Islands, in the South China Sea. "Two probable radar towers have been built on the northern portion of the feature, and a number of 65-foot (20-meter) poles have been erected across a large section of the southern portion. These poles could be a high-frequency radar installation, which would significantly bolster China's ability to monitor surface and air traffic across the southern portion of the South China Sea," the report, released by the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative, said. "Most people in this area recognize that the facilities that China has constructed are primarily for strategic reasons. They're for military purposes, rather than civilian. But that's how China will spin it," Ian Storey, a senior fellow at the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies in Singapore, said in his opinion of the issue, reports The New York Times. Meanwhile, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi had recently reprimanded the media and requested it not to focus on China's "limited and necessary national defense facilities" in the South China Sea, as China was "providing goods and services to the international community," reports the Christian Science Monitor. Washington would "press China to de-escalate and stop its militarization," of the South China Sea, said U.S. State Department spokesman Mark Toner according to Reuters. @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Severe storms raced through the southern U.S. on Tuesday, destroying homes and displacing residents across the lower half of the country. At least 18 tornadoes touched down, and winds were damaging, leaving three people dead and upward of 30 hospitalized. States of Emergency were declared in Mississippi, Louisiana and Alabama, according to The Weather Channel. A recreational vehicle park in Convent, La., saw exceptional amounts of damage, with two deaths and 31 people hospitalized, according to the Associated Press. Additionally, three people are still missing, even after an all-night search through debris and rubble by the police, St. James Parish Sheriff Willy Martin said. Tornadoes were reported in areas spanning as far west as the Houston area, as north as Birmingham, Ala., and as far east as Valdosta, Ga. The greater New Orleans area saw multiple tornadoes touch down, as well as the areas surrounding Pensacola, Fla. High winds and rain are expected to continue into Wednesday, with the system pounding the area until it fades later at night. Tornadoes are also still a major threat for Wednesday, stretching from the Miami and Tampa areas up along the coast and through Virginia, according to The Weather Channel's Domenica Davis. The afternoon on Wednesday will see the threat of severe weather move northward, with cities like Jacksonville, Fla., Savannah, Ga., Raleigh, N.C., as well as Norfolk and Richmond, Va., according to Accuweather. Thunderstorms are expected to continue moving east and north, even up into the mid-Atlantic states. By Wednesday night, the storms will have moved out of the South and made their way up the coast, with severe weather still expected in the eastern parts of North Carolina and Virginia, as well as parts of southeastern Maryland, reports The Weather Channel. Thunderstorms are predicted to strike most of the mid-Atlantic, working up into the Northeast as far as Boston and Albany. The storms will cover most of Pennsylvania, westward to Williamsport and Harrisburg, as well as Delaware and New Jersey, and most of Southern New York. Widespread rainfall may accumulate up to 2 inches, with higher amounts possible locally. Wind gusts higher than 50 mph are expected. @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. In Boise, Idaho, a captive breeding program for California condors reached a new milestone Monday toward helping the birds return to the wild in plentiful numbers, according to Times Argus. For the first time in more than 10 years, there were more condor chicks born than condor deaths. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service confirmed that there were about 14 new birds brought in to the world last year, compared to the 12 that died. In 1987, the California condor became extinct in the wild, urging animal conservationists to take action, according to the Spread It. In 2011 the captive Condor project was able to boast that there were more condors in the wild than in captivity, and in 2012 the number of condors in the wild reached 226. "That's an indication that the program is succeeding," said Eric Davis, coordinator of the Fish and Wildlife's preservation program. The condors are typically released from captivity into the wild when they are a bit younger than two years old, in batches of about 20 to 40, according to WSBTV. One of the things contributing to the condors' death rate is hunters who leave bullet-ridden carcasses for the birds to eat. Those bullet fragments, often containing lead, are poisonous to the birds. @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Researchers at The University of Queensland, have revealed an ancient and extinct kangaroo fossil, found at the Riversleigh World Heritage Area in north-western Queensland, Australia. The ancient kangaroo fossil defines a new species of extinct, non-hopping kangaroos. This new genus is known as Cookeroo, named in honour of a museum researcher, Bernard Cooke. Cooke led most of the research program that focused on the evolution of ancient kangaroo species known as Cookeroo buldwidarri and Cookeroo hortusensis. "They lived around 15-23 million years ago and were the size of very small wallabies or pademelons," University of Queensland researchers Kaylene Butler said, according to a press release. The kangaroo species also moved on all four legs and were situated in a densely forested habitat. This new found species appears to have also been a direct competitor with a fanged kangaroo species found in Riversleigh. "It seems likely that the fanged cousins were out-competed by our new species and their descendants," said Butler. This may be because the Cookeroo species adapted better to the environmental change, from rainforest to a more open woodland. Professors Michael Archer and Suzanne Hand, of the University of New South Wales also contributed to the research and study of the ancient kangaroo species. Findings have been published in the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. An institution associated primarily with history will reinvent itself in Bismarcks growing downtown arts community. The Lewis and Clark Fort Mandan Foundation will take offices in the old Woolworth building an icon at Fourth Street and Main Avenue for the baby boomer generation and devote most of the space to a retail gallery, where art by known and emerging artists will be displayed for sale. The foundation created and supported the Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center at Washburn for nearly 20 years, but was relieved of the heavy lifting when the facility was taken over in the fall by the State Parks and Recreation Department. Foundation president David Borlaug said the gallery will create a revenue stream to support the interpretive center and, as with the foundations namesakes Lewis and Clark, point toward a new destiny and direction. We hope to combine history, art and culture, but, at the same time, our legacy commitment will always be there, Borlaug said. He will maintain a foundation office at the interpretive center also. Plans are to hold a gallery grand opening in early summer with initial exhibits by Minot artist Walter Piehl, known for colorful Western abstracts, and the late Gary Miller, whose work immortalizes the Great Plains landscape. It will be a wonderful combination to start things off, Borlaug said. The Larsen Gallery in Scottsdale, Ariz., will host a reception Sunday, hosted by well-known North Dakotans, with Gov. Jack and Betsy Dalrymple as special guests. Borlaug said he is looking for founding members willing to contribute $5,000 to get the gallery off the ground and says the gallerys name has not yet been selected since hes hoping a significant benefactor will step forward. Eileen Walsh, executive director of Dakota West Arts Council, said its exciting to see Bismarcks downtown transformed into a vibrant art neighborhood. This will make it the sixth gallery downtown, and there will be opportunities for all of them together to do great things. Bismarck is the capital city of North Dakota and artists from all around the state should have an opportunity to display their art, Walsh said. Walsh is in the second phase of a Bush Foundation grant that, if awarded, would provide funds for an arts and culture assessment of Bismarck that she hopes could eventually lead to the development of an arts center to parallel the Heritage Center, if not in size, at least in scope. Were trying to move the arts forward and raise the bar, she said. Borlaug said the foundation is excited to join the Bismarck arts community. We know how to do art; its been central at the interpretive center from day one. We amassed a $1 million art collection that is now owned by the state of North Dakota. With this gallery, we will bring great art to the community, he said. Today marks the official roll-out of a significant and compelling change in the Google search engine result page (SERP). The search engine will no longer display ads on the right hand side of the SERP. Instead, the number of ads displayed above the fold will decrease from ten to four or three in some cases. Google has decided to focus on quality over quantity giving higher value to fewer, more relevant ads. Predictions for What This Means for Hotel Brands Because there will be less ad inventory that is worth a damn, brands should expect to see cost-per-click rise across the board. The impact of these rising CPCs might be beneficial for hotels during branded searches because they are and will remain the search result with the highest relevance or quality score. This means it will become increasingly more expensive for other companies to bid on your branded keywords, and that competition may drop off overtime. On the other hand, it will become more difficult for smaller brands to bid on generic keywords like "beach resort in Maui" or "hotel near the airport in Houston." Larger brands and OTAs with more extensive advertising budgets will likely push smaller players out of the auctions who lack the ad spend to compete. Brands should take note this move means that organic efforts must be approached with renewed fervor. Showing up organically might become the most viable option for smaller, independent hotels who may eventually be priced out of the top positions. Additionally, remaining competitive in Google Hotel Finder is a big key to success. As you can see in the screenshot below, the entirety of above the fold real estate is taken up with either ads or Hotel Finder results. What This Means for the Future of Google Google has been crystal clear that they believe the future of search is becoming increasingly mobile. In simplifying their search results, they are making a very clear statement that this is what their future looks like. In the past, Google pulled the option for brands to target or bid adjust on tablets and desktop. It seems that the next logical step would be to streamline the entire advertising platform by eliminating the option to choose between whether ads are displayed on mobile through mobile bid enhancements (positive or negative). This new layout is indicative of how all of this may be leading to a consistent advertising experience across devices. While the impact on advertisers is all speculation, it will be interesting to see how things shake out in the coming year with Google's core algorithm updates. This is obviously a very monumental change, and it is important for brands to stay vigilant in the auctions that they are a part of. Certain keyword strategies that might have worked in the past, may become cost prohibitive to continue as a viable strategy in the future. Who knows what the future holds, but as the old saying goes, "The only constant is change" so brands must be prepared, be flexible and be ready to adapt in the coming months and years. Sarah Harkness Screen Pilot Screen Pilot LLC View source By Philippe Masset and Jean-Philippe Weisskopf, Assistant Professors and Pablo Charosky, Research Assistant at Ecole hoteliere de Lausanne, HES-SO // University of Applied Sciences Western Switzerland Nowadays, most hotel groups maintain light asset structures and focus their full attention on their core business: hotel management. This context has led practitioners and academics to dedicate a particular attention to strategic and operational issues. Nevertheless, real estate still is at the very heart of the hotel industry. The recent subprime crisis, which has begun with the drop of housing prices followed by commercial real estate assets, demonstrates that issues related to hotel property valuation should not be underestimated. In this article, we use a comprehensive dataset of hotel transactions and take a deeper look into the US hotel real estate market. We examine three related questions: what is the typical value (per room) of a hotel? How has this value evolved since 2000? What are the most expensive and cheapest states and cities in terms of hotel value? What is the typical value of a hotel room in the United States? In fact, numerous factors affect the value of a hotel room. For an Upper Midscale mid-sized hotel, the estimated price per room can vary from $50.000 up to $150.000 depending on its location. The hierarchy between the various scales is generally well respected. Luxury properties are, by far, the priciest and their value strongly depends on the hotel chain they belong to: for example, a room in a Four Seasons is on average worth close to 350% more than a room in an ordinary hotel from the Upper-Midscale segment. Upper-Upscale and Upscale properties display a premium of respectively 40% and 30% compared to the Upper-Midscale segment, while Midscale and Economy hotels exhibit a discount of 20% and 35%. Furthermore, the impact of offering limited or full services depends on the standing of the hotel. For superior categories, being full-service has a positive effect on value, whereas for lower scale brands, the impact is often negative. The size of the property also matters. Smaller "boutique" hotels and large hotels (which generally offer extensive facilities) feature a higher value per room than, more common, mid-sized properties. Source: EH The figure reports the evolution of a hotel real estate price index (own estimates based on transaction data), a hotel REITs price index (own estimates based on all hotel REITs listed in the US) and the S&P 500. The hotel real estate price index has increased by more than 60% between 2000 and 2007. It has then severely declined during the financial crisis, rebounding in 2010 only. An indirect investment through hotel REITs has generally delivered higher returns than a direct investment in hotel properties, but the latter has been less volatile and also much less severely hit by the financial crisis. Overall, hotel investments have performed better than stocks but, since 2010, the S&P 500 seems to be progressively catching up with the hotel index. Source: EHL The table displays the 5 most and least expensive hotel markets, classified by cities and states. Only cities of at least 1 million inhabitants are considered in this analysis. The first observation that can be made is that the geographic location of a property has a strong impact on its value. Indeed, the same hotel could have its price more than doubled if sold in Detroit or Los Angeles. New York City leads the country, with a premium of about 53% compared to the price observed for similar properties in a rural place on the Pacific coast (used as a point of comparison). Several cities located in California or along the Boston-Washington corridor follow. At the bottom of the ranking, one finds mostly cities from the Midwest. The situation of Ohio, with three cities ranked amongst the cheapest in the USA, is quite striking. Hotel values in this state are on average 42% lower than in California (which serves as a point of comparison). Hawaii displays, by far, the highest hotel values of all states. It is followed by Alaska and New-York state. The District of Columbia, due to its particular status is not reported in this table, but it also displays one of the highest price levels in the country. The findings of our analysis underline the variability of hotel real estate prices and the factors that affect them. Investing in hotel real estate, directly or indirectly is therefore a delicate decision that requires a thorough analysis. Philippe Masset Ecole hotelire de Lausanne +41 21 785 14 12 EHL It looks like you've reached a page that doesnt exist (anymore). Please use the navigation or search above to find content on Hospitality Net. Go back to home Two school districts on the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation are aiming to bolster arts and music in the classroom with the support of the Presidents Committee on the Arts and the Humanities. Solen Public Schools and Standing Rock Community/Fort Yates Public School District received visits this week from the staff of the presidents committee, which was created in 1982 under Ronald Reagan. The districts have applied for grants through the committees Turnaround Arts initiative, which offers training to teachers to integrate arts throughout the curriculum in subjects as varied as science and cultural studies. That tends to be an area where a lot of teachers dont have expertise, Fort Yates Superintendent Robyn Baker said. The grant would allow teachers to attend conferences with arts and education experts, and money would go toward purchasing new instruments and supplies for the schools. Also through the program, celebrities involved in various arts adopt schools by hosting workshops and giving lessons. They include big names such as actresses Sarah Jessica Parker and Kerry Washington, as well as cellist Yo-Yo Ma. Local artists also work with the schools. We are looking at increasing opportunities for students on the reservation in arts and humanities, said Solen Superintendent Justin Fryer, adding that schools participating in Turnaround Arts typically see academic improvements and higher attendance rates. The initiative began with eight low-performing schools in 2011 and is expected to grow to 65 throughout the nation this year as the presidents committee adds two new sites, said Lucy Fredericks, director of Indian education at the North Dakota Department of Public Instruction. The program operates for three years at each school and is intended for kids in grades K-8. She said her department and the North Dakota Council on the Arts submitted an application in December and expect to hear in March whether the Standing Rock schools have been selected. Radisson RED Dubai Silicon Oasis Rezidor introduces the lifestyle select brand Radisson RED to Dubai. Located in Dubais Silicon Oasis, a community designed to facilitate and promote modern technology based industries, the 171-room Radisson RED Dubai Silicon Oasis is expected to open in Q3 2018. Dubai has always been an important destination for our growth, and its continued development opens up new opportunities for our expansion. Our total portfolio in Dubai currently stands at 13 hotels with more than 2,600 rooms, and we are excited to introduce our first Radisson RED to the city, said Elie Younes, Executive Vice President & Chief Development Officer of Rezidor at the signing ceremony in Dubai. Furthermore, it is even a greater privilege to see the brand being launched in partnership with the Dubai Silicon Oasis Authority, a Government entity of Dubai, further committed to grow the city as a regional business hub with a focus on innovation, technology and entrepreneurship, added Younes. We are pleased to welcome Rezidor to Dubai Silicon Oasis and to be the inaugural footstep for the Radisson RED brand in Dubai. Silicon Park is set to become the first smart city project to take shape within Dubai Silicon Oasis, and we are confident that its technological advancements will create great synergies with the Radisson RED concept and its focus on technology, commented Dr. Mohammed Alzarooni, Vice Chairman & CEO of Dubai Silicon Oasis Authority. "We are also confident that the smart solutions that Silicon Park will offer combined with the strategic location of Dubai Silicon Oasis, will allow the hotel to offer its customers a unique experience within a community that allows people to work, live and play. We look forward to working closely with Rezidor to ensure the hotel brand and experience are fully expressed, for a mutually beneficial completion, Dr. Alzarooni added. The Radisson RED Dubai Silicon Oasis will be located just 14km from Dubai International Airport (DXB) and 33km from Al Maktoum Airport with easy accessibility due to its close proximity to major highways. In addition to a selection of creative signature dining outlets, the hotel will also include an outdoor terrace and a number of reading rooms. The hotel will be at the centre of the Silicon Park with a promenade of various food and restaurant outlets along with a business centre and dedicated meeting facilities connected to the property. Radisson RED is Carlson Rezidors new lifestyle select brand inspired by the ageless millennial mindset, fashion, music and art. RED boasts a forward-thinking focus on design and detail, the guest experience, personal interaction, personal choice and recognition of the increasingly important role that technology plays in facilitating the best of everyday life. The global portfolio features 12 hotels under development, and the very first hotel will make its debut in April 2016 in Brussels, Belgium. Trump Hotels has announced the appointment of Mark Hawthorn as chief accounting officer of the international luxury hospitality company. Mr. Hawthorn brings to the growing hotel brand more than 15 years of corporate finance experience specializing in the hospitality industry and international operations. He joins Trump Hotels during a period of significant brand expansion that includes the openings of Trump Hotel Rio de Janeiro, Trump International Hotel & Tower Vancouver and Trump International Hotel Washington D.C. in 2016. Trump Hotels also recently announced its expansion to Asia with upcoming projects in Lido and Bali, Indonesia. "Mark is immensely proficient in complex financial analysis and has been extremely effective as a finance executive for several large companies," saidEric Danziger, Chief Executive Officer of Trump Hotels. "We look forward to him being part of our company's growth as we introduce new luxury properties in the world's most exciting travel destinations. His exemplary track record in hotel accounting and finance as well as his understanding of global markets make him ideally suited for the chief accounting officer role at Trump Hotels." Hawthorn joined Trump Hotels on February 22, following his tenure as vice president, treasury for Kerzner International, a global developer and manager of destination resorts and luxury hotels operating the Atlantis and One&Only Resorts brands. Hawthorn has overseen Kerzner's global finance and treasury functions and played a critical role in the successful completion of the company's comprehensive restructuring in 2012. He has managed the company's global audit process, resolved technical accounting issues, as well as implemented procedures to enhance controls and accelerate financial reporting. "I am thrilled to join Trump Hotels during this exciting time of exponential growth," said Hawthorn. "I look forward to being part of a team of such well-respected leaders in business and hospitality." Hawthorn began his career in public accounting with Arthur Andersen before transitioning to Ernst & Young's South Florida audit practice. He holds a Bachelors and Masters of Science in accounting from the University of Florida and is a Certified Public Accountant in the State of Florida. Trump Hotels is currently one of the fastest growing luxury hotel companies in the world. With a portfolio of 14 hotels, including iconic assets such as Trump National Doral, an 800 acre property in the heart of Miami; Trump International Hotel & Tower, the only hotel in North America that has achieved five stars (Forbes) and five diamonds (AAA) for both the hotel and restaurant, in addition to three Michelin stars for the restaurant; and many others, Trump Hotels properties are known for achieving the highest accolades and are located in prime locations worldwide. When Hot Press ran its first craft beer special in 2011, Kevin Thornton, Gavin Glass, Fair City star Ciara OCallaghan and Mal Tuohy from the Riptide Movement helped us drink to the fact that the 20th Irish microbrewery, the very fine Metalman in Waterford, had just opened. With previous titles such as Why You Runnin, Catching a Tiger and Back to Forever, Lissies nomadic lifestyle has been her greatest inspiration. Third studio album My Wild West is no different, finding the Illinois native in transitional limbo, as she departs California and faces into an uncertain future. Im through with all that make-believing, getting blood from a stone, she sings on Hollywood, a piano-lead reflection on the Hollywood dream, falling apart at the seams. Meanwhile, on the folky pop-rock number Wild West, Lissie assures us that despite having gone Rouge in the wild, wild west, shell be Fine, fine, fine. That narrative remains clear throughout, but like on previous albums, the sound and production lack focus. Stay, for example, begins as a spacious, alt-folk guitar track with a devastating vocal, before banjo, backing vocals and other unnecessary sounds invade. In contrast, Dont You Give Up On Me deftly showcases Lissies abiding flair for catchy choruses, while the excellent Shroud and Go For a Walk give hope for the future, courtesy of unfussy arrangements that allow Lissies gorgeous vocals to shine. In case you hadnt noticed, were in another leap year and theres a 29th day of February coming up Monday. Leap year and its accompanying 366th day is one of the many somewhat strange things in society thats largely taken for granted. Its purportedly about synchronization of the calendar to the actual time it takes the Earth to revolve around the Sun. Thats because our home planet actually takes slightly more than a year to travel around its host star 5 hours, 48 minutes and 46 seconds longer, for the record. But being the cautious realist God made me, I have a few suspicions that theres more to it than celestial synchronicity. But first, a little leap history. The practice of adding the extra day began in 46 B.C. when the Julian calendar was created by decree of Roman ruler Julius Caesar and an extra day was added every four years. But Caesars design (or the one devised by his calendar cronies) was far from accurate, and by 1582 an 11-minute discrepancy in it that had added up to a whopping 10 days. At that point, Pope Gregory XIII stepped in and had the Gregorian calendar created. To get rolling, Greg 13 had 10 days from that years October to even things up. He also established Feb. 29 as the official date to add during a leap year, and had leap year rules fine-tuned to only include century years that can be evenly divided by 400 (for example, 1700 and 1900 were not leap years because they are not divisible by 400, even though they are divisible by four). That all but assured there would never again be a Julian-style cosmic discrepancy. And while he was at it, Greg even coined the term leap year (or at least is credited with doing so). Of course, as with almost anything out of the ordinary, a bunch of weird traditions and superstitions ended up surrounding leap years, like people in Greece avoiding marriage to avoid bad luck. And of course, theres the subject of leap babies, and all the charming anecdotes about 40-year-olds having only 10 birthdays. But then, not many people are born on Feb. 29 in Scotland, because thats considered bad luck. Anyway, amongst all the stuff surrounding leap year, theres one little tidbit of technicality that really gets my attention: In effect, salaried employees work for free on leap days. That may sound harmless and funny on the surface, but it makes you really wonder if there could very well be more to staging an occasional 366-day year than simply making sure that 15,000 years from now snow isnt falling in August, and temperatures arent in the 100s in January. In turn, I declare that from here on Feb. 29 is International Salaried Employees Work-For-Free Day. Its fascinating. For hourly employees, Feb. 29 represents a chance to make a days extra wage. But the opposite is true for workers with salaried positions. For example, for three straight years, a middle manager at a cardboard factory in Canton works a certain number of days for a designated amount of money, then suddenly, along comes an added day of work with no added compensation. Maybe Im wrong, but isnt working without compensation called slavery? Im not accusing anyone of anything that extreme or even illegal its just that something seems to be missing from the equation (like cash, bread, moolah, lettuce). But guess what that extra day also means (in a money sense): More sales tax collected by sales tax-collecting entities. What a bonus! Another whole day for people to buy groceries, gas and garments, and for those purchases to generate tax income. Free money! Its a miracle! So maybe leap year (and its accompanying leap day) is more than a scientific band-aid that has been applied to a less-than-failsafe system of tracking days, months and years. It could be more about money. But then, what isnt these days? For that matter, since the first-ever exchange of something valuable took place, hasnt everything pretty much always been about financial gain? And we know, of course, that the Bible says the love of bucks is the root of bad stuff (not just money itself, but the unchecked, misguided love of it; see 1 Timothy 6:10). Just sayin. Doug Davison is a writer, photographer and newsroom assistant for the Houston Herald. Email: ddavison@houstonherald.com. Subscribing to our services is a three step process. First you have to create an account and then you have to pick if you want to subscribe to digital and or print. Some people only want to be a digital subscriber to get access online and others want to also receive the print edition. If you are already a print subscriber and want online access, it is free, you simply have to create an online account and then attach your print subscription account number to the online account you create. A short refined products pipeline in eastern North Dakota was given the green light by regulators Wednesday and is expected to provide flexibility for a company in the region to provide more product to state consumers. Public Service Commission members unanimously agreed to allow a 7.3-mile, 8-inch-diameter refined products pipeline to be built in Cass County to move forward. The $12 million project was brought forward by San Antonio-based NuStar Pipeline Operating Partnership. This was a pretty straightforward project, Commission Chairwoman Julie Fedorchak said. The pipeline will begin at the Cenex Fargo Terminal located about 1.3 miles southeast of Prosper and end at a NuStars existing 10-inch diameter North System Pipeline, located about 2 miles southeast of Mapleton. NuStars project is called the Laurel Interconnect Pipeline Project. The project will provide a connection between Cenexs Laurel Pipeline, which runs from the Cenexs refinery in Laurel, Mont., to the Magellan Midstream Partners, LP terminal in Fargo and NuStars North System Pipeline. The North System Pipeline runs from the Tesoro refinery in Mandan to a terminal in Roseville, Minn. Fedorchak said the project provides operational flexibility for both systems. More diesel fuel and gasoline will be able to be provided within the state via the companys terminals in Jamestown. The initial capacity for the project will be 24,000 barrels per day of refined products with a maximum capacity of 64,000 barrels per day. As an existing print subscriber it is easy to get FREE access to all our online content. When you click get started below it will walk you through creating an online account to attach your print subscription number to. After your account is created it will ask you to either add a subscription for online access or click on the print subscriber button. Click the print subscriber button header and it will open a dropdown, now click on get started. The page will reload and you will be prompted to enter an account number and a zip code. IT IS VERY IMPORTANT TO USE THE NUMBER OFF OF THE MOST RECENT ISSUE OR ANYTHING AFTER JANUARY 28, 2019 TO GAIN ACCESS! OLD ACCOUNT NUMBERS WILL NOT WORK The account number and zip code are easily available on your most recent issue of the High Plains Journal or Midwest Ag Journal in the address fields as is shown here. Sometimes the account number has extra zero's in front of it, just ignore those. Athens Macedonian News Agency: News in English, 16-02-23 Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article From: The Athens News Agency at CONTENTS [01] NATO chief: Refugees, migrants who have set sail from Turkey will be returned [01] NATO chief: Refugees, migrants who have set sail from Turkey will be returned BRUSSELS (ANA-MPA/M. Spinthourakis) a NATO General Secretary Jens Stoltenberg clarified on Tuesday that third country nationals who have set sail from Turkey in a bid to illegally reach Greek territory will be returned to the Turkish coast once rescued, according to an agreement signed between the two sides. He also said NATO's role in the refugee crisis does not consist of arresting people and stopping vessels, but of assisting the work of the Greek and Turkish coast guards, as well as Frontex. Speaking at the European Parliament, Stoltenberg said it is primarily about sharing information relating to the identification and monitoring of vessels sailing in the region. He noted however, that if NATO ships locate people at sea who are in peril, they will be rescued, in accordance with international law. The NATO chief added that the success of the operation depends on Greece, Turkey and Frontex. Considering that Greece is a member of the EU and Turkey isn't, NATO's role also consists on bridging that gap, he added, and said the alliance will participate with two to five ships. Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article Athens Macedonian News Agency: News in English, 16-02-24 Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article From: The Athens News Agency at CONTENTS [01] Tsipras cites 'disappointment' with Europe's management of refugee crisis [02] PM Tsipras, ND leader Mitsotakis discuss refugee crisis [03] High court prosecutor orders breakup of farmers' roadblocks [04] Dombrovskis: First program review must be completed soon [01] Tsipras cites 'disappointment' with Europe's management of refugee crisis The management of the refugee crisis by Europe has been disappointing, Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said on Wednesday in an address in Parliament, during a debate on draft bill to reform public administration. "Some don't realize that the common rules either apply to all or they don't exist," he said. "Also, agreements are either implemented by all or they don't exist. It's shameful for the decisions taken by the EU heads of state to be annulled by some sub-gatherings," he said, noting Greece will demand its partners "to act responsibly". "We will not allow Greece to become a warehouse of souls," he said. He also announced that he will ask for a of political leaders' council meeting before the EU-Turkey summit on March 7, to form a consensus on which Greece will request the obligatory implementation of relocation and resettlement of refugees from member-states. [02] PM Tsipras, ND leader Mitsotakis discuss refugee crisis Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras spoke by phone with main opposition New Democracy leader Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Wednesday, with whom he discussed developments on the pressing refugee crisis, government sources said. The two political leaders also discussed the possibility of holding a political leaders' council meeting on the same issue, ahead of the EU-Turkey summit on March 7. [03] High court prosecutor orders breakup of farmers' roadblocks The chief Supreme Court prosecutor, Efterpi Koutzamani, on Wednesday ordered all regional prosecutors to ensure the opening of roadblocks set up by protesting farmers, as well as to press charges for obstructing transportation against individuals blocking the country's main motorway. Koutzamani ordered colleagues to intervene with the assistance of police in order to confirm whether "transportation is being obstructed and to inspect if any other offences are being committed, as well as to identify and prosecute suspects". [04] Dombrovskis: First program review must be completed soon BRUSSELS (ANA-MPA / M. Aroni) a The refugee crisis faced by Greece makes it all the more important to complete the first program review soon, European Commission Vice-President Valdis Dombrovskis said during a press conference on Wednesday. Dombrovskis noted that because Greece is facing difficulties with the refugee issue, it would be good to have some results in the implementation of the bailout program, to complete the first review soon, to continue with the funding of the program and end uncertainty. He also said the first program review is underway and that work is continuing on all aspects, noting that Greece must meet the fiscal targets agreed, reform its pension system and its public administration and operate its privatization fund. Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article ajor HR topic attracted celebrity attention this week as Ellen DeGeneres called on employers to recruit people they may not immediately consider.I hope more people see this and see that you actually can hire people that you think you shouldnt hire, said the chat-show host. I hope more people do that right now, she added.DeGeneres was talking about employers hiring people with disabilities or, more specifically, autism the request came as internet sensation and dancing barista Sam appeared on her show. Starbucks employee Sam shot to online fame after a video was shared showing his unique skills and dance moves. The aspiring 17-year-old had previously been told his autism deemed him unemployable but manager Chris spotted potential in the youngster and offered him a job.Sam really stood out to me when I actually met him, said Chris. He told me one of his dreams he wanted to be a barista and I tried to make that happen, he added.In that moment, my life changed and my whole world changed, Sam told DeGeneres, recounting the moment he was offered his dream job.Sams dancing not only helps him concentrate on the task in hand but also helps him find an outlet for the jerky movements that accompany his autism.The music and the dance was able for him to control himself, focus on the drinks, focus on the routines, explains manager Chris. Hes become more comfortable and hes been doing so great.Sam, whos excelling in his role and has proved himself as a valuable employee, is quick to show his appreciation to the employer who gave him a chance.Hes an amazing boss and hes also a really, really good friend, gushed Sam. I wouldnt give him up for anything.Chris also addressed the concerns that many employers may have, of hiring someone whose social skills arent necessarily in line with most other employees or who they might think will take a lot of time to manage.When I first met Sam he was a little shy, he had trouble looking me in the eye through the progression Ive seen Sam be so outgoing with our customers, hes been able to make all the drinks, hes so friendly and he works really independent. Last Week Tonight (HBO): Hollywood Whitewashing With the The Academy Awards coming up, Last Week Tonight with John Oliver asks: Hollywood whitewashing...how is this still a thing? Posted by Last Week Tonight with John Oliver on Tuesday, 23 February 2016 "Last Week Tonight with John Oliver" has a bone to pick with Hollywood and its habit of casting white actors in roles that could go to people of colour. The HBO show released a "How Is This Still a Thing?" segment on Facebook Tuesday that took the movie industry to task for casting gaffes that took place as recently as last year. Advertisement Back 2015, Cameron Crowe released the film "Aloha," in which white actor Emma Stone played the role of a half-Asian woman. Meanwhile, the previous year saw Christian Bale and Joel Edgerton cast as Egyptians in Ridley Scott's "Exodus: Gods and Kings." Joel Edgerton, left, and Christian Bale star in 2014's "Exodus: Gods and Kings." (Photo: Fox) The segment was released just five days before the Academy Awards which, for the second year in a row, have drawn controversy for the sheer number of white actors nominated for Oscars. Advertisement Only one person of colour, "The Revenant's" Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, is nominated for Best Director. The nominations spawned a hashtag, #Oscarssowhite, in which Twitter users reflected on the lack of diversity among the contenders. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), which chooses the Oscar winners, has responded to the outcry by committing to doubling its number of women and diverse members by 2020. But that still wouldn't solve the problem of a white Hollywood. A study out of USC's Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism found that women, people of colour and members of the LGBT community don't have nearly the presence in Hollywood that white men do. Advertisement It said that underrepresented speaking characters made up 26.7 per cent of the people in movies from 2014 to 2015. Other media fared only slightly better. So to answer John Oliver's question: it seems pretty clear that Hollywood whiteness is still a thing because people of colour aren't being cast enough. That would be a good start. Also on HuffPost: University Of Calgary Alberta students are concerned a much-needed mental health grant for post-secondary schools may not be renewed after the province's mental health review made no mention of the program. The University of Alberta, University of Calgary and University of Lethbridge have each received $1 million in annual grant funding since 2013. The grant was introduced in response to studies showing dire need for increased mental health services at all three schools. Advertisement But now that funding is set to expire in August, and the provincial government has yet to announce if it will be extended. Vague wording and lack of commitments Many had hoped Alberta's Mental Health Review, released Monday, would signal the province's intent to renew the funding or make it permanent. However, the review only makes brief mentions of mental health concerns among post-secondary students. It recommends officials "create healthy and supportive post-secondary campus environments through health promotion, addiction and mental health campus services, and community partnerships." The majority of students on campus probably voted for the NDP in exchange for a promise that we will have increased mental health funding, because its really crucial for the students wellbeing, U of A Students' Union Vice President Vivian Kwan told the university's student paper. Advertisement From reading the review, I dont think that we are too hopeful that there will be much for us included in the budget." Many programs at capacity Last year, he province's suicide rate spiked as the economy plunged deeper into a recession. In the first half of 2015, Alberta's suicide rate grew nearly 30 per cent, putting higher demands on Alberta's at-capacity mental health programs. Even high school students are feeling increased stress due to the economy, said Western Canada High School Principal Martin Poirier. He told CBC News his school has hired a psychologist to help students with their anxiety. Unfortunately, the same economic pressures causing students stress are also forcing the government to tighten purse-strings. Advertisement The province is facing a $6-billion deficit, and Finance Minister Joe Ceci said in December that many initiatives promised by the NDP will be delayed or reduced in 2016. Romy Garrido, vice president of the U of C Students' Union said funding for mental health is always one of the first items she raises when meeting with MLAs, but she's been told by sources it's unlikely the funding will be renewed, according to U of C student paper The Gauntlet. If the funding is cut, schools may be forced to reduce staff and counselling hours for campus mental health providers services that are already seeing full wait times and students turned away at the U of C, according to Metro News. If you or someone you know is feeling suicidal, please contact a 24-hour distress line in your area. Advertisement In honour of Black History Month, we wanted to take the opportunity to highlight some of the incredible array of black literary talent that Canada is so fortunate to have. These are valuable voices sharing fresh and influential stories and perspectives. It's not difficult to see why so many of these authors and their novels have been nominated for and won some of the biggest literary prizes the Giller Prize, Commonwealth Writers' Prize, and the Prix Medicis (to name a few). Five highway rest areas will be closed by the North Dakota Department of Transportation as it works to address a shortfall in revenue. In addition, the department indicated Tuesday that it will leave open positions vacant and reduce the number of hours worked by temporary employees. Grant Levi, director of the DOT, told the interim Transportation Committee that the state also will switch to federal funding to do its highway marking program, which paints lines on highways. These changes are meant to address a projected $69.2 million shortfall in user revenues. These revenues include motor vehicle registration fees, fuel taxes and truck fees. We started to become concerned late last fall, Levi said. To save on salary costs, 20 full-time DOT positions will be left vacant and the budget for temporary employees will be decreased. These changes will provide savings of $3.5 million and $1.4 million, respectively. A total of $1.9 million in compensation to employees in the oil patch to supplement salaries and recruit new employees also is being cut. We need the salary savings. These are obviously some things we can do, Levi said. How many temporary employees are to be let go or have hours reduced is still being determined. Levi declined to give an estimated number of impacted employees. The five highway rest areas are in the north central and northeastern parts of the state and create $70,000 in operational cost savings. The rest areas are located at Norwich, Finnish, Germantown, Pleasant Lake and Sykeston. There are a total of 28 highway rest areas in the state. The cost of using federal dollars for the pavement marking program per biennium is $14 million. So far this biennium, $2 million has been spent in state dollars before the decision to make the switch was made. Levi said lower fuel prices are lowering our state fleet costs, adding that savings in fuel costs total about $6.7 million. Cities, counties and townships also will be impacted by reductions in their share of state fuel taxes and motor vehicle registration fees, to the tune of $31.3 million. Our partners are experiencing the same challenges, Levi said. The cuts in user revenues are separate from budget cuts ordered this month to agencies funded by general fund dollars, Levi said. Last week, the DOT submitted $26.6 million in cuts as part of the 4.05 percent in budget cuts ordered by the governor to address a $1.074 billion projected general fund budget shortfall. The majority of those cuts, about $22 million, will come from cost reductions and scope changes to road projects in the western part of the state. The remaining $4.5 million in DOT cuts are coming from changes in scope to projects in non-oil producing counties. Levi said bids for planned projects have been more competitive than a few years ago when oil activity was higher, which prompted higher construction costs. Are we expecting to do them all? Probably not, Levi said of the states construction program for the biennium. A lucky draw reunited one Canadian Navy sailor with his partner for a special kiss on a B.C. dockyard Tuesday and it made history, too. A crowd gathered at CFB Esquimalt in Victoria, B.C. burst into cheers after Master Seaman Francis Legare walked off HMCS Winnipeg and toward his waiting partner, Corey Vautour. Advertisement Time seemed to stand still as Legare and Vautour stood in front of each other, waiting for their signal to share a first kiss a navy tradition determined solely by a random draw. The fellow on board the ship is a sailor like every other sailor, doing his job, Royal Canadian Navy spokesman Kris Phillips told The Huffington Post Canada. He added the fact that Legare is in a same-sex partnership is irrelevant to his role in the navy. Data isnt kept about the ceremonial kisses, but the one between Legare and Vautour is the first between two men, the navy confirmed. Two women shared a first kiss a few years earlier, said Phillips. Advertisement What we are supporting here, what were standing behind is something that should be very representative of what you would expect to find anywhere in Canadian society, he said. The first kiss is a time-honoured rite that bears emotional significance for navy couples separated by long deployments. ... what were standing behind is something that should be very representative of what you would expect to find anywhere in Canadian society. Sailors buy raffle tickets one for $2 or $5 for three for a chance to be chosen as the first to walk off the ship and share a kiss with their spouse or partner. The money collected through the raffle is used for family-related events. The HMCS Winnipeg's crew of 250 had been in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific for eight months. Legares previous deployments have taken him to the Arabian Sea for maritime security and counter-terrorism operations. This latest voyage separated him from Vautour for exactly 255 days he kept count. Advertisement Now Im back. Im here. Its just unreal, it feels great. Im just speechless right now, Legare told reporters on Tuesday. Also on HuffPost After Kanye Wests tumultuous few weeks, he's at it again with a new fight to pick on Wednesday. This time it's with a Canadian music producer who wrote a less-than-flattering blog post about the rapper. What kind of crazy, fucked up world is it where this guy is considered to be culturally important!!??? wrote Bob Ezrin, a Toronto-born producer whos worked with Pink Floyd, U2, and Jay-Z. Advertisement Kanye West reacts as he accepts the video vanguard award at the MTV Video Music Awards at the Microsoft Theater on Aug. 30, 2015, in Los Angeles. (Photo: Matt Sayles/Invision/AP) In spite of what the aspirationally-cool media keeps saying about him, unlike other creators in his genre like Jay-Z, Tupac, Biggie or even M.C. Hammer for that matter, its unlikely that well be quoting too many of Kanyes songs 20 years from now, Ezrin wrote on Monday. Hell, Forbes named this guy one of the 100 most influential people IN THE WORLD in 2005 and 2015!! Seriously??? Influencing WHAT exactly? Advertisement Kanye, in typical fashion, responded with a long series of tweets. Has anybody ever heard of Bob Ezrin??? KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) February 24, 2016 Im tired of old people that have no connection with anything trying to comment on music! KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) February 24, 2016 Bro you said Macklemore was more important musically than me no offense to Macklemore, hes a nice human being! KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) February 24, 2016 Bob please never speak in public again you are everything that is wrong with the old guard KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) February 24, 2016 Ezrin I truly feel sorry for your friends and family that they have had to suffer an idiot like you for so many years KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) February 24, 2016 Advertisement West also said hed send Ezrins kids free pairs of the sneakers he designed with Adidas, the Yeezy Boost 350. Considering theyre selling for up to $1,499.99 on eBay, getting publicly roasted by Ye may have its own special perks. Im so sorry for them I will send them free Yeezys to make up for the embarrassment that you have caused your family! KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) February 24, 2016 And yes I've talked to Adidas and we gon hook y'all up with free Yeezys and Adidas. All positive vibes. KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) February 24, 2016 The federal defence minister says Canada remains "in the fight" against the so-called Islamic State, even while insisting the Liberals' retooled mission is non-combat. But Harjit Sajjan balked Wednesday when asked directly in question period if Canada is "at war with ISIL." Advertisement Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan answers a question in the House of Commons Wednesday. (Photo: Adrian Wyld/Canadian Press) Under pressure from the left and right, Sajjan and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau have both walked something of a rhetorical tightrope since unveiling the new government's strategy this month. Conservatives say the plan is a "shameful" step back, largely because CF-18 airstrikes have already ended. New Democrats say the plan goes too far because hundreds of Canadian troops could face danger on the ground training Kurdish forces. Advertisement In the House of Commons Wednesday, Tory defence critic James Bezan highlighted that the U.S. general running the air campaign against ISIS was "surprised" to learn Canada was withdrawing fighter jets. "Will the defence minister stand with our allies and put our CF-18s back in the fight?" Bezan asked. "I can assure the member we are in the fight with our coalition partners." Harjit Sajjan "I can assure the member we are in the fight with our coalition partners," Sajjan replied. The defence minister added that coalition partners have told him the Liberals' plan is a good one because "this fight against ISIL can only happen on the ground." Bezan then mentioned how U.S. Lt.-Gen. Charles Brown told The National Post that Canadian planes were "pounding" ISIS and would be welcomed back. "Why is the Liberal government opting out of the combat mission against ISIS? This isn't a fight anymore," Bezan said. Sajjan reminded the Tory critic about the chain of command in the military, suggesting he's spoken with people above Brown who are pleased. Advertisement Canada at 'war'? But Pierre Paul-Hus associate Tory defence critic and like Sajjan, a military veteran followed up by saying that it's important for soldiers to know if they are going to participate in ground combat operations. "The United States has declared that they're at war against ISIL, France has done the same," Paul-Hus said. "This is a fundamental question for our soldiers. Can the minister tell us if Canada is at war with ISIL, yes or no?" Sajjan said he didn't fully understand the question. "If it means we're defining fighting against ISIL and defeating them, we are committed to it," Sajjan said. "We've done it in the past. We will assess the situation. And this is what's needed on the ground right now." Trudeau says Liberals stepped up in 'fight' Earlier in question period, interim Tory Leader Rona Ambrose accused Trudeau of misleading Canadians by suggesting that American allies were "just fine" with Canada pulling the jets. "Our allies were pleased to know Canada continues to be a strong member of the coalition and indeed has stepped up our involvement in the combat, the fight against ISIS," Trudeau said, adding that the country is contributing with training, intelligence, and refugee support. Advertisement Liberals 'denying the facts': NDP In question period on Monday, NDP foreign affairs critic Helene Laverdiere accused Liberals, who once criticized the previous Tory government's "loose definition of a combat mission," of now failing to provide clear answers. "Will the minister stop denying the facts and admit that our soldiers are engaged in a combat mission?" she asked. "This is a non-combat mission," Sajjan responded. "However, we are in a conflict zone. Our troops will be at risk. That is the reason why we have mitigated this with many aspects of bringing in certain capabilities." Also on HuffPost Canada's ISIS Mission: Then & Now See Gallery Mike Liu via Getty Images Beach scenic in Cancun, Mexico Photo credit: Alejandro Cabrera The Baja California Peninsula is the ultimate snowbird (or any time of year) destination. Hot daytime temperatures cool in the evenings, white sand beaches are splashed by turquoise waters, and many of the peninsula's wonders often go undiscovered. Advertisement Baja is one of the few remaining places in the world where travelers can camp on a postcard-worthy beach or bathe under a waterfall without another soul in sight. Historic cities line world-famous surf spots, and whales splash off the coastline for those escaping the cold in their native countries. There are more must-visit places in Baja than can be counted on one hand, but the following are five you simply don't want to miss. Todos Santos Whale watchers, foodies, surfers, art enthusiasts and beach lovers will all find that Todos Santos immediately feels like home. This small town is one of the most vibrant in the Mexican state of Baja Sur, with art festivals, famed restaurants, historic buildings and plenty of affordable places to rent for short or extended stays. Whale watching, beachcombing, surfing, fishing and horseback riding are just a few of the many outdoor activities you can enjoy seconds from Todos Santos' happening and historic downtown area. Bahia Concepcion Photo credit: Comefilm You don't have to travel to the Caribbean for beaches that will blow your mind, and you'll find even less crowded ones in Baja. The famous Bahia Concepcion starts south of the expat town of Mulege and spans roughly 20 miles. It's one of the most scenic places in Baja for camping, swimming, snorkeling, kayaking or taking in the beauty of sugar-sand beaches backed by the varying blues of the Sea of Cortez. Advertisement Santiago Santiago is a small Baja Sur pueblo, offering an ideal stopping place for those exploring the peninsula by vehicle. The town is just minutes from Aguas Calientes (hot springs), the Canon de la Zorra (Fox Canyon) and the picturesque Rancho Ecologico Sol de Mayo, which features a moderately difficult trail to a freshwater pool fed by a 30-foot-tall waterfall. Santiago is also only about a 1 hour drive from anywhere in the Los Cabos area, offering an adventurous and refreshing retreat from popular tourist hotspots. Loreto Photo credit: Kirt Edblom Loreto is one of Baja's oldest settlements, and the small town along the Sea of Cortez offers a much more authentic feel than some of Baja's more popular tourist destinations. This mountain town, sitting among the stunning Sierra de la Giganta, offers access to uninhabited islands, picturesque beaches, cliffs, and bays that seem as though they were created specifically for lounging, swimming and snorkeling. Loreto is a pristine Mexican town with colorful traditions and rich heritage. Spend days dining in authentic restaurants, enjoying local music, shopping and experiencing the many traditions of this centuries-old area. San Jose del Cabo Cabo San Lucas is known around the world as a top party destination, but its sleepy sister San Jose del Cabo often goes unnoticed. This artsy town with cobblestone streets, a traditional town square and some of the top dining destinations in Baja is the perfect place for travelers who prefer earlier nights and a more quaint town. However, there's no shortage of places to shop, dine and drink, so be sure to bring your wallet. Advertisement We live in the most autobiographical era of human history, documenting and sharing the minutiae of our daily lives. It's hard to know what impact this will have on memoirs yet unwritten: if you remember the sweet crunch of an apple you had in your lunch box on the first day school, but an old Instagram photo reveals it was an orange, which is truer -- the taste in your mouth or the picture of a fruit you do not remember? While the taste that lingers in your mouth might be most salient, a sensory truth wouldn't be truthful enough for a memoir today. Memoir, as a genre, has been under intense scrutiny since that watershed moment in 2006 which saw James Frey tumble from Oprah poster boy to flailing pariah. Investigation into James Frey's best-selling memoir of addiction, A Million Little Pieces, resulted in the accusation that he had betrayed millions of people. At first Frey, asserted that the memoir reflected the "essential truth" of his life (it tasted like an apple, if you will), though later, under further pressure, he confessed to having fabricated significant portions of the book (it was actually an orange). Advertisement The fact that A Million Little Pieces was initially shopped around as a novel tends to be forgotten. When my first novel, Mouthing the Words, was about to be published in the UK, my British publisher asked whether it couldn't be promoted as memoir. But how could I possibly publish this story about a child who had been sexually abused as my own when it didn't reflect my own experience? Sure, I identified with many of the protagonist's feelings, but isn't that what writing and reading are about? From a publishing perspective though, I got the sense that if something read like truth and borrowed enough facts from an author's bio, it was legitimate to market it as such. But that was in 2000, six years before Oprah spoke publicly of Frey's betrayal and his publisher offered refunds to those who felt they had been victims of fraud. Frey took the fall, yet all the interested parties were invested in, if not exactly the deception, the willing suspension of doubt. A lot of money was riding on it: five million copies were sold. We make sense of our lives by ordering events in narrative form; we find and construct meaning and identity in this way. The kind of scrutiny the Frey case raised has pushed us to go further in our attempts to both acknowledge memoir's conceits and work with and against them. Advertisement It's never been a secret that a writer uses narrative technique in the telling of his/her own story. There are ways in which our stories are framed and narrated for effect, there are moments of compression and expansiveness that don't necessarily reflect the time it took for certain events to be lived, we leave out the boring uneventful stuff and make omissions for reasons of poeticism or unity or preservation--of ourselves and the relationships we hope will survive the memoir's publication. We focus on what is salient to us at a particular moment, we link experiences through time, finding parallels and thematic resonance, we craft a story so that our lives have texture and meaning and are something more than simply a recollection or chronology of fact. This has never been a secret because this is what we all do, whether we are are writers or not. We make sense of our lives by ordering events in narrative form; we find and construct meaning and identity in this way. At a minimum, when we tell someone else a story we give it a beginning, middle and end. We add humility, heroism, pathos, humour. Perhaps we end with a lesson we did not see in the moment of the event, but only find in the aftermath, in the telling. David Shields, author of the manifesto "Reality Hunger" goes as far as to say that "anything processed through memory is fiction." He expresses disappointment with Frey, not because he "is a liar but [because] he isn't a better one. He should have said, 'Everyone who writes about himself is a liar.'" So how then do we deal with this persist problem of truth? Karl Ove Knausgaard and a number of other writers have confronted the challenge of factual representation by blurring genre distinctions. Knausgaard's six-volume My Life is a series of "autobiographical novels." By resisting the charge of memoir, he may be pointing to the impossibility of being anything but a flawed or unreliable narrator of one's own life. But he may also be having his cake and eating it too: I, for one, am tired of the metafictional pretension of novels with characters named after their authors. Those who persist and risk the claim to memoir do so with all the awareness of the pains and pitfalls of the past decade. Often, they necessarily engage in some kind of metacommentary as they write the story, asking what truth is, acknowledging the conceits of memoir, interrogating themselves in the attempt to, as Mary Karr writes, seek "the truth of memory -- your memory and character -- not of unbiased history." Good memoir ultimately transcends its subject. By using personal material in order to speak to bigger ideas, it serves to illustrate and analyze aspects of human experience, which is experience shared. Advertisement See a short video of the author talking about her book, This Is Happy. The video was prepared by the RBC Taylor Prize for the Huffington Post. John Wohlfeil via Getty Images Count right now how many reward cards you have clogging up your wallet. When was the last time you actually went on a free trip or got some sort of reward from them? Have you ever thought how much more money you spend travelling across town to use that store or get extra rewards? How many points apps or websited do you have on your phone and how do they change our natural behaviour? When we count up the effort, is it worth the reward? Advertisement Due to the fact that I'm always trying to get the most bang for my buck, I've crunched all of the numbers and my chosen rewards system is the one that is the longest running. It's called cash. I can use it to buy hotels, a toaster or travel on any airline, and my wallet is free of any cards of any kind. It can be used everywhere, and I can even save the tax or get a better price at some places when I use it. There aren't any membership fees and I don't have to pay interest on anything that I've already bought. Cash also doesn't make me change my behaviour to use certain stores or buy twice as many products to get my rewards. The reward I have with cash is the FREEDOM to get what I need, efficiently. The closest gas station, cheapest grocery store or most convenient mall and less stress and hassle is my reward. I recently tried to redeem two different points systems to get a trip to Calgary. A ticket that would have cost me $371, including tax, to buy with cash would have taken $45,000 worth of spending with one credit card and $25,000 with another card. Advertisement Then on top of that they would have charged $187 or $114.80, respectively, on top of my points for taxes and extra charges. I really don't see how these reward programs add up. Here is my logic: 1. SAVE Using cash saves people up to 20 per cent compared to using cards. You simply spend less money when you have to actually plop it down. Using cash puts a ceiling on your spending; if you're spending virtue is in question -- if you're being naughty with your money -- it's very helpful. What I do is allocate $400 every Monday, and that is my discretionary spending for the week. It has to cover everything from clothing and coffee to eating out for the whole week. If I drop it all on a crazy Monday night bender, then it is gone. I have to wait a week to get another $400 of play money. 2. SPEND LESS The average yearly fee for points credit cards is around $120 to $150 a year. To build the points to fly to Calgary it would take me two to three years to charge $25,000 on my card, plus two or three years of fees. Remember, the flight only costs $371. I'm motivated to spend more money to save money on a "free" reward. Yikes! 3. STREAMLINE "Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away," said Antoine de Saint-Exupery. Using a simple skinny wallet is so refreshing, elegant and Antoine-approved. Advertisement Seriously, look through your wallet or phone and see all the tacky crap the retailers get us to carry around. If they were not making money off the card, they wouldn't offer them, so therefore we're paying extra to use them. And if it takes up time and room in my life, it's not a reward. 4. SIMPLICITY There are some items you do need to use a credit card to buy, like things from online stores, and there are no fee cash back cards that won't encourage you to spend more money. The reverse psychology to having a dumpy credit card would be to aim for the lowest amount of card rewards and a pile of cash in your account at the end of the year that you didn't spend and a ton of time on your hands that you didn't waste chasing points. Try to get one with a cat on it or something you're embarrassed to whip out. Cash really is king. It keeps a ceiling on my spending, simplifies and streamlines my wallet, and gets me a better price on many things. My own reward for using cash and ditching my cards and apps is freedom. In this ever-so-busy and complicated life, that's the reward program for me! Dave Follow HuffPost Canada Blogs on Facebook MORE ON HUFFPOST: The North Dakota Emergency Commission granted a $100,000 request Wednesday from the Public Service Commission to pay a third-party contractor to conduct inspections of the Dakota Access Pipeline. Sheila Peterson, director of the Office of Management and Budgets Fiscal Management Division, said Dakota Access LLC, a partner of Dallas-based Energy Transfer Partners, has already paid a $100,000 fee. This is such a large project there will be expenses incurred above and beyond the $100,000, Peterson said. The PSCs contract with Mandan-based Keitu Engineers and Consultants Inc., outlines more than $111,000 in costs. This prompted the PSC to ask for the additional fees from the pipeline company. The 1,168-mile, 30-inch diameter pipeline when built would begin in western North Dakota near Stanley and would end near Patoka, Ill. When completed, the Dakota Access Pipeline would transport up to 450,000 barrels per day of Bakken crude with a future capacity of 570,000 barrels per day. The route through North Dakota extends approximately 358 miles and passes through seven counties: Mountrail, Williams, McKenzie, Dunn, Mercer, Morton and Emmons. The pipeline has an overall cost of $3.78 billion; $1.4 billion of the total cost would be invested in North Dakota. We wanted to make sure with a 358-mile project we had a really solid plan in place, PSC Chairwoman Julie Fedorchak said. Fedorchak said the state has utilized third-party inspections of pipeline projects since 2008 but wasnt aware of a previous instance of needing to go beyond the $100,000 level. The inspection process during the course of a project has four phases, Fedorchak said. Inspections occur when projects are breaking ground and multiple inspections also occur during construction. Additional monitoring takes place when soil is put back in place and ground is reseeded as well as one year later to check on the effectiveness of reclamation. Kavi Guppta For all of us that wonder how that woman in our life does it all, here's the answer: she knows how and when to say "no." Anjali Ramachandran's main goal in all of her personal and professional endeavours is to make an impact; she's ruthless with her time so she can achieve more. Advertisement Ramachandran is the head of innovation at PHD UK in London. She's the co-founder of Ada's List, a group for women who work in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, and she also writes about innovation in the developing world. Today, Ramachandran discusses how she stays focused to meet her goals: What are you trying to achieve as head of innovation? I'm trying to get companies to a point where they realize that investing in new ideas and technology can help them be future proof. This depends on the complexity of the client business, and they are all fairly complicated, involving operations, marketing, finance, procurement, and brand strategy. I also try to figure out which back-end processes need to work together to enable a piece of front-end technology to work most seamlessly. Crucially, it's also about user research and ensuring that any product or service I suggest keeps with customer and market needs, and not just a vanity project for the brand -- that's harder than you might think. Who did you want to be when you grew up? I wanted to work at the United Nations. When you're at university studying the social sciences that's probably something that a lot of people want to do. My experiences in the years following university (a mix of non-profit and for-profit work) made me realize that at the time I could probably make a bigger impact working in the corporate world, and I've never looked back. My side projects now help me channel my desire to have an impact on society. Advertisement How do you stay focused to meet your goals? Give an example. Earlier on in my career I'd meet with almost anyone who asked for a meeting, but now I'm a bit more ruthless with my time -- it's the only way to achieve what I want to, which is to make an impact in what I do. I use Google calendar to schedule my time. I try and figure out what will take the least time but potentially enable me to make the most impact. I focus on my personal life alongside working on my day job and side projects. That's still a lot of (non-family) people to spend time with, and, in my case, interesting startups and companies I need to meet. What are we not doing to help women in tech advance? We're not funding them enough, not hiring enough of them and we can absolutely do more to help them get on boards and into leadership positions. I'm not talking about this issue just because it's the right thing to do - there's a clear business case for it. Diverse companies are just more successful. Less than five per cent of VC funding goes to women-run businesses and even less than that goes to tech companies run by women of colour, so it's no wonder that companies like Google and Facebook are now actively running unconscious bias courses to tackle the issue at a hiring level. I was also really pleased to see the launch of the Boardlist over the last couple of weeks. Over the last couple of years there has been a lot of positive movement but there is a lot more to be done, and I think we're achieving some of that through Ada's List. What else? I'd like to encourage more people to spend time mentoring or sponsoring a smart, sparky female, whether that's someone who works in your company or your community. Advertisement I'd also like to recommend that people join a peer network around a subject they find interesting. Even if you're not an active member (and I wholly recommend that you be active if time permits), you pick up a lot through osmosis and simply listening in on conversations. That wasn't an opportunity I had access to when I was younger, so definitely make use of it. There are now so many communities to access online and offline through Google groups, meetups, and events. Follow Anjali on Twitter. I'm fascinated by creative women -- their passions, challenges, and contributions to society. If you know a creative woman to feature, please tweet @kmarano For more stories about creativity and business, sign up for my newsletter, Creative Women Weekly. Getty Images I'm standing outside the VFS Global application centre for South African visas in Accra. Dressed in all black, the glare of a 30-degree sun is bright enough to bake, but I feel nothing. Or maybe that's an attempt to de-escalate the dramatic sense of feeling everything all at once. My application for a short-term visa in line with pursuing a consulting project with a Johannesburg-based non-profit, has been rejected -- twice. The first time, it was because "I did not meet the requirements." This was confusing to both my employer and myself, as we had followed the application process to a T. When we asked why it had been rejected, we were told to contact the South African embassy in Accra. In the rare instance when the South African embassy in Accra answers their phone or responds to emails, they do not provide feedback on applications. When I showed up in person, a tired looking man behind a glass window told me to leave; the embassy only caters to long-term visas and he had a long line and no time to deal with my rejection issues. Advertisement The second rejection, at least, came with a reason: "Applicant on internal control list." I had been rejected again, because I had been rejected the first time. It is likely my application was not even looked at. Each rejection took three weeks to process and GHS 820 in fees and associated printing costs, not including the opportunity cost of forgoing other opportunities in pursuit of the one at hand. Even at Ghana's rapidly depreciating conversion rate of roughly $200, GHS 820 isn't a ridiculously large sum as visas fees go. Academic pursuits and apparently misguided attempts at becoming a global citizen, have led to my spending thousands of dollars on immigration visas over the two decades I have been travelling, studying and working outside my home country. My double-decker passport has proved resilient through it all; surviving everything from an unfortunate hit-and-run on an icy street in Montreal, to acute water damage in Mumbai. But this cut may be the deepest. Dramatic much? I think to myself while squinting judgmentally at a honking taxi driver who just won't seem to take the hint that I'm waiting for someone else. I wonder if that's how they see us, other Africans seeking to admission into South Africa: like an annoying mosquito whose sounds you tolerate in lieu of being able to slap off. Or maybe I'm just bitter. I text Olu -- a Nigerian friend from business school -- two words: "Rejected again." He texts back: straight-faced, wide-eyed emoji, followed by a string of 'whats?' and 'hows?' Three months ago, Olu was in South Africa on a similar consulting project at a financial services firm. He can't seem to wrap his head around the situation. Unsurprisingly, he'd used his British passport. Yes, I'm bitter. South Africa grants visa-free access to several countries on 90 and 30-day terms. Only 14 of the 124 visa-exempt nations are African and Ghana isn't one of them. Advertisement Maybe it's dramatic to call this a new apartheid. But a quick search as I wallow in the glare of an unforgiving sun and my own self-pity reveals countless stories of unexplained visa refusals and similarly stringent refusals from South African embassies, to provide reasons for them. Of course, it could be worse. Generation Citizen's Scott Warren recounts the story of Themba Maphosa, a Zimbabwean working in South Africa, who is one of many to have fallen victim to forced deportation without cause. He describes Johannesburg as a place where "each nationality has its own enclave." It clashes with the images I've seen scattered across my Facebook feed of a city rich in culture or, as Olu described it, "kizomba nights and bright lights." My friend Nii, another Ghanaian MBA grad, spent a year and a half waiting for a South African work permit. I remember listening in humor-tinged horror as he recounted stories of arguments with embassy personnel through glass. Maybe it's a misguided sense of entitlement that left me in shock when I encountered that exact situation, only a few weeks later. 'But how could they reject you? With your degrees from McGill and Oxford?' people said of the initial rejection. I was equally dumbfounded. In the weeks prior, I had allowed myself to revel in the equally disturbing thought of being "special," separate from other, perhaps less-credentialed African nationals seeking admission into South Africa. Because, as another shocked friend commented, "What Oxford graduate is looking to get into South Africa, so that they can scurry away into its hinterlands once their stingily-granted single entry visas run out?" A passport that the world respects could open doors to places, opportunities and experiences I would have never thought to pursue. But South Africa's immigration issues run deep and beyond my own self-aggrandizing musings. While hers was an inter-company transfer filed in London, my sister Mabel's visa application process was not without its own set of frustrations and extended wait times. She is now based in Durban, a hotbed in recent uprisings against African immigrants, supposedly ignited by a Zulu King's speech. The South African government's lukewarm response was reminiscent of similar violent xenophobic outbreaks in 2008 that left 44 dead and 20,000 injured, robbed and displaced. Advertisement Still, South Africa's immigration restrictions are just one example of the many challenges Africans face when it comes to global mobility. Maybe I should have ditched my Ghanaian passport for a Canadian one when I had the chance, living there for seven years. The thought is fleeting but with a lingering sharpness, like popping a pulp of lime. I can already hear my father saying, "Work on your Canadian papers. You don't need to use it. It's really just a precaution." In the world of immigration law, a "first-world" passport is more than a mere precaution -- it's a panacea. A passport that the world respects could open doors to places, opportunities and experiences I would have never thought to pursue. Exhausted and tired of waiting for the ride I was promised that still hasn't arrived, I flag down another honking taxi that just won't take a hint, and head home. New York Daily News Archive via Getty Images (Pool photo by Jefferson Siegel) - Kesha (center in white) cries as she learns she will not be released from her record label contract in Manhattan Supreme Court on Friday, February 19, 2016. A judge said she would not allow Kesha to leave her record label. (Pool Photo by Jefferson Siegel/NY Daily News via Getty Images) The recording artist Kesha broke down in tears the other day. This came after a New York City judge ruled against her in her ongoing struggle to extricate herself from her contract with music producer Lukasz Gottwald, known in the industry as Dr. Luke. Kesha alleges that early on in their acquaintance, the producer drugged and sexually assaulted her, and then proceeded to abuse her emotionally, physically and verbally over the years. Advertisement Since this unfortunate ruling, numerous recording artists have come out in support of Kesha, including Lady Gaga, Ariana Grande, Lorde, Kelly Clarkson, Darren Hayes and Taylor Swift, who just donated $250,000 to help Kesha pay her mounting legal fees. Although Dr. Luke must be considered innocent until proven guilty, his recent behaviour could be seen as questionable. For example, his insistence on maintaining the recording contract with Kesha is tantamount to holding her hostage. While Dr. Luke has other artists to work with, Kesha's contract stipulates that she must complete three more records with him, and because she has stated that she fears for her safety around him, this has left her unable to record any music at all. Apparently, SONY, the company Dr. Luke works for, has said that Kesha would be able to work with other producers under their label, but Kesha's lawyer, Mark Geragos, calls this an "illusory promise," saying that he doubts SONY would promote any work that Kesha did without this producer. Advertisement I question why Dr. Luke would insist on maintaining his contract with Kesha if she has made it absolutely clear that she'll never record with him again. He would not be able to benefit professionally from their association. Dr. Luke can continue working with other artists, but if Kesha is held to this contract, her career will be over. One could see Dr. Luke's decision to reject Kesha's request to dissolve their contract as a way for him to benefit in another manner; it could be seen as an opportunity for him to punish Kesha for speaking out about the alleged abuse. While I can't know what Dr. Luke did or didn't do, with regard to Kesha, it makes me wonder why a producer would be so adamant about continuing a professional association with a recording artist who speaks so badly of him. Why would a producer be so insistent on maintaining a relationship with an artist who says that she's afraid of him and who refuses to work with him? Really, the only benefit I can see for such a producer would be to prevent this artist from working with anyone else; indeed, preventing the artist from ever working again. So, although right now, we can't know if Dr. Luke is guilty of the abuses detailed by Kesha in court, it appears, at least on the surface, that he's guilty of sabotaging her career. Advertisement This is very sad, because whether or not the allegations turn out to be true, it would be yet another case of a woman failing to receive justice after having reported being sexually assaulted by a man, and it would be yet another case of the man in question finding a way to punish the woman for bringing these allegations to light. Whatever the truth is in the case of Kesha vs. Dr. Luke, it reminds me of the problem all women today face when they accuse powerful men of sexual assault. Most often, they're ignored or their claims are rejected; their reputations are tarnished in the public domain and the man who's been accused finds a way to make the woman pay for her temerity to speak out about his (alleged) behaviour. Sexual assault against women is rampant. Thousands of women are subject to it, every day, all over the world. Here in North America, where we pride ourselves on fairness and justice, women who make claims of sexual assault are often denied justice and even more often, they're raked over the coals by the lawyers of the men who've been accused. It's not surprising why a majority of women don't come forward after having been sexually assaulted. They can anticipate their reputations being dragged through the mud, their career being jeopardized, their personal lives being held up to intense scrutiny, and the perpetrator being let off the hook - that is, if the courts even choose to pursue the case in the first place. It almost seems like there's a conspiracy afoot; one in which men in power have made it virtually impossible for a woman to obtain justice with regard to sexual assault, and one in which the potential consequences of speaking out about sexual assault are often so dire that the woman is silenced, even before she's decided whether or not to pursue her case. Advertisement Sexual assault against women is rampant, and it will continue to be until women no longer live in fear of being punished for speaking out about their own experiences. It's bad enough that it's nearly impossible in 2016 to obtain a conviction against the man who has perpetrated the assault, but to be silenced in this way, in a supposedly free society, is an outrage that should horrify every civilized, moral citizen. I hope that Kesha is able to obtain justice, and that she can eventually resume her recording career. I also hope that we can all work toward a truly just society in which women who dare to speak out about their experiences of sexual assault - alleged or true- are no longer punished and silenced by powerful men and the institutions run by these men. Sign up here for my free monthly wellness newsletter. March is all about the problem with permissiveness and over-entitlement at home, school and work. And check out my new podcast series. In episode 1 I talk with Dr. Eva Selhub about self-love and the power it has in healing your body, mind and spirit. Advertisement BananaStock via Getty Images Place setting We've fielded several calls lately from journalists working on stories about rising food prices. You've probably read a few: most aim to provide quick tips for how Canadians can make a dollar go further in the grocery store, and how to eat healthy for less. Many of those tips are helpful: buy in season and in bulk, soak your beans, get comfortable with a few empty-the-fridge recipes that can help you curb food waste. Making the most of what you've got is always good practice, especially when what you've got is not a lot. And eating well doesn't have to be complicated. These are ideas that underpin the many healthy cooking and growing programs offered by our partner Community Food Centres. When a few good ideas or skills can make the difference, making changes is easy. Advertisement But for the people we work with, most of whom are living on woefully inadequate incomes, making small changes isn't the issue. Single Ontarians on social assistance have just over $600/month to cover all their living expenses, including rent and food -- a pittance that causes many to have to go without food, or to access a food bank or meal program. People in low-paying jobs with no benefits struggle too. There's lots people can do to eat well on a limited budget -- in fact, studies show that the lower someone's income is, the more likely they are to cook from scratch -- but no amount of bean-soaking can bridge the income gap for the four million food insecure Canadians who struggle to put food on their table at any price. We need to start holding the government to account to build an equitable food system. What we need to talk more about is how poor our fellow Canadians are, and how inured to that fact we've become. The conversation we need to have is about the inadequacy of our existing social policies -- we need to examine the legacy of cuts that have left so many without access to food in a country of plenty, and the lasting impacts that inequality has on people's physical and mental health: rates of Type 2 diabetes, for example, are more than four times higher in the low income group than in the highest. We need to be asking why, in a country as bountiful and rich as Canada, our driving focus often seems to be doing more with less. If we really want to ensure that everyone can afford and access good food, the policies we need to consider are as varied and complex as the issues in play. For one, we need to ensure that farmers can continue to grow a diverse range of foods rather than expanding our current fixation on chemical-dependent commodity crops aimed for export. So many of our agricultural policies are driving us into a situation where dependence on imports makes us highly vulnerable to the weather in California and the changing value of our dollar. We need to keep our prime land in use for farming and ensure that farmers find it viable to grow on that land. And while we're at it, let's stop fixating on how to get to cheaper and cheaper food and instead use this moment as a springboard for a conversation about the true cost of producing food and what environmental and social costs we're deferring when our sole focus is on driving down prices. Advertisement But none of these policy ideas -- ideas that genuinely have the potential to significantly shift our social landscape -- will see the light of day unless there's political will to make them happen. Governmental silos, a lack of willingness to invest the resources required, and the fear that championing the poor is a political liability are just a few of the factors that could undermine that will. "I agree with you, I want to do it, now make me do it." Those words, spoken by Franklin Delano Roosevelt to civil rights organizer A. Philip Randolph more than 70 years ago, are running through our heads these days. We need to seize the opportunity offered by the signs of hope we're seeing to make sure the momentum for change keeps growing. Food prices will continue to rise and fall, but lamenting the price of the latest expensive vegetable distracts us from the complex and system-wide policies and community mobilizing that we need to have in place to truly ensure that good food, produced sustainably by fairly paid farmers, is not a luxury, but a basic human right for all Canadians. Follow HuffPost Canada Blogs on Facebook Plans to scrap Britain's Human Rights Act are a "gift" to more repressive leaders like Vladimir Putin and "fatally undermine" our ability to stop them curtailing freedoms in their countries, Amnesty International has warned. The Tory plans to replace the HRA with a British Bill of Rights and the government's wider position on the matter sets a "dangerous precedent to the world", the campaigning organisation said in its damning verdict on the UK's recent human rights stance. Campaigners, including Amnesty, have expressed concern as to how Britain would enforce the principles of the European Convention on Human Rights or treat decisions by the European Court on Human Rights in Strasbourg with a Bill Of Rights. Advertisement Amnesty said the rhetoric in Britain about ditching the HRA had encouraged Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta and Vladimir Putin's Russia in rejecting outside legal scrutiny. The International Criminal Court (ICC) accused Kenyatta in 2010 of inciting post-election violence in Kenya that left some 1,200 people dead and 600,000 displaced. While defending himself against the charges, Kenyatta told his country's parliament: "The push to defend sovereignty is not unique to Kenya or Africa. Advertisement "Very recently, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom committed to reasserting the sovereign primacy of his parliament over the decision of the European Human Rights Court. He has even threatened to quit that court. The ICC withdrew charges against Kenyatta in December 2014, shortly after he gave that speech. He remains in power. The ICC prosecutor called the decision to withdraw charges "a painful moment for the men, women and children who have suffered tremendously from the horrors of the post-election violence". "Kenyatta has cited the UK as an example of a state rejecting scrutiny and asserting sovereignty," an Amnesty spokeswoman told HuffPost UK. "This is a man who has openly disavowed the authority of the ICC, where he was sought to be tried for war crimes and crimes against humanity." She added Russian legislation passed in December, which empowered its courts to ignore rulings by foreign courts including the European Court of Human Rights, showed that the "UKs similar plans are grist to the mill for countries like Russia and we are worried this is just the start". Advertisement Putin's (left) Russia and Kenya President Uhuru Kenyatta (right) have both been encouraged by Britain's 'downgrading' of human rights, Amnesty said Kate Allen, Amnesty's UK director, said: "The UK is setting a dangerous precedent to the world on human rights. Theres no doubt that the downgrading of human rights by this government is a gift to dictators the world over and fatally undermines our ability to call on other countries to uphold rights and laws. People around the world are still fighting to get basic human rights and we should not let politicians take our hard-won rights away with the stroke of a pen. Advertisement Writing on HuffPost UK earlier this month, Council of Europe human rights commissioner Nils Muiznieks said that "the current debate in the UK has broader European ramifications". "Every step of this debate and its outcome is closely scrutinised by other European states, in particular those with a much less flattering performance in protecting human rights," he wrote. "Many are in fact eager to exploit any backsliding in Westminster's commitment to the Convention system to justify measures reducing their own citizens' and residents' ability to obtain justice." In its annual report on the global state of human rights, published on Wednesday, Amnesty also said Britain was jeopardising its human rights standing by refusing to take in more refugees amid the migration crisis, boosting surveillance powers and selling arms to Saudi Arabia as it reportedly bombs civilians in Yemen. A Government spokeswoman said Britain was "absolutely committed to promoting and protecting universal human rights". Advertisement She added: "The Foreign and Commonwealth Offices departmental report is clear that human rights, democratic values and strengthening the rules-based international system are vital and integral parts of the our work. "The FCO has also doubled funding for global human rights and democracy projects to its highest ever level of 10.6m." Justice minister Dominic Raab condemned Amnesty, calling it "irresponsible" to criticise plans for a Bill of Rights before the detail of it was unveiled. "Amnesty have already been told our plans involve the UK remaining in the European Convention, so this scaremongering undermines their own credibility," he said. Allan Hogarth, Amnesty UKs head of policy, said: Far from scaremongering, we are genuinely scared because the human rights discussion in this country, led by this government, has exclusively been about reducing rights and diminishing protections. Advertisement Our concerns are also borne out by people like Kenyatta actively praising the UKs plans to tear up human rights laws. The government could alleviate some of our fears immediately by publicly and unequivocally stating that under no circumstances will the UK leave the Convention, which they havent done yet. Perhaps Mr Raab would like to put that on the record. The government defended itself on other points Amnesty cited as failings on the human rights front. Labour's candidate for London mayor, Sadiq Khan, has said he will happily join David Cameron in campaigning for Britain to remain inside the European Union. Speaking to BBC Newsnight on Tuesday evening, Khan also denied he was trying to "have it both ways" having nominated Jeremy Corbyn in the Labour leadership race and then moving to the centre as the mayoral election approaches. Advertisement Corbyn has said he will not share a stage with Cameron in the fight to keep the UK inside the EU, despite both men advocating a 'Remain' vote at the referendum. However Khan struck a more bipartisan tone while speaking to Newsnight presenter Evan Davis. "Sometimes I will disagree with Jeremy Corbyn," he said. "On some things I will agree with the Conservative prime minister, Conservative chancellor, home secretary, business secretary, defence secretary, to argue for London to stay an integral part of the EU. "I will join the Conservative chancellor when it's in the interests of London. I will join a Conservative prime minister to argue for us to stay in the European Union," Khan said. Advertisement The Tory candidate for City Hall, Zac Goldsmith, has said he will campaign for Britain to leave the EU at the June 23 vote. Khan, the former shadow justice secretary who ran Ed Miliband's 2010 Labour leadership campaign, said he wanted to be the mayor for "all Londoners" whether they were a "billionaire" or a "bus driver". Noting his warm words for the City of London, Davis branded Khan "more Mandelsonian than Mandelson" and said he now appeared to be at a "completely different end of the party" to Corbyn. Davis told Khan: "You've been talking one thing when you were getting the selection and you've sort of changed your tune completely." Donald Trump won the Nevada caucuses on Wednesday, the latest step in the tycoons seemingly unerring march to the Republican Party's presidential nomination. The 69-year-old celebrity builder, who announced his White House bid from the bottom of a gold escalator in New York in June, adds Nevada to previous victories in New Hampshire and South Carolina. Trump placed a close second to Texas Senator Ted Cruz in the Iowa caucuses at the beginning of the month. Advertisement Continuing to tap into working class fears about terrorism, immigration and the economy, Trump surged to a convincing projected win, much to the delight of his fanatical supporters gathered in the ballroom at the Treasure Island casino off the famous Vegas strip. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump smiles as he greets voters at a caucus site Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016, in Las Vegas We love Nevada. We love Nevada. Thank you. Thank you, Trump said during his victory speech. This is a great place. Thank you. Advertisement Responding to President Obama's Tuesday overture to close the detention centre in Cuba, Trump said: [We're] gonna keep Guantanamo open, were going to fill it with bad dudes." "Mexico is going to build the wall, he added before thanking those responsible for his Nevada win. I love the evangelicals, he said We did well with the poorly educated. I love the poorly educated. Amid a huge voter turnout, there were reports of chaos at many of the caucus meetings with poll workers running out of ballots and even polls workers those organising the ballots wearing clothing in support of specific candidates. There were also reports of voter identifications not being checked, and even double voting, however Republican Party officials said there were no voting irregularities. @TeamMarcoNV just wrong that the guy collecting votes wears Trump shirt/hat! Did he change my vote? #NVforMarcopic.twitter.com/HqKXIYLpsb VC (@VicCaserta) February 24, 2016 Advertisement It's not against the rules for volunteers to wear candidate gear. Volunteers went through extensive training & are doing a great job Nevada GOP (@NVGOP) February 24, 2016 The process for the Republican Nevada caucuses required voters to mark their preferred candidate on a secret ballot, which were then counted. The state has 30 delegates up for grabs, which are distributed proportionally according to where candidates finish in the caucuses. Crowds of people line up to get a ballot at a Republican caucus site, Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016, in Las Vegas To become the eventual GOP nominee, a candidate must amass delegates from across the states with the aim of reaching a preponderance of 1,237 ahead of the Republican convention in July. Advertisement Trump went into the caucuses with a huge lead in the polls, leaving Cruz and Florida Senator Marco Rubio scrambling for second place. Ohio Governor John Kasich and retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson make up the remaining Republican field. Overheard at Treasure Island, site of Trump NV rally tonight: "Is this the line for Cirque de Soleil or Trump?" Holly Bailey (@hollybdc) February 24, 2016 The next test for the candidates is the vital Super Tuesday contest on March 1, when 13 states across the country vote in nine primaries and four caucuses within 24 hours. Britain's referendum on its membership of the European Union is nothing more than a "cockfight" between Boris Johnson and David Cameron, the European Parliament has been told. Former Belgian prime minister Guy Verhofstadt dismissed the argument between the prime minister, who wants the UK to remain a member, and the London mayor, who wants to leave, as "pathetic". "This deal is not about Europe, it is an attempt to re-unite the Tory party. I may not know the result of the referendum, but I am sure this will not re-unite the Tories," he said. Advertisement Verhofstadt, who now leads the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE), added: "What I am seeing is a glorified cockfight". "Boris Johnson challenging David Cameron. I can tell you I have seen ambitious politicians, I myself am an ambitious politician, but Boris Johnson takes it to a whole other level." Advertisement Verhofstadt, a keen European federalist, said in promoting Brexit, Boris was "acting against the interests of the citizens of London". He said Boris was acting for "personal ambition" and his position was "totally bonkers". He added: "It's pathetic, I should say, that it is happening." On Wednesday, divisions at the top of the Conservative Party were laid bare as Michael Gove clashed with Downing Street by claiming that Cameron's deal changing Britain's relationship with the EU is not legally binding and could be overturned by a prominent European court. The justice secretary rejected the prime minister's claim that the package was irreversible, warning that the European Court of Justice is not bound by the settlement without treaty change. Downing Street moved quickly to dismiss Gove's claim with a statement insisting the agreement "has legal force" and must be taken into account by the court. Advertisement And the government's senior law officer, Attorney General Jeremy Wright QC, said: "The suggestion that this agreement does not have legal effect until it is incorporated into EU treaties is not correct. The row came as Number 10 attempted to shift debate about EU membership to the impact on security - but admitted a blunder in a letter signed by former military chiefs. The group of former senior military commanders have warned that leaving the European Union could hamper the UK's ability to tackle threats such as Islamic State or Vladimir Putin's Russia. Michael Gove is wrong to claim the new EU membership deal negotiated by David Cameron will not be legally binding, according to the government's two most senior legal officials. The justice secretary, who is campaigning for Brexit, said on Wednesday morning he believed the prime minister's deal could be unpicked by the European Court of Justice as it "stands above the nation states". Advertisement But Jeremy Wright, the Attorney General, dismissed the claim. He said the "suggestion that this agreement does not have legal effect until it is incorporated into EU treaties is not correct" as it had the "equivalent legal force to other agreements such as treaties". Wright added this was "not just my opinion" but the "opinion of this governments lawyers, lawyers for EU, and, I suspect, majority of lawyers in this country". Gove, who has served as justice secretary since May, is not a lawyer. Attorney General Jeremy Wright has dismissed Michael Gove's Brexit claim Robert Buckland, the solicitor general, also used Twitter to insist the agreement struck by the prime minister "has force in law". Advertisement EU agreement has force in law; arguments about enforceability are tenuous to say the least. Robert Buckland MP (@RobertBuckland) February 24, 2016 Cameron told MPs on Monday his reforms"will be legally binding in international law" and "cannot be unpicked without the agreement of Britain and every other EU country". Gove told the BBC today: "The whole point about the European Court of Justice is that it stands above the nation states. "I do think it's important that people also realise that the European Court of Justice stands above every nation state, and ultimately it will decide on the basis of the treaties and this deal is not yet in the treaties." In September, Jean-Claude Piris, the EU's former top lawyer, told the Sunday Telegraph that a commitment from EU states to Britain would have "no legal value". Advertisement Wright's predecessor as Attorney General, Dominic Grieve, also told Gove he was "wrong" and that it was "fanciful" to say the prime minister's new deal does not have legal force. Grieve, who served as Cameron's Attorney General from 2010 until July 2014, said: "Its quite plain that the agreement that weve reached has legal force. "It will have legal force from the day on which we indicate after a referendum that we wish to stay in the European Union. And ever after the terms of the agreement can be raised in any court case, which is where its relevant, and the court would have to take it into account." Today, Gove's wife journalist Sarah Vine, used her Daily Mail column to reveal her husband had been "locked in an internal struggle of agonising proportions" over his decision on the referendum, but had chosen "own heartfelt beliefs" over "loyalty to his old friend, the prime minister". The Book of Daniel predicted it. The Book of Revelation confirmed it. The Necronomicon spelled it out in language too terrible for human ears to hear. And if you read The Art of the Deal backward in the original Sanskrit, youll find it foretold there as well: Before the seventh seal is opened, before Famine and Pestilence are loosed, the Man in White must do battle with the Combed-Over Titan, amid the ravening shrieks of Twitter and beneath the unblinking eye of Cable News. Or, for the less mystically inclined: It was only a matter of time before Pope Francis tangled with Donald Trump. Their war of words came about the way you would expect. It began with a rambling news conference on the papal plane, where Francis suggested that Trump (or at least his zeal for an amazing border wall) is not Christian. It escalated with a rambling news release from the mogul turned presidential candidate, which Trump-splained to the pope that only a Trump administration can protect the Vatican from ISIS. Then came the inevitable downplaying from Vatican officials, the inevitable turnabout from Trump (the pope is a wonderful guy, he told CNN), the inevitable debates about whether the Vaticans own walls are un-Christian, whether Protestant voters in the South Carolina primary are still suspicious of popery, and more. The obvious drama of the collision lay in the contrasts between the two men: The celibate and the lecher, the ascetic and the billionaire, the mystic and the frank materialist. But their similarities are also fascinating. For all the ways in which Francis and Trump differ, as figures on the global stage theyre also strangely alike in the forces that theyre channeling, their style of public salesmanship, and their relationship to the institutions they either head or aspire to lead. This resemblance begins, as Matthew Schmitz pointed out in The Washington Post, with their status as outsiders bent on shaking up their establishments, which they (and many others) deem sclerotic and corrupt. When Trump attacks Republican elites and breaks with party orthodoxy on trade or foreign policy or campaign finance, Schmitz notes, hes mirroring the way that Francis challenges a hidebound Vatican bureaucracy and flirts with revising settled Catholic doctrine. Both messages appeal to the same exhaustion with institutions, the same desire to somehow make a mess (as Francis likes to put it) and start anew. This mirroring extends to their rhetoric, where both men have a fondness for, well, name-calling thats rare among presidential candidates and popes. The insults differ: Trump calls people low energy, liar and loser, while Francis prefers Pharisee and self-absorbed Promethean neo-Pelagian (though hes not above whiner and sourpuss as well). But their pungent language reflects a shared mastery of the contemporary media environment, in which controversy and unpredictability are the great currencies, and having people constantly asking Did he really just say that? is the surest ticket to the worlds attention. The public style that produces these say what? moments can get them both into a kind of trouble. But the billionaire and the pontiff both seem to believe on some evidence that a little troublemaking is the best way to make the disaffected pay attention. And by reaching people who usually tune out churchmen and politicians, they have become leading populists in our increasingly populist moment. The popular constituencies they speak for are very different, of course. Trump is a nationalist, speaking on behalf of the unhappy Western working class, while Francis is a Latin American and a globalist, speaking for the developing worlds poor which is why immigration policy naturally puts them at loggerheads. But they nonetheless share a common enemy: Not just specific guardians of business as usual, whether Catholic or Republican, but the wider Western ruling class. Whether its the Donald attacking the very, very stupid people making policy in the United States, or Francis deploring the greed and self-interest of rich nations and wealthy corporations, the pope and the mogul are now leading critics of the neoliberalism that has governed the West for a generation or more. Neoliberalism needs critics, as the Republican Party needs reinvention and the Catholic Church needs reform. At the same time, as Schmitz notes, what both Trump and Francis promise deliverance from inconvenient and unresponsive institutions, with all their strictures and corruptions downplays the value of rules, customs, and traditions in protecting people from the rule of novelty and whim. This is always populisms peril: That it relies too much on the power of charisma, and tears down too much in the quest to make America or Catholic Christianity great again. Of course neither Francis nor Trump have broken anything yet. The populist pope may be remembered as a great reformer, and the populist billionaire as the unlikely catalyst for the Republican Partys long-delayed reform. But for now, the last thing they have in common in this: Everything that makes them interesting makes them dangerous as well. (Ross Douthat writes for the New York Times. His syndicated column appears on Wednesdays.) It isnt often were left speechless, but Cheryl Fernandez-Versinis Brit Awards look has got us pretty stumped, as were having trouble coming up with enough adjectives to describe how good she looked on the red carpet. MORE BRITS: The X Factor judge was looking nothing short of sensational as she arrived at The O2 Arena on Wednesday (24 February) night. Advertisement Cheryl Fernandez-Versini Cheryl opted for a lace yellow mini dress for the occasion, which may look more than a little familiar to some Girls Aloud fans The ensemble didnt look too dissimilar from the outfits the girl group sported in their video for Cant Speak French. Advertisement Cheryl, who is rumoured to be divorcing her French husband Jean-Bernard, has also added a set of extensions to her newly-lightened hair. YAAASSS, Cheryl! She finished off her look with some dramatic eye makeup, and a pair of strappy silver heels. Cheryl opted for a smoky eye on the red carpet She was also joined on the red carpet by former X Factor colleagues Caroline Flack and Nick Grimshaw, who announced their departures from the ITV talent show in recent days. Advertisement Caroline made her first public appearance since her 'X Factor' exit Cheryl is also presenting the award for Best British Breakthrough Act with Grimmy, during the ceremony, which is being hosted by fellow Geordies Ant and Dec. Take a look at all the Brits arrivals in the red carpet gallery below... David Cameron gave out some flack at PMQs on Wednesday - hurling insults at Jeremy Corbyn across the Despatch Box for not wearing a tie properly. In a bizarre throwback to the days of playground 'your mum' jokes, the Prime Minister quipped: "I think I know what my mother would say. She'd say: 'Put on a proper suit, do you your tie and sing the national anthem.'" Advertisement But it seems the Conservative leader could do with heeding his own sartorial advice a little more. He's quite happily had meetings with world leaders, posed for national election campaign posters and wondered round the country meeting constituents, all the while without wearing either a suit or tie. Disgraceful behaviour, we're sure Mary Cameron would agree. So here are 9 times the Prime Minister could have done with paying more attention to his mother's apparel advice. 1. Prepping for the G8 with Putin 2. And later, sharing a laugh with Angela Merkel Advertisement 3. Posing for his 2010 election poster 4. Skyping with Obama 5. Slipping-out at the Lord Chancellor's banquet 6. Speaking at a general election rally 7. Today, talking sans-tie in London - with Philip Hammond and Greg Hands both sporting ones Advertisement 8.Campaigning for tie-wearing Zac Goldsmith 9. He managed it here. But did the PM dare admonish his chief election strategist, Lynton Crosby, for turning up to work like THIS?! David Cameron joked he had ignored my mothers advice this evening as he appeared tieless and jacketless at the launch of the pro-EU Conservatives IN campaign. The Prime Minister made the quip in reference to his explosion at Prime Ministers Question earlier today, when he told Jeremy Corbyn to smarten up. Advertisement Addressing a room of Conservative Cabinet Ministers, MPs, MEPs and councillors, Mr Cameron gave a passionate defence of why he felt the UK should stay in the EU. The launch of Conservatives IN came on the same day as a group of Tory MPs gathered in the grounds of Parliament to demonstrate that they were backing the Vote Leave campaign ahead of the referendum. At the Institute of Contemporary Arts in Pall Mall this evening, Mr Cameron began his speech by saying: I have tonight ignored my mothers advice: I have taken off the tie and Ive taken off the jacket. Advertisement This matters so much for our country. The Prime Minister vowed to go all across the country ahead of the June 23 referendum in an attempt to persuade people to vote Remain. He said there are three very simple and very straight-forward arguments for why the UK should stay in the EU: prosperity, security and military and diplomatic strength. I photo bombed this lot today! @vote_leavepic.twitter.com/groSKtJreF Douglas Carswell MP (@DouglasCarswell) February 24, 2016 The Remain camp received a boost today when the man most trusted by ordinary Brits over the European Union issue revealed he is currently planning to vote to stay in. In an exclusive interview with the Huffington Post UK, Martin Lewis, known as the Money Saving Expert, admitted he is 55/45 in favour of the UK staying in the EU. Advertisement The financial guru, who is a regular on ITVs Good Morning Britain, said the referendum will come down to how risk averse individual voters are. He said: Its riskier to leave the European Union than to stay in it because change is always riskier. However, risk should not be automatically considered a bad thing. If you are risk averse you should probably vote to stay in the EU. If, however, you are of the view that you want change you should vote out. Honestly, Im risk averse. At the moment I am probably 55/45 for staying in Europe. Justice Secretary Michael Gove who is calling for the UK to leave the EU rejected the idea that leaving the EU was a risk for the UK. In an interview with the BBC, Mr Gove said: "No I think this is the safer choice. I think if we leave the European union we take back control. People in this country will have control over our money, over our laws - over politicians. Advertisement 'Death in Paradise' series five finale airs this Thursday, but there's good news for fans of the Caribbean crime drama, with series six confirmed this morning. The continued ratings success of the show has convinced BBC bosses to bring back the Kris Marshall as the British policeman fish in tropical water, and his local colleagues on the fictional island of Saint Marie. Advertisement Josephine Jobert and Kris Marshall star in 'Death in Paradise' The fifth series has enjoyed big audiences, with more than eight million viewers regularly tuning in to see clumsy DI Humphrey Goodman hunt around for a pencil, spill something down his shirt, continue in his hapless search for love, but somehow solve a murder by the end of each hour. Critics have despaired of the limited plot structure, but the viewers have kept coming. This series finale will see, if all goes ahead, the wedding of Humphrey's colleague JP but, so far, Humphrey has not been so fortunate, with his wife leaving him, and his former colleague Camille leaving the island. But another series could give him another chance at romance. Because every week, we meet all the suspects from the beginning of the episode before Humphrey whittles it down, the writer of the show, Robert Thorogood, recently admitted on Radio 4's Loose Ends, "It's not a variation on Agatha Christie. It IS Agatha Christie." The show is filmed on the French island of Guadeloupe, and began with comedic actor Ben Miller in the central role of DI Richard Poole. He was killed off at the beginning of the third series, with Kris Marshall replacing him. Advertisement The show was listed as the third highest rating UK drama of 2015 and the fourth widest-selling British drama, having been sold to 237 territories around the world including China, South Africa and the US as well as Caribbean countries close to where the show is set and filmed. Other UK dramas listed in the top five include 'Downton Abbey', 'Luther' and 'Doctor Who'. It was announced on Tuesday that the new Crossrail line will be dubbed the Elizabeth Line, after Her Majesty The Queen - but one woman has a warning for the monarch. When she woke up, Elizabeth Line, an employee at publisher Conde Nast in New York, found herself suddenly trending on Twitter. Advertisement After discovering pictures of the Queen posing in front of the signs for the new service, Line tweeted: What an amazing honor. Just wish the Queen would give it a rest with the photobombs. pic.twitter.com/XCn09bUOaY Elizabeth Line (@lizline) February 23, 2016 Well played Ms Line, well played. She went on to tell indy100: When I woke up this morning, a friend had texted to let me know I was trending on Twitter. My first thought was.....'it's finally happening!! I racked my brain to make sure I hadnt done anything that would cause my family any embarrassment. Once I found out about the Crossrail naming, I settled comfortably into my 15 minutes. She also tweeted the Metropolitan Transportation Authority of New York: Advertisement The Elizabeth Line will appear purple on the Tube Map and will run from Reading and Heathrow in the west to Shenfield and Abbey Wood in the east via central London. The new name was announced as the Queen visited Bond Street station with Boris Johnson. The Mayor of London is believed to have come up with the name himself. The Queen visited Bond Street on Tuesday for the unveiling of the new Crossrail name The first section of the line is set to open in May this year, between Liverpool Street and Shenfield. It will initially be known as Crossrail, before becoming the Elizabeth line once trains begin to run through central London. The Queen already has one Tube line named in her honour - the Jubilee line - and there is also one named after her ancestor Queen Victoria. She has also made many visits to the transport network through the years... EDINBURGH, SCOTLAND - AUGUST 20. General Sir (Hugh) Michael Rose KCB CBE DSO QGM poses during a portrait session held at Edinburgh Book Festival on August 20, 2007 in Edinburgh, Scotland. (Photo by Marco Secchi/Getty Images) Marco Secchi via Getty Images Downing Street has been forced to apologise for wrongly claiming a former SAS chief backed David Camerons In campaign in the EU referendum. In a huge embarrassment for the Prime Minister, No.10 admitted on Wednesday morning that General Sir Michael Roses name had been mistakenly included in a joint letter from leading former generals supporting his stance on the EU. Advertisement The letter to the Daily Telegraph, which was splashed on the papers front page with the headline Generals: We are safer in Europe - had been arranged by Downing Street, a spokesman for the PM conceded. Thirteen former armed forces chiefs were named in the letter warning that the UK had to stay in the EU to protect itself from grave security threats posed by ISIL and Russia. Field Marshals Lord Bramall and Lord Guthrie, Air Chief Marshal Jock Stirrup, Admiral of the Fleet Lord Boyce and General Sir Mike Jackson all signed the letter. Advertisement The Telegraph front page But General Rose, a former Director of Special Forces, SAS commander in the Falklands War and commander of UN forces in Bosnia, was also included due to an administrative error, Downing Street said. No.10 also faced a possible spin row as the mistake which would have been pounced on by Eurosceptic Tory MPs appeared to have been kept under wraps until after Prime Ministers Question Time in the House of Commons. Straight after PMQs, a spokesman for Mr Cameron confessed the blunder after he was asked if any generals had refused to sign the letter. One thing to clarify, we have put out a clarification in the last hour or so about Gen Sir Michael Rose, who didnt sign the letter, the spokesman told HuffPost UK and other reporters. There was a mistake on our part. Somebody thought that he had and he hadnt. We were made aware of it this morning. Advertisement General Sir Michael Rose in Bosnia Asked if General Rose had rung No.10 to point out the error, the spokesman replied: He would be the obvious person It was also unclear if Mr Cameron would personally ring the General, who is currently in New Zealand, to apologise. The Telegraph letter was meant to be the latest weapon in Mr Camerons security case for staying in the EU, ahead of the referendum on June 23. It followed a similar letter from business chiefs to The Times on Monday. But in a rare glimpse of the media manipulation involved in such letters, Downing Street today admitted that it had played a role in generating and coordinating the Telegraphs missive from former generals. Advertisement Number 10 was involved. There was a number of people involved, including No.10, the PMs political spokesman said. Asked if No.10 had actually written the text of the letter, he replied Let me check that. The Daily Mail reported that even though General Rose had seen a draft letter that was circulated to him, he had not signed it. Sky News' Defence correspondent suggested in a Tweet that Gen Rose hadn't wanted a fuss When General Rose emailed me this morning, he said he didn't want to go public on it. Strange then that Downing Street decided to Alistair Bunkall (@AliBunkallSKY) February 24, 2016 Others on Twitter were scathing about what they saw as the latest 'spin' over the EU In campaign. A British backpacker who was reported missing in Thailand and later at Krabi airport after walking away from officers while blowing a whistle, has returned home. Grace Taylor was located on Tuesday after her mother Sam Taylor made a Facebook appeal for help finding the 21-year-old who had not made contact with her family since February 16 while she was backpacking in Pattaya. Thai police detained Grace who they said appeared "extremely disturbed". She reportedly flew back to the UK on Tuesday night. Advertisement Grace Taylor has returned to the UK after going missing in Thailand Sam Taylor on Tuesday spoke of her relief that "our Gracie has been found". Taylor wrote: "We don't as yet know what has happened. "We are working to get her home safely. Thank you all so very much for your efforts and kind words of encouragement and thank goodness for the power of social media over the last few days plus the help of the Police and local authorities in Thailand." Grace was said to have been "very stressed and frightened" Police Lieutenant Colonel Jetsada Chanpoom said on Tuesday that Grace was "feeling sick but we do not believe there was any crime involved". Advertisement Dorset Police said it was contacted by Interpol overnight Monday and had been told Grace was being cared for by an officer from the tourist police. A spokesman added: "Her family have been informed and arrangements are under way to bring Grace back to England." Grace called her mother from Ao Nang, in Krabi province, on Monday and sounded "very stressed and frightened saying that people were trying to hurt her", Taylor said in a post on Facebook. The family, from Swanage, Dorset, booked her a flight from Krabi airport but Grace did not board the plane even though she was believed to have arrived there between 8.30pm and 9.30pm local time. Advertisement Grace was booked a ticket from Krabi, but missed her flight In a post on Monday, Taylor said: "Grace contacted us at 11am today from Ao Nang, she was very stressed and frightened saying that people were trying to hurt her and were following her and she wanted to come home. "We calmed her down and booked her a flight from Krabi tonight but she apparently reached the airport but didn't catch her flight and has gone missing again. Sam Taylor's Facebook plea for help finding her daughter "We are desperately worried, all previous backpacker sightings have reported that she is disorientated and not in a good mental state." Taylor has reported her missing to Dorset Police and the Foreign Office (FO) and appealed for backpackers in the country to help locate Grace. Advertisement #CoryBernardiWankPuffin is trending on Twitter in Australia. The viral hashtag is the result of some widespread opposition to South Australia senator Cory Bernardi, who recently had to defend himself against allegations of homophobia from the Opposition leader. It also appears to be related to the Safe Schools Coalition, which Bernardi is opposed to. As for the Wank Puffin part, there's no clear reasoning for it. It might be a popular insult down under, for all we know. But it also might be related to a viral tweet at the end of last year, in which a man claimed his elderly mother's WiFi password had been automatically generated as "wankpuffin7". It also could be related to the usage of the term to insult Donald Trump. Advertisement This appears to be the first usage of the hashtag: I wonder what it would take to get #corybernadiwankpuffin trending nationally? Richard Watts (@richardthewatts) February 24, 2016 Despite no one really knowing what the wonderful phrase means, it's becoming a meme on the social media site. Jeremy Clarkson has issued an apology to 'Top Gear' producer Oisin Tymon, after settling a 100,000 claim over the now infamous March 2015 fracas that cost him his BBC job. The star, who is currently preparing to make his Amazon Prime debut, has settled the case out of court, Press Association reports. Advertisement Jeremy Clarkson The apology reads: "I would like to say sorry, once again, to Oisin Tymon for the incident and its regrettable aftermath. "I want to reiterate that none of this was in any way his fault. "I would also like to make it clear that the abuse he has suffered since the incident is unwarranted and I am sorry too that he has had to go through that. "I am pleased that this matter is now resolved. Oisin was always a creatively exciting part of Top Gear and I wish him every success with his future projects." Advertisement The case was due to be heard at the Central London Employment Tribunal, according to The Telegraph. A private hearing previously took place in November 2015, with lawyers for Jeremy and the BBC present, alongside Oisin. Jeremy's contract was not renewed by the BBC after the incident, which is believed to have taken place when the Top Gear presenting team were given cold meat platters instead of hot dinners, after a long day of filming on location. A BBC investigation, led by BBC Scotland boss Ken MacQuarrie, found that Clarkson had subjected the 36-year-old to a 30-second physical attack and sustained verbal abuse. He concluded that the producer was subject to an unprovoked physical and verbal attack by Clarkson, during which he was struck, resulting in swelling and bleeding to his lip. Advertisement James May, Jeremy and Richard Hammond scored themselves a new big money deal with Amazon Prime Speaking days after the incident, an unnamed guest at the Yorkshire hotel where the incident took place shared their version of events, stating: When they arrived just after 10pm Clarkson got angry. It was more like a scuffle. But he did swear using every bad word you could think of. The producer stood there looking quiet and embarrassed. He was being blamed for not arranging hot food. The general manager ended up cooking for the three presenters. Upon Clarkson's sacking, Tony Hall, BBC Director-General, said Clarkson had subjected an innocent party [to] a physical altercation accompanied by sustained and prolonged verbal abuse of an extreme nature. In a statement following Clarksons dismissal in March this year, Tony Hall said it was with 'great regret that the BBC would not be renewing Clarkson's contract'. Tap the picture to launch the slideshow... An NHS medic has blasted David Cameron's 'suit and tie' putdown in the Commons today by quizzing him on how dress-sense impacts his contentious weekend death claims. Natalie Blencowe, a 36-year-old junior doctor who is training to become an academic surgeon, hit out at the Prime Minister's criticism of Jeremy Corbyn at PMQ's earlier today, in which the prime minister urged the Labour leader to "put on a suit, do up his tie and sing the national anthem". Advertisement She tweeted a picture of herself on an 8am-8pm research shift, saying: "No smart suit. How exactly do ties help us separate sound science from spin & sexed-up stats?" No smart suit. How exactly do ties help us separate sound science from spin & sexed-up stats?#answerthequestiondavepic.twitter.com/fedwNoCPwQ Natalie Blencowe (@NatalieBlencowe) February 24, 2016 The hospital worker has been qualified as a doctor for 12 years and still has four more to go on her course, but wasted no time in picking Cameron up on his response to a question on weekend death stats asked during Prime Minister's Questions. The PM rebutted queries Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt had used unverified and unpublished research to blame junior doctors for weekend deaths by admonishing opposition leader Corbyn for his dress sense. Advertisement When HuffPost UK asked her to elaborate on the quip, Natalie cited - "funnily enough" - Margaret Thatcher. She used a quote by the former Conservative leader and prime minister, who famously long grappled with union bosses during her premiership in the 1980s, to rubbish Cameron's remark. The Thatcher quote is: "I always cheer up immensely if an attack is particularly wounding because I think, well, if they attack one personally, it means they have not a single political argument left." A 35-year-old diagnosed with skin cancer has issued a heartbreaking plea asking others to never use sun beds and always use sun cream when outside. Kellie Wheeler was diagnosed with stage 4 advanced melanoma in November 2015, when tests flagged up numerous tumours across her body including her left and right lung, pancreas, kidney, breast and adrenal gland. The mum-of-three, who was first diagnosed with skin cancer back in 2010, said her situation is now "a living hell" and has urged friends and family on Facebook to research melanoma and always protect their skin. Advertisement "Its a matter of life and death," she said. Kellie Wheeler and her husband Dean Melanoma is the fifth most common cancer in the UK with around 13,000 new cases of melanoma diagnosed each year. Wheeler was first diagnosed with melanoma in 2010 when she spotted an unusual looking mole on her left leg. After getting it checked out, she had surgery to remove the mole and was given the all clear. In September 2015, she started getting pains in her chest and, after undergoing tests, doctors revealed that the cancer had returned and had spread across her body. Advertisement Wheeler is now in hospital undergoing immunotherapy, - is a type of cancer treatment designed to boost the body's natural defences to fight the cancer - but she is incredibly weak and is confined to a wheelchair. She penned a heartbreaking Facebook post to her friends and family. "Im not brave or strong or dealing with any of it. Im absolutely petrified, heartbroken, frightened. You name it, Im feeling it... The fear of leaving my beautiful children, husband, family, friends and life is something I cant cope with," she wrote, according to the Birmingham Mail. "But I just have to tell you all how eternally grateful I am for the love and support and I hope this makes everyone live their lives to the fullest because none of us know whats in store in the precious time we are given. "P.S. Please research melanoma, please dont use sunbeds and please protect yourselves and your children from the sun, its a matter of life and death." Friends of the family are now trying to raise money for Wheeler's husband Dean, 48, and their three children Taylor, 17, Louie, 13, and Lexi, 6. Advertisement So far they have raised more than 6,000 through a GoFundMe page. Melanoma is a type of skin cancer that can spread to other organs in the body. The most common symptom is the appearance of a new mole or a change in an existing mole. According to the NHS, melanomas often have an irregular shape and more than one colour. They may also be larger than normal moles and can sometimes be itchy or bleed. This particular type of skin cancer occurs when skin cells begin to develop abnormally. It is thought that exposure to UV light is partially responsible for this. People with lots of moles or freckles, pale skin that burns easily, red or blonde hair and a family history of melanoma are most at risk. Advertisement If you are concerned about a new or unusual-looking mole, please book an appointment to see your GP. A man has been detained after an apparent "hostage situation" at a London restaurant. Officers are outside Bella Italia in Leicester Square, having been called at around 8.50pm. Armed police and a negotiator were at the scene. A Metropolitan Police spokesman told HuffPost UK there was a "man intimating he has a knife, holding a woman against her will" inside. After a standoff, a man was detained and police stood down. The police spokesman added the incident is not believed to be terror-related. Advertisement The incident at a restaurant in Irving Street has now been resolved and a man has been detained by police. No reported injuries. Metropolitan Police (@metpoliceuk) February 24, 2016 Police were called at 8.50pm. Diners in adjacent restaurants were made to stay inside during the incident. Police called 20:50hrs on 24 Feb to man holding a woman against her will at restaurant in Irving St. NOT terrorist related. Police at scene Metropolitan Police (@metpoliceuk) February 24, 2016 Apparently there's a hostage situation happening at Leicester Square right now?!? pic.twitter.com/EmGJbewdRF Raymond Reddington (@Loso_LFC) February 24, 2016 Advertisement Things are getting serious pic.twitter.com/PRO6CT5bLh Jordan Brown (@trtzbass) February 24, 2016 Gigging in Leicester Square.We had to stop, there's an apparent hostage situation at Bella Italia just down the road pic.twitter.com/8OFI7U3xYg Jordan Brown (@trtzbass) February 24, 2016 Situation between Leicester Square and Charing Cross Road. Lots of police and people trapped in restaurants. pic.twitter.com/vpsEqc4LKf James Robinson (@jamesrobinson) February 24, 2016 There were understood to be two other people inside the restaurant, as well as the hostage. Evening Standard columnist Rosamund Urwin was among those who could not leave. She said she was "very safe" and "more worried about other people". I'm in Leicester Square and we're not allowed to leave our restaurant. Lots of police outside. Reports of hostage situation. Rosamund Urwin (@RosamundUrwin) February 24, 2016 Advertisement @ronniejoice thank you. More worried about other people - think we're very safe where we are Rosamund Urwin (@RosamundUrwin) February 24, 2016 When the incident was ongoing, musician Jordan Brown told The Evening Standard he was playing a gig at Caffe Concerto, where police had told people not to leave. He said: "We were playing a gig and the police came around and said please stop singing. We thought we were being too loud, but turns out there's a hostage situation. "We can't leave the restaurant, they've closed closed the whole place down." He praised the police as "true pros" afterwards. Thanks @metpoliceuk you handled the Leicester Square situation like true pros. Jordan Brown (@trtzbass) February 24, 2016 Pictures from the scene show a number of police in riot gear outside the restaurant during the incident. Advertisement File photo dated 15/03/13 of Martin Lewis who is to donate half a million pounds to enable food banks to roll out a pioneering programme enabling thousands of people to get free help with money and debts. Andrew Matthews/PA Wire The man most trusted by ordinary Brits over whether the UK should leave the European Union is currently planning to vote Remain, the Huffington Post UK can reveal. In an exclusive interview, Martin Lewis, known as the Money Saving Expert, admitted he is 55/45 in favour of the UK staying in the EU. Advertisement However, the ITV star told the HuffPost UK he still needed to carry out research into the issue, and attacked politicians for talking bollocks once their minds had been made up. His intervention is a coup for the Remain side, with a poll published last year showing Mr Lewiss view is more trusted by the public than any politician or businessperson. The financial guru, who is a regular on ITVs Good Morning Britain, said the referendum will come down to how risk averse individual voters are. He said: Its riskier to leave the European Union than to stay in it because change is always riskier. Advertisement However, risk should not be automatically considered a bad thing. If you are risk averse you should probably vote to stay in the EU. If, however, you are of the view that you want change you should vote out. Honestly, Im risk averse. At the moment I am probably 55/45 for staying in Europe. However, I, like everybody else, am still doing my research on this issue and what it means for me and my country. Mr Lewis was ranked as the most trustworthy voice in the EU debate in a survey carried out last November. Research carried out by Greenberg Quinlan Rosner showed the opinion of the financial journalist was more influential than inventor Sir James Dyson, London Mayor Boris Johnson and former Prime Minister John Major. Mr Lewis holds particular sway over women, and those likely to support Remain. Advertisement Despite his current backing of voting to stay in the EU, Mr Lewis acknowledged he still needed to find out more information about the consequences of a vote to Leave or Remain. He attacked politicians who have dug down into a particular viewpoint and then refused to accept any of the arguments put forward by their opponents. Mr Lewis said: This is an opaque issue, yet once the politicians are in a camp they rebuff every argument from the other side. Thats unbelievable. Advertisement Its bollocks, its just bollocks. He added: If we leave the EU will we get a nice, friendly trade agreement? Probably not for the first few years. But alternatively it the UK could become a thriving, tiger economy. Mr Lewis said all voters have a responsibility here to look into the various issues around the referendum before forming their view, and should not just base it on a two minute report on the news or what a politician has said. Earlier this month, the boss of budget airline company easyJet warned that Brexit could lead to an increase in holiday costs. Mr Lewis was unsure if that was true, and instead quipped: I can guarantee if we leave the EU, low-budget flights will either increase, decrease or stay the same. Conservative Chief Whip Michael Gove makes a phone call whilst campaigning in Rochester in Kent in upcoming Rochester and Strood by-election forced by the defection of Mark Reckless to UKIP last month. Stefan Rousseau/PA Archive Michael Goves wife, the newspaper columnist Sarah Vine, today spoke of the nightmare surrounding her husbands decision to campaign for Brexit. But it true Ms Vine style, she also revealed much, much more about the life of the Justice Secretary. Advertisement In her column in the Daily Mail which in the past she has used to discuss her sex life with Mr Gove Ms Vine lifted the lid on life with the Cabinet Minister. Gove has an irrational aversion to houseplants and quiche. Not a dislike, an actual aversion. Softy Walter. Looks nothing like Gove, does he? As a child, instead of reading the Beano, he used to badger his parents for a subscription to The Spectator. Maybe the character of Softy Walter in the comic was a bit too close to home. Advertisement His favourite part of Europe are the vineyards of Bordeaux. Of course they are. Goves friends seem to have had him down as a massive racist, as apparently they were surprised he had agreed to marry Vine as she had grown up in Italy. Presumably the Justice Secretary doesnt accept the legality of a Get Out Of Jail Free card. Advertisement Gove's son is a Chelsea fan and is worried Brexit could affect the number of foreign players his club could attract. Ironic really, seeing as this season Chelsea seemed determined to get out of Europe as quickly as possible. Feminist author Caitlin Moran was a guest at the Gove wedding and there is a picture of her chatting to George Osborne. How anti-establishment of her. Gove and Boris Johnson discussed their views of the EU over a roast lamb dinner in the London Mayors house last week. Also present was the impeccably groomed and suited Independent and Evening Standard owner Evgeny Lebedev. Advertisement A Labour MP who has just spent two months in hospital has paid tribute to the NHS for saving his life - and dismissed Government suggestions doctors, nurses and staff do not work seven days a week. The high praise from Mike Gapes, who needed emergency heart surgery in the early hours of Saturday morning after collapsing following a Jools Holland gig, contrast with the picture painted by Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt, who has repeatedly linked weekend deaths with the need to contract doctors to work more on Saturday and Sunday. Advertisement Mr Gapes tomorrow details his experience in a column for his local newspaper, the Ilford Record, where he says: Let no one tell you that we dont have a 24 hour service seven days a week at our hospitals. Mike Gapes: "I had fantastic care." Speaking to The Huffington Post tonight, the MP said that anyone who spends an extended period in hospital knows NHS staff work twelve hour shifts, and they work weekends, and how many doctors he spoke to felt their case in the row over pay and conditions had been traduced. The Ilford South MP, who hopes to complete his recovery and be back in Parliament around Easter, was rushed to hospital in November after suffering an aneurysm following the Friday night concert. Advertisement Admitting he is lucky to be alive, the MP explained to HuffPost UK how events unfolded at the weekend. He said: They operated on me straight away - I dont know what time it was, probably about 1 oclock in the morning. They operated again a bit later, called in a top consultant to do the operation, and they had the team waiting for me as the ambulance arrived early on Saturday morning. Then I was cared for for several weeks including over weekends. People were checking my blood pressure, checking the equipment, giving me all kinds of tests. X-Rays and everything else. He added: I had fantastic care, not just from doctors but nurses and physios, and very friendly cleaners and people who bought me the food. When you spend eight weeks in hospital you really get to know lots of people. Advertisement I think people who have been in hospital for a long period of time, as I was, understand very well the doctors and the other NHS staff work twelve hour shifts, and they work weekends. There are certain things that were reduced at weekends - but the cleaning, the food, the nursing, the doctors still go on. On whether the supported the junior doctors resistance to a new contract, he said: The British Medical Association has a good case, and I spoke to many doctors while in the hospital who were really very unhappy about the way their case has been traduced by various people. The MPs remarks came as David Cameron claimed in Parliament 11,000 deaths a year were the result of the NHS "weekend effect". Advertisement Ministers have used the notion to justify its push for a new contract with junior doctors which would change their rotas. The figure stems from a British Medical Journal study from last year - but even its author said it would be rash and misleading to suggest people were more likely to die at the weekend because of poorer care. Body confidence has become synonymous with feeling happy with your dress size, but for many people it goes beyond that. One in six people in the UK have a disability, yet you wouldn't know that if you looked at the London Fashion Week catwalks or advertising campaigns. Advertisement Model Kelly Knox has spoken out in support of The Huffington Post UK's Fashion For All campaign to celebrate moments of diversity in fashion, as she is on a mission to make the industry more inclusive before her five-month-old son Jenson reaches an age where this exclusion becomes an issue for him. "Fashion For All sings the song of my heart," she explained. "Fashion needs to be inclusive of everyone, regardless of colour, size, age or disability. "People with disabilities are often the most visible section of society, but in the fashion industry it's like they don't exist at all." Advertisement Kelly Knox "We live in a diverse society and I want my son to grow up in a world where he and his peers are empowered by the images they see, so they can feel confident no matter what their skin colour or what their body is like," Knox continued. "I believe it's every person's birth right to grow up with confidence, in an inclusive society where they can celebrate their individuality, embrace their differences and just be human beings. "But when only one type of body is represented in fashion it makes people feel unconfident in their skin and that holds them back in all aspects of life, from job interviews to relationships." Knox has been modelling since 2008 when she won 'Britain's Missing Top Model' a BBC show about women with disabilities trying to get their break in the modelling industry. Advertisement Knox was born without a left forearm, but it wasn't until filming for the series began that she began to think of herself as "disabled". "Growing up I never classed myself as 'disabled', I know that might sound weird, but in my house we never used the word," she explained. "My friends didnt see me that way. My family didnt see me that way. I didnt see me that way. "But when I joined 'Britain's Missing Top Model', it was as though all of a sudden I was labelled as a 'disabled person' and it felt like that came to be my defining feature. "It was only then that I started learning about how society perceives disability. "That's when I knew I needed to work to change this." Kelly Knox shot by Rankin Knox has landed some major jobs: being shot by Rankin, modelling for P&G and featuring on Vogue.com as part of a Debenhams campaign. Advertisement Last September she was approached to walk in Lenie Boya's spring/summer 2016 London Fashion Week show alongside Paralympian Stephanie Reid, but she had to pass up the opportunity as she had given birth to her son just the month before. But Knox has been disappointed to note that almost all of her jobs have been part of a push by the company to highlight disability - a trend that only ever seems to last one season. "This tokenism has been the problem I've faced all throughout my career," she said. "I do something massive and then suddenly it's like I don't exist. Not only that, but it's like models with disabilities don't exist. It's very frustrating. "It's like brands are just ticking a box - using a disabled model for one campaign. But what about the next campaign? "It has to be consistent to make a difference to how people with disabilities are perceived." Advertisement "There has only been one job I've had so far that I've got from an open casting," said Knox. "For everything else my management have been contacted by a team saying they want to use Kelly to fit a brief for a 'disabled model'. "And I don't want that to be taken the wrong way, I'm grateful for that - the brands who are actively casting disabled models are the innovators. "They can see that diversity isn't a passing trend, it does sell, it's what people want to see. They're the people who are making the changes. "But for true change we need to get to a stage where all models can turn up to open castings - regardless of any disability they may have - and have an equal chance of getting the job." Knox is the co-founder of Diversity Not Disability a campaign that launched at the start of the year to celebrate all body types and promote equal representation of models with disabilities across all platforms of the media. Advertisement It is her hope that her campaign will lead to more opportunites for people with disabilities. "I've always said I don't feel disabled myself, it's the attitudes of others that 'disable' me and create barriers to what I can achieve," she explained. "I want to be part of bringing change to the fashion industry, to break down the barriers so all models can achieve their potential, no matter what their body type. "And that, in turn, will help a younger generation grow up to feel body confident." This February, HuffPost UK Style is running a month-long focus on our Fashion For All campaign, which aims to highlight moments of colour, size, gender and age diversity and disability inclusivity in the fashion and beauty world. Google/Alamy Many have spoken out to express their "horror and disgust" at the decision by to use a vehicle to kill the animal, which ran free in North Wales after biting an officer in the early hours of Monday morning. Advertisement Others have expressed sympathy for the officers - whom it has been revealed were both animal lovers and had "not taken their decision lightly." The incident occurred on the A55 in Conwy, North Wales John Blackwell, Senior Vice President, British Veterinary Association, told The Huffington Post UK that his 30-year experience working as a vet had seen him respond to incidents alongside the police. "The difference between the incidents I've been to and the one in North Wales is the level of control in the environment. Advertisement "It appears this incident was very much uncontrolled and it took some nimble thinking to destroy the animal using a vehicle to mitigate the threat to human life. "While running an animal over would never be a preferred option - in an uncontrolled incident it's obviously been seen as appropriate by the two officers. "In a controlled situation, things are rather different. I spent an entire night at one incident where an arctic animal transporter had overturned. Working with the police and others, it was decided my task would be to humanely destroy 17 animals who were injured using a captive bolt. "If human life had been in danger there would have been a plan B." "Horrifed, disgusted and upset" - vet Marc Abraham However, vet Marc Abraham said he was "horrified, disgusted and upset" at the animal's treatment. He told Sky News: "I think the general public demand an explanation. Surely at three am in North Wales they could have shut the road. What if it had been a mentally ill person, would they have done the same? Advertisement If theyve closed the road, that would have mitigated the risk. If youre driving at that speed in your vehicle youre causing another risk. It doesnt make sense at all. "Frankly, I don't know what else they could've done" - Kevin Hurley, Surrey PCC Meanwhile Surrey's Police and Crime Commissioner defended the actions of the officers, saying that the two officers' options were limited. Kevin Hurley told Afternoon Live: "A police officer bravely got out onto the carriageway and quickly realized the dog may have caused a high speed collision. "Both officers are dog lovers and North Wales is sparsely policed. Frankly I dont know what else they could have done. Advertisement "Its awful that two dog lovers saw no other option." Monday morning's incident will now be investigated by the Independent Police Complaints Commission. And there have been other high-profile incidents where police officers have destroyed animals in hectic "uncontrolled" circumstances... Tap to begin the slideshow below It's time for another Prime Minister's Questions! No doubt it'll be another half hour of political point scoring and schoolboy-esque jeering, so here's a round up of everything that happened with all the annoying bits taken out. Jeremy Corbyn had a musical entrance, but no word on royalties being paid to The Who: As Corbyn rises cries of 'Who Are You' ring through the Commons. #pmqs Scooter1 (@scoote1972) February 24, 2016 Advertisement Oh dear The who are you jibe was funny once, let's hear the end of it now aye #pmqs Cham Payne (@Calamity_Payne) February 24, 2016 And the Labour leader focused on junior doctors, but the PM just dodged everything: Cameron will reply to this question with a load of stats and lies. #pmqs Buddy Hell (@buddy_hell) February 24, 2016 Strong support for @Jeremy_Hunt from David Cameron today during #PMQs Ben Sutcliffe (@SkyNewsBen) February 24, 2016 And eventually it seemed like neither side could get their stats right: Cameron ups the ante on weekend NHS deaths stats. Claims there's 11,000 not 6,000, the "true figure". Tin hats on #pmqs Graeme Demianyk (@GraemeDemianyk) February 24, 2016 Advertisement But Corbyn's dress sense was the main focus on Twitter: #pmqs Scruffy Corbyn wearing the same jacket, tie and shirt again. Hope he's washed them! England My England (@WantEnglandBack) February 24, 2016 DAMN JEREMY! Back at it again with the beige suit #pmqspic.twitter.com/vGiuDkjt0f Ross McCafferty (@RossMcCaff) February 24, 2016 Has Jeremy Corbyn only got one suit jacket? #pmqs James Dalton (@jamesdalton1990) February 24, 2016 And, thanks to a slightly self-deprecating jibe from Cameron, it was the focus of the House too: Cameron: Ask my mother - I know what she'd say. She'd say, put on a proper suit, do up your tie and sing the national anthem. #PMQs Red Box (@timesredbox) February 24, 2016 They're literally doing "your mum" gags at #PMQs I think I could be a good politician David MacLean (@GeordieStory) February 24, 2016 Advertisement Wow that was pathetic Put on a proper suit? Elitist Moronic Vacuous #Corbyn forced to bring his late mother into the debate #pmqs Cham Payne (@Calamity_Payne) February 24, 2016 Corbyn's riposte to Cameron: "My late mother would say 'stand up for an NHS free at the point of care'." #pmqs Graeme Demianyk (@GraemeDemianyk) February 24, 2016 But the soundbite was obviously an attempt to dodge the real issue of three more junior doctors strikes: #pmqs oi, david cameron, lets just focus on the actual issues for a change rather than issuing sartorial advice from your mum... Stacey (@_StaceyStacey) February 24, 2016 #PMQs They say when you resort to personal insults you are losing the argument. Sums up David Cameron perfectly today. #juniordoctors OnefromupNorth (@buttersideup60) February 24, 2016 Advertisement And after that, there wasn't much of night other than the usual. I hate when Tory MPs ask questions at #pmqs lol it's always something like "WON'T THE PM AGREE THAT WE'RE REALLY GREAT GUFFAW GUFFAW?" Maariyah (@Maariyah05) February 24, 2016 And even the Tory rebels had been whipped into line for PMQs: Chrissy Teigen is pleased as punch that she's expecting a baby girl, but she wasn't surprised - as she selected her baby's gender herself. The model has previously spoken about the fertility struggles she and her husband John Legend faced when trying for a baby and now she has revealed they selected their child's gender during IVF treatment. "I've made this decision," Teigen told People magazine. "Not only am I having a girl, but I picked the girl from her little embryo. I picked her and was like, 'Let's put in the girl.'" Advertisement Selecting a baby's gender before birth is offered in many fertility clinics in America, but it is not allowed in the UK. According to the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority, in the UK sex selection is only allowed for medical reasons - for instance, if you carry a serious genetic condition that you risk passing onto your children, then it could be considered. Teigen said she came to a decision over the gender of her baby because Legend "deserves a little girl", before adding that she would also like a baby boy in the future. "I think I was most excited and allured by the fact that John would be the best father to a little girl," she said. "A boy will come along. Well get there too, so its not like we really have to pick. But he definitely is very lucky to have a little girl. And this girl is going to be so completely lucky to have John as her papa." Teigen received some criticism for choosing the gender of her baby on Twitter, to which she responded: What year is this!? And for the record, I am always happy and open to speak on infertility. The more casual, the better! I don't mind. christine teigen (@chrissyteigen) February 24, 2016 Advertisement I also picked the embryo with a taste for bacon, a knack for magic and size 7 feet so she can always find shoes christine teigen (@chrissyteigen) February 24, 2016 what is that difference though? i've already created embryos with a doctor. only after must it be random? https://t.co/hyIwy3P1Oy christine teigen (@chrissyteigen) February 24, 2016 what is that difference though? i've already created embryos with a doctor. only after must it be random? https://t.co/hyIwy3P1Oy christine teigen (@chrissyteigen) February 24, 2016 anyhow I am not mad at anyone's beliefs but I don't really actively seek out people to make them feel bad about their decisions either. christine teigen (@chrissyteigen) February 24, 2016 so many typos, my apologies. pretty under the weather. probably this darn science baby. christine teigen (@chrissyteigen) February 24, 2016 Advertisement The horror of a gang's sexual abuse of young girls has been revealed in a trial that saw three brothers convicted of sexual exploitation. The brothers and their uncle are among six people convicted of the sexual exploitation of girls, the youngest 11, in Rotherham, with the NSPCC praising the victims' "tremendous bravery" in testifying against their abusers who put them through "a living hell". Advertisement Arshid, Basharat and Bannaras Hussain - known as Mad Ash, Bash and Bono - formed a violent, gun-toting, drug-dealing family who appeared to operate with impunity in Rotherham in South Yorkshire, Sheffield Crown Court heard. Women described how they were raped, beaten and passed between abusers and used as prostitutes by a gang led by the three men, who "owned" the town. Top left to right - Basharat Hussain, Arshid Hussain, Bannaras Hussain Bottom left to right - Karen MacGregor, Qurban Ali, Shelley Davies Some of the 15 women who were abused by the gang watched the verdicts from the public gallery overlooking the packed court, some holding hands with each other. The abuse took place between 1987 and 2003. Advertisement One of the victims, now in her 40s, was brought to the house and told to have sex with them in exchange for being looked after. Another victim, now in her 30s, was passed around to other men by Arshid Hussain. One of the victims was driven to north London where she was forced to have sex with five men to whom Arshid Hussain owed money. An NSPCC spokesman said: "The survivors of abuse in this case showed tremendous bravery to come forward and reveal the extreme violence, rapes and sexual assaults they suffered when they were vulnerable young girls. Those convicted today left a legacy of misery and trauma after treating their victims with utter contempt, in some cases even spitting at them. The Hussain brothers created a web of power, control and coercion that systematically isolated these girls and left them in a living hell." Advertisement Peter Mann from the Crown Prosecution Service said: "These defendants in their differing ways targeted these teenage girls because they were vulnerable and then facilitated their systematic sexual abuse. "The abusers then groomed and sexualised their victims, often subjecting them to acts of a degrading and violent nature. "Some of the violence was extreme and protracted." Temporary Detective Chief Inspector Martin Tate, from South Yorkshire Police, said: "The verdict today marks a crucial milestone for those victims and survivors who endured years of violent and horrific sexual abuse at the hands of these vile individuals. They have shown incredible bravery, reliving vicious and horrific events for the courts that, for many of these young women, completely shattered their lives and caused life changing damage. "I cant begin to put into words the trauma that these women experienced at such a young age." Arshid, 40, and Basharat, 39, were found guilty of multiple rapes and indecent assaults following the trial. Advertisement Bannaras, 36, had admitted 10 charges including rape, indecent assault and assault occasioning actual bodily harm at the start of the trial, The Press Association reports. Their uncle, Qurban Ali, 53, was convicted of conspiracy to rape. Karen MacGregor, 58, and Shelley Davies, 40, were found guilty of conspiracy to procure prostitutes and false imprisonment. Brothers Majid Bostan, 37 and Sajid Bostan, 38, were cleared of all charges. Arshid Hussain, who was portrayed as the gang's ringleader and claims to be paraplegic, appeared from his bed at home via video link and looked asleep. The NSPCC spokesman added: ""Little was done to protect these children at the time. When a child or young person says they have been sexually abused the allegations must be taken seriously and fully investigated immediately. "Its vital that the victims of sexual abuse receive all the support and therapy they need to recover, for as long as they need it." Advertisement Judge Sarah White told the jury of six men and six women that Arshid's wife had called an ambulance during the verdicts and he had been taken to hospital, despite his bail being revoked. Michelle Colborne QC, prosecuting, said this appeared to be a deliberate attempt to frustrate the judicial process. Ms Colborne said: "Mr Hussain is en route to Scunthorpe Hospital. I understand he is unwell. He's not speaking to the police with him. "I have instructed the police to ask him directly whether he's willing to attend court or whether he determined to disobey your honour's order." The six convicted people will be sentenced on Friday. The five things you need to know on Wednesday February 24, 2016 1) TAKING THE MICHAEL Its PMQs day again and David Cameron and Jeremy Corbyn will both be hoping they get a better show of support from their backbenches than they did in the EU statement on Monday. Normal service will probably resume, though Corbyn will probably want to shift the debate away from Europe to things like either the junior docs strike (see below) or child poverty and disability benefits (see below too). Advertisement One big problem for the PM is Michael Gove taking down his claims that his EU deal is legally binding and irreversible. The Justice Secretary is typically polite but typically bruising as he directly contradicts Cameron on this on the BBC, saying the European Court of Justice can rip up the package. No.10 was swift early today to tell me that: It is not true that this deal is not legally binding. Britain's new settlement in the EU has legal force and is an irreversible International Law Decision that requires the European Court of Justice to take it into account. But Team Gove were equally swift in pointing out those last four words: take it into account is not the same as approve. The PM tried to be nicer to Boris yesterday (though Boris had a pretty robust morning doorstep of his own, slagging the business chiefs letter), but he must be quietly seething at Goves latest move. In her Mail column Goves wife Sarah Vine writes: Baroness Thatcher herself could rise from her grave to tell him to get back in his box, and still he wouldnt." So Dave had no chance. The trouble for the PM will get worse next week when Gove and Boris unite to reject what is expected to be a weak offering on sovereignty drafted by Oliver Letwin. It may not even be a law now. Lets see if either Gove or Boris turns up to PMQs. Advertisement Meanwhile, the BBC will air its biggest ever debate in front of 10,000 at Wembley Arena two days before the polls open. Who the hell is going to turn up to that, other than diehards on both sides? 2) WAVERING NOT DROWNING The BBCs own guidelines prevent it from leading on polling stories for this EU referendum. But that doesnt stop the newspapers and today the only consensus seems to be that its all rather closer than either side would like. The Times/YouGov poll shows that 38% back Brexit and 37% want to remain, with 25 %undecided or not planning to vote. Thats a sharp fall in the Brexit from last month. Note this is the first of its new polls since changes gave greater weight given to people who say they pay little attention to politics. Boris has more trust than other politicians, but the public as ever are contradictory: 21% think he is acting in the best interest of the country and 40% in the best interest of his career. The DailyMail/ComRes poll gives Remain a 12 point lead, with 51% to 39% saying theyd vote to leave. Most Britons think that the level of net migration to the UK will either not change (53%) or increase (21%) following Mr Camerons renegotiation. One in five (22%) think it will decrease as a result of the deal. The Indy has a different tack, citing the National Centre for Social Research that two-thirds of the electorate were unhappy with Britains current membership terms. But when given a straight choice between staying or going, 60 per cent thought Britain should stay in the union compared with 30 per cent for Brexit. Advertisement John Curtice, one of the few pollsters to emerge with credit from May 2015, warns that The Leave campaign evidently needs to persuade more voters of its economic arguments. Thats why No.10 pushed its business letter hard yesterday. Though the Sun fisks that letter today, revealing that some on the list were Tory donors, foreigners (a former Miss Normandy, helpfully pictured in her bikini) or hadnt even seen the letter (like one pub landlord John Harries). Meanwhile, some Tory MPs are wavering as much as the public. The FT reports the campaign by both sides to squeeze the 80 undecided Tory backbenchers. Getting a majority of Tory MPs is a hugely symbolic prize for In and Out camps. Maybe thats why there was so much online interest in Alan Mak and Charlie Elphicke both plumping for Remain yesterday. Careerism had nothing to do with it, oh no. 3) TB CONTINUED Blairs baffled. Just baffled. In a joint interview with the Guardian and FT he says that he cant fathom the rise of Jeremy Corbyn or Bernie Sanders. One of the strangest things about politics at the moment and I really mean it when I say Im not sure I fully understand politics right now, which is an odd thing to say, having spent my life in it is when you put the question of electability as a factor in your decision to nominate a leader, its how small the numbers are that this is the decisive factor. That sounds curious to me." Blair has been baffled continuously since last summer and God knows what he thinks about Donald Trumps latest primary victory in Nevada last night. Worrying pointers for his opponents: Trump won a majority of Latino voters and edged Cruz among "very conservative white evangelicals" by 38-32. Advertisement As for Corbyn at home, the latest ElectionData/YouGov poll shows he would win an even bigger landslide among Labour members if challenged for the leadership. But theres a glimmer of hope for moderates an analysis done for HuffPost: a single moderate candidate could beat McDonnell in a post-Corbyn leadership race. But how on earth would MPs get Jez to quit? He looks like hes going nowhere for now. BECAUSE YOUVE READ THIS FAR Watch this superb Game of Thrones mashup of Donald Trump (you dont have to watch the show to enjoy it). But for all the ridicule, Trump keeps on winning, as he proved in Nevada overnight. 4) DOCTORING THE SPIN Its the last thing the Government needs when its trying to focus on the EU referendum but Jeremy Hunt is facing trouble again. Junior doctors have unveiled three new waves of strike action (Wednesday 9 March, Wednesday 6 April from 8am, Tuesday 26 April) and a legal challenge. The Health Service Journal had a neat scoop yesterday as the government's former patient safety adviser said ministers were wrong to impose the contract. Prof Don Berwick said there should be a three-year moratorium on the imposition of the new contract and called on the government to "apologise". The BMA knows it risks losing public support with more action, but I wonder if a canny Brexiteer can use anti-Cameron feeling on this to good effect? Its quite an ask, but you never know. Lefty fears over the impact on the NHS of the EU-US trade deal (aka TTIP) are the dog that hasnt barked in the referendum so far. Advertisement And theres more trouble for Hunt. The BBCs excellent Health Editor Hugh Pym reports a trail of emails shows Whitehall officials attempted to cover up the fact that the Health Secretary had seen a sensitive study into weekend deaths at least two months before it was peer reviewed and published. 5) POVERTY OF EXPECTATIONS In his CSJ speech last night, IDS was pretty defiant about dumping income-based measures of child poverty. He even cited Jezza Corbyns new pal and Nobel Prize winning economist Joe Stiglitz (who posed for a pic with JC and McDonnell last week). IDS said: By measuring these things, it is my hope that future governments can never again ignore or misrepresent the true nature of poverty in Britain. To paraphrase Joseph Stiglitz: we are creating the right metrics so that we will strive for the right things. Knowing how off-piste Corbyn likes to go at PMQs, maybe he will pick up on this? Corbyn would be wise too to seize on Tory backbench unease over disability benefits cuts that were aired in the Commons yesterday. Ominously, the tag-team of Heidi Allen and Stephen McPartland - the Conservative canaries down the coal mine on tax credits cuts - who were out again. Allen fired my warning shot to Government yesterday. If youre reading this on the web, sign-up HERE to get the WaughZone delivered to your inbox. BRIGHTON, ENGLAND - SEPTEMBER 30: Deputy Leader of the Labour party Tom Watson takes applause with Labour Leader Jeremy Corbyn following his closing speech on the final day of the Labour Party Autumn Conference on September 30, 2015 in Brighton, England. On the fourth and final day of the annual Labour Party Conference, delegates will debate and vote on an emergency motion detailing strict conditions for the support of military action in Syria, as well as attending talks on healthcare and educa Jeff J Mitchell via Getty Images Labours row over Trident has erupted again after Jeremy Corbyn and his deputy deputy Tom Watson underlined their deep split over the nuclear deterrent. Mr Watson today revealed that he had told David Cameron personally that he would back the Tory Government in any Commons vote to renew the weapons system, with the construction of four new Successor submarines. Advertisement But his warning came as it emerged that Mr Corbyn would address a huge CND rally this Saturday, a move that infuriated Labour MPs who point out current party policy is to back the 41bn plan to upgrade the deterrent. Labour deputy leader Tom Watson And ahead of a GMB conference on Thursday at which trade unionists will urge the party to help secure thousands of jobs that rely on Trident, HuffPost UK has learned of fresh tensions at the top of the party over its defence review. At a private meeting of Labour MPs on Tuesday night, former Defence Secretary Des Browne came under attack from former security minister Lord West over a radical new call to delay any Trident replacement for upto 30 years. Advertisement And the first meeting of Labours International Policy Commission was as equally fraught, with some members telling co-chair Ken Livingstone and Shadow Defence Secretary Emily Thornberry that the party was risking needless division as the Government would win its Trident vote long before the next election. A Vanguard Trident submarine Speaking to the Engineering Employers Federation in London, Mr Watson signalled that he and other Labour MPs would join the Conservatives in any vote to upgrade the current four Vanguard class nuclear submarines that carry Trident warheads. You asked me about my position on Trident. Im in favour of a continuous at sea nuclear deterrent. My party's policy favours a continuous at sea nuclear deterrent, he said. Our trade unions who represent the thousands of workers in the 450 companies who form the supply chain that make it are in favour of Trident. Advertisement And in his starkest challenge to Mr Corbyn since both men were elected at the top of the party, Mr Watson made plain he felt the partys defence review was academic - and urged the PM to bring forward a Commons vote as soon as possible. You may have read that this view is not shared by all our MPs. But I have made it clear to David Cameron that if he honours his promise of a vote on Trident I will support it. There are enough Labour MPs to guarantee that the vote is won. I know the PM is currently pre-occupied with the European Referendum but I happen to believe that the sooner this vote is tabled, the greater certainty we can give to industry, our allies and our enemies, that British Industry will deliver the Trident project in good time. The Ministry of Defence had hoped for a Commons vote on Trident before Easter, but Downing Street may delay the showdown until the autumn in a bid to exploit Labour splits at its party conference in September. Advertisement Jeremy Corbyn attending the CND conference last October Mr Watsons remarks came as it emerged that Mr Corbyn would join Scotlands First Minister Nicola Sturgeon and Green Party MP Caroline Lucas at the CND rally in Trafalgar Square. A Labour source told PoliticsHome.com: We can confirm that Jeremy will attend the CND rally. A lifelong unilateralist, Mr Corbyn is determined to allow party members to have a fresh say over Labours current policy of renewing Trident, even though the policy was confirmed at the partys conference last year. He ousted pro-Trident Maria Eagle as his Shadow Defence Secretary in January and replaced her with Mr Thornberry, who now heads a review of defence policy which is expected to deliver an interim report by June. Ruling NEC member Ken Livingstone The row reignited on Tuesday at the first meeting of Labours international policy commission at its HQ in Victoria Street, with Mr Livingstone in the chair and leading figures such as Ms Thornberry and Shadow Foreign Secretary Hilary Benn present. Advertisement With pro-Trident supporters such as John Woodcock and former PLP chairman Lord Watts on the commission too, it is understood that several speakers complained that the party should not be drafting its 2020 manifesto pledges on defence when the Trident vote would have long passed by then. The meeting discussed the possibility of gathering its own evidence on Trident, separately from Ms Thornberrys defence review. And some members want their final report to take as long as it takes, without being ready for this years party conference. Former Defence Secretary Des Browne Tensions within the party surfaced too at a private meeting in the Commons on Tuesday evening, when Mr Browne clashed with MPs and former Nato secretary general Lord Robertson over Trident. The meeting, arranged as part of an ongoing series by the backbench defence committee chaired by Mr Woodcock, saw Mr Browne complain that he had been misled by the Ministry of Defence over the need to renew Trident. Advertisement The former Defence Secretary said that he felt the current submarines, which are already due to go beyond their deadline for deployment, could have their lifetime extended by another 30 years. Mr Browne said that B52 bombers were 50 years beyond their expected lifespan and suggested submarines could be made to last longer too, with a huge cost to the taxpayer. He also claimed that new underwater drone technology was advancing so fast that the seas would become permeable and make the new generation of Successor deep water submarines redundant. Former Security Minister Lord West But Admiral Lord West pointed out that other nations such as Russia were investing huge new sums in submarines despite the alleged threat of drones. Former Chief of Defence Staff Lord Boyce had also told the backbench committee recently that it would take at least 30 years for any underwater drones to be a threat to submarines. Advertisement Lord West also said that the Royal Navy was already worried about the current decision to extend the lifespan of the Vanguard subs, which had been due to last 25 years, by a further five years until the early 2020s. At a national defence conference in Newcastle on Thursday, the GMB union will mobilise its workers in support of Trident. Gary Smith, Secretary GMB Scotland, said "Many people have not realised that the future of shipbuilding on the upper Clyde is tied to the Trident successor programme. Eric McLeod, trade union secretary at Babcock Rosyth added: "The debate on Trident has focused on job losses at Faslane and Coulport. If the successor programme did not go ahead it would have a devastating impact on Rosyth. Rosyth is trying to diversify, we are chasing oil and gas work as well as work in renewables but I can tell you it is tough. Advertisement And in a direct swipe at Mr Corbyn and those who back him on cutting back the nuclear programme, he added: We are not going to take lectures in diversification from people who know nothing about our industry. Tony Blair delivers a speech at the National September 11 Memorial Museum Auditorium in New York City, NY, USA, October 6, 2015. Blair said that while the essence of Islam is peaceful and compassionate, there is an ideology based on a perversion of Islam which threatens global security and that this ideology, as well as the violence which it often leads to, must be defeated. Photo by Dennis Van Tine/ABACAPRESS.COM Van Tine Dennis/ABACA USA Tony Blair has admitted to being utterly confused by the rise of Jeremy Corbyn and Bernie Sanders but acknowledged the had been a "loss of faith" among voters in more centrist leftwing politicians. "Im not sure I fully understand politics right now," the former Labour prime minister told The Guardian and The Financial Times. Advertisement Blair said there appeared to be a "desire to choose people who are going to rattle the cage" in both Britain and the United States. "And its partly also about social media, which is itself a revolutionary phenomenon which can generate an enormous wave of enthusiasm at speed," he said. "When I first started in politics, these things took so long to build up momentum; your decision points were well before that moment was achieved. But its also a loss of faith in that strong, centrist progressive position and weve got to recover that. Advertisement Blair also criticised Labour Party members and Democrats who wanted to back candidates, such as Corbyn and Sanders, who he said were unlikely to be able to win national elections. One of the strangest things about politics at the moment and I really mean it when I say Im not sure I fully understand politics right now, which is an odd thing to say, having spent my life in it is when you put the question of electability as a factor in your decision to nominate a leader, its how small the numbers are that this is the decisive factor. That sounds curious to me," he told the papers. "Surely it should be a major factor because if this is not about you, but its about the people you want to serve, then selecting someone who is electable is really important because otherwise you cant help people; youre powerless." Blair, who is a supporter of Hillary Clinton, said it was "up to the Democrats" who they nominated in the presidential race. But drawing parallels with the British Labour Party, he said: "Five months on from the nomination of Jeremy Corbyn as leader of the Labour party, youve got the published polls. We [Labour] should be significantly ahead. The last poll I saw, we were quite significantly behind." Advertisement Speaking at the Center for Strategic & International Studies (CSIS) in Washington DC, Blair also directed thinly veiled swipe at Donald Trump, Blair said US presidential candidates should not attack entire religions. Who you elect as your president is up to you," he said. "I just want to make that clear. You guys, you can decide that." Let me just say I think, mentioning no names, that it is vitally important, if we are going to win this battle, that we have allies and those allies within Islam are crucial so we probably should concentrate on building those alliances not alienating an entire religion." The crew of missing MH370 "deliberately altered" the aircrafts flight path, the widow of of a passenger who died on board alleges in a compensation claim filed with Australia's Victorian Supreme Court. Jennifer Chong, 48, from Melbourne, has launched a claim against Malaysia Airlines following the death of her husband of 23 years, Chong Ling Tan, who was sitting in business class seat 1C when the aircraft disappeared on March 8, 2014. Twelve crew and 227 passengers were on board the flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing. Chong's claim for an undisclosed amount - which is being supported by her two sons, aged 19 and 14 - asks the court to confirm her insistence that the airline and its crew were responsible for the loss of the Boeing 777. Advertisement Jennifer Chong is seeking compensation from Malaysia Airlines over the death of her late husband Chong Ling Tan on flight MH370 Her husband's death, Chong said, has led to her and her sons suffering "nervous shock". In papers acquired by Melbournes The Age newspaper, Chong said Malaysia Airlines was vicariously responsible for the actions of its crew "who failed to ensure the aircraft safely reached its destination and/or who deliberately altered the course of the aircraft resulting in its loss at sea". The airline, Chong claimed, breached its duty of care to her husband and could not prove his death was not due to their negligence "or other wrongful act". Advertisement Chong claims Malaysia Airlines crew may have 'deliberately altered the course of the aircraft' She said in her writ: "Further the defendant (Malaysia Airlines) owed a duty of care to the deceased and other passengers and crew on the flight in relation to their safety and wellbeing." In a list of complaints against Malaysia Airlines, Chong claims it had been negligent in failing to ensure the flight was safe for her husband and the other passengers and had failed to ensure that reasonable and adequate precautions were taken on the flight. She also says the airline failed to monitor and track the flight at all times and ensure that its crew followed all proper procedures. If the airline had not been so negligent, Chong says in her claim, the plane would not have disappeared. Advertisement The search for MH370, being conducted in the southern Indian Ocean, south west of Australia, is due to end in June this year. Debris from the plane was found on the island of La Reunion, however, the cause of the disaster remains unknown. Tap to activate slideshow Jokes about someone else's mother are traditionally the preserve of the playground. But on Wednesday, they entered the Palace of Westminster during PMQs. But Wednesday's theatre is not the first time ministers have resorted to making jokes at the expense of mothers. Advertisement We take a look at five of the best: 1. Cameron chastised for cuts The Prime Minister faced ridicule for his mum signing a petition against cuts to local services by Oxfordshire's Conservative-run council. Kevin Brennan, a shadow business minister told the Commons on 11 February 2016: "There is little explanation from the Government as to how local government... will easily be able to expand the number of high-quality apprenticeships that they can offer at a time when they are having to reduce their staffing because of central Government policy. "Even the Prime Ministers mother would understand that point." 2. A chamber of disappointed mothers Advertisement A three-way mother's mud-slinging battle in the Commons broke out in January 2007, as Michael Gove, Yvette Cooper and then-Lib Dem shadow communities minister Tom Brake used each other's parent to fight it out over amendments to a Bill on the Greater London Assembly. Brake, who is now the Lib Dem's foreign affairs spokesperson, said his mum knew better than Gove's about which amendments opposition members could claim to have pioneered on their own merit, referencing a clause being voted on that day. "The hon. Member for Surrey Heath [Gove] talked earlier about how his mother was watching his progress carefully in this place and said that he wanted to give her a concrete example of his achievements since his election, such as an amendment that was his own," Brake said. "Well, my mother also follows carefully my progress in Parliament. "She has done so during the past 10 years and I think that she probably has a more realistic view than the hon. Gentlemans mother about the success of Opposition Members in identifying amendments that they can claim as their own. Advertisement Gove later interjected himself, following a speech by Cooper where she said his amendment - supported by Brake - should be withdrawn. "I am disappointed that she has once again been a cause of disappointment to an hon. Members mother," he said. "Not since the days of Don Giovanni have so many mothers been disappointed by someone who still manages to maintain their poise and smile even as they are breaking hearts." 3. 'Tortured' parents to combat strikes Advertisement Sir Nicholas Fairbairn, an ex-Conservative MP, once conjured up the image of a rival's cancer-suffering mother left standing in the snow watching an ambulance drive away from her to hammer home a point about strikes. His opponent, Donald Dewar, a former Scottish Labour MP, had accused Fairbairn of saying strikes "tortured people". But the ennobled Tory responded: "He accuses me of using the word 'torture' and saying that it is emotive. "I believe that if a member of society made the hon. Member's mother stand in the snow and drove the ambulance away when she was suffering from cancer, that might properly be described as torture. "I should like to think that even the hon. Member's conscience might be tortured if that happened or if he was the ambulance driver and he drove away." Advertisement 4. Age-mistaken mothers A former Labour sport and tourism minister remarked in a 2004 public bill committee debate on casinos that he took his 88-year-old mother to church every Sunday and got grief every time he attended for being involved in licensing and gabling registration. "My mum is 88, and I take her to church every Sunday," he told MPs. "She is a very strong Methodist." Lib Dem MP Don Foster, the party's shadow culture secretary, rebutted jokingly: "I hope that the entire Committee will want to join me in wishing the Minister's mother a happy birthday. "On 1 November she was 87, and today she is 88, so she must have had a recent birthday, and I pass on my best wishes." Advertisement 5. 'Dead mothers can't vote' An impassioned speech from one former Mid-Ulster MP on instability in Northern Ireland called on a rival Member to imagine their mother had been killed in The Troubles. Bernadette Devlin was speaking to Conservative Kenneth Lewis in the Chamber on 13 October 1969 when she said: "You say "rubbish" when people are dead in Northern Ireland who will never vote, never have houses and never have jobs. "Rubbish to you, sir. It is not your father, your mother or your child." Following in the footsteps of eminent scientific figures like Isaac Newton and Ernest Rutherford is no easy feat, yet two months into his five-year presidency at the Royal Society, Sir Venki Ramakrishnan is taking it all in his stride. Smartly dressed and softly spoken, the Nobel laureate and deputy director of the MRC Laboratory for Molecular Biology (LMB) is a calm figure of authority, very much at ease with his new role at the world's oldest and most illustrious scientific body. Indian-born Ramakrishnan, 63, who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2009, alongside Tom Steitz and Ada Yonath, is the 62nd president in the society's 355-year history. He talks to Alex Jackson about his aspirations, the importance of public engagement, and the need for transparency in government policy. Advertisement "I think scientists partly have a duty, especially ones who are publicly funded, to engage with the public." Image courtesy: Royal Society What are some of your earliest memories of science? I grew up in a scientific family. Both my parents were scientists, my father, a biochemist, and my mother, a psychologist. Together, they combined their skills to look at the effects of malnutrition on learning and brain development. I originally didn't want to be a scientist, thinking I might be an engineer or doctor. I was fortunate to have a few key teachers at the right time in my life, both at high school in Vadodara (previously known as Baroda), the town I grew up in back in India, and at the Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda, where I completed a degree in physics. Advertisement I started off as a physicist, finishing off a PhD in theoretical physics at Ohio University in the US. By the mid-1970s, I had already felt that biology was at a very exciting stage where dramatic discoveries were constantly being made, so I made the transition. How much importance do you place on public engagement and the communication of science to a lay audience? Public engagement means engaging the general population with science, not just its practical benefits, but science as part of our culture, and human endeavour. That in turn, builds up support for science. There is a great desire among the public to know what's going on in the scientific community. I like to say we all start off as scientists. When we are children we are always curious about all kinds of natural phenomena, why is it like this, or how does this work? We lose this as we become adults and stop asking questions. I think we should be encouraged to continue to be scientists all our lives, in some sense, and continue to ask questions. It's also important because the public is supporting a lot of science, through paying their taxes, and it is only right that they know what it is they are supporting. I think scientists partly have a duty, especially ones who are publicly funded, to engage with the public. Governments and politicians don't act in a vacuum, so we need to provide them with ammunition to support science. Speaking with the government without engaging the public isn't useful in my opinion. We live in a democracy and all know people have to make decisions on where to spend money. It's therefore important that we make the case for science. Advertisement "When we are children we are always curious about all kinds of natural phenomena, why is it like this, or how does this work? We lose this as we become adults and stop asking questions. I think we should be encouraged to continue to be scientists all our lives, in some sense, and continue to ask questions." Does this engagement with government have an impact on evidence-based policies? Absolutely. One of the strengths of the British government is that it does believe in evidence-based policy, unlike many other countries. It is very important that we provide evidence for all kinds of issues. Public issues such as GMOs, the effects of certain chemicals, issues around the development of pharmaceuticals, and global energy problems, need scientific input. What I've seen of the government in my time here suggests it is largely evidence-based. Of course, sometimes the evidence will suggest a certain course of action that is either politically not palatable, goes against tradition, or there are cultural reasons not to do it. Where this is the case, the government need to be very transparent about why it is they are taking a certain course of action when the evidence suggests they ought to be doing something else. "Take a guy like Michael Faraday, who never finished high school, became apprentice to Humphry Davy, and eventually rose, to the top of UK science. It shows Britain has always been meritocratic in that way about science." Was the Royal Society appointment a surprise? I would say it was a bit of a surprise. I've only been in Britain for about 16 years and was sort of parachuted into the laboratory for molecular biology, so I don't have the extensive network of contacts I would have had if I'd grown up and went to university here. To some extent it reflects the openness of British science. Take a guy like Michael Faraday, who never finished high school, became apprentice to Humphry Davy, and eventually rose, to the top of UK science. It shows Britain has always been meritocratic in that way about science. The other reason for my selection could be because of my international background. I grew up in India, but spent most of my life in the US, before I came to Cambridge. So in that sense I have some geographical breadth and also broad experiences in various sciences as a physicist and structural biologist. Advertisement Image: Sir Venki at the 2009 Nobel Prize press conference - Prolineserver 2010, Wikipedia/Wikimedia Commons/CC-BY-SA-3.0 "We need to constantly engage with governments and industry to make sure the notion that science is going to be of long-term benefit to society is not forgotten. Without a knowledge-based society, we are not going to be able to compete in the future." How important do you think the interdisciplinary approach to science is? I think it can be important but shouldn't be forced. There are plenty of people doing really excellent science in their own area; pure mathematicians are doing wonderful work, as are chemists and geneticists. But often new fields will advance when different disciplines come together. Advertisement The growth of molecular biology itself came about when physicists like Max Perutz and Francis Crick became interested with chemists like Frederick Sanger, which created a kind of synthesis and new way of looking at genetics in a molecular way. My view is that one should try to remove obstacles to interdisciplinary research and perhaps to some extent foster them, but not force them. What are you most excited about in your new role at the Royal Society? I think science education both at school and university level is really something we need to look very hard at. We need to make sure that science is taught in an exciting and interesting way, that we're not turning off pupils at school. As well as this, we must ensure the curriculum is taught in a rigorous enough way to prepare the students for the science of the future. Another issue is international relations, as science becomes an increasingly global enterprise. The Royal Society represents the commonwealth, and I'd like to strengthen those relationships. Many Asian countries, such as China, Korea and Singapore are also investing heavily in science and dramatically advancing. I think it's essential we engage with these countries on matters of mutual interest. If we don't, then the global agenda will be set by others. "My view is that one should try to remove obstacles to interdisciplinary research and perhaps to some extent foster them, but not force them." What are the biggest challenges and opportunities for UK science in 2016? As a former model and photographer, I have trodden the catwalk during London Fashion Week, photographed an editorial shoot for Elle magazine, and was the youngest person to exhibit in the National Portrait Gallery. In 2013, I gave all this up to become an emergency nurse. A career that couldn't be more different from the one that I started in. Polar opposite in fact. Portraiture was my passion as a photographer - they have a language and rawness of their own. But, as I became more involved in the fashion photography industry, I noticed my creativity and the opportunity to photograph honest portraits was beginning to tire. The fashion world was at times a very channelled space, filled with unrealistic expectations and lacking in opportunities to make a difference. I realised I was feeling less and less in love with my job - I needed something that would mean more. Advertisement The turning point for me came when I was commissioned by the National Portrait Gallery to photograph a portrait of an established person who has made a contribution to British culture. My subject was Dame Christine Beasley, a pioneer of the nursing profession: a warm and inspirational person, and having photographed, Dame Beasley, I started photographing more nurses. For me, they embodied such strength that they appear an unbreakable force, but I wanted their portraits to demonstrate the caring, compassionate, empathetic nurse as well. Though I loved photographing nurses, what soon became clear was that I wanted to move from behind the camera - I wanted to become my subject. So, I hung up my Agent Provocateur uniform, put the camera away and retired my red lipstick, big hair and stilettos - and followed my dream of becoming a nurse. It was a long and thought out decision, a year of doing some jobs I didn't care much for whilst I made certain nursing was the career I wanted to pursue with both my heart and my head. It's not a decision to be made lightly. It takes a certain type of person to become a nurse; and it takes a certain breed of nurse to work in emergency care. But, from day one, I felt at home. I had many ups and downs during my nursing degree: it isn't something you can prepare for. All of a sudden you are given serious responsibilities, and you deal in life and death on a daily basis. It's emotional, even for those of us that manage to keep our feelings hidden. Training to be a nurse strips you of everything, bringing you back to the importance of life, and giving you a perspective that you cannot explain. You see loss, love, happiness and grief on a daily basis, you experience patients' anger and frustration, relatives' pain - and you celebrate their relief. Advertisement No day is ever the same, no day can be prepared for. It's just a case of doing all you can, the best you can in every moment. And I flourish and thrive in emergency nursing, I love the pace and the unknown. The resuscitation room is where I feel like I give the most, which is all the more surprising given my previous career. From bright lights and hair and make-up, exhibition openings and glossy magazines, to 12.5 hour shifts in my Nike airs and staff nurse uniform There, in the emergency room, my mind, my compassion, my empathy and my knowledge become my most important assets. Everything I can offer comes from within. Until I started this I didn't know the difference you could make to someone's day, to their life by just your presence, a smile, a hug or a cup of tea, even when there are no words. It has brought perspective to my life and I love being a nurse. From the very core of my heart I can honestly say I go to work in A&E and feel honoured to be in the position to help and care for people at their most unwell or vulnerable. I feel the knowledge and skills I have learnt as almost treasure-like, it's a wealth of facts that I can use to make a difference, and for me that inspires me to continue to learn and to better my abilities every day. I'm so glad the RCN are encouraging people to capture this immense profession on camera - as it was doing just that helped me find my path. Nursing fills me with enthusiasm, it makes me feel positive and it gives me a satisfaction no other job has given me before. I love to take photographs and that will always be a part of my life, but I can wholeheartedly say I feel at home being an Emergency Department staff nurse. Nowhere and nothing has ever felt so right. Advertisement Just after 8am on 11 February I Tweeted that I was glad that Junior Doctors were back at work and hoped that both sides would set about settling their remaining differences and negotiate a new contract that would be safe for patients and fair for staff. A few minutes later I was shocked to hear the news that the Secretary of State was going to impose the new contract, something he had threatened all through negotiations. I could not understand what had made him reach for the 'nuclear' option when so much progress had been made in a fairly short period after several years of stalemate. His claim that he had a letter agreeing imposition signed by leading Trust chief executives started to unravel within hours as one after the other claimed that, while they thought the offer was fair, they did not agree to imposing the contract. How did it come to this? The contract negotiations have been so badly handled from the start, with the threat of imposition hanging over the talks like the sword of Damocles. A cynic might almost think it was a deliberate attempt to 'break' the doctors and thus make changing the contracts of all other health workers a simple matter. Advertisement The contract that Jeremy Hunt and the UK Government have decided to impose on junior doctors reclassifies antisocial hours in evenings and Saturdays which will reduce the pay of those who work a significant proportion of their hours at these times. This will act as a further disincentive to doctors considering entering the very acute specialities such as A&E or emergency medicine where the NHS is already struggling to recruit young doctors. Mr Hunt claims these changes are crucial to developing safe healthcare over seven days in the English NHS but junior doctors already work across seven days. The research which the Secretary of State regularly quotes has shown a higher number of deaths, within a month, among those admitted at weekends but it has not been further investigated to find out if the patients could have been saved or were just too ill. Nor has he considered any of the research which might explain the actual cause of the problem before trying to fix it. The contract also removes the automatic increase in pay for working excessively long hours which has encouraged hospitals to employ sufficient staff rather than overwork their junior doctors. This vital safeguard has served us well and its removal poses a threat to patient safety, the working lives of our health service staff and the sustainability of the service. The Government proposes a designated 'guardian' to whom junior doctors can report concerns about the hours they are being asked to work but this requires a young doctor to be willing to step forward and complain which is not always easy in a hierarchical system and they may fear being labelled as a trouble maker. In contrast to the ever worsening relationship between the BMA and Jeremy Hunt, Cabinet secretary Shona Robison has been working closely with the medical profession to ensure that our Scottish health service provides first class care in a way that is safe for patients and fair for staff of all grades and professions within the NHS. While the Scottish NHS faces the same challenges as England, with an ageing population and ever increasing demand, we do not have the additional difficulties of fragmentation, privatisation and confrontation. Advertisement The Scottish Government is committed to protecting all sectors of the Health Service in Scotland and will not be imposing this contract on our Junior Doctors. No one wants strikes, certainly not health service staff, but the UK Government must listen to the concerns of the profession. I certainly would not like to see a return to the ridiculous hours I used to work as a Trainee surgeon; it was not safe for patients nor for staff. As they say on the signs above the motorway 'Tiredness Kills' and sadly, on occasions, that has been only too true. It is hard to see how trust between the medical profession in England and Jeremy Hunt can be regained but it is imperative that he steps back from the imposition of this contract and both sides come back to the negotiating table to achieve a fair deal that is safe for patients and staff. We need to have a rethink about fashion. High fashion in particular. This might seem cliche. Every season at London Fashion Week, high fashion, womenswear mainly, gets it in the neck. It is elitist, discriminatory to consumers and, at worst, irrelevant. 'Where are the non-white castings, the trans models?' 'Why are the models so thin, can this be right?' Thinking as a cultural and literary historian I like to take a long view when it comes to these questions. Fashion has always been in conflict with the mainstream. It has always been criticised. Chances are, it would probably lose much of its allure if it were not. In the early nineteenth century, commentators objected to the detailed descriptions of closely fitting men's suits in novels. In the very magazines that promoted corsetry, medical writers were voicing their concerns about the dangers of light lacing. When short hair for women made the transition from an avant-garde European style to a British and American mainstream one, there were claims that bobbed hair was an offence against Christianity. None of these objections stopped women from wearing corsets (it took the social changes arising from World War I to do that). Nothing stopped modish ladies from queuing at barber shops to have their hair cut right up to their ears. Most of the criticism in the past, however, was anti-fashion. Its objections were on the grounds that an interest in appearance was worldly, trivial, and dangerous to society's morals. History lesson over. Advertisement These days the criticism is very different. It comes from bloggers, academics and stakeholders of smaller enterprises. It comes from consumers. It's a very different battle. And it is indeed a battle. Fashion is political. It is a reflection of the forces that affect our complicated lives. Trends might be short lived, but they are not trivial when it comes to their effects. Our bodies and our clothes play a role in the formation of how we want to appear and the social hierarchies that we live in. Unfortunately, the catwalks and editorial do not often relate to this. Even within the narrow confines of body size and shape that are the conventions of haute couture, we see predominantly white model castings. The few non-white models present will be in an 'exotic' style. It is not hard to find, in the twenty-first century, a white model 'blacked up' for an editorial. It is a painful truth, but we would do well to understand that beauty follows power. Bodies considered 'beautiful' often represent or flatter what we think of as dominance. Beauty is a product of our colonial inheritance, Victorian racial theories, where whiteness, was, in most circumstances, placed at the top and presented as 'normal' (just as it can be in the beauty industry now). On top of this, in our current age: thinness represents a self-disciplined ideal, affluence and 'correct' femininity. Of course there are subcultures and different kinds of beauty that deviate from this so-called norm. But we also know certain types of beauty seem to get on magazine covers more than others. Can we make the industry be more inclusive? Probably not in the short term. The fashion industry is caught up in a world-view that we as executives, designers and consumers are the bearers. Industry professionals present their decisions as if they were simply following the natural order of things, or the needs of the market. They would not be in their roles if they could not do this. Whether they are effective in convincing the public in the long term, remains to be seen. Advertisement To say that fashion and beauty are not product of politics, however, is anachronistic, naive or self-serving. In the Cultural Studies programme at Central Saint Martins on which I am a lecturer, our team offer the next generation of potential professionals and scholars new ways of thinking critically about fashion in our complex world. If high fashion is about selling a fantasy, then the industry could, at the very least, provide opportunities for expression, rather than reproductions of familiar oppressions. Fashion professionals, who seek the revenue of a digital, global economy, but resist the cultural implications of what that brings, test the loyalty of consumers. They also ignore the wealth of talent from a generation who do seem baffled by some of the editorial and casting decisions they see. Challenging the dominance of the white model, for example, in a country with a history of colonialism is an inevitable part of progress. It is about moving beyond the limitations of the past. High fashion would do well to be a part of this. As a young woman, and a young professional - I never really felt like my gender came into the equation. Maybe it's because I grew up around strong women and incredible examples - maybe it's because I've never let my gender define what I could or couldn't do. But as I'm growing older (I mean, I'm still young at 26, but I feel a million miles away from the graduate I was at 21) I do notice every now and again how gender affects people, and how it can change the potential for a person for those unwilling to look beyond it. Maybe it's something you witness more the further up the career ladder you climb. Maybe it's something you notice the older you get. As men are perceived stronger and wiser with age, women are portrayed as a burden. Advertisement "You're 26? You'll be having kids soon right? That's a lot of time off" I've been climbing, and I'm actually happy with my life as a freelancer, for many reasons. One of which being, I can pick and choose who I work with - and make sure they're a supportive, modern-thinking brand. But, saying all this, I know if I were to re-enter the world of corporate roles, suits and office jobs - the hiring manager for someone at my senior level would probably be a man in his 50s or 60s, who has never honestly viewed a woman as his equal and probably never will. It's not his fault - everything is a matter of circumstance and thinking what we're taught to think, but it's certainly not a circumstance I'm happy with accepting. That's not to say all men don't accept women as equals. I know, in my life, that all the men I choose to have in it, definitely do. The men I am friends with (and the man I'll soon be married to) celebrate women, their talent, their skills and their endless potential and awesomeness. I know though, that this isn't always the case. And actually, it's probably the exception to the rule. Obviously, I don't like this. But who would? As gender equality and working rights become more prevalent in the mainstream media (Emma Watson, famously making a powerful speech last year at the UN), unfortunately, it seems many young women still shy away from 'male-dominated industry' roles because of the stereotypes that proceed them; a recent survey has shown that nearly 40% of women who have engineering degrees either leave the profession early or never even join it. Advertisement Why? Is it because they think they're un-welcome, or because they actually are unwelcome? Because if either are true, both need rectifying. I didn't want this article to be a rant though (which I fear it turning into) what I wanted it to be - was an inspiring look at some of the incredible women around us, taking on those male-dominated industries and leading the way, not just for women, but for men as well. Women In IT and Online Marketing This one is close to my heart, as it's an industry I've worked in, and it's an industry my partner works in too. As a woman in online marketing, it's fantastic to see the amount of women working in all kinds of roles, compared to 5 years ago, for example. Moz (one of the main publishers and software companies in the industry) carry out a survey every year to track this growth, and every year since 2012 the number of women working in the industry has been rising. In 2012; 22.7% of the online workforce were women, but that number has increased to 30.1% in 2015. Another thing Moz are great for is showcasing women speakers and women writers - exactly what women need to see happening. The company even has a female CEO, an incredibly talented woman called Sarah Bird. Sarah was appointed CEO after company owner and founder, Rand Fiskin decided she was far better equipped for the job - again, an important move for gender equality that would've been inspiring and encouraging for all women trying to get to the top in SEO, IT or Online Marketing. Both Rand and Sarah are people I hugely admire, and there's a really great blog post about the transition here, that Rand wrote himself. Advertisement Women In The Fleet Industry I wanted to take a much more extreme example for my next point, and I think the fleet industry is one that still sees a huge gap in terms of gender employment. There are over 16 million HGV and fleet drivers in the UK alone and it is important to point out that only 1% of those drivers are female. However, whilst those numbers may be small, the number of women working within the management sector of these companies has risen greatly (software and management companies such as WEX Europe Services for example) who are seeing a rise in female hires, especially in the management and software side of the business. In fact, many large companies like this are reporting up to 30% of the Senior Fleet Management are women. It is definitely a figure that is moving in the right direction. Two women I hugely admire, in this industry are Dr Lisa Dorn (founder of Driver Metrics) and Andra Rush (founder of Rush Trucking Corporation). Both of these women set up two hugely successful and influential businesses, and continue to achieve amazing things. Dr Lisa Dorn for example is President of the International Association of Applied Psychology - Traffic and Transport Psychology Division, Associate Fellow of the British Psychological Society and a member of the Institute of Ergonomics and Human Factors. I think that's what you call, kicking ass in your field. Women in Highly Visible Senior Roles What inspires me, is seeing women in highly visible senior roles. Like all the women mentioned above. Indra Nooyi may not be a name that you recognise, but she is the powerful mastermind behind PepsiCo; she joined the company in 1994 and has risen to the top of the company. During her supreme reign she has helped the company's revenue increase by 72% alongside acquiring Tropicana, Gatorade and Quaker Oats to name but a few. I love seeing women doing incredible, and not being shy about it. "Yes, I'm fucking awesome. Watch me do a fucking great job" - is the attitude I want all women to have, whether they're in a male dominated industry or not. I want to see more lists like this, and this. Dear Heathrow 13, As long-standing opponents of a third runway at Heathrow, we want to express our support and solidarity to you all. Recently, hardly a month has gone by without a new temperature record being broken, fresh floods bringing misery to communities across the UK, or yet another study warning about the impacts of air pollution on our health. The consequences of our dependence on dirty fossil fuels are getting more visible with every passing day, yet our political leaders' willingness to deal with the problem isn't. If it's ever built, the third runway at Heathrow will be a living monument to our government's complacency. Ministers know that a new runway would emit as much carbon dioxide as the whole of Kenya, as well as causing many more people to die prematurely from air pollution. Advertisement If you think about it, it's not extraordinary that 13 activists took peaceful, non-violent action to try to stop such a folly. What's extraordinary is that there were just 13 of them. When governments fail in their fundamental duty to protect their citizens, it falls on ordinary people to take up the fight for the common good. Ministers have shown they are good at giving speeches about the need for climate action but then fail with the actual decisions they take. If the Heathrow 13 are guilty of anything, it's of being ready to act out the values our politicians only pay lip service to. Our justice system is supposed to jail people who represent a threat to society, not the people trying to protect society. It's would be a strange world where activists were sent to prison for an offence like trespass, whilst those backing a project that will almost certainly break crucial climate and air pollution laws are not even held to account. Dear Heathrow 13, today you got what you deserve - our admiration, our gratitude, and our respect. Keep fighting the good fight and see you on the other side. Emma Thompson and Alistair McGowan This year International Fashion Showcase (IFS) at London Fashion Week, discovering and promoting young fashion talents from across the world, hosted designers from far East (Egypt, UAE for the first time), near East (Europe) as well as other destinations across the globe. We kept our eyes glued to the Central-East European selection (can't blame - this is what we do) and the selection was pretty visually pleasing, with the Czech Republic at the centre of attention. My humble guess was that the first prize for the best Country representation this year will come back to Europe, Central Europe, Czech Republic, and my prediction was correct. The back-to-home location of Somerset House was a nice change from the last year's Brewer Street Car Park (where the main Designer Showrooms are located since last season). The car park gives a nice edge to the Designer Showrooms, however, steals light, literally, from the emerging fashion installations adding an unnecessary amateur feel to great fashion and jewellery designs. Alternatively. Somerset House helps young talents shine in a natural light (literally, again). When you just enter the exhibition our Georgian friends Atelier Kikala will welcome you at the Next In Line selection. Advertisement Atelier Kikala (Centre) The Czech Republic's designer selection and curation by Pavel Ivancic (designer himself), at the end of the fashion filled corridor at West Wing Galleries, plays like a grand finale of the International selection. We will dedicate a whole new page to this selection and the rise of the Czech Republic fashion soon. But for those looking for instant inspiration - don't miss Sofya Somareva's hats shaped as human hair or huge cactus). I couldn't resist trying one on and already started thinking about my very own human hear hat from sheep felt. Another flavour of the Czech - humble and sweet Marketa Kratochvilova and her daring sexually intense creations called Enfant Terible. I didn't try on any of these, though. Marketa Kratochvilova Our next stop at IFS2016 was Romanian jewellery room. This year Romanian delegation was supported by the newly established National Association for Contemporary Jewellery. Hence, all designers were jewellery students and graduates. Romanian designers produced original mini-series collections for the IFS2016 according to this year's theme Fashion UTOPIAS. I genuinely liked the curation and exhibition and the selection of the designers, especially Maria Otilia Mihalcea (Oval), who explained me how her unique jewellery can be worn (or sewn into my attire on the go). Another young artist you might want to check - Adelina Petcan, just ask her about all the symbolism behind the pendants resembling recycled decorative blush containers. Advertisement Masha Reva On Sunday 21st February ISIS claimed responsibility for the death of 122 people following attacks in Syrian strongholds; southern Damascus and Homs. Days prior they claimed responsibility for the attacks on a Yemen military camp, the execution of 20 Libyan soldiers, an IED attack in north Sinai and an attack on a Saudi Arabian mosque killing 2 children. That is just within the past 30 days and yet the western world hasn't batted an eye lid. Gary hasn't made a facebook rant, we aren't singing Syria's national anthem and the Libyan flag hasn't been lit up onto any national landmark. It's bullshit that lives lost in a terrorist attack are of different value depending on where those lives are lost. It's wrong that a life in Paris warrants days of public mourning whilst hundreds all across the middle east are continually attacked, oppressed and pursued and not even worthy of a news piece. It seems that the atrocities of ISIS only really matter when they're across the channel or conducted on our white skinned pals. But you don't stand against ISIS if you only stand for yourself. There is a widespread disillusion that the middle east is some backwards alien land where only terrorists live. When bad things happen there no one cares because its 'normal' and they were all probably terrorists anyway. No one changes their Facebook picture. No one calls for improvements in policy. No one suddenly forgets they're an atheist and starts #praying. No one does anything because no one knows and no one cares. Advertisement If we're going to be selective with which of ISIS' victims we sympathise for then we're never going to be any closer to solving the crisis. The people of Lebanon, Syria, Libya, Yemen and all across the Middle East need our support and attention. They're the people who live what the people of Paris lived on the 13th November for a couple of hours every single day. Yet, whilst we have the luxury of being able to switch off and selectively choose which of ISIS' attacks we care about, they don't. With a good squoosh of lime, a dash of dark sugar, a handful of torn basil, some chillies and Thai soy sauce, ordinary ingredients become a delectable stir-fry - in the time it takes to collect a (quite probably salty, fatty) takeaway. Over my many, many years of cooking - longer than some of you have been alive - I have made a seemingly innocuous but, I feel, important discovery: cooking is good for my brain. Not just in the sense that I am occasionally learning something new - although that too, of course - but rather my breathing slows, anxiety is soothed, and I just feel better. I'm sure you know what I mean. Advertisement This may seem obvious to many of you: if you enjoy cooking it probably does take you out of yourself, and immerses you in a constructive and productive activity. You mix up a batter, pour it in a pan, whack it into he oven and, et voila, a cake. Of course that's good for your brain - if not your waistline. But I think it is more than that. Cooking as Meditation Being a bit of a geeky person, someone fond of diving into studies and trying to wrap my normal-sized brain around the experimental outcomes of those with massive, sciencey brains, I have read up on how certain activities affect the brain. More specifically, how rhythm affects our mood, blood pressure and brain waves. It is fairly well-documented that patterned, repetitive, rhythmic multi-sensory activities help with symptoms of depression and anxiety. These days enlightened doctors encourage those with depressive or anxiety disorders to get out and walk, try mediation, run, dance, sing, learn about breathing techniques - all activities that lower stress hormones, raise "feel good"hormones and lower heart rate. If the doctor doesn't recommend this, then he/she certainly should. Pills have their place, but so does activity. While some of us will have clinically identified mental health issues such as depression or anxiety, there are also many, many of us who can identity at least in some ways with the life-altering and distressing symptoms of some mental illnesses. Occasionally feeling that heart-pounding, flight-or-flight moment (that seems to last forever), where brain and body feel "stuck"; having days and weeks when every thought and action is conducted through an invisible river of treacle. Advertisement I've noticed - and so have others when I've talked about it - that cooking helps. Cooking heals. At work I see a number of people really struggling with the mental and emotional side of living with cancer. I won't go into it here, but even the sunniest person cannot help but have down days. One thing that seems to help, at least a bit, is cooking. The actions of taking the time and thought to gather ingredients, organise them, chop them, stir, mix, taste, and smell is its own rhythmic meditation. Even if, like me, you can't get your head around some of the basics of meditation (I am rubbish at sitting still for a start), taking the time to cook for yourself can have a very similar effect. And it doesn't have to be expensive or take much skill: a thoughtfully prepared and unrushed beans on toast - adding a dash of Worcestershire, or a sprinkle of paprika - can be quite meditative. Taking walks and doing tai chi and yoga are great too, but cooking is something else. Not only does cooking help clear your mind of intruding thoughts and worries, slow the heart rate and stress levels with the rhythmic activities of chopping, mixing and stirring, but you get a cake, a casserole, a risotto to nourish yourself, and possibly to share with others - making a connection with yourself and potentially others. Anyway, here is my best way to meditate - making a juicy, crunchy, colourful stir fry. As soon as the ingredients hit the hot wok, hear that "sssss", and get that first warm waft of aroma, the stresses and worries vanish. Advertisement Until I turn around and see the pile of washing up.... Ah, another meditative practise. This time for my husband... Veggie Thai (ish) Stir fry This recipe has slightly Thai overtones, using as it does lime juice, muscovado sugar (instead of Thai palm sugar), basil and soy/tamari sauce. What You Need: 1 -2 firm aubergine(s), sliced into 1 cm wide batons (amount doesn't matter unless they are both huge) 2 tbsp rapeseed oil 1 x 200g packet basil tofu, sliced in scant 1 cm strips OR marinated tofu* OR smoked tofu 150g sugarsnap peas, de-stringed if necessary 1 small courgette, sliced into even-sized batons or rounds juice of 1 large lime (about 3 tbsp) + lime to serve 2 cloves garlic, finely minced 1 rounded tbsp muscovado sugar or other unrefined dark brown sugar (for flavour rather than nutrients) Advertisement approx 2 tbsp tamari or soy sauce (it depends on how much juice is in the lime) freshly ground pepper, to taste tsp arrowroot or cornflour/cornstarch handful fresh basil leaves (sweet kind if you can get them) 2-3 fresh or frozen lime leaves, optional (you can usually find these in Chinese and some Asisan grocers - I buy a tub of frozen ones) 1-2 red or green chillies, sliced (optional) What You Do: 1. Toss the aubergine batons in the oil then lay them onto a baking tray; bake at 200C/400F for between 15 and 20 minutes: you want it to soften and take on a little colour in places. Set aside while you make up the sauce. You may also saute these in a large saute/frying pan. 2. In a small bowl, whisk together the lime juice, minced garlic, sugar, soy sauce or tamari, and the ground pepper; add in the sliced chilli and lime leaves if using. 3. When the aubergine is ready, heat a wok or large saute pan and add the courgette batons sliced tofu, cooked aubergines and beans; stir fry for a couple of minutes. Sprinkle over the arrowroot or cornflour and mix through the ingredients, then pour over the lime juice mixture, tossing to coat. Continue to stir fry for a further minute before tearing in the basil leaves. Serve with jasmine or basmati rice, brown rice noodles or soba noodles, and scatter with chopped cashew nuts. A side of steamed pak choi or spring greens is great too. Advertisement * To marinate plain tofu, wrap the tofu in several sheets of paper towel and squeeze between two cutting boards, or between your palms - keep it in its square shape. Squeeze the juice of a lime into a bowl and whisk in 1 tablespoon of sesame oil and 1 tablespoon of tamari or soy sauce. Slice the tofu into cubes and toss in the mixture, lightly pressing the tofu to help it soak up the flavours. Leave to marinate for at least 20 minutes before adding to the dish. Overnight is ideal. Would you like to read more healthy recipes like this? Many of my recipes are vegan and naturally gluten free too kelliesfoodtoglow.com. Or you can keep up with my recipes on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram. Ten years ago today (25 February), on a cold Saturday morning in Oxford, I was standing in Oxford city centre watching hundreds of people congregate to rally - not against - but in favour of constructing a new animal research laboratory at the University of Oxford. The crowd included students angered by the intimidation tactics of Oxford's animal rights activists, patients whose lives had been saved by treatments developed using animal research, world-class researchers wanting to defend the importance of their work, and me - a 16-year-old school-dropout with a passion for biomedical science. Together we formed the first demonstration of Pro-Test ; the world's first grass-roots pro-animal-research campaign group, which I founded only a few short weeks earlier. The march went ahead - despite threats from animal rights extremists to disrupt it - and was followed by several more, along with dozens of media appearances, articles, and debates, raising the public profile of animal research. The Oxford Biomedical Sciences facility was completed, enabling some great research to be undertaken, and scientists were afforded a platform from which they could educate the public about the necessity of using animals in biomedical research. Since then, Pro-Test has served as a banner for other groups around the world - in Italy, California and Germany - to fly in support of life-saving research. Advertisement My colleagues and I started Pro-Test because we believed that the use of animals in science is vital for the continuation of medical progress, and the decade that has passed since that first demonstration has not reduced my confidence in this. Since then, I have debated many members of the animal rights movement, have read extensively through the scientific literature, have obtained an undergraduate degree in Physiology and a masters in Neuroscience, and have personally undertaken animal-based experiments at the Oxford laboratory. This experience has deepened my appreciation for the value of high-quality welfare in animal research, from both an ethical and scientific perspective. It has improved my understanding of the limitations that animal-based research methods have (along with the limitations of non-animal methods). But it has also reinforced my opinion that the future of medicine would be very bleak indeed if it weren't for scientists' ability to make use of animals in their experiments. Broadly speaking, the British public agrees with me - 68% of adults support animal research provided it's for medical purposes and there's no alternative, according to a recent Ipsos MORI poll . Unfortunately, people are still quite confused as to the true nature of animal research; awareness of the "three Rs" principles of use of animals in research ("reduce", "refine", "replace") is very low, many people report knowing very little about animal research in the UK, and 31% of the respondents believed that testing of cosmetics on animals is legal (it is illegal to use animals to test cosmetics or their ingredients anywhere in the EU). This confusion probably results from a combination of misinformation propagated by some animal rights groups who value their ideological agenda above evidence, alongside the relative complexity and nuance of the topic, which lends itself to misunderstandings. Groups such as Understanding Animal Research and Speaking of Research have provided excellent resources for the public to better grasp the importance of this area, but such advocacy work is difficult on a limited budget. Advertisement Britain hosts some of the highest-impact biomedical research in the world, with some excellent programmes underway to find replacements and refinements for animal-based tests, and among the most stringent controls on animal welfare in research. Universities and other organisations that perform animal research are more open than ever about their work, as evidenced by the Concordat on Openness on Animal Research in the UK. However, despite the efforts of Pro-Test and similar groups, animal research is still under attack. Several animal rights groups have been successful in their efforts to intimidate transport companies into refusing to import primates for research, resulting in substantial difficulties for scientists who require non-human primates - often to study diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's. I caught up with artist Lefteris Yakoumakis whose fascination with Icelandic culture and landscape has drawn him back again and again to the small town of Siglufjorur in the country's far north. In our interview, he talks of the changes he's seen in the region in recent years, and how the environment has influenced his own work. What prompted your first visit to Iceland in 2007? Over the years I've been asked why many times and have come up with various answers. As a boy my imagination was captivated by the Vikings or I'd seen the film 101 Reykjavik and became curious, etc. Looking back now I have to simply admit it was my girlfriend's idea. But once I got there I was fascinated by its diverse yet austere landscape as well as the scarcity of its population. We'd drive for hours in open plains, heavy sky above us, mountains in the distance and not a car in sight. That was of course nine years ago. Iceland's far busier now. Then in 2010 I had the time and money to attend a couple of residency programmes. During my first trip to Iceland Trollaskagi was the region I liked and wanted to revisit the most. Its sharp mountains towering over small fjords have a mythical, epic feel. Herhusi was the only residency in the region at the time so I applied. I applied for December in order to challenge myself to withstand the solitude and to see if I'd enjoy staying in Iceland in the wintertime. I also wanted hide for a while in an icy sanctuary and clear my mind. Five days after my arrival I found myself drunk at a local artist's house so my lonely winter explorer fantasy was ruined! However, hiking the neighbouring mountains and valleys and taking long night walks when the weather permitted it I found the solitude and inspiration I was looking for. At the same time I made good friends that gave a voice to what before had seemed a magnificent yet silent landscape. Advertisement Some of your experiences made their way into '55 Ways to Pronounce the Word Siglufjorur'. Tell us more about the book. The book is the product of my fourth visit to Iceland, my first prolonged stay in Siglufjorur. I lived in Siglufjorur from August 2013 to March 2014 working for a fisherman, bating long-line. I was working long excruciating hours but my job put bread on the table and also gave me a sense of belonging. Having neither the time nor the space to paint I had to reinvent myself as an artist. I started drawing with coloured markers and Chinese ink on small format paper. By the end of the winter I had done 55 drawings that I decided to collect in a book. I wrote short stories recording my experience to accompany the drawings. The stories range from everyday life to local myths but ethical and political issues are in some cases their thematic undercurrent. To better reflect my experience the texts in the book are in Greek and Icelandic. There's also a digital English version online that the reader can access by scanning QR codes at the beginning of each chapter in the book. I run a successful crowd-funding campaign in the summer of 2014 and finally published the book tin September of the same year. I had a lot of help from friends both in Iceland and Greece with the campaign and the book itself and felt very lucky to realise this dream. Advertisement Lefteris Yakoumakis, Cover illustration to '55 Ways to Pronounce the Word Siglufjorur' I was struck by the story in the book about the young French traveller, who visits Siglufjorur and writes in his journal that he has found in the landscape of Trollaskagi 'what I've always been looking for'. You've now spent some time living in Siglufjorur. What have you found here? I've found sanctuary, a home away from home when I most needed it. I consider my friends in Siglufjorur to be my second family. But reflecting on the Frenchman's story I have this to say: living under Siglufjorur's mountains, walking the coast, gazing at the ocean, spending my days in this primordial landscape is nothing less than empowering. I've met many people, like you and me, who've felt the impulse to keep returning there or chose to make their home there. The Frenchman chose to die there. I think I can now understand why. How has your experience working in the fishing industry in Siglufjorur informed your appreciation of the environment? So far I've found myself working in two different aspects of the fishing industry. At a small business, for Siggi the fisherman, and then at a large corporation's shrimp processing plant. On the one hand I saw how people's lives are tied to to the sea, harvesting its fruits with hard work. Most sailors and fishermen I've met in Siglufjorur love their job and even though I'm not an islander, coming from Greece I can relate to and am moved by this tradition. On the other hand I saw first-hand the grim consequences of the overexploitation of ocean resources. For example for every fish that reaches our table there is a considerable amount of by-catch dragged out of the ocean with it. Unfortunately in some cases I had to dispose of this by-catch myself and it was shocking. Siglufjorur itself as a community experienced a great shock after the decline of the herring population in the late 1960s and is still recovering. Man nowadays has a sense of entitlement over natural resources but this can easily backfire. Advertisement What is the biggest challenge communities like Siglufjorur face in the future? Iceland faced economic collapse in 2008. After that the country became much cheaper both for tourists and big investors, foreign and local, and 'development' begun. Two economic sectors were boosted, 'green' energy and tourism. To me they are both problematic but the latter has more to do with Siglufjorur so I'm going to talk about that. Tourists have started making a 'friendly' take-over of the country, mostly during the summer months. Hotels and B&Bs pop up like mushrooms and prices are going up. You see 'Viking' this and 'Saga' that at every other corner, every other souvenir shop or excursion agency. Siglufjorur hasn't escaped this wave. One could say that it's hoping for the tourists to take the place of the lost herring. Tourism can bring people easy money but it costs them their soul. They can easily become a caricature of themselves, acting 'Icelandic' for the tourists and sacrificing their peace and quiet for some extra cash. Of course tourism has its benefits but the challenge here, for places like Siglufjorur, is to preserve their identity and more importantly a sense of community. You're working on a graphic novel with the American historical fiction writer Thomas Carl Hardy. Tell me more about the project. On my first visit to Iceland I became interested in the Icelandic Sagas. My favourite is Egils Saga, a piece of medieval literature telling the story of notorious Viking and esteemed poet Egill Skallagrimsson. Over the years I had done numerous drawings inspired by the saga (two of them can be found in 55 Ways to Pronounce the Word Siglufjorur). In early 2015 Thomas Carl Hardy happened to come across some of those drawings online and emailed me proposing we worked on a graphic novel retelling Egils Saga together. He was to write the script and I'd do the illustrations. He had never worked on making comics before and, with the exception of a fanzine I was making with some friends when I was high school, neither had I. Seeing how Thomas and I were both passionate about the Sagas I found this to be a perfect opportunity. I replied to his email without second thought saying, 'I'm in.' Advertisement A year later we have become good friends and are still committed to our project which will take us at least another year to finish. I think our graphic has a more insightful approach to the Vikings than audience will be familiar with. Most people think of Vikings as warmongering raiders, and ignore their rich and complex culture. Poetry was a cornerstone of their culture and everyday life. I think no one embodies this aspect of Norse culture better than Egill Skallagrimsson, a man who through his troubled life found consolation and strength in his verses, a poet who composed his poetry on a razor edge. This interweaving of life and poetry is one of the graphic novel's dominating themes. Hopefully we will soon find a publisher for our project and we'll be able to do Egill some justice for all the inspiration he's offered us. Details Find out more about Lefteris Yakoumakis' art on his website. Image: Thijs ter Haar When the date of the referendum was announced last weekend, it signalled an immediate shift in the discourses on the European Union. Consider that over the past few months, until last Saturday - and I mainly speak for myself, but I feel it is a fair extrapolation - our newsfeeds have not been dominated by discussions over the historical, political, social and cultural dimensions of the European Union. Far from it. It should strike us as immensely worrying that we now have less than four months to decide to Remain or Leave, and not merely because this is clearly an immensely short period of time. More specifically, there is too little time for people who have not already engaged in the debate to conceive of what our country would look like in decades to come - whether we are part of the EU or not - as discussions over the EU by politicians and the media have generally lacked a coherent political vision. Advertisement Compare this lack of general debate to the Scottish referendum in September 2014. There was crucially a difference in the relative order of events; that is, of negotiation and voting. The negotiations concerning what a future independent Scotland would look like following a Yes vote would have only occurred after the vote had taken place, which meant that the topics of debate on formal and informal levels across Scotland did not tend to focus on the technical details of future negotiations. This is not to say that issues in Europe, such as the significance of the EU Working Time Directive, were irrelevant to British people during Cameron's negotiations. However, the wider, overarching pertinence of these issues had until a few days ago been obscured by an almost singular focus on the political manoeuvres of Cameron in European summits, and the general political machinations of particular individuals in the Tory party using the EU referendum as a platform for their own power plays. Instead of articulating concerns about what 'British sovereignty' really means in relation to global capital, or emphasising that Britain is not nearly as exceptional in relation to the European project as some would like to think, we have instead been compelled to follow Cameron's exploits. We have witnessed the resounding failure of a Prime Minister who wasted the time of European ministers in the midst of an overwhelming refugee crisis, to extract relatively minor concessions. More generally however, what seems to be distinctly lacking at the moment is the same visceral expressions of people's political engagement, which were present in Scotland months before its referendum. This political energy varied in its manifestations - whether in outward displays of 'Yes' or 'No' signs in household windows, or in the conversations of clubbers outside the smoking area in Glasgow's Sub Club talking about the referendum. I remember going back home to Manchester briefly for a few months prior to the referendum having been in Edinburgh for several years, and being struck by a noticeable lack of awareness amongst many in England of how fervent the political energy was in Scotland. Likewise, it now seems that the worrying prospect of leaving the EU has not been given the due weight in formal and informal discourses that you would hope is imminently given to it. Advertisement There is however one striking similarity between the Scottish and EU referendums -the direction of a victorious outcomes would have been, or will be in the EU's case, determined by the main campaigns. Many Scottish Green Party members were avid proponents of Scottish independence, on the basis of implementing more egalitarian economic policies, even though the balance of power at the time of the referendum was fundamentally wielded by the SNP - a party that was effectively encouraging a race to the bottom in terms of corporation tax, which conflicted with the economic policies conceived of by the Greens. Similarly, even if you were of the opinion that Britain would not particularly suffer from leaving the EU, and thought that it could even significantly gain by leaving the EU, consider who is leading this campaign - Iain Duncan Smith, Michael Gove and and Nigel Farage These self-proclaimed saviours of the EU are not just men you would fundamentally not like to get a pint with, but, moreover, they represent a group with an almost pathological hatred of the EU, and who have so far failed to present to the British public a clear idea of where we would stand outside of the European Union. Below is a transcript of the speech Salil gave in London to launch today's release of the Amnesty International Annual Report 2015/16 Thank you for joining us to get our assessment of human rights in the world in 2015. The moment that describes the situation most clearly is the one that I can never forget from my time with Syrian refugee families. This is from when I was visiting the informal refugee settlements in the Bekaa valley on the Syrian border in Lebanon. I spoke to many refugees and what struck me the most was that not one woman, one man, one child, told me that they want to go to Europe. Every one of them wanted to go back home, to Syria. But they could not. This in many ways epitomises the story of 2015. The brazen violation of the most basic of human rights. Advertisement Yes, human rights have been under severe attack in the last 12 months. From Venezuela to Egypt, from DRC to China. Even the countries which have traditionally championed human rights, stand compromised. Those standing up for human rights - activists, journalists, lawyers - have been intimidated and even killed in at least 91 countries. Their organisations have faced harassment and many of them shut down. But what in many ways is even more worrying in 2015 is that the system to protect human rights is itself under serious threat and needs protection. The system that has been carefully built over 70 years to protect human rights now needs to be protected from a wholesale attack. Let me explain why we think this is the case at different levels. At the global level, countries that have signed up to the Refugee Convention are shamelessly flouting it in the face of millions fleeing war and persecution. Many African countries have clubbed together, threatening to walk out of the International Criminal Court - the global institution that is the only hope for justice in situations of mass atrocities. Advertisement At the regional level, the European human rights regime is under threat, including by the UK's attempts to weaken its role. As tens of thousands of Rohingya Muslims take the dangerous journey on boats through the Andaman Sea to avoid violence and discrimination in Myanmar, governments in Asia do little to save lives. At the national level, too many governments are undermining the independence of their judiciary and press, introducing new laws or abusing existing ones to curb dissent and crush civil society. Women, minorities, indigenous communities, lower castes, LGBTI people, migrants and refugees have all faced threats and violence. We documented at least 122 states torturing or ill-treating people, 88 countries had unfair trials and 113 restricted freedom of expression. Protection from violent attacks by armed groups, important as it is, has become the excuse for far too many governments to take shortcuts on human rights. Amnesty International has consistently documented and condemned human rights abuses by armed groups - Islamic State, Boko Haram, YPG, and others - but the actions of these groups cannot be used as a justification for any government to themselves violate international human rights or humanitarian law for short-term gain. Whether it's the US using mass surveillance, or Russia using the Foreign Agent Law, or Turkey or Nigeria using their security forces on their own populations, or France searching houses in an arbitrary and discriminatory way under its increasingly questionable emergency powers, human rights of civilians cannot be sacrificed under some vague notions of combating "terrorism". Human rights are not a nice-to-have add-on in today's world; they are a fundamental prerequisite for lasting peace, security and prosperity. Human rights are a necessity, not an accessory. Advertisement I want to make one more thing clear. This is not an abstract discussion about somebody else's rights. This affects each one of us. It affects you and your rights. If the insidious and creeping attempts to dismantle the system to protect human rights has not already hit you, be sure that it could. It's not just journalists or activists that will be affected, it could affect absolutely anybody. Don't take your right to privacy, your right to free speech and your right to assembly for granted any more. Increasingly, it is all up for grabs. The stakes for humankind have never been higher. The fact that we have the highest number of people uprooted from their homes since the Second World War - 60million - and 20million of them have been pushed out of their home countries - is a serious wake up call. The UN Security Council and the so-called international community continues to watch helplessly as Syria faces a complete meltdown. But it's not just Syria - Iraq, Yemen, Libya, Burundi, North Korea are all in a precarious condition. It is time for world leaders to stop playing politics with the lives of civilians - children, women and men. It is time to protect the human rights of ordinary people. We are calling on national governments and institutions at the regional and global level to do everything in their power to put human rights first. This means urgently stopping the assault on human rights and the systems that protect them. This means a full stop to the unlawful killing of civilians. It means enforcing the Refugee Convention and the international protections that refugees are entitled to. It means finding safe, legal and dignified ways for refugees to access Europe and other destinations. It means fully funding urgent humanitarian needs so as to protect economic and social rights of people on the move. It means resettling 1.2 million refugees without further delays. It means ending mass surveillance. It means respecting the rule of law. Advertisement Today, as we launch our Annual Report, more than 7 million members, activists and supporters across the world who are part of the Amnesty International movement are calling on every concerned individual and organisation across the world to join our fight against this unprecedented assault on human rights. If not us, who? If not now, when? In Oslo, Norway 40% of all rapes are connected to the use of dating apps. In the UK there have also been an alarming number of reports of crimes connected to online dating apps. In 2013, there were 55 cases of criminal activity reported and in 2015 this number increased to 412 cases. Social media is connecting people. Unfortunately, not everyone has good intentions. We need to talk about online dating and crime. Why isn't the online dating industry forced to check who they let in before they allow people to start using dating apps? Having rapists and criminals pretending to be 'the honest guy' in the world of online dating is just awful. Would online dating be safer if you had to show your true identity? Online gaming services have identity processes in place that you must satisfy before they let you play. You must prove you are over 18 years old. On most dating sites there is a total lack of identity verification processes. Advertisement Is the design of apps wrong to start with? Is the lack of security because the app developers are men and they aren't bothered about security? Or is it because governments around the world have not 'got it'? Maybe because it's harder for a politician to use dating sites so they never get first-hand experiences themselves. I know that the women-only dating app Her asks its new users to verify that they are who they say they are. Apparently, many men have been trying to get themselves an account on Her in an attempt to fulfil their erotic dreams, so the app needs this process. In the beginning, this was done manually by calling users they suspected were men, now they have developed a technology to make the verification easier. An idea for the dating industry is that you can still use a username but in the backend you need to be verified using your passport and matching social media networks. It can't be more complicated than being verified for a PayPal business account. Verifying the users on all dating websites and apps should be a vital safety factor. If you have a verified account and have actually made the effort then you could get a verification badge next to your profile. Verification badges are the small blue symbols with a tick inside them that you see on social media. I'm guessing that these users would be very popular to connect with. Advertisement Photo Fotolia weedezign Since the major dating apps still haven't got their act together to put safety before profit you have to be cautious about how and where you meet people. The police suspect that a large number of rapes and crimes go unreported. People feel ashamed after agreeing to meet up with the perpetrator beforehand. The online world is full of scammers, stalkers and rapists and you need to stay safe. Your own safety is key in all your relationships. If your gut tells you that something is wrong, something probably is. Stay away. Tips for safer online dating Have a chat about life in general with your potential date before you decide to go further. If the person sounds desperate to meet up the alarm bell is ringing. If your online date asks for money it's fraud. Thousands of people get scammed this way and feel totally embarrassed about it. Some people use a separate mobile phone number for online dating, it makes them feel safer. If you are going to talk over the phone you can call anonymously. Change your settings to 'hide your number' and you won't have to show your real mobile number. Check the person's true identity on social media before you meet up. Ask for their Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn profiles. If they want to keep them secret then you should smell a rat. Always meet in a public place and don't go home to his or invite him home after the first date. There are many men who promise that you will 'only hold hands and kiss and won't even think about having sex', moments later they rape you. That's the experience for far too many women and men. Don't accept a lift home after a date - even if it's raining. The person is still a stranger. A decent man will always respect you if you are safety cautious. A pushy jerk won't. Last week David Cameron unveiled plans for the "biggest shake-up of prisons since the Victorian era". His proposals included prison league tables, more day release tagging, and new model "reform prisons". The proposals also include giving prison governors greater autonomy, similar to those afforded to Headteachers in academies and free schools. "It's exactly what we did in education - with academies, free schools and new freedoms for heads and teachers," said the prime minister. Advertisement Perhaps greater autonomy and transparency aren't the only school reforms that would benefit the prison service. In September 2014, a new computing curriculum was introduced in all schools, which featured coding as a core component. It was seen as critical that pupils learn skills that support them long after leaving the classroom, of which coding is one. The same could be said of prisoners needing skills that will support them after walking out of the prison gate. Unsurprisingly, we must look to Silicon Valley for the new, cutting-edge innovation. Or more precisely, to the hills overlooking the bay, which are home to San Quentin, California's oldest prison. To put San Quentin in a UK justice context, it would be a category A prison - it's home to 699 death row inmates. Since 2013, groups of prisoners have been learning HTML, Python and JavaScript as part of the Code 7370 programme run by a charity, The Last Mile. As with any prison rehabilitation programme it comes with its own set of challenges - but one in particular stands out. No internet access. You also have men serving longer sentences who have never used the internet or a smartphone. "I had a flip phone, a Nextel phone, but I don't think it was very smart", said top student Aly Tamboura. If you've ever learnt to code through Codeacademy, Udemy or Coursera you'll already know the drill, when you get stuck, you google for the solution. But not on Code 7370. The solution at San Quentin is to use a book. "Every resource they have is either a book or documentation or files we have written or downloaded for them," describes Wes Bailey, the program director. Advertisement At the end of the six-month intensive computer programming classes, the cohort pitch at a "Demo Day" to Silicon Valley investors and local tech businesses. At the last Demo Day ideas pitched by Code.7370 graduates included: Teen Mob, an online community to support victims of bullying; GPS, an app to track school grades; and VocaLock, a voice activated locking system. "It's hard to get a job, period. So imagine coming out of prison and you want to look for a job!" said Darnell Hill, a Last Mile graduate at the 2015 Demo Day. Following his release after 24 years, he and fellow programme graduate Kenyatta Leal are now working in the tech industry. In 1994 Kenyatta was sentenced to 25 years to life in prison, under California's three strikes law. When he was released in 2013, within two weeks he had secured an internship at tech start-up RocketSpace. So, could it work in a British prison? We face the same challenges around high reoffending rates - 46% of all prisoners will re-offend within a year of release. This increases to 60% for those serving sentences of under 12 months. Plus, we have an even more acute skills shortage than San Francisco. It is predicted that by 2020, there will be a shortage of 300,000 workers with digital skills in London alone. When I travel long distances, I suffer from jet lag pretty spectacularly. At night, just as I'm ready to unwind with a nice meal, I'll find myself so tired that matchsticks couldn't keep my eyes propped open. And at an obscenely early hour I'll be awake but tired, chugging down coffee - and that means I stay in the same vicious lagged-up cycle for days on end. For my most recent trip I vowed to avoid this push/pull entirely. This timezone hop would be different, I vowed, then set out to stack the deck a bit. I've tried all the basics and even some of the not-so-basics, but then I stumbled on Human Charger and its claims of massively curbing jet lag. So how does it work? Human Charger operates on the premise that bright light stimulates our circadian rhythms. What makes this gadget different is that it shines light into your ears in 12 minute bursts - interesting, right? The makers claim it is the only non-pharmaceutical intervention that is scientifically proven to help beat jet lag. Advertisement The timing couldn't have been better - I had a flight coming up from London to Puerto Rico. The time difference is four hours, so clearly more manageable than some flights, but ideal for a trial run. I run a blog and podcast called Zestology on living with energy and zest, so I'm keen to see if I really could experience more jet and less lag. Two days before flight: I download the Human Charger app and put in my flight details. It directs me to put the weird light earbuds in my ear in the mornings on the days leading up to my flight. I feel a gentle extra buzz of energy, but nothing else. On the morning of the flight: Passport, check, tickets check, Human Charger check. Ready! But the big question: can the Human Charger really help get rid of that sluggish, post-flight hangover feeling? On the flight itself: my fellow passengers look on rather suspiciously as I insert bright lights into my ears on the flight as directed by the app. In fact the app is super helpful, and explains that bright light in the evening of my destination in Puerto Rico (late night back in London) will have an effect in keeping me up and alert and full of zest. Advertisement If only the app would explain to the woman next to me that I'm not a member of some weird cult that likes to shine intense light in my ears. I'll be using it four separate times today, twice on the flight and twice once landed for 12 minutes each session. On the evening after the flight: Once arrived in the Puerto Rican capital San Juan, the practicalities of using the device become tricky. I'm out on the town, having fun and hanging with friends. And the pesky app keeps bugging me, wanting me to stick my headphones on. I skip a session. Whoops. But wow, it still seems to work. I'm out til 2am (6am UK time) and I don't feel like a zombie. One day after flight: I wake early, annoyingly early in fact. This nifty gadget may have had me up late last night but it doesn't seem to have helped the early starts that jet lag often brings. Undeterred I use it again as directed that evening and sure enough I stay out late once again. Two days after flight: Once again I wake earlier than I'd like. This thing doesn't seem to help me sleep to my new time zone, but there's no doubt I've felt plenty of extra evening energy since I've been here. Fairfax Media A fiery Question Time in the House of Representatives dissolved into farce on Wednesday as two Labor MPs were ejected for bringing unicorn toys into the chamber to mock treasurer Scott Morrison. Let's back up a bit. Morrison was on a media blitz last week, delivering an address to the National Press Club and giving interviews all over radio and TV to talk up the government's negative gearing and tax plans. Despite all his work, much of the attention was focused on just one line that he repeated a few times. Advertisement "They are selling a unicorn to the Australian people -- higher taxes for higher spending," Morrison said of Labor's announced tax plans. In a later interview, he said "Im realistically optimistic, but at the same time the environment for the budget is difficult, and Im not going to be a Treasurer who tries to sell the public a unicorn on this thing." Labor's Andrew Leigh sarcastically said he "applauds Morrison's strong anti-unicorn-trafficking stance". On Wednesday, quite a few days after the unicorn comments first surfaced, Labor MPs Tim Watts and Pat Conroy came to Question Time, and they were prepared. When Morrison approached the dispatch box, they pulled out a few props of their own. Advertisement Labor MPs Conroy and Watts bow to the Speaker after being ejected from QT for taunting the Treasurer with a unicorn pic.twitter.com/CA9QIfTm9Y ellinghausen (@ellinghausen) February 24, 2016 Watts and Conroy placed the toys -- Conroy a large pink stuffed model, Watts with a smaller plastic one -- on their desks quietly, with laughter from the Labor side drawing the attention of the Speaker of the House, who promptly ejected the pair from the house. Pat Conroy, Tim Watts and their unicorns are ejected from the House of Represenatives pic.twitter.com/mmNSkpaVun andrew meares (@mearesy) February 24, 2016 While the video cameras in the chamber did not capture the offending toys, Watts later Tweeted a close-up of the unicorn that saw him given an early mark from the chamber. @PatConroy1@Rashidajourno my daughter will attest that this a unicorn, not a pony. Morrison certainly recognised it pic.twitter.com/G1ubimwMOg Tim Watts (@TimWattsMP) February 24, 2016 Advertisement Fairfax Media CANBERRA -- The wife of a late top CSIRO scientist, who died just days after deep cuts to the agency's budget were announced, has savaged the government during a protest on the front lawn of Parliament House. The CSIRO -- the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, the federal science research agency -- announced in an email to staff earlier this month that 350 jobs would be slashed in a cost-cutting exercise. Jobs are expected to go in the areas of climate modelling, oceans and atmosphere monitoring, and land and water divisions. Advertisement On Wednesday morning, more than 100 employees and supporters assembled on the wide lawn in front of federal parliament in Canberra to protest the news. Protestors outside Parliament on Wednesday One of those was Andrea Leuning. Her husband, Ray, was a well-respected and influential member of the CSIRO for many years, holding the position of chief research scientist when he retired in 2012. After a long battle with a brain tumour, Ray died on February 12, just days after the cuts to his former employer were announced; but not before putting in an angry call to the top echelons of the CSIRO to complain about the cuts, despite being bed-ridden. "To cut the heart of the climate scientists is an outrage," she told The Huffington Post Australia. "If we take climate scientists out of Australia, who is working on it in the southern hemisphere?" According to Peter Briggs, a CSIRO scientific programmer and data analyst who was also a friend of Ray, had the answer. Advertisement "Absolutely nobody is," he claimed. "So many organisations in Australia are tied to the CSIRO and its climate research. We are the main output for the entire southern hemisphere. Nobody else will do our climate science for us." Briggs said he held grave fears for Australia's future if the cuts were to go through as outlined. "It is an issue of national security, to be making these cuts. It is sending us blind into the future, with no capability to understand what's going on or to respond to it," he said. Another CSIRO scientist, Eva Van Gorsel, said she worried the CSIRO would no longer be able to make world-class breakthroughs -- such as its past innovations in wi-fi internet -- after the staff layoffs. "We going into this opportunistic, short-term innovation stream, but this is not how science works. It's not how we did wi-fi," she said. Advertisement "It's taking the foundation out of the CSIRO. An organisation like this has to do the long term science. This is going to have a big impact." Andrea summed it up even more simply. The Senate reached an agreement on an emergency bill for Flint when both sides agreed that it was far easier and less costly than actually addressing the problem. Rep. Bill Shuster has been partying with people who have testified before his committee, a level of unprofessionalism we havent seen since Trey Gowdy and Hillary Clinton were spotted on that tandem bicycle. And a new poll finds no one wants Michael Bloomberg to be president. Dont worry Mike, neither party is interested in supporting a Jew or New Yorker for president. This is HUFFPOST HILL for Wednesday, February 24th, 2016: WHY IS ANYONE LISTENING TO A BUNCH OF LAME DUCK SENATORS - Michael McAuliff: President Barack Obama is in the last year of his second term, Republican senators argue, so he should no longer have a say in something so important as who sits on the Supreme Court. Let's wait for the voters to weigh in this fall, they say.If after a mere three years, however, Obama has lost his mandate, what about those other elected officials who haven't gone before the voters in five years? There are 34 senators serving the final years of their six-year terms. Ten of them are Democrats, and 24 are Republicans, including at least seven facing difficult re-election fights. 'I don't have any idea what that means,' said Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), another member of the Judiciary Committee, when presented with the lame-duck senator scenario. Both Grassley and Graham, who is not currently up for re-election, signed a letter Tuesday vowing that the Judiciary Committee would not hold hearings on an Obama nominee to the Supreme Court. Graham had just left a news conference with Sens. Kelly Ayotte (R-N.H.) and John McCain (R-Ariz.) denouncing Obama for proposing to close the Gitmo prison camp. 'It's a ridiculous analogy, but I appreciate it,' said Ayotte, who is facing a tough electoral challenge this year from New Hampshire Gov. Maggie Hassan (D)." [HuffPost] Advertisement TRUMP REALITY CHECK: HE'S WINNING, HE'S PROBABLY GOING TO WIN - Please work through whatever no-really-Mitt-could-parachute-in-and-rescue-this-thing repression you must to accept this fact. Natalie Jackson: "HuffPost Pollsters polling averages have pointed to Trump as the front-runner in most contests for several months -- and with the notable exception of Iowa, theyve been mostly right in the primaries and caucuses that have taken place. Perhaps Cruz's unexpected victory in Iowa generated a false sense that the polls would be wrong and Trump wouldnt win. After all, polls projected Trump to win with 31 percent of the vote, and he wound up in second place with 24 percent. Ted Cruz, who was polling at 24 percent, won with 28 percent. But even so, polls weren't necessarily wrong -- they just left the field too early and weren't able to pick up on the last-minute momentum shifts. Although polls overestimated Trump in Iowa, they did correctly point to his win in New Hampshire and South Carolina. They even nailed his win in Nevada on Tuesday, which is notable given the scarcity of available polls, coupled with the general difficulties associated with polling the Nevada caucuses. In fact, the only candidate whose vote totals have been consistently different from the polls is Florida Sen. Marco Rubio. In three of four contests so far, Rubio has won more support in the election than in the polling averages, and a poor debate showing could have been to blame for his underperformance in New Hampshire." [HuffPost] @realDonaldTrump: "The polls show that I picked up many Jeb Bush supporters. That is how I got to 46%. When others drop out, I will pick up more. Sad but true" REMINDER - Donald Trump has some incredibly racist supporters, as HuffPost reporter Julia Craven has been reminded on Twitter yesterday and today. "Hundreds of people have tweeted at me in the past 12 hours with messages that echo various notes Trump has struck on the campaign trail -- his contempt for black people and their concerns, his casual misogyny, his anything-but-compassionate language regarding mental illness and his genuinely frightening readiness to suggest that maybe it's OK to meet words with physical violence." [HuffPost] Advertisement SENATE REACHES DEAL ON FLINT - Laura Barron-Lopez: "Senators reached a deal Wednesday to make money available to cities like Flint, Michigan, which desperately needs to replace lead pipes that have potentially poisoned thousands. After weeks of negotiations, Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) said he and Michigan Sens. Debbie Stabenow (D) and Gary Peters (D) had reached an agreement on how to pay for the money that will be made available to not only Flint but alsoother cities that have crumbling water infrastructure. The measure was fast-tracked on Wednesday, setting up a possible vote as early as next week to redirect $250 million from the Energy Department's Advanced Vehicle Technology Fund. While it doesn't send money directly to Flint, the city will be able to apply for a loan to receive a chunk of the money...If the proposed procedure is agreed on, the bill will move forward as a standalone and then be tethered to House-passed legislation that clarifies the Environmental Protection Agencys requirements for when it must notify the public of high concentrations of lead in drinking water." [HuffPost] Does somebody keep forwarding you this newsletter? Get your own copy. It's free! Sign up here. Send tips/stories/photos/events/fundraisers/job movement/juicy miscellanea to huffposthill@huffingtonpost.com. Follow us on Twitter - @HuffPostHill BILL SHUSTER SHOULD PROBABLY TAKE THE HINT FROM POLITICO AND BREAK UP WITH HIS GIRLFRIEND - We look forward to yet another "but look at all of the people Politico reporters date!" retaliatory piece that is planted in a conservative news outlet and then taken down. Jake Sherman, Anna Palmer and John Bresnahan: "On Feb. 10, Nick Calio, head of the nations top airline trade group, Airlines for America, testified before Rep. Bill Shusters House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. The topic was a top priority for both men: A bill to overhaul the Federal Aviation Administration, most controversially by putting air traffic control in the hands of an entity favorable to the airlines. Two days later, Shusters committee approved the measure. And the week after that, he and Calio escaped to Miami Beach, Florida, with Shelley Rubino, an Airlines for America vice president who is Shusters girlfriend...Its the most recent example of Shusters cozy relationship with the powerful airline association. His panel has jurisdiction over the $160 billion U.S. airline industry. The FAA bill is critical to the Pennsylvania Republicans legacy, and to Airlines for Americas members, which include every major airline and cargo carrier in the country except Delta Air Lines." [Politico] Thanks to Loren Mullen from Jeff Merkley's office for making this after we mentioned in yesterday's edition that Orrin Hatch should avoid talking to Obama's eventual SCOTUS nominee by "walking around with giant sunglasses and comically large Beats By Dre headphones." SCOTUS FIGHT: WHITE HOUSE DEFINITELY TRYING TO TROLL GOP AS HARD AS POSSIBLE - Alternate plan: Nominate Chuck Hagel for maximum lulz. Mike DeBonis and Juliet Eilperin: "Brian Sandoval, the centrist Republican governor of Nevada, is being vetted by the White House for a possible nomination to the Supreme Court, according to two people familiar with the process. Sandoval is increasingly viewed by some key Democrats as perhaps the only nominee President Obama could select who would be able to break a Republican blockade in the Senate. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) on Tuesday pledged no action on any Supreme Court nomination before Novembers election, saying the decision ought to be left to the next president...But at least three key Republican senators -- all on the Judiciary Committee that is charged with considering a Supreme Court nominee -- said that a Sandoval nomination wouldnt change their decision not to consider Obamas nominee." [WaPo] Where does The Rock end and Obama begin? We don't know. MEMBERS OF CONGRESS FINALLY ENDORSE TRUMP - And here we were hoping that Nancy Pelosi would be the first. Buffalo News: "Rep. Chris Collins, a mainstream Republican from Clarence, on Wednesday became the first sitting member of Congress to endorse bombastic billionaire Donald Trump for president. 'Donald Trump has clearly demonstrated that he has both the guts and the fortitude to return our nations jobs stolen by China, take on our enemies like ISIS, Iran, North Korea and Russia, and most importantly, re-establish the opportunity for our children and grandchildren to attain the American Dream,' Collins said in a statement released first to The Buffalo News. 'That is why I am proud to endorse him as the next president of the United States.' Collins had previously endorsed former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, who ended his bid for the nomination after a disappointing fourth-place finish in Saturdays South Carolina primary." [Buffalo News] Another Trump endorsement came from vaping Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-Calif.) NO ONE WANTS MICHAEL BLOOMBERG TO BE PRESIDENT - Probably because they're just holding out for Joe Scarborough's No Labels-backed campaign for the job. Jonathan Lemire and Emily Swanson: "By wide margins, Americans of all ideologies say they have no interest in voting former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg into the White House, suggesting that the billionaire media mogul would have significant headwinds should he mount a third-party bid for president. Just 7 percent of registered voters say they definitely would vote for him, while 29 percent say they'd consider it, according to a new Associated Press-GfK poll. 'Isn't he the one who wanted to restrict the size of soda drinks?' asked Patricia Kowal, a 66-year-old Democrat who works on an assembly line and lives in Lublin, Wisconsin. 'I think that's intruding on people's personal choices. It's none of the government's business.' A court blocked Bloomberg's attempt to ban supersize takeout soda in 2014. Six in 10 Democrats and Republicans alike say they would not consider voting for Bloomberg in a general election, according to the poll. The total saying they wouldn't vote for him is the highest level for any candidate in the field." [AP] BECAUSE YOU'VE READ THIS FAR - Here's a puppy playing dead. COMFORT FOOD - The "Imperial March" from "Star Wars" played in a major key is much happier. - The story behind "Handsome Grandpa." - The sexiest professions, according to Tinder. TWITTERAMA There are people who make an imprint on our culture that is so profound that their actions contribute to changing the course of our history. Throughout Black History Month, many prolific and honorable figures are highlighted and talked about. Dr. King, Brother Malcom X, Representative John Lewis, Medgar Evers and A Philip Randolph are all iconic figures that we celebrate. These men were each instrumental in shaping the Civil Rights Movement and so was a young foot soldier from Alabama. His story too, should be bookmarked in the pages of our history books and the name Washington Booker III is one we should all become familiar with. The day Washington Booker III, saw children being abused by the police, was the day he decided to get involved with the Civil Rights Movement. Despite being a child himself (fourteen) Booker took immediate action. Writer, Cynthia Levinson chronicled Booker and three other Birmingham children in her book, "We've got a Job" that details the 1963 Birmingham Children's March. Levinson explored the Children's March that was encompassed of almost 4,000 Black Children who risked it all in the hopes of ending segregation and having the opportunity to simply be treated as equal human beings in what she described as the "most racially segregated and violent city in America." This was also noted by Nina Simone in her song, "Mississippi Goddam" Levinson wrote that "They (the children) marched, protested, sang, and prayed their way to jail during the first week of May 1963, in Birmingham, Alabama.Their goal was to end segregation. Many young people suffered attacks by snarling German shepherds and days of being crammed into sweltering jail cells. Some wondered if they would survive. Wash, who had never gone to nonviolence training, threw stones at the police and firemen, along with other observers. He was proud when he was able to save a protester from a pursuing policeman. The following Monday, he skipped school again and headed to the park." Advertisement "I didn't know that morning that I was going to...make the decision to go to jail," Wash told Levinson "It "It was part festival, part day of liberation." Wash was arrested with many other students. City Jail and Juvenile Hall were full. Finally he was moved to Jefferson County Jail, where he slept on the concrete floor. Wash was released on Friday, along with hundreds of other children. His mother, he says, "didn't whip me, didn't scold me, which let me know that what I had done was alright." During the Civil Rights Movement, Booker marched with the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., the Rev. Ralph Abernathy and the Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth. Booker continued being a solider throughout his life. He went on to become a proud Marine who did everything required to defend America during Vietnam. He spoke about his experience on AL.Com. He also used his voice to highlight how the people who keep us most protected often go unnoticed. "We had seen combat and killed folks and watched our friends die," Booker told AL.Com's Barnett Wright. "Nobody wanted to hear about what we had been through. They just wanted us to sit down, be quiet, and go away. Nobody said, 'thank you.' Nobody even acknowledged us. The only thing we've had for 40 years was each other."E Pluribus Unum: out of many, one," he said. "A lot of brothers still need people to say, 'thank you.' It means a lot after 40 years." Describing a photo of his longtime friend and himself, Dr. Tom Ellison said "He (Booker) as always was comforting and supporting me as we prepared for our Mentor Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth. He ALWAYS had my Back and was able to calm me." Advertisement Washington Booker III paid the price for us to be free. He risked his life multiple times for justice, freedom and for America to flourish. For that, we are in fact eternally grateful and thankful. Although Mr. Booker passed on last month on January 20th, 2016 his spirit lives forever. The child Foot Soldier who saved lives leaves behind a rich history, passing the torch to the next generation of Civil Rights Activists. The term "Melting Pot" was coined to describe the accepting attitude of America as a nation, where people of any demographic were welcomed and afforded the same opportunities. However, our country didn't reach this status overnight. Without key figures in history including Martin Luther King Jr, America wouldn't be much of a Melting Pot. Despite strong opposition, King struggled towards his dream, that one day, black and white people could unite to make America a better nation. In Islamic terminology, King's great struggle for equality may qualify him for the title of "Mujahid". After all, the literal definition for the root word "jihad" is "to struggle for a greater cause". Unfortunately, words like "jihad" and "mujahid" (one who struggles for a cause) often have negative connotations, which I find to be very ironic. This is because of the skewed exposure that the general public experiences when watching the news. The terrorists we see flailing their guns claiming to be doing jihad for the sake of promoting Islam bring only harm to the teachings they claim to follow and make it harder for the 1.6 billion peaceful Muslims who actually understand Islam. If we look to how both the prophet Muhammad and Dr. King strived or struggled for their causes, we can clearly see an epitome of the real jihad. There was a time when an entire city had rejected the message of the Prophet Muhammad, and he was driven out of the valley of Ta'if with stones. It is narrated that he was beaten so badly, that his shoes were soaking with blood. At that time, when an angel asked the Prophet if he should crush Ta'if with the surrounding mountains, the Prophet declined, saying that if not these people, maybe future generations will accept this message from God. Similarly, Dr. King also persevered through adversities, by urging the African-American population to withstand, and struggle through the hardships including beatings and all sorts of harassment. Some true examples of mujahideen (plural for mujahid). As we conclude the month of February as Black History Month, we can use this time to acknowledge and learn from both of these important leaders in history. We can also use this as an opportunity to assess where we currently stand as a nation. Has Martin Luther King's dream really become reality? As an American-born Muslim, growing up in post 9/11 America has made me question the Melting Pot utopia. While it is true that on paper, all Americans are to be the same, regardless of one's color, there's still some gray area regarding what exactly constitutes an American. By this, I'm not just talking about always getting "randomly" selected for TSA bag searches at the airport. I'm talking about the currency of our country's values, such as love and diversity. Can we really say whether Emma Lazarus' great poem "The New Colossus" is applicable to our country today when the leading GOP candidate seeks to build a wall to separate us from our neighbors? How receptive are we of the "tired...poor...(and) huddled masses yearning to breathe free" when we are so divided on allowing Syrian refugees to immigrate? While there are many tensions between all the diverse groups in our country including the "Black Lives Matter" movement, Islamophobia, and xenophobia, we, as Americans can look to these leaders who have set a noble precedence. We can all learn from Martin Luther King Jr's humility, who persevered from once being the societal villain to eventually become a hero. Likewise, with the Prophet Muhammad and his patience with the people of Ta'if. For a Muslim, it can be a struggle in itself considering how such a peaceful religion is being represented with violence. At a time when Islamic ideology was under heavy attack in the late 19th century, the founder of our peaceful Ahmadi Muslim sect Mirza Ghulam Ahmad stated that in this age, it is the sword of the pen with which we are attacked... We should use our pen (not sword) to prove the truth of the religion of God. This is precisely why I wage the jihad of the pen to demonstrate the true and peaceful teachings of my religion through patience, discourse, and reason. The numbers for startup success aren't great. According to Mashable, 50% of all businesses will fail within four years of operation. The number of startups that are going to become the next Facebook can be counted on one hand. But you don't have to reach for the stars in order to be considered a success. There are many startups that will do great things without becoming billion dollar companies. This article is going to take a look at the seven startups you should be watching in 2016. Product Hunt Discovering new products is a challenge because there are so many companies all competing for eyeballs. Blogger Ryan Hoover started his website to search for cool and new products. It started out as an email list, but it's quickly grown into a business hub. Advertisement Within a year of launch, the site gained millions of users. Product Hunt has raised $7.1 million from venture capitalists, so 2016 will be the make or break year for this company. DoorDash Dashers are about to become a part of your vocabulary. In a way that's similar to Uber, this food app will allow you to place orders from wherever you happen to be. The difference is this is related to the food industry. You can receive food from local restaurants in over 250 cities around the US and Canada. This has managed to gain $60 million in investment, including from Dunkin' Donuts and 7-Eleven. These companies will expect to see a return on their investment. Boxed Shopping at huge centers like Sam's Club and Costco can be hard for those who live in big cities. But if you want to grab some wholesale goods you can with Boxed. This eCommerce business allows customers to buy household items in bulk. You don't have to pay any membership fee or wait in a long line. Advertisement It's gained $100 million in serious investments. This could make a difference when buying wholesale because it brings the warehouse to you. Luxe Valet It may be hard to park your car in the middle of a busy city. Luxe Valet is a smartphone app that will allow you to find a valet in your chosen city. For a few dollars, they will find the parking spot for you. Pay extra fees and they will even clean the car, change the oil, and fill it up with gas. You pay by the hour when using Luxe Valet's services. Medium Medium is a social publishing hub for people who need to publish content in all niches. This was an invite-only platform until 2013 when it opened its doors to all. The company is currently working on monetization through providing sponsored content. Only time will tell whether it manages to become a serious profit-making business or not. ClassPass Classivity was a failure. Nobody booked through its gym membership platform. But it's reinvented itself through offering a one-month pass to try up to ten different classes in their local studios. The company has managed to get itself off the ground. Google Ventures took notice and invested in the company. It currently employs around 300 people. In 2016, it hopes to continue its winning streak. Advertisement Beepi Beepi is a startup bringing buying and selling used cars into the 21st century. You can now sit at home, browse a lot full of cars, and make a purchase. This service was launched a couple of years ago and hasn't stopped growing since. It's achieved an incredible 20% annual growth rate. This is simply an app, but it puts this business entirely online. Furthermore, investors love the idea because $149 million has been pledged to it in investment. How Many Will Succeed in 2016? The startups gaining the investment and making a name for themselves are those in the tech industry. Investors want to concentrate on the future and the future is in technology. Very few of these ideas are actually unique. They concentrate on simply moving a common daily task to the online arena. Most successful startups don't try to change what people do. Instead, they try to change how people do it. To customers, they have the prospect of taking a task and making it both easier and cheaper. What could be better than that? There's no telling whether these startups will go on to achieve their goals. But they have all received backing from large numbers of investors. All of them can't be wrong. Advertisement Conference Board found that 52.3% of Americans are unhappy in their jobs. The reasons for this vary, but they often boil down to stress, boredom, and a lack of advancement. This is because many companies (and employees) don't think about how to change things. One option is to attend a cool business conference. They can offer so many marketing benefits to right person. But if your company isn't in the habit of attending conferences, you need to take the lead. Convince your bosses of the merits of an upcoming conference you like the look of. This article is going to show you how winners do things differently. Ask Don't Dance People are often terrified of asking their bosses for something that could cost the company money. And so they approach their bosses and nervously bring up the subject of the conference. Instead of asking to go, they ask what the boss thinks about it first, and they receive an answer. Then they ask whether they would like to go. Advertisement The boss brushes it off or says "I'll think about it" and, naturally, it never gets mentioned again. This isn't how a winner manages things. A winner will go right up to their boss and say exactly what they mean. They want to go to the conference and they are asking whether they can go and whether the company will foot the bill for it. It doesn't always lead to a positive answer, but you get a firm answer and you know exactly where you stand. The Boss's Point of View Any salesperson is told to understand their target audience. They have to understand their needs and wants before they begin trying to sell to them. The same principles apply to going to a conference. Try to think about what your boss wants from this investment. And that's what it is. The company is making an investment in you by giving you the time off to go there. They want something out of it. Advertisement If you were the leader of your company and you had the option to send a worker to a conference, what would you want them to come back with? You would want to see your company become greater as a result. So with that in mind, think about the benefits a conference will bring to the company. Here are some good answers that you may want to give your boss: "It will help me support you in X, Y, and Z." "I will be able to cover for A if B is sick." "I believe this conference will provide the company with lots of new ideas to push forward and the marketing potential is large". It all boils down to making the company more profitable, more flexible, and better able to function under difficult conditions. The fact that it's cool and YOU will have a good time doesn't come into it. Start Small Your boss may still refuse. Perhaps you are trying to go to a five-day conference on the other side of the country? It's a big request to make and so you may decide to come up with an alternative that's closer to home. You may only be gone for a day and the conference may be in one city over. Many bosses want to know that they can rely on you. If you've gone to a conference, and it's worked out well for the company, they are more likely to listen to you when you make that big request to attend the conference in Tahiti. Advertisement Compromise on Your Work A common complaint is that your boss doesn't want you to miss a meeting or they fear you will fall behind on work. Compromise and barter with them. Say that you will work some overtime before the conference to make up for it. Offer to set some time aside to appear virtually. It's your job to make the conference seem as undisruptive as possible. Last Word Convincing your boss to allow you to go to a conference is just like trying to make a sale. Understand your target audience and attempt to see things from their point of view. If you can do this, you are more likely to get the outcome you want. But if the boss does say no, don't stamp your feet and don't be petty about it. Just try again the next time. It may simply be a bad time for the company. Black women who care are the backbone of the American economy, and yet little attention is given to the conditions that Black women who care face. If Black futures are to matter in our economy, we must, at minimum, ensure that the Black women who care for us are cared for in return. The history of Black women in the economy is rooted in the legacy of slavery. Enslaved Black women were forced to provide care work, unpaid, for white families. While most worked in the fields alongside enslaved Black men, a portion worked inside the home--building and tending fires, hauling water, cooking, cleaning, serving, taking care of children and the elderly. For some Black women, care work even meant nursing white women's children from their own breasts. They were particularly vulnerable because of the likelihood of sexual coercion and violence at the hands of male members of the household, and because their children were subject to sale. 32% of homecare workers are Black, and 91% are women. Advertisement Though home care is one of the fastest growing industries in today's economy, more than two million home care workers are subject to poverty wages, making an average annual salary of $17,000, and lacking core social supports, like healthcare and childcare. This creates an untenable situation where the people we depend on to care for us don't have the supports they need to care for themselves and their families. The gains of Black-led social movements created the conditions for Black women to have access to greater opportunity in the economy. The demands of the Civil Rights era weren't limited to voting rights--they strove for an end to segregation in all aspects of life, including housing, employment and public accommodations. Black women were able to both expand access to higher paying jobs, but also demand that the industry they were concentrated within improve conditions. Black women in the care industry shaped the movement from the intersections. Dorothy Bolden, founder of the first Domestic Workers Union in 1968, approached Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., asserting that the plight of domestic workers was a critical part of the civil rights struggle. King replied that it sounded like the perfect job for her--so Bolden built one of the strongest national domestic worker unions in the country, with more than 20,000 domestic workers organized in ten cities around the nation. Today, organized labor is under attack by some of the most powerful corporate forces, and Black women who care are caught in the crosshairs. Organizing at the intersections of the economy and our democracy, as Dorothy Bolden advocated for, is an imperative for the movement for Black lives. Advertisement The questions we must ask include "What will it take to make Black lives matter in our economy?" "What will it take to make Black women's lives matter in the fastest growing industry in the nation?" and "What kinds of organizations and movements are necessary for Black lives to matter?" It is not a guarantee that a labor movement fighting to survive against corporate attacks and internal divisions will stay the course in the fight for Black lives, but there are signs of light on the horizon. Promising developments include public statements and public advocacy from labor federations such as the AFL-CIO, and a newly released intersectional platform for investing in Black lives from BYP 100. In 2014, AFL-CIO president Richard Trumpka broke the uncomfortable silence about racism, and identified important contradictions within the labor movement that must be addressed. At its recent Civil and Human Rights conference in Washington, D.C., more than 1000 AFL-CIO members and affiliated organizations honored organizations and individuals that fight for self determination by and for the formerly incarcerated, and had difficult conversations about the implications of maintaining the presence of police unions within its ranks. These dialogues are an important first step towards an integration with the movement for Black lives. In 2016, domestic workers are still excluded from most federal labor protections, the result of a compromise between organized labor and southern Democrats during the New Deal. We can make Black lives matter in the labor movement by building the kinds of movements that Black women need to shape a new economy and a new democracy that don't force them choose between making a living and being a part of a healthy democracy. It's time to care for the Black women that care for us. Alicia Garza is the co-creator of #BlackLivesMatter--her work at NDWA cultivates the leadership of Black immigrant and Black American women who care so that their experiences in the care economy can establish a new set of standards and shape the future, bringing our full selves and our whole range of concerns into powerful social movement that believe that it all matters. Advertisement Illustration by: Alyssa Etoile View colorful houses in Longyearbyen with snowSvalbard, Norway It took me a week to figure out where I was even going, and once I was there, four days to differentiate how Longyearbyen, Spitsbergen, and Svalbard were related. I had originally planned a trip to Norway to see the Northern Lights in Troms, but when someone suggested going even further North, to an Arctic archipelago that's known as the "Northermost inhabited place in the world", I obviously couldn't say no. The people there refer to it as "Next to the North Pole" or the "North Polet", because it's the closest location that commercial flights operate to, and well, because it's right next to the North Pole. It's peculiar in general that people are eager to travel there, but what I found even more interesting is the way of life there. With only 2,100 official residents, 3,000 native polar bears, and a rapidly increasing amount of global visitors, Longyearbyen, the small town in the area of Spitsbergen, that's on the archipelago of Svalbard, has quite the adventure to offer. Here's the peculiar things I found during my visit to the North Polet: Advertisement 1. It Has the Northernmost Inhabited Town in the World Some people will argue that there are places further north than Svalbard that you can go to, and they're right; but it's mostly ice and maybe a few research stations. Svalbard has an actual town (called Longyearbyen) that is inhabited by about 2,100 residents who live there somewhat permanently, as opposed to being there for research. It also has several restaurants, two schools, a university, a movie theater, a shopping center, and a grocery store. 2. There are No Natives Everyone who lives in Longyearbyen has moved there from somewhere else. Although there are a few multi-generation families there, the majority of people do not stay for their entire lives. The earliest inhabitants were the coal miners and their superiors, but all of them came from other countries as well. 3. The Average Age is 35 Now it might be slightly higher since it's easy for the average age of a 2,100 person population to shift drastically, but I thought this was interesting because it shows how many young people and new families are living in the Arctic. As I mentioned there are two schools, which means a lot of kids are growing up in the Arctic! 4. People Walk Around with Polar Bear Rifles Yep. That's right. You'll see people walking and riding snowmobiles with rifles slung around their shoulders, and all of your tour guides will have them too. Although there haven't been any actual polar bear attacks, and the only sighting I heard of involved a big bear getting into a lot of dog food, the people in Longyearbyen are still extremely cautious. There's even a polar bear guard that patrols the fence around the school where the kids play. Advertisement 5. Wearing a Reflective Vest is Normal At first I thought the blinding neon yellow reflective vests were some other sort of polar bear protection, and was a little reluctant to put one on for one of my walking tours. But, I quickly realized that since the winters are dark for the majority of the day, the reflective vests are more for helping motorists see pedestrians that may be walking around. 6. You Can See Where Santa's Workshop Is When someone told me that the old cole mine nestled in the snow covered mountainside near the school was where the kids believed Santa's workshop was, I 100% believed it too. I mean, it makes sense, since it's right next to the North Pole, and it even looks like it does in the movies! They told me that during Christmas the town lights the old mine up with lights and a tree, and puts a mailbox at the bottom of the mountain for the kids to put their letters to Santa in. Aww. 7. You Have to Take off Your Shoes to Go Inside Apparently taking your shoes off to go inside is an old tradition which started to avoid people tracking ice inside and getting everything wet. I can also see why it may have been started around when Longyearbyen was a mining town, in order to avoid getting black soot everywhere! But yes, in hotels and restaurants, even the fancy ones, you have to take your shoes off at the door. Not going to lie, it's kind of strange to dine in socks! 8. It Has the Largest Wine Collection in the World Considering how many countries in the world produce and love wine, not to mention, how many wine enthusiasts there are all over the world, it was a little surprising when I heard that the largest wine collection was on this random Arctic archipelago. This wine collection is located in Huset, a restaurant/wine cellar/cafe/night club, and holds over 30,000 different types of wine from all over the world! 9. The World Seed Vault is Also There Clearly some people think (or know) that eventually hell is going to freeze over, because they've taken copies of seeds from every important plant in the world, and stored them in an indestructible "World Seed Vault" in none other than the Arctic archipelago, Svalbard. So now you know where to head if the world is ending, even though it's too cold to grow any plants there! Advertisement 10. Snowmobiles Are the Main Transportation There's a few cars here and there, but since Longyearbyen is such a small town, and since you can't drive most cars over ice or snow, the majority of people there use snowmobiles. Snowmobiles are also used in many of the tours, not to mention, are really fun to drive! 11. It's Not Owned by Any Country That's right, Svalbard is not a country, nor does it belong to one. It's technically under Norway's rule, but it's open game for anyone to come live and work there if they can afford to sustain themselves. It has several nicknames such as "No Man's Land", "Next to the North Pole", and the "North Polet", and although slightly confusing, three names to describe the overall land mass, region, and town; Svalbard, Spitsbergen, and Longyearbyen. 12. You Can't Be Born or Die There No wonder why there's no natives, no one is allowed to give birth in Svalbard! It's not because they don't want anyone to claim being a native though, it's because their main hospital isn't equipped for an emergency in case something were to go wrong with child birth. Instead, a person must fly to either Norway or their home country to deliver. You can definitely die there (hopefully you won't), but you can't be buried in Svalbard, because the majority of the archipelago is made of permafrost, which means after a while, your perfectly preserved body would rise up to the surface. 13. All Alcohol is Limited Besides Wine This is another old tradition that they created in order to keep the coal miners, uh, tame. You can only order certain amounts of hard liquor and beer in Svalbard, but wine is open game for drinking and buying as much as you want. As a wino, I very much appreciated this rule, especially since they say it's always happy hour in the Arctic!. 14. Alcohol is Cheaper than Milk or Juice Since there's no plant or animal crops in Svalbard, all plant or animal products must be mostly imported. Since they are harder to import, especially since they're perishable, things like milk and juice are drastically more expensive than alcohol! Advertisement 15. You Don't Have to Eat Veggies Again, since plant products are difficult and expensive to import to Svalbard, the amount of vegetables is limited. Although I'm a vegetarian, I don't really like vegetables, so this was perfectly fine with me, just funny to see the types of portions I'd get at the restaurants! 16. It's Normal to Have No Idea What Time it is When I was in Svalbard in the beginning of February, the sun had just started to come out again after a winter of darkness. It would only come out a little bit for an hour or so, but would gradually increase by 20 minutes each day. The only time I ever knew what time it was, was when it was light out, but before and after that I had to set alarms for certain times I had to do things. In the summer when it's 24 hours of sunlight, the town uses mood lighting to let people know when it's "night time" even when it's still light out. 17. It's Normal to Have Reindeer in Your Soup As one of the only animals that live in Svalbard that are actually edible, it's normal to see dishes like Reindeer soup. It's actually more common in mainland Norway, where Reindeer meat is still a typical food item and a main business trade for the native Sami people. As a vegetarian, I did not actually eat the Reindeer meat, but I used a piece of bread to taste the broth of the soup, which pretty much tasted like your typical beef stew. Sorry Rudolph. 18. I Ended Up "Knowing" Someone There Technically I hadn't met them before, but as soon as I got to Svalbard I received an email from someone saying their mother saw that I posted on social media that I was going to Svalbard (that's awesome). Turns out that he's the drummer for a popular Norwegian musician named Sondre Lerche, who was performing in a music event called the Polarjazz Festival, which, is also peculiar to see happening on an Arctic archipelago next to the North Pole! Also on HuffPost: Shane Cavanaugh, owner of Amazon Organics, a pot dispensary in Eugene, Ore., arranges the cannabis display in his store on Monday, Sept. 28, 2015. Medical marijuana dispensaries in Oregon will be able to sell recreational marijuana starting Thursday. (AP Photo/Ryan Kang) It looked like a line for a concert, young folks shifting their weight as they patiently waited outside of the New Parish, a popular music venue in Oakland. The appearance of the crowd led one to believe that an alternative rock band or other anti-establishment act was poised to appear. Tattoos were in full force, piercings adorned ears, noses and less common body parts, and hair colors evoked rainbows. But this wasn't a rock show, this was a work event, if your work happens to be in the cannabis industry. These folks were waiting to get into the Budtender's Bash. Sponsored by Bloom Farms, the Bash is a an appreciation party for those who work in the cannabis industry. Now, I don't know if say, Walmart, throws parties for their employees, but I am fairly certain that the attendees at this event feel more empowered by and satisfied with their work then young people in almost any other field. Watching the faces of the industry, the young faces, the dark faces, the faces of those marginalized from most other big business opportunities, I am reminded of the benefits of cannabis legalization that have nothing to do with using cannabis. Namely, employment and social capital. Advertisement Much of the hoopla around the emerging cannabis industry is focused on tax revenue, with states and cities counting the cash (and without banking access, it's literally cash) that comes with the legal retail sale of cannabis. However, beyond just tax dollars, this industry has value, and it lies in opportunity, empowerment, and self-determination. According to a 2011 study, 43 percent of young adults 18-29 are dissatisfied with their jobs. As a result, 77 percent of those surveyed said they would have to put off major life decisions due to their dissatisfaction with employment or inability to find it, including buying a home, paying off debt, and going back to school. The situation is more intense for young people of color. One in four African Americans and one in six Latinos under the age of 25 is unemployed. Low wage jobs commonly held by young people are increasingly being taken by the middle aged who themselves are being pushed out due to lack of jobs. In addition, the school to prison pipelinehas had a more deleterious effect on young people of color, setting the stage for a lifetime of unemployment and underemployment. Low job satisfaction, unemployment and few prospects for success have more than just financial implications for this population. They can tear at a person's self-worth and make self-destructive behaviors seem more appealing. But most of all, they can dull the brilliance that lives in so many of the young people relegated to fast food serving and cubicle living. Enter the legal cannabis industry. Some estimate that the newly regulated industry will have provided 200,000 new jobs by 2015. These jobs include everything from construction on new facilities to retail, agriculture, laboratory testing, manufacturing positions, media work, and all of the people it takes to makes these businesses happen. And, unlike what is happening in the general work force, young people are getting these jobs, because they like the risk and they know the product. That's 200,000 people, who, given their demographic, would likely be unemployed or underemployed if it were not for the cannabis industry. That's 200,000 people who don't have to avoid big life decisions like buying a home or paying off loans because of job dissatisfaction and unemployment. But let's take it a step further. Advertisement The racial disparities in cannabis enforcement have been well documented. Throughout history, black and brown people have borne the brunt of the drug war. The collateral sanctionsassociated with a drug charge cut deep across a person's ability to succeed in life, by negating access to employment, housing and education opportunities. The fact that there is a legal industry displacing the illicit one means that we need to find a place in the new industry for those who were a part of the old one. This is especially true given the harsh penalties imposed upon people for doing the same thing that others are now hoping to get rich off of. Reparations anyone? I call on the newly emerging legal cannabis industry to be mindful of the backs on which you stand, and to conduct employment searches that first dip into the pool of applicants who have a wealth of cannabis retail, manufacturing and cultivation experience and the criminal record to prove it. The emerging cannabis industry is much more than a vehicle for financial success, it is an opportunity to lift up and empower groups that have long been under-appreciated and dishonored in our society. From folks who have been discriminated against because of the color of their skin, to their ideas and lifestyle choices, for all who have been stigmatized, this industry welcomes you and wants you to succeed...and least many of us do. Crippled infrastructure and stalled economic activity is on no government's wish list. Realizing that climate change could make them a recurring reality, cities are ramping up their climate adaptation and resilience projects. Too often, however, low-income communities and communities of color are overlooked for this investment. That needs to change. Senator Chuck Schumer recently announced that New York City will get $176 million in federal funding for storm protections. The ambitious project will fortify the Lower East Side and Southern tip of Manhattan, a densely populated coastline that is vulnerable to flooding. The plan includes state-of-the-art sea walls, temporary floodwalls, and expansive grass river beams to absorb waves and double as recreation areas when the sun is shining. It will improve the resilience of an area that needs protection against increasingly extreme weather and shield vulnerable public housing as well as the city's financial nerve. This proactive project will protect jobs, residents and critical infrastructure--proving the value of considering climate change in long-term city planning. But it ignores the needs of the extremely vulnerable in other parts of New York and New Jersey. Low-income and working-class communities in the region, like the Rockaways, Newark, and Hunts Point, continue to be under-resourced in terms of climate resilience and adaptation. Their homes, businesses and economies continue to be threatened by rising sea levels, floods, torrential precipitation, extreme heat and powerful storms. The reality is that the United States has a structural deficit when it comes to funding climate resilience projects across the board. This deficit is exacerbated by the deteriorated infrastructure and lack of services in the most vulnerable communities. Low-income communities--often communities of color--experience the worst climate impacts and are usually the last to get help. The Lower Ninth Ward in New Orleans bears testimony to this. This majority African-American area of the city was devastated in Hurricane Katrina and support for recovery was shamefully sluggish. While most of the pre-storm population is back in the rest of New Orleans, less than half of the mostly African American residents have retuned. Environmental injustice is just one facet of the pernicious inequity threatening to tear America's social fabric. That the communities most in need of support are often the last to receive it is not new or surprising. But that doesn't make it right. Investing in climate adaptation projects in low-income communities should be at the top of our priority list. The prolonged drought in California has disproportionately impacted communities of color and the poor from tribal, rural and farming communities. Farming communities in places like Porterville are seeing their wells dry up and have no reliable water infrastructure to fall back on. Poor-quality housing and infrastructure, proximity to environmental hazards and lack of economic security have hampered communities and individuals' ability to survive and recover from climate related disasters. Unless their needs are met with government investment, these communities could witness a complete collapse. Flint Michigan is yet another reminder of the devastating effects of government negligence, poor infrastructure and the legacy of environmental injustice that climate change can exacerbate. In addition to catalyzing innovative adaptation planning, the National Disaster Resilience Competition--which brought the $176 million project to New York City--also aimed to promote innovative, local resilience projects across the region and the country. The prize money was meant as a starting point, bait to get cities to start moving in this forward-thinking direction. We must take this momentum and run with it to every corner of every city. Some projects -- like the storm water drainage systems being installed in flood-prone neighborhoods in Queens, New York--are underway. Other projects like decentralized micro-grids, green spaces in urban heat islands, and other interventions are needed. But Mother Nature got a big head start on climate change and we are playing a dangerous game of catch up. It's up to us to make sure that no one is left behind. Ana Baptista is the Associate Director of the Tishman Environment and Design Center at The New School. Earlier in the week, Abbi Jacobson and Ilana Glazer-the shows creators-stopped by 770 Broadway to do an interview at AOL's BUILD series, ahead of the release of their upcoming, third season. I had the pleasure of attending this taping, and can only describe the scene as frenzied. The room reached capacity at least an hour prior to the start of the interview, as people crammed into any and every available space in the studio, eager to catch a glimpse of the hilarious duo. They have inspired a large and loyal fan base that is a testament to their success and skills, as is their presence in the zeitgeist. "Yas:" an interjection that is synonymous with the traditional "yes," but contains more enthusiasm and expresses an extreme approval or liking of that noun or thing which it relates to. Usually the word "yas" is followed by "queen," or "kween." "Yas" is a phrase that is more than just a word, it's more of a saying that is simultaneously a pop-culture reference and a rallying cry. Its usage is symbolic of the popularity that Abbi and Ilana have, and the adoration that is felt towards them by their fans. It also highlights their importance as writers and creators of content and culture, especially. For instance, their syntax has even reached the presidential hopeful, Hillary Clinton. In a bid to appeal to a larger millennial demographic, she has begun to adopt the lingo of the "Broad City" ladies, on social media, sell merchandise with the popular slogan emblazoned on the front, right under a Warhol-esque print of her face, and she is even going to be featured in an upcoming episode from this new season. But don't worry about feeling left out, just because Hillary is part of the club, this doesn't mean the show isn't relatable or relevant to the rest of us. Advertisement The opening scene of season three features a split-screen look at each of the main characters morning rituals, complete with peeing, pooping, plunging (the toilet), and primping-leaving little-to-nothing to the imagination. The scene is also hilarious and instantly familiar to anyone who has sung in the shower, given themselves a mirror pep-talk, etc. This scene is perfectly representative of the success and appeal of the show, which is grounded in reality. Having been labeled as the "id girls" in the past, they represent the unmediated, instinctual desires of a contemporary generation-and the desires and experiences of sharing everything on social media. When watching this show, you feel like part of the group, and yearn to be with your own friends and go on similar adventures-which is entirely within the world of possibility. In the aforementioned interview, Abbie and Ilana discuss their creative process: "The characters are completely based on us, they're just heightened versions," says Abbi. They continue: "This season contains a lot of 90's references- as a writer you cant be helped but be influenced by everything you've seen and been exposed to." The structure of the show has even followed a recognizable pattern, changing from an episodic series of fragmented vignettes, to a more continues development and progression. This too is relatable to many audience members who are trying to organize their lives and transition from a scattered existence, to a more structured lifestyle (but still spontaneous and fun). Whereas in the past, one might have been able to watch the episodes in a random order, Abbi suggests that with season three, you "watch the episodes in order." Advertisement The show sometimes deals with issues that might be particular only to New Yorkers, however, the ethos of the show is inspired in part by, and grounded in, a New York attitude and character, which can be relatable to anybody: that is, to be forward thinking, open minded, and progressive, as "any New York show would have forward thinking beliefs," says Ilana. To return to the issue mentioned at the beginning of this article, it was brought to attention in the BUILD interview was the discussion about women's place in comedy, and how Abbi and Ilana feel as women who write and act in a comedy show. While the moderator of the interview, raised the issue, he added that he is sick of asking the question, but feels that he wouldn't be doing his job without mentioning it, which is an expectation perpetuated by society. Men often think that women are not funny, or they might think one woman or two are funny, but this is weird, or an anomaly. As a white male writing about or discussing this topic in an article such as this, like the moderator of the interview about the content these women have created, I have questions about how to respectfully handle the material. I am aware, and painfully so, that maybe I'm contributing to the problem by furthering an unnecessary discussion, which inherently might imply a counterargument. Although I strongly hope this isn't the case. And in fact, in this interview and another with writers and actors Jillian Bell and Charlotte Newhouse, the guests were willing to discuss their feelings on the subject, to hopefully enlighten and set the record straight. Ilana Glazer pointed out that "we're almost at a point where this discussion is over, and thank God we're almost there and this discussion is almost over-it is disgutsting." While we are almost there, Abbi Jacobson mentioned that they are still constantly beat over the head and "made aware" of their femininity, and "asked about it almost every interview (they) do," as if people have to put them in a box and categorize them. Charlott Newhouse and Jillian Bell are "excited" about this moment that Ilana eluded to, where "it is the new norm," and nobody thinks twice about women in comedy. After all, women have always been funny. Amy Poehler reminds those who have forgotten, or might not know, that women have been some of our favorite, funniest, most beloved characters that we've grown up with. Not only have she and her partner in crime-Tina Fey-been at it for over two decades now, but women writers have been been behind other hilarious characters and sketches that we all know and love. SNL writer Paula Pell has created sketches and characters such as: Cheerleaders, Debbie Downer, and Gilley, to name a few. In fact, we've had a number of funny women here at AOL BUILD, recently, and they were funny before their interviews, and they remain funny after their interviews. Starting with Natalie Leite and Alexandra Roxo of "Be here Nowish," who similarly to Abbi and Ilana take on issues of every day life. In the first scene of episode one, the characters attend a class to try to find clitoral nirvana via orgasmic meditation. The creators strive to be open minded and both playful and serious. Again, while some might find something "radical" about a comedy centered around two women who are open with their sexually and having their own agency, they don't view it as a political act. Alex said about this process, "Being honest, it's representative of our feelings and beliefs. A lot has changed since we started writing it, as we've changed." Natalia picks up there, "We're not putting things in there just to be controversial-everything is a part of our lives." Dakota Johnson, Alison Brie, and Leslie Mann came to discuss "How to Be Single." Simply put, this movie is about questions of identity as experienced through relationships, dating, and going out. Struggling with self-discovery and identity isn't uncommon, in fact, it's an experience that is universal. These women are addressing real, viable options and courses of action to penetrate ones self-and the fact that that is a double entendre isn't a joke. Often in shows like "Broad City" and "Be Here Nowish" and "Inside Amy Schumer," the main characters discover things about themselves through their sexuality, which is a familiar topic of contention in our country and politics today, but is completely legit. Grappling with ones own sexuality is something that everyone who has gone through puberty can relate to, and kudos to these women who are giving a voice and outlet for everyone to identify with and bringing such feelings to the forefront of our cultural and political landscape. But specifically, these shows speak about women's sexuality, a topic that has often been taboo, and women have been told that it's a subject which is not okay to talk about. Men, however, have had the freedom to talk about their sexuality-and women's-for a long time. It's about time, and a good thing, that women are finally allowed this same territory. "Women talk about women!" Abbi Jacobson of Comedy Central's "Broad City" shared this semi-sarcastic, potential lead with anyone who was watching her (and Ilana Glazer's) interview promoting the upcoming season, and then felt compelled to write a Facebook post-or something-about it. Specifically, she was referring to the women in comedy conversation, and It's a subject that they are tired of talking about, and frankly, one we are tired of too. It shouldn't be a conversation, let alone a debate. None the less, let's talk about it. I'm conflicted because I want to share my opinion, which is supportive of these women, but am aware that in writing about this topic-as white male, no less-I might be furthering the problem. In an attempt to educate myself, and maybe a few people who are more oblivious than myself, I've written something to engage in the discussion. I've tried to be respectful and handle the subject carefully. This is a discussion about funny women, and how we can move past discussions just like this one. While absolute equality hasn't been achieved yet, we're moving in the right direction, and it is in no small way thanks to women like Amy and Tina, Abbi and Ilana, Alex and Natalia, and Dakota, Alison, and Leslie. As we move forward and continue to make progress, there might be one more thing that we can to, that hasn't been done yet, suggests Abbi Jacobson and Ilana Glazer: "When confronted with the question of women in comedy, maybe an effective way to deal with the issue wouldn't necessarily be to drop the question, but maybe to ask men the same thing. Next time you have a male comedian on the show, ask them: 'how does it feel to be a man trying to write comedy?'" I recently interviewed Harry DeMell, an immigration lawyer since 1977 and a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association, about the current immigration crisis. Schupak: How do you think Justice Scalia's death will affect the Texas v. US case? DeMell: I think there will be a stalemate on this issue and that's a good thing. Schupak: Remind our readers what this case is about. DeMell: Well, president Obama issued an administrative order a few years ago allowing certain people who were brought here as children and have been living here for many years to remain here, work legally and travel. This is not the same as a green card. The president then issued an order a couple of years later allowing the parents of these children the same rights. Several states sued the federal government to stop the second order. The states won in the district court in Texas and then won again at the Court of Appeals. The case was appealed to the Supreme Court where it's being decided. Schupak: So how has Justice Scalia's death has effected the outcome? DeMell: it is unlikely that either side will have a majority. I expect a four, four vote on the appeal and that will leave the appeals court decision standing. It means that the president's executive order is squashed. Advertisement Schupak: And you think that's a good thing. Why? DeMell: Any court ruling here would make a bad president. If the case would be overturned the president would have increased powers to make these decisions. People who like President Obama haven't thought it through. There may be a future president who will use this power in ways that they would not want. If the president's order is ruled unconstitutional it is possible that a future president might not have the power he or she might need. I think it's better that a decision on this issue be reserved for a better case in the future. Schupak: Won't this lead to the deportation of many of these parents? DeMell: The decision for that is a political one not a judicial one. Nine appointed lawyers should not have the power to make this decision. There is a procedure for that. Schupak: What procedure? DeMell: Well either congress passes a law or the president follows the law as outlined by the Administrative Procedure Act. Schupak: Congress is not likely to pass a law during this election cycle. DeMell: Yeah. But the president might have complied with the law, issued proposed regulations in this regard and he would have been on significantly stronger ground. He didn't because he doesn't want to admit he has limited powers. The constitution requires compliance with the law, though. Advertisement Schupak: What happens if a new justice is appointed to the Supreme Court? DeMell: If that new justice has not participated in the argument and decision he or she can't vote. Nothing changes. It's too late to appoint someone and effect this case. Schupak: So what becomes of these parents? DeMell: It looks like it's up to the next administration. Schupak: What's your solution. DeMell: My solution would be to change our deportation laws to allow more discretion to our immigration judges in a deportation hearing and allow some of these people to stay when they can show a certain level of hardship to the child, a history of paying taxes and of good moral character. Schupak: Wouldn't that burden our courts? It has been a rough winter in Washington D.C.! Have you been scrambling for fun, engaging activities to do with your family in the frigid cold? Or are you visiting Washington D.C. and not sure the best indoor activities to do with your kids? There are so many hidden gems of family fun in Washington D.C., it is hard to keep up with the latest and greatest! In the latest video for my web series The Modern Mompreneur, blogger Angelica Talan of ClarendonMoms provides her recommendations for indoor destinations for family fun in the D.C. Metro area. Angelica's recommendations span D.C., Maryland, and Virginia and are the perfect cure for the winter and rainy day blues. Advertisement Click here for to find links to all destination recommendations. "Banks took the money the American people gave them and they used it to pay themselves huge bonuses and lobby the Congress to kill big reform. And then they blamed immigrants and poor people, and this time even teachers." On this somber note, The Big Short closes, having told the story of the reckless banks and Wall Street financial firms and hedge-fund managers who crashed the world economy in 2008. The Oscar-nominated film unpacks sub-prime mortgages, credit default swaps, and other Wall Street-imagined products that swindled American families out of their homes and their retirement savings. While pension funds lost $889 billion and regular American families lost $11 trillion, one hedge-fund manager -- John Paulson -- made $20 billion for his investors and $4 billion for himself with the crash of 2008. Advertisement After driving state and local budgets into the tank, along with the rest of the economy, Wall Street bankers looked for someone else to blame for the flailing economies across our country. The targets they settled on? People who educate children, protect communities, and save lives. They decided these Americans and their pensions, not Wall Street, were to blame for the woes of state and local government financing. Pensions experienced long-term success before the financial collapse and are clearly rebounding today. The aggregate funding level of state and local pension systems was 103 percent in 2001. By 2013, after market downturns in 2000-2002 and the crash of 2008-9, aggregate funding levels had fallen to 72 percent. 2014 was the first time post-recession that pension systems started to rebound, with aggregate funding levels ticking back up to 74 percent. The Center for Retirement Research (CRR) at Boston College projects that funding levels will continue to improve, up to a healthy 81 percent by 2018. If someone was lucky enough to have a public pension when the market crashed, a dignified retirement is still possible thanks to the fundamental structure of a pension. Assets are pooled among workers and risks are shared between the employer and the employees. So workers can continue to retire and receive their promised benefits while the pension fund recovers its losses over the next ten, twenty, thirty, even forty years, as CRR shows funds are doing now. Meanwhile, if an employee's assets were in a 401(k) when irresponsible and reckless bankers on Wall Street brought our country to the brink of financial collapse, they might have ended up with nothing. Advertisement Some people were forced out of retirement. Others had to work five or ten years longer than they had planned. Some people were able to recover their savings, but many didn't. This should come as a surprise to no one. The 401(k) was designed to only benefit millionaires and billionaires who have the money to gamble on Wall Street. The teacher, social worker, and police officer's fixed income does not generate the capital to win big in the stock market, leaving them with little or no savings to rely on when leaving the workforce -- with or without financial crisis. What we learned in The Big Short is that shady financial schemes and little to no oversight led to economic ruin. After years of reckless behavior by bankers and brokers -- as Ryan Gosling's character says -- "only one single banker went to jail" while taxpaying families were left to pick up the pieces. Crucifixion & Last Judgment by Wikimedia.org A current exhibit (January 25-April 14, 2016) at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City features an in-depth examination of two paintings by famed Renaissance artist Jan van Eyck: Crucifixion and Last Judgment (ca 1440-1441). Particular attention is paid to Crucifixion, a magnificent painting that depicts more than two dozen figures--each with realistic and detailed varied emotional expressions--present at the crucifixion of Jesus. The exhibit conveniently provides a magnifying glass next to the painting so that viewers can examine the fine details and rich colors close up. The exhibit also includes infrared reflectography examination of the paintings, which uncovered several under-drawings that reveal van Eyck's changes as he worked and reworked the paintings. This examination is intended to provide insight into the artist's creative process in arriving at the final version. The investigators hoped that the under-drawings and the additional X-radiography and elemental mapping by X-Ray fluorescence study of the frames of the paintings might answer long-standing questions: "Whether the paintings were always intended as a diptych, or whether they were originally the wings of a triptych or the doors of a tabernacle." The curator's comments appear on panels next to the paintings and frames. At the end of the commentaries a note tells viewers that changes in the frames were "likely stipulated by the individual who commissioned the work." But that comment should also have been applied to the changes in the under-drawings and the finished painting itself. The fact is that artists of the period were almost totally subordinate to the wishes and instructions of benefactors who commissioned artworks. Advertisement Yes, commissions were collaborative efforts, but the patron had the last word. That control included specifications for the content of the artwork, its size, and specific materials down to the last detail, sometimes including colors, pigment quality, and even the amount of gold coloring and gold leaf to be incorporated. These details were set down in contracts that were negotiated by the artist and patron and witnessed by a notary. Not surprisingly, artists were eager to please patrons lest they be criticized and penalized, giving them black marks that could hurt them in a fiercely competitive marketplace for commissions--and even terminate their careers. This picture of the creative process is a far cry from the bulk of commentaries on Renaissance artworks by art historians, curators, and critics, who place the artist at the center, with the patron out of the picture or mentioned in passing. The Metropolitan Museum curator's comment about the probable patron input on the changes in the van Eyck frames is an example. But the curator does not identify or provide any information about the patron. Marginalizing patrons or placing them out of sight feeds the illusion of art historians that Renaissance artists created their artworks in a romantic trance oblivious to the economic, political, social, theological, and personal factors that defined and constrained the creative process. We now know about the comprehensive context for Renaissance artworks thanks to the meticulous scholarship of several researchers. Art historian Professor Michelle O'Malley's important book, The Business of Art: Contracts and the Commissioning Process in Renaissance Italy, includes 184 contracts for altarpieces and frescoes and 84 other commissions from the late Middle Ages (1285) to the height of the explosive Renaissance art period (1540)--contracts with some of the most distinguished artists of the period, including Botticello, Fillipino Lippi, Fra Angelico, Leonardo da Vinci, Pietro Perugino, Piero della Francesca, and Raphael, Advertisement Art historian Jonathan K. Nelson and economist Richard J. Zeckhauser, in their book, The Patron's Payoff: Conspicuous Commissions in Italian Renaissance Art, emphasize the role of patrons. In applying a game theory model to commissions they bring together art history and economic theory to examine multiple factors from these two domains that shaped the business of art: "Commissioned art always conveys information about the patron. Crucial decisions inherent in the creation of a specific work tell a great deal about the person who ordered it... . Specifically, during the Italian Renaissance, the patron selected the artist and paid the bill; the artist acted as the agent charged to carry out the work with skill and aesthetic sensibilities." The authors added that patrons exercised scrutiny and supervision of preliminary drawings and the final product which "helped to ensure that the message conveyed by art reflected the patron's interests." In his book An Artist Empowered artist Eden Maxwell reminds us that Renaissance commissions were work for hire "which was counterpoint to the artist who creates art for art's sake." And the Renaissance Art Connection states it this way: "Artists were still a service business. Unlike today, artists did not create whatever they liked then put it up for sale. Artists were paid to produce exactly what the patron wanted." Among other notable achievements, the Renaissance facilitated the rise of a wealthy merchant class that rivaled the wealth of royalty and the Church. Competitive conspicuous consumption was rampant, as the affluent sought self-aggrandizement in lavish visible displays of their riches. In his book Wealth and the Demand for Art in Italy, 1300-1600, economic historian Richard Goldthwaite concluded that for affluent patrons in Italy, commissions "expressed their sense of what constituted noble status." It is fortunate for us today that the wealthy chose art and architecture for their conspicuous consumption. Without the support of these benefactors, it's doubtful that the massive collection of Renaissance artworks that we treasure would ever have materialized. Advertisement In view of the powerful personal motives and expenses entailed in commissioned artworks it's not surprising that commissions were governed by detailed legal contracts that specified fine points reflecting the patrons' conception of the artwork. O'Malley describes the central role of the patron in many of the contracts she uncovered. For example, the contract between renowned Renaissance artist Piero della Francesca and members of the Confraternity of the Misericordia states that "[It will be painted] with those images and figures and embellishments that will have been told to him by the above named Prior and Councellors or their successors in office and by the said other elected men named above." Pietro Perugino's1497 contract with the convent of Santa Maria at Vallombrosa shows how content-specific a contract could be. It designated "the size that the main panels and that the predella [platform] should be made, precisely indicating that the Virgin was to be depicted seated and surrounded by cherubim, seraphim, and eight music-making angels, and listing each saint to be painted, observing what each should wear, his attribute, his placement on the panel, and even the colour of the friar-saints' habits." Similar precise demands for embellishments surely constrained the creative process as in the altarpiece Resurrected Christ, commissioned by the Griffi bothers with painters Marco d'Oggiono and Giovanni Antonio Boltraffio: "The risen Christ was to be shown wrapped in a sheet touched with gold and finished with golden fringes, and the figures of the Annunciation on the carved surround were to wear robes enlivened with traces of gold." Frequently, though, detailed information about the subject matter wasn't included in contracts, but not because it was left to the artist. According to O'Malley, content specifications might be sketchy with the understanding that they were "intermediate decisions" subject to change through "verbal exchange" as the artwork developed. Nevertheless, it was clear that the patron made determinations as the painting progressed. For example, the initial contract might call for a number of saints to be named later, as recorded in notes by artist Alesso Baldovinetti in 1470. He wrote that his contract to paint a tabernacle for Sant'Ambrogio specified "the fee, the materials he was required to supply, and noted the main figure and the number of additional saints he had agreed to paint." Similarly, Filippino Lippi's contract (1487) stipulated that he was to paint two large scenes in the Strozzi chapel, the specifics to be given later by the client. In another citation O'Malley shows that the content reflected the patron's choices not the painter's in Perugino's altarpiece for San Pietro, in Perugia. This contract specified images of the ascension of Christ with the Virgin, the apostles, and angels. The finished work includes Saint Paul, the placement of which was inappropriate and not likely the choice of the painter, according to O'Malley. She says the addition was no doubt insisted on by the friars because the chapel was dedicated to Peter and Paul. In many cases, the artist participated in shaping content. O'Malley cites changes made by Leonardo da Vinci in his famous painting Virgin of the Rocks, commissioned in 1483 by Prior Bartolomeo Scorlione and the Milanese confraternity of the Immaculate Conception for the church of San Francesco Maggiore in Milan. "It [the painting] does not represent the type of virgin noted in the contract and the lista, and there are changes in the figures originally stipulated for the altarpiece." The contract called for a depiction of the Virgin and child with angels and two prophets. The actual painting pictures the Virgin and child with John the Baptist. O'Malley explains that Leonardo probably suggested changes because the altarpiece most likely already had the image specified in the contract, and Leonardo didn't like the idea of repetition. In any event, Leonardo's version was approved. The point here is that artists participated in determining and developing subject matter and were often listened to--but the patron held final judgment. Also, it's likely that artists would suggest changes in accord with their perception of the patron's beliefs, wishes, and intentions--and nothing maverick or challenging that might raise ire or displeasure. Contracts commonly required artists to pay for materials. That's why artists might sometimes cut corners in applying less expensive pigments. In one instance reported by O'malley, Luca Signorelli did not use ultramarine for the robe of the Virgin specified in the contract for a 1519 altarpiece. The client charged breach of contract. Luckily, Signorelli got off lightly when he promised to repaint with the expensive ultramarine pigment. In addition to the conspicuous consumption of commissioning costly lavish artworks, religious paintings were intended to celebrate Christianity and show the patron's devotion to the faith. This was evident in the 1485 contract for frescoes in Giovanni Tornabuoni's chapel in Santa Maria Novella cited in The Patron's Payoff. The contract clearly stated that the artwork was offered "as an act of piety and love of God." Similarly, another Florentine patron, Giovanni Rucellai, said to his descendents that his commissions brought him "the greatest contentment and the greatest pleasure because they serve the glory of God, the honor of the city and the commemoration of myself." Other patrons "wanted God and the saints to see their devotion and hoped that their commissions would help reduce their time in purgatory." With these deeply personal religious motives it's no wonder that patrons would monitor the progress of their commissions with strong hands-on attentiveness and control. Advertisement The devotional element in Renaissance religious art can be seen in varying degrees in all religious art of the period; patrons sought powerful Christian images, messages, and display of their piety. This pervasive intention supports a subject I've written about extensively: the falsification of biblical history by omitting Jesus' connection to Judaism. A vast trove of Renaissance artworks typically pictures Jesus and his family as blond fair-skinned Northern Europeans surrounded by anachronistic Christian saints and artifacts. These figures were often portrayed in palatial settings alien to Jesus and his family's Jewish identity as dedicated practicing Jews residing in a rural village in Nazareth. Art historians to whom I've spoken attribute these omissions to Renaissance artists' embrace of technical advances and practices in art, such as contemporizing figures, embracing realism and naturalism, and reviving Greek idealism. In view of revelations about the prominent role of patrons in controlling the content of their commissions there is a simpler more obvious explanation: Patrons demanded totally Christianized artworks that expressed piety and devotion. This overarching motive allowed no room for content that would undermine or challenge that conception. Thus, the inclusion, or even hint, of Jesus as Jew would not be an issue or question. Unfortunately, the omission masked the common foundation of the two faiths and fostered a wedge between Judaism and Christianity that reverberates today. Perhaps it's time for corrective action. The revolutionary findings documenting the important role of patrons and other factors in the creative process begs re-examination of art history of the late Middle Ages and Renaissance. Patrons must be retrieved from the shadows and recognized as at least equal partners in the creation of commissioned artworks. Advertisement Moreover, art historians, curators, and critics should consider giving face and voice to patrons in exhibits, critical reviews, as well as texts and other writings about Renaissance art. They might also note the falsifications of biblical history that were byproducts of a narrow ideologically driven perspective deeply entrenched in an anti-Semitic society. These falsifications are clearly visible to the naked eye and do not require infrared reflectography or X-rays to uncover them. In addressing these issues art professionals can seize an opportunity to educate students and other art lovers about the broad scope of influences that shaped remarkable Renaissance artworks. The King James Bible, authored by fifty people, has never been so busy in one week, as thousands of Filipinos quoted from it left and right to defend Manny Pacquiao's controversial statement last week about LGBTs being "worse than animals," and his instagram post a few days later about how homosexuals should be put to death. The Filipino online community exploded into a ping-pong of hate and self-righteousness, hurling tirades of condemnation at each other while punctuating them with a contradictory "God Bless You." Over the past week, I have been condemned to hell more than I could ever count in my life by people I thought to be reasonable. Hate and bigotry is a very familiar space, as I have experienced it growing up as a gay boy in Manila. I thought because of advances in the global LGBT movement, the people of the Philippines would already have taken admirable small steps out of the dark ages. However, with God allegedly on their side and armed with a biblical quote or two, Filipino bigots took on the Internet and went to war with human rights, reason, science, progress and me. God of Convenience, God of Excuses Of course, Fiipinos brandished hate in the name of God. God's name is invoked by every failure in the Philippines. When Filipinos fail, it is because God has a "better plan" for them. The idea of personal accountability is as far-fetched as a UFO invasion. God is the excuse Filipinos have for everything that fails. If the government fails, it's because God wanted it that way. When marriages fail because Filipino husbands enjoy extending their marital lineage into other women in the community, the wives privately suffer until the anak sa labas shows up at the husband's funeral and make their paternal claim. Every Filipino family has a story to share about meandering husbands and children out of wedlock. It is so numbingly common that nobody questions the culture that sustains it. Nobody asks why a just God shatter families and bring into the world more traumatized children. Or why the Philippines is the only country left in the world with no divorce laws. However, strangest of all is how Bible-leaning people conveniently forget Leviticus 20:10, which may be the key to depopulating an overly-crowded country and ridding it of sins: Advertisement If a man commits adultery with another man's wife -- with the wife of his neighbor -- both the adulterer and the adulteress are to be put to death. God is convenient for people who are lazy and afraid. Hypocrisy is the language they speak. The high rate of poverty in the Philippines is exacerbated by the encouragement of poor people to have so many children they can't provide for, subjecting them to human trafficking. Abortion is an abomination. Women have no rights over their bodies. Reproductive rights continues to be hindered by the powerful Catholic right. Where is morality and decency when you look out your windows and see hungry children roaming the streets? Don't you see yourself as complicit while you support organized religious institutions and politicians that live off of other people's suffering? What is so nutritious about suffering that you choose to eat it every day? Does condemning people as sinners make you a better person in the eyes of God? Aren't sins everywhere because your indifference helped create them? You can pray all you want to not go to hell. Look around you, don't you think you are already in it? Advertisement Common Sense as a Second Language Although I was so irritated when I read Pacquiao refer to the non-existence of homosexual behavior in the animal kingdom as "common sense," amid cheers from Filipinos in the dark ages, I felt a tinge of hope. Common sense touches the realm of logical reasoning. The fact that it was even a part of the conversation meant that there is a possibility that we could at least begin a true, common-sensical conversation, say about -- The King James Bible, completed in 1611, translated from Latin and Greek, written by fifty human hands. Common sense is the beginning of wonder. It is when you go through a door, and not a window when leaving your home. It is when you turn off the stove, and not leave it on when you go to bed. Is it so challenging to use common sense when reading the Bible? Right above the most quoted line in Leviticus that homophobes love to twirl around is Leviticus 11:10: And all that have not fins and scales in the seas, and in the rivers, of all that move in the waters, and of any living thing which is in the waters, they shall be an abomination unto you. And right below it is Leviticus 19:19: . . . thou shalt not sow thy field with mingled seed: neither shall a garment mingled of linen and woollen come upon thee. And now the infamous Pacquiao Leviticus 20:13 quote: If a man also lie with mankind, as he lieth with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination: they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them. Common sense asks me, if Filipinos truly subscribe to the Bible as the word of God, why are they still eating shrimp sinigang, or pansit palabok, and mixing all kinds of fabric when they go to church, or planting bananas next to guava next to rice? Common sense tells me if one rule from the same page is no longer applicable to modern times, then all of them must be questioned. If God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrha, did the same God send supertyphoon Yolanda to destroy Tacloban and thousands of innocent people? Did God send Hitler to kill six million Jews? Did God send the Marcos clan to rob Filipinos blind so their faith could be tested? If God is Love, and Love is Truth, is destroying the innocent a showing of Love? Is condemning me to Hell a form of Love? Is Hate how God manifests in your life? "Leaving the Philippines" as a Metaphor I grew up Catholic just like most of you, and was immersed in Catholic education for a decade. I was made to accept suffering as being Christ-like and made to believe that hell is a consequence of my sins. In other words, as someone born gay, I was guaranteed a place in hell. I carried that as a burden and guilt throughout my childhood in Christian Philippines. I didn't understand then that this apparent "sin" was a projection of others on me, based on ritual codes written for a group of people over 2,000 years ago. It was their belief system, and didn't have to be mine. I didn't have to stay in the dark ages, because darkness could make me blind. When I left the Philippines, I opened my eyes to a journey of reconciliation with my full humanity. I left suffering behind. Hell would be someone else's problem. I intentionally discontinued the sacraments of the church. For me, the idea of renouncing Satan is a curious one, but I would prefer to renounce many things that personally bother me: racism, sexism, big corporations, religious fundamentalists, pedophile priests, Ugandan born-agains, homophobia, Filipino bigots, the Marcos clan. But I'm not sure any Catholic priest would allow me that privilege. Growing up with a family that loved, accepted, and supported me, and being away from Filipino culturally-sanctioned bullying and micro-aggression, I have become a well-adjusted citizen of the world. In my life, I aim for the full potential of my existence, and continue to make a daily commitment to see how far my intelligence could stretch and deeply I could practice empathy. "Leaving the Philippines" was not only a migratory act, but a metaphor. I started to think, seriously think. Critically think. Questioning everything. Read. Write. Strive. Opening closed boxes. Thinking outside of boxes. Study. Learn. And like all creatures on the planet -- evolve. I invite you to "leave" the Philippines: your comfort zones, the dark ages, your 500-year old colonial universe, your Hollywood Moses, your visceral hate and condemnation, and be open to new things. Human history has a menu of ideas to choose from, spirituality to live by that promotes and embraces humanity and modernity. The bible is not the only book in town. While it has survived the ages, it also has traveled very far from its Hebrew source. It has been touched by so many people, translated to fit cultural mores of the eras. Much is lost in interpretation, reinterpretation, and eventual translation. Much, in over 2000 years. To Love as God . . . The evolution of the human mind has taken us very far in such a short time. The laptop I am typing on is a product of scientific minds. And so are the mobile phones and computers you are reading this article from. We are now hundreds of years past the time when the earth was thought to be both flat and the center of the universe. Somewhere deep in your mind is an intelligent person willing to join the modern times, someone with enough self-respect to stand to reason and say, No, the universe was not built in seven days, and No, the earth is not 6,000 years old. Mythology is a beautiful thing if you could understand how to translate it for modern living. Taking passages in the bible literally, as compelling as they are, will get you stoned to death before you reach Deuteronomy. Literal interpretation of mythology is missing the point of God. The God of Love. The Love that is inside you. The God inside you. The Love Thy Neighbor as You Love Yourself. Compassion. The Jesus way. Love is what most religions in the world have in common. Love is taught in the entire history of our humanity because love is not easy. It is very hard to love those who are different from us. It is hard to love those who don't agree with our belief systems. It is easier to fear. It is easier to judge others and hate them. It is easier to be indifferent to the suffering around us. It is easier to not question authority that institutionalizes hate. It is easier to pick bible verses to give ourselves permission to dismiss the human rights of others. If that continues to be the case, your name is already signed in the dark future of the Philippines. Is that what you want? Advertisement For a change, think. This week, the NY State Public Service Commission (NYPSC) is holding a technical conference with the purpose of discussing their 2015 report "Staff Assessment of Telecommunications Services", and to address the mostly ignored Connect NY Coalition Petition, which was filed in July 2014 and called for a series of investigations. Click to see New Networks Institute's new reports from "Fixing Telecom" and our previous reports, which were used in the Connect NY Coalition Petition. This Summary Report is designed to give a quick sketch of some of the issues with the New York State report and exposing the current financial shell game. Advertisement The State report manipulated the costs of services to customers -- The State doesn't use actual communications bills; they used the promotional price only. The information is off by 30%-120%. Customers were overcharged based on "massive deployment of fiber optics" and manipulated losses. Starting in 2006, Verizon got at least three rate increases, over 84%, and customers were overcharged $1000.00-$1500.00 per line extra for the 'fiber optics' and 'losses'-- and counting. $200 Million or $8.4 billion? Verizon manipulated the utility construction budgets. -- Verizon claims to have spent $200 million for copper maintenance in all states since 2008. Yet, Local Service, in just New York, was charged $8.4 billion in network expenses, from 2009-2014. Where did all the money go? It cross-subsidized wireless and FiOS, a cable service. The NY AG claims that 75% of the 2011 construction budget of $1 billion was diverted; our research shows it mostly went to build the fiber optic wires to the cell sites, starting in 2010. The FCC's "Big Freeze" created cross-subsidies. The FCC set how their accounting rules are applied to phone company expenses, based on the year 2000; the consequence was it dumped most expenses into Local Service. Outrageous expense dumping of 'Corporate Operations' -- Local Service was charged 60% of all 'Corporate Operations' expenses in 2014 (which includes, lawyers, lobbying, etc.) The State and Verizon manipulated the accounting of access lines. --There are an estimated 65 million access lines in NY, not 2.7 million. The State and Verizon only count basic voice lines, which is a subset of total lines -- the majority of copper lines are 'special access' lines and not counted. Verizon New York's FiOS deployment only passes 45%-62%. -- When comparing Verizon's statements with actual Census and FCC data, Verizon's coverage is around 50% and a lot less counting all the 'gaps'. Verizon NY lost $13.6 billion in since 2009. -- Verizon NY has lost over $2 billion annually since 2009 (with a caveat for 2013) and hasn't paid State or federal income taxes since 2003, it appears. The losses are NOT from the costs of offering local phone service. NOTE: When we asked to present this information at the state event, we received the following reply: "We are not at this time going to expand the panels. Time permitting; there may be an opportunity for audience participation near the conclusion of each panel." I will address the issues brought up in the meeting agenda in a separate response. Discussion 1)The State Report Manipulated the Costs of Services to Customers. This chart is from NY State's Assessment of Telecom report and details the pricing of the Double and Triple Play by Verizon and Time Warner Cable. The State doesn't use actual phone or communications bills. Instead, they only used the promotional pricing of Verizon and Time Warner Cable, without the made up fees, etc. Advertisement FINDING: The State's pricing information is off by 30%-120%+. And this is the author's Time Warner Cable Triple Play after the 12 month promotion ended, having gone up over 112% for this $89.99 package. The current bill is for $203.07 -- 126% above the advertised price. No one can ever get the advertised price, ever, as even the promotional price is missing 30%-50% of all charges a customer must pay. Moreover, there is no direct competition to primary services so every part of the bill has had increases -- almost continuously. Verizon is no better and uses the same deceptive advertising, marketing and billing practices. Quoting just the promotional price vs doing actual communication bill surveys shows a serious lack of how to analyze basic data, but also it covers over the actual costs to customers to make it look like things are 'cheaper' and that there is competition -- when it doesn't exist. 2)Customers were Overcharged based on "Massive Deployment of Fiber Optics" and Manipulated "Losses". In New York State, local phone customers have had at least three major, separate rate increases starting in 2006 for 'massive deployment of fiber optics' and 'losses', i.e., 100% of local phone customers paid for 'greenfield' upgrades of the state utility but only 50%-60%, or so, ever got upgraded -- or will get upgraded. Verizon NY rate increase, June 2009: Statement by NY Public Service Commission "We are always concerned about the impacts on ratepayers of any rate increase, especially in times of economic stress,' said Commission Chairman Garry Brown. 'Nevertheless, there are certain increases in Verizon's costs that have to be recognized. This is especially important given the magnitude of the company's capital investment program, including its massive deployment of fiber optics in New York. We encourage Verizon to make appropriate investments in New York, and these minor rate increases will allow those investments to continue." And the statement continues and claims that there were major losses that needed to be addressed: "The rate increases will generate much needed additional short-term revenues as the company faces the dual financial pressures created by competitive access line losses and the significant capital it is committing to its New York network....For 2008, Verizon reported an overall intrastate return of negative 6.7 percent and a return on common equity of negative 48.66 percent." Unfortunately, as we show, the construction budgets were diverted to other lines of business, which also helped to create massive losses. And the 'access line' accounting leaves out the majority of actual, copper-based lines in service. 3)Manipulation of the Utility Construction Budgets -- "$200 Million" or $8.4 Billion? Verizon claims to have spent $200 million for copper maintenance, but Verizon New York's Local Service was charged $8.4 billion in network expenses, from 2009-2014. Verizon's own filing at the FCC claimed that: "Verizon since 2008 has spent more than $200 million on its copper network." And, $200 million is for all of the Verizon states. Later, this statement was picked up by the Communications Workers of America, (CWA) and the cities who aren't being properly upgraded and they challenged Verizon. Members of the New York State Assembly and Senate wrote: "We ask that you address a particular matter that has come to our attention this month. In an ex parte letter filed by Verizon for the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) recent proceeding regarding the retirement of copper facilities, Verizon attempts to rebut labor and consumer group evidence that Verizon is de facto abandoning its traditional landline copper telephone network through lack of proper maintenance and repair. In its defense, Verizon wrote: '[S]ince 2008, Verizon has spent more than $200 million on its copper network.' This shockingly small level of investment in the copper network confirms what we hear regularly from businesses and consumers: Verizon's traditional landline service is unreliable, repairs are never permanent, deteriorated cable is not replaced, and new installations are delayed...Verizon's statement to the FCC amounts to an admission, on the record in a formal regulatory proceeding, that it has spent virtually nothing over the past seven years on its traditional copper network...Verizon has been systematically misleading the Commission about its commitment to ensuring high quality service to customers who remain on the traditional landline network." Verizon's mea culpa, as stated in their letter to the FCC on September 18th, 2015, claims that this was an incomplete picture of all expenses for the copper wire maintenance, etc. But this is only a small part of a massive financial shell game and one has only to compare this statement with actual data. This next exhibit, taken from Verizon New York annual reports, shows that Verizon NY's Local Service paid $8.4 billion in "Plant" and "Non-Specific Plant" expenses from 2009-2014. If Verizon New York is adding $1.4-$2.1 billion in network costs annually to the Local Service category, where is all of this money going? Verizon stopped upgrading the networks around 2010-2012, and it slowed down maintaining the state copper-based utility networks over the last decade. And even if Verizon spent $200 million in just New York, and in just one year, it would still be a fraction of the network costs that have been allocated against the copper-based local phone service revenues. Advertisement 4)Where Did All the Money Go? Cross-Subsidized Wireless and FiOS, a Cable Service. In 2011, the NY State Attorney General's Office detailed that 75% of the capital expenditures in New York State went to fund the building of the fiber optic wires to cell sites and to FiOS, not to the maintain the state's copper networks. "Verizon New York's claim of making over a 'billion dollars' in 2011 capital investments to its landline network is misleading. In fact, roughly three-quarters of the money was invested in providing transport facilities to serve wireless cell sites and its FiOS. Wireless carriers, including Verizon's affiliate Verizon offering wireless, directly compete with landline telephone service and the company's FiOS is primarily a video and Internet broadband offering....Therefore, only a fraction of the company's capital program is dedicated to supporting and upgrading its landline telephone service." In short, the money to maintain and upgrade the networks as part of the state utility was diverted to fund other lines of business, even though customers were charged for "massive deployment of fiber optics" and 'losses'. 5) The FCC's "Big Freeze" Created Cross-Subsidies. In 2001, the FCC created a set of accounting rules that 'froze' the expenses charged to each line of business to be based on the year 2000, and thus made all proceeding years be based on the percentages from the year 2000. The FCC's "Big Freeze", then, has distorted all accounting and financials for the last 15 years and no government agency, not the FCC or the State, can calculate the actual charges to end users or competitors and can't, then, calculate whether the prices are 'fair and reasonable'. Advertisement And since this is a federal issue, this problem is not specific to Verizon New York but is being played out in every state and every phone company throughout America. 6)Outrageous Expense Dumping of 'Corporate Operations' in Local Service Thus, every year the same shape model has been applied to the expenses. And it is shocking to see when every year is lined up. This next exhibit is of the FCC's Big Freeze impact of applying 'Corporate Operations' expenses in Verizon New York to Local Service. While 'Local Service' revenues declined, the expenses remained virtually identical year after year. In fact, the revenue losses of the local networks can be attributed to the other lines of business not paying common costs, which created the impression the local networks were 'unprofitable', which led to massive rate increases, which helped to 'migrate' the customers to wireless through the 'harvesting' of local, utility phone customers. 7)The State & Verizon Manipulated the Accounting of Access Lines This is what the State is reporting about access lines. Woe is Verizon, losing all those lines. According to NY State: "Once monopoly providers of landline telecommunications services providing retail voice and data services to about 13 million subscribers in 2000, the incumbent local exchange carrier industry has lost over 73% of its access lines, with an overall industry negative rate of return." What a shame it is all just made up. We do not argue that as the price of service continued to rise, customers dropped the lines that were used for voice phone calling. Advertisement But something is amiss. This is the last FCC published information, supplied by Verizon New York, about the Total Access Lines, in 2007. It shows that there were 47 million total lines in 2007. Starting with the FCC's 2007 data, and combining different available data, including Verizon New York annual reports for 2009-2014, we found: In 2014, there are approximately 65 million 'special access' lines and 'equivalents' in Verizon NY. (See report for details.) According to Verizon, there were only 2.7 million access lines; about 4% of total lines in 2014. Special Access line accounting is not included in the access line accounting supplied by Verizon, or any telephone company. Moreover, the FCC's recent data showed that mostly copper-based special access services represented 60% of this $40 billion market in revenue -- i.e., in America, in 2013, there was $24 billion in revenues for copper-based (TDM), telecommunications-based, special access services. But the kicker: There is no documentation of the number of actual copper-based lines in service -- "0" lines -- How can that be? Advertisement And in Verizon New York's financial accounting we find that special access has grown over 38% in revenues from 2009-2014, and had reached $1.8 billion in revenue in 2014, while Local Service was only $1.4 billion. But again, "0" copper or even fiber optic special access lines are accounted for. All of this is exasperated by this 'deceptive' framework. If the State or FCC are 'deregulating' a line, it is NOT only for a voice call, but all other services are impacted -- fax, competitive DSL, alarm circuits, etc. -- as they rely on wires that are part of the state utility. The CDC numbers are useless. The Center for Disease Control (CDC) data is often quoted but it does not represent 'wireless-only households' as it doesn't count the wires; it counts voice calling only. The alarm circuits (26% of households), the wires used for cable service, the wires for the home office aren't counted; neither are the small business ATM machines, credit card readers and a host of wires that go to the WiFi hot spots. They are the same copper wires and the FCC and State have neglected any accounting. In fact, the AT&T-paid-for survey report that is quoted by the State Commission shows that 84% of households in New York State have a wired broadband connection at home and 26% of homes have an alarm circuit. The State has no clue about the actual number of copper wires in service today and it is making public policy decisions that are NOT data-driven. Period. Advertisement 8)Verizon New York's FiOS Deployment Only Passed 45%-62%. How many fiber optic lines were installed? Only 45% to 62% of "Housing Units and Businesses" have been 'passed'-- that's it. Verizon's own press release claimed that it had "over 4 million homes and businesses" in New York State, at the end of 2014, which includes New York City. "Fiber-optic networks strengthen communities, and last year Verizon continued deployment of its 100 percent fiber-optic network, with its FiOS TV and FiOS Internet services. At year's end, FiOS services were available to more than 4 million New York and Connecticut homes and businesses. Verizon has placed more than 161 million feet of fiber optic cables in the two states." NOTE: We used Census data about the "housing units", "households", and "businesses" in New York State and New York City, as these terms vary the outcomes. And we use the FCC data pertaining to market size of Verizon in New York State. NOTE: The quote from Verizon is for 'homes and businesses', while the New York City franchise appears to use 'households' in some places, but in other places uses 'residential dwelling units'. They are not the same. There are 300,000 more 'housing units' than 'households' according to the US Census, (and almost 800,000 more in New York State total). Advertisement Simple Math Kicks in. Using Only "Homes": a)If Verizon covers 4 million homes and businesses. b)There are 6.4 million households covered by Verizon in New York State, and if c) of the deployments are upstate and the other half are in New York City, d) Then, Verizon can only have 2 million covered in New York City. e)Census tells us that New York City has 3 million homes. f) 65% coverage--at best. Using the Other Terms: g)The Verizon New York quote states that there are 4 million "homes and businesses", then availability in New York City is only 50%. h)And if we use "housing units" and "housing units and businesses", the number drops further. 9)Verizon NY Lost $13.6 Billion in since 2009 According to a report from the Alliance for Excellent Education, teacher attrition costs the United States up to $2.2 billion annually. Roughly half a million U.S. teachers either move or leave the profession each year, and tragically, this serious problem disproportionately affects high-poverty schools. It's essential that we keep every teacher we get. Yet classroom teaching is arguably the most stressful job there is. Somewhere between 40 and 50 percent of those that go into teaching are gone within five years. Teachers matter, and if we are to have excellent teachers, we not only have to focus on recruiting qualified candidates but also creating an environment in which they can flourish. In pursuit of solutions to the problem, The Global Search for Education asked our Top Global Teacher Bloggers this month: What are the top ten ways that administrators can help new teachers avoid burning out? Advertisement Adam Steiner (@steineredtech) discusses in his blog the kind of pressure that teachers feel because of the political pressure put on schools to perform. Improving schools is called the "accountability" approach where teachers are held directly responsible for the numerical scores of their students on a single annual test. Adam says, "The relentless drive toward higher test scores has left teachers feeling a palpable pressure to show student progress above all else - and the price that is paid is in student social emotional health and a passion for lifelong learning. Evidence of this over-emphasis on data is in student stress surveys that show that students are overwhelmed with expectations and workload. If students are burned out, their teachers won't be far behind." Read More. Pauline Hawkins (@PaulineDHawkins) points out that the key to retaining teachers is in the social relations between both the administration and other teachers. New teachers should be paired up with master teachers in a mentor/mentee relationship. New teachers require a whole network of support so that they feel like part of a team. New teachers should be allowed to "concentrate more on building relationships with students rather than on producing flawless curriculum." Principals should do more than just dole out orders, they should be made to listen to and build rapport with every new teacher. Read More. Expectations should be lined up with experience. Vicki Davis (@coolcatteacher) says, "new teachers are given hard jobs that no one wants. When you give a new teacher too much or too difficult of a task, you're setting them up for failure." She points to not only curriculum overload but to the central problem that every first year teacher faces: discipline. Keeping students on track and focused with their work is unlike any job in the world. Read More. Balance is something that new teachers have a hard time finding. Sometimes it can feel like school is their whole world and that can be terribly overwhelming. Craig Kemp (@mrkempnz) suggests that teachers must be allowed to have time for self-care. They should still be able to play sports, listen to music, or go running. Craig points to staff drinks and social gatherings as being essential to a healthy education culture. Teachers should be encouraged to associate outside the classroom. Read More. Advertisement Education has a distinct culture that is different from the rest of the work world. Todd Finley (@finleyt) suggests that because of this, "every school has norms of which new faculty might be unaware. Therefore strong mentoring colleagues are critical. A good first meeting would involve discussing a fact sheet of 20 things that might not be obvious to rookies." Transparency is key for keeping new teachers. A checklist should be made for less visible procedures so that there are no surprises for new teachers. Expectations should be made upfront and totally clear if new teachers are expected to meet them. Read More. Richard Wells (@EduWells) indicates that first year teachers should not be made to bite off more than they can chew. He says: "Don't add to the burden by giving new teachers a wide scope of courses or topics to get to grips with. Keep the initial focus on a narrower curriculum demand. Let them build confidence in a small amount before taking on the full job." He also points out the double benefit of team-teaching: it relieves some of the pressure put on new teachers as well as provides a time-efficient source of professional development. Read More. The Global Search for Education would like to thank our Top Global Teacher Bloggers for sharing their insightful perspectives. Tom Bennett (@tombennett71), Joe Bower (@joe_bower), Susan Bowles (@FloridaKteacher), Lisa Currie (@RippleKindness), Vicki Davis (@coolcatteacher), Todd Finley (@finleyt), Pauline Hawkins (@PaulineDHawkins), Craig Kemp (@mrkempnz), Karen Lirenman (@KLirenman), Adam Steiner (@steineredtech), Silvia Tolisano (@langwitches) and Richard Wells (@EduWells) are The Global Search for Education 2014 Top 12 Global Teacher Bloggers. In Memoriam Joe Bower (@joe_bower). Left to right top row: Adam Steiner, Susan Bowles, Richard Wells, Todd Finley Middle row: Vicki Davis, Lisa Currie, C. M. Rubin, Pauline Hawkins, Joe Bower Bottom row: Craig Kemp, Silvia Tolisano, Tom Bennett, Karen Lirenman Advertisement Lead photo courtesy of Shutterstock.com Join me and globally renowned thought leaders including Sir Michael Barber (UK), Dr. Michael Block (U.S.), Dr. Leon Botstein (U.S.), Professor Clay Christensen (U.S.), Dr. Linda Darling-Hammond (U.S.), Dr. MadhavChavan (India), Professor Michael Fullan (Canada), Professor Howard Gardner (U.S.), Professor Andy Hargreaves (U.S.), Professor Yvonne Hellman (The Netherlands), Professor Kristin Helstad (Norway), Jean Hendrickson (U.S.), Professor Rose Hipkins (New Zealand), Professor Cornelia Hoogland (Canada), Honourable Jeff Johnson (Canada), Mme. Chantal Kaufmann (Belgium), Dr. EijaKauppinen (Finland), State Secretary TapioKosunen (Finland), Professor Dominique Lafontaine (Belgium), Professor Hugh Lauder (UK), Lord Ken Macdonald (UK), Professor Geoff Masters (Australia), Professor Barry McGaw (Australia), Shiv Nadar (India), Professor R. Natarajan (India), Dr. Pak Tee Ng (Singapore), Dr. Denise Pope (US), Sridhar Rajagopalan (India), Dr. Diane Ravitch (U.S.), Richard Wilson Riley (U.S.), Sir Ken Robinson (UK), Professor Pasi Sahlberg (Finland), Professor Manabu Sato (Japan), Andreas Schleicher (PISA, OECD), Dr. Anthony Seldon (UK), Dr. David Shaffer (U.S.), Dr. Kirsten Sivesind (Norway), Chancellor Stephen Spahn (U.S.), Yves Theze (LyceeFrancais U.S.), Professor Charles Ungerleider (Canada), Professor Tony Wagner (U.S.), Sir David Watson (UK), Professor Dylan Wiliam (UK), Dr. Mark Wormald (UK), Professor Theo Wubbels (The Netherlands), Professor Michael Young (UK), and Professor Minxuan Zhang (China) as they explore the big picture education questions that all nations face today. The Global Search for Education Community Page In this photo taken Thursday, Nov. 1, 2012, Grocery market owner Ray Martinez poses for a photo at La Playa Market in Inglewood, Calif. Martinez opposes the passing of California Proposition 37, Mandatory Labeling of Genetically Engineered Food. For every unmarked item at his Inglewood store, Martinez would need to get a sworn statement from suppliers or get independent certification confirming products are GMO-free. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes) How much money does it cost to tell consumers the truth? In the current battle over whether or not foods made with genetically modified ingredients must be labeled, the answer to that question is not easy to come by. Supporters of GMO labeling say the costs associated with implementing labeling will be nearly nonexistent -- possibly $2.30 a person per year -- a pittance for information that some consumer groups consider critical health and safety information. But opponents of labeling say the costs could be much higher; so high that they could be crippling to some families. A Feb 21 report funded by the Corn Refiners Association, said the cost could be as steep as $1,050 per U.S. family, or up to $82 billion annually. The economic analysis was conducted by John Dunham of John Dunham & Associates, a former senior economist with the Philip Morris tobacco company. "These regulations will lead to food price increases that all Americans -- including the poorest -- will have to pay," Dunham argues in his analysis. Advertisement Consumer advocacy groups were quick to discount the report. "The food industry is once again attempting to scare consumers and legislators in order to get their way," Andrew Kimbrell, executive director at Center for Food Safety, said in a statement. Just how costly GMO labeling really might be, or might not be, is likely to be part of the discussion on Thursday when the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition & Forestry takes up the bill introduced last week by Sen. Pat Roberts (R-Kan.) that would block any state from implementing mandatory GMO labeling. The law would most immediately impact consumers in Vermont, where mandatory GMO labeling is set to take effect on July 1. A similar measure called the Safe and Accurate Food Labeling Act by supporters, but referred to as "Deny Americans the Right to Know" or the DARK Act, by GMO labeling supporters, passed the U.S. House of Representatives on July 23. The Corn Refiners group, whose members include Archer Daniels Midland Co., and Cargill Inc., has a vested interest in the labeling issue, to be sure: Roughly 92 percent of all the corn planted in the United States in 2015 was genetically engineered, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Advertisement But that ominous figure of $1,050 is a key lobbying point for a much broader food industry fight. The $1,050 figure accompanies a bold warning of "48 Million Americans At Risk From Food Insecurity" atop the Coalition for Affordable Food website, and consumers are told that "TIME IS RUNNING OUT." The coalition, which includes a long list of organizations representing agribusiness and food industry interests, encourages consumers to contact Congress and support the Roberts bill, which would provide for national labeling on a voluntary basis only. Those who want to see mandatory labeling say that among their concerns about GMO foods is a worry that the herbicide glyphosate, which is widely used on genetically modified crops, is harmful to human health. Residues of the pesticide have been detected in foods and water and a World Health Organization research unit last year declared glyphosate as "a probable human carcinogen." They also express concerns that GMO crops, which include herbicide-tolerant corn, soybeans canola and sugar beets, have not undergone thorough independent safety testing. Those opposed to labeling say that consumers don't understand the science behind GMOs, and concerns are unfounded. They say the GMO crops are proven safe, as is the herbicide glyphosate. They predict that many consumers might turn away from foods made with GMOs if they are labeled, and that many companies would follow suit. It's that final fear that drives some of the cost modeling in the Corn Refiners report. Dunham states as much: "This law would encourage most national food manufacturing companies to either relabel their products, or most likely reformulate products from using GMO ingredients to non-GMO ingredients. If manufacturers shift to non-GMO ingredients, these costs would be substantial, and, will inevitably be passed on to consumers. It is certainly possible given consumers' lack of lack science based information on this subject, that 100 percent of all products would eventually be reformulated. This would lead to extreme disruptions in the nation's food supply chain that could take many years to overcome." If the Vermont law is allowed to take effect July 1, the ramifications could sweep across the country, the report argues. "This could impact over 300 million Americans, far beyond the population of Vermont and could cost consumers as much as $81.9 billion annually or approximately $1,050 per American family." Advertisement The key architect of the anti-labeling legislation and a main promoter of the notion that labeling could translate to inflated costs for consumers is the Grocery Manufacturers Association, which represents more than 300 food companies. The GMA states that it welcomes a "common-sense solution to provide consumers with more information" but says that mandatory labeling like that in Vermont would be costly and confusing for consumers. (The GMA's devotion to consumer interests has been called into question by Washington State Attorney General, who has accused the association of "repeatedly and intentionally" violating state laws there by hiding $11 million in food industry money used to defeat a GMO labeling measure in that state in 2013.) Last year, a study promoted by GMA and authored by Cornell University Professor William Lesser came to similar conclusions about the costliness of GMO labeling, finding that a proposed mandatory GMO labeling bill in New York would cost families an average of $500 per year. That report was also criticized as invalid by proponents of GMO labeling who say real-life examples show actual costs for adding or changing food labels is not material, at least not to the tune of thousands per year of additional costs to the consumer. Christopher Miller, social mission manager at the ice cream company Ben & Jerry's, which has converted its ingredients and packaging to non-GMO over the last few years, said that labeling in and of itself is not a big cost factor that would be felt by consumers. Ben & Jerry's, which is a supporter of mandatory GMO labeling, has changed between 20-40 percent of its packaging nearly every year without an impact on the price the consumer pays, Miller said. "The idea that minor changes to labels that can be phased in over many months... would have any impact on the price consumers pay at the grocery store is just crazy," said Miller. He called it "moderately stunning" that the food industry seems so afraid that consumers will run from foods bearing GMO labels. "If they are so proud of these ingredients, why wouldn't they be really proud to label them in foods?" Advertisement Campbell Soup Co. last month said it would start labeling its products that contain GMOs without any added costs to consumers. Avid Kumar runs a four-person business painting the exteriors of high-rise towers in Kolkata, the capital of India's West Bengal state. Painting a building typically earns him around 10,000 rupees -- about $145 -- far more than he could earn by taking on many smaller projects. Even so, he cannot afford proper safety equipment for himself and his team. Avid was born in Kolkata after his parents moved there from the state of Bihar, West Bengal's western neighbor. He was raised and still lives in one of the city's many slum districts. His first job was carrying live chickens to a market on a bicycle. But as the rising popularity of Western-style supermarkets cut demand at the market, he switched to painting when he was 19. Although he relies on his personal connections with staff at the huge property companies that manage the blocks, his biggest worry is getting paid on time. Advertisement Kolkata, India | Photographer: Dripta Guha Roy "The Other Hundred" is a series of unique photo book projects aimed as a counterpoint to the Forbes 100 and other media rich lists by telling the stories of people around the world who are not rich but whose lives, struggles and achievements deserve to be celebrated. The second edition of "The Other Hundred" focuses on the world's everyday entrepreneurs. The book offers an alternative to the view that most successful entrepreneurs were trained at elite business schools. Here are people who have never written a formal business plan, hired an investment bank, planned an exit strategy or dreamt of a stock market floatation. Find out more about the upcoming third edition, "The Other Hundred Educators," here. The city of Chicago wants to build another selective enrollment high school using TIF money to pay for it. I can see how spending millions of taxpayer dollars to create yet another SEHS would be tempting. Thousands of Chicago kids spend their entire seventh grade year thinking and worrying about their grades and test scores. There are far more kids who want to get into a selective enrollment high school than there are seats available for them. In theory, the cream of the seventh grade crop of students will earn, by their academic and testing prowess, a seat at one of those selective enrollment high schools. Many Chicagoans believe that the kids who get a letter of acceptance to an SEHS are indeed the brightest kids in the city. The SEHS's are by definition "selective". They don't take just any adolescent with hopes and dreams and ambitions. Nope. Only the "smartest" will be selected. Many fourteen year olds will open a letter this spring, only to read, "We don't allow your kind in here". Whether explicitly said or not, the SEHS process passes judgment on a kid's intelligence. A conversation between CPS adolescents regarding SEHS cannot be had without the word "smart" coming in to play. "I don't think I'm smart enough to get in to an SEHS." "He got into to Payton. He's smart." "See that kid? He's not that smart. He didn't get in anywhere". (If you have to ask "in where?" you aren't from around here are you?) Smart kids go to a SEHS. This is the cultural belief of the majority of kids in CPS, no matter how much the adults who love them argue otherwise. I would go even further than that, and say that many adults in Chicago feel that the kids who do not get accepted into an SEHS just don't belong in one. They do not belong at a high school that has wonderful programs housed in state of the art facilities. They just wouldn't fit in, because that type of environment is only for a selective few. No one ever said public education was fair, at least no one in Chicago. If only small percentage of students will actually benefit from one additional SEHS, and if CPS is in a budget crisis, why build another very expensive selective enrollment high school, especially using TIF monies to do so? Actually, by creating another couple of hundred of seats via one additional SEHS, won't CPS be admitting kids into a selective school who the year prior to this new build, would not have made the cut? A score that labeled a kid as "not fit for SEHS" one year, will be deemed "you're our kind of student" the following year, because a new SEHS means more seats will be available. So are those seats really just for the cream of the crop? Or will they now be accepting some plain old milk into an SEHS too? I think, if the city of Chicago sees the need to spend 60million in TIF monies on a new SEHS, then CPS is saying that they need to provide more of it's city's youth with an well funded and well appointed high school experience. By the same token, if CPS is acknowledging MORE students should get a "world class" education, why not just admit that EVERY kid in Chicago should be able to attend a kick ass, state of the art high school? Chicago certainly can't afford to build enough brand new high schools for ALL of its youth. It can't even afford the $60million one currently being discussed. Right now, the proposal to use TIF money to build even one more selective enrollment high school, with or without Obama's name on it, should be out of the question. If nothing else, it is fiscally, completely irresponsible. Advertisement I live in a small house. It has one bathroom on the main floor and another one in the basement. The one in the basement looks like many Chicago basement bathrooms. The floor is a little uneven. The ceiling is low. The foundation wall is exposed. It is far from fancy. However, the toilet flushes. The sink drains. The lights work. The door closes for privacy. It is a perfectly fine, functional bathroom. The problem is, I can't get anyone in my family to use it. Everyone wants to use the upstairs bathroom, even though the one in the basement would absolutely meet everyone's needs. No matter how much I try to convince my family to use the basement bathroom, they absolutely believe it provides a sub-par bathroom experience. They are wrong, but it's a tough perception to crack. I have even conducted tours of the basement bathroom...for real...drawing attention to its good points. "Look, the toilet works just as well as the one upstairs. You can have even MORE privacy in this bathroom because no one will bother you down here! Walk in! It's actually bigger than the bathroom on the main floor. The lighting is brighter, and the soap smells better! It's got a lot going for it!" I get no takers. I can't convince a soul to use that bathroom. It's not the "good" one. Borrowing from the CPS model, I could pay someone 500k to walk around my property and see if they could find a location to build a brand NEW bathroom, so that the bathroom experience on the main floor could be duplicated. Once a suitable location was found, I could build a brand-new "world class" bathroom. Like CPS, my husband and I have our share of debt, and absolutely do not have the funds to build a brand new bathroom. It would be a fiscally irresponsible, but we do want to provide "better bathroom options" for our family. Here's a thought: we could spruce up the bathroom we already have. We could put some drywall up, apply a coat of paint, tile the floor, and maybe get glass block windows so the neighbor's cat doesn't get a free show. If we fixed up the bathroom we already have, make it desirable, on par with the main floor bathroom, my family would actually want to use it. It would be consider a "good" bathroom too. Plus, we could save that 500k finders fee. Advertisement Protests continue in India as Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) student union president Kanhaiya Kumar remains imprisoned, charged under section 124A of the Indian Penal Code, sedition. Kumar was arrested last week following a rally he helped organize on the JNU Delhi campus condemning the 2013 hanging of Mohammed Afzal Guru, a native of Kashmir who was convicted for his alleged role in the 2001 Indian Parliament attack. At the center of this debate is the charge of sedition and its existence in the Indian Penal Code. Sedition, according to the Indian Penal Code, denotes any form of expression, whether it be verbal or written, that may induce any disaffection towards the Indian Government or India (Central Government Act, section 124A). First established in the late 19th century by the British to suppress any Indian nationalistic sentiment, India ironically continues to use it against its own citizens (Dutta, 2012). The obvious issue that arises from this debate is whether one has the right to practice freedom of speech in India. As some JNU students have stated, the problem is not only the unjust arrest of their student union president but the enforcement of sedition itself (Lakshmi, 2016). Can India legitimately present itself as a democratic country if freedom of speech and expression is confined to approved, nationalistic mentality and dialogue? Advertisement In November 2015, Sikhs in Punjab, India called for an urgent religious meeting in the village of Chabba called Sarbat Khalsa. The purpose of Sarbat Khalsa was to provide an opportunity for Sikhs in Punjab to address the continued grievances felt by the Sikh Kaum (community) and adopt new resolutions to resolve these issues. A few of the grievances addressed at Sarbat Khalsa included the desecration of Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji (Sikh holy scripture that is treated as a living Guru), the innocent killings of peaceful Sikh protestors by police, the detainment of Sikh political prisoners that have served their given sentences, and discontent with the current political and religious leadership. As thousands of Sikhs worldwide joined and watched online in this momentous event, news followed that most of the organizers of Sarbat Khalsa and newly appointed religious leaders had been arrested and charged with sedition. The speeches given at the meeting were cited as anti-national and anti-social (Bassi, 2015). Some of the organizers and religious leaders of Sarbat Khalsa remain incarcerated to this day. The arrest of Kumar and the JNU incident has been deemed, by some, as a watershed moment (Gopal, 2016). As freedom of speech and other civil liberties continue to be crushed, a time must come where Indians must reassess their chosen leadership and its suppressive ideology. Will India proudly stand behind its government's intolerant stance on civil liberties or vow to make a social change where students, journalists, artists, and religious minorities can freely exercise their democratic rights in the world's largest democracy? Sarbat Khalsa, November 2015, Village Chabba Sikhs traveling to Sarbat Khalsa Bassi, Aseem. (13 November, 2015). Sedition case slapped on Sarbat Khalsa organisers. Hindustan Times. Retrieved from here. Advertisement Central Government Act. Section 124A in The Indian Penal Code. Retrieved from here. Dutta, Saptarishi. (14 September, 2012). Sedition in India: A Quick History. The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved from here. Gopal, Priyamvada. (17 February, 2016). This is a watershed moment for India. It must choose freedom over intolerance. The Guardian. Retrieved from here. Democratic presidential candidate, Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt. speaks during a rally in Norfolk, Va., Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016. (AP Photo/Steve Helber) "When you dare to do big things, big results should be expected. The Sanders program is big, and when you run it through a standard model, you get a big result." -- James K. Galbraith Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders says he wants the American people to join him and "fight for a progressive economic agenda that creates jobs, raises wages, protects the environment and provides health care for all." His website outlines a number of proposals toward this end, including increasing taxation of corporations and the wealthy and using the money to repair the country's infrastructure, extending public education four years to cover college, extending Medicare to everyone, expanding Social Security and addressing climate change. Advertisement Gerald Friedman, a respected economist (and Clinton supporter by the way) took a look at Sanders' proposals, ran the revenue and spending numbers through a standard economic model, and suggested that the very high level of spending would provide a "significant stimulus to an economy that continues to underperform, with national income and employment at levels well below capacity." This stimulus could lead to several positive economic outcomes, including increasing gross domestic product growth to 5.3 percent a year, cutting unemployment to 3.8 percent and increasing wages by 2.5 percent per year. This, combining with the revenue proposals, would bring a budget surplus. Friedman wrote: Like the New Deal of the 1930s, Senator Sanders' program is designed to do more than merely increase economic activity: the expenditure, regulatory, and tax programs will increase economic activity and employment and promote a more just prosperity, "broadly-based" with a narrowing of economic inequality. On balance, the Sanders program will lead to a dramatic acceleration in economic growth and employment. It will raise wages, especially for the lowest-paid Americans, and narrow the gap between rich and poor. With these gains, economic conditions will return to the prosperity of the late-1990s, or even the mid-1960s. Friedman's analysis went largely under the radar of the mainstream press. White House Economists Stoke Opposition Then, four ex-chairs of the White House's Council of Economic Advisers (CEA), all Democrats, wrote an open letter using Friedman's projections as a way to attack the Sanders campaign. The letter called the projections "fantastical," "extreme" and "claims that cannot be supported by the economic evidence." They compared the projections to the "grandiose" predictions Republicans make about the effects of tax cuts. They wrote that the Sanders campaign (not Friedman) was making "promises" of high job and income growth, writing, "Making such promises runs against our party's best traditions of evidence-based policy making and undermines our reputation as the party of responsible arithmetic." The New York Times amplified the attack on Sanders in "Left-Leaning Economists Question Cost of Bernie Sanders's Plans," written from the premise that Friedman's projections came from the Sanders campaign itself, writing that even "liberal-leaning economists who share his goals but question his numbers and political realism." The Times piece quoted Austan Goolsbee saying Sanders is offering "magic flying puppies with winning Lotto tickets tied to their collars." Advertisement This was picked up widely and amplified further. Paul Krugman, in Varieties of Voodoo wrote that the former CEA chairs' letter matters because "fuzzy math from the left would make it impossible to effectively criticize conservative voodoo." Krugman said all of this "is an indication of a campaign, and perhaps a candidate, not ready for prime time." Many others piled on, including Kevin Drum at Mother Jones, who wrote in "Bernie Sanders' Campaign Has Crossed Into Neverland," "... this is insane. If anything, it's worse than the endless magic asterisks that Republicans use to pretend their tax plans will supercharge the economy and pay for themselves. It's not even remotely in the realm of reality." (Note: Drum later takes it back. Read on to learn how.) Most recently Ezra Klein amplified Krugman's "not ready for prime-time" comment in "Why Bernie Sanders's campaign makes me worry about how he'll manage the White House" implying that voters are looking for a manager, not a visionary, and this all shows that Sanders... "...isn't very interested in learning the weak points in his ideas, that he hasn't surrounded himself with people who police the limits between what they wish were true and what the best evidence says is true, that he doesn't seek out counterarguments to his instincts, that he's attracted to strategies that align with his hopes for American politics rather than what we know about American politics. And these tendencies, if they persist, can turn good values into bad policies and an inspiring candidate into a bad president." Apparently, though, none of the critics actually ran Sanders' proposals through their own economic models to see if the results differed from Friedman's. They just followed the White House advisers' letter and went ballistic. Advertisement "Tribalism And Intellectual Dishonesty" William K. Black looks at this attack on Sanders, through Friedman, at New Economic Perspectives in "Krugman and the Gang of 4 Need to Apologize for Smearing Gerald Friedman": If you depend for your news on the New York Times you have been subjected to a drumbeat of articles attacking Bernie Sanders - and the conclusion of everyone "serious" that his economics are daft. [. . .] Orthodox economists just hate the results of Friedman's model, for the results support Bernie, rather than Hillary. Worse, they show that orthodox economists' claims that the government can do little good is a myth. They set out to kill the messenger, Friedman, even though Friedman shares their support for Hillary. [. . .] Friedman's modeling of Bernie's plan is so terrifying ... because it shows - under the orthodox economic models - that the government can be a powerful engine of producing "huge beneficial impacts." What is required is that our President has the nerve to junk the orthodox economic myths. ... Notice that they do not claim that Friedman's "arithmetic" is inaccurate in the sense of making a computational or data input error. Nor do they attack his use of the conventional models they embrace. No, their criticism is that they hate the results of Friedman's accurate arithmetic. They point out no errors in Friedman's arithmetic. There is no indication that they ever checked out the accuracy of how he modeled the impacts of Bernie's plans. Yves Smith also takes on this attack at Naked Capitalism, in "Krugman and His Gang's Libeling of Economist Gerald Friedman for Finding That Conventional Models Show That Sanders Plan Could Work": Let us be clear about the vehemence of the salvos aimed at Friedman: this isn't just a bad case of tribalism and intellectual dishonesty. This is purveyors of a failed orthodoxy refusing to indulge any consideration of plans that would show how badly they've mismanaged the economy. The original sin of Friedman's model of Sanders' plan is that it projects GDP increases in excess of 5 percent for several years running before growth levels moderate. Mind you, Friedman did this using a completely standard model. Sanders Proposals Close The Output Gap There is an "output gap" in the GDP trend from 2007 to now. This is the gap between where economic growth would have been without the Great Recession and where it is after austerity policies insisted on by Republican lawmakers restrained the "Obama stimulus," preventing a full normal recovery. David Dayen points out that Friedman is saying Sanders' stimulus merely makes up that gap, in "The Pious Attacks on Bernie Sanders's 'Fuzzy' Economics" at The New Republic: I don't feel it necessary to defend Friedman, though it's worth pointing out that his economic growth numbers would simply eliminate the GDP gap that was created by the Great Recession and was never filled in the subsequent years of slow growth--which should be the goal of public policy, however "extreme" it sounds. Mike Konczal at Next New Deal, also takes up the output gap argument in, "In Praise of the Wonk: Dissecting the CEA Letter and Sanders's Other Proposals": I would have done Gerald Friedman's paper backwards. He gives a giant headline number and then you have to work into the text and the footnotes to gather all the details. But a core assumption within the paper is that we are capable of getting back to the 2007 trend GDP through demand. We can get the recovery we should have gotten in 2009.... I'd recommend reading JW Mason's excellent analysis about why this is an important and reasonable argument to have: "In other contexts, it's taken for granted that more expansionary policy could deliver substantially higher growth" when there's still an output gap, and if the output gap has shrunk understanding why is essential. Wonks can identify this as an essential disagreement and demand clarity. To reject Friedman's analysis, as the former CEA chairs do, seems to involve rejecting that component of the analysis. If so, they have an obligation to explain what happened to that potential output trend from 2007. I'm not sure where that trend went, and given the stakes we should look for it. J.W. Mason takes up some of the same points in "Can Sanders Do It?" This is worth skimming; there's a lot and it's good. The people who are saying that Jerry's growth numbers are impossible on their face are implicitly saying that we should expect all output losses in recessions to be permanent. This is not orthodox economic theory, at all. Orthodoxy says that the exceptionally deep recession should be followed by a period of exceptionally strong growth -- and if it hasn't been, that suggests some ongoing demand problem which policy can reasonably be expected to solve. ... If increased government spending could boost output in 2008, then why couldn't it today? And if the right answer to "how big?" then was "enough to close the output gap," why isn't that the right answer today? Yes, it would be a big number. (Again, it's a lucky coincidence -- if correct -- that it happens to be close to what Sanders is proposing.) In "Why are big-shot liberal economists hippie-punching Bernie Sanders?" at The Week, Ryan Cooper has an idea: Advertisement Let's do what the Very Serious Wonks did not, and actually look closely at the paper. Friedman's analysis is certainly far outside the mainstream, and from my informed amateur perspective, the amounts by which he predicts Sanders' program will exceed the CBO baseline are mighty implausible. But the basic shape of his analysis -- a sharp initial growth spike driven by massive fiscal stimulus, falling rapidly to a lower but still-strong rate -- is not at all ridiculous. [. . .] In short, the whole debate is about how much extra economic capacity there is in the economy, and some fairly strong evidence suggests that the answer is "a lot," provided the government is willing to try really hard. AsMatthew Klein writes, "This supposedly 'extreme' and 'unsupportable' forecast implies American output will return to its previous trend just as Sanders would be finishing up his second term." [. . .] This is classic hippie-punching. It's policing the leftward edge of the discourse, and in a way that is deeply unfair to Professor Friedman. Even if his analysis turns out to have some errors, he's not remotely comparable to the Republican hacks who cynically stamp out argle-bargle claiming whatever handout to the rich is on deck will create one bazillion percent growth. James K. Galbraith's Ultimate Takedown Of The Critics Economist James K. Galbraith wrote a letter responding to the CEA criticisms, saying: I respond here as a former Executive Director of the Joint Economic Committee - the congressional counterpart to the CEA. You write that you have applied rigor to your analyses of economic proposals by Democrats and Republicans. On reading this sentence I looked to the bottom of the page, to find a reference or link to your rigorous review of Professor Friedman's study. I found nothing there. [. . .] [L]et's first ask whether an economic growth rate, as projected, of 5.3 percent per year is, as you claim, "grandiose." There are not many ambitious experiments in economic policy with which to compare it, so let's go back to the Reagan years. What was the actual average real growth rate in 1983, 1984, and 1985, following the enactment of the Reagan tax cuts in 1981? Just under 5.4 percent. That's a point of history, like it or not. You write that "no credible economic research supports economic impacts of these magnitudes." But how did Professor Friedman make his estimates? The answer is in his paper. What Professor Friedman did, was to use the standard impact assumptions and forecasting methods of the mainstream economists and institutions. For example, Professor Friedman starts with a fiscal multiplier of 1.25, and shades it down to the range of 0.8 by the mid 2020s. Is this "not credible"? If that's your claim, it's an indictment of the methods of (for instance) the CBO, the OMB, and the CEA. [. . .] It is not fair or honest to claim that Professor Friedman's methods are extreme. On the contrary, with respect to forecasting method, they are largely mainstream. Nor is it fair or honest to imply that you have given Professor Friedman's paper a rigorous review. You have not. [. . .] What does the Friedman paper really show? The answer is quite simple, and the exercise is - while not perfect - almost entirely ordinary. What the Friedman paper shows, is that under conventional assumptions, the projected impact of Senator Sanders' proposals stems from their scale and ambition. When you dare to do big things, big results should be expected. The Sanders program is big, and when you run it through a standard model, you get a big result. That, by the way, is the lesson of the Reagan era - like it or not. It is a lesson that, among today's political leaders, only Senator Sanders has learned. Again, "When you dare to do big things, big results should be expected. The Sanders program is big, and when you run it through a standard model, you get a big result." Advertisement Galbraith drops the mic. 90s-Style Attack Politics There is a style of politics where you win by creating a lasting "first impression" before your opponent has a chance to respond. When people are first looking at a candidate there is an information gap, so early information can fill the void and "set the narrative" about them. This was common in old-style politics of the past. But the overuse and negativity of it turned people off to politics in general, not knowing who to trust anymore. This was such an attack. In this case the attack was meant to give an impression that Sanders "makes promises he can't keep," Sanders "doesn't know what he is talking about," and Sanders' "numbers don't add up." Of course people can't be expected to dive into complicated economic models themselves. (Another example of this kind of attack politics is the idea that Sanders somehow is "against" African Americans and women. For example, recently Clinton campaign ally David Brock said, "black lives don't matter much to Bernie Sanders," in an attempt to reinforce that narrative. But then the New Hampshire primary showed that Sanders actually does get votes from women, and Nevada showed he can get votes from Latinos - erasing the myth of a supposed demographic disadvantage and restoring issues to the forefront of the campaign.) This "attack politics" used to be very effective. Back then there were few ways a candidate could break through a set narrative. Channels for getting information to voters were limited, as was mindshare. But times have changed. Now there is the Internet. People are connected. Information gets passed around. Memories are longer - because Internet search engines let you look into the past. So the 90s-style attack might set an opening narrative, but people have the capacity to analyze the attack and might see that what they first heard is not the story at all. And then they are as likely to turn on the attacker as believe the attack. This is happening to the story about Sander's proposals, and Friedman's analysis of their effect on the economy. For example, Kevin Drum, who originally wrote, "Bernie Sanders' Campaign Has Crossed Into Neverland" is taking it back. In "On Second Thought, Maybe Bernie Sanders' Growth Claims Aren't As Crazy As I Thought," Drum actually puts Sanders' proposals through some actual analysis - none of the other critics had done this - and writes, "[I]t turns out that...Friedman isn't projecting anything wildly out of the ordinary after all. ... I set out to take another whack at these projections, and I didn't really get what I expected. So I figured I should share." Advertisement Unfortunately Drum still says these are Sanders' claims instead of Friedman's. But you take what you can get. So the turnaround is beginning. In the 90's the "establishment" may have gotten away with this and established a "truthiness" to the claim that Sanders' numbers don't add up (even though they are actually Friedman's numbers). Spending on fixing our infrastructure actually would "create jobs" and raise wages. Shifting health care costs off of people's and business' backs though a Medicare-for-All plan actually would help the economy. Increasing Social Security benefits and the minimum wage actually would enable people to spend more at local stores, boosting the economy. We don't have to accept slow growth, resulting from austerity policies, as the "new normal." Our economy is currently resisting treacherous global economic conditions and those conditions, if anything, could plausibly argue for the U.S. to accelerate against the global headwinds to prevent us from joining other countries in an economic spiral downward. In fact, it is in the interest of the rest of the world for the U.S. to play this role. And that is exactly what Sanders' proposals do. The daughter of Raid Masalmeh, a Palestinian man who stabbed two Israelis to death at an office building and car park in Tel Aviv, looks at the debris of her family home after it was demolished near the West Bank village of Dura on February 23, 2016.Israel has destroyed the homes of two Palestinians accused of separate attacks that left five people dead, the army said, the latest in a series of punitive demolitions that have drawn criticism from rights groups.The overnight demolitions west of Hebron targeted the homes of two men said to be behind November 19 knife and car-ramming attacks in Israel's commercial capital Tel Aviv and at a junction in the occupied West Bank. / AFP / HAZEM BADER (Photo credit should read HAZEM BADER/AFP/Getty Images) Noga Kadman is a licensed Israeli tour guide. She is also the author of a book, based on her masters thesis, that tells us about each and every one of the 418 Palestinian villages depopulated in 1948 in order to make Israel a Jewish country. The book is no ordinary tour. Originally published in Hebrew in 2008, it provides a systematic and detailed overview of how Israel's ongoing campaign of Judaization has played out in the depopulated villages. Happily, this important book is now available in English translation from Indiana University Press under the title Erased from Space and Consciousness: Israel and the Depopulated Palestinian Villages of 1948. Advertisement In identifying villages to be studied, Kadman used the list of 418 from Walid Khalidi's All That Remains: The Palestinian Villages Occupied and Depopulated by Israel in 1948. Following Khalidi's lead, she does not address related depopulations of Bedouin communities in the south and Arab neighborhoods in cities. Kadman begins with an overview of the "depopulation, demolition, and repopulation of the village sites." She quotes David Ben-Gurion, Israel's first Prime Minister, who said in 1948: "The Arabs of the land of Israel have only one function left--to run away." And run they did, expelled by Jewish authorities, attacked by Jewish militias, or terrorized by military attacks in nearby villages and reports of massacres, which were often accurate. In four cases, villagers were told to leave by Arab authorities. In most, they left in panic under Jewish pressure (see Appendix A, Table 2). In all cases, Israel forbid them to return, claimed all their land and property for the benefit of Jews, and refused compensation of any sort. Many of the beneficiaries were Holocaust survivors. Israel's need to place and support Jewish refugees of the Holocaust was central to the process of expropriation that created the Palestinian refugees of 1948. Kadman reports: Advertisement Three hundred fifty out of the 370 new communities established across the country between 1948 and 1953 were set up on refugee land, and in 1954 more than a third of Israel's Jewish population was living on land belonging to refugees, whose return no one intended to allow. Kadman's central concern is with the subsequent erasure of the Palestinian villages from space and consciousness. She quotes a 1949 statement from Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion, whose commitment to Judaization extended to Hebraizing all names : "We must remove the Arabic names due to political considerations: Just as we do not recognize the political ownership of Arabs over the land, we do not recognize their spiritual ownership and their names." One of the main players is the Jewish National Fund. Beyond its roles in demonstrating Jewish presence and creating Jewish memory, the forestation project of the JNF has been used for covering the remains of destroyed Palestinian villages and therefore as a way of deliberately casting them into oblivion. Michal Katorza, a JNF official who is responsible for putting signs in JNF parks, has stated explicitly, "In fact, a large portion of JNF parks are on lands where Palestinian villages used to stand, and the forests are intended to camouflage this." Kadman concludes: The JNF stands out as a nongovernmental organization with the stated mission of preserving and developing the land of the country for the benefit of the Jewish people, rather than for the sake of all Israeli citizens. Israel has vested the JNF with the authority to do so, thus regarding the JNF as a central instrument of Judaization. Indeed the JNF took part in many of the erasure activities described in this book: demolition of villages, planting forests over their remains, establishing Jewish communities on refugee land, Judaizing place names, and marginalizing the villages in the information it provides about the sites that contain their remains today. Kadman also conducted a systematic analysis of kibbutz and moshav publications and websites to address the attitudes of Jewish communities living on or near the site of a depopulated Arab village. In most cases she found general awareness that the village was Arab before 1948 but no mention of why the Arabs left, where they went, or where their families are now. The villages are deemed "abandoned." The Palestinians are erased from space and consciousness. Advertisement When people ask why I'm in the restoration industry, I have to smile. They probably wouldn't ask that question if I were a man. I've always had a knack for fixing things and a good head for business, and my husband is a carpenter. In 2008, we combined our talents and started our own fire and water damage restoration company in Chicago. Based on my success, I offer these 10 tips for women working in male-dominated industries. 1. You Have to Take the Leap Just look at all the women today with important roles in national politics, high finance and heavy manufacturing. Advertisement You often hear that we're too emotional for the big jobs, but our ability to empathize makes us effective leaders. We get the big picture and understand the details. Don't be afraid to do things your way. Believe in yourself, and get your ideas out there. 2. Learn to Be Assertive, Not Aggressive You have to work harder in a male-dominated business. I knew what I was doing when I tackled my first water damage repair assignment, but some of the guys on my crew weren't so sure. I did my job without attitude, and that gave me control without trying to control the situation. You earn respect. It's not something that you can demand from the men working around you. 3. Meet Challenges with Solid Support You face so many different challenges in a business that's always been run by men, so it's important to surround yourself with successful people. When you connect with individuals who serve as inspiration, they help you develop the confidence it takes to push to the next level. Advertisement I appreciate so much the friends who believe in me and back me with their solid support. 4. Don't Let Stereotypes Get to You Because I'm a woman working in a male-dominated industry, clients sometimes look right through me. I remember knocking on a door to take care of mold testing in a Chicago home. The woman who answered gave me a blank stare and then began talking with the guys on my crew. You can't take it personally. Just hold your head high, and do your job. 5. Develop a Thick Skin and a Sense of Humor Often, men have trouble accepting us on the job because they think that they have to behave differently when we're around. Once they know that dirty jokes or criticizing their girlfriend doesn't offend us, they relax. This doesn't mean you should ever tolerate sexual harassment. However, understand that routine guy behavior isn't directed at you. Everyone will feel more comfortable. 6. Make Your Voice Heard Don't assume that your boss will notice what a great job you do and make that next important project a part of your road to success. Men in the workplace are very vocal about what they want. You have to speak up too if you want to be heard. Getting ahead means getting noticed, so find your voice. As Sheryl Sandberg would say, don't be afraid to 'lean in.' Advertisement Tell the boss why you should get that assignment. 7. Don't Be Afraid to Ask for More When it's time to ask for a promotion or raise, don't feel intimidated because your boss is a man. He got where he is by weighing facts and figures, so arm yourself with information that makes your case and demonstrates your worth. Keep your expectations clear, and don't be shy about letting him know why you believe that you deserve what you're asking for. 8. Link Up with Other Women We work in businesses where we're outnumbered by men, but our own strength in numbers is really starting to grow. Take a look around your industry's community, online networks and social channels, and join different women's business groups and Meet Ups. They provide ongoing support, understanding and opportunities. You'll make great new friends too. 9. Recognize the Value of a Mentor I was fortunate enough to have a wonderful mentor who helped me tremendously. She recently passed away, and I miss her, but I'm so grateful for how she shaped my way of thinking. She taught me to catch my breath, take a step back and honestly evaluate my choices. Advertisement When you have someone who encourages you to reach your full potential, you have the best business teacher and friend in the world. 10. Support and Share with Other Women I'm so proud of my female techs who work in the field every day. They go through the same rigorous training and certification as my male crews, and the women who run our headquarters work just as hard. By supporting and empowering each other, we're all building personal success stories in industries that won't always be dominated by men. Things are changing quickly, and our opportunities for expanding our professional horizons just keep getting better. We're a force to be reckoned with, and we're earning the recognition and respect that we deserve. I'm proud of what I've accomplished, but I know that it's something every woman can achieve. The first of five daily installations. Our last six major candidates for President of the United States are all graduates of prosperous and prestigious private preparatory schools - Obama (Punahou School'79, HI), Romney (Cranbrook Schools '65, MI), McCain (Episcopal High School '54, VA), Bush (Phillips Andover Academy '64, MA), Kerry (St. Paul's School '62, NH), and Gore (St. Alban's School '65, DC). The schools reported endowments averaging over $300 million on their IRS Forms 990 in SY (school year) 2012. So much for the old "log cabin" image presidential candidates once liked to project. While both were worth millions, Obama and Romney reportedly paid personal income tax in 2011 at effective rates (tax paid as a percentage of AGI, adjusted gross income) "lower than Warren Buffett's personal assistant's" - 14.1% for Romney and 20.5% for Obama. How could that be possible, indeed legal, in a so-called progressive tax system, with a top marginal rate - tax on the last dollar earned - of 35%? (The top rate increased to 39.6% in 2013.) The Occupy Wall Street movement began the same year, embarrassing a few of "the 1%", the super-rich, by calling public attention to such inequities in our tax system. In 2014, Thomas Piketty mapped the widening income gap between rich and poor over time in his best-seller, Capital in the Twenty-First Century, and extended the study to include the wealth gap as well. Robert Putnam's more recent Our Kids goes a step further, showing how mightily both gaps contribute to the immorality of the opportunity gap poor kids in the United States face today. Advertisement The final 38 years of my 44-year career in secondary education were spent at Mercersburg Academy in Pennsylvania, a private boarding school whose endowment now resembles the ones cited above. In the sixties, wanting a more egalitarian image, private schools shed the word "private" and replaced it with "independent". Independent of what? Well, of government, of course - both the funding and the regulation government applies to public schools. Photo Courtesy of Linda Hill Yet nearly thirty years as Mercersburg's chief development officer taught me that, while private schools may receive no direct funding from government, they do receive significant indirect support from Washington and from their states and municipalities in the form of tax loopholes, deductions, and exemptions - tax expenditures in the nomenclature of the IRS. The low effective tax rates of Romney and Obama, so far beneath the top marginal rate, arise from tax policies that favor those with high income and high net worth. Realizing how much they favor the rich caused me to wonder if the same policies might also explain the widening income and wealth gaps between our richest and poorest private schools. To explore that possibility I set out to quantify the total tax expenditure (indirect support from governments at all levels) Mercersburg received in SY2012. While well aware of each type of tax expenditure, their individual and collective scales surprised me. In fact, the wealthier independent schools might legitimately be called dependent. Advertisement The Charitable Deduction Taxpayers are most familiar with this tax expenditure. Mercersburg's IRS Forms 990 show it received gifts averaging $11.7 million per year for the five years ended June 30, 2012. If the distribution of incomes among its donors was the same as in the general public, the average annual tax savings for Mercersburg donors would have been at least $2.5 million (Appendix A.) The incomes of private school donors are skewed more highly, of course, than those of the general public. An old axiom of fundraising is that the top 10% of donors do 90% of the giving. Let's assume the 90% rule holds, and that the top 10% of Mercersburg donors were all actually in the top 5% of incomes - about $167,000 or more in 2012. The tax expenditure could then have been as much as $3.3 million per year (Appendix A.) Splitting the difference, the average tax savings the IRS passed along to Mercersburg donors would be $2.9 million per year for SY2008 through SY2012. The charitable deduction is typically the largest of many government subsidies wealthy non-profits receive. At 40% - even higher than the top marginal rate - the new federal estate tax rate sounds formidable. But it is not applied until the size of the estate is reduced by certain charitable provisions ... and reduced, yet again, by a further $5.25 million. As a result, most estates - over 99.8% of them in 2013 - paid no federal tax at all. Federal estate tax revenue, which averaged $22.5 billion for the years 2001 to 2009, plummeted to $5.0 billion in 2013. America's most prosperous baby-boomers have long sat atop the largest rich to poor income gap since the Census Bureau began tracking such data. Those whose parents died before the virtual elimination of the estate tax in 2010, had already received part of the biggest intergenerational transfer of wealth in U.S. history. The others did or eventually will do even better under the new estate tax. And all of them now have free rein to enshrine in their progeny, at their deaths, the American plutocracy - rule of the rich - the estate tax was originally designed to curb. Score another one for inherited (not merited) wealth! Advertisement It became a crime to be Black and unemployed. The Codes further forbade Blacks from occupations outside those of a farmer or servant...[they] permitted beatings, incarceration, and unpaid labor if Blacks broke what were often economic and socially oppressive contracts with whites...children could be taken and placed in the unpaid apprenticeships of white businesses... Laws were also enacted that prohibited Blacks from looking whites in the eye, and in some states it was even a crime for a Black man to walk on the same side of the road as a white person ...Once arrested and convicted, the formerly freed Blacks were leased out by the criminal justice system to labor in coal mines, railroads, and, of course, plantations. This 'convict leasing system 'allowed states to lease out their mostly Black prison population as laborers for a fee, which became popular and profitable for both states and businesses throughout the South. For such a clearly prejudiced system to flourish in light of the Emancipation, the public had to also buy into the criminality and inferiority of Blacks. As such, the images and narratives told of Blacks pre-Emancipation were generally that of a trusting, submissive and docile people...Post-Emancipation, the attributed identity of Blacks in America shifted. Social scientists, who long theorized Black inferiority during the heydays of slavery, were galvanized to observe and quantify the behavior of freed Blacks. Hoffman's landmark 1896 publication, Race Traits and Tendencies of the American Negro, saturated public consciousness with the imagery of Black men as criminal. His research negated the proximity of slavery to its subjects, negated the present social and economic plight of Blacks, but nonetheless proclaimed that, "crime, pauperism, and sexual immorality" are tendencies of Black people. Proponents of this doctrine could then substantiate their belief by highlighting the prevalence of Black men in the criminal justice system. -- James & Smyth (2014) -- A Racial Analysis of American Criminal Justice in the Aftermath of Trayvon Martin Readers will forgive their writer for being clueless when it comes to the connection between religion and mayonnaise. Ever since Woody Allens character pondered converting to Roman Catholicism in the 1986 film Hannah and Her Sisters by schlepping home a Bible, Crucifix, loaf of Wonder Bread and a jar of Hellmanns mayo, Ive wondered what on earth the condiment reference meant. About the sacrilege associated with Allens Wonder Bread allusion the less said the better, even during the Lenten season. Yet earlier this month nonprofit Green America celebrated the Unilever companys latest non-genetically modified organism (GMO) entries in its Hellmans Mayonnaise lineup: Green America congratulates Unilever on two new products announced todayHellmanns organic mayonnaise and Hellmanns Carefully Crafted egg-free dressing and sandwich spread. Both products are made with non-GMO ingredients. The announcement of these products follows the introduction of Hellmans non-GMO olive oil mayonnaise last year. Hellmanns USDA certified organic mayonnaise is made with all organic ingredients including organic/non-GMO and cage-free eggs. Hellmanns Carefully Crafted sandwich spread is an egg-free, and cholesterol-free spread made with non-GMO ingredients. The Green America press release goes so far as proclaiming the condiment brand iconic, which I suppose automatically grants it religious status among some faiths. So, theres that. However, lest readers forget, Green America counts among its allies many Christian investor groups, including As You Sow and the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility as well as the myriad religious investment groups affiliated with Green America allies Ceres and US SIF: The Forum for Sustainable and Responsible Investing. The Green America press release continues: As the third largest food and consumer goods company in the world, Unilever has a responsibility to operate in a way that is environmentally sustainable and healthy for consumers, said Michael Stein, food campaigns manager for Green America. By offering organic and non-GMO Hellmanns products, Unilever has made an important step towards this end and is listening to the demands of the 21st century consumer. GMO Inside, a campaign led by Green America, began educating consumers in 2014 about GMOs in mayonnaise. Because Hellmanns is such an iconic mayonnaise brand, thousands of consumers reached out to Hellmanns to ask the company to go non-GMO. In response, Hellmanns began offering a non-GMO mayonnaise made with olive oil in May 2015. Your writer chuckles mildly and continuously at the concept of an iconic mayonnaise brand, but also rankles a bit that Green America attaches negative qualities to GMOs: Unilevers latest announcement follows Campbells announcement of more non-GMO and organic products last year and call for mandatory labeling in January 2016. Momentum in the food industrys response to consumer demand for healthier food is growing rapidly. In addition to Hellmanns and Campbells, GMO Inside has also been successful in moving General Mills to offer non-GMO original Cheerios, Similac to offer non-GMO infant formula, and Hershey to switch to non-GMO sugar for some of its candy products. Consumer demand for organic and non-GMO products has been skyrocketing, said John Roulac, CEO of Nutiva and co-chair of the GMO Inside Campaign. As more people are becoming concerned with the ingredients in the food they eat and how it is made, it will be important for other companies to follow Unilevers lead and offer organic and non-GMO options. Directly implied above is that GMOs are less healthy than organic foods, which is simply not true. Hellmans, Campbells and General Mills, of course, are free to expend marketing and manufacturing resources as they and their shareholders see fit. But to employ bad science in such endeavors misleads the public into believing falsehoods that incite bad purchasing decisions of more expensive pantry staples when a less-expensive version would suffice for most households purposes. This is not only deceitful marketing; its immoral to its core because it employs scare tactics to dissuade consumers on limited budgets from making the best economical (and safe) choice for their family purchases. Writing for Reason Magazine, science journalist Ronald Bailey makes not only the moral case for GMOs, but the scientific case as well. Bailey rebuts assertions by anti-GMO crusader Nassim Taleb: In 2014, a group of Italian biologists did a comprehensive review of the last 10 years of research on biotech crops that encompassed 1,783 different scientific studies. These studies dealt with such concerns as the crops impacts on natural biodiversity, the possibility that theyll exchange genes with wild relatives, and their effects on the health of people and other animals. In the review, the biologists concluded that the scientific research conducted so far has not detected any significant hazard directly connected with the use of GM crops. So most scientific evidence finds that biotech crops are safe for people and the environment. What then are the benefits? In a 2014 meta-analysis of 147 studies, a team of German researchers reports that the global adoption of genetically modified crops has reduced chemical pesticide use by 37 percent, increased crop yields by 22 percent, and increased farmer profits by 68 percent. They conclude that there is robust evidence of GM crop benefits for farmers in developed and developing countries. Therefore it is no surprise that farmers around the world have (when regulators permit it) embraced these enhanced crop varieties. The global extent of biotech crops has increased more than 100-fold from 4.2 million acres in 1996 to about 450 million acres in 2014. Eighteen million farmers in 28 countries planted them in 2014. Sound good? Yes, it does from where your writer sits as well. Baileys moral case for GMOs goes like this: Finding no smoking gun, Taleb and his colleagues must hyperbolically conjure one and liken growing biotech crops to playing Russian roulette. They have it backwards. By pushing to ban biotech crops, Taleb and company are demanding that poor people continue to spin those metaphoric cylinders whose chambers are already fully loaded with real disease, hunger, and back-breaking labor. Modern biotechnology can empty a few of those chambers, and thus reduce the chances that when the trigger is pulled disaster will ensue. For [genetically modified] crops to be part of the solution, biosafety assessments should not be overly politically-driven or a burdensome impedance to delivering this technology broadly, the ecologist Peter Raven has cogently argued. Biosafety scientists and policy makers need to recognize the undeniable truth that inappropriate actions resulting in indecision also have negative consequences. It is no longer acceptable to delay the use of any strategy that is safe and will help us achieve the ability to feed the worlds people. Fallacious arguments against developing and growing modern biotech crops is cause for great moral concern. Wonderfully put. But its doubtful Green America and its religious shareholder cohorts will pay any attention to the science and morality of Baileys argument. Its so much easier to spread unscientifically unfounded fears to further ends that hardly can be regarded as moral. "We will be governed by a robot in a 100 years. The real question is what comes after robots? Organized energy that has an intelligence? I'm not sure, but certainly a robot will be able to lead the world better than a human being." -- Transhumanist presidential candidate, Zoltan Istvan Zoltan Istvan and family by Andi Hatch. While Ted Cruz, Hillary Clinton or Ted Turner sleep thinking about immigration issues, internal politics or relations with China and the Middle East, there is another candidate in competition, which goes beyond the present, the philosopher, futurist and journalist, Zoltan Istvan representative of Transhumanist party, who believe in human immortality based on the technological advances that are already happening in humanity. The story of this different candidate has also sparked interest in other prestigious international media as it was a few months ago the BBC and the Financial Times of London those who see in Istvan a representation that symbolizes new times of digitization and robotics. Advertisement Scientifically speaking, the matter of immortality is growing fast, in fact in California it is the Methuselah Foundation which dedicates full time to find a solution to death problem treating it as a disease and they have actually progressed in experiments with mice who have increased their life expectancy and the giant technology company Google has invested in the company looking to find a cure for diseases associated with aging. Thoughts on the future of work, threats of robotics and artificial intelligence, poverty, climate and economic systems of the future were part of this interview with Zoltan Istvan who looks throughout immortality reaching to lead the White House in Washington. Do you think that artificial intelligence could endanger humanity? Yes, absolutely. However, that doesn't mean we should stop investing in AI or change how we feel about it. We just need to remember that AI is totally foreign territory, so we must be very careful, similar to how we treated the development on the atomic bomb. But I do think eventually AI will largely benefit humanity. Do you invest more resources in technology to monitor criminal networks? Yes, I'd love to invest more resources--many more. The key to stopping criminals is not to try to change who they are--which we've been doing unsuccessfuly for centuries now. But rather to stop them with technology before they ever commit crimes. If drones, robot polic, and implant devices could be more successfully used, I think we'd see a sharp drop in crime around the world. Advertisement What do you think about green technologies ? I think green technologies are exactly the way to deal with the environmental problems the planet has. And I do believe the planet has problems, like global warming and overpopulation. All its problems can be fixed, but we must use green technologies. For example, we can learn to fill the ozone layer to reduce our carbon footprint. We could also cure cancer so we don't have to worry about the ozone layer as much. And we can use things like meatless meat to stop cutting down rainforests so cattle can graze. These are just a few green tech ideas that can change the planet for the good. Do you think computers will replace the judges and prosecutors in the courts? Yes, computers will eventually replace everything. However, it'll be a while before a computer replaces a human judge. This is becasue our feelings come into play when sentencing criminals, so computers may not have very good or humanitarian feelings for a long time. However, eventually, yes, they will replace judges and all jobs, including the President of the United States. How technology can help reduce poverty? Technology has been reducing povery ever since it came into existence. World Bank reports show the world is getting better. People have more wealth, more jobs, longer lifepsans and better health. This is all a result of better science and technology. In the future, robots will take all the jobs, so this will create a need for a Universal Basic Income, which I support. This will help reduce povery too. Do you think that in 100 years we could be governed by robot? We will be governed by a robot in a 100 years. The real question is what comes after robots? Organized energy that has an intelligence? I'm not sure, but certainly a robot will be able to lead the world better than a human being. Humans are selfish, but a robot might have our very best interests at heart. It will aim to do the greatest good for the largest amount of people. Which professions will be most threatened by technology in the coming years? All professions will be threatened, and the majority will be come extinct. There is just no way a human can compare to a robot that has better intelligence and better ability to perform. Professions that last the longest will probably be entirely in creative arts or engineering technology. Advertisement As you imagine the family in the future? There will be pet robot? children robot? Pet robots are aleady here, and they will grow to become commonplace. But I don't think we'll ever have robot children. There's just no need for that. We have children for a very basic biological need right now since we're animals. But we will eventually evolve into machines. And once we replace part of our brains with machine parts, then our identity will change. We'll no longer be mammals and need children. We may still want companions, but probably not spouses. The family institution will exist only as need and pure functionality. Eventually, virtual reality will allow us artificial companions, and I think many people may have little or no contact with anyone real every again. We will become gods to ourselves. What economic system would be ideal for the technological progress of humanity? In 50 years, only one ecomonic system will be left, and that is a type of luxury communism where robots do all the work, and the state (probably a world government) will provide everything. Capitalism won't survive, because within 50 years, we'll reach the Singularity, and working and wealth won't matter in the face of the acceleratiing technological change--change that is changes every 5 minutes more than it did in all of history before it. Istvan in Financial Times Istvan in interview with Singularityweblog "Real Future: Meet Zoltan Istvan, the Transhumanist Running For President" Until a few years ago, when we thought and talked about American Minimalism, we referred to such artists as Carl Andre, Robert Irwin, Sol LeWitt, Agnes Martin, and Richard Serra, among others. But thanks to the consistent efforts of one of the best Los Angeles art galleries, Blum & Poe, we started to learn in recent years about the Korean counterpart to this American movement. The current exhibition at Blum & Poe presents the first survey of Korean monochromatic painting, known as Dansaekhwa, while juxtaposing it with carefully and smartly chosen examples of American Minimalism. And though the word Dansaekhwa translates as "monochrome painting," these Korean artists excelled in surprisingly diverse and unconventional ways of expressing themselves as they pushed, smeared, and scraped paint; and if that was not enough, the artists scratched, punctured, and sliced the material with which they work. The intriguing challenge for any visitor to this exhibition is determining which of the 35 paintings and sculptures are by Korean artists, and which are by their American counterparts. What comes as a welcome surprise is how Dansaekhwa artists, in their sophistication and daring, easily match the high mark established by icons of American Minimalism. Though Dansaekhwa emerged in the 1960's, it was not until the 1980's that it achieved renown in Asia and Europe. However, it took many more years before this Korean movement gained recognition in the United States. Usually, I'm rather reluctant to use the term "museum quality" while talking about artworks or exhibitions in commercial galleries, but the Dansaekhwa exhibition at Blum & Poe fully deserves such praise. Advertisement Now, enough with Minimalism. Let's switch gears to Maximalism at its most operatic. Of course, I'm talking about the complete transformation of The Petersen Automotive Museum from its formerly easy to miss, low-key, boxy building into a spicy, curvaceous architectural fantasy, proclaiming its love affair with gorgeous cars speeding along the endless ribbons of freeways that slice through and embrace our City of Angels. I do remember my first ever experience driving along an American freeway --it was a busy night with heavy traffic. In front of me were rivers of red and white lights, which made me think about flows of rubies and diamonds or, if you prefer, blood and milk feeding this city of ours. The bright red and shining silver of The Petersen's new twisting encasement make me think of these winding, streaming rivers of light --the veins and arteries of Los Angeles. The exterior of The Petersen Automotive Museum, transformed by architectural firm Kohn Pedersen Fox, turned this Miracle Mile museum into an attention-grabber able to compete with LACMA and the coming Academy Museum across Wilshire Blvd. Even if you, like me, are far from being a car-aficionado, you'll find cars inside of The Petersen that are pure art. And I mean it. How else can you describe the 1995 BMW painted by David Hockney? Let's finish with news about 3 upcoming Getty lectures that you don't want to miss. They will be delivered in the coming week by leading Impressionist scholar Richard Brettell, who will focus on 3 outstanding paintings from the Getty Collection: Jeanne (Spring) by Edouard Manet on Sunday, February 28th, Arii Matamoe (The Royal End) by Paul Gauguin on Tuesday, March 1st, and Young Italian Woman at a Table by Paul Cezanne on Thursday, March 3rd. Advertisement To learn about Edward's Fine Art of Art Collecting Classes, please visit his website. You can also read The New York Times article about his classes here, or an Artillery Magazine article about Edward and his classes here. ___________ It's pretty obvious that President Obama is welcoming the opportunity to have one last knock-down, drag-out showdown with Senate Republicans. Obama's decision to forego attending the funeral of late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia is a good indicator that the president is ready to rumble. Yes, Obama paid his respects to Scalia on Friday, February 19, but by skipping the funeral, he trolled the hell out of the Senate's Republican majority. No Obama at the funeral of the man who implied the Bell Curve theory should be applied to college admissions sends a message. Advertisement He wants this fight. And that's good! That's really good. Because Senate Republicans have given him absolutely no reason to play nice with them nor observe the asinine gentility that obfuscates the partisan rancor of that institution. Obama didn't appear to have much of a grasp on the way the legislative game was played in his first term. It's certainly fair to say that at least part of the blame for his problems with Congressional Republicans -- a small part -- lies with those early missteps. Possibly the biggest miscalculation of the early Obama presidency was not understanding the vein of ethno-nationalist hatred his election had opened on the right wing. It's as if the administration thought that the outpouring of hatred from the general election ravings of Sarah Palin was the end, not the beginning. We all know better now. The radically right wing turn of the Republican Party in the past eight years is not solely about Obama -- but it's mostly about him. True, a lot of the shift has its roots in post integration white backlash from the mid to late 1960s. And a lot of the shift has to do with the rise of the religious right in the 1970s and 1980s. Advertisement But that's all contextual, and it goes back decades. This GOP, the one we have now, after 2008, and especially 2010, is a direct reaction to the nation's first black president. That kind of racial hatred and animus isn't going to be deflected by rational appeals to political maturity. It just can't be reasoned with. The judiciary has been a perfect example of this recalcitrance and its expression in refusing to allow Obama to fulfill his Constitutional duties. The Republican led Senate has simply refused to allow Obama's judicial nominees to go forward. It's led to a federal judiciary with too many vacancies- and this was before Scalia's death. The right believes Obama is a usurper of the presidency. When the birther movement wasn't able to prove he was unqualified to serve, it fell to the Republican Party's Congressional delegation to just stop the President from governing and fulfilling the duties the Constitution requires of the office. So now that Obama has the opportunity to replace one of the most arch-conservative jurists in U.S. Supreme Court history with a more liberal justice, he's going for it. Advertisement Predictably, the news of Scalia's death hadn't even gotten proper non-Saturday news anchors in the studio before Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell released a statement declaring in no uncertain terms that an Obama nominee wouldn't even get a vote. Now a number of GOP Senators have signed on to the idea, publicly pledging to stop any nominee from even reaching committee. Maybe 2009 Obama would have tried to find a compromise with the Senate on the nomination. Even 2014 Obama might have tried to reach some common ground with the GOP, tried to find a way to make things work between the two parties. Not 2016 Obama. This Obama understands what's going on with the GOP, and he just doesn't care anymore about the consequences of fighting them. It's game on. A brief bit of background . . . last year the UN set 17 Sustainable Development Goals for the year 2030. These follow the eight Millennium Development Goals set in year 2000, targeting 2015. While parents clearly figure within many of the goals, our role is not mentioned. Even the word 'family' barely appears! I would like to say, as they do in the popular British television series Downton Abbey, "May I have a word?" We read a lot about economic development. Social development is less often discussed, yet the UN annually devotes ten days to the Commission for Social Development (CSD), most recently February 3-12, 2016. I was there and had the privilege of hearing two top researchers give their perspectives on the role of families in development. Advertisement Insights from Dr. Kyle Pruett, Clinical Professor of Child Psychiatry at Yale University, and Dr. Bahira Trask, Professor of Human Development and Family Studies at University of Delaware, at a February 11 meeting at the CSD, address two questions: Social development means, what, exactly, for parents? -and- What role do parents play in social development? Lynn Walsh, co-chair of the NGO Committee on the Family and organizer of the meeting, introduced Dr. Pruett and Professor Trask, with these words: "We want to raise the profile of family issues at the UN and in society at large. Parents, usually too busy to advocate for themselves, nonetheless make essential contributions to social stability and social development, precisely because of their unique responsibility for the well-being of their children." Dr. Pruett opened and closed his presentation with a little known quote from Margaret Mead, "It is the primary task of every society to teach men how to father." Note the wording . . . 'the' primary task, not just 'a' primary task. Dr. Pruett described how fathers and mothers parent in different ways and stressed how fathers' involvement in children's lives benefits children and fathers themselves in a variety of ways, including economic success and emotional wellbeing. Advertisement Pruett's assertions run counter to the present-day fixation in family services on women and girls, explicitly mentioned in Sustainable Development Goal 5: "Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls." They also run counter to our focus on deficits and challenges. Of course both of these merit attention, but if we can also focus on positive and preventive programming - - inclusion of men in parenting education would be top of my list - - we will be much more likely to minimize deficits and successfully face challenges. In her presentation, Professor Trask took a global view of social policies affecting the family. Debates about families, she said, are becoming more complex, as global economic forces affect parents' ability to raise their children and care for elderly and disabled family members. Further, she found that the Western model of women's involvement in the paid labor force, often for individual advancement, is not universal. Among the poor in industrialized countries and the developing world, women and children work outside the home simply for survival. Trask pointed out the stunning mismatch between our rhetoric, which describes families as the foundation of society, worthy of protection and nurture, and our often individualistic social policies, which leave families at every rung of the socio-economic ladder without the resources they need. She found that some countries with the strongest family rhetoric have the weakest family policies. Mmm, might we look in the mirror here in the US? Answers, then, to the two questions above are these: social development policies must include broad and consistent support for parents -and- parents play a fundamental role in social development, within the family and in society at large, and need support to fulfill their role effectively. Advertisement A more familiar quote from Margaret Mead can serve as closing: "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has." Among the thoughtful and committed participants February 11 was Ms. AlAnoud Al-Temimi, representing the event sponsor, the Qatar Mission to the United Nations. Qatar's participation in the Commission went far beyond what one might expect from the country's small size. Qatar also hosted a February 9 meeting in collaboration with DIFI, the Doha International Family Institute. The title of that session was "Work-Family Balance, Social Development, and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development: Implementation of Culturally Specific Policies". By Beth Braverman, Contributor More than 43 percent of Americans recently polled by GOBankingRates said that they expected to pay more for health care costs this year, while less than 20 percent anticipated that their costs would go down. There are plenty of reasons to expect health care costs will go up: Employers are shifting a greater share of costs onto their workers, the prices of drugs and medical procedures continue to rise and our aging population has greater medical needs. Still, there are ways to fight back against rising health care costs. Read on for 21 health care hacks that can help you slash your bills in 2016. 1. Use Generics If your doctor prescribes you a brand-name drug, ask whether it would be OK to use a generic substitute. Generics can be significantly less expensive, and often there's no difference in outcome. Medicare enrollees who opted for generic drugs saved an average $1,923 per person in 2014, according to a report by the Generic Pharmaceutical Association. Advertisement 2. Stick With In-Network Providers Your insurer has deals with certain providers that will give you the best price and guarantee that the treatment will be covered. Going out of network almost always means that you'll have to pay higher prices. Out-of-network providers charged patients on average 300 percent more, or higher, than the Medicare rate for many procedures, according to analysis by America's Health Insurance Plans, a trade association representing the health insurance industry. 3. Ask for 90-Day Prescriptions Breaking down the monthly cost, you'll likely pay less for a prescription for 90 days' worth of medicine than you will for a 30-day supply. Plus, you'll only have to pay your copay once, versus three times. 4. Get Moving In addition to causing poor health, living an inactive lifestyle can have a dramatic impact on your medical bills. Sedentary adults pay $1,500 more per year in health care costs than adults who are physically active, according to a recent study by health advocacy organization Trust for America's Health. 5. Get a Pet Not only can it be rewarding to have a pet, it can tangible health benefits, too. The decline in office visits and the reduced frequency of obesity associated with pet ownership can lead to a health care savings of about $86 per year, according to a recent report from the Human Animal Bond Research Initiative Foundation. Advertisement 6. Shop Around for Care For elective procedures, shop around to find the best price, and quality, for a procedure within your insurance network. Start by checking Healthcare Bluebook to get a sense of what a fair price for the procedure might be in your geographic area. Then call around to a few providers and ask for a quote based on your health insurance. "Even if you have insurance and you play by the rules, you could still pay five to 10 times more than you should if you don't shop for care," said Jeff Rice, CEO of Healthcare Bluebook. 7. Check Your Bill for Errors Nearly half of Americans say that they've received an inaccurate health care bill, according to a Wolters Kluwer Health poll. Protect yourself from overpaying by carefully reviewing every bill that you receive and disputing any potential errors. If anything looks off, or you don't understand a charge, contact the provider. 8. Carefully Select a Health Care Plan When it comes to deciding on a health insurance plan, choosing the correct one upfront can potentially save you thousands in medical expenses throughout the year. However, more than 90 percent of workers say they choose the same benefits every year, and almost 80 percent spend less than an hour researching benefit options before making a selection, according to a recent Aflac poll. 9. Take Advantage of Wellness Programs Companies are increasingly investing in wellness programs that encourage their workers to take steps -- such as signing up for biometric screenings, health assessments and physical activity programs --to monitor and improve their health. To increase employee participation in such programs, a growing number of employers are now offering incentives like money, gift cards, reduced health insurance premiums or contributions to an HSA or FSA, according to a report last year by the National Business Group on Health. Advertisement 10. If You're Eligible for an HSA, Use It If you have a high-deductible health plan at work, then you can fund a health savings account to use for medical expenses. Unlike an FSA, your HSA money is yours to keep and grows over time, so even if you don't use it this year, you can tap it for medical expenses in the future. For 2016, you can put up to $3,350 for an individual and $6,750 for a family into an HSA to use for medical expenses. 11. Shop Around for Drugs Just as medical providers offer different prices, so do drug stores. A recent search on GoodRx.com for a 30-day supply of Lipitor found prices ranging from $10 to more than $90. Retailers like Walgreens and Costco have prescription savings clubs, which offer a discount on generic prescriptions and often price match their competitors. The Walgreens program also provides a 10 percent discount on care at the store's health clinics. 12. Avoid the Emergency Room Unless you have an actual emergency, stay away from the emergency room. Visiting a doctor's office or urgent care clinic typically costs much less, and is often a less frenzied experience. Choose carefully, though, because urgent care clinics that are owned by hospitals could charge the same rate as their parent company. "You'll pay anywhere from four to 20 times the price by not going to your doctor," said Adria Gross, CEO of Medwise Insurance Advocacy, which helps people navigate the medical claims system. Advertisement 13. Negotiate Your Bills If you're paying out of pocket for a procedure, contact a hospital's billing department upfront to see whether there's any wiggle room in the price. If you've already had a procedure, but can't afford to pay the bill, there might also be an opportunity to negotiate the size of the bill, or set up a payment plan that makes it more affordable. 14. Try Telemedicine More insurers and companies are offering benefits that include telemedicine, in which you can consult with a doctor online or over the phone for minor ailments, at a fraction of the cost of an in-patient visit. The average telemedicine visit is estimated at $40 to $50, compared to an in-person acute care visit at an average estimated cost of $136 to $176, according to a study commissioned by the Alliance for Connected Care. Bonus: You don't have to leave the house when you're under the weather. 15. Consider Medical Tourism Some 750,000 Americans leave the country every year for health procedures that are cheaper elsewhere or not affordable in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control. The practice of "medical tourism," as it's known, includes risks, such as trouble communicating or less-safe practices. However, the Medical Tourism Association estimates that traveling for medical treatment can net savings of up to 90 percent. 16. Bundle Your Costs Once you've reached your deductible in one year, consider scheduling any covered, elective procedures to also take place that year. That way, you can potentially avoid having to pay the full deductible in two consecutive years. 17. Deduct Your Medical Expenses You qualify to write off your medical expenses on your taxes if your medical expenses are more than 10 percent of your adjusted gross income, or 7.5 percent if you're age 65 or older. Qualified expenses include doctor visits and premiums, fertility treatments and hearing aids. Advertisement 18. Go to Labs for Blood Work If your doctor orders blood work or other lab tests, first ask the doctor whether they're medically necessary. If yes, get the work done in a standalone lab, where prices tend to be cheaper than what you'll pay by getting work done in a hospital or some doctor's offices. Asking your doctor for a written lab order and taking it to a national laboratory group, rather than an in-hospital lab facility, could save you up to 90 percent on costs, according to a 2014 study by health care consultant group Castlight. 19. Insure Yourself Under the Affordable Care Act, if you can afford health insurance but choose not to buy it, you'll have to pay a fine when you file your federal tax returns for that year. In you're uninsured in 2016, you could pay a fine of 2.5 percent of your household income, or $695 per adult and $347.50 per child under 18 -- whichever is highest. In addition, going uninsured means that one medical emergency could become a financial disaster for you, depleting your savings or causing you to run up unnecessary debt. 20. Strategize With Your Spouse If both you and your partner have access to health benefits at work, compare the plans offered by both companies. Find out which one offers the richest benefits at the best cost for your family, and whether you might be able to save money by being insured separately. 21. Move Somewhere Cheaper The cost of getting insurance via the Affordable Care Act marketplaces plan varies drastically depending on where you live, according to recent analysis by GOBankingRates. Buying a plan in New York, the most expensive state in the country for these costs, for example, would mean signing on for a $3,000 deductible and a $366 monthly premium. A similar plan in New Mexico, by contrast, features a $2,000 deductible and premiums of just $181 per month, less than half of those in a New York plan. Advertisement Last week in our Education Week blog conversation, "Bridging Differences," Deborah Meier described the five democratic habits of mind and heart that formed the basis of the highly successful public schools she led in East Harlem (Central Park East) and in Boston (Mission Hill). I agree with her idea of "democratic habits" as the goal of education. I'd also bring in the skills and habits of civic agency. A topic for another day: how to assess civic agency? Her emphasis on "habits of mind and heart" is a lot better than the simple cognitive focus on "mind" in higher education which dominates these days. Advertisement Richard Levin, president Emeritus of Yale, gave a talk last fall at the University of Illinois Urbana Champaign where I'm going tomorrow. His title was "education for global citizenship." He made interesting points about the need to revisit older ideas about what are "furniture" and the "disciplines" of the mind, drawing on Yale curricular changes. But Levin neglected "heart," the way education cultivates affections. He also neglected "hand," work in the world. I am glad Meier also mentioned developing work habits, like being mutually accountable, as part of the purpose. There is a growing sense of crisis among educators in higher education that we've lost control over the huge changes occurring (there also seems to a feeling of loss of agency in K-12 but it takes somewhat different forms). Colleges and universities face rising costs, growing student debt, political attacks, and technological transformations. Educators usually feel powerless. Emphasizing (and assessing) democratic habits of civic agency is not only good for students but also good for educators. Faculty and staff need skills and habits of democratic action and reflection to move from being objects and victims of change to being agents and architects of change. Here are two "polarities" which disempower higher education's educators by greatly weakening relationships with larger publics and the world outside higher education. One is the tension between "education for global citizenship," widely advanced as the aim of liberal education, and inward-looking nationalism. Reflecting the culture of detachment in research I described last week, educators tend to see themselves as "outside" the society, partnering with citizens -- not as citizens themselves. Advertisement The other is the tension between preparation for careers and liberal education. Adding heart and hand involves two ways to rethink things. In the civil rights movement I learned "democratic internationalism," different than either "America 1st" nationalism or global citizenship. I worked for the Citizenship Education Program of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, King's organization. Our "Citizenship Workbook" put it this way. "We love our land - America!" It also affirmed the right of other peoples in the Western Hemisphere to the identity of "American." And it welcomed the emergence of new nations in Africa and Asia "where people of color are demanding the freedom to decide their destiny." Democratic internationalism challenges distinctions between "advanced" democracies and "emerging" democracies. In a time of grave threats to democracy in the US and across the world, we need to learn from each other. Democratic internationalism is grounded in patriotism which sees citizens not defined by legal status but rather by citizens as co-creators of open and dynamic societies, refreshed by each wave of immigrants and new generations. We need to love our society, warts and all, and its great democratic possibilities. The culture of being "outside" has spread to all the professions. Professionals who talk about civic engagement see it as meaning working with citizens. They don't see themselves as citizens. Adding "hand" to heart and mind brings together liberal arts together with career preparation. Advertisement This means new focus on "citizen professional" (and "citizen worker") in many fields, graduates who understand and engage the world as it is but also are effective agents of change, who see institutions not as places to fit in but rather as sites for democratic transformation. Citizen professional schooling requires equipping students and educators with capacities to create empowering schools and businesses, congregations and clinics, nonprofits and public agencies -- foundations for democracy as a way of life not simply a trip to the ballot box. Shouldn't a democratic, open patriotism and civic agency begin in K-12 schools? And shouldn't K-12 schools make strong connections between learning and work with public purpose and impact? The tag line of the Minneapolis public schools is "education for global citizenship." I'm sure it's meant to welcome new immigrants. But my experience is that like most African Americans in the civil rights movement, immigrants "love our land - America!" China's mishandling of its financial markets continues to reverberate through its own economy and global financial markets. The Chinese leadership has just fired its chief regulator, Xiao Gong, after having stated that departments having major responsibility had taken "inadequate actions" and in addition "had internal management issues." Simply firing Xiao Gong will not solve the underlying problem, which is structural and dangerous. In this regard, Chinese authorities, like their Western counterparts, have ignored the powerful insights about financial structure from the financial instability hypothesis (FIH) that was developed by the late economist Hyman Minsky. As documented in my new book Behavioral Risk Management, the FIH consists of twelve steps, the first eight of which induce financial instability, and the last four consisting of stabilizing measures. "Regulatory Failure" is the FIH component most directly related to the Chinese leadership's remarks recognizing inadequate actions and internal management issues. The FIH stipulates that regulatory agencies will tend to be outmatched in resources and talent by financial firms. In this regard, financial firms will use complex innovation strategies to increase both leverage and risk to imprudent levels during periods of euphoria. Advertisement To be sure, until last year, Chinese markets were euphoric, especially markets for real estate and stocks. Many observers issued warnings about the associated fragility, including me in May 2015. Then in June, Chinese stocks began to decline dramatically and continued to fall during the summer. To stem the decline, Chinese regulators prohibited new initial public offerings, forbade large financial firms from selling shares, instituted circuit breakers, and allowed the Chinese currency to decline in value. Most of these measures failed, and were recently reversed, despite the loss of face to Chinese authorities. In line with the FIH's concept of "Regulatory Failure," the Chinese regulatory system is weak. Xiao Gong himself acknowledged that Chinese market mechanisms were flawed with inadequate supervision by regulators. The regulatory agency, the China Securities Regulatory Commission, is lacking in talent and in the wake of Chinese financial instability has lost seasoned personnel. The agency has been criticized for lacking workers having international experience and connections. In addition, there are reports that last summer, agency staff members tipped friends about agency decisions before they were announced. Xiao Gong received his undergraduate degree from Hunan University in Changsha. He received a Master's degree in law from Renmin University in Beijing. In 2007, a year before the full eruption of the global financial crisis, I visited both of these universities to lecture on behavioral finance. My main message in those lectures pertained to the dangers that irrational exuberance posed for China's financial system and economy. The lectures drew an analogy between the historical experience of stock market bubbles in the U.S. and the situation at the time in the Chinese stock markets. I suggested that Chinese authorities could learn from the U.S. experience. Asset pricing bubbles comprise another component of the FIH. In 2007, Xiao Gong had already graduated from both Hunan University and Renmin. However, the message about asset pricing bubbles was still germane, and could become a salient part of the dialogue in China about mapping its future. The events which unfolded after 2007, especially after 2012, point to the key lessons from the FIH largely going unheeded. Advertisement When regulators fail during euphoric periods, imprudent leverage and risk develop. Shadow banking expands in a way that promotes what the FIH calls "Ponzi finance." In 2012, while he was at the Bank of China, a state-owned bank, Xiao Gong described the growth of shadow banking in China as "fundamentally a Ponzi scheme." Imprudent leverage, imprudent risk-taking, and Ponzi finance have combined to produce China's ticking financial bomb. Subsequent events have proved Xiao Gong's Ponzi characterization as prescient. Had he been familiar with the FIH and taken it seriously, he might have been able to connect the dots. Had he sufficient control, he might even have been able to steer China onto a more prudent path. Nevertheless, policy decisions in China are very much top down, and Xiao Gong was not at the absolute top. The top position is occupied by Xi Jinping, the President of the People's Republic of China. He would be well-advised to do some reading about the FIH, and apply its lessons so that China and the rest of the global economy embark on a more prudent path. The company began in 2012, as a class project for Brian Keller and Zachary Quinn; students at the University of St. Thomas. "At the time," Quinn explains, "we both had family and friends impacted by cancer." Their idea: a buy-one-give-one retail model (much like TOMS) that would allow people to support pediatric cancer patients. Their goal: to give a beanie to every child, in America, battling cancer. Called "Love Your Melon," the company has grown from its modest Minnesota roots and, in three years, has given away over 45,000 beanies to kids going through chemotherapy. They have generated over a million dollars for charity. Advertisement The hats (American-made) are donated in person at hospitals nationwide by Love Your Melon college ambassadors. The beanies are well-received and, as Quinn says, "just make sense...because every superhero needs a helmet." I recently asked Quinn, President of Love Your Melon (LYM), a few questions: First of all, congratulations on your success. How did you arrive at the idea for LYM? Why cancer specifically? Cancer is the disease that touches our communities the most - a widespread disease with many causes that inflicts fear upon us. Love Your Melon fights cancer with love, comfort and coziness. Our beanies cover children battling cancer with love and bring them into a community of people that support them. Brian and I started Love Your Melon because we wanted to make a difference in our communities and found that cancer was the most prevalent cause of pain and suffering. Love Your Melon is our way of fighting back against this horrible disease. It all came from the simple idea of wanting to put a hat on every child battling cancer in America. Through selling headwear and apparel, we are able to create programs that bring college kids dressed as Superheroes into children's hospitals across the country. Currently, Love Your Melon is at over 750 different schools nationally with over 11,000 college students representing the organization as Love Your Melon Crew Members. Advertisement And what are you working towards? Our ultimate goal for Love Your Melon is to find a cure for childhood cancer and make sure that no child is left behind. We have now given over 52,000 hats to children undergoing cancer treatment and donated over 1 million dollars to cancer research and family support. There is plenty of work left to do and we are on a mission to make sure it happens. What do you know for sure? Details matter. By Michele Battle-Fisher, Hippo Reads contributor At its simplest denominator, a citizen is by principle afforded the right of being included in a group's decisions. But there is a special place for those who serve as policymakers and policy experts. But I offer the point in my book that "sometimes the rules are not made by the public required to follow them." The solidarity means that all of us have culpability in the health of the collective. But each of our investment in this solidarity differs in our (re)actions, invocations and values. This knowledge should, in theory, affect the role that each of us plays in bettering social outcomes. Those in policy hold a special role that should not be understated. A policy has the power to guide and mold the direction of societal movements or cause an unfortunate setback. The democratic process has placed the power of policy in the hands of select individuals with certain position and access to resources. Those policymakers are anointed members of the social order but are not infallible. The policymakers are tinkering with our public, in so doing, the social system changes as a result. Puffins, which puffin is really in charge? The public has placed the responsibility of policy and governance on puffins. More specifically, our public policy mechanisms are placed in the hands of what I call "policy puffins." Puffins uniquely self-organize through colonization, forming groups in order to increase the chances of their colony members' survival. Policymakers lack the distinctive physical features of the adorable seabirds. The social construction demonstrated by these puffins offer an allegory for the complexity of what could be happening with policymakers. In a recent study by Andris and colleagues, in the past 60 years Congress has never been more polarized across partisan lines. These policy puffins have hunkered in, committed to their colony (party) and have vested immense power in the hands of a select few "puffins" to act as negotiation brokers across parties. When this allegory is framed using the Andris et. al. study of political cooperation in the U.S. House as well as other general systems science research: Advertisement The puffins select like minded allies in Congress which increases the chance of overly homogenous political groupings. Select "super" puffins in Congress anointed by the party act as the bridges across political networks which make them powerful in terms of social connection as well as information gate keeping. In systems, bridges gain power in part due to the strategic configuration of connections that could be leveraged for social advantage. You cannot leverage connections that you do not have. Puffins flock to allies for personal political survival. "Super" puffins become more powerful during political upheavals because allies run to them for protection. Membership in a political group could mask dissenting opinions within a political group because all that is important is keeping up the united front. Puffins, you are a part of the public. The beneficiaries of public policy are vast publics. Publics, while fragmented and divided based on societal wants and political requirements, are bound by some level of negotiated citizenship under that policy. People must live and act under these policies orchestrated by the policy puffins. But people also die under those policies as well. We must never forget that policymakers are also of that same public. Policymakers must be reminded that powerful rules affect the very public they promised to protect. Advertisement Puffins, old wounds must be opened and those wounds may have come from policy. In a 2015 JFK Kennedy Forum at Harvard's Kennedy School, Ta- Nehisi Coates offered scathing commentary of historical approaches to social justice. He called for society go wide and open past policies to scrutiny that makes damaging policy accountable for that legacy of damage. He said, "it is not enough to stop wounding someone... [society] must do something about the harm [policy] has produced." Essentially, there is going to be a life for this policy. People are going to be affected by the policy. Policymakers understand the huge social weight placed on their position. However failing to harness the social complexity of that policy on the public is unethical. The longer the public has to live under a policy, the social system changes under that policy. Errors in a social system under a policy become more apparent over time. So how the policy puffins react to the changing reality under policy sets a historical stage for the public's welfare. Puffins, the policy lingers and lingers, for better or for worse. Failure is picking up a socially expected square peg after the innovative oval one fails to fit a conventional hole. If you really "need" the oval to work (and the world is not yet with the program), check out the board again. If there is no oval hole, darn it and chuck that board. Find a reamer and create your own or perhaps ask for a refund with no return shipping. Failure is the incessant attempt to satisfy others by hiding that socially acceptable square peg behind your back and asking for a few more days (in dog years) to work it out. Whittling that square peg with that dull pocket knife into a misshapen imposter of an oval peg serves no god. That imposter peg is not flush to the side of the hole. It is surrounded by slight flashes of open space. That open space created around the non-flush peg should extract with a slight tug. Trust me, that tug will be less taxing than the linear process that got that wrong peg there in the first place. Policy has little tolerance for misshapen pegs that bring with them unintended ("side") effects. Use a policy that works until it does not or admit that it never worked at all. Then make it work without the errors gumming up the machinery. What works may not be the most apparent or popular choice. More often than not, policymakers violate systems by linearly attacking the problem in the same way expecting a positive result. Mark my words, "while systems have antiquity that lingers, policies have a legacy that leaves its own residue of feedbacks behind." Systems thinking is acting fearless amidst uncertainty. The stakes are high in policy. However fearlessness on the part of policy puffins should not wantonly place structural power and position based prestige over the welfare of the public. Advertisement Read more in Michele Battle-Fisher, Application of Systems Thinking to Health Policy & Public Health Ethics- Public Health and Private Illness (Springer, 2015). On December 2, 2015, an absolute tragedy occurred. Fourteen Americans were killed and 22 were seriously injured in a mass shooting in San Bernardino. Which of the following would you attribute responsibility for what happened: Let me give you a hint. It's not the one that comes in five flavors. Next question: in the wake of San Bernardino, which one is the U.S. government going after? *** Do you know how a properly functioning society would react to an event like San Bernardino? I do -- because I've had the misfortune of living through such an event. On the 28th of April, 1996, a gunman equipped with an AR-15 assault rifle -- the same kind that the San Bernardino shooters used -- opened fire in Port Arthur, in Australia. Thirty-five people were killed and 23 were wounded. It remains one of the world's deadliest shootings by a single person. Within months, the country's governing party led a bipartisan effort to prevent such a tragedy from ever happening again. Advertisement They didn't do it by focusing on creating backdoors into phones. This is how a properly functioning society reacts to an event like San Bernardino: This is not how San Bernardino is playing out in the United States right now. *** Instead, the U.S. government has decided to leverage the tragedy that happened in California to pursue a very different agenda: If you believe the government's case, then terrorism is the root of the problem here, and the real change that we need in our society is for the government to have backdoors into our phones. Let's run the numbers on that: Credit: Rolling Stone It's absurd. The guns in San Bernardino that resulted in all those deaths were legally purchased weapons. And the big legal push the U.S. government has decided to make in response? Advertisement It's decided to seek a precedent that would allow it to force every American company to create a backdoor for the government to snoop on anyone it so pleases. The logic is outrageous: "People got shot. So we need a backdoor into your phone." In response, the company in question decided to take a principled stance. They said no. No, we're not going to be forced to create weaknesses in our products -- weaknesses that would compromise the privacy of customers not just in the U.S., but all around the world. Weaknesses that would give the green light to countries like China to demand exactly the same thing. "Principles only mean something if you stick by them when they're inconvenient." I think it was an incredibly brave and principled thing for Apple and Tim Cook to do. And remember: principles only mean something if you stick by them when they're inconvenient. Unfortunately, this approach to principles isn't one that carries much weight in Washington D.C. That, or the U.S. government has forgotten what it was lecturing other countries on less than 12 months ago: In any properly functioning society, Apple would get adulation for standing up to a government trying to do this. Advertisement But do you know what Apple got for taking that principled stance? They got shit piled on them. Shit piled on them by people like this clown -- who, by the way, could be the next President of the U.S. -- who said: "But to think that Apple won't allow us to get into her cell phone. Who do they think they are? They have to open it up." Well, Donald. Let me tell you who they are. These are the people who are trying to stop Vladimir Putin, your old pal from the KGB, from being able to hack into yours -- and everybody else's -- phone. That's who they fucking are. These are people who aren't just from the largest company in America -- they are from one of its most admired. When Apple's CEO died a few years ago, people all around the world went into mourning. And you know why? Because, unlike you, Mr. Front-Runner-for-the-Republican-nomination, these are people who actually give a shit about principles. Advertisement But it wasn't just political candidates pandering for votes who were making light of Apple's stance. It was the U.S. government itself, which has claimed that Apple was doing this for "marketing purposes": There's just one problem with that. If it were really so important for the U.S. government to get into that phone, then it could do so, and do it without Apple's assistance: Read that one more time: if it really was so important for the U.S. government to get into that phone, it would not need to spend what could be months or even years in court -- it could get in right now. But the U.S. government hasn't chosen to get into that phone. Because this case isn't really about keeping Americans safe. "The U.S. government hasn't chosen to get into that phone. Because this case isn't really about keeping Americans safe." Advertisement All because one company is willing to stand up to it. On principle. A principle that the U.S. government wants everyone else to adhere to. But thinks that the same rules don't apply to it. If you think there's something to this, I encourage you to support the ACLU or the EFF, both of which have come out in support of Apple. And if you enjoyed the article, you might enjoy Exponent, the podcast that Ben Thompson and I do weekly. We'll be talking about this topic on the next episode. Acton Institute Director of International Outreach Todd Huizinga joins us on this weeks edition of Radio Free Acton to discuss his new book, The New Totalitarian Temptation: Global Governance and the Crisis of Democracy in Europe. When many of us think of the European Union, we picture an organization of European democracies acting in concert on a variety of issues, and holding a common (albeit troubled) currency. But how democratic is the EU? What philosophy undergirds the European project? Is the EU splintering under the pressure of the Eurozone and migrant crises, or will the pressures currently applied to the EU lead to meaningful reform of the organization? You can listen to the podcast via the audio player below, and be sure to pick up a copy of Todds excellent book. The latest buzz in the presidential race is that Sen. Bernie Sanders' presidential prospects are in doubt given that the race moves this week to South Carolina, where blacks make up more than half of the Democratic electorate, and on March 1 to a string of southern states with big blocs of African-Americans, who strongly support Clinton and have been slow to warm to Sanders. Some black voters said on Saturday they did not see a reason to switch their loyalty away from Clinton, a fondness that dates back to her husband Bill Clinton's presidency. Wow! Once again, Hillary's husband's legacy when it comes to blacks has been thoroughly photoshopped, given his virtual destruction of welfare while he was POTUS. As fellow blogger Eric Schmeltzer observed, the Clintons have a habit of tossing aside key supporters when they believe the political situation calls for it. It happened when President Clinton slapped the Gay and Lesbian community across the face by signing the homophobic Defense of Marriage Act. And it happened again when he passed a harsher-than-needed Welfare Reform package that hurt the single mothers and children that Hillary Clinton once worked to defend, as part of the Children's Defense Fund. Advertisement Peter Edelman, who resigned as Clinton's assistant secretary of Health and Human Services in protest of the legislation, described it as the worst thing Bill Clinton has done in an article he wrote for The Atlantic. In the article he said he was "amazed by the number of people who have bought the line that the bill was some little set of adjustments that could easily be done away with. Congress and the President have dynamited a structure that was in place for six decades." What's tragic about this is that the Clinton's relationship with the Edelmans goes back to the early 1970s. After receiving national acclaim for a speech at her Wellesley commencement, Hillary was invited to address The League of Women Voters' 1970 convention in Colorado Springs as a ''young leader of the future.'' She had been selected by the conference organizer, Peter Edelman, a former aide to Robert F. Kennedy and the husband of Marian Wright Edelman, then a lawyer specializing in children's issues. Both Edelmans were appalled when Clinton passed the welfare bill. Mrs. Edelman wrote an opinion piece in the Washington Post pleading with the president to resist accepting Republican-sponsored welfare legislation. When Clinton signed the bill, ending a 60-year federal guarantee of assistance for poor children, Mrs. Edelman denounced him for making ''a mockery of his pledge not to hurt children.'' While sponsors of the legislation said it would get people to work instead of depending on welfare, it simply ended the federal assurance of help to needy families with children and put a limit of five years on how long a family could get help. The legislation also made savage cuts in food stamps for the poor and cut out food stamps and other benefits for legal immigrants, many of them elderly and disabled people who have paid Social Security and other taxes for years. Advertisement It's not uncommon for Oscar winners to use their acceptance speech as a bully pulpit for political issues. Given the recent uproar over the unabashed chalkiness of this year's nominees, we may be hearing a few more contrite, if not downright apologetic, acceptance speeches from the winners. We may even see a few outright rejections, a la Marlon Brando. Of course it's not the artist's or producer's fault that the Academy chose films about white people, featuring white people, and mostly made by white people, nor is it the artist's fault that the Academy has become so monochromatic over the years. Even so, some may look at this year's prize as slightly tainted, now that the Academy has been "exposed," so to speak. So it won't be surprising if some actors and filmmakers take this year's Oscars as an opportunity to help chart a new course for the Academy, not to mention the industry in general. It's easy to imagine what a more diverse Academy and the Oscars will look like in the future, but how it will be achieved is anybody's guess. Some may encourage adopting the approach that some literary awards seem to be moving toward, which increasingly categorizes the work according to the social profile of the author. Who would be surprised if we started to see the Academy award Oscars for "the best documentary by an aboriginal, bisexual, disabled New Zealander" or "best animated short by a heterosexual female Peruvian under the age of 40?" Advertisement LA Times correspondent Mary McNamara points out that "Awards are objective measures of excellence, goes one argument; female writers and directors or actors of color should not be shoehorned onto nominee lists just to provide some politically correct vision of diversity." George Clooney, in a Variety article, points out that "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 don't think it's a problem of who you're picking as much as it is: How many options are available to minorities in film, particularly in quality films?" McNamara echoes that sentiment: "The problem with the overwhelming male-whiteness of this year's Oscars is not white males and their stories, it's the millions of other people and stories that should be part of the powerful force of American cinema and continually are not." American cinema; if there's one thing this year's best picture nominees have in common, it's real, albeit mostly white male, America. With the exception of Mad Max: Fury Road, all of the nominees for best picture are distinctly American stories, and four out of six of them are interpretations of actual events. The Revenent - Trappers vs. tribes vs. grizzlies in the Rocky Mountain west The Big Short - The bad mortgage bust of 2007 Spotlight - A team of Boston reporters goes after corrupt Catholic priests and their lawyers The Martian - NASA loses track of an American astronaut on Mars Bridge of Spies - The American side of the Cold War Room - Girls held captive in an American backyard Brooklyn - An Irish/Italian immigrant love story in the white melting pot It follows, naturally, that many of the actors in the best picture category are also nominees for individual awards. Still, only two male actors (Leo DiCaprio and Matt Damon) are in films that are also nominated for best picture. Same goes for female performances: two out of the five nominees appear in potential best pictures. What of the other films that delivered this year's finest performances? Again, with the exception of Eddie Redmayne in The Danish Girl, and Charlotte Rampling in 45 Years, American stories are prominent. Trumbo - Bryan Cranston as vilified screenwriter and suspected communist Dalton Trumbo during the red scare Steve Jobs - Michael Fassbender as the archetypal tech version of Horatio Alger Carol - Cate Blanchett, Manhattan, a department store, forbidden love in the fifties Joy - Jennifer Lawrence as the female Blake Carrington in her own American dynasty This dominant thematic thread is carried through the other major categories too: white American stories made for white American audiences. Isn't it ironic how these films, though years in production, came out against the soundtrack of the masses chanting "make America great again?" There seems to be a strange synchronicity, no doubt completely coincidental, between the content of this year's Oscar offerings and the general mood of the so-called silent majority. Or perhaps we should be giving credit to the marketers who are monitoring the pulse of public sentiment. These films wouldn't be so prominent if the studio bosses and their minions didn't think they would sell. At least it's evident from the Academy's reaction, and the threatened boycott, that the homogeneity of the last two years is about to change. This year, regardless of who we pick to win, it's clear that our choices in the coming years should reflect America as it is, and not how rich and powerful studio executives may wish it to be. As I plan a trip for Europe this coming summer with a friend, I see how much fun "adventuring" can be. Of course, I am no match for women who have scaled mountains or traveled to the, literally, ends of the Earth. As Amelia Earhart said "Women, like men, should try to do the impossible. And when they fail, their failure should be a challenge to others." Match the woman adventurer with her accomplishment: ____ 1. The first female pilot to fly across the Atlantic Ocean. ____ 2. The first African-American woman to reach both the North and South Poles. ____ 3. The first woman to cross the ice to the North Pole. ____ 4. The leader of the first women's team to reach the summit of Denali. ____ 5. The first woman to summit the Matterhorn. A. Annie Smith Peck B. Amelia Earhart C. Arlene Blum D. Ann Bancroft E. Barbara Hillary The first woman to summit the Matterhorn, in the Swiss Alps, in 1895, when she was 45 years-old, Annie Smith Peck set many records during her years as a mountain climber. The fame that she achieved by climbing the Matterhorn came because she was wearing pants - not the long skirt that was the uniform for women of her day. Often having to make her own equipment, because men's equipment was not sized properly for her, she was the first to make the highest climb in the Americas, Mount Huascaran in Peru - at 21,812 feet - in 1908, when she was 58 years-old. An ardent suffragist, she planted a "Votes for Women" pennant atop Peru's Mount Coropuna when she was 61 years-old. Advertisement Quite a tomboy in her youth, Amelia Earhart fell in love with airplanes at a stunt-flying exhibition. In 1928, she became the first women to fly across the Atlantic Ocean and became famous with a ticker-tape parade in New York City and a visit to see the President at the White House. In 1932, Earhart became the first woman and second person to fly solo across the Atlantic for which she received many honors and accolades. Another first occurred in 1935, when she became the first person to fly solo across the Pacific Ocean from California to Hawaii. On her endeavor to become the first woman to fly around the world, in 1937, she was lost. Earhart has been inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame. Arlene Blum is best known for leading the first American and all women's ascent of Annapurna I. She also led the first women's team up Denali and was the first American woman to attempt to scale Mount Everest. A leader in more than 20 mountain expeditions, she also hiked the entire length of the European Alps with her baby daughter on her back. Blum says "Climbing the world's highest mountains is a powerful metaphor for achieving any demanding objective. Reaching the summit requires total physical, intellectual, and psychological commitment--and yields the greatest rewards." One of the world's preeminent polar explorers, in 1986 Ann Bancroft became the first woman to cross the ice to the North Pole. When she reached the South Pole in 1993, she became the first woman known to have reached both the North and South Poles. She is passionate about the natural world as well as teaching children. Her Foundation works to "create a world where every girl has a chance to live her dream and reach her full potential." Bancroft has been inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame. Like Bancroft, Barbara Hillary has been to both the North and South Poles. The first African-American woman and the oldest woman with that achievement, Hillary reached the South Pole at age 75 (in 2007) and the North Pole (in 2011) at age 79. The double cancer survivor (both lung and breast cancer) and retired nurse made it her mission to reach the North Pole after becoming aware that no African-American woman had yet done so. The recipient of many awards, Hillary today serves as an inspirational speaker. Advertisement Learn about more she-roes and celebrate amazing women. All of these adventurers are among the more than 850 women profiled in the book Her Story: A Timeline of the Women Who Changed America. We salute their accomplishments and celebrate their sense of adventure. Donald Trump unveiled his Middle East policy by telling a tale about General John Pershing killing Muslim terrorists in the Philippines with pork-laden bullets, which "solved the problem." Not only is the story unsubstantiated, but using pork products against Muslim terrorists doesn't work. Jeremy Diamond with CNN reported about a recent campaign rally where Trump claimed the pork bullets were used against Filipino Muslim terrorists with great success. Trump reiterated his claim that the U.S. should "go much further" than waterboarding suspected terrorists, telling the story of Gen. John Pershing in the Philippines, who Trump said captured 50 Muslim prisoners a century ago and dipped 50 bullets in blood. "And he lined up the 50 people and they shot 49 of those 50 people, and he said to the 50th, you go back to your people and you tell them what happened -- and in 25 years there wasn't a problem," Trump said to the audience, which grew quiet as he told the story. I've seen this story told before on email chains. So did Snopes.com, which looked into this one during one of the many September 11 anniversaries when this tale makes the internet rounds. No Evidence Of Pershing Doing This This fact-checking site was unable to corroborate that Pershing did anything like this. Their researchers did find a 1939 Gary Cooper film where an American doctor serving in the Philippines orders that Muslim attackers will be buried in pig skins. Of course, it's good to fact-check the fact-checkers. So I read a 1998 biography about Gen. Pershing that wasn't on Snopes.com list, focusing on the chapter concerning his service in the Philippines. It's called Until the Last Trumpet Sounds; The Life of General of the Armies John J. Pershing, by Gene Smith. You'll find he's a pretty classy guy, a person who respected the Moros and their culture, taking on fighting missions with the greatest reluctance for loss of life, preferring peaceful negotiations where possible, not the bloodthirsty character Trump makes him out to be. If Trump knew our military heroes better, like Ike, Patton, Bradley, etc. he'd know that our best lead with respect, not with war crimes like William T. Sherman. Snopes.com Isn't Biased Either People I know (liberals and conservatives) have been sending me all kinds of anti-Trump stuff. They claim in a People Magazine 1998 interview that Trump said he'd run as a Republican because their voters are too stupid to think for themselves. Snopes.com busted that one. Trump didn't bash Jesus either (another Snopes.com discovery). Snopes.com also found that Trump didn't call for a boycott of Apple on his iPhone, though he continues to use one after calling for a boycott of Apple products. Advertisement Using Pig Skins Against Muslim Terrorists Doesn't Work Israelis have been trying to use pork-based products around dead Islamic terrorists for years, with no success. That's because terror groups like Hamas have told their followers it doesn't matter what happens to the body after a martyr blows himself or herself up, just like 9/11 hijackers from al-Qaeda broke every Muslim practice in the book, before and during the attacks. The belief that pork is some sort of kryptonite for Islamic terrorism isn't supported by the evidence. Those terrified of terrorism may wish it so, and yearn for a government that would just use pigs as an anti-terror weapon and save us. But anyone who studies terrorism knows it takes a more robust policy to combat the problem than throwing a slice of bacon at the enemy. There's an old saying that you should "invest in what you know," but what's far more valuable is when you can "invest in who you know" as well. The new crowdfunding laws are not designed to nurture this; they are meant to prohibit investment conversations with the company insiders when the opposite has historically been the case. Wealthy individual investors and funds (angels and VCs), will often do both, and it makes a lot of sense, when you have the time and the wherewithal to afford due diligence, apply your previous experiences, and meet with the founders or senior management to determine whether an investment is a good one. A secondary benefit to this approach is that you often get to insert your previous knowledge (i.e. what you know) into the equation, because you have invested enough to have a voice. Aside from reading the company's reports, the other main component to making an investment decision is the ability to get to know who you are investing in. This is arguably the more important component, especially for those with limited amounts to apply toward investing. But does this mean that all of the new opportunities to make investing available to everyone via crowdfunding helps us in this regard? Advertisement The last few years have been exciting ones for those following new crowdfunding laws at both the state and the national level. I am not speaking to donation-based crowdfunding here (such as Kickstarter, Indiegogo and the rest) but rather investment crowdfunding (that involves actual return on investment). When the JOBS Act was passed and as we watched and waited to see what rules our federal government would create, the states took earlier actions to implement their own forms of state-based securities crowdfunding. However, many of the new rules are going in the exact opposite direction of how investing has historically been done, and those rules have created more barriers, not fewer, in terms of getting to know who you might invest in. For examples, the JOBS Act rules (and those of many states) that require a company to only post their offering onto a third-party "intermediary" platform, and that limit what a company can say directly to its potential investors, creates such a barrier. Investing has almost always been more interaction than any reaction to data before a transaction is completed, where the personal aspects of the interaction weigh heavily in favor of any successful transaction. How many times have we used, heard or relied on the old adage that you need to look someone in the eye before you can do a deal with them? In this modern age of SEO, and the multitudes of interweb communications, there are still many dealmakers that need to meet, and should be able to meet, the other person first before any deal gets done. The same has held true for our investing in other businesses since the dawn of investments began, and still holds true today. Consider most companies that raise funds privately, through a broker-dealer, or even those that go public via a IPO. In each and every case, the company or its representatives sell those offerings, and the investors only buy (invest) if they can get to know the team. With private offerings, the company goes directly out to the accredited investors that already know them, or to whom they have been introduced. Broker-dealers help companies with their offerings by introducing them to investors they know, and those investors then get to know the company. And broker-dealers are supposed to ensure that the deal is suitable for every investor they bring in. Even IPOs have a personal connection component. The main underwriter will take the company team out on a roadshow, and introduce the team to its potential syndicate of other dealers to bring them in to an IPO. Those potential dealers put a lot of weight into meeting that team, and likely would not consider investing without a chance to get to know them personally. Advertisement But not all securities crowdfunding takes the unfortunate approach that you need to separate the company from the investor and utilize technology platforms in the place of that person interaction. In addition to the Direct Public Offerings (DPO) that have been around for decades, there is also, for example, the new Oregon Community Public Offering (CPO). DPOs are federally exempt offerings that must be filed with any state in which the offering is conducted, either using a federal exemption that currently limits the raise to $1m (but allows you to file in multiple states), or what is known as the Intrastate Exemption that typically has no dollar limit but requires the company and all investors to be in just one state. The Oregon CPO, which was championed by Amy Pearl and Hatch Innovation, was designed to be a community capital raising tool, and companies are actually encouraged, not discouraged from raising those funds directly from their communities via meet-ups that actually allows people to look the CEOs in the eye. After yesterday's news that Republican Senate leaders will not even consider any Supreme Court nominee until a new president is in office, current President Obama is taking it to the streets in an effort to get his yet unnamed pick approved. Or at least to make some much-needed political hay. In a guest column on the acronymically-named SCOTUSblog, Obama makes his case that he will do his constitutional duty by naming an appointment and he expects the Senate will do the same by giving the Obama nominee a fair hearing and, at least in Obama's world, the thumbs up in an up-or-down vote. The President's implication is that he is fulfilling his duty while a Republican Senate contingent which has clearly stated it will not act on a Supreme Court replacement for Justice Scalia until the next president is in office, would be guilty of a dereliction of duty. If you read between the lines, it almost could be an admonition straight out of Gilbert and Sullivan: "He has done his duty. I will do mine. Go ye and do yours." Advertisement Obama talks about his putative nominee's virtuous qualities: fierce independence; understanding the role of the judiciary in interpreting, not making law; a keen intellect; faultless integrity. Of course. But let's cut through the crap. At this stage, it's all political posturing. On both sides. And in some ways, the President's predicament reminds me of situations faced by the kids in my high school forensics class who after getting busted by the teacher for some infraction or other were faced with detention or another equally odious punishment. In such situations, Bonnie Miller's response was invariably the same: "Sorry, hon, you did it to yourself..." In the past, we have heard criticisms from the White House when Congress passed bills which the President had signaled he would veto. On such occasions, it was as if one could hear in the background of the White House declarations Seinfeld's Larry Thomas deliver one of his lesser-known classic lines with gusto: "Please, you're wasting everyone's time." The President would then go on to veto the bill in question with a slight head shake, as if to say "kids will be kids." On a number of occasions, if the President wanted to be spared the inconvenience of a veto, he got his Senate acolytes to use the filibuster. In this way, for example, he was able to see his recent Iran deal sail through, despite majority opposition in both houses of Congress. While the deal was voted down by the House, it failed to get an up-or-down vote in the Senate. Advertisement At that time, of course, it was the Republican Senate leadership which decried the Democrats' use of the filibuster. As a key element of American foreign policy, the Iran deal, they claimed, deserved a full hearing and an up-or-down vote. The Democrats not only responded with the "waste of time" argument, but also suggested that the use of the filibuster was simply yet another way in which - through their duly elected Senators - the people of the United States were speaking. Sorry, Republicans, you didn't have the votes. Next! Now that the shoe is on the other foot, Democrats are crying "Foul!" and trying to parse the differences between their own use of the filibuster and the Republicans' unwillingness to consider any Obama SCOTUS nominee, which is in itself a form of filibuster. "Ah, but the filibuster is often used when it comes to legislation. It is unprecedented when it comes to Supreme Court nominees." This is sheer nonsense, and it is all political game-playing within the wacky, arcane set of rules the Senate in all its old-school glory sets for itself. When you change those rules, as for instance when the Democrats under then-Majority Leader Harry Reid used the "nuclear option" to eliminate the filibuster for lower-court nominees, don't be surprised when the new rules are used against you if ever that shoe moves feet. And be even less surprised when the existing rules are used against you. You're all playing by the same rules, unless, of course, you change them. Let me make it clear: I personally believe the Republicans in the Senate should give any Obama nominee a hearing (though I do not feel their "advise and consent" role obligates them to an up-or-down vote). If anything, the Republicans are playing within those old-school rules which allow them to make a decision without actually voting on it. They are not changing the rules, as the Democrats did when they used the nuclear option. Advertisement Now it is the President who is on notice that his nominee has no chance of clearing the Senate, as the Senate exercises its constitutionally mandated "advise and consent" role. In this case of reversed fortunes, it is the Senate which effectively is threatening a veto. And yet, just as the Republicans in Congress don't always pay heed to the President's veto threat when it comes to legislation, the President himself seems undeterred by the Senate's veto threat. It's a classic game of political chicken. This time the Republicans will want to frame the matter as one of the American People's right to decide the matter through the upcoming presidential election; they will want to paint the President as "wasting time." The President will want to paint the Republicans as "obstructionist" and "derelict in their duties." Each side will attempt to inflict the maximum amount of political damage on the other in this election year. In a sense, the President is reaping what he has sowed through his inability to reach across the aisle during his 7+ years in office. Ultimately, the SCOTUS showdown and game-playing are nothing more than a symptom of his dysfunctional relationship with the Republicans in Congress, which has been exacerbated by his own abuse of executive orders. In short: how can Republicans in Congress trust the President to pick a justice who understands the Supreme Court's constitutionally mandated role when he himself doesn't seem to understand his own? SINGAPORE -- The rise of Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders in American politics has shocked the world. America has consistently projected itself as the country that could be trusted for political predictability and stability. While extremist or fringe movements might emerge in other countries, American political culture, by contrast, would be dominated by sensible centrist figures, like Jeb Bush and Hillary Clinton. Astonishingly, one has dropped out of the race. The other remains, but is shaky. So what happened? Is this just another passing political phenomenon? Or does it reflect a structural shift in American politics? Here, a comparison with Asia might help to draw out some structural issues that drive politics. To put it simply, the politics of pessimism provides fertile ground for fringe politicians like Donald Trump, just as it does for Marine Le Pen of the National Front in France. The politics of optimism which used to dominate American political life has now shifted to Asia. It has led to the election of sensible centrist figures in Asia like Narendra Modi in India (May 2014), Joko Widodo in Indonesia (July 2014) and Lee Hsien Loong in Singapore (September 2015). Advertisement In the current pessimistic political environments of America and Europe, politicians get punished for truth-telling. So why have Asian societies drifted to the political center and America -- and parts of Europe -- drifted to the fringe? The simple answer is that societies that are hopeful of a better future want to put their fate in safe pairs of hands, like Modi, Jokowi and Lee. By contrast, societies whose populations fear the future are driven to try out fringe figures. The Trump-Sanders surge sends a clear signal that Americans are losing faith in their political establishment. In theory, America has a government of the people, by the people and for the people. In practice, it has a government chosen by the people to serve special interests, not their interests. This perception of American policies being hijacked by special interests was accentuated by the 2008-09 financial crisis. American bankers almost destroyed the American economy, yet only one top one went to jail. Bernie Sanders captures the American anger well when he says, "The sad reality is that the Federal Reserve doesn't regulate Wall Street; Wall Street regulates the Fed. It's time to make banking work for the productive economy and for all Americans, not just a handful of wealthy speculators." He also notes: "If Congress cannot regulate Wall Street, there is just one alternative. It is time to break these too-big-to-fail banks up so that they can never again destroy the jobs, homes, and life savings of the American people." Advertisement Gardens By The Bay, Singapore. "Societies that are hopeful of a better future want to put their fate in safe pairs of hands." (Getty) Inequality and long-term unemployment have made matters worse. Sanders has also stressed that the top 0.1 percent of the American populations own almost as much wealth as the bottom 90 percent. Few white middle-class Americans believe that their children will have a better future. Hence there is a large inchoate anger in the American political system driving the emergence of political extremes. By contrast, several Asian societies (not all) have shunned populism and taken economically necessary but unpopular decisions. Modi bravely removed gas subsidies for consumers with a taxable income higher than 10 lakh rupees -- about 14,600 USD -- per annum. Similarly, Jokowi did the same when he abolished fuel subsidies, with the exception of a small subsidy of 1,000 rupiah -- 0.07 USD -- on diesel. Lee Hsien Loong, has, of course, respected his father's warning against creating budget-busting subsidies. Even Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak, despite his political travails, introduced a tax on goods and services that riled many. Lee Kuan Yew once said, 'I always tried to be correct, not politically correct.' Inevitably, there were some protests against these anti-populist moves. But none of these leaders changed course. Each of them could see a better future down the road for their societies. Hence, they stuck to doing the "right" thing. Interestingly, many Asian leaders were inspired by Lee Kuan Yew's political legacy. Lee Kuan Yew once said, "I always tried to be correct, not politically correct." He also believed in telling his people "hard truths," not politically convenient ones. In the current pessimistic political environments of America and Europe, politicians get punished for truth-telling. Chancellor Angela Merkel is right to say that, aside from Germany's humanitarian obligations, the Syrian refugees also represent a demographic dividend for an aging Germany. She has been punished for telling the truth. Advertisement To campaign for an immigration initiative in the referendum, the right-wing Swiss People's Party uses political posters depicting a white sheep kicking a black one over the border. (SVP) Even more amazingly, the normally sensible Swiss might actually vote in a measure that could subject any foreign resident to automatic deportation, if convicted of offenses ranging from murder to two lesser offenses, such as speeding, committed within a 10-year duration. There's even political posters like the one above depicting foreigners as black sheep. Can populism be killed in the West? Yes, it can. To do this, the dominant negative narratives in the media need to be balanced with positive narratives. The average Western citizen believes that the world is going off the rails. The media only tell this story. Yet, objectively speaking, the world is not being derailed. Military conflicts are on a long-term declining trend. Poverty is diminishing. Middle-class populations are exploding all around the globe. New markets are emerging. After the current downturn, a better future beckons. In short, with the right leadership, Western countries, like the rest, can hope for better futures. Stack of colorful books, grungy blue background, free copy space Vintage old hardback books on wooden shelf on the deck table, no labels, blank spine. Back to school. Education background As a high school teacher I had always told my students that the one person they should really thank for an incredibly wonderful gift was the person who taught them to read. Whether it was a parent, grandparent, or educator, that person gave them an invaluable tool. When you know how to read you can unlock any door. Those who write also read... a lot. In his craft book, On Writing, Stephen King advises authors this classic nugget, Advertisement "If you want to be a writer, you must do two things above all others: read a lot and write a lot." The Victorians called reading "an acquired taste for literature" and I acquired it very early. My parents taught me to read at the age of four and that was a gift that has kept on giving and grown exponentially with time. There were always books around when I was growing up and I read everything. My mother bought Reader's Digest Condensed Books which were a series of hardcover anthology collections, published by the monthly family magazine Reader's Digest and mailed to our home. The collections contained five or six current abridged best-selling novels and nonfiction books. Needless to say I devoured every book in the collections. Marjorie Morningstar, The Kapillan of Malta, The Nun's Story, Giant, The Caine Mutiny, Tales of the South Pacific and so many more entertained and enlightened me. Those books taught me that there was so much more to life than the limited amount of what I knew. They gave me solace and joy, peace and disturbance, doubt and assurance; they shook my world. My favorite books were those whose detailed stories and characters allowed me to live inside another dimension. It was exhilarating to feel as if I was somewhere else with interesting people who were so unlike the ones who populated my world. And it wasn't just stories that influenced me; poetry was at one point an all-consuming passion. T.S. Eliot used to talk about a dead poets' society. This society was Eliot's way of expressing that each author changed poetic tradition and interpretation and made it new. The Rhyme of the Ancient Mariner stayed with me for years as did Kubla Khan and The Highwayman. All 'dead' poets, all with strong influences on new authors. For me, becoming a writer was an early ambition because of the wonderful books I read. Many of the books we read influence us in subtle ways that enrich our writing without defining it. Some influence us by opening a window in our minds that wasn't there before. In a nutshell, books make us think. Advertisement Perhaps author Annie Dillard said it best when she talked about the influence of one writer on another. "The writer studies literature. . . . He is careful of what he reads, for that is what he will write." How true. Writers are readers and it is easy to understand how certain books made their impressions on modern authors. Humorist Dave Barry has admitted that he loved the writings of another famous humorist, Mark Twain. Barry has won the Mark Twain prize for humor. Anne Rice has said that the book Great Expectations by Charles Dickens, a book she re-reads every so often, had a great deal to do with her becoming a writer. Isabel Allende credits reading works by such diverse authors as Germaine Greer and Gabriel Garcia Marquez in influencing the writing of her first novel The House of the Spirits. In a world where reading has been reduced at times to scanning a work on a computer or handheld device, I hope the joy of reading and the influence of authors hasn't dimmed. Books can have a great influence not only on the creative minds of writers but on everyone who seeks to go beyond their own lives. Reading is a gift, a precious one for all of us. Read and enjoy. Happy writing! Read the adventures of Kristen Houghton's own popular sleuth in the A Cate Harlow Private Investigation series available at all book venues Advertisement By now you may have heard that Facebook's "like" button has company. In addition to saying that you like someone else's post, you can now say Love, Haha, Wow, Sad or Angry. The initiative, said Facebook engineering director Tom Alison, came from CEO Mark Zuckerberg who, last year, told staff that he wanted to allow people to give feedback on newsfeed posts other than like. Like is now joined by Love, Haha, Wow, Sad and Angry Zuckerberg was responding to years of feedback from Facebook users who felt odd about "liking" posts that, perhaps, had bad news, like someone's dog dying, or posts about things that made them angry. Advertisement Listen to Larry Magid's CBS Radio News interview with Facebook's Tom Alison And, while they were at it, the company decided to expand the positive reactions too, hence Love, Haha and Wow. "We wanted to be really thoughtful about this and not just default to a dislike button," said Alison, "because in reality people wanted to express more types of feedback than just like or dislike." The company's data analytics team looked at all of the different types of short comments that people commonly leave on newsfeed posts and, said Alison, "it turns out that they fell into really about five or six different buckets," which allowed Facebook to start focusing in a core set of reactions. The company spent time designing different types of icons for the reactions and spoke with members around the globe to make sure that they worked in different cultures and languages. The company built numerous prototypes that it tested with employees and subsets of members and, finally did "country tests" in Ireland and Spain, before rolling it out to the U.S. and other countries. Advertisement Although there is no dislike button, there are two negative reactions, "sad" and "angry." Sad is obvious. You use it to express sympathy when someone posts sad news. Angry, said Alison, has been used mostly to express support for an angry comment rather than expressing anger at the person who wrote the post. The choice of emotions is an important issue because Facebook wanted to make sure that Reactions couldn't be used as a shortcut for bullying. Of course, it's still possible to say nasty things to people in posts or comments but that's not the purpose of the Reactions tool. Alison said that Facebook consulted psychologists and other experts about the right words to express positive (albeit sometimes sad or angry) reactions. No dislike button One thing Facebook didn't do was offer a "dislike" button, as some had speculated. As I predicted, in an article published in September shortly after Zuckerberg expressed interest in creating this product, the company had no intentions of making it easier for people to be nasty or cruel. As a member of Facebook's Safer Advisory Board, I can say first hand that the company puts a lot of effort into combating bullying and harassment and encouraging people to be supportive of one another. Once or twice a year, Facebook holds a Compassion Research Day where it invites researches like Mark Brackett from the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence and Dacher Keltner from Berkeley's Greater Good Science Center to present research on how Facebook can improve the user experience, especially when it comes to helping people deal with conflict, tensions and resolve issues that arise online. For example, researchers have informed Facebook on the proper language to suggest in its social reporting tools so that if someone asks a fellow Facebook member or take down an unflattering image, for example, the request is worded so that it will have the most amount of positive impact with the least amount of drama. Facebook's Reactions product won't solve all negativity on the service, but it does give users an extra set of tools to reach out with love, humor, support and, sometimes sadness and anger. WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 23: Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY)(C), speaks to the media about the recent vacancy at the US Supreme Court, on Capitol Hill February 23, 2016 in Washington, DC. Senate Republicans said they will deny confirmation hearings for any Obama nominee to fill the vacancy after the passing of Justice Antonin Scalia. (Photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Images) The Republican-controlled Senate's refusal to consider, hold hearings for, or even meet with any Supreme Court nominee proposed by President Obama is not "just" partisan politics as usual. It is not even a very bad case of partisan politics. It is dereliction of duty, constitutional abdication, a violation of the oaths of office they took when they became Senators, and disturbs the balance of power in the United States putting our democracy at risk. When US Senators take the oath of office, they swear (or affirm) they will "support and defend the constitution." Article II Section 2, paragraph 2 of the United States Constitution is so clear as to be transparent: "The President shall have power, by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate . . . [to] appoint. . . Judges of the Supreme Court." Advertisement The Constitution -- the document our Senators swear to support -- does not say anything about the President's authority and the Senate's responsibility for this task ending any time before the term of presidency does. It is our collective responsibility to ensure that each branch of government is capable of fulfilling its constitutional obligations. Refusing to keep our highest court fully staffed is irresponsible. Our Constitutional Democracy is founded on and works because of the system of checks and balances and the separation of powers. These are constitutional principles that many of us learned about in junior high school and that have served our Democracy well for over 200 years. When one branch abdicates its duty, it throws the entire system out of whack. To put this into perspective, consider Illinois. Here in Illinois, we have been in a budget stale mate for seven months because our governor and state legislature cannot do their jobs. They cannot compromise and pass a budget for this year (don't even think about next year!). But, that does NOT mean Illinois is closed for business. It means the programs that courts deem to be "essential" are being funded via court orders. Therefore, areas of government expenditure that impact businesses and have powerful representatives in the courtroom get funded while service agencies for families living in poverty, state-supported affordable higher education, and other important state functions go unfunded. Illinois' legislature and governor may be holding fast to principled decisions, but they also are subverting the Illinois constitution and are allowing, indeed forcing the third branch of our state government, the courts, to make funding determinations which amount to making all of the policy decisions about how our state functions. One branch of government, in many ways the least able to do so, is running our state. When two branches refuse to or are unable to do their jobs, the work of governing does not stop; it moves to a different venue. One that may be far less able to make the kind of informed policy decisions that a legislature and executive can make given their roles. Advertisement Stalemates at the Federal level have added significance because in addition to domestic policy, the Federal government maintains our safety and security. That important task is shared by the legislature which sets policy and appropriates funds, the executive, who enforces those laws, and the courts which ensure judicial processes that balance enforcement with due process and fair treatment for those accused of crimes. Handicapping the highest court in the land puts all of these important functions at risk. Like their counterparts in Illinois, our elected Federal officials cannot agree and the stalemate between President Obama and Congress has resulted in the second-least productive Congress in modern history. And now this obstreperous bunch seeks to undermine the court by leaving Justice Scalia's chair empty for at least a year. Congress and President so deeply at odds, handicapping the courts is short-sighted and dangerous. To be sure, replacing Justice Scalia is an important task that may have jurisprudential implications for decades. Our Senators have the prerogative and the responsibility to take this job seriously, but this does not extend to total abdication of Constitutional responsibility. How many of us have jobs where we can simply refuse our clear obligations without being terminated? Thoughtful Time Magazine Story Offers Insight on Looming Gaza Tunnel Campaign | Main | NPR Obfuscates and then Goes Silent on Possible Ethics Violation February 24, 2016 Hamas Reaching Out to Iran, Analysts Say Hamas, the U.S.-designated terror group that rules the Gaza Strip, wants to mend ties with Iran,? according to two analysts. Grant Rumley and Amir Toumaj, researchers at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, a Washington, D.C. think tank, note that Hamas is reaching out to Tehran. Rumley and Tourmaj report that a senior Hamas delegation,? including the movements international relations head Osama Hamdan, politburo member Mohammad Nasr and Khalid al-Qaddoumi, Hamas ambassador to Iran, went to Iran to attend celebrations of the 37th anniversary of the 1979 Islamic Revolution on February 11. The Hamas delegation met with the secretary of Irans Supreme National Security Council, Ali Shamkhani. Relations between Hamas and its principal benefactor, Iran, have been shaky in recent years. As Rumley and Tourmaj note, the terrorist group has historically enjoyed Tehrans generous financial, material and political support, but relations soured in 2012 when the Hamas leadershipthen based in Damascuspublicly sided with the largely Sunni rebels against the Iranian-backed Syrian regime.? Had Hamas chosen to side overtly with Tehran in the Syrian civil war, it likely would have faced blowback in the Sunni Arab world. Hamas, like other Iranian-supported Palestinian Arab terror groups such as Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), is comprised of Sunni Muslims, the dominant brand of Islam in the Gaza Strip, the West Bank (Judea and Samaria), and eastern Jerusalem. In this, it conflicts with the Shiite theocracy of the Islamic Republic. As Middle East scholar Jonathan Schanzer, among others, has pointed out, ties with Tehran have led to rivals and the Palestinian public questioning both PIJ and Hamas legitimacy (Hamas vs. Fatah, Palgrave Macmillan, 2010). PIJs refusal to support Iranian backing of the Houthis in Yemens ongoing civil war also has led to a deterioration of that groups relations with its Iranian benefactorleading to Tehran reportedly cutting 90 percent of its funding for Islamic Jihad. In addition, the mullahs have supported a new Palestinian terror group called Al-Sabireen, which is Shite and as CAMERA has noted (Journalist Profiles New Iranian-backed Palestinian Terror Group,? Oct. 29, 2015) is thought to be recruiting from disaffected members of Fatah, the majority movement in the Palestinian Authority. In 2012, Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh declared his support for opponents of Iranian-backed Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad, saying he salutes the heroic people of Syria who are striving for freedom, democracy and reform.? Of course, Haniyehs praise for democracy and reform do not extend to the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip where the group has refused to hold elections and routinely imprisonsand torturesjournalists (see, for example, Hamas Cracks Downon Palestinian Journalists,? CAMERA, Jan. 13, 2016). Yet, Haniyehs stance was not unanimously supported within the terror group. Rumley and Tourmaj note that several members affiliated with the military wing? of Hamas, continued to court Iranian support and technology just as before. In March 2014, Israel intercepted a cargo ship bearing Iranian arms headed for Gaza.? In August of that year, the Irans Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) stated that it had given Hamas advanced rockets for use during Israels 2014 Operation Protective Edge against the movement, PIJ and similar groups. According to Hamas Hamdan, the objective of the recent visit to Tehran was to reach an understanding on the Syrian civil war. Hamdan said that Hamas now supports a political resolution in the countrya reversal that is perhaps the result of recognition of growing Assad wins and strength following increased Iranian and Russian involvement to prop up the dictator. Hamas member Khalid al-Qaddoumi said the Iranians pledged continued support against Israel. Hamdan told Iranian media that Iranian officials fully supported the ongoing terror attacks against Israelis that have occurred in Jerusalem and elsewhere. The FDD analysts report that although Hamas has fissures and elements of the terror group have increasingly sought support from Iranian-rivals like Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkey, nonetheless the group knows it will find no more committed or generous patron than the Islamic Republic of Iran.? Grant Rumley and Amir Toumaj's February 23 Jerusalem Post Op-ed can be found here. Posted by SD at February 24, 2016 02:41 PM Guidelines for posting This is a moderated blog. We will not post comments that include racism, bigotry, threats, or factually inaccurate material. Post a comment "No matter who we are or where we are going, I think we have the same reason for our flight. It is connection." Last autumn while learning to dance salsa, I met Leo. He founded a startup called flightSpeak because he believes airports should not be about steel and scanners, but about people -- their sights, stories, and connections. He invited me for coffee and asked if I'd write an essay about flight. I loved the idea. Where will you fly next? Why will you go there? No, why will you REALLY go? This post originally appeared on Valentine's Day, at blog.flightSpeak.net. xo -Laura Bump-bump, bump-bump. This exquisite organ pumps life force through our bodies and connects us to one another in unseen ways. Advertisement Your heart can detect the pulse of other hearts around you and it begins to mimic them. Waves form with every beat, carrying information from one heart to another. Most of the time, without even realizing it, we are talking and listening with our hearts. While lovers buy roses, I am preparing for a different kind of heart connection. It started when I met my high school crush at our reunion in Oregon. He had followed the pulse of his ancestors and gone to live among the Sioux on the Great Plains. I asked if I could come for a visit and capture photographs for a story in Lucia (following my own heart led me to return to my Pacific Northwest origins and create this magazine). He offered to introduce me to his community's leaders. "They are all Grandmothers," he said. He wrote the word with a capital G. Now I am dreaming of a flight to the heart of the continent, leaving Seattle's steel buildings and city sounds for Painted Hills and the vast, rich silence of Dakota prairie--something deep in my psyche yearns to meet these Lakota Grandmothers. Advertisement Native American blood flows through my veins too, sloshing with genes of Icelanders and Europeans. My father's great-grandmother was Cherokee, orphaned on the Trail of Tears. She gave birth to sixteen children. My great-grandfather was her youngest. I want to know, better, who she was. I do not have a photograph of her, or any other direct connection to draw from. Perhaps this sentimental desire to fly halfway across the country and meet Native women to whom I have no direct connection is really my heart's way of seeking to unravel one more knot in the mystery. We all have mysteries, don't we? How deep do your roots go? No matter who we are or where we are going, I think we have the same reason for our flight. It is connection. We make sense of our world, and the people in it, through our bodies. We must see them with our own eyes, hear their songs with our own ears, sit beside them to eat. We must sense the cadence of their pulse with our own hearts. This is how we come to know one another. This is how we come to know ourselves. This is why we fly. Woman voting on election day If you moved recently, or if you never registered, or you've simply been living under a rock, then it's time to wake up and move on over to the ballot box. Yep, unless you've been in complete media silence with an aluminum foil cap over your head, you know this is an election year for the president of the U.S of A. There is no "debate" that every American needs to cast their ballot this November, so it is vital to check to see if you are properly registered to vote. Even if you moved several years ago, you may not realize you are not registered to vote with your new local election office. Your voter registration does not move with you. If you move within your existing county, you must complete a new voter registration form to update your new address. If you move to a different county or state, you must re-register with your new county and/or state. Advertisement Fortunately, there are various places to register and the U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC) has made the task simple. Follow this guide to ensure you have a voice in November! 1.By Web & Mail: Visit the EAC website to download and print the National Mail Voter Registration Form. The form also lists pertinent information for each state, including the mailing address to which to send the completed form. You can use the National Mail Voter Registration Form to change your name, change your address, or register with a political party. Once you have completed the registration form, mail it to the address listed under your state in the "State Instructions." 2.By Web: If you are more of a modern voter, Rock the Vote provides an Online Voter Registration Platform. 3.By Car or Foot: Deliver your registration form in person to your local voter registration office or you can also update your voter registration in person at these places: State or local election offices, the Department of Motor Vehicles, any public facility that the state allows voter registration (e.g. public library, public school, or city or county clerk's office). Advertisement 4.When to Register: ASAP! Each state has its own deadline for registering to vote. Check the deadline for your state on the last page of your voter registration form booklet. Or visit Rock the Vote for state by state information, deadlines, and election dates. 5.Exceptions: You cannot use the National Mail Voter Registration Form if you live outside the United States or if you are in the military stationed away from home. Use the Federal Postcard Application available to you from military bases, American embassies, or consular offices. New Hampshire town and city clerks will accept this application only as a request for their own absentee voter mail in registration form. North Dakota does not have voter registration. Wyoming law does not permit mail registration. Patrick Brown, executive director of the Greater Burlington Multicultural Resource Center, has this to say about Bernie Sanders: "We are all so proud of him." Brown has been organizing Martin Luther King, Jr. Day events since the early 90s; speakers have included Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Anita Hill, and the Rev. Al Sharpton. According to Brown, Sanders is a regular participant, introduced Anita Hill when she spoke, and received an award from Rev. Sharpton. Brown also said: I am surprised he has not tapped into me as an African American person to speak about his record here. This is an area he could capitalize more on. That Sanders hasn't is perhaps due to his distaste for quid-pro-quo politicking - as shown by his refusal to take massive corporate donations. Oddly enough, Brown's words appear in a recent piece attacking Sanders, that said Vermont's black leaders found they were invisible to him. The premise is strikingly at odds with Bown's account - which, ironically, is buried more than 650 words into the piece. Before his words in praise of Sanders appear, however, three other individuals critical of Sanders are quoted. While Brown's active status as a black leader in Vermont is inarguable, the others aren't so clear; they include a lawyer for an international finance and aerospace corporation; the founder of an organization that Bizapedia lists as 'inactive'; and the executive director of an organization based 150 miles from Burlington, who seems also to be its lone member. Which is not to say that they are not leaders; but it is an extremely odd choice to present their views as the only relevant ones, especially since Brown, who clearly has a long history with Sanders, could speak from extensive experience about Sanders' relationship with the African American community in Vermont. It gets weirder, though. The 'inactive' organization, the African American Alliance of the Northeast Kingdom, appears in one other website apart from the Bizapedia listing: across the top of a page on a libertarian website, whose sole content is a link to a rough paraphrase of the original article. The paraphrase, titled "Black Leaders Skewer Sanders: He's Neglected Us", does not include Brown's praise for Sanders. The name of the inactive organization is extremely prominent; the name of the libertarian website it appears on it is far smaller, and is easily missed (see image). Advertisement Screenshot of libertarian website; posing as African American site? It is hard to imagine why you would format a page that way; at first glance, it seems to be a page for the inactive organization. That could be the intent, however. If you do a search for the organization, the libertarian site is the top result, with the defunct organization's name appearing as the link - exactly as if it were the website for the organization (see image below). If you were doing a quick fact-check, you'd find the libertarian site, and no others; and, if you looked quickly, you could easily mistake that page for the defunct organization's website, and consider the story confirmed. Screenshot of search result with African American organization appearing as name of link to libertarian website Then again, maybe it's all just poor formatting, that coincidentally supports a blatantly false narrative about a Presidential candidate's relationship with the black community in his home state, right before the first predominately African American primary takes place. By Evi Kaban Dugar Lumbagaol, a 62-year-old father of five, started farming coffee fifteen years ago in the North Sumatra village of Hutajulu. Before becoming a coffee farmer, he earned a modest living trading rice in Tanjungbalai, 200 kilometers (124 miles) away from his hometown. After several years of making meager profits in rice, Dugar gave up and returned home to try his hand at coffee farming. Dugar is not the only farmer Lutheran World Relief (LWR) has worked with who turned to coffee as a last resort. "Coffee farmers cannot be rich," asserts Beslin Sitinjak, a farmer participating in LWR's coffee project in North Sumatra. Many farmers believe that producing coffee will not earn them enough income to purchase anything for their families beyond the barest essentials. They also do not wish for their children to follow in their footsteps, laboring to produce coffee for a market that is often unfair to individual farmers. LWR, through its Ground Up Coffee and Cocoa Initiative, wants to show Indonesian farmers that farming coffee isn't a last resort, but a profitable livelihood. One strategy to improve farmers' and farmers' organizations (cooperates and farmers groups) production capacity, access to competitive financing, and partnerships with buyers is LWR's annual Temu Kopi Forum, which brings coffee farmers together with local and international buyers and financiers for two days of networking and workshops on issues facing the coffee industry, such as climate change and methods for improving coffee quality. Advertisement Another strategy is to directly train coffee farmers in field schools on new inputs, tools, and methods in order to increase their farms' productivity and coffee quality, which in turn increases their income. Most small-holder coffee farmers often lack strong farm management skills and as a result, produce less than 700kg/ha of coffee per year. LWR field schools train farmers on farm operational and financial management to ensure the sustainability and profitability of their livelihood. Dugar, who has participated in one of the field schools, has noticed that his newly acquired pruning skills have improved the productivity of his coffee trees, and he is more confident in his livelihood choice to become a coffee farmer. Dugar only laments, "I wish I were younger, so I could practice what I've learned longer and earn more money since I am able to produce more." Through connecting with more buyers and improving their coffee's quality and quantity, farmers are empowered to negotiate higher prices for themselves. Dugar hopes, "With better prices for my coffee...I can ask my son to come home to become a coffee farmer." Evi Kaban is Program Manager for Lutheran World Relief's (LWR) coffee-based development projects in Indonesia. LWR started working with farmers in Indonesia's coffee sector in 2012 as part of our Ground Up Coffee and Cocoa Initiative that take place in Aceh, North Sumatra, and Nusa Tenggara Timur (NTT). Advertisement Jamel Saliba, better known to her millions of fans as Melsy, did everything you're not supposed to do when you've got a good, corporate job and a 401(k) and you're still in your mid-twenties. She quit her job and raided her 401(k) to start a business in, of all things, fashion illustration. And she's doing just fine, thank you. "Entrepreneurship and art have always just merged together," Saliba says. "I'm equally comfortable being an artist and an entrepreneur. "I've always wanted to be my own boss. When I found this niche about two and a half years ago, I knew I found my calling--to pursue my career as a full-time fashion illustrator and live the dream of becoming self-employed. "I've been surrounded by entrepreneurs my whole life, my dad being one of them, so it's kind of in our blood!" Saliba began posting her fashion illustrations on Etsy, a website that allows independent artists to share and sell their work. In practically no time, Saliba developed an international following and developed a successful business selling her drawings. It's not just art fans who scour Etsy for the latest and hottest. Big businesses do, as well. A French company discovered her work on Etsy, contacted Saliba, and asked if they could present her designs to their next client. Who was that next client? T.J.Maxx/HomeGoods. Saliba did her due diligence, signed the deal, and now sells card sets on the shelves of this major national chain. Hallmark came calling next. Saliba designed images for the iconic card company, which will be released in time for Christmas, 2016. Maybe the most courageous move of all was to rent space in the holiday shops at Bryant Park in Midtown Manhattan, behind the New York Public Library, and the primary location for New York Fashion Week. "I had never done a move like this before," Saliba says. "I rented a bus, packed up all my things, and drove to New York City with my family. I stayed with my cousin in Manhattan for those two months." Renting space in Midtown was a risky move for the young artist/entrepreneur, one she bankrolled out of her 401(k). "To most people," Saliba says of her looting her retirement account, "this is a big no-no. I knew if I didn't take the risk, I would've regretted it forever and didn't want to keep on thinking about what ifs. "I took all the savings I had to my name, and took a major risk ... but it was the best 'no-no' I had ever done!" Saliba is one of a rising tide of young artist/entrepreneurs who have taken advantage of Etsy, Pinterest, and other visually oriented websites to develop national reputations practically overnight. She hopes to work with top designers like Chanel, Prada, Louis Vuitton, and Dior in the near future. She also hopes to extend her brand into high-end stores like Bloomingdales and Neiman Marcus. Vogue and Vanity Fair are on her radar as well. What guidance would she offer artists who fear entrepreneurship? "Never be afraid," she advises. "Fear only gets in the way of your dreams. If you have enough passion to make art your career, you won't be scared--you will have faith! "I'm usually an over-thinker and scared of everything, but I was fearless when it came to starting Melsys [her childhood nickname]. I just had a great feeling about it and ran with it!" You can find her work at Etsy.com/shop/melsys and on Instagram at melsysillustrations. Chynna Levin contributed to the interviewing and writing of this article. Adam Crapser is a loving father. He is also Korean-born American adoptee who has been subjected to and survived a failed adoption and extreme and sustained child abuse. Now, the country that promised Adam a good family and a better life continues to punish him for its own failing systems. Like other immigrant families impacted by deportation and detention. Adam has been unjustly detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on February 8, 2016. He is currently being held indefinitely at the Northwest Detention Center in Tacoma, Washington. Advertisement This is a follow-up of my April 8, 2015 HuffPost regarding the plight of Adam Crapser and the danger of deportation facing all internally adopted American citizens. Adam was adopted from a Korean orphanage by U. S. citizen parents at the age of three. With the promise of being placed in a safe and loving home and a better life. Instead, he faced chronic and severe child abuse and neglect from two sets of adoptive parents. To compound this, both sets of adoptive parents and the State of Oregon failed to fulfill their responsibility to naturalize Adam. Because of their failure, Adam, now 40, is being held in a detention center and faces the possibility of being deported to a country, or understand the culture. Adam and his family deserve to live with dignity and support. All adoptees deserve to be raised in nurturing and loving families. All survivors of childhood violence deserve compassion and access to mental health services. Instead, he is being deported for the failure of those who handled his adoption when he was just a child! Advertisement ALL those internationally adopted into America face the same awful outcome. If you have adopted internationally or know someone who has, please be sure that the adopters have secured citizenship for the children they have adopted. Many who adopt internationally are unaware that it is not done automatically, as well it should be. The Korean adoption community is supporting Adam Crapser and the estimated 18,000 Korean American adoptees that do not have U.S. Citizenship, NAKASEC (the National Korean American Service & Education Consortium) launched an Adoptee Rights Campaign. NAKASEC and Adoptee Rights Campaign have established the following ways you can support Adam by taking any or all of these four actions: 1) Sign a petition in support of Adam being immediately released from detention and removed from deportation proceedings. RABAT, MOROCCO - FEBRUARY 20: Moroccan supporters of the February 20 pro-reform movement take part in a demonstration to mark the fifth anniversary the movement's creation at the Bab el Ahad Square, on February 20, 2016 in the Moroccan capital Rabat. (Photo by Jalal Morchidi/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images) Five Years after Morocco's "Spring" moment, the North African kingdom remains a carefully engineered political edifice where the regime is, for now, virtually uncontested. When the tsunami of the Arab uprisings reached Morocco on February 20, 2011, there was much jubilation and optimism as the February 20 protest movement launched massive demonstrations in Rabat against corruption, economic, and political stagnation. The movement's undeniable feature was that it was born out of several tech savvy youth activists. Using the social media platforms Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, the activists released the movement's founding document calling for a democratic constitution, the recognition of Amazigh as an official language, and the release of prisoners of conscience. In the first protests in Rabat, an estimated 10,000 people took to the streets chanting: "Down with autocracy" and "The people want to change the constitution," and other slogans against the government, corruption and state television. Advertisement The February 20 movement channeled relative deprivation as a key element in framing its repertoires of contention. The protest movement called for sweeping constitutional changes, reducing the scope of monarchical powers, dissolving the parliament and sacking the government. Some protests even breached the so-called redlines, and called for a republican form of government, and an end to the long monarchical reign. The February 20 movement was initially successful in drawing several groups, and mobilizing a diverse lot of dissatisfied political groups in Morocco from radical leftist Marxists to the banned Islamist al-Adl wal Ihsane, which later withdrew from the coalition of the movement due to defections amidst the leadership of the movement, and state penetration of the movement, in what one activist termed as "the betrayal of the movement" by some key group leaders. Unlike Tunisia's and Egypt's governments' tough stances against protesters, Morocco's monarchy, relying on its socio-cultural capital as a spiritual and temporal purveyor of change and stability, managed to slow the momentum of the protest movement of February 20, by offering a slate of constitutional and institutional reforms. These state strategies quickly closed that cycle of contention that the February 20 movement created in the initial massive demonstrations. The movement never took hold in majority rural areas of Morocco where there was a clear discursive disconnect between the youth's demands in the large urban cities of Rabat, Marrakech, and Casablanca, and rural towns I visited around the greater Marrakech area where absolutely no major protests took place formally or informally. Constitutional reforms, though largely cosmetic, and the election of an Islamist-led coalition government interrupted the momentum and cycle of contention of the February 20 movement. However, it is the protest movement's lack of a contentious cultural frame that proved its most pronounced weakness vis-a-vis the regime's cultural capital. In addition to regime cosmetic constitutional changes, and limited legislative elections, which interrupted the February 20 protest movement cycle of contention, the beleaguered movement was also beset by superior regime cultural frames that effectively impeded the movement's success in its articulation of alternative narratives to the monarchy. Despite some slogans denouncing the monarchy as "rotten", and calling for the downfall of the regime of Mohammed VI, the protest movement did not manage to articulate a strong alternative discourse to that of the monarchy, especially in its traditional and religious appeal. The Moroccan monarchy is deeply rooted in society, in terms of both political culture and institutional reach. This, in turn, may be related to the depth of its perceived legitimacy, political manipulation, coercion, and patronage. Advertisement Regime monopoly over the religious sphere is also an added advantage that has inoculated the institution of the monarchy against challenges from opposition forces. The monarch is considered the protector of the faith; a royal prerogative codified in the Moroccan constitution and monitored by the state through the Ministry of Islamic Affairs, which supervises the mosques, religious institutions, and appoints imams. The monarchical interpretation of Islam dominates Morocco's political discourse and religious legitimacy is the basis of the power of the monarch. The centrality of the monarchy in the religious realm has led to the monarch's dominance of religious discourse. Faced with a carefully crafted regime traditional-Modern institutional symbiosis, February 20 movement has largely been limited. The mistakes of Feb. 20th movement were also compounded by its lack of organization and coherent protest strategy. One early striking, but constant feature of the Feb. 20 movement, was its fragmented centrifugal leadership, and horizontal mobilization. Several of its members disagreed on the strategy and goals of contestation, while the withdrawal of the popular banned Islamist movement of al-'Adl dealt it a fatal blow. The February 20 movement has largely failed as a transformational social movement capable of articulating an alternative discursive and coherent challenge to the regime. The movement's cycle of contention and cultural frames were nullified by state institutional, constitutional maneuvering, and by a superior regime cultural frame. Ideological fissures amplified the February 20 movement's weakness, lack of consistent contestation strategy, internal disorganization, state penetration, and co-optation. In many ways the monarchy's apparent "success" in weathering the tempest of the Arab revolts is also a function of the weakness, and manipulation of local protest movements. Despite the failure of the February 20th movement, it has managed a slight discursive silver lining as it has elevated the anti-regime narrative to include dissent in areas previously considered taboo by the state in Morocco. By Paula Arboleda, Senior Legal Advocate, New York Legal Assistance Group In January, we got some good news in New York State when Governor Andrew Cuomo maintained funding in his 2016-2017 Executive Budget for the State's Managed Care Consumer Assistance Program. MCCAP is a network of six community-based organizations across New York State that work together to serve seniors and people with disabilities and their families by helping them access needed health services and reduce their Medicare costs. As a senior legal advocate with NYLAG's Evelyn Frank Legal Resources Program, I know firsthand what a difference MCCAP has made. MCCAP agencies last year served more than 3 million of New York's most vulnerable and hard-to-reach residents: Medicare eligible individuals who are uninsured, dually eligible for Medicare and Medicaid, seniors, immigrants, and people with disabilities. MCCAP agencies collaborate with the New York State Office for the Aging (NYSOFA) to accept referrals of the most complicated cases and resolve complex Medicare issues. We also operate as technical assistance support for the State's Health Insurance Information, Counseling and Assistance Program, and report to NYSOFA regularly on client outcomes. Advertisement I will share just one story of a client whose situation would have been very different without the resources we were able to tap on her behalf. Ms. T, a 67-year-old New York City resident, is a cancer survivor who applied for Medicaid in 2014. As an income-eligible Medicare beneficiary, she should have been automatically enrolled in a Medicare Savings Program (MSP). Through a processing error, she was initially denied Medicaid. A Fair Hearing later reversed this denial and provided retroactive Medicaid coverage, but failed to retroactively enroll her in an MSP. This put her crucial Part D prescription drug subsidy for expensive cancer drugs at risk. Ms. T also had outstanding paid medical bills that should have been eligible for reimbursement. An MCCAP counselor was able to successfully advocate for Ms. T to be retroactively enrolled in an MSP back to the earliest date of her eligibility, to be reimbursed for seven months of expenses she had paid out of pocket, and to continue her vital Part D subsidy, without which she could not afford the cancer drugs. MCCAP has allowed NYLAG and our partner agencies to help millions of struggling New Yorkers like Ms. T. By leveraging the strengths of different organizations we have been able to provide technical support to state agencies, meet unique community needs - such as providing assistance in any language our clients speak - and maintain the direct-to-consumer assistance that Medicare beneficiaries and their families depend upon. Advertisement By Jen Rudin Jacob Tremblay and Brie Larson in Room (via The Hollywood Reporter) In July 2013, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences made a major announcement. After 84 years of excluding casting directors from voting, they finally opened up a new voting branch and let the casting directors in. This was a major accomplishment, but casting directors still don't feel like we are completely part of the Academy, because there is still no Best Casting category. That puts us in a peculiar position: We can vote, but we can't win. Thanks to the buzz generated by Tom Donahue's 2013 Emmy nominated documentary Casting By, viewers learned about the inside world of casting and finally saw the detailed hard work and creative process of the casting director. The Academy also took notice. "The best news was that the movie made a stir," says one of the film's producers, Kate Lacey-Kiley. "A few days before our premiere on HBO the Academy announced they were adding a voting branch for casting directors which was a big first step. Casting is a pivotal element of the filmmaking process, and casting directors need to be diligent and unified in continuing their fight to finally gain that recognition." That recognition has been slow to come. The casting director's job is to synthesize the director's vision for the characters and find actors who bring life to the story. It helps to have a really good memory and a lot of patience. We speak to agents, we conduct grassroots searches, we direct actors in the audition room, we sift through the hundreds of audition tapes, and send only the best actors on. Because casting takes place early on in the movie's production, it's private and confidential and often only the film's producer, director and casting director know who's being considered for a role. It's worth noting, too, that the Casting Society of America (CSA) estimated in 2013 that more than 73% of its 600 members were women. Advertisement London-based casting director Fiona Weir worked on two extraordinary movies this year, both of which are nominated for multiple Oscars, including Best Picture: Brooklyn and Room. In Room, Weir had a particularly hard task: finding a young actor for the lead role of Jack. Weir and her global casting team (Kathleen Chopin in the United States and Robin Cook in Canada) conducted a four-month search for the role. Well over 950 young actors were screened in the U.S. and Canada combined, a process Weir describes as "trying to access kids from the furthest reaches -- London, Canada, and the United States -- in addition to the professional young actors with agents." Weir and her team narrowed in on Jacob Tremblay. He was very good in his first audition. By the end of the four-month casting process, he ended up being identified as one of the top choices. Weir commends Tremblay's immense talents: "Some children get better with each audition....Through the casting process, Jacob revealed himself to have a real capacity to go on the journey of the story." If you haven't seen Room, go see it. Great filmmaking, great acting and great casting. "In the last few years, acknowledgement of our craft has grown immensely," CSA president Richard Hicks shared. "Thanks to the consistently excellent work of casting directors in all forms of media, there is now a deeper understanding of the contributive power of quality casting than ever before, and it's encouraging to see things moving in the right direction." The casting can make or break a movie. When you tune into the Oscars on Sunday and watch the film clips of actors practicing their craft, remember that a casting director probably saw them first. Jen Rudin is an award-winning casting director and author of Confessions of a Casting Director: Help Actors Land Any Role with Secrets from Inside the Audition Room (Harper Collins/It Books, 2013). She is a proud member of the Casting Society of America (CSA) and pens the monthly column "Speak Easy" for Backstage. Backstage recently named Jen one of the top NY CD's to follow on Twitter. Visit www.jenrudin.com and follow @RudinJen Co-authored by Julia Radomski, Information Services Coordinator at Bank Information Center Are development finance institutions held accountable when their projects cause harm to communities and ecosystems? While "accountability" has become an oft-used and broadly-defined buzzword in development, much work remains to be done to ensure that institutions are indeed held to account in their everyday operations. According to a recent report by eleven international NGOs, including the Centre for Research on Multinational Corporations (SOMO), Accountability Counsel, Center for International Environmental Law, and Inclusive Development International, the evidence suggests that development finance institutions are failing to provide remedy to those harmed by their projects. The first independent accountability mechanism created by a development finance institution was the World Bank's Inspection Panel, established in 1993. The Inspection Panel reports directly to the Board of the World Bank on complaints from local communities. The Panel investigates whether the World Bank has violated its environmental and social policies, and recommends actions to mitigate damage and prevent further harm. Many other development finance institutions now have their own complaints mechanisms. "Glass Half Full? The State of Accountability in Development Finance" assesses the extent to which the development banks, such as the World Bank Group and the regional development banks, and their complaint mechanisms (also known as accountability mechanisms) are equipped to handle complaints from affected people. The report draws on analysis of the policies and procedures of the development banks and their mechanisms, and the outcomes experienced by communities that had filed complaints. According to the authors, when it comes to development finance accountability, the glass can be considered either half full or half empty. Advertisement From a positive perspective, project affected people who may have been displaced, impoverished, or otherwise harmed by development projects are generally better off than they would be without accountability mechanisms. Accountability mechanisms like the Inspection Panel are sometimes the only avenues for communities to affect projects and policies financed by the international development institutions, and can be their best--or only--hope for receiving compensation for damages incurred. Cases filed through accountability mechanisms often generate widespread attention, which can lead to improved outcomes for affected communities through international advocacy and media naming and shaming. On the other hand, the process itself cannot be relied upon to deliver results. That is primarily because the outcome relies on the willingness of the bank itself and/or its client to provide remedy. The banks do not provide the accountability mechanisms with sufficient mandate and authority to make binding decisions. An example cited in "Glass Half Full?" is the World Bank's Protection of Basic Services Project (PBS) in Ethiopia, which provided block grants to sub-national government budgets to improve basic services. In September 2012, representatives of Anuak indigenous people submitted a complaint to the Inspection Panel detailing mass forced displacement from their ancestral land, and relocation to sites that were unsuitable for farming and lacked access to services such as schools, clinics and wells. This was a result of the Gambellan Government's villagization program, which the government justified as a way to make it easier to access the basic services in the very same sectors targeted by PBS. In their report, the Inspection Panel concluded that the Bank's design, risk analysis, and supervision were insufficient, and that the Bank failed to take the Anuak's well-being into account. Nonetheless, the Panel concluded that the Bank was not responsible for the harm suffered by complainants. Although complainants believed that the international attention generated by the complaint prevented further harm from the villagization program, the process did not result in redress for the immense harm already inflicted. Advertisement The authors of "Glass Half Full?" recommend strengthening current accountability systems. One basic measure that the banks could adopt is to require their clients to inform those affected by the project about the accountability mechanisms. The current system relies on luck or chance for project affected people to learn that there is the possibility of filing a complaint should they be harmed by the project. Ultimately, though, the development banks have demonstrated over the last 20 years that they are either unwilling or unable to make the current system function. Too often the banks seek to defend and justify their actions, rather than committing to compensate and protect the communities that development finance is intended to benefit. Instead, a more fundamental change is required that would empower accountability mechanisms to make decisions that are binding on the bank and the client. Remedy cannot rely on the willingness of the party who committed the abuse. In the kindergarten classroom at the Kuyilapalayam Higher Secondary School the children are learning to write in Tamil, English and Hindi. Today on the board, Tamil letters dominate and the children practice in composition books. They come up one by one to the teacher and make the corrections she asks for. Tamil has over 200 letters in the alphabet. The teacher tells me, "It's not like English, 26 letters only." In the classroom where students are working on English, my eleven-year-old is shocked. "These kindergartners have better handwriting than I do. They could teach me." The alphabet is on the board in cursive. There's no printing-first philosophy here. Advertisement Here in Pondicherry, small-town India, the surf instructor speaks four languages, shifting between French and English for clients and Spanish and Tamil with his fellow teachers. Mr. Sircar, who allowed me to visit his class at the ashram, speaks English, French, Bengali, Italian, and possibly another language. Our landlord who tells us how terrible his actually very good English is, speaks French, Tamil, and Vietnamese. My advisor speaks French, English, and Tamil. All the students at the College of Education learn English, Tamil and a third language. All I have is English. I tell the teachers I wish I had another language, that I wish my children could have learned a language in primary school, like the children in India do. "But your accent is perfect," says one teacher. My American ummms, likes, and tendency toward hyperbole seem far from perfection to me. The phrase "mother tongue" comes up often in discussions of education in India. It's the language that carried a person through babyhood, and it's important. People talk passionately about their mother tongue, visceral, in the body. I don't see that connection with English among English speakers in the US. In fact, I've heard more regret over whatever ancestral language was lost. It would be difficult to use the phrase "mother tongue" in the US without sounding ironic. Our country's history (and continued policy) of linguistic genocide casts too long of a shadow. We could be offering Indigenous languages in early grades beside a second foreign language and using English as the medium of instruction. It's possible. Other countries do it. Our educational focus on one language hasn't helped anyone get along either. It's clear reading the daily news that we don't understand each other. I'm beginning to believe the opposite. The more languages each of us speak, the more likely we are to find connection and commonality. When we don't offer students in the United States second and third languages in primary school, we limit them. Waiting until middle school, brains awash in hormones and bodies soaked in self-consciousness doesn't work. Advertisement I wonder with the recent unveiling of President Obama's "Computer Science for All Initiative" if we're missing something deeper in the United States. Yes, job readiness. Yes, money. Yes, that's what shapes curriculum. Yes, we are capitalists first. Speakers of languages second. Recent calls to have coding replace foreign language in US schools hammers that fact home. Today I'm thinking about the understanding of self and the world. Knowing another language allows a child a view into another culture, a depth of understanding allows us to navigate the distance between people in a very personal way. Whether it's being able to switch languages to help someone who needs directions or it's arriving at a deeper connection that can only be found through sharing the music and grammar of words. And for lost connection, I'm mourning alone in my office this afternoon. Every time I come to work here, one of the College's assistants comes in to turn on the air. I've traveled from Alaska and they don't want me to be uncomfortable, so they blast it the moment arrive. For South Indians, it's not even that hot yet, so the fans aren't even on yet in other rooms. I'm trying to adapt. Yesterday I went to have chai in the canteen. Professor Annie sat next to me and talked. The chai burned my throat and I didn't know how to ask for a silver cup to pour it back and forth to cool it. The room felt like a sauna. Partway through our conversation, Annie said, "Nicole, you're sweating! You have to go back to your room now!" She grabbed my hand and told me to go, that we'd talk another time. Here I am writing in my office with the air conditioner on. That's what it's like with only one language. Alone, in my climate-controlled world, while my friends, kind and so adaptable, work hard to make things easier for me. That's the sadness of speaking only one language. Advertisement I'm going to shut off the air and go get some chai. I will see if I can find Annie. I'll try not to sweat so much today. A city in the north of Belgium with a population of just over half a million is a place that you may likely not have heard of, since it does not appear that prominently on the more mainstream tourist itineraries. Cities by the sea usually have a lot of character that comes from a flux of trade and people. Antwerp, with its portside location and unique history, is one such city. For starters, eighty percent of the world's traded diamonds pass through here. The centuries old diamond trade is one of the many reasons why this city always seems to be in its golden age. Also, over the course of about six decades before the Second World War, over two and a half million people passed through here on their way to a new life in America, carrying with them countless dreams. Antwerp was the main port of call for the Red Star Line, the shipping company that carried them across the Atlantic. Advertisement They were seeking their fortunes in the promised lands of North America, landing in Ellis Island in New York, in Boston and Philadelphia and in various ports in Canada. They came from all over Europe, escaping poverty, discrimination, famine and many hundreds of thousands of them making a fortuitous escape before the war began. Many of them were Jews escaping imminent persecution and death. Albert Einstein and Irving Berlin were the two most famous names that followed this same route through Antwerp. The city of Antwerp is where they all gathered, often carrying all their worldly possessions and hopes with them, fearful whether they will pass the required medical examinations to be considered fit enough for the New World. Being diagnosed with Trachoma, an infectious eye disease, for example, meant a definite denial to board the ship. All of this after journeys that often lasted weeks or even months for many who came from far flung places in Eastern Europe. These journeys are now chronicled in the Red Star Line Museum in Antwerp. Today, Antwerp is a dynamic and prosperous city with a thriving fashion, design, food, and nightlife scene. It is one of the major hubs of the European fashion scene and is home to the 'Antwerp Six', a group of six avant-garde fashion designers that includes world famous names such as Dries van Noten and Ann Demeulemeester. Since great fashion goes hand in glove with unique design, Antwerp is also home to one of the largest concentrations of design-oriented concept stores, displaying everything from footwear to artisanal home wares. With over seven higher education institutes, it is a city with a lot of young people. Add to that the concerted efforts of the city authorities to promote and incent entrepreneurial ventures, and you get a city pulsating with vigor and energy. Advertisement As if all of this weren't enough, Antwerp has earned some top accolades for its food scene as well. A restaurant here was recently voted the world's most beautiful restaurant. The Jane, a Michelin-starred gem, is housed in an ex-military hospital chapel transformed into a modern gothic space. You don't have to necessarily splurge to find great food here. And even that cafe around the corner will serve your coffee and cake in a way that is reminiscent of a time when afternoons were more luxurious. Most bars here serve a range of great beers - you are in Belgium after all! Antwerp was also home to the baroque artist Peter Paul Rubens and his apprentice Anthony Van Dyck. For art history buffs, a visit to the house where Rubens spent twenty-five years painting - The Rubenshuis - is an absolute must. Like a lot of cities in Europe, Antwerp is really well connected by train to major cities like Brussels and Amsterdam. In fact, the central station, with its art deco hall and towering dome, is regularly voted one of the world's most beautiful railway stations. When we tell these Antwerp stories to our friends in the States and elsewhere who have never visited it, we often get bemused looks. And from those that have visited, there is a shared recognition of having discovered a city rich in its past and present. It's refreshing to know that even in this age of rapid global information sharing, there are still some well-kept secrets, which only adds that much wanted spark of serendipity and joy to travel. Also on HuffPost: I am one of the pastors serving St. Stephen Lutheran Church in Williamsburg, Va. This year, during the journey through Lent, we are encouraging each other in the faith practice of Sabbath-keeping as a way to "Return to God, Rest in God, Discover Delight in God." In that context, God the Holy Spirit has been speaking to me through some verses of Psalm 107 since it came up in the monthly schedule of praying over the Psalms. Psalm 107 has a liturgical character, with the author repeating the same structure of prayer and answered prayer. In each section of the poem, he names a situation of suffering from the peoples' history with God ("Some wandered in desert wastes"; "Some were sick through their sinful ways"; "Some went down to the sea in ships"). Then he gives words to their cry to God for relief and, finally, describes the relief God gave to them. When I pray the Psalm, it speaks to me in metaphors. For instance, I have never literally "wandered in desert wastes." But I sure have experienced periods in the desert during my journey of faith, periods of spiritual dryness, spiritual emptiness. When the Psalm writer ends that section: "For [Yahweh] satisfies the thirsty, and the hungry he fills with good things"; I remember experiences of receiving abundant spiritual drink and food that has ended a desert period on my journey. Advertisement This time through, it is the second section of Psalm 107, verses 10-16, that have stayed in my prayer. The Psalm writer names the peoples' experience: "Some sat in darkness and gloom, prisoners in misery and in irons." Why were they imprisoned? Because "they had rebelled against the words of God, spurned the counsel of the Most High." And so "Their hearts were bowed down with hard labor; they fell down, with no one to help." This time through Psalm 107, with thoughts of Sabbath-keeping providing the context, I have been thinking about my experiences of imprisonment to hard labor. For me, often, a stretch in the desert comes because I am exhausted, on the edge of burnout. Why? It's because I have been working too intensely, for too long, without a break. I have been ignoring the healthy rhythm that God has built into creation - of receiving the gift of Sabbath time. Instead, I have been working as if it all depends on me, on my accomplishments, on getting everything checked off of my "to do" list. I find that I have again turned away from God and, because of my overly-active sense of responsibility, I have become a slave to my work, a prisoner in misery. This is because I have been rebelling against the words of God. The Psalm writer describes me. Imagine this: God loves us so much that God commands us to receive the gift of Sabbath time! God commands us to turn away from time devoted to worries about productivity, anxiety over accomplishment. God commands us to receive time for losing ourselves in whatever it is that gives us the greatest delight and joy in God! What refreshment comes from this! What energy Sabbath-keeping gives us, when we return to our work. Return to God, rest in God, discover delight in God. In October 2015, Peter Taptuna, the Premier of Nunavut, the northeastern territory that, with two others, central and west, comprise the land that borders the Canadian Arctic, wrote an open letter to the four candidates in the coming Federal elections. The letter posed questions in six major areas of interest: What will your party do to ensure Nunavut's economic development continues to grow and this growth benefits the people of Nunavut in a sustainable and environmentally friendly manner? What are your party's priorities and plans to address our infrastructure deficit? Is your party prepared to work with the Government of Nunavut to develop a long-term plan that will address and fund Nunavut's housing needs? Does your party support a devolution agreement with Nunavut? Does your party support a strengthened language services agreement with Nunavut and the resources to enable a successful heritage center? Is your party committed to developing a strategic climate change plan for the Arctic? Will you ensure that the three territories are involved and have real input in such a plan? When would you, as leader, begin and have such a plan in place? The letter was written, no doubt, to publicize the long and unresolved discussion between the Harper government and the indigenous peoples of Canada, to put the candidates on the spot regarding the future, and to perhaps influence a vote that at the time seemed likely to favor the Conservatives whose policies, focused mostly on Canadian sovereignty in the region, in conflict with Russia and the United States, and an industrial development of the Arctic to include road-building, oil and gas extraction, increasing fishing, and the opening of shipping lanes across the Northwest Passage. Harper's slogan regarding the Arctic was "Use it, or lose it," thus I suspect Premier Taptuna was not optimistic that his questions would affect the election or change the debate, or even generate a response. But, change did occur, radical change with the stunning election of Trudeau who had clearly advocated against the Harper emphasis on tar sands energy and pipelines and was apparently more sympathetic about the Nunavut issues raised. Trudeau has now been in office a few short months, and the specific plans he may have for the Arctic are not yet forthcoming. Advertisement Taptuna's letter, however, revealed that his concerns for the people he represents, for those who have lived for generations in the hard and remote places of the Arctic, are directed toward development that is environmentally sustainable and benefits residents in the context of local employment and business opportunities, not federal royalties or corporate profits. Taptuna writes of an "infrastructure deficit", outmoded and inefficient power generation, lack of runways for air access, and no fiber optic connection to link these communities through the Internet to the rest of the world. He points further to a crises in sub-standard and limited housing, inadequate water and sewage services, and basic educational programs that do not come close to the communities' needs. He calls for a Nunavut-based university to provide higher education and vocational training. He points to the decline in funding to support Inuktuk, the indigenous language of the Inuit who comprise 85% of Nunavut population. He argues for a place to store, display, and interpret indigenous art and historical artifacts, a heritage center comparable to those that have been built and are government-subsidized in every other part of Canada. Nunavut is also the only territory in Canada that does not control Crown lands and natural resources, and thus has no say in policy and decisions made regarding transfer, licenses, royalties, and other benefits derived from this exploitation by others. A devolution agreement, creating a structure whereby the Nunavut government can participate in the development decisions has been under consideration for some time, but negotiations were suspended pending the outcome of the election. All these questions and uncertainties pertain directly to similar questions regarding Arctic resources and populations all across the north--Canadian and otherwise. These are global ocean issues, and the old parameters, along with the old perpetrators, may no longer be appropriate and useful. It may be that now, at long last, Premier Taptuna's letter from Nunavut merits a differently articulated response. -- There are about 500 million small-scale farmers on Earth, and most of them live on less than $1 a day. That's half a billion people laboring below the global poverty line, surviving and sometimes struggling to improve their harvests. They're often separated from larger population centers, or lack the means to educate themselves on specialized farming methods, or run up against natural and man-made obstacles that leave the futures of their farms in jeopardy. In these situations, knowledge is as valuable a tool as a shovel, a seed or a plow. But whereas the internet is readily available to Western nations on the grid, farmers in Africa and parts of South America operate on a digital deficit. That's why WeFarm calls itself, "The internet for people without the internet." Founded in 2014, WeFarm is a free, peer-to-peer service designed for farmers living around the world. It enables farmers to share information with each other via SMS (Short Message Service), or text messaging. WeFarm translates and connects queries from continent to continent, and has thus far provided more than 100,000 answers to its 43,000 registered farmers. WeFarm's SMS service. (Image courtesy of WeFarm) WeFarm CEO and founder Kenny Ewan developed the service after spending seven years working in sustainable agriculture with indigenous communities in Peru. Many of the communities he lived and worked in were remote and without regular access to the internet, which left them isolated from their neighbors. Ewan was largely concerned about the effects of climate change on the region, and how global warming will necessitate a change in harvesting techniques. Advertisement Today, over 97 percent of scientists agree that global warming will increasingly impact the way human beings live. Developing countries will be hit the hardest of all, making them the critical locus for climate adaptation strategies. According to Zoe Fairlamb, WeFarm Comms and PR Manager, the idea for a peer-to-peer service came to Ewan when he saw how innovative certain farmers could be when meeting the challenges of climate change. "Kenny noticed, quite soon on, that people could come up with these low-cost, ingenious solutions, but farmers five miles down the road wouldn't have heard about what these people were doing," she told Planet Experts. "So that prompted him to think about communication and really pose the question, 'Why isn't there a global resource for information on agriculture?'" Ewan began the process of creating that resource in 2009 when he joined Cafedirect Producers' Foundation (CPF), a UK-registered charity that works with smallholder farms and their organizations. Advertisement Connecting Farmers and "Changing the Conversation" Internet connections might be less common in the developing world, but mobile technology is pervasive. GMSA estimates that there are 7.5 billion mobile connections, and 3.7 billion unique subscribers, worldwide. By comparison, a little more than a third (36 percent) of the planet is online. In Africa, many countries have leapfrogged landline technology and gone directly to mobile phones. According to Pew, some 90 percent of adults in Nigeria and South Africa own cell phones (mostly "basic feature" phones capable of calling and texting). Indeed, for most Africans, SMS technology is already an invaluable tool. In 2007, Vodafone launched M-Pesa, a mobile phone-based money transfer system, for mobile network operators in Kenya and Tanzania (the "M" stands for mobile, the "pesa" is Swahili for money). It was the success of mobile tech like M-Pesa that spurred WeFarm to make its initial launch in Kenya in February 2015. "In East Africa, people are very used to using mobile technology for other services," said Fairlamb. "There's also a very strong culture in Kenya and Uganda of people sharing and giving. People trust one another and want to share and help each other." In 10 months, WeFarm registered about 33,000 Kenyan farmers with its service. "People love it," said Fairlamb. The ultimate goal is to create a global network for small-scale farmers in Africa, Asia and Latin America. As Fairlamb explains, "Basically, a farmer can register on WeFarm's service completely for free just by sending an SMS message to our national number. Once they've signed up to the service, they can then ask any question regarding farming and we distribute that question to other farmers locally, nationally and internationally, and the farmer who asked the question should receive between three to five crowd-sourced answers within a couple of hours without having to leave their farm, without having internet access and without having to spend any money." Advertisement Using SMS in Uganda. (Photo Credit: WeFarm) It's a fast, free and convenient solution for farmers on the edge of developing infrastructure, yet marketing the service proved an initial challenge. By definition, these unconnected farmers are scattered and separated, remote and difficult to reach. "We've had to be quite inventive in solutions of ways to reach these people," said Fairlamb. Part of that has been making use of CPF's farming network and training farmers to become WeFarm ambassadors, which then go out and train others in turn. The most successful method for getting the word out, however, has been radio. Interviews with radio presenters on both the local and national level have had incredible results, said Fairlamb. "There was one occasion where we did a national radio show and within the space of an hour we had 4,000 people sign up to the service. It was really exciting seeing everyone registering that quickly." WeFarm's Uganda network has also shown promising growth. After launching in late November, they had already signed 2,500 farmers by mid-December. A Peru launch earlier in the year has also added invaluable insights to WeFarm's information network. "We're seeing some amazing things, pieces of advice, coming through the system from Peru," said Fairlamb. The growth of the service in Africa alone has been extremely gratifying for the WeFarm team. "I think Kenny [Ewan] would say that it wasn't a surprise but maybe a relief just how much farmers use it and how much they value it," said Fairlamb. "There were a lot of people who questioned the peer-to-peer model, but that's the core of the business. There's kind of a widespread approach in international development circles whereby people kind of assume and think that people who are living in poverty need to be told what to do. WeFarm wants to be about changing that conversation and giving these people a voice, showing their knowledge is valuable and giving them a way to share that information. Advertisement WeFarm's next big launch will be in Cote d'Ivoire. A Tanzania launch is forthcoming, as are launches in India and Brazil. Balancing Social Good With Making Profits Though a humanitarian endeavor, WeFarm is also a for-profit business. Yet it's a business that is following the growing economic ethos that profit is not divorced from doing good. The social good of the WeFarm SMS service is giving farmers the means to communicate with each other and share techniques and strategies for improving crops and adapting to climate change. That service is free, so the revenue comes from the wealth of insight that emerges from that communication. Still in the pilot stage, WeFarm hopes to sign up businesses to a monthly service that provides disaggregated data about what's going on in their various supply chains. As Fairlamb explains, "Small scale farmers are responsible for producing 70 percent of the world's food, but the majority of corporate food and drink businesses, retailers, any kind of consumer brand that has small scale farmers in their supply chain, has next to no visibility as to what goes on in that bottom rung. So we offer a service to these types of businesses that enables them to improve supply chain sustainability, make better decisions and help the people who are producing the products that they rely on." Connecting with SMS in Uganda. (Photo Credit: WeFarm) For a tea company, that might look like, "What are the top three questions that tea farmers are asking this month?" or the top two crops that tea farmers are looking to diversify into. Disaggregated data from WeFarm can also help identify challenges facing various farmers and techniques for overcoming them. WeFarm is also interested in providing lead generation and SMS advertising for more local businesses. Advertisement "Constantly on the system we see people asking questions about 'where can I find this type of seed' or 'where can I buy a solar panel,' 'I'm interested in a micro-finance loan, how do I go about finding that?' We're quite well positioned to be able to connect these farmers to the products and the services that they're looking for," said Fairlamb. William Penn was the first great hero of American liberty... Almost everywhere else, colonists stole land from the Indians, but Penn traveled unarmed among the Indians and negotiated peaceful purchases. He insisted that women deserved equal rights with men. He gave Pennsylvania a written constitution which limited the power of government, provided a humane penal code, and guaranteed many fundamental liberties... The French philosopher Voltaire, a champion of religious toleration, offered lavish praise. "William Penn might, with reason, boast of having brought down upon earth the Golden Age, which in all probability, never had any real existence but in his dominions." Penn was the only person who made major contributions to liberty in both the New World and the Old World. Before he conceived the idea of Pennsylvania, he became the leading defender of religious toleration in England. He was imprisoned six times for speaking out courageously. While in prison, he wrote one pamphlet after another, which gave Quakers a literature and attacked intolerance. He alone proved capable of challenging oppressive government policies in court -- one of his cases helped secure the right to trial by jury. Penn used his diplomatic skills and family connections to get large numbers of Quakers out of jail. He saved many from the gallows. William Penn was born on October 14, 1644, in London... Left mostly to himself, young William became interested in religion... Quakers were a mystical Protestant sect emphasizing a direct relationship with God. An individual's conscience, not the Bible, was the ultimate authority on morals. Quakers didn't have a clergy or churches. Rather, they held meetings where participants meditated silently and spoke up when the Spirit moved them. They favored plain dress and a simple life rather than aristocratic affectation. After acquiring a sturdy education in Greek and Roman classics, Penn emerged as a rebel when he entered Oxford University. He defied Anglican officials by visiting John Owen, a professor dismissed for advocating tolerant humanism. Penn further rebelled by protesting compulsory chapel attendance, for which he was expelled at age 17. His parents sent him to France where he would be less likely to cause further embarrassment, and he might acquire some manners. He enrolled at l'Academie Protestante, the most respected French Protestant university, located in Saumur. He studied with Christian humanist Moise Amyraut, who supported religious toleration. Back in England by August 1664, Penn soon studied at Lincoln's Inn, the most prestigious law school in London. He learned the common law basis for civil liberties and gained some experience with courtroom strategy. He was going to need it. Admiral Penn, assigned to rebuilding the British Navy for war with the Dutch, asked that his son serve as personal assistant. [] Young William developed a cordial relationship with the King and his brother, the Duke of York, the future King James II. Penn's quest for spiritual peace led him to attend Quaker meetings even though the government considered this a crime. In September 1667, police broke into a meeting and arrested everyone. Since Penn looked like a fashionable aristocrat rather than a plain Quaker, the police released him. He protested that he was indeed a Quaker and should be treated the same as the others. Penn drew on his legal training to prepare a defense. Meanwhile, in jail he began writing about freedom of conscience. His father disowned him... He learned that the movement was started by passionate preachers who had little education. [so he] resolved to help by applying his scholarly knowledge and legal training. He began writing pamphlets, which were distributed through the Quaker underground. ...Meanwhile, Penn attacked the Catholic/ Anglican doctrine of the Trinity, and the Anglican bishop had him imprisoned in the notorious Tower of London. Ordered to recant, Penn declared from his cold isolation cell: "My prison shall be my grave before I will budge a jot; for I owe my conscience to no mortal man." By the time he was released seven months later, he had written pamphlets defining the principal elements of Quakerism. His best-known work from this period: No Cross, No Crown, which presented a pioneering historical case for religious toleration. The Conventicle Act He wasn't free for long. Penn decided to challenge the Conventicle Act by holding a public meeting on August 14, 1670. The Lord Mayor of London arrested him and his fellow Quakers as soon as he began expressing his nonconformist religious views. At the historic trial, Penn insisted that since the government refused to present a formal indictment -- officials were concerned the Conventicle Act might be overturned -- the jury could never reach a guilty verdict... The jury acquitted all defendants, but the Lord Mayor of London refused to accept this verdict. He hit the jury members with fines and ordered them held in brutal Newgate prison. Still, they affirmed their verdict. After the jury had been imprisoned for about two months, the Court of Common Pleas issued a writ of habeas corpus to set them free. Then they sued the Lord Mayor of London for false arrest. The Lord Chief Justice of England, together with his 11 associates, ruled unanimously that juries must not be coerced or punished for their verdicts. It was a key precedent protecting the right to trial by jury. ... Penn began to form a vision of a community based on liberty. He resolved to tap his royal connections for his cause. With the blessing of King Charles II and the Duke of York, Penn presented his case for religious toleration before Parliament. They would have none of it... The Founding of Pennsylvania Penn became convinced that religious toleration couldn't be achieved in England. He went to the King and asked for a charter enabling him to establish an American colony. Perhaps the idea seemed like an easy way to get rid of troublesome Quakers. On March 4, 1681, Charles II signed a charter... The King proposed the name "Pennsylvania" ... Penn sailed to America on the ship Welcome and arrived November 8, 1682... Penn was most concerned about developing a legal basis for a free society. In his First Frame of Government, which Penn and initial land purchasers had adopted on April 25, 1682, he expressed ideals anticipating the Declaration of Independence: "Men being born with a title to perfect freedom and uncontrolled enjoyment of all the rights and privileges of the law of nature ... no one can be put out of his estate and subjected to the political view of another, without his consent." ... His First Frame of Government provided for secure private property, virtually unlimited free enterprise, a free press, trial by jury and, of course, religious toleration. Whereas the English penal code specified the death penalty for some 200 offenses, Penn reserved it for just two -- murder and treason. As a Quaker, Penn encouraged women to get an education and speak out as men did. He called Pennsylvania his "Holy Experiment." Penn insisted on low taxes... Penn's First Frame of Government was the first constitution to provide for peaceful change through amendments... Penn achieved peaceful relations with the Indians -- Susquehannocks, Shawnees, and Leni-Lenape. Indians respected his courage, because he ventured among them without guards or personal weapons. He was a superior sprinter who could out-run Indian braves, and this helped win him respect. He took the trouble to learn Indian dialects, so he could conduct negotiations without interpreters. From the very beginning, he acquired Indian land through peaceful, voluntary exchange... His peaceful policies prevailed for about 70 years, which has to be some kind of record in American history... ... With an atmosphere of liberty, Philadelphia emerged as an intellectual center. Between 1740 and 1776, Philadelphia presses issued an estimated 11,000 works including pamphlets, almanacs, and books. In 1776, there were seven newspapers reflecting a wide range of opinions. No wonder Penn's "city of brotherly love" became the most sacred site for American liberty, where Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence, and delegates drafted the Constitution. By creating Pennsylvania, Penn set an enormously important example for liberty. He showed that people who are courageous enough, persistent enough, and resourceful enough can live free. He went beyond the natural right theories of his friend John Locke and showed how a free society would actually work. He showed how individuals of different races and religions can live together peacefully when they mind their own business. He affirmed the resilient optimism of free people. These questions originally appeared on Quora - the knowledge sharing network where compelling questions are answered by people with unique insights. Answers by Austan Goolsbee, American economist, Professor of Economics at The University of Chicago, on Quora. A: Well, his tax plan is an $11 trillion tax cut over 10 years and he's said he's for massive tariffs on imported goods. Those are about the only specific economic policies he's mentioned. Most economists I know-- spanning the ideological spectrum--say his plans are nutty. I presume he will start changing what he says he will do if he gets the nomination. So far, I would say that each time he says something about the economy everyone here at Booth wants to run the clips of him saying he went to Wharton. Advertisement ... A: Depends which ones and whether you mean the ideas of the proposals or the specifics. I think several of his ideas are really important--improving college affordability, getting more people covered in health care, reforming campaign finance, etc. Some of the actual specifics in his policies I would say the numbers do not add up at all and I hope that they will keep working on them to make them more realistic. Overall, though, as I wrote in a blog post last November, I basically think that Sanders is proposing something like the big social welfare states in Europe. Those entail higher government spending than we have had before in the US but clearly they aren't impossible given that they exist. I would just remind folks that if you have European sized government sectors, you are likely to also have European-style taxes which are paid by the middle class, not just the rich. ... A: He was an excellent debater, yes (he & his partner were 2nd in the nation....my partner and I were 1st). Advertisement He was best at set pieces and laying traps for his opponents. He was most vulnerable to having to adjust on his feet. I'm afraid that if he gets elected president, he's going to come after me for all the fun I used to have at his expense. ... A: I only saw one President's decision making up close and he's a guy I knew for a long time before he became President so no way I can eliminate my own biases. Disclaimer: This is not a political post. Rather, I'm using my interests as a futurist to share some possibilities about what Bernie Sanders' reticence about his Judaism might say about him and about contemporary American Jews. Bernie Sanders, despite an unmistakably Brooklyn Jewish accent, clearly is ambivalent about publicly identifying himself as a Jew. He lived on a kibbutz in Israel, defended the right of Chabad to place a large menorah outside of City Hall, when he was mayor of Burlington, Vermont and joined them in lighting it. Today, when asked about his religion, he describes himself as a "secular" Jew and speaks in generalized terms about spirituality. He sometimes hints in code that he's Jewish (as if anyone in the America or maybe even in the world doesn't know!). In a recent debate with Hillary Clinton, he commented: "... I think, from a historical point of view, somebody with my background... I think a Sanders' victory would be of some historical accomplishment, as well." He is an admirer of the current Pope, whom he claims is also a socialist, and Bernie has quoted the Jewish Biblical prophet Amos, but without explicitly connecting his passion for social justice to his Jewish heritage. Advertisement So, to what extent is Bernie a glimpse into the Jewish future -- as a seeker of universal social justice of Jewish descent? Is he a portent of what more American Jews will be like -- individuals who adopt a strong narrative and practice of social justice, deeply linked to the Jewish past but intentionally delinked from the Jewish present? I'm also curious about why an individual who speaks about moral values is described as "secular" and not "religious" in both Jewish and general religious press outlets (like Religion News Service). This description is an admission of our self-acceptance of categories that experts have imposed on the nature of religion. But I believe it is a false, binary, distorted and fragmenting distinction. It unintentionally reinforces a belief that "real" religious people practice rituals but may not care as much about ethics, and "genuine" secular Jews care about social justice but may be indifferent to the beauty of Jewish ritual practice. The categories of "secular" and "religious," as we know from decades of studies on the American Jewish community, obliterate the nuanced understandings that individuals hold about the meaning that Judaism has for them. The New York Observer called to ask me if I had seen that my dear friend of 25 years, Senator Cory Booker, had removed me from his memoir over my public criticism of his choice to support the Iran deal. I was vocal in calling upon Cory to oppose the genocidal Iran regime and oppose giving them $150 billion to murder innocents around the globe. Cory also chose to block any vote on the deal in the Senate after publicly promising, just two days before the vote, that he would not participate in the Democratic filibuster because a vote on so momentous a policy, he said, was vital. I took the news in stride and told them I had expected it. Cory expected me to put loyalty and friendship first and to remain silent over his backing the Iranian regime amid their threats to annihilate the Jews. I have supported Cory for 25 years. Made him my student President at Oxford University at a time when we were the second largest student organization in Oxford's history. Had him introduce our guest Mikhail Gorbachev to 3000 students. Introduced Cory to the American Jewish leadership across the United States. Got him to speak before hundreds of Jewish audiences and facilitated his raising millions of dollars for his campaigns from the Jewish community. Helped him prepare countless speeches based on themes from the Torah and the writings of Jewish giants like Maimonides, the Rebbe, Elie Wiesel, and Victor Frankl. Advertisement But this time was different. There can be no silence in the face of genocide. There can be no passivity when confronting genocidal intent. The United States is a signatory to the United Nations' 1948 Anti-Genocide convention which makes incitement to genocide a crime against humanity. Rather than being given $150 billion by which to kill innocent people around the world, the leaders of Iran should have been indicted at the International Criminal Court at The Hague for their repeated promises to eradicate the Jews. Cory, as someone who promised eternal friendship to a community that made him the foremost recipient of contributions from Jewish supporters of any candidate in the United States, due to their love of Cory's values, should have been at the forefront of condemning Iran's promises to exterminate the nation of Israel. His silence precipitated my outspokenness. Public figures have to understand that criticism comes with the territory. It's nothing personal. But genocide is deadly serious. I told The New York Observer that Cory will just have to understand my deep disappointment and get over it. I will always love him. We will always be soul-friends. Our friendship will resume. I am a public figure and as painful as it is to admit it, I have learned much from my admirers but even more from my critics. Advertisement And as for me, well, father Abraham reminded us that we are all but dust and ashes. And however much a friend's actions will sometimes cause personal pain, we all have much larger things to live for, none more so than the protection of our people and defending the infinite value of human life. True, other Rabbis and Jewish leaders to whom I introduced Cory over the last 25 years chose not only silence in the face of Cory's Iran support but bent over backward to give Cory political cover and preserve his relationship with a stunned Jewish community as Jewish support for Cory began to disintegrate. These Rabbis did so in the name of political access, arguing that Cory is a powerful man and the community needs a relationship with him. In particular, Rabbi Shmully Hecht, for whom Cory also served as student President at Yale after my imploring Cory to do so, and Rabbi Menachem Genack of the Orthodox Union, who met Cory at my home over many Shabbat meals, worked overtime to get Jewish leaders to meet with Cory in order to preserve his standing in the Jewish community. Shmully made herculean efforts to have Cory invited to high-level meetings with Jewish and Israeli leaders where Cory was being shunned after what many saw as a betrayal. Rabbis providing Cory with political cover in order, one presumes, to preserve their access to the Senator was all allegedly done in the name of helping Israel and the Jewish community. But in this apparent attempt to curry favor with a lawmaker who has legitimized a regime that stones women to death and hangs gays from cranes, I was reminded of the sad legacy of Rabbi Steven S. Wise, the Reform Jewish leader during the Holocaust who categorically refused to call out FDR for inaction against the annihilation of European Jewry, his refusal to bomb the train tracks to Auschwitz, and the State Department's unwillingness to allow Jews into the United States, all in order to preserve access to the White House. To be sure, Wise argued that the community needed the President and thus should never criticize him. His refusal to call out the President, and his efforts to provide FDR with political cover in the Jewish community, was all done in the name of God. Advertisement But history remembers it differently. Wise's name today lives in infamy because he put political relationships before the interests of his people. And his silence did not help even a bit. It was Peter Bergson, who strongly challenged the FDR Administration in successive full-page New York Times ads that ultimately led to the creation of the War Refugee Board and the saving of some 250,000 Jews. Bergson was soundly criticized by many as a troublemaker and nuisance. Wise said that Bergson's criticisms of the White House had made him "worse than Hitler." But history has vindicated Bergson as the courageous Jewish leader who put the interests of his people before relationships with the powerful. This year on 5 May our organization, The World Values Network, will honor Bergson through his daughter Becky with fellow honorees Yoko Ono, Rev. Bernice King, daughter of Martin Luther King, Jr., the Crown Prince of Iran Reza Pahlavi, mega-philanthropists Michael and Judy Steinhardt, and the world's foremost benefactors of Jewish causes, Dr. Miriam and Sheldon Adelson. Cory is a good and special man. But he is served poorly by sycophants who refuse to remind him of the virtues that made him so special and brought him to national prominence in the first place. First, there was always Cory's graciousness and gratitude. Where did that go? How could Cory have written a memoir that barely acknowledges the vast Jewish contribution to his life and career, if at all? In Cory's Book United he acknowledges the influence of the African-American, Latino, and Muslim communities in shaping his life, teaching him valuable lessons, and supporting his political rise. The Jewish contribution seems largely to have vanished. Gone is any mention of the thousands of hours of Torah and Parsha study that we enjoyed together and which helped shape his values. Lacking is any reference to how the ideas and values of Judaism, which I and other scholars studied with him, gave him inspirational material for speeches that electrified audiences. Absent is mention of the hundreds of Synagogues who opened their doors to him and gave him unconditional love. Missing also is a proper acknowledgment of the countless Jewish organizations and individuals who raised huge sums of money to support his political campaigns from the time he first ran for City Council to the time he reached the Senate. In largely whiting out his history with a Jewish community that once adored him but became disillusioned in his failure to at least call out Iran for their promised second holocaust, Cory undermined the incredible courage it took for an African-American Rhodes Scholar to become the head of my student L'Chaim Society organization at Oxford in the early nineties when there still was tension between the Black and Jewish communities. Our friendship, which was written about in the world's leading publications and which even Barbra Streisand wanted to make a film about, inspired hundreds of thousands and Cory even pushed me to take off an entire summer to write a book about our special and unpredictable soul-friendship. Cory moved into my home and we wrote and wrote every day in my living room. In the place of that bravery we have instead, as a friend who reviewed the book expressed it to me, the "whitewashed, homogenized, poll-tested language that is risk free and without the passion and personality that made him so interesting and dynamic." The brave Cory that defeated Sharpe James and took over a city, embraced reform, and destroyed a corrupt political machine is replaced by a more timid political personality who barely won his senate seat in the very blue state of NJ. The brave Cory stood up for Israel and was famously above partisanship. The whitewashed Cory stands up unconditionally for President Obama's policies on Iran and Israel and calls Hillary Clinton "the most qualified candidate for President since George Washington," even as she takes advice on Israel from arch-Israel hater Max Blumenthal who calls Israel a Nazi state and compares the IDF to the SS. But I do not despair. I know we will see the brave Cory again, the one that was both my pupil and inspiration at Oxford. The time will come for the Jewish community to reconcile with our dear friend. I believe that one day soon Cory will take to the floor of the United States Senate and demand that the remaining provisions of the Iran deal be frozen until Iran stops threatening a second holocaust of the Jews and ceases their support for Bashar Assad's wholesale slaughter of innocent Arabs in Syria. Advertisement Samantha Power exposed in her Pulitzer-prize winning book, A Problem from Hell, the many American politicians who sat idly by while genocides raged during their terms in office. She loudly criticizes the Administration of President Bill Clinton and Susan Rice for their failures to stop the Rwandan genocide. There is no excuse for silence in the face mass murder. One must speak out regardless of the political costs. Joseph Stalin is credited with saying, "A single death is a tragedy; a million deaths is a statistic." It is just too easy for politicians to sit back and do nothing when there is nothing pressuring them to act. Yet with all of this, and through Cory's heartbreaking error of supporting the Iran deal, I have said over and again that my outspokenness was never personal. This was a matter of genocide, not egos, and I am sure that our friendship is strong enough to survive even this. As President Obama welcomed representatives from 10 Southeast Asian nations to California for the US-ASEAN meeting at Sunnylands last week, it became quickly apparent that not everyone was happy with the guest list. Human rights advocates questioned the wisdom of inviting Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, who, after gaining control following a coup in 2014, has clocked up a very worrying human rights record, which counts an "attitude adjustment" program and liberal use of the lese majeste laws among its dubious achievements. Some, such as Human Rights Watch suggested that Obama should take this opportunity to have some uncomfortable conversations with Asian leaders about their predilection for 'jailing journalists, cracking down on peaceful protestors and dismantling democratic institutions after coups', while others, such as RED-USA pointed out that in hosting the visit, the USA is actually violating its own laws, and suggested that Chan-o-cha's visa should be cancelled. Advertisement Predictably, this didn't happen, and is made even more frustrating given that it was a perfect opportunity for Obama to take Thailand to task over the piece de resistance of junta-led reforms - the latest draft of the new constitution, released on January 29. Although touted by the Constitution Drafting Committee (CDC) as an "anti-corruption charter", many onlookers contend that "anti-democracy charter" would be a more fitting moniker, arguing that it will weaken elected government while giving the junta even greater powers. The first attack on democracy comes in the form of the suggested reforms to the House of Senators. All 200 members of the upper house will be appointed, giving the junta the green light to shape a tame Senate - most likely made up from the ranks of senior military and the police - who will be able to veto legislation, appoint judges to the Constitutional Court and resist amendments to the Constitution. The second major issue is the role of the National Reform Steering Assembly (NRSA), which like its predecessor, the National Strategic Reform and Reconciliation Committee (NSRR) is an unelected puppet of the military. Named by the junta, the NRSA will shape and guide the legislative agenda. Unlike the previous constitutional draft (rejected last autumn), the Cabinet is not obliged to implement the NRSA's ideas, but only to 'cooperate' with it. But dissent is futile - any conflicts must be decided by the Constitutional Court, which, of course, is fully stocked with members nominated by the aforementioned unelected House of Senators. And so the NRSA will function to sanction the junta's plans as it did last week when it passed the controversial National Strategy Bill, which charts the nation's course for the next 20 years, regardless of who is in power. Governments who fail to adhere to these plans will face 'penalties' - though both the crime and the punishment remain amorphously defined at present. Advertisement Another significant issue in the draft constitution is the proposed reforms of the electoral system, from a mixed member majoritarian system (MMM) to a mixed member apportionment system (MMA). Although ostensibly more democratic, the consequence - and no doubt certainly not an unintended one - is the bolstering of midsized parties and the weakening of current front-runner Pheu Thai Party, responsible for Thailand's two deposed Prime Ministers: Thaksin and Yingluck Shinawatra. Ensuring neither of them can make a come-back has been one of the junta's main objectives, and the MMA system creates the ideal conditions for a fractured, easy-to-dominate parliament. Proposals for who can be elected into power are also troubling. Current plans involve parties being asked to submit three names as potential prime ministers, and no mechanisms in place to ensure that these names are those of elected officials. In short, as long as they are sponsored by a political party, anyone can become the next Prime Minister of Thailand, whether a member of the House of Representatives or not. For many, this constitution is simply a means to ensure the Junta's long-term control, masquerading as a crusade against corruption. Others believe it is simply a means to stall planned elections and prolong Prayuth's rule. Thailand's former Prime Minister, Thaksin argued that the constitution was "crazy" and simply "a charade to show the world that Thailand is returning to democracy, when in reality, it would be like Myanmar before its political reforms." He also suggested that while the constitution allows for a prime minister "the real power would be in some politburo above him, and the economy would suffer." For what the junta has drafted is a constitution with a triple threat at its heart. Firstly, the sweeping oversight powers bestowed upon the NRSA act as a noose on the Cabinet's legislative autonomy. Secondly, through the House of Senators the junta can influence the Constitutional Court as well as scuttle any piece of legislation that might rub the army the wrong way. And lastly, the electoral reforms will ensure that the Parliament is weak and divided. In combination, these measures mean that while Thailand might ostensibly give a voice to its people, the tools are in place to ensure that they can be shouted down whenever they say anything in opposition to the junta. It's democracy in theory, but certainly not in practice. Advertisement Your eyes do not deceive you, the headlines do not exaggerate: homelessness is worse than ever in New York City. On any given night, some 60,000 people reside in the city's shelter system -- a 40 percent increase in four years. That number includes 24,000 children. It does not include thousands more sleeping rough in the streets, whose true number we can only approximate. New York's political leaders are finally responding to the embarrassing crisis that it surely is. Last December, Mayor de Blasio shook up his social services staff and ordered yet another review of homeless programs and policies, with a plan of action due in March. And in January, Gov. Cuomo pledged an unprecedented $20 billion over five years to expand and improve services for the homeless and 100,000 units of affordable housing across the state. Advertisement The attention and the investment are overdue. But unless we learn from the mistakes that put us where we are today, these efforts will be wasted. Previous mayors, from Koch to Bloomberg, all tried to tackle homelessness with big solutions reflecting their political instincts and the theories of the moment. And all of them failed to turn the tide. The challenge faced by de Blasio today is bigger than ever. In 1986 -- during the Koch years, when homelessness first became a major political issue -- the fact that 3,000 homeless were languishing in temporary shelters was unthinkable to most New Yorkers. By the end of the Bloomberg administration we saw a 20-fold increase with over 58,000 individuals living in homeless shelters. The problem is that the city has always approached family homelessness in the wrong way. For decades the city has tried to make families fit an emergency system rather than making the system responsive to the specific needs of families. Advertisement It's as if we've been handing the same pill to every patient that ends up in the emergency room. Some will get better, but most will be back, possibly sicker than ever. Do we need more low-cost housing? Absolutely. Will we ever get enough? Probably not, and that's the terrible reality. The last time there was a national balance between the number of low-income renters and the number of affordable low-income apartments was 1970. Today, the deficit is at 6 million. In New York not even Cuomo's massive investment will remedy that problem anytime soon, especially since the federal government is hardly in the housing business anymore. Prevention programs also have their place. Who wouldn't spend money to prevent a family from becoming homeless? But stopping an eviction today doesn't necessarily change the longer term circumstances that put the family on the brink. Inevitably, a large share of those who benefit from prevention will wind up homeless. The solution of the day is rapid rehousing -- moving families out of shelter with rental vouchers and limited supports in place to keep them from returning. Advertisement The Bloomberg administration embraced this policy, giving families in the shelter system priority for placement in public housing and handing out tens of thousands of time limited rental vouchers almost like candy. But this gave families, who were doubled up with relatives, an incentive to enter the system in hopes of finding permanent housing -- a rational response from their point of view -- and pushed shelters stays to well over a year further clogging the system. What happens when the voucher runs out? Families return. We're seeing it now in the skyrocketing shelter census. After thirty years of working with the homeless, experience has taught us that the answer to homelessness doesn't begin at the exit door when a family moves out of shelter. It begins at the entrance, when they arrive. Like a good ER, we need to triage: Why did you become homeless? What went wrong? What supports do you need to move on? Understanding the root causes leads to tailored solutions. People mistakenly believe that there's no difference between chronically homeless families and those who temporarily find themselves without shelter. They're wrong: homeless families fall into three broad categories. The first group is made up of those who have had long-term employment and tenancy, but who have experienced a temporary setback, such as a lost job, illness or injury. These should be the candidates for rapid rehousing. If they turn up at a shelter, move them out as quickly as possible and take pressure off the system. Advertisement The second is a group with many needs -- typically a single mother, 25 or younger, with an incomplete education and little or no work experience. Her arrival at the shelter is the opportunity to help her complete her education, give her employment counseling, and teach her parenting skills -- without these she and her children are unlikely to make it on their own. The third group has the most serious problems. They've lost their homes for reasons often out of their control, including generational poverty, domestic violence, child abuse, substance abuse, and mental illness. This group requires specialized services and comprehensive support that shelters currently don't provide. A smart, well-designed shelter system would identify and focus on the needs of families as they arrive, then provide them with customized services based on that assessment. This approach is precisely what was recommended by a Dinkins-appointed Commission on Homelessness in 1992. The head of that panel was none other than Andrew Cuomo, not long before he joined the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development under President Clinton. The recommendations of the Cuomo Commission were never fully implemented and have been essentially forgotten. But now their chief author sits in the governor's office, calling homelessness "a true human crisis that is a litmus test for society's compassion and government's competence." The mayor, too, is promising fundamental change. Advertisement It will take bold leadership and strong political will to turn around policies that have gone in the wrong direction for so long. After 30 years and five mayors, it is time to realize that simply tweaking the system again won't work. A complete reorganization of its purpose is required. The ongoing teacher protest in Detroit has drawn public attention to the horrific physical conditions in many of the city's public schools. Photos have circulated of toxic mold, mushrooms growing out of walls, evidence of infestation, and gym floors too warped to stand, much less run, on. Each one is a window into a complex tragedy of multilayered government neglect and a funding system that traps children in under-resourced schools. These conditions call out not just for emergency aid, but systemic reform. In the 1880's, Upton Sinclair's book The Jungle depicted the deplorable conditions of the meatpacking industry in Chicago. In one memorable passage, he describes what happens to packing-plant waste: "Bubbly Creek" is an arm of the Chicago River... all the drainage of the square mile of packing houses empties into it, so that it is really a great open sewer a hundred or two feet wide... Bubbles of carbonic acid gas will rise to the surface and burst, and make rings two or three feet wide... The packers used to leave the creek that way, till every now and then the surface would catch on fire and burn furiously, and the fire department would have to come and put it out. Advertisement The Jungle triggered a public outcry led that to real national action: the creation of the federal Food and Drug Administration, which was tasked by President Theodore Roosevelt to oversee private companies, and to drop the hammer on those jeopardizing the health of American citizens. If only there were such sweeping federal protections when it comes to public schools. A completely arbitrary and fractured school funding system leads to conditions in many cities like Detroit have been allowed to worsen until the situation seems, now, almost irredeemable. The bleak picture: There's black mold in the classrooms of Detroit's Spain Elementary-Middle School, where more than 650 students are expected to learn. A recent health inspection found evidence of vermin infestation, including feces and carcasses, throughout the school. In this school, all but two students are African American, and the vast majority of the population relies on meals prepared for them each day within the decaying walls. There were 280 suspensions handed out at Spain Elementary-Middle School last year--that's 1 for every 2.3 students. Only 10 students in the entire school are meeting state standards in math. The school's sorry state has attracted the attention of celebrities like Ellen DeGeneres and Justin Bieber, but these conditions extend well beyond this one school, and superstar fundraisers can't address the serious and systemic issues that gave rise to Spain's troubles. Who, then, is at fault? Advertisement It is certainly irrefutable that, due to years of poor financial management, the Detroit City school district finds itself in extreme debt. The district has taken out such large loans that currently, $3,019--nearly a quarter--of funding that the school district receives for each student goes immediately to paying off years of bad debt rather than to the classroom. There's little room in that equation for hundreds of millions of dollars in facilities repair--or even, apparently, for the small capital repairs would be required to, say, keep the toilets and sinks working in the girl's bathroom. The system's current debt, estimated to be $3.5 billion in short and long-term liabilities, is so enormous and complex, some estimate that it's increasing by $1 million every day. The system is now in a position of choosing between paying bills or paying teachers. But we're missing a key point when we limit our focus to district mismanagement. There's a much larger system of institutional failures is letting down Detroit's children, both in the specific area of school facilities oversight and the general realm of education finance. The city's responsibility: The municipality of Detroit bears its own responsibility for the situation. In response to the teacher sick-outs and observed conditions in the schools, Mayor Mike Duggan ordered the inspection of all Detroit public schools in the city. This belated gesture only underlines how little oversight the city's health and building agencies have exercised over schools until now; so far, the Buildings, Safety Engineering, and Environment Department (BSEED) has turned up 433 code violations in the first 48 schools inspected, every one of which was missing its required annual Certificate of Compliance. Of those inspected, 10 schools so far have also been referred to the Detroit Department of Health--another city agency just now coming on the scene--and that department has reported 71 health violations to date within those 10 buildings. Each of these schools has also been given 30 days before the building is shuttered. The city-level issues go beyond poor agency supervision. The struggles of Detroit overall, and the radical decline of property values in the city, have been well documented. Because property taxes form the foundation of all education budgets in Michigan (as in most states), in order to keep schools funded, the city's residents have had to levy extremely high rates as their tax base has shrunk. Detroit now taxes its property at 8.7% each year just to pay for schools. That's 47% higher than the tax rate paid by its wealthy neighbor Grosse Pointe, where the median household income is more than three times as high as Detroit's and where, it goes without saying, there are most likely no vermin carcasses under the desks. Advertisement Detroit residents really have no more money to spare for their schools, nor should they be asked to continue to tax themselves at a rate far higher than their wealthy neighbors. The state's responsibility: In the case of both the buildings and the funding, there's clear evidence of neglect at the state level. It turns out that teachers from Spain Elementary-Middle School have been writing for over a year to the Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Administration, but until very recently, they were told that the state did "not plan to conduct an onsite inspection at this time." (If the state had inspected, it would have found the health conditions that city has since identified as so hazardous that it has threatened to close the school within 30 days if the vermin, mold, and ceiling leaks aren't addressed.) But the state hasn't only failed to respond to this crisis--it also helped to create it. Over half of Detroit's children live in poverty, and the school district certainly needs greater resources to meet student needs than a wealthy district like Grosse Point. Despite this, the state gives almost exactly the same amount per pupil to each district: $7,902 to Detroit and $7,911 to Grosse Point, according to the most recent available figures. When the needs of students in Detroit are far greater and the residents of the city are already taxing themselves at a far higher rate than their neighbors, it is incumbent upon the state to provide resources that recognize both the local resident effort to help their schools and the significant needs of DPS students. The current state of facilities in Detroit isn't a one-off problem of mismanagement. It's a picture of a system that can't escape mistakes of the past, a city that's already taxing itself at a higher rate than its peers, and a state that isn't offering much help. We're witnessing an institutional structure that, at every level of government, abdicates responsibility, yet expects teachers and students to somehow excel within a radically broken--and broke--system. Let's clear something up about this story about Hitler's penis. We actually don't know if Hitler had a micropenis or not. What his doctor's diaries reveal is that Hitler was prescribed hormones and amphetamines to help with sexual activity, but as far as the diaries go, there's no mention of penile hypospadias. The only evidence for the claim is the claim itself, in the book Hitler's Last Day: Minute to Minute, which reads: "Hitler himself is believed to have had two forms of genital abnormality: an undescended testicle and a rare condition called penile Hypospadius [sic] in which the urethra opens on the underside of the penis." The problem is: Believed by whom? The authors of this book? Despite the fact that they're being called "historians," that's a claim that's a little bit less than honest, too. Emma Craigie is a novelist, and it's not really clear what Jonathan Mayo does for a living other than writing books for what appears to be a Minute by Minute series, also featuring D-Day, the sinking of the Titanic and JFK's assassination. Suffice it to say, Craigie and Mayo are not scholars. They sell schlocky non-fiction that isn't held up to standards of peer-review, or, I don't know, integrity. The reason it matters is that, first of all, it's not the truth. Or, we don't know that it's the truth. Craigie and Mayo can't supply a picture of Hitler's penis or a documented description of Hitler's penis by someone who saw it. There's been speculation about Hitler's ability to perform sexually for a long time, but Craigie and Mayo went the extra distance to suggest that not only did Hitler have some kind of penile dysfunction, but that he had a small penis with a urethral opening on the side. All of which is a shot at Hitler's masculinity. Take the Telegraph article that took off Monday morning, which opens with "It has long been suspected that Hitler's conquest of Europe was an attempt to compensate for a lack of potency elsewhere" and goes on to call penile hypospadias "embarrassing" and reprint the lyrics of the children's rhyme "Hitler's Got Only One Ball." A-plus journalism, guys. The second reason it matters is that this is all part of a long-standing effort in popular culture (which is what Hitler's Last Day: Minute by Minute is a part of -- not serious historical academia, make no mistake) to paint Hitler as effeminate and gay and by doing so, demonize him. Take the History Channel's feature "10 Things You Didn't Know About Hitler," which goes so far as to call him a "mama's boy" and suggest that he preferred the company of men. It's presumed from the get-go that these are coded "bad," that having a close relationship with your mother makes you effeminate, that being gay makes you effeminate, that having a small penis makes you effeminate, that having sexual dysfunction makes you effeminate, that having one testicle makes you effeminate, and that being effeminate makes you less of a man, that feminine means, somehow, evil. Advertisement Can we pause for a second and remember that Mohandas Gandhi, too, had a very close relationship with his mother, and that he became abstinent even though he was married? Can we take a second and consider the fact that men who have testicular cancer and have to have their testicles removed are not less masculine for it? That men who have erectile dysfunction or penile hypospadias are not less masculine or bad people? That Oscar Wilde, Harvey Milk, Alan Turing, Marcel Proust, John Maynard Keynes, were all gay? That men who are not masculine are not inherently bad? Or that of all the men with testicular cancer, men with sexual dysfunction, men with penile hypospadias, abstinent men and gay men who have ever existed, only one of them has been Adolf Hitler, framer of the Final Solution and perpetrator of an attempted genocide? The thing is that there are easy cultural and moral points to be won by throwing ad hominems at Hitler or insulting him for his body or lifestyle, that by saying Hitler had a "tiny, deformed penis" or that he was a "mama's boy" or that he "preferred the company of men," what you're really saying is "I know Hitler was bad and I don't like or agree with Hitler." But what you're doing in effect isn't really all that different from, say, Nazi propaganda denouncing gays as "sexual degenerates" or people with physical disabilities or abnormalities as "unfit." Remember that the LGBT pink triangle symbol was reclaimed by the gay community from the concentration camps. Associating Hitler with small penises, effeminacy and homosexuality only breeds the idea that what's wrong isn't Hitler -- what's wrong is effeminacy and homosexuality. Under Hitler's orders, 6 million Jews and 5 million non-Jews were killed during the Holocaust by labor, gassing, starvation and mass shootings. Hitler was evil on the merits of his actions, and there's no reason, in 2016, to further the kind of hatred and disgust toward male effeminacy and gayness that Hitler himself propagated. "...I recognize the right of the president, be it Republican or Democrat, to place before the Senate a nominee for the Supreme Court and I fully expect and look forward to President Barack Obama advancing a nominee for the Senate to consider. I also recognize my duty as a senator to either vote in support or opposition to that nominee following a fair and thorough hearing along with a complete and transparent release of all requested information. The Senate's role in providing advice and consent is as important and significant as the president's role in proposing a nominee. A partisan or extreme nominee would not be prudent nor would it provide a steady, scholarly hand to guide the constitutional ship of state." In this photo taken Aug. 12, 2015, workers assemble a truck at Ford Motor Companyas Ohio Assembly Plant Wednesday, Aug. 12, in Avon Lake, Ohio. The United Auto Workers union on Friday, Nob. 6, 2015, has reached a tentative contract agreement with Ford. The contract covers 53,000 workers at 22 U.S. plants. (AP Photo/David Richard) If you open the newspaper to the business section or listen to a politician talking about economic growth in the country, it may seem that manufacturing is booming in America. After all, the U.S. auto industry saw record sales in 2015, selling 17.5 million cars and light trucks. Americans spent an estimated $570 billion buying new rides. With thousands of jobs being added in the past few years, people everywhere are praising the industry for rebuilding our economy and the middle class. But as those of us who work at auto plants know, that's not the full story. For five years I've worked at the Camaco auto parts factory in Lorain, Ohio, which makes metal seat frames for multiple automakers. Camaco is a major employer for Lorain and the surrounding towns -- even my son and nephew work there with me. I began working in 2011 at $10 an hour and have seen small, 50 cent raises throughout the years. I now make $12.18 - one of the highest wages at the plant. And yet when I return home at night, I'm scrounging to feed myself and my mother, who I take care of. It's not uncommon that I have to call my friends or family to help provide dinner. I have three granddaughters in Atlanta, but I can't imagine a time in my future where I'll have enough money to visit them. Advertisement And I'm not alone. When I look around the factory, or I talk with my son, I realize we're all hardly scrapping by: We find a way to save multiple pay checks in a row to pay for rent, and the few remaining dollars go to gas and food. There is not a single extra dollar. The truth is that while auto jobs used to be good jobs, we now have more in common with workers at McDonald's or Walmart. One-in-four of the 600 jobs at the Camaco plant are temporary positions that pay $10 an hour. Meanwhile, wages for all of the plant's production workers are capped at just $12 an hour -- with an 18-cent raise a year for a "living fee." I haven't even received that raise this year. Temp workers are often kept in limbo for up to a year before being hired on full time. And turnover at the plant is off the charts, with a manager recently admitting that 1,500 workers have cycled through the plant in the last two years. The company has been forced to hire three temp agencies to find employees, recruiting workers from as far away as Cleveland. The same thing is happening across the country. From 1976 to 2006, manufacturing workers earned more than the average U.S. worker. But by 2013, the median wage for manufacturing workers was 7.7 percent less than for the typical American worker.Nationally, one out of every four manufacturing workers makes $11.91 or less, and that doesn't even count the growing number of temporary workers. It's even worse for auto parts workers like myself who have seen real wages plunge 14 percent in the past decade. It's time Camaco and other manufacturers acknowledge what we workers already know is true: auto jobs are no longer a ticket to the middle class. We can't afford any of the basics of a middle class lifestyle, like traveling to see our grandkids or going to the movie theater. And this is bad news both for the workers and for our local communities. When workers are forced to think about every penny we spend, we can't contribute in a meaningful way to our town's economy. Advertisement That's why this Saturday I spoke at a town hall meeting in Lorain to sound the alarm on the plant's unfair pay and working conditions. And I was joined by my fellow workers, local mayors, community leaders, and members of the clergy who all know that when you pay and treat your workers right, everyone benefits. "America, America, God shed his grace on thee!" Those are words from the song "America the Beautiful" that we all learned in elementary school. Well, if America ever needed grace...and salvation...it is now. Donald Trump won the Nevada primary. He will most likely be the Republican nominee for president. Though my politically astute friends try to calm my fear that he will win the White House, I am not so sure. America's racists are on a roll, and they are not about to stop. Donald Trump says that he will "make America great again." That's merely a euphemism for putting white supremacy back on top. It's a euphemism for making it so that black and brown people are under the foot of the Empire, denied of justice in the courts, fair treatment in housing, education and employment. America's white people are afraid of losing power, plain and simple. Some say they are angry because of the economy, but the biggest issue for them is that the numbers of black and brown people are steadily increasing. They are afraid that their base is getting smaller and smaller, and with that, their power, their capacity to oppress "the least of these." Advertisement And Donald Trump says he will make it all better. He is giving them pablum and they are eating it like starving children in underdeveloped countries eat when they are finally given substantive food. I read a troubling article this morning, about Trump and the so-called "Central Park 5." Trump was on the case, calling for the five black teens accused of raping a white woman, to be convicted and put to death. Actually, his statements seemed more to ask that they simply be killed. (http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/feb/17/central-park-five-donald-trump-jogger-rape-case-new-york?CMP=share_btn_fb#_=) What Trump said and did in that case was appalling and troubling ...but not for people who still believe in vigilante violence when it comes to black people accused of doing something to a white woman. When it was proven that the teens did not rape the white woman, and the charges were dropped, Trump was furious, and was even more furious when the city of New York awarded the young men, collectively, $41 million in damages. This is not a man who believes in justice for all people. He is clearly racist, and openly so. He is unabashed in what he says and believes, and he knows he has a large group of Americans, mostly white but not completely so, who are with him. Advertisement They want the America of the past, where black people stayed in their place. They don't care much that America's "exceptionalism" came mostly from this country's boast that it was a democracy where everyone could come (pluralism) and make good on "the American dream." (capitalism). Racists never ascribed to that claim. They were clear that America was to be the land of opportunity for white, property-owning men. Colored people were not worthy of having full citizenship. They were merely the tools which white men would use to make this country the powerful country it became. They were to be used, not respected. Trump is singing their song. He is sounding like George Wallace and Ross Barnett and Sam Bowers and other racist demagogues. His being in the White House, his followers believe, will provide a calm to the rising tide of multiculturalism in this country. They believe he will bring things into normalcy in the White House. They celebrate, it feels like, that he will be like President Woodrow Wilson, a member of the Ku Klux Klan who had screenings of The Clansman and Birth of a Nation in the White House. So many white people are not disturbed at all at what Trump says because he is speaking to the pain they have felt as white oppression has been steadily addressed. They would not think it bad that not only was Woodrow Wilson a member of the Klan, but so were four other presidents, including Warren G. Harding, who was actually sworn in a KKK ceremony that was held at the White House. Calvin Coolidge allowed cross burnings on the steps of the capital and also allowed KKK parades in the nation's capital in 1925 and 1926. (http://www.thetrentonline.com/revealed-5-us-presidents-members-racists-cult-ku-klux-klan-photos/) They are just tired of non-white people. White people of the ilk I am describing have been mortified that a black man has been in the White House, his wife dancing on popular television shows, letting little black children inside those hallowed walls. Many white people believe that America was created to be a "white man's country," and all these people of color are messing up what is "supposed" to be. Advertisement The media must be in sympathy and in agreement with Trump and his ideology, because from the beginning, they allowed Trump so much free air time - this to the most wealthy man of the bunch running for president. They put his foot on the first rung of the ladder. If he couldn't come into their studios, they interviewed him by phone. The American media has done much to usher in a racist, hate-filled man, showing that it is not objective at all. They let America hear this demagogue over and over ..and they hardly challenged him. Does that mean that they do not care about Trump's open racism? There is an important chink in this argument, however, that we have to consider. Trump is not only winning with racist white people. In Nevada, he got a big swath of the Hispanic vote as well. According to reports, 45 percent of Hispanics there are Trump supporters, that in spite of his stance on immigration. (http://dailycaller.com/2016/02/24/entrance-polls-trump-dominates-latino-vote-in-nevada/) So, now, here we are. Trump most probably will get the Republican nomination. He will continue to be a bully and a political thug, much to the admiration of his followers. Evangelicals have shown that their love for God leans toward maintaining their view of God in a white-ruled country. They have shown that the words of Jesus, for Christians to be forgiving and to care for "the least of these" have little to do with their religion. And America's "silent majority" is showing that what they believe in is America's mandate to be white. If a bully will keep it that way, so be it. Grover Norquist, founder and president of Americans for Tax Reform, participates in a session on 'Strategic Communication' at the annual Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) at National Harbor, Maryland, outside Washington, on February 26, 2015. AFP PHOTO/NICHOLAS KAMM (Photo credit should read NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP/Getty Images) There is a growing consensus after South Carolina that Donald Trump may well get the Republican nomination. One key piece of evidence (besides his electoral victories): Jeb Bush, scion and pillar of the traditional wing and Trump's most outspoken foe, went down to ignominious defeat; Republican voters are rejecting their party's establishment in droves. Why is that? Based on statements by Trump supporters, he is the only one standing up for them, expressing their feelings. They have lots of anger, lots of grievances. But above all, there is a sense that the deck is stacked against them in so many ways: by the rich, by ineffectual politicians, by immigrants supported by liberals. An article in the Christian Science monitor quoted South Carolinians on why they supported a New York businessman. Dianne Lawson of Ridgeland, S.C. explained, "He says what a lot of us want to say but are afraid to say." Look at how Trump is wildly cheered when he rails against businesses that send American jobs offshore, and vows to block these Republican stalwarts; it is one of his biggest applause lines. This is not in front of Democrats, but with Republican voters in every state he has campaigned in. Advertisement Yet how has the Republican establishment responded to this deep and widespread outrage on the part of their constituents? More than any other concept, for a number of years, the Republican Party has stressed one idea as the single solution to the problems of this nation: cut taxes, especially on the rich. No job training, no infrastructure projects, nothing for those misfiiting to the new economy. It is this disconnect between the pain of Republican voters and leadership's response that provided Donald Trump his opening, which the mogul then drove a truck though. Why this shortsightedness, this narrowness, that explains so much? You can thank Grover Norquist. In 1985 Norquist founded Americans for Tax Reform, a taxpayer advocacy group whose founding principle is "a system in which taxes are simpler, flatter, more visible, and lower than they are today." Their foremost accomplishment is the "Taxpayer Protection Pledge," which asks candidates for federal and state office to commit themselves in writing to oppose all tax increases. Before the November 2012 election, 238 of 242 House Republicans and 41 out of 47 Senate Republicans signed on, making it the fundamental platform of the Republican Party, almost unanimously. An August 2015 article in the Washington Post bore the title, "Nearly All the GOP Candidates Bow Down to Grover Norquist." There was enormous danger here, and not for the obvious reason that tax policy is far more complex than a single simple solution. The real threat to the Republican Party was that by focusing on this one item, it failed to develop a full panoply of solutions (some of which, but not all, required public monies), failed to develop a national platform with a wide range of proposals. Going into this election cycle they still campaigned too much on the tax package, not enough on responses to the legitimate anguish so many of their voters were experiencing. Advertisement The collapse of oil prices and consequent loss of oil-related revenues have forced the government of Enrique Pena Nieto to considerably scale down its plans for grandiose infrastructure projects. However, one mega-project remains on drawing boards: a new international airport for Mexico City (referred to locally by its Spanish acronym, NAICM). As is the trend these days for any city with global aspirations, the futuristic design was drawn up a leading architect, in this case UK-based Norman Foster in partnership with Mexico's own Fernando Romero. The new airport will occupy an area at least three times larger than the current airport (which has all but maxed out its potential for further expansion) and feature as many as six runways compared with just two in the current one. Mexico City - an urban agglomeration of over 20 million and one of the top 20 cities in the world by GDP - desperately needs a new airport to satisfy its current and projected transport needs. In this sense, that the government fully intends to pursue its intention of building one is commendable, especially after the cancellation of its high-speed railway project (which had initially been awarded to a Chinese-led consortium only to see the tender retracted under suspicious circumstances). However, the NAICM project is in many ways a microcosm of Mexico's long-standing urbanistic failures and the politics behind them. It could also have serious environmental consequences that the government is playing down. A Mesoamerican Venice One of Diego Rivera's most famous murals in Mexico City's National Palace depicts an Aztec marketplace with an imposing background: the great city of Tenochtitlan as an island in the middle of Lake Texcoco, crossed by canals and causeways. To say that at the time of the Spanish conquest Tenochtitlan was the Western Hemisphere's Venice would be an understatement - Tenochtitlan was in fact 2-3 times larger than Venice despite the latter also being at the height of its glory. Little wonder that when Hernan Cortes described the Aztec capital in a letter to his sovereign, he warned that his account would "appear so wonderful as to be deemed scarcely worthy of credit; since even we who have seen these things with our own eyes, are yet so amazed as to be unable to comprehend their reality". Advertisement Diego Rivera's famous mural, La Gran Tenochtitlan, in the National Palace (Mexico City)[Image: Wikipedia Commons] After the conquest, the Spanish would have to come to terms with the city's one major urbanistic scourge: its vulnerability to flooding, which was exacerbated the destruction of the Aztecs' delicate but effective regulation mechanisms. After catastrophic floods in 1555 and 1607 there began a centuries-long effort to dry out Lake Texcoco and by the time of independence most of the western half of the lake (the part directly under Mexico City) was gone. By the middle of the 20th century, the eastern and northern bits had shrunk into three smaller lakes and in the 1990s the middle lake - which retained the name of Lake Texcoco - had almost fully evaporated, leaving just a few wetlands and reservoirs. Nearly gone as well were Tenochtitlan's waterways, which as early as the colonial period had been turned into sewage canals. Still, even up to the 1930s and 40s the city retained various usable canals (some dirty, some clean) but most were filled up to build the city's urban expressway system - the inner ring, or Circuito Interior, still keeps the names of the rivers that one flowed beneath. That the few canals that remain in Xochimilco are a major tourist attraction points at the lost opportunity had more of them been preserved. The fact that one of the world's mega-cities is built on a lakebed has caused innumerable headaches over time, especially during the second half of the 20th century when the population skyrocketed and most of the area beneath Lake Texcoco was built up. The most obvious is that the city is slowly sinking due to the combination of its soft foundations and the slow drying up of its overused aquifer. The city is also made more vulnerable to earthquakes. The tragic September 1985 earthquake where over 10,000 Mexico City residents lost their lives is said to have been amplified by the weak subsoil, causing damage well in excess to what would be expected given the distance to the epicenter. The NAICM will be located in the most recently exposed area of the lakebed which presents an added challenge to the designers. Advertisement Compared to the original NAICM plan (red), the new location (blue) is squarely in the former lakebed. [Image: Rodrigo Aguilera] How the previous airport plan failed Barring the obvious geological issues, there is no more obvious place to build a massive new airport than in the vast emptiness of what was once Lake Texcoco in the Estado de Mexico, the state that borders Mexico City. It is relatively close to the city which would mean that the cost of linking the airport to the city's transportation system would be minimal. One of the sites that has for a long time been considered for an alternative airport, the municipality of Tizayuca, would be too far from the city (80 km) and require dedicated rail lines and shuttle services. Another benefit is the fact that the area is already owned by the federal government which will therefore avoid costly and politically troublesome land expropriations. In fact, the latter is the reason why the NAICM wasn't built a decade earlier when the project was first launched under former president Vicente Fox (2000-06). The failure of Vicente Fox's airport plan is indicative of the Mexican government's goldilocks attitude towards authority: too hard handed when it needn't be, too indecisive when it needs to show its strength. Trouble began in October 2001 when the Fox administration chose the municipality of San Salvador Atenco as the site for the new airport. Atenco is mostly composed of ejidos - a collective rural landholding system established in the early 20th century but which following liberalization in the 1990s could be put up for sale or taken over through eminent domain. The government chose the latter route, offering the ejido owners a pittance in compensation and which resulted in protests, highway roadblocks, and marches in Mexico City featuring machete-wielding farmers from what now became known as the Frente Popular por la Defensa de la Tierra (FPDT, the Popular Front for Defence of the Land). In the face of this mini-insurrection, and even after its offer of increased compensation was rejected, the Fox administration capitulated, shelving the airport project the following year. Fueled by their victory against the airport plans, the Atenco farmers remained politically active. In 2006, the FPDT went up in arms again after state police dispersed indigenous flower vendors from a Texcoco market. In the clashes that ensued, two FPDT members were killed and as many as 26 women suffered sexual assaults from the police. But despite reports from the National Human Rights Commission that the state police used excessive force, made over a hundred arbitrary arrests, and violated protesters' human rights, no action was taken against them. The governor of the Estado de Mexico who presided over this incident and who ordered the state police against the vendors and protesters was none other than Enrique Pena Nieto, who had been elected less than a year earlier. Advertisement A less than ideal location If there is one better place to build the airport than on the dried up Lake Texcoco, it is in (or near) Atenco. The area benefits from being on more stable ground which would provide less of an engineering and environmental challenge, and it is not surrounded by major urban areas (the city of Texcoco is the closest and only has around 100,000 people). One of the original designs for the NAICM was for the airport to be located at the northeast edge of the lakebed, next to Atenco, but the location was later changed to the western edge, bordering the densely populated municipality of Ecatepec (with over 2 million people, it is Mexico's largest). Thankfully, the angle of the runways suggests that noise pollution will not be a major issue except to those neighborhoods nearest to the edge of the airport's boundaries, but still, one wonders where the change in location is done out of political considerations than of actual practicality since the airport would now be located on far more fragile ground. In this sense, the shadow cast by the Fox administration's failure a decade and a half ago along with the 2006 incident (which surely still lingers in Mr Pena Nieto's mind) may be prompting the government to choose a sub-optimal location for the airport in order to preempt the threat of militant farmers spoiling what is Mexico's biggest infrastructure project so far in the 21st century. Needless to say, there has not been any consultation either with the affected neighborhoods of Ecatepec, which will soon have jet airliners taking off and landing just a few hundred meters away. That these neighborhoods are composed of mostly low income, working class families is telling of the little importance that is typically assigned in Mexico to those without the deep enough pockets to make their voices heard (or who aren't willing to pick up machetes and march in Mexico City's main square as the FPDT did back in 2001). The comparison with the long-running controversy over Heathrow's third runway is illustrative of this, since many of the neighborhoods that would be affected by the expansion of London's main airport are relatively affluent. Then again, the government knows well that when consultations do take place, the results are not always ideal. A poorly-conceived project (known as the Corredor Cultural Chapultepec) to revitalize the area around a major Mexico City avenue was recently shot down by the area's middle- and upper-class residents. What is also concerning is the lack of information on the different impacts that the airport will have on the region. Although an environmental impact study has been elaborated, neither cost-benefit nor technical feasibility studies have been made public. This lack of provision of information needed for civil society to make a judgment on the project's benefits and risks is illustrative of a top-down approach that does not leave much room for the kind of policy debates that are taken as a given elsewhere (London's Heathrow vs. Gatwick expansion plans for example). Dreaming of lakes In the long run, the NAICM in its current location all but destroys any possibility in the future to recover this last remnant of Lake Texcoco as a body of water. This has not just been a pipe dream for Tenochtitlan nostalgics but has been seriously considered by some of Mexico's leading architects and urbanists. In the 1970s, the rector of the National Autonomous University (UNAM), Nabor Carrillo, led an effort to stop the still-existing lake from shrinking further through more efficient use of the aquifer, but the government never followed it through and the lake dried out two decades later. In the 1990s, renowned Mexican architects Teodoro Gonzalez de Leon and Alberto Kalach published a proposal known as Vuelta a la Ciudad Lacustre ("Return to the lacustrine city") which envisaged a recovery of the Lake Texcoco area - even with a new airport designed around it, which proves that the two objectives are not mutually exclusive. More recently, architect Inaki Echeverria proposed the Lake Texcoco as a major ecological conservation area composed of parks, leisure facilities and numerous smaller lakes. Sketches from 'Vuelta a la Ciudad Lacustre'. The need for a new airport was not ignored. [Image: CNN] Unfortunately none of these plans have made so much of a dent in policy-making circles who likely see them as too expensive relative to their material or political benefit compared to a major infrastructure project designed by a globally-renowned "starchitect". It also does not help that Mexican governments at all levels and of all parties have historically been lacking in imagination and competence when it comes to grand urbanistic thinking. Case in point: Morena leader Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador didn't miss the opportunity to gain some political leverage from the opposition to the new airport by making an entirely new "alternative airport" proposal that invites even more criticism than the NAICM plan. Advertisement But continued short-sightedness on the matter would be perilous. The main risk is that the massive and resource-intensive new airport ends up severely damaging the fragile hydrological balance that currently exists in the area, a risk that Jose Luis Luege Tamargo, a former head of Mexico's National Water Commission (Conagua), recently described as "catastrophic" (Tamargo, by the way, picked Tizayuca as the ideal airport location). There has already been one ominous warning: heavy rains from tropical storm Arlene in 2011 forced authorities to flood the Texcoco lakebed so that the rising water levels would not spill over into the built-up areas. With these risks in mind, the benefits of restoring the dried up lakebed into a more natural environment of lakes and parkland makes far more sense, and would not be incompatible with building the much needed NAICM nearby, on firmer ground (i.e. Atenco or Tizayuca). And if the government cannot negotiate or deal with militant farmers for this to happen, then one must seriously question the capability of the Mexican government to get things done. Thinking big That the Pena Nieto administration is neither willing to listen to the airport's critics, or to involve civil society in the debate is regrettable yet not surprising in a country where little effort is made to involve stakeholders in major policy decisions. But if the NAICM goes ahead in its current, less-than-ideal location, the government will be doing something worse: it'll be shutting the door on the possibility of a much grander urban and environmental vision for one of Mexico City's most economically-deprived and ecologically-vulnerable areas. If Pena Nieto cannot think big, he should at least not prevent his successors from doing so. depression teen depression ... Delivering health care has become too complicated. We are screening for, discovering, and treating disease more frequently; people are living longer; and a greater proportion of the population is entering Medicare age all leading to increasingly complex patients. Its no surprise that health care costs have finally surpassed $3T. With increasing patient complexity and rising costs, the demands placed on physicians have increased in parallel. Primary care physicians and specialists alike are being asked to coordinate more and more streams of information - whether from pharmaceutical companies, insurers, hospitals, or other providers. The administrative burden on those physicians has grown to rival the clinical burden. Yet even as more is asked of physicians, not enough has been done to create efficient systems to help accomplish those tasks. Advertisement Ripe for Clinical Transformation One area of health care in need of clinical transformation is the integration of behavioral[1] and physical[2] health. More than 17% of American adults suffer from comorbid[3] behavioral and physical health illnesses, translating to greater than 34 million people. Studies have shown that people with physical health issues (heart failure, for example) and an untreated or undertreated behavioral health issue (such as depression or anxiety) cost 2-3x more for treatment of their physical conditions. Per 2012 data, those patients accounted for almost $300B annually in excess and partially avoidable health care spend, mostly attributable to use of medical (as opposed to behavioral) services. In any discussion of bending the health care cost curve, differences of that magnitude are impossible to ignore. Such cost variation occurs for multiple reasons, including patient non-compliance, increased utilization of high-cost and fragmented care (i.e. emergency room visits, inpatient admissions, repetitive/redundant treatments, etc.), and lack of improvement in a persons health status, amongst others. Growing Silos in Care Over the last 30+ years, the silo between general medicine and behavioral health has only grown. Care in both realms is often provided independently of each other. Treatment regimens and access to resources have become increasingly separate with little to no overlap. Some medical practices have tried to place behavioral health providers (i.e. social workers, therapists, psychologists, and even psychiatrists) in primary care offices, though thats an expensive proposition and difficult to scale. Mostly, primary care physicians and some specialists have been trying to manage behavioral health issues on their own with only 1 of 4 patients receiving effective care. When formal behavioral health services are required (for example, intensive outpatient treatment), many of those providers have little idea what resources are available or how to access them. Advertisement As an attending Internal Medicine physician, Ive lived that predicament far too many times myself. I remember one recent case of a late-30s man with a history of alcohol and IV drug addiction that had left him with end-stage heart failure. Anytime he developed anxiety or stress, hed have chest pain and usually come into the emergency room (ER). Since this man had severe heart failure, his cardiac lab results would always be abnormal, and he would invariably get admitted for further evaluation. In one year, this man had been admitted more than 10 different times from the ER for chest pain. Cardiologists and psychiatrists alike agreed his chest pain was largely related to worsening anxiety and depression. What this man needed most was regular access to outpatient behavioral health resources and a tangible care plan to help him cope with his poor prognosis. But despite my staffs best efforts, we had so much difficulty getting him that access and were never able to break his cycle of hospitalizations. How much better off would this man be if we could have found appropriate, timely behavioral health resources to support him outside the hospital? How many long-term health care dollars could we have saved? And what if we could have helped him with his addiction and behavioral health issues before he ever developed heart failure? I think about those types of questions almost every day whether with this patient or others. Almost every physician can think of similar examples in their own practice. Need for Change Questions like those above have led to the necessary realization that current health care processes need to change - especially in ways that dont add to physician workload or confuse patients. Its naive to think behavioral and physical health are entirely separate. Physical illness impacts a persons psyche, and that persons state of mind impacts his/her ability to manage chronic disease. Collaborative care and value-based health care are common buzzwords and occasional punch lines in health care circles today. However, there is tremendous value in creating better, well-coordinated opportunities for partnership. Enhanced integration between physical and behavioral health is one logical target in improving the broader health care landscape. It is a very real gap in clinical care, makes complete economic sense, and is the right thing to do in promoting true patient wellness. But most importantly, patients and providers alike need and deserve it. Advertisement REFERENCES: [1] I.e. traditional mental health conditions (i.e. anxiety, depression, etc.) and substance abuse [2] I.e. medical conditions affecting the body The disability community, from grassroots advocates to powerful cross-disability organizations, devotes a lot of time and energy to proving the value of hiring disabled workers. This is a common theme for our community, and extremely necessary, as there are a number of workforce-related challenges that workers with disabilities face. The unemployment rate for workers with disabilities is twice that of workers without disabilities. It is still legal for workers with disabilities to be paid well below the minimum wage based on a law that dates back to 1936, when the talents and potential of workers with disabilities were even more horribly misunderstood. And of course, while the Americans with Disabilities Act provides vital protections to the disabled workforce, it can't solve every issue in the disabled workforce, such as the systemic problem of fewer opportunities for advancement for workers with disabilities. One theme we commonly hear when discussing disability (or any minority) employment is that it is the right thing to do. Providing equal opportunity is providing equal rights; it's moral and ethical. However, from the perspective of businesses that perpetuate discrimination in their hiring and retention of workers with disabilities, this message doesn't seem to be enough. Advertisement What if we looked at disability employment from a business perspective instead of from an advocacy perspective? There are many businesses that are leading the way in promoting an inclusive workplace, businesses that are proud of the advancements they have made in hiring workers with disabilities. Why are they so passionate about hiring disabled workers? With this question in mind, I reached out to companies that are not only some of the most successful businesses in the country, but are also recognized as being the most inclusive of disability in hiring, retention, and promotion. These businesses are all Fortune 1000 companies that scored 100 points on the US Business Leadership Network's (USBLN) Disability Equality Index (DEI). I asked them two questions: "How do recruiting, retaining, and promoting employees with disabilities make good business sense? How do they improve a business's productivity and profitability?" Here's who they are and what they had to say: 1. If you are one of the many consumers of Starbucks' coffee, you are also supporting one of the most advanced employers of workers with disabilities. Starbucks states that "creating a culture of belonging is one of [their] core values." The company boasts thorough accommodations for workers with disabilities (such as interpretation services and accessible software), as well as for customers with disabilities. Additionally, in 2015 they participated in events celebrating the 25th Anniversary of the ADA, and their press room frequently publishes material and stories on their inclusive environment. Here's what they had to say: "When we think about hiring for Starbucks, we think beyond labels. We challenge ourselves to look beyond traditional sources and typical profiles, to bring in people that share our values and our passion for service and community. There is no better example than our commitment to hiring people with disabilities. These talented professionals bring unique experiences that foster innovation and new ideas while contributing to a culture of warmth and true inclusion. We work across multiple business teams to collaborate and inspire partners (employees) to embrace accessibility as a global value of Starbucks, and we are continually inspired by the diversity and inclusion of our people." -Scott Pitasky, Executive Vice President and Chief Partner Resources Officer, Starbucks 2. As one of the top contractors to the US government, Northrop Grumman not only supports the needs of the military, but also supports many of the millions of Americans with disabilities in the workforce who want meaningful employment. Beyond inclusive hiring for its own workforce, Northrop Grumman has a Global Supplier Diversity Program, which works to foster beneficial business relationships between the company and minority-owned businesses, including many businesses owned by persons with disabilities. In addition to these programs, Nothrop Grumman is also particularly committed to disabled service members. Northrop Grumman created the award-winning Operation IMPACT program in 2005, a wounded warrior program designed to support the most severely injured service members or their primary caregiver. They provide career readiness and placement assistance as well as post-transition support to all eligible candidates. In 2009, Northrop Grumman established the Operation IMPACT Network of Champions, a group of more than 110 companies and partners that share job candidates, best practices, and create wider opportunities for veterans with disabilities. Here's what they had to say: "Northrop Grumman is committed to creating a work environment that values diversity and inclusion because it creates innovation, improves productivity and boosts profitability. People with disabilities are an important component of a diverse pool of talent and we are determined to draw from this valuable resource. We actively seek to hire disabled employees because of the tremendous value they bring to the workplace. In our continuing efforts to attract and retain employees with disabilities, we recently added new online accommodation tools for requests and case tracking; increased accessibility of our Internet website, including the Careers section; expanded accessibility at our locations; and we have adopted a more focused approach for posting job requisitions with disability-related job boards." -Kymberlee Dwinell, Director, Global Diversity & Inclusion, Northrop Grumman Corporation 3. AT&T is not only one of the top telecommunications corporations in the world, but is also a model for programs that support the disabled workforce. They are particularly successful in their implementation of diversity programs, so that not only are they weaving accessibility and inclusion into the fabric of their business, but they also produce special opportunities for the disadvantaged disabled workforce to get ahead. Advertisement Here's what they had to say: "AT&T is company where everyone's differences are authentically embraced, valued and vital to our business inside and out. People with disabilities are no exception. I've seen this personally, because it's part of my charge. Whether it is by ensuring an accessible environment so employees can win at work or offering the accessibility products and services to our customers, accessibility is our commitment to connect people to the world around them. In addition to our Corporate Accessibility Technology Office (CATO), our longstanding relationship with Career Opportunities for Students with Disabilities helps us find and hire college graduates with disabilities. Finally, our Employee Resource Group IDEAL (Individuals with Disabilities Enabling Advocacy Link) is 4,300 members strong and plays a big role in ensuring we continue to stay ahead of the issues that this community faces." -Cynthia Marshall, SVP Human Resources and Chief Diversity Officer, AT&T 4. Ernst & Young, a global leader in professional services, is proud of their mission to "[embrace] all abilities." Built by a founder with a disability, Arthur Young, their commitment to disability inclusion ranges from signing on to the Business Taskforce On Accessibilities (BTAT) Charter to programs such as EY AccessAbilities and the Abilities Champion Network, which respectively give EY employees the resources they need to develop their skills and advocate for accessible policies and disability awareness in the workplace. Here's what they had to say: "Ernst & Young seeks the best talent- period. To find the specialized skills we need, we have to tap the broadest available talent pools, including people with a wide range of physical, cognitive and mental health abilities. We know that diverse teams produce better solutions, so there's a clear performance advantage to bringing together people with all kinds of differences - in gender, ethnicity, orientation, age, background, and abilities. Employees with disabilities have higher retention rates, so for many businesses, there can be a real cost savings through reduced turnover. Studies show that consumers prefer doing business with companies that employ people with disabilities, so there's brand value. Research has also found organizations employing people with disabilities have higher morale and employee engagement, which we know drives profitability. Finally, people with disabilities often have well-honed problem solving skills and a degree of adaptability that are especially valuable in today's fast changing business environment. At Ernst & Young, we learned this early in our history, as our co-founder, Arthur Young, was deaf and had low vision. Unable to successfully practice as a courtroom lawyer because of his disabilities, he turned to the emerging field of accounting, where he became an innovator and entrepreneur." -Lori B. Golden, Abilities Strategy Leader, Ernst & Young, LLP To summarize, these companies are not only extremely successful leaders in their fields but are also powerful models of disability inclusion that make compelling arguments for greater disability workforce inclusion. They not only reject the outdated ideas that disabled workers are liabilities to business, but actively promote the perspective that workers of all abilities bring different strengths to the companies' missions. There are clear capitalist benefits to inclusive hiring. As stated by Shawna Berger, Director of Marketing and Communications at the US Business Leadership Network: JACKSON, Mississippi -- Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant has declared a state of emergency for all areas of Mississippi under threat of severe weather from an approaching front. "All our citizens need to be prepared for this severe weather event," Bryant said in a statement. "Everyone should know how to receive weather alerts and have an action plan to take shelter if severe weather strikes." Issuing a state of emergency enables the state to provide assistance to local governments with emergency response and recovery. Also on Tuesday, George County officials announced that both the Agricola and Benndale Community Centers are open as "safe havens" for county residents in need of shelter during the severe weather. The Agricola shelter is located at the intersection of Highway 613 and Cooks Corner Road, while the Benndale shelter is on Highway 26, just east of the intersection with Highway 57. As the presidential campaign heats up, candidates are talking a great deal about the need to support middle- and lower-income families. Republicans and Democrats alike have offered constructive ideas on this issue, illustrating bipartisan commitment to helping Americans shake off the lingering damage of the Great Recession. Yet, while much of this discussion has focused on wages and income, a big part of achieving economic security is building assets and long-term wealth. Today, the country has largely come back from the financial crisis and unemployment is at a multi-year low, but millions of Americans continue to struggle with depressed or negative net wealth, casting a worrying pale over their financial future. To address this challenge, the federal government should expand asset-building programs it has financed to support vulnerable constituencies throughout the country into a broader effort that helps millions of working class Americans rebuild wealth lost during the crisis. Advertisement As it does so, policymakers should draw on emerging technologies to ensure these programs work in a way that is effective, efficient, and impactful for program participants and taxpayers more broadly. Before the crisis, most working class Americans, particularly those from African American and Latino communities, held the bulk of their wealth in their homes. When housing prices plummeted during the crisis, many Americans faced foreclosure or were forced to sell their homes at fire-sale prices. The crisis thus deprived them of their most valuable asset, leaving hard-working families underwater with negative wealth. The consequences were stunning. According to a 2014 report from the Center for Global Policy Solutions, the net worth of African-American and Latino households fell by 53 percent and 65 percent, respectively, between 2005 and 2009, while net wealth felt by a more manageable but still-damaging 16 percent among white households. In dollar terms, these movements become more striking. The 53 percent decline for African American households translated into a drop in net wealth from $12,840 during the crisis to $6,081 at its peak in 2009. For Latinos, net wealth shrunk from $19,228 to $6,688 during this period. For white households, household wealth declined more modestly, from $142,335 in 2005 to $119,152 in 2009. Advertisement While the ravages of the crisis have subsided, and housing prices are coming back, people who suffered most during the recession are seeking ways to shield their economic security from the vicissitudes of the market. Instead of holding most or all wealth in their homes, they are seeking to diversify into other assets, like IRAs, 401(k)s, mutual funds, and other savings plans the value of which depends on steadier, long-term market growth, instead of short-term gyrations. In the face of this challenge, the federal government has sought to provide support. One of the key ways it is trying to do so is through the Department of Health and Human Services' Assets for Independence Program. According to the agency, the effort provides "funding to grantees who in turn provide financial education and support for individual development accounts for eligible individuals in their service areas." The goal is to educate economically at-risk Americans on, and provide them with access to, basic financial and wealth-building tools that will allow them to diversify their assets and build a financial cushion that grows over time. This laudable effort has been picked up in nearly every state. The ambition now should be to expand the program from the small pool of extremely vulnerable populations it has targeted to date -- such as foster children and resettled refugees -- to a broader swath of Americans, including low- and middle-income households who saw their wealth decimated in the crisis. A major challenge in doing so is that asset-building programs are difficult to administer. Existing efforts have often lagged vision, as states and ground-level implementers lack a strong methodology of tracking participants' individual activities and implementing a customized approach that ties rewards, incentives, and earnings to financial literacy, work, and other positive behavior. Fortunately, technological gains in recent years have made this much more possible. Software firms have developed with off-the-shelf software solutions that asset-building administrators can use immediately to track participant progress, see where they need more assistance, and report more easily and illustratively to program funders. Advertisement Such systems can also provide assessments that help case managers track the baseline needs of, and create individualized service planning and outcome attainment measures for, the individuals and families they are supporting. So far, the use of new asset-building technology is in its infancy, and the programs it was designed to facilitate target a limited number of Americans. But, with the chorus of presidential candidates pledging to do more for aggrieved working class families, we should also be thinking about how these programs and technologies can be scaled up. Doing so could help millions of American families bounce back from the crisis and build the wealth necessary for long-term economic security. Carlo Di Lanno is assertive and elegant as Siegfried in Helgi Tomasson's Swan Lake. Partnered with principal dancer Sofiane Sylve in the dual roles of Odette/Odeil, the pair embodies the fervent intensity and mystical elan that is at the heart of Tchaikovsky's most cherished ballet. Before joining SF Ballet as principal dancer in 2008, Sofiane was acclaimed for her interpretations in Peter Martins' two-act / adrenaline-busting version at New York City Ballet. Carlo Di Lanno was twenty when he made his debut as Siegfried in the Rudolf Nureyev version at La Scala Ballet. Carlo Di Lanno and Sofiane Sylve. Photos, Chris Hardy and David Allen "It was my first principal role there," said Carlo. "I was just coming out of the corps and it was the first thing they gave me. The Nureyev version is very demanding for the prince - five variations, more than any other traditional version. There is one after the White Swan pas de deux - that nobody does - and a variation during and after the waltz. Nureyev's variations are harder than those in the original version, but similar to what we have here." Carlo Di Lanno made his debut with SF Ballet in 2014. He has appeared as Romeo in Tomasson's celebrated classic and as Espada in the Tomasson/Possokhov Don Quixote. His contemporary repertoire has been expanded with appearances in works by George Balanchine, William Forsythe, Alexei Ratmansky, Jerome Robbins, and by the Company's own rising choreographer, Myles Thatcher. At the recent Gala Premiere, Carlo and Sofiane danced a pas de deux in the North American premiere of Forsythe's Pas/Parts. The entire work was part of Program 1 and the pair repeated the duet in the opening night performance. The simplicity of the production (Forsythe also created the scenic and lighting designs) and the unyielding pace of the score by Thom Willems compels the viewer to focus on the geometrics of the choreography and the fortitude of the ensemble. I asked Carlo if he has the same kind of enthusiasm for today's abstract works as he does for the full-length classics? Advertisement "I have to say that before I joined here, I was a really big fan of classical ballet, the story ballets. It's really what I wanted to do. But since I've been here, I really appreciate the new works, the new choreographies, and the opportunity to work with the choreographers. It's not about the scenery behind you or any projection. It's really about the dancers. Tights, t-shirts, no structure - it's just you, moving. That is what the audience should be liking. In a way, as an art institution - as Ballet - we are about education. I think Pas/Parts is a great thing for the audience. I listened to a lot of opinions about it. It is hard to like. Not everybody has the instruments to like it. But, it's what we should do." Carlo Di Lanno and Sofiane Sylve in Pas/Parts. Photo, Erik Tomasson "Overall, the Prince in Swan Lake is not really about interpretation. At the beginning, it's really about learning the choreography so you don't fall down. Once you have that, you can play with the role - with what you want to say. There's a whole variation in the first act about what's going on with him, what he's going through. He knows the Queen is about to enter and will tell him it's time to get married. Siegfried does not want to get married, because there is no one he loves at that point. The variation is very dramatic and lyrical, you can see what he is thinking. It's one of the best moments in the ballet. It's great to be able to express a state of mind through the steps. It's basically a monologue with the audience. Hopefully, you are making them understand what you are thinking at the moment. And at the same time trying to nail your pirouette. That's why you really need to have the steps under your belt. Otherwise, there cannot be a character." Advertisement Carlo's arrival at San Francisco Ballet is an adventure - something of an odyssey - that involves elements of destiny, self-determination and contractual oddities that most young American ballet students will never confront. A native of Naples, Carlos had his first ballet class when he was nine. His parents had a shop that was close to a ballet school. "Because we were friends with the family that owned the school, we went to watch the final performance of the year. My parents always told me I was mesmerized by that performance. Ballet never felt like something I didn't want to do. It was always natural and, in a way, kind of easy for me. When I graduated I went on to another school, to La Scala. It was a big change. Here, if your school is related to a company such as San Francisco Ballet, the Director will let you know whether you are hired or that you need to find another job. In Italy and in Europe overall, it's different. We had to audition for the company just like everybody else. But at the same time, we wanted to audition all around Europe. I went to the La Scala audition, also Zurich and Vienna. I was offered contracts everywhere and had to choose. I picked La Scala - basically because it was attached to the school and the Director told me he had some projects for me and wanted me to dance more. After one season, I decided to leave because I did not like the environment and the fact that I wasn't dancing enough. So, I went to Berlin. After one season there, I was promoted to Soloist. Then the Director from La Scala calls, saying he wanted me for Diamonds, Siegfried in Swan Lake, Basilio in Don Quixote. So, I went back and danced the roles. But La Scala is a hard place - in the sense that there are people with a lot of rights and people with no rights. Unfortunately, even though I was covering the big roles and had a lot of responsibility, I was one of those with no rights." San Francisco Ballet in Ratmansky's Souvenir d'un Lieu Cher. Photo, Erik Tomasson "The way it works is that if you have a life contract you get to work until you're forty-five. After that, you get your retirement straight away. I don't know the exact number of contracts available to the corps, the soloists and the principals. But, if all the places are covered, nobody from the supplemental corps can get one of those life contracts. I was one of the supplemental corps. That means I had a two-month contract, then three months, then five months. I was working the whole season and getting my salary every month - but I couldn't get a life contract. That became a problem. With a supplemental contract, if you get injured - for example, within your two months - once those two months are over, you are not paid anymore, you are not covered. With a life contract, you are paid through the whole season. What was a great opportunity at the beginning - to be dancing those roles - started to become a responsibility. I'm the one dancing the Prince. I needed to have a proper contract and with a category, such as Soloist, Principal. Fine that it was a great opportunity, that I was getting all this experience, but - so what?" Carlo sent a video to a number of companies showing his work in Swan Lake and Diamonds as well as a sample from Ratmansky's Concerto DSCH. A very smart move. The result was a few offers. He was really interested in San Francisco Ballet - because of its repertory. Carlo Di Lanno and Vanessa Zahorian in Dances at a Gathering. Photo, Erik Tomasson Hats are back, and they are cool again. The source, at least in sunny climes around the world, is the Greenpacha Panama hat company, and the person responsible for Greenpacha is Florencia Gomez Gerbi, a cheerfully serious 33-year-old Argentine San Diegan. However, the story is more than the return of the jaunty Panama to the tawny heads of the hip and the beautiful, the sportif and the spiritual, from Windansea to Ipanema. Greenpacha is the forerunner of a new trend in business. Call it caring capitalism, social entrepreneurship, or simply giving back, but a percentage of the gross is repatriated to the original producers. In the case of Greenpacha, funds go to a community of 2,000 weavers, mostly women, in Ecuador. These hats are not your grandpa's chapeaux, of course. And not the famous woven white straw mat that covered President Teddy Roosevelt's aging locks back in 1906, when he inaugurated the Panama Canal from the control panel of a 95-ton steam shovel (ah, the Iron Age). These toppers have been redesigned and colored pink, yellow, skullcap amber and black for the surf and skateboard set. Advertisement Panama hats don't come from Panama, either. They originated in Ecuador and northern Peru, now Cuenca in the highlands of the Andes and Montecristi on the coast, where the toquilla palm grows, a tree almost as rare as the truffula in Dr. Seuss's The Lorax. Panama hats were sold to California's 49ers passing through the isthmus on their way to the gold fields, resulting, along with the Roosevelt Panama Canal connection, in the mistaken name. An earlier iteration of the great hat greeted the conquistadores. Archeological evidence even indicates that the palm's soft fibers were broken out 4,000 years ago to ward off the sun. But it is more than tradition that we are dealing with here, in this iconic fashion accessory. "In my spiritual way of seeing it," Gerbi explains in her rapid-fire, Castilian-accented, somewhat twisted new English, "the earth makes a plant, and with the help of a human hand the straw made from it is shaped into a hat, and so you wear something that came from the earth, a total human and natural combination that finally protects you from the sun." Wearing a Greenpacha Panama, then, makes a statement. It is organic, natural, almost completely constructed by hand by women who have learned the craft over decades, from a culture hundreds of years old, with dyes squeezed from plants and insects, stretched on traditional looms. Wearing a Greenpacha, the motto of which is "Hats for a better world," could be as sustainable an act as going barefoot. That was the idea -- the intellectual capital -- and Gerbi is nothing if not a budding mistress of fashion branding. But she exhibits innocence and heart, too, and that is important in the tricky new business model of social entrepreneurship, because without empathy there can be no authenticity. And without authenticity -- my friends, you are shopping at Kmart. Advertisement Even so, the hats retail for $75 to $150 at high-end and bellwether boutiques from Santa Monica to Italy. Gerbi was passing through Ecuador with her mother and sister and her sister's baby, and friends suggested they follow "The Hat Trail," as countless other entranced adventurers have done. She fell in love with the otherworldly concentration of the women making the hats. At the same time, she understood that the weavers needed money. Their men had migrated to America Norte. They were raising kids by themselves. Panama hats had fallen to the value of a tourist trinket. She listened to the weavers' leaders and was also struck by some modern news. Chinese agronomists had entered the remote region and taken seedlings to Asia, where the hats could be made "for like 50 cents." But the toquilla would not grow in China. She realized she would be protected from Asian competition. The idea was not only to give back. When I went there, I asked them what were their needs. They have a lot of needs and live in poverty. So they want to improve their life conditions -- these women -- and so they get rid of as many intermediaries as possible so their work is better paid, because they get the less amount of money in the chain. So what I do is to give back directly from 2 percent of the sales to these communities and with that money they just deliver according to their performance as weavers. At the same time, Gerbi hopes the weavers' exposure to designers helps them improve style, shaping and finishing, and create different hat designs. Florencia's younger sister Julieta, 30, became the designated designer after the trip, and Florencia took on the mantle of idea woman and marketer. Advertisement Next, Gerbi needed a name. She felt her "energy" aligned with Tom's Shoes, the huge "inspiration" or "movement" (don't call it a "corporation") that gives back "one-for-one" a pair of shoes to a shoeless kid in Argentina or Africa for every pair you buy in Manhattan. (And if you purchase some awesomely styled shades, Tom's will see to it that someone not in California, not so well-sighted, not so, perhaps, entitled, will be given a pair of spectacles in your name.) On a surf run to Cabo, Florencia met with Tom's founder, a 27-year-old kid named Blake Mycoskie who makes millions of dollars annually by doing right. He got the idea about shoes while running in the second season of The Amazing Race with his own sister. Mycoskie told her T-O-M'S stood for "tomorrow shoes." "I didn't know that. I thought his name was Tom," she said. Mycoskie told her the name had to have meaning and that it was very important. In Latin America, 'pacha' is a huge word that signifies something like 'times of the Inca' and at the same time, 'Mother Earth.' So that's what I liked -- Green Times. It makes sense to me because it's coming back from the roots, the best of the roots. And what is good is to bring to the present and enjoy it now. So that's the Green Times. Early in my medical training a sage family physician, Jack Medalie, reminded us students that there's often a "hidden patient whose suffering goes unnoticed." Medalie was referring to family members who may be struggling as much or even more than the person that is being directly cared for by the doctor. Medalie was a pioneer in the medical specialty of Family Medicine, a specialty that didn't exist until 1969, but today represents 80,000 American physicians. I think he was on to something! In addition to traditional medical diagnosis and treatment, the pioneers of Family Medicine recognized that to truly help people live better lives doctors needed to understand and address family and community dynamics. I loved the holistic thinking and was inspired to become a part of this specialty; I later graduated from the same Family Medicine program that Medalie launched at Case Western Reserve University. While medical issues at all ages and all stages of life profoundly impact families--the common medical issues of aging exact an enormous toll on families. Family caregivers are daily working in the shadows of our health care system, helping their loved ones that suffer from Alzheimer's disease and other neurological conditions, heart disease, severe arthritis, cancer, and various other diseases and combinations of diseases. The efforts, effectiveness, and strength of family caregivers are major factors in the success or failure of health care for older people. Family caregivers also have other personal and workplace responsibilities that are heavily impacted by their caregiver role. Advertisement With the aging of the Baby Boomer generation there will be over 80 million people insured by Medicare; by 2022 Medicare is expected to cost the country over $1 trillion per year. The economic and societal importance of how we navigate the demographic shift cannot be underestimated, and family caregivers are at the heart of these issues. When family caregivers succeed their loved ones are less likely to be unnecessarily hospitalized on Medicare's dime, the caregivers remain more productive in the workforce, they are better parents and partners, and their own health is better. There's a lot at stake. This is more than a health care concern; it's a business issue, economic issue, and family issue. In spite of the central importance of family caregivers to their loved ones, to the health care system, and to the future of our country, they remain as Medalie noted decades ago "hidden." The best step to get caregivers out of the shadows of American health care is to routinely measure and report on their experience and their outcomes. While such measurement would require substantial forethought and expense, it will lead to real action and improvements. In recent years we have seen hospitals, physicians, insurers, nursing facilities, and home health agencies develop incredible efforts to improve patient experience. Health care leaders are studying hospitality industry behemoths like Disney and Ritz Carlton, hospitals are appointing "Chief Experience Officers," and the strategic plans of health care providers around the country include improving the patient care experience. Advertisement These efforts are directly related to Medicare's mandatory measurement and reporting on the patient experience at the provider level. But, family caregiver experience is not routinely tracked. Medicare also benchmarks providers on various quality measures and outcomes, and many types of organizations that work with Medicare beneficiaries have "stars rating" systems. However, these measurement systems don't routinely track outcomes for family caregivers. Why not? Imagine if such outcomes and experience measures were in place for family caregivers how much energy, creativity, innovation and competitive spirit would be unleashed to try and change health care services to better meet the needs of family caregivers? It would be of particular importance to measure aspects of caregivers that contribute to their ability or inability to keep their loved ones at home and in the community. There would be more focus of doctors and others to do all we can to help people get needed home care supports to buttress the efforts of family caregivers. Sharon Washington, Marjorie Johnson and Finnerty Steeves in Colman Domingo's Dot. Photo: Carol Rosegg Dot, at the Vineyard, is another one of those dysfunctional-adults-returning-to-the-family home-to-deal-with-a-sick-parent plays. But it is a good one; Colman Domingo has created an engaging--and yes, deeply troubled--trio of siblings and provided the audience with nonstop laughter, all the while approaching the mother sinking into dementia with tender sensitivity. Plays of this type can be trite, or depressing; Dot, we are happy to report, is rollicking and affecting. Dotty (Marjorie Johnson), living in the up-scale West Philly house she moved into when it was still a white neighborhood in 1953, is having trouble "connecting the dots." The opening scene between mother and daughter Shelly (Sharon Washington) plays almost like The Odd Couple at breakfast; between the laugh lines, though, we see that Dotty is severely struggling--and Shelly is desperately trying to cope with a parent slipping into advanced Alzheimer's. (The connect-the-dots theme is carried over to the front curtain of Allen Moyer's fine set, with a pointillist rendition of Dotty's row house in the manner of Seurat.) Shelly gets no help from her siblings, out-of-work musicologist Donnie (Stephen Conrad Moore) and flamboyant former YouTube sensation--but now supermarket cashier--Averie (Libya V. Pugh). The action takes place just before Christmas, with jokes and gibes flying until everyone is caught up in the tragedy of the situation. Also on hand are Donnie's husband, Rainbow Alliance-activist Adam (Colin Hanlon); Fidel (Michael Rosen), an illegal but caring caregiver from Kazakhstan; and Jackie (Finnerty Steeves), the Jewish girl-next-door who was Donnie's high school girlfriend and suddenly finds herself pregnant and unmarried at forty. Advertisement Johnson, whose stage credits are mostly from regional theatre, does a strong job as Dotty, fiercely trying to hold her ground while fully aware that her control is slipping away. The central performance, though, comes from Washington. The actress--who was so powerful in the Rosa Parks-like role in The Scottsboro Boys--here reveals herself as a keen comic actress and a thorough joy. Moore is sympathetic as the conflicted son, while Pugh struggles somewhat with her role as Averie. (It is one thing to perform the role of a flamboyantly-dizzy character; it is another to be comprehensible in the part.) Once Domingo allows Averie to "take off the wig" on Christmas morn, Pugh's performance becomes real. The most sympathetic characters are the two white men, the only ones who seem able to connect with and console Dotty. Hanlon (as the husband) and Rosen (as the nurse) give humorous and sensitive performances, and both help ground the play as it moves from wild comedy to emotional truth. Michael Rosen and Marjorie Johnson in Colman Domingo's Dot. Photo: Carol Rosegg Playwright Domingo (A Boy and His Soul) has done a wise job of playwriting, creating a vibrant and outrageous circle around the core of the play, with Dotty struggling through the final moments before being fully overtaken by her disease. Domingo, being a performer himself--he received Tony and Olivier nominations for his performance as Mr. Bones in The Scottsboro Boys--also knows how to write juicy roles for actors. In Dot, all seven are given moments to gloriously shine. Even Steeves, in the somewhat unresolved role of Jackie, has an uproariously funny run-on "breakdown" of a speech. "Wow! That was great!" Even under the glare of fluorescent conference room lighting, the 50-year-old manager's eyes were wide with surprise. "I totally felt my body settle... and then I felt the guy next to me calming!" In under 2 minutes, a complete newbie had discovered the innate capacity to shift mind and body. Exercises like these make a powerful point: Not every mindfulness practice takes hours in a dark meditation room. In fact, both research and experience are proving that outside these short, "on the go" practices can be very sweetly effective all on their own. Having used short-pause practices to manage chronic pain for years, I know firsthand what yoga practitioners have known for hundreds of years: that a few mindful breaths can harmonize the physical and shift the mental. Now, at last, the mindfulness community is looking at quick "on the go" mind-body practices as something more than ongoing support after formal training. There is a new training format on the horizon, and it doesn't come in 8 weeks of hourly training and 20 minutes a day of seated practice. Advertisement The December 15th Harvard Business Review featured a Google manager that resets her system with a quick 6-second pause before entering a meeting. Chade Ming Tang, the founder of Google's Search Inside Yourself program, says "getting the training's earliest benefits doesn't even require 50 hours ... you can begin to benefit with your first mindful breath, in the first six seconds." Finally, acknowledgement that even a short mindful pause has huge benefit. The question is, how much foundational training is required before such a sprint practice is possible, and exactly what kind of training is most effective when it comes to alternate forms of practice. Recent discoveries linking body sensing and emotional resiliency suggest that developing physical attunement may be key. Perhaps the next wave of mindfulness practices will come from study of Yoga or Chi Gong. The jury may be out on the details, but the market is surely clambering for options. The recent research summary from the 2016 Mindful Business Conference team points to the importance of "small, practical, day to day application" of skills and an "easily translatable and transferable set of tools." While traditional contemplative training has leaned towards the development of attention and awareness over prolonged time and duration, corporate clients are seeking effective options beyond the usual 50 hour format. A condensed practical immersion in the basics followed by an informal program of regular, short pauses is an attractive solution, and the research is accumulating to prove that such an approach is a valid one. The existing body of research by the Heartmath Institute provides solid evidence that you can train your heart, mind and body to harmonize into a state of optimal function within a matter of breaths. Now, Kristen Neff, M.D. is accumulating research on a 3-step micro-practice response of self compassion, to counter habitual self criticism. Stanford Social Psychologist Kelly McGonigal, Ph.D. is also a micro-practice fan. Her new book The Upside of Stress includes research on the stress mindset and a concise 3-step "mindset reset" practice to re-pattern the physiological stress response. Whether the basics come from a classroom intervention or are experienced over a 4-day intensive, both women are accumulating data that show micro-practices carry their own discrete level of effectiveness. Interestingly, both also leverage the power of felt sense and tactile cues. Advertisement Maybe it's not really all that complicated. We know that every habit starts with a psychological pattern called a "habit loop." The mindfulness micro-practice can be used to train the mind and body for a new behavior loop associated with pausing into presence. Different than the "meat and potatoes" neural training of a formal mindfulness training program, how do these new practices fit within existing training models? The Awake@Intel program, for example, is a formal, 10-week program with over 3 years' worth of data showing efficacy across the organization. The program currently uses various micro-practices as way to integrate essential skills of attention and awareness into the everyday world of product engineering and manufacture. But in looking to grow her grass roots program to meet demand, both internal and external to the company, Awake@Intel Program Director Lindsay VanDriel is keen to customize delivery, and says the micro-practice makes sense. "Not everyone has availability, access or interest in an extensive formal training program." She's partnered with consulting professionals from the Iosis Collective to provide guidance in tailoring the program to ensure content integrity with alternate forms of delivery. "Micro-practices provide a great point of entry and open the door for deeper exploration down the road." For those looking to cultivate a mindful work environment, a workshop intensive on micro-practices can serves as great first exposure to the concepts and skills of working mindfully. For those with previous exposure to mind-body training, a toolkit of techniques may be all they need. Maybe not everyone is a candidate for formal meditation training, but everyone can benefit from pausing for intentional connection to mindful presence. Advertisement The power pause is a trainable skill, and one with merit all on its own. Want to play the micro-practice game? Use the guidelines below to develop a personal mindfulness "power pause." And then practice... often. Tie your micro-practice time to something you do regularly or frequently throughout the day, such as brushing your teeth or riding the office elevator. Savor the sweetness of a short, mindful pause and then repeat, repeat, repeat. Keys to Success: Leveraging the Micro-practice 1)Keep it Simple: Make the practice easy to recall in a moment of need. 3 steps or less is best, a handy acronym even better. Elijah Goldstiens S.T.O.P practice is a great example. 2)Shift Focus: Use specific tactile cures to shift out of Default Neural Mode The use of breath and "felt sense" help in recalling a state of mind-body presence. For example, placing an open hand in the center of the chest and breathing deeply, low and slow in the belly, is a satisfying centering gesture. 3)Engage with Intention: Remind yourself that you're building a new habit Poets be warned. Only in Romania is there a poetry reading series known as the slaughterhouse. It's called Thoreau's Nephew (Nepotu Lui Thoreau) and takes place in a brightly painted, very smoky (well, smoky until mid-March, when the legislation changes) bar called Insomnia--sounds like a literary purgatory, doesn't it? I was invited to read there in 2013 while in Romania for the first time. In Sibiu the night before my 5-hour bus trip through Transylvania, a friend called out to me across Piata Mare, The poets in Cluj are not so nice! Thoreau's Nephew is a bimonthly club de lectura that was formed in 2008 by a group of writers, critics, and professors one night at Insomnia over drinks: Stefan Manasia and Stefan Baghiu (poets and critics), Janos Szantai (writer and film professor), and Francois Breda (writer and theater professor). Their question: how could they transform this bar into a literary space where Romanians and Hungarians could feel at home? Why the name, you might ask. Manasia says they were thinking of Henry David Thoreau's Walden, and, in particular, that they saw Thoreau as a main figure of the anarchist movement. A perfect father for an anti-establishment poetry night. The name is tricky, though--in Romanian, nepot means both nephew and grandson. So, in a sense, the inspiration for this lecture club is that of legacy--one in which free speech is the law of the land. Advertisement Here's how it goes. The poems are printed and placed on all the tables in the bar--and, if they aren't written in Romanian, translations are provided when available. The reading begins like any other. One of the Stefans introduces the featured poet, who then reads for 20-30 minutes. (The most surprising part of this portion of the night is that everyone in the bar--the audience, on average, 60-80 people--is silent and listening, or reading and listening, to the poems.) After this is when the fun begins. The microphone is handed over to the audience. As Manasia puts it, Everybody becomes a literary critic for a couple of hours. This, he thinks, explains the success of Thoreau's Nephew. Anything goes, and it does. Some people speak just to hear themselves talk (as with any Q&A), others debate from different corners of the room. The critiques build momentum, are known for getting tense. Meanwhile, the poet watches, listens, drinks (featured poets receive drinks on the house). "Rather than love, than money, than fame, give me truth." In this context, Thoreau's sentence from Walden really hits home. The audience is honest, anything but gentle. It's true--they're not nice. Manasia says they didn't expect to have such a big success, big audience; but, from the beginning, it was the best literary event in town. In addition to Romanians and Hungarians coming to feel at home in poetry, the regular audience consists of lawyers, doctors, philosophers, painters, professors, critics, students, and general lovers of poetry. They come here and take the mic and say beautiful things, ordinary things, or crap about poetry. A lot of writers call us the literary slaughterhouse, he says. I was a lucky survivor. I got invited back to read last month, and couldn't wait. For two whole hours after my reading the audience went back and forth about atmosphere, strangled tone, too much description, not enough description, relevance vs. irrelevance, craft and content, black holes (the subject of one of the poems). Even the bartender got involved: You cannot see what exists in the black hole--but if you feel it, there is a poem. During one particularly tense moment, Manasia leaned over and said, This is a literary death match. I told him later that, to the best of my knowledge, we have nothing like this in the U.S. And I couldn't wait to tell all of you about it. Advertisement On poets after their readings, Manasia tells me, Most of them are destroyed and they hate us for a while. And, Some people are invited back but refuse because they're afraid. One older poet, speaking about his reading, said it made him feel like he was a student again. And, about two poets who read once and might never come back, They were sacrificed like two lambs. For the fourth time in two months, the Afghan peace process advanced to create a roadmap for reviving stalled negotiations between the Afghan government and the Afghan Taliban. Delegations from China, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and the United States -- the Quadrilateral Coordination Group - met on February 23 in Islamabad. Although encouraged to attend the previous round of talks, Taliban representatives were not present. The writing might be on the wall as the Taliban have stepped up terrorist attacks, including an attack north of Kabul on Monday which left over a dozen dead, and pro-Taliban religious leaders have come out against the peace talks. This is no surprise given the internal splintering of the group since it openly acknowledged the death of Mullah Omar. "We require collective effort from all [Quadrilateral Coordination Group] countries at this stage, to persuade maximum number of Taliban groups to join the talks. This will not only be beneficial in terms of lasting peace and stability, but will also shrink space for the irreconcilable," The Express Tribune quoted Pakistan's Prime Minister's Adviser on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz, saying during his opening peace talk remarks earlier this month. Advertisement In a joint statement released by the Afghan Ministry of Foreign Affairs following the latest round of discussions, all participating parties again pushed for direct talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban, encouraging "all Taliban and other groups to participate through their authorized representatives." From the start, Beijing has taken steps to bring peace to the war-torn country through diplomatic channels. It met privately in Beijing with Taliban representatives last year and leaned hard on its regional neighbor, Pakistan, to bring the Taliban to the negotiating table. This strategy, however, has not achieved the desired outcome. Chinese officials, ever the optimists, have possessed steadfast belief in the diplomatic process. Chinese officials have previously stressed that any resolution to the conflict must be "Afghan led." While this form of diplomacy from Beijing is nothing new, one could argue that it does tilt its longstanding non-intervention policy, albeit slightly. From the Taliban's perspective, negotiations might be legitimized given Beijing's involvement as it has often been critical of U.S. involvement. Chinese officials understand too, the difficult challenge ahead. At the regular press conference on February 2, China Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Lu Kang, stated the objective of the upcoming negotiations was to "reach a roadmap acceptable to all parties concerned" and "drive forward the reconciliation process." Advertisement Another step forward was taken late last month when Afghan Foreign Minister Salahuddin Rabbani, met with his Chinese counterpart in Beijing on an official visit. One topic of discussion was China's support of Afghan peace. There are several reasons for Beijing's push to broker peace. The primary reason concerns China's national interest. "[Peace] is not only in the national interest of Afghanistan, but also in the national interest of China and Pakistan, and it will also benefit the entire region, especially economic development of regional countries," Deng Xijun, China Special Envoy for Afghanistan and attendee on behalf of the Chinese delegation participating in the talks, said last year. Beijing further has an underlying economic motive to ensure regional stability, as any disruption, especially from civil war, would likely cause a major setback to Chinese President Xi Jinping's grand economic "One Belt-One Plan" strategy. Last month, Afghan government officials asked their Chinese counterparts to support its full membership into the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), a regional organization whose member states include China, Russia, Pakistan, and other central Asian countries, aimed to foster collaborative relations on diplomatic, economic, and security issues. Advertisement China will likely back Afghanistan's change in membership status because it views Kabul as a key partner in the international fight against terrorism, and a key ally to counter the rise in domestic terrorism in Xinjiang province. By Nick Melvoin When I first stood before a South Los Angeles classroom as a public school teacher nearly a decade ago, I was already firm in my conviction that educational equity is the civil rights issue of my generation. Our students were as capable and brilliant as children anywhere in the city, and yet only four percent of them would pass algebra by the time they got to high school. To me, that represented the unfinished business of a civil rights movement that had stopped short of its historic goals. My ability to affect change from within the system, however, was thwarted time and again by seniority-based layoffs that ensure that, in times of fiscal crisis, our least senior teachers will be laid off first. When the recession hit, I was handed a pink slip, as were so many of the teachers at my school. The layoffs convinced me that the fight for education equality couldn't be waged in the classroom alone -- we had to take it to the courtroom. I went to law school to train as a civil rights attorney; if I couldn't fight for our students in the classroom, I was determined to fight for them in the legal arena. In 2013, I testified in the historic case of Vergara v. California. It was an honor to speak about my incredible students and dedicated colleagues who were being shackled by a system that was failing them. Our stories convinced the court that something had to change. Advertisement It's been almost two years since Judge Rolf M. Treu issued his opinion in Vergara, declaring California's laws governing teacher tenure, dismissal, and last-in, first-out (LIFO) layoffs unconstitutional. Writing that the evidence "shocked the conscience," Judge Treu found that these laws had a disparate impact on poor and minority students who were more likely to be assigned underperforming teachers. Yet the laws have remained on the books. The Vergara opinion is "stayed," meaning that, although a court declared the laws unconstitutional, they are still in effect until a higher court can review the decision. The appellate court is scheduled to hear an appeal of the decision on February 25. By the time that appeals court issues an opinion, which can be as late as June, it will be exactly two years since Judge Treu's resounding indictment of our education code. And even that decision is likely to be appealed further, which means that it could be years before the case is finally done meandering through the state court system and the judiciary forces the legislature's hand. But hopefully teachers will force their hand first. Over the last few months, teachers I work with have been meeting with elected officials throughout the state to describe the harms LIFO enacts on educators and students. These teachers have a simple plea: pass new legislation now rather than wait years for the state's highest court to tell us what we already know. If the legislature musters the courage to act, the Vergara case will be rendered moot, and students will have the protections Vergara secured before it becomes too late for some of them. This would be akin to state legislatures around the country outlawing segregated schools before Brown v. Board of Education spent years making its way to the Supreme Court. Sixty years after Brown, I hope we've learned our lesson on the need to act when children's futures are at stake. Legislation would also mitigate harm from the impending teacher shortage, which the California Department of Education has identified in almost every subject area in the state. As I testified in Vergara, the unconstitutional LIFO, dismissal and tenure statutes discourage teachers from coming to teach in our state. Advertisement This makes sense. Would you want to take a job if you knew you would be laid off after a few months? And would you stay in the profession knowing that even if you escaped the guillotine one year, you were likely to get a pink slip next year regardless of how effective you were in the classroom? We need to reward success with promotion, not pink slips. In order to attract the best teachers to California, we need laws that value excellent teaching. The longer the legislature dithers, the longer the teacher shortage will last. When I was a teacher, a cartoon on the wall of my seventh grade classroom depicted an elected official speaking to his constituents. He said, "I'm going to listen to whatever you say and then do it, because I'm your leader." A constituent in the crowd raises her hand and asks, "Isn't that a follower?" The cartoon taught my students that leadership is not passive--leaders take a stand and bring people with them. It's a lesson I hope our state legislators soon heed. This story was originally published on the Child Trends blog Trend Lines. In December, a grand jury declined to indict the rookie police officer who shot and killed Tamir Rice, a twelve-year-old boy carrying a toy gun in a park in Cleveland. Responding officers said they believed Rice--who was "big for his age"--was much older than 12. To some social science researchers, these characterizations would not come as a surprise, because Rice was black. Research published in 2014 by the American Psychological Association found people perceive black boys as bigger and older than they actually are. What is worse is that newly published research from the University of Iowa found seeing the faces of just kindergarten-aged black boys was sufficient to send white study participants into heightened-threat mode. Race and ethnicity have important implications for culture, identity, and well-being. Children of different races show large differences in well-being, including health, mortality, school performance and attainment, and access to family and community resources. Neither entirely de jure (by law) or de facto (a matter of fact), this is a more systematic form of racial discrimination. A study conducted by the National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago found that many in the United States still harbor beliefs about racial and ethnic minorities based on racist stereotypes. Blacks are also more likely than whites to say a lot needs to be done to achieve racial equality in the U.S. Sadly, and as seen in the case of Tamir Rice, race is more than just a demographic descriptor. For many black children, race is a determinant of poorer outcomes. Advertisement Household wealth for black families continues to lag behind Poverty and its harmful effects also disproportionately affect black children. At 57 percent, black children are less likely than either white or Hispanic children to have at least one parent with secure employment. Nearly half (45 percent) of black children younger than three are poor, and one in four black infants and toddlers lives in households that are food insecure. Among peers, black children are also the most likely to live in deep poverty. The median net worth for black households in 2011 was lower than it was in 1984, while white household net worth was almost 11 percent higher. Among all children, black children are the second most likely to live in working poor families. Black workers also receive extra scrutiny from bosses, which can lead to worse performance reviews, lower wages, and even job loss. Advertisement Black children are more likely to be victims of violence, experience incarceration of a parent Children who are exposed to violence are more likely to suffer from attachment problems, regressive behavior, anxiety, and depression, and to have aggression and conduct problems. In 2011-12, black children were most likely to live in neighborhoods their parents reported as never or sometimes safe. A quarter of black parents say they worried about their child getting shot, compared to one in five white parents. Firearm deaths, which comprise a majority of teen homicides and suicides, but also include accidental deaths, were highest in 2014 among black teens (47 per 100,000 males, and 5 per 100,000 females). More research is needed, but there are still things we can do now. Even though more research is needed to identify strategies that address the issues specifically affecting black children and families, there are promising interventions at multiple levels that can improve outcomes for these youth. First, universal violence prevention programs can be effective in ethnically diverse communities and in communities with high rates of poverty or crime. Second, there are several promising school-centered approaches. Educators can create learning opportunities for students to dispel stereotypes, an effort that could be reinforced by recruiting more black teachers. The Discipline Disparities Research-to-Practice Collaborative argues that to eliminate the school discipline gap, people must also start talking about it more. Finally, parental involvement is another key to improving outcomes for black youth. According to Child Trends, students of all races with parents who are involved in their school tend to have fewer behavioral problems and better academic performance, and are more likely to complete high school than students whose parents are not involved in their school. 2016 st pats.jpg The O'Blarney Society will hold it's first parade in the City of Pascagoula on March 12. (Picasa) PASCAGOULA, Mississippi -- The "wearin' o' the green" will be in full force on March 12 as Pascagoula will play host to its first-ever St. Patrick's Day Parade. T.he O'Blarney Society will stage the parade and will have several Grand Marshals in order to honor local heroes Alma Huyett who has an extensive history of working with the Jackson County Carnival Association, felt the city warranted a St. Patrick's Day parade. "There needs to be more events in the city like this," Huyett said. "This brings people to town and it gets the community involved. Its good for the economy." "I have been involved with the Jackson County Carnival Association for last 18 plus years so I am familiar with the process of putting on a parade. When I was approached to put it on my response was not why, but why not?" Huyett said. Most parades have grand marshals and a colleen, but what makes this St. Patrick's Day Parade unique is that local, everyday heroes will serve in these roles for the parade. Those selected include: City of Pascagoula Jason Murphy is a resident of Pascagoula He started his career with the Pascagoula Police Department as a Reserve Officer. He has been a patrolman with the department since 2012. He has a daughter, Ashley, and is engaged to Pascagoula police dispatcher Kim Dale. Matthew O'Brien is a resident of Ocean Springs. He started his career with the Pascagoula Fire Department in June of 2008. He is married to Lindsay Foster O'Brien, who works for the Ocean Springs School District. City of Pascagoula Teacher Angie Gibson will serve as the colleen of the parade. Many krewes for the Jackson County Carnival Association are participating, as well some other civic organization and there is still time for those interested in participating to register. Applications can be picked up Eastbank Pub located at 709 Ingalls Ave. or the Pascagoula Chamber of Commerce. Those interested can also contact Huyett at 228-990-1456 or Brian Young at 229-202 3338 for more information. Image: Yamal-Region TV website An obscure TV channel in Siberia first alerted us to the fact of a superpower buildup in the Far North. Yamal-Region TV is owned by the government of Russia's Yamal oblast (state), a finger of permafrost land the size of Florida that pokes into the Arctic Ocean. In the native Inuit language Yamal means "the end of the world." And that may turn out to be the perfect name for it. The Arctic region is controlled by competing powers, including Russia and the U.S., who are now arming themselves to the teeth. The argument is over newly thawed shipping lanes and natural gas ports opened up by the warming climate. In the words of Reuters News Service, they are "Preparing For War." This short video called "Cold War On Ice" is part of our web series ThisPlanet.TV. It includes a few clips from Yamal's newscasts illustrating the Russian viewpoint on the situation in the Arctic: Advertisement Almost every night, Yamal TV's newscast revealed the extent of cold war planning in the cold north: Ice breakers! Military bases! Roads to nowhere (except oil exploration sites)! Siberia is the richest fossil fuel source on Earth, but it was hard to get at all that oil and natural gas because it lay beneath a whole lot of ice. Its riches include a potential 30% of the world's undiscovered natural gas, and over 13% of its unexplored oil. Climate change to the rescue! The Arctic just had its hottest summer on record. Eighty percent of the summertime ice cover has melted since 1979, hence the competition for lucrative new shipping lanes in the Arctic, as well as a handful of new natural gas ports. How ironic is it that: if you burn the black stuff hard and long enough, it melts the ice and opens the Arctic to undreamed-of riches? Image: Andy Lee Robinson Damn the melting permafrost and full speed ahead. Russia has already filed a request for the UN to recognize its continental shelf claims in the Arctic. According to an article in the UK's Telegraph newspaper, Russia's defense ministry is planning an Arctic base that can house 150 soldiers for more than a year with no outside contact. Russian maritime war exercises in the area have been unprecedented in scale including one 'snap exercise' that involved 80,000 soldiers and 220 aircraft. Advertisement But Russia wants to play down the buildup. The Moscow Times says: The apparent militarization of the Arctic is merely a process of normative securitization...Russia reprises its Cold War role and is cast as the villain of the Arctic narrative...Discussion of Russia's 'rapid' militarization is misleading, as Russia's Arctic military might isn't anything new. The US is hardly convinced. President Obama will be requesting resources from Congress in 2016 to fund 'critical investments' in icebreakers ($3 Billion for three new ships). Reuters reported that the US already operates 41 nuclear powered submarines that can cut through or sail under Arctic ice. And another source tells us that over the last 14 months, most of the 16 U.S. intelligence agencies have assigned analysts to work full time on the Arctic. Obama made it more human, visiting Alaska with a selfie stick, and topping off his Instagram with the snapshots: Photo courtesy The White House And one more thing -- if the Yamal Peninsula sounds familiar, its where Russian scientists discovered giant craters in the permafrost last summer, another probable effect of climate change. The term 'Sanctuary City' at first glance has a righteous, humanitarian ring. The word 'sanctuary' (alone) makes most people think of a safe haven in an unfriendly environment. Sanctuary as a place of refuge is an old concept. For centuries, European churches traditionally offered sanctuary to criminals. Criminals in England, for instance, could also stay for indefinite periods of time at "chartered sanctuaries" established by the Crown. When the idea of established sanctuaries disappeared in the Sixteenth Century, criminals had nowhere to hide. The Catholic Church always had a rule on sanctuary in its Code of Canon Law but that was abolished in 1983. Many Hollywood movies from the 1950s show a fugitive on the run taking refuge inside a Catholic church as the police waited patiently outside. Those days are gone. In today's world, there might not be any church sanctuary spaces available but there's a much bigger concept called the Sanctuary City. Entire US cities have become big welcoming churches not for U.S. citizen criminals but for fugitives who have entered the country illegally. The question begs: Is this really a good idea? Advertisement Let's backtrack a little. Immigration in this country used to follow a regular pattern. In the three centuries prior to 1910, most immigrants hailed from Western and Northern Europe. After 1910, they came from Eastern and Southern Europe, Canada and Latin America. Ellis Island, New York, processed thousands of immigrants a day where each person was asked a series of probing questions, including, "Are you an anarchist?" The immigrants were then examined by doctors and nurses. People with criminal records, carriers of disease (and all those revolutionary anarchists) were sent home. The flood of immigrants was greatly reduced in the 1920s, partially as a result of WW I. The Ellis Island system was solid and sacrosanct. If you wanted United States citizenship, you had to follow the rules. 'Following the rules' takes many forms. When US citizens apply for a Passport, for instance, they are expected to follow the most miniscule of small print requirements. Disregard just one requirement and you'll get an official notice in the mail denying your application. This is especially true when it comes to the Passport photo. If the photo measurement is off by just a fraction of a centimeter, you'll be asked to redo it. If too much of the shoulder area is exposed in a Passport photo, applicants will be told to resubmit. When I renewed my Passport recently it took three different photo sessions from a professional Passport photographer to get it right. No sanctuary option here. Try entering Canada without proper ID (today this means a Passport) and see how quickly Canadian authorities send you home. Before a Passport was required to enter Canada, travelers on Amtrak were told in advance what kind of ID to bring. Amtrak trains into Canada stopped at the US-Canada border (they still do) for upwards of 45 minutes while Canadian Customs officials boarded the train and inspected "papers." Inevitably there was always one poor soul who didn't have the right ID who would be asked to leave the train and then escorted into a small foreboding-looking bunker by the tracks where, presumably, they were questioned further. Sometimes they were not allowed back on the train. Try traveling to Israel from the U.S. and you'll experience the most intense interrogation by security anywhere in the world. Every aspect of your life is up for a probing Q and A: work, home life, religion, marital status, hobbies, sexual orientation or political party affiliation. Israeli security is a big Orwellian machine where any question, no matter how trivial or personal, might be asked. In fact, travelers to Israel are warned in advance to be prepared for the most "politically incorrect" questions imaginable. Before boarding a flight to Tel Aviv some months ago, my 30 minute interrogation by Israeli security, although very polite, left me wondering if I would be approved for boarding. Advertisement Okay, so given the tight US Passport requirements, why then do we have the reverse of this, the sloppy Sanctuary City concept? Hundreds of cities and municipalities in the US have 'sanctuary city' status, which means that in these cities illegal immigrants are shielded from deportation. Sanctuary City status bars police and prison officials from telling Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) about an illegal immigrant's release from prison. This new system flies in the face of the strict immigration standards set by Ellis Island, when (legal) immigrants with criminal pasts were sent back to their homeland. In 2016, someone can enter the US illegally, commit a crime, serve time in a US prison, and then be released into the general population as a free agent, regardless of the fact that they entered the country illegally. They can then go on to commit other crimes without any risk of deportation as long as they live in a sanctuary city. The big irony here is the fact that what I have just described is prohibited by federal law. Yes, every sanctuary city and municipality is breaking the law. In an even stranger twist, there are some politicians who accuse those who oppose sanctuary cities as being xenophobes. In October of 1965, then President Lyndon Johnson signed the Teddy Kennedy Immigration and Nationally Act into law on Liberty Island, New York. In many ways the Act was a good thing. It expanded immigration to increase immigrant flow from eastern and southern Europe. http://www.lbjlib.utexas.edu/johnson/archives.hom/speeches.hom/651003.asp At the signing, Johnson stated, "This bill says simply that from this day forth those wishing to immigrate to America shall be admitted on the basis of their skills and their close relationship to those already here. This is a simple test, and it is a fair test. Those who can contribute most to this country--to its growth, to its strength, to its spirit--will be the first that are admitted to this land." Advertisement Okay, so what happened in the ensuing years to change this, since many now believe that too many recent immigrants to the United States have not necessarily represented "those who can contribute most to this country?" One of Mayor Kenney's first Executive Orders was to reinstate the city's 'sanctuary city' status. This news was ecstasy to new City Council member Helen Gym, who raised her fist in a 'Power to the People' salute as Kenney signed the Order. Nicole Kligerman of the New Sanctuary Movement of Philadelphia, said, "We are thrilled...!" http://www.phillymag.com/news/2014/02/21/interview-philly-welcome-immigrants/ But are we really? Kenney's Executive Order means that Philadelphia is joining those scofflaw cities breaking federal law, such as San Francisco (where a woman was killed by an illegal immigrant who was deported 5 times), Detroit, Portland, Miami, Baltimore and Seattle .http://articles.philly.com/2016-01-06/news/69541175_1_south-philadelphia-secure-communities-ice If Philadelphia is breaking the law, what kind of role model is the city offering to its residents? Why should ordinary Philadelphians pay attention to laws against insurance fraud, mail fraud, counterfeiting, child support, arson, embezzlement and motor vehicle crimes? The city is blatantly disregarding President Obama's own disapproval of the sanctuary city concept. We must ask: Why? Will Mayor Kenney go as far as the Republican governor of Nevada, who approved the issuing of drivers licenses to illegal immigrants? How did we forget that immigration laws are there to protect the public safety? Consider this: Had I entered Israel illegally after my Q and A with Israeli airport security, and then committed a series of crimes in Tel Aviv, do you think I would have been considered for Israeli citizenship had I wanted to stay? Would I have been offered a sanctuary seat in a cozy city cafe? Ex-Governor Rendell is on record as saying that Philadelphia should obey the law. Rendell said that it was the Obama Administration that is enforcing the deportation laws. "So, I think I would've not made Philadelphia a sanctuary city," Rendell said. "... Jim Kenney has been, for the longest time, even going back to when I was Mayor, he's been an advocate for making Philadelphia a more attractive place for immigrants to come and settle and open up businesses. And I agree with that and think his policy is dead on but I think that it can only happen with legal immigrants. "http://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/2016/01/05/ed-rendell-jim-kenney-wrong-to-make-philadelphia-a-sanctuary-city Thank you, governor. Meanwhile, the bearded, heavily tattooed 300 pound plus mayor of Braddock, Pennsylvania, John Fetterman told PoliticsPA that he supports Kenney's Sanctuary City decision. "I want to give my full-throated endorsement of Mayor Kenney's decision. Any Democrat that doesn't agree with this policy is pandering to xenophobia. Sanctuary cities ensure the safety and well-being of everybody." http://www.phillyvoice.com/sanctuary-cities-legislation-reach-senate-floor/ What Fetterman is basically saying is that unless you fall in line and agree with not enforcing immigration laws, you're basically a panderer to bigots. As one legislator from New York, Rep. Peter King, put it, "...The general outlook from the media is that it's very humanitarian to have these cities, and that they are protecting the innocent people. Well, as you can see...you have to have an orderly society, orderly immigration, or you're going to see social consequences...". http://www.wnd.com/2015/07/sanctuary-cities-release-thousands-of-violent-criminals/ My one prediction for 2016 is this: Congress will enact legislation to end the sanctuary city problem. "First rule of maintaining a healthy marriage while parenting an infant is nothing thats said between 1:00 a.m. and 5:00 a.m. can be held against you." To fully appreciate a historic city like Charleston, you shouldn't speed through it in car. In fact, even taking a horse-drawn buggy might be rushing it. "Those carriage tours are popular, but the city is so walkable that it's best experienced on foot," says Caroline Eubanks, an Atlantan whose travel blog focuses on the South. "You see much more interesting things this way--like narrow alleys with street art, plaques denoting historic homes, and the stamps on each brick that tell where they're from." Indeed, sometimes the best way to embrace a city is to take it slow, and that's one reason Travel+Leisure readers love South Carolina's Holy City, ranking it among their favorite urban centers in North America. As part of the magazine's World's Best survey, Travel + Leisure readers voted on their favorite airports, cruise lines, islands, and hotels--and also ranked the world's greatest cities for features such as arts, shopping, dining, and romantic ambience. Advertisement Like Charleston, many of the top 20 winners in North America have a deep sense of history, while still cultivating modern features like craft breweries, coffee houses, and ever-evolving music scenes. But some regional stereotypes still persist in the survey: one winning category, friendliness, gave certain Southern cities in the U.S. a distinct advantage, thanks to their lilting accents and free refills on iced tea. But one local from a Midwestern contender urges travelers to see past her hometown's own accent and bluster. "Based on our harsh winters and our track record with the Cubs, you'd think we'd be very bitter," says Chicago resident and independent-travel podcast co-host Kathy Pulkrabek. "But we're the first people to help wayward tourists on the street, or strike up a conversation in a bar." To start up your own chat in the Windy City, she adds, "just remember the three Bs: Bulls, Bears, and Blackhawks." --By Katrina Brown Hunt Also on HuffPost: Boris Johnson's announcement that he will vote to leave the European Union, aka Brexit, smacks of the lustful calculation of a political campaign to become prime minister. On the climbing frame of politics, where one must constantly strive to find a footing to beat the competition to the top, it looks like Boris has concluded that his choice of stance on the EU is the risk he must take in order to succeed -- with barely a sideways glance at the long-term consequences for his country's economy nor for the political stability of a disintegrating world that a weaker European Union will endanger. It seems he, too, has now had a "Granita" moment with the Justice Minister Michael Gove, the two of them perhaps going Dutch on taking the helm of a future conservative government. If so, this pact could well come back to haunt us, but, hopefully, just them. So now we must fear not a waning Britain but the launch of a resurgent England, hoisted by the petard of a resentful Wales, an economically weak northern Ireland and an independent Scotland, dreaming that it can sustain a post-Brexit relationship with the US that is special. Advertisement America today loves its partner's sexy appeal in the pragmatic knowledge that it is a real and trusted political player within a powerful European bloc of 500 million people. Trying to remain faithful to a "Dad's Army" England outside the EU will be as difficult as keeping up a teenage crush, when the superficial handsomeness of youth turns into a cluster of pimples and lip fluff. The same goes for China, with any good ol' days of a shared history with Britain at zero. Talk of losing sovereignty: all of Britain's previous traction with the two superpowers will disappear. And, without the powerhouse of an empire nor the support of a continent, England will be smart, wily and lonely. Good luck then with thinking that the world will come to its aid when thousands of migrants learn to swim the Channel and the Jungle moves to Dover. There's always the upside that England's economy declines to the extent that migrants stop coming. Oh, and good luck also with containing IS to 200 kilometres of Libyan coastline, as well as a proxy war with Russia in Syria and Ukraine, and expecting Europe's undivided attention when cybercriminals shut down its national grid. Boris's tripping platitudes about fighting for a new set of trade relationships outside the EU are misleading, knowing that the nature of trade today is not a version of Amazon, nor does it lie in its 1950's version of "we make something, you buy it and we send it to you". Rather it is ensuring one has a seat at the table when the rules are written that will determine British companies' access to the EU or any other market. So better take a ticket and wait in line, and hope to revive the fishing industry on the back of new English trade deals with Papua New Guinea and Burkina Faso, carbon mile overheads notwithstanding. Boris Johnson's pledge to fight for a better Britain penetrates an island's sea of concerns like a tossed headstone, pinning down people's hopes with a thickness of thinking that he would decry in others. His idea of batting for his country is to leave the EU in order to get a better deal with Europe. With the country's newly established pulling rank of a boutique hotel, how would that work exactly? Advertisement Summary: The seeds of revolution are sprouting in Afghanistan, but President Ashraf Ghani can escape the Sword of Damocles by changing his trajectory and giving the provinces more freedom to self-govern. A former university professor named Ashraf Ghani wrote a book in 2009 entitled Fixing Failed States, and now than he is President of Afghanistan, Ghani must be wondering if his book needs a complete rewrite - as he finds himself presiding over a state teetering on the brink of collapse. Ghani and co-author Clare Lockhart subtitled their book A Framework for Rebuilding a Fractured World, which seems something of an embarrassment now as we see, after a year-and-half under Ghani's reign, Afghanistan itself remains fractured. Advertisement And the prospects for 2016 appear grim. In January, the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction published a quarterly report to the U.S. Congress that cites the "fragile and worsening" condition of the economy and security climate in this war-torn country. Brinton Crane, in his influential book The Anatomy of Revolution, identified telltale signs that occurred before key revolutions throughout history - and which were mirrored in Afghanistan during the 1970s, leading up to the assassination of Sardar Mohammad Daud Khan in a bloody coup d'etat. Today, Afghanistan simmers with events that could signal yet another revolution. The political environment is volatile. The Taliban has taken advantage of that disarray by carrying out a series of deadly attacks, inhibiting freedom of movement. Major roads in the south are impassable, and the country as a whole appears on the verge of breakdown. It led First Vice President Abdul Rashid Dostum to don his military uniform, as once he did when fighting alongside Russians in the war against the Mujahedeen. Advertisement On Feb. 15, former Jihadi commander Abdul Rasou Sayyaf demanded that the Afghan Unity Government allow Mujahedeen fighters to battle against Taliban forces. "If people are not allowed to mobilize against the enemy to defend the country," Sayyaf said, "then the people will be compelled to take action and defend their soil. This will undoubtedly lead to disorder." Afghans are fleeing by the thousands in search of a better life elsewhere. As part of this chain of critical events, some political activists are calling for the removal of Ghani from his presidency through a Loya Jirga - a meeting of tribal leaders and influential individuals. Among them, former Afghan president Sibghatullah Mojaddedi has criticized Ghani as a novice who suffers from a lack of government experience. But if the elected Afghan president is removed, it may be tantamount to handing the government over to the Taliban. There's no doubt that some of Ghani's calamities are self-inflicted, which hurt his image at home and abroad, both as a leader and as the worlds' second-most influential thinker (as he was ranked in a worldwide poll by Prospect Magazine in 2013). Much of the damage has been caused by his micro-managing of state affairs, his softness on the Taliban, and his failure to carry out campaign promises. Advertisement Ghani's style of governance forebodes social upheaval. Despite the unity government forged by the mediation of U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, various ethnic rivals continue to jockey for power and muck up the already slow-moving engine of government. It took Ghani seven months to form a cabinet. The positions of Secretary of Defense and many other governor and minister posts have yet to be filled by Chief Executive Officer Abdullah Abdullah, who presides over an ongoing, contentious and painstaking process. However, many circumstances are beyond President Ghani's reach. The country suffers from a chronic socio-economical sclerosis. Aside from being land-locked, Afghanistan lacks natural resources and is losing its educated, skilled populace in a brain drain. During almost four decades of war, the country has seen its educated elite flee abroad, while its private and public institutions fall apart. As a result, Afghanistan is unable to generate enough revenue to pay public servants, provide basic services for citizens or enforce the law. Today, the insurgency may not be as much a problem as a weakened government that is unable to spread its wings beyond the city of Kabul. Couple that with a disturbing culture of dependency and a lack of personal responsibility among the citizens, and you have percolating disaster. Advertisement Alas, many who call for the removal of President Ghani are those who served in previous, ineffective regimes. Their credentials aren't impressive. However, Ghani cannot ignore the warning signs. He still has a chance; Afghans have no viable alternative at this point. They are war-weary and not inclined to take to the streets in revolution. They know that if the government fails, the Taliban wins. Ghani the author clearly underestimated the challenge of fixing failed states. Ghani the President can avoid the Sword of Damocles that fell on Sardar Daud's neck by acknowledging the creeping danger and engaging his opposition. One giant step in the right direction would be to give the provinces more freedom to self-govern. That would remove a huge burden from his governance and perhaps change his trajectory. In this season of Lent, this text of summons may be a sobering one for us. In this election season amid shrill or buoyant rhetoric, we may not notice that there real choices to be made, even as Jews in ancient Babylon were confronted with real choices of a most elemental kind. These verses are addressed to elite Israelites who had been forcibly deported to Babylon when Jerusalem had been destroyed. While these deported elites yearned for a return to Jerusalem, it is clear that they also came to terms with the Babylonian regime and the Babylonian economy, enough to participate in the opportunities and requirements of the imperial order. In doing so, they inevitably compromised their quite distinctive Jewish identity as members of a neighborly covenant. It was an uneasy balancing act for them, to participate fully in the dominant economy and to practice at the same time an intentional and distinctive faith identity. That same uneasy balance is the very one that many of us seek to maintain in our own political economic setting. Advertisement Into that uneasy arrangement comes the powerful poetry of the text. The message of Isaiah is that he wants his Jewish listeners to heed his call to reembrace their distinctive identity, and so to retreat from commitment to the empire. The purpose of his summons is that his listeners will be prepared to return to Jerusalem with as clear covenantal identity, because geo-politics is about to permit such a release as the grip of Babylon wanes in the face of Persian power. In verses 1-5 the poet calls his listeners to make a clear choice. He offers them an option of the generous self-giving of YHWH, the God of covenant. This God has in times past given Israel manna-bread and water in the wilderness, and will now generously give all that is needed for life...free water, free milk, and free wine, all gifts of God. But reception of these free gifts in faith requires his listeners to choose against the quid-pro-quo economy of Babylon. In that imperial economy of demand-production, these deported Jews had to do work that was not satisfying; they had to buy consumer goods that had no sustaining value. The quid-pro-quo of production ("labor for that which does not satisfy") and consumption ("that which is not bread") is in fact a dead-end project that only results in fatigue, disappointment, and despair. The summons of the poem is that, because of the living God, an alternative way is possible. That alternative way is a homecoming that will be enacted because of God's fidelity to the covenant with David. In verses 6-9 the poet introduces a second riff. While verses 6-7 may be familiar to us as a generic "call to worship," in fact these verses are not a "call to worship." Rather they are a call to sanity in a quite specific social situation. The "wickedness" and "unrighteousness" of which Israel is to repent concerns Israel's wholesale compromise with the quid-pro-quo of the Babylonian empire that entailed a shift away from covenantal commitments. Thus the Jews who compromised with Babylonian practices, values, and procedures of production and consumption are invited back to the generous governance of YHWH who, in the context of the parsimonious empire, gives the gifts needed for life. To return to YHWH is to depart the Babylonian calculus and reengage the covenantal values of a neighborly kind. Advertisement The ground for such a radical reengagement with faith is the elemental contrast between the anxious assumption of deported Jews who thought they were on their own in Babylon and the intention of YHWH who has indeed left God's people on their own for time (see Isaiah 54:7-8), but who will now provide what they need. The poem makes a vigorous and emphatic contrast between "your ways and thoughts" and God's "ways and thoughts." The poet dares to introduce to Israel in exile an alternative resolve that has not been on their screen."Your ways," you who have colluded with the empire of quid-pro-quo, is a way of fear, scarcity, and anxiety that requires labor that does not satisfy and purchases that are not bread. God's way, by contrast, is a way of generous, reliable fidelity that makes such fearful collusion both inappropriate and unnecessary. Thus Isaiah's listeners are summoned to deal with the reality of God, God's way, God's thought, and God's future that constitute a palpable alternative to the offer of Babylon. It takes no deep imagination to see that this poem continues its powerful summons in a contemporary way even for us, perhaps especially in an election season that converges for now with Lent. The political rhetoric to which we are now relentlessly exposed is either a) to be very afraid and angry about a system that has not kept its promises, or b) to have confidence in the restored system that will keep its promise of wellbeing and security. Either way, in fear and anger or in confidence in the system, the horizon of our political rhetoric is, perforce, limited to the claims of the US market and the promise of security guaranteed by the National Security State. Both market ideology and the National Security State are given cover by the claims of US exceptionalism that boldly offers theological assurance as the chosen of God. All of that, however--market, security, exceptionalism--assume that there is no "way" but the "way" of the way of the US market-security system, no "thought" except the thought that the United States is God's most surely chosen people. All of that, whether in despair or in pride, bets everything on the imperial wonder of the United States, thus not very different from that of ancient Babylon. The choice to which the text may summon us is a choice for a covenantal horizon that allows for a purpose other than our own. That alternative choice is grounded in a holy claim; but it has real life political implications. The covenantal offer has in purview a practice of neighborly justice, on which see Isaiah 56:1. This alternative breaks the harsh demand of quid pro quo. It recognizes that there neighbors who are entitled to generosity. It knows that healthy social relationships depend on generous hospitality. It consents that instead of score-keeping quid pro quo, large acts of forgiveness are in order, large acts that include cancelation of the debts of the poor. The news is that the reality of God creates alternatives in real time. Lent is an opportunity to host such alternatives. The election season is a time for deep critical faith that exposes phony ideological claims. In ancient time, only some few took the option of returning to a covenantal identity that is grounded in another way and another thought. We now, in the presence of this text, face a like opportunity. Bible Study Questions: 1. At times many of us may feel caught up in a quid pro quo cycle - we go to work to pay the bills, to pay the bills we go to work. What are some spiritual disciplines you use to break this cycle and break into the life of abundance in God? 2. The scarcity worldview of quid pro quo living is in direct conflict with God's gift of abundance. In scarcity we believe there is not enough so we do not give graciously to those in need. How does scarcity-thinking show up in your life? If you could believe you had unlimited resources how would you shop more or give more of yourself to others? Does it even matter? 3. God's ways and thoughts are different than our ways and thoughts. How is God calling you to break us of our self-absorption and into true community? What would experiencing a covenantal horizon and living for a purpose other than your own look like this week? Advertisement For Further Reading Walter Brueggemann, The Prophetic Imagination, 2001 Walter Brueggemann, Hopeful Imagination: Prophetic Voices in Exile, 1992 Walter Brueggemann, Prayers for a Privileged People, 2008 Like ON Scripture on Facebook Follow ON Scripture on Twitter @ONScripture I just finished reading Erica Jong's latest book Fear of Dying. The cover jacket is that of a zipper, an obvious reprise of her startling first book Fear of Flying and its notorious phrase "Zipless Fuck." This book published in 1973 when she was 30 established her as the doyenne of libidinousness. Its demanding sexuality titillated, and splattered the tranquil self satisfaction of the time. I first met Erica here at Stanford as she was promoting her then latest book, Fear of Fifty-- A Midlife Memoir. It was largely the ruminations of a menopausal woman in 1994. She recalls "50 years of training for midlife self annihilation." She acknowledges that she liked her teenage daughter better than herself, maybe jealousy. She actually begins Fear of Dying with a remembrance that she related to me directly, recalling "how I tried to swish every man that I encountered on 57th street. When I heard a wolf call I figured that I was the source of the flirtation, but then I recognized that the object of the whistle was my daughter, not myself. This was a startling right of passage that spoke to the archival nature of the triad of Fear of Flying, age 30, Fear of Fifty, age 50 and now Fear of Dying, age 70. Her aging was in print. Advertisement At our first meeting here at Stanford she wowed the audience, She was salty as hell and challenged any conventionality. She received a standing ovation for her insistence of the autonomy of Women. After her talk I spoke to the assemblage using my geriatric diploma to state my case that aging was less of the problem than was the attitude about what aging represents. I'm a good speaker, and the audience was generous with their response as was Erika who quickly engaged me in telling me that her parents' capacities were starting to dwindle and she was consumed by anxiety about this. We hit it off famously, and I offered up assorted platitudes to her on how she could provide grease for her parents' omega slide. Fear of Dying displays the varied indignities suffered separately, but infecting all. Repeated hospitalizations, incontinency, and assorted other frailties and decays became the daily drill. The bleakness of her parents' lives impacted her reserves of courage. She feared that her own future years would follow the trajectory of her own parents miserable decline. She tried to escape from this depression in seeking out further amorous trysts, both here and abroad. Much of the text of Fear of Dying relates multiple dreams of earlier sexually charged encounters that continued to bubble up and make her wakening more anxious than ever. She saves her most tender narrative for the adoration she feels about her baby grandson Leonardo (Leo now). He is invested with images of beauty and perfection. It reminded me of my own personal favorite line in my first book We Live Too Short and Die Too Long. I wrote "the birth of a grandchild is my personal Easter." I'm proud of this observation. I recall thirty years ago when I was on my own book tour I was being interviewed by NPR in Boston. My interviewer remarked "my favorite line in your book Dr. Bortz was the birth of a grandchild is my personal Easter. I reacted "my God you read the book." Book tours are usually excruciating indignities as the interviewers are informed by reading from the book jackets , not the meat. Advertisement Erica hates aging and its warts. This third novel of her age Trilogy concludes with her husband and she pondering their prospects for reincarnation. This speculation was fueled by their visit to India, and bathed in its mythologies. She observes," Once we are dead we are utterly fearless. Death is fearlessness. It's the anticipation of our dying that's the problem.""Fear is a waste of Life". This echoes Woody Allen's famous remark, "I'm not afraid of dying. I just don't want to be there when it happens." This year, the world has seen clearly the costs of extremism and political instability. After months of violent attacks on nearly every continent and facing the biggest refugee crisis since World War Two, we're forced to wrestle with hard questions. We're grappling with how to address the root causes of political violence. We're struggling with how to create a world not burdened by the shadow of extremism, intolerance, and hate. Through Teach For All, I'm in regular contact with education leaders from around the world; they all find themselves asking, "What can we do in our classrooms today to create a better future?" Still reeling from attacks in her home city, Teach For France's CEO, Nadia Marik-Descoings, questions whether we are really providing children with an education that will put them on a path to fulfilling, meaningful lives and careers. Ulf Matysiak, the CEO of Teach First Deutschland --whose own country accepted more than 1,000,000 migrants in 2015 -- believes deeply in migrants' ability to contribute to their new society. Rather than asking refugee children where they come from, he challenged us to consider what they would like to become. And Evgenia Peeva, the CEO of Teach For Bulgaria, wonders if we are doing enough to effectively bridge diversity by teaching the values of community, empathy, and collaboration. The conversations I've had with these people fortify my belief in the power of many voices, from many countries, coming together to inform and strengthen local efforts to develop students' leadership and lay a foundation for engaged global citizenship. Advertisement The events of recent months demonstrate that no matter where we live, our fates are interconnected. To improve our collective welfare, we must work together to define visions for students that go far beyond academic outcomes and seek to empower their leadership and moral character. And then, as a global community, we need to work together to help provide this high standard of education to every child. If we are serious about creating a better future, there is no other option. Across Teach For All, we've seen this approach foster peace, hope, and opportunity, while cultivating tolerance and understanding. Participants teaching through our partner organizations in the Middle East are helping students affected by conflict cope with trauma and channel their energy toward a more hopeful future. Farah Mhanna, of Teach For Lebanon, leads a class of students orphaned by war. When Farah first entered the classroom, her students saw no value in education because their past taught them to believe that weapons and violence could solve any problem. Yet, Farah committed to reaching each of them and helping them believe in their own potential. She designed a curriculum around content that she knew would resonate with them and worked hard to forge a connection with her most challenging students. Advertisement After six months, Farah's persistence and dedication paid off. She broke through the seemingly intractable invisible wall and was able to talk openly with them about the war, their violent past, and their hopes for the future. They began to recognize that war was the cause of their anger and that something better is possible. Together, Farah and her students created a video about their hopes and dreams; in it, they made clear that education -- not weapons -- is their only path forward. In Germany, Syrian refugees attend schools in low-income neighborhoods where the group that forced them from their homes regularly recruits. Leading many of those classes are Teach First Deutschland participants. These teachers are committed to making sure that all students are treated as productive members of German society and feel connected to their communities. The teachers organize community service projects where, together with their German-born peers, migrant students from across Europe and the Middle East give back to their new community. These projects help instill dignity and respect, affirming the fact that they may become Germany's next business owners, doctors, educators, and community leaders. In Lebanon, Germany, and around the world, our future depends on the kind of adults our children become. Kusum, a grade 6 student taught by Teach For India participants at a government school in Delhi, embodies the leadership that our global society needs. At school, she is learning to become a citizen who will create a better future for us all. "To build a vision...we all need to work together," Kusum tells us. LAS VEGAS, NV - FEBRUARY 24: Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks during a campaign watch party on the day of the Nevada republican caucus at the Treasure Island Ballroom in Las Vegas, NV on Tuesday Feb. 23, 2016. (Photo by Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post via Getty Images) The sound bites that dominate today's politics are bad enough, but even worse is when presidential candidates use them to tell false and horrific stories. A perfect example of this is from Republican front-runner Donald Trump. During a campaign rally on Friday night in South Carolina, Trump told his audience a story about General John Pershing executing Muslim prisoners in the Philippines. Trump said Pershing, in the early 1900's, "caught 50 terrorists that did tremendous damage and killed many people and he took the 50 terrorists and he took 50 men and he dipped 50 bullets in pig's blood." Advertisement Trump went out to describe a mass execution shooting of 49 of the prisoners, with the last one being sent to tell the others what happened. It was Trump using this "story" to demonstrate that America needed to get tough on terrorism, using brutal methods, and that he would be the man to do it. But the story is not true. There was no mass execution led by Pershing. That is a rumor created on the Internet. A Chicago Daily Tribune article from 1927 has a story where Pershing had prisoners from the Moro Rebellion in the Philippines. The Moros were Muslims who resisted American or any other occupying force. The Moros had swordsmen, called Juramentados, who were killing Christians in this uprising. It had to be stopped. General Pershing was given this difficult task. Advertisement The Tribune article says Pershing sprinkled some prisoners with pig's blood, which the Juramentados believed would condemn them for eternity. But then Pershing let the prisoners go. He issued a warning to others about being sprinkled with the pig's blood. The Tribune article said "those drops of porcine gore proved more powerful than bullets." There were no executions as described by Trump. In fact, Pershing was more inclined toward peace talks with the Moros rather than violence. The General met with the Moros and read from the Koran with them. Pershing wanted to build bridges. An illustration shows the General in peace talks in the jungles of the Philippines. What Trump should do is tell true stories about the great General Pershing, who commanded American forces during the First World War. While he was a tough and a great military leader, he also was a man who wanted to build peace. So often that is the case with great military leaders, they are often the first to call for peace building because they understand the horror as well as limitations of war. Pershing was leading young American soldiers, many who did not even have a high school education, into WWI, the worst conflict in history at that point. Their bravery deserved a lasting world peace, which we are still seeking. Pershing also understood something that more people need to realize, that famine is the inevitable aftermath of war. Advertisement After the First World War Pershing teamed up with Herbert Hoover to raise funds to feed hungry children in Europe. Hoover and Pershing co-hosted' "invisible guest" fundraising dinners. They would place an empty setting at the table, representing the starving children. Why can't we hear that Pershing story at campaign rallies instead of a false and violent one? General Pershing (right) with Herbert Hoover at the "Invisible Guest" fundraising dinners. (Herbert Hoover Presidential Library) If Pershing were around today he would be advocating food for the hungry child refugees, which are at unprecedented levels today because of the war in Syria. They never talk about hunger during the presidential debates, but it's a top foreign policy issue, which Pershing and other great leaders have understood. Pershing was also deeply concerned about high levels of military spending. He often spoke about achieving global arms reductions and disarmament. Nations could work together to achieve this noble goal. As a man who understood more about warfare than perhaps anyone in our country's history, Pershing knew well the danger of excessive armament. He might have some questions for Trump or others who talk about pouring on the military spending. But instead of trying to learn from Pershing, Trump cites a false story in an attempt to sound tough and get a sound bite on TV. The last thing this world needs is more people talking or advocating violence, especially someone running for President. Advertisement Kasich in Gulfport 3.jpg Ohio Gov. and GOP presidential hopeful John Kasich speaks to a crowd of supporters during a town hall meeting in Gulfport Wednesday. (Tyler Carter/Gulflive.com) GULFPORT, Mississippi -- Ohio Governor and GOP presidential hopeful John Kasich brought his message of unity and common sense governing to Gulfport Wednesday as he continues his push for the Republican nomination. With banners reading "America Never Gives Up" and "A Strong America is a Safe America" as a backdrop, Kasich spoke to a standing room only audience, saying he was in the race for the long haul. Gulfport Mayor Billy Hewes introduced Kasich and Biloxi Mayor Andrew "FoFo" Gilich was also in attendance, along with several other current and former state officials, including former U.S. Rep. Gene Taylor. Kasich spent the first portion of his appearance outlining his qualifications for the presidency, including his service in the U.S. House of Representatives and two terms as Ohio's governor. "First off, you're not electing someone for class president, you are electing the President of the United States," Kasich said. "I just wish in this campaign we could put up resumes and accomplishments. You know resumes don't mean that much, but accomplishments really matter." Kasich then took subtle shots at fellow Republicans who felt that he should drop out of the race because they believe he does not have a chance to win. "Forget about it," he said bluntly. Frequent and enthusiastic applause echoed through Cafe Climb, where the meeting was held, as Kasich tackled a number of campaign issues. At one point, he made it clear that going to Washington, D.C., was not about making friends, but moving the county forward. "I believe it was (Harry) Truman who said 'If you want to go Washington to have a friend, buy a dog,'" Kasich said. "Because that place is filled with people who do not give a 'hoot' about us and people who keep things just as they are just to make money." During a roughly 30-minute Q&A session with the audience, Kasich was asked about a multiple range of topics, from education reform to tax reform to his strategy for defeating ISIS. "Air strikes alone will not defeat ISIS," he said. "We must use air and ground forces to defeat them. We must also utilize Muslim and Egyptian allies to help defeat them and then get out of the war and allow them to figure it out." Kasich also outlined a litany of plans for his first 100 days in the White House and said he intends to reach across party lines to accomplish his goals for the county. "I can promise you these things are not difficult," he said. "After the election, I plan to call the leadership and those who are not necessarily a part of the leadership, but are leaders and remind them of one thing: I know you are a Republican, I know you are a Democrat, but you have to understand that you are an American before you are either of those." Kasich appealed to all demographics present at his rally on Wednesday. Seniors, middle-aged, and especially the youth were targets of his message to rebuild America from the ground up. "Our seniors are worried about what will happen to them, and we must take care of them first and I plan to do so when I am elected," he said. Kasich also discussed the military and his desire to see more of the military budget go to front line troops, rather than defense contractors who frequently gauge the military in defense contracts. He also said he intends after taking office to put together a team to fix the Veterans Affairs fiasco "once and for all." Behind Kasich were kids from the YouthBuild program. The program is a non-profit organization which provides education, counseling and job skills to unemployed young American adults, generally high school dropouts. Kasich turned his attention to those children telling them "We are counting on each of you." Audience member Richard Pagano said he wasn't too sure about Kasich when he came on the scene, but that he now feels more comfortable with him after hearing him speak on Wednesday. "I have always considered myself moderate-conservative so I was skeptical about him at first, but the more I listened to him, the more I liked the ideas he presented," Pagano said. "He didn't scream and yell to get his point across and I like to be talked to as a person and not as a number sitting out there. "I wish he had gotten in sooner to get his organization going stronger, but I'm hoping we can keep him in here because I definitely think he will do well for this country." Pagano's granddaughter had asked Kasich during the meeting about his plan to eliminate student loan debt to which he responded that the debt she may have isn't as much as others, but that the most important thing for her would be to find employment after college. Pagano agreed with his granddaughter's concern about student loan debt and noted the importance of getting the economy moving again. "My granddaughter is going to college and I want her to have a job and not a load of college debt so she can have a prosperous future," he said. "I liked how he talked about to the young people about getting a second chance in life and showing them a way to make a living. That is important to me." After the Gulfport rally, Kasich was whisked off to a private meeting with the Gulfport Republican Club, which was closed to the media, before departing for a Wednesday afternoon rally in New Orleans. Atheist Bus Campaign -- Photo by Dan Etherington from London, UK In the West, atheism is growing. Nearly a billion people around the world are essentially godless. Yet, that burgeoning population faces an important challenge in the near future--the choice whether to support far longer lifespans than humans have ever experienced before. Transhumanism technology could potentially double our lifetimes in the next 20-40 years through radical science like gene editing, bionic organs, and stem cell therapy. Eventually, life extension technology like this will probably even wipe out death and aging altogether, damaging one of the most important philosophical tenets formal religion uses to convert people: the promise of being resurrected after you die. About 85 percent of the world's population believes in life after death, and much of that population is perfectly okay with dying because it gives them an afterlife with their perceived deity or deities--something often referred to as "deathist" culture. In fact, four billion people on Earth--mostly Muslims and Christians--see the overcoming of death through science as potentially blasphemous, a sin involving humans striving to be godlike. Some holy texts say blasphemy is unforgivable and will end in eternal punishment. So what are atheists to do in a world where science and technology are quickly improving and will almost likely overcome human mortality in the next half century? Will there be a great civil rights debate and clash around the world? Or will the deathist culture change, adapt, or even subside? More importantly, will atheists help lead the charge in confronting religion's love of using human mortality as a tool to grow the church? Advertisement Transhumanism vs. Religion -- Interview with Brian Rose of London Real First, let's look at some hard facts. Most deaths in the world are caused by aging and disease. Approximately 150,000 people die every day around the world, causing devastating loss to loved ones and communities. Of course, it should not be overlooked that death also brings massive disruption to family finances and national economies. On the medical front, the good news is that gerontologists and other researchers have made major gains recently in the fields of life extension, anti-aging research, and longevity science. In 2010, some of the first studies of stopping and reversing aging in mice took place. They were partially successful and proved that 21st Century science and medicine had the goods to overcome most types of deaths from aging. Eventually, we'll also wipe out most diseases. Through modern medicine, the 20th Century saw a massive decrease of deaths from polio, measles, and typhoid, amongst others. On the heels of some of these longevity and medical triumphs, a number of major commercial ventures have appeared recently, pouring hundreds of millions of dollars into the field of anti-aging and longevity research. Google's Calico, Human Longevity LLC, and Insilico Medicine are just some of them. Advertisement Google Ventures' President Bill Maris, who helps direct investments into health and science companies, recently made headlines by telling Bloomberg, "If you ask me today, is it possible to live to be 500? The answer is yes." Increasingly, leading scientists are voicing similar ideas. Reuters reports that renowned gerontologist Dr. Aubrey de Grey, chief scientist at SENS Research Foundation and the Anti-aging Advisor at the US Transhumanist Party, thinks scientists will be able to control aging in the near future, "I'd say we have a 50/50 chance of bringing aging under what I'd call a decisive level of medical control within the next 25 years or so." Even smaller projects like the musician Steve Aoki supported Longevity Cookbook with its Indiegogo campaign have recently launched, in an effort to get people to eat better to live longer. All these endeavors add to a growing climate of people and their attitudes willing to accept the transhumanist idea that death is not fate. In fact, in the future, death will likely be seen as a choice someone makes, and not something that happens arbitrarily or accidentally to people. Immortality Bus visits one of the South's largest megachurches to spread atheism and transhumanism -- Video by Roen Horn Advertisement Despite this positive momentum in the anti-aging science movement, changing cultural deathist trends for 85 percent of the world's population may prove difficult. Humans are a species ingrained in their ways, and getting fundamentally religious people to have an open mind to living far longer periods than before--maybe hundreds of years even--could prove challenging. Recently, a number of transhumanists, including myself who is a longtime atheist, have attempted to work more closely with governmental, religious, and social groups that have for centuries endorsed the deathist culture. Transhumanists are trying to get those groups to realize we are not necessarily wanting to live forever. As science and reason-minded people, we simply want the choice and creation over our own earthly demise, and we don't want to leave it to cancer, or an automobile accident, or aging, or fate. Of course, for atheists, the elephant in the room is overpopulation. If everyone lives longer, surely the world will become even more crowded than it is. The good news is that scientists generally believe Earth could handle a far larger human population than we have now, without destroying the planet. But we'd need better methods of resource distribution and laws that ensure equality among people. The key to handling a large population likely rests in new green technology, and using it to fix major environmental problems. Meatless meat is a great example. Much rainforest destruction comes from creating pastures for animal grazing. But we could regrow those forests (which would help the greenhouse and ozone layer problems) by creating meatless meat in laboratories and bypassing the need for livestock. I like this for more reasons than one; 150 million animals are slaughtered every day for our consumption. That's a lot of killing that could be avoided. In the end, longer lifespans and more control over our biological selves will only make the world a better place, with more permanent institutions, more time with our loved ones, and more stable economies. People, including those who are atheist or religious, will always have the choice to die if they want to, but the specter of death from formal religion will no longer be able to be used as a menacing tool for growing a deathist culture and agenda. Advertisement ***** Meinzahn via Getty Images sign ladies for the public toilet NEW DELHI --More than 400 students at the Smt Durgabai Deshmukh Women's Technical Training Institute in Hyderabad have to do their ablutions in the open because the Ameerpet-based establishment does not have a single functional toilet. Neither the Institute nor the state government have lifted a finger to remedy the appalling situation by arranging clean toilets for the students. Advertisement The Times of India reported today on the daily ordeal of 476 students who relieve themselves in a college field, terrance, or an "abandoned" classroom in the campus, which happens to stink all the time. Privacy is a joke. While one student does her business, her friends hold a thin duppatta around her for cover. "We are adjusting by peeing wherever we can," one student told the newspaper. The students have received no response to their repeated complaints about the unclean toilets, which are impossible to use. Faculty members told TOI that the toilets have not been cleaned in years. M. Nagaraj, the former head of the architecture department at the institute, sent a letter about the lack of toilets to Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, but he hasn't received a response yet. "The toilets in the institution are untidy. Neither are they cleaned regularly nor are there any proper facilities. The girl students of the institution are facing much difficulty while using the toilets," he said in the letter. Advertisement Suresh Janga, principal of the institute, expressed helplessness over the situation. "We are forced to live here. The present building is just a temporary arrangement. The toilets that we have are abandoned. Since the building will be dismantled, we cannot repair it," he said, adding that the completion of the new building is also doubtful due to "lack of government funds." Also on HuffPost: Hindustan Times via Getty Images NEW DELHI, INDIA - DECEMBER 21: Mayawati Supremo BSP talking to media personnel after Rajya Sabha passes SC/ST Bill, supplementary demands without debate during the Winter Session of the Parliament at Parliament House on December 21, 2015 in New Delhi, India. As pressure mounted on it for early passage of the Juvenile Justice Bill, the government today listed the crucial legislation in Rajya Sabha for passage tomorrow and blamed Congress for blocking it in the past due to its obstructionist politics even when it was listed on 15 occasions. (Photo by Vipin Kumar/Hindustan Times via Getty Images) NEW DELHI -- Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati today triggered an uproar in the Rajya Sabha by raising Rohith Vemula's suicide, with lawmakers from her party shouting "Dalit virodhi sarkar" (anti-Dalit government) in the Well of the House. The Rajya Sabha was adjourned multiple times on the second day of the Budget Session. "Dalit virodhi ye sarkaar, nahin chalegi, nahi chalegi, Ambedkar virodhi ye sarkaar, nahin chalegi, nahin chalegi," BSP lawmakers shouted over and over again. Advertisement "Rohith ke pariwar ko nyay do (Give justice to Rohith's family)," they said. During the course of the Budget Session, opposition parties are closing ranks against the Bharatiya Janata Party-led government over three issues: the arrest of students from the Jawaharlal Nehru University in a sedition case, the violent Jat agitation over quota in the Other Backward Classes (OBC) category, and Vemula's suicide at the University of Hyderabad. Irate over the Modi government's handling of the Dalit student's suicide, last month, Mayawati demanded the sacking of the university's Vice Chancellor, resignation of two union ministers, and the inclusion of a Dalit member in the Enquiry Commission probing the incident. "Dalit students are being targeted," she said. Human Resource Development Minister Smriti Irani accused the Opposition of using "a child as a political tool." Advertisement Contact HuffPost India Facebook page Update: This story has been updated to remove the reference to Anil Dikshit as a Dainik Jagran journalist. His social media profiles have now been updated to remove this claim as well. At a time when the medias role has come under scrutiny for inciting passions in the JNU row, a journalist with in Agra has asked for arrested JNU students to be raped in jail. The journalist, Anil Dikshit, however, says that it was not his post and he has removed it. Advertisement The post said that JNU students Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya were born out of the black womb of communism and that when they are presented in court, they too should be beaten up by lawyers the way Kanhaiya Kumar was. The post went on to say that these two boys could be of use to other prisoners for many nights. Dikshit claims that the Nirbhaya rapists were repeatedly raped in Tihar jail by other prisoners who wanted to show them the joy of rape (balatkaar ka mazaa). This is how, Dikshit wrote, these students will learn that an Afzal Guru cant be born in every house just like that. Screenshot of the post. Speak on phone from Agra, Dikshit first said, Have you read the post? Read it carefully?" Then claimed that he never wrote it. Someone shared it on my wall but I have removed it. Asked if he agreed with its contents, he said that lawyers beating up 'anti-national' elements in court may be illegal but it is justified given the anguish they have caused. On rape, however, he said he did not agree with the post. Advertisement Dikshit seems to have removed the post after it went viral on the internet, picked up with websites like Truth of Gujarat and Media Vigil. Some journalists have begun a signature campaign demanding that Dainik Jagran take action against Dikshit, whose Facebook page describes him as a 'deputy news editor'. However, journalists in Agra said that Dikshit was with Jagran a long time ago and is no more employed with the paper. Dikshit himself said he had resigned a while ago. Posters put up by students protesting the JNU arrests. A signature campaign currently underway is seeking to appeal the management of Dainik Jagran to treat the Facebook post as incitement to violence and rape and take appropriate action. It is precisely this ideology, that treats sexual assault as a way to 'teach someone a lesson', or 'put them in their place' that perpetuates rape culture, and makes it possible for rapists across the land to practise violence with complete impunity. We demand that the management of Dainik Jagran treat this incitement to violence and rape by their Deputy Editor as a serious offence, and against the laws of the land," the letter reads. Advertisement After resurfacing on campus, Umar Khalid had denied making any anti-national slogans or speeches at the meet on 9 February, which was called to protest the third anniversary of Afzal Gurus hanging. Khalid And Bhattacharya, like JNUSU president Kanhaiya Kumar, have been charged with sedition and criminal conspiracy. Contact HuffPost India Also see on HuffPost: SAJJAD HUSSAIN via Getty Images An Indian demonstrator holds a candle as she takes part in a vigil and silent protest against the alleged gang-rape of a nun in the eastern state of West Bengal, and attacks on Churches in Pakistan and India, in New Delhi on March 16, 2015. Hundreds of priests, school girls and other protesters staged a peaceful rally March 16, 2015 in the Indian city of Kolkata to support an elderly nun who was gang-raped at her convent school. AFP PHOTO/ SAJJAD HUSSAIN (Photo credit should read SAJJAD HUSSAIN/AFP/Getty Images) NEW DELHI -- The Haryana government has denied a media report that at least 10 women were allegedly raped near the National Highway in Murthal during the Jat agitation in the early hours of Monday morning. Meanwhile, Justice N.K. Sanghi of the Punjab and Haryana High Court has written to the acting Chief Justice, Justice Shiavax Jal Vazifdar, recommending a probe by a premier investigating agency" into the alleged incident. Advertisement An official spokesperson said that Principal Secretary Devender Singh and Inspector General of Police Paramjit Ahlawat visited the area today, and they established that no such crime had occurred. The state government described the media reports as "totally false, misleading and not based on facts." The Tribune reported today at least 30 goons attacked commuters heading to the National Capital Region, and set their vehicles on the fire, but women who could not flee were pulled out, stripped and raped in the fields nearby NH1. The Tribune spoke to witnesses who confirmed this account, but they said that the local police had urged the families of those who were attacked to keep quiet for the "the sake of their honour," and not to pursue the matter since what had happened could not be undone." Advertisement "There was no rape, no victim and no complaint," Inspector Ajay Kumar, who is based in Murthal, told HuffPost India. Addressing a press conference in Hisar, the state's top cop, Y.P. Singal, described the report as "false." I still want to request to everyone that if something has happened, then come to the police," he said. Advertisement Hindustan Times via Getty Images NEW DELHI, INDIA - OCTOBER 9: Yoga Guru Baba Ramdev addresses during a press conference on October 9, 2015 in New Delhi, India. Future Group tied up with Yoga Guru Baba Ramdev's Patanjali Ayurved to sell the latter's products. (Photo by Arun Sharma/Hindustan Times via Getty Images) The Maharashtra government has given Baba Ramdev's Patanjali Yogpeeth 653 acres of land to set up four industrial units in Vidarbha region of east Maharashtra, including in the backward district of Gadchiroli. Announcing the deal, Union Minister for Road Transport, Highways and Shipping Nitin Gadkari said that these units will come up in Multi-modal International Cargo Hub and Airport at Nagpur (Mihan), Amravati and Katol, besides in Gadchiroli. Advertisement "Maharashtra government has decided to provide 347 acres of land in Mihan to Patanjali Yogpeeth for setting up a food processing unit," he said. "The land will be handed over within a month and the government will also provide the required infrastructure there. Land will also be provided in Amravati for a food park." The Maharashtra government signed the MoU with Patanjali Group last Friday, and Ramdev expects a turnover of around Rs 240 crore from the sale of forest produce which would benefit the local tribals, reportedBusiness Today. Patanjali will invest Rs 2,000 crore in this venture. While 108 acres of this land will be in the special economic zone (SEZ), around 239 acres will be outside it, said Gadkari, who represents Nagpur Lok Sabha seat. He claimed that this would general employment for over 10,000 locals. Meanwhile, 200 acres of land will be given to Patanjali in Katol MIDC (Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation) area, about 40 kilometres from Nagpur, for an orange processing unit. Advertisement "Of the 300 or so herbs, 200 can be grown in Gadchiroli and Chandrapur districts alone. Patanjali will set up a unit to manufacture herbal medicines in Gadchiroli," he said. Patanjali's Managing Director Acharya Balkrishna said the company will help the farmers get right value for their harvest. Balkrishna added that both Gadkari and chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan have "showed a positive reaction and have agreed to help us". He claimed that Patanjali has focussed on Vidarbha because farmers in the region are facing a major agrarian crisis. Gadkari said the Patanjali will also train tribals of Gadchiroli and Chandrapur districts to grow these herbs. He said Patanjali Yogpeeth is also mulling establishing a milk unit in the region, but it is in conceptual stage. (with agency inputs) Advertisement Contact HuffPost India Also See On HuffPost: AP/ Getty NEW DELHI -- Lawmakers in both Houses of Parliament debated the explosive incidents involving the suicide of a Dalit student in Hyderabad, and the arrest of Jawharlal Nehru students in a sedition case, which have polarized the nation on questions of free speech, dissent and discrimination, this year. On the second day of the Budget Session, Bahujan Samaj Party leader Mayawati and Human Resource Development Minister Smriti Irani confronted each other in the Rajya Sabha over Rohith Vemula's suicide. Advertisement While Mayawati demanded Irani's resignation, the HRD minister blasted the Opposition for using "a child as a political tool." "Dalit students are being targeted," said Mayawati, while lawmakers from her party rushed to Well of the House shouting "Dalit virodhi ye sarkaar, nahin chalegi, nahi chalegi(Anti-Dalit government won't work)." "Who uses a child as a political tool?" said Irani. "Let me reply. If you don't like my answer then I will chop off my head and place it at your feet," she told Mayawati. During the course of the Budget Session, opposition parties are closing ranks against the Bharatiya Janata Party-led government over three issues: the arrest of students from the Jawaharlal Nehru University in a sedition case, the violent Jat agitation over quota in the Other Backward Classes (OBC) category, and Vemula's suicide at the University of Hyderabad. Advertisement Vemula, 26, was founding hanging from his friend's room in the Hyderabad University campus in January. Irate over the Modi government's handling of suicide, Mayawati demanded the sacking of the university's Vice Chancellor, resignation of union ministers linked to the tragedy, and the inclusion of a Dalit member in the commission probing the incident. "Are we signaling to nation that a judge's capacity to deliver justice will depend on his caste?," Irani shot back. Irani repeated her earlier claim that a a Dalit professor was on the Executive Council of the university which suspended five Dalit students including Vemula, last year. In a press conference, last month, Irani said that the warden, who did not let Vemula enter the hostel, was also a Dalit. She warned against characterizing his death as a "Dalit versus non-Dalit" issue. But the University of Hyderabad SC/ST Teachers and Officers Forum rubbished Iranis claim that a Dalit professor was on the Executive Council. Advertisement When Mayawati repeated her demand for a Dalit to be in the committee probing the suicide, Irani said, "Are you saying that a Dalit is a Dalit only if Mayawati ji gives a certificate? Contact HuffPost India Education Images/UIG via Getty Images Cracked Glass Of Car Windshield NEW DELHI -- Sex in a speeding car on the Pilibhit-Puranpur Highway in Uttar Pradesh ended badly for a young couple on Monday night. The 31-year-old man and the 24-year-old woman were naked from the waist down when their car crashed into a mini truck after they failed to swerve out of the way in time, The Times of India reported today. Advertisement The head-on collision left the man dead, and landed the woman in hospital with head injuries and a broken leg. "Probably the couple was having sex in the moving car and either didn't see the truck coming from the other side or couldn't drive past it," said Gajroula Rajesh Yadav, a local police official. An FIR has been filed against the driver of the mini van at a local police station. "It was residents of the Bengali Colony here who rushed out of their homes when they heard the loud sound of the crash. They tried to rescue the passengers in the car, but the man had already died by then," another official told TOI. Also on HuffPost India: India's 10 Deadliest Snakes See Gallery Advertisement Advertisement Spanic 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 Pakistan parliament became the first in the world to completely run on solar power, a venture supported by China with $ 55 million funding. Advertisement In January 2000, a Harvard academic wrote a piece in The Frontline titled The RSS Gameplan, describing a "creeping fascism" perpetrated by what he called a "disillusioned and dispirited" RSS. Journalist Prem Panicker, noted how prescient the article resonates in today's political environment. Check it out. A controversial book penned by the brother of Hindutva ideologue VD Savarkar, claiming Jesus Christ was a Tamil Hindu, is being re-launched 70 years after it was first published. The assistant sub-inspector of police who was assaulted, forced to hold a saffron flag and paraded in a town in Maharashtra, marking yet another case of violence unleashed by extreme right wing activists, said he was let down by his own colleagues. An Indo-Canadian Sikh comedian was forced to take off his turban here during a security check, weeks after a Sikh-American actor was barred from boarding a flight in Mexico for refusing to take off his turban. Advertisement Main News JNU students Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya, accused of sedition for shouting anti-India slogans, surrendered outside the institutes gate and were taken to South Campus RK Puram police station in Delhi. The left-leaning and centrist political forces of the country flocked to Jantar Mantar to support the family of Rohith Vemula, a Dalit scholar at Hyderabad University who committed suicide on January 17, and demanded a new legislation named Rohith Act to prevent caste-based prejudice in educational institutions. Amidst the raging JNU row, a BJP MLA has stoked fresh controversy by alleging that the premier university is a hub of sex and drugs where over 3,000 used condoms and 2,000 liquor bottles are found daily. The Border Security Force found an abandoned Pakistani fishing boat with a gun on board near Harami Nala area in Kutch district along the Indo-Pak border. Blockades disrupted train movement to Assam and Northeast. The National Convention Committee, a newly-floated umbrella body of several adivasi organisations, blocked trains in Kokrajhar district, demanding ST status before the ensuing Assam assembly election. Advertisement Off The Front Page Lalji bhai Badshah, whose family shot into fame after bidding up to Rs 4 crore for NaMo's famed suit that had 'Narendra Damodardas Modi' monogrammed as pinstripes on it, has announced the donation of Rs 200 crores to 10,000 girls (Rs 2 lakhs each) in Gujarat. Chilled potable water will be sold through kiosks in Hyderabad, modelled on the lines of ATMs. The water board chief directed officials to work out the proposal of installing water ATMs, through which pedestrians could get a litre of chilled water for Re 1. In Karnatakas Malur taluk, deity procession and cultural events were organised to mark a temple's 10th anniversary. As part of the cultural programmes, an orchestra troupe from Bangarpet was asked to perform in the evening. But the devotees where shocked when it turned into a strip dance. Three people, including a priest, were arrested. A pregnant woman, who was going to the hospital for a regular check-up with her husband on his bike, ended up delivering a baby by the roadside. Husband said the bumpy road induced the early labour. Leela Santhosh, 28, is not a product of any film school, nor has she had any formal schooling. But, this young tribal woman from Nadavayal in Kerala, with a documentary film to her credit, is busy planning her first feature film. Advertisement Opinion In the absence of critical data on the Other Backward Classes, we are only playing a political poker game, with mob violence on one side and paper drafts and legislations on the other. The Haryana incident is a good example, writes Priyadarshi Dutta in The Pioneer. If the threat of sedition hangs heavily on its campuses, zombies will come out of it, not innovators. You will have cyber coolies and ideology slaves emerging from the campuses rather than innovators and radical thinkers, writes Josy Joseph in The Hindu. Once again its budget season, and railway minister Suresh Prabhu will not only be taking stock of last years performance but also revealing the road ahead. Hopefully this year, too, he will stick to his tried and tested pragmatic approach, which may not please his political colleagues, but ensure that the nations engine of economic growth, writes RC Acharya in the Hindustan Times. Advertisement Contact HuffPost India Also On HuffPost: JACKSON, Mississippi -- The chairman of a Mississippi Senate committee on government transparency is telling the public not to use cellphones or other electronic devices while his committee meets. Tuesday was the first big deadline of the 2016 legislative session, with House and Senate committees scrambling to consider general bills filed in their own chamber. Meetings were packed with lobbyists, journalists and spectators from the general public. The Senate Accountability, Efficiency and Transparency Committee had a standing-room-only crowd as it met to discuss several bills, including one to change the Jackson airport board. Committee Chairman John Polk, R-Hattiesburg, announced at the outset that people could not use electronic devices or stand too close to senators during the meeting. Senators were seated at a large table, and the Senate sergeant at arms, Rick Hux, told spectators they couldn't stand along one of the walls behind the table. People stood in three or four rows at the end of the table, and Hux quietly walked over to a few during the meeting and admonished them to stop using cellphones. After the meeting, Polk told The Associated Press that he saw no conflict in a transparency chairman banning some communication by the public during a public meeting. "They can take notes, just like you were doing," Polk said. Polk also said he did not intend his ban on electronic communication to apply to journalists, although he didn't announce that at the beginning of the meeting. Two TV cameramen recorded part of the committee's debate, and they were allowed to do their jobs. Similar restrictions on where spectators may sit or stand have been set in other committees, including Senate Education. The Senate this term has banned the public from using a portion of a public stairwell between the third and fourth floors of the Capitol -- a space where lobbyists often buttonholed legislators on the way to the Senate chamber. House leaders this month took away half of the press row that had been established for decades in the House chamber, leaving fewer seats than there are reporters. The Senate chamber for years has had too few press seats for credentialed journalists. Senate President Pro Tempore Terry Burton, R-Newton, said committee chairmen are allowed to set limits on spectators during meetings. He said prohibiting people from looking over legislators' shoulders makes sense because legislators could be reading emails or text messages that contain personal information from constituents. Burton also said it's a common practice for lobbyists or others to send electronic messages to legislators during committee meetings or floor debates, suggesting questions that legislators should ask. He said such communication can be distracting. "There's a happy medium somewhere," Burton said of setting limits on the public in committee meetings. "I don't know what it is." Headlines from the front lines Sign up to join the fight for all animals with email updates and text alertsyou can be first to take action on the issues that matter most. Access exclusive content and media materials in our press room. Gun seized from student at HMS-7 Friday morning Tip led to police being on the scene as the student entered the school. Classes were in brief lockdown. 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. Two global insurers are reported to be seeking buyers for business units in Asia. CNBC says that Zurich is looking to offload its Singapore and Hong Kong units as part of its review of non-core activities outside of its European base. As we previously reported the insurer is also said to be selling its general insurance divisions in South Africa and Morocco.Meanwhile, Reuters says that Allianz is selling its South Korean life insurance business, according to sources. Potential buyers include Anbang Insurance Group and Fosun International.Neither Zurich or Allianz have commented on the reports.The Academy Awards takes place Sunday and one industry body is keen to highlight the important role that the insurance industry plays in the movie business. The Insurance Information Institute says that without insurance movies may not exist.Severe weather can delay a films production, as can either an illness or an injury to a star performer, said Janet Ruiz, the I.I.I.s California representative, The people who finance and produce major motion pictures have always turned to the insurance industry to manage these risks.Among the coverage frequently arranged by movie producers are protection against illness or death of cast members, damage to film or video tape, damage and losses of props and sets, third-party property damage and delays from civil commotion.No one has ever nominated an actuary or a claims adjuster for an Academy Award, said Ruiz. Yet without them, the show would not go on.Economical Insurance has been announced as the gold sponsor of Brain Waves, an awareness day organized by the injury-prevention charity Parachute. The interactive, hands-on program teaches students about concussion awareness, along with brain and spinal cord education. The campaign is designed to educate school students in life-saving information that can be critical in childhood injuries."Too many Canadians are killed or disabled by preventable injuries every year," said Karen Gavan, Economical's president and CEO. "By building awareness of how to protect the most vital organ, our brain, we are able to focus on safety and injury prevention. We are pleased to support this important initiative that helps kids better understand how to protect themselves while having fun."More than 30,000 children took part in Brain Waves in 2015. Moderator Robert Reilly shepherds the more than three-hour debate punctuated by conflicting sets of 'facts,' personal attacks, catcalls and bursts of applause. Lanesborough Voters Debate Wisdom of High School Project LANES BOROUGH, Mass A combative special town meeting on Tuesday rehashed decades-old animosities and looked ahead to a momentous vote scheduled for March 15 on the Mount Greylock Regional School building project. With considerable aplomb, Moderator Robert Reilly shepherded a more than three-hour debate punctuated by conflicting sets of "facts," personal attacks, catcalls and bursts of applause. And when it was over, no decision was made and no one on either side expressed an inclination to change their opinion on the $64.8 million addition/renovation project. In two weeks, the town's voters will be asked to OK the approximate $10.6 million town share of the project. Mount Greylock's other member town, Williamstown, will hold a parallel vote on March 1 in regard to the estimated $22.3 million share that town would incur. The rest of the $64.8 million price tag about half would be paid by the Massachusetts School Building Authority. Tuesday's meeting, which also included a brief discussion and vote authorizing the Board of Selectmen to negotiate a land acquisition to facilitate a bridge project, really got going when Mount Greylock School Building Committee Mark Shiek walked the audience through the project. Shiek covered much of the same ground he discussed in a Feb. 11 public presentation at Williamstown Elementary School, putting heavy emphasis on the economics of the project. If approved, the project would add between $353 and $393 to the tax bill of an average home in Lanesborough. It would add between $505 and $750 per year on an average tax bill in Williamstown. Two of the selectmen are opposing the project as it stands. The reason those numbers are still a range is that the district cannot be sure the MSBA will reimburse all of the costs planners project the state agency will bear. The reason Williamstown, which would pay two-thirds of the local share, will have less than double the hike in the average tax bill is because it has a larger tax base across which to spread the burden. Some in Lanesborough including several elected town officials contend that Williamstown and, more specifically, Williams College is not paying its fair share for the building project. That was a major theme for one of the more contentious speakers, Finance Committee member Ray Jones. Jones cast himself as the voice of the opposition after Shiek's lengthy explanation of the project. The Fin Comm member opened by musing about Abraham Lincoln (forgetting, perhaps, that Lincoln was a former Whig who favored internal improvements and signed the Morrill Act creating the nation's Land Grant colleges and universities). He then hurled an attack on the district's former superintendent, drawing not for the last time Reilly's ire. Jones next questioned the validity of Mount Greylock's educational program, relying on a 2006 2016 Harvard study that challenged the value of Advanced Placement courses. Jones' point was that the AP classes are one of Mount Greylock's justifications for maintaining a high student population through school choice and tuition. School choice and tuition have been a favorite target for the school district's critics the last few years. Jones mocked Mount Greylock's plan to build a school for a student population of 535 students in Grades 7 through 12. "At St. Joseph, there are only 105 students in the entire school," Jones said of his alma mater, citing the number of St. Joe students who matriculate to quality colleges and universities. "I talked to Lenox. There are only 219 students in the high school. It's amazing they can provide such an educational experience." But Jones' chief target was Williams. First he thanked the college for its recent commitment to donate $5 million for infrastructure at Mount Greylock. Then he cited figures from the website endowments.com that peg Williams' endowment at $2.3 billion. "Five million dollars is nothing to Williams, nothing," Jones said. "They're not going to miss their $5 million. May I suggest that if Williams was not tax exempt, as they are, they would not have as much to put into their endowment." Mount Greylock School Committee Chairwoman Carolyn Greene, who told the meeting it had taken a decade to get to this point. "Closing Drury High School? That's going to be a surprise to residents of North Adams," Moors joked. "That is a pipe dream. It's not going to happen." Mount Greylock School Committee Chairwoman Carolyn Greene also countered Barton's assertions. Greene, who serves on the task force, said she specifically asked her colleagues on the group if the district should put its building project on hold. "To a person, the response was 'Keep going. You will never get back in [the MSBA pipeline]," Greene said. That notion of a sense of urgency to stay in the MSBA process was a recurring theme for building project proponents. "We have already had this project approved by MSBA," Greene said, referring to calls to scale down the project or build a cheaper building. "If we want to choose a different plan, if we want time to think things over and do things differently They're happy to give the money to someone else." Mount Greylock spent six years attempting to get into the MSBA's funding program and the last two years generating the project that the authority approved last month. School officials have repeatedly noted that a failure to move forward at this point means going to the back of the line. "The MSBA has a very competitive process," Shiek said. "They get about 100 [statements of interest] per year, and they weed that down to five or 10, depending on how much money is available and the size of the projects. "It took us 10 years to get to this point. The process does start to move quickly because the MSBA wants us to move quickly at this point. They have money to spend, and if we're not ready to spend it, they'll find somebody else." Tuesday's meeting was attended by 148 voters of the 2,300 currently registered in the town, a turnout of about 6.4 percent. Four More Shots Please S3 Review: This Old Wine In New Bottle Doesn't Get You Drunk As Easily Anymore 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 North Gate Vineyard The patio attached to the tasting room at North Gate Vineyard in Purcellville, Va. (Facebook) For those who follow such things, the Virginia Governor's Cup competition took place Monday night in Richmond. What's as significant as the fact that the 12 best wines in the state were named is that the ceremony took place at a classy gala in the state capitol with Gov. Terry McAuliffe present to announce the winner. The combination says plenty about the governmental and financial support that wine industry has received and why Virginia has elevated itself to one of the country's best-recognized producers. The event took place at the Hotel John Marshall. It provided the setting for the culmination of the annual competition put on by the Virginia Wineries Association; this one drew 432 entries from around the state. Keswick Vineyards, located just east of Charlottesville, won the Governor's Cup for best wine with its 2014 Cabernet Franc Estate Reserve. More and more, Cabernet Franc not only is gaining fans around the state but it's also winning some significant bling and respect regionally. Here is a list of all the winners. The top 12-scoring wines are given the Governor's Case distinction. The full 2016 case includes: Stone Tower's 2013 Hogback Mountain (69 percent cabernet sauvignon, 23 percent merlot, 4 percent cabernet franc, 3 percent petit verdot); Fabbioli's 2012 Cabernet Franc Reserve (90 percent cabernet franc, 5 percent cabernet sauvignon, 5 percent tannat); North Gate's 2013 Meritage (60 percent merlot, 22 percent petit verdot, 18 percent cabernet franc); Keswick Vineyards' 2014 Cabernet Franc Estate Reserve; Glen Manor 2013 Meritage red blend; Granite Heights' 2010 Evening Serenade red blend; Bluestone Vineyards' 2014 Chardonnay; North Gate Vineyards' 2013 Meritage red blend; Naked Mountain's 2012 Petit Verdot; Barboursville Vineyards' 2014 Vermentino; Michael Shaps' 2014 Petit Manseng; Cardinal Point's 2014 Clay Hill Cabernet Franc; and Horton Vineyards' 2014 Petit Manseng. Those who have paid attention to some of my past blog posts will notice that North Gate Winery in Purcellville, also in Loudoun County, once again finished with a wine in the top 12. North Gate is the sister winery of Lower Paxton Township's Spring Gate Vineyard, which carries several of the Virginia producer's wines. It has now placed a Meritage in the Governor's Cup case the last three years. Meritage is a term that describes wines made from the traditional grapes of Bordeaux, France -- those being Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. The Loudoun Times-Mirror noted in its story that each Meritage used a different blend, something that co-winemakers Mark Fedor and his wife Vicki talked about recently with the news organization. "Part of our strength is in our blending skill," Mark said. "We were always taught and mentored to try blending, to make the best wine possible. We understand the pieces we have to work with and are able to blend them together to make appealing wines for both the mass market and the judges." Here's the full story on the Governor's Cup announcement. The content you are trying to view is exclusive to our subscribers. To unlock this article: IMF Survey : African Policymakers Tackle Data Challenges IMF co-hosts one of largest statistics conferences in Africa Reliable data are critical for policymaking and require further investment The IMFs enhanced General Data Disseminated System supports data transparency Comparable, high quality, and timely data are critical to support sound policymaking and foster economic growth in the region, conference participants hear. Investment in Statistics Senior officials from over forty African countries, as well as representatives from academia, banks, rating agencies, think tanks, and international organizations debated the particular data challenges facing African policymakers at a conference in Accra, Ghana on February 2. It was one of the largest conferences on the continent on the importance of data for better macroeconomic policies. The conference was organized by the Government of Ghana, the IMFs Statistics Department (STA), and the United Kingdoms Department for International Development (DfID). In opening remarks, Seth Terkper, Minister of Finance and Economic Planning of Ghana, stressed that enhanced data for better policies is a fundamental key to accelerating the economic growth of the region in the coming decades. He added that all of our efforts to strengthen our statistical framework contribute to enhancing our capacity to implement better policies, which also enhances our relationship with credit rating agencies, thus allowing us to deepen our access to markets. Min Zhu, IMF Deputy Managing Director, delivered the events keynote speech, emphasizing that in Africa, as elsewhere, we need to jump ahead of crisis management when it comes to data, and seek to enhance the gathering, processing, dissemination, and analysis of data to help us formulate and implement the best possible set of economic and financial policies. Investment to improve public policy Drawing on the experience of the 2008-09 global crisis, there was consensus that African countries should strive to invest in and enhance their statistics, including their timeliness, periodicity, coverage, and reliability. As the Senegalese Minister of Finance, Amadou Ba, put it: "Managing the economy without statistics is like asking a blind to orient himself in a city that he does not know." For many countries, better data meant getting the basics right, such as rebasing their GDP, extending the coverage of government finance statistics, and ensuring timely publication (dissemination) to improve transparency. Many data challenges were fleshed out, such as low investment in skilled human resources, the lack of information technology capacity, difficulties in measuring the informal economy, and inadequate institutional and legislative frameworks. At the same time, participants shared a vision and some common goals for the way forward. This encompassed the need for transparency and comparability of statistics, the need for integrity and independence of the institutions producing statistics, and pride and determination to make every possible effort under often difficult circumstances to promote the production of timely and high-quality data for the benefit of policymakers. Speakers also recognized that improving statistics is not an end in itself, but an investment to improve public policy. In that respect, countries suggested that every effort should be made to demonstrate what could be the tangible outcomes of such investment. As spending should not just reflect donor generosity, participants pleaded that the national authorities take ownership and give higher priority to the production of statistics in their national budgets. Cooperation and innovation to learn from each other To tackle some of the challenges of improving data, participants focused on the need for better collaboration across agencies to address institutional aspects of enhancing data, addressing the challenges with innovations and technological advances, and ensuring an appropriate legal framework for statistics to safeguard integrity and clarify who the custodian of statistics is. A number of speakers proposed and supported an initiative for the creation of a forum that would allow for better sharing of experiences across African countries on how to overcome challenges and to learn from each others' experiences. Participants recognized that regional integration requires timely and comparable data that align with international methodologies and standards and have broad sector coverage. In that context, speakers highlighted the need for stronger peer-to-peer learning mechanisms in overcoming common challenges, as well as the importance of sharing country experiences. Countries with more advanced statistics could take the role of "a locomotive" and foster data improvement in other countries in the region. How the IMF supports data transparency Participants agreed that it is not sufficient to just produce data but to also make data available to the public. This would support sound decisions by the government and the private sector, enhance accountability, and ensure the smooth functioning of economies. Speakers enthusiastically welcomed the IMFs new Enhanced General Data Disseminated System (e-GDDS) that envisages the publication of key macroeconomic data in a disciplined manner through a national summary data page with the help of cloud-based technology, thus greatly reducing country reporting burdens; the IMF is supporting the implementation of the e-GDDS in partnership with the African Development Bank and with financial assistance from DfID. Discussants identified some particular challenges in getting data into the public domain, such as information technology challenges, institutional constraints, and the need to coordinate publication across all main national data-providing agencies (national statistical offices, central banks, ministries of finance), but those could be overcome through determined efforts. Capacity building The conference highlighted IMFs extensive capacity development in statistics to African countries. Several success stories were mentioned, such as the IMFs Statistics Department support to countries in rebasing their GDP or introducing quarterly national accounts statistics. Min Zhu assured participants that the IMF stands ready to maintain this extensive support going forward. Climate Smart Agriculture Sacramento, California - California is the nations leading agricultural state, with 76,400 farms producing more than 400 commodities with a farm-gate value of $54 billion. The mission of the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) is to promote and protect agriculture. Its a complex job - and one that is getting more complex as the climate changes. With the current drought in its fourth year, California has already started to experience some of the anticipated impacts of climate change. With drought, we have seen economic losses including job losses, fallowed land, and greater demand for a limited amount of water. A concerted approach is urgently needed to prepare California agriculture for future climate change impacts. One essential approach is embracing and implementing the concept of climate smart agriculture. Practicing climate smart agriculture means following three principles: developing agricultural systems that are resilient to climate change; reducing greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture; and preparing for climate change in a way that keeps farms productive and profitable. I heard a lot about climate smart agriculture during a recent visit to the Netherlands with a delegation of agricultural leaders from California. The Netherlands is a leading agriculture distributor in Europe and the worlds second largest (after the United States) agricultural exporter. Climate smart agriculture is already strongly integrated into Dutch economic and food security strategies. Our delegation not only heard about the threats from higher precipitation, but also about how overly dry conditions in the summer threaten the stability of peat dikes, which dry up to the point that they may simply float away, compromising the levee structure in a region where most of the land is below sea level. In California we can prepare for such multi-faceted impacts through our own climate smart agriculture initiatives. At CDFA, we have a variety of programs and efforts underway to support agricultural sustainability, build resilience to climate change and reduce greenhouse gas emissions: The State Water Efficiency and Enhancement Program (SWEEP) is an emergency drought program implemented at the direction of Gov. Jerry Brown to assist farmers in moving to efficient water irrigation systems that save water, conserve energy and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. To date, SWEEP has funded 233 projects totaling almost $18 million with $10.5 million in matching grower funds. The program is built on a strong scientific foundation and supported by a collaborative partnership involving other agencies, resource conservation districts, the California State University (CSU) system and UC ANR Cooperative Extension (UCCE). The academic institutions play a key role in providing technical evaluations of applications for water savings and reductions in energy consumption. More-efficient irrigation technologies like this drip system in an almond orchard in Yolo County save water, conserve energy and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The Dairy Digester Research and Development Program, launched in 2014, provides incentives for dairy operations to install manure digesters. Digesters capture methane from dairy lagoons, allowing the gas to be used to generate electricity. Methane is a short-lived climate pollutant that is 28 times more potent as a greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide. In 2015, CDFA awarded $11.1 million for the development of five digesters at California dairies. Matching funds by developers totaling $19 million were allocated to these projects. The digester program is supported by several scientific experts from the University of California as well as a technical advisory sub-committee. The program highlights the many opportunities to use agricultural byproducts for multiple benefits, including the generation of electricity. Manure from dairy cows like these in Fresno County is typically collected in lagoons, which generate the potent greenhouse gas methane. Dairy digesters capture the methane produced by microbial manure decomposition so that it does not escape to the atmosphere and can be used as a source of renewable energy. The Fertilizer Research and Education Program has a long-standing collaboration with UCCE to provide growers with cost-effective practices to improve the efficient use of fertilizer and minimize environmental impacts. Improving the timing and rate of nitrogen fertilizer application can help to prevent leaching and runoff as well as emissions of nitrous oxide (N2O), another potent greenhouse gas. Efficient use of fertilizer also reduces the amount applied, saving money for the grower. Under the Healthy Soils Initiative, Gov. Brown has directed CDFA to lead an interagency collaboration to promote the development of healthy soils that sequester carbon on working lands. The health of agricultural soil influences its ability to build and retain adequate organic matter via the activity of plants and soil organisms. Adequate organic matter helps to enable the soil to function as a vital living ecosystem and provide the foundation for sustainable agricultural productivity. Carbon sequestration has been difficult to quantify in soils given the long time period for the accumulation of stable soil carbon pools. However, recent work by the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) has yielded results that allow for the scientific estimation of greenhouse gas reductions associated with several soil management practices ( comet-planner.com/). These management practices can be implemented on a wide range of croplands and rangelands. We are eager to collaborate with UCCE, NRCS, resource conservation districts and other researchers to advance this important work as part of climate smart agriculture. No-till and cover cropping strategies help to build soil organic matter and sequester carbon, while also improving soil quality and retaining soil moisture. In a no-till field that will soon be planted to processing tomatoes, Fresno County UCCE advisor Dan Munk uncovers the residue from a winter cover crop of triticale. These are a few examples of practices that can reduce greenhouse gases and increase climate resilience on our farms and ranches. Gov. Browns 20162017 proposed budget signals Californias ongoing support for these initiatives, including $20 million for SWEEP, $35 million for the dairy digester program and $20 million for the Healthy Soils Initiative. In addition, the proposed budget includes $40 million for the Sustainable Agricultural Lands Conservation Program, overseen by the Strategic Growth Council and administered by the Department of Conservation, and which supports the protection and sustainable management of Californias agricultural lands through planning and conservation via agricultural easements. Going forward, CDFAs climate smart agriculture initiatives will be coordinated through the newly created Office of Environmental Farming and Innovation. There is no doubt we can do more in the climate smart agriculture arena. As we continue to expand our work in this area, CDFA will continue to work closely with our partners, including the scientific and technical experts at the CSU and UC systems. We are fortunate in California to have such expertise available to support our food production system with sound research, an extensive technical support infrastructure and an enormously accomplished agricultural extension service. Ventura County Seabees Celebrate 74 Years of Service Simi Valley, California - Seabees from around Naval Base Ventura County gathered at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library for the 74th Annual Seabee Ball, Saturday. More than 1,000 active duty, Reserve, and retired Seabees packed two floors of the library to commemorate the Seabee's 74th anniversary, the Navy Civil Engineer Corps' 149th anniversary, and 174 years of Naval Facilities and Engineering Command. Commander, U.S. 3rd Fleet, Vice Adm. Nora Tyson attended as the guest of honor. Tyson assumed operational control of Naval Construction Group (NCG) 1, based at Naval Base Ventura County, Port Hueneme, in August 2015. Tyson spoke of her past experiences with the Seabees, praised their accomplishments, and spoke of their unique mission capabilities. "The Seabees are unrivaled in building partnership capacity throughout the Pacific," said Tyson. "Every time you deploy, you open doors for future collaboration and access as we look to gain trust and establish mutual respect among partner nations." Tyson said Seabees improve local communities through construction efforts and also play a critical strategic role in building and sustaining relationships between partner nations, non-governmental organizations, and international organizations. "Whether building facilities for our troops in Afghanistan, helping residents recover from natural disasters, or building clinics and schools in underdeveloped areas, your technical expertise and 'Can Do' spirit provides the presence, partnerships, and purpose our Navy and our nation depend upon," Tyson added. Following Tyson's remarks, the youngest and oldest Seabees in attendance were recognized with a cake cutting, and after a robust rendition of the "Song of Seabees," the expeditionary engineers celebrated with music and dancing. Naval Facilities and Engineering Command, established in 1842, is the Navy's oldest systems command. The Navy Civil Engineer Corps was established in 1867 following the Civil War. The Seabees were created March 5, 1942, after Adm. Ben Moreell, chief of the Navy's Bureau of Yards and Docks recognized the need for a militarized construction force. Following Pearl Harbor, the Navy saw the formation of Naval Construction Battalions. With the motto "we build, we fight" the Seabees have gone on to construct thousands of miles of roadway and airstrips, entire bases, and thousands of other projects around the world. Naval Construction Group (NCG) 1 prepares Pacific Fleet Naval Construction Force units to conduct deliberate construction in support of combatant commanders, numbered fleet commanders, Marine air-ground task forces, and other warfighter requirements. U.S. 3rd Fleet was formed during World War II, on March 15, 1943, under the command of Fleet Adm. William F. "Bull" Halsey. It leads naval forces in the Pacific and provides the realistic, relevant training necessary for an effective global Navy. Under Secretary Novelli Travels to Mexico City Washington, DC - Under Secretary of State for Economic Growth, Energy, and the Environment Catherine Novelli will travel to Mexico City February 24-26 to participate in the United States-Mexico High Level Economic Dialogue (HLED). On Thursday, February 25, Under Secretary Novelli will join Vice President Biden, Assistant Secretary for Western Hemisphere Affairs Roberta Jacobson, and U.S. co-chairs in meetings with members of the Mexican government, private sector, and civil society to advance HLED priorities and establish a 2016 HLED roadmap to lay out the next steps in our efforts to ensure North America remains the most competitive economic region in the world. U.S. and Mexican stakeholders will discuss the six key HLED pillars: energy, modern borders, workforce development, regulatory cooperation, partnering for regional and global leadership, and stakeholder engagement. Later that day, U/S Novelli will host a town hall at Tecnologico de Monterrey with university students and green business leaders to discuss implications of the COP 21 agreement, climate change, clean energy, and entrepreneurship. Under Secretary Novelli will participate in a meeting with the Business Coordination Council (CCE) and the American Chamber of Commerce on Friday, February 26 to learn about the opportunities to deepen U.S.-Mexico economic integration and prospects for economic growth in Mexico. She will subsequently visit Startup Mexico, a national and regional business incubator, and engage in a roundtable discussion with entrepreneurs. People with diabetes have a greater risk of cardiovascular disease and there is also a relationship with microvascular disease, as blood sugar levels rise above normal, Gary Culliton reports in his latest Clinical Update. The prevalence of Type 2 diabetes (T2D) is thought to be higher here than in the UK and it is increasing. Some estimates put the prevalence of the condition at between 5 and 10 per cent. The increase was probably due to lifestyle, exercise levels and food intake, said Prof Graham Roberts, Consultant Endocrinologist at University Hospital Waterford and the Whitfield Clinic. T2D is a result of a combination of increased insulin resistance and decreased insulin secretion. A lot of diabetics have had the disease for many years before diagnosis. Historically, T2D has often been diagnosed as long as seven years after its onset. The condition is defined by glucose tolerance, and it is now possible to diagnose T2Ds from HbA1c. However, it is not correct to assume that HbA1c can rule out diabetes: Prof Roberts said that even when a patients HbA1c was normal, it was advisable to consider the possibility of Type 2, using the old glucose tolerance test criteria. It would seem wise to screen people who are at risk when they are attending healthcare professionals for other reasons, said Prof Roberts. Overweight people, those with a family history of the condition and people with genetic predispositions, are particular candidates for opportunistic screening. Due to Irelands higher rate of diabetes, it could be argued that many people of Irish background may have a genetic predisposition. One thing that represents an obstacle to getting diabetic patients to therapeutic targets is the level of financial support for diabetes care. Ireland has a notoriously low number of specialists for the population of diabetes patients here, Prof Roberts said. Moves to transfer more diabetes care into the community would be of assistance. However, a shared care system with the community would require an increase in the number of hospital consultants to a level comparable to the ratios in other countries such as the UK. The fact that we are so far behind in terms of hospital staffing means there needs to be increased care at hospital level, as well as at general practice level. Since 2008, there has been a national model for diabetes care. The programme is being implemented by degrees and the recently announced diabetes cycle of care represents a step in this regard. Treatment In terms of treatment, metformin is well established. New European guidelines cite many agents that can be used after metformin. These include sulfonylureas and thiazolidinediones. Among newer treatments are glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists, which are injected. Dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP-4) inhibitors, oral medications that inhibit the breakdown of natural GLP-1, also act on the incretin system. These two classes of drugs DPP-4 inhibitors and GLP-1 agonists are not used together. The SGLT2 inhibitors use a separate mechanism. These agents have come to the market recently and use of them has grown rapidly. These drugs encourage the body to pass more glucose in urine. These agents cause a calorie loss. One limiting factor to good treatment can be the risk of hypoglycaemia, said Prof Roberts. Therefore, it can be wise to use drugs from the classes that are highly unlikely to cause hypoglycaemia. Type 2 medications may be divided into two groups. The first group are the therapies that do not make patients blood sugar levels drop too low and carry a very small risk of unconsciousness. Metformin and medications in the GLP-1, DPP-4 and SGLT2 categories are very unlikely to cause hypoglycaemia. The second group are the therapies that can make patients blood sugar levels drop too low and cause hypoglycaemia and unconsciousness. This second group includes insulins and sulfonylureas. Cardiovascular risk factors could be treated more aggressively in Ireland, said Prof Roberts, as people with diabetes had a greater risk of cardiovascular disease. There is also a relationship with microvascular disease: this increases rapidly as blood sugar levels go above normal. There is now systematic screening for eye disease for people with diabetes in Ireland. Most diabetics are called for retinal screening reviews. Screening for diabetic retinopathy has been a great success, said Prof Roberts. A systematic policy for diabetic foot care has also been devised. There is debate regarding how well diabetes care in Ireland is being financed. Five people go blind in Ireland every week, or 260 people per annum. Diabetic retinopathy is one of the five main causes of sight loss in Ireland and the leading cause of blindness among the working age population. This is despite the fact that 70 to 75 per cent of blindness is preventable with early diagnosis and treatment. Since the introduction of the Diabetic Retina Screening programme in the UK, diabetic retinopathy is no longer the leading cause of blindness in the working-age population in England. Diabetes is now considered the fastest growing epidemic by both the World Health Organization and the United Nations. In Ireland, it is estimated that 191,000 people have diabetes and this will increase to 233,000 by 2020. People with both Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes are at risk of developing diabetic retinopathy, which affects the small blood vessels in the lining at the back of the eye and can lead to deterioration in vision. Commenting on the importance of early detection and treatment of diabetic retinopathy, Mr David Keegan, Eye Surgeon and Clinical Director of DiabeticRetina Screen, said: Diabetic retinopathy may not have any symptoms or may not affect sight in the early stages. The national screening programme will reduce sight loss among people with diabetes as a result of early detection and effective treatment. We urge people to make the follow-up call when they receive their letter of invitation, so an appointment for screening can be arranged. More than 70,000 patients have been screened through DiabeticRetina Screen in more than 100 locations. The register for the National Diabetic Eye Disease Screening Programme is growing by an excess of 700 new names month-on-month. Some 8,000 among the people screened have been referred to one of the seven treatment centres. All 153,000 people registered to date on DiabeticRetina Screen have received a letter of invitation to be screened. Mr Keegan said: The uptake for the DiabeticRetina Screen is showing an upwardly trend, with on average 700-to-1,000 new names being added to the register each month. It is a very positive development that greater numbers are consenting to be involved in the programme, which aims to prevent vision impairment and blindness due to diabetic retinopathy, a common complication of diabetes, said Mr Keegan. Equity of access for people living all over the country remains a priority of the programme. The National Diabetic Retinal Screening Programme, a Government-funded programme, offers free, regular screening and treatment of diabetic retinopathy to people with diabetes aged 12 years and older. The establishment of the Diabetic Retinopathy Screening Programme and the HSEs National Programme for Eye Care has provided a real opportunity to achieve improved outcomes for people with the threat of sight loss in Ireland, Mr Keegan believes. Continued investment in cost-effective interventions such as the DiabeticRetina Screen programme is essential to ensure eye diseases which are treatable are detected early and unnecessary sight loss prevented, said Mr Keegan. Portiuncula Hospital in Ballinasloe is bidding to ensure that the locums it employs remain on a longer-term basis, to provide continuity. This was challenging due to difficulties in recruiting consultants nationally, the HSE said. There was no reduction in service at Portiuncula Hospital, the Executive insisted. Advertisements for consultant respiratory and geriatrician posts are planned at Portiuncula Hospital. Currently, there are three locum consultants in medicine at Portiuncula. A consultant general physician post was advertised in December. A replacement for Dr John Bartons consultant cardiologist post was advertised, the HSE said in response to questioning in the Dail by Independent Deputy Denis Naughten. A consultant obstetrician/gynaecologist advertisement seeking a replacement for Dr John Monaghan has also been published; there is a locum in place currently. Interviews have taken place for the appointment of a fourth paediatrician, and it is envisaged that the candidate will take up the position shortly. The consultant endocrinologist replacement post has been filled since November, while the new consultant anaesthetist post has been filled since October. The Minister for Health Dr Leo Varadkar has said the focus in the development of hospital groups would be on embedding robust governance structures within groups, and on building effective networks to provide direct support to smaller hospitals within groups, in particular. gary.culliton@imt.ie Richard Corbridge, Chief Information Officer (CIO) for the HSE and Chief Executive Officer for eHealth Ireland, is the latest addition to the speaker line-up for the upcoming Social Media Summit. Starting from March 1, the two-day event, which is seen as a fledgling replacement for the Web Summit, has also seen demand moving it to the larger venue of the Aviva Stadium which will see the largest ever gathering of social media professionals in Ireland with #SMSummitIRL topping trending. Created by Samantha Kelly, TEDx speaker and Irelands own tweeting goddess, and Tom Williams of Platinum Events, and supported by International Relations in Dublin City Council, the event will be an important global gathering of key influencers, leaders, investors and creators within the global social media community. The summit will help decision makers and marketers to stay ahead of the curve by shaping the role and future strategy for social media in their organisations. Corbridge, an internationally recognised expert in healthcare strategy and technology who is passionate about social engagement in these processes, joins the Social Media Summit as a featured speaker. He was listed by Computer Weekly as a rising star of the IT Industry in praise of the speed at which the health system in Ireland was moving towards adoption of an eHealth fabric under his guidance. He has also been named by the Huffington Post as one of the most Social CIOs and named the fifth most influential CIO in Europe by CIO magazine in 2015. Kelly said: Richard, along with the other noted speakers we have assembled, will show how brands and companies can excel through effective use of social media to generate strong customer loyalty and advocacy. For further information on the event, see here. lloyd.mudiwa@imt.ie Watch: This Video Of Woman Failing At Archery, Hitting Arrow On Head Is Hilarious Get our free weekly email for all the latest cinematic news from our film critic Clarisse Loughrey Get our The Life Cinematic email for free Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the The Life Cinematic email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} If one thing's become clear, it's that there is a severe issue regarding diversity in Hollywood, highlighted by the announcement of this year's Oscar nominations. Prompting the #OscarsSoWhite campaign which has since led several to boycott Sunday's ceremony (Jada Pinkett Smith, Will Smith, Spike Lee), the Academy has since inducted new methods to ensure diversity would be promoted in the future. Now, three African-American film executives have gathered to speak at the ICON MANN Panel held in LA yesterday (23 February), pinpointing where exactly Hollywood can go from here. #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 They all agreed that the change will manifest once Hollywood truly considers what stories are going to be told, how theyre going to be told, and who is going to tell them," Deadline reports. The assembled insiders included Cassandra Butcher, Vice President of National Publicity at Fox Searchlight, Paramount Pictures' Production Executive Alana Mayo and Tendo Nagenda, SVP production at Disney. Reflecting upon this year's nominations, Butcher stated: You dont get nominated by luck, you get nominated because you campaigned. That means kissing a lot of babies, literally shaking a lot of hands and making sure Oscar voters are given opportunities to see the film. Nagenda concurred that the Academy's diversity issue is a more deep-rooted one, suggesting that it begins a long time before the nominations are announced. What I think we see with the lack of diversity and conclusion, how we want to define it with the number of nominations or exposure, it sort of starts much earlier." He went on to brand the ceremony a "self-fulfilling prophecy," claiming that due to the Academy being largely comprised of former winners, previous results are inevitably reflected. The incredible Oscars 2016 banquet Show all 12 1 /12 The incredible Oscars 2016 banquet The incredible Oscars 2016 banquet Celebrity chef Wolfgang Puck knows how to wow his guests Getty Images The incredible Oscars 2016 banquet Tiramisu push pops Getty Images The incredible Oscars 2016 banquet Beautiful displays are what the stars have come to expect Getty Images The incredible Oscars 2016 banquet Baby beets, Cara Cara oranges, frisee, arugula and shallot vinaigrette dish Getty Images The incredible Oscars 2016 banquet Whisky foam cocktails served in gold eggs Getty Images The incredible Oscars 2016 banquet These are no ordinary canopes, they are gold-leafed canopes Getty Images The incredible Oscars 2016 banquet Chopped salad with artichokes, aspergus, radicchio and haricot vert Getty Images The incredible Oscars 2016 banquet Caviar is the fish of the day Getty Images The incredible Oscars 2016 banquet The 'Demure & Dashing' specialty cocktail made with spiced honey syrup, Galliano Liqueur, bitters and an orange twist Getty Images The incredible Oscars 2016 banquet Gold chocolate statuettes Getty Images The incredible Oscars 2016 banquet More delicious desserts on offer at the Governors Ball Getty Images The incredible Oscars 2016 banquet The 'Macaron Tower' with macarons in every colour imaginable Getty Images They all agreed that the issue is improving, however, with Mayo saying: I dont doubt the entertainment world will be more diverse in five years because of how global our business continues to become; China, for example, is the fastest growing international market. "Having our audience in mind its going to be so imperative to make movies that serve and speak to audiences that want to see themselves. The Oscars, hosted by Chris Rock, take place this Sunday, 28 February. Get our free weekly email for all the latest cinematic news from our film critic Clarisse Loughrey Get our The Life Cinematic email for free Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the The Life Cinematic email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Doug Liman, director of 2002 spy thriller The Bourne Identity, is set to make an action television series - in virtual reality. Liman - whose credits also include actioners Mr and Mrs Smith (2005) and Edge of Tomorrow (2014) - will oversee the six-part series that will be penned by Oscar-nominated screenwriter Melisa Wallack (Dallas Buyers Club). Set in modern-day Manhattan, Invisible will follow the Ashlands - a prominent New York City family in possession of a supernatural gift that is on the brink of discovery. Partnering with virtual reality cinema company Jaunt, this will be a television series shot entirely in virtual reality. The episodes will become available via the Jaunt VR app on Google Play and iTunes. It was recently announced that NBCUniversal was producing Halcyon, a Syfy TV series that will be featuring five episodes specifically designed for VR platform Oculus Rift. Invisible is set to premiere later this year. Get our free weekly email for all the latest cinematic news from our film critic Clarisse Loughrey Get our The Life Cinematic email for free Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the The Life Cinematic email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Casey Affleck turned up to The Late Show with Stephen Colbert to promote his latest movie, heist thriller Triple 9. So far, so normal; except Affleck managed to roll out from the other side of it with instant internet notoriety, as the internet brandished his interview as reaching new heights of celebrity/talk show host discomfort. Call me a conspiracy theorist, but within seconds of Affleck perching himself on that couch, that glazed look in his eyes, my brain jumped straight back to 2009. Back to the infamous, hilariously mangled Letterman interview that forms the centre point of Affleck's mockumentary on Joaquin Phoenix's faux-public breakdown, I'm Still Here. What's so odd about Affleck's interview is that Colbert seems to be the one who initiates the weirdness. Right off the bat, he comments on the actor's peculiar, casual appearance. A bizarre opening jab considering the actor still had the grace to turn up in a shirt and jacket; though it may be minus the ironing and shirt tucked into trousers stage, it's not exactly an attire of pizza-stained sweatpants. Letterman opened his own interview with Phoenix with a straightly delivered, "you look different than I remembered"; Letterman then compares Phoenix to the Unabomber, Colbert calls Affleck "street corner Jesus". Both then essentially follow on exactly where they began on the awkwardness scale: the passive aggressive talkback, the weirdness over mug drinking, the weirdly straight reactions to the host's jokes. Take a look for yourself below. So, what is going on here? As a self-confessed mega-fan of Affleck's utterly bizarre, sublimely hilarious 2010 mockumentary; the comparisons seem utterly inescapable. Affleck's interview plays out like a ghosted tribute of Phoenix's Letterman showdown, like the primer for I'm Still Here 2: My Brother is Batman Edition. Conveniently, the pair are once more collaborating on a feature film project; though Affleck's Far Bright Star plays things straight (and fictional) with an adaptation of Robert Olmstead's novel on the perils of desert survival in 1916, with Phoenix in the lead as a cavalryman sent to hunt down Mexican revolutionary Pancho Villa. That wouldn't stop Phoenix from propositioning Affleck with a sneaky bet over an upcoming television appearance, though; would it? That said, a large portion of Phoenix's lines in I'm Still Here were carefully scripted by the duo, so there is a chance the Letterman interview was actually a vague collection of Affleck's own perceptions of talk show television. All now played out in glorious, unintentional tribute; as art becomes life and Affleck realises his parodic vision of Hollywood actors may have hit too close to home. So, what's the verdict? Are Affleck and Phoenix sharing an inside joke, or is this all a case of art turned into life? Get our free weekly email for all the latest cinematic news from our film critic Clarisse Loughrey Get our The Life Cinematic email for free Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the The Life Cinematic email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Theres an argument to be made that good acting is increasingly being confused with intense acting. Thats not to take anything away from Eddie Redmayne (last years Oscar winner) or Leonardo DiCaprio (probably this years), but both roles (The Theory of Everything and The Revenant) are exalted for their transformative nature. The subtleties of acting are the most important, argues director Marcus Geduld, who a couple of years back posted a detailed and highly-upvoted answer to the question How does one differentiate between "good" and "bad" acting? on Quora. He lauds Jack Nicholsons ability to surprise, James Gandolfinis use of his body and Julianne Moores emotional nakedness, going through the different traits he feels are necessary for fine acting. Heres his answer in full (via Slate): If anyone tells you there are objective standards, they're full of crap. This is a matter of personal taste. There are trends. There are many people who loved Philip Seymour Hoffman's acting. But if you don't, you're not wrong. At worst, you're eccentric. I'm a director who has been working with actors for almost 30 years, and I'm the son of a film historian. I'll give you my definition of good acting. But I really want to stress that if I say, Pacino is great, and you disagree, my experience does not make me right and you wrong. It just means we have different tastes. First, for me, an actor is good if he makes me believe he's actually going through whatever his character is going through. I'm talking somewhat about physical stuff (He really is getting shot! He really is jumping off a moving train!) but mostly about psychological stuff (He really is scared! He really is in love!). If an actor seems to be faking it, he's not doing his job. Second, the actor has to surprise me. This is the most nebulous requirement, but it's important. Except for really small parts that aren't supposed to call attention to themselves (e.g., a bank teller who just cashes the hero's checks), it's not enough for actors to just seem real. Seeming real is a requirement, but a second requirement is that I can't predict their every reaction before they have them. Think of how someone might react if his or her significant other ends the relationship. There are many, many truthful waysways that would seem like a human being reacting and not like a space alien behaving in some bizarre, unbelievable way. An actor's job is to know the breadth of human possibility and the depths of his or her own possibilities. He or she must pull from this well and surprise us. Otherwise, the actor becomes boring and predictable. There are many ways and actor can surprise. Gary Oldman and Johnny Depp surprise us by being truthful while playing multiple, very different roles. Jack Nicholson surprises by being ... surprising. Even though he's not a chameleon like Oldman or Depp, you never know what he's going to do next. But whatever he does, it's grounded in psychological reality. It never seems fake. Christopher Walken, Glenn Close, Al Pancino, and many others have a surprising danger in them. They're a little scary to be around, because you feel they might jump you or blow up at you at any time. They are ticking time bombs. And, of course, many comedic actors (e.g., Julia Louis-Dreyfus) surprise us in all sorts of quirky, zany ways. Or watch Katharine Hepburn and Cary Grant in Bringing Up Babyabsolutely surprising and absolutely truthful. Another great example of surprising acting that never seems fake is Diane Keaton's work in Annie Hall. Third, the actor is vulnerable. Great actors share the parts of themselves that most people keep hidden. They are always naked. (Some are literally naked, but I'm talking about emotional nakedness.) Bad actors are guarded. They don't want to share the parts of themselves that are ugly, mean, petty, jealous, etc. Access unlimited streaming of movies and TV shows with Amazon Prime Video Sign up now for a 30-day free trial Sign up There are so many examples of actors being naked onstage and screen. My favorite is Rosalind Russell in the movie Picnic. She plays a middle-aged teacher who is in danger of growing old and dying alone. There's a heartbreaking scene in which she begs a man to marry her. She goes down on her knees in front of him. She gives up every scrap of dignity inside her and lets the scared, hurting parts of herself burst out. These are the same scared, hurt parts that are inside all of usthe parts we work hard to hide. This ties in with everything I wrote above: When actors are exposed and raw, it's always surprising. And if it doesn't seem real, there's no point in it. In fact, this sort of emotional nakedness is very hard to fake. If you ever get a sense that an actor is showing you a secret part of himself, he probably is. Examples are Julianne Moore, Bryan Cranston, and Michael Redgrave in The Browning Version. He turns himself inside out and wrings out all his pain. Oscar nominations revealed Fourth, the actor knows how to listen. It's fascinating to watch actors when they're not speaking. Some are too caught up in ego or technicalities (e.g., trying to remember the next line) to totally focus on whomever it is they're acting with. Others seem to register everything they hear. You can see whatever is being said to them physically affecting them, as if the words are slapping them across the face. Watch Claire Danes. She's an amazing listener. Fifth, the actor has a well-honed instrument, by which I mean he knows how to use his voice and body to serve whatever role he's playing. This doesn't necessarily mean he's slim and has a six-pack; James Gandolfini used his body well. It means he knows how to move and talk in expressive ways. His voice and body aren't fighting him or holding tension that's inappropriate to his role. James Gandolfini, who conveyed so much through his eyes alone as Tony Soprano One negative example: Kristen Stewart. It's almost painful to watch her. She looks like she'd rather be anywhere else besides in front of a camera. She is (or seems) very self-conscious. To me, Hoffman was great because he embodied all of these traits. He was vocally and physically gifted. He wasn't in great shape, but he used the shape he had in expressive ways. If you watch him closely when he's not speaking, you'll see he always listened to his co-stars closely. What they say affected him deeply, and his reactions grew organically out of whatever they had previously said or done to him. He was profoundly vulnerable. Always. This was his most distinctive trait. You always knew what you were getting from him was raw and honest. It was this rawnessas well as intelligence and a sly sense of humorthat made his work surprising and fresh. And I never once saw anything from him that seemed fake. I don't hate Tom Cruise the way some people do. To me, he's believable most of the time. He's just not very interesting. He rarely surprises me, and he doesn't seem to dig deep into a anything raw or vulnerable inside him. He seems guarded. The must vulnerable I've seen him is in Eyes Wide Shut, in which he did some good work. But it wasn't brilliant, and it's not his norm. 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 Keep in mind that many people (who aren't themselves actors, directors, or obsessive film buffs) aren't very clear on what an actor contributes to a film. It's not necessary for most audiences members to understand who does what during production. Lots of people think an actor is great if they like his or her character. But that's often a function of good writing more that good acting. Or they think she's good if she pulls off some impressive effect, such as gaining or losing a lot of weight or pretending to be handicapped. Those are impressive stunts, but they aren't the core of what actors do. If you forced me to rank Dustin Hoffman in Rain Man versus Dustin Hoffman in Kramer vs. Kramer, I'd say he did more exciting work in the latter. In Rain Man he was able to hide behind some stunts. In Kramer vs. Kramer, he just had to be truthful. Some people think acting is good if they like the movie. Keanu Reeves, in my mind, is a horrible actormostly because he's wooden and fake. It often seems as if he's reading from cue cards rather than saying words that are his. There is a difference between playing an undemonstrative person and being a wooden actor. In fact, playing someone who is reserved is very difficult (because you have to act without showing very much), and the actors who pull it off are brilliant. I would point you to Anthony Hopkins in Remains of the Day, Tommy Lee Jones in many of his roles, and even Clint Eastwood in Dirty Harry. These actors manage to convey the sense that although they have stony exteriors there's much going on underneath. To me, Reeves conveys an actor who is showing up and saying his lines. Having auditioned many actors, I'm used to hearing ones that can take any writer's lines and make it sound like their own words. And I'm also used to less experienced (or less gifted) ones who sound uncomfortable with words that aren't their own. They sounds as if they're are reciting or reading something. They sounds scripted. Listen to Reeves in this clip, especially at around 10 seconds in, when he says, I have offended you with my ignorance, Count. Many of his line-readings sound like that to me: He has not fully lifted them off the page and into his own mind and body. I don't believe much else is going on underneath except maybe nervousness. I don't know if you can see a difference between Reeves, above, and Tommy Lee Jones here. They are both pretty deadpan. The difference, for me, is that Jones seems to be speaking his own words, even though they are just as scripted as the ones Reeves speaks. Jones is just much more comfortable in his skin and much more able to own his lines. If you feel otherwise, that's fine. Remember, it's subjective. But some people like Reeves because they think the Matrix films are cool. They confuse the movies with the actor. If some other actor had been in those films, those same people would have liked him, but since he plays the protagonist, they focus on him. Finally, many people confuse an actor's life with his work. Tom Cruise is a good example. He's a high-profile scientologist, and many people dislike that religion. They dislike his acting at least in part because they find him unsavory as a person. To some extent, this may be a sign of bad acting on his part. At least, he's not a good enough actor to make people forget about his private life while they're watching him in movies. To some extent, it wouldn't matter how skilled he was. Currently, many people are having strong reactions to work by Woody Allen and Mia Farrow that have nothing to do with what they're doing on screen. I'm not even remotely saying such people are wrong, stupid, or crazy. I'm just saying that people's reactions to actors are often complicated and not 100 percent influenced by their performances. Get our free weekly email for all the latest cinematic news from our film critic Clarisse Loughrey Get our The Life Cinematic email for free Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the The Life Cinematic email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Some surprising yet brilliant new for fans of Pacific Rim; Daredevil showrunner Steven S. DeKnight has taken charge of the sequel, having spoken to the originals director Guillermo del Toro. The off-and-on again sequel looks set to happen despite previous reports it was put on hold indefinitely and that production was in limbo. According to Del Toro GDT, the reigns have been handed to DeKnight, who will act as director, while he will step back into a producer role. DeKnight has yet to work on film but he does have numerous TV credits to his name, including being the creator of Spartacus and working on Smallville, Buffy and Dollhouse. Uncertainty surrounding the production Pacific Rim was sparked when Legendary - the studio who owns the franchise - seemingly sold the franchise to Chinese company Wanda. On initial release, Pacific Rim didnt do as well as expected on the international market in general, but was exceedingly popular in China. If the company has purchased Pacific Rim, a sequel could be even more likely than with Legendary. In older, none-Pacific Rim related Del Toro news, the director apparently wants to direct a Jabba the Hut-led mafia movie based in the Star Wars universe. Sign up to the Independent Climate email for the latest advice on saving the planet Get our free Climate email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Independent Climate email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} The nightmare has been ended for the Heathrow 13 as they were narrowly spared jail for their high-profile protest against the London airports expansion. District Judge Deborah Wright astonished many legal observers last month by warning that a custodial sentence was almost inevitable for the peaceful demonstrators. But the public outcry against her remarks appeared to have cut through, as she handed the protesters six-week suspended sentences, Rob Basto, who at 68 is the oldest member of the Heathrow 13, was perhaps the most relieved of the group as the judge returned from three hours of final deliberations at Willesden Magistrates Court to inform them that they would be spending the night at home rather than prison. Asked by The Independent what he planned to do with his evening of freedom, he said: Mr Basto replied: I havent thought that far ahead. What day is it? Thursday? I think Ill just do nothing and chill out. This will be the first day for ages when I havent been worried. Its been a very stressful seven or eight months but its also been amazing. My co-defendants are amazing, the support has been amazing and I feel that its really got people talking about climate change, he added. The judges announcement of the non-custodial sentence transformed the mood of the court in an instant and there was loud cheering as the defendants left the dock to return to their friends and family who had come to watch the proceedings. Rob Basto, the oldest member of the Heathrow 13: 'This will be the first day for ages when I havent been worried' (Charlie Forgham Bailey) Ella Gilbert, another member of the group, who recently finished an MA in climate change at the University of East Anglia, said: I feel good. Its been a bit of a rollercoaster of a day well, months really with lots of suspense. We did what we did for a reason and its really helped the cause. David Thacker, the father of one of the 13 Edward who was not involved in the protest himself, said he was immensely proud of his son but had mixed feelings about the sentence. I have enormous pride and admiration for the way he has dealt with this and Im of course relieved because prison would have been appalling. But Im also angry because I think the judge has missed the point, said Mr Thacker. 12 of the Heathrow protesters (Rob Basto not included), from left: (top row) Danielle Pafford; Ella Gilbert; Melanie Strickland; Kara Moses; (middle) Alistair Tamlit; Graham Thompson; Edward Thacker; Sheila Menon; (bottom) Sam Sender; Richard Hawkins; Cameron Kaye and Rebecca Sanderson He believes that a suspended sentence is still far too harsh for a peaceful environmental protest. The judge sentenced the protesters to six weeks in prison, suspended for 12 months meaning that as long as they dont break their conditions or commit another offence the threat of jail will lift in a year. The conditions include not going within 500m of any Heathrow terminal building or within 5m of the perimeter fence, which they cut through as part of their protest last July before making their way on to the north runway. They are also ordered to carry out between 120 and 180 hours of unpaid work, depending on whether this was a first offence or they had previous convictions which three of them do. Judge Wright strongly criticised the protesters for causing huge and costly disruption when they grounded 25 flights at Heathrow last summer. But she paid tribute to their integrity and conviction, saying there is no doubt they are all committed to tackling global warming and very genuinely believe they are acting in the best interest of society. She said that 92,000 passengers were inconvenienced to a greater or lesser degree by their actions, which in some cases was bound to have meant that people on their way to see sick relatives or attend funerals would have faced delays which added to their anxiety. I cant fail to be impressed by the quality of references received for all defendants... But the fact that you are principled and have strong views about public interest doesnt mean you can break the law, she said. Protest on runway at Heathrow Each and every one of those people who had their journeys disrupted was a victim of your actions, she added. Last month, Judge Wright caused an uproar when she found the group guilty of aggravated trespass and warned them to expect a prison sentence. It would have been the first time peaceful environmental protesters had gone to jail for the offence of aggravated trespass since it came into force two decades ago. Before the sentencing, around 300 supporters gathered at the front of the court to offer their support. As the Heathrow 13 left the court afterwards many of them were still there. Standing outside the court Danielle Pafford, one of the group, said: Im so relieved. Its a triumph for democracy; a triumph for the movement. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Hundreds of millions of Android mobile users have downloaded apps which have sent unencrypted and easily interceptable private data to servers in China, a recent security report has claimed. The report says the personal information of countless Android users who have downloaded certain apps have had their personal information collected by Chinese advertising and search giant Baidu. It alleges information about users' precise locations, browsing histories and search terms were transmitted to Baidu's servers either without any encryption, or with easily decryptable encryption. Device IMEI numbers, which can be used to identify a person's phone, were also allegedly sent to Baidu's servers in an easily decryptable format. Encryption is the practice of encoding digital information so that only authorised parties can read it. Companies like Google collect some of the same information Baidu collects, but use encryption to make sure it doesn't fall into the wrong hands. Without encryption, data sent to Baidu's servers could be intercepted by hackers. Furthermore, the report claims Baidu web browser updates for Windows and Android don't include any code signatures, which are used to guarantee that the incoming updates come from an authorised source. This potentially means hackers could use Baidu's security flaws to perform a 'man in the middle' attack, sending anything to the browser and having it installed on the computer - including viruses and trojans which could put even more personal information at risk. "It's either shoddy design or it's surveillance by design."

Ron Deibert, Citizen Lab director

The researchers, working at the University of Toronto's Citizen Lab, found the problems in an app development kit built by Baidu. They claim the security flaws affect Baidu's mobile browser, apps developed by the company and others using the development kit, and even Baidu's desktop Windows browser. Citizen Lab director Ron Deibert told Reuters said: "It's either shoddy design or it's surveillance by design." Citizen Lab said Baidu had fixed some of these issues since it brought them to the company's attention in November 2015. However, the Android browser still sends sensitive data such as the device's unique ID in an easily decryptable format. Speaking to Reuters, Baidu said its interest in the data was just commercial. However, it didn't say who else might have access to it. China's digital economy is booming, but a lack of encryption is commonplace, partly due to rapid growth and poor awareness of common security issues. Andy Tian, chief executive of Beijing-based app develoiper Asia Innovations, told Reuters: "It's really, really painful, but it's a growing pain." Stay ahead of the trend in fashion and beyond with our free weekly Lifestyle Edit newsletter Stay ahead of the trend in fashion and beyond with our free weekly Lifestyle Edit newsletter Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Lifestyle Edit email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} While sex is still one of the biggest taboos in society, it is accepted that most sex between consenting adults is moral but any act that takes place without consent, be it rape or paedophilia, is wrong. But what if you physically cannot control your compulsions, even if you know what you are doing is immoral? This is the position that a 40-year-old man found himself struggling with in 2000. Three years later he was the, albeit unnamed, subject of international headlines after doctors concluded that a brain tumour had caused him to become a paedophile. In a stable, happy marriage for two years prior, the man enjoyed good health and lived with his second wife and his stepdaughter in the US. While he harboured a strong interest in pornography since his teen years, he said he had never been attracted to children and had never behaved in a sexually deviant way. In fact, he had worked as a corrections officer before taking a masters degree in education and becoming a school teacher in 1998. But during the year 2000, his tastes began to change. For the first time in his life, he visited prostitutes at brothels disguised as massage parlours. Fully aware that his feelings were immoral, he built a secret collection of pornographic magazines and websites which focused on paedophilia. Soon, he was unable to contain his urges and started making sexual advances towards his prepubescent stepdaughter. After a few weeks the girl told her mother, who discovered her husband's preoccupation with child pornography. He was kicked out of his home, diagnosed with paedophilia and prescribed Medroxyprogesterone a drug usually used to regulate womens period but that is also prescribed to patients with sexual disorders. A judge later found him guilty of child molestation and ordered him to complete a 12-step rehabilitation programme for sexual addiction or go to jail. But the threat of incarceration didnt stop his sexual urges and he was kicked off the programme for making advances at staff members and other clients, knowing his only option was prison. The night before his prison sentencing, he was rushed to the emergency department at the University of Virginia, suffering from a headache after complaining that he had lost his balance. There, he admitted to psychiatrists that he had experienced suicidal thoughts and feared he would rape his landlady. During tests at the hospital, he solicited female members of staff for sexual favours and was unconcerned when he urinated on himself. Doctors also noticed that his gait had changed, and he twitched his head has he walked, and lost the ability to write. Health news in pictures Show all 40 1 /40 Health news in pictures Health news in pictures Coronavirus outbreak The coronavirus Covid-19 has hit the UK leading to the deaths of two people so far and prompting warnings from the Department of Health AFP via Getty Health news in pictures Thousands of emergency patients told to take taxi to hospital Thousands of 999 patients in England are being told to get a taxi to hospital, figures have showed. The number of patients outside London who were refused an ambulance rose by 83 per cent in the past year as demand for services grows Getty Health news in pictures Vape related deaths spike A vaping-related lung disease has claimed the lives of 11 people in the US in recent weeks. The US Centre for Disease Control and Prevention has more than 100 officials investigating the cause of the mystery illness, and has warned citizens against smoking e-cigarette products until more is known, particularly if modified or bought off the street Getty Health news in pictures Baldness cure looks to be a step closer Researchers in the US claim to have overcome one of the major hurdles to cultivating human follicles from stem cells. The new system allows cells to grow in a structured tuft and emerge from the skin Sanford Burnham Preybs Health news in pictures Two hours a week spent in nature can improve health A study in the journal Scientific Reports suggests that a dose of nature of just two hours a week is associated with better health and psychological wellbeing Shutterstock Health news in pictures Air pollution linked to fertility issues in women Exposure to air from traffic-clogged streets could leave women with fewer years to have children, a study has found. Italian researchers found women living in the most polluted areas were three times more likely to show signs they were running low on eggs than those who lived in cleaner surroundings, potentially triggering an earlier menopause Getty/iStock Health news in pictures Junk food ads could be banned before watershed Junk food adverts on TV and online could be banned before 9pm as part of Government plans to fight the "epidemic" of childhood obesity. Plans for the new watershed have been put out for public consultation in a bid to combat the growing crisis, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) said PA Health news in pictures Breeding with neanderthals helped humans fight diseases On migrating from Africa around 70,000 years ago, humans bumped into the neanderthals of Eurasia. While humans were weak to the diseases of the new lands, breeding with the resident neanderthals made for a better equipped immune system PA Health news in pictures Cancer breath test to be trialled in Britain The breath biopsy device is designed to detect cancer hallmarks in molecules exhaled by patients Getty Health news in pictures Average 10 year old has consumed the recommended amount of sugar for an adult By their 10th birthdy, children have on average already eaten more sugar than the recommended amount for an 18 year old. The average 10 year old consumes the equivalent to 13 sugar cubes a day, 8 more than is recommended PA Health news in pictures Child health experts advise switching off screens an hour before bed While there is not enough evidence of harm to recommend UK-wide limits on screen use, the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health have advised that children should avoid screens for an hour before bed time to avoid disrupting their sleep Getty Health news in pictures Daily aspirin is unnecessary for older people in good health, study finds A study published in the New England Journal of Medicine has found that many elderly people are taking daily aspirin to little or no avail Getty Health news in pictures Vaping could lead to cancer, US study finds A study by the University of Minnesota's Masonic Cancer Centre has found that the carcinogenic chemicals formaldehyde, acrolein, and methylglyoxal are present in the saliva of E-cigarette users Reuters Health news in pictures More children are obese and diabetic There has been a 41% increase in children with type 2 diabetes since 2014, the National Paediatric Diabetes Audit has found. Obesity is a leading cause Reuters Health news in pictures Most child antidepressants are ineffective and can lead to suicidal thoughts The majority of antidepressants are ineffective and may be unsafe, for children and teenager with major depression, experts have warned. In what is the most comprehensive comparison of 14 commonly prescribed antidepressant drugs to date, researchers found that only one brand was more effective at relieving symptoms of depression than a placebo. Another popular drug, venlafaxine, was shown increase the risk users engaging in suicidal thoughts and attempts at suicide Getty Health news in pictures Gay, lesbian and bisexual adults at higher risk of heart disease, study claims Researchers at the Baptist Health South Florida Clinic in Miami focused on seven areas of controllable heart health and found these minority groups were particularly likely to be smokers and to have poorly controlled blood sugar iStock Health news in pictures Breakfast cereals targeted at children contain 'steadily high' sugar levels since 1992 despite producer claims A major pressure group has issued a fresh warning about perilously high amounts of sugar in breakfast cereals, specifically those designed for children, and has said that levels have barely been cut at all in the last two and a half decades Getty Health news in pictures Potholes are making us fat, NHS watchdog warns New guidance by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), the body which determines what treatment the NHS should fund, said lax road repairs and car-dominated streets were contributing to the obesity epidemic by preventing members of the public from keeping active PA Health news in pictures New menopause drugs offer women relief from 'debilitating' hot flushes A new class of treatments for women going through the menopause is able to reduce numbers of debilitating hot flushes by as much as three quarters in a matter of days, a trial has found. The drug used in the trial belongs to a group known as NKB antagonists (blockers), which were developed as a treatment for schizophrenia but have been sitting on a shelf unused, according to Professor Waljit Dhillo, a professor of endocrinology and metabolism REX Health news in pictures Doctors should prescribe more antidepressants for people with mental health problems, study finds Research from Oxford University found that more than one million extra people suffering from mental health problems would benefit from being prescribed drugs and criticised ideological reasons doctors use to avoid doing so. Getty Health news in pictures Student dies of flu after NHS advice to stay at home and avoid A&E The family of a teenager who died from flu has urged people not to delay going to A&E if they are worried about their symptoms. Melissa Whiteley, an 18-year-old engineering student from Hanford in Stoke-on-Trent, fell ill at Christmas and died in hospital a month later. Just Giving Health news in pictures Government to review thousands of harmful vaginal mesh implants The Government has pledged to review tens of thousands of cases where women have been given harmful vaginal mesh implants. Getty Health news in pictures Jeremy Hunt announces 'zero suicides ambition' for the NHS The NHS will be asked to go further to prevent the deaths of patients in its care as part of a zero suicide ambition being launched today Getty Health news in pictures Human trials start with cancer treatment that primes immune system to kill off tumours Human trials have begun with a new cancer therapy that can prime the immune system to eradicate tumours. The treatment, that works similarly to a vaccine, is a combination of two existing drugs, of which tiny amounts are injected into the solid bulk of a tumour. Nephron Health news in pictures Babies' health suffers from being born near fracking sites, finds major study Mothers living within a kilometre of a fracking site were 25 per cent more likely to have a child born at low birth weight, which increase their chances of asthma, ADHD and other issues Getty Health news in pictures NHS reviewing thousands of cervical cancer smear tests after women wrongly given all-clear Thousands of cervical cancer screening results are under review after failings at a laboratory meant some women were incorrectly given the all-clear. A number of women have already been told to contact their doctors following the identification of procedural issues in the service provided by Pathology First Laboratory. Rex Health news in pictures Potential key to halting breast cancer's spread discovered by scientists Most breast cancer patients do not die from their initial tumour, but from secondary malignant growths (metastases), where cancer cells are able to enter the blood and survive to invade new sites. Asparagine, a molecule named after asparagus where it was first identified in high quantities, has now been shown to be an essential ingredient for tumour cells to gain these migratory properties. Getty Health news in pictures NHS nursing vacancies at record high with more than 34,000 roles advertised A record number of nursing and midwifery positions are currently being advertised by the NHS, with more than 34,000 positions currently vacant, according to the latest data. Demand for nurses was 19 per cent higher between July and September 2017 than the same period two years ago. REX Health news in pictures Cannabis extract could provide new class of treatment for psychosis CBD has a broadly opposite effect to delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the main active component in cannabis and the substance that causes paranoia and anxiety. Getty Health news in pictures Over 75,000 sign petition calling for Richard Branson's Virgin Care to hand settlement money back to NHS Mr Bransons company sued the NHS last year after it lost out on an 82m contract to provide childrens health services across Surrey, citing concerns over serious flaws in the way the contract was awarded PA Health news in pictures More than 700 fewer nurses training in England in first year after NHS bursary scrapped The numbers of people accepted to study nursing in England fell 3 per cent in 2017, while the numbers accepted in Wales and Scotland, where the bursaries were kept, increased 8.4 per cent and 8 per cent respectively Getty Health news in pictures Landmark study links Tory austerity to 120,000 deaths The paper found that there were 45,000 more deaths in the first four years of Tory-led efficiencies than would have been expected if funding had stayed at pre-election levels. On this trajectory that could rise to nearly 200,000 excess deaths by the end of 2020, even with the extra funding that has been earmarked for public sector services this year. Reuters Health news in pictures Long commutes carry health risks Hours of commuting may be mind-numbingly dull, but new research shows that it might also be having an adverse effect on both your health and performance at work. Longer commutes also appear to have a significant impact on mental wellbeing, with those commuting longer 33 per cent more likely to suffer from depression Shutterstock Health news in pictures You cannot be fit and fat It is not possible to be overweight and healthy, a major new study has concluded. The study of 3.5 million Britons found that even metabolically healthy obese people are still at a higher risk of heart disease or a stroke than those with a normal weight range Getty Health news in pictures Sleep deprivation When you feel particularly exhausted, it can definitely feel like you are also lacking in brain capacity. Now, a new study has suggested this could be because chronic sleep deprivation can actually cause the brain to eat itself Shutterstock Health news in pictures Exercise classes offering 45 minute naps launch David Lloyd Gyms have launched a new health and fitness class which is essentially a bunch of people taking a nap for 45 minutes. The fitness group was spurred to launch the napercise class after research revealed 86 per cent of parents said they were fatigued. The class is therefore predominantly aimed at parents but you actually do not have to have children to take part Getty Health news in pictures 'Fundamental right to health' to be axed after Brexit, lawyers warn Tobacco and alcohol companies could win more easily in court cases such as the recent battle over plain cigarette packaging if the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights is abandoned, a barrister and public health professor have said Getty Health news in pictures 'Thousands dying' due to fear over non-existent statin side-effects A major new study into the side effects of the cholesterol-lowering medicine suggests common symptoms such as muscle pain and weakness are not caused by the drugs themselves Getty Health news in pictures Babies born to fathers aged under 25 have higher risk of autism New research has found that babies born to fathers under the age of 25 or over 51 are at higher risk of developing autism and other social disorders. The study, conducted by the Seaver Autism Center for Research and Treatment at Mount Sinai, found that these children are actually more advanced than their peers as infants, but then fall behind by the time they hit their teenage years Getty Health news in pictures Cycling to work could halve risk of cancer and heart disease Commuters who swap their car or bus pass for a bike could cut their risk of developing heart disease and cancer by almost half, new research suggests but campaigners have warned there is still an urgent need to improve road conditions for cyclists. Cycling to work is linked to a lower risk of developing cancer by 45 per cent and cardiovascular disease by 46 per cent, according to a study of a quarter of a million people. Walking to work also brought health benefits, the University of Glasgow researchers found, but not to the same degree as cycling. Getty Scouring his medical history for answers, doctors found that the man had injured his head in 1984 and was knocked unconscious for two minutes. Scans later revealed that he had a brain tumour, which may or may not have been related to the injury. Days after it was removed, the mans life was transformed. Hours later he regained bladder control and his gait returned to normal. Seven months later, he has completed a Sexaholics Anonymous programme, and was allowed to return home to his wife and stepdaughter. But he became concerned when he started to develop persistent headaches and started to collect pornography again. The tumour that had caused his paedophilia had returned. When it was removed, he was once again cured. Scientists concluded that the tumour interfered with the orbifrontal cortex which helps to regulate social behaviour and likely exacerbated his pre-existing interest in pornography, and manifesting sexual deviancy and paedophilia. Doctors said that this was the first known case of paedophilia being caused by a tumour. The tumour had cast him into the fraught situation where he lost control of his sexual impulses, while his knowledge of wrong and right was preserved. His only focus was short-term sexual reward, despite being accutely aware of the long-term consequences. Canadian psychologist and sex behaviour scientist Dr James Cantor, who was not involved in the case, said that the mans is one of a handful of reports where people have carried out sexual crimes against children because of a head injury or brain disorder. He added that his cause would likely no longer be regarded as paedophilia having been caused by a tumour. Although these cases can be an important clue, I would not conclude that they represent someone who became paedophilic or became non-paedophilic again. Rather, the evidence suggests that someone who was already paedophilic all along lost the ability to hide it after the injury, and then regained the ability to suppress it as the neurological problem was treated. He added that he believes the mans attitude towards the females around him, including his young stepdaughter, revealed how his tumour had affected his sexual self-control rather than causing him to become a paedophile. Dr Sarah Goode, a sociologist and the acting CEO of the StopSO specialist therapy organisation, agreed with Dr Cantor. Dr Goode, who has authored two books on paedophilia, explained: Many people with paedophilia say that they 'always knew' they were paedophiles; others say they grow into awareness of their sexual attraction during adolescence, when the age of those they find attractive does not increase as it does with their non-paedophile peers. A smaller number say they realise their sexual attraction to children later in life, but as far as I know this is not accompanied by any neurological symptoms and is not due to any organic cause such as a lesion. She went on to stress that the way paedophiles are treated medically must change, and they should feel that they are able to reach out for help in order to prevent children from being harmed. An important aspect of paedophilia for many people is that point when they first realise they have this involuntary sexual attraction. It is a great shock for many young people, who feel horrified, shamed, disgusted by themselves, and suicidally desperate and lonely. They feel unable to reach out for help. "This is the point at which society needs to ensure they have the key messages that help is available, they are not alone, and they are not doomed to become abusers but can always make moral choices to stay law-abiding." Stay ahead of the trend in fashion and beyond with our free weekly Lifestyle Edit newsletter Stay ahead of the trend in fashion and beyond with our free weekly Lifestyle Edit newsletter Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Lifestyle Edit email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} A therapy widely recommended in the UK, Europe and the US to stop women giving birth prematurely is ineffective, newly-published research shows. Although the treatment is safe for both mother and child it fails to achieve what is has been designed for, according to researchers who called for a review of the medicine. They also said the findings, based on a trial taking place between February 2009 and April 2013 involving more than 1,200 women, should spark "a re-doubling of efforts" to find alternative interventions to prevent premature births. Recommended Read more Depression in expectant fathers linked to premature births Previous research suggested that the therapy a hormone called progesterone may stop pregnant women from giving birth early but little was known about its long term effects. This latest trial, whose results are published in The Lancet medical journal, is the largest to assess the effects of the treatment on women and the first to study its effects in babies born after the therapy. Researchers focused on women who are considered to have a greater risk of premature delivery either because they have previously delivered a baby early or have lost a baby late in pregnancy. Health news in pictures Show all 40 1 /40 Health news in pictures Health news in pictures Coronavirus outbreak The coronavirus Covid-19 has hit the UK leading to the deaths of two people so far and prompting warnings from the Department of Health AFP via Getty Health news in pictures Thousands of emergency patients told to take taxi to hospital Thousands of 999 patients in England are being told to get a taxi to hospital, figures have showed. The number of patients outside London who were refused an ambulance rose by 83 per cent in the past year as demand for services grows Getty Health news in pictures Vape related deaths spike A vaping-related lung disease has claimed the lives of 11 people in the US in recent weeks. The US Centre for Disease Control and Prevention has more than 100 officials investigating the cause of the mystery illness, and has warned citizens against smoking e-cigarette products until more is known, particularly if modified or bought off the street Getty Health news in pictures Baldness cure looks to be a step closer Researchers in the US claim to have overcome one of the major hurdles to cultivating human follicles from stem cells. The new system allows cells to grow in a structured tuft and emerge from the skin Sanford Burnham Preybs Health news in pictures Two hours a week spent in nature can improve health A study in the journal Scientific Reports suggests that a dose of nature of just two hours a week is associated with better health and psychological wellbeing Shutterstock Health news in pictures Air pollution linked to fertility issues in women Exposure to air from traffic-clogged streets could leave women with fewer years to have children, a study has found. Italian researchers found women living in the most polluted areas were three times more likely to show signs they were running low on eggs than those who lived in cleaner surroundings, potentially triggering an earlier menopause Getty/iStock Health news in pictures Junk food ads could be banned before watershed Junk food adverts on TV and online could be banned before 9pm as part of Government plans to fight the "epidemic" of childhood obesity. Plans for the new watershed have been put out for public consultation in a bid to combat the growing crisis, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) said PA Health news in pictures Breeding with neanderthals helped humans fight diseases On migrating from Africa around 70,000 years ago, humans bumped into the neanderthals of Eurasia. While humans were weak to the diseases of the new lands, breeding with the resident neanderthals made for a better equipped immune system PA Health news in pictures Cancer breath test to be trialled in Britain The breath biopsy device is designed to detect cancer hallmarks in molecules exhaled by patients Getty Health news in pictures Average 10 year old has consumed the recommended amount of sugar for an adult By their 10th birthdy, children have on average already eaten more sugar than the recommended amount for an 18 year old. The average 10 year old consumes the equivalent to 13 sugar cubes a day, 8 more than is recommended PA Health news in pictures Child health experts advise switching off screens an hour before bed While there is not enough evidence of harm to recommend UK-wide limits on screen use, the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health have advised that children should avoid screens for an hour before bed time to avoid disrupting their sleep Getty Health news in pictures Daily aspirin is unnecessary for older people in good health, study finds A study published in the New England Journal of Medicine has found that many elderly people are taking daily aspirin to little or no avail Getty Health news in pictures Vaping could lead to cancer, US study finds A study by the University of Minnesota's Masonic Cancer Centre has found that the carcinogenic chemicals formaldehyde, acrolein, and methylglyoxal are present in the saliva of E-cigarette users Reuters Health news in pictures More children are obese and diabetic There has been a 41% increase in children with type 2 diabetes since 2014, the National Paediatric Diabetes Audit has found. Obesity is a leading cause Reuters Health news in pictures Most child antidepressants are ineffective and can lead to suicidal thoughts The majority of antidepressants are ineffective and may be unsafe, for children and teenager with major depression, experts have warned. In what is the most comprehensive comparison of 14 commonly prescribed antidepressant drugs to date, researchers found that only one brand was more effective at relieving symptoms of depression than a placebo. Another popular drug, venlafaxine, was shown increase the risk users engaging in suicidal thoughts and attempts at suicide Getty Health news in pictures Gay, lesbian and bisexual adults at higher risk of heart disease, study claims Researchers at the Baptist Health South Florida Clinic in Miami focused on seven areas of controllable heart health and found these minority groups were particularly likely to be smokers and to have poorly controlled blood sugar iStock Health news in pictures Breakfast cereals targeted at children contain 'steadily high' sugar levels since 1992 despite producer claims A major pressure group has issued a fresh warning about perilously high amounts of sugar in breakfast cereals, specifically those designed for children, and has said that levels have barely been cut at all in the last two and a half decades Getty Health news in pictures Potholes are making us fat, NHS watchdog warns New guidance by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), the body which determines what treatment the NHS should fund, said lax road repairs and car-dominated streets were contributing to the obesity epidemic by preventing members of the public from keeping active PA Health news in pictures New menopause drugs offer women relief from 'debilitating' hot flushes A new class of treatments for women going through the menopause is able to reduce numbers of debilitating hot flushes by as much as three quarters in a matter of days, a trial has found. The drug used in the trial belongs to a group known as NKB antagonists (blockers), which were developed as a treatment for schizophrenia but have been sitting on a shelf unused, according to Professor Waljit Dhillo, a professor of endocrinology and metabolism REX Health news in pictures Doctors should prescribe more antidepressants for people with mental health problems, study finds Research from Oxford University found that more than one million extra people suffering from mental health problems would benefit from being prescribed drugs and criticised ideological reasons doctors use to avoid doing so. Getty Health news in pictures Student dies of flu after NHS advice to stay at home and avoid A&E The family of a teenager who died from flu has urged people not to delay going to A&E if they are worried about their symptoms. Melissa Whiteley, an 18-year-old engineering student from Hanford in Stoke-on-Trent, fell ill at Christmas and died in hospital a month later. Just Giving Health news in pictures Government to review thousands of harmful vaginal mesh implants The Government has pledged to review tens of thousands of cases where women have been given harmful vaginal mesh implants. Getty Health news in pictures Jeremy Hunt announces 'zero suicides ambition' for the NHS The NHS will be asked to go further to prevent the deaths of patients in its care as part of a zero suicide ambition being launched today Getty Health news in pictures Human trials start with cancer treatment that primes immune system to kill off tumours Human trials have begun with a new cancer therapy that can prime the immune system to eradicate tumours. The treatment, that works similarly to a vaccine, is a combination of two existing drugs, of which tiny amounts are injected into the solid bulk of a tumour. Nephron Health news in pictures Babies' health suffers from being born near fracking sites, finds major study Mothers living within a kilometre of a fracking site were 25 per cent more likely to have a child born at low birth weight, which increase their chances of asthma, ADHD and other issues Getty Health news in pictures NHS reviewing thousands of cervical cancer smear tests after women wrongly given all-clear Thousands of cervical cancer screening results are under review after failings at a laboratory meant some women were incorrectly given the all-clear. A number of women have already been told to contact their doctors following the identification of procedural issues in the service provided by Pathology First Laboratory. Rex Health news in pictures Potential key to halting breast cancer's spread discovered by scientists Most breast cancer patients do not die from their initial tumour, but from secondary malignant growths (metastases), where cancer cells are able to enter the blood and survive to invade new sites. Asparagine, a molecule named after asparagus where it was first identified in high quantities, has now been shown to be an essential ingredient for tumour cells to gain these migratory properties. Getty Health news in pictures NHS nursing vacancies at record high with more than 34,000 roles advertised A record number of nursing and midwifery positions are currently being advertised by the NHS, with more than 34,000 positions currently vacant, according to the latest data. Demand for nurses was 19 per cent higher between July and September 2017 than the same period two years ago. REX Health news in pictures Cannabis extract could provide new class of treatment for psychosis CBD has a broadly opposite effect to delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the main active component in cannabis and the substance that causes paranoia and anxiety. Getty Health news in pictures Over 75,000 sign petition calling for Richard Branson's Virgin Care to hand settlement money back to NHS Mr Bransons company sued the NHS last year after it lost out on an 82m contract to provide childrens health services across Surrey, citing concerns over serious flaws in the way the contract was awarded PA Health news in pictures More than 700 fewer nurses training in England in first year after NHS bursary scrapped The numbers of people accepted to study nursing in England fell 3 per cent in 2017, while the numbers accepted in Wales and Scotland, where the bursaries were kept, increased 8.4 per cent and 8 per cent respectively Getty Health news in pictures Landmark study links Tory austerity to 120,000 deaths The paper found that there were 45,000 more deaths in the first four years of Tory-led efficiencies than would have been expected if funding had stayed at pre-election levels. On this trajectory that could rise to nearly 200,000 excess deaths by the end of 2020, even with the extra funding that has been earmarked for public sector services this year. Reuters Health news in pictures Long commutes carry health risks Hours of commuting may be mind-numbingly dull, but new research shows that it might also be having an adverse effect on both your health and performance at work. Longer commutes also appear to have a significant impact on mental wellbeing, with those commuting longer 33 per cent more likely to suffer from depression Shutterstock Health news in pictures You cannot be fit and fat It is not possible to be overweight and healthy, a major new study has concluded. The study of 3.5 million Britons found that even metabolically healthy obese people are still at a higher risk of heart disease or a stroke than those with a normal weight range Getty Health news in pictures Sleep deprivation When you feel particularly exhausted, it can definitely feel like you are also lacking in brain capacity. Now, a new study has suggested this could be because chronic sleep deprivation can actually cause the brain to eat itself Shutterstock Health news in pictures Exercise classes offering 45 minute naps launch David Lloyd Gyms have launched a new health and fitness class which is essentially a bunch of people taking a nap for 45 minutes. The fitness group was spurred to launch the napercise class after research revealed 86 per cent of parents said they were fatigued. The class is therefore predominantly aimed at parents but you actually do not have to have children to take part Getty Health news in pictures 'Fundamental right to health' to be axed after Brexit, lawyers warn Tobacco and alcohol companies could win more easily in court cases such as the recent battle over plain cigarette packaging if the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights is abandoned, a barrister and public health professor have said Getty Health news in pictures 'Thousands dying' due to fear over non-existent statin side-effects A major new study into the side effects of the cholesterol-lowering medicine suggests common symptoms such as muscle pain and weakness are not caused by the drugs themselves Getty Health news in pictures Babies born to fathers aged under 25 have higher risk of autism New research has found that babies born to fathers under the age of 25 or over 51 are at higher risk of developing autism and other social disorders. The study, conducted by the Seaver Autism Center for Research and Treatment at Mount Sinai, found that these children are actually more advanced than their peers as infants, but then fall behind by the time they hit their teenage years Getty Health news in pictures Cycling to work could halve risk of cancer and heart disease Commuters who swap their car or bus pass for a bike could cut their risk of developing heart disease and cancer by almost half, new research suggests but campaigners have warned there is still an urgent need to improve road conditions for cyclists. Cycling to work is linked to a lower risk of developing cancer by 45 per cent and cardiovascular disease by 46 per cent, according to a study of a quarter of a million people. Walking to work also brought health benefits, the University of Glasgow researchers found, but not to the same degree as cycling. Getty Around a half of the women were given progesterone and the others were given a dummy placebo pill. The team found that while the therapy appeared to be safe, it did not reduce the risk of premature delivery and offered no notable health benefits for mother or baby. They concluded: For those clinicians and women who wish still to use progesterone for preterm birth prophylaxis, our data provide reassurance that it appears safe, at least until 2 years of age of the child. More than 64 hospitals from around the UK were involved in the research, which was led by the Tommys Centre for Maternal and Fetal Health at the University of Edinburgh. Professor Jane Norman, Director of the Tommys Centre at the University of Edinburgh, said: Babies born too early have a much greater risk of short-term and long-term health problems. We need to find new strategies that help mums carry their babies to term. Stay ahead of the trend in fashion and beyond with our free weekly Lifestyle Edit newsletter Stay ahead of the trend in fashion and beyond with our free weekly Lifestyle Edit newsletter Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Lifestyle Edit email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Babies born by caesarean section should not be smeared with their mothers vaginal fluid in order to protect them with supposedly healthy bacteria according to medical researchers who warn of the dangers of the increasingly popular practice. The fashion for vaginal seeding has grown from suggestions that caesarean babies have a slightly higher risk of obesity, asthma and autoimmune diseases allegedly because they were not exposed to the good bacteria that normally populate the mothers birth canal. Vaginal seeding involves using a gauze swab to transfer a mothers vaginal fluid to the nose, mouth, body and anus of her new-born baby immediately after caesarean delivery. Proponents of the practice argue that this is what happens naturally in a vaginally-delivered birth. However, specialists in infectious diseases said that there is little evidence to support the practice which, they said, raises the risk of spreading dangerous infections such as streptococcus B bacteria the most common cause of neonatal sepsis genital herpes and gonorrhoea. About one in four babies in the UK are now delivered by caesarean birth and an increasing number of women are asking doctors to carry out vaginal seeding in the belief that it will benefit the long-term health of their child, said Aubrey Cunnington, a clinical senior lecturer at Imperial College London. The potential benefits of vaginal seeding have recently been reported in the press and, as a result, demand has increased among women attending our hospitals, Dr Cunnington and colleagues write in an editorial in the British Medical Journal. Demand has outstripped both professional awareness and professional guidance on this practice, they said. Encouraging breast feeding and avoiding unnecessary antibiotics would be better for a babys gut bacteria, they added. Health news in pictures Show all 40 1 /40 Health news in pictures Health news in pictures Coronavirus outbreak The coronavirus Covid-19 has hit the UK leading to the deaths of two people so far and prompting warnings from the Department of Health AFP via Getty Health news in pictures Thousands of emergency patients told to take taxi to hospital Thousands of 999 patients in England are being told to get a taxi to hospital, figures have showed. The number of patients outside London who were refused an ambulance rose by 83 per cent in the past year as demand for services grows Getty Health news in pictures Vape related deaths spike A vaping-related lung disease has claimed the lives of 11 people in the US in recent weeks. The US Centre for Disease Control and Prevention has more than 100 officials investigating the cause of the mystery illness, and has warned citizens against smoking e-cigarette products until more is known, particularly if modified or bought off the street Getty Health news in pictures Baldness cure looks to be a step closer Researchers in the US claim to have overcome one of the major hurdles to cultivating human follicles from stem cells. The new system allows cells to grow in a structured tuft and emerge from the skin Sanford Burnham Preybs Health news in pictures Two hours a week spent in nature can improve health A study in the journal Scientific Reports suggests that a dose of nature of just two hours a week is associated with better health and psychological wellbeing Shutterstock Health news in pictures Air pollution linked to fertility issues in women Exposure to air from traffic-clogged streets could leave women with fewer years to have children, a study has found. Italian researchers found women living in the most polluted areas were three times more likely to show signs they were running low on eggs than those who lived in cleaner surroundings, potentially triggering an earlier menopause Getty/iStock Health news in pictures Junk food ads could be banned before watershed Junk food adverts on TV and online could be banned before 9pm as part of Government plans to fight the "epidemic" of childhood obesity. Plans for the new watershed have been put out for public consultation in a bid to combat the growing crisis, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) said PA Health news in pictures Breeding with neanderthals helped humans fight diseases On migrating from Africa around 70,000 years ago, humans bumped into the neanderthals of Eurasia. While humans were weak to the diseases of the new lands, breeding with the resident neanderthals made for a better equipped immune system PA Health news in pictures Cancer breath test to be trialled in Britain The breath biopsy device is designed to detect cancer hallmarks in molecules exhaled by patients Getty Health news in pictures Average 10 year old has consumed the recommended amount of sugar for an adult By their 10th birthdy, children have on average already eaten more sugar than the recommended amount for an 18 year old. The average 10 year old consumes the equivalent to 13 sugar cubes a day, 8 more than is recommended PA Health news in pictures Child health experts advise switching off screens an hour before bed While there is not enough evidence of harm to recommend UK-wide limits on screen use, the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health have advised that children should avoid screens for an hour before bed time to avoid disrupting their sleep Getty Health news in pictures Daily aspirin is unnecessary for older people in good health, study finds A study published in the New England Journal of Medicine has found that many elderly people are taking daily aspirin to little or no avail Getty Health news in pictures Vaping could lead to cancer, US study finds A study by the University of Minnesota's Masonic Cancer Centre has found that the carcinogenic chemicals formaldehyde, acrolein, and methylglyoxal are present in the saliva of E-cigarette users Reuters Health news in pictures More children are obese and diabetic There has been a 41% increase in children with type 2 diabetes since 2014, the National Paediatric Diabetes Audit has found. Obesity is a leading cause Reuters Health news in pictures Most child antidepressants are ineffective and can lead to suicidal thoughts The majority of antidepressants are ineffective and may be unsafe, for children and teenager with major depression, experts have warned. In what is the most comprehensive comparison of 14 commonly prescribed antidepressant drugs to date, researchers found that only one brand was more effective at relieving symptoms of depression than a placebo. Another popular drug, venlafaxine, was shown increase the risk users engaging in suicidal thoughts and attempts at suicide Getty Health news in pictures Gay, lesbian and bisexual adults at higher risk of heart disease, study claims Researchers at the Baptist Health South Florida Clinic in Miami focused on seven areas of controllable heart health and found these minority groups were particularly likely to be smokers and to have poorly controlled blood sugar iStock Health news in pictures Breakfast cereals targeted at children contain 'steadily high' sugar levels since 1992 despite producer claims A major pressure group has issued a fresh warning about perilously high amounts of sugar in breakfast cereals, specifically those designed for children, and has said that levels have barely been cut at all in the last two and a half decades Getty Health news in pictures Potholes are making us fat, NHS watchdog warns New guidance by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), the body which determines what treatment the NHS should fund, said lax road repairs and car-dominated streets were contributing to the obesity epidemic by preventing members of the public from keeping active PA Health news in pictures New menopause drugs offer women relief from 'debilitating' hot flushes A new class of treatments for women going through the menopause is able to reduce numbers of debilitating hot flushes by as much as three quarters in a matter of days, a trial has found. The drug used in the trial belongs to a group known as NKB antagonists (blockers), which were developed as a treatment for schizophrenia but have been sitting on a shelf unused, according to Professor Waljit Dhillo, a professor of endocrinology and metabolism REX Health news in pictures Doctors should prescribe more antidepressants for people with mental health problems, study finds Research from Oxford University found that more than one million extra people suffering from mental health problems would benefit from being prescribed drugs and criticised ideological reasons doctors use to avoid doing so. Getty Health news in pictures Student dies of flu after NHS advice to stay at home and avoid A&E The family of a teenager who died from flu has urged people not to delay going to A&E if they are worried about their symptoms. Melissa Whiteley, an 18-year-old engineering student from Hanford in Stoke-on-Trent, fell ill at Christmas and died in hospital a month later. Just Giving Health news in pictures Government to review thousands of harmful vaginal mesh implants The Government has pledged to review tens of thousands of cases where women have been given harmful vaginal mesh implants. Getty Health news in pictures Jeremy Hunt announces 'zero suicides ambition' for the NHS The NHS will be asked to go further to prevent the deaths of patients in its care as part of a zero suicide ambition being launched today Getty Health news in pictures Human trials start with cancer treatment that primes immune system to kill off tumours Human trials have begun with a new cancer therapy that can prime the immune system to eradicate tumours. The treatment, that works similarly to a vaccine, is a combination of two existing drugs, of which tiny amounts are injected into the solid bulk of a tumour. Nephron Health news in pictures Babies' health suffers from being born near fracking sites, finds major study Mothers living within a kilometre of a fracking site were 25 per cent more likely to have a child born at low birth weight, which increase their chances of asthma, ADHD and other issues Getty Health news in pictures NHS reviewing thousands of cervical cancer smear tests after women wrongly given all-clear Thousands of cervical cancer screening results are under review after failings at a laboratory meant some women were incorrectly given the all-clear. A number of women have already been told to contact their doctors following the identification of procedural issues in the service provided by Pathology First Laboratory. Rex Health news in pictures Potential key to halting breast cancer's spread discovered by scientists Most breast cancer patients do not die from their initial tumour, but from secondary malignant growths (metastases), where cancer cells are able to enter the blood and survive to invade new sites. Asparagine, a molecule named after asparagus where it was first identified in high quantities, has now been shown to be an essential ingredient for tumour cells to gain these migratory properties. Getty Health news in pictures NHS nursing vacancies at record high with more than 34,000 roles advertised A record number of nursing and midwifery positions are currently being advertised by the NHS, with more than 34,000 positions currently vacant, according to the latest data. Demand for nurses was 19 per cent higher between July and September 2017 than the same period two years ago. REX Health news in pictures Cannabis extract could provide new class of treatment for psychosis CBD has a broadly opposite effect to delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the main active component in cannabis and the substance that causes paranoia and anxiety. Getty Health news in pictures Over 75,000 sign petition calling for Richard Branson's Virgin Care to hand settlement money back to NHS Mr Bransons company sued the NHS last year after it lost out on an 82m contract to provide childrens health services across Surrey, citing concerns over serious flaws in the way the contract was awarded PA Health news in pictures More than 700 fewer nurses training in England in first year after NHS bursary scrapped The numbers of people accepted to study nursing in England fell 3 per cent in 2017, while the numbers accepted in Wales and Scotland, where the bursaries were kept, increased 8.4 per cent and 8 per cent respectively Getty Health news in pictures Landmark study links Tory austerity to 120,000 deaths The paper found that there were 45,000 more deaths in the first four years of Tory-led efficiencies than would have been expected if funding had stayed at pre-election levels. On this trajectory that could rise to nearly 200,000 excess deaths by the end of 2020, even with the extra funding that has been earmarked for public sector services this year. Reuters Health news in pictures Long commutes carry health risks Hours of commuting may be mind-numbingly dull, but new research shows that it might also be having an adverse effect on both your health and performance at work. Longer commutes also appear to have a significant impact on mental wellbeing, with those commuting longer 33 per cent more likely to suffer from depression Shutterstock Health news in pictures You cannot be fit and fat It is not possible to be overweight and healthy, a major new study has concluded. The study of 3.5 million Britons found that even metabolically healthy obese people are still at a higher risk of heart disease or a stroke than those with a normal weight range Getty Health news in pictures Sleep deprivation When you feel particularly exhausted, it can definitely feel like you are also lacking in brain capacity. Now, a new study has suggested this could be because chronic sleep deprivation can actually cause the brain to eat itself Shutterstock Health news in pictures Exercise classes offering 45 minute naps launch David Lloyd Gyms have launched a new health and fitness class which is essentially a bunch of people taking a nap for 45 minutes. The fitness group was spurred to launch the napercise class after research revealed 86 per cent of parents said they were fatigued. The class is therefore predominantly aimed at parents but you actually do not have to have children to take part Getty Health news in pictures 'Fundamental right to health' to be axed after Brexit, lawyers warn Tobacco and alcohol companies could win more easily in court cases such as the recent battle over plain cigarette packaging if the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights is abandoned, a barrister and public health professor have said Getty Health news in pictures 'Thousands dying' due to fear over non-existent statin side-effects A major new study into the side effects of the cholesterol-lowering medicine suggests common symptoms such as muscle pain and weakness are not caused by the drugs themselves Getty Health news in pictures Babies born to fathers aged under 25 have higher risk of autism New research has found that babies born to fathers under the age of 25 or over 51 are at higher risk of developing autism and other social disorders. The study, conducted by the Seaver Autism Center for Research and Treatment at Mount Sinai, found that these children are actually more advanced than their peers as infants, but then fall behind by the time they hit their teenage years Getty Health news in pictures Cycling to work could halve risk of cancer and heart disease Commuters who swap their car or bus pass for a bike could cut their risk of developing heart disease and cancer by almost half, new research suggests but campaigners have warned there is still an urgent need to improve road conditions for cyclists. Cycling to work is linked to a lower risk of developing cancer by 45 per cent and cardiovascular disease by 46 per cent, according to a study of a quarter of a million people. Walking to work also brought health benefits, the University of Glasgow researchers found, but not to the same degree as cycling. Getty The researchers believe the evidence of any benefit is not strong enough to warrant the risks of exposing new-born babies to potentially serious infections. The doctors said they have already intervened in one case of a woman with genital herpes who wanted doctors to perform vaginal seeding on her caesarean section baby. At the moment were a long way from having the evidence base to recommend this practice. There is simply no evidence to suggest it has benefits it may carry potential risks, Dr Cunnington said. The theory is that by transferring bacteria from mum to baby, these bacteria can then make their way to the babys gut and alter the bacteria in their tummy called the microbiome. There is now quite a lot of evidence that differences in the microbiome are associated with risk of developing conditions such as allergies and obesity, he said. However, people have made a leap of logic that gut bacteria must be the link between caesarean section and risk of these diseases. But we just dont know this for sure or when we can even influence this by transferring bacteria on a swab from mum to baby, he added. One particular risk of vaginal swabbing is transferring the harmful bacterium streptococcus B, which is carried by about one in four pregnant women and though poses little or no risk to mothers can be fatal if it infects babies, Dr Cunnington. Doctors, nurses, midwives and parents need to be aware they are doing something with a potential risk that currently doesnt have any evidence of benefit, he said. Stay ahead of the trend in fashion and beyond with our free weekly Lifestyle Edit newsletter Stay ahead of the trend in fashion and beyond with our free weekly Lifestyle Edit newsletter Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Lifestyle Edit email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Its often said that birds of a feather flock together now scientists are arguing they have the evidence to back up this claim. People who go on to develop friendships or romantic relationships with each other are already similar at the outset of their social connection, and their personalities, attitudes and values are unlikely to change much over time, a major study on friendship formation has suggested. Selecting friends and partners similar to ourselves is so common that experts in the US described the process as a psychological default, putting paid to the notion that opposites attract. From the very first moment two people meet, their similarities play a powerful role in dictating the likelihood of future interactions, according to the study from researchers at Wellesley College, in Massachusetts, and the University of Kansas. 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 "You try to create a social world where you're comfortable, where you succeed, where you have people you can trust and with whom you can cooperate to meet your goals," said one of the papers authors, Chris Crandall, professor of psychology at the university of Kansas. "To create this, similarity is very useful, and people are attracted to it most of the time." Selecting similar others as relationship partners is extremely common so common and so widespread on so many dimensions that it could be described as a psychological default," said co-author, Angela Bahns, assistant professor of psychology at Wellesley College. Friends with dissimilar points of view did not necessarily influence each other over time, according to the study, published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. Professor Bahns said these findings could be seen as a "cautionary message" for people who believe they can persuade their friends or romantic partners to come around to their way of thinking. "Change is difficult and unlikely; it's easier to select people who are compatible with your needs and goals from the beginning," she said. The researchers noted the drive toward similarity can lead to benefits such as "stability of identity, value systems, and ideology but that limited exposure to different ideas and beliefs can be a major drawback. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} A lot of older people feel let down by financial service firms. They feel misled, unfairly treated and often ripped off by the UKs banks, insurers and other companies providing essential savings, investments and pension services. Frankly there has been a deal of evidence of people being let down. But now the Financial Conduct Authority hopes to ensure that in the future older people are given the right financial services or information they need to make the right financial decisions. That will become crucially important in the next five years as the number of people aged over 65 in the UK is expected to increase by 1.1 million. And its why the City Watchdog has started working with the financial industry now to develop new rules that ensure better outcomes for older consumers. Linda Woodall is running a new team at the FCA thats been charged with examining the issues. Evidence suggests that as we age we tend to rely less on reasoned, deliberative thinking and more on gut-feel and things learned through experience, she said. Older people also find it more difficult to navigate the proliferation of choice. This emphasises the importance of framing products and services in a way that meets the needs of older people. On Monday, the FCA published a discussion paper with contributions from across the industry. It posed many crucial questions. For instance, Nigel Keohane of the Social Market Foundation asked: How can we stop pensioners from underestimating their longevity and running out of money? Meanwhile Sue Lewis of the Financial Services Consumer Panel addressed the issue: How well do financial products and services meet the needs of older consumers? Its a promising programme which could lead to a potential revolution in the way finance firms deliver their products to people. The clear aim is to ensure that consumers have access to the right financial products at the right time and understand the importance of the decisions they are making. And that applies to younger people too, as they will become tomorrows generation of older people. Equipping them with the knowledge and capability to make reasoned financial choices now could ensure that when they do reach their golden years, they dont fall prey to the same confusion and mistrust that is a mark of the current generation of older people. As an industry we need to be increasingly flexible and accommodative in how we provide access to products and services, said Tom McPhail of Hargreaves Lansdown. We need to have vulnerable customer policies in place for example we offer all clients over the age of 75 the option to have someone else present when meeting with an adviser. He warns that the industry needs to consider physical and psychological barriers that older people face while trying to access financial products, such as offering large print, Skype and telephone support, as well as online tools. Jackie Spencer of Money Advice Service warns that its essential for the financial services industry to co-ordinate the message to people about planning financially to live into their 90s and beyond. Working together we can start to improve the accessibility of financial products and services and encourage more people to plan ahead and have control over their finances in later life, she said. The move is an encouraging one. There are many issues that we will all face when ageing, but having the finance industry on our side rather than just trying to make money out of us will make a huge difference. The FCA is seeking comment on the issues by 15 April. You can read the discussion paper at bit.ly/1oFfrie and comment at bit.ly/1oztp4h For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} The number of major weapons switching hands around the world was up 14 per cent in the last five years, compared to the five years before that. The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, an independent resource on global security, has released a study that shows that India is the world's largest importer of arms. The chart shows that Asia was the main importer of weapons in the last five years, as the region races to arm itself ahead of its regional rivals: China and Pakistan. The high levels of Indian imports are also the result of its small domestic arms industry, which means it has to buy weapons from overseas. Russia is the biggest supplier of arms to India, ahead of the US. But US imports there are growing. They were 11 times higher in 2011-2015 than 2006-2010. Chart: Statista (Statista) SIPRI also identified eight rebel forces as importers of major weapons in 201115, but none of these forces accounted for more than 0.02 per cent of total deliveries. 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. The US was by far the top arms exporter in 2011-15, with a 33 per cent share of the global market. Exports from the US have increased 27 per cent in the last five years. Saudi Arabia is its biggest customer, and aircraft are its biggest product. As of the end of 2015, the USA had numerous outstanding large arms export contracts, including contracts to supply a total of 611 of its new generation F-35 combat aircraft to nine states. Cameron on arms trading with Saudi Arabia.mp4 The UK is the sixth largest exporter of arms in the world, with a 4.5 per cent share of the global market. Arms exports from the UK increased 26 per cent in the last five years. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Johnson & Johnson has been ordered to pay $72 million in damages to the family of a woman whose death from ovarian cancer was linked to her use of talc-based Baby Powder and Shower to Shower for several decades. Jurors in a Missouri court ruled that the family of Jacqueline Fox should get $10 million of actual damages and $62 million of punitive damages, according to court records. It is the first verdict to award damages in a string of allegations over cancer risks relating to talc-based products. Around 1,000 cases of cancer linked to Johnson & Johnson talc products have been filed in Missouri and another 200 in New Jersey. Biggest business scandals in pictures Show all 20 1 /20 Biggest business scandals in pictures Biggest business scandals in pictures Volkswagen emissions scandal VW admitted to rigging its US emission tests so that diesel-powered cars would looks like they were emitting less nitrous oxide, which can damage the ozone layer and contribute to respiratory diseases. Around 11 million cars worldwide were affected. Getty Biggest business scandals in pictures Martin Shkreli and Turing Pharmaceuticals Martin Shkreli became known as the most hated man in the world after his drug company, Turing, increased the price of a 62-year-old drug that treated HIV patients by 5,000% to $750 a pill. He was charged with illegally taking stock from Retrophin, a biotechnology firm he started in 2011, and using it pay off debts from unrelated business dealings. Shkreli, who maintains he is innocent, and says there is little evidence of fraud because his investors didn't lose money. Biggest business scandals in pictures Panama Papers: Millions of leaked documents expose how worlds rich and powerful hid money - April 2016 Millions of confidential documents have been leaked from one of the worlds most secretive law firms, exposing how the rich and powerful have hidden their money. Dictators and other heads of state have been accused of laundering money, avoiding sanctions and evading tax, according to the unprecedented cache of papers that show the inner workings of the law firm Mossack Fonseca, which is based in Panama. Getty Biggest business scandals in pictures Google's tax avoidance Google reached a deal with the HM Revenue and Customs to pay back 130 million in so-called back-taxes that have been due since 2005. George Osborne championed the deal as a major success. But European MEPs have since called for the Chancellor to appear in front of the committee on tax rulings to explain the tax deal. Getty Biggest business scandals in pictures Rogue trader A French court cut the damages owed by rogue trader Jerome Kerviel from 4.9bn (4.2bn) to just 1m (860,000). The court ruled on that Kerviel was partly responsible for massive losses suffered in 2008 by his former employer Societe Generale through his reckless trades. Kerviel has consistently maintained that bosses at the French bank knew what he was doing all along. AP Biggest business scandals in pictures Barclays CEO under investigation for trying to identify whistleblower - Monday Paril 10 Authorities have launched an investigation into Barclays chief executive officer Jes Staley for trying to identify a whistleblower, the bank said on Monday. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) are both investigating Mr Staley after the bank notified them that Mr Staley had tried to identify the author of two anonymous letters, which were sent to the board and a senior executive in June 2016. Getty Biggest business scandals in pictures UK to crack down on bank money laundering after reports of 65bn Russian scam, City minister says - March 2017 The Economic Secretary to the Treasury has vowed that the Government will crack down on money laundering practices, after several of the UK's biggest banks were accused of processing money from a Russian scam, believed to involve up to $80bn (65bn). Reuters Biggest business scandals in pictures Former HBOS bankers convicted of bribery and fraud over 245m loan scam - February 2017 Two former HBOS bankers were among six people found guilty of bribery and fraud that cost customers and shareholders hundreds of millions of pounds, the BBC reports. Lynden Scourfield, 54, a manager at HBOS, forced struggling clients to use the services of his friends David Mills, 60, and Michael Bancroft, 73. In return, the two businessmen arranged sex parties, cash and lavish gifts. On Monday, the three were convicted at Southwark Crown Court on accounts including bribery, fraud and money laundering. Mark Dobson, another manager at HBOS, Alison Mills, and John Cartwright were also convicted. Getty Biggest business scandals in pictures Lloyds chief apologises for damage caused by affair allegations - August 2016 Antonio Horta-Osorio, the chief executive of Lloyds Bank, has broken his silence over allegations about his private life admitting he regrets any "damage done to the group's reputation". In a message sent to the bank's 75,000 employees, the banker said that anyone can make mistakes while insisting that staff had to maintain the highest professional standards. Getty Biggest business scandals in pictures Christine Lagarde faces court over 340m Bernard Tapie payment - July 2016 The head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Christine Lagarde, must stand trial in France over a payment of 403 million (now 340m, then 290m) to tycoon Bernard Tapie, a France's highest appeals court has ruled. The court rejected Ms Lagarde's appeal against a judge's order in December for her to stand trial over allegations of negligence in her handling of the affair. Ms Lagarde could risk a maximum penalty of one year in prison and a fine of 15,000 euros if convicted. Reuters Biggest business scandals in pictures HSBC senior manager arrested in FX rigging investigation at JFK airport in New York - July 2016 A senior executive at HSBC has been arrested at New York's JFK airport for his alleged involvement in a conspiracy to rig currency benchmarks, according to reports. Mark Johnson, global head of foreign exchange cash trading in London, was reportedly arrested on Tuesday. He will appear before a federal court in Brooklyn on Wednesday charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, Bloomberg said. Getty Biggest business scandals in pictures Former PwC employees found guilty in 'Luxleaks' tax scandal - June 2016 Two ex- PricewaterhouseCoopers staffers were found guilty in Luxembourg of stealing confidential tax files that helped unleash a global scandal over generous fiscal deals for hundreds of international companies. Antoine Deltour and Raphael Halet face suspended sentences of 12 months and 9 months and were ordered to pay fines of 1,500 (1,230) and 1,000 (822) for their role in the so-called LuxLeaks scandal. Despite the minimal sentences, the ruling was described by Deltours lawyer as shocking and a terrible anomaly. The ruling puts on guard future whistle-blowers, Deltour told reporters.The LuxLeaks revelations sped beyond Luxembourg, causing European Union regulators to expand a tax-subsidy probe and propose new laws to fight corporate tax dodging, while EU lawmakers created a special committee to probe fiscal deals across the 28-nation bloc. Reuters Biggest business scandals in pictures Goldman Sachs dealmakers lavished Libyan officials with prostitutes to win contract - June 2016 A former Goldman Sachs dealmaker trying to persuade Gadaffi-era Libya to invest $1 billion with the investment bank procured prostitutes and invited Libyan officials to lavish parties in the hope of winning the business, the High Court heard on Monday June 13.The Libyan Investment Authority sovereign wealth fund is suing Goldman Sachs for inappropriately coercing its naive staff into giving its sovereign wealth fund cash to the bank to invest in products they did not understand. The products were designed to generate big profits for Goldman, the LIA claims.Goldman denies wrongdoing and says the LIA was treated as an arms-length customer Reuters Biggest business scandals in pictures Former boss of BHS said his life was threatened - June 2016 Darren Topp, the former boss of BHS, has said former owner Dominic Chappell threatened to kill him when he challenged him over a 1.5 million transfer out of the business. MPs on the Business, Innovation and Skills Committee asked Mr Topp about a 1.5 million transfer Mr Chappell made from BHS to a company called BHS Sweden. Getty Biggest business scandals in pictures Sports Direct founder Mike Ashley admits paying workers below the minimum wage - June 2016 Mike Ashley admitted paying Sports Direct employees below the minimum wage at a hearing in front of MPs. The company founder said that workers were paid less than the statutory minimum because of bottlenecks at security in an admission that could result in sanctions from HMRC. Reuters Biggest business scandals in pictures Mitsubishi admits improper fuel tests - April 2016 Mitsubishi has admitted to using false fuel methods dating back to 1991. The scale of the scandal is only just coming to light after it was revealed in April that data was falsified in the testing of four types of cars, including two Nissan cars. AP Biggest business scandals in pictures Quindell, the scandal-ridden insurance firm Quindell was once a darling of AIM but its share price fell in April 2014 when its accounting practices were attacked in a stinging research note by US short seller Gotham City. In August the group was forced to disclose that the 107 million pre-tax profit it had reported for 2013 was incorrect, and it had in fact suffered a 64million loss. Getty Biggest business scandals in pictures Toshiba Accounting Scandal The boss of Toshiba, the Japanese technology giant, resigned in disgrace in the wake of one of the countrys biggest ever accounting scandals. His exit came two months after the company revealed that it was investigating accounting irregularities. An independent investigatory panel said that Toshibas management had inflated its reported profits by up to 152 billion yen (780m) between 2008 and 2014. Biggest business scandals in pictures FIFA Corruption Scandal Fifa, football's world governing body, has been engulfed by claims of widespread corruption since the summer of 2015, when the US Department of Justice indicted several top executives. It has now claimed the careers of two of the most powerful men in football, Fifa President Sepp Blatter and Uefa President Michel Platini, after they were banned for eight years from all football-related activities by Fifa's ethics committee. A Swiss criminal investigation into the pair is ongoing. Getty Biggest business scandals in pictures Libor fraudster City trader Tom Hayes, 35, has become the first person to be convicted of rigging Libor rates following a trial at London's Southwark Crown Court. Hayes worked as a trader in yen derivatives at UBS before joining the American bank Citigroup in Tokyo. He was fired from Citigroup following an investigation into his trading methods. He returned to the UK in December 2012 and was arrested following a two-and-a-half year criminal investigation by the SFO. Getty Fox claimed she used Baby Powder and Shower to Shower for feminine hygiene for more than 35 years before she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer three years ago. She died in October aged 62. Jere Beasley, a lawyer for Fox's family, told journalists that Johnson & Johnson knew as far back as the 1980s of the risk, and yet resorted to lying to the public, lying to the regulatory agencies. Potential cancer breakthrough Carol Goodrich, a spokeswoman, said Johnson & Johnson were disappointed with the outcome of the trial. We sympathize with the plaintiff's family but firmly believe the safety of cosmetic talc is supported by decades of scientific evidence," Goodrich said. Trials in several other talc lawsuits have been set for later this year. Additional reporting by Reuters Sign up to our free Brexit and beyond email for the latest headlines on what Brexit is meaning for the UK Sign up to our Brexit email for the latest insight Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Brexit and beyond email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} The London Stock Exchange is back in talks to merge with Germanys Deutsche Borse in a deal that would create one of the biggest exchange owners in the world and inevitably lead to speculation that the British business is preparing for a possible post-Brexit world. A merger was last attempted back in 2005 before current LSE chief executive Xavier Rolet arrived and hugely strengthened the London exchanges business with a spree of acquisitions. There was also an earlier attempted deal between the pair in 2000. That was scuppered when Swedens OM Exchange upset the process with a hostile takeover bid for the LSE. The proposed deal, coming just days after Boris Johnson boosted the Brexit camps hopes of success in the June referendum, was seen in some quarters as evidence of the Citys financial services hub preparing for life outside the EU trading agreement. Recommended Read more London Stock Exchange confirms merger talks with Deutsche Boerse Many of the Citys big investment banks have warned that they may need to decamp to continental capitals in order to continue financial trading within the EU system. Mr Rolet was among the signatories to an open letter from corporate bosses urging Britain to remain in the EU. However, despite fevered speculation about the impact on his thinking of the Brexit threat, the reality is that the LSE already has a big operation on the Continent through its ownership of Borsa Italiana, which it bought in 2007. The company later merged with the Toronto Stock Exchange to add to its presence outside the UK. 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. While Brexit may have affected the timing of the announcement of the talks, analysts pointed out that Mr Rolet has long advocated further consolidation in the industry. He has repeatedly said financial market operators should merge into a small handful of big players, and that it was crucial one of those should be based in the UK. Yet the proposed deal would turn the LSE into the minor partner in the business, with its shareholders owning 45.6 per cent of the enlarged group. The transaction would put the combined company in among global frontrunners such as the Intercontinental Exchange, which acquired the London Liffe futures market when it bought NYSE Euronext in 2013, and Chicagos CME, the worlds biggest commodities exchange. Describing the proposed deal as a merger of equals, the companies said in a Stock Exchange statement that they would strengthen each other in an industry-defining combination that would make it easier for customers to clear cross-border derivatives trades. Shares in both companies soared, with the LSE ending up 317p or 13.71 per cent at 2630p. Both companies are using boutique advisory firms rather than big investment banks, with London-based Robey Warshaw advising the LSE, and Perella Weinberg Partners assisting the exchange. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} The UK Food Standards Agency has confirmed the best before dates of all the chocolate bars affected in a massive product recall by the American chocolate maker Mars. Mars has recalled chocolate bars in 55 countries after a customer in Germany found bits of plastic in a Snickers bar in January. All products made at the same time and at the same factory in the Netherlands have been recalled from Europe. A Mars Netherlands spokesperson said: We cannot be sure that this plastic was only in that particular Snickers. We do not want any products on the market that may not meet our quality requirements, so we decided to take them all back. The FSA has said that customers should avoid eating funsize Mars and Milky Way bars and boxes of Celebrations with the following package sizes and best before dates: 250g bags of Mars Funsize (product code AV39F) with a best before date from 11/09/16 to 02/10/16 227g bags of Milky Way Funsize (product code AV39J) with a best before date of 02/10/16 Variety Funsize - Family Favourites (product code AV33W) with a best before date from 29/05/16 to 14/08/16 Variety Funsize - Party Mix (product code AV33T) with a best before date from 15/05/16 to 07/08/16 Biggest business scandals in pictures Show all 20 1 /20 Biggest business scandals in pictures Biggest business scandals in pictures Volkswagen emissions scandal VW admitted to rigging its US emission tests so that diesel-powered cars would looks like they were emitting less nitrous oxide, which can damage the ozone layer and contribute to respiratory diseases. Around 11 million cars worldwide were affected. Getty Biggest business scandals in pictures Martin Shkreli and Turing Pharmaceuticals Martin Shkreli became known as the most hated man in the world after his drug company, Turing, increased the price of a 62-year-old drug that treated HIV patients by 5,000% to $750 a pill. He was charged with illegally taking stock from Retrophin, a biotechnology firm he started in 2011, and using it pay off debts from unrelated business dealings. Shkreli, who maintains he is innocent, and says there is little evidence of fraud because his investors didn't lose money. Biggest business scandals in pictures Panama Papers: Millions of leaked documents expose how worlds rich and powerful hid money - April 2016 Millions of confidential documents have been leaked from one of the worlds most secretive law firms, exposing how the rich and powerful have hidden their money. Dictators and other heads of state have been accused of laundering money, avoiding sanctions and evading tax, according to the unprecedented cache of papers that show the inner workings of the law firm Mossack Fonseca, which is based in Panama. Getty Biggest business scandals in pictures Google's tax avoidance Google reached a deal with the HM Revenue and Customs to pay back 130 million in so-called back-taxes that have been due since 2005. George Osborne championed the deal as a major success. But European MEPs have since called for the Chancellor to appear in front of the committee on tax rulings to explain the tax deal. Getty Biggest business scandals in pictures Rogue trader A French court cut the damages owed by rogue trader Jerome Kerviel from 4.9bn (4.2bn) to just 1m (860,000). The court ruled on that Kerviel was partly responsible for massive losses suffered in 2008 by his former employer Societe Generale through his reckless trades. Kerviel has consistently maintained that bosses at the French bank knew what he was doing all along. AP Biggest business scandals in pictures Barclays CEO under investigation for trying to identify whistleblower - Monday Paril 10 Authorities have launched an investigation into Barclays chief executive officer Jes Staley for trying to identify a whistleblower, the bank said on Monday. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) are both investigating Mr Staley after the bank notified them that Mr Staley had tried to identify the author of two anonymous letters, which were sent to the board and a senior executive in June 2016. Getty Biggest business scandals in pictures UK to crack down on bank money laundering after reports of 65bn Russian scam, City minister says - March 2017 The Economic Secretary to the Treasury has vowed that the Government will crack down on money laundering practices, after several of the UK's biggest banks were accused of processing money from a Russian scam, believed to involve up to $80bn (65bn). Reuters Biggest business scandals in pictures Former HBOS bankers convicted of bribery and fraud over 245m loan scam - February 2017 Two former HBOS bankers were among six people found guilty of bribery and fraud that cost customers and shareholders hundreds of millions of pounds, the BBC reports. Lynden Scourfield, 54, a manager at HBOS, forced struggling clients to use the services of his friends David Mills, 60, and Michael Bancroft, 73. In return, the two businessmen arranged sex parties, cash and lavish gifts. On Monday, the three were convicted at Southwark Crown Court on accounts including bribery, fraud and money laundering. Mark Dobson, another manager at HBOS, Alison Mills, and John Cartwright were also convicted. Getty Biggest business scandals in pictures Lloyds chief apologises for damage caused by affair allegations - August 2016 Antonio Horta-Osorio, the chief executive of Lloyds Bank, has broken his silence over allegations about his private life admitting he regrets any "damage done to the group's reputation". In a message sent to the bank's 75,000 employees, the banker said that anyone can make mistakes while insisting that staff had to maintain the highest professional standards. Getty Biggest business scandals in pictures Christine Lagarde faces court over 340m Bernard Tapie payment - July 2016 The head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Christine Lagarde, must stand trial in France over a payment of 403 million (now 340m, then 290m) to tycoon Bernard Tapie, a France's highest appeals court has ruled. The court rejected Ms Lagarde's appeal against a judge's order in December for her to stand trial over allegations of negligence in her handling of the affair. Ms Lagarde could risk a maximum penalty of one year in prison and a fine of 15,000 euros if convicted. Reuters Biggest business scandals in pictures HSBC senior manager arrested in FX rigging investigation at JFK airport in New York - July 2016 A senior executive at HSBC has been arrested at New York's JFK airport for his alleged involvement in a conspiracy to rig currency benchmarks, according to reports. Mark Johnson, global head of foreign exchange cash trading in London, was reportedly arrested on Tuesday. He will appear before a federal court in Brooklyn on Wednesday charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, Bloomberg said. Getty Biggest business scandals in pictures Former PwC employees found guilty in 'Luxleaks' tax scandal - June 2016 Two ex- PricewaterhouseCoopers staffers were found guilty in Luxembourg of stealing confidential tax files that helped unleash a global scandal over generous fiscal deals for hundreds of international companies. Antoine Deltour and Raphael Halet face suspended sentences of 12 months and 9 months and were ordered to pay fines of 1,500 (1,230) and 1,000 (822) for their role in the so-called LuxLeaks scandal. Despite the minimal sentences, the ruling was described by Deltours lawyer as shocking and a terrible anomaly. The ruling puts on guard future whistle-blowers, Deltour told reporters.The LuxLeaks revelations sped beyond Luxembourg, causing European Union regulators to expand a tax-subsidy probe and propose new laws to fight corporate tax dodging, while EU lawmakers created a special committee to probe fiscal deals across the 28-nation bloc. Reuters Biggest business scandals in pictures Goldman Sachs dealmakers lavished Libyan officials with prostitutes to win contract - June 2016 A former Goldman Sachs dealmaker trying to persuade Gadaffi-era Libya to invest $1 billion with the investment bank procured prostitutes and invited Libyan officials to lavish parties in the hope of winning the business, the High Court heard on Monday June 13.The Libyan Investment Authority sovereign wealth fund is suing Goldman Sachs for inappropriately coercing its naive staff into giving its sovereign wealth fund cash to the bank to invest in products they did not understand. The products were designed to generate big profits for Goldman, the LIA claims.Goldman denies wrongdoing and says the LIA was treated as an arms-length customer Reuters Biggest business scandals in pictures Former boss of BHS said his life was threatened - June 2016 Darren Topp, the former boss of BHS, has said former owner Dominic Chappell threatened to kill him when he challenged him over a 1.5 million transfer out of the business. MPs on the Business, Innovation and Skills Committee asked Mr Topp about a 1.5 million transfer Mr Chappell made from BHS to a company called BHS Sweden. Getty Biggest business scandals in pictures Sports Direct founder Mike Ashley admits paying workers below the minimum wage - June 2016 Mike Ashley admitted paying Sports Direct employees below the minimum wage at a hearing in front of MPs. The company founder said that workers were paid less than the statutory minimum because of bottlenecks at security in an admission that could result in sanctions from HMRC. Reuters Biggest business scandals in pictures Mitsubishi admits improper fuel tests - April 2016 Mitsubishi has admitted to using false fuel methods dating back to 1991. The scale of the scandal is only just coming to light after it was revealed in April that data was falsified in the testing of four types of cars, including two Nissan cars. AP Biggest business scandals in pictures Quindell, the scandal-ridden insurance firm Quindell was once a darling of AIM but its share price fell in April 2014 when its accounting practices were attacked in a stinging research note by US short seller Gotham City. In August the group was forced to disclose that the 107 million pre-tax profit it had reported for 2013 was incorrect, and it had in fact suffered a 64million loss. Getty Biggest business scandals in pictures Toshiba Accounting Scandal The boss of Toshiba, the Japanese technology giant, resigned in disgrace in the wake of one of the countrys biggest ever accounting scandals. His exit came two months after the company revealed that it was investigating accounting irregularities. An independent investigatory panel said that Toshibas management had inflated its reported profits by up to 152 billion yen (780m) between 2008 and 2014. Biggest business scandals in pictures FIFA Corruption Scandal Fifa, football's world governing body, has been engulfed by claims of widespread corruption since the summer of 2015, when the US Department of Justice indicted several top executives. It has now claimed the careers of two of the most powerful men in football, Fifa President Sepp Blatter and Uefa President Michel Platini, after they were banned for eight years from all football-related activities by Fifa's ethics committee. A Swiss criminal investigation into the pair is ongoing. Getty Biggest business scandals in pictures Libor fraudster City trader Tom Hayes, 35, has become the first person to be convicted of rigging Libor rates following a trial at London's Southwark Crown Court. Hayes worked as a trader in yen derivatives at UBS before joining the American bank Citigroup in Tokyo. He was fired from Citigroup following an investigation into his trading methods. He returned to the UK in December 2012 and was arrested following a two-and-a-half year criminal investigation by the SFO. Getty 388g boxes of Celebrations (product code AJ46N) with a best before date from 08/05/16 to 28/08/16 245g boxes of Celebrations (product code AJ46R) with a best before date from 08/05/16 to 28/08/16 2.5kg catering cases of Snickers Miniatures (product code YF413) with a best before date of 07/08/16 and 14/08/16 Customers are advised to contact Mars' customer care team on 0800 952 0084, recall@uk.mars.com or by post at Mars R1, FREEPOST, Mars Consumer Care. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Rising fears over a possible Brexit saw the ground crumble beneath the housebuilders on a day when blue-chip stocks constructed strong gains. Berkeley Group was the hardest hit, down 160p or 4.8 per cent to 3,203p as London Mayor Boris Johnson lent his support to the leave campaign, while Persimmon fell 89p to 1,973p, Taylor Wimpey dropped 8.7p to 175p, and Barratt Developments slumped 24.5p to 560p. Boris Johnson leaving his home on Monday. The London Mayor heckled the Prime Minister in the Commons over Brexit (PA) Property developers were also on the losing side, leaving British Land 21.5p worse off at 671p and Land Securities down 23p at 1,013p, and B&Q owner Kingfisher was also sucked into the red, 11.6p cheaper at 330.5p, on concerns it will mean less DIY. Last month, JPMorgan said property companies had most to lose if Britain leaves the EU and suggested betting against housebuilder Berkeley, given its London focus. Miners proved their mettle to help investors shrug off Brexit fears as the FTSE 100 began the week on a high, 87.50 points to the good at 6,037.73. The price of Brent crude recovered from a heavy fall on Friday, up $1.84 or 5.5 per cent at $34.85 a barrel. It was a similar story for industrial metals, with iron ore back above $50 a tonne for the first time since October, boosting mining stocks including Anglo American, which soared by 47.1p or 11 per cent to 483.75p. A strong first-half performance from Dechra Pharmaceuticals had investors scrambling to get their paws on the shares as the value of the veterinary products firm topped 1bn for the first time. The FTSE 250 company, which makes drugs used by vets, saw first-half revenues jump 14.9 per cent to 110.7m, while pre-tax profits rose from 12.6m to 14.2m, helping the shares climb 113p, or 11 per cent, to 1,175p. Among the tiddlers, Regency Mines soared by 0.3p to 0.63p a 92 per cent leap as it bought a 5 per cent stake in Horse Hill Developments, the operator of the so-called Gatwick Gusher oil well near Londons second airport. The deal marks a change of heart for the AIM natural resources firm, which last April sold a stake of the same size in Horse Hill. Sign up for a full digest of all the best opinions of the week in our Voices Dispatches email Sign up to our free weekly Voices newsletter Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Voices Dispatches email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} The stranglehold former public-school pupils have on the UKs top jobs has laid bare in a hard-hitting report out today. The study, by the Sutton Trust education charity, shows that virtually every key profession is dominated by privately educated pupils snaffling the senior jobs. Their grip on power is most noticeable in the judiciary, where 74 per cent of leading judges (those in the High Court or Court of Appeal) were privately educated. As a result of the research, an All-Party Parliamentary Group is to set up an inquiry into how to improve access for people from disadvantaged backgrounds to senior jobs. The charity, which campaigns for equal access to education for all, demands tougher action be taken to help more bright state-school pupils to access leading positions in the professions. Figures in the report also show that one in three MPs (32 per cent) was privately educated as were half the members of the Conservative Cabinet. Even in Jeremy Corbyns Shadow Cabinet, 13 per cent of members went to private school. Nationally, the figure is just 7 per cent. Social divide is growing Todays report, carried out by Dr Philip Kirby, goes on to show that 71 per cent of senior Army officers two-star generals and above went to private schools. Only 12 per cent attended comprehensives. In medicine, 61 per cent of doctors were privately educated while 22 per cent went to selective state grammar schools and just 16 per cent to comprehensives. The list goes on 48 per cent of civil servants were educated privately, 29 per cent went to selective grammar schools and 23 per cent to comprehensives. The higher echelons of journalism are also dominated by the private sector, with 51 per cent educated in independent schools. And of those chief executives of FTSE 100 companies who were educated in the UK, 34 per cent were privately educated. Nearly half the top actors 42 per cent of Bafta Award winners went to private schools, fuelling criticism made in the past month that the profession is becoming more elitist. Our research shows that your chances of reaching the top in so many areas of British life are so much better if you went to an independent school, said Sir Peter Lampl, the chairman of the Sutton Trust. As well as academic achievement, an independent education tends to develop the essential skills such as confidence, articulacy and teamwork, which are vital to career success. The key to improving social mobility at the top is to open all independent schools to all pupils based on merit, not money as well as highly able students in state schools. 10 best primaries and secondary schools Show all 20 1 /20 10 best primaries and secondary schools 10 best primaries and secondary schools Bousfield Primary, London SW5 (Primary school) 10 best primaries and secondary schools Fox Primary, London W8 (Primary school) 10 best primaries and secondary schools West London Free School Primary, London W6 (Primary school) 10 best primaries and secondary schools William Tyndale Primary School, London (Primary school) 10 best primaries and secondary schools St Peters Catholic Primary School, Hampshire (Primary school) 10 best primaries and secondary schools St Stephen's Church of England Primary School, Bath (Primary school) 10 best primaries and secondary schools Trinity Church of England, Gloucestershire (Primary school) 10 best primaries and secondary schools Meadowside Primary School, North Yorkshire (Primary school) 10 best primaries and secondary schools Bourne Abbey Church of England Primary School, Lincolnshire (Primary school) 10 best primaries and secondary schools South Morningside Primary School, Edinburgh (Primary school) 10 best primaries and secondary schools The Grey Coat Hospital, London SW1 (Secondary school) 10 best primaries and secondary schools Highbury Grove, London N5 (Secondary school) 10 best primaries and secondary schools Holland Park School, London (Secondary school) 10 best primaries and secondary schools Dame Alice Owens, Hertfordshire (Secondary school) 10 best primaries and secondary schools Cherwell School, Oxford 10 best primaries and secondary schools Cranbrook School, Kent 10 best primaries and secondary schools Kings School, Hampshire (Secondary school) 10 best primaries and secondary schools Bishop Wordsworth's School, Wiltshire (Secondary school) 10 best primaries and secondary schools Sexeys School, Somerset (Secondary school) 10 best primaries and secondary schools James Gillespies High School, Edinburgh (Secondary school) Sir Peter advocates the adoption of the Open Access scheme, which the Sutton Trust tried out at the Belvedere Academy for girls, in Liverpool where it paid the fees of all the girls who passed the entrance exam whose parents could not afford the fees. The Department for Education said that 1.4 million more pupils were being taught in schools rated as good or outstanding by the education-standards watchdog, Ofsted, than in 2010. As The Independent Schools Guide has recognised, the state sector is increasingly matching the private sector in terms of academic attainment and learning environment, a spokesman added. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Donald Trump may have secured a convincing electoral victory in Nevada on Tuesday, but there was one group of people he flatly failed to win over. When the tycoon walked out of the hotel he owns close to the Las Vegas strip on Tuesday, he was confronted by the sight of dozens of demonstrators protesting over the fact that the management at his hotel seem less than enthusiastic about recognising unions. A report in Mother Jones suggested that while the Culinary Workers Union Local 226 has worked hard to increase the level of worker representation at the citys hotels, it is struggling to make headway with officials at the Trump International Hotel. Nobody from the hotel immediately responded to inquiries on Wednesday. Demonstrators outside Mr Trump's hotel in the heart of Las Vegas (Culinary Workers Union) The union said it had called on the Republican presidential frontrunner to negotiate a contract. It claimed that on Tuesday, hundreds of union members, employees of Mr Trump, and local religious leaders took part in the demonstration. If Donald Trump wants to Make America Great Again, he should start right here in Las Vegas by negotiating with us the same deal his company made with his Canadian workers, said Geoconda Arguello-Kline, Secretary-Treasurer of the Culinary Union For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} A huge fireball crashed into the Atlantic this week, unleashing the same amount of energy as the first atomic bomb, and barely anyone noticed. A meteor flew into the atmosphere about 600 miles off the coast of Brazil. As it did so, it exploded in the air and unleashed a huge blaze in the Atlantic sky but nobody was really around to see it. Even despite the huge power of the explosion, scientists said that the explosion would have caused few problems even if it happened near people. Recommended Read more Nasa sets up team to save Earth from asteroids Had it happened over a populated area it, wouldve rattled some windows and probably terrified a lot of people, said researcher Phil Plait. But I dont think it wouldve done any real damage." The incident was logged on Nasas Near Earth Fireball Report page, when it came to prominence. The explosion was the most powerful since a fireball exploded over Chelyabinsk. That injured 1,600 people when it exploded in February 2013. Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Show all 30 1 /30 Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Solar Flare An image from Nasa's Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) shows a 200,000 mile long solar filament ripping through the Sun's corona in September 2013 Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Nasa Celebrates 50 Years of Spacewalking For 50 years, NASA has been "suiting up" for spacewalking. In this 1984 photograph of the first untethered spacewalk, NASA astronaut Bruce McCandless is in the midst of the first "field" tryout of a nitrogen-propelled backpack device called the Manned Maneuvering Unit (MMU) Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space A Hubble Cosmic Couple The spectacular cosmic pairing of the star Hen 2-427 more commonly known as WR 124 and the nebula M1-67 which surrounds it ESA/Hubble & NASA Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Veil Nebula Supernova Remnant Nasa's Hubble Space Telescope has unveiled in stunning detail a small section of the Veil Nebula - expanding remains of a massive star that exploded about 8,000 years ago Nasa's most stunning pictures of space The Soyuz TMA-15M rocket launch The Soyuz TMA-15M rocket launches from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on Monday, Nov. 24, 2014, carrying three new astronauts to the International Space Station. It also took caviar, ready for the satellite's inhabitants to celebrate the holidays Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Earth from the ISS From the International Space Station, Expedition 42 Flight Engineer Terry W. Virts took this photograph of the Gulf of Mexico and U.S. Gulf Coast at sunset Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Black Hole Friday Nasa celebrated Black Friday by looking into space instead sharing pictures of black holes Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space NuSTAR X-rays stream off the sun in this image showing observations from by NASA's Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array, or NuSTAR, overlaid on a picture taken by NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Cassiopeia A c A false colour image of Cassiopeia A comprised with data from the Spitzer and Hubble Space Telescopes and the Chandra X-Ray observatory Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Orion Capsule splashes down The Orion capsule jetted off into space before heading back a few hours later having proved that it can be used, one day, to carry humans to Mars Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Earth Observations From Gemini IV in 1965 This photograph of the Florida Straits and Grand Bahama Bank was taken during the Gemini IV mission during orbit no. 19 in 1965. The Gemini IV crew conducted scientific experiments, including photography of Earth's weather and terrain, for the remainder of their four-day mission following Ed White's historic spacewalk on June 3 Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Frosty slopes of Mars This image of an area on the surface of Mars, approximately 1.5 by 3 kilometers in size, shows frosted gullies on a south-facing slope within a crater. The image was taken by Nasa's HiRISE camera, which is mounted on its Mars Reconaissance Orbiter Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Yellowstone from space NASA astronaut Reid Wiseman shared this image of Yellowstone via his twitter account Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Saturn This near-infrared color image shows a specular reflection, or sunglint, off of a hydrocarbon lake named Kivu Lacus on Saturn's moon Titan Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Worlds Apart Although Mimas and Pandora, shown here, both orbit Saturn, they are very different moons. Pandora, "small" by moon standards (50 miles or 81 kilometers across) is elongated and irregular in shape. Mimas (246 miles or 396 kilometers across), a "medium-sized" moon, formed into a sphere due to self-gravity imposed by its higher mass Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Solar Flare An X1.6 class solar flare flashes in the middle of the sun in this image taken 10 September, captured by NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Large Magellanic Cloud galaxy An image of the Large Magellanic Cloud galaxy seen in infrared light by the Herschel Space Observatory. Regions of space such as this are where new stars are born from a mixture of elements and cosmic dust Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Mars Rover Spirit Nasa's Mars Rover Spirit took the first picture from Spirit since problems with communications began a week earlier. The image shows the robotic arm extended to the rock called Adirondack Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Morning Aurora From the Space Station Nasa astronaut Scott Kelly captured this photograph of the green lights of the aurora from the International Space Station Nasa/Scott Kelly Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Launch of History - Making STS-41G Mission in 1984 The Space Shuttle Challenger launches from Florida at dawn. On this mission, Kathryn Sullivan became the first U.S. woman to perform a spacewalk and Marc Garneau became the first Canadian in space. The crew of seven was the largest to fly on a spacecraft at that time, and STS-41G was the first flight to include two female astronauts Nasa's most stunning pictures of space A Fresh Perspective on an Extraordinary Cluster of Galaxies Galaxy clusters are often described by superlatives. After all, they are huge conglomerations of galaxies, hot gas, and dark matter and represent the largest structures in the Universe held together by gravity Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Hubble Sees a Galactic Sunflower The arrangement of the spiral arms in the galaxy Messier 63, seen here in an image from the Nasa Hubble Space Telescope, recall the pattern at the center of a sunflower ESA/Hubble & NASA Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Pluto image Four images from New Horizons Long Range Reconnaissance Imager (LORRI) were combined with colour data from the Ralph instrument to create this enhanced colour global view of Pluto Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Fresh Crater Near Sirenum Fossae Region of Mars The HiRISE camera aboard Nasa's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter acquired this closeup image of a "fresh" (on a geological scale, though quite old on a human scale) impact crater in the Sirenum Fossae region of Mars. This impact crater appears relatively recent as it has a sharp rim and well-preserved ejecta Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Hubble Peers into the Most Crowded Place in the Milky Way This Nasa Hubble Space Telescope image presents the Arches Cluster, the densest known star cluster in the Milky Way NASA & ESA Nasa's most stunning pictures of space An Astronaut's View from Space Nasa astronaut Reid Wiseman tweeted this photo from the International Space Station on 2 September 2014 Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Giant Landform on Mars On Mars, we can observe four classes of sandy landforms formed by the wind, or aeolian bedforms: ripples, transverse aeolian ridges, dunes, and what are called draa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Expedition 39 Landing A sokol suit helmet can be seen against the window of the Soyuz TMA-11M capsule shortly after the spacecraft landed with Expedition 39 Commander Koichi Wakata of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), Soyuz Commander Mikhail Tyurin of Roscosmos, and Flight Engineer Rick Mastracchio of NASA near the town of Zhezkazgan, Kazakhstan (NASA/Bill Ingalls) Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Jupiter's Great Red Spot Viewed by Voyager I Jupiter is the largest planet in the solar system and perhaps the most majestic. Vibrant bands of clouds carried by winds that can exceed 400 mph continuously circle the planet's atmosphere Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Chandra Observatory Sees a Heart in the Darkness This Chandra X-Ray Observatory image of the young star cluster NGC 346 highlights a heart-shaped cloud of 8 million-degree Celsius gas in the central region Similar impacts happen throughout the year, and mostly go unseen, according to scientists. The impacts are occasionally picked up by military sensors, but are not often seen or filmed. Many objects fly into Earths atmosphere, but most of them burn up without causing any problems and long before theyve arrived anywhere near the Earth. Nasa watches for hazardous near-Earth objects, which are tracked as they fly around our planet. But it can sometimes miss them, as with an Asteroid that flew close past last year and was spotted until it was very close. The devoted Nasa programme to such objects says there is no known threat to the Earth this century. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} A gang of four men and two women have been convicted of sexually exploiting teenage girls in Rotherham. Some of the 15 women who were abused by the gang watched from the public gallery as the verdicts were delivered at Sheffield Crown Court. The convictions were described as a milestone for the victims of the gang, which was formed by a drug-dealing and gun-toting family that a court heard owned the town and operated with impunity. The ruling was also hailed by the authorities as evidence that the victims of sexual abuse by gangs in Rotherham will no longer be ignored. Arshid Hussain and his brother Basharat were found guilty of multiple rapes and indecent assaults of teenagers. Their brother, Bannaras Hussain, 36, has admitted 10 different charges including rape, indecent assault and assault occasioning actual bodily harm at the beginning of the trial. The three brothers were known as Mad Ash, Bash and Bono. Their uncle, Qurban Ali, was found guilty of one charge, conspiracy to rape. Karen MacGregor, 58, and Shelley Davies, 40, were found guilty of conspiracy to procure prostitutes and false imprisonment. Brothers Majid Bostan, 37 and Sajid Bostan, 38, were cleared of all charges at Sheffield Crown Court. One woman, now 36, explained to the jury how she was abused from the age of 11 with Arshid passing her on to his brother and friends, often as "payment" for debts. Prosecutors said she was "beaten, had a cigarette stubbed out on her chest, tied up and raped ... from a very young age, often by numerous men, one after another, at the say so of Arshid Hussain". Karen MacGregor, 58, (left) and Shelley Davies, 40, who have been found guilty of conspiracy to procure prostitutes and false imprisonment (PA) They added: "Her recollection is that the violence became a regular thing when she lived at the children's home and, seemingly, no-one was interested in whether she returned in a bloodied state." The girl said she was locked in Karen MacGregor's house for weeks and forced to have sex with a succession of men. A Muslim commentator has warned British Pakistanis against burying our heads in the sand about the problem of grooming gangs. Mohammed Shafiq, chief executive of the Ramadhan Foundation, said: Until British Pakistanis accept that this is a problem for our community we will not be able to eradicate this evil. This is not a white conspiracy dreamt up by the far right, or victimisation of the Pakistani community, as some claim. This is a concerted effort by a minority of Pakistani men who have groomed, abused and raped young white girls. Acting Detective Chief Inspector Martin Tait, from South Yorkshire Police, called the verdicts a crucial milestone for those victims and survivors who endured years of violence and horrific sexual abuse at the hands of these vile individuals. He said: They have shown incredible bravery reliving vicious traumatic events for the courts. In August 2014, a report into sexual exploitation in Rotherham by Professor Aleixs Jay found "utterly appalling" examples of "children who had been doused in petrol and threatened with being set alight, threatened with guns, made to witness brutally-violent rapes and threatened they would be next if they told anyone." Professor Jay's report found that at least 1,400 children had been raped, trafficked and groomed in the South Yorkshire town over a 16-year period. It said collective failures by police, social workers and others in authority had enabled it to continue for more than 15 years. In 2010, five men - Umar Razaq, Razwan Razaq, Zafran Ramzan, Adil Hussain, Mohsin Khan - were found guilty of a string of sex offences against girls aged between 12 and 16. Reaction: A victim's story A victim of the Rotherham gang has told how she was groomed by Arshid Hussain after meeting him at a party when she was 14 in the late 1990s. He preyed on the teenager and began waiting for her outside school. Soon he was having sex with her, despite knowing her age, and even though he was 10 years older. The woman told how he very quickly became controlling and isolated her from family and friends. He became very violent and would not let her do anything without his permission. There were times when I thought he was going to kill me, she said. The woman, who cannot be identified, said after the case that going through the investigation had been an emotional rollercoaster. She said she hoped her experiences would give others the resolve to step forward and put more child abusers behind bars. It has been 16 years we have waited for this, she said. It hasnt sunk in yet. This can give me some closure. For me, my life starts now. It has been such a mess. I can finally move on. The investigation started two-and-a-half years ago and it has been one of the hardest things I have had to do, but it is so worth it. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} It is highly unlikely three people missing after part of a power station collapsed in Didcot are alive, emergency services have said. One person was killed and five others are in hospital after a concrete and steel building at the derelict Didcot A site in south Oxfordshire came down at around 4pm on Tuesday while it was being prepared for demolition. Drones and sniffer dogs are being used in the search for the three demolition workers in Oxfordshire but fire officials added they have not picked up any clear signs of life. A further 50 people were treated for dust inhalation while emergency crews worked into the night searching for the missing - although the operation could take "several days". Dave Etheridge, Oxfordshire Fire and Rescue Service Chief Fire Officer, said: "We have just spoken to the families who are obviously distraughtwe have explained to them we have not picked up any signs of life but we are doing everything we can to locate their loved ones. He added: "It is highly unlikely the three missing people are still alive. Recommended Read more Pictures show scale of destruction at Didcot power station We have tried the construction site radios and had no response and we this as significant. A solitary floral tribute left at the scene reads: "Rest in peace. To a hardworking soul. From a 'Didcot' resident. Thoughts of those injured and those missing." Oxfordshire Assistant Chief Fire Officer Simon Furlong said to reporters outside the police cordon earlier today: "The remainder of the building is very unsafe, which is hampering the search. This is a very difficult situation with a very unstable structure. "The safety of emergency service personnel has to remain our priority, while recognising how hard this must be for families waiting for news of loved ones overnight. Our sympathies are with them, and the family of the person who died here yesterday. "An expert from Cheshire with similar experience is due on site today to advise on the search. "The police will be taking over control of the site as part of ongoing investigation but we are continuing working with fire services from Buckinghamshire, Hampshire and the West Midlands, and this work may continue for several days." A cordon has been placed around the scene as the rescue operation continues. Deputy Chief Fire Officer Nathan Travis described the site as "challenging". He said: "The building is potentially 10 storeys high; half of that building has collapsed, so you have got a rubble pile which is approximately 20 to 30 feet deep at the moment. A still taken from ITV News footage showing the scene at Didcot power station following the explosion (ITV News) "The search will be considerable due to the instability of the site; we expect the search to continue throughout the night and possibly into the coming days." Asked about the chances of finding the missing alive, he replied: "At the moment I can't give you any details on that but it is a substantial collapse of a building." Pictures from the scene showed a significant chunk of a building in the defunct Didcot A site has collapsed, with a large amount of debris on the ground. Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust statement said: "We are grateful to members of the public for avoiding attending our Emergency Department for anything other than serious or life-threatening emergencies." Witness David Cooke, whose company, Thames Cryogenics, has a building overlooking the power station, said: "Our building shook and as we looked out of the window. The end of the main turbine hall collapsed in a huge pile of dust. Smoke rising from Didcot power station in Oxfordshire where a 'major incident' has been declared (Blaine Morris-Smith/PA) "It totally obscured the towers and must have drifted across the roads and main rail line. What's left looks a tangled mess. "The dust was hanging over the area for five to 10 minutes." Didcot A opened in 1970 as a coal-fired power station and was later converted so it could also generate power from natural gas. It ceased generation in March 2013 and hundreds gathered to watch when three of its enormous cooling towers were blown up in July 2014 after dominating the town's skyline for more than four decades. The incident comes 16 months after a major fire struck a cooling tower at Didcot B in October 2014. Additional reporting by Press Association Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Morning Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Angry protesters descended on private members club Shoreditch House and let off smoke bombs in protest at the closure of the Jungle migrant camp. Masked demonstrators descended on the popular celebrity hang-out in east London, where the French ambassador was due to speak. Daniel Giacopelli wrote on Twitter: "Got smoke bombed out of Shoreditch House as balaclava'd protesters tried to get in. French ambassador was due to speak." A video posted on his account shows protesters behind a banner which read "borders are weapons of fear & division. Tear down their fences live fighting live free" as one man shouts his opposition to "social barbarity". Edith Hancock wrote on Twitter: "Was blocked for 45 mins from attending event with French ambassador to UK Shoreditch House due to protesters supporting Calais migrants." A leaflet handed out at the demonstration and posted on Twitter warned that the destruction of the Jungle camp in Calais would tear down the shops, churches and community the migrants had set up. It said: "Across Europe the walls are going up again. "Some of the technologies of control and surveillance are new, developed by the high-tech 'creative industries' the French government is celebrating at tonight's event." It added: "Borders are weapons of fear and division, used by the elites to carve up the world's wealth and turn us against each other. 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. "Against their vicious borders let's create networks of solidarity and cultures of openness and cut down their fences everywhere." Earlier the French embassy had tweeted about being at Shoreditch House for the launch of the Creative France event. A Metropolitan Police spokesman said: "Police were called to Ebor Street, E1, to reports of a protest taking place at approximately 6.50pm. "Officers are currently on scene. An appropriate policing plan is in place." The French embassy in a statement said: "Everyone agrees that life conditions in the 'Jungle' are not ideal. The French authorities are deploying huge efforts to cater for the migrants. "Our objective is that everyone should be housed in humane conditions." PA Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Morning Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} The female backpacker who was reported missing in Thailand is believed to have returned home to the UK. Grace Taylor, from Swanage, Dorset, was reported missing on 21 February after she failed to contact her family for five days while she was backpacking in Pattaya. But the BBC has reported that the 21-year-old flew back to England on Tuesday night. Dorset Police are yet to confirm this information. Ms Taylor was initially due to fly home on Monday night but she did not board her flight. Earlier that day, her mother, Sam Taylor, said she had received a call from her daughter in Ao Nang, Krabi province. "She was very stressed and frightened saying that people were trying to hurt her and were following her and she wanted to come home," her mother said in an appeal on Facebook. We calmed her down and booked her a flight from Krabi [on Monday night] but she apparently reached the airport but didnt catch her flight and has gone missing again, said her mother, adding that she was desperately worried. The Facebook post was shared more than 76,000 times. Ms Taylor was then found at Krabi airport by authorities, Dorset Police confirmed. A spokesman said: Dorset Police has been contacted by Interpol overnight and they have reported that missing woman Grace Taylor has been located at Krabi airport and is being cared for by an officer from the tourist police. Her family have been informed and arrangements are under way to bring Grace back to England. Additional reporting by PA Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Morning Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Pharmaceutical companies are causing biased information to be given to doctors about the efficacy of drugs, causing an epidemic of misinformed practitioners that is costing hundreds of thousands of lives across the world, it has been claimed. Speaking to The Independent, Dr Aseem Malhotra, an NHS cardiologist and a trustee of the Kings Fund health think tank, claims there is a systemic lack of transparency in the information being given to doctors to prescribe medication, in terms of the benefits of drugs being grossly exaggerated and their side effects under reported in studies. Dr Malhotra said the prevalence of pharmaceutical companies, which are profit making businesses being able to fund studies and drug trials causes biased information to be recorded and reported on in medical journals. This is in turn creating an epidemic of misinformed doctors, he said, stressing that the heart of the issue is corporate interest trumping patient interest. Recommended Read more NHS chief warns one in seven hospital procedures are unnecessary It is this lack of transparency that harms patients through the adverse side effects of drugs, Dr Malhotra said, citing an FDA report that found adverse events from prescribed medications caused 123,000 deaths in the USA in 2014 and 800,000 serious patient outcomes, which include hospitalisation or potentially causing disability. The FDA report also states that the number of adverse events from prescribed medications have tripled in the past 10 years in America, he said. Dr Malhotra said that while the UK does not have the same kind of data, Peter Gotze, professor of research design at the University of Copenhagen, has evidence to suggest that prescribed drugs are the third biggest killer behind heart disease and cancer, with particular concern placed on the effects of psychotropic drugs used to treat dementia, among others illnesses. In the UK, the elderly are at particular risk of adverse drug reactions, Dr Malhotra said. Side effects of prescription drugs on the over 75s, particularly if they are on more than one set of medications, can make them dizzy and fall over which can cause a hip fracture and develop into further problems. A pill for every ill: Two million Brits have become addicted to prescription drugs Show all 3 1 /3 A pill for every ill: Two million Brits have become addicted to prescription drugs A pill for every ill: Two million Brits have become addicted to prescription drugs 229798.bin Chris Bull/ UNP A pill for every ill: Two million Brits have become addicted to prescription drugs 229799.bin Jamie Harris A pill for every ill: Two million Brits have become addicted to prescription drugs 229800.bin George Carrick/UNP The number of over 75s being admitted to hospital due to adverse drug reactions is one in three, and a quarter of these patients will die as a result of these injuries, he claimed. Dr Malhotra is one of a number of senior physicians, including the Queens former doctor Sir Richard Thompson, calling for the Public Accounts Committee to launch an independent enquiry into the efficacy and safety of medicines. Institutions such as universities, medical journals and doctors collude wittingly or unwittingly with the medical industry for financial gain, Dr Malhotra said. We need a cultural shift towards de-prescribing and full access to the raw data from clinical trials for independent scrutiny, as this will encourage pharma sponsored research to be conducted at a higher ethical level, he said, adding that until then I personally regard all industry sponsored studies as marketing until proven otherwise. A spokesperson for the Association of the British Pharmaceutical industry said: All medicines undergo rigorous testing for quality, safety and efficacy by global regulators, including the MHRA in the UK. The data is also subject to continuous scrutiny during trials, once licensed and throughout the life of the medicine, even after a patent has expired. The spokesperson added that the suggestion that prescription drugs are the third leading cause of death after cancer and heart disease is misleading and is certainly not a statistic recognised by either the World Health Organisation nor the Office for National Statistics in the UK. Last year the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges launched a campaign to stop doctors from over-treating patients amid growing evidence patients are being over-diagnosed and treated for a number of conditions, such as prostate cancer, high blood pressure and asthma. NHS England declined to comment. Sign up to the Inside Politics email for your free daily briefing on the biggest stories in UK politics Get our free Inside Politics email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Inside Politics email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} The UK is setting a dangerous precedent to the rest of the world by undermining the human rights of its own citizens at the same time as continuing to supply arms to questionable regimes such as Saudi Arabia, according to a major report published on 24 February. The Government's commitment to repealing the Human Rights Act, its reluctance to open the UK's borders to Syrian refugees and proposals for the mass surveillance of UK citizens are all criticised in Amnesty International's annual global analysis of 160 countries and territories. The Conservatives committed to replacing 1998's Human Rights Act with a British Bill of Rights ahead of last year's general election. The Government has yet to unveil the details of the changes, but the UN has described the move as profoundly regrettable and has raised concerns that repealing the Act could have an impact on the country's most vulnerable people. The Amnesty report also criticised the draft Investigatory Powers Bill which it said could threaten human rights by opening the door to the mass surveillance of citizens' internet habits and phone records and the Trade Union Bill, which it said would make it more difficult for workers to exercise their right to strike. The UK is setting a dangerous precedent to the world on human rights, said Amnesty International UK director Kate Allen. Theres no doubt that the downgrading of human rights by this Government is a gift to dictators the world over and fatally undermines our ability to call on other countries to uphold rights and laws. People around the world are still fighting to get basic human rights and we should not let politicians take our hard-won rights away with the stroke of a pen. Human rights attacks around the world Show all 10 1 /10 Human rights attacks around the world Human rights attacks around the world China Escalating crackdown against human rights activists including mass arrests of lawyers and a series of sweeping laws in the name of national security. Getty Images Human rights attacks around the world Egypt The arrest of thousands, including peaceful critics, in a ruthless crackdown in the name of national security, the prolonged detention of hundreds without charge or trial and the sentencing of hundreds of others to death. Getty Images Human rights attacks around the world Gambia Torture, enforced disappearances and the criminalisation of LGBTI people; and utter refusal to co-operate with the UN and regional human rights mechanisms on issues including freedom of expression, enforced disappearance and the death penalty. Getty Images Human rights attacks around the world Hungary Sealing off its borders to thousands of refugees in dire need; and obstructing collective regional attempts to help them. Getty Images Human rights attacks around the world Israel Maintaining its military blockade of Gaza and therefore collective punishment of the 1.8 million inhabitants there, as well as failing, like Palestine, to comply with a UN call to conduct credible investigations into war crimes committed during the 2014 Gaza conflict. Getty Images Human rights attacks around the world Kenya Extrajudicial executions, enforced disappearances and discrimination against refugees in its counter-terrorism operations; and attempts to undermine the International Criminal Court and its ability to pursue justice. Getty Images Human rights attacks around the world Pakistan The severe human rights failings of its response to the horrific Peshawar school massacre including its relentless use of the death penalty; and its policy on international NGOs giving authorities the power to monitor them and close them down if they are considered to be against the interests of the country. Getty Images Human rights attacks around the world Russia Repressive use of vague national security and anti-extremism legislation and its concerted attempts to silence civil society in the country; its shameful refusal to acknowledge civilian killings in Syria and its callous moves to block Security Council action on Syria. Getty Images Human rights attacks around the world Saudi Arabia Brutally cracking down on those who dared to advocate reform or criticise the authorities; and committing war crimes in the bombing campaign it has led in Yemen (pictured) while obstructing the establishment of a UN-led inquiry into violations by all sides in the conflict. Getty Images Human rights attacks around the world Syria Killing thousands of civilians in direct and indiscriminate attacks with barrel bombs and other weaponry and through acts of torture in detention; and enforcing lengthy sieges of civilian areas, blocking international aid from reaching starving civilians. Getty Images The report also notes the UKs continued reluctance to share responsibility for the increasing number of refugees arriving in Europe from Syria, pointing out that it was accepting far fewer people than some other countries, and criticises the Government's continuing arms exports to Saudi Arabia in the face of claims that the country may be responsible for atrocities in Yemen. Responding to the report, the Government accused Amnesty of prejudging its changes to the Human Rights Act. It is irresponsible for any campaign group to criticise our proposals before they've seen them, said Justice Minister Dominic Raab. Amnesty have already been told our plans involve the UK remaining in the European Convention [on Human Rights], so this scaremongering undermines their own credibility. A HMG Spokeswoman said: The Government is absolutely committed to promoting and protecting universal human rights. The Foreign and Commonwealth Offices departmental report is clear that human rights, democratic values and strengthening the rules-based international system are vital and integral parts of the FCOs work. The FCO has also doubled funding for global human rights and democracy projects to its highest ever level of 10.6m. Far from undermining human rights, the investigatory powers bill will promote freedoms and rights by protecting both the privacy and security of the public while ensuring world-leading oversight and safeguards. Sign up to the Inside Politics email for your free daily briefing on the biggest stories in UK politics Get our free Inside Politics email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Inside Politics email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} David Cameron has branded Israels construction of illegal settlements on occupied Palestinian land as genuinely shocking. The Prime Minister said that though he was a strong supporter of Israel, he had been taken aback by what had seen first hands on visits to the occupied territories in Jerusalem. I am well-known as being a strong friend of Israel but I have to say the first time I visited Jerusalem and had a proper tour around that wonderful city and saw what has happened with the effective encirclement of East Jerusalem occupied East Jerusalem it is genuinely shocking, he told MPs in the House of Commons. Recommended Read more Israel suspends EU role in Palestine peace process What this government has consistently done and gone on doing is saying yes, we are supporters of Israel, but we do not support illegal settlements, we do not support what is happening in East Jerusalem and its very important that this capital city is maintained in the way that it was in the past. The Prime Minister had been asked by Labour MP Imran Hussain what the Government was doing to prevent the infringement into Palestinian lives and land. The United Nations and the international community in general regards all of East Jerusalem, including the core Old City, as being part of the Palestinian territories illegally occupied by Israel. The Israeli government has however approved the construction of homes and facilities in the area in apparent breach of international law. West Bank rises up in a new 'white' intifada Show all 7 1 /7 West Bank rises up in a new 'white' intifada West Bank rises up in a new 'white' intifada 335595.bin QUIQUE KIERSZENBAUM West Bank rises up in a new 'white' intifada 335596.bin QUIQUE KIERSZENBAUM West Bank rises up in a new 'white' intifada 335597.bin West Bank rises up in a new 'white' intifada 335599.bin QUIQUE KIERSZENBAUM West Bank rises up in a new 'white' intifada 335600.bin QUIQUE KIERSZENBAUM West Bank rises up in a new 'white' intifada 335601.bin QUIQUE KIERSZENBAUM West Bank rises up in a new 'white' intifada 335604.bin QUIQUE KIERSZENBAUM A United Nations sponsored conference held in December 2015 accused Israel of practicing ethnic cleansing against Palestinians living in the area. The official UN press release for the International Conference on the Question of Jerusalem noted that a policy of ethnic cleansing was pushing Palestinians out of the city. Video shows Israeli soldier pushing man out of his wheelchair Since Israel's annexation of East Jerusalem in 1967, it had implemented a comprehensive policy to deepen its control over the city by weakening Palestinian presence and ties there, Shawan Jabarin, the general director of a Ramallah legal center told the conference. Israeli security forces barricaded Arab neighborhoods in East Jerusalem late last year amid a series of knife attacks and car-rammings by Palestinians against Israelis. The attacks took place in the context of clashes and tensions between the two groups. Around 25 Israelis and 149 Palestinians have been killed in the renewed clashes since September. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said in a statement that the Israeli occupation had led to fear, humiliation, frustration and mistrust, in the city, provoking the attacks. In January of this year Foreign Office minister Tobias Ellwood condemned the Israeli Governments decision to commission 450 new settlement homes in the West Bank, at the height of the latest wave of violence. We urge the Government of Israel to reverse this decision. It is important to focus on steps that are conducive to peace, he said in a statement. Earlier this month Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu commended the British government for its policy of banning public sector ethical boycotts, which would include boycotts of Israeli goods from the occupied territories. I want to commend the British government for refusing to discriminate against Israel and Israelis and I commend you for standing up for the one and only true democracy in the Middle East, Mr Netanyahu in a press conference held to mark the visit of Cabinet Office minister Matthew Hancock to the country. Sign up to the Inside Politics email for your free daily briefing on the biggest stories in UK politics Get our free Inside Politics email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Inside Politics email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn was left visibly angry after David Cameron invoked the memory of NHS founder Nye Bevan at Prime Ministers Questions. Asked about what the Government was doing to bring down NHS deficits, Mr Cameron said that under the Tories there were 1.9 million more people going to A&E, 1.6 million more operations, 10,700 more doctors, 11,800 more nurses. And I have to say, I think if Nye Bevan was here today he would want a seven-day NHS, because he knew the NHS was for patients up and down our country, Mr Cameron said. Raising his voice, Mr Corbyn responded: Nye Bevan would be turning in his grave if he could see the Prime Ministers attitude to the NHS. He was a man with vision, who wanted a health service for the good of all, he said. Mr Corbyn went on with a question from a doctor named Ashraf, who asked about stretching all NHS staff to working across seven days a week, and asked: Will the Prime Minister reveal how he is going to pay for a seven-day NHS, rather than picking a fight with the junior doctors who want to deliver it? During other exchanges at PMQs Mr Corbyn raised the issue of the junior doctors strike, accusing the Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt of basing his arguments on incorrect figures. A BBC investigation had found that the author of a study cited by Mr Hunt had accused the Health Secretary of using the figures in an inaccurate manner before they had been verified. In pictures: Junior doctors protests in UK Show all 10 1 /10 In pictures: Junior doctors protests in UK In pictures: Junior doctors protests in UK 20,000 Junior Doctors marched through central London in protest at the new contract changes the government is trying to impose which they say will be unfair and unsafe In pictures: Junior doctors protests in UK Junior doctors protest in London In pictures: Junior doctors protests in UK 4 year old Cassius takes part in a demonstration in Westminster, in support of junior doctors over changes to NHS contracts, London In pictures: Junior doctors protests in UK Protest over proposed changes to junior doctors' contracts, Leeds In pictures: Junior doctors protests in UK Junior doctors and NHS staff protesting against the health service cuts and the proposed contract changes offered by the government outside Parliament In pictures: Junior doctors protests in UK Junior doctors and NHS staff protesting against the health service cuts and the proposed contract changes offered by the government outside Parliament In pictures: Junior doctors protests in UK Over 5000 junior doctors rallied in Waterloo place, before marching through Whitehall and onto Parliament Square, in opposition to Jeremy Hunt's new working conditions for doctors In pictures: Junior doctors protests in UK Demonstrators listen to speeches in Waterloo Place during the 'Let's Save the NHS' rally and protest march by junior doctors In pictures: Junior doctors protests in UK Junior doctors marched in London to highlight their plight In pictures: Junior doctors protests in UK A protester at a demonstration in support of junior doctors in London And in a bizarre series of jibes, the two leaders also traded blows over each others mothers. Mr Corbyn make a joke referencing the fact Mr Camerons mother had signed a petition against cuts in her local area despite the fact her son was implementing them. The Prime Minister however hit back claiming that his mother would tell the Labour leader to put on a proper suit, to do up his tie, and to sing the national anthem. The put-down was a reference to an episode earlier in Mr Corbyns leadership in which he appeared not to sing the national anthem at a remembrance service. Sign up to our free Brexit and beyond email for the latest headlines on what Brexit is meaning for the UK Sign up to our Brexit email for the latest insight Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Brexit and beyond email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Ryanair is no stranger to controversial advertising. But on Thursday the Irish airline will launch perhaps its most contentious campaign yet: telling the British electorate how to vote in Junes EU referendum. Press advertisements, using a stylised Union flag curiously in the shape of mainland France, show a Ryanair plane flying over the Houses of Parliament, with the slogan Vote Yes. The airlines chief executive, Michael OLeary, said: UK voters should vote Yes to Europe and Yes to the reformed Europe that David Cameron has delivered. He called on his staff and the vast majority of Ryanair passengers to help deliver a resounding Yes vote on 23 June. Mr O'Leary told The Independent: If you keep Britain at the heart of Europe we are more likely to see more effective reform and we wont be left to the mercies of the French and the Germans who will make a mess of it. He dismissed campaigners for a UK exit as "career politicians," saying "They dont employ people, they dont create jobs." In the past two weeks, British travel bosses have joined other industry leaders in supporting a remain vote. Dame Carolyn McCall, chief executive of easyJet, warned that leaving the EU could return Britain to the 1990s, with passengers flying on government-owned airlines between state-controlled airports. The UK began promoting the concept of open skies long before the rest of Europe. Agreements signed in the 1980s with Ireland and Holland were the first steps along the road to full, free access for European airlines to fly anywhere within the EU. That legislation, which took effect in 1994, enabled Ryanair to expand rapidly away from its home turf, starting with a route between Prestwick and Stansted - quickly followed by the launch of easyJet between Glasgow and Luton. Ryanair backs staying in EU Ryanair and easyJet are now the biggest budget European airlines. They extend way beyond their home countries of Ireland and the UK, with busy domestic operations in France, Germany, Italy and Poland. Yet Michael OLeary rejected Dame Carolyns prediction that airlines would face more restrictions. He told The Independent that the status quo on aviation would probably prevail: It wont change as long as the UK signs up for the open skies agreement, which is the contradiction at the heart of the Leave campaign. They want to leave Europe but they want to sign up for all the European treaties. Like Norway, if you want to sign up for the European treaties, you have to obey the rules, and you have to pay. Few large companies get involved in the domestic political disputes of other countries, but Ryanair has some previous experience. It recently launched an online petition seeking to remove the right to strike from Europes air-traffic control (ATC) unions, saying: Since 2009, French ATC have staged 40 days of strikes. Not all budget airline staff will support their bosses. Andy Jones, a Bristol-based pilot for easyJet, told the leave.EU group that competition from abroad was adversely affecting UK flight crew. Speaking in a personal capacity, he said: Over the last decade, like many British pilots, I have worked in Britain for a British company but have frequently found the young co-pilot accompanying me in the flight deck has been Spanish, German, Dutch, Italian, Belgian or Danish. Newly qualified pilots of jet airliners in the UK are frequently on zero-hour contracts and largely laid off during the winter months. Wages have shrunk dramatically. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Egyptian authorities has said terrorists downed a Russian passenger plane from Sharm el-Sheikh to damage the countrys tourist industry after months of denying Isis claims of responsibility. Metrojet flight 9268 was just 23 minutes into its journey to St Petersburg when it crashed on 31 October, killing all 224 passengers and crew on board. An Egyptian faction of the so-called Islamic State, Wilayat Sinai, immediately claimed responsibility but local authorities initially maintaining a technical problem was to blame for the disaster. Egypt flights cancelled Weeks later, an Isis propaganda magazine published photos claiming to show the improvised explosive device that had brought the plane down after being hidden inside a can of Schweppes Gold pineapple juice. But as countries including Russia and the UK cancelled flights to Sharm el-Sheikh, a Red Sea resort integral to Egypts tourism industry, the country released its own report claiming the civil aviation ministry had so far not found anything indicating any illegal intervention or terrorist action. That position appears to have been abandoned on Wednesday, as President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi made an impassioned speech on terrorism. Has terrorism ended, no it has not but it will if we unite, the said. Whoever downed the Russian plane, what did they want? They wanted to hit tourism, and to hit relations with Russia. Russian passenger plane crashes in Egypt Show all 20 1 /20 Russian passenger plane crashes in Egypt Russian passenger plane crashes in Egypt Egyptian soldiers collect personal belongings of plane crash victims at the crash site of a passenger plane bound for St. Petersburg in Russia that crashed in Hassana, Egypt's Sinai Peninsula Russian passenger plane crashes in Egypt Egyptian soldiers collect personal belongings of plane crash victims at the crash site of a passenger plane bound for St. Petersburg in Russia that crashed in Hassana, Egypt's Sinai Peninsula Russian passenger plane crashes in Egypt In this Russian Emergency Situations Ministry photo, made available on Monday, Nov. 2, 2015, showing Metrojet Airbus A321-200 flight 7K9268 flight recorder on display at an undisclosed location in Egypt Russian passenger plane crashes in Egypt Mourners lay flowers at Pulkovo International Airport outside St. Petersburg. Russia on 1 November mourned its biggest ever air disaster after a passenger jet full of Russian tourists crashed in Egypt's Sinai, killing all 224 people on board. Flags were at half mast on the parliament building, in the Kremlin, and on other official buildings in honour of the victims, most of whom were from Russia's second-largest city of Saint Petersburg Russian passenger plane crashes in Egypt People pay their respects at the entrance of Pulkovo airport outside St. Petersburg, during a day of national mourning for the plane crash victims Russian passenger plane crashes in Egypt Debris from the plane crash in Egypt Russian passenger plane crashes in Egypt A piece of an engine of Russian MetroJet Airbus A321 at the site of the crash in Sinai, Russian passenger plane crashes in Egypt The crash site debris Flight 7K9268 crashed in the Sinai peninsula, in all probability killing every one of the 224 people on board AFP/Getty Russian passenger plane crashes in Egypt The crash site debris Debris lies strewn across the sand at the crash site EPA Russian passenger plane crashes in Egypt Relatives in St Petersburg Relatives react after a Russian airliner with 217 passengers and seven crew aboard crashed, as people gather at the Kogalymaviais information desk at Pulkovo airport in St Petersburg on 31 October AP Russian passenger plane crashes in Egypt Relatives in St Petersburg A relative of a passenger of MetroJet Airbus A321 at Pulkovo II international airport in St Petersburg, Russia, 31 October 2015. EPA Russian passenger plane crashes in Egypt The plane's journey The plane's last recorded radar position above the northern Sinai peninsula Flightradar24 Russian passenger plane crashes in Egypt Where it crashed A satellite view from Google Maps of the rough area where the plane crashed, in the mountainous Hassana region of the Sinai peninsula. Google Maps Russian passenger plane crashes in Egypt The plane The Metrojet's Airbus A-321 with registration number EI-ETJ that crashed in Egypt's Sinai peninsula REUTERS/Kim Philipp Piskol Russian passenger plane crashes in Egypt The plane The crashed Airbus A321 at Domodedovo international airport, outside Moscow,, on 20 October Russian passenger plane crashes in Egypt Relatives at in St Petersburg A relative of a passenger on MetroJet Airbus A321 at Pulkovo II international airport in St Petersburg EPA Russian passenger plane crashes in Egypt Relatives at in St Petersburg Relatives of passengers of MetroJet Airbus A321 at the Crown Plaza hotel in St Petersburg EPA Russian passenger plane crashes in Egypt Bodies being repatriated An Egyptian soldier prays as emergency workers prepare to unload bodies of victims from a police helicopter to ambulances at Kabrit military airport on 31 October. AP Russian passenger plane crashes in Egypt Bodies being repatriated Ambulances line up as emergency workers unload bodies at Kabrit military airport, 20 miles north of Suez, on Saturday AP Russian passenger plane crashes in Egypt Bodies being repatriated Egyptian paramedics load the corpses of victims into a military plane at Kabrit military air base by the Suez Canal on October 31, 2015 AFP/Getty Images The comments were the first official Egyptian indication that the plane was deliberately downed. Official confirmation that a bomb brought down the Airbus A321 could potentially expose Egypt to compensation payments to victims families. The country is fighting against Isis-affiliated insurgents in the Sinai Peninsula who have claimed responsibility for a wave of bombing and shooting attacks around the country, including near the Pyramids and other tourist attractions. Authorities have sought to play down a series of incidents, calling men who stabbed tourists at a hotel in Hurghada "drugged" and claiming security services were the target at a Cairo hotel. Moscow stopped all civilian flights to Egypt, a popular destination for Russian tourists, after the crash and the UK was among several other nations stopping their airlines operating routes from Sharm el-Sheikh. The crash was the worst aviation disaster in Russian history and came during an intensified periods of terror attacks claimed by Isis, including the bombings in Paris, Beirut, Tunis and the massacres that killed 130 people in Paris. Additional reporting by Reuters For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Two teens became viral stars last week after a video showing one of them repeatedly exclaiming Damn, Daniel! at the other took off into the meme stratosphere. Now, police say one of the two newly-minted Internet celebrities was swatted at his California familys home. Someone called a police non-emergency line at about 1 in the morning Tuesday, claiming he had shot his mother in the head with an AK-47, said Lt. Christian Dinco of the Riverside Police Department. A large number of officers responded to the residential address given by the caller, including the departments air unit and SWAT personnel. Dinco estimated that as many as 30 to 35 officers showed up at the home, prepared to encounter an armed murderer. But what they found was quite different: a family stepped outside of their home to speak with the assembled officers. It quickly became clear that no one had been shot inside the home, and that the original call to police was false. The family told officers that they believed the call was associated with an online posting called Damn Daniel that one of the family members had recently made. And it wasnt the first weird and bad thing that had happened to the family in recent days: Theyd received several prank calls to their home, Dinco said, though nothing nearly as dramatic as the swatting attempt. In case youre not familiar, a swatting involves placing a fake emergency call to authorities and describing some sort of horrible crime taking place at the home of an unsuspecting victim. The idea is to get the SWAT team to burst through the door of the victim with the intent of apprehending a dangerous criminal. Recommended Read more The story of five real people who became memes Although swatting has its origins in a couple of Internet subcultures, the practice has targeted a wider range of victims in recent years, including a current member of Congress who had introduced anti-swatting legislation. Some police departments, such as Riversides, are now aware of the phenomenon and have responded to these pranks before. But swatting can create an intensely dangerous situation for its victims. Dinco noted that officers cant treat [potentially false emergency calls] as though it is a prank, and have to respond to each call, like the one placed Tuesday morning, as if it is real. But Riverside police receive a couple of fake calls like these a year, and are very aware that theres a possibility [an emergency call] could not be true, he said. 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 matter is under investigation, Dinco said. Police havent arrested anyone, and are working to uncover the identity of the caller. In the departments experience, people who call in with a swatting attempt typically use techniques to mask their identity from police. Swatting is a misdemeanor in California, thanks to a law that recently went into effect in the state, Dinco said. Its punishable with up to a year in jail. Swatters could face felony charges in cases where victims are injured, Dinco added. In this case, no one was hurt. The Damn, Daniel meme was also the subject of a bad Internet hoax in recent days, claiming that the Daniel of the video was mugged and robbed, losing the white Vans mentioned in the video to criminals. Washington Post Sign up to our Evening Headlines email for your daily guide to the latest news Sign up to our free US Evening Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Pity the poor hijab. Hated by liberals, looked at suspiciously by ordinary members of the public, and obliged to endure an intimate relationship with its owner. Now, the US military has offered its own considered opinion on the subject, with a suggestion that the headscarves worn by some, but not all, Muslim women, represent a form of passive terrorism. This week, it was reported that a policy paper issued by the Air Force Research Laboratory and titled Countering Violent Extremism: Scientific Methods & Strategies, included a chapter that contained some strange and unproven thoughts on radicalisation. The Intercept reported that in addition to the comment about hijabs, is a claim that support for militant groups is driven by sexual deprivation. Ibtihaj Muhammad (left) is among many high-profile hijab wearers (Getty Images) The report said the paper, first published in 2011, was reissued by the Air Force last summer following President Barack Obamas announcement of a national counter-extremism strategy. This January, the revised copy was published online by the open source research website Public Intelligence. A preface for the revised report cited a summit convened by Mr Obama on extremism as a reason for revisiting the subject, adding that the wisdom contained in this paper collection is more relevant than ever, the website reported. Many of the articles contained in the document were written by academics and researchers in the field of counterterrorism. The chapter that contains the references to the hijab being a form of passive terrorism was written by Dr Tawfik Hamid, a self-described former Islamic extremist and fellow at the Potomac Institute for Policy Studies. He said support for groups such as Isis was the result sexual deprivation and that terrorism bears relation to religious dress. His ideas for combating terrorism include addressing the factors underlying [sexual] deprivation among young men, as well as weakening the hijab phenomenon. [Extremism occurs when] increasing numbers of women begin to wear the hijab, which is both a symptom of Salafi proliferation and a catalyst for Islamism, writes Mr Hamid. In turn, the proliferation of militant Salafism and the hijab contribute to the idea of passive terrorism, which occurs when moderate segments of the population decline to speak against or actively resist terrorism. Speaking from my own experience with the radical groups, I believe young Muslims are motivated to join radical groups because of sexual deprivation." Yet observers have pointed out that hijabs are commonly worn by millions of Muslim women, the overwhelming majority of whom do not support militant groups. Among the high-profile wearers of the hijab are Ibtihaj Muhammad of the US Olympic fencing team, and Pakistani Nobel Peace Prize winner and education activist Malala Yousafzai. Muslims in America and elsewhere were quick to blast the report on Twitter using the hashtag #PassiveTerrorism. Sign up to our Evening Headlines email for your daily guide to the latest news Sign up to our free US Evening Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} The mystery behind a ghostly image, seemingly showing a passenger plane submerged in a US lake on Google Maps, has been solved. Pictures of a plane, which appeared to have sunk to the bottom of Lake Harriet in Minneapolis, puzzled authorities after they emerged on Googles satellite map. Officials appeared to have no record of a plane crash in the area and were unaware there was a wreck in the lake. However, before the image began to spark mass conspiracy theories, a Google Maps spokeswoman suggested there was a simple explanation to the conundrum. Due to the way Googles satellite imagery is created it is most likely the picture of the lake was taken at the same time as a plane was flying over it, causing the two objects to merge. Susan Cadrecha, a spokeswoman for Google maps, told The Minneapolis Star-Tribune: "In short, each satellite image you see on the map is actually a compilation of several images. "Fast-moving objects like planes often show up in only one of the many images we use for a given area." Lake Harriet is around five miles from Minneapolis-St Paul Airport, where more than 400,000 planes land and take off each year. It is also under the airports flight path making Googles theory even more plausible. The weirdest and most shocking news stories Show all 30 1 /30 The weirdest and most shocking news stories The weirdest and most shocking news stories What do horse semen, an elephant and a yurt have in common Leading removals company AnyVan.com operates on the premise that they can move anything anywhere, an undertaking which has certainly given them more than they bargained for over the years. In addition to the more common requests to move homes, furniture and pianos, listings have included a horse semen, live elephant, a cabinet engraved with the Kamasutra, a phallic statue, a dungeon gynaecological bondage chair, a yurt and an ice cream van The weirdest and most shocking news stories Couple find dead lizard inside the can of tomatoes A couple in Birmingham were making lunch when they found the surprise addition of a dead lizard in a can of tomatoes. Muhammad Hussain and his wife Sanam discovered the critter had managed to get into the can that Mrs Hussain had been using to cook a curry. Mr Hussain was alerted to the presence of the lizard when he heard his wife screaming as she made lunch BBC The weirdest and most shocking news stories Greggs (a bakery) has actually stopped selling loaves of bread You'd have thought a bakery would be the one place you'd be guaranteed to buy a loaf of bread. Well, not at Greggs. According to the companys website, customers are able to buy white or malted sliced loaves which are freshly baked every day. So when one customer went into his local Greggs in Burton-upon-Trent, he was surprised to be told they didn't stock them any more. According to the company, they will now focus on the food to go market, which means most of the bread that the company sells is in sandwiches AFP The weirdest and most shocking news stories Man trolls plane passengers by painting sign on his roof welcoming them to the wrong city One US homeowner has taken trolling to another level by painting a message on his roof top to deliberately trick aeroplane passengers into thinking theyve boarded the wrong flight. Mark Gubin painted the sign Welcome to Cleveland on his home which is next to Mitchell International Airport in Milwaukee. Milwaukee is a city in Wisconsin, some four hundred miles away from Cleveland, in the state of Ohio, prompting passengers to fear theyve accidentally boarded the wrong flight as they spy the trick lettering from the aeroplane window Google Maps The weirdest and most shocking news stories Missing cat found after spending 64 days trapped inside a mattress A family who thought theyd lost their cat as they prepared to move 3,000 miles across the US, were relieved when they found their pet inside a mattress some 64 days later. Moosie, a 2-year-old tabby cat, disappeared when Kymberly Chelf and her husband Jesse Chelf boxed up their belongings in preparation for their move from El Paso, Texas, to Anchorage, Alaska. In early June, the familys belongings arrived at their new home along with a big part of their old life. When the Chelfs heard a meow coming from inside the box, Mrs Chelf said: "it just sounded like he [Moosie] was giving it everything he had just to let us know he was there." The cat had been trapped for over two months without light, food or water. Moosie emerged from the ordeal suffering from severe dehydration and with a damaged liver, but vets have said he is in a good condition, CNN reported AP Photo/Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, Eric Engman The weirdest and most shocking news stories There's a lottery in which the prize is a 20-year supply of bacon Indiana's Hoosier Lottery is switching from cold, hard cash to hot, crispy bacon for its prize, offering players the chance to win 20 years-worth of the stuff. $5,000 of bacon will be dished out in 20 annual instalments to winners, according to the rules, presumably because no-one has the freezer space for 20 years of bacon. It's an ingenious ploy, given that anyone who tried to eat 20 years of bacon would probably struggle to live 20 years The weirdest and most shocking news stories Demonic CIA Osama Bin Laden doll goes up for sale at auction for $5,000 One of the strangest propaganda weapons of the War on Terror has gone up for sale at auction, and it could be yours for only $5,000. The item in question is a doll of Osama Bin Laden, designed to terrify the children of the Middle East so much that they would be permanently put off from joining Islamist groups. The doll is a fairly faithful recreation of the late terrorist leader, complete with white robes, combat boots, and a scraggly black beard. The propaganda value in the bizarre toy comes from the heat-sensitive paint used on the doll's face. When children played with the doll, the heat from their hands would activate the paint, and change Osama into a terrifying green-eyed, red-faced demon, with black markings all over his face Nate D. Sanders The weirdest and most shocking news stories The mystery of the 25-year-old Australian cat which turned up in Northern Ireland An Australian cat has been mysteriously found in Northern Ireland, sparking speculation as to how he made the 12,000 mile journey. The ginger cat was picked up by Cat Protection helpers in County Armagh last week. When animal welfare officers took him to the vet for a health check, it was discovered that he had been micro-chipped in Australia. The plot thickened as the chip revealed he has also been found as a stray across the Irish Sea in London Photo: Cat Protection The weirdest and most shocking news stories Replacement found after 'over-enthusiastic' bull breaks his own penis A prize bull has had to be taken off his farmers breeding programme after he suffered a broken penis. The injury, which the Simmentall bull sustained at the beginning of the breeding season, was probably due to being over-enthusiastic, according to his owner, Tommy Moyles. According to the Irish Mirror, Mr Moyles was then forced to bring another bull, which was previously destined for the slaughterhouse, out to provide his services Ian Forsyth/ Getty The weirdest and most shocking news stories Thieves steal four pints of bull semen from Minnesota farm A group of thieves have stolen about four pints of bull semen from a farm in southern Minnesota in the US - and could sell it on for an extraordinary amount of money. Police in the town of Leroy said they are investigating the theft of a $500 storage container with around 90 filled vials. On the open market, that amount of semen would be worth around $70,000 (47,000) Screengrab via CBS News The weirdest and most shocking news stories Charcoal has become the hot new flavouring If you want to be in on the latest trend in Britain's restaurants and bars, you're going to have to feel - and indeed taste - the burn. Some words of comfort next time you overfry, overbake, overboil or otherwise burn your dinner to a crisp: charcoal, in all its dark and mysterious forms, is being embraced by some of the best in the food and drinks business. It's not just about cooking on a grill (although that's also a booming market), but charcoal as an actual ingredient bringing flavour, colour, texture and a touch of playfulness to plates of food and bottles of juice. This news comes on the heels of Burger King Japan's Kuro Pearl offering, a burger with a jet-black bamboo charcoal bun, which met with a mix of hysteria and confusion upon its launch last year. It turns out that the fast food giant was bang on: charcoal is the new, well, black Victor De Jesus The weirdest and most shocking news stories Woman claims ski accident has given her extraordinary mental powers An anonymous woman in America has told an incredible story of how she was left with extraordinary mental abilities after hitting her head in a skiing accident. The ex-student revealed that she now has a condition known as acquired savant syndrome following the heavy fall on the slopes during a family holiday. The syndrome now lends her incredible powers of memory and the writer explains how she can draw diagrams of thousands of places, with thousands of rooms, branches and doorways right down to the smallest detail in a piece for xojane.com. An individual with savant syndrome will display remarkable and sometimes spectacular talents, according Jonathan Hiles, Principal Lecturer of Health and Life Sciences at De Montford University, in an online article regarding the condition Getty The weirdest and most shocking news stories This octopus learned to use a camera faster than some humans A brainy octopus at a New Zealand aquarium has learned how to take photos - using a waterproof camera specially designed to be operated with tentacles. Rambo the octopus, a popular attraction at Kelly Tarlton's Sea Life Aquarium in Auckland, New Zealand, stunned her trainers with how quickly she got to grips with the camera. Speaking to Cult of Mac, Mark Vette, Rambo's trainer, said: "When we first tried to get her to take a photo, it only took three attempts for her to understand the process. That's faster than a dog." He added: "Actually, it's faster than a human in some instances" ULI DECK/AFP/Getty Images The weirdest and most shocking news stories 4-year-old leaves home at 3am to buy a 'Slushie' drink Its commonplace to see strange sights on the night bus. But passengers were completely baffled to witness a little girl boarding the vehicle alone at 3am just to satisfy her sweet-tooth. Four-year old Annabelle Ridgeway climbed onto a bus, having been drenched in the rain and without her parents knowledge, to find a place to buy a crushed-ice beverage. Bus driver Harlan Jenifer, 52, quickly called for assistance and Annabelle was taken to a local hospital to wait for her mother YouTube The weirdest and most shocking news stories Little girl goes off on surprising tangent after being told she's going to be a big sister It starts like one of those classic, schmaltzy parent-and-child YouTube videos. 3-year-old Kathryn's dad informs her in no uncertain terms that she's going to get a little sister. Kathryn pauses for a second, apparently stunned by the news. But no! There's no tearful excited, she just whispers "I farted" The weirdest and most shocking news stories Shia LaBeouf's heartbeat is now available for livestreaming Walking Hollywood masterpiece Shia LaBeouf is offering the internet the chance to get closer to him than ever before. But dont let that utterly terrify you the actors latest offer has nothing to do with paper bags, paraphrasing footballers or running around museums in Amsterdam 144 times sporting lycra and a single dreadlock. Instead, the 28-year-old will be livestreaming his heartbeat for the next week as part of a new metamodern performance art piece with his previous #IAMSORRY collaborators Nastja Sade Ronkko and Luke Turner. The project, called Follow My Heart, was announced at the SXSW festival The weirdest and most shocking news stories What color is this dress? The internet has been divided into two warring tribes by a picture of a dress functioning as an accidental colour perception experiment. #TheDress, as it has become known, was spotted by a blogger who turned to Tumblr for help when the garment started an argument among her friends. The question of whether it is blue and black or gold and white has divided friends, families and the celebrity world. This dress has sparked an internet frenzy the likes of which has not been seen since Left Shark took the Super Bowl by storm Caitlin McNeill/Wired The weirdest and most shocking news stories Llamas on the run The world didn't know how to contain itself when it saw two llamas running around a city but for motorists in Arizonas Sun City, it was no doubt an a-lama-ing sight. Two of the animals, one black and one white, decided to dash through the centre of the city, doing their best to evade local residents trying to catch them. After a number of near things, the animals were captured by means of a lasso. The owner of the llamas told local media there had actually been three llamas that got spooked and ran away near the centre of the town. He said the animals were part of a mobile petting zoo at a Sun City care centre The weirdest and most shocking news stories Madonna falls off stage at Brit Awards This years Brit awards ceremony looked set to fade from memory like so many others in recent history until Madonna fell down the stairs after a serious wardrobe malfunction. The queen of pop, 56, was making her first performance at the Brits in two decades, when just seconds into Living for Love she was pulled backwards down a flight of stairs by her backing dancers. She fell heavily on to her back, the long cape and hood she had been wearing failing to separate from her other clothes. She fell heavily on to her back, the long cape and hood she had been wearing failing to separate from her other clothes The weirdest and most shocking news stories 'Left Shark' steals Super Bowl 2015 as Katy Perry is upstaged by her out-of-time support dancer While Katy Perry strutted her stuff during the half-time show which involved multiple costume changes, an entrance on a large metallic lion and duets with Lenny Kravitz and Missy Elliott social media users were left star-struck by the figure now known as Left Shark. Within minutes, Left Shark had its own Twitter account which has since expanded to no fewer than six different accounts but it was not the sharks killer moves and deadly accuracy on stage that gained so much attention, but rather the fact that it had no idea what it was doing. Perhaps even drunk, Left Shark was out of time with Right Shark, who was a picture of perfection as he moved with the beat and in time with Perry who by this time was already onto her third costume change and bursting into a rendition of Teenage Dream Getty Images The weirdest and most shocking news stories Kim Kardashian breaks the internet Kim Kardashian West has recreated the iconic "champagne incident" image by Jean-Paul Goude for the December issue of Paper magazine. Kardashian West is pictured on the cover of the magazine popping open a bottle of champagne which lands in a glass perched on her bottom. In another image released by the American publication, Kardashian-West is pictured naked from behind provocatively dropping her dress. Two further images were released by the magazine last night which show the reality TV star baring all; in one full-frontal shot and another topless image The weirdest and most shocking news stories Zombie cat A US cat owner has been left baffled after he claimed his dead pet turned up outside his front door five days after being buried. Ellis Hutson told vets in Tampa Bay, Florida, that he had found his black and white cat Bart lying in a pool of blood after he was hit by a car. According to Fox 13, Hutson told the Human Society of Tampa Bay that he had taken Bart away and buried him, and could not explain how the cat came to be spotted by neighbours a full five days later YouTube The weirdest and most shocking news stories 'F*ck it, I quit': KTVA reporter Charlo Greene quits live on air in spectacular fashion KTVA reporter Charlo Greene quit her job on live TV last night, outing herself as the owner of an Alaskan cannabis club and declaring "f*ck it." Having grown weary of reporting the news, Greene told viewers she would instead be putting all her energy into the fight to legalise marijuana in the state, having previously reported on the Alaska Cannabis Club without mentioning her connection to it KTVA The weirdest and most shocking news stories Nation in shock as Cadbury's changes the Creme Egg recipe In a bilateral attack on the glory of Easter, Cadbury's has stunned consumers by changing the recipe of its Creme Eggs and reducing their number in boxes from six to five. Reports that the latest batch of Creme Eggs tasted different were followed up by The Sun, wih Cadbury's confirming to the tabloid that it has switched out Dairy Milk for a "standard cocoa mix chocolate" in the shell Cadbury's The weirdest and most shocking news stories Chocolate Digestives revelation could change the face of biscuit eating forever Shut the biscuit tin, defenestrate your cup of tea, this is serious snack news: you have been eating chocolate biscuits upside down. Biscuits in fact have the chocolate on the bottom of the biscuit, not the top, McVitie's have confirmed, meaning Digestives, Hobnobs and more have a history of being eaten the wrong way up. The news sent shockwaves across the UK's subreddit, after a user posted an email from United Biscuits explaining their composition. "For your information," a spokesperson wrote, "the biscuits go through a reservoir of chocolate which enrobes them so the chocolate is actually on the bottom of the biscuits and not on the top" The weirdest and most shocking news stories Dollar store toy wand has hidden picture of demonic child cutting herself with a kitchen knife A mother in Dayton, Ohio was shocked when she purchased a toy wand for her child at a dollar store only to find it ran not on unicorn hair but a picture of a child slicing her arm open. In fairness to the dollar store (literally called '$.100 store') the product was named 'EVIL STICK', though the pink lettering, fairies, swirls and snowflakes on the packaging ensured it would catch the eye of toddlers. The fact that the wand emits a cackling laugh when activated is probably permissible, the horrific hidden image less so WHIO The weirdest and most shocking news stories Hello Kitty is not a cat - she's a British girl The revelation comes from Sanrio, the creators of the international toy, who contacted University of Hawaii anthropologist Christine R. Yano who was putting together a 40th anniversary retrospective of Hello Kitty in Los Angeles. Professor Yano, speaking to the LA Times, said: That's one correction Sanrio made for my script for the show. Hello Kitty is not a cat. She's a cartoon character. She is a little girl. She is a friend Getty The weirdest and most shocking news stories Cannabis-eating sheep munch through 4,000 in plants dumped in bag near farm Cannabis is known to leave its smokers feeling woolly-headed, but it seemed to have little effect on a flock of sheep who chomped their way through thousands of pounds worth of the drug. The hungry hash-eaters came across seven black bags containing the class B banned substance that had been dumped at the edge of their farm in Merstham, Surrey, and started scoffing Getty The weirdest and most shocking news stories Tesco cash machine offers 'free erection' because of mistake translating sign into Welsh Aberystwyth councillor Ceredig Davies took this picture after the new cash machine became the talk of the town, explaining that 'codiad am ddim' translates colloquially as 'free erection' Ceredig Davies The weirdest and most shocking news stories Parrot returns to British owner speaking Spanish - four years after disappearing Nigel, a grey African parrot, flew away from his home in California in 2010 but was returned to his British owner, Darren Chick, after he was discovered in Torrance, California. Although the Spanish-speaking bird bit Mr Chick when he first saw him, the happy owner said: "He's doing perfect. Mr Chick says his birds British accent is gone, replaced by fluent Spanish and someone called "Larry". Even though he has no idea where the bird has been for the last four years, he claimed: "It's really weird, I knew it was him from the minute I saw him" Getty Other Google satellite images also appear to show planes in mysterious locations. An image of a passenger plane sitting in a New York playground has been spotted by Untapped Cities, and another image of a plane can been seen in the Atlantic Ocean near Long Beach, New York, according to Gawker. Click here to take the 'What did you see first quiz' Sign up to our Evening Headlines email for your daily guide to the latest news Sign up to our free US Evening Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} "A city of tents" - that is how a local government official chose to describe San Francisco, fuelling a bitter divide in a city that is dealing with a mounting number of homeless people. Scott Wiener, who is on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, is determined to close down the tents for homeless people on the city pavements. Homeless charities, however, say these inhabitants have nowhere else to go. In a Medium blog, Mr Wiener said: Permitting these encampments is neither humane nor progressive." He said the tents are a sign of the citys failure to deal with homelessness, mental illness and drug addiction and as a result San Francisco is facing from bizarre and aggressive behaviour, syringes and feces strewn all over, and other behaviors that degrade our communitys quality of life. Mr Wiener elaborated that the tents might provide government with less motivation to provide an permanent housing. The occupants must be moved into shelters now, he said. Occupants of the tents have been assaulted in the tents. Predatory drug dealers are drawn to the tents and victimize the occupants, he added in the Medium post. His letter to authorities on the subject in January prompted a negative response from homeless charities, who called his opinions cruel and mean. Whats cruel and inhumane is to allow people to remain in these tents. Whats cruel is to continue to allow people to deteriorate and die on our streets, said Mr Wiener. An editorial addressed to Mayor Ed Lee in the San Francisco Chronicle said that the majority of citizens want the tents to go. However the city appears divided. An appeal on GoFundMe called Tents for San Francisco has raised over $16,800 in less than a month from over 500 donations. Shaun Osburn, a local graphic designer who started the appeal, wrote on the funds website page that he will not disclose when and where his group are distributing the tents. Weve encountered a great deal of hostility from people, and wed rather not find out if their violence transfers over from online to real-time, he said. Local residents have taken to social media to either share their frustration about the tents or their support for its occupants. The number of tents is disputed, but Michael Russo from the Coalition on Homelessness San Francisco said told The Independent that there are probably about 20 to 40 tents in the city, which is starting to resemble Calcutta, India. Obviously these people are in tents because there is no alternative - they have nowhere else to go, he said. They are not there because they want to be. On 19 February the Mayor announced he was looking for partners to provide 290 affordable rental units at the site of the former Candlestick stadium in the Bayview area, citing $500 million worth of funding. San Francisco housed almost 12,000 people in permanent housing between 2004 and 2014, according to Mr Wiener. He said a recently opened shelter in the city at Pier 80 is not yet full. Officials recognise that they need to provide more homeless services which include mental health facilities and drug rehabilitation services, as well as housing. The Mayor and Board of Supervisors have increased funding for homeless services by around 50 per cent to $250 million per year, added Mr Wiener. Sign up to our Evening Headlines email for your daily guide to the latest news Sign up to our free US Evening Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} At least three people have died and more than 30 people have been injured after multiple tornadoes hit southern Louisiana and Mississippi. Hundreds of homes, businesses and vehicles were destroyed when the storms lashed the southern states on Tuesday. A Louisiana police official described it as the worst damage he had seen in decades. A state of emergency was declared in both Louisiana and Mississippi. Two people lost their lives at the Sugar Hill trailer park in Convent, in southern Louisiana, where 90 per cent of around 160 mobile homes were damaged. This is some of the worst damage that Ive seen in my 36 years with the state police, superintendent Colonel Mike Edmonson said. Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards said rescue teams were searching the debris for two or three people who remained unaccounted for. He added that it was a minor miracle that the death toll was not higher as most of the trailers had been occupied when the storms hit. These travel trailers were picked up, thrown a considerable distance and just mangled. A Louisiana ambulance service confirmed that it had taken 31 people, most of whom were from the park, to local hospitals. Jerome Picou, who lives near the park, described the force of the weather: The wind was blowing a little bit, but then it stopped. Then all of a sudden all kinds of wind and rain started. It was so bad, I had to go inside the house or I would have been blown away with it. One person died in a mobile home in Lamar County in southern Mississippi, a coroner told NBC News. Cody Creed identified the victim as 73-year-old Harris Dale Purvis, who died as a result of blunt-force trauma. Mississippi Governor Phil Bryant said the state's citizens needed to be prepared for the weather, adding it was important for everyone to "have an action plan to take shelter if severe weather strikes". In total, there were 22 reports of tornadoes across Alabama, Florida, Louisiana and Mississippi, the Storm Prediction Center (SPC) said. At least five of the storms have been confirmed. As the storms moved towards Florida on Tuesday night, more people were injured and businesses damaged. The Storm Prediction Center said strong to severe thunderstorms had been forecast from the Mid-Atlantic states southward through the Carolinas and into Florida on Wednesday. Additional reporting by agencies Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Donald Trump chalked up another big victory on the Nevada leg of the Republican presidential race last night, in spite of a caucus process that at times proved chaotic and contentious. Neither Marco Rubio nor Ted Cruz came close to preventing the belligerent billionaire claiming a third presidential primary triumph in a row, following his double-digit wins in New Hampshire and South Carolina. With around 15 per cent of precincts reporting, Mr Rubio, who spent part of his childhood in Nevada, was running a distant second in the Silver State, at approximately 24 per cent of the vote to Mr Trumps 45. The result comes a week before 1 March, known as Super Tuesday, when Mr Trump is expected to secure several more states, propelling him ever closer to the nomination. In a gleeful speech to supporters in Las Vegas, Mr Trump noted that pundits had originally predicted that he would not win in Nevada. Now were winning, winning, winning the country and soon the country is going to start winning, winning, winning, he said, adding: Youre going to be proud of your President, and youre going to be even prouder of your country. Trump on Protester - 'I'd Like to Punch Him in the Face' Last nights was just the third caucus the Nevada GOP had hosted since the process was introduced to the state in 2008, and the party appeared underprepared for the large turn-out, which led to long queues at many caucus sites, as well as ballot shortages and claims that some voters IDs had not been properly checked. There were multiple reports of caucus volunteers collecting ballots while wearing Trump t-shirts and hats, though the state GOP insisted it was within the rules for volunteers to advertise their preference. Mr Trump tweeted a warning of potential foul play to his supporters, telling them not to be misled by the Cruz people during the voting process. They are bad! BE CAREFUL, he wrote. Trump speaks as his sons Donald Trump Jr. (L) and Eric Trump (R) look on during a caucus night watch party (Getty Images) Mr Cruzs campaign ran into trouble in recent days, as he fired his spokesman Rick Tyler over a tweet that mistakenly accused Mr Rubio of mocking the Bible. The dismissal, though, did little to dispel the impression that the Texas Senators campaign is prone to dirty tricks. Cruz lies more than any human being Ive ever dealt with, Mr Trump said at a rally in Las Vegas on Monday. In the end, Mr Cruz appeared to have finished third in Nevada, up to four per cent behind Mr Rubio. Nevadas mixed electorate gave the candidates their first opportunity to reach out to the Latino voters that many believe are crucial to the Republicans regaining the White House. Mr Rubios parents and Mr Cruzs father are Cuban, yet entrance polls suggested that of the Latinos who took part in the caucus around nine per cent of total voters significantly more had voted for Mr Trump than for his rivals. Number one with Hispanics, Mr Trump reflected. Im really happy about that. Rolando Dondon, 66, one of precious few non-white voters lining up to caucus at Bonanza high school in Las Vegas, said he had supported Jeb Bush until the former Florida Governor dropped out of the race this week, but now believed Trump was the strong male role model the US needed. I dont want us just to be one of the many; I want America to remain a leader in the world, he said. In an interview on Monday, Mr Cruz joined Mr Trump in vowing, as President, to round up and forcibly deport Americas 12 million undocumented immigrants. Mr Dondon, who was born in the Philippines and spent 30 years in the US Navy, said he agreed with Mr Trumps hard-line stance on immigration. People who want to come to America have to obey the law, he said. A few miles away at Ed W Clark high school, another caucus site, Bill Tarbell, who is running to represent Nevada as a Republican in the US Senate, said he too was backing Mr Trump. There are many similarities between Rubio, Cruz and Trumps platforms, he said. But when I talk to people all over the state they say pretty much the same thing: strength. Trump has the gonads. With Mr Bush out of the race, Mr Rubio is now the anointed candidate of the GOP establishment, having garnered at least a dozen endorsements from governors or members of Congress in recent days. The Florida Senator said yesterday that he was the one remaining candidate capable of uniting Republicans to defeat Democrat Hillary Clinton at the election in November, telling an audience in Las Vegas: It cant just be about electing the loudest person in the room. As the results came in last night, Mr Rubio had already left Nevada to campaign in Minnesota and Michigan, hoping perhaps in vain to head off the Trump charge. In his victory speech, Mr Trump pointed to his promising poll numbers in his rivals home states: Texas, Florida and Ohio. 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 At Ed W Clark high school, John Kasich supporter Erik Lurz, 30, said he had struggled to persuade Nevadans of the merits of his candidate, the Governor of Ohio, who finished dead last with fewer than five per cent of the vote. Kasich is the kind of person I want to lead our country: hes positive, he cares, he represents the values Id like to emulate, Mr Lurz said. Look at candidates like Cruz and Trump: I dont want to emulate their values, and I dont want them to represent our country. Mr Trump chose to hold his victory party at the Treasure Island hotel and casino on the Las Vegas Strip, not at his own nearby property, the Trump International Hotel. The local chapter of the Culinary Workers union had staged a caucus day demonstration at the Trump hotel, protesting the Trump Organisations refusal to recognise its workers attempts to unionise. Among those present at the party were Mr Trumps fellow billionaires Phil Ruffin, the owner of Treasure Island, and Steve Wynn, who owns several Vegas resorts including the eponymous Wynn hotel and casino. Mr Wynn, who once feuded publicly with Mr Trump over their rival casino developments in Atlantic City, New Jersey, is now an unofficial adviser to the Trump campaign. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} As Donald Trump barrels towards the Republican presidential nomination, the other billionaires who would usually help to shape the race are said to be sitting it out. Mr Trump chalked up his third clear and consecutive primary victory on Tuesday at the Nevada caucuses, where among the voters was Las Vegas casino mogul and erstwhile Republican mega-donor Sheldon Adelson. Mr Adelson, worth an estimated $20bn (14bn), cast his ballot at Bonanza High School, a few miles from the Vegas Strip, but declined to reveal who he had voted for. The 82-year-old owner of the Venetian resort is believed to favour Florida Senator Marco Rubio, who came a distant second in Nevada, but though he spent some $100m on the 2012 election, this year Mr Adelson reportedly plans to keep his wallet closed until the GOP chooses a nominee. He is not alone. Despite their distaste for The Donald, the Republican partys elite donors have so far failed to fund any significant effort to thwart his candidacy, apparently fearful that such attacks would fail or reinforce Mr Trumps populist campaign, by playing into its portrayal of the pugnacious businessman as anti-establishment. The donor network led by billionaire industrialists Charles and David Koch accumulated a war chest of close to $900m to fight the 2016 campaign but, according to a report by Politico, the Kochs recently backed away from a mooted plan to attack Mr Trump. Veteran GOP campaigner Karl Roves Super PAC, American Crossroads, has concentrated its fire on the Democrats race. Mr Trumps Nevada victory party at the Strips Treasure Island casino was hosted by the venues owner, Phillip Ruffin, who also co-owns (with Mr Trump) the nearby Trump International Hotel. In his speech, Mr Trump claimed Mr Ruffin had offered to fund his candidacy. Phil said, Donald, I want to put $10m into your campaign. I said, Phil, I dont want your money, Im self-funding. Trump Celebrates Landslide Victory in Nevada Caucuses The absence of major donors is just one way in which this nomination race has slid out of the Republican partys control. Previous primary contests have tended to winnow to a mainstream candidate and a dyed-in-the-wool conservative. But Mr Trumps message has proved appealing to a broader group: the angry and disaffected. In Nevada, Mr Trump won 46 per cent of the vote, more than the mainstream Mr Rubio and conservative Ted Cruz combined. The result comes a week before Super Tuesday, 1 March, when he is expected to claim several states and edge ever closer to the nomination. In his victory speech, he pointed to his promising poll numbers in his closest rivals home states of Florida and Texas. Nevadas mixed electorate gave the candidates their first opportunity to reach out to the Latino voters considered crucial to the Republicans regaining the White House. Mr Rubios parents and Mr Cruzs father are Cuban, yet Mr Trump won with Latinos, as he did with almost every other group. No 1 with Hispanics, he said. Im really happy about that. Filipino-born Rolando Dondon, 66, one of the few non-white voters queuing at Bonanza high school, said Mr Trump was the strong male role model the US needed. I want America to remain a leader in the world, he said. At Ed W Clark high school, another caucus site, Bill Tarbell, who is running to represent Nevada as a Republican in the US Senate, said he too was backing Mr Trump. The major candidates platforms were similar, he said, But when I talk to people all over the state they say pretty much the same thing: strength. Trump has the gonads. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} A missing Nepalese passenger jet which went missing with 23 people on board has been found crashed and "completely destroyed" in the jungle, according to local media reports. Local police told the Nepal Times there appeared to be "no survivors", while aviation minister Aananda Prasad Pokhrel was quoted by the Kathmandu Post saying the plane was scattered across an area some 200 metres wide. The aircraft, operating by domestic airline Tara Air, was on an 18-minute flight on Wednesday when it lost contact after take-off. Two foreigners, 18 other passengers and three crew are understood to have been on board. File photo shows a Tara Air DHC-6 Twin Otter aircraft, similar to one that went missing (AFP/Getty Images) The plane's wreckage was found around four hours after it was due to have landed, crashed in a jungle in the Kekarko Butta district. "The plane was on fire and it is still burning," said police constable Phool Kumar Thapa Magar, reportedly one of the first to arrive on the scene. The Twin Otter plane had taken off at 7.50am local time from Pokhara, a resort town 125 miles west of Kathmandu, and was heading north to Jomsom, the starting point for trekkers going into mountainous areas. Only small planes can fly the route, which goes between mountains. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Incest between siblings and necrophilia should be legalised, a branch of the Swedish Liberal People's Party has argued. The Stockholm branch of the party's youth wing (LUF) voted on the controversial motion at its annual meeting on Sunday. It called for the repeal of several laws to make consensual sex between brothers and sisters aged over 15 legal, as well as allowing people to "bequeath" their bodies for intercourse after death without fearing the perpetrator would be prosecuted. The political party's youth wing voted on the motion at a meeting in Stockholm (Getty Images) Cecilia Johnsson, president of LUF Stockholm, told Aftonbladet counter-incest legislation amounted to morality law, adding: These laws protect no one right now. I understand that [incest] can be considered unusual and disgusting, but the law cannot stem from it being disgusting. The LUF also voted to support the legalisation of sexual acts with a corpse, on the condition that the person consented while they were still alive. Ms Johnsson said: You should get to decide what happens to your body after you die, and if it happens to be that someone wants to bequeath their body to a museum or for research, or if they want to bequeath to someone for sex, then it should be okay. The central Liberal People's Party disagreed, however, with spokesperson Adam Alfredsson telling Expressen the proposals were nothing like the mother party endorses. Incest is and should remain illegal, he added. We think it will continue to be illegal to use a dead mans body in [a sexual] way. Meanwhile, a former Swedish Liberal MP, Carl B Hamilton, took to Facebook to dismiss the youth wing's proposals as a publicity stunt concocted by "nitwits". National Geographic Traveller Photography competition Show all 27 1 /27 National Geographic Traveller Photography competition National Geographic Traveller Photography competition Hong Kong - Cities "Tropical Storm Barijat was just passing over Hong Kong, bringing with it this crepuscular ray that brightened up a part of Kowloon" - Tse Yuk Wai Tse Yuk Wai National Geographic Traveller Photography competition Singapore - Cities "This was taken at the top of the Marina Bay Sands hotel in Singapore. Its an amazing place, offering breathtaking views of downtown, with people frolicking in the infinity pool in the foreground" - Robert Huberman Robert Huberman National Geographic Traveller Photography competition Kyoto, Japan - People "This 17-year-old girl has been training to become a geisha for the past two years. Until she qualifies, she wears half-painted lips, signalling to her clientele that shes still learning" - Sharon Kynaston Sharon Kynaston National Geographic Traveller Photography competition Kolkata, India - Cities "A taxi driver leans against his yellow Ambassador cab one of the icons of the city reading a newspaper before the day begins" - Annapurna Mellor Annapurna Mellor National Geographic Traveller Photography competition Alaska, USA - Nature "Heavy snow fell one night during my visit to the city of Homer. As I lay in the snow to capture shots of bald eagles, two began squabbling, sending the fresh white powder flying" - Julia Wainwright Julia Wainwright National Geographic Traveller Photography competition Kandy Central Market, Sri Lanka - Food "Everything in a busy market feels magnified all your senses are pushed to the limit presenting an abundance of photographic opportunities" Pablo Borrego National Geographic Traveller Photography competition Marrakesh, Morocco - People "One of the owners of a fabric boutique in Marrakech showed us this almost apocalyptic scene of a worker dyeing wool - it was dirty, hot and a pungent smell filled the air" - Justin Cliffe Justin Cliffe National Geographic Traveller Photography competition Mount Mikeno, Democratic Republic of Congo - Nature "Some of the worlds last mountain gorillas live on the slopes of Mount Mikeno. This is a female from the Humba family, a habituated group that lives near Virungas Bukima station" - Daniel Burton Daniel Burton National Geographic Traveller Photography competition Leh, India - Food "I was walking through the streets of Leh a town in the Indian region of Ladakh when I saw two workers at this bakery, churning out bread from an oven. It felt like an authentic moment in the life of the town" - Marco Anfossi Marco Anfossi National Geographic Traveller Photography competition Skiathos, Greece - Food "This was taken outside a taverna while I was watching fishermen hang octopus out to dry. For me, the image perfectly captures how people live on Skiathos slow and steady, but with love for what they do" - David Fargher David Fargher National Geographic Traveller Photography competition Kampala, Uganda - People "During summer, I visited a village in the Kampala District. I dont know the name of the boy who curiously looked through a hole in the door at me, but suddenly he was there, his eye perfectly framed by the wooden structure" - Mikael Molander Mikael Molander National Geographic Traveller Photography competition Yosemite Valey, USA - Nature "I took this image on a day off from climbing in Yosemite Valley. I spotted two climbers* approaching El Cap Tower it looked like they were lost in a sea of granite" - Alex Palmer *Climbers can just about be spotted in the bottom left of the image Alex Palmer National Geographic Traveller Photography competition Wrangel Island, Russia - Portfolio "The buildings at Doubtful Harbour are decaying slowly. The rangers who work here are tasked with protecting the wildlife in this federally protected nature sanctuary" - Claire Waring Claire Waring National Geographic Traveller Photography competition Wrangel Island, Russia - Portfolio "The buildings at Doubtful Harbour are decaying slowly. The rangers who work here are tasked with protecting the wildlife in this federally protected nature sanctuary" - Claire Waring Claire Waring National Geographic Traveller Photography competition Wrangel Island, Russia - Portfolio "The buildings at Doubtful Harbour are decaying slowly. The rangers who work here are tasked with protecting the wildlife in this federally protected nature sanctuary" - Claire Waring Claire Waring National Geographic Traveller Photography competition Wrangel Island, Russia - Portfolio "The buildings at Doubtful Harbour are decaying slowly. The rangers who work here are tasked with protecting the wildlife in this federally protected nature sanctuary" - Claire Waring Claire Waring National Geographic Traveller Photography competition Wrangel Island, Russia - Portfolio "The buildings at Doubtful Harbour are decaying slowly. The rangers who work here are tasked with protecting the wildlife in this federally protected nature sanctuary" - Claire Waring Claire Waring National Geographic Traveller Photography competition Marrakesh, Morocco - Portfolio "Navigating the narrow streets of the Medina in Marrakech, the local people and their everyday lives are fascinating to watch, with a mix of buyers, sellers, musicians and observers on every corner" - Mick Ryan Mick Ryan National Geographic Traveller Photography competition Marrakesh, Morocco - Portfolio "Navigating the narrow streets of the Medina in Marrakech, the local people and their everyday lives are fascinating to watch, with a mix of buyers, sellers, musicians and observers on every corner" - Mick Ryan Mick Ryan National Geographic Traveller Photography competition Marrakesh, Morocco - Portfolio "Navigating the narrow streets of the Medina in Marrakech, the local people and their everyday lives are fascinating to watch, with a mix of buyers, sellers, musicians and observers on every corner" - Mick Ryan Mick Ryan National Geographic Traveller Photography competition Marrakesh, Morocco - Portfolio "Navigating the narrow streets of the Medina in Marrakech, the local people and their everyday lives are fascinating to watch, with a mix of buyers, sellers, musicians and observers on every corner" - Mick Ryan Mick Ryan National Geographic Traveller Photography competition Marrakesh, Morocco - Portfolio "Navigating the narrow streets of the Medina in Marrakech, the local people and their everyday lives are fascinating to watch, with a mix of buyers, sellers, musicians and observers on every corner" - Mick Ryan Mick Ryan National Geographic Traveller Photography competition Pengzhen, Chengdu, Sichuan, China - Portfolio "Deep in the western suburbs of Sichuan's capital Chengdu, lies Peng Zhen, a town barely touched by the hands of time, and where the shadow of Chairman Mao and his Cultural Revolution still looms large" - Simon Urwin Simon Urwin National Geographic Traveller Photography competition Pengzhen, Chengdu, Sichuan, China - Portfolio Original Communist propaganda featuring Chairman Mao's trademark beneficent smile. Simon Urwin National Geographic Traveller Photography competition Pengzhen, Chengdu, Sichuan, China - Portfolio Qingyuan Xu, Pengzhen's traditional medicine practitioner in his doctor's 'surgery'. Qingyuan, 78, began studying traditional medicine at the age of eight under the tutelage of Master Liu, one of the physicians to Chiang Kai-shek, the former Chinese leader who was ousted by the Communists and forced to flee to Taiwan. Simon Urwin National Geographic Traveller Photography competition Pengzhen, Chengdu, Sichuan, China - Portfolio The town barber awaits customers in his 'salon' Simon Urwin National Geographic Traveller Photography competition Pengzhen, Chengdu, Sichuan, China - Portfolio Lunchtime in the restaurant 'A Heavenly Table', a former Communist canteen which served free food to workers. Simon Urwin The Independent has contacted Ms Johnsson for a response. It is not the first time similar proposals have been raised in Europe. In 2014, the German Ethics Council also called for an end to the criminalisation of incest between siblings, after examining the case of a man who was jailed for having four children with his sister. The council argued that the risk of disability in children was not sufficient to warrant a law putting couples in tragic situations, and that decriminalising incest would not fuel the spread of the very rare practice. The majority of the German Ethics Council is of the opinion that it is not appropriate for a criminal law to preserve a social taboo, a statement said. A spokeswoman for Angela Merkel's CDU party dismissed the possibility of abolishing criminal punishment at the time. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Though Enda Kenny and Micheal Martin display little personal animosity towards each other the two men lead parties at the opposite poles of Irish politics, divided by a century-old chasm filled with bitter memories. They have both been courteous throughout the campaign leading up to Fridays Irish election, but the hostility between Mr Kennys Fine Gael and Mr Martins Fianna Fail is deep a division which began as a blood feud. Yet voters may now be on the brink of propelling the two parties together, for the election seems certain to produce a hung parliament that will leave them with little alternative to combining to form a grand coalition. Recommended Read more Irish election date announced as Labour Party braces for big losses This would shatter one of the iron laws of Irish politics: that two parties whose ancestors fought a bloody civil war nearly 100 years ago, marked by ruthless violence on both sides, could never work together. Deep in the genes of both parties fester bitter recollections of brother killing brother. Among many controversial incidents, Fine Gael blames the precursors of Fianna Fail for the assassination of its hero, Michael Collins, while Fianna Fail blames Fine Gael for executing scores of its civil war prisoners. Memories are long in Ireland but if the opinion polls are even close to accurate the old mould may be about to be broken as a result of electoral arithmetic. From left: Sinn Fein Leader Gerry Adams ,Taoiseach Enda Kenny, Fianna Fail Leader Micheal Martin and Tanaiste Joan Burton, during Tuesday's televised debate, the last before the election (PA) The outgoing government, consisting of Fine Gael and the smaller Labour party, is dismayed. It had expected to be rewarded for managing a much-praised recovery following the disastrous financial crash of 2008. Fianna Fail had been expected to remain in the doldrums, since no one has forgotten that the government it headed was in power when the crash almost bankrupted the country. But such calculations have been overturned by the persistence of the extraordinary political splintering which, in the wake of 2008, saw many disgruntled voters turning their back on traditional parties in favour of the unconventional. The beneficiaries were Sinn Fein and a slew of independents and small factions. Recommended Read more Shadow Northern Ireland Secretary to attend Sinn Fein conference If the polls are correct Sinn Fein will take 15 per cent of the vote, while independents and others will take no less than 28 per cent. This is largely because the recovery has been uneven: the middle classes tend to think Fine Gael has put in a sound performance, but the less well-off feel they have borne the brunt of tough austerity. Richard Boyd Barrett of the leftist People Before Profit explained: People are furious because the established parties are imposing continual austerity on the majority while a tiny minority continue to prosper. People are turning away from politics based on civil war parties who basically are the same anyway. This is also part of a wider shift to the left across Europe. During the campaign Fine Gael did itself no favours with its slogan Keep the recovery going, with its underlying assertion that it is almost mission accomplished. This has proved deeply unimpressive to the many who continue to struggle with poverty, emigration and deeply unpopular new charges. Ireland elections: Crucial vote for the economy This reality was highlighted by Patrick Coveney, an international businessman reputed to be the worlds largest sandwich maker, his companies producing 400 million sandwiches a year. Mr Coveney whose brother is a cabinet minister said candidly that while the revival has been unprecedented loads of people have been left behind. This only fully dawned on Fine Gael late in the day, as it remained becalmed in the opinion polls while Fianna Fail gained support. The government belatedly admitted that the recovery has yet to be felt behind every door. The partys leader and current Taoiseach Mr Kenny, 64, allowed his frustration at Fine Gaels failure to achieve lift-off in the campaign to get the better of him. In a televised outburst in his constituency, he castigated voters for their lack of appreciation of his economic achievements. Some of his own constituents were all-Ireland champions at whingeing, he declared, lashing out that some of them wouldnt know sunshine if they saw it. He first attempted to defend his remarks, but later apologised. Labour, his coalition partner in the last administration, appears to be in much deeper trouble since it is slipping steadily lower in the polls. It seems destined to suffer the same fate of junior coalition parties elsewhere, most strikingly the Liberal Democrats in Britain. The morale in Labour ranks was illustrated when one of its junior ministers, Ann Phelan, stormed out of a live radio debate announcing she was just going to give up. She snapped in exasperation at her opponents: Ive been completely ignored and Ill tell you now, Im fed up with the whole bloody lot of you. Sinn Feins ratings have risen steadily over the years but it has faltered a little in recent weeks as party leader Gerry Adams has been judged weak in his grasp of economics. It is set to make significant gains but its ambition to form part of the next government has faded. The unexpected star of the campaign has been the Fianna Fail leader, who picked his party up when it was on the floor and has exuded competence and confidence. Enda Kenny has had to apologise for calling some of his constituents champions at whingeing (Reuters) Although Mr Martin, 55, was a prominent Fianna Fail minister at the time of the crash he was not in a financial post and so escaped personal blame. In office he was responsible for one of his partys most conspicuous successes, when as Health Minister he introduced a smoking ban. He is now enjoying the highest satisfaction rating of any leader. All the signs are that Fine Gael will again be the largest party but that Labour will not be strong enough to make up a government, and Sinn Fein will not be acceptable. That leaves the idea of a Fine Gael-Fianna Fail deal which might provide stability. After all the years of implacable hostility the old tribal terrain could finally be altered, perhaps leaving Irish politics changed utterly. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} The missile system used to down Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 was transported into Ukraine by Russian soldiers with high-level authorisation, a new report has claimed. An investigation completed by the Dutch Safety Board last year concluded that the plane was downed by a warhead fired by a Buk system that detonated a metre away from the cockpit and caused the aircraft to break up and crash, killing all 298 passengers and crew on board. Those findings did not assign responsibility for the disaster, which is the subject of a separate criminal probe, but identified a 320 sq km area of eastern Ukraine from which the missile was fired. In a report released today, a group of investigative citizen journalists have used social media posts, satellite images and video footage to trace the Buk missile system alleged to have downed MH17 from Russia into Ukraine. The launcher, labelled Buk 3x2, can allegedly be traced in a convoy operated by Russias 53rd Anti-Aircraft Missile Brigade from a base in Kursk, Russia, to the Ukrainian border near Millerovo. Footage and images taken on 23 and 24 June 2014, less than a month before the crash, show the weapon being transported with several other rocket launchers, a command post and radar equipment. There is no direct evidence indicating if it was Russian or separatist soldiers who operated Buk 32 when it was in Ukraine, Bellingcat researchers said. However, considering the complexity of the Buk-M1 system, it is most likely that the Russian military did not transfer a Buk missile launcher to separatist commanders without some guidance or a Russian crew. Buk 3x2 was identified in rebel-held Ukrainian territory around Donetsk, Torez and Snizhne on the day MH17 crashed in nearby Hrabove. In pictures: MH17 final report Show all 7 1 /7 In pictures: MH17 final report In pictures: MH17 final report Getty Images In pictures: MH17 final report Getty Images In pictures: MH17 final report Almaz-Antei director Yan Novikov, center, looks at the screen during a news conference in Moscow. Almaz-Antei air defense consortium, the builder of Buk missiles, presented its vision of the MH-17 air crash based on a new modeling of the disaster they recently conducted AP In pictures: MH17 final report A graphic and a skin element of a passenger airplane which was used in a full-scale experiment by Almaz-Antey simulating shooting down of Malaysian Airlines flight MH17 in Ukraine is displayed during a Russian missile manufacturer Almaz-Antey news conference dedicated to the MH17 crash in Moscow EPA In pictures: MH17 final report Almaz-Antei director Yan Novikov, seated center, attends a news conference in Moscow AP In pictures: MH17 final report Projectiles with thecharacteristic "double tee" formation of components of the warhead of a Buk missile 9?38?1, are displayed during a news conference in Moscow AP In pictures: MH17 final report Almaz-Antei director Yan Novikov, attends a news conference in Moscow AP Associated Press journalists documented seeing the Buk being transported through the town of Snizhne on 17 July 2014, noting that the uniforms of some members of its crew differed from separatists and claiming they spoke with a distinctive Russian accent. The account was supported by three eyewitnesses who told the BBC they saw a Buk launcher being unloaded by Russian soldiers in Snezhnoye, 10 miles from the crash site, hours before MH17 was hit. In images taken on the following morning, the system appears to be missing one missile. Shortly after MH17s disappearance, a post attributed to separatist leader Igor Girkin, a Russian army veteran, claimed rebels had shot down a Ukrainian military transport plane. The swiftly-deleted on Russian social network VKontakte was accompanied by a video of rising smoke and said: We warned them - dont fly in our sky. Image of Buk-M1 launcher in the vicinity of the MH17 crash Intercepted phone calls between rebels also appeared to show their involvement, with an alleged recording dated on 18 July 2014 showing a man saying the launcher had been brought from Russia by a contact code-named the Librarian. Conversations released by the Security Service of Ukraine appeared to show a panicked militant telling a superior: It was 100 per cent a passenger aircraftthere are civilian items, medicinal stuff, towels, toilet paper. Separatist groups have since denied any involvement in the disaster, while Russian officials have continually dismissed allegations of soldiers or equipment being deployed in Ukraine. In its own investigation, Russian Buk manufacturer Almaz Antey claimed the deadly missile was fired from Zaroschenskoye and that Ukrainian forces were stationed there at the time. The Dutch Safety Board delivering its final report in October 2015 (AP) The Joint Investigation Team conducting the criminal investigation into the crash issued footage of Buk 3x2 as part of a call for witnesses. Its information matched Bellingcats analysis, showing the weapon being transported throughout the Donbass region and around Snizhne, although no verdict has yet been reached. Bellingcat said it sent an extended and uncensored version of its report to investigators in December, including the full names and photographs of soldiers associated with the 2nd Battalion of the 53rd Anti-Aircraft Missile Brigade. Although it is likely that the head officials of Russias Ministry of Defence did not explicitly decide to send a Buk missile launcher to Ukraine, the decision to send military equipment (with or without crew) from the Air Defence Forces to Ukraine was likely made at a very high level and, therefore, the Russian Ministry of Defence bears the main responsibility for the downing of MH17,the groups report concluded. The report alleged that Vladimir Putin was 'ultimately responsible' as commander of Russia's armed forces (Sean Gallup/Getty Images) This responsibility is shared with separatist leaders of the Donetsk Peoples Republic and (to a lesser extent) the Luhansk Peoples Republicultimately, responsibility for the downing of MH17 from a weapon provided and possibly operated by the Russian military lies with its two head commanders: Minister of Defence Sergey Shoigu and President Vladimir Putin. The conflict continues in Ukraine more than two years after a separatist insurgency started in the east following the toppling of President Viktor Yanukovych. The foreign ministers of France and Germany expressed concern that the crisis could escalate once again during a visit to Kiev on Tuesday. The two countries have been trying to help resolve the conflict that has killed more than 9,000 people since April 2014. Additional reporting by AP For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} A bridge built especially for squirrels to be able to cross a busy motorway in the Netherlands which cost 150,000 (120,000) to construct has been used five times since its erection, according to officials. The bridge was built in 2012 to give squirrels safe passage between the Haagse Bos forest and Oosterbeen, and Clingedel park, and spans the N44 motorway by the Benoordenhoutseweg. According to The Hague online, the countrys Animal Protection Agency said the bridge would stop squirrels from being run over on the motorway, which had been a problem, and would help their declining population grow by expanding the rodents habitat. But the bridge has only been used by five red squirrels since it was built, The Times reports. The number was discovered after a local councillor enquired about the efficiency of the bridge. The Mayors office responded with the statement: In 2014 three squirrels, and in 2015 two squirrels, were spotted on the bridge. This is evidenced by monitoring using CCTV cameras on the bridge. The Mayor added that the bridge had been funded by government using environmental compensation money relating to the relocation of the US embassy to Clingendael when asked whether the 150,000 had been wasted on the rodents. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} The EUs faltering response to the refugee crisis has ben dealt a fresh blow after the Hungarian Prime Minister, Viktor Orban, announced a referendum on the plan for mandatory migration quotas. In an echo of Britains Out campaign, Mr Orban said a No vote would be in favour of Hungarys independence. The referendum will challenge last Septembers binding decision by the EU to relocate 160,000 Syrian refugees across Europe, which was carried despite fierce opposition from Hungary, the Czech Republic, Romania and Slovakia. Recommended Read more Dead pigs reportedly dumped outside Dutch refugee site However, just 598 refugees have so far been relocated across the EU, a mere 0.4 per cent of the target. Hungary has taken none of its 1,294 quota. Meanwhile, foreign and interior ministers of Austria and nine Balkan countries met in Vienna to discuss the crisis. Last week Austria set an 80-a-day ceiling on asylum applications, a measure said by the European Commission to be illegal. Its Interior Minister, Johanna Mikl-Leitner, said that cutting the flow of migrants was a question of survival for the EU. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} As Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev stood on the podium, a hush fell over the room. It was 25 February 1956 60 years ago to the day and the country's highest-ranking Communist party members had assembled at the 20th Congress, a closed session that would be the last convened at the party's headquarters in Moscow. When Khrushchev, Josef Stalin's immediate successor, began to talk, some among the crowd erupted into shrieks, others collapsed and were carried out by friends. Everybody was in a state of shock. For the next four hours, Khrushchev did what no other Soviet politician had dared in the decades before, launching a ferocious attack on Stalin's reign of "brutal violence" and "cruel repression" since coming into power in 1922. In what became known as "the secret speech", Khrushchev denounced his predecessor, who had died of a brain haemorrhage three years before, as "despotic and capricious" and lambasted the system of violence that stemmed from Stalin's invention of the "enemy of the people". It was the greatest blow ever to have been delivered to Stalin's world of cruelty and paranoia, which for decades had battered the lives of ordinary Soviet citizens. Millions of people had been shot or sent to labour camps, accused of harbouring anti-Soviet feelings. A society whose state apparatus thrived on accusations of sabotage and counter-revolution had been called into question. Not-so-smooth succession: Nikita Khrushchev who later denounced his master with Josef Stalin in 1936 (Wikimedia) Within hours, Khrushchev's words were speeding towards Europe and the United States. The CIA was allocated $1 million from the US government to obtain a copy, and the State Department published it in full within weeks. The contents were met with delight abroad as world leaders finally saw the sign they had been waiting for: the walls of Stalin's terror had finally started to crumble. But the speech was left out of the Soviet Union's official narrative for years. Circulating the Eastern bloc in samizdat for three decades, it wasn't until 1989 that it was finally published in full in the Soviet Union. The effects of Khrushchev's words were almost immediate: monuments to Stalin across the country were torn down and thousands of political prisoners were released. But the limits of Khrushchev's thaw soon became clear. He continued to preside over political persecution and the represseion of religion, and protected Communist Hungary by sending Soviet forces to crush a revolt. Drone captures mill untouched since Stalingrad Khrushchev condemned the world Stalin had created, but he never fully broke from it. It was the beginning of what was to become a difficult path to understanding Stalin's legacy. Even now, 60 years after those damning words, Russia has failed to fully reckon with the atrocities committed. "Some people say it's demoralising to remember and talk about the horrors of the past," says Roman Romanov, director of a new, state-funded Gulag Museum in Moscow. "Some people say that it's better to forget or that it was only criminals who were sent to the camps, so why memorialise them? We have to find a language with which to communicate about these things again, even if it's difficult." The museum, which describes the system of gulags and political repression under Stalin using artefacts and video testimonies from gulag survivors, is fully funded by the state. Vladimir Putin has also authorised a new monument to victims of political repression to be unveiled later this year. Yet the perception of Stalin as an "effective manager" has significantly risen under Putin, while Stalin-era rhetoric has returned. Opposition figures are increasingly branded "enemies of the state" again and non-governmental organisations labelled "foreign agents". And while critics accuse Putin of presiding over the creeping rehabilitation of Stalin preferring to downplay the human cost of his rule to focus on the Soviet Union's successes an independent poll conducted in Russia in March last year revealed that 45 per cent of those questioned said they thought that the sacrifices made under Stalin were justified given the speed of the Soviet Union's economic growth during his rule. It's a statistic that has nearly doubled since the same poll was taken two years before. A placard depicting Adolf Hitler, Joseph Stalin and Vladimir Putin, in Independence Square, Kiev, in 2014 (Getty) (Getty Images) Stalin may have been a leader whose tenure saw many dark moments, but they were ultimately overshadowed by his greatest success, guiding the Soviet Union to victory in the Second World War or so the story goes. And it's a narrative that takes on profound resonance in Russia today. Putin's efforts to make Russia a resurgent superpower call on grand images of the country's past: great, internationally feared, and militarily capable of winning wars. Be prepared, the narrative warns, Russia's greatness comes at a price. "There are groups of people, most of whom grew up and were educated in the years before the collapse of the Soviet Union, who have a kind of nostalgia for the USSR, who think life before its collapse was better than today," says Romanov. "For them, Stalin is tied up with that, so his rehabilitation becomes part of an effort to restore the 'great Soviet past'." In January this year, a new cultural centre celebrating Stalin was unveiled in the Tver region near Moscow. Local communists declared 2016 to be the Year of Stalin throughout the region. Alongside this, new staff at Perm-36, a former gulag that was turned into a museum in the Urals, have come under fire for softening the image of Communist-era repression after pressure from the regional administration. Alexander Drakler, a history teacher at a Moscow school, says that downplaying the bleaker aspects of Stalin's rule has seeped into education. "There is pitifully little on so many of the dark periods of Soviet life under Stalin. The deportation of the Chechens, for example, [when in 1941 Stalin forcibly expelled nearly half-a-million Chechens to Central Asia, with thousands dying along the way], has only one or two paragraphs devoted to it in history textbooks for kids. Why is something so important given such little attention?" Stalin's rehabilitation in Russia comes amid Putin's shift towards authoritarianism. Some of the Soviet Union's darkest practices have made an ominous return: curtailing freedoms and consolidating his power, Putin has created a modern Russia in which dissent once againcarries a high price. Eyewitness: 'For two weeks they didn't let me sleep they kept trying to get me to confess to crimes' It was a cold January day in 1951 when Yury Naydenov-Ivanov, a factory technician, was sitting with his friends in a cafe on Moscow's central street, Old Arbat. The trio had ordered drinks when a stranger sat down in the empty chair next to them. The men stiffened. Terrifying tales of arrests and disappearances that had circulated the Soviet Union for years often began with the presence of a stranger. "We need to ask you some questions," the man said quietly. The man was a member of Josef Stalin's dreaded secret police, the NKVD. Seemingly out of nowhere, more men entered the cafe, took Yury and his two friends by the arms and bundled them into a van. The next time Yury saw light, it was reflected from the bright ceiling of a cell in the NKVD's headquarters in Lubyanka Square, and in front of him were his interrogators. The nature of the events that led to their seizure were by no means exceptional. Zhenya Petrov, one of the three men at the cafe, had purchased a copy of a magazine called America, a Russian-language illustrated monthly, chronicling life in the United States. Inspired by its content, Zhenya telephoned the magazine's office in Moscow with a question: what is life like for Russians in America? The magazine wasn't illegal. It circulated with permission from the Soviet authorities even then, despite a deep-rooted paranoia that viewed anything foreign as a threat to Soviet values. But the question Zhenya asked proved his undoing. "They tapped his phone and heard the whole thing," Yury recalls. "They were waiting for him that day." Yury Naydenov-Ivanov in 1955 The journalist Zhenya had spoken to on the phone invited him to come down to his office in the city centre; Yury and another friend agreed to come along, too, all three meeting first at the cafe. Zhenya was the target for arrest. Yury was collateral damage. "For two weeks they didn't let me sleep," Yury says. "That was worse than being beaten. My interrogators kept trying to get me to confess to crimes I hadn't committed. Each time that I'd nearly fall asleep, they'd wake me up and start it all over again." After a fortnight's interrogation and four months sitting in the NKVD's jail, Yury was accused of "anti-Soviet propaganda" and attempting to flee the country, sentenced to 10 years of labour and sent to a camp near the border with Kazakhstan. He was 20 years old. Yury was one of around 40 million people who passed through the Soviet Union's gulags after they first appeared in 1918. An abbreviation for Chief Administration of Corrective Labour Camps, the gulags were a vast network of forced labour camps that symbolised the cruelty of Stalinism. Described by writer Alexander Solzhenitsyn as "a chain of islands", the gulags became the graveyard for millions of Soviet citizens who were accused of harbouring "anti-state" thoughts. "Every day we were woken up at 5am and worked on constructing the colony," Yury recalls. "The summers could get really hot which made the building work we had to do uncomfortable but winters were worse." Still, he could be called one of the lucky ones. "Being near the border [with Kazakhstan]," he continues, "we didn't have it as bad as those near the Arctic, for example." These unfortunates included Zhenya, who worked for two years in northern Russia before he perished. Yury Naydenov-Ivanov today. 'We were freed, yes, but we were amnestied, not rehabilitated,' he says (Nadia Beard) Yury's imprisonment should have ended sooner than it did. Although Stalin died in 1953, thus starting the staggered release of most gulag prisoners, it wasn't until 1955 two years after sentencing that he was freed. "None of us even knew that Stalin had died!" he says. "We kept working as normal because nobody said anything to us. I couldn't believe it. We used to say that SSSR [USSR] stood for 'Smert Stalina Spaset Rossiu' [The Death of Stalin Saved Russia]." But his ordeal didn't end there: "We were freed, yes, but we were amnestied, not rehabilitated. The state pardoned me for political misdeeds I'd never committed, and that was it. It was written in all my documents, which meant, as soon as prospective employers saw my documents, that was it. I was turned away from every job I applied for until I won my rehabilitation. Before then I was seen as a criminal." It took another two years of lodging petitions to the general prosecutor until Yury was finally fully rehabilitated in 1957. Now he breathes a sigh of relief that Russia's Communist Party won't win a general election any time soon. "But," he whispers, "that dreadful motto we lived under for such a long time 'whoever's against us will get it' hasn't died yet." For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} A Swedish 16-year-old who was rescued from Isis territory in a Kurdish special forces raid says she was tricked into travelling to Syria and Iraq by her jihadi-supporting boyfriend. Marilyn Nevalainen, from Boras near Gothenburg, was identified on Tuesday by the Kurdistan Regional Security Council though her name was misspelled. Kurdish officials said they worked with the Swedish authorities and the girls family to locate and rescue her. Though details surrounding the rescue attempt were unclear, it was believed Marilyn was the same girl who reportedly travelled to Isis territory last year, pregnant, with her 19-year-old boyfriend. A Kurdish security source told The Independent she was held against her will before she was rescued from within the Isis stronghold of Mosul, Iraq, on 17 February. And Marilyn has now appeared in an interview on Kurdish television, in which she said she had a really hard life under Isis in Iraq. Describing her relationship with her partner, who according to some Swedish reports may have been killed in an air strike, she said: First we were good together, but then he started to look at Isis videos, started to speak about them and stuff like that. In pictures: The rise of Isis Show all 74 1 /74 In pictures: The rise of Isis In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters Fighters of the Islamic State wave the group's flag from a damaged display of a government fighter jet following the battle for the Tabqa air base, in Raqqa, Syria AP In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters Fighters from Islamic State group sit on their tank during a parade in Raqqa, Syria AP In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters Fighters from the Islamic State group pray at the Tabqa air base after capturing it from the Syrian government in Raqqa, Syria AP In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters Fighters from extremist Islamic State group parade in Raqqa, Syria AP In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis kidnapping A video uploaded to social networks shows men in underwear being marched barefoot along a desert road before being allegedly executed by Isis Getty Images In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis kidnapping Haruna Yukawa after his capture by Isis In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis kidnapping Khalinda Sharaf Ajour, a Yazidi, says two of her daughters were captured by Isis militants Washington Post In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters Spokesperson for Isis Vice News via Youtube In pictures: The rise of Isis A pro-Isis leaflet A pro-Isis leaflet handed out on Oxford Street In London Ghaffar Hussain In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters Isis Jihadists burn their passports In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis controls Syrian Aid A man collecting aid administered by Isis in Syria In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis controls Syrian Aid A woman collecting aid administered by Isis in Syria In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis controls Syrian Aid Local civilians queue for aid administered by Isis. Since it declared a caliphate the group has increasingly been delivering services such as healthcare, and distributing aid and free fuel In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Iraqi security forces detain men suspected of being militants of the Isis group in Diyala province In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Mourners carry the coffin of a Shi'ite volunteer from the brigades of peace, who joined the Iraqi army and was killed during clashes with militants of the Isis group in Samarra, during his funeral in Najaf In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraqi refugees An Iraqi Shiite Turkmen family fleeing the violence in the Iraqi city of Tal Afar, west of Mosul, arrives at a refugee camp on the outskirts of Arbil, in Iraq's Kurdistan region In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi A photograph made from a video by the jihadist affiliated group Furqan Media via their twitter account allegedly showing Isis leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi delivering a sermon during Friday prayers at a mosque in Mosul. Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi declared an Islamist caliphate in the territory under the group's control in Iraq and Syria In pictures: The rise of Isis Islamic extremists destroying mosques in Iraq Shiite's Al-Qubba Husseiniya mosque explodes in Mosul In pictures: The rise of Isis Islamic extremists destroying mosques in Iraq Smoke and debris go up in the air as Shiite's Al-Qubba Husseiniya mosque explodes in Mosul. Images posted online show that Islamic extremists have destroyed at least 10 ancient shrines and Shiite mosques in territory - the city of Mosul and the town of Tal Afar - they have seized in northern Iraq in recent weeks In pictures: The rise of Isis Islamic extremists destroying mosques in Iraq A bulldozer destroys Sunni's Ahmed al-Rifai shrine and tomb in Mahlabiya district outside of Tal Afar In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Iraqi security forces celebrate after clashes with followers of Shiite cleric Mahmoud al-Sarkhi, in front of his home in the Shiite holy city of Karbala, 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Baghdad In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Iraqi security forces arrest a follower of Shiite cleric Mahmoud al-Sarkhi after clashes with his followers in the Shiite holy city of Karbala, 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Baghdad In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Iraqi security forces arrest a follower of Shiite cleric Mahmoud al-Sarkhi at his home after clashes with his followers in the Shiite holy city of Karbala, 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Baghdad In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Iraqi security forces arrest a follower of Shiite cleric Mahmoud al-Sarkhi after clashes with his followers in the Shiite holy city of Karbala, 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Baghdad In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis A vehicle burns in front of a home of a follower of Shiite cleric Mahmoud al-Sarkhi after clashes with his followers in the Shiite holy city of Karbala, 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Baghdad In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraqi refugees An Iraqi woman holds her exhausted son as over 1000 Iraqis who have fled fighting in and around the city of Mosul and Tal Afar wait at a Kurdish checkpoint in the hopes of entering a temporary displacement camp in Khazair In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraqi refugees Displaced Iraqi women hold pots as they queue to receive food during the first day of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, at an encampment for displaced Iraqis who fled from Mosul and other towns, in the Khazer area outside Irbil, north Iraq In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria A militant Islamist fighter waving a flag, cheers as he takes part in a military parade along the streets of Syria's northern Raqqa. The fighters held the parade to celebrate their declaration of an Islamic "caliphate" after the group captured territory in neighbouring Iraq In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria Isis fighters wave flags as they take part in a military parade along the streets of Syria's northern Raqqa province Reuters In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria Isis fighters travel in a vehicle as they take part in a military parade along the streets of Syria's northern Raqqa province In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria Fighters from the Isis group during a parade with a missile in Raqqa, Syria. Militants from an al-Qaida splinter group held a military parade in their stronghold in northeastern Syria, displaying U.S.-made Humvees, heavy machine guns, and missiles captured from the Iraqi army for the first time since taking over large parts of the Iraq-Syria border In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria Isis fighters during a parade in Raqqa, Syria In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria Fighters from the Isis group during a parade in Raqqa, Syria. Militants from the splinter group held a military parade in their stronghold in northeastern Syria, displaying U.S.-made Humvees, heavy machine guns, and missiles captured from the Iraqi army for the first time since taking over large parts of the Iraq-Syria border In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria Isis fighters hold a military parade in their stronghold in northeastern Syria In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria Isis fighters during a parade in Raqqa, Syria In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria A member loyal to the Isis waves an Isis flag in Raqqa In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Iraqi anti-government gunmen from Sunni tribes in the western Anbar province march during a protest in Ramadi, west of Baghdad. The United Nations warned that Iraq is at a "crossroads" and appealed for restraint, as a bloody four-day wave of violence killed 195 people. The violence is the deadliest so far linked to demonstrations that broke out in Sunni areas of the Shiite-majority country more than four months ago, raising fears of a return to all-out sectarian conflict In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Iraqi security forces hold up a flag of the Isis group they captured during an operation to regain control of Dallah Abbas north of Baqouba, the capital of Iraq's Diyala province, 35 miles (60 kilometers) northeast of Baghdad In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Iraq Isis fighters parade in the northern city of Mosul In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Volunteers, who have joined the Iraqi army to fight against the predominantly Sunni militants from the radical Isis group, demonstrate their skills during a graduation ceremony after completing their field training in Najaf In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Kurdish Peshmerga troops fire a cannon during clashes with militants of the Isis group in Jalawla, Diyala province In pictures: The rise of Isis Lieutenant General Qassem Atta speaks during a press conference Iraqi Prime Minister's security spokesman, Lieutenant General Qassem Atta speaks during a press conference about the latest military development in Iraq, in the capital Baghdad. Iraqi forces pressed a campaign to retake militant-held Tikrit, clashing with jihadist-led Sunni militants nearby and pounding positions inside the city with air strikes in their biggest counter-offensive so far In pictures: The rise of Isis A police station building destroyed by Isis fighters An exterior view of a police station building destroyed by gunmen in Mosul city, northern Iraq. Iraq's new parliament is expected to convene to start the process of setting up a new government, despite deepening political rifts and an ongoing Islamist-led insurgency. Iraqi President Jalal Talabani issued a decree inviting the new House of Representatives to meet and form a new government In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Iraq Smoke billows from an area controlled by the Isis between the Iraqi towns of Naojul and Tuz Khurmatu, both located north of the capital Baghdad, as Iraqi Kurdish Peshmerga forces take part in an operation to repel the Sunni militants In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraqi refugees An elderly Iraqi woman is helped into a temporary displacement camp for Iraqis caught-up in the fighting in and around the city of Mosul in Khazair In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraqi refugees An Iraqi Christian woman fleeing the violence in the village of Qaraqush, about 30 kms east of the northern province of Nineveh, cries upon her arrival at a community center in the Kurdish city of Arbil in Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraqi refugees An Iraqi woman, who fled with her family from the northern city of Mosul, prays with a copy of the Quran AP In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Iraq The body of an Isis militant killed during clashes with Iraqi security forces on the outskirts of the city of Samarra Reuters In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Iraqi civilians inspect the damage at a market after an air strike by the Iraqi army in central Mosul EPA In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Members of the Al-Abbas brigades, who volunteered to protect the Shiite Muslim holy sites in Karbala against Sunni militants fighting the Baghdad government, parade in the streets of the city AP In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Shia tribesmen gather in Baghdad to take up arms against Sunni insurgents marching on the capital. Thousands have volunteered to bolster defences AFP/Getty In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis A van carrying volunteers joining Iraqi security forces against Jihadist militants. Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki announced the Iraqi government would arm and equip civilians who volunteered to fight AFP/Getty In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Fighters of the Isis group parade in a commandeered Iraqi security forces armored vehicle down a main road at the northern city of Mosul In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq An Islamist fighter, identified as Abu Muthanna al-Yemeni from Britain (R), speaks in this still image taken undated video shot at an unknown location and uploaded to a social media website. Five Islamist fighters identified as Australian and British nationals have called on Muslims to join the wars in Syria and Iraq, in the new video released by the Isis In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Al-Qaida inspired militants stand with captured Iraqi Army Humvee at a checkpoint belonging to Iraqi Army outside Beiji refinery some 250 kilometers (155 miles) north of Baghdad. The fighting at Beiji comes as Iraq has asked the U.S. for airstrikes targeting the militants from the Isis group. While U.S. President Barack Obama has not fully ruled out the possibility of launching airstrikes, such action is not imminent in part because intelligence agencies have been unable to identify clear targets on the ground, officials said In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Militants attacked Iraq's main oil refinein Baiji as they pressed an offensive that has seen them capture swathes of territory, a manager and a refinery employee said In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Militants from the Isis group parading with their weapons in the northern city of Baiji in the in Salaheddin province In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq A smoke rises after an attack by Isis militants on the country's largest oil refinery in Beiji, some 250 kilometers (155 miles) north of the capital, Baghdad. Iraqi security forces battled insurgents targeting the country's main oil refinery and said they regained partial control of a city near the Syrian border, trying to blunt an offensive by Sunni militants who diplomats fear may have also seized some 100 foreign workers In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Militants of the Isis group stand next to captured vehicles left behind by Iraqi security forces at an unknown location in the Salaheddin province. For militant groups, the fight over public perception can be even more important than actual combat, turning military losses into propaganda victories and battlefield successes into powerful tools to build support for the cause In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq An injured fighter (C) from the Isis group after a battle with Iraqi soldiers at an undisclosed location near the border between Syria and Iraq In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Fighters from the Isis aiming at advancing Iraqi troops at an undisclosed location near the border between Syria and Iraq In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Fighters from the Isis group taking position at an undisclosed location near the border between Syria and Iraq In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Fighters from the Isis group inspecting vehicles of the Iraqi army after they were seized at an undisclosed location near the border between Syria and Iraq In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq One Iraqi captive, a corporal, is reluctant to say the slogan, and has to be shouted at repeatedly before he obeys Sky News In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Iraqi captives held by the extremists Sky News In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Iraqi captives held by the extremists Sky News In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Militants of the Isis group force captured Iraqi security forces members to the transport In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Militants of the Isis group transporting dozens of captured Iraqi security forces members to an unknown location in the Salaheddin province ahead of executing them In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq A major offensive spearheaded by Isis but also involving supporters of executed dictator Saddam Hussein has overrun all of one province and chunks of three others In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Militants of the Isis group executing dozens of captured Iraqi security forces members at an unknown location in the Salaheddin province In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Isis militants taking position at a Iraqi border post on the Syrian-Iraqi border between the Iraqi Nineveh province and the Syrian town of Al-Hasakah In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Isis rebels show their flag after seizing an army post AFP/Getty Images In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Isis militants waving an Islamist flag after the seizure of an Iraqi army checkpoint in Salahuddin Getty Images In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Demonstrators chant slogans as they carry al-Qaida flags in front of the provincial government headquarters in Mosul, 225 miles (360 kilometers) northwest of Baghdad. In the week since it captured Iraq's second-largest city, Mosul, a Muslim extremist group has tried to win over residents and has stopped short of widely enforcing its strict brand of Islamic law, residents say. Churches remain unharmed and street cleaners are back at work But I didnt know anything about Islam or Isis, I didnt know what he meant. And then he said he wanted to go to Isis, and I said OK no problem, because I didnt know what Isis means, what Islam is, nothing. Speaking about life under Isis, she said: In Sweden we have everything, and when I was there I had nothing. No water, no electricity, and we didnt have any money either it was a really hard life. So when I got a phone I started to contact my mum, and I said to her that I want to come home. It has been reported that the couple left Sweden in late May 2015, making their way across Europe by bus before crossing into Syria at Gaziantep, Turkey. From there, they were taken by Isis militants to Mosul, where they were provided with a house. In their statement on Tuesday, the Kurdish authorities said they were called upon to carry out the rescue mission by Sweden. She will be transferred to Swedish authorities to return home once necessary arrangements are put in place, it added. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} During winter, the air conditioning blows out freezing air. A light is kept on around the clock to keep inmates awake. Food provided in the cramped cells is raw or rotting. As Palestinian security detainees undergo interrogation by the Israel Security Agency (ISA) at Shikma Prison in southern Israel, they are held in hellish circumstances designed to break their will and that is before their questioning begins. Recommended Read more The British Government has turned its back on the Palestinian people That, at least, is the grim portrait of conditions for Palestinians held at Shikma because of suspected security offences that emerged from a joint report by two leading Israeli human rights groups, based on 116 sworn affidavits taken from prisoners detained between August 2013 and March 2014. Conditions at the Shikma facility are an inherent part of interrogations there: they serve to weaken both mind and body, complementing the actual interrogation of detainees in the interrogation room, says the report, issued by Btselem and HaMoked rights groups and funded by the European Union. Detainees were held in solitary confinement in cramped and foul-smelling cells no more than two metres long, the report claims. Most underwent their interrogations which varied in length from one to 40 days with hands tied behind them to the chair on which they sat, the report said. Human rights attacks around the world Show all 10 1 /10 Human rights attacks around the world Human rights attacks around the world China Escalating crackdown against human rights activists including mass arrests of lawyers and a series of sweeping laws in the name of national security. Getty Images Human rights attacks around the world Egypt The arrest of thousands, including peaceful critics, in a ruthless crackdown in the name of national security, the prolonged detention of hundreds without charge or trial and the sentencing of hundreds of others to death. Getty Images Human rights attacks around the world Gambia Torture, enforced disappearances and the criminalisation of LGBTI people; and utter refusal to co-operate with the UN and regional human rights mechanisms on issues including freedom of expression, enforced disappearance and the death penalty. Getty Images Human rights attacks around the world Hungary Sealing off its borders to thousands of refugees in dire need; and obstructing collective regional attempts to help them. Getty Images Human rights attacks around the world Israel Maintaining its military blockade of Gaza and therefore collective punishment of the 1.8 million inhabitants there, as well as failing, like Palestine, to comply with a UN call to conduct credible investigations into war crimes committed during the 2014 Gaza conflict. Getty Images Human rights attacks around the world Kenya Extrajudicial executions, enforced disappearances and discrimination against refugees in its counter-terrorism operations; and attempts to undermine the International Criminal Court and its ability to pursue justice. Getty Images Human rights attacks around the world Pakistan The severe human rights failings of its response to the horrific Peshawar school massacre including its relentless use of the death penalty; and its policy on international NGOs giving authorities the power to monitor them and close them down if they are considered to be against the interests of the country. Getty Images Human rights attacks around the world Russia Repressive use of vague national security and anti-extremism legislation and its concerted attempts to silence civil society in the country; its shameful refusal to acknowledge civilian killings in Syria and its callous moves to block Security Council action on Syria. Getty Images Human rights attacks around the world Saudi Arabia Brutally cracking down on those who dared to advocate reform or criticise the authorities; and committing war crimes in the bombing campaign it has led in Yemen (pictured) while obstructing the establishment of a UN-led inquiry into violations by all sides in the conflict. Getty Images Human rights attacks around the world Syria Killing thousands of civilians in direct and indiscriminate attacks with barrel bombs and other weaponry and through acts of torture in detention; and enforcing lengthy sieges of civilian areas, blocking international aid from reaching starving civilians. Getty Images Seats were often unusually small or low, tilted backwards or forwards and in some cases were fixed to the floor. Some 25 former detainees reported suffering pain to their back, neck, legs or hands, which some described as intense or hellish, from prolonged shackling and the nature of the chair. Recommended Read more Israeli policeman filmed pushing Palestinian man out of wheelchair A Palestinian identified only as LH from the West Bank city of Hebron said he was made to sit on a chair with two short back legs. When you sit on it, it makes you lean back but the interrogator yells at you to stay straight, he said in his affidavit. To do that, you have to lean forward. It hurts your hands and back. The pain in my arms and hands, and especially in my left arm, became unbearable. It is the most in-depth report to date dealing with the Shikma facility and according to Btselem spokeswoman Sarit Michaeli it backs up previous reports describing similar abuses at other ISA facilities. Those interviewed for the report were suspected of security offences, including violence against Israelis. The affidavits were taken in prisons elsewhere after the interrogation process was completed and the Palestinians had been charged, tried and were serving their sentences. A small number who were released without being charged were interviewed at home. Recommended Read more Israel opens doors to more Palestinian workers Most of those arrested spent two to four weeks under ISA interrogation, eventually confessed and were charged and convicted. Those under interrogation were brought before a judge to extend their arrest within eight days of being taken into custody. Thirty nine had previously also been arrested and interrogated by the Palestinian Authority (PA) security forces and many reported being tortured or severely abused by the PA. Israels Justice Ministry termed the report tendentious. It said that ISA interrogations are conducted within the confines of the law and with the aim of pre-emptively foiling and preventing illegal activities aimed at harming state security, its democratic regimes or its institutions. It added that conditions in Shikma do not resemble those described in the report and they comply with the law. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Vladimir Putin spoke to Bashar al-Assad, the King of Saudi Arabia, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and Benjamin Netanyahu in quick succession today as efforts to implement a planned ceasefire in Syria continue. The Russian President is playing a key role in brokering the cessation of hostilities due to start on Saturday after drawing up plans with the US. The temporary truce has been agreed by the Syrian regime and opposition but there are concerns the exclusion of Isis and Jabhat al-Nusra, and permission to continue attacks on terrorists will make the agreement largely ineffectual. US and Russia agree on Syria cessation of hostilities A spokesperson for Assad said he and Putin had stressed the need to continue fighting the so-called Islamic State, al-Qaeda linked rebels and other terrorist organisations in their phone call on Wednesday. The Syrian President classed all armed groups as terrorists in an interview last week, saying: I dont think that the term opposition can be used to describe somebody carrying a weaponevery terrorist is an enemy. But the Kremlin put a more positive spin on its allys stance today, saying Assad confirmed the Syrian governments readiness to facilitate the ceasefires implementation. Their conversation was quickly followed by a call between Putin and the King of Saudi Arabia, Salman bin Abdulaziz al-Saud, who reportedly welcomed the truce agreement and pledged to support Russia in its implementation. In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Show all 19 1 /19 In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Syrian boys cry following Russian air strikes on the rebel-held Fardous neighbourhood of the northern embattled Syrian city of Aleppo Getty In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Russian defense ministry spokesman Major General Igor Konashenkov speaks to the media in Moscow, Russia. Konashenkov strongly warned the United States against striking Syrian government forces and issued a thinly-veiled threat to use Russian air defense assets to protect them AP In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Syrians wait to receive treatment at a hospital following Russian air strikes on the rebel-held Fardous neighbourhood of the northern embattled Syrian city of Alepp Getty In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Russian Deputy Defense Minister Anatoly Antonov speaks at a briefing in the Defense Ministry in Moscow, Russia. Antonov said the Russian air strikes in Syria have killed about 35,000 militants, including about 2,700 residents of Russia AP In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Jameel Mustafa Habboush, receives oxygen from civil defence volunteers, known as the white helmets, as they rescue him from under the rubble of a building following Russian air strikes on the rebel-held Fardous neighbourhood of the northern embattled Syrian city of Aleppo Getty In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Civil defence members rest amidst rubble in a site hit by what activists said were airstrikes carried out by the Russian air force in the town of Douma, eastern Ghouta in Damascus, Syria Reuters In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria A girl carrying a baby inspects damage in a site hit by what activists said were airstrikes carried out by the Russian air force in the town of Douma, eastern Ghouta in Damascus, Syria Reuters In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Civilians and civil defence members look for survivors at a site damaged after Russian air strikes on the Syrian rebel-held city of Idlib, Syria Reuters In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Civilians and civil defence members carry an injured woman on a stretcher at a site damaged after Russian air strikes on the Syrian rebel-held city of Idlib, Syria Reuters In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Volunteers from Syria Civil Defence, also known as the White Helmets, help civilians after Russia carried out its first airstrikes in Syria In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria The aftermath of Russian airstrike in Talbiseh, Syria In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Smoke billows from buildings in Talbiseh, in Homs province, western Syria, after airstrikes by Russian warplanes AP In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Russian Air Forces carry out an air strike in the ISIS controlled Al-Raqqah Governorate. Russia's KAB-500s bombs completely destroy the Liwa al-Haqq command unit In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Caspian Flotilla of the Russian Navy firing Kalibr cruise missiles against remote Isis targets in Syria A TASS/ITAR-TASS Photo/Corbis In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Russia claimed it hit eight Isis targets, including a "terrorist HQ and co-ordination centre" that was completely destroyed In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria A video grab taken from the footage made available on the Russian Defence Ministry's official website, purporting to show an airstrike in Syria In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria A release from the Russian defence ministry purportedly showing targets in Syria being hit In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Russia launched air strikes in war-torn Syria, its first military engagement outside the former Soviet Union since the occupation of Afghanistan in 1979. Russian warplanes carried out strikes in three Syrian provinces along with regime aircraft as Putin seeks to steal US President Barack Obama's thunder by pushing a rival plan to defeat Isis militants in Syria In pictures: Russian air strikes in Syria Caspian Flotilla of the Russian Navy firing Kalibr cruise missiles against remote Isis targets in Syria, a thousand kilometres away. The targets include ammunition factories, ammunition and fuel depots, command centres, and training camps A TASS/ITAR-TASS Photo/Corbis The Saudis oppose Assad and have allegedly been supplying selected rebel groups with weapons via a Turkey-based operations centre, as well as floating the possibility of a ground invasion to oust the Syrian President. Among his few supporters is Saudi Arabias arch enemy, Iran, which has admitted sending military advisors to support the Syrian army but is believed to directly deploying its Revolutionary Guards into combat. President Rouhani was also on the long list of leaders speaking to Putin today, discussing joint efforts to resolve the Syrian crisis, according to the Russian Presidents office. He was followed by the Prime Minister of Israel, who reportedly requested the call to discuss co-operation with Russia in the Middle East and diplomatic relations between the countries continue to improve following the establishment of ties 25 years ago. Vladimir Putin started Russia's intervention in Syria at the request of his ally, Bashar al-Assad (GETTY IMAGES) Russias internal security council met on Wednesday afternoon to discuss the issues raised in the conversations, although Putins office has not yet released details of the meeting. It came as the countrys defence ministry announced its latest round of air strikes in Syria, having carried out 187 strikes in 62 sorties over just two days. Major General Igor Konashenkov said areas covered by the impending ceasefire were not targeted and only militants designated as terrorist groups by the United Nations were hit in the provinces of Hama, Raqqa, Deir Ezzor, Aleppo and Homs. The Kremlin has insisted Isis the main target of its four-month campaign but opposition groups and Western leaders have alleged its strikes have mainly targeted areas controlled by the opposition, killing countless civilians. Major questions remain over how Saturdays truce will be enforced and how groups will be reprimanded for any violations. A temporary ceasefire was initially planned to start last week following discussions in Munich but was derailed by continued fighting including a regime advance in Aleppo province. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} The world reached a nadir for human rights in the past year and international systems are no longer adequate to cope, according to an Amnesty International report. Amnesty identified 10 key examples of countries where there have been attacks on individual human rights and the institutions designed to protect them on a national scale (see gallery below). With its bitter and ongoing civil war, Syria unsurprisingly features prominently in the report on The State of the Worlds Human Rights 2015/16. But from Israel and Egypt to Russia and Hungary, other countries were included on the list despite being at peace and, like the latter, in the EU. In his foreword to the report, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees Antonio Guterres said its pages cannot convey the full human misery of the topical crisis of this last year. In such a situation, protecting and strengthening systems of human rights and civilian protection cannot be seen as optional, he said. It is literally a matter of life and death. Human rights attacks around the world Show all 10 1 /10 Human rights attacks around the world Human rights attacks around the world China Escalating crackdown against human rights activists including mass arrests of lawyers and a series of sweeping laws in the name of national security. Getty Images Human rights attacks around the world Egypt The arrest of thousands, including peaceful critics, in a ruthless crackdown in the name of national security, the prolonged detention of hundreds without charge or trial and the sentencing of hundreds of others to death. Getty Images Human rights attacks around the world Gambia Torture, enforced disappearances and the criminalisation of LGBTI people; and utter refusal to co-operate with the UN and regional human rights mechanisms on issues including freedom of expression, enforced disappearance and the death penalty. Getty Images Human rights attacks around the world Hungary Sealing off its borders to thousands of refugees in dire need; and obstructing collective regional attempts to help them. Getty Images Human rights attacks around the world Israel Maintaining its military blockade of Gaza and therefore collective punishment of the 1.8 million inhabitants there, as well as failing, like Palestine, to comply with a UN call to conduct credible investigations into war crimes committed during the 2014 Gaza conflict. Getty Images Human rights attacks around the world Kenya Extrajudicial executions, enforced disappearances and discrimination against refugees in its counter-terrorism operations; and attempts to undermine the International Criminal Court and its ability to pursue justice. Getty Images Human rights attacks around the world Pakistan The severe human rights failings of its response to the horrific Peshawar school massacre including its relentless use of the death penalty; and its policy on international NGOs giving authorities the power to monitor them and close them down if they are considered to be against the interests of the country. Getty Images Human rights attacks around the world Russia Repressive use of vague national security and anti-extremism legislation and its concerted attempts to silence civil society in the country; its shameful refusal to acknowledge civilian killings in Syria and its callous moves to block Security Council action on Syria. Getty Images Human rights attacks around the world Saudi Arabia Brutally cracking down on those who dared to advocate reform or criticise the authorities; and committing war crimes in the bombing campaign it has led in Yemen (pictured) while obstructing the establishment of a UN-led inquiry into violations by all sides in the conflict. Getty Images Human rights attacks around the world Syria Killing thousands of civilians in direct and indiscriminate attacks with barrel bombs and other weaponry and through acts of torture in detention; and enforcing lengthy sieges of civilian areas, blocking international aid from reaching starving civilians. Getty Images In its global release for the report, Amnesty said international protections for human rights were "unravelling". Salil Shetty, the secretary-general of Amnesty International, said "more than 70 years of hard work and human progress lies at risk". The world today is facing many challenges which, at their source, have been created or prolonged by governments who have played politics with peoples lives. Refugees are suffering in their millions as conflicts proliferate, and armed groups deliberately attack civilians and commit other grave abuses, he said. It is within world leaders power to prevent these crises from spiralling further out of control. Governments must halt their assault on our rights and strengthen the defences the world has put in place to protect them. Human rights are a necessity, not an accessory; and the stakes for humankind have never been higher. Here is a summary of what the report found for each of the 10 countries identified in the gallery above: China (Getty Images) A massive nationwide crackdown against human rights lawyers; new laws with a national security focus that present grave dangers to human rights; authorities stepped up their controls over the internet, mass media and academia; Televised confessions of critics detained for investigation multiplied; Freedom of religion continued to be systematically stifled; The government maintained extensive controls over Tibetan Buddhist monasteries. Egypt (Getty Images) Executions were carried out following grossly unfair trials; Detainees faced torture and other illtreatment; Women and members of religious minorities were subject to discrimination and inadequately protected against violence; The authorities arbitrarily restricted the rights to freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly, enacted a draconian new antiterrorism law, and arrested and imprisoned government critics and political opposition leaders and activists, subjecting some to enforced disappearance. Hungary (Getty Images) Constructed fences along its southern borders, criminalized irregular entry to its territory and expedited the return of asylum-seekers and refugees to Serbia, effectively transforming Hungary into a refugee protection-free zone. Roma continued to be at risk of forced eviction and inadequately protected against hate crimes. Israel The three councils were cleared of all the charges put against them (Getty Images) Unlawful killings of Palestinian civilians, including children, and thousands of Palestinians detained who protested against or otherwise opposed Israels continuing military occupation, holding hundreds in administrative detention; Torture and other ill-treatment remained rife and were committed with impunity; Israeli settlers in the West Bank attacked Palestinians and their property with virtual impunity. Gambia (Getty Images) The December 2014 attempted coup led to arrests and further human rights violations. The authorities continued to repress dissent and display a lack of willingness to cooperate with the UN and regional human rights mechanisms or comply with their recommendations. Kenya (Getty Images) Continued attacks in Kenya carried out by al-Shabaab, the Somali-based armed group, led Kenya to step up its counter-terrorism operations, which resulted in an increase of extrajudicial executions, enforced disappearances and other human rights violations. Human rights organizations reporting on violations by security agencies during these operations were increasingly harassed. Some civil society organizations were shut down or threatened with closure through judicial or administrative measures. Pakistan (Getty Images) Executions resumed; newly established military courts were authorized to try all those accused of terrorism-related offences, including civilians; Religious minorities continued to face discrimination, persecution and targeted attacks; Human rights activists experienced harassment and abuse. Russia (Getty Images) Freedoms of expression and peaceful assembly remained severely restricted; the authorities dominated the print and broadcast media, and further extended their control over the internet; growing numbers of individuals were arrested and criminally charged for criticizing state policy and publicly displaying or possessing materials deemed extremist or otherwise unlawful under vague national security legislation; refugees faced numerous obstacles in accessing international protection; serious human rights violations continued in the North Caucasus, and human rights defenders reporting from the region faced harassment. Saudi Arabia (Getty Images) The government continued to severely restrict freedoms of expression, association and assembly. The authorities arrested, prosecuted and imprisoned human rights defenders and government critics, often after unfair trials; torture and other ill-treatment of detainees remained common; women faced discrimination in law and in practice and were inadequately protected against sexual and other violence; the authorities used the death penalty extensively and carried out more than 150 executions. Syria (Getty Images) Government forces and non-state armed groups committed war crimes, other violations of international humanitarian law and gross human rights abuses with impunity in the internal armed conflict. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Tory students plan to erect a 250-foot (76.2 metre) iron statue of Margaret Thatcher on their university campus to encourage good and sensible behaviour. A petition by Kent University Conservative Associations (KUCA)has now moved onto its second stage - collecting signatures - after the first stage was approved by Kent Union, bringing students closer to seeing the Iron Lady look down on them every day. With 12 days left, 80 students from a possible 150 have, so far, shown their support by signing. Describing how the statue would be built in the Graeco-Roman style and inspired by the Colossus of Rhodes - one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World - the petition reads: [It] would be placed on a 50-foot (15 metre) high white marble pedestal in the square across from the universitys nightclub, The Venue. The placement across from the nightclub would encourage good and sensible behaviour under the gaze of the 250-foot Colossus. Appropriately, the statue would be constructed almost entirely of iron at a 46:1 scale. At this scale, the Iron Ladys handbag would be approximately 30-foot tall. The plan is to construct the handbag of a highly-polished bronze. If placed strategically, it is hoped the sun would reflect off the handbag at certain times during the day. The petition concludes: The statue would then serve the purpose of being a literal shining testament to liberty, while the ingenious polished bronze handbag would also allow the statue to dazzle the eyes of those lefties who would [sic] the Colossus. Margaret Thatcher: Life in pictures Show all 35 1 /35 Margaret Thatcher: Life in pictures Margaret Thatcher: Life in pictures 403788.bin Getty Images Margaret Thatcher: Life in pictures 191385.bin Margaret Thatcher: Life in pictures 191386.bin Margaret Thatcher: Life in pictures 191387.bin Margaret Thatcher: Life in pictures 192809.bin Margaret Thatcher: Life in pictures 168685.bin Margaret Thatcher: Life in pictures 168686.bin Margaret Thatcher: Life in pictures 192808.bin Margaret Thatcher: Life in pictures 168688.bin Getty Images Margaret Thatcher: Life in pictures 285241.bin Getty Images Margaret Thatcher: Life in pictures 168691.bin Margaret Thatcher: Life in pictures 50419.bin Getty Images Margaret Thatcher: Life in pictures 168690.bin Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images Margaret Thatcher: Life in pictures 168700.bin Central Press/Getty Images Margaret Thatcher: Life in pictures 192781.bin Margaret Thatcher: Life in pictures 168702.bin Central Press/Getty Images Margaret Thatcher: Life in pictures 168701.bin Margaret Thatcher: Life in pictures 191388.bin Getty Images Margaret Thatcher: Life in pictures 168704.bin David Wimsett/Getty Images Margaret Thatcher: Life in pictures 168706.bin Keystone/Getty Images Margaret Thatcher: Life in pictures 192805.bin Getty Images Margaret Thatcher: Life in pictures 168708.bin Express/Express/Getty Images Margaret Thatcher: Life in pictures 163488.bin Getty Images Margaret Thatcher: Life in pictures 168711.bin Margaret Thatcher: Life in pictures 110601.bin Margaret Thatcher: Life in pictures 192807.bin Margaret Thatcher: Life in pictures 111403.bin PA Margaret Thatcher: Life in pictures 140162.bin PA Margaret Thatcher: Life in pictures 167141.bin Jon Jones Margaret Thatcher: Life in pictures 33728.bin Chris Jackson/Getty Margaret Thatcher: Life in pictures 30501.bin Margaret Thatcher: Life in pictures 48234.bin REUTERS Margaret Thatcher: Life in pictures 52821.bin AP Margaret Thatcher: Life in pictures thatcher_2.jpg Margaret Thatcher: Life in pictures thatcher-2_1.jpg Getty Images Speaking with The Tab, chairman of Kent University Conservative Association (KUCA), Emilio Kyprianou, was revealed to be the brains behind the campaign. Describing how the petition was started as an attempt to highlight problems with the current petitioning system, he added: Having said that, we are going to run with it - this could be a real positive for Kent. Turns out, though, this isn't the first time such a campaign has occurred on the grounds of Kent. In 2013, ex-KUCA treasurer, Guy Snowden, called for a 200-foot bronze statue of Mrs Thatcher to be placed in Canterbury because the greatest form of flattery is imitation. Thatcher's criticism of Brixton riot - London Live The sabbatical officer at the time, though, told Mr Snowden at a debate his motion was a complete waste of time and, according to The Medwire, students voted overwhelmingly to stop the motion from passing through. Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the View from Westminster email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} This week I have participated in events organised as part of Israeli Apartheid Week, which every year aims to raise awareness about Israels ongoing settler-colonial project and apartheid policies over the Palestinian people. For some, talk of Israeli apartheid may seem like just another buzzword used by activists. Others see it as unhelpful, lazy, inflammatory, or even antisemitic. But what are we really saying when we talk about Israeli apartheid? First, and crucially, it is not about a precise analogy with the apartheid South Africa regime. Although it is true that prominent veterans of the anti-apartheid struggle have invoked the comparison. In 2002, for example, Desmond Tutu said a trip to Palestine had reminded him so much of what happened to us black people in South Africa. And in 2009 Tutu also endorsed a book I had written called Israeli Apartheid: A Beginners Guide. There is a rich discussion to be had about what happened in South Africa and what is happening in Israel and Palestine. But this comparison is not how one ultimately tests whether to speak of Israeli apartheid is accurate or appropriate. That is because apartheid is a crime in international law, independent of what took place in South Africa. The 1977 Additional Protocol I of the Geneva Conventions of 1949, for example, lists apartheid as a grave breach, and one without any geographical limitation. Israel: From independence to intifada Show all 7 1 /7 Israel: From independence to intifada Israel: From independence to intifada 26973.bin Israel: From independence to intifada 26974.bin Israel: From independence to intifada 26975.bin Israel: From independence to intifada 26976.bin Israel: From independence to intifada 26977.bin Israel: From independence to intifada 26985.bin Robert Capa/Magnum Israel: From independence to intifada 26986.bin Robert Capa/Magnum Apartheid is also listed as a crime against humanity in the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, adopted in 1998 four years after the formal end of apartheid in South Africa. The Rome Statute defines apartheid as inhumane actscommitted in the context of an institutionalised regime of systematic oppression and domination by one racial group over any other racial group or groups and committed with the intention of maintaining that regime. Do Israeli laws and practices match this definition? In the words of the US State Department, Palestinian citizens face institutional and societal discrimination. This affects areas such as immigration and family life, land and housing. There is no legal guarantee of equality, and human rights defenders have identified more than 50 discriminatory laws. In the West Bank, the Israeli state has created and established a network of illegal settlements whose residents citizens of Israel live among Palestinians subject to military law. While settlements expand, Palestinian homes are demolished. Recommended Read more Israeli policeman filmed pushing Palestinian man out of wheelchair Recently, in the words of Israeli human rights NGO BTselem, Israeli authorities have stepped up efforts to expel Palestinian communities from vast areas in the West Bank this is ethnic cleansing. From January 1 to February 15 of this year, according to United Nations data, Israeli forces destroyed or confiscated 283 Palestinian homes and other structures, displacing 404. As a senior UN official explained, while most of these demolitions take place on the spurious legal grounds that Palestinians do not possess building permits, Israeli figures themselves show that only 1.5 per cent of Palestinian permit applications are approved in any case. Amnesty International has described the formal denial of participation in planning for an entire population, coupled with the establishment of a parallel planning system for Israeli settlements that explicitly discriminates in favour of another population whose very presence living in the territory in question violates international law as unique globally. In the Gaza Strip, Palestinians continue to suffer under an Israeli blockade that constitutes illegal collective punishment. When Israel is not conducting horrific large-scale attacks on the fenced-in territory, there are routine attacks on Palestinian farmers and fishermen. The majority of Palestinians in Gaza are actually refugees, whose lands are often a few miles away inside Israels pre-1967 territory. It is a reminder of the fact that Israels "Jewish majority" was only established by the expulsion of Palestinians, and is maintained by their continued exclusion. This is just a sample but the key point here is that Israels crimes are not aberrations. They are not the actions of some gung-ho generals or of one particularly right-wing government. We are talking here about core legislation, and policies maintained by the state over decades. We are talking about then, as the Rome Statute puts it, inhumane actscommitted in the context of an institutionalised regime. This is why the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination has urged Israel to eradicate all practices that violate the prohibition of racial segregation and apartheid. To dismiss all of this because Israel is not the same as South Africa is to miss the point, in the same way that to whitewash systematic discrimination simply because there is an Arab on Israels Supreme Court (the only one from 66 justices past and present) is cheap tokenism. The facts are clear. It is Israeli apartheid that should cause offence not campaigns (or boycotts) in support of the Palestinians basic rights. Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the View from Westminster email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} To the Ministry of Defence last night for the ninth meeting of the Strand Group, the public seminar series of the Policy Institute at King's College, London. We were addressed by Air Marshal Phil Osborn, who has been Chief of Defence Intelligence for a year. Defence Intelligence, which has sometimes been regarded as a backwater tributary of British intelligence, has under his command been upgraded in resources and status. It employs 400 analysts (Osborn was proud that most of those under 45 are women) and with his four-star rank "we are not as vulnerable to head-office iniquities as we used to be," he said. DI is readying itself to provide real-time monitoring of world threats 24 hours a day, seven days a week. "That means five shifts, which is manpower intensive, but essential if we are not to be surprised," he said. Trying to avoid being surprised is one of the agency's objectives (it is not a separate agency like MI5, MI6 and GCHQ, but a part of the Ministry of Defence). Osborn had recently conducted an exercise echoing that carried out by Philip Tetlock for the US intelligence service, Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity (IARPA), of reviewing DI's analyses over the past 10 years to see how well it had anticipated developing threats. Most of its predictions had been good, but it had underplayed extremism in the form of the rise of Daesh; the extent to which Russia would be militarily assertive; and the problem of migration. This last had been anticipated, but not the "confluence of factors that made it as immediate [a problem] as it is today". It is not just change but the pace of change that is hard to predict, he said, particularly with autocracies. With slides showing photos of Vladimir Putin and Bashar al-Assad, he spoke of "the mysteries of personality-based grand strategic decision-making". His next slide was of the "cone of probability", which showed how DI has to try to assess a range from "likely", which is usually "like what is happening now only more so", to the "unlikely but disastrous". DI has to try not just to get its predictions "right" in the Tetlock sense, but to anticipate threats that probably won't materialise but which would be catastrophic if they did. Naturally, Osborn wasn't specific, but the audience, many of whom were senior civil servants or ex-civil servants, and many of whom seemed to have worked with Osborn and to admire him, enjoyed imagining some of the chilling scenarios conjured up by, for example, the mere title of the "joint cyber and electro-magnetic group". I came away glad that the government employs so many people to imagine the worst on my behalf. Sign up here to receive a daily "Catch-Up Service" email (9am Sunday to Friday) with links to new posts by John Rentoul. Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the View from Westminster email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} The timing couldnt have been better or worse, depending on how you look at it. As if to mark Israeli Apartheid Week, which has been taking place at UK universities, Israels ministry of transport announced yesterday that Palestinians travelling to work in Israel would be required to board separate buses to those used by Jewish settlers. Search #apartheid on Twitter, and see how the announcement has turned into another PR gift from the Israeli government to pro-Palestinian campaigners. Is Israel an apartheid state? Historical analogies should always be used with care, so the question bears some scrutiny. Its worth noting that the apartheid charge isnt a recent invention of pro-Palestinian activists. In fact it was first used in an Israeli cabinet meeting when the occupation of the West Bank was just a few weeks old. As the Israeli historian Tom Segev records, during a July 1967 discussion on the fate of the territories one minister said: 'We can't maintain this occupation and start settling Israelis on the land people will accuse us of apartheid'. That, of course, is precisely what happened. When Israelis began setting up communities on the newly conquered land, two separate legal and bureaucratic regimes sprang up. Jewish settlers enjoyed all the benefits of Israeli citizenship, while Palestinians came to be subject to separate laws, put on trial in separate courts, and governed by a separate bureaucracy overseen by a department of the Israeli military. This dual standard grew more acute as the situation wore on and it became clear that the occupation wasnt going to be temporary. When Palestinian rage erupted into the protests of the First Intifada, Israel ramped up measures to segregate settlers from their Palestinian neighbours. In time, the occupation turned into a multifaceted system designed to control nearly every aspect of Palestinians lives. Segregated bus lines are just the tip of an iceberg that includes segregated roads, unequal checkpoint regimes, and separate justice systems. In an attempt to sugarcoat these policies, Israels apologists argue they arent comparable to South African apartheid because theyre rooted in security concerns rather than racial supremacism. This misses the point. Some Israelis are outright racists and some arent the same could of course be said of Palestinians. But, as all colonial regimes learn, any attempt to maintain separate legal regimes for two peoples in one territory requires increasingly discriminatory security measures to keep order. But before we conclude that the charge of Israeli apartheid is an open and shut case, a crucial qualification is in order. Palestinians inside Israels legal, pre-1967 borders live under a very different regime from their brethren in the West Bank. Though they face all kinds of discrimination, they can vote, hold political office and move freely none of which could be said of South African blacks under apartheid. In mixed cities like Haifa, Arabs and Jews rub shoulders in cafes, on public transport and in workplaces again, a far cry from pre-1990 South Africa. This doesnt justify the very real discrimination faced by Palestinian Israelis. But it shows we should tread carefully when applying incendiary labels to complex political and social realities. Those who try to make the apartheid epithet stick to both pre-1967 Israel and the much harsher regime in the West Bank have a none-too-subtle political agenda. By eliding these different ground-level realities, they attempt to portray Israels very existence as illegitimate insisting justice can only prevail as a result of an equal rights struggle similar to the one waged by Mandela and the ANC. Their desired outcome isnt just an end to the occupation, but the creation of a single Israeli-Palestinian state in which Jews and Palestinians live harmoniously on the basis of one person, one vote. This may be a pleasant exercise in wish fulfillment, but such a state would have about as much chance of surviving in this part of the world as a snowman in June. By trying to stretch apartheid well beyond its original meaning, in the service of a goal supported by almost nobody outside a leftist fringe, we do a disservice to the specific struggles of Israeli and West Bank Palestinians. "The question," as Alice says to Humpty Dumpty in Through the Looking Glass, "is whether you can make words mean so many different things." Unless we are careful with language, we play into the hands of Israels apologists, who can shrug off such charges as the ill-informed propaganda of people bent on its destruction. And in doing so, we let the perpetrators of a real apartheid regime in the West Bank off the hook. This article was originally published by The Independent in March 2013 Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the View from Westminster email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} EastEnders has long been criticised for being a bit too white. For most people, the real East End of London represents the best of multicultural Britain, with waves of migrants over the past few centuries shaping it into one of the most diverse parts of the city and, indeed, the country. Good news, then, that there are plans to build a mosque in its fictional TV representation! Im just nearing the end of a PhD on British mosques, and Ill be honest: Im looking for a job. So I humbly offer my expertise as a consultant to the BBC to ensure their show is as realistic as possible. Here are few suggestions - pro bono, of course. Building a mosque is never a dull affair There are about 1600 mosques in Britain, give or take. These vary from house mosques to landmarks such as London Central Mosque. Few were established without some sort of controversy, from local council disputes to protests from far-right groups - and even the occasional arson attack. Plenty of opportunity for soap opera drama here. Forget radicalisation - try Ramadan en masse There have been suggestions that the introduction of a mosque might also be followed by a radicalisation plotline. This is too easy. Most cases of radicalisation take place outside of mosques, on the streets or online. Instead, EastEnders can have a big Ramadan storyline. Anyone deprived of food and drink for several hours a day is going to get a bit testy, Muslims included. Recommended Read more Pop stars are embroiled in a bitter battle to be the most feminist Combine this with the general Bollywood-inspired predilection for South Asian elders to react melodramatically on TV and you have a ready-made storyline - and the best part? You can do it annually! Yeah, we might have seen the Masoods do the odd fast, but Ramadan is a communal thing. Get everyone down the mosque for free food at sundown. The mosque can be the new Queen Vic. Maybe someone can break their fast with a pint and the Imam can shout: Get out of my mosque! These are changing times; we need a new catchphrase, people. Which moon will Albert Squares mosque be following? Every year, when it comes to the time for the Islamic Eid festival, a debate tears apart British Muslims. See, unlike Christmas, which is nice and predictable and falls on the 25th December consistently, Muslims like to follow the lunar calendar, which relies on some degree of visual sighting. And every Eid, Muslims argue about whether we should be using astronomical predictions, following Saudi Arabias sightings, or London-based sightings. The debates get really intense and you can have Muslims in the same city (even the same street) following different calendars. Id like to see a plotline with Albert Square residents all getting involved in the debate, with punch-ups and teary-eyed shouting matches. Itll really bring some authenticity to the proceedings. More tea, Imam? A mosque means an Imam, which will be a great regular addition to the EastEnders cast. The shows already had two Imams, both called Ali. I suggest for realism hes called something else this time (try Mohammed, cant go wrong with that). UK Imams are increasingly British-born, young, highly educated and usually underpaid. They will also have had a decent amount of training in fiqh, or jurisprudence, preparing them for the difficult questions theyre likely to encounter during their ministry. Imams receive training in pastoral support, meaning theyre great at giving advice, and not just to Muslims. Who better than the local Imam to advise local residents on the frankly ridiculous ethical dilemmas and moral quandaries they get into? What are the Islamic ethical issues raised when a mother switches her deceased baby for another baby without the second mother realising? Well I, for one, would like to know. So there you go, BBC: some straightforward ways to not only ensure your Walfords new mosque is as realistic as possible, but also ways to introduce some fresh drama into the show. Give me a ring sometime. We can discuss my new appointment over lunch. Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the View from Westminster email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} After the farcical display put on by the Conservatives during Mondays EU debate (the less said about the chanting of Who are ya? the better), it was hard to see how the tone in Parliament could have been brought down even lower during todays PMQs. But, not wanting to miss an opportunity, more of the same followed from the Tory benches, as the exchanges veered from the astonishing to the ridiculous. Corbyn chose to attack Cameron over the junior doctor contract debacle. He cited the NHS Staff Survey, which shows that junior doctors already work additional hours, and with morale falling across the sector. He also swung at the Health Secretarys imposition of the contract, and the Governments calculated misrepresentation of weekend mortality statistics. Cameron retorted with numerous slippery claims about the contract. He hammered home the 10bn extra being spent on the NHS (omitting the fact that this will be by 2020), and said that the Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt did indeed get the mortality stats wrong, but only because he understated rather than overstated them. See what he did there? According to the PM, there are actually 11,000 weekend deaths on the NHS, up from the 6,000 that Hunt claimed in July. But as has already been pointed out by Buzzfeeds Tom Chivers, the British Medical Journal (BMJ) article this figure was plucked from also said it would be rash and misleading to link the deaths to poorer care. Its actually much more complicated than the Government is claiming, as people coming into hospital at weekends tend to be sicker. After the Department of Health referred to the 11,000 stat in October, the editor of the BMJ even got involved and accused Hunt of misusing data to mislead the public. As Chivers tweeted earlier, There is *zero chance* that Hunt or the PM don't know about that rebuke. The fact that they are repeating this falsehood is extraordinary. David Cameron claims figure of 11,000 weekend NHS deaths at PMQs During PMQs the PM also took aim at the BMA, accusing them of misleading the public over pay figures a surprisingly hostile move, considering three more strikes and a legal challenge were announced yesterday. He then demanded an apology from Corbyn for his attack on Hunt, which I dont think hell be getting any time soon. Dave Brown on David Cameron Show all 11 1 /11 Dave Brown on David Cameron Dave Brown on David Cameron 4 March 2016 Boris Johnson campaigns for Brexit Dave Brown on David Cameron 20 January 2016 Cameron's response to Tata Steel job cuts Dave Brown on David Cameron 5 January 2016 Cameron's reaction to Saudi Arabia executions Dave Brown on David Cameron 3 December 2015 Cameron called the opponents of military action in Syria "terrorist sympathisers" Dave Brown on David Cameron 2 December 2015 Cameron and the Syria bombing vote Dave Brown on David Cameron 19 November 2015 Cameron moves toward a second vote on bombing Syria Dave Brown on David Cameron 21 October 2015 Xi Jinping is lauded at a state banquet as British steelworkers lose their jobs, largely as a result of cheap Chinese steel imports Dave Brown on David Cameron 8 October 2015 Tory conference responds to Camerons keynote speech Dave Brown on David Cameron 6 October 2014 Clegg attempts to distance himself from Cameron Dave Brown on David Cameron 27 June 2014 Cameron and EU re-negotiation Dave Brown on David Cameron 1 December 2012 Cameron, Murdoch and the Leveson Report Cameron was obviously under pressure today. Stats and figures appeared to be flowing out of his mouth without any thought of what they might be. As well as rehashing the dodgy 11,000 stat, he claimed that the UK has 10,000 more doctors and 10,000 more nurses. This later turned into 11,000 more nurses both numbers which are, actually, inaccurate. Its 8,500 more nurses. Bizarrely, Cameron also decided to invoke Nye Bevan to push his health plans, saying that the chief architect of the NHS would want it to run a seven-day service because he knew it was for patients up and down the country. Although Im not sure that Bevan who once said he had a deep burning hatred for the Tory Party [] So far as I am concerned they are lower than vermin would agree. David Cameron and Jeremy Corbyn clash over Aneurin Bevan The PM also launched a seething personal attack on Corbyn that was completely uncalled for. After a Labour backbencher heckled him about his mother signing a petition opposing cuts to childrens centres, Cameron said Ask my mother? I think I know what my mother would say. I think shed look across the dispatch box and shed say: put on a proper suit, do up your tie and sing the national anthem. The hordes of backbenchers behind him descended into uncontrollable jeering and guffawing which seemed to go on for an eternity, not helped by the fact that Speaker Bercow failed to intervene. Recommended Read more The government is about to stop recognising certain children as poor After a week away from PMQs, it was disappointing to see that a recess has done nothing for the tone of debate in Parliament. While Corbyn appeared animated, passionate and genuinely angry about the current assaults on junior doctors and the NHS, Cameron seemed rattled. Maybe he was weary from his exhausting week in Brussels, trying to make a set of minor concessions written on the back of a croissant sound like a deal? Who knows, but a Cameron of old appeared today one who could only revert to personal insults to justify his weakening position, both on the NHS and in his party generally. Corbyn missed opportunities to strike back, although to his credit, now hes started to get a grip on PMQs it would have been a shame to see him lower himself to the PMs snide and denigrating behaviour. My verdict: Cameron 3/10. Pathetic showing by the alleged Prime Minister. Take a holiday possibly permanently. Back to the drawing board. Corbyn 8/10. A well-controlled, effective outing under rather difficult circumstances. Just ignore the advice about your dress sense. Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the View from Westminster email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} In spite of President Obamas good intentions, it is quite possible that the Guantanamo Bay detention camp will not be closed until the last remaining prisoner dies there. Whatever President Obama does, a reader of The New York Times told the newspaper this week, he cannot allow the terrorists who planned and executed the 9/11 attacks that killed my niece and 3,000 others to be released or transferred to other countries. This reader, like millions of Americans, is still seeking closure. The reason for my pessimism is my doubt whether closure, however ardently desired, can any longer be attained. And in these circumstances, I dont see Congress supporting the Presidents plan. The first attempt to give full expression to Americas righteous indignation was the invasion of Afghanistan in 2001 soon after the 9/11 atrocities. While the US and its allies, including Britain, had significant military success in Afghanistan, the Taliban hung on and the al-Qaeda leader, Osama bin Laden, remained at large. Then, from 2003 onwards, the Taliban regrouped and responded with an insurgency that has been going on ever since. No closure there. In 2003, President George W Bush launched a second invasion with Britain and other allies. This time the target was Iraq, on the mistaken grounds that Saddam Hussein harboured weapons of mass destruction. The invasion was successfully completed in seven weeks, but then it morphed into the longer Iraq war, from which the US finally withdrew in 2011 without a good result, only to re-engage in 2014 at the head of a new coalition. So the American people could draw no satisfaction from this attempt to punish the perpetrators of 9/11. But at least they had Guantanamo Bay. It was established in a US naval base in Cuba in January 2002. Since then 779 men have been held there. Many were, or are, Afghans. Unfortunately, seeking to take their revenge on an entire population, the Americans werent too choosy about whom they incarcerated. Some detainees had in effect been bought from Afghan tribesmen, who were offered cash bounties for supplying prisoners. All were atrociously treated, including denigration of Islam by such acts as flushing the Koran down the toilet. Shaker Aamer: Guantanamo's last British detainee Show all 10 1 /10 Shaker Aamer: Guantanamo's last British detainee Shaker Aamer: Guantanamo's last British detainee 332063.bin AP Shaker Aamer: Guantanamo's last British detainee 332066.bin DAVID SANDISON Shaker Aamer: Guantanamo's last British detainee 332062.bin REUTERS Shaker Aamer: Guantanamo's last British detainee 332053.bin AP; PA Shaker Aamer: Guantanamo's last British detainee 332054.bin AP Shaker Aamer: Guantanamo's last British detainee 332055.bin REUTERS Shaker Aamer: Guantanamo's last British detainee 332056.bin REUTERS Shaker Aamer: Guantanamo's last British detainee 332057.bin PA Shaker Aamer: Guantanamo's last British detainee 332058.bin DAVID SANDISON Shaker Aamer: Guantanamo's last British detainee 332059.bin DAVID SANDISON This bad treatment cannot bring closure. Indeed, many aspects of early mistreatment were, in due course, halted. The identities of those held were first kept secret, but later disclosed. The US government also asserted that detainees were not entitled to any of the protections of the Geneva Conventions, but in 2006 the US Supreme Court ruled that prisoners were entitled to the minimal protections listed under Common Article 3. In January 2009, a Bush administration official conceded that torture had occurred at Guantanamo on at least one detainee. Meanwhile, numerous detainees were released. The last British resident held at Guantanamo, Shaker Aamer, was returned on 30 October last year; he had been held in solitary confinement despite never being charged with any wrongdoing. Now President Obama has proposed that some 60 of the remaining 91 detainees be transferred to a new, yet-to-be-built maximum-security prison on US soil. Most Republican, and some Democratic politicians, are opposed to the Presidents plans. Senator Marco Rubio of Florida, a presidential candidate, said angrily at a rally in Las Vegas before the states Republican caucus: Not only are we not going to close Guantanamo, when I am president, if we capture a terrorist alive, they are not getting a court hearing in Manhattan They are going to Guantanamo, and we are going to find out everything they know. Underlying objections like these is the perception that President Obamas civilised proposals dont represent closure for the 9/11 terrorist attacks. The nearest one could get would involve bringing the remaining detainees before the American courts on terrorism charges. If convicted they would no doubt receive severe sentences, if not the death penalty, in states where capital punishment still obtains. But would they be convicted? Given the random way in which the detainees were originally rounded up, and given the sheer length of time that has elapsed since 2001, and given the difficulty of gathering evidence in the Middle East, is it realistic to imagine that trials could be held? I dont think so. The reality is that closure will not be achieved. Many Americans will remain distressed, and Guantanamo will remain open for the foreseeable future. Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the View from Westminster email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} You know things have reached a pretty pass in any dispute when the combatants start to invoke the spirit of deceased politicians. But when two men who have reached the top of their political trees also start invoking their own mothers as Jeremy Corbyn and David Cameron did at Prime Ministers Questions well, the possibility of any agreement looks remote indeed. Yes, after a merciful, but all too brief, period of remission, we are back in the heat of the junior doctors dispute. The Labour leader accused the Government of showing bad faith and misrepresenting statistics (about hospital deaths at weekends); the Prime Minister returned to his mantra about people not getting sick only on weekdays. Whatever else the Government may be ready to compromise on, it appears not to be a seven-day NHS. And quite right, too. Recommended Read more Jeremy Hunt event cancelled after junior doctors buy tickets Our NHS is not run for the benefit of the staff, however long they have spent in training, however mountainous their student loans, however arduous and responsible their work. A great many people would probably like to work only Monday to Friday, 9 to 5, especially if highly-paid overtime for additional hours comes virtually guaranteed. But this is not the reality for most people, and there is no reason, when so much in this country now functions 24/7 with the staff on rotas and little, if any, overtime paid why it should still be such a struggle to get the emergency services to do the same. Yet it is here the overtime culture has proved most resilient. There will be those and I admit to being among them who saw the final offer to the junior doctors as too generous. By preserving a system of overtime, for Saturdays after 5pm and all Sundays, it leaves in place the idea that doctors can expect to work something like traditional office or factory hours with additional rewards for anything else. Those expectations need to be scotched. Junior doctors, and their many vocal supporters, have tried to turn the contested statistics about weekend fatalities to their advantage, suggesting that a cut-price seven-day NHS would simply raise death rates around the week. Anyone who visits hospitals on weekdays and at weekends, however, will be familiar with the glaring disparity in staffing at every level, and what sometimes appears to be a surfeit of employees, especially in the least skilled jobs, during standard working hours. There is surely money to be saved here, that could offset the cost of more staff at weekends. In pictures: Junior doctors protests in UK Show all 10 1 /10 In pictures: Junior doctors protests in UK In pictures: Junior doctors protests in UK 20,000 Junior Doctors marched through central London in protest at the new contract changes the government is trying to impose which they say will be unfair and unsafe In pictures: Junior doctors protests in UK Junior doctors protest in London In pictures: Junior doctors protests in UK 4 year old Cassius takes part in a demonstration in Westminster, in support of junior doctors over changes to NHS contracts, London In pictures: Junior doctors protests in UK Protest over proposed changes to junior doctors' contracts, Leeds In pictures: Junior doctors protests in UK Junior doctors and NHS staff protesting against the health service cuts and the proposed contract changes offered by the government outside Parliament In pictures: Junior doctors protests in UK Junior doctors and NHS staff protesting against the health service cuts and the proposed contract changes offered by the government outside Parliament In pictures: Junior doctors protests in UK Over 5000 junior doctors rallied in Waterloo place, before marching through Whitehall and onto Parliament Square, in opposition to Jeremy Hunt's new working conditions for doctors In pictures: Junior doctors protests in UK Demonstrators listen to speeches in Waterloo Place during the 'Let's Save the NHS' rally and protest march by junior doctors In pictures: Junior doctors protests in UK Junior doctors marched in London to highlight their plight In pictures: Junior doctors protests in UK A protester at a demonstration in support of junior doctors in London Nor can the junior doctors dispute be seen in isolation. Their new contract is just one part if a large part of reform of the NHS that is yet to come. If next in line are to be the consultants, for whom the junior doctors are often deputising at nights and weekends, you can understand why the Government might be keen to hold the line. What occasioned the latest sword-crossing in the Commons was the announcement by the British Medical Association earlier this week that the junior doctors would hold three more days of strikes, and would fight the Health Secretarys imposition of the new contract through the courts. In the first instance, this means seeking a judicial review. On precisely what legal grounds the BMA intends to fight is not yet clear. For all the perception that the English judiciary has become more politically engaged in recent years, it is hard to see a judge ruling that an elected government is not within its rights to set the terms of a contract for public sector employees, particular when in line with a manifesto commitment. Going to court is only going to inject more poison into this already toxic dispute. It is beyond time that the BMA called it a day and recognised that the junior doctors have won as much as they are going to more than they could have expected at the outset and more, indeed, than may be wise for the future health of the NHS. The BMAs continued insistence a safe seven-day NHS is somehow beyond the countrys means is defeatism of the first order, and really not junior doctors call to make. It is the stated policy of an elected government. That said, the extent to which this dispute has become politicised has made it infinitely harder to resolve. Jeremy Hunt has not just been defending his governments policy of a seven-day NHS, he has been engaged directly in negotiating the small print of a new contract. This has enabled junior doctors, and the BMA on their behalf, to cast the project as a heartless Tory plot. The most senior non-politicians the chief executive of NHS England, Simon Stevens, and the medical director, Sir Bruce Keogh have both been conspicuously absent from the fray. This may be because, if heads had to roll, the Health Secretary is deemed more dispensable than either of them. But here, perhaps, also lies the key to change. For 10 years or more most recently in the Conservatives 2010 election manifesto proposals have been mooted to separate the NHS from politics by placing it under an independent board. Policy, such as the creation of seven-day service, and the overall NHS budget would be set by central government, leaving the rest to professionals. Each time, however, a consensus evolved to the effect that the NHS was so integral a part of national life and the sums of money allocated so vast, that there had to be direct political accountability. The scandal at Mid-Staffs augmented that view. But the downside of the argument is again before us. Junior doctors and a Conservative government at loggerheads; there is talk of relations blighted for a generation. One solution might be for the Government to return to its election manifesto of 2010 and divest itself of managerial responsibility for the NHS. If junior doctors can cast that as a victory, so be it. But there is no reason why the sort of hands-off arrangement that is considered good for the BBC and increasingly for schools should not be good for the NHS, too. Enda Kenny has declared himself "man enough" to admit his mistakes and move on after coming under pressure over his latest gaffe in the final days of the general election campaign. Opponents seized on the Taoiseach's apparent admission in a live television debate that he personally appointed a Fine Gael supporter to a State board a year and a half ago. Donegal businessman John McNulty's elevation to the board of the Irish Museum of Modern Art, effectively allowing him to run for a Seanad seat, sparked a major cronyism row. Fianna Fail said Mr Kenny's admission on the live leaders' debate - which he later appeared to retract - was the second time this week he was forced to change his story after his "handlers had got to him". Barry Cowen, Fianna Fail's environment spokesman, said: "I think during the course of the debate, we seen for the first time that he told the truth on the matter by virtue of the fact that it was he that appointed (Mr McNulty) to the board. "Then again by the time he had got to the back door the handlers had got to him and his story had changed." Mr Cowen said the Taoiseach "had form" in having to backtrack during the campaign, referring to Mr Kenny's remarks about "whingers" in his own constituency of Mayo earlier in the week. On the second last day of campaigning, Mr Kenny brushed off suggestions he is gaffe-prone, by claiming it was a defining characteristic of his leadership that he could admit his mistakes. "I make mistakes, but I'm man enough to acknowledge and accept responsibility for all these things," he said, during his party's final press conference before the poll. "I think the hallmark of leadership is how you move on from issues that arise." But Renua leader Lucinda Creighton accused Mr Kenny of having contradicted everything he said about the McNulty affair when questioned about it at the time in the Dail. "The extraordinary thing is, we would have a head of government who would go into the Dail chamber and claim that black is white," she added. Gerry Adams, who pointed out the admission during the leaders' debate, claimed it was a stark reminder of a "golden circle" politics waged by both Fine Gael and Fianna Fail. The Sinn Fein leader said both parties have been appointing "their cronies and friends to positions of influence in the State for decades". He said: "Despite promising a democratic revolution, (Enda Kenny) has kept Fianna Fail's legacy of cronyism and that culture of corruption and political patronage alive and well." "There are two Irelands out there - one for the privileged and one for the rest of us." Tanaiste Joan Burton scored a narrow victory in the final live leaders' debate, analysis of reaction on social media has shown. While none of the four party chiefs landed any killer blows, research by data scientists at Adoreboard, a semantic analytics firm based at Queen's University, Belfast put the Labour leader a fraction ahead. The debate itself however failed to really drive massive interaction on Twitter, with only a four-fold spike in engagement during the 90 minutes on air. But Adoreboard's emotion platform, Toneapi.com, managed to show that more than 57% of the interactions with Ms Burton on the microblogging site were positive. Their research put her a percentage point ahead of Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin on 55.9% and Sinn Fein chief Gerry Adams on 55.7%. Taoiseach Enda Kenny suffered the worst score, according to the analysis, hitting only 54.9%. The report was backed up by the view of pundits who regarded the final show on RTE's Prime Time as Ms Burton's best performance. Adoreboard chief technology officer Dr Fergal Monaghan said: " From the numbers, Gerry Adams continues to be the most tweeted about, and in particular he had a good start in the debate." The platform works on any content using mathematical algorithms for emotions expressed in tweets so feelings such as joy, rage, anger, surprise, annoyance and trust can be measured. On the negative side, Adoreboard found Mr Martin experienced the most criticism on Twitter during the debate followed by Mr Adams and the Taoiseach and Tanaiste neck and neck. Leaders will spend the final two days of the campaign hosting their last major media events and spending time out canvassing as a hung Dail looks more likely. The company also used data analysis to show if Twitter recorded any impact from voter engagement. Unfortunately for all the leaders on the microblogging site, about one third of the engagement they have seen in the short campaign has been negative. While Taoiseach Mr Kenny fared the worst at 36%, the others were not far behind. Some 34% of the mentions on Ruth Coppinger's profile were negative while Mr Martin and Ms Burton's was 33%, Shane Ross 32% and Stephen Donnelly and Mr Adams 31%. Dr Monaghan said the figures often reflect the work of parties and their supporters to like or retweet messages from their party chiefs. "What you tend to see on Twitter is a slightly more positive engagement overall," he said. "People tend to tweet more positive stuff, and you don't only see that in politics. The twittersphere is as much about marketing." Data also showed the Social Democrats performing well in terms of followers, albeit from a low base. Mr Donnelly added 2,604 followers in the short campaign, the second biggest number, but they all trail Mr Adams. He gained 4,339 followers in the few weeks of hustings and took his total follower base past the 100,000 mark. At the same time Mr Adams' party - renowned for its so-called Shinnerbot online following - added 1,870 followers. The Taoiseach did well himself by adding 1,739 followers. The only other party getting anywhere near that mark was the Social Democrats with 1,742 new followers. A graphic artist's impression of the planned development in the Cork docklands. A graphic artist's impression of the planned development in the Cork docklands. Development of Cork's vast docklands is set to be kick-started by a 90m office complex aimed at resolving a chronic shortage of commercial space in the city. Owen O'Callaghan unveiled plans for the 360,000 square-foot centre which will comprise four separate buildings at Albert Quay. Mr O'Callaghan, who developed Cork's Mahon Point Shopping Centre and Opera Lane retail complex, said the project would provide office space capable of handling up to 3,000 employees. The Albert Quay site, adjacent to where Mr O'Callaghan had proposed to develop a Cork events centre, is considered hugely strategic to Cork's entire docklands redevelopment. It also seeks to address a chronic shortage of office space in Cork city centre. The 60m One Albert Quay office complex, developed by John Cleary adjacent to Cork City Hall, registered record lettings by firms eager to secure business space in the city centre. More than 350m worth of major projects are under way in Cork city. These include the 60m Cork events centre being built by BAM/Heineken on the old Beamish & Crawford site, the 60m One Albert Quay office complex, the 3m facelift for Kent railway station, the 70m revamp of Pairc Ui Chaoimh GAA stadium, the 3.2m Irish Independent Park rugby stadium revamp, and the 50m Capitol retail complex. O'Callaghan Properties confirmed planning for the new office complex would be formally lodged with Cork City Council this week. "This project makes a really powerful statement for Cork, Ireland's second city," Mr O'Callaghan said. As we waited for the daffodils to remind us that spring had arrived, their place was usurped by the sudden appearance of multi-coloured election posters on nearly every telephone and lamp post in the country. These posters, some with lush green backgrounds, others with images of bright blue skies and deep golden hues now dominate our landscape. With voting day rapidly approaching this is probably a good time to take a quick look at what has been happening in farming over the last five years. Unfortunately very little has happened in cattle farming with incomes continuing to remain unsustainably low. The critically important de-coupled Single Payment Scheme has now morphed into the 'Basic Payment' scheme. There have also been some adjustments in the level of these payments with reductions to larger beneficiaries while smaller beneficiaries have seen modest increases to their payments. During the 2013 CAP reform debate, efforts by some prominent politicians to transform EU beef support payments into a populist form of social welfare scheme did not succeed. It is interesting to note, however, that repercussions from these events are still being felt by one of our farming organisations. I believe that the single most important change over the last five years is that a real sense of pride has been restored to Irish farming. For the first time ever, the Irish public now appear to fully appreciating how critically important agriculture is to our economy. I believe Minister Simon Coveney, whom I have often been critical of in the past, deserves much credit. So what have our farming organisations been up to during the same period? Leaving aside recent controversy, it is difficult to see any hope for the future of cattle farming emerging from any of our farming organisations. Their constant huffing and puffing would appear to be more about justifying their own existence than actually helping farmers. Constructive leadership which puts the future of the 'Irish farmer' to the fore has never been so badly needed. Speaking of visionaries I recently had the privilege of attending a talk on the future of Ireland's dairy and beef sectors given by one of Ireland's greatest agricultural visionaries, Denis Brosnan. In a major coup for the North Tipperary Foxhounds who organised the event Mr Brosnan gave, what was only his second public address to a farmers' meeting since he retired from the Kerry Group over a year ago. It was very chastening to listen to Mr Brosnan spell out what he saw as the future of Irish farming. In order to survive in what is now a global marketplace, farmers will not only have to be super efficient but will also have to be brave enough to borrow to expand. Mr Brosnan remarked that as global food prices continue to fall, small inefficient producers will disappear. I also found it interesting to note that when questioned on the potential environmental effect of this expansion in food production Mr Brosnan appeared quite confident that a great deal of scientific research was already underway on ways to address these issues. He mentioning anaerobic digesters as one option. However, Mr Brosnan's emphasis on the development of 'Grey Infrastructure', such as transport infrastructure, as a solution would appear to conflict with the EU's more favoured concept of developing 'Green Infrastructure' as a means to alleviate problems associated with more intensive agriculture. Back on the farm, the cattle I bought-in last cattle autumn continue to do well. I treated them with a pour-on dose for lice and worms soon after housing and it appears to have been very successful. So apart from having to take out a few animals that were unable to adapt to indoor living, everything appears to be going well. In relation to silage, barring a very bad spring I should be alright. With the longer spring days and the land drying I had planned to spread slurry and also get lime out on some fields. However the arrival of Storm Imogen and the harsh weather which followed has put a serious damper on these plans as the accompanying rain quickly restored my farm to its previously sodden state. It is quite frustrating, but it looks like I will just have to wait until the elements allow me to catch up on these jobs, some things never change! John Heney farms at Kilfeacle, Co Tipperary Glanbia's plan to spend 35m on the refurbishment of its cheese plant in Wexford will benefit from grant aid from Enterprise Ireland. "Subject to planning approval being secured, Enterprise Ireland has indicated its willingness to provide support for this investment," said a statement from the processor. The meat industry is stalling efforts to create a beef price index, claimed IFA presidential candidate Henry Burns. "In the dairy industry we have a price index. In beef we are fighting for that at European level, but the meat industry is resisting it all the way. In the absence of it, we have no way of getting information on wholesale prices between the farmer and the supermarket," Mr Burns said at last week's IFA presidential debate in Limerick. "In the US there are 150 people within the US Department of Agriculture working on reporting supermarket prices twice daily," the IFA livestock chairman said. A spokesman for Meat Industry Ireland (MII) said the EU Commission publishes the beef prices paid in every member state weekly, and Irish cattle prices are at 105pc of the EU average. MII pointed out it worked with Bord Bia to give a market analysis of beef exports at the recent Beef Forum which showed cuts and market channels in retail, food servicing and manufacturing. A spokesman said this showed the "complexity and diversity of the market channels" and also showed the "impossible task of running a price index that could encompass the complexity and diversity of cuts, markets and channels". "It was also accepted that no other member state in the EU has such a beef price index," he said. Joe Healy said that research had shown that a heifer for which the farmer received 800 retailed out at a return of 2,200. "We have proved that we are too easily dictated to and we need to be a lot stronger," he said. Flor McCarthy said that it was not acceptable that Irish produce is being used as a loss leader by the supermarkets, but he added that farmers are also too willing to accept the processors' reasons for not paying more. In a separate development, Mr Burns told the Limerick meeting an agreement has been reached with Minister Simon Coveney that will see the Department of Agriculture carry out monitoring of the carcase trim of cattle at factories. The process is to become the responsibility of Agricultural Officers at the factories for all carcasses being processed at the 26 export factories. He said it must be ensured the Department of Agriculture AO's (Agricultural Officers) fully monitor it. IFA funding has been hit by a drop of 1m per annum in income from FBD following the collapse of profits in the insurance company, one of the candidates for the association's presidency has claimed. All three candidates for the IFA presidency have stressed the need to replace sources of funding to maintain current services as farmers again called for an end to the controversial levies collected by factories, dairies and marts on the IFA's behalf. Kerry native Flor McCarthy told the hustings in Limerick that the IFA's income of 12m a year had included around 1m from FBD which was "now gone". However, IFA headquarters stated that funding from FBD was not down by 1m but declined to provide another figure. "We are definitely back by 2m at this stage and whether we are back more or not I cannot tell you," said Mr McCarthy. The collection of levies by factories remained a "massive issue" but he stressed a well-funded organisation was vital to maintain services. If a "creditable proposal" for a replacement of the levies could be placed on the table he would support it, he added. Transparency In addition to levies, the demand for full disclosure on IFA funding and payments - including staff salaries and expenses - dominated last week's debate between the three candidates in Limerick. Laois-based candidate Henry Burns said transparency means knowing "what people are paid, why they are paid it and what they are benchmarked off". Galway's Joe Healy said farmers appeared to have accepted the linking of IFA salaries to similar grades in the Department of Agriculture and that this principle should be applied to all staff going forward. David Thompson from Pallasgreen said the "IFA has made fools of us", as he called for "full transparency" and for the organisation to get back to "delivering for farmers". John McNamara said the new president would be the "most significant president of the IFA in a generation", adding that the new man would either be hailed a hero in two years for "having rescued the organisation" or be "taking the high road out". There was also strong criticism of the manner in which the beef blockades at factories in 2014 had been called off "prematurely" which left producers "feeling like fools". Mr Burns stated he was not satisfied with the outcome, while Mr Healy said he was livid over the withdrawal. Contrary to the current French proposals in Brussels, all three candidates said that bringing back milk quotas was not an option, but neither is the continuation of milk price below the cost of production. Meanwhile, IFA Connacht may become the first region ever in the organisation to be without a chair as the unprecedented impasse on selection of candidates for the election continues. The IFA Rules and Privileges Committee were meeting last night to discuss the deadlock following the failure of the second round of county executive nominations to get the required second nomination. "It is up to the five counties to agree on candidates if they want a chairman," a source said. John Deere has approved the use of Camso rubber tracks on its Gator utility vehicles in Europe, following their availability in the US for several years. An XUV 855D Gator equipped with a Camso UTV T4S four-track system supplied by UK distributor Supatracks was recently featured on the company's stand at LAMMA 2016. Designed to extend the versatility and all year round use of these popular all-terrain vehicles even further, the Camso tracks reduce ground pressure by up to 75 per cent to less than 1 psi and take less than two hours to install in place of the wheels, with no other modifications required. Track widths are 318mm (12.5in) in front and 356mm (14in) at the rear. The tracks are steered and therefore minimise disruption of the soil surface when driving off-road. Camso tracks are manufactured in Canada by the same company that supplies units for John Deere's 8R, 9R and new 9RX four-track Series agricultural tractors. Camso is the world's leading maker of tracks for farm and construction vehicles as well as snowmobiles. Track systems provide better weight distribution and maximum flotation on all types of off-road terrain. The 25hp XUV 855D Gator 4x4 has a standard top speed of 32mph (52kph) and features true on-demand four-wheel drive, activated by a dash-mounted electronic switch, power steering and all-round independent suspension, adjustable at the rear. Ground clearance on the tracks is increased by around 45pc to 406mm (16in), while total payload and towing capacity remain the same at 635kg and 680kg respectively. The Gator's standard deluxe Mauser ROPS frame can be upgraded to a full glass cab if required, and models can be ordered with a variety of other factory and dealer installed options and attachments. These include tool carriers, cargo box dividers, a front mounted load rack, a bull bar and side extensions. Price of the Camso UTV T4S Track System, which is available to order from the John Deere dealer network, is around 4,875 euros plus VAT and delivery. The price of the normal Gator is around 12,500 plus VAT. Farmers have been urged to complete a financial analysis before sowing this spring, as concerns grow over low grain prices. It comes as farmers assess the damage caused by winter storms with many fields facing reduced plant growth due to water-logging. An estimated 500ha has been lost in southern coastal areas to salt burn from sea mist due to harsh winds. Ivan Whitten, a Teagasc tillage advisor, urged farmers to carry out a cost control analysis, particularly the rental of high-cost land as the latest Tillage Crops report issued a stark profit warning for the sector. "The economics of it don't add up," the specialist said, with grain prices back 10-15/t on last year's prices. "Tillage growers are feeling the pain as much as dairy and pig farmers," he said, emphasising the price of fertiliser is now out of sync with the price of grain. Farmers have been weighing up the costs of CAN verses urea, with many opting for urea as it is cheaper per kilo of nitrogen spread, said Mr Whitten. He also urged farmers to consider the "realistic option" of leaving poor quality tillage ground fallow. "The doom and gloom there at farm level is also there at merchant level as well," he said, with debts to merchants likely to increase unless prices rise this harvest. Mr Whitten pointed out merchants were also losing money on the stocks of grain stored in sheds and machinery sellers would also be impacted. "Everyone is exposed in low grain prices," he said. John Spink, head of crops research at Teagasc, said the winter barley acreage was up again reflecting the high yields of last year. It is predicted that the area of spring cereals, particularly spring feed barley, will likely drop again due to low margins and increased winter sowings. The area of winter barley sown is estimated to be up 7pc on last year at close to 75,000ha, with 12,000ha of winter oats. IFA grain chairman Liam Dunne said growers should insist on minimum price contracts delivering a margin before ordering fertiliser and seed this spring. The DEPFA bank on Commons Street at the IFSC, Dublin. There are no current plans to close Dublin-based Depfa's Irish office or lay off more of its 130-plus staff as the process of winding down the operation accelerates, according to FMS-WM, Germany's 'bad bank'. As the global financial crisis struck in 2008, Depfa was the catalyst for a 134bn bailout required by its then parent, Hypo Real Estate Holding. The bailout included 124bn of liquidity guarantees and 10bn in capital provided by the German government to Hypo between 2008 and 2010. A liquidator from Grant Thornton has just been appointed to a unit of the Ireland-based bank - Depfa Public Finance Bank. But FMS-Wertmanagement spokesman Andreas Henry told the Irish Independent that the winding-down process will still take years. Hypo Real Estate paid 5.2bn in 2007 to buy Depfa, just before international financial markets began to falter. Hypo was nationalised by the German government in 2009, and in 2014 FMS-WM bought Depfa for 320m. A planned sale of Depfa was also scrapped, with the German government saying that it hoped to extract more value from winding down the unit within FMS-WM. Mr Henry said Depfa has a lot of covered bonds and liabilities that run into the next century, and that plans have to be developed to deal with that. He added that Depfa has bought back certain preferred securities and is now buying back covered bonds, which he said are steps that "are leading to an accelerated winding down". FMS-WM launched a tender offer last month for 1bn of outstanding euro-denominated asset covered securities, and a total of 1.06bn (970m) Swiss franc-denominated securities that were issued by Depfa and Hypo. Mr Henry said an update on Depfa will be given when FMS-WM publishes accounts in April. Depfa is not allowed to write any new business, and its main purpose now is to manage and run down its public sector finance asset base. Depfa employs 134 people, most of them in Dublin. Glanbia, a global performance nutrition and global ingredients group, has posted its sixth consecutive year of double-digit growth, which has led to revenues in the firm jumping 9.3pc. In the company's annual results for 2015 it posted revenue in its wholly-owned businesses of 2.77bn, up 9.3pc on the previous year. Group earnings before interest, tax, and amortisation (EBITA) rose 10.5pc on the previous year, up to 271m. Glanbia's crown jewel, its Global Performance Nutrition arm, continued to expand with EBITA growth of 28.3pc, up to 135.6m. Expand Close Rob Kearney, Optimum Nutrition ambassador / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Rob Kearney, Optimum Nutrition ambassador Falling milk prices hit Glanbia's Global Ingredients division. In the firm's results it described the EBITA for the division as 'resilient'. Global Ingredients EBITA fell by 11.6pc, down to 106.6m. Speaking about the results Glanbia chief executive, Siobhan Talbot expressed her delight at the firm's continued growth. "The results demonstrate the resilience and diversification of the Glanbia model during a difficult year for dairy markets. Glanbia Performance Nutrition was the main driver of earnings growth supported by Dairy Ireland which saw a recovery in performance in 2015. The outlook for 2016 is positive and we are guiding 8pc to 10pc growth in adjusted earnings per share, constant currency," Ms Talbot said. Glanbia's recommended dividend for the year grew by 10pc, up to 12.2c per share. Ms Talbot said the firm is expecting further growth this year. "Our unique portfolio of performance nutrition brands and nutritional ingredients are right at the heart of emerging growth opportunities. The outlook for 2016 is positive and we are guiding 8pc to 10pc growth in adjusted earnings per share, constant currency. Chocolate giant Mars has recalled bars and sweets in 55 countries including Ireland, after plastic was found in one of its products. Mars Ireland announced that it is recalling its "fun-size" Mars and Milky Way bars as well as variety bags of fun-size chocolates and Celebrations that were made in the Netherlands. However, the recall does not affect the regular-sized bars. There have been no complaints in Ireland to date of any suspected contamination here, and the recall is being done as a purely precautionary measure, a spokesman for the company confirmed. Precaution The company issued a statement last night in which it said: "As a precautionary measure, Mars Ireland is recalling certain batches of the above products, due to the possible presence of plastic pieces. "No other varieties of chocolate, pack formats or bar sizes are affected in Ireland." Customers who bought the affected products are asked to return it to the store of purchase for a refund. They can also contact Mars Ireland on 1890 812315 with any queries. The recall comes after the popular chocolate bar manufacturer was forced to issue a recall of its Mars and Snickers bars in Germany after a consumer found a piece of plastic in a Snickers bar bought in Germany on January 8. Contaminated The contaminated bar was traced back to the manufacturer's plant in Veghel, Netherlands, which is understood to involve a protective cover used in the factory's manufacturing process. The potentially affected products include Celebrations boxes with expiry dates of 08/05/16 and 17/07/16 and fun size variety packs expiring on 24/07/16. Fun-size Mars bars with expiry dates 04/09/16, 11/09/16 and 18/09/16 are also affected, as are Fun-size Milky Way bars with an expiry date of 2/10/16. Other countries involved include the UK, France, the Netherlands and Germany. The manufacturer is based in the USA. Ladbrokes said that its online division incurred overheads that were higher than expected. Ladbrokes said its Irish operations returned to profitability in the second half of 2015, following an examinership process last year that saw the group shut 53 of its 196 outlets here. The company said it incurred 3.8m (4.8m) in legal and redundancy costs related to the examinership. It also shouldered an additional 6.4m (8.1m) exceptional charge that was mostly related to the Irish examinership, while the closure of the Irish shops also resulted in a 39.7m (50.7m) non-cash impairment charge, Ladbrokes said yesterday. Shares in UK gambling group Ladbrokes jumped as much as 6pc yesterday as it reported better than expected full-year results on the back of an improvement in its retail business. Ladbrokes, which is awaiting regulatory approval for a 2.2bn (2.8bn) merger with Coral Gala, said that its all-important online division - which has been struggling for some time - incurred overheads that were higher than analysts expected. Ladbrokes said its group revenue rose 3.2pc to 1.19bn (1.5bn) last year, while its group operating profit declined almost 36pc to 80.6m (103m). Revenue at its UK retail chain rose 2pc to 827.4m in 2015, while operating profit in the unit declined 2.7pc to 116.1m. That was better than analysts had anticipated, however. Although revenue at its digital arm jumped 12.9pc to 242.8m, it reported an operating loss of 23.8m compared to a profit of 14m a year earlier. Analysts at Davy Stockbrokers welcomed the results, but said online losses will continue to raise questions. Ladbrokes is attempting to tie the knot with Gala Coral after Paddy Power and Betfair merged to create an 11bn powerhouse. Among Ladbrokes' shareholders is financier Dermot Desmond. He criticised the planned merger with Gala Coral last year. Ladbrokes expects a preliminary ruling from the UK's Competition and Markets Authority in late April. Ladbrokes has already incurred close to 18m (23m) in costs pursuing the merger. In the Republic of Ireland, staking fell 7.8pc last year as it closed shops, while revenue was 16.5pc lower. On a like-for-like basis, the remaining 143 shops recorded a 14.3pc increase in the amounts staked, and a 20.5pc increase in the second half. Here are the main business stories from this morning's papers: Irish Independent * The numbers at work are now at the highest level since early 2009, new figures show, giving a boost to the outgoing Coalition as the election campaign enters its final days. Although experts point out that employment growth was weaker than expected in the final months of last year, they argue the overall labour market trend shows the strength and breadth of the economic recovery. The unemployment rate stood at 8.9pc last month, slightly higher than first thought, but economists believe it will dip further - to below 8pc - by the end of the year. Youth unemployment remains stubbornly high at 18.9pc, although that's down over the year from 20.3pc. * NAMA will seek 80m for the Gresham Hotel when it formally puts it up for sale today. CBRE and Christies have been tasked with selling the iconic Dublin hotel, which will be one of the last major hotel sales after the property crash. The Gresham, which opened in 1817, is by far the most prestigious hotel on the northside of Dublin. * Kerry Group is this year prepared to exceed the near 1bn it spent on acquisitions in 2015. The company is actively exploring deals at the moment, chief executive Stan McCarthy told reporters yesterday. "In terms of M&A activity, we have active M&A going on right now." The Irish Times * Employment levels hit their highest levels in seven years according to new figures released by the Central Statistics Office yesterday. The figures come as a timely boost to the Government ahead of Friday's election. The release from the CSO also showed a slowdown in the rate of employment growth in the final quarter of last year. Employer's group Ibec warned that businesses are becoming increasingly concerned over instability following the election. * Eir is to continue with its own rollout of high-speed broadband to rural homes, which may challenge the State's official broadband plan. According to a report in The Irish Times, Eir is pressing ahead with the rollout of broadband to 300,000 homes that have been earmarked for the rural broadband scheme. Eir expects to have 100,000 of these homes connected by the end of the year, with the ambition to provide another 200,000 with broadband over the following three years. * Bank of Ireland is to extend the maturity of its 1.4bn bonds that were issued to it by Nama six years ago. The bonds were due to mature in March of this year, but in the bank's full year results, it said that it had agreed to accept the issuance of new bonds. The new bonds will mature in March of next year. Irish Examiner * Limerick and Cork are the only two counties to join Dublin with an average disposable income greater than that of the rest of the State. According to the latest figures from the CSO, the three counties all had average disposable income of over 18,707. Dublin came out on top when it came to disposable income with an average of 20,885. * Kerry Group could spend in excess of 1bn in acquisitions this year with the firm intending to keep a strong focus on taking over new businesses. The firm's chief executive, Stan McCarthy, said that capital expenditure will amount to between 3pc and 4pc with more investment due to go towards improving manufacturing facilities. Kerry spent in excess of 900m on acquisitions last year, including a 700m splurge on three different US ingredients specialists in October. * Ladbrokes has an 'exciting' future in Ireland despite just coming out of a three-month examinership period last August. Following the examinership period the firm shed 50 stores and 90 staff in its Irish operations. Profits in the firm grew last year to 8.7m, up by 54.5pc on the previous year. However, that figure excludes around 10m in exceptional costs, which are associated to the examinership. Only a fraction of high end tech jobs are held by women, according to the European statistics agency Eurostat. Photo: Michael Mac Sweeney / Provision Ireland punches well beyond its weight for high end technology jobs, which is no surprise given the presence of global employers like Apple, Google and local startups such as Intercom. But just a fraction are held by women. Across the European Union, almost 16pc of the value of all exports is made up of high tech products and services, but in reality there are wide national disparities - with tech exports ranging from 45pc in Malta to just 2pc in Greece. Figures compiled by the European statistics agency Eurostat also show that the EU as a whole is a net importer of technology - paying 7bn more for technology products than it exported in 2014. That trade deficit is not seen across the board. Ireland, along with Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, France, Hungary and the Netherlands, sell more technology than they buy in, as does Germany which in value terms was the EU's leading exporter of high-tech products to the rest of the world. In 2014 the high tech manufacturing and services sector accounted for 15pc of all employment, including 2.3 million working in high-tech manufacturing and close to five million in what are classed as knowledge-intensive services. In Ireland almost 140,000 people work in the high tech sectors and at 3pc the share of all workers here employed in high-tech manufacturing is the highest in Europe. A greater 4.3pc of all Irish workers are employed in more high end and value added high tech services, second only to Finland. However, the figures show clear evidence of a massive gender gap within Ireland's high tech industries. Thirty five percent of workers in the high tech manufacturing sector here are women, a higher share than in manufacturing generally. Just 29pc of those employed in higher value, usually better paid, knowledge intensive services sector are women however, even though in the services sector as a whole women make up a majority of all workers. In fact, while Ireland has a higher share of high end tech services jobs than almost anywhere in the EU, the proportion of those held by women is below average, according to Eurostat. That points to the persistence of the under representation of women across the tech sector at a time when both Irish and international employers are complaining of difficulties in hiring skilled workers. Ireland is far from an outlier on that score, however. No country achieved a gender balance in its tech sector, according to the Eurostat figures, with men particularly over represented in areas such as computer programming, scientific research and development and telecommunications. The biggest gender gaps within the EU were in the Netherlands and the Czech Republic where fewer than one in four tech jobs are held by a women. Cyprus (44.4pc), Bulgaria (41pc) and Croatia (39.5pc) come closest to balance between the sexes. While Dublin is anecdotally regarded as a technology hub, it is not among the most technology rich EU regions where around one in 10 of all employees are tech workers. The UK's Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire regions - close to London and major universities at Cambridge and Oxford - each record 11pc of the labour force in high-tech sectors. In Denmark's Hovedstaden it's 9.5 pc, with similar rates in Prague. The Women in Business Network (WIBN), which has 3,000 members across the UK, is opening its first branch in Ireland. The launch takes place tomorrow in the Royal St George Yacht Club in Dun Laoghaire. The WIBN opened in doors to new members in Ballsbridge last month and will have a second group launch tomorrow. In the last four years, the network has grown from eight to 22 franchises within the UK, with the Dublin launches marking a significant milestone as the first international groups for WIBN. Lindsay Loxley, WIBN managing director, said the organisation was excited to be expanding beyond Britain. The first Dublin groups will launch under the leadership of Siobhan Fitzpatrick, inset below, who is also a member and chair of the WIBN group in the Clapham area of London. "Following a recent move back to Ireland, I felt there was a real opportunity to offer female Irish entrepreneurs access to this fantastically supportive network," Fitzpatrick said. "Equally, the expansion will help extend the reach of UK members into Ireland and vice versa." Beware the Belgian underworld Spare a thought for our gallant Eurocrats whose efforts in Brussels to lift the rest of us out of the economic mire by dreaming up new taxes and rules are being slowed by a fiendish underground movement. An army of Eurosceptic mice is keeping Commission staff from their toils in the red tape mills. Desperately-needed repairs to Brussels' transport infrastructure are on hold because the mice have eaten the blueprints. City authorities, who host not just key European bodies but also Nato headquarters, are unable to fix tunnels because mice have eaten the original plans. News website Nieuwsblad.be reported that the plans were "stored" in a cavity under a viaduct back in 1989 as a stop-gap, and forgotten about. Rodents happened upon them and have spent decades nibbling through them. Repairs are being delayed while engineers attempt to recreate the originals. A bank worker who left a medical student blind in one eye after assaulting him with a pint glass has received a suspended sentence of 18 months. Robert Jones (26) of Glenview Park, Tallaght, Dublin pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to assault causing harm at Palace night-club, Camden Street, Dublin city, on July 20, 2014. The maximum penalty for the offence is five years. After the night-club assault Jones told gardai that the victim Brian Murphy had repeatedly made throat-cut gestures at him, using his thumb across his throat. He said Mr Murphy then came close to him and made it again and he instinctively threw his right hand at him and forgot he was holding a glass. He said he thought Mr Murphy was going to hit him and felt threatened. He said it was completely instinctive and he had a rush of adrenaline and a fight or flight feeling. The victim told gardai he had done nothing to provoke Jones and had not spoken to him before the assault. In his victim impact statement he wrote: I did nothing to deserve this. The fourth year Trinity college medical student of Ennis Road, Limerick said that the night of the assault changed his life forever. He had permanently lost sight in his left eye and still suffered flashes of light in his vision. He said that he asked his own doctors soon after the assault if he would still be able to do surgery. He added: No-one deserves what I have suffered and what I will have to endure for rest of life. Dominic McGinn SC, defending, told the court that two women who were in Jones' company on the night gave statements to gardai that the victim had been lurking around, drunk and messy and had made the slit throat gestures at Jones. Judge John Aylmer said he was making no determination on whether there was any provocation to the assault. But he said that having regard to some witnesses at the scene who stated there was provocation, he was legally bound to give Jones the benefit of that doubt. He said the extent of the provocation was not great but he must take it into account as a mitigating factor. In sentencing Jones Judge Aylmer noted his previous impeccable character and said that there was no question of rehabilitation required as there was no likelihood of Jones re-offending. He said the assault was entirely spontaneous and not premeditated. Finally, as regards mitigating factors, he noted Jones had brought 8,000 to court as a token of remorse and that the victim was pursuing compensation in a civil action. He said Jones, who is currently employed by AIB, had a very promising career and would be a mark for compensation in the future for the victim to pursue. He pointed out that a custodial sentence would likely destroy Jones' career prospects which would affect the victim's ability to seek civil compensation from him. In his victim impact statement Mr Murphy said he was a quiet person who did not seek out trouble and rarely went out to night-clubs. He told gardai that he had been drinking with college friends in Dundrum earlier that evening before the group got a taxi into Camden Street. He said he was on his own on the dance floor when he saw a man dancing beside him. This man then hit him in the face with a pint glass. He said there had been no words spoken between them before this. He saw blood all down his clothes and couldn't see out of his left eye. He said he was struck forcibly and doubled up. He was bewildered and in a state of shock and the accused was looking at him and he said he asked Jones: Why would you do that? The court heard the night of the assault was a big UFC night in the Dublin. Garda Sean Trowell agreed with Mr McGinn that immediately after the assault he questioned Jones in the night-club. In a cautioned statement Jones told Gda Trowell that Mr Murphy had gestured with his thumb across his throat about five times. He said he was sorry for what he did and he kept telling the victim this after the assault. A female witness told gardai that Mr Murphy had come over and tried to dance with her and she pretended to be with Jones as if he was her boyfriend. She said Mr Murphy tried once or twice and went away but came back. Another witness Lauren Byrne said she noticed Mr Murphy trying to dance with the first witness and she was trying to get away from him. She said Mr Murphy stayed lurking around and was drunk and messy and was a bit touchy feely and had been pulling at myself. She said he came over and said to her you're with the wrong guy. She said Jones didn't hear the comment. She told gardai that Mr Murphy came over and made a slit throat gesture at Jones and was up in his face. She said assault took place in the next split second. Later she saw Jones sitting down with his head in his hands. Another witness said he was crying. Mr McGinn said his client came from a good law abiding hard working family and was hard working himself. He said since the age of 16 he had funded his own way through college and was now working for AIB. He said Jones and his partner were living together now and were expecting a child. They had saved money up for a deposit on a house and this was where the 8,000 in compensation had come from, counsel said. He said his client was not a violent man and was deeply sorry for what he did. He described Jones as as soft soul who could not cope in prison. He is not a hard man, Mr McGinn said. Judge Aylmer said the case was one of the somewhat extraordinary cases of a single act of aberrant behaviour on the part of an accused of otherwise impeccable character. Garda Trowell told the court that Jones had faced trial charged with the assault causing harm and a more serious offence of assault causing serious harm which came with a maximum penalty of life imprisonment. Jones entered a plea of guilty to the lesser charge once the DPP agreed to withdraw the more serious offence. A nolle prosequi was entered on this charge. Judge Aylmer said this decision by the DPP had consequences for him. He said: Notwithstanding the horror I might experience in hearing the extent of the injury I cannot allow that to affect my decision. It would be wrong in principle as a matter of law to sentence him as if he had pleaded (guilty) to assault causing serious harm. Former Anglo Irish Bank boss David Drumm has dramatically dismissed the legal team which had been representing him in his bankruptcy appeal. In a legal filing, he told a US appeals court he would be representing himself in the case in which he is seeking to strike down the decision of a bankruptcy judge to deny him protection from creditors. Without such protection he remains open to lawsuits for the recovery of his debts of over 10m. Mr Drumm (49) also sought an eight week extension to a March 1 deadline he is facing to lodge papers with the US Court of Appeals, claiming this was reasonable if he is to represent himself. It is unclear what bearing, if any, the decision will have on his anticipated return to Ireland. Mr Drumm is currently in a maximum security prison in Massachusetts awaiting extradition to Ireland to face 33 charges relating to his time as chief executive of Anglo. It had been thought his extradition could take place within weeks of his decision on February 11 not to contest the issue. No date for his return has been announced yet. In the legal filing, a lawyer for Mr Drumm said he was presently incarcerated by the United States Marshals Service in the Plymouth County Correctional Facility. "As a result of his incarceration and the severe restrictions and limitations of the Plymouth facility, as well as the fact that his attorneys are located in New York, Mr Drumm has not been able to adequately confer with counsel and review the record," said lawyer Edward McNally. The lawyer said Mr Drumm had authorised his legal team to withdraw from the case and would proceed "pro se", meaning he will represent himself. In seeking additional time to lodge appeal papers, Mr McNally said: "The size of the record in this matter is voluminous, and it is necessary that Mr Drumm have an adequate opportunity to review the contents of such record prior to filing the brief." He indicated that the bankruptcy trustee handling the case and the Irish Bank Resolution Corporation, which is the largest creditor, had not agreed to the requested extension, meaning a judge will have to rule on the issue. Mr Drumms faces an uphill battle to overturn the decision not to discharge him as a bankrupt. His original application for bankruptcy protection was rejected in January 2015 when Boston Judge Frank Bailey issued a 122 page judgment. A first appeal judge upheld the decision last November. Judge Leo Sorokin said Judge Bailey had "made no mistake" in his findings against Mr Drumm. Former Anglo Irish Bank boss David Drumm has dramatically dismissed the legal team who represented him in his bankruptcy appeal. In a legal filing, he told a US appeals court he would be representing himself in the case in which he is seeking to strike down the decision of a bankruptcy judge to deny him protection from creditors. Without such protection he remains open to lawsuits for the recovery of his debts of over 10m. Mr Drumm (49) also sought an eight-week extension to a March 1 deadline he is facing to lodge papers with the US Court of Appeals, claiming this was reasonable if he is to represent himself. It is unclear what bearing, if any, the decision will have on his anticipated return to Ireland. Mr Drumm is currently in a maximum-security prison in Massachusetts awaiting extradition to Ireland to face 33 charges relating to his time as chief of Anglo. It had been thought his extradition could take place within weeks of his decision on February 11 not to contest the issue. No date for his return has been announced yet. In the legal filing, a lawyer for Mr Drumm said he was incarcerated by the United States Marshals Service in the Plymouth County Correctional Facility and, as a result, "has not been able to adequately confer with counsel". THE High Court has continued orders preventing members of retired solicitor Brian O'Donnell's family and others from dissipating money they may get from the imminent sale of a st132m property in London. O'Donnell-family related firms stand to get as much a st6m from the sale of Columbus Courtyard, Canary Wharf, after substantial debts on the building have been paid, Bank of Ireland claims. Last week, the bank obtained temporary orders preventing dissipation of the monies by Mr O'Donnell's sons, Blake and Bruce, and three British Virgin Island (BVI) registered companies, to which the banks says the residual sale proceeds could ultimately go. It claims this is part of a sham and fraudulent scheme by Brian O'Donnell and his wife Mary Pat, who are bankrupt and would not be entitled to deal in the assets, to put anything from Columbus Court beyond the reach of the bank which is owed 70m by the parents. The bank wants the sale to proceed, as do the O'Donnells and the court-appointed official administering the bankruptcy, the court heard. The bank had previously got undertakings, in 2012, from Blake and Bruce not to deal in the BVI assets. However, when it learned last week the sale of Columbus Courtyard was imminent, it obtained the temporary injunction preventing the BVI companies and Blake and Bruce from dissipating any proceeds that my come from the sale. It also took separate proceedings in the Caribbean itself on the same day. Today, when the case returned before Mr Justice John Hedigan, Blake O'Donnell, on behalf of himself and his brother, complained they had received only the order from the BVI Supreme Court but none of the detail of what it had based its case on. He complained the order sought by the bank in the BVI was "a backdoor way" of getting a receiver appointed over the companies and it was inappropriate. He did not see why the 2012 undertakings he and his brother gave were not enough and said the bank could simply have asked them (the brothers) to agree to continue them. He claimed the bank was trying to damage their reputations. He also said that despite bankrupting his parents, the bank was still pursuing them and pursuing him and his brother though "a derivative action". He also claimed the bank's actions in seeking these latest orders may have triggered a default on borrowings on Columbus Courtyard which are in excess of st100m. Cian Ferriter SC, for the bank, said his client had met the tests for an injunction pending full determination of the matter. The judge said what happened in the BVI was not really relevant to the bank's application to continue the orders it got here last week. He believed the orders being sought were essentially the same as the undertakings previously given by the O'Donnell sons and he was satisfied to grant them pending a full hearing of the matter. He also said he did not see how these proceedings could have any affect on the sale of the property. The Criminal Courts of Justice in Dublin Anthony Kelleher covering his face at an earlier hearing, inset A MAN was convicted of a savage assault which left his wife with horrific injuries including a brain wound, a collapsed lung and a lacerated liver. Anthony Kelleher (42) was convicted of assault causing serious harm to his wife, Siobhan (36), despite the fact the woman refused to give evidence at his Cork Circuit Criminal Court trial. Ms Kelleher wept as her husband was taken into custody today following the week-long trial. She had to be placed in a medically induced coma on June 12 2014 after being discovered by paramedics with serious injuries at her home at Raleigh North, Macroom, Co Cork. The trial heard that Ms Kelleher was in a critical condition by the time she arrived at Cork University Hospital (CUH). She also suffered a stroke. Anthony Kelleher had vehemently denied assaulting his wife of seven years. The couple had married in Cyprus in 2008. However, he was unanimously convicted by a jury of nine men and three women after one hour and 15 minutes of deliberations. The defendant was remanded in custody by Judge Sean O'Donnabhain for sentencing on May 9. Judge O'Donnabhain granted leave for the defence to apply for expert submissions including a psychiatric report to assist with sentencing. The trial heard that Gardai received a complaint from the woman about her husband's behaviour. She alleged that he came home ranting and raving, dragged her out of bed and threw her down the stairs of the family home. Det Garda Tom OSullivan confirmed he took a statement from Ms Kelleher on June 25 2014 as she recovered in hospital. She said her spouse had been cursing and blinding at her about a call made to their home. In the garda statement, the woman explained he followed her to their bedroom when she went to bed. I went to bed and covered my head. He pulled the blankets off me. I said 'sorry.' I put my hand up to my face to save my head. I didnt want bruises, she said in the statement. He pulled me out of bed by the ponytail. There were clumps of hair. He threw me down the stairs and kicked me in the ass. Gardai said she later told them her husband visited her in a Cork hospital and said that, if she had died, he would have thrown himself into a river. The trial heard that Ms Kelleher suffered a stroke, brain injury and multiple fractures. She was treated at Cork University Hospital (CUH) and the National Rehabilitation Centre in Dun Laoghaire. Defence counsel Tom Creed told the trial a blood sample taken from Ms Kelleher revealed she was over the legal limit for driving on June 12. He said it was his clients contention that his wife had suffered an accidental fall. Kelleher denied ever striking his wife. Mr Creed said Ms Kelleher had suffered post-natal depression and had a chronic drinking problem. Sgt Marie Keating said she met Ms Kelleher by appointment in April 2015 and she expressed her wish to withdraw her earlier statement against her spouse. Ms Kelleher told Sgt Keating that she had very little recollection of the date in question and that she must have slipped or tripped on June 12. She said it was possible she fell while putting out the washing. Ms Kelleher also told the garda that her husband was a good father, a good husband and from a respectable family. "I do not want him charged," she said. Dr Jason van der Veldt, who assisted paramedics in the ambulance on the day of the incident, said he was surprised to note multiple bruises all over (her) body of various ages. Ms Kelleher had suffered a brain injury, a lacerated liver, a collapsed lung and a stroke. Dr Louise Kelly of CUH stated that Mrs Kelleher was put in a medically induced coma at the hospital. She noted a fracture in the left wrist and a compound fracture in the right little finger. She also noted bruising of the abdomen and multiple bruising on the lower limbs. Dr Kelly recalled that some of Ms Kellehers bruises were older and had gone green and yellow. Ms Kelleher also had bruising on the scalp on both sides. She had right rib fractures and liver lacerations. Dr Kelly said, in her opinion, the liver lacerations didnt match normal parameters for a fall down the stairs, as such a condition generally involves force from the front to the back. The sheer force couldnt have happened with a fall down the stairs, she said. Some injuries also appeared to be defensive in nature. Evidence was also submitted that hair found at the Kelleher home had been torn out of the woman's head. During the trial, Ms Kelleher took to the witness stand but declined to answer questions from either the prosecution or the defence. "I refuse to give any evidence, judge," she said. The woman now walks with the aid of a cane. Judge O'Donnabhain said it was "a particularly difficult case" and excused the jury from further service for 10 years. Shaun Kelly, who killed a pensioner and seven of his best friends in the worst car crash in the history of the State. Inset are crash victims (clockwise from top left) : Hugh Friel, Eamonn McDaid, James McEleney, Mark McLaughlin, Paul Doherty, PJ McLaughlin, Ciaran Sweeney and Damien McLaughlin. The DPP is set to appeal Shaun Kelly's sentence. AN inquest into the deaths of eight men killed in Irelands worst car crash was dramatically halted today after legal rows over the contents of witness statements. The men died in a two-car crash in Inishowen, Co Donegal, on July 11, 2010. Coroner Dr John Madden made the ruling at the hearing in Buncrana after some family members and a solicitor representing driver Shaun Kelly asked for expert reports to be admitted in the case. Kelly, now 27, from Hill Road, Ballymagan, Buncrana, Co Donegal, is serving an eight year sentence for causing the deaths by dangerous driving after the original sentence was doubled by the Court of Appeal last December. Seven of Kellys friends and a pensioner died in the crash on July 11, 2010. The coroner also issued a summons for the appearance of Mrs Anne McGilloway, whose car was also at the scene of crash. She had been due to appear as a witness today but informed the coroner 45 minutes before the hearing that she was unable to attend. Dr Madden told the families that he wanted to assure them that he wished to give them all the answers they wanted in relation to how the men died. Those killed in the crash, Irelands biggest ever single loss of life in a road tragedy, were pensioner Hugh Friel, (66), from Urris, Clonmany and Kellys friends Eamon McDaid, 22 of Ballymagan, Buncrana; Mark McLaughlin (21) of Ballinahone, Fahan; Paul Doherty (19), of Ardagh, Ballyliffin; Ciaran Sweeney (19), of Ballyliffin; PJ McLaughlin (21), of Rockstown, Burnfoot; James McEleney (23), of Meenaduff, Clonmany and Damien McLaughlin (21), of Umricam, Buncrana. Solicitor Ciaran Mac Lochlainn, representing Shaun Kelly, has submitted a request to include a report commissioned from an engineer for Kellys defence in the Circuit Court. Barrister Stephen Byrne, representing the Garda Commissioner, objected to the request, saying that the defence report had not been used by Kelly in his Circuit Court case as he had pleaded guilty to all charges. He told Dr Madden that should the coroner accede to the request, the prosecutions own expert engineers report should also be considered by the inquest. This report, said Mr Byrne, had been given to Kellys defence team, represented by senior and junior counsel, and Kelly had pleaded guilty to causing the deaths by dangerous driving. Mr Byrne said that whatever decision the coroner takes tomorrow the inquest would not be entitled to lay blame as set out in legislation. Philomena McEleney, whose son James died in the crash, told Dr Madden that the 23-year-old was her flesh and blood and we have the right to know exactly what happened to him. Earlier pathologist Dr Gerry O'Dowd told hearing that the vast majority of the deaths were caused by catastrophic injuries and those who died had done so instantaneously. Other witnesses gave evidence of seeing Kelly's northern-registered Volksvagen Passat driving at speed just before the collision. The hearing continues tomorrow. HEALTH Minister Leo Varadkar has described former IRA leader Thomas Slab Murphy as a thug and a gangster and said Sinn Fein will always be associated with murders and bodies buried in bogs. Mr Varadkar made the charges during a heated debate with Sinn Feins deputy leader Mary Lou McDonald on Newstalk today. Under questioning from broadcaster Pat Kenny, Ms McDonald claimed that all political parties has their past and has their legacy. Mr Varadkar replied: Oh come off it, wheres my partys past or legacy of people who were murdered, bodies buried in bogs, or people still living today who were maimed, who are still carrying the scars and burns? THe angry exchanges between the pair continued as Ms McDonald, a TD for Dublin Central, defended her party leader Gerry Adams. A fair assessment of Gerry Adams. A fair and objective assessment of Gerry Adams would recognise absolutely the fact of his involvement in the Peace Process, the very considerable risks he took, including injury to himself, his own safety and that of his family, she said. Mr Varadkar accused Sinn Fein of trying to take full credit for the Peace Process - despite the fact the party is associated with murders - prompting an angry response from Ms McDonald. To hear Sinn Fein claiming credit for peace because they stopped killing people, it is just unbelievable. Its like one of the crime bosses now giving up crime and giving up credit for the fact that the murder rate has gone down, he said. Mc McDonald replied: Dont be so cheap to be comparing me or my colleagues to gangsters. Mr Varadkar then highlighted Sinn Feins relationship with Thomas SLab Murphy, who faces up to five years in prison on Saturday for tax offences. Some of your colleagues are gangsters , do you not think Slab murphy is a gangster? Do you not agree that Slab Murphy is a thug and a gangster? Ms McDonald responded: Slab Murphy needs to fix his tax affairs and settle his affairs with revenue. Independent TD Michael Lowry has lost a bid to halt his trial on tax-related charges. Mr Lowry's case was based on many "ingenious and even superficially attractive" arguments which were "in truth, devoid of any substance and ultimately built on a foundation of sand", Mr Justice Seamus Noonan said when dismissing his case in the High Court. He found Mr Lowry had "conspicuously declined" to engage with the 372,000 transaction of 2002 at the heart of the case. He also disagreed with Mr Lowry's argument that a 2015 Appeal Commissioners determination of his tax appeal was a "vindication" of him, in light of which continuation of the tax prosecution was oppressive. The Appeal Commissioners found "clear evidence" Mr Lowry "misappropriated" money of his company Garuda, the judge said. There was also no authority for the proposition one "can buy immunity" by paying arrears of tax due. Rejecting further complaints about the TD's trial being moved to Dublin Circuit Criminal Court from his native Co Tipperary, the judge said he could not see how that decision "could conceivably amount to oppression". The five charges against Mr Lowry arise from a 2002 transaction involving a 372,000 payment due to Garuda being diverted to an Isle of Man trust account nominated by Kevin Phelan, an accountant from Omagh. Mr Lowry is charged with filing incorrect income tax returns for 2002 and conniving in alleged delivery by Garuda of incorrect corporation tax returns for the years ending 2002 and 2006. He is also charged, under the Companies Acts, with wilfully causing a company to fail to keep proper books of account between August 28, 2002, and August 3, 2007. Mr Lowry argued he self-declared and self-corrected the matter in 2007. He also said the Appeals Commissioner in 2015 found he had no personal income tax liability. Garuda ultimately paid some 38,000 in corporation tax and the only outstanding issue was a disputed surcharge liability of 2,410. In the circumstances, he argued continuation of his prosecution was unfair and disproportionate and he was also prejudiced by "savage" media articles about the Lowry tapes. The DPP rejected the claims. Mr Lowry was not in court but, in a statement, indicated he intended to appeal. A Dublin man has been sentenced by the Special Criminal Court to eleven years in prison for possession of firearms, ammunition and explosives. In November, 2014, gardai found what the court's presiding judge described as an "arsenal" of weapons at the man's home, the court heard. Stephen Hendrick (49), of Balbutcher Drive, Ballymun, Dublin 11 pleaded guilty last year to the possession of 59 rounds of ammunition of various calibres and brands at Furry Park, Turnapin Great, Old Airport Road, Cloghran on July 3rd, 2013. On a second bill of indictment, Hendrick pleaded guilty to the unlawful possession in suspicious circumstances of a 7.62 mm Kalashnikov assault rifle and various components for Glock pistols at his home on November 15th, 2014. He also admitted to the unlawful possession of ammunition, including 125 rounds of Kalashnikov rifle ammunition and five shotgun cartridges, also at his home and on the same date. The third charge on the indictment, to which Hendrick also pleaded guilty, was the unlawful possession of an explosive substance - flexible tubing filled with PETN explosive - at his home on the same date. The court heard today that Hendrick committed the latter offences, from November 2014, while on bail for the first. At the sentence hearing, Detective Inspector William Hanrahan, of the Special Detective Unit (SDU), told prosecuting counsel Vincent Heneghan BL that, after receiving confidential information, gardai searched a container at Furry Park, near Dublin Airport. The court heard that the search lasted for three days and gardai found 59 rounds of ammunition. Det Insp Hanrahan told Hugh Hartnett SC, defending, that Hendrick's guilty pleas were "of significance" and that while in custody he was compliant and co-operative. Detective Sergeant Padraig Boyce, also of the SDU, told Mr Heneghan that on November 15th, 2014, gardai searched Hendrick's home in Ballymun, where they found pistols, an AK47, the explosive substance PETN, shotgun cartridges and 125 rounds of AK47 ammunition. The detective told the court that Hendricks was "importing firearms into this jurisdiction". The offence had been committed while he was on bail, the court heard. Det Sgt Boyce also told the court that Hendrick, a carpenter by trade, is a "good family man". Presiding at the three-judge, non-jury court, Mr Justice Paul Butler said that the first offence, dating from July, 2013, was "less serious" than the second and that an appropriate sentence should be three years in prison, dating from October 30th, 2014. Mr Justice Butler said that the offences dating from November, 2014, were "far more serious". He said that the list of items found at Hendrick's home "read like an arsenal". The court sentenced Hendrick to eight years for each of the three counts, with each term to run concurrently, and consecutive with the first prison sentence. A MAN was seriously injured when he was hit by a truck while pushing his out-of-fuel car on a motorway hard shoulder, the High Court heard. Richard Roche-Garland (42), French Lane, Stackallen, Co Meath, was pushing the car with the assistance of a Good Samaritan motorist towards a safer spot when he was struck, it is claimed. Mr Roche-Garland, who was a self-employed seaweed spa bath products supplier, is suing the truck owners, Furniture Link International, of Dundalk, Co Louth, and its driver Larry Hoey. The defendants deny the claims and say he stepped into the articulated lorry's path as he attempted to open the door of the car at the driver's side on the hard shoulder. They say he did something inherently risky and did not comply with the highway code of getting out of the car and staying on the motorway embankment while he phoned for and awaited assistance. The accident happened just after lunchtime on May 4, 2012, on the M6 near Kilbeggan, Co Westmeath. Mr Roche-Garland said he remembered very little about the accident except he was pushing the car, which he had borrowed from his mother, while holding the steering wheel through an open window. He decided to push it towards a lay-by a short distance away and the next thing he remembered was waking up in hospital. He spent six weeks in hospital having suffered severe injuries including to both his legs, his shoulder and head. He returned to work selling his product at fairs and events around Ireland with the help of his wife but had to eventually give it up because of his injuries. Under cross-examination, he agreed he was not insured on the car at the time but thought he was. He disagreed he was under financial pressure because he had run out of diesel and did not have insurance. He disagreed with the lorry driver's claim that he was about to open the car door and had stepped out into the truck's path when he was hit even though the lorry tried to veer right to avoid him. He accepted what he had done did not comply with the rules of the road but said he was trying to get the car and himself off the hard shoulder. David Richardson, who was passing by and decided to assist Mr Roche-Garland when he saw him pushing his car, said he felt "a swoosh" of the lorry passing by and he realised the man he had been helping had been hit. The case continues. Two men who tortured and sexually assaulted a friend in an "appalling and brutal" attack have been jailed and placed on the sex offenders' register for life. Sentencing Darren Fu to 11 years and a co-accused to six years, Judge Gordon Kerr spoke of the humiliation and degradation meted out to Aodhan Woods, who was just 17 at the time. Fu (20) and his co-accused, who was 17 at the time of the offence and cannot be named because of reporting restrictions, appeared in Belfast Crown Court where they were sentenced for a litany of offences. The court heard how the duo subjected Mr Woods to "exceptional degradation" at a flat in the Stranmillis area of Belfast during which he was tied up, threatened at knifepoint, locked in a cupboard, subjected to several serious sexual assaults, and had cigarettes stubbed out on him. Two weapons were used during the sexual assaults - a drumstick and a microphone stand - and at one stage the victim believed photographs were being taken of his torture. Threats were issued that if he told anyone what had happened, the pictures would be released. Expand Close Darren Fu / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Darren Fu The court heard drugs played a "significant role" in the incident. Passing sentence, Judge Gordon Kerr QC branded Fu and the co-accused's actions as "sadistic" and said: "It is hard to imagine the terror and feelings of helplessness he (Mr Woods) must have felt during this horrifying ordeal." The sexual assault occurred on May 30, 2014, when Mr Woods called to Fu's flat. At a previous hearing, the court was told that Mr Woods had been told by his friend Fu to sell some mephedrone, and he was worried before entering the flat because he had not sold enough. Mr Woods was attacked and threatened with rape, and at one point had a pillowcase placed over his head. Pointing out that at the time Mr Woods was "legally a child" who was subjected to a "prolonged period of violence", Judge Kerr spoke of the effect the incident has had on the young man. He has been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder as a result of what happened. When he finally managed to leave the flat, Mr Woods went home and told his mother. The police were then informed. Regarding Fu, Judge Kerr said he had since made the case that he cannot remember what happened as the incident took place at a time when he was taking drugs excessively and was not in control of himself. He subsequently described what happened to a probation officer as "mental madness", and pleaded guilty to four charges - namely false imprisonment, two counts of sexual assault, and rape. Fu was handed an 11-year sentence, half of which will be spent in custody, with the remainder on licence upon his release. He was also placed on the sex offenders' Register for life. His co-accused - who made the case that he felt threatened by Fu and was scared of what would happen if he didn't do as he was ordered - admitted six counts including false imprisonment, two counts of sexual assault and attempted rape. He was handed a six-year sentence, half of which will be spent in custody with the remaining three years on licence when he is released. He was also placed on the sex offenders' register for life. Serial rapist Trevor Lawlor has been jailed for life in the UK. Photo: PA A serial sex offender flouted laws obliging him to inform gardai of his whereabouts. Dubliner Trevor Lawlor (32), jailed for life this week over a rape in Manchester, was previously prosecuted by gardai for failing to notify them of his whereabouts, the Irish Independent has learned. Lawlor was put on the sex offenders register after being jailed in 2004 for six years for rape. He carried out the attack after forcing his way into the home of his victim, claiming he was being chased by gardai. Following his release, he was obliged to keep gardai informed of his address. However, officers discovered he had breached these conditions in 2013 when he was arrested for theft and criminal damage. He received a three-month jail sentence in Cloverhill Prison for a combination of charges, including failing to notify gardai of his home address contrary to Section 12 of the Sex Offenders Act 2001. Following his release, he moved to the UK, where he committed another horrific rape. It was unclear last night whether he informed gardai he had moved or if he registered his whereabouts with Greater Manchester Police. Risk This information was not disclosed at his trial, and neither police force would comment on whether they had been in communication with each other regarding Lawlor's whereabouts. A garda spokesman said it was not the force's policy to comment on individual cases. Speaking generally, he said sex offenders are risk assessed and a management plan put in place to manage any identified risk. An office in the National Bureau of Criminal Investigation maintains files on offenders and a nominated inspector is responsible for ensuring the policy is implemented in every garda division. The spokesman said that, where appropriate, the management of offenders can involve working with other police forces through Interpol. Lawlor, who previously had addresses in Huntstown Avenue and Fortlawn Drive in Dublin 15, was jailed for life on Monday after being convicted of attacking two women in their homes in front of their children. He raped one of his victims in view of her toddler son and was prevented from raping the other only when her boyfriend unexpectedly returned to the house. The horrific incidents occurred in Newton Heath, Manchester, on July 10 last year. The judge in the case at Manchester Crown Court said he was convinced Lawlor posed "a dangerous and substantial risk to the public, particularly women and children". Lawlor will spend a minimum of 10 years in jail before his sentence can be reviewed. The court heard he entered the house of his first victim and woke her while she was in bed lying next to her young son. He threatened to slit the woman's throat, but was disturbed when his victim's partner returned. Following a struggle, Lawlor fled in his underwear and knocked on the door of a woman who lived nearby. The woman let him in after he told her he had been kidnapped and needed to escape his attackers. He then raped and beat her in front of her toddler son. A 13-YEAR-OLD student, who was served detergent with chips instead of vinegar at a New Years Eve family dinner in a top Co Dublin hotel, has been awarded damages in the Circuit Civil Court. Barrister Ray Delahunt told the court that on 31st December, 2012, Raymond Allen had been with his parents Owen Mellon and Svetlana Allen at the Radisson Blu St Helens Hotel, Stillorgan, Blackrock, when the incident happened. The court heard the family, with a previous address at Riverwood Crescent, Castleknock, Dublin and who now live in Australia, had been eating chips with a meal when they realised a vinegar jug inadvertently contained detergent instead of the condiment. Mr Delahunt told Circuit Court President Mr Justice Raymond Groarke that the teenager had been overnighting in the hotel with his parents as a New Year treat and they had sat down to a light dinner in the bar area. When their orders had been served up he had requested vinegar for his chips and had inadvertently been given a detergent or cleaning agent which he had sprinkled over his chips before eating some of them. Mr Delahunt said Raymond had suffered stomach upset, diarrhoea and psychological trauma following the incident and had been unable to eat for two days afterwards. Through his mother Svetlana Allen, he sued the hotel for negligence. Mr Delahunt, who appeared with David Powderly solicitors, said that liability was not an issue in the case and the defendant had made a 4,000 settlement offer. Judge Groarke, hearing that Raymond had recovered quickly after the incident, approved the offer. A woman broke a Yankee candle over the head of an acquaintance when he robbed a beauty salon as she was getting her nails done. Gerard Halpin (40) was jailed for six and a half years at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court for the robbery and for breaking into a house and telling the occupant not to scream or he'd kill her. Halpin of Corduff Grove, Blanchardstown, Dublin pleaded guilty to the burglary which occurred on December 19, 2013. He was convicted by a jury last week of the salon robbery and possession of a knife which occurred on December 23, 2014. The court heard that Halpin entered the beauty salon Urban Dolls in Corduff Shopping Centre while wearing latex gloves and armed with a kitchen knife. He grabbed the owner Sarah White by the neck and put a knife to her back before walking her towards the till. Halpin was wearing a scarf over his face but a customer, Emma Kelly, recognised him. She lived in the area and had known Halpin all her life. Halpin ordered Ms White to open the till but Ms Kelly closed it and said What the fuck are you at Gerard? She told Ms White not to give him any money but Halpin raised the knife above his head and said back off Emma. Ms Kelly then picked up a Yankee candle from a display case and smashed it over Halpin's head. Halpin fled with Ms Kelly close behind shouting his name. She followed him as he cycled to his father's home a few hundred yards from the salon. Ms Kelly saw Halpin in the bedroom window changing his clothes. She knocked on the door and Halpin answered. He was sweating, breathing heavily and had changed his clothes. He claimed he had just been in the kitchen having a cup of tea. Garda Adrian Kildea told prosecution counsel Pieter Le Vert BL that a garda search of the house found the gloves in an open safe in an upstairs bedroom. Halpin, who has 38 previous convictions and a long history of drug abuse, denied the robbery and claimed he had left the house just once that day to go to the pharmacy. A victim impact report from Ms White stated she had lost a lot of business because of the raid as well as the 480 that was stolen. She said she was now thinking of closing down the salon. The court also heard evidence of a burglary by Halpin at Castlecurragh Heath, Mulhuddart. He later admitted to gardai that he went out looking for gear and rang the bell of a house three times before breaking in. A woman was in one of the bedrooms and tried to stop Halpin getting in. He forced his way in and grabbed her phone from her. He told her don't scream or I'll kill you before taking her laptop and leaving. As he left he also met another resident and warned her to be quiet or he'd kill her. The women saw him getting into a BMW 3 Series car and driving away. He was caught shortly afterwards and admitted the burglary. He said he was off my head on tablets and got the wrong house. James Dwyer BL, defending, said Halpin had twins with his partner. He said he came from a severely dysfunctional family and his childhood home was not a happy place. Judge Sarah Berkeley imposed a three year term for the burglary and five years for the robbery. Both sentences are to run consecutively as Halpin was on bail during the robbery. She suspended the final 18 months of the eight year term. Five years to the day since Rona Browne or her partner paid a single penny off a 300,000 mortgage debt, a judge told her today she and her family could live there for another year. Judge Sinead Ni Chulachain in the Circuit Civil Court granted Ebs Mortgage Finance a possession order for Brownes family home at 136 Killala Road, Cabra West, Dublin 7 but restrained the bank from executing the order for a year. The judge said that in the meantime the court expected Browne to try and come to some arrangement with the bank about the debt which had now reached just over 330,000. Browne, who has been representing herself at all court hearings over the last few years, was told by Judge Ni Chulachain today that her sole defence of lack of jurisdiction against a possession order had collapsed with the recent High Court finding of Mr Justice Michael White. I have jurisdiction since the High Court has ruled that any jurisdictional challenge applies only to houses built after 1977 and your home was built before that year, Judge Ni Chulachain said. She told Ms Browne, who said she had two children and the property was their family home, that she was granting an order for possession for No 136 in favour of the bank but putting a stay on the order for a year. Judge Ni Chulachain said the court had noted that not a single penny had been paid off the mortgage since February 24, 2011. Today was the fifth anniversary of the last repayment against the loan that had been taken out by Browne and her partner Darren Mahoney in 2006. The order for possession had been sought against both Browne and Mahoney, whose address was stated to be 257 Bannow Road, Cabra West, Dublin 7. Judge Ni Chulachain made an order for costs against Mahoney in favour of the bank but made no costs order against Browne. Browne told the court she had always engaged with the bank but had been unable to reach an agreement with them. She said her former partner Darren Mahoney had neither engaged with the bank or the court. This has been my family home and has been my mother and fathers family home and the family home of my grandparents before them, Browne told the court. Judge Ni Chulachain told Ms Browne this had been coming upon her for a long time and, while she accepted she had engaged with the bank, not a penny had been paid off the debt. She said the court had given Browne opportunities in the past and she was giving her a final opportunity to try and reach some agreement with the bank. The matter would not be coming back before the court but her stay would continue for a year. Browne told the judge: It is not very easy to do anything. I have been in a dark place but I am stronger now than I have been. I will try and negotiate with the bank. A Dublin man considered one of the citys most dangerous predators is back on the streets. Philip Murphy (35), who was sentenced to 10 years in prison for kidnapping a woman, was allowed to slip out of the side door of Arbour Hill prison away from waiting media. Murphy received the 10-year sentence in 2009 for kidnapping a woman a year earlier. He was the chief suspect in a similar incident that happened in 2008. He was questioned in connection with an attempted abduction of another central European woman, but there was not enough evidence to charge him. A source said gardai would have to monitor Murphy, who previously sliced a taxi drivers neck with a bottle and left him with life-threatening injuries, because of his violent past. Murphy was released from prison before lunchtime yesterday via a side door, unlike previous high-profile offenders such as rapist Larry Murphy and sex offender Anthony Lyons who walked out of the front door when their sentences were served. When questioned about the manner of Murphys release the Irish Prison Service said it did not comment on individuals or individual cases. He was jailed after being convicted of falsely imprisoning a Polish woman in Clondalkin on June 7, 2008. Dublin Circuit Criminal Court was told Murphy was nominated as a suspect on the basis of his modus operandi. Judge Frank ODonnell said that during the trial it had been put to Murphy, who denied the charges, that he had been scouring the countryside looking for a victim, but noted that he could only deal with the evidence before him. He imposed a 10-year sentence for the false imprisonment offence and a three-year sentence for producing a knife, to run concurrently. Det Insp Peter OBoyle told the court that the woman was waiting at a bus stop at 6.30am to go to work when a car pulled up. The driver offered to give her a lift, but at first she refused. He returned a short time later and again offered to give her a lift. The woman got into the car and they drove a distance, chatting normally. She asked the man to turn right towards her workplace but he told her he had to get petrol. She asked to get out of the car, but he produced a craft knife and told her to be quiet or he would cut her. The woman pleaded with him and believed she was going to be raped or killed. The fear will never leave me, she said in a statement. Det Insp OBoyle said the woman tried to jump out of the moving car but was restrained by the seatbelts. She eventually released the belt and when the car stopped she fled from it towards her workplace. After his release yesterday, father-of-three Murphy was driven to the housing section of South Dublin County Council in Tallaght. Murphy with previous addresses at Elmbrook Crescent, Lucan, and Lindisfarne Vale, Clondalkin left a short time later without speaking. Wearing a hat and covering his face, he would not comment on his time in prison, whether he was remorseful, or where he intended to live now that he was free. He walked from the council offices to the car park at the Square Shopping Centre accompanied by a man who is thought to have been assigned to assist him post-release as per prison protocols. He was then driven away to an unknown location. Residents in Lindisfarne Vale, where Murphys respected family live, said they had heard he was due to be released but did not want him living on or anywhere near their street. I have teenage daughters. I dont want him near them, said one woman. He only brings trouble to the area. His poor mother doesnt deserve it. They are a good family, but hes definitely not welcome here. Another local person said: That animal is as bad as Larry Murphy and is a danger to women and young girls. Reliable sources said the Murphy family have told him he is not welcome to live with them. Enda Kenny mentioned an expert group which I could expect would be chaired by an appropriate woman and work with the Oireachtas and all-party committee. "An appropriate woman" should chair an expert group that would examine changes to the Eighth Amendment, Taoiseach Enda Kenny has said. Fine Gael's preferred coalition partners, the Labour Party, have committed to a referendum on the repeal of the amendment if returned to government. The Eighth Amendment acknowledges the right to life of the unborn and equates it with the mother's right to life. Mr Kenny, who has been advocating a more cautious approach, was asked about the Labour's Party's pro-choice stance yesterday and if he could say there won't be full abortion in the next five years. "I've made my views on this known. Clearly it's an issue that's divided Irish society for so long," he replied, adding that he wants a citizens' assembly to examine the issue of abortion. "I struggle with this myself - I do. Our society has changed, it's values have changed. "Courageous women have come forward to recount their experiences," Mr Kenny said. He then referred to the Eighth Amendment, saying: "It has divided Irish society, polarised it on a number of occasions. I want this depoliticised," Mr Kenny said. "I want a proper analysis and discussion, sensitive, dealing with the morality of it, the legality of it." Mr Kenny mentioned an expert group "which I could expect would be chaired by an appropriate woman and work with the Oireachtas and all-party committee". He said that, "if a consensus emerges from that", a referendum on its recommendations could be put to the Irish people. "It is not as simple as saying change the Eighth Amendment, take out a bit of it, put something else back in," Mr Kenny said. "If you want to reflect the changed values of a changed society then you have to have a consensus. "I have no wish to politicise a matter as personal and as sensitive as this," Mr Kenny added. Three o'clock came and went in the Midlands yesterday, but there was no apology from James Bannon to his Sinn Fein constituency rival. The Fine Gael TD insisted he was too busy delivering his own canvassing leaflets to pilfer those of Sinn Fein candidate Paul Hogan. The Fine Gael TD spoke to Gardai on Monday night after a member of his canvassing team was accused of stealing election leaflets belonging to Mr Hogan from post boxes in a Longford housing estate. The Sinn Fein councillor vowed to press charges if Mr Bannon didn't apologise by 3pm yesterday as the 'Battle of Ballymahon' raged on. Mr Hogan gave it another half an hour before he went to Ballymahon Garda Station and made an official statement to gardai. He alleges members of Mr Bannon's team stole leaflets from letter boxes. He also told gardai that Mr Bannon "threatened me with his fists". Investigation Gardai confirmed an investigation is under way. Mr Bannon denies theft. He was not available last night to put the allegation of a threat to. Pushing some of his own literature through doors in the village of Killashee, however, the Longford-Westmeath candidate earlier told the Irish Independent he wasn't sorry (about the leaflets). Mr Bannon said: "What have I to apologise for? Nothing - I have to apologise for nothing." Returning to the village where his grandmother grew up for some last-minute canvassing, he stood by his earlier explanation that the member of his team was only "reading the leaflet". "I was accused [of something] when I wasn't even around," he said. "What happened, I think, a fella that canvasses with me, he just looked at a leaflet and put it back in, and that was it, and they swarmed on him." Countering allegations that the canvasser's pockets were stuffed with stolen Sinn Fein leaflets, or that he could still be in possession of his competitor's bumph, Mr Bannon continued: "That couldn't be further from the truth. "You can come up and search the boot of my car." "I'm not that type of a person. Anyway, I have enough of my own." On Monday night, Cllr Hogan claimed to have five witnesses who had seen someone they believed to be canvassing for the TD remove his leaflets from post boxes in Creevaghbeg. Issuing a deadline for an apology, he also threatened to invoke the Electoral Act if the missing material wasn't returned: "I asked [Mr Bannon] is this the sort of dirty tricks you're running? "It's the lowest of the low," he said at the time. Last night he stood by his accusations, maintaining that gardai might bring charges for theft, a more serious count of interfering with letterboxes, or under the Electoral Act for trying to influence the outcome of an election. "I found I had no option but to go to the gardai," Cllr Hogan told the Irish Independent, adding that he had given Deputy Bannon and his team ample time to make an apology. "This has certainly left a bad taste in people's mouths in the area. I think people are disgusted by his behaviour." Despite the saga. Mr Bannon says he has nothing to fear from his Sinn Fein counterpart. "He'd have no impact coming from Athlone, you're 50 miles from here," Mr Bannon said. "My grandmother was born just down the road here in Killashee, I live near Longford. Sure Athlone would be miles away. THE so called 'Battle of the left' took place on Newstalk this morning as People Before Profits (PBP) Richard Boyd Barrett and Labours Brendan Howlin clashed. Mr Boyd Barrett, who is hoping to be re-elected in the Dun Laoghaire constituency, said that PBP had been consistent throughout the last Dail and were aiming to unite the left. We have been the most consistent since we entered the Dail in actually defending the principles of fairness and equality, he explained. Mr Howlin, however, said the only consistency that Mr Boyd Barrett had shown was to oppose everything we needed to do" to get the economy back. We would, had we followed the path that Richard and his colleagues mapped out for us, be like Greece now he was the champion of Syriza, Howlin said. Mr Boyd Barrett refuted this and accused the government of introducing what he called unfair measures like water charges and property taxes and criticised the Labour Party for breaking their promise to burn the bondholders saying that the party had failed to protect the vulnerable. They have created the worst housing and homelessness crisis in the history of the state and made a shambles of the public health service, Mr Boyd Barrett added. The outgoing Minister for Public Expenditure however denied that the Labour party had betrayed the left. Weve taken 700,000 people the lowest paid out of the universal social charge, we have twice increased the minimum wage weve restored trade union right - were the only country in the western world who has given collective bargaining rights to the trade union movement, he said. In terms of protecting the vulnerable, Mr Howlin was bullish saying that social welfare spend was 40pc of everything the government now spends and pointed to the fact that there were 135,000 people back to work under the governments watch. He defended the governments decision not to burn the bondholders saying that the President of the ECB had warned of dire consequences for Ireland had the government had done so. Mr Howlin again pointed to the example of Greece saying that the banks had closed for three weeks and the economy virtually collapsed. On the housing crisis, Mr Howlin accused Fianna Fail of abandoning social housing seven years ago and said there was no money when Fine Gael and Labour got into government. You cant spend money you dont have, he concluded. Mr Boyd Barrett said that it was untrue to say that there weren't choices, in all of the years Brendan says there was no money, he went along with paying seven and eight billion to bond holders for an odious debt that was not the debt of the people of this country. Money that could have gone into social housing, the health service, education," he said. Mr Howlin said that what Mr Boyd Barrett was suggesting was to default on their national debt "as if that was something you could do without a disastrous consequence". Mr Boyd Barrett added that no matter what Mr Howlin or Labour said the people that voted for the Labour in 2011 looking for protection had been abandoned, adding that the polls would reflect this on election day. Taoiseach Enda Kenny visits the Joe Duffy Motors BMW garage in Finglas, Dublin, where he meets apprentice Dean Tang. Photo: Barry Cronin The creation of 60,000 jobs this year could be put at risk if an "unstable or anti-enterprise government" is formed, the boss of employers' lobby group Ibec has warned. Danny McCoy raised his concerns following the publication of a letter by 11 business leaders who warned political instability will threaten jobs. Politicians, including Taoiseach Enda Kenny, have also echoed the fears contained in the letter to the Irish Independent that was signed by executives from major firms. The companies included Boston Scientific, CRH, Smurfit Kappa and the Dublin Airport Authority. The warning comes as polls increasingly suggest that a hung Dail - or a government supported by an array of Independents - is a very real prospect. "Irish business can create a further 60,000 new jobs in 2016, but hiring plans could be threatened if the election results in an unstable or anti-enterprise government," Mr McCoy said. "Business will deliver more jobs over the coming years, but the conditions must be right," he added. He warned of the situation in both Greece and Portugal and said uncertainty was the "enemy of business". IBEC expect around 15,000 jobs to be created in the construction industry alone this year. The technical and professional services sector will be the next largest area of growth followed by manufacturing, the lobby group believe on the basis of hiring surveys. Speaking at the launch of Fine Gael's plan for more apprenticeships, the Taoiseach vowed to use the remainder of the campaign to promote the outgoing Coalition's economic track record. Independents "I have every faith in the Irish electorate that they will not want to create instability or confusion at a very critical time..." He added: "While they mightn't love us, at least they have respect for the way that the economy has moved in the right direction." Fianna Fail's finance spokesman Michael McGrath also issued a warning of "instability" if a large number of Independents were elected. Meanwhile, his colleague, Sean Fleming, raised the prospect of forming a coalition which involves the Labour Party, Renua and the Social Democrats. Jobs minister Richard Bruton emphasised the importance of building the export market to help Ireland's "small open economy" to succeed. Mr Bruton argued that Fianna Fail had forgotten this when it was in power. He claimed that none of the opposition parties "have mentioned exports". Meanwhile, Margot Slattery, chief executive of Sodexo Ireland, a subsidiary of the French outsourcing giant, said: "In recent years we have enjoyed stability and growth so I would like to see more of that. "I don't want to see the progress made destabilised," she added. Her organisation employs 2,000 people in Ireland. On the possibility of Sinn Fein in government, she said: "From an international perspective I have heard some fears voiced... "International colleagues are wary about the party's tax policies and reputation. "I think if Sinn Fein is going to make its way into government it should happen slowly, perhaps as one of a three-part coalition." In their letter the 11 business leaders warned that political uncertainty will drive up the cost of borrowing - as has happened in Portugal. A prominent Fine Gael backbencher is to make a statement to gardai after being warned her throat would be "slit". The chilling threat was issued to Meath East deputy Regina Doherty just hours after she took part in a heated radio debate with Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams. The threat, which was communicated to Ms Doherty through a private Facebook message, was part of a barrage of abuse she received following the debate on LMFM. Sinn Fein last night condemned the threat, which is understood to have been issued by an anonymous individual. "Sinn Fein condemns all threats to politicians. There can never be any justification for this type of behaviour," a spokesman told the Irish Independent. Ms Doherty yesterday spoke to her local superintendent about the issue and is due to give a statement after polling day. It's understood she has been told to take precautions in relation to her personal safety. Fine Gael headquarters has also been in touch with Ms Doherty over her personal welfare. During the debate, Ms Doherty and Mr Adams engaged in bitter exchanges over Sinn Fein's past. Mr Adams said two members of his family were killed. He also told presenter Michael Reade that he has been shot and his family home and office have been bombed. "All brought on by your own actions," Ms Doherty replied. Mr Adams responded: "'All by your own actions'. Isn't that an awful thing to say, Regina?". During heated exchanges that followed, Ms Doherty attacked Mr Adams over his handling of the Brian Stack case. Mr Stack, a prison officer, was murdered by the IRA in 1983 and his family say Sinn Fein knows the identities of those involved. "It's funny now he is not in a position to help Austin Stack with the request that he gave yesterday. But he didn't have a problem putting Austin Stack and his brother in a blacked-out van, Hiace van, and taking him to an unknown, remote destination a number of years ago so he could then give him information with regard to his father's murder and killing," Ms Doherty said. "The difficulty is people don't find you sincere," she added. Renua leader Lucinda Creighton yesterday suggested that the threat was issued against Ms Doherty as a result of her criticism of Mr Adams during the debate. She also said Mr Adams should "lead from the front" in condemnation. "There is a growing tendency amongst the media, and even in the larger political parties to shy away from reminding people of Sinn Fein's past, instead focussing solely on their tax or economic policies," Ms Creighton said. "The reality is that there is no other attack against a political party leader except Sinn Fein which could result in death threats being made against that person, and that's why it is so important that Gerry Adams and Sinn Fein lead from the front in condemning this threat," she added. FIANNA Fail has promised to "look into" circumstances surrounding a bitter stand-off between rival party canvassers in Dublin. The party's environment spokesman Barry Cowen today sought to downplay the incident earlier this week where a woman candidate, Lorraine Clifford-Lee, says she was verbally abused by supporters of her running mate, Senator Darragh O'Brien. Both candidates are standing in five-seat Fingal, which was previously known as Dublin North, and where Fianna Fail currently have no sitting TD. Mr Cowen said the party had two really good candidates in the constituency and both were fighting to win a Dail seat. He said the incident was being investigated. "Well, the party is looking into it," he said when questioned about more specific details of any investigation. Party officials said they expected both candidates to work together to maximise the vote. Mr Cowen, who was launching his party's document on "Spreading the Recovery" said all of the party's 71 candidates in the 40 constituencies were standing with a determination to win. Ms Clifford-Lee said she was described as "a blow-in" and that her supporters were intimidated in the incident on Limetree Avenue in Portmarnock on Monday. Political sources said tensions are mounting in the final 48 hours of the canvass and the rivalry within parties is extremely strong. THE Green Party's Eamon Ryan critised the leaders debate on RTE, saying it failed to inspire last night. Mr Ryan said that he wouldn't dis another party but slammed the Government's environmental plans, saying it had no ambition. The Dublin South candidate was part of 2007-11 Coalition that introduced plans for Metro North and criticised Fine Gael and Labour for shelving it. They killed a project that was ready to go, the party leader said at the last Green press conference before the General Election. Mr Ryan added that his party were not the only ones that can own the climate change issue. I could scare the living daylights out of people about what's happening in the Arctic, but I'm not going to. He admitted the party would be terribly disappointed if it failed to win a seat when voters go to the polls on Friday, adding "we've done our best. Gone are the days that people are saying 'look at those Greens wearing sandals.' This is what people who are investing ahead want to do. The world has gone green. Fianna Fail has been rocked by a bitter feud between two of its own candidates which resulted in a heated stand-off in a Dublin estate. The party is now investigating claims by Dublin Fingal candidate Lorraine Clifford-Lee that she was verbally abused by the campaign team of her own running mate, Senator Darragh O'Brien. The altercation is alleged to have taken place in Portmarnock on Monday night after supporters of both candidates attempted to canvass residents in Limetree Avenue. Ms Clifford-Lee claims she was described as a "blow-in" by members of Mr O'Brien's team, who allegedly used foul language during the altercation. She also alleges that members of her campaign team felt intimidated. There have been tensions between the pair since Ms Clifford-Lee was added to the ticket by party headquarters last year. Witnesses to the altercation say members of Mr O'Brien's team took issue with the fact his rival was canvassing in the same estate. Members of the public are understood to have watched on as both sets of supporters argued on the street. Mr O'Brien was in the vicinity at the time but is not accused of the verbal attack. The incident is highly embarrassing for Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin and is understood to have been referred to the party's general secretary, Sean Dorgan, for investigation. Speaking to the Irish Independent last night, Ms Clifford-Lee said a number of members of her campaign team felt "intimidated" and "shaken" following the altercation. "This is the old-style politics that we saw in the past. What sort of message does it send out to women looking to get into politics? "One of my youngest canvassers is aged just 18 and he no longer wants to canvass after experiencing that," she said. "There was bad language and at one stage it was suggested that I am a simply a 'blow-in' who shouldn't be canvassing the area," she added. Ms Clifford-Lee lives in Portmarnock with her husband and young daughter, having previously contested the local elections on the south side of the city. Following the incident, she contacted a family member who arrived in the area soon after. She and her supporters then left the scene. "What really annoys me about this incident is that we have a good shot at taking two seats. But this type of thing is really damaging," Ms Clifford-Lee said. Mr O'Brien did not respond to calls yesterday. A party spokesperson said: "We have received a number of reports regarding an alleged incident in the Dublin Fingal constituency involving canvass teams from our two candidates in Dublin Fingal. "These allegations are being looked into. "As far as the party is concerned, we have two excellent candidates in Lorraine Clifford-Lee and Darragh O'Brien and we expect both to work together to maximise the party's vote in Dublin Fingal." Sinn Fein Leader Gerry Adams, Taoiseach Enda Kenny, Fianna Fail Leader Micheal Martin and Tanaiste Joan Burton as they line up for their last TV Debate on RTE Prime Time with Miriam O' Callaghan During last week's RTE leaders' debate, Taoiseach Enda Kenny and Tanaiste Joan Burton were able to show a united front when they were positioned beside each other on stage. Last night, Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin was squeezed in between the Coalition partners - possibly reflecting the current opinion poll trends. For the final RTE debate, moderated by broadcaster Miriam O'Callaghan, the leaders stood from left to right - Gerry Adams, Enda Kenny, Micheal Martin and Joan Burton. Stuck between the two would-be Taoisigh, Mr Kenny was forced to fight it out alone in the early part of the debate when he faced questions on his record on the health service. Mr Martin and Mr Adams regularly interrupted the Taoiseach as he fought to get his point across. Noticeably, Ms Burton stayed clear of the shemozzles in the first half of the debate. The Labour Party leader's delivery was more considered and less aggressive than in the previous debates. She was also determined to highlight her own personal achievements while in government. "I brought back the Christmas bonus" and "I restored the minimum wage", she said. No mention of the "we" or the Coalition. Left to fight on his own, Mr Kenny remained calm as he faced charges on the unfairness of Fine Gael's tax policy. When asked about his now infamous "whingers" comments, Mr Kenny did not giggle or role his eyes as he did at previous press conferences. Instead, he remained straight-faced and insisted he apologised unreservedly. He did squirm when questioned on his controversial appointment of John McNulty to the board of the Irish Museum of Modern Art ahead of a Seanad election. He also let slip that he personally sought to appoint Mr McNulty, which allowed Mr Adams make capital on the faux pas. Joan Burton turned on Mr Martin in her opening contribution when Labour was accused of failing people with disabilities. She pointed towards the Fianna Fail leader and highlighted the damaged economy Mr Martin's government left behind before the last election. Mr Adams was conveniently positioned to the left (his right) of the other leaders and used the opportunity to distance himself from the other party bosses as much as possible. He turned on Ms O'Callaghan when she questioned his IRA past and inability to handle basic accountancy and economics. Mr Martin stayed relatively steady but wobbled on his appointment of Celia Ahern to a State board. Sinn Fein Leader Gerry Adams, Taoiseach Enda Kenny, Fianna Fail Leader Micheal Martin and Tanaiste Joan Burton as they line up for their last TV Debate on RTE Prime Time with Miriam O' Callaghan SINN Feins Gerry Adams turned on RTEs Miriam OCallaghan in the final televised debate ahead of the General Election, asking her: What world are you living in? The party leader also told the presenter she should reveal her salary, as he struggled so often under the spotlight. At one point, Mr Adams had to ask, Whos Senator Cahill? after the story of abuse victim Mairia Cahill, who was subjected to an IRA kangaroo court, was raised by the Taoiseach. Enda Kenny said the Sinn Fein leader defends Mr Murphy in reference to tax cheat Thomas Slab Murphy but wont defend Senator Cahill. A confused Mr Adams asked: Whos Senator Cahill? before it was explained to him. Expand Expand Expand Previous Next Close Enda Kenny Fianna Fail Leader Micheal Martin arriving for TV debate on RTE Tanaiste Joan Burton arriving for TV Debate as she answers questions from the media for RTE Prime Time / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Enda Kenny Read More The leaders of the four main parties were all forced to defend their past actions at various stages during the debate. Mr Kenny and Tanaiste Joan Burton were also forced to defend the state of the health system and their handling of the homeless crisis, while Micheal Martin admitted cutting the minimum wage as the economy crashed was a mistake. Mr Kenny struggled when asked to explain how the abolition of USC was fair, given that high earners stand to gain by thousands of euro as a result. Every worker will benefit from Fine Gaels tax plan. When Michael Noonan reduced the USC in the last two budgets more money flows into the system. Those who have most will pay most, he said. He denied that his party had flip-flopped on the issue, given Fine Gaels previous position that USC wasnt just a temporary tax. Mr Adams came under attack from the three other party leaders for his tax policies, which Ms Burton described as shocking. Nobody earning about 20,000 will get any tax relief, she said, adding that the Labour Partys tax plan was the fairest on offer to the electorate. We will get more than that back in terms of growth and jobs in the economy, she said. Mr Martin said Sinn Feins plan would kill jobs in this country and SMEs. He described its plan to reduce tax relief on pensions a devastating blow for average income earners. Ms Burton also hit out at Mr Adams over Thomas Slab Murphy, saying he had bags and bags of money in his hay-sheds but Sinn Fein still call him a good republican. Read More The Fianna Fail leader faced questions about why his party cut the minimum wage when the economic crisis hit. He argued that Fianna Fail originally introduced the minimum wage, but conceded cutting it was a mistake. As Ms Burton made the point that the first thing the outgoing government did was restore the cut, Mr Martin replied: I learned from that. I acknowledge there was very tough decisions taken in 2009 and 2010. They had to be taken. Read More Mr Adams insisted he is fit to be Taoiseach, despite his associations with the IRA and recent difficulties in explaining his partys tax policies. These parties would rather discuss the IRA or my ability to count when what people want is political leadership, he said, pointing at Enda Kenny, Micheal Martin and Joan Burton. Mr Kenny was asked whether his partys Keep the recovery going message was a sign of arrogance. I accept, of course, that many people have not felt the recovery but our challenge is to bring that to every single home, he said. Ms Burton was accused of backtracking on her 2011 election promises by cutting respite and disability grants as well as discretionary medical cards. When we came in after Micheal and his party had finished with the country, the cupboard was bare, she said. SINN Fein leader Gerry Adams says he has spoken to two party members who are alleged to have been involved in the murder of IRA murder victim Brian Stack. But Mr Adams has repeatedly refused to reveal what role the individuals currently serve within Sinn Fein. Brian Stack, who was the chief prison officer at Portlaoise, was shot in the back of the neck by the IRA in Dublin in 1983. He died from brain injuries 18 months later. In 2013, the IRA admitted to the murder during a meeting with the Stack family at an undisclosed location close to the border. The meeting was arranged by Mr Adams. But the controversy has resurfaced during the election campaign after the victims son, Austin Stack, claimed to have been given credible information that two senior members of Sinn Fein were involved in the murder. The victims widow, Sheila Stack, today called on Mr Adams to come clean with the truth. Expand Expand Previous Next Close Brian Stack was shot by the IRA during the Troubles Photo: Irish Prisons/PA Wire Austin Stack. Photo: Frank McGrath / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Brian Stack was shot by the IRA during the Troubles Photo: Irish Prisons/PA Wire Read More Speaking at Sinn Feins final press conference before polling day, Mr Adams claimed to have spoken to the two individuals whose names he said were given to him by Austin Stack. Mr Stack has denied this he gave the names to Mr Adams. Mr Adams said he he asked the two individuals to meet with the Stack family but they refused. "First of all the names of the people that Mr Stack said he wanted to talk to to, I spoke to them, they denied any involvement . He told me he got the names from An Garda Siochana. An Garda Siochana have the names, Mr Adams said. The Sinn Fein politician said he is not withholding any information from gardai because they have the names of the Sinn Fein members. Mr Adams was also asked about the biography of Sinn Fein TD for Kerry Martin Ferris, which describes Brian Stack as vindictive who was despised by his colleagues and other prisoners. Mr Ferris was the officer commander of the IRA in Portlaoise Prison while Mr Stack served as Chief Prison Officer there. When it was put to Mr Adams that he should consider asking Mr Ferris to withdraw the claims in his book, he replied: "Thats a matter entirely for Martin Ferris. That's a matter for him entirely, he was in Portlaoise, I wasnt. Tanaiste Joan Burton has launched a last ditch effort to save the Labour Party by warning voters that a Fine Gael/Fianna Fail coalition will be the most conservative government in decades. At a press conference in Labours headquarters in Dublin, Ms Burton said opinion polls are indicating the country is faced with the stark reality that a Fine Gael/Fianna Fail coalition may emerge after the General Election. She described the possibility of a grand coalition between the old civil war enemies as the elephant in the room ahead of the election and said there is a real possibility the country could end up with a government that nobody wants. Public opinion is probably more progressive, more liberal, more anxious than at any time in my life and yet we could end up by default with perhaps the most conservative government in recent decades, she said. The Tanaiste urged also voters thinking of voting for Independents to think twice before marking the ballot paper. Ms Burton played down suggestions that her warning of a possible Fine Gael/Fianna Fail coalition came to late in the campaign. She also insisted she is not concerned her leadership may be under threat if the Labour Party performs badly in the polls Well, Im not anticipating that it will arise because were fighting for every seat and the campaign has experienced a huge amount of warmth around the achievement of marriage equality, she said She also dismissed suggests she may be disappointed Labour deputy leader Alan Kelly did not attend the crucial press conference. Public Expenditure Minister Brendan Howlin said Labour TDs were fighting for their political lives as the election day nears closer. Mr Howlin also warned of the impact of a Fine Gael/Fianna Fail coalition. He said Micheal Martins party would never play second fiddle to Enda Kennys Fine Gael. The dogs on the street know that. The only thing, not the first thing, on their agenda will be the split. Those who know these parties are already talking about temporary little arrangements, he said. Mr Howlin said Fianna Fail would only support a Fine Gael government until it bruised it sufficiently to take electoral advantage. Communications Minister Alex White reaffirmed the partys commitment to hold a referendum on repealing the eight amendment. GEs big bet on data and analytics. FedEx, UPS face dual threats to B2C delivery share, investment firm says. And a review and ratings site for truckers and brokers. The danger of fatigue cracks on container cranes The Port Equipment Manufacturers Association (PEMA) has published an information paper on the structural examination of container handling cranes in ports and terminals. The paper is designed to increase understanding of the risks posed by fatigue failure, highlight the importance of structural examination and give practical guidance to help terminal personnel to detect cracks through visual examination of ship-to-shore (STS), rail mounted gantry (RMG) and rubber tyred gantry (RTG) container handling cranes. Source: PEMA GEs big bet on data and analytics GE has bet big on the Industrial Internet the convergence of industrial machines, data, and the Internet. The company is putting sensors on gas turbines, jet engines, and other machines; connecting them to the cloud; and analyzing the resulting flow of data. The goal: identify ways to improve machine productivity and reliability. This MIT Sloan Management Review case study looks at how this traditional manufacturer is remaking itself into a modern digital business. Source: MIT Evaluating three identification technologies Laser, Camera, RFID? How can you ensure the best match between your needs and the available AIDC technologies? This white paper provides a concise overview of their benefits and limitations. Source: SICK Ralph Lauren boots XPO from North Carolina warehouse XPO has been on a roll in recent months, consolidating the logistics sector through takeovers of large firms like Con-Way Inc. and Norbert Dentressangle. But the firm got a rare piece of bad news last week when fashion retailer Ralph Lauren announced it would dismiss XPO and assume control of its own warehousing and inventory management in a North Carolina facility. Source: Retail Dive Iran buys 5,000 train cars from Russian firm Iran continued to rapidly rebuild its logistics infrastructure after agreeing to strict nuclear enrichment caps in a deal allowing it to rejoin the global economic community. In the latest move, the country said it planned to take delivery of 5,000 freight cars from a Russian train equipment firm. Source: Tasnim News Agency FedEx, UPS face twin threats to delivery business: Morgan Stanley Investment firm Morgan Stanley & Co. says UPS Inc. and FedEx Corp. face two major threats to their ground shipping business: selective insourcing from e-commerce giants like Amazon (AMZN) on one end, and last-mile delivery competition on the other. Source: Barrons AAR gets visual in touting value of rail industry The Association of American Railroads (AAR) has debuted the latest version of its nine-year-old Freight Rail Works campaign, which goes heavy on the visuals to describe freight rails ongoing private investments in building, growing and maintaining the nation's network, and to demonstrate the railroads unique and integral role in moving 54 tons for every American each year. Source: Railway Age Company forms Yelp-like model for trucking reviews A Richmond, Va.-based company called ScoopMonkey wants to be the trucking industrys version of Yelp, the wildly popular review and ratings app. ScoopMonkey offers The website offers a way for industry pros to post reviews and ratings of carriers and brokers. ScoopMonkey CEO Eddie Peloke and Richmond entrepreneur Pat Hull said the rating system will help make the trucking industry safer and more efficient Source: Richmond Times-Dispatch Three Aerotropolises powering the global economy This blog post from UPS identifies three logistics hubs that play an important role in international air cargo routes: Zhengzhou, China; Dubai World Central, and Panama City. Source: UPS Longitudes TAOISEACH Enda Kenny has denied he's "blown it" by not calling the election last November saying if he had it would have "ruptured the link with the Labour Party". He also defended his performance on the campaign trail after a series of gaffes saying the "hallmark of leadership is how you move on from issues that arise." Mr Kenny said priorities for him if he is returned to power are solving the housing crisis and problems in the health system. He was joined in Dublin's Bord Gais Energy Theatre by six Fine Gael ministers including Michael Noonan, Frances Fitzgerald and Leo Varadkar for the last major press event of the campaign. With mixed results in the polls over the last few weeks, Mr Kenny was asked if he had "blown it" by not going to the country three months ago. "It would have been very simple to go in November after the Budget and the strong feeling that was there but I'm very happy that I've done the right thing here," Mr Kenny replied. Expand Close Taoiseach Enda Kenny, Fine Gael and Taniaste Joan Burton the RTE Claire Byrne Live Leaders Debate / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Taoiseach Enda Kenny, Fine Gael and Taniaste Joan Burton the RTE Claire Byrne Live Leaders Debate "First of all if I'd gone in November you'd have ruptured the link with the Labour Party particularly after saying that you'd go the full distance." He also pointed out that legislation including the Finance Bill and the Legal Service Bill would not have been completed. "And people would have been rightly critical of not having waited for the results of thee Banking Inquiry," he added. "You might argue and say, you know, we could have been fighting this campaign in hail and sleet and rain and snow and everything else. "So perhaps next time that the call is being made it might come with a little more surprise," Mr Kenny said. It was put to Mr Kenny that he had made a number of gaffes during the campaign including the length of time it took him to rule out a post-election deal with Independent Michael Lowry, the 'whingers' remark, and his answer in the last leaders' debate to the question on the appointment by Fine Gael of John McNulty to a State board. He was asked which one he would erase from voters memories if he could. "Actually you deal with all these things. I make mistakes but I'm man enough to acknowledge and accept responsibility for all these things. I think the hallmark of leadership is how you move on from issues that arise." Mr Kenny said there are three problem areas that he would like to fix if he is returned to power "One is the housing and homeless situation, two is the health issue and three is specifically mental health and the challenges that so many people face everyday." Asked if he would deliver on each of those issues he replied: "yes". Finance minister Michael Noonan warned of the risk to Ireland's recovery if a stable government isn't returned after the election. Health minister Leo Varadkar referenced his party's history in his contribution. "Just a few weeks before he died our founding father Michael Collins set out his vision for a free and independent Ireland and in that he said our object in building up the country economically must not be lost sight of and that object is social justice for all. "And Fine Gael today in this centenary year holds to those values true," he said. The numbers at work are now at the highest level since early 2009, new figures show, giving a boost to the outgoing Coalition as the election campaign enters its final days. Although experts point out that employment growth was weaker than expected in the final months of last year, they argue the overall labour market trend shows the strength and breadth of the economic recovery. The unemployment rate stood at 8.9pc last month, slightly higher than first thought, but economists believe it will dip further - to below 8pc - by the end of the year. Youth unemployment remains stubbornly high at 18.9pc, although that's down over the year from 20.3pc. Outgoing Finance Minister Michael Noonan said employment numbers have risen for 13 successive quarters, with the numbers now at work at 1.98 million - up 44,100 in the year to the end of December. "Ongoing employment growth is a clear sign of economic recovery," Mr Noonan said, following the latest jobs data from the Central Statistics Office. "More people are now at work than at any stage since 2009, with some 142,000 jobs created since the trough of the crisis." On a seasonally adjusted basis, employment increased in the final three months of last year by 4,700, or 0.2pc, compared with the previous quarter. This was weaker, however, than had been expected by economists. Employment had risen on average by 0.7pc over the previous three quarters, Ulster Bank chief economist, Simon Barry, said. But he said the evidence from other economic indicators points to further jobs growth, "arguing against a negative interpretation of the Q4 figures". "Indeed, annual employment growth is still a very healthy 2.3pc, consistent with ongoing very solid underlying improvement, albeit not quite as exceptionally strong as the 2.9pc recorded in Q3," he said. "It's not just Dublin or the Greater Dublin Area (GDA) which is experiencing a jobs recovery: while the GDA did outperform slightly in the year to Q4, the rest of the country is continuing to experience solid jobs growth. Over half of the new jobs created in the economy in the year to Q4, and indeed over the past three years of recovery, were filled by workers outside the GDA," he said. The jobless rate is falling in every region bar the West, where it rose from 10.3pc in the final three months of 2014 to 10.6pc in the same period last year. The highest regional unemployment rate is in the South East, at 11.9pc, while the lowest is in Dublin at 7.6pc. Employment increased in 12 of the 14 economic sectors over the last year, with the largest increases in construction, which rose by 8.5pc, or by 9,900 people. The financial and insurance sectors saw the greatest rate of decline, dropping 3.9pc, or by 4,000. Robust "Overall, the solid trends in the labour market reflect the strength and breadth of growth in the economy more generally. We expect strong, if less exceptional, GDP growth to be maintained through 2016 - an outlook which underpins our expectation for the labour market to also continue to show further, solid improvement through this year," Mr Barry said. KBC Bank said that while the softer tone of the jobs figures in the final quarter of last year "injects some note of caution", the recovery in employment remains "robust". "The data for 2015 as a whole are very impressive," the bank said. "The recovery also moved onto a broader geographic footing in 2015." Fine Gael candidate Kate OConnell has called on Renua leader Lucinda Creighton (pictured) to publish all evidence in relation to the legal fees controversy in the interests of transparency and accountability. Photo: Mark Condren Renua leader Lucinda Creighton has made a political career out of calling for transparency and political reform. Before and after she quit Fine Gael in 2013 over abortion legislation, Ms Creighton regularly called her party colleagues to account over what she perceived as unethical behaviour. When former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern was before the Mahon Tribunal over his personal finances, the Renua leader was quick to criticise Fianna Fail. In January 2008, she issued a statement criticising a Fianna Fail cabinet minister for attacking the tribunal, as details of Mr Ahern's financial affairs were being scrutinised. She described this as a "concentrated attempt" to undermine the tribunal because ministers did not like its findings. She also attacked her former Fine Gael colleague and then Environment Minister Phil Hogan, after he blocked the Standards In Public Office (Sipo) attempts to force full disclosure of all political donations. Mr Hogan said it was not legally possible for parties to disclose all donations received at a grassroots level. At the time, Ms Creighton said it was "important" that all political parties "account for monies raised at all levels". "That's the very least that taxpayers and the public can expect," she added. Ms Creighton has also introduced legislation calling for greater transparency and openness in how political donations are recorded by politicians. The Social Democrats co-leader Roisin Shortall has said that there is a reason no Fine Gael government has ever been re-elected and urged the public to support the fledgling party at the polls this Friday. Speaking outside Leinster House in Dublin city centre this morning, flanked by fellow Social Democrats co-leader Catherine Murphy and several party candidates, Ms Shortall was critical of Fine Gael. "I think it is important to point out the fact that Fine Gael have never re elected to government in this country, and there is a reason for that. "People don't like the type of society Fine Gael are working towards - it's a divided society, that's what has been created over the past five years," she added. The party have insisted that they are hopeful of securing at least seven seats in the general election this Friday. Today they called on the electorate to turn their goodwill into seats for the party urging them to support the 14 Social Democrats at the polls. Ms Shortall added, "I believe the government parties have seriously misjudged the mood of the electorate. They thought it was a matter of just saying 'we'll keep the recovery going' when most people were saying 'what recovery?'" Agreeing with these sentiments was party co-leader, Catherine Murphy who said that people in Ireland want a fair and equal society and they recognised that the Social Democrats were trying to achieve this. "You can feel it on the ground, in relation to the reaction to the recognition to the party and to the candidates and it's all down to the electorate to support our 14 candidates," Ms Murphy said. After the election the party are planning to play significant role in the next Dail, whether that be in Government or in opposition. On suggestions of a potential Fianna Fail, Labour, Renua Ireland and Social Democrats coalition Ms Shortall smiled saying, "well I think that would be a strange combination." Before adding, "we've said from the start, we're not interested in more of the same, we will only consider participating in a government if that government is going to bring the country in a new direction." Meanwhile, the topic of the RTE leaders debate was discussed, in particular the Taoiseach's apology regarding the McNulty scandal with Ms Murphy criticising the lack of accountability. "It really drives people nuts, there's never any consequences and part of the reason there is a process is that the process can be used in a way that builds confidence. "Repeatedly we've seen the process is bye passed... That is what's ruining trust - it's the politics for the few," she added. An 84-year-old woman whose adult son has lived in a community hospital for the past decade following a brain haemorrhage has said the Government "may as well kill us both" if they move him. Liam McGettigan has lived in the Stranorlar community hospital for over 13 years. He and other residents are to be moved to Letterkenny, 22km away, as the unit is to close. His elderly mother Eileen, who doesn't drive, says she will have to consider leaving her own home and moving to Letterkenny as she cannot leave her son alone. "I spend most of my days with him, he's so close by. My daughter drops me off and the other can pick me up. If he goes to Letterkenny, I just don't know how I will manage. It would just kill the two of us. He waits on those visits, his face lights up," she said. Liam, a UCD graduate, suffered a brain haemorrhage and stroke 13 years ago. He was moved into the community hospital as he could no longer care for himself. However, he gets to visit his own home twice a week with a carer. Fr John Joe Duffy, chair of Save Our Services, a campaign to save residential care beds in three separate community hospitals in Donegal, warned voters they could chose to save local services or guarantee their closure with their decision this Friday. He urged voters to support those who have promised to reverse a Government decision to close the beds. Resident of 54 Mountjoy Street, Gemma Bradley who is being made homeless with her family. Photo: Tony Gavin A young mum who miscarried while sleeping rough in a car said she was prepared to move anywhere in Ireland if her family were given a house. Gemma Bradley (21), her partner Paul and their toddler son Kaiden are one of seven families who have been told they must leave their emergency accommodation on Mountjoy Square this Friday. The young family have been living in the hostel since last November. On Friday, Gemma was given seven days notice by Dublin City Council that its contract with the private landlord was ceasing. Weve had a tough time since we first became homeless in 2013, said Gemma. They hope the council will find them suitable alternative accommodation. They said they endured a lot of stress when placed in a poorly-run hotel in Dublin in 2013. Following a stint at a different city hotel, they emigrated to England. Gemma worked as a trainee manager in an English pub while Paul worked in construction. But when their landlords home was repossessed, they returned to Dublin in December 2014. Read More With no accommodation, the couple ended up sleeping rough while her mother looked after their son. We were sleeping in a car for a while that we brought over from England. We then sold the car because we needed the money and slept rough. I didnt know I was pregnant when we were living in the car. I lost the baby at three months, she said. They were finally given emergency accommodation in a north Dublin hotel, but difficulties arose involving other people staying there. In desperation, Gemma said she managed to contact Taoiseach Enda Kenny about her plight and the council then offered them accommodation at a really nice hotel. Then last November, they moved into the emergency accommodation in Blessington Street. Now, the council have offered us a place where we would have to share a kitchen. We want some place to ourselves, she said. All we really want is a stable home for our son. Wed go anywhere in Ireland if we were given a house, she said. Gemma said she would protest with other residents outside the building on Blessington Street on Friday when they have to leave. Focus Ireland spokesman Mike Allen said: Its very traumatic for these families in Blessington Street, but this is not untypical for what other homeless families go through. This is what a homeless crisis looks like. Dylan Souster is recovering after he was the victim of two assaults in one night. Picture: Facebook AN Irishman was brutally attacked and hospitalised after enduring a savage 'homophobic' attack in Australia, firstly by a gang of seven and then by a man who initially appeared to be trying to assist him. Dylan Souster (22), from Laragh, Co Wicklow, sustained multiple facial fractures, tooth dislodgement, palate damage and bleeding in the ears. Severe swelling of the jaw means he can't yet speak properly, while one eye remains swollen and he has a split lip. His ordeal began in the early hours of Sunday morning, at about 1 a.m., when he went out to the front of his Waterloo apartment in inner-south Sydney to wave off some friends who were getting a taxi home. As he turned to go back into his apartment he was suddenly struck by an unknown assailant. The victim woke up at Waterloo Oval, some five minutes away from his apartment, to find a group of seven people kicking him in the head and all over his body. He has no recollection of how he got there. They only stopped the prolonged assault after a woman in the group started yelling at the six men to stop. A bloodied Mr Souster staggered back home and asked a man along the way for his assistance. The stranger asked 'are you Okay? What happened?' He walked Mr Souster back to his apartment and asked if he wanted to contact his girlfriend to help him get upstairs. This is going to get out one way or another so I may as well post it. Last night I was attacked for no reason and for... Posted by Dylan Souster on Sunday, February 21, 2016 When Mr Souster replied that he had a boyfriend, the man suddenly roared 'oh, you have a boyfriend. You're a queer, you're a faggot.' He then proceeded to punch the Irish man in the face on numerous occasions. Speaking to the Daily Telegraph in Australia, Souster said: Ive experienced verbal homophobic abuse in Sydney while alone and with my partner but never anything physical. Im terrified to leave my apartment now. The first attack was a complete blur. I was literally across the road from my apartment when I went to turn around and walk home, after realising that my friends had left and got into a taxi or walked, I just remember being hit in the face by a male. After this I dont know if I ran towards the oval in shock to get away or whether he forced me there but I remember waking up in the oval being kicked and punched all over my body by a group of males. The guy that tried to help me seemed genuine as he walked me within 50m of my apartment. It was only when he asked what had happened and I mentioned my boyfriend that he freaked out and said youre one of those fags ya f**king queer c**t then he turned on me and hit me into the face full force. I then ran home thinking he was following but he had turned away and ran. Ive been having nightmares of feet coming towards my face and waking me up. My injuries include: Two burst lips, an overly swollen jaw, two black eyes, cuts to my forehead, cheeks and massive bruising on my head. I honestly thought I was going to die in that oval. Ive never been so scared in my life. Hopefully the people that done this will be caught so that it cant happen to anyone else. Speaking to the Syndey Morning Herald, Mr Souster's boyfriend, Darren Hedderman, described the man as a 'Good Samaritan-turned-bad.' He added, 'It's such a cowardly thing to do, such scum, I wish it had been me instead.' The couple have lived in Sydney for over three years and while they have suffered some homophobic verbal abuse, this was the first time they ever experienced any violence. 'We've had a few people shouting stuff from cars. But it's never gotten physical.' The couple ended up spending over twelve hours at St Vincent's Hospital in Darlinghurst, where Mr Souster underwent two CT scans. New South Wales Police have confirmed that they are investigating the assault. According to a statement, 'Detectives from Redfern Local Area Command are investigating the circumstances surrounding the incidents, including bias towards the man based on his sexual orientation.' They are also examining CCTV footage. A 13-year-old boy drowned yesterday after jumping into a river to try and save his friend. The schoolboy was one of three teenagers, two boys and a girl, who were playing near the Lyreen River at Maynooth, Co Kildare, when the tragedy occurred. It is believed that one of the group fell into the water and the 13-year-old jumped in to try and rescue them. However, he got into difficulty himself. Another teen, who had also entered the water, managed to escape. He desperately raised the alarm and emergency services rushed to the scene. The tragedy occurred at around 4pm yesterday on a stretch of the Lyreen River near the Kilcock Road. The three teenagers were rushed to Our Lady's Hospital for Sick Children in Crumlin, Dublin. Despite medics' best efforts, the 13-year-old boy passed away some time later. His two friends are believed to be in a stable condition. Gardai are carrying out a full investigation of the incident. However, they said the boy's death is being treated as an "awful tragedy". As part of the investigation, a post-mortem will be conducted today. Local priest for the Maynooth area Fr Liam Rigney told the Irish Independent last night that he had noticed a commotion along the Kilcock Road at the time, but mistook the incident for a car crash. "I knew something had happened because there was a lot of activity going on around that time. There were fire brigades, ambulances and gardai all around the Kilcock Road. I thought it was a car accident," he said. He described the boy's death as a "terrible tragedy". Acting U.S. Secretary of Education John B. King Jr., should start researching the lunch options in House and Senate cafeteriashes going to be on Capitol Hill quite a bit this week. Hell kick things off with a House education committee hearing on the budget Wednesday, plus another on the presidents latest budget request for fiscal year 2017 on Thursday morning. But the highlight may come Thursday afternoon, with his confirmation hearing. Kings predecessor, Arne Duncan, sailed through his confirmation hearing in early 2009, with Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., now the committee chairman, calling him Obamas best cabinet pick. Alexander promised President Barack Obama that if he nominated King, the former New York state schools chief would get a fair hearing. But that doesnt mean his confirmation hearing will be quite the love feast that Duncans was , in part because relations between Capitol Hill Republicans (and some Democrats) and the Education Department have become strained over the past seven years. King, who arrived at the department early last year, wasnt around to help make many of the decisions that GOP lawmakers have criticized as federal overreach (like pushing teacher evaluation through test scores, and Common Core State Standards adoption through waivers from the No Child Left Behind Act). But he could still take questions on those issues Thursday. Here are four things that will almost surely come up in the confirmation hearing and, possibly, Kings other appearances this week: Implementation of the Every Student Succeeds Act: Alexander has said its particularly important to have an honest-to-goodness, confirmed secretary since the next person to head up the Education Department will get the ball rolling on implementation of ESSA, the latest iteration of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. Alexander (and many other Republicans) thought Duncan overstepped his bounds in offering states waivers from the NCLB law. So there are huge sections of ESSA seeking to rein in federal power when it comes to testing, standards, teacher evaluations, and more. King, who has made it clear in recent speeches that he sees the law as including a clear role for the federal government in ensuring equity for all students, will almost certainly be asked about how he sees those prohibitions playing out. Kings personal and professional background: King, who is African-American and Puerto Rican, has used his personal storygrowing up in New York City as the orphaned son of educatorsto prod states to keep the needs of disadvantaged front and center in policymaking . King may also play up his background as a teacher and principal. If confirmed, hed be the first former principal to serve in the job, and only the third former K-12 teacher . (Secretaries Rod Paige and Terrel Bell were classroom teachers. So was another acting secretary, Ted Sanders.) Whats more, King is a former state chiefso he can talk about the federal-state relationship from both perspectives. Common Core: The standards are highly likely to come up at some point in the hearing. As New York state chief, King was a common core fan, but for the most part, he wont be able to use his power as secretary to bolster common corethanks to ESSA, he cant tie adoption of the standards to flexibility or new money. (He can use the bully pulpit to tout the benefits of the standards, though.) But congressional Republicans arent happy with the Education Departments recent messaging on ESSA standards. Rep. John Kline, R-Minn., head of the House education committee, said at a recent hearing that the department has been making it sound like the new law continues to embrace common core. (In fact, ESSA calls for states to set standards that will prepare students to take credit-bearing coursework in college, but prohibits the departmentor the post-secondary schoolsfrom directing states to set specific standards. The department has said the law calls for college- and career-ready standards.) Teachers Take: During his tenure as New York state chief, teachers unions and other advocates criticized King for, in their view, pushing too far, too fast on tying evaluations to new tests aligned to the common core. (More here .) And when King was selected to replace Duncan, Randi Weingarten, the president of the American Federation of Teachers, expressed serious concerns about the choice. (She feels a lot better about King now that shes seen him in action. More here ). But not everyone is going to be assuagedthe Badass Teachers Association has been circulating a petition calling on lawmakers not to confirm King . BONUS: King could be asked about Danny Harris , the departments chief information officer, whose had some tax and conflict-of-interest issues detailed in a report by the departments Inspector Generalbut that seems less likely now that Harris has announced his retirement. Earlier this month, King testified when the House Government Reform and Oversight committee held a hearing on how the department has dealt with Harris behavior. King explained thatback in 2013the Justice Department and the Inspector General concluded Harris didnt violate law or policy. Plus, King, who has only been acting secretary for a couple months, counseled Harris about his behavior. But Rep. Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, still expressed concerns about Kings management, saying the new secretary was failing. Harris collapsed at the hearing and had to be taken to the hospital. Last week, though, Harris announced his retirement, effective Feb. 29. (Hat tip: Politico). Harris, who has been a career employee at the department for more than 30 years, could have retired already, but decided to stick around to help the department improve cybersecurity, said Dorie Nolt, an education department spokeswoman in a statement. Its unclear if Senate Republicans shared their House colleagues concerns about Harrisbut his actions may not matter as much now that hes on his way out the door. Want even more? Rick Hess of the American Enterprise Institute (and Edweeks Rick Hess Straight Up) has some suggested questions for lawmakers . The north Dublin home of crime boss Gerry 'The Monk' Hutch has been swept by detectives investigating the murder of Kinahan cartel drug dealer David Byrne. The Crumlin crime lord was gunned down by members of a six-man kill squad at the Regency Hotel earlier this month. The 34-year-old father of two was shot in the head at point-blank range during the audacious raid that also saw Sean McGovern (30) receiving bullet wounds to the stomach. Aaron Bugler (25), who was also shot, is still recovering in hospital. Gardai investigating the shooting yesterday combed the Clontarf home of Gerry Hutch (53). Up to 10 officers were involved in the 7am search - one of 11 to take place across the capital. Hutch was not at the property during the raid. However, a relative is believed to have assisted gardai with their search. Sources have revealed that a number of laptops, mobile phones, bank statements, travel documents and other paperwork were seized. Similar items were also taken into evidence during planned searches at residences associated with key Hutch gang members across the city. Some 100 officers took part in the dawn raids that were spearheaded by gardai from Ballymun. Properties were stormed across the city. An apartment linked to a key Hutch associate was also raided. The bolthole is believed to belong to the hitman dressed in drag who was photographed by members of the media fleeing from the Regency Hotel with a gun in his hand. Gardai leading the murder hunt identified the individual, who is linked to a number of gangland killings, just hours after the attack. No arrests were made following the searches. However, gardai are "very satisfied" that the evidence gathered will go a long way towards securing convictions. On Friday, Gerry Hutch defied threats on his life while he attended the funeral of his brother, Eddie Hutch Snr. The 58-year-old taxi driver was shot in the head five times on February 8 in the hallway of his modest home on Poplar Row. Eddie Snr is believed to have had no involvement in organised crime and his murder, which came just three days after the Regency attack, is thought to have been in response to the killing of Byrne. Sources have revealed that Hutch left Ireland over the weekend to meet with Irish drugs godfather George 'The Penguin' Mitchell in Holland. Mitchell is believed to be responsible for importing vast amounts of narcotics to the UK and Ireland from his base on the continent and is also linked with Christy Kinahan. Meanwhile, over 540,200 viewers tuned into TV3 on Monday night to watch a special documentary by Paul Williams charting the history behind the feud. TV3 bosses described the documentary, titled 'Paul Williams: Gangsters at War', as a "ratings success". In the hour-long show, Williams, who is Special Correspondent with this newspaper, revealed the latest developments in the feud between the Kinahan and Hutch gangs. Undated handout file photo issued by South Yorkshire Police of Tommy Ward, 80, who was left with devastating injuries in October last year when he was attacked in his Maltby home by raiders who took his life savings has died Tommy Ward, 80, who was left with devastating injuries in October last year when he was attacked in his Maltby home by raiders who took his life savings has died An 80-year-old man who was severely beaten by robbers in his own home has died five months after the attack, police have said. Ex-miner Tommy Ward, was found badly injured at his home in Salisbury Road, Maltby, Rotherham, on October 1 and around 30,000 was thought to have been taken. The great-grandfather of 15, who weighed just 9st, died on Tuesday night in Rotherham Hospital, where he had been receiving treatment since the attack. South Yorkshire Police said a post-mortem examination will be carried out to determine the cause of death. Mr Ward's mother was originally came from Connemara in Galway and he was a regular visitor to Ireland with his wife Dorothy before she passed away in 2011. Detectives said a safety deposit box was taken in the break-in, and a similar one was found in the Kilnhurst area two weeks after the attack. Detective Chief Inspector Vicky Short said: "The police investigation surrounding what happened is very much ongoing and officers would still like to speak to witnesses, or anyone who has information about what happened. "I urge anyone who has even the slightest piece of information to come forward and tell us what you know." Anyone with information should call South Yorkshire Police on 101. Two 19-year-old men were previously arrested on suspicion of attempted murder and burglary. They have been released with no further action. After the attack Mr Ward's daughter, Jackie Perry, described his attackers as "animals" and said they had "no conscience". The man (dressed in black) with the Spanish police. (Image Policia Nacional) ONE of the IRA's most senior commanders in the Republic has been arrested in Spain for child sex abuse. A spokesman for Spains National Police confirmed officers detained the fugitive as he was wanted on a warrant for four sexual assaults on a minor. The detainee was the subject of four arrest warrants issued last January by a judge in Dublin. The crimes are said to have happened in the early nineties. The officers who arrested the suspect at an undisclosed location belonged to a specialist Madrid-based anti-fugitives unit and a local unit specialising in combating violent crime The suspect had been living in south Dublin. Officers detained him in Alicante on the Costa Blanca last night and he is now in custody. The suspect is a very senior Republican figure who was a very prominent Sinn Fein activist in the 1980s and 1990s. Originally from the North and holding a British passport, the suspect fled the Republic when he became the focus of detectives investigating the killing of Det Garda Jerry McCabe. Officers wanted to speak to him about the authorisation of the robbery which led to the shooting dead of Det Gda McCabe. President Michael D Higgins' daughter Alice-Mary is to run as an Independent candidate in the Seanad elections. Ms Higgins has taken an unpaid leave of absence from the National Women's Council of Ireland, where she works as a policy co-ordinator, to run as a civil society candidate on the NUI panel. Among her main campaign issues are closing the gender pay and pension gap, repealing the Eighth Amendment and introducing equality budgeting, which analyses how different sections of society are affected by specific economic policies. From Galway, Ms Higgins (40) has previously worked with the unemployed, anti-racism project Comhlamh, aid agency Trocaire and for the umbrella group 'Older and Bolder', which campaigns for senior citizens. A Fulbright Scholar and graduate of UCD and Trinity College Dublin, she said that although the Seanad was in need of reform, it did play an important role in developing progressive legislation. "However, there is further reform needed if the Seanad is to reach its full potential as a space for national debate," she said. "If elected, I will work to secure a vote for all citizens, building on the excellent legislative proposals of former NUI senators. "Equality, in all its forms, has been internationally recognised as an essential foundation for a healthy society and sustainable economy. We need to build from the base by legislating for decent work, resourcing social protection and delivering quality public services. I'm not seeking a role in government, but to be a voice for civil society." Not since 1981 has there been a woman elected to the NUI panel in the Seanad. The last was Gemma Hussey. President Higgins served as an NUI senator between 1983 and 1987. Ms Higgins's manifesto will be launched in the coming weeks. Paul Murphy has said that the left is united ahead of going to the polls this Friday and that the scaremongering tactics used by Fianna Fail, Fine Gael and Labour on the electorate have backfired. At an Anti Austerity Alliance/ People Before Profit press conference held in the Mont Clare hotel in Dublin city centre he predicted the rise of what he described as the "real left" and predicted a Labour Party wipe out. Dismissing suggestions that the left bloc would be unstable he said, "In terms of the left, we think that the anti austerity alliance people before profit represents a big step forward. "We will be part of two organisations that exist within a bloc, and I think we both see that not as a finished product but as a step towards building a broad left wing party in this country," he added. Mr Murphy called on the electorate to stand up and resist what he called 'project fear' and vote for the policies that they want and for the kind of society they want to see. He also added that a potential Fianna Fail and Fine Gael coalition would not be stable and that there would be "significant tensions between the two parties vying to be the main establishment party in this country." In particular, pointing to policy differences between the two like the stance on water charges as likely causes of tension should they seek to form coalition. "Fianna Fail and Fine Gael should be one political party, they represent the same failed politics of the establishment - there is no reason for them to be two different political parties," he concluded. Meanwhile, Ruth Coppinger was critical of fellow Right To Change members, Sinn Fein. She said she felt there were "indications that Sinn Fein are moving away from a radical alternative", citing their acceptance of the fiscal space concept. She also said that they would call on Sinn Fein to exclude Fine Gael, Fianna Fail and Labour from any potential coalition arrangement after the election. "People feel the Labour Party betrayal so much, and I think that they will pay the price and I'm confident that we can in that battle win out," she added. Richard Boyd Barrett said that all the pre election predictions made by experts have fallen wide of the mark, and that support for the coalition had continued to drop and the support for the left parties had only strengthened. "The establishment have no credibility, no conviction and they have no consistency in policy... The more the establishment open their mouth, the more support they lose," he said. AAA-PBP are running a total of 31 candidates across the country and said that they hope to secure a minimum of seven seats. A Trinity Law School graduate who knocked a bouncer's teeth out after being refused entry to a nightclub and later punched a garda in the mouth is to be sentenced later. Niall McGlynn (30) also faces sentence for robbery of a bookmakers during which he was thrown out and held by staff until gardai arrived. McGlynn of Castlefarm, Swords, Co Dublin pleaded guilty to two counts of assault and one count of assault causing harm in Dublin city centre and in Pearse Street Garda Station on January 27, 2014. He also pleaded guilty to robbery at Paddy Power in Swords on June 12, 2015. Judge Yvonne O'Connor adjourned the case at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to March 16 when she will finalise sentence. Prosecuting counsel Marie Torrens BL told the court that McGlynn and another man were very drunk when they went to the Czech Inn in Temple Bar, Dublin. The bouncer refused them entry because of their condition. McGlynn became aggressive and was told by the bouncer to chill out. McGlynn then punched the victim in the mouth. The bouncer fell back into the doorway and could feel that his teeth were broken. Another bouncer from the pub across the road witnessed the attack and chased after McGlynn. At one stage the bouncer was given a lift from a bin lorry in his pursuit of the accused. He caught up to McGlynn on Ormond Quay but the accused punched him and escaped. When gardai eventually caught McGlynn on North King Street he was very aggressive. He kicked out at gardai when put in the back of the patrol car and gardai pepper sprayed him. When he got to the station he appeared to calm down but when officers removed his handcuffs he punched Garda Brian Cleary to the face. The court heard that the following year McGlynn, who has a serious gambling addiction, went into his local Paddy Power. A staff member told him he couldn't serve McGlynn because he had been barred the previous week. McGlynn said he didn't want to be served and jumped up on the counter shouting I want the money. He grabbed some notes but then fell off the counter, scattering the cash. He got up and tried to grab the cash but staff were pushing him away. A staff member grabbed him and threw him out of the bookies with some force. McGlynn was held there until gardai arrived. Defence counsel Maddie Grant BL said McGlynn had a law degree from Trinity College but never practised as a lawyer. She said he had a gambling and substance abuse problem but had remained out of trouble since the bookies incident. This is the dramatic moment police carried out an armed siege on a house in west Belfast last night. Officers were responding after a 41-year-old man was shot in the leg in the Glasvey Drive area. He was taken to hospital for treatment and his condition is described as serious. Police located two suspects in the area of Aspen Walk as they responded with the assistance of the police helicopter. A number of heavily armed officers stood guard at the house. Exclusive Belfast Telegraph footage shows the dramatic moment officers swooped on the house. Two men, aged 25 and 35, were arrested on suspicion of attempted murder and are currently in custody assisting police with their enquiries. Several people including a woman are seen exiting the house and are held by the officers. Police confirmed a search of the property has commenced. Detective Inspector Cummings said: A motive for this attack has not yet been established and I would appeal to anyone who witnessed the incident or anyone with any information that would assist with our investigation to contact Detectives in Lisburn Police Station on 101. "Information can also be passed anonymously via the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111. Laurence and Cecelia McCann on their wedding day, as the Northern Ireland couple have returned from the US to enjoy a special 50th anniversary at the church where they wed. PRESS ASSOCIATION Photo. A Irish couple have returned from the US to enjoy a special 50th anniversary at the church where they wed. Laurence and Cecelia McCann were married in 1966 at Drumcree Church in Portadown. It has since been dismantled and rebuilt at the Ulster Folk and Transport Museum in Co Down. Expand Close Laurence and Cecelia McCann on their wedding day, as the Northern Ireland couple have returned from the US to enjoy a special 50th anniversary at the church where they wed. PRESS ASSOCIATION Photo. / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Laurence and Cecelia McCann on their wedding day, as the Northern Ireland couple have returned from the US to enjoy a special 50th anniversary at the church where they wed. PRESS ASSOCIATION Photo. Mr McCann is a retired businessman and his wife a former nurse. They settled in Albuquerque in New Mexico but have lived all over the world. Mrs McCann said: "This is a very special day for us, made even more memorable by being here at the same church, now in a different county." They were joined by family and friends - including the bridesmaid and best man. Mrs McCann added: "Many of our guests have travelled thousands of miles to be here and it has been wonderful to have the blessing in the very unique setting of the Ulster Folk and Transport Museum." Drumcree Catholic Church was originally located on the Birches Road in Portadown, County Armagh. Built in 1783, it was dismantled and reconstructed at the Ulster Folk and Transport Museum in 1990. Expand Close Laurence and Cecelia McCann on their wedding day, as the Northern Ireland couple have returned from the US to enjoy a special 50th anniversary at the church where they wed. PRESS ASSOCIATION Photo. / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Laurence and Cecelia McCann on their wedding day, as the Northern Ireland couple have returned from the US to enjoy a special 50th anniversary at the church where they wed. PRESS ASSOCIATION Photo. The church is comparatively rare in that it was created before the repeal of the Penal Laws, which attempted to force Catholics and Presbyterians to accept the Church of Ireland. It includes a magnificent early-1800s pipe organ as well as 14 Stations of the Cross, identical to those hung in the original church. The couple, aged in their seventies, first met through church and then developed their friendship as young people when they were both volunteers with the Legion of Mary - an organisation which helps and coordinates home visits for people in need. They have two sons and four grandchildren. Acting Secretary of Education John B. King Jr. got asked about a variety of issues during the House Education and the Workforce Committees Wednesday hearing on the U.S. Department of Educations budget request for fiscal 2017, from charter schools to open educational resources. King, whose own confirmation hearing will take place in the Senate education commitee on Thursday, was also quizzed about ways his department wants to improve the teaching profession and increase the diversity of the teaching workforce through its requested budget. And he was put on the hot seat by Republicans on the committee who expressed concerns about the new programs in the departments request. Unveiled earlier this month, the proposed fiscal 2017 budget for the Education Department prioritizes racial integration efforts, but would flat-fund several programs such as the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. (It does request $450 million in new Title I funds for disadvantaged students, but its not truly new money, as my co-blogger Alyson Klein has explained.) It would also seek to significantly expand preschool and scale up promising educational practices at the local level. Overall, the request seeks $69.4 billion in discretionary funding, or a 1.9 percent increase. Generally speaking, President Barack Obamas budget request faces very long odds in Congress. King told lawmakers that the budget puts a priority on equity, the teaching profession, and completion rates in higher education. Citing record-high graduation rates and falling dropout rates, King also told lawmakers that the budget builds on that progress in important ways. But several GOP representatives, including Rep. John Kline, R-Minn., the committee chairman, were unimpressed by key aspects of the budget. Kline, for example, said he was unhappy that the request does not focus more attention on traditional funding streams like the IDEA My concern is that the budget is full of new programs, Kline told King. Hot Seat on Spending Rep. Todd Rokita, R-Ind., the chairman of the committees K-12 subcommittee, also aggressively questioned King about the wisdom of the spending proposal, which he said would contribute to the long-term rise in budget deficits. Rokita, who attributed $127 billion in new mandatory spending in the request to the Preschool for All initiative and Americas College Promise, pointedly asked King if had actually been involved with developing the spending request, given his recent elevation to acting secretary. King replied that he had been involved. We were careful to stay within the constraints of the budget caps that were agreed to last year, King said earlier in the hearing. And Rep. Bobby Scott, D-Va., the committees ranking Democrat, took Kings side when it came to the budget requests overall size, stating it was proof that, We can increase the amount we spend on education in a responsible way without running higher deficits. King was in more of a comfort zone when discussing teacher policy with Rep. Susan Davis, D-Calif., who said she was concerned about the diversity of the teaching workforce as well as the way the teaching profession is perceived. When Davis cited, for example, teachers concerns that leadership or advancement programs might take them out of their classrooms, King highlighted the $1 billion RESPECT: Best Job in the World competitive-grant program proposed earlier this month, which would fund teacher-advancement opportunities, efforts to improve teaching conditions, and make teacher professional development more flexibile, among other initiatives. (The RESPECT proposal is part of the departments fiscal 2017 budget request.) I am very worried about the ways in which the [tone of conversations] around teaching in the last decade has led folks to feel blamed or attacked, King told Davis. He also noted his concern that only 2 percent of the teaching workforce is comprised of black men , and told Democratic Rep. Frederica Wilson of Florida that attracting more diverse leaders into education is a hugely important issue. And speaking of the budget requests Stronger Together school integration initiative, King said, We want our schools to be places where students experience the kind of diversity that they will experience in the workforce. However, Rep. Suzanne Bonamici, D-Ore., expressed general skepticism about competitive-grant programs, stating that in many cases they put smaller districts at a disadvantage when it comes to generating grant proposals. Charter Accountability Highlighted The acting secretary got several questions related to charters. Rep. Raul Grijalva, D-Ariz., asked King how the department planned to step up accountability measures for charters. King said his department was mainly focused on ensuring charter school authorizers were more vigorous in their oversight efforts, telling Grijalva, There are places where authorizers should be doing a much better job. But he also noted that several issues around authorizers and accountability are ultimately a matter of state law. The budget request seeks a $17 million increase for the departments charter school program, bringing it up to $350 millionthere have been problems regarding charter accountability in states like Ohio , as Democratic Rep. Marcia Fudge of Ohio also noted during the hearing. And last September, the Education Department awarded Ohio new charter school grant money despite recent evidence that charter students there, on average, learned less in a year than their peers in traditional public schools. King took the time to stress that while he views charter schools as a key part of promoting innovation in education, ultimately they were also responsible for contributing to strong academic outcomes for students. But King got a charter school-related shout-out from Rep. Luke Messer, R-Ind., who praised the departments response to concerns he and Rokita raised last year about the distribution of Title I funds to charters in the Hoosier State . King told Messer that his department was continuing conversations about the issue with the Indiana education department. Rep. Jared Polis, D-Colo., is a fan of charters, but instead focused his attention on open educational resources. King said in response, We think theres a huge opportunity for savings and sharing in K-12 and higher education. In fact , the new Every Student Succeeds Act provides significant support to open educational resources by allowing block grant funding to be used on such resources. Several members also asked about career and technical education. King highlighted the budgets inclusion of $80 million for the next generation high school program that focuses on technology as a way to flesh out CTE programs. (This high school program has been included in past budgets, but hasnt made it across the finish line.) We see the next generation high school program as an opportunity to spur that innovation, King said. Photo: Acting U.S. Secretary of Education John King, center standing, speaks during a roundtable discussion with lawmakers and local leaders in January in El Paso, Texas.--Victor Calzada /The El Paso Times via AP-File Follow us on Twitter at @PoliticsK12 . Premium Ian O'Doherty Opinion For once, the UN is right were standing on the edge of a deadly nuclear precipice For those of us of a certain age, the last few months have felt as if we have somehow time-warped back to the 1980s. Stranger Things, which is set in that decade, has been the biggest show on TV. Kate Bush thanks, incidentally, to Stranger Things is now regularly played on the radio and she has reached number one in 2022 with the re-release of her 1985 hit, Running Up That Hill. Ireland is too small to tell two different stories. Word here travels fast and eventually duplicity becomes clear for all to see. You can't govern one way in Belfast and campaign the opposite way in Dublin without it being noticed and talked about. Last week, Gerry Adams suggested that if voters were looking for accurate illustration as to how Sinn Fein would govern in Dublin, they merely had to gaze up the road to Belfast. The Sinn Fein leader should be careful what he wishes for. Even a cursory glance at its record of government in the North tells a sorry tale. Sinn Fein, alongside the DUP, has now held power in Northern Ireland for nine years. It is joint leader of the Executive with all major decisions requiring its joint approval. By any standards, nine years of government is a good, long run and it's certainly long enough to face judgment on your record. So how has it fared? In terms of popular perception, the news isn't good. In an opinion poll for the 'Belfast Telegraph', more than two-thirds (66.3pc) rated the Northern Ireland Assembly's performance as either 'not very good' (the most common option at 41.8pc) or 'very bad' (26.5pc). It is clear that people in the North, whether unionist or nationalist, see Sinn Fein's time in government as representing failure after failure, broken promise after broken promise. In a society still deeply divided, we are all at least united in our disappointment. They're the majority parties, but they don't have the support of the majority of people. These poll numbers are not hard to explain. Look at the core issues of competence by which any government would expect to be judged. Look at its record in investing outside of greater Belfast. From April 2011 to September 2014, businesses in the east of Northern Ireland received 81pc of funding, compared with 19pc in the west. After nine years in government, that's not balanced regional development. Such policies have a direct and real consequence. An average 24,000 of our young people leave every year in the hope of finding work; 37pc of qualified school leavers head to Britain and beyond in the search of a university place. Most don't return. Sinn Fein's response? It has cut third-level funding in its last two budgets, resulting in over 1,000 fewer places with the promise of more cuts. The North is continuing to export our young people. That's not investing in the future. In the public sector, its big economic idea is to invest in redundancies. It is currently engaged in a process of spending 700m (895m) to put public servants out of work. What's even worse is this money was meant to be used to invest capital in our ailing infrastructure. Failures in our economy are devastating our society. In housing, 11,016 households are deemed to be homeless by the North's Housing Executive. Around one in four of our children and 21pc of our pensioners live in poverty. One in five working adults struggles to keep their head above the poverty line. Sinn Fein chooses to shy away from these statistics and these realities. One of the most enlightening aspects of its time in government is its complete avoidance of economic responsibility. Over the course of its nine years as the second-largest party in government with an entitlement to four full ministries, Sinn Fein has avoided choosing a ministry with any direct responsibility for the economy. It has had the chance to banish its image as being economically illiterate, yet has failed to take up the challenge of ministerial office. Only Sinn Fein can answer why. No doubt Sinn Fein will dispute all of these hard facts. It will claim that Stormont's devolved system has limitations. In this, it is right; Stormont has restrictions in terms of the fiscal levers it can manoeuvre. Creating positive political change is never a straight-forward task. But even with this defence, it is again telling two different stories. Because in the Republic it barks loudly in absolutist and rigid tones and in the North it talks of compromise and complexity. Sinn Fein can't see and can't admit its own contradictions. Whatever government has taught Sinn Fein in the North, it seems it has not taught it humility. Colum Eastwood is the leader of the SDLP Leonardo DiCaprio looks set to add an Oscar to his Bafta award Leonardo DiCaprio will pick up his first ever Academy Award on Sunday, if the Oscars continue their recent trend of mirroring the top winners at the Baftas. A total of four of the previous five recipients of the Bafta for best actor - and eight of the last 11 - have gone on claim the same title at the Oscars. The pattern is exactly the same for women, which could mean good news for this year's Bafta winner Brie Larson. New analysis by the Press Association shows that the two academies are increasingly picking the same people to win the biggest film awards. Between 1995 and 2004, Bafta correctly forecast the winners of the top four Oscars on just under a third of occasions (30%). But between 2005 and 2014, this figure rose to 68%. The British judges' choice for best film is also increasingly matching that of their American counterparts. Since 2007, there has only been one instance when the same movie did not win the best film award at both the Baftas and the Oscars. That was last year, when Bafta picked Boyhood while the Oscar went to Birdman. If both academies opt for the same choice this year, DiCaprio's film The Revenant will triumph on Sunday. History is not on the side of the man who directed The Revenant, however. Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu could miss out on an Oscar to go with his Bafta, as the winners of the award for best director have been less unanimous recently. In only two of the last five years has the same person picked up both titles. Video of the Day Inarritu won the Oscar for best director last year, and the Academy hasn't given this award to the same person two years in a row since 1950. Eddie Redmayne, nominated best actor for his role in The Danish Girl, can take heart from the fact that UK-born males have thrived at the Baftas and Oscars in recent years. Brits have won best actor at six of the last nine Baftas and three of the last five Oscars. The story is not so impressive for females. No British stars have won the best actress award at either ceremony since 2009 - unless you count Julianne Moore, on account of her Scottish mother, who did the double in 2014. Model Shauna Lindsay (20) has said she can't wait to move up to Dublin next month as her modelling career goes stellar. Rugby star Conor Murray's love interest has told the Diary she'll be moving to the capital next month as she's been so busy with work. Speaking for the first time since news of her four month romance with the 26-year-old Munster and Ireland star was revealed, she said it's a great opportunity for her to boost her modelling career. "I'll be moving up to Dublin in the next couple of weeks for work. "It just makes sense to move up as I've been so busy the past few months working with Andrea Roche. It's the right time for me and I'm super excited." Expand Close Shauna Lindsay models the new season SS16 collection for Debenhams. Picture: Kieran Harnett / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Shauna Lindsay models the new season SS16 collection for Debenhams. Picture: Kieran Harnett However, the Clare native didn't comment when asked about her reported romance with hunky rugby star Murray and declined speak about their relationship. No doubt absence will make the heart grow fonder when it comes to her and her other half, who is based in Limerick. Last week, the brunette beauty turned heads in Dublin as she modelled at the Debenhams fashion show in House, where she showed off the latest line in new season swimwear. Read More She was the envy of all after it was revealed that she was being romanced by the rugby star, who was once voted the sexiest player on the Ireland squad. This isn't the first time that the in-demand model has been linked to an Irish rugby player. Expand Close Ireland's Conor Murray. Picture credit: Stephen McCarthy / SPORTSFILE / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Ireland's Conor Murray. Picture credit: Stephen McCarthy / SPORTSFILE Two years ago, she made headlines after Munster star Simon Zebo tried to flirt with her on Facebook - sparking the ire of her then-boyfriend, Limerick DJ JJ Hartigan. The 5'10" 19-year-old has been working as a model for the past three years, becoming the face of Gosh cosmetics and then winning Miss Limerick in 2013. Video of the Day Lindsay was also one of the finalists in the Miss Universe Ireland contest last December, which was judged by Rozanna Purcell. She has signed up with Celia Holman Lee in Limerick and is also with Andrea Roche in Dublin as she has been inundated with offers of modelling work. Expand Close Miss Limerick Shauna Lindsay in 2013 / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Miss Limerick Shauna Lindsay in 2013 Read More Speaking about her love of her job previously, she said she relishes being in the spotlight. "It's just the buzz you get off it - it's such an adrenaline rush when you walk out in front of all the people. I love it," she said. President Barack Obama walks up to the podium before speaking in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington. President Obama urged politicians yesterday to give his plan to close the US military prison at Guantanamo Bay a "fair hearing" and said he did not want to pass the issue to his successor when he leaves the White House next year. The Pentagon plan proposes 13 potential sites on US soil for the transfer of remaining detainees but does not identify the facilities or endorse a specific one, administration officials said yesterday. Obama pledged to close the prison and move the detainees as a candidate for the White House in 2008. Lawmakers largely oppose moving the prisoners to the US, however, and his final attempt to get congressional backing is unlikely to gain traction. "Let us go ahead and close this chapter," Obama said in White House remarks. "I don't want to pass this problem on to the next president, whoever it is." President Obama leaves office in January 2017. The Guantanamo prisoners, held at a US naval station in southeastern Cuba, were detained by US troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. The facility came to symbolise aggressive detention practices in years past that opened the US to allegations of torture. The transfer and closure costs would be $290m to $475m (263m to 431m), an administration official told reporters. Housing remaining detainees in the US would be $65m to $85m cheaper than at the Cuba facility, the official said. Some 35 prisoners will be transferred from Guantanamo to other countries this year, leaving the final number below 60, officials said. Obama is considering closing the facility by executive order if lawmakers do not back his proposal. The plan would send detainees who have been cleared for transfer to their homelands or third countries and transfer remaining prisoners to US soil to be held in maximum-security prisons. Congress has banned such transfers to the US since 2011. Though the Pentagon has previously noted some of the sites it surveyed for use as potential US facilities, the administration wants to avoid fuelling any political outcry in important swing states before the November 8 presidential election. Ceasefire Earlier yesterday, the US and Russia announced that they had agreed terms for a ceasefire in Syria beginning on Saturday, but many questions remain over whether the agreement can be implemented on the ground. The deal would in theory mean an end to fighting between the Syrian regime and all major opposition groups except for al-Qa'ida's Syrian affiliate and Isil. The truce, which would begin at the stroke of midnight on Saturday, should also mean an end to Russian airstrikes against rebel forces. However, news of the agreement was met with deep scepticism by observers of a conflict that has raged for five years and claimed around 300,000 lives. John Kerry, the US Secretary of State, announced plans for a similar ceasefire two weeks ago, but its start date came and went without an end to the fighting. The deal would allow Russia to continue bombing Isil and the al-Nusra Front, an al-Qa'ida group in Syria. Britain and other Western governments have accused Russia of bombing rebel groups opposed to the Assad regime while claiming to be attacking the two jihadist groups. "About 90pc of Russian air strikes have been against the opposition, not against [Isil]," said a spokesman for the US-led coalition. News of the peace deal could lead to an escalation of fighting as all sides scramble to take ground before the ceasefire. The U.S. Supreme Court is getting back to business this week after the unexpected death of Justice Antonin Scalia. On Friday, the eight justices will meet in private conference to consider whether to take up appeals in several high-profile education cases (among many other appeals), with an announcement on the cases fate possible as early as Monday. In one case, the high court is being asked whether public schools may discipline students for off-campus speech, an issue that has been percolating in the lower courts for several years now. The Mississippi student in the case, who was disciplined for a violent rap song that alludes to shooting teachers, has drawn support from professional rappers who tell the court that the lyrics of their art form are not always meant to be taken seriously. In another case, the justices are being asked to decide whether Colorados state constitutional provision barring aid to religion, which the states highest court relied on in striking down a school districts private school voucher program, was born of such religious bigotry as to violate the U.S. Constitutions guarantee of free exercise of religion. In a third, the high court is being asked to hear the appeal of a Tennessee school district whose decision to outsource its alternative education program to a private Christian school was struck down by two lower federal courts as a violation of the First Amendments prohibition against government establishment of religion. (More on each case below.) A grant in any one of these case would be a huge deal for education. While the odds are stacked against any appeal being granted to start with, these cases are at the very least considered cert-worthy"meaning under normal circumstances they might have a decent chance for winning a grant of a writ of certiorari. But Justice Scalias death on Feb. 13 changed the calculus for the courts docket. With an eight-member court a possibility for as long as a year, the justices may be reluctant to take on certain divisive issues if they think the outcome would be a 4-4 tie. (In such instances, the Supreme Court affirms the lower court ruling without setting a precedent.) Here is a bit more on each of the cases mentioned above. Student Speech In Bell v. Itawamba County School Board (Case No. 15-666), a Mississippi high school student is appealing a ruling by a full federal appeals court that his off-campus rap recordings that allude to shooting two teachers are not protected by the First Amendment. Student Taylor Bells rap song and video, posted on Facebook and YouTube, make reference to a character attacking two teachers with guns. Bells lyrics included a character boasting to one of the teachers, Im going to get you with my rueger [sic], a misspelled reference to a type of gun. Another line said, going to get a pistol down your mouth. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit, in New Orleans, ruled 13-3 that school officials reasonably concluded that one rap video made by student Taylor Bell in 2011 was directed at the school community and threatened two teachers. In his appeal to the Supreme Court, Bell has drawn support from several professional rap artists, who argued in a friend-of-the-court brief that hip hop and gangsta rap are often misunderstood. The decision by the court of appeals punishes a student for his artand perpetuates unfair and inaccurate stereotypesby mischaracterizing often-used rap music phrases as threats, says the brief signed by multiple artists and professors , including one known as Killer Mike. (The brief makes plain that this is a stage name and the artist has never actually killed anyone.) Blaine Amendments In Doyle v. Taxpayers for Public Education (No. 15-556) and related appeals, the Douglas County, Colo., school district and other parties are appealing a June 2015 decision by the states highest court that struck down a local voucher program because it aided religious schools in violation of the state constitution. The appeals ask the U.S. Supreme Court to consider whether language in Colorados constitution barring government aid to religion was born of 19th Century anti-Catholic bigotry and violates the U.S. Constitution. The language against government aid to religion in Colorados constitution, and those of about three dozen other states, are referred to as Blaine amendments. They are named for a 19th-century congressman, James G. Blaine, who led an unsuccessful effort to amend the U.S. Constitution to prohibit public funding of sectarian schools at a time when Roman Catholics were pressing for government funding for parochial schools. Outsourcing of Education In Kucera v. Jefferson County Board of School Commissioners (No. 15-553), the justices are being asked to examine a Tennessee school districts use of a private Christian school as its alternative education provider for students with disciplinary problems. A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit, in Cincinnati, held last year that the public school students were served in a day program that offered secular instruction and only minimal exposure to religion, and thus the arrangement did not violate the establishment clause. The case involves the Jefferson County, Tenn., district, which in 2003 eliminated its own alternative school because of budget concerns and contracted with the Kingswood School in Bean Station, Tenn., for such services through 2010. (The arrangement ended that year, but that apparently did not present a mootness issue for the lawsuit, which was brought by two teachers who lost their jobs when the districts own alternative school was closed.) * * * * These three cases were originally set to be considered at the justices Feb. 19 private conference, but that conference was postponed because it was the day that a memorial observance was held for Scalia in the Supreme Courts Great Hall. They will now be considered at this Fridays conference. Supporters of Republican U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump celebrate as television networks declare him the winner of the Nevada Republican caucuses at Trump's Nevada caucus rally in Las Vegas, Nevada, February 23, 2016. REUTERS/Jim Young Republican U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump gestures to his sons Donald Trump Jr. (L) and Eric Trump (R) as he addresses supporters after being declared by the television networks as the winner of the Nevada Republican caucuses at his caucus night rally in Las Vegas, Nevada. REUTERS/Jim Young DONALD TRUMP has emerged the decisive winner of Nevada's Republican caucuses, leaving his main rivals battling for second place in an increasingly urgent effort to slam the brakes on the billionaire businessman's juggernaut. Mr Trump now has three straight victories - in the West, the South and North east - a testament to his broad appeal among the "mad-as-hell" voters making their voices heard in the 2016 US presidential race. Expand Close Supporters of Republican U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump celebrate as television networks declare him the winner of the Nevada Republican caucuses at Trump's Nevada caucus rally in Las Vegas, Nevada, February 23, 2016. REUTERS/Jim Young / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Supporters of Republican U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump celebrate as television networks declare him the winner of the Nevada Republican caucuses at Trump's Nevada caucus rally in Las Vegas, Nevada, February 23, 2016. REUTERS/Jim Young Six in 10 caucus goers said they were angry with the way the government was working, and Mr Trump scooped about half of those, according to preliminary results of an entrance poll. Projections on TV networks gave Trump 46 percent of the vote, with senators Marco Rubio of Florida and Ted Cruz of Texas trailing some 20 points behind. "We will be celebrating for a long time tonight," Trump told cheering supporters in a victory speech. Nevada was a critical test for Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz, the two senators battling to emerge as the clear alternative to the Republican front-runner. Mr Rubio was out to prove he could build on recent momentum, while Mr Cruz was looking for a spark to recover from a particularly rocky stretch in his campaign. Already campaigning in Michigan as caucus results rolled in, Mr Rubio was projecting confidence that he could consolidate the non-Trump voters who have been splintering among an assortment of Republican candidates, saying: "We have incredible room to grow." Mr Cruz, a fiery conservative popular among voters on the Republican right, finished a disappointing third in South Carolina after spending much of the past two weeks denying claims of dishonest campaign tactics and defending his integrity. Another disappointing finish in Nevada would raise new questions about his viability heading into a crucial batch of Super Tuesday states on March 1, including his home state of Texas. Nevada's caucusing played out in schools, community centres and places of worship across the state, a process that has been chaotic in the past. Preliminary results of the entrance poll found that about three in 10 early caucus goers said the quality that mattered most to them in choosing a candidate was that he shares their values, slightly more than the quarter who said they want a candidate who can win in November. About a quarter said they wanted a candidate who could bring change. About 2 in 10 want one who "tells it like it is". Mr Trump is on a roll after winning primaries in New Hampshire and South Carolina. Mr Cruz won the lead-off Iowa caucuses. Nevada marks the first Republican nominating contest in the West and the fourth of the campaign as the candidates try to collect enough delegates to win the party's nomination at the national convention in July. Although Nevada has relatively few delegates, it is the first measure of voter sentiment in the vast western region, much as South Carolina was the first glimpse at the South's preferences last weekend. Nevada is 28% Latino, 9% Asian-American and leads the nation with the highest rate of people living in the country illegally, according to the Pew Hispanic Centre. Its immigrant communities - 19% of its population was born outside the United States - have helped turn a once reliably Republican state into one that backed Barack Obama twice. Many analysts attribute that to hardline Republican positions on immigration. A Republican field that included a dozen candidates a month ago has been reduced to five, with former Florida governor Jeb Bush the latest to drop out after a disappointing finish in South Carolina. Ohio governor John Kasich and retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson remain in the race and could play spoilers as the trio of leading candidates battle for delegates with an increasing sense of urgency. Mr Trump's rivals concede they are running out of time to stop him. The election calendar suggests that if the New York billionaire's rivals do not slow him by mid-March, they may never. Mr Trump swept all of South Carolina's 50 delegates, giving him a total of 67 compared to Mr Cruz and Mr Rubio who have 11 and 10, respectively. There are 30 delegates at stake in Nevada, awarded to candidates in proportion to their share of the state-wide vote so long as they earn at least 3.33%. A crowd of several hundred supporters gathered at Mr Trump's Nevada watch party at the Treasure Island hotel in Las Vegas and burst into cheers and screams at the news that he had won. Some shouted "USA! USA!" as the caucus results rolled in. Many of the supporters in the crowd were from outside the state and decided to turn up at the celebration while in town. Nevada caucus-goers who decided whom to support before the last week were key to Mr Trump's victory in the state, according to early results of the entrance poll conducted among people arriving at caucus sites. Among those who decided whom to support in the last week, about four in 10 backed Mr Rubio, about a quarter supported Mr Trump and about two in 10 supported Mr Cruz. But a majority of those deciding before the last week supported Mr Trump and they accounted for about seven in 10 caucus attendees. The survey was conducted for The Associated Press and the television networks by Edison Research as Republican voters arrived at 25 randomly-selected caucus sites in Nevada. The preliminary results include interviews with 1,545 Republican caucus-goers and have a margin of error of plus or minus four percentage points. Mr Trump celebrated his win with a prediction that he would soon claim his party's presidential nomination. He told supporters in Las Vegas that "it's going to be an amazing two months", adding: "We might not even need the two months folks, to be honest." Mr Trump also basked in his caucus victory by vowing to keep the open the military detention centre in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. He told supporters he would keep open the jail for terror suspects President Obama is working to close, saying: "We're going to load it up with a lot of bad dudes out there." Mr Trump also drew loud cheers for his vow to build a wall along the southern border and his instance that Mexico would pay for it. And he shouted out from the stage to several of his billionaire friends, including Phil Ruffin, who owns the Treasure Island hotel, and casino developer Steve Wynn. "Now we're going to get greedy for the United States," Mr Trump said. Mr Cruz, meanwhile, said he could not wait to get home to Texas, pointing out that the Super Tuesday primaries, including the balloting in his home state, "will be the most important night of this campaign". Speaking at a Las Vegas-area YMCA after his underwhelming performance, he said he was the only Republican candidate who could beat Mr Trump. "The undeniable reality that the first four states have shown is that the only campaign that has beaten Donald Trump and the only campaign that can beat Donald Trump is this campaign," he said. A mother in Australia has saved her son by ripping off a three-metre python that was biting his face. The parent, identified only as Tammy on social media, woke up to the screams of her son Tyler duirng the night on Thursday after the snake entered their home in Macksville, northern New South Wales. The boy, who was sleeping in the top part of a bunk bed, was awoken when the reptile slithered under the sheets and bit him on the hand. It then started attacking his face before Tammy rushed in, snatched it away and called for help. Tyler was attacked by a three-metre python. Photo: Craig Baker/Facebook A friend of the family, Craig Baker, killed the snake. In a photo of it posted on Facebook, the snake dangles from above his head down to the ground. The post on the social networking site, which has since been shared thousands of times, says Tyler is now doing well. A spokeswoman for the Mid North Coast Local Health District told The Daily Telegraph in Australia a six-year-old boy was admitted to Macksville District Hospital early last Friday before being moved to Coffs Harbour hospital. Snakes are a common problem in Australia. Last week, a homeowner in Maroochy River, Queensland had a nasty shock when he found a snake lurking behind a plug socket. Dramatic video footage showed a huge carpet python trapped behind the socket causing smoke to waft out from the wall. Last month, experts said a "plague" of snakes had seen a sharp rise in humans and pets suffering bites across the country. "The hotter the day, the more active the snakes are definitely," a vet said at the time. "Its a very hot season...Theres also a lot of new developments so the snakes dont have the habitat that they used to have, so theyre basically moving into peoples backyards." Telegraph Media Group Limited [2022] If Britain votes to leave, Boris Johnson would be able to argue he had been more in tune with the country. British government ministers campaigning for a 'Brexit' have been banned by Whitehall's most senior civil servant from accessing official documents and prevented from receiving briefings. In a move likely to enrage Eurosceptics, Jeremy Heywood, the Cabinet secretary, has told ministers that when they campaign on EU matters they will no longer have access to official briefing papers, or get help with developing ideas for speeches. Instead, departmental officials will be allowed only to provide them with a basic fact-checking service. In a letter, which was distributed in Whitehall yesterday morning, Mr Heywood said: "It will not be appropriate or permissible for the Civil Service to support those who oppose the government's official position by providing briefing or speech material on this matter. Access "This includes access to official departmental papers, excepting papers that ministers have previously seen on issues relating to the referendum question prior to the suspension of the collective agreement." He adds: "Departments may check facts for such ministers on request. And civil servants should continue to support such ministers in undertaking all official government business in the usual way." The rules will apply until May 27, when the official Whitehall purdah period begins. Meanwhile, it is widely believed the EU referendum will play a decisive role in who succeeds David Cameron as Conservative leader. George Osborne is in prime position to carry on Mr Cameron's legacy, having built up a formidable operation as his deputy, and he is tied in to his mission to keep Britain in the EU. Boris Johnson has always been seen as Osborne's main rival. But given how Eurosceptic Conservative members and MPs are, might backing Brexit win Johnson the Tory leadership? It has become a truth universally acknowledged over recent months that Mr Osborne is the Conservatives' leader in waiting. However, Tory MPs are starting to cool on the chancellor. The level of Euroscepticism in the party seems to run deeper than Downing Street anticipated, so the EU referendum debate could strain any goodwill MPs have for senior Conservatives advocating continued membership. Around one in three Conservative MPs was estimated initially to be in favour of leaving the EU, with suggestions that the tally of pro-Brexit MPs would be between 70-100. But now they've been free to declare where they stand, more than 150 MPs (approximately half of the party) have thrown their weight behind Brexit, with more expected to follow. Mr Johnson's stance will allow him to ride this wave of 'outist' feeling in any prospective leadership contest. His name recognition will put him ahead of other Conservatives who've been more overt in wanting to leave, and encourage those who've been toying with joining them. Mr Johnson's intervention will make the decision easier for similar Eurosceptics, making him a prominent figure for Brexit-backing Tories to rally behind. Any concerns MPs have about how long it took for him to come around to the merits of Brexit would be put aside as long as they felt he was the best possible candidate to lead the party. Mr Johnson has recognised this in the past - writing in the 'Telegraph' back in 2001 during a previous leadership contest - that "the Tory party is a vast organism animated by a few vague common principles such as tradition and love of country, and above all by the pursuit and retention of power". Crucial Mr Johnson will thrive if he can persuade Tory MPs that he has this winning appeal, as they have a crucial role in the leadership contest, whittling down the candidates to a final two before a postal ballot of the wider membership. "There would have to be someone in the final two who backed Brexit, as Europe is such a critical issue," one senior Tory said. If Britain votes to leave, the potential sway to Mr Johnson would be magnified, as he would be able to argue that he had been in tune with the country, while 'Remainers' like George Osborne were on the wrong side of history. ( Daily Telegraph, London) Telegraph Media Group Limited [2022] Emergency services worked long into the night at Didcot on the rescue operation Four people were feared dead last night following a major building collapse at Didcot Power Station, in England. One person was confirmed dead, three were missing and five were in hospital following the incident yesterday afternoon. Emergency services declared a "major incident" after being called to the scene in south Oxfordshire at 4pm. The collapse happened at the former coal-fired Didcot A plant, which closed in 2013 and was in the process of being demolished. Area manager Mat Carlile, from Thames Valley Fire Control Service, said yesterday evening: "I can confirm search operations are in progress and that there has been one fatality, five persons have been taken to hospital and three persons are currently missing." The fire service advised people to stay indoors, saying that while dust from the collapse had covered "a considerable area" there were no hazardous materials in the building. Fire engines from Oxfordshire were at the scene, along with specialist search units and further teams from Thames Valley Police and South Central Ambulance Service, including six ambulances and two air ambulance helicopters. Pictures from the scene showed a significant chunk of a building in the defunct Didcot A site collapsed, with a large amount of debris on the ground. A GMB union official said: "We understand that workers were preparing two boilers for demolition in the coming weeks. This led to the collapse of a building." The plant closed in 2013 and hundreds gathered to watch when three of its enormous cooling towers were demolished. David Cooke, whose company Thames Cryogenics has a building overlooking the power station, said: "Our building shook and as we looked out of the window, the end of the main turbine hall collapsed in a huge pile of dust. "It totally obscured the towers and must have drifted across the roads and main rail line. What's left looks a tangled mess. "The dust was hanging over the area for five to 10 minutes. "First thought was it didn't looked planned, followed by the thought that people are going to have been hurt." Witness Bill McKinnon told the BBC: "I was sitting in my front room, I can see the power station quite clearly from where I am - it's only about 400 yards away. "When I heard the explosion and the very loud rumbling, by the time I had got up and looked out of the window there was a huge cloud of dust which came through and over our village." The crimes in Cologne caused public uproar as Germany deals with a huge influx of migrants Two men have been convicted of theft and given suspended sentences in the first trials for New Year's Eve crimes in the German city of Cologne. A third suspect was convicted under juvenile law and put on probation. The spate of reported thefts and assaults on women near Cologne's main station caused public uproar as Germany faces a huge influx of migrants. More than 1,000 criminal complaints were filed, over 400 of those alleging sexual crimes. Neither of Wednesday's trials involved allegations of sexual assaults. Names were not released in accordance with German privacy laws. The Cologne district court handed a 23-year-old Moroccan asylum-seeker a six-month suspended sentence and a 100-euro (79) fine for stealing a mobile phone from a woman as she photographed the city's cathedral and for possessing drugs. In a separate trial, a 22-year-old Tunisian was given a three-month suspended sentence for theft. The court found he distracted a man on a bridge near Cologne's main station while his 18-year-old Moroccan co-defendant stole a bag containing a camera. The younger man, who the court said also committed three thefts nearly a year ago, was convicted and put on probation for two years. Both will have to do 60 hours' community work. In the first trial, the Moroccan apologised to the victim. The 20-year-old woman did not immediately see who had stolen the phone but caught him after an Afghan refugee who had witnessed the theft pointed him out to her. The court stressed that the future of the man's asylum application was not a matter for Wednesday's proceedings. Amid outrage over the Cologne crimes, the German government is moving to make it easier to deport criminal foreigners. The changes would mean that even a suspended prison sentence would be grounds for deportation if someone is found guilty of certain crimes - including bodily harm, sexual assault, violent theft or serial shoplifting. Add Maryland to the list of states to find that students tended to score better when taking the 2014-15 PARCC exams on paper instead of by computer. Paper results in the state were higher than online results for every tested grade in English/language arts and on higher-level math exams, according to an analysis prepared by the state department of education and presented to the state board of education Tuesday. Differences between the student populations who took the exams via different modes of administration accounted for a portion of the score discrepancies, according to the analysis. But a bigger factor was students readiness for the technology platform, including developing extended written responses on a computer and responding to multimedia content. A lot of this has to do with getting our instruction on board [with the new tests and Common Core State Standards they are meant to assess] and making students more aware of whats required for an adequate response, said Doug Strader, the assessment director for the Maryland education department, in an interview. Those findings echo a pattern of score discrepancies by mode of administration found across the multi-state Partnership for the Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers, one of two consortia to develop and administer last year new tests aligned with the common core. The apparent mode-of-administration effect was first reported by Education Week earlier this month. Colorado, Illinois, and Rhode Island have found similar patterns within their states. The Baltimore County schools, one of the largest districts in Maryland, also found such a pattern, then used statistical techniques to isolate the impact of testing format. The district found that after controlling for student and school characteristics, students were between 3 percent and 9 percent more likely to score proficient on the paper-and-pencil version of the math exam, depending on their grade level. Students were 11 percent to 14 percent more likely to score proficient on the paper version of the E/LA exam. According to the new analysis from the Maryland education department, 80 percent of the more than 876,000 Maryland students who took the PARCC exams last spring did so online. In math, the advantage for paper-based test-takers was most pronounced on upper-grade and higher-level tests, such as 8th grade math and Algebra I and II. About 55 percent of students who took the Algebra I exam on paper scored proficient or advanced, for example, compared to fewer than 30 percent of those who took the exam online. The advantage for paper-based test-takers was found in every grade (3-8 and 10) on the English/language arts exam. Among 4th graders, for example, just over 50 percent of students who took the E/LA test on paper scored proficient or advanced, compared to fewer than 40 percent of those who took the exam online. Paper-best test-takers tended to be higher-performing on previous state exams, a difference that accounted for about 40 percent of the discrepancy between paper and online results on this years PARCC. African-American students, English-language learners, students from low-income families, and students with disabilities did not appear to be significantly disproportionately affected, according to Strader. And there was no evidence of technical flaws in the development, administration, scoring, or reporting of the assessment, according to the state analysis. That leaves student readiness for technology as the biggest factor explaining the score discrepancies. In other words, scores in some cases reflected not what students know and are able to do, but their familiarity and capabilities with the computer-based platform on which the test was administered. Test items that required more involved responsesfor example, developing a longer written response to be entered via computerappeared to be the biggest problem in the online version of the exams, according to the state report. Through informal discussions with test-takers of both modes, there was a common theme of not knowing what was expected to score well on the extended response items [via computer], according to the report. Students shared that they would default to the size of the response box to better determine how much was enough. Students also described having little experience developing extended responses from start to finish with the use of technology, according to the report. Several states have dropped the PARCC exams since last school year, but the overall push for more online testing appears to be moving forward unabated. Maryland schools will again administer the PARCC exams, during a 30-day window between April 4 and June 10. The state expects the test to be fully online by next school year, with the exception of students who require an accommodation. Like many states, Maryland has delayed using the results of PARCC exams for high stakes, such as student graduation or teacher evaluation, during the transition. Photo: A student at Marshall Simonds Middle School in Burlington, Mass., reviews a question on a PARCC practice test before 2014 field-testing of the computer-based assessments.--Gretchen Ertl for Education Week-File See also: 21 tons of aid were dropped on the city A plane has dropped the first cargo of aid to the Syrian city of Deir el-Zour, t he UN humanitarian chief said. Stephen O'Brien told the UN Security Council that 21 tons of aid were dropped on the city which is surrounded by the extremist Islamic State group early on Wednesday. He said initial reports from Syrian Arab Red Crescent teams on the ground say the pallets landed in the target area. Mr O'Brien said the UN and its partners have reached 110,000 people in besieged areas and have approval to reach a further 230,000 people, including through air drops in Deir el-Zour. But he said the UN is still waiting for approval to reach 170,000 additional people in besieged areas and "we expect those approvals to happen immediately". Frances Parrish/Independent Mail District 1 bus driver Sacajewea Blassingame, better known as Tweet, stands with Transportation Director Benny Bridges, Superintendent David Havird and board Chairman Fred Alexander (seated). SHARE By Frances Parrish of the Independent Mail With her family watching, bus driver Sacajawea Blassingame, also known as Tweet, was recognized Tuesday night for saving a student from being hit by a car earlier this month. "She has a constant focus on safety. Because of the training, she could tell something serious was going on. The car was not slowing down at all ... you can imagine, if you were there seeing that, what could have happened," Superintendent David Havird said to the board of trustees. "On behalf of our entire district, thank you for being our bus driver for 26 years. We all know it's one of the most difficult jobs in the district, and most importantly for watching out for our students," Havird said, handing a certificate to Blassingame. For the student's mother and Blassingame, it was an afternoon they wouldn't forget. It was 3:15 p.m. when Elizabeth Burns walked out of her house to pick up her son from the bus stop. Blassingame opened the doors for 8-year-old Brayden Burns at his stop that Monday afternoon. He stopped after getting off the bus, waiting for Miss Tweet's signal to cross the street. On the other side of the street, his mother was waiting. Burns heard the revving of an engine. She looked down the road to see a minivan speeding toward the stopped bus and her son standing in front of the bus. " 'Are you going to stop?' I thought," Burns said. Blassingame stopped Brayden from walking across the road, and after the speeding vehicle passed, he crossed the road safely. "If it wasn't for her, we'd both be dead," Burns said. "He's my world." At least once a month, Blassingame has someone go around her stopped school bus, but this is the first time in 26 years she's had a close call. "That one time is one time too many," Blassingame said. On every route, Blassingame has an average of 45 to 50 students on her bus. "It can be stressful," Blassingame said. "It just makes me stay on my P's and Q's. I can't let my guard down. I can't get comfortable. I have to always watch. We have to pay attention, there is so much going on around us." Bus drivers in Anderson County and all over the state face problems with other drivers illegally passing a stopped school bus every day. Nearly every other day, District 1 Transportation Director Benny Bridges said he signs at least one stop-arm violation form to send to the South Carolina Department of Education. District 5 Transportation Director Darryl Webb said there are two to three violations reported on any given school day. "I think it's ridiculous," Webb said. "If you look at the safety of our kids, I think that needs to be a priority of something that occurs on a daily basis." Groups such as the South Carolina Association of Pupil Transportation, South Carolina Department of Education and the South Carolina Highway Patrol are working to curb the number of violations. The South Carolina Highway Patrol received 540 complaints from the South Carolina Department of Education about stop-arm violations from January 2013 through August 2014. The highway patrol either assigned a state trooper to the bus route or to a particular stop, and 159 citations were issued to drivers illegally passing a stopped school bus, said Lt. Kelley Hughes of the South Carolina Highway Patrol. The Anderson County Sheriff's Office works with school districts to alert residents in areas with frequent violations, but even if bus drivers or parents report a tag number, police can't do anything about it. "We can't write a ticket to the tag," said Sheriff John Skipper. "Luckily, we haven't had a lot of injuries, but there's always that potential. It's very dangerous." The South Carolina Association of Pupil Transportation started a Stop Arm Violation Education campaign, and have worked with senators to push bills through the Legislature to punish drivers who illegally pass a stopped bus. A law passed in 2014 allowed buses to have cameras to identify anyone illegally passing a school bus, but if police don't catch the driver in the act or if the driver can't be identified, nothing can be done. This year the Save campaign, with the help of Sen. Robert Hayes, is pushing for an amendment to the law to allow fines to be mailed to the owner of the vehicle caught on camera passing a school bus illegally. Follow Frances Parrish on Twitter @frances_AIM photos by KEN RUINARD/INDEPENDENT MAIL Tyler Free of Anderson practices throwing a fishing line in the flowing Rocky River in Anderson. A group is trying to get financial support for some swampland near Anderson University, along Williamston Road, to be used for education and recreation. SHARE Swamp hidden in the tall grass along Williamston Road in Anderson. The Rocky River Conservancy is trying to get financial support for some swampland near Anderson University, along Williamston Road in Anderson, to be used for education and recreation. Related Photos Rocky River project By Abe Hardesty of the Independent Mail In Greenville County, near the former Donaldson Air Base, a once-ignored area of the Reedy River has been converted into the Conestee Nature Park 400 acres of natural habitat on the Reedy River. Six miles south of downtown Greenville, the park offers hardwood and evergreen forest, extensive wetlands, and 1.5 miles of wildlife-luring riverbank. Deer, raccoon, beaver, fox, otter, and various small mammals inhabit the park, along with reptiles, amphibians, and more than 150 bird species. A small group, The Rocky River Conservancy, envisions the same thing in Anderson. The tract of approximately 180 acres near Anderson University is a natural lure for all those critters and has the potential to be a magnet for visitors. The nonprofit organization hopes to make visiting easier by building a 487-foot boardwalk through the wetlands near the Rocky River Nature Trail. It will soon make an application to the South Carolina Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism for a grant that will accelerate the project, Park Director Dana Leavitt said Tuesday. Leavitt, one of the leaders of a grass roots project that began five years ago, will present the plan Thursday in Anderson. The public is invited to make suggestions. The proposed boardwalk will be 6 feet wide and meander through the wetlands area that can be seen from Williamston Road. The nature trails, already in place, are hidden from the highway by forest. "The boardwalk will connect two trails, forming a loop and will also be a vital component in studying the Wetland Restoration program recently funded," Leavitt said. If all goes well with the funding, Leavitt hopes to have the boardwalk in place by July. The grant application deadline is March 2. "It's a step," conservatory member Juan Brown, a retired surgeon, said of the proposed boardwalk, which would link the swamp area of the park to its nature trails. "The area has a lot of potential. There are about 180 acres there, with lots of wildlife and walking trails." Anderson University and private landowners have committed significant parcels for the park, adjacent to Williamston Road and Old Williamston Road, and conservancy members hope more land eventually will be donated. The project could eventually encompass more than 400 acres. The conservancy hopes to eventually create an environmental educational facility for students in the region. Part of Anderson University's 125-acre tract, donated by John and Marie Pracht in 2008, is already used as an outdoor biology classroom. The site is being developed in three phases beginning with the area known as the bluff, at the northern rim of the tract. The upland sector of the park can be accessed across from Trammel Road on Old Williamston Road. It is open from dawn to dusk. Brown organized the conservancy task force in 2010 to collaborate with the city of Anderson, Anderson County, Anderson University and other community partners. Plans for the park also include outdoor classrooms, a chapel and an outdoor pavilion. Last year, the conservancy received two grants worth a combined $90,000. Upstate Forever, a nonprofit that exists to preserve special places in the region, helped to secure both grants. Follow Abe Hardesty on Twitter @abe_hardesty Want to go? What: The Rocky River Conservancy will make a presentation about plans for a boardwalk and other additions at the Rocky River Nature Park. The 60-minute meeting is open to the public. When: Thursday, 6:30 p.m. Where: Anderson City Council Chambers, 401 S. Main St. (side entrance on John Street). LAS VEGAS -- If Ken Cuccinelli couldn't tell how bad it was out there, the boos did it for him. The former attorney general of Virginia, an early endorser of Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, flew to Nevada for the caucuses and volunteered to speak before a big ten-precinct gathering in the retirement communities of Summerlin. He started to make the case, and was knocked back by jeers. "It's hard to talk to Trump people, from a persuasion standpoint," said Cuccinelli diplomatically, as he waited for election results to come in from Cruz's party at a Las Vegas YMCA. The rise of Donald Trump has baffled the so-called establishment of the Republican Party. It's become just as confounding to the libertarians, conservatives, and "constitutionalists" who used to be called the "Tea Party." While Cruz had spent the days before these caucuses pre-spinning a loss, the size of the Trump victory challenged notions about who, exactly, was a conservative. "One thing I've learned about Nevada is that you're very angry," said Glenn Beck, one of Cruz's warm-up speakers. "You're very frustrated." Sal Russo, the longtime Republican strategist who co-founded the Tea Party Express PAC in 2009, came to Nevada to back Cruz. He used some downtime to attend Trump's Monday night rally on the Strip, which packed nearly 10,000 people into an arena, eight times more than had ever attended a Cruz rally in the state. "I've been to a lot of rallies," said "I've never seen anything like this one. He would say something -- 'punch that guy in the face!' -- and the veins would be popping out of peoples' necks." Cruz, by contrast, never seemed to catch fire in a state that he worked harder than any candidate. He organized here early, and muscled out Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., in the battle for libertarian-minded rural voters. On Sunday, he flew immediately to the state from South Carolina and set out on nine crowded campaign stops. At three of them he was introduced by lengthy remarks from Beck, a Mormon convert who drew cheers at the mention of his faith. But the speedbumps were hard to miss. Cruz spent Sunday night and Monday morning dealing with the fallout of Rick Tyler, his communications director, sharing a video of Rubio apparently mocking the Bible. The video's caption was doctored; Cruz asked Tyler to resign. That overshadowed what could have been a disappointing Rubio quest for second place, in a state that the Florida senator -- who lived in Nevada as a child -- once hoped to win. Even when it was rolling, the Cruz roadshow had a slapdash feel. It recycled video endorsements from Iowa, with libertarian activists from two time zones away making the case for Cruz. One video even ended with the slogan "people of Iowa, it is time to believe again." In Carson City, when Attorney General Adam Laxalt needed to stall for Cruz's arrival, he spoke until he ran out of topics, then announced a "short video" - and the audience groaned. Cruz's stump speech, as tight as Trump's is stream-of-consciousness, changed only a little for Nevada. In a TV ad, and in speeches, Cruz promised to hand over the 85 percent of Nevada land owned by the federal government over to the state. It drew applause - and some protesters - but did not move votes. In early results, Cruz did not fare much better in rural Nevada than he fared in Clark County. That frustrated Cruz supporters like Doug Whalen, 49, the campaign chairman in Las Vegas, who had rallied with Cliven Bundy at his 2014 protest of the Bureau of Land Management. "People blindly follow Trump," suggested Whalen. "I'm a small businessman, and I've seen the lies he tells. But a lot of people don't see it. I really thought more people would connect with the land issue." Only toward the end of his Nevada blitz did Cruz discover a potent narrative. He began reminding audiences of the 2014 midterms, when Republicans won back the Nevada legislature, only to pass a tax hike. "The people of Nevada have some experience with politicians who say one thing and do another," Cruz said at his final rally, in Carson City. "If you look at our state leadership team, almost every one of them voted against the tax increase." At his election night party, Cruz streamlined his speech and even changed up its setting. In the last three states, Cruz had closed out the race in front of a backdrop of high-profile endorsers. In Nevada, he stood with young campaign staffers. He congratulated Donald Trump -- just two people clapped -- then did what he had been reluctant to do in interviews this week. He predicted a victory in Texas, the state he couldn't "wait to get home" to. As the party ended, Texas Republican Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick doubled down then tripled down on the Texas promise. "Texas will reward Ted Cruz," he said. "One thing the mainstream media hasn't done a good job of covering is that early voting has started already. By the time the Trumpster finds Texas, half of the votes may well have been cast." It was in Texas, in 2o12, that Cruz first perfected his message of "both parties" in Washington posing the same threat to America. That was long before the narrow-casting, lane-conquering messaging that had fallen short in Nevada. In Texas, said Patrick, Cruz would start winning again. "If you don't get 20 percent of the vote, you don't qualify for delegates," he said. "Probably, the only people who get delegates out of Texas are Ted Cruz and Donald Trump." By Dezan Shira & Associates Editor: Tracie Frost On February 5, 2016, Dominos Pizza opened its 1000th store in India, making India the only country outside of the U.S. with 1,000 Dominos stores. Dunkin Donuts opened with one store in India in April 2012; the company now has 67 Dunkin Donuts restaurants in the country. Last year, Anytime Fitness Gym unveiled plans to open 50 more outlets by the end of the year 2015. Each of these franchises is taking advantage of tremendous growth opportunities in India. By some estimates, franchising is growing faster than any other sector of the Indian economy. The industry has grown from US$13.4 billion to approximately US$24 billion since 2012. In 2015, for the fifth year in a row, the Indian franchise industry saw more than 30 percent growth over the previous year, with the addition of approximately 4,050 new brands. And franchises are expected to add 100,000 jobs in 2016. As a business model, franchising is well suited to Indias business environment. India has no laws that specifically regulate business franchising. As a result, a franchise can be opened without concern for franchise regulations, registration, or accreditation. However, franchisors are governed by a number of different national and regional statutes and codes. To complicate matters, regulations often vary by region, and the lack of legal and regulatory recognition of franchises makes it difficult for them to obtain loans because most lenders do not treat franchisees as a separate customer segment. Perhaps the greatest obstacles, however, involve the stringent foreign direct investment rules. The Indian government considers retail to be either multi-brand (retailers like supermarkets that offer multiple brands) or single-brand (retailers that sell only their own brands). Most franchisors fall into the single brand category. As of September 2012, the government allows up to 100 percent foreign investment in single-brand retail. However, single-brand ventures with more than 51 percent foreign investment must be locally sourced with at least 30 percent of the value of goods purchased from Indian firms. For many companies, this threshold will be extremely difficult to meet. In addition, India is not a one-size-fits-all market. Tremendous differences in culture, language, preferences, and tastes make it impossible to use just one business model for the entire country. Franchisors and their franchisees must therefore be highly innovative and flexible to succeed in the Indian market. Despite potential challenges, numerous international franchisors have been extremely successful in India. The most successful have entered the Indian market prepared for difficulties and have adapted their products and services to local market preferences. Dunkin Donuts, for example, realized early that its global model was not an option in India. The majority of U.S. sales happen between 6am to 8am when people stop for breakfast on their way to work. The concept of breakfast on the go does not exist in India. So instead, the company targeted the 50 percent of Indians who are under 35 years old with their slogan Get your mojo back!. Additionally, more than half of the Dunkin Donuts India menu has been altered to suit local tastes. Industries with the best prospects for successful franchising in India include retail, food and beverages, education and training, health and beauty, and consumer services, but other industry sectors with potential also exist. Apparel franchises, travel and tourism, and business and financial services franchises have gained traction in recent years. RELATED: Pre-Investment Services from Dezan Shira & Associates As is always the case with India, regulatory improvements would go far in improving both the ease of franchising and the economic gains from growth in the franchise sector. Some reforms, which are already underway, will affect franchising in positive ways. These include improvements to conflict resolution and bankruptcy proceedings and intellectual property protection. However, significant gains could be taken from specific federal franchising laws, pre-contract disclosure requirements, and controls on royalty payments and franchisee fees. About Us Asia Briefing Ltd. is a subsidiary of Dezan Shira & Associates. Dezan Shira is a specialist foreign direct investment practice, providing corporate establishment, business advisory, tax advisory and compliance, accounting, payroll, due diligence and financial review services to multinationals investing in China, Hong Kong, India, Vietnam, Singapore and the rest of ASEAN. For further information, please email india@dezshira.com or visit www.dezshira.com. Stay up to date with the latest business and investment trends in Asia by subscribing to our complimentary update service featuring news, commentary and regulatory insight. Managing Your Accounting and Bookkeeping in India In this issue of India Briefing Magazine, we spotlight three issues that financial management teams for India should monitor. Firstly, we examine the new Indian Accounting Standards (Ind-AS) system, which is expected to be a boon for foreign companies in India. We then highlight common filing dates for most companies with operations in India, and lastly examine procedures and regulations for remitting profits from India. Tax, Accounting, and Audit in India 2014-2015 Tax, Accounting, and Audit in India 2014-2015 offers a comprehensive overview of the major taxes foreign investors are likely to encounter when establishing or operating a business in India. This concise, detailed, yet pragmatic guide is ideal for CFOs, compliance officers and heads of accounting who need to be able to navigate the complex tax and accounting landscape in India in order to effectively manage and strategically plan their India-based operations. An Introduction to Indias Audit Process In this issue of India Briefing Magazine, we provide readers with an overview of Indias annual audit process and offer important tips for the smooth navigation of the countrys audit regulations and accounting standards. We begin by first explaining the two most common types of audit in India, statutory and internal audits, and then outline the standard steps and procedures an Indian auditor will follow in each. 'Highway' actor Randeep Hooda who is gearing up for his next which is a biopic seems to be sharing an emotional bond with Sarbjit's real sister Dalbir Kaur. Sources say that, Dalbir recently met Randeep on set during the shoot and she also invited Randeep to her house for a meal. According to a close source, "Randeep met Dalbir for the first time in Mumbai, before they started shooting for the movie. And when they were filming at Bhikhiwind, a town along the India-Pakistan border in Punjab, recently, Dalbir dropped in on the sets to meet Randeep. She shared stories of her and Sarbjit`s childhood. This even helped Randeep prepare for his role. He has promised her that he will come over for a meal. They share a great bond now." On this, Randeep said, "It was a pleasure to meet Sarabjit`s family and friends in Bhikhiwind. Dalbir and both her daughters are adorable." The movie 'Sarbjit' is based on a farmer who crosses the India-Pakistan border under the influence of liquor and is mistaken as an Indian spy. He was kept in the jail for 23 years until he was killed by the inmates. Randeep has shed 18 kgs withing 28 days for the role of 'Sarbjit', he is giving his heart and sould for the movie. This movie is directed by Omung Kumar and it features Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Richa Chadha and Darshan Kumar in the lead, this will hit screens on May 19. Saudi Arabia has 1.8 million tonnes of wheat reserves, up from 1.6 million tonnes this time last year, enough to last more than six months, the director-general of the kingdom's main wheat-buying agency said on Tuesday. Saudi Arabia has become a major importer of hard and soft wheat since abandoning plans for self-sufficiency in wheat in 2008, as farming in the desert drained scarce water supplies. It has halted purchases of locally grown wheat this year. Ahmed al-Fares also said he expects Saudi Arabia to complete the privatisation of its flour mills by the first quarter of 2017, although the Ministry of Finance's Public Investment Fund determines the final timeframe. <>Saudi General Grains Organization (SAGO) and the Public Investment Fund are studying how to establish four joint-stock companies to operate the flour mills, as approved by the Saudi cabinet in November. The privatised entities will be open to both national and foreign investment. SAGO, previously called the General Silos and Flour Mills Organisation (GSFMO), said in October that it expected to import 3.5 million tonnes of wheat in 2016. Fares said Saudi Arabia has not been in the wheat market so far in 2016 because it has enough reserves, but said he expects to go back to the market soon. Powered by Commodity Insights Global venture capital seed fund and startup accelerator , 500 Startups has launched a $25 million fund which will be focused on India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.Named as Kulfi 500, the new fund is expected to make about 25 to 50 deals per year, focusing majorly on fledgling companies with market-fit products and demonstrated traction.The Silicon Valley based investment firm, one of the most active investor in Asia which writes small cheques of a few hundred thousand dollars stated that India is currently the fastest growing economy. Also with the median age in India being 27.3 years old and increasing smart phone penetration gives a great opportunity to invest in India for future growth.500 Startups provides early-stage companies with up to $250,000 in funding, a startup accelerator program, and conducts events like SmashSummit, UnSexy, and GeeksOnaPlane. It has startup mentors around the world, and a community of startup founders, assisting new ventures under the program.500 Startups has already invested in over 50 startups in India. ZipDial, SourceEasy, Instamojo, CultureAlley, SilverPush, KartRocket, and Headout are few of the many start-ups that have received funding. 500 Startups has a $200 million corpus and has investments in more than 1,500 companies across 50 countries. In last year alone it funded over 20 start-ups in India.Although we are sector-agnostic, we will take a closer look at financial technology, edutech, health and wellness, data analytics, content, SaaS (software-as-a-service) and small and medium businesses," Pankaj Jain, partner at 500 Startups and runs the 500 Kulfi fund, wrote in a blog post on the company's website.Besides, 500 startups has also announced the launch of two new funds, including a $25 million fintech fund and a $25 million vehicle focused on India. 500 FinTech led by Sheel Mohnot, an investor and entrepreneur who joined 500 Startups after Labor Day, will look at lending, insurance, alternative investing platform and bitcoin. Felon Voting Rights Range Widely Across the U.S. It used to be that someone who committed a felony was barred from voting in state or federal elections for life, pretty much wherever they were. Now that is not so, and felons have a range of voting rights, which vary from state to state. Four states still bar felons from ever voting in governmental elections. Meanwhile, in two tiny New England states felons may vote even while incarcerated. In other words, the variation in law on felony voting rights is wide. The short story is that states decide, not the federal government. Let's look at some details. The States Decide Felony disenfranchisement is determined by the states on an individual basis, which accounts for the range in approaches. While Maine and Vermont never take the right to vote away from a felon, there are four states in which felons permanently lose the right to participate in elections. In Florida, Kentucky, Iowa, and Virginia, the price for crime is more than just doing the time but a lifetime of exclusion from elections. While there have been efforts made to create a more uniform approach to felony disenfranchisement federally, the fact is that the US Supreme Court affirmed in 1974 that states determine both state and federal voting rights. In Richardson v. Ramirez, a challenge to felony disenfranchisement brought by three California ex-convicts who were refused voter registration in multiple counties, the Supreme Court found no violation of the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment of the US Constitution. As such, states determine their desired approach to felony voting. The Middle Path Most states have a more measured approach than Florida and a less lenient one than Maine. The 44 states that lie between the two extremes all have their own rules about rights restoration. In Arizona, for example, a felon may seek to have voting rights restored two years after completing a sentence. The restoration of these rights is at a judge's discretion. Some states automatically restore voting rights upon sentence completion and others require that a person register to vote again, showing proof from probation, parole, or a prison, that the sentence was served. Public Perception There is a general perception in the public that convicted felons cannot ever vote again, no matter the crime and if they did the time. That is incorrect, but based on the fact that many more states used to have felon voting restrictions like the harshest four today. It is not the case, however, that all felons are barred from voting in all elections across the country. The rules are anything but uniform, so if you're concerned about your right to vote in a specific state, take the time to find out if yours is jeopardized by your status as a convicted felon. Consult With Counsel If you have been charged with a crime or are concerned about your right to vote, speak to a criminal defense attorney. Get help. Many attorneys consult for free or a minimal fee and will be happy to discuss your situation. Related Resources: The Auto Care Association and the U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC) will be hosting two free webinars on the business opportunities in the automotive industries in Peru, Guatemala and El Salvador. These webinars will provide country profiles and market information, and will highlight best prospects and trade mission details.The U.S. is the largest trading partner for many Latin American countries, with more than half of all Americas Free Trade Agreement (FTA) partners. FTA countries offer low or zero tariff rates on merchandise, increase transparency, improve the business environment and reduce market access barriers.Attendees will hear from U.S. Commercial Service automotive industry specialists operating in the country for first-hand market insight, and will have the opportunity to raise questions to the presenters to address specific interests. Attendees will also learn about the Auto Care Association's 2016 trade missions and U.S. Commercial Service/DOC in-country support. The associations trade missions will take place in Peru, May 17-19, and in Guatemala, June 21-22, with an optional stop in El Salvador, June 23-24.The Auto Care Association's trade missions are a part of the Market Development Cooperator Program (MDCP) award the association recently received from the U.S. Department of Commerce to help the automotive industry increase exports to free trade agreement partners in Central and South America. "GMR Male" International Airport Limited ( GMIAL) a subsidiary of GMR Infrastructure Limited had entered into a Concession Agreement with Government of Maldives (GaM) and Maldives Airport Company Limited (MACL) for modernization and operation of Ibrahim Nasir International Airport (INIA) in 2010. The said concession Agreement was repudiated by the Government of Maldives and Maldives Airport Company Limited on 29th November 2012 alleging that the same was void ab initio and initiated an international arbitration.On 18th June 2014, the International Arbitral Tribunal constituted to adjudicate the said dispute, with its seat at Singapore, had issued its First Part Final Award holding that the Concession Agreement was valid and binding, Government of Maldives and Maldives Airports Company Limited had unlawfully repudiated the same and that they are jointly liable for damages to GMIAL for loss caused by such wrongful repudiation. By its Award dated 23d Februarv 2016, the said Tribunal has ruled that such damages payable by GoM and MACL to GMIAL will also include all the sums owed by GMIAL to the project lenders Axis Bank Singapore Pte Ltd. Under the Facilitv Agreement.The project debt covered by the aforesaid ruling as part of damages is besides the other damages/compensation payable by GoM and MACL to GMIAL in terms of the First Part Final Award.The quantum assessment of the entire damage/compensation payable by GoM and MACL is expected to be completed sometime around the end of the third quarter of CY2016"GMR Infrastructure Ltd is currently trading at Rs. 12.24, up by Rs. 0.99 or 8.8% from its previous closing of Rs. 11.25 on the BSE.The scrip opened at Rs. 11.2 and has touched a high and low of Rs. 12.93 and Rs. 11.15 respectively. So far 33848715(NSE+BSE) shares were traded on the counter. The current market cap of the company is Rs. 6790.44 crore.The BSE group 'A' stock of face value Rs. 1 has touched a 52 week high of Rs. 20.31 on 28-Feb-2015 and a 52 week low of Rs. 9.58 on 04-Sep-2015. Last one week high and low of the scrip stood at Rs. 11.5 and Rs. 10.35 respectively.The promoters holding in the company stood at 61.61 % while Institutions and Non-Institutions held 27.05 % and 11.34 % respectively.The stock is currently trading above its 200 DMA. The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi has given its approval for signing of an Agreement between India and Maldives for the avoidance of double taxation of income from international air transport. The Agreement provides for relief from double taxation for airline enterprises of India and Maldives by way of exemption of income derived by the enterprise of India from the operation of aircraft in international traffic, from Maldivian tax and vice-versa. Under the agreement, profits from the operation of aircraft in international traffic will be taxed in one country alone.Accordingly the taxing right is conferred upon the country to which the enterprise belongs. The Agreement will provide tax certainty for airline enterprises of India and Maldives. The Agreement further provides for Mutual Agreement Procedure for resolving any difficulties or doubts arising as to the interpretation or application of the Agreement. Venezuela's state oil company PDVSA may clinch a deal for Oil and Natural Gas Corp to invest some $500 mn in their San Cristobal joint venture, the South American company's president reportedly said. Report says that the deal would be signed soon. The funds would go towards shoring up production at San Cristobal, which has fallen from a peak of over 40,000 barrels per day to around 28,000 bpd. : PNB has declared a list of about 900 wilful defaulters, including Winsome Diamonds & Jewellery, Zoom Developers and Nafed, which owe it nearly Rs. 11,000 crore.: M&M has firmed up plans to invest around Rs. 1,000 crore in developing petrol engines over the next two to three years.: The company is preparing a digital platform and an omnichannel to complement its strong physical presence in the organised retail business, reports a business daily.: IDFC Alternatives and I Squared Capital are in the race for acquiring a controlling stake in two projects of Gayatri Projects, reports a business daily.: Kotak Mahindra Bank Ltd has announced that the Bank has signed a share subscription and shareholders agreement with Airtel M Commerce Services Limited Company (AMSL) and Bharti Airtel Limited for agreeing to acquire 9,83,82,022 equity shares at Rs. 10/- each aggregating to Rs. 98.38 crore being 19.90% of the paid-up capital of AMSL.: Riding high on impressive interests shown by the institutional investors, the offer for sale (OFS) of NTPC Ltd, which opened for subscription, received bids for 56,62,06,819 shares in the non-retail portion as against the non-retail issue size of 32,98,18, 576 shares, which is 1.81 times more.: Tata Motors' Sanand plant is facing heat over the issue of suspension of workers due to misconduct, as nearly 300 of their colleagues are now on a flash strike demaning their reinstatement.: The company will announce adoption of global standards for patient-centric health services, value-based medicine.: The top official head said that the company will take three years to recover its India revenues following the impact of the Maggi episode as per conventional wisdom but the Swiss foods giant is looking to do it faster, as per media reports.: The company will announce its quarterly results today. The company will recommend a final dividend, if any for the year ended December 31, 2015.: The company will announce its quarterly results today.: IFCI Ltd. handed-over a Dividend Cheque of Rs.92.30 crore, which is 10% interim dividend for 2015-16 towards 55.53% of GOI equity holding in IFCI, to Arun Jaitley, Finance Minister, Government of India.: Strides Shasun Ltd have achieved closure of a strategic investment in GMS holdings through its Singapore-based subsidiary GMS Pharma Pte Ltd.: The company informed that Ministry of Coal has conveyed the allotment of Talabira-II & III Coal Mines in the State of Odisha to NLC by the Competent Authority in order to meet the coal requirements for the power projects of the Subsidiary companies viz., NLC Tamilnadu Power Limited (5 MTPA), Neyveli Uttar Pradesh Power Limited (10MTPA) and Sirkali Power Project (20MTPA).: HCC in joint venture with Vensar Constructions Company Ltd (VCCL), has been awarded Rs. 1114 crore contract by the Public Works Department (PWD) of Government of Manipur.: The company has signed a Distribution Agreement with IPD Group Limited of Australia - a Leading Electrical distributor/Wholesaler and manufacturer in Australia for marketing and selling of Salzer Branded Electrical products for Solar Photovoltaic Applications in Australia and Newzeland.With an aim to cut costs and increase productivity, Tata Steel Ltd is looking to restructure its India business, reported a financial daily. Sluggish demand in domestic markets, increasing cheap imports, and shrinking profitability are considered to be the key factors behind the companys latest move.: SEBI approves IDBI bank's plan to raise Rs. 3,771 crore via QIP.: Dr. Lal Pathlabs, one of the leading diagnostic chains in India, is all set to expand its presence. The company has earmarked capital expenditure of Rs. 40 - 50 crore for building pathology laboratories each in Kolkata and Lucknow.: Jet Airways, Indias premier international airline, announced the appointment of Rahul Taneja as Chief People Officer. Infosys CEO Vishal Sikka has been reappointed as the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the top IT firm for 5 years with effect from April 1, 2016 until March 31, 2021.The decision was taken at the Infosys board meeting held on February 24. As the company's BSE filing, the decision was influenced by the outstanding initiatives taken by Sikka towards restoring the top position of the company. Sikka has drawn up goals for revenue, margins and people productivity for FY21, expected to be progressively achieved in the next five years, the company said.The former SAP top executive was appointed as the CEO of the country's second largest tech firm in August 2014.Infosys Ltd ended at Rs. 1125.4, up by Rs. 1.45 or 0.13% from its previous closing of Rs. 1123.95 on the BSE.The scrip opened at Rs. 1123 and touched a high and low of Rs. 1143.95 and Rs. 1119 respectively. A total of 2680136(NSE+BSE) shares were traded on the counter. The current market cap of the company is Rs. 258165.1 crore.The BSE group 'A' stock of face value Rs. 5 touched a 52 week high of Rs. 1219 on 12-Oct-2015 and a 52 week low of Rs. 932.55 on 10-Jul-2015. Last one week high and low of the scrip stood at Rs. 1133.25 and Rs. 1077 respectively.The promoters holding in the company stood at 13.07 % while Institutions and Non-Institutions held 57.18 % and 12.48 % respectively.The stock traded below its 50 DMA. Vistara has been trying to increase capacity, expand networks and reduce business class seats to attract more passengers, reports a business daily.We will also be offering more choices of destinations and improving the timings of our flights based on customer feedback. We are also gearing up to expand the footprint by 50% in 2016, Vistara CEO Phee Teik Yeoh told the financial newspaper.At present, Vistara flies to 12 destinations including four metro cities (Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore and Hyderabad) with nine Airbus A320 aircraft and operates 365 flights in a week.However, Vistara does not operate on the Bangalore to Hyderabad route.The airline has reduced ticket prices where it can compete with other budget carriers like Indigo and SpiceJet, according to the newspaper.Vistara is concentrating on the Delhi to Mumbai route on which it operates eight flights daily, adds the paper.The market share of the airline in 2015 stood at 1.3% while the passenger load factor (PLF) stood at 77% in December. Its on-time performance is close to 90%. Being the most lucrative debt instrument in the emerging market debt, Indian bonds have till date been the most preferred purchase of the foreign portfolio investors (FPIs). However, a pull-out of $145.34 million between 1 January and 22 February by FPIs when $376.1 million of bonds were sold in February itself, signal coldness on the FPIs part, according to a leading media house.The lucrative aspect of Indian bonds, no longer seems to be able to draw FPIs due to fears that Indias rating could decline, and pressures of social spending and recapitalizing banks. With such pressures, governments prospects of meeting fiscal deficit targets look bleak which has made FPIs turn cold towards Indian bonds, the report mentioned.Indian companies could undergo loss of a major chunk of foreign investors with a downgrade rating of the country, since currently it is rated just a a notch above investment grade, the report stated.Additionally, FPIs are worrying that plans to revive power distribution companies (discoms) could burden state finances, considering state deficits have considerably increased and the supply of state bonds in the market has risen by 35 per cent in fiscal 2016, the report stated.With an increased supply, yields on state bonds have undergone an increase of 30 basis points in a weeks time, which could impact corporate bond yields, FPIs are concerned, added the report. Her biopic might be melting hearts, but whatever is being said and written about Neerja Bhanot is less. We saw in the film how she didn't give up during her struggle with the armed terrorists during those ill-fated 17 hours of hijacking. And she definitely deserved nothing less than the Ashoka Chakra which the Government of India bestowed upon her posthumously. Here is the citation of India's biggest bravery award she received, which salutes the courage of this young air hostess. Facebook/ Fox Star India Also Read: A Pan Am 73 Survivor Describes The Last Few Hours Of Neerja Bhanot's Fight With The Hijackers! The slain stewardess Neerja saved the lives of hundreds of passengers onboard the Mumbai-New York-bound Pan Am Flight 73 during its hijacking at the Karachi airport in September 1986. During her battle with the terrorists, she sacrificed her own life. After watching the biopic, Neerja's brother Akhil Bhanot called the Sonam Kapoor-starrer film "honest and inspiring.". The Bhanot family thanked the makers of the film for telling her story to the world, after three decades! Fab little thank u from @AneeshBhanot n @AkhilBhanot #Neerja 's brothers bout d film. Thank u for ur trust guys pic.twitter.com/a822bJuG1r atul kasbekar (@atulkasbekar) February 22, 2016 India's dairy giant brand Amul had shared an advertisement that featured Neerja some time back. It has now come out with a poster dedicated to her. The caption of this poster read "Amul Topical: Bollywood biopic-braveheart." Facebook/ Amul Neerja's sacrifice will always be remembered, a girl who didn't think twice before taking the bullets on herself to save three kids. And all this at a young age of 23! catchnews We salute her! Google Once upon a time, Junagadh was an eminent princely state in India. However, today it's a tiny town lost somewhere in Gujarat with lots of forts, and vintage structures residing inside it. Flickr After the partition of India and Pakistan in 1947, the Indian government made consistent efforts to persuade the Nawab of Junagadh, Muhammad Mahabat Khanji III, to accede to India but he did not agree. India even thought of threatening him in case of denial. But the Nawab wanted to join Pakistan. His argument was that Junagadh, even though surrounded by Indian mainland from 3 sides, could join Pakistan by sea. On 15 September 1947, Jinnah approved and counter signed Junagadhs instrument of accession. On the other hand, the Indian government tried to keep things calm, and tried persuading the Nawab to change his decision. Government Secretary V.P. Menon sent a message to him to withdraw its accession to Pakistan. However, the Nawab passed on the responsibility to the government of Pakistan. Things got worse while trying to solve issues with Pakistan. Thats when India decided to shut all its borders to Junagadh stopping the movement of goods, transport and postal articles. Unable to handle a worsened situation, the Nawab and his family left Junagadh and arrived in Karachi on 25 October 1947. Wikipedia Realising the critical situation, the Chief Minister of Junagadh wrote to Pakistan. In response, the Nawab authorised Bhutto to act in the best interests of the Muslim population of Junagadh. He decided to initiate peace talks with India and requested the Indian Government to take over the administration of Junagadh to protect the lives of its citizens. On 24th February, 1948, a plebiscite was held in which 99% of the predominantly Hindu population of Junagadh voted to join India. According to History TV, Pakistan took up the accession of Junagadh with UN Security Council. But the vote was largely in favour of India with 190,870 people voting to join India and only 91 voting in favour of Pakistan. In July 2001, grandson of the princely state of Junagadh, Nawab Mohammad Jahangir Khanji, addressed a specially organised press conference to remind Pakistan on `annexation' of the state of Junagadh by India immediately after independence. He demanded that Pakistan take up the dispute with India, and shouldnt ignore the Nawab family as the third party. Table of contents Archived MSDN and TechNet Blogs Article 5/29/2020 2 minutes to read In this article If you were looking for MSDN or TechNet blogs, please know that MSDN and TechNet blog sites have been retired, and blog content has been migrated and archived here. How to use this site Archived blogs are grouped alphabetically by the initial letter of the blog name. Select the initial letter from the TOC to see the full list of the blogs. You can also type the name of the blog or the title of the blog post in the "search" box at the upper-right corner of this page to search for it. If you have any questions or issues, please share your feedback here. All Blogs Fashion designer and mom of three Mindy Scheier's son, Oliver, suffers from muscular dystrophy. It was after seeing her child in pain that she thought of advocating adaptive clothing for specially-abled kids. So it came as a major victory for her when Tommy Hilfiger unveiled the new adaptive clothing line for kids. Tommy Hilfiger unveiled the new line - a collaboration with Scheier's nonprofit Runway of Dreams. The brand website boasts of a heartwarming strategy that says, "a very special collection addressing the challenges the differently-abled community faces each day when getting dressed." The clothing line also features velcro and magnet closures from MagnaReady, an adaptive clothing brand founded by a designer whose husband has Parkinson's disease. The pants feature closures on the legs and fly and also allow for waist and length adjustability. According to the Tommy Hilfiger website, the new line features 22 pieces and will cater to kids aged between four to 18 for girls and four to 20 for boys. "Every detail was considered, so the clothing is not only functional but looks exactly the same as the TH Kids collection. They also cost the same price, which is an amazing thing.", claims the website. TOMMY HILFIGER/RICHARD CORMIN (Photo: Huffintonpost) The tagline for the collection is "because every kid deserves a great pair of jeans" -- a nod to the experience that inspired Scheier to launch Runway of Dreams. HuffPost blogger Ellen Seidman, whose son Max has cerebral palsy, did a sampling of the collection before its release and shared a glowing review on her website. Ellen Seidman said, "When your fingers don't do what you want them to do, buttons, snaps and even zippers can be tough to manipulate," she wrote. "Your child is frustrated by this lack of independence. Therapists at his school put fabric loops on sweatpants so he can pull them up and down, but have no suggestions for how he can put on his own shirts." This is where this new Tommy Hilfiger line will work as a rescue. "Clothes like these will be a game-changer for our kids,"Seidman continued. "Not only will they have more autonomy, they'll better fit in with their peers, given that the clothes have the usual cool, crisp Tommy style." In a conversation with Huffington Post, she also revealed that, "Max may have special needs, but his desire to look cool is totally typical." The world isn't that bad after all. These little stories don't just warm our hearts but make us hopeful about this world as well! From his fans to his family, everyone is eagerly waiting for Sanjay Dutts release from the prison. Everyone is waiting for B-Town's Munnabhai to make a come-back. Rediff It is obviously one of the most special feelings for his daughter Trishala, who he dearly loves. He's all set to be released from Yerawada Central Jail in Maharashtra on Thursday, February 25. Sanjay was serving 42 months of his remaining jail term after Supreme Court upheld his conviction in 2013. Twitter His 27-year-old daughter is on a throwback mode and has been Instagramming some of the most coolest Instagram videos, declaring her happiness! From Sanju Babas award-winning film Khalnayak to Kaante, she has turned her instagram feed into a Throwback party for his Daddy dearest! Trishala, who is based out of New York shared a video of Sanjay from his popular 'Kaante' song, 'Ishq Samandar' calling her daddy dear "my lion." Her post alongside read, "Its past 12AM in Mumbai! which means in 24 Hours my lion is out of the cage and back in jungle @dutt1 #roamfree #countdown #anxiouslywaiting #iloveyou #excited #Icantwaittoseeyou #newbeginnings #prouddaughter. Wait! There is more to it. She also shared this hilarious video from Khalnayak where Sanjay wears a ghaghra-choli and dances to the tunes of Choli Ke Peeche. The countdown has begun...5 days left until my tough guy is free forever and comes home after 3 years.. #icantwaittoseeyou #loveyou, she wrote. #tbt - The countdown has begun...5 days left until my tough guy is free forever and comes home after 3 years.. #icantwaittoseeyou #loveyou A video posted by Trishala Dutt (@trishaladutt) on Feb 18, 2016 at 10:09pm PST Isn't it really cute? via Gizmodo The Zika virus spreading across Brazil and other South American countries has been linked to microcephaly, a birth defect in babies that results in a smaller head and an underdeveloped brain. As of now, health agencies are still conducting studies to confirm whether or not microcephaly is a direct consequence of the Zika virus, or if it is caused by some other factor entirely. Zika may even cause mental illnesses in babies. Health experts warn that microcephaly is the most visible consequence of the Zika infection, however these babies may also be at a greater risk for mental health problems later on in life, if their mothers were infected by the Zika virus during pregnancy. The Zika virus closely resembles other infectious agents that have been associated with the spread of conditions like autism, bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. These conditions actually have no single cause they are brought about by a combination of factors that include genetic markers and traumatic events like physical or sexual abuse, drug use and abandonment. However, in-utero infections serve as triggers for these conditions, which is why the Zika virus could be even more harmful than what is currently believed. Hours after two Jawaharlal Nehru University students Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya surrendered to the police for sedition charges, Khalid has reportedly confessed to chanting pro-Afzal Guru slogans. toi Did Umar Khalid organise the pro Afzal Guru event? Umar Khalid has reportedly accepted that he did organise the event. Who created posters supporting Afzal Guru? Anirban Bhattacharya prepared the materials, including posters, distributing them among the students, according to media reports. Were JNU students chanting pro-Afzal Guru? Omar has, under police interrogation confessed to raising pro-Afzal slogans. Afzal Guru was convicted in 2001 Parliament attack, and received a judicial hanging in 2013. Who else is expected to surrender? According to reports, JNU students Rama Naga, Ashutosh Kumar and Anant Prakash, also accused of allegedly shouting anti-national slogans; will surrender before police today. When did the surrender take place The duo, who returned to the JNU campus last Sunday after having gone missing since February 12, drove from the administrative bloc to the main gate of the university, got into a Delhi Police vehicle and were taken to an undisclosed destination. Police sources said Khalid and Bhattacharya surrendered at around midnight. There was no word from police as to where the two were taken. Khalid and Bhattacharya are likely to be produced before a magistrate soon. HC asks police to conduct remand proceedings secretly so that arrested students -- Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya -- are not harmed. Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) February 24, 2016 Khalid and Bhattacharya are among the five students who, along with JNUSU President Kanhaiya Kumar, had allegedly shouted anti-national slogans at an event organized in the university campus to mark the death anniversary of parliament attack convict Afzal Guru on February 9. #EXCLUSIVE INTERROGATION DETAILS | Khalid and Anirban admitted that in past too Afzal Guru hanging was debated in JNU #KhalidSurrenders CNN-IBN News (@ibnlive) February 24, 2016 Besides Kumar, Khalid and Bhattacharya, the other students are Rama Naga, Ashutosh Kumar and Anant Prakash. Delhi Police had issued a look-out notice on February 20 against Khalid, Bhattacharya, Naga, Ashutosh and Prakash. Earlier, Khalid and Bhattacharya left the JNU campus at around 1150 pm tonight for the surrender. The university students formed a human chain to prevent the media from following Khalid and Bhattacharya when they were leaving the campus this evening. Beijing is the new "Billionaire Capital of the World", but India isn't exactly leagues behind. The Chinese capital overtook New York as home to home to the most billionaires - 100 to 95 -according to Hurun, a Shanghai firm that releases yearly rankings and research about the 1 percent. Despite a global slowdown, the number of billionaires in the world has increased to a record 2199. China's billionaire count has overtaken the USA, and India has retained its position in the 3. Leading Americans on the list include Jeff Bezos Amazon founder and chief), US Presidential hopeful Donald Trump, and Michael Bloomberg. Indias presence on the billionaires list India has contributed 111 billionaires to the 'Hurun Global Rich List 2016', a ranking of the US dollar billionaires currently found in the world, adding 14 more billionaires to the 2015 list. According to the list, "Manufacturing, Pharma and Tech are the preferred sectors with 22, 20 and 15 billionaires respectively. Combined wealth of the Indian billionaires shot up by 16% to US$308bn. Average age is 64. Mumbai is headquarters to most of the Indian billionaires. Mukesh Ambani (US$26bn, rank 21) is the richest Indian." Flipkart founders Sachin Bansal and Binny Bansal were present in the category of self made billionaires under the age of 35 hurun Interestingly, India also found a mention on the UK list:"UK billionaires have a combined wealth of US$267bn. Overall wealth of UK billionaires increased by 10%. Gerald Grosvenor & family and Indian origin SP Hinduja & family are the richest people living in the UK." India was also present on the list of 'Countries by Self-Made Scorecard' hurun 4 Indian names found mention in the 'Top 100 - Hurun Global Rich List 2016' Mukesh Ambani (net worth 26 billion USD) Dilip Shanghvi (net worth 18 billion USD) Pallonji Mistry (net worth 13 billion USD) Shiv Nadar (net worth 12 billion USD) Sonam Kapoor starrer 'Neerja' isn't India's first major tribute to valiant attendant of Pan Am flight 73, Neerja Bhanot. Ghal Kalan village (Moga Tehsil, Punjab) has had a small memorial to the hijacked flight and Neerja, the Ashok Chakra awardee, who saved over 300 lives aboard the flight hijacked on September 5, 1986. She was tragically killed while protecting three children from gun shots indianexpress A Pan Am 73 Survivor Describes The Last Few Hours Of Neerja Bhanot's Fight With The Hijackers! The memorial was created by 43 year old Manjit Singh Gill, a sculptor who left his government job create statues of inspirational personalities, including former president Abdul Kalam, Milkha Singh, Mahatma Gandhi, Subhash Chandra Bose, Shaheed Bhagat Singh, Dr B R Ambedkar and even victims of the Air India Kanishka crash of 1985. tribuneindia The buzz around the recently released movie named after the flight attendant has increased footfall around the memorial.Gill told the Indian Express: "I never imagined that after the film, people would come down to my village and ask for the way to Neerjas memorial. It is the only memorial in the entire nation built in her memory. I was really inspired by the sacrifice of this young woman when I decided to make her statue in 2013." It's surprising that there aren't any memorials for the brave lady. Aneesh Bhanot, Neerjas brother based in Chandigarh, said: This is the only one in the country as far as we know. There is one chowk named after her in Mumbai but no memorial. The movie has come at the right time. Youth can learn three things from Neerja: you should be scared of none; you should always do your duty and that there cannot be any compromise on self-respect. We are really thankful to Gill, Bhanot said. Rights advocacy group Amnesty International has become the latest to join the bandwagon to criticize the Narendra Modi led BJP government of creating an atmosphere of intolerance by cracking down on dissent through arbitrary arrests, caste-based discrimination, extrajudicial killings and attacks on freedom of expression. Reuters The rights body in its annual report for 2015-16 released on Wednesday said the government had failed to prevent hundreds of incidents of communal violence, usually involving members of the Hindu majority pitted against Muslims or other minorities. Instead, ruling party lawmakers and politicians were fueling religious tensions with provocative speeches and justifications for the violence, it said. It also condemned the growing intolerance and pointed out on the crackdown on freedom of expression under Modi government. Reuters "Scores of artists, writers and scientists returned national honours in protest against what they said was a climate of growing intolerance," the report said. "Authorities clamped down on civil society organisations critical of official policies, and increased restrictions on foreign funding. Religious tensions intensified, and gender and caste-based discrimination and violence remained pervasive. Censorship and attacks on freedom of expression by hardline Hindu groups grew," it added. PTI "Over 3,200 people were being held in January under administrative detention on executive orders without charge or trial," the report said, adding that state authorities used "anti-terror" laws to illegally hold activists and protesters in custody. It questioned the Indian Parliament's defeat of legislation to decriminalize same-sex relations, noting that the country was still adhering to a colonial-era law that makes homosexuality a crime punishable by up to a decade in prison. It also highlighted "restrictive foreign funding laws" being used to repress NGOs critical of the government. Reuters Aakar Patel, Executive Director of Amnesty India, said: "In 2015, India saw several backslides on human rights. The government intensified restrictions on civil society organisations." He however added that there was still hope for a better outcome in 2016. "What is heartening is that there has been opposition to the erosion of rights. The widespread outrage around incidents of religious intolerance, a Supreme Court ruling striking down an oppressive law on free speech online, the many public protests against ill-conceived reforms to land acquisition laws - these offer hope that 2016 can be a better year for human rights in India." Manipur Update The report also lauded a historic peace framework agreement reached in North-Eastern India between the government and the "influential armed group National Socialist Council of Nagaland". The troubles for Indian mobile startup, Ringing Bells seems to be growing by every passing day. Reuters The company which shot into limelight last week with the announcement of the world's cheapest smartphone, priced at Rs 251 has ever since been marred by controversy after controversy. Now the union government has stepped in, warning of tough action if they failed to deliver on their promises. PTI We have received a lot of communication raising doubts over the companys plan. So what we are doing is taking precautionary measures.We inquired into how prepared they are, whether they can provide a phone for Rs 251 or not, whether they have the BIS certificate or not, Communications and IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said. Financial Express Meanwhile payment gateway service, PayUBiz said they are holding on the money and will only release the money, once the products are dispatched. As a leading payment solution company, we are cognizant of both our merchants and buyers. With a surge in number of queries received for Freedom 251 during last few days, we are cautious towards the payments being made by buyers to buy Freedom 251. As a responsible payment solution company, we have ensured that the buyers money remains safe with us and gets released to the merchant once the product is dispatched. In case the merchant is not able to fulfil the huge demand they have received, we will work with merchant to return the money to buyers. PayUBiz said in a statement. However Ringing Bells said that it wont actually be taking the payment from the payment gateway facilitator PayUBiz, until it gives proof of delivery. According to reports Ringing Bells had received orders worth Rs 1.7 crores through PayUBiz, which it is scheduled deliver to the payment service provider by February 26. PTI The Noida based company which still appears confident to fulfil its promises had received over 7.35 crore orders for the phone. Even though the company had earlier claimed that the phones will be manufactured in India, later they claimed the first batch of 50 lakh phones will be imported. Many including industry experts and rival brand have also raised question of the feasibility of Ringing Bell's promise to deliver a 3G smartphone for Rs 251. Freedom 251, the world's cheapest smartphone announced at a price of Rs 251, literally shook up the mobile industry. TOI While many have questioned their ability to live up to their promise, some people on the internet took it to the next level. A new website has come up which promises a rival phone, named Freedom 651, which is priced at Rs 651. The website owned by 'Doesn't Ring a Bell Pvt. Ltd', looks very similar to Freedom 251's website. Freedom 651 What else does the website have? To start with, there is a 'Do not Buy' button, and a customer care number which reads- 0420-420420, 4200420. On the Contact Us' section it asks for a user's grandfather's, neighbour's details and still warns not to even try submitting the form. So what is the big deal? Turns out if you book the phone now, it will be delivered in next ten years, yes you read it correct in 2026! Components from Mars The original Freedom 251 is supposed to be assembled in India using components made in Taiwan. So what about Freedom 651? Well, they went one step extra, the phone will be made using components found only in Mars! And how do they get the spare parts? Apparently the company have tied up with Standard Fireworks in Sivakasi to make 20 million rockets which will be launched to Mars. Freedom 651 Phone specifications *The .3MP Front camera capture best moments and makes them much smaller and blurrier than they actually are. *Inbuilt touchless technology is ideal for the perfect selfie. *All you have to do is to say "I want a selfie" and the company representative will make a picture for you. *Facial recognition identifies dissatisfaction and automatically sends a "You are out of range" signal to the other side. *Voice recognition feature which identifies "Aur Bholo" in 27 languages and then drops the call if it is mentioned three times. *And on top of it all, the phone comes with the latest OS, Android 26.6, Zucchini! What about warranty? Well, you decide. Freedom 651 To end on a sad note, the company has no service centres in India, the phone can be serviced only on Mars. Freedom 651 It's not been a long time since Starbucks made an entry into the Indian market with Tata in the tow. But even before that Indians were a fans of the coffee-shop chain giant from the States. Twitter And may be one of the reasons - apart from the astronomically-priced drinks with a galaxy of personalisation options - is their customer service. Do not agree? Well, this guy will surely vouch for it Meet Ibby Piracha, a regular customer at his neighbourhood Starbucks outlet in Leesburg, Virginia in the US. He is deaf and usually types out his order on his phone for the barista - the staff manning the counter - to read out. But all this changed three days back when the barista responded to him in sign language and handed him this note. What a sweet Starbucks cashier lady wrote it! pic.twitter.com/8dEsHXtTMP Ibby Piracha (@Deafibbypiracha) February 21, 2016 (ASL in the note means American Sign Language) The overjoyed Ibby shared this image on Twitter and it became a rage all over. "I was like 'wow.' It brought a smile to my face. I was really surprised she had started signing. It wasn't anything I had asked her to do. She had taken her own initiative and she had done it herself," Piracha told the Independent. "I was glad to hear someone supporting the deaf community. Sometimes we feel kind of pushed away, and I wish hearing people were a little more assertive to learn more about us and our community," he added. Though the employees at the store said, they can't talk to the media,a company spokesperson commented that Starbucks is proud that the employee is taking this initiative to learn American Sign Language. This blog is looking for wisdom, to have and to share. It is also looking for other rare character traits like good humor, courage, and honor. It is not an easy road, because all of us fall short. But God is love, forgiveness and grace. Those who believe in Him and repent of their sins have the promise of His Holy Spirit to guide us and show us the Way. Jasmeet Singh, also widely known as Youtuber Jus Reign, was recently forced to remove his religious headgear for security check at the San Francisco airport. The incident comes barely a month after Sikh actor Waris Alhuwalia was barred from boarding a flight because he had refused to remove his turban. Twitter Calling the encounter "insensitive", Jus Reign said such instances are stemming from extreme paranoia and a lack of education about turbans in security personnel at airports, reported CBC News. On 22nd February, Jus Reign was asked to remove his turban for an extra round of security check by the TSA. Singh had tweeted the entire incident, narrating his ordeal and the fact that he whole-heartedly cooperated with the authorities. so the @tsa made me take off my turban in extra screening or they said I wouldn't be able to be let through to catch my flight Jasmeet Singh (@JusReign) February 22, 2016 after finding absolutely nothing wrong because a turban is just cloth and the whole thing is stupid I ask for a mirror to tie it back again Jasmeet Singh (@JusReign) February 22, 2016 Jus Reign was then asked to walk the entire breadth of the airport without his turban. the agent tells me there are no mirrors and that I can just walk down the terminal to the nearest restroom without my turban on Jasmeet Singh (@JusReign) February 22, 2016 On February 24, Jus Reign also posted a hard-hitting message on his Instagram profile. He wrote: "Sunday night I was taking a flight back from San Francisco to Toronto and was stopped by security and ordered into additional screening. Now this is nothing new to me, as Im a brown dude who flies quite often and these types of extra screening and searchings are regular occurrences. In this specific case however I was asked to remove my turban so it could go through an additional extra check. my first inclination was to say nah, I had a flight to catch and taking off a turban and tying it back on before a flight would be inconvenient. I asked to have a pat down instead (i get my clothes patted down, and those too are made of cloth, never asked to remove those) the manager insisted that either I would take off my turban and or I would be escorted back into the public area and I could book a flight with a different airline or airport. "They provided a private screening room, and after they had done a complete body search and scanned my turban through another x-ray they came back and told me I was good to go. Twitter "It was at this point I asked for a mirror to retie my turban again, because unlike a hat or a shoe, tying a turban back on takes time and skill (great skill, only the manliest of men know) plus I gotta make sure i look extra crispy and good ALWAYS (my motto in life, most of the time when Im not lazy of course) The officials responded that they dont provide mirrors and one of them had even told me to walk down the nearest bathroom at the other end of the terminal, in public, without my turban on. Which completely defeats the purpose of being in a private room in the first place why undress me and then tell me to walk out undressed to the nearest bathroom to retie my turban again? The turban is a sign of royalty, respect, dignity, courage and has a huge significance for my people. "I followed all the security protocols, asked whatever they wanted me to do, the issue isnt JUST with the fact that I was asked to remove the turban (however silly it still is) but with the lack of respect and insensitivity when I asked for a simple request like a mirror to tie it back on again. "Also fun fact: no one has ever found anything dangerous in a turban ever." Both Waris and Jus, after tweeting their torment, had received immense support on social media. The tension that spewed post 9/11 seems to be revealing its ugly face again, and it's high time authorities are given a drastic change of 'unlearning' and 'learning' about the value of wearing a turban. American healthcare products maker Johnson & Johnson was ordered by a state jury to pay $72 million of damages to woman's family after she died from ovarian cancer, and her death was linked to her use of the company's talc-based Baby Powder and Shower to Shower for decades. $10 million of actual damages + 62 million of punitive damages stlday The verdict was announced late Monday night by a Mussouri court. Jurors in the circuit court of St. Louis awarded the family of Jacqueline Fox $10 million of actual damages and $62 million of punitive damages, according to the family's lawyers and court records. The verdict is the first by a U.S. jury to award damages over the claims, the lawyers said. Johnson & Johnson faces several hundred lawsuits claiming that it, in an effort to boost sales, failed for decades to warn consumers that its talc-based products could cause cancer. Fox, who lived in Birmingham, Alabama, claimed she used Baby Powder and Shower to Shower for feminine hygiene for more than 35 years before being diagnosed three years ago with ovarian cancer. She died in October at age 62 wikimedia Jurors found Johnson & Johnson liable for fraud, negligence and conspiracy, the family's lawyers said. Deliberations lasted four hours, following a three-week trial. Jere Beasley, a lawyer for Fox's family, said Johnson & Johnson "knew as far back as the 1980s of the risk," and yet resorted to "lying to the public, lying to the regulatory agencies." He spoke on a conference call with journalists. Carol Goodrich, a Johnson & Johnson spokeswoman, said: "We have no higher responsibility than the health and safety of consumers, and we are disappointed with the outcome of the trial. We sympathise with the plaintiff's family but firmly believe the safety of cosmetic talc is supported by decades of scientific evidence." In October 2013, a federal jury in Sioux Falls, South Dakota found that plaintiff Deane Berg's use of Johnson & Johnson's body powder products was a factor in her developing ovarian cancer. Nevertheless, it awarded no damages, court records show. Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc now owns the Shower to Shower brand but was not a defendant in the Fox case. Justin Trudeau, the Canadian Prime Minister, will attend this year's Pride Parade to be held in Toronto. The event will create history as Trudeau will become the first PM of Canada to take part in an event such as this. Were delighted to announce that @JustinTrudeau will be the first Prime Minister in history to attend #PrideTO! pic.twitter.com/PbAu4KAyRS Pride Toronto (@PrideToronto) February 22, 2016 Trudeau has previously taken part in pride events in Toronto and Vancouver for years. But "this time as PM" will carry special significance for him. Very much look forward to being there again, this time as PM. #PrideTO https://t.co/cz5gBLZNyD Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau) February 22, 2016 Getty Images The Pride Parade will take place on July 3. Trudeau has already become a favourite among people for being the 'sexiest politician alive'. And now he is giving more reasons for people to fall in love with him. All. Over. Again. An ancient Hindu temple in Peshawar's Karimpura district is being demolished secretly in the name of repair, and is being replaced with a commercial plaza. This is what several locals here have told the media, claiming that this process has been ongoing for the last 10 days. maps "It is a pity that a criminal act of pulling down a heritage structure has been launched. The building is being knocked down clandestinely to erect a commercial plaza on the site." "There is no action from any of the government departments which are supposed to protect such buildings," the resident said. Another resident said it was a double-criminal act hindujagruti "On the one hand an ancient building is being demolished while on the other a commercial plaza is set to be constructed on its land in a purely residential area," he told The News. Residents have questioned the silence of the relevant government departments over the entire episode. They deplored the inaction of government authorities in the wake of the the demolition of the heritage building. There is no action by the Evacuee Trust Property Board (ETPB), Auqaf Department dealing with the non-Muslim properties and the Archaeology Department the departments tasked with protecting such properties. "Either these departments are a partner in the crime or they are negligent," a resident said. Demanding an immediate halt to the demolition process, the residents asked ETPB Chairman Saddique-ul-Farooq to order a probe into the issue to bring to justice the government officials whose negligence or tacit approval had put in danger the ancient Hindu temple. The Civil Society members, in a statement, said this is a painful story in all major cities of Pakistan where speculative land mafia in collusion with lower-tier government officials and police get away with destroying Pakistan's precious heritage. The government is reduced to being a silent spectator in this demolition, they said. Follow us on bravery saluted read what ashok chakra certificate says about neerja bhanot New Delhi: Sonam Kapoor starrer Neerja' is garnering applause from every nook and corner of the country. The Ram Madhvani directorial brought alive the story of brave heart soul Neerja Bhanot, a flight attendant onboard Pan Am 73 flight, who sacrificed her life to save 359 passengers during the hijacked flight. During those 17-hours when the flight was captivated by terrorists, Neerja kept her cool and saved the Americans passengers by hiding their passports under the seat. When the plane's supporting power unit ran out of fuel the terrorists started a firing spree. It was then that Neerja and a passenger opened the emergency door and helped people escape from there. Neerja, who had the wide opportunity to run and save her life, instead chose to fulfil her professional commitment and kept guiding the passengers out of the gate. Seeing her helping the passengers, terrorists then shot her in the head. She was dead before medical aid could reach her. After her demise, Indian Government awarded her with highest bravery honour, the Ashok Chakra. Neerja Bhanot was the youngest recipient and the first civilian of the award at the age of 23. Here we bring you an excerpt from the Ashoka Chakra which salutes the bravery and courage of this young air hostess who lied his life to make sure others live. Take a look. Respect! RIP Neerja Bhanot Latest Bollywood News Follow us on competitors beware kapil sharma reveals his new show is going to be bigger and better New Delhi: Comedian Kapil Sharma has been news lately less because of his acts and more owing to the controversies surrounding him. He being at loggerheads with Colors channel has become one of the favourite topics of tabloids. Lately, we also heard that Kapil and his entire on-screen family are coming up with a new show on Sony TV. As expected a lot of speculations have engulfed this new show. After weeks of staying mum on the matter, Kapil Sharma has finally revealed that his new show is going to be a notch higher than Comedy Nights with Kapil'. Speaking about it to a leading news channel he said, Ganpati baba ki mehar rahegi hamare oopar bhi. Bahut hi achcha show lekar aa rahe hain aur ummeed hai ki logon ko pasand aayega. A few days ago the creative director of CNWK, Preeti Simoes shared a few pictures from the promo shoot which immediately went viral. In the pictures we saw the actors, Sunil Grover (Gutthi), Sumona (Manju), Ali Asgar (Dadi), Kiku Sharda (Palak), Chandan Prabhakar (Raju) and Kapil clad in black business suits. Speaking about the promo shoot, Kapil chuckled, Maine decide kiya tha kuch aisa promo shoot karte hai jisme stylish lagen. 15 seconds ke baad hum apni aukad mein aa jaayenge. He added, Mazaak mazaak mein Sony TV ne bahot kharcha kar diya hai. Ab hamein bahut tension ho rahi hai. This says a lot about the pressure Kapil has on his shoulders. He has to come true to the expectations of his ardent fans and also ensure Sony Channel profits from his gig. Given his history, we don't think it is going to be a difficult task. We can't wait to see the crazy family on our television. Can you? Latest Bollywood News Follow us on mallika sherawat urges jat protestors to maintain peace and non violence Mumbai: Amid the ongoing Jat agitation in Haryana, actress Mallika Sherawat has appealed to the Jat community to maintain peace. The Jat protesters are demanding reservation under the OBC category in government jobs and educational institutions. The Murder actress, who comes from a small village in Hisar district of Haryana , took to Twitter to make her appeal. My appeal to the jaat community to maintain peace and nonviolence #JaatReservation #jaatagitation #haryana, Mallika tweeted. The actress is known for her bold performances in films such as Khwahish and Murder, and was last seen on screen in the 2015 film Dirty Politics. Last week, actor Randeep Hooda, who belongs to the Jat community, also urged Jats to refrain from using violent measures and to seek a way out of the problem in a peaceful manner. Latest Bollywood News Follow us on 9 things that sanjay dutt did inside yerawada jail Mumbai: Actor Sanjay Dutt, who was identified as prisoner no. 16656 in the Yerawada Central Prison of Pune, has finally walked out this morning. The 56-year-old was released after serving the remainder of his five-year sentence for possessing illegal arms in the March 12, 1993, Mumbai serial bomb blasts case. Of the five-year sentence, Sanjay has served more than 50 months in two installments, excluding the parole and furlough he was granted at various times on different grounds. He spent 18 months in jail as an undertrial before he was granted bail. Later, following a Supreme Court order in May 2013, he was sent to the Yerawada Jail in Pune to serve the remaining 42 months of his five-year sentence. While there is abuzz in the industry over the actor walking out of prison, we get you an inside scoop on the actor's activities during the prison term and how he spent his time. Here are the 9 things that Sanjay Dutt did during his jail term. 1. Sanjay Dutt made five new friends other than his old friend Yusuf Nalwala, who was also an accused in the 1993 Bombay blast case. Two of them are appointed in the kitchen, one in the carpentry department and one in the radio room, whereas one is imprisoned in a cell near Sanjay Dutt's barrack no. 3. 2. In the initial first year of his term, Dutt was not allowed to mingle with other inmates or watch TV post-dinner due to security reasons. He was, however, allowed to read books. 3. During his term, Sanjay read Hanuman Chalisa every morning and then worked out in the gym for about an hour. After breakfast, he used to work in the carpentry department. 4. During his tenure of imprisonment, Sanjay earned a total of Rs. 440 by making paper bags. 5. Paper-binding and making paper files was his main job, for which he was paid Rs 25 per day. Later, he got a salary hike of Rs 15, taking it to a total of Rs 40 per day. 6. On Wednesdays and Thursdays, Sanjay sang songs on the radio as requested by other prisoners. 7. Considering Dutt's safety and security, the jail authorities rejected his request to assign him rigorous physical work in order to ensure sound sleep. 8. Sanjay Dutt could not keep himself away from acting and dancing even in the jail. He played an interesting role in a play organised by Yerawada Jail authorities. He, along with 50 inmates, practiced for almost 10 hours daily for 40 days. 9. Apart from the controversies related to his paroles and furlough, there were rumours that he is being served liquor by the police. However, these allegations of VIP treatment could not be proven. Latest Bollywood News Follow us on khalnayak to return home in chartered plane carrying rs 440 party siddhivinayak on cards New Delhi: Bollywood actor Sanjay Dutt is going to walk as a free man tomorrow, the 25th of February. Not only is the entire film fraternity waiting for him to walk past those iron bars, but a chartered plane too. The actor who earned Rs 440 in his time in prison will fly from Yerwada jail near Pune to Mumbai in a chartered plane, costing not less than Rs 5 lakh. Despite his celebrity status, Sanjay will not be given a farewell by his inmates and his exit will be a low key affair. On reaching Mumbai early in the morning anytime between 6:30 to 8 A.M, it is being said that he will seek blessings at the Siddhivinayak Temple. Our sources also reveal that he will visit his mother Nargis's grave situated in Marine lines. Post that he will perform a small Puja at his father Sunil Dutt's portrait. The Bollywood superstar was arrested on April 19, 1993, for possession and destruction of an AK-56 rifle, which was a part of cache of arms and explosives which landed in India prior to the serial blasts of March 1993. In April 1993, he spent 16 months in prison and was granted bail in October 1995 but was re-arrested in December 1995. He was again released on bail in April 1997. The case came to court in 2006 and during the period of 20062007, Dutt spent seven months in Arthur Road Jail and Pune prison on three occasions for the offences. He was sentenced to six years rigorous imprisonment under the Arms Act on July 31, 2007 by the TADA court. In 2013, the Supreme Court of India upheld the TADA court's decision but reduced the jail term to five years. In December 2013, he was granted 90 days and for 30 days later. Owing to his good behaviour in the prison, Sanjay is getting released almost eight months before the scheduled date. To celebrate the homecoming of Sanju Baba, a party is being hosted at his house. His wife Manyata has been planning this party for quite some time now. His friends from Bollywood Ajay Devgn, Apoorva Lakhia, Rajkumar Hirani, Vidhu Vinod Chopra, Bunty Walia and Rajat Rawail are expected to grace the occasion. His close friend Salman Khan might also be present. Latest Bollywood News Follow us on deadly stunt when tiger shroff almost blew shraddha kapoor s head New Delhi: Tiger Shroff and Shraddha Kapoor will be seen together on the silver screen for the first time in the upcoming movie Baaghi'. While the movie's story has been kept under the warps, there is something which is grabbing eyeballs action sequences. Tiger Shroff, who is back in a new look after Heropanti, has done some breath taking stunts for the movie. And during one such sequence he almost blew Shraddha Kapoor's head. We are not kidding! You can see for your self. Watch Video The shooting for Sabir Khan directorial has been wrapped up. Shraddha took to Twitter to share the news with her fans. Mixed feelings... Happy and sad... Another journey comes to an end. Another wait begins. 'Baaghi' film wrap Sabbir Khan, Tiger Shroff, she tweeted. Baaghi: Rebels in Love is slated to release on April 29. Latest Bollywood News Follow us on cbse boards 2016 class xii exams to be held from march 1 to april 24 New Delhi: The Central Board of Secondary Education today released the schedule of the Class XII exams to be held under its ambit. According to the CBSE, the exams for class XII will be held from March 1 to April 24, exams for class X will begin from March 1 and will end on March 28. However, for Class X students who choose the school-based exams, the date of commencement of examination is March 10, the CBSE said in a statement released today. Of the total 14,99,122 registered students for the Class X examination, 8,92,685 are boys and 6,06,437 are girls, CBSE data stated. For class XII, the total number of registered candidates is 10,67,900 of whom 6,21,259 are boys and 4,46,641 are girls. (With inputs from PTI) Latest India News Follow us on jnu row court sends umar khalid anirban to 3 day police custody New Delhi: A court in Delhi today sent two JNU students Umar Khalid and Anirban to police custody for three days. Both students are charged with sedition in relation to a pro-Afzal event where anti-India slogans were allegedly raised. While the police was seeking custody of the two students for seven days, the court sent the two students to three days in police custody. Umar Khalid, the alleged mastermind behind the entire event, surfaced with four other students at the JNU campus late on Sunday night. Umar and Anirban later moved the Delhi High Court seeking protection in view of the attack on JNUSU leader Kanhaiya Kumar -- also facing sedition charges for the same event while he was being presented before the court. Both students surrendered before the police outside the JNU campus following a reprimand from the HC saying they need to follow due course of law. Both students, in their appeal to the HC, had sought the court's permission to surrender at a time and place of their choice, a plea that the HC judge had refused to entertain immediately. The surrender cannot be at the whims and fancies of the accused students, the court had observed, indicating that the accused students should surrender before the police and join probe at the earliest. Their surrender had come after a daylong standoff between the Delhi police and the JNU administration. Treading cautiously, Delhi Police chief B S Bassi had asked the accused students to surrender and join the probe. The students, on the other hand, had said that they would not offer any resistance if the police were to arrest them from the campus. The JNU vice chancellor had refused to allow the Delhi Police to enter the campus. The decision was taken after a meeting with the JNU teachers association who had opposed the nmanner in which police entered the campus to arrest JNUSU president Kanhaiya Kumar. Meanwhile, the police, in its report to the court, has claimed that Umar Khalid was the one actually responsible for organising the event. They have also said that Umar was the one who had requested the university's permission for holding an event on February 9. While the requisition was that for a poetry reading event, what turned out was an event to commemorate the death anniversary of parliament attack convict Afzal Guru. Meanwhile, two lawyers who were seen on camera assaulting JNU students and teachers as well as journalists have been arrested by the police. While Yashpal Singh was arrested yeaterday before being granted bail, Vikram Chauhan was arrested by cops today. Latest India News Follow us on jat agitation haryana govt denies charges of women being gangraped Chandigarh: The agitation demanding quota in government jobs and academic institutions over the past week has seen several cities engulfed in a bitter spell of violence and anarchy. As the state tries to limp back to normalcy, reports of women getting raped and assaulted during the Jat quota agitation has put the government in quite a fix. The agitation, which left 28 people killed and several others injured during the stir also saw major highways leading to the state jammed due to the blockade. Reports have emerged that women passengers were stopped, dragged and raped in the fields on the national highway near Murthal, a claim that the state government has denied categorically. According to Haryana's Principal Secretary Devendra Singh, police officials talked to the locals in the area where such incidents were reported to have taken place and concluded that nothing of the sort had actually happened. Meanwhile, Justice NK Sanghi of the HC has sought action against the culprits. In a letter to the chief justice, he wrote that the reports of rapes with women during the protest was shameful and it was painful that instead of taking steps against the locals, the senior police officials asked the victims to go home at that time. According to reports, at least 10 women were dragged out of their vehicles and sexually assaulted. The police, however dismissed it as a rumour and said that no such incident had taken place during the agitation. The unruly Jat agitation forced authorities in Haryana to impose curfews in several districts and also call in the army as protests turned violent. Shoot-at-sight orders were also issued in the city areas of Jhajjar and Rohtak, the worst affected districts by the crisis. Latest India News Follow us on jat stir haryana govt asks insurance cos to settle claims within 15 days Chandigarh: Haryana government has asked the insurance companies to settle the claims of the persons whose insured establishments were damaged in arson, loot and vandalism during the recent Jat agitation within 15 days. Additional Chief Secretary, Finance and Planning, Sanjeev Kaushal, issued the statement at a meeting with representatives of various government insurance companies at Chandigarh yesterday. The representatives of insurance companies said that they have already taken up the matter with their headquarters and that efforts would be made to settle the claims at the earliest. The owners will also to provide copies of the FIR, policy certificate, accounts bills, bills of sale and purchase, bank statements, stock and other necessary documents to the surveyor. Meanwhile, life is returning to normal after agitators called off their protests demanding reservation under OBC category. All road and rail routes have been cleared and traffic has been restored. Yesterday, curfew was lifted from most of the places and traders opened their shops. Every precautions is being taken by the administration to maintain peace. Yesterday evening, former Chief Minister Bhupender Singh Hooda and his MP son Deepender Hooda faced ire of traders whose properties have been damaged by the agitators at Rohtak. They raised slogans against them when they reached Rohtak from Delhi. Authorities have asked the two leaders to leave Rohtak Latest India News Follow us on jat stir situation improving rail road traffic resumes in haryana Chandigarh: Curfew was today lifted in Hisar district and relaxed in violence-hit Rohtak and Bhiwani districts while rail and road traffic resumed on routes which had remained blocked for over a week due to the Jat stir that claimed 19 lives. In Bhiwani, one of the worst-affected districts in the agitation, authorities gave a four-hour relaxation in curfew as the situation was improving, officials said. Curfew was lifted from Hisar and its nearby town Hansi, though prohibitory orders under Section 144 banning assembly of five or more persons will remain in force. Day-long relaxation in curfew was given in Rohtak, the epicentre of the pro quota agitation in Haryana, where extensive damage has been caused to property that includes destruction of many shops, showrooms, hotels, malls and vehicles. "The situation is peaceful in Rohtak city today. No untoward incident has been reported from anywhere," a senior police official said. Both Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar and former Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, who visited Rohtak yesterday, had to face the ire of traders and shopkeepers, who had suffered heavy losses. While Khattar was heckled and shown black flags as residents demanded strict action against people who took the city to ransom, Hooda was also ghearoed by the angry traders when he reached his stronghold. Life was also returning to normal in violence-hit Sonipat, where three persons had died in a clash with security forces two days back. Security forces were patrolling sensitive areas including Bhiwani, Hisar, Sonipat and Rohtak, officials said. The arterial Delhi-Ambala National Highway, which had remained closed for four days, was thrown open last evening. Officials said that protesters had cleared the rail and road blockades and normal traffic across the State had started to resume. Train services on the Delhi-Ambala-Chandigarh route will be restored this evening from Delhi end after inspection and repair of the track on Ambala-Delhi route. A railway spokesman said that train service from Hisar has resumed to various destinations, including Delhi, Bhiwani, Rewari, Jaipur, Sadulpur and Ganganagar following removal of blockades and safety clearance of the tracks. Bus service from Hisar to various destinations including Chandigarh, Delhi and Rohtak has also been restored, General Manager of Haryana Roadways, Hisar, Ram Kumar said. Latest India News Follow us on jesus christ was a tamil hindu claims 70 year old book New Delhi: Sparking off a debate, a controversial book penned by the brother of Hindutva ideologue VD Savarkar named Ganesh Savarkar, has claimed that Jesus Christ was a Tamil Hindu. The book, Christ Parichay, will be re-launched on February 26 to mark the death anniversary of the Hindutva icon, president of the Swatantryaveer Savarkar National Memorial Ranjit Savarkar said. The book was first published in the year 1946. According to the text of book, Jesus was a "Vishwakarma Brahmin" by birth and Christianity was a sect of Hinduism. It also goes on to claim that Jesus had died in Kashmir. The Marathi book is being brought out by Savarkar National Memorial, a trust that preserves and propagates the Savarkar brothers' literature and ideology. The book claims that the present day Palestinian and Arab territories were Hindu land and that Christ travelled to India where he learnt yoga. The book says Christ's real name was Keshao Krishna, Tamil was his mother tongue, and his complexion was dark. Asked about the claims in the book, senior priest and director of the Bombay Archdiocesan Heritage Museum, Father Warner D'Souza, said such books will not shake the faith of Christians. Latest India News Follow us on judicial scrutiny of intelligence agencies will dent national security sc New Delhi: Putting intelligence agencies IB, RAW and NTRO under judicial scanner may "dent" national security, the Supreme Court said on Tuesday while rejecting a PIL seeking to make these bodies accountable to Parliament for their actions and expenditure. "We are not inclined to entertain this petition ... Trying to get into the domain of intelligence may create dent in national security," a bench comprising Justices Dipak Misra and Shiva Kirti Singh said. It rejected the plea of Prashant Bhushan, appearing for NGO CPIL which has filed the PIL, claiming that in every advanced democracies like the UK and the USA, such agencies are accountable to parliamentary panels as they spend tax-payers' money. "What they do in the United Kingdom, we cannot practice in India," it said, adding "They (Centre and Parliament) must be having some measures. It cannot be said that they do not have any mechanism. You need not legislate on all issues. You need to have some kind of caution also, otherwise, the very purpose will be lost." "We do not think the court should entertain such kinds of petitions which deal with security of the country," it said. The bench said that irrespective of nature of the PIL, any plea that may dent national security, should not be entertained by courts. "As a student of History, Law and Literature, I do not think, any court should enter into this territory," Justice Misra, heading the bench, said. On the submission that this court had issued notice on the PIL way back in 2013 and it should not be dismissed like this, the bench asked Bhushan to give suggestions to attorney general Mukul Rohatgi instead. The apex court had in 2013 issued notice to the Centre asking to respond on the PIL seeking to bring the agencies under the oversight of Parliament and CAG. The NGO's petition had sought directions from the court for parliamentary oversight and financial auditing of Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), Intelligence Bureau (IB) and National Technical Research Organisation (NTRO) by CAG like in several developed countries. Latest India News Follow us on no meeting of indo pak nsas after pathankot attack government New Delhi: Government today said there has not been any meeting between National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and his Pakistani counterpart Lt Gen (retd) Naseer Khan Janjua in Paris after the Pathankot attack in January. "We denied it then and we deny it now," External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Vikas Swarup tweeted. He was replying to a query on a media report that Doval and his Pak counterpart met in Paris in second week of January after Pathankot attack. Though the Spokesperson has been maintaining that the two NSAs are in touch over the probe into the Pathankot terror attack, he has always denied that there was any meeting between the two. According to a report in a national daily, Doval had a second secret meeting with Janjua in Paris in the second week of January when he was there to meet French President Francois Hollande who came to India as chief guest for the Republic Day parade. The meeting in Paris with Janjua came soon after the Pathankot airbase attack on January 2 carried out by terrorists belonging to the Jaish-e-Mohammad, it added. Latest India News Follow us on rajiv gandhi assassination convict gets parole to attend father s funeral New Delhi: Nalini Sriharan, a convict in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case, was today granted a 12-hour parole to attend the last rites of her father. "She has been granted a 12-hour parole and will return to jail by this evening," a jail official of Women's prison told PTI. She left the Vellore Central Prison (women's jail) under police escort by 6.50 AM. She is on her way to Chennai where she will attend the cremation of her father Sankara Narayanan. Nalini was sentenced to death by the trial court in the case on January 28, 1998. Her sentence was commuted to life term by the Tamil Nadu Governor on April 24, 2000. In December 14 last year, she had moved Madras High Court seeking a direction to Tamil Nadu government to consider her representation for premature release, saying she has undergone imprisonment for more than 24 years. Latest India News Follow us on umar khalid confesses raising pro afzal guru slogans New Delhi: Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) student Umar Khalid, facing sedition charges, has confessed that they he had raised pro-Afzal Guru slogans on February 9 inside the university campus. According to Delhi Police sources, Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya, who is also facing the same charges, are cooperating in the investigation and were answer questions during interrogation. The two have also disclosed about the location where they had taken shelter after February 9 incident which led to the arrest of JNUSU president Kanhaiya Kumar. After Khalid and Bhattacharya surrendered, the police drove around for almost 10 km to avoid the media before taking the students to RK Puram police station, less than a kilometre from the university. The students reached the police station after 2 am. A senior police official said that Kanhaiya and Khalid may be interrogated together and that police will oppose the former's bail plea in the High Court today. It is important to cross question Umar and Kanhiya together. Further strategy to seek Kanhiya's police custody will depends on today's decision of the High Court. If Kanhiya don't get bail they will once again approach court to seek his police custody. Will seek police custody and question them in details, the official said. Sources say the students were questioned for five hours before being arrested. Khalid and Bhattacharya will be produced before the Patiala House today at 2 pm. Khalid and Bhattacharya are among the five students who, along with JNUSU president Kanhaiya Kumar, had shouted anti-national slogans at an event organized in the university campus to mark the death anniversary of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru on February 9. Besides Kumar, Khalid and Bhattacharya, the other students are Rama Naga, Ashutosh Kumar and Anant Prakash. The two surrendered to police hours after the Delhi High Court Justice Pratibha Rani rejected Khalid and Bhattacharya's petition expressing willingness to surrender before the court. While refusing to grant protection from arrest, the court asked both petitioners to secretly give details of the date, place and time where they will surrender, to the court and senior police officials will ensure their safety. Kanhaiya Kumar, the JNU student's union president, was arrested earlier this month over the controversial event. He is in the Tihar Jail. His bail plea will be heard by the High Court today. Latest India News Chinese Internet giant Baidu a combination between Google, Facebook and Twitter, with key investments in many companies, including Uber makes its own Windows/Android browser, long believed to be a de facto surveillance tool. An investigation by Citizen Lab found that Baidu Browser transmits lots of personal data to Baidu, the sort of thing Android collects for Google location, search terms, nearby wifi networks and some they don't (hard drive serial numbers, browser history) but without the kind of security that Google uses. All that data is either transmitted in the clear, or with badly implemented cryptography that can be easily broken. It's also a remarkably badly secured tool: Baidu Browser accepts unsigned updates, allowing malicious updates from third parties. Hilariously, Baidu's design decisions allow for circumvention of China's censoring great firewall, seemingly by accident (the browser uses a proxy that is meant to fix slowdowns caused by the country's censorship regime). Many of Baidu's defects come from its SDK, widely used by Android app developers, meaning these vulnerabilities affect thousands of apps. Baidu was notified of these vulnerabilities prior to Citizen Lab's publication, and has apparently patched some of the issues Citizen Lab identified. Baidu Browser, a web browser for the Windows and Android platforms, transmits personal user data to Baidu servers without encryption and with easily decryptable encryption, and is vulnerable to arbitrary code execution during software updates via man-in-the-middle attacks. The Android version of Baidu Browser transmits personally identifiable data, including a user's GPS coordinates, search terms, and URLs visited, without encryption, and transmits the user's IMEI and a list of nearby wireless networks with easily decryptable encryption. The Windows version of Baidu Browser also transmits a number of personally identifiable data points, including a user's search terms, hard drive serial number model and network MAC address, URL and title of all webpages visited, and CPU model number, without encryption or with easily decryptable encryption. Neither the Windows nor Android versions of Baidu Browser protect software updates with code signatures, meaning an in-path malicious actor could cause the application to download and execute arbitrary code, representing a significant security risk. The Windows version of Baidu Browser contains a feature to proxy requests to certain websites, which permits access to some websites that are normally blocked in China. Analysis of the global versions of Baidu Browser indicates that the data leakage is the result of a shared Baidu software development kit (SDK),1 which affects hundreds of additional applications developed by both Baidu and third parties in the Google Play Store and thousands of applications in one popular Chinese app store. Please see the "Update: Analysis of updated versions of Baidu Browser" section at the end of this report for updates on these issues, following our disclosure to the vendor and our analysis of the latest versions released prior to publication. Baidu's and Don'ts: Privacy and Security Issues in Baidu Browser [Jeffrey Knockel, Sarah McKune and Adam Senft/Citizen Lab] (Image: Baidu headquarters, Kokuyo, CC-BY-SA) Follow us on donald trump adds india to list of nations he says poaching us jobs Las Vegas: Republican presidential frontrunner Donald Trump has added India to the list of countries that he believes is taking away jobs from the US and has pledged to bring those back if elected president. "What I did on June 16, we came out and we started talking about trade, how we're being ripped off with China, ripped off with Japan, ripped off with Mexico at the border and then trade, ripped off by Vietnam, and by India, and by every country," Trump told his supporters at a massive rally in Las Vegas. "Every single country because they're all represented by these people that we think are representing us. That's why when I say I am self-funding, folks, it means much more than you think. It means much more, I'm telling you," Trump added. After jumping into the presidential race last June, Trump has been regularly singling out China, Japan and Mexico and occasionally Vietnam for taking away American jobs. But this is for the first time in recent months that Trump has added India to that list. However, Trump has been much harsher on China than any other country during his electioneering rhetoric. "We are going to take our jobs back from China and all of these other countries," he said. "I have a friend, he's a great contractor, and he's a great merchandiser, and he cannot get his product into China. No matter what he does, he can't," he added. Donald Trump looks to take Nevada A triumphant Donald Trump rolls into Nevada as a hot favourite in the Republican nomination for the US Presidential elections. The real estate mogul, an easy winner in New Hampshire and South Carolina, looks well ahead in Nevada, and leading in 10 of the 14 states set to vote in Republican primaries over the next two weeks. Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz will fight it out for the second place. According to Real Clear Politics, Trump's biggest lead is in Massachusetts, where he is 35 points ahead of Florida senator Marco Rubio. His lowest margin of victory is predicted to come in Minnesota, where he leads Rubio by 6 points. But in Texas, Senator Ted Cruz's home state, Trump trails him by 6.7 percent. The candidates are now revving up their campaigns for Super Tuesday on March 1, when voters in 12 states go to the polls. Rubio, who edged out Cruz for second place in South Carolina, said that primary turned the Republican presidential race into a three-person contest. As in South Carolina, Rubio's campaign strategy relies heavily on endorsements from local lawmakers and celebrities. Cruz, seeking to recover from a disappointing third place in South Carolina, has stressed the fact that he is the one candidate who has prevailed in a contest with Trump with a triumph in the Iowa caucuses. With PTI Inputs Latest World News Follow us on donald trump wins nevada caucuses 3rd victory in a row Las Vegas: Notching three in a row, Donald Trump decisively won Nevada's Republican caucuses on Tuesday as Marco Rubio bid to elbow out Ted Cruz for second place in an increasingly urgent effort to slam the brakes on the Trump juggernaut. Trump now can claim victories in the West, the South and Northeast a testament to his broad appeal among the mad-as-hell voters making their voices heard in the 2016 presidential race. "We're winning, winning, winning the country," Trump declared. "Soon, the country is going to start winning, winning, winning." Ticking off a list of upcoming primary states where he's leading in preference polls, Trump predicted he'll soon be able to claim the GOP nomination. "It's going to be an amazing two months," he told a raucous crowd at a Las Vegas casino. "We might not even need the two months, folks, to be honest." Six in 10 caucus goers said they were angry with the way the government is working, and Trump got about half of those angry voters, according to preliminary results of an entrance poll. With time running out, Nevada was a critical test for Rubio and Cruz, the two senators battling to emerge as the clear alternative to the GOP front-runner. Rubio was out to prove he can build on recent momentum, while Cruz was looking for a spark to help him recover from a particularly rocky stretch in his campaign. Lagging far behind the two senators in the Nevada vote were Ohio Gov. John Kasich and retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson. Rubio, already campaigning in Michigan as caucus results rolled in, sought to project confidence that he can consolidate the non-Trump voters who have been splintering among an assortment of GOP candidates, saying, "we have incredible room to grow." But after finishing third in Iowa, fifth in New Hampshire and second in South Carolina, Rubio needs a win soon to support the idea he can beat Trump. Cruz, a fiery conservative popular among voters on the GOP's right, finished a disappointing third in South Carolina after spending much of the past two weeks denying charges of dishonest campaign tactics and defending his integrity. Another disappointing finish in Nevada would raise new questions about his viability heading into a crucial batch of Super Tuesday states on March 1. The election calendar suggests that if Trump's rivals don't slow him by mid-March, they may not ever. Trump swept all of South Carolina's 50 delegates, giving him a total of 67 compared to Cruz and Rubio who have 11 and 10, respectively. There were 30 delegates at stake in Nevada, and a whopping 595 available one week later in the March 1 Super Tuesday bonanza. The billionaire businessman, in his victory speech, dismissed the notion that if more GOP candidates drop out of the race, they'll coalesce around an alternative. "They keep forgetting that when people drop out, we're going to get a lot of votes," he said. Nevada's caucusing played out in schools, community centers and places of worship across the state a process that's been chaotic in the past. Count Tracy Brigida, fed up after her husband was laid off from his mining job, among those caucusing for Trump. "I want a businessman to run the biggest business in the world," Brigida said as she caucused at a Las Vegas high school. Jeremy Haight drove straight from his marketing job to caucus for Marco Rubio at the same high school. "He's the most level-headed. He hasn't said anything stupid or crazy ... which is really what I think the country needs," Haight said. It was Cruz for Megan Ortega, who declared: "He's consistent, he's bold and he's a class act." Preliminary results of the entrance poll found that about 3 in 10 early caucus goers said the quality that mattered most to them in choosing a candidate was that he shares their values, slightly more than the quarter who said they want a candidate who can win in November. About a quarter said they want a candidate who can bring change. About 2 in 10 want one who "tells it like it is." The GOP field that included a dozen candidates a month ago has been reduced to five, with former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush the latest to drop out after a disappointing finish in South Carolina. Kasich and Carson could play spoilers as Trump, Cruz and Rubio, battle for delegates with an increasing sense of urgency. Indeed, Republican establishment heavyweights have been flooding to Rubio in recent days, including Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson, North Carolina Sen. Thom Tillis and Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch. South Florida's three Cuban-American members of Congress announced their support for him in the hours before the Nevada contest. Nevada marked the first Republican election in the West, the fourth of the campaign. And it's not one that's gotten much attention from the GOP candidates. Through Tuesday, the Republican candidates and the super PACs supporting them had spent a combined $3.8 million on television and radio advertisements in Nevada less than a tenth of the $39.3 million spent ahead of last weekend's South Carolina primary, according to Kantar Media's CMAG data. Latest World News Follow us on iraqi troops rescue swedish teen from islamic state Irbil (Iraq): Iraqi Kurdish authorities said Tuesday their troops rescued a Swedish teenager from the Islamic State group near the extremist-controlled city of Mosul earlier this month, while a local TV station broadcast an interview with the girl in which she described how she came with her boyfriend to Iraq last year. A statement from the regional government said the rescue operation by the Kurdish anti-terrorist forces took place on Feb. 17 near Mosul, 360 kilometers (225 miles) northwest of the Iraqi capital, Baghdad. The statement identified the young woman by name, saying the 16-year-old from the Swedish town of Boras "was misled" by an Islamic State member in Sweden to travel to Syria and later to Mosul. Swedish authorities and the teenager's family had contacted the Iraqi Kurdish government and asked for help in locating and rescuing the girl from the IS, the statement also said. It added that the young woman was currently in Iraqi Kurdish territory and was being "provided the care afforded to her under international law," adding that she will be "transferred to Swedish authorities to return home once necessary arrangements" are made. The statement provided no details on the rescue and did not say whether the teen was mistreated while with the Islamic State group. The Associated Press does not identify minors who may have been victims of abuse or may be accused of crimes. Iraqi Kurdish officials contacted by the AP in Irbil, the capital of the Kurdish semi-autonomous region in northern Iraq, declined to provide more details on the case. But a local TV station, K24, described the rescue as a "unique military operation" and late Tuesday night broadcast an exclusive interview with the teen in which she describes what had happened to her in the last two years. The girl recounts how she stopped going to school at the age of 14 and met her boyfriend that year. At first all was fine, she says, but then he started speaking more and more about "ISIS videos." "I didn't know what ISIS means, or Islam," she said, using an alternative acronym for the IS group. The boyfriend convinced her to "go to ISIS in Syria" and the pair left Sweden by train on May 31, 2015, she said, recounting their subsequent journey across Europe until they reached Turkey and crossed into Syria and from there, they ended up in the Iraqi city of Mosul. They were given a house but it was without electricity or water, she said, adding that it was "totally different" from Sweden. After a while, she got a mobile phone and contacted her mother, saying she wanted to come back to Sweden. In the end, the girl thanks the Iraqi Kurdish government and asks them to send her back to Sweden. Seemingly unharmed by her experience, she did not say what happened to her boyfriend or offer other details about her life in IS territory. Iraq's second-largest city of Mosul was the first major city to fall into the hands of Islamic State militants during their blitz in June 2014, when the group swept across vast areas in the country's north and west. To this day, Mosul remains under control of the Islamic State group as Iraqi forces, aided by airstrikes carried out by the U.S.-led international coalition, are battling to reclaim ground lost to the militants. Iraqi troops are also assisted by Shiite militiamen and Sunni pro-government fighters in the battle, while Iraqi Kurdish peshmerga forces are fighting IS militants to the north and east of Mosul. Latest World News Follow us on pakistan arrests pathankot attack suspects in punjab province report Lahore/New Delhi: Pakistani authorities have conducted raids in some cities of Punjab province and arrested several suspects in connection with Pathankot IAF base terror attack. According to media reports, all the arrested person have been shifted to an undisclosed location and further interrogation will be done to establish the possible links. "The raids were conducted in Sialkot, Gujranwala, Jhelum and Dina cities in Punjab province during the last two days, and some suspects were arrested," an Interior Ministry official said. The authorities are looking for those involved directly in the attacks or the facilitators of the attackers, reports said, adding that the special teams comprising police and other law-enforcers are conducting raids across the country, especially in central Punjab cities. Pakistan has also started investigations regarding the telephone numbers provided by India and used in planning the attacks on the Pathankot airbase. "It is suspected that the arrested people have been in contact with the alleged extremists in the near past. These people went underground when news stories were run by the media after the attacks," the official said. The official said these suspects had stopped the use of their mobile numbers (SIMs) and because of this locating them had become very difficult. He, however, said those points are being searched for the suspects where they had last used the said mobile numbers. Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan said the mobile numbers provided by India in the Pathankot case were also included in the case registered by the Pakistani authorities. He said during the investigation, several people have been detained for questioning. He, however, did not provide the details of those arrested. Pakistani authorities had lodged an FIR in connection with the Pathankot attack on February 18. The FIR was filed against 'unknown persons' after weeks of probe into the terror assault that had led to the postponement of Foreign Secretarylevel talks. Meanwhile, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar has said that no one can enter the defence installations without the permission of the ministry, hinting who should have the final call about permitting the Pakistani SIT team. "The incident has happened here and we will investigate what has happened here. What we are asking them (Pakistan) to investigate is the role of their people in their country," Parrikar said. Parrikar's remark came in the wake of media reports suggesting that the Indian authorities have allowed the Pakistani SIT to visit the attack site in Pathankot. Seven security personnel were killed when suspected terrorists of Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) stormed the Pathankot airbase on January 2. With Agency Inputs Latest World News Follow us on republicans vow to block barrack obama s apex court pick Washington: Setting the stage for a major confrontation with President Barack Obama, Senate Republicans have vowed not to hold confirmation hearings for his Supreme Court nominee to replace a dead conservative judge amid a tense battle for the White House. Democrats blasted the "obstructionist and unprecedented" move setting the stage for a major confrontation between America's finest African-American president and a Republican controlled legislature. "I can now confidently say the view shared by virtually everyone in my conference is that the nomination should be made by the president who the people elect in the election that is underway right now," Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said on Tuesday. "In short, there will not be action taken," he said outraging the Democrats. Obama has said he intends to nominate a judge to take the place of Justice Antonin Scalia on the nine judge bench and expects the Senate to hold hearings and a vote to confirm the new justice, but Republicans say the next president should make the nomination. Scalia's February 13 death has left the nine judge bench now evenly divided 4-4 among liberal and conservative judges. McConnell's comments came shortly after Republican members of the Senate Judiciary Committee sent a letter to the Senate leader saying no hearings will be held until Obama leaves office. "Senator McConnell and the Republican leaders said point-blank they are not going to exercise their Constitutional responsibilities," Senator Dick Durbin, Assistant Minority Leader said criticising the move. "This has never happened before -- never ... and now, McConnell is going to have to wear the collar for it." Major cases before the apex court include access to abortion, and an Obama policy to prevent the deportation of undocumented immigrants who have children who are US citizens or lawful residents. If the court splits 4-4, the decision of the lower court stands, but does not become nationwide precedent. Meanwhile, a Fox News poll released earlier this month found that registered voters want Obama and Senate leaders to "take action to fill the vacancy now" by a margin of 62 percent to 34 percent. A Pew Research Centre poll released on Monday found a majority of Americans (56 percent) say the Senate should hold hearings and vote on Obama's choice to fill the vacancy, with 38 percent saying they should not hold hearings until the next president takes office. Latest World News Follow us on us lawmaker assails f 16 deal says pakistan supports taliban al qaeda haqqani network Washington: The chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee has sharply questioned the US plans to sell F-16 fighter jets to Pakistan, in the light of Pakistani actions in Afghanistan describing them as a threat to US troops. They continue to support the Taliban, the Haqqani network and give safe haven to Al Qaeda, Republican Senator Bob Corker said to Secretary of State John Kerry, who was testifying to the committee about the State Department's annual budget request. US Lawmakers have 30 days to block the sale and Mr Corker has made it clear that he has doubt about it. Earlier, the US government had announced that it will sell Pakistan eight F-16 fighters built by Lockheed Martin Corp, radar and other equipment for $699 million, Mr Kerry responded by saying the issue was complicated and that Pakistan was an ally. I understand your reservations about it but their military has been deeply engaged in the fight against terrorism, he said. India has already registered its strong protest at Washington's decision to sell fighter jets to Islamabad. The US Department of Defense (Pentagon) is reportedly paying almost half the cost as military aid. The Congressional Research Service (CRS) reports that, between 2002-2014, the US sold Pakistan military kit worth $5.4 billion under the Foreign Military Sales programme. About half consisted of F-16s and related equipment. Latest World News Follow us on 400 foreign academicians invited to teach in india mukherjee New Delhi: President Pranab Mukherjee on Tuesday said the government has invited 400 foreign academicians to teach in India. "To enable increased interaction between foreign faculty and our students, under the aegis of GIAN, my government has in the first cycle invited 400 foreign academicians to teach in India," he said. The president was addressing a joint sitting of both houses of parliament -- Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha -- marking the commencement of the budget session. He also said that two Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), six Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs), one Indian Institute of Science Education and Research and one National Institute of Technology have started functioning. Mukherjee also added that through the launch of Imprint India, scientific areas have been identified in 10 fields of research ranging from defence to sustainable living. "Government has given impetus to research through the launch of Imprint India whereby scientific goalposts have been identified in 10 fields of research ranging from defence to sustainable living," he said. "National Institutional Ranking Framework has been launched for higher educational institutions. The National Scholarship Portal provides a one-stop platform for applications of all scholarships," he added. Follow us on 5 crazy ways supporters celebrated amma s 68th birthday in tamil nadu Chennai: AIADMK head and Tamil Nadu chief minister J Jayalalitha is no stranger to sycophancy and her ardent supporters have ensured that the leader's 68th birthday today does not fall any short of it. With the assembly polls in Tamil Nadu now a stone's throw away, there is a fierce race expected between the two Dravidian parties the ruling AIADMK headed by Chief Minister J. Jayalalitha and the opposition DMK with its leader M. Karunanidhi. Assembly polls in the southern states are scheduled to begin by mid-April this year. While it is premature to speculate the results, the party members of Amma's party are leaving no stone unturned to reserve a seat for themselves. Here goes a list of five crazy ways the chief minister's birthday was celebrated throughout the state: 1. Mass marriage of 68 couples A mass-marriage event was organised by AIADMK party cadres which saw 68 couples getting married under the subtext of marking Jayalalitha's 68th birth anniversary. Besides the decor that echoed her presence, small cut-outs of Amma's face were placed on the head on every newly-wed couple as a show of being bestowed with her blessings. 2. Amma tattoos A tattoo event was organised by Velachery MLA M K Ashok to mark the leader's birthday. In a rare show of solidarity, over 1,000 people got inked with the AIADMK supremo's face with Amma' written in Tamil on their forearms. 3. The floating' MLA In a unique gesture, AIADMK's MLA M V Karuppaiah floated in a government swimming pool holding the party's flag in his mouth for 48 minutes, all to wish Jayalalitha on her birthday. 4. Gift to the girl child Every girl child born on Wednesday in one of the corporation's hospitals received a gift of Rs. 10,000 from the party's people in a mark of respect for the chief minister. 5. On a cake and a prayer Giant cakes were cut and distributed in different parts of the state. Old songs from films featuring Amma were also played out in the streets of Tamil Nadu. Special prayers were also held by her supporters throughout the state. Follow us on will our mps listen to president and allow parliament to function New Delhi: The Budget Session of Parliament has been set in motion with the President Pranab Mukherjee addressing the join sitting of the two houses Tuesday. Budget session, in one sense, is the most important session of Parliament as the government presents its economic and financial vision and spriorities on the floor of the two houses. The government has to seek parliament's approval for all its expenses and that's one reason why the lower house, where the government of the day enjoys majority, has been given authority to override the objections of upper house as far as money bills are concerned. The government of the day usually does not face any challenge in getting money bills in Lok Sabha owing to its majority and Modi government has brute majority in the lower house but it's equally important for members of the both the houses to discuss and debate the initiatives taken by the government. The opposition in the Rajya Sabha can't stop the passage of money bills but it can definitely add value by putting forward its valuable suggestions. All this is possible only if the parliament functions smoothly without any disruption. This is easier said than done given the fact that the last two sessions, Winter Session and before that the Monsoon Session, were reduced to complete washouts. That's why President Pranab Mukherjee while addressing the joint sitting of the two houses today reminded the political leaders that Parliament is a place for debate and discussions and not for disruption or obstruction. The statement of the President underlined his apprehensions of the opposition parties repeating their obstructionist approach this time as well. Read Also: President Pranab Mukherjee calls for discussion, not disruption of Parliament The question is will the opposition parties pay heed to the sane advice rendered by the President of India? Do our MPs and their leaders need to be reminded time and again that they have been elected to discuss and debate' and not to disrupt or obstruct' as the President rightly pointed out? This is not to say that the ruling party has no role in ensuring smooth functioning of the parliament. In fact, the onus actually lies more on the ruling party to ensure that they take into account the genuine concerns of the opposition and try their best to resolve the differences. To be fair to this government, they displayed their willingness to discuss issues in the parliament in last two sessions. Even this time, Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu has clearly said that the government is ready to discuss every issue including the contentious JNU row. However, the signs emanating from opposition parties do not inspire confidence. After the customary all-party meet before budget session, the opposition has accused the government of setting the agenda for disruption. And it gives enough hints for things that are likely to follow in this session. The opposition looks all set to fiercely raise issues like sedition case involving JNU students, Rohit Vemulla's suicide, Jat reservation etc and they have every right to do so but let them do it in a way that is in line with the spirit of our democratic set-up. The problem arises when political parties and their leaders willingly allow themselves to become prisoners of history. The Congress is not ready to allow passage of GST bill because the BJP, when in opposition, had not cooperated with them on this bill. That they don't see anything wrong in disrupting the Parliament because the BJP had also done the same thing when it was in opposition. How can we ignore that this tu-tu-main-mainbetween Congress-led opposition and BJP is doing a great disservice to the development of the country. Should our political leadership, both ffrom ruling party and opposition, not display statesmanship and forget the acrimonies of the past? Should they not join hands to resolve serious issues bothering different sections of the society- from students and labourers to farmers and businessmen? Members of Parliament must be reminded that huge amount of money is spent on the functioning of the two houses. Under no circumstance, tax-payer's money should be wasted by continuously disrupting the parliament. The opposition has every right to question the government, censure the government if they have committed any mistake, make them answerable if they are not fulfilling their electoral promises but all this can be done only through civilised debate and discussion. Disruption is never an advisable option in parliamentary democracy. Interestingly, political leaders don't mind discussing issues, including those which are most contentious, on TV channels but they refuse to discuss the same on the floor of the parliament. Is it not an insult to the mandate of the country and expectations of the common man? Let our MPs think over it- calmly and sincerely. Follow us on centre targets electrifying 7 000 villages by march New Delhi: The central government has fixed a target of electrifying 7,000 un-electrified villages by the end of the current fiscal on March 31, Power Minister Piyush Goyal has said. "The village electrification target for 2015-16 was 2,800 villages, which I set to 5,800. Now my officials told me that they would be able to electrify 7,000 villages by March end. I'm sure that we would be able to achieve this target," Goyal said at The Power Focus Summit here on Tuesday evening. "The figure, as we speak, of villages that have already being electrified is 5,542 villages, that's one-third of the total. There are another 1,390 villages, where electrification work is done, they are under energization," the minister said. "Officials have themselves fixed their target to electrify 7,000 villages by March end. I'm sure that we would be able to achieve this target", he added. Referring to the Ujwal Discom Assurance Yojana (UDAY), Goyal hoped that more states would join the discoms' debt restructuring scheme. "The agreements signed with the states specify the timelines and the reduction in losses to be achieved. The central government will monitor their work very religiously and I am sure more states including Kerala and Karnataka will join UDAY." Bihar became the sixth state to sign the Uday MoU here earlier this week. Donald Trump thrashed his Republican rivals so completely in Nevada's caucus that he won about as many votes as Marc Rubio, Ted Cruz and John Kasich combined. For Republicans hoping it would all go away, the knowledge that even a "consensus candidate" can't prevail is dawning. At The Guardian, Jeb Lund explains that Trump's victories aren't mysterious if you understand why people are angry, which very few people in politics or the media appreciate, even now. But you don't need some grand overarching political science theory. There are millions of miserable people in America who know exactly who engineered the shattering of their worlds, and Trump isn't one of those people and, with the exception of Bernie Sanders, everyone else in the field is running on the basis of their experience being one of those people. When you are abused and bullied enough, anyone willing to beat up or burn down whomever put you in that position is your friend. Even a bully can be a hero if he targets others bullies and that is, more or less, what Trump has done since day one. At The Federalist, though, Mollie Hemingway blames the media for enabling him and for embracing his awful talking points. They're complicit. You can't cry "dangerous and outrageous" with this type of cross-network coverage that other candidates would pay millions of dollars to have. Every day is a test for the media and Trump. And every day they fail, and he succeeds wildly. It's not that candidates should get equal time, but let's not pretend that there was any sense of proportion to the Trump media circus this past year. Trump is a smart campaigner, exploiting each and every weakness in American media for his gain. And his supporters are happy to have him. He's earned his success. But I'll be darned if the media want to pretend they didn't play a huge role in his easy path to the nomination. In any case, conservatives know that whatever the truth of Trump is, they are going to be blamed for it. Follow us on i have no expectations from railway budget nitish kumar Patna: Stating he had 'no expectations' from Railway budget, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Tuesday opposed the Centre's decision asking state governments to invest in railway projects. "I do not have any expectations from railway budget. Though the nation has always big expectations from railway budget...Railway minster is my friend and wish him best," Kumar, he said while talking to reporters after the cabinet meeting. The Central government should work for development and expansion of railways across the country, he said. "State governments have been asked to make investments in the railway projects of the concerned state. In how many areas and sectors, the state government will invest. The development and expansion of railways are the responsibility of the Central government," Kumar said. RJD leader Lalu Prasad had on Monday criticised the BJP government at the Centre for pushing railways to "serious crisis". Stating that Railway ministry should not allocate 'token' funds, Kumar said that people have huge expectations from railways whose various projects are pending in the state. There are many projects which have crossed their deadlines too, he added. Centre is talking about private investments in railways which are in bad shape, Chief minister said and added that it was the Centre's responsibility to develop railways in a manner that its benefits should be passed on to all people. Railways play a bigger role in unifying the country, he added. Nitish's grand secular alliance partner and RJD leader Prasad, who had served as Railway minister in the UPA I government, had shot off a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi about the "recent flawed policy moves of Railways." "The decision to recklessly increase financial leverage manifold by signing MoUs for borrowing of 40 Billion US dollar from institutions like LIC and JICA, that too for un-remunerative and cash guzzling projects like Bullet train is likely to prove suicidal," Prasad had said. Follow us on jnu row govt won t let me speak because they are scared says rahul gandhi New Delhi: Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi today said that he will raise the JNU issue in the parliament but the government will not let him speak as they are scared of what he will say. Speaking to reporters,Rahul said, the government said they are open to a discussion but they will not let me speak in the Parliament. Gandhi had yesterday accused the Modi government and RSS of crushing voices of dissent of college and university students across the country and pitched for a law to protect them from "discrimination" and "suppression". Earlier, Congress gave a notice for adjournment motion on the issue on the first working day today of the House in the Budget Session. Party leaders Mallikarjun Kharge, Jyotiraditya Scindia and KC Venugopal have given the notice for the motion. Rajya Sabha has already decided to discuss the issue. JNU is caught in a row over an event on February 9 in the campus against the hanging of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru, where anti-national slogans were allegedly raised. The varsity's students union president Kanhaiya Kumar is in judicial custody in a sedition case in connection with the event. Gandhi had visited the varsity campus on February 13 where he had compared the Modi government to that of Hitler while addressing the students. Follow us on pm modi exchanges pleasantries with opposition leaders in lok sabha New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi today reached out to the opposition in Lok Sabha on the first day of the Budget Session by walking up to them and exchanging pleasantries. As soon as the House adjourned for day, Modi walked up to the opposition benches greeting leaders like Mulayam Singh Yadav (SP), Jai Prakash Yadav (RJD), P Karunakaran (CPI-M) and leader of the Congress party in Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge. Before the Prime Minister walked up to the leaders, Congress President Sonia Gandhi and her deputy Rahul Gandhi had left the Lok Sabha chambers. Earlier, Gandhi and Rahul were seated on the last row in the opposition benches but later moved ahead. While Modi was shaking hands, some members from the Kerala unit of Congress were seen handing him a letter. The Prime Minister also exchanged greeting with leaders of NDA allies TDP and Shiv Sena before leaving the chamber. Indications of a tumultuous beginning of the Budget session had emerged at the all-party meetings convened by Speaker Sumitra Mahajan and Union Minister M Venkaiah Naidu yesterday with the Opposition accusing the govt of "setting the agenda for disruption". Issues like the JNU row, suicide by a Hyderabad university scholar and reservation system are set to dominate the proceedings. Follow us on president calls for discussion not disruption of parliament New Delhi: President Pranab Mukherjee today said that Parliament reflects the supreme will of the people and democratic temper calls for debate and discussion, and not disruption or obstruction. He said the government will constantly strive for smooth and constructive conduct of Parliamentary business. In his customary address to the joint sitting of both the Houses of Parliament outlining government's agenda in the coming financial year, he urged all members of Parliament to discharge their solemn responsibilities in a spirit of cooperation and mutual accommodation. "Our Parliament reflects the supreme will of the people. Democratic temper calls for debate and discussion, and not disruption of obstruction. My government will constantly strive for smooth and constructive conduct of Parliamentary business. I urge all Members of Parliament to discharge their solemn responsibilities in a spirit of cooperation and mutual accommodation. Let us all collectively endeavour to build a flourishing and prosperous India," the President said in his more than hour-long address. The President remarks assume significance in the context of repeated disruption of business on various issues, loss of time of Parliament and the stalling of legislative business in Rajya Sabha where the government lacks majority. The 20-page speech was heard in rapt attention by members in the central hall of Parliament whenever he spoke of the government achievements and new announcements. "Let noble thoughts come from all directions, should be the spirit behind the debate in this temple of democracy. Being a member of this great institution bestows great honour as well as important responsibilities," Mukherjee said. Terrorism a global threat: President Asserting that the government is fully committed to firmly dealing with all challenges concerning the security of the country, the President said terrorism is a global threat and strong counter-terrorism measures are necessary worldwide to eradicate it completely. "Let me congratulate the security forces in successfully foiling the recent attack at the Pathankot air base by terrorists. Firm and effective steps will be taken to deal with any situation arising out of cross-border terrorism," he said. "My government is committed to forging a mutually respectful relationship with Pakistan and in creating an environment of cooperation in combating cross border terrorism," Mukherjee said while referring to the government's foreign policy. He said the government believes in a secure and prosperous future for the neighbourhood while committing itself to the principle of 'the world is one family'. Elaborating on the focus of the government 'development for all' beyond just the economic advancements that dominate headlines, the President said the country must ensure that the poor and deprived were truly empowered to take advantage of opportunities to improve their lives. "Development for all means that backward sections of society are equally valued and are genuine stakeholders in the country's progress. Development for all implies that we tackle the pollution, traffic, and garbage problems that plague our cities," he said. Mukherjee said 'development for all' also meant development of the entire world which was why India has to be a responsible member of the global comity of nations helping humanity solve major challenges such as terrorism, climate change and financial instability. Prez lauds Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojna The President said the government is focused on poverty eradication, farmers' prosperity and massive employment generation. "The overriding goal for my government is poverty eradication," he said adding the poorest of the poor were entitled to the first charge on the nation's resources. Removing the scourge of poverty and destitution was government's most sacred moral responsibility, Mukherjee said it was pledge to making this goal possible through financial inclusion and social security, the two wings on which human aspiration takes fight. "To this end, my government has placed great emphasis on food security, Housing for All and subsidies that reach those who need them the most, when they need them the most," he said. The President said under the ambitious Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojna he was proud to say that it was the world's most successful financial inclusion programme. "Under the programme, out of over 21 crore accounts opened, 15 crore accounts are operational with an aggregate deposit of over Rs.32,000 crore. The programme has gone beyond mere opening of bank accounts to becoming a platform for poverty eradication by offering basic financial services and security to the poor," he said. To universalise social security, the President said, the government has launched three new insurance and pension schemes which afford insurance to hitherto uncovered sections of society. He said targeted subsidies ensure that benefits reach the deserving. Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) has so far been extended to 42 schemes funded by the government. "PAHAL has become the largest direct cash transfer programme of its kind in the world, with nearly 15 crore beneficiaries. Since June 2014, the food security coverage has more than doubled to cover over 68 crore persons." The 'Give-It-Up' campaign in tandem with the Give-Back programmes has released subsidised fresh connections to 50 lakh below-poverty-line families. "More than 62 lakh LPG consumers have voluntarily surrendered their LPG consumers have surrendered their LPG subsidy under the campaign. The highest number of new cooking gas connections to the rural poor were distributed in 2015," he said. Laws amended to promote ease of business: Prez The President said the government has fostered competitive cooperation among various states to enhance 'Ease of Doing Business'. State governments were being encouraged and supported to simplify procedures, introduce e-enabled processes and invest in infrastructure to improve investment climate. "A series of reforms have been initiated to help convert job seekers into job creators. My government has launched the Start-Up India campaign which would deepen, expand and support the innovation eco system in the country," he said. Mukherjee said a landmark agreement with Japan will make the Mumbai-Ahmedabad high speed rail corridor a reality. By March 2019, under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana, 1.78 lakh habitations will be connected with all-weather roads. "My government has revived a majority of the 73 stalled road projects, completed construction of 7,200 km of high ways and awarded 12,900 km of highway projects which is the highest-ever number of new highway kilometres awarded," he said amidst thumping of desks by members. India fastest growing economy: President India, the President, said is a haven of stability in an increasingly turbulent global economy. GDP growth has increased making India the world's fastest growing economy among large economies. Inflation, fiscal deficit and current account deficit have all decreased. India recorded the highest-ever foreign exchange reserves in 2015, he said. Mukherjee said the government's concerted efforts to tackle the menace of black money have started yielding results. With the enactment of the Black Money (Undisclosed Foreign Income and Assets) and Imposition of Tax Act, 2015, a stringent legislative framework has been put in place to combat the menace. The Gold Monetisation Scheme and Sovereign Gold Bond Scheme in November, 2015 has been launched to ensure productive utilisation of idle assets. He said the government has taken a number of measures to put in place a simplified, progressive and non-adversarial tax regime by incorporating international prevalent best practices in tax administration. A gamut of taxpayer facilities like e-filing of returns and various forms, electronic processing and retrieval of documents and online grievance redressal are now available to the citizen, he said. With PTI Inputs Follow us on rahul should clarify if he supports raising of anti india slogans amit shah Bahraich(UP): BJP President Amit Shah today asked Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi to clarify whether he supports anti-national slogans which were raised at JNU during a controversial event organised to mark death anniversary of parlieamnt attack convict Afzal Guru. Shah was addressing a rally in Bahraich. Shah said that Gandhi should tell the people whether he supports the raising of anti-national slogans, if not then he should condemn it. "I want the parliamentarians to see if the public agrees to such kind of freedom of expression,"Shah added. Demanding all parties in the parliament to clarify their stand, the BJP president asked whether raising slogans against the nation was freedom of speech or sedition. He also unveiled a statue of Dalit King Suhel Dev. Earlier, Rahul Gandhi said that he will raise the JNU issue in the parliament but the government will not let him speak as they are scared of what he will say. Speaking to reporters,Rahul said, the government said they are open to a discussion but they will not let me speak in the Parliament. Follow us on pm modi asks bjp mps to aggressively defend govt on jnu issue New Delhi: After President's address to members of both Houses of Parliament yesterday, the legislative business of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha will begin today. Issues relating to JNU and Hyderabad University will come up for discussion today. In Rajya Sabha, discussion will take place on the situation arising in the central institutions of higher education with specific reference to Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) and University of Hyderabad. It will be discussed in the Lok Sabha tomorrow after the presentation of Rail Budget. Today, in the Lok Sabha, motion of thanks on the President's address will be moved. The Election Laws amendment bill is also scheduled to be introduced in the Lower House today. In Rajya Sabha, The National Waterways Bill, The Carriage by Air (Amendment) Bill, The Bureau of Indian Standards Bill is scheduled to come up for discussion and passage today. On Tuesday, the BJP leaders including Prime Minister Narendra Modi decided on an aggressive strategy to counter the opposition in Parliament on JNU row and the suicide by Dalit student Rohith Vemula in Hyderabad University. The BJP parliamentary executive committee met yesterday evening and decided to counter the opposition aggressively over the issues. Sources also said that Finance Minister Arun Jaitley briefed the leaders on the legal aspects of the JNU row and Hyderabad University issue. Rajya Sabha member Bhupendra Yadav will be the first speaker from BJP as he has been dealing with these issues within the party. After this meeting, a meeting of the NDA leaders took place which was also attended by BJP president Amit Shah. The JNU has been on the boil after a police crackdown on students accused of shouting anti-India slogans, while Hyderabad Central University had erupted into protests against alleged harassment of Dalit students following the suicide on January 17 of Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula, who was one of the five suspended for clashing with an ABVP leader. Govt keen to push legislative agenda The government has agreed to discuss all the issues as it wants to avoid a repeat of the monsoon and winter sessions, where little work got done. The government has a heavy legislative agenda to push through in this session. A list of 74 items of business has been compiled by the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs on the basis of responses received from various ministries and departments which contain 62 legislative items and 12 financial items. It was decided to give 26 items 'top priority' as the ministries wanted them to be introduced and passed in the Budget session itself. A total of 16 bills, including the GST Bill, Lokpal (Amendment) Bill, Factories (Amendment) Bill and the Anti-Hijacking Bill are pending in Parliament -- five in Lok Sabha and 11 in the Rajya Sabha. The government will also push for the passage of a bill to replace the ordinance to amend the Enemy Property Act, which was promulgated on January 8. An ordinance lapses 42 days/6 weeks from the day a session begins unless a bill to replace it is cleared by Parliament. The ordinance amends the 47-year-old Enemy Property Act to allow custodians to continue to retain control over such properties. The Budget Session commenced yesterday and will focus largely on the financial business of the government. The General Budget will be presented on February 29. The first part of Budget Session will end on March 16 and the second part will be convened from April 25 to May 13. Follow us on rohith vemula suicide mayawati smriti irani lock horns in rs New Delhi: BSP MPs led by Mayawati in Rajya Sabha today demanded resignation of Union Ministers Smriti Irani and Bandaru Dattatreya in connection with the suicide of Dalit student Rohith Vemula at the Hyderabad Central University. Stating that the issue was a matter of grave concern, the BSP members raised slogans that the "anti-Dalit, anti-Ambedkar" government will not be allowed to run. The BSP chief even dubbed the incident an "insult to 25 crore Dalits" in the country. "HRD Minister is responsible for Rohit Vemula death," she said. Irked over Mayawati's remark, Irani said the opposition was using a "dead child" (Rohith) as "a political tool and strategy" and asked the opposition to start discussion on the issue "right now". "First listen to my answer. Behead me if you are not satisfied with my answer," she said, adding that "Are we signalling to the nation that a Judge's capacity to deliver justice will depend on his caste?". A visibly upset Chairman Hamid Ansari, who went the extra mile to hold an all-party meeting days before start of the session to ensure smooth functioning, asked Mayawati to follow procedures, arguing that her party members can raise the issue any other time during the day. "Disruption of House is the violation of the privilege of individual members of the House. Do not trample the privilege your colleagues," he said. Members from treasury benches welcomed Ansari's remarks. He also held an informal meeting with leaders of parties in his chamber after the House was adjourned for the third time. Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said if Question Hour was not being allowed, the legislative business should be taken up as otherwise it will not send a right message. He said a response can be given only if a thorough debate is allowed in which everybody gets a chance to participate. However, his pleas remained unheeded. A number of Union Ministers like Rajnath Singh, Arun Jaitley, Piyush Goyal, Smriti Irani, Nirmala Sitharaman, Prakash Javadekar, Thawar Chand Gehlot and Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi among others were present in the House. Rajnath Singh later left the House amid the din. The row in the Upper House began virtually from the start. Even though a discussion on the issue was listed for today, Mayawati (BSP) wanted a response from the government to her demand for resignation of the Union Ministers allegedly linked to the suicide. "Since the time, BJP came to power at the Centre, nefarious means are being used to impose RSS ideology," she said, adding that prestigious institutions like Hyderabad University, Aligarh Muslim University, Jamia Milia and Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) were being interfered with. Suicide by Rohith is not the first case and many Dalit students have committed suicide in the past including when Congress-led UPA was in power at the Centre, she claimed. Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said if the House agreed, a debate on the issue could be taken up immediately. Deputy Chairman of Rajya Sabha P J Kurien too agreed that a discussion can be taken up immediately if the House agrees. But Mayawati insisted on a response to her demands first, even as Naqvi said, "We are not running away from debate." Kurien said the subject raised by Mayawati was already in the list of business and could be taken up now and the government will reply to it. But BSP members remained unrelenting. After the brief adjournment when the House reassembled, Mayawati again wanted to know from the government if there would be a Dalit member in the inquiry committee. To this, Deputy Chairman Kurien said "don't take the House to ransom". As BSP members trooped in to the Well, Naqvi said a discussion would take place on the issue and the government cannot reply to questions in bits and pieces. Follow us on rohith vemula march rahul gandhi arvind kejriwal join protest New Delhi: Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal today lent their participation to a protest march organised by the family and friends of Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula, who committed suicide in the university campus in Hyderabad. The protest march saw hundreds of students, including those from the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), express their solidarity to the cause. Though both leaders did not share stage they marked their appearance at different times - they did mark their presence felt at the protest venue, expressing similar views against the ruling dispensation. Targeting the Narendra Modi-led government over the issue of Rohtih Vemula's suicide and the JNU row, Rahul Gandhi said that voices with new ideas were being crushed in the country. "Our universities are being encroached upon. Rohith's voice was muzzled. We need a law which doesn't let students' voices in colleges and universities be stifled," he said addressing the crowd. Attacking the RSS over its ideologies, Rahul said, Rohith talked about future of India, but RSS doesn't support that but only support talking about the past," he added. Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal also launched an attack on the BJP saying that this government was at war with the students of this country. "If someone tries to go against the nation, he won't be spared. Similarly, if innocents will be harassed like what the Centre is doing, it won't be tolerated. Modiji ab bhi samay hai sudhar jaiye, warna janta aap ko ukhaad phekegi. (People will throw you out Modiji if you don't mend your ways of dealing). All the thugs and loafers are nationalists, whereas Aamir Khan and Rohith Vemula are anti-nationalist, he said in an apparent dig at the Centre's handling of affairs. Held under the banner of Joint Action Committee for Social Justice of University of Hyderabad, the march was organised from Ambedkar Bhawan to Jantar Mantar. Students of the JNU demanding the release of Kanhaiya Kumar also joined in the protest. Rohith Vemula committed suicide in a hostel room of University of Hyderabad on January 17th. Bhartiya Janta Party's student wing, the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), was blamed for forcing Rohith to take such an extreme step. Follow us on smriti irani tears into opposition over jnu row rohith suicide New Delhi: Union Minister for Human Resource Development Smriti Irani today made a strong and emotional counter to the charges of the Congress and other opposition parties against her and the ruling government over the suicide of Rohith Vemula and the JNU row, saying opposition parties were playing politics over the death of a student and that such acts would ruin the country. She was speaking in the Lok Sabha in response to a discussion during the day over the JNU and Rohith Vemula issues. In a strong, but emotionally charged speech made by the HRD minister, she tore into the opposition charges for having turned the suicide of Rohith into a tool for political gains. Countering charges that actions by the government led Rohith Vemula to suicide, an emotional Irani said, The politics being played out in the name of Rohith has shaken me completely. I am a mother and someone who gives birth to life is being subjected to such politics over the death of a child. Irani further said that the death of Rohith was used as a political tool and that no attempt was made to revive him or take him to a doctor. Taking on on Rahul Gandhi over his visit to Hyderabad to join protesters at the central university following Rohith's suicide, she said, Rahul Gandhi went to Hyderabad university only because he saw a political opportunity there. Over 600 students died in the Telangana agitation. Did Rahul visit even once? When I talk about Rohith, I talk about a child and not a Dalit student, she said, in a reference to charges that the government was harassing Dalit students at central universities. My name is Smriti Irani and I challenge anyone who can tell my caste, she added. The leader, in her speech filled with facts and documentary evidence, went on to inform the house on the JNU issue. Quoting the report of the JNU committee on the event, Irani said that one of the students Umar Khalid, charged with sedition on charges of having organised an event where anti-India slogans were allegedly raised, had misled the university administration. Umar Khalid misled JNU administration. He said in an application form that he was organizing a poetry reading, she said in the lower house, adding that the government had video proof for the JNU incident. Irani also responded to charges that the HRD ministry was indulging in the saffronisation of education by appointing vice chancellors of their own choice. There still are many VCs appointed by UPA, I challenge that even if one of them says I do saffronisation, I will leave politics, said Irani. Tearing into the opposition for having used such issues for political gains, Irani urged opposition leaders not to use students as political tools. Children are not vote banks. Don't make education a political battlefield, Irani said. Politics that feeds on the death of a youngster will take this country to ruin, she added. Follow us on we need a law to end discrimination in education rahul gandhi New Delhi: Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi today reached Jantar Mantar to join protest by students who demand justice for Rohith Vemula, the Hyderabad research scholar who committed suicide last month. Addressing the students, Rahul slammed RSS for muzzling the voice of students He said," Rohith talked about future of India, but RSS doesn't support that but only support talking about past." Demanding a law to end discrimination, Rahul said,"When I went to Hyderabad, I suggested that we need a law for Universities for ending discrimination." "Our universities are being encroached upon. Rohith's voice was muzzled. We need a law which doesn't let students' voices in colleges and universities be stifled," he said. "We need a law which doesn't let students' voices in colleges & universities be stifled,"he added. Rohit Vemula's family is also present at the "Chalo Dilli" protest. Vemula committed suicide inside University of Hyderabad hostel room on January 17 after being reportedly targeted by right wing organisations. Delhi Chief Minsiter Arvind Kejriwal will also join protest to express solidarity with Rohith's family and to speak to the students. He tweeted that he would go to Jantar Mantar to express solidarity with Rohith's family and to speak to the students. Hundreds of students, including those from the Jawaharlal Nehru University joined the protest march organised under the banner of Joint Action Committee for Social Justice of University of Hyderabad from Ambedkar Bhawan to Jantar Mantar. As the march began, protesters carried placards and shouted slogans demanding a "Rohit Act" to end caste discrimination in education. "We have never seen such an anti-student government. The future of educational institutions is at stake," said an activist. "This protest is for millions of Rohith Vemulas, Dalits, minorities and women who have been denied freedom of speech, expression and basic education," she added. Stephan Urbach is part of Telecomix (previously), activists who worked tirelessly to keep the Internet on during the Arab Spring, when endangered despots were killswitching net links in a bid to keep protest from spreading. Urbach wrote a bestselling account of his work called "Neustart," which received enthusiastic critical response. Now he's crowdfunding 3,800 to pay a professional translator to finish an English edition of the book (the first chapter's already done and online). 50 gets you a hardcopy of the book and an acknowledgement by name. Urbach hopes that he will find it easier to source a mainstream English publisher for his story once it's already in English. Telecomix was an international group of activists working for free communication. During the green revolution (known as Arab Spring") we were working with people on the ground in Egypt. When Mubarak shut down the internet, we deployed modem landlines and faxed the modem numbers to Egypt. People used them to write Emails, blogposts and upload small pictures form Tahrir. When the protests started in Syria, we were working with Syrians to help them to get pictures and videos out of the country without getting caught by the Syrian intelligence services or the police. We made friends with people in Syria. Some of them got killed by the Assad regime. We had hard times and struggled as individuals and as a group. I have held lectures about our work all over the world from FSCONS in Sweden to Free Connected Minds in Beirut. From lectures in Harvard and Yale to DOKU:TECH in Prizren. Together with Ingo Petz I wrote a book about the events and my life as an activist. It has, in fact, been published in German by a large publisher. You can get it in German on Amazon, as an import in any bookstore or in my own shop. It has received great reviews in the media. There is a book called .REBOOT and we need to get it into English! [Stephan Urbach/Indiegogo] End Times for the Caliphate? By Patrick Cockburn People who have been smuggled out of Mosul say that the caliphate is buckling under military and economic pressure. Continue ========= Newly Translated WikiLeaks Saudi Cable Overthrow the Syrian Regime, but Play Nice with Russia By Brad Hoff An internal Saudi government cable sheds new light on the kingdoms current threats of military escalation in Syria. Continue ========= Hillary Clintons Terrible Vision for Syria By Brad Blankenship Hillary Clinton is not a diplomat; she is a bloodthirsty and deranged woman with no respect for human rights and a true exemplar of corruption. Continue ========= Russians Ride Fast By Israel Shamir "You can follow the lead of your Israeli Lobby, or you can have peace and security, but you cant have both, it is that simple." Continue ========= UK Targeted in EU Arms Embargo Against Saudi Arabia. By Felicity Arbuthnot The European Parliament voted on Thursday, February 25th, for an EU-wide arms embargo against Saudi in protest at its assault on its southern neighbor. Continue ========= In Israel, Racism Is The Law By Ben White Successive Israeli governments since 1948 are responsible for the institutionalised discrimination against Palestinians. Continue ========= Why "Brexit" Would Be Good News for Russia By Finian Cunningham British inclusion in Europe is of paramount geopolitical advantage to Washington. Continue ========= America's Addiction to Terrorism The National Insecurity State By Henry A. Giroux The European Parliament voted on Thursday, February 25th, for an EU-wide arms embargo against Saudi in protest at its assault on its southern neighbor. Continue ========= US Presidential Elections 2016: The Revolt of the Masses By James Petras Trumps appeal is rooted in the deep amorphous anger of the downwardly mobile middle class, which has no ideology . . . but plenty of resentment at its declining status. Continue ========= Academia: Hands off Revolutionary Philosophy! By Andre Vltchek Philosophers have been muzzled by the Western global regime; most of great modern philosophy concealed from the masses. Continue ========= Syria ceasefire comes into force under US-Russia deal: A landmark United Nations-backed ceasefire has came into effect in Syria - the first major truce in a five-year civil war that has claimed more than 270,000 lives. Syria factions agree on truce plan as raids intensify : Opposition alliance says 97 factions will respect ceasefire as Russian jets reportedly target rebel-held areas. Nusra Front rejects Syria truce, urges stronger attacks: audio statement : The al Qaeda-linked Nusra Front rejected on Friday the cessation of hostilities in Syria due to begin at midnight, and urged insurgents to intensify attacks against President Bashar al-Assad and his allies. The Joint US-Russian Statement on Syria is not a declaration of a ceasefire . It is an attempt by the Russians to split the Free Syrian Army - and its US backers - from the jihadi terrorists Russia is bombing. Turkey drops ground offensive option from policy on Syria: Turkey said Friday that a ground offensive in Syria is not "binding" and prepared, apparently backing out from a possible unilateral intervention into Syria that it might have considered several weeks ago. Turkish troops taking on Isil in 'secret battle' in Iraq : Exclusive: More than 1,000 soldiers are engaged in covert ground war with the Islamic State near their stronghold of Mosul, against Iraq's Iraqi security forces kill 19 ISIS militans: The source said in a statement received by IraqiNews.com, This morning the security forces carried out a military operation to cleanse the areas around al-Amiriyah, liberating Albu Daeig area after fierce battles and killing 19 ISIS members. 15 killed by suicide bombers in Iraq: Suicide bombers hit a religious building and a military checkpoint in a Shiite-majority neighbourhood of Baghdad on Thursday, killing 15 people, an Iraqi security official said. Hundreds of thousands of Shiite Muqtada al-Sadr supporters protest corruption in Baghdad : Protesters in Baghdad's Tahrir Square shouted slogans of "no to corruption and the corrupt" and speaking on stage Sadr told the masses they should be prepared to continue their protest movement. Israeli troops shoot dead Palestinian who tried to stab them-army: A military spokeswoman said the assailant was the only casualty in the incident and a Palestinian official and family members identified the dead person as 17-year-old Mahmoud Shaalan, a Ramallah resident who also held U.S. citizenship. PA collaborates with Israels torture agency : Palestinian prisoners are being held in painful positions for up to 35 hours, according to a new report. The Israel Security Agency, known as Shin Bet, is confining detainees to filthy cells smaller than the size of an adult body stretched out, the report also reveals. The ancient Silk Road is back in business as new train connects China to Tehran : The 5,900-mile trip from eastern Zhejiang province took 14 days, or 30 days less than a typical sea voyage between Shanghai and the Iranian port of Bandar Abbas, according to the head of the Iranian railway company, Mohsen Pourseyed Aqayi. 7 Libyan soldiers killed as army presses gains in Benghazi : Seven soldiers were killed on Friday in clashes with Islamist militants in the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi, where military forces are pressing to consolidate recent gains, an army commander said. Egypt security forces kill 2 protesters: Egypt's Interior Ministry says security forces have clashed with Islamist Muslim Brotherhood protesters in northern Egypt, killing two of them and arresting six. Two blasts, gunfire target hotel in Somalia's Mogadishu : Two loud explosions rocked the centre of Mogadishu on Friday followed by automatic gunfire, police and an AFP correspondent said, with Somalia's Shebab Islamists claiming they had attacked a hotel. U.S. Plans to Put Advisers on Front Lines of Nigerias War on Boko Haram: The Pentagon is poised to send dozens of Special Operations advisers to the front lines of Nigerias fight against the West African militant group Boko Haram, according to military officials Hunting Boko Haram: News analysis - The U.S. Extends Its Drone War Deeper Into Africa With Secretive Base Pak military trains IS in Afghanistan: Ex-IS man : Pakistan's military provides weapons and training to ISIS militants in Afghanistan and instructs them to kill the "infidel" Afghan forces, according to the terror group's fighters who laid down their arms. Philippine Army Kills 42 Islamist Militants In Battles In South: Three soldiers were killed and 11 wounded when the forces seized the bastion of an affiliate of Jemaah Islamiah, a Southeast Asian network of Islamist militants, in the province of Lanao del Sur. Demonizing China: Australia Announces Rise in Spending for Military: Responding to the military challenge from China, the Australian government on Thursday announced a robust increase in military spending, including the biggest expansion to its navy since World War II. Breedlove: US Ready To "Fight and Defeat" Russia in Europe : "We are ready, if necessary, to fight and win," said Breedlove at a hearing of the Committee on armed services of the U.S. house of representatives, to discuss measures to counter "Russian aggression" in Europe. NATO cant fight Russians in Europe, says leading US think tank : A report by influential US-based think tank the Atlantic Council says NATOs European members cant fight a war against Russia. Earlier, the commander of US European forces said Americans were ready to fight and win against Russia. Turkey uses refugees to blackmail EU into compliance ex-MI6 agent: Will sober heads prevail, or will the bloodshed in Syria just open another chapter? We ask former a MI6 agent and EU foreign policy adviser. Alastair Crooke is on Sophie&Co today. Greece struggles under weight of mass refugee influx : Despite refugee camps being fully packed in Greece, signs are eastern EU states are preparing for its total isolation. Emails show Michigan Gov. Snyder's aides warned about degraded water quality in Flint early on : The emails also showed that an effort was made at the time to keep the states Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) out of the loop so that tainted-water worries would not be subject to discovery via the Freedom of Information Act Trump wins Christie backing: Christie said the billionaire had the best chance of beating Democrat Hillary Clinton in the Nov. 8 U.S. presidential election. His endorsement gives the front-runner Trump a further lift before the March 1 Super Tuesday nominating contests. Marco Rubio waged an all-out verbal assault on Donald Trump Friday morning: "A con artist is about to take over the Republican Party and the conservative movement, and we have to put a stop to it," Rubio charged on CBS' "This Morning." The Story Behind Donald Trumps Undocumented Polish Workers : Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) took some unexpected digs at billionaire Donald Trump during the CNN Republican presidential debate on Thursday, the most provocative of which surrounded Trumps past employment and alleged mistreatment of undocumented immigrants. Rubio Attacked Trump For Running a Fake School. But Theres Just One Problem. : Rubios hands are not clean either, since he has supported a for-profit college chain that has hurt far more students than Trump University has. Corinthian Colleges, which actually offered degrees and was regionally accredited, damaged far more students lives. Donald Trump Out Front in Florida, Besting Marco Rubio in New Poll: Trump takes 45 percent of Florida Republicans with Rubio in second with 25 percent. U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, cracks double digits with 10 percent while Gov. John Kasich, R-Ohio, garners 8 percent and Dr. Ben Carson takes 5 percent. WATCH: Muslim refugees assure terrified Trump supporter theyre not coming to chop off head s: Watch the video Noam Chomsky on Clinton vs Sanders : Video - The US academic says Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders has the "best policies", but little chance of winning in a "mainly bought" election. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Information Clearing House has no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of this article nor is Information ClearingHouse endorsed or sponsored by the originator.) Privacy Statement Even within the batty realms of North Korea's propaganda, the invective thrown at South Korean President Park Geun-hye is remarkable. In perhaps its lengthiest and harshest verbal attack on Park since she took office in 2013, the North's official Korean Central News Agency on Saturday called her a "tailless, old, insane bitch," a "senile old woman" and a "murderous demon" destined to meet "a sudden and violent death." North Korea previously called Park a "prostitute" and said she lives on the "groin of her American boss." It has frequently questioned her womanhood because she has no children, which the North labels as an "obligation" for women. North Korea also frequently refers to the "swish of her skirts," a Korean phrase used to describe women seen as overly aggressive. "The swishes of Park Geun-hye's skirt, created by her American boss, are so unpredictable they're dumbfounding," an unnamed spokesman of the North's Joint National Organization of Working People said in a statement last year published by the KCNA. "This is all because the United States' black, hairy hands reach deep into Park Geun-hye's skirt." Bush Haunts the GOP By Eric Margolis February 24, 2016 " Information Clearing House " - The evil that men do lives after them, wrote Shakespeare. A prime example, former US President George W. Bush who appeared last week campaigning in South Carolina for his amiable younger brother, Jeb. George W. continues to haunt the Republican Party and damage its electoral chances. At home, Bush has been staying out of public gaze; abroad, he is widely hated and limits overseas travel due to fear of war crimes arrest for his 2003 invasions of Iraq. Republican spin doctors and the rightwing US media has been trying to soft soap Bush and his mentor, Dick Cheney, for years and slowly expunge their disastrous Iraq and Afghanistan Wars that opened a Pandoras Box of horrors across the Muslim world. Democrats who cheered the war have equally sought to dodge responsibility. However, Hillary Clinton cant seem to escape her tawdry war record. The US, claim the Bush/Cheney amen chorus, was misled into invading Iraq by faulty intelligence, misled by the hope to promote democracy among the benighted Muslims; on a noble quest to remove a frightful dictator Saddam; and, of course, the famous missing weapons of mass destruction. As candidate Donald Trump said last week, these were all bare-faced lies. These spurious allegations had one purpose: to mislead Americans into believing that Bushs aggression in Iraq was a crusade for justice rather than a crude attempt to turn Iraq, with the worlds second biggest oil reserves, into an American vassal petrostate. Unfortunately, mainstream America has not yet understood the enormity of the crimes that were committed in Afghanistan and Iraq. These include some one million civilians, cities destroyed, death squads, drone wars, kidnapping, torture and turning the US into a Stasi-like police state. And destruction of Iraqs water and sewage treatment plants by US air attacks, spreading disease and pestilence across the nation. Washington claimed these crimes against humanity were justified by the 9/11 attacks, though the real culprits came from Saudi Arabia, not remote Afghanistan or Iraq. Osama bin Laden was rubbed out so he could never voice the truth in a fair court. Almost as bad was the continuing evil from Bush/Cheneys so-called war on terror. Concocted and run by neocons, the faux war served to expand US control of the Muslim world (which I term the American Raj in my book), and destroy enemies of Israel. This war continues today, 13 years later, with military budgets doubled in size, a 100% increase in spending on all sorts of spies, mercenaries and private armies, militarized police forces, and endless funds to fuel Americas Mideast, African and Asian imperial wars. There should be special taxes to pay for these conflicts, but all are dumped onto the national debt, driving America ever deeper into hock. CIA, founded to provide analysis, assassinates alleged enemies across the world. The US government now shamelessly spies on all of us, exceeding even the intrusions of the old KGB and Stasi. Thank you, George W. Bush for supposedly defending America. Bush ruined Americas name across the globe, making us look no better, maybe even worse, than the Soviet Union. Todays witch hunt in the US against Muslims began during the Bush years. The Bush administration made many Americans feel that Uncle Sam was their enemy, not their friend. Of course, to many of American hard right and neocons Bush was a saint. He remains so today in the Bible Belt and West. South Carolina, with its evangelicals and retired military communities, venerates Bush. A survey taken just before the invasion of Iraq showed that over 70% of evangelical Christians ardently backed the impending war. Bush/Cheney aggressions led directly to the spread of the al-Qaida movement whose goal was to drive western influence from the Muslim world. The more lethal ISIS was born in US prison camps in Iraq. Somalias Shebab arose after the US and Ethiopia overthrew Somalias legitimate government. Now, the US in fast blundering into a major new Mideast War in Iraq and Syria that could provoke a nuclear confrontation between Washington and Moscow. Unfortunately, too few Americans understand these legacies of Bush, Cheney, Hillary Clinton and the neocons. Who even remembers former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright actually saying that the deaths of over 500,000 Iraq children (UN figures) caused by US sanctions were worth the price. George Bush is no cowboy saint. He, Cheney and their henchmen should all face justice for the invasions of Afghanistan, Somalia and Iraq Eric S. Margolis is an award-winning, internationally syndicated columnist. His articles have appeared in the New York Times, the International Herald Tribune the Los Angeles Times, Times of London, the Gulf Times, the Khaleej Times, Nation Pakistan, Hurriyet, Turkey, Sun Times Malaysia and other news sites in Asia. http://ericmargolis.com/ Copyright Eric S. Margolis 2016 Who Is Khalifa Hifter? Who is the American citizen leading one side of the civil war in Libya, and why did he spend 20 years in suburban Virginia, reportedly under the auspices of the CIA? By Chris Ernesto February 24, 2016 " Information Clearing House " - " AntiWar " - In 1991, the New York Times reported that 350 exiled "Libyan soldiers were trained by American intelligence officials in sabotage and other guerrilla skills. The plan to use the exiles fit neatly into the Reagan Administrations eagerness to topple Colonel [Muammar] Qaddafi." Former Libyan General Khalifa Hifter was the leader of that group, the Libyan National Army, and was one of those flown to the United States and granted exile. Within three years, Hifter was given U.S. citizenship and spent much of the next 20 years in suburban Virginia, near the CIAs headquarters in Langley, VA. Switched sides in the 80s Born in 1943 in eastern Libya, Hifter was an army officer when he participated in the coup that brought Qaddafi to power in 1969. But in the late 1980s, Hifter was captured in neighboring Chad while fighting for Qaddafis army. Qaddafi refused to admit that any Libyans were being held captive in Chad, and thus, many of those captives formed an anti-Qaddafi insurgent group while imprisoned. Shortly thereafter, Hifter and others were flown by the US Air Force to New York for resettlement. Leader of a US based "contra-style group" A 1996 Congressional Research Service report claimed that Hifter began preparing an army to march on Libya. The report also stated that the Libyan National Army is in exile with many of its members in the United States. In the same year, the Washington Post reported that Hifter was alleged to be the leader of "a contra-style group based in the United States called the Libyan National Army." Hifter "spent most of the previous two decades, at least some of that time working with the Central Intelligence Agency," according to the New Yorker magazine. The New York Times Ethan Chorin reported that he found "many traces of a long relationship between General Hifter, the United States and the National Front for the Salvation of Libya, the main exile group opposing Colonel Qaddafi at the time. These included assertions that the CIA recruited General Hifter to help prepare military activity against [Qaddafi]. General Hifter settled in Virginia and was put in charge of training like-minded Libyans as prospective insurgents." "So a former Qaddafi general who switches sides is admitted to the United States, puts down roots in Virginia outside Washington, D.C. and then somehow supports his family in a manner that mystifies a fellow who has known Hifter his whole life. Hmm," pondered Russ Baker in the Business Insider. "The likelihood that Hifter was brought in to be some kind of asset is pretty high. Just as figures like Ahmed Chalabi were cultivated for a post-Saddam Iraq, Hifter may have played a similar role as American intelligence prepared for a chance in Libya," Baker continued. Hifter and the 2011 US intervention in Libya On March 20, 2011, the United States joined France and Great Britain in an air attack against Libya. Eleven days later, Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) addressed congress. Kucinich challenged the Obama administrations widely-accepted narrative that the US intervention was being conducted to prevent a deepening of the humanitarian crisis caused by the Qaddafi government. Kucinich pointed out that it was the Libyan National Armys "call for opposition to the Qaddafi regime in February which was the catalyst of the conflict which precipitated the humanitarian crisis which is now used to justify our intervention But I ask how spontaneous was this rebellion?" Kucinich continued, the new leader of Libyas opposition military left for Libya two weeks ago, apparently around the same time the president signed the covert operations order The new leader spent the past two decades of his life in Libya? No. In suburban Virginia, where he had no visible means of support. His name, Colonel Khalifa Hifter. One wonders when he planned his trip and who is his travel agency?" "Like Clint Eastwood" Hifter returned to Libya expecting to have no problem winning over others who were attempting to oust Qaddafi. Mustafa Gheriani, an opposition spokesman, said Hifter had swaggered into town like Clint Eastwood, with aspirations of leadership. But after being absent from the country for over two decades, Hifter was unable to wrestle full control of the rebel faction from Abdul Fattah Younes, Qaddafis former interior minister. Within months, though, Hifter gained complete command after Younes was mysteriously assassinated. By 2014 Hifter had secured his position and he launched Operation Dignity in May of that year. In March 2015, Hifter was officially sworn in as army chief by Libyas UN-recognized government based in Tobruk. But Libyas Supreme Court ruled that Hifters opposition in Libya, the General National Congress, was the national legislature, essentially leaving Libya with two competing governments. US allies currently supporting Hifter In May 2014, when asked if Egypt and the UAE were behind Hifter, the US Ambassador to Libya Deborah Jones said, I have nothing for you on that. But in February 2015, the BBC reported that, "since the 2011 ousting of Qaddafi, no government has managed to establish control over the whole country. Two military coalitions claim to represent the legitimate government. One is Libya Dawn, a grouping of militias that includes various Islamist groups as well as forces from the east of the country, which supports the former elected parliament It vehemently opposes any role for former members of the Qaddafi regime in politics, and is backed by Qatar and Turkey. The other is Dignity, headed by a general, Khalifa Hifter It would prefer to include some members of the previous regime in politics, and is backed by Egypt and the UAE." Is Hifter still supported by the US? The US continues to send mixed signals on whether or not they currently support Hifter. In May 2014, when asked about Hifter, then US State Department spokesperson Jen Psaki said, "we have not had contact with him recently." She went on to say that the department did not condone the violent attacks being led by Hifter in Libya. But just a few days later, Ambassador Jones said that she would not "condemn blanketly" the actions of Hifter, who declared war on Islamic terrorists in Libya and forced the country to call new parliamentary elections. Hifters actions were described as "a de facto coup" by some. The Ambassador added that Hifter is clearly one of the influencers in Libya and that our approach now is to reach out to all the influencers. But mixed signals continued to be sent when an anonymous senior US official told The New Yorker magazine, that the US government has nothing to do with General Khalifa Hifter. Hifter is killing people, and he says he is targeting terrorists, but his definition is way too broad." Who are US bombs targeting in Libya? It has been established that Hifter was supported by the CIA for some period of time, but whether he continues to receive direct US support is uncertain. If nothing else, Hifters cause is being aided by the US In November 2015, two US F-15 aircraft launched an airstrike against Hifters rivals in Derna, Libya. At the time, residents in Sirte and Tripoli reported US drones and spy planes orbiting above. Another US airstrike followed last week as fighter-bombers struck an alleged ISIS training camp in rural Libya near the Tunisian border, killing at least 49 people, including two Serbian embassy staffers who were being held hostage by ISIS. As both airstrikes were directed at some of his rivals, it appears that US citizen Khalifa Hifter will, at worst, have his cause furthered by his second home country. Chris Ernesto is cofounder of St. Pete for Peace, an antiwar organization in St. Petersburg, FL that has been active since 2003. Mr. Ernesto also created and manages OccupyArrests.com and USinAfrica.com. What the Pundits Don't Get About Trump The class war is already underway, and the petit bourgeois media is clueless. By Charles Hugh Smith February 24, 2016 " Information Clearing House " - " Of Two Minds " - The typical bourgeois mainstream media pundit is confused and alarmed by Donald Trump's ascendancy. The typical pundit is a member of the petit bourgeois who has zero contact with the working class in America, other than saying "hello" to his/her auto mechanic, hair salon employee, etc. The standard-issue pundit has an overweening sense of their own insight due to their academic/media success; nobody gets air time for confessing "I'm clueless." Their failure to grasp Trump's appeal has revealed their absolute lack of insight and understanding of the real world beyond the media, Wall Street and D.C. The conventional MSM pundit compares Trump to the politicos of the past and finds him wanting. He's no FDR, Reagan, etc., they pout. The pundits are outraged by Trump's success as a candidate because in their blindered view of the political/economic landscape, he shouldn't be successful and so something is amiss with the Universe. The standard petit bourgeois media hack is comfortable with the conventional politico stereotype: Slick Willy I feel your pain small-town mayor gone bigtime, check; ambitious, duplicitous Lady Macbeth (Hillary), check: Lady Macbeth suppresses her instincts toward compassion, motherhood, and fragility associated with femininity in favour of ambition, ruthlessness, and the singleminded pursuit of power. frat-boy fly-boy, got a nickname for everybody, just put one over on you grin G.W. Bush, tail-end of a dying dynasty, check; idealistic insider/outsider Bernie Sanders, fired up by injustice but unwilling to challenge the Democratic Party's favored cartels, check, and a crowd of also-rans climbing the hilltops in a rainstorm, hoping political lightning strikes their me-too campaigns, check. Trump doesn't fit into any stereotype of recent campaigns, and so the perplexed pundits have attempted to label him a demagogue or Id-fueled populist without a "real" agenda --that is, a candidate that should have burned out in the first week ot two of the campaign. They don't get it, and the reason why they don't get it is because they are rooted in the petit bourgeois technocrat class that aspires to insider status within corrupt cliques of centralized power. The pundit burnishes their credentials with the usual petit bourgeois baubles--advanced degrees from "respected" universities, books published by "respected" New York publishing houses, and fellowships from "respected" poverty-pimp foundations funded by guilt-ridden plunderers and their dilettante offspring. The media punditry's relationship with the working class is akin to their relationship with China: they visited Shanghai once and stayed in a luxe hotel and were entertained by bigshots in the glitzy bars and cafes. Satisfied with their shiny new profound knowledge of China, they return home filled with insights into a nation they've never actually visited-- what they visited was the Hollywood tour version of China, not the actual nation. The petit bourgeois media, so easily impressed with institutional "respect" and other fabrications of the ruling class , demeans the working class supporters of Trump as lumpenproletariats , which Marx described thusly: Alongside decayed roues with dubious means of subsistence and of dubious origin, alongside ruined and adventurous offshoots of the bourgeoisie, were vagabonds, discharged soldiers, discharged jailbirds, escaped galley slaves, swindlers, mountebanks, lazzaroni, pickpockets, tricksters, gamblers, maquereaux [pimps], brothel keepers, porters, literati, organ grinders, ragpickers, knife grinders, tinkers, beggars in short, the whole indefinite, disintegrated mass, thrown hither and thither, which the French call la boheme. Rather than describe the working class, this describes the political class of the U.S.A. to perfection. What the blindered media pundits don't grasp is their self-satisfied class of country-club Republicrats and ersatz we-feel-your-pain Demopublicans is the real enemy of progress , for what Trump supporters understand that the technocrat class of social climbers fails to grasp is the only way to progress from here is to tear down the institutions of privilege that the technocrat class defends and aspires to join. This is why the media is as much the class enemy of the working class as the incestuous, corrupted and corrupting pool of swindlers, fakes, apparatchiks, lobbyist/brothel keepers and grifters that populate Washington, D.C. Technocrat pundits scratch their well-educated heads and wonder why Trump enthusiasts would vote for a bombastic scion of wealth. Let me help you, gentle confused pundits: Trump comes across like a plumber who's struck it rich: he's got a beautiful (immigrant) wife (second, third or fourth, who's counting, the guy has it made), he speaks his mind regardless of who's offended, and he doesn't bother with bean-counter trivialities like a carefully scripted agenda that includes all the key demographic groups. Trump tells people he doesn't need their campaign contributions, but millions of dollars in small donations flood in anyway. Many of the working class supported G.W. Bush, but they now understand he betrayed them and the nation; hence Jeb Bush's $100 million campaign flop. The working class supported Slick Willy because they knew his type--lady's man, snake charmer, greasy go-to guy for the monied class in town, a guy on the make every waking second. Slick Willy was relentless, sweating, oozing, seething wth ambition--a guy you could see though but also a guy who had big dreams and worked them hard. His wife, on the other hand, is as phony as a 3-dollar bill , incapable of irony or shame, a zealously self-absorbed chameleon who changes her accent, message, clothing and language to appeal to whomever she's addressing at the moment, a technocrat-lawyer who believes in nothing but her own entitlement and will to power. Trump supporters are 100% confident their vote won't change; Hillary's supports--not so much. Should the storm-troopers of the Democratic Party's elites crush Bernie Sander's nomination with super-delegate trickery, Sander's supporters will not vote for Lady Macbeth. For what Sander's and Trump's supporters share is the understanding that the status quo that Hillary represents to a private-jet/$200 thou speaking fees perfection has failed everyone but the elites and their technocrat servants, and the centers of power must be completely disrupted if anything is going to change. The class war is already underway, and the petit bourgeois media is clueless. Charles Hugh Smith - http://www.oftwominds.com Copyright 2014 Charles Hugh Smith all rights reserved in all media. A POLICY PAPER issued by the Air Force Research Laboratory, titled Countering Violent Extremism: Scientific Methods & Strategies, includes a chapter setting forth controversial and unsubstantiated theories of radicalization, including the idea that support for militant groups is driven by sexual deprivation and that headscarves worn by Muslim women represent a form of passive terrorism. The paper, first published in 2011, was reissued by the Air Force lab this past summer following President Obamas announcement of a national counter-extremism strategy. This January, the revised copy was published online by the open source research website Public Intelligence. A preface for the revised report cites a summit convened by Obama on extremism as a reason for revisiting the subject, adding that the wisdom contained in this paper collection is more relevant than ever. Many of the articles contained in the document have scholarly merit and are written by academics and researchers in the field of counterterrorism. But a chapter titled A Strategic Plan to Defeat Radical Islam, written by Dr. Tawfik Hamid, a self-described former Islamic extremist and fellow at the Potomac Institute for Policy Studies, contains a number of bizarre prescriptions for how to defeat terrorism, few of which appear to be supported by empirical evidence Among Hamids claims are that support for militancy is primarily a product of sexual deprivation and that terrorism bears relation to religious dress. His ideas for combating terrorism thus include addressing the factors underlying [sexual] deprivation among young men, as well as weakening the hijab phenomenon. Hamid further claims that, along with fundamentalist ideology, the hijab contribute[s] to the idea of passive terrorism and represents an implicit refusal to speak against or actively resist terrorism. Hamid does not make clear how he reaches these conclusions. On his personal website, he describes himself as an Islamic thinker and reformer and says he has a medical degree in internal medicine from Cairo University and a masters degree in cognitive psychology and educational techniques from the University of Auckland. He also claims credit for developing one of the most innovative Cognitive Psychology models, the Multi-Dimensional Learning Model. Two terrorism experts and a professor of Islamic Studies questioned the assertions in Hamids chapter of the Air Force white paper, calling them unsubstantiated. This characterization of the hijab demonizes millions of women whose reasons for covering have nothing to do with the advocacy of political violence, says Arun Kundnani, a lecturer on terrorism studies at New York University. The document as a whole includes some scholars who are serious researchers. However it appears the purpose of this chapter by Hamid is not a genuine investigation of the roots of violence, but rather an attempt to supply national security agencies with bogus surveillance rubrics. Hamids theory of radicalization states that terrorism stems from a lack of sexual activity among young men and that addressing this issue is key to reducing support for militant groups. I believe young Muslims are motivated to join radical groups because of sexual deprivation, he writes, claiming further that addressing the factors causing deprivation in this life can interrupt the radicalization process and reduce the number of suicide attacks by jihadists. An expert on the subject of foreign fighters disagrees. There is virtually no evidence that sexual deprivation is somehow a cause of radicalization, or suicide attacks, says Amarnath Amarasingam, a fellow at George Washington Universitys Program on Extremism. From my interviews with jihadists in various organizations, it is clear that they are there for a complex variety of reasons. To simply attribute their motivations to sexual depravity is to miss the point entirely. An accompanying chart that describes Hamids purported theory of radicalization is similarly unfounded. One thing that is absolutely clear from studies of radicalization is that this conveyor belt model from conservative beliefs to violence is incorrect, Amarasingam says. Ingrid Mattson, a professor of Islamic Studies at the University of Western Ontario, said Hamids comments about the hijab are baffling. She pointed out that the garment is worn by an incredibly diverse array of women, including Nobel Peace Prize recipient Malala Yousafzai, who was the subject of a Taliban assassination attempt after she campaigned for womens rights in northwest Pakistan. Is hijab any Muslim womans headcover? Any style, any country? Because covering the head is very widely observed among Muslim women, Mattson says. There is no logic here. Is Malala, who wears a hijab and was shot by the Taliban, a terrorist? There is nothing, sadly, more banal than for powerful people to tell women to take their clothes off. Hamids article also expresses a striking faith in the power of government public relations efforts to overcome deeply unpopular policies toward the Middle East. It claims that improvements in the U.S. reputation in the Mideast will not come from drastic changes in policy, but instead from government PR campaigns. For example, Hamid writes, during the late 1970s and early 1980s, the U.S. Agency for International Development sent food aid to Egypt. Images of chickens wrapped in bags adorned with the U.S. flag significantly improved Egypts perceptions of the U.S., even though it had not altered its pro-Israel policies. Hamid repeated his theory about the power of food aid in 2011 testimony to the House Armed Services Committee in which he claimed that such efforts had, among Egyptians, created a link in the human brain between the word U.S.A and the good taste [of chicken]. Hamids theories seem to contradict a Rumsfeld-era study commissioned by the Pentagons Defense Science Board Task Force. That study traced the poor reputation of the U.S. in the Middle East to government policies, not to insufficient PR. Arguing that Muslims do not hate our freedom, but rather, they hate our policies, the report cited the U.S. support for dictatorial regimes, its military occupations of countries like Iraq and Afghanistan, and its one-sided support in favor of Israel as the primary factors behind its poor reputation in Muslim countries. Still, Hamids thoughts are apparently influential in government; he says on his website that his opinion has been solicited by a wide range of government agencies, including the Department of Defense, the National Security Agency, the Special Operations Command, and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. It is not clear if he has been paid for his appearances at such agencies. Hamid is currently a writer at the right-wing website Newsmax, where he publishes a running column titled Inside Islam. In recent weeks, he has written several articles lavishly praising Republican presidential candidates Donald Trump and Ben Carson for their vituperative public statements about Muslim Americans. Hamid did not respond to requests for comment. The updated version of Countering Violent Extremism: Scientific Methods & Strategies includes a preface that credits Hamid with providing a soup to nuts strategic plan for combating radicalism that addresses the components of the Islamist terrorism cycle at ideological, psychological, social, and economic levels. The original version of the report was cited by the FBI in the development of its own anti-extremism strategy in 2014. Both the original and revised versions contain Hamids chapter on radicalization. Hamids section ends with an unsettling argument for using harsh military force to fight terrorism, comparing it to the use of chemotherapy to fight cancer. Nobody supports the intentional killing of innocent civilians, he says, but in war, as in medicine, good cells die when we treat bad ones. It is unfair to blame the doctor for killing good cells. February 24, 2016 " Information Clearing House " - " Sputnik " - The Syrian war has engaged multiple global players, prompting the Western media to dub the recent fight for Aleppo a "mini world war," CIA veteran and nonresident senior fellow at the Brookings Institution Paul R. Pillar notes. Indeed, there are a lot of striking and disturbing resemblances between the ongoing conflict in Syria and the 1914 crisis that resulted in the First World War, Pillar emphasizes in his article for The National Interest. "The prospect of the Syrian conflict remaining unsettled for years and thus providing many opportunities for it to grow into something bigger is the starting point for spinning out escalatory scenarios. But some more specific attributes of that conflict have greater and more disturbing similarities to the 1914 crisis. One is the multiplicity of players, from outside as well as inside Syria and the region, who perceive themselves as having a stake in the conflict," the CIA veteran elaborates. To complicate matters further, the perception about stakes is closely related to the tendency to regard the war in Syria as part of a greater conflict between large coalitions. "This view amplifies the perceived stakes ever further and also brings into play a sense of obligation to friends and allies," the expert remarks. Unsurprisingly, Saudi Arabia and Turkey are trying to use the crisis to their geopolitical advantage, by making every effort to drag the US and NATO in the Middle Eastern conflict. The overthrow of Bashar al-Assad has become an idee fixe for Riyadh, prompting the Gulf monarchy to throw money to arm anti-Assad Sunni extremists. In its turn, Ankara has become obsessed with the Kurdish issue, hunting Kurdish militants in both Turkey and Syria. "The potential for Turkey dragging the United States into bigger trouble is made all the greater by its status as a party to the North Atlantic Treaty," the CIA veteran stresses. As a result, the international community is now inclined to see Riyadh and Ankara as nothing less than troublemakers and part of a problem in the Middle East. "The Turkish-Russian line of conflict, which underlay multiple Russo-Turkish wars across several centuries, could be at the center of escalation and expansion of the Syrian conflict. If so, there would be shades again of World War I, in which the Russian and Ottoman Empires were on opposite sides," the expert underscores. Sputnik/ Iliya Pitalev Syrian army artillery soldiers in Idlib province in northwestern Syria. (File) Indeed, Turkish leadership is enraged by Russia and Syria's latest success in northern Syria. The Syrian Arab Army, backed by the Russian Air Forces, is close to liberating Syria's largest city of Aleppo. In this light an opportunity to free Daesh's stronghold Raqqa also emerges for the Damascus-led forces. How soon will the Syrian army set its course for the Daesh "capital" of Raqqa, English writer and journalist Robert Fisk asked in his article for Independent. "The everlasting Sunni 'Islamic Caliphate' in Syria doesn't look so everlasting any more. Is this why the Sunni Saudis have suddenly offered to send ground troops to Syria? And why the Turks are so flustered? I doubt if anyone is weeping in Shia Iran," Fisk emphasizes. The journalist echoed Pillar's concerns regarding weird resemblances between the current conflict in Syria and the beginning of the First World War. He warned that NATO member Turkey may unleash a new world war by launching a ground operation in Syria: "we'll find ourselves in another Gavrilo Princip moment and we all know what happened in 1914." "It is a reason to give high priority to efforts to secure ceasefires and to realize that tamping down this still-local war is more important than prosecuting the war to obtain a particular local result," Pillar underscores. Meanwhile, the US and Russia have finally agreed on a Syria ceasefire starting on February 27. "The United States and Russia, as co-chairs of the ISSG [International Syria Support Group] and ISSG Ceasefire Task Force, announce the adoption on February 22, 2016, of the Terms for a Cessation of Hostilities in Syria attached as an Annex to this statement, and propose that the cessation of hostilities commence at 00:00 (Damascus time) on February 27, 2016," the official statement reads. Losing in Syria, Start Another War in Libya By Finian Cunningham February 24, 2016 " Information Clearing House " - " American Herald Tribune " - Its no coincidence that as Washingtons criminal covert war for regime change in Syria comes off the rails, we are now seeing a new flare up Libya allegedly to combat the ISIS terror group. The Libya theatre is re-opening in order to distract from the setback to Washington and its accomplices in their losing enterprise in Syria. The New York Times tells us that the follow-up deal hammered out this week between the US and Russia for a second attempt at a truce in Syria is the latest diplomatic effort to end the five-year-old civil war. Leave aside the misnomer civil warfor a moment. The assertion that Washington is expending diplomacy to end violence in Syria is the jarring term. Anyone who has followed the Syrian conflict with independent intelligence as opposed to Western media misinformation will not buy that claim. Russia may well have bona fides in trying to end the Syria war. But Washington embarking on a diplomatic effort to end the five-year-old conflict? Thats just out-right fabricated nonsense. The violence in Syria has from the outset been a foreign-backed covert war for regime change. Washington, Britain, France and their regional clients in Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Jordan and Israel launched the aggression to topple the Russian and Iranian-allied Assad government in March 2011. The country was infiltrated with a proxy army of terrorists of which ISIS is but one component so as to achieve regime change by plunging Syria into a bloodbath. So, the notion of civil warthat the New York Times and other Western media continually peddle is a contemptible misnomer, used for the purpose of concealing the real nature of the war a foreign-backed aggression, entirely illegal and responsible for the near-destruction of a nation. This latest bid to call a truce in Syria is not about finding a peaceful settlement, as far as Washington and its assorted partners-in-crime are concerned. Last week, the same purported cessation did not happen, partly because the terror proxies were making outlandish demands that the Syrian government and Russia must call off all bombing and ground operations against their terrorist affiliates. Another reason for why the earlier truce did not occur was that Saudi Arabia and Turkey, with passive consent from Washington, Britain and France, insisted on engaging in foreign aggression against Syria through cross-border shelling and threats of invasion. There is little chance that this second effort at calling a cessation will work either. The deal worked out this week between John Kerry and his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov again excludes the terror groups ISIS and Jabhat al Nusra. So Syria and Russia will continue rightly to strike those militia and related groups, as stated in the Kerry-Lavrov accord. The term related groupsapplies factually and legally to the vast majority of militia in Syria. The West may pretend that such militia are moderate rebelsbut that supposed distinction peddled by the West is simply a farce. ISIS and Nusra are integrated with the so-called moderates including the much-vaunted and chimerical Free Syrian Army. But here is another reason why the latest seeming attempt at a truce will not work. It is cynically being used as a tactical pause by Washington and its accomplices to reorganize their proxies. Their covert army has been taking a severe beating since Russia sent its fighter bombers into Syria last September. Russias air power and Syrian army ground forces have been rolling up the Western proxy army and, decisively, have cut off their key supply routes from Turkey. Perhaps surprisingly, it was the New York Times that blurted out the cynical calculation behind Washingtons so-called truce effort. In the same article cited above, the Times alludes, in the final two paragraphs, to the bigger picture. For the Obama administration, a partial truce in Syria may simply be a way to keep a lid on the violence there while it turns its attention to planning and carrying out military operations against ISIS fighters in Libya,the paper tells us. The NY Times is a reliable echo chamber for official thinking in Washington. It goes on to quote Andrew J Tabler, who is described as an expert on Syriaat the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. He said: Washingtons stated policy is not to end the Syrian war. They just want to settle it down so it boils a little more slowly. Its yet another attempt to contain a conflict that has been uncontainable. There you have it: the truceis merely a turning down of the heat that Washington and the other foreign powers have been scorching Syria with. It is no coincidence then that Washington and its NATO allies, Britain, France and Italy, are now shifting military action to Libya. Following the US air strike last week on an alleged ISIS training camp west of Tripoli, the Obama administration said that more such strikes are on the way. Various reports indicate, too, that the US is preparing a major military foray in Libya. Of course, ISIS in Libya is just the cover story for what would be yet another illegal incursion in a foreign country. The real purpose, it seems, is that Libya will provide a much-needed distraction from the disastrous Washington-led covert war in Syria. Finian Cunningham (born 1963) has written extensively on international affairs, with articles published in several languages. For over 20 years, he worked as an editor and writer in major news media organisations, including The Mirror, Irish Times and Independent. Those responsible for the spurious figures smuggled into the 2016 budget proposal presented to the National Assembly would not go unpunished, President Muhammadu Buhari has vowed. The president made the vow yesterday while addressing the Nigerian Community in Saudi Arabia. Mr. Buhari, who is on a week-long visit to Saudi Arabia and Qatar to engage officials of both countries in talks for the stability of oil prices, described the controversy generated by the 2016 budget proposal as very embarrassing and disappointing. A statement by presidential media aide, Femi Adesina, quoted President Buhari as saying: The culprits will not go unpunished. I have been a military governor, petroleum minister, military Head of State and headed the Petroleum Trust Fund. Never had I heard the words budget padding. Our Minister of Budget and National Planning did a great job with his team. The Minister became almost half his size during the time, working night and day to get the budget ready, only for some people to pad it. What he gave us was not what was finally being debated. It is very embarrassing and disappointing. We will not allow those who did it to go unpunished, he vowed. The president also assured the Nigerian community in Saudi Arabia of his administrations zero tolerance for corruption. We have zero tolerance for corruption and other unethical practices. We will deal decisively with anybody found wanting, he promised. On the counter-insurgency war in the North-East, Buhari restated the commitment of his administration to wipe out the Boko Haram terrorist sect. Our armed forces have done a great job of dealing decisively with Boko Haram. We are collaborating with our neighbors in the operations of the Multinational Joint Task Force to handle security threats in the sub-region and we have significantly destroyed the capacity of the insurgents. Times are hard, the jobs are unavailable, the price of oil (Nigerias main source of revenue) has since crashed globally. The price of food items have gone up and the little income you earn is barely enough to see you through the month. The good news is, there are other things apart from white collar jobs that are guaranteed to earn you good money. There are trades like sewing, hair styling, car repairing and so on that could be learnt. However if you do not have an interest in sitting under anyone to learn, INFORMATION NIGERIA in this piece brings you 5 very lucrative types of farming one could go into Cassava Farming: Cassava is a common source of food among Nigerians and garri is gotten from it. It is quite difficult to determine whether Nigerians eat more rice than garri or vice versa. Apart from garri, there are a lot more that can be gotten from cassava. The good thing with cassava is that, it flourishes on nearly all lands in Nigeria and if the land is well managed, one could make thousands of Naira from its production. Plaintain Plantation: Unlike cassava, you only need to plant it once and after that it keeps producing on its own. Most Nigerian families eat plaintain almost as much as they eat rice. Plaintain, also known as dodo can be eaten with rice or beans. As long as the food is popular in Nigeria, one is sure to make huge income from it. Poultry Farming: A lot of people have mis-managed the business that it has planted fear in other people to venture into. Poultry Farming is a very lucrative business as 70% of poultry consumption in Nigeria is based on importation. Imagine supplying poultry meat and eggs to yoru area imagine the profit you would make. Catfish farming: The business is still widely untapped in Nigeria today because a lot of people are not getting it right. Study its production properly and delve into it, youll be amazed how much smile will be on your face when you go to the bank. Goat Farming: Rear goats in commercial quantity and make millions yearly. The truth is, people make more investing in Agriculture than in other sectors of the Nigerian econmomy. Take a look at these few and make up your mind on which appeals to you more and you will be glad you did!! Almost every one Nigeria either has a Yoruba friend, or went to school with one or lives in the same house or neighbourhood with one or is in a relationship with one or married to one. There is hardly anyone in Nigeria, who has not come in contact with the a Yoruba person. This is due largely to their huge population and also the fact that the Yorubas are scattered in different parts of Nigeria. However, there are certain conceptions or misconceptions about these group of people which many Yoruba person would love to argue arent true. INFORMATION NIGERIA brings you 7 of those notions Yoruba Men Love Women: People always say Yoruba men love women and can never ever stay with one woman through out their life as they often end up marrying one and having several others as concubines. Yoruba Women are promiscuous: Yoruba women have been tagged as the most promiscuous women in Nigeria. Some people say it is common practice for a Yoruba woman to be married and still have sexual affair with other men. Some people even allege that the man to whom they are married, sometimes know the men their wife have extra-marital affair with. Yorubas are dirty: It is a popular belief that Yoruba people are dirty. Anyone who is Yoruba to other tribes in Nigeria are seen to be very dirty. Yoruba People from Ijebu are Stingy: It is common for you to hear people say someone who is frugal is an Ijebu man or woman. Yoruba people who are not Ijebus even accuse the Ijebus of being stingy. Yorubas dont have guts: It is not uncommon to hear people say an average Yoruba man is just like a toothless bull dog that only barks but cant bite. Yoruba people are believed to have the ability to start trouble and disappear right in the thick of it. Yoruba People are very fetish: This should be the first on this list, however since we are not making a ranking, it can come anywhere. A lot of Nigerians have this belief that an average Yoruba person cannot do without consulting a babalawo or Ifa priest. Yoruba people love parties: There is the saying that a Yoruba person could run into debts just to throw a party. According to popular belief, Yorubas would throw a party for any occasion from naming to wedding, to house-warming to graduation, to accomplishing something to winning a lotto to death etc. A Yoruba person loves party (Owambe) too much. Even the party name, Owambe that every tribe in Nigeria has adopted for party has a Yoruba origin. True or false???? Two bomb attacks targeting police and a pro-government figures in northern Afghanistan killed at least 15 people and injured several others, authorities said Tuesday. One person was killed and seven others injured when a magnetic bomb, placed under a car in Kunduz, detonated Tuesday, Chinas Xinhua news agency reported. The vehicle belonged to Hajji Abdul Qadir, an influential figure in Kunduz province and an advocate for the Kabul government. It was not immediately clear if Qadir was killed or injured in the blast. The Taliban claimed responsibility for a separate bombing in the Parwan province on Monday. That suicide blast killed at least 14 people, including six local police officers, and appeared to have been targeted at a police commander who was among the dead. Afghanistans interior ministry said Sunday that police had arrested Mohammad Sayed Raza, the Taliban governor for the Chahar Dara district of northern Kunduz province. The Kunduz bombing occurred as the third round of four-nation peace talks between Afghanistan, Pakistan, China and the United States began in Kabul. The Parwan bombing came a day after Afghan troops withdrew from three strategically important bases in the Musa Qala and Nawzad districts of Helmand province. Afghan officials said the troops were needed in other areas more heavily contested by the Taliban, such as Lashkar Gah and Sangin. President Muhammadu Buharis administration is in government purely for the Nigerian people and is always open to talk and dialogue, the Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo (SAN) has said. We are here for the people, if not for the people, we will not be here. We got here by the grace of God and the votes of the man on the street who felt it is time for change, he said. Osinbajo spoke on Tuesday in Abuja, when a delegation of the Trade Union Congress (TUC) visited him at the Presidential Villa. He said it is important to the Buhari Presidency to talk and dialogue, even if we disagree, we must still talk. The reason is that the government itself is the government of the people. Prof. Osinbajo stated that nobody is in government by inheritance, adding we are here today because the people chose us and that is the reason we must be prepared to listen to issues that concern Nigerians. According to the vice president, the Buhari administration had set out a number of initiatives to better the lot of ordinary Nigerians. He listed them as the six social investment programmes for which N500 billion has been earmarked in the 2016 appropriation bill, among others. Mr. Osinbajo told the union leaders that government would take a look at all the issues raised carefully. He recalled that the Buhari administration packaged a bailout for workers last year, and added that no government, especially the Buhari administration, would set out to deliberate punish the people. We are here for the people and we want to identify with the people, he added. On the new electricity tariff, which the TUC President, Bobboi Kaigama labelled as anti-people, the vice president urged the union to not just condemn it. We are open to your suggestions, but it is not enough to say it is a wicked tariff. We must answer the question how, referring to the challenge of compensating the electricity value-chain. Mr. Osinbajo enjoined all Nigerians to support government in the fight against corruption, adding: if you dont fight corruption, you cannot even deal with the economy. You need to hold corrupt people accountable because they stole the money meant for the economy. Commenting on the extent of damage that the corruption of past government caused, he observed that our sense of outrage is nowhere near what has happened. Some people are even arguing why are we going after the looters? That we should concentrate on the economy. But if we dont fight corruption, we cant deal with the economy effectively. Prof. Osinbajo added that what has happened in this country is criminal. Earlier, leader of the delegation, Kaigama, said the visit was to avail the Congress the opportunity to discuss with the vice president on some pertinent issues affecting the nation, especially the working class. The TUC also expressed support for the Buhari administrations zero-tolerance for corruption. According to Kaigama, Nigerian workers are solidly behind you in the fight against corruption, we are ready to come out in solidarity and show our support. (NAN) The Egyptian military admitted to making a mistake when they sentenced a four-year-old boy to life in prison last week. The court was supposed to sentence a 16-year-old for murder, but sentenced the four-year-old instead because he had a similar name, spokesman Col Mohammed Samir said on Facebook. Ahmed Mansour Qurani Ali was convicted in a group of 115 men who were said to be part of a Muslim Brotherhood riot in 2014, despite Alis lawyer providing documents that proved Ali was only a year old at the time. The teen the military were intending to convict was Ahmed Mansour Qurani Sharara. The four-year-olds conviction is the latest embarrassment for a court that has already become an international laughing stock. The United Nations declared in 2014 the country had a judicial system where international fair trial guarantees appear to be increasingly trampled upon after more than 1,200 people were given death sentences in a pair of mass trials rife with procedural irregularities. Alis lawyer said court officials didnt pass the childs birth certificate to the judge before he was convicted of four counts of murder, eight counts of attempted murder and vandalizing government property. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry urged the Egyptian government last summer to use greater care in dealing with its opposition It is important to distinguish between those who use violence to achieve their ends and others who seek peacefully to participate in a political dialogue, even if what they say may sometimes make people uncomfortable, Kerry said at the time. UPI. The Ekiti State Council of Traditional Rulers has denied the existence of bad blood between it and Governor Ayodele Fayose over his feud with the suspended Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Dr. Tope Aluko. Mr. Aluko over two weeks ago went on television to allege that the June 21, 2014 governorship poll in the state was rigged with the active connivance of the Presidency and Nigerian Army. Arising from an emergency meeting yesterday at their council chambers in Ado Ekiti, the monarchs denied an online publication alleging that Fayose compelled them through his Chief of Staff, Dipo Anisulowo, to write a joint communique to condemn Alukos damning expose on the Ekiti governorship poll. According to them, the online publication mentioned the names of specific monarchs described as the arrowhead of the anti-Governor Fayose stance. The report, which has since gone viral on social media, was described by the monarchs as libelous. The council also demanded an immediate retraction of the said publication and a published apology. The monarchs described the content of the said publication as a blatant lie, a fabrication arising from the imagination of the writer and a deliberate attempt to smear the image of the traditional rulers. The Chairman of the Council and the Ologotun of Ogotun Ekiti, Oba Samuel Oladapo Oyebade, who read the communique issued by the monarchs, admitted that it was true that they met on February 16 but the meeting was not attended by Anisulowo or any government official. The Ologotun warned that traditional rulers should not be dragged into murky waters of politics under any guise. We note that the said online publication names specific traditional rulers as arrowhead of anti-Fayoses stance. Council says unequivocally that the content of that publication was a blatant lie, a fabrication arising from the imagination of the writer. It was also a deliberate attempt to smear the image of the traditional rulers and pitch the government and the council against each other. It is true that a meeting of traditional rulers was held on February 16 but the meeting was never attended by Mr Dipo Anisulowo or any government official as quoted in the online publication. We, therefore, say without mincing words that there is a cordial relationship between the government of Mr Ayodele Fayose and the traditional council. It is therefore our opinion that the publication was meant to embarrass our members. Ekiti Council of Obas will not allow the traditional institution to be dragged into the murky water of politics, Oba Oyebade said. Lecturers of Government-owned Universities yesterday kicked against the inclusion of universities in the Treasury Singe Account (TSA) policy of the Federal Government, saying it undermines the institutions autonomy and makes their operations difficult. Addressing a news conference in Abuja under the umbrella of Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), the lecturers urged the government to exempt the universities from TSA implementation on account of the peculiarities of the institutions. The ASUU National President, Dr. Nasir Fagge Isa, who spoke on behalf of the union, also lamented that the TSA had caused delays in the payment of salaries in the universities. Isa said: With the operation of TSA, federal universities find it extremely difficult to discharge their core responsibilities of teaching, research and community service as well as engaging in international academic networking due to inadequate access to budgeted funds. In view of the dynamic nature of universities and fluidity of their programmes, this accounting system creates bottlenecks, undermines university autonomy and makes it extremely difficult for universities to fund ongoing research and sustain international networks. Also, the TSA makes it very difficult to buy equipment and consumables for laboratories On account of the TSA, federal universities have experienced shortfall in their personnel cost in the month of December 2015 and January 2016 and this has caused serious delays in the payment of salaries. ASUU rejects, in its entirety, the practice of causing shortfalls in personnel cost and will be compelled to take appropriate steps against it if this is not checked on time. TSA is incompatible with the autonomy of universities and our union calls on the Federal Government to exempt the universities from its implementation on account of the peculiarities of the institutions. ASUU also kicked against the decision to borrow to fund the 2016 budget, saying the move would return the country to debt trap. According to the union, the budget has the capacity to increase the nations debt profile by about 14 per cent of the nations GDP with the danger of beginning another debt trap. Dr. Isa further stated that the 2016 budget did not have any new alternative strategy for developing the country, pointing out that to fund the recurrent expenditure, the government will have to go borrowing. It is worrisome that the IMF and the World Bank are already courting, praising and toasting the new government in Nigeria. He added that while President Muhammadu Buhari has said the country would not borrow, the Minister of Finance, Kemi Adeosun, has been consistently affirming that we have to borrow in order to fund the 2026 budget. Opposing the idea of borrowing money to fund the budget, the ASUU national president said the N2.2 trillion recovered from the TSA and other funds recovered from looters should be ploughed back to finance the budget. He noted that economic recovery and national revival would succeed only with a socio-economic and political programme grounded in the peoples wishes and aspirations, stressing that such programmes should be explained to the citizens and will be accepted by them. The union also justified its silence on the issue of the sack of 13 vice chancellors, saying 12 of the universities established by former President Goodluck Jonathan lacked legal backing and therefore, did not exist as universities in the eyes of the law. It, however, faulted the process of the sack and appointment of new ones, saying it raised a lot of concern for due process, university autonomy and the growth of universities. Going by the provisions of the University Miscellaneous (amendment) Act 2003, only the governing councils are bestowed with power of appointment and removal of vice chancellors, Isa said. Explaining the position of the union on the government decision, he said: ASUU, way back in 2011, condemned the manner in which the new universities were established through executive fiat by President Goodluck Jonathans administration. For upward of four years, the laws establishing these universities were not gazetted. All our entreaties to make government correct this anomaly fell on deaf ears. The latest development in these universities has justified our consistent demand for proper governance structures and processes in the Nigerian university system. In the first place, vice chancellors were arbitrarily appointed into these institutions and governing councils instituted without making the enabling laws public. We are worried that the same circle of illegality is playing out again. In a university where there is the law, only the governing council is empowered to remove a vice chancellor from office for a good course and only a council has the power to appoint a vice chancellor in accordance with the law. Citing the relevant provisions of the law, the ASUU president said: We therefore call on the Federal Government to tow the path of legality and due process by gazetting the law, appointing the council and mandating the councils to immediately commence the process of appointing the vice chancellors for the affected universities. On the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) Vice Chancellor, he said: Available information suggests that since the Vice Chancellor of NOUN had served a five year term guaranteed under the University Miscellaneous (amendment) Act 2003, he should not be given an extended term of even a day. The union also accused the government of foot-dragging in the implementation of the 2009 agreement between the it and government, pointing out that some actions of government amounted to abrogation of some sections of the agreement. The ASUU president cited the development in the university staff schools, budgetary allocation to education, payment of outstanding earned academic allowances, establishment of Nigerian Universities Pension Management Company, commencement of renegotiation of the agreement and funding of state universities as part of the breaches. President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday night reiterated his administrations commitment to increasing the productivity of Nigerias agriculture and solid minerals sectors to save the nation from the harsh effects of falling crude oil prices. Speaking at a meeting with leading members of the Council of Saudi Arabias Chambers of Commerce and Industry, President Buhari said that with revenues from Nigerias economic mainstay crude oil declining, hopes of economic resurgence now lie in the rapid development of the countrys immense agricultural and solid mineral resources. While beckoning on Saudi Arabian businessmen to take advantage of renewed government interest in agriculture and solid minerals, the president assured that his administration will welcome greater foreign investment in support of its efforts to rapidly diversify the Nigerian economy. Buhari, in a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, said that Nigeria had regrettably depended too much on crude oil exports to the neglect of other resources and was now reaping the negative consequences of failing to diversify its economy early enough. He said: With the downturn in the global prices of oil, we now have to prospect our solid minerals. We have to return to agriculture. Mining and agriculture are our hopes now. We will welcome investments in these areas. We will appreciate an in-flow of more resources and expertise to help us achieve our objective of economic diversification. The governors of Osun, Ogun, Katsina, Borno, and Zamfara states, who were part of the presidents delegation, took turns to address the Saudi Arabian businessmen on investment possibilities in their states, assuring them of good returns. The Chairman of the Council of the Saudi Arabian Chambers of Commerce and Industry, Dr Abdulrahman Al Zamil, said that agriculture was a very important area of investment for its members, adding that they were already in Brazil, the United States of America and Sudan, where we have huge farms. Declaring that they were willing to invest in Nigeria Dr. Al Zamil pointed out that the Saudis were the leading investors in Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia, Kenya and Ethiopia. A total of N370 billion has been distributed to the federal, state and local governments for the month of January. The Minister of Finance, Mrs Kemi Adeosun revealed this while addressing journalists after the monthly Federation Accounts Allocation Committee (FAAC) meeting in Abuja. She said gross statutory revenue received for the January stood at two N290 billion. While attributing a shortfall of N24 billion drop in revenue to shut down and maintenance repairs at major oil terminals, she said a total of N2 billion owed the Federal Government was refunded by the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC). A former bodyguard to the late Kim Jong Il said the current North Korean leader leads a life of luxury while ordinary North Koreans die of hunger. After speaking at the Geneva Summit for Human Rights and Democracy, defector Lee Young-guk told Voice of America Tuesday Kim Jong Un should be referred to the International Criminal Court for crimes against humanity. According to Lee, Kim has built 14 luxury villas for his enjoyment, and makes seasonal visits to each retreat to go hunting or swimming. The defector said that as the leader of North Korea Kim should be taking care of his people, but is instead pursuing his own interests. Lee added Kim should take responsibility for the countless North Koreans languishing in political prison camps, where they are dying from hunger, malnutrition and beatings. Information control in North Korea is tight, and the Pyongyang regime closes the eyes and ears of the people preventing most, even senior officials, from ever knowing anything about Kims lavish lifestyle and the abject conditions in the prison camps. Lee said Kim needs to be referred to the ICC, if it means North Koreans can now know the truth about the leadership. The defector worked as the late Kim Jong Ils bodyguard between 1978 and 1988. He was imprisoned at Yodok concentration camp for five years after his arrest in 1994, when he attempted to flee the country. Lee left North Korea permanently in 1999, and gained entry to South Korea in 2000. He currently works as an activist at a North Korea human rights organization. Lees indictment of Kim comes at a time when the North Korean leader is shaking up the bureaucracy and making significant changes in the countrys system of governance, Yonhap reported. A tourist attraction in Taipei, Taiwan, is turning heads in all directions with the spectacle of an upside-down house. The Upside-Down House Taiwan exhibit in Taipei, which opened its upside-down doors to the rightside-up public Feb. 6, features three stories of rooms decorated in the American Country style with all furniture and decor treating the ceiling as the floor. The house took just over two months to complete and reportedly cost $600,000 to build. A time-lapse video posted to YouTube shows how the mind-bending structure was created. The attraction includes a bathroom, a kitchen, bedrooms and an upside-down garage with a full-sized vehicle mounted to the ceiling. UPI. The Trade Union Congress (TUC) on Tuesday tabled a fresh demand to the Federal Government for an upward review of the current N18,000 national minimum wage. The TUC made the demand when its President, Comrade Bobboi Kaigama, led a delegation of the union on a visit to Vice President Yemi Osinbajo at the Presidential Villa, Abuja. Noting that the National Minimum Wage (Amendment) Act 2011 would be five years old in March, Mr. Kaigama said that in accordance with the International Labour Organisations Minimum Wage Fixing Convention 131 of 1970, an ad hoc committee should be raised every five years for the review. He said: We use this opportunity to serve notice that it is time for the Federal Government to set up that committee and mandate it to kick start work on a new minimum wage. We trust that this will be done immediately to save Nigerian workers from the harsh effects of present day economic realities which are taking tolls on their meager incomes. The TUC president also urged the government to reverse the sale of the electricity distribution companies (DISCOs), stressing that the current operators had demonstrated a lack of will, capacity and competence to invest in the power sector and provide electricity to consumers. He also described the current increase in electricity tariff as anti-people, just as he termed the Act of the National Assembly empowering the electricity regulator the unilateral power to increase the tariff as very lame, too simplistic and misleading. He said: Any Act that preys on the masses that it is supposed to protect negates the very essence of public policy. In the same vein, any act that compels the citizens to pay for services not delivered is not only flawed and undemocratic but ultra vires to the power of the National Assembly to make laws for the good of the country. Stressing that the telecommunication operators brought funds, expertise, service delivery and competition in their business which Nigerians were happy about, Kaigama accused the DISCOs of profiteering through fraud. According to him, the DISCOs have failed to implement their own part of the bargain as poor electricity supply and non-availability of meters are experienced nationwide. Former Aide de Camp (ADC) to ex-President Goodluck Jonathan, Ojogbane Adegbe, has challenged his continued detention by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) at the Federal High Court. The ex-ADC was reportedly picked up about two weeks ago by the EFCC to answer questions surrounding the N10 billion allegedly shared among delegates to the Peoples Democratic Party, PDPs presidential nomination convention in 2014. Adegbe, a colonel, in the suit filed by his counsel, Ogwu Onoja (SAN), is claiming N100 million damages for his detention, which he says violated his fundamental rights. Mr. Onoja also prayed the court to declare that his clients arrest and continued detention by EFCC since February 11 was unconstitutional and violated his right to personal liberty as enshrined in the 1999 Constitution. He urged the court to make an order directing the EFCC to immediately release the applicant from unlawful detention. Mr. Onoja argued that the arrest and detention of Col. Adegbe by the EFCC violated his right to personal liberty and freedom of movement guaranteed by Section 35 and 41 of the 1999 Constitution. The applicants counsel contended that EFCCs action violated Articles 5, 6 and 12 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights. The case has been fixed for Feb. 26 for hearing. (NAN) At least 23 soldiers and militants have been killed during three days of clashes in the southern Philippines. The fighting broke out Saturday when a group of about 40 militants attacked a military detachment from the Filipino 51st Infantry Battalion at a village in the Lanao del Sur province. Troops were still engaged in sporadic clashes Tuesday as the number of militants rose to 80. The fighting has claimed the lives of at least three Filipino soldiers, including one who was killed when militants ambushed a detachment of the 5th Mechanized Battalion on Tuesday. At least 20 militants are also believed dead. Filipino troops have reportedly cordoned the area, and helicopter gunships and warplanes have been deployed to conduct airstrikes against militant positions. The Philippines southern island of Mindanao is home to several armed Muslim groups. The clashes came as Filipino troops in the neighboring Maguindanao province battled militants with the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters a breakaway group that opposes ongoing peace talks between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, the largest Muslim rebel group in the country. A military source told Xinhua news agency that the militants in Lanao del Sur were followers of Edris Salindawan, also known as Abu Hanif, a commander in the MILF. MTN Group Ltd. has agreed to pay N50 billion following ongoing negotiations with Nigerian communications regulator NCC over a record $3.9 billion fine slapped on it for failing to disconnect unregistered subscribers before an August 2015 deadline. According to a statement by the company, it is paying the Nigerian government on the basis that this will be applied towards a settlement, where one is eventually, hopefully arrived at. In an effort to achieve an amicable settlement, MTN has agreed to withdraw the matter from the Federal High Court in Lagos, the company said. MTN had been handed the fine after missing the deadline on an order to disconnect 5.1 million unregistered customers. The move by the regulator was aimed at supporting the fight against Boko Haram insurgency in the country by ensuring proper identity records. The Islamic militants have killed more than 15,000 people since 2009. The telco had dragged NCC to court, maintaining that it went to court as a last resort but it would continue to seek an amicable end to the issue. It hired former U.S. attorney general Eric Holder to help in its negotiations with the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC). Leading telecommunications company, MTN Nigeria, has withdrawn its suit against the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) and paid the sum of N50 billion out of the N780 billion fine the NCC imposed on it. The NCC had fined MTN Nigeria a record N1.04 trillion last October for failing to deactivate 5.1 million unregistered lines from its network. Following weeks of high-level negotiation between the company and government officials, the fine was reduced to N780 billion. Dissatisfied with the reduction, MTN dragged the Nigerian Government before a Federal High Court in Lagos, seeking to stop the payment of the fine, for which the NCC gave it a Dec. 31st 2015 deadline to pay. However, last month, MTN Nigeria indicated its willingness to settle out-of-court. A statement issued by the telecommunications company on Wednesday states that the sum of N50bn was paid to the federal government as a gesture of good faith and commitment to continued efforts towards an amicable resolution. MTN Nigerias CEO, Ferdi Moolman, while speaking on the new development, said: This is a most encouraging development. It demonstrates a willingness and sincerity by both parties to work together towards a positive outcome. We are hopeful at this stage. Along with the authorities, it is clear that we are collectively committed to working towards a solution that is of mutual benefit to all parties. Our industry in Nigeria is an incredibly important example of the remarkable progress in ICT particularly as a much needed catalyst for socio-economic growth and development at this time. Source: The Cable. Apart from economic hardship, Nigerians are having a hard time dealing with the hot weather currently being experienced all over the country. It is even harder with the epileptic power supply prevalent all over the place. Heat like every other thing else, if not controlled can have serious consequences like heatstroke and hyperthermia, which can occur when our cooling systems are overwhelmed. Heat-related illnesses occur when a persons body cannot properly cool itself. As the bodys temperature continues to rise, the body begins to suffer. Other factors such as age, obesity, dehydration, and drug or alcohol use can make it harder for the body to stay cool in hot weather. In order to help you stay healthy in this hot weather and economic condition, INFORMATION NIGERIA has put together these tips Head downstairs: Since hot air rises, the upper stories of a home will be warmer than the ground floor. A basement can be a cool refuge from the midday heat. Eliminate extra sources of heat: Incandescent light bulbs can generate unnecessary heat, as can computers or appliances left running. Eating fresh foods that do not require you to use the oven or stove to prepare will also help. Maintain an adequate level of hydration: which means youll need to consume more water than you usually do when its hot. If youre sweating profusely, you will also need to replace the electrolytes you are losing by eating a small amount of food with your water or by drinking specially-formulated electrolyte replacement drinks. Thirst is the first sign of dehydration; you should drink sufficient amounts of fluids before you feel thirsty in order to prevent dehydration. Remember that water is your most important resource, so protect the water thats already in your body by avoiding the sun and the wind, as both can increase water evaporation from your body. Do not eat unless you have plenty of water, and limit or cease physical activity if your water resources are critical. Avoid alcoholic beverages and caffeine: These substances can act as diuretics (any substance that promotes the production of urine) and promote dehydration. Dont eat large, protein-rich meals that can increase metabolic heat and warm the body. Avoid heavy outdoor activity. Wear a hat, light and loose clothing, sunscreen and sunglasses when going outside. Spend at least two hours in an air-conditioned room. Talk with your doctor, nurse or pharmacist if you are taking medications, some medicines make it harder for your body to control its temperature. We hope these tips help!!! In what can be described as a bold statement that Nigeria is a secular state, President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday told the Saudi Arabian government that the Nigerian Military will not be a part of the Islamic States coalition against terror. The president conveyed the position of the Federal Government to King Salman Bin Abdul-Aziz during bilateral meeting talks between the two leaders held in Riyadh, the capital city of Saudi Arabia. Mr. Buhari is on a week-long state visit to Saudi Arabia and Qatar. Recall that last October, the Saudi Arabian Defence Minister and Deputy Crown Prince, Mohammed bin Salman, announced that his country has formed a coalition of 34 Islamic countries to coordinate a fight against terrorist organizations across the globe. The minister listed Nigeria among the countries that make up the coalition. The inclusion of Nigeria among the coalition sparked controversy with the Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, pointedly rejecting the labeling of the country by Saudi Arabia as an Islamic nation. The formal rejection of the offer was made public yesterday by Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, while explaining that the two leaders engaged in extensive discussions on regional and global issues, and agreed that terrorism posed a common threat to their states and would require close cooperation to prevail over the threats. The presidential spokesman quoted Buhari, who was making his first pronouncement on the invitation to join the coalition of Islamic states against terror spearheaded by the Saudis, as congratulating the Kingdom for forming the coalition, saying: Even if we are not a part of it, we support you. I must thank the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for the recent creation of a coalition to address the menace of international terrorism. Nigeria will support your efforts in keeping peace and stopping the spread of terror in your region. This is in consonance with our own commitment and ongoing efforts in seeking to stamp out Boko Haram terrorists from the West African sub-region and Lake Chad Basin Commission (LCBC). On global terror generally, Buhari said: International terrorism made a statement by attacking one of the advanced countries by carrying out an attack on Paris, in which 130 were killed. Now we have to come together to find a common solution to the problem of terrorism. He also thanked the Saudi government for continuing support to Nigeria in the fight against terrorism. Speaking on the crisis in Libya, President Buhari expressed regrets that the late Libyan leader, Muammar Ghadhafi recruited, trained and armed citizens of many states in the Sahel region. With his fall, these mercenaries have returned to their countries doing nothing but to shoot and kill, he said. The president cited Burkina Faso and Mali as the main victims but expressed happiness that the countries neighboring the Lake Chad had tightened their ranks to finish off the Boko Haram threat. Luckily, we have cultivated our neighbours. We are now working together against Boko Haram, otherwise the problem would have become worse, he said. In his remarks, King Salman commended the progress made by Nigeria in combating terrorism, and promised to give further support and assistance. He also welcomed the support of the Nigerian government for the new ant-terrorism coalition and implored the president to consider its full membership. The Saudi King pledged his full support and cooperation to Nigeria under its present leadership and directed all agencies of his government to follow up on the discussions. I now instruct my team to go and sit down with your relevant agencies to push forward cooperation between our states, he said. The Federal Government has said it will probe the Growth Enhancement Support (GES) scheme initiated by the former Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, for farmers in the country. Speaking while receiving the Senate Committee on Agriculture led by Senator Abdullahi Adamu in Abuja on Tuesday, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh said the probe became necessary to check the anomalies in quality of seed distributed to farmers as well as financial claims allegedly spent on the farm input, especially in 2015. The GES scheme was a farm support initiative where registered farmers in the country paid 50 percent cost for seeds and fertilizers. Ogbe told the Senators that although the agriculture ministry spent a lot of money on the GES, it currently owes some agro-dealers, who took part in the programme. We have challenges of seed. Last year under the GES scheme, seed supply happened but the quality of seeds that was sold was not too good. We are dealing with some of those issues now. Even the figures branded around as being spent on seed are so high that we are investigating them because we dont even have the money to pay. We are also dealing on payment of fertilisers. Mr. President was kind enough to help us find money to clear those arrears, so we can begin to plan for fertilizer blending for this season, Ogbe said. Key organs of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) have approved a three-month tenure for the embattled National Chairman Alhaji Ali Modu Sheriff dousing tension in the party. The decision was reached at an enlarged meeting of the PDP Governors Forum, the partys Board of Trustees (BoT), the National Assembly Caucus, the partys National Working Committee (NWC) and state caucuses. Rising from the meeting, which was held at the Ondo State Governors Lodge, Asokoro, Abuja, the party leaders said the decision to allow Sheriff stay for three months was a unanimous one. Addressing journalists after the meeting, Ondo State Governor, Dr. Olusegun Mimiko said the decision to stand by Sheriff was taken in the best interest of the party. He said Sheriff had been mandated to put in motion preparations for the partys national convention to elect new members of the NWC to run the party. Also commenting on the outcome, the Acting Chairman of the BoT, Senator Walid Jibrin, announced the concurrence of the BoT with the decision. According to him, Sheriff was given two weeks within which to produce a timetable for the next convention to be convened in May. He expressed the optimism that the lingering crisis in the party would be resolved within three months. On the rejection of Sheriff by the partys ex -ministers, Mimiko said they are members of the state caucuses headed by chairmen of their various state chapters. This, according to the governor, automatically makes them a party to the decision. Mimiko, however, said the various party organs would still reach out to the ex-ministers, with the view to bringing them on board. Segun Agbaje, Managing Director of GTBank is Keynote Speaker at Social Media Weeks #YTech100The Managing Director of Guaranty Trust Bank (GTBank) Plc, Segun Agbaje has been announced as speaker for Social Media Week Lagos event #YTech100, an annual cocktail and networking event honouring the brightest and best in Nigerias technology eco-system. Described by the Chairperson of #SMWLagos as one of the programmes biggest events, this years edition will take place on Thursday, 25 February, 2016, at the Experience Stage, Landmark Event Centre, Victoria Island, Lagos. It is imperative that the Nigerian tech market leverage opportunities for true local success and global competitiveness, said Mr. Agbaje. We are happy to partner with YNaija.com in creating a platform to showcase and honour some of Nigerias brightest innovators. Our sponsorship affirms our ardent belief in the immense potential of the Nigerian youth as a panacea for economic development. He further stated that the theme of this years event resonates with the trajectory of the Bank in emerging from a leading financial institution in Nigeria to a globally renowned African brand committed to providing innovative solutions to its customers. Themed, Globalisation: Local Champions to Unicorns, the event will also feature high-profile business leaders. Its such an honour to have GTBanks MD as keynote speaker at the #YTech100. Participants will have a rare opportunity to interface with, and learn from the driving force behind an institution that continues to innovate and push the boundaries of technology in delivering best in class services, said Isime Esene, Managing Editor, YNaija.com. The event will be streamed online, with an integrated online audience, and a robust interactive session. The event is presented by leading youth media company, Y!/YNaija.com. The company is part of the RED brand, the media group to reach and inspire the largest number of Africas youth at any time. Registration for the event is ongoing at http://socialmediaweek.org/lagos/events/ytech100/ On this day in 2010, President Umar Musa YarAdua returned to Nigeria after staying in Saudi Arabia for 3 months due to health reasons After a 93 days absence and being away from presidential duties, President Umaru Musa YarAdua returned to Nigeria, but his health conditions remained unclear as there was still speculations that he remained on life support machine. The countrys political elite were consumed by a power struggle. Then Vice-President, Goodluck Jonathan had been reshuffling ministers, pledging to tackle power shortages and forging ahead with an amnesty for militants in the oil-rich Niger Delta. YarAdua died on 5 May at the Aso Rock Presidential Villa. Also on this day in 2012, suspected members of the Boko Haram sect gunned down five worshipers inside a mosque as evening prayers ended. The gunmen suspected of being Boko Haram Islamists killed a dozen people when they razed a police station after failing to storm a jail in Gombe city in Kano. The recent hacking of the Linux Mint site has drawn an enormous amount of media attention and has shattered the faith of some users. What should the developers of Linux Mint do to regain the trust of the folks who use their distribution? This topic came up in a thread on the Linux Mint subreddit and redditors there weren't shy about sharing their opinions. Chucks launched the thread by asking his question: How should Mint approach the situation to minimize damage? Do they need to do anything or is "can happen to anybody" enough? The thing is no matter how you look at it or how much you blame the Mint team for what happened, the results were pretty serious and there was a ton of bad press. Other Linux Mint users chimed in with their thoughts: Jpaek1: "I imagine do the same as anyone after a hack. Be honest and open about the issue and vow to do better in the future and prove it by actually doing better. I think its obvious that security needs to be better. Hopefully they can get some kind of security fix posted for those running the infected installs, though I honestly don't know if that is possible or not, though I would assume it is." And not to downplay the issue, but hacks like this are going to happen. Even large corporations and companies like Sony have been breached multiple times. If someone wants in bad enough, they'll eventually find a way in. In terms of attacks, this one wasn't nearly as bad as it could have been. Bad but not catastrophic. Widby: "I still trust Linux Mint and I have no doubts the team will address the issue of site security adequately. The distro itself is still as good as it always was. I think the ISOs need to be digitally signed, not just hashed. This is what I expect to be among their list of measures." Conzerak: "Obviously they need to harden their website and reach out to the people who were compromised. This is disappointing news but I do not intend to start dumping my many Mint installations. I left the Windows world for Mint and I'm just very happy with Mint for quite some time. I would rather the Mint guys take this as a wake up call and fix the issues... but I am still firmly in their corner... though I am watching this as it develops." Multia-z: "I disagree the results were pretty serious.. but there was a ton of bad press, far, far more than one would have expected for a small linux distro. and so much vitriol in that bad press, most of it comming from the linux community, which actually falls back on the whole linux community, many potential users or starters in linux will be running back to MS no matter which distro they were thinking about. Not because Mint was hacked but because the linux community acted like sharks having a feeding frenzy and an injured member of their own kind." RAngerm2: "Honestly, there's not much that can be done. Anything can be hacked, and all they can do is toughen their security, be honest and open about what they've done to toughen it, and perhaps invite a trusted 3rd-party to confirm it." TheAtheistOtaku: "This is such a huge over reaction I feel sorry for the mint team. 99% of users are unaffected by this but with all the press and crap you would think the 99% are the ones affected. but I bad press Is usually louder then good press unfourtunatly." Captainslow: "They should start taking security much more seriously. And not just on their website. For awhile now I've been reading the occasional comments on Linux-related subreddits that trash Mint as being a distro put together by people who are likely in over their heads (due to the massive popularity Mint has gained). It may have started as a hobby or fun project for Clem and his team. But by now, rightly or not, it's a hugely popular distribution. The Mint team needs to recognize this fact and act accordingly. Put the people and structure in place necessary for being a serious distribution. When people, especially noobs, are depending on Mint for their computing needs they are trusting the Mint team to know what they're doing. That trust has been rocked at least a little bit by the website hack." Sudoismyname: "I use Mint on my desktop and laptop. To regain my trust all they have to do if fix their current site security issues. I haven't wiped and installed something else or even spent 10 seconds worrying about it since it doesn't affect me or my system. I do like the conversation about distributing distros that this has generated. The idea of pgp signed images sounds good to me, hopefully Mint will adopt that." Masterpooter: "I honestly don't care that they got hacked. If MAJOR corporations like Sony can get hacked. Then of course a small organization like the Mint team can get hacked. Corporations like Sony deal with shit like corporate espionage. I'm sure that they had great security when they got hacked." More at Reddit 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. Coffee Prices Fall as the Supply Outlook Improves Barchart - 1 hour ago December arabica coffee (KCZ22 ) this morning is down -0.50 (-0.26%), and Nov ICE Robusta coffee (RMX22 ) is down -47 (-2.30%). Coffee prices this morning are moving lower, with arabica falling to a... KCZ22 : 190.90s (-0.08%) RMF23 : 1,996s (-2.20%) Crude Oil Pushes Higher on Dollar Weakness Barchart - 1 hour ago Dec WTI crude oil (CLZ22 ) this morning is up +0.23 (+0.27%), and Dec RBOB gasoline (RBZ22 ) is up +1.40 (+0.57%). Nov Nymex natural gas (NGX22) is down by -0.393 (-7.33%). Crude oil and gasoline prices... CLZ22 : 84.94 (+0.51%) RBZ22 : 2.4741 (+0.32%) 3 Dividend Paying Tech Stocks Sure Dividend - 1 hour ago Tech stocks are not normally known as dividend payers, but these 3 dividend stocks have solid yields and long-term dividend growth. Hogs Mostly Higher at Midday Barchart - 1 hour ago Lean hog futures are printing $0.50 to $1.92 gains through the Friday midday. The deferred summer 23 months are red by 2 to 12 cents on the board. The CME Lean Hog for 10/19 was $93.76, up by another... HEZ22 : 89.100 (+2.38%) HEJ23 : 93.950 (+0.89%) KMZ22 : 98.000 (+1.16%) Cotton Market Mixed Mostly Higher Barchart - 1 hour ago Midday cotton prices are stuck within 15 points of UNC. December is up by 15 points, with the deferred months also gaining 4 to 9 points. Midday March contracts are down by 4 points so far. December has... 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ZWZ22 : 850-4 (+0.15%) ZWH23 : 869-4 (+0.17%) ZWPAES.CM : 7.8508 (+0.20%) KEZ22 : 947-6 (-0.21%) KEPAWS.CM : 9.0528 (-0.22%) MWZ22 : 960-2 (-0.23%) Corn Futures Climbing Back into Midday Barchart - 1 hour ago After overnight action pulled the board lower into Fridays session, prices have firmed back up into fractional to 1 1/2 cent gains for midday. The International Grains Council reduced estimated global... ZCZ22 : 685-2 (+0.18%) ZCPAUS.CM : 6.7428 (+0.05%) ZCH23 : 691-0 (+0.14%) ZCK23 : 690-4 (unch) Beans Firm for Option Expiration Barchart - 1 hour ago November soybean options will expire at the close with the $14 strike still in play. Currently $14 puts are about seven cents in the money with the calls set to expire worthless. The other front months... ZSX22 : 1396-2 (+0.34%) ZSPAUS.CM : 13.5089 (+0.34%) ZSF23 : 1405-0 (+0.36%) ZSH23 : 1412-4 (+0.34%) Donor-advised funds were first pioneered by the New York Community Trust in 1931, and have since helped power the phenomenal rise of community foundations across the country, with these entities reporting a record $66 billion in assets in 2013a number that has surely soared higher since then, as legions of new donors turn to DAFs as the easiest way to hit the ground running with their philanthropy and, more broadly, as a growing number of wealthy Americans get focused on philanthropy after decades of record wealth accumulation. No community foundation has flourished more than the Silicon Valley Community Foundation, with its $7.3 billion in assets far outstripping any other community foundation. In just the past few years, the SVCF has attracted astonishing sums from Mark Zuckerberg, but also other tech winners, like Nick Woodman and Jan Koum. Yet while we often hear of the money going into SVCF, we hear less about the money going out. What's the story on that end? Well, the headline is that SVCF's giving is exploding. It recently came out with its final figures for 2015, which are stunning. It made 122,000 grants totaling $823 million in 2015, nearly doubling its previous record of $476 million in 2014 and making it one of the very largest foundations in the United States as measured by giving. Only the Gates Foundation and the Open Society Foundations give away more every year. Meanwhile, no other community foundation even comes close to SVCF's annual grantmaking. The New York Community Trust, for example, made $157.7 million in grants in 2014. "The idea that in one year, a group of people can donate $823 million is amazing," said Emmett D. Carson, the foundations CEO in a public statement. "It makes me feel we have developed an institution that people trust. They trust us to be good stewards of their resources." Clearly. You might think that a foundation with this amount of firepower has been around for generations, but actually its only been a decade. SVCF is just approaching its 10-year anniversary actually. Back in January 2007, the foundation was created by merging San Jose's Peninsula Community Foundation and San Mateo's Community Foundation Silicon Valley. At first glance, SVCF's meteoric rise might look like a simple story. The tech sector is booming, so its foundation of choice is booming, too. Certainly, that's true. But another part of the story here is one we tell often at Inside Philanthropy: More and more new donors are choosing not to set up foundations, and instead operating through full-service intermediaries like SVCF. As well, the rise of this place speaks to the greater sense of urgency that many tech donors bring to their giving. They don't want to set up foundations that exist in perpetuity and pay out at a conservative rate. They want to solve big problems now. Mark Zuckerberg is a case in point, and given that he and Priscilla Chan operate through SVCF, it's a good bet that some of its jump in annual grantmaking is specifically due to that couple's growing largesse. So where's that blizzard of SVCF grants been going lately? It's a question worth asking because this funder has such an influential presence in the Bay Area. That said, it's always hard to generalize about the grantmaking of community foundations, since these places host the giving of so many donors and also have both their own funding programs. You can't talk about what a community foundation "is doing" the way you can with other foundations. But SVCF definitely does have its own distinctive grantmaking priorities. Around this time last year, we published a blog titled Where SVCFs Local Support has been Going, in which we noted that top grantmaking focuses were economic security, English for immigrants, and out-of-classroom education. And more recently, we highlighted the Silicon Valley Community Foundations increased giving for math and English education, as well as predatory lending prevention. Lots of other stuff is going on, too. You can read more about SVCFs 2015 accomplishments in the February 11, 2016 press release, including the California Mathematics Placement Act, the Big Lift, and Silicon Valley Gives. Imagine this scenario: Astronomers discover an asteroid in space thats heading our way and predict that it will impact somewhere in the ocean later in this century. Its not big enough to extinguish all life on Earth, as some asteroids might, but its sizeable enough that when it hits, it will generate tsunamis worldwide, inundating most coastal cities. Despite this news that civilization as we know it faces a dire threat, politicians in Washington dither, with many claiming the astronomers have the science wrong. Years pass without much action toward efforts to knock the asteroid off course, even as the astronomers furnish more details about just how destructive its impact will be. An array of activist groups spring up around the world, urgently calling for stronger steps to counter the asteroid. World leaders pledge some action, but its not nearly enoughand the U.S. Congress wont even back those modest steps. How would philanthropy respond in this situation? Well, you might think that many foundations would immediately drop everything else theyre doing and focus on stopping that asteroid. Right? After all, theyd see that theres little point in caring about poverty or the arts or education if a catastrophic disruption of society would one day make all these concerns moot. Given those stakes, you might think that foundations would give whatever it takes to ensure that every advocate sounding the alarm about the asteroid has enough resources, along with every scientist seeking a solution. You might think that the big legacy foundations would ignore the conservative payout limits on using endowment funds, busting open their great trusts in an urgent bid to save civilization. Alas, if you thought all these things, youd be wrongat least judging by philanthropy's response to climate change, a threat that could mean sea level rises of six feet by 2100, along with other consequences so devastating that one expert panel compared the likely effects to World War II, which claimed 60 million lives. Based on the climate record so far, philanthropys response to the asteroid threat would probably look more like this. First, most funders would shrug their shoulders, saying extra-terrestrial issues fall outside of current program guidelines and dont align with their missions or donor intent. The attitude would be: let someone else worry about the damn asteroid. Second, even those top funders who did step forward to stop the asteroid would do so as part of a balanced portfolio of grantmaking. Theyd say all the right things about the urgency of stopping the asteroid, and maybe make historic multi-year grant commitments to this end, but otherwise wouldnt drastically upend their priorities. Such goals as ensuring "children realize their full potential" would occupy an equal place with ensuring that, as adults, those kids don't face a global catastrophe. Third, not a single major anti-asteroid funder would seriously consider dipping into their endowments in a big way to save civilization. One excuse would be that they werent confident such extra spending would make a difference in stopping the asteroid. Where are the metrics, they ask. Another would be that they needed to save their money for later, to help civilization adapt to a post-impact world. Some might point to organizational bylaws that barred any excessive spending of endowment principal and cite their fiduciary responsibilities. Here, too, the dead hand of donor intent would triumph over the imperative of future survival. Would the new billionaire philanthropists step forward to fill the vacuum left by cautious and small-minded legacy foundations? After all, these donors often talk about bold and urgent approaches to philanthropy. A great many have signed the Giving Pledge. Surely theyd open their checkbooks in a dramatic way to help figure out how to knock the asteroid into a orbital path away from Earth. Since they signed the pledge, why not give away their piles sooner rather than later, especially when civilization hangs in the balance? And to be sure, a few billionaires would step forward, becoming some of the top anti-asteroid funders. But most would take the attitude that the asteroid was someone elses problem, and even those stepping forward would deploy only a tiny fraction of their net worth to finance anti-asteroid work. As the asteroid moved closer, with Washington still deadlocked and alarm bells sounding more loudly, there would be richly ironic moments as philanthropy fumbled the clutch moment. We might see, for example, two CEOs of top legacy foundations who get the asteroid threat issue a public call for their fellow funders to do moreand yet take no drastic action at their own institutions to think outside the box about what they themselves define as an existential threat. No matter how grave the asteroid menace might be, it wouldnt trump the imperative of preserving endowment principal. We might see another such plea for greater philanthropic action from a foundation CEO known for her boldness and a billionaire known for his leadership on the asteroid issueafter which both would promptly resume business as usual. The CEO wouldnt persuade her board to break open the endowment piggy bank or suspend all other grantmaking. The billionaire wouldnt touch the vast bulk of his fortune, even as a Giving Pledge signatory in his 80s. We might see the richest man in the world step forward to convene a group of billionaires to finance long-term anti-asteroid researcheven as they curiously ignored the fact that Washington wasnt taking a host of obvious near-term steps to deal with the threat and advocates in the trenches were begging for more resources to win the political fight. And so it would go. For all the talk of philanthropy as societys risk capital, this sector likely wouldnt be able to mobilize for the necessary risks to head off the ultimate threat. But you can bet that thered be some swell conferences and retreats. Meanwhile, the asteroid would keep getting closer. And closer. Related: Heres a hopeful sighta young, female leader quizzing bank and credit card company executives on their approaches to LGBT equality. Lets zoom in: Chelsea Clinton, vice chair of the Bill, Hillary and Chelsea Clinton Foundation, sits on a stage at the New York Sheraton, with Tim Murphy, general counsel and chief franchise officer for MasterCard, and Barbara Byrne, vice chairman of banking for Barclays, engaging them in dialogue about how their corporations are carrying out their LGBT-friendly policies, and how to get more corporations to do the same. The setting for this display of young leadership and rapidly changing corporate culture is a plenary session of the Clinton Global Initiatives Winter Meeting on February 4, which brought together over 450 leaders from diverse backgrounds in the nonprofit, for-profit, and government sectors, to discuss world problems with an eye toward making progress. Both Barclays and MasterCard are part of a new global coalition called Open For Business, a CGI Commitment to Action led by the Brunswick Group, which is pushing to make LGBT inclusiveness the norm globally. While making the business case for inclusion, the coalition also seeks to engage global influencers, train local advocates, and raise the profile of LGBT inclusion efforts among policymakers. The CGI Open for Business commitment has an estimated duration of two years. When implemented, the total value of the commitment is estimated at $1,452,000. But the significance of this effort goes well beyond money: It's about getting corporate leaders more strongly aligned against LGBT discrimination, both in the U.S. and abroad, by leveraging the Clinton Foundation's most powerful assetits convening power. The thing to remember about this outfit is that networking, not grantmaking, is its signature strength. The bigger picture behind Open for Business, as we've reported, is that the LGBT rights movement has made ending discrimination the new centerpiece of its work in the wake of the successful fight for marriage equality. A wide array of discriminatory practices related to employment, housing, and other issues remain perfectly legal in many U.S. statesnot to mention a great many countries. In working to end such discrimination, LGBT philanthropists like Tim Gill see business as a critical ally. Meanwhile, many businesses have their own motives for moving on this issue as they work to attract top talent from the tolerant millennial generation. Related: No One Left Behind: Tim Gill and the New Quest for Full LGBT Equality In September 2015 at the CGI Annual Meeting, the roster of organizations signing on to support Open for Business was long and impressivea total of 15 corporations committed to this new coalition, including newer giants like Google, as well as old standards like AT&T and IBM. After Davos in January 2016, Accenture, Barclays, Microsoft and Tesco joined the Open For Business coalition. Mastercard supports LGBT inclusiveness through its Business Resource Group, PRIDE, which helps the company foster an environment where everyone can feel comfortable about their sexual orientation and gender identity. I think diversity is an important topic for our company. Its essential to who we are and a core part of our culture, said Tim Murphy, who has been General Counsel for Mastercard since 2014. We think there is a very strong business case for diversity, and it obviously all revolves around people. Its about making sure you have the right people at the table to make decisions in a very complex environment. Barbara Byrne, vice chairman of banking for Barclays, talked about how Barclays came early to the party on LGBT inclusion, starting in the early 2000s with its Spectrum Network. Barclays employs 8,000 people just two blocks from the conference venue in Midtown Manhattan, and Byrne said that 70 percent of those 8,000 employees are millennials. In 2010, we said, 'Shouldnt we have coverage for partners?' Byrne explained. Before Marriage Equality passed, Barclays offered a way for partners to be included for tax purposes called a Gross-Up on taxes, which eliminates the tax inequity faced by employees in same-sex domestic partnerships. The Street followed, said Byrne. Other companies, including Facebook, Google, and Apple, began implementing gross-ups for same-sex couples in their workforces. Byrne made the point that leadership starts at the top, and that corporations can encourage each other to take on more LGBT-inclusive policies. I think business has a platform that can lead government, said Byrne. She pointed to the fact that many developing nations are seeking large employers, so businesses like Barclays can model the value of inclusiveness and pressure the governments to change laws that are hostile to LGBT relationships. The more LGBT is not the other, but becomes me, my friend, my family, the more progress we will see, said Murphy. Byrne described how Barclays is the largest employer in Singapore, where homosexuality is illegal. We have an LGBT Spectrum Network to do advocacy and ensure a safe work environment there, said Byrne. She also spoke to her experience in witnessing how LGBT inclusion improves employee performance and workplace culture. Ive seen time and time again, often the most compelling leadership comes from people who have been marginalized in one culture, and through a different opportunity, they are given access to another culture where they can flourish, said Byrne. Self-storage properties are constantly changing hands, and Inside Self-Storage is regularly notified of these market transactions. Many are covered in detail on the ISS website and available for viewing on the Real Estate topics page. Following are additional acquisitions and sales that werent covered independently due to missing information such as buyer, seller, sale price or other relevant details. 520 Self Storage, a 53,635-square-foot facility in Cocoa, Fla., was sold to a limited-liability company. The five-building property at 3855 W. King St. includes 498 storage units and eight vehicle-parking spaces. Built in 1990, it was expanded in 2000. The buyer and the seller, a private investor, were represented in the transaction by Michael A. Mele, senior vice president investments in the Marcus & Millichap Tampa, Fla., office and senior director of the firms National Self Storage Group, as well as Luke Elliott, senior associate, and Brian Baldwin, associate, also from the Tampa office. The two-property Acme Self Storage portfolio in Carrollton, Ga., was sold for $1.19 million. The portfolio comprises 41,500 square feet of self-storage space as well as flex space at both locations, which are about two blocks apart. The seller was represented by Mike Patterson of Commercial Realty Services of West Georgia, who is also the Argus Self Storage Sales Network broker affiliate for Georgia. Andover Properties LLC, which operates the Storage King USA brand, has acquired the Triangle Self Storage portfolio, which consists of two properties in Raleigh, N.C., and one in Roanoke, Va. The facilities comprise more than 200,000 square feet of storage space in 1,447 units as well as outdoor vehicle parking. Available Self Storage, a 33,414-square-foot property in Corpus Christi, Texas, has changed hands. The property at 9337 S Padre Island Drive was built in 1973 and contains 212 units. Jon Danklefs, an investment specialist in the Marcus & Millichap San Antonio office, represented the buyer and seller. Avondale Self Storage in Avondale, La., was sold to a national operator. The property at 3701 Highway 90 comprises 59,380 rentable square feet of storage space in 540 units. Situated on 4.1 acres, it has visibility along U.S. Route 90, a major east-west highway that passes through the South. The seller was represented by Bill Barnhill and Stuart P. LaGroue Sr. of Omega Properties Inc. Both are broker affiliates for Argus in Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi. Grand Oaks Self Storage in Summerville, S.C., was sold to an out-of-state buyer for $1.7 million. The price included land that has been approved for the addition of more than 55,000 square feet of self-storage space. The buyer intends to expand the facility soon, according to a press release from Midcoast Properties Inc., the real estate firm that represented the seller in the transaction. This existing facility comprises 24,705 rentable square feet of storage space in 152 units on more than 5 acres. The broker was Midcoast President Dale C. Eisenman. Simply Self Storage (SSS), a Florida-based limited-liability company that owns or manages 187 facilities nationwide, has acquired Surelock Self Storage in Orlando, Fla. The property at 7628 Narcoossee Road encompasses 61,000 square feet of storage space in 402 non-climate-controlled and 120 climate-controlled units. Constructed in 2006, it also has two development pad-ready sites. Mele and Elliott represented the buyer and the sellers, Bouik and Dana Koshmer. Space Place Storage, a 51,750-square-foot facility in Columbia, S.C., was sold to an out-of-state investment firm. Prior to the sale, the property at 110 Newland Road was managed by AAAA Self Storage Management Group, a third-party management company and affiliate of Nicholson Cos. Situated on 3.65 acres, the facility includes 403 units and an office. Eisenman represented the seller in the transaction. U-Haul International Inc. purchased Allstate Self Storage in Phoenix for $6.7 million. The property at 4110 E. Bell Road was constructed in 1999 and consists of 68,250 square feet of storage space in 785 units. It also has a 7,600-square-foot, two-tenant retail building. The seller, a Phoenix-based investor and developer, was represented by Bill Alter, a broker for Arizona-based Rein & Grossoehme Commercial Real Estate. New York City-based Andover is a private real estate investment firm that owns and operates 22 storage facilities in seven states. Argus is a Denver-based network of real estate brokers who specialize in storage properties. Formed in 1994, the company has 36 broker affiliates covering nearly 40 markets. Marcus & Millichap is a commercial-property investment firm with more than 1,500 investment professionals in offices throughout the United States and Canada. Midcoast Properties offers brokerage services to self-storage owners and investors in Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina. Founded in 1993, Rein & Grossoehme specializes in the sale of investment properties and retail as well as office and industrial leasing. Headquartered in Orlando, Fla., SSS owns or manages facilities in 18 states and Puerto Rico. Its properties comprise 14.9 million square feet of storage space. Established in 1945 and based in Phoenix, U-Haul has more than 44 million square feet of storage space at more than 1,200 owned facilities throughout North America. Sovran Self Storage Inc., a real estate investment trust (REIT) that operates the Uncle Bob's Self Storage brand, has acquired a recently constructed, 99,000-square-foot facility in North Miami, Fla., for $11.04 million. The 1.3-acre property at 640 N.W. 133rd St. was purchased by subsidiary Sovran Acquisition from North Miami Storage LLC, an affiliate of Northbrook, Ill.-based Banner Storage Group LLC, according to a source. Banner acquired the property in 2014 for $1.125 million and used a $5.95 million loan from PNC Bank to develop the facility last year, a source reported. The total development cost was about $8.5 million, according to the Banner website. At the time of the purchase, Banner intended to develop a four-story building featuring 950 climate-controlled units. Property amenities were to include interior, climate-controlled loading/unloading areas, video cameras, motion sensors, free Wi-Fi, and a retail office. The facility is adjacent to Interstate 95. A planned 183-acre, $4 billion mixed-use project called SoL Mia is slated for the North Miami area between Miami Shores and North Miami Beach, according to a source. The master-planned community, announced last year, is expected to include 12 residential buildings with 4,390 residential units, more than 1 million square feet of commercial space, 37 acres of parks and two swimming lagoons. The North Miami facility is one of four properties contracted to be acquired by Sovran this year in certificate of occupancy purchases, the REIT announced in January. Combined, the purchase price for the four properties is $38 million. The three other facilities include one in Charleston, S.C., and two in Chicago. Banner Storage Group was formed in July 2013 as a subsidiary to Banner Apartments LLC to diversity the companys real estate holdings outside of its multi-family focus. The company is led by Gary Delaney, president, and John Nikolich, executive vice president, who have more than 35 years of combined experience in the acquisition, development, disposition and financing of self-storage properties, portfolios and real estate operating companies. Based in Buffalo, N.Y., Sovran operates more than 500 facilities in 26 states. Its portfolio of owned and managed facilities comprises more than 36 million square feet. Alaska Permanent Fund Corp. is coping better than many other investors with the market volatility that started this past summer. The Alaska Permanent Fund, the sovereign wealth fund managed by APFC, began its 201516 fiscal year down 4.4 percent for the quarter ended September 30, but rebounded, posting a 2.1 percent return for the three months ended December 31. Although APFC missed its own benchmark for the quarter, that performance is notable, given how heavily Alaska relies on oil and that there is a slumping commodities market. Before the latest drawdown, the fund managed to take profits by selling stocks and continuing to reduce its dependency on commodities. Other U.S. sovereign funds that built their wealth on natural resources have taken similar steps to diversify. Changes to the Permanent Fund have been in the works for a few years, and theyve readied its portfolio to withstand what looks like a choppy 2016, says Angela Rodell, CEO of Juneau-based APFC. We thought our positions in many companies were at their high-water mark in 2014, Rodell explains. After taking those profits, APFC used the cash to boost allocations to private equity, which accounts for about 6 percent of its portfolio, and to build out co- and direct investments. The fund doubled the size of its private equity group last year from two to four staffers, and its hunting for a new CIO. The role has been temporarily filled by Jim Parise, AFPCs director of fixed income, while Rodell searches for a more permanent replacement after Jay Willoughby resigned last fall. Rodell also started writing bigger checks to fewer external managers. It makes our participation more valuable to the manager and gives us a stronger negotiating position, she says. Those larger sums help her to extract bonuses like revenue-sharing opportunities or strategic partnerships, which can mitigate the cost of fees paid on other investments. To mitigate downside risk, APFC has reoriented its equities portfolio toward longer-term value opportunities, Rodell adds. That shift started in 2008; along with the recent move into private equity, APFC has made the portfolio less correlated to market fluctuations and less dependent on commodity prices. As a result, the fund now has a more sustainable asset mix and more cash in savings for future generations. Our royalty from energy has been steadily declining, so weve had to focus on other investments to ensure that were always well funded and can be responsive to the cash needs of the Department of Revenue, Rodell says. For the state to fill this years $3.8 billion budget deficit, Alaska North Slope crude would need to be about $113 a barrel a price that hasnt been seen since 2014. As of February 18, ANS stood at $32, according to the Alaska Department of Revenue. While Alaska struggles to find other economic diversifiers, Governor William Walker wants to use cash from the Permanent Fund without endangering its longevity. Walker has proposed drawing $3.3 billion, or about 4.5 percent of the fund, each year to pay for budget items. For Rodell, the amount isnt as important as how and when the state government would need it. The question is if they want a single check, or if we can distribute that money out quarterly, she says. If I can do it on a quarterly basis, then we can continue to earn interest over the year on what hasnt been distributed yet, so we have to consider what makes the most sense. To remain tactical, Rodell also keeps about 20 percent of the Permanent Funds portfolio in a mix of liquid instruments and cash. That gives her the option of taking advantage of new investment opportunities or having ready access to cash. For sovereign wealth funds that depend on natural resources, adopting a tactical approach is part of the new normal. In a recent presentation to the Alaska legislature, Harvard Kennedy School of Government fellow Malan Rietveld cited performance data to make his case that resource-based funds used to living off the luck of their geography must now consider a more rules-based investment strategy that focuses on asset classes such as private equity, credit and equities. Consultants who work with public funds tend to agree. As such funds diversify their investments, its important to focus on building relationships that create long-term value, says Michael Koenig, a managing director at Hamilton Lane, a Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvaniabased private markets investment specialist: In private equity, for example, we advise our clients to have a core allocation to the asset class, but you want to strategically pace those investments so they make sense within a total portfolio. Diversification has helped the New Mexico State Investment Council (SIC), manager of New Mexicos permanent funds, to withstand recent market turbulence. Like APFC, the Santa Febased SIC grew on the back of local resources. When Robert (Vince) Smith took over as deputy state investment officer for New Mexico in 2010, he launched an asset allocation audit. After reaching the same conclusions as APFCs Rodell, he scaled back exposure to public equities heading into 2015. We see a shift in the return pattern of equities that will be impactful over the long term, Smith says. So we started to reorient to other asset classes as part of our risk mitigation strategy. For SIC, that meant capturing opportunities in floating-rate debt and increasing private equity from 10 to 12 percent of the portfolio. Each year Smith and his team set an annual view of their market expectations and invest in themes based on that view. In 2015 this approach led them to floating-rate debt, which helped to keep losses down. The total value of New Mexicos permanent funds fell by 1.2 percent last year, from $20.2 billion in 2014 to $19.95 billion as of December 31, according to preliminary estimates by SIC. Smith says theres no magic asset mix, but by creating annual plans the fund can stay dynamic and shift allocations to respond better to market conditions, he adds. This year New Mexicos oil production is expected to drop for the first time since 2008 because of global oversupply, making tactical investment decisions that much more important. Investors must be willing to look at a lot of different opportunities in the market today to stay truly diversified, Smith says. Were looking at investments we believe will be supported by the future environment, and we want to avoid getting hung up on a particular asset class or investment idea, because the environment is always changing. Get more on sovereign wealth funds. Cyclists given access to insurance products and services and other benefits Utica Mutual Insurance Company in New Hartford, New York, said Richard P. Creedon officially began his tenure as chief executive officer of the company with the retirement of J. Douglas Robinson as CEO. Utica Mutual first provided its CEO succession plan in November 2014 and announced that Creedon would assume the CEO role when Robinson retires in February 2016. Robinson and Creedon have been working together for a seamless transition for agent-customers, policyholders and employees since the announcement. Robinson, who served as Utica Mutuals CEO since 2000, will remain as chairman of the Board. Creedon has been Utica Mutuals president and chief operating officer since 2013. He first joined Utica Mutual in 1998 as assistant vice president and director of workers compensation claims and has held leadership roles of increasing responsibilities. Creedon will also retain his president title along with his new CEO post. His COO role will be assumed by Kristen H. Martin. Utica Mutual said Martin is the first woman in the companys history to hold the title of COO. Reporting to Martin in her role as executive vice president and COO will be the senior officers of the following departments: Actuarial, Claims, Customer Experience, Information Technology, Project Management, Reinsurance, Marketing and Sales, and Underwriting. Prior to becoming COO, Martin was executive vice president, director of Underwriting Operations and corporate secretary. Martin joined the company in 2001 as claims examiner and has held leadership roles of increasing responsibilities. Tracing its roots back to 1914, Utica National sells its products through more than 2,200 independent insurance agents and employs over 1,200 people countrywide. Based in New Hartford, the company has seven regional offices. Topics New York Zurich Insurance is exploring a sale of its Hong Kong and Singapore operations as it reviews its non-core businesses outside Europe, sources familiar with the matter said. The Swiss insurer has discussed the plan with several investment banks but has yet to hire advisers, the sources said, cautioning that no deal was certain. [Editors note: Zurich subsequently issued a statement regarding reports that it is exploring a sale of its Hong Kong and Singapore operations. We would like to clarify that Zurich has no intention of exiting the Hong Kong or Singapore markets, the company said. We remain committed to our General Insurance and Global Life businesses in Hong Kong, and our General Insurance business in Singapore. Zurich retains its position as top two general insurer in Hong Kong, and one of the top five general insurers in Singapore. We look forward to continuing to service and protect our customers from risk in these key strategic markets for Zurich in Asia Pacific.] The Swiss insurer launched an in-depth review of its business in September after explosions at the Chinese port of Tianjin caused losses of around $275 million. It had also abandoned a 5.6 billion pound bid for Britains RSA Insurance after a deterioration in its general insurance business. Then in January it issued a profit warning for its general insurance business and subsequently hired Generalis former Chief Mario Greco to revive its fortunes. The firms Asian review comes amid efforts to sell Zurichs businesses in South Africa and Morocco, the sources said, adding that Morgan Stanley is leading the South African sale, which Zurich announced on Feb.19. Zurich began scaling back its Asian franchise last year when it stopped accepting new life policy applications in Singapore, where it has been since 2006. Asian Franchise A partial exit from Asia will need the blessing of Zurichs incoming boss Greco. The 56-year-old executive will take over the reins in March from Tom de Swaan, who has held the role on an interim basis since Martin Senn stepped down in December. Its up to Greco to take the final decision on Asia, one of the sources said. If a sale goes ahead, Zurich will focus on China, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Australia, New Zealand and Taiwan, the sources said. Zurich restructured its Australia business last year, pulling out of some products, changing its organizational structure and cutting jobs. (Additional reporting by Swati Pandey in Sydney and Joshua Franklin in Zurich; editing by Rachel Armstrong and Alexander Smith) Related: The London-based Managing General Agents Association (MGAA) announced the election of new board members Mark Birrell, chief executive of Castel Underwriting, and Charles Manchester, chief executive of Manchester Underwriting Management. They join directors Catherine Bell, chairman of inet3, Charles Earle, non-executive director of Advent Solutions Holdings, James Gerry, chairman of GB Underwriting and Jeff Turner, chief executive of Miramar Underwriting, who were all re-elected to the board. The six member-elected directors are joined by representatives from the associations market practitioner and supplier membership. Keith Stern, regional manager, UK & Ireland at Lloyds, was re-elected as supplier representative, and Bill OMalley, senior vice president, business development and broker management at Arch Insurance Group remains as market practitioner representative until his current term ends in February 2017. The board also includes directors representing the associations two largest full MGA members by gross written premium: UK General and Pen Underwriting. Following Peter Hubbards retirement from UK General earlier this year, he has stepped down from the board and his place will be taken by Mike Keating, UK Generals commercial managing director. Tom Downey, managing director of Pen Underwritings specialty division, remains on the board. MGAA chairman and a founder of the association Reg Brown has retired from his position. Fellow founder Sian Fisher did not stand for re-election following her recent appointment as CEO of the Chartered Insurance Institute. Peter Staddon, managing director of the MGAA, said: This is an important time for the association as we drive ahead with a strategy to continue the growth in membership, build on our position and influence in the industry, increase the focus on education, professionalism and ethics in the MGA sector and the level of engagement in Europe and beyond. Staddon thanked Reg Brown and Sian Fisher for their commitment and support to the MGAA since its formation, as well as Peter Hubbard, Nicholas Hales and Darren Doherty for their contribution to the work of the association. Their legacy will continue to go from strength to strength under our new board. Source: Managing General Agents Association (MGAA) Topics Underwriting Insurance Wholesale Human Resources Minnesotas attorney general is suing a Missouri company, accusing it of misleading consumers into unnecessarily buying coverage for auto repairs. The lawsuit by Attorney General Lori Swanson was filed in Dakota County against United Auto Defense. The lawsuit alleges that UAD solicits Minnesotans into buying vehicle service contracts that provide third-party coverage for certain auto repairs. It says the company misleadingly poses as a manufacturer or dealership and tells consumers via direct mail that there may be issues with their car or that their warranty has expired. The attorney general says some Minnesota consumers bought coverage for as much as $4,750 through UAD. CEO Gary Primm told The Associated Press he was unaware of the lawsuit. He declined to comment until he learned of the allegations against his company. Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Topics Auto Missouri Minnesota Before the walls shook, before the two-by-fours twisted and the roof began tearing off, Amanda Bose saw news about the tornado on television. Everybody in the bathroom right now! the 36-year-old mother told her 5-year-old and 15-year-old. There was almost no time to wonder, she says, whether the home would protect them or collapse around them. The Dallas Morning News reports similar scenes played out in homes across North Texas during the Dec. 26 storm, which destroyed 159 houses and did major damage to 311 in Rowlett alone. Damage from the storm will reach $1.2 billion, the Insurance Council of Texas estimates. As populations grow denser throughout the tornado alley that stretches from North Texas through South Dakota, many experts say communities should consider designing buildings to withstand twisters just as coastal communities build to survive hurricanes. Tornado-resilient designs of houses, or of any structure, is a thing within our grasp, said University of Florida engineering professor David Prevatt, who surveyed the damage in North Texas. Its something we can do, and we ought to do it. The tornado that hit Rowlett was rated an EF3 as it moved over Boses neighborhood. That means the National Weather Service estimated its peak winds there could have been as high as 165 mph, a speed at which even well-built homes are in trouble. But most homes in a tornados path dont experience its top winds, Prevatt and other experts say. So while improving building standards might not save every home in a storm, it could save many. Two weeks after the storm, Prevatt walked Boses street with a team of his students. They were joined by employees of Simpson Strong-Tie, a California-based company that makes products for wind-resistant building. He pointed to Boses home as one of many vulnerable to damage because of weak construction. Building codes have improved since Boses home was built in 1984, as engineers and researchers analyze what worked and what didnt after disasters. In the 1980s, codes in North Texas and in most places required design against only 70 mph winds. That threshold rose to 90 mph about 15 years ago, in accordance with standards set by the International Code Council. Cities typically adopt the ICCs codes, sometimes adding their own small amendments. But adopting changes that substantially increase costs can threaten a citys competitiveness in the real estate market if surrounding cities dont do likewise, some local officials say. Still, Rowletts mayor, Todd Gottel, says the city should consider adopting a more tornado-resilient building code. Costly upgrades shouldnt be imposed on those homeowners trying to rebuild, he said. But for new construction afterward, he continued, We should look at alternative building standards or codes, to see if it makes sense. In the meantime, the code is only a minimum, says Selso Mata, president of the Building Officials Association of Texas and director of building inspections in Plano. It is not the maximum standard, Mata said. A lot of people build better than that. Builders tend to spend money on things that buyers can see. Bricks and stone make nice-looking facades, but add little strength. The two-by-four studs behind the bricks are what make a structure sturdy. Homebuyers should consider asking for and be prepared to pay more for structural features that exceed the code, Mata said. Small improvements can dramatically increase a homes defenses, experts say. Like using metal straps, rather than only nails, to secure walls to roof rafters. And using bolts, rather than nails, to anchor walls to a foundation. Neither is required in North Texas by the building code. Adding a skin of plywood or wood particle board to the studs of a wall structure strengthens it a lot, experts say. The walls in Boses neighborhood are sheathed instead with a material called Thermo-Ply, which critics compare to cardboard. The company that makes it defends the product and notes that it is widely used in Texas. Tornadoes dont destroy homes instantly. Instead, they find weak points and progressively tear homes apart from there, says Chris Ramseyer, an engineering professor at the University of Oklahoma who specializes in structural design. It finds the corner thats weak, pulls it apart, and then it works on whats left, he said. Reinforcing that one weak corner, often the homes garage, can save the entire structure. The costs that youre looking at are generally less than the cost of the granite countertop that the homeowner wants in the kitchen, Ramseyer said. Moore, Okla., was the first city in the nation to adopt a building code to fend off tornado damage, requiring designs to withstand 135 mph winds. The city adopted the enhanced code after a 2013 tornado killed 24 and caused $2 billion in damage. When the changes were proposed, Moore city officials braced for a political fight from builders. Their automatic first response is, `We dont want to do that; well price ourselves out of business, said Moores assistant city manager, Stan Drake. But builders ended up endorsing the changes in Moore, and Drake said he doesnt think the added costs have made the citys housing market less attractive to buyers. Officials in Moore predicted the new rules would cost an extra dollar per square foot. In reality, those costs have been higher, according to builders, who estimate the increases at $1.50 to $2.50 for every square foot under the roof, plus about $400 to beef up each garage door. Still, builders like the changes, said Tom Pollard, last years president of the Moore Home Builders Association. I dont know if the people are even realizing its costing that much, he said. Theyre concerned obviously about their house staying together. Adopting the same code throughout Oklahoma would pay off in the long term by mitigating disaster costs, according to a cost-benefit analysis by a team led by Kevin Simmons, a professor of economics at Austin College in Sherman. We could tell the builders to build a fort, but then no one could afford it, Simmons said. So where is the sweet spot? I think what Moore did came pretty close. The tornado in Rowlett tore past Boses neighborhood and out over Lake Ray Hubbard. Her bathroom, battered and roofless and flooded, still mostly stood. But the family had to crawl out through the rest of the house, where it looked as if a bomb had exploded. Not far from the bathroom, exterior walls had been wrenched loose from the roofline and the concrete slab foundation. Bricks had tumbled onto the lawn. Boses father, a carpenter, came to help the family salvage what they could from the house they rented. He just thought it was poorly put together, Bose said. It could have killed somebody, the way it just fell apart. Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Topics Catastrophe Natural Disasters Texas Windstorm Construction Karen Quirk has been named chairman and chief operating officer of San Antonio-based Quirk Group Inc., and Luis Vazquez has been promoted to president and CEO of the managing general agency and surplus lines broker, Quirk & Company. Quirk began her insurance career at State Farm Insurance. In 1989 she joined Quirk & Company and has held several positions of increasing responsibility. Most recently she was vice president of Marketing for Quirk & Company and vice president and secretary for Quirk Group. As chairman and COO of Quirk Group, she provides leadership to the board of directors of the company in addition to serving as the liaison between the board and executives for all subsidiaries of the group. Quirk holds the Associate of Surplus Lines Insurance designation from The American Institute for Chartered Property and Casualty Underwriters. Vazquez began his insurance career as an auditor for the international department of EW Blanch Holdings Inc. In 1996, he joined Quirk & Company and has since held a variety of management positions, most recently as senior vice president. As president and CEO of Quirk & Company, Vazquez is responsible for overall leadership, revenue development and operational success of the company. Source: Quirk Group Inc. Topics Leadership An attorney for a French woman who sued the University of Oklahoma over a painting that the Nazis stole from her family says a settlement has been reached and that the university will return the painting to her. New York attorney Pierre Ciric told The Associated Press that the settlement was signed by both parties regarding ownership of the painting Shepherdess Bringing in Sheep by the impressionist master Camille Pissaro. He says under the settlement, 100 percent the paintings title will be transferred to his client, Leona Meyers. The agreement also calls for the painting to be displayed publicly at OUs Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art in Norman, Oklahoma, and a museum in France. Meyer filed the lawsuit in May 2013, saying the painting belonged to her adopted father. Meyer, a Jewish woman who lives in Paris, wrote an open letter in 2014 that said her biological family was killed at Auschwitz between 1942 and 1944. Meyer survived the Holocaust and was adopted by Raoul and Yvonne Meyer in 1946. Raoul Meyer fled to the United States, but returned to Europe in 1945 and found the painting missing. He discovered it in Geneva six years later a year after the statute of limitations ran out. He claimed subsequent owners made a weak attempt to prove the Pissarro wasnt on a list of known Nazi-looted works. A Swiss court found that post-war owners had done due diligence and rejected Meyers claim. Oklahoma oil tycoon Aaron Weitzenhoffer and his wife, Clara, purchased the painting from a New York gallery in 1956. It was donated to the university when Clara Weitzenhoffer died in 2000 A university spokeswoman didnt immediately return a phone message seeking comment. Related: Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Topics Lawsuits Fraud Oklahoma A.M. Best has upgraded the issuer credit rating (ICR) to a+ from a and affirmed the financial strength rating (FSR) of A (Excellent) of Seven Seas Insurance Company, Inc. (Riviera Beach, Fla). The outlook for the ICR has been revised to stable from positive, while the outlook for the FSR is stable. Best said the rating upgrade reflects Seven Seas outstanding underwriting and operating performance, excellent capitalization and the synergies gained from its effective low-cost distribution platform and preferential access to those it insures via the customer network of its affiliate, Tropical Shipping and Construction Company Limited (Tropical Shipping). Tropical Shipping is one of the largest transporters of containerized cargo to the Caribbean region and the Bahamas from the United States and Canada. The ratings also acknowledge managements specialty underwriting expertise within the ocean and inland marine cargo market, as well as its strong client relationships, effective loss control and risk management techniques. Partially offsetting these positive rating factors is the companys lack of surplus growth due to sizeable annual dividend payments to the parent, including an extraordinary dividend payment in 2013. Despite these payments, the companys risk-adjusted capitalization remains strong due to a conservative invested asset base coupled with exceptional operating results. Seven Seas and Tropical Shipping are ultimately owned by Saltchuk Resources, Inc., a Seattle-based holding company with a wide ranging set of subsidiaries focused on maritime operations and logistics. Source: A.M. Best Co. Topics Florida AM Best A nursing home in Marysville, Wash has again been accused of giving a patient inadequate care that resulted in death. The Daily Herald reported an Edmonds lawyer has filed a wrongful-death lawsuit against the Marysville Care Center in connection to the February 2013 death of 85-year-old Norman Mallang. The company was is also the target of a lawsuit in the death of 74-year-old Violet Riddle. According to court documents, Mallang became dehydrated and malnourished shortly after being admitted to the nursing home. He fell numerous times and also developed bed sores and MRSA. He was transferred to an Everett hospital and subsequently died from his injuries. The lawsuit claims the nursing home was negligent and didnt provide adequate care. Marysville Care Center Executive Director Brandon Davis says he is unable to discuss pending litigation. Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Topics Lawsuits Washington "The Google Compare service itself hasnt driven the success we hoped for." Google Compare announced in an email to its partners that it would be shutting down its insurance and financial products comparison service tools in the US and UK as of March 23. The lack of traction in both usage and revenue generation were named as two key reasons. Those were the headlines across the industry this week. So Google Compare is done for now. This is big news for the insurance industry that has spent the last year figuring out how to shield itself from the potential impact that the tech giant would make. It turns out it didnt make much of a splash after all. In addition to insurance, Google is backing out of credit cards, banking, and mortgage products. In their issued statement, Google is shutting down for now and focusing on improving the customer experience. Maybe they will be back in a year, maybe five years, but what can we learn from it now? When Google Compare was launched in the US last year, it took the industry by storm. The agent/broker ecosystem was skeptical of any success, but they were also fearful given Googles size, wealth, and talent could Google become a disruptor in personal auto quoting? But what the agent/broker ecosystems did was to keep their (potential) enemy close by understanding what they were doing. They watched, and hoped for failure. Meanwhile, a handful of insurers signed up to be part of the California launch: those insurers who could easily connect to the Google platform and wanted to be part of a potential success. And these companies had to explain their actions to their agents who were in the wings watching and waiting to see what would happen. I have my own thoughts on why Google Compare failed this first go-around. First, consumers can get these quote comparisons elsewhere insurers already do this. Next, maybe customers just arent quite ready for self-service compare engines but by all accounts, they soon will be. I dont think Google underestimated the complexity of insurance, nor do I think they underestimated the consumer. I think, probably, that the timing was off, and they didnt differentiate themselves from existing solutions with comparative raters. They probably lacked some of the innovation that would have been needed to differentiate them from others in the market. Google Compare, like many start-ups, at least for now, has failed. At SMA, we talk all the time about how there is an innovation journey and how even the best laid plans will sometimes fail. Part of the journey is learning through failure and then coming back better than ever. This is especially true in insurance. The industry is complicated. Its complex and heavily regulated. It experiences slow growth, a slow pace of change, and relatively small profits. And it requires lots of resources, cash, and expertise commitments over a long period of time before it pays off. SMA research shows 88% of insurers understand that innovation projects may fail. Part of that acceptance indicates a growing ability to learn from failure. So where do you place your bets moving forward? Will Google Compare opting out of insurance cause new disruption? Will new solutions move in to fill the void? Many will place their bets on strong incumbents and todays ecosystem. Insiders believe that with Google Compare moving out, it will become unappealing for outsiders to move in and try to understand it, citing that the barriers to success are too high. Others will say that something will come to disrupt and challenge the traditional ways of the comparative raters, and that outsiders, with their naivety and innovative thinking, will find a pin hole in the ecosystems and exploit the market. Either way, the wonderful thing about innovation is that it is essence of change. The only constant is change. Things happen so quickly. Innovation can flip an industry on its side overnight. Google Compare isnt going away forever; it is just shutting the blinds. While this may be a small win for the establishment insurers who viewed Googles entry as a threat, it doesnt mean these organizations should rest on their laurels. The time is now to innovate, fill a void, and improve overall services. Finally, failures and what we learn from them serve to set the ground work for change and innovation. It is part of the innovation journey to improve and adapt. As we continue this year, I am confident there will be more changes to the industry so stay tuned. This blog entry has been republished with permission from SMA. Readers are encouraged to respond using the Add Your Comments box below. The opinions posted in this blog do not necessarily reflect those of Insurance Networking News or SourceMedia. Todays seesaw markets can be worrisome to investors saving for retirement. Watching account values rise and fall can cause you to feel anxious about your simplified employee pension (SEP) plan. However, your SEP has more advantages than disadvantages, even during times of market volatility. Key Takeaways A simplified employee pension (SEP) is a type of individual retirement account that an employer or a self-employed person can establish. A SEP IRA is designed to help a company's employees save for their retirement. A SEP can also be set up by the self-employed owner for their own benefit. The maximum total contribution limits are the lesser of 25% of an employees compensation or $58,000 in 2021 and $61,000 in 2022. Saving More A simplified employee pension (SEP) is a type of individual retirement account (IRA) that an employer or a self-employed individual can establish. A SEP IRA is designed to help a company's employees save for their retirement, or a SEP can be set up by the self-employed owner for their own benefit. However, the contributions are not funded by the employees, as in the case of a 401(k), but instead, a SEP IRA is funded by the employer. The contributions are made directly to the employee's IRA. A SEP is a good retirement savings vehicle. However, rules limit the amount that can be contributed. The maximum contribution limits in 2021 and 2022 are the lesser of: 25% of an employees compensation (subject to $290,000 maximum in 2021 and $305,000 in 2022), or $58,000 in 2021 and $61,000 in 2022 Account Set Up SEP accounts are usually set up by the self-employed or a small business. The maximum value of contributions cannot exceed the lowest of the two values. Thus, both values should be calculated to determine the limit. If a SEP is established as an IRA, individuals can usually make individual contributions up to the traditional IRA limit of $6,000 in 2021 and 2022 with an additional $1,000 contribution allowed each year for those over the age of 50. SEP accounts are often a top choice for self-employed sole proprietors because it allows them to make pre-tax contributions to a retirement account of potentially $58,000 in 2021 or $61,000 in 2022 while also taking a business expense deduction. Sole proprietors are subject to special calculations for the deduction. Overall, each SEP plan will have its own provisions depending on the setup and contributor(s). Employers are required to contribute the same percentage to each employees' account, including their own as an owner. Sole proprietors may decide to choose a solo 401(k) as an alternative to a SEP. A solo 401(k) is similar to a SEP account, but it has its own rules and regulations. The solo 401(k) can allow for salary-deferred contributions of up to $19,500 in 2021 (increasing to $20,500 in 2022); however, a solo 401(k) is subject to its own special maximum contribution calculations. Tax-Free Accumulation The tax benefits of a SEP are basically the same as those of a 401k or other pre-tax retirement savings vehicle. All earnings accumulate with no immediate income tax obligations. Savings compound at a relatively high rate, giving you more money after retirement even after future taxes are paid on withdrawals. SEP contributions can also be deductible for the contributor though deductions can vary depending on the situation. Employee Benefit Most small businesses offer little in the way of pension benefits. An employer making profit-sharing contributions on behalf of its employees is providing a benefit that helps attract and retain quality employees at a lower cost than increasing salaries. Changing Investments Without Tax Liabilities A SEP is a vehicle you can use to manage a portfolio actively. All trades are made with no tax consequences. You can base decisions on total return and what market conditions dictate. Many SEP providers offer a wide range of investment choices, such as exchange traded funds (ETFs), which contain a basket of stocks to help diversify the risk associated with investing in the equity markets. Dollar-Cost Averaging Mutual funds, which are portfolios of securities managed by an investment manager, are common investment vehicles in SEP accounts. Savers can choose from several mutual funds and have their contributions deposited regularly. This passive investment strategy is a major pro in the downward stage of a volatile market since dollar-cost averaging automatically takes place. Every deposit purchases a greater number of fund shares as the market goes down and fewer shares when it is rising. What Are Some of the Advantages of a SEP Account? Some of the advantages of a SEP account include a reduction in taxable income, tax-deferred compounding, high contribution limits, and a practical way to save for retirement. What Are the Contribution Limits for a SEP Account? The contribution limit for a SEP account is the lesser of 25% of an employee's income or $58,000 in 2021. In 2020, the amount is the lesser of 25% of an employee's income or $61,000. Can I Contribute to a SEP Account? As an employee, you cannot contribute to a SEP account. Only employers can contribute to a SEP account and they decide the amount that is contributed. An employer can also decide not to contribute any amount at all. The Bottom Line A SEP retirement accounts advantages will vary depending on the setup. In the end, the only big con for investors is not choosing to participate in a SEP when one is offered. SEP accounts will have a great deal of variation for sole proprietors versus employer contributions for employees. Like any employer-offered retirement plan, SEP accounts can increase the pay received beyond a standard salary. In fact, they are usually set up as an additional employee benefit. Employees can take advantage of all the pros with minimal account management. If market volatility is driving the market down, shift to conservative investments, such as bonds. If the market starts to rise, shift assets back to stocks. If you don't want to be bothered, pick a no-load asset allocation mutual fund targeted to retirement goals and let professional portfolio managers make the market-timing decisions. Whether you are an active or passive investor, you will have much larger retirement savings than people who do nothing. For sole proprietors, SEP accounts offer the same advantages as for employees. Sole proprietor SEP accounts can be a great vehicle for individual investment savings with the option for a business expense deduction. Sole proprietor SEP contributions can be subject to their own limitations, so extra research and planning may be required. Small cap stocks offer the potential for attractive returns, but they also tend to be more volatile than equities with larger market capitalizations. Companies considered part of the small cap universe generally have market values between $300 million and $2 billion. Unlike large U.S. corporations, small cap companies generally are heavily focused on the domestic economy for growth. Investors optimistic about the future growth of smaller companies can invest in a diverse basket of small cap stocks using a small cap exchange-traded fund (ETF). But investors concerned about an economic shock, or that the current steep U.S. recession may not end soon, can short small caps through an inverse small cap ETF. Key Takeaways The three inverse small cap ETFs to short small cap stocks are MYY, SBB, and RWM. These ETFs use index swaps in order to provide inverse exposure to their underlying benchmarks. Plunging stock prices earlier this year caused by rising fears over the coronavirus pandemic officially plunged U.S. equities into a bear market in 2020. The S&P 500 fell 33.8% between February 19 and March 23 of this year. But inverse small cap ETFs, which use various financial derivatives to provide short exposure to small cap stocks, rose significantly over the same period. Inverse ETFs can be riskier investments than non-inverse ETFs, because they are only designed to achieve the inverse of their benchmark's one-day returns. You should not expect that they will do so on longer-term returns. For example, an inverse ETF may return 1% on a day when its benchmark falls -1%, but you shouldn't expect it to return 10% in a year when its benchmark falls -10%. For more details, see this SEC alert. There are 3 inverse ETFs for shorting small cap stocks, excluding leveraged ETFs. While these ETFs rose significantly during the short bear market plunge earlier this year, they have fallen dramatically over the past 12 months as equities have recovered from the crash. The S&P 500 has provided a total return of 22.4% over the past year. The best-performing inverse small cap ETF, based on performance during the bear market earlier this year, is the ProShares Short Midcap 400 (MYY). We examine the 3 inverse ETFs to short small cap stocks below. All numbers in this story are as of September 1, 2020. ETFs with very low assets under management (AUM), less than $50 million, usually have lower liquidity than larger ETFs. This can result in higher trading costs which can negate some of your investment gains or increase your losses. Performance from Feb. 19, 2020 to Mar. 23, 2020: 59.3% Performance over 1-Year: -17.3% Expense Ratio: 0.95% Annual Dividend Yield: 0.66% 3-Month Average Daily Volume: 15,382 Assets Under Management: $24.1 million Inception Date: June 21, 2006 Issuer: ProShares MYY provides short exposure to both small cap and mid cap stocks tracked by the S&P MidCap 400 Index. Technically, mid cap companies generally have market capitalizations between $2 billion and $10 billion. However, there is no strict dividing line between small cap and mid cap, with many brokers drawing their own lines between the two categories. This ETF thus provides exposure to many small cap stocks in addition to mid cap stocks. The ETF uses various index swaps to provide -1x exposure to the daily performance of its index. The fund's returns are compounded on a daily basis, which can lead to results that are significantly different from the target return when held for periods longer than a day. MYY is intended for sophisticated investors with a short-term time horizon. Performance from Feb. 19, 2020 to Mar. 23, 2020: 57.3% Performance over 1-Year: -15.6% Expense Ratio: 0.95% Annual Dividend Yield: 0.59% 3-Month Average Daily Volume: 18,705 Assets Under Management: $12.5 million Inception Date: January 23, 2007 Issuer: ProShares SBB offers short exposure to stocks tracked by the S&P SmallCap 600 Index, an index comprised of small cap U.S. equities. The ETF seeks to provide a return that is -1x the daily return of its index. It uses a variety of index swaps to provide the inverse exposure to small cap stocks. The fund's returns are compounded on a daily basis, resulting in results that may deviate significantly from the target return. SBB is intended for sophisticated investors able to monitor their holdings on a daily basis. Performance from Feb. 19, 2020 to Mar. 23, 2020: 55.4% Performance over 1-Year: -19.8% Expense Ratio: 0.95% Annual Dividend Yield: 1.02% 3-Month Average Daily Volume: 2,418,570 Assets Under Management: $459.7 million Inception Date: January 25, 2007 Issuer: ProShares RWM offers short exposure to stocks tracked by the Russell 2000 Index, an index comprised of small cap U.S. equities. The ETF seeks to provide a return that is -1x the daily performance of its underlying benchmark. It uses a variety of index swaps in order to provide short exposure to some of the smallest equities in the U.S. equity market. The fund's returns are compounded on a daily basis, which leads to results that may significantly differ from the target return. SBB is not intended for investors with a long-term buy-and-hold strategy. The comments, opinions and analyses expressed herein are for informational purposes only and should not be considered individual investment advice or recommendations to invest in any security or to adopt any investment strategy. While we believe the information provided herein is reliable, we do not warrant its accuracy or completeness. The views and strategies described on our content may not be suitable for all investors. Because market and economic conditions are subject to rapid change, all comments, opinions, and analyses contained within our content are rendered as of the date of the posting and may change without notice. The material is not intended as a complete analysis of every material fact regarding any country, region, market, industry, investment, or strategy. When you visit the site, Dotdash Meredith and its partners may store or retrieve information on your browser, mostly in the form of cookies. Cookies collect information about your preferences and your devices and are used to make the site work as you expect it to, to understand how you interact with the site, and to show advertisements that are targeted to your interests. You can find out more about our use, change your default settings, and withdraw your consent at any time with effect for the future by visiting Cookies Settings, which can also be found in the footer of the site. Running for president of the United States is an expensive proposition. In the 2012 presidential campaign, incumbent Barack Obama and challenger Mitt Romney each spent over $1 billion, in what was the most expensive presidential election ever at the time, with Obama winning a second term. In 2016, the overall cost of the White House racespending by all the candidatestotaled under $2.4 billion that year (versus 2012s total spending of $2.6 billion). However, the 2020 election blew all previous spending records away. In total, the election cost an unprecedented $14 billion, making it twice as expensive as the previous presidential election cycle. American citizens of every political persuasion may justifiably wonder where all that money comes from and how its spent. Lets have a look. Key Takeaways One major source of funding for candidates is the super PAC, a political action committee that can spend unlimited amounts of anonymously donated funds for their favorite. Candidates can also directly raise funds from donors large and small. Almost half the money raised goes to media advertising; the second largest chunk is for campaign administrative costs. Super PACs A major source of campaign financing is the super PAC, short for special political action committee. A Supreme Court decision in the 2010 case of Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission allowed these organizations to spend unlimited amounts of money on their preferred candidate. They are not required to fully disclose the names of their contributors, and they are prohibited by the law from coordinating their political activities with their candidate of choice. The money spent by super PACs is part of a presidential campaign, although it technically does not represent money spent by the candidate. As of May 17, 2021, 2,276 groups organized as super PACs have reported total receipts of $3,427,543,995 and total independent expenditures of $2,128,047,603 in the 20192020 cycle. Fundraising According to the Federal Election Commission (FEC) and reports from the candidates and media, money comes from a variety of sources, including large donors, small donors, and organizational donations. During the springtime primaries leading up to the 2016 election, Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton raised about $160 million and the super PAC Priorities USA Action raised over $55 million for her. Assuming a maximum donation amount of $2,700, approximately 73% of Clintons raised funds were large individual contributions. Bernie Sanders, who refused the support of super PACs, raised close to $140 million, and 67% of it had come from small individual contributions, which averaged $27. On the other end of the political aisle, Republican Ted Cruz raised $66 million himself and $52 million was donated to super PACs that supported him. During the primaries for the 2016 election, Donald Trump was largely self-funded, with 70% of his campaign funds coming from loans he had taken out; the super PACs in his favor raised a relatively paltry $2 million. Trump began raising money for his 2020 campaign shortly after he was elected. While some experts predicted that it would be impossible for any candidate to out-raise him, Joe Bidens campaign beat fundraising records and ended up surpassing the Trump campaigns fundraising haul during the final months of the election cycle. In 2020, Biden raised approximately $1,044,187,828 in candidate committee money and $580,113,800 in outside money in getting elected, while Trump raised approximately $773,954,550 in candidate committee money and $313,954,719 in outside money in defeat. (During the 2016 presidential campaign, Trump is said to have received free media attention valued at about $5 billion.) How Money Is Spent According to OpenSecrets.org, a release of data by the FEC showed that 48.9% (or $354.8 million) of donations go toward media advertisements, with administrative costs coming in second at 24.6%. Campaign expenses such as consulting, events, and surveys make up 12.8%, and 11.8% goes toward fundraising for donations. Less than 2% of expenditures are dedicated to loan payments, contribution refunds, parties, and miscellaneous costs. The Bottom Line To provide the necessary millions required to run for president, candidates draw funding from donors large and small and rely on super PACs to join the effort through advertising and other political activities. The bulk of the campaign funds collected are spent on mediaprint, broadcast, and Internet advertising. But having a lot of money is no guarantee of a successful run for the presidency, either in the primary races or after the party candidates have been nominated. Detailed monthly data on campaign spending is filed by both major-party candidates with the FEC. Its comprehensive reports on campaign spending are available online to the public. As president of the United States, Donald Trump was likely the wealthiest individual to inhabit the White House and his net worth remains a topic for debate. In 2015, Donald Trump claimed in a press release that he was worth more than $10 billion, however, his net worth as of 2022 is estimated at $3 billion. Key Takeaways Donald Trump is the founder of The Trump Organization, a private entity. He is required to submit a financial disclosure document each year, although numbers are self-reported and dont provide an accurate estimate of his net worth. Forbes estimates Donald Trump's net worth at $3 billion although Trump has claimed the value at $10 billion. The Trump Organization Since 1976, Donald Trump grew his wealth through global commercial, resort, and residential real estate development under the umbrella of The Trump Organization. As a private entity, The Trump Organization is not required to publish financial statements in the same manner as a publicly-traded company. Donald Trump famously refused to publish his tax returns, which would show his annual income and taxes paid or owed. Although The New York Times published abbreviated information from Trump's tax returns on Sept. 27, 2020, the disclosure failed to provide details about his actual net worth. As a former president, Trump completes a required annual financial disclosure to the U.S. Office of Government Ethics. Government financial disclosures may list assets and investments but in estimates and broad value ranges. In 2021, many of Trump's properties were valued at "over $50 million," however, these estimates are self-reported, unaudited, and also differ from numbers The Trump Organization has reported to state and local tax officials. 71 The number of properties in the portfolio owned and operated by The Trump Organization. This total includes commercial and residential real estate, golf courses, hotels, and personal estates. Assets In May 2022, Forbes estimated Trumps net worth at $3 billion, falling short of the $10 billion estimates that Trump suggested while running for office in 2015. Forbes' numbers marry with the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, which placed the former presidents net worth at $2.97 billion in August 2020.Forbes has attempted to break down Trump's net worth by assets. Net Worth The value of all assets minus liabilities. Much of Trumps wealth is tied to multi-use buildings in Manhattan, including retail real estate in the busy Midtown district. His highest value asset is a 30% stake in the office and retail space at 1290 Avenue of the Americas, valued at $2.2 billion, with a debt value of $950 million on the property. The Trump Organization owns several exclusive golf properties estimated at $730 million, including clubs in Scotland and Dubai. Trump's private golf club in Palm Beach, Fla, Mar-a-Lago, is valued at $350 million. Trump holds approximately $275 million in cash and liquid assets. Other personal assets include three Florida homes and his 11,000-square-foot residence in New York City, the Trump Tower penthouse. Residential units throughout the United States and around the globe have an estimated value of $340 million. This includes hotels and residential locations in Chicago, Las Vegas, San Francisco, Europe, Asia, and South America. Donald Trump announced in October 2021 that he was creating his own social media platform. Truth Social, held through Trump Media, garnered Donald Trump $430 million from investors. The Donald Trump brand, including his licensing and management business, is valued at just over $50 million. Trump holds roughly $275 million in cash and liquid assets. Other personal assets include three Florida homes and his 11,000-square-foot residence in New York Citythe Trump Tower penthouse. Trumps vast real estate empire includes approximately residential units throughout the United States. This includes hotels and retail locations in Chicago, Las Vegas, and San Francisco. What Are Donald Trump's Estimated Liablities? Trump has a lengthy financial record which includes corporate bankruptcies and lawsuits. In 2021, Trump Organization owed $590 million in debts due within four years by 2025. What Prominent Real Estate Locations in New York City Has Donald Trump Owned? Donald Trump has owned and sold many buildings in New York including the Plaza Hotel, the St. Moritz Hotel, now the Ritz Carlton on Central Park South, and the land under the Empire State Building. What Is Considered One of Trump's Bad Investment Decisions? In 2014, Donald Trump partnered with an Azerbaijani family that U.S. officials called notoriously unethical. The building, a five-star hotel, and residence called the Trump International Hotel & Tower Baku in Azerbaijan has never opened. The Bottom Line Donald Trump's net worth has ranged in estimates from $3 billion to $10 billion. With his private firm, The Trump Organization, and its limited public disclosures, it has been difficult to capture the true net worth of his global commercial, resort, and residential real estate as well as his licensing and social media ventures. The utilities sector is an essential aspect of any healthy economy. The equities included in this industry range from gas and electric companies to transmission providers. Essentially, it comes down to the companies that support the very infrastructure of any modern civilization. Leaders of utilities are some of the highest paid, and many of these executives have been working for decades for their respective companies. Here are some of the highest-paid executives in the utilities sector as of 2019. Key Takeaways Executives in this industry earn a base pay of $1~2 million. They can earn additional annual incentive pay and long-term incentive pay that adds another $10 million or so to their pay package. NextEra Energy CEO James Robo is one of the highest-paid in the industry, pulling in $21.87 million in compensation. Thomas F. Farrell II Thomas F. Farrell II is the president, chair and CEO of Dominion Energy (D), positions which he has held since April 2007. He joined Dominion as a company director in 2005. Farrell is one of the highest-paid executives in the utilities sector. In 2019, he earned $2.56 million in pay, which includes $1.55 million in base salary plus annual incentive pay. He also received another $11.48 million in long-term incentive pay, bringing his total compensation for the year to about $14.05 million. In addition, Farrell holds 996,316 common shares of Dominion Energy and 224,226 restricted shares. Dominion Energy is headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, and supplies energy to more than seven million customers in 20 states. In July 2020, it sold its gas transmission and storage business to Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A, BRK.B) in a deal valued at $9.7 billion. Christopher Crane Christopher Crane is the president and CEO of Exelon (EXC). He has been a director at the company since 2012 and was president chief operating officer of Exelon and Exelon Generation from 2008 through 2012. In 2019, Crane received $15.44 million in compensation. This consisted of $1.34 million in base salary, $11 million in stock awards and the remainder coming other forms of compensation. He owns 1.04 million shares of the company. His retirement package was worth $34 million at the end of 2019. Exelon is headquartered in Chicago. It has operations in 48 states, the District of Columbia and Canada. Crane joined the company in 1998, when it was ComEd, and became chief nuclear officer in 2004. James Robo James Robo is the president, chief executive and chair of NextEra Energy (NEE). He has been president and CEO since July 2012, and was appointed chair in December 2013. In 2019, Robo received $21.87 million in compensation. This included a base salary of $1.45 million, stock awards of $11.74 million, option awards of $2.83 million, non-equity incentive pay of $4.6 million, and other forms of compensation. He owns approximately 1 million shares of the company. NextEra Energy is headquartered in Juno Beach, Fla. The company owns two electric companies in Florida, wind and solar businesses, and eight nuclear power plants in Florida, New Hampshire, Iowa and Wisconsin. Nicholas Akins Nicholas Akins is president, chief executive and chair of American Electric Power (AEP). Akins was an executive vice president from 2006 to 2011, when he became CEO. He was named chair in 2014. In 2019, Akins earned $14.5 million in total compensation. Of this, $1.48 million was base salary, $8.8 million was stock awards, $3.6 million was non-equity incentive pay and the remainder came from other forms of compensation. American Electric Power serves more than five million retail customers in Arkansas, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Ohio, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and West Virginia. The Internet has become such a powerful tool for home buying and selling that its worth asking whether its still worth it to hold open houses. Statistics suggest that it may not be. According to the National Association of Realtors (NAR), just 7% of buyers found the home they bought by visiting an open house or seeing a yard sign. Not surprisingly, a majority of buyers used websites or apps in their home search, and more than half (51%) ended up finding the home that they ultimately bought online. That statistic jumps to 61% for thirty-somethings. Another factor: the COVID-19 pandemic, which led many realtors to suspend open houses in 2020 and 2021, at least in the early days. Here are six reasons why open houses may no longer be an effective sales tool. Key Takeaways Most buyers dont visit open houses and instead use the Internet to browse homes and narrow down their choices. Open houses may benefit real estate agents more than sellers, because they serve as a way for agents to meet prospective clients. The risk of theft is a major downside of open houses. Visitors can either steal jewelry and other valuable items or scope out the location for a future break-in. 1. Homebuyers Shop Online The first step that most buyers take during the home-buying process is to look online for properties for sale, according to the National Association of Realtors. Buyers do most of their research online, narrowing down their options before they even contact a real estate agent. Real estate aggregator websites allow buyers to search for properties by ZIP code or neighborhood, and filter the results by size, number of bedrooms and bathrooms, features, and even keywords (e.g., waterfront). These websites also show price history, property tax details, school system ratings, and other metrics to help buyers make decisions. The second step that most buyers take is to contact a real estate agent, who can provide access to homes on the buyers schedule rather than during an open house. 2. Real Estate Agents Can Benefit More Than Sellers Open houses are supposed to attract potential buyers, but often, all they do is bring new clients to real estate agents. Thats because unrepresented buyers frequently go to open houses, which means potential new business for an agent. It also means that those potential buyers could learn about other homes for sale if your agent talks about them during your open house. That creates an awkward situation, which may sour your relationship with the agent. 3. Looky-Loos Might Be Your Only Open House Visitors Opening a home to strangers can be a hassle, especially if it turns out that curious neighbors and looky-loospeople who have no intention of buyingare the only visitors. Lots of people who arent in the market go to open houses out of curiosity or to get ideas for their homes. And while it may be a fun way for them to get decorating ideas, it can feel like a big waste of time for you. After all, serious buyers can contact your agent directly to get a showing. 4. Open Houses Can Attract Thieves and Burglars One of the risks of an open house is that you could be the victim of theft. Since anyone can go to an open house, it creates an opportunity for thieves to steal cash, jewelry, electronics, and prescription drugs. They can even steal your identity if they get hold of bank statements, credit cards, passports, or USB flash drives with sensitive information. Also, savvy criminals can use an open house as a way to scope out your home for a future break-in. While its difficult to estimate how many thefts occur during or as a result of open houses, some police departments around the country have issued warnings to homeowners and real estate agents about the risk of being robbed. 5. Open Houses Cost Money Time is money, and the longer it takes to sell your home, the more costs you will incurincluding the cost to host open houses. There are generally candles, cake, and drinks, for starters. Also, you may have to run the air conditioning or heat more than usual, which means a higher utility bill. Dont forget the time, cost, and stress of keeping the house in show-ready condition and getting the kids and pets out of the house. These little things may not seem like a lot, but they can quickly add up, especially if you host multiple open houses before you find a buyer. 45% Percentage of realtors who suspended holding open houses at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, according to a survey by the National Association of Realtors. 6. COVID-19 and Other Health Risks The COVID-19 pandemic has curtailed open houses because many sellers don't want strangers in their homes, and many buyers dont want to risk going into someone elses space. It could be that in the post-COVID world, buyers and sellers still might shy away from open houses. If thats the case, then professional imageryincluding high-resolution photographs, virtual video tours, and drone footagecould become even more important to buyers and sellers alike. The Bottom Line Rewind a couple of decades, and open houses were one of the few ways that buyers could see homes for sale. Today, however, the Internet makes it easy for buyers to search and view homes online. As a result, the open house isnt such a winning proposition anymore. Not only does it take time and money, but also, you are taking a risk by opening up your home to strangers. Add data that doesnt support the effectiveness of open houses, and it may make more sense to put your efforts elsewhere. Top News - Investor Idea Mullen (NASDAQ: MULN) Continues Acquisition Path With Purchase of ELMS Assets Including Factory in Mishawaka, IN., Enabling EV Production for Retail and Commercial Vehicle Lines BREA, Calif. - October 19, 2022 (Investorideas.com Newswire) Mullen Automotive, Inc. (NASDAQ: MULN), an emerging electric vehicle ("EV") manufacturer, announces the US Bankruptcy Court approval on Oct. 13th, 2022 of its acquisition of electric vehicle company ELMS's (Electric Last Mile Solutions) assets in an all cash purchase. Top EV Stock News - Investor Idea Breaking EV Stock News: Mullen Automotive (NASDAQ: $MULN) Taps Former GM Executive John Schwegman as Chief Commercial Officer for Next Phase of EV Growth BREA, Calif. - October 21, 2022 (Investorideas.com Newswire) Mullen Automotive, Inc. (NASDAQ: MULN), an emerging electric vehicle ("EV") manufacturer, announces today the hiring of John Schwegman as its Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) for Mullen's line of commercial vehicles. Top EV Stock News - Investor Idea EV Stocks Driving Higher: (NASDAQ: $MULN) (NASDAQ: $TSLA) (NYSE: $NIO) (NYSE: $F) Vancouver, Delta, BC - October 20, 2022 (Investorideas.com Newswire) Investorideas.com, a leading investor news resource covering EV and automotive stocks releases a special report featuring Mullen Automotive, Inc. (NASDAQ: MULN), covering the continued growth of the EV market as government policy and infrastructure plans sync up with consumer and investor interest in the EV space. Top AI Stock News - Investor Idea Breaking AI Stock News: FatBrain (OTCQB: LZGI) Acquires Confidential Computing Platform ZeroTrust to Protect Data Privacy and Accelerate Innovation for Millions of Growth Businesses NEW YORK, NY - October 19, 2022 (Investorideas.com Newswire) FatBrain AI (LZG International, Inc.) (OTCQB: LZGI), the leader in powerful and easy-to-use artificial intelligence (AI) solutions for star enterprises of tomorrow, has acquired the confidential computing and privacy intellectual property (IP) plus software assets of Zero2A PTE LTD ("ZeroTrust Platform"), a software company based in Singapore. Check out our Podcasts for great investor ideas: Get new posts by email: Subscribe Powered by Investorideas.com Newswire: Subscribe to Investor Ideas Newswire Press Release IPU Cambodia mission urges dialogue to resolve MPs cases Geneva, 19 February 2016 Members of the IPU delegation met Cambodia's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Interior, Sar Kheng (second from left). IPU A delegation from the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) has visited Cambodia to investigate allegations of human rights violations against 12 opposition politicians. The mission, from IPUs Committee on the Human Rights of Parliamentarians, met most of the 12, who have made a number of serious allegations including physical assault, threats, intimidation, violation of their freedom of expression and assembly, and the lack of fair trial guarantees and independence of the judiciary in repeated legal procedures against them. The delegation held a series of high-level meetings with parliamentary, executive and judicial authorities, including the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Interior, the Minister of Justice and the Prosecutor General. Talks were also held with senior leaders of the governing CPP and opposition CNRP parties, and with representatives of the international community and civil society organizations. The delegation found all these meetings useful and constructive. It said it was encouraged by plans by the governing and opposition parties for the immediate resumption of political dialogue to find an urgent political solution to the cases, reaffirming the need for international human rights standards and the Cambodian constitutional and legal framework to be respected. The two-day mission to Cambodia, which ended on 17 February, was aimed at gaining a better understanding of the 12 cases and of the political and human rights contexts in which they occurred, and at finding satisfactory solutions in line with Cambodian and international law. The delegation members - Bahraini parliamentarian Ali Abdullah Alaradi and Abatalib Gueye of Senegal - will report back to the Committee at the IPU Assembly in Lusaka in March, and will later produce a report containing its conclusions and recommendations, the observations of all relevant stakeholders and any further developments. The cases under investigation involve Cambodian opposition leader Sam Rainsy, who is currently in exile, Senator Sok Hour Hong, whom the team visited in jail, and 10 others - Chan Cheng, Kong Sophea, Nhay Chamreoun, Mu Sochua, Keo Phirum, Ho Van, Long Ry, Nut Romdoul, Men Sothavarin, Real Khemarin. IPU has meanwhile renewed its offer to provide all appropriate technical assistance to the Cambodian Parliament to strengthen parliamentary democracy and the rule of law, if the authorities request such assistance. IPUs Committee on the Human Rights of Parliamentarians undertakes missions, with the permission of relevant authorities, where it feels it would be helpful to gather first-hand information, speak to the MPs concerned and hold discussions with officials. The Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) is the global organization of national parliaments. It works to safeguard peace and drives positive democratic change through political dialogue and concrete action. Iran dented the efforts of other big oil exporters to limit production Wednesday by refusing to curb its own output, demonstrating the limits of OPEC's power to boost prices amid rising tensions among its members. Oil minister of Iran, Bijan Zanganeh's decision threw into question the future of a plan brokered by Saudi Arabia and Russia this week for major oil producing countries to limit their output to last month's levels. The efforts come as the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries scrambles to find ways to prop up an oil market rocked by surging production that outpaces demand by more than one million barrels on any given day. Prices have fallen by two-thirds since June 2014, throwing global markets into turmoil and ravaging OPEC countries like Venezuela and Nigeria and nonmember Russia. The broken-down oil talks also added a new layer to the heightening tensions between Saudi Arabia and Iran, longtime rivals who are the Middle East's dominant powers for the Sunni and Shiite strains of Islam, respectively. Iran and Saudi Arabia are backing opposing sides on several battlefields, including Syria, where Iran supports President Bashar al-Assad and Saudi Arabia supports opposition groups who want to unseat him in the country's five-year war. Saudi Arabia is also leading a military coalition in Yemen fighting Shiite Houthi rebels whom Iran says it supports politically. The tensions reached new heights in January when Iranians angered by Saudi Arabia's execution of a prominent Shiite cleric stormed and set fire to Saudi diplomatic buildings in Iran. Saudi Arabia then cut all diplomatic and commercial ties with the Islamic Republic. The countries are also increasingly at odds in the oil business since Western sanctions against Iran were lifted in January. Tehran and Riyadh are waging a price war as they approach refineries in Europe, a market that Saudi Arabia swooped into when Iran was forced out by sanctions. An Iranian official cited Saudi Arabia's production increase while Iran was crippled by sanctions as a reason to snub any output deal now. The conflicts between OPEC's two most influential members have made it increasingly difficult to coordinate action within the 13-nation cartel that controls more than a third of the world's oil. Saudi Arabia and other supporters of production limits didn't offer official reactions to Iran's inaction, but some were privately dismayed. OPEC's president, Qatar's oil minister Mohammed Bin Saleh al-Sada, led a delegation to Tehran on Wednesday to try to persuade Iran's oil ministry to join in limits. After a two-hour meeting over pastries, the group left without issuing a statement or joining Mr. Zanganeh at a later news conference. "Not very encouraging," said an OPEC official from a Persian Gulf Arab country. The attempt to get Russia and OPEC on the same page represented a departure for Saudi Arabia, which had been convinced that limiting output only helped rival producers. With prices so low, Saudi Arabia saw the talks with Russia, Iran and others as an exercise in building trust, said another OPEC official from a Persian Gulf Arab country. Production curbs are difficult to monitor, and Saudi Arabia has accused Russia, Iran and others of violating agreements in the past. U.S. oil prices settled up 5.62% Wednesday at $30.66 a barrel, as expectations that Iran would reject the Saudi plan altogether faded. Mr. Zanganeh said the Saudi agreement with Russia and others was a "first step and more steps must follow." David Meaney, portfolio manager at BP Capital LP, said, "Short-term, if OPEC is able to agree on anything, that's a step in the right direction." But Wednesday's talks offered little hope that the world's oil-supply surplus would be addressed soon. Surging output from Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Russia and the U.S. were part of the reason for the supply glut. Output has fallen in the U.S., with data released Wednesday showing North Dakota's fell to its lowest levels since August 2014. But even if the OPEC producers and Russia decided to limit output to January levels, demand wouldn't catch up with supply until late this year. Venezuela, Russia and Iran are all facing exceptional challenges. Caracas's economy is contracting after years of social overspending, Moscow is subject to stringent international sanctions while Tehran is only starting to recover from decades of isolation. Limiting production would clash with Iran's national priorities now that sanctions over its nuclear program have been lifted. Iranian officials have said they are well on their way to increasing output by one million barrels a day this year and won't consider limits until then. Earlier Wednesday, Venezuelan president Nicola s Maduro tweeted a statement praising the decision by Saudi Arabia and Russia in Doha to freeze output. But he didn't make any reference to the Tehran meeting where his country was also represented. Mr. Zanganeh told state media that he talked to Mr. Sada and Venezuela's oil minister Eulogio del Pino about the importance of Iran's return to the export market. Shana, the state-run news service of Iran's oil ministry, said, "They viewed the reality with a logical view." There are doubts that Iran can ramp up production as quickly as its oil ministry says. Tehran recently canceled a forum in London to unveil new terms for international oil companies to work in Iran because the contracts haven't been completed. Iran says it needs $30 billion in oil-and-gas-field investments to achieve its long-term production goals. Another missing piece for OPEC is Iraq. The country has contributed to the global glut with record production reaching 4.35 million barrels a daythe second-most in OPEC. The increased output represents the renaissance that has taken place in Iraq's oil industry since the fall of Saddam Hussein, but also the country's deep need for moneyas it furiously pumps oil to generate revenue to fight its war with Islamic State. Iraqi officials have signaled that they are willing to limit their production, if others follow suit. Iraq's oil minister attended the meeting in Tehran but didn't comment afterward. OPEC has overcome more serious conflicts than those facing Saudi Arabia and Iran. Kuwait and Iraqi oil ministers managed to sit down at the same table to discuss production even after Iraq's invasion in 1990. Iraq and Iran coordinated production during a brutal war in the 1980s. Previous OPEC production cuts took months to negotiate and there were often false starts. | Soruce: NASDAQ | By S.Seal Luke Waters, ex-top homicide detective in New York and a Dublin native, will give you a different perspective on undocumented immigration. Even The New York Times recognizes that. As reviewer Sam Roberts wrote about Waters new book, 'NYPD Green: An Irish-Born Detectives Twenty Years on the Mean Streets of New York,' Luke Waters will make you think twice about illegal immigrants. Roberts continues, In 'NYPD Green,' Mr. Waters, a first-time author who arrived in the city in the 1980s and overstayed his visa, takes readers on an inspiring, inside tour of the human toll, and the satisfactions, of becoming a cop. Instead of following his grandfather and brother into An Garda Siochana (the police force in his native Dublin), Mr. Waters worked his way up from New York rookie cop to homicide detective, retiring after two decades. I put about a thousand lawbreakers behind bars in my time carrying a badge, he writes, and although I made plenty of mistakes, I never took a dime I wasnt entitled to, never set a perp up for a crime he did not commit. Not once did I have to pull the trigger off the range. Now isnt that the kind of immigrant we need and should not seek to block? Alas, Waters, who later joined an FBI led task force against Mexican drug lords, got no break or extra recognition at all. Despite his bravery and outstanding record, it took years for Waters to become legal. It was somewhat ironic that he was later made a federal agent in a huge drugs case in order to have him work in tandem with the FBI. A wild drug war between gangs brought him to Puerto Rico and eventually back to New York where, in a huge operation, the most wanted drug dealer in the country, Leit Fernandini, who had supplied the whole Bronx, was captured by Waters and his fellow feds and cops. Waters is telling his story now and it has met with great interest. Simon and Schuster has published his book in America while the movie rights are currently being negotiated. Who will play him? Danny DeVito, laughs the strapping 6-footer during a recent chat. For a kid from Dublins tough Northside, Waters has come a long way. Yet he continues to think about others. He is especially exercised by the lack of Irish now joining the NYPD, pointing out last year was the first time in living memory no Irish-born person applied. While the city's ethnic makeup has changed, something Waters acknowledges, he still says the Irish with their ability to communicate, calm people down, use their charm can get to the bottom of a case much more quickly than anyone. He especially regrets that immigration from Ireland no longer occurs in any great numbers and says America is much the poorer for it. These days Luke Waters has learned to trust himself and his ability to get things done which is why he wants to fight for immigration reform even as the political landscape looks bleak. But how could it be any bleaker than what he faced when he came to America, overstayed his visa and became undocumented, yet somehow fashioned an amazing career as top cop and now best-selling writer? As he says himself, When the punches, bullets or recriminations start to fly keep smiling and stand your ground. But dont forget to duck. Luke Waters, homicide detective, federal agent, best selling author, is an original. The new movie "Hail, Caesar!" starring George Clooney is loosely based on the life of a notorious Irish Catholic thug from New Jersey who according to a recent feature in the New York Post bribed cops, bedded hundreds of would-be actresses, ran with the mob and may have ordered the killing of Superman George Reeves. But mob ties and murder allegations may not be the worst of it: Mannix also played a role in what is widely considered to be the nastiest anti-Irish movie to ever make its way out of Hollywood. He was born Joseph Edgar Allen John Mannix, though by the time he had risen up the ranks at the MGM movie studio, he was known as Eddie. Mannix (played by Josh Brolin in "Hail, Caesar!") was born in Fort Lee, NJ and became an infamous fixer for the stars to whom he touted his Catholic faith, but only as an explanation as to why he could never get a divorce despite the many romantic affairs he engaged in. He was married in 1916 to Bernice Fitzmaurice, a daughter of Irish immigrants. Soon enough Mannix was stepping out on his wife, but divorce was not an option given the religion of both Mannix and his wife. It was in 1927 that Mannix began working as an MGM producer on a little picture about poor Irish immigrants entitled "The Callahans and the Murphys." Initial buzz on the picture was strong. Legendary comic actor Harold Lloyd thought it was one of the funniest movies ever made, according to Hollywood biographer Betty Lee. But once the film began hitting theaters, many Irish moviegoers complained about the films use of cliches and stereotypes. There was lots of drunken brawling in the movie. The depiction of tenement life in general not to mention Irish American life specifically was so offensive to so many that boycotts were swiftly organized. A group calling itself The American Irish Vigilance Committee blasted the film because it vilified Irish home life. Mannix and other producers on the film scrambled to re-edit the movie to halt the protests and boycotts. Editorial writers at the The Irish World newspaper were not pleased with the results. The so-called revision by MGM consists of the elimination of some of the features to which objection was taken, but it fails. The Simian grimaces...are vulgar and unseemly and a caricature of Irish women, the paper wrote. One worker on the movie lamented that the Irish were picketing the theaters and sending a long scroll to the studio signed by thousands of names, protesting our deliberate attempt to ridicule the Irish. Eventually, Cardinal Dennis Joseph Dougherty of Philadelphia called on MGM to pull "The Callahans and the Murphys" from all theaters. Mannix and other producers on the film begrudgingly complied. Many at MGM were particularly surprised by the uproar because many of the people who worked on the film were Irish themselves. As Lee writes: The producer, Eddie Mannix, had nothing but Irish blood in his veins, while director George Hills grandparents were born in Ireland. Either way, the whole mess over "The Callahans and the Murphys" would have long-term consequences for Mannix and everyone else in Hollywood. The justifications for the strict movie code that would eventually be passed, censoring all Hollywood films by the early 1930s, were not merely about sexual content. Religious and ethnic minorities, such as the Irish, were also sick and tired of films they deemed offensive. As for Mannix, he remained a Hollywood mover and shaker. Hollywood legend has that he fixed problems for everyone from Spencer Tracy (whod slept with a 14 year-old Judy Garland) to Clark Gable (who may have killed a pedestrian while driving drunk). Most notoriously, Mannix knew about an affair his second wife was having with "Superman" actor Reeves. After Reeves moved on, in June of 1959, he was found shot dead after a party. Officially ruled a suicide, many in Hollywood whispered that Mannix had arranged the killing. Maybe. But that allegation is not really much uglier than what Mannix (who died in 1963 at the age of 72) had done with "The Callahans and the Murphys." * Contact sidewalks@tdeignan.blogspot.com. On Friday, the people of Ireland will take to the voting stations to elect their new government. A lot has changed in Ireland since the last general election in 2011, and the outcome of the 2016 general election is still being widely debated as the parties engage in a whirlwind of last minute campaigning. Are you Irish living abroad and therefore (rather unfairly) unable to vote? Have you been keeping up with all the Irish election drama as a matter of interest? We want to know which party, if any, would have your vote in Fridays election. Read more: 83% of young Irish people plan to vote in Fridays general election Readers unfamiliar with the Irish election process should keep in mind that the Irish electoral system differs from that of the US in that Irish citizens cast votes for candidates to represent their constituencies in the Dail (Irish parliament) instead of voting for a single leader who represents their party. In Ireland, the party that wins the most Dail seats gains control (or, sometimes, two parties will agree to govern as a coalition, as Fine Gael and Labour have done for the past five years) and the leader of that party is typically voted into office as Taoiseach (Prime Minister) by the Dail when it enters session following the election. In some cases, a voters favorite representative for their constituency might not be with the party he or she would like to see in power overall, which means they must prioritize which is more important to them as a voter. Would you want Fine Gael / Labour to remain in power with Enda Kenny at the helm? Or Fianna Fail to make a comeback from their historic loss in 2011? Would you hope to add to Sinn Feins strides in popularity? Or would one of the smaller parties or independent candidates get your vote? Read our brief guide to each of the parties and their positions (or, fine, skip ahead if your mind is already made up) and cast your vote in our poll below. We'd love to hear your reasoning in the comment section, too. Fine Gael Party profile: Currently in power as the leader in a Fine Gael - Labour coalition, Fine Gael is Irelands center-right, Christian Democratic party. Its origins lie with the pro-treaty (the Anglo-Irish Treaty of 1921) side of the Irish Civil War. Party leader: Enda Kenny Platform issues: Job creation (200,000 new jobs by 2020), infrastructure spending to reduce unemployment, an end to the Universal Service Charge tax, establishing a $2.75 billion "rainy day" fund for emergencies; establish a Citizens Assembly to tackle the abortion debate. Slogans: "Your hard work is working and "Let's keep the recovery going" Labour Party profile: Labour is Irelands center-left, social Democrat party. It was founded in 1912 by Irelands famous labor activists James Connolly, James Larkin and William OBrien. Party leader: Joan Burton Platform issues: Job creation, increasing the minimum wage, free primary medical care, holding a referendum on repealing the 8th amendment to the Irish constitution, which bans abortion. Slogans: "Standing up for working families" and "Standing up for Ireland's future" Fianna Fail Party profile: The Fianna Fail party also stems back to Irish Civil War (& the Anglo-Irish Treaty), with Fianna Fail emerging as the anti-treaty, Republican political force. A centrist party, Fianna Fail is seen as slightly more liberal than Fine Gael Party leader: Micheal Martin Platform issues: Job creation, homelessness, abolishing Irelands controversial water charges, improved services for families. Slogans: "An Ireland for all" (Eire do Chach) Sinn Fein Party profile: Sinn Fein was founded in 1905 and was the major Irish republican party until Fianna Fail broke away in 1926 over how to unite Ireland, Fianna Fail preferring to work within the existing political structure. Sinn Fein, which is also an active party in Northern Ireland, has worked to diminish its perception as the political arm of the IRA. The party has been increasing in popularity in recent years thanks to its liberal, anti-austerity views. Party leader: Gerry Adams Platform issues: An all-island referendum on Irish unity, a referendum to repeal the 8th amendment, abolishing water charges and taxes, increasing healthcare spending to pave the way for universal healthcare. Slogans: "Better with Sinn Fein" (Nios Fearr le Sinn Fein) Green Party Party profile: Irelands green politics party was founded in 1981 as the Ecology Party of Ireland. It formed a coalition government with Fianna Fail in 2007, but currently has no representatives in the Oireachtas. Party leader: Eamon Ryan Platform issues: Binding targets on climate change, $33.3 billion clean energy investment program, investment in infrastructure, increasing the number of refugees allowed into Ireland each year, a referendum to repeal Irelands abortion amendment. Slogans: "Think ahead, act now" Reuna Ireland Party profile: One of the newer parties to the scene, Reuna was launched in March of last year as a politically liberal but economically conservative challenger to Irelands established political parties. Party leader: Lucinda Creighton Platform issues: Budgetary and economic reform, introducing a flat tax of 23%, investing in affordable housing and community nursery schools, introducing a system to monitor and track the success of elected officials. Slogans: "Rewarding work, rebuilding trust" Anti-Austerity Alliance People Before Profit Party profile: These two far-left, anti-austerity parties joined together in 2015. Platform issues: Abolishing all taxes introduced during austerity, implementing free universal healthcare, affordable housing via NAMA, calling a referendum to appeal the abortion amendment. Slogans: "A voice for people power, share the wealth" Social Democrats Party profile: Also new to the political scene, the Social Democrat party was founded in July 2015 by its three leaders. The center-left party supports the Nordic model for a social democracy. Party leader: Catherine Murphy, Roisin Shortall and Stephen Donnelly Platform issues: Abolishing water charges, referendum to repeal the 8th amendment, referendum to repeal the Equal Status Act, which currently allows kids to be refused admission to local schools based on religion, setting up an electoral commission, keeping the tax base at its current level. Slogans: "Building a better future" and "Reducing the cost of living" Other parties include Independents 4 Change, Workers and Unemployed Action, Catholic Democrats, Communist Party, Direct Democracy, Fis Nua, Irish Democratic, Workers Party, and Independent Alliance. *H/T The Guardian, The Daily Kos, The Irish Times David Drumm is reported to have dismissed his legal team. It is reported he intends to represent himself. The former Anglo Irish Bank CEO - who is due to be extradited to Ireland shortly - is appealing the decision to deny him bankruptcy in America. If he is unsuccessful in his attempt he remains vulnerable to debts of up to 10m. Mr Drumm has filed legal papers in which he is understood to outline his plans to represent himself in the proceedings. He has also asked for an eight-week extension on a March deadline he faces from the US Court of Appeals. The development is not expected to have any bearing on his return to Ireland. Mr Drumm is currently being held at a maximum security prison in Massachusetts. Update 11.00pm: The Taoiseach was put under pressure on Fine Gael's tax plans, which moderator Miriam O'Callaghan said would give greater benefits to higher earners: "The point I'm making is that every worker will benefit from Fine Gael's tax plan." Update 10.50pm: Labour leader Joan Burton said the economy inherited from the previous government meant some pre-election promises had to be broken: "When we came in after Micheal and his party had finished with the country, the cupboard was bare. "What I did as Minister for Social Protection and Deputy Leader then of Labour, was I sought to keep the weekly payment of social welfare absolutely intact." Update 10.40pm: Sinn Fein's Gerry Adams said all the major problems now facing Ireland were the result of the three other people taking part: "Everything that is wrong with our society now is a result of the decisions taken by the people on my left, Micheal did drive the bus over the cliff, now he wants the keys back to get into the bus again. "The Taoiseach and the Tanaiste had choices to make, they made the wrong choices in support of the golden circle instead of in support of the people." Update 10.20pm: The Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin said the government had presided over a series of major crises that only a new government could fix: "People need and want the change in government to bring about a fair and more decent society. "We just had the situation the last few days, again, where homelessness is gone to record levels. "1,700 children are now in emergency accommodation. "We cannot keep this going, cannot keep it going, record numbers again on trolleys in emergency departments." Update 10.12pm: The debate began with each leader being challenged about their previous records in government on either side of the border. Fine Gael's Enda Kenny said the coalition needed a second term to make sure that every citizen could feel the benefit of an improved economy: "I accept that many people are not feeling the recovery, but that's why we need a second term to complete the job that people gave us, which was to fix our public finances and put our people back to work. "The bigger signals from the country, the sacrifices people have made have been enormous. "So our plan is to create 200,000 jobs by 2020 and reduce taxes." The four main party leaders have arrived at RTE TV for the last of the political debates in Election 2016. Enda Kenny of Fine Gael, Micheal Martin of Fianna Fail, Joan Burton of Labour and Gerry Adams of Sinn Fein will battle it out on live TV to win over undecided voters. The televised debate gets underway at 9.35pm. Speaking earlier in Rathfarnham, Micheal Martin said he will be focusing on the issues that are hurting the people: "I will focus on the issues, offering constructive solutions to the challenges and every-day problems people face in their lives. "I think that's been a constant theme of this campaign and we've picked this up - that people in different sets of circumstances have real issues in terms of their daily lives, from health to education to childcare to just getting by as families, you know I'll be reflecting a lot of that." Richard Gnodde and Michael Sherwood, the London-based co-CEOs of Goldman Sachs international division, HSBCs Stuart Gulliver, and Bill Winters of Standard Chartered signed a letter to The Times newspaper saying that staying in the bloc would be best for the British economy. Barclays and Lloyds Banking Group were not represented. Bankers appeared more eager to back Mr Cameron than representatives of other industries, with only 36 of the UKs 100 biggest companies endorsing the statement that leaving the EU would deter investment, threaten jobs and put the economy at risk. Grocery chains Sainsbury and Tesco were among those not included. The publication of the letter comes four months to the day until a referendum on so-called Brexit, as Mr Cameron prepares to intensify his campaign after making risks to the economy a central plank of his case for remaining in the EU. The pound continued its drop against its developed-nation peers yesterday following the decision by London mayor Boris Johnson, Britains most popular politician, to support withdrawal from the EU, setting the stage for a heated campaign. In their letter, the executives said that business needs unrestricted access to the European market of 500m people in order to continue to grow, invest, and create jobs. The signatories, including bosses from Marks and Spencer, Vodafone, and Heathrow Airport, employ 1.2m people and represent about 200 companies, The Times said. A vote to remain offers the best of both worlds it secures our place as a powerhouse in the global economy, while remaining in the worlds largest free trade zone, John Holland-Kaye, the CEO of Heathrow, said in a separate statement yesterday. Other finance chiefs to back Mr Cameron were HSBC chairman Douglas Flint, Adrian Montague, chairman of Aviva, Xavier Rolet of the London Stock Exchange, and Tidjane Thiam of Credit Suisse. Perhaps worried about alienating consumers, pay-television provider Sky joined Tesco and Sainsbury in not endorsing the letter. The referendum is a matter for the British people, Sainsbury said in a statement on Monday. Barclays said that while it did not sign up to the letter as it is against the banks policy, on balance we think it is in the interests of our customers and clients to stay in the EU. The financial industry is more likely to be worried about life outside the EU than other business sectors given an exit would jeopardise the so-called passporting arrangements which allow firms to operate from the UK without needing a separate subsidiary on the continent. On Tuesday, ING CEO Ralph Hamers said the Dutch lender would probably follow other major banks in reducing its London staffing levels if the UK left the EU. HSBC has already said it would probably relocate. If some of the mega banks, the markets banks, leave London, we will go with the flow, Mr Hamers said. Either the circus of the financial markets is located in London or its going to be somewhere else. Mr Cameron warned lawmakers on Monday that the economy would suffer if the UK left the EU and it would be less secure against threats from Russia and terrorism. The opposition Labour Party intensified its own push to stay in the EU with former minister Alan Johnson using a speech in western England to argue manufacturing jobs would be threatened by Brexit. The latest opinion poll, conducted by ICM, showed 42% of respondents in favour of staying in the bloc, with 40% opposed and 17% undecided. The online survey of 2,021 voters was conducted almost entirely before Mr Johnsons announcement. A Survation poll carried out Saturday showed a 15 percentage-point lead for staying in. That is in line with other recent phone surveys, which have consistently shown big leads for the status quo, while more frequent online polling has been inconclusive. John MacNamara, Enterprise Irelands software department manager, is leading the agencys charm offensive at Mobile World Congress (MWC), in Barcelona, this year, and sees huge potential in the companies joining him. Between the companies at the mobile Mecca this week, and the high-potential start-ups back home, theres no need to worry that the stream of new technology companies will dry up anytime soon, he said. That confidence is based on the range of start-ups supported by Enterprise Ireland last year, which Mr MacNamara said would ensure the continued health of the indigenous technology scene. There was an event held in Dublin Castle recently, which was basically a celebration of the class of 2015, said Mr McNamara. Were talking about more than 200 start-ups supported by Enterprise Ireland last year. "The future is looking very rosy indeed. High-potential start-ups are very well-represented in Barcelona; theres a very strong pipeline [of companies]. Eighteen start-ups travelled to Barcelona with EI this year, to exhibit on the Ireland stand, among the thousands of other exhibitors and roughly 100,000 attendees. Such is the scale of the conference, being part of a national stand gives smaller companies more of a presence in what, for many, is their first foray into the MWC battleground. One of the biggest challenges, for the companies, is not to get lost in all of that. One of our objectives is to allow them to position themselves well, said Mr MacNamara. Participating as part of a national stand gives them a profile that they would not otherwise have, if they tried to go it on their own, apart from the actual expense of it. "For a small company, its horrifically expensive to try and get your own stand. Of course, if it is expensive for Irish companies to pitch up at MWC on their own as some have this year, in addition to those with Enterprise Ireland it can not be cheap for a government agency to bring a cohort of 18 businesses along, either. Providing a return on that investment is something Mr MacNamara is conscious of, but which he admits is difficult to measure. The return on investment is always very, very hard to quantify, but if you look at the event in its own right, the event is massive, he said. Therell be over 100,000 people going through the event and, if you think about it, the publics not allowed [in], so this is 100,000 industry professionals, movers, shakers these are the guys that really decide on the direction of this industry, so its a remarkable event. "Our end metric is the creation of quality jobs and this will add to that. The work, however, did not just begin upon arrival in Spain, but has, instead, been ongoing for weeks, with Enterprise Irelands overseas staff laying the groundwork with potential customers, so they are not brought to the stand cold. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (ebitda), and excluding special items, will decline by a low double-digit percentage this year, the company said. The company will also miss its goal of an adjusted operating margin of 25%. Shares fell 20% to 55.55 in Frankfurt, the most since October 2008. The National Potato Conference in Dublin heard that the average Irish shopper bought potatoes on 34 grocery trips last year, up on 2014. However, the Irish shoppers 119kg for 2015 is short of the 2007 total of 140kg. Yesterdays conference was hosted by IFA, Teagasc, and Bord Bia. Their promotional campaign is directed at 22-44-year-old females. It offers tasty, healthy and easy- to-prepare recipes, to help cook potatoes. Lorcan Bourke, Bord Bia potato manager, said: This collaborative initiative will see potatoes presented as a naturally fat- and gluten-free ingredient, that can be used in many different ways and for a variety of occasions, to positively change the perception of younger consumers about potatoes and show that they are, as the campaign name highlights, more than a bit on the side. IFA national chairman, Jer Bergin, said the joint initiative with the UK is funded by growers, packers and the Department of Agriculture. He said the potato industry is worth nearly 80m at the farm gate, noting that 2015 was better for growers relative to the disastrous prices of the previous two years. Teagascs head of crops knowledge transfer, Michael Hennessy, highlighted the Salad Potatoes initiative, which is aimed at increasing the production of salad potatoes grown in Ireland. The industry has all the elements necessary to increase salad potato production as we have suitable soils, existing infrastructure and a market anxious to sell Irish produce, said Mr Hennessy. The Wicklow-based firm was contracted by Panasonic to help it deliver the worlds first in-flight 3G service. Druid was brought in by the Japanese manufacturer during the 3G development programme to provide technology consultancy services to the project. Alan Campbell, engineering manager for global communications at Panasonic Avionics, said Druid played a central role in delivering the world-first technology. Druid Software has provided vital technology consultancy services to Panasonic Avionics for many years, he said. Druids deep knowledge of cellular signalling protocols, and knowledge of avionics platforms has been crucial in the development and roll-out of our in-flight 3G service. The service, operated by Panasonic company AeroMobile, allows passengers to use their smartphones for data, text, and voice services during flight as international roamers. The 3G service is currently being installed on Airberlins entire A330-200 fleet and will be extended to other partner airlines in the coming months. Speaking in Barcelona at the Mobile World Congress, Druid Software director of professional services, Derek Gallagher said: It has been great working with Panasonic again on another worlds first project. Panasonics market leading Ku band satellite network makes in-flight 3G a similar experience to using 3G on a terrestrial cellular network. Meanwhile, Irish firm Anam Technologies followed news of a multimillion euro investment last week with the announcement it has partnered with Norwegian telecom, Telenor, to deliver an app-to-person SMS initiative across its group, aimed at improving its service quality and revenues. Ireland's scenic coastline proved a treat for visitors to our shores last year, with almost all tourists saying it's the most beautiful part of the country. A staggering 98% of tourists would rate the Wild Atlantic Way tourist trail as the most scenically beautiful region in Ireland. Fiona Crawford, counsel for five-year-old Amelia Duhy, told the Circuit Civil Court the pants were bought by a friend in Brown Thomass Dublin store for Amelia following her birth in April 2010. It was while on holidays 10 weeks later with parents Julie and Robert Duhy, she was dressed in the new pink dress and pants combination in which she became very agitated after several hours. Ms Crawford, with Patrick Geaney solicitors, for Amelia and her mother, of Avenue One, Yellowbatter, Drogheda, Co Louth, said that when the child was being prepared for bed that evening her mother noticed red marks on her babys outer thighs. On returning from holiday, Ms Duhy brought Amelia to her GP, Dr Mary Behan, who referred her to consultant plastic and reconstructive surgeon David ODonovan. Ms Crawford told Circuit Court president Mr Justice Raymond Groarke, that Amelias injuries were photographed at the time and several times afterwards until their complete disappearance after two and a half years. Professor Julian Ellis, a Nottinghamshire expert in the technology of elastic fabrics, forensically examined the pants in early 2012, and found the elastic was twice as powerful as he would recommend even for an adult. Ms Crawford told the court that plastic surgeon Mr ODonovan found residual scarring on Amelias outer thighs secondary to a tight constriction band in the area where an elasticated baby-gro might fit against a babys skin. His report noted the only treatment required for the injuries was massage with Bio oil by the babys mother. Three years after the incident the surgeon noted there were no marks and no need for any treatment. Ms Crawford said the defendants, Ralph Lauren Ireland Limited, delivered a full defence to the claim and liability was in issue. A settlement offer of 17,500 was made and she recommended the court approve it. She told the court Amelias skin, while marked, was never broken. Judge Groarke approved the offer and awarded Amelia and her mother their legal costs. Judge Sean O Donnabhain suspended the last 18 months of the 10 years he imposed on Daniel Wyse, aged 32, from 35 Glenfields Park, Ballyvolane, Cork. David Rickard, defending, said yesterday that Wyse had been in abject fear since he was imprisoned in November. He said that, twice during his consultation with Wyse, the accused referred to the word hit. Mr Rickard said that while he did not clarify this issue with his client, he took it from many years of criminal cases that Wyse was not referring to a smack in the ribs. The barrister said that Wyse had been in lockdown at Cork Prison for his own safety and had spent most of his time since November in the Midlands Prison. Mr Rickard also said Wyse was under duress at the time he was caught by gardai. Judge O Donnabhain said he found that hard to believe and concluded that Wyse was fully and deliberately participating in the activity when gardai caught him. The judge said that in the face of the overwhelming evidence against him, Wyse decided not to put himself at the mercy of the court but to go before a jury. The jury found Wyse guilty of having heroin for sale or supply at Halfway, Crossroads, Rathduff, Co Cork, on February 15, when its street value exceeded 13,000. Judge Sean O Donnabhain said Wyse had excluded himself from full mitigation in light of his conviction following a plea of not guilty. Wyse claimed he knew nothing about the heroin and only travelled to Limerick to get identity papers for his dog. Wyse chose not to give direct evidence but the jury was told of what he told gardai when questioned. Interviewed after his arrest at the scene by Garda Jamie ORiordan, Wyse said he knew nothing about heroin, only what he read in the Evening Echo, and he thought heroin was a dirty drug which should not be on the streets and that he had only gone to Limerick to get papers for his dog. Detective Garda John Sheedy said he and his colleagues were on a surveillance operation in the Mallow area at around 11.20pm that night when he saw a Suzuki Grand Vitara jeep with two men on board. I had information on that vehicle. We followed the jeep and it turned left to Rathduff on the Cork-Mallow Road. We followed it down the cul de sac. I could see it making the turn. I could see it turn around. We activated the blue lights and siren, said Det Garda Sheedy. I could see the Grand Vitara jeep accelerate and drive towards us. We moved to the right to block it. We were doing about 10 miles per hour. The Grand Vitara accelerated and drove up on the embankment on our righthand side. The Vitara went up on the embankment and attempted to pass us. It came to a sudden stop. There was a bang. On the left side, there was a large rock. It then slid down and collided with the front of the patrol car. Det Gda Sheedy said both passengers said in response to gardai that there were no drugs in the car. The detective said a package was found at the front passenger footwell. He brought this to their attention and they made no comment about it. A foxy float of fun-loving freckled redheads is set to feature in Cork citys March 17 parade as part of a celebration of our famous hair colour one of the rarest tones in the world. Some of the gingers on the float will also feature in a striking new portrait exhibition of red heads from the around the world, shot by photographer Jorg Koster as part of a unique five-year project, which will be unveiled at Cork Airport next month. Jorgs fascination with photographing redheads began five years ago when the Cork-based advertising, fashion and food photographer was shooting Irish clothing products for German catalogues. A friend alerted him to the Irish Redhead Convention the now world-famous wacky celebration of red hair which takes place in Crosshaven, Co Cork, every August. The freckle-fest organisers invited him to set up a photo studio at the event and redheads were invited to get their portrait for free, while proceeds from the sales of prints were donated to the Irish Cancer Society, raising almost 4,000 so far. Jorg now has a portfolio of thousands of redhead portraits from all over the world, featuring the full colour spectrum from strawberry blonde to flaming auburn a project which would have taken decades had it not been for the annual gathering of gingers in Cork. I am very excited to show a selection of my redhead portraits as large scale prints in a beautiful public space like Cork Airport, Jorg said. In a world of digital perfection, we in the advertising business spend a lot of time manipulating images and distorting reality to create flawless subjects. I wanted my portraits to be natural, spontaneous and pure. By using a grey backdrop I aimed to bring out the beauty of red hair and freckles, which for so long were considered to be a flaw. It has been a great experience to meet so many proud redheads, hear their stories and receive so many positive messages. Irish Redhead Convention organiser Joleen Cronin said that while there is great diversity among redheads, there is an amazingly strong sense of community. This project captures the essence of this concept so beautifully and viewers will be enthralled by the details in the differences and the personalities that shine through in each portrait. After all, every ginger tells a story, she said. Cork Airport spokesman Kevin Cullinane said that the images embody Irish culture and our people in a unique way. The King and Queen of the Redheads, Alan Reidy and Grainne Keena, who were crowed last August, will open the exhibition on March 10. To sign up for Foxy Float, visit www.redheadconvention.ie. Devin Singleton, aged 25, of Primrose Grove, Darndale, Dublin, had pleaded not guilty to assault causing harm to Garda Brendan Fitzpatrick. The garda suffered a fractured little finger during the incident at Edenmore Avenue in Coolock in Dublin on the night of January 25, 2015. He was also found guilty of resisting arrest but Judge Bryan Smyth dismissed a charge for unlawful possession of a small tomahawk hatchet. Jeffrey Dumbrell, aged 35, who is serving a life sentence, was being held in a high security segregation unit at the time but has since moved to a wing with a number of other prisoners and hopes some day to re-join the general prison population. He was sentenced to three and a half years for the threat yesterday. However because he is serving a life sentence, which is indeterminate, the new sentence will run concurrently. The courts have ruled previously that a life sentence cannot be extended for new offending while in prison because technically a life sentence never ends. When life sentence prisoners are released it is on permanent temporary release meaning the sentence is still active. However the new offending can be taken into account by the Parole Board when it assesses Dumbrells suitability for release. Dumbrell, formerly of Emmet Rd, Inchicore, Dublin, pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to making threats to kill a prison officer at Wheatfield Prison on December 10, 2014. He has 10 previous convictions including murder, assault and larceny. Judge Karen OConnor said it was a serious threat and she had no doubt the officer took it seriously. She said Dumbrell storming into the room in such an aggressive manner would have been frightening and noted that the victim constantly has one eye looking over his shoulder during his work now. Prison officers would not be unaccustomed to some form of abuse as part of their working day, she said, adding that she would imagine they are more robust than reporting every incident of verbals from inmates. She said prison officers cannot be allowed to be threatened in such a serious manner during their lawful working day. They have to be protected from this type of behaviour. It has very serious implications for society were they not protected, Judge OConnor said. She said she was taking into account the fact that Dumbrells early plea meant that the officer knew he would not have to give evidence at trial, which she said would have been particularly difficult and added to his trauma. Referring to the television series as perhaps more of an operation humiliation than operation transformation, Dr Francis Finucane, consultant endocrinologist at University Hospital Galway, called for a culture change around how we treat obesity as a society. While recognising the benefits of the show in raising awareness of obesity, Dr Finucane said the show perpetuated a culture of placing the burden of obesity on individuals rather than on society. Society portrays obese individuals as morally weak, lazy, greedy individuals and fails to place responsibility for the condition on society, he argued. He said around 61% of Irish adults are overweight or obese and efforts are required to address this. Some 11 homes and units, linked to associates of the Hutch gang, were searched yesterday as part of the murder investigation. While most of the addresses targeted were in Dublins north inner city, gardai also searched the home of Gerry The Monk Hutch in upmarket Clontarf. Sources said that gang members are under incredible pressure, because of the very real threat of being killed at the hands of the Kinahan gang and at the prospect of being arrested and prosecuted by gardai. As high levels of Garda patrols continue in both the north inner city and south west Dublin the base of many members of the Kihanan cartel gardai fear further attacks. But some sources suspect violence may switch to Spain as members of both outfits, particularly the Kinahan gang, head back to bases they have there. Last September, Gary Hutch was shot dead in Spain by the Kinahan gang over a drugs dispute. In suspected retaliation, his associates carried out the military style assault at the Regency Hotel, shooting dead Crumlin man David Byrne, a senior member of the Kinahan cartel. Three days later, the Kinahan gang shot dead Edward Hutch, the uncle of Gary Hutch, and brother of Gerry, at his home in the north inner city. Gardai investigating Byrnes death are satisfied they have identified two gunmen a man wearing a flat cap and a young man dressed as a woman. They were caught on camera by photographers from The Sunday World after the shooting at the hotel. The man in the cap, aged 46 and from Co Tyrone, has been holed up across the border since the attack and has had his home raided by the PSNI. A former member of a series of republican terror groups, he previously faced charges in relation to a kneecapping. Sources said gardai first need to gather all their evidence before seeking a European arrest warrant for the man. Sources said the mans nerves were frayed and that both he and other members of the gang were under incredible pressure. Gardai are satisfied they have identified the young man who was dressed as a woman. Another youth, who is also suspected of being in the six-man gang, is currently on remand in prison. The 22-year-old, from the north inner city, was arrested on foot of a warrant and taken to Cloverhill Prison on February 12. He is under protection there since. In the searches yesterday, involving around 100 gardai, an array of mobile phones and documentation were taken away for analysis. It is understood the suspects had anticipated the searches and there were no forced entries or incidents. Forensic tests are continuing on three cars, seized last week, which are suspected to have been used as getaway vehicles after the Regency shooting. Barrister Barney Quirke said that, in October 2013, Emily Counihan was close to her home at Mountain View, Crinken Glen, Shankill, Co Dublin, when a dog owned by neighbour Margaret Quinlan attacked her. He told Circuit Court president Mr Justice Raymond Groarke the dog, a mongrel named Sophie, had bitten Emily in the face, lacerating her upper lip area. She had been taken to hospital, where the cut had been stitched. The court heard that the wound had left a 2cm scar on Emilys face and she was very conscious of it. Mr Quirke said that the colour of Emilys scar changed in different weather conditions. Judge Groarke was told the scar was visible and permanent, and may need to be treated with laser when Emily is 16. The court heard Emily suffered some psychological trauma following the attack and was now wary of dogs. Through her mother, Sinead Counihan, Emily sued her neighbour, Ms Quinlan, of Mountain View, Crinken Glen, Shankill, Co Dublin, for negligence. Emilys legal team claimed that Ms Quinlan had failed to ensure her dog was kept in a secured and fenced area, and had allowed her to stray from her property without adequate supervision. The dog had a known violent propensity and therefore should have been restrained or muzzled. Mr Quirke, who appeared with Kenny Sullivan solicitors, said Ms Quinlans insurer, RSA Insurance, had made a 40,000 settlement offer and he recommended its acceptance. Judge Groarke, approving the offer, said that although it was not the case in the claim before the court, very often people walking their dogs did not muzzle ones that were supposed to be muzzled and it was very often the case that owners did not have any insurance. Some dog owners have a total disregard for their responsibility in public places, Judge Groarke said. Senior officials from Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII), have agreed to carry out a 3 million project to improve the streetscape and install traffic calming measures in Killeagh. Tony Mullane, a senior TII engineer, told members of the East Cork municipal council at a meeting in Midleton that TII had money available to plan the design of the bypass, but it would take at least two and a half years to complete that and get planning permission. However, he added, that even when this was done there was no guarantee that funding would be made available to build the bypass. Councillors said that TII must instead turn to upgrading the road surface in the village, improve footpaths and, most importantly, put in traffic calming measures especially near the primary school. The N20, main Cork-Waterford road, runs through the village and residents have expressed concern about the number of near misses pedestrians have encountered in recent years with passing traffic. They are particularly concerned about the safety of children at the local school. Cllr Susan McCarthy (FG) urged the TII officials to upgrade the village road surface but added that the most important thing was to make the area around the school safe. We want proper signage and traffic calming measures put in place, plus flashing speed limit signs put up with pictures of children on them. Were also asking for a 30km speed limit, I dont think that is inappropriate and we need to advance this fast, Cllr McCarthy said. Cllr Pat Buckley (SF) said he hoped TII would shortly be able to provide councillors with a timeframe for the project. We are disappointed with news about the bypass, but outside the school is extremely dangerous, he said. Mr Mullane said TII would come back to councillors with a timescale for the work as soon as possible. The recall which includes Funsize Milky Way (227g), Funsize Mix Variety Pack (358g) and Celebrations (380g box) extends to 55 countries, mainly in Europe. It comes after a customer found a piece of plastic in a Snickers bar purchased in Germany. The error was traced back to a Mars factory in Veghel, the Netherlands. A spokesperson for Mars Netherlands said: We cannot be sure that this plastic was only in that particular Snickers. We do not want any products on the market that may not meet our quality requirements, so we decided to take them all back. The company said that in some instances, such a piece of plastic could present a choking hazard. The recall only involves products manufactured at the Dutch plant. The company has not said how many bars are affected or how much the recall will cost. The Food Safety Authority of Ireland posted a notice on its website, (www.fsai.ie), advising consumers that Mars Ireland is implementing its own recall of the products as a precautionary measure. The products have a range of best before dates from May 8, 2016, to October 2, 2016. No other varieties of chocolate, pack formats or bar sizes are affected in Ireland. Consumers can contact Mars Ireland on 1890 812 315 or email recall@uk.mars. com with any queries. The 12th round of negotiations began in Brussels on Monday with Greenpeace protesting and delaying the start of the talks. But the objections are EU-wide and with both sides now pushing to get agreement on the massive trade deal by July so President Barak Obama can get it signed before the end of his term, pressure is mounting on all sides. One of the big issues highlighted by most objectors, including the Irish-based Peoples Movement, is that the EU will be forced to drop its precautionary principle which says if there is a doubt about the safety of a food or product then it should not be included. Instead of the EU and the US trying to agree to adopt the same standards for all products, the intention is that they will recognise one anothers standards, and that the regulatory convergence is agreed behind closed doors. US poultry is doused in chemicals, including chlorine, to kill off anything that can cause salmonella, for instance, while the EU banned chlorine treatment 20 years ago because of fears it caused cancer, Kevin McCorry pointed out. But rearing poultry in the EU is more expensive as the conditions are designed to prevent salmonella, and the more expensive poultry will not be able to compete with cheaper US imports, he argues. The highly controversial issue of who decides if a governments laws or decisions are protecting national companies against those of their trading partner is back on the table, having been taken off in 2013. The European Commission came up with what promised to be a compromise on the courts run by trade lawyers that could decide that a government had to pay often massive fines to the company believed to suffer a loss of potential profits. However the Commissions proposal for a court staffed by full-time specialist judges and with an appeal mechanism is still seen by those opposed as a system outside the normal civil legal system where business interests win out. Opposition is particularly strong on environmental and human health grounds. And while European companies have been big users of the existing system that have been part of trade agreements in some parts of the world, small businesses and NGOs warn that under TTIP, it will mean business takes over from democracy. More than 280 organisations from Europe, the US and Canada signed a statement condemning what they called the European Commissions re-branding of the old investor state dispute procedure, that is in place for some Canadian trade agreements. They say the proposed new Investor Court System is not an improvement. The right to regulate for example still leaves massive potential to penalise national governments for legislation intended to protect public health, the environment, and society, the group said. Rachel Crawshaw, aged 28, appeared before Mallow District Court yesterday. Details of her arrest and caution were heard. She faces a charge that between March 12 and 13, inclusive, in 2014, she unlawfully killed John Palmer at apartment 24, Granary Court, St Josephs Road, in Mallow. She faces another charge that, on the same dates and at the same location, she unlawfully killed another man, Greg Lonergan. The third charge is that she committed arson at the Granary Court apartment. The court, sitting before Judge Brian Sheridan, heard how, when the charges were put to Ms Crawshaw, she made no reply. Arresting garda, Sgt Michael Corbett, told the court that he arrested Ms Crawshaw at 7.20pm on Monday at Cork Airport, on foot of an extradition warrant. She was then brought to Mallow Garda Station and charged. Sgt Corbett said the defendant made no reply to the charges. The court also heard that Ms Crawshaw has no address and is of no fixed abode. Ms Crawshaw had earlier entered the court with her head covered with a scarf. Wearing blue leggings and a black top, she listened as the court was told there was no bail application, with the case to be mentioned again on March 1, in Mallow, when formal directions will be issued. Ms Crawshaws solicitor, Emmet Boyle, said they consented to continuing remand. Ms Crawshaw is being detained, in the interim, in prison in Limerick. The fire claimed the lives of John Palmer, aged 37, who was originally from Tallaght, Co Dublin, and Greg Lonergan, aged 36, who had been living in Mallow for a number of years, but who was originally from another part of north Cork. They died following the fire in the third-floor apartment, while gardai saved the lives of two other people who were in the premises at the time. Senior officials from Zurich Insurance toured flood defences in Fermoy yesterday which held firm after a massive flood came down the River Blackwater in December 2015. It was the first time the flood defences had been fully tested and businesses and householders who had been inundated in the past decades breathed a sigh of relief. However, many complained that despite this insurers were still refusing to provide them with quotes for flood cover. The insurance company took up the invitation to see the defences after a request was made by Cork Chamber, which represents more than 1,000 businesses in the region. The chamber said that, following the visit, Zurich Insurance was able to see at first hand the efficacy and robustness of flood defences, and could use this information when assessing the viability of providing wider flood cover in areas impacted by flooding. This meeting was attended by Cork Chamber chief executive Conor Healy, local businessman Michael Hanley of Fermoy Enterprise Board, engineers from the OPW and Cork County Council, and a representative from McCarthy Insurance Group. Zurich representatives were able to assess earthen and demountable defences, construction of which got under way in 2009 over two phases one for the north side of the river and the other on the south which were completed last May. These defences were fully deployed for the first time during the recent storms and prevented the reoccurrence of flooding which has dogged the town for years, with serious flooding hitting areas such as Ashe Quay, ONeill-Crowley Quay, Brian Boru Square, and Mill Rd. Mr Healy described the meeting as a positive step forward from the company that they would view the defences themselves and take the opportunity to meet with key stakeholders that have been involved in the construction of the Fermoy Flood Defence Scheme. Zurich Insurance spokeman Lorcan Harding said they were happy to accept the Cork Chambers invitation to see the demountable defences for themselves. We are committed to understanding the nature and operation of these defences better to build our knowledge of the flood resilience programme and to inform our assessment of the future risks of flooding in the area, said Mr Harding. Paul Kavanagh, managing director of McCarthy Insurance Group brokers, knows more than most the devastation that many locals have encountered over the years as he lives in the town. Business and home-owners in Fermoy have been badly impacted by flooding over many years, said Mr Kavanagh. The investment in flood defences is beginning to pay dividends for the people of the town. We welcome Zurich Insurances presence here in Fermoy to see the works that have been undertaken and we are encouraged that they will take these defences into consideration when evaluating the flood risks in the area, Do you read the terms and conditions for online services or do you just tick the box? You probably see the term cookies pop up on your phone or laptop countless times a day but do you know what it means? Are you happy that services such as Google and Facebook harvest your information for advertising? Have you ever thought about how safe your information is in the cloud? Data-protection consultant Daragh OBrien says most people are not aware of what information online services such as Google have stored on them. People think they are tech-savvy because they are online and using apps. But the majority of people dont read terms and conditions. They focus on the convenience and the immediate need but dont necessarily stop to think what actually happens to their data, he says. If you are using consumer-grade Gmail, Google are reading your emails to identify things they can sell to you. That is like the postman opening your letters to figure out what page of the Argos catalogue to put through your letterbox. When a postman opens your letter, he gets fired. When Google opens your emails, they generate profit. People think these services are available for free; they dont think about how Google funds the services they provide. Computers, servers, data centres, and staff are expensive. Google, as a brand, has become so ingrained in how we do things, that people just seem to have an element of trust in it. They have taken the view that if this was bad, the Government would stop it. According to OBrien, the majority of consumers have simply been unable to keep up with the challenges that technology poses to our privacy. In terms of peoples exposure to services like Google, Facebook, and wearable devices like Fitbit, its not that they are unaware or naive. The technology we are using went from being niche and nerdy to mainstream. Business models have evolved rapidly with the evolution of technology. I like to use the phrase the quantified serf; we are relying very much on feudal landlords to provide us with these services and we are just hoping they are benign. The key thing is if you are not paying for it, you are the product, at some point in the chain. There is nothing inherently wrong with those business models. The problem we have is one of education and awareness. To mark Data Protection Day last month, Eoin ODell, an associate law professor at Trinity College Dublin, deleted his digital profile and then challenged people to find as much of the missing data about him as they could. I turned off all the stuff I had control over my various college-related profiles, the groups I am involved in, my social media profiles, and my own website. I discovered its a lot harder to turn them off than it is to come back. The exercise was also about what information other people can find out about you with just average search tools we are not talking about sophisticated data mining by large multinational organisations. I knew what was possible but I was still surprised at how far people were able to go and how quickly. Under data-protection rules, he says Google or Facebook can only hold information for so long as it is relevant. For so long as you have an active Gmail account or Facebook account, Google and Facebook keep all the data you have generated in those accounts; the view is, it builds your profile and therefore continues to be relevant. ODell believes people are becoming more aware of online privacy. We are beginning to have a conversation about what it means to be private in a digital age. We have kind of sleepwalked into the situation we are in. We are not handing over money but we are being charged in data. There are lots of controversies around services like Ask.fm or about cyberbullying or stealing photographs. As these happen, we can begin as a society to educate ourselves. We are in a transition and we need to manage it. But the ground rules for the transition sometimes need to be set not just socially but also legally and thats where things like data-protection law come in. The Data Protection Commissioner (DPC) has been in the spotlight recently with ongoing cases in Ireland and the EU surrounding online privacy. Its responsibilities have also grown hugely with numerous data-centred multinationals locating here. Regulations governing the transfer of data from the EU to the US are in a state of flux following the striking down of the Safe Harbour framework, which was formulated in 2000. A new framework known as Privacy Shield has yet to be given final approval by the EU. In 2014, privacy advocacy group Digital Rights Ireland (DRI) took a successful case to the European Court of Justice, overturning the legislation under which the telephone and internet data of EU citizens were retained for up to two years. Now, DRI is taking legal action against the Government, challenging whether the DPC office is truly an independent data authority under EU law. What we are seeing with the European privacy regulators is that they are now baring their teeth. It does raise some questions, given that all of these companies are based in Ireland, why its the French, the Belgians, and the Dutch who are starting the enforcement proceedings, says OBrien. However, the DPC office here has historically been grossly underfunded. They have almost tripled the funding compared to what it was but the total funding for the DPC office is still less than the drinks expense bill for the Dail bar. The fact they have to go to court for everything also hampers them. A traffic warden has more powers of immediate sanction than the DPC. OBrien is wary of what data he hands over to services such as Google. If you are sending emails about sensitive medical conditions, for example, do you really want to be sending it over a messaging system where they are going to be read and indexed for the purpose of building marketing profiles? Thats the choice people make. Ultimately, email is not like sending a letter in an envelope, its like sticking all your private information on the back of a postcard. In terms of an alternative search engine to the ubiquitous Google, OBrien recommends DuckDuckGo which doesnt track your searches and also claims to offer smarter answers. When you use Google search, their algorithms are affecting the results you see in countless subtle ways. Algorithms are increasingly becoming not just predictive of behaviour but they are actually guiding behaviour because they are filtering choices for us and we are not necessarily aware of it. You wind up going to YouTube to see the video because Google presents the YouTube videos in the first ten links; the other video-hosting sites might have better content but Google will send you to their own stuff first. ODell says there are some simple steps that can help you protect your privacy online. Be conscious of the data you are handing over do you really need to give your name, gender, age, or marital status to get free wifi in a coffee shop for half an hour? When you use a service, you shouldnt just take the default settings, you should try and work out what the privacy settings are. Choose a company that is protecting your data rather than one that is mining and selling it. OBrien says we need to be conscious that we are paying a price for easy access to information online. There is nothing wrong with any of these things as long as you realise you are toiling in the fields for someone else to make money for them every time you use their service. There are things people can do to protect their privacy; there are things they can do to get back some control. Maybe were getting to a stage where we might not become completely free but we might become a little bit more free-range. For many of those years the received wisdom was that around 10% of drugs smuggled into a country were seized by authorities but a UN report has found that figure far too optimistic and suggested that, in Irelands case, the figure is closer to 3%. This finding stands in sharp contrast to the position persistently advanced by senior gardai who have, for many years, insisted that the 10% figure was a gross underestimation of their unsubstantiated strike rate. The death toll generated by this failing war on drugs is shocking. The Mexican government has reported that between 2007 and 2014 more than 164,000 Mexicans were victims of drug-related homicide. Nearly 20,000 died last year, a substantial number, but still a decrease from the 27,000 killed at the peak of fighting in 2011. These figures do not include those who died because they used narcotics. Mexicos very stability is threatened by this carnage. The Pentagon proposal suggests 13 potential sites on US soil for the transfer of remaining detainees but does not identify the facilities or endorse a specific one, administration officials said. Mr Obama pledged to close the prison and move the detainees as a candidate for the White House in 2008. Lawmakers largely oppose moving the prisoners to the US, however, and Mr Obamas final attempt to get congressional backing is unlikely to gain traction. Let us go ahead and close this chapter, Mr Obama said in White House remarks. I dont want to pass this problem on to the next president, whoever it is. Keeping this facility open is contrary to our values. It undermines our standing in the world. It is viewed as a stain on our broader record of upholding the highest standards of rule of law. Mr Obama leaves office in January 2017. The Guantanamo prisoners, held at a US naval station in south-eastern Cuba, were detained by US troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. The facility came to symbolise aggressive detention practices in years past that opened the US to allegations of torture. The transfer and closure costs would be $290m to $475m (about 430m), an administration official said. Housing remaining detainees in the US would be $65m to $85m cheaper than at the Cuba facility, the official said, so costs would be offset in three to five years. Some 35 prisoners will be transferred from Guantanamo to other countries this year, leaving the final number of prisoners below 60, officials said. Mr Obama is considering closing the facility by executive order if lawmakers do not back his proposal. The plan would send detainees who have been cleared for transfer to their homelands or third countries and transfer remaining prisoners to US soil to be held in maximum-security prisons. Congress has banned such transfers to the US since 2011. Though the Pentagon has previously noted some of the sites it surveyed for use as potential US facilities, the administration wants to avoid fuelling any political outcry in important swing states before the November 8 presidential election. Late last year, assessments done by the Pentagon team suggested that the Centennial Correctional Facility in Colorado would be a more suitable site to send detainees whom officials believe should never be released. Those officials were not authorised to discuss that matter publicly, so spoke on condition of anonymity. Called an irradiator, the device has been used to control fruit flies on the Portuguese island of Madeira. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said it will pay to ship the device to Juazeiro, in the northeastern state of Bahia, as soon as the Brazilian government issues an import permit. Its a birth control method, the equivalent of family planning for humans, said Kostas Bourtzis, a molecular biologist with the IAEAs insect pest control laboratory. Brazil is scrambling to eradicate the Aedes mosquito that has caused an epidemic of zika, a virus associated with an alarming surge in cases of babies born with abnormally small heads. A Brazilian non-profit called Moscamed will breed up to 12m male mosquitoes a week and then sterilse them with the cobalt-60 irradiator, produced by Canadian company MDS Nordion, Bourtzis said. The sterile males will be released into target areas to mate with wild females who will lay eggs that produce no offspring, he said. After an initial program in a dozen towns near Juazeiro, the Brazilian government would have to decide on scaling up the sterile mosquito production with more funding for use in cities, where they would be released from the air, possibly from drones, Bourtzis said. With no cure or vaccine for zika, which has spread to 30 countries, mostly in the Americas, the only way to contain the virus is to reduce mosquito numbers. Brazilian researchers are also experimenting with radiation. The Fiocruz biomedical research institute based in Recife has released 30,000 sterile mosquitoes on Fernando de Noronha, an island 350km off the coast of northeast Brazil. The pilot project seeks to replicate lab results in which 70% of the eggs laid by the females were sterile, Fiocruz researcher Alice Varjal said. Initial results are expected in May. Varjal said the sterile insect technique using small doses of radiation was the safest way to fight the mosquito because nothing toxic gets released into the environment. Another experiment underway in Brazil involves a mosquito genetically modified so their offspring will die before reaching adulthood and being able to reproduce, developed by Oxitec, the British subsidiary of Intrexon. Much remains unknown about zika, including whether the virus actually causes microcephaly. Brazil said it has confirmed more than 500 cases of microcephaly, and considers most of them to be related to zika infections in the mothers. Brazil is investigating more than 3,900 additional suspected cases of microcephaly. The billionaire businessman made the comments as security staff escorted the protester from a Las Vegas arena that was filled with thousands of Trump supporters, on the eve of the Nevada caucuses. The guards were being very gentle, Mr Trump said, allowing the man to walk out of the arena smiling. You know what I hate? Theres a guy totally disruptive, throwing punches. Were not allowed to punch back any more, he said. Reporters did not see why the man was ejected, and it was unclear whether he had actually thrown any punches. However, Mr Trump continued: I love the old days. You know what they used to do to guys like that when they were in a place like this? Theyd be carried out in a stretcher, folks. The crowd thundered in agreement. Id like to punch him in the face, Mr Trump added. Mr Trump continued to lash out at nomination rival Ted Cruz, telling the crowd: This guy is sick. Theres something wrong with this guy. He took specific issue with an ad Mr Cruzs campaign has been showing that accuses Mr Trump of being against turning over government land in Nevada to state control. However, Mr Trump said it was not a subject I know anything about. Something to do with I want to take away your land? And I want to keep it in the federal government? I dont even know what the hell theyre talking about, he said. Mr Cruz meanwhile said he liked the thought of Democrat hopeful Hillary Clinton behind bars. The Texas senator suggested this when one of his supporters at a rally in Elko, Nevada, shouted that he should put Hillary in jail if he was elected in November. Mr Cruz paused, then responded: With any luck, shell be there already. The capacity crowd cheered at the suggestion that the former US secretary of state, who has been dogged by questions about her private email use at the state department, should be locked up. Mr Cruz later added: I am told the Democrats are opening up a new polling place at Leavenworth, a reference to the federal prison in Kansas. AUSTRIA: Vienna visitors beware: Burping too loud could come at a price. City bartender Edin Mehic was fined 70 after belching in the proximity of a policeman while enjoying the scene at the Prater fun park. Displayed on his Facebook page, the ticket notes that Mehic violated public decency with a loud belch next to a police officer. Though it was emitted earlier this month, the belch continues to resonate more than 100 people have vowed to attend a Loud Belch Flashmob planned for Saturday near the scene of the crime. Plane lucky USA: A pilot walked away without injury after his small plane clipped parked cars and crash-landed on a Los Angeles street. Nobody on the ground was hurt as the single-engine plane crash-landed near Whiteman Airport in Pacoima, smashing the roofs and windscreens of two parked cars before winding up in the street with its right wing broken off. Ian Gregor of the Federal Aviation Administration said the Mooney M20 plane tried to return to the airport shortly after departing. The pilot said he was on landing approach when a wind gust blew him off course. Fancy dress felon ENGLAND: Police have released an image of a suspect wanted in connection with an assault complete with drawn-on moustache. The Met said the suspect, wearing a pink shirt, appeared to be in fancy dress when he attacked two men and a woman at a party at the Tudor Barn pub in Eltham, south-east London. The CCTV image shows the man with a curled-tip moustache and soul patch tuft of hair below the lower lip, while he is described as being of large build and around 6ft tall. Caught short ENGLAND: One in five smaller companies do not provide enough toilets for staff, threatening the bottom line of their finances, according to a new study. Around one in five small businesses are not meeting legal requirements, leaving employees having to wait to use the loo, it was found. A survey of 2,000 workers by Initial Washroom Hygiene showed that more than half regularly had to wait to use an office toilet, wasting an average of seven minutes a week. Fidget factor ENGLAND: Computers can be programmed to measure boredom or interest by watching people fidget, a study has found. The findings could pave the way for empathic robots or online teachers that can tell when a pupil is not paying attention, scientists at Brighton and Sussex Medical School said. Researchers showed that boredom levels can be assessed by measuring non-instrumental small body movements in other words, fidgeting. When people are thoroughly absorbed in what they are watching or doing, they tend to fidget less. Clumsy kiss ENGLAND: A British cathedral sought to reassure visitors that they could still view a massive sculpture following a Facebook post by the statues creator saying the church had moved it because people kept bumping into it while texting. The Salisbury Cathedral said in a tweet under the Twitter handle @SalisburyCath: Dont worry, you can still see The Kiss at the Cathedral. Weve moved the sculpture onto the lawn #Relationships. The Kiss is a 20-foot sculpture of clasping hands by artist Sophie Ryder. Ryder posted a video on Facebook of a crane moving the statue, with the comment We had to move the kiss because people were walking through texting and said they bumped their heads! Oh well!! Several social media users poked fun at the statues relocation to the cathedral lawn. Visitors were originally meant to follow a path through the clasped hands. GrumpyGitRant (@GRumpGitRant) said in a tweet: Its safe now to visit #salisbury cathedral. The kiss statue better known as the #claspedhands is no longer a danger. Mystery noise USA: An unexplained high-pitched tone has kept residents of a Portland suburb awake at night for at least a week, confounding the best efforts of police and firefighters to pinpoint its source, officials said. Adding to the mystery is the fact that the noise, a steady, whistle-like note resembling a flute, has only been reported after dark in Forest Grove, a rustic community of 22,500 located about 40 km west of Oregons largest city. Former residents say they remember a similar sound echoing through the night air several decades ago, according to reports filed with Forest Grove Fire and Rescue. The woman pleaded not guilty in a Cape Town court to kidnapping, fraud, and breaking South Africas child protection laws. Murmurs of disbelief could be heard in the packed courtroom, where the childs biological parents also sat. The 50-year-old woman allegedly snatched a newborn baby from her sleeping mothers bedside in 1997. The baby, now a teenager, was found last year after befriending her biological sister at school, not knowing they were related. The mother of the newborn baby cried in court as she recounted how she woke up to find her little girl had vanished. Celeste Nurse, 36, gave evidence just metres from the 50-year-old woman accused of kidnapping her baby, whom the mother had named Zephany Joy Nurse. The accused woman cannot be named for legal reasons. The kidnapped girl, now 18, was found in February last year in a bizarre twist. In her final year of high school, a younger daughter of the Nurse family began to attend high school and was told by friends about another student who had an uncanny resemblance to her. The two girls met and bonded instantly, despite the four-year age difference. The younger daughter told her parents about her new friend who looked just like her. Still hopeful, the family invited the girl to their home for coffee. After seeing her, the father immediately contacted the police who revived their investigation into the kidnapping. The police found that the couple claiming to be the teenagers parents could not prove that she was their biological daughter, and DNA tests were carried out, showing that she was the daughter of Celeste Nurse. In court, Ms Nurse recounted how Zephany had been stolen at Cape Towns Groote Schuur hospital on March 30, 1997, when she was just three days old. Ms Nurse said she was sleeping under medication in a bed close to the ward door. She said she was groggy when she awoke after hearing her newborn crying. I saw a person sitting at the door dressed as a nurse, she said. She asked me can I pick up the child? I said yes. Thats all I can remember until a nurse woke me and asked where the baby was. I asked what do you mean, the nurse was just here with the baby. We ran everywhere in the hospital. The baby was nowhere to be found. Missing. Gone. The suspect had a series of miscarriages before allegedly stealing Zephany from the hospital. She has been free on bail on condition that she does not contact potential state witnesses including her own husband and Zephany. She faces a minimum of five years in jail if convicted of kidnapping. The family had always celebrated their missing daughters birthday on April 28. All that time, Zephany was living just a couple of miles from her biological parents. Martin Peter Trenneborg, who held the woman for six days, had admitted to kidnapping her but denied, and was acquitted of, a rape charge. Stockholms District Court said in the verdict the doctor had planned the deed for a long time. Furthermore, the doctor subjected the victim to serious risks by medicating her and by keeping her locked up in very unpleasant forms in the light and sound proof bunker, it said in a statement. The doctor, 38, drugged the woman with strawberries spiked with a sedative in Stockholm before bringing her to a purpose-built bunker in his isolated house in southern Sweden, about 550km away. The bunker, built over several years, featured electronic locks and had several rooms, a toilet, and a small enclosed courtyard. After six days, Trenneborg reportedly drove back to Stockholm to retrieve some of the womans belongings from her apartment, when he discovered she had been reported missing. Trenneborg then took the woman to a police station in Stockholm on September 18, hoping to persuade police that she was unharmed and that they were a genuine couple, according to The Local, an English- language newspaper in Sweden. However, officers became suspicious and spoke to the woman separately, after which he was arrested. Asia Former Thai PM Thaksin Warns on Economy, Says No Deal with Military Former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra warned Thailands ruling generals Tuesday that a prolonged stay in power will only worsen economic hardship. SINGAPORE Fugitive former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra warned Thailands ruling generals on Tuesday that a prolonged stay in power will only worsen economic hardship in Southeast Asias second-largest economy. The junta, which took power following a May 2014 coup, has struggled to revive Southeast Asias second-largest economy amid falling exports and high household debt and critics say economic mismanagement is the biggest threat to its hold on power. Speaking to Reuters in Singapore, Thaksin, 66, said the junta lacked the vision and talent to fix an economy in disarray. It is a government with no freedom and no pool of talent to drive the economy, Thaksin told Reuters. The longer they stay, the longer economic hardship is going to be there. A decade of turbulent politics has pitted Thaksin and his sister, former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, whose government was ousted in the 2014 coup, against a royalist-military establishment that sees the Shinawatras as a threat. Thaksin on Tuesday denied long-standing reports he had struck a backroom deal with the military to leave his personal and family interests untouched in exchange for a retreat from politics. We are not talking. I have never telephoned anyone. I dont know why I would get in touch with them and I have no need to, Thaksin said. Thaksin has lived in self-imposed exile for nearly eight years, mainly in Dubai. In 2010, he urged his red shirt followers to mobilize protests calling for elections that ended in a bloody confrontation with the military in which more than 90 people died. His legacy of village welfare and cheap rural loans made him a hero in red shirt country in the rural north and northeast where he still commands huge respect. But critics, including the urban elite, accuse Thaksin, a former police colonel turned telecoms tycoon, of widespread corruption. He was sentenced to two years in prison in 2008 for graft in a land purchase case, which he says was politically-motivated. The May 2014 coup was the latest installment in more than a decade of bitter power struggle that has weakened an economy that was once a shining beacon of progress in Southeast Asia. Thailand has gone through six prime ministers since Thaksin was removed in a 2006 coup and finds itself once again at a crucial political juncture. The junta has promised elections next year. But some critics are skeptical, saying the militarys objective is to block Thaksins allies from returning to power and to consolidate the militarys own powers by writing them into a new constitution. Another undercurrent of the crisis is a deep anxiety over the issue of royal succession. Ailing King Bhumibol Adulyadej, 88, the worlds longest reigning monarch, has been in hospital since May and has been treated for various illnesses. His heir, Crown Prince Vajiralongkorn, does not command the same respect as his father. Ensuring a smooth succession will be a daunting task for whoever is in power. Thaksin was reputed to be close to the prince but said he has not seen him since 2007. There is no relationship with him, only that I respect him, he said. Thaksins decision to speak to media this week has riled the junta. He remains a person without credibility who thinks he is above the law, government spokesman Major General Sansern Kaewkamnerd told reporters. The government has rejected Thaksins offer to hold formal talks on the countrys political future. They said they cant talk to me because of the cases against me but a coup is a bigger crime, Thaksin said. Thaksin, who said he spends his time meeting up with old friends including former heads of state, said he has adjusted to his nomadic life and makes, on average, 120 landings a year in his private jet. He believes he will return to Thailand one day but wont go back to face charges or live under house arrest because of previous assassination attempts. I am confident I can return, he said. I am not the bad person I am accused of being. Burma 88 Generation Activist Detained For Role in Protest One Year Ago Nilar Thein was arrested on Wednesday under the Peaceful Assembly Law over a protest held one year ago in support of students demanding education reform. Burma Mon National Day Marked with Renewed Hope for Genuine Federalism Dressed in traditional white shirts with red longyis, thousands of ethnic Mon celebrated their national day on Wednesday with songs, marches and dancing. CHAUNGZON TOWNSHIP, Mon State Dressed in traditional white shirts with red longyis, thousands of ethnic Mon celebrated the anniversary of their national day on Wednesday with songs, marches and dancing. In matching uniforms, marchers on Bilu Island in Mon States Chaungzon Township, where this years main ceremony was held, paraded with drums and Mon flags. We hold this celebration as we intend to fight for our self-determination, said Ah Deepa Wansa, an ethnic Mon senior Buddhist monk, in an address to the crowd. We can celebrate our national day peacefully now. But those who celebrated it in the past, they were arrested by the regime. We need to pay respects to persons who maintained our national day. Mon National Day, which is marked annually one day after the full moon day of the lunar month of Thabodwe, commemorates the establishment of the first Mon kingdom, Hongsawadee, in 573 AD. Ah Deepa Wansa drew on this rich history in his speech on Wednesday. We had a kingdom in the past, but not anymore. We should all be concerned for our ethnic peoples culture and literature, [or it] will disappear, he said. With the National League for Democracy (NLD) set to lead government from April 1, many Mon leaders are hopeful that a more federal system will be instituted granting Mon and other ethnic nationalities more autonomy over their own affairs. Ethnic Mon parties performed disappointingly in last Novembers election. The Mon National Party claimed two state and one Upper House seat while the All Mon Region Democracy Party won a solitary seata constituency in Chaungzon Township for the state parliament. Some voters blamed the two major parties failure to merge into a single entity as a key reason for their dismal electoral showing. We need to fight for our federal system, Ah Deepa Wansa said on Wednesday. But we need a real Mon government as only Mon understand our [affairs]. In a speech to attendees on Wednesday, Min Kyi Win, a state lawmaker with the Mon National Party, cited ongoing conflict despite the years-long peace process as a sign there was much work left to be done to safeguard the rights of the countrys ethnic nationalities. NLD leader Aung San Suu Kyi sent a statement to the events organizers, recognizing the unique Mon history and culture and expressing support for a genuine federal system in Burma, with equal rights and self-determination for all. Burma Rice Exports Down as Fiscal Year Nears End Due to the lingering effects of torrential flooding and El Nino, Burmas rice export volume is expected to dip in the 2015-16 fiscal year, experts say. RANGOON Due to the lingering effects of torrential flooding and El Nino, Burmas rice export volume is expected to dip in the 2015-16 fiscal year, industry experts said. With just one month left in the fiscal year, which began in April 2015, rice export volume has reached only 1 million tons, according to figures from the Ministry of Commerce. Myint Cho, director of the Ministry of Commerce, said that he expects rice exports to fall short by more than 200,000 tons, with the exact figure currently at 1.037 million tons, compared to the 1.255 tons that had been exported over the same period last year. We wont match last years record, with the major reasons being the floods last year [in July and August] and the fact that some rice exporters and traders are concerned about not having rice for the summer [because of El Nino], so theyre storing rice, Myint Cho said. Rice prices increased last year because of these floods, so traders are preparing for prices to remain the same this time. Theres also less production here, he added. By the end of the 2014-15 fiscal year, Burma exported a total of 1.84 million tons of rice, including broken rice. Of this, 1.3 million tons went to China. Besides China, Burma also exports rice to Germany, Indonesia, Poland, Singapore and Thailand. In recent weeks the Myanmar Rice Federation (MRF) has been urging the government to prepare rice reserves for a potentially extreme El Nino period in the months ahead. Ye Min Aung, MRF secretary, said that the public sector should also prepare rice reserves because of the potentially severe weather on the horizon. Im not concerned about summer paddies but about rain paddies, because it [El Nino] may delay rain for the harvest season later. We should keep an eye on this, Ye Min Aung said. Well also have to be careful about market speculation, because if some traders try to speculate how the market will move, the price of rice could increase. Despite an official Chinese ban on Burmese rice imports, traders in Burma have recently been focusing on trade across the Sino-Burmese border. Moreover, domestic prices have increased compared to normal trade prices in the world market, Myint Cho explained. The world price is less than US$400 per ton, while the Chinese price is over $400, so most [of Burmas] rice is going to China, he said. Ministry figures estimate that Burma produced more than 13 million tons of rice over 23 million acres of paddy during the fiscal year 2014-15. At least 9 million tons were used for local consumption, while about 1.8 million tons went to the export market. Burma State Media: Combined Operations Launched in Shan State State-run media said Wednesday the Burma Army was conducting combined operations in Shan State, the scene of recent clashes between ethnic armed groups. An article in state-run media proclaimed on Wednesday that the Burma Army was conducting combined operations in Shan State, the scene of recent hostilities between two ethnic armed groups. However, the article in the state-run Global New Light of Myanmar, based on an announcement from the defense ministry on Tuesday, did not explain what combined operations involved, nor explicitly which armed group was targeted, though the Shan State Army-South was singled out for operating outside its designated territory. Fighting between the Taang National Liberation Army (TNLA) and the Shan State Army-South (SSA-S) first flared in November last year but intensified earlier this month. Clashes were reported in at least two townships in northern Shan State, Kyaukme and Namkham, leading to the displacement of thousands of civilians. The Taang armed group has accused government troops of cooperating with the SSA-Sallegations repeatedly denied by the latter force. The Global New Light of Myanmar article on Wednesday indicated that the Shan force had in fact been rebuked by the Burma Army over the recent fighting. The article states that the commander of North Eastern Command, which is based in Lashio, sent a letter of complaint denouncing the acts of [the SSA-S] and requested the group return to its designated territorya request that was reportedly refuted. Hla Maung Shwe, a senior leader of the Myanmar Peace Center, denied on Wednesday that any combined military operation had been launched but did confirm that a letter had been sent to the SSA-S reminding them to respect the nationwide ceasefire agreement (NCA). The SSA-S, also referred to by its political wing, the Restoration Council of Shan State (RCSS), was one of eight armed groups that inked the pact in October last year, while the TNLA did not. The Tatmadaw [Burma Army] wants the RCSS and TNLA to return to their respective territories. Otherwise, the Tatmadaw will clear them out. It is not a joint operation, Hla Maung Shwe said. He speculated that the Shan armed groups reply to the Burma Armys original letter may have been misinterpreted. On Monday, representatives of the Myanmar Peace Center, including chief peace negotiator Aung Min, alongside former lieutenant general Khin Zaw Oo, met with RCSS leaders in Chiang Mai, Thailand, to discuss the ongoing clashes. Burma The Million Dollar Mismanagement of Mrauk U Costly conservation gives way to unwanted modernization in the ancient Arakanese capital, raising questions about government and contractor transparency. MRAUK U, Arakan State Throughout outgoing President Thein Seins term, the Arakan State government spent 1.5 billion kyats (over US$1.2 million) to preserve the remnants of the ancient Arakanese Mrauk U kingdom, according to the states annual audit report. Yet some officials connected with the project allege that it has been fraught with mismanagement. Khin Than, chairperson of Mrauk U-based Heritage Trust, claims that halls within two famous temple complexesthe Ko-thaung and Shite-thaung pagodaswere damaged by government contractors negligence. New shrines were built alongside originals, she addedconstructed out of concrete and sandstone. Archaeologists and scholars of Mrauk U, which boasts more than 1,500 documented temples, have advocated for its classification as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, but fear that unscrupulous renovation of the ancient locale will put such an achievement further from reach. The Conservation Was Wrong Nyein Lwin, director of the Mrauk U Department of Archaeology and Cultural Heritage Conservation, admitted that reconstruction at Mrauk U had been carried out instead of maintenance. This often involves the use of concrete and new stones, rather than brickwork more authentic to the original structures. Contractors lack experience to properly preserve the temples and pagodas, he explained, clarifying that much of the work was carried out before he stepped into the directorial role three months ago. I saw a pagoda the conservation was wrongit was reconstructed, Nyein Lwin said, describing a site within the Shite-thaung complex. [It] was reconstructed with bricks, sand and stone. It is a 2015 model. It cant be a Mrauk U model anymore. I cant feel it [is an original]. Some original Shite-thaung pagodas had echo chambers and an air circulation system built into the architecture, but after the preservation, both had been disabled. Arakan States Statistical Department Chief Tun Aung San also admitted that local contractors had proven unskillful in working on the ancient Mrauk U temples. Exponential Budget Increase The deputy director of the Sittwe Department of Archaeology and the National Museum provided The Irrawaddy with an annual report revealing that the regional government budget for Mrauk U maintenance had increased exponentially, from 8.4 million kyats (US$6,800) in 2011 to 639 million kyats (US$515,800) at present. Over the last five years, a total of 1.5 billion kyats (US$1.2 million) has been poured into the ancient ruins. Nyein Lwin claims he was kept in the dark about the funds allocated by the state before his tenure. This reportedly topped 665 million kyats (US$536,800) during 2014-15, while the project was managed by the Sittwe Department of Archaeology in the Arakan State capital. When he became the Mrauk U archaeology departments director, Nyein Lwin said that he identified discrepancies in the projects audit report, which led him to file a complaint with the Arakan State chief minister. He noticed that five renovations which had not yet been completed were marked as done, and the local companies responsible had prematurely collected payment for the projects. Nyein Lwin said he requested that the contractors provide cost estimates for the undertaking and a performance guaranteewhich most failed to present. If a contractor does not complete a project satisfactorily, authorities are supposed to take action, Tun Aung San explained. Yet he declined to say whether the state government follows through on this responsibility, simply adding that they manage any problems that arise. Despite allegations of poor work performance, Tun Aung San revealed that, to his knowledge, the statistical department had not yet scrutinized the 2015-16 budget for the Mrauk U project. Open or Closed Tender? According to the official audit list, contractors who were selected to lead the Mrauk U restoration include well-connected Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) members, a Sittwe hotel owner, and construction companies like Nilar Myint Myat, Myanmar Ariyan and Roma Mandaing. How certain local contractors obtained key positions on the project remains ambiguous. Burmese government protocol states that if a proposal is valued at above five million kyats (US$4,000), a tender competition is announced; if a project is appraised at 50 million kyats (US$40,300) or more, the public is informed through state-owned newspapers to facilitate competitive bidding. The Irrawaddy was unable to clarify whether the Arakan State government had called for an open tender for Mrauk Us temple maintenance. I dont know whether the tender was open or closed. And even at the Mrauk U branch, we dont know how many contractors are operating here, Nyein Lwin said, the latter claim also echoed by the Sittwe Department of Archaeologys deputy director. Arakan States audit chief told The Irrawaddy that such decisions are left up to regional authorities, and it was unclear if they adhered to a transparent bidding procedure. Its difficult to say whether the majority of tender cases are open or closed. It depends on the state governments plan, he said. When contacted by The Irrawaddy, Moe Hein, a director within the Arakan State government, denied that the state privately handled tenders for such projects. Intentional Violation of Laws Further controversy has been courted by state government plans to construct a museum in a colonial era building which was once a Mrauk U palace. Arakan State authorities have reportedly offered 300 million kyats (US$242,200) to a local businessman to complete the project during the 2016-17 financial year. The Mrauk U Heritage Trust objects to the project on the grounds that it violates a 1998 law prohibiting both the reconstruction of ancient structures and the construction of new buildings at heritage sites. The state government and the Department of Archaeology and Cultural Heritage Conservation are intentionally violating the existing laws. The projects are shared with their close [relations] and after that, our heritage is destroyed, said Khin Than, chairperson of the Trust. She lamented that some business contractors had already received official permits to construct guesthouses and hotels nearby. Nyein Lwin speculated that some government officials might be unaware of laws banning on-site construction, but added that the responsibility to enforce the rules remained with the manager of the project. If Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing gave a command to fight, it is the frontline commander, and not Min Aung Hlaing [that has to do it], said Nyein Lwin, referring to the Burma Army chief. Whether they win or are defeated depends on the commanders qualifications. It is the same here, he concluded, stressing the importance of lower level leaders in Mrauk Us chain of authority. The operation manager is key. Wednesday, February 24th, 2016 (8:00 am) - Score 1,226 The CEO of BT Group, Gavin Patterson, has made a final plea ahead of tomorrows Strategic Review outcome and informed the Mobile World Congress event in Barcelona (Spain) that he would significantly increase investment (1bn+) in order to further improve national broadband connectivity. Reports at the weekend suggested that Ofcom would not move to separate BT (here) from control of their national UK phone and broadband network (Openreach), although they might keep that option on the table. Never the less Patterson cannot afford to trust in leaks to the media, not least because BT will officially learn of its fate at the same time as everybody else.. tomorrow. Gavin Patterson said: Theres a significant investment that we are ready to make now in the next generation of technology, more Fibre-to-the-Premise [FTTP], G.fast (and) Fibre-to-the-Cabinet [FTTC] Thats a big decision, we are ready to make it if we get some regulatory certainty coming out of the Ofcom review. Openreach is the only national player and it is very heavily regulated. We believe having Openreach as a unit within the BT group is good for investment and for research and development, and insures you get a national service at competitive prices. If its ever separated, would you see the same investments being made? I very much doubt you would. According to a related report on the FT, that significant investment would see BT spend 1 billion+ on improving UK broadband connectivity. But the commitment lacks key information, such as whether or not this actually reflects an existing pledge or even if it has separated out Capex (capital expenditure) from Opex (operating expenditure). Readers may recall that BT made a big commitment last September towards improving national broadband connectivity (here) and the bulk of that is focused on their G.fast deployment. BT intends to begin the commercial roll-out of G.fast in 2017 (here and here) and theyve pledged to make the new service available to 10 million premises by 2020, with most of the UK likely to be done by 2025. Initially the service will only offer speeds of up to 300Mbps, before later increasing to 500Mbps. At this point readers may recall that BTs original 2.5bn commercial commitment to roll-out superfast broadband (FTTC/P) also intended to deploy significantly more ultrafast fibre optic 330Mbps FTTP broadband (around 2.5 million premises passed), but the operator ended up dramatically scaling that back in order to focus on cheaper, but slower, 40-80Mbps FTTC. A fair bit of that 2.5bn didnt get spent, which theyd say is good value for money. However BT already spends around 300-400m per annum on fibre (so we were told last year) and broadly expect that to continue for the next 5 years until 2020, with the majority of future investment likely to support the G.fast roll-out. But BT also told us that G.fast could be done within the original 2.5bn commercial commitment and that begs the question, is the new promise of significant investment largely just a re-announcement? We did shoot off a quick message in the hope of some clarity, although a BT spokesperson told ISPreview.co.uk, Ofcom will release their provisional findings on Thursday morning and we will respond then. We made it clear in September that we are keen to invest large additional sums in the UK s infrastructure and that has not changed. Regulatory certainty is required however as Gavin made clear yesterday. Lest we not forget BTs other commitment, which originally (2010/11) promised to match the 830m state aid allocation through the Broadband Delivery UK programme (this is separate to the 2.5bn commercial commitment). At this point its becoming hard to distinguish new commitments from old. In any case we might get a clearer answer after tomorrow. Meanwhile Vodafones CEO, Vittorio Colao, also used the MWC event to take a last ditch shot at BT: A model which was supposed to be neutral and separated has actually been creating extra profits for the company that owns it. Its a model that allows equal access but a price higher than most European countries. I hope [Ofcoms CEO] is going to say either that she really supports considering the split of Openreach or at least that she will put much tighter obligations on Openreach, both in terms of performance and pricing. We suspect that Vodafone will get at least part of what they want. Wednesday, February 24th, 2016 (10:58 am) - Score 781 The city and county of Swansea (Wales) has today proposed a new 500m City Deal to the Government that could improve local health, business, energy and broadband services, not least by supporting a new transatlantic fibre optic cable with North America. According to Cardiff University, the Internet Coast deal could result in additional economic output of 3.3bn and create another 33,000 jobs over the next 20 years. Such claims are not dissimilar to the ones that also accompanied last years City Deal for Aberdeen in Scotland (here), although we still have precious little information on the detail. On the broadband front, which is of course what interests us the most, theres also a lot of talk about delivering even faster Internet connectivity. Mind you Swansea is almost totally covered by both BT and Virgin Medias respective hybrid-fibre broadband networks, so its already a lot better off than other parts of the UK. On top of that BT are also trialling their next generation 300-500Mbps G.fast technology in the area (here). But whether or not this will have any impact upon the pro-broadband and mobile connectivity side of the argument is difficult to know. Sir Terry Matthews, Chairman of Swansea Bay City Region, said (here) Think of the way the internet and broadband networks have transformed communications worldwide. Now imagine the same principle applied to future energy systems, to health and well-being and any number of other sectors. It is a massive opportunity and with City Deal support we can take a lead position in Wales and make our wider contribution to the UK and to Europe. Swansea Bay became world famous in the first machine age. We aim to re-energise a vibrant and pioneering role in Wales and the UK as the world now enters a new digital machine age. There are echoes of the Industrial Revolution in this vision and I am pleased to be leading the region as we aim for a new place in the global economy. As for that transatlantic fibre optic cable, its stated that it would run from New York (USA) to Oxwich Bay in Gower (Wales) and the discussions are said to be at an advanced stage. But weve been able to find some mentions of a cable that was original laid in 1990 between the USA and UK, which apparently landed at Oxwich Bay and then went on to Cambridge University, although it doesnt show up on the usual cable maps and so may have been deactivated (theres also one [SOLAS] that lands nearby, from Ireland, at Port Eynon). In terms of funding, the four local councils in the city region are looking at a 100m commitment over 20 years, with further contributions also expected to come from the private sector and EU. However the Government will probably take some time to consider the proposal and whether or not it will bring quite as much benefit as claimed. The digital transformation of the worlds leading brands relies on unified application performance monitoring of their line of business, public facing apps, where quick response is the difference between a satisfied customer or a lost one. AppDynamics, a leading application intelligence company, has announced its Winter 16 Release, featuring next-generation updates to its Application Intelligence Platform to help enterprises achieve the user experience and operational success necessary for effective digital transformation. The Winter 16 Release gives greater visibility into the user journey with detailed User Sessions support; enhanced monitoring with Server Visibility and Browser Synthetic Monitoring; and support for C/C++ applications. It introduces User Sessions, which provides a rich and detailed view into the user journey what actions users take as they move through each transaction in the conversion funnel, and how application performance impacts their journey. This real-time data, across both mobile and desktop, helps companies better manage user experience; identify opportunities to improve conversion; provide more personalized and relevant support; and connect the dots between application performance and business outcomes. AppDynamics Application Analytics, which seamlessly integrates with the Application Intelligence Platform, received major upgrades to enhance the interface and provide deeper, actionable insights into users, applications, and the correlations between application and business performance. Were a hyper-growth business, and application performance is absolutely core to our success, said Michael Lee, vice president of technology for Beachbody. AppDynamics now plays an indispensable role for us. Unified Monitoring gives us the total visibility we need to deliver an outstanding experience for our core customers. AppDynamics new Browser Synthetic Monitoring helps us to trust but verify the many, many third parties we rely on. Downtime costs us $150,000 an hour minimum, and since we got rid of our hodgepodge of tools and focused on APM with AppDynamics, our mean time to resolution went down on several severe incidents in 2015. It all means were doing the best possible job for our users, and that is the key to our continued success. Were monitoring to deliver big value, and its working. Gorkey Vemulapalli, solutions architect from the Office of the CTO at Xerox Government Healthcare, said, The new Unified Monitoring capabilities in AppDynamics Winter 16 Release allow us to pinpoint any performance issues in minutes across seven million lines of code. Previously, five people would spend a 40-hour work week trying to uncover critical performance glitches. AppDynamics is an important partner helping us execute on our critical digital transformation initiatives. The role of todays CIO is evolving to bridge the gap between business and technology, and make customer experience a top priority, said Jyoti Bansal, founder, chairman and chief strategist of AppDynamics. That means measuring the way users interact with applications, and ensuring the applications perform optimally. Our new Winter 16 Release provides IT teams with the most comprehensive view of performance from the end-users perspective, in a single intuitive dashboard. We allow enterprises to efficiently review application and customer behavioral data the real-time, actionable insights needed to drive business outcomes and organizational success. Also with this release, AppDynamics makes Browser Synthetic Monitoring generally available, offering monitoring of website performance from dozens of locations around the globe. Browser Synthetic Monitoring enables enterprises to ensure availability and performance of their websites even in the absence of real users, and enables accurate competitive benchmarking and measurement of third-party performance. AppDynamics Unified Monitoring provides industry-leading, end-to-end visibility from the end user through all the application layers and their supporting infrastructure to facilitate comprehensive management of user experience and application health. With the Winter 16 Release, Unified Monitoring now supports C/C++ applications through a monitoring SDK that enables the same real-time, end-to-end, user-to-database performance visibility as other supported languages, for rapid root-cause analysis and issue resolution. Like all components of Unified Monitoring, the C/C++ capability includes automatic discovery and mapping of all tiers that service and interact with C/C++ applications, and business transaction contextualization for performance reporting. The Winter 16 Release also delivers the following enhancements to AppDynamics Application Analytics: support for more data sets, including all of AppDynamics APM data, log data, and APIs for importing/exporting external data sets; a custom SQL-based query language that enables unified search and log correlation with business transactions; a number of user interface enhancements and new out-of-the-box visualizations and data widgets; and role-based access control. A Forrester report co-authored by Milan Hanson, senior analyst for Infrastructure & Operations at Forrester stated, Analytics is the magic More monitoring is producing more data, and yet insight and action are expected to take less time. Analytics is the key The new breed of APM analytics can intake more diverse data in higher volumes at higher velocity and produce faster insights. Server Visibility is also now generally available, enabling IT operations to proactively isolate and quickly resolve server performance issues in context of business transactions. Enhancements include: support for Windows servers; user interface upgrades, enabling drill-down to server metrics directly from the application flow map; and the ability to monitor servers that do not have an AppDynamics agent installed. It also offers 25 new extensions, including 19 for monitoring Amazon Web Services (AWS) components which brings the extension count within the AppDynamics Exchange to nearly 150, enabling AppDynamics users to monitor an ever-growing roster of specific application and infrastructure components. Capgemini, one of the worlds foremost providers of consulting, technology and outsourcing services, has announced that it is dedicating more global resources to help enterprise customers build and migrate applications on Amazon Web Services (AWS). As part of its extended cloud services program, which includes cloud advisory, migration and managed business services, Capgemini Cloud Choice with Amazon Web Services will see Capgemini further invest in its dedicated migration factory, leverage AWS technology and develop sector-specific IP solutions hosted on AWS. The Capgemini migration factory for AWS, in Chennai and Bangalore, will support customers migration of enterprise applications to the AWS Cloud. More than 1000 professionals are anticipated to be trained across India, the UK, the US, Netherlands and France by the end of 2016. The migration factory will use the AWS Cloud Adoption Framework (AWS CAF) planning tool as part of its methodology to enable enterprises to migrate workloads faster and more efficiently to the AWS Cloud. Terry Wise, Vice President of Worldwide Partner Ecosystem, Amazon Web Services, Inc. said: We are delighted to be working with Capgemini as they expand their commitment to AWS customers including a dedicated migration factory. With our respective strengths and methodologies, Capgemini and AWS help enterprise customers become more agile in building and migrating applications, thereby accelerating their transformation to the AWS Cloud. A key goal of Capgeminis increased focus on AWS will be to develop cloud advisory, migration to AWS and managed offerings specifically for the financial services sector, based on Capgemini IP hosted on the AWS Cloud. One of the offerings already available is its Insurance Connect (not related to InsuranceCONNECT Pty Ltd in Australia), a fully managed business service insurance platform which enables core processing, digital services and insights and analytics on AWS. For insurers facing significant variance in workload demands, access to the highly scalable AWS Cloud provides a cost-effective way to integrate functions (such as CRM, policy administration and underwriting) and increase computing capacity on a pay-per-use basis with minimal upfront investment. Asset-intensive industries (such as energy and utilities) will also benefit from the extension of this working relationship, as Capgemini already provides its Digital Industrial Asset Lifecycle Management solution as a managed business service built on AWS. This on-premises offering is now also available on the AWS Cloud and provides an environment which can be up and running in as little as fifteen minutes. It gives access to a scalable and fastto-deploy digital asset hub, enabling organisations to advance their digital transformation journey, as well as an accelerated path for improved health and safety compliance, reduction of project costs and improvement of operational efficiency. Customers looking to migrate their existing SAP solutions to the cloud or to adopt SAP S/4HANA will also greatly benefit from this expanded collaboration between Capgemini and AWS, with the ability to either get on the latest release of SAP solutions, optimise their workload on the cloud or consume through an integrated delivery model. Capgemini's SAP certified BAiO (Business All-in-One) SAP Business Suite technology can be pre-configured by Capgemini to the needs of a specific industry. Clients benefit from industry-leading processes, solutions to common business process challenges, and faster implementation times. industry specific and Line of Business IP solutions are now available on SAP HANA, optimised to run on the AWS cloud and allowing customers in most industries to be up and running in as little as 6 weeks. Franck Greverie, Capgemini's Global Leader for Cloud Services said, "The continued execution of our client-centric strategy demands even more targeted solutions and responses for our clients' most challenging business demands. Cloud Choice with Amazon Web Services combines the strength of Capgemini's Cloud Services global capabilities and delivery assets with the on-going technology innovation from AWS to continue to develop and deliver the right cloud solutions to our collective clients with speed, predictability, risk mitigation and sustainable business impact." Capgemini has a longstanding relationship with AWS dating back to 2008, with both parties working to bring business solutions to enterprise customers leveraging Capgeminis industry expertise coupled with AWSs technology such as Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (Amazon EC2), Amazon Simple Storage Service (Amazon S3) and Amazon Redshift. Examples of past innovations include Capgeminis SAP OnePath and COMPLETE. Capgemini is a Premier Consulting Partner in the AWS Partner Network (APN). Capgeminis increased focus on AWS is an essential component of Capgeminis Cloud Services program, Cloud Choice, enabled through collaboration with a broad ecosystem of cloud partners, and includes a range of services: Business Cloud Assessment and Strategy, proof of concepts, migrating applications to the Cloud, Platform as a Service, Infrastructure as a Service, Business Process as a Service and Cybersecurity. Nimble Storage has announced a new range of all flash storage arrays to complement its existing adaptive flash arrays. The AF series of all flash arrays initially consists of four models, the AF3000, AF5000, AF7000 and AF9000. Describing the launch as "a really important milestone, CEO Suresh Vasudevan (pictured) said the AF series is "dramatically more scalable than other all-flash arrays." The company also claims the total cost of ownership of the AF series is up to 33 to 66% lower than competing products from other vendors. This is the result of several factors. The AF controller requires one tenth to one thirtieth as much memory than competing products, so at the entry level a single controller is cheaper, and then as the array is expanded fewer controllers are needed to support large amounts of storage. AF arrays also support 3D V-NAND as used in the Samsung PM863 Series SSDs, with endurance management and integrated hot sparing that extends flash lifespan to seven years while providing 20% more usable capacity in half the footprint and cost of competing eMLC-based all flash arrays. Vasudevan said Nimble had chosen to stay with SSDs rather than adopting a proprietary flash technology because the latter would provide no cost advantage. The company packs two SSDs into the space of one 3.5in drive, and handles endurance management in the file system. As with earlier models, the AF series includes inline variable block compression but adds variable block deduplication. Combined with zero pattern elimination, this means the AF series provides up to five times greater effective capacity than competing products. Support for thin provisioning and zero copy clones provides additional savings. Nimble plans to add variable block deduplication to its adaptive flash arrays over time, said vice president of products, solutions and alliances Dan Leary. Since Nimble's adaptive flash arrays run the same release of NimbleOS as the new all-flash arrays, they can be used to provide backup, disaster recovery and archiving at lower cost while maintaining a single architecture. The cost is sufficiently low that customers can afford to retain several months worth of data, Leary said. Adaptive flash and all-flash arrays can be assembled into a single cluster, so the most demanding workloads can be assigned to all-flash. Applications can be moved from one to the other without downtime. The top of the range AF9000 delivers up to 350,000 IOPS with sub-millisecond latency and scales to more than 2PB effective capacity in 12U. Up to four arrays can be clustered for up to 1.2M IOPS and effective capacity of more than 8PB, said to an order of magnitude greater than competitive all flash arrays. Such clusters can be managed as a single unit. Storage can be added, controllers upgraded and arrays clustered without disrupting normal operation. The AF series can provide ten times the effective capacity and twice the performance of an EMC XtremeIO system, said Leary, or five times the effective capacity and equivalent performance to a Pure Storage system that lacks Nimble's scale-out capability. "Substantial changes" were made in the development of the AF series, vice president of engineering Varun Mehta told iTWire. Adaptive flash used flash storage as a caching layer, but that is not needed in an all-flash array. But the biggest change comes from the introduction of inline deduplication, he said. Data is initially written to NVRAM to deliver the required performance, and from there a 'fingerprint' is generated to determine whether or not an identical block has already been stored. The problem is that the fingerprint table can become very large, so Nimble allows it to spill from memory into flash storage. "That's good and bad," he said. The good thing is that it allows Nimble to support more storage at lower cost, as a controller with a given amount of memory can keep track of more data blocks and hence more SSDs. The bad is that retrieving table entries from flash takes longer. So Nimble has developed a new algorithm to predict which entries are likely to be needed and bring them back into memory ahead of time, thus providing sustained write performance. "Everybody touts their read performance, hardly anyone publicly canvasses their write performance,"said Mehta. "We did a lot of work to make sure our write performance remains very high" because "in real life, writes dominate... typically by a 2:1 ratio." Making provision for compression of variably sized blocks also makes a difference. Applications typically write data with a consistent block size, but the actual size varies among different applications, he explained. Matching the compression block size to the application's block size results in greater efficiency, but "it's not commonly done" because it is easier to use a fixed block size such as 512 bytes or 4KB, Mehta said. Nimble's software lets users tell the array which application will use a particular volume, and it sets the block size accordingly and applies specific optimisations. For example, Windows system partitions use 4K blocks, while Exchange 2012 uses 32K blocks. Users can manually set the compression block size if the application is unknown to the Nimble software. While compression is more efficient with larger blocks, a mismatch between the size of application writes and compression block sizes reduces overall efficiency. Reliability and availability have been an important part of Nimble's pitch from the outset. The company has achieved 99.9997% uptime across all its customers, equivalent to eight seconds of downtime per system per month. As with previous Nimble arrays, the AF series protects against the simultaneous failure of three SSDs. The new 'Triple+' parity scheme takes account of the different failure characteristics of SSDs compared with spinning disks. A complete failure equivalent to a hard drive crash is "exceedingly rare" with SSD, Mehta told iTWire. A more likely cause of failure is that certain cells wear out before others, and intra-drive parity helps protect against this problem by providing four rather than three places to recover data before turning to snapshots or replicated copies, he said. Nimble's analytics (see below) help prevent multiple simultaneous drive failures by recommending early replacement of some drives, otherwise the efficient wear-levelling mechanism could make that situation more likely. But some customers like to run their systems into the ground before replacing any parts, so Triple+ parity reduces the risk that such practices could result in lost data, Mehta said. An important feature of Nimble's platform is the InfoSight cloud analytics system that collects more data points every four hours than there are stars in the Milky Way. By pooling infrastructure data from many customers the company is able to prevent issues from arising by alerting customers of the need to take particular actions (nine out of ten issues are detected by Nimble before the customer notices), perform rapid root-cause analysis across the technology stack, and predict future requirements to simplify planning. Data from non-Nimble elements is collected using standard APIs such as those provided by VMware's vCenter, vice president of customer support Rod Bagg told iTWire. Support for additional hypervisors such as Microsoft Hyper-V is planned, along with data collection from Windows and other operating systems. "We have a roadmap for that sort of thing," he said. InfoSight is included with all Nimble support contracts, and can be used by as many people as the customer requires. The new AF arrays can be ordered immediately. "Our engineers are so confident in the readiness of our all flash arrays that we've been powering core Nimble production engineering infrastructure services on an AF7000 array for several weeks and have experienced flawless service," said vice president of product management Ajay Singh. Disclosure: The writer travelled to San Francisco as a guest of Nimble Storage. Announcing that she was quitting her post at Telstra to be replaced by current board member John Mullen - Livingstone told a media and investor conference today that it was important to recognise that Telstra was now entering its next phase strategically . Emphasising the changeover at the top was part of an orderly transition, Livingstone said Its important that the team thats going to take Telstra through that next phase comes together and that the first part of that is a chair transition. Its all part of an orderly and planned process for setting Telstra up for as much success in the next phase as it has had in the last. We are now able to consider new growth opportunities alongside our traditional core businesses, looking to extend our footprint in ways that are consistent with creating long-term shareholder value.The incoming chair, John Mullen, deferred most questions until he officially takes up the role, including where he saw the need for changes at the telco going forward.A Telco director since 2008, Mullen is Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Asciano, a position he has held since 2011.Livingstone will hand over to Mullen in coming months or as she put it in the next little while - allowing for a smooth transition once Mullen is free from his obligations to Asciano as Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Asciano.Livingstone says she believed the timing was right to enable a new Chairman to drive Telstras continued growth as a world class technology company.On her time at the helm of Telstra, Livingstone said It has been an extraordinary period of my life to have been part of the team which helped Telstra set a new direction after having transitioned from a corporatised then privatised organisation.We have improved relationships with important stakeholders, and none so more important than our customers. This is an area where we can always continue to improve, but has been substantially advanced in the past few years.While making the point that Telstra serves an important role within Australia, Livingstone said the telco can be an even larger contributor in the regional and global technology space as it helps more people and businesses to connect with each other.Mullen paid tribute to Livingstones leadership of Telstra as the organisation had transformed itself as a leading edge technology provider. Optus has been recognised for 4G network and spectrum innovation with an award for outstanding contribution to 4G TDD technology and in particular, 4G TDD-FDD convergence. The award was announced at the GTI Night, held in conjunction with Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, with GTI being the Global TD-LTE Initiative. GTI is a global industry organisation created to promote and develop 4G TD-LTE technology, with the awards acknowledging the achievements and success of industry players in the TD-LTE ecosystem across a wide range of market segments. Soo Meng Tay, the Group CTO of Singtel-Optus accepted the award and said: Since 2012, Optus has worked tirelessly with the GTI, network equipment vendors and device manufacturers to help build and develop the 4G TD-LTE environment. Over the past year Optus has developed the 4G network even further, greatly improving the networks capability and customer experience, and making TDD-FDD convergence a reality. We are proud to be recognised for those efforts by the GTI and I thank the Optus team, our vendors and device manufacturer partners for their efforts. As reported by iTWire at the time, August 2015 saw Optus achieve its world first with the commercial launch of 4G Carrier Aggregation with 2xTDD channels + 1x FDD channel with a commercial handset. More below, please read on. As the company explains, the combination of three channels between TDD and FDD was an innovative way for it to leverage its spectrum assets and deliver peak download speeds of over 300Mbps in a live, commercial network. Tay added: This world first commercial launch of TDD+FDD carrier aggregation was particularly rewarding as it removed the final technology barrier to true TDD+FDD convergence. Optus notes that it has worked with a range of vendors and device partners including Qualcomm, Huawei, Hisilicon, and Nokia to ensure the required 4G TDD capability is included in vendor roadmaps not just for Optus benefit but the benefit of the global TDD community. We worked with Samsung to achieve the worlds first commercial launch of TDD+FDD carrier aggregation in August 2015. Samsung in fact used the Optus network as their test-bed to confirm the functionality of their new Galaxy S6 edge+ and Galaxy Note 5 devices, Tay concluded. Optus customers who want to contact family and friends following the extreme weather in Fiji will be able to make free calls to Fiji for the next two weeks. The tragedy of Fijis unprecedented cyclone has taken Fiji and the world by surprise, and is an incredible natural disaster. Optus has decided to step up and offer its customers with friends and family in Fiji free calls over the next two weeks. The telco says its consumer customers with a prepaid or post-paid mobile, or home landline will receive free standard voice calls to Fiji from 12:01am AEST Wednesday 24 February until 11:59pm 10 March, 2016. Calls made to Fiji during this time will not be charged on your next Optus consumer bill. More below, please read on. Optus advises that the impact of the cyclone and high activity on the telecommunications network in Fiji may impact some calls getting through. Thus, some Optus customers may experience busy tones, recorded voice announcements or the call might go straight to voicemail when calling. The company also advises that any of its customers who wish to discuss their individual circumstances can call the Optus Customer Services team on 133 937. The FBI has sought to gain access to 13 different iPhones, not one, according to court documents, casting doubt on the version of events it has publicised in its stoush with Apple. And Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates has stepped into the ring, first being quoted as supporting the FBI's bid to force Apple to provide a backdoor into its mobile operating system, and later saying he had been misunderstood. A report in the The Verge said 12 of these iPhones were listed by Apple in its response to a request from a district court in New York. The remaining device is mentioned in a letter from the US Department of Justice. Apart from these 13, the district attorney of Manhattan district, Cyrus Vance Jr, told the US National Public Radio that his cyberlab had asked Apple to break into 175 iPhones. The FBI obtained a court order last Tuesday (February 15) asking Apple to provide it with an updated version of iOS so that it could gain access to an iPhone 5c belonging to the San Bernardino Department of Health. The phone had been in use by Syed Rizwan Farook, one of two people involved in an act of terrorism in December last year in which 14 people were killed. When Apple chief executive Tim Cook issued a strongly-worded response to the FBI's court order, the agency went back to court and obtained another order compelling the company to fall in line. The FBI's version of events took its first hit when news emerged that the Apple ID of the phone had beenafter it was in the agency's custody, something which the FBI laterhad been done at its urging. Of the 13 iPhones cited earlier, eight are said to be running versions of iOS 7.0 or earlier, thus making the obtaining of data from them relatively easy. There are also two iPhone 3s and one iPhone 4; both these models do not have the additional security features that have been incorporated into iOS since version 8.0. (corrected) These features allow 10 guesses to be made as to the passcode; after five, the length of time before one can make the next guess increases, until it becomes an hour after the ninth guess. After 10 guesses, the phone becomes unusable. The FBI wants Apple to disable these two features in a modified version of iOS and load it onto the iPhone in the terrorism case, so that it can use brute force methods to guess the passcode. The FBI has used a 227-year-old law, the All Writs Act in its pursuit of Apple; the law makes it compulsory for an individual or an organisation to assist officials in their investigations and is generally used only when there is no other way to obtain co-operation. Gates made his arguments in favour of the FBI to the Financial Times in which he was quoted as saying: "This is a specific case where the government is asking for access to information. They are not asking for some general thing, they are asking for a particular case." The Microsoft billionaire appeared to be unaware of the latest development in the case when he made this statement. He also seemed to be unaware that the Reform Government Surveillance organisation, of which Microsoft is a member, had issued a mild statement in support of Apple and Cook's statement. Later in an interview with Bloomberg TV, Gates said he had been misunderstood. But what he had to say did not change to any marked degree his earlier statements. Apple has until Friday (Saturday AEDT) to respond to the FBI's court order. Former US solicitor-general Ted Olson will represent the company in court. BARCELONA -- Pepper the robot is coming to America later this year, first for businesses and later for consumers. After its debut in July 2014, there are now more than 10,000 Pepper robots in use in other countries, primarily Japan. Some are helping passengers find the right train platform at stations in France, and some greet shoppers at supermarkets in both France and Spain. A fuller expansion in Europe is planned for 2016, as well as the U.S. introduction, according to officials at the robot's inventor, Aldebaran, based in Paris. Aldebaran is a subsidiary of Softbank Group of Japan. In that country, Softbank has placed Pepper robots inside Softbank Mobile phone stores to greet and assist customers. Several U.S. companies are considering using Pepper, Aldebaran said, although it wouldn't disclose any names. The humanoid robot speaks and interprets 20 languages and can even entertain a little, busting a move fairly smoothly to the tune of The Loco-Motion, a pop song from 1962. Business customers will pay $20,000 for a single Pepper, which includes three years of service. Consumers will pay half as much, but won't get the complete range of business functionality. Already, about 7,000 Japanese families have Pepper robots living inside their homes. Businesses will be able to write code to customize Pepper's functions, with a software development kit from Aldebaran. Pepper runs Aldebaran's proprietary operating system called Naoqi. An emotional robot Julien Seret, vice president of enterprise business for Aldebaran, described Pepper as an "emotional" robot, since it can detect emotions of people it interacts with by using facial, gesture and voice recognition. Based on a short demonstration at Mobile World Congress, it was clear that Pepper was reacting at appropriate times to visitors when spoken to. Pepper raised its arms to imitate the gestures of people, slightly nodding at times. When asked a direct question, rings around its eyes lit up, a sign it was actively listening. Pepper also responded to touch with sensors under its white, plastic skin. When patted on its head, Pepper said it felt like a cat. When it was clear the conversation was over, Pepper said, "No worries, have a wonderful day." Pepper will also high-five and fist bump, but its gestures and talk can be customized in many ways. At MWC, Pepper was showing off products from SoftBank subsidiary Brightstar, using a tablet on its chest to quickly present pictures of products. At the end of the presentation, Pepper was programmed to ask a person to take a survey, rating Pepper's overall actions and performance from 1 to 5. After someone took the survey, Pepper revealed how others rated it, as shown on a bar chart on the tablet. Business use case Seret said that businesses would be able to use Pepper's survey functions and other human interactions to improve an in-store shopping experience. Compared to online shopping, brick-and-mortar stores actually know little about their customers. Pepper can retrieve information about a product in a store from the retailer's database to offer price and location on a shelf, but Pepper would also be able to conduct a Web search to fill out its responses to customers. During a brief "interview" with Computerworld, it was obvious that the Pepper on display at MWC could respond only to a select range of requests. Pepper also seemed to have trouble now and then hearing over the noise on the show floor and seemed to be distracted when people would walk by. However, Pepper's occasional distractibility seemed a little like the way a middle-school child might act around his or her parent when being given specific spoken directions. Yet at other times during the 15- minute interaction, Pepper was very cogent and responsive and even, well, endearing. Seret said that Pepper's face and overall design were very deliberate. Pepper's face resembles an older child and its height is 120 centimeters -- nearly 5 feet. That height was considered ideal since much taller might be threatening to some people and children, while much shorter would make it hard for people to talk to Pepper when standing. Seret had a part in helping design Pepper and recalled the first time the robots were tested in the lab in 2013. Two Peppers were activated at the same time and almost immediately began to talk with each other, he said. The two Peppers didn't have much of a vocabulary at the time, so the dialog was short. "But it was amazing," Seret said, smiling like a proud parent. Struggling smartphone vendor BlackBerry is looking to diversify its business by launching a cybersecurity consulting service, focusing in part on the Internet of Things, and providing related tools to customers. The Ontario smartphone vendor, an early standard bearer for multifunction mobile phones, announced Wednesday it has acquired U.K. cybersecurity consulting firm Encription. The company did not disclose the terms of the deal, which was completed last week. BlackBerry's move into cybersecurity consulting isn't a huge leap, as the company has long positioned itself as a security-minded smartphone vendor. Late last year, the company launched the Priv, a security- and privacy-focused smartphone running a modified version of Android. The company has significant cybersecurity expertise in house, and the new cybersecurity consulting practice will build on those assets, a spokeswoman said. The company noted the global cybersecurity consulting industry generates US$16.5 billion in business a year, with huge growth predicted. BlackBerry posted a net loss of US$89 million for its third quarter, which ended Nov. 28. Still, for the previous nine months ending on that date, it posted a net profit of $30 million, compared to a net loss of $332 million over the same period in 2014. BlackBerry's cybersecurity services will focus on helping customers with security strategies and providing technical assistance, the company said. The company will specialize in automotive and Internet of Things security and in detection, testing and analysis. The growing move into cybersecurity is a "smart move for Blackberry, especially as security is in the headlines" with a recent fight over smartphone encryption between Apple and the FBI, said Jeff Kagan, a mobile analyst. Still, it's unclear if cybersecurity consulting will be a long-term winning strategy for the company, he said by email. "BlackBerry is having a tough time finding growth areas," Kagan added. "Before we get too excited, well just have to see whether this moves the needle at BlackBerry." Samsung has started shipping its first Artik developer board, hoping it will find a place in robots, drones, wearables and a whole range of connected devices in the Internet of Things. The Artik 5, which looks like the Raspberry Pi 2, is an uncased computer with all the components mashed into a small circuit board. It is available for $99 from Digi-Key. It is the first board to ship out of the three Artik development boards announced last May. The two not yet available are the minuscule Artik 1, which is for wearables, and the larger Artik 10, which could be the guts of PCs, robots or even portable servers. The Artik 5 has a dual-core Cortex-A7 ARM processor, which is used in smartphones and wearables. It has a 720p graphics processor, 4GB of storage and 512MB of RAM. The connectivity features set the Artik 5 apart from rivals like Raspberry Pi. In addition to Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, it supports Google's Thread, a connectivity specification to link up IoT devices. Samsung has already voiced its support for Thread. Samsung has a grand plan to equip homes with Internet-connected appliances like refrigerators, ovens, washing machines and bulbs. Artik could help enthusiasts make smart devices that can plug into such an environment. The board will come pre-loaded with Linux-based Fedora OS. It's not clear yet if Artik supports Google's Brillo, an IoT development platform for connected home devices, which is closely tied to Thread. Intel's Edison developer board already supports Brillo. Samsung is also providing software tools, security features and services through its SAMI cloud platform. For example, a cloud service may decide when to turn an air conditioner on or off based on data collected from a smart meter. SAMI could allow sensor data to be fed into the cloud for analysis. Another interesting use of Artik could be for health and fitness. Data collected from a wearable can be sent for monitoring and analysis to Samsung's Simband cloud-based health analytics service. Samsung has also tied the Artik boards to driver assistance, service robots and cloud-based security services. The Artik boards are targeted at an audience that includes enthusiasts and startups developing IoT hardware. IBM, ARM and Microsoft are among the notable companies selling boards with access to cloud services. Raspberry Pi has no cloud service attached to it. The Artik boards are also part of an effort by Samsung to sell more components and services for IoT devices. Analysts have estimated the number of connected devices numbering anywhere from 20 billion to 50 billion devices by 2020. The Artik 5 is 29 by 25 millimeters. It has USB, GPIO, I2C, UART and SPI ports, which are critical for attaching components and peripherals like cameras. Samsung has said it will make Artik boards compatible with Arduino, a development platform popular with makers, but it's not clear if that has happened yet. The board is shipping ahead of the Samsung Developer Conference, which will be held in San Francisco on April 27 and 28. The Artik 1 and Artik 10 boards could ship prior to the conference. Details about the "Sons of Anarchy" prequel have been limited online. While fans are eager to get more information about Kurt Sutter's new show, rumors just keep on circulating about its cast and plot. For many, the return of Charlie Hunnam as Jax Teller is a great treat. Fans are definitely looking forward to see the hot biker reprise his role. According to reports, there could be a great chance that the actor return as evidenced by him dropping out of some notable roles. "The 35-year-old Hunnam backed out of 'Fifty Shades of Grey,' where he was slated to play Christian Grey," IBT reported. "His role in "The Mountain Between Us," opposite Rosamund Pike, was also offered to Idris Elba. There are rumours that Hunnam may also be moving out of the "Pacific Rim 2" movie due to his other commitments, such as being Green Arrow." Meanwhile, fans were definitely delighted to hear rumors that Brad Pitt has allegedly been chosen to play a crucial role in the prequel. According to reports, Pitt has been eyed to join the cast as John Teller, Jax Teller's father. Pitt's character will be very crucial to the new show as it will reportedly focus on John Teller's early years. "At some point I do have plans to hopefully do the prequel, which I do see as a one-off 10- or 12-episode thing where we begin in Nam and see John Teller and Piney and see how that relationship got created, and bring them back to the States and the obvious external dynamics that were going on with the country and the perception of the war and what an odd kind of perception these vets got when they returned home," showrunner Kurt Sutter told Deadline. Stay tuned for more "Sons of Anarchy" prequel and spin-off updates here! Johnson & Johnson was reprimanded by a jury in the state of Missouri to pay $72 million because it failed to warn consumers about the risks associated with talc-based products. The company was ordered to pay the amount to the family of Jacqueline Fox whose death "from ovarian cancer was linked to her use of the company's talc-based Baby Powder and Shower to Shower," a report from TorontoSun states. Fox's family claimed that the victim used the company's products for more or less 35 years. She died last October 2015. She was 62 years old. A verdict states that the family of Fox is to receive $10 million in compensatory damages and $62 million in punitive damages. The verdict was given by the jurors in St. Louis, Missouri, on Monday. The family's lawyers claimed that such verdict is considered to be the first - by a U.S. jury - to award damages. Several women from across the US have filed lawsuits against the company, claiming that they were never warned about the link of their products to ovarian cancer. There is about 1,000 cases filed in Missouri state court alone while another 200 is said to have been filed in the state of New Jersey. According to Jese Beasley, one of the family's lawyers, Johnson & Johnson "knew as far back as the 1980s of the risk" linked to their products. However, they resorted to "lying to the public, lying to the regulatory agencies." "It was really clear they were hiding something. All they had to do was put a warning label on," Krista Smith, the jury foreman, said. On the other hand, Carol Goodrich, a Johnson & Johnson spokeswoman, said, "We have no higher responsibility than the health and safety of consumers and we are disappointed with the outcome of the trial. We sympathize with the plaintiff's family but firmly believe the safety of cosmetic talc is supported by decades of scientific evidence." Johnson & Johnson's talcum powder has been available for at least 100 years in the market. However, it was only in recent years that scientists suggested the possible link between talc and ovarian cancer. Research regarding this possible finding is still ongoing. In a customer letter released by Apple, they said that they have opposed an order given by the United States government to take an unprecedented step with regard to encryption. This, according to the company, threatens the security of their customers. They believe that such an order is getting out of hands and has implications that are far beyond the legal case faced by the company. Included in the letter is the company's call for public discussion. On the other hand, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates and some members of the general public have turned against the company and is leaning towards the US government's side for safety reasons. Apple, make of iPhones, has been ordered by the Federal Bureau of Investigation to comply with their request to hack into a specific iPhone. That iPhone is believed to be used by Syed Rizwan Farook, who is involved in San Bernardino shooting, Business Finance News reports. FBI wants to gain access into the phone in order to retrieve data that might be helpful in the case and might help combat terrorism in the long run. Such access, the agency believes, could help ensure public safety. However, Apple CEO Tim Cook said that this is not possible as hacking into the phone involves developing a hacking software that could be a threat to public safety as it will be a backdoor for terrorists as well. "Specifically, the FBI wants us to make a new version of the iPhone operating system, circumventing several important security features, and install it on an iPhone recovered during the investigation. In the wrong hands, this software - which does not exist today - would have the potential to unlock any iPhone in someone's physical possession," the customer letter states. "The FBI may use different words to describe this tool, but make no mistake: Building a version of iOS that bypasses security in this way would undeniably create a backdoor. And while the government may argue that its use would be limited to this case, there is no way to guarantee such control," the letter further states. Facebook, Twitter, Google and other tech companies that understand this supported the company. Apple, on the other hand, requested the government create a panel to discuss the situation and find a peaceful solution without having to put a threat to data security. When two students from Metro Nashville wrote essays back in 2015 about their career path, who knew that they would be recognized by the Nashville School Board. Last year, Metro Public School freshmen took part in the "My Future, My Way Career Exploration Fair." Students were given a chance to visit company displays by Tennessee employers and they were able to take part in career talks by teachers, police officers, firefighters, IT technicians and health workers on a one-one-one basis. Freshmen students were able to learn what is required to pursue that kind of job in that type of industry. After the fair, students were required to write a short essay on their experiences on the different professions they have witnessed. Two winning essays were awarded with notice. The Metro School Board recognized the student writers earlier this week. Students Lindsey Dao from John Overton High and Nolan Carrasquillo from Antioch High School were given recognition. Dao wrote about her desire to work in the health care industry and Carrasquillo took home the learning that a profession needs passion, hard work and persistence. Though both teenagers had discussions with prospective employers, they figured that these companies were not the best fit for them. Dao explained that though she may find an IT career profitable, she felt that it was not the path for her. This is a good sign of finding the right path for students at an early age. The career fair was meant to ready the students for the future and make them think about what they want to pursue that would most likely narrow down to their passions. Thousands of students like Dao and Carrasquillo are thinking about their future even though they haven't finished high school yet. Have you already had this discussion with your children or students? Earlier this month, Dallas health officials reported the first known case of sexual transmission of Zika in the current epidemic. United States health officials on Tuesday said they were investigating 14 more new reports of the Zika virus possibly being transmitted by sex, including two pregnant women. If confirmed, the unexpectedly high number would have major implications for controlling the virus, which is usually spread by mosquito bites. "These new reports suggest sexual transmission may be a more likely means of transmission for Zika virus than previously considered," the CDC said in a written statement. Scientists had believed sexual transmission of Zika to be extremely rare and have documented only a few cases. "In two of the new suspected sexual transmission events, Zika virus infection has been confirmed in women whose only known risk factor was sexual contact with an ill male partner who had recently traveled to an area with local Zika virus transmission; testing for the male partners is still pending.", according to the CDC. There are eight other suspected cases under investigation. Lab results are pending for four additional suspected cases among women. Doctors had known Zika could be spread by sexual transmission. In 2008, a U.S. researcher was infected in Africa and infected his wife back in Colorado. Zika has been found in semen. Zika's spreading fast across the Americas and the Caribbean and the World Health Organization has declared it a public health emergency of international concern. The virus itself is relatively harmless to most people, but what's worrying is the potential that it causes severe birth defects. The CDC is urging individuals to follow its previously issued guidance of abstinence or condom use for women, especially those who are pregnant, whose male sexual partners have traveled to a Zika-infected area. It also issued a notice through their Health Alert Network that notified health care providers, labs and local, state and federal public health employees about urgent public health information. Norman Holleman is running for his third term as the Forsyth County Register of Deeds, but faces a challenge from former employee Lynne Johnson in the Democratic primary March 15. The winner will face Republican Steve Wood of Pfafftown in the Nov. 8 general election. Holleman, 60, was first elected in 2008 and won re-election in 2012. He ran unsuccessfully for register of deeds in 2000 and 2004. Johnson, 55, a Forsyth County deputy clerk of court, is running for her first public office. She had previously worked for 27 years in the registers office, including as supervisor of its vital records division during Hollemans tenure. The registers office stores records of births and deaths; real-estate transactions; veterans discharges; and marriage licenses. The office has an annual budget of $1.13 million, and collects $3.1 million in revenue annually, Holleman said. The office rarely finds itself in the public eye, but was squarely in the spotlight when an amendment to the state constitution reinforcing a ban on same-same marriage was ruled unconstitutional. A group of Republican legislators sponsored a bill that created a religious exemption for state magistrates who objected to participating in same-sex weddings on religious grounds. The bill was passed by the North Carolina legislature in 2015, and vetoed by Gov. Pat McCrory. The General Assembly then overrode McCrorys veto. Holleman and Johnson said they would issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples, even though the state law allows employees in the register of deeds office to opt out because of religious beliefs. Eight employees in the registers office have decided to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples, Holleman said. As register of deeds, I dont have a personal opinion (on gay marriage), he said. I just follow the law. Johnson said she is concerned that the opt-out provision could lead to discrimination against same-sex couples. I dont want to see some other type of excuse implemented for someone not to do their job, Johnson said. For me, it does teeter on discrimination. Holleman said he is running for his third term because he wants to continue his record of public service. Since assuming his duties in December 2008, Holleman said he has taken measures that have saved Forsyth County taxpayers about $2 million. I run this office as if it was my own money I was using, Holleman said. I just want to continue what I am doing. As an example of his cost-cutting measures, Holleman has reduced his office staff from 25 full-time employees and one part-timer to a current staff of 19 full-time employees and one part-timer, he said. That has saved taxpayers more than $100,000 annually in salary and benefits, he said. His office staff digitizes its records rather than hiring an outside agency do that work, which has saved the county $50,000 annually, Holleman said. The records of real-estate transactions and indexes of birth and death certificates and marriage licenses are available online at no charge, Holleman said. However, the actual copies of birth and death certificates and marriage licenses are not. People who want certified copies of those records must pay a $10 fee and show a valid ID. Johnson said she is confident about her chances against Holleman. I feel like my chances are as good as his were when he initially filed, Johnson said. He had no experience (in an elected office). Before his election as register of deeds in 2008, Holleman worked 10 years as a real-estate agent. I know what that office looks like when its running efficiently, Johnson said. I just want to make sure when the office issues legal, certified copies, that the statute is followed. Johnson said she would work to ensure that county residents know in advance what types of valid IDs are required to obtain records from the registers office. People have been turned away more than once because they didnt know what was required to get that record, Johnson said. The MINI Classy co-CEOs and lead designers Michelle Lopez (left) and Andrea Dotzauer show off some products in their Third Ward office. Credit: Mike De Sisti By Perhaps the best evidence that The MINI Classy children's clothes made by a pair of Milwaukee moms had taken off came last month, when a member of Jimmy Fallon's "Tonight Show" band ordered some Dino pants for his kids. And for Fallon's daughters. And, what the heck, throw in an adult-sized pair for Fallon himself. Since Michelle Lopez and Andrea Dotzauer started The MINI Classy about two years ago, the colorful pants, dresses, scarves and tops have been spotted on the children of celebrities like Kourtney Kardashian, Fergie, Mario Lopez, 50 Cent and Tori Spelling. The shipment of Dino pants, featuring stripes and soft, cotton spikes, will be headed to Fallon and his family on Friday, courtesy of Tariq Trotter, better known as Black Thought, a member of The Roots Fallon's house band. The high-profile order is the latest in a series of celebrity-fueled successes for the tiny Third Ward company. "We wanted to create clothes that allowed kids to express themselves," Dotzauer said. "They want comfort and color, and their parents want quality and style. It's a huge gap in the industry, but we knew that we had the background and knowledge to fill it." After meeting through their significant others several years ago, Lopez and Dotzauer said they knew they wanted to work together. Both are graduates of Mount Mary University's fashion design program, and agreed to collaborate on high-end streetwear for kids. The two started their business on Lopez's dining room table with a single pair of pants and a post on social media. Using Instagram as a showroom, MINI Classy began to grab the attention of fashionable parents from Milwaukee to Malibu. "It's exciting how quickly it's grown," Lopez said. "It's our passion, and we've had to sacrifice a lot to make things happen. But we're doing something we love." Tapping into celebrity buzz didn't happen quickly. After they contacted a number of public relations firms in Los Angeles, Marque Communications agreed to take on Lopez and Dotzauer as clients. The firm began distributing samples of the clothing to celebrities in Los Angeles and New York. Last fall on Oct. 16, MINI Classy was featured on the Today Show spot "Bobbie's Buzz," a recurring feature with Today Show Style Editor Bobbie Thomas. That happened after the public relations firm sent Thomas samples shortly before she had a baby. Thomas "fell in love with it," Lopez said. She ordered more items after the baby was born, and also requested that the company make some items for Justin Timberlake. And then came the Today Show feature. The MINI Classy's products have also been featured on "The Ellen DeGeneres Show," Huffington Post and Daily Mail UK. And there are now exclusive MINI Classy collections at Barneys in New York City and Kitson Boutique in Los Angeles. Harem pants for kids MINI Classy's first design, a pair of Harem pants, was inspired by a style of trousers typically popular among adults. They found that the fit (loose at the waist and tight around the ankles) translated nicely to kidswear. Harem pants are now the brand's bestselling item, and the one most frequently purchased by their celebrity clientele. A pair costs about $40, the average price for most MINI Classy products. Lopez and Dotzauer said MINI Classy produces an average of 600 pairs each month. While they fill a portion of their orders in Chicago, about 85% of their clothes are produced by the The MINI Classy team in their office in the Third Ward at 338 N. Milwaukee St. The firm has six full-time employees and two interns. Lopez and Dotzauer have collaborated with national streetwear brands such as New York-based Married to the Mob. In summer 2014, MINI Classy made it to the second round of a casting call for the ABC reality show "Shark Tank." "Anyone we've reached out to has been excited to help," Dotzauer said. Pint-size product testers Their most frequent collaborators, and often toughest clients, are their own children: Lopez's 3-year-old daughter Sasha and Dotzauer's 4-year-old son Math. "They're sweet. I like them," Sasha said of the suede "teddy bear" pants her mother made for her. "Me too!" Math added. Collaborating with kids is an important part of MINI Classy's literal "kid tested" business model. "Kids are the ones ultimately wearing our clothes, so we need to make sure that they don't just look good, but they also feel comfortable and excited about what they're wearing," Dotzauer said. She added that they've trashed plenty of designs because they were not "kid approved." If a new top or pair of pants is "too itchy" or "uncomfy," it's tossed. Most MINI Classy items are constructed from bamboo/cotton-blend fabrics that are both comfortable and durable. Although the two have enjoyed the success and approval they've received from their children and their clientele, they admit that it can be difficult to grow a brand from the Midwest. "It's hard being in Milwaukee," Lopez said. "Most factories and major fashion labels are on the coasts or somewhere overseas. We don't have the option of going to downtown LA every day to network or shop for materials." Another challenge has been organizing the business and attracting Wisconsin investors. Lopez and Dotzauer approached local nonprofit BizStarts about a year ago for help creating a business plan and securing investments. "Finding investment can be challenging," said Jacquin Davidson, BizStarts executive director. "It can be hard to get in the fashion industry and get investments because most of the area's investors don't really want to invest in fashion." Before coming to Milwaukee, Davidson lived and worked in California for more than three decades. She said that although Midwest fashion start-ups like MINI Classy face challenges, locating here provides plenty of benefits as well. "Wisconsin is very different from California. People are really willing to help you here. Andrea and Michelle have found the right people to work with them, and they've created a very friendly and creative environment to work in." As their business grows, Lopez and Dotzauer hope to add products such as bedding to their brand. They also hope to collaborate with their alma mater, Mount Mary, on a mentorship program that gives students an opportunity to design for their company. "Milwaukee's been good to us," Dotzauer said. "Rent and overhead are cheap. The art community is strong. We've built an incredible support system here." Lopez added, "I don't think that would've happened in California." Finding the clothing The MINI Classy is available at theminiclassy.com, or locally at Hot*Pop. SHARE By of the Two Milwaukee police crime analysts will work with prosecutors to track juvenile carjacking and auto theft cases through the criminal justice system, Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett announced Tuesday. "What we're trying to do is create a longitudinal study," Barrett said. "Because I truly don't know where the point is where repeat juvenile offenders are being released back into the community." Barrett credited Common Council President Michael Murphy and District Attorney John Chisholm for working together on the issue. The mayor also highlighted two recent cases he says exemplify his concern. On Saturday afternoon, four teens robbed an 82-year-old woman of her car keys in a parking lot in the 1500 block of W. Capitol Drive. Witnesses intervened and chased the teens, preventing them from taking the woman's car, according to police. An off-duty Milwaukee police captain caught two of the suspects, ages 14 and 15, who were arrested outside a house in the 4200 block of N. 51st Blvd. Officers also found the woman's stolen car keys and a toy gun that police believe was used in the attempted robbery. The 14-year-old boy had been arrested for theft, burglary and arson since 2011. As of Saturday, he was on a weekend pass from a residential juvenile facility. The 15-year-old boy also was assigned to a residential juvenile facility and was on probation for strong-arm robbery. Police say he had two active warrants at the time related to robbery offenses. Milwaukee police are still searching for the other two suspects. Last week, two teens, including one with a history of prior arrests, were arrested in a stolen car after a crash. The car was taken in a robbery Feb. 7 when three people, one armed with a gun, stole it in the 2900 block of N. 40th St., according to police. Occupants in that car were linked to other unspecified crimes in Milwaukee and surrounding areas, officials said. The 16-year-old boy arrested after the crash had been on county supervision with 24-hour curfew and GPS monitoring since January and had an open warrant for his arrest on an unspecified offense. So far this year, Milwaukee police have arrested 87 juveniles for auto theft and carjacking-related offenses a 64% increase in arrests from the same time last year. "Our police officers are making arrests," Barrett said. "Our frustration is many times these kids are back on the street to commit more crimes." Barrett said he met with Milwaukee County Executive Chris Abele, who agreed that city officials and police will be part of the working group exploring placement options for youths returning from Lincoln Hills, a state-run youth facility under federal and state investigation for allegations of abuse, neglect, sexual assault and excessive use of force. The mayor also has called on the Milwaukee Community Justice Council and the Milwaukee Homicide Review Commission to focus on youthful offenders. "Clearly we need all of the participants in the criminal justice system to tackle this with us," Barrett said. SHARE Jeffrey L. Schultz Waukesha County Sheriff's Department By of the A man who received a plea deal and two years of probation for beating an 8-year-old autistic boy and choking the boy's mother is now charged with strangling the woman after a melee at a Waukesha hotel. Prosecutors say Jeffrey L. Schultz, 48, beat the woman in the hotel last month, seriously injuring her and one of the four officers required to subdue and arrest him. Two weeks before the attack, Washington County authorities had issued an arrest warrant for Schultz after he threatened to kill the woman. But they did not take him into custody. In addition to the open warrant, Schultz had prior domestic violence convictions in Washington County. The case illuminates the often-escalating nature of domestic violence and the lasting trauma it leaves behind. One domestic violence expert said a description of Schultz putting the woman in a "chokehold" raises questions as to why he wasn't charged with felony strangulation in the earlier case, which occurred last year. Instead, Schultz was charged with two counts of misdemeanor disorderly conduct and felony child abuse in connection with hitting the woman's son. As that case was pending, he was charged with disorderly conduct and felony bail jumping for arguing with the woman and punching a hole in the wall. All those charges were consolidated in Washington County and Schultz pleaded guilty to two misdemeanors. The others were dismissed, but the judge, James K. Muehlbauer, was allowed to consider them during sentencing. The prosecutor on the case, Peter Cannon, declined to answer questions about the deal. Cannon said only that the victim had been notified of all proceedings and that the district attorney's office generally does not discuss plea negotiations. If Schultz violated the terms of his supervision, he could have received up to one year of jail time. The woman, who at one time was married to Schultz, was shocked he wasn't required to serve immediate jail or prison time. "It was like a slap in the face," said the woman, who asked that her name not be published. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel typically does not identify victims of domestic violence. Deputies called to home Last February, Washington County deputies were called to the Richfield home the woman and her three children shared with Schultz. The woman and Schultz were married at the time. Court documents and interviews detail what happened next: Schultz had been snow-blowing the driveway when the woman's autistic son got in the way. Schultz told the woman to deal with the "(expletive) kids." The woman told deputies she tried to calm down Schultz, but he continued to yell and swear, causing her son to get upset and run around the house. Schultz stopped the boy with a blow to the face. When the woman tried to help her son, Schultz pushed her against the wall, wrapped his arm around her neck and tried to cover her mouth as she yelled for the children to call 911. The woman fled possibly by biting his hand, but she couldn't remember exactly with her children as law enforcement arrived. Another adult in the house backed up the woman's account and described Schultz as putting the woman in a "chokehold." The witness also said she saw the woman's son on the floor with a bloody nose and marks on the right side of his face. Schultz told deputies he was trying to get the boy to stay out of the way of the snowblower but became frustrated when the child didn't listen. Schultz denied intentionally hitting the boy. He said the boy "had run into his hand" and that caused the injuries. He also denied any physical contact with the boy's mother. Tony Gibart, public policy and communications coordinator for End Domestic Abuse Wisconsin, said he would like to know more about the investigation and why it was not charged as a strangulation. "When victims or witnesses talk about strangulation in everyday language, that's how they talk about it 'He tried to choke her' and that's why we try to move away from that type of terminology," he said. "Choking is something you do at the dinner table," Gibart continued. "It kind of immediately minimizes what's going on, whereas the act of strangulation has the connotation of a life-threatening situation." Another call to deputies Less than two months later, on March 28, deputies were called to the Richfield house again. This time, Schultz, who was still living with the woman, punched a hole in the wall during an argument. Deputies interviewed Schultz, who claimed he was having a "pretend argument" with the woman because he was testing if the house was "bugged" with secret recording devices. The case was consolidated with the previous one, and the felony child abuse charge was reduced to misdemeanor battery as part of the plea deal. Schultz pleaded guilty to battery and disorderly conduct, and he got two years of probation with stayed jail time. On Jan. 7, 2016, as he was serving probation under the plea deal, Schultz's agent contacted Washington County deputies when Schultz texted her: "Please leave my wife alone. You turned her against me. ... I don't want to hurt her, but if you don't stop I will have no choice." The agent had given Schultz a travel permit to go to Florida from Christmas through New Year's Eve. It was not clear in court records if the agent knew Schultz was traveling with the woman. The agent learned of problems between Schultz and the woman when they returned. The woman showed the agent photos of several guns Schultz had taken from Wisconsin to Florida. The woman also told a Washington County deputy Schultz beat her with his cane in December. She said she did not get medical treatment or call police because she was so scared of Schultz. Schultz also had sent the woman two texts on Jan. 7, expressing anger that she reported his actions to his probation agent. "I will end your life," he texted her. That's when Washington County officials issued the arrest warrant. The hotel assault Two weeks later, prosecutors say, Schultz launched the violent assault at Country Springs Hotel and Waterpark. According to the criminal complaint: The incident began when the woman's 9-year-old son started dancing, which prompted Schultz to "flip out" and tell the woman to make him stop. The woman said she and the children were going to a different room. Schultz grabbed her throat and squeezed. He slammed her against a wall. He whispered to her: "You're going to die." Throughout interviews with the police, the woman repeatedly said she was terrified to leave Schultz because "he will hunt her and the children down and murder them." She said she believes he tracked her phone. He has told her he has people following her and her children every day. Her daughter gave a similar account of what happened, how she watched her mother's face change colors and her eyes roll back into her head as she was being strangled. When Waukesha police arrived at the hotel room, they could hear the woman moaning and Schultz screaming obscenities. Officers pushed the door open and rescued the woman, who was lying limp on the floor. Schultz, who weighs nearly 600 pounds, taunted the officers and was arrested after a struggle with police during which one officer was pinned underneath Schultz, seriously injuring the officer's leg. He was charged in Waukesha County on Jan. 27 with first-degree reckless injury, two counts of felony strangulation, two counts of felony victim intimidation, false imprisonment, battery, disorderly conduct and resisting an officer. "What happened at the Waukesha hotel was, to my mind, an attempted homicide," said Gibart, spokesman for End Domestic Abuse Wisconsin. "In retrospect, it speaks to the issue of taking prior incidents of strangulation and threats to kill as very clear warning signs that the perpetrator is at high risk to kill the victim," he said. A judge set Schultz's bail at $500,000 and ordered a mental competency examination to determine if Schultz can understand the charges and aid in his own defense. His attorney did not return phone calls for comment. In an interview, the woman, who is still recovering from her injuries in the January beating, said she felt frustrated at a system she thought would help protect her and her family. Even though Schultz currently is in jail, she doesn't feel safe. "I know he's coming after us," she said. The Sojourner Family Peace Center in Milwaukee County operates a 24-hour hotline at (414) 933-2722. The Women's Center operates a 24-hour hotline in Waukesha County at (262) 542-3828. The National Domestic Abuse Hotline is (800) 799-7233 and the National Child Abuse Hotline is (800) 422-4453. By of the The Wisconsin Supreme Court on Wednesday said police acted lawfully when they ordered blood be taken from an emergency room patient they suspected of suffering a heroin overdose. The patient, later charged with possession of heroin, argued that police should have gotten a search warrant and that evidence of the drug in his blood should be suppressed. But in a 5-2 ruling, the court found that "exigent circumstances" that the heroin would break down into morphine in the patient's blood, making it difficult to identify heroin in the person's system granted police an exception to Fourth Amendment prohibition against unreasonable searches and seizures without a warrant. In October 2012, Oshkosh police and firefighters responded to a report of a man not breathing. Andy Parisi was on a living room floor, amid vomit. He was given Narcan, a drug to stop the effects of a heroin overdose, and taken to a hospital. A police officer said he suspected heroin because some was found elsewhere in the house and because medical personnel had administered Narcan. Prosecutors later argued that because heroin quickly breaks down into another substance in the blood, it might have been too late to detect it if officers sought a search warrant and the best evidence of heroin possession would be lost. Writing for the majority, Justice Annette Ziegler said all the facts taken together support the exigent circumstances exception to the search warrant requirement. She said the decision does not establish a per se rule that police may always take blood without consent or a warrant when they suspect heroin. But the dissent says the ruling does just that and ignores a 2103 U.S. Supreme Court decision that largely ended the practice, common in states like Wisconsin, of routinely taking warrantless blood draws in drunken driving cases. In her dissent, Justice Ann Walsh Bradley said the state failed to prove the circumstances were truly exigent, since there appeared to be ample time, manpower and opportunity for police to seek a warrant for Parisi's blood. Bradley also points out that, even if heroin dissipated from Parisi's blood within an hour, the resulting morphine would stay in his blood long after that, and a charge of possessing morphine carries the same possible sentence as possession of heroin. After the trial judge denied his motion to suppress the heroin found in his blood, Parisi pleaded no contest to possession, was sentenced to two years probation and appealed. The Court of Appeals also upheld the search, but on different grounds, finding that police were acting in good-faith reliance on older law. SHARE By More students in Wisconsin's graduating class of 2015 took advanced placement exams and earned passing scores than the previous class, the state Department of Public Instruction said in a news release Wednesday. A higher percentage of Wisconsin students passed the exams than the percentage of students who passed nationwide, the DPI said. The numbers were gathered from a report by the College Board that shows a pattern of steady growth in Wisconsin students' participation in the AP program in recent years. A passing score on an AP exam can earn a student college credit or advanced standing from most colleges and universities, saving students and families hundreds or even thousands of dollars in tuition costs. The number of Wisconsin students who took AP exams increased from 19,859 for the 2014 graduating class to 20,825 in 2015, which is 35.3% of the state's graduates. The percentage of Wisconsin students who passed the exams increased from 23.6% in 2014 to 24.7% in 2015. Nationwide, 22.4% of students earned passing scores. The number of low-income students taking and passing the exams in the state has also steadily increased since 2005. In 2015, 13.5% of low-income students took AP exams, compared with 4.4% in 2005. Some of the most popular AP exams in 2015 were psychology, English, biology, calculus and chemistry. The Milwaukee County Safety Building would be demolished to make space for a proposed $184 million Criminal Courthouse, under a plan presented by a consultant. The plan says that all criminal courts should be taken out of the historic 1932 courthouse to eliminate movement of prisoners in public hallways. Credit: Angela Peterson SHARE By of the The Milwaukee County Safety Building would be demolished to make space for a proposed $184 million criminal courthouse, under a plan recommended by consultants. The Safety Building was constructed in 1929 and renovations required to bring it up to modern operating standards and building codes would cost up to $150 million, so a team of consultants hired by the county last year is recommending its demolition, a report summarizing the plan says. Consultants are recommending construction of a 10-story criminal courthouse with 360,000 square feet to provide space for 26 courtrooms and judicial chambers. The plan will be discussed this month at a special meeting of the County Board's transportation, public works and transit committee, Board Chairman Theodore Lipscomb Sr. said. A date has not been set for the meeting. "I'm supportive of solving the problems," Lipscomb said. "Our current facilities are inadequate and inefficient. We certainly need to do something." "I don't think the right thing to do is throw more money into the existing Safety Building," he said. The trio of consultants determined all criminal courts should be taken out of the historic 1932 Milwaukee County Courthouse to eliminate movement of prisoners in public hallways and improve use of space there. "Removing the criminal courts would significantly improve the utility and safety of the historic Courthouse," the consultants say in the report. Civil, probate and family courts could remain in the existing courthouse, along with other county offices, such as County Board, executive, register of deeds, county clerk and treasurer. The consultants are: Hammel, Green and Abrahamson Architects, Justice Planning Associates and IBC Engineering. An updated master space plan will be completed at the end of 2016, county Facilities Management Director Jeremy Theis said in a memo to Lipscomb. The strategic plan for the county courts system is part of a larger consolidated facilities planning process for all county facilities, said Administrative Services Director Teig Whaley-Smith. A few years ago, the county was facing more than $300 million in deferred maintenance across all of its buildings and parks. The goal of consolidating county services in fewer buildings is "to provide better, more efficient space at a savings to taxpayers," he said. Should the County Board accept the proposed strategic plan for consolidating criminal courts, consultants would return with more comprehensive plans and financing options by the end of this year, Whaley-Smith said. "This is the largest single project we would have done in decades, if it proceeds," Lipscomb said. "One thing that ought to be discussed is how to pay for it." Inside the Safety Building, several criminal courtrooms on lower floors were built in former offices and now fail to meet minimum safety standards established by the Wisconsin Supreme Court, the consultant's report says. "As with the historic courthouse, criminal defendants in custody are moved through public hallways in order to access courtrooms," the report says. Among other problems found in the Safety Building: asbestos, pests and "poor air and water quality due to mechanical, electrical and plumbing inadequacies." "Due to the uncertainty regarding long-term use of the building, proper maintenance of the facility has been deferred for an extended period of time, and will now be very expensive to achieve," the consultants concluded. The proposed criminal courthouse also would improve public service provided by jurors in criminal cases, according to the report. "Jurors must move from the jury assembly room in the historic courthouse to courtrooms in the Safety Building and in the Criminal Justice Facility," the report says. "A new criminal courthouse would provide a dedicated jury assembly room for those courtrooms." Steven Avery is seen in a Calumet County courtroom during the opening day in his murder trial on Feb. 12, 2007, in Chilton, Wis. Credit: Journal Sentinel files By Leave it to the state of Wisconsin to take even the most high-minded and admirable legislation and find some way to screw it up. A bill to boost the amount of compensation to people who have been wrongfully imprisoned passed the state Assembly on Feb. 9 on a vote of 98-0. Everyone agreed the state's current cap of $5,000 per year, to a maximum of $25,000, is woefully low; the bill would increase that to $50,000 per year, to a maximum of $1 million. But raising the cap for people whose lives are shattered by wrongful convictions, sometimes due to police and prosecutorial misconduct, is not all the bill would do. Another provision would allow the wrongfully convicted person to request the "sealing of all records related to the case" to everyone else. Judges would be required to honor such requests. That means the media and public potentially could be deprived of information on cases in which it is known that something went terribly wrong. For instance, if this change had been in place following Steven Avery's 2003 exoneration for a sexual assault, for which he spent 18 years in prison, he would have sole power to decide whether the court files of his conviction would be open to public view. Avery, whose story has drawn recent international attention as the result of a Netflix documentary series, was subsequently convicted of murder. But Steven Avery is not the only person who has a legitimate interest in these records. The media has a right to see how the justice system screwed up, on behalf of the taxpayers who pay for everything from the police work that led to his conviction, to his court trial, to his years of wrongful incarceration. The legislation was on a fast-track to Senate passage. But suddenly, on Feb. 16, the bill was pulled from a scheduled vote, after alarms were sounded about its potential impact on court records. A spokeswoman for Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald says "the recent increase in public scrutiny on the topic intensified some of the concerns that our members had with the proposal throughout the process." She said the bill "is certainly still under consideration" for the Senate's planned session in mid-March, but only after additional discussion. Let's hope that discussion focuses on the need to keep court records open to all, especially in cases in which the courts have made terrible mistakes. Consider the alternative: prosecutors who know a court file contains evidence of official misconduct could agree not to oppose a wrongfully convicted person's effort to secure release provided that the person agrees to promptly request the sealing of the file. Our available court records should reflect our actual court realities, including the fact that the justice system sometimes acts as an instrument of injustice. We must resist efforts to allow courts to exercise their vast powers including the ability to deprive people of their liberty in secret. Bill Lueders is president of the Wisconsin Freedom of Information Council and associate editor of The Progressive. SHARE Schneider's skewed vision Christian Schneider's defense of Sen. Ron Johnson and Republican obstructionism is astonishing ("Johnson shouldn't budge on court," Crossroads, Feb. 21). He praises Johnson for believing that President Barack Obama should not be allowed to nominate a replacement for Justice Antonin Scalia. In Schneider's skewed vision, somehow democracy will take hold only after the November elections. He says that voters "will appreciate being trusted with a say in how their judiciary is constructed." But the voters have already had their say. They elected Obama. Twice. Schneider discounts the president's authority, calling him a lame duck. No, he's not. A lame duck is an official who is still in office even though his successor has been chosen. Obama will be a lame duck only between the election and the next inauguration. Until then, he is fully the president. Schneider invites sympathy for poor Johnson for his seeming difficulty in explaining "complicated judicial procedure." There's nothing complicated about it. The president's constitutional duty is to fill the vacancy, and in a timely manner. And Johnson's duty? To advise and consent. Not threaten delay and obstruction, even before a candidate has been named. The longest we have gone with a Supreme Court vacancy is 125 days. To obstruct the nomination for nearly a year is mind-bogglingly incompetent. Mr. Schneider, instead of praising threats to stall before a candidate is even named, how about calling for the parties to try to work together to come up with a suitable nominee? How about encouraging them to be leaders and recognize their duty to keep the government functioning, and condemning them when they don't? Thomas Zachek Hubertus Sanders' socialism Upon reading the Feb. 21 letter from Art DeJong comparing the manufacture of the East German Trabi and the West German BMW, I was amazed at how deceptive this humorous anecdote was ("Socialism is never the cure," Crossroads). The "capitalists" who built the BMW in Munich all have a single-payer health care plan run through their federal government. They all have terrific mass transit run by their local and federal governments. They have nearly free education in an outstanding educational system run by their government. Many of those workers vote for the SPD, one of Germany's major political parties. The SPD is the Social Democratic Party. The builders of the Trabi lived in a tyrannical political system that called itself a "democratic republic." The term socialism has been around for two centuries and has meant different things in different decades to different people. Karl Marx called his ideas "scientific socialism." They were not scientific and when Lenin got hold of power they were soon called Bolshevism. They didn't work. Past mayors of Milwaukee successfully improved the city's infrastructure under the name socialism. The democratic socialism that Bernie Sanders advocates is entirely in line with the goals of the Labour Party of Great Britain and the SPD of Germany, as well as the left side of the "aisle" in almost every industrialized democracy in the developed world. Rudi Mueller Waukesha Holding on to the past Art DeJong's letter of Feb. 21 in the Milwaukee Journal was correct in the context of Cold War rhetoric, but times change, and those who hold on to the past as a light to the future will be left behind as the world moves on ("Socialism is never the cure," Crossroads). And move on it has, for now we rely on those same potential enemies of the past China and Russia to buy our country's sovereign debt to keep our country going. Ten years from now, who knows how much the world will be further changed. John Rowe Milwaukee 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. Waukesha Mayor Shawn Reilly speaks in favor of tapping Lake Michigan water for the City of Waukesha during a public hearing on Waukesha's request for a Lake Michigan water supply at Carroll University on Feb. 18. Credit: Rick Wood By Waukesha needs a new water supply. Our groundwater supply is severely depleted. Naturally occurring contaminants are increasing. We are under a court order to comply with the federal drinking water standards for radium, a carcinogen. We are a leader in water conservation efforts, but conservation does not prevent our need for a new supply. After a five-year review of our 3,000-page application and 22 subsequent memos, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources concluded that our only reasonable water supply alternative is to borrow and return Lake Michigan water under the Great Lakes Compact. We will borrow 1/1,000,000 of 1% of Great Lakes water and return the same amount. But a group calling itself the Compact Implementation Coalition (CIC) is opposing our application with a continuous campaign of misleading information that is being repeated by others. One of CIC's false claims is that Waukesha could continue to use our current wells if we treat the water and serve a smaller service area than state law requires. They ignore the fact that the deep aquifer is severely depleted and is not a reliable long term water supply. The DNR reviewed CIC's proposal and found it flawed. Among the errors are CIC's inflated capacities of our existing wells and its failure to consider that the proposed reverse osmosis treatment wastes 10% to 20% of the water supply. That means additional shallow aquifer wells would be necessary, harming 900 to 1,000 acres of wetlands. The DNR said that is unreasonable. CIC also did not consider that water quality in the shallow aquifer is vulnerable to contamination. Waukesha recently had to suspend the use of two shallow wells because chloride levels exceeded secondary standards, potentially allowing corrosive water to enter our drinking water system. Another false CIC claim is that Waukesha's application promotes growth. In fact, regional planners estimate our service area will only have 0.5% annual growth until build-out in about 2050. Only 15% of the service area is available for future development. CIC proposes that service not be provided to portions of communities adjacent to the city. But the city already is serving areas outside of its limits because of existing public health issues. CIC's newest claim condemns "Waukesha's return of partially treated wastewater through the Root River" to Lake Michigan, even though that cannot happen. The treatment facility has been designed so that only water that has received advanced treatment can reach the start of the 20-mile pipe to the Root River and Lake Michigan. In the unlikely event of an overflow, the water would remain outside of the Lake Michigan Basin and outside of the Root River. We are returning water via the Root River at the suggestion of DNR water management staff. The additional flow will improve fish passage and help a DNR fish egg collection facility. Our return flow water to the Root River is cleaner than the river. CIC also claims that borrowing water under the Great Lakes Compact must be our "last resort." Again, this is untrue. The compact states a community must have "no reasonable water supply alternative." The Wisconsin DNR found this is true for Waukesha. Finally, CIC promotes fears that approval of Waukesha's request will send Great Lakes water to distant places. The compact absolutely prohibits water from going beyond communities in counties that straddle the Great Lakes surface divide, like Waukesha. Approval of Waukesha's application will not change that fact. Public health decisions must be made on the basis of thorough, long-term planning and scientific analysis. That is the basis of Waukesha's application. I am confident the Great Lakes governors will agree that borrowing Lake Michigan water is our only reasonable water supply alternative and will not harm the precious resources of the Great Lakes. Shawn Reilly is the mayor of Waukesha. Representatives of Great Lakes states and provinces listen to testimony during a public hearing on Waukeshas request for a Lake Michigan water supply at Carroll University on Feb. 18. Credit: Rick Wood By If the City of Waukesha has its way, a dangerous precedent will be set for the entire Great Lakes region. This Wisconsin community wants the Great Lakes governors to sign off on a first-of-its-kind diversion application that fails to meet the letter and spirit of the Great Lakes Compact, a much-heralded regional agreement signed into federal law in 2008. In recognition that the Great Lakes remain a critically important natural resource to the region at large, the compact categorically bans diversions of Great Lakes water except under extremely limited circumstances and then only to communities that have no other reasonable options. This is not the case with Waukesha. In 2000, the Environmental Protection Agency identified Waukesha as one of more than 50 Wisconsin communities with too much radium in its water. These committees were asked to take action to make their water safe to drink by 2006. Most did so, but not the City of Waukesha. Unlike the dozens of other Wisconsin communities that invested in radium treatment and other reasonable solutions, Waukesha chose to look to the Great Lakes, one of our region's most precious and fragile freshwater resources, to bail it out. What's more, Waukesha's proposed Great Lakes diversion option promises to cost $150 million more than a non-diversion alternative, which would enable Waukesha to meet its drinking water needs by adding common-sense, available treatment technologies to its deep groundwater wells, while continuing to use its shallow wells. Moreover, it appears that Waukesha's diversion application is based not on the needs of its current city residents, but rather on the purported needs of households, and portions of other neighboring communities, included in a far larger water supply service area created by a state planning law. This expanded water supply service area almost doubles the size of the city's current water supply service area. Nowhere does the Great Lakes compact allow for a diversion based on the possible future needs of expanded service areas. And the households and commercial entities within this expanded area fail to meet two of the compact's central requirements: they have not shown any real need for Great Lakes water nor demonstrated significant water conservation efforts to date. Wisconsin's reliance on a state planning law designed to foster growth as justification for this contentious, expanded water supply service area is equally misplaced, because the provisions of the Great Lakes Compact inarguably trump state law. Finally, beyond its failure to comply with core compact requirements, Waukesha's diversion application shows a blatant disregard for the people of Racine, a city struggling on a different and far greater scale than the City of Waukesha. It is Racine that will be forced to bear the public health risks and cleanup costs relating to Waukesha's return of partially treated wastewater through the Root River, which runs through the heart of Racine and empties into the city's Lake Michigan harbor. This is simply wrong. In order to secure the protection and viability of our magnificent Great Lakes for generations to come, the Great Lakes governors on the Compact Council must ensure that the core principles of the Great Lakes Compact are fully and truly honored. For its shortcomings and missteps, Waukesha's application must be denied. Jodi Habush Sinykin is an attorney with Midwest Environmental Advocates, a Madison-based nonprofit group that works to protect water resources. The group is a member of the Compact Implementation Coalition. Republican presidential candidates Donald Trump, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) and Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) talk during a commercial break in the Republican presidential debate at St. Anselm College Feb. 6 in Manchester, N.H. Credit: Getty Images In America, racial and gender progress often can be a challenge to measure. This is why we so effusively celebrate "firsts." When someone becomes the first of a given ethnicity or gender to occupy a job we've all heard of, it's shorthand for, "Look, we're breaking down barriers!" The most obvious example of this effect was the election of Barack Obama as president in 2008. There's no doubt electing the first African-American president was an important symbolic accomplishment. It was an American molting; the country believed it was shedding its skin of slavery and segregation and growing a new coat of racial tolerance. (Unfortunately, the good vibes didn't last long, leading comedian Zach Galifianakis to ask Obama, "What's it like being the last black president?") There are, however strict limits as to who gets to claim the mantle of racial progress. If you're Clarence Thomas and you're appointed to the U.S. Supreme Court by a Republican president, you're not "groundbreaking," you are, as George Takei called Thomas, "A clown in blackface." Conservatives, of course, are not eligible to break down racial barriers. If you're U.S. Sen. Tim Scott, for instance, an African-American Republican elected to the U.S. Senate in the Southern state of South Carolina, prepare yourself to be derided as a "ventriloquist's dummy" by notable NAACP leaders. That's why, as you look at the remaining Republican presidential contenders, something may seem a bit askance. It's a three-man race, and two of those men seem to look a little bit different from any other previous GOP candidates. Maybe one day, after conducting some vigorous investigative journalism, the media will figure out what makes Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz unique in political history. Here's a bread crumb, for any reporter who might want to do some digging: Rubio and Cruz are Latino. They are both the sons of Cuban immigrants. Sadly, there's a better chance of a national newscast demonstrating how to cook meth in your basement than there is of any of them acknowledging that Hispanic candidates are currently a dominant force in the GOP. (Although not as much as the orange bag of gas currently leading the field.) One can only imagine the public media orgy if two Latino Democrats were the last sane options to win their party's nomination. Rubio's town hall meetings would be filled with smoke caused by the saliva damage reporters would be inflicting on their laptops. George Stephanopoulos would begin his political talk show every Sunday wearing a sombrero and shaking maracas. But Republicans are exempt from such celebrations. After Iowa, where Ted Cruz became the first Latino candidate from either party to win a presidential primary or caucus, Republican National Committee Chair Reince Priebus took to the airwaves to decry the lack of coverage of the historic event. "Where is the media on this, right?" said Priebus on Fox News Channel. "I mean, this is a big deal." Compare the lack of identity politics on the right to what's going on in the Democratic primary. In New Hampshire, Hillary Clinton surrogate Madeline Albright famously said there's a "special place in hell for women who don't help each other." (Albright later apologized for her oft-used line.) In defending herself against Bernie Sanders' attack that she's part of the "establishment," Clinton shot back, "Honestly, Sen. Sanders is the only person who would characterize me a woman running to be the first woman president as exemplifying the establishment." (Unfortunately for Clinton, her gender appeals failed, and she lost the female vote to Sanders, and, as multiple media outlets were quick to point out, Sanders was the first Jewish candidate to win a presidential primary.) So here's some pre-emptive praise for the first media outlet to emphasize the progress Republican Latinos are making in America. Your courageous reporting is truly groundbreaking. Christian Schneider is a Journal Sentinel columnist and blogger. Email cschneider@jrn.com. Twitter: @Schneider_CM SHARE By of the A divided state Court of Appeals on Wednesday reversed a judge's 2014 ruling that had sought to clarify the so-called webcam abortion law, saying Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin never had standing to seek the ruling. An attorney for the organization said it is nonetheless satisfied with the outcome, since the appellate court's ruling had the same effect, confirming that its current and preferred practice is within the law. "The reason for the suit was to ensure no personnel would be subject to prosecution," said Susan Crawford, of Madison. "The decision says clearly, under current protocol, they're not subject to liability." The agency's concern was whether the 2012 law required doctors be present when patients take an abortion drug, or only when it is prescribed. Several state defendants called the suit frivolous, because they had agreed to Planned Parenthood's interpretation in an earlier federal lawsuit. But since the judge in the federal case said the matter really belonged in state court and refused to sign off on a formal settlement, Planned Parenthood sought an injunction in Dane County Circuit Court. As the dissent notes, state officials' stipulations made during the federal litigation are not necessarily binding in the future, should new state officials adopt a different reading of the law and bring charges or other sanctions against abortion providers. The law was aimed at making sure doctors were present when they give women abortion pills, rather than providing them after a consultation done over a webcam. Using webcams to administer abortion pills has not happened in Wisconsin but has in other states, and abortion opponents were concerned the practice could spread here. Nonsurgical abortions require a two-step drug use. Typically, a woman takes the first dose in a doctor's office and the second 24 hours later at home. Planned Parenthood said the law's wording was vague, and could be read to mean doctors must be present when the patient takes the second dose. It was important to get a judge's official ruling, it said, because doctors could face civil and criminal penalties if they violate that requirement, or one that defines a patient's voluntary consent to the procedure. Dane County Circuit Judge Richard Niess issued a declaratory judgment in Planned Parenthood's favor, though not an injunction, in 2014. Then-Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen appealed, along with the Dane County district attorney and state Medical Examining Board members. At the time, Planned Parenthood's attorney said the appeal was merely an attempt to appease anti-abortion voters and cost Planned Parenthood money in defending the appeal. In Wednesday's 2-1 decision, Judge Mark Gundrum wrote the majority opinion, joined by Judge Paul Reilly. They concluded Planned Parenthood failed "to show how, under their undisputed standard protocol for medication abortions, they possibly could be in violation of the statute," and the case should have been dismissed. Chief Judge Lisa Neubauer dissented, noting that Niess found the word "given" was ambiguous. "The court found 'given to the woman,' could mean simply handed to her, i.e., dispensed, or administered to her, i.e., introduced into her body by ingestion or otherwise," Neubauer wrote. "I agree with the circuit court's conclusion that reasonable persons could disagree as to its meaning." Neubauer also said the defendants provided no analysis to support the claim the statute is not ambiguous, and that the majority declared it so without applying the usual rules of statutory construction. Nearly half of the abortions performed by Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin were nonsurgical in 2011. It stopped using the method in April 2012 until April 2013, when Neiss issued a temporary injunction blocking parts of the webcam abortion law. Former U.S. Sen. Russ Feingold (left), a Democrat, is challenging incumbent Republican Ron Johnson in this years election. A liberal advocacy group released a poll Wednesday that showed 62% of Wisconsinities surveyed favor filling the vacant U.S. Supreme Court this year, a move Johnson and other Republican senators have balked at. Credit: Journal Sentinel files SHARE By of the Madison Saying the 2016 election is for "all the marbles," U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson stuck to his opposition Wednesday of any new appointee to the federal Supreme Court by President Barack Obama and said there would be no point to holding confirmation hearings on the nominee. Also Wednesday, the Wisconsin Republican said the United States should drop the federal corporate tax in favor of taxing shareholders in corporations instead, saying that would solve the problem of companies shifting their headquarters overseas to avoid federal taxes. Johnson made his comments on the court as a liberal advocacy group sought to pressure Johnson with a poll showing a majority of state residents favor filling the vacant seat left by the sudden death of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia. Pointing to the fact that the next nominee could flip the majority of the court from conservative to liberal, Johnson said he or she would affect rulings on issues ranging from firearms to free speech. So it's reasonable to leave the appointment and confirmation to the next president and next U.S. Senate, Johnson said. "We were elected by people who are highly concerned about the direction of this court," Johnson said of Senate Republicans. "I think it's pretty obvious the type of judge or justice that President Obama would nominate would be a super-legislator who would tip the balance of the court and would put at risk our Second Amendment gun rights and our First Amendment speech rights." In November, Johnson faces a challenge from Democrat and former U.S. Sen. Russ Feingold, who immediately criticized Johnson's statements on the court. "Senator Johnson needs to do his job, not promise to obstruct a nominee that hasn't even been named yet," Feingold spokesman Michael Tyler said. "The people of Wisconsin expect him to his uphold his constitutional responsibility. Senator Johnson's blind partisanship on this issue is bad for Wisconsin and bad for America." Johnson's campaign shot back that Feingold opposed holding a vote on President George W. Bush's second Supreme Court nominee, Samuel Alito, and then voted against him. Feingold voted for John Roberts, Bush's first nominee. Feingold's camp responded that, before doing that, he met with Alito and that he did not oppose holding hearings on his nomination. The liberal group Americans United for Change paid for the survey of 1,000 Wisconsin voters that was conducted Monday and Tuesday by the Democratic-leaning firm Public Policy Polling. The margin of error was plus or minus 3.1%. Similar surveys have been conducted in Ohio, Pennsylvania and New Hampshire, where Republican senators face re-election. In the Wisconsin poll, 62% said the Supreme Court seat should be filled this year, while 35% said it should be left empty for the next year, with 3% not sure. Johnson said there was no point to holding hearings or waiting for a nominee from the president, saying Obama already had a "track record" in appointing poor justices in Elena Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor. Johnson had no comment on GOP Gov. Scott Walker's decision, one year into his second term, to appoint Rebecca Bradley in October as a successor to Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice N. Patrick Crooks. An election for that seat is being held in April. Johnson was asked about cases of companies moving their main offices overseas, such as the recently announced Johnson Controls' merger with Tyco International that will shift its headquarters to Ireland and save an estimated $150 million on U.S. taxes. Johnson said U.S. corporate taxes were too high and should be assessed instead on individual shareholders. "It would completely do away with the problem of foreign capital being stuck overseas and make us unbelievably competitive," he said. By of the Madison The state Supreme Court heard arguments Wednesday in a case rife with political dimensions that will determine whether Milwaukee police officers can be required to live in the city. Republicans who control the Legislature in 2013 included a provision in the state budget prohibiting local governments from maintaining residency rules other than those requiring police and firefighters to live within 15 miles of their borders. That conflicted with Milwaukee's policy, enacted in 1938, requiring employees to live within the city. City officials at the time argued they could continue to enforce the policy under the "home rule" provision of the state constitution. The Milwaukee Police Association brought a lawsuit against the city that was later joined by the Milwaukee Professional Fire Fighters Association Local 215. The city has halted the residency rule while the case continues, even though it won the latest round in the legal fight. Wednesday's questioning didn't reveal which way a majority of the Supreme Court was leaning. There are political elements to the case. The unions that brought the lawsuit have endorsed Justice Rebecca Bradley, who was appointed to the state Supreme Court by Gov. Scott Walker in the fall and is seeking a full 10-year term on the court in the April 5 election. On Wednesday, a statewide police union endorsed Bradley's opponent, Appeals Judge JoAnne Kloppenburg, with the union's leader questioning Bradley's understanding of how court rulings affect cops. Jim Palmer, the executive director of the Wisconsin Professional Police Association, said in an email to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel he had never known a court candidate to offer so little substance as Bradley, in part because she refused to share her thoughts on past court rulings. "While we respect Justice Bradley, she was able to offer very little beyond platitudes when she met with our board, and they were left with no real way to evaluate her understanding and experience of the issues that matter to law enforcement officers in this state," Palmer wrote. Bradley has gotten the endorsement of 41 sheriffs, 14 district attorneys and the Milwaukee Police Supervisors Organization. Her campaign manager, Luke Martz, declined to comment Wednesday. Palmer's group has endorsed both liberals and conservatives in the past. It did not endorse anyone for Supreme Court in 2011, when Kloppenburg unsuccessfully challenged conservative Justice David Prosser. As with the Milwaukee public safety unions, the Wisconsin Professional Police Association supports the 2013 law limiting the ability of local governments to set residency requirements the law at the heart of the case considered Wednesday. Conflicting rulings A Milwaukee County circuit judge in 2014 sided with the city unions and determined the state residency law trumped the city rule. In July, the 1st District Court of Appeals reinstated the city's residency rule. The unions appealed and the state Supreme Court is expected to reach its decision by summer. The state constitution provides that state laws must yield to local ordinances unless they involve matters of statewide concern and uniformly affect all cities and villages. The appeals court decision found the 2013 law was not of statewide concern and did not affect all municipalities equally because it would have an "outsize impact" on Milwaukee because of its hit to the city's neighborhoods and economy. But Jonathan Cermele, the attorney for the unions, contended residency requirements were an issue of statewide concern because lawmakers have an interest in addressing the welfare of municipal employees and make sure they are treated fairly. He also noted the state pays for a significant portion of the budgets of local governments. Milwaukee's deputy city attorney, Miriam Horwitz, argued the issue was strictly local, saying each municipality had unique reasons for establishing residency requirements that vary considerably from one community to another. "The fact is that they're local concerns," she said. The city agreed to stop enforcing the residency rule after the lawsuit was filed and hundreds of Milwaukee employees now live outside the city. Officials have said they will again enforce the residency rule if they prevail before the Supreme Court. The endorsements from the unions that brought the legal challenge do not preclude Bradley from participating in the case. Bradley sat through Wednesday's arguments but did not ask any questions. In 2010, the court on a 4-3 vote adopted ethics rules that said judges do not have to step down from cases solely because they received endorsements, campaign contributions or other political support from those before the court. Inflation is a top issue for voters, but candidates can do little about it elections Senate Republicans, most vocally Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky (center) are facing a high-stakes political showdown with President Barack Obama sparked by the recent death of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia. Credit: Associated Press SHARE By and Washington The Senate will take no action on anyone President Barack Obama nominates to fill the Supreme Court vacancy, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Tuesday as nearly all Republicans rallied behind his calls to leave the seat vacant for the next president to fill. The announcement by McConnell (R-Ky.) came after Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee ruled out any hearing for an Obama pick. "I agree with the Judiciary Committee's recommendation to not have hearings. In short, there will not be action taken," McConnell said. In a letter to McConnell, Judiciary Committee Republicans wrote: "Because our decision is based on constitutional principle and born of a necessity to protect the will of the American people, this committee will not hold hearings on any Supreme Court nominee until after our next president is sworn in on January 20, 2017." Even the most divisive nominees for the high court have received a hearing before the Judiciary Committee, and the election-year decision to deny such a session is a sharp break with the Senate's traditional "advise and consent" role. A committee review and a hearing is the first step. The action is certain to have repercussions, not only in the presidential race but in congressional contests where vulnerable Senate incumbents, such as Ron Johnson in Wisconsin and others in Illinois, Ohio, Pennsylvania and New Hampshire, face tough Democratic challengers. Johnson, who faces former Sen. Russ Feingold, said in a statement: "I've given my advice: Let the American people decide the direction of the Supreme Court through their votes in the fall election for president and for the Senate. (Judiciary Committee) Chairman (Charles) Grassley, with the unanimous support of the Republican members of the Judiciary Committee, has stated his agreement with that position and decided the Senate, as a coequal branch of government, will withhold its consent. It's a reasonable position that I support let the American people decide." Another of those senators, Republican Mark Kirk of Illinois, has suggested holding hearings, putting him at odds with fellow Republicans. Republican members of the committee met with McConnell in a closed-door session and emerged with a simple message: "No hearing, no vote," said Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.). "We believe the American people need to decide who is going to make this appointment rather than a lame-duck president," said Sen. John Cornyn of Texas, the Senate's No. 2 Republican and like Graham, a member of the Judiciary Committee. Hearings would be "a waste of time," said Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), who was his party's 2008 presidential nominee. Confirmation hearings for a Supreme Court nominee are high-profile in the Senate, and any session is certain to be a spectacle. Among the members of the panel is Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz, and the Texas senator has vowed to block any nominee. Sen. Pat Roberts (R-Kan.), when asked about hearings, said, "Oh why even put that ball on the field? All you're going to do is fumble it. Let the people decide." A new survey by the nonpartisan Pew Research Center said 56% of Americans believe that the Senate should hold hearings and vote on a Supreme Court nominee. White House spokesman Josh Earnest said it was "absolutely" still possible that the Senate would hold hearings, pointing to a handful of Republicans who he said had expressed a willingness, including Kirk, Susan Collins of Maine, Dan Coats of Indiana and Roy Blunt of Missouri. He said that in the last day, Obama has spoken to Republican lawmakers, including some on the Judiciary Committee. As a rationale for their decision, Republicans pointed to a 1992 speech by Vice President Joe Biden, then the chairman of the Judiciary Committee, in which Biden said that in a presidential election year the Senate should "not consider holding hearings until after the election." "Instead, it would be our pragmatic conclusion that once the political season is underway, and it is, action on a Supreme Court nomination must be put off until after the election campaign is over," said Biden, then a Delaware senator. As it turned out, there was no opening on the court that year. Biden had defended himself in a statement Monday, noting that Senate Judiciary Committee chairman, he always ensured prompt consideration for Supreme Court nominees. Scalia's unexpected Feb. 13 death ignited a major fight in Washington over whether Obama should be able to replace him in a presidential election year. McConnell offered one of the first salvos. Scalia had only been dead for a few hours when McConnell announced that he would oppose replacing him before the election. Top Judiciary Committee Democrat Patrick Leahy of Vermont said the GOP's promised obstruction was unprecedented. "During my time on the committee, we have never refused to send a Supreme Court nominee to the full Senate for a confirmation vote, even when the majority of the committee opposed the nomination," he said. "And once reported to the full Senate, every Supreme Court nominee has received an up-or-down confirmation vote during my more than four decades in the Senate." Also Tuesday, a letter from Rear Adm. Brian P. Monahan, the attending physician for members of Congress and the Supreme Court, said Scalia, 79, suffered from coronary artery disease, obesity and diabetes, among other ailments that probably contributed to his sudden death. Presidio County District Attorney Rod Ponton cited the letter, dated Feb. 16, in saying there was nothing suspicious about the death and an autopsy was unnecessary. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump greets supporters at a caucus site Tuesday in Las Vegas. Credit: Associated Press SHARE LAS VEGAS (AP) Donald Trump notched a win in Nevada's Republican caucuses on Tuesday as Marco Rubio bid to elbow out Ted Cruz for second place in an increasingly urgent effort to slam the brakes on the Trump juggernaut. Trump now has three straight victories in the West, the South and Northeast a testament to his broad appeal among the mad-as-hell voters making their voices heard in the 2016 presidential race. INTERACTIVE: Nevada caucus results Six in 10 caucus goers said they were angry with the way the government is working, and Trump got about half of those angry voters, according to preliminary results of an entrance poll. Nevada was a critical test for Rubio and Cruz, the two senators battling to emerge as the clear alternative to the GOP front-runner. Rubio was out to prove he can build on recent momentum, while Cruz was looking for a spark to recover from a particularly rocky stretch in his campaign. Rubio, already campaigning in Michigan as caucus results rolled in, was projecting confidence that he can consolidate the non-Trump voters who have been splintering among an assortment of GOP candidates, saying, "we have incredible room to grow." Cruz, a fiery conservative popular among voters on the GOP's right, finished a disappointing third in South Carolina after spending much of the past two weeks denying charges of dishonest campaign tactics and defending his integrity. Another disappointing finish in Nevada would raise new questions about his viability heading into a crucial batch of Super Tuesday states on March 1. "There's something wrong with this guy," Trump said with his usual measure of tact during a massive Las Vegas rally Monday night. The former reality television star tweeted on Tuesday, "He used him as a scape goat-fired like a dog! Ted panicked." Nevada's caucusing played out in schools, community centers and places of worship across the state a process that's been chaotic in the past. Count Tracy Brigida, fed up after her husband was laid off from his mining job, among those caucusing for Trump. "I want a businessman to run the biggest business in the world," Brigida said as she caucused at a Las Vegas high school. Jeremy Haight drove straight from his marketing job to caucus for Marco Rubio at the same high school. "He's the most level-headed. He hasn't said anything stupid or crazy which is really what I think the country needs," Haight said. It was Cruz for Megan Ortega, who declared: "He's consistent, he's bold and he's a class act." Preliminary results of the entrance poll found that about 3 in 10 early caucus goers said the quality that mattered most to them in choosing a candidate was that he shares their values, slightly more than the quarter who said they want a candidate who can win in November. About a quarter said they want a candidate who can bring change. About 2 in 10 want one who "tells it like it is." Nevada state marks the first Republican election in the West, the fourth of the campaign. And it's not one that's gotten much attention from the GOP candidates. Through Tuesday, the Republican candidates and the super PACs supporting them had spent a combined $3.8 million on television and radio advertisements in Nevada less than a tenth of the $39.3 million spent ahead of last weekend's South Carolina primary, according to Kantar Media's CMAG data. That primary reduced a GOP field that included a dozen candidates a month ago to five, with former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush the latest to drop out after a disappointing finish in South Carolina. Ohio Gov. John Kasich and retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson remain in the race and could play spoilers as the trio of leading candidates, Trump, Cruz and Rubio, battle for delegates with an increasing sense of urgency. Trump's rivals concede they are running out of time to stop him. The election calendar suggests that if the New York billionaire's rivals don't slow him by mid-March, they may not ever. Trump swept all of South Carolina's 50 delegates, giving him a total of 67 compared to Cruz and Rubio who have 11 and 10, respectively. There are 30 delegates at stake in Nevada, awarded to candidates in proportion to their share of the statewide vote so long as they earn at least 3.33%. While proportional contests give Trump's weaker rivals a chance to accumulate delegates, proportional contests also make it difficult to catch up if one candidate runs up a significant lead. After finishing third in Iowa, fifth in New Hampshire and second in South Carolina, Rubio needs a win soon to support the idea that he is the prime heir to Bush's supporters. Indeed, Republican establishment heavyweights have been flooding to Rubio in recent days, including Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson, North Carolina Sen. Thom Tillis and Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch. South Florida's three Cuban-American members of Congress announced their support for him in the hours before the Nevada contest. The entrance poll survey was conducted for The Associated Press and the television networks by Edison Research as Republican voters arrived at 25 randomly selected caucus sites in Nevada. Benac reported from Washington. Associated Press writers Nicholas Riccardi in Las Vegas and Chad Day in Washington contributed to this report. Follow Steve Peoples and Nancy Benac on Twitter at: http://twitter.com/sppeoples and http://twitter.com/nbenac Fond du Lac police officer Erik Foster speaks Monday to a group of about 100 people at Holy Family Catholic Community about what to do in a situation with an active shooter. Foster is in high demand for his departments active shooter training program. Credit: Mark Hoffman By of the Fond du Lac When two people opened fire last December at an office holiday party in San Bernardino, Calif., killing 14 and wounding 22, Erik Foster's phone began ringing. That's the new normal for the Fond du Lac police officer. Something bad happens massacres in a church, a movie theater, a school and people are jolted into thinking, what would I do? How could I survive? The Fond du Lac Police Department offers free active shooter training sessions that Foster teaches for churches, businesses and schools in the community. His calendar filled up right after the San Bernardino mass shooting. While schools, businesses and churches have long drilled for fires and tornadoes, more also are beginning to prepare for what until a few years ago was unthinkable shooting massacres. "It seems like any time there is a public display of an active shooter like San Bernardino, we get call after call from companies wanting to do this for their employees. I've got a dozen scheduled through the end of February," said Foster, a nine-year veteran of the Fond du Lac Police Department. Among them was Holy Family Catholic Community in Fond du Lac, where about 100 parishioners and employees turned out Monday evening for the sobering and eye-opening session. Foster stood before the congregation and spoke matter-of-factly about the difference between life and death often coming down to the actions of people who realize what's happening. The old wisdom of hiding and avoiding confrontation doesn't cut it anymore. Now police encourage people to flee if they can, barricade themselves if they can't and defend themselves by whatever means necessary. "Take that fear and change it into something useful," Foster told the church group. "Get mad and fight back." Members of the Fond du Lac Police Department attend Holy Family, which is how church officials heard about the free active shooter classes. The catalyst was the San Bernardino shooting, said parish manager Joe Bird. "As much as we don't want to have to think about something like that happening, we do have to think about it and be prepared," said Matthew Rodenkirch, communications coordinator for Holy Family, the largest Catholic parish in Wisconsin with 15,000 members. Quick, decisive action Foster's presentation includes disturbing videos of a 2010 shooting by an enraged citizen at a Florida school board meeting and a 2003 Rhode Island nightclub fire that killed 100 people, most of whom tried to leave through the entrance they came in despite several other exits. Foster explained how people don't want to believe something bad is happening, assuming that gunshots are fireworks or a car backfiring, or that flames leaping up on a nightclub ceiling must be part of the band's pyrotechnics. But those who take action quickly and decisively are often among the survivors. And whenever someone does take action, others are more likely to follow. He showed a chart from the 2007 Virginia Tech massacre where 32 were killed. The number of victims decreased in each classroom as the shooter moved from room to room because students and faculty who realized something was wrong jumped out of windows or barricaded their doors. Students in one classroom came up with a novel way to live they laid on their backs with their feet against the door, stacking themselves on top of each other and when the shooter couldn't open the door, he moved on to another room, Foster said. Foster told them that being prepared means always noticing the locations of exits and being aware of surroundings, not unlike soldiers in combat. Foster showed an interactive map compiled by the FBI of mass shootings between 2000 and 2013. As dots appeared on the United States map year by year, they began to speed up as the frequency rapidly increased. Among them were dots in southeastern Wisconsin representing the Oak Creek Sikh Temple and Azana Spa shootings in 2012. "Can it happen here? You betcha," Foster said. The Fond du Lac Police Department began offering active shooter training sessions a few years ago, using a program created by the Advanced Law Enforcement Rapid Response Training Center at Texas State University. The organization's Civilian Response to Active Shooter Events material used by Fond du Lac police is being taught in several states in the coming months. Plus, webinars, workshops and training sessions are scheduled across the country by the Department of Homeland Security and law enforcement agencies as well as private security companies. Through statistics, graphics and videos, the one-hour session illustrates the change in tactics used by police following the 1999 Columbine school massacre. Before Columbine, the first police officers on a scene set up a perimeter and waited for SWAT teams trained and equipped for tactical events to arrive and take over. But inside the Colorado high school, the shooters continued to kill and injure people while police waited outside. Now the first officers to arrive are instructed to neutralize the threat and stop the shooter in any way possible, Foster said. Shooters often don't stop until someone starts shooting back at them and they're either killed, disarmed or commit suicide. "Once you decide to move, you need to move with purpose. Don't take your time," Foster said. Afterward, parishioners Ted Ellestad and Terry Thomas sat in a pew where they normally sing hymns and listen to sermons, talking quietly about what they had seen. Thomas said he had never stopped to think about an active shooter incident. "This bothers me that it's come to this," said Ellestad, adding that although the videos of people trying to flee the nightclub fire and a gunman shooting at Florida school board members was difficult to watch, "you learn from other people's mistakes." Reddit Email 0 Shares Human Rights Watch | (Beirut) A life sentence apparently handed down by mistake to a 3-year-old boy on February 16, 2016, exemplifies the arbitrariness of Egyptian courts that are used to punish political opponents of the government. A Cairo military court presiding over a mass trial of 116 defendants, including Ahmed Mansour Qurni Sharara, 3, delivered the sentence after investigators and prosecutors failed to remove Mansours name, even though they knew it was included by mistake, a lawyer for the defense team told Human Rights Watch. This case exemplifies the banality of repression in Egypt today, said Joe Stork, deputy Middle East director. Police, prosecutors, and judges arent even bothering to check basic facts as they rush to pack defendants off to prison. All 116 defendants received life sentences, though only 16 were in custody, not including Mansour. The defendants have one opportunity to appeal the verdict, to a military appeals court. Believing that Mansour was an adult, police went to the familys home in 2014 to arrest him in connection with a protest, the defense lawyer said. When Mansours father, Mansour Qurni Ahmed Ali, told them that the person they wanted was his young son, they did not believe him, so he presented his son, along with a birth certificate viewed by Human Rights Watch. The police arrested the father instead and held him for four months. In response to media scrutiny, the authorities have offered incomplete explanations. A spokesman for the armed forces said in a statement posted on Facebook on February 21, that the person listed in the case was not the 3-year-old, but a 16-year-old student whom police had tried to arrest in 2014 but who had fled. The spokesman did not explain why police in 2014 had gone to the 3-year-olds home or arrested his father. Major General Abu Bakr Abd al-Karim, a spokesman for the Interior Ministry, said in a phone call during a televised studio interview with the father and son on February 20, that the 16-year-old was the boys uncle. But the father said that the uncle was 52 years old. The boys mother, who also called in during the televised interview, said that police had come to the family house again that day to arrest the father and son. The case stemmed from a January 2014 anti-government protest in Fayoum, 65 miles south of Cairo, that authorities blamed on supporters of the Muslim Brotherhood. Security forces dispersed the protesters with teargas and live ammunition, killing a 52-year-old teacher, an 18-year-old student, and a 28-year-old construction worker. Several people were wounded. Following the incident, National Security officers of the Interior Ministry recommended charges approved by civilian prosecutors against a seemingly random assortment of Fayoum residents, including the brothers of two of the dead protesters, a deceased man, and a man who was not in the country at the time, a human rights lawyer who researched the case told Human Rights Watch. All 116 defendants faced allegations of killing the three slain protesters, attempting to kill eight others, and deliberately destroying government property, according to the charging document seen by Human Rights Watch. The document also accused the defendants of using force and violence against government employees, including the army and police. Egyptian civilian prosecutors have retroactively transferred thousands of civilians to military trials since October 2014, when President Abdelfattah al-Sisi issued a decree vastly expanding military court jurisdiction. The decree, Law 136 for the Securing and Protection of Public and Vital Facilities, allows military courts to try any crime committed on public or vital property, including electricity stations, gas pipelines, oil wells, railroads, road networks, bridges, public universities, and any similar state-owned property. Nearly all of the civilians transferred to military trials since the decree were already facing charges in civilian courts. Their cases were transferred to military courts following a November 2014 decision by the then-prosecutor, General Hisham Barakat, requiring prosecutors throughout the country to send any cases related to aforementioned crimes, at any stage (of investigations), to military prosecutors whenever asked to do so. Article 111 of Egypts Child Law (2008) prohibits the sentencing of children to life imprisonment, death, or forced labor; the law also raised the minimum age of criminal responsibility from seven to 12 years. The expert committee that interprets and monitors state compliance with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, to which Egypt is a state party, has urged Egypt to ensure that children are never brought before and prosecuted under the military justice system and to ensure that any sentence handed down to children by military courts be considered null and void, in accordance with their rights in juvenile justice. Egypts military courts operate under the authority of the Defense Ministry, not the civilian judicial authorities. The judges are serving military officers. Military court proceedings typically do not protect basic due process rights or satisfy the requirements of independence and impartiality of courts of law. Children can also face charges before military courts, which Human Rights Watch opposes in all circumstances. Though Egypts constitution allows military court trials for civilians, the practice violates international law, including the 1981 African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights, which Egypts parliament ratified in 1984. The African Commission on Human and Peoples Rights has stated that civilians should never face military trial. Via Human Rights Watch - Related video added by Juan Cole: Egyptian Toddler Sentenced To Life In Prison Newsy Reddit Email 0 Shares Maan News Agency | BETHLEHEM (Maan) The occupied Palestinian territory has been ranked 195th in the world on how effectively children can take legal action to defend their rights, the Child Rights International Network (CRIN) reported Tuesday. In a report titled Rights, Remedies and Representation, CRIN placed the occupied Palestinian territory as the third lowest nation in the world on childrens access to justice ranking only above Eritrea and Equatorial Guinea. The report took into account whether children could bring lawsuits over violations of their rights, the legal resources available to them, and whether international law on childrens rights was applied in national courts. Since obtaining non-member observer State status in 2012, the occupied Palestinian territory has acceded to a number of international conventions, including the UN Conventions on the Rights of the Child, CRIN said in a statement. The right group said this had allowed Palestinian children to bring an action before their courts. It also noted that while religious courts in the Palestinian territory had no obligations to childrens rights, the Chief Islamic Justice has encouraged these rights be taken into consideration. However, CRIN said that Israels nearly 50-year military occupation posed a major obstacle in Palestinian childrens access to justice. As the Occupied Palestinian Territory remains under Israeli occupation, considerable obstacles to the rule of law exist and addressing these remains the (Palestinian Authoritys) priority, the group said. Nasser Atallah CRINs Middle East director, stressed the importance of Israels occupation in the low ranking. Palestine was unique within our ranking as it was the only occupied territory included, and the effects of the occupation undeniably dragged Palestine down the ranking. He said: When a state is occupied, the government does not have full control over its territory or legal system and, in certain circumstances, is unable to exercise the jurisdiction necessary to meet international standards. Attallah noted that the division of the occupied territory between the PA and Israels army had left many Palestinian children outside the jurisdiction of the Palestinian justice system instead under Israels military jurisdiction. The scoring does not place the blame on the Palestinian justice system for this feature, but it does recognizes it as a factor that severely hampers access to justice for children in the West Bank, he said. CRINs director, Veronica Yates, meanwhile said: While the report highlights many examples of systems poorly suited to protecting childrens rights there are also plenty of people using the courts to effectively advance childrens rights. Our ranking represents how well States allow children access to justice rather than how well their rights are enshrined. However, it is hard to ignore how many countries with deplorable human rights records are on the lower end of the ranking for childrens access to justice. Rights groups have repeatedly found Palestinian children to be among the most vulnerable victims of Israeli policies and practices in the occupied territory. Last year, Defense for Children International Palestine (DCIP) highlighted a number of hardships faced by Palestinian children which make up 43 percent of more than 4.5 million Palestinians living in occupied Palestinian territory. The report pointed foremost to Israeli violent force as well as the Israeli military court systems denial of basic rights. It also documented violations of childrens rights under Palestinian jurisdiction particularly abuse during arrest and interrogation and criticized the lack of a unified juvenile law used by Palestinian authorities. DCIP said that over 50 percent of Palestinian children face some form of domestic abuse, and rising poverty in the occupied territory has forced around 73,000 Palestinian children to join the labor force. The rights group said the lives of Palestinian children would not improve until a political solution ends Israels prolonged military occupation. Via Maan News Agency Related video added by Juan Cole: TeleSur: Israel Has Killed 49 Palestinian Children Since October Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - February 24, 2016) - CanAlaska Uranium Ltd. (TSXV:CVV) (OTCQB: CVVUF) (FSE: DH7N) ("CanAlaska or the Company") is pleased to announce it has entered into an option agreement with Cameco Corporation (TSX: CCO) (NYSE: CCJ) ("Cameco"), one of the world's largest uranium producers, for exploration of CanAlaska's West McArthur Uranium Project ("Project"). The agreement enables Cameco to earn up to a 60% interest in the Project through total expenditures of $12.5 million consisting of cash payments to the Company and accelerating exploration programs, culminating in a joint venture. West McArthur Project Grid 5 Fox Lake Zone To view an enhanced version of this image, please visit: http://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/2864/19371_canalaskaenhanced.jpg To earn a 60% interest in West McArthur, Cameco will pay CanAlaska an initial $725,000 to have the right to earn a first stage 30% interest for a $5 million exploration program within 3 years on two separate target areas: Grid 1 and Grid 5. Cameco will then have the right, after a $500,000 payment, to carry out a further $6.275 million of work on the Project over the following 3 years to earn a further 30% interest and form a Joint Venture (JV) with CanAlaska. A guaranteed minimum $1 million work program is required in the first year and permitting and planning for a 2016 drill program is underway. The West McArthur Uranium Project covers 35,830 hectares (88,536 acres) commencing 15 kilometres (9 miles) west of Cameco's majority owned McArthur River uranium mine. Importantly, the Project is immediately adjacent to Cameco's recently disclosed Fox Lake uranium discovery with reported inferred resources of approximately 68.1 million lbs based on 387,000 tonnes at 7.99% U3O8. The Fox lake discovery is within the Read Lake project operated by Cameco (Cameco 78.2%, Areva 21.8%). Cameco's exploration team has been very active on the Read Lake Project and their Fox Lake target since 2008 when the company announced, "The newly discovered mineralization along the C10 conductor attests to the potential for finding a significant uranium deposit on the Read Lake property." And " with mineralization found 90 to 150 metres above the unconformity." (Cameco Assessment Reports 2008 and website). In February 2016 Cameco stated, "Among the larger expenditures planned is $7 million on the Read Lake project, which is adjacent to McArthur River in Saskatchewan." (January 2016 MD&A). In 2012, CanAlaska and MC Resources, a subsidiary of Mitsubishi Corporation, identified new uranium exploration targets on the Grid 5 target zone, which the JV believed hosts the western continuation of the C10 conductor horizon being explored by Cameco at Fox Lake. The large sulphide and arsenic alteration zones seen in the Athabasca sandstone in drill holes WMA 28 and WMA 34 from the JV's 2012 program, are similar in style to that reported from the Fox Lake target drilling by Cameco (see April 13, 2012 news release http://www.canalaska.com/s/News.asp?ReportID=518515). Additionally, hole EL-007 drilled in 1988, located on CanAlaska's West McArthur property near the northern flexure of the main conductor, is strongly silicified and altered in the top 400 metres of the sandstone column. The hole displayed the characteristics of being above a major hydrothermal system, large enough to send fluids 800 metres above the Athabasca unconformity. CanAlaska's exploration on the West McArthur project commenced in 2004, with the first of a series of deep penetrating airborne EM surveys. These early surveys identified a number of potential uranium targets, which older airborne survey technologies could not detect. In 2006 CanAlaska entered into an exploration option agreement with MC Resources, and commenced a systematic survey of the Project by progressively carrying out surface geophysics followed by drill testing on the airborne targets. CanAlaska and MC Resources' prioritized exploration on Grids 1, 4 and 5, the most prospective known targets, and areas which had shown alteration patterns and trace uranium mineralization, generally associated with large Athabasca-style unconformity deposits. The West McArthur Joint Venture commenced following the $10 million earn-in by MC Resources in early 2010, but exploration drilling has been postponed each of the past two years because of market conditions. CanAlaska president Peter Dasler comments, "There has been considerable detailed ground exploration and drilling by Cameco immediately east of our drill holes at Grid 5 on the West McArthur project. Cameco's recent announcement of the large, high-grade Fox Lake resource demonstrates the potential for discovery of additional uranium deposits along the C10 conductor extension and other targets in the Grid 5 area. In the past there has also been co-operation between Cameco and the West McArthur JV with regard to overlapping survey areas. At this stage CanAlaska considers it prudent to utilize the expertise and funding that Cameco can provide, so that we can rapidly advance our opportunity for discovery of a new unconformity uranium deposit. We are very pleased to have been approached by Cameco, and to have concluded this significant agreement which allows multiple targets to be evaluated with minimum equity dilution to our shareholders while retaining a meaningful interest in West McArthur." CanAlaska is concentrating on pursuing further property option and joint ventures opportunities under confidentiality agreements on its non-core projects, as well as evaluating further targets in the Athabasca region. The qualified technical person for this news release is Dr Karl Schimann, P. Geo., CanAlaska director, and Vice President, Exploration. About CanAlaska Uranium CanAlaska Uranium Ltd. (TSXV: CVV) (OTCQB: CVVUF) (FSE: DH7N) holds interests in approximately 700,000 hectares (1.7 million acres), one of the largest land positions in Canada's Athabasca Basin region - the "Saudi Arabia of Uranium". CanAlaska's strategic holdings has attracted major international mining companies Cameco, Mitsubishi, KORES and KEPCO as partners at its core projects. CanAlaska is a Project Generator and is positioned for discovery success in the world's richest uranium district. For further information, visit www.canalaska.com. About Cameco Corporation Further information on Cameco can be found at www.cameco.com On behalf of the Board of Directors Contact: Peter Dasler, President and CEO. Tel: +1.604.688.3211 x 138 "Peter Dasler" Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Peter Dasler, M.Sc., P.Geo., President & CEO, CanAlaska Uranium Ltd. The TSX-V has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release: CUSIP# 13708P 10 2. Vancouver, BC / TheNewswire / February, 24, 2016: BonTerra Resources Inc. (TSX-V: BTR, US: BONXF, FSE: 9BR1) (the "Company" or "BonTerra") is pleased to announce that it has entered into agreements with arm's length vendors to acquire a 100% interest in the St-Cyr and West Lacroix Lake Properties (the "Properties"), located in the Urban Barry Gold Camp, Barry Township, Quebec (the "Acquisition"). BonTerra continues to evaluate other key strategic properties in the Urban Barry Gold Camp to add to its controlling stake of known geological structures. The Properties adjoin Bonterra's West and East Arena Properties and one of Oban Mining Corporation's properties. Both are located approximately 90 kilometres east of Lebel sur Quevillon and less than 10 kilometres southwest of, and along the same geological trend, as BonTerra's 100% owned Gladiator Gold Project. The St-Cyr Property consists of 13 minerals claims covering 733.70 hectares and the West Lacroix Lake Property consists of 18 mineral claims covering 1016.34 hectares. The specific geology of the newly acquired properties is particularly prospective for gold exploration; being characterized by a thick overturned bimodal sequence of basaltic flows intercalated with felsic rhyolitic to mafic andesitic volcaniclastic rocks. The volcanoclastic sequence is intruded by both syn-volcanic post-volcanic intrusions. Gold mineralization found to date in the area occurs in basalts, rhyolite and the volcano-sedimentary sequence. There are at least two styles of gold mineralization: sulphide replacement (generally pyrite) either as disseminations and stockworks of sulphide-rich fractures and classical native gold in quartz veins. The Properties also cover a recently discovered alkaline carbonatite complex with interesting but as yet undetermined gold potential. Carbonatite-syenite alkaline complexes make excellent exploration environments, especially when embedded in gold bearing Archean greenstone belts. Nav Dhaliwal, President and CEO of BonTerra, stated: "After reviewing key properties in the Urban Barry Gold Camp, these properties are strategically located and believed to potentially host the eastern extension of the known mineralized zones recently identified on the Gladiator Gold Project, as well as offering a new additional gold exploration environment." In consideration for the Properties, BonTerra will issue an aggregate 1,200,000 common shares. Both vendors will retain a 2% Net Smelter Royalty of which 1% can be purchased by BonTerra for $1,000,000. The Acquisition is subject to TSX Venture Exchange approval. Robert Gagnon, Geo. has approved the information contained in this release. Mr. Gagnon is a Director of BonTerra and is a Qualified Person as defined by NI 43-101. BonTerra Resources Quick Facts: -Using a 4 g/t Au cut-off grade, the project currently contains an inferred resource of 905,000 tonnes, grading 9.37 g/t Au for 273,000 ounces of gold. Of note, ~90% of the worlds operating mines have an average gold grade less than 8 g/t. Mineral Resource Estimate and technical report filed July 27, 2012, Snowden Mining Consultants. --$3.5 million in cash as at January 1, 2016; ~53 million shares outstanding. -2016 Exploration Program underway - up to 25,000 meters utilizing minimum of two drill rigs at its 100% owned Gladiator Gold Project to expand current gold resource. -Results to date include 14.1 g/t Au over 6.6m and 7.2 g/t Au over 7.7m -Located in the Abitibi Greenstone Belt in mining-friendly Quebec. ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS, Nav Dhaliwal, President & CEO BonTerra Resources Inc. For additional information, please contact: Todd Hanas Corporate Development E: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. T: 866.869.8072 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 information" that is based on Bonterra''s current expectations, estimates, forecasts and projections. This forward-looking information includes, among other things, statements with respect to Bonterra's exploration and development plans. The words "will", "anticipated", "plans" or other similar words and phrases are intended to identify forward-looking information. Forward-looking information is subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause Bonterra's actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information. Such factors include, but are not limited to: uncertainties related exploration and development; the ability to raise sufficient capital to fund exploration and development; changes in economic conditions or financial markets; increases in input costs; litigation, legislative, environmental and other judicial, regulatory, political and competitive developments; technological or operational difficulties or inability to obtain permits encountered in connection with exploration activities; and labour relations matters. This list is not exhaustive of the factors that may affect our forward-looking information. These and other factors should be considered carefully and readers should not place undue reliance on such forward-looking information. Bonterra disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Copyright (c) 2016 TheNewswire - All rights reserved. About Me BPL Ref The BPL Bookblog reviewers include: Laura, who likes a bit of a thrill but who also loves a good story; Christy H. who often likes a walk on the spooky side; Kristin, the Eclectic Bibliophile who can help you find the perfect book; and Jeanne. When we figure out what she does, we'll let you know. BBL stands for "Bookblog of the Bristol Library." It also stands for "Be Back Later"-- as in, "Be back later, we're reading." View my complete profile Blog Archive Brook Cottage Books does not share personal information with third-parties nor do we store information we collect about your visit to this blog for use other than to analyze content performance through the use of cookies, which you can turn off at any time by modifying your Internet browser's settings. We are not responsible for the republishing of the content found on this blog on other Web sites or media without our permission. This privacy policy is subject to change without notice. With his American money, Friedrich Trump was a gift to his German community, but the German bureaucracy under Kaiser Wilhelm II kicked him out. Despite repeated appeals for German citizenship (Trump had become an American so he could vote in the presidential election after Washington became a state in 1889), he was suspected of having fled Germany to dodge the draft and returning only when he was no longer eligible. So, Wilhelmian bureaucrats bear the ultimate responsibility for the emergence of presidential candidate Trump. That, however, is not the part of the family story I really want to hear from him. During World War I, when hamburgers were called Wilsonburgers and sauerkraut became "liberty cabbage," President Woodrow Wilson banned German men from planes and boats and ordered 600,000 German aliens to register with the police. Many German immigrants changed their names because they felt -- and often were -- threatened. The Trumps didn't, according to Blair: They "hunkered down to avoid suspicion," but remained a German-speaking household. Their children, second-generation Americans, grew up speaking German, too, "but the bitter experience of having been tarred by their German ancestry had left scars on the Trump children." What German immigrants endured during World War I was just a warning to Frederick Trump, the candidate's father and the man who made the family rich. World War II taught him he had to forget his heritage. Blair wrote: As the children searched the skies for Messerschmidt planes, Fred Trump was silent about his own German background. Although he had spoken German when he had visited Kallstadt just before the Depression, in America only his parents' generation spoke the language in public. He began to deny that he knew German and didn't teach it to his children. Eventually, he started telling people that he was of Swedish ancestry. Mindful of the growing prominence of Jews in the real estate industry and local politics, he became so active in Jewish philanthropies that people often assumed he belonged to that faith. Donald Trump picked up the Swedish lie and stressed his mother's Scottish heritage, especially as he promoted his golf courses in Scotland. More recently, he has had to acknowledge his German roots, but the people of Kallstadt don't root for him the way Slopnice roots for Sanders, who has visited the town. I suspect it's not only because Trump defies fact-checking, and truthfulness is an important virtue in Germany. The similarity between the way the U.S. treated Germans during the world wars and the way Trump wants it to treat Muslims is striking. And if, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the U.S. had as restrictive an immigration policy as Trump proposes, his grandfather couldn't have come in the first place -- or returned when Germany rejected him. WASHINGTON President Barack Obama took one last shot Tuesday at his long-sought goal of closing the Guantanamo Bay detention facility, but the proposal quickly ran up against bipartisan opposition on Capitol Hill, including lawmakers from Nebraska and western Iowa. Rep. Brad Ashford, D-Neb., was among those quick to denounce the proposal from his fellow Democrat. Our elected leaders greatest responsibility is ensuring the safety of our communities and our families, Ashford said in a press release. Guantanamo Bay houses dangerous terrorists who must be kept in isolation, away from our citizens. We must also make sure these enemy combatants do not return to the battlefield. Tuesdays long-awaited proposal, which was requested by Congress, is Obamas final attempt to make good on an unfulfilled campaign promise. Fourteen years after the facility opened and seven years after Obama took office, the president argued that it was finally time to shutter a facility that has sparked persistent legal battles, become a recruitment tool for Islamic militants and garnered strong opposition from some allies abroad. I dont want to pass this problem onto the next president, whoever it is, Obama said in an appearance at the White House. If we dont do whats required now, I think future generations are going to look back and ask why we failed to act when the right course, the right side of history, and justice and our best American traditions was clear. The administrations strategy calls for shrinking the population at Gitmo, hoping that the cost of housing the diminished population would ultimately make closure inevitable. Under the plan, roughly 35 of the 91 current detainees would be transferred to other countries in the coming months, leaving up to 60 detainees who are either facing trial by military commission or have been determined to be too dangerous to release but are not facing charges. Those detainees would be relocated to a U.S. facility that could cost up to $475 million to build. That cost would ultimately be offset by as much as $180 million per year in operational savings: The annual operating cost for Guantanamo is $445 million; the U.S. facilities would cost between $265 million and $305 million to operate each year, according to the proposal. But Obama must persuade Congress to change the law that prohibits moving detainees accused of violent extremist acts to U.S. soil, and that could be a difficult task. Sen. Deb Fischer, R-Neb., a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said Congress has spoken by placing tough restrictions into law on steps to close the facility and transfer detainees into the United States. Congress has made it clear we dont want it closed, Fischer said. She said there are individuals who need to be in a place like Gitmo. There are terrorists there that other countries will not accept, and were saying bring them to the United States? Fischer said. The facilities here, while they may be good, I dont believe are appropriate for these individuals. Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, also a member of the Armed Services Committee, described Obamas plan as reckless. Despite his big ambitions, Obamas proposed path remained unclear. The plan leaves unanswered the politically thorny question of where in the United States a new facility would be, and it relies on broad cost estimates. The White House described it as more of a conversation starter than a definitive outline. Ashford said Congress should debate the issue and come up with a consensus about future of the Guantanamo Bay facility. Republican leaders in Congress showed little interest in having much of a conversation. We will review President Obamas plan, but since it includes bringing dangerous terrorists to facilities in U.S. communities, he knows that the bipartisan will of Congress has already been expressed against that proposal, said Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky. Guantanamo Bay has been a contentious topic for years, and it remains a potential election issue come November. Just look at the releases that the National Republican Congressional Committee was firing off Tuesday, calling on targeted Democratic challengers and incumbents to oppose the plan. One of those boilerplate releases called out Ashford, saying the Omaha congressman would have to choose whether to stand up for national security or stand with President Obama by voting to bring dangerous terrorists to U.S. soil. By the time the NRCC release landed, Ashford already had issued his statement of opposition. When that was pointed out to NRCC spokesman Zach Hunter, he cited several votes by Ashford on amendments related to Gitmo that he said run contrary to Ashfords statements Tuesday. That included supporting two unsuccessful amendments in June 2015. One would have stripped additional restrictions on closing Gitmo, while the other would have struck a prohibition on transferring detainees to other countries. Ashford also voted against a proposal the month before that would have prohibited the transfer of detainees to Yemen. In response, Ashfords chief of staff, Jeremy Nordquist, pointed to several other votes in which Ashford backed proposals to keep Guantanamo as it is now. For example, Ashford voted against an amendment that provided a framework for closing the facility by the end of 2017. As a member of the Armed Services Committee, Congressman Ashford helped write the National Defense Authorization Act, which bans bringing Guantanamo detainees to the United States and tightens restrictions on transferring detainees to other countries, Nordquist said. He has stood by this position since he was elected and has made his position clear with his continued support of the NDAA in 2015 even when the President threatened to veto the act. This report contains material from the Associated Press. KEARNEY Walter W. Hazzard, 96, of Kearney died Saturday, Feb. 20, 2016, at Brookdale Kearney Northridge. Services will be at 2 p.m. Thursday at First Baptist Church with the Rev. Stan Murdoch officiating. Burial will be at Kearney Cemetery with military honors by the Offutt Air Force Base Funeral Honors Team, Kearney American Legion Post 52 and Kearney Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 759. Visitation will be from 5-7 p.m. today with the family present at Horner Lieske McBride & Kuhl Funeral and Cremation Services and one hour before services Thursday at the church. Walter was born Nov. 15, 1919, as his family just recently found out by obtaining a copy of his birth certificate. He and his family always thought he was born on Nov. 17. He was the fourth of nine children born to Raymond E. and Alice (Osborn) Hazzard in Watertown. He attended country school at Wild Horse and Red Wing north of Miller. He went to Miller High School where he graduated in 1937. He was always interested in farming and raising cattle. He showed 4-H calves at the Kearney fairs for several years. Walter and his brothers spent a summer in Idaho and Oregon working for farmers because work was so scarce around Buffalo County. He later worked for farmers and ranchers in Buffalo County. In summer 1941 he started farming for himself. In September 1941, he joined the U.S. Air Force and served during World War II. He went through Armament School at Lowry Air Force Base in Denver. He was sent to Lubbock Air Force Base in Texas as a mechanic to train to work on airplanes. He was assigned a squadron of men to train for a year and a half and then sent to Bryne, Texas, and continued to be promoted to the status of technical sergeant. In 1944, he was sent overseas to Burma, India and China. He received a promotion to master sergeant and was in charge of a squadron of men to keep fighter planes in condition to bomb the Burma Road. His squadron kept the Flying Tigers Air Force Squadron in repair. He spent 15 months there before he returned home after peace was signed with Japan. He returned to Denver where he received an honorable discharge on Dec. 10, 1945. After his discharge he returned to Miller where he bought a farm northwest of Miller. On Feb. 2, 1946, Walter and Geraldine Geri Robbins were married in Parkdale, Ore., and returned to their farm northwest of Miller. They spent 22 years in the Miller, Amherst and Elm Creek area farming and raising Black Angus cattle. To this union were born four children, Robert, Kathleen, Gary and Rodney. Upon selling their farm in 1968, Walter worked at Shofstall Hay, Bakers Skelly, moved to Colorado for a short time and returned to Lexington to work at Sperry New Holland plant for six years. He retired in 1983. They moved to Kearney and lived in various places before they moved to Northridge Retirement Community in March 2015. He was a member of First Baptist Church, Kearney VFW and Kearney American Legion. He and Geri just recently celebrated 70 years of marriage. His passing was as he wished, sitting in his easy chair and going to sleep. He was a loving and kind husband, father, grandfather and great-grandfather. His daily attitude for his 96 years was that he was Still taking it one day at a time or Im still kicking. His quiet manner and his love to tease anyone around him will be missed by all of his family, friends and acquaintances. Surviving relatives include his wife, Geri of Kearney; daughter, Kathleen Labs and husband Terry of Elm Creek; sons, Gary Hazzard and wife Karen of Kearney and Rod Hazzard and wife Charlotte of Lincoln; daughter-in-law, Shirley Hazzard of Kearney; brother, Raymond Hazzard of Miller; sister, Hazel Strickler of Papillion; brother-in-law, John Robbins and wife Bonnie of Lincoln; six grandchildren; three stepgrandchildren; 14 great-grandchildren; and one stepgreat-great-grandchild. Walter was preceded in death by one son, Robert Bob Hazzard; three sisters; three brothers; and other family relatives. Memorials are suggested to First Baptist Church Building Fund. Visit www.hlmkfuneral.com to leave a tribute or message of condolence. Pump prices likely on the rise in coming months Gas prices are likely to go back up following the OPEC+ decision to cut oil production by 2 million barrels a day, starting in November.... Spindle Items .. ETERNAL HAPPINESS All of us are chasing happiness. None of us wants to be miserable, angry, frightened , depressed or the like. If... Out of the Past 25 Years AgoOct. 22, 1997 Zoning laws in the Town of Tonawanda received much needed updating Monday as Councilman Raymond Sinclair presented amendments in underground... Family fun for everyone Halloween is every kids dream holiday, with costumes and candy, tricks and treats. Some of my favorite memories with my family have centered around Halloween,... 435 Shares Share With the Supreme Court in the balance, every aspect of the unexpected demise of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia has received intense scrutiny, from the cause of his recent death to the politically charged choice of his successor. An autopsy was not performed on the 79-year-old jurist, who was found dead in his room in a West Texas hunting resort, and that too has become a lightning rod for controversy. This high-profile case provides an opportunity to shine some light on the practice of autopsies, and the pros and cons in circumstances like these. Pathologists, who specialize in the study of disease, are the physicians who perform autopsies. While I must emphasize that I do not know any of the details of Mr. Scalias health records or the events that transpired following his death (and I obviously dont know the position of the pillows in his hotel room), there are some things that can be extrapolated. Presidio County Judge Cinderela Guevera pronounced Scalia dead under natural causes, according to The Washington Post. A death that occurs outside a hospital falls under the jurisdiction of the local county typically a coroner, who is an elected official, or an appointed medical examiner, usually a doctor, in a large metropolitan area like Cook County in Illinois. Autopsies performed by coroners or medical examiners offices are forensic autopsies, while those in hospitals, such as the ones I have performed, are medical autopsies. There are many similarities in the two autopsy types, but a forensic autopsy will further investigate certain possibilities. For instance, a coroner or medical examiner further investigates cause of death if there is any indication that it occurred under unusual or unnatural circumstances, including foul play, such as shootings, or some sort of accident, such as a drowning or car crash. A 79 year old passing away in his sleep, while sad and untimely, may not necessarily trigger an autopsy, especially if the patient had significant prior medical conditions. Similarly, an autopsy may not be pursued if a 79-year-old man dies while shoveling snow if the patient had known coronary artery disease. In making her decision, Guevera reportedly contacted Scalias doctor and learned about some of his chronic conditions. Presidio County District Attorney Rod Ponton later told the Associated Press that Scalias doctor wrote a letter to Guevera stating that the Supreme Court justice suffered from coronary artery disease, obesity, diabetes, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, hypertension and sleep apnea. Scalia also had been a smoker, according to the letter. One of the benefits of a forensic autopsy in an extremely high-profile case like this also may be to help rule out such things that conspiracy theorists speculate about. Forensic autopsies differ from medical autopsies in that toxicology tests may be performed on blood or other body fluids to look for an overdose or even for poisoning. A forensic investigation also would take into account any clues from the death scene. An autopsy itself would not put all the conspiracy theories to rest and one cant help but think about John F. Kennedy in such instances but it would have taken away one angle on them. A patients family also has the opportunity to seek a private autopsy, and Mr. Scalias chose not to do that, according to reports. If a death occurs in a hospital, a family has the choice whether to request a medical autopsy, which would be performed by pathologists, pathology residents or pathology assistants there. A reasonable presumption in a case of a septuagenarian, where the deceased was not ill at the time of death but had multiple chronic conditions, is that the cause of death was a cardiac event. A myocardial infarction would be high on the differential diagnosis. In both forensic and medical autopsies, pathologists scrutinize the organs of the body and sample postage stamp-sized portions of tissue that are made into slides which are later examined under a microscope. Unfortunately, autopsies are limited in their ability to pinpoint an MI as an acute cause of death because the tell-tale changes that cardiac muscle cells undergo after an MI typically are not microscopically identifiable until about 12 hours after the event. If a patient dies before then, those changes are halted in their tracks and are thus undetectable. However, pathologists performing an autopsy can discover many of the predisposing conditions that suggest that an MI was a strong possibility. For example, are the coronary arteries hardened and occluded with atherosclerosis? Is there pre-existing scarring that suggests that an earlier MI occurred (perhaps one so small that the patient had not felt it)? Similarly, if a patient dies of a fatal heart arrhythmia, there will be no sign at the autopsy that would point to it conclusively like an abnormal EKG taken before death. An autopsy could, however, more definitively identify other common causes of acute deaths by natural causes. Pathologists performing autopsies follow a standardized procedure and would look for a pulmonary embolism, an aortic dissection or a cerebral hemorrhage. In hospitals, autopsies are not performed as commonly as they were in the past as improving medical technology has made them less necessary. More precise lab tests and advanced diagnostic capabilities in radiology, such as CT scans which can detect cancers spread throughout the body, have taken much of the mystery out of why patients die. Autopsies remain an important facet in the education of pathologists and pathologists-in-training undergoing lifelong learning in how diseases affect the human body. Even when the cause of death is not 100 percent conclusive, they can reveal insight into the condition of the patient that led to his demise. In this case, with such a prominent patient, the autopsy may have been more revealing in what it did not find, as opposed to what it did find. In other words, the greatest benefit may have been simply in precluding the question: Why didnt they perform an autopsy? John Biemer, a former reporter, is a pathology resident. Image credit: Shutterstock.com A seasoned campaigner of both local and national elections, community activist Noel G Walsh has again put himself forward in a bid to represent the people of Carlow-Kilkenny. He will run as an independent candidate in next Friday's General Election here. He has been canvassing with his team around the constituency in recent weeks, and the response, he says, has been generally positive. No one is really refusing [the leaflets], and no one has been giving out, he says. When we meet, it's lunchtime and either many of the residents of St Francis Terrace are either away from home or are not in the mood to answer the door. The first few houses show little activity. At one door, a young mother happily accepts the leaflet and promises to have a read of it. Noel says a lot of people are disenchanted with the traditional parties and are looking for a credible alternative. He is critical of the current political model. I don't think any political party should get any funding from the taxpayer, he says. They should have to do the same as me, as an independent. He has put out 10,000 leaflets and has another 5,000 on the way. I've all of south Kilkenny done, he tells me. We are focusing on Kilkenny now we were in Carlow two days last week. So, what are the big issues? Housing, Irish Water, and the HSE, says Noel. All the carry-on with the HSE they don't know whether they are coming or going. There's others. I was talking to one woman on the Dublin Road and she was talking about the [proposed boundary change in south Kilkenny]. Noel is also passionate about mental health and young people. He has personal experience with the woes of emigration, having paid to educate his children here and then watch them go abroad in search of work. But what can an independent TD do in the Dail, against the big party machines? I'm sure I can achieve many things locally, he says, listing the status of Kilcreene Hospital, the retention of the James Stephens Barracks, and providing social housing for people as priorities. I have taken on the council's housing department a number of times, he says. They are telling us there's no houses. But there are empty houses here, and around town. The council tell you they have no money, but they can afford to pay people who lose their seats. Other important issues for Noel include supporting carers and disability allowance. Outside of politics, Noel is a registered Peace Commissioner and he also offers people legal advice. He loves Kilkenny, and indeed, every morning at 6.30am, he is out at Jenkinstown Woods. He enjoys taking in the scenery, and walking his dogs two labradors, two red setters, two jack russell terriers, and one collie. He is now looking forward to the remaining days of the campaign, and seeking people's number one votes. Shortly after 9am on Wednesday morning Department of Agricultural officials assisted by gardai seized 14 horses from lands close to the Wetlands Halting Site on the outskirts of the city. Approximately 40 gardai including members of the Armed Response Unit were present as the animals were rounded up and placed in trucks. All the horses were scanned and according to a Department of Agriculture official present none of them were chipped, as required by law. The animals were seized because they did not comply with the requisite micro-chipping and passport requirements. There was also concerns for animal welfare following a number of reports to gardai in recent times. Gardai spoke to members of the travelling community who contested that the animals had the necessary documentation. A short time later a further 15 horses were seized from Daly's Hill on the Circular Road. The operation was as a result of growing concerns over the wellbeing of the animals and the fact that neither tract of land is registered as an equine premises as is required by law. The Kilkenny Traveller Community Movement issued a statement condemning the operation. This ham-fisted action by the Gardai will come as a blow to all individual Travellers and non Travellers working to improve the lot of the most disadvantaged community in Kilkenny. (Kitco News) - The Dutch central bank could have a slight problem on their hands, they might have to move more than 189 tonnes of gold from vaults in Amsterdam, currently worth more than $7 billion. According to Dutch media websites, De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB) is now looking at different storage for their gold reserves as its Frederiksplein headquarters is being renovated. The central bank is looking at the possibility of storing its reserves in a regular office building outside of the city; however, the bank has to evaluate the need for a high level of security for both employees and visitors. Some of the security measures include scanners, passport controls and armed guards. In an interview with Dutch news agency ANP, a bank spokesperson said that the move is still only a possibility. Its an exploration, not a decision. The bank is expected to make a decision on whether to move the vault and its gold by the end of the year. The Netherlands gold reserves have, more than once, made international headlines. Last year, the Dutch central bank had to correct an error made by the International Monetary Fund, which reported its gold reserves higher that it actually was at the time. In November 2014, the bank also announced that it had repatriated 122.5 tonnes of gold to its Amsterdam headquarters from New York -- a move that might be regrettable with this latest turn of events. According to the latest IMF data, the Netherlands has 612.5 tonnes of gold, representing about 54.6% of its total foreign reserves. Those reserves are spread around the world with 31% held in Amsterdam, 31% held in New York, 20% in Ottawa and 18% in London. By Neils Christensen of Kitco News; nchristensen@kitco.com Follow me on Twitter @neils_C Monica Lorance looks at photos of her late fiance, James Allen Erickson. LARRY STEAGALL / KITSAP SUN By Josh Farley of the Kitsap Sun Six years ago, the Kitsap County Health District distributed a little more than 200,000 free needles as part of its effort to stop outbreaks of infectious disease among intravenous drug users. This year, the district is projected to hand out more than 700,000 an increase of a half million needles. The increased demand for needles is just one indicator of surging abuse of injectable drugs mainly heroin around Kitsap County, Washington state and the country. Jail bunks and drug treatment beds are increasingly filled by people with an addiction to the drug. Worse yet, heroin is killing people. Opiate deaths in Kitsap, which can include prescription painkillers as well as heroin, rose from 18 between 2000 and 2002 to 50 between 2009 and 2011, the latest period for which data is available from the University of Washington. Opiate overdoses, which might involve concoctions of drugs, typically depress the respiratory system until the user simply stops breathing. Overdose deaths dont tell the full story. IV drug users also can be susceptible to illnesses and infections stemming from a weakened immune system. Prescription monitoring programs and formula changes have made it harder for addicts to gain access to heroinlike highs from prescription painkillers like OxyContin. In the wake of those changes, users have turned to cheaper black tar heroin, trafficked from Mexico. Researchers have also been alarmed at the number of young users of a drug whose danger once provided a powerful stigma. The most first-time treatment requests are coming from those aged 18 to 29, according to University of Washington data. It is increasing like Ive never seen it before, said Dr. Scott Lindquist, Kitsap Countys public health doctor. Young kids, 14, 15 years old talking like heroin is marijuana. HEROIN GOT INVOLVED James Big Jim Erickson, 36 when he died in August, was one of the people caught in heroins path of destruction in Kitsap County. He had battled addiction in the past, but his fiance, Monica Lorance, felt hed turned a corner in recent years. He worked as a painter during the day, she as a janitor at night. It paid the bills and their three kids were well looked after. Life was amazing, she said. Then, heroin got involved. One day, she reached for something on a shelf above their washer and dryer and found more than 100 used needles. Jim began leaving the house for long stretches. Money and valuables went missing. I was working to support his habit, and I didnt know it, she said. She remembers the times he tried to kick the habit. The withdrawals were unbearable. Hed lay in bed all night, shaking, kicking. Hed cry. In financial straits, they had to leave their five-bedroom home in Bremerton and move into a two-bedroom apartment in Port Orchard. Erickson developed abscesses due to heroin use, but even in the hospital, friends would bring him heroin, Lorance said. Erickson returned to treatment, But in a weak moment he injected again. That batch of heroin killed him. He and Lorance were to be married in March. Heroin is a demon, Lorance said. You can be in recovery years and years, and it will say in your ear, just one last time, its ok, she said. Heroin isnt the only drug responsible for the spike in IV drug use. Methamphetamine use overall appears to be down, but shooting it up is still prevalent. Some users even combine meth and heroin in a dangerous concoction known as a goofball. Whatever the drug, injecting it into a vein provides the quickest and most intense high, former users say. Its zero to 60 in 10 seconds, said Eric Dolan, 33, a recovering addict who used methamphetamine intravenously. Bremerton resident Heather Hickeys introduction to injecting meth into her arm began after personal tragedy. A divorce drove her to drink. Alcohol sent her to bars, where she met unsavory characters. Her life unraveled quickly she went from someone who had never even smoked a cigarette to an IV meth user. Now sober for six years, Hickey has graduated from Kitsap Countys drug court. She says she has layered her life in recovery. Once clean, she feared what could have come of using needles when she used to wander fix to fix. She got tested for intravenous diseases and is thankful she was clean. But she knows others arent so lucky. THE NEED FOR NEEDLES The dangers posed by sharing needles to inject tar heroin was the impetus for needle exchanges. Kitsap Countys syringe exchange programs began in 2002. Most of the needles are given to IV drug users, but the program isnt limited to illicit drug users. Their goal is to prevent outbreaks of HIV and hepatitis, and program has been effective at doing so, according to Dr. Lindquist. The rate of IV drug use doesnt rise in communities that have a needle exchange, he said. Many times, rates go down because the exchange provides opportunities for health professionals to talk with users and explain options for quitting. Free needles are available in Kitsap County at the Norm Dicks Government Center, out of longtime volunteer Monte Levines home in the Ostrich Bay area, and at the Port Gamble SKlallam Tribes health clinic. The surge in needle use isnt unique to Kitsap. In King County, 5.6 million needles were exchanged in 2012, up from 2.1 million needles in 2007, according to the countys public health department. Some in Bremerton, including former Callow Avenue business owner Robert Parker, have been alarmed to find discarded needles. Parker worries that discarded needles will drive people away and tarnish the citys hard fought gains. Hes made it his mission to keep them off the streets, and hold public officials accountable when theyre found. He says hes found needles in alleyways, on sidewalks, even on top of playground equipment. He is not opposed to providing free syringes, but he believes the program should be well regulated, and involve some accountability. Im actually for the needle exchange, Parker said. But its got to be done responsibly. Parker is advocating for a one-for-one needle exchange program. All were asking them to do is when we give you needles, bring them back, he said. Lindquist says thats pretty much what the health district does. People requesting needles must meet with a nurse to discuss their needs in a confidential session, he said. Syringes are provided, as are sharps containers for them to bring used syringes back. Lindquist doesnt believe that an exact one-for-one program can work. He uses the example of someone bringing back a five-gallon sharps container full of needles. For safety reasons, no one is going to count those needles one for one, he said. The health department is still gathering data about how much syringe-exchange needles are ending up in the community. Where theyve found discarded needles, the health district is examining the idea of placing sharps containers nearby, Lindquist said. Already, Lulu Haddon Park in West Bremerton, where Bremerton parks staff have found several needles, has a sharps container in an on-site bathroom. JAIL BUNKS AND TREATMENT BEDS IV drug users are flooding local treatment centers. More than 60 percent of the patients admitted to Kitsap Recovery Center this year 81 people used needles to shoot drugs. Fifty-three of those are heroin addicts, according to Bergen Starke, director of the Kitsap Recovery Center. Police in Bremerton are seeing it too. In 2010, Bremerton cops put heroin or its paraphernalia needles, spoons and the like into evidence in 14 cases. In 2013 to date, at least 40 cases have involved heroin or paraphernalia. Sgt. Randy Plumb, who is in charge of Bremertons anti-drug Special Operations Group, said he has never seen heroin reach such a mainstream level. We really have a drastic increase, he said. Its really out of control. Prescription opiates, whose numbers started increasing in the 1990s, are thought by many epidemiologists to have created far greater societal exposure to the opiod world, which includes heroin. When abuse of prescription opiates like OxyContin surged, drug companies reacted by altering such drugs to gel formulas so they couldnt be crushed to be smoked, snorted or shot up. The move worked, says Caleb Banta-Green, research scientist at the University of Washington; deaths involving prescription opiates declined. Heroin filled the void. The stigma associated with that drug would do little to stop people already addicted to prescription opiates. The example holds true for Jackielynn Tolentino, who got a prescription for 30 Percocets when her wisdom teeth were taken out at age 15. The Bremerton resident managed for a while to maintain a stable lifestyle while buying the drugs. Her job as an emergency room technician helped. The prices of the drugs went up, and heroin was a fraction of the cost, so she switched over. I used so I didnt get sick anymore, Tolentino said. I was always chasing that first high. She knew she needed help, and after a friend overdosed and she found herself high in the same place she worked, she sought treatment. While detoxing, she went to the hospital, and found herself face to face with the doctors she worked for and looked up to. I couldnt hide who I was, she said. Today, at age 29, she lives in an Oxford house, has gone through treatment, and continues to work on her recovery. Shes thankful that her time on heroin amounted to only about four months. CONTACT THE KEY Preventing a rising tide of heroin abuse isnt going to be easy. Banta-Green recommends a three-pronged approach that starts with societal exposure: dont let opiates fall into the hands of kids. Bremerton Mayor Patty Lent, a member of the Kitsap Public Health District board, acknowledges an epidemic of heroin and IV drug use. Shes hopeful that some of the recently passed sales tax bump one-tenth of one percent for mental health and chemical dependency services can be used for more mental health counseling in area schools to look for warning signs of students who might be falling prey to the drug scene. If someone is addicted, Banta-Green is a believer in maintenance therapy, in which a user is weaned from heroin by getting a supervised daily dose of another opiate like methadone. In 2011, a movement to bring a methadone clinic to Bremerton was met with a backlash and its organizers abandoned plans. Those here participating in such programs either drive to Tacoma or take the ferry to Seattle. Many recovering addicts, like Tolentino, have been successful in Kitsap Countys abstinence-based treatment programs. As a last resort, Banta-Green said that users must be protected from infectious diseases and overdose. Clean needles are available, and now so is naloxone, the antidote to heroin users can inject to reverse an overdose. It can be purchased in Washington pharmacies without a prescription. Under the states good Samaritan law, users can also call 911 without fear of prosecution for possession (though more serious crimes can still be charged). Lindquist says the more users see that help can be, and is, available, the better. Anything we can do to make contact with this population is key, he said. If you need help --Kitsap Recovery Centers detox treatment unit (all calls are confidential): 360-337-4625 --Narcotics Anonymous Helpline: 1-877-861-6156 --Local Narcotics Anonymous helpline: 360-373-3610 If you find a needle Call the Kitsap Public Health District at 360-337-5235 and ask for a solid waste inspector to report a needle complaint. To report it to law enforcement, call 911. This story has been edited to correct the name of the Kitsap Public Health District. SHARE By Kitsap Sun Staff ASHLAND, Ore. A Port Orchard man was killed early Monday and a Bainbridge Island man was arrested, after a van they were traveling in crashed in southern Oregon. Ryan Bowker, 18, was riding in the back of the vehicle when it crashed into a utility pole in Ashland, Oregon, according to a statement from the Ashland Police Department. The driver of the van, Brandon Morlok, 21, was believed to be impaired and was arrested on suspicion of first-degree manslaughter, second-degree manslaughter and driving under the influence of a controlled substance. Investigators believe the vehicle was traveling at a high rate when it collided with the utility pole. Morlok and another passenger sustained minor or no injuries from the wreck, according to the statement. Stuff reports: Lawyers for Julian Assange have asked a Swedish court to overturn an arrest warrant for the Wikileaks founder following a ruling by a UN panel that his stay in Ecuadors London embassy amounts to arbitrary detention. Assange, 44, took refuge at the embassy 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. Once again the biggest threat to the UN is itself. Assange voluntarily entered the embassy to avoid extradition to Sweden to face rape charges. He can leave the embassy at any time, so long as he is willing to defend himself against the charges. Trying to escape the criminal justice system of Sweden for rape allegations does not make you a political prisoner. Share this: Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Reddit WhatsApp More Pinterest Print Tumblr SHARE By Mary Constantine of the Knoxville News Sentinel Country Life Natural Foods of Pullman, Michigan, has issued a recall of its shelled raw pistachios because of the potential contamination with salmonella. As this time no illnesses have been reported. The pistachios, sold in two pound bags and 30 pound boxes, were distributed in Tennessee, Arkansas, Florida, California, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, and Wisconsin. The batch number for the two pound bag, found on the lower left corner of the brand label is 1357. The 30 pound boxes will have the name "SAM International" on the box with a lot number of 102914 and the "best by date" of April 29, 2016. Those infected with salmonella may experience diarrhea, nausea, fever, vomiting and abdominal pain. Consumers who have bought the product may return it to the place of purchase. For more information contact Country Life Natural Foods at 1-800-456-7694. With 10 Oscar nominations, Mad Max: Fury Road may well come away with more wins at the Academy Awards than any other film. SHARE George Miller By Jake Coyle, Associated Press Of the many roads to the Academy Awards, none is as unlikely as the one taken (at ferocious speed, with engines roaring) by George Miller's "Mad Max: Fury Road." Whatever one's concept of "Oscar bait" is, it does not include action-movie dystopias with face-painting kamikazes and blind, fire-shooting metal guitarists who answer to the name of "Doof." "There's a great quote from Hunter S. Thompson where he said that when something turned right for him unexpectedly, it was like falling down an elevator shaft into a pool of mermaids," Miller says. "It's been a little bit like that." Despite "Fury Road" being about as far away from the usual Oscar-friendly costumed drama, Miller's fireball of a film heads into Sunday's Academy Awards with 10 nods (second only to "The Revenant"), including best picture and best director for Miller. Nominated in every technical category, "Mad Max" stands a good chance of being the night's most-awarded film. It's a gratifying if utterly unforeseen outcome for the 70-year-old Miller, who spent more than a decade trying to get various iterations of a "Mad Max" sequel off the ground, not to mention months of shooting in the Namibian desert and several years in post-production along with the bad word of mouth that accompanies such delays. But when "Fury Road" was finally unveiled in May, the response was rapturous. Here was not the average, bloated summer sequel at all. Here was a blisteringly cinematic movie stuffed with allegorical meaning, with much to say about gender roles and power. "I treat action movies very, very seriously," Miller says in a recent interview between stops on the awards circuit. "It's not something like: Here's a movie with talkie bits and now some action. We were trying to conflate the two." The multitude of Oscar nominations for "Fury Road" speaks to the widespread admiration for the movie's old-school craft. Though it includes extensive visual effects, "Fury Road" was shot with real vehicles on a real location. Miller is the rare action filmmaker who speaks of Buster Keaton and Harold Lloyd as inspirations. "It finds its antecedents in those early films, those pre-sound movies where arguably the film language, this very new language we had, was forged," Miller says. "When I first came to cinema that's where I first went to with a pretty strong sense of inquiry as to: What is this new language? It's not much more than 100 years old and we can read it before we can read books." The language of "Fury Road" an essentially non-stop chase through a post-apocalyptic wasteland is wildly kinetic. It's expressed almost entirely through imagery rather than dialogue. Tom Hardy, who inherited the role of Max from Mel Gibson, described Miller's movie as "if Obi-Wan Kenobi could make an action movie." It's composed of approximately 2,900 shots. The average shot is 2 seconds and 9 frames. "Film is a mosaic art and this one had many pieces," Miller says. The mammoth task of assembling so much footage from scenes sometimes shot with a dozen cameras fell to Miller's wife, editor Margaret Sixel. She received daily footage at home in Australia while shooting continued in Africa. She, too, is up for an Oscar. It's Sixel's first nod, but several of Miller's films have previously been Oscar nominated, including 1992's "Lorenzo's Oil," 1995's "Babe" and 2006's "Happy Feet." It's a jarringly varied filmography bookended by "Mad Max," which Miller first debuted in 1979. The story has remained a constant in Miller's life, an omnibus onto which to latch ideas. In the '70s, it was oil shortage; in "Fury Road," it's water scarcity. But for many, it's the film's story of female empowerment, led by Charlize Theron's one-armed warrior Furiosa, that's makes "Fury Road" exceptional. Some have called it a feminist action film. "It was really, really gratifying when people did respond and saw all its resonances and really picked up on it," Miller says. "The attraction of something like 'Mad Max: Fury Road' is basically allegorical. You're trying to find those things in the story that seem to be constant in humanity." SHARE Gov. Bill Haslam By Richard Locker, locker@knoxnews.com NASHVILLE Former Tennessee Board of Regents Chancellor John Morgan on Tuesday delivered his strongest criticism yet of Gov. Bill Haslam's plan to break up the TBR system and create new governing boards for each of the six TBR universities. Despite his remarks, the House Education Administration and Planning Committee recommended approval of the Haslam plan and sent it to its next committee review, the House Government Operations Committee. The committee postponed discussion for a week on a separate bill focused on the authority of the University of Tennessee board of trustees and its president and chancellors. Morgan told the committee the Haslam plan will destabilize the current balance between the TBR and University of Tennessee systems, hurt the smaller Board of Regents schools, create a new structure that is "less accountable, less efficient and less effective," and ultimately impede Tennessee's economic growth. That final point, on the state's economy, Morgan said is because the governor's "Drive to 55" initiative in which 55 percent of adult Tennesseans would have some form of post-high school credential by 2025 focuses on the state's community and technical colleges to supply 60 percent of those credentials, tied current workforce needs. Mike Krouse, executive director of the governor's Drive to 55 initiative, told the committee that Drive to 55 is the catalyst for the higher education realignment. "Drive to 55 is important but I think it would be a significant mistake if we underestimate the importance of the state universities to the state's economic future," Morgan said. "If Tennessee and every other state achieve their (higher education attainment) goals ours was 55 percent three years ago Tennessee will rank 48th in educational attainment. Meeting the needs of the economy we have is important but I would submit that it's more important to create the economy we want and that's what universities do," Morgan said. Morgan retired in January, a year earlier than planned in protest of Haslam's surprise plan to restructure higher education. He summarized his opposition to the plan in his Jan. 7 resignation letter to the governor and the Board of Regents. The former chancellor was asked by House Democratic Leader Craig Fitzhugh of Ripley to speak to the committee, and he elaborated on his concerns. "I don't really question the intent but I do think it's a mistake," Morgan said. He said six new governing boards for the University of Memphis, Austin Peay State University, Tennessee State University, Middle Tennessee State University, Tennessee Tech University and East Tennessee State University will dilute their power and damages their collaboration for the state's overall interests. "I really think that by creating independent university boards, who presumably will act independently as envisioned by the legislation, that it moves us further away from the kind of comprehensive, strategic ability to meet the state's needs in a state that frankly is resource-challenged and probably will always will be resourced challenged. "Perhaps more importantly, I think it creates a competitive environment within which many of our institutions will not fare well. In Tennessee, our higher education system can be seen as a seesaw. There's the UT system on one end, there's the TBR on the other, with THEC (Tennessee Higher Education Commission) acting as a fulcrum in the middle. Over time we have achieved a pretty reasonable balance I think. "In this new structure it's like an eight-sided seesaw: six university boards, the Board of Regents still responsible for the colleges of applied technology and community colleges, and the University of Tennessee. Achieving balance and equilibrium in that environment I think is going to be extraordinarily difficult. Particularly when you consider that the power of the University of Tennessee board is intact. There are no changes being contemplated for the board of UT. They will still be a statewide system, they will still have the flagship (UT Knoxville), they will still have the Institute for Agriculture with extension services in every county and what that brings with it, while the other boards will be significantly less positioned when it comes time and it will come time to compete, to try to advocate, to try to secure the best resource treatment for each of those institutions," Morgan said. But he said the biggest problem he sees is accountability and responsibility. "Right now if something is going on at one of our systems or one of our institutions that is incorrect, that is wrong, you need only look at the system to say this is wrong, it needs to be fixed. In this new world, that will not be true . I think over time we will find that that leads to a system that is less accountable, less efficient and less effective." SHARE Jessica Stewart Jill Hill Valarie Cagle By News Sentinel Staff While their educational experiences may be different, Jessica Stewart, Jill Gill and Valarie Cagle all shared something on Tuesday night they were named Knox County Schools' top Teachers of the Year. The teachers were recognized Tuesday night as part of the school system's annual event that celebrates educators throughout the district. To be eligible for the honor, each candidate must be a full-time, certified Pre-K-12 teacher who has taught five years or more and spends the majority of the day instructing students. Recipients are nominated by their colleagues. Honorees from each school are recognized, but only three receive the top honor and go on to represent the district in the state's Teacher of the Year celebration. Christenberry Elementary School's Stewart, who has been with the school system for four years, has a philosophy of teaching that centers on the idea that every child has the potential to learn and holds the capacity to grow, experiment, achieve, think and reason. One nomination letter noted Stewart was deserving because of her "extraordinary character and leadership qualities, devotion to teaching students and her unselfish service to others." But Stewart is also known for the time she gives to her colleagues, too. For one week every semester, she conducts an after-school workshop called "Open Art Studio," where her colleagues can come in and create a clay work of art to unwind, relax and enjoy art. Gill, a teacher at Ritta Elementary, has been with the district for 20 years. She is an Aspen trainer, mentors new teachers and is a TNReady support teacher. She tries to make learning personally meaningful for her students by incorporating relevant information from their lives. Her principal, Melissa Johnson, described her as a one of her most effective teachers. "Her knowledge and experience make her a valuable resource and she is a great example of the kind of educator we want in each classroom," Johnson said of Gill. Cagle, a teacher at Farragut High, has 16 years of teaching experience and has also been a sponsor for cheerleading, student government, newspaper, prom committee and the junior honor society. Her students scores consistently rank in the top three of all English I classes in the school system. Cagle's educational ideas are that all children are unique learners capable of growth, effective teachers are guides who show rather than tell and liberal education reflects and reciprocates the American dream. A student said in a nominating letter that Cagle gives them the tools to achieve their goals on their own and encourages a deeper level of thinking. Her principal Stephanie Thompson said she is deliberate and compassionate in her leadership. A demonstrator opposed to immigration restrictions watches from the gallery in the Senate Chamber on Monday in Nashville. The state Senate has passed a resolution on a 27-5 vote directing Tennessees attorney general to mount a legal challenge to the federal refugee resettlement program. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey) By ERIK SCHELZIG, Associated Press NASHVILLE (AP) Gov. Bill Haslam on Tuesday took issue with a move by fellow Republicans in the Legislature to order the state attorney to sue the federal government over the refugee resettlement program in Tennessee. The governor told reporters that refugee resettlement was a major topic of discussion during a National Governors Association meeting in Washington over the weekend, and that he came away with the understanding that the program doesn't present a threat to Tennesseans. "There are people who are coming into our country illegally who want to do this country harm, but I don't think that's the process they're coming in under," Haslam said, noting that the resettlement process can take between 18 months and three years. The resolution overwhelmingly passed the Senate on Monday and is sponsored by Speaker Ron Ramsey, R-Blountville, and Senate Republican leader Mark Norris of Collierville. While the measure "directs" a legal challenge to be mounted, Norris said that the resolution provides for hiring an outside attorney if the Attorney General Herbert Slater were to decline to file the lawsuit. Haslam nevertheless raised concerns about "one branch of government ordering the attorney general what to do." He was also worried about the precedent that would be set by hiring an outside attorney to represent the state. "I'm not sure that's a really good trend for us," Haslam said. Fears about refugee resettlement in Tennessee were heightened after last year's terrorist attacks in Paris. Republican Sen. Mark Green of Clarksville said security concerns caused him to support the resolution. "Our federal government has failed to protect us," Green said during Monday's debate on the Senate floor. "In certain groups of those refugees, people who want to do harm to us are infiltrating this program." Opponents of the resolution, including dozens of protesters who came to the Capitol, argued that it would make Tennessee appear unwelcoming to immigrants. Norris rejected those arguments. "What could be more welcoming than a state that is willing to stand upon its rights, under the state and federal constitutions, to protect the people within its borders?" he said. "What I, ask you, could possibly be more welcoming to that?" The resolution has been sent to the House. The governor does not have the power to veto resolutions. SHARE By Richard Locker, locker@knoxnews.com NASHVILLE The bill allowing motorcycle riders 21 and up to ride without helmets was delayed again in a House committee Tuesday evening by the bill's sponsor who more or less acknowledged he doesn't have enough votes in the committee for passage. But the sponsor, Rep. Jay Reedy, R-Erin, said he's still working on answering his colleagues' questions about the measure and that he won't pronounce it dead for the year even though he took the bill "off notice" in the House Finance Committee. That's a procedural step that means there will be no further consideration of the bill unless he asks to bring it back up. Similar legislation has been filed almost annually for 20 years and has occasionally passed the Senate, only to fail in various House committees. The finance committee is the furthest the bill has ever advanced in the House, which gave motorcyclists who support the bill hope that it might pass this year. Tennessee is one of 19 states plus the District of Columbia with a mandatory motorcycle helmet law for all riders, regardless of age. The law was enacted in 1967. Twenty-eight states require only underage riders, under either 18 or 21, to wear helmets. And Illinois, Iowa and New Hampshire have no laws at all requiring helmet use, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. Reedy's House Bill 700 would allow anyone 21 and up with medical or health insurance other than TennCare to ride without a helmet on Tennessee streets and roadways. It also prohibits police from stopping motorcyclists solely because they're not wearing a helmet, but Reedy said he was willing to amend that portion of the bill. The state Department of Safety and the Department of Health both oppose the bill, along with AAA, the Auto Club. Concerned Motorcyclists of Tennessee is the leading proponent of the bill. We have our turn in the voting booth come Tuesday. n It didn't matter if Jeb Bush had $100 million, rank-and-file Republicans were not going to sit still for the coronation. After having John McCain and Mitt Romney crammed down our throats, we weren't going to put up with it again. People who should have known better were contributing money and signing on as delegates. It took three humiliating defeats for Bush to see what was obvious to the rest of us from the beginning. n Will national Democrats ever realize that many of the rank-and-file members feel the same way about Hillary Clinton as Republicans do about Bush? An Iowa tie, a huge loss in New Hampshire. U.S. Sen. Harry Reid and the culinary workers in the casinos prevented another humiliating loss in Nevada. She was 20 points up over democratic socialist U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders last month but by Election Day it dropped to a pathetic 5 percent. Clinton needs the black vote in the South and 400 super delegates to stay ahead of Bernie. n I don't see why Donald Trump won't march through the South the way Sherman marched through Georgia. As we discussed months ago, the only way to stop Trump was to get Bush out of the race. Trump was the people's choice to prevent the coronation. It may be too late now. If it gets down to Trump, Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio, the numbers still favor Trump. The danger for the anti-Trump establishment is if Trump gets over 50 percent, the party's over. But in the states that have proportional delegates where you don't get all the delegates even if you carry the state Cruz and Rubio might be able to keep Trump from winning outright. Stopping him at the convention with all the non-Trump delegates united behind Rubio or Cruz could deny him the nomination. If that happens, the GOP will be toast. n Before Sanders came along the most famous American socialist was Eugene Debs. He protested and ran for president on a platform mostly centered around the rights of working people. He also protested World War I. Democratic President Woodrow Wilson prosecuted him under the sedition act and sent him to prison. Republican President Warren G. Harding let him out, considering that 10 years was long enough in prison for not having committing a crime in exercising his constitutional right of free speech. But virtually everything Debs advocated for was delivered by President Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal. What future Democratic president will pass all Bernie's social programs? n Remember that the stupid, confusing election ballot for the Republican primary may be hard to negotiate. Unless everyone decides to skip the delegate selections, you can expect the lines to be long at voting precincts. You vote for president, then you can vote for anybody listed that you want to go to the convention. You can vote for Trump and then vote for a Bush delegate. It makes no sense, and the ballot needs to be reformed. If you are John Doe out there, you aren't likely to get elected as a delegate; if your name starts with Aardvark, you may be a lock. n Please don't vote for another one-term senator who doesn't know beans. Haven't we had enough of that? SHARE Apple Inc. is justified in resisting a federal court order to unlock an iPhone used by one of the shooters who killed 14 people during an attack in San Bernardino, California. Few would disagree that fighting terrorism is the nation's top security priority, but it should not be pursued at the expense of the privacy rights of all Americans. If Apple is compelled to create an unsecured operating system for iPhones as part of a government fishing expedition, the personal information for all smartphone users would be put at risk. Syed Rizwan Farook and his wife, Tashfeen Malik, shot 35 people at a civic services center in San Bernardino on Dec. 2, killing 14 and wounding 21. Police later killed Farook and Malik in a shootout. Authorities believe the Islamic State inspired the attack. Farook was an environmental health specialist with San Bernardino County. The Federal Bureau of Investigation wants to retrieve data from Farook's county-issued iPhone as part of its probe into the massacre. Apple has written its iPhone operating systems to be secure from hacking even by Apple engineers. The iPhone in question requires a four-digit passcode to gain access, and entering the wrong code 10 times automatically wipes out the data stored in the device. A federal district court judge in California has ordered Apple to create software that would enable the FBI to gain access to the phone's data. Apple is resisting the order. In a letter to customers, the company's CEO, Tim Cook, said compliance with the order would have a chilling effect. "In the wrong hands, this software which does not exist today would have the potential to unlock any iPhone in someone's physical possession," Cook wrote. The Justice Department, contending that the order applies only to Farook's phone and would not pose a threat to the privacy of other iPhone users, has filed a motion demanding that Apple be forced to comply with the court order. Documents unsealed on Tuesday in a federal court in Brooklyn, however, show the government has asked Apple to unlock at least a dozen iPhones in cases across the country, multiple news organizations reported. As Cook warns, if the government prevails, the existence of the software would present a security risk for all smartphone users. State and local law enforcement would seek access just like their federal counterparts. The National Security Administration could secretly obtain the same authorization from the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court. Foreign governments, recreational hackers and crime syndicates would attempt to obtain the code. The government's fishing expedition is unlikely to produce much useful intelligence. Farook and Malik destroyed their personal phones, but not Farook's work-issued iPhone, according to the San Bernardino Sun. The Times reported the FBI already has retrieved data from Farook's iPhone, backed up on Apple's iCloud service, leaving only about one month's worth of data untouched. The risks to privacy are too great and the anti-terrorism value too low for the government to prevail. Apple has a duty to its customers indeed to all smartphone users to resist this planned invasion of their privacy. SHARE Regarding the story "Downtown churches reach out to new residents," First Presbyterian Church plays an active role in the life of the downtown community every day through the Community School of the Arts. The church has been home to the Community School of the Arts since its inception in 1992 and serves as the school's "main campus," even through construction. The school was actually founded by what was then the Christian Service Committee for the purpose of establishing an arts-based after-school program for underserved and at-risk children, and was separately incorporated as a nonprofit entity with its own community identity and board of directors in 1992. Since then, the Community School of the Arts has provided free lessons and classes in both the performing and the visual arts to thousands of children and teens from East, South and North Knoxville. First Presbyterian Church not only provides classrooms for private music lessons (piano, strings, brass, guitars, voice), performance classes (percussion, electronic music, modern dance) and visual arts classes for all ages, it also houses our administrative offices and hosts all of our concerts and recitals. And thanks to access to the church's kitchen facilities, we even have a culinary arts program. We estimate that the in-kind contribution provided by First Presbyterian to the Community School of the Arts is, in space alone, $150,000, based on the current market value. We are thrilled to be a part of this new chapter in the life of the church, which, once Phase I is complete, will give us a new designated entrance on State Street, signs and a lobby gallery in addition to classrooms and administrative offices. The generosity, heart and commitment of First Presbyterian Church and its congregation have allowed our own mission to grow and thrive, and we look forward to the next 20 years of service to the downtown community. Jennifer Willard, Knoxville 1:16 p.m. February 24, 2016 Former IRS Employee Sentenced for $326,000 Fraud Scheme, Identity Theft A former Internal Revenue Service employee was sentenced in federal court on Tuesday, February 22 for using stolen identities in a scheme to receive $326,000 in fraudulent tax refunds. On June 1, 2015, Demetria Michele Brown, 39, of Birmingham, Ala., pleaded guilty to two counts of wire fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft. Brown admitted that she engaged in a scheme to submit hundreds of false and fraudulent state and federal income tax returns in order to generate refunds from 2008 to 2011. Brown was sentenced on Tuesday to two years and six months in federal prison without parole. The court also ordered Brown to pay $326,000 in restitution to the state of Missouri and the IRS. Brown, formerly of Fairview Heights, Ill., worked at an IRS office in St. Louis, Mo. during the fraud scheme. While employed by the IRS, she illegally obtained the personal IDs of at least 120 individuals. Brown had direct access to taxpayers personal ID information; however, rather than risk detection by using that information to commit her fraud, she obtained the identities of taxpayers in the Metro-East area of St. Louis and Birmingham through illicit sources. Brown filed more than 120 fraudulent federal tax returns, resulting in a loss of approximately $211,000 and at least 236 fraudulent state tax returns, resulting in a loss amount of approximately $326,000. Brown obtained personal identification information, including names, Social Security numbers, and dates of birth of other persons without their knowledge or consent. She then completed U.S. individual income tax returns and Missouri state income tax returns for persons using the information she had obtained. She also added other information which was false and fraudulent, including the address, place of employment, wages earned, taxes withheld and the fact that a refund was due. Published February 24, 2016 South Korea's antitrust watchdog on Wednesday slapped fines on two Japanese car parts makers for price rigging that distorted fair competition. The Fair Trade Commission (FTC) said it ordered Denso Corp. and Mitsubishi Electric Corp. to pay a combined 1.14 billion won (US$923,000) in fines for exchanging information on bids they planned to submit to win contracts from GM Korea Co. in 2008. GM Korea, the South Korean unit of U.S. auto giant General Motors Co., opened a bid for vehicle motor starters used to get an internal-combustion engine to rotate so as to allow the engine to operate under its own power. "The companies agreed beforehand on which company would win a particular bid," the corporate regulator said. It said the company that agreed not to win would intentionally ask for a high price so the other could secure the contract. The engine starters supplied by Denso and Mitsubishi were used in GM's Spark city car, the Cruze compact and the Orlando multipurpose vehicle, it said. "Starters used on small cars like the Spark were supplied by Denso, with Mitsubishi allowed to win the deal to provide parts for mid-size vehicles," the FTC said. The commission said that the latest actions targeting cartel activities carried out by car parts manufacturers are the seventh of their kind. "The government is committed to ferreting out all corporate activities that hurt consumers and manufacturers, and will continue to keep close tabs on such practices in the future," the watchdog stressed. The FTC has slapped fines on suppliers of car meters, wipers, ignition coils, bearings and exhaust gas temperature sensors since 2014. (Yonhap) Actors perform a scene from a musical for elementary school students, Captain Guardian.' The Korea Life Insurance Association plans to stage the musical to educate young students about insurance throughout this year, as part of its insurance education program. / Courtesy of KILA By Nam Hyun-woo The Korea Life Insurance Association is running a string of educational programs for young people. One is an insurance class in which educators visit elementary, middle and high schools across the nation. According to the Life Insurance Social Contribution Committee, the educators teach students about financial insurance through easy texts and board games. The committee said some 24,000 students at 111 schools across the country have joined the classes and the number will increase to 30,000 students this year. There will also be a nationwide musical tour to interest students in insurance. It will include two musicals "Captain Guardian" for elementary school students and "Daddy Long Legs" for middle and high school students. The musicals will be staged 180 times this year. Last September, "Daddy Long Legs" won an award presented by the governor of the Financial Supervisory Service. "The tour will visit not only big cities but also small and remote regions so that the committee can make a cultural contribution to people who have limited access to cultural activities," it said. To bolster its insurance education programs, the committee is running the Life Insurance Education Culture Center, which provides "self-guided" learning experiences where students answer quizzes and accomplish various insurance-related missions. The committee said it is designated as a training institution for teachers by the Seoul Education Training Institute and runs quality programs. In 2014, the committee earned certifications from the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education and the Ministry of Education (MOE). Last year, it won an award from the Seoul Mayor for its social contribution and another from the MOE for its educational contribution in December. By Choi Sung-jin As China increases pressure on Korea over the latter's proposed deployment of the U.S. missile defense system, concerns are mounting about Beijing's possible economic retaliation, business officials say. "The Chinese government has only to say one word to its tour agencies no' (for Korean tours)," a Korean businessman operating in Beijing said. By just controlling the number of Chinese "youke" (overseas travelers) bound for Korea, it can deal a serious blow to the Korean economy, he said. Chinese people account for half of foreign tourists in Korea. When the number of Chinese visitors plunged last summer because of Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS), the nation's tourism revenue also plummeted, which in turn affected domestic consumption and dragged down further already sluggish economic growth. Bilateral economic cooperation is rapidly chilling over the scheduled introduction of the U.S. missile shield here, called the terminal high-altitude area defense (THAAD) system, which Beijing suspects would neutralize its missiles. By Lee Hyo-sik Denso and Mitsubishi Electric were found to have colluded to win supply contracts from General Motors at lower-than-market prices, according to the country's antitrust agency Wednesday. The Fair Trade Commission (FTC) said it decided to impose a combined 1.14 billion won ($950,000) fine on the two Japanese auto parts makers for rigging the prices of starter motors when taking part in GM's global sourcing in 2008. Denso was ordered to pay 510 million won and Mitsubishi Electric 630 million won. The latest bid rigging will likely tarnish the images of Denso and Mitsubishi, as well as adversely affect their efforts to sign supply deals with automakers in Korea and elsewhere. FTC said that prior to the bidding, officials from the two companies met at Mitsubishi headquarters in Tokyo in July 2008 and agreed to collude in order to reap undue profits. The two companies even drew up a written agreement. Under the agreement, one would intentionally submit a slightly higher bid than the other so that the latter could obtain the contract with a desired bid. The agency said through the bid rigging, Denso secured a contract to supply B-DOHC engine starter motors for GM Korea's Spark mini car. In exchange, Mitsubishi won the deal to supply FAM Z engine starter motors for the carmaker's Cruze compact sedan and the Orlando multipurpose vehicle. "Denso and Mitsubishi clearly violated the nation's Fair Trade Act, causing financial damage to the carmaker," an FTC official said. "Besides imposing a fine, we ordered them to never again engage in such dubious acts either here or abroad." FTC investigators summoned executives of Denso and Mitsubishi multiple times from their headquarters in Japan for questioning. The latest case is the seventh of its kind since January 2014 when the FTC began investigating a series of suspected bid riggings among global auto parts makers. "We have accumulated extensive knowhow and expertise over the past two years," the official said. "We will continue to monitor and reprimand those involved in collusive acts, which negatively affect the interests of domestic enterprises and consumers." By Lee Hyo-sik Kim Jae-hong, CEO of the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA), speaks during a press conference at a restaurant in Seoul, Wednesday. / Yonhap Korea will continue to face an uphill battle in bolstering its sagging exports unless China and other emerging economies regain growth momentum, according to the head of the state-run trade promotion body, Wednesday. Kim Jae-hong, CEO of the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA), said exports will likely shrink by a double-digit figure in February from a year earlier, stressing that Korea needs to diversify its export markets and encourage more small businesses to turn their eyes abroad. "We estimate that February's outbound shipments would drop at a double-digit rate," Kim said Wednesday. "Unfortunately, this downward trend is feared to continue for the foreseeable future." In January, Korea's exports fell 18.5 percent from the same month last year, the steepest decline in more than six years. Kim citied a slowdown in China and other emerging economies as a major culprit for the country's sluggish exports. "Local exporters ship about 58 percent of their goods to China and other developing countries," he said. "When these nations' economies slow down, this inevitably wreaks havoc on our exports. In addition, Korean firms have been selling largely low-cost, low-tech industrial products rather than innovative and premium ones. Large companies have led the export drive, while many small and medium-sized enterprises remain on the sideline." Kim called on domestic firms to shift focus to the United States and other advanced economies, as well as market more consumer goods and encourage and support more small firms in selling their goods abroad. "To help bolster the country's sinking outbound shipments, we have taken all possible measures over the past few months," he said. "We are running a taskforce to draw up comprehensive support for exporters. We are also in the middle of realigning our manpower to play a more active role in the nationwide export promotion campaign." To become the export promotion-focused state agency, KOTRA is in talks with the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and the Ministry of Strategy and Finance about its ongoing organizational reshuffle, he said. "We will help more companies that are producing premium consumer goods make inroads into foreign markets," Kim said. "We will extend all possible support to those looking to enter newly emerging markets, such as Iran and Mexico. Korea's export outlook seems bleak at the moment. But if we work hard, we can make a difference." Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Corp. is test running the Shin-Kori unit 3 reactor. / Courtesy of KHNP By Yoon Ja-young Cho Seok KHNP President and CEO Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power Corp. (KHNP) plans to focus on expanding its business in the global nuclear energy market this year, its CEO said Wednesday. "Korea's nuclear power plant technology is highly evaluated in the global market. We have 24 nuclear reactors and we are at the world's top level in terms of operation rate," KHNP President and CEO Cho Seok told reporters. "Among the nuclear power plants currently being constructed around the world, we are the only one with everything on time and within budget," he added. Korea has been making efforts to advance into nuclear power plant markets overseas, including countries in the Middle East, and Southeast Asia. The state-owned company is currently building a nuclear power plant in the United Arab Emirates. It has completed 61.4 percent of the construction so far and the completion rate is scheduled to reach 79 percent at the end of the year. It recently successfully completed a cold hydrostatic test (CHT) on the first reactor, officially approving its overall capability. It is currently negotiating with the UAE on an operating support services agreement (OSSA) for the nuclear power plant. Cho noted that nuclear power will come to play bigger role after the New Climate Regime, whereby countries have agreed to cut carbon emissions, comes into effect. Korea, which is the world's eighth biggest emitter, is planning to reduce its emissions by 37 percent. If a 1000MW nuclear power plant replaces one using coal, 6.1 million tons in gas emissions can be cut, according to KHNP. Thanks to stable management, KHNP increased its electric power sales to 10.6 trillion won last year, with a 2.5 trillion won net profit. It plans to expand investment by 359.1 billion won this year, up from its original plan of 2.8 trillion won, to help pull up economic growth. Renewable energy is another sector the company is eyeing, with around a 1 trillion won investment planned for the next four to five years. Cho was elected to head the World Association of Nuclear Operators (WANO) last year. The company, which will be relocating its headquarters to Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province, is scheduled to hold WANO's general meeting in the city next year. He hopes that it will be an opportunity to help globalization of the city as well as contributing to its development. Seohyun speaks during a press conference of "Mamma Mia!" at the Charlotte Theater in southern Seoul, Tuesday. / Courtesy of Seensee Company By Kwon Mee-yoo Seohyun of Girls' Generation revealed her bubbly side on a Greek island with ABBA's music in the musical "Mamma Mia!" Seohyun showcased a scene from the jukebox musical at a press event Tuesday, singing the Swedish pop group's "Thank You for the Music." Seohyun portrayed Sophie, the bright-eyed ingenue who loves singing and dancing. This is her third role in musical theater, following Yeon-woo in the Korean musical "Moon Embracing the Sun" in 2014 and Scarlett O'Hara in the French musical "Gone with the Wind" in 2015. "Mamma Mia!" is a jukebox musical featuring some 22 songs of ABBA, revolving around Donna and her daughter Sophie living on a Greek island. Seohyun said she did not take extra private acting lessons, but tried to harmonize with the team. "I received notes from our director Paul (Garrington) and listened to advice from cast members," she said. Seohyun alternates the role with two other actresses, Park Ji-yeon and Kim Geum-na. "I looked into myself to find out what part of me I can relate to Sophie. All three of us are different so our portrayals of Sophie will be slightly different," Seohyun said. Actor Sung Ki-yoon, who plays Sam, one of the candidates for Sophie's father, said Seohyun is taking a great first step as a theater actress. "This style of acting is totally new to Seohyun, but she is getting better day after day. I am excited to see how she will portray Sophie at the end of the run," Sung said. Another cast member, Lee Kyung-mi, who plays Rosie, said Seohyun is physically different from other actresses who previously played the role as they were mostly short and petite. "However Seohyun is tall and slender, bringing freshness to the show and the cast. I saw in her eyes her passion for becoming a proper actress," Lee said. Seohyun admits she is still a newbie as an actress, despite her nine-year career as a member of Korea's top girl band. "Sophie is totally different from the characters I played before. At first I thought I could relax and enjoy being a part of Mamma Mia!', but during the rehearsal I learned that there is much more for Sophie to do in the show such as being in the chorus for the mother's trio and becoming a part of the ensemble," she said. "I feel I am not good enough compared to when I first started musicals. Now I know I have big shoes to fill and become more responsible for what I do." Choi Jung-won and Shin Young-sook star as Donna, Jeon Soo-kyung and Kim Young-joo as Tanya and Lee Kyung-mi and Hong Ji-min as Rosie. Actor Bae Yong-joon /Korea Times files By Kwon Ji-youn Some of the country's top actors and actresses have disappeared from the small screen and theaters, prompting concern among fans about whether they intend to return, and when. Among them are Bae Yong-joon, who appeared alongside Choi Ji-woo in "Winter Sonata"; Ko So-young, wife of actor Jang Dong-gun; and Won Bin, who recently married actress Lee Na-young. Bae and Ko have been missing in action for the past nine years and Won Bin for the past six. Bae's last dramatic appearance was in 2007 with MBC's "The Legend." In 2011, he made a brief appearance in KBS's "Dream High," which starred miss A member Suzy and Kim Soo-hyun, but that was it. Actress Ko So-young Ko, in 2006, attempted a return to the big screen with "Project Makeover," and in 2007, followed with a dramatic appearance in SBS's "Blue Fish." But when both failed to turn heads, she stopped acting. Bae and Ko were more familiar to viewers for TV commercial gigs, but even advertisers are now looking for new blood. Ko, 42, last year canceled a contract for a TV commercial for a Japanese company that has a money-lending business. Ko was criticized for shooting the commercial for "J Trust Group," which has several subsidiaries that lend money with interest as high as 29.2 percent. Ko admitted she did not pay enough attention to the commercial until media reports about the company. She has also been replaced by a younger actress in a skin-care product commercial. Bae, who kindled the hallyu (Korean wave) boom with "Winter Sonata," was once the face of Lotte Duty Free, but has been replaced with younger stars who are more active in the industry. These include idols Super Junior and 2PM, and actors Kim Soo-hyun and Park Hae-jin. Actress Choi, on the other hand, is still a model for Lotte Duty Free. Actor Won Bin Won Bin, whose last cinematic appearance was in 2010 with "The Man from Nowhere," is another actor fans are hoping to see more often on the big screen, if not the small screen. Other actors of his caliber, including Gang Dong-won and Hwang Jung-min, have been keeping themselves busy shooting film on top of film, and so Won Bin's disappearance is only becoming more conspicuous. It was anticipated that the actor, who shot to stardom after appearing opposite Song Hye-kyo in "Autumn Story," would be cast for the drama "That Winter, the Wind Blows" and coming film "With God," but both deals fell through. But there is still hope as Won Bin, who fathered a child in December, is said to be looking for comeback opportunities, according to industry insiders. Kim Nam-joo is also said to be considering a comeback to the small screen with KBS's "War of Roses." Kim notched huge successes with her appearances on MBC's "My Wife is a Superwoman" and "Queen of Reversals," and KBS's "My Husband Got a Family." In 2010, she won the grand prize at the MBC Drama Acting Awards and won again at the KBS Drama Acting Awards. But the actress, 44, has disappeared from the small screen since. Should she fix a role in "War of Roses," it will mark a comeback after almost four years. Lee Byung-hun / Screen capture from Twitter Top actor Lee Byung-hun has left for Hollywood to present an Academy Award at the ceremony on Feb. 28. After attending the awards, he will have his first Japanese fan meetings - in Osaka, Tokyo and Sendai - next month. About 20,000 fans are expected to attend. Lee is the first Korean actor to appear on stage at the Oscars. He made his debut in Hollywood in "G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra," in 2009. Since then he has appeared in several films, including "Terminator Genisys" with Arnold Schwarzenegger last year. South Korea and the United States will hold their first high-level meeting in April on implementing their new nuclear energy partnership accord, a top Seoul diplomat said Wednesday. Vice Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul said he plans to visit Washington next week to announce the official launch of the high-level committee tasked with discussing the details of the accord. "The first meeting will be held in Seoul in April," he said during a keynote speech at a symposium on nuclear issues. Cho co-chairs the committee along with his U.S. counterpart, Deputy Secretary of Energy Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall. After years of negotiations, the allies struck the deal last year to allow Seoul to expand its peaceful nuclear activity despite U.S. concerns that it could undermine its nonproliferation drive. Under the accord, Seoul will be able to conduct research into a nascent nuclear-reprocessing technology known as "pyroprocessing." It will also continue discussions with Washington on the possible low-level enrichment of uranium. Responding to growing public calls for South Korea's nuclear armament, Cho reaffirmed Seoul's commitment to nuclear nonproliferation. "From the military and economic perspectives, it is difficult to agree with such arguments," he said. North Korea conducted its fourth nuclear test last month and launched a long-range rocket earlier this month. Some South Korean politicians and analysts have argued that the only effective deterrent against North Korea's nuclear and missile programs is South Korea's own nuclear armament. (Yonhap) President Park Geun-hye said Wednesday that job creation is a key priority of her government in the latest sign of challenges facing South Korea. Park has been struggling to create more jobs for people, especially young people, though its efforts have not paid off. The jobless rate among people between ages 15 and 29 reached a record high of 9.2 percent in 2015, the highest reading since 1999 and much higher than the 3.6 percent average for the country as a whole. Park said the government should strengthen its focus on job creation. "Purposes of all (policies) should be job" creation, Park said in a meeting with officials and advisers on the economy, calling job creation "the biggest task of our society." Park also pressed the National Assembly again to pass a set of bills which she said would help reform South Korea's labor markets and revitalize the economy. In December, the government announced draft guidelines to allow companies to formally sack underperforming employees and amend employment rules more easily even without the consent of workers. Under current labor laws, companies can terminate employee contracts only when they are either involved in a corruption or an embezzlement case, or when the firm has to lay off workers due to serious financial difficulties. (Yonhap) / Korea Times file Brokers who tried to smuggle 100 Vietnameses into Korea using a cargo ship have been caught in Busan, police said Wednesday. According to the Busan Metropolitan Police Agency, three brokers, identified only as "S," 60, "O," 52, and "K," 55, were arrested for allegedly plotting with a brokers' group in Vietnam to smuggle the 100 Vietnameses. They said "S" was wanted on charges of smuggling about 100 Chineses and "K" allegedly smuggled nine Koreans into Japan last March. Police allege the three received 8 million won ($650) a person from the Vietnameses and tried to lease a 500-ton cargo ship to smuggle them in. The brokers would have made 600 million won ($490,000) if they succeeded, because only 200 million won would be needed to hire the ship and its crew, police said. An opposition lawmaker set the record for the longest filibuster in Korean history Wednesday, delivering a 10 hour and 18 minute address on the parliamentary floor to block the passage of an anti-terrorism bill. Rep. Eun Soo-mi of the Minjoo Party began giving her address before a largely empty National Assembly at 2:30 a.m. and got off the podium at 12:48 p.m., replacing the record set more than 40 years ago. The previous record was set by Park Han-sang in 1969, a then-opposition lawmaker, who gave a 10 hour and 15 minute address against the constitutional amendment drive by the Park Chung-hee government. On the podium Eun reiterated the opposition's concerns over a potential abuse of power by the National Intelligence Service (NIS), South Korea's top spy agency. "I feel pain in many parts of my body including the back and legs," Eun told reporters after her filibuster. The first-term lawmaker said she tried to make her points clear why the anti-terrorism law entailed problems during her address. The filibuster rule allows a lawmaker to speak endlessly in order to delay a bill. The filibuster session by the Minjoo Party followed National Assembly Speaker Chung Ui-hwa's decision a day before to take the bill to the floor for a vote by invoking his authority. The anti-terrorism law has been stalled for more than a decade. Since the first draft was filed with the National Assembly following the Sept. 11 attacks in 2001 to effectively combat terrorism, no major progress has been made. The bill's passage has gained urgency following North Korea's nuclear test and long-range rocket launch early this year. Under the bill, an anti-terrorism center will be set up under the Prime Minister's Office, but the NIS will have the power to gather the relevant information on possible terrorists and attacks. The ruling Saenuri Party slammed the Minjoo Party for its filibuster to thwart the bill's passage and urged it to end the ongoing discussion on the floor. "The opposition's filibuster to block the anti-terrorism law at a time of heightened tensions is an act of terror against the safety of the people," said Saenuri floor leader Won Yoo-chul during a party meeting. Won also called on the opposition to act in a bipartisan manner to ensure national security by voting on the long-stalled law. Calls among ruling party lawmakers for the bill's swift passage have become more acute after North Korea threatened to strike Cheong Wa Dae, South Korea's presidential office, on Tuesday night in its usual harsh rhetoric. While the rival parties continue to lock horns over the contentious bill, police arrested two civic activists on charges of violating the law on assembly and demonstration Wednesday. The police said the two, identified only by their surnames Kim and Yoon, picketed and chanted in protest of the law in front of the National Assembly at around 3:15 a.m. The two were released hours later after questioning. (Yonhap) President Park Geun-hye speaks during a meeting with her economic advisors at Cheong Wa Dae, Wednesday. She will enter her fourth year in office today. / Joint press corps By Kang Seung-woo President Park Geun-hye has done well in dealing with diplomatic and security affairs during her three years in office, but has shown a disappointing performance in unifying the nation on contentious issues, analysts said Wednesday. Park, who took office in 2013, enters the fourth year of her five-year single-term presidency on Thursday. The President's foreign policy was highlighted by "balanced diplomacy" between the United States and China, the nation's two most important partners in terms of security and economics. "Under the diplomatic initiative, President Park acted with balance," said Park Won-gon, an international relations professor at Handong University. "She attended the military parade marking the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II in Beijing and joined the China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), while she also held summits with U.S. President Barack Obama to tighten the security alliance." Since her inauguration, Park has concentrated efforts on improving ties with China to take advantage of its leverage over North Korea as well as enhancing trade with its giant neighbor. As a result, the ties between the two nations have been described as the strongest ever. The professor also gave credit to Park's handling of inter-Korean tension in August due to Pyongyang's landmine attack in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ). "The government's consistent response led to North Korea's rare concession to avoid a military confrontation. That has to be one of her major achievements," he said. A public poll also backs up Park Won-gon's view, finding that more than half of all South Koreans estimate that her job performance in dealing with North Korea has been excellent. According to a recent survey, conducted by Realmeter that interviewed 1,014 respondents, 54.8 percent of respondents supported the President's North Korea policy and diplomatic efforts with neighboring countries, compared to 42 percent who opposed it. The poll's margin of error was plus or minus 3.1 percentage points. It was the only area of the poll where Park's approval rating was higher than people's disapproval, and hovered over the half-century mark. The poll also asked about her economic policy, national security and vision for the future, among others. However, it remains to be seen if her approval rating will continue for the rest of her presidency because a rift between South Korea and China is emerging after the President's decision to discuss with Washington deploying the U.S. Theater High Altitude Area Defense system (THAAD) to combat North Korea's evolving nuclear and missile programs. The Chinese government has repeatedly urged the South Korea to scrap the plan to deploy THAAD, warning the systems will jeopardize bilateral ties. In addition, inter-Korean relations are returning to a confrontational mode with the South currently taking a hard-line on the Kim Jong-un regime due to the provocations, as evidenced by the shutdown of the Gaeseong Industrial Complex (GIC) earlier this month to cut off a major revenue source for North Korea's advancement of its nuclear and missile programs. How she deals with these issues will go a long way in deciding the success of her diplomatic and security efforts. So far, President Park has failed to gain recognition in terms of forging national cohesion. Political analysts advised the President to use her leadership to unify the nation. "President Park has repeatedly shown unilateral leadership to freeze the political situation," said Lee Jung-hee, a professor of political science at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, in a media interview. Kim Hyung-joon, a professor of political science at Myungji University, echoed Lee's view. "The key in politics is cohesion, but Park has been lacking in such efforts," he said. "For example, if the President wanted economic revitalization bills to be passed, she should have met with the opposition rather than the ruling party to seek cooperation." According to the poll, only 39.6 percent of respondents feel that President Park has contributed to unifying the nation, with 55.3 percent responding that she has not. By Kang Seung-woo Qiu Guohong Chinese ambassador The Ministry of Foreign Affairs summoned Chinese Ambassador to Korea Qiu Guohong, Wednesday, over sensitive remarks he made about Seoul-Beijing ties during a meeting with the South Korean opposition leader the previous day. "Deputy Foreign Minister Kim Hong-kyun called in Ambassador Qiu to ask about his remarks and Qiu gave a sincere explanation of the related situation," the ministry said in a statement. "He also expressed an understanding about the sensitivity of the issue and said he would make more efforts towards the constant development of South Korea-China relations." However, the ministry failed to mention whether the envoy expressed his regret over the remarks. In Tuesday's meeting with Kim Jong-in, the interim head of the main opposition Minjoo Party of Korea (MPK), the Chinese ambassador said that a possible deployment of a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) battery in Korea would destroy ties with China, according to a party spokesman. "The THAAD deployment could destroy bilateral relations in an instant," he was also quoted as saying. In retaliation for North Korea's recent nuclear test and rocket launch, the government has decided to hold negotiations with the United States about the U.S. Forces Korea's (USFK) plan to deploy THAAD onto Korean soil. To protest against the decision, the Chinese government summoned South Korean Ambassador to China Kim Jang-soo earlier this month. Earlier in the day, Cheong Wa Dae said that the THAAD deployment is a matter of self-defense against increasing threats from North Korea. "The USFK's THAAD deployment is a measure of self-defense against the North's evolving nuclear and missile programs and it is a matter to be decided in accordance with security and national interests," said presidential spokesman Jung Youn-kuk at a briefing. "China will have to recognize this point." An official of the presidential office said the spokesman's remarks are the nation's basic stance on the issue of THAAD deployment. The foreign ministry also said that China needs to review the root cause of South Korea's consideration of the deployment. "Before taking issue with the THAAD deployment, it is reasonable that China considers why South Korea is considering the issue," a foreign ministry official said. "Based on mutual trust, the two nations need to make efforts to advance bilateral ties." Qiu's remarks, quite unusual for a senior diplomat, were seen as China exerting explicit pressure on South Korea. China has strongly opposed the deployment on the Korean Peninsula, claiming that the U.S. missile interceptor could be used to nullify its military strike capabilities. In addition, the Chinese government has pressured its South Korean counterpart to thwart the plan, exploiting its position as the country's No. 1 trade partner. The ruling Saenuri Party also condemned the ambassador's remarks, saying that China ignored the nation's sovereignty over national security. "The issue of THAAD deployment should be solely decided by South Korea from the perspective of national interests and the safety of our people," said floor leader Won Yoo-chul during a party meeting. "The envoy's remarks were rude and unreasonable as they completely disregarded the sovereignty and the security of South Korea." China has a track record of taking issue with the U.S. missile defense system. During a summit between President Park Geun-hye and Chinese President Xi Jinping in July 2014, Xi reportedly asked Park to turn down a U.S. request to deploy the THAAD system. Xi's request was followed by the Chinese ambassador and Chinese Defense Minister Chang Wanquan, voicing concerns about the missile interceptor that drew criticism from South Korean lawmakers who said this was a violation of South Korea's sovereignty. By Jun Ji-hye The South Korean military issued a strong warning Wednesday to North Korea after the latter threatened to strike Cheong Wa Dae the previous day. The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said that the military will sternly punish the Kim Jong-un regime and make it regret any provocations. "We strongly urge North Korea to stop its provocative actions that are driving itself toward destruction," the JCS said in a statement. "If the North ignores our warning and goes through with its provocations, we will make it bitterly regret it through a stern retaliation as we are planned and prepared." The JCS added that Pyongyang will have to take full responsibility for any consequences caused by its reckless provocations. "The North's provocations will expedite the collapse of its dictatorial system," it said. The intense criticism mentioning the "collapse" and "destruction" of the Kim regime comes a day after the Supreme Command of the (North) Korean People's Army issued a "crucial statement," criticizing South Korea and the U.S. for their joint annual war game, Key Resolve, and the field training drill Foal Eagle, scheduled to begin March 7 and run until April 30. During the drills, the allies are planning to apply their new joint wartime operational plan, dubbed Operation Plan (OPLAN) 5015, which reportedly includes a contingency for a "beheading operation" and preemptive strikes against the North's leadership and its key facilities. The North, stating that its primary target is "Cheong Wa Dae and reactionary ruling machines," argued that its armed forces "will go into a preemptive and just operation to beat back the enemy forces to the last man if there is a slight sign of their special operation forces and equipment moving to carry out the so-called beheading operation' and high-density strike.'" It added that U.S. bases in the Asia-Pacific region and the U.S. mainland are its secondary striking targets. The JCS said the North's provocative rhetoric is unacceptable at a time when the international community is strongly condemning Pyongyang for its fourth nuclear test and long-range rocket launch, and is discussing tougher sanctions to deter such provocations. Cheong Wa Dae also criticized the isolated state, saying the North's threat is unacceptable, and it "should be fully held responsible for all consequences to be incurred by" its threats. The Ministry of Unification joined the criticism, urging the totalitarian regime to stop any provocative actions. Follow Jun Ji-hye on Twitter @TheKopJihye By Chung Ah-young Prosecutors have imposed an overseas travel ban on top officials of Audi Volkswagen Korea, which is currently under investigation here over its rigging of emissions tests. The Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office said Wednesday that Audi Volkswagen Korea's executive director Johannes Thammer and Audi's head of overseas sales Terence Bryce Johnsson are among several officials who are banned from leaving the country. It did not disclose exactly how many officials were slapped with the travel ban. The company also has not confirmed the names of the officials. Prosecutors are investigating whether the officials sold the emissions-manipulated vehicles in Korea even though they had been already aware that the vehicles were equipped with software to manipulate the results of tests. Last Friday, prosecutors raided the offices of the German carmaker's local unit in southern Seoul to seize computer hard drives, documents related to Volkswagen vehicles' emissions and letters exchanged with the carmaker's headquarters in Germany. The raid followed complaints by the Ministry of Environment after the company failed to fully recall vehicles, citing that it needed permission from the German headquarters to do so. The prosecution plans to summon the officials after reviewing the confiscated items. In September 2015, Volkswagen was found to have installed software in its vehicles to manipulate the results of laboratory tests measuring nitrogen oxide emissions levels. In Korea, the ministry conducted its own tests in November and banned the selling of seven of the company's vehicle brands, ordering recalls of 125,522 vehicles with the emissions-manipulating software. The carmaker was also fined 14.1 billion won. In January, the ministry filed a complaint with prosecutors against the local unit for not fully performing the recall order. The company failed to submit sufficient reports requested by the ministry for the reason for the emissions cheating, and how it would improve fuel efficiency. Also, the ministry additionally filed a complaint for the alleged rigging of the emissions tests and selling unauthorized vehicles after it had revoked the company's authorization. The ministry is considering filing complaints against more company officials once the seized materials are reviewed. Under Korean law, those caught violating the Clean Air Conservation Act are subject to up to a seven-year jail term or a maximum fine of 100 million won. The company also faces multiple suits from civic groups and customers over its alleged violation of domestic law. The Public Welfare Committee, a civic group, filed a complaint over the automaker's violation of the act and interfering with the authorities in exercising their duty, while more than 2,000 owners of the German company's vehicles have also joined class action suits. By Lee Kyung-min The Ministry of Health and Welfare said Wednesday it will advise Saudi Arabia on the setting up of a disease control center. Health Minister Chung Chin-youb signed a framework of cooperation (FOC) with his Saudi Arabian counterpart, Khalid A. Al-Falih, to strengthen the healthcare partnership between the two nations during his visit to the Middle Eastern country from Feb. 20 to 23, according to the ministry. "Saudi Arabia has suffered from infectious diseases such as Middle Eastern Respiratory Syndrome (MERS), but has not had a disease control and prevention authority," a ministry official said. Under the agreement, the ministry and the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will help Saudi Arabian doctors and nurses receive training here. The two countries will also exchange treatment information on new infectious illnesses such as MERS, and also the Zika virus, and share knowhow on how to administer health insurance systems. Korea will also help Saudi Arabia set up the Korea-developed Hospital Information System (HIS) in 300 state-run hospitals there, as the system in use is outdated. Currently, six hospitals there have been working with a consortium of Korean hospitals and companies to establish the HIS. Cooperation will be strengthened between Samsung Medical Center here and King Fahd Medical City in Riyadh with the Korean hospital passing on information about anticancer treatments to the Saudi hospital. The two countries also agreed to strengthen cooperation in medicine and medical equipment development. Chung invited Saudi Arabian drug and medical equipment companies to 2016 Bio Korea, an expo to be held at COEX in southern Seoul from March 30 to April 1. Chung also met with health officials in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to encourage patients there to come to Korea for advanced medical treatment. He told them that Korea plans to strengthen interpretation services, and provide lodging and halal food for Muslims, to help them better recover after treatment. By Choi Sung-jin North Korea's state propaganda machine is attempting to interfere in parliamentary elections in South Korea, calling for voters to "punish" the incumbent administration. "It is as clear as daylight that the South's governing party, which has served as little more than the pawns of Park Geun-hye, would be punished in April's parliamentary polls," said Minju Chosun, the mouthpiece of the North's cabinet, in its Tuesday issue. On Sunday, the (North) Korean Central News Agency, reporting on the news conference by South Korea's civic and social groups, called for voters to show their rage against the Park administration. "The political landscape in South Korea, where not a day passes without people watching partisan and factional bickering, reminds us of the old bureaucrats in the feudal Joseon Kingdom," it said. These North Korean media reports are designed to aggravate "South-South conflicts" and create political situations advantageous to the communist regime, experts here say. "Whether the inter-Korean relationship was good or bad, the North has interfered with the South's political calendars, directly or indirectly," said Yang Moo-jin, a professor at the University of North Korean Studies. "Their moves are aimed at instigating splits between hawks and doves here and inducing Seoul to soften its policy toward Pyongyang by pointing out the policy mistakes and failures." If experience is any guide, the North has made similar attempts even when elections did not work in their favor, he said. Rep. Eun Soo-mi of the main opposition Minjoo Party of Korea hugs a fellow lawmaker after ending the country's longest filibuster of 10 hours and 18 minutes at the National Assembly, Wednesday. In the below photos, the lawmaker drinks and exercises during the speech. / Korea Times photo by Koh Young-kwon By Kim Hyo-jin Lawmakers of the main opposition Minjoo Party of Korea (MPK) continued filibuster speeches for a second consecutive day, Wednesday, in a concerted effort to block a National Assembly vote on an anti-terrorism bill. The tactic was adopted Tuesday night after National Assembly Speaker Chung Ui-hwa exercised his authority to put the bill, backed by the ruling Saenuri Party, to a vote at a plenary session. The battle between parties over the anti-terrorism bill is heating up because the ruling party is criticizing the opposition over delaying the vote. While saying it is a last resort, the MPK vowed to continue its filibuster until the Saenuri Party agrees to amend details of the disputed bill, which it claims could lead to abuses of power by the nation's spy agency. The Saenuri Party, for its part, claimed that it will hold out for the passage of the bill, dismissing the opposition parties' move as a form of vote-seeking ahead of the April 13 general election. "The filibuster is the opposition's last resort to stop the parliamentary dictatorship driven by the majority's votes," MPK floor leader Rep. Lee Jong-kul said in a party meeting. "If the bill is revised in a way to limit the authority given to the National Intelligence Service (NIS), we can agree on endorsing it despite its many loopholes." The MPK has long stood against the bill that aims to put a new counterterrorism control tower under the authority of the NIS and allow the agency to engage in the surveillance of private communications of people deemed to be potential terrorists and track their whereabouts and financial transactions. A "ghost rally" using holographic images / Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chul By Kim Se-jeong Police in Seoul are seeking to punish Amnesty International Korea for waging an anti-government "ghost rally" using holographic images, the first of its kind in Korea. The international human rights group projected holographic images of protesters on a screen at Gwanghwamun Square in central Seoul, Wednesday, the eve of the third anniversary of President Park Geun-hye's administration. In the 30-minute projection, holographic people chanted slogans like "Guarantee peaceful assembly" and "We are not illegal," also holding a banner reading "Assembly is a human right." Some walked in silence, wore masks and held flowers to their chests. The holographic work ended with five participants urging the government to respect their constitutional rights. Police officers were near the projection site, taking photos and videos of Amnesty International members who projected the images and people who gathered there to support the virtual protest. The police had already warned the group that the virtual rally could violate the law on assembly and demonstration. "If the event includes chanting indicative of a collective expression of opinion, it can be considered as a demonstration, and this means the rally would be illegal because the organizer did not report it in advance," said Lee Sang-won, commissioner of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, Tuesday. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry was to meet with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Tuesday for talks expected to focus on ironing out differences over how strongly to sanction North Korea for its nuclear and missile tests. For more than a month since the North's nuclear test, the U.S. Security Council has been struggling in negotiations to come up with a new sanctions resolution on the North because China has been reluctant to impose harsh measures on Pyongyang. Amid the deadlock, the North flouted the Security Council again with a banned missile launch on Feb. 7. Tuesday's meeting between Kerry and Wang will be watched closely for a breakthrough in the negotiations. Beijing has condemned the North's nuclear and missile tests but has been lukewarm about calls for a stern response. Analysts have long said Beijing fears that pushing Pyongyang too hard could lead to its collapse, instability on its border and the ultimate emergence of a pro-U.S. nation. Chinese cooperation is key to putting together any meaningful sanctions resolution and its implementation as it is one of the five veto-holding permanent members of the U.N. Security Council, and the main provider of food and fuel aid to the impoverished North. Tuesday's talks also take place amid rising tensions between the two sides over China's vehement opposition to the proposed deployment of the U.S. THAAD missile defense system to South Korea to better defend against North Korean threats. Wang could raise the THAAD issue during the talks with Kerry. Shortly after the North's missile launch on Feb. 7, South Korea and the U.S. jointly announced they would begin official discussions on the possible placement of the U.S. Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) missile defense system in South Korea. China has claimed THAAD can be used against it, despite repeated assurances from Washington that the system is aimed only at deterring North Korean threats. Beijing expressed regret after the South and the U.S. announced the decision to hold THAAD talks. (Yonhap) Night view of Kuwait City / Courtesy of the Kuwaiti Embassy Kuwaiti Ambassador to Korea Jasem Albudaiwi contributed the article below to commemorate the 55th anniversary of his country's National Day on Feb. 25 and the 25th anniversary of its Liberation Day on Feb. 26. ED. It is that busy time of the year again for the people of the State of Kuwait as they excitedly prepare for the nation's 55th National Day on Feb. 25 and the 25th anniversary of Liberation Day on the following day, Feb.26. On this delightful occasion, I would like to express my deepest gratitude and extend my warmest greetings to the people and the government of the Republic of Korea. I am most thankful for and proud of the achievements our two nations the State of Kuwait and the Republic of Korea have made ever since the establishment of our diplomatic ties in 1979. The year 2015 was a remarkable year for the ever-growing Kuwait-Korea partnership as it witnessed various landmark events, the most significant being the historical summit meeting between the President of the Republic of Korea, Her Excellency Park Geun-hye, and the Emir of the State of Kuwait, His Highness Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, on March 2, 2015, in Kuwait City. 2015 was a year of taking active and effective measures to diversify the Kuwait-Korea partnership. Kuwait and Korea have strived continuously to pave roads into areas that could unlock new sources of growth, but it was only until President Park's visit to Kuwait in March, that the two nations ignited the spark towards creating a truly diversified partnership. Kuwaiti Ambassador to Korea Jasem Albudaiwi poses with portraits of Amir Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, right, and Crown Prince Nawaf Al-Ahmad AlJaber Al-Sabah. During President Park's visit, a total of nine agreements were signed, including memoranda of understanding outlining cooperation in areas ranging from renewable energy to information and communications technology along with an agreement on the mutual waiver of visa requirements for holders of diplomatic, official and special passports. This meeting between the leaders of the two nations was followed by more dynamic steps toward achieving expansion and diversification in the Kuwait-Korea partnership. In April 2015, His Excellency Dr. Ali Al-Obaidi, Minister of Health, visited Korea to meet His Excellency Moon Hyung-pyo, Minister of Health and Welfare, and discuss cooperation in healthcare, especially on expertise exchange between the two nations. In May 2015, His Excellency Marzouq Alghanim, Speaker of the Kuwaiti National Assembly, visited Korea to touch on plans to increase parliamentary cooperation between the two nations and strategies to effectively implement previously signed agreements associated with sectors other than the traditional oil, energy and construction sectors. In June 2015, His Excellency Yoo Il-ho, (former) Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, visited Kuwait to meet key personnel in the land and transport sectors including His Excellency Yasser Hassan Abdul, Minister of State of Housing Affairs, and hold talks on how Korean firms could assist Kuwait in carrying out its large-scale projects in the relevant sector. In October 2015, Her Excellency Engineer Awatef Al-Ghunaim, Undersecretary for Ministry of Public Works, visited Korea to supervise the fifth session of the Kuwait-Korea Construction Cooperation Committee and to explore new business opportunities in the already thriving construction sector. Moreover, she introduced to Korean construction companies new projects which the Kuwait government plans to have ready for tendering. In November 2015, a delegation consisted of representatives from both the public and private sectors of Kuwait and led by His Excellency Abdul Wahab Mohammad Al-Wazzan, Second Vice Chairman of the Kuwait Chamber of Commerce & Industry (KCCI), visited Korea to participate in the Kuwait-Korea Business Forum, a series of business meetings and study tours jointly organized by the Chamber and the Korea International Trade Association (KITA) with the objective of promoting bilateral business opportunities between the two nations. Finally, in December 2015, "Kuwait Cultural Days in Seoul," a three-day event of traditional performances by the renowned Kuwaiti band "Al-Mass" and art exhibitions by famous Kuwaiti artists, was organized and hosted by the Embassy of the State of Kuwait in order to raise cultural awareness and cultural exchange between the two nations. All these high-level visits and events of 2015 demonstrate that even in the midst of global apprehension over plunging oil prices, the Kuwait-Korea partnership remains strong and secure. Furthermore, Kuwait's solid commitment to its sweeping development plan "Kuwait Vision 2035" to transform the nation into a world class financial and commercial center serves as further verification of the endless possibilities the Kuwait-Korea partnership still holds. The first five-year plan for the years 2010 through 2015, included a total of 1,100 projects with an estimated $125 billion in value. The second five-year plan for the years 2015 through 2020 has had a strong start, having already brought substantial business to the Kuwait-Korea partnership. In 2015 alone, GS Engineering & Construction won the New Water Center project worth $300 million in September 2015 and SK Engineering & Construction, Hyundai Engineering & Construction, Hyundai Heavy Industries, Daewoo Engineering & Construction and Hanwha Engineering & Construction won deals in the Al-Zour refinery project worth $4.6 billion in October 2015. For this year, 2016, the Kuwaiti authorities have announced that it is looking to sign deals worth $55 billion before the year-end, which exceeds the unprecedented $32.2 billion worth of contracts awarded last year. Among the new development projects to be launched this year are the $3.3 billion LNG Import Regasification Terminal project in the Al-Zour region where one of the largest oil refineries and petrochemical complexes in the Middle East is currently under construction, a $500 million Sabah Al-Ahmad Hospital project in the south of Kuwait City along with the adoption of the World Health Organization's recommendation of providing a minimum of 22 hospital beds per 10,000 citizens by 2030. Plans to provide housing for applicants will also be executed through the development of the South Mutlaa city, which will contain 29,000 housing units. As such, Kuwait is firmly committed to its development plan, and hopefully, more Korean firms will be given the opportunity to participate and support Kuwait's visionary reform initiative. Besides revamping its own nation into a global commercial and financial hub, Kuwait has made great accomplishments and contributions in providing assistance to victims of ongoing humanitarian crises around the world. On Sep. 9, 2015, the United Nations celebrated the first anniversary of the Global Humanitarian Leadership Award presented to the Emir of the State of Kuwait, His Highness Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber, acknowledging once again the Emir's noble acts of human kindness. Kuwait's foreign policy is aligned with the Emir's devotion to world philanthropy, and thus has shown considerable involvement in the international efforts to fight against global issues such as extreme poverty, diseases, environmental pollution and terrorism, mainly in partnership with the Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development (KFAED). Kuwait played a leading role in supporting the Syrian refugees by hosting the first three International Pledging Conferences for Syria in 2013, 2014 and 2015, during which it pledged $300 million, $500 million and $500 million, respectively, and by the end of 2015, was ranked as the fifth largest donor of humanitarian aid to Syria in the world. More recently, Kuwait pledged an additional $300 million, at the international conference "Supporting Syria & the Region" which it co-hosted with the United Kingdom, Germany, Norway, and the United Nations in London in February 2016. Over $10 billion was raised during this single conference. On the occasion of National Day and Liberation Day, I would like to once again look back and praise the incredible amount of work the State of Kuwait and the Republic of Korea accomplished to expand and diversify its strategic alliance, and congratulate the tremendous amount of success the two nations enjoyed in 2015. I am most positive that the year 2016 will also turn out to be a triumphant year for the Kuwait-Korea partnership. I avail myself of this opportunity to express my most profound gratitude and convey my best wishes to the well-being and prosperity of the friendly people and the government of the Republic of Korea and to Her Excellency President Park Geun-hye. Ha Ju-hyun, third from left in the back row, professor at the Department of Elementary Special Education, Konyang University, gathers with her students at Daejeon Gawon School, a school for children with learning disabilities in Daejeon, Nov. 20, 2015. The students are members of a club, "Creative Stone," who volunteer to help disabled students that require special education. / Courtesy of Prof. Ha Ju-hyun New paradigm needed to nurture creative talent Ha Ju-hyun, education professor at Konyang University By Chung Hyun-chae An expert on creativity in education has emphasized that parents should encourage their children to ask more questions to develop creativity. "Actually all children are born with curiosity, openness, spontaneity and risk-taking that are preconditions for becoming creative," said Ha Ju-hyun, professor at the Department of Elementary Special Education, Konyang University in Nonsan, South Chungcheong Province. She became the seventh president of the Korean Society for Creativity Education last month. Since its creation in 1996, the society has conducted research on how to promote creative education. It has also provided a forum for scholars to exchange their expertise and experiences. She is confident that creative thinking starts from curiosity. However, she pointed out that unfortunately most Koreans lose their curiosity, the seed of becoming creative, as they grow because parents and teachers give them immediate answers, depriving them of an opportunity to ask "why." "For example, when children ask Why does rain come down from the sky?' many intelligent mothers answer It happens because cold air meets with hot air,' which is correct but is not good in helping the children become creative," Ha said. "The most advisable answer is Well, what do you think?'" If children give ridiculous answers, the parents should keep encouraging them to ponder "why," she said. During her lectures at the university, Ha always tries to encourage her students to ask more questions regardless of how correct or incorrect their solutions may be. "I sometimes ask the whole class to give all different answers. Then students rack their brain trying to come up with different ideas," Ha said. "I also reprove those who always give copybook answers because they could narrow other students' view; and I praise those giving wrong answers because they inspire other students to try to give another answer." She has called on schoolteachers to give their students more leeway for the quest for learning. "At schools, most Korean teachers speak 40 minutes in a 45-minute class, which means students are busy just listening to teachers," Ha said. "Students should sometimes rest in peaceful oblivion to develop creative thinking." Trust in children She believes that childhood is the most important stage for children to inspire their imagination and develop a creative mindset. "Once parents trust their children, the children become confident of success in any field and try many new things feeling at ease," Ha said, citing stories of American inventor Thomas Edison and British primatologist Jane Goodall. It is a famous anecdote that Edison failed more than 1,000 times before he finally invented the light bulb in 1879. "Why do you think Edison tried so many times to achieve his goal? It is because he had confidence in himself, which came from a strong trust relationship with his parents," Ha said. She explained that Goodall's mother also showed unconditional trust in her daughter. When Goodall came back home after staying out until late at night, watching a hen sitting on eggs, her mother responded with, "I see," instead of scolding her. When Goodall said she wanted to go to Africa, which was very dangerous at that time, her mother said, "I will go with you," instead of discouraging her. "I think those mothers who supported their children could draw out their children's creativity and talent," Ha said. Putting students on center stage She said that children usually start cultivating their knowledge of the world in their elementary school days. They learn basic knowledge of different subjects including math, science and literature. While studying, they become interested in certain areas. After entering secondary school, they begin in earnest studying such areas. "During the process, parents should not disturb children's interest, probably by pushing them to study math or English," Ha said. She has promised to work together with other scholars, educators and schoolteachers to create a paradigm shift in Korean education to change the current system which is too focused on methods of teaching that emphasize cramming and preparing student through learning by rote for extremely competitive college entrance exams. The professor stressed that students, not teachers, should take center stage in education under the new paradigm to develop their critical and creative thinking. She said the Korean Society for Creativity Education will make efforts to find out what is wrong with education in Korea and work out programs to nurture creative students. Oh Yeon-ho, second left in front row, the founder of Ggumtlefterskole, stands with the school Principal Chung Seung-kwan, to his left, and teachers after holding a workshop in Mapo-gu, western Seoul, Nov. 27. Ggumtlefterskole, a Danish-style residential school for middle school graduates, opened on Ganghwa Island, Monday. / Courtesy of Ggumtlefterskole By Chung Hyun-chae A Danish-style residential school opened on Ganghwa Island in Incheon, Monday, offering a one-year course for middle school graduates. The school, called Ggumtlefterskole, resembles Efterskole, a unique Danish residential school providing alternative education, where students aged 14 to 18 spend one to three years finishing their lower secondary education. "I've established Ggumtlefterskole to allow middle school graduates freedom for one year to find their aptitude while doing anything they want," said Oh Yeon-ho, founder of the school. "Our motto is to give children the opportunity to plan their own lives while resting, stepping aside from the cutthroat competition," Oh added. Thirty students attended the school's first entrance ceremony on the opening day. They included 17 middle school graduates, eight high school students who have finished their freshman year, two students from unauthorized schools and three homeschooling students. Danish Ambassador Thomas Lehmann gave a congratulatory address during the event. Without feeling the burden of cramming for college entrance exams, the students will learn how to cook rice, do farm work, travel and debate with others while living together at the school for one year. The school has five teachers including two principals, a married couple _ Chung Seung-kwan and Kim Hee-ok. Chung teaches philosophy and Kim is in charge of special activities programs. "I will also have a 90-minute writing class with students once a week," said Oh, who is also founder and CEO of OhmyNews, an online media outlet. The school will welcome Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon, Seoul National University Law Professor Cho Kuk and other noted figures and experts as special lecturers. "After the students finish the one-year course, I hope they will pursue their dream, whether it might be academic achievements or starting their own businesses," Oh said. The tuition is 500,000 won per month and the dormitory fee is 300,000 won each month. The school plans to raise donations from individuals and companies so that it can ease the financial burden of students' parents. By Catherine Heejin Kim Freedom of assembly is currently under threat in South Korea. Nowhere is this more evident than in the case of 68-year-old farmer Baek Nam-gi who was knocked head first to the ground by a mixture of water and chemical irritants shot from a high pressure water cannon by police on November 14 last year during a rally in downtown Seoul. Baek's case is symptomatic of a deeply worrying trend in which the space for public expression and dissent in South Korea is shrinking. Police routinely employ excessive force to disperse large demonstrations with little accountability to those whose rights are trampled in the process. Two days before the demonstration, Seoul Police Commissioner, Goo Eun-su announced that he would erect bus barricades to block the protest if it were to move towards Gwanghwamun Plaza. On the day, 20,000 police and 679 buses were deployed to surround the protest. Between 4:30p.m.and 11:10p.m., 10 truck-mounted water cannon sprayed a total of 202 tons of water and 440 liters of chemical irritants at demonstrators. The water cannon fired at Baek used 4,000 liters of water between 6:30p.m.and 7:30p.m. More than three months on, Baek remains unconscious and is unlikely to ever recover. His family has yet to receive an apology and those officers responsible have not been held accountable for their actions. Rather than guaranteeing and protecting the fundamental rights to freedom of assembly and expression, police have banned nearly all protests around the Blue House and continue to announce that protest are "illegal" even before they take place. A common reason given for issuing a ban is that protests are a traffic obstruction. Police statistics obtained by the National Assembly Security and Public Administration Committee member Yoo Dae-oon show that 104 out of the 151 bans issued in the first ten months of 2015 were made on these grounds. Under the current Park Geun-hye administration, freedom of assembly has become a mere ghost of itself. In light of this, Amnesty International held a "Ghost Protest" in Gwanghwamun Plaza, downtown Seoul yesterday on the evening of February 24. Flickering apparitions marched in formation against the backdrop of ancient Gyeongbok Palace, hoping their messages would reach the public _ and the Blue House. In the first protest of its kind in Asia, holographic demonstrators were projected into the night chanting messages including, "We are not illegal!" and "Guarantee our right to peaceful assembly." The protest was inspired by a similar hologram protest held in Madrid in April of 2015 protesting the so-called "gag law" which places heavy fines on protesters assembling around government buildings. Concerned members of the public were invited to join by entering a film studio two weeks in before the protest ready to be turned into apparitions. Others recorded their own protest message or wrote to Amnesty suggesting picket slogans. The interest was overwhelming, with over 180 participants signing up within two days. Ironically but perhaps expectedly, Amnesty International's own attempt to register the Ghost Protest in front of the Cheongunhyoja-dong Community Service Center nearer the Blue House was also turned down on grounds that it would obstruct traffic. Within days of our planned protest at Gwanghwamun Plaza being announced to the press, the police had already begun examining whether it was illegal. South Korea has come a long way since military rule was finally overturned and democracy was won by ordinary citizens taking to the streets and making their demands known. Freedom of assembly is not a privilege to be controlled and rationed by the authorities. Rather, it is a fundamental human right that governmentsand police forces should protect and guarantee. The South Korean government must take concrete steps to hold accountable those police employing force arbitrarily and must ensure that the demonstration notification process is not used as a permit system. Under the current situation in which the freedoms of assembly and expression are being reduced to ghost-like impersonations of what they ought to be, farmer Baek has become an unwitting symbol of the slow death of freedom of assembly in South Korea. This must be the last time ghosts converge to haunt the streets of Seoul.Rather than ghosts, the people must be free to exercise their basic right to freedom of assembly and in doing so reclaim the spirit of democracy that was once won on the streets. Catherine Heejin Kim serves as director of Amnesty International Korea. South Korea's presidential office expressed displeasure Wednesday at China's ferocious opposition to its push for the deployment of THAAD, a U.S. missile defense system, here. It is a matter of "self-defense" against North Korea's nuclear and missile threats, Cheong Wa Dae spokesman Jeong Yeon-guk told reporters. He was responding to increased public pressure from China over the THAAD issue. Beijing's top envoy in Seoul warned Tuesday that bilateral ties will be destroyed "in an instant" if the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system is positioned on the peninsula. In a meeting with Kim Jong-in, head of the main opposition Minju party, Ambassador Qiu Guohong was also quoted as saying South Korea's own national security may be jeopardized as well. Qiu's remarks, quite unusual for a senior diplomat, were seen by many as Beijing's explicit pressure on Seoul. The Cheong Wa Dae official stressed that it's a self-defense measure for South Korea to allow the U.S. Forces Korea to deploy THAAD in the country. He cited the North's growing military threats. "It's a matter to be decided in accordance with security and national interests, and China will have to recognize the point," Jeong said. (Yonhap) South Korea's military issued a strong warning Wednesday against North Korea, saying any direct provocation would expedite the "collapse of its dictatorial system." In a statement, the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) vowed to sternly retaliate if the North carries out its threat of attack on the South. On Tuesday night, the Supreme Command of the North's People's Army threatened to strike the presidential office of Cheong Wa Dae and U.S. military installations in the Asia-Pacific region. It was denouncing the upcoming South Korea-U.S. military drills slated to begin early next month. "Should (North Korea) ignore our advice and press ahead with provocations, we will make it bitterly regret through stern retaliation," the JCS said in a statement. It stressed that the North will have to take all the responsibility for all the consequences of its reckless provocations. (Yonhap) Qiu Guohong, Chinese Ambassador to South Korea By Ko Dong-hwan Cheong Wa Dae said Wednesday the deployment of a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) battery in South Korea is "our right of self-defense," retorting the Chinese Ambassador to Korea's Tuesday comment that the deployment will end up "damaging" the Seoul-Beijing relationship. "It is our government's right of self-defense that will determine whether to deploy THAAD to protect our country against North Korea's increasing nuclear missile threats," said Presidential spokesman Jung Youn-kuk during a press briefing. "China must recognize that." One day earlier, Chinese Ambassador to South Korea Qiu Guohong expressed strong concerns about THAAD deployment in Korea during his closed-door meeting with Kim Jong-in, interim leader of the main opposition Minjoo Party of Korea. During the meeting, the Chinese envoy said the deployment will seriously affect China's national interest. "If this issue damages China's national interest, bilateral relations between South Korea and China will be damaged too, and they will be difficult to quickly recover," he said. A Chinese company in the northeastern border city of Dandong has been ordered by China's commerce ministry to halt its coal trade with North Korea starting next month, according to a state-run Chinese newspaper Wednesday. Citing an unnamed Chinese businessman who operates a coal business with North Korea, the state-run Global Times newspaper said the order appeared to be linked to a measure against North Korea's nuclear test last month. "A relevant department of the Commerce Ministry and the General Administration of Customs issued the order and, as far as I understand, the Liaoning provincial government received the information," the newspaper quoted the Chinese businessman as saying. The report, however, did not identify both the businessman and the Chinese company. Dandong is a border town near North Korea, where more than 70 percent of bilateral trade is conducted. Recently, China and the United States have made progress in negotiations to adopt a U.N. Security Council resolution imposing sanctions on North Korea for its nuclear and missile tests. (Yonhap) China has reported two more imported cases of the Zika virus, bringing the number of diagnosed Zika infections to five in mainland China, according to the country's health authorities on Wednesday. A 38-year-old man and his eight-year-old son from Yiwu City in China's eastern Zhejiang province were confirmed to have been infected by the Zika virus after traveling to Fiji and Samoa, China's National Health and Family Planning Commission said in a statement. China confirmed its first case of an imported Zika infection earlier this month and there have been no cases of the spread of the disease in mainland China. In the statement, the Chinese health authorities said there is a low risk of spreading the virus. The World Health Organization has declared the Zika virus outbreak a global emergency. (Yonhap) By Kim Ji-soo People Editor Literature, the conscious mass of words and sentences that manages to capture the thoughts or sentiments of society, will invariably travel through borders porously. That mass will have a universal thrust or undercurrent that will manage to open the hearts and minds of different readers. And in a way, it could be just as powerful as music; in another, it may well be more powerful than food for example, as the palate can be trickier to pull at. In that vein, books by the Korean novelist Han Kang are gaining traction in the British and North American literature market. Han's 2014 work, "Human Acts" about a boy who searches for his friend's corpse during the May 18 Democratic Movement in Gwangju was published in the United Kingdom in January. Translated by Debora Smith, Han's clear almost translucent work has been appealing to British readers. The Guardian called her one of "best kept secrets" of Korea. Her 2004 work "The Vegetarian," was published in the United States by Hogarth Publishing in February. In Britain, "The Vegetarian" was published last year. It is hard to deny that the news of Han's reception overseas comforts Korean readers in re-learning that our literature still communicates across borders. It is a sliver of good news against the general decline in Korean literature domestically after controversies over plagiarism and drops in readership. Before Han, there were noted writers who achieved varying degrees of success overseas including Shin "Please Look After Mom," and Hwang Sun-mi's fable, "A Hen Who Dreamed She Could Fly." Before them, there were also distinguished veteran writers such as Park Wan-seo whose works were translated into French as well. Noted author Kim Young-ha has enjoyed success with his works. Another undeniable aspect of the resurgent interest via Han's novels is that it amps up the anticipation that a Korean author will earn more global recognition including the Nobel Prize for literature. Koreans' desire to receive a Nobel Prize for literature is heightened every year especially since poet Ko Un's name was mentioned several years ago. Critics including the author Kim Young-ha ("I Have the Write to Destroy Myself") have criticized the Korean desire for a Nobel as a craving for recognition that goes back to its tragic past of colonialization. But to be recognized runs along the lines of the desire to be understood. It is a basic instinct of people to want to be understood. To the extent of overdoing it, we could argue that when Koreans obtain a measure of confidence about themselves through literature and not only through "made-in-Korea" products there ought to come some good to follow as Korea steps up in its role as a member of global society. More Korean literary works are expected to be translated into various languages in the coming days. What is interesting to note is that there will invariably be more works from a younger generation of Korean writers, who might be slightly more removed from the direct impact or fetters of history in the stages of democratization and the rapid industrialization of Korea Inc. Yet nevertheless, they will be writers courageous enough to starkly stare at the essence of human instincts, desires and issues hinging on some certain second, minute, hour, day or week or month. It is good to know that readers of varying languages will be able to share those moments captured in Korean literature. The ruling and main opposition parties on Tuesday hammered out a last-minute agreement on new constituency boundaries for the April 13 general election. The accord came 54 days after the existing electoral map became invalid for the first time in our constitutional history. Under the hard-fought deal, the number of parliamentary seats through direct elections will increase from 246 to 253 in the 300-member unicameral legislature. The number of lawmakers selected through proportional representation will decline from 54 to 47. The agreement is quite disappointing, given that the two parties had already reached a consensus on the allocation of parliamentary seats. It defies our understanding why the parties wasted time to reach a consensus on this level of agreement in violation of the deadline set for the new electoral map stipulated under the relevant law. Drawing up the new constituencies is in line with a ruling by the Constitutional Court in October 2014 that electoral boundaries should be redrawn to address unequal representation arising from population changes. The court then said that the ratio of the most populous electoral districts to the least populous must be lower than two to one from the current three to one. The biggest problem with the latest redistricting is that the rival parties have shown an absence of political innovation throughout the process of reaching the deal. In particular, the bipartisan effort to address shortcomings in the current single-member constituency system went nowhere due largely to the ruling party's adherence to vested interests. The governing Saenuri Party also deserves the blame for prolonging the process by linking the redistricting issue to the parliamentary passage of contentious bills, including one with anti-terrorism measures. Of course, the ruling party's eagerness to pass the seemingly urgent bills at the National Assembly is understandable. But it's clear that the new constituency bill should have been dealt with separately from other contentious bills. The delay on redrawing the electoral map has put political rookies at a great disadvantage because they will face more hardships when campaigning than incumbent lawmakers. There is no denying that some unsuccessful candidates might file petitions, raising questions about the legitimacy of the election. The brouhaha over the laborious revision of the electoral map has exposed once again that advancing our political system will remain a remote experience from the electorate as long as political parties with vested interests pursue partisan interests. In order not to repeat the same fiasco four years from now, there must be institutional improvements so that parties can't postpone determining new electoral districts. Beijing not in place to push Korea to drop THAAD Chinese Ambassador Qiu Guohong's protestations during a meeting at the National Assembly, Tuesday, against the introduction of an advanced U.S. anti-ballistic missile defense system to Korea were completely out of line for two reasons. With Qiu's consent, the main opposition Minjoo Party of Korea relayed his message to the local press saying that Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) deployment "could destroy bilateral relations in an instant." He also reportedly said that Korea's own national security may be jeopardized. First, blurting out a verbal threat at Korea's legislature shows a complete disregard for the Korean people. Second, it is a severe breach of diplomatic protocol for an envoy to speak in a manner that illustrates encroachment on his or her resident country's sovereignty. We strongly disapprove of Beijing's brazen push toward Seoul and Washington to drop their THAAD plan and urge its diplomatic officials to speak with caution regarding Korea's national security decisions. Seoul should make it clear that it will not tolerate inappropriate outside interference in internal affairs. In this context, Cheong Wa Dae responded in a timely way by telling Beijing, Wednesday, in a statement that THAAD is a matter to be decided in accordance with our security and national interests. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs should also speak up on Beijing's impudence and clearly explain Korea's rationale for the decision to enter negotiations with the United States to China. China says that the long-range radar system of a THAAD battery could be used to monitor its military activities and potentially target its missiles. Beijing also argues that an additional military asset would aggravate military tensions in East Asia. All of these concerns are understandable from the Chinese perspective, but this still does not give Beijing the right to force its neighbor to sacrifice self-defense strategies for the sake of its own national interest. Beijing's stance is self-contradictory considering its own defense mechanisms in the South China Sea. It has deployed surface-to-air missiles on parts of the contested Paracel Islands in the South China Sea, and reportedly has long-range radar facilities close to the Korean Peninsula that can track military targets in Korea. Many experts see these moves as hurting the security interests of China's neighbors, especially Korea. It is the responsible course of action for Beijing to recognize that the only reason that THAAD is being considered is because of the need to deter growing military threats from North Korea. Pyongyang's fourth nuclear test on Jan. 6 and a missile test a month later have given Korea and the U.S. justification to start considering THAAD deployment. As U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said after his meeting in Washington, D.C. with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi Tuesday, there is no need to deploy THAAD if "we get denuclearization" of the Korean Peninsula. Instead of being a bystander on the issue, China should wield its influence over North Korea and encourage it to abandon its nuclear program rather than making cursory statements urging relevant parties to resolve the North Korean nuclear issue through dialogue. Ihn Ji-yeon, center, the founder and president of Now! Act for North Koreans! (NANK), delivers a collection of photos on the group's activities to National Assembly Speaker Chung Ui-hwa at Chung's office in Seoul on Dec. 22, 2015. / Courtesy of Ihn Ji-yeon By Yi Whan-woo Now! Act for North Koreans! (NANK), a Seoul-based activist group set up in September 2013, has been campaigning for the parliament to pass approval for a long-stalled bill drawn up to research, record and attempt to counter Pyongyang's human rights abuses. With the National Assembly set to pass the bill by the end of this week, Ihn Ji-yeon, the founder and president of NANK, says her next goal is to help North Koreans who have left the isolated state socially integrate in the South. "It will not be the end, but just the beginning for me and NANK if the bill on North Korean human rights is approved," she told The Korea Times in a phone interview, Tuesday. "The passage of the bill is a small but critical step for social integration in a unified Korea and that's why NANK has asked lawmakers to endorse it as quickly as possible while requesting people to join our campaign." The rival parties are expected to put the much-touted bill to a vote at a plenary session slated for Friday. If endorsed, it will be the first South Korean legislation addressing the dire human rights situation in North Korea. Beginning in 2005, a string of precedent proposals against Pyongyang's crimes against humanity was submitted to the National Assembly but they were all scrapped due to concerns that they may provoke the repressive regime. Ihn said that there are still many improvements to be made at both parliamentary and civic levels to embrace North Koreans who come here while preparing to punish their leadership. She cited the 2016 bill jointly proposed by Reps. Yoon Sang-hyun and Hwang Jin-ha of the ruling Saenuri Party. Its key points include setting up an archive under the Ministry of Unification and collecting evidence on Pyongyang's dire human rights record while sharing the data with the Ministry of Justice every three months. "It's the justice ministry that will have the right to investigate and bring criminal charges against the North Korean leadership. And it should be operating the archive and use the related data in accusing the Pyongyang regime," Ihn said. "I'll wait for ratification of the bill then will ask the lawmakers to amend it accordingly." She claimed that South Koreans are less interested than foreigners regarding issues related to North Korean human rights, referring to NANK's two campaigns. Ihn organized campaigns in Gwanghwamun Square in 2013 and 2015 respectively. Each campaign ran for 100 straight days, during which NANK members heralded the deplorable living conditions of North Koreans, including political prisoners, and asked the passers-by to join them. "Expats and international tourists gathered around us on the streets whenever they heard us shouting four words, North Korean human rights,' but most of the South Koreans just passed by," she said. "It'll be our job to raise awareness toward our brothers in the North." Ihn, 43, who was a freelance English to Korean translator, said she decided to become a full-time North Korean human rights activist after watching a musical, titled "Yodok Story" in 2006. It dealt with inhuman living condition of political prisoners at a North Korean concentration camp in Yodok, South Hamgyong Province. Ihn studied at Handong University Law School and also worked as an intern at the U.N. Office off the High Commissioner For Human Rights before launching NANK. NANK has a total of 205 members. By Kim Yoo-chul BARCELONA, Spain LG Electronics hopes its mobile unit will see a "meaningful turnaround" by the second quarter of this year in the United States and Europe, given its new flagship smartphone model the LG G5 gets a favorable response. "LG Electronics will adopt aggressive tactics to promote the G5 in the company's target markets," said Cho Juno, chief of LG's mobile business division. He made the remark during a press conference at a hotel, here, on the sidelines of this year's Mobile World Congress (MWC), Wednesday (KST). The G5 will be available in all countries where LG Electronics has a presence, beginning in late March through April. But the availability of the G5 in some limited markets such as the United States, Mexico and Brazil may be delayed. "LG was in talks with carrier companies about the suggested price of the G5," said the senior executive. "But the G5 will be affordable in terms of price, helping consumers widen their choices for new smartphones." Since the third quarter of last year, LG Electronics' mobile division remained dark territory. Cho said the company was happy to see favorable reviews of the G5 by media and consumers. Its decision to use a full metal surface design and adopt a modular build was the company's response to consumer demand, he said. "The key issue is how LG Electronics will invite more third-party developers to make LG's modular G5 much more powerful from content to software features," he said. LG Electronics plans to hold contests and invite more third-party developers to enter. Asked why the company unveiled the G5 at the 2016 MWC convention, Cho said they didn't intend to compete with Samsung Electronics' Galaxy S7 and some other Chinese brands. "This is because LG wants to be different from our key rivals. We have our own stakes and I will try to focus on awakening the idling demand for LG phones." The executive said LG is on track to fine-tune its mobile payment system LG Pay installing more universal features before the service's release. LG skipped unveiling LG Pay at the MWC which the company says is because of its strategy to bring more focus on the G5. With fifth-generation (5G) technology, virtual reality (VR) is another key theme for the fair and Cho said LG will be active in keeping up with the trend by improving its hardware and software technologies. The phone's display is always on and provides information such as the time, date and notifications _ this works in conjunction with the Quick Cover case as LG announced ahead of the handset's unveiling. Inside is a Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor which is expected to be one of the most popular chips this year. The G5 has also incorporated expandable storage with a microSD card slot. "Again, I thank you for your enthusiastic support of the G5," he said during the conference. "We will try to write a successful story." SK Telecom CEO Jang Dong-hyun, left, shakes hands with Deutsche Telekom CEO Tim Hottges on the sidelines of the Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2016 in Barcelona, Spain, Wednesday (KST). / Yonhap By Kim Yoo-chul BARCELONA SK Telecom will expand its global profile, making the most of a partnership with Deutsche Telekom, Europe's top communications company. The two firms said they had formed the strategic partnership to cooperate in services, the Internet of Things (IoT) and research. "Deutsche Telekom just ended a honeymoon period," said CEO Tim Hottges at a press conference on the sidelines of the Mobile World Congress (MWC). "We really love SK Telecom and I am sure SK Telecom loves us." Hottges said the German telecom firm, which has about 150 million subscribers in 14 countries, is "very delighted" with its alliance with SK Telecom to promote the next-generation fifth-generation (5G) technology and help the Korean company expand its international businesses. "In the world of convergence, you can't survive on your own," Hottges said. "You should do that with a global alliance. SK Telecom is the best telecom operator in the world. I'm impressed to see the agility and creativity of SK Telecom engineers and the company's new business models. "You will see ups and downs when you do business with your partners. Hopefully, there will be more ups. You will never know where the future is. But we will try to see a better future by proceeding on new business models with SK Telecom." Hottges did not specify the timing of his company's advance into the Korean market. But he did not rule out the possibility. "We have labs in Silicon Valley and Europe," he said. "But Asia wasn't our territory. Now, we have today." Hottges said the two companies will work on services and infrastructure and collaborate on new platforms across markets. The alliance with Deutsche Telekom is a milestone and will be a huge boost for SK Telecom, said CEO Jang Dong-hyun. He said SKT has shifted its strategy toward active collaboration to find next revenue streams by reducing its heavy dependence on the domestic market. "The Korean market is too small," Jang said. "Only companies which are experienced and have powerful global networks can handle international businesses. SK Telecom can't do it on its own." He said Deutsche Telekom will sell SKT's products to its customers. Hottges said his company will distribute SKT's smart beam projectors to customers in Germany in the second half of this year. "This is really a cool one," he said. "I have no questions about the marketability of this item." Jang said the company is considering a direct investment in Deutsche Telekom to develop new telecom infrastructure, which is crucial to boost data-intensive services. "SK has opened doors to all kinds of collaboration," he said. "Establishing a joint venture or making a direct investment is possible if those plans bring tangible results." Deutsche Telekom sells its business-to-business (B2B) products in 55 countries and its annual sales amount to $500 million. Media industry experts and telecom officials discuss the effects of SK Telecom's proposed takeover of CJ HelloVision (CJH), at The-K Hotel in southern Seoul, Wednesday. The Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning (MSIP) held the event to gather opinions from not just experts but also interested parties including SK Telecom, KT and LG Uplus. / Korea Times by Lee Min-hyung By Lee Min-hyung A group of telecom industry officials clashed again over SK Telecom's proposed takeover of CJ HelloVision (CJH), putting the government in a serious dilemma. This came as the Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning (MSIP) held a second round of discussions Wednesday, accepting opinions from experts and interested parties over the takeover initiative. The MSIP held the first discussion earlier this month and has since gathered public opinions on the issue. The deal has become the talk of the town in the media industry here, ever since the nation's top telecom operator announced the plan in early November. SK Telecom previously described the deal a "global trend," pledging to establish a converged media platform with CJH's nationwide cable TV infrastructure. However, concerned parties including rival carriers KT and LG Uplus joined hands, voicing worries that the deal will help SK Telecom create a dominant media platform preventing fair competition in the media industry. "The merged entity will create a new content retail channel where the content and media industries can prosper," said SK Telecom Vice President Lee Sang-heon, during an event at The-K Hotel, in southern Seoul. "SK Telecom has been losing its market share over the past few years. We will present a successful co-prosperity model through the combination." KT and LG Uplus officials, however, countered such claims, calling the move nothing more than a "collusion." Park Hyung-il, a vice president of LG Uplus, argued the deal is against the government's mainstream policy to revitalize the sagging telecom industry. He said the government has been making all-out efforts to introduce a fourth mobile carrier to the market in a move to encourage competition. But the latest deal will only result in eliminating the existing mobile virtual network operator (MVNO), according to him. CJH holds the nation's largest market share for its MVNO business. "The merger is not about co-existence, as SK Telecom holds an 80 percent market share in terms of operating profit," he said. Kim Hee-soo, vice president at KT, also joined hands with LG Uplus to criticize the deal. "SK Telecom is not seeking to increase its share by fierce competition or active investment, but is only looking for easy and stable ways such as the merger," Kim said. "Establishing a competitive landscape plays a crucial role in the development of the media ecosystem. But the latest takeover plan has nothing to do with fostering competition." Government faced with dilemma The deep division is expected to leave a bigger burden on government agencies including the MSIP, the Korea Communications Commission (KCC) and the Fair Trade Commission (FTC). They are reviewing documents submitted by SK Telecom on Dec. 1. The opposition sides including the rival carriers and civic groups have since called for the government to undergo strict screening procedures and make public its criteria for the screening measures. Following the event, a coalition of 14 civic groups issued a statement that reads, "It has been almost three months since SK Telecom submitted the document, but the MSIP did nothing, but is holding a series of discussion in the name of receiving opinions from a wide range of experts." The statement reflects that the 90-day legal deadline for the screening process over merger and acquisition (M&A) plans is nearing. The coalition also stepped up its criticism of the MSIP, urging the ministry to unveil a specific process and time frame regarding the screening. "The MSIP has sought to receive opinions without revealing fundamental information or guidelines over its decision for the M&A deal," it added. Meanwhile, the discussion came two days before a CJH shareholders meeting scheduled on Friday at which CJ O Shopping, which holds a 53.9 percent stake in CJH, is expected to vote in favor of the deal. This has invited strong opposition from rival carriers which have called for CJH to scrap the plan, as the government has yet to make any decisions over the takeover deal. Under the deal, SK Broadband, SK Telecom's Internet protocol television (IPTV) subsidiary, will merge with CJH, upon receiving approval from the government. SK Telecom previously decided to buy a 30 percent stake in CJH held by CJ O Shopping, for 500 billion won ($405.51 million). The mobile carrier will then acquire CJ O Shopping's remaining 23.9 percent stake in CJH. German Chancellor Dr. Anjela Merkel assures to send a high level business delegation including the Economic Affairs Minister of Germany to seek about the opportunities to improve economic investments and trade relations between Germany and Sri Lanka. She made these remarks when she met President Maithripala Sirisena today (Feb. 17) at the Office of the German Chancellor. The President who arrived in the Federal Chancellors Office was received by the German leader. A Guard of Honour was also held to welcome President Sirisena, who is on a 3-day state visit to Germany. After the Guard of Honour, two national anthems were played. Subsequently, the Chancellor Merkel and President Sirisena started bilateral discussions. The discussion was focused on strengthening of bilateral relations of the two countries. The special attention was paid on promoting of the economic and trade activities between Germany and Sri Lanka. President Sirisena briefed about the issue of the kidney disease in Sri Lanka and sought assistance over the kidney disease prevention activities. The Chancellor agreed to extend the assistance for researches on that. She also assured assistance for purification of water. Dr. Merkel expressing her satisfaction about the reconciliation process in Sri Lanka stated she heard that the people both in the South and the North are living contentedly. She also pledged the assistance of the Government of Germany for the welfare of the northern people. The German chancellor expressed her willingness to grant funds for the improvement of fields of vocational training and renewable energy in Sri Lanka. Commenting on the ban imposed on Sri Lankan fish exports to Europe, Dr. Merkel said a committee has been appointed to investigate that matter. She said the actions will be taken according to the report by the committee. When President Sirisena requested the assistance to regain the GSP+ to Sri Lanka, the German Chancellor said she would seek for the possibility over that. The President invited the German Chancellor to make a visit to Sri Lanka and she accepted the invitation. Ministers Mangala Samaraweera, Ravi Karunanayake, Mahinda Samarasinghe, Daya Gamage, Malik Samarawickrama and the Sri Lankan Ambassedor in Germany Karunathilaka Amunugama also were present at this occasion. Courtesy: www.pmdnews.lk The SLFP does not condone the continuation of the Emergency Regulations (The Public Security Ordinance) more than a day necessary Read more If you're working in corporate America, chances are you've experienced your fair share of stress. Whether it's meeting deadlines, managing projects, or dealing with difficult co-workers, the workplace can be a breeding ground for stress. reducing stress from completing a project Once you've identified your triggers, it's important to take a step back and assess the situation objectively. LewiLink.com provides an in-depth article on reducing the stress from meeting deadlines at work. uoc khang inh la mot trong nhung trang Web hang au Viet Nam ve truc tiep cac loai the thao , nhu Bong a, Bong Chuyen, Bong Ro, chung toi cung cap cho ban nhung buoi xem bong tuyet voi nhat cakhia Kenh cua chung toi luon luon than thien voi tat ca moi nguoi, cung cap nhung tran au truc tiep cua Viet Nam va toan cau, voi video Full HD , ko lag ko giat, am bao cung cap cho ban nhung giay phut bong a tuyet voi nhat The city of Calgary is well served by the quality services offered by Image Line Painting. Since 2007 these painters in Calgary have provided interior and exterior painting services for a multitude of projects. This includes providing excellent customer services and a commitment to excellence in the Calgary painters community. PRESS RELEASE Chinese Railway Project Saves Lives in Ethiopia Feb. 23, 2016 (EIRNS)This story was published in the Feb. 25 issue of the weekly EIR Strategic Alert Service published in Europe. Ethiopia is currently suffering from one of the worst droughts in its history, but unlike 30 years ago, hundreds of thousands of people are not dying of starvation. The contrast can be attributed to two important changes. First, the current government has aggressively implemented an economic development policy which, in the last decade, has lifted millions of people out of poverty and made Ethiopia one of the fastest-developing economies in Africa. Second, an over 800-km-long railway has been built by the Chinese, connecting the port of Djibouti and Addis Ababa, the Ethiopian capital. The railway, which was completed late last year, has reduced shipping time from up to three weeks for trucks to only five hours by train! This has enabled the government to transport the grain and other food products it has bought overseas to the 8.2 million people affected in the drought-stricken areas, in a matter of hours and days, thus saving thousands of lives. Despite its obvious benefits, neither the International Monetary Fund nor the European Union has agreed to finance the railway. Thus, the Chinese not only built the line, but ended up funding most of the $3 billion project. The Djibouti-Addis Abada line is just the first of a planned 5,000-km national network that will link the country with Sudan, South Sudan, and Kenya. And that, in turn, will be part of the East African railway network, also backed by China. That network, according to the East African Railway Master Plan, will connect railways in Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania, extend them to Rwanda and Burundi, then to Sudan and Ethiopia to the south. Last September, Ethiopia completed its first light rail networkthe first in all of Sub-Saharan Africa. It connects the airport and the city of Addis Ababa. It was also built and financed by the Chinese. The chief executive of the Ethiopian Railways Corporation (ERC), Getachew Betru, has said that his dream is for the Ethiopian network to link into a trans-African rail line to the Atlantic. Getachew also believes that Ethiopian railways could play a crucial nation-building role in Somalia, which is still struggling to become a rising nation. Pointing to the fact that Ethiopia is landlocked and dependent on the crowded port of Djibouti, and is the largest country in the region as well as the potential economic powerhouse, he said it will need access to other ports. Somalia has the port of Berbera, which is currently functioning but under-utilized. It is located in Somaliland, which declared independence from Somalia, but it is not recognized internationally. Nonetheless, with a master plan that seeks to integrate, through railways, all of Somalia with Ethiopia and the other countries in the region, the basis will be laid for solutions to such thorny questions of national unity. PRESS RELEASE Russia, United States Upset British Gameboard; Reach Agreement for Syrian Ceasefire Feb. 23, 2016 (EIRNS)U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov announced in the evening of Feb. 22, that an agreement had been reached on conditions for a ceasefire in Syria between all but the jihadi terrorists. All parties involved in the conflict, outside those terrorists, have until Feb. 26 at noon, to indicate their willingness to participate, with the ceasefire then to go into operation the following day. Taskforces have been set up to work out details. The address given by President Vladimir Putin to the Russian people on the agreement on Monday night, following a conversation with President Obama which he initiated, best summarizes the terms reached and commitments made. Putin made clear this was no "quick fix," but rather grew out of much work, including making "use of the positive experience we accumulated over the course of cooperation in eliminating chemical weapons in Syria." Enforcement of the ceasefire between the groups who agree to participate is to proceed thusly: "Russian and American troops will jointly delineate the territories where these groups are active. No military action will be taken against them by the Armed Forces of the Syrian Arab Republic, Russian Armed Forces and the US-led coalition. In turn, the opposition will cease all military action against the Armed Forces of the Syrian Arab Republic and other groups supporting them," Putin stated. Strikes against ISIS, Al-Nusra and other UNSC-designated terrorist groups will continue. A communication hotline and, if necessary, a working group to exchange information, will be set up. "Russia will conduct the necessary work with Damascus and the legitimate Syrian leadership. We expect that the United States will do the same with regard to their allies and the groups they support," said Putin. These actions "will be enough to radically reverse the crisis situation in Syria. We are finally seeing a real chance to bring an end to the long-standing bloodshed and violence." Most importantly: "Russian-American agreements on the cessation of hostilities in Syria, and their joint implementation in coordination with all nations participating in the International Syria Support Group, can become an example of responsible actions the global community takes against the threat of terrorism, which are based on international law and UN principles," he concluded. A far cry from the disasters in Somalia, Iraq, Libya, Yemen which resulted from "one-sided actions not sanctioned by the UN." Less than 24 hours later, Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenko reported that Russia had provided the U.S. the contacts for the hotline, and had set up a "coordination center" at its airbase near Latakia, Syria, tasked to monitor compliance with the ceasefire, facilitate contacts between the Syrian government and opposition, and provide humanitarian aid. Syrian President Bashir Assad announced that parliamentary elections will be held on April 13, and Syrian Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad told Lebanese television channel Al Mayadeen that "Damascus has agreed to stop military operations" against all but the terrorists. In a joint press conference with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi this afternoon, Secretary Kerry reported that he hoped to hear soon that the Syrian opposition High Negotiations Committee (HNC), then meeting, also accepted the ceasefire. All parties involved, Syrian government and opposition, and other countries, must make the commitment to implement the agreement, he saidsingling out no party in particular (unlike the British). Reflecting the global effects and efforts which went into this accord which now must be made to stick over British imperial sabotage Kerry cited the Chinese role in creating conditions for this ceasefire. Kerry pointed out that Foreign Minister Wang had flown the longest and the farthest of any Foreign Minister, to participate in the international discussions on an end to the Syrian conflict held in Munich. Maybe they should call it Toni Morrison week. In 2016, Banned Books Week will spotlight works by authors of color. And Morrison, winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature, is one of the authors of color whose works are now most banned and challenged. Morrisons The Bluest Eye was in the top 10 most challenged books in 2014 (the most recent year for which data are available) and 2013. In 2012, it was her novel Beloved. In 2006, both The Bluest Eye and Beloved made the top 10. During the decade prior, a tally of the 100 most banned and challenged books has three Morrison titles: The Bluest Eye at No. 32, Beloved at No. 45 and Song of Solomon at No. 84. In a news release, the American Library Association said that estimates indicate that more than half of challenged or banned books are from non-white writers. The group says this years Banned Books Week will celebrate literature written by diverse writers that have been banned or challenged, as well as explore why diverse books are being disproportionately singled out in the first place. Advertisement Other books by writers of color that are perennial targets are Sherman Alexies The Absolutely True Diary of A Part-Time Indian, Alice Walkers The Color Purple, Khaled Hosseinis The Kite Runner, Rudolfo Anayas Bless Me Ultima and Maya Angelous I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. In a release, Banned Books Week chair Charles Brownstein said its alarming that books by writers of color are banned so frequently. By shining a light on how these ideas are censored, we hope to encourage opportunities to create engagement and understanding within our communities, and to emphasize the fundamental importance of the freedom to read, he said. The ALAs decision to focus on diversity comes at a time when increasing numbers of people are calling for more representation of non-white artists in the publishing and film industries. In the literary world, a large number of readers have joined the #WeNeedDiverseBooks campaign, named after a Twitter hashtag first used by novelist Aisha Saeed in 2014. That campaign will partner with the ALA for this years Banned Books Week. Diversity also has become an issue in the movie industry. The Academy Awards were heavily criticized this year for failing to nominate any actors of color for a second year, leading some critics to use the hashtag #OscarsSoWhite in protest. Last years Banned Books Week focused on young adult fiction. The ALA released a list of the 10 most frequently banned or challenged books from 2014 to 2015, which included authors of color such as Alexie, Toni and Sandra Cisneros. Banned Books Week 2016 will run from Sept. 25 through Oct. 1. Schaub is based in Austin, Texas. Follow him on Twitter. After a year on the sidelines, Qualcomm Inc. has won back the key semiconductor slot in Samsung Electronics Co.'s latest flagship smartphones. The San Diego company said that its Snapdragon 820 processor will power Samsungs new Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge smartphones sold in select markets, such as the United States. Samsung will use its own Exynos processor in Galaxy S7 models sold in South Korea and some other countries. Advertisement The announcement at the Mobile World Congress trade show in Barcelona, Spain, on Monday was expected but still welcome news for Qualcomm. Samsung is the worlds largest maker of Android handsets, shipping nearly 325 million devices last year, according to industry research firm International Data Corp. It is a longtime Qualcomm customer. Last year, Samsung ditched Qualcomms Snapdragon 810 integrated applications processor/cellular radio from all of its top-tier Galaxy S6 smartphones, contributing to a 30% plunge in Qualcomms stock. Qualcomm has made it a priority to recapture Samsungs business, fixing last years performance and power consumption deficiencies with the new line of Snapdragon 820 processors. Last year was a big loss in terms of units, said Jim McGregor, head of Tirias Research. This deal means more revenue for Qualcomm, and it helps rebuild that relationship with Samsung. Qualcomm said the Snapdragon 820 is being designed into more than 100 models of new devices coming to market. LG also announced at Mobile World Congress that it would use the Snapdragon 820 in its G5 smartphones. Last year, Qualcomms Snapdragon 810 processor fell out of favor with Samsung in part because it wasnt as power efficient as Samsungs Exynos chip. . mike.freeman@sduniontribune.com Chinese technology executives are weighing in on the standoff between Apple Inc. and the FBI and theyre taking Apples side. Chinese Internet companies operate in one of the worlds most restrictive online environments, in which bowing to official censorship and surveillance demands is a necessity of doing business. Services that dont comply, including Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Google and Instagram, are summarily blocked. So it might seem counterintuitive that this week two prominent chief executives of Chinese technology firms threw their support behind Apple Chief Executive Tim Cooks refusal to create software that would help the U.S. government break into the encrypted iPhone used by one of the shooters in the deadly San Bernardino terrorist attack. Advertisement But these public statements may have less to do with potential business advantages than they do with global politics, said James Lewis, senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington. China has decided, as a matter of policy, to become very critical of the United States, he said. We dont know what [the executives] motives are but since you see this whole spate of Chinese articles saying the U.S. is corrupt and its democracy is flawed, this is another example of that. Yu Chengdong of Huawei Technologies Consumer Business Group, speaking at the Mobile World Conference in Barcelona, Spain, on Monday, said he strongly supported Cooks decision. Tim Cook attached great importance to privacy protection, Yu said, according to Chinese state-owned news website the Paper. Its also very important to Huawei. That same day, Jia Yueting, CEO of streaming video giant LeTV, reblogged a post about the Apple-FBI standoff on Sina Weibo, Chinas most popular microblogging service, adding: We should support every [business] decision thats based on customer benefits. The CEOs statements also let their companies project a positive image to their customers in China and beyond, said Guobin Yang, associate professor of communication and sociology at the University of Pennsylvania. He said Huawei in particular has been aiming at a global market. There are principles they want to follow, Yang said. Whether or not those principles or laws or regulations will actually be followed can be a very different matter. That Apple is the company embroiled in this controversy also makes it more attractive for the Chinese executives to speak out. Apple products are extremely popular in China, where people regard them as a status symbol and a bulwark against cybercrime. In April, the country surpassed Europe to become Apples second-largest market after the United States. It hasnt come easy. Apple had to overcome a massive Chinese black market for its products. It failed, until a few years ago, to partner with China Mobile, a service provider that commands about two-thirds of Chinas cellphone market. When National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden famously leaked U.S. intelligence reports in 2013, Apple had to overcome accusations that its hardware was a threat to Chinese national security. The company agreed to store encrypted user data on servers belonging to the state-owned company China Telecom. The company said it did this to improve the speed in which users could get their data. Apple also pledged to Chinese regulators that it would never construct a backdoor for any government as a condition in allowing the iPhone 6 into the China market. Chinese are pretty sensible they know Apple is here to make money and will do whatever they have to do to make money, said Charlie Smith, a co-founder of GreatFire.org, a website that tracks Chinese censorship. But, he added, it would only take one negative incident some user getting stuff monitored on his phone and turned in to the authorities, for example to turn the tide against Apple. If Apple does not want to cooperate with the authorities, then the authorities can publicly damage the Apple brand so nobody buys anymore. MORE: Get our best stories in your Facebook feed >> On Tuesday, a group of researchers at the Canada-based Citizen Lab found that scores of applications developed by Chinas biggest search company, Baidu including its mobile and Windows browsers transmit personal user data to Baidu servers without encryption and with easily decryptable encryption, leaving users personal data vulnerable to hackers. Its either shoddy design or its surveillance by design, Citizen Lab director Ron Deibert told Reuters. At the Apple store in Beijings Sanlitun district, a hub of glitzy shops and restaurants, several customers bemoaned Chinese companies inability to follow Apples lead. [Its] Apples responsibility to protect every customers privacy, said Shi Luofei, 25, a banker. It would be so intrusive to have anyone have full access to your cellphone, said Cao Yongmei, 30, the owner of a cosmetics store. The U.S. Constitution protects peoples freedom, so thats what Apple is supposed to do, said Chen Yang, 20, a college student in Beijing. If the government has access to all information of its citizens, it would be very scary. In China we dont even have a tech company that is able to encrypt cellphones to the same extent as Apple, let alone say no to the Chinese government. Heres everything you need to know about the fight between Apple and the FBI in two minutes. jonathan.kaiman@latimes.com samantha.masunaga@latimes.com Kaiman reported from Beijing and Masunaga from Los Angeles. David Pierson in Los Angeles and Yingzhi Yang and Nicole Liu in The Times Beijing bureau contributed to this report. MORE FBI director calls Apple case hardest question in government Apple court papers: FBI is seeking dangerous power that violates its constitutional rights Apples Tim Cook disappointed with Justice Departments handling of San Bernardino case In Apples fight to knock down a court order requiring it to help FBI agents unlock a killers iPhone, the tech giant plans to argue that the judge in the case has overreached in her use of an obscure law and infringed on the companys 1st Amendment rights, an Apple attorney said Tuesday. Theodore J. Boutrous -- one in a pair of marquee lawyers the technology companys hired to wage its high-stakes legal battle -- outlined the arguments Apple plans when it responds to the court order this week. At the heart of Apples response, Boutrous said, will be an objection to the use of the All Writs Act as the legal basis of the order compelling the company to assist the FBI. The act, which was first passed by Congress in 1789 and updated periodically, is a sweeping legal tool that allows judges to issue orders if other judicial avenues are unavailable. Advertisement See more of our top stories on Facebook >> In seeking the order, prosecutors said the act provided legal grounds to force Apple to write new computer software that would allow FBI agents to discover the phones four-digit security passcode. In recent legal skirmishes, law enforcement authorities have relied on a 1977 Supreme Court ruling that said the All Writs Act could be used to compel New York Telephone Co. to provide technology to enable investigators to track calls being made in a gambling operation. But significant differences exist in the current case, experts have noted. For example, the phone company was a heavily regulated public utility and already had the technology needed to comply with the courts order. The government here is trying to use this statute from 1789 in a way that it has never been used before. They are seeking a court order to compel Apple to write new software, to compel speech, Boutrous said in a brief interview with The Times. Boutrous said courts have recognized that the writing of computer code is a form of expressive activity -- speech that is protected by the 1st Amendment. He indicated that Apple would argue that Congress, not the courts, is the proper venue for a debate about the security and privacy of citizens and law enforcement needs. It is not appropriate for the government to obtain through the courts what they couldnt get through the legislative process, he said. A spokesman for the U.S. attorneys office in Los Angeles declined to comment. Apples anticipated gambit will be the latest development in a legal showdown stemming from the Dec. 2 attack on the Inland Regional Center in San Bernardino, in which a county employee and his wife killed 14 people and wounded many more. Federal authorities have categorized the attack by Syed Rizwan Farook and Tashfeen Malik as terrorism, making it the deadliest act of terror on U.S. soil since 9/11. Authorities have all but pieced together the couples movements between the time of the attack and their deaths in a wild firefight with police hours later, but they cannot account for the couples whereabouts during an 18-minute period. The FBI is also probing whether the couple received any help in plotting or carrying out the attacks. Hoping some answers exist on an iPhone 5c that the county issued to Farook for use in his job as a health inspector, FBI agents turned to Apple for help unlocking the device. When Apple refused, prosecutors turned to the courts, setting up an epic showdown that pits Apples concerns about incursions into users privacy against law enforcements need for information. Earlier this month, U.S. Magistrate Judge Sheri Pym in Riverside directed Apple to help the FBI get around the phones passcode protection and any auto-erase functions the device might employ. After Pym, the case would move to a U.S. District Court judge and then probably on to the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals. For more news on federal legal issues in California, follow @mauradolan and @joelrubin. MORE Apple backs idea for panel to study technology and national security Car makers had to install air bags; shouldnt Apple have to hack its iPhone? How you might feel about Apple right now if your boyfriend died in San Bernardino In 1982, the Ethiopian American director Haile Gerima released a feature-length film on the struggles of a black veteran in the wake of the Vietnam War. Ashes and Embers told the story of Ned Charles, a man contending with the psychological scars of conflict, both in the U.S. and abroad. But the film was never widely seen in its day; it never received full theatrical distribution. Since then, it has been practically impossible to catch on the big screen, only rarely materializing at festivals. Mr. Gerima is a master of cinema who has been overlooked, Ava DuVernay says via telephone from New Orleans, where she is directing the television series Queen Sugar. This film is a singular part of the black cinematic canon. Advertisement Well, now Ashes and Embers is set to get some valuable screen time. And the timing couldnt be better as #OscarsSoWhite reaches its climax with Sundays Academy Awards. Thanks to DuVernays efforts, as well as the Broad museum, Gerimas drama shows at REDCAT on Thursday as part of the series called Array. Curated by DuVernay, Array is presenting half a dozen films over the course of several months principally those directed by women and underrepresented minorities. There is nothing we would rather be doing the week of the Oscars, Ed Patuto, director of audience engagement at the Broad, says of the screening. The Oscars will come and go. The controversy we will see how that plays out. But we will keep doing what we are doing, observing the creativity of filmmaking. Filmmaker Ava DuVernay has teamed up with the Broad museum for a screening series devoted to the work of minority and women filmmakers. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times) The series is part of a long-running project undertaken by DuVernay to promote and distribute work by artists who are frequently overlooked by the Hollywood distribution machine. Gerimas film will not only screen in Los Angeles, it will also land on Netflix at the end of February and Array will host other public screenings at the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington and the Schomberg Center in New York. Thats been a major objective of Array, Patuto says. Its to take these gems which have been important to filmmakers of color, and to make them accessible to a broader audience. The series is an extension of a distribution collective that DuVernay launched in 2010 called the African American Film Festival Releasing Movement (Affirm). Its goal: to distribute work by black filmmakers, including DuVernays own early movies The Middle of Nowhere and I Will Follow made before DuVernay achieved renown as director of the Martin Luther King Jr. biopic Selma. Thats how I got Middle of Nowhere into the world, she says. And thats what led to me directing Selma. There is a connection. Youre not seeing much of black Los Angeles on film ... This is the Los Angeles we should see in movies -- with all of its texture and its nuances. Ava DuVernay, director, founder of Array Last summer, the collective changed its name from Affirm to Array, adding films by women and other underrepresented directors to its roster. (The Times Glenn Whipp wrote about it.) And late last year, DuVernay teamed up with the Broad to present these and other works to the public as a series. For the screening of Ashes and Embers, Gerima will be in attendance interviewed by cinematographer Bradford Young, of Selma and A Most Violent Year. Viewers will also be invited to go to the Broads galleries to learn about works inspired by social justice issues. The intent is to put work such as Gerimas top-of-mind especially at a time when Hollywood is grappling with issues of diversity. The director was part of the L.A. Rebellion, an important group of black Los Angeles filmmakers that emerged out of UCLA in the 1970s that included figures such as Charles Burnett (Killer of Sheep) and Julie Dash (Daughters of the Dust). Like many of his fellow filmmakers, his work shows a view of Southern California that isnt always depicted in the movies. Youre not seeing much of black Los Angeles on film, says DuVernay. Youre not seeing Watts. Youre not seeing Compton. Youre not seeing South L.A. This is the Los Angeles we should see in movies with all of its texture and its nuances. It has not been seen or explored enough. Ashes and Embers screens at REDCAT on Thursday at 8:30 p.m. The event is sold out, though a small number of tickets will be made available on the day of the screening. 631 W. 2nd St., downtown Los Angeles, thebroad.org. Find me on Twitter @cmonstah. Pakistani filmmaker Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy has long wanted to make a movie about the thousands of women who have been, and continue to be, murdered in her country by husbands, fathers, brothers and other male relatives who believe the women have shamed their families. But she wanted to tell the story of these so-called honor killings through the eyes of a survivor, a plan that proved daunting until she met Saba Qaiser, the subject of her Oscar-nominated documentary short, A Girl in the River: The Price of Forgiveness. Qaiser, now 19, had eloped and married a man against her familys wishes. Shortly after the wedding, Qaisers father and uncle found her, took her to a riverbank, shot her in the head, stuffed her in a bag and threw her into the water. Qaiser survived, grabbing on to the reeds near the rivers edge, and found help, eventually recovering. But her story was far from finished. OSCARS 2016: Full coverage | Complete list of nominees | #OscarsSoWhite controversy | Awkward Oscar moments | Oscars quiz | Awards season database | Top nominee photos | Ballot | Fashion Faceoff Advertisement Once police apprehended the father and uncle, Qaiser was pressured to set them free per Pakistans forgiveness law, a legal loophole that allows families to forgive the killers. You would be hard-pressed to pick up a newspaper in Pakistan every day and not find a story of an honor killing, Obaid-Chinoy says. Government statistics put the annual number at 1,000. Most believe the figure to be double that because knowledge of the killings is kept within the family, the victims often buried in unmarked graves. If people go to jail, the precedent will be set that if you kill a woman in your family, you will go to jail. Pakistani filmmaker Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy The Oscar nomination for Obaid-Chinoys film has again galvanized debate about honor killings, putting pressure on the Pakistani government to close the legal technicalities that allow the killings to continue unpunished. The movie had a premiere screening Monday in Islamabad at Prime Minister Nawaz Sharifs home with Sharif and members of Pakistans senate and national assembly attending. A week earlier, Obaid-Chinoy had met with Sharif to discuss her film. After their talk, Sharif issued a statement saying that honor killings have nothing to do with Islam, calling the issue critical and promising to adopt all possible ways and means for removing this stain from our society. SIGN UP for the free Gold Standard newsletter >> Thats a huge deal, Obaid-Chinoy says. The prime minister has never made a statement like that so publicly about anything related to women. And it seemed like it came from the heart. If so, its probably because Qaiser makes for such a compelling subject in Obaid-Chinoys film. The young womans plain-spoken courage draws viewers into her story, her anger at her father and uncle palpable. (They should be shot in public in an open market, so that such a thing never happens again, she says in the movie.) When the local elders eventually persuade her to go to court and publicly forgive her would-be killers so they can avoid prosecution, Qaisers pain in the face of societal indifference is heartbreaking. The conversation spurred by A Girl in the River follows the high-profile public outcry over the 2014 killing of Farzana Parveen, a pregnant woman who was stoned to death by nearly 20 members of her family outside a Pakistani high court. In Pakistan, cultural tradition, government and religious law have all been in cahoots around honor violence, and A Girl in the River is pulling the rug out from under that alliance, says author and activist Amy Logan, who has worked on the issue of honor killings for 20 years. Obaid-Chinoy remains hopeful that Sharif follows through and sponsors legislation that eliminates the forgiveness law. If people go to jail, the precedent will be set that if you kill a woman in your family, you will go to jail, Obaid-Chinoy says. Deterrence is the very first step. Logan would like to see the law changed too, though she believes true societal change will be harder to achieve. I dont expect honor violence to end right away because culture and tradition are powerful unconscious drivers, Logan says. If the proposed amendment is passed, the courts instead of the family will be able to decide if an honor killing is punished or not and thats no guarantee. Honor killing should be considered murder, period, not negotiated on a case-by-case basis. Both agree that legislation is a first step. And it likely wouldnt have come without the Oscar nomination for A Girl in the River. As a social justice documentary filmmaker, I am living out my dream, Obaid-Chinoy says. And when and I dont say if, but when we change the law, I think that in a country like Pakistan, it will give others a lot of hope about how we can achieve change in the country. ALSO: With Spotlight, victims of child sex abuse by Catholic priests feel empowered Why the Oscars keep disqualifying Alejandro Inarritus movies from its original score competition French-backed Mustang, set in Turkey, has global girl-power message Questions big and small remain unanswered in the two weeks since the California Coastal Commission forced its widely admired executive director to walk the plank. Among the bigger questions: With a raft of gigantic, controversial projects coming before the commission in coming months, whats the plan to put back the pieces, rescue the demoralized and leaderless staff and find a replacement for Charles Lester? One of those mega developments an oil company confabs proposed Banning Ranch residential development in Newport Beach was supposed to come up at next months meeting but has been postponed. Advertisement The commission staff had recommended against building on the environmentally sensitive habitat in Newport Beach, but the commissioners havent given up on the project. But strategically speaking, a moment when so many people are saying that this commission is friendlier to developers than past boards probably didnt seem like the best time to plow ahead. The commission is expected in March to start talking about who might replace Lester, who knew more about the Coastal Act that protects our 1,100-mile shore than any living person. But thanks to the clumsy firing, whod want the job? For starters, I recommend that they find someone wholl ask the same common sense questions so many Californians are asking: For instance, is it a good idea to have a sitting commissioner who is a paid consultant to companies that have a financial stake in commission decisions? The clients listed on Commissioner Wendy Mitchells consulting firm website include Carollo, an engineering firm involved in two desalination plant projects. Mitchell has told me she recuses herself in any potential conflict, but I find myself uneasy about a sitting commissioner whose consulting website boasts: Strategy. Connections. Results. I finally got results with Commissioner Mark Vargas. I wanted to know why he met in Ireland last year with U2 guitarist David Evans the Edge just days before voting to approve the musicians rock n roll compound in Malibu. Hed been brushing me off actually acting as if I were invisible at the Morro Bay meeting at which he voted to fire Lester, for example. But on Tuesday Vargas sent an email saying he was already in the UK for work and Thanksgiving vacation, and this trip proved to be the most convenient time for me to meet with them. Vargas said he paid for his own food, lodging and transportation, and for tickets to the U2 concert he attended the day he met with Evans. Its still not clear why the meeting was necessary at all. And I cant help but note how it seems a little easier for the rich and famous or their lawyers and consultants to get face time with commissioners, while the average Joe cant even find good contact information on the Coastal Commission website. But at least Vargas finally responded. I cant say the same for Commissioner Erik Howell, a Pismo Beach councilman. Id like to ask Howell about the $1,000 donation he got last September for his City Council reelection campaign from a woman by the name of Antoinette DeVargas. DeVargas works for McCabe & Co., which is run by Susan McCabe probably the most powerful consultant in California. McCabe was representing the developer of a residential development that would block ocean views. Less than two months after accepting the $1,000 donation from DeVargas to his City Council campaign, Coastal Commissioner Howell voted against the wishes of some constituents and in favor of the development. Ed Henry, one of the angry Pismo residents, tells me he and some neighbors plan to file a complaint about that donation with the Fair Political Practices Commission as early as this week. Im not an attorney and I cant decide whether its legal or illegal, Henry said, " but I think theres enough there that it warrants a complaint. Not only is DeVargas listed on McCabes website as the operations manager who oversees all company finances, said Henry, but theres a public record that DeVargas is a 19-year domestic partner of Susan McCabe. Henry was referring to a Desert Sun feature published this month. In the category relationship status the Sun notes that McCabe, vice president of the civil rights advocacy group Equality California, has had a partner, DeVargas, for 19 years. The editor of the article told me McCabe had emailed that information to him. McCabe and DeVargas did not respond to my latest round of interview requests. I guess not everyone has heard the call, up and down the state, for more transparency in the way the Coastal Commission does business. steve.lopez@latimes.com Twitter: @LATstevelopez Im Davan Maharaj, editor of the Los Angeles Times. Here are some story lines I dont want you to miss today. TOP STORIES Trump in the Win Column Again Advertisement Donald Trump won the Nevada caucuses, his third straight victory and another bump in momentum heading into next weeks Super Tuesday. Though Trumps supporters were all smiles at a victory party in Las Vegas, a poll revealed that half the GOP caucus-goers were angry at the federal government and about 60% said they wanted the next president to come from outside the political establishment. More about the race is here, along with a county-by-county map of results. The Tao of Marco Rubio Can Marco Rubio win by not winning? Republican leaders are looking to Rubio as their only hope to stop Trump from becoming the GOP nominee, but the senator from Florida has lost in every primary or caucus so far. The not-so-shocker: At some point, Rubio will have to start winning. Take a closer look here at this curious kind of Marco-mentum. Amid #OscarsSoWhite, TV Is #NotAsBad While the film industry has taken its lumps this Oscar season, TV has emerged as a more inclusive alternative at least by comparison. TV diversity is not great, as we know, but film is pretty abysmal is how one UCLA professor puts it. So whats the difference between mediums? For one, the TV business has a greater number of opportunities. Read on to see the other factors in how television gives women and minorities more screen time. A Tax to Help the Homeless? Amid all the talk of fighting homelessness, one big issue hadnt been addressed: how to pay for the plans. Its about to get real. L.A. city officials, including Mayor Eric Garcetti, are looking at a ballot measure in November to seek voters approval of a bond, tax or fee. Here are the options the city is looking at and what you might face. Tales From the Encrypt In the showdown between Apple and the FBI, the tech industry is standing with its Silicon Valley brethren and pushing ahead with plans to give you more privacy from potential hackers or the government, not less. Heres why the companies dont want to have a key to your data in the first place, and why its less about lofty talk and more about dollars and sense. Wyomings Black Hole Under U.S. law, when mining companies dig up land, they must restore it to more or less its original condition. It has worked that way for about 40 years. But a recent collapse in the coal industry is now raising questions: How will those giant holes in Wyoming and across the West be filled, and who will pay for it? CALIFORNIA -- Steve Lopez: Questions big and small about the Coastal Commission remain unanswered. -- A 23-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of killing a 1-year-old girl in Compton, authorities said. -- A brides father who went missing during his daughters wedding reception in Walnut Grove has been found dead. -- A long legal fight ends over century-old Korean papers that were found in L.A. NATION-WORLD -- President Obama gives Congress a plan to close the Guantanamo Bay prison. Tell us on Facebook what you think of the proposal. -- Hard-line media groups in Iran increase the bounty for killing Salman Rushdie. -- A Chinese social media platform plays a role in the U.S. rallies for NYPD officer Peter Liang. -- Heres what its like to usher in the Year of the Monkey at 180 mph on Chinas bullet train. -- Take a look at astronaut Scott Kellys photos from the International Space Station. HOLLYWOOD AND THE ARTS -- Whoa. Keanu Reeves is the subject of art-book photos by L.A. artist Alexandra Grant. -- Why the Oscars keep disqualifying Alejandro Inarritus movies from the original score competition. -- The Oscar-nominated A Girl in the River looks at so-called honor killings in Pakistan. -- Theater review: Romeo and Juliet, with dumpsters and graffiti, at A Noise Within in Pasadena. BUSINESS -- CBS Chairman Leslie Moonves tells us how he reversed the TV networks lagging fortunes. -- Pssst, wanna buy a studio? Viacom is exploring the sale of a minority stake in Paramount Pictures. SPORTS -- Bill Plaschke: A reduction in spring telecasts is just the latest outrage in the Dodgers ongoing TV boondoggle. -- Dylan Hernandez: Why all the animosity toward Lakers Coach Byron Scott? Firing him wont change anything. WHAT OUR EDITORS ARE READING -- The trains didnt run on time: How a mechanical failure caused hundreds of delays on the New York subway. (New York Magazine) -- An examination of how social media is affecting teens, especially girls, in America. (Time) -- What would happen if you removed all the words from novels and left only punctuation? (Medium) ONLY IN CALIFORNIA Jose Montoya had swagger. He sketched lowriders, zoot suiters, pachucas and Aztec warriors. He wrote poetry in English, Spanish and Spanglish. And as a member of the activist art collective the Royal Chicano Air Force, he wore pilot regalia as they traveled in VW buses into Central Valley farming towns. Montoya died in 2013, but see how his legacy lives on and get a look at that pilot gear. Please send comments and ideas to Davan Maharaj. One of the highest-stakes battles in education is about to resume Thursday in a Los Angeles courtroom as teacher unions and their allies try to win back job protections that were tossed out in a landmark 2014 ruling. An appeals court will weigh the ruling by L.A. Superior Court Judge Rolf M. Treu that sent shockwaves through California and the rest of the country by striking down the tenure and seniority system that had long protected public school teachers. The ruling is on hold pending the appeal. In Vergara vs. California, Treu sided with the plaintiffs: nine public school students, who argued that the rules protecting teachers jobs endangered their constitutionally guaranteed right to a public education. Advertisement NEWSLETTER: Get essential California headlines delivered daily >> Treu found that teachers earn strong job protections too quickly -- within two years. And he found the process for firing them to be so complex, time consuming and expensive as to make an effective, efficient yet fair dismissal of a grossly ineffective teacher illusory. He also threw out rules under which teachers are laid off based on a seniority system, rather than on performance. The judge also accepted the argument that these rules favored by teachers unions disproportionately harmed minority students -- a status quo that, he said, shocked the conscience. Unions and their allies challenged the evidence presented in court, noting, for example, that an instructor named in testimony as an example of a bad teacher had been honored as teacher of the year in her school system. They also argued that taking away job protections would do little to improve the teacher corps and might dissuade talented teachers from entering or remaining in the profession. The case quickly made California the center of a national debate over how to protect students from ineffective teachers and how they should be defined. Former U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan hailed the decision. American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten decried the decision, saying it stripped the hundreds of thousands of teachers who are doing a good job of any right to a voice. See more of our top stories on Facebook >> There were further ripples. That October, former CNN anchor Campbell Brown founded her own nonprofit that supported a similar lawsuit to undo tenure protections in New York. The verdict, which is on hold, was appealed by the California Teachers Assn., the California Federation of Teachers, Gov. Jerry Brown and other top state officials. A panel of three justices hearing the case must rule within 90 days after the hearing. You can reach Joy Resmovits on Twitter @Joy_Resmovits and Howard Blume on Twitter @HowardBlume. ALSO Conservatives push back on transgender bathroom rights in North Carolina Mining companies declining fortunes imperil the restoration of land theyve mined Legal fight over century-old Korean papers found in L.A. ends The Los Angeles School Police Department doesnt have any more weapons from a controversial Department of Defense program, according to a letter the school district sent to activists on Monday. The weapon collection included grenade launchers, a Mine Resistant Ambush Protected armored vehicle and rifles. On Feb. 5, the department returned the last of the weapons it had obtained through a Defense Department program that stocked local police departments with surplus weapons and equipment. The district sent the letter to the Labor/Community Strategy Center, a civil rights group, and provided it to The Times. Advertisement But on Tuesday, a handful of activists commandeered an L.A. Unified school board committee meeting to demand proof. Returning all the weapons isnt enough, Strategy Center Director Eric Mann said. He and the others want proof that the weapons have been returned, an apology from the district and a pledge to sever all ties with the Defense Department. They also want to see a reduction in the school police force and in existing weapons, he said in an interview. He called the gathering a peoples school board meeting and took over for about half an hour before security officers nudged them outside. Since 2014, activists at the Strategy Center have repeatedly called for the district to give the public an inventory of its weapons and to return or destroy the weapons from the Defense Department program. L.A. Unified spokeswoman Shannon Haber would not say on short notice how many rifles had been returned. But as of 2014, the district had 61 M-16 automatic rifles, which were modified to semiautomatic. In 2014, the district returned the grenade launchers after scrutiny following the Ferguson Police Departments use of Defense Department weapons against protesters in Missouri. At the time, the school district released a statement justifying its decision to keep the armored vehicles and the rifles: While we recognize, this armored vehicle is military-grade, it is nevertheless a life-saving piece of equipment that the district would not otherwise have. The 2014 statement also called the rifles essential life-saving items. Then-Supt. Ramon C. Cortines sent the activists a letter in 2015 saying that the L.A. Police Department was no longer participating in the Defense Departments 1033 Program, and that the district only had standard civilian police-force grade weapons and equipment. At Tuesdays meeting, the activists spoke over the Pledge of Allegiance and demanded to be heard before other business could proceed. Asst. Supt Earl Perkins hurried forward and motioned to camera operators, with a hand slashing across his throat, to cut the live video feed while meeting chairman and board member George McKenna tried to establish order. We spent a year and a half playing by their rules, said Mann, turning toward those remaining in the boardroom. McKenna stepped in to say that the district had already returned the weapons in question. When it became clear that the group of demonstrators would not stand down, even if offered a chance to speak, McKenna adjourned and left the room along with other board members and senior staff. Put on your show, said a frustrated McKenna, and well come back. sonali.kohli@latimes.com Twitter: @Sonali_Kohli howard.blume@latimes.com Twitter: @howardblume Setting up a pitched battle between Silicon Valley and the counter-terrorism community, Apples chief executive said Wednesday that his company would fight a court order demanding the tech giants help in the San Bernardino attack investigation, turning what had been a philosophical dispute into a legal skirmish that could have major ramifications for the tech industry. Apple Inc. CEO Tim Cook said that the FBI request that the company develop software to hack into one of its own devices, an iPhone 5c, used by gunman Syed Rizwan Farook, would set a dangerous precedent that could compromise security for billions of customers. The government, Cook contends, is asking Apple to create a backdoor to its own security systems. ------------ Advertisement FOR THE RECORD An earlier version of this post incorrectly said that the All Writs Act of 1789 is a rarely used law. ------------ Up to this point, we have done everything that is both within our power and within the law to help them, Cook wrote in a letter published on the companys website. But now the U.S. government has asked us for something we simply do not have, and something we consider too dangerous to create. FULL COVERAGE: Terror attack in San Bernardino >> The company will file an opposition to the court order, which was handed down in Riverside on Tuesday. The court order marks the first time Apple has been asked to modify its software to access data sought by the government, according to an industry executive familiar with the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity. The Dec. 2 San Bernardino terrorist attack killed 14 people. Investigators said unlocking the phone could provide valuable information about the terror plot and whether Farook and his wife, Tashfeen Malik, received help from anyone else. Chenxi Wang, chief strategy officer at the network security firm Twistlock, said the court battle would be a seminal moment in balancing privacy and civil liberty against government data access. If Apple succeeds in fighting the court order, it will set up a high barrier for the FBI and the other government groups to access citizen data from now on, Wang said. This will absolutely have a ripple effect. Apple is now viewed as the flag bearer for protecting citizen data, and if they succeed, there will be a flood of other companies following suit. Tensions between tech magnates and Washington, D.C., have been high since the 2013 Edward Snowden leaks revealed a massive domestic spying network that left millions concerned about communications privacy. Apple also changed the way it manages phone encryption in 2014, making it nearly impossible for forensic investigators to sidestep its pass-code system. Previously, investigators could tap into a devices hardware port to access encrypted data, according to Clifford Neuman, director of USCs Center for Computer System Security. The pass-code system is the key issue blocking federal investigators from gaining access to the data hidden on the phone used by Farook. Investigators want to unlock the phone by using a computer program to automatically guess numeric pass codes until one works, according to a court filing. But they say they require special access from Apple to attempt that on the phone without erasing data or getting bogged down in a long process. Investigators say a feature is probably enabled that would immediately and permanently destroy encrypted data in the event of 10 consecutive failed log-in attempts. Join the conversation on Facebook >> In the government motion, the FBI argued that Farook intentionally disabled the phones iCloud backup function six weeks before the Dec. 2 terror attack at the Inland Regional Center. Any communications linked to the shooting, as well as location data that might help the FBI map the movements of Farook and his wife before and after the attack, are accessible only through the phone itself, the government said. Investigators were able to retrieve some data from previous iCloud backups, and companies like Apple normally comply with requests to retrieve cloud data because they do not involve giving the government access to company servers or altering software, Neuman said. The San Bernardino County Department of Health, which employed Farook, actually owned the device and gave the FBI consent to search it, according to court filings. The court order handed down Tuesday would require Apple to provide the FBI with a recovery bundle or file that would reboot Farooks device while disabling the auto-erase feature. That would allow the FBI to repeatedly enter pass codes remotely without risk of destroying the data on the phone. Robert Cattanach, a cybersecurity attorney and former Department of Justice special counsel to the secretary of the Navy, said the governments request leaves Apple in a difficult position as the company is thrust into the center of the battle to balance privacy needs against counter-terrorism efforts. The FBIs request ... represents the next step in the journey to find the Holy Grail of backdoor unencryption, and the next salvo in the ever-escalating battle between law enforcement and tech companies, Cattanach said. In seeking this weeks court order, the U.S. attorneys office cited the All Writs Act of 1789, which allows judges to issue orders they deem necessary and appropriate. Apples argument that the government is overreaching has met favorable reception in at least one court. Late last year, a U.S. magistrate in Brooklyn, N.Y., halted a government request to obtain a suspects iPhone data in a drug conspiracy case, saying that the All Writs Acts might not provide enough legal foundation for such an order. The Brooklyn magistrate hasnt issued a final order, but Apple told the court in a filing last week that it would like a decision because it has been advised that the government intends to continue to invoke the All Writs Act ... to require Apple to assist in bypassing the security of other Apple devices in the governments possession. Apple drew support from civil liberties advocates, who fear that totalitarian governments such as China will demand the company use a similar tool to open phones of opposition leaders and human rights activists. If the FBI can force Apple to hack into its customers devices, then so too can every repressive regime in the rest of the world, ACLU staff attorney Alex Abdo said in a statement. Apple says it will fight a federal magistrates order to help the FBI hack into an encrypted iPhone used by Syed Rizwan Farook, one of the San Bernardino shooters. The company says that such a move could potentially undermine encryption for millions Apples objection to the FBIs request may increase calls for a federal law that requires tech companies to design products that law enforcement officials can access with a search warrant. Earlier this year, a California legislator proposed a similar measure that would require all cellphones produced and sold in the state to have the capacity to be unlocked by law enforcement. Any push for legislation would face stiff resistance from privacy advocates and technology companies, which say they are building products with encryption to protect users privacy and data from hackers, and because customers want it. Interested in the stories shaping California? Sign up for the free Essential California newsletter >> The Obama administration, which has increasingly reached out to Silicon Valley over the last year, has not asked Congress to intervene in the hope that tech company executives would find a way to comply with search warrants while still protecting customers privacy. In the governments motion, the FBI asked Apple to create a software package designed to function only on Farooks phone. But Cook said in his letter that he was concerned about the potential for abuse. While the government may argue that its use would be limited to this case, there is no way to guarantee such control, he wrote. Presidential candidates began weighing in on the issue Wednesday morning. GOP front-runner Donald Trump said he was floored that Apple had not volunteered to aid the FBI. Who do they think they are? he asked on Fox News. Speaking to reporters in South Carolina, Sen. Marco Rubio said he hoped the tech giant would voluntarily comply with the governments request, but acknowledged the court order is far from a simple issue. In San Bernardino, locals reacted to news of Apples refusal with mixed emotions. Some expressed concern about government overreach. But others sympathized with the FBI. Aaron Winchester of Menifee, who wore an Apple Watch and carried an iPhone 6S Plus, said he bought the products because he felt they were more secure and less prone to being hacked. Even so, he wants Apple to help law enforcement access the information on Farooks phone. When it comes to terrorism, he said, if theres information they can get that will help prevent future crimes, thats in the best interest of everyone. tracey.lien@latimes.com | Twitter: @traceylien brian.bennett@latimes.com | Twitter: @ByBrianBennett paresh.dave@latimes.com | Twitter: @peard33 james.queally@latimes.com |Twitter: @JamesQueallyLAT Lien reported from San Francisco, Bennett from Washington, D.C., and Dave and Queally from Los Angeles. Times staff writers Richard Winton and Joel Rubin in Los Angeles and Paloma Esquivel in San Bernardino contributed to this report. MORE ON THE APPLE VS. THE FBI How a passcode has foiled the FBI The FBI wants Apple to pry into your iPhone In San Bernardino, where terrorists struck, residents debate FBI vs. Apple Battle lines continued to be drawn in the dispute between Apple Inc. and the FBI as attorneys for the tech giant offered a clearer sense of their strategy to fight efforts to make them assist federal agents in the San Bernardino terror investigation. At the request of the FBI, a judge has ordered Apple to help unlock an iPhone belonged to one of the San Bernardino attackers. Apple opposes the order, saying that obeying it would threaten the privacy of all iPhone users. On Tuesday, protesters marched across the nation in support of Apples stance. Coordinated by a group called Fight for the Future, which has held protests on other tech issues, the protests were organized in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Apples Silicon Valley headquarters and FBI headquarters in Washington, among other locations. Advertisement Outside the Apple store at the Grove shopping center in L.A.'s Fairfax district, about a dozen people carried posters and digital signs on their Apple devices with such slogans as, Secure phones save lives. Heres everything you need to know about the fight between Apple and the FBI in two minutes. Here is a Q&A on Apples legal stance: What will Apples argument be? Apple will say the judge in the case has overreached in her use of an obscure law and infringed on the companys 1st Amendment rights, an Apple attorney said. Theodore J. Boutrous -- one in a pair of marquee lawyers Apple has hired to wage its high-stakes legal battle -- outlined the arguments the company plans when it responds to the court order this week. At the heart of Apples response, Boutrous said, will be an objection to the use of the All Writs Act as the legal basis of the order compelling the company to assist the FBI. The act, which was first passed by Congress in 1789 and has been updated periodically, is a sweeping legal tool that allows judges to issue orders if other judicial avenues are unavailable. In seeking the order, prosecutors said the act provided legal grounds to force Apple to write new computer software that would allow FBI agents to discover the phones four-digit security passcode. See more of our top stories on Facebook >> What is the All Writs Act? In recent cases, law enforcement agencies have relied on a 1977 Supreme Court ruling that said the All Writs Act could be used to compel New York Telephone Co. to provide technology to enable investigators to track calls being made in a suspected gambling operation. But significant differences exist in the current case, experts have noted. For example, the phone company was a heavily regulated public utility and already had the technology needed to comply with the courts order. How does Apple think the issue should be handled? Boutrous said courts have recognized that the writing of computer code is a form of expressive activity -- speech that is protected by the 1st Amendment. He indicated that Apple would argue that Congress, not the courts, is the proper venue for a debate about the security and privacy of citizens and law enforcement needs. It is not appropriate for the government to obtain through the courts what they couldnt get through the legislative process, he said. NEWSLETTER: Get the days top headlines from Times Editor Davan Maharaj >> Where does the case stand? U.S. Magistrate Judge Sheri Pym in Riverside issued the original order earlier this month, directing Apple to help the FBI get around the phones passcode protection and any auto-erase functions the device might employ. After Pym, the case would move to a U.S. District Court judge and then probably on to the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals. A Pew poll found 51% of respondents backed the FBIs efforts to get Apple to help. But protesters see things differently. At the protest outside the Grove store, Nicholas Linindoll, 34, said he cherished the right to privacy and that the FBIs investigation shouldnt compromise every iPhone users privacy. I honestly dont think this work phone will yield any information, said Linindoll, a West L.A resident who works in Web development. If it did, this is bigger than that. We need to be able to protect security around the world of all Americans. MORE ON APPLE VS. THE FBI: While the FBI battles Apple over encryption, pushback from the tech industry persists How the iPhones security measures work Apple vs. FBI: Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, John McAfee and more are taking stands Demonstrations across the nation on Tuesday drew supporters of Apple for defying a court order and refusing to help the FBI unlock the San Bernardino gunmans iPhone. Coordinated by a group called Fight for the Future, which has held protests on other tech issues, the protests were organized in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Apples Silicon Valley headquarters and FBI headquarters in Washington, among other locations. Outside the Apple store at the Grove shopping center, about a dozen people carried posters and digital signs on their Apple devices with such slogans as, Secure phones save lives. Advertisement The number of protesters, however, paled in comparison to the number of shoppers inside, and by 6:30 p.m., they numbered only nine. Laura Borst, carrying a sign that stated, Dont break our phones, said she was concerned that the FBIs position left her and others vulnerable to identity theft. The government is exploiting this terrible tragedy to do surveillance, she said. I dont think its against the victims memory to maintain privacy. The FBI and Apple have been engaged in a tense standoff over whether the tech giant should help unlock San Bernardino shooter Syed Rizwan Farooks iPhone 5c. The public dispute was triggered by U.S. Magistrate Judge Sheri Pyms Feb. 16 order that Apple assist the FBI in unlocking the phone. Hours later, Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook released an open letter to Apple customers, saying the company would resist the judges order. He described the federal governments request as tantamount to constructing a backdoor to the iPhone, which Apple considers too dangerous to create. In the following days, elected officials and rival tech companies joined the fray, with Rep. Ted Lieu (D-Los Angeles) on Tuesday calling for Congress, not a judge, to resolve the debate raised by ever-evolving technology. Cook said Monday in a letter to employees that the FBIs request was about more than a single investigation, but a test case with far-reaching consequences. At stake is the data security of hundreds of millions of law-abiding people, and setting a dangerous precedent that threatens everyones civil liberties, Cook said in his letter. The chief executives remarks follow a publicly released statement by FBI Director James Comey, who said Sunday that the scale of the San Bernardino attacks, which left 14 people dead and 22 injured, warranted the pursuit of all leads, including the contents of Farooks phone. I hope folks will take a deep breath and stop saying the world is ending, but instead use that breath to talk to each other, Comey said. We simply want the chance, with a search warrant, to try to guess the terrorists passcode without the phone essentially self-destructing and without it taking a decade to guess correctly. Thats it, Comey said. We dont want to break anyones encryption or set a master key loose on the land. At the protest outside the Grove, Nicholas Linindoll, 34, said that he cherished the right to privacy and that the FBIs investigation shouldnt compromise every iPhone users privacy. I honestly dont think this work phone will yield any information, said Linindoll, a West L.A resident who works in Web development. If it did, this is bigger than that. We need to be able to protect security around the world of all Americans. For breaking news in California, follow @SarahParvini and @MattHjourno. Prosecutors continued to press their case Wednesday that DNA evidence linking the deaths of several women to the man accused of being the Grim Sleeper killer was overwhelming. That DNA evidence has been the focus of testimony this week in the trial of Lonnie Franklin Jr., who prosecutors say is responsible for a series of slayings in South Los Angeles spanning more than 20 years. Franklin faces 10 counts of murder in the deaths of nine women and a 15-year-old girl and one count of attempted murder. Advertisement Franklin, 63, has pleaded not guilty. On Wednesday, jurors in the downtown Los Angeles courtroom once again heard from Cristina Gonzalez, a criminalist with the Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department, who testified that DNA evidence found on the body of Lachrica Jefferson, who was found dead of two gunshot wounds in L.A.'s Westmont neighborhood in 1988, matched Franklins DNA profile. Gonzalez had testified Tuesday that DNA evidence retrieved from the body of 15-year-old Princess Berthomieux also matched Franklins profile. Berthomieux was found strangled and beaten to death in an Inglewood alley in 2002. Jurors on Tuesday also heard from Supria Rosner, a criminalist with the Los Angeles Police Department, who testified that Franklins DNA profile matched DNA evidence found on the bodies of Barbara Ware and Bernita Sparks. Franklins defense attorney, Seymour Amster, has sought to discredit the DNA evidence, which looms as crucial to the prosecutions case. He resumed that tack while questioning Gonzalez, presenting a series of hypothetical situations suggesting that the procedures and policies used to conduct the DNA analyses could have been faulty. As Rosner did a day earlier, Gonzalez insisted that her analyses and those of her colleagues were sound and adhered to proper protocols. Prosecutors have said that all the victims were connected to Franklin either by DNA, firearm evidence or both. LAPD Det. Donald Hrycyk took the stand Wednesday to recount arriving at a Hyde Park alleyway in August 1986 to investigate the death of a woman found under a mattress with two gunshot wounds. The body was later identified as Henrietta Wright, 35, considered the Grim Sleepers second victim. The woman appeared to have been killed elsewhere and dumped in the alley because there was no physical evidence of the killing at the scene, Hrycyk said. About a year later, he began investigating the death of Bernita Sparks, whose body was found in a trash bin in the 9400 block of South Western Avenue. He noticed similarities between the two victims, he told the court. Both were young African American women who were shot in the chest and apparently dumped in or near South Los Angeles alleys, he said. Neither was found with identification, and both seemed to be intentionally hidden. Investigators would eventually link the deaths of those victims and others to the Grim Sleeper, who authorities said continued to kill for decades while targeting vulnerable young women in South Los Angeles. See more of our top stories on Facebook >> For more Los Angeles court news, follow @sjceasar ALSO Ex-state Sen. Leland Yee gets 5 years in prison in corruption case A grisly discovery: Boy walking home from school finds dead baby in Long Beach alley CarMax salesman killed when Corvette crashes in test drive; friends hold prayer circle One of the biggest corruption scandals in San Francisco history comes to a head Wednesday when former state Sen. Leland Yee is set to be sentenced. Here are some key questions and answers in the case from The Times archives: Who is Leland Yee? Advertisement At one time, Yee was an up-and-coming elected official. He served on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, in the state Assembly and at the time of his indictment was in the state Senate. What did he do? Yee admitted in a plea deal that he was part of a racketeering conspiracy that involved exchanging official acts for money, conspiring to traffic in weapons and money laundering. Specifically, Lee promised an undercover FBI agent favors in return for campaign contributions. Government prosecutors have asked that Yee be sentenced to eight years in prison, a three-year term of supervised release, a fine of $25,000 and a $100 special assessment. How did the scheme work? A federal affidavit filed in 2014 painted a portrait of Yee that was by turns seedy and bumbling, and one deeply at odds with the high-minded image he had long cultivated. Yee, who had been a candidate for secretary of state, was accused of being willing to take varied and numerous steps to solicit campaign donations and sidestep legal donation limits. For instance, he was accused of seeking an official state Senate proclamation in the spring of 2013 praising the Ghee Kung Tong Freemason lodge in San Francisco. Yee sought the proclamation, according to the court complaint, in exchange for a $6,800 donation to one of his campaigns a donation that was paid by an undercover FBI agent. An organized crime figure named Raymond Chow, known as Shrimp Boy, identified himself as the dragon head of that Freemason organization on his Facebook page. The indictment said Chow, 54, whose criminal history includes racketeering and robbery, had a position of supreme authority in the Triad, an international organized crime group. Yee was also accused of brokering an introduction between a prospective campaign donor and state legislators who had influence over medical marijuana legislation. It allegedly came in exchange for cash campaign donations that far exceeded legal limits and were paid by the FBI. The affidavit said that in August 2013, a prominent California political consultant who had been working to raise money for Yees campaigns told a prospective donor, an undercover federal agent, that Yee had a contact who deals in arms trafficking. In exchange for campaign contributions, according to the affidavit, Yee would facilitate a meeting with the arms dealer so that the donor could buy a large number of weapons. The firearms would be imported through a port in Newark, N.J. At one meeting, the affidavit said, Yee and the prospective donor discussed details of the specific types of weapons. Here is a timeline from the San Francisco Chronicle. Here is the federal indictment. Who is Shrimp Boy? Chow was at the center of organized crime in San Franciscos Chinatown for decades, according to federal court documents. On his Facebook and Twitter accounts he bills himself as a reformed gangster who now advocates on behalf of children. Chow was born in Hong Kong in 1960 and came to the United States at 16. His grandmother, documents and law enforcement sources say, gave him the nickname Shrimp Boy, in part because of his small stature. Chow was convicted of armed robbery in 1978 and spent more than seven years in prison. In 1986, Chow was indicted on various criminal charges, including assault with a deadly weapon, mayhem and possession of a firearm, and served three years in prison. At some point Chow forged an alliance with Triad member Peter Chong, who told Chow he was a member of the Wo Hop To gang, and their organizations eventually unified, according to records. Chow, Chong and a third gang leader formed an umbrella organization called Tien Hu Wui, the Whole Earth Assn., to oversee all the gangs business, according to federal court documents. In 1995, Chow was convicted on a variety of federal firearms and prostitution-related charges. He was sentenced to 280 months in prison for the firearms offenses. The gang, according to federal court documents, engaged in loan sharking and exerted control over local gambling dens and restaurants in addition to regularly collecting fees from businesses. Chow was released in 2003, and in recent years has insisted he has turned his life around and become an upstanding citizen. ALSO Father of bride who went missing after walking away from daughters reception is found dead Uber driver assaults motorist at San Jose airport, police say Man arrested in killing of 1-year-old girl in Compton A former San Jose State University student accused of calling his former suite mate racial slurs, hanging a Confederate flag in their living room and barricading him in his bedroom has been found not guilty of committing hate crimes. The jury hearing the case in Santa Clara County Superior Court also deadlocked on hate crime charges against two other suite mates accused of participating in the attacks against Donald Williams Jr., who was a freshman at the time. Prosecutors said they have not yet decided whether to try again with a new jury. All three defendants 21-year-old Joseph Bomgardner of Clovis; 20-year-old Logan Beaschler of Bakersfield; and 20-year-old Colin Warren of Woodacre were found guilty of misdemeanor battery charges related to their treatment of Williams, who is black. Advertisement See the most-read stories this hour >> The three face up to six months in jail when they are sentenced in March. Williams has filed a $5-million claim with the California State University system against San Jose State and his former suite mates. Williams attorney, Carl E. Douglas, could not be reached for comment. Lawyers for Warren, Beaschler and Bomgardner could also not be reached. Warren, Beaschler, Bomgardner and a fourth student were accused of bullying Williams in the summer and fall of 2013, when they all shared a four-bedroom suite on the San Jose campus. The fourth student has not been identified because he was a juvenile when the bullying took place. His case was handled in juvenile court, and the outcome has not been made public. None of the four undergraduates accused or convicted of bullying Williams still attends the university. Follow the Times education initiative to inform parents, educators and students across California >> The four suite mates, all of them white, were accused of writing racial epithets on a whiteboard in the suite and decorating the living area with Nazi symbols and pictures of Adolf Hitler. Among the names they used for Williams was three-fifths, a reference to the fact that the U.S. Constitution originally counted each slave as three-fifths of a white person, according to prosecutors. At one point, the white students put a U-shaped lock around Williams neck, prosecutors said. Williams parents notified campus housing officials about some of the abuse after visiting their sons suite. Those officials, in turn, reported the situation to campus police. At the time, then-university President Mohammad Qayoumi said he and the school had failed Williams by waiting too long to stop the abuse and punish the students. The allegation of hate crimes sparked outrage on campus and beyond. Students held protests near the statues of alumni Tommie Smith and John Carlos, two sprinters who won gold and bronze medals, respectively, in the 200-meter race at the 1968 Summer Olympics and raised their black-gloved fists in protest as The Star-Spangled Banner played in their honor. The school has since formed a task force that reviewed the racial climate on campus and made more than 50 recommendations, including increased diversity training for students, more frequent visits to dorm rooms by staff and creating an administrative position that focuses on diversity. The school has also begun searching for a chief diversity officer. Much work lies ahead as we seek to create a truly inclusive, welcoming and safe environment for every member of our community, said interim President Sue Martin, who took over after Qayoumi left to take a high-level job in the Afghanistan government. Follow @byjsong on Twitter. MORE FROM EDUCATION Opinion: hats next for Berkeley and UC? Why only 19% of Cal State freshmen graduate on time -- and what lawmakers aim to do about it L.A. County spends more than $233,000 a year to hold each youth in juvenile lockup A former firefighter with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection was sentenced to five years in prison after admitting that he set a series of wildfires because he wanted to impress others, earn more overtime pay and relieve boredom, prosecutors said Wednesday. Benjamin Cunha, 33, of Placerville pleaded guilty in Sacramento on Tuesday to a charge of felony arsony. He must pay $246,862 in restitution and surrender to federal prison authorities by July 18, according to U.S. District Court documents. As he admitted in his plea agreement, this defendant set a multitude of fires with a callous disregard for the danger to life and property that he was inflicting, U.S. Atty. Benjamin B. Wagner said in a statement. Advertisement Cunha was a seasonal firefighter who turned to arson during the summers of 2006 and 2007 in Amador and El Dorado counties, according to prosecutors. According to court documents, by setting fires that he would then presumably help put out, Cunha hoped to impress his fellow firefighters with his skills, accrue overtime pay and overcome boredom. The fires scorched both state and federal lands, and in 2008 Cunha pleaded guilty to state charges and was sentenced to a year in jail. After his release from custody, Cunha was identified as the prime suspect in two 2013 fires that erupted in the same counties. At least one of the fires was started with a time-delay device, the same tool Cunha admitted to using in starting the more than two dozen wildfires years earlier, according to court documents. The charge that Cunha pleaded guilty to on Tuesday did not involve those 2013 fires, however. Prosecutors said they feared that even more fires could be set while they investigated the 2013 wildfires, so they chose to charge him with the two 2007 federal land fires. Cunha had already admitted to starting those fires in a 2008 videotaped interview, according to court documents. Cunha had no consideration for Cal Fire fighters safety when he set the fires, placing them in grave danger during the fire suppression efforts, said agent Jill A. Snyder of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. In his videotaped interview with law enforcement, Cunha admitted to developing the time-delay device using his knowledge as a firefighter, according to court documents. Cunhas goal was to create fires big enough that significant firefighting resources would be required to extinguish the fires, the court papers said. In sentencing documents, prosecutors asked that Cunha be sent to prison for more than five years, arguing that there is a high need to protect the community. In a letter to federal Judge John Mendez, his parents, Edward and Kathy Cunha, asked the judge to consider their sons years of community involvement and his past conviction when sentencing him. For breaking news in California, follow @VeronicaRochaLA Hoy: Lea esta historia en espanol ALSO CarMax salesman killed when Corvette crashes in test drive; friends hold prayer circle Father of bride who went missing after walking away from daughters reception is found dead A grisly discovery: Boy walking home from school finds dead baby in Long Beach alley State Sen. Leland Yee did not want to retire. His term was ending, and he had just run and lost a mayors race in San Francisco. He decided to aim for secretary of state, which oversees state elections, and desperately needed to raise money for his campaign. That is when Yee, 67, got into trouble. The San Francisco Democrat was caught in an FBI sting that recorded him promising votes and guns to an undercover agent who was funneling him contributions. He pleaded guilty last year rather than face a trial. And Wednesday, after decades as an elected officeholder, he was sentenced to five years in prison for doing political favors in exchange for campaign cash or, as the judge put it for selling his vote. Advertisement During an hourlong hearing, Yee implored U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer to be lenient. Standing at a lectern near his lawyers, Yee said he had taken responsibility for his crimes and knew that he had shamed himself and hurt his family, his supporters and others. That will always weigh on me, he said, and that will always haunt me for the rest of my life. Yee also told the court that his wife was severely ill and needed him to care for her. I hope that in your sentencing of me, you will look at my entire life and not just these crimes I have committed, Yee said. In the 67 years of my life, I have devoted much of it to the work of the community, to people here in San Francisco and in the state of California. Breyer replied that he was not inclined to be lenient, telling Yee that he had been hypocritical. Yee had promised an undercover agent to arrange an illegal shipment of guns, even though Yee publicly presented himself as a gun control advocate. The judge said Yees actions were vile and besmirched his former office. It must be that the public has trust in the integrity of the institution, and Mr. Yee, you abused that trust, Breyer said. You showed you did not have integrity in your actions. The five-year sentence was within the term recommended by federal sentencing guidelines. Prosecutors had sought eight years. They said that Yee had received tens of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions in exchange for favors and that he admitted he knew his actions were illegal. Yee abused the public trust in the worst possible way to retain power as a public official, Assistant U.S. Atty. Susan Badger told Breyer. Fellow legislators are looking to see what the sentence will be. They are watching. They are aware. See more of our top stories on Facebook >> Yee was ensnared by an FBI investigation that spanned several years and led to the convictions of Raymond Shrimp Boy Chow, a reputed Chinatown mobster, Keith Jackson, a former school board president and fundraiser for Lee, and others. Jackson received a nine-year sentence. Chow faces a life term when he is sentenced next month. Ethics experts generally applauded Yees sentence, saying it sent a needed message. The public should be assured officials who violate the publics trust will be held accountable, and those of us who are tasked with holding officials to the highest ethical standards will be vigilant in doing so, said Jodi Remke, chairwoman of the state Fair Political Practices Commission. Jessica Levinson, a Loyola Law School professor and president of the Los Angeles City Ethics Commission, said it was important that the judge recognized that Yees crimes were not victimless. Yee sought and violated the publics trust, Levinson said. This tarnishes not only himself but the government institution in which he served. Yee was charged in 2014, a year when three other legislators and a former lawmaker also faced prosecutions. The criminal investigations cost Democrats their supermajority in the Legislature and prompted some reforms. The Senate adopted resolutions that year to ban members from fundraising during the last month of the legislative session and the month leading up to a budget vote, when special interests are especially active in trying to influence legislation. The resolutions also required the Senate Rules Committee to appoint an ethics ombudsman to accept allegations of wrongdoing and protect whistle-blowers from retaliation. Looking back on those changes, Sen. Joel Anderson (R-San Diego) described them Wednesday as mere window dressing for a culture of corruption. Sadly, all of the Senate reforms would not have prevented todays verdict, Anderson said. Sen. Patricia Bates (R-Laguna Niguel) introduced a bill Friday aimed at closing a loophole in campaign finance law that Yee exploited. Her measure would extend contribution limits that apply to candidates campaigns to also apply to ballot measure committees formed by elected officials. Todays sentencing of a former elected official underscores the need to close campaign finance loopholes wherever they exist, Bates said. Gov. Jerry Brown, Senate leader Kevin de Leon and many other top Democrats declined to comment on the sentencing, which ends a case that has been an embarrassment to party officials. De Leon recently said Yees guilty plea turns the page on one of the darker chapters of the Senates history. Assemblywoman Cristina Garcia (D-Bell Gardens), a leading legislative proponent of tougher anti-corruption laws, welcomed Yees sentence. The justice system has spoken and Im glad todays sentence of Sen. Yee reinforces the basic principle that nobody is above the law, Garcia said. His crime will do lasting damage, well beyond his five-year sentence, to the publics trust in their elected officials and their government. Yee has 30 days before he must report for prison. In addition to his sentence, he was ordered to pay a $20,000 fine. Dolan reported from San Francisco and McGreevy from Sacramento. Twitter: @mcgreevy99, @mauradolan ALSO Woman killed after falling from 18th floor, lands in hotel laundry chute A violent hit when 4.8 magnitude earthquake strikes Californias Central Valley Two killed in collision that spills 20 tons of lemons on Highway 126 near Castaic Donald Trump rode a week of insults directed at a popular pope and a GOP president to trounce his opponents in South Carolinas Republican presidential primary Saturday, the most convincing evidence to date that his establishment-smashing campaign is on track to win him the nomination. None of Trumps rivals came close to knocking him off, despite or perhaps because of his position at the center of one of the most polarizing campaign weeks in recent history. Theres nothing easy about running for president, Trump told a cheering crowd in Spartanburg, S.C. Its tough. Its nasty. Its mean. Its vicious. Its beautiful. When you win, its beautiful, and we are going to start winning for our country. Advertisement He added, Lets put this thing away. The biggest casualty of the night was the epitome of the establishment, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, the onetime front-runner who dropped out after voters in a third consecutive state rejected his brand of mainstream conservatism. Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, who like Trump is running as a party agitator, was jostling for second place with Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, himself viewed by many party elites as the last man standing between traditional GOP values and the restive forces that have come to upend them in the 2016 campaign. Ohio Gov. John Kasich, who finished in the single digits like Bush, will try to make the case that he can emerge as a stronger challenger when the race heads to Midwestern states near his home. Retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson vowed to fight on despite his similarly poor finish. Evangelicals dominated the primary electorate, accounting for about 3 in 4 voters, according to an exit poll conducted by Edison Research for the Associated Press and the major television networks. Though Cruz and Rubio competed intensely for their votes, and Trump has stumbled in talking about religion, Trump nonetheless won the largest share of their support. Trump won nearly every group of GOP voters: military, nonmilitary, moderates, conservatives, men and women. Only among more educated voters did Trump split votes with his rivals, losing to Rubio among voters with postgraduate education. Trump ran up his totals by winning big among voters who wanted an outsider and someone who tells it like it is. Though Cruz also positioned himself as an outsider, Trump badly beat him among those voters, winning about 6 in 10 of them, four times as many as Cruz. Im fed up with politicians. I dont care what stripe Democrat, Republican, independent theyre all the same, said Howard Winslow, a 74-year-old cab driver and Vietnam War veteran from Columbia, who said he voted for Trump. Such voters were bad news for Bush, who entered the race last year as the front-runner and immediately attracted more funding and high-profile endorsements than any other candidate in what was once a field of more than a dozen. In this campaign, I have stood my ground, Bush said in announcing his exit. Despite what you have heard, ideas matter. Policy matters. South Carolina not only ended Bushs candidacy, it may also signal the end of his familys long hold on the Republican Party. Trump shattered taboos during last weekends debate when he accused Bushs brother, former President George W. Bush, of lying to bring the country to war in Iraq and failing to keep the country safe from the Sept. 11 attacks. The Bush family had long counted on South Carolina voters to hoist them in tough times, and Jeb Bush campaigned throughout the week with both his 90-year-old mother, Barbara, and his brother, the former president. I feel sorry for Bush, said Rick Arkell of Columbia, a retired weather forecaster. He has the wrong last name. In addition to the Bush family, Trump took on Pope Francis over immigration and Trumps oft-stated goal of building a border wall to stop illegal immigration from Mexico. Francis had asserted to reporters, A person who only thinks about building walls, wherever they may be, and not building bridges, is not Christian. Trump did not come close to backing down, calling Francis comments disgraceful and insisting that the pontiff would pray for a Trump presidency if and when the Vatican is attacked by ISIS, another name for the Islamic State militant group. Trumps voters seemed to lap it all up, becoming more devoted to him with each fight. As one of them said this week, Were voting with our middle finger. Enough bull, said another supporter, Wayne Wates, a retired butcher on his way in to vote for Trump in Edgefield. Despite racking up another win, Trump continues to alienate large groups of voters 40% of those surveyed in a national Fox News poll conducted this week said Trump was the candidate they would most dread watching on television for the next four years. Yet he maintains seemingly unflappable support from about a third of the Republican electorate. Challengers are hoping that gives them a one-on-one opening. But two factors could conspire to give Trump the nomination. First, his challengers continue to find reasons to remain in the race, and the longer the field remains crowded, the harder it is for any one of them to attract more voters than Trump in a given state. In fact, one of Rubios main arguments is that the longer this goes on, the worse its going to be, and therefore he is the candidate who can unify the party. A Bush aide said he dropped out in part to help the party unite behind an alternative. Trump himself mocked pundits for saying his opponents votes combined could defeat him if some of them drop out. These geniuses, he said, his voice dripping with sarcasm. They dont understand that as people drop out, Im going to get a lot of those votes also. You dont just add them together. Second, polls show an increasing number of Republicans have become comfortable with Trump leading the partys ticket in the November general election. In the Fox poll, 74% of Republicans said they would be at least somewhat satisfied with Trump as president. That number was far smaller (43%) among all voters. To beat back Trump, Cruz, who won the Iowa caucuses, will need to pick up wins in a slew of Southern state primaries held March 1, and hope other contenders drop out. But the Texas senator ultimately will have to persuade more voters to embrace his pure form of conservatism and reject Trump as a phony, a case he has been trying to make for weeks. If you are conservative, this is where you belong, Cruz told supporters Saturday. Because only one strong conservative is in a position to win this race. Rubio, who may have been helped by his endorsement this week from South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, has a different challenge. The Florida senator will have to begin winning states and hope that a majority of Republicans decide they want a more mainstream candidate, despite polls showing voters are looking to back those who have not served in government. Rubio did well among GOP primary voters who said they wanted to vote for the best general election candidate, but only about 15% of South Carolina voters said that was a priority. If it is Gods will that we should win this election, Rubio said Saturday night, then history will say, on this night in South Carolina, we took the first step forward to the beginning of a new American century. seema.mehta@latimes.com lisa.mascaro@latimes.com noah.bierman@latimes.com Mehta and Mascaro reported from Columbia and Bierman from Washington. Times staff writers Chris Megerian and Michael Finnegan contributed to this report. ALSO: Hillary Clinton narrowly defeats Bernie Sanders in Nevada caucuses Jeb Bush, after disappointing finish in South Carolina, ends his campaign for president Latinos seek answers from Sanders and Clinton at Democratic forum in Las Vegas Justice Antonin Scalia adamantly tried to distance himself from elective politics. He avoided the State of the Union address for 19 consecutive years, once calling it a "childish spectacle." But within hours of his death, Scalia and his legacy were shoved to the center of a battle between Republicans and Democrats over the search for his successor. On Wednesday morning, President Barack Obama nominated federal judge Merrick Garland as Scalia's successor. Here is what history has taught us about that process: Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalias courtroom chair is draped in black Tuesday to mark his death, as part of a tradition that dates to the 19th century. Scalia died Saturday at age 79. He joined the court in 1986 and was its longest-serving justice. (J. Scott Applewhite / Associated Press) It could take more than a year to confirm Scalias replacement There is no limit for how long filling a Supreme Court seat can take. From presidential nomination to Senate Judiciary Committee review to Senate confirmation, action can take days, weeks, even months. A few vacancies have lasted two years, although none recently. Scalia was confirmed 85 days after President Reagan nominated him. His fellow justices saw a similar waiting time: Elena Kagan: 87 days Sonia Sotomayor: 66 days Samuel A. Alito Jr.: 82 days John G. Roberts Jr.: 23 days (Roberts had initially been nominated to replace Justice Sandra Day OConnor. When Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist died, President Bush withdrew the earlier nomination and submitted Roberts for the chief justice position.) Stephen G. Breyer: 73 days Ruth Bader Ginsburg: 50 days Clarence Thomas: 99 days Anthony M. Kennedy: 65 days In the event that a nomination is rejected by the Senate, which last happened in 1987, the president would have to go back to the drawing board. If no one nominated by President Obama is confirmed by the time he leaves office, the next president would get to pick the nominee. A justice joins the court when he or she is confirmed, but doesnt participate in deciding cases on which the court has already heard arguments. The court typically stops hearing arguments each term at the end of April, so if a nominee is not confirmed by that point, the new justice would not start considering cases until the next court term begins in October. A justice can be confirmed during an election year, but the situation doesnt come up often The last time a justice was confirmed during an election year was in 1988. President Reagan nominated Kennedy in November 1987, and Kennedy was confirmed in February 1988 -- Reagan's final year in office. Theres no limit to how many times a president can submit a nomination Before Kennedy was nominated and confirmed, Reagan had already tried twice that year to fill the seat of Supreme Court Justice Lewis Powell. The Senate rejected Reagans first nominee, Robert Bork after more than 100 days. His next nominee, Douglas Ginsburg, withdrew before the Senate vote after allegations of his marijuana use surfaced. For Reagan, the third time was the charm. Reagan conducted informal talks with leading Senate Democrats about potential nominees before submitting Kennedys name. Currently, the Senates Republican leadership has made clear that they do not want Obama to nominate a justice at all. The lower courts will serve as a tie-breaker until Scalia is replaced Most Supreme Court decisions do not involve a close vote. But the handful that might have been a 5-4 split might now end up 4-4. In the event a case receives a 4-4 vote from the Supreme Court, the lower court's decision, which is under review, would stand. While Kennedy has typically been viewed as a swing vote, he mostly sides with the courts three remaining conservatives against the four liberals. So a tie is a real possibility given the courts division. UPDATE: 1:04 p.m.: This story was updated to include Obama's Supreme Court nomination. This post was originally published on February 24, 2016. The vast black canyons have not always been here and they are not supposed to stay. After the coal has been carved out and hauled to market, the sprawling surface mines that helped make the Powder River Basin one of the worlds most profitable sources of fossil fuels are supposed to return to what they were before: unspectacular grassland. No more hard hats and signs warning of toxic orange clouds released by blasting. Just ranches and antelope and the relentless Wyoming wind. For four decades, mining companies have been required to repair land they mine to a form and function similar to its previous condition. The process is called reclamation, and, done well, it can be convincing. Some of the smoothest slopes and meadows here were shaped not by time and the elements but by federal law and heavy equipment. Advertisement What youre looking at right now just won a national award, Mark Dunn, the environmental manager for Cloud Peak Energys Cordero Rojo mine, said this month, pointing to a panorama that included active mining to the west and a restored stream and wetlands to the east. We try to make it close to the way it was before or better. Now, however, amid a stunning collapse of the coal industry that has prompted some of the nations largest mining companies to file for bankruptcy, there are new questions about how the giant holes dug in Wyoming and elsewhere across the West will be filled and who will pay to fill them. Wyoming produces nearly 40% of the nations coal used for electricity. Amid a stunning collapse of the coal industry that has prompted some of the nations largest mining companies to file for bankruptcy, there are new questions about how the giant holes dug in Wyoming and elsewhere across the West will be filled and w Under the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977, for mining to go on, reclamation has to go on. But in some cases, big companies have persuaded government regulators to let them operate under terms that seem to turn the law upside down: For reclamation to continue, mining has to continue. Last month, prompted by a complaint from environmental groups, the federal Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement challenged Wyoming regulators to show that two major companies that have both filed for bankruptcy in the last year, Arch Coal and Alpha Natural Resources, have enough money to do the reclamation work they are obligated to do. In the weeks since then, following more complaints from environmental groups, the agency has made similar demands related to mines operated in Wyoming, Colorado, New Mexico, Indiana and Illinois by another imperiled company, Peabody Energy. All three of the companies have been allowed to meet many of their financial commitments for reclamation through a process called self-bonding. Under self-bonding, the companies do not have to pay a third party to guarantee that reclamation money would be there if the mining company suddenly failed. Instead, the companies essentially are allowed to say their financial strength is proof enough that they could meet their obligations. The problem with self-bonding, basically, is that its based upon this notion of these companies being so wealthy and substantial, said Mark Squillace, who teaches environmental law at the University of Colorado Law School. Its sort of like the banks being too big to fail, right? Arch Coal and Alpha Natural Resources are now trading for pennies on the stock market even as, combined, they are responsible for about $900 million in reclamation work in Wyoming alone. Peabody, which traded for $1,090 a share in 2011, was at just above $2 on Friday. Though self-bonding is legal under federal law, states choose whether to allow it. Critics say states like Wyoming should not have allowed struggling companies to self-bond as coal began its steady decline in recent years. Mining companies, they say, have little incentive to stay ahead of their reclamation work if they have no bond debts to pay down. And in a crisis like the current one, there is no third-party guaranteeing that it will pay for the reclamation. Joseph Pizarchik, the director of the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement, said in an emailed statement that his agency could not end self-bonding, only Congress can stop it. This month, in Wyomings response to the federal government regarding Alpha Natural Resources, Kyle Wendtland, the administrator of the land quality division of the state Department of Environmental Quality, said there were certain systemic problems with self-bonding. But Wendtland, a former environmental manager for Cloud Peak Energy, also defended an agreement the state recently reached with Alpha Natural Resources that committed the company to paying the state a maximum of $61 million for reclamation while it is in bankruptcy, even though the company currently is obligated to do $411 million worth of work. Wendtland said the state would maintain its claim on the full amount after the company emerged from bankruptcy though there is no assurance it will have the money. The state recently proposed a similar deal with Arch Coal, agreeing to accept what it says would be $92 million instead of the $486 million it is obligated to perform in reclamation. In an interview Friday, Wendtland defended the states approach to reclamation. He said about 45% of the mined land in Wyoming had been reclaimed, a figure he said remained steady because mines were continuously moving. Because of the amount of electricity Wyoming coal creates, he said, keeping the companies mining here was important for more than just Wyoming. Theres a state interest, a local interest, a jobs interest and a national interest in these mines, Wendtland said. As Squillace put it, if you force the company to post an actual bond, then they have to put up some actual money, which theyre going to say they dont have, Squillace said. They need to be able to continue to mine, because thats the only continuing income they have. Some of the environmental groups that have filed complaints say they want to see the companies continue to mine, with the hope that the revenue, however reduced it may be in the current market, will preserve jobs and give companies time to transition to other means of financing reclamation work. At least at this point in time, it is in everyones interest to try to keep these mines going, said Shannon Anderson, a lawyer for the Powder River Basin Resource Council, which filed complaints in Wyoming. As long as they keep operating, they can keep reclaiming, she added. ------------ FOR THE RECORD Feb. 24, 5:20 p.m.: An earlier version of this article misidentified lawyer Shannon Anderson as a man. Anderson is a woman. ------------ Mining around Gillette and in the Powder River Basin soared for many years as global demand, particularly from China, increased the appetite for coal. But exports and production have declined in recent years, threatening the jobs of some of the 6,500 people employed in Wyoming through coal mining. See more of our top stories on Facebook >> In an opinion piece published after Arch Coal declared bankruptcy last month, Gov. Matt Mead wrote: Our focus is [ensuring] that financial restructuring does not impact jobs, reclamation, salaries or pensions of employees in Wyoming. In the three decades that Karla Oksanen has lived in Gillette, she has watched the earth open next to her neighborhood and has seen new mountains rise as well. Her house is adjacent to the massive Eagle Butte mine, operated by Alpha Natural Resources. She feels the rumble of blasting work, and her view has been altered by the soil that miners dig out and pile high to gain access to coal. I have seen the view in the neighborhood change, Oksanen said. Supposedly theyre going to put it back the way it was. I havent seen it yet. william.yardley@latimes.com MORE NATIONAL NEWS: Conservatives push back on transgender bathroom rights in North Carolina Scalias death probably linked to obesity, diabetes and coronary artery disease, physician says Art collective builds a dream house in Santa Fe with millions of dollars and junk He launched his campaign in the warmth of a Florida summer, hailed as the candidate who melded a new, multicultural Republican appeal, a family history of winning and the most formidable fundraising machine his party had ever built. Eight humiliating months later, in the South Carolina winter, defeated once again by Donald Trump, John Ellis Bush gave up, making him the most prominent casualty of an unruly presidential contest and marking a stunning public repudiation of a family that defined GOP success for decades during two turns in the White House. Jeb Bushs withdrawal from the race came as Trump handily won South Carolinas primary, advancing another significant step toward the partys nomination. Sens. Marco Rubio of Florida and Ted Cruz of Texas were battling for second place. Advertisement By dropping out, Bush could help the party consolidate against Trump, although even if all his votes in South Carolina had gone to one of the two senators, Trump still would have prevailed. The heady promise of Bushs start made his fall that much more dramatic. The campaigns launch in June opened with a splashy call to action that was presidential in scale and embracing in tone, particularly toward the voters whom GOP leaders had identified as a crucial target after the partys loss in 2012. Latin music blared, and speakers including Bush addressed the Miami audience in Spanish. His slogan added an exclamation point to suggest enthusiasm: Jeb! Bush employed his Mexican-born wife and his bilingual children and imported members of his famous family to craft a compelling image. He is the new America. He is the new Republican Party, said one announcement speaker, state Sen. Don Gaetz. It was everything a candidate could dream of except for an almost total lack of appeal to GOP voters. Bush had sought to resurrect the political fortunes of a family partially sullied by the misadventures of his brother, George W. Bush. But he was hobbled by an inability to deal with both the fallout of his siblings presidency and an angry, disaffected GOP electorate that despised the party establishment he personified and rejected its call to reach out to minority voters. Out of office for more than eight years before he jumped into the presidential race in June, Bush appeared oblivious to the staunchly conservative direction the party had taken in his absence, a change driven by activist reactions to the presidencies of his brother and his father, George H.W. Bush. He persisted in believing that people would eventually embrace a studious, serious candidate in a race filled with rhetoric-flinging rookie politicians and celebrity outsiders. But he failed to gauge the depth of animosity toward him and his family, and the more genteel Republican Party they championed. In South Carolina, the last state in which he competed, Bush tried every trick. His mother, former First Lady Barbara Bush, implored voters to side with her son. George W. Bush emerged from post-presidential retirement to denigrate his brothers nemesis, Trump, and ask South Carolinians who had once rescued his candidacy to do the same for Jeb. None of it worked. In the end, having finished no better than fourth place in any state, the most conservative candidate his family had produced was deemed insufficiently rock-ribbed and far too old-school for a party surging toward a new identity. The people of Iowa and New Hampshire and South Carolina have spoken, and I really respect their decision, said Bush, who occasionally grew emotional as he announced his departure. He defended an effort that went from front-runner to underdog: I have stood my ground, refusing to bend to the political winds. Bushs candidacy rested on the same ruthless strategy that had worked for two family members. Within months of signaling his interest in the race early last year, he used the familys expansive network of fundraisers to collect more than $100 million for the super PAC that helped finance his activities, and more still for his campaign. In the end, the campaign and super PAC spent well over $90 million. Yet in an early warning sign, his effort to clear the field worked only minimally, helping to persuade 2012 nominee Mitt Romney to forgo a third White House try. Even with the threat of all that money, Bush could not dissuade others: Trump, the non-politician billionaire who would soak up so much attention and bully Bush; Cruz, the eventual Iowa caucus winner whose rapier speaking style would attract many of the partys newer voters; Ohio Gov. John Kasich, whose surprise second-place finish in New Hampshire would win over the more moderate and blue-collar voters Bush had counted on; and his onetime protege, Rubio, who would cast Bush aside as he called for a generational revolt. Bigger problems awaited. Some conservatives glowered at Bushs past support for the federal education standards known as Common Core. Others were enraged when Bush characterized immigrants in the country illegally as people who were acting out of love a quote that Trump and others would mock for months. Had the electorate been what he anticipated, the electorate of a generation ago, Bush might have surmounted his problems. But those two issues have become pillars of GOP activist fervor, so Bushs unorthodox views loomed large. Its perhaps the biggest irony of Bushs campaign that while his family gave him many advantages such as the massive fundraising base it also set the stage for his failure. Bushs father was never trusted by conservatives in the party, who saw him as the moderate underling not up to the stature of their hero, Ronald Reagan. The elder Bushs broken presidential pledge to not raise taxes led to a serious primary challenge by conservative Pat Buchanan in 1992 that served as a template for the racially tinged, insurgent candidacies this year. George W. Bush campaigned as a compassionate conservative a moniker that irked other conservatives it subtly maligned. His support for national education reforms and an immigration plan leading to rights of citizenship for those in the country illegally provoked another lurch to the right for party activists, which expanded further during the Obama years. The sins of the father and brother made many Republicans greet the third Bush with skepticism, despite his conservative tenure in Florida. If there was to be a new Republican Party, as his supporters asserted, it was not in their view going to be one that heralded yet another Bush. See the most-read stories this hour >> Bush himself was another problem. He was neither his quietly confident, patrician father nor his back-slapping, perennially underestimated older brother. Jeb Bush was a self-described introvert, a sometimes diffident policy wonk comfortable in his briefing books, who had jumped into an election that was fuming with hostility toward politics as practiced by his family. He started the campaign insisting that he would show who I am, tell my story, one different from the other Bushes. But even before his campaign officially began, he was tied in knots for days as he tried to answer the question of whether, given current knowledge, he would have gone to war in Iraq as his brother did. (The eventual answer: I would not have invaded Iraq.) Trump mercilessly pummeled him over his brothers actions and what Trump declared to be Jeb Bushs personal inadequacies. Ive got to get this off my chest: Donald Trump is a jerk, Bush finally declared in late December during a New Hampshire event, a comment whose prim language only underscored his discomfort with the rancor of the campaign. Trumps most common refrain was that Bush was low energy. It was meant to get under Bushs skin, but got to a central truth about him: In a field of aggressors evincing animal rage, he barely registered. He disappeared for long stretches during the early debates, as louder voices dominated. Campaign slogans Right to Rise, Jeb Can Fix It came and went, each an acknowledgment that the previous theme hadnt worked. It was only in the final weeks that Bush seemed to find a sense of urgency in debates and in speeches, but by then the race had passed him by. The closing chapter of the Bush dynasty opened with one of its key attributes public optimism. Jeb Bush had survived New Hampshire in fourth place and was back in South Carolina, the state that had righted his brothers campaign in 2000 and propelled his fathers in 1988. But any momentum he might have had stalled when the well-liked Gov. Nikki Haley spurned Bush family appeals and instead endorsed Rubio. George W. Bushs popularity in the state proved nontransferable. A rally in Summerville descended into embarrassment as, one after another, supporters rose to give a visibly frustrated candidate campaign advice. At the upbeat Miami event where his effort began so winningly, Bush had exuded optimism, and maybe even a sense of destiny. He was, he cautioned, presuming nothing. Not a one of us deserves the job, by right of resume, party, seniority, family or family narrative, he said. Its nobodys turn. Its everybodys test. And its wide open exactly as a contest for president should be. At the time, he was inoculating himself against any insinuation that he felt he should be handed the presidency. It turned out to be an early and prescient assessment of the emotions at play in campaign 2016, and of the forces that would chase him out of the race. cathleen.decker@latimes.com seema.mehta@latimes.com Decker reported from Las Vegas and Mehta from Columbia. ALSO All the money in the world cant save Bushs campaign Trump wins South Carolina primary: Lets put this thing away Victory in Nevada caucuses sets Hillary Clinton back on track for Democratic nomination Republican leaders who view Donald Trump as a pox on their party have finally settled on a strategy: Resist him as long as they can. Then figure out how to retreat gracefully. Most mainstream Republicans still worry that Trump would make a bad president. And they hold deep concerns that his incendiary rhetoric and ideological smorgasbord of ideas could damage the party, both politically and philosophically, so profoundly that it might never recover. But even as many party elites have fallen in line behind Florida Sen. Marco Rubio in recent days believing him the best hope to defeat Trump they no longer dismiss the billionaire celebrity or insist that it will all work out, as it usually does for the establishment in GOP primaries. Advertisement A lot of longtime Republicans, probably a couple weeks ago, had to sit down and think, You know, this could happen, said Trent Lott, the former Senate majority leader from Mississippi who is now a Washington lobbyist. TRAIL GUIDE: All the latest news on the 2016 presidential campaign >> For many in the party establishment, that reckoning amounted to an existential crisis, a moment to reflect on where their core beliefs end and where their practical political instincts kick in. If Trump wins the nomination, his combative relationship with the establishment will end in an embrace, though perhaps an uneasy one, predicted Lott, who is backing Ohio Gov. John Kasich. Theyre not going to sign up, and theyre not excited by the prospect, Lott said of his fellow party standard-bearers. But I think theyre thinking that if he becomes the nominee he runs the table and becomes the nominee were certainly going to support him if it comes to Hillary or Bernie. Its a slow process. Several establishment figures, including former New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani and Reagan administration Secretary of Education William Bennett, said in recent days that Trump has reached out to them to talk policy, sending a broader signal that he may be able to win over at least a few establishment allies. And others have sounded notes of increasing acceptance. Oh, yeah, I think I can work with Donald Trump, Rep. Kevin McCarthy, the House Majority leader from Bakersfield, told MSNBC this week, giving Trump a 50% chance of grabbing the nomination. Rep. Duncan Hunter, an Alpine Republican, told Politico on Wednesday that he was supporting Trump, becoming the first member of Congress to endorse him. At the same time, the anti-Trump forces remain divided over how to confront Trump whether to attack him head-on now, or wait until the field winnows so that a single candidate can take him on. Many of the GOPs traditional mega-donors, including casino magnate Sheldon Adelson and the Koch brothers, have not spent money in the primaries, neither to support a candidate nor to try to take down Trump. Rubios supporters have pressed Kasich to withdraw. Kasich, who believes his support will increase in a few weeks when contests move to the Midwest, has resisted. Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, the only candidate to defeat Trump in a nominating contest, also has asserted that he is the best candidate to beat Trump, though his campaign is troubled and many in the GOP establishment view him with equal or greater disdain. Ben Carson, the retired neurosurgeon, is also keeping the field relatively crowded, even though he has little chance of winning. TRAIL GUIDE: All the latest news on the 2016 presidential campaign >> That dynamic helps Trump, who has solid support from about one-third of Republican primary voters. Trump has now decisively won contests in New England, the South and the West, while placing second in the Midwest. But many party leaders and donors still want to wait until at least mid-March, when larger winner-take-all states such as Florida and Ohio vote, before resigning themselves to a Trump nomination. I dont think youre going to see a lot of folks accepting the inevitable until we get through the heavy delegate states and the math starts to harden, said Josh Holmes, former chief of staff to Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and president of Cavalry, a consulting firm. Were just not there yet. One of Rubios Washington-based financial backers explained the Machiavellian political calculus a little more bluntly. Theres plenty of time to make nice with Trump, he said, requesting anonymity to speak candidly about the thinking among elite Republicans. But you dont need to do that now, when theres time to take him out. Some leading figures on the right insist there is no conscionable time to join the Trump bandwagon, citing Trumps inconsistencies on issues including abortion, his nativist rhetoric or his rebuke of other principles that have come to define the modern conservatism. Those who are deluding themselves thinking that if they support Trump, he will support them, will instead find themselves slowly compromised on both their integrity and values, commentator Erick Erickson wrote this week in an essay titled I Will Not Vote For Donald Trump. Ever. Waiting almost certainly plays to Trumps advantage. He not only likely wins if the field remains crowded, he may also win a one-on-one competition. After coming first in the South Carolina primary and the Nevada caucuses this week, Trump mocked pundits for saying his GOP opponents votes combined could defeat him if some of them would drop out. They keep forgetting that when people drop out, were going to get a lot of votes, Trump told supporters at his Tuesday celebration at the Treasure Island casino. Polls seem to back him up, with increasing numbers of Republicans saying they could accept Trump as their nominee. That has some Republicans arguing that the establishment should not go down without a more robust fight. They throw their hands up in frustration as they see Cruz, Kasich, Carson and Rubio fending off attacks from one another instead of focusing on Trump with their campaigning and advertising dollars. Its looking at the Daytona 500 and saying You know, if there hadnt been X, Y and Z cars in the race, I could have won, said Stuart Stevens, a former campaign advisor to Mitt Romney. You race the field. You have to beat the person in front. That may be the case, but most candidates have shied from taking on Trump consistently, considering those fights have generally ended with Trumps opponent on the mat. And many party elites already have accelerated the process of coming to terms with a Trump nomination. Ron Kaufman, a former Romney advisor who backed former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush until he dropped out Saturday, said he still would prefer a more centrist conservative candidate. But, he said, he believes Trump will not seem so absurd as time moves on. In the 1980 Republican primary, Kaufman supported George H.W. Bush against a Hollywood actor. I remember saying God help us if Ronald Reagan is president, and a lot of people felt that way, he said. Twitter: @noahbierman MORE ON CAMPAIGN 2016 Marco Rubios no-win Republican primary strategy cant last The prospect of a Trump-Rubio rumble and 3 other things to watch for in the GOP debate While Clinton talks race, Sanders turns elsewhere to reach minority voters As things stand, Donald Trump is the presumptive GOP nominee. Thats awful news, and depressing to contemplate. But terrible possibilities dont become less terrible if we ignore them. Rather, they become more likely. The GOPs collective desire to look away has been a problem for months. Nearly everyone, including yours truly, believed that Trumps candidacy would exhaust itself. There are many reasons why that hasnt happened. Chief among them: Too many people thought it was someone elses job to bell the Trumpian cat. No better evidence for this thesis can be found than the fact that of the $215 million spent by super PACs so far this cycle, only 4% was spent attacking Trump. Marco Rubio is now the only plausible alternative to Trump. Advertisement Although the queue for allotments of blame would be longer than a Great Depression bread line, the person at the head of it is Sen. Ted Cruz. For months, Cruz embraced Trump as a comrade in arms, which helped send the signal to talk radio hosts and various conservative activists that Trump was a healthy addition to the political conversation. Even though the two men are wildly divergent ideologically, they both found shelter under the anti-establishment umbrella. Cruz finally broke the clinch in Iowa, demonstrating that negative attacks on Trump work. Then, disastrously, Cruz stopped. He wrongly reasoned that he had no chance in New Hampshire and had little to gain there, so why bother fighting Trump? For the entire crucial week leading to the New Hampshire primary, the GOP field went back into a cannibalistic frenzy to win the non-Trump mantle. This disarray allowed Trump to run up a huge victory in the Granite State, and that momentum let him gobble up Cruzs evangelical base in South Carolina (where 73% of voters describe themselves as evangelical or born-again). Cruz finished a strategically devastating third. The morals of this story so far should be a familiar. First, you cant count on politicians to look beyond their immediate tactical self-interest. Second, rumors of the so-called establishments power or even existence are greatly exaggerated. Waiting for the establishment to save the party from a Trumpian hostile takeover is like waiting for Godot to bring the beer to the party. Marco Rubio is now the only plausible alternative to Trump. But its doubtful hes taken either of the above lessons to heart. According to his campaigns post-South Carolina strategy memo, he thinks he can wait until after Super Tuesday to post a win in any state. And he assumes first-place finishes will ultimately come his way because the field will clear. Will it? Jeb Bush is finally out, but Ben Carson seems to be running one of the most ingeniously disguised book tours in modern memory; John Kasich is hunting windmills in Ohio and Michigan; and Cruz, having tasted victory in Iowa, is unlikely to give up anytime soon. Rubios strategy is not crazy, just implausible. Luckily, theres another option. Republican disarray is largely attributable to the fact that no establishment candidate has secured much support from the conservative grass-roots and no grass-roots candidate has secured much support from the establishment. If the two factions could be unified, it might be enough to stop Trump. What would unity look like? A Rubio-Cruz ticket a la Reagan-Bush in 1980. Cruz wont work at the top of the ticket for the simple reason that too many GOP apparatchiks fear Cruz more than Trump. But with Rubio leading the way, Los Hermanos Cubanos might just do the trick. Of course there are real costs to such a deal (not least the fact that there are better general election running mates for Rubio). But if theres a good alternative, I havent heard it. And in a race where Trump has changed everything with his boldness, its past time for his opponents to provide some of their own. jgoldberg@latimescolumnists.com Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion and Facebook Seven years after issuing an executive order promising promptly to close detention facilities at Guantanamo, President Obama pleaded with a skeptical Congress on Tuesday to accept a plan to shut that facility in Cuba and relocate some detainees to secure facilities in the United States. Congressional consent is necessary because of a law signed, albeit reluctantly, by Obama that prohibits the use of federal dollars to transfer Guantanamo inmates to the U.S. or to build facilities in the U.S. to house them. The administrations proposal is vastly preferable to the status quo. Members of Congress should endorse the goal of closing Guantanamo rather than continuing to stoke fears that imprisoning and trying suspected terrorists on American soil would endanger public safety. But it is worth remembering as this debate continues that the problem with Guantanamo is not so much its physical presence as its symbolic importance. The prison is a reminder of a disgraceful era in which the U.S. aroused the anger of the world by engaging in torture and extraordinary rendition and by holding suspected terrorists without trial for years on end. Closing the prison itself would be an important gesture, to be sure but ending the underlying behavior is even more important. Advertisement The stain of Guantanamo on Americas reputation exists not because prisoners are held indefinitely [abroad], it is a result of their being held without trial anywhere. To some degree, that has already happened. Obama banned torture by executive order shortly after coming to office, and Congress has passed a law prohibiting the cruel and degrading treatment of prisoners. Extraordinary rendition is not banned, but the administration says it only sends terrorism suspects to third countries if it receives assurances that they will not be tortured; thats fine, if you believe what those countries tell you. Closing Guantanamo under Obamas plan would involve sending many of the remaining 91 inmates to other countries, but for dozens more detainees, it wouldnt guarantee either release or a trial (though their status would continue to be reviewed). Transferring these detainees from Cuban soil to a civilian or military prison in the United States would allow the U.S. to close the physical facility at Guantanamo. But it wouldnt address the difficult question of what to do in the long term with detainees considered too dangerous to release but who have been held in some cases for 10 years or more without charges being brought against them or the opportunity to defend themselves. In some cases, prosecution may be impossible because evidence was obtained through torture. Will the U.S. really hold them forever? In a 2013 speech, the president sketched out a troubling scenario: Imagine a future 10 years from now, or 20 years from now when the United States of America is still holding people who have been charged with no crime on a piece of land that is not a part of our country.... Is that who we are? Is that something that our Founders foresaw? Is that the America we want to leave to our children? In a similar vein, the president said Tuesday that keeping Guantanamo open undermines our standing in the world. It is viewed as a stain on our broader record of upholding the highest standards of rule of law. But the stain of Guantanamo on Americas reputation exists not because prisoners are held on a piece of land that is not part of our country; it is a result of their being held without trial anywhere. Americans 20 years from now might equally ask, Is that who we are? if an inmate captured after the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan in 2001 remains imprisoned in Illinois, Kansas or South Carolina. Obamas critics have argued that suspected terrorists at Guantanamo can be held indefinitely as war prisoners. The president himself, even as he has emphasized the ability of civilian courts to try terrorism cases, has clung to the notion that some suspected terrorists can be held under the law of war. One problem with that theory is that the U.S. is now engaged in an open-ended conflict with Islamic State and similar groups. Does that mean indefinite confinement without trial not only for some inmates now at Guantanamo but also for other suspected terrorists who may be apprehended in the future? In his 2013 speech, Obama expressed confidence that once the U.S. closed Guantanamo, the problem of indefinite detention could be resolved consistent with the rule of law. Whatever its other benefits, his new plan falls short of fulfilling that promise. Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion and Facebook The Republican establishment has finally woken to the danger its in: Unless something changes soon, Donald Trump is going to be the partys nominee for president. How is this possible? As has often been noted, Trump has been able to win primaries with no more than 35% of the vote because the GOP field is so fragmented. The non-Trump majority has divided its votes among Sen. Marco Rubio, Sen. Ted Cruz, Gov. John Kasich and others. But theres another, less obvious reason Trump is doing so well: Hes turned out to be a disciplined candidate with a clear strategy. Hes not the unguided missile he once appeared to be. Advertisement His attacks on other candidates may have looked petulant, but its now clear that they were calculated. For much of last year, Trump concentrated his fire on Jeb Bush, who was long considered a front-runner. Trump grabs media attention by saying something outrageous - and then takes a step back, as if to say: I didnt mean it literally. When Bush faded, Trump moved his sights to Cruz, who was trying a little too obviously to steal Trump voters. There was nothing random about the choice of targets. Ted is hanging around the top too long, Trump told aides in January, according to the Wall Street Journal. Time to take him down. If the pattern holds, Trumps next punching bag will be Rubio, whos been unofficially anointed as the Great Establishment Hope. You can expect Trump to warn voters that Rubio is in the pocket of the big-money donors who are frantically pumping cash into his campaign. Besides, as Trump said last year (at a time when Rubio was surging): Marco Rubio, hes like a kid.... He sweats more than any young person Ive ever seen. Trumps campaign has been a strategic success in another, subtler way: Hes quietly climbed down from positions that might alienate too many GOP voters. The real estate mogul has kept the core of his populist message clear: He says hell get rid of incompetent politicians, halt illegal immigration by building a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border and stop losing to other countries. But hes also softened some of his most unusual statements, if only around the edges. After tangling with Pope Francis over immigration last week, he quickly decided to call a truce. The Pope is great, he told voters in South Carolina. After charging that President George W. Bush lied to take the country to war with Iraq in 2003, Trump muddied his attack. He could have lied. Maybe he did, maybe he didnt. Youd have to ask him, he said. After surprising conservative voters by defending Planned Parenthood, he promised that he would block federal funding for the group if it continued to offer abortions. And Trump has even shown unexpected charity toward the news media. We love the press, he said at a rally last week. Were hard on the press; Ive called them so many different names. Notice the pattern? Trump grabs media attention by saying something outrageous and then takes a step back, as if to say: I didnt mean it literally. That free media strategy has enabled Trump to dominate the debate. Trump is also more traditional than he may seem when it comes to financing his campaign and motivating supporters. He has often boasted that his campaign is self-financed, but like many other Trump claims, thats not entirely true. About one-third of the $26million hes collected has come from individual donors. And although hes joked that money spent on television commercials is probably a waste, his campaign still aired almost as many ads as Cruzs (if far fewer than Rubio or Bush) in South Carolina. Finally, while the hallmark of Trumps campaign has been giant rallies, hes used the names collected at those events for old-fashioned telephone drives to get out the vote on election days. Whats more productive? his South Carolina campaign manager asked. Having 10,000 people in one night [at a rally], or having 100 people go bang on 5000 doors and half of them being empty? In short, Trumps campaign isnt all that chaotic. Its a well-designed amalgam of old and new that makes good use of the candidates reality-TV strengths. The results are striking: In recent polls, Trump is running ahead of Rubio in Florida, ahead of Kasich in Ohio and close to Cruz in Texas. Hes still divisive, uncivil and mendacious. Hes still the most unconventional candidate weve seen in a long time but part of his crazy genius is that hes not as unconventional as he pretends. doyle.mcmanus@latimes.com Twitter: @doylemcmanus Hoy: Lea esta historia en espanol Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion and Facebook Now that the GOP presidential nominating contest is settling into a three-way race between a would-be wall builder and two guys whose families came from Cuba, a new immigration controversy is coming to the fore. Record numbers of refugees from Fidel Castros failed communist experiment are streaming into the United States not just across the Florida Straits, but especially over the U.S.-Mexico border. During the last three months of 2015, more than 12,000 Cubans knocked on our southern door. This years migration is on pace to double the previous high. In stark, resentment-sowing contrast to other migrants from Latin America, Cubans are greeted in the U.S. with cash, access to welfare and a path to citizenship. Thats all thanks to the 1966 Cuban Adjustment Act. But now many politicians are asking whether, during this period of Washington-Havana thaw, its time to revamp this Cold War-era preference. Advertisement We have people living in Cuba off Social Security benefits... This is an outrageous abuse. Senator and Republican presidential candidate Marco Rubio I dont think thats fair. I mean, why would that be a fair thing? Donald Trump told the Tampa Tribune this month. You know, we have a system now for bringing people into the country, and what we should be doing is we should be bringing people who are terrific people who have terrific records of achievement, accomplishment. Is this another oh-no-he-didnt moment for Trump, daring to utter an unmentionable in Florida, the way he supposedly did by going after the locally popular George W. Bush in South Carolina? Not quite. Americas wet-foot, dry-foot policy, whereby Cubans who are interdicted at sea are forcibly returned to their homeland, but the ones who make it to shore are accepted as communism-fleeing refugees, is coming under increasing attack by Cuban Americans as well. We dont think the U.S. should be fleeced by people who claim to be refugees, then take advantage of our welfare system, Rep. Carlos Curbelo (R-Fla.) recently told Fox Latino. Curbelo in December introduced the Cuban Immigrant Work Opportunity Act, requiring migrants from the island to prove they suffered political persecution before they can receive any government benefits. Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) introduced the Senate version of the bill in January, saying that the increase in Cuban immigration is becoming a real crisis. We have people living in Cuba off Social Security benefits, he lamented to a New Hampshire town hall last month. They never worked here. This is an outrageous abuse. The other Cuban American senator battling for second place in the Republican presidential primary, however, is comfortable with the status quo. Ted Cruz of Texas, even while promising that all 12 million or so immigrants in the U.S. illegally will somehow be deported and made permanently ineligible for citizenship, thinks the Cuban Adjustment Act should stay in place until Castros decaying paradise is no longer communist. Cubanos si, Venezolanos no. This kind of political discord and uneven treatment is what happens when immigration is managed from Washington on a patchwork, country-by-country basis. As has been proved again and again in policies about both immigration and Cuba, unintended consequences are the rule, not the exception. For instance: The renewed diplomatic relationship with the U.S., to be crowned by President Obamas historic visit to the island next month, is one of the main reasons for the migratory surge. Cubans are heading out now while the Cuban Adjustment Act is still in place, fearing that theyll soon have to apply for documentation like everyone else. Obamas removal last year of the cap limiting the amount of money Americans can send back to their relatives in Cuba has also boosted the outward migration, in conjunction with Raul Castros elimination of an exit visa. Suddenly, more Cubans have more access to more money, and no longer require the governments blessing to get on a plane. No wonder theyre heading to Ecuador and Mexico with an eye turned northward because they can. This is not a crisis, this is a huge victory for personal and political freedom of a long-suffering people. During my visit to the island last month for the first time since 1998, the presence of new money and personal latitude amid the socialist ruin was palpable and heartening. As the embargo-hating Sen. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.), who was part of my group, pointed out, something like one-quarter of Cubans now make their principal income from nongovernment sources. Thats a horrendous number in the free world, but downright miraculous in Havana. At some point soon, Cubans should rejoin the line with other would-be immigrants from the Caribbean and Central America. But policymakers should be focusing on how to make that line shorter, not longer, with simple rules that respect human aspiration and reflect supply and demand, not the temporal whims of power-seeking pols. Matt Welch is editor in chief of Reason and a contributing writer to Opinion. Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion and Facebook Maybe President Obama is seriously considering nominating Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval, a Republican, to the Supreme Court. Or maybe hes just messing with GOP senators minds by forcing them to say whether their refusal to consider an Obama-named replacement for the late Justice Antonin Scalia would extend to snubbing a fellow Republican. So far the answer seems to be yes, but that could change if Obama actually nominated Sandoval. So is the governor is qualified? That could depend on whether he is evaluated by historic criteria for a Supreme Court appointment or more recent standards. Advertisement Sandovals career has mixed law and politics. As well as serving as governor, he is a former attorney general of Nevada and state legislator and he served four years as a federal district judge, appointed by President George W. Bush on the recommendation of Democratic Sen. Harry Reid, the current Senate minority leader. Join the conversation on Facebook >> At earlier points in American history, that resume would be more than adequate for a Supreme Court nominee. The legendary Chief Justice Earl Warren had served as governor of California and some of his colleagues on the bench also had served in elective office. (Justice Hugo Black had been a U.S. senator and Justice Potter Stewart had been elected to the Cincinnati City Council before being appointed a federal appeals court judge.) But in recent decades Supreme Court justices have tended to come to the nations highest bench from lower federal courts seven sitting justices served on the U.S. Court of Appeals and the eighth, Elena Kagan, is a former U.S. solicitor general, a position sometimes referred to as the tenth justice. The last member of the court to have been elected to public office was Justice Sandra Day OConnor, who retired in 2005. She had served an Arizona state senator. And the court lacks diversity in other respects, including educational backgrounds. As Adam Liptak of the New York Times has written, that fact was cited by Scalia in his dissent from the courts 2015 decision legalizing same-sex marriage. The court, Scalia noted, consists of only nine men and women, all of them successful lawyers who studied at Harvard or Yale Law School. Four of the nine are natives of New York City. Eight of them grew up in East- and West Coast States. Only one hails from the vast expanse in-between. Not a single South-Westerner or even, to tell the truth, a genuine Westerner (California does not count). Not a single evangelical Christian (a group that comprises about one quarter of Americans), or even a Protestant of any denomination. A Justice Sandoval wouldnt bring religious diversity to the court hes a Catholic but hes a graduate of a non-Ivy League law school (Ohio State) and a longtime resident of not-quite-coastal Reno (though he was born in California.) Most important, he would bring the experience of a practicing politician to a court whose decisions are often criticized for being clueless about the way the political process works. These traits make him an attractive candidate. The question is whether his brief judicial experience on a trial court is adequate preparation for service on the Supreme Court or even for responding to questions from senators. In a talk at Georgetown University this week, Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. said: Given the way the interviews with senators occur beginning immediately on the announcement of the nomination, its very difficult for somebody who has not been dealing with the whole breadth of federal law that may come before the Supreme Court to be ready for those interviews. The other question is how a Sandoval nomination would be viewed by the American Bar Assn., which tends to place a premium on appellate court experience. In a column he wrote this week for SCOTUSblog, Obama promised that the person I appoint will be eminently qualified. That would be a harder claim to defend if Sandoval or some other nominee received anything less than the well qualified rating the organization has bestowed on recent appointees to the court. Follow Michael McGough on Twitter @MichaelMcGough3 To the editor: The Los Angeles Unified School District says it is making dramatic gains in student graduation rates by helping them meet new requirements using strategies such as allowing kids to take online courses for credit recovery. The district anticipates a graduation rate as high as 80%. (Despite new requirements, L.A. Unifieds projected graduation rate soars, Feb. 19) This years seniors are required to complete college prep classes with a passing grade of D or better. So, are we supposed to be thrilled that students are allowed to graduate high school while earning Ds when we know that this would hinder their chances of getting into a University of California or California State University campus? According to the UCLA Institute for Democracy, Education and Access, California will not meet its 2025 workforce needs if it fails to strengthen its education pipeline, particularly for African American and Latino students. The key here is strengthening education, not lowering standards. Advertisement As long as L.A. Unified fails to help students meet college admission standards, it will continue to leave kids unprepared for work or higher education. Evelyn Macias, Reseda .. To the editor: Ive been teaching for three years. Previously I was an attorney at the public defenders office. At the high school where I teach, it is common practice in my department to give students credit for classes theyre not taking. A student is enrolled in one class, but the teacher gives the student a grade for two. Zero period is another popular way to give students credit for classes theyve failed. The students do packets of work to get credit. Youd think the kids would need intensive support to help them learn material theyve failed to master in the classroom, but these students do not receive instruction, just assistance completing their packets. So, at what cost are graduation rates projected to soar? Handing unearned diplomas to kids who struggle so mightily seems so blatantly unfair from where I sit. Im sure LAUSD will have 1,001 justifications for what it does, but I cant think of one that would pass the stink test with me. Stephanie Sauter, El Segundo Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion and Facebook To the editor: Thanks for the article reporting that there have been more than 2,000 police shootings in Southern California since 2004, only one of which resulted in criminal prosecution (the officer was acquitted). (Police in six Southern California counties have shot more than 2,000 suspects since 2004. Only one officer was prosecuted -- he was acquitted, Feb. 19) Yes, its amazing and perhaps disturbing how many citizens are killed by police officers. However, its obvious that most of us will back up police actions of any kind, because like all those cops out there, we are afraid for our safety. Los Angeles Police Department Chief Charlie Beck assures us that no officer ever kills anyone without reason. And former L.A. County Dist. Atty. Steve Cooley is equally objective when he says, Like it or not, the law provides huge cover for police in these situations. Advertisement So all you law-abiding citizens have nothing to fear. This article will, as always, have absolutely no effect on the behavior of law enforcement. Bob Loza, Burbank .. To the editor: Is the proliferation of police shootings motivated just by trigger-happy officers or by the brazen and violent criminals who have no fear or respect for authority? We, as bystanders, can easily point fingers at officers without actually understanding the complexity of the situation. When a police officer investigates a crime, especially a violent crime, his edginess is akin to a hunter stalking a lion; hes ready to pull the trigger as soon as he senses a sudden movement as a threat to his life. Police officers are engaged every day in the milieu of a criminal element, which they can no longer contain. Their job is to protect and serve us, but as we persistently castigate officers for every police shooting, that protection will slowly diminish as crime worsens. Giuseppe Mirelli, Los Angeles .. To the editor: I am a retired New York Police Department lieutenant. I made or assisted in more than 3,000 criminal arrests in my career. That number includes a few bad police and corrections officers. Luckily I was never shot at, and I never had to fire my revolver on the street. I am shocked by this article. Is it suggesting that grand juries should be indicting more police officers? Do the 2,000 incidents include the police shooting in December of two fleeing terrorists in San Bernardino? Perhaps future articles should also include support for the tough job our police are doing to keep us safe. A preferred headline might have read, Grand juries and prosecutors find 99.95% of police shootings in six Southern California counties since 2004 justifiable. Andy DiMarco, Manhattan Beach Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion and Facebook To the editor: The late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia is best known for his espousal of originalism, generally thought of as the idea that the meaning of the Constitution is fixed forever to what it meant at the time it was written. (Antonin Scalia and the judgment of history, Opinion, Feb. 22) It is worth noting that if the founders were originalists like Scalia, it is unlikely that they would have included Article V in their document, describing how the Constitution might be amended when, in James Madisons own words, useful alterations will be suggested by experience. Donald Schwartz, Los Angeles Advertisement .. To the editor: The left denigrates Scalia because of his conservative decisions such as the one in Citizens United, wherein the majority of justices ruled that corporations, and not just real people, have constitutional rights. Lets think about what could happen if he had sided with the progressive justices. Government could possibly confiscate corporate property without due process of law; it might also be able to more easily censor corporate-owned newspapers such as The Times. Perhaps even the Roman Catholic Church could face greater restrictions, because it is a religious organization and not a real person. Luckily, Scalia understood that corporations (and organizations) are just an extension of individuals. He also understood the importance of protecting our constitutional rights, even if it meant deciding one particular case contrary to how many (even the majority of Americans) would want it to turn out. Scalia was a brilliant jurist, and America would be a far better place if we had more justices like him. P.J. Gendell, Beverly Hills .. To the editor: This op-ed article focuses on Scalias emphasis on originalism and the historical effect of his term. It also mentions that in the Citizens United decision he insisted that the founders considered the free speech rights of corporations as well as citizens to be protected even though corporations barely existed at the time. English grammar rules dictate that the pronoun who applies to people, while that refers to things. Even our language does not consider corporations to be people. Hows that for true originalism? Betty C. Duckman, Long Beach Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion and Facebook With a sudden outpouring of money and endorsements flowing to Marco Rubio, Republican leaders have launched a full-scale scramble to unify the party around the charismatic young senator as the GOPs only hope for stopping Donald Trumps march to become their presidential nominee. The only problem with the plan: Rubio has yet to win a single state. And no one seems certain when, or where, he will. Nevada was once thought to be almost a sure bet for Rubio, even if he failed to win in early states Iowa and New Hampshire. Advertisement But despite a heavy investment by Rubio in Las Vegas, where he spent part of his childhood, voters handed Trump a big victory Tuesday. TRAIL GUIDE: All the latest news on the 2016 presidential campaign >> The senator from Florida has spun his early-state failures into success stories, insisting his second- and third-place finishes prove he is the partys top alternative to Trump and the only candidate who can bring together the partys splintering factions. Backers say they always expected Rubio to trail early and then gradually build momentum. Even in defeat, Rubio has endeavored to give his campaign an air of inevitability. Our campaign gives us the best chance, not just to come together, not just to unify our party, but to unify our country and to grow this movement, he said after his second-place showing in South Carolina. Tuesday night, Rubio went to bed without making a statement, his campaign spokesman said. Outside Rubios campaign, however, strategists and others looking for a way to halt Trumps seemingly unstoppable rise point to the obvious: He cant win the nomination by forever coming in second. To win, you have to win. And you dont win by doing well, said Stuart Stevens, the top strategist to Mitt Romneys 2012 campaign. Despite his campaigns claims of Marco-mentum, it is Trump, not Rubio, who is amassing the necessary delegates. Polls show that a growing number of Republicans believe Trump will be the nominee, while Rubio continues to be most voters second choice. Were past the point of trying to lower expectations, said Kevin Madden, a GOP consultant and Romneys former spokesman. When youve got someone with Donald Trumps momentum, youve got to start beating expectations. By contrast to Trumps bravado about winning, Rubios campaign wont even say when or where their candidate might finish first in a state primary. On Wednesday, Rubio heads to a rally in Minnesota, one of the large number of states voting on March 1, where his more measured brand of conservatism may have a good chance. Many in the GOP say hell need to win at least one or two of the March 1 contests or risk falling hopelessly behind. NEWSLETTER: Get the days top headlines from Times Editor Davan Maharaj >> Trump and Sen. Ted Cruz planned to take their fight to the more conservative and Christian-oriented southern states that dominate the March 1 voting. Critics of Rubios approach offer lots of advice. Stevens dismissed Rubios campaign as a branding exercise, with too much focus on crafting an optimistic message and holding festive, music-filled rallies: Thats great and then they lose. To win, Stevens says Rubio needs to take a more confrontational approach against Trump. Campaigns are fights, he said. And not fighting Donald Trump not fighting the person thats winning means youre fighting for second, third, fourth place. Trumps unexpected popularity upended Rubios carefully laid campaign plans. For one thing, Trumps brash style pushed Rubio to strive to look and sound tougher, shifting from the Reaganesque optimism that he originally hoped to convey. Over the last weeks, Rubio has hardened his positions on immigration and joined Trump in bluntly calling Cruz a liar. Trumps successes have also forced Rubios campaign to rethink its electoral math. Early on, Rubios team privately acknowledged that its goal was simply to do well enough in Iowa and New Hampshire to amass enough cash and support to push forward to expected victories in South Carolina and Nevada. This was soon dubbed the 3-2-1 strategy, for his third-, second- and first-place hopes. But after Rubios near-fatal stumble in the New Hampshire debate helped land him in fifth place, and Trump dominated South Carolina despite Rubios slate of high-profile endorsements, rivals and critics began mocking it as a 3-5-2 plan. Ive been baffled this entire campaign by this obsession these campaigns have by trying to determine the order of losing, instead of trying to win, Stevens said. Polling data from South Carolina showed that Rubios support there was highest among GOP voters who believe he is best poised to beat the eventual Democratic nominee. But it remains unclear whether Rubio can expand the partys base by drawing in young people and minorities, as was once hoped. Campaign officials say they are not worried. Republican voters are starting to realize across the country, if you dont want Donald Trump to take the nomination, you better get on Team Marco, said Rubio spokesman Alex Conant. The key to us was to clear the field and get in a one-on-one campaign with Trump, and thats whats happening. Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bushs exit Saturday from the race has helped, allowing high-dollar donors whose loyalties had been split between the two Floridians to turn to Rubios side. Many now expect Bush to endorse Rubio. Rubio has racked up endorsements from several prominent senators as well as Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson and former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty. A top advisor from one of the billionaire Koch brothers network of organizations, Freedom Partners Chamber of Commerce, also joined Rubios team. People are coming out to back Marco all over the country right now, said Rick Wilson, a longtime Republican consultant in Florida who runs a pro-Rubio super PAC. People are realizing Marco Rubio is the one guy who can beat Donald Trump, and he beats Hillary Clinton in every survey. But few are predicting outright wins for Rubio in any of the upcoming contests, largely because the anti-Trump vote continues to be divided among Rubio, Cruz, Ohio Gov. John Kasich and retired surgeon Ben Carson. That means Rubio may not see a clear victory until he competes in his home state of Florida on March 15, widely seen as a must-win. But by then, campaign veterans warn, it may be too late. lisa.mascaro@latimes.com ALSO Even the Republican elite are starting to accept Donald Trump (but not without a fight) Trumps first congressional endorsement comes from California: Which candidates have support? If Clinton manages to improve her image with voters, she can thank town halls It was a raw version of Donald Trump on display in Nevada this week, and it showed more clearly than ever how the front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination is turning his party asunder. The New York developer gloated at his Nevada victory Tuesday night when he walked on stage to thundering chants of his name at a Las Vegas casino across the street from the gold-glass hotel tower that he owns on the Strip. Its going to be an amazing two months, he told the crowd, boasting of his prospects in upcoming contests in Texas, Tennessee, Georgia, Arkansas, Florida and Ohio. We might not even need the two months, folks, to be honest. Trump might be right. After decisive wins in New Hampshire, South Carolina and now Nevada, its fair to ask how many more contests his top rivals Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio can lose before the delegate math makes it impossible for anyone but Trump to capture the nomination. See more of our top stories on Facebook >> On Tuesday night, Trump mocked pundits who argue that all it will take to knock him out of the race is the consolidation of mainstream Republicans behind a lone rival most likely Rubio or, should the Florida senator falter, Ohio Gov. John Kasich. They keep forgetting that when people drop out, were going to get a lot of votes, Trump told a few hundred supporters at his celebration at the Treasure Island casino. With a dash more bravado than usual, he reminded his national audience it was another Trump speech televised live of his signature pledge to bill Mexico for an $8-billion border wall. Theyll pay for the wall, theyll be very happy about it, believe me, Trump said. Ill talk to them. Theyll be very, very thrilled. SIGN UP for the free Essential Politics newsletter >> It was just the kind of rhetoric that strikes a nerve with Mike Schoch, a 62-year-old Las Vegas limo driver wearing a white Hillary Youre Fired cap. Id like to see the wall go up, he said while in line at the partys bar. The Vaticans got one. Why cant we? Looking ahead to the dozen Super Tuesday contests next week, Trump played up his cultural affinity with white blue-collar conservatives. He thanked Donald Trump Jr. for campaigning in remote Elko, Nev. He and his other son Eric love the rifle stuff, Trump said. This is serious NRA both of them, he said. We love the 2nd Amendment, folks. Nobody loves it more than us. Trump also made a point of thanking his star evangelical Christian supporter, Jerry Falwell Jr. an unbelievable guy. Falwell played no visible role in the Nevada contest, but could help Trump defeat Cruz in Bible Belt primaries that the Texas senator must win next week to remain viable. Calling attention to his refusal to accept campaign money from special interests, Trump gestured to his business partner, Philip Ruffin, who owns Treasure Island. When Ruffin offered to give the campaign $10 million, Trump said he responded, Phil, I dont want your money. At the same time, Trump inadvertently called attention to questions about his attitude toward women by using an archaic method of introducing the spouses of Ruffin and another casino mogul in the audience, Steve Wynn: Mr. and Mrs. Phil Ruffin and Mr. and Mrs. Steve Wynn. Trump, whose frequent vulgarity has turned off many upscale Republicans, avoided profanity during his two-day swing through Nevada. But he still showed his rougher edges. He used his vow to torture terrorism suspects as an applause line at a Las Vegas rally Monday night (as did Rubio, if more elliptically, at a casino stop Tuesday morning). And when a protester was ejected from the rally, Trump said, Id like to punch him in the face. With Trump fast approaching striking distance of the White House nomination, Republican mega-donors like Marlene Ricketts are alarmed. Ricketts, whose family owns the Chicago Cubs, has given $3 million to a super-PAC running attack ads against Trump. Her husband, billionaire Joe Ricketts, is the founder of finance giant TD Ameritrade. On Twitter, Trump stopped just short of threatening retaliation on Monday. I hear the Rickets family, who own the Chicago Cubs, are secretly spending $'s against me, he wrote. They better be careful, they have a lot to hide! Advertisement michael.finnegan@latimes.com Twitter: @finneganLAT MORE POLITICAL COVERAGE Trump wins Nevada caucuses, fortifying his lead in the Republican race Eight years later, Obamas race is still front and center Univision fought with Donald Trump and now it wants to register 3 million new Latino voters Im Christina Bellantoni, the Essential Politics host today. Lets get started. There were a lot of timelines being thrown around Tuesday night, before even one-third of the Nevada caucus results were tallied. Donald Trump got it started, proclaiming, Its going to be an amazing two months. We might not even need the two months. Advertisement He was both verbalizing the reality if he indeed keeps winning, winning, winning, he could be the nominee in three weeks and putting into words a fear that has been percolating in some Republican circles that hes unstoppable. In his own speech, before knowing if hed claimed the runner-up or third place slot, Sen. Ted Cruz had a prediction of his own: One week from today will be the most important night of this campaign. What this means is that the campaigns are looking at the calendar, and the 12 contests Tuesday with piles of delegates at stake. Cruz made clear his strategy is to remind voters hes the only hopeful who has beaten Trump, which makes his home state of Texas a must-win in six days. The Super Tuesday contests span from Massachusetts to Alaska, and well be helping you keep track of whats at stake and whos on top. In the meantime, check out the full results from the Nevada caucuses and catch up on what you missed as the candidates bid Nevada farewell. WHATS NEXT FOR RUBIO? With a finish far behind Trump, Sen. Marco Rubio never appeared before supporters to give a speech. Fox News reported he had gone to bed. Lisa Mascaro details how Republican leaders have launched a full-scale scramble to unify the party around the charismatic young senator as the GOPs only hope for stopping Trump. Just one problem: Rubios no-win primary season. WHY A LOS ANGELES CONGRESSWOMAN IS TALKING ABOUT AFRICA Sarah Wire reports on how Rep. Karen Bass (D-Los Angeles) uses breakfast meetings with African immigrants and ambassadors to shape U.S. policy toward the continent. Bass said its best when the people have a voice in the policy that affects them. In community organizing, you believe that the best policy is made by having those people that are most affected by the policy at the table. Its not rocket science. If you do policy in a vacuum it can have unintended consequences, she said. But its the diversity of her own district that has inspired her to focus on Africa. FAMILY LEAVE CHANGES AHEAD Melanie Mason reports on how presidential campaign rhetoric has put a measure to make the state program for family leave more lucrative for workers on the fast track in the Legislature. ARGUING OVER GITMO Republicans made clear they dont support President Obamas attempt to finally meet his 2008 campaign pledge and close the Guantanamo Bay prison. Obama sent Congress a plan Tuesday to transfer up to 60 terrorism suspects to a yet unnamed U.S. prison. TODAYS ESSENTIALS On our editorial pages, Jonah Goldberg suggests a Cruz-Rubio ticket to stop Trump. Matt Pearce looks at the fight over transgender bathrooms in North Carolina. Listen to Spike Lees Bernie Sanders endorsement. House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer dropped in on California last week, stumping for a handful of California Democrats facing competitive races, reports Christine Mai-Duc. They included three Democratic members and several challengers. Hoyer attended fundraisers for Michael Eggman, an almond farmer hoping to unseat Rep. Jeff Denham (R-Turlock), and Jimmy Panetta, whos running for the seat that will be vacated by the retirement of Rep. Sam Farr. Eight years after Obama was nominated, the presidents race is still front and center. Colleen Shalby breaks it down in light of the latest remarks from presidential hopeful Ben Carson. Evan Halper details the latest in Hillary Clintons email problems, as a federal judge ruled that aides to the former secretary of State should be questioned in a lawsuit that alleges the private server set up in her home may have been intended to dodge federal transparency laws. LOGISTICS Miss yesterdays newsletter? Here you go. Did someone forward you this? Sign up here to get Essential Politics in your inbox daily. And keep an eye on our politics page throughout the day for the latest and greatest. And are you following us on Twitter at @latimespolitics? Please send thoughts, concerns and news tips to politics@latimes.com. If Hillary Clinton manages by the end of this campaign to dramatically improve her image, she can credit the cable TV networks and the town halls they have aired incessantly for weeks. Republican presidential candidates have been throwing around accusations of lying and deceitful campaign tactics. The Republican establishment -- whats left of it -- has been tying itself into pretzels trying to figure out a way to knock out Donald Trump, the front-runner who on Tuesday won his third successive state -- but who, many in the party feel, would doom them in November. At the same time, Clinton and her challenger, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, have gotten gobs of free airtime to soften their edges or toughen their resumes, whatever their need. Advertisement TRAIL GUIDE: All the latest news on the 2016 presidential campaign >> The town hall format like the one on CNN Tuesday night seems to particularly benefit Clinton, in part because she is the one whose image has needed rebooting. She has had persistent problems convincing voters that shes trustworthy and cares about them, for starters -- key elements in a general-election decision. For her, the town halls give one of the worlds best known -- and most caricatured -- women an extended, nationally televised and free opportunity to craft a more appealing visage. Candidates like town halls because they are not debates. Clintons allies, in fact, tried to limit the number of Democratic debates this year, a somewhat inexplicable decision considering shes won all of them. Instead of the face-to-face battle, the one-after-the-other format makes one or the other the center of attention, before an audience happy to be there. For a solid hour Tuesday night, voters asked each Democrat questions, and they didnt go after the candidates as much as professional questioners would have. No one asked Clinton on Tuesday about a federal judges ruling hours earlier that her aides could be questioned in a lawsuit about the private email server she used as secretary of State. If anything, the town halls this year have gone quirky, forcing the candidates off their oft-repeated talking points and into interesting character territory with questions such as the one posed to Clinton on Tuesday: How will you harness the power of forgiveness as president? I could not be standing here if I had not been forgiven many times and if I had not been able to forgive, myself, those who I thought had in some way disappointed or wronged me, she replied. I as a person of faith believe profoundly in the power of forgiveness. To anyone watching, it was a simultaneous reminder of multiple things that arguably helped Clinton: her little-known but lifelong faith, her hard-fought loyalty to Bill Clinton after his presidential affair with an intern, and a sense of humility that doesnt often enter the campaign arena. Clinton, who can knit an astonishing amount of policy detail into any town hall answer, went on to describe South Africas post-apartheid reconciliation program, and then doubled back to this country with what appeared to be a slap at the Republican candidates. Join the conversation on Facebook >> I see so much anger and fear and bitterness, some of it being played out in our political system right now: the kind of language being used, violent images, threats against people, said Clinton, speaking a day after Trump, at a campaign event, had talked about wanting to punch a protester. It is deeply troubling to me because we need to try to unite our country, not divide it, if were going to deal with the challenges we face. Clinton also offered an evocative answer to a question about racial differences in the country, and used a light touch when asked a question by a young law student who said she was in Sanders camp even though her mother was voting for Clinton. The young woman asked about student debt, and after a lengthy and detailed answer about her plans for the college loan system, Clinton let her go with a joking: Go talk to your mother. Her image-smoothing commentaries in South Carolina followed similar occurrences in Nevada and New Hampshire. Sanders would seem to be a prime beneficiary of the extended and largely uncritical coverage that the town halls offer, but he hasnt been in a position to take full advantage of them. For one thing, he tends to beat the same drum he does in his speeches: the political system is corrupt, the economy is rigged, the middle class has been abandoned. And extended riffs about Clintons Wall Street connections dont seem to hit as hard when shes not standing next to him on stage. Whether because of his fierceness -- or because the audience is trying to figure how Clintons friendly town hall demeanor squares with the notion that shes a cold fish -- he also doesnt get as many thought-provoking questions as Clinton does. His questions have a largely unspoken theme: Nice ideas, but how exactly would you get them passed? He bridled a bit on Tuesday when asked about a Clinton ad that accused him of being a single-issue candidate focused only on punishing Wall Street. He went on at length about other things he cares about -- rebuilding the nations infrastructure, making college tuition free, pay equity for women. Then he interrupted himself to focus anew on Wall Street, which was, he said, enormously important. Clinton and Sanders have gone out of their way to praise one another at these events, which only sharpens the contrast with Republicans engaged in a bloody and unrepentant battle. Just in the last few days, Trump all but sanctioned violence against campaign protesters while belittling his challengers, calling Texas Sen. Ted Cruz sick. Rubio complained about Cruzs tactics against him and another candidate, Ben Carson. And Cruz had to fire his spokesman after the spokesman spread a video that wrongly questioned Rubios faith (and went a ways to confirming Rubios complaints.) No one on that side of the aisle was talking about forgiveness. cathleen.decker@latimes.com For political news and analysis, follow me on Twitter: @cathleendecker . For more on politics, go to latimes.com/decker ALSO Trump wins Nevada caucuses, fortifying his lead in the Republican race What you need to know about the search for Scalias successor Bernie journeys and Clinton travelers: Meet the Californians who made the political pilgrimage to Vegas When Barack Obama made history as the first African American president, a dichotomy was born: Would Obama showcase his black heritage too much? Or would he, the son of a white mother, prove not to be "black enough"? The latest speculation comes from Republican presidential candidate Ben Carson, who implied to Politico that hes more authentically African American than the president. Hes an African American. He was, you know, raised white. Many of his formative years were spent in Indonesia. So, for him to, you know, claim that, you know, he identifies with the experience of black Americans, I think, is a bit of a stretch. Obama has addressed the concept of blackness before. "The notion that theres some authentic way of being black, that if youre going to be black you have to act a certain way and wear a certain kind of clothes, that has to go," Obama said in 2014. Conversely, activist Michael Skolnik started #ObamaAndKids this weekend in honor of Black History Month. The hashtag quickly became a top trending conversation on Twitter. This would be the last Black History Month celebration at The White House during the presidency of the first African-American in the history of The United States to hold the highest office in the land, Skolnik wrote in a Medium blog post. Obama himself has spoken openly about his race in connection with his presidency. Earlier this month, he talked with Los Angeles Times reporter Christi Parsons about his legacy. Youve got a whole generation of kids where the only president they know is African-American, Obama said. President Obama on generational attitude changes Could the U.S. see a female or Hispanic president in the future? Obama chatted with us about the changing attitudes of each generation:https://lat.ms/1TacuAV Posted by Los Angeles Times on Thursday, February 11, 2016 On Sunday, the White House released a video of 106-year-old African American Virginia McLauren meeting the president and First Lady Michelle Obama at the White House in a Black History Month celebration. And last week, the president made a Black History Month joke in reference to black culture. Were nine months out from election day and at the start of official retrospection on the 44th presidency. But judging by the past eight years, and even the past month alone, Obama's race will likely continue to be a topic of debate and conversation even after the torch is passed. To determine whether the Zika virus is indeed responsible for a surge in birth defects, public health officials are drawing on expertise from many disciplines. These collaborators are galvanized by more than mere scientific curiosity. Having battled Ebola, Middle East Respiratory Syndrome, West Nile virus and other scourges, they remain vigilant against any outbreak that could morph into the Big One a deadly and highly transmissible new pathogen for which the public has no natural immunity. FULL COVERAGE: Zika virus outbreak Zika is one of those reminders that everything is worth studying, because we dont know what the next big one is going to be, said North Carolina State University entomologist Michael Reiskind, who studies how mosquitoes spread disease. Biology is incredibly diverse, and when we let our guard down were constantly surprised by things. Zika is a perfect example of this. Heres how the puzzle comes together: Epidemiology Entomology Microbiology Diagnostics Clinical Medicine Epidemiology Brazilian Army soldiers inspect a home while canvassing a neighborhood in Recife, part of an attempt to eradicate the larvae of the mosquito which carries the Zika virus. The soliders also discuss ways to prevent Zikas spread. (Mario Tama / Getty Images) Epidemiologists are poring over, and filling in, a narrative of outbreaks of Zika since its 1947 discovery in Ugandas Zika Forest. As population scientists track the virus migration out of Africa and into Asia and the Americas, they will pay particularly close attention to evidence that could help them figure out whether cases of microcephaly followed in its wake but were undetected at the time. The tiny island nation of Yap in the South Pacific may provide the most useful record of Zika infection. Experts estimate that in 2007, between 68% and 88% of residents over the age of 2 were infected with the virus. Islands can offer a uniquely revealing picture of outbreaks, said Derek Cummings, an infectious diseases specialist at the University of Florida. Their generally small populations tend to be exposed to one new pathogen at a time, and that offers a clearer picture of a virus immediate impact and its longer-term health consequences, he said. If no rise in birth defects is discernible, that could be a sign of poor record keeping. It may also indicate that hundreds or thousands of pregnant women must be infected with Zika to produce one microcephalic infant. If so, the geographically isolated outbreaks of the past may have been too small to prompt a noticeable increase in birth defects. But epidemiologists must consider other possibilities as well. Among them: Have birth defects been absent before because Africans and Asians have lived with Zika for so long that almost all pregnant women have developed immunity to the virus? That is known to be the case with another pathogen called cytomegalovirus, said Dr. Sarah Obican, a maternal and fetal medicine specialist at the University of South Florida. If a woman is exposed to cytomegalovirus for the first time while pregnant, she is more likely to give birth to a baby with microcephaly and other neurodevelopmental disorders. But the virus is so widespread that by the time women become pregnant, most of them have already developed antibodies that protect both them and their developing fetuses. There might be an ominous explanation for the sudden appearance of birth defects apparently related to Zika perhaps a new mutation in the virus genetic code has endowed it with the ability to attack fetal brain tissue. Some scientists are also asking whether theres something about Brazilian women a genetic vulnerability or an environmental factor such as poor nutrition, for instance that makes their babies more vulnerable to brain-related birth defects when Zika is present. Brazils public health service is already planning studies that will closely track women from the earliest days of their pregnancies until well after they give birth. That way, they can confirm infections when they happen and see how often these illnesses result in birth defects. It will also help them spot new modes of transmission, if and when they arise. Back to top Entomology A view of Aedes aegypti mosquitos at the epidemiology department of Guatemala City, Guatemala. These are one of two species known to spread the Zika virus. (Esteban Biba / EPA) Entomologists, the scientists who study insects, are putting Zika-spreading mosquitoes under the microscope. Feeding Zika-rich blood to swarms of mosquitoes in their labs, these scientists hope to pinpoint the moment in a mosquitos 3-week life span at which it becomes capable of spreading the virus. Entomologists must also discern how efficiently each mosquito transmits its viral cargo. So far, it appears that two mosquito species Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus can spread Zika with their bites. These are the same species that spread the viruses that cause dengue, chikungunya and West Nile virus. As a result, their ranges, feeding patterns and reproductive habits have been extensively studied. That information can help with mosquito control efforts. Microbiology A doctor performs laboratory tests at the National Autonomous University of Honduras Microbiology Research Institute in Tegucigalpa. The universitys microbiology department is leading research on the Zika virus. (Orlando Sierra / AFP/Getty Images) Mosquitoes and humans are not the only animals to be studied in the puzzle over Zika. At the National Institutes of Health, rodents and perhaps other laboratory animals will be exposed to the virus to see how readily they develop infections, how their illnesses progress, and by which of many possible mechanisms the virus reaches and infects a developing fetus, said Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. Microbiologists will track the virus entry into cells, distinguishing which ones they favor, how they replicate, and what if anything impedes them. Some cellular answers are now in hand, and more are on the way. A team of Slovenian researchers recently examined the brain tissue of an aborted fetus with microcephaly whose mother had been infected with Zika in her first trimester. The team found Zika virus throughout the brain but in no other tissues they examined, according to a February report in the New England Journal of Medicine. Given the phalanx of biological barriers the virus eluded to slip into the fetal brain and how widespread it was, the researchers concluded Zika virus is drawn to the growth medium that brain cells provide. The team also harvested the Zika virus in such a way that its genome can be sequenced comprehensively. That will allow geneticists and virologists to compare the RNA from current strains to those from earlier outbreaks, looking for signs that the virus has evolved in the course of its worldwide journey. Then they must scope out its shape, habits and vulnerabilities, allowing them to plot how and for how long the human immune system responds to it, and how vaccines could help. Dr. Albert Ko, an infectious disease physician and epidemiologist at Yale, said the Zika now circulating in South America is clearly related to the version seen in Yap in 2007. But as it cuts across the Americas, it may well change. Scientists will also examine samples collected throughout South and Central America now, to see if Zika virus found in the tissue or amniotic fluid of babies with birth defects is in any way different from the virus circulating more broadly in the community. Ultimately, virologists and immunologists will use the insights they glean to design vaccines that could protect against Zika. Fauci said NIH scientists are currently pursuing at least two approaches to a Zika vaccine one used to design a vaccine for West Nile virus and the other used to make a vaccine for dengue virus. Both of these vaccines are already in early clinical trials, and either or both have the potential be adapted quickly to fight Zika. But Fauci cautioned we will not have a widely available safe and effective Zika vaccine this year and probably not in the next few years. Back to top Diagnostics Cultured cells that have been infected with the Zika virus, viewed under a microscope. The cells appear green only if they are infected. (DR. ERIK LATTWEIN/EUROIMMUN AG/H / EPA) Researchers need to develop inexpensive and easy-to-use blood or urine tests that will reliably identify a Zika infection, past or present. Some tests currently exist, but they have limited value for the public health officials grappling with the current outbreak. For instance, one available assay detects the genetic residues of the Zika virus only when an infection is ongoing. Another can detect a recent infection, but requires careful sampling techniques, storage and days of laboratory processing. The ideal assay would be able to confirm whether a patient is infected with the Zika virus or has antibodies suggestive of a past infection. And it could reliably distinguish Zika infection from infection with other viruses that are either in the same family or cause some of the same symptoms but which are not linked to birth defects. The value of such a test is hard to overstate, said Derek Cummings, an expert in infectious diseases at the University of Florida. It could allow physicians to reassure pregnant women sickened by something other than Zika. It could also help doctors identify and track the pregnancies of women who have been infected by Zika. In addition, the test would be an invaluable tool for tracing Zikas pattern of spread through populations with no immunity. Without it, Cummings said, researchers will be hobbled in conducting the kinds of large epidemiological studies that are necessary to tease out Zikas long-term consequences for the public. A good field test for Zika could help scientists figure out how the human immune system responds to the virus, and how long that immunity lasts. That might help clarify whether a woman whos been exposed to Zika before she becomes pregnant might confer protection against any Zika-related birth defects to her future offspring. Researchers at MIT, the University of Texas and elsewhere are racing to develop Zika assays to fill the void. Even if they work, however, it could take months or years for them to become available to physicians and researchers. Back to top Clinical medicine A gynecologist examines a rash on the arm of Daniela Rodriguez, who is six weeks along in her pregnancy. She was diagnosed with the Zika virus in Cucuta, Colombia. The most common symptoms of Zika are fever, rash, joint pain, or conjunctivitis. (Ricardo Mazalan / AP) Even as they scramble to care for pregnant women with Zika and the babies they bear, fetal and maternal medicine specialists are desperate to solve some key riddles about the virus. They must figure out whether and how it crosses the placental barrier between mother and child, when in fetal development it must be present to do damage, and whether other factors say, a genetic predisposition or nutritional deficit must be in place for harm to occur. Dr. Albert Ko of Yale, who has examined some of the brain scans of affected babies, said doctors are seeing a wide range of neurodevelopmental birth defects in Brazil. While some have mild cases of microcephaly, others have very small brains that are abnormally smooth and riddled with harmful calcium deposits. Abnormally formed retinal and optic nerves, which may affect vision, as well as hearing loss, are also among the birth defects linked to Zika. That range of outcomes could be a sign that the timing of congenital infection makes a difference, said Dr. Sarah Obican, a University of South Florida maternal fetal medicine specialist who is actively monitoring the pregnancies of women who fear they have been infected with Zika. The first trimester is when all the anatomic formation occurs, but the brains development continues throughout pregnancy, she said. An infection early in pregnancy might be most dangerous because its effects have so long to play themselves out, Obican said. At the same time, she added, its really hard to say the brain cannot be affected in every trimester. Meanwhile, pathologists and maternal-fetal medicine specialists will be combing through the fluids and tissues of infected fetuses and babies, looking for clues as to where the virus flourishes. Experts who examined a microcephalic fetus aborted at about 29 weeks gestation reported in the New England Journal of Medicine that they found Zika virus in the brain, but not in other tissues they checked. Other teams have found the virus in amniotic fluid. Obican said she must assume that American women infected with Zika are at no less risk of having babies with birth defects than are women in Brazil. But she, too, wonders whether some genetic or environmental difference may be interacting with the virus to make Brazilian babies more vulnerable. Were nowhere near where we need to be to make such predictions, she said. Back to top Follow me on Twitter @LATMelissaHealy and "like" Los Angeles Times Science & Health on Facebook. On the outskirts of the ancient Roman city of Nimes in southern France, archaeologists have discovered the graves of three Muslim men that date back to the 8th century. The finding, reported Wednesday in PLOS One, suggests the early medieval presence of Muslims north of the Pyrenees was more complicated, and perhaps more welcome, than previously thought. The medieval history of Muslims in Spain and Portugal is well established, but information about the experience of Muslims in France during the same time period has been more difficult to find. Advertisement According to historical documents, around the year 719, Muslim troops from the Umayyad army crossed the eastern Pyrenees and occupied the region around Narbonne 530 miles south of modern-day Paris. But the occupation was short-lived. By 760, the Franks, who came from the north, took over the region known as Septimania. NEWSLETTER: Get the days top headlines from Times Editor Davan Maharaj >> Very little known is about these early invaders. Historians cannot say for sure whether they lived in garrisons or created more long-term establishments, or what cities they could be found in. They dont even know if the occupiers were Arabs, Berbers or converts. And thats why the three Muslim graves that date back to this time period are so valuable. They could start to answer these questions, said Yves Gleize, who studies archaeo-anthropology at the University of Bordeaux and was the lead author on the study. Gleize was among the archaeologists who discovered the graves back in 2006. The researchers found a total of roughly 20 scattered graves, but Gleize said the three described in the study stood out. The position of the skeletons in these three graves suggested the bodies had been arranged so that each of the deceased was lying on his right side, with his head pointing southeast, toward Mecca. Gleize had seen similar body arrangements in Muslim graves in Montpellier that dated back to the 12th century, and in Marseille from the 13 century. My first reaction was that this could be a very important discovery, he said. He originally thought the graves could be as old as the ones in Montpellier or Marseille. But after sending off a small bit of bone for analysis, he learned that they in fact dated back to a much earlier time, between the 7th and 9th centuries. It was very amazing, he said. Further proof that the graves held Muslim remains came from DNA extracted from each of the skeletons. This genetic data suggested the ancient bones belonged to people of North African lineage. The researchers were also able to determine that the deceased were all men between the ages of 20 and 50. See more of our top stories on Facebook >> We believe these three individuals were Berbers that had been integrated into the Arab army, Gleize said. The researchers also say that the traditional Muslim burial of the three soldiers suggests that there was some type of Muslim community in the area at the time, whose members could bury them in this particular way. In addition, the graves were sprinkled in among those of others who were presumably Christian. That was a sign that Muslims were not necessarily ostracized from the local community. Its a very small sample, just three graves, but it shows the early medieval Muslim presence in the south of France is a reality, Gleize said. Do you love science? I do! Follow me @DeborahNetburn and like Los Angeles Times Science & Health on Facebook. ALSO Scientists survey an Orange County neighborhoods nonnative lizard populations Road to the discovery of gravitational waves was riddled with doubt Five ways scientists are going after the Zika virus With several new restaurants opening in downtown Burbank in recent months and more anticipated, its a sign for some that the district is becoming a more appealing destination in the region, but the trend also indicates that the face of commerce is changing. Five Guys Burgers and Fries opened at the Burbank Town Center in September. A few months later, Steak n Shake opened nearby, across from the AMC Burbank 16 only the third California location for the burger joint with restaurants throughout the country, concentrated mainly in the Midwest, according to the companys website. NEWSLETTER: Stay up to date with whats going on in the 818 >> Several more restaurants are coming soon, said Mary Hamzoian, economic development manager for the city. Those include Gyu-Kaku Japanese BBQ and Wood Ranch BBQ and Grill, both expected to open in the coming months, as well as several still in the permitting process, such as the Yard House sports bar, expected to open above Barneys Beanery. Five Guys Burgers and Fries opened at the Burbank Town Center in September. Its among the first of a wave of new restaurants opening throughout downtown Burbank. (Raul Roa / Staff Photographer) Thats when you know how well your downtown is doing, Hamzoian said, referring to the growing list of well-known restaurant brands and concepts coming to the district. However, some businesses are also moving out, Hamzoian said. She attributed that largely to the fact that leases are expiring, and property owners see an opportunity to raise rents and find new, stronger tenants. Sometimes that can seem to take a long time while much of the work is being done behind-the-scenes. Los Angeles-based taqueria Guisados is working through the permit process for a location at what was formerly an Orchard Flats juicery, at 312 N. San Fernando Blvd. Carving Board Sandwiches is expected to move into a now-empty florist storefront at 218 E. Olive Ave. Downtown needs to balance the growing number of restaurants with retailers, Hamzoian said, but that can be more difficult as landlords favor eateries in an economy being reshaped by online shopping. The types of businesses that are expected to do well are the ones offering experiences that cant be replicated online, she said, and you cant eat on the Internet. The city is already working with the owners of the property that was, until earlier this month, the campus of Marinello Schools of Beauty, Hamzoian said, actively and aggressively seeking a retail tenant. The roughly 11,000-square-foot space could be ideal for a discount shoe or cosmetics store, based on the areas demographics, she said. Alex Benes, a partner and the culinary director at Wood Ranch BBQ, said his company had been looking to open a Burbank location for some time, but had trouble finding the right spot until word got out that Elephant Bar might be closing. The company quickly reached out to the Cusumano Real Estate Group, which owns the property, to express interest. For Benes, some of the key factors were the daytime activities in the area, with nearby retail at Empire Center and IKEA, as well as the AMC theaters. He also said the proximity to offices makes for strong happy hours, while nearby residences mean there will likely be a regular evening customer base. Construction continues at Wood Ranch BBQ and Grill, which is expected to open in the coming months. (Raul Roa / Burbank Leader) Hamzoian said she personally referred more than a dozen firms to the Cusumano group after they expressed interest in the former Elephant Bar location at 110 N. First St. Michael Cusumano, co-owner of the real estate group, said the site attracted a lot of interest because it is a stand-alone restaurant at a prominent intersection and has its own parking lot, but also because the area is continuing to establish itself as a destination. For example, he said, attendance at the fall beer festival in downtown has grown dramatically. The four-block event drew more than 2,800 attendees last year, compared to 600 and 225 at the one-block events in 2014 and 2013, respectively, according to data Hamzoian provided. You cant underestimate the overall appeal of downtown Burbank, Cusumano said. Wood Ranch is one of his personal favorite eateries, he said, and he predicts it will have long lines when it opens, likely in mid-June. It will help continue the momentum of downtown Burbank, he added. -- Chad Garland, chad.garland@latimes.com Twitter: @chadgarland Re. Baugh will only run if Rohrabacher steps Aside, Barbara Venezia column, Feb. 18: I call Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-Costa Mesa) my friend, and you should too. Rohrabacher has been very effective in helping to bring tax dollars back to the 48th Congressional District to support public infrastructure projects like the world famous Ground Water Replenishment System, built and operated by the Orange County Water District, where I serve as director for Division 7. Without his advocacy it is doubtful the project would ever have been built. The congressman is the 24th most-senior member of the U.S. House of Representatives and serves as the ranking member of Foreign Affairs and Appropriations committees. Seniority doesnt come for free; you pay with time in the seat. As chairman of the Europe, Eurasia and Emerging Threats Subcommittee, he carries the voice of the American people to parts of the world most Americans have never heard of and couldnt find on a map, often at great personal risk to himself. He willingly takes the initiative to step in where others fear to tread. After these trips are complete, and the diplomacy is over, friends from far away places visit the 48th Congressional District to see the marvels of science, space and technology that exist right here in Orange County. Together, Rohrabacher and I have personally hosted no less than a dozen delegations, dignitaries and ambassadors from countries around the world, including China, Japan, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Kazakhstan, to name just a few. I am certain these people leave here with a sense of goodwill toward America, and tell and retell their own stories about their visit with their friend Rohrabacher. Former Orange County Republican Party chairman Scott Baugh may be up to the task of running for Congress, but I am certain he knows he has some very big shoes to fill when he gets there. The next time you see Rohrabacher around town, introduce yourself and thank him for his service. I am sure youll find a friend in him too. Shawn Dewane Board president, Mesa Water District Costa Mesa * Development a drain on resources A new, 26-story condo tower is proposed in Newport Center. A reasonable question might be asked if the water to be used for this development is exactly the same water that Newport residents have been working so hard to save. That thought certainly makes me want to flush twice. Susan Skinner Newport Beach Good morning, 818. Today is Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. Temperatures for today are forecasted to reach a high of 86 and a low of 51, according to the National Weather Service. Here are your local headlines: Crime and Public Safety Officer knocked out during fight with suspect A Burbank police officer was knocked unconscious during a fight Sunday night with an assault and vandalism suspect, police said. Granada Hills resident Michael Cho, 26, was arrested on suspicion of assaulting a peace officer, vandalism and resisting an officer, and is being held in lieu of $50,000 bail, according to authorities. Burbank Leader Police seek package theives Police are looking for a woman and her getaway driver who was caught on camera stealing a package from the front porch of a Glendale home last month, officials said. The passenger, described as a Hispanic woman in her early 20s with tattoos on her left arm and abdomen, hopped out of the car and grabbed the package before running back to the car and shoving it inside. Glendale News-Press Murder suspect gets court date A 44-year-old man suspected of killing his elderly uncle in La Crescenta last July using a mallet is slated to be arraigned on Wednesday, records show. David Bushman was charged with one count of murder in the death of 73-year-old Arthur Palmer, who coroners officials said was found with multiple blunt force traumatic injuries in the attached garage of his home last July. Glendale News-Press Three arrested in credit card fraud operation Police recovered $10,000 worth of fraudulent purchases and 50 counterfeit credit cards after a Florida woman used one of them to try to spend $2,079 at Victorias Secret in the Glendale Galleria, officials said. Glendale News-Press Assault suspect appears in court A 21-year-old man who was shot by Burbank police after he slammed a truck into a patrol car at the end of a pursuit pleaded not guilty Tuesday to assault charges, officials said. Arthur Papiyan was charged last month with two counts of assaulting a peace officer with a deadly weapon on Jan. 28, according to the Los Angeles County district attorneys office. Burbank Leader DUI checkpoint yields five arrests Glendale police stopped 75 drivers and conducted 15 field sobriety tests during a DUI saturation patrol Saturday night, officials said. From 6:30 p.m. Saturday to 2:30 a.m. Sunday, eight motorcycle officers looking for impaired drivers arrested five drivers on suspicion of driving under the influence, and two each for being unlicensed and having a suspended license, said Glendale Police spokeswoman Tahnee Lightfoot. Glendale News-Press -- Education Concerns over student privacy Local school officials say they have received concerns from parents over the potential disclosure of student information to attorneys as part of a 2012 lawsuit against the California Department of Education. At the request of State Supt. Tom Torlakson, local school districts, including Glendale and Burbank, are letting parents know how to object to the potential release of student data, which could include students names, addresses and special education programs in which they have been enrolled. Burbank Leader -- Business All in agreement Burbank-Glendale-Pasadena Airport Authority board members on Monday were ironing out a few last wrinkles in an agreement with Uber to strengthen regulations for drivers picking up or dropping off riders at the Burbank airfield, which officials hope will lead to greater compliance and increased revenues. At least two Uber competitors, Lyft and Wingz, had signed similar contracts as of last week. Burbank Leader Parking predicament While Bob Hope Airport officials are seeking to shore up declining parking revenue through stronger enforcement of rules that require car services such as Uber and Lyft to pay $3 per pick-up, some officials also discussed plans to promote low-cost parking options as an advantage of flying out of Burbank. Burbank Leader -- Civic News and Politics Marriott gets greenlight to draw up plans The Glendale City Council on Tuesday gave Marriott International the go-ahead to draw up plans for an artsy boutique hotel that could be built behind a pair of downtown restaurants. The idea is to construct a 117-room AC Hotel the first in California on the site of a 55-space parking lot at Maryland and California avenues. The project site is to the rear of Panera Bread and the Mediterranean eatery Carousel. Glendale News-Press Settlement reached in gender discrimination suit Burbank officials agreed to stop challenging a jurys verdict in favor of a man who sued Burbank for gender discrimination after he was passed over for a job as a police dispatcher, according to a settlement agreement finalized last week. Michael Naylor who served in the U.S. Air Force from 1984 to 2000 before he was injured and discharged sued the city in 2014 after he applied, interviewed and tested for a communications operator position with the city, but was passed over for the job in favor of a woman whose previous work experience was the lunch rush at In-N-Out, according to his attorney Leonard Tavera. Burbank Leader -- In the Community Disc golf tournament draws dozens Hahamongna Watershed Park was a hotbed of athleticism last weekend, as 105 disc golf enthusiasts descended on the nations first course to compete in the Professional Disc Golf Assn.'s 38th Annual Wintertime Open, a two-day tournament open to all levels. La Canada Valley Sun -- Ryan Fonseca, ryan.fonseca@latimes.com Twitter: @RyFons Imagine nationwide demonstrations, mobilized primarily via a Chinese social media platform and involving tens of thousands of people, spanning more than 40 cities on the same day. Such a scenario is unthinkable in mainland China, but its precisely what happened over the weekend. Chinas Internet censors, who routinely scrub the Web of any calls to collective action, didnt seem to bat an eye. Chinas state-run news media typically skittish about publicizing protests paid keen attention to the rallies demanding justice. Advertisement Why such lenient treatment? The rallies took place in the United States. The cause celebre was Peter Liang, a Chinese American rookie cop who fatally shot an unarmed African American man, Akai Gurley, in a dark stairwell in a Brooklyn, N.Y., public housing complex in 2014. Gurleys death came amid a nationwide debate about police killings of black men and followed a slew of cases in which grand juries declined to indict white officers implicated in much less ambiguous killings. Liang, 28, maintains the shooting was an accident, but this month he was found guilty of manslaughter, becoming the first New York City Police Department officer convicted in an on-duty death since 2005. Saturdays rallies in New York, Boston, Philadelphia, Los Angeles and dozens of other cities were a rare instance of collective political action by Chinese Americans, many of whom contend Liang was sold out by the NYPD because of his race. RELATED: Hundreds gather in L.A. to support convicted New York cop Peter Liang>> A crucial factor in the turnout was WeChat, a.k.a. Weixin, a social media platform developed by the Chinese company Tencent and used primarily on smartphones. A cross between WhatsApp and Facebook, the service has flourished in the last several years in China, where Facebook, Twitter, Line and many other foreign social media platforms are blocked by authorities who have taken note, with horror, of their role in mobilizing protests around the world, from Egypt to Chinas western region of Xinjiang. Though political speech is often scrubbed from WeChat and its closed architecture confines a great deal of commentary to narrow friend groups, the service has more than half a billion users in China. It is also a must-have for the Chinese diaspora around the world for keeping in touch with friends and staying up to date on the latest (government-approved) news, photos and trends. Seamlessly mixing posts in multiple languages and offering voice memos, it appeals to both immigrants in the U.S. with no mastery of English and Chinese Americans who speak English better than Mandarin. Most of the organizing was done on WeChat. There was some via email, Facebook and Twitter, but very little, said Jack White, a small-business owner who immigrated from China 13 years ago and is president of the Minnesota Chinese Assn. It was the first time, he said, that he had taken part in such a protest. This is one of the great things about America, said White, who noted that organizing a protest via WeChat in China was unthinkable. I tell my friends: The U.S. is the best country in the world, although its not perfect and has its problems here and there. Tian Wang, a Beijing native who lives in Diamond Bar, said he had followed Liangs case with some ambivalence in 2015. Somebody died, and he has to be responsible to some degree. I was against going out to protest for a long time, Wang said. But after the conviction, Wang said, he found fault with the prosecution, the judge and the media, and decided to act. There has been a lot of tension between the African American community and cops, and the tension was at a breaking point, said Wang, 32, a leader of the L.A. protests that drew hundreds downtown. NYPD made him a scapegoat. Join the conversation on Facebook >> It wasnt Wangs first time in the streets. In 2013, he joined protests criticizing ABC and Jimmy Kimmel after the talk show host aired a segment with a group of children discussing the United States $1.3-trillion debt held by China and one suggested the solution was to kill everyone in China. At that time, recalled Wang, WeChat hadnt yet attained widespread popularity. He estimated that in L.A., organizers collected $50,000 in donations to buy TV, radio and newspaper ads to mobilize protesters and hire buses to drive to ABCs Burbank headquarters. This time, we didnt have to ask for anything; we could do it all on WeChat for free, he said. I and some neighbors spent about $4,500 on banners and signs, but thats about it. Not all the WeChat organizers, though, are in the United States; a number publicizing the rallies are in mainland China. One, a software engineer named Xie Shuisheng with a doctorate from an American university, runs a WeChat account called Civil Rights. Through that and via a software service he developed called WeiDB.com that enables users to easily publish long opinion pieces on WeChat, Xie has been urging Chinese in the United States to get involved in American democracy. Xie says his Civil Rights channel which he founded after the Kimmel incident garnered 10,000 followers in less than 10 days after Liangs conviction, and its published articles were viewed more than a million times. Now visiting his family in southern China, he has been staying up all night to keep posting updates during the U.S. daytime and says he believes his was the most influential channel in mobilizing demonstrators. While acknowledging that his activities could veer into sensitive territory, Xie said he is very careful about what he posts. When my parents heard I was doing something like this in the U.S., I said, Dont worry, Im not doing anything against the laws of [China], he said. NEWSLETTER: Get the days top headlines from Times Editor Davan Maharaj >> Chinas state-run TV often avoids showing demonstrations. But on Sunday, CCTV News devoted numerous segments throughout the day to the U.S. gatherings. The state-run New China News Agency sent reporters in at least four U.S. cities to various rallies, and the official China Daily featured the New York gathering on its front page. An op-ed in Global Times, a Communist Party tabloid, took the opportunity to highlight inequality in America, bemoaning the obvious double standards toward different races that has made people furious and calling Chinese Americans a model group in the U.S. They work hard, pay taxes on time, they dont miss a credit card payment, and they place more value than other Americans do on marriage, parenthood and family. However, a majority of them are not active in politics and have relatively low voting rates. This means they are easily overlooked or discriminated against. Some people have accused the Chinese government of fomenting the protests, but Xie called the idea nonsense. Though Saturdays rallies in the U.S. indicate the potential power of WeChat to bring people into the streets if left uncensored human rights activists say China is likely to keep a tight rein on the platform, at least at home. Social media platforms like WeChat have served as powerful means of spreading information, raising awareness and organizing in recent years, especially in relatively small-scale bread and butter disputes that concern specific workplaces or local concerns, said William Nee, a China-focused researcher at Amnesty International. However, the government systematically censors WeChat, he said. It can close down accounts, and it punishes people for their political speech, so there are obvious limits on the effectiveness of WeChat as an organizing tool. Special correspondent Chuan Xu, Times staff writer Jonathan Kaiman and Nicole Liu in The Times Beijing bureau contributed to this report. ALSO Obama gives Congress plan to close Guantanamo Bay prison Hard-line media groups in Iran increase the bounty for killing Salman Rushdie Ushering in the Year of the Monkey at 180 mph on Chinas bullet train Wearing a white sweater and a blue blazer, her eyes framed by round spectacles, Eun Soo-mi looked more like a librarian than a political saboteur as she approached the podium in South Koreas parliament at 2:30 a.m. on Wednesday. With the quiet resolve of an endurance athlete, the 52-year-old member of the Minjoo Party embarked upon her mission: to speak for 10 hours as part of opposition lawmakers effort to block a vote on controversial anti-terrorism legislation with a filibuster a highly unusual move that South Korea hasnt seen in more than 45 years. Lawmakers from the Saenuri Party, a conservative party that holds a majority in the chamber, repeatedly interrupted her, yelling for her to step aside and let the bill go to a vote. Saenuri Policy Chief Kim Jung-hoon accused her of turning South Koreas parliament into an international laughingstock. Advertisement NEWSLETTER: Get the days top headlines from Times Editor Davan Maharaj >> But Eun just kept going with her rambling monologue, mostly reading academic papers about anti-terrorism legislation. When interrupted, she simply made deadpan requests to her noisy opponents, flatly saying, Please apologize. The decision by opposition lawmakers to resort to a rare filibuster the first since 1969 underscores the deep divide over the legislation. The bill is ostensibly a response to recent provocations by North Korea, including a nuclear test and long-range rocket launch. Saenuri lawmakers and President Park Geun-hye have described the current situation as an emergency and argue that it is necessary to grant the National Intelligence Service, the countrys main spy agency, greater power to investigate people or organizations. Saenuri holds 152 of 300 seats in parliament. If the measure were put to a plenary vote, it would almost certainly pass. The legislation was first introduced after the 2001 terrorist attacks in the U.S. and has been languishing in parliament since then. Given North Koreas latest antics, the ruling party contends that now is the time to step up security measures. But the opposition claims that the agencys powers should be curtailed, not expanded. Under parliamentary rules, there is no mandatory end to debate -- as long as someone keeps talking, the ruling party has no power to stop them. And thats just what the opposition plans to do for the next two weeks. For the filibuster to succeed, the lawmakers will have to keep up the chatter until March 11, when the parliamentary session is scheduled to end. South Korean intelligence agencies have for years faced allegations of meddling in politics and overstepping their authority to snoop on the public. In 2014, the former director of the National Intelligence Service was sentenced to three years in prison for leading a campaign that saw thousands of comments posted on online message boards ahead of the 2012 presidential election. The messages praised ruling party candidate (and now President) Park Geun-hye, while disparaging her liberal opponent, Moon Jae-in, as a North Korea-loving stooge. A 2014 report by the International Crisis Group called on South Korea to rein in the NIS. Efforts are needed to reform the Souths intelligence capacities, principally by depoliticizing its agencies and ensuring adequate legislative and judicial oversight, the group said. The filibuster began Tuesday evening, led off by five hours and 23 minutes of remarks by the Minjoo Partys Kim Gwang-jin. Eun followed Kim with 10 hours and 18 minutes at the podium, setting the record for longest ever address in South Korean parliament. But she fell short of the mark set by Strom Thurmond, who carried out the longest ever filibuster by a U.S. senator, speaking nonstop for over 24 hours in an effort to filibuster the Civil Rights Act of 1957. Euns only display of emotion was when she choked up talking about South Korean democracy icon and former President Kim Dae-jung, who as a young lawmaker in 1964 gave a speech in parliament that lasted more than five hours in an effort to block parliamentary approval of a fellow legislators arrest. See more of our top stories on Facebook >> South Korean politicians dont always resolve their differences so peacefully. In the past, lawmakers have gotten into fistfights, thrown furniture and barricaded doors to prevent the passing of legislation. In 2011, an opposition lawmaker tossed a tear gas canister at the main podium in a last-ditch effort to prevent the signing of a free trade agreement with the United States. Parliament was evacuated, but the bill passed anyway. The ongoing filibuster attempt is a rare cooperative act by South Koreas political opposition. In recent years, the main liberal party, now the Minjoo Party, has changed its name, and had many high-profile members defect amid infighting and electoral defeats. Their suddenly united front may have something to do with having a common enemy. Resisting the expansion of the NISs discretionary powers is certainly something opposition lawmakers can rally behind, for now at least, said Steven Denney, a Graduate Fellow at the Asian Institute at the University of Toronto and specialist on South Korean politics. Borowiec is a special correspondent. MORE FROM WORLD Chinese social media platform plays a role in U.S. rallies for NYPD officer I knew Beijings bad air was killing me slowly. But is it making me fat too? North Korea will collapse if it pursues nuclear weapons, South Korean president says Attempting to show his devotion to his country, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Sisi said he would be willing to put himself up for sale and donate the proceeds if he thought it would help the economy. I swear to God if I could be sold ... then I would be sold, he said in a sprawling televised speech Monday that quickly became a topic of mockery. Field Marshal philosopher with a military background in good shape for sale, somebody posted in an EBay listing for the former army officer and self-described philosopher. The ad has since been taken down. Advertisement Sisi also acknowledged for the first time that terrorists had downed the Russian passenger jet that crashed over the Sinai Peninsula in October. The incident caused a steep decline in tourism, leading to a foreign currency shortage that has contributed to the countrys worst financial condition since the 2011 revolt that ousted Hosni Mubarak. Although Sinai State, a group affiliated with Islamic State, claimed responsibility for the crash that killed 224 people aboard the Metrojet airliner, Sisi had dismissed the claim as propaganda and an investigative panel set up by the government said there was no evidence of a terrorist act. The president said Wednesday that terrorists had brought down the plane not only to hurt tourism but also to damage Egypts international standing. The speech, though, was largely about the economy, including a new development plan called Egypt 2030. Sisi urged Egyptians to contribute their own money to help lift Egypt from its woes. If the 10 million who have mobile phones out of the 90 million Egyptians said good morning to Egypt by sending a 1-pound message donation, we would have 10 million pounds a day, which is 300 million pounds each month, he said. NEWSLETTER: Get the days top headlines from Times Editor Davan Maharaj >> The 61-year-old grew emotional as he shed a tear as he spoke about selling himself. After the speech, thousands of Egyptians took to social media to spoof the presidents words and dramatic flair. It didnt take lone for the hashtag #Evaluate_Sisis_speech began trending. Thanks Mr. President; now we have enough material to make fun of for the next month, @Amani207 tweeted in Arabic. @Jojo_Fawzy wrote: Would you end my phone contract f I dont send a morning donation sms! And @abooazozz1403 tweeted: Is this a speech by the president of a country with the history of Egypt?! Putting himself up for sale like that! Sisi also addressed his political opponents. Dont listen to anyone but me, he said. I am dead serious. He went on to threaten anyone who might try to topple the government: I will remove him from the face of the Earth. I am telling you this as the whole of Egypt is listening. What do you think you are doing? Who are you? A state crackdown on political dissidents has drawn heavy criticism from local and international human rights organizations, which report that more than 300 people have disappeared and at least 16,000 more jailed as a result of political activism. Hassan is a special correspondent. See more of our top stories on Facebook >> MORE FROM WORLD Why the Syrian cease-fire may be dead on arrival Murder, torture, drugs: Cartel kingpins wife says thats not the El Chapo she knows South Korean lawmakers try first filibuster since 1969 to block anti-terrorism bill The fatwa issued 27 years ago by Irans former supreme leader calling for Salman Rushdie to be killed seems like a relic of a bygone era. But not to a group of hard-line Iranian media organizations that announced it has raised $600,000 to add to a bounty for the death of the British novelist for writing The Satanic Verses. The announcement published this week by the Fars news agency, which has close ties to Irans Revolutionary Guard Corps, is a sign of political infighting in the run-up to Fridays elections for parliament and the Assembly of Experts, the body that will choose the next supreme leader. Advertisement Opponents of President Hassan Rouhanis efforts to improve relations with the United States and its allies have been taking every opportunity to show there will be no opening to the West, even after a milestone nuclear deal negotiated last year, analysts said. Farshad Ghorbanpour, a political analyst close to the reformists, said Irans young, educated city dwellers have largely forgotten the fatwa issued by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini months before he died in 1989. But he said religious hard-liners will bring back a mammoth from the ice age if it serves their political purposes. The announcement of the new bounty, which came at a digital media exhibition last week, was timed to coincide with the anniversary of the fatwa, according to Fars. The agency said it was one of 43 contributing organizations. Their pledges theoretically raise the reward money available to anyone who carries out Khomeinis edict to nearly $4 million. A religious organization called the 15 Khordad Foundation had offered $3.3 million. Rushdies 1988 novel suggested that parts of the Koran were not the words of God, which Khomeini deemed blasphemous against Islam. His fatwa prompted Britain to sever diplomatic relations with the Islamic Republic for nearly a decade. Rushdie spent several years in hiding and has lived under police protection ever since. Several other people involved in the books publication have been attacked, including the Japanese translator Hitoshi Igarashi, who was stabbed to death in 1991. In 1998, Irans then-president, Mohammad Khatami, a reformist, said the fatwa was finished, but the countrys religious authorities never lifted the edict. Last year, the country pulled out of a book fair in Frankfurt, Germany, when it was announced that Rushdie would be a speaker. Imam Khomeinis fatwa is a religious decree, and it will never lose its power or fade out, Irans Deputy Culture Minister Seyed Abbas Salehi said at the time, according to Fars. Special correspondent Mostaghim reported from Tehran and Times staff writer Zavis from Los Angeles. For more international news, follow @alexzavis on Twitter. The success of a U.S.-Russian cease-fire agreement in Syria hinges on the fate of one extremist faction and its not Islamic State. On Monday, the U.S. and Russia, chairs of the 17-nation International Syria Support Group seeking to end the war in Syria, set a deadline of midnight Friday for a truce to begin among the belligerents in Syria, where a multitude of rebel factions are fighting to wrest control of the country from forces allied with Syrian President Bashar Assad. The cessation of hostilities applies to any party currently engaged in military or paramilitary hostilities against any other parties, according to the U.S. State Department. Advertisement But the deal excludes groups that the United Nations Security Council has designated as terrorist organizations, such as Islamic State. That caveat also includes Al Nusra Front, the Al Qaeda affiliate that has been an essential player in the ranks of the Syrian armed opposition since early 2012. Its militants, battle-hardened veterans from other theaters such as Iraq and Afghanistan, are known for their relentlessness, shooting until they run out of ammunition and then detonating explosives belts. They have become the shock troops in the fight against the government. And although so-called moderate rebels operating under the banner of the Free Syrian Army claim they shun the extremists for fear of losing Western support, many freely acknowledge they work with Al Nusra and other Islamist groups to achieve success on the battlefield. There is no existence for a cease-fire with the targeting of the Nusra Front, for we are a part of it and it is a part of us, tweeted Abu Hamza, the nom de guerre of a media official with Ahrar al Sham, which has cast itself as a moderate group despite being co-founded by an Al Qaeda operative. The crux of the agreement may be in the fine print, which calls for the collection of aggregated data that delineates territory held by the groups that are parties to the deal, while marking the territory held by Islamic State, Al Nusra Front and other terrorist organizations designated by the U.N. Security Council, which are excluded from the cessation of hostilities. Military action, including airstrikes, by the Syrian government, Russia and the U.S.-led coalition will continue against those groups, the agreement says. This may work in territory controlled by Islamic State, which operates in areas where other factions have no presence. Al Nusra Front, however, can be found throughout rebel-controlled areas, making delineation a virtually impossible task in a Swiss-cheese battlefield where the bases and headquarters of different factions exist in the same town, village and even neighborhood. Murad Shawakh, a resident of the northwestern town of Azaz who was reached via social media on Wednesday, said Al Nusra Front had 5,000 insurgents spread out over the northern provinces of Aleppo, Idlib and Hama. No one expects the cease-fire to happen there, since all these areas have Al Nusra Front, he said. Rebels also insisted that the inclusion of Al Nusra Front was a ploy for Russia to continue its bombing campaign against Assads enemies. Russia intervened under the excuse of fighting Daesh, but in truth it bombed and destroyed areas that included the Free Syrian Army, said Col. Mohammad Ahmad, a commander with the Aleppo-based Levant Front faction, referring to Islamic State by its Arabic acronym. Now they put Nusra in there as well so as to justify their bombing of us again, he said. If the limited cease-fire does take place, observers say, the rebels will have no choice but to fight Al Nusra Front. It is not enough in the cease-fire for the warring parties to promise not to fire at each other, wrote Louay Hussein, a prominent opposition politician, on his Facebook page Monday. Instead it means those parties must accept to fight Daesh, Al Nusra Front, any group deemed by the great powers to be a terrorist organization. This is embarrassing for the [rebel] factions, who will be forced to fight the allies of yesterday and others, and indeed may be forced to cooperate with the regimes army to do so, he said. Bulos is a special correspondent. MORE ON THE MIDDLE EAST Airstrikes cutting into Islamic States cash supply, U.S. says A fast growing club: Countries that use drones for killing by remote control Hard-line media groups in Iran increase the bounty for killing Salman Rushdie The Latino vote has been called "decisive" in the presidential election, and one organization is projecting record voter turnout by the group this November. National Latino Turnout Increases by Double Digits The National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO) Educational Fund analyzed recent data and projected more than 13.1 million Latinos will cast their votes on Election Day this November. The estimation represents an increase from the 11.2 million Latino voters in the 2012 election. The Latino voter turnout will increase 17 percentage points and grow 8.7 percent when compared to 2012's Latino voter share, according to the group. "Early primary results have shown that the Latino vote is still very much up for grabs, even within the nation's major political parties," said NALEO Education Fund Executive Director Arturo Vargas in a statement. "With more than 13.1 million Latinos expected to head to the polls to make their voices heard, no candidate or political party can afford to take our support for granted if they want to win the race for the White House in 2016." Vargas added, "13.1 million is only the floor for Latino turnout this year, with the possibility of even more Latino voters casting ballots if significant investments in Latino outreach are made by nonpartisan funders, candidates, parties and political donors in the lead up to November." NALEO has been working to provide Latino voter projections for key primary and caucus states where significant Latino populations reside. As Latin Post reported, NALEO expects 194,000 Latinos to cast their votes in 2016, which is an increase of 4.4 percent over 2012's Latino vote share. In 2012, nearly 157,000 Latinos voted, which, at the time, was a significant increase from 38,000 voters during Election Day 2008. In Colorado, with a Latino population of over 1.1 million, more than 277,500 Latinos are expected to cast their votes this year, an increase of 5.6 percent from 2012. Meanwhile, in Texas, with a Latino population of over 10.4 million, over 2 million Latinos are expected to vote, an increase from 2012's 1.89 million. Historic Year for Latinos Seeking Political Office Regardless of political affiliation, Latinos are having a prominent role in the 2016 election. In the Republican Party presidential race, Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas became the first Latino to win a primary or caucus for a major political party. Cruz won the Iowa caucus on Feb. 1, while Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida placed third. Rubio and Cruz also placed second and third, respectively, in the South Carolina Republican primary on Feb. 20. Nevada has the opportunity to elect a number of Latinos to Congress, including former Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto, who is campaigning to succeed retiring Sen. Harry Reid. If Cortez Masto wins, she will become the first Latina to serve in the Senate. In Texas, Dolly Elizondo is running for the state's 15th Congressional District. If elected, she will be the first Latina from the Lone Star state to serve in Congress. To watch NALEO's press conference, via Periscope, click here. __ For the latest updates, follow Latin Post's Michael Oleaga on Twitter: @EditorMikeO or contact via email: m.oleaga@latinpost.com. United Airlines and mechanics affiliated with the International Brotherhood of Teamsters failed to agree on a new contract extension last week. It led to Teamsters seeking approval from the National Mediation Board to start a strike. United mechanics followed it up with protests at the maintenance facilities of the airline carrier in Houston, San Francisco and Orlando. About 93 percent of these mechanics voted against United's recent proposal and approved Teamsters' initiative to start a strike. During the protest at the maintenance facilities, signs that read "Millions for UAL Execs--Peanuts for Passengers and Mechanics" were used. Technicians also participated in the protest by donning "Tell UAL: NO" stickers while at work. More Protests to Be Held "These longtime, loyal mechanics will be taking their message to United's customers and investors next, all of whom stand to lose if the company continues to treat its employees badly," said Capt. David Bourne of the Teamsters Airline Division. Bourne added that United's offer is "substandard," considering the company's record profits because of many cost-cutting measures and diminishing oil prices. Deborah Ward-Crummey, one of the mechanics in San Francisco, said that United has been very ignorant of their work and years of sacrifice for the company. "United's proposal would allow aircraft maintenance to be outsourced, which we believe is not safe for passengers or the company's long-term stability," Ward-Crummey explained. "It also fails to secure family health care protections, which will hurt my family and families across the nation." Not Good for the New Heart The stress of a looming strike may not be good for the new heart of United CEO Oscar Munoz. However, the 57-year-old said that he will directly talk with the labor representatives and mechanics to ensure that an agreement will be reached. "I will personally meet with our labor leaders to make sure we reach an agreement that will work for our technicians," Munoz said. Both United and Teamsters representatives will appear before the National Mediation Board on March 3 in Washington D.C. to resume negotiations. Munoz is still not cleared to return full-time to his position as CEO. He may be available to work again by the end of the first quarter. Munoz underwent a successful heart transplant surgery last Jan. 6 at Northwestern Memorial Hospital. He suffered a heart attack five weeks into his term back in October before doctors suggested that a heart transplant is the long-term solution. Soledad OBrien has been making waves for being the host of the I am Latino in America tour. Here are some interesting facts on one of the top journalists in the world and how she started the tour. How the Tour Started The first I am Latino in America tour happened at Florida International University in Miami in September 2015, just in time for Hispanic Heritage Month. Previously, OBrien hosted the hit series Latino in America on CNN. The show started in 2009 while the tour launched six years later. Ingenuity, a growth agency based in Kansas that links brands, people and backgrounds, is the driving force behind the tour. The company is headed by David Chavez and his wife Sarah. The couple also worked with OBrien on the CNN show. OBrien reportedly talked to Chavez about collaborating for the project. What we wanted to do was do what we do best, take an event and take it to the highest level in terms of red carpet, the kind of panelists that Soledad wanted, a mixture of celebrities, community leaders and experts, said Chavez in an interview. The tour also went to the University of Texas in the Rio Grande Valley and Occidental College in Los Angeles. Why the Tour is Special The tour became popular because of its interactive nature. Panelists featured a wide range of personalities such as Congressman Ruben Hinojosa and comedian Cristela Alonzo. Those who attended I am Latino in America were given the opportunity to ask questions and participate in social media. Every tour event was divided into segments, which dicuss the 2016 election, economy, education and media. One of the most important aspects of the tour is the privilege that attendees have to share their personal experiences. The tour provided a voice to a lot of vulnerable individuals. In 2016, more than 4,000 college students teamed up with local and national Latino leaders during the initial three stops of the tour. More cities and dates have been added to the tour's schedule this year. The "I am Latino in America" team is looking for new potential markets aside from colleges and universities. OBrien is also looking for other opportunities to create quality content through social media and her own production company. Based on the reception of attendees, the I am Latino in America tour is expected to stay popular, empowering Latinos for a long time. In room 402, a music room adorned with trophies, frames yearbook photos, and a row of student-ready guitars, left-leaning Nevadans prepared to take sides. They filled up chairs along the three-tier riser, dividing themselves between Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders supporters as part of the nation's First in the West caucus. All live in nearby precinct 6725; friends and neighbors by residence, not by political affiliation. They waited for excessive lines outside Sierra Vista High School -- located in a suburb 10 miles southwest of the Las Vegas Strip -- to dwindle enough for the caucusing to begin. "The line is moving so slow we can't get our people in," said Jerilyn Gonzales, precinct captain and one of about two dozen caucus-goers in the classroom. A tally scheduled to begin just before noon was pushed back over half an hour. Lines outside the suburban high school wrapped around the block and separated between last-minute attendees and a portion of the 31,000 Nevadans who pre-registered online for express check-in. If it were up to Gonzales, Clinton would win the Democratic nomination, if only for what she offers the Latino community. "She cares very much about the Hispanic situation, especially with DREAMers," Gonzales said. "They have such high goals and they're so smart. They need that advantage that they don't get in Mexico." The Latino Vote Clinton eventually won the Feb. 20 caucus by an eight-point margin over Sanders but lost the impressionable Latino voting bloc. An NBC News exit poll found 53 percent of Latinos caucused for the Vermont senator, compared to 45 percent for Clinton, validating various entrance polls that had Sanders winning between eight and 11 percent of their vote. What puzzles Clinton's camp is that she lost Hispanics despite winning Clark County, home to the state's largest Latino population. Clinton lobbied Latina activists and actresses to join her in Las Vegas following the New Hampshire primary. She gave a heartfelt response during last week's Democratic town hall, vowing to repeal a law barring immigrations from returning once deported. She even met with Hispanic cooks, casino blackjack dealers, and housekeepers along the Strip, some hours before the 11 a.m. caucus start time. Yet a majority of Latinos, the fastest-growing demographic in the country, sided with Sanders. Team Housekeeping Caesar's Palace was one of 250 caucus locations throughout the Silver State. Attendees walking towards the Milano 1 conference center were inundated with plum and aqua-colored campaign shirts, the latter in support of Clinton. The avid group of 278 heard a caucus dictated almost entirely in Spanish. Some wore "Estoy Contigo" shirts in support of Clinton, other raised Spanish banners that read "La Boleta Bernie!", and one group - deemed Team Housekeeping - gathered under a raised sweeping broom. "I have confidence in her. She is a smart, prepared woman who has fought for this. She encourages children, education, and women, and that convinced me," said Clara Watson, a Latina maid with Team Housekeeping. The group, made up of housekeepers from the Bellagio Hotel, wore dark blue "I'm with her" t-shirts over their work uniforms. Watson added, "It's better that she doesn't promise a lot but follows through on what she promised for everyone. Mexicans, South Americans, immigrants. Everyone." Team Housekeeping changed "Hillary, Hillary" as the rode an escalator down to the Caesar's Palace casino, united as they walked back next door. Sanders and Millenials Clinton garnered 20 percent of support from Latino under 30 years of age ahead of the 2008 Democratic National Convention. Expectations were just as high this time around, given the effort she put into the state. The U.S. Census Bureau estimates the median age for Latinos in Nevada is 26 years old; the state's median age is 37. The age range is directly in Sanders' wheelhouse due in large part to the appeal he has with millennials, especially preparing to vote for the first time. Exit polls following Saturday's caucus found 83 percent of voters age 24 or younger sided with Sanders. Those 45-year-old and up favored Clinton two-to-one. Fledgling grassroots efforts that began in Vermont - with scarcely-attended stump speeches and word-of-mouth social media posts - brought pockets of success in the Iowa caucus and the New Hampshire primary. Now Sanders has a presence in Nevada, where young volunteers like Gina Mizzoni spread the word. "I love that he's motivated my often aloof and complacent generation to stand up and make our voices heard about what is best for America," Mizzoni said. "I've always been frustrated with how so many of my peers take part in the political process. But that's all changed now. Bernie has ignited a fire that I don't think will 'Bern' out for a long, long time." Mizzoni was one of hundreds inside the Sierra Vista caucus site but was the only one carrying a black hand-made sign with red hearts, a crossed-out dollar sign, and raised text that read "We the people: not for sale." For a 74-year-old senator to make such an impact with millennials is telling. Many are disenfranchised with the Clinton name. Others, ironically, want a fresh face detached from establishment politics. Sanders fit the bill on every end, and it appears to be drawing once-overlooked Latino and youth voter bases. "I think that when you take into consideration that Bernie started with single-digit support, the fact that he's now neck-and-neck with Hillary speaks volumes," Mizzoni said. "This is truly a revolution." Republican hopeful Ted Cruz recently went out of his way to assure Fox News host Bill O'Reilly he is totally committed to a plan to deport all 12 million undocumented immigrants estimated to in the U.S., if the candidate were elected president. "Yes, we should deport them," Cruz told "The O'Reilly Factor" host. "That's what ICE exists for. We have law enforcement that looks for people who are violating the laws, that apprehends them and deports them." The Texas senator, who won the Iowa caucus, joined his rival, front-runner Donald Trump, in his response to the problem of illegal immigration. Cruz called for vastly increased border patrol and added, "We should build a wall." Cruz Toughens Immigration Stance The timing of Cruz's tougher stance on the issue was not lost on Trump, who immediately took to Twitter to suggest it was solely motivated by his inferior showing in the recent South Carolina primary. Ted Cruz only talks tough on immigration now because he did so badly in S.C. He is in favor of amnesty and weak on illegal immigration. Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 23, 2016 Cruz spokeswoman Catherine Frazier forcefully shot down that comment, insisting the Texas senator has long expressed such hard-line views. "There's no change here," she wrote in an email. "Cruz has been very clear: People who are here illegally should be deported. That is the law today. Period. They broke the law, they face the consequence. ICE exists for that purpose and they should continue to do their job." In the past, Cruz has resisted providing details about what he would do with people in the country illegally. Just over a month ago, he totally rejected the idea of a "deportation force," which Trump has openly called for. "I don't intend to send jackboots to knock on your door and every door in America. That's not how we enforce the law for any crime," he told CNN's Jake Tapper at the time. More recently, Cruz has argued he is even tougher on immigration than Trump. He pointed out his rival's proposal would allow those deported to eventually return to the U.S., while he would ban them forever. Cruz Reflects on Learning to Speak Spanish Cruz also recently took time out to guest star on an episode of Hugh Hewitt's radio show, where he reflected on his life in the U.S. as a Cuban-American. "I grew up speaking Spanish," he said. "I learned it the same time as English, but my grammar is lousy. I have the classic second-generation challenge where I mis-conjugate the verbs and I mess up the masculine and the feminine. I understand most of it, so I can have a conversation, but it's nowhere near fluent, but I learned it at the same time I did English." During that interview, Cruz also made certain to address the growing controversy over some of his perceived underhanded and deceitful campaign tactics. "My opponents in this race have decided on a campaign strategy which is that they do not want to defend their own records so anytime anyone points to their actual records, instead of defending them because their records are inconsistent with what they're campaigning on," he told Hewitt. "Both Donald Trump and Marco Rubio, instead of defending their records, they simply begin screaming, 'Liar, liar, liar,' and engaging in personal and direct insults." Listen to a clip from his interview: Republican candidate Marco Rubio scored several key endorsements from Puerto Rican leaders in light of the island's upcoming primary on March 6. Puerto Rican Officials Endorse Marco Rubio Proud to support @marcorubio - the only one that can unite the GOP, win in November & lead us to a better future. pic.twitter.com/WSpTbaYBAj Luis Fortuno (@luisfortuno51) February 23, 2016 The Florida senator announced in a press statement sent to Latin Post on Tuesday he is being supported by four GOP leaders in Puerto Rico, including former Gov. Luis Fortuno, who described Rubio as someone who "has the judgment, vision and strong values to be a great president." "Washington today is plagued by the same problems we see in San Juan: politicians who tax too much, spend too much and lack the courage to solve the great challenges of our time. Marco Rubio would change that," said the RNC national committeeman. "As American citizens, Puerto Ricans deserve better than the failed leadership they've gotten during the last eight years, which would continue if the Democrats retained the White House. Marco Rubio is the only candidate in this race who can unite us, win the White House and lead us into a New American Century," he added. Share with you the press release from the Marco Rubio campaign @marcorubio pic.twitter.com/iLPGm9vOKA Jenniffer Gonzalez (@Jenniffer2012) February 23, 2016 Jenniffer Gonzalez, the minority leader of the Puerto Rico House of Representatives and RNC chairperson, said Latinos with conservative values "seek a leader like Marco who will energize constituencies that in the past have been left behind." She added that Rubio's message resonates with young people, women and disenfranchised communities, "including the people of Puerto Rico who seek the tools to improve our island economy, create jobs, and achieve full equality as Americans." Likewise, Zoraida Fonalledas, an RNC national committeewoman, said she is supporting the Cuban-American lawmaker because he can relate to those struggling to achieve the American Dream and he has a history of fighting for Puerto Rico. "Puerto Rico may not have a vote in the Senate, but Marco Rubio has been looking out for us throughout his time there and standing up against the unequal treatment Puerto Ricans face when it comes to many federal policies," she added. Lastly, Republican fundraiser Jose Carrion said he was proud to endorse Rubio. He called the candidate "a man who will never forget that he leads a nation that also includes Puerto Rico's 3.5 million American citizens." According to Carlos Mercader, the executive director of Latino Partnership for Conservative Principles, these endorsements will give Rubio's campaign an added boost on the island. "All of them are important political leaders in Puerto Rico," he told Latin Post, adding that "their support helps Rubio's campaign to gain more traction" and they can "move voters" to the polls. He went on to say that the four leaders were initially backing Jeb Bush's campaign before he dropped out the race on Saturday. Now, with Bush out of the picture, Rubio has a good chance of winning all 23 delegates in Puerto Rico during the primary, he said. In turn, this could also help Rubio win his home state. "Whomever wins the island, it sends a strong message to the Puerto Rican community in Florida," said Mercader. Because Puerto Ricans in Florida has close ties to the island, they may also be swayed to vote for the Latin legislator as well. Mercader added that the "growing" Puerto Rican population is "powerful" in swing states like Florida where Latino voters will help determine who wins the White House. Puerto Rico's Debt Crisis The endorsements come at a time when Puerto Rico is suffering from a massive $72 billion debt. To help alleviate the debt, government officials have been promoting local tax incentives to lure wealthy investors to invest in the U.S. territory. Other Endorsements Last week, Rubio was endorsed by three Latino Republican congressional lawmakers who had previously supported Jeb Bush's run for the White House. However, once Bush suspended his campaign, Rubio announced support from Florida Reps. Carlos Curbelo, Ileana Ros-Lehtinen and Mario Diaz-Balart. This article has been updated to reflect the correct spelling of Carlos Mercader's name. Iconic designer Oscar de la Renta may have died in 2014, but his fashion empire and legacy continue to thrive. In a recent interview, his son-in-law and brand CEO Alex Boden discussed future plans for the fashion house, including a Paris store and menswear line. According to Fashionista, the brand, established in 1965 by the Dominican-born designer, hopes to open a store in Paris, despite the changing retail economy there. The CEO is even considering China. "If you don't think Paris is going to remain an important world fashion capital, you should be in a different business," he said. "I think we need to take advantage of others standing still." Boden also revealed that de la Renta himself inspired the coming menswear line. He recently discovered that the late designer was considered one of the top 10 best dressed men in the world. The menswear line, set to be designed by newly installed creative director Peter Copping, will cater to the growing male customer base and open de la Renta's brand to a new audience. Despite the changes, Boden explained that de la Renta's ideal customer is still very much a part of the brand. "The Oscar de la Renta customer is a woman who appreciates well-made, feminine product, who is very dressed up at all times in her life, day and evening, wants to look great, wants to feel great," he said. "Oscar always said that it was his job to help women lead easier lives, to solve their problems, to help them feel great. That is what we're trying to do with our product." Check out some of the designer's most iconic moments and career successes. Stylist to First Ladies Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton may not be known for her fashion sense, but she, along with first ladies Laura Bush, Nancy Reagan and Jackie Kennedy, has been dressed by de la Renta. His elegant and classic designs have made his gowns a favorite among the wives of U.S. presidents. Clinton has remained faithful to the designer throughout the years. She wore a magenta de la Renta to her daughter's wedding. Chelsea Clinton's wedding gown was also designed by de la Renta, as was Jenna Bush Hager's wedding gown. The designer's relationship with first ladies and his presence in American fashion lead to an exhibit at The George W. Bush Presidential Center called "Oscar de la Renta: Five Decades of Style." An American in a French Fashion House One of de la Renta's career achievements included becoming the first American designer to design for a French fashion brand. He worked for Pierre Balmain from 1993 to 2002. According to the Franchise Herald, his work as a designer for the brand led to him being awarded the Legion d'Honneur as a commandeur. Famous Red Carpet Looks De la Renta has been a favorite among a variety of celebrities on the red carpet as well. The designer was known for dressing many stars, such as Sarah Jessica Parker, Taylor Swift, Penelope Cruz and Kerry Washington. Stars have worn the designer's gowns to events like the annual Met Gala, the Academy Awards and the Golden Globes, among others. His Last Wedding Gown One of de la Renta's last memorable designs was the wedding gown worn by Amal Clooney when she married actor George Clooney. The designer, who established his own wedding line in 2006, created a white, off-the-shoulder lace gown for the lawyer and activist. George and I wanted a wedding that was romantic and elegant, and I cant imagine anyone more able than Oscar to capture this mood in a dress, Amal Clooney told Vogue. Meeting him made the design process all the more magical, as he is so warm and such a gentleman. Final Runway Show De la Renta died on Oct. 20, 2015. Three weeks earlier, he held his final fashion show, where he presented his Spring 2015 collection. The collection featured a variety of floral gowns that embodied the best of fun spring colors but maintained an elegance perfect for any formal affair. Since de la Renta's death, Copping has taken over the brand. While he designs skillfully in his own right, the collections remain true to the classic vision established by de la Renta. An estimated 13.1 million Latinos are expected to vote in November, which increases the United States total by 9 percent. This increase in turnout can be attributed to many Latino-Americans reaching the voting age as well as immigrants becoming legal citizens. However, there is still fear among Latino voters, especially in Salem, Massachusetts where there have been reports of "harassment and intimidation" from election workers. Many minorities said that they experienced harassment during the 2012 and 2014 elections. Harassment and Intimidation Back in 2014, newly legalized U.S. citizen Altagracia Florian was about to vote for the first time when a police officer harassed her. Florian said that the officer told her, "Surely you must have stolen that," before taking away her sample ballot. Another Salem resident Yoleny Ynoa said that when he went with his mother to vote in 2014, a poll worker and police officer told him to leave her mother alone. The state law of Massachusetts implies that voters can have assistance while inside the voting booth. "My mom was afraid. She told me she doesn't want to vote anymore because she doesn't want me to get in trouble," Ynoa revealed. A group of volunteer interpreters was also prohibited from assisting voters back in the 2012 election. Salem State professor Tiffany Chenault observed the 2012 election at the Bentley School where the said incidents happened. She said, "People were being treated very disrespectfully and even a bit racist. As someone who studies voting inequality, just to witness the disparities that people had in regard to access to vote blew my mind." Cheryl LaPointe Organizations such as the North Shore Community Development Coalition, Salem Latino Leadership Coalition and Point Neighborhood Association are pointing out City Clerk Cheryl LaPointe. The groups are saying that LaPointe won't sign a memorandum of understanding regarding voting rights of minorities. "When you're running an election, you can't choose one group over another. I have been working diligently to help aid the Latino population who don't speak English real well," LaPointe said. LaPointe also said that she has given her poll workers proper training and is hoping for the best in the upcoming November elections. One of the poll workers, Joseph Szymanski, said that the allegation of harassment is "a lie." He added that many Latino voters have no idea on how to vote. Szymanski is also puzzled why these people are allowed to vote in his country. "They come here and demand that we speak their language. Not that they learn our language in our country. They want us to learn their language," he said. Leaks in Peru's main oil pipeline have spilled at least 3,000 barrels of crude oil in the Amazonian region. According to the state oil company Petroperu, the spilled oil has polluted two rivers that are part of the Amazon region: the Chiriaco and Morona rivers located in northwestern Peru. Around eight indigenous communities depend on the rivers for their water consumption, the Peruvian government and indigenous leaders said. Local indigenous leader Edwin Montenergo said that the oil spill is affecting the Achuar community. Heavy rains have made initial efforts to contain the spill difficult. The oil firm blamed the first leak on a landslide while the root of the second leakage is still unknown. Petroperu vowed to carry out a full clean-up, as well as to provide food and water provisions to the native villages affected by the oil spill. Consequences for Petroperu Peru's Health Ministry has announced a water quality emergency in five districts. The national environmental regulator, OEFA, said that Petroperu could be fined for up to 60m soles ($17 million) if the spills caused serious health concerns on the local people. OEFA said in a statement that the spills were not "isolated cases" and "similar emergencies have emerged as a result of defects in sections of the pipeline." The group also ordered the firm to "replace parts of the pipeline and to improve maintenance." Petroperu President German Velasquez has denied the reports claiming that the company paid children to clean up the thick, black sludge. The official also said that he is considering axing four company officials, adding that one of them may have hired children to gather the spilled oil. Velasquez said that the firm is currently evaluating the pipeline, which was built in the 1970s, to avoid more spills in the future. This evaluation process could take up to two months. The leaks have hampered the transportation of 5,000 to 6,000 barrels of oil per day. Velasquez said that it could take "some time" before operations normalize again. Petroperu operates the pipeline and is also responsible for refining the oil it transports, which has reduced in recent months as oil prices continue to collapse. The pipeline usually carries crude oil from block 192, which is operated by the Pacific Exploration & Production Corp. Petroperu is gearing up to participate in oil production with a private company after more than two decades of refining, commercializing and transporting crude. The firm is also planning to put up to 49 percent of its output on Lima's stock exchange. According to The National Association for Latino Elected Officials (NALEO) statistics, there will be 13 million Latino voters this November. The NALEO Educational Fund projections state there is an increase of 17 percent Latino voters this year compared to only 11 million in 2012. "Early primary results have shown that the Latino vote is still very much up for grabs, even within the nation's major political parties," said NALEO Executive Director Arturo Vargas. "With more than 13.1 million Latinos expected to head to the polls to make their voices heard, no candidate or political party can afford to take our support for granted if they want to win the race for the White House in 2016." The statistics were taken by studying and looking at how much Latinos have voted in the last four Presidential elections. They were then compared to the Current Population Survey data from the US Census Bureau reports, Voting and Registration in the Elections of November 2000-2012. The statistics do not factor out the number of voters added or subjected from Latino naturalizations, voter registration and voting laws issues and many more. According to the Pew Research Center, nearly half of the eligible Latino voters are millennials and there has been pressure on presidentiables to reach out the Latino community as they hold some power to make or break their candidacy. "We are only going up, but the question is how far," said Vargas. "We still have a performance gap." As to who the Latinos will vote for will depend on the platforms of the candidates. Democrats Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders have reached out to the Hispanic-Americans for their votes. The latest poll in Nevada, much like any election result, is unclear of who got the Latinos favor. The Democrats, are hopeful, however, that Latinos will vote for them instead of their Republican counterparts. It remains to be seen how much of the Latino population will vote for them. Interestingly, during the last presidential elections in 2012, more than 70 percent of Latinos went for President Obama while the rest voted for Mitt Romney. Presidential candidates and Republicans Senator Ted Cruz and Senator Marco Rubio, who are both Cuban-Americans, are facing challenges in Nevada where it has a sizable Latino community. Both are being led by Donald Trump, who has a large lead against the two. Immigration and deportation laws remain to be the biggest concerns of Latinos. Rubio and Cruz have made their stance regarding immigrants by suggesting stricter legal immigration processes and abolishing President Obama's "executive actions" that benefit immigrants. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry will visit Cuba to discuss human rights. In a statement before the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Kerry said that his visit will take place "in the next week or two." "I may be down there in the next week or two to have a human rights dialogue, specifically," he said. In his speech before the committee, Kerry said that human rights issues still pervade the island nation. Kerry also headed to Cuba in August 2015 to raise the U.S. flag at the American Embassy in Havana, the Cuban capital. Kerry Welcomes Cuban Minister in Washington Last week, Kerry welcomed the Cuban Minister of Foreign Trade and Investment, Rodrigo Malmierca, and the members of his delegation in Washington, D.C. The meeting occurred at the headquarters of the Department of State during the last day of the Cuban representatives' four-day visit to the United States. The meeting aimed to move forward with the process of normalizing relations between the United States and Cuba. It also focused on the interest of American companies to set up shop in the island nation. Malmierca said that the existing financial, economic and commercial barriers are considered the main hurdles in the thawing of relations. In December 2014, President Barack Obama declared his administration's plan to reestablish diplomatic relations with Cuba after more than 50 years of severed ties. Diplomatic relations were formally reinstated on July 20, 2015. Barack Obama to Visit Cuba Malmierca's meeting with Kerry took place hours after the White House announced Obama's trip to Cuba scheduled on March 21-22. He will be accompanied by the First Lady Michelle Obama on the trip, which makes him the first American president to set foot in Havana in nearly 90 years. "The president hopes to press forward on the agenda of speaking to the people of Cuba about the future and obviously he is anxious to press on the rights of people to be able to demonstrate, to have democracy, to be free, to be able to speak and hang a sign in their window without being put in jail for several years," Kerry said of Obama's visit. The president said in his weekly address that he will meet with his Cuban counterpart, Raul Castro, during his visit. They will discuss business and easier access to trade and the Internet. "I'm focused on the future, and I'm confident that my visit will advance the goals that guide us -promoting American interests and values and a better future for the Cuban people, a future of more freedom and more opportunity," Obama said. Mexico City was among the most visited places in 2015. In fact, the country set a record in tourism for the sheer number of tourists they welcomed last year. Mexico Set a Record According to the Ministry of Tourism, Mexico set a record with over 32 million international tourists arriving by plane in the previous year. It boosted the economy of the country with 12,457 million. "Compared to 2014, tourist arrivals increased by 9.5 percent, while revenue also grew by 7.7 percent, confirming that tourism is one of the major growing industries in Mexico." Tourism in Mexico in 2015 In the first six months of 2015, there were already 7,886.19 thousands of tourists who visited the country by plane. This represents a growth rate of 10 percent. From January to October of the same year, a total of 6,855,624 visitors was recorded, which showed an increase of 16.1 percent from the same period in 2014. The tourism industry in Mexico in 2015 recorded a surplus of 7 billion. The said amount almost compensated for the insufficiency in the "energy balance of the country" brought about by oil prices collapsing. Tourism is the third source of income in the country. Best Places to Visit in Mexico 1. Tulum -- Tulum is named as the number 1 destination on the rise for 2016 by Trip Advisor. The place is popular for its Mayan ruins and it is the new frontier of Riviera Maya beaches. 2. Guadalajara -- Travel + Leisure ranked Guadalajara as the second Best Place to Travel in 2016. The place offers the best urban getaway with diverse dining, several museums, plenty of cultural sites and busy nightlife. 3. Cabo San Lucas -- It is a luxurious getaway from the busy and blinding lights of show business. The beaches here range in temperament from serene waters of the Sea of Cortez to the kicking waves of Playa del Amor. 4. Playa del Carmen -- If you love diving, this is the best place to visit. It offers vibrant sea life and dazzling underwater caverns that will surely astound you. You can also explore the ancient ruins of the Coba Mayan Village or greet the spider monkeys at The Jungle Place sanctuary. 5. Cancun -- Aside from its party-town reputation, the city has much more to offer. It has several beautiful and impressive resorts that cater to visitors who want to enjoy the tropical Yucatan climate. You can also go to Museo Maya de Cancun for another fun and memorable adventure. Republican Presidential candidate Donald Trump expressed wanting to punch a protester on the night before the Nevada caucuses. Donald Trump, who was speaking during a Las Vegas rally, blurted in the middle of his speech some choice words for the interrupter. "I'd like to punch him in the face," Trump said of the man who was momentarily escorted but smiling as he went out. "He's smiling, having a good time." While the suggestion of physical violence may have been found distasteful by some people, this is not the most shocking thing that has happened during the billionaire's Presidential campaign. Trump VS Protesters In the same speech, Trump insinuated that the protester punched the security people, which prompted his escorted exit out of the rally. However, the man was seen to be compliant and smiling and went to wherever he was escorted. "Oh, I love the old days, you know? You know what I hate? There's a guy, totally disruptive, throwing punches, we're not allowed to punch back anymore," Trump said and added, "I love the old days, you know what they used to do to guys like that when they were in a place like this? They'd be carried out in a stretcher, folks. Oh, it's true." At other campaigns, Trump has been known to have issues with his microphone and has made repeated slurs against Senator Ted Cruz. He has also demanded security to take people outside in the freezing weather and more. Trump at the Vegas Rally With the presence of protesters at the rally, Trump forged on with his speech and took a swing against Cruz. Trump thinks that Cruz is "sick" and that "there's something wrong" with him. He refers to the attack ads made by Cruz against him and his allies. The tycoon has been criticized on several conservative issues including gun control, abortion, Obamacare and more. "I missed the part where Donald challenges our facts?" A Cruz spokeswoman said. "He can't, because our ads are true -- he is not a real conservative. He can't defend his record, so like a frustrated child, he resorts to name calling." Glenn Beck Calls Trump a 'Bully' Glenn Beck, a known conservative, is supporting Cruz's campaign and clamors for his followers to support the candidate against Trump. The television host cited a tweet by Trump threatening the Ricketts family. "Today Donald Trump tweeted a threat to the owner of the Chicago Cubs," Beck said a moment before introducing Cruz in Elko. "When we have a candidate that threatens people... This is not American. This is not equal justice. This is not who we are." The headmaster of the Boston Latin School has issued an apology on Tuesday, Feb. 23, for not quickly acting on racism concerns raised by students. Headmaster Lynne Mooney Teta directly apologized to the school's community, including students and parents, for not performing her duties correctly. "After weeks of self-reflection and frank conversations, I realize that in important ways I have not succeeded. I am truly sorry," Mooney Teta said. She also gave her praise to the two students and leaders of the school's Black Leaders Aspiring for Change and Knowledge. Meggie Noel and Kylie Webster-Cazeau are the students who raised the racism issues prevalent in the Latin school. They called the school's investigation of recent racial slurs doled out by non-black students to black students as a failure. One of the incidents involved a male non-black student threatening a black female student in November 2014 with "lynching." No Re-Investigations The school's superintendent Tommy Chang met with Michael Curry of the local National Association for the Advancement of Colored People on Monday. It was after the NAACP called for the firing of the school's headmaster, but Chang insisted that there will be no re-investigation of the alleged racial slurs. However, the NAACP will be conducting its own investigation of the racism claims as well as the headmaster's shortcomings in the issues. Chang said in a statement that they will be cooperating with the NAACP's investigation as part of one community. "The district looks forward to working with the NAACP and other community groups, and will cooperate with any outside review while continuing to adhere to student and personnel confidentiality regulations," Chang said. Plenty of Support for the Headmaster Mooney Teta received plenty of support from a group of parents, saying that they are confident with the headmaster's plans for racial sensitivity. The group wrote a letter that praises Mooney Teta. The said letter was addressed to the school's superintendent and Boston Mayor Marty Walsh. "I feel that based on my experience with [Mooney Teta] that she will be able to lead the school through the plan that's been set forward," Catherine Campbell, one of the parents, said. They will also support the Boston Latin School's plan to recruit more minorities to study and work there. Michael Curry of the NAACP responded to the group of parents calling them "mostly white Boston Latin School Alumni." He wrote, "We find it concerning that they show up now, but did not find it necessary to speak up as generations of black and brown families experienced a hostile racial climate." Migrants, especially Afghan refugees, seeking asylum inside Europe's borders are being turned away. European countries are trying to stop the influx of refugees and migrants coming from war-torn countries like Syria and those coming from the Middle East, Central Asia and North Africa. In fact, a large number of refugees are expected to come from the Middle East in the next couple of weeks. Countries like Croatia and Slovenia have slowly restricted passage and may be joined by Belgium and France this week. Greece along with Austria filed an official protest, which introduced restrictions against refugees entering their countries. It is thought to be what set other countries to put caps on their borders as well. Countries like Austria, Macedonia and Serbia have barred their doors to refugees, particularly Afghans, which make up a third of all migrants. Middle Easterners without travel documents like passport are also being turned away which contribute to the increasing number of people stuck in the borders. Police authorities in Croatia, Slovenia, Serbia, Austria and Macedonia are only taking in migrants from war zone countries but said that Afghans aren't qualified to be let in. "[P]eople are being sent back and forth between borders with no clear information about their rights or what will happen tomorrow," Stephanie Moissaing, Doctors Without Borders/Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) head of Mission in Serbia said. "By experience, we know they will be pushed towards smuggling networks and unsafe routes, exposed to the risk of abuse and violence." Many people that are stranded at the border may find unsafe ways to get in. They may resort to smuggling, separating from their families and any other situation that may cause them harm. The International Rescue Committee (IRC) reacted and are worried by the reports of unqualified people being sent back. "This is yet another example of arbitrary, unilateral decisions by individual states threatening to cause serious humanitarian consequences for desperate refugees fleeing from war and persecution," the IRC said. "Nationality must not determine eligibility for refugee status. People from all nationalities must be granted their right to a fair and thorough status determination procedure based on their individual circumstances." The United Nations (UN) criticized the restriction of refugees and called for unity in Europe. The agency called out countries with restrictive measures to cite clear admission criteria for those who may wish to pass. "With every passing week, it appears some European countries are focusing on keeping refugees and migrants out more than on responsibly managing the flow and working on common solutions," the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees said. There has never been a Texan woman in Congress, but the women of Hidalgo County are trying their best to make history in the upcoming elections with Dolly Elizondo. Elizondo's greatest strength in earning the support of a large cut of voters is her background. She started out from humble beginnings that many in the community will find familiar. She was a divorcee single mother with no college degree, working from the bottom up to finish community college. Through hard work, she eventually purchased her own real estate company in 1997. Although politics was not in her initial plans, Elizondo and her friends founded the Hidalgo County Democratic Women for women voters. She was eventually elected as the county's Democratic Party chair. "I think that was the start of what this is now," she said. "Women here have my story." This relatability is the backbone of her campaign. Women in the community do not feel well-represented in Washington, where a lot of the politicians come from a privileged upbringing or are not from a minority background. With Elizondo, they are encouraged that the issues will be heard from someone who shares the same roots as them. Sara Lopez, who supported Hillary Clinton in 2008 and came out of political retirement to help Elizondo's campaign, said, "Dolly is one of us." The district that Elizondo is seeking to represent has a large pool of Latino and Democratic voters. It is an opportune time to run for Congress here as well. Longtime Congressman Ruben Hinojosa confirmed that he would be stepping down from his position this year after two decades. While the women backing Elizondo appreciate Hinojosa, they are eager to see a woman having a seat in Washington. It's an uphill battle for the position as she is running against six other Democrats, who all have their own strengths in the competitive district. Elizondo's campaign is an efficient but modest operation backed by only five full-time employees and a limited budget. Because most of the Democrat candidates share the same stances in various issues, Elizondo is hoping to set herself apart with her background. Fortunately, she has gotten the support and endorsement of national organization EMILY's List, which helps female Democrats who are for abortion rights. Other powerful women have also expressed their support include former state Senator Wendy Davis and New York Senator Kirsten Gillibrand. Ultimately, Elizondo and her team are hoping to mobilize the women and unengaged locals of Hidalgo County. Do you think it's time for someone like Elizondo to take a Congress seat? The political gridlock to nominate Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia's successor is becoming much more difficult with President Barack Obama and Senate Republicans disagreeing on the nomination process. President Obama's "Spoiler-Free" Insights On Wednesday morning, SCOTUSblog published a post written by Obama, where he defended his presidential right to nominate a candidate to serve on the Supreme Court. "It's a duty that I take seriously, and one that I will fulfill in the weeks ahead. It's also one of the most important decisions that a President will make," Obama wrote. "Rulings handed down by the Supreme Court directly affect our economy, our security, our rights, and our daily lives." Obama reiterated that he's taking the nomination process seriously and plans to take considerable amount of time, debate, consultation and reflection with experts and individuals from both major political parties. Obama listed some "spoiler-free insights" regarding what he's considering for a Supreme Court justice. First, Obama said the individual must be a qualified and intellectual candidate with an independent mind, excellent credentials and integrity. Second, the president plans to appoint someone who understands the role; that the individual should only interpret the law and not create laws. "I seek judges who approach decisions without any particular ideology or agenda, but rather a commitment to impartial justice, a respect for precedent, and a determination to faithfully apply the law to the facts at hand." Finally, he wants a nominee that understands justice affects the lives of every American, especially in a rapidly changing democratic society. Obama added that senators have a constitutional responsibility to consider the person he appoints and hopes the lawmakers move quickly to debate and confirm the nominee. GOP Reaffirm Freeze on SCOTUS Nomination Process On Tuesday, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., acknowledged that Obama has the right to nominate someone but the Senate also has a constitutional right to provide or withhold consent. Presidents have a right to nominate just as the #Senate has its constitutional right to provide or withhold consent. #SCOTUS Leader McConnell (@SenateMajLdr) February 23, 2016 McConnell also tweeted statements from Democratic Party leaders, including Vice President Joe Biden from his time as senator for Delaware, to further defend the GOP's stance to not debate or confirm a nominee during the current election year. Whoever Obama nominates has to go through the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, currently led by Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa. In a letter sent to McConnell on Tuesday, Grassley and fellow Judiciary Committee Republicans announced they will use their "constitutional authority to withhold consent of a Supreme Court nomination and will not hold hearings on a Supreme Court nominee until the next President is sworn in." "We intend to exercise the constitutional power granted the Senate under Article II, Section 2 to ensure the American people are not deprived of the opportunity to engage in a full and robust debate over the type of jurist they wish to decide some of the most critical issues of our time," wrote Senate Judiciary Committee Republicans, which includes GOP presidential candidate Ted Cruz, later adding, "Because our decision is based on constitutional principle and born of a necessity to protect the will of the American people, this Committee will not hold hearings on any Supreme Court nominee until after our next President is sworn in on January 20, 2017." Obama Defends Nomination Right & Rumored Hispanic Nominee Following a bilateral meeting with Jordanian King Abdullah II on late Wednesday morning, Obama responded to Senate Republicans' plans to not hold a hearing regarding his Supreme Court nominee. Obama said he will do his job, per the Constitution, to provide a nominee. The president added that he hopes the Senate Judiciary Committee fulfill their job to grant a hearing and give courtesy of meeting with the nominee. "I understand the posture that they're taking right now. I get the politics of it," said Obama. "I'm sure they're under enormous pressure from their base and their constituencies around this issue. I've talked to many of them, and I've told them I'm sympathetic. And, by the way, there's not a lot of vigor when they defend the position that they're taking, that they wouldn't even meet, for example, with a Supreme Court nominee. They're pretty sheepish about it when they make those comments. So we'll see how this plays itself out. But I'm going to do my job." He added, "I'm going to nominate somebody and let the American people decide as to whether that person is qualified. And if they are qualified, let the American people decide whether there's enough time for the U.S. Senate to hold hearings and have a vote. It's not as if, from what I see, the Senate calendar is so full that we don't have time to get this done." By early Wednesday afternoon, reports circulated that Republican Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval is being considered, by the White House, to succeed Scalia. According to The Washington Post, several sources said Sandoval, referred to as a "moderate pro-choice Hispanic Republican," was being vetted, but the White House did not confirm if he's on the president's radar. Sandoval may have support from a leading Senate Democrat: Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada. During an interview on CNN, Reid said he would support the Nevada governor, if picked as the next Supreme Court justice. "I don't pick the justices, but I know if he were picked, I would support the man," said Reid. "He's a good person, has a great record, and has been a tremendously good governor in spite of having to deal with some very big problems there." __ For the latest updates, follow Latin Post's Michael Oleaga on Twitter: @EditorMikeO or contact via email: m.oleaga@latinpost.com. The Republican presidential primary appears to be a three-horse race with Donald Trump, Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio, but the latter has yet to actually win a primary or caucus. For Rubio, the Florida senator may be hoping to score big Rubio's Delegate Count With two primaries and two caucuses completed, Trump leads the Republican delegate count with 81, while Rubio is tied at second with Cruz with 17 delegates, each. A Republican candidate must hit 1,237 delegates to secure the GOP's nomination. While Rubio could win a few delegates next Tuesday, also referred to as "Super Tuesday" as 13 states host either primaries or caucuses, the Florida senator could score 99 delegates from the Sunshine State. Florida will have its primary on March 15, and it's a "winner takes all" state, meaning Rubio's fellow Republican rivals won't share his 99 delegates but only if Rubio wins. Polling: Trouble for Rubio Despite being a senator from Florida, polling data has shown Rubio losing to both Trump and Cruz. Based on surveys conducted in January, CBS News and YouGov polled 988 Republican likely voters and Rubio ranked third with 18 percent, behind Trump's 41 percent and Cruz's 22 percent. The poll was conducted when former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush was still campaigning, but he only secured 4 percent of the poll, and it's not guaranteed his supporters would flock to Rubio. But there is hope for the Cuban American as 23 percent of respondents indicated they could change their first-choice candidate support for another GOP candidate. When asked about the next candidate they would consider voting for, Rubio received the second most support with 63 percent, losing to Cruz, as he received 65 percent. Among the 135 Hispanics polled, Trump was still the preferred choice, receiving 47 percent. Rubio ranked second with 25 percent, defeating Cruz's 17 percent. According to the Florida Atlantic University Business and Economics Polling Initiative (FAU BEPI) survey, conducted between Jan. 15 and Jan. 18 with 386 likely Republican voters, Trump's lead increased to 47.6 percent. The FAU BEPI poll also showed Cruz defeating his fellow Latino rival with 16.3 percent and 11.1 percent, respectively. Bush attracted 9.5 percent, but with the former governor suspending his campaign following his fourth-place finish in the South Carolina primary on Feb. 20, some of his supporters could prove beneficial for Rubio. "At this point, Donald Trump is simply crushing the opposition in the Florida Republican primary," said Kevin Wagner, a FAU associate professor of political science and a research fellow of the Initiative. "Not only has he increased his lead, Mr. Trump's favorability ratings among Republicans are now ahead of his competitors by a substantial margin." Since Florida is a "winner take all" state, and based on the two Florida polls, Trump would win all 99 delegates and none for Rubio. Mass Endorsements Following Bush's campaign suspension, Rubio won the endorsements of more than a dozen political figures. Among Rubio's latest endorsements are Cuban-American congressional lawmakers Carlos Curbelo, Ileana Ros-Lehtinen and Mario-Diaz Balart, each representing key Latino districts. While three aforementioned three House Republicans had supported Bush for the White House, they are not championing Rubio. "From our days in the Florida legislature, I've known Marco Rubio to be a principled man committed to public service," said Diaz-Balart in a statement on Monday. "This commitment and his vision for the future of this great nation make him the strongest candidate for the Republican nomination. It's no secret that the current administration has left our country weakened and divided. We need someone who will not only win back the White House in November, but who will also put our country back on a path to prosperity. I am proud to support my friend Marco Rubio as the next president of the United States." The Sunshine State's Latino Vote According to the Pew Research Center, across the country, a record 27.3 million Latinos will be eligible to vote in the 2016 presidential election, and Florida is home to nearly 2.6 million eligible Latino voters. In October 2014, the Florida Department of State Division of Elections said 1.73 million Latinos were registered to vote in the state, but most are Democratic leaning. The department revealed 471,000 Latino voters were registered as Republicans, while 662,000 Latinos registered as Democrats. __ For the latest updates, follow Latin Post's Michael Oleaga on Twitter: @EditorMikeO or contact via email: m.oleaga@latinpost.com. Donald Trump reportedly won 45 percent of the Latino vote in Tuesday night's Nevada caucus, but the figure is being scrutinized given that only eight percent of respondents in a CNN exit poll identified as Hispanic. Univision journalist Enrique Acevedo tweeted that Trump's Latino backers were a fraction of the 75,000 Nevadans who caucused, yet a slew of now-deleted Twitter accounts purportedly belonging to Latinos re-posted Acevedo's tweet word-for-word. "Trump won around 40% of the latino vote in Nevada, but that accounts for about 1,300 votes. Still, more than the two hispanics on the ballot," read Acevedo's tweet, which was typed -- not re-tweeted -- verbatim by dozens of individuals with Latino surnames. It appears Trump campaign created spam accounts with Latino names who all tweeted exact same thing in past 2 minutes pic.twitter.com/wHacPOK3qM Niraj Warikoo (@nwarikoo) February 24, 2016 Few minutes later, a spam account tweeted same, and then at 12:57 came several more with same words and Latino names pic.twitter.com/Bi4xp0PGar Niraj Warikoo (@nwarikoo) February 24, 2016 Acevedo poked fun at the tweets once social media users brought it to his attention. He wondered whether Trump's campaign created the spam accounts. It appears so, and the funny thing is that the original tweet comes from me, a Univision journalist... @nwarikoo https://t.co/bmJ24YbHa8 Enrique Acevedo (@Enrique_Acevedo) February 24, 2016 Trump cruised to a Nevada caucus win Tuesday night with a 22-point margin over second-place Marco Rubio. The Republican presidential front-runner credited his broad spectrum of supporters for his third election cycle victory -- which include New Hampshire and South Carolina primaries -- making sure to single out evangelicals, young, old, smart, and "poorly educated" voters. Latinos, the demographic many consider him a long shot to sway, reportedly caucused for him over his Cuban-American rivals Rubio and Ted Cruz. "You know what I'm really am happy about? I've been saying it for long time -- 46 percent with the Hispanics, 46 percent, No. 1 with Hispanics," Trump said during his Nevada victory speech. "I'm really happy about that." Cabot Oil & Gas Corp faces a civil trial on Tuesday after two families accused its drillers of contaminating their well water with methane in northeastern Pennsylvania. The families are currently trying to persuade a federal jury to hold the Cabot Oil & Gas Corp accountable. Attorney Leslie Lewis, who represents the two families, told a six-member jury that the company had shown "reckless disregard" for the safety of her clients and other residents in the area, as Reuters reported. Opening statements were made at the outset of the trial, which pits residents in the village of Dimock against one of the largest natural gas driller company in Pennsylvania. While Cabot Oil and Gas Corp consistently denied such allegations, regulators from the state blamed their faulty gas wells' drills for leaking flammable methane into Dimock's groundwater. Philly reported that numbers of plaintiffs received a settlement from Cabot, but the two families opted to take their claims to the federal court. The community became an arena for environmental advocates fighting against the extraction of huge volumes of natural gas and oil from rock formations deep underground, a technique which is also known as fracking. Monica Marta-Ely, one of the plaintiffs, said outside the court that "their village haven't had clean water since her son was in kindergarten." According to Yahoo News, many critics stated that fracking is responsible for excessive noise, environmental damage, and even earthquakes. Dimock and Cabot became infamous after an Oscar-nominated documentary entitled "Gasland" was released and shown to the public in 2010. The documentary film then motivated the anti-fracking movement. However, a lawyer of the Houston-based Cabot, Stephen Dillard, said in his opening statement that the town's groundwater already contains natural occurring methane and that residents cannot be harmed by methane-laced water. "Those can be treated, but it's not toxic," Dillard added. The lawsuit filed by the two families is said to be the first one alleging water contamination from fracking to reach a federal jury. The trial is expected to last for two weeks. On Friday, federal judges refused to delay a ruling that North Carolina congressional districts be redrawn over racial gerrymandering in 2011 redistricting. The rejection then appealed to the US Supreme Court by the state election officials and forces congressional primaries to be rescheduled for June 7. WRAL reported that three judges ruled North Carolina legislators had unconstitutionally relied on race when drawing two district maps: the 12th Congressional District, which expands from Charlotte to Greensboro; Winston-Salem which is held by democratic Congresswoman Alma Adams; and the 1st Congressional District, which is based in the eastern part of North Carolina and is being currently held by Democratic Congressman G.K. Butterfield. While the order finds only two districts unconstitutional, they stretch and touch so many other districts that the bulk of North Carolina's federal election map will have to be redrawn. As of Monday, as North Carolina voters are already casting ballots by mail, almost 10,000 voters had requested mail-in absentee ballots, and almost 700 have been cast. The US court ordered North Carolina to redraw its congressional maps after it became a law in 2011, as ABC News reported. It is now up to Chief Justice Roberts after the state appealed that decision to the Supreme Court. Justice Roberts handles all appeals of this issue and was reported to reject a similar request from Virginia. After such rejection, a special court appointee has since been tapped to redraw a district in the said state. Meanwhile, US Supreme Court gave no explanation for its decision in a one-sentence order which was issued on late Friday night. According to Reuters, the ruling said 'race had been the main factor' when the Republican-led legislature redraw the boundaries and lawmakers from the state were not justified in using that benchmark. The state's gubernatorial and presidential primaries will be held on March 15. Reports also say that the late Justice Antonin Scalia had been expected to cast a vote in favor of staying the ruling before his death. Feb 24, 2016, 11:05am ET Takata workers complain of test data manipulation Internal documents appear to corroborate allegations of wrongdoing, even after the defects began killing motorists. Takata workers appear to have been pressured to manipulate test data, both before and after the company's airbag inflators were deemed defective, according to internal documents cited in a Senate investigation. The supplier has reportedly acknowledged that workers fudged test results in 2000, though the company has denied that such practices may have affected the widespread recall campaigns. Internal documents cited in the Commerce Committee inquiry (PDF) suggest otherwise. The correspondence points to a contentious relationship between Takata's North American staff and Japan-based managers. "[Process validation reports] were cherry picked and [redacted] was schmoozed to accept certain deviations," an engineering manager wrote in an e-mail to a fellow engineering manager in 2006. "[Redacted] and [redacted] intimidated the shit out of [redacted] to 'create' these wonderful fictitious PV reports." A response further down the e-mail chain is even more revealing: "But the more important thing is our records, if we go back to our record we will find a lot of failures and if the customer request records or make an audit we will have a lot of failures (Some times 38% at week of failures)." Takata has claimed both comments were not based on first-hand knowledge of the alleged data manipulation. The Senate investigators appear to be troubled by other documents suggesting Takata continued to manipulate and falsify test data in 2010, two years after the first recalls and a year after two fatalities were blamed on ruptured inflators. Regarding an experimental inflator design, one worker warned of "significantly variable hydro-burst, significantly reduced safety factor, and significant weld quality issues." "[Takata Japan] was informed of these results, but altered them and reported good results to Honda," the presentation added. "Honda now wants to implement the design." Automakers and regulators have struggled to determine the extent of the defect, leading to slow rollout of recall campaigns in response to failures in the field or in the lab. One of the most recent deaths involved the driver-side airbag in a Ford Ranger. The decade-old pickup had already been listed in a campaign to replace its passenger-side inflator, however the driver-side component was not recalled until it had caused fatal injuries. Regulators are attempting to determine if such cases represent a genuine lack of data or intentional falsification and obfuscation. A Takata director in 2013 sounded an alarm to a senior vice president, more than four years after the first recalls. ""I told the group that it seemed clear to me that the information used to set the range of the recall was, in one case, technically unsupportable, and in the other case, a likely misrepresentation of the production records," he wrote in his personal notes. "The basis for limiting the 2002 recall population is false. It is a blatant misrepresentation of the production records." The director explicitly warned that such practices "will either generate unnecessary recall population or fail to recall product that is suspected," representing a "violation of our moral obligation to protect the public." Legislators have asked the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to demand a widespread recall of every ammonium nitrate airbag inflator produced by Takata. Approximately 29 million parts have been deemed defective so far. If the agency follows the advice, the overall tally could reportedly climb to 120 million. English | Espanol 100% Satisfaction Guarantee Our refund policy: We do right by youso we'll refund our fee within the first 60 days of purchase if you're unhappy with our services. Call or email us, and we'll process your refund within 5 business days. What it doesn't cover: We can't refund third-party processing fees (e.g. paid directly to our service partners or to facilitate fulfilling your order like courier fees) once you make a purchase. 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Updated: August 2, 2021 A state of the art CCTV system has been launched in Durrow and Dunmore, a pilot scheme that may be rolled out across Ireland to end motorway linked crime. The Dunmore, Durrow Rural CCTV scheme got 50,000 in Dept of Environment funding, sought by Labour Senator John Whelan on behalf of the Dunmore Community Alert Group. He also helped secure funding for a similar scheme in Borris-in-Ossory. Laois is leading the way in combating rural crime through these innovative rural CCTV projects in our villages off the M7 and M8 motorways. I am confident that these will help deter and detect travelling gangs raiding rural areas. This is an ideal blueprint which needs to be rolled out across the country, Sen Whelan said. He secured the funding for the project from Minister for Environment Alan Kelly. Speakers at the launch included Ollie Clooney, the Chairman of Dunmore Community Alert, Pat Hennessy of Laois IFA and Garda Chief Superintendent John Scanlan. The high tech system is up and running, and can read number plates, assisting Gardai in tracing criminals. It is an excellent example of communities working in co-operation with the Gardai and the local authority. It is only part of the solution, we clearly need more Gardai and improved resources. Tighter legislation is now in place to curb lenient sentencing for organised gangs and repeat offenders, Sen Whelan said. The new Scottish Party Political Broadcast is going out right now. Its focused on the idea of putting a penny on tax for education and features parents from across Scotland talking about their experience of parenting, the challenges they face and their hopes for their childrens futures. Enjoy! One of the participants is Wendy Chamberlain, who joined the party in the wake of the election and introduced Willie Rennie at Autumn Conference. Willie Rennie said: Fit for the future is more than a sound bite. It is the fundamental challenge that we face as a country. At the moment, someones ability to get on in life has as much to do with their family background as their skills. Children from poorer backgrounds are less likely to do well in school. Less likely to go to university. Less likely to enter the professions. More likely to go to prison. More likely to die young. That needs to change. But this means moving on from the divisions of the referendum and taking urgent, positive steps to improve education. Getting fit for the future means building a Scotland where every child at nursery or school today has every opportunity to fulfil their potential. That is what our penny for education policy will help deliver. Extra help to close the gap and boost nursery care, support for pupils in schools and extra college places. It will head off the 500m of SNP cuts that will hammer education budgets. Our new party broadcast will set the tone for a Scottish Liberal Democrat conference focussing relentlessly on the positive things that we can do over the next five years to get Scotland fit for the future. Junior doctors are to hold three more one-day strikes. The British Medical Association, which represents the doctors, has also announced that it is seeking a judicial review into the imposition of the new contract because the government failed to carry out an equalities impact study. Norman Lamb has added his voice to the debate: LABOUR stalwart Joe Kemmy has accused Cllr Cian Prendiville of using his late brothers name in a desperate attempt to win votes. General election candidate for the Anti-Austerity Alliance (AAA) Cllr Prendiville has claimed that countless supporters of Education Minister Jan OSullivans predecessor, the late Jim Kemmy, have switched to supporting him in his bid for the Dail. But Joe Kemmy has rejected this notion, insisting Ms OSullivan carries on the legacy of Jim Kemmy. It may interest Cllr Prendiville to know that on a wet Monday night last week, there were at least 16 people canvassing for Jan OSullivan who campaigned for Jim Kemmy. It may also interest Cllr Prendiville to know that countless people who voted for Jim Kemmy are supporting Jan OSullivan in this election, Joe Kemmy added, saying he is surprised and somewhat amused by the AAA mans remarks. He added: Jan OSullivan was a friend, supporter and colleague of Jim Kemmy. The people of Limerick elected her to take his place in the by-election following his death, and I have no doubt they will do so again on this occasion. Meanwhile, Ms OSullivan has warned against a Fianna Fail-Fine Gael coalition. With a fall in support for both Fine Gael and Labour, many commentators have speculated this may be the only stable option for government. But the Education Minister said she does not believe it will happen. I dont think these two parties want to come together, so it is unlikely to happen. I don't think it would be good for Ireland if you did not have a strong left-wing voice in government, and that's what we have been. If we had not been in government, we would have had a much harsher response to the problems the country had in the early years, she said. At the event, she admitted she was fighting for the last seat in the city, vowing: I intend to win that battle. In a thinly veiled attack on election rival Cllr Maurice Quinlivan, she said: I think the politics that Sinn Fein represents is the politics of protest, the politics of not wanting to go into government. I feel I am the difference between making noise from the sidelines, and making a difference. It is very easy to say what people want to hear, but that does not necessarily sort out their problems. THE CHAIRPERSON of Limerick ICMSA has dismissed the level of attention and focus that all parties have given to the problems currently confronting both the farming community and the wider rural sector. Thomas Blackburn said that there was no sign whatsoever that any candidates, including those from the main parties, even understood the problems - much less had thought about solutions. The Effin farmer said there are two massive problems affecting everyone that lives in rural Ireland and they are to a degree interlinked. Firstly, there is the price crisis that is destroying income in every single sector of agriculture, said Mr Blackburn. As an example, he cited the latest figures that now indicate an 800 million fall in dairy farmer income in the two years since 2014. Mr Blackburn said the wider impact of this income loss on the rural economy as it fed-through is estimated to be 1.35 billion. Yet we struggle to hear even a word on this crisis while we have endless discussions about the exact size of the fiscal space available for tax cuts that will only be slightly greater than the amount weve lost as a result of a falling milk price. Limerick is a massive milk producing district so the question for all local candidates is what is their position on this hugely important issue actually is and, secondly, what are their proposals to address it? All we are getting is very generalised proposals with little or no detail on how we restore farm income, said Mr Blackburn. The second issue that is so obvious for rural communities in County Limerick and throughout Ireland is the growing realisation that the State seems to have withdrawn from large areas of the country, he said. A whole range of services that took a century to roll out to every corner of the country have disappeared within a decade: post, policing, district courts, schools, veterinary, departmental offices, banking... This is categorically not a party-political point because it has happened under successive governments. But people all across the rural parts of Ireland feel that the State is somehow retreating back into the cities and large towns and that those of us living outside large population centres are, at best, tolerated and, more bluntly, seen as an administrative burden and inconvenience. But this is a republic and people living in Anglesboro, Bruree, Doon or any other part of the county are citizens in the exact same way as those living in Castletroy and the North Circular Road, and with the exact same rights, said Mr Blackburn. According to the dairy farmer, people living in rural Ireland dont feel that the State accepts that; they feel that theyre treated in a measurably inferior fashion to their urban or suburban counterparts. And, in my opinion, that suspicion is absolutely correct, concluded the Limerick ICMSA chairperson. A JUDGE has ordered a Traveller to be excluded from a halting site for three years, after a number of events where he allegedly threatened council workers. John OReilly, aged 27, of Bay 2, Kilmurry View halting site, Castletroy, was excluded from entering the site for the maximum of penalty of three years, at a hearing in Limerick District Court. According to Limerick City and County Council witnesses, OReilly who was not present at the hearing verbally and physically threatened electricians, carpenters, contractors and council employees on four occasions between November 11 and January 20. OReillys exclusion order was under review after a hearing in July 2015. On November 11, an electrician was forced to withdraw from the site after OReilly refused access to the site, the witness said. The following day, a carpenter had intended to carry out works, but OReilly verbally abused him. On November 25, two workers entered the site with the objective of carrying out carpentry works at the location in which OReilly resided. Again, Mr OReilly verbally abused both of them and threatened physical bodily harm to both of them, the witness said. On January 15, OReilly and his mother were notified by the council that works would be carried out on the morning of January 20, the court heard. Immediately at arrival, they were confronted by Mr OReilly and asked them why they were there. He then became very volatile and threatened one of the employees. The councils solicitor, Ger Reidy asked if the other six bays on the site needed services from the council, and he said that they did, but workers have stopped work on the site since January 20 on the grounds of health and safety. They [the residents] have been suffering as a result of his actions. Defending solicitor Sarah Ryan had no further questions to ask the council. Judge Marian OLeary implemented the exclusion order, at the request of the council. THE Deaf Community Centre on OConnell Street is unlikely to be operating by the summer, should its funding situation remain the same, according to one of its directors. Director Haaris Sheikh said that because the DCC is not State-funded, it has been relying on small pockets of funds to keep it going since 2006, and that it will face closure in April or May if it does not receive ring-fenced funding from the Government. His comments follow a meeting with some of the Limerick City election candidates on Monday evening, when the DCC outlined its wishes for the future. Proposed plans included the full recognition of Irish Sign Language; secure funding for DCC, and ratify and implement UN Convention in relation to those who solely communicate through sign language. Present at the meeting were Willie ODea, Minister Jan OSullivan, Sinn Fein Cllr Maurice Quinlivan, Fine Gael TD Kieran ODonnell, and Independent - former Renua - candidate Desmond J Hayes. They have acknowledged some changes that need to be done. I think they got a very different insight into why we have this manifesto. That was positive. Whether it is tokenistic, whether it will be worked on is a second issue, but at least they were there, genuinely listening to the issues and concerns, Mr Sheikh said. He added that the failure to recognise sign language as an official language contributes to lack of job opportunities and inclusivity in education, and rise in mental health problems. There is evidence-based research that mental health is becoming a bigger concern to the deaf community. So if we are not funded and provide a place where deaf people can interact, mental health problems will eventually fall back on the HSEs doorstep that they then have to deal with. TWO brothers who are charged in connection with a significant drugs seizure have been granted legal aid after the State withdrew its objections. Kieran Collopy, aged 40, who has an address at St Itas Street, St Marys Park and Brian Collopy, aged 43, of Kilonan, Ballysimon are each accused of possession of heroin, worth around 50,000 for the purpose of sale or supply. Both men were arrested on December 15, last after gardai searched a house at St Itas Street, St Marys Park. Both were refused bail a number of days later after investigating gardai objected saying they feared they would flee the jurisdiction, if released. Limerick District Court was told previously that Brian Collopy, who is in receipt of disability allowance, left the country on 11 separate occasions over the past year and, along with his brother, has access to an apartment in Benidorm in Spain. Kieran Collopy, the court heard, travelled outside of Ireland five times during the same period. While the defendants lodged bail applications in the High Court, they were withdrawn a short time before the scheduled hearing. Yesterday, Sergeant Donal Cronin said the garda investigation into the matter is continuing and that directions are not yet available from the Director of Public Prosecutions. Solicitor John Herbert, representing each of the defendants who appeared before the court separately, said his clients were consenting to a two week adjournment of the case. While Brian Collopy application for legal aid was approved in December, Sgt Cronin previously indicated the State had some concerns as a Statement of Means had not been submitted. Yesterday, he said there was no objection to the application. It was also previously indicated that gardai would be objecting to Kieran Collopys application for legal aid but again, yesterday, Sgt Cronin indicated there was no objection. After formally granting legal aid, Judge Marian OLeary back-dated the certificate to the date of their first court appearance on December 19. Both men were remanded in custody and are due to appear before Limerick district court again on March 8, next. UNIVERSITY Hospital Limerick became a talking point of a controversial RTE investigation earlier this week, as it looked at the horrendous conditions, in which patients are admitted to Irish emergency departments. The Big Picture programme, entitled Health: The Never Ending Story, observed a number of hospital A&Es around the country. The report first looked at a case study of an elderly man, Eddie Moloney, who died after suffering a stroke, but was left on a trolley in the Dooradoyle emergency department for more than 12 hours, before getting access to a bed the following morning. Daughter Joanne Moloney told RTE that her father, who lived in the city, was admitted to the A&E on a Friday night, in early October. She said that after a brain scan, thats when we knew that our father wouldnt be waking up ever again. It was chaos. It was a Friday night, she said. There was a lot of drunk people on trolleys. There was a drunk man, right beside my father, and he was so drunk that when he tried to get up, he fell off the trolley and banged into my mother, while she was trying to rub my dads hand and talk to him. I was devastated for my mum and the distress that she was in. She said on the programme that when they Joanne, her brother Paul and mother asked staff if they could access a private room for their dying father, the request was declined. They had said that he wasnt going to make it through the night, so my thinking was that he was put out in the hall to die. Again, its not the staffs fault, Paul said. Eddie, aged 73, who was former owner of Buddys Bar on William Street, survived the 12 hours and was transferred to a bed. However, that morning he died in busy public ward, with little or no privacy. Paul said: No one who goes through their whole life working should go through that at the end of their life. Take care of these situations first before you take care of anything else in this country. The health service is at the top of the list, surely. RTE went undercover in the emergency department, at UHL, where there were 37 patients waiting to be transferred to a bed on the day. During their secret family, they spoke to local woman Niamh Galligan, whose mother in her 80s had been lying on a trolley for two days. An emotional Ms Galligan said that there was a lot of activity in the emergency department and that you cant sleep or rest there. "People are in pain; they are moaning, they are groaning. So, in that, she finds it very uncomfortable. There are so many trolleys lined up, and its not that the staff dont care; they do care, but they are working in horrendous conditions. The elders have built this State and its terrible that they are left like dogs. Like dogs. Its horrendous that anybody should be left like that. Its terrible, and my heart goes out to those people. A spokesperson for the UL Hospitals Group said that, where possible, a patient identified as being at the end of life is prioritised for a bed patient identified as being at the end of life is prioritised for a bed. However, the spokesperson added that in a busy hospital environment where are there competing demands for single rooms, this is not always possible. An End-of-Life care section is built into the bed-booking system to facilitate patients. The spokesperson said that the hospital apologises to any any patient who has faced long waits during this busy period and is making every effort to minimise the numbers waiting and the length of time they wait. UL Hospitals Group has long acknowledged that the emergency department at UHL is simply too small for the volumes of patients attending and is not fit-for-purpose. The spokesperson said, in spite of measures taken to reduce the hospitals overcrowding rate in recent months, the emergency department has remained under pressure since December 2015 owing to the high volumes of patients presenting, in particular frail elderly patients, and seasonal factors such as influenza. Amongst these measures include increasing bed capacity by more than 40 in the past two months; hiring of additional staff; securing funding to open a specialist facility for elderly patients at St Johns Hospital; and closer cooperation with the Community Health Organisation. LIMERICK city composer Paddy Mulcahy will re-release his acoustic piano works, Tape Sketches, with a Swedish record label on March 4. The 22-year-old musician said that the eight-track re-release with 1631 Recordings will push the album, which was self-released in June, to a larger and more appropriate audience. I like to look at it as a fresh pair of legs to the album. I think as many people as possible deserve to hear it. Its something special, and it will be an insight into whats to come in the future. My Mulcahy, who is currently half-way through finishing his next album, said that he has recently taken a major interest in the aesthetics of music and its presentation. In June 2015, Paddy ended his five-year stint as electronic musician nubus; a solo project that led to the release of a multitude of albums of varying genres. Since then, he has performed and recorded in Germany, and has worked with various local dance groups in Limerick, contributing original scores for live performances. The young musicians mellow-ambient and soothing album can purchased for 6.79 online via 1631 Recordings. Paddy will perform with local actor Kevin Kiely, Jr and Angie Smalis for the original show Specifically. Being. Human, at Limerick City Build, Ltd, on February 25, at 8pm. TOP Irish bands Bell X1 and Ash join Editors and The Kooks on a very strong bill for the Mitchelstown held Indiependence music festival in July. The event, the brainchild of UL graduate Shane Dunne, who said the team was delighted to be back in Mitchelstown for Indie16 for the 11th year of the festival, will take place from Friday July 29 to Sunday July 31. UK indie legends Idlewild join the billing, along with The Strypes, plus Hudson Taylor and The Blizzards while Little Hours, King Kong Company, Pleasure Beach, Brian Deady, CC Brez, Saint Sister, Coasts and Stephanie Rainey are all set for appearances at the Deer Farm event. Indie15 was a sold out success in a year that saw the festival grow from 5,000 to 8,000 people, welcoming Kodaline, Basement Jaxx, Ash, Mark Lanegan Band, Jape and many more to Deer Farm, as well as comedy and spoken word stages. Three tiers of early bird tickets for INDIE16 have already sold out, with weekend camping tickets for the festival now on sale at 119. Organisers have also announced the return of the Beer Hall Stage, Comedy and Spoken Word, the Silent Disco, Festi-Huts and a wide variety of food options over the course of the weekend, with more announcements imminent. Shane and his team have been quietly growing the festival into a leading light on the Irish music calendar, taking home numerous best festival awards in recent years. The daily capacity for this years festival will grow again to 10,000 per day, double the numbers that attended the first ticketed event in 2009. For more information and to book tickets for Indiependence, see www.indiependencefestival.com. We and our partners use cookies to Store and/or access information on a device. We and our partners use data for Personalised ads and content, ad and content measurement, audience insights and product development. An example of data being processed may be a unique identifier stored in a cookie. Some of our partners may process your data as a part of their legitimate business interest without asking for consent. To view the purposes they believe they have legitimate interest for, or to object to this data processing use the vendor list link below. The consent submitted will only be used for data processing originating from this website. If you would like to change your settings or withdraw consent at any time, the link to do so is in our privacy policy accessible from our home page. A growing number of pregnant women are asking doctors about a procedure that involves wiping down the skin of a newborn delivered by cesarean section with a gauze carrying their mothers' vaginal fluid, in an attempt to transfer helpful bacteria. Now, a group of doctors who are seeing this at their hospitals are urging caution. The idea behind this process (sometimes called "vaginal seeding") is to transfer the bacteria present in the mother's vagina which babies naturally come into contact with, if they are born vaginally to babies born via C-section. Some experts say that these bacteria have the potential to reduce the risk of disease in children, and a small study published earlier this month showed that the procedure did likely affect the bacteria present in and on the babies. However, in an editorial published today (Feb. 23) in The BMJ, other experts not involved in that study argued that there is not enough data to show that vaginal seeding is safe. [Body Bugs: 5 Surprising Facts About Your Microbiome] It is possible that infants may develop severe infections from exposure to vaginal pathogens, the authors wrote in the new editorial. Women may carry pathogens in their vaginal fluid such as group B streptococcus bacteria, herpes simplex virus, and the bacteria that cause chlamydia and gonorrhea, even without having any symptoms, according to the editorial. The authors acknowledged that there is growing evidence that suggests that the bacteria can be manipulated to benefit infants' health. In the small, recent study, 11 infants who were delivered by C-section and were swabbed with their mother's vaginal fluid shortly after birth, were found to have levels of bacteria similar to those of seven infants who were delivered vaginally. However, the authors of that study noted that more research is needed to determine if the procedure is beneficial and that it could take another 10 to 15 years for the procedure to be approved. Until there is evidence that vaginal seeding is beneficial, the authors of the new editorial have advised staff at their hospitals to not perform the procedure. "We believe the small risk of harm cannot be justified without evidence of benefit," they wrote. In addition, because the simplicity of the procedure makes it easy for mothers to do it themselves, the authors recommend that health professionals inform women about the possible risks. Health professionals should also keep vaginal seeding in mind when examining newborns who may have infections, as it could be a potential cause, they wrote. The authors of the editorial noted that other events in early life namely, breast-feeding and antibiotic exposure also have "a powerful effect on the developing microbiota" in an infant. "Encouraging breast-feeding and avoiding unnecessary antibiotics may be much more important than worrying about transferring vaginal fluid on swab," the authors concluded. Follow Sara G. Miller on Twitter @SaraGMiller. Follow Live Science @livescience, Facebook & Google+. Originally published on Live Science. Tying up your lover is one way to introduce a little excitement to the bedroom. But for male nursery-web spiders, bondage during mating can be a matter of life and death. By restraining their partners, male spiders reduce their chances of falling victim to sexual cannibalism, a new study finds. Nursery-web spiders (Pisaurina mira) are long-limbed hunters that catch and overpower their prey. Though the females' bodies can be a bit larger than males', measuring about 0.5 to 0.7 inches (12 to 17 millimeters) in length, researchers noted that males' legs were longer than females', relative to their body size. Prior studies described the male spider's unusual mating behavior wrapping silk around the female's legs before and during copulation and the scientists wondered if longer legs would help males restrain their hungry mates, leaving the guys more likely to survive cannibalism sparked during the throes of passion. [Animal Sex: 7 Tales of Naughty Acts in the Wild] Safe sex In some insect and spider species, sex can be a deadly roll of the dice for males, carrying the possibility that their female partners may suddenly identify them as a convenient postcoital snack. While this is understandably not an ideal outcome for males, cannibalizing is "quite beneficial for the female," said Alissa Anderson, who co-authored the study. Anderson, a behavioral ecologist at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, told Live Science in an email that to a just-fertilized female with eggs to nourish, her mate's immediate value transforms from sex partner into "resources for her developing offspring" like a Happy Meal with legs. In another spider species, Anderson and her colleagues explained in the study, when a female consumes the male after mating, it leads to more offspring and increases the little spiders' weight and chances for survival. And it's the conflict between these two competing desires the female's urgent need for sustenance and the male's need to not die that can lead to unusual sexual-survival strategies, Anderson said. According to the researchers, in one spider species that practices sexual cannibalism, the males will play dead to keep from being eaten. In other species, males sedate the females into unconsciousness, while the males of still other species seek out and mate with females that are busy cannibalizing their earlier sex partners. Or, like the nursery-web spider, males will bind the females' legs securely in the pursuit of safer sex. All tied up Silk serves several purposes for nursery-web spiders, though the arachnids don't spin webs to catch prey. Females build "nursery webs" that hold newly hatched and developing spiderlings, while both males and females produce strands of silk that may be used like lifelines to help the critters swing to safety if they fall or are threatened. And during mating, the males loop silk strands around the females' legs. Other spiders may drape their mates with silk, but these nursery-web spiders are the only male spiders that use their silk to physically restrain females, Anderson told Live Science. To study this, the researchers paired male and female spiders, with some of the males able to spin protective strands and some inhibited from spinning. The males that couldn't restrain females were able to mate nearly as much as males that could bind their partners. But the unprotected males were also much more likely to be eaten afterward, the researchers reported. Longer-legged male spiders that had larger bodies were the most successful at wrapping up their partners, and the most likely to walk away after mating, the researchers found. Restraining the females also allowed males to achieve "more insertions," the scientists noted, which is known in other spider species to increase the chances of successful fertilization. Because longer legs could help the males manipulate their silk to more effectively bind the females, this would likely be a sexually selected trait, the study concluded. The findings were published online today (Feb. 23) in the journal Biology Letters. Follow Mindy Weisberger on Twitter and Google+. Follow us @livescience, Facebook & Google+. Original article on Live Science. History buffs know that Adolf Hitler had an undescended testicle, but a new review of his medical records suggests that der Fuhrer also had other genital problems, including a condition called a micropenis. In fact, Hitler had a slew of below-the-belt problems, according to the new book, "Hitler's Last Day: Minute by Minute," (Short Books Ltd, 2015), by historians Jonathan Mayo and Emma Craigie. After reading Hitler's medical records, they said they found evidence that Hitler had a condition called penile hypospadias, in which the opening to the urethra is not at the tip of the penis, but either somewhere along the shaft or at its base, according to news reports. That condition may have left him with a micropenis, and likely made it difficult to go to the bathroom, the historians said. [How 13 of the World's Worst Dictators Died] Dr. Andrew Kramer, an associate professor of urology at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, explained why the conditions of hypospadias and micropenis sometimes occur together. Normally, while a male fetus is developing in utero, the cells that form the urethra (the duct that carries urine and semen out of the male body) migrate from within the abdomen toward what will eventually become the penis, Kramer said. "Testosterone drives the migration," Kramer told Live Science. If there is not enough testosterone during development, the urethra's ending point might not migrate all of the way to the tip of the penis. Instead, it might develop partway up the shaft, or at the base of the penis. A man with this condition might have to urinate sitting down, Kramer said. But testosterone also supports general penile development and helps the testicles drop into the scrotal sack. If there is low testosterone during development, a fetus could develop a small penis and have one or two undescended testicles, he said. "It's a complex that goes together due to developmental lack of testosterone at the critical stages of development," Kramer said. These days, surgery and testosterone treatments can help newborns with these conditions, but it's unlikely that doctors had these techniques during Hitler's lifetime (1889-1945), Kramer said. However, it's impossible to confirm that Hitler had either hypospadias or micropenis, Kramer said. The undescended testicle may be more likely: A jingle that Allied soldiers sang during World War II alluded to Hitler's one undescended testicle, and medical reports auctioned in 2010 indicate that the dictator had "only one ball," according to The Telegraph. But Kramer said it wouldn't be surprising to hear that Hitler had low testosterone levels, especially since Hitler didn't have much facial hair (except for his mustache), had a small stature and wasn't known to have many romantic relationships. Moreover, Hitler received injections of bull-testicle extracts to bolster his libido, medical records report. "It's hard to pin him as someone who doesn't have high testosterone," Kramer said. "But I think there's a little bit there. " Follow Laura Geggel on Twitter @LauraGeggel. Follow Live Science @livescience, Facebook & Google+. Original article on Live Science. Local News, Crime, Business & Finance, Community, Charity & Cause, Press Releases By Long Island News & PR Published: February 24 2016 Nassau County DA Madeline Singas announced that more than 50,000 winter coats and 1,000 pairs of jeans will be tested for possible donation to the needy after a Hicksville retailer pleaded guilty today to importing ... Mineola, NY - February 24th, 2016 - Nassau County District Attorney Madeline Singas announced that more than 50,000 winter coats and about 1,000 pairs of jeans will be tested for possible donation to the needy after a Hicksville retailer pleaded guilty today to importing the counterfeit goods. Haryash Paul, 64, was arrested by DA investigators in December 2015 after a joint investigation with U.S. Customs and Border Protection and Homeland Security Investigations New York. He pleaded guilty today before Nassau County District Court Part 9 Judge Judge Martin Massell to Attempted Trademark Counterfeiting in the 1st Degree (a D felony) and Trademark Counterfeiting in the 2nd Degree (an E felony). State law requires not-for-profit recipients of donated counterfeit clothing to inspect or pay for the inspection of clothing to ensure that [it is] in a condition consistent with federal consumer safety standards, but prosecutors in this case are requiring the defendant to pay for the expense of independent testing. Paul will also have to pay for the post-search-warrant storage fees for the tens of thousands of articles of clothing. Paul will receive a three-year conditional discharge if he complies with all the conditions of the plea; he faces six months in jail and five years of probation if he does not. If the coats and jeans are found to be safe for distribution, they will be given to not-for-profit organizations that have experience in collecting and donating such clothing. Its not often that we get the opportunity to help so many people in need as the result of a criminal disposition, DA Singas said. I hope that this clothing will pass safety testing so that thousands of people who need a winter coat or a pair of jeans will be able to get them. Mr. Pauls guilty plea sends a strong message to those who attempt to profit by selling counterfeit products to consumers, that there is a steep price to pay for their greed said Angel M. Melendez, special agent in charge HSI New York. Fortunately we have been able to take one mans greed and turn it around by donating these clothes to the needy if they pass the necessary safety testing. Pursuant to New York State General Business Law, notice will be given to The North Face and True Religion the victims of the counterfeiting of the intention to donate the seized products to help indigent individuals and that the donation[s] will proceed unless [The North Face or True Religion] object to the donation[s], in writing within 30 days. DA Singas said that NCDA Investigators, working with the assistance of United States Customs and Border Protection, United States Homeland Security Investigations and the Allegiance Protection Group, Inc., executed a search warrant at warehouse facilities located at 230 Engineers Drive in Hicksville. DA Investigators seized more than 50,000 counterfeit The North Face jackets and about 1,000 pairs of counterfeit True Religion jeans which were shipped to the New York area from Bangladesh. It is estimated that the coats seized in this case have a street value in excess of $2 million. The seized coats are in multiple styles, adult sizes and colors. The defendant, who operates Manhattan-based Glamour Line Inc. and is associated with a Jericho-based business known as TRB Designs and Resources, Inc., was arrested at the warehouse by DA Investigators. The case is being prosecuted by Chief Diane Peress and Assistant District Attorney Abigail Malone of Acting DA Singas Economic Crimes Bureau. Paul is represented by Jeffrey Einhorn, Esq. Community Campaigns by Region Total Projects/Kilowatts (kW) Capital Region: (3) Solarize Albany, Solarize Saratoga Springs, Solarize Troy 92 projects/708 kW Central NY: (5) Solarize CNY: Cayuga, Cortland, Madison, Onondaga, Oswego 192 projects/2,653 kW Finger Lakes: (3) Solarize the Flower City, Solar Seneca, Solarize Williamson 50 projects/332 kW Long Island: (2) Solarize Brookhaven, Solarize Southampton 86 projects/825 kW Mid-Hudson: (8) Solarize Beacon Plus, Solarize Goshen-Warwick, Solarize Kingston, Solarize Bedford Mt. Kisco, Solarize Cortland Croton, Solarize Mamaroneck Larchmont, Solarize Ossining Briarcliff, Solarize Woodstock - Rosendale 305 projects/2,338 kW North Country: (3) Solarize Akwesasne, Solarize Canton, Solarize Tri-Lakes 78 projects/550 kW Southern Tier: (2) Solar Schuyler, Southern Tier Solar Works 97 projects/941 kW See details by campaign here. The next round of Solarize projects, beginning this spring, will be led by 12 municipalities, 18 not-for-profit organizations and a private entity working in association with a community group. Some of these new campaigns will participate in New Yorks Affordable Solar program, announced by the Governor this past fall, which doubles NY-Sun incentives for households earning less than 80 percent of the area or state median income. In addition, 13 applications are for Shared Renewable campaigns, which help provide solar and other clean energy opportunities for renters and other consumers unable to have solar on their roofs. See a list of communities here that are participating in the second round of Solarize campaigns. From 2012 -2015, New York has seen an increase of 575 percent in the amount of solar power installed and in development, which has also generated a significant increase in the number of solar-related jobs across the State. According to a national report announced in February, New Yorks solar industry is now the fourth largest in the nation and currently employs more than 8,250 workers, an increase of more than 3,000 jobs since 2013. In 2016, double-digit job growth is expected to continue with another 1,000 additional jobs created as a result of the states robust solar project pipeline. About NY-Sun NY-Sun is Governor Andrew M. Cuomos $1 billion initiative to advance the scale-up of solar and move New York State closer to having a sustainable, self-sufficient solar industry. The growth of solar in the State has increased more than 300 percent from 2011 to 2014, twice the rate of U.S. solar growth overall. NY-Sun web site. About Reforming the Energy Vision Reforming the Energy Vision is New York Governor Andrew M. Cuomos strategy to build a clean, resilient and affordable energy system for all New Yorkers. REV is transforming New Yorks energy policy with new state-wide initiatives and regulatory reforms. REV will grow the states clean energy economy, support innovation, ensure grid resilience, mobilize private capital, create new jobs, and increase choice and affordability for energy consumers. REV places clean, locally produced power at the very core of New Yorks energy system. This protects the environment and supports the States goal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 40% while generating 50% of its electricity from renewable energy sources by 2030. Successful initiatives already launched as part of REV include NY-Sun, NY Green Bank, NY Prize, K-Solar, and a commitment to improve energy affordability for low-income communities. To learn more about REV, visit www.ny.gov/REV4NY and follow us @REV4NY. Press Releases By Long Island News & PR Published: February 24 2016 Legislative package will criminalize corruption, increase penalties, empower local district attorneys offices. Long Island, NY - February 24th, 2016 - Assemblyman Todd Kaminsky a former federal prosecutor who helped oversee the U.S. governments anti-corruption unit unveiled his plan today to give local prosecutors new weapons to prevent corruption in New York and punish corrupt public officials who abuse the publics trust. Kaminskys package of targeted legislation, Restoring New Yorkers Trust, includes provisions to criminalize corruption and increase its penalties at the state level, as well as laws to empower District Attorneys to root out and prosecute corrupt public officials like former Sen. Dean Skelos, locally. Kaminsky said today that his plan for cleaning up government came from his experience as a federal prosecutor, when he successfully prosecuted corrupt Democrat and Republican politicians, including former Senate Majority Leader Pedro Espada, and former Assemblymen Jimmy Meng, among others. As a federal corruption prosecutor, I saw first-hand how dirty politicians abused their power by exploiting weak laws that allowed their corruption to go unchecked for long periods of time, said Assemblyman Kaminsky. Our penalties in New York must be much stronger to deter corruption. We must also empower our District Attorneys to find corruption, stop dirty politicians in their tracks, and punish their crimes. We cannot rely on the federal government to clean up New York. There is a real cost to corruption when public officials put themselves before taxpayers whether the dirty politician is a senate leader or a local legislator and we cant afford to allow the corrupt to get away with fleecing New Yorkers for years before stopping them. We must stop corruption wherever it is, whenever it is, as fast as we can to protect our tax dollars and our democracy. We need more cops on the beat with the weapons to fight back. We cannot let another Dean Skelos get away with stealing from taxpayers for as long as he did. Specifically, Kaminsky announced two bills to advance the fight against corruption, and reiterated his call for convicted public officials to lose their state pensions. Kaminsky's first piece of legislation creates criminal charges for abuse of the public trust, which will allow for additional charges to be added against those who commit felonies, and then use their official position to conceal the crimes they have committed. The bill also lowers the threshold for bribery charges, and reforms the bribery statute to enable local prosecutors to more fairly apply the law to public officials by adding intent to influence provisions. Kaminskys second bill empowers District Attorneys by making it a crime for anyone to knowingly give false statements to a district attorney or their lieutenants. Kaminsky also renewed his call for pension forfeiture legislation to be enacted this session. Politicians found guilty of violating the publics trust should not be rewarded for their bad behavior by receiving their public pensions, said VFW Post 1384 Commander Dan MacPhee. I am proud to support Assemblyman Kaminsky in his efforts to eradicate corruption from Albany. Our City administration has a zero tolerance policy when it comes to violating the public trust, said Long Beach City Manager Jack Schnirman. This City Council stands with Assemblyman Kaminsky in the fight to stamp out corruption, stated Long Beach City Council President Len Torres. We wholeheartedly support any legislation that will crack down on those who abuse the public trust," said City Councilman Scott J. Mandel. Any public officer who is convicted on corruption charges should not be eligible to receive a public pension. Nature & Weather, Local News, Community, Charity & Cause, Health & Wellness, Press Releases By Long Island News & PR Published: February 24 2016 DEC Law Enforcement Collects and Destroys 720 Pounds of Unused and Expired Medications. Long Island, NY - February 24th, 2016 - The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) collected 720 pounds of pharmaceutical medications during the second DEC Long Island Pharmaceutical Take Back, Region 1 Director Carrie Meek Gallagher announced today. A total of twenty-seven long-term healthcare facilities throughout Nassau and Suffolk counties participated in the program, which collects and responsibly destroys unused or expired pharmaceuticals. "Health care facilities such as nursing homes and other long-term care facilities normally have little choice but to flush unused medications," said Director Gallagher. "DEC will continue our efforts to reduce medications entering our waterways and we are grateful to all the facilities who chose to enthusiastically participate in this years take-back day." Last year DEC received funding through a State Legislative Appropriation for $150,000 to collect unused and unwanted pharmaceuticals from medical facilities in Nassau and Suffolk counties. The program is designed to reduce the amount of pharmaceuticals that are "flushed" by facilities and can end up in Long Island's groundwater, bays and estuaries. Pharmaceuticals have been detected at low levels in New York State waterways and Long Island's shallow groundwater. Adrienne Esposito, Executive Director of Citizens Campaign for the Environment said, We applaud the DEC for implementing this successful drug take-back program, which prevents pharmaceutical contaminants from entering Long Islands water. Long term care facilities are potentially significant contributors to pharmaceutical contamination in ground and surface waters. Easy, safe disposal options are imperative for these facilities. Last year, DEC launched this program and collected 52 boxes of unused medications on the first take-back day. Now, we need to continue to grow this great program and ensure that all health care facilities are safely disposing of unused medications. Twenty-seven facilities made up primarily of nursing, extended care and rehabilitation centers, agreed to participate in this years collection, up from the 25 that participated the previous year. Each facility stored unused and expired medications until DEC Environmental Conservation Officers (ECOs) visited them at their facility on Monday, February 22. The stored medications were brought to the Covanta Waste-to-Energy Plant in Huntington, which volunteered its services to incinerate the products. Covanta is very proud to provide a program for the safe disposal of drugs allowing us to both assist in the prevention of drug abuse and in the protection of our waters, said John G. Waffenschmidt, Covanta Vice President of Environmental Science and Community Affairs. We are also happy to join with the Department of Environmental Conservation and Citizens Campaign for the Environment in their important work to end the practice of flushing drugs by residents and institutions. Our Energy-from-Waste facilities are equipped with state-of-the-art combustion controls and air pollution control equipment to ensure the secure destruction of these drugs in an environmentally sound manner." Covantas Energy-from-Waste facilities in Westbury, East Northport, West Babylon and Ronkonkoma serve the municipal solid waste management needs of thousands of Long Island households and businesses, converting nearly 5,000 tons of post-recycled municipal solid waste each day into clean energy to power over 100,000 homes. The facilities also recycle 50,000 tons of metal annually. Prescription drug take back efforts began in the last few years. Prior to these initiatives the normal disposal practice was to flush unwanted drugs. With technological advances in analytical techniques, it is now possible to detect very low levels of drugs in surface water and groundwater. Some drugs pass largely unaltered through wastewater treatment plants and enter rivers and other waterways. Drugs from heath care facilities, pharmaceutical manufacturing facilities and farms can also find their way into the water. Flushed medications have been found in New York lakes, rivers and streams which can negatively affect the waterways. A nationwide study done in 1999 and 2000 by the United States Geological Survey (USGS) found low levels of drugs such as antibiotics, hormones, contraceptives and steroids in 80 percent of rivers and streams tested. Medications adversely affect fish and other aquatic wildlife and increase the development of drug-resistant bacteria. Nature & Weather, Local News, Community, Charity & Cause, Press Releases By Long Island News & PR Published: February 24 2016 At a press conference on February 23rd at the William H. Rogers Legislature Building in Hauppauge, Suffolk County Legislators were joined by environmental advocates and residents to urge Governor Andrew Cuomo to reject the Dredge ... Hauppauge, NY - February 23rd, 2016 - At a press conference on February 23rd at the William H. Rogers Legislature Building in Hauppauge, Suffolk County Legislators Sarah Anker (D-Mt. Sinai), Al Krupski (D-Cutchogue), Kara Hahn (D-Setauket) and Robert Trotta (R-Fort Salonga) were joined by environmental advocates and residents to urge Governor Andrew Cuomo to reject the Dredge Material Management Plan (DMMP), proposed by the Army Corps of Engineers. When the public asked for more responsible alternatives for the disposal of dredge materials, the United States Army Corps of Engineers failed to deliver. The new plan, released in January, outlined the continuation of dredge dumping in the Long Island Sound for 30 additional years without addressing possible beneficial reuses. The Army Corps of Engineers has taken over 10 years and spent over $7 million to identify alternatives to dredge spoil dumping into the Long Island Sound, but have failed to find a solution, said Legislator Sarah Anker, a strong advocate for environmental preservation and conservation. The Dredged Material Management Plan proposed by the Army Corps is a weak excuse to avoid seriously addressing water contamination. Hundreds of millions of dollars have been dedicated to protect Long Island Sound. It is absolutely unacceptable to continue to dump potentially toxic dredge spoils into a body of water that generates up to $36 billion in economic value for Long Island every year. Working to identify beneficial reuses for the dredge material is imperative in order to prevent irreparable harm to Long Islands environment, health, and economy. In February of 2005, the governors of Connecticut and New York requested that the Army Corps of Engineers participate in the development of a Dredged Material Management Plan (DMMP) for the Long Island Sound. The original request asked the Army Corps to research alternative practices with the goal of phasing out open-water dredge dumping, but the final plan fails to reach that goal by outlining an additional 30 years of continued dumping in the Sound. While routine dredging is necessary to maintain safe and navigable waterways, sediments from river and harbor dredging can contain toxic materials, such as mercury, lead, PCBs and pesticides that pose a threat to the environmentally sensitive Long Island Sound. To date, an estimated 17 million cubic yards of dredged material has already been dumped into the Sound, and the DMMP calls for the dumping of an additional 30-50 million cubic yards of sediment. Officials and environmental advocates are urging Governor Cuomo to oppose the DMMP plan and to direct the Army Corps of Engineers to phase-out open water disposal. Alternative beneficial reuse approaches such as using non-toxic dredge material for beach nourishment, habitat restoration projects, and landfill capping should be incorporated into the plan. Its unfortunate the Army Corps plan allows for the continued disposal of potentially harmful materials into the Long Island Sound, despite the strong objections across the board from New Yorks elected officials, residents and environmental advocacy groups, said Legislator Al Krupski, who has been calling for the end of open water disposal of dredge spoils in the Long Island Sound for decades and who last year authored a letter, signed by his colleagues in the Suffolk County Legislature, urging the Army Corps to eliminate the option of open water disposal from the DMMP. This is clearly a case of putting the needs of a few above the health of the Sound. I encourage anyone who is concerned about this issue to join me in calling on Governor Cuomo to do whatever he can to stop this ill-conceived plan. The plan to dump up to 53 million cubic yards of sediment into the Long Island Sound is further proof that the federal government is astonishingly out of touch with the needs of Suffolk County, said Suffolk County Legislature Presiding Officer DuWayne Gregory (D-Amityville). Much of the sediment to be dumped in the Sound is dredged material from Connecticuts industrialized shoreline. Our waters should not be treated as a landfill for Connecticuts potentially-toxic waste. I call upon the state to reject this plan and protect Long Islands waters. Over the past 30 years, leaders from both sides of the Long Island Sound have invested heavily in an effort to restore the majesty of this treasure, said Legislator Kara Hahn, Chairwoman of the Environment, Planning and Agriculture Committee. Dumping inland dredge spoils that potentially harbor toxic pesticides, heavy metals and industrial byproducts defies the commitment made by Congress, New York and Connecticut a generation ago. I urge Governor Cuomo to reject the Dredge Material Management Plan to ensure we continue moving forward on a mission of restoring the health and economic vitality to our Long Island Sound. Legislator William R. Spencer, M.D. (D-Centerport) has also voiced his concerns about the DMMP plan: Managing our dredge material should not result in compromising the quality and health of the Long Island Sound. Permitting such a large volume of sediment to be dumped into our greatest resource over the next 30 years is not the direction we should move in. Seeking out beneficial reuse for this material to protect our most cherished waterway is the responsible course, and it is my hope that the original bi-state agreement can be adhered to. Many residents who have lived on the North Shore their entire lives cannot begin to imagine the negative consequences of continued dredge dumping. Mayor Ed Weiss of Shoreham Village, a long-time resident of the North Shore, reflected on the beauty of the Sound and the need to maintain its integrity: I remember as a young boy in the mid-1950s standing in chest-deep waters of Long Island Sound seeing the sand below and blowfish swimming around my feet. I stood on Sills Rock off the shore of Shoreham and I could look down 10 feet and seeing the sand there, too. There were blackfish swimming around the base of the rock, and from the shoreline, I was captivated by schools of porpoises frolicking in and out of the water with calves following their mothers. Wouldnt it be great to bring the Sound back to the way it was then? Adrienne Esposito, Executive Director of Citizens Campaign for the Environment, voiced her opposition to the DMMP and urges Governor Cuomo to find alternatives: "We need New York State to stand up against the federal government's plan of using the Long Island Sound as a dumpster. We have come very far in our efforts to protect the Sound and cannot allow this ill-conceived plan to go forward. The Army Corp is apparently looking for cheap and easy disposal options without any consideration for the economic and environmental value of the Sound. Governor Cuomo has the power to say no and veto the plan and that's exactly what he should do!" Looking to stay up to date about all of the news stories and local headlines that are important to Long Islanders? We've rounded up the top coverage for all of the important topics from multiple sources around Long Island, so you can be sure you've got the most recent update on the top stories for Long Island. Have an idea for a news story? Email us at news@longisland.com Columnists Press Releases Interview with FOX Business Network's Maria Bartiromo February 24, 2016 This month marks your two year anniversary with FOX Business Network. What's that been like? It's been very exciting. I love it here. My two shows are doing very well. We are just off of our best month ever on Mornings with Maria, the morning show on the Fox Business Network. We are the highest rated Sunday morning program on cable on Sunday Morning Futures on the Fox News Channel. And I am so grateful to be able to talk about broader and deeper content than before. I feel more informed about the issues that are important to the American people than ever before. Fox has an amazing bench of military men and women, of politicos, and business people who are at the ready to weigh in on important issues. So I feel like Fox is very unique in terms of its grasp and understanding and access to experts of the issues that are front and center today, particularly during an election year. And, of course, moderating two debates during this election season also has been a true honor and privilege. I'm learning a lot! For FOX Business you travel a lot. What is it like traveling for work? I love to travel and have the opportunity to speak to people across the country and the world. It is always a great value and education. We have a fantastic team who takes the show live in several different venues across the country. The team is very professional and has done a great job. Where have you traveled so far in 2016? San Francisco, Arizona, Davos Switzerland, South Carolina; headed to DC, Boston, Washington and LA soon. Which place is your favorite? New York is still my favorite city. But I love San Fran, South Carolina and Davos. Quite a diverse group of travels! What are some of your favorite hotels you like to stay at when traveling? I love The Peninsula Beverly Hills. I think it's the best hotel in the world, debatable second to the Four Seasons George V in Paris. Very luxurious to say the least. Are there any destinations you recommend? Arizona for hiking; New York for fun. NY, LA and San Fran for luxury. Do you have a favorite airline? They are all getting better. Emirates and ETIHAD are very luxurious, but American is doing very well too. What are some must-haves when traveling? Lots of water, my devices like my iPhone, and workout gear. Shangri-La Muscat, Oman Celebrates 10 Year Anniversary As a result of the resort opening in 2006, after three years of construction, the 640 rooms doubled the total room inventory available in Muscat and was, and remains, the largest resort in terms of both size and facilities available. During the construction, materials were shipped to the site by sea as the road was being built as previously the resort was inaccessible by land! The development was created as a self contained and independent location, including its own desalination plant and backup generators. The construction was so extensive that on occasions there was up to over 3,000 workers onsite each day.When creating Shangri-La Barr Al Jissah Resort & Spa, its architects and designers followed traditional themes to produce an experience based on the very roots of Oman's rich cultural heritage. Ancient castles, palaces, cities, towns and mud brick villages that embody the Sultanate's unique regional identity were the main focus and inspiration for the resort. Today, these themes continue and are evident in the opulent decor and style still portrayed and maintained throughout the resort.Since time immemorial, sea turtles have been making their way onto beaches throughout Oman to lay their eggs, and to ensure that these rare creatures experience minimum disruption during their annual pilgrimage, Shangri-La appointed Mohammed Al Hassini, the first Turtle Ranger in a resort in not only Oman, but within the global Shangri-La family. Since opening, the Turtle Ranger has assisted over 50,000 turtle hatchlings (from just over 1,000 nests) make their way to the ocean. During the design and construction of the resort it was important to preserve this environment for the turtles, so after careful consideration the resort was designed to ensure all lighting at night was directed away from the shores so as not to impact on the nesting turtles.Shangri-La Muscat has always been a key contributor to Oman's tourism sector and a strong support to the country's growing economy of employment in Muscat, providing work for over 5,500 people since opening in 2006, with 145 members of staff from the team in 2006 still working there today. At the time of opening, 1,200 palm trees were planted in the grounds of the resort for every member of staff employed, and these palms still line the backdrop of the resort today.The resort has also been an ambassador in supporting jobs for the local community, employing nearly 2,000 Omani colleagues since opening. They have a dedication and passion for training and developing skills for future careers with a particularly strong partnership with the National Hospitality Institute in Wadi Al Kabir by supporting Omani's with a passion for hospitality in their first steps in their careers.In addition to the direct employment Shangri-La has provided in Muscat, they have also indirectly created employment for independent transportation. Taxi drivers, partner-operated cars and tour guides have all benefited from the opening of the resort and it is estimated that on average the resort receives over 85,350 independent transports per year, which since opening has generated revenue for over 850,000 contributors to tourism in Muscat.Over the years Corporate Social Responsibility has been a growing focus and the team and management have supported over 1,900 CSR projects, ranging from beach cleanup exercises, fundraising and water distribution to redeveloping entire homes and schools for the local community.As a pioneer staff member from 2006 I am personally very proud to be here 10 years after opening the resort. From the moment I arrived I fell in love with Oman and, while having a short time working in Dubai, it was like coming home to return to Muscat once again commented Mark Kirk, Area Manager and Hotel General Manager at Shangri-La.He continued There are many achievements that the resort has accomplished over the past 10 years and we are all very proud and excited to be celebrating this milestone anniversary. We have always maintained our Shangri-La Values of hospitality from the heart, and we can truly say our hearts lie in Muscat.Since 2006 Shangri-La Barr Al Jissah Resort & Spa has welcomed over 2,781,365 guests to the resort, from all over the world, and is looking forward to another 10 years developing the tourism to Oman.To celebrate this momentous occasion, the resort will be offering some outstanding special promotions, such as rooms for only OMR 10 as well as food and beverage and CHI, The Spa deals. The information on the offers will be announced on the resort's Facebook page on Friday 26thFebruary 2016.Visit website: Menswear startup Combatant Gentlemen has a brand-new iOS app that will help you find the perfect outfit for a wedding, a job interview, or a date. The Combat Gent app (free) makes it easy to swipe through all of the brands suits, blazers, and dress shirts, or what the company calls mens corporate essentials, along with some casual wear. The key feature, however, is that the app has built-in algorithms that can recommend outfits based on the weather in your location, your skin color, and your previous shopping habits. For example, the app will not suggest a sweater if youre going on a date in sunny Miami, and it will also know that youve already recently purchased a navy blazer and stop suggesting them. Combatant Gentlemens COO Imran Rahman describes the apps algorithm as a combination of Amazons recommendations engine and Netflixs predictive model. Whatever we recommend is going to look good, Rahman said, based on pure science color theory and based on other people in this matrix that have looked at similar products. You get started by selecting what type of outfit youre looking to buy, say, Interview, Date Night, or Black Tie. Then you input your zip code and day of the event so the app can figure out what the weather is going to be like. Lastly, you select your skin tone, and the app will suggest products with a complementary RGB based on the monochrome color theory. The Combat Gent app also takes into account your personal shopping behavior, as well as the shopping habits of about a million Combatant Gentlemen shoppers on mobile and on the web. Guys ask us all the time, What do I wear with a black suit? What do I wear with this? Its the number one question, so we just put it in the app for you, so you dont have to think about it, Rahman said. Launched in 2012, the Combatant Gentlemen brand bills itself as a millennial mans alternative to Mens Wearhouse more affordable, tech-savvy, and consumer-friendly. Cofounded by Vishaal Melwani, a third-generation tailor, the startup says it can produce quality wool suits at the fraction of the cost because it owns all the raw materials and retains full control of the manufacturing process. We have sheep in Italy that we own, Rahman said, so we get to cut out the middleman. Combatant Gentlemens sheep are on the same farm as Tom Fords sheep, but CG suits dont come with the luxury markup. They range from $140 for a chino suit to $320 for a chalk-stripe suit. Most are about $200 and are made with 100 percent Italian wool. Rahman says that the quality of CGs $160 suit is equivalent to that of an $800 Hugo Boss suit. Even though Combatant Gentlemen is starting to launch retail locations across the country and has done some pop-ups inside Nordstrom, most of its sales are online. Soon, more sales could shift to mobile if this new Combat Gent app takes off. We didnt want to just create a mobile version of the website, Rahman said. We wanted to create a personal shopper that changes as you change. One feature the Combat Gent app does take from the website is the companys proprietary Fit Tech. This algorithm can help find the right suit size without a measuring tape. It estimates your suite size by taking into account your height, weight, pant size, neck size, and whether you prefer a slim fit or modern, a more classic fit. With those four measurements we are able to put together within 95 to 99 percent accuracy what your suit size should be, Rahman said. Ive yet to see someone not fit in a [size suggested by Fit Tech]. Fit Tech is a modern-day take on centuries-old tailoring know-how that could estimate a mans suit size based on his shoe size. CG assumes a mans body is proportional, so there are a few exceptions. For example, you might need slight alternations in order to get the right suit size for someone like Michael Phelps. In order to lure customers to use the app, the company is currently offering free shipping and returns for all in-app purchases. App users are also first to get notifications about special sales and daily deals. In addition, Combat Gent lets you check out using Apple Pay and track your order. An Android version is coming soon, as well as an iPad app with GQ-inspired articles on how to dress well and look the part. Cardboards ecosystem isnt as fully formed on iPhone as it is on its original home OS of Android, but there are still plenty of apps available to try. Want to give it a shot? Heres how to get up and running with Google Cardboard. But there is a lower-end alternative that works across iPhone and Android phones, and it might not cost you much of anything. Google Cardboard is an entry-level take on mobile VR, and it lets you strap your existing phone into a cheap, portable viewer and then pop it on your face. While the experience isnt nearly as immersive or interactive as on those other platformslet alone PC-based headsets like the Oculus Rift and HTC Viveit can still provide cool, 360-degree multimedia experiences. Despite rumors across the years, Apple still hasnt made a virtual reality move of its own. And while Samsungs top phones have the Gear VR headset and some Android phones support Googles Daydream platform, theres nothing of comparable quality for the iPhone. How it works Rather than use a dedicated screen and processor, Cardboard relies on an affordable shell with specialized lenses, using your iPhone to do the heavy lifting. Depending on your viewer of choice, the iPhone will either slide or strap in, and then once you fire up a compatible app or game, the image will be split into two halves on the screen. Stare into the lenses and the two images are combined into a single 3D image, and most Cardboard apps use your phones gyroscope and accelerometer to let you freely look around the virtual world. Cardboard isnt a hugely interactive platform, so games are pretty simplistic, but its a great way to view 360-degree videos and photo spheres, along with other visual experiences. Cardboard first launched in 2014 exclusively for Android, and as user and developer support grew, so too did Googles own focus on the platform. In the summer of 2015, the company released the enhanced 2.0 viewer blueprint and added iOS support, launching the official Cardboard app and letting app makers bring their VR experiences to the App Store. Googles own Cardboard app includes fun demos, and it can point you towards other apps to download too. The core Cardboard app isnt required to use a Cardboard viewerany VR app designed for Cardboard can launch and work independently without Googles main app installed. However, its a nice introduction to the world of mobile VR and has a handful of neat VR diversions to check out, such as a dazzling kaleidoscope and some 360-degree tours of various locales. Hardware options When Google first launched Cardboard, it had a very strong DIY ethos around itbut then a whole community of resellers quickly spawned around the concept, each offering their own commercial take on the viewer. Google didnt make or sell its own retail Cardboard units for some time, but now you can purchase a plain and simple Google Cardboard viewer directly from the Google Store for $15. Yes, its quite literally made from cardboard. Dont like the standard model, or want to shop around? Google has also given an official Works with Google Cardboard stamp to many manufacturers that make viewers of all sorts. Companies like Unofficial Cardboard ($14.95), I Am Cardboard ($8), and Knoxlabs ($7) all sell versions that are mostly similar to Googles own blueprint, aside from small differences in build and componentswith a couple of those at about half the cost. Each comes with the lenses and a conductive touch button, and theyre lightweight and easily customizable. Unofficial Cardboard also has a 2.0 Plus viewer (also now $15) that tweaks the design with adjustable lenses and an optional head strap, and theyve added a cheaper, simpler Elite viewer thats priced at $8. Unofficial Cardboards 2.0 Plus viewer adds little tabs for adjusting the position of each lens, but otherwise its similar to the standard 2.0 cardboard viewer. There are also plastic and foam options, some bigger and stronger than the cardboard viewers and others smaller and more portable. Mattels original View-Master VR ($20) is a neat option: When I wrote about it for our sister site Greenbot, I praised the sturdy build and comfortable fit against your face, although the latch was a little finicky. Holding my heavier iPhone 6s Plus at the time, sadly, the latch was even more prone to popping open. Its still a pretty good option overall, and now theres a refined Deluxe version (also $20) that might be even better. The ViewMaster VR is sturdy and comfortable, although the clamshell latch doesnt always hold tight. Otherwise, theres the Go4D C1-Glass ($15), which snaps onto your phone, and I Am Cardboards foldable Pocket VR ($10) viewer. Merge VRs Goggles ($59) are a much sturdier option with a head strap and an extra input button for compatible apps, meanwhile, albeit at a much larger price. Weve also seen aluminum and EVA foam versions in the past from various manufacturers, although the models we spotlighted previously are no longer sold. Merge VRs Goggles are pricey, but they come with big perks over the cheaper options. Even with all of those options, you can still make your own: Google provides the plans, although youll need to track down all of the pieces. Just note that it will take a fair amount of precise cutting to get the viewer into working shape. Still, it could be a fun weekend project. Lastly, if you dont want to buy a Cardboard viewer but also dont want to make one yourself, keep an eye out for promotional giveawaystheyve been common in the past. The New York Times gave out more than a million free viewers to subscribers in 2015, and Verizon also gave away free Star Wars-themed viewers before The Force Awakens came out. Other companies have done similar mass handouts to promote app and media releases, although theres less buzz around low-end VR as of this writing. Worthwhile apps Cardboard has been available for iPhone for a shorter span than Android (and didnt start on iOS), so its not surprising that there are fewer overall apps available. Still, many of the most interesting options are available on the App Store, and nearly everything is free. Last year, we profiled 11 apps worth a look, many of which are focused on immersive news reports and documentaries, as well as photospheres and other quick diversions. Beyond those, you might also consider Proton Pulse ($3)a delightful arcade-style brick-breaking game where you use your gaze to control the paddleas well as Vanguard V (free), a dazzling one-level space shooter demo from the same developer. The Star Wars app offers a series of free Jakku Spy 360-degree videos to enjoy in VR. The official Star Wars (free) app also has some amusing shorts inspired by The Force Awakens, while Sisters (free) is an unsettling, albeit brief horror experience. Besides all of those, we recommend hitting the App Store and downloading anything that catches your eye. Again, most Cardboard apps are free and offer compact experiences, so you might as well sample the buffet of VR options. And be sure to check out the extremely cool Cardboard Camera. Googles own app lets you easily create immersive 3D photospheres from your own surroundings, complete with audio bits to help recreate the sensation of being there. Its perfect for creating a snapshot of a great party or event, or recording your last day in an apartment or home before moving out. Its free, and one of the rare examples of a Cardboard app that actually lets you create something. More than 10 million Cardboard viewers are out in the world now, which means more and more people are checking it outand more and more interesting apps and games will hopefully come, too. Now you can jump in yourself and give it a look, but be sure to check back here in the future, as we plan to add more iPhone VR coverage to this hub.